May 5, 2015

Top News Stories –

Salman Khan: Bollywood star guilty in hit-and-run case –
An Indian court has found Bollywood star Salman Khan guilty of killing a homeless man in a 2002 hit-and-run driving incident in Mumbai. The man was among five people who were run over in the incident. The actor was charged with culpable homicide. Khan had said his driver was behind the wheel, but the judge said the actor was driving the car and was under the influence of alcohol at the time. His sentence is still to be announced. Khan faces up to 10 years in jail. Legal experts say the actor is bound to appeal against the verdict and the case is likely to go on for many more years. [BBC] [Later in the year Khan was cleared of the charges]
Salman-Khan Salman Khan

Django Unchained actress to apologise to police –
An actress investigated by police after a report she had sex in a car in public must apologise to officers, after admitting disturbing the peace.
Django Unchained actress Daniele Watts had initially claimed police actions last September were racially motivated. Watts was handcuffed and briefly detained during the incident, after LA Police responded to a call about “indecent exposure”. Prosecutors made a deal to drop charges of committing a lewd act in public. The pair had been facing up to six months in jail and a $1,000 (£659) fine if convicted of committing a lewd act in public. [BBC]

Kitchen microwaves baffle Australian space scientists –
After 17 years of fruitlessly searching the galaxy, Australian scientists have discovered the source of mysterious radio signals hitting a telescope. It turns out the source was their own kitchen microwaves. PhD student Emily Petroff made the discovery at the Parkes telescope, after noticing that the signals were only received during business hours. The rays, known as “perytons”, were emitted when impatient staff opened the microwave door prematurely. [BBC]
Microwave_oven

50 Shades of Subterfuge: Rape charges as ‘male model’ offering sex in dark turns out to be balding 68-year-old –
A Frenchman masquerading as a 37-year old “male model” offering women 50 Shades of Grey-type sex dates in the dark is facing rape charges after they belatedly discovered he was a short, fat and balding 68-year old. A man calling himself Anthony Laroche attracted much female interest on several dating websites after depicting himself as a young, mysterious prince charming with a photo highlighting his smouldering gaze, square jaw and designer stubble. Adding spice to the proceedings, “Anthony” proposed a “blind” date in which the two total strangers had sex in the dark on their first encounter at his flat in Nice, southern France. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Arnold Acts Out His Films In 6 Minutes – The Late Late Show with James Corden

CLICK TO SEE MORE STUFF FROM THIS DAY…

May 22, 2015

Top News Stories –

One Direction, Robert Pattinson help out in first Red Nose Day in America –
One Direction, Benedict Cumberbatch and Robert Pattinson were among British stars who helped raise money for the first Red Nose Day in America.
The three-hour TV show opened with a monologue from host Seth Meyers. He announced his plans to trump the UK version of the fund-raising marathon.
“I don’t want the British doing anything in front of the cameras,” said the late night talk show host. “They are famously terrible actors so they are all working backstage.” Cameras cut to Simon Cowell in the director’s chair, Orlando Bloom at the sound board, Naomi Campbell operating a camera, Sir Ian McKellen working the teleprompter, Cumberbatch struggling with cue cards and Dame Helen Mirren making tea. Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne was left with the task of wishing people good luck while Pattinson struggled with valet parking and crashed the first car given to him.[BBC]
Highlight of the night was Cold Play creating a musical version of Game of Thrones with many of the cast appearing including John Snow (Kit Harrington). See Video of the Day.
Kit_HarringtonKit Harrington

Thousands of new words added to Scrabble dictionary –
Thousands of new words – including slang terms lolz, shizzle and obvs – have been added to the latest Scrabble word list, its publisher has said.
About 6,500 words have been added to the latest Collins Scrabble Word List, including a number of slang terms used on social media and in text messages. New words include twerking, emoji, bezzy and ridic – short for ridiculous. One the highest scoring new entries is quinzhee – an Inuit snow shelter – which scores 29 Scrabble points. Other new words now acceptable in the board game include onesie, devo – short for devolution – vape, and shootie, meaning a fashionable shoe that covers the ankle. [BBC]

