She was the 18th century celebrity who made men faint in awe of her beauty by her very presence. But her beauty - and her vanity - led to her demise as the lead-based make-up she insisted on plastering on daily resulted first in the loss of her looks, then deadly blood poisoning. Now the grand 7ft mirror in which Maria Gunning, the former Countess of Coventry, admired her stunning reflection has been auctioned off for more than £300,000. Labelled the first victim of vanity, Maria died aged 27 in 1760 after her love of make-up resulted in her untimely death. The 253-year-old mirror sold well above its estimate even though her condition meant she the society hostess used it for a matter of just months. A glorious George II giltwood overmantel design, it was bought for her by her husband The Sixth Earl of Coventry in 1759, who is said to have been so frustrated by his wife's love of make up that he would chase her around the dinner table with a handkerchief, trying wipe it from her face.
While often referred to as the kings of the jungle, gorillas - for all their might - are notorious hydrophobes .
A KITTEN'S teaparty and rat's playing dominoes are the bizarre creations by one of Britain's great eccentrics pictured in an incredible new book .
PERCHING on the edge of a flower, these loved-up caterpillars can't resist each other as they enjoy a romantic moment together .
AN ITALIAN mechanic has created the world’s most ferocious mini-car .
THIS is the awesome moment an Osprey catches its prey travelling at 50mph, giving new meaning to FAST FOOD .
WELCOME to the drawing room that is home to the £100K world’s greatest collection of Margaret Thatcher autographed objects .
PRANKSTER Dom Joly was so livid when he was slapped with a parking ticket that he took to Twitter to vent his anger – only to discover he was the victim of his own gag! The comic got a taste of his own medicine when he was tricked by a fellow joker for the first time in a decade .
These images of vintage cars, bikes and vans, pictured all over the world, could easily have come from a globetrotting petrol-head’s photo album .
