text
stringlengths 102
11.9k
| query
stringlengths 2
806
| summary
stringlengths 22
3.99k
|
|---|---|---|
by louise cheer and aap the victorian government will be forced to hand over $451 million in compensation to gambling giant tatts for lost poker machine revenue tatts group limited took court action against the government in 2012 seeking at least $490 million after it and tabcorp were stripped of their duopoly of the operation of poker machines outside melbourne's crown casino individual clubs and pubs now operate poker machines in the state but tabcorp's bid for an even heftier payout $686 million was rejected by the victorian supreme court on thursday tatts group limited and tabcorp took court action against the victorian government after they lost their duopoly of operating poker machines outside of melbourne's crown casino (pictured) the abc reported the lawyers for tabcorp said some of the money it had paid for its gambling licence should have been refunded after the john brumby led government introduced the reforms in 2008 tabcorp argued it had a right to compensation as a law introduced by the government after the privatisation of the victorian tab and listed tabcorp on the share market in 1994 guaranteed it a payment when its 18 year licence expired but lawyers for the government said awarding new licences in 2008 and 2009 did not trigger a terminal payment provision in the contract with tabcorp on the other hand, tatts' claim was seeking compensation after the expiration of its gaming operator's licence under an agreement made in 1995 legislation introduced by the victorian government in 2008 meant individual pubs and clubs now run poker machines tatts were the only ones to walk away triumphant and will get $451 million in compensation from the government 'in the context of the clear purpose of the terminal payment provision, the court noted the unfairness of this result, but concluded that the statutory language was too strict to allow the alternative interpretation contended for by tabcorp,' justice hargrave said in a statement, victorian treasurer michael o'brien said the government would appear the supreme court ruling justice hargrave said changes to the gambling regulation act made in 2009 did not override tatts' entitlement to a payout he ordered the government to pay the gambling giant $451 million plus interest premier napthine said today the government would appeal the tatts decision with the state election just five months away, dr napthine said the government would not cut spending or raise taxes to cover the cost of the payout 'we have a budget surplus this year of over $1 billion, so we can absorb this loss and we will not be increasing taxes 'we will not be cutting services as a result of this tatts and rival tabcorp lost their duopoly over the operation of poker machines outside of melbourne's crown casino in august 2012, following a decision in 2009 by the previous labor government, with poker machines in victoria now operated by clubs and pubs 'the labor party ought to apologise to the people of victoria for their mismanagement of this process,' he told fairfax radio on friday | tatts tapcorp victorian supreme court tabcorp denis napthine $540m | tatts and tapcorp took court action on the government in 2012 . it came after they were stripped of duopoly of operating poker machines . victorian supreme court has ruled in favour of tatts but against tabcorp . premier denis napthine said the government will appeal the decision . he says it will likely cost upwards of $540m if the decision stands |
by kieran corcoran 'neo nazi': michael piggin is accused of plotting terrorist attacks a neo nazi sixth former who plotted a columbine style massacre was bullied by asian classmates and had no friends up until he started secondary school, a court heard today michael piggin, 18, drew up a 'hit list' of pupils and teachers and said he wanted to 'eliminate' them he also planned to target his past and present schools in loughborough and the town's university, council offices, mosque and cinema, the old bailey heard he was arrested last february after drawing a knife in the street and threatening other teenagers when police searched his room they found a giant swastika flag above his bed, a copy of mein kampf by adolt hitler, military books and a copy of zero day, a film dramatisng the 1999 columbine school shooting the court heard piggin had also stockpiled knives, guns, homemade bombs and a crossbow on his bedroom floor, and kept a journal of his plans to commit mass murder the english defence league supporter, who was just 16 at the time of the alleged plot, planned to carry out mass murder two months later on the april anniversary of the columbine massacre, jurors heard earlier in the trial the jury was shown a video, allegedly of piggin spraying anti islamic graffiti at a wall in loughborough before hurling a molotov cocktail at it scroll down for video footage: the old bailey was shown a video, which allegedly shows piggin spraying anti muslim graffiti and throwing molotov cocktails burning: a figure is shown standing in front of a burning patch of ground after throwing the explosive today the teenager, who has been diagnosed with asperger syndrome, told how he was bullied throughout school, which forced him to move several times 'people kept starting on me so i went to a different school i didn't have any friends i used to go home from school and just read in my room,' he told jurors asked who bullied him piggin said: 'i was bullied quite a lot by asians i remember one incident in particular with a bengali boy he beat me up' piggin said his home life was 'unsettling' because he and his mum got evicted from their family home after missing rent payments they then went to live with his grandmother but were kicked out following an argument and had to move in with his brother, who is 10 years older than him during that time he said he missed periods of school 'because it was more important to find somewhere to live' when he did return he saw a counsellor, which he said 'helped' him by that time piggin had made two friends and said he felt 'happy i guess' giving evidence in an arctic monkeys t shirt, piggin said they were one of his favourite bands along with the who, led zeppelin and the beatles bedroom: the old bailey heard investigators found nazi symbols and a copy of mein kampf in piggin's bedroom he said he became interested in the military at a young age and had a massive collection of war books and dvds 'i was interested to go into the army when i got older,' he said and he told how he started collecting 'knives, air guns and bb guns' because he thought it was 'cool' 'i felt happy when i went shooting,' he said piggin and two other 18 year old boys, who cannot be named, have already admitted possessing petrol bombs and pipe bombs however, piggin maintains he was not planning a terrorist attack he denies possessing articles for a purpose connected with terrorism, and possession of a document or a record likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism the trial continues sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article | michael piggin 18 loughborough nazi piggin asperger syndrome | michael piggin, 18, is accused of plotting terrorist attacks in loughborough . jury at old bailey has been shown his nazi themed bedroom . have also seen footage of him throwing a molotov cocktail at a wall . court heard that he was bullied in school, and was evicted from his home . also heard that he was 'happy' when he went shooting . but piggin, who has asperger syndrome, insists he did not plan an attack |
by freya noble and aap northern territory politician larisa lee has avoided jail after pleading guilty to assaulting her niece for having an affair with her partner lee, 31, faced the katherine magistrates court on tuesday, having told reporters as she arrived that she felt 'it will all come to an end, finally it will be a good outcome' she pleaded guilty to common assault and disorderly conduct charges scroll down for video palmer united part member for the northern territory larisa lee has been found guilty of common assault after she attacked her niece the court heard that on april 24, the palmer united party mla found out her niece sherese dooley, 18, was having an affair with her partner, benjamin ulamari, after finding photos on his phone she tracked her niece to the katherine centrelink and called her outside to discuss the affair, before assaulting her 'instead of talking through the issues, you responded in a different way,' magistrate elisabeth armitage said 'you got out of the car when you saw her, you went up to her, grabbed her by the hair and dragged her across a concrete driveway 'you didn't stop there, but then proceeded to punch her a number of times to the head with a closed fist you swore at her and threatened her' ms dooley escaped the assault with a cut to her knee and many people witnessed the incident lee's lawyer ron hope said her 'emotions boiled over' and that she had been 'totally humiliated' by the events leading up to the assault, known of by all in the small katherine community the mp faced the katherine magistrate's court on tuesday and was fined $300 and given a good behaviour bond of $1000 but lee was not seeking special treatment due to her role in public life, he said ms armitage said ms dooley was also humiliated by the attack, and had filed a domestic violence order against lee 'jealousy is not an extenuating circumstance,' she said, but noted lee was unlikely to ever commit such an offence again, had no prior criminal history and had contributed significantly to the community lee was convicted of common assault and received a $1000 good behaviour bond, with no jail time to be served she received no conviction for the charge of disorderly conduct, but received a $300 fine along with $300 to be paid as a victims' levy lee will retain her seat of arnhem, which she won in 2012, she told reporters outside court 'as individuals we all go through experiences that we have to overcome, it's either going to make us or break us this situation actually made me,' she said lee will retain her seat of arnhem as a member of clive palmer's party despite the incident 'i'm a person, at the end of the day betrayal is something nobody wants to face; nobody wants to go home and find their niece in bed with their partner 'i'm going to move forward from this and i look forward to my job, i look forward to representing my electorate and doing the best i can' she apologised to the public for her actions, saying domestic violence was never acceptable 'people need to control their emotions better; i shouldn't have done what i've done i'm very sorry to the public and the people of katherine for that matter, and it will never happen again' the controversial politician made headlines in march and april when she and fellow aboriginal backbenchers alison anderson and francis xavier kurrupuwu resigned from the country liberals government amid claims of racism and broken promises to the bush clive palmer announced the three had joined his party just days after ms lee's arrest | larisa lee lee sherese dooley palmer arnhem northern territory dooley 300 1000 | larisa lee pleaded guilty to assaulting her 18 year old niece . lee assaulted sherese dooley after she found her in bed with her partner . the palmer united mp for arnhem, northern territory, confronted and assaulted dooley outside centrelink . she avoided jail time, fined $300 and her bail is set at $1000 |
by sophie jane evans tragic: lucas drummond, 16, from hackney, north london, has plummeted to his death while leading a rock climbing expedition in costa rica the parents of a 16 year old british schoolboy who plummeted to his death while leading a rock climbing expedition in costa rica have paid tribute to their 'adventurous' and 'loving' son lucas drummond, from hackney, north london, is believed to have fallen as he abseiled down a rock face in santa ana, a suburb of the capital san jose he had travelled to central america to complete his sixth form studies as part of an international baccalaureate programme the teenager's parents carol and john, a property developer and former hackney councillor, flew to costa rica after learning of the tragedy last friday in a statement today, they said: 'we are devastated by the loss of our son lucas, who was a devoted and loving brother and son to us and friend to so many 'lucas was always full of life and energy, someone with so many ideas of how to change the world for the better, and that is how we will remember him 'he was given the opportunity to study abroad in a multi cultural international school with an ethos of being able to help others while learning about themselves 'this was like a dream come true for lucas and an opportunity to help develop his lively mind and his spirit for adventure which was a strong part of his being he died doing what he loved' it is not known when the couple will fly home, and the curtains remain drawn at their victorian terrace home near victoria park 'adventurous': the teenager is believed to have fallen as he abseiled down a rock face with a group of students location: he had been out of sight of the rest of the party as he led the descent in santa ana, san jose (above) lucas, a former pupil of stoke newington school, is understood to have been an experienced climber who had taken part in competitions around britain he had been leading four other students from the united world college of costa rica (uwc) under the supervision of a local instructor when he fell, according to reports he is believed to have been out of sight of the rest of the party as he led the descent on the mountain range, before plummeting to his death in the statement, lucas's parents thanked uwc for their support, adding: 'we ask that our privacy be respected as we grieve for lucas' today, tributes were being paid to the teenager, who is said to have been 'talented in many areas' lucas's former headteacher, annie gammon, said: 'everyone at stoke newington school is shocked and saddened by this tragic news 'lucas was a popular member of our school for the five years he was with us many of our students stayed in touch with him once he had left and started sixth form in costa rica 'he was very talented in many areas and we remember his drama performances particularly well 'staff and students have signed a book of condolences at the school, and our thoughts go out to his family at this terrible time' meanwhile, mauricio viales, principal of uwc costa rica, said: 'we are all very saddened by the loss of our student, lucas devastating: today, tributes were being paid to lucas, who is said to have been 'talented in many areas' 'he was an outstanding young man, full of energy and creative ideas, always looking to serve others and dedicated to the ideals of diversity as it applies to the larger world of history, politics, and economics 'our entire community including lucas's fellow classmates, his teachers, and our support and administrative staff deeply feel his passing' dominic o'reilly, director of communications at uwc international, added: 'the staff and students of uwc costa rica united in activities and vigils, including a tree planting, to express their grief and remember a hugely popular and valued member of their community' 'uwc costa rica is cooperating fully with the local authorities’ investigation' mountain range: an area of santa ana, believed to be close to where lucas plummeted to his death last friday neighbours have also paid tribute to the schoolboy, saying the community had been left 'heartbroken' by his death mother of two paula milhazes, 39, said: 'he was a really nice boy his death has come as such a shock to everybody 'no one ever had a bad word to say about lucas he was a really, really nice boy and really brave to go abroad to go to school he was really bright' she said lucas had chosen to complete his sixth form studies in costa rica himself, even though his parents had some concerns about him living so far away 'they weren't happy for him to go,' she said 'they were scared because he was going so far but he wanted to go and do it and they couldn't stand in his way 'they were a very close family his parents must be heartbroken' she added: 'he was always quite adventurous i know that since he was a boy he liked to go climbing everyone is really heartbroken for the family' another neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: 'we are all very upset it is tragic' police are investigating lucas's death, and have examined his ropes and climbing equipment so far a spokesman for the foreign and commonwealth office refused to comment on the circumstances of the teenager's death but he said: 'we are aware of an incident involving a british national and we are providing consular support' | lucas drummond 16 santa ana san jose sixth central america costa rica friday today | lucas drummond, 16, died during climbing trip in santa ana, san jose . plummeted to ground while abseiling down rock face with other students . believed to have been completing sixth form studies in central america . teenager's parents flew to costa rica after learning of tragedy on friday . today, they paid tribute to 'devoted' son, who 'died doing what he loved' |
by emily crane and aap a man has handed himself in almost 12 hours after allegedly running from the scene of a fatal car accident during a police chase northwest of melbourne police were responding to reports that three men and a woman wearing balaclavas were allegedly trying to rob a ticket machine at macedon railway station, about 70km from melbourne, just before 5am on saturday the four people took off in a sedan and police gave chase but a short time later, officers found the car had rolled on a nearby bend scroll down for video a man has handed himself in almost 12 hours after allegedly running from the scene of a fatal car accident during a police chase northwest of melbourne one man was killed after being ejected from the vehicle and police saw two men fleeing into dense bush, nine news reports police arrested a 27 year old sunbury woman at the scene and she is under police guard at royal melbourne hospital 'the fact they left their friends, one dead and one injured, and fled off into the bush probably speaks volumes about their character,' assistant commissioner jack blayney said of the two men who fled police were responding to reports of an alleged robbery at macedon railway station, about 70km from melbourne, just before 5am on saturday the four people took off in a sedan and police gave chase but a short time later, officers found the car had rolled on a nearby bend a sunbury man, 30, was later arrested on a roadside at nearby gisborne about 945am on saturday he had minor injuries and remains in police custody but police were still looking for the second man until saturday evening when a 32 year old from diggers rest showed up at gisborne police station he was being held for questioning investigators believe the car lost control in wet conditions and clipped a tree 'if the police are indicating to people that they should pull over, they should pull over it's not worth risking your life, the life of your friends, the life of innocent members of the public and also the lives of police officers for such trivial matters,' blayney said one man was killed after being ejected from the vehicle and police saw two men fleeing into dense bush police arrested a 27 year old sunbury woman at the scene and a man, 30, was later arrested on a roadside at nearby gisborne police were still looking for the second man when he showed up at gisborne police station | macedon melbourne saturday morning 27 year old 30 later that morning gisborne police station saturday night | police were pursuing a sedan with four people following reports of alleged robbery at macedon railway station, northwest of melbourne . the car was found a short time later on its side early on saturday morning . police found one man dead after being ejected from the vehicle . a 27 year old woman was arrested at scene and a man, 30, was arrested later that morning on a roadside . police were still looking for another man when he handed himself in at gisborne police station on saturday night |
if your home can’t actually be a castle, it’s surely the next best thing to have one in your garden and this beautiful manor house comes with one that dates from the 11th century for £850,000 – the price of a one bedroom flat in central london – the buyer will get the eight bedroom house and the castle, which has sea views from the turrets home: the lavish eight bedroomed georgian home, built in 1808, is at the heart of the property it has welcomed figures as diverse as the queen and former labour leader michael foot garden: the package, available to lease from the duchy of cornwall, also boasts remains of a norman castle, seen left, and spectacular views over the plymouth sound remains: the circular keep, pictured above, has no roof and has been reimagined as a romantic walled garden grand design: the georgian house was designed by benjamin tucker, a naval man and surveyor general of cornwall there is one drawback: it will be yours for only 20 years before the lease expires trematon castle was built shortly after the norman conquest by robert, count of mortain it was sold to richard, earl of cornwall in 1270 and is now owned by prince charles’s duchy of cornwall standing in nine acres of landscaped gardens, the manor house features a dining room, drawing room, library, study, pantry, larder, boot room, kitchen, cellar and four bathrooms also in the grounds is a keep or tower that stands on a hill, a two bedroom lodge and an ‘indian influenced’ outdoor heated swimming pool forever england: the home, which is currently leased by landscape gardeners julian and isabel bannerman, is richly appointed inside as well as boasting impressive history and spectacular views rooms with a view: breathtaking vistas over the plymouth sound, praised by poet laureate john betjemen, can be seen from some of the property's eight bedrooms knockdown deal: estate agents knight frank say the property on the market for an £850,000 leasehold would be worth £3million if put on the market outright stylish: the dining room is decked out with china pieces and sketches of a viaduct designed by isambard kingdom brunel which is visible from the windows picturesque: a glimpse of plymouth, which lies across the water from the castle, can be seen from the window of the substantial kitchen entertaining: there would be plenty of room for guests in the huge house, which featured traditional fireplaces and extensive gardens for summer extensive: the large manor house even features a 'boot room', which is pictured here while the leasehold on the property near saltash, cornwall, is only 20 years, it is expected that it will be renewed richard speedy, of knight frank estate agents, said: ‘the keep is currently not being used for anything and if you were living there it could be turned into whatever you like there is no roof on it so it might make a very nice garden’ trematon castle was built by the count of mortain to strengthen the hold of william the conqueror in england after his triumph against king harold at the battle of hastings in 1066 warlike heritage: the castle, currently owned by the prince of wales's estate, has outlived its defensive purpose the rustic looking wooden cannon which 'guard' the property were installed by the current tenants vista: the castle can be seen, below centre, nestled in the dramatic cornish landscape grounds: in the shadow of the keep is an outdoor pool, built in the 19th century to commemorate an 1812 visit by george iv, then prince regent imperial: the architecture of the pool reflects designs common in areas of india colonised by the british empire inside the keep: currently the circular walls of the open keep contain a romantic, thriving garden in elizabethan times it was used by sir francis drake to house spanish treasure, the fruits of his piracy in the pacific more recent tenants include diplomat hugh foot, lord caradon, brother of the late labour leader michael foot it was also spoken warmly of by poet laureate john betjeman, who called the vista from the property ‘one of the most superb views of cornwall’ bonus: the package for sale also includes this two bedroom lodge, which is currently rented out for around £420 per month floor plan: the above diagram shows the extensive layout of the 17 century manor house the grand estate of trematon castle had a vibrant history extending far beyond its beginnings in the wake of the norman conquest the fortification was built by the count of mortain to strengthen the hold of william the conqueror in england after his triumph at the battle of hastings historical: sir francis drake spent time at trematon before returning in triumph to london with spanish treasure but, since britain has never been invaded since, the fort has never seen battle nonetheless it has played host to a variety of historical figures across the centuries the property’s grade i listed gatehouse was built as a cornish home for edward the black prince, who won dramatic victories in france and founded the chivalrous knights of the garter in elizabethan times it was used by sir francis drake to house spanish treasure, the fruits of his piracy in the pacific ocean he lay low at trematon castle before parading the hoard, including emeralds and gold, up the thames in his ship the golden hind the ornate swimming pool in the lower reaches of the gardens was built by 19th century tenants of the castle to commemorate an 1812 visit by the prince regent, who was later crowned george iv trematon eventually passed into the possession of hugh foot, lord carodan, who was a top british diplomat in cyprus, nigeria and jamaica while they still belonged to the empire his young brother, michael foot, was labour leader for part of margaret thatcher’s time in office, and would often stay at the family seat there are reports of him being soaked in one of the bedrooms when a pipe burst above his head it was also spoken warmly of by poet laureate john betjemen, who called the view: 'one of the most superb views of cornwall, a brunel stone viaduct crossing a foreground creek, the lynher and tamar estuaries beyond, and the wooded slopes of anthony' in more recent royal history, queen elizabeth made a visit to trematon in 1962 | trematon castle saltash cornwall william the conqueror 1066 joint the duchy of cornwall prince charles 20 year | trematon castle, near saltash in cornwall, was built after william the conqueror invaded in 1066 . joint package including the castle, a nine bedroom manor house, a separate lodge and acres of gardens is on sale . the property is owned by the duchy of cornwall, the estate belonging to prince charles . the property is not available to be bought outright, but will have a 20 year lease attached, which can be renewed |
by laura clark students will be asked to analyse the speeches of tony blair and boris johnson as part of their english gcses they are also scrutinising the commentaries of international cricket matches and transcripts of hairy bikers tv cookery programmes it comes after recent exams have asked pupils to analyse the rambling armchair stories of ronnie corbett and eddie izzard’s performances, fuelling the argument of those who claim the exams are being ‘dumbed down’ former prime minister tony blair, left, and london mayor boris johnson, right, are both politicians who could see their speeches analysed in the exams blair's addresses on the death of princess diana and the eve of the iraq war are two of the texts students could find themselves studying transcripts of television programmes, such as cookery show the hairy bikers, will also form part of the exams pupils studying english language with the ocr exam board must write an essay on extracts of spoken language – worth 10 per cent of the marks but critics have questioned why pupils are being encouraged to study the language of tv hosts and entertainers rather than great orators such as winston churchill and abraham lincoln the exams are among those facing the axe in a radical exam overhaul even the commentaries on sporting events, such as international cricket matches, could form part of courses education secretary michael gove has ordered examiners to rethink gcses in english and other core subjects to counter apparent dumbing down as part of the changes, being phased in from next year, so called ‘controlled assessments’ – such as the spoken language assignment – will be scrapped and all marks will rest on performance in final exams but teachers preparing pupils for exams in 2015 have been told that youngsters can study either tony blair, london mayor boris johnson or comic david mitchell critics of the courses say students should study history's great orators, such as britain's prime minister during the second world war, winston churchill, left, and america's president during the country's civil war, abraham lincoln, right, who gave famous speeches such as the gettysburg address they are then given four hours of classroom time to complete a 1,000 word essay on the spoken language of their chosen person education secretary michael gove has launched a crusade against what he sees as the 'dumbing down' of exams schools are allowed free rein as to which of blair’s speeches they select but his ‘people’s princess’ speech on the death of diana is known to be among those chosen, as is his address to the iraqi people on the eve of war guidance to schools says pupils should focus on how the speaker establishes a rapport with the audience, how they create impact with their speech and how they use techniques such as timing and pace the interviews of jeremy paxman, michael parkinson and john humphrys have also made it onto the syllabus, as have transcripts of commentaries of cricket matches and the men’s wimbledon singles final extracts from cookery shows hosted by the hairy bikers, jamie oliver and delia smith have also been considered suitable material one recent year saw the examining board use the queen, martin luther king and comedian rob brydon as speakers to be studied chris mcgovern, chairman of the campaign for real education, said: ‘it is important that children are not denied access to speeches that have stood the test of time the interviews of newsnight presenter jeremy paxman, top, chatshow host michael parkinson, bottom left, and radio 4 today programme presenter john humphreys, bottom right, will also be texts for study ‘abraham lincoln and winston churchill, for example, provide a much richer source of oratory than contemporary radio show hosts and tv comedians in a study of spoken english the only real justification for studying the words of tony blair or ronnie corbett is to expose the limitations of their language in comparison with truly great oratory’ an ocr spokesman said: ‘where speakers are selected for the controlled assessment task, schools are given the flexibility to choose speakers or topics which will engage and interest their students‘speakers are selected because they are public figures whose speeches are widely available and have the breadth to sustain a critical appraisal’ | english ten per cent michael gove 2015 | speeches, sports commentaries and comedy transcripts are just some of the texts students will be studying . it has led to accusations that english exams are being 'dumbed down'. ten per cent of marks come from an analysis of spoken language . michael gove will be phasing out the 'controlled assignments' of which this is a part but it will still affect children studying in 2015 . students must analyses how orators strike up a rapport with the audience and how they use timing and pace to make an impact |
by kieran corcoran model railway enthusiasts have recreated the great train robbery in a small scale depiction of the infamous crime volunteers from luton model railway club spent over a year carefully building the replica train, robbers and money bags from the heist their diorama shows the night in august 1963 when a gang of robbers stole £26million from a mail train in buckinghamshire small train, big money: enthusiasts from luton have painstakingly recreated the night in 1963 when thieves made off with £26million getaway: the overnight train was brought to a standstill by the gang as it travelled through buckinghamshire detail: the model train fans made the diorama after being inspired by coverage of the robbery;s 50th anniversary during the incident driver of the train jack mills, was hit over the head with an iron bar suffering serious head injuries he recovered but still suffered from severe headaches, and although he returned to work, he retired in 1967 he died in 1970 aged 64 from an illness unrelated to the robbery but his family maintains the trauma never left him the scale model includes mini bags of cash being unloaded from a carriage and the robbers making off with their haul the club said they were inspired by last year’s 50th anniversary of the robbery nigel adams, 54, project manager at an electronics company, said: 'we do not condone the actions of the event, but it is a fact that the great train robbery has become a part of the national consciousness for many people over a certain age 'national consciousness': a spokesman for the group said they wanted to mark the event because of its historical importance heist: seven of the robbers, including ronnie biggs, were given lengthy jail sentences after they were caught 'we have tried to portray this event in a sensitive way, taking due regard for the injuries sustained by the locomotive crew on the night' the diorama is an o gauge 7mm finescale and measures in at three metres wide, with light and sound helping to portray what happened that night the exhibition is currently insured at a value of £8,000 including operating stock and requires two people and two cars to transport it to exhibitions aftermath: these images show the looted train after the robbery had taken place embankment: this is the grassy bank where the robber would have made off with their stolen cash victim: train driver jack mills was hit over the head with an iron bar during the great train robbery and suffered severe headaches in the years after before he died in 1970 mr adams added: 'there are 15 figures on the display, although we have taken care to present them as just that figures on a model 'we do not identify any personalities due to the sensitive nature of the subject' the great train robbery saw ronnie biggs make off with the stolen money but he escaped from prison and eventually fled to brazil he returned to the uk in 2001 another seven men involved received huge jail sentences the reconstruction, which includes a commentary, will be on display at the national festival of railway modelling in peterborough in october bags of loot: above the is bbc's 2013 recreation of the moment the train was looted rolling in it: the bbc's recreation of the event (pictured) drew public attention to the anniversary | luton the great train robbery 26million ronnie biggs | enthusiasts from luton spent more than a year constructing the scene . it commemorates the great train robbery, where robbers took £26million . criminals including ronnie biggs made off with the money . but seven of the men involved were later given huge prison sentences |
by martin robinson the co operative bank could go bust within months if it does not raise £400million, it was revealed yesterday the dire warning was contained in the bank's financial results, which showed a £13billion loss last year directors warned that failure to find the cash to plug a hole in its accounts could affect its ability to continue as a 'going concern' losses: the co op bank could go bust within months if it does not raise £400million, it was revealed yesterday auditor kpmg said there was 'significant doubt' over the bank's future if it does not raise the funds if it did collapse, investors' money would be protected under the financial services compensation scheme it emerged yesterday that former directors and senior executives would miss out on £5million in bonuses because current management blame them for steering the bank to the brink of collapse pay rise: co op bank boss niall booker was paid £17million this year and will get £29million next year if results improve as its catastrophic results for last year were published the bank also issued an apology for its past failings and warned a return to any profit is unlikely before 2016 last year it failed to buy 632 lloyds tsb branches when a £15billion hole was discovered in its finances but despite the huge losses, the bank admitted its current chief executive niall booker will receive a £29million salary for 2014, of which £17million is dependent on performance at the end of three years he would get a £12million bonus if the bank was profitable it also emerged in the annual report that mr booker was paid £17 million last year, including £943,000 as a fixed allowance 'that takes account of the broad range of specialist skills required of the role' the allowance is equivalent to £140,000 per month and is payable quarterly up until june 2015, the co op said he said on thursday that there are still 'significant issues' that need to be resolved and he expects there will be further losses in 2014 and 2015 experts said that for such a relatively small bank the losses were 'truly shocking' the £5 million of withheld payments to former directors and senior executives relate to performance targets which have not been met as well as from some of the legacy issues at the bank neville richardson, the former britannia boss, who took the helm of the co op bank after its ill fated 2009 takeover of the building society, is among those likely to miss out on a bonus quit: lord myners' resignation on thursday came just four months into his job, plunging the group into further crisis changes: the world's first co operative store was opened in rochdale lancashire in 1844 (pictured), but the now huge group has been led to the verge of collapse the bank has repeatedly delayed the publication of its annual report twice until today due to the chaos both at the lender and at the co op group its crisis deepened further on thursday with the sudden resignation of the former minister charged with dragging the troubled organisation into the 21st century lord myners, who was brought in to modernise the group, quit just four months into the job after facing opposition to his reforms reverend paul flowers, the co op bank's former chairman, was exposed by the mail on sunday as buying crystal meth and crack coacaine it came just a month after the chief executive quit branding the business 'ungovernable' and leaves the co op struggling to repair its reputation after its banking boss reverend paul flowers was exposed by the mail on sunday for buying crystal meth and crack cocaine lord myners will continue his review of the group but will no longer serve as an independent non executive director, a role for which he is being paid a nominal sum of £1 the review was launched after the rev flowers scandal and the discovery of a £13billion black hole in the co op bank’s accounts questions have been asked about why rev flowers was ever put in charge of the co op group's banking arm but attempts to repair the group's finances and reputation have repeatedly faltered last month euan sutherland, the co op group chief executive, resigned claiming senior co op officials 'talk the talk of reform, but in practice they won't do it' and the group was 'ungovernable' rev flowers’ drugs shame was revealed in an expose by the mail on sunday when the methodist minister was covertly filmed counting off £20 notes to buy crystal meth and crack cocaine he had resigned as chairman of the co op bank six months prior to the scandal, over criticism of alleged lavish expenses there have been repeated questions about how he was ever put in charge despite having almost no knowledge of the banking sector if you're fed up with your bank and thinking of switching to another provider, there are plenty of incentives to movethis is money's five of the best current accounts is a regularly updated guide to where the best offers are top deals include halifax's reward account promising new customers £100 to switch and £5 per month if they stay in credit first direct pays £100 to new customers who switch to its first account on top of that, the bank is so confident in its customer service that it will give you a further £100 if you chose to close the account within the first 12 months even if you are already a santander customer, you could think about swapping to its 123 current account, which pays interest on in credit balances 1 per cent on balances between £1,000 and £2,000, 2 per cent between £2,000 and £3,000 and 3 per cent on balances between £3,000 and £20,000 nationwide bs flexdirect offers to pay 5 per cent interest on balances up to £2,500 for the first year, while its flexaccount delivers free travel insurance by amy andrew | bank niall booker 46million 5million myners euan sutherland co op | bank could go bust if it does not raise funds, it was revealed yesterday . boss niall booker set to be paid £46million over 18 months to save it . firm has decided to withhold £5million in bonuses from senior executives . it has also apologised for past failings and warned of no profit before 2016 . on thursday, ex minister lord myners quit after his reforms were blocked . a month ago euan sutherland resigned from 'ungovernable' co op group |
by jennifer smith published: 05:15 est, 19 august 2013 | updated: 06:21 est, 19 august 2013 the father of a young british backpacker who died after drinking poisonous gin has flown around the world in a bid to catch the people who sold her the lethal substance brenton emmons, 47, has travelled more than 8,000 miles to indonesia after his daughter, cheznye, tragically died there in april mr emmons, from great wakering, essex, is determined to bring those responsible for her death to justice cheznye emmons, 23, was travelling across indonesia with her boyfriend, joe cook (right) when she died after drinking methanol which had been labelled as gin brenton emmons (right) and boo beckett travelled to indonesia earlier this summer in a bid to catch shopkeepers who are still selling methanol laced alcohol which killed mr emmons's daughter, cheznye a statement on mr emmons's facebook page on july 12 read: 'going back to shop that the gin was bought from to take more photos, can't say to much at the moment, but my feelings are all over the place at this point in time' 'i've had hardly no sleep for a couple of nights now i can't stop thinking my little girl and just how far the shop is too the hospital it must of been f****ng horrific' 'this is breaking my heart but i'm just hoping we can get some justice, just for peace of mind if not anything else we are still waiting on police reports on raids done first day we got here' the raids mr emmons refers to took place after he alerted authorities to a local shop in bukit lawang where he bought counterfeit whisky brenton emmons has made the emotional journey back to indonesia where daughter cheznye died of alcohol poisoning in april he also purchased two bottles of gin during his trip which were brought back to the uk for analysis tests revealed a staggeringly high amount of methanol in the drink two 25ml shots could be enough to blind someone, and four could potentially kill brenton emmons has returned to the popular tourist spot in south sumatra with friend, boo beckett, in a bid to shut down shops selling illegal alcohol mr emmons returned to the popular tourist spot in southern sumatra with his friend, boo beckett, in july after launching a campaign in the uk against methanol poisoning chez save a life campaign aims to raise awareness about methanol poisoning abroad and in the uk so that others won't have to endure the same heartbreak the emmons family the campaign encourages travellers to 'stick to beer' when drinking abroad a statement from the campaign's facebook page says its 'mission' is to spread 'very simple' information 'into the nhs system, onto the streets and into our heads' it continues: 'nobody deserves to be hurt or killed for something that could so simply be stopped cheznye was stolen from us whilst travelling in indonesia on her dream trip she drunk (sic) gin from a sealed bottle that had been laced with methanol' 'our family wish to stop anyone else suffering a tragic loss like ours' beautician, cheznye had been travelling across indonesia with her boyfriend, joe cook when the couple arrived in bukit lawang after visiting an orangutan sanctuary the pair fell ill after drinking from a bottle labelled mansion house gin at a full moon party chez save a life campaign aims to warn young people about the dangers of methanol poisoning at home and abroad cheznye was taken to hospital after suffering loss of sight and seizures she was kept there for five days until her parents, brenton and pamela emmons, were told there was no more doctors could do for her cheznye woke up the following day unable to see and was taken on a five hour journey through the jungle to hospital, where she was treated for blindness, kidney failure and seizures mr cook, 21,survived the methanol poisoning but was forced to make the call to cheznye's parents after she showed no signs of recovery she spent five days in hospital before doctors told mr emmons and cheznye's mother, pamela who had flown to the area, there was nothing else they could do they were left no choice but to turn off the medical machine that was keeping their daughter alive dream trip: cheznye and boyfriend, joe cook, had been travelling across indonesia on what mr emmons described as her 'dream trip' before drinking the lethal alcohol beautician cheznye and her boyfriend, joe cook, both drank from the bottle which they had purchased in a local store mr cook survived the alcohol poisoning in april mr emmons is determined to spread the word about the dangers of alcohol poisoning he told the sun newspaper: 'i just want to get the message out to other parents and travellers they need to know how devastating and dangerous this is 'i don't want another dad to feel the way i do' high taxes on recognised brands of wine, beer and spirits in indonesia have prompted shop owners to mix the drinks with a locally brewed substance called arak some, like in cheznye's tragic case, are replacing drinks with methanol which is colourless to try and keep costs down methanol, which is also called methyl alcohol, is used in numerous industrial applications, including the production of formaldehyde, acetic acid and as a fuel component | unscalable upsilon haimsucken | no related information |
by suzannah hills published: 10:41 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 03:03 est, 19 august 2013 a nine year old boy is severely injured in hospital after being crushed between a car, a shopping trolley and a wall in a supermarket car park emergency services were called to an aldi store in donnington, telford, yesterday morning after the child was struck by a car in the supermarket car park he suffered serious injuries to both legs and was treated at the scene in telford by paramedics from west midlands ambulance service at the scene: west midlands ambulance service paramedics pictured attending to a nine year old boy who was crushed between a car, shopping trolley and supermarket car park wall yesterday morning an air ambulance then landed on a nearby football field, halting a match, so the boy could be airlifted to university hospital north staffordshire major trauma unit west midlands ambulance service today said the boy was taken to hospital in a neck collar and spinal board they added the woman driving the car was 'extremely distressed' by the incident which happened on saturday morning a spokesman said: 'crews arrived to find a nine year old boy believed to have been crushed between a car, a shopping trolley and a wall on the car park rushed to hospital: the boy was treated at the scene yesterday morning before being flown to hospital by an air ambulance helicopter which landed in a nearby football field 'the boy received emergency treatment at the scene for serious injuries to both legs he received pain relief and both legs were placed in splints he was also immobilised using a neck collar and spinal board 'the boy was airlifted to university hospital north staffordshire major trauma unit for further emergency treatment the hospital had been pre alerted to the child’s injuries and his imminent arrival 'the driver of the car, a woman believed to be in her 50’s, was uninjured but extremely distressed she was cared for by ambulance crews but did not require further treatment 'the air ambulance landed at a nearby park we would like to thank the players of a football match for their understanding in disturbing their game to allow the child to be airlifted to hospital' patient: the nine year old boy was airlifted to the major trauma unit at the university hospital of north staffordshire, pictured, where he was still being treated today | aldi yesterday telford | schoolboy suffered serious injuries to both his legs in an aldi car park . air ambulance landed on a nearby football field yesterday, halting a match . boy was airlifted from the car park in telford to a nearby major trauma unit |
by olivia williams published: 14:57 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 03:46 est, 19 august 2013 die hard volkswagen aficionados spent this weekend gathered at harewood house in yorkshire to show off their much loved vws great and small the annual vw festival in praise of all things vw is now in its 9th year, gaining in popularity as owners arrive to show off their models and spectators marvel at the vintage cars on display around 15,000 people attended over the weekend, ending with the grand finale of the winners car parade on sunday scroll down for video sooty shuttleworth sits in his 1957 vw splitscreen, a former school bus from australia at the in praise of all things vw festival the festival at harewood house near leeds attracted 15,000 guests david kooman proudly showing off his carefully restored 1966 vw beetle sean starbuck's 1967 vw splitscreen vw on display in the grounds of the grand country house some die hard fans even turned up sporting vw tattoos or with dogs in specially made outfits there was a great range in the condition of the sought after cars as some older models looked rusty and unroadworthy, despite their enduring popularity volkswagen means 'people's car' in german and is currently the third largest carmaker in the world the company was founded in 1937 in germany to provide an affordable new car for the masses one of the older models on display today, from 1957 a canine fan wearing a vw scarf to show his appreciation dedicated lee horton from pontefract with his vw tattoo one of the earliest models, the volkswagen beetle, in its original incarnation was first manufactured in 1938, and more than 21 million were sold before vw ended production of the cult design in 2003 another classic design is the camper van, which allowed thousands of festivals the comfortable option of staying overnight in their vehicles rather than the discomfort of a tent elaborately restored, the camper van can make for a bedroom on wheels or even a very authentic looking american diner, as one of the owners showed jo thompson from leeds sleeping with her dogs bojangles and basil in her vw camper van charlie and seth rennie from halifax playing in a 1969 silvia vw camper a boy plays in his vw camper, which has been carefully made into a mobile american diner | camper vans beetles vws this weekend harewood house leeds | from camper vans to beetles, vws were out in force this weekend . 15,000 enthusiasts turned out to see them at harewood house near leeds |
