How quickly do Laurel grow?

I love this thread as it gives substance to my own spite of Laurel.

I have read somewhere that the clippings of Laurel give off cyanide gas (or something like that) and people have been known to get drowsy behind the wheel on the way to the tip with a car load

 

Ive got a 25m laurel hedge thats been 6ft tall a 2ft wide for 25 years now.Gets pruned 1/2 a year. No feeding required and no dramas.
Wildlife wise its almost devoid of it but no problem as the rest of the garden is heaving with alsorts of birds bugs etc etc. Great hedging if u prune it yearly.