The rocket’s engines were shut down just as it was about to leave the pad at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Onboard computers noticed the chamber pressure in one of the nine Merlin engines under the Falcon was outside its permitted value.

Tuesday is the next launch opportunity.

SpaceX is attempting to become the first private company to send a supply craft to the ISS. Such unmanned freighter missions are usually performed by government-owned vehicles.

Both SpaceX and another private firm, Orbital Sciences Corp, have been given billion-dollar contracts by Nasa to keep the space station stocked with food and equipment. Orbital hopes to make its first visit to the manned outpost with its Antares rocket and Cygnus capsule system later this year.

This new approach is intended to free Nasa to concentrate more of its effort and funds on planning exploration missions far beyond Earth, to asteroids and Mars.

The current SpaceX mission is billed as the final demonstration of its freight service before it picks up its re-supply contract.

via BBC News – SpaceX Dragon ship aborts launch.

According to American gossip site TMZ the Disco Queen died in Florida this morning after losing her battle with cancer.

They report that Donna Summer had been keeping the extent of her illness under wraps – and was currently working on a new album.

Donna Summer was a five-time Grammy winner who was famous for hits like ‘Hot Stuff’ ‘Bad Girls’ and ‘Last Dance’.

She married ‘Brooklyn Dreams’ singer Bruce Sudano in 1980 and they had two daughters together.

The news has yet to be confirmed by her spokesperson

1/4 cup unsalted cashews

3 dried hot red chilies

2 in piece of stick cinnamon

1 1 in cube fresh ginger

1/4 teaspoon cardamom seeds

3 whole cloves

2 large garlic cloves peeled

2 tablespoon poppy seed (white)

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads

6 tablespoon ghee (or melted butter)

1 cup chopped onion

2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unflavored yoghurt

1 1/2 lb lamb cut into 2 cubes

2 tablespoon finely chopped coriander

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup boiling water

1 cup cold water

Directions: How to Cook Korma (Lamb With Cashew-Nut Curry)

To make the masala, combine the cashews, chilies, ginger and the cold water and blend at high speed for 1 minutes. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, garlic, poppy seeds, coriander seeds and cumin. Blend again until the mixture is completely pulverized. Set the masala aside. Place the saffron in a small bowl, pour in boiling water and let soak for at least 10 minutes. In a heavy skillet heat the ghee over moderate heat until a drop of water flicked into it sputters instantly. Add the onions and, stirring constantly, fry for 7 or 8 minutes, until soft and golden brown. Stir in the salt and the masala, then add the yoghurt. Stirring occasionally, cook over moderate heat until the ghee lightly films the surface. Add the lamb, turning it about with a spoon to coat the pieces evenly. Squeeze the saffron between your fingers, thin stir it and its soaking liquid into the skillet. Reduce the heat to low, cover tightly, and cook for 20 minutes, turning the lamb cubes over from time to time. Scatter 1/2 of the fresh coriander over the lamb and continue cooking, tightly covered for 10 minutes more, or until the lamb is tender. To serve, transfer the entire contents of the skillet to a heated platter, and sprinkle the top with lemon juice and the remaining fresh coriander

Thirteen-year-old Duwayne Philpott has been in a critical condition in a hospital in Birmingham since Friday morning when the blaze broke out.

Sky reporter Becky Johnson, who is at the hospital, said: “It’s desperately sad news from the family, confirmed by Derbyshire Police.

“Duwayne was pulled from the first floor of the house that was filled with thick black smoke by the time emergency services arrived.

“His family, who have been at his bedside, have now made that agonising decision to switch off his life-support machine.”

Assistant Chief Constable Steve Cotterill, of Derbyshire Police, said: “Mr and Mrs Philpott remain at their son’s bedside and my thoughts are with them at this distressing time.”

Police have suggested someone could be protecting the killer of Duwayne’s five siblings who died when their house caught fire as they slept.

Jade Philpott, 10, John, nine, Jack, seven, Jessie, six and five-year-old Jaydon all died when the blaze ripped through their home in Allenton, Derby.

A 38-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman who had been arrested on suspicion of murder following the fatal fire were released without charge on Saturday.

Asst Chief Con Cotterill said: “This is a complex inquiry which requires careful and methodical investigation. We are still treating the fire as suspicious and are pursuing a number of lines of inquiry.”

He thanked the members of the community who had come forward with information but expressed surprise that so few had been in touch.

“I strongly suspect that there is someone out there in the community who knows more than we are being told,” he said. “I fully understand that people may be reluctant to talk to us.

“My plea in this case is to remember that we are trying to find out exactly what caused the death of these five young children, who had everything to look forward to in life.

“If someone has confided in you, now is the time to speak up and do the right thing.”

The children were asleep in their beds upstairs when the fire broke out. Their father, Mick Philpott was downstairs at the time and tried to get through the smoke and flames to save them.

Mr Philpott is said to have fathered 17 children and hit national headlines several years ago when he demanded a larger house to share with his wife Mairead, girlfriend Lia and their children.

People from the estate have set up an online charity to help the family pay funeral costs and cover other expenses they may now face.

Bobby Sutherland, who has lived on the estate all his life, said he felt inspired to create the charity Catch Me When I Fall.

He said: “I said to my missus, ‘They’re going to have to pay about 10 grand when they get home,’ and I said that ain’t right. So I said, ‘I want to set up a charity’.”

He added: “The original statement was about the kids. Everybody’s got kids, everybody wants kids or everybody’s had kids, so it affects everybody.”

Mr Sutherland said many people had their own judgment about Mr Philpott, but he loved his children desperately.

A special church service was held for the children at St George’s Roman Catholic Church on Saturday morning and five candles were lit in their memory.

Father Alan Burbidge, who knew the family well, said: “I knew him (Mr Philpott) to be a good, caring family man. He looked after his children well; he was devoted to his children even though he’d got so many.

“He was there for them and also did the cooking as well at the house. He had a good garden for them with a trampoline and a sort of climbing frame. He was very good with the children.”

Flowers, toys and cards have been mounting outside the house as police and forensic teams continue to work to establish the cause of the blaze.

Rather, the painted room in the residential complex at Xultun was likely the place where the town scribe kept records, scrawling computations on the walls in an effort to find “harmony between sky events and sacred rituals,” said the study in the journal Science.

The hieroglyphs date back to the ninth century, making them hundreds of years older than the calendars in the Maya Codices, which were recorded in bark-paper books from 1300 to 1521.

Some appear to be the 365-day solar calendar, the 584-day cycle of the planet Venus and the 780-day cycle of Mars, said archaeologist William Saturno of Boston University, who led the exploration and excavation.

According to Saturno, the writing looks like someone’s attempt to sort out a very long math problem, as if on a blackboard.

“For the first time we get to see what may be actual records kept by a scribe, whose job was to be official record keeper of a Maya community,” Saturno said.

“The ancient Maya predicted the world would continue, that 7,000 years from now, things would be exactly like this,” he added.

“We keep looking for endings. The Maya were looking for a guarantee that nothing would change. It’s an entirely different mindset.”

Furthermore, there is no sign that the much-hyped myth that the Mayan calendar would end in 2012, and with it the world, has any bearing in reality.

All that ended in 2012 was one of its calendar cycles, said co-author Anthony Aveni, professor of astronomy and anthropology at Colgate University.

“It’s like the odometer of a car, with the Maya calendar rolling over from the 120,000s to 130,000,” said Aveni.

“The car gets a step closer to the junkyard as the numbers turn over; the Maya just start over,” he added.

“The most exciting point is that we now see that the Maya were making such computations hundreds of years — and in places other than books — before they recorded them in the Codices.”

Even though the 12-square mile (31-square kilometer) site of Xultun, deep in a rainforest where tens of thousands of people once lived, was first discovered about 100 years ago, the house structure where the calendar is drawn on the walls was spotted in 2010.

Researchers say careful excavations have revealed that the paintings inside — including some of human figures wearing feather head-dresses — show the first examples of Mayan art on a house interior.

“It’s weird that the Xultun finds exist at all,” Saturno said. “Such writings and artwork on walls don’t preserve well in the Maya lowlands, especially in a house buried only a meter (three feet) below the surface.”

The land and sea operation at the mouth of Belfast Lough was triggered after a woman plunged from the Stena Line boat as it made its way into port from Cairnryan in Scotland on Wednesday night.

The 37-year-old Belfast woman was rescued within 15 minutes and taken to the city’s Royal Victoria Hospital for treatment, where she remained in a stable condition today.

At the time of the incident it was reported that a baby had also entered the water with the woman, prompting extensive searches. But after a complex police investigation, which included interviewing the woman’s family, officers said they no longer believe a child was in her care at the time.

A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) spokesman said: “Police have called off the search operation in Belfast Lough which began yesterday evening after a report that a baby had gone into the water with a woman who was later rescued.

“Following an extensive search operation involving several agencies and volunteers and after enquiries with the 37-year-old woman and her family, police now understand the report of a baby going into the water was incorrect.

“Police do not believe there was a baby in the woman’s care on the ferry. The woman, who is from Belfast, remains in a stable condition in hospital.

“Police enquiries are continuing.”

The incident happened in the lough, close to Holywood, Co Down, at around 6.10pm on a busy shipping route for passengers and freight between Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Agencies, including the police helicopter, the Irish Coastguard and the RNLI were involved in the search operation.

Encased in a compact but solid, functional body, this new model comes equipped with a host of advanced photographic tools for the easy creation of diversified visual expressions, while demonstrating much higher standards of image quality, data processing speed and operability than previous models. Developed using the highly acclaimed PENTAX K-7 (introduced to the market in June 2009) as its base, the K-5 inherits the exceptional reliability, user-friendly operation, array of advanced features and compact, lightweight body of its predecessor, yet it is more resourceful and flexible in photographic expression. Coupling a new high-speed, low-noise CMOS image sensor with the high-performance PRIME II imaging engine, it produces super-high-resolution, rich-gradation digital images with approximately 16.28 effective megapixels, even when shooting in the continuous shooting mode at a maximum speed of approximately seven images per second. It also offers an extra-wide sensitivity range between ISO 80 and ISO 51200 (when expanded via a custom function) and Full HD-proportion movie recording at 1920 x 1080 pixels to expand the boundaries of high-quality visual presentation. Adding other improvements and refinements — such as a much-faster auto-focusing speed, an upgraded HDR (High Dynamic Range) function now usable in handheld shooting, and better operability through an overall review of the design and shape of all components — the K-5 is designed to be more functional and maneuverable in every detail, and more capable of responding to the discriminating demands of advanced amateurs than previous models.

Pentax K-5 Digital SLR Camera with DA 18-55 WR Lens Kit

Researchers will use the facility in Lea County, near Hobbs, to look at everything from intelligent traffic systems and next-generation wireless networks to automated washing machines and self-flushing toilets.

The town will be modelled on the real city of Rock Hill, South Carolina, complete with roads, houses and commercial buildings, old and new.

No one will live there, although they could as houses will include all the necessities, like appliances and plumbing.

The point of the town is to enable researchers to test new technologies on existing infrastructure without interfering in everyday life.

For instance, while some researchers will be testing smart technologies on old grids, others might be using the streets to test self-driving cars.

Hobbs Mayor Sam Cobb said: “It brings so many great opportunities and puts us on a world stage.”

The city will be built by Pegasus Holdings and its New Mexico subsidiary, CITE Development.

The Centre for Innovation, Technology and Testing (CITE) is being billed as a first-of-its kind smart city that will be developed on about 15 square miles west of Hobbs.

Bob Brumley, senior managing director of Pegasus Holdings, said work on the city will begin by June 30 .

The initial development cost is estimated at $400m, although Mr Brumley estimates the overall investment in the project to top $1bn.

The project is expected to create 350 permanent jobs and about 3,500 indirect jobs in its design, development, construction and ongoing operational phases.

Julia Orayen was part of the production team working on the debate that was focusing on the economy and the drug-related violence ravaging the country.

But it was her low-cut revealing dress that hit the headlines.

At the start of Sunday night’s debate, Orayen walked in front of the camera to hand out cards to the four candidates, and created an immediate stir on social media sites.

The appearance lasted only a few seconds but quickly began trending on Twitter, generating thousands of mentions.

While many Mexicans enjoyed her appearance, others condemned the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) for the incident, saying it had undermined the seriousness of the debate.

The IFE later issued a statement apologising to the people of Mexico and the candidates for the “production error associated with the dress of an assistant”.

Orayen posed nude for the Mexican edition of Playboy in 2008, a spokesman for the magazine said.

Around 50,000 activists gathered in the capital Manama on Friday as Formula One drivers took to the track of Bahrain International Circuit , just 25 miles away.

Thousands more are expected to take to the streets today calling for the cancellation of the controversial motorsport event.

The protesters started their so-called “three days of rage” on Friday against Bahrain’s rulers.

Petrol bombs were hurled at security officials and anti-grand prix graffiti was daubed on walls, before the protesters were dispersed with tear gas and pepper spray.

Despite months of political unrest and the regime’s crackdown on demonstrators, F1 organisers have refused to scrap the three-day event.

Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman al Khalifa said that cancelling the race would “empower extremists”.

“For those of us trying to navigate a way out of this political problem, having the race allows us to build bridges across communities, to get people working together,” he added.

“It allows us to celebrate our nation. It is an idea that is positive, not one that is divisive.”

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone had earlier insisted it was down to the Bahrainis to cancel their grand prix.

Meanwhile, the sport came under attack from cyber anarchists with internet hacking organisation Anonymous announcing they would turn the formula1.com website into “a smoking crater in cyberspace”.

The denial-of-service attack, under the title of Operation Bahrain after watching what they perceive as “the incredible human rights abuses of the Bahrain regime”, was unleashed shortly after Crown Prince Salman’s comments.

In Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron has resisted pressure to call for the cancellation of the event, insisting it is a matter for the F1 authorities whether the race should go ahead.

It came after Labour leader Ed Miliband and shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper added their voices to demands for the race to be called off.

Mr Miliband said proceeding would send out the wrong signal a time of protests over human rights abuses in the Gulf kingdom, while Ms Cooper said British drivers should not take part.

Mr Cameron said there was “a process of reform under way in Bahrain” and added: “This Government backs that reform and wants to help promote that reform.”

In 2011, the race was cancelled as international criticism grew over the bloodshed.

The Foreign Office has advised fans in the country for this year’s event to remain vigilant.

Evans, 23, had denied raping the 19-year-old woman in a hotel room near Rhyl, North Wales, in the early hours of May 30 2011.

He was given the sentence after Caernarfon Crown court heard the woman had been too drunk to agree to sex, which the defendant claimed had been consensual.

Co-defendant Clayton McDonald, who plays for Port Vale, was found not guilty of the same charge.

McDonald had initially brought the woman back to the Premier Inn, having met her on a night out in Rhyl over the Bank Holiday weekend.

He admitted to sex with the woman, saying it was consensual.

Evans will be eligible for release on parole just over halfway into the sentence.

Proceedings were delayed when friends and family celebrated McDonald’s acquittal, which was followed by the decision to find Evans guilty.

