General news

• The X Factor 2015: week five – live

  28-11-2015 22:13
  
  It’s time … for … the … fifth live show! But who will be left to compete in the semi finals? 9.13pm GMTMy wife just informed me that Che Chesterman’s dad is also called Che Chesterman. The boy really is having a dreadful night, isn’t he? 9.12pm GMTOK, it turns out that you’re not ALL Barry from EastEnders. This is a comfort.@stuheritage I've been in the same room as Barry from Eastenders. It was a restaurant actually, we were at different tables thoug
  
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• Wladimir Klitschko v Tyson Fury: world heavyweight boxing – live!

  28-11-2015 22:07
  
  The Ukrainian fights England’s Tyson Fury for the world heavyweight title in Düsseldorf. Follow all the action live with Tom LutzEmail [email protected] with your thoughts 9.07pm GMTGood evening! The good news: we are going to have a fight tonight, with Tyson Fury’s camp agreeing to go ahead after the Englishman threatened to pull out because he thought the canvas was too soft. In a victory for pencil pushers everywhere Fury’s agent said the canvas presented “
  
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• Doctor Who series 35, episode 11 – Heaven Sent

  28-11-2015 22:00
  
  Peter Capaldi is deep in confessional mode as he pull out all the stops in this single-hander, but what on earth was it about?Spoiler alert: this blog contains plot details for Heaven Sent, episode 11 of the 35th series of Doctor Who on BBC1Continue reading...
  
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• Grant Shapps profile: from farce to tragedy

  28-11-2015 21:35
  
  How a man once tipped as prime ministerial material became a laughing stock, and then a liabilityFew Tory MPs have risen so quickly in recent years only to fall into obscurity – and now ignominy – as Grant Shapps.The youthful-looking 47-year-old minister for international development has bucketloads of chutzpah, but is viewed as something of a maverick by the more fusty elements of the Conservative party. Continue reading...
  
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• Donald Trump reframes claim that Muslims cheered 9/11

  28-11-2015 21:28
  
  ‘Worldwide, the Muslims were absolutely going wild’ after the attacks, said the Republican presidential candidate The Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Saturday reframed his claim that he saw Muslims in Jersey City cheering the attacks on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in Manhattan on 11 September 2001, by asserting the sentiment was shared worldwide.Related: What will it take to stop Donald Trump?Continue reading...
  
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• Grant Shapps quits amid claims of inaction over Tory bullying allegations

  28-11-2015 21:25
  
  Grant Shapps has dramatically quit the government after admitting he should have done more to deal with claims of bullying in the Tories' youth wing.
  
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• Probe after 'unexplained' death of baby girl in Carlisle

  28-11-2015 21:18
  
  Police are investigating the sudden death of an eight-month-old baby girl.
  
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• Black Friday sales fall 10% from last year

  28-11-2015 21:01
  
  Fewer customers ventured out for the traditional busiest shopping day of the year, while online retailers saw sales jump Total sales in the US on Black Friday fell 10% to $10.4bn this year, down from $11.6bn in 2014, according to research firm ShopperTrak.Related: Black Friday eclipsed by Thanksgiving shopping as retailers open earlierContinue reading...
  
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• Strictly Come Dancing 2015: week 10 – live

  28-11-2015 20:58
  
  Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman watch the seven remaining couples show off their ballroom and Latin routines. Will anyone need to boost their scores with a quickstepathon? 7.58pm GMTAnybody know what to look at? Nope, me neither. Everybody is skipping in circle, although Peter and Janette look more tentative than the rest. The daughter has declared Helen’s dress her favourite, which is not very helpful. Some lovely spins from Jay and Aliona at the end there.7.54pm GMTThe rules of the Quick
  
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• Vladimir Putin announces Russian sanctions against Turkey

  28-11-2015 20:50
  
  Decree issued by Kremlin to ‘ensure national security’ includes restrictions on certain imports and Turkish staff working for Russian firmsRussia has announced a package of economic sanctions against Turkey in retaliation for the shooting down of a Russian jet four days earlier on the Syrian-Turkish border.President Vladimir Putin signed a decree outlining the curbs and the details were posted on the Kremlin’s website. Among the measures announced were restrictions on certain i
  
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• Laquan McDonald shooting: Burger King manager says he has testified

  28-11-2015 20:41
  
  Jay Darshane has said Chicago police erased surveillance video in the case of McDonald, a black teenager shot 16 times by a white officerA Burger King manager who accuses Chicago police of erasing surveillance video in the case of Laquan McDonald, a black teenager shot 16 times last year by a white officer, says he has testified before a federal grand jury investigating the shooting.Jay Darshane told the Chicago Tribune the FBI also took the restaurant video recorder containing all of its survei
  