by jennifer smith published: 06:14 est, 19 august 2013 | updated: 06:36 est, 19 august 2013 a thrifty gardener is still using the same tools his grandfather first used 130 years ago neville hume inherited the utensils in 1979 from his late father alfred who had been given them by his own father, and has been using them ever since the former hairdresser from sutton coldfield, warks, claims they are more reliable than tools in shops today mr hume has been using his grandfather's tools since 1979 and claims they are more reliable than those in shops today despite being over 130 years old, the victorian weeding hoe and digging fork are in surprisingly good condition the handles of both tools are made from elm wood, with their steel ends remaining in almost pristine condition the four prongs on the fork have been worn down slightly and are now only four inches long, about half their original length but mr hume insists he wouldn't be caught in his garden without them he said: 'my grandfather was a professional gardener for a wealthy landowner and his boss bought the tools for him 'i guess they built things to last in those days 'my father was given them and he worked as a chauffeur and gardener and so used them professionally as well 'when he retired he even took them to his retirement home and used them right up until he died in 1979 'i have had them since then and use them all the time in my garden and allotment they are perfect for tidying up a flower border 'i always keep them clean and wipe them off after i use them 'i've had lots of other forks over the years but the tines of those end up bending out of shape and they don't last' mr hume who lives with his wife, amanda, does not have any sons of his own to pass the tools on to 'if and when it gets to the point where i can't manage the garden anymore i will probably donate them to a museum,' he said | neville hume 73 first 130 year old today hume | neville hume, 73, was given tools which first belonged to his grandfather who was a victorian gardener . claims the 130 year old utensils are more reliable than ones found in shops today . mr hume plans to donate tools to a museum when he can no longer use them |
by becky barrow, business correspondent published: 20:06 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 10:04 est, 19 august 2013 the sharp increase in house prices comes amid growing concern that government schemes to boost the housing market may be fuelling another house price bubble the average asking price of a home in england and wales has jumped by around £20,000 since the beginning of the year, a report reveals today a typical home advertised for sale in an estate agent’s window now has a price tag of £250,000, equal to nearly ten times the average full time salary in this country the sharp increase comes amid growing concern that government schemes to boost the housing market may be fuelling another house price bubble at the beginning of january the report, from the property website rightmove, reveals the average asking price was £228,989 today it is £249,199, a jump of £20,210 in london, the affordability crisis facing anybody wanting to get onto the housing ladder, or move to a larger home, is even more acute the average asking price in london hit £501,067 this month [aug], compared to £454,875 in the same month last year, according to rightmove miles shipside, director of rightmove, called on ministers to ensure ‘an unsustainable boom in property prices’ is not created by their recent interventions he said: ‘it is now critical that the supply of property improves so that the goal of a significant increase in transaction numbers is not over shadowed by an unsustainable boom in property prices’ since april, a scheme called help to buy helps people with a small deposit of five per cent to buy a new build property for up to £600,000 they are given a five year interest free loan for up 20 per cent of the property price from january, another scheme, which confusingly is also called help to buy, will allow people with the same small deposit to buy a home, with the government providing a guarantee to the mortgage lender of up to 15 per cent of the loan this scheme will apply to old properties as well as new properties miles shipside, director of rightmove, has called on ministers to ensure 'an unsustainable boom in property prices' is not created by their recent interventions the institute of directors slammed the new help to buy scheme as ‘very dangerous’, while the consultancy capital economics said it is ‘ropey economics’ but added it may be ‘more successful politically’ rightmove said it is ‘already seeing early signs of demand outstripping supply’, a problem which britain’s housing market has faced for many years to the fury of housing campaigners the housing charity shelter says 250,000 new homes are needed every year, but only 106,820 were completed between may 2012 and june 2013, according to the government’s figures kay boycott, a director of shelter, said: ‘unless we see radical action from the government to tackle our chronic shortage of homes, house prices and rents will quickly rise even further out of reach for millions of people across the country struggling to find a stable home of their own’ overall, the rightmove figures show the average asking price has risen by 55 per cent over the last year, although it fell by 18 per cent in august the asking price of the average flat has reached an all time record of £209,652, compared to £188,445 for a terraced property, £204,392 for a semi detached home and £364,254 for a detached house | january government rightmove | growing concern government schemes to boost the housing market may be fuelling another house price bubble . from january another scheme will allow people with small deposit to buy a home, with the government providing a guarantee . rightmove said it is ‘already seeing early signs of demand outstripping supply’ |
by laura cox published: 19:08 est, 8 february 2013 | updated: 19:10 est, 8 february 2013 mary berry effect: the wi's membership peaked at 211,000 in 2011/2012 the highest since the 1970s, with the mary berry's popularity thought to have had an influence forget calendar girls the wi has another phenomenon to thank for its latest resurgence – the mary berry effect the woman who inspired a new generation to master the mysterious arts of fondant fancies and filo pastry has also, it appears, helped revive the women’s institute last year 22,600 women joined the wi, with overall membership for 2011/2012 peaking at 211,000 – the highest since the 1970s some new members are as young as 20 this huge rise has been credited in part to miss berry, 77, and the popularity of the great british bake off as a result, 144 new institutes have been created across england and wales in the past year ruth bond, chairman of the national federation of women’s institutes, said: ‘home baking has been enjoying a great resurgence over the past few years and many new wi members have told us that brushing up on their baking skills was one of the reasons why they decided to join the organisation ‘i’m sure that programmes like the great british bake off have inspired more women to take up baking because the experts make it look quite easy and fun and take away the fear factor 'of course it’s practice that makes things work like a dream and we offer the chance to get better and better ‘it’s a pity we don’t have cooking in schools in a more determined way i grew up knowing how to cook but a lot of people haven’t and there are lots of basics in baking and cookery that you really need to know to make things work inspiration: this membership surge rise has been credited in part to miss berry, 77, and the popularity of the great british bake off ‘and the great thing about baking is that you can quite quickly have a decent end result that is enjoyable for the taste buds but also gives you a sense of achievement at having made something that looks good and that people say they enjoy’ post war austerity prompted a steady rise in the number of women joining institutes around the country in 1973 there were 442,158 but that slumped in the 80s and 90s as women took a stand against being labelled as housewives putting many institutes on the brink of closure the great british bake off has earned its makers between £5million and £10million, according to analysts, and they are not the only ones reaping the benefits cake making groups are rapidly becoming the new book clubs, with members meeting regularly to swap recipe ideas and sample each other’s offerings the clandestine cake club, which has branches across the uk as well as abroad in countries including spain, switzerland and australia, seen membership figures increase from 1,000 last year to 6,000 this year success: ruth bond, chairman of the national federation of women¿s institutes, said: 'i'm sure that programmes like the great british bake off have inspired more women to take up baking' there are now 150 clubs, compared with 19 this time last year sales of baking equipment have also increased john lewis has reported a 126 per cent rise in sales of silicone bakeware and cooling racks are up 70 per cent, year on year lakeland sold 15 million pieces of bake and ovenware in 2012 and reported a 30 per cent rise overall in the sales of cookery products nicola hattersley, cookshop buyer for john lewis said: ‘we have definitely seen an increased interest from our customers for baking accessories ‘i am sure that programs like the great british bake off have reignited a passion for home baking and have inspired lots of people to try their hand at making freshly baked cakes and pastries’ | yanked pulpier farandine | no related information |
by alex ward published: 04:30 est, 17 june 2013 | updated: 07:22 est, 17 june 2013 a man blackmailed a terrified muslim teenager into handing over more than £15,000 worth of her mother’s jewellery to stop him exposing a sex tape of her on facebook aamir khan, 20, told the 16 year old girl that he had covertly filmed her during an intimate encounter with him in his car he then made demands for money and gold, threatening to post the footage on facebook and send a copy to her parents 'cynical betrayal': aamir khan blackmailed a muslim teenager, 16, into handing over more than £15,000 worth of family jewellery to stop him exposing her in a sex tape on facebook, leicester crown court (pictured) heard the victim was so frightened of her parents finding out that she took jewellery, including irreplaceable family heirlooms, and handed them to khan through her bedroom window on several occasions the muslim girl was so ashamed that she considered running away from home and killing herself, leicester crown court heard khan, of spinney hills, leicester, admitted blackmail and was sentenced to three years and seven months youth detention judge michael pert qc described khan’s actions as ‘wicked’ and a ‘cynical betrayal’ he said: ‘the blackmail happened in 2009 when you were 18 and she was 16 it's of some significance you both come from a background where the shame of teenage sex would have more impact than perhaps it might in other circles ‘you made a number of demands over several weeks, cynically and brutally ‘she would have been mortified of photographs going on facebook and her parents getting to know there has to be a deterrent sentence ‘people must realise what an appalling crime this is and how members of society view it with disgust’ he said khan only admitted his wrongdoing after a long delay, on the day of the trial judge pert said: ‘you hoped to get away with it and didn't plead guilty until the last minute, causing the victim more anguish about whether she'd have to say what had happened in court and then be called a liar’ a pre sentence report on khan described him as ‘controlling and manipulative’ jonathan eley, prosecuting, said after the sexual encounter with the victim the defendant dropped her off in his car khan casually remarked: ‘it's a good thing blackberrys [phones] have cameras’ a few minutes later he phoned the girl, saying he had filmed what had happened, the court heard mr eley said: ‘he told her to get money or he'd post a copy of the film through her letterbox and put it on facebook so her family would see what kind of daughter they had’ ‘the family had high value, high carat jewellery and she took rings, bangles and chains 'wicked' threats: khan made demands for money and gold, threatening to post the tape on facebook and mail a copy to her parents after telling the victim he had covertly filmed an intimate encounter with her ‘the next night the defendant collected it from her window he later falsely claimed half of it was fake and demanded more gold and made more threats about the video ‘a day or so later he took more bangles, chains and necklaces with family names on them’ he told her he needed the money to recompense someone for damage he caused to a car, and later demanded more gold because he needed to spend money on his own vehicle mr eley said: ‘she told him it was all gone he then sent her a message saying he'd given the video to a colleague who knew where she lived and demanded £500’ there was a burglary a few weeks later at the house, by persons unknown the victim's sister suspected something was wrong and found incriminating phone messages from khan to her sister, demanding gold the girl confessed to her family, who have had rallied round to support her, said mr eley no video footage was ever recovered and it is believed no sexual encounter was ever recorded none of the jewellery, worth £15,000, has been found in a victim personal statement, the girl said she thought about running away and ending her life because of the ‘whole nightmare for me and my family’ judge pert made a restraining order banning khan from any contact with the victim or her family anthony rimmer, mitigating, said: ‘it was an unsophisticated blackmail he's shown genuine remorse and realises the shame and abhorrence it's caused to the girl's family ‘he wishes he could turn the clock back’ | aamir khan 20 16 khan three years seven months | aamir khan, 20, told the girl, 16, he had covertly filmed them during an intimate encounter in his car . the victim was so ashamed she considered running away from home and killing herself . khan admitted blackmail and was sentenced to three years, seven months youth detention |
by daily mail reporter published: 16:01 est, 9 december 2013 | updated: 17:42 est, 9 december 2013 the families of many of those who died in a shooting rampage last year at an elementary school in newtown, connecticut, gathered on monday to encourage people to perform an act of kindness on the anniversary of the slayings the families also announced the launch of a new website, mysandyhookfamilyorg, to honor the 26 victims in the december 14, 2012, shootings the website is intended to create a 'singular place of sharing, communication, and contact with the families of those who lost their lives that day' in a tearful procession, representatives from 14 sandy hook elementary school families stood up to say they would light a candle to mark the anniversary scroll down for video never forget: families of the 26 victims of the sandy hook elementary school shooting today announced the launch of a website, mysandyhookfamilyorg, as the first anniversary of the dec 14 tragedy approaches we'll get through this: erica lafferty, daughter of sandy hook elementary school shooting victim, dawn hochsprung, right, consoles carlee soto, sister of victim victoria soto after families representing fourteen families addressed the media representatives of the group said they hoped those moved by the tragedy would perform an act of kindness in their own communities to honor the 20 children and six adults killed nearly a year ago the website brings up a biography and details on charities related to the victim when the user clicks on the victim's name 'in the midst of our grief we have come to realize that we want our loved ones to be remembered for the lives they lived and how they touched our hearts,' krista rekos, mother of slain first grader jessica rekos said at a gathering of 14 families monday 'we have been uplifted by the support of so many people and we would like to keep that spirit of unity alive in all we do to remember those we so dearly miss' victims: the six teachers and 20 students who were killed at sandy hook elementary school last december by adam lanza 'this website is intended to serve as a singular place of sharing, communication, and contact with the families of those who lost their lives that day mysandyhookfamilyorg allows us, the 26 families, the opportunity to honor our loved ones in a way that feels right to each individual family 'we ask that you understand that each of us – each family – is unique in our own experiences following this tragedy and we each have our own voice and perspective by creating this website, we hope to offer an opportunity to communicate with our families and honor our loved ones, while at the same time respecting each family’s individual journey and unique experiences' the families each said they would light a candle on the one year anniversary saturday in honor of their loved ones there is also a link to the my sandy hook family fund, run by sandy hook resident rob accomondo accomondo started the fund the day after the massacre and has raised more than $16 million, all of which has gone directly to the families many of the families are still bitter at the distribution of money from the largest fund the newtown sandy hook community foundation inc the families received $77 million out of what was then an $113 million fund leave us alone: family members representing fourteen of the twenty six victims from the sandy hook elementary school shooting address the media newtown is not hosting formal events to mark the anniversary saturday in memoriam: krista rekos (l) and joann bacon read a statement about the formation of the website mysandyhookfamilyorg created for those killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy at a private home in sandy hook hole in their hearts: krista and richard rekos, parents of jessica rekos, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, arrive to give a statement regarding the formation of the website mysandyhookfamilyorg not all of the money was given to the victims families the foundation has also no clear plan on what to do with the rest of the money the newtown sandy hook community foundation now has more than $12 million with about $750,000 raised since the families distribution was made in one of the worst mass shootings in us history, a 20 year old newtown resident, adam lanza, went on the rampage at the elementary school, shooting the pupils and school staff dead before turning a gun on himself the shootings shocked the nation and led president barack obama to propose a series of new gun control measures, including an expansion of federal background check laws those efforts were blocked in the us senate after some lawmakers argued the changes would be onerous to law abiding gun owners in a report released last month, state investigators said the gunman acted alone, using guns legally purchased by his mother, whom he shot dead before driving to the school his motive and reason for targeting sandy hook, a school he once attended, remain a mystery, the report said missing her: lynn mcdonnell, mother of grace mcdonnell, 7, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, announces she will light a candle for her daughter a year flew by: jimmy greene and nelba marquez greene, parents of ana marquez greene, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, announce that they will light a candle for their daughter remembering those they lost: from the left, carlee soto, sister of sandy hook elementary school shooting victim victoria soto, erica lafferty and george hochsprung, daughter and husband of victim dawn hochsprung, robbie and alyssa parker, parents of emilie parker, and neil heslin and scarlett lewis, parents of jesse lewis, stand with other family members as they address media, in newtown, connecticut light of their lives: david wheeler and francine wheeler, parents of benjamin wheeler, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, announce that they will light a candle for their son so upset: carlee soto (l), sister of sandy hook teacher victoria soto, weeps as she stands next to george hochsprung (r) and erica laffferty, daughter of sandy hook principal dawn hochsprung earlier on monday, newtown officials, including first selectman pat llodra, held a news conference with television reporters to ask for privacy and a restrained media presence as the anniversary nears 'we can't choose to not have this horrible thing happen to us it happened we cannot make it un happen,' llodra said 'but we can choose how we react to it 'please respect our need to be alone and to be quiet and to have that personal time to continue on our journey of grief in the way that serves us,' she said we don't need to be reminded we don't need to relive it we live it every day we carry it with us,' said e patricia llodra, newtown's first selectman, at a news conference monday 'we are fully aware of our tragedy so we are trying to say to the world, 'please give us the chance so that we can get to that really, healthy, happy place that loves children and families and has great schools, and we know who we are' 'we know that that is our destiny but you need to help us get there by please staying away' local government officials are urging the media to stay away saturday, the first anniversary of the dec 14 shootings that killed 20 children and six educators at sandy hook elementary school broken voices: carlee soto (l), sister of sandy hook teacher victoria soto, and erica laffferty, daughter of sandy hook principal dawn hochsprung, announce that they will light a candle for them remember: jennifer hensel, mother of avielle richman, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, announces she will light a candle for her daughter on the one year anniversary of the disaster in sandy hook, connecticut tribute: robert and alissa parker, parents of emilie parker, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy, announce they will light a candle for their daughter forever in our hearts: erica laffferty, daughter of sandy hook principal dawn hochsprung who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school shooting, stands with dawn's husband george hochsprung 'one of the challenges for us, is that when media is present, some of the people that are most vulnerable, who need the most support, won't come,' said matt crebbin, senior minister for the newtown congregational church & coordinator of the newtown interfaith clergy association 'we don't want our people to feel and become isolated' just the presence of news vehicles in the town causes additional stress for a big population in the town, said cody foss co director, newtown youth academy 'seeing media presence as a reminder of last year is a pretty tough trigger for a lot of people' mr foss said 'there is a sense in this town that we kind of need that day back and from where we are now, we are trying to protect our kids and families and get some sense of normally back but we just can't do that with all these other triggers and other things that are out of our control' miss you boy: neil heslin and scarlett lewis, parents of jesse lewis, 6, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school shooting, announce they will light a candle for their son those who can, teach: terri rousseau and gilles rousseau, parents of lauren rousseau, 30, who was killed in the sandy hook elementary school shooting, announce they will light a candle for their daughter website launch: relatives of the victims killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy give a statement regarding the formation of the website mysandyhookfamilyorg just before the one year anniversary of the disaster in sandy hook, ct lasting memory: joann bacon reads a statement about the formation of the website mysandyhookfamilyorg created for those killed in the sandy hook elementary school tragedy at a private home in sandy hook many of those directly affected by the shooting, including parents of the children killed that day, have said they plan to be out of town this week groups that have used newtown as a rallying call in advocating for changes in public policy have also vowed to stay out of newtown on the anniversary, holding events in washington and other cities instead newtown's police chief, michael kehoe, said the town would have extra police officers on duty and that the department's goal would be to encourage an atmosphere of normalcy llodra said she hoped to fulfill media organizations' request for access while requesting they stay away this week 'we're trying to respect the world's interest in us, and we certainly have benefited from that interest in many ways,' she said but, she added, 'we pay a price when the media is here' | interlineating macaw cansos | no related information |
by louise cheer and aap peter zervas, pictured in 2009, had half of his nose bitten off in an attack at his leichhardt home on tuesday the man accused of biting off the nose of a former hells angel bikie was refused bail because he might return to 'finish the job' and is at risk of a revenge attack nicholas harafias, 28, appeared in burwood local court on friday charged with affray and causing grievous bodily harm with intent it is alleged the hurlstone park man savagely assaulted peter zervas outside his leichhardt unit building in sydney's inner west on tuesday the attack took place after mr zervas answered an intercom call the 37 year old then had to pick the tip of his nose off the ground, drive to the hospital and have it surgically reattached harafias was arrested by police near his hurlstone park home on thursday his application for bail was refused, with the prosecution arguing the 28 year old would return to mr zervas's home or work place to 'finish the assault' but in court documents, police also said harafias himself would be at risk if he was released because mr zervas may still have strong connections with the hells angels 'the prosecution have serious fears of a reprisal attack on the accused due to the recent and possibly current active senior involvement of the victim with the outlaw motorcycle gang hells angels,' the papers said prosecutors did not reveal why the violent confrontation had occurred, but the court heard harafias told police 'he [zervas] deserved it' scroll down for video mr zervas (pictured, centre, arriving at court in 2010) is the brother of hells angels bikie anthony zervas who was killed at sydney airport in 2009 harafis donned a black t shirt and sat expressionless in the prisoner's dock, while his lawyers said if he was released on bail he would live with his mother in hurlstone park, obey curfew conditions and would not approach mr zervas it comes just days after the man accused of killing mr zervas' brother, mahmoud hawi (pictured) was granted bail there is no suggestion the two incidents are connected but magistrate margaret quinn sided with the prosecution, agreeing the measures would not be enough to reduce the risk harafias posed to both the community and mr zervas 'they would not be sufficient, in my view, to mitigate those risks,' she said ms quinn noted even though mr zervas had not co operated with police, the evidence against harafias was strong the court heard the self employed gym instructor had been captured on cctv arriving at the leichhardt residence and leaving covered in blood a search of harafias's home found bloodied clothing and mobile phone data that allegedly incriminated him the attack on mr zervas came just days after his brother's alleged killer, mahmoud 'mick' hawi, was granted bail there is no suggestion the two incidents are connected mr zervas' brother, anthony zervas, was bashed to death when the hells angels and comancheros clashed at sydney's domestic airport in 2009 days after the killing, peter zervas was shot six times outside his mother's home in sydney's west but survived harafias will return to court on monday sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article | slating fortilage retail | no related information |
by julian robinson police are hunting an 'elderly' hit and run driver who struck an 18 month old toddler after she let herself out of her garden little safa ally opened her front gate and ran into the road while she was playing at her family home in daubhill, bolton, greater manchester her grandfather saw a red vauxhall astra hit the toddler and, fearing she was dead, rushed over to the tiny child who was lying in the road safa ally, pictured next to the garden gate she opened moments before she was struck down by an 'elderly' hit and run driver in daubhill, bolton, greater manchester police descended on the scene outside safa ally's home in bolton, greater manchester, on sunday after the 18 month old toddler was struck down by an elderly hit and run driver after a night in the royal manchester children’s hospital, safa is now back at home with just cuts and bruises and the family say they forgive the car driver despite their ordeal her aunt sabiha ally said the family feared the worst after the accident which happened at about 1230pm on sunday she said: 'when he picked her up off the road, she was unconscious and he was distraught safa ally was found by her grandfather lying unconscious in the road after a hit and run driver ploughed into her fearing she was dead, he carried her inside and called an ambulance the scene outside 18 month old safa ally's home in daubhill, bolton moments earlier, an elderly driver had ploughed into the toddler after she strayed in to the road having opened her garden gate 'he kept saying ‘she’s gone, she’s gone’ but, after a few minutes, she was crying and started moving her arms and legs, so we knew she was okay then we called an ambulance' the driver, thought to be an elderly man, has still not been traced, but a police spokesman said they had found the car safa’s father, javid ally, said he had been 'heartbroken' to hear what had happened but that the family was now starting to get back to normal playing happily on her pink toy car, safa ally was lucky to escape her hit and run ordeal with just minor injuries she had let herself out through the garden gate on sunday before being ploughed into by an 'elderly' driver outside the home in daubhill, bolton he added: 'it takes a while for us all to recover from the shock of something like this, but we are okay now and, most importantly, safa is okay her injuries are mainly just cuts and scratches 'i wasn’t at home at the time, but when my sister phoned me to tell me what had happened i didn’t believe it i was distraught and heartbroken 'of course, i am very relieved and i think we just want to forget what happened now and move on and make sure that safa is okay' st helen's road outside safa ally's family home in daubhill, bolton where the 18 month old was struck by a hit and run driver police soon descended on the scene and have launched a hunt for an 'elderly' driver | semanticist erythematic concluders | no related information |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor a rise in lamb prices has led to s spate of sheep rustling across the country the rising cost of lamb has triggered a rural crime wave, with farmers £6million a year to sheep rustlers in recent weeks there has been a spate of thefts of sheep and lambs across the country, including in northumberland, county durham and yorkshire now senior conservative mp anne mcintosh has accused the government of failing to take rural crime seriously, and questioned if the tories could still claim to be the ‘party of the countryside’ the issue of rural crime is to be debated in the commons tomorrow the value of sheep has risen sharply since the start of the year, from around £50 per ewe in january to £75 in mid march nearly one farm a week is being raided in the valley of swaledale in north yorkshire, with £120,000 worth of livestock disappearing in 25 separate raids over just ten months mrs mcintosh told mailonline: ‘i am not sure any prosecutions have been brought the financial value to the farmer is huge if they are stolen at this time of year before lambing, they have lost the mother sheep – the ewe – and the lambs ‘they will take whatever is in the field why is this crime, an economic crime, being treated any less seriously than a crime taking place in an urban area? it does seem to be quite widespread’ mrs mcintosh, who chairs the environment, food and rural affairs select committee, tabled a series of parliamentary questions on the scale of the problem but drew a blank she added: ‘i do believe it is something defra should taking seriously i always thought the conservative part as the party of the countryside… i do believe we have got to take rural crime seriously ‘it is very disappointing that a rural crime of quite large proportions financially is going unprosecuted’ insurers nfu mutual warn sheep rustling is costing farmers £6million every year sheep rustling is a crime and is covered under the theft act 1968 the home office and the department for environment, food and rural affairs insist they have not had any formal representations about sheep rustling but tim price, rural affairs spokesman at insurers nfu mutual, said: ‘during the decade to 2010, livestock rustling had been at historically low levels, while rural thieves concentrated on easy pickings stealing quad bikes, tractors and expensive power tools from farms tory mp anne mcintosh accused the government of failing to take rural crime seriously ‘now however, high meat prices and improved security on farm vehicles appear to be leading to a resurgence in livestock rustling in the last few years we have seen a worrying increase in thefts in all livestock rearing parts of the uk ‘rustling is one of the world's oldest crimes since the first cavemen kept goats, rustling has been a feature of farming however, the worrying trend today is that instead of small numbers of animals being taken in one attack, we are increasingly seeing very large numbers of sheep being stolen’ nfu mutual's claims figures show that the cost of rustling has risen dramatically since 2010, up 170 per cent in 2011 and 36 per cent in 2012 people who live in the countryside are now being urged to ‘keep an eye on sheep in fields near their homes, and report and suspicious activity to local farmers or the police’ farmers and butchers buying stock are also being told to check livestock records and ear tags carefully to make sure they are not buying stolen animals last year rustling is estimated to have cost uk farmers over £6m, with the south west, north west and north east hardest hit home office minister norman baker said: ‘it is for police and crime commissioners to ensure that forces use those resources to tackle the crimes that matter most to the communities they serve, including sheep rustling where that is a local priority ‘the government will provide £85 billion to the police in england and wales in 2014 15, demonstrating our continued commitment to protecting the public from crime in addition, the police receive around a quarter of their total funding from the police precept component of council tax’ | 50 ewe 75 6million anne mcintosh the house of commons | lamb prices have soared from £50 per ewe in january to £75 in mid march . insurers warn sheep rustling is costing farmers £6million a year . people living in the countryside urged to keep watch over local fields . mp anne mcintosh says ministers are ignoring 'economic crime'. rural crime to be debated in the house of commons tomorrow |
by emma glanfield a solicitor has told of the terrifying moment she was savagely bitten three times in the face by a vicious dog as she tried to stop it mauling her eight month old puppy michelle parker, 43, feared her pomeranian toby was going to be killed when it was grabbed around the throat by the out of control dog believed to be a staffordshire bull terrier – in a public park the mother of one watched in horror as the dog threw toby around ‘like a ragdoll’ in townhill park in southampton, hampshire michelle parker, 43, pictured after the attack, suffered a cut lip, bites to her right ear and a bruised cheek after a staffordshire bull terrier mauled her and her eight month old puppy toby she was attacked by the dog when she leant down to try and pull the dogs apart and suffered a cut lip, bites to her right ear and bruising on her cheek she said her beloved puppy would’ve been mauled to death had she not stepped in to stop the savage attack she said: ‘i was walking along with toby who was on a leash ‘i heard some shouting and i heard the owner shout at his dog, which was running towards my dog at a million miles an hour ‘toby started to run off and he was quite scared ‘i could not get hold of him and the dog was biting him and throwing him around like a ragdoll ‘as i leaned down to pick him up, that was when the dog went for me and bit me in the face ‘at the time my only concern was for toby, if i had not stepped in he would have mauled him to death ‘i was not concerned about me the dog could have bitten my ear off for all i care, i just wanted to save toby’ the ordeal only ended when the owner grabbed the raging dog which was not on a lead the young man later fled the scene when witnesses asked him to give his details mother of one ms parker feared her eight month old pomeranian toby was going to be killed when it was grabbed around the throat by the out of control dog believed to be a staffordshire bull terrier in a public park ms parker, from west end, southampton, was left with blood pouring from her face (left) following the horrific attack and was taken to hospital by ambulance to be treated for her injuries which are still visible (right) ms parker, from west end, southampton, was left with blood pouring from her face following the horrific attack and was taken to hospital by ambulance her pet puppy toby was treated at a nearby veterinary centre for injuries to his back and was given injections and painkillers witnesses said the dog’s owner was was with a group of several people at the time including a young girl there was also another staffordshire bull terrier type dog running around the field without a lead when the incident occurred at around 720pm on wednesday ms parker was attacked when she tried to stop the out of control dog mauling her eight month old pomeranian puppy, called toby (left) the owner of the raging dog fled the scene following the incident on wednesday night the attack occurred at around 720pm on wednesday in cutbush lane recreation ground in townhill park, southampton, hampshire (above) after the attack ms parker, who has a 16 year old daughter called chloe, said the owner apologised for the incident and said his dog had never done anything like that previously but he refused to put the dog on a lead and later ran off when it was suggested he should pass over his details hampshire constabulary said they are trying to trace the dog’s owner and urged any witnesses for the attack to contact police | michelle parker 43 eight month old toby | michelle parker, 43, was savagely attacked by the vicious dog in public park . she was trying to stop the bull terrier mauling her eight month old puppy . dog threw her puppy toby around 'like a ragdoll' and could've killed him . the mother of one suffered bites to her ear, cut lips and bruising on her face . young male owner of out of control dog fled the scene after horrific incident |
by mark duell royal marine: sergeant alexander blackman was found guilty of murdering an injured afghan fighter a royal marine jailed for life for executing a severely wounded taliban captive ‘lost his head’ amid fears he would be ‘skinned alive’ if caught by insurgents, a court heard sergeant alexander blackman, 39, blasted the afghan prisoner in the chest at close range with his 9mm pistol in a ‘moment of madness’ on the battlefield blackman – known as marine a at his trial – is serving a minimum of ten years in prison after becoming the first uk serviceman to be found guilty of murder in a warzone since the second world war yesterday he launched a legal bid for freedom by having his conviction quashed or sentence reduced the experienced commando and his men lived in daily fear of being blown up by ieds or, worse, captured and mutilated by inhumane enemy fighters, senior judges were told anthony berry qc, representing blackman, told the court martial appeal court the marine had succumbed to ‘extreme stress’ after a gruelling tour of helmand he said: ‘there was a cocktail of circumstances which led this brave and modest man, to whom loyal duty and allegiance to the corps was second to nothing, briefly to lose his head ‘the task and stress of leadership is considerable when you hear and see your comrades being killed … and how they fear being caught by taliban insurgents and knowing what they would do, namely skinning them alive, cutting off their testicles and displaying body parts in trees as a warning to other forces’ mr berry said the conviction was ‘inherently unsafe’ because a seven man military board was permitted to find him guilty on a simple majority he said the odds were stacked unfairly against the marine at the court martial which meant the conviction failed to ‘satisfy the criminal standard of proof’, and argued the sentence was ‘manifestly excessive’ shooting: footage captured by a camera mounted on the helmet of a royal marine showing sgt blackman during a patrol in afghanistan in which an insurgent was killed in attendance: claire blackman, the marine's wife, at the court martial appeal court in london today the judge at his court martial had not taken into account his patrol ‘remained in hostile territory and knew of further insurgents in the immediate vicinity’ as well as being jailed, blackman was dismissed with disgrace from the marines after he had served with distinction for 15 years, including tours of iraq, afghanistan and northern ireland urging the three judges to reduce the ten year term, mr berry said: ‘his career is over his reputation and standing is lost and the loss of the comradeship is perhaps the most significant punishment for him to bear ‘he is a normal citizen, tainted only by the impact of war’ blackman, from taunton, somerset, killed the injured insurgent following a fierce firefight on september 15, 2011 the captive had been hurt by cannon fire from an apache helicopter after an attack on a british base in helmand recordings from a helmet mounted camera worn by a comrade captured the moments when blackman shot the prisoner and told him: ‘shuffle off this mortal coil, you ****’ he then told his comrades: ‘obviously this doesn’t go anywhere, fellas i just broke the geneva convention’ in november, he was convicted of murder sentencing blackman, who served with plymouth based 42 commando, judge advocate general jeff blackett said he had ‘tarnished the reputation’ of the armed forces sent down: a court drawing of sergeant alexander blackman, standing in front of the judge, as he passes sentence and jails him for ten years last november hearing: he was jailed for life after being convicted last year at a court martial in bulford, wiltshire (pictured) but the severity of the sentence sparked a massive wave of support with more than 100,000 people, including mps and senior military figures, calling for leniency blackman’s wife claire, 42, was at the hearing but said she would not comment until after the court gives its decision lord chief justice lord thomas, sir brian leveson and lady justice hallett are expected to rule after easter on whether or not the conviction can stand the footage was captured by a camera mounted on the helmet of a royal marine in the aftermath of a helicopter attack in helmand he shot the unknown insurgent in the chest but said he believed the man was already dead and he was taking out his anger on a corpse as the fighter lies on the floor convulsing and struggling for breath, sgt blackman tells him: 'there you are shuffle off this mortal coil you c*** it’s nothing you wouldn’t do to us' he then turned to his comrades and said: 'obviously this doesn’t go anywhere fellas i just broke the geneva convention' blackman is the first british serviceman to be found guilty of murder during combat since the second world war blackman completed tours of iraq, afghanistan and northern ireland during his military career, and before a video of the murder came to light, he was being considered for promotion to colour sergeant | alexander blackman court martial appeal court 39 year old last november bulford wiltshire marines 15 years 2011 plymouth 42 commando | sergeant alexander blackman's case heard at court martial appeal court . 39 year old convicted last november at court martial in bulford, wiltshire . was also dismissed from marines, which he had served with for 15 years . killing was in 2011 while he served with plymouth based 42 commando |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor after the week he has had, it is no surprise that david cameron was looking for divine inspiration hours after the prime minister was forced to defend maria miller’s resignation over her expenses, he told religious leaders at an easter reception in downing street: ‘the bible tells us to bear one another’s burdens’ the stressed out premier was also seen leaning against a pillar with his eyes shut as a soprano sang the – rather appropriate – hymn ‘ave maria’ david cameron held a reception for easter in downing street hours after the resignation of his culture secretary maria miller the prime minister asked church leaders if there were any volunteers to help bear his burdens after spending a week defending mrs miller, mr cameron yesterday admitted he had learned the hard way that public anger over mps' expenses is still 'raw' in the commons he struggled to explain why he clung on to his culture secretary after she was ordered to repay £5,800 in over claimed expenses and apologise to the commons labour leader ed miliband accused the pm of a 'terrible error of judgement' by refusing to sack mrs miller earlier, adding: 'he just doesn't get it' but by evening mr cameron was rather more philosophical, ignoring the advice of former labour spin doctor alastair campbell that downing street does not 'do god' hosting the easter reception in number 10, he told church leaders how he finds ‘moments of greatest peace’ at thursday morning services and even claimed jesus was responsible for his ‘big society’ policy soprano laura wilde sang ave maria for guests, before mr cameron addressed the audience maria miller quit as culture secretary six days after being told to repay £5,800 the prime minister said: ‘the bible tells us to bear one another’s burdens 'after the day i’ve had, i’m definitely looking for volunteers’ mrs miller was told on tuesday night by an ‘emissary’ that senior tories believed she should offer to resign for the good of the party she then had a late night phone call with the prime minister as he was returning from the state banquet for the irish president at windsor castle in which it was agreed she would quit mrs miller was ordered to repay £5,800 in overclaimed mortgage expenses and found to have broken the mps’ code of conduct in her belligerent attitude towards the independent parliamentary standards commissioner the offence was compounded when the culture secretary delivered a curt 32 second apology in the commons allies of mrs miller claimed she had been the victim of a ‘witch hunt’, in part fuelled by opposition to her policy to legalise gay marriage mr cameron made no reference to the issue in his speech, according to a bloomberg report instead he focussed on his own faith, and went further than he has before in describing the comfort he takes from the church he described jesus christ as ‘our saviour’ and said his ‘moments of greatest peace’ come ‘perhaps every other thursday morning’ when he slips into the sung eucharist at st mary abbots, the church in kensington, west london soprano laura wilde sang ave maria, hours after mrs miller was forced to quit over her expenses mr cameron was seen leaning against a pillar with his eyes shut as miss wilde sang the church is linked to the school his children attend he added: ‘i find a little bit of peace and hopefully a bit of guidance’ mr cameron also spoke of the support he received from the church when his son ivan died in 2009 mark abrey, the vicar of at his local church, was the ‘person who looked after me’, mr cameron said ‘i can’t think of anyone who was more loving or thoughtful or kind,’ he added the big society, to encourage more volunteering and social enterprise, was one of the flagship ideas of mr cameron’s tory leadership mr cameron also spoke of how he finds his 'moments of peace' during thursday morning visits to church mr cameron said christians are now the most persecuted religion around the world but the onset of the recession, and confusion about what it really meant, has sen it quietly dropped in recent years but last night mr cameron boasted: ‘jesus invented the big society 2,000 years ago; i just want to see more of it ‘if there are things that are stopping you from doing more, think of me as a giant dyno rod’ to clear any blockages he went on: ‘it is the case that christians are now the most persecuted religion around the world ‘we should stand up against persecution of christians and other faith groups wherever and whenever we can’ | hours maria miller six days 5,800 cameron | prime minister hosted easter reception hours after resignation broke . maria miller resigned six days after being told to repay £5,800 in expenses . cameron explains how church visits give him 'moments of greatest peace'. he was seen leaning against a pillar with eyes shut during hymn |