The victim said she woke up in a double bed, having had no recollection of going to the hotel or with whom, fearing her drinks had been spiked.

“My clothes were scattered around on the floor,” she said. “I just didn’t know how I got there, if I had gone there with anyone. I was confused and dazed.”

The court heard that Evans, who lives in Yorkshire but whose mother lives in Rhyl, had invited several friends to the town for an evening on May 29.

He had booked a hotel room for his former Manchester City youth academy team-mate McDonald, saying it was because there was not enough room at his mother’s house.

The prosecution said that the men had gone out the intention of procuring a woman for sex, and that the events were watched through a window by Evans’s brother Ryan Roberts and a friend, Jack Higgins.

Witnesses, including hotel employees, told the court that the woman was struggling to stand up at various points during the evening.

McDonald had texted Evans after returning to the hotel, saying he had “got a bird”. Evans told the court that he entered the room, watched the pair having sex before doing so himself.

The player fell to the ground half an hour into the match after suffering a heart attack. Italian media report that the 25-year-old tried to get up at first but failed.

Medical staff attended to him on the pitch, before he was stretchered off and taken to the nearest hospital.

He arrived at the hospital in a pharmacological coma and doctors fitted him with a provisional pacemaker but he could not be resuscitated.

Morosini, a former Italy U21 international, is currently on loan at Livorno from Serie A side Udinese.

The news comes just weeks after Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba suffered the same problem in an English FA Cup match before making a remarkable recovery in hospital.

All italian football leagues have been suspended after Morosini’s death.

Some 1,514 people out of 2,224 on board died when the ship went down on 15 April 1912, carrying a mixture of aristocracy and ordinary folk looking to make a new life in America.

All those facts are well known. What is less well known is that among the passengers on that fateful voyage were nine of the world’s best sportsmen. Here are their stories.

- – - -

Richard Norris Williams

The 21-year-old Williams was a promising tennis player who was travelling first class with his father, Charles, on the voyage. Williams came through a series of hair-raising scrapes to make it out alive: he was threatened with arrest by a Star Lines steward for breaking down a door to rescue a fellow passenger (a scene borrowed in James Cameron’s ‘Titanic’ movie), narrowly avoided the collapsing chimney stack of the sinking boat (which killed his father and several other people near him) before being washed overboard by a huge wave. He then managed to swim to one of the lifeboats, but was forced to cling to the side for several hours before he could get aboard.

After his rescue by the Carpathia, he was still not out of trouble: doctors told him that his injuries were so severe that they would have to amputate both his legs. Williams refused, recovered anyway, and two years later won the first of his two US Open titles. He also went on to win the Wimbledon doubles title in 1920 and the Olympic mixed doubles gold in 1924 (despite having a sprained ankle) as well as two Davis Cup victories. He died in 1968, aged 77.

Karl Howell Behr

Behr was 27 and already a US Davis Cup veteran and Wimbledon doubles runner-up at the time of the Titanic’s voyage, and he had only been in Europe on a flimsy pretext: he had fallen madly in love with Helen Newsom, a friend of his sister’s, and organised a business trip (he was a lawyer) to coincide with her Grand Tour of Europe.

Behr and Newsom made it safely onto the second lifeboat to leave the ship. Behr proposed on board the lifeboat, Newsom accepted, and the pair lived happily together until his death aged 64 in 1949. He went on to be picked for the Davis Cup alongside Williams in 1914, but due to work commitments did not play – though he did beat the world’s best player, Maurice McLoughlin, in a tournament a year later.

David John ‘Dai’ Bowen

The 21-year-old from Treherbert, South Wales, went down the mines as a boy, but his skill at boxing – under the tutelage of a former British army boxing champion and PT instructor called George Cundick – offered him a way out and a better life. He had already won the Welsh lightweight title and was tipped for future stardom, and having recently got married was heading to the USA on a third class ticket to take part in a series of professional bouts – including one against the legendary Packey McFarland, who won 105 fights and lost just one. Bowen drowned in the disaster, and his body was never recovered.

Leslie Williams

The blacksmith-turned-boxer from Tonypandy in South Wales was a stablemate of Bowen, a promising bantamweight who was also en route to the US for a series of professional fights. He drowned, though his body was later recovered before being buried at sea a few days later.

Charles Eugene Williams

The 23-year-old  from Harrow was squash world champion in April 1912, and was on his way to New York – in second class – to defend his title in a match against a Mr G Standing. Williams, a professional squash player, had been practising in the on-board squash court and had just gone for a cigarette when the ship hit the iceberg. He rushed out onto the deck and witnessed the iceberg towering over the ship. He survived after subsquently leaping off the side of the ship and making it to one of the lifeboats. Williams’s second class ticket, incidentally, cost £13; Dick Williams’ first class passage, by comparison, cost £61, seven shillings and seven pence, while Leslie Williams third class ticket was £8.

Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon

The Scottish landowner was a renowned sportsman who had won a team silver in the fencing at the 1906 Olympics. He was also an excellent wrestler, and took part in the mixed martial art known as ‘Bartitsu’ which was immortalised in Arthur Conan-Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories. Duff-Gordon was among the 12 people on Lifeboat 1, which left the ship half-empty – mainly due to crew members who thought nobody would want to get on board since the ship was still believed to be unsinkable. He was briefly engulfed in a scandal after allegations that he had bribed the crew aboard the lifeboat not to go back and look for survivors following the sinking, but was later cleared and eventually died in 1931 at the age of 68.

William Ernest Carter

The polo player was travelling with his wife, two children and an entourage of maid, chauffeur and valet. He had been dining in a party with the captain the night the ship hit the iceberg, and after seeing his wife and children into lifeboats proceeded to spend some time helping load other boats. He eventually made it into a lifeboat later in the night when no more women or children could be found, alongside White Star Lines chairman Joseph Bruce Ismay. He made it safely home, but a serious polo accident later that year left him unable to compete again.

James Clinch Smith

The 56-year-old was one of the foremost yachtsmen of his age and a prize-winning horseman who had scooped dozens of prizes over the years at the New York Horse Show. He had been in Paris to patch up the differences with his estranged wife, Bertha, who had been living in France for eight years to pursue her musical career. The reconciliation had been a great success and Smith had been going home on the Titanic with Bertha due to follow later. He never made it, and his body was never recovered.

John Borie Ryerson

Just a teenager at the time of the sinking, Ryerson was heading back to the USA after a trip to England with his family. His father perished, but the rest of his family survived. Ryerson went on to become a highly successful amateur golfer, competing in over 400 tournaments around the world, and lived until the age of 87. He is mentioned in ‘Ripley’s Believe it or Not’ for having played over 1,000 courses in his life.

Washington Roebling II

Robeling had been a promising American Football player in his youth, but his fascination with cars led him to join the pioneers of the early days of motorsport. He designed and built his own car which he used to finish second in the Vanderbilt Cup in Savannah, and had been on a tour of Europe from which he was returning in April 1912. He was travelling in first class, and helped dozens of people into lifeboats – cheerfully promising one of them that “you’ll be back with us on the ship again soon” – but never made it off the ship himself.

The Queen stars recruited Lambert to belt out Freddie Mercury’s hits at the summer festival, but when it was scrapped last month, the duo scrambled to find a fitting London venue to stage an alternative.

Now drummer Taylor has revealed he’ll be playing two concerts at the Hammersmith Odeon with May and Lambert in early July.

The duo performed Queen songs with the American star during the Idol finals in 2009 and at the MTV Europe Music Awards last year.

Taylor tells Billboard.com, “We’re really excited about it. Adam… has this unbelievable range, like Freddie had range. Adam can really cover it. He’s an extraordinary singer and a real talent. I feel he fits into our sort of theatricality.”

The Queen stars will also perform with Lambert at a festival in Kiev, Russia, where they’ll share the headliner spot with Elton John.

The MS Balmoral set sail from Southampton and will follow the same route as the doomed liner. Those on board will eat food from the same menus as the Titanic .

A Belgian band has even been hired to provide period music in honour of the musicians who are said to have played until the ship sank.

When the vessel reaches the wreck site a memorial service will be held at the time the tragedy happened to remember its victims.

The same number of passengers are on board as on the ill-fated ship – 1,309.

They have paid between £2,799 and £5,995 for the 12-night cruise to New York, which has to leave two days earlier than the Titanic because the Balmoral is slower.

Many turned up in Southampton dressed in period costume as first class passengers, crew or steerage passengers.

Passenger Graham Free, a telecomms manager from Bolton, was dressed as a Edwardian gentleman as he arrived.

He said: “I have been a fan of the Titanic since I was nine years old and this cruise is the closest you are going to get to it.

We are not here to mock. We are here to enjoy and remember those who were unfortunately lost.

The memorial service will take place in the North Atlantic on April 14 starting at 11.40pm, the exact time the ship hit an iceberg. There will be another at 2.20am on April 15 when it went down.

Among the other passengers will be authors, historians and people who are fascinated by the Titanic disaster, which claimed the lives of more than 1,500 people.

Those on board are from Australia, Canada, the Caribbean, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, South America and the US.

Philip Littlejohn, grandson of Titanic survivor Alexander James Littlejohn, said: “I’m sure my grandfather, a 1st Class Steward on RMS Titanic, would be proud to know his story will be shared with the passengers on this historic cruise.

“It will be an emotional moment when we are over the wreck site, where I dived in 2001 and where my grandfather left Titanic rowing Lifeboat 13.”

The cruise demonstrates the world-wide appeal of the story, which was was the subject of an Oscar-winning film in 1997 starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Another cruise ship from New York is due to meet up with the Balmoral over the site of the Titanic’s wreck.

The girl suffered “serious but non-life threatening injuries” during the incident on Saturday, Cleveland Police said.

She was taken to a specialist paediatric unit at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle where she is being examined.

“Initial inquiries suggest she had been the victim of a serious assault,” a spokeswoman added.

The girl was reported missing from her home at 6.30pm on Saturday and was found by a member of the public on Maritime Way, Stockton at 9pm.

The girl is 4ft tall and has brown hair. She was wearing black leggings and a chequered top, with a brown, furry body-warmer when she disappeared.

“Police would particularly like to hear from anyone who saw a girl matching this description either alone or with someone else between 5pm and 9pm yesterday evening,” the force spokeswoman said.

“Police are asking the local community to work with them and remain calm.”

18 year old Chelsea was supported in the wings by her Nan, who is also a singer and who was there to give her granddaughter some much needed encouragement and support.

After belting out her rendition, a tearful Chelsea looked nervous as she awaited the judges’ comments, but she had no need to worry. Singer Alesha Dixon was impressed:

“I can see how much this means to you. I love how shy and sweet you are and then this powerful voice comes out.”

18 Year Old Singer Chelsea Redfern Tipped To Be A ‘Superstar’ As She Stuns BGT Judges

David Walliams was equally stunned: “you’re a beautiful girl. You could be a superstar!”

Music-mogul Simon Cowell added “I thought it was a risk at first choosing that song.” “You’ve got something really quite distinct in your voice. Not only do you sound like a popstar, you look like a popstar.”

But this wasn’t Chelsea’s first shot at fame. She made the top 16 girls in last years’ X Factor and her audition in Cardiff of Etta James’s “At Last” received a standing ovation from the crowd and Gary Barlow and Kelly Rowland both loved her.

Tonight Chelsea was rewarded with four ‘Yes’ votes that catapulted her into the next round of the competition, taking her a step closer to making the live finals.

British Tech3 Yamaha rider Cal Crutchlow was third fastest with his best ever qualifying display (1:55.022) and took the final front-row spot.

Australian Stoner has won the night race four times in the last five years, four times from pole.

“I had to push more than 100 percent to make pole position but I pushed to the limit and managed to make a perfect lap,” said Lorenzo.

“We still have to improve the power on the straight and our maximum speed but in the rest of the track the bike is working really well. Tomorrow will be a tough race and tyres will be very important I think.”

Yamaha’s American Ben Spies qualified fourth with compatriot Nicky Hayden fifth on the Ducati.

Stoner’s Spanish team mate Dani Pedrosa starts seventh while Moto2 champion and MotoGP rookie Stefan Bradl of Germany qualified ninth.

Italian great Valentino Rossi will line up in 12th place.

“To be honest, I’m disappointed,” said Stoner, who struggled with a skittish and ‘chattering’ bike. “We started the weekend in a bit of a bad situation. We’ve basically gone full circle and come back to it.”

“We’ve got a lot of work to do tonight,” added the Australian, who had looked dominant in pre-season testing. “We’re going to have to go across everything that we did over these last few days and try to come up with something.”

Roared on by huge galleries, Mickelson produced a dazzling display of shot-making and nerveless putting en route to a flawless six-under 66.

The left-hander, already a three-time Masters champion, finished the day at eight-under for the tournament and one shot behind Sweden’s Peter Hanson, who birdied the last two holes for a 65 and the outright lead.

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, the runaway winner of the 2010 British Open, put himself in the frame for a second Major with a 69 to be third at seven under while Bubba Watson was a further shot back after a two-under 70.

Saturday is traditionally known as Moving Day and this was no exception. More than any other tournament, the intense pressure of the Masters can bring out the best and worst in any golfer and Saturday’s third round had it all.

While the leaders were thriving in the cooker-pressure atmosphere at Augusta National, McIlroy and Woods both walked off the 18th dejected and frustrated.

McIlroy began the day in a tie for third but for the second consecutive year at Augusta National the Northern Irishman’s game collapsed and he tumbled down the leaderboard.

Seven different players had a share of the lead at various stages during the round, but McIlroy’s only move was backwards.

After starting the day one shot behind overnight leaders Fred Couples and Jason Dufner, McIlroy shot a five-over-par 77, that included two double-bogeys, to end at one over.

It rekindled memories of last year when he held a four-shot lead at the start of the final day but closed with an 80.

A frustrated Tiger Woods failed to make up any ground on the leaders and was in danger of his worst finish at the Masters since he turned professional.

Needing to shoot a low score to get back into contention, the former world number one could only manage an even-par 72 to remain at three over.

He made a bright start, with birdies at the third and fourth holes, as the crowd let out a mighty roar that echoed through the pine trees but failed to make another birdie all day as his emotions started to boil over.

On the 13th tee, he slammed his club into the ground after hooking his drive into the banks of Rae’s Creek. On the previous day, he kicked one of his irons after missing a green.

“Certainly I’m frustrated at times and I apologise if I offended anybody by that,” Woods said. “But I’ve hit some bad shots and it’s certainly frustrating at times not hitting the ball where you need to hit it.”

Defending champion Charl Schwartzel was also left hoping for a last-day miracle after the South African shot a 75 to end the day at six over while world number one Luke Donald was a further shot back after also signing for a 75.

Mickelson started the day at two-under. He parred the first nine holes before making his move on the back nine, which he covered in just 30 shots, featuring four birdies and an eagle.

Hanson bogeyed the opening hole but did not make another mistake all day, reeling off eight birdies to lead a Major for the first time.

“It’s a new situation to me. I’ve been up on the leaderboard a few times, but I’ve never led in anything like this,” he said.

The two rowing crews were forced to stop after 35-year-old Trenton Oldfield, a director of a group called This Is Not A Gateway , put himself in the path of the boats.

The blades of both teams’ oars narrowly missed the swimmer as they passed either side of him.

Oldfield was taken away by police after being pulled from the river.

He has been released on bail and will appear at Feltham Magistrates’ Court on April 23 accused of a Section Five offence under the Public Order Act.

In a post on This Is Not A Gateway’s Twitter feed, its co-cordinator Deepa Naik said: “Deepa here… finding out just like you. Yes is Trenton.”

Writing before the protest on his blog Elitism Leads To Tyranny , Oldfield talked about why he planned to carry out a “performance on the Thames”.

“This is a protest, an act of civil disobedience, a methodology of refusing and resistance,” he wrote.

He described the race as “a public event, for and by the elites with broader social relations aims”.

Cambridge won the 158th running of the Boat Race after it was restarted from near Hammersmith Bridge after about 30 minutes. Oxford broke an oar allowing their rivals to win back the title.

President of the Oxford University Boat Club Karl Hudspith blamed Oldfield after the defeat.

He wrote on Twitter: “To Trenton Oldfiled (sic); my team went through seven months of hell, this was the culmination of our careers and you took it from us.”

The crews were neck-and-neck when the race was stopped between the two and three-mile markers of the four-and-a-quarter mile race between Putney and Mortlake.

Cambridge team president David Nelson said: “There was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing up to the (Chiswick Eyot) island and suddenly there was some yelling about an obstruction in the water.

“The next thing I know I see a guy’s head between the two boats – and there’s 10 or 20 boats following us, so that guy was in serious strife.”

Umpire John Garrett said it was Olympic gold medalist rower Sir Matthew Pinsent, who was assistant umpire, who spotted the swimmer.

“He basically said, ‘There’s something in the water, there’s something in the water’. He thought it was some debris and then we realised that it was actually a swimmer.

“We weren’t sure what was going to happen, whether he was going to get out of the way in time and then it was quite clear he was just waiting for the boats to come across him so I had to stop the race and restart.”

Oldfield, wearing a wetsuit, ducked under the water as the two boats converged on him.

Sergeant Chris Tranter, of the Metropolitan Police, said the rowers “almost took his head off”.

Witness Anne Gill said: “The lifeboat men pulled him out of the water, immediately the police boat was alongside them as well.

“He was taken to Chiswick Pier where he was landed. I think he was probably in handcuffs, he was certainly covered in a red rug, and he walked past me smirking.”

“Everybody was booing him, everyone was extremely unhappy with him.”

After the race had been completed there was more drama as a member of the Oxford crew collapsed.

Alexander Woods had to be lifted from the bow of the boat and was given emergency medical treatment.

Oxford’s coach Sean Bowden said: “Obviously our biggest concern is Alex’s welfare and it was good to see that he was conscious and taken off to hospital with good care.

“But this really was the product of the most extraordinary and unfortunate chain of events that have conspired against us to take away a win which I think we looked like we were about to take in the race proper.”

The world-famous event is broadcast in 200 countries and attracts around 250,000 people to the banks of the Thames.

In 2001 the race was stopped by the umpire just over a minute after the start following repeated warnings to both crews to move apart and then a clash of blades for which Oxford was blamed.

The race was subsequently restarted and Cambridge rowed to victory.

The Desperate Housewives star bravely recounts the painful experience in her new memoir You Have No Idea, which she co-authored with her mother Helen, and Williams insists it’s time she finally went public with her story in a bid to help others.

She writes, “Family friends who had a daughter invited me to visit their friends in California with them. The family we stayed with had two kids. Susan, who was 18, smoked, drove a car, and was the epitome of cool. (My friend) Nancy and I slept in the den. One night Susan crept in. She told me to lie down on the rug. I was confused. Are we going to play a game? As I tried to make sense of it, Susan pulled down the bloomers of my cotton baby-doll pajamas.

“‘What are you doing?’ I asked. ‘Don’t worry – it’ll feel good.’ I lay there paralyzed. What was going on? I didn’t speak. She kept at (the molestation) for I don’t know how long. She slid my bloomers back up and whispered: ‘Don’t tell anyone.’

“I climbed into my bed, trying to figure out what had just happened.

“For years I kept Susan’s visit to myself. I didn’t really understand until college. I was with with my boyfriend and it hit me and I blurted it out: ‘Oh my god – I was molested!’ After that trip I felt something change in me.”

But the Grammy Award-nominated singer, now 49, admits she’s in a much better place, telling People magazine, “I don’t dwell (on the past).”

Seven companies are introducing restrictions on water use following one of the driest two-year periods on record.

Domestic customers face a £1,000 fine if they use their hosepipe in defiance of the ban.

Thames Water, Southern Water, South East Water, Anglian Water, Sutton and East Surrey, Veolia Central and Veolia South East are bringing in the restrictions that will affect about 20 million people.

Customers will no longer be able to use their hosepipes for watering their gardens, washing cars or boats, hosing down patios and paths, and filling swimming pools, ponds, fountains and paddling pools. Public parks and allotments will also be hit.

The firms insist the restrictions are necessary to preserve essential water supplies and protect the environment.

Martin Baggs, chief executive of Thames Water , said: “Imposing restrictions on the use of hosepipes, although regrettable, is the most sensible and responsible next step in encouraging everyone to use less water so we can maintain supplies for as long as it stays dry, and reduce the risk of more serious restrictions later in the year.”

Despite some rain in the past few days, March was another dry month and the whole of the South East and East Anglia and parts of Yorkshire are officially in a state of drought.

The Environment Agency said most reservoirs were now below normal levels and river flows were decreasing. All rivers are experiencing lower than normal flows, with two-thirds “exceptionally” low.

The water firms bringing in restrictions say they are investing significant resources in fixing leaks, moving water resources from wetter to drier areas and encouraging their customers to save water.

But the Environment Agency has urged companies to do more to tackle leakage rates.

Water companies across England and Wales leaked more than 3.3 billion litres a day in 2010/11, according to Ofwat, the economic regulator of the water and sewerage industry.

Anglian and Southern were among the companies to fail to meet their water leakage targets last year.

But the water companies say the main problem is that it has not rained enough in the past two winters to re-stock supplies.

Peter Simpson, managing director of Anglian Water , said: “Two dry winters have prevented rivers, reservoirs and aquifers from refilling with the water we treat and supply the rest of the year, especially during the hotter months when demand rises.”

Southern Water estimated that the hosepipe ban would reduce water demand by around 5% while Thames Water said its last ban in 2006 reduced demand by 10%.

Mike Hegarty, Sutton and East Surrey Water ‘s operations director, said: “We have said from the outset that we very much regret having to impose this bar but this drought is becoming increasingly serious.

“We have no choice if we are to protect our customers by ensuring the long-term security of their water supply.”

Companies have warned of wider restrictions, including extending the hosepipe ban to businesses.

Murray asked pundit Mark Lawrenson: “When you get sent off for that type of lame headbutt, do you regret not sticking the head in anyway?” and some viewers interpreted the comments as Murray condoning more aggressive behaviour.

In a tweet republished by the Daily Mail, Carl Waring said: “Cannot believe what Colin Murray has just said on MOTD 2 about headbutting. Just what do the BBC see in him as a presenter?”

Another viewer, Hayley Usher added: “Colin Murray is a disgrace for saying that. Basically inciting violence on the pitch.”

The BBC then apologised for the comment by saying: “We’re sorry for any offence caused.”

Murray is a big supporter of Liverpool and had five stars tattooed on his arm when the club won the European Cup for the fifth time in 2005.

He has been hosting MOTD2 since 2010 when former presenter Adrian Chiles left the BBC for ITV.

The Reina-Perch incident caused a major debate amongst football fans with many criticising Perch for his dramatic fall to the ground after being confronted by Reina.

However, former referee Dermot Gallagher told Yahoo! Eurosport that the decision to send off Reina was the correct one.

Forecasters have predicted that the region could be hit by snowfall and sleet early on Tuesday – with parts of Rochdale, Oldham and Stalybridge said to be most at risk.

The chilly-weather warning follows the hottest March since 2005, with temperatures of up to 24C in Manchester city centre.

The Met Office regional weather alert for snow starts at 1am tomorrow (TUE) and runs through the morning until 11am.

Forecasters predict up to five centimetres of snowfall on higher ground – and a chance of rush-hour travel disruption.

The warning follows two weeks of glorious sunshine as Greater Manchester basked in conditions hotter than Athens, Madrid, Malta and Madeira.

City workers and shoppers were pictured enjoying the sun at Piccadilly Gardens and Spinningfields and shops reported a run on sales of ice-cream and barbecues.

The hot March weather was caused by an area of high pressure above Britain, which brought warm air fronts in from continental Europe.

But forecasters, who were predicting rain for today, said the high pressure would be replaced by a cold front coming down to the region from Scotland.

And the weather over the Easter weekend is unlikely to be as good as it has been.

Forecaster Helen Wake said: “It’s disappointing.

“We had high pressure and clear skies and the sun had strength in it. There were warm air currents from the south and Europe.

“But that has disappeared and there will be a northerly flow with colder temperatures. There will be a cold front coming in from Scotland and behind that very cold air, which will cause the snow.”

She predicted temperatures would reach a high of 8C throughout the week.

Ms Wake added: “The snow could stick on higher ground on Tuesday.

“It will be most likely on higher ground, including parts of Rochdale and Oldham.

“On lower levels it will be mostly rain, but there is a chance of snow and sleet.”

The Met Office warning said: “Rain spreading southwards on Monday night and into Tuesday will turn increasingly to snow, which will settle mainly on hills above about 200m.

“Here accumulations of five centimetres or so are expected in places, whilst a mixture of rain, sleet or snow at lower levels brings the risk of some temporary slushy accumulations. The public are advised to be aware of the risk of some disruption to transport.”

Throughout the rest of the week Greater Manchester is set to be hit by a cold north-easterly current, which will cause intermittent rain and sun on Good Friday through to Easter Monday.

A man had to have metal plates fitted in his jaw after he was punched in the face during a vicious attack.

The 25-year-old was in the Boogie Piano Lounge on Atkinson Road, Urmston, when he got into an argument with his attacker at 2.45am on March 24.

He was punched twice in the face without warning and both sides of his jaw shattered.

The attacker was white, in his early 20s, stocky and had a shaved head.

Det Con Lee Attenborough said: “This was an entirely unprovoked attack, which has left the victim severely injured.

Daniel Bartlam killed his mother Jacqueline in a hammer attack at their home before burning her body.

Today the judge at Nottingham Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions allowing the media to name the teenager, who the court heard had been inspired to carry out the murder by a plot in ITV soap Coronation Street.

The court heard how Bartlam, who was 14 at the time of the attack, hit his mother seven times with a claw hammer at their home in Georgia Drive, Redhill, Nottingham.

He then poured petrol around her bedroom before lighting newspaper on a gas fire and setting the property alight.

Jacqueline Bartlam could be identified only by dental records, after her body was recovered from the blaze on April 25 last year.

The court heard how Bartlam had been inspired to carry out the killing by a plot in Coronation Street, where one of the characters John Stape, had killed a woman with a hammer.

Bartlam had claimed the killing was not murder because he had lost self-control.

But in February this year a jury unanimously found the teenager guilty of his mother’s murder.

Sentencing him to life imprisonment at Nottingham Crown Court today, Mr Justice Julian Flaux told the teenager he must serve a minimum of 16 years and described the killing as “grotesque” and “senseless”.

The judge said it seemed like the teenager wanted to “get away with the perfect murder”.

Following the sentencing today, DCI Kate Meynall, senior investigating officer who led the investigation, called it a “shocking” and “chilling” case.

She said: “The circumstances of this crime are shocking and difficult to comprehend.

“We know that Daniel spent time planning to kill his mum, and then executed his plan overnight.

“He then attempted to conceal evidence and cover his tracks by making up a story that his mum had been attacked by an intruder.

“His account did not correlate with other witness accounts so Daniel was arrested.

“From his computer, we recovered a deleted story about a character called Daniel Bartlam who killed his mother in the exact same circumstances in which Jacqueline was killed.

“I have personally never dealt with something like this, and as a police officer this was an extremely shocking case, but the biggest impact has of course been on Jacqueline’s family.

“The level of violence, degree of planning and extent of his lies is not only shocking, but it is also chilling that a boy of 14 could do this.

“You can only imagine the impact that this has had on Jacqueline’s family, and having spent time with them throughout the investigation and subsequent legal proceedings, I know this is going to be very difficult, if not impossible, for them to come to terms with.

“This murder has devastated everyone involved. There is only one person who knows why it happened, and Daniel has lied consistently throughout, making attempts to besmirch Jacqueline’s character. Everyone who knew her knew she lived for her children and was a warm, loving mother.

“Maybe one day Daniel will tell the truth, as there are several gaps that only he can fill.”

“We find it so hard to explain what we are going through. There are no winners here because not only have we lost Jacqui, but we have lost Daniel too because of what he’s done. We know it was the right result at court but trying to understand how a boy you have loved for 14 years can do something like this is so difficult.

To find out that Daniel planned to kill his own mother and then hear all the details, it is all so hard to believe. The most difficult part for us and something that only Daniel can answer is ‘why?’

“We would like to thank all those who have been there for us throughout the past year, their kindness and support has not wavered and won’t be forgotten. We would also like to offer our thanks to the police and prosecution team who presented the case which enabled the jury to come to the right decision, and particularly to our family liaison officer who we have been able to turn to whenever we’ve needed him.

“Jacqui cared and she loved, and she was most certainly loved by us all. She will be forever missed as our daughter, sister, mother, aunty, great-aunty, godmother and friend.”

The Old Trafford fixture on February 11 saw United win 2-1, alleged half-time fighting between players in the tunnel and Liverpool striker Luis Suarez’s infamous snubbing of Patrice Evra’s offer of a handshake following their race row.

But the main statistic for hoteliers was that the day of the match was the first time Manchester’s city centre hotels had been fully booked since daily records began nine years ago.

Despite the city having hosted many major sporting and entertainment events in the past, it took the much-anticipated clash between the two north west rivals to fill all Manchester’s hotel rooms.

The 2011 Take That tour, the 2008 Glasgow Rangers-Zenit St Petersburg Europa League Final and regular events such as Manchester Pride have all led to surges in hotel bookings.

But only the clash of football’s bitterest rivals has so far produced the sold-out signs at all city centre hotels.

Paul Simpson, Visit Manchester’s managing director, said: “We are by no means a city lacking accommodation – Manchester’s city centre hotels are able to cater for tremendous amounts of visitors.

“For this reason, it comes as a huge surprise to reach 100 per cent occupancy. A fantastic surprise at that.

“Manchester is an extremely proud city – particularly of our sports – and this news could not come at a better time.

“With Soccerex having taken place in Manchester, the Olympics bringing football to the city and the opening of the National Football Museum in the city centre, it seems as though 2012 is an important year for reminding people that Manchester is the city of many things. And one of those things is sport.”

City centre hotel occupancy reached an impressive 98 per cent on February 25, when the X Factor Live Tour came to the MEN Arena, and 97 per cent on February 7, during the National Squash Championships at Sportcity.

David Walters, 23, screamed ‘die, die’ as he attacked stranger Maria Morrison, 74, on December 29 last year.

Earlier he had gone on Facebook and said he would ‘kill’ after discovering that his cousin had made contact with his girlfriend by ‘poking’ her on the social networking site.

He blamed both his girlfriend and his cousin for the perceived betrayal, Manchester Crown Court heard.

A spit on the pavement snares maniac who stabbed 74-year-old woman at Chorlton bus stop

I forgive knife maniac, says 74-year-old Maria Morrison after horror attack at bus stop

At 4.37am he wrote on Facebook: “It’s straight up, 187, cos now I lost you, I ain’t got nowt to lose”. The court heard 187 was a reference to the California penal code for murder.

Walters – who the court heard was in an ‘obsessive jealous rage’ – then armed himself with a 12-inch knife intending to take his anger out on his cousin.

On his way, he came across Mrs Morrison, a grandmother, who was at a bus stop outside Southern Cemetery on Nell Lane in Chorlton.

Even though he had never met her before, he subjected her to a furious attack, leaving her for dead.

Walters, who at the time was on licence from prison for another offence, then went back on Facebook and sent a message to his ex-girlfriend saying: “Murder has been committed.

“You thought I was joking.”

Mrs Morrison spent nine days in hospital but survived despite at least six stab wounds, one of which left part of her lip hanging off.

Walters – of Vixen Close, Chorlton – later pleaded guilty to attempted murder.

He was handed an indeterminate prison sentence for the public protection – and told he would serve a minimum seven years behind bars before he could be considered for parole.

Passing sentence Judge Andrew Gilbart, recorder of Manchester, told Walters: “Your head was filled with obsessive jealousy and sense of rage at the slight you felt and you chose to set upon [Mrs Morrison] as if someone who in some way was responsible.

“You struck her several times with the knife.

“You caused her several injuries to her face and her lip which was almost hanging off.

“You also caused injuries to both shoulders, her abdomen and her elbow.

“She is a woman of spirit and character. She struggled to avoid some of the blows and fortunately through her spirit you didn’t killer her.”

Tim Greenhald, prosecuting, had earlier told the court that investigation of CCTV in the area showed the attack appeared to last for 47 seconds.

Walters was only caught after police realised the attacker had spat on the pavement nearby – and were able to gather vital DNA evidence.

Mrs Morrison, a devout Catholic, said in a victim statement read to the court that she still struggled with the physical and psychological effects of the attack.

She said: “I try to remain optimistic and think tomorrow is another day.

“Thank God I am still here. I may appear strong to other people but I’m not as strong and not as confident as my mental health has deteriorated since the attack. ”

The court heard Walters, who was 22 at the time of the attack, had a string of previous convictions – including assaulting a prison officer.

Michael Lavery, defending, said Walters was ‘very remorseful’ for his actions.

A spit on the pavement snares maniac who stabbed 74-year-old woman at Chorlton bus stop

I forgive knife maniac, says 74-year-old Maria Morrison after horror attack at bus stop

The five-bedroom property appeared in Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County, which catapulted the California rich girl into the spotlight when the MTV reality series became a hit.

However, the star’s father Dennis reportedly failed to keep up with payments on the £4.7 million he owed for the mortgage, according to TMZ.com.

The property was foreclosed and was sold at a public auction last month for £3.8 million.

The Queen allowed filmmaker and Games director Danny Boyle and 007 Daniel Craig access to her home for the short, which will kick-start the celebrations that will launch the sporting event in June.

In the film, Bond will discover he has been selected to open the Olympic Games and he will pick up a helicopter in the grounds of Buckingham Palace and parachute into the Olympic stadium in Stratford, London.

The Bee Gees star, who is battling colon cancer, was admitted to a London hospital over the weekend to allow doctors to work on his stomach.

Gibb’s publicist released a statement on Wednesday morning confirming the surgery, but in a separate note to fans posted on his website hours later, a representative for the star revealed he had to undergo a second operation in as many days due to an “unrelated” issue.

The new statement reads: “On Monday evening 26 March 2012, Robin Gibb underwent emergency surgery to remove a blood clot that caused perforation. This follows earlier surgery for a twisted intestine and is unrelated to Robin’s recent illness.

“Robin underwent the operation successfully, he is awake and has been talking to his doctors. He is currently being monitored and resting in hospital and his family are hoping for his full recovery.

“We ask that Robin and his family’s privacy be respected during this period… An update on Robin’s progress will be released in due time.”

The To Love Somebody hitmaker, 62, is hoping to be back on his feet in time to perform at the Titanic Requiem concert, marking the 100th anniversary of the luxury liner’s sinking, in London on 10 April.

Female beach volleyball players will be allowed to wear less revealing clothes at the London Olympics should they wish after the rules on clothing were relaxed.

The changes have come about as a move to respect the cultural and religious beliefs of competing nations.

The sport has gained notoriety in previous Olympics for the women’s skimpy bikinis or body suits, which have been mandatory for participants.

But Federation spokesman Richard Baker insisted that the rule change was necessary.

“Many of these countries have religious and cultural requirements,” Baker said, “so the uniform needed to be more flexible”.

The modified rule permits “shorts of a maximum length of three centimetres above the knee, and sleeved or sleeveless tops”.

The rule already applies in the Continental Cup, a tournament which provides teams with a route to the Olympics and is designed to encourage more countries into the sport.

With 142 nations participating in those events, the rules on outfits were relaxed.

Women will still be able to wear the familiar bikinis should they wish to this summer when the Olympic competition takes place at the Horse Guards Parade in London.

And Baker believes that many will still wear the same attire as before.

via Beach volleyball outfits to get less skimpy | London Spy – Yahoo! Sport UK.

The attack – which police have described as “appalling” – happened as the 29-year-old victim entered a subway leading to Salford Shopping City in Broad Street in Pendleton, Greater Manchester.

The woman – who was pushing a pram – heard a man with a British accent make a racist and a sexual comment to her before feeling a liquid being thrown on her back, a police spokesman said.

When she turned around she saw a man in his 40s holding a plastic container.

He then threw more of the liquid onto her chest before running away towards Broad Street.

The woman, who has not been named, suffered burns to her chest and back. She is in a stable condition in hospital.

The baby was not injured in the attack, which happened at around 2pm on Thursday.

The man is described as being white, stocky, and between 5ft 10in and 6ft 2in tall. He had very short, dark hair which is balding at the back.

He had blue eyes, a dimple in his chin and a red mark – like a burn – on his bottom lip. The attacker also had peeling skin on his cheek bones and had stubble.

He wore a long-sleeved dark grey jumper, black tracksuit bottoms and black Adidas trainers.

Detective Constable Jim Harris, from Salford CID, said: “This is an appalling attack on a lady who was walking with her very young baby.

“Thankfully none of the corrosive liquid hit the baby or went on the victim’s face as the incident could have been a lot worse than it already is.

“I would urge anyone who may have seen this man running away from the subway or may have witnessed the attack to contact police as soon as possible.”

Nathaniel Grant, Kazeem Kolawole and Anthony McCalla were convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey of causing grievous bodily harm to Thusha Kamaleswaran.

She was gunned down as she played in her aunt’s shop in south London in March last year.

A bullet hit her in the chest and passed through her spine, leaving her wheelchair-bound for life.

Film from several cameras played in court showed Thusha, in a pink dress, dancing along the shop’s aisle as the intended victim and another shopper rushed by her.

She was then seen slumped on the floor.

Shopper Roshan Selvakumar, 35, was shot in the face and has been left with bullet fragments permanently lodged in his head.

Grant, Kolawole and McCalla were looking for a rival gang member when Grant opened fire into the Stockwell Food and Wine shop.

They were also convicted of attempted murder of their intended victim, Roshaun Bryan, who was unhurt.

In a statement read outside the court, Thusha’s parents thanked emergency services for helping their daughter on the day she was shot.

“We are very happy that justice has been done,” her parents said.

Thusha’s mother, Sharmila, described the shock of seeing her daughter on a hospital bed.

“Seeing Thusha took my heart away,” she said.

She said her daughter’s dreams of becoming a singer and dancer had been shattered.

Mrs Kamaleswaran wept during the trial as the jury saw clear CCTV footage of the moment her daughter was gunned down.

The judge, Martin Stephens QC, warned jurors that what they were about to see would be “disturbing”.

The court heard how Thusha’s heart stopped before paramedics arrived and managed to resuscitate her.

Her condition deteriorated on the way to hospital, where she was revived again.

The prosecution said the shooting was a tit-for-tat attack by members of the Brixton-based GAS gang on rivals the ABM gang from Stockwell.

Grant, 21, Kolawole, 19, and McCalla, 20, who all denied the charges, are due to be sentenced on April 19.

“The three men convicted here today showed a complete disregard for public safety,” Crown Prosecution Service’s Daren Streeter said.

After the verdicts, junior prosecutor Michelle Nelson told the court that Thusha is expected to be discharged from hospital next week.

“It will be the first time the family will all be together since the incident,” she said.

:: Some of the police officers involved in the case have been so moved by Thusha’s plight that they are donating to her care with funds raised during their Three Peaks climb attempt in September.

Fife Police confirmed to the BBC: “The death is non-suspicious and due to a medical matter.”

Wilson, a heavy smoker, was diagnosed with the lung disorder chronic pulmonary obstructive disease in 2009.

He won the 1982 and 1989 World Championships and reached a minimum of the quarter-finals at every tournament between 1979 and 1991.

He also won the British Championship on four occasions.

The Professional Darts Corporation tweeted: “We are very saddened to hear of the death of former World Champion Jocky Wilson. Simply devastated. #RIPJocky”

Thirteen-times champion Phil Taylor told the Sun on Sunday: “We owe Jocky so much. Jocky really was a true legend.”

Bobby George, who twice finished as runner-up in the World Championship, also paid tribute.

“Farewell John Thomas (Jocky) Wilson,” he tweeted. “We had some great times together will never forget you and your toothless grin! Great #darts #legend”

Wilson turned professional in 1979 and retired in 1996.

The accident happened on the southbound carriageway between junctions three and four, just before 6.30am this morning.

The motorway is currently closed in both directions between Bromsgrove and Halesowen, southwest of Birmingham.

The Fire Service said one person had to be cut out of the lorry, while two people were cut out of the coach.

West Midlands Police said two people were seriously hurt in the accident, while 20 others suffered minor injuries.

The Ambulance Service added a number of patients are currently being taken to various hospitals across the area.

via M5 Crash: One Killed In Motorway Collision – Yahoo! News UK.

Most of the best exercises for strengthening the ab muscles are crunches. Crunches are exercises where you bring your body right forward, curling upwards to bend yourself into a tight ‘V’ shape. There are very many variations on crunches.

One of the most popular is the exercise ball crunch, which is where you lie back onto an exercise ball, and then do a crunch slowly, without the ball moving. This allows you to keep a good crunch speed, as well as supporting your back while you crunch.

Another good method is the full crunch, where you extend out your legs and then put your hands behind your head. As you pull yourself up with your hands, push outwards with your legs. If it is done right, this will exercise both your upper and lower body.

You might also try the reverse crunch (sometimes known as a V-up), where you lie on the floor, put your legs in the air, and then instead of bending up towards your legs, you bend your legs back towards you. This has the same effect, but is less strenuous, as you are lifting less weight.

A word of warning: as ab exercise becomes more popular, some companies are trying to cash in by hawking ab exercise machines and tools – those little frames that you put around yourself while you exercise, and that rock you back and forward. However, research has shown that there is no difference between the benefits of using these machines and just doing a normal ab crunch. There is, however, certainly a very large difference in price (the difference between free and very expensive), so it’s best to just avoid them altogether.

The evolution of casino software can be categorized in four primary stages. In the beginning there were low quality downloadable software that took over three hours to download, offered a small choice of games, and poor graphics. The available no-download software of the time were not much better. Later on a breakthrough gave downloadable software an edge: the software was divided to too – a light installation package that downloaded quickly, and a game suite from which the player could choose to download specific games. Thanks to this method and overall technical improvement, online gambling kept on expanding.

The fast increasing popularity of internet casinos naturally led to a growth in the development of casino software. The first software developers’ motivation was to take over as much of the market before the word gets around and the arrival of new competitors will cause a raise in the cost per earned player. This urge brought investors – some of them unfamiliar with internet technology – to put their money on two major goals: improving the downloadable casino software, and creating no-download casino applications. The development of the downloadable casinos was extremely successful; Download speed, graphics, games suite, and most important the game experience have improved dramatically. This led to a further increase in the number of players and the popularity of online gambling. However, in comparison to the downloadable casinos, the development of no-download casino software was quite a failure, primarily due to internet connection speed issues.

In the past, the resources required to operate an instant play casino software (loading graphics, communicating with casino servers, etc.) were beyond the capabilities of internet providers. As a result no-download software took forever to load, and in many cases they weren’t worth the waiting. To make matter worse, whenever players closed the casino window, they had to start the entire process from the start to play again. Nonetheless, in the past couple of years these problems were solved.

Today the average clients of internet providers as well as casino operators enjoy faster connections, robust processors, and durable operating systems – and these factors contribute to the rise of instant play casino software. Now the player can start playing within less than a single minute; the communication with casino servers, and therefore the games, run smoothly, free from interruptions. Starting from 2005, in additions to companies specializing in advanced flash software such as FutureBet, major software developers Microgaming and Playtech as well as others released instant play games.

Currently no-download casino software is as common as downloadable casino software and its popularity is increasing rapidly. Almost all downloadable casinos began offering flash games too, such as industry leader www.888.com, and many casinos are basing their marketing exclusively on no-download casino software, such as www.Money-Casino.com . In addition to benefits such as visual superiority, speed, and supply of games, no-download casino provides one of the most important commodities an internet user can ask for at this age: privacy. No download casinos do not require from players to download and install files on their personal computers. This is a double benefit: players can play in a casino without leaving signs in their PCs (like installation package or the software itself), and they can play from each computer at any time just by launching the software from the casino website – a significant attraction factor for players who are more mobile or use other computers than their own.

Casino operators recognize the advantage of this attribute – the player is not limited to a single location or PC, and therefore the average play time is prolonged. As both players and casino owners benefit from instant play software the providers are urged to keep on delivering even more advanced no-download casinos. Judging from all perspectives this market trend is here to stay, the conclusion is that the future of online gambling lies in instant play casino software.

Tennis for beginners can be a pleasant voyage or of frustration. This depends partly on the trainer and the environment, and partly on the player.

The majority of the beginners in tennis do not have any idea in the way in which tennis is learned. They don’t know how many repetitions are necessary before the movement becomes automatic. They don’t know that the hardest part of tennis is not technical but perception of the flight and to move of ball to the right spot in less than 2 seconds.

Tennis looks at very simple when you observe a good player. But the road with the control is long and him it matter of doesn’t which the sector you work – with tennis, with the piano or to dance.

In order to relieve your tennis at the beginning there be some important ends which will help you to become more realistic, improve your rate of study and groove your races with a calm mentality.

Point out you – the brain stores all not simply, mechanical of race. It stores emotions, thoughts and consequently the belief as well as mechanics! Thus the beginning of the let with some realistic sights on tennis for beginners:

Why so much of balls?

The beginners do not realize really of the number of balls in the basket when they write the court. If they would begin their practice as regards volley ball, of football or basketball, they would see 10-20 balls. But here they could see from 40 to 200 balls or even more in one basket.

The reason is simple – the trainer knows that the repetition is the mother of competence and a beginner of tennis will have to make much repetitions before he’ll be able to control the race. And more thing – the race is not only the movement of arm, but includes/understands the movement with the ball, stopping, balancing and striking the ball. A complex action of It which takes time to become our second nature.

To answer the question thus – there are so many balls because the driving training (learning how to strike and movement) take many repetitions and the trainer is ready for that. He also knows that you will probably miss much time before you obtained the good to feel. A question not of the life or death of It , the study right of the it to move in a new manner.

Errors?

The errors are a part of the training. A beginner of tennis does not realize really of how much and the way in which LARGE its errors will be. There are two types of errors while learning how to play tennis:

a) Errors where you can influence the results When a trainer recalls you to play gently and you forget with or decide that the survey of the it to the play gently, then you most probably blow of surplus. You can correct this error while striking more gently. It is in your order. Unless naturally you’re late on the projectile and you’re dispatching the race which produces a blow of surplus.

b) Errors which are out of your order (for now) You cannot have a perfect technique after 45 repetitions. It nonpossible to make the correct movement and liquid with so small repetitions. Your brain needs much more to store and coordinate your body fluidly. You cannot have a good to feel for the level of face of racquet or also to balance the speed after 20 minutes of practice.

You will make errors and you cannot accelerate the process. That takes time. Thus it is out of your order.

You don’t must obtain the inversion with yourself, because there is not only you can make on this subject in this moment. Remain calms it and give your brain and body much more information so that they can learn and to adapt.

If all is well you now have a better arrangement in the way in which the process to learn tennis functions for beginners. To accept errors as an element of the voyage and to be patient will return the lessons commençantes of tennis much more pleasant and the recreation.

And later when you control this interesting play you will really have fun on the court. Advance thus and find a trainer of tennis to show you which tennis is all approximately.

If you ever ceased really thinking of the play and the sport of tennis you would return account soon which it is not that hard of a sport and the majority of the people can learn how to play it. There are some basic rules which you must know before you start to play but you get information soon about them. You will have to be in the very good form to play a true game of tennis.

The first things which you will need when you are the first play to begin the play of tennis is a racquet tennis, some balls of tennis and some shoes of tennis and light clothing to play inside. You will want to carry light clothing thus you can come to end your clothing and obtain with the ball tennis to strike it behind through the court. You will learn how to play the fast it of play not which hard of a sport and will play you in one nothing time of the whole.

The court of tennis which you play above must be the normal payment or the people with whom you play say that well your side of the court was larger and will have you just arguments. The net enters in the dead medium of the court and there is a pipe of service which being with it. Where you will start to play the will to be with the broad outline these lines are the last whole of lines in the back if the court and it is where you will be used the ball for the team of opposition.

There remain other lines and these lines are called the lanes. When you play in the doubles which the lanes will be opened and you will not be panelized to strike out of the limits. In regular tennis the lanes would be considered out of the limits and thus you would make take points of your combination of points. So that is another thing to be observed outside for when you are in the play of tennis.

To begin all the play thus that should make you is to serve the ball in the box of the service of your opponent and to wait to see whether they return the ball to begin a play. The play is very easy and will not take a whole a long time so that you obtained how to play the sport and for really obtain how to play the game. Once that you obtain how to play the game that it is pretty recreation you strike the ball in the two directions and it is kind of similar table tennis except larger top measure. Thus if you want to try to play tennis you should go for him because it is not that hard of the whole and it will be recreation for the whole family. If you don’t think that it is a good sport for you and your family which is to you but if you are a family of four it would be the perfect sport because you can play of the doubles in tennis.

A religious education teacher, his two sons, aged three and six, and a 10-year-old girl all died in the attack at the Ozar Hatorah school in Jolimont, Toulouse, on Monday morning.

A 17-year-old boy was also seriously injured in the shooting, which was carried out by a gunman riding a scooter.

The teacher has been named by his family as Jonathan Sandler, an Israeli-French dual citizen originally from Jerusalem who moved to France last September.

The attack bore strong similarities to two shootings in the same region earlier this month, in which three French soldiers were shot dead by a gunman riding a scooter.

The killer was wearing a full face helmet and escaped on what police said was a 500cc Yamaha TMAX scooter stolen in Toulouse earlier this month.

A French police official said the same large calibre pistol was used in all three attacks. French prosecutors are studying possible terrorist links but any potential motive remains unclear.

French president Nicolas Sarkozy has ordered the terror alert in the southwestern region to be raised to the highest level.

Mr Sarkozy said he was “sure” the same gunman was behind the three attacks and that it was “obvious” Monday’s event was anti-Semitic.

He added that he was suspending his re-election campaign until at least Wednesday.

Earlier Toulouse prosecutor Michel Valet described what happened: “A man arrived in front of the school on a motorcycle or scooter. He got off and when he was directly outside the building shot at everyone, children and adults alike.”

A resident who lives near the school said he spoke to Mr Sandler just before he was mown down.

“I said ‘bonjour’ to him like normal then he went out into the school entrance,” said Baroukh, 29. “I heard the shots and I turned around and saw him on the ground. He looked dead but I didn’t have much time to see who did it because I panicked and started running away.”

A six-year-old schoolgirl called Alexia said: “I came to the school this morning for prayers. Five minutes later we heard shots and we were very afraid. We were gathered in a room and prayed together while we waited for our parents.”

Mr Sarkozy rushed to the scene, where he described the attack as “barbaric” and vowed that the killer would be caught.

“Today is a day of national tragedy because children have been assassinated in cold blood. This tragedy affects the national community as a whole,” he said.

His main rival in the presidential election battle, Francois Hollande, said: “This act, whose anti-Semitic nature is as obvious as it is despicable, hits what families hold most dear – their children, and plunges the entire nation into mourning.”

In the earlier attacks, three soldiers were killed and another seriously wounded by a gunman wearing black and riding a high-speed scooter or motorbike.

On March 11, a 30-year-old non-commissioned officer dressed in civilian clothes was shot at point-blank range by an assailant using a 9mm gun.

Four days later, two paratroopers were killed and another seriously injured at a cash machine outside their barracks in Montauban around 30 miles (50km) from Toulouse.

Witnesses said the motorcyclist walked up to the men, who were in uniform but unarmed, and opened fire at point blank range.

He apparently had time to turn over one of the wounded men who was trying to crawl away and fire three more shots before returning to his scooter and fleeing.

Police forensic experts said on Friday that the same pistol was used in both attacks and officers have said the same calibre weapon was used at the school.

French media reported that the paratroopers involved were of Arab origin.

Before the third attack, a major manhunt was already under way and between 50 and 60 police officers including anti-terrorist specialists were working on the investigation.

Senior military officials have also instructed troops based in the region not to wear their uniforms outside barracks.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has said there is no evidence yet to suggest the soldiers had been killed because of their service in Afghanistan.

After Monday’s tragedy, France initially ordered security to be tightened around all of its Jewish schools. Within hours, it widened the move to include all religious buildings.

A formal link between the attacks has not yet been established but the three investigations have now been taken over by Parisian authorities.

Prosecutor Francois Molins said: “Paris prosecutors have taken over three probes into murder and attempted murder carried out as part of a terrorist enterprise.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the killings as a “despicable murder”.

“It is too early to determine exactly what the background to the murderous act was, but we certainly cannot rule out the option that it was motivated by violent and murderous anti-Semitism,” the leader said.

Sky’s defence and security editor Sam Kiley said there was a clear pattern despite the shift from attacking the military to Jewish targets.

He said: “All of these shootings have been in the Toulouse area. Police have already made that connection. They have sent down counter-terrorist specialists.

“They will be focusing their attention on Islamic groups and on the weapon being used, which given these are quick drive-by shootings is likely to be an Uzi or a Scorpion – a small machine-gun with very high, rapid fire.”

A minute’s silence will be held in all French schools at 11am Tuesday in memory of the victims.

France has the largest Jewish community and the largest Muslim population in western Europe, with around 500,000 and around 5 million respectively.

She faced up against Jorgie Porter in the skate off, with Jorgie facing the skate-off for the very first time.

In a unanimous judges’ vote, judge Louis Spence stated that Jennifer had “pulled out all the stops,” before saving Jorgie for having the better overall performance.

Similarly, judges Robin Cousins and Katarina Witt praised Jennifer’s “fabulous performance”, before opting to save Jorgie who had “her best skate of the series.”

Speaking to hosts Phillip Schofield and Christine Bleakley after the decision and resigned to her fate, Jennifer was teary and admitted that she didn’t want the experience to end:

“I’ve loved every single minute of it, thanks to everyone including the team for the opportunity.”

Professional skating partner, Daniel Whiston, praised Jennifer for reaching the semi finals, and he said the best gift they were taking away from the series was their newly-found-friendship. They both also added that they can’t wait to get started on the Dancing On Ice Tour.

Finally, Jennifer then praised the other finalists saying that it was set to be a “cracking final” before she wished Jorgie, Matt and Chico the best of luck for next week.

Earlier tonight Matthew Wolfenden topped the leader board after gaining the highest overall score after his two performances and automatically won a free pass to the final. Meanwhile underdog Chico was voted through into the final after his skating score was combined with the viewers’ votes.

Dancing on Ice returns for the final next Sunday (March 25) on ITV1, where viewers have been promised a never-before-seen iconic performance of the Bolero by ice legends Torville and Dean.

Muamba slumped to the turf in an FA Cup tie against Tottenham at White Hart Lane, and underwent several minutes of CPR and defibrillation before being taken to the London Chest Hospital.

“Bolton Wanderers can confirm that Fabrice Muamba has been admitted to the heart attack centre at London Chest hospital where he is currently in a critically ill condition in intensive care,” the club said in a statement.

“No further information will be issued at this stage. The club has requested the media to respect his family’s privacy at this time.”

Sky News had reported a hospital spokesman as saying that he is breathing and in a stable condition.

The incident took place with nobody around him in the 42nd minute of the match, which was later abandoned by referee Howard Webb.

Medical staff spent several minutes attempting to resuscitate him using CPR and a defibrillator. Muamba was eventually carried from the pitch on a stretcher as doctors continued to attend to him.

Both sets of fans applauded him off, while players from both sides appeared greatly distressed.

Bolton later confirmed that the 23-year-old was taken to hospital. Manager Owen Coyle and club captain Kevin Davies are also understood to be there in support of the player.

Webb initially suspended the match pending further news on Muamba’s condition, before it was confirmed that the game was abandoned.

Fans in the crowd looked visibly distraught as Muamba was being attended to. Some chanted his name, but in general White Hart Lane fell into a sombre silence.

Muamba was born in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa, but came to Britain at an early age with his family. He graduated through the youth ranks at Arsenal, and was a regular for England at Under-21 level.

According to reports in the United States the actor and several of his activist colleagues were arrested and taken away in handcuffs this morning.

The Descendants star was protesting against the country for blocking food and aid from entering the Nuba Mountains area of the country.

One Wednesday the American actor testified before Congress about what he called “a campaign of murder” in Sudan.

He said of the country where villagers have to run to escape daily bombings: “What you see is a constant drip of fear.”

George had just returned from a trip in which he entered one of the worst areas.

He added: “We found children filled with shrapnel, including a 9-year-old boy who had both his hands blown off.”

The vehicle was travelling towards Sion when it veered to the right, hit a kerb and smashed into a concrete wall of a tunnel in the Swiss Alps, near the border with Italy.

Another 24 children were injured in the crash.

Six adults, including the two drivers of the coach, died in the accident.

The bus, which was carrying 52 people, crashed on Tuesday night in the canton of Valais, an area of popular ski resorts.

Parties from two schools in Belgium were travelling on the bus from Val d’Anniviers back to Belgium along the A9 motorway when the accident happened.

Most of the children were aged around 12, and the bus was one of three hired by a Christian group.

Familes of the victims are being flown to Switzerland by military aircraft.

An investigation to determine the cause of the crash is under way.

Belgium’s Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo, who will also be travelling to the crash scene, said this is “an extremely sad day for all of Belgium”.

A statement from his office said: “The prime minister learned with dismay of the horrible accident that happened in Switzerland.

“This is a tragic day for all of Belgium.

“His first thoughts go to the victims, to the members of their family and their loved ones.”

Swiss President Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf will also be visiting the site.

Jan Luykx, the Belgian ambassador to Switzerland, who went straight to the site of the crash, said: “This tragedy will hit the whole of Belgium.”

The impact of the smash was so severe many passangers were trapped in the wreckage and had to be freed by rescuers.

Around 200 police, firefighters and medics worked through the night on board the bus, its front ripped open and broken glass and debris strewn across the road.

Eight helicopters and a dozen ambulances ferried survivors to hospitals in the Valais region, as well as to Bern and Lausanne.

Jean-Pierre Deslarzes, a surgeon in one of the hospitals, said: “All the rescuers were shocked by what they have experienced.

“The magnitude of the accident is difficult to digest.”

Swiss newspaper Blick said the coach was heading back to the cities of Lommel, close to the Dutch border, and Heverlee in Flanders.

Distraught families rushed to Saint Lambertus School in Heverlee and the Stekske school in Lommel for news about their loved ones.

Marc Carels, headteacher of Saint Lambertus School, which had 22 pupils, a teacher and a classroom assistant on the trip, said: “We know some of the children are ok, but we don’t have names.

“We asked the parents to come and we are trying to comfort them.”

Deputy mayor of Lommel, Kris Verduyckt, said: “The first thing we did was gather the parents here and gave them the information we had.

“A lot of people are calling us asking for more information.”

Peter Vanvelthoven, the mayor of Lommel, joined relatives on a convoy of buses to a military base to be flown to the crash scene.

Transport Minister Melchior Wathelet said: “I’m at a loss for words. Terribly hurt, terribly moved.

“We are all thinking like parents, with this terrible thought for those parents who will not see their children coming back.

The site at the corner of Raglan Road and Washway Road previously housed Sale Baptist Church and Trafford Council’s Raglan Road Community Centre.

The existing buildings are currently being replaced with a single church and community facility, known as the LifeCentre.

Demolition began last October and it is anticipated that construction will be complete this October and that the centre will open in November.

Executive councillor Mike Cornes said: “This is a great example of how our assets can be transferred to the community and enhanced to create an exemplary facility for everyone to use.