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• ‘Hugely disappointed’ Steve McClaren gives Newcastle Sunday training

  28-11-2015 20:41
  
  • Manager ‘very hurt’ by 5-1 defeat at Crystal Palace• ‘It’s not a magic wand to instantly change this group of players’Steve McClaren is under increased pressure at Newcastle after a 5-1 defeat at Crystal Palace that leaves his team one place off the foot of the Premier League table. Newcastle’s players will report to their Darsley Park training ground for an extra session on Sunday after a display that left McClaren “hugely disappointed&rdquo
  
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• Jamie Vardy breaks record as Leicester draw with Manchester United

  28-11-2015 20:40
  
  Jamie Vardy remains in dreamland but Leicester were unable to match his bravado or to capitalise on his opening goal by returning to the top of the Premier League table. If there was any disappointment at having to share the points with Manchester United it was mitigated by a new scoring record and the fact that the visitors were also prevented from going top. Related: Jamie Vardy's extraordinary Premier League goalscoring record – in picturesContinue reading...
  
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• Leicester City v Manchester United: Premier League – as it happened

  28-11-2015 20:25
  
  Jamie Vardy scored yet again, making it 11 matches in a row, and erasing Ruud van Nistelrooy from the Premier League record books. 7.20pm GMTAnd that’s that. Leicester hold on for a point. Both teams went for the three points during those breathless closing exchanges. Both contributed to a fine match overall. But neither did quite enough to win, and neither deserved to lose. So a draw’s about right, then. Manchester City are the new Premier League leaders, Leicester are second, and U
  
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• Isis mocked with rubber ducks as internet fights terror with humour

  28-11-2015 20:24
  
  Members of Reddit group 4chan superimpose duck heads on to images of Isis fighters, setting off craze that has spread to Twitter and FacebookIf it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, could it in fact be an Islamic State militant?As world leaders scratch their heads about the best method to defeat the terror of Isis, internet users have come up with their own way to take the sting out of the group’s feathery tail. Continue reading...
  
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• No deal as talks continue in bid to avert junior doctors' strike

  28-11-2015 20:21
  
  Government negotiators will sit down with British Medical Association (BMA) officials again on Monday for last-ditch efforts to reach an agreement that would head off a strike by junior doctors over pay and working conditions.
  
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• Face it, home owners must take a hit to sort out housing | Sonia Sodha

  28-11-2015 20:03
  
  The only way to solve the housing crisis is for home owners to accept that house prices must fallImagine going to the supermarket and contemplating whether or not to buy a chicken costing £50. At that price, buying a chicken a week would cost the average workers almost 10% of their salary. If chicken prices had gone up as fast as house prices in the last 40 years, that’s exactly how much we’d be payingHousing policy is dominated by consensus. We all agree on the problem: house-
  
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• Murder Probe After Body Found On Thames Shore

  28-11-2015 19:56
  
  A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after the discovery of a body near the River Thames. Police found the body of the 21-year-old man on the foreshore of the Thames in Tower Hamlets on Wednesday. A post-mortem examination uncovered evidence of head injuries, although the cause of death is yet to be determined, Scotland Yard said.
  
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• Former Conservative chairman resigns over bullying claims

  28-11-2015 19:49
  
  A former chairman of the ruling Conservative Party resigned from his post as a junior minister on Saturday, in response to allegations that he failed to act on warnings about bullying within the party. Grant Shapps, who chaired Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives from 2012 until May this year, quit as an international development minister after saying he took responsibility for hiring an aide who became the subject of complaints about bullying. "Over the past few weeks - as individual a
  
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• Former Conservative Party chairman resigns over bullying claims

  28-11-2015 19:43
  
  A former chairman of the ruling Conservative Party resigned from his post as a junior minister on Saturday, in response to allegations that he failed to act on warnings about bullying within the party. Grant Shapps, who chaired Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives from 2012 until May this year, quit as an international development minister after saying he took responsibility for hiring an aide who became the subject of complaints about bullying. "Over the past few weeks - as individual a
  
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• Trafalgar Square runs red with 'blood' in domestic violence cuts protest

  28-11-2015 19:39
  
  Feminists disrupt central London traffic and dye fountains red in demonstration styled as funeral for victims of domestic violenceFeminist activists have dyed Trafalgar Square’s fountains red after hundreds of women marched through London’s West End in a noisy protest against cuts to domestic violence services. The demonstration, styled as a funeral procession for the victims of domestic violence, blocked roads and stopped traffic on a route that took the protesters from Soho to Traf
  
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• Obama urges gun control after Colorado Springs shooting: 'Enough is enough'

