The paper alleges Mr Prescott and "two or three thousand" other public figures were targeted, including London Mayor Boris Johnson and former Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, but evidence about the bugging operation was suppressed by the police and the High Court.

BBC: Prescott calls for hacking probe

In old age he had become tightfisted, although the household hemorrhaged money, and he spent two or three hundred thousand rupees a month without knowing where it went.

NEWYORKER: In Other Rooms, Other Wonders

Three thousand men owned 100 or more, and one Georgia planter boasted 1, 500 human chattels spread over several properties.

WSJ: Book Review: The Fall of the House of Dixie

It's because in the old days, which was three or four years ago, not a thousand years ago, the video stores, namely Blockbuster, bought their videos depending on how many people came on an opening weekend.

NPR: Is Hollywood Wasting Money Selling Movies to Teens?

In its first year, it led to just two hundred thousand loan modifications, out of some three or four million candidates.

NEWYORKER: Replay

"I've been in my job three and a half years and I've had fewer than five letters or contacts from the public about this issue, whereas I've had three to four thousand contacts from members of the media, " he said.

BBC: Open to stay men only