by harriet arkell a schoolboy who was teased when he failed to light a fire on a scout trip decided to build one in his garden and sparked a £10,000 blaze which left him in hospital edward hawkins, 14, hoped to prove himself to his friends by stacking up wood in the garden of his family home in wainscott, kent, and dousing it with petrol as his mother took his brother to school armed with a camera phone to capture the moment, he put a match to the pile but watched in horror as flames leapt onto spread to his father, eddie’s, shed aftermath: edward hawkins was treated at the specialist burns unit at the queen victoria hospital in east grinstead after burning himself in a fire he set this picture, taken through a neighbour's window, shows the scale of the fire the schoolboy started it contained two explosive gas canisters, and as edward frantically tried to empty it, a petrol can exploded, soaking him as he stamped down the flames the fire spread up from his feet, engulfing his clothes and body before blistering his hands and face the schoolboy tried to put out the flames by rolling on the ground as neighbours raced to throw wet blankets over him and called emergency services edward was taken to hospital suffering superficial burns to his face, and is now waiting to hear if he will need a skin graft for a bad burn to his thumb the fire wrecked the home made shed where site manager mr hawkins, 48, kept his expensive tools and garden equipment, causing £10,000 damage scout edward hawkins, 14, built a large fire in his parents' garden in wainscott, kent, but ended up in hospital with severe burns edward said: 'i just remember thinking, i need to put out the fire and i need to get the tools and gas out of the shed 'apparently i was shouting, but i couldn’t feel anything, i was just panicking and didn’t realise how badly i was burnt' neighbour len cracknell, 74, said he heard edward shouting 'help me, help, i’m on fire' and called the fire brigade the schoolboy's mother, carol, 49, a party planner, said: 'i abandoned my car and sprinted up the road, screaming for edward 'the first i saw him he was on a stretcher ready to be wheeled all the way down the road to the ambulance because it couldn’t get to the house 'i was so frightened, i felt like i was going to collapse all i could hear was edward saying ‘mummy, help me, please help me’' she added: 'this all came about because those scouts teased him when he couldn’t get his fire going 'he just wanted to show them he could light one, bless him unfortunately i think he went a bit too far 'the firefighters said to us the two gas canisters still in the shed were seconds off exploding from the heat and if they had, edward might not be here today 'to be honest, edward wasn’t thinking about himself, he was more worried about how angry his dad would be that the outhouse he built from scratch, and all his tools, had been destroyed up in smoke: the wooden shed, hand built by edward's father, contained tools worth £10,000 edward was badly burnt as he tried to save the contents of the shed, and may need a skin graft on his thumb edward's mother, carol, 49, said she sprinted to the house to see her son being carried out on a stretcher 'but at the end of the day they’re replaceable, my son isn’t and i’m just so happy and relieved that he is alive' firefighters were delayed in tackling the blaze because double parking in the hawkins' cul de sac prevented them from getting their vehicles near enough, forcing them to lay out hoses first edward was taken to medway maritime hospital, before being transferred to the specialist burns unit at the queen victoria hospital in east grinstead doctors say the burns on his face are likely to heal, but he may need a skin graft on a bad burn to his thumb edward is a member of the 27th all saints frindsbury scout troop assistant scout leader derek king refused to comment today scouts work towards a variety of badges, two of which involve learning about fire safety the camper activity badge is awarded to scouts who can demonstrate their ability in a variety of camping skills, one of which is constructing an 'altar fire', ie one on top of a trestle table shaped construction scouts aiming for the fire safety skill badge must learn about 'the dangers of fires at camp and what precautions should be taken', as well as how to act if fire breaks out they must also know how to deal with a person whose clothes are on fire badges: scouts can work towards both the camper activity badge, left, and the fire safety skill badge, right | edward hawkins 14 wainscott kent 10,000 edward carol 49 scouts | scouts mocked edward hawkins, 14, for not being able to make fire on trip . so he made a huge bonfire in garden of family home in wainscott, kent . when his mother took his brother to school, he added petrol and a match . fire spread to his father's hand made shed containing tools worth £10,000 . edward caught fire too, suffering burns which may require a skin graft . mother, carol, 49, said her son was more worried about his father's shed . she said: 'he just wanted to show the scouts he could light one, bless him' |
by tom latchem fiona believes that by confronting the issue of pregorexia, emmerdale could help many expectant mothers emmerdale's ongoing 'pregorexia' storyline may be the first time the dangerous condition has ever featured in a british soap but for the many thousands of women around the country carrying babies while in the grip of anorexia and bulimia, it's a constant battle that can lead to severe complications and dangerously undernourished babies actress fiona wade, whose character priya sharma is currently going through the eating disorder one in 14 pregnant women suffers from, is glad she's raising awareness of what is essentially a mental disorder 'pregorexia is a dangerous condition,' says the 35 year old, 'yet most people have never heard of it i don't think it's taken as seriously as many other mental illnesses but that's what it is 'when you think how many people watch the show we're really getting the message out there i've had lots of lovely letters from people with the condition saying they feel they can be more open about it now it's out there it's wonderful to think the storyline might be making a positive difference to viewers' lives i just wanted to portray it as accurately as i could' fiona researched the condition in detail, speaking to psychotherapists and reading sufferers' accounts and what she uncovered shocked her a study by university college london found seven per cent of pregnant british women have a full blown eating disorder, while a quarter are highly concerned about their weight, placing their life, and that of their unborn child, at risk fiona's research has helped her realistic portrayal of priya, who's seven months pregnant and obsessed with avoiding food and making herself sick after meals 'i threw myself into it to help me get into sufferers' mindsets it's been challenging, with lots of scenes that take it out of you but i feel passionate about it' while fiona, nominated for sexiest female at next month's british soap awards, has always been slim, thankfully she's never suffered an eating disorder herself though that doesn't mean the actress, who has previously stripped down to her underwear for racy photoshoots and sex scenes, is without self doubt fiona wade on set with bhasker patel (right) and rik makarem (left) 'oh, i'm as insecure as every other girl,' she says 'i'm the biggest worrier i'll do a shoot and think, “oh god, was that alright?” i pull myself apart the same as anyone' aside from that, fiona, who's just signed on with the itv soap for another year, says she's having the time of her life the only thing missing, though, is a man to share it with 'i'm in my 30s and, while being single is fun, it would be nice to meet someone i'm in a great place career wise, so that would be the icing on the cake priya likes a bad boy, but i definitely don't want one i'm ready to meet a great guy who'll be my best friend 'yes, i'm super busy, constantly running between my home in leeds and my mum's place in hertfordshire, but if you want to be with someone enough you'll make it work i wouldn't let anything stand in the way' dubai or las vegas? dubai is perfect for winter sun and relaxation juice or cola? i don't drink alcohol so i'm obsessed with fresh juices i try to have one every morning brad pitt or leonardo dicaprio? leonardo is incredible every film, every character he plays, he nails kylie minogue or rihanna? i like all kinds of music, but i've been loving kylie's new album kiss me once lately monopoly or cranium? my family all play cranium at christmas it gets everyone thinking and is such fun 4x4 or a sports car? i really like the range rover evoque it's a 4x4 with a sleek look for womenwinding down with friends or a spa weekend? i love a catch up at mine with a movie and food | uk emmerdale fiona | one in 14 pregnant women suffer from an eating disorder . pregorexia is becoming a growing problem in the uk . emmerdale has tackled the story line . fiona hopes that it may encourage more expectant mothers to seek help |
by kim carillo ah, the glorious hint of summer, the softness of the breeze, the winter grump giving way to lightness, but — ugh — the clothes! few things can dull the mood of a (slightly) older lady like a sweep around the shops as autumn/winter’s woollens give way to pastel atrocities and, horror of horror, sleeveless shifts at 54, my arms pay no heed to twice weekly pilates classes or 40 lengths of the pool so stubborn are those pockets of fat that the number of surgical ‘arm lifts’ carried out in britain increased by 97 per cent from 2009 to 2011but i prefer to rely on the perfect summer sleeve, revealing just the right amount of skin at last, the high street is taking notice, and there are more spring dresses with sleeves than ever i checked out what’s available denim shirt dress, £30, nextcouk, heels, £29, dorothyperkinscom my initial reaction to this was ‘prisoner cell block h’ i do wear denim quite a bit but this looked a lot younger than what i would usually attempt however, i was quite pleasantly surprised that with a few tweaks — rolling up the long sleeves and tying the belt tightly around my waist — and a nude pair of heels, it actually looked nice not an outfit for an expensive lunch, perhaps, but nice for a potter around the shops or a picnic bright pumps are a must, though score: 3/5 lk bennett lace sleeve dress, £295, johnlewiscom heels, £195, lucychoilondoncom this flattering soft pink made my skin look tanned and felt really modern and fresh the delicate, elbow length lace gave a tantalising glimpse of flesh without being too revealing and made my arms appear slimmer the dress skimmed over my hips and was comfortable both sitting and standing i intend to wear this again as it’s sexy without being overdone and incredibly comfortable to wear score: 5/5 floral print dress, £95, coast storescom, heels, £198, lucychoilondoncom i am really not a floral person — i don’t have a single floral item in my wardrobe — but this i really loved it’s perfectly cut, managing to simultaneously fit like a glove while also having plenty of give, so you don’t feel like you’re sewn in the elbow length sleeves make my arms looks slim and trim in fact, i like it so much i’m going to wear it to a swanky lunch party love it score: 4/5 phase eight maxi, £120, johnlewiscom, heels, £60, officecouk a lovely evening look with three quarter length lace sleeves which were neither heavy nor scratchy although very fitted, the gentle gathering across the stomach cut a flattering shape, and navy was a nice change from funereal black lace sleeves are the perfect answer to summer dressing, especially for over 50s very nice score: 35/5 expensive but worth it goat belted dress, £450, fenwick: 0207 629 9161, heels, £195, lucychoillondoncom i loved the pleating around the bust, while the belt nipped in at just the right point the sleeves were a lovely length and the hem was cut for an elegant silhouette i wouldn’t usually go for white in a dress as it can be very unflattering, but i was pleasantly surprised yes, it is expensive but it looks — and feels — it too would look even better with a light tan at a garden party score: 4/5 embellished midi dress, £399, tedbakercom, heels, £69, dunecouk oh gosh not my cup of tea at all the length made me feel dumpy and, as it was difficult to walk in, i felt incredibly inelegant the sleeves were cut at an unflattering length and were too unfitted, while the chainmail overlay was far too heavy even bare arms would be better i don’t see myself wearing this any time soon and certainly not at that cost score:0/5 | £30 to £450 kim carillo | ranging from £30 to £450, kim carillo looks at the spring dresses that reveal just the right amount of skin |
by mark duell published: 10:05 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 01:38 est, 19 august 2013 labour officials are considering making a commitment to cut the voting age from 18 to 16 in their election manifesto, it was revealed today shadow justice secretary sadiq khan said the change should be combined with improved citizenship education in schools to teach 16 year olds about the democratic system mps believe the pledge by labour would increase the likelihood of a coalition at the next election between them and the liberal democrats who have long supported the lowering of the voting age idea: shadow justice secretary sadiq khan said the change should be combined with improved citizenship education in schools to teach 16 year olds about the democratic system mr khan, who is also mp for tooting in south london, told the sunday times: ‘the evidence we have is that if you vote the first time you are entitled to, you will carry on doing so through your life ‘there are more and more things that 16 and 17 year olds can do work, pay national insurance and tax, have sexual relationships, get married and enter civil partnerships and join the armed forces’ the reform would be introduced in time for the election in 2020 if labour return to power in 2015 one of the major reasons behind it is that the party wants to capture the vote of young people lib dem mp stephen williams fronted a successful backbench motion for the lowering of the voting age and said labour’s support could help the party decide who to support in a hung parliament younger votes: mps believe the pledge by labour would increase the likelihood of a coalition at the next election between them and the liberal democrats who have long supported the lowering of the voting age he told the sunday telegraph: ‘if we can bank that as an agreement then if the next parliament does result in an inconclusive election, which i think is quite likely, the more issues that we know in advance that we're likely to agree on will make the negotiations swifter’ 'the evidence we have is that if you vote the first time you are entitled to, you will carry on doing so through your life' sadiq khan, shadow justice secretary mr williams added: ‘i have never been in favour of compulsory voting i think voting should be attractive to people but it's up to politicians to give people good reasons why they should turn out to vote’ the mp’s motion earlier this year was passed by 119 votes to 46 but this was not binding, and prime minister david cameron insisted he would not be supporting a change in the voting age you are only able to vote aged 16 in a select few countries in the world those aged 16 have been able to vote for two decades in brazil, while argentina lowered the age of voting to 16 last year | excussion wolfsbergite cleistocarp | no related information |
by daily mail reporter published: 19:53 est, 26 july 2013 | updated: 19:53 est, 26 july 2013 the doctor found to be responsible for the death of pop icon michael jackson will be freed from jail in just three months after serving less than two years following his 2011 involuntary manslaughter conviction for giving the 'king of pop' a lethal dose of the powerful sedative propofol conrad murray is scheduled to be freed from the los angeles county jail on october 28, after serving less than two years of a four year sentence and members of jackson's family reportedly are livid murray served his time in county jail rather than state prison due to overcrowding in the the california prison system free man: dr conrad murray is expected to be released from prison in october after serving less than two years of a four year sentence 'this is it': 'the king of pop' announcing what was supposed to be his final tour 'it is not right i will never be able to see my son again, while his mother can see him,' sources close to the jackson family told the daily mirror the source went on to say the family including his devastated children, paris, 15, prince, 16, blanket, 11, and his 83 year old mother, katherine feels murray 'should serve his time for his crime' 'murray is the killer of michael in their eyes he cost them their son and father,' the source said, adding that 'for [murray] to get out in two years is an insult they still feel he should have been tried for murder' murray was sentenced to four years for jackson's death, but is expected to get time off from his sentence for good behavior grieving: jackson's children blanket (left) paris (center) and prince will grow up without a father 'he has been a model inmate and the authorities have granted him an early release due to that good behaviour and the overcrowded california jail system,' a friend of the doctor's told the paper murray reportedly has been serving his time in solitary confinement because of the high profile nature of his case and because the victim was a beloved figure in pop culture despite being in solitary confinement, murray has both a television and a cell phone in his cell in addition to the reduced sentence, the jackson family is enraged that murray has refused to provide testimony in their wrongful death lawsuit against concert promoter aeg live, which was promoting jackson's 2009 'this is it' tour outraged: jackson's mother, katherine, is furious that murray is being released after less than two years the tour was pegged as jackson's final tour the family claims that the grueling rehearsal schedule and aeg live's negligence in hiring murray contributed to jackson's death in june of 2009 this week, murray made headlines when he said that if he was forced to testify in the wrongful death case, he would reveal information about jackson's relationship with his family that would be like a 'nuclear' bombshell it's unclear to what he might be referring murray says he wants nothing to do with the lawsuit because he fears he could be incriminated murray is appealing his criminal conviction prisoner: murray is said to have both a television and a cell phone in his jail cell | mycetogenic preemploy suberites | no related information |
by daniel martin published: 18:42 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 06:51 est, 19 august 2013 a mammoth fund worth £20 a year for every adult and child in the uk should be set up to encourage cycling, the liberal democrats say the latest idea from the junior coalition party would cost the taxpayer more than £12billion a year at a time when public spending needs to be cut to help bring down the deficit it would also give cycling as much public money as some entire departments in whitehall healthy plans: the proposed budget would see £20 a year spent on each uk citizen to encourage cycling however, the party will discuss plans for a ‘cycling budget’ at its conference next month after they were proposed by cambridge mp julian huppert critics will point out that the scheme is traditional lib dem posturing that will make very little difference to efforts to encourage more people into the saddle george eustice, conservative mp for camborne and redruth, said: ‘getting people cycling is important, but i don’t think this policy would work 'it would mean an unfunded cost of over £12billion, which would simply lead to more borrowing and more debt’ on yer bikes! the cycling budget had been proposed by cambridge mp julian huppert tory backbenchers will see the plans as merely the latest in what has been called the lib dems’ ‘war on the motorist’ other proposals to be discussed at the party’s conference include automatically blaming drivers for all accidents involving cyclists using a legal system of ‘proportionate liability’ deputy prime minister nick clegg’s party also wants to ban all petrol and diesel cars by 2040 their ‘cycling budget’ motion would see the creation of a budget worth £10 per person, increasing later to £20 a head the most recent official estimates put the uk population at 632million so at £20 per person, mr huppert’s scheme would cost £126billion per year – the equivalent cost of 41,489 soldiers funding the cycling policy would mean slashing the total number of army personnel in half it is also the equivalent cost of taking 31,752 policemen off the streets, 48,672 nurses out of hospital wards, or removing 39,371 teachers from schools the budget’s size is also comparable with some government departments in 2014/15, the amount of taxpayers’ money allocated to the foreign office is expected to be about £135billion the lib dem’s spending proposals do not stop there mr huppert’s motion also calls for an increase in the ‘local sustainable transport fund’, better integration of the cycle network and the creation of more cycle paths | 20 uk lib dems next month | new plan would see £20 a year spent on each uk citizen . lib dems to discuss plans for scheme at conference next month |
by jill reilly published: 02:00 est, 22 october 2013 | updated: 04:04 est, 22 october 2013 french president francois hollande telephoned president barack obama to express his 'deep disapproval' amid claims that american spies secretly listened in to 703 million private phone calls in france over less than one month hollande told obama that the alleged practices were 'unacceptable between friends and allies because they infringe on the privacy of french citizens' at the same time, german weekly der spiegel reported the nsa had also hacked into former mexican president felipe calderon's email account anger: french president francois hollande telephoned president obama last night to express his 'deep disapproval' amid claims that american spies secretly listened in to 703 million private phone calls in france over less than one month france's le monde newspaper reported that the us national security agency had secretly monitored 703 million phone communications in france over 30 days from december 10, 2012, to january 8 this year the allegations, the latest from leaks by former nsa contractor edward snowden, also marred a visit to paris by us secretary of state john kerry, where he discussed moves to try to end the war in syria claims: a german newspaper reported the nsa had also hacked into former mexican president felipe calderon's email account calderon, on twitter, described the revelations as an 'affront to the institutions of the country, given that it took place when i was president' the allegations come on top of previous revelations by snowden who has sought safety in russia as us authorities pursue him for leaking classified information that the united states had a vast, secret programme called prism to monitor internet users french prosecutors are already investigating the programme, and french prime minister jean marc ayrault said he was 'deeply shocked' by the new revelations 'it's incredible that an allied country like the united states at this point goes as far as spying on private communications that have no strategic justification, no justification on the basis of national defence,' he told journalists french foreign minister laurent fabius, on a visit to luxembourg, said us ambassador charles rivkin was summoned to his ministry early monday 'these kinds of practices between partners that harm privacy are totally unacceptable,' he told reporters, adding france needed assurances that the united states was no longer monitoring its communications his comments were relayed to the us ambassador during the meeting, a ministry spokesman said the second time in less than four months that america's top representative in france has been hauled in over revelations about us snooping kerry refused to comment on the specific accusations, but noted that washington was reviewing its intelligence gathering operations following protests from allied governments he also sought to defend the us position 'protecting the security of our citizens in today's world is a very complicated, very challenging task because there are lots of people out there seeking to do harm to other people,' kerry said at a press conference after meeting arab league officials 'lots of countries are engaged in the activity of trying to protect their citizens in the world,' he said 'our goal is always to try to find the right balance between protecting the privacy and security of our citizens' overshadowed: the allegations also marred a visit to paris by us secretary of state john kerry, where he discussed moves to try to end the war in syria talks: french foreign minister laurent fabius shakes hands with us secretary of state john kerry at the foreign affairs ministry in paris according to le monde, the spy agency automatically picked up communications from certain phone numbers in france and recorded certain text messages under a programme code named 'us 985d' the french daily said the documents gave grounds to believe that the nsa targeted not only people suspected of being involved in terrorism but also high profile individuals in business and politics hollande's office said the french president and obama had agreed 'to work together to determine the facts and the exact scope of surveillance activities' revealed by le monde der spiegel also revealed that us agents had hacked into the mexican presidency's network, gaining access to calderon's account according to the report, the nsa said this contained 'diplomatic, economic and leadership communications which continue to provide insight into mexico's political system and internal stability' the agency reportedly said the president's office was now 'a lucrative source' the latest report on us spying in france underlines the extent of the nsa's capabilities in listening and recording such vast amounts of personal data mexican authorities said they would be seeking answers from us officials 'as soon as possible' 'this practice is unacceptable, illegitimate and contrary to mexican law and international law,' the foreign ministry said glenn greenwald, an american journalist now living in brazil who has broken many of the recent stories about secret us surveillance programmes, says washington has spied on all latin american countries speaking to a press association in miami, greenwald said he would report about each case in the region and warned that more spying within the united states would also be revealed he also said the disclosures published by le monde monday had been in the hands of the french daily for some time the article in le monde was co written by glenn greenwald, pictured, the american journalist who first published the documents leaked by snowden this is not the first time there have been reports that france and mexico have been targeted in relation to nsa spying allegations since information leaked by snowden first emerged in junemexico's current president enrique pena nieto has already complained to obama over reports us spies have gone through his emails and der spiegel reported last month that in 2010 the nsa monitored the internal computer network of france's diplomats and that of the foreign ministry but france itself has also been accused of spying le monde reported in recent months that intelligence services intercepted all communications in the country, stocking telephone and computer data for years accusations denied by the government | us edward snowden nsa 703m france mexican paris john kerry syria | allegations based on leaks from us ex intelligence analyst edward snowden . claims: the nsa recently spied on 703m phone calls in france . also claimed nsa hacked into email account of former mexican president . claims have marred a visit to paris by john kerry to discuss syria |
by amanda williams published: 10:34 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 18:02 est, 18 august 2013 boys do better than girls in exams such as science because they are better at taking risks, the man in charge of admissions at oxford university said yesterday mike nicholson claimed: ‘we have generally seen male students tend to be much more prepared to take risks, which is why they do well in exams ‘generally, female students are risk averse and will tend to take longer to think about an answer if it’s a multiple choice question [boys] will generally go with their gut feeling girls will try to reason it out’ boys are better at exams than girls because they are 'more prepared' to take risks, according to the man in charge of admissions at oxford university he said that what while it depends on the subject discipline, the university had seen male students tend to be much more prepared to take risks, which is why they do well in exams he said boys tended to 'whizz through' timed multiple choice exams whereas girls may not even finish them admitting he was talking in ‘broad brush strokes’, the director of undergraduate admissions at oxford added: ‘if you are using timed multiple choice assessments, that has a bearing on the likelihood of the female students even finishing the section’ however, professor averil macdonald, a board member of the women in science and engineering campaign and chairman in science engagement at the university of reading, said his statement was ‘factually incorrect’ she pointed out that while boys dominated subjects such as physics, girls actually achieve better results across the board she added: ‘girls are outperforming boys at all subjects they are getting better results than boys even in subjects like physics, which are traditionally seen as a male preserve ‘boys may be following gut feeling, but that isn’t necessarily the way to get the right result’ professor macdonald agreed that boys did tend to be favoured when more weight was given to exams than coursework ‘if you phrase a question in the context of a story, boys tend to strip away what’s irrelevant more quickly ‘but, if you ask any teacher, girls are more organised at completing coursework and getting it in on time’ she added: ‘industry is crying out for more female scientists and engineers because it’s important not just to have a male perspective, and more needs to be done to tackle the stereotypes in schools that mean teachers are pushing girls away from science subjects’ oxford university said there were 17,500 applications for 3,200 places at oxford this year mr nicholson said that so much effort was put into selecting students when theyfirst apply that they did not do much during the clearing process thursday’s a level results revealed that this year the big winners in the battle of the sexes this year were boys eight per cent of boys achieved the top grade of a * compared to 74 per cent of girls last year they were separated by just 01 per cent boys also narrowed the gap in combined a* and as with a 02 per cent improvement to 26 per cent, while girls slipped half a per cent to 266 per cent 0verall, girls still managed to outperform boys in all subjects except maths, chemistry, spanish, french and german mike nicholson, the director of undergraduate admissions, said that female students tend to be risk averse whereas boys 'go with their gut feeling' four in five physics exams were sat by boys, an increase of four per cent in a year they also took 607 per cent of the maths papers, up 39 per cent but girls accounted for 743 per cent of psychology entries, a rise of 52 per cent, and around seven in ten psychology a levels experts suggested peer pressure might be deterring candidates from taking exams usually associated with the opposite sex michael gove is trying to end grade inflation by making exams more robust end of course exams replacing bite size tests on modular courses is one of the measures being introduced under the education secretary’s watch 'they only begin to think about it once they’ve got a string of as at that level it gives them the confidence to think oxford is within their reach 'our biggest concern is that the proposed reforms could undo an awful lot of work that has been going on in the higher education sector to encourage students' | mike nicholson 8% 74% | mike nicholson is director of undergraduate admissions at the university . he said that female students were risk averse but boys 'went with gut'. a levels saw 8% of boys get top grade of a* compared to 74% of girls |
by leon watson published: 05:39 est, 11 july 2012 | updated: 07:17 est, 12 july 2012 two journalists arrested by detectives investigating corrupt payments to public officials have been released on bail, scotland yard said justin penrose, crime correspondent of the sunday mirror, and tom savage, deputy news editor of the daily star sunday, were questioned on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt and of conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office the latest arrests mean 41 people have been arrested by detectives on operation elveden, the investigation into suspected corrupt payments to public officials scotland yard said a 37 year man was detained at his home in kent and a 34 year old man also arrested in connection with operation elveden it is being run alongside operation weeting, the scotland yard probe into phone hacking both men were held at separate police stations and have been bailed to a date in october pending further inquiries, police said a yard spokesman said yesterday: 'a 37 year old man was arrested at his home in kent and a 34 year old man at his home in south east london at approximately 6am this morning, on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt (contrary to the prevention of corruption act 1906) and of conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office (contrary to common law) 'the two, both journalists, were taken to police stations in kent and south east london 'both have now been bailed to return pending further inquiries to the same police stations on dates in october' the gps locator on the website of tom savage shows him at east dulwich police station penrose has been with the sunday mirror since 2004, when he joined as a general news reporter he was promoted to the position of full time crime correspondent in january 2006 trinity mirror said officers searched mr penrose's desk yesterday morning and took away 'various items', including his computer a spokesman said: 'following a prearranged meeting at 11am, the police now have in their possession various items from justin penrose's desk, including his computer 'there is no further comment to make at this stage' in evidence to the leveson inquiry into press ethics, mr penrose said the newspaper never paid police for stories in a written statement, addressing the question of what ethical issues need to be held in mind by a journalist communicating with the police, he said: 'the main ethical issue is that we never pay police officers for stories or seek to put the police in a position where they feel that they should provide information to us in exchange for anything that they consider that they are getting from us' decision: britain's director of public prosecutions, keir starmer, pictured, says 14 notw staff will find out if they face charges within weeks he also warned that there was a 'climate of fear' stopping officers talking to the press he wrote: 'i believe that officers should be allowed to speak to the press about their cases without the fear that they are going to be accused of corruption at the moment there is a climate of fear in which officers are too scared to talk to the press' the other suspect was daily star sunday deputy news editor tom savage, who was shown on a gps locator on his website at east dulwich police station in south east london this morning the pair are being questioned at separate police stations on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt and of conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office, the met said a spokesman said: 'today's arrests relate to suspected payments to a public official and are not about seeking journalists to reveal confidential sources in relation to information that has been obtained legitimately' the latest arrests mean 41 people have been arrested by detectives on operation elveden, the investigation into suspected corrupt payments to public officials the operation is being run alongside operation weeting, the scotland yard probe into phone hacking the met spokesman said: 'a 37 year old man was arrested at his home in kent and a 34 year old man at his home in south east london at approximately 6am this morning on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt (contrary to the prevention of corruption act 1906) and of conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office (contrary to common law) 'the two, both journalists, are being questioned at police stations in kent and south east london' it comes after the director of public prosecutions keir starmer revealed more than a dozen former news of the world journalists will find out by the end of this month if they face phone hacking charges keir starmer says he is 'reasonably confident' the crown prosecution service will make a final decision on the 14 suspects within weeks probe: former notw staff arrested under operation weeting, pictured clockwise, include rebekah brooks, andy coulson, former assistant editor ian edmondson, and former managing editor stuart kuttner journalists arrested and bailed include former editors andy coulson and rebekah brooks, who may have directed or allowed their staff to intercept mobile phone voicemails former assistant editor ian edmondson, chief reporter neville thurlbeck and managing editor stuart kuttner were also arrested as part of the metropolitan police's hacking operation, known as weeting starmer told the guardian that alleged phone hacking cases would be dealt with as 'a batch' meaning that the fate of those allegedly involved will be dramatically announced on the same day this month any hacking charges would be the first brought since 2007 the news of the world's former royal editor clive goodman and private investigator glenn mulcaire were then jailed for four months and six months respectively for intercepting messages from members of the royal family and their staff prosecutors are currently using a 'broad interpretation' of the regulation of investigatory powers act (ripa), starmer said, which will allow journalists to be charged with hacking even if the person had listened to the voicemail first former met assistant commissioner john yates had said previously it was not clear if someone could be prosecuted if a message had already been played back starmer also told the guardian that alternative charges would also be considered 'in so far as it was necessary,' including conspiring to intercept communications and computer hacking he added that the 'public interest' test was being applied to every case if the person allegedly being hacked had acted with 'serious hypocrisy', like having an affair for example, this will also be considered, he said | justin penrose tom savage | justin penrose and tom savage held in dawn raids . released until october pending further inquiries |
by larisa brown published: 20:18 est, 18 august 2013 | updated: 23:15 est, 18 august 2013 a rider was crushed to death when a horse he was riding rolled on top of him during a horse trial event yesterday the 25 year old had been competing in somerford park horse trials in congleton, cheshire, when the horse failed to jump an obstacle the horse’s front legs became caught, causing them both to fall forward over a bar and the horse fell on the rider causing fatal injuries a 25 year old rider has died after he was crushed to death during the somerford park horse trials in congleton, cheshire spectators were watching the event in horror when the man, from new zealand, died at around 3pm yesterday afternoon the three part competition was held over the weekend and included events in dressage, cross country and show jumping the event had been organised to raise money for the air ambulance service organisers immediately abandoned the competition after the tragedy a cheshire police spokesman said: ‘we can confirm a 25 year old man was killed at an equestrian event in a 'rotational fall' at somerford park in cheshire ‘it is a dangerous event and on this occasion a man was fatally injured’ the horse's front legs became caught, causing them both to fall forward over a bar and the horse fell on the rider causing fatal injuries (file picture) the spokesman confirmed the man was from new zealand and police were still trying to contact his family in a statement from british eventing, be chief executive mike etherington smith said: ‘we would ask that at this extremely sad time that people using social media respect the fact that the rider’s family may not be aware of the accident today’ friends took to twitter to express their sadness at the man’s death ginny wells wrote: ‘such a devastating way to end a lovely event at somerford my thoughts go out to his family in this difficult time’ laura wallace said: ‘cannot believe that one of my best friends is no longer with us after somerford today i loved you so much rip my dear xxxx’ | somerford park horse trials cheshire | rider died while competing in somerford park horse trials in cheshire . horse he was riding fell on top of him after failing to jump obstacle . horse's legs became caught, causing them both to fall forward over a bar |
by sarah griffiths published: 12:03 est, 9 july 2013 | updated: 12:04 est, 9 july 2013 russia will begin to operate the world's first floating nuclear power plant in just three years time the specially made ship with a nuclear power plant on board will provide energy, heat and drinking water to relatively inaccessible areas of the vast country the director of russia's largest shipbuilders, the baltic plant, announced that the unique ship should be operational by 2016 at the 6th international naval show in st petersburg in three years, russia will have the world's first floating nuclear power plant the akademik lomonosov is to become the first of a series of floating nuclear power plants, which russia plans to put into mass production the first ship will be called akademik lomonosov and is intended to be the first of small fleet of floating nuclear plants in russia it is designed to provide energy to big industrial companies, cut off port cities and offshore oil and gas platforms the ship's power generating capabilities were based on nuclear reactors which are already on board ice breaker ships in the chilly region that have operated successfully for over half a century the akademik lomonosov will weigh 21,500 tons and have a crew of 69 people but it will not have a propulsion system so will have to be towed to the location where it is needed, according to global news service, rt it will have two modified klt 40 reactors that will be able to provide enough energy for a city with 200,000 people together the reactors will generate 70mw of electricity or 300 mw of heat an artist's impression of the ship, which is designed to provide energy to big industrial companies, cut off port cities and offshore oil and gas platforms it will weigh 21,500 tons and have a crew of 69 people but will have to be towed to the location where it is needed russia's large towns and ports along its northern coastline and its far eastern regions are currently not experiencing much economic growth, partly because of a lack of energy, so it is hoped that these floating power stations will help the situation the country could also use them near areas of mineral deposits and military bases outside the country the floating power plants will be able to be modified and be used as a desalination plant this means that the ship could produce a staggering 240,000 cubic metres of fresh water every day a total of 15 countries have expressed an interest in using floating power stations, including: china, indonesia and argentina the ship builder insists that the process of fuel enrichment on the floating power station complies with the international atomic energy agency's regulations russia's large towns and ports along its northern coastline and its far eastern regions are currently not experiencing much economic growth, partly because of a lack of energy, so it is hoped that these floating power stations will help the situation the floating power plants will be able to be modified and be used as a desalination plant just like nuclear power stations on land, the floating power plant is designed with a safety margin it is designed to withstand collisions with other ships and land as well as survive a tsunami after 40 years of service, the nuclear reactor will be replaced the firm claims that its floating power station is safe for the environment as it does not release any hazardous substances while it is operating building of the first ship got underway in 2007 at that sevmash submarine building plant in severodvinsk it was moved to the baltic plant where it stayed for two years after the money ran out but work on the vessel has got underway again after a financing deal was signed between the baltic plant and a company owned by the russian state in december of last year | russia akademik lomonosov 240,000 cubic metres | floating nuclear power station will provide energy, heat and drinking water to relatively inaccessible areas of russia . the ship called akademik lomonosov is planned to be the first of a small fleet of floating power stations . as well as powering cities with up to 200,000 people, the plant can also provide 240,000 cubic metres of fresh water every day |
by ryan gorman published: 00:55 est, 7 december 2013 | updated: 06:38 est, 8 december 2013 a banksy mural that was originally on the wall of a hollywood gas station sold this week for more than $200,000 at auction an anonymous bidder scooped up the massive slab of street art from julien’s auctions, in beverly hills, with a winning bid of $209,000 in the first ever us auction of a banksy piece the mural is on a nine by eight foot slab of beige brick wall and weighs almost four tons, according to reuters on the move: banksy painted 'flower girl' on the side of a los angeles gas station in 2008 it sold thursday at auction the piece was completed in 2008 using banksy’s trademark stencil style, according to an auction house statement it shows a young girl wearing a dress and carrying a basket of flowers while looking up at a camera sitting at the top of a taller than life flower stem – it is named ‘flower girl’ ‘in ‘flower girl,’ the artist poignantly juxtaposes the innocence of a young girl picking flowers with the curious and questioning gaze of someone not yet willing to back down,’ said the statement as it originally appeared: 'flower girl' before it was removed from a hollywood chevron station where it all began: this gas station, now a chevron, is where the banksy mural was resided before being removed workers removed it from a hollywood chevron station so it could be sold at thursday’s auction four other banksy pieces were sold thursday for a total of $248,000, reuters noted among them was ‘tv girl,’ which sold for $137,000 ‘flower girl’ was sold as part of an auction featuring only street art, and was among a collection of 92 total pieces put up for sale the pieces pulled in a small fortune, but they were not the highest selling banksy works of all time that distinction goes to a piece known as ‘slave labour,’ according to reuters ‘slave labour,’ which shows a young child making union jack patches on an industrial sewing machine, sold for $11million at a recent london auction more banksy pieces will sell later this month in miami, reuters noted | autoabstract returned uncouples | no related information |
by dan bloom published: 07:53 est, 4 december 2013 | updated: 11:06 est, 4 december 2013 a jack russell whose owner beat him so savagely that bystanders thought he was dead is on the road to recovery shocked eyewitnesses chased demmi grice, 25, down the street after they saw the tiny dog punched, lifted up by the collar and then smashed head first into the pavement grice, from rochdale, greater manchester, has been found guilty of animal cruelty and the adorable dog will soon be put up for adoption lucky dog: two year old jack russell terrier mylo will soon be put up for adoption after a savage beating by his owner rspca inspector kat hamblin, left, said: 'he cowers when people make sudden movements' thug: demmi grice outside bury magistrates' court he was found guilty of animal cruelty and banned from keeping pets after saying: 'it's my dog, i don't need lessons they started chasing me for nothing' accused: grice, 25, swore at a photographer outside court, where he was found guilty of animal cruelty rspca inspector kat hamblin said: 'you can tell he hasn't been treated very well as he cowers when people make sudden movements 'he needs training, but despite everything he's been through, milo likes people and is a great little dog with a bit of love and care, he'll make a lovely pet for someone' grice, who was given the dog by his mother, told the court the bystanders had 'rudely interrupted' him on the way to his breakfast, adding: 'it's my dog, i don't need lessons they started chasing me for nothing' magistrates heard he shouted angrily at milo, lifting the dog up by the collar several feet into the air he then punched the terrified terrier in the head and hurled him to the pavement head first onlookers chased him as he fled, dragging the dog along the ground by his lead, but they caught up with him and kept him restrained until police arrived top dog: two year old milo, pictured with rspca inspector kat hamblin, is on the road to a miracle recovery daniel harris, 24, was in the passenger seat of a car on the way to a job interview when he chased grice on the morning of october 10 he told the court: '[milo] landed head first and then crumpled to the left as its back hit the floor at this point i made up my mind to get out of the car i genuinely thought he had killed the dog 'i was quite distressed, mainly because if he could do that in public i was worried what he would do to the animal behind closed doors' grice ran, said mr harris, adding: 'the dog's legs were being dragged along the concrete pavement because he couldn't keep up with the speed the man was running at' the driver of the car, teacher robyn stevenson, 23, also saw the abuse and followed grice on foot she said: 'i was disgusted that he could do that to an animal he showed no remorse and just screamed 'it's my dog' attack: demmi grice, from rochdale, had denied smashing milo's head into the pavement in broad daylight 'i was shaking like a leaf, i've got dogs of my own and it was horrible to watch' grice accepted that he shouted at the dog and held him up by the lead, but denied one count of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal grice, who swore at a photographer as he left court, claimed the witnesses were lying and he had not punched the dog or thrown it to the ground he insisted he was a good dog owner and his pet had never missed a meal or a walk the yob was banned from keeping animals for five years after being convicted of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal by bury magistrates he was ordered to pay a total of £1,049 in fines and costs chairman of the bench julia de sousa told grice: 'we find what you did to that little jack russell cruel and unkind and we hope that is reflected in the sentence' milo will be rehomed if grice does not lodge an appeal within 21 days rspca inspector jason bowles added: 'in situations like this we always hope for a ban on keeping animals as it's the best way of protecting any others from suffering in future' | milo rochdale greater manchester demmi grice grice | two year old milo was lifted up by his collar and smashed into the pavement . attack happened in broad daylight in rochdale, greater manchester . shocked bystanders chased milo's owner demmi grice, 25, down the street . grice claimed he was 'rudely interrupted' after they tried to stop him . rspca: 'despite everything he's been through, milo is a great little dog' |
