You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!

Duderonomy

For some reason this is the best bit of news I've read in a long time:http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/23/italian-job-ending-solvedShould they ever get around to shooting a sequel to The Italian Job, might we recommend John Godwin for a supporting role? The Surrey resident was yesterday declared the winner of a competition, organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry, to solve the riddle that ends the classic 1969 film. Thanks to Godwin's solution, Michael Caine's gang of bank robbers can now live to fight another day.Peter Collinson's picture wraps up with a literal hanging ending, as the getaway coach is balanced precariously on the edge of a cliff. The gang is at one end and the gold is at the other. "Hang on a minute, lads," says Caine's ringleader in the film's final line. "I've got a great idea." Four decades on, fans are still wondering what it was.Now, finally, we have an answer. According to Godwin, the "great idea" would have come in three stages. First, the coach would have to be stabilised by breaking the windows that overlooked the precipice. Then the fuel tank at the rear of the vehicle would have to be emptied by running the engine. And finally, a gang member would be allowed out of the coach in order to stabilise the front end with rocks."There're several sheets of maths here," the IT manager from Godalming admitted. "It was a good long day with a calculator. It's more than 20 years since I saw the film ??? I remember thinking there must be some way of getting that gold off the bus."He added: "I always had an idea of how they might solve this, so when the Royal Society of Chemistry put this out to the public as a competition it seemed like the ideal opportunity to see if it would really work or to see if it was hot air."In the interests of accuracy, it should be noted that Godwin's idea bears a passing resemblance to the solution offered some years ago by the film's star. In a 2003 documentary for the BBC, Michael Caine explained how the gang could have made their escape. "The next thing that happens is you turn the engine on," he said. "You all sit exactly where you are till all the petrol has run out, which changes the equilibrium. We all jump out and the gold goes over the cliff."Caine's idea is flawed in only one respect, in that it saves the gang but dumps the gold. By contrast, Godwin's more complicated, nuanced approach ensures that the bank robbers are able to escape the coach while still keeping the loot ??? an ingenious plan that won him the prize of a three-night stay in Turin. Now that's what we call a happy ending.

nzshadow

Twelve-year-old Thomas Nixon's homonym solution was for the gang to sing until they all got "frogs" in their throats. The frogs start to jump up and down which rocks the bus. They use the "rocks" to weigh down the end of the bus.

Eventually, the gang's throats become sore from the singing. And with the "saw" they cut the gold bullion in half. Because two halves make a whole - the gang could sneak the gold through the "hole".

-------------------

Twelve... I bet he gets beaten at school for being a little wise-ass.