£119 bet on the End of the World at odds over 1,000,000:1
With the World as yet not at an end as a result of the ‘Large Hadron Collider’ scientific experiment, bookmakers William Hill were breathing a sigh of relief ,and celebrating winning £119 from punters who took up their offer of placing bets that the world would cease to exist as a result of the experiment.
‘Uniquely, we offered customers the opportunity to place bets that the world would end, at odds of their own choosing’ said Hill’s spokesman Graham Sharpe. ‘Our standard odds are 1,000,000/1, but anyone wanting longer or shorter odds is at liberty to take them. A number of customers took us up; on our offer and have bet that the world will end as a result of the Large Hadron Collider experiment. It is difficult to be precise, but I am aware of up to £119 in stake money so far placed on this eventuality. Of course, some may say it is a bet we can never lose, for the obvious reason that we won’t be here to pay out should it happen. However, I have always believed there will be bookmakers in the hereafter – with the crucial difference that they will only ever take winning bets from their celestial customers, and therefore be in a kind of bookie Hell for eternity!
‘We have had about a dozen customers placing bets on the end of the world, most of them so that they have a souvenir betting voucher to show off to their friends, but one or two who were genuinely convinced that the worst would happen placed bets to prove their pessimism in advance.The largest bet I am aware of was £20. We haven’t taken bets of this nature since the last major Solar Eclipse’