Barometer: Who snorts more cocaine — the rich or the poor? 

The darkest day

Several people were injured on ‘Black Friday’, a day of retail discounting imported from the US, where the fourth Thursday of November is the Thanksgiving holiday and many shops hold one-day sales the following day. There are at least 23 historic events named ‘Black Friday’, from the imprisonment of seven bishops by James II on 8 June 1688 to the hanging of four anarchists in Chicago on 11 November 1887 and the seizure of online poker sites by US authorities on 15 April 2011. What is the blackest day of the week, according to entries on Wikipedia?

Black Monday	15
Black Tuesday	5
Black Wednesday	3
Black Thursday	16
Black Friday	23
Black Saturday	15*
Black Sunday	10

*17 if you include Jewish Black Sabbaths

High life, low life

Nigella Lawson was alleged to have a cocaine habit. How does admitted drug use vary by income?

Admitted use in past year

Household income	% used any cocaine
Less than £10,000	2.1%
£10,000–£20,000	1.5%
£20,000–£30,000	1.7%
£30,000–£40,000	1.5%
£40,000–£50,000	1.9%
Over £50,000	2.3%

Household income	% used Class A drug
Less than £10,000	3.6%
£10,000–£20,000	2.1%
£20,000–£30,000	2.1%
£30,000–£40,000	1.8%
£40,000–£50,000	2.8%
Over £50,000	2.