“The previous community facility needed upgrading and by working with the church, residents will not only have a new place of worship but also somewhere they can use and get the most from throughout the week.

Andy Barclay-Watt, senior leader of LifeChurch, added: “After many years of planning and prayer, we’re absolutely delighted with the progress now being made with the project and also the response we’re getting from the community.

“Residents continue to give good feedback about the builders high levels of professionalism and consideration for the area.

“We’re really looking forward to welcoming everyone to check out the new facility in a series of launch events planned for the winter.”

Leonie Nice, 12, was catching the ball during a lesson at Woodlands Comprehensive School in Takely End when she was hit in the chest and fell over, the head teacher has said.

Andy White added: “Leonie keeled over and appeared to go into a fit.”

It happened just before midday on Tuesday. Leonie was taken to Basildon Hospital by ambulance but died soon afterwards.

Gary Sanderson, spokesman for the ambulance service, said: “First and foremost our thoughts are firmly with the girl’s family at this tragic time.

“The ambulance crew arrived at the scene within one minute and found the girl in a critical condition. Following rapid treatment and stabilisation, she was taken to an awaiting medical team at Basildon Hospital where sadly she died shortly after.”

Paying tribute to the Year 7 pupil, Mr White said: “Our thoughts and prayers are with her family at this time.

“Leonie was a promising, delightful and kind girl who will be greatly missed by all the staff and pupils of Woodlands School.

“The pupils and parents have been informed of this sad event and students who require support are being looked after by our own staff and specialist staff from Essex County Council’s support team.”

Tributes have also been left on micro-blogging website Twitter.

@ShannonHernaman said: “RIP Leonie-Jo Nice; a beautiful girl, resting with the angels – heaven only takes the best; we all love you; sleep tight angel.”

Runners and riders during the Glenfarclas Handicap Chase on Centenary Day, during the Cheltenham Festival.

Animal welfare groups reacted with anger after 11-year-old Scotsirish, 13-year-old Garde Champetre and seven-year-old Educated Evans all lost their lives in competition.

Nine horses have now died at the race track in the last five years.

Scotsirish and Garde Champetre were both competing in the Glenfarclas Handicap Chase with Scotsirish the favourite for the race.

However he had to be euthanised after breaking his hind legs while Garde Champetre lost his action and had to be destroyed.

Animal Aid’s Horse Racing Consultant, Dene Stansall was quoted by the Daily Mail as saying: “The race in which Scotsirish and Garde Champetre were killed should never have taken place, given that it was run on dangerously firm ground.

“The layout of the cross-country course does not allow the operators to soften the going by watering what was officially termed ‘good to firm’ ground.

“Rather than take the precautionary step of calling off the race, officials risked the lives of the horses, and two paid the ultimate price.”

Clerk of the course, Simon Claisse, defended the cross-country race: “Regrettably we had three fatalities, two in the cross-country race. We’d had 27 races and 375 runners on the (cross-country) course since 2000 and up until today only one fatality.

“We try to minimise the risk as much as we can, but sadly these things happen.”

Willie Mullins, trainer of Scotsirish, said: “He picked up an injury jumping the Canal Turn fence. It’s unfortunate as I thought he’d have gone very close.

“I’d been delighted with the way he’d taken to the discipline, but I’ve got no complaints about the ground whatsoever.”

Educated Evans, trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies, fell two out in the concluding event of the day – the Pulteney Land Investments Novices’ Handicap Chase – but again Stansall said the horse was put under unfair pressure.

“Novice horse Educated Evans was unable to survive in an extremely crowded race that tested his ability to breaking point,” said Stansall.

“More horses have been killed at Cheltenham Racecourse than at any other in the country over the past five years – a little known statistic that the owners of the course will not be keen to share with the paying punters.

“Animal Aid protestors will be at Cheltenham Racecourse on Wednesday to remind race-goers of the heavy price paid by horses at this notorious event.”

The Girls Aloud beauty found her private life under scrutiny last month when an expose about her alleged romance with former So Solid Crew rapper MC Harvey was splashed across the cover of Now.

In the article, Harvey claimed to have grown close to Cole in 2010 following her split from ex-husband, football star Ashley Cole.

He said, “There was a relationship and an attraction to each other’s aura… We’ve known each other for years. But then (after she broke up with Cole) we started confiding in each other. The conversations we had… it was like two people who’d gone through so much and both respected each other because of it.”

Singer Cole immediately dismissed the relationship allegations, and Harvey later backtracked over his boasts, admitting they only communicated via email and never actually dated.

She is now taking legal action over the Now magazine report and a follow-up story editors also published, accusing reporters and bosses at the publication’s parent company, IPC Media, of misusing private information about her in the articles.

Police were investigating two boys on suspicion that they set grass at the foot of the Krasna Horka castle on fire on Saturday when they tried to light up cigarettes, said Jana Mesarova, police spokeswoman for the eastern Slovak region of Kosice. Children under the age of 15 cannot be prosecuted in Slovakia.

“A unit sent to the site found that two local boys aged 11 and 12 were trying to light up a cigarette and because of careless use of safety matches, they set grass at the castle hill on fire,” Mesarova said.

The castle subsequently caught fire and emergency services deployed 84 fire-fighters to the scene.

The Slovak National Museum wrote on its Facebook page that damage to the castle was extensive but about 90 percent of historical collections were saved, including contemporary photographs of furnished castle premises from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, oil paintings and various ornaments.

“The castle’s roof burned down completely, as well as the new exhibition in the gothic palace and the bell tower. Three bells melted,” the museum said.

The castle, near the UNESCO-protected Domica Cave, dates back to the early 14th century.

The professional skier, who also found herself in last weeks’ skate off, this week found herself up against Chico to face the judges.

Chemmy Alcott Exits Dancing On Ice

In a tense judges’ vote, Katarina said that it was “so close” to choose between the pair, but eventually chose to save Chemmy and her professional skating partner Sean Rice after their “magical performance.”

Louis Spence also stated it was a “difficult decision” before opting to save Chico.

Robin Cousins with the casting vote reiterated that it had been a terrific skate off but “the skater who had the spark was Chico” which sealed Chemmy’s fate.

Speaking to hosts Phillip Schofield and Christine Bleakley after the decision, Chemmy was teary and said how proud she was to have taken part and overcome an injury from last year that left her unable to walk.

Earlier tonight Jorgie Porter found herself at the bottom of the leader board for the first time ever, after failing to impress the judges with her ribbon-prop performance, however was saved by the public and secured her position in next week’s semi final.

The show ended with the revelation that in next week’s semi final, the celebrities will have to master the ‘Ultimate Skills Test’ involving 60 seconds of solo skating, with the celebrity finishing at the top of the judges leader board, having a free pass to the final.

Dancing on Ice returns for the semi final stage next Sunday (March 18) on ITV1.

Its quarterly rent bill is due in a fortnight and failure to pay its landlords could push it into administration, jeopardising 10,000 jobs and wiping out investors.

The Sunday Times newspaper said advisory firm Rothschild has been appointed to find a buyer for the business, which includes 600 UK shops, but that completing a deal in such a short time-frame will be difficult.

The retailer’s trading difficulties deepened in recent weeks, despite it agreeing revised lending facilities with its banks last month.

But the loan was not enough to reassure suppliers, with Game reportedly losing the rights to sell keenly awaited fighting game Street Fighter X Tekken.

Last month the retailer told gamers it would not be selling popular sci-fi game Mass Effect 3, supplied by Electronic Arts.

The report said Deloitte has been lined up to handle any insolvency process which could see Game’s UK operations put through a pre-pack administration in order for some or all of its estate to be sold on quickly.

The company, which has 1,300 stores worldwide trading under the Game and Gamestation brands, suffered a dismal Christmas with like-for-like sales down 12.9% in the eight weeks to January 7, blamed on a lack of new consoles and a squeeze in consumer spending.

Game has already signalled that losses for the year to the end of January will be around £18 million

Tony McCluskie, 35, from Hackney in east London, will appear before Thames Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

His sister, who frequently appeared in the soap in 2001, was last seen alive at a hospital opening ceremony on March 1.

Her torso, which was also missing its arms and legs, was discovered floating close to Hackney’s Broadway Market last Tuesday.

The murder charge came as police divers continued their searches for the 29-year-old’s remaining body parts.

A post-mortem examination on Miss McCluskie was inconclusive.

Her body was pulled from Regent’s Canal in Hackney after it was spotted by a member of the public.

Police have been reviewing CCTV images of the hospital event as part of their investigation into her death.

The actress was pictured at the ceremony wearing a yellow long-sleeved blouse with a round neck and navy-blue leggings.

She was also carrying a two-toned Louis Vuitton bag with beige handles. Her BlackBerry mobile phone, which had a white case, has not been recovered.

The actress appeared in more than 30 episodes of EastEnders in 2001, playing the role of Kerry Skinner.

Her character arrived in Walford as a friend of Zoe Slater and the great niece of the late Ethel Skinner. She briefly dated Robbie Jackson and got him to propose to her.

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At around 8:30am on Friday morning ‘BBC Breakfast’ cut to their BBC News Channel counterparts only to see newsreader Simon McCoy seemingly sleeping at his desk.

Viewers spotted him with his head resting on his arms, with many taking to Twitter afterwards to point out the gaffe.

One tweeter called Neil Tam-Im, said: “LOL at Simon McCoy being caught napping during a live bulletin!”

Sleeping newsreader McCoy took to Twitter himself to laugh off the incident. He joked to one user: “I was not asleep! Had just been told The Queen wanted me to cover her NEXT visit…”

He later said it was “a long desk head-banging that wasn’t meant to be picked up in the BBC1 opt!!”

It’s not the first time Simon McCoy has made the headlines with his strange antics. In 2009 he was caught doing push-ups at his desk and a year later the BBC had to apologise after a weatherman was caught on camera making a rude gesture at McCoy.

The companies said the changes will be expanded across the US to streamline their manufacturing processes. The changes have already been made for drinks sold in California.

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo account for almost 90% of the US soft drink market, according to industry tracker Beverage Digest.

The American Beverage Association, which represents the broader industry, said its member companies will continue to use caramel colouring in certain products but that adjustments would be made to meet California’s new standard.

“Consumers will notice no difference in our products and have no reason at all for any health concerns,” the association said in a statement.

A representative for Coca-Cola, Diana Garza-Ciarlante, said the company had directed its caramel suppliers to modify their manufacturing processes to reduce the levels of the chemical 4-methylimidazole, which can be formed during the cooking process and as a result may be found in trace amounts in many foods.

“While we believe that there is no public health risk that justifies any such change, we did ask our caramel suppliers to take this step so that our products would not be subject to the requirement of a scientifically unfounded warning,” Ms Garza-Giarlante said in an email.

The Centre for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer advocacy group, filed a petition in February with the US Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of ammonia-sulphite caramel colouring, which is now being reviewed.

A spokesman for the Food and Drug Administration said a consumer would have to drink more than 1,000 cans of cola a day to reach the doses administered that have shown links to cancer in rodents.

The American Beverage Association noted that California added the colouring to its list of carcinogens with no studies showing that it causes cancer in humans. It noted that the listing was based on a single study in lab mice and rats.

LG PW450T 42 Inch

Sky’s First Choice for 3D TV’s. The PW4 3D Ready TV series provides stunning picture quality with a stunning razor frame design. Bring the magic of 3D Home and convert your living room to a sports stadium or cinema thanks to its crystal clear picture quality. The PW4 series is HD Ready with built-in Freeview HD and 600Hz technology to provide a superb viewing experience.

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3D TV brings the ultimate immersive viewing experience into your living room, with sports, videogames, documentaries and blockbuster movies bursting out of the screen. With LG, you can experience the same breath-taking 3D effects that you’ve seen in the cinema from the comfort of your own living room sofa.

Get closer to the action than ever before and get ready for Sky 3D, 3D Blu-ray and 3D video games to get the ultimate 3D experience with LG’s 3D TVs.

Convert your regular television programmes into a stunning immersive 3D effect with 2D to 3D conversion. The converted images are also available in 20 different scales of 3D effects to personalise your 3D experience. One pair of active-shutter glasses included.

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Sky is formally endorsing LG as its first choice for 3D TVs due to the wide range of 3D TVs including LG’s Next Generation 3D TV (Cinema 3D). The partnership, which will see the two brands embark on joint marketing as well as consumer awareness, education and demonstration activity, builds on a relationship that has already seen over a million people enjoy 3D TV in pubs and clubs nationwide, and the 3 million plus customers who already have a Sky+ HD box, and therefore 3D Ready. LG boasts the widest range of 3D TV products available, as the first manufacturer to offer two 3D technology options for consumers.

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Freeview HD couldn’t be any easier to set up. Simply plug in your existing aerial cable into your LG TV and it will do the rest. You will instantly have access to non-subscription digital TV, directly through your terrestrial aerial, all for free. Enjoy channels such as ITV2, E4, BBC3 and Film4, all without the need to install a satellite dish or a monthly contract.

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You can connect your digital camera, MP3 player or flash memory through the USB port to show off your latest holiday snaps, music collection or High Definition movies for a true multimedia experience on the big screen. USB connection allows you show off your pictures in the easiest and clearest way possible, allowing you to enjoy those precious moments in stunning quality on LG’s impressive LCD screens. The latest music you’ve downloaded, the moments you’ve captured on camera and the movies you missed – they can all be viewed in the comfort of your home with an LG TV with DivX HD.

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via LG 42PW450T 42-inch Widescreen HD Ready 3D 600Hz Plasma: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics.

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The Nilfisk C110 3-5 PC X-TRA is a compact lightweight pressure washer with high performance. The C110 3-5 PC X-TRA makes easy work of cleaning tasks around the home and garden and is the perfect choice for automotive cleaning tasks. The machine includes a trolley for excellent mobility and the onboard accessory storage keeps all nozzles and accessories neat and tidy in one place. The powerful motor and aluminium pump provides 110 max bar pressure and a maximum water flow rate of 440 litres an hour. The machine comes complete with Vario and high power powerspeed nozzles and chemical dosing bottle with foam applicator and patio cleaner.

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1 x Soft Grip Gun and Click&Clean lance

1 x compact patio cleaner

via Nilfisk C110 3-5 PC X-Tra Pressure Washer Patio Cleaner Set with 1400 Watt Motor: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools.

The Spider-Man 3 star is a big fan of George Lucas’ sci-fi franchise and he decided to use his passion for Star Wars to learn how to edit films.

He called his project Star Wars: Episode III.5: The Editor Strikes Back and he screened it for a select group of industry friends this week, telling JustJared.com, “It took about nine months to do. But I was learning and experimenting how to edit at the same time. Hopefully this will segue into a series of some sort.”

Frogmen are trawling Regent’s Canal in Hackney, east London, hoping to find the legs, arms and head of the former soap star, 29.

Miss McCluskie’s brother, Tony, 35, is understood to have been arrested on suspicion of murder, just days after he circulated ‘Missing’ posters asking for help to trace her .