by scarlett russell she been a regular on the london part circuit of late, but it was a more civil affair on saturday as princess beatrice attended the wedding of prince amedeo of belgium and elisabetta maria rosboch von wolkenstein the ceremony took place at basilica santa maria in trastevere in rome, where the 25 year old royal hit all the right fashion notes in a beautiful dusty pale pink dress but it appears to be the exact same valentino dress and sparkly valentino shoes she wore with a valentino coat to the wedding of prince william and catherine the duchess of cambridge in 2011 gorgeous: beatrice of york attends the wedding of prince amedeo and elisabetta maria rosboch von wolkenstein in rome, italy the princess looked ladylike in her pale pink chiffon dress we've seen that before! princess beatrice's dress is the same one she wore to prince william's wedding to catherine, duchess of cambridge, in 2011 royal wave: despite recycling her valentino outfit, worn to the duke and duchess of cambridge's wedding in 2011, princess beatrice still looked stunning on saturday at the wedding of prince amedeo and elisabetta maria rosboch von wolkenstein the gorgeous dress had a flattering scoop neck, long sleeves and a touch of lace stripes across the top the chiffon skirt was detailed with a pretty sash, perfectly accentuating the princess’ small waist the skirt ended just above the knee and beatrice complimented the look with silver court shoes, with just enough height and sparkle to provide a touch of glamour to the outfit she accessorised with a matching pale pink clutch bag, and wore her long hair down and parted to the side copy cat: princess beatrice appears to be wearing the same valentino dress here, at the royal wedding of prince william and kate middleton in may 2011 perfect outfit: beatrice's silk and chiffon skirt was detailed with a pretty sash, perfectly accentuating the princess' small waist stunning: beatrice's skirt ended just above the knee and the young royal complimented the look with silver court shoes, with just enough height and sparkle to provide a touch of glamour to the outfit ready for her close up: princess beatrice arrives to attend the wedding of italian journalist elisabetta maria rosboch von wolkenstein and prince amedeo of belgium at the basilica di santa maria in trastevere in rome and this was just the latest in a run of fashion wins for the beatrice, the daughter of prince andrew, duke of york and sarah ferguson, duchess of york the young royal has attended celebrity filled bashes almost every night this past week on monday she went to the masterpiece marie curie party looking effortlessly glamerous and perfectly on trend in a colourful printed skirt and white blouse with bejewelled neckline she topped the look off with dark blue satin heels on tuesday, it was a sweeping organza gown and lilac strappy sandals for the a list only serpentine gallery summer party so feminine: this pleated skirt is incredibly flattering on princess beatrice, who paired teh dress with sparkly heels for the perfect touch of glamour joining the likes of bradley cooper, suki waterhouse and cara delevingne, beatrice’s strapless white dress featured leather flowers by the designer nicholas oakwell after the summertime evening party, which her younger sister princess eugenie also attended, beatrice and her long time boyfriend david clark headed to london hotspot chiltern firehouse and the following day she scored fashion points once again: at wimbledon she looked lovely in white blazer and navy blue dress complete with a jazzy studded belt 28 year old prince amedeo is sixth in line to the belgian throne the elegant wedding in italy took place yesterday his now wife, elisabetta, is a journalist the only child of italian aristocrats | braw vulpecular steek | no related information |
by sara nathan they have made no secret of their growing love after spending the past few months jet setting around the world together and one of michelle rodriguez's closest confidants has revealed she is so in love with british supermodel cara delevingne that she believes she is 'the one' and wants to start a family with her in an exclusive interview with mailonline, the friend of the fast and furious star who has asked to remain unnamed reveals how michelle, 35, is so besotted by cara, 21, that she has already told pals she would love a baby with her but while the actress is planning her future with cara who is 14 years younger than her we can reveal the mulberry model’s family is terrified of the influence the wayward star is having on the top model who has become the toast of the fashion industry scroll down for videos inseparable: before jetting to italy cara, 21, and 35 year old michelle were seen out on the town in london the start of something: model cara delevingne shared a kiss with openly bisexual actress michelle rodriguez as they sat courtside at the new york knicks game at madison square garden in january baring all: michelle rodriguez shared a photo on instagram on tuesday which showed her stark naked while meditating the source, who michelle regularly confides in, said: 'michelle comes from a broken home and it has a lot to do with why she has found herself in trouble again and again throughout her life 'constantly, she pushes boundaries and has been in trouble with the law, but really all of it is because she is desperate to be loved 'her mom and dad separated when she was a child and ever since michelle has been yearning for some stability in her life 'sadly after years of dating older women and men like olivier martinez, nothing seemed to work out for her 'but now cara has come along, who is so much younger than the women she normally dates, but suddenly michelle is happy again' in recent years, former lost star michelle, who openly admits she is bisexual, has endured a string of broken relationships after dating french heartthrob and swat co star olivier martinez, fast and furious co star vin diesel as well as model claudette lali, director francesca de sola and model aleksandra rastovic the source claims michelle had a 'great thing' going with terminator 3 actress kristanna loken who strongly hinted to advocate magazine that she was in a relationship with her in 2006, yet michelle has never confirmed their relationship 'kristanna wanted to come out as a couple she's proud to be bisexual, but michelle wasn't ready to go public,' said the friend: 'so instead of working it out, michelle ended it smitten: michelle was linked with terminator 3 actress kristanna loken, who hinted the couple were in a relationship in 2006 ex lovers: michelle rodriguez iis said to have dated flimmaker francesca de sola the pair are pictured at the screening of francesca's film 1%ers in new york in april 2013 'then she was left heartbroken a year later when she fell for another model/actress only to find out she had slept with someone else while she was away filming the movie avatar' the actress has also found herself behind bars after being in trouble repeatedly with the law in march 2002, she was charged with assault and harassment when her girlfriend, louise ward, claimed the tough girl had attacked her in their new jersey apartment ward was left battered and bruised, but later dropped all charges against michelle the friend said: 'michelle can be intense and dive head first into romances this can land her in hot water as she found out with louise 'over the last 15 years there have been countless other examples of her disastrous love life' just one year later michelle found herself in trouble again when she appeared in court to face eight misdemeanor charges relating to two driving incidents, including a dui and a hit and run in 2004, she pleaded no contest to three of the charges, hit and run, drunken driving and driving with a suspended license and went to jail for 48 hours and was placed on probation for three years and in 2005, while filming abc hit lost in hawaii, the stunning brunette was fined multiple times for speeding later that year on december 1st she was arrested for drunk driving, to which she pleaded guilty and paid a $500 fine and spent five days in jail due to this being a clear violation of her earlier drunk driving crimes, she was also sentenced to 60 days in jail, but due to overcrowding was released on the same day she entered and it's precisely this behavior that has left cara's family a little fearful michelle's close friend admitted: 'she's a very free spirit and before this relationship she has always been terrified of commitment “and because of her troubled past, many of them have essentially had to be her babysitter or a mother figure to her 'so now cara might be younger than her, but she honestly thinks this is 'the one' just before she met cara she was talking about wanting a family within the next couple of years lovers? michelle rodriguez reportedly dated vin diesel, her fast and furious co star the pair pose at the premiere of fast and furious 6 in seoul, south korea, in may 2013 ex love: michelle rodriguez was also said to have dated her swat co star olivier martinez the actor is now married to halle berry 'she really wants a baby and wants one soon and now she has found cara she thinks this could finally be the time to chase that dream 'sadly due to michelle’s troubled past, cara’s family are not so surethey are not 100 per cent pro this relationship and are in some ways willing it to end 'the 14 year age gap between the girls concerns them as does michelle's wayward reputation 'they know cara has been swept off her feet by michelle, who has dropped everything to be with her young love, but the family fear the relationship will end in nothing but disaster 'i highly doubt at 21 years old cara is ready to start a family she is no doubt currently smitten with michelle, who dropped everything, including her girlfriend and friends, to be with her 'but if anyone is going to get their heart broken in this relationship it's going to be michelle she will smother cara, and wants to be around her 24 hours a day' the couple, who apparently met in january, were also seen attending prince's secret gig at ronnie scott's club on monday, february 17, and the elle style awards the following evening before heading to milan to close the autumn/winter fashion season they then hired a private jet last week to head to milan fashion week, where cara had a busy schedule the pair were spotted in coordinating black outfits while carrying bags as they made their way to their airplane while the brit beauty's parents were also along for the trip after landing in milan, michelle sat with her love as she sat in hair and makeup backstage at the fendi autumn/winter 2014 fashion show they then flew back to london and are now believed to be on vacation supportive: the fast and furious star hung out with her model squeeze backstage at milan fashion week romantic getaway: it seems michelle's girlfriend cara delevingne might be on the thailand holiday too as that same day she shared a photo of herself wearing scuba diving gear while in a tropical location sexy couple: michelle's post came days after cara shared this snapshot michelle spoke openly about her sexuality in october after years of speculation, telling entertainment weekly, 'i've never walked the carpet with anyone, so they wonder: what does she do with her vagina?' plus, i play a butchy girl all the time, so they assume i'm a lesbo' asked about the assumptions, she admitted: 'eh, they're not too far off i've gone both ways i do as i please i am too f king curious to sit here and not try when i can men are intriguing so are chicks' this week, michelle posted a picture of herself naked, revealing her bare derriere to the world as she appeared to be meditating she was seen lapping up the sunshine in thailand, where she is currently enjoying a getaway, and the snapshot also showed a stunning ocean view and it is likely that the photo was taken by cara, as that same day the model shared a picture of herself clad in scuba diving gear in an equally tropical location michelle’s snap comes just days after her model squeeze shared her own extremely sexy picture on the social networking site the source added: 'you can see from the photos of them out together in london that they are clearly having fun 'they don't seem to have a care in the world and i know michelle will pay for everything, go everywhere with her and has unlimited funds to do as they please 'to begin with this will be nice and she will be flattered but when she has to go away to shoot a film, it will end and michelle does fall hard 'and maybe it will all be a little too much for someone as young as cara' turning heads: michelle attended the baftas in london earlier this month in a silk and leather plunging gown blossoming relationship: michelle and cara debuted their romance last month at a new york knicks game | michelle cara | close friend of openly bisexual actress says: 'michelle really wants a baby and now she's found cara she thinks this could finally be the time to chase that dream'. but cara's family are 'not so sure' due to michelle's wayward reputation . source says: 'if anyone is going to get their heart broken it's going to be michelle she will smother cara and wants to be around her 24 hours a day'. fast and furious actress michelle spoke about her sexuality in october, saying: 'i've gone both ways i do as i please men are . intriguing so are chicks' |
by nicole lampert keith barron & gwen taylor are to star in a new stage version of the hit tv show of duty free a reunion after nearly 30 years is always going to be a nostalgic event, but i didn't expect this gruff yorkshireman keith barron is sitting in front of me, big fat tears rolling down his face, as he talks about when he first realised the 1980s sitcom duty free was special 'it was one of the first scenes we did, when gwen (taylor, who played his shrewish wife) pushed me into a pond,' he says, misting over 'and as i was under the water i was smiling to myself thinking, 'this is good, this is really good'' gwen, who's sitting next to him, smiles and pats him on the knee it's been a bit emotional all round duty free only ran for two years, from 1984 to 1986, but was one of the biggest comedies of the decade, regularly attracting 12 million viewers the show was a farce about two working class northerners, david and amy pearce, enjoying their first trip to spain there they meet posh southerners, robert and linda cochran, and david and linda decide they're in love, mainly because he pretends to be a lot more worldly than he really is there's lots of hiding in wardrobes and romantic interludes rudely interrupted, mostly by amy who's determined to keep david from straying by constantly outwitting him all the while robert remains blissfully oblivious to the whole thing the show's still regularly aired on various satellite channels, and keith says he gets stopped at least four times a day by people who want to talk to him about it 'and i'll get people in the supermarket joking, 'are you going to pay for that in pesetas?'' laughs gwen she says the show struck a chord with so many because the couple had the same flaws as real people 'women would stop me in the street and say, 'david's just like him' about their husbands the fibbing and the sucking in of the stomach when the ladies walked past, the pretending to be sophisticated with wine amy always knew that once she got him home he'd be back to normal he'd just had his head turned the thing about the show was it was always on the verge but you never saw any sort of sex they were always thwarted by a donkey, or a monkey but mainly by me' the original cast of duty free in 1984 keith barron, gwen taylor, joanna van gyseghem and neil stacy keith laughs and adds, 'taxi drivers used to shout at me, 'have you got your leg over yet?' and i'd say 'no' we all knew if i got my leg over there'd be no show it was all about the pursuit' no wonder then hot on the heels of the rejuvenated sitcom birds of a feather a new stage show is bringing duty free back to life 'when they first approached me about it i thought, 'what took you so long?'' says keith, 79, who's been popping up in everything from dci banks to benidorm ever since 'we enjoyed the success of it so much i just thought, 'i have to do it'' but gwen, 75, who was given her own sitcom, barbara, after duty free finished, almost turned it down joanna van gyseghem who played linda, the object of david's affections, was unable to do it because she'd just become a grandmother to twins but she's been replaced by carol royle while neil stacy returns as robert 'i was worried that without joanna the whole thing would be unbalanced but carol is wonderful,' says gwen we meet just five days into rehearsals 'the first week has been a bit awful,' says keith, lowering his voice 'it's been a bit messy,' adds gwen 'people assume we don't need to bother getting to know the characters but it was 30 years ago and there's been a fair bit of crying,' she adds 'getting back together has been really moving; this show meant so much to us it made us household names and that's an amazing thing' the new show, last of the duty free, picks up the story 30 years on surprisingly, given that they've barely seen each other for 30 years, their easy chemistry makes gwen and keith seem like they really have been married for decades 'we've spoken a bit but not really stayed in touch' says keith, 'that's the odd thing about the business you take up where you left off it's strange' the new show, last of the duty free, picks up the story 30 years on david has bumped into linda at a train station in england and the two have planned a secret rendezvous at the spanish hotel where their frustrated love affair first started but then their spouses find out; and all four find themselves back in spain three decades on means 30 years older though, and at the rehearsal studio today both are carefully avoiding the low sofa 'you'll never get up from that,' gwen warns keith 'oh, it's terrible we're old now,' says keith 'yes, we've got aches in our knees and our hips,' adds gwen 'when i see old episodes of the show i look so beautiful and young that i can't bear it' the play has been penned by original duty free writer eric chappell, and he knows his leading pair well enough to incorporate some of their own characteristics into it 'i can be a bit rude at times,' says gwen, who's married to playwright graham reid in real life 'i do come out with things and then think, 'oh no, i shouldn't have said that'' keith, who has two sons with his stage designer wife mary pickard, admits he empathises with david's constant fibbing 'i think most men lie,' he shrugs 'it's the quest for something better in life i think david would like to be staying at the ritz if he'd heard of the ritz; he's always trying to climb out of the situation he is in 'our characters were from the common herd we are everyman and everywoman and people used to like seeing us getting one over on the posh people' keith barron 'our characters were from the common herd we are everyman and everywoman and people used to like seeing us getting one over on the posh people it was a show families would watch together because there was never any sex in it they don't really make sitcoms for families now' the show required a certain amount of suspension of disbelief; essentially the group were on the same holiday for over two years and the series never actually made it to spain (although one christmas special was partly filmed there) because of budget constraints the resort was replicated at yorkshire television studios money was so tight there was only one bedroom with curtains and soft furnishings being changed between scenes depending on who was supposed to be sleeping there with the success of sitcoms like rev and miranda, could a tv comeback be next for duty free if all goes well on tour? 'i say yes, but quietly,' says keith 'at the moment i'm more concerned about trying to get ready for the tour' 'i'd be worried about high definition,' adds gwen 'it's so cruel and shows every flaw even the most beautiful girls look flawed on it' keith grabs gwen's hand as if they'd skipped over 28 years in a heartbeat, 'oh, but darling, you look lovely' the uk tour of last of the duty free opens on tuesday at the theatre royal, windsor for more information and tickets, visit wwwkenwrightcom | expressive epistemolog fantasts | no related information |
by james peachey emma thompson says she very much enjoyed her kissing scenes with pierce brosnan in their new movie the love punch emma thompson seems to be suffering some sort of mid life romantic crisis first she pronounced that dancing with prince charles was 'better than sex', then she told us all how the perm she'd had for her role as mary poppins author pl travers in movie saving mr banks had put a serious dent in her love life now, she's positively drooling over pierce brosnan, her co star in comedy heist movie the love punch 'we play a divorced couple and had some kissing scenes to do,' explains emma 'i just kept messing up the scene in so many different ways, as often as i could, because pierce was such a good kisser and i didn't want the scene to end when we finally got it right, pierce turned to me and said, “have we been kissing all day?” and i said, rather sheepishly, “well yes, i rather think we have” 'but how can you resist pierce?! he has an enormous amount of glamour but he's also very surprising to the point where you suddenly expect him to whip out some knitting he has the most extraordinary grace he's like a ballerina, he has this remarkable way of moving and yet he can also sit there and do the crossword and be very normal' 'you can't really be a movie star if you can't walk or run and some people just can't i don't mean they can't get about, they obviously can, but you don't want to watch them moving about because they aren't attractive when they do so, they don't do it with grace pierce does that's why he was such a successful bond watching him move in that role was so wonderful' emma looking younger than her 54 years is cast as kate, the ex wife of pierce's character richard in the love punch the couple have been divorced for eight years following richard's numerous affairs but are brought together again by unfortunate circumstances 'richard's company is stripped of its assets all their income that's paying for their children's education, the mortgages on their respective homes, is taken from them,' explains emma 'they join forces to try and gain revenge on the businessman who asset stripped the company and who's spent £10 million on a diamond for his fiancée stealing the gem, and selling it, would solve richard and kate's financial problems so they travel to france to try and pinch it' emma thompson with her husband greg wise at an after party for the closing night gala european premiere of saving mr banks aided and abetted by their best friends jerry and pen (timothy spall and celia imrie), they become unlikely burglars, intent on stealing back the diamond by whatever means necessary working as home counties versions of the pink panther also reawakens the passion between them, although even at the beginning of the movie there's not a lot of animosity between richard and kate 'the truth is, she's more amused by his failed relationships with much younger women than upset by them she thinks he's nicer than he used to be and much less of a twit 'there was an earlier draft of the script where the couple had only been divorced for a short while and there was still a lot of rage and pain between them but i think this works better, it's lighter and it's funnier this movie is about lifting people's spirits and god knows that's what we all need from time to time! 'also, i wonder whether we haven't stumbled on something important here richard and kate have taken a proper break from their marriage, a beneficial break, and i wonder whether this isn't the way forward for a lot of married couples? you look at it and think that maybe every marriage should have a kind of sabbatical, that couples should be forced to take a break from each other every so often, if just for a year or so it's actually not a bad idea' 'you look at it and think that maybe every marriage should have a kind of sabbatical, that couples should be forced to take a break from each other every so often it's actually not a bad idea' she's warming to her theme now 'you need to go off perhaps, although not to be with other people i think that would make things very difficult: that free love stuff has been tried and tested and doesn't work and has been proven to make relationships very, very tricky but i'm sure a sabbatical could work if it were done properly the love punch proves it it's about two people who know each other very, very well coming back together again and loving each other in a different kind of way second time around' so is emma thinking of taking a sabbatical from her own marriage to actor greg wise, whom she met when they were both appearing in the 1995 movie sense and sensibility? 'oh no,' she says, looking somewhat shocked 'i'm not talking about myself, i'm talking in general terms about long term relationships' she's equally matter of fact on the subject of holding grudges, the kind that drive kate and richard to seek revenge in the love punch emma thompson and pierce brosnan as kate and richard in love punch twice an oscar winner for her performance in howards end in 1992 and for her script for sense and sensibility, you might imagine there are people in emma's life against whom she might legitimately hold a grudge kenneth branagh, perhaps, her first husband, whose affair with actress helena bonham carter on the set of frankenstein put the skids under his marriage to emma in the early 90s? but no, she says, grudges just aren't her thing 'i don't hold grudges i really ought to hold them slightly more i'm rubbish at them it's actually one of my best qualities, not to hold grudges i have many vile characteristics but that's quite a nice one frankly, i haven't got the energy it takes a lot of energy to hold on to grudges and i don't really see the point of them' what she does see the point of is making a sequel to the love punch, if the opportunity arises she clearly had a ball filming this first movie, which was shot entirely on location in france 'i was surprised, in particular, at how much i enjoyed all the action scenes, whether it was playing beach volleyball, slipping into a rubber diving suit or driving a car very fast through the streets of paris the highlight was definitely the driving 'i was allowed to do a lot of it and i had pierce sitting next to me in the passenger seat as i manoeuvred this car down a very steep flight of steps he was genuinely frightened at the prospect of tipping over imagine that! stunt driving with an ex james bond beside you, and he's the one that's frightened! 'i've definitely got the taste for a full on action movie now maybe, if enough people come to see this film and it makes enough money, we could do a sequel where jerry and pen are on holiday in some exotic location, and richard and kate have to rescue them from pirates? i'd be keen to do that' james peachey the love punch is in cinemas from friday and will be available on dvd and blu ray from 18 august | emma thompson the love punch pierce brosnan | emma thompson returns to cinema screens in a new film the love punch . here she tells us about kissing scenes with the irresistible pierce brosnan . she says that a break from marriage can be a beneficial thing |
by craig hope follow @@craighope01 chelsea's premier league game against sunderland has been moved forward by one day to help jose mourinho's quest for champions league glory the blues were drawn to play atletico madrid in the semi final of the competition with the first leg scheduled for tuesday, april 22 in the spanish capital that match was scheduled to take place just 48 hours after chelsea's home game with sunderland euro march: chelsea will be given more time to prepare for their champions league tie at atletico swap: chelsea will now face sunderland on saturday april 19, a day earlier than scheduled but the premier league has now confirmed that the fixture has been brought forward to saturday tea time and a 530pm kick off and will be shown live on sky sports hull city versus arsenal will now take place on sunday, april 20 with kick off at 205pm and will also be shown live on sky sports the move affords chelsea an extra day to prepare for their trip to spain the return leg at stamford bridge on wednesday, april 30 comes three days after chelsea's away fixture at liverpool on the road: arsenal's visit to hull has been pushed back a day to sunday 20 april still standing: chelsea drew atletico madrid in the last four of the champions league | chelsea v sunderland sky sports hull v arsenal chelsea champions league atletico madrid stamford bridge liverpool | chelsea v sunderland moved from sunday 20 april to saturday 19 april . game will kick off at 530pm and remain on sky sports . hull v arsenal shifted from saturday 19 april to sunday 20 april . move allows chelsea more time to prepare for champions league semi . chelsea travel to atletico madrid for first leg on tuesday 22 april . second leg of tie at stamford bridge on wednesday 30 april . liverpool v chelsea on sunday 27 april unaffected |
by christopher stevens we're a nation of hoarders, but drew pritchard might inspire you to take a closer look at your clutter his tv show salvage hunters proves that junk can be priceless if it has the 'x factor' drew, 43, is no ordinary antiques trader he describes himself as a 'decorative salvage dealer', scouring collections and hoards everywhere from country houses to bric a brac shops, in search of things to renovate he has an eye for the pieces other dealers miss, and his discerning clients who include fashion designer ralph lauren, chef marco pierre white and hollywood star jim carrey trust his taste in the unusual drew pritchard on the hunt for hidden treasures a typical drew find might be a rusty arc lamp or a vintage barber's shop chair or even part of a building, such as a gargoyle he got his eye for art from his father, a painter who taught him about perspective, scale and form 'i still can't paint,' he admits with a laugh, 'but i can look at something and know at a glance whether it's right or wrong' he insists he never overthinks what to buy 'it's very organic, i just let it happen,' he says at 15 he set out on a lifelong treasure hunt, learning how to find buyers and turn a profit he and his wife rebecca now sell all over the world from their warehouse in conwy, north wales, and in january they opened a stand at the liberty department store on regent street in london 'this is the best job in the world i get to wander round beautiful buildings, and buy something wonderful i own it for a brief space of time and then i make my living out of it' 'that was a fluke,' drew says 'the head buyer of liberty called into my warehouse when he was on holiday he didn't even know i had a tv show!' most antiques traders are well aware of drew's television fame this week sees the start of the show's fourth series and that creates its own problems 'i don't mind getting recognised, and it doesn't really push the prices up in fact, some people want to strike a deal just because they love the show but i do end up with things i sometimes didn't intend to buy, because so many youngsters approach me with their discoveries they've found something unusual, and i want to encourage their passion for antiques, so we end up haggling and i end up paying that's ok, because it's helping to shape the next generation of salvage hunters' the new series sees drew uncover an aladdin's cave above a shropshire pub, where the landlord has been collecting oddities for 50 years 'i'm a hoarder,' confesses alan east, 77, who runs the yew tree inn 'it goes back to the war you didn't throw anything away' the rooms upstairs, which once might have been let by the night to travellers, are now over stuffed museums packed with the unexpected such as a 19th century three cornered hat with ostrich plumes, and a velveteen dress uniform that would not have looked out of place on the cover of the beatles' sgt pepper album drew's celebrity clients include fashion designer ralph lauren (left) and chef marco pierre white (right) but drew's eye picks out an oak box that contains a bizarre edwardian apparatus for delivering electric shocks to treat psychiatric illnesses it's just the sort of puzzling contraption, all cables and dials with brass levers, that might turn up in any junk shop with a £5 tag but the right buyer might pay a hundred times that that nose for a bargain uncovers all sorts of unlikely gems in a barn on the grounds of a georgian manor house in wales, drew sees a battered armchair lying upside down its stuffing is slashed and two legs have snapped off most people would take one look and sling it on a bonfire, but drew pays £150 even his wife thinks he's taken leave of his senses, until it emerges from his renovation workshop with all four legs suddenly, the chair is a classic, and worth an estimated £550 he has to be quick off the mark to find the best pieces, and be prepared to go wherever the treasure is hidden 'last week i got an email from a friend about a mill in halifax, with some photos of carts made out of pony skins huge square things, with massive cast iron wheels, 160 years old we were there next morning and bought 16 you've got to get in the car, know what they're worth to you and have the money ready the only downside is the amount of driving it's often five hours on the road' on a visit to kevin marshall, who runs what some say is britain's best junk shop in kingston upon hull, drew falls in love with a chair from a traditional barber's shop it's child sized and decorated with a metal horse's head to keep young customers amused while they were getting a short back and sides kevin is reluctant to part with it, but drew knows that many visitors to his stand at liberty would happily pay £1,500 to buy it for their own young family a deal is soon sealed 'i'm so lucky,' drew enthuses 'this is the best job in the world i get to wander round beautiful buildings, see antique collections that are like time capsules, and buy something wonderful i own it for a brief space of time and then i make my living out of it' so next time you think of clearing out your attic, just remember one man's junkyard is another man's fortune salvage hunters, wednesday, 9pm, quest (sky 167, virgin 172) | salvage hunters sky drew | a new series of salvage hunters starts this wednesday on sky . this time round drew is facing a bigger challenge with a hoarder . the programme may inspire you to rifle through your junk |
by monty don working with my hands has always given me a deep satisfaction, and the physical, tactile skills of gardening are an essential part of its pleasure, regardless of which plants i'm growing for ten years in the 1980s my wife sarah and i ran a jewellery company, designing all the pieces ourselves and, for the first few years before the business grew, making them all too sarah had studied jewellery design but i had to learn on the job one of my regrets is that i didn't maintain my silversmithing skills, because i loved working with that sublime metal monty says that it's essential for us to preserve our ancient crafts before they die out but i became swept up in the desk based business of making a living rather than making objects the truth is that the demands of a professional craft require absolute dedication the half hearted soon get found out making things matters we were once a nation that made everything from buttons to ships now we make hardly anything, and we are losing the sense of self worth that comes with doing something well yourself this loss often extends to whole communities but i believe many of us still have a hankering to learn the skills necessary to make things we can be proud of i became convinced of this while filming a new series called monty don's real craft in it we follow three very skilled, keen amateurs in six different crafts on an intensive month long course aimed at raising their skills to a professional level, culminating in a competition for a prestigious commercial commission stone mason, brad steele at work the crafts in this series are blacksmithing, stonemasonry, weaving, pottery, furniture making and glass blowing each was led by a master craftsman who lived and worked with the trainees cheek by jowl, guiding and overseeing their work, acting as mentor, instructor and, at times, brutally harsh adjudicator of their efforts the results were fascinating all the hopefuls were shocked to realise the gulf between the amateur and the working professional a prime example was when aidan mcevoy a surrey based cabinet maker who creates furniture of breathtaking quality for clients including the royal family set his three trainees, richard, 46, jodie, 32, and daniel, 30, the task of making a box in four hours they showed, i thought, remarkable skill and application, though none had finished when aidan called time one by one he picked their work apart 'look at this,' he said, peering at one of jodie's dovetail joints 'this relentless pursuit of excellence was ingrained into them all, in every craft, for 10 12 hours a day, seven days a week' 'this is half a millimetre out there's a gap you could drive a car through' it must be pointed out that this half millimetre gap would be permanently hidden inside the box 'but i know it's there,' said aidan, 'and you know and in 60 years that joint might give when i make furniture i want someone to treasure it in at least 100 years' time' within half an hour of arriving at the glass blowing works in trowbridge, wiltshire, trainees kira, 39, bee, 24, and james, 24, were asked by master glass blower jim adlington to make a pair of identical wine glasses i'd had a go at making a glass bowl and know that handling the molten glass is desperately tricky they struggled bravely but for the most part hopelessly making just one good one was tough making two the same seemed impossible but, as jim pointed out, people buy glasses in sets there seemed to be a mountain for them to climb to even begin to achieve the standard expected sam, 30, stephane, 41, and jo, 28, worked for days making mouldings to replace 500 year old stones from worcester cathedral, thrilled their work would stand for centuries alongside medieval craftsmanship the results were astonishingly good but not good enough, according to mentor brad steele all three were rejected as unworthy to stand with the work of any of the masons who'd worked on the cathedral through the ages this relentless pursuit of excellence was ingrained into them all, in every craft, for 10 12 hours a day, seven days a week trainee blacksmith, sally, gets to work they spent their days in a strange combination of mental and physical exhaustion, and exhilaration at getting expert tutelage in the thing they loved most at any point they could have given up; a couple did but most persevered, despite sometimes feeling hopelessly out of their depth sally, 23 a petite mother from lancashire had trained as a farrier, making and fitting shoes for horses, but broke her back in an accident this meant farriering with its intense bursts of activity requiring great strength and awkward crouching to pick up hooves was no longer possible but she took to the steadier rhythms of blacksmithing general metalwork using an anvil and hammer with fierce determination despite desperately missing her baby daughter and constant pain from her injured back likewise joel, her fellow trainee, at 28 recovering from me and at times looking dangerously exhausted, gave himself wholeheartedly to the hours of physical labour shaping the hot metal, eventually transforming himself as well as his skills it was hard but for all of them, from the glassblowers making spectacular chandeliers for the hotel chain hotel du vin, to the weavers creating woven bags for smart menswear retailer hackett and the potters making a porcelain tea service for the chic goring hotel in london's belgravia, it was a transformative experience other than the two who decided to leave, all our trainees made scarcely believable improvements some will go on to new careers in their chosen crafts this series shows our hunger for excellence hasn't been blunted by modern consumerism the crafts passed on through the centuries are still vital, and their mastery provides a life richer and more rewarding than anything money can buy monty don's real craft, mondays, 9pm, more 4 | monty britain | in a new series monty explores britain's hidden crafts . he says we were once a nation who made everything now we make nothing . he wants to preserve some of these forgotten crafts before they die out |
by anna hodgekiss keith ballantine was struck down with guillain barre syndrome after consuming too many liquorice allsorts which gave him an upset stomach a grandfather who got an upset stomach after eating too many of his favourite sweets developed a rare nerve condition that left him paralysed keith ballantine was struck down with guillain barre syndrome after consuming too many liquorice allsorts which gave him an upset stomach doctors believe the antibodies he produced to fight the upset stomach caused his body to react badly and mr ballantine, from worcester, then developed the deadly nerve disease within weeks, he was completely paralysed and only now, a year later, has he managed to relearn to walk again the 68 year old said: 'i ate a whole packet of liquorice allsorts in one sitting they were always my favourite treat 'i ended up having a bit of an upset tummy, and a week later, i was struggling to get out of bed 'it’s been an absolute nightmare i lost three stone in a month and it’s taken me a year to start walking again' he first noticed something was wrong shortly after eating the sweets when he couldn’t turn the ignition in his car 'my thumb felt weak but i brushed it off as old age just as i did when i lost the feeling in my feet' after struggling to get out of bed the following week , his wife jennifer, 64, took him to their gp in september 2012 his condition deteriorated rapidly as he lost feeling in almost all of his body and he was admitted to hospital while doctors frantically tried to diagnose his mystery illness it was only when a doctor asked him whether he had had been unwell in the previous weeks and he remembered his stomach bug that he realised gbs was a possibility as a former nurse, he was aware of the symptoms and knew the seriousness of the situation doctors believe the antibodies mr ballantine (with wife jennifer) produced to fight the upset stomach caused his body to react badly triggering the debilitating nerve disease gbs usually occurs when antibodies produced by the immune system to fight an infection also start attacking the nervous system although it only affects one in every 40,000 people, sufferers normally lose mobility and spend months in rehabilitation relearning to use their limbs guillain barre (pronounced ghee lan bar ray) syndrome is a rare but serious condition of the nerves that control the body's senses and movements it affects about 1,500 people in the uk every year and is slightly more common in men than women it causes the immune system (the body’s natural defence against infection and illness) to attack these nerves, causing them to become inflamed symptoms include a tingly, numb sensation in the arms and legs which can result in a loss of feeling and movement most people who develop it have suffered from a viral or bacterial infection a few weeks before around 80 per cent of people make a full recovery within a few weeks or months, and do not have any further problems such as permanent nerve damage for more information: wwwgbsorguk consultant neurologist dr john winer is an expert on gbs and how it develops he said: 'in 75 per cent of cases of gbs there is a history of infection and that can be caused by either bacteria or a virus 'we can identify which infection gbs developed from in half of all cases, but we don’t understand it completely and in a large number of cases, the cause of the gbs is unclear 'there are hundreds and hundreds of infections which are incriminated as triggers although some are more likely than others' caroline morrice, director of the guillain barré support charity, gain, said: “this is a matter of much research and the causes of gbs just aren’t always known 'however it definitely could have been related to these liquorice allsorts “but it’s like all rare illnesses we need to do more research to help people such as keith' after his three month stint in worcester royal hospital, keith left hospital in december still in a wheelchair it was another four months before he could take his first steps unaided thanks to a painful course of physiotherapy and he now tries to walk a mile a day within weeks, mr banantine was completely paralysed and it has taken him a year to walk again amazingly, keith has made an almost complete full recovery and has just begun driving again he said: 'although i’m not the man i was, there’s no point crying 'why me?' i’ve just been very unlucky 'if you’d asked me two years ago which, of all the illnesses i could get, which one would scare me most, i would have said gbs 'there’s something about this illness, it’s so horrible i really feared it i’m just so thankful that my family have been there to support me through my recovery' the 68 year old said: 'i ate a whole packet of liquorice allsorts in one sitting they were always my favourite treat but the last year has been a nightmare' | keith ballantine guillain barre syndrome weeks a year | keith ballantine ate whole bag of sweets in one go, upsetting his stomach . doctors believe the antibodies he produced to fight infection may have, in turn, triggered nerve condition guillain barre syndrome . within weeks, he was paralysed and it has taken a year for him to recover . back to mail online home . back to the page you came from |
by daily mail reporter for most parents, having grandma take care of the children once in a while is a godsend but it seems she may not be sharing the benefits – at least not if she does it too often looking after the children for five days a week or more can make grandmas less mentally sharp, a study claimed yesterday staying sharp: grandparents who look after their grandchildren once a week stay mentally alert for longer, research has found it found those who did so performed poorly in a test of working memory and mental processing speed however, grannies who looked after the children just once a week showed improved mental agility margery gass of the north american menopause society, which published the study in its journal, said: ‘we know that older women who are socially engaged have better cognitive function and a lower risk of developing dementia later but too much of a good thing just might be bad’ the research, carried out by the women’s healthy aging project, looked at 120 australian grandmothers aged 57 to 68 each woman was given three tests of mental sharpness nana knows best: caring for children was found to have a particularly positive effect on grandmothers those who spent one day a week taking care of their grandchildren performed best in two of the tests but those who lent a hand for five days or more fared significantly worse in the test that looked at working memory and mental processing speed the researchers also found that the more time grandmothers spent taking care of the grandchildren, the more they felt their own children had been demanding of them this suggests that mood may have affected the result the investigators are already following up the project with more research although other studies have examined the relationship between mental sharpness and being socially engaged, this is the first to look at how it affects grandmothers after the menopause, women are at an increased risk of developing alzheimer’s and other cognitive disorders ‘because grandmothering is such an important and common social role for postmenopausal women, we need to know more about its effects on their future health,’ said dr gass ‘this study is a good start’ | alzheimers five days | grandparents benefit from looking after children once a week . researchers found it increases mental sharpness, combating alzheimers . however if tasked with childcare five days a week it is detrimental . back to mail online home . back to the page you came from |
by lizzie edmonds published: 03:51 est, 20 september 2013 | updated: 10:08 est, 21 september 2013 a motorist was hit with a £70 parking fine after pulling over for just seven seconds to drop off his elderly mother in law ian hardman, 58, fell foul of a council run spy car when he stopped in an empty taxi rank to let 82 year old audrey harrison out he later received a letter from bolton council, giving him 28 days to pay the fine – which works out as £10 for every second of his good deed stopped: mr hardman's car is pictured pulling over on bolton high street at 142228 driving off: in this next picture, the driver is about to pull away in his car at 142235 close up: the images were taken by a council 'spy car' parked a few metres away the council run car recorded the moment mr hardman stopped his ford focus at the side of the road that afternoon at 1422 and 28 seconds it then took a second snap of mrs harrison getting out of the car at 1422 and 33 seconds before grabbing a third photo as her son in law was driving away at 1422 and 35 seconds the retired firefighter received a four page letter from bolton council saying he was guilty of ‘parking contravention’ and was given 28 days to pay the fine the council refused his appeal, warning that parking for just a few seconds could have prevented a cab driver from picking up a fare if he had parked just yards further up the road in a loading bay, he would have avoided the penalty notice pay up: mr hardman received a letter from bolton council saying he was guilty of a 'parking contravention' today mr hardman joined other drivers who also fell foul of the spy car by complaining to bolton council claiming motorists were being targeted as 'cash cows' mr hardman, who is a blue badge holder and registered disabled due to a spinal injury he suffered when in the fire service, said he had never been given a parking ticket before he said: 'people talk about the death of the british high street and it’s hardly surprising when the people in authority allow this sort of thing to happen penalty charge: the driver thought this letter he received from bolton council 'was a joke' 'it just puts you off going into town for fear of being spied on by these council snoopers 'when the fine came through the post my first reaction was just to be very angry i have never been in trouble in my life and never even had a parking ticket 'i thought it was a joke i could have just pulled over on the road but i thought i did the right thing by getting off the road and not causing an obstruction to other traffic 'the taxi rank was empty anyway it was two in the afternoon, not in the rush hour or peak time and there was not a soul waiting for a cab 'i didn’t even turn my engine off how can you get a parking fine when you haven’t even parked up? it has all been a big shock it took me a while to realise what the offence was and when i did i burst out laughing 'the council must be very hard up if they’re charging people for seven seconds it is just ridiculous whoever has seen this and then sent it out ought to be demoted 'our town centre is dead now, full of charity shops and empty buildings and it’s no wonder shoppers don’t want to come here any more because of these jobsworths' local shopkeepers near the layby in knowsley street said bolton council’s camera car, which films from inside a small toyota iq car, has been located at the layby for weeks trying to catch out motorists one driver complained after pulling up for 12 seconds to drop off his wife and daughter in the same area ilyas dajkatar, who runs royal cafe in knowsley street, said: 'lots and lots of drivers, more than 100, have been caught 'i got a ticket when i popped into the shop with a small delivery a couple of weeks ago i can’t believe that they are trying to catch people out like this 'when i got my fine i had been stopped for less than 20 seconds i think it is affecting business when people are so worried about parking then it puts them off coming into town' 'spy car': the vehicles, which are fitted with cctv cameras, have been called council 'cash cows' by critics the council said parking and stopping, for any time, in taxi ranks contravenes the highway code a bolton council spokesman said: 'the taxi rank is reserved for the use of hackney carriage drivers only and no other vehicles are permitted to stop there 'we acknowledge this driver may feel that the fine is unfair because he was there for only a short period of time however, the taxi rank is clearly signed and stopping in the rank, even for a few seconds, could prevent a taxi from parking and picking up a fare' today, figures released by car insurance company lv showed that motorists are being stung by almost 900,000 parking fines a month at a cost of £30million this is an increase of 4 per cent on the previous year the figures also showed that tickets issued on sundays have increased by 13 per cent – with nearly 300,000 tickets issued on that day of the week in the first five months of 2013 the aa have said that traffic wardens often target sunday church goers and choristers mr hardman is just one of a string of drivers hit with fines from the so called 'cctv cars' the camera cars were originally introduced to provide traffic safety outside schools, but have been increasingly used to capture motorists who park illegally even for a few seconds there have been reports of drivers who didn't even stop their vehicles being fined in may, a london council was accused of ordering the 'spy' cars to hit minimum targets for issuing penalty notices despite the practice being illegal the alleged policy, carried out on behalf of haringey council in north london, was revealed in a series of leaked emails and showed that the cars were told to issue at least 260 fines a day the council denied imposing a 87,360 per year quota for fines in march, the communities secretary eric pickles said he wanted to put an end to the 'over zealous culture of parking enforcement' he said that shoppers visiting the high street should no longer be hit with fines for stopping at the local shop for 10 minutes | kuar chatelaines bear | no related information |
