General news

• Cumbria Floods: Police Warn Against Driving

  25-12-2015 23:42
  
  Police are warning residents of Cumbria to avoid driving overnight, as heavy rain looks likely to extend through Boxing Day. Heavy rain is set to hit swollen rivers in Cumbria, where some regions have been hit by flooding three times within a month. Many towns and villages across Cumbria are still cleaning up after Storm Desmond caused damage to hundreds of homes and businesses earlier this month.
  
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• Twitter 'vows to defeat online trolls'

  25-12-2015 23:26
  Social media giant Twitter has pledged to clamp down on trolls once and for all, according to reports.
  
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• Samantha Thomas and 10-month-old son, from Kent, found after police search

  25-12-2015 22:26
  
  A young mother and her baby son who were reported missing on Christmas Eve have been found "safe and well", police said.
  
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• Missing Mother And Son Found Safe

  25-12-2015 22:21
  
  A 24-year-old woman and her 10-month-old son who disappeared on Christmas Eve have been found safe and well.
  
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• McFly's Harry Judd is Strictly Christmas king

  25-12-2015 21:11
  
  McFly's Harry Judd is the winner of the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special.
  
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• Mother And Son Vanish On Christmas Eve

  25-12-2015 20:36
  
  Police are searching for a 24-year-old woman and her 10-month-old son who disappeared on Christmas Eve. Samantha Thomas was last seen at 10.30am at her home in Sheerness, Kent. A spokesman for Kent Police said Ms Thomas is believed to have her young son with her.
  
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• Justin Bieber congratulates NHS Choir after Christmas number one joy

  25-12-2015 20:09
  
  Pop superstar Justin Bieber has congratulated the NHS Choir after they beat him to be Christmas number one for 2015.
  
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• Newmarket Tesco shoplifting suspect dies following arrest by Suffolk Police

  25-12-2015 20:06
  A man has died after being arrested on suspicion of shoplifting from Tesco on Christmas Eve.
  
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• Queen Reflects On 'Moments Of Darkness' In 2015

  25-12-2015 17:26
  
  The Queen has used her Christmas Day message to reflect on a year with "moments of darkness". The Queen acknowledged this, showing a 19th century image of Victoria and Albert around a candle-lit tree and saying: "After this touching picture was published, many families wanted a Christmas tree of their own, and the custom soon spread.
  
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• Queen focuses on Christian faith after year of 'dark moments'

  25-12-2015 16:53
  Queen Elizabeth focussed on what she called the light of the Christian faith in her annual Christmas message on Friday, after a year marked by militant Islamist attacks across the world. Elizabeth, 89, the head of the Church of England, quoted the Bible and spoke of millions of people lighting candles of hope. "It is true," she said, "that the world has had to confront moments of darkness this year, but the Gospel of John contains a verse of great hope, often read at Christmas carol services: 'T
  
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• Thames Valley murder probe police arrest man after stab death in Cippenham

  25-12-2015 16:47
  A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 48-year-old was reportedly stabbed to death at a house on Christmas Eve.
  
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• Flood warnings as Britain is braced for torrential Boxing Day rain

  25-12-2015 16:45
  
  More than 100 flood alerts and warnings have been issued across England and Wales as Britain is braced for a Boxing Day marred by torrential rain and flooding.
  
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• Queen uses Christmas Day address to highlight triumph of light over darkness

  25-12-2015 16:32
  
  The Queen has used her Christmas Day address to highlight the Christian message of light triumphing over the dark following a year which has seen "moments of darkness".
  
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• Queen Gives Traditional Christmas Day Message

  25-12-2015 16:00
  
  The Queen is giving her traditional Christmas message. The speech - which traditionally has a strong religious framework - is written by the Queen and this year sees her quoting from the Gospel of John. She is expected to say: "It is true that the world has had to confront moments of darkness this year.
  
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• Christianity facing elimination by IS apocalypse warns Archbishop Welby

  25-12-2015 15:29
  
  An "apocalypse" forged by the Islamic State has left Christianity facing "elimination" in the very region where the faith was born two millennia ago, the Archbishop of Canterbury warned today.
  