It is understood Miss McCluskie was living with Tony, who is currently being interviewed at an east London police station, until she disappeared last week.

“The smallest detail could be important,” the posters read.

Scotland Yard said that divers were renewing their search of the canal after the limbless torso was recovered from the Broadway Market stretch earlier this week.

“Police were initially contacted by a member of the public who had noticed something suspicious floating in the water,” a Met spokesman said.

“The torso was recovered by divers from the Met’s Marine Support Unit and additional searches are due to be carried out in the water.”

Miss McCluskie starred in the soap as Kerry Skinner on more than 30 occasions in 2001.

Her character arrived in Walford as a friend of Zoe Slater and the great niece of the late Ethel Skinner . She briefly dated Robbie Jackson and got him to propose to her.

After Miss McCluskie’s disappearance, friends and family members carried out searches in the area and handed out leaflets.

Co-stars Brooke Kinsella and Natalie Cassidy both appealed for help finding her on Twitter.

Kinsella has become a prominent anti-knife crime campaigner since her brother Ben was murdered in 2008 .

She tweeted: “Gemma McCluskie has been MISSING from Bethnal Green since Thursday please get in touch if you have seen her.”

Cassidy, who played Sonia in the soap, also posted: “Gemma McCluskie, missing since Thurs, if u have sn her/have any info PLS contact @CarlyKarma … #FindGemma.”

Sky’s crime correspondent Martin Brunt said: “Although there has been no formal identification of the body, Gemma McCluskie’s family have been informed about the discovery of the body and police are working on the theory that it is in fact her body.”

Neighbours of Miss McCluskie have reacted with shock following the discovery.

Margaret O’Carroll, 88, said: “I’ve seen Gemma grow up around here, this is terrible.

“She lives in that maisonette with her mother and one of her two brothers. She’s very nice, a nice girl.

“I didn’t know she was missing, then my son told me about a body being found. The whole thing is scary, dreadful.”

Another neighbour, who did not give her name, fought back tears as she said: “I’m so shocked, this is not something you hear about every day.”

Detective Inspector John Nicholson, who is leading the murder inquiry, has appealed for witnesses.

this article is for those of us out there who can not afford
to pay out hundreds of pounds on studio lights and the rest….

but just want a medium / small area where we can take photos of objects
pets and or head shots of family members….

Things you need well a camera to start but if your here then you should have one
if not have a look at these….

Things for your studio we are going to setup with a area of aprox 1.6 meters
so your gonna need

long curtain pole with wall mounts (broom pole type)
*SALE* NATURAL COLOUR REAL WOOD

CURTAIN POLE 23mm *MANY SIZES* MATCHING HOLD BACKS AVAILABLE 300

style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />
or go get one from b&q or wherever…

medium muslin sheet made for photography bacgdrops
PhotoSEL BK11CW White Screen 100%

Muslin Backdrop 2m x 3m with Carrying Bag

PhotoSEL BK11CB Black Screen 100%

Muslin Backdrop 2m x 3m with Carrying Bag

PhotoSEL BK13CU Chroma Key Blue

Screen 100% Muslin Photography Backdrop 3m x 6m (10′ x 20′) with Carrying Bag

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border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

PhotoSEL BK13CG Chroma Key Green

Screen 100% Muslin Photography Backdrop 3m x 6m (10′ x 20′) with Carrying Bag

src="http://www.assoc-amazon.co.uk/e/ir?t=buwine-21&l=as2&o=2&a=B002HSCPY2" width="1" height="1"

border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

3745 Top Quality Professional

Month Warranty >>> THT Trade

PhotoSEL BD113GU Reversible Chroma

Key Green & Blue Collapsible Background 1.5m x 2m

your also going to need clamps for clamping the sheet to the
curtain pole that you will be mounting to the wall

Toolzone 4Pc 90mm (3?”) Black

Plastic Clamp

width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

(having a nice clean room is good too so giving your room a coat of matt white paint
is a goog idea) and if you dont want to buy curtain pole n muslin sheet then just
do a great job of painting. lol

ok so you have your pole and muslin or you just painted the wall
hang your muslin sheet over the pole n clamp it down leaving some of
the sheet flowing on the groundor if you have done it higher up then make sure
you have something like a chest of drawers under it for taking photos of objects like fruit n ved
or things you want to sell online.ect ect..

next thin lights as your basic flash on your camera is not going to be good enuf for most
shots you take you need lights for removing shaddows and getting the image just right….

if you have the money then buy propper studio light kits but if you dont then
we have what you need…

everyone has some old desk lamps in there home so they are going to be your studio lights
if you dont have any and want something a bit more good looking then…..

get urself 2 or more lamps with clamps and a few cheap camera tripods

Clip on Light Mains – 2 Metre Cable

length

height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

Konig Lightweight Aluminum

Tripod

height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

and well clamp the lamps to the tripods

normally a studio lamp (single one~) would cost around £50 or more you just got one
for under £30

next bit of the lights your going to need are bulbs now your every day
energy saving bulbs just wont cut it so use the highest watt bulb the lamps can take
or……………..

if you want halogen ultra bright lights then follow this bit too….

B22 to gu10 converter
Interlux™ B22 to GU10

adapter

height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

10 x GU10 50 Watt Halogen Light

Bulbs

height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

the above adaptor will fit all large / normal size light fittings on lamps that are bayonet
fittings and will give you the option to put in the small gu10 bulbs that are
in the portable photo studio kits that sell on ebay..

the last bit you need are / is a way of diffusing the light if its too bright….

what i do is use any of the spare clamps i have left and clamp
a coat hanger on the tripod next to the lamp and cover it with a very thin
pillow case or pillow cover these can be found in most pound shops in the uk or
$stors in the us ect you get what we say.

this will give you a much larger studio than the ones that sell on ebay / or amazon
at the price of £30 to £90

if you purchase everything above it will be a bit pricey but is worth it and you
have a much larger work space for your photos………

The incident took place at around 7.20pm on Saturday night in the village of Culcheth.

A police statement said: “During the contact, a male occupant of the car was shot and sustained fatal injuries.

“Two men were arrested at the scene and remain in custody. The deceased’s next of kin have been informed.”

It added: “Cheshire police patrols have been increased in the area, and the community of Culcheth should be reassured that this is an isolated incident and there is no risk to the community as a whole.”

Eyewitness Jessica Brown, who was in a nearby shop with a group of friends, described the incident as “like something off a film”.

“A couple ran into the shop and told us to stand back against the wall so we weren’t seen or hurt by anything.”

The teenager said she saw people in the street running for cover before hearing several gunshots.

“It was really dark outside. I couldn’t see anyone’s faces but I saw people running around everywhere and trying to get inside,” she said.

“I heard gunshots being fired and then I saw three people run past wearing gas masks.

“When I went outside after it was all finished, I felt gas up my nose and I could taste it because it was really strong.

“It didn’t seem real at all, it was horrible.”

Cheshire Constabulary and Greater Manchester Police are now investigating the circumstances of the incident and the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has been informed.

An IPCC spokesperson said: “IPCC investigators are at the scene and working with officers from both Greater Manchester Police and Cheshire Constabulary.

“The IPCC investigation is at a very early stage. We will issue a fuller statement in due course.”

Sky News reporter Nick Martin, who is at the scene, said the area is heavily sealed off.

“Greater Manchester Police are not saying a great deal this morning other than it was the culmination of an operation,” he said.

“The IPCC investigation will pick up the reins and look into the events leading up to what happened here.”

The 20-year-old, who held the record with a 69.59 throw, is now within touching distance of qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics.

The Burnley-born athlete needs a second throw of over 69-metres to qualify, a feat she comfortably achieved in 2011.

After her record-breaking throw, Hitchon modestly tweeted: “70.40 good start to the season.”

HITCHON’S RANKINGS

British senior ranking – 1

British all time ranking – 1

World U-23 ranking – 4

World senior ranking – 33

Current world record holder Betty Heidler of Germany set the landmark of 79.42m last year at the age of 27, but she did not hit the distances Hitchon has already achieved until the age of 22.

Hitchon has excelled in the sport after switching from ballet at the age of 14.

BRITISH GAS SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS 2012

Venue: Aquatic Centre, London Olympic Park

Date: 3-10 March

Coverage: Live on BBC red button & BBC Sport website from 1825 GMT, 3-9 March; Live on BBC One from 1300-1400, 10 March; Live on 5 live sports extra from 1830, 3-10 March

Hannah Miley was one of five British swimmers to secure Olympic places with her victory in the 400m medley at the national trials in London.

Miley was joined by Aimee Willmott, Robbie Renwick (400m free), Roberto Pavoni and Joe Roebuck (400m medley) in making the British team for the Games.

To guarantee a place, swimmers need to finish in the top two in their event and also make the ‘A’ standard time.

Continue reading the main story

“I am really chuffed with how it went, it felt great. The crowd and the atmosphere was electric”

Hannah Miley

The GB Paralympic trials are also taking place at the Aquatic Centre.

It is the first time the venue has been used for a competitive swimming meeting, with the capacity this summer set to be 17,000 before it is reduced to 2,500 post-Games.

Speaking on day one of the test event, London 2012 chairman Lord Sebastian Coe said he considers the swimming centre “to be the gateway to the (Olympic) Park – 75% of people coming into the Park will be through this gateway – and we thought it was really important we made this the iconic venue”.

The likes of double Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington and 50m backstroke world champion Liam Tancock must see off challengers from across the nation over the next week if they are to make it to the Games.

One of Britain’s leading medal hopes will definitely be there after Scotland’s World Championship runner-up, Miley, swam an impressive four minutes 32.67 seconds in the 400m medley, while Aimee Willmott joined her in making the Olympic team with an English record of 4:37.48.

“I wasn’t really expecting that time,” said Miley. “I am really chuffed with how it went, it felt great. The crowd and the atmosphere was electric so it is going to be really exciting how it is going to be at the Olympic Games.

“It’s taken a huge pressure off me knowing I’ve made it, I’ve done what I needed to do. I can hopefully enjoy the rest of the competition.”

Keri-Anne Payne, who will look to add to her open water world title at the Olympics, is keen to make the pool team but was fifth in the 400m medley and will now look to qualify in the 800m freestyle.

Pavoni earlier became the first British swimmer to guarantee their place in the Olympic pool in August by winning the 400m medley in 4:12.43, with Roebuck also getting the required time in second place.

QUALIFICATION PROCESS

Olympics: The top two in each event make Team GB as long as they make the ‘A’ standard time. If both places are not taken in London there is a second chance in June.

Paralympics: The three fastest Britons in each event make Team GB, with another chance to post times at the second trials in Sheffield in April.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Pavoni. “I’m 20 years old, it’s my first Olympics, I’ve been dreaming about this ever since we found out in 2005 it was going to be here.

“I live just 20 minutes down the road – I might even stay at home for the Games. It’s one stop on the train from my home town to Stratford so you can’t get much closer.”

Renwick dominated the 400m freestyle with a winning time of 3:46.73, but Dave Carry was an agonising 0.23 seconds outside the ‘A’ time in second.

Adlington will go in the 400m freestyle on Sunday, while Fran Halsall, Jemma Lowe and Ellen Gandy will battle it out in the 100m butterfly and Tancock will begin his 100m backstroke campaign.

The situation for Paralympic hopefuls sees three places available on Team GB, with a second national trials to come in Sheffield from 6-8 April. Only after that will the three fastest swimmers in each event make the team.

World record holder and multi-Paralympic champion Ellie Simmonds, 17, won the MC 400 free in 5:27.09 ahead of Hannah Russell, who set an S12 British record of 4:46.76.

“It’s amazing to know the public were all watching and it’s great that they’ve stayed on to cheer us on, because everything helps,” Simmonds told BBC Sport.

Jonathan Fox (S7) won the MC 400 Free, Jessica-Jane Applegate the MC 200 Free, and Stockport’s Dan Pepper took the MC 200m free in 2:02.73, ahead of Ben Procter and Craig Rodgie, with all three under the qualification time.

“I’m very pleased with that,” Pepper told BBC Sport. “I would have liked to go a bit faster but getting the qualifying time is excllent, so I’m happy with that at this time of the season.”

Fourteen people were killed in southern Indiana, another 17 in neighbouring Kentucky, at least two in Ohio and one in Alabama.

The fatalities occurred as powerful storms stretched from the US Gulf Coast to the northern Great Lakes, leaving buildings flattened and at least one small town wrecked.

It is thought up to 90 tornadoes struck across seven states of the country, putting up to 10 million people at risk.

Widespread damage was reported across Indiana and Clark County Sheriff’s Department Major Chuck Adams said the town of Marysville was “completely gone”.

“The reports on the telephone were that Marysville is gone. I can’t confirm any damage right there yet. We’re just trying to concentrate on the more populated areas and we’ve been inundated with calls,” he said.

A baby was found in a field in Salem, Indiana, about 10 miles (16km) north of New Pekin, where her family lives, said Melissa Richardson, spokeswoman at St Vincent Salem Hospital, where the little girl was initially taken.

The child is now in a critical condition at a hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, and authorities were still trying to figure out how she ended up alone in the field. Ms Richardson said she had so far been unable to identify the child or her family.

Dozens of houses were also damaged in Alabama and Tennessee, two days after storms killed 13 people in the Midwest region and the South.

Thousands of schoolchildren in several states were sent home as a precaution and several Kentucky universities were closed.

Emergency management officials said 40 homes had been destroyed and 100 others seriously damaged by tornadoes powering through two northern Alabama counties.

The states of Illinois and Missouri were also hit after swarms of twisters touched down.

The Alabama Emergency Management Agency said dozens of homes and businesses suffered damage in the southern state.

At least 20 homes were also badly damaged in the Chattanooga area of Tennessee after strong winds and hail lashed the region.

In the Tennessee town of Cleveland, Blaine Lawson and his wife Billie were watching the weather when the power went out and winds ripped the roof off their home.

“It just hit all at once,” 76-year-old Blaine said.

“Didn’t have no warning really. The roof, insulation and everything started coming down on us. It just happened so fast that I didn’t know what to do. I was going to head to the closet but there was just no way. It just got us.”

The mayor of Huntsville said students had taken shelter in hallways as severe weather hit in the morning. Several houses were levelled and five people were taken to hospital.

The extent of their injuries is not yet known and emergency crews are still surveying the damage.

A maximum security prison about 10 miles from Huntsville was also damaged by an apparent tornado but none of its 2,100 inmates escaped.

The roof was damaged on two large prison dormitories holding around 250 men and part of the perimeter fence was knocked down.

Authorities were confident that storms in Limestone and Madison were tornadoes but it will be up to the National Weather Service to confirm the twisters.

For residents and emergency services across Alabama, tornado precautions and clean-up operations are a familiar routine. Some 250 people were killed in twisters last April.

It had been reported that the couple went their separate ways after a brief stint as boyfriend and girlfriend, but they have remained in close contact on Twitter, leading fans to question what exactly the deal is between them.