  28-11-2015 19:30
  
  Officials name suspect as Robert Lewis Dear, 57, of North CarolinaPolice say ‘items’ suspect left at scene are ‘no longer a threat’Republican criticizes Planned Parenthood as search for motive goes onColorado Springs: a playground for pro-life, pro-gun evangelicals Related: Three dead after gunman storms Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Robert Lewis Dear, a 57-year-old from North Carolina, has been named as the suspected gunman behind a standoff at a Planned Parentho
  
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• I despair at Celtic’s antics over the living wage | Kevin McKenna

  28-11-2015 19:02
  
  Celtic FC is wonderful, but the club needs to rethink its wage policyThe football column I turn to first on a Sunday morning resides in the Observer’s sports section, tucked away beneath the fold, often on a left-hand page and after the main business of reporting on the Saturday matches has been disposed of.It’s called Said and Done and it’s a witty and excoriating compendium of the corruption, hypocrisy and exploitation that underpins the global business of football. In here a
  
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• Prince Harry Tumbles Off Pony In Polo Match

  28-11-2015 18:41
  
  TV pictures show Prince Harry falling off his pony twice during a charity polo match in South Africa.
  
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• Nico Rosberg sees off Lewis Hamilton to take pole in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

  28-11-2015 18:40
  
  • Mercedes driver Rosberg claims sixth successive pole position
  • Britain’s Hamilton qualifies in second with Kimi Raikkonen thirdNico Rosberg made it six straight pole positions as he won Saturday’s qualifying session for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.Lewis Hamilton’s wait for his 50th pole will now extend into next year. He has not qualified for the front of the grid since the Italian Grand Prix at Monza nearly three months ago. Continue reading...
  
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• Egypt '90% sure' there are hidden chambers in King Tut's tomb

  28-11-2015 18:39
  
  Search for hidden chamber in Luxor, once the pharaonic capital, points to chamber that some say could hold remains of Queen NefertitiEgypt has said there is a 90% chance that hidden chambers will be found within King Tutankhamun’s tomb, based on the preliminary results of a new exploration of the 3,300-year-old mausoleum.Researchers say the discovery of a new chamber could shine fresh light on one of ancient Egypt’s most turbulent times, and one prominent researcher has theorised tha
  
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• Crystal Palace hammer Newcastle to leave Steve McClaren in deep trouble

  28-11-2015 18:17
  
  If Newcastle were supposed to act on the “home truths” that Steve McClaren dealt them last week then it is hard to escape the conclusion that this is a team of frauds. Related: Watford’s Troy Deeney seals victory to deepen Aston Villa’s miseryContinue reading...
  
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• Prince Harry falls from his polo pony during charity match

  28-11-2015 18:12
  
  Prince Harry has had a dramatic fall from his polo pony as he played in a South African fundraising match - then lost his seating a second time as the event came to an end.
  
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• Shapps Resigns After Tory Bullying Claims

  28-11-2015 16:54
  
  Government minister Grant Shapps has resigned amid allegations he failed to act on claims of bullying in the Tory youth wing. Mr Shapps told the Prime Minister in his resignation letter that the "buck should stop with me" over issues while he was Conservative Party chairman. The allegations of bullying relate to claims Mr Johnson was bullied by Tory youth organiser Mark Clarke, who denies any wrongdoing.
  
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• Grant Shapps resigns amid claims of inaction over Tory bullying allegations

  28-11-2015 16:35
  
  A Government minister has dramatically resigned over allegations he failed to act on claims of bullying in the Tories' youth wing.
  
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• David Cameron urges Commonwealth to press for reform in the Maldives

  28-11-2015 16:20
  
  David Cameron has called on Commonwealth countries to toughen up their approach to the Maldives over the "unacceptable" actions of its government.
  
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• Queen ends state visit to Malta with emotional farewell

  28-11-2015 15:55
  
  The Queen paid an emotional farewell to Malta at the close of her three-day state visit.
  
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• Reward Offered To Catch Pensioner's Killer

  28-11-2015 15:44
  
  A £10,000 reward is being offered for information about the murder of a 74-year-old man in his own home.
  
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• PM condemns Ken Livingstone for claiming British troops are 'discredited'

  28-11-2015 15:18
  
  David Cameron has lashed out at Ken Livingstone after the former London mayor said British troops are "discredited" and Chinese forces should go into Syria.
  
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• Steel Jobs Saved As Caparo Business Sold

  28-11-2015 15:10
  
  More than 300 jobs have been saved with the sale of a business from the Caparo steel group, administrators have annnounced. PwC said Caparo Tubular Solutions had been sold to the Gupta family, whose interests include the Simec and Liberty House groups. Caparo Tubular Solutions includes the businesses of Caparo Precision Tubes Oldbury, Caparo Tube Components, Caparo Accles and Pollock, Hub Le Bas and the Caparo Tubes Tredegar asset.
  
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• Shapps To Resign After Tory Bullying Claims

  28-11-2015 15:02
  
  International Development Minister Grant Shapps is expected to resign after claims that he failed to deal with allegations of bullying within the party's youth wing, Sky sources understand. It follows the suspected suicide of 21-year-old Conservative activist Elliott Johnson in September amid allegations he was bullied and his complaints were not handled correctly. On Friday, Mr Johnson's father, Ray, called on Mr Shapps and Conservative Party Chairman Lord Feldman to quit, saying his son w
  
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• Rowling feared first Harry Potter follow-up could not match its success

  28-11-2015 14:46
  
  JK Rowling revealed the "triumph" of getting her first Harry Potter novel published in America was soured by the fear that her next work could never match its success.
  
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• No 10 Lobbying Labour MPs On Syria Airstrikes

  28-11-2015 14:30
  
  Downing Street officials and ministers are lobbying Labour MPs this weekend in an attempt to win support for military intervention in Syria. Despite Jeremy Corbyn's opposition, the Labour Party is likely to have a free vote in parliament, leaving the task of convincing wavering MPs to the Government. Senior Labour MPs like Yvette Cooper have complained they have not been given detailed briefings, which "makes it very difficult for MPs" to respond to whatever form the government's motion takes.
  
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• Cameron feels 'deeply' for parents of Tory party activist who killed himself

  28-11-2015 14:23
  
  David Cameron has said he feels "deeply" for the parents of a Tory party activist who killed himself amid allegations of bullying within the party.
  
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• Cameron's strongest sign yet he will call for Syria airstrikes vote

  28-11-2015 14:10
  
  David Cameron has given his strongest indication yet that he will call a vote on British airstrikes in Syria despite Jeremy's Corbyn's opposition to action.
  
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• Briton injured by seal on remote Atlantic island rescued by Navy and RAF

  28-11-2015 13:50
  
  A British man who suffered a serious seal bite on a remote South Atlantic island was rescued by a joint Royal Navy and Royal Air Force effort.
  
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• Queen plants sapling of Malta's national tree on state visit

  28-11-2015 13:29
  
  The Queen planted a sapling of Malta's national tree in the grounds of San Anton Palace.
  
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• 333 steel jobs saved as Caparo business sold

  28-11-2015 13:21
  
  A further 333 jobs have been saved at the steel group Caparo.
  
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• Queen views plaque honouring her father's 1943 visit to Malta

  28-11-2015 13:12
  
  The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh took a boat ride across Valletta Harbour in Malta, alighting at the same spot where George VI landed in 1943 to present the George Cross.
  
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• Britain's Labour should allow MPs free vote on Syria - Corbyn ally

  28-11-2015 12:56
  
  By William Schomberg LONDON (Reuters) - A top official in Britain's opposition Labour Party said its lawmakers should be allowed a free vote on taking military action against Islamic State in Syria, after reports that some of his colleagues might quit if forced to vote against bombing. With Labour deeply split over Syria two months into far-left lawmaker Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, the party's finance chief John McDonnell said lawmakers should be allowed to follow their conscience on issues such
  
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• Shoppers bag £3bn of bargains despite 'muted' Black Friday

  28-11-2015 12:41
  
  Shoppers are expected to spend more than £3 billion by the end of Cyber Monday despite a "muted" Black Friday on the high street prompting suggestions the American phenomenon has already peaked in the UK.
  
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• Insight - Britain's Labour Party battles for soul and identity

  28-11-2015 12:30
  
  By Elizabeth Piper LONDON (Reuters) - In the 1970s, a trio of socialists joined a battle to steer Britain's Labour Party to the left. Almost 40 years on, the same three men, led by new party chief Jeremy Corbyn, are closer than ever to their goal of pushing the opposition party to the hard left. Two months after 66-year-old Corbyn was elected leader on a wave of enthusiasm for change, some Labour lawmakers closer to the centre are rebelling openly over his stand on vexed questions such as how to
  
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• Talks resume in bid to avert strikes by junior doctors

  28-11-2015 12:01
  
  Talks aimed at averting strikes by junior doctors have resumed as the British Medical Association (BMA) and Government aim to reach agreement over pay and working hours.
  
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• Olly Murs was scolded by mother for X Factor elimination gaffe

  28-11-2015 12:01
  
  X Factor presenter Olly Murs has revealed his mother rang him up to call him a "plonker" after his elimination gaffe led to accusations that the show had been fixed.
  
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• Tory chairman and minister urged to quit over 'inaction on youth wing bullying'

  28-11-2015 11:06
  The Conservative Party chairman and a minister should resign over allegations they failed to act on claims of bullying within the party's youth wing, the father of an activist who killed himself has said.
  
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