Never mind JB, I think it's a fascinating and under-valued topic.
Now, on a practical note; if your loo-roll holder has a matching metal flap on top, as many hotel ones do, the only way you can hang the roll is away from the wall. If you do it the other way it will be caught on the edge of the drop-down flap, as it rolls, and will wrinkle and tear. I'm sure I don't have to point out the potentially dire consequences of using a sheet of wrinkled, torn loo-paper, we've all been there haven't we? Oh, well some of us have.
On a scientific note; you know how, sometimes, the perforations in your bog-standard (boom boom) 2-ply loo-roll don't quite match up? It only takes a centimeter out of line and you've got little bits of shredded paper where you gave a tug and only one lot of perforation worked. To cure this problem, hang the offending roll the other way (end facing the wall if it was formerly away from the wall) and, Hey Presto!, your little perforations will match perfectly.
Did you know that it is considered vulgar, in polite society, to use any other colour paper than white? If you want to show how very sophisticated you are where it
really counts you should hang plain white paper and avoid pink, green or, particularly, multi-coloured squares of the Daily Mirror. The latter can leave a lasting impression on your guests.
Ooh, I could go on all night but I'll have to stop. Call of Nature.