by bianca london published: 06:30 est, 18 june 2013 | updated: 12:41 est, 18 june 2013 it was the most high profile modelling moment of 2012 when ten year old romeo beckham was unveiled as the star of burberry's spring/summer 2013 campaign alongside cara delevingne and edie campbell chief creative officer christopher bailey famously said the youngster 'stole she show' during the photoshoot, despite it being his first professional job and now, the king of burberry has spoken out again to praise the budding model's 'impeccable taste' in clothing scroll down for video good taste runs in the family: burberry's chief creative officer christopher bailey has spoken out about romeo beckham's 'impeccable taste' ahead of the london collection: men's show this afternoon bailey revealed that fashion designer victoria's son is just as enamored with a passion for fashion as she is he enthused: 'romeo loves fashion, completely loves it he had a real opinion; he was so involved in what he was wearing 'and he was so well mannered and humble he would never say, 'i don't like this', but he would say, 'hmm, maybe something else' he has impeccable taste' it was a risk using such a young model on the shoot which also starred british beauties cara delevingne and edie campbell but christopher believes romeo is a credit to his parents david and victoria and made the experience a 'dream' entertainer: young beckham entertained the likes of cara delevingne on set and it is no wonder that bailey said he 'stole she show' despite it being his first professional job passion for fashion: bailey said the youngster had a great eye for clothes and would give his own style input when it came to dressing for the shoot the fashion mogul added in an interview with the sunday times newspaper: 'he was an absolute dream to work with honestly, he is the sweetest genuinely, so well brought up 'i've known victoria and those guys for quite a long time; they are just lovely, grounded, gentle, well mannered little kids' christopher also shared some kind words about it girl of the moment cara delevingne, who has been recently grabbing showbiz headlines for the wrong reasons grounded family: bailey has known victoria and the family for quite a long time and describes them as 'just lovely, grounded, gentle, well mannered little kids' he said: 'cara is uber professional she enjoys it she has no airs and graces at all, and she is very kind' bailey was speaking on the day of the burberry prorsum menswear show, which has returned from milan to london and was showcased as part of london collections: men the star studded front row saw tinie tempah, dermot o'leary, douglas booth and suki waterhouse gather to marvel the colour cropped macs and strong knits in summer sorbots complimentary: he also described cara delevingne, posing here in her first burberry campaign with eddie redmayne in 2012, as uber professional and very kind catwalk: colour cropped macs and strong knits in summer sorbots were the order of the day at the burberry men's spring/summer 14 show star studded: tinie tempah, douglas booth, serena williams, sergio pizzorno, anders thomsen, suzy menkes, jefferson hack sat front row | burberry christopher bailey said cara delevingne ' | burberry chief creative officer christopher bailey praised youngster . said he has 'impeccable taste' and his parents should be proud . also branded cara delevingne 'uber professional and kind' |
by sam webb published: 04:12 est, 17 june 2013 | updated: 06:24 est, 17 june 2013 with £6million in his back pocket, you'd think stephen hester would be able to afford the finest home furnishings money can buy so it's a bit of a surprise that the 52 year old former chief executive of rbs has been making trips to budget furniture store ikea the banker has been spotted carrying his belongings in one of the chain's distinctive bright blue bags while on holiday in the south of france with his wife suzy neubert flat pack millionaire: former rbs chief stephen hester was spotted with his belongings in a bag from budget furniture chain ikea, despite his £6m severance package break: mr hester arrived in the south of france with his second wife suzy neubert he received the seven figure sum enough to buy a million £6 lack tables from the popular swedish store as a golden goodbye from the bank, which is 81 per cent owned by the taxpayer after a £45billion bailout the keen huntsman is on a golfing holiday at the £1,000 a night royal mougins resort near cannes after leaving the bank last week this cost conscious choice of shop is especially surprising considering he enjoyed an annual salary of about £12million while heading the bank, as well as long term incentives linked to shares he owns a 350 acre estate in oxfordshire and a ski chalet in verbier, switzerland hardly the ideal setting for a £20 mdf side table mr hester is on a golfing holiday at the £1,000 a night exclusive royal mougins resort near cannes after leaving the bank a £25 expedit bookcase from ikea (right) with £6million, he could buy 240,000 units he is on a golfing holiday at the £1,000 a night royal mougins resort near cannes in the french riviera he was brought in to run the bank after the treasury was forced to bail out rbs during the financial crisis five years ago, but chancellor george osborne believes he is not the right person to guide the bank through privatisation speculation has been rife that mr hester’s departure from rbs reflected a split with mr osbourne over the timing or structure of privatisation or perhaps a concern that the government was about to revive plans to break up rbs into a 'good' bank and a 'bad' bank however, he insists there has been no falling out and claimed he did not feel any anger over the manner of his departure, adding: ‘i don’t want to show frustration, i don’t want to punch someone in the eye ‘i haven’t hidden from anyone that i am torn a bit at this juncture ‘part of me did want to see the job fully through, did want the champagne and roses of a successful privatisation another part of me thought, “goodness me, this job drives me nuts from time to time and how long do i want to do it for?”' mr hester speaking to the parliamentary commission on banking standards earlier this year he added: 'i genuinely mean i am comfortable with what has happened rbs is in much better shape than we had any right to think it could be i want the company to have a good future and i want to pass the baton on smoothly and without rancour or difficulty i am happy with this result’ more than £1billion was wiped off the value of the government's stake in royal bank of scotland in the wake of the dramatic departure last week replacing him is expected to take at least six months, with mr osborne reportedly sharing the rbs board’s view that the next chief executive must be prepared to stay on for at least five years mr hester split from his first wife in 2010 and is now married to mrs neubert, a wealth manager cannes, on the french riviera, appears to be a popular location for former rbs chiefs ex chief executive sir fred goodwin, who enjoys a £342,500 a year pension despite the bank's failures, has a villa in the prosperous french city the oxford educated banker enjoys hunting and is pictured here at the warwickshire hunt more than £1billion was wiped off the value of the government's stake in rbs after mr hester left stephen hester was named the new chief executive of royal bank of scotland in october 2008 as sir fred goodwin was ousted and the labour government made the first of two massive capital injections that eventually totalled £45billion to shore up the collapsing bank hester joined rbs from property giant british land where he had been chief executive, but he was a banker through and through a comprehensive education in yorkshire took him to oxford where he took a first in philosophy, politics and economics he then began a career in investment banking at credit suisse it was here, between 1982 and 2001, that he laid the foundations of his personal wealth and met his first wife, canadian born barbara abt hester came to prominence in british retail banking from 2002 when he joined abbey national, first as finance director and later as chief operating officer working alongside chief executive luqman arnold abbey had run into difficulties because of an expansion into wholesale banking which had backfired and lumbered the bank with toxic assets and spiralling losses arnold and hester stabilised the bank and in 2004 sold it to spanish giant santander after taking over at rbs, hester oversaw a major shrinking of the bank’s assets, tackled the libor scandal and suffered repeated public and political attacks over his bonuses, most of which he has been forced to waive | rbs hester 6million cannes french riviera | former rbs chief mr hester spotted with bag from budget chain . surprising choice for man who received a £6million severance package . he is on a golfing holiday near cannes in the french riviera |
by daily mail reporter published: 09:46 est, 19 august 2013 | updated: 14:53 est, 19 august 2013 'he hogs it': library director marie gandron wants to end 9 year old tyler weaver's five year reign over her library's children's reading contest a fifth grade boy just won his public library’s children’s reading club contest for the fifth year in a row but instead of congratulating him, his librarian wants him banned from the contest hudson falls public library director marie gandron says 9 year old reading ace tyler weaver ‘hogs’ the annual competition and needs to step aside the self proclaimed ‘king of the reading club’ read 63 books for this summer’s dig into reading event between june 24 and august 3 and his unparalleled prowess has the other children scrambling to keep the pace ‘other kids quit because they can’t keep up,’ gandron told the post star over the last five years of contests, tyler has devoured an impressive 373 books at or above his reading level he accepted his fifth title on august 15 tyler has won the coveted prize every year since kindergarten he’s proud of his accomplishments and he’s not shy about saying it ‘it feels great,’ tyler said ‘i think that was actually a record breaking streak’ tyler’s mom katie concurs ‘i don’t see the downside of tyler winning five years in a row i think people should be proud of him, especially a library director,’ she said prizes he’s received over the years include an atlas, water bottle, and t shirt ‘they’re really not any grand things i think he just likes to be the top reader,’ said katie menace? 9 year old tyler weaver is about to start fifth grade and has won his library's reading contest since kindergarten but his library's director thinks it is time for him to relinquish his crown feud: the picturesque hudson falls library may be pretty on the outside, but strife in the children's section is making things ugly on the inside but gandron doesn’t seem to like it until katie made the controversy public, gandron wanted to change the rules so that winners are drawn from a hat instead of chosen by number of books read and this isn’t the first time the library director and katie have been embroiled in a reading contest dispute gandron told the post star that tyler’s mother has a bad ‘attitude’ toward the reading contest because several years ago a little girl claimed to have read 200 books though the mother backed up her daughter’s claims, it turned out they were both lying ‘that’s when we stopped [going on the parents’ word] because she wasn’t [reading the books],’ gandron said rigged? katie weaver, right, says her son deserves to keep competing but gandron says tyler's mom has an 'attitude' about the contest because of cheating by other kids in previous years now the participants are quizzed on each book they claim to have read to ensure they’re telling the truth the debate over tyler’s reading award has caused internal strife at the library, as well library aide lita casey, who tyler calls ‘gram,’ has taken tyler’s side over her boss’s and says tyler won the contest fair and square ‘my feeling is you work, you get it that’s just the way it is in anything,’ said casey, who’s worked at the library for 28 years dynasty: though katie has threatened to take her son's talents elsewhere, tyler's brother jonathan, right, may continue the family's reign he's won second place for the last two years it remained unclear how the feud would be resolved but katie maintains she’ll be taking her son’s reading skills elsewhere—to the crandall public library in glens falls meanwhile, taking tyler out of the running won’t necessarily end gandron’s troubles there may be a dynasty emerging in tyler’s 7 year old brother jonathan, who has now won second place for two years in a row | dwalm veinulets thrower | no related information |
by alex greig and daily mail reporter published: 00:59 est, 9 december 2013 | updated: 01:20 est, 9 december 2013 the campus police officer who shot dead an unarmed straight a student outside san antonio says he opened fire because he felt his life was in danger, it has been revealed corporal chris carter, who serves on the police force for the university of incarnate word, fired multiple shots and killed robert cameron redus, 23, about 2am friday after a routine traffic stop more than 200 people including redus' mother and father turned out a vigil sunday to mourn the uiw student and remember his short life my son: mother of robert cameron redus is hugged by emily vaughan, a friend of the family as people gather at the university of the incarnate word grotto as part of the vigil for cameron redus who was killed by a university police officer devastated: robert cameron redus' brother and father listen to tributes and prayers in his honor at a candlelight vigil college shooting: cameron redus was killed after a campus cop shot him multiple times during a traffic stop 'we are understandably devastated by the death of our dear son cameron and we ask for your prayers as we deal with our tragic loss,' his family said in a statement 'we trust that god is faithful and will see us through this most difficult time' cpl carter, the officer who killed redus, pulled the student over not far from campus in alamo heights because he was speeding and 'driving erratically,' according to police the officer, who has been placed on leave pending the outcome of the shooting investigation, has an 'extensive law enforcement background,' according to the university however, part of the background involves jumping from job to job on a regular basis, according to employment records obtained by the san antonio express news cpl carter has had nine jobs at eight different agencies over his eight year law enforcement career he rarely stayed in any job for more than a year and the two years and seven months as a campus officer for uiw was the longest stint in his career kvue tv reports that cpl carter has told investigators he feared for his life it's not clear what actions the unarmed redus took to make the officer believe he was in danger of being killed when redus pulled over at an apartment complex off broadway, police said redus got out of his truck and allegedly attacked carter a struggle ensued between the officer and redus before carter opened fire and fatally shot the student, police said memories: the ceremony included many remembrances from friends in the uiw community a candlelight vigil was also held on campus at the lourdes grotto redus' brother and mother can be seen on the right of the picture green is the color: a vigil was held inside the academic convocation center many in attendance either wore green clothing or a green ribbon as it was his favorite color redus' brother is seen here several of redus' friends spoke to the media derrick bryant said he knew redus most of his life the two went to high school together at the baytown christian academy 'he was the most intelligent, artistic, creative and genius mind i have ever come across,' bryant said, crying kyle leihsing, a san antonio native had been friends with redus for three years 'he was one of the most level headed people i've ever met what i have heard is completely counter intuitive to what i have known him to be,' he said, referring to accounts of redus initiating an altercation with the officer who shot him' 'there's just an outpouring of genuine grief among hundreds, if not thousands, of people in our community because he was so well liked and loved,' annie jones, a friend of redus, told kens 5 'our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the student and officer involved in this incident,' uiw president dr lou agnese said redus had moved to san antonio from baytown for school he went to baytown christian academy and graduated as co valedictorian honored: redus's father spoke at the vigil to remember his son come together: close friends of cameron redus come to a vigill many in attendance either wore green clothing or a green ribbon as it was his favorite color his academic success continued at uiw, where he had been named to the dean's list and was a part time anchor for the school's student newscast 'i grieve on behalf of his parents, because i know how devastated they are he was a sweet, sweet person,' said family friend annie jones a witness says he heard the sarcastic final words of a texas student moments before he was shot dead by a college police officer neighbour mohammad haidaras told my san antonio that he heard a tense exchange between redus and carter sixty seconds before shots rang out he told the website: 'i heard (a man) say, 'oh, you're gonna shoot me?' like sarcastic almost' the 22 year old claims he heard gunshots less than a minute later and jumped into his closet investigators say an altercation began when carter tried to pull redus over for speeding and driving erratically big turnout: family and friends of university of the incarnate word student robert cameron redus gather for a candlelight vigil and tribute feeling loss: the ceremony included many remembrances from friends in the uiw community a candlelight vigil was also held on campus at the lourdes grotto under investigation: the parking lot of redus' apartment block where he died is cordoned off by police lieutenant cindy pruitt of the alamo heights police department told ksat that the incident occurred about 2am in the parking lot of the tree house apartments in the 100 block of grandview place off broadway, where redus was a resident redus, known to friends by his second name cameron, had spent the evening celebrating the end of semester with classmates it is not clear where carter first tried to pull redus over, but both vehicles drove north on broadway until they pulled into the parking lot of the treehouse apartments once there, both got out of their cars and some kind of struggle ensued pruitt told my san antonio that carter radioed for help shortly before redus was shot a witness who lives in the treehouse apartments described hearing 'five or six' gunshots, but no verbal warnings 'i didn't hear him say anything like, 'get down on your hands and knees,' you know? i didn't hear him say anything he just started shooting,' the man told ksat 'he emptied the gun on him,' he said 'boom, boom, boom' scuffle: witnesses heard a short exchange between redus and the officer before shots were fired graduation in sight: redus was set to graduate from the university of the incarnate word in may not aggressive: cameron redus' friends and family can't understand how someone as gentle and kind as him could have been shot by a police officer mohammad haidarasl lives directly below redus at the treehouse apartments he told my san antonio that he was asleep on his sofa when he heard an exchange between redus and carter 'i heard [a man] say, 'oh, you're gonna shoot me?' like sarcastic almost,' he said less than a minute later, haidarasl heard four to six gunshots he only realized the man who had been shot was his upstairs neighbor, whom haidrasl described as 'the nicest guy' carter has been placed on administrative leave while officers investigate the shooting devastated: friends sarah davis (left) and annie jones (right) speak of their disbelief at the shooting of cameron redus celebration turns to tragedy: redus was out celebrating the end of semester before he died at the hands of a police officer officers investigating the incident haven't attempted to contact haidrasl about what he heard, haidrasl told my san antonio back in redus' hometown of baytown, the promising student's mother, father, brothers and friends are struggling to understand their loss 'we are understandably devastated by the death of our dear son cameron and we ask for your prayers as we deal with our tragic loss we trust that god is faithful and will see us through this most difficult time,' the victim's family said in a statement redus old friends from high school were shocked to hear the news 'he was so kind he’s not an aggressive person at all,' friend sara davis told khou 'the story doesn’t really make sense to any of us' 'he was an honor student, dean’s list every semester, incredibly intelligent,' said annie jones 'so, so, so smart he was our co valedictorian in high school' a vigil has been set for 7pm on saturday at the university of the incarnate word grotto according to abc, redus' family has hired an attorney | urethrostomy methodiser hydradephagan | no related information |
by bianca london published: 06:34 est, 9 december 2013 | updated: 07:11 est, 9 december 2013 looking to seal the deal with a colleague you have a crush on this festive season? you're not alone because nearly one million brits are heading to their christmas party in the hope of becoming closer to a colleague they fancy, according to a new study and it seems they may be in luck because two million brits have admitted to hooking up with a colleague at the december event looking to take the office flirtations to the next level? a new survey has revealed that 2 million brits have hooked up at the work christmas party of the 11 million people heading to events this week, those aged between 25 to 34 are the most likely to get lucky, with a presumptuous six per cent even considering booking a hotel room to continue the festive flirtations the study also found that over one million brits have admitted to doing the notorious ‘walk of shame’ going into work the next day wearing the same clothes from the night before presumptive 25 34 year olds are the most likely to get lucky, with 6 per cent even considering booking a hotel room however, it seems there may be a risk of embarrassment for some, with six per cent admitting to sleeping in a public place such as a bus stop or a train station after their work christmas party a spokesperson from hotelscom mobile app, who carried out the survey, said: 'after working longer hours and being more careful with spending over the year, it’s understandable that hard working brits want to let their hair down and the christmas party is the perfect opportunity for this to happen 'but while it’s fine to indulge, if you do find yourself getting into an embarrassing situation, having a phone handy can help get you away quickly and easily – from booking a cab to finding a hotel at the click of the button – so you don’t need to worry about explaining yourself to your colleagues the next day!' up all night to get lucky: of the 11 million brits heading to work events, nearly 1 million are going with the hope of sealing the deal with a colleague they fancy | 6% brits christmas this week | those aged between 25 34 are most . likely to get lucky . presumptuous 6% are considering booking a hotel room . 11m brits are heading to work christmas parties this week |
by mark duell and simon tomlinson published: 06:16 est, 4 april 2013 | updated: 10:59 est, 4 april 2013 jailed jobless father of 17 mick philpott was 'earning' the equivalent of a £100,000 salary in benefits and wages from his wife and live in lover, it emerged today the violent drug user forced wife mairead and mistress lisa willis to pay all their money from cleaning jobs and child tax credits into his bank account while he lounged on the settee watching tv but even that wasn't enough for the former soldier, who hatched a plan to frame miss willis for the fire which killed six of this children in an appalling attempt to secure a larger council house scroll down for video scrounger: mick philpott (pictured with his wife mairead, centre, his mother peggy, right, and sons jesse, right in green, and john, far right) claimed thousands of pounds in benefit and refused to get a job plot: over the past eight weeks, nottingham crown court has heard how the house was set on fire last may as part of a plan to frame mick philpott's former live in lover lisa willis details of his finances emerged as philpott, 56, mairead, 32, and their friend paul mosley, 46, were handed lengthy jail prison sentences after each were found guilty of six counts of manslaughter judge mrs justice thirlwall told philpott he 'did not even allow' his wife or lover 'their own door key' during the trial, nottingham crown court heard philpott had lost £1,000 a month when miss willis moved out of the family home in allenton, derby, with her five children he had been receiving a total of £8,02360 a year in child benefit, while mairead and miss willis were given £20,560 and £17,870 a year respectively, it was reported by the times the two women had cleaning jobs which brought in an extra £14,000 tragic: mick philpott (centre) hatched a plan to frame mistress lisa willis for the fire which killed six of his children philpott, who has not worked since 2004, also received an estimated £150 a week to cover the rent on their three bedroom house, bringing in a further £7,800 a year to take the total to around £67,000 child benefit philpott: £2030 a week for eldest son, £1340 for the other ten yearly total: £8,02360p working tax credits mairead: up to £20,560 a year for her six children lisa willis: up to £17,870 for her five children estimated earnings from their cleaning jobs: £14,000 yearly total: £38,430 housing benefit philpott: £150 a week yearly total: £7,800 estimated grand total: £68,000 this is the approximate take home pay of someone earning £100,000 as working tax credits and child benefits were paid tax free, his 'take home pay' could have been similar to a man earning around £100,000 a year, putting him in the top two per cent of earners mairead's sisters jennifer and bernadette told how they frequently tried to rescue her and the children from philpott's clutches after the household starting imploding when miss willis left they explained how mairead attempted suicide in the months before the fire jennifer lobban told panorama: 'we would try and get round there when he was doing the school run because we knew that he wouldn’t be in the house 'we told her that we could go to the school, we could go now; go take the kids from school we would get her out, but she just wouldn’t leave' philpott once allowed the eldest child, duwayne, 13, to have a sleepover at bernadette’s house bernadette said the little boy was in a terrible state, adding: 'mick said he hadn’t eaten for a week and i took him and my little boy out for a pizza i had never seen a child eat so fast in my life’ liar: mick (right) and mairead philpott appear to cry during a news conference at derby conference centre following a fire at their home which claimed the lives of six of his children over the past eight weeks, nottingham crown court has heard how they set fire to their house last may as part of a plan to frame philpott’s former live in lover miss willis she had walked out of the shared three bedroom semi in allenton, derby, with her five children and the thousands of pounds in benefits they were worth to philpott the fire was also set in an attempt to get a bigger council house, a demand philpott had infamously made six years earlier on the jeremy kyle show but the plan went tragically wrong, with the petrol fuelled blaze burning out of control | mick mairead lisa willis willis philpott 1,000 | mick forced wife mairead and mistress lisa willis to pay in all their money . judge tells him at sentencing: 'didn't even allow them their own door key'. then he hatched plan to frame willis in fire which killed six of his children . philpott lost £1,000 a month when she left family home with five children |
by sam webb and amie keeley published: 16:17 est, 25 november 2013 | updated: 09:21 est, 26 november 2013 she’s an aristocrat in name only but a little technicality like that wasn’t going to stop dame edna everage mixing with some very blue blooded friends last night dame edna was more than happy to pull up a seat next to prince charles and the duchess of cornwall during the annual royal variety performance the couple burst out laughing in delight as dame edna joined them in the royal box at the london palladium scroll down for video dame edna everage, played by austrlian comic barry humphries, took a seat in the royal box next to charles and camilla during this year's royal variety performance glamorous: the duchess of cornwall wore a midnight blue evening gown as she attended the glittering event camilla, duchess of cornwall meets singer jessie j as she attends the royal variety performance at the london palladium the prince of wales and duchess of cornwall also met legendary west end composer andrew lloyd webber at the london palladium they were seen joking with dame edna, played by 79 year old australian comedian barry humphries, who wore his trademark mauve wig and rhinestone glasses camilla wore a specially commissioned midnight blue evening gown by vivienne westwood her floor length midnight blue silk gown had scoop neck detail with textured fabric she teamed the frock with a matching purple silk shrug, matching silk court shoes in the same shade of blue and accessorised with a statement silver necklace the couple met legendary west end composer andrew lloyd webber at the london palladium, as well as singer and the voice judge jessie j liverpool comic john bishop hosted the evening which incorporates the best of british music, dance and comedy take that frontman gary barlow, the cast of the hit west end musical charlie and the chocolate factory, olly murs, dame edna everage and jazz musician carol emerald are on this year's bill figure skaters torvill and dean will mark the 30th anniversary of their olympic gold medal by taking part in the show and newly discovered dance act attraction won themselves a place on stage after coming first in tv reality show britain's got talent us singer mary j blige, cockney singers chas & dave and the cast from the upcoming spoof x factor musical are also on the line up prince charles, prince of wales meets singer jessie j at the royal variety performance this evening stars: as well as jessie j, take that frontman gary barlow, the cast of the hit west end musical charlie and the chocolate factory and olly murs are on this year's bill the prince of wales speaks to sir andrew lloyd webber (left) as he arrives singer and the voice judge jessie j (right) waits to meet camilla the evening also included a performance from choirmaster gareth malone’s latest project, voices malone is hoping to repeat his 2011 success and gain another christmas number one, this time with their rendition of a little respect by erasure bishop, 46, said: 'as a child, the royal variety show was like the grand national and the fa cup final it was something our family always watched (the only difference being that we didn't bet on the winner) 'to host a show with such heritage is something i never imagined i would do and i trust my parents will be proud when they take their seats in the audience, although i have told my dad not to shout, 'come on son' it's not a match or a horse race!' the last time the prince and duchess attended the royal variety in 2010 their evening was marred when a protester campaigning against the rise in tuition fees attacked their rolls royce limousine david walliams hosted last year's 100th anniversary show in front of the queen at london's royal albert hall this year's performance, staged in aid of the entertainment artistes' benevolent fund, will be screened on itv in december pride: the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall stand for the national anthem | cornwall london palladium dame edna everage wales andrew lloyd webber gary barlow olly murs dame edna | prince and duchess of cornwall met showbiz stars at london palladium . couple were joined in the royal box by dame edna everage . prince of wales was also pictured talking to andrew lloyd webber . gary barlow, olly murs, dame edna and attraction all on the bill |
by scarlett russell britain's susie wolff became the first woman to drive at a grand prix for 22 years this morning but, judging by these pictures, the 31 year old scot wasn’t quite as pleased with her results as she might have liked after spending just 24 minutes on the famous silverstone race track, wolff left the circuit, emerged from the car and was seen wiping tears from her eyes girl power: british racing driver susie wolff of williams walks back to the pits after retiring with a mechanical failure during the first open practice session at silverstone race track ahead of the formula 1 grand prix of great britain on sunday brave: susie wolff became the first woman to drive at a grand prix for 22 years this morning after taking the wheel at the famous silverstone race track for an hour and a half wolff emerged from the car wiping tears from her eyes frustrated: judging by these pictures, 31 year old wolff wasn't quite as pleased with her results as she may have liked she had completed just four laps and was supposed to drive for an hour and a half in total the car – a williams broke down during the free practice, ahead of this weekend's formula 1 british grand prix, due to oil pressure dropping ‘the engine has gone terminal,’ she was told by her race engineer the open practice was ahead of the british grand prix on sunday wolff, 31, joined the williams fi team in 2012 as a development driver, which involves aerodynamic testing, simulator work and track tests the high pressure job involves test driving and collecting data before the big races, in a largely male dominated profession smiling: an excited susie wolff of williams smiles at the first practice session of the british f1 grand prix something wrong, susie williams' wolff in the garage during the practice day at silverstone circuit, left, looking somewhat glum she walks back to the pits after retiring with a mechanical failure, right problem: wolff stops her williams car at club corner during the practice day at silverstone circuit earlier today assistance: wolff is helped by marshals as she walks away after her car broke down during free practice today the last woman to enter the f1 world championship was italian giovanna amati, who failed to qualify for three races at the start of the 1992 season with brabham five women have entered f1 races in the past, the most prolific being italian lella lombardi, who started 12 grands prix in the 1970s wolff, who is married to mercedes boss toto wolff, drove this year’s car during in season testing in may she told mail online before her turn at silverstone: ‘if there were just a handful of little girls who saw me driving and suddenly realised they could do the same, that would be the biggest positive to come out of it inspirational: 'if there were just a handful of little girls who saw me driving and suddenly realised they could do the same, that would be the biggest positive,' wolff, pictured here, said proud: susie wolff on wednesday, ready to make formula one history as the first woman to practice at the grand prix for 22 years it's all over: wolff retires with a mechanical failure to her car during the first open practice session at silverstone dedicated: wolff, pictured left, in the garage before first practice session at the british grand prix at silverstone and, right, talking to mechanics happy: 'i want to say a huge thank you for all the support it means a lot and really helps,' she said 'it was wonderful' wolff began karting as a child and in 1996 at the age of 13 was named the british woman kart racing driver of the year in 1997, she competed in a number of different karting categories, coming out on top in almost all of them in 1999, she competed in the british formula a championship and was placed 13th overall she then came an impressive 34th in the overall formula a world championships and was named british woman kart racing driver of the year in 2000 speaking to paul weaver at the guardian today, wolff said: 'it was a really tough day but that’s formula one sometimes 'we had an oil pressure problem which cut the engines – the guys are looking at getting it fixed for free practice two 'i want to say a huge thank you for all the support it means a lot and really helps it was wonderful' | unskaithd valeria misfortuner | no related information |
by jessica jerreat when joshua tucker was taken to hospital after serving in afghanistan the only thing keeping the arizona soldier strong was knowing his military dog ellen was waiting for him but just as the k9 mp finished his treatment for injuries and post traumatic stress disorder, the armed forces called his wife, sherie, to say the dog had been moved what followed was an extraordinary effort over three years, involving the army, air force and congress to reunite tucker with the dog that meant so much to him scroll down for video reunited: army veteran joshua tucker with wife sherie and his beloved dog ellen on the day they were reunited support: ellen and joshua tucker served in afghanistan together the black labrador ellen was finally tracked down to a base in germany, and the pair shared an emotional reunion last month after the army agreed to hand her over for tucker, it was the moment he had been waiting for since he was medically retired in 2011 'they gave me my life back,' he told the army times not being able to see his dog, who had accompanied him on dangerous missions since 2009, was hard for tucker 'we had no idea he would never see her again they never let him say goodbye i lost the man that my husband was,' his wife said she explained that when he returned from his last tour in afghanistan he was 'banged up quite a bit' and only agreed to treatment because he believed it meant he would get to work with his dog again but the day before he was due to leave hospital, mrs tucker received a phone call asking her to break the news to her husband that he wouldn't see ellen again 'to have to sit there and look my husband in the eye and say 'i don’t know how to tell you this, but she’s gone',’ it was like telling him that our child just died,' she told spouse buzz refusing to give up on ellen, the couple began a complicated journey to find the dog and adopt her bond: tucker had worked with ellen the dog since 2009, and quickly became devoted to her mission: sherie and joshua spent three years tracking down ellen so they could adopt her the search took them from the joint base lewis mcchord base in washington to the lackland air force base in texas, before finally finding that ellen had been sent to a base in ansbach, germany the couple contacted friends stationed in germany, who were able to confirm ellen was there by checking a tattoo in her ear tucker thought his dream of seeing ellen had finally been realized, but despite a program to let soldiers wounded in combat adopt their service dogs, the army declined his request refusing to give up, the couple enlisted the help of arizona representative krysten sinema, who sent letters to the army insisting ellen be retired on february 20, tucker finally got the call he had been waiting for, when a member of the army stationed in europe told him: 'she's yours' ellen was flown to the us and the pair had an emotional reunion in a hotel, where the dog charged into tucker's arms as soon as she saw him focus: tucker, pictured with sherie and ellen, was separated from his dog when he was treated for ptsd 'it was kinda like seeing someone come back from the dead,' he told fox news his wife said seeing ellen had an immediate affect on her husband, adding: 'i watched his eyes change back they gave a soldier his life back' the couple took ellen to meet congresswoman sinema this week, and to thank her for her help she said: 'spc tucker and ellen served our country valiantly in afghanistan, and spc tucker has paid a dear price for that service, returning home with ptsd 'reuniting spc tucker with his best friend and prior service dog ellen was the right thing to do and i'm so glad that our office was a part of this happy reunion' | untreatable mallee mesion | no related information |
by daily mail reporter published: 13:53 est, 24 october 2013 | updated: 16:48 est, 24 october 2013 one of tv's most popular crime series is to be revived with oscar winning actress octavia spencer cast as the star in a new take on murder, she wrote spencer, who won critical acclaim for her role in the help, is to take on angela lansbury's role as an amateur detective in a modern spin on the long running series an hour long pilot, said to be like a light version of bones or fargo, will feature spencer as a hospital administrator and sleuth, who publishes her first mystery novel scroll down for video remake: oscar winning actress octavia spencer is to star in a contemporary version of murder, she wrote leading lady: angela lansbury starred as amateur sleuth jessica fletcher from 1984 to 1996 the award winning original cbs drama, which ran from 1984 to 1996, featured lansbury as jessica fletcher, a cabot cove widow with an uncanny knack for solving grisly crimes in the new nbc version spencer plays a woman whose fascination with true crime results in her having a big role in solving cases, deadline reported despite its more contemporary feel, is is believed the remake will keep the original murder, she wrote theme music created by desperate housewives executive producer alexandra cunninghan and producer david janollari, the new look murder, she wrote will be a contemporary version of the old favorite popular: murder, she wrote won several awards and ran for 12 seasons new look: spencer will take on angela lansbury's role as an amateur sleuth in the crime series remake spencer, who won a best supporting actress oscar for her role in the help became involved with the tv series after an exploratory meeting with nbc chairman bob greenblatt 'i’ve always considered myself an armchair detective and in a recent meeting with bob greenblatt, he asked me what type of character would be able to lure me to tv,' spencer told deadline 'naturally, i said 'jb fletcher meets colombo' and here we are,' she said cunningham has also expressed excitement about working with spencer on the show 'octavia and i are both huge true crime buffs, amateur criminologists, and fans of angela lansbury,' she said 'to get the chance to reimagine murder, she wrote for a dynamic and multi faceted actress like octavia is a thrill and a pleasure' lansbury received a record 12 emmy nominations for her role as jessica fletcher in the show, which won a host of awards | tameness semiseptate endangium | no related information |
by joshua gardner published: 14:14 est, 25 january 2013 | updated: 22:01 est, 25 january 2013 developers of a flying car say they're about $80 million closer to giving your morning commute a real lift for years, moller international has been working on a way to make the old science fiction dream of turning tires into turboprops a reality their skycar, designed for speeds of over 300 mph at altitudes as high as 36,000 feet would seat four people and isn't trying to replace commercial air travel scroll down for video scenic drive: in this undated photo, dr paul moller stands with two prototypes of his skycar and his company's flying saucer, the neuera, which he helped develop and himself piloted in the 1970s nor do they want their vehicle to cater to only the elite hobbyist as of today, very few people have had the rare pleasure of riding in any iteration of the skycar instead, the company intends to bring their 'vertical take off & landing (vtol) fast, low cost personal recreational or utility vehicle' to the masses basically, an eye catching alternative to the earthbound sports car jet set: to bring flying cars to a wide market, dr moller insists they must take off and land vertically, like his skycar, pictured here in an unmanned demo of its hovering ability now, according to a jan 24 company statement, founder dr paul moller has persuaded a southern california firm to offer up the hefty sum to speed his vehicles' path to the marketplace the joint venture with athena technologies, inc of harbor city california, is intended to pair the 30 years of technological experience backing moller with athena's affordable manufacturing capabilities overseas in chinese facilities and the $80 million is just the tip of the iceberg flying high: moller international has been working to bring a car/plane hybrid into reality for 30 years and the company's founder's latest attempt is the skycar 400, pictured here as an illustrated imagining of the car in flight the companies are projecting an eventual $480 million investment into several varieties of the car plane hybrid this includes the 'neuera' vehicle, basically a flying saucer powered by high velocity fans the company's website boasts the neuera 'can operate up to 10 feet above any surface: land, water, sand, snow, swamp or grasslandscombining the capabilities of a boat, hovercraft, atv, snowmobile or other off road vehicle' but don't start shopping around for pilot gear just yet production on the vehicles wouldn't begin until at least 2014 and the agreement between moller and athena isn't even yet official 'the formal agreement is expected to be approved by both parties within weeks' dr moller, said in a statement moller expects a working test vehicle, however, by the end of 2013 | moller international china the end of 2013 | moller international joins with outside firm to move production to china . founder expects a working prototype by the end of 2013 |
by anna edwards published: 23:00 est, 24 october 2013 | updated: 05:55 est, 25 october 2013 portuguese police are searching for a gang of five paedophiles they believe may have snatched missing youngster of madeleine mccann the fresh circle of suspects were spotted near the apartment from where madeleine, was snatched in 2007 the new development comes after the country's authorities reopened their inquiry into the disappearance of the child, five years after they controversially shelved the investigation scroll down for video officers from porto's policia judiciaria believe foreign perverts may have kidnapped the three year old officers from porto’s policia judiciaria believe foreign perverts kidnapped the three year old, who would now be 10, the mirror reported the country’s attorney general authorised the new look into the case this week after ‘highly significant’ new evidence was identified by local detectives she said ‘new elements of evidence’ and new witnesses justified the continuation of the original investigation madeleine’s parents kate and gerry, who were wrongly suspected of being responsible for their daughter’s disappearance during the shambolic first inquiry by portuguese police, welcomed the news madeleine's parents kate and gerry, were wrongly suspected of being responsible for her disappearance during the shambolic first inquiry disappearance: the ocean club resort in praia da luz where madeleine mccann disappeared from in may 2007 ‘we are very pleased we hope that this will finally lead to her being found and to the discovery of whoever is responsible for this crime,’ they said in a statement the new investigation will work with scotland yard’s multi million pound inquiry into madeleine’s disappearance, which was the subject of a major appeal on bbc1’s crimewatch programme last week she was three when she disappeared from the mccanns’ holiday apartment in praia da luz in the algarve in may 2007 scotland yard began a review of the case in may 2011 and opened a formal investigation in july this year after identifying dozens of potential suspects and scores of new lines of inquiry portuguese police said yesterday that their own review team had been working since march 2011 to reassess files from the original investigation and this process had uncovered new leads a well placed source told the mail they could be ‘highly significant’ probe: detective chief inspector andy redwood in the scotland yard incident room where british officers are launching their own search for madeleine authorities have put a secrecy order on the new material, banning it from being made public, but portuguese law states that unsolved cases can be reopened only when there is strong new evidence the fresh probe was authorised by joana marques vidal, portugal’s first female attorney general, who was not in the post when the original investigation was shelved metropolitan police assistant commissioner mark rowley and detective chief inspector andy redwood, who is in charge of the yard’s inquiry, met senior portuguese police in lisbon late last week to be briefed on the new lines of inquiry, which are said to be separate to those being followed by the met the mccanns were also briefed mr rowley said the meeting was ‘very positive’ and both forces had a ‘shared determination’ to solve the case home secretary theresa may welcomed the development, saying: ‘i hope what we are going to see is a resolution of this case for the sake of maddie’s parents and family’ earlier this month scotland yard spoke of a possible breakthrough after it emerged that officers were analysing data from the phone records of people who were in praia da luz when madeleine vanished | madeleine portugal | police look for ring of five paedophiles who may have taken youngster . madeleine was snatched in 2007 from family's holiday apartment . portugal police have re opened case five years after it was closed |