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• Bieber Beaten By NHS Choir To Christmas No 1

  25-12-2015 14:17
  
  Justin Bieber has been beaten to the UK's official Christmas number one spot by the NHS Choir after he urged his fans to back their charity single. Speaking to Sky News, moments after hearing the news, one of the choir said: "It's a amazing, absolutely amazing - we got to number 1. Bieber, 21, had called on his fans to "do the right thing" and support the choir’s single earlier this week when he tweeted that "for one week it's OK not to be number one".
  
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• Queen Criticised For Wearing Fur Coat

  25-12-2015 14:00
  
  The Queen wrapped up in an old fur coat before her traditional Christmas Day church service - apparently brushing off criticism from animal rights groups who have attacked her for wearing it before. When she wore it for the Christmas Day service in 2013, animal rights group PETA said: "How can Queen Elizabeth not yet have learned what's right and wrong and abandoned fur, the product of immense suffering.
  
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• NHS choir pips Justin Bieber to secure Christmas number one spot

  25-12-2015 14:00
  
  The NHS Choir has beaten Canadian pop star Justin Bieber to secure the UK's official Christmas number one for 2015.
  
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• World wide web inventor uses anniversary to campaign for internet rules

  25-12-2015 12:59
  The world's first website went live 25 years ago today.
  
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• Teenage Girl Killed In Christmas Eve Crash

  25-12-2015 12:49
  A 17-year-old girl has been killed and two young men seriously injured in a car crash on Christmas Eve.
  
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• Royals Mark Christmas With Traditional Service

  25-12-2015 12:49
  
  The Queen has marked Christmas Day by attending a traditional church service at Sandringham. The Queen arrived in a Bentley wearing a red dress coat, but Prince George and Princess Charlotte stayed at home. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge smiled as they arrived, with Kate making conversation with Prince Harry.
  
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• No sign of George and Charlotte at Sandringham Christmas service

  25-12-2015 12:33
  
  Prince George and Princess Charlotte stayed inside as the Royal Family attended their traditional Christmas Day service.
  
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• Thousands Braced For Floods As Army Prepares

  25-12-2015 12:32
  
  Heavy rain is set to hit swollen rivers in Cumbria, where some regions have been hit by flooding three times within a month. Ministers will hold a Christmas Day conference call to discuss the Government's preparations, with Armed Forces personnel on standby for more flooding today as the North braces for further wild weather. Major Nick Higgins, from 2nd Battalion the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, told Sky News it was "business as usual" over the festive season for the many soldiers helping prep
  
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• Cobra crisis committee to meet as Storm Eva rolls in across Britain

  25-12-2015 12:27
  
  The Government's emergency Cobra committee will meet as thousands pray for a dry Christmas Day with another storm rolling across the British Isles prompting more flood warnings.
  
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• UK house prices expected to rise by 'up to 6% in 2016'

  25-12-2015 12:01
  The only way is up for house prices in 2016, according to property experts.
  
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• Backpacker Murders Verdict Sparks Protests

  25-12-2015 11:00
  
  Hundreds have protested in the Myanmar city of Yangon after two workers from the country were sentenced to death for killing two British packpackers on a Thai island. Demonstrators, including monks, gathered outside Thailand's embassy after Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Tun were convicted for the murders of David Miller, 24, and Hannah Witheridge, 23. The British holidaymakers were found battered on a beach on the southern Thai diving resort of Koh Tao in September last year.
  
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• Thousands Of Homes At Risk Of Christmas Floods

  25-12-2015 10:50
  
  Heavy rain is set to hit swollen rivers in Cumbria, where some regions have been hit by flooding three times within a month. Ministers will hold a Christmas Day conference call to discuss the Government's preparations, with Armed Forces personnel on standby for more flooding today as the North braces for further wild weather. Major Nick Higgins, from 2nd Battalion the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, told Sky News it was "business as usual" over the festive season for the many soldiers helping prep
  
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• Welby: Christians Face Middle East Elimination

  25-12-2015 10:46
  
  The Most Reverend Justin Welby will use his Christmas Day sermon at Canterbury Cathedral to say IS is "igniting a trail of fear, violence, hatred and determined oppression". He will also brand the Islamic extremists as "a Herod of today" - a reference to the Biblical despotic king of Judea at the time of Jesus's birth. "They hate difference, whether it is Muslims who think differently, Yazidis or Christians, and because of them the Christians face elimination in the very region in which Christia
  
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• Protests After Thai Backpacker Murders Verdict

  25-12-2015 10:46
  
  Hundreds have protested in the Myanmar city of Yangon after two workers from the country were sentenced to death for killing two British packpackers on a Thai island. Demonstrators, including monks, gathered outside Thailand's embassy after Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Tun were convicted for the murders of David Miller, 24, and Hannah Witheridge, 23. The British holidaymakers were found battered on a beach on the southern Thai diving resort of Koh Tao in September last year.
  