Earlier this week the talented singer and actress pleaded with her millions of followers on the micro-blogging site to tune in to Valderrama’s new TV show Awake, writing: “Everyone pleeeease tune in to NBC tonight at 10 PM to watch the AMAZING new show #AWAKE (sic)

“Im so excited to watch @WillyVille tonight!”

She later said that she thought the episode was “so good”.

Valderrama had previously dated Lindsay Lohan, who, like Demi, has faced a string of personal demons over the past few years.

But, unlike several of her contemporaries, Demi has been openly discussing her hard work in recovering from her struggles, and will appear in an MTV documentary called Stay Strong this week.

Her single ‘Skyscraper’ is out in the UK now, and Unbroken will follow on Monday (March 5).

The pair split late last year amid heavy allegations of infidelity on his part, and Demi was admitted to rehab after collapsing from what her reps branded “exhaustion” in January.

Demi Moore Visited By Ashton Kutcher After Rehab Stint?

The ‘Ghost’ star has been taking a break from the public eye in the Caribbean following the completion of her treatment in Utah last week.

“They are not getting back together,” an insider told People. “[But] he knew it was important to her daughters.”

One such daughter, Rumer Willis, is thought to have been with her mother on the night of her collapse.

Great to see Ashton and Demi on good terms – but do you think a reunion could be on the cards? And if so, is it a good idea?

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For hard-up Hugh Chadwick it was a dream come true when the offer came through from Rotech Laboratories.

Hugh Chadwick’s persistence paid off

Left penniless after enrolling on an HND course in aerospace engineering, the 20-year-old felt he had to take drastic action.

Standing on the side of a busy road in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, determined Hugh brandished a placard which read ‘Please Give Me A Job’, with a smiley face drawn on the top-right corner for extra effect.

His persistence has now paid off handsomely, with Hugh due to start in his new role on Monday.

Hugh, from Solihull, told the Birmingham Mail: “I got a job offer from Rotech and went to see them on Friday. It went really well. They offered me a job as a mechanical testing technician and I start on Monday – I can’t wait.”

Northern Irish comedian, Frank Carson, has died at the age of 85.

The standup, who famously appeared in The Comedians and Tiswas in the 1970s, had been battling cancer for a number of years.

He died at his home in Blackpool on Wednesday morning and plans are now being made for a funeral in his home town of Belfast.

In a statement, his family said the “husband, father, Gaga and comedian set off for his final gig today”.

“He went peacefully at his home in Blackpool surrounded by his greatest fans – his extended family.

“We will be taking him home to Belfast to lay him to rest and celebrate his joyful life.

“It’s quieter down here now. God help them up there!!”

The comic, known for his catchphrases “It’s the way I tell ‘em” and “It’s a cracker”, rose to fame in the 1960s after winning talent show Opportunity Knocks three times.

He was still performing across the UK until recently, taking part in around 80 events a year.

But he had been ill for some time with heart problems, and was diagnosed with stomach cancer last year.

The former tradesman dedicated much of his life to looking after his wife Ruth, who had poor eyesight, with his sons Tony and Aidan and daughter Majella.

His spokesman Ashley Yeates said on Wednesday: “It is with great sadness that we have to announce the passing of Frank Carson.

“Frank will be remembered for being a wonderful standup comedian from the golden era of light entertainment on television shows such as The Comedians, Tiswas, Opportunity Knocks and many, many more.

“His audience and friends alike will remember him as a genuine, kind-hearted and generous man who was also very funny because of ‘the way he told ‘em’.

“We will remember him as one of the nicest people in showbiz, a gentleman and a friend.”

The son of a binman, Carson grew up in an area of north Belfast known as ‘Little Italy’.

He worked as a plasterer and electrician and then joined the Parachute Regiment.

He served three years in the Middle East in the 1950s, before turning his attentions to a career in showbusiness where his contemporaries included Eric Morecambe, Tommy Cooper and Spike Milligan.

Journalist and friend Eddie McIlwaine told of how Carson once joked with the Pope.

“He met the present Pope [Benedict XVI] and the Pope said ‘did you ever meet Elvis Presley’ and Frank said ‘no I have not but it won’t be long now’.”

Pope John Paul II knighted Carson in 1987 into the Order of St Gregory in recognition of his charity work.

He had moved to Blackpool in later life, where he became involved with the UK Independence Party.

McIlwaine added: “He was not just a comedian on stage, he was always a funny man and an expert at the one-liner, he was a naturally born comedian.”

original post from / by

• Jasmine Coleman
• guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 22 February 2012 23.12 GMT
• Article history

The five youngsters – aged between 13 and 15 when the alleged abuse began – were thought to have been “passed around” among a group of men in Rochdale and sometimes subjected to violence.

A jury at Liverpool Crown Court has been told that one of the girls became pregnant at the age of 13 and had to have an abortion.

The court heard another girl “very quickly became regularly and heavily drunk, depressed, incapable of getting herself out of the situation and resigned to what was happening to her”.

Prosecutor Rachel Smith said: “She did not always cry or protest or tell the men that she did not want to have sex with them although she often did both.

“But she was persistently coerced or forced into submission by them.”

Another girl, who had absconded from a council care home, said she was sexually exploited by large numbers of men and given “substantial amounts of alcohol such that she was severely drunk when she was used for sex”.

She said: “They just get you proper hammered so that you can’t do anything.”

She claimed that she would regularly find herself drunk to near unconsciousness, waking up with men having sex with her.

She also claimed that one man would pull her hair and grab her neck if she resisted and had threatened to cut her with a razor blade if she refused to have sex with him.

The girl was eventually removed from the area and accommodated in the south of England after social workers had become aware of the extent of the alleged offences.

The court was told that the case followed an investigation by Greater Manchester Police with the first arrest in 2008 and the final one in 2011.

The jury heard police missed an opportunity to intervene earlier when one of the alleged victims disclosed what had happened but officers decided at that stage not to take the matter further.

The defendants are Kabeer Hassan (25), Abdul Aziz (41), Abdul Rauf (43), Mohammed Sajid (35), Adil Khan (42), Abdul Qayyum (43), Mohammed Amin (44), Qamar Shazad (29), Liaquat Shah (41) and Hamid Safi (22).

Another defendant cannot be named for legal reasons. All deny the charges against them.

Many other men, who have not been identified by the police, are said to have been involved in the exploitation. The trial continues

The singer was seen standing outside the New Hope Baptist Church with his family and wife Alicia Etheridge, before getting into a car and driving off.

Some speculated that he was turned away by Whitney’s family, while others claimed he became too emotional and left.

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Clarifying what happened, Bobby said in a statement: “My children and I were invited to the funeral of my ex-wife Whitney Houston. We were seated by security and then subsequently asked to move on three separate occasions.”

“I fail to understand why security treated my family this way and continue to ask us and no one else to move. Security then prevented me from attempting to see my daughter Bobbi-Kristina. In light of the events, I gave a kiss to the casket of my ex-wife and departed as I refused to create a scene.”

“My children are completely distraught over the events. This was a day to honor Whitney. I doubt Whitney would have wanted this to occur. I will continue to pay my respects to my ex-wife the best way I know how.”

Can you sympathise with Bobby?

The actress, who played Lana Lang in the hit Superman show, will portray a modern-day New York homicide detective who befriends the survivor of a military experiment-turned-city vigilante in the new drama, reports Deadline.com.

The series will be loosely based on the hit 1980s TV drama Beauty & The Beast, which starred Linda Hamilton and Hellboy actor Ron Perlman.

There’s also a Beauty & The Beast movie in the works, which Guillermo Del Toro will direct. Reports suggest Harry Potter star Emma Watson will play his leading lady.

The price of Houston’s ‘Ultimate Collection’ and ‘Greatest Hits’ went up by £3 hours after the news of her passing. The price rise then fed through to iTunes.

Whitney Houston was found dead in her bath in a Hollywood hotel room on Saturday.

The move provoked fury across the Internet and Twitter where fans slammed the increase as ‘shameful’.

In a statement, the record label said: “Whitney Houston product was mistakenly mispriced on the UK iTunes store on Sunday. When discovered, the mistake was immediately corrected.

“We apologise for any offence caused.”

Houston’s death has sent record sales soaring in both the US and the UK. Her smash hit song ‘I Will Always Love You’, which featured in ‘The Bodyguard’, is currently at number one in the iTunes chart

It is reported that at least seven of the late singer’s songs are to enter the UK Top 40 on Sunday.

Houston died on Saturday at the age of 48. The singing sensation, who sold over 170 million albums, singles and videos worldwide during her five-decade-long music career, is to be buried on Saturday in the church where she sang as a youngster.

It was one of the world’s worst prison fires and was apparently started by one of the inmates late on Tuesday night at the jail in Comayagua, about 75 km (45 miles) north of the capital Tegucigalpa.

By the end of it, 359 people were dead, said Danelia Ferrera, a senior official at the attorney general’s office.

“It’s a terrible scene … Our staff went into the cells and the bodies are charred, most of them are unrecognizable,” Ferrera told Reuters, adding officials would have to use dental records and DNA in many cases to identify those killed.

A convict was suspected of starting the blaze, said the governor of Comayagua province, Paola Castro.

“One inmate got in touch with me just after 11 p.m. to say another inmate had set fire to the prison in block number 6, presumably by setting fire to a mattress,” she said, noting she had met the prisoner during her social work at the prison.

Jails are stuffed full of convicts in Honduras, which is ravaged by violent street gangs, brutal drug traffickers and rampant poverty. According to the United Nations, the country has the highest murder rate in the world.

Violence on the streets is mirrored by frequent riots and deadly clashes between rival gangs behind bars.

But the carnage in the Comayagua prison was shocking even by Honduran standards. Chaos erupted after the blaze took hold.

“We heard screaming from the people who caught on fire,” one prisoner told reporters, showing fingers he fractured escaping the blaze. “We had to push up the roof panels to get out.”

Injured inmates were filmed being carried out of the jail, some crawling with visible burns.

By the time Red Cross volunteer Jose Manuel Gomez arrived, all he could do for many was gather up their remains.

“We’re placing them into bags in parts because when we grab them, they disintegrate,” he said.

The inferno was the third major prison fire in Honduras since 2003 with dilapidated jails packed at more than double their capacity across the Central American nation.

Worried and angry relatives surrounded the prison on Wednesday morning, at one point throwing rocks at police and trying to force their way inside the prison.

Police responded by firing shots into the air and shooting tear gas at protesters, most of whom were women.

President Porfirio Lobo said he had suspended the director of the Comayagua prison and the head of the national prison system to ensure a thorough investigation.

He promised to “take urgent measures to deal with this tragedy, which has plunged all Hondurans into mourning.”

Police reported that one of the dead was a woman who had stayed overnight at the prison and the rest were inmates, but noted some of those presumed dead could have escaped.

VIOLENT GANGS, DRUGS

Honduras’ violent street gangs, known as ‘maras’, gained power inside Hispanic neighbourhoods in the United States in the 1980s and then spread down into Central America. Their members wear distinctive tattoos and are involved in drugs and weapons trafficking, armed robbery and protection rackets.

A local police chief read out the names of 457 survivors outside the prison on Wednesday, but relatives still clamoured for more information.

“This is desperate, they won’t tell us anything and I think my husband is dead,” a crying Gregoria Zelaya told Canal 5 TV as she stood by a chain link fence.

Officials are still investigating the cause. They said earlier on Wednesday that a short circuit might have been behind the blaze at the Comayagua prison, which housed more than 850 inmates, well above its limit of around 500.

The country’s penitentiaries are meant to hold 6,000 but the prison population is more than 12,500.

In 2003, a fire broke out after a riot in another prison in northern Honduras, killing 68 people. A scandal ensued when an investigation found that police and prison staff had shot and stabbed inmates in the melee.

The government pledged to improve the crumbling prison system but just a year later more than 100 prisoners were killed in a fire in San Pedro Sula. Survivors of that blaze said guards fired on inmates trying to escape or left them locked up to die.

Honduras had more than 80 homicides per 100,000 people in 2009, a rate 16 times that of the United States, according to a United Nations report last year. A slow and inefficient justice system has stretched jails to bursting point.

The country is a major narcotics trafficking transit point for South American cocaine moving north to consumers in the United States, and authorities say they are grappling with a growing presence of violent Mexican drug cartels.

A political crisis ripped through Honduras in mid-2009 when a widely-condemned coup toppled the democratically elected president but the country has been trying to heal divisions since Lobo was elected later that year.

The Manchester United and England striker spent £63,000 on a one-year-old colt in December after being tempted into the world of racing by team-mate Michael Owen.

The purchase sparked a frenzy of speculation about what the 26-year-old would call the thoroughbred.

The player had originally wanted to name his horse Oceans Seven, but the name had already been registered with the British Horseracing Authority.

So in the end he made a late switcheroo to go with Switcharooney, whose jockey will race in pink and white silks that we assume were designed by Rooney’s wife and co-owner Colleen.

Owen, who sparked Rooney’s interest by showing him round the stables, explained when the horse was originally bought that his team-mate’s well-bred steed – son of former European champion two-year-old Bahamian Bounty and proven French winner Amazon Beauty – will soon be racing.

Wayne Rooney has become a racehorse owner after Manchester United team-mate Michael Owen got him into the sport. – 2″This is a lovely colt and he wasn’t cheap. Wayne will want to see a bit of action, so we thought it best to point him in the direction of something that’s going to run at two,” he said.

“With Wayne owning him all eyes will be fixed on him, so let’s hope he’s half-decent.”

The diminutive blonde suffered perforated eardrums when she was a youngster but her mother was so poor she was unable to pay for treatment.

When she landed her role as Lucy Ewing in the hit sex-and-scandal TV series, Tilton developed a way of filming her scenes without betraying her secret – but she was eventually forced to confess after repeatedly missing her cue during a shoot with Larry Hagman.

Tilton tells the Daily Express, “My eardrums were perforated and it left me with hearing loss. I knew I was hard of hearing but it was just something I lived with.

“When I worked on Dallas I had to go to black-tie events for work and I would just smile and say ‘Yes’ to whatever anyone was saying. God only knows what I was answering Yes to. It was always frustrating that I could never hear people’s names, especially names I needed to know such as network executives.”

Tilton has now taken to wearing a hearing aid so she has no problems understanding her pals – and she’s amazed at the difference the device has made to her life.

She adds, “It is wonderful. I hadn’t realised how much I was missing.”

The Umbrella hitmaker doesn’t officially turn 24 until next week but she got the party started with more than 100 friends and family members at the Hearst Mansion in Beverly Hills, California.

Guests including Coldplay frontman Martin and gal pal Perry feasted on a Caribbean-style dinner – as a tribute to Rihanna’s island roots – and indulged in cupcakes decorated with Barbadian flags.

A brass drum player was also on hand to play reggae tunes and a guest tells People.com, “Rihanna was dancing all night and had an amazing time celebrating with her friends.”

Towards the end of the evening, a personalised birthday cake, featuring an image of a bikini-clad Rihanna, was brought out along with more than 20 bottles of champagne for a special toast. Attendees also walked away with high-end Camacho cigars as a parting gift.