by peter allen published: 12:02 est, 16 august 2013 | updated: 14:52 est, 16 august 2013 armed robbers stole watches worth thousands of pounds after holding terrified staff at a hotel boutique at gunpoint in a raid that detectives fear may be the work of a notorious criminal gang thieves threatened staff at the hyatt regency palais de la mediterranee hotel on the upmarket promenade des anglais in nice shortly after 7am this morning the gang targeted watches which were displayed in a reinforced case next to the hotel's jewellery boutique terror hotel: the robbers threatened staff at the hyatt regency palais de la mediterranee hotel in nice shortly after 7am this morning police are exploring the possibility that the heist could be linked to the pink panther gang made up of ex soldiers from places like serbia and ukraine the gang has been targeting jewellery collections for almost 15 years, stealing up 330 million pounds worth, often from riviera resorts like nice and cannes a police spokesman said that the robbers left the scene on scooters and that the value of their haul has not yet been calculated the robbery is the latest in a long list of raids which have targeted the upmarket hotels and shops on the seafront around resorts like nice police are linking the heist to a series of other robberies on the french riviera which they are connecting with the pink panther gang the carlton hotel in cannes, pictured, was targeted last month the authorities in nearby cannes pledged to tighten security last month following a record breaking raid at the world famous carlton hotel, which is a favourite of hollywood stars ranging from elizabeth taylor to angelina jolie a lone gunman wearing a crash helmet and scarf to cover his face walked into the hotel on a sunday lunchtime before brandishing his pistol at staff he walked into a bedroom where £90 million worth of diamonds and jewellery encrusted watches were stored and tipped the valuables into a briefcase before escaping through a set of french windows cannes is renowned for its jewellery thefts – many of which take place during its annual film festival in may a cannes kronometry luxury watch store was also raided in july french connection: police investigate the raid on the carlton, another high profile hotel targeted by thieves in a string of raids on the french riviera police are exploring a possible link with the heists and the escape of a member of the notorious pink panther organised crime gang milan poparic was released from a swiss jail by accomplices brandishing ak 47 automatic rifles, making the third pink panther to have got out of prison in as many months the gang are said to be able to ‘launder’ stolen jewels in eastern europe after driving them overland from the places where they were stolen police and hotel staff in french hotels frequently complain that jewellery firms frequently place minimum security around their stock | plumbisolvent pythonomorphic endorphin | no related information |
by suzannah hills published: 04:04 est, 8 august 2013 | updated: 10:23 est, 8 august 2013 a street performer accused of 'annoying' shoppers by addressing them on the meaning on life with a megaphone is fighting a council fine for noise nuisance because 'it is his human right' danny shine, 46, repeatedly used the loudhailer to warn members of the public in london's oxford circus shopping district about the perils of consumerism in november last year but a council warden confiscated his megaphone and mr shine was issued with a court summons for breaking a westminster city council bylaw for 'the prevention and suppression of nuisances' mr shine has decided to fight the case at westminster magistrates court next month, claiming the law infringes on his human right to 'freedom of expression', and faces a fine of up to £500 if he is found guilty scroll down to watch video 'noise nuisance': danny shine, 46, has been accused of breaching a council bylaw by 'annoying' shoppers in london's oxford street by addressing them with a megaphone as well as fighting his own case, mr shine, from hendon, north london, hopes to have the 12 year old bylaw declared unlawful by the court for conflicting with the human rights act mr shine has been expressing his views with his megaphone on the streets of london for the past four years and videos of his antics have been viewed more than two million times on youtube mr shine told the independent: 'this law is completely arbitrary it allows a member of the public or a civilian officer to prosecute you because you've annoyed him 'while corporations are allowed to drown us in their messages, i’m not allowed to do what i think of as interactive street theatre i end up with a summons and a choice of accepting a fine or fighting a case and ending with a legal bill of £10,000 this is shutting down freedom of expression' but the council says it is not prosecuting mr shine over the content of his speeches just for the level of volume he delivers them at, which was causing a noise nuisance for shoppers and local businesses follow the campaign online here caught on camera: mr shine at oxford circus using his megaphone to address members shoppers a westminster city council spokesman told mailonline: 'this case isn’t about what you say in public – it’s about the volume at which you say it the right to free speech isn’t a licence to walk the streets with a loudhailer disturbing the public 'it’s our job as a local authority to protect the interests of the public and visitors to westminster from undue noise and irritation' a council official added that mr shine was initially given the opportunity to sign a written undertaking that he would stop using the loudhailer to resolve the matter when mr shine refused, he was asked to accept a caution when he also refused to take a caution, court action was taken as a last resort, the official said the 'good rule and government' bylaw was drawn up in 2001 to stop people from making 'any noise which is so loud or so continuous or repeated as to give reasonable cause for annoyance to other persons' the council said it has only used the law twice under extreme circumstances in the last year the case is due at westminster magistrates in september last resort: a westminster city council official said court action against mr shine was a last resort after he refused several requests to stop using a megaphone the council claims that the issue was not the content of mr shine's speeches just the loud volume he performed them at, which created a noise nuisance | danny shine oxford circus london westminster shine | danny shine, 46, was using the loudhailer at oxford circus in london . a westminster council warden told him the noise was in breach of a bylaw . he confiscated the megaphone and mr shine was given a court summons . he claims the bylaw breaches his human right to freedom of expression |
by suzannah hills published: 06:02 est, 19 july 2013 | updated: 11:36 est, 19 july 2013 pamela held, 27, has accused new york police officer sean christian of stealing nude picture messages from her iphone a woman plans to sue the new york police department for invasion of privacy after an officer allegedly stole sexy photographs from her iphone pamela held, 27, took nude photos of herself in provocative poses on her mobile phone to send to her boyfriend but when police seized her phone after stopping her for an alleged traffic violation, she claims officer sean christian found the raunchy images stored on her phone and sent them to his own mobile ms held, from deer park, long island, told the new york daily news: 'it makes me sick i don’t even want to think about what he’s done with them' police sources told the daily news that officer christian, 41, is the subject of an internal affairs investigation stemming from held’s complaint it comes after ms held was pulled over by five police officers on february 6 because her car didn't have an inspection sticker the officers found prescription drugs in her car so took both ms held and the friend she was travelling with to the police station when asked by officers where she had been that evening, she told them she had visited a friend and could prove it with text messages on her phone she then gave then her security pin number so they could look at the messages ms held said police officers then left the interview room with her mobile while she was processed for misdemeanor drug charges when her phone was returned to her, ms held claims the raunchy messages had been forwarded from her phone to an unknown mobile number 'sickened': ms held, from long island, claims that the police officer sent 20 nude photos of her and five videos stored on her phone to his own mobile she alleges that 20 nude photos and five videos were sent to the mobile number ms held then hired lawyer richard soleymanzadeh, whose private investigator traced the number on her mobile to police officer sean christian the nypd officer claims he never met pamela held and never worked for the 104th precinct in queens where ms held claims the breach took place detectives who examined christian’s phone records claim it does not appear his mobile ever received the photos or videos court case: ms held is now suing the nypd for breach of privacy after claiming that a police officer took pictures from her mobile while she was being questioned by other officers (stock image) read more: blond beauty set to sue nypd over sexy photos swiped from iphone | pamela held new york police department | pamela held was stopped by police and questioned over drug possession . she handed phone to officers so they could check messages on her phone . ms held claims one of the officers then sent nude messages stored on her iphone to his own mobile . she now intends to sue new york police department for breach of privacy |
by ryan gorman published: 09:09 est, 12 august 2013 | updated: 09:27 est, 12 august 2013 two new yorkers either don’t care about or don’t understand the city’s byzantine parking regulations despite owing almost $350,000 for over 2,200 parking tickets between them, the two individuals aren’t even at the top of the list of worst scofflaws in new york that honor goes to a new jersey based company that owes more than $316,000 for over 1,700 tickets, according to the city the 10 worst offenders were made public monday by the new york post parking tickets: some people pay them, others owe six figures worth of fines wallinton, nj based consolidated dairies owes a staggering $316,059 – including over $37,000 in interest – for 1,759 tickets racked up by drivers since 2005, according to the post a message left for comment by mailonline with the dairy products distributor was not returned the top 10 list, first reported by the post, is made up almost entirely of companies except for two people manhattan resident john caruso is indebted $176,821 for the 872 tickets he’s racked up in the past 8 years, including over $54,000 in interest, according to the post, which speculated the reason he can’t be tracked down is because he’s never lived at the address listed for him in city records the greenwich street address the city has for him used to have mailboxes for non residents, according to a doorman questioned by the post coming in just after caruso is brooklyn’s anthony grady, who owes $172,250 towards 1,404 tickets dating back to 2005 when the post attempted to reach grady, there was an eviction sign on the scofflaw’s door source: nyc department of finance former neighbors defended him, telling the post that the parking signs in the area are confusing because of a nearby school ‘the school has different schedules of when you can or can’t park on the road the signs [are] a little bit hidden,’ kelsea baker told the paper city finance commissioner david frankel expressed his frustration to the paper, saying that it’s ‘outrageous that a few new yorkers cheat their fellow citizens’ frankel may be an outlier though, especially after the city’s rage inducing parking signs were completely redesigned earlier this year referring to the old parking signs as ‘a five foot high totem pole of confusing information,’ city department of transportation commissioner janette sadik khan said the new signs would be ‘ easier to read and take the stress out of figuring out where and when you can legally park’ at their january unveiling redesigned parking signs: the city unveiled new parking signs earlier this year in an effort to decrease the frustration felt by many city drivers ‘you shouldn't need a phd in parking signage to understand where you are allowed to leave your car in new york,' city council member daniel garodnick added parking signs have long confused city drivers, and were even lampooned by comedian louis ck the city is still in the process of rolling out the new signs, but they – along with parking holidays in the aftermath of hurricane sandy – may have contributed to the city issuing fewer tickets in fiscal year 2013 than in previous years meter maids wrote just under 74million tickets totalling $466million between july 2012 and june 2013, according to the post, a surprising drop from the 9million tickets and $512million in fines the previous year deadbeat offenders owe about $570million in unpaid tickets, according to the post the city removes parking ticket debt from its books after eight years | new jersey over $316,000 2005 roughly $570million | the two individuals are in the top 10 list of worst parking ticket scofflaws, which is mostly made up of companies . the worst offender is a new jersey based company with over $316,000 in parking tickets since 2005 . the city is owed roughly $570million in outstanding parking fines |
by martha de lacey published: 12:38 est, 9 december 2013 | updated: 12:04 est, 10 december 2013 spotted at the age of 57 by a professional photographer who spied her posing for photos with her grandchildren, sarah wiley had never considered becoming a fashion model before then snapped up by london based agency close models, wiley, now 65, has since appeared regularly as a glamorous clothes horse for this morning, as well as on gok wan's how to look good naked and for retailer john lewis but she's not alone wiley, who appeared in stella magazine's latest beauty shoot for the telegraph about using make up on aging skin, says she's one of a 'whole gang' of older women being papped by fashion editors and designers sarah wiley, 65, was only scouted as a model when she was spotted by a professional photographer at the age of 57 speaking to rena niamh smith for stella, the former ballerina explained when she got 'spotted' she agreed to do a simple lifestyle shoot, just for fun, with the photographer other members of the group include veteran model carmen dell'orefice, 82, 85 year old daphne selfe, and jenni rhodes, 81 speaking to rena niamh smith for stella, the former ballerina explained when she got 'spotted' she agreed to do a simple lifestyle shoot, just for fun, with the photographer she initially thought the idea was a wind up, only to be told at the end that she was quite the natural in front of the camera saddened that her 10 year old granddaughter is given the impression by magazines that in order to be successful a woman must be thin, wiley wishes to challenge traditional idea of 'beauty' she says: 'it's the interest in someone's face that makes them arresting being alive, being interested in the world around you' sarah wiley, right, and jenni rhodes, 81, another elder stateswoman of modelling veteran model carmen dell'orefice wearing a dress by carmen marc valvo at the 2005 red dress collection fashion show in new york, a show celebrating the second anniversary of the red dress, the national symbol for women and heart disease awareness carmen dell'orefice, 81, presents a creation from the norisol ferrari spring/summer 2013 collection during new york fashion week, september 2012 daphne selfe, 85, has been modelling for 60 years | nonecclesiastically vesicatory chukar | no related information |
by guy adams and daniel martin published: 19:28 est, 22 november 2013 | updated: 06:05 est, 23 november 2013 ed balls faced increased pressure over his close relationship with the co op last night as it emerged he lavished praise on the stricken bank even after it had racked up £15billion of debt attending a fund raising dinner, the shadow chancellor boasted that he was the ‘co operative shadow chancellor’ who was ‘looking forward to taking co operation into the treasury when we get the chance’ mr balls also said the bank would go from ‘strength to strength’ – even though disgraced chairman paul flowers had just been forced out for what it is now known to be major concerns about his expenses ed balls (left) speaks to peter marks at a reception at downing street for the launch of a co op venture in 2010 the words further undermine mr balls’s attempts to distance himself from the co operative bank scandal and from flowers, who was arrested late on thursday night after revelations that he bought crystal meth, crack cocaine and ketamine the senior labour figure has received £50,000 in funding from the co operative movement and refuses to hand the money back, saying he was ‘proud’ to accept it on thursday, he said any attempts to link him to the scandal were ‘smears’ but, as flowers was bailed until the new year after being quizzed by police over an ‘ongoing drug supply investigation’, it emerged: the mail has seen the transcript of a plush dinner at which the shadow chancellor gushed about how the ‘fabulous’ bank had emerged from the financial crisis as one of the strongest on the high street the former chairman of the co operative bank, paul flowers the praise he heaped on the struggling bank at the annual co op dinner on june 20 came despite the fact that just two weeks earlier, flowers had been forced out after it emerged the co op bank had racked up a £15billion black hole of debt mr balls was forced to deny claims he was too close to the co op after mr flowers told mps they had met at labour party functions both men attended a reception at no 10 in 2010 but mr balls says they did not have a conversation his denials were undermined when it emerged that he had bragged about his role in rubber stamping legislation that paved the way for a disastrous takeover deal at the co op mr balls also accepted a £50,000 donation from the co op group in march 2012, when flowers was chairman of the co op bank labour has also benefited from millions of pounds in ‘soft’ loans with preferential rates of interest earlier this week, mr balls insisted that he had not held meetings with flowers, and said he had ‘never in my life’ had a conversation with him about the funding of his office but on june 20, the shadow chancellor hosted senior co op executives and guests from the chinese embassy at a private £70 per head dinner in a luxury west end hotel flowers had been on the guest list, but labour sources said he did not attend speaking about the co operative movement, mr balls said: ‘we are going from strength to strength i am the first ever co operative shadow chancellor but, more importantly, i have a team of five in the house of commons including me three are women; two are men ‘three are co operative and labour mps: a majority of co operators in the shadow treasury team, looking forward to taking co operation into the treasury when we get the chance’ he also drew attention to the fact that four ‘fabulous’ by election successes over the last year had seen four more labour and co op mps in parliament ‘people ask: “does being a labour and co operative mp help you get elected?” well, what we are seeing in this parliament is they are queuing up to be co operative mps because, we know, on the doorstep the values of our movement and the difference we make really makes a difference’ mr balls admitted that it had been a ‘tough week’ for the co op movement, with flowers having just been forced out but he added: ‘let’s be completely honest: the performance of the co operative group over recent years has been fabulous, across all its many different retail businesses and actually, as a bank, the co operative bank was one of the institutions which came through the financial crisis strong enough to step in and help other organisations in difficulty and in trouble ‘that commitment to local engagement, and to local values, the ability to innovate – that is important for the future’ during the dinner there was an auction for mr balls to make a lasagne for the co operative member who made the winning bid the auction proved so popular that mr balls promised to make lasagnes for two members who had each bid £4,000 last night a labour source said mr balls had also talked in his speech about the difficulties at the bank, how there had been a change of management and that there were significant challenges ahead the treasury was also dragged into the co op scandal last night after former tory leadership contender david davis questioned why officials had not spotted its financial problems years ago regulators and treasury staff should have noticed its shortcomings back in 2011, the mp said, when the financial problems were becoming visible the co op’s financial woes were set out in a letter in january 2012 to the lloyds board when it made its doomed bid to take over the banking giant the letter was written by lord levene, a city veteran who was heading a rival bid mr davis said that should have set alarm bells ringing to the treasury, lloyds and uk financial investments, which handled the government’s stake in the co op paul flowers racked up a £63,000 expenses and allowances bill at bradford council before he was forced to resign over the discovery of porn on his laptop the daily mail has learned that the disgraced former co op boss received the cash over three years while he was a councillor at the authority last night a local government minister urged the authority to find out whether the claims are genuine earlier this week this newspaper revealed that flowers is suspected of claiming as much as £75,000 in false expenses while heading a drugs charity paul flowers claimed £63k in expenses while serving as a councillor in bradford he made claims for ‘a lot of dining’ and frequent hotel stays and travel, but resigned from the lifeline project before internal proceedings against him could be concluded the co op is also trawling through his expenses claims amid claims he may have used some of its money to fund his sordid lifestyle it is believed that the head of the co op group became concerned about flowers’s ‘excessive use of expenses’ before he resigned the methodist minister claimed £63,10377 in allowances, expenses and other perks from bradford council – £13,36284 in 2009/10, £35,09137 in 2010/11 and £14,64956 in 2011/12 brandon lewis, a tory local government minister, said: ‘this level of expenses seems suspiciously high and should be investigated a full breakdown of what these expenses were and the business case for them needs to be looked at’ flowers resigned after adult material was found on his computer, but colleagues were told at the time that he left because of pressures of his work at the co op bank the council’s chief solicitor, suzan hemingway, said all the claims had already been checked ‘all councillors’ allowances and expenses are a matter of public record and are published on our website dating back to 2004/5,’ she added ‘the basic allowance payable to all councillors is currently £13,04294 a year ‘special responsibility allowances are paid to councillors who have significant additional responsibilities such as being a member of the executive ‘claims for travel, accommodation or meals are checked before any payments are made the system for making payments is regularly audited’ but robert oxley, of the taxpayers’ alliance, said: ‘given mr flowers’s track record of expenses, taxpayers will be rightly concerned about how these councillor’s allowances may have been used ‘it further adds weight to the need for a full and proper investigation into what’s happened during his time in power’ | ed balls treasury methodist 63,000 labour bradford flowers chris leslie cathy jamieson george osborne the co op bank | ed balls said the bank would go from 'strength to strength' in speech . boasted that he was looking forward to taking co operation into treasury . the disgraced methodist minister claimed an extraordinary £63,000 in expenses in just three years as a labour councillor in bradford. flowers sat on the national executive committee of the co op alongside three labour mps, two of whom – chris leslie and cathy jamieson – are members of labour’s treasury team. chancellor george osborne announced an independent probe into the near collapse of the co op bank which will cover the ‘appointment’ of senior staff. flowers’s solicitor said his client was in a ‘rather ponderous frame of mind’ and that police would be making ‘further inquiries’ |
by daily mail reporter published: 11:33 est, 17 may 2013 | updated: 06:35 est, 18 may 2013 a single tear rolls down her face as she hesitatingly explains what 'those men' made her do the 12 year old girl is just one of 100,000 children estimated to work in the terrifying sex trade of the philippines where virginity is sold for $250 to foreign men although the tales she tells are horrifying, in many ways this child is lucky she is one of 15,000 young girls saved by anti trafficking organisation visayan forum horrifying: a single tear rolls down her face as she hesitatingly explains what 'those men' made her do the 12 year old is just one of 100,000 children are estimated to work in the terrifying sex trade of the philippines where virginity is sold for $250 to foreign men harrowing: in the documentary cecilia takes the camera crew to a safe house in an undisclosed location three 12 year old girls explain their harrowing plight at the hands of the sex traffickers set up by philippine human rights pioneer cecilia flores oeband in 1991, the charity managed to recruit philippines' biggest star, manny pacquiao, to join them as a fighter in the battle against modern day slavery, reports cnn's freedom project manila, the capital of the philippines has a booming sex trade and money is passed between adult prostitutes and punters freely but there are also thousands of young children who are forced to work the streets outreach: cecilia and visayan forum run halfway houses for girls all over the country, four support centres for domestic workers and one safe house, a home for those worst affected cause: cecilia blames part of the problem on sex tourists who visit the area to pick up prostitutes cecilia blames part of the problem on sex tourists who visit the area to pick up prostitutes 'if no westerners go to that area there is no business for this in the philippines,' explains cecilia in the cnn documentary titled the fighters, cecilia is seen talking to maria, a young girl who had been forced into the trade, by the time she turned 15, several dozen men had paid to rape her 'she was told she was going to a restaurant but when she arrived it was a house with 16 girls staying on the second floor,' explains cecilia some of the sex slave prisoners were younger than maria at just 13 or 14 years old the girls in the house which doubled as a brothel were forced to serve 14 customers per day and virgins provided large cash injections for the sex traffickers abuse: cecilia is seen talking to maria, a young girl who had been forced into the trade by the time she turned 15 several dozen men had paid to rape her saved: a raid lead to rescue of 30 filipino girls who were reportedly on the way to be trafficked to syria the picture is taken at the police station where girls were brought for investigation after the rescue 'they are some that actually ask for virgins' explains cecile visayan forum raided the house and managed to recover 'around 23 more girls' the brothel owner and maria's recruiter were taken to court, but the judge dismissed the case cecilia and visayan forum run halfway houses for girls all over the country, four support centres for domestic workers and one safe house, a home for those worst affected in the documentary cecilia takes the camera crew to a safe house in an undisclosed location it houses thirty girls whose ages range from 12 20 years old 'if you could live off love, the center of hope would be a palace,' explains cecilia but cecilia explains that the charity is in desperate need of furniture, food and medicine she said that some of the girls suffer from stds star boost: in february 2012, pacquiao delivered a speech to congress in which he outlined the necessity to stop human trafficking helping out: pacquiao has lent his name and his vision to become an ambassador for the poor at the safe house three 12 year old girls explain their harrowing plight at the hands of the sex traffickers although they are now being looked after the damage is evident one of them wakes up in the night screaming in fear in case the traffickers find her another one of them continually vomits without warning a psychologist told the charity it is a physiological reaction as she remembers what she was asked to do by the sex traffickers they had been forced to perform sexual acts in a video chat room for a number of foreign men as they tell the camera crew their horrifying stories one of the children covered her ears in shame some of the men who they say were american demanded they perform sexual acts with men pulled off the street, drink their own urine and other even more degrading acts the girls have subsequently developed a fear of american men and label them as 'maniacs' although the battle is long, there is hope for the future haven: 'if you could live off love, the center of hope would be a palace,' explains cecilia about the safe house pacquiao has lent his name and his vision to becoming an ambassador for the poor in february 2012, pacquiao delivered a speech to congress in which he outlined the necessity to stop human trafficking 'during my visit to the visayan forum i talked to children as young as 9 years old who are trafficked for prostitution,' pacquiao told congress 'as politicians, we need to be true to our words and actions we need to send a clear message; that filipinos are not for sale' and it seems his drive is working a few months ago philippines's president benigno aquino iii, signed the anti trafficking bill pacquiao had been championing, into law 'a few years from now i might not be in boxing anymore but my fight is to continue to support cecile and the visayan forum to stop human trafficking,' explains pacquiao the fighters: a cnn freedom project documentary’ airs on cnn international, friday 17 may at 9pm (part one) & saturday 18 may at 9pm (part two) | visayan forum cecilia flores oeband | anti trafficking organisation visayan forum have saved 15,000 young girls . organisation is headed by human rights pioneer cecilia flores oeband |
by daily mail reporter published: 15:34 est, 10 december 2013 | updated: 17:40 est, 10 december 2013 it looks like leonard lauder, the 80 year old billionaire chairman of the cosmetics giant estee lauder, is officially back on the singles’ market the wealthy octogenarian was due to marry his girlfriend linda e johnson, 55, this past august, but the couple scrapped the planned nuptials just days before saying 'i do' however, the two continued to be seen in public together and even went ahead with their trip to sardinia, which was supposed to be their honeymoon they're history: leonard lauder, the 80 year old chairman of estee lauder, and his former fiancee linda e johnson, pictured here in september, wrote in an email to friends that they decided to go their separate ways on tuesday, new york post's gossip column page six reported that lauder and johnson sent their mutual friends a joint email announcing their split 'we are afraid that we must cancel sunday’s holiday party,' the missive cited by the post read 'sadly, we have made the difficult but mutual decision to go our separate ways 'we will remain friends and certainly cherish the time we spent together we are so very sorry for the inconvenience and send you our warmest wishes best, linda and leonard' estee lauder spokesperson bari seiden confirmed the separation to mailonline in an email this afternoon mr lauder is the firstborn son of estee lauder, who in 1935 co founded a company along with her husband selling beauty products his estimated net worth is currently $76billion, according to forbes miss johnson, a glamorous philadelphia socialite and art collector, has been the president and ceo of brooklyn public library since 2011 lauder and johnson were set to walk down the aisle in late august, but the intimate philadelphia ceremony was called off at the last moment after the couple decided things were moving too fast the couple had begun publicly dating in late 2012, just a year after lauder had tragically lost his first wife evelyn to ovarian cancer they had been married for 52 years and had helped grow the family business together beginning of the end: lauder and his brooklyn library boss girlfriend linda johnson called off their wedding in august but have gone on a honeymoon anyway lauder and johnson were pictured attending several new york society events together last year and spent last new year's eve at the metropolitan opera gala in may, it was revealed that the couple were very happy and talking about marriage, news that caused much distress among aspiring socialites 'of a certain age' launder, the chairman emeritus of estée lauder co, has been described as ‘new york’s most eligible bachelor’ the couple had been planning to wed in philadelphia in front of a small group of family and friends in the last week of august cancer campaigner: leonard lauder pictured with late wife evelyn lauder in 2009, who famously spearheaded the breast cancer research foundation's pink ribbon initiative but the new york post reported at the time that the couple had started calling guests just a few weeks prior to tell them that their big day was being ‘postponed’ in late september, lauder and johnson were all smiles at the metropolitan opera's season opening production of eugene onegin then in october, the couple were photographed warmly embracing at the whitney gala leonard and evelyn lauder married in 1959 and had two sons together she had also worked at the cosmetics giant and was especially famous for spearheading the breast cancer research foundation's pink ribbon initiative lauder clan: leonard lauder poses with his nieces aerin, left, and jane, right johnson, who was born and raised in philadelphia, studied law according to her brooklyn public library biography, she was formerly ceo of the national constitution center and collects contemporary art, contemporary craft and early american folk art leonard lauder is uncle to aerin and jane lauder, who both work for the family business too aerin is described as a 'modern day ambassador' for the brand, while jane has been global president/general manager of the origins and ojon brands since july 2010 | estée lauder linda e johnson 55 august lauder first 52 years 2011 | the estée lauder chief and his then fiancee linda e johnson, 55, postponed their nuptials in august . announced their split in email to friends, writing that they won't be able to host planned holiday party . the couple started dating after lauder's first wife of 52 years died of cancer in 2011 |
by daily mail reporter published: 14:03 est, 10 december 2013 | updated: 15:30 est, 10 december 2013 a 6 year old boy has been suspended from a colorado school for kissing a girl on the cheek hunter yelton was sent home and remained there monday after school officials accused the first grader of sexual harassment canon city school officials say no matter his age, what he did fits their school policy code’s description sexual harassment and say the offense will go on his record scroll down for video snakes and snails? 6 year old hunter yelton was suspended from school for kissing a little girl on the cheek, which school officials called 'sexual harassment' the boy's mother jennifer saunders tells krdo that there was nothing unwanted about her son’s playful kiss ‘she was fine with it, they are “boyfriend and girlfriend,” said saunders ‘the other children saw it and went to the music teacher’ that’s when saunders says she was called in to speak with the school principal, who first used the term ‘sexual harassment’ 'sexual harassment': hunter's mom jennifer saunders says her son kissed his 'girlfriend' who didn't mind the normal, playful affection ‘this is taking it to an extreme that doesn't need to be met with a six year old,’ said saunders in fact, the mother said the ordeal has had a detrimental effect on hunter ‘now my son is asking questions… what is sex mommy? that should not ever be said, sex,’ she said ‘not in a sentence with a six year old’ child clinical psychologist and sexual development specialist sandy wurtele agreed and told krdo the issue should have been handled differently 'repeated': hunter had been in trouble for kissing the girl before the school said the repeat offense constituted sexual harassment per their policy (pictured) and their sticking with the decision hunter was due back in school tuesday ‘i don't think a six year old would understand what harassment is,’ said wurtele ‘that has some longer term implications’ hunter was suspended once before for kissing the girl and had disciplinary problems, but the girl did not object to being kissed a school district re 1 official said the repeat offenses meet the school policy definition of sexual harassment and they hope the tough standards will force the boy to change his behavior hunter was set to return to school on tuesday extreme response? though hunter admits to his wrongdoing, some adults, including a child psychologist, say the harsh steps taken by the school to punish him were in the extreme | colorado hunter yelton hunter jennifer saunders | colorado first grader hunter yelton was sent home when he kissed a girl he has a crush on . the school district maintains that hunter's action fits their policy description of sexual harassment . 'mommy, what's sex?': hunter's mother jennifer saunders says hunter is now asking her questions inappropriate for a boy his age |
by scarlett russell showbiz marriages aren't generally known for their longevity, but iman mohamaed hussei or iman as she is better known and david bowie, are the exception to the rule the supermodel, 58, and rock and roll icon david, 66, have been happily wed for 21 years, a lifetime in the celebrity world she's always insisted, however, that it was david jones she fell in love with, not bowie the stage name he later adopted supermodel: iman, now 58, at a premier in new york in 2013 the model and philanthropist says she will never stop working or forget her somalian roots so in love: david bowie, left, and iman, right at a charity dinner in new york, 2011 the two met in new york at the peak of iman's modelling career, which kicked off with a vogue assignment in 1976, just one year after she was spotted on a street in nairobi in africa she was 20 years old, studying political science and living as a somali refugee in kenya, when american photographer peter beard approached her according to the observer magazine, he asked to photograph her and she said the privilege would cost him $8,000 the entire amount of her university fees 'my mother said if you didn't know exactly what you wanted you weren't worth it, so ask for everything,' iman tells carole cadwalladr of the magazine true love: iman and david bowie, pictured here at t he met ball in 2005, have been married for 22 years, a lifetime in the showbiz world stunning: iman in her modelling days she was spotted at 20 years old in kenya and landed her first assignment, for vogue, in 1976 just a year later iman soon moved to new york where her career took off over the next 14 years she modelled for halston, gianni versace, calvin klein, issey miyake, donna karan, thierry mulger and yves saint laurent, whom she became a muse for she also worked with notable photographers including helmut newton, richard avedon and annie leibovitz and was the first black woman to front us cosmetic giant revlon the race card, she says, was never an issue until people in america made it one an editor famously thought she was complimenting iman when telling her she looked like a, 'white woman dipped in chocolate' says iman: 'i wasn't a major in political science for nothing, so i understood the politics of beauty and race when it comes to the fashion industry' it was during her modelling high in new york where she met david, though at the time he was living in switzerland the couple moved there briefly before heading back to the states and marrying in 1992 calwalk: iman walks for thierry mugler in 1990 the somalia born model was known as the first black supermodel and had a remarkable 14 year career before she focused her attentions on other projects 'i did not want to get involved with a rock star, no way,' she told the express in 2011 'it is not a sane thing to do but david changed my mind he wooed me' the couple have a daughter, alexandria, or 'lexi,' who is 13, though iman had her first daughter, zulekha, when she was 23, with her then husband, american basketball player spencer haywood she may have retried from modelling 24 years ago, but iman isn't about to slow down just yet her ethnic cosmetics company, iman cosmetics, is worth $25m (£15m) and her charitable endeavours are seemingly endless: she's currently working with nobel peace prize nominee dr hawa abdi on a foundation that supports and helps people in somalia and she's been a keen supporter for save the children, children's defense fund and keep a child alive 'i like working,' iman tells the observer 'what's the other option, sitting at home eating bonbons?' | psychograph clasts nonexclamatory | no related information |
by daily mail reporter published: 11:51 est, 10 december 2013 | updated: 01:26 est, 11 december 2013 general motors ceo dan akerson has announced that he will step down next month and be replaced by the first woman to run the storied car company mary barra, a gm 'lifer' and the current global product chief, has been named as his successor in the landmark appointment the new title bump for the married mother of two means that she will be the first woman to head a global car manufacturer to insiders, her new role as ceo comes as part of a steady climb, as her father is a long time gm employee and barra has spent her entire 33 year career at the company scroll down for video mary barra seen speaking at the final press preview day for the north american international auto show in detroit, michigan (pictured in january 2012) when she starts her new job on january 15, she will lead a company that's made nearly $20billion since emerging from bankruptcy in 2010, much of it from the cars and trucks she helped develop she still faces challenges of paring down gm's costs and winning over buyers in international markets such as india and south america akerson, 65, said he had planned to stay at least until spring, but his wife's advanced cancer diagnosis changed that he said the board unanimously picked barra from several internal candidates because of the breadth of her experience, her management record, her people skills and her understanding of gm's operations ‘this is an executive who has a vision of where she wants to take the organization,’ he said since february 2011, barra has held what many say is the most important job at gm she joined the company in 1980 as an engineering student at kettering then known as general motors institute and became a plant manager, executive director of engineering and head of human resources mary barra (pictured left in december 2013) will take over from dan akerson (pictured right) as general motors' next ceo in january 2014 along the way, she earned a reputation as a manager who made tough decisions, yet was able to get people to follow her lead and work as a team, according to current and former gm executives noting her talent, gm sent her to stanford university to get an mba the 51 year old executive has been in charge of design, engineering and quality for all gm vehicles and has shepherded most of the company's recent new vehicle introductions under her command, gm rolled out brawny new full size pickup trucks, the chevrolet silverado and gmc sierra, and the chevrolet impala full size car, which earned the highest score for a sedan in testing by consumer reports magazine akerson hinted at barra's promotion earlier this year when he told a women's business group in detroit that a ‘car gal’ would someday run one of the detroit three automakers but he made it clear tuesday that she wasn't picked because she's a woman mary barra seen introducing the 2013 buick encore during the press preview at the north american international auto show last year ‘mary's one of the most gifted executives i've met in my career,’ he said during her tenure, gm's quality scores rose in surveys done by jd power and associates she also streamlined the organization, eliminating positions and putting one engineer in charge of each vehicle 'she is polished, soft spoken, invariably polite, but firm and goal focused she will have a learning curve, but will be an excellent ceo,' said bob lutz, a retired gm vice chairman who once led product development barra grew up near pontiac, michigan, in a car oriented family her father was a die maker who retired from gm after 39 years gm's previous two ceos, akerson and whitacre, came from outside the auto industry and lacked the experience that barra has, said erik gordon, a professor at the university of michigan's ross school of business 'there's nobody with more years of honest `car guy' credentials than she has,' gordon said 'she's the one to do the breakthrough' | mary barra gm product development barra 05% 4070 | mary barra has worked at gm for 33 years and is currently product development chief . barra is a married mother of two with one teenage son and one daughter . shares of gm fell 05%, to $4070 in tuesday morning trading after the announcement |
by scarlett russell much like katherine heigl's character in the film 27 dresses, sherry kettner, 31, from arkansas, us is the serial bridesmaid who is still waiting to find a husband of her own sherry has experienced a total of 13 hen dos, sets of wedding pictures and rounds of speeches and still gets excited every time she gets an invite her serial role has seen her walk up the aisle on the arm of people aged eight to 80 in churches, fields and town halls for the big days of her closest friends big day: sherry kettner (l) at her friends heathers wedding (r) sherry has been bridesmaid at 13 weddings but is still looking for a love of her own party gal: sherry attends a party wearing the bridesmaid dress she wore to her sister kayla's wedding film star: katherine heigl as jane in the 2008 film 27 dresses, where she, like real life sherry, was always the bridesmaid but never the bride sherry was first called upon for bridesmaid duty when she was 18 and did the honours for three high school friends; camille, bekah and amanda after she graduated university in 2007 she was asked to walk down the aisle ahead of two friends emily and arlene and her two sisters ericka and kayla and since 2008 she’s been a bridesmaid six more times in as many years for friends, her college roommate, and a fellow blogger for a lifestyle website she contributes to while sherry, who works with adults with special needs for the barnabas foundation, has never been a bride herself, she’s still hoping her big day will come happy: sherry, top right, as a bridesmaid at her friend emily's wedding sherry has been to 13 hen dos, been in 13 sets of pictures and sat through 13 sets of speeches never the bride: sherry, left, walks down the aisle at the wedding of her friend lauren katherine heigl played a fictional character jane, right, in 27 dresses who was a bridesmaid numerous times but remained single she was engaged four and a half years ago and since the relationship ended she has remained single, but she says she’ll never get bored of supporting people on their big day, as well as the rest of their marriage 'i’ve been a bridesmaid so many times but the buzz is still the same when i’m asked,' she says 'it’s such an honour to be invited to be part of someone’s wedding that i can’t help but say yes 'although it’s common for people to get married quite young where i live, i haven’t lost hope 'i definitely want to get married and have children one day 'until then i just feel so blessed to have been part of so many special days!' congratulations! sherry (2nd l) at her friend heather's wedding 'i've been a bridesmaid so many times but the buzz is still the same when i'm asked,' she says sitting pretty: sherry (back r) at her friend jules' wedding since she was 18 sherry, now 31, has been a bridesmaid 13 times amongst the traditional white dress church weddings, sherry as worn a black gown, carried a parasol instead of flowers and boogied the night away at a 1980s themed rehearsal dinner at one wedding the bridal party even pulled james bond poses at the altar unsurprisingly, the odd dress disaster inevitably cropped up during two of the 13 nuptials one bride tried to be kind by picking a value for money dress that suited four bridesmaids, but with its grey green tinge and high necked victorian style collar that reached sherry’s ears, it ended up far from flattering at her own sister’s wedding, a suspect seamstress in charge of alterations did such a bad job, the perfect dresses that had been handmade for each bridesmaid ended up sticking out in all the wrong places these aside, sherry has lovingly hung onto six of the dresses and even wears them for parties now sister love: sherry (l) at her sister kayla's wedding hopeful sherry says: 'i feel so blessed to have been part of so many special days' rock n roll: sherry (back l) at her friend alicia's wedding since 2008 she's been a bridesmaid six times for friends, her college roommate, and a fellow blogger for a lifestyle website she contributes to blushing bridesmaid: sherry (2nd r) at gracie's wedding in the 13 weddings she has been bridesmaid for, sherry has worn a black gown, carried a parasol instead of flowers and boogied the night away at a 1980s themed rehearsal dinne jumping for joy: sherry (2nd l) at gracie's wedding 'it's such an honour to be invited to be part of someone's wedding that i can't help but say yes,' she says but unlike katherine heigl in the 2008 film, she’s never had to dash between two weddings in one evening or been forced to plan the wedding of her crush to someone else 'as much as i love that film i’m not sure about all the things [katherine's character jane] does,' says sherry 'unlike jane i’ve been really good friends of all the people i’ve been a bridesmaid for they’ve wanted me to support them in their marriage, not just organise their big day! 'all the weddings i’ve been in have been about the people not just a big white dress and a cake 'i love weddings, they’re great to meet people and bring people together, but if it’s just about the party then it loses the attraction for me 'it has to be about celebrating lasting love' she adds: 'i really have been very fortunate with the dresses there’s only been one that was a bit of a shocker and in hindsight even that wasn’t so bad 'i’ve even managed to get some wear out of them again' | sherry kettner arkansas sherry | sherry kettner, 31, from arkansas has been a bridesmaid 13 times . her duties have been called upon by her two sisters and countless friends . 'the buzz is still the same every time i’m asked,' says single sherry |