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• West Bank risks being plunged into chaos in 2016, warn Palestinian officials

  25-12-2015 09:30
  
  Rising support among Palestinians for wave of attacks on Israelis comes amid growing vacuum of political leadershipPalestinian officials are warning that the occupied West Bank risks being plunged into chaos next year, with no sign of three months of violence coming to an end and support growing among Palestinians for the current wave of attacks on Israelis.The warnings that the status quo is untenable follow recent comments by both senior US figures and the Israeli military that the risk of con
  
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• The Lost in Showbiz quiz of 2015

  25-12-2015 09:00
  
  From Russell Brand’s double act with Ed Miliband to Lindsay Lohan’s offer of help to the needy, are you up to speed with the year’s celebrity goings-on? Continue reading...
  
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• In the bleakness of the Calais migrant camp, a light shines out | Jonathan Freedland

  25-12-2015 09:00
  
  Just 22 miles off the coast of England, refugees are enduring shantytown conditions. But, as governments turn away, volunteers have stepped in – it’s an inspiring storyChristmas dinner for Kate Moss and friends. Earlier this month he rustled up something for Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin in the Hamptons. But in between, private chef Kevin Mikailian was preparing food for a rather different clientele.Working in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of Calais, he was in his chef w
  
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• China's 'train hunter' on a quest to chronicle its fast-expanding railways

  25-12-2015 09:00
  
  Wang Wei has spent 10 years travelling all over China to photograph trains and new lines, but can he keep up with the incredible pace of the country’s rail boom?It has been 10 years since China’s self-styled “train hunter” set off on a 300,000km quest to document the greatest railway lines on Earth.Armed with his trusty Nikon camera, Wang Wei has hiked up to the frosty Tibetan plateau and across the Gobi desert; he has journeyed to a tropical island in the South China Sea
  
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• Will Bieber Boost Send NHS Choir Song To No 1?

  25-12-2015 08:59
  
  The NHS Choir will find out today whether Justin Bieber's support has helped them beat him to the Christmas number one spot. Bieber has rallied behind the single, tweeting this week: "I'm hearing this UK Christmas race is close... but the @Choir--NHS single is for charity. Bieber added: "This is what it's all about.
  
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• Tim Peake Dials Wrong Number From Space

  25-12-2015 08:41
  
  Major Peake, who is spending six months on the International Space Station, has apologised and insisted it was not a prank call. Later today, Britons could get a glimpse of the ISS as it soars 250 miles above the Earth.
  
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• Cumbria Flood Threat For Thousands Of Homes

  25-12-2015 08:38
  
  Heavy rain is threatening to bring more water to swollen rivers in Cumbria, where some regions have been hit by flooding three times within a month. Up to six inches of rain is expected in Cumbria, which has already suffered the wettest December since records began in 1910. Ministers will hold a Christmas Day conference call to discuss the Government's response to the crisis, while Armed forces personnel are on standby for more flooding today as the North braces for further wild weather.
  
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• High hopes, disaster and a new start: a year in the saddle for record chaser

  25-12-2015 08:30
  
  A crash left Briton Steve Abraham far behind his US rival in the race to cycle the greatest number of miles in 12 months. But he’s not a man to give up easilyThe last time I saw Steve Abraham, he had a gigantic sporting dream: to smash the world record – set in 1939 by Tommy Godwin – of the greatest number of miles cycled in one year. After Godwin set his total, he had to teach himself to walk again. It seemed unlikely, not because he didn’t look as if he could do it &nda
  
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• Crisis committee to meet as Storm Eva threatens Christmas disruption

  25-12-2015 08:27
  
  The Government's emergency Cobra committee will meet as thousands pray for a dry Christmas Day with another storm rolling across the British Isles prompting more flood warnings.
  
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• Death sentence for Myanmar men prompts protest at 'shameless' Thais

  25-12-2015 08:07
  By Aukkarapon Niyomyat and Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - Hundreds called for the release of two Myanmar migrant workers in a protest in Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city, on Friday, a day after a Thