March 10, 2015

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Top Gear Clarkson out for the count –
Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has been suspended by the BBC after what it called a “fracas” with a producer. Sources said he was accused of hitting the producer in an incident last week, and the remaining three episodes of the current series might not be broadcast. The BBC confirmed one episode – due for broadcast on Sunday – would not be shown, but gave few further details. Clarkson, 54, has not commented, but has been joking on social media about films that could replace Sunday’s show. [BBC] Jeremy-ClarksonJeremy Clarkson

Berlusconi cleared of under-age sex –
Italy’s top court has confirmed the acquittal of Silvio Berlusconi on charges that he paid for sex with an under-age dancer and then abused his position as prime minister to cover it up. After nine hours of deliberations, the judges at the Court of Cassation delivered a ruling that brings to an end a lengthy legal saga centred on the billionaire media tycoon’s infamous “bunga bunga” sex parties. It also leaves the 78-year-old free to resume a central role in Italian politics. Berlusconi has just finished serving a community service order for tax fraud and remains embroiled in several other legal cases. [Daily Telegraph]Silvio_BerlusconiSilvio Berlusconi

“Blurred Lines” was plagiarised from Marvin Gaye track –
Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams plagiarised their monster hit Blurred Lines from Marvin Gaye’s 1977 song Got to Give It Up and have been ordered by a court to pay $7.4 million to the late Motown singer’s children for infringement of copyright. The ruling followed a two week case at the The US District Court in Los Angeles and some experts said the outcome could have a detrimental effect on an industry in which many artists are heavily influenced by those who went before. Thicke, who performed the song, and its producer Williams, made Blurred Lines into the biggest song of 2013 in the US, where it stayed at number one for 12 weeks, and a familiar tune across the world. A jury of five women and three men decided unanimously that they had infringed copyright and must pay damages to Gaye’s children Nona, Frankie and Marvin Gaye III, who were in court. [Daily Telegraph]
Pharrell_Williams Pharrell Williams

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The most popular Top Gear Clip ever
Bugatti Veyron v Euro Fighter Typhoon: Drag Race

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June 1, 2015

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Caitlyn Jenner breaks Twitter record, gaining more than 1m followers –
After gaining more than a million followers in four hours, Caitlyn Jenner has broken a new Twitter record, Guinness World Records has confirmed. She’s beaten Barack Obama, who held the title for two weeks. The US president reached the one million mark in five hours. Caitlyn launched her Twitter account at the same time as a Vanity Fair magazine cover was released, showing her as a transgender woman and revealing the name she will now be using. See Video of the Day. [BBC]

Vanity-Fair-July-2015

Front cover of Vanity Fair July 2015 featuring an Annie Leibovitz photograph of Caitlyn Jenner.

British tank crushes learner driver’s car in Germany –
There’s a lot to remember when you’re a learner driver but a pretty good rule is: don’t pull out in front of tanks. That’s what happened to an 18-year-old driving this Toyota Yaris in the Lippe district of Germany today. According to local police she pulled out in front of a column of British military vehicles travelling on a ring road around the town, often used by British forces stationed nearby to transport tanks and other armoured vehicles. The driver of the tank, a 24-year-old British serviceman, wasn’t able to bring his Challenger 2 tank to a stop in time.
Inevitably, in a battle between 62-tonnes of armour and a one-tonne hatchback, there was only going to be one winner. Luckily the driver of the car was completely unharmed in the incident, and the tank crew pulled her free. The car, however, suffered 12,000 euros (£8,600) worth of damage.
The tank, not entirely surprisingly – was unscathed. [BBC]

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Caitlyn Jenner Is Finally “Free” on Vanity Fair’s Cover

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January 30, 2016

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Lebanon returns Israeli vulture cleared of spying –
A huge vulture detained in Lebanon on suspicion of spying for Israel has been returned home after UN peacekeepers intervened, Israeli officials said. The bird, which has a 1.9m (6ft 5in) wing span, flew over the border from an Israeli game reserve and was caught by Lebanese villagers on Tuesday. They became suspicious as the griffon vulture had a tracking device attached to its tail. It is part of a conservation project to reintroduce raptors to the Middle East. Wildlife officials say the vulture was brought from Spain last year and set free about a month ago in the Gamla Nature Reserve in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Tel Aviv University is involved in tracking the bird, and as well as a GPS transmitter, it had tags on its wings and an engraved metal ring on its leg saying: “Tel Aviv Univ Israel”. [BBC]

People are freaking out over their results on the JK Rowling approved Harry Potter Sorting Hat test –
There have been Harry Potter Sorting Hat quizzes online for years, but this one has actually been approved by the author. JK Rowling has made, or approved, a quiz to go on her Pottermore website, which purports to accurately tell you what house you should be in. The quiz asks a series of personality questions, and sorts you in to your true house.
It tells you whether you are Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. You can take the Pottermore quiz here {Daily Telegraph]
In October 2015 JK Rowling dismissed Harry Potter fan theories about time travel and werewolves
J._K._RowlingJ. K. Rowling

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If Google Was A Guy (Part 5)

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