by scarlett russell when pictures emerged of helen mirren on holiday in italy sporting a red bikini, the reaction was sensational at 63, she had a healthy toned figure many 30 year old women could only dream of and it would seem the impact is still going strong six years later, as jd williams has seen a massive surge in the swimming style in their over 50s customers influential: dame helen mirren was 63 when this photo was taken in pelugia, italy in 2008 it's impact is still going strong: jd williams have reported an 230 per cent surge in bikini sales from their over 50s customers the women’s retailers has announced a growth of +227 per cent year on year in bikini sets, driven by their costumer base who, ironically, were born around the time of the two piece’s invention in 1946 separates are selling especially well, in particular the high waist brief so strong is the trend that swimwear buyers have dubbed the skimpy beachwear the ‘grankini’ and it’s not just mirren who can rock a two piece over the age of 50 gorgeous: demi moore, 51, rocks a black bikini and looks sensational no wonder more and more women over the age of 50 are embracing the bikini never looked better! sharon stone, left, and kathy griffin, right, both look incredible in their bikinis celebrities such as demi moore, kathy griffin, sharon stone, jerry hall, sheryl crow and denise welch have all given their younger counterparts a run for their money over recent years , looking fabulous in bikinis rachael antal, swimwear buyer at jd williams says: ‘historically, when british women hit fifty there is a noticeable shift in their body confidence which generally means sales of one pieces soar and bikini sales deplete swimwear: the magisculpt body sculpting bikini top, £25, left and cleo plunge bikini top, £31, by jd williams ‘now, celebrities around the world are embracing their shape and looking fabulous in the two piece 'wearing a supportive, well proportioned bikini is less aging and accentuates rather than hides natural shape 'advances in swimwear design mean that we can now create bikinis that flatter a mature shape top to bottom: the magisculpt body sculpting bikini brief, £18, left and cleo plunge bikini briefs, £1650, right are both by jd williams 'wider straps, wires and built in mesh support hoist and shape breasts in the same way that lingerie does, while bikini bottoms with higher waist lines offer coverage for any wobbly bits or stretch marks' women over 50 are responsible for £67 billion of british fashion spend and much of this is apportioned to the summer wardrobe, according to jd williams research psychologist rachel maclynn comments: 'by 2050 the over 50s will account for two billion of the population amazing figure: singer sheryl crow shows off her incredible bikini body in 2010 on holiday at atlantis paradise island in the bahamas 50s ladies: bikini clad denise welch in, left, looks great whilst jerry hall, right, is toned and trim 'the term ‘flat age society’ has been applied to this constantly expanding market who manage the ageing process in a way our predecessors did not 'there are no rules to say when a woman should retire her bikini women over fifty are as interested in looking glamorous as their younger counterparts; and the beach is no exception 'traditional age barriers no longer exist meaning that customers of all ages are confident about fashion' with over 140 year’s expertise in fit and fashion, jd williams, part of the n brown group, caters for three million customers they refuse to adopt a ‘one size fits all’ approach, instead focusing on clothes that fit and flatter, making shopping for fashion easy and enjoyable whatever your size or shape | jd williams 230 per cent helen mirren | jd williams announces 230 per cent increase in bikini sales . say their costumers are largely women over fifty and trend for two pieces is inspired by celebs like helen mirren . 'customers of all ages are confident about fashion,' says spokesperson |
by dan bloom published: 01:17 est, 12 december 2013 | updated: 01:30 est, 12 december 2013 gay couples who wed less than a week ago have had their marriages annulled after australia's highest court struck down a law allowing the nation's first same sex unions the weddings were legalised in the capital canberra on saturday after regional authorities enacted a gay marriage law but it was challenged by the government, which said it was invalid today the high court of australia agreed, shattering the dreams of more than a dozen couples who had already married this week tearful: activist rodney croome with couples outside the high court of australia after a gay marriage law was struck down today he said: 'marriage equality is not about protest or politics it's about love' devastated: chris teoh and ivan hinton had their wedding, pictured, on saturday it will now be annulled glenda and jennifer lloyd, pictured with their marriage certificate, had wed only days before the historic ruling this couple, named as krishna and veronica, was one of dozens who attended the high court ruling today australia's prime minister is against gay marriage and the national marriage act was amended in 2004 to define weddings as 'between a man and a woman' the government told the high court that having different marriage laws in different states would cause confusion the australian capital territory, which passed the law in october, said it should stand because it governs couples outside the federal definition of marriage as being between members of the opposite sex today the court sided with the government, saying the two laws could not run side by side ivan hinton, who married his partner chris teoh on saturday, had only received their marriage certificate on wednesday and had already applied to change their surnames to hinton teoh outside court he said he will always consider teoh his husband and added: 'this was an unprecedented and historic opportunity i wouldn't have missed it for the world' upset: a couple hug outside the court australian prime minister tony abbott is against same sex unions emotion: couples embrace each other after the ruling, which defeated a regional law made in capital territory glenda and jennifer lloyd embraced as couples faced the media today outside the high court of australia the court said in a statement: 'the marriage act does not now provide for the formation or recognition of marriage between same sex couples the marriage act provides that a marriage can be solemnised in australia only between a man and a woman 'that act is a comprehensive and exhaustive statement of the law of marriage' rodney croome, national director of the advocacy group australian marriage equality, said his group knows of about 30 same sex couples who have married since saturday, though the actual number may be slightly higher conservative: australian prime minister tony abbott is against gay marriage and blocked two bills the court decision nullifies their marriages as it means the local law under which they were wed was invalid outside the court in canberra, a tearful croome, flanked by several same sex newlyweds, said the ruling was a defeat for marriage equality but there had been a 'greater victory' 'that victory was the nation saw for the first time, i believe, what is really at the core of this issue,' he said 'they've seen that marriage equality is not about protest or politics or even about laws in the constitution, ultimately marriage equality is about love, commitment, family and fairness' the ruling has effectively barred any other australian states from legalising same sex marriage, and the decision can now only be taken by the government however, prime minister tony abbott opposes gay marriage and his coalition blocked two federal bills last year that would have allowed legal recognition of same sex partnerships lyle shelton, managing director of australian christian lobby, which opposes same sex marriage, praised the court ruling and said common sense had prevailed as for the ruling's impact on the newlywed couples, shelton said it was 'really sad that they were put in a position' in which they were allowed to marry before the court handed down its judgment the ruling comes a day after india's supreme court struck down a 2009 lower court decision to decriminalize homosexuality the verdict to reinstate gay sex as an 'unnatural act' as part of a 153 year old colonial law prompted dismay from human rights groups across the world, which condemned the ruling as 'medieval and regressive' homosexual acts in india, in many parts a deeply conservative country, are punishable with life in jail | nation just weeks ago yesterday india 153 year old | nation's highest court quashes regional law approved just weeks ago . more than 20 couples had already wed and will have marriages annulled . activist: 'marriage equality is not about protest or politics it's about love'. yesterday india recriminalised homosexuality under 153 year old law |
by daily mail reporter published: 12:30 est, 11 december 2013 | updated: 12:46 est, 11 december 2013 questioned: eduardo rocha bracamontes is being questioned after the death of his son a mexican diplomat and his wife are being questioned by police after their four month old son died with cuts and bruises across his body, police said eduardo rocha bracamontes, 36, and his wife, gina ximena, 26, took their unconscious baby son, eduardo rocha ovalle, by taxi to a manhattan hospital around 9pm on tuesday night the child was not breathing and was pronounced dead at nyu langone medical center at 936pm staff contacted police authorities said an autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause of the boy's death, but it has been deemed suspicious because of 'bruising on his hands, feet, back and genitalia' the new york daily news reported that the baby boy had a laceration to his scalp and cuts on his right thumb and a toe both of the parents are answering questions at the midtown south precinct, although police sources said that they have not given any explanation as to what had happened in their home 'i can tell you that the parent, the father is an employee of the mexican consulate here in new york,' nypd commissioner ray kelly said wednesday 'the baby expired at the hospital when the medical examiner responded, he determined that an investigation should be done to determine the specific cause of death and that’s what’s going forward right now,' home: police have been called to the family's home in this manhattan building twice for domestic spats the mexican consultate's office has not yet responded to a request for comment from mailonline nypd officers have been called to the couple's home on 32nd street in manhattan twice since september for verbal disputes that did not result in arrests, police confirmed wanda hernandez, 52, the super of the building where the family lived, told the new york post that the couple had lived in the apartment for about a year but they they were behind on their rent she added that the couple were planning to go back to mexico on december 31 hernandez said that when she left police into the apartment there was no visible signs of blood or violence she added that around two months ago she found the mother on the door steps talking to a female officer, telling her: 'he grabbed me so hard, he shook me' 'she was crying,' hernandez told the post 'she told me her husband bruised her and she was showing me the bruises on her arm she said he doesn’t want to give her the baby' the couple was planning to go back to mexico on dec 31st, hernandez said | eduardo rocha ovalle manhattan tuesday night eduardo rocha bracamontes mexican | baby eduardo rocha ovalle was pronounced dead at a manhattan hospital on tuesday night after he was rushed there by his parents . baby 'had laceration to his scalp and bruises across his hands, feet, back and genitals'. his father eduardo rocha bracamontes works at the mexican embassy and is now being questioned, along with his wife, about the baby's death . police have responded to the family's home twice for verbal disputes |
by daily mail reporter published: 13:43 est, 11 december 2013 | updated: 16:53 est, 11 december 2013 former gynecologist bruce sylvester smith was finally sentenced to 18 years in prison on tuesday for raping a pregnant patient while performing an exam on her in his office in chicago's south side in 2002 following a bungled investigation the victim, who was eight months pregnant at the time and cannot be identified, struggled as she explained the attack while taking to the witness stand, saying that even though it happened 11 years ago, she has never gotten over the pain she was lying on an examination table with her legs in stirrups on august 2, 2002, when smith, 60, grabbed her legs and penetrated her, according to cbs 'how do i describe the feeling of nasty and dirty, never being able to wash that feeling away, never being able to wash him away?' she told the court bruce sylvester smith has finally been sentenced to 18 years prison for raping a patient during an exam at his chicago office in 2002 following a bungled investigation 'it's like an endless knot in the pit of my belly that never goes away 'it never goes away 'i am afraid and paranoid all the time 'i am afraid to be seen by a doctor, not just men (but) women too' 'i put the health and care of myself and the health and care of my unborn child in his hands, but he violated that trust and he abused his position 'he violated me in the worst way possible' the prosecution called smith 'despicable' and 'a liar' after he testified the sex was consensual 'he blamed her for it,' assistant state’s attorney annette milleville said 'he shattered (her trust) into a million pieces in the most despicable manner' although the rape took place well over a decade ago, smith wasn’t arrested for crime until 2010, with prosecutors forced to admit 'mistakes were made' in their investigation the woman, a teaching assistant, immediately called her sister after the attack, who contacted a rape hotline at a counselor's urging, the woman underwent a rape exam at the university of chicago hospital on the day of the assault days later she filed a complaint with chicago police however the prosecutor who initially reviewed the case in 2002 declined to press charges pending further evidence the case was later closed and the rape kit sat untested for years then in 2009 smith’s medical license was suspended for nine months after several women came forward, accusing him of sexual misconduct as the stories and allegations against smith started to multiply, with numerous being documented by the chicago tribune, a detective sent the kit to a lab the results matched dna to smith smith was never charged in any other case, although there were many one former patient who went public with her allegations against smith said he raped her during a pelvic exam in 2000 when she was 19 and her legs were in stirrups tameka stokes said she broke down crying as she left the exam room and a nurse immediately called police a rape exam did not turn up smith's semen and prosecutors declined to press charges 'you go into the doctor trusting them, thinking they'll do the right thing for you and you come out feeling humiliated like that's been taken away from you,' stokes told authorities during a 2008 state hearing smith chose not to say anything in court before he was sentenced but assistant public defender armando sandoval spoke on smith’s behalf describing how the father of five grew up poor and enlisted in the us army and worked as a teacher before putting himself through medical school because of his legal troubles, smith’s second marriage ended, sandoval told the judge in hopes of smith avoiding the maximum 30 year sentence he was sentenced to 18 years prison | bruce sylvester smith chicago smith | bruce sylvester smith, 60, was spared the maximum penalty of 30 years for his crime and sentenced to 18 years prison . the gynecologist raped a patient during a exam at his chicago office in august 2002 . the prosecution bungled the investigation and initially closed the case, until it was finally reopened in 2010 after multiple allegations stacked up against smith . the woman at the center of the case took to the stand at smith's sentencing hearing on tuesday |
by rebecca english published: 18:17 est, 23 october 2013 | updated: 02:13 est, 24 october 2013 as transformations go, it was nothing short of astonishing just three hours after she was seen walking down the street yesterday in black skinny jeans and brown polka dot pussy bow blouse on her way to the hairdressers, carole middleton arrived at the royal christening in style with her shoulder length brunette hair scraped back in a hair clip, the 58 year old matriarch was virtually unnoticeable as she left her daughter pippa’s london flat just before 1130am scroll down for video change: carole middleton was virtually unnoticeable as she left her daughter pippa's london flat yesterday morning (left), but after a stint with her stylist, mrs middleton (right) was ready to hold her own with royalty we're here: michael and carole middleton arriving for the christening of prince george at st james's palace but after a stint with her stylist, mrs middleton who topped numerous best dressed lists for her choice of outfit at the royal wedding was ready to hold her own with royalty it is not known who was responsible for her make over, although she and her daughters do favour the richard ward salon on nearby king’s road carole left her slightly harassed looking husband, michael, back at the family’s chelsea crash pad while she underwent her makeover but like all men, he was only required to don a suit afterwards there was just time to do her make up like her daughters carole prefers to do her own and favours lashings of eyeliner before heading off to the palace siblings: pippa and james middleton follow their mother as they arrive at chapel royal in st james's palace mother: the duchess of cambridge carries her son prince george who was christened at the chapel royal once again her choice of outfit was spot on a catherine walker and co ‘iris’ coatdress made from navy, superfine merino wool its elegant lines were enhanced by inset panels of chalk grey silk at the sides, mounted with a delicate navy floral calais lace all of catherine walker’s outfit are made to measure for clients and would cost upwards of £2,000 carole teamed her outfit with a soft grey hat with a satin trim by milliner jane corbett a favourite of all the middleton ladies george’s other granny, the duchess of cornwall, was wearing a cream georgette dress, featuring embroidery on the neck, and a cream bouclé coat, both by fiona clare, with a philip treacy hat | vitupery styrol railroaders | no related information |
by richard spillett jasvir ginday, 29, has been found guilty of murdering his wife varkha after she threatened to 'out him' as gay a gay bank worker who strangled his new bride with a hoover pipe and burnt her body in an incinerator after she threatened to 'out him' was today found guilty of murder and jailed for life jasvir ram ginday killed 24 year old varkha rani in september last year following a lavish wedding ceremony in india just six months earlier the 29 year old strangled his wife with a metal hoover pipe before forcing her body into the 22 inch deep incinerator and setting it alight neighbours described a smell similar to the kind which comes from a crematorium but ginday told them he was just 'burning some rubbish' he then reported his wife missing and police attended the marital home on victory road in walsall, west midlands officers returned the next day when they saw black smoke billowing from the property and discovered varkha's charred remains in the incinerator ginday was arrested and initially denied killing his wife before eventually claiming he had 'lost control' and strangled her to death the it expert pleaded guilty to manslaughter and a further charge of perverting the course of justice by lying to police but denied murdering his new bride but a jury of five men and seven women found him guilty of murder unanimously today following a three week trial at wolverhampton crown court sentencing ginday to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years, judge john warner said he had showed a 'complete lack of any humanity' and had told 'lie after lie' in a bid to escape justice following the verdict, varkha's heartbroken mother paid tribute to her 'precious' daughter and told how she knew ginday had planned the murder all along kashmir kaur, speaking from her home in nawanshahr, india, said: 'he didn't like girls he liked boys 'he had already made his plans to marry a girl from india and kill her he'd already made the plan and my innocent daughter has been killed for no reason 'she had no idea what she was getting in to he could have left her here in india she could have stayed with us scroll down for video the couple had wed six months earlier after ginday travelled to india and met 15 women before marrying varkha in front of 700 guests 'she was the most precious of my daughters, she was my favourite she had four degrees, she had a good life here, she was a very dutiful daughter 'he killed her in such a heartless way and should be locked up for a long time ' ginday showed no emotion as the verdict was delivered and is expected to be jailed for life this afternoon the trial heard university graduate ginday travelled to india in october 2012 and met 15 women before marrying varkha in front of 700 guests on march 28 last year varkha's mother kashmir kaur has paid tribute to her 'most precious' daughter, who she said had four degrees ginday said varkha had threatened to leave him after finding evidence of his sexuality on his phone the new bride, who had completed a degree and a master's degree in science and it in her home country, came to the uk on august 10 just a month later on september 12, ginday killed his wife in their bedroom before dragging her body downstairs and dumping it in the burning incinerator the jury heard ginday had only married varkha because he wanted to hide his sexuality and not bring shame on his family ginday had been frequenting gay bars and having relationships with men around the time of his engagement to varkha in 2012 the jury in the trial were shown cctv images of ginday filling up a bottle with petrol just hours before varkha's burnt body was discovered by police detective chief inspector sarbjit johal said ginday 'tricked a poor innocent girl into marriage but was living a lie' he told the court they began fighting when she confronted him about his sexuality after she had found 'material' on his ipad and iphone sentencing ginday to life imprisonment today, judge warner said: 'you suggest in the case going over to india to ask varkha to marry you was not deceitful it was clearly a fundamental deception 'it was a very cruel situation you put her in she was a vulnerable woman 1,000 miles from her close family you should not have deceived in her in that way 'only two people know what happened that afternoon she is not here to tell us you have told lie after lie about a number of matters making it impossible to rely on what you say 'the state of her body was such dr kolar, the pathologist, couldn't even determine the cause of her death your injuries were caused by her desperate attempts to save herself at first, he denied killing her but later claimed he had 'lost control' after she threatened to 'expose him in the community' 'it may be that you formed the intentions to do what you did as long as ago as when you bought the incinerator 'you are a very devious, controlling man and a meticulous planner in a number of aspects of your life by the day itself you had sorted out what you going to do 'killing her was dreadful enough but what followed was horrible even beyond imagining 'you behaved in an unbelievably casual and callous way with a complete lack of any humanity 'no one who was in court to hear that evidence will easily put out of their minds the image of her body being poked and prodded by you down into that incinerator 'her death and manner of her death has had a profound effect on her family leaving a gap which cannot be filled' police noted nothing suspicious when they first visited the couple's home in walsall, west midlands but returned when they saw smoke rising from the garden neighbours noticed a burning smell, but ginday told them he was just 'burning some rubbish' during the trial, ginday had claimed his wife had threatened to 'out him' to the community the royal bank of scotland employee said he had realised he was gay at the age of 12 but felt unable to tell his parents the truth because they would be 'devastated' he told the jury: 'she started saying that she had found out about me she said 'i have found out that you're gay' 'i was shocked, i didn't know how to react she said 'i'm going to leave you, i'm going to tell everyone i'm going to expose you to the community'' 'after that everything happened so quickly we started to fight and i was trying to plead with her not to tell anyone 'i didn't want anyone to know about my sexuality because i knew there would be a lot of issues surrounding that i still wanted to work the relationship out a 22 inch deep incinerator like that ginday used to burn his wife's body 'it happened so fast we ended up on the bedroom floor there was scratching going on then all of a sudden i lost control' the court heard two police officers found the charred remains of varkha in the incinerator on september 13 prosecutor debi gould said: 'a pc dutton lifted the lid and found herself looking down on a human skull which was severely burnt' pathologists later confirmed the human remains were varkha's and that she had died from strangulation by a metal pole being placed across her throat during the trial the jury were shown cctv images of ginday filling up a water bottle with petrol at a service station just hours before his wife's remains were found footage of celebrations held for the wedding of ginday's sister manjit less than a week before varkha's death were also played to the court in the videos, the couple were seen having their photos taken together and then joining hands to dance alongside a crowd of people after the verdict, varkha's cousin sunil kumar said: 'no words can truly express the sadness and hurt my family and i are experiencing at the loss of varkha, she was loved dearly by all, she had a great passion for life and doted on her family 'varkha attained a masters degree and was driven to make her life a success, unfortunately she fell prey to ginday who had ulterior motives which varkha would not have appreciated' detective chief inspector sarbjit johal, from west midlands police, said: 'ginday got married as a matter of convenience he tricked a poor innocent girl into marriage but was living a lie 'when she uncovered the truth he could not live with it and killed her quickly then tried to dispose of her body and her possessions by burning them 'had another day passed before police attended, ginday may well have successfully removed all traces of varkha 'i hope that this verdict brings some comfort to varkha's family who have travelled from india to see justice is brought for their daughter' | antievangelical conjugium arterioplasty | no related information |
by derek lawrenson click here for the latest augusta leaderboard masters champion adam scott opened his defence here at augusta national on thursday like a man with no intention of letting anyone rip the jacket off his back all year the pride he felt in becoming the first australian to win here was obvious, as he took the green coat — to use the american vernacular — on a world tour that culminated in a glorious homecoming down under last november scott has inspired his australian peers to such an extent that they have won four of the last seven job well done: adam scott looks happy after completing round one, finishing just one shot back great start: but american bill haas leads the way, with a round of 68 at augusta respect: haas was playing with miguel angel jimenez at the masters, and both played well now the main man is back, as he posted an impressive three under par 69 that left him just a stroke off the lead held by american bill haas ‘i don’t know how it felt to him but to me it looked like he had the ball on a string,’ said scott’s playing partner, england’s us amateur champion matt fitzpatrick ‘he’s got such a fantastic swing, it was a pleasure watching him’ the only other player who draws compliments like this from fellow competitors is rory mcilroy all those hoping for the pair to be locked together come the final nine holes on sunday will have been encouraged by the sight of the northern irishman also taking his place on the leaderboard the 24 year old finished with a 71, which represented a good start on a devilishly difficult opening day as so often this season, his driving was a thing of beauty but 34 putts told its own story of a round that was stunted by his work on the greens still, the daunting nature of the set up was illustrated by the fact only four players broke 70, with bubba watson and louis oosthuizen, the two men who contested the play off in 2012, finishing alongside scott watson, the winner on that occasion two years ago, was the only player in the 97 man field to keep a bogey off his card mcilroy began by booming drives on the opening three holes that all came to rest 320 yards from the tee on their respective fairways hanging in there: rory mcilroy is well in contention on one under par gary player (@garyplayer): ‘an honour to kick off @the masters with jack & arnie only 1 shot counting on blasting it long & straight’ the south african veteran joined jack nicklaus and arnold palmer to hit the honorary tee shot tiger woods (@tigerwoods): 'it never gets old watching the honorary starters tee off one of the oldest and best traditions in the game' the injured world no 1 had to watch from the sidelines as this year's tournament got under way graeme mcdowell (graeme mcdowell): 'not breaking us in gently with day one pin positions here @the masters some tough ones especially 5/10/16' the northern irishman was spot on with his predictions and faced a struggle before finishing level par for the day shane warne (@warne888): the masters starts today! good luck to all the players, especially the aussies, maybe back to back scotty? my tip is @jdaygolf!' former australian spinner warne was backing his fellow countryman jason day to follow up adam scott's win last year eoin morgan (@eoin16): made all my bets for live masters i've spread the love this year backing rory, bubba and keegan bradley the england batsman will be hoping his tips perform better than his cricket team have done recently gareth bale (@garethbale11): ‘it’s masters time! one of my favourite sporting events backing @djohnsonpga to win it this year’ the real madrid star backed american dustin johnson, but fellow welshman ian woosnam finished on five over decent support: girlfriend and tennis star caroline wozniacki was following the northern irishman could have been better: it was still a mixed day for mcillroy at the par four third, that left him just a pitch on to the green and he duly knocked it close to set up his first birdie another followed at the fifth but then came bogeys at the eighth and 12th he found the green in two on both the par fives on the back nine to set up birdies but a three putt at the 18th stung still, as he reflected: ‘this was a day when the course was set up so hard any score under par represented a good start’ mcilroy thought the test a little different from the past, but the familiarity of the names at the top of the leaderboard suggested otherwise after the monsoon on monday and unseasonably chilly weather to follow, dawn broke on masters thursday to a georgia peach of a day the opportunity was clearly there to post a score and make a statement but the pin positions on the first day are usually brutal and here was no exception much of the interest surrounded mcilroy and scott, of course, who were out in successive groups scott made a spectacular start a pushed drive at the first left him with only a narrow opening to squeeze his approach through if he was to find the green fearless: scott was showing no signs of nerves as he looked to defend his masters jacket uh oh: the australian had to take a drop at the par 5 15th what a lesson: amateur playing partner matt fitzpatrick said it was a pleasure to watch scott's swing he did that all right, provoking one of the loudest cheers of the early play when the ball pitched six feet from the hole and pulled up half that distance away having achieved one unlikely birdie, scott managed another at the short sixth, where the hole was positioned on a treacherous ledge a more customary birdie for a man with his prodigious gifts off the tee followed at the long eighth to take him out in a tidy 33 strokes a birdie at the 10th — the hole he also birdied last year to break the aussie curse in the play off against angel cabrera — took him to four under the 12th hole at augusta is the shortest on the course, known as golden bell, and how often it has tolled for players who appear to be moving through the gears on this day the flag was located on the right, always the most dangerous spot never go for this flag, advises jack nicklaus, but scott gambled — and lost his ball finished in the water and he failed to hole from six feet for a bogey mixed emotions: brandt snedeker lead at one stage before finishing on two under, just like jimmy walker mixed emotions: brandt snedeker lead at one stage before finishing on two under, just like jimmy walker still going strong: fred couples impressed beyond his years scott also three putted the long 13th for a disappointing par, before birdieing the 14th to continue his curious round where he birdied the holes you’re supposed to par and parred the holes that offer obvious opportunities ‘it showed how well i was playing that i only birdied one of the par fives and yet still shot 69,’ he said seven players shot 70, including americans brandt snedeker and jimmy walker, while alongside mcilroy on 71 was 54 year old fred couples evergreen is exactly the right word to describe him given that every time he puts on that green jacket and walks through the gates of magnolia lane, he turns into a golfing peter pan couples hasn’t finished outside the top 15 since turning 50, a truly remarkable statistic scotland’s stephen gallacher finished on the same mark while graeme mcdowell shot a respectable 72 — a score matched by the indefatigable bernhard langer, now 56 — but for england’s finest it was another frustrating day shining light: the englishman struggled on day one, only westwood really impressing struggled: luke donald (left) and justin rose had a horrific day with the tricky tee positions luke donald found insult added to injury when he was assessed a two shot penalty at the ninth for touching the sand with his club in a bunker before he hit the ball to turn a poor 77 into a desperate 79, while justin rose and ian poulter shot 76s it was a popular score among the english contingent with the two amateurs competing, fitzpatrick and garrick porteous, on the same mark in this company, last man out lee westwood’s 73 was a positive beacon course specialist phil mickelson needs a low one as well on friday after also shooting 76 got a chance: augusta regulars louis oosthuizen (above) and bubba watson are right in the mix what of the two stadlers, kevin and craig, the first father and son to play in the same masters? kevin, on his debut, shot a fine 70 his dad was surely delighted with that? if he was, he kept it well hidden did you watch kevin tee off, he was asked ‘no,’ came the reply he did pretty well today? ‘i’ve no idea what he shot’ two under ‘did he? good’ craig stadler, it hardly needs saying, went round in 82 wouldn’t you think he’d have swallowed his own disappointment? | bill haas masters adam scott bubba watson louis oosthuizen rory mcilroy lee westwood phil mickelson luke donald justin rose | bill haas leads the masters after a round of 67 . adam scott, bubba watson and louis oosthuizen a shot back . rory mcilroy on one under par, along with lee westwood . phil mickelson, luke donald and justin rose suffer |
kim kardashian's got one of the biggest bottoms in show business, but fitness guru jen selter is trying to her best to outdo her the 20 year old new yorker, who famously convinced barbara walters to do squats on live tv earlier this year, has amassed almost three million instagram followers after posting daily poses of herself working out in tight fitting gym gear her shapely derriere being the primary focus in a picture posted on monday her hourglass silhouette is captured from the side as she climbs into the pool wearing a tiny bikini to do some laps scroll down for video hold that pose: amply bottomed jen selter, 20, from new york, has amassed almost three million instagram followers after posting daily poses of herself in tight fitting gym gear she uploaded this shot on monday just the day before she was snapped in central park doing yoga in the sun after spending the morning squatting in the gym but on saturday it appears she took some time out from her jam packed workout schedule as she is seen smiling for the camera at home however, she remains wearing her revealing gym gear, as to not let fans down well toned: just the day before she was snapped in central park doing yoga in the sun bend and stretch: the same morning miss selter did some squats at the gym thanks to her constant parading, miss selter landed a lucrative sports management deal in january causing her to be dubbed the 'next jillian michaels' the pretty brunette is now set to make a small fortune through product endorsements and public appearances book, tv and fitness video projects are also in the pipeline 'i see myself motivating and inspiring everyone around the world with hard work and dedication, anyone can get to where i am' miss selter signed with the legacy agency, which represents baseball stars carl crawford and johan santana, nfl players osi umenyiora and reggie bush and sports broadcasters troy aikman and dan hicks 'we believe she can be the next jillian michaels,' tla agent andrew witlieb told the new york post, even though miss selter has no formal fitness training unlike michaels, 39, who is a judge on nbc’s the biggest loser however, mr witlieb pointed out: 'jillian didn’t get to where she is until her mid 30s jen’s going to grow as a person, as a fitness expert, in these next years she’s here for the long term' comfort gear: when she's not at the gym miss selter enjoys relaxing at home flaunting it: miss selter, who is single, says she struggles to go anywhere where she is not recognized asked if miss selter’s precious rear would be insured like the limbs of other top athletes, mr witlieb added, 'i have no idea' just one picture of miss selter on a workout ball or squatting at the gym can garner as many as 200,000 likes, and thousands consider her a fitness inspiration 'i don't really go to public gyms anymore just because it is a whole big scene when i'm there i don't like being watched' 'i'm recognized wherever i am,' miss selter said 'i don't really go to public gyms anymore just because it is a whole big scene when i'm there i don't like being watched' she admits that her photos are always focused on her rounded behind, explaining: 'i don't really post a lot of face pictures they don't want to see my face' miss selter, who is single and lives with her mother on the upper west side, took cosmetology classes while holding side jobs at a plastic surgeon's office and a gym after graduating high school when she started working out at the gym, she noticed that her behind began getting bigger and was inspired by the transformation curvy: selter worked in a gym until she amassed half a million followers and began getting other job offers proud: she says that while she has worked hard to achieve her behind, anyone can do it she joined instagram in march 2012 and began posting images of her body when she saw people reposting her images, she asked for a credit and her number of followers boomed once she achieved 300,000 followers, sponsorship offers piled up from companies including nike, lululemon and new balance, among others she has since quit her gym job and secured deals with water company ny20 and a nutrition supplement company, game plan nutrition, for which she is a spokeswoman while she would not reveal how much she makes from these deals, miss selter, who did not go to college, said they give her 'a lot more money than a graduate would be making' her mother, jill weinstein, said she couldn't be more proud of her daughter and her following close: selter is pictured with her mother jill, who said she is proud of how her daughter motivates others 'i'm very proud of her because this is a girl who didn’t want to go to college, and she was able to build up this social media in such a way that she has become famous and she is an inspiration and motivation for so many people,' she told the post many followers have suggested her plump derriere is fake but she insists it is real, explaining that the only cosmetic surgery she has undergone was a nose job as a teenager 'i'm jewish,' she said 'jewish girls have big noses probably 1 out of 3 girls i know [has had] a nose job' miss selter, who hopes to create a line of workout gear or even her own chain of gyms, admits that some of the photos can be 'showy' but said that she simply wants to inspire people 'i see myself motivating and inspiring everyone around the world,' she concluded 'with hard work and dedication, anyone can get to where i am' | 20 year old new yorker instagram rihanna | the 20 year old new yorker became an internet hit after posting photos of her workout and yoga sessions to instagram . she counts rihanna and sports stars among her followers |
by daily mail reporter and associated press reporter the jackpot in the powerball lottery climbed to $400 million after nobody picked the winning numbers in saturday's draw dreamers hoping to strike it rich quick plunked down $2 a ticket hoping to win the previous jackpot estimated to be at $300 million but in vain the winning numbers for saturday's drawing were 21, 24, 36, 42, and 45, with the powerball 15scroll down for video lottery fever: those hoping to take home the $300million powerball jackpot scrambled for the $2 lottery ticketssociety) rtxzs75 frenzy: the powerball prize leapt today as lottery players scrambled to buy more tickets the jackpot was well below the eye popping record of $5905 million, won in may by an 84 year old florida widow but it was big enough to attract casual players who only buy tickets when they think the payoff is big and potentially life changing the odds of matching all six numbers are 1 in 175,200,000 powerball is played in 43 states, washington dc, and the us virgin islands when it comes to choosing the winning combination of six numbers, some players use birthdates of family members, but nearly 80 per cent let the computer randomly pick the digits, according to abc news that is the strategy that gloria mackenzie, 84, of zephyrhills, florida, used back in may, taking home close to $600 million – the largest prize for a sole winner in the history of us lottery against the odds: the odds of matching all six numbers are 1 in 175,200,000 ‘while in line at publix another lottery player was kind enough to let me go ahead of them in line to purchase the winning quick pick ticket,’ she said in a statement, according to florida lottery officials of all the states that participate in the powerball lottery, indiana is the leader in the number of winners, coming in at 38, followed by pennsylvania, missouri, minnesota and kentucky very wealthy: this is the 84 year old widow gloria mackenzie who just claimed a $5905million jackpot the powerball jackpot is now the fourth biggest in us history after no weekend winner1 $656 million, mega millions, march 30, 2012 (3 tickets from kansas, illinois and maryland)2 $5905 million, powerball, may 18, 2013 (1 ticket from florida)3 $5875 million, powerball, nov 28, 2012 (2 tickets from arizona and missouri)4 $400 million, powerball, (drawing scheduled for wednesday, aug 7; jackpot could grow)5 $390 million, mega millions, march 6, 2007 (2 tickets from georgia and new jersey)6 $380 million, mega millions, jan 4, 2011 (2 tickets from idaho and washington)7 $365 million, powerball, feb 18, 2006 (1 ticket from nebraska)8 $363 million, the big game, may 9, 2000 (2 tickets from illinois and michigan)9 $340 million, powerball, oct 19, 2005 (1 ticket from oregon)10 $3383 million, powerball, march 23, 2013 (1 ticket from new jersey) if wednesday’s jackpot doesn’t top $400 million, a single winner choosing the cash option would collect $2303 million before taxes the last time that someone won the powerball jackpot was june 22, newsday reported the lucky ticket was sold in pennsylvania, earning its holder a prize of $131 million the largest jackpot in us history stands at $656 million it was won in march 2012 by participants in the mega millions lottery from maryland, kansas and illinois | powerball 15 $5905 million florida | winning numbers on saturday were 21, 24, 36, 42, 45, with powerball 15 . biggest powerball jackpot of $5905 million was won by 84 year old florida widow in may . odds of matching all six numbers are 1 to 1752 million . the next draw will be on wednesday |
by jenny awford tragedy: off duty detective constable ian smollet died after being hit by a truck on the m8 near edinburgh an off duty police officer has died after being struck by a tanker truck on a busy motorway detective constable ian smollet, 35, stepped out of a vehicle on the hard shoulder of the m8 outside edinburgh when he was hit by a leyland daf tanker truck the father of two from livingston, west lothian, suffered serious injuries in the collision which took place on thursday afternoon he was taken to edinburgh royal infirmary but lost his battle for life that evening police scotland offered their sympathies to mr smollet’s wife laura, his two young daughters and the rest of his family and friends chief superintendent gill imery said: ‘it is with the deepest regret i can confirm that detective constable ian smollet, who served in the lothians and scottish borders division, has died following thursday’s collision ‘our sympathies are with his family, friends and colleagues at this very difficult time ‘road policing officers are continuing their investigation and i would urge any members of the public who witnessed the collision or who believe they can assist with this inquiry to contact police immediately’ the collision took place between junctions two and three on the westbound carriageway and the road was closed for at least five hours in a statement released through police scotland, mr smollet’s family said yesterday: ‘ian was a caring and loving husband, an amazing dad and will be missed immensely ‘we would ask that the media respect our privacy and allow us to grieve in private’ neighbours expressed their sadness rachel smith, 40, said: ‘i am in shock the family has always been very friendly, it’s so upsetting’ accident: dc smollet stepped out of a vehicle parked on the hard shoulder of the m8 between junctions two and three near edinburgh, and was hit by a truck he died later in hospital | ian smollet m8 edinburgh edinburgh royal infirmary | detective constable ian smollet was killed on the m8 near edinburgh . as he stepped from a vehicle on the hard shoulder he was hit by a truck . father of two lost his fight for life at edinburgh royal infirmary . his family pay tribute to a 'loving husband and amazing dad' |
by associated press the father of michigan's first surviving set of sextuplets has died at the age of 39 while playing with his children ben van houten suffered a heart attack on wednesday night shortly after setting up a trampoline at his home in the holland area in western michigan mr van houten's wife, amy, gave birth three months' prematurely to six children over three days at a grand rapids hospital in 2004 devastating loss: ben van houten died on wednesday at the age of 39 he is pictured with his family in 2008 from left, john, ben, 15 month old drew, nolan, sammy, kennedy, peyton, wife amy and gerrit sit together in their home in hamilton mr van houten's father in law said that he loved nothing more than spending time with his children (picture taken in 2006) the newborns were tiny at birth; the largest was only 2lb 1oz the sextuplets john, nolan, peyton, gerrit, kennedy and sammy are all now ten years old two of the boys, john and gerrit, have cerebral palsy and require special care 'it's scary to think we're responsible now,' ben van houten joked in 2004, when daughter samantha was the first to leave the hospital several years later, mrs van houten, a preschool teacher, gave birth to a daughter drew, now seven father in law calvin reimink told the grand rapids press that van houten was playing with his children when the heart attack occurred mr reimink says knowing mr van houten even for one day was a 'blessing' he added that the 39 year old was always spending time with his children and was the best son in law ben van houten, pictured with five of his seven children at their home in january the 39 year old father and church deacon died suddenly while playing with his children on wednesday night ben van houten and his wife amy mrs van houten gave birth to michigan's first surviving sextuplets in 2004 the father of seven had worked for many years at utv/sud, a global testing company he was a deacon at the calvary baptist church and a christian youth program leader mr reimink said that mr van houten's father john had died of a heart attack at just 40 years old sue herweyer of dykstra life story funeral home in holland confirmed the death and says the funeral home is handling arrangements ben and amy van houten pose in their home in hamilton, michigan, with their sextuplets, from left: peyton, gerrit, samantha, kennedy, john and nolan on july 21, 2005 ben van houten talks with his daughter sammy at their home in hamilton, michigan the father of seven and christian youth leader passed away suddenly on wednesday | ben van houten holland michigan amy calvin reimink ben | ben van houten suffered a heart attack on . wednesday night shortly after setting up a trampoline at his home in . the holland area in michigan . his wife amy gave birth to sextuplets in 2004 and then a daughter in 2007 . two of the sextuplets have cerebral palsy and need special care . his father in law calvin reimink said knowing ben even for one day was a 'blessing' |