Kim Jong-un’s ‘brat pack’ brother jets in to London for Eric Clapton concert –
Kim Jong-chol, allegedly passed over as heir to the North Korea regime because he has a weak character, was seen entering the Royal Albert Hall with a female companion and wearing a leather jacket. Wearing a leather jacket, T-shirt and sunglasses, Kim Jong-chol was caught on film by a camera crew from Japan’s TBS channel entering the venue with an unidentified woman. South Korean media reported that Kim was staying at The Chelsea Harbour Hotel and was scheduled to board a flight from London to Moscow on Friday. Rooms at the hotel cost up to £2,184 a night. Mr Kim, 33, was passed over by his father, Kim Jong-il, as heir to the North Korean regime because he has a weak character, according to South Korean intelligence reports. To compensate, he has taken on the mantle of the unofficial leader of the North’s “brat pack” of children of the regime’s elite.[Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Red Nose Day – Game of Thrones, Coldplay’s New Musical (Episode Highlight)

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 #BuenViernes #MemorialDayWeekend #BankHolidayWeekend
2 #TeLoConfiesoAsiD1 #VoteYes #FridayFeeling
3 #NoSoporto #WhatWouldYouDoFor100dollars Eric Pickles
4 #Vertigo Mike Huckabee #FarewellFearne
5 #تفجير_ارهابي_�… #ItsNotADateIf #KentEarthquake
6 #MeCambiaElDia 19 Kids and Counting #VoteYes
7 Samid #DisneyPrincessProblems George Best
8 Hayırlı Cumalar #WhyImATerribleCookIn5Words #bbcqt
9 Harden Hard Knocks #MadMenFinale
10 #EuAdmitoQue #AskTOP #WhatWouldYouDoFor100dollars

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks
Business
  • Li Hejun, formerly China’s richest man, loses an estimated US$14 billion when his energy shares plunge nearly 50%. (Forbes)
Disasters and accidents
Politics
Science
Sports

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

June 2, 2015

Top News Stories –

Fifa’s Sepp Blatter resigns Fifa presidency and is ‘under investigation in US’ –
Fifa president Sepp Blatter is being investigated by US officials as part of their inquiry into corruption at the world football body, US media say.
The news came hours after Mr Blatter announced that he was stepping down from his role. US prosecutors launched a criminal inquiry last week, with seven Fifa officials arrested in Switzerland, part of a group of 14 people indicted. Two days after the arrests, Mr Blatter was re-elected president of Fifa. However, he said on Tuesday that it appeared the mandate he had been given “does not seem to be supported by everyone in the world”. [BBC]
2014_FIFA_Announcement_(Joseph_Blatter)_Sepp Blatter at the 2014 FIFA Tournament Announcement in 2007

Kim Kardashian catches fire at awards dinner –
Kim Kardashian has already got enough on her plate, what with her expecting her second child and all. So it probably didn’t help when her first outing since announcing her happy news ended in flames. Not actual Kim Kardashian, but her dress at the CFDA Awards. The feathers on her see-through embellished dress brushed against a candle, and she needed some A-list emergency help to put her out. Luckily Pharrell (sans big hat) and his wife Helen were nearby to “jump” on her to pat Kim out. [BBC] See List of the Day
Kim-Kardashian-Instagram-June-2Kim Kardashian Instagram

Four teenagers air-lifted to hospital with serious injuries on roller-coaster crash at Alton Towers –
Five people were hospitalised and a further eleven required medical attention yesterday following a crash on an Alton Towers roller-coaster that the theme park described as the worst in its 35-year history. Two men aged 27 and 18 and two women aged 19 and 17, were airlifted to hospital after suffering serious leg injuries and another man aged 20 was treated for neck and abdominal injury before being taken to hospital by land ambulance. A dozen riders were released one at a time over four hours after being stranded 25ft in the air at an angle of 45 degrees when a carriage carrying 16 people crashed into an empty carriage on The Smiler ride, which has a top speed of 50mph. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Winners of the 2015 Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Awards

Semi-Permanent 2015 Opening Titles. from Raoul Marks – MARXº on Vimeo.

List of the day –

Womenswear Designer of the Year: Ashley Olsen and Mary-Kate Olsen for The Row

Menswear Designer of the Year: Tom Ford

Accessories Designer of the Year: Tabitha Simmons

Swarovski Award for Womenswear: Rosie Assoulin

Swarovski Award for Menswear: Shayne Oliver for Hood by Air

Swarovski Award for Accessory Design: Rachel Mansur and Floriana Gavrielfor Mansur Gavriel

Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award: Betsey Johnson

The Media Award in Honor of Eugenia Sheppard: Instagram

The Founder’s Award in Honor of Eleanor Lambert: Millard “Mickey” Drexler, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of J.Crew Group, Inc.

International Award: Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli for Valentino

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 MC Dinero #WearingOrange #BeatlesRecipes
2 Charles Kennedy Nick Young #CharityTuesday
3 #EstoyHartoDe Mike Huckabee Charles Kennedy
4 #FelizMartes #BeatlesRecipes Big Trouble in Little China
5 #QueBroncaCuando #SummerOfAnswers Alton Towers
6 #MiEstrategiaEnTuiterEs Charles Kennedy #nusnec
7 #bringbackmagcon #BadTeamBuildingActivities Jeremy Hunt
8 Drake Bell Fallout 4 #bringbackmagcon
9 Fallout 4 #ImNotHappyIf #CFDAAwards
10 Flor de la V Swaggy P Fallout 4

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks
Disasters and accidents
Health
Law and crime
Politics and elections
Sport

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

February 1, 2016

Top News Stories –

Alphabet – owner of Google – takes top spot from Apple –
Alphabet- Google’s parent company- has surpassed Apple as the world’s most valuable company after its latest earnings report. The company made a profit of $4.9bn (£3.4bn) for the fourth quarter, an increase from $4.7bn a year ago. The announcement sent its share price up as much as 9% in after-hours trading.
That means that Alphabet is now worth around $568bn, compared with Apple, which has a value of $535bn. [BBC] Alphabet was launched in August 2015
Alphabet_Chart Structure of Alphabet companies

Zika-linked condition: Rio Olympics ‘to go ahead’ despite virus –
There is no chance that the Rio Olympics will be cancelled because of a Zika virus outbreak, Brazil has said. The authorities said there was no risk to athletes and spectators – except pregnant women – at the August event. Earlier, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned a disease linked to Zika posed a global public health emergency requiring a united response. The infection has been linked to cases of microcephaly, in which babies are born with underdeveloped brains. Experts are worried that the mosquito-borne virus in Latin America is spreading far and fast, with devastating consequences. Meanwhile, WHO Director General Margaret Chan called Zika an “extraordinary event” that needed a co-ordinated response. The WHO alert puts Zika in the same category of concern as Ebola. It means research and aid will be fast-tracked to tackle the infection. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Flight Over Dwarf Planet Ceres
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 #FevereiroDetremuraSdv #mondaymotivation #HappyBirthdayHarryStyles
2 #لو_السعاده_بي�… #hourlycomicday #mondaymotivation
3 #زد_رصيدك80 #ShawnWorldTourPresale #DeadlineDay
4 #FelizLunes #IowaTODAY #MakeAFilmScottish
5 #OhNoSimon Frederick Douglass #StormHenry
6 #BienvenidoFebrero Jeff Hornacek #GreaseLive
7 #DeadlineDay #OhNoSimon #NVRD
8 #JustinRainha1DNadinha #HappyBirthdayHarryStyles 1st of February
9 #هل_تتزوجين_سع�… #DeadlineDay #ontopictalkshow
10 #ShawnWorldTourPresale Infinite Jest #emojinal

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks
Disasters and accidents
Health
Law and crime
  • Chinese authorities arrest 21 people involved in the Ezubao online finance scheme accused of allegedly defrauding 900,000 people of 50bn yuan ($7.6bn; £5.3bn) in a Ponzi scheme. (BBC)
  • Two men are sentenced to death for the murder of Tibetan religious leader Akong Rinpoche, his nephew and his driver in 2013. (Reuters)
Politics and elections

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource