Britain

Stories 1261 - 1280 | << Prev   Next >>

Boy George Replaces Queen on Fake Bills

British shop workers fooled by his-head-for-hers forgery

(Newser) - Boy George made a convincing stand-in for the Queen on a counterfeit note found in Britain this week, the Daily Telegraph reports. The £20 note was passed at a stationary shop and the staff didn't realize it was a fake until a bank worker checked the anti-forgery watermark and...

Vandals Target Former RBS Boss, Vow Further Action

Goodwin target of public outrage over his pension

(Newser) - After the Edinburgh home of the former boss of the Royal Bank of Scotland was vandalized last night, an unknown group is warning of further attacks on financial figures, the Scottish Daily Record reports. Sir Fred Goodwin has been the focus of controversy since he took early retirement—complete with...

I Say, Old Chap, Big Brother Is Watching Twitter

UK government weighs monitoring social sites for security threats

(Newser) - The British government wants to keep an eye on what people are doing on Facebook. On the lookout for terrorist plots, the Home Office has provoked an outcry from civil libertarians by floating a plan to track users of social networking sites, which were previously free of government monitoring, reports...

Brits to Stop Saving Stranded Whales

Marine experts say refloating causes suffering and rarely works

(Newser) - Whales who get stuck on British shores will now get a lethal injection instead of a lift back to the ocean, the Independent reports. The policy is backed by marine experts and animal welfare groups as the more humane option, based on new research showing that refloated whales usually die...

Jade's Funeral Date Set
 Jade's Funeral Date Set 
GOSSIP ROUNDUP
Mar 24, 2009 10:28 AM CDT

Jade's Funeral Date Set

Plus, Rihanna house hunts, and more

(Newser) - The funeral for Jade Goody, the British reality star who died of cervical cancer, will be held April 4, the BBC reports. A funeral procession will go from her house to a nearby church. Elsewhere:
  • Rihanna was spotted house-hunting yesterday in the Hollywood Hills, the Sun reports.
  • Struggling-for-cash Lindsay Lohan
...

Jargon Not a Best Practice, Brit Bureaucrats Told

Confusing phrases are keeping people from using services: agency

(Newser) - This recession requires the British government to drop its jargon and get consensually transparent, er, clear. A government agency frets that people are missing out on services because they don't understand bureaucratic lingo like the following phrases, per Reuters:
  1. Slippage: Why not just admit the delay?
  2. A menu of options
...

OK! Prints Jade Tribute —but She's Not Dead

Gossip rag runs death issue while reality star lives

(Newser) - OK! magazine jumped the proverbial gun today with the release of an issue “in loving memory” of British reality-TV star Jade Goody—who is still alive, the Guardian reports. The edition bills itself as the "official tribute issue 1981-2009," containing photos and recollections of Goody along with...

Plucky Duck Thinks She's a Dog

'Hound duck' turns heads in British town

(Newser) - A duck who thinks she's a dog has been causing plenty of double-takes in Bournemouth, England, the Daily Telegraph reports. Nine-month-old Essy's owners say the duck wags her tail, tries to bark, and even goes on walks with the family's two Staffordshire terriers who are fiercely protective of their pal...

Brits' Drinking Solution: Double Booze Prices

Top doc says price hike will curb rising alcoholism

(Newser) - Britain's top medical officer wants to curb binge drinking by hitting Britons in the wallet, the Telegraph reports. Sir Liam Donaldson will tomorrow recommend a government-imposed price hike of 50 pence—about 70 cents—per unit of alcohol. The move would also double the price of many supermarket beers. "...

Brits Condoned Torture, Aided Extraordinary Renditions: UN

UK a full partner in US terror effort, report says

(Newser) - Binyam Mohamed, a recently released Gitmo detainee, alleges that he was tortured in Morocco while asked questions on behalf of Britian’s MI5. His story so far has amounted to his word against MI5’s, but a new report supports the former detainee’s claim, the Economist reports. A UN...

William Opens Up on Loss of 'Mummy'

He becomes patron of child bereavement charity

(Newser) - Prince William makes his first public acknowledgment about the grief he felt after losing his mother in a Daily Mirror essay. "Never being able to say the word 'Mummy' again in your life sounds like a small thing," he writes. "However, for many, including me, it's now...

Stimulus Sours Obama's European Honeymoon

US urges more spending; EU focused on regulation

(Newser) - European leaders’ love affair with President Obama has hit its first snag: Obama is pushing Europe to spend more to battle the financial crisis, while Europe would prefer to focus on stricter regulation, the Los Angeles Times reports. “The Americans should be more modest about giving lessons, because the...

Goody Goes Home to Die
 Goody Goes Home to Die 
Mar 11, 2009 9:27 AM CDT

Goody Goes Home to Die

(Newser) - Cancer-stricken reality star Jade Goody left her London hospital and returned home today, the Mail reports. New husband Jack Tweed, as well as a nurse from the hospital, accompanied her. Goody, who has only weeks to live, wants to die at home and was “thrilled” at the prospect of...

Brit Pol Lashes 'Unreachable' Obama Team

'You have a bunch of people who haven't been in government before,' official gripes

(Newser) - A British government official has ripped Barack Obama's "unreachable" team as leaders scramble to make arrangements with the White House to organize next month's G20 summit in London, reports the Independent. "There is nobody there. You cannot believe how difficult it is," said the Cabinet secretary. "...

Secret Army Units Stirred Up N. Ireland Violence: Adams

British PM visits site of shooting, calls for 'hunting down' of gunmen

(Newser) - Sinn Fein head Gerry Adams says Northern Ireland’s chief constable “made a huge mistake bringing in undercover British Army units” to Northern Ireland after two UK soldiers were killed at a barracks Saturday, the Daily Telegraph reports. “You don't understand the history if you don't appreciate that...

'Chanting' Intruder With Hammer Frightens Goody

Jacko offers support; possible movie in talks

(Newser) - A hammer-wielding woman was arrested after sneaking into the London hospital room of dying reality-TV star Jade Goody yesterday, the Mail reports. Goody, whose husband had stepped out momentarily, awoke to the intruder “chanting and praying” over her. “Jade was very, very frightened and she screamed,” her...

Why a Dying TV Star Became a Phenom
 Why a Dying TV Star 
 Became a Phenom 
OPINION
Mar 9, 2009 8:14 AM CDT

Why a Dying TV Star Became a Phenom

Goody's death offers reality in an immaterial world: Bunting

(Newser) - A poll last week found that, after Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela, the public figure Britons most respected was Jade Goody—the British reality TV star dying, very publicly, of cervical cancer. Once dismissed as racist and ignorant, Goody has become "a parable of modern-day redemption," writes Guardian ...

Prince Charles: We've Only 100 Months to Save the World

Future king warns about the deleterious effects of global warming

(Newser) - Nations have “less than 100 months” to avoid the irreversible damage caused by global warming, Prince Charles will tell business leaders this week in Rio. The British royal, an ardent climate-change activist, will deliver the dire warning as he begins a 10-day South American tour—a trip designed to...

Scotland Yard Secretly Tracking Activists

Civil liberties groups believe database on peaceful protesters may be illegal

(Newser) - British human rights advocates have been alarmed to discover that Scotland Yard keeps a secret database on political activists, the Guardian reports. Surveillance teams have tracked and gathered information on protesters, including thousands of people not suspected of any crime. Personal information on the activists—including their political affiliation—is...

Goody Christened in 'Final Goodbye'

Cancer patient Jade Goody in 'emotional service' with sons

(Newser) - Terminally ill British reality star Jade Goody was christened today along with her sons in a ceremony at a London hospital chapel, the BBC reports. The “very pale and fragile” Goody had a “smile and a kiss for everyone” at the “very short and emotional service,”...

Stories 1261 - 1280 | << Prev   Next >>