by daily mail reporter published: 06:56 est, 19 august 2013 | updated: 06:59 est, 19 august 2013 the shocking variation in cancer incidence and mortality rates across the country has been revealed by a leading charity cancer research uk has unveiled a new search engine that enables a person look look up cancer statistics according to postcode, healthcare area or local authority the findings highlight the discrepancy between those living in the north and the south with london coming out on top in the country and liverpool performing the worst cancer research uk's new website highlights the discrepancy in healthcare between those living in the north and the south london and the south came out on top while the liverpool was found to perform the worst salubrious london boroughs including kensington and chelsea and westminster are the least likely to contract or die from cancer in the country, whereas cities in the north such as liverpool and manchester show the highest prevalence – and death rate – of the disease, according to a report by the independent sara hiom, director of early diagnosis and patient engagement at cancer research told the newspaper: ‘there has been plenty in the news over the years about north south divide and a lot of factors will play into that incidence of cancer is very often a reflection of lifestyle in an area levels of deprivation and high smoking rates, for example 'incidences are very often a reflection of lives that have been led: deprivation, high smoking rates, high alcohol rates, low exercise – all the things that we know contribute to increased cancer risk ‘if you get well established communities that are either incredibly well off or deprived, the chances are you are going to get higher cancer incidences in the more deprived areas, and [the] converse’ according to the latest data, 2959 people out of 100,000 develop cancer in kensington and chelsea that figure is well down on the national average of 3981 per 100,000, but even further below the highest incidence rate of 4984 out of 100,000 at the liverpool primary care trust cancer mortality rates show a similar trend the lowest rate of 1239 deaths per 100,000 was recorded by the kensington and chelsea pct, with liverpool pct registering the highest number of deaths in the country at 2399 ms hiom added that the data would raise awareness about regional cancer rates and the need for more initiatives at a time when services like smoking cessation could be under threat from the huge reorganisation of the nhs dan jarvis, labour mp for barnsley central and shadow minister for culture, media and sport, added: 'cancer research uk’s local cancer statistics website is a great source of information for mps, their staff and everybody else who is interested in information about cancer like waiting times and smoking rates locally' to look up your local area, visit cancer research uk's local cancer statistics | commelina wraparounds theologer | no related information |
by steve nolan published: 12:28 est, 3 august 2013 | updated: 12:42 est, 3 august 2013 a news reader was left embarrassed after a clip of her warning viewers that she is 'going to sound like a drunk' during a late night bulletin was aired by mistake a technical glitch meant that viewers of the canberra news show were shown kerryn johnston uttering a throw away line pretending to be drunk after stumbling over her words during a rehearsal instead of hearing the expected professional greeting from the presenter once the opening credits had rolled, ms johnston was heard to say: 'good evening, tonight i'm going to sound like a drunk' scroll down for video red faced: news reader kerryn johnston was left embarrassed after a throwaway line about reading the news drunk was accidentally aired gaffe: ms johnston made the joke that she was going to read the news 'like a drunk' during a screen test after her tongue in cheek greeting, ms johnston looked down at her script and requested a different camera angle in what was intended to be a screen test producers of win news issued an apology after the error, with the channel's director of news, stewart richmond saying that ms johnston's high standards made the gaffe all the more difficult for her he said in a statement: 'this is a newsreader who sets a very high standard for herself 'to have it go to air when it was not intended to, has been more than embarrassing for her 'kerryn has been presenting news for over two decades and has never put a foot wrong i’m sure our viewers will understand' funny: the clip ended with ms johnston looking down at her notes and asking for a different camera angle embarrassed: bosses at wn news issued an apology over the error the error was aired during a midnight re run of an earlier 630pm bulletin miss johnston only begun presenting nightly win canberra bulletin at the beginning of july she has presented the show since filming was moved from the network's canberra studio to wollongong in new south wales as part of cost cutting measures when the network made the changes, bosses vowed that the cutbacks would not affect the quality of broadcasts | win news's canberra midnight win news kerryn johnston the start of july | the gaffe was broadcast on win news's canberra midnight bulletin . win news issued a statement describing the news reader's embarrassment . kerryn johnston has only been presenting the show since the start of july |
by scarlett russell they say opposites attract, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for beauty pageant winners ruby bowater and jordan williams, who are arguably the best looking couple in britain ruby, 19, from dudley, is miss west midlands and has been dating mr england jordan, 26, from nuneaton, warks, for five months the genetically blessed pair now hope to develop their modelling careers as a 'power couple' hey good looking! couple ruby bowater, right, and jordan williams, left, are both winners of beauty pageants is this the uk's best looking couple? stunning miss west midlands ruby bowater, 19, from dudley, has been dating mr england, jordan williams, 26, from nuneaton, warks, for five months size six ruby, who works for mac cosmetics, is vying for a place in the miss england competition so she can stand alongside her man however ruby says she was wary of dating the hunk at first ‘when i first met jordan last year it was on the pageant circuit and he was always trying to have banter and chat to me, but i was wary because i thought he might have been a bit of player,’ she says 'there are always lots of stunning girls around the miss england events and i thought he might have had a wandering eye ‘but i kept bumping into him and he asked me go for dinner, so i decided to take a chance on him and we went out for food and got on really well beauty brand: 'it would be so nice to be the first miss and mr england that are a couple,' says ruby, right, of her boyfriend jordan, left it would make us the ultimate power couple' sweet couple: jordan, left, who works as a michael buble tribute act, said of his girlfriend ruby: 'i have never been much of a relationship man, but with ruby it is different' 'it’s so nice that he understands what it is like to be in the paegent world ‘i was a bit worried what some of the other contestants would think when they heard me and jordan were a couple, but everyone has been really supportive’ their love affair blossomed from their first date and a week later ruby agreed to accompany jordan on a trip to london where, like the doting girlfriend that she is, held his hand while he had his teeth whitened jordan, who works as a michael buble tribute act, said: ‘i have never been much of a relationship man, but with ruby it is different ‘we just get on so well and she completely understands what i have to do ‘we support each other and would love to work together in the future it would be great to be as big as posh and becks’ ruby adds: ‘i don’t get jealous and he is really good too because he understands exactly what it’s like ‘it would be so nice to be the first miss and mr england that are a couple it would make us the ultimate power couple’ | verbarian pavlovian superalimentation | no related information |
by scarlett russell a sporty schoolgirl who suffered torment at the hand of bullies has landed modelling contracts with, not one, but three top agencies jasmine gorman, 12, from garswood, merseyside, was a member of wigan leisure and culture trust excellence swimming squad and a former member of liverpool harriers running team but she was forced to change schools after being repeatedly taunted for her slim figure and branded ‘anorexic’ by fellow pupils little beauty: jasmine gorman from garswood, merseyside, aged 12 was bullied but has won three modeling contracts sporty: jasmine was a member of wigan leisure and culture trust excellence swimming squad and a former member of liverpool harriers running team she was branded 'anorexic' because of her athletic figure but now, pretty jasmine is having the last laugh modelling agencies bizzykidz, adora models and talent management all couldn’t wait to sign her up jasmine will also be appearing in the grand final of miss junior teen great britain competition in august her mother rachel, 43, said: ‘jasmine used to get called all sorts of names such as anorexic because she is tiny, due to exercising five times a week because of her commitment to sport ‘she was bullied a lot last year and she ended up having to change schools it was such a difficult time for her’ pretty: bullies forced jasmine, pictured here, to move schools but now she has the last laugh as she has landed three contracts with modelling agencies model school girl: jasmine, pictured here, has been snapped up by modelling agencies bizzykidz, adora models and talent management and will appear in the grand final of miss junior teen great britain in august but rachel is convinced that modelling will help jasmine regain her confidence and boost her self esteem ‘the main aim of this competition is to give jasmine lots more confidence and i think it's working,’ she said ‘she is still quiet and a bit timid but the modelling is really helping her to come out of her shell and do things which she would never have done before ‘now she has something to concentrate on and show the bullies what she is really made of’ bright future: jasmine, pictured here, would like to pursue a career in modelling, acting or physiotherapy mother's love: 'now she has something to concentrate on and show the bullies what she is really made of,' says rachel gorman of her daughter jasmine, 12, pictured here jasmine has landed three modelling deals this isn't the first time jasmine has been talent spotted: when she was just eight years old she was asked to take part in modelling work, though rachel insists that she will ensure jasmine keeps her feet on the ground and lives her adolescence to the maximum she added: ‘i don't want her to get too involved with fake tanning and overdoing the make up as i don't think any girl needs at that age needs to wear it ‘she is such a natural beauty, a very pretty girl, and is really good at modelling i can’t wait to see her up on that stage ‘she's just really excited for the final now and i couldn't be more proud i actually think i'm more nervous than her!’ jasmine says she is passionate about pursuing a career in either catwalk modelling, acting or physiotherapy | jasmine gorman merseyside britain rachel | bullies caused jasmine gorman, 12, from merseyside to move schools . now she will also appear in miss junior teen great britain in august . 'i'm so proud and can't wait to see her on stage,' says mother rachel, 43 |
by ashley collman published: 14:29 est, 19 october 2013 | updated: 17:30 est, 19 october 2013 the red lobster customer accused of writing 'none n*****' on the tip line of his check is so confident he didn't make the slur that he hired a forensics expert to evaluate his handwriting the forensics expert evaluated both 20 year old devin barnes' handwriting and that of his wife and concluded: 'there is evidence to indicate that devin barnes did not write the total entry no significant handwriting characteristic similarities were noted' now mr barnes and his wife plan on taking legal action against the chain, after receiving numerous death threats when the photo went viral scroll down for video not guilty: devin barnes, 20, says he didn't write the n word on his red lobster check and he's got a forensic expert's opinion to back him up bad tipper: a forensics expert compared the writing on the total line with a sample of both mr barnes and his wife's handwriting and ruled that there were no similarities 'a lot of people on the internet who i don't know are calling me a racist and i'm thinking people have their own opinion but i know i am not a racist i don't see color i have many mixed color friends,' he told wate the photo was posted last month by 19 year old red lobster waitress christina jenkins 'this is what i got as a tip last nightso happy to live in the proud southern statesgod bless america, land of the free and home of the low class racists of tennessee,' she wrote on her facebook page speaking exclusively to mailonline, miss jenkins described what happened the afternoon she served mr barnes and his wife miss jenkins served mr barnes and his wife last month at the red lobster location in cool springs, tennessee trouble customers: speaking last month with mailonline, miss jenkins described mr and mrs barnes as being very rude when she served them apology: mr barnes wrote a note saying he was sorry for the incident, but admitted that it wasn't him that wrote 'n*****' on the check 'they were extremely rude, but i introduced myself to them and they didn't respond when i came to take their order they simply told me they wanted their food and to put everything in a to go box i offered them dessert but they told me abruptly that they just wanted the check 'when i went back to the table they had gone and left the receipt and had written in the comments' while mr barnes admits that he didn't tip miss jenkins, he says it wasn't him that wrote the slur he explains that the couple asked for their meal to go after getting a call about a family emergency miss jenkins said she believes him and posted the picture to make a comment about racism, not to draw attention to herself 'i know i didn't write it if he's claiming he didn't write it, i believe him wholeheartedly i'm just that kind of person i have nothing against him or his family,' miss jenkins said after hearing that mr barnes denied writing the n word on his check, miss jenkins said that she believes him wholeheartedly she says she posted the check on her facebook to make a statement about racism, not draw attention to herself mr barnes holds no grudge against miss jenkins 'i'm not mad i just didn't like what happened i just wish it didn't come out this way,' mr barnes told wsmv he does question why the chain didn't investigate the incident more and says he and his wife are looking into legal action mike bernstein, the spokesman for red lobster, said they haven't been contacted by mr barnes yet and wouldn't speculate on any possible lawsuit 'our employee experience something no one should have to experience and we remain convinced we took the appropriate actions, given the unique circumstances of the situation,' mr bernstein said in wake of the picture going viral, more than 1,000 people contributed to a fund to raise 10,000 in 'tips' for miss jenkins which she says is going towards buying a car, paying for school and helping her church reward: in wake of the viral photo more than 1,000 people contributed to give miss jenkins 10,000 in 'tips' which she says she is using to buy a car, pay for school and help her church | bessera rephonate invect | no related information |
by jenni murray published: 17:13 est, 23 october 2013 | updated: 17:13 est, 23 october 2013 sitting opposite me, her tight sweater hugging her chest, her skirt barely skimming slender thighs, was the woman i had idolised as a teenager and ever since it's not often, when you've been in the interviewing business as long as i have, that you experience the flutter of nerves that once beset you in the early days but my guest on the radio the other day was cher, undoubtedly one of the most famous women in the world indeed the only recording artist to have had a number one hit in every one of the six decades since she began her long music career with sonny in the mid sixties 'she's one of us': jenni with her teenage idol cher earlier this month she's also known for being tough and outspoken and not suffering fools gladly and, as it's my job to ask the difficult questions, there were plenty of sticky subjects to approach which could have led to disastrous silences during woman's hour there's the two kids and two husbands who had an unhealthy relationship with drugs, the daughter who became a son, and the rumours that she's spent half her life under the plastic surgeon's scalpel my first thought when i woke up that day was: what if she's horrible? it would have shattered all the affection for her which began in 1965 when sonny and cher burst on the british music scene with i got you babe i was 15, she was 19 and everything i wanted to be she was beautiful with cheekbones to die for her voice was deep and powerful her hair hung around her face in the 'curtains' my mother had banned, and her clothes were loose and comfortable totally on trend but considered sloppy and messy by the american audience who never took to her as quickly as the british did (when we met, she confided that those clothes were made for her by a dressmaker friend, and that they were all she could afford at the time) on the day, she arrived at broadcasting house to a barrage of paparazzi, and surrounded by the kind of entourage that accompanies any major star i counted at least nine people dancing attendance and providing for her every need superstar: cher at her most outrageous she carried no handbag, suggesting one of them was responsible for carrying her money and a packet of tissues she says she never gets sick, but had picked up the cold that's going around 'that's britain for you,' she said with a grin and coughed heartily would she splutter through our interview? thankfully not, after one of her minions handed her a plastic beaker with a straw containing some secret concoction she is not a classically beautiful woman, but she is stunningly attractive she's tall and fabulously slim and toned she wore a leather jacket, which she removed at my request on account of the creaking every time she gesticulated not a good sound on the radio underneath, she had on what she described as her union jack sweater, seriously tight her skirt an extended belt as my mother would have described it and low heeled black leather boots almost met at the hem in other words, precisely the kind of thing she would have worn in the sixties her hair is long and dyed black with a hint of bouncy curl, and her skin is flawless i studied it carefully and, while it's obvious there's been work done, she doesn't have the tight, motionless features of one who's indulged in excessive plastic surgery we talked first about those early days and the reason for her separation from sonny while she acknowledged he was pivotal in guiding her career, she told me that she found his need to control her and play the older, wiser partner suffocating they were together for 12 years, but then she broke away, craving independence i suspect that since that day, no one has been able to tell cher what to do or how to behave and i shouldn't have worried that she would duck the controversial questions why had she been critical of miley cyrus and her 'twerking' performance with the singer robin thicke, i asked? wasn't it a bit rich coming from someone who'd unashamedly used shock tactics to engage her audience? she'd stunned america by baring her navel in the seventies she was apologetic, saying she'd kind of jumped on a bandwagon of criticism of cyrus she didn't blame her for knowing her own audience she did, though, hold to her critique of the performance it was, she smiled, simply bad and that's unforgivable so, what about the plastic surgery? how much had she really had? first of all, she denied that there'd been any re contouring of her body she'd worked hard at it, she said, by keeping fit, slim and toned: it was all through her own physical effort with no surgical assistance she had, though, begun to worry about her ageing face in her 40s when she was cast in romantic roles opposite actors such as nicolas cage in moonstruck for which she won a best actress oscar she was very aware that he was in his 20s and the difference was glaringly apparent she had a bit of bone shaved from her nose to give it a neater profile and had a nip and tuck i suspected augmentation of the lips there seemed to be a hint of a trout pout, though she denied it, saying she had no truck with anything that scared her she had never had fillers or botox, she said, and hated the idea of young people who had nothing to fill messing about with treatments she didn't think she could trust glamours: cher strikes a pose in 1978 she was open and confident about the work she had done, denying that she continued to feel pressure to look young she claimed not to have any intention to go any further with surgery and insisted that what she had done had been entirely her choice and she had no regrets she, at 67, has four years on me and there's no doubt she looks a good 30 years younger it didn't make me like or admire her any less to know that she has cheated a bit i would never go down that road, but then radio's a very forgiving medium for an older woman maybe if, like her, i'd relied on my face and my figure to earn a crust i might have been tempted to make a different decision sad, but seemingly unavoidable in our youth obsessed culture it was when we talked about her children that the emotion really surfaced it had, she reckoned, been hell for them to be raised in the full glare of the publicity of being cher's kids she'd supported them through drug rehab, but had found her daughter chastity's gender reassignment from female to male he's now known as chas incredibly painful she said she had called chas soon after his surgery and heard his female voice on the phone he'd forgotten to alter it and use a lower tone, and she asked him to leave it a little longer, a way of keeping in touch with the daughter she'd known she says she's now completely happy with her son's decision because it has made him happy which is all any mother wants so what was it like to meet the woman i idolised as a girl? she was warm, passionate, kind and occasionally funny and her voice is undiminished in its power and i've never seen so many people finding spurious reasons to pop into the studio for a peek our conclusion? 'she's great she's one of us just richer!' and with a very tight sweater | zyzomys nontheological sabuline | no related information |
by snejana farberov disgraced canadian aviator dellan millard who was charged in the death of a young husband and father last may is now being accused of murdering his girlfriend and shooting dead his own father millard, 28, of toronto, was charged thursday with two more counts of first degree murder in the slayings of wayne millard and laura babcock the november 2012 death of the suspect's father was initially ruled a suicide; miss babcock disappeared in june 2012 disgraced scion: dellan millard, 28, of toronto, canada, has been charged with murder in the deaths of tim bosma, his own father and his ex girlfriend victims: millard's ex girlfriend laura babcock (left), 23, was last seen alive in june 2012; his father, wayne millard (pictured right with dellan as a boy), was found dead from a gunshot wound in november 2012 murdered: tim bosma, 32, from ontario, disappeared after taking two men out to test drive his pickup truck which was advertised for sale online on may 6, 2013 millard was charged with first degree murder last spring in connection to the killing of tim bosma, 32, from ontario, national post reported bosma's charred remains were discovered on millard’s farm in may 2013 more than a week after he had vanished after taking two men out to test drive his truck he was planning to sell millard’s new girlfriend, 21 year old christina noudga, has been charged with accessory after the fact in bosma's slaying his friend mark smich, 26, faces murder charges in both the bosma and babcock cases millard’s lawyer, deepak paradkar, said thursday that his client is pleading guilty to the charges, suggesting that police are trying to turn the 28 year old aviator into a serial killer by taking advantage of the notoriety of the bosma murder mr paradkar also questioned the authorities' decision to reclassify his father's apparent suicide as a homicide two years after the fact co conspirators: prosecutors believe millard (left) killed bosma and disposed of his body with the help of his friend mark smich (right), who is also facing murder charges gruesome discovery: bosma's charred remains were discovered on millard's farm in north dumfries township more than a week after he disappeared millard and smich are expected back in court for a preliminary hearing in september, and their trial is set to get under way in the spring of 2015 millard is the scion of a failed aviation company, millardair, which was started by his grandfather, retired pilot carl millard, in 1954 the charter airline went out of business in 1990 the millards also owned an airline maintenance venture, which wayne millard headed from 2006 until his death in 2012 in his youth, dellen millard attended an elite private school in toronto, where he reportedly shocked his classmates by eating dog treats in the hallways tim bosma, pictured with his wife and daughter, left his home in may 2013 in the company of two strangers who asked to test drive his pickup truck on his 14th birthday, millard made international headlines when he became the youngest person in canada to complete solo flights in both a plane and a helicopter aside of his hereditary passion for aircraft, the young aviator also owned a collection of cars, which he souped up and raced after his father's shooting death, millard took over the struggling family business, but it went under a short time later but millard still had substantial assets by the time he was arrested, with at least four valuable properties registered to his name, including his grandparents' million dollar home in a toronto suburb, a $14million apartment building, a farm and a condo in downtown toronto, cbc reported dellan millard, sporting his signature pink mohawk on his head, was arrested may 11, 2013, just five days after the disappearance of tim bosma, who had put up his dodge ram pickup truck for sale online two men, believed to be millard and smich, answered the ad and arrived at bosma's ancaster home for a test drive bosma never made it back home to his wife, sharlene, and his young daughter trailblazer: on his 14th birthday, millard became the youngest person in canada to complete solo flights in both a plane and a helicopter boss: wayne millard (left), pictured in 1999 with his son, was the owner of an airline maintenance venture three days later, police searched millard's 45 hectare farm and discovered the missing man's badly burned body police believe the two suspected killers used a livestock incinerator dubbed the eliminator to dispose of the victim’s remains millard had no animals on his property in july 2012, millard's girlfriend laura babcock, a 23 year old graduate of university of toronto, was reported missing her last sighting was june 26, the toronto star reported according to her family, the last person babcock spoke to was millard her former boyfriend shawn lerner has accused police of ignoring babcock’s missing person case because she was a mentally unstable drug user who also dabbled in the sex trade her body was never recovered, but homicide detectives told the spectator they are convinced that she had met the same fate as tim bosma four months later, wayne millard was discovered dead in his etobicoke home from what was believed to be a self inflicted gunshot wound to the left side of his head the death was ruled a suicide and mr millard’s body was cremated on the occasion of his father's passing, dellan millard wrote a touching obituary in which he described his late parent as a humanitarian and a passionate animal activist | cavorting unflippant meibomian | no related information |
by daily mail reporter dr chukwuma igbokwe is accused of bullying and harassing his junior colleague in his role as director of st luke's healthcare group a former diplomat exposed himself to a colleague during a two year ‘onslaught’ of sexual harassment, a tribunal heard chukwuma igbokwe, 46, grabbed vanessa turley from behind and thrust himself towards her before exposing himself and asking her to perform a sex act, it was claimed the former consul to the uk of the republic of niger is accused of bullying and harassing his junior colleague in his role as director of st luke’s healthcare group mrs turley, 42, was allegedly subjected to an ‘onslaught of sexual innuendo’ and verbal abuse when she worked with igbokwe at a private hospital in ebbw vale, south wales, between march 2008 and july 2010 she told the medical practitioners tribunal service how she quit her job and took legal action to stop igbokwe when she realised she may not be his only victim 'it was just never ending with him,’ she said giving evidence 'i thought he’s got to stop this people came to me and said it was happening to them 'i thought 'when is this guy going to stop' 'the only person who had enough evidence to go forward was myself' referred to as 'mrs a' during the current proceedings, she told the panel she felt the police did not take her seriously when she complained, but was vindicated when she won an employment tribunal against her former bosses last year she said: 'it was never about the money it was about proving to people what he was like as a person and what he put me through' she added: 'i was trying to stop him doing it to other females because in my eyes he had no respect at all no matter what your position in the company it was a conquest' igbokwe was not present or represented at a fitness to practise hearing in manchester where he could be struck off the medical register if the string of misconduct allegations against him are proved igbokwe, the former consul to the uk of the republic of niger, allegedly exposed himself to his colleague one of the charges relates to a 'mayor’s ball' held in his honour in his role as niger’s consul to the uk in november 2009 when he made a sexual innuendo towards her after the incident he then quizzed her in the tea room at st luke’s about why she had told people what he had said, the hearing was told on another occasion, on april 9, 2010, igbokwe is said to have called her into his office and held her hips from behind he then thrust himself against her, told her to sit down, exposed his privates and gestured to her to perform a sex act vanessa turley, 42, was allegedly subjected to an 'onslaught of sexual innuendo' and verbal abuse when she worked with igbokwe 'he touched me on a previous occasion, but the actual grabbing was the same time when he exposed himself and actually grabbed me from behind,' said mrs turley she said he was aggressive and rude to her, asking her to bring him dinner or make his tea but it was in june 2008 that he is alleged to have called her into his office and said: 'because i want to f*** you over my desk' mrs turley told the panel: 'i'm from a deprived working area and i was devastated 'most nights coming home and on sundays not wanting to face the next day 'the harassment started back up again because he was thinking i was going to say something and made my life and working environment unbearable to try to make me finish on my own 'but when i didn’t report it he started up an onslaught of sexual innuendo and text messages again because he got away with it the first time' the panel heard igbokwe would 'make eyes' at her when they were working in the same room and ask her to meet at local hotels even when she had left her job and was pursuing legal action against igbokwe she claims the harassment didn’t stop she received pornographic emails, which were sometimes opened by her husband and children, and was told by friends they had seen a suspicious silver mercedes following her 'it was just unreal, my life i’m trying to start to get it back together, but it’s still there i just want to shut the book on it,' she said 'i feel i have moved on a lot, but to talk about it, when i go into any detail and depth i get upset because i think was there anything that i did,' she added 'i am a lot stronger person now for what i have done' the hearing continues | chukwuma igbokwe vanessa turley | dr chukwuma igbokwe accused of bullying and harassing junior colleague . vanessa turley was allegedly subjected to 'onslaught of sexual innuendo'. she told tribunal she quit her job and took legal action to stop igbokwe |
by kerry mcdermott published: 05:40 est, 29 july 2013 | updated: 07:44 est, 29 july 2013 champion cyclist chris froome's outspoken fiancée has hit out at bradley wiggins for failing to congratulate his sky teammate on his tour de france victory michelle cound previously clashed with wiggins' wife cath when she implied that the role played by her husband to be in helping to secure sir bradley's 2012 win went unacknowledged miss cound now claims the wiggins have not contacted froome, 28, since he became only the second briton to win the tour de france last week, and said the couple should have 'been a bit more classy and sent a message of congratulations' spat: tour de france winner chris froome's fiancee michelle cound claims his team mate bradley wiggins didn't congratulate him on his victory clash: froome's fiancee said it was 'fair to say' wiggins and his wife cath should have been in touch following his tour de france win asked if it was significant that her fiance had not been congratulated by wiggins, miss cound, who was born in wales but raised in south africa, replied 'yes they should have', according to a report in the sun tweets: michelle cound appeared to vent her frustration on twitter during last year's tour wiggins' team sky colleague claimed victory in the tour de france in paris on july 21, inheriting the title won by sir bradley in 2012 the rivalry between the two cyclists came to light last year when froome was forced to stay with team sky's leader rather than push on up the mountains alone froome finished as runner up to wiggins on that tour miss cound's latest swipe at the couple comes after her pointed remarks in the wake of the 2012 event, when she tweeted: 'teamwork is also about giving the people around you, that support you, a chance to shine in their own right' sir bradley's wife cath went on to post: 'see mick rogers and richie porte for examples of genuine, selfless effort and true professionalism' wiggins was forced out of the tour this year with a chest infection and knee injury he has admitted he couldn't bring himself to watch his fellow team sky rider storm to victory in france this year victory: chris froome became only the second briton to win the tour de france after storming across the finish line in paris on july 21 support: froome (leading) sacrificed his own tour ambitions to help wiggins win in 2012 support that went unacknowledged, michelle cound claims | dialectically subauriculate lactide | no related information |
by emma innes published: 07:40 est, 16 august 2013 | updated: 08:46 est, 16 august 2013 a mother is claiming that her eight month old son rolled off an x ray table while a technician went to get a cup of tea chantelle ratcliffe, 26, had taken baby thompson stoner for an appointment to have an x ray on his hips but she says her son rolled off the bed at pinderfields hospital in wakefield, west yorkshire, after the x ray technician left to fetch a cup of tea chantelle ratcliffe, 26, says thompson stoner fell off an x ray bed at pinderfields hospital in wakefield while he was having an x ray of his hips taken he bruised and bumped his head when he fell ms ratcliffe, of castleford, west yorkshire, said she had warned hospital staff that he was trying to crawl so was likely to roll over thompson suffered bumps and bruises to his head ms ratcliffe, who was with her partner steven stoner and their daughter ebonie, eight, said: ‘one of the technicians was putting a lead apron on me so i could stay with him, the other was with thompson ‘the next thing i heard a bang and he was on the floor, screaming ms ratcliffe says that the accident happened because the x ray technician who was minding thompson left him to go and get a cup of tea she has made a formal complaint to the hospital ‘my partner and daughter were behind the x ray screen and saw the whole thing ‘my partner said someone came in the room with a tray of tea and the technician left thompson on the table so he could get the tea’ she said even though the staff were apologetic, she decided to take thompson to a&e herself as the doctor never arrived to check him over the hospital says that it is investigating the complaint and that it will be in touch with ms ratcliffe when the investigation is complete thompson was at the hospital to have an x ray on his hips, as doctors were concerned he might have a problem with them when he was born ms ratcliffe is filing a formal complaint with mid yorkshire hospitals nhs trust, which runs pinderfields hospital sally napper, who is a chief nurse at the trust, said: ‘we are now investigating the complaint and will be back in touch with the family in due course’ | chantelle ratcliffe thompson pinderfields hospital | chantelle ratcliffe says thompson fell off a bed at pinderfields hospital . she claims she warned staff he might roll over as he was trying to crawl . says the technician left him to get a cup of tea while she was having a lead apron put on |
by scarlett russell are you on your third diet of the year? are your kitchen cupboards filled with low calorie, low taste foods? is your sexy gym kit gathering dust in the corner? if so then you are not alone britain's yo yo dieters will not only try 15 different weight loss plans over 30 years but, they'll spend £105,000 trying and failing to shape up as well a new survey has revealed that 60 per cent of yo yo dieters will try 10 20 diets in a lifetime the 30 year sum of £105,000 breaks down to £3,500 a year or £30 a week on trying to lose weight yo yo dieters will spend £105,000 trying to lose weight over a lifetime these dieters will spend £1,500 a year on fitness classes, gym gear and memberships to try and slim down the remaining £2,000 will be spent on branded diet plans, including programme fees, fad foods and diet supplements the poll was published by the team behind new book the intotrim plan: how to keep the weight off forever author and dieting expert natasha hurst said: 'we all know that yo yo dieting is bad for your health, but it appears from this study that it can and does have a disastrous effect on your wallet, too the intotrim plan by nutritionist natasha hurst 'the reality is that diets can be hit and miss, but when they do work, slimmers often lack the knowledge to succeed at maintaining their weight loss 'once you’ve achieved your target weight there’s usually little support and advice for maintaining that slimmer figure and it’s no wonder many women get trapped in an endless cycle of yo yo dieting 'for most people, however, maintaining that weight loss once they do reach their goal weight can actually be achieved from a balanced diet alone and needn’t cost the earth' dieters admitted to feeling trapped in an 'endless cycle' of yo yo dieting, in search of the perfect way to lose weight the annual spend was aimed at losing an average target of 24lbs the women polled were also found to buy new clothes and pamper themselves with beauty regimes to, 'showcase my new, fitter body' ms hurst, added: 'it is clear from the cross section of women we surveyed that dieting plays an integral role to many women’s lives '95 per cent of the women we questioned conceded that they would spend 30 years on some sort of weight loss scheme or another 'given the sacrifices they make throughout their lives continually dieting, along with the money they spent repeatedly losing weight, i think it’s safe to say that this is not good value for money 'it’s far, far cheaper and much more effective to take a little time to address bad habits and learn how to eat not just for a diet, but for a lifetime' | lacinulas scomfit perqueer | no related information |
by scarlett russell three sisters who found out they were all pregnant in the same month have all given birth within 51 days of each other kerry harwood, 29, jodie manning, 28, and carla manning, 26, from ashford, kent, were surprised to discover they were all expecting in august last year the babies – little boy laelan, and girls laici and evarna – were born on 7 april, 18 april and 28 may respectively baby fever: the ashford sisters had babies born within weeks of each other from left; carla and laelan, jodie and laici and kerry with evarna so cute! left to right, cousins laelan, laici and evarna were born within 51 days of each other bundles of joy: left to right, carla manning, 26, jodie manning, 28 and kerry harwood, 29, were surprised to discover they were all expecting in august last year youngest sister carla, an admin assistant, was the first to give birth her son laelan weighed in at 7lb 1oz and she says he was the speediest of all three births eleven days after laelan’s arrival, on 18 april, middle sister jodie gave birth to daughter laici laici weighed a healthy 8lb when she was born nursery practitioner jodie already has a daughter taila, six, from a previous relationship her current partner, byron bradley, 28, a construction worker, was by jodie's side when she gave birth to their daughter laici new borns: kerry harwood, left, and her younger sister jodie manning right, as babies 29 and 28 years ago cousins: left to right, laelan penfold, laici manning and evarna harwood were all born within weeks of each other their mothers, sisters carla, kerry and jodie, all found out they were pregnant in august last year last to give birth was eldest sister kerry, who has three other children jaya, none, isara, six and harlan, two, with businessman husband james harwood, 30 little one: youngest sister carla manning, now 26, as a baby her daughter evarna was born at 106am on may 28, weighing 8lb 10oz ‘i couldn’t wait for my baby to come,’ says kerry ‘i loved holding the other two and spending time with them the children are getting on well ‘my son harlan has been a bit of a pickle he was the baby for so long and now there are suddenly three new ones around ‘evarna was a little chunk when she was born, she was a very healthy weight and she's just so sweet’ adds carla: ‘its been nice having them so close because we can compare weights and check ups’ carla and partner wayne penfold, 31, a salesman, already have a one year old son codee as for the girl’s mother, julia young, 55, is now a proud grandmother of eight she flew to ashford from texas to attend all three births – and possibly fitted in a few rounds of babysitting | carla manning 26 jodie manning 28 kerry harwood 29 last august laici evarna laelan april may | sisters carla manning, 26, jodie manning, 28 and kerry harwood, 29, found out they were all expecting last august . two girls, laici and evarna and a boy, laelan, were born in april and may |
by scarlett russell a breast cancer sufferer who has decided to devote the remainder of her life to making wedding dreams come true for others who, like her, are terminally ill, has released her autobiography on the day of her second wedding anniversary naomi thomas, 31, from somerset, who suffers from secondary breast cancer, won the daily mail’s inspirational woman of the year award last november in recognition of the charity she set up, the wedding wishing well foundation she was then approached by harper collins to write an electronic book about her incredible life no ordinary wedding planner was published on friday june 6, as she and husband graham renewed their vows so in love: naomi, left, and her husband graham, right, renewed their wedding vows, two years after getting married, on their second anniversary last friday naomi has terminal cancer and says she, 'doesn't know how much time i have left' graham, left, and wife naomi, right, with their three year old son devon, centre, pictured on their second wedding anniversary on friday, when graham and naomi renewed their vows the couple went to the deer park hotel in devon for the intimate occasion, with only their three year old son devon, a celebrant, photographer and vigil present it was exactly two years after they married at st audries park, somerset, where they renewed their vows last year ‘i don’t know how long i am going to be here, so we always renew our vows on our anniversary,’ naomi tells mailonline ‘graham and i always write our own vows, we update them every year and say what we’re thankful for and how we feel about each other ‘devon walked me down the aisle this time carrying balloons and at the end we lit candles together’ naomi was 26 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer graham had proposed just two days earlier stronger than ever: graham proposed to naomi in 2009 just two days before she found out she had secondary breast cancer the couple are pictured here renewing their vows last friday happy anniversary! happy couple graham and naomi, pictured here, have been married since 2012 and each year renew their vows naomi says she wants to make the most of her short life, as she suffers from incurable breast cancer after seven months of treatment naomi was declared free of cancer, only to be told just a few months later that the disease had returned and was incurable devon was just six days old thoughts of their wedding were the one thing that kept naomi and graham going, but the financial burden of terminal illness meant their big day was just a pipe dream however, dozens of donations from friends, family, local supporters and businesses – not to mention a £500 donation from a woman who wanted only to be known as mary poppins allowed them to marry in naomi’s dream setting on june 6 2012 so inspired was naomi by these well wishers, that she ultimately set up her own charity with the mission of spreading the joy she had experienced on her big day what a face! adorable devon, three, gold his mother naomi's hand as he gets ready to walk her down the aisle on her second wedding anniversary naomi and devon's father graham renew their wedding vows every year on 6 june the blushing bride: naomi sits in deer park hotel, right, about to renew her vows to husband graham the couple after the ceremony, left, in the grounds of the hotel in devon, near to where they live in cornwall my rock: naomi set up the wedding wishing well foundation in 2012, with the help of husband graham who is a trustee the couple are pictured here on friday, renewing their wedding vows the wedding wishing well foundation was formed in december 2012 since then, naomi has helped bring together eight weddings and several additions to smaller weddings ‘because either the bride or groom is on limited time, we often have very little time ourselves,’ explains naomi ‘they may have found out about the illness halfway through planning the wedding, when they have little funds, time or energy left, so we’ll come in and sort out the cake or photographer, or organise to have the wedding take place by their hospital bed if need be whatever people need' naomi continues: ‘the full weddings we’ve had about nine months to plan are worth £25,000 but we manage to do for £5,000 6,000 ‘it’s all from donations every single day i am overwhelmed and amazed by how incredibly supportive and generous people have been’ on the back of the daily mail inspirational woman of the year award 2013, publishing house harper collins approached naomi to write her story for them lovebirds: graham, left and naomi, right on their second wedding anniversary on friday, renewing their vows naomi has written an autobiography, no ordinary wedding planner, also released on friday all smiles: 'graham and i always write our own vows,' says naomi, pictured right before renewing her wedding vows to graham, pictured left, on friday the couple renew their vows every year ‘i’d always fancied writing a book but never had time,’ she says ‘it was the phone call of a lifetime harper collins wanted me to write an ebook as part of their new e book series, harpertrue ‘they gave me advice on how to write it and it’s all my own words i found once i started i couldn’t stop they asked me for 18,000 20,000 words and my first draft was 38,000! ‘i requested that it be published on june 6, my wedding anniversary, when i knew i would renew my vows’ 'graham is my rock,' says naomi, pictured her with husband graham on their second wedding anniversary on friday 'my marriage is stronger than it has ever been' now, with book deadline met and summer approaching, it's time for a break ‘it’s pretty impossible for us to arrange weddings at short notice during summer anyway, because everything is booked up, plus i have a limit to how much i can do,’ says naomi good read: no ordinary wedding planner is published by harpertrue in ebook at 99p ‘i can’t even stand up for very long and get incredibly tired, so want to spend as much time making memories with devon and graham as i can,’ she says naomi takes 30 tablets a day, has scans and check ups every six months and regular injections to bring on early menopause, which prevents cancer spreading oestrogen from developing ‘i don’t know how long i have left,' she says 'despite all the medicine, cancer will do what it wants when it wants i can’t plan further than six months ahead’ while naomi is open about her illness, she admits that writing the book was, ‘much harder than i thought ‘we talk about cancer at home devon is four in september so even though he doesn’t fully understand, he knows mummy is ill ‘but i feel that i discuss it so much, it’s numbed me slightly getting it all down in words was more difficult than i anticipated ‘the hardest part was at the end, when i write all my thank yous ‘i imagine that when i am gone, these are the words graham will read over again – and devon when he is old enough ‘it’s very emotional’ but for now, naomi intends to live every day as if it were her last ‘we are going to egypt, the same place as we went on our honeymoon and i never thought we’d ever afford to go back,' she says 'it was donated to us in the first place and now we’ve saved up to go again i can’t wait to spend time with my boys devon is a little older now so hopefully will get more out of it ‘it’s so important to stop and spend time as a family cancer is an awful thing but, actually, it’s brought us closer together ‘my marriage is stronger than it’s ever been’ no ordinary wedding planner thomas is published by harpertrue in ebook at 99p, http://amznto/1l2bz6y for more information about the wedding wishing well foundation visit, wwwweddingwishingwellorguk | naomi thomas 31 somerset 26 a year later naomi the wedding wishing well foundation 2012 no ordinary wedding planner | naomi thomas, 31, from somerset, has secondary breast cancer . she was diagnosed aged 26 and told a year later the cancer was incurable . naomi set up the wedding wishing well foundation in 2012 . she's written an e book autobiography, no ordinary wedding planner |
Subsets and Splits