May 23, 2015

Top News Stories –

Sweden wins Eurovision Song Contest –
Unabashed commercial dance music triumphed over kitsch and politics, as Sweden swept to its sixth victory in Eurovision, making it the most successful country in Eurovision history behind Ireland. Måns Zelmerlöw, a leather trousered hunk, with his pop anthem Heroes, beat off stiff competition from Russian (bolstered by some neighbourly votes from Eastern European nations) and Italy. Sweden won 365 points, while Russia, in second, got 303. [Daily Telegraph] Unfortunately after Eurovision went off air it was revealed that two countries had been disqualified. Montengro and Macedonia’s voting results have been disqualified after it was discovered the two countries used votes from the televoting to account for 100% of the country’s votes, rather than 50% with 50% coming from a jury, as is required. [Daily Mirror] See Video of the Day and List of the Day
Måns_Zelmerlöw Måns_Zelmerlöw from Sweden

Ireland becomes first country to legalise same-sex marriage by popular vote –
Ireland has voted by a huge majority to legalise same-sex marriage, becoming the first country in the world to do so by popular vote in a move hailed as a social revolution and welcomed around the world. Some 62% of the Irish Republic’s electorate voted in favour of gay marriage. The result means that a republic once dominated by the Catholic church ignored the instructions of its cardinals and bishops. The huge Yes vote marks another milestone in Ireland’s journey towards a more liberal, secular society. Out of an electorate of more than 3 million, 1,201,607 backed gay marriage, while 734,300 voters said No. The result prompted a massive street party around the gay district of central Dublin close to the national count centre. [The Guardian]

Spanish La Liga ends with Barcelona on top but Cristiano Ronaldo with 61 goals –
Cristiano Ronaldo finished with a season’s best goals tally of 61 as his first-half hat-trick helped Real Madrid end their season by hammering Getafe 7-1. The Portuguese forward’s haul is one more than the 60 he scored in 2011-12. Barcelona had already won the title and said adios to their captain Xavi Hernández who has won eight La Liga titles with the side after joing the club aged 11 in 1991. See List of the Day 2
XaviXavi Hernández

Banned number plates revealed: VA61ANA banned but PEN15 allowed –
The DVLA has revealed its entire catalogue of forbidden car number plates – including some amusing selections as well as surprising omissions. It seems motorists can drive a PEN15, but not a VA61ANA, and while BL03 JOB is forbidden ORG45M is fine. The list of personalised plates the DVLA believes to be in poor taste runs to 46 pages and includes religious or homophobic words. [Daily Telegraph]
Banned number platesBanned number plates – how they might look

Video of the Day –

Måns Zelmerlöw – Heroes (Sweden) – LIVE at Eurovision 2015 Grand Final

List of the day 1 –

Eurovision Song Contest 2015 results

  1. Sweden – 365 points
  2. Russia – 303 points
  3. Italy – 292 points
  4. Belgium – 217 points
  5. Australia – 196 points
  6. Latvia – 186 points
  7. Estonia – 106 points
  8. Norway – 102 points
  9. Israel – 97 points
  10. Serbia – 53 points
  11. Georgia – 51 points
  12. Azerbaijan – 49 points
  13. Montenegro – 44 points
  14. Slovenia – 39 points
  15. Romania – 35 points
  16. Armenia – 34 points
  17. Albania – 34 points
  18. Lithuania – 30 points
  19. Greece – 23 points
  20. Hungary – 19 points
  21. Spain – 15 points
  22. Cyprus – 11 points
  23. Poland – 10 points
  24. United Kingdom – 5 points
  25. France – 4 points
  26. Germany – 0 points
  27. Austria – 0 points

 

List of the day 2 –

2014-2015 Spanish La Liga final table

#
Team
GP
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
PTS
1
Barcelona
38
30
4
4
110
21
89
94
2
Real Madrid
38
30
2
6
118
38
80
92
3
Atlético Madrid
38
23
9
6
67
29
38
78
4
Valencia
38
22
11
5
70
32
38
77
5
Sevilla
38
23
7
8
71
45
26
76
6
Villarreal
38
16
12
10
48
37
11
60
7
Athletic
38
15
10
13
42
41
1
55
8
Celta Vigo
38
13
12
13
47
44
3
51
9
Málaga
38
14
8
16
42
48
-6
50
10
Espanyol
38
13
10
15
47
51
-4
49
11
Rayo
38
15
4
19
46
68
-22
49
12
Real Sociedad
38
11
13
14
44
51
-7
46
13
Elche
38
11
8
19
35
62
-27
41
14
Levante
38
9
10
19
34
67
-33
37
15
Getafe CF
38
10
7
21
33
64
-31
37
16
Deportivo
38
7
14
17
35
60
-25
35
17
Granada
38
7
14
17
29
64
-35
35
18
Eibar
38
9
8
21
34
55
-21
35
19
Almería
38
8
8
22
35
64
-29
32
20
Córdoba
38
3
11
24
22
68
-46
20

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 キスの日 #BreloVerdict #BigWeekend
2 #PreguntasPelotudas Ireland #EqualityForAll
3 #JornadaDeReflexion #SharedWordMovies #furnishamovie
4 Dream Concert Jeezy Grange Hill
5 #جمال_الشخص_في #BigWeekend Adjoa
6 #اكتب_اسمك_وان�… #NashsNewVideo Southend
7 #EsteFindeLargoRePintaPara #NewTLCShows Fat Elvis
8 Dursun Özbek Xavi #askDinahYane
9 노건호 Bundesliga Eric Pickles
10 #6raciesXavi #UFC187 #CarShare

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September 2, 2015

Top News Stories –

Wikipedia rocked by ‘rogue editors’ blackmail scam targeting small businesses and celebrities –
Hundreds of small British businesses and minor celebrities have been targeted by a sophisticated blackmail scam orchestrated by “rogue editors” at Wikipedia, The Independent can reveal. The victims, who range from a wedding photographer in Dorset to a high-end jewellery shop in Shoreditch, east London, faced demands for hundreds of pounds to “protect” or update Wikipedia pages about their businesses. A former Britain’s Got Talent contestant was among dozens of individuals targeted. The scam worked by targeting firms struggling to get pages about their businesses on Wikipedia. They were often told their articles had been rejected due to concerns of excessive promotional content – although in some cases the scammers themselves may have been the ones causing the articles to be removed. [The Independent]

‘Doctor Who’: Alex Kingston Revives River Song Role For Christmas Special –
Actress Alex Kingston is returning to the world of “Doctor Who” for this year’s Christmas special, to air Dec. 25 on BBC America. Kingston plays the time-traveling Professor River Song, who is married to the Doctor. She’s appeared in 15 “Doctor Who” episodes since 2008, but the Dec. 25 special will mark the first time she’s worked with Peter Capaldi, the latest actor to play the Doctor in the enduring British sci-fi franchise. The 11th “Doctor Who” Christmas special began production this week, from a script by exec producer Steven Moffat and directed by Douglas Mackinnon. Producers said a range of guest stars for the special are still to be announced. [Variety] See Top Twitter Trends
Alex-KingstonAlex Kingston

Man invents ‘Nutella Lock’ to stop people stealing –
Daniel Schobloch has invented the “Nutella Lock” to keep chocolate spread thieves out. Schobloch says the product started off as a joke and was inspired by a friend: “One of my friends was always getting worked up because his children were stealing his Nutella.” Eventually, word got out that someone had finally created a solution to all our Nutella woes, and demand began to rise. As of the end of August, Schobloch as sold nearly 1000 units. He hopes to bring the device, which he warns shouldn’t be used as a “serious security” measure, to the open market soon. In the meantime, you can put an end to Nutella thievery by purchasing a lock on eBay for 10 euros (£7.30). Though judging by the response on Twitter, you’ll have to be quick. [Daily Telegraph]
Nutella lock tweet

French farmers kidnap Alps park chiefs, demanding protection from wolf attacks –
A group of 50 farmers are holding hostage the president and director of a national park in the Alps, demanding they take urgent action to stop wolves attacking their livestock. French farmers have kidnapped the head of a national park in the Alps, demanding stronger measures against wolves that are attacking their flocks. Around 50 farmers took the law into their own hands on Tuesday evening by taking hostage Guy Chaumereuil, president of the National Park of Vanoise in the French Alps, along with the park’s director, Emmanuel Michau. France has become accustomed to “bossnapping” over the years during labour disputes, but this is thought to be the first time an official has been held over a wolf dispute. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Google, Evolved

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 River Song #DoItRight #Expo15NHS
2 #felizmiercoles River Song #5HEuropeanAnnouncement
3 #5HEuropeanAnnouncement #Change5SOSLyricsToFries River Song
4 #كم_فلوسك_في_ال… #FreddieGray Bill Turnbull
5 #KıyıyaVuranİnsanlık Hump Day Miss Piggy
6 #MasterChefBR Dean Jones #Change5SOSLyricsToFries
7 #غرق_طفل_سوري #WeKnowTheTruth Kyrgios
8 #DursunÖzbekistifaEt #IWishICouldForget Walkie Talkie
9 参加者の声 Dwight Howard #DescribeMyJobToA5YearOld
10 #OTRAPhilly Elvis Andrus #IWishICouldForget

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