Britain

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Trapped Brit Actor Tweets From Stuck Elevator

'Arse, poo and widdle'

(Newser) - British actor Stephen Fry tweeted his way out of a stuck London elevator yesterday, reports the Times of London. "Hell's teeth. Arse, poo and widdle," Fry typed to his 100,000 Twitter followers, along with his exact location. Passengers were freed in 45 minutes. Fry, of Wilde and...

UK Charges Wen Jibao's Shoe-Tosser

Faces public disorder charge; China sweeps incident under rug

(Newser) - The Cambridge University protester who yesterday chucked a gray sneaker at the Chinese premier—and missed by a solid 3 feet—has been slapped with a public disorder charge for his trouble, reports the Telegraph. The 27-year-old will appear in British court next Tuesday. China voiced its continued ire over...

Shipwreck Found Off UK May Hold $1B in Treasure

Florida firm finds HMS Victory, lost in 1744

(Newser) - A shipwreck that could contain treasure worth over $1 billion has been found in the English Channel, Reuters reports. Florida’s Odyssey Marine Exploration discovered the wreck of the HMS Victory, an English flagship that was lost in a storm in 1744 with all 900 crew—and a stash of...

Jail for UK Driver Who Texted Before Fatal Accident

Woman who slammed into victim at 70 mph said phone wasn't involved

(Newser) - A UK woman who sent more than 20 text messages while driving before crashing into a stopped car and killing another motorist has been sentenced to 21 months in jail, the Times reports. Philippa Curtis, 21, said she was not using the phone when she plowed into Victoria McBryde at...

UK Protester Lobs Shoe at China's Wen

Protester calls premier a 'dictator' during speech at Cambridge

(Newser) - A protester threw a shoe at China’s premier while he was giving a speech at Cambridge University in England today, the BBC reports. The young man shouted “how can the university prostrate itself with this dictator—how can you listen to the lies he’s telling?" before hurling...

US Scavengers Spot Legendary Warship

Tons of gold coins could be on board sunken British warship

(Newser) - A US company has found a prized, 18th century British warship that may be worth millions, the BBC reports. Florida-based Odyssey Marine Exploration says it has spotted the HMS Victory, a man-o-war that sank in the English Channel in 1744 and has been sought by scavengers ever since. "Very...

Brits Hunt for Oldest Bulb
 Brits Hunt for Oldest Bulb 
Jan 31, 2009 6:12 PM CST

Brits Hunt for Oldest Bulb

(Newser) - The UK’s Royal Society of Chemistry has offered a $700 prize for the lucky Briton who turns up with the oldest working light bulb in the nation, the Telegraph reports. The society hopes the search will produce a bulb even older than the current world record holder—a lamp...

Cleared for Landing: Lily Allen's US Return

After visa snags, UK import tackles US for the second time

(Newser) - After being grounded by US immigration officials just as her 2007 album was set to take off, the UK’s Lily Allen is taking a second shot at conquering America with a new album, reports the Wall Street Journal. Despite her visa travails, Allen's debut sold a respectable 500,000...

When Economy Gets Tough, the Tough Go Blond

Celebrity Brit hairdresser finds clients turning to the dye bottle for cheer

(Newser) - The grim economy is causing a gold rush in Britain's hair salons, a celebrity hairdresser tells the Daily Telegraph. His sales of blond hair products have jumped 67% since last year, and he credits the sales bombshell to women looking for a quick way to cheer themselves up amid the...

Electric Motorcycles Closing Gap on Speed

Brit creates all-battery bike for the racetrack

(Newser) - An English entrepreneur is developing an all-electric motorcycle he says can compete on the racetrack, Wired reports. Well, in the near future. His prototype—the bike is expected to be for sale next year and will be legal for street use—can go from 0 to 60 in 3.8...

Paris: Acting Dumb Is Hard
 Paris: Acting Dumb Is Hard 
Jan 28, 2009 11:00 AM CST

Paris: Acting Dumb Is Hard

Heiress mistakes chef for prime minister

(Newser) - Paris Hilton is no dummy—just ask her. The hotel heiress blames her stint on The Simple Life for her international reputation as a five-star ditz, the Daily Mirror reports, and she insists she didn't really mistake TV chef Gordon Ramsay for British PM Gordon Brown. “I know exactly...

Sniffing for Coke Blamed in Police Dog's Death

Vet believes years of police work doomed dog to nasal cancer

(Newser) - A police dog's owner believes his years of sniffing drugs cost him his life, the New York Daily News reports. Max, a springer spaniel, spent 7 years helping British police bust drug offenders but had to be put down last week after developing an aggressive tumor in his nose. His...

Tonight Marks Reinvention for Franz Ferdinand
Tonight Marks Reinvention
for Franz Ferdinand
NEW RELEASE
Jan 27, 2009 11:08 AM CST

Tonight Marks Reinvention for Franz Ferdinand

Disco-charged album offers 'brand new start' for Scottish band

(Newser) - Franz Ferdinand’s third album, Tonight, is a “wholesale reinvention of their sound,” writes Andy Langer in Esquire. Establishing riffs rooted in bass rather than their trademark guitar sound, the quartet’s effort—out now—treads where few have dared, says Langer.  “The Achilles heel of...

Virginia Woolf Gets Silly in 'New' Play

Off-Broadway troupe revives author's one satirical work

(Newser) - A satirical play by Virginia Woolf received its professional premiere today in New York, NPR reports. Featuring figures like poet Alfred Lord Tennyson and painter George Frederic Watts, Freshwater lampoons "high-falutin', oldish, long-bearded Victorians," the play's producer said. Woolf wrote the hour-long farce as a fun project for...

Desperate Times: UK Mulls 3-Day Week
Desperate Times: UK Mulls 3-Day Week
Jan 25, 2009 10:39 AM CST

Desperate Times: UK Mulls 3-Day Week

Gov't may compensate workers to avoid higher cost of mass layoffs

(Newser) - Now officially in recession amid the global downturn, the specter of a three-day work week has emerged in Britain, the Independent reports. Though officials say it’s "not imminent," the government has discussed paying firms to cut hours with public cash going toward compensating employees for the lost...

BBC Refusal to Air Gaza Appeal Sparks Uproar

Network fears appearance of bias in charged issue

(Newser) - The BBC has been lambasted by politicians, religious leaders and its own staff for the network's refusal to broadcast an appeal for Gaza aid, the Guardian reports. Executives of the publicly funded network say they must adhere to a strict code of impartiality, and that airing the appeal could be...

Worldwide Downturn Speeds Up Alarmingly

Analysts don't expect recovery in 2009

(Newser) - The global economy is in a faster decline than economists predicted only weeks ago, as the bursting of the biggest-ever real-estate bubble hits real economies in Europe and Asia, killing millions of jobs and shutting businesses, the Washington Post reports. Britain just posted its biggest quarterly slump since 1980, while...

Dow Tumbles 332, Below 8,000
 Dow Tumbles 332, Below 8,000 
MARKETS
Jan 20, 2009 3:21 PM CST

Dow Tumbles 332, Below 8,000

Obama inauguration can't break Street's gloom

(Newser) - A spirit of optimism swept through America today as Barack Obama was sworn in—except on Wall Street, where financial trouble at home and in the UK sent the Dow below 8,000 for the first time since November, the Journal reports. The Dow fell 332.13 to close at...

Nationalization Looms for Royal Bank of Scotland

Lack of faith in government's bank bailout plans sparks investor stampede

(Newser) - One of Britain's biggest banks is on the verge of nationalization, reports the Daily Telegraph. The Royal Bank of Scotland's shares plummeted more than 65% yesterday after it revealed massive losses of $56 billion for 2008—the highest in British history. The government has upped its stake in the bank...

UK Squatters Wait Out Recession in Mansions

(Newser) - In the middle of one of London’s ritziest neighborhoods, a dozen young artists are lounging in the scantly lit living room of a $33 million mansion, eating curry made from ingredients found in the trash. The current recession has reignited England’s passion for squatting, the Washington Post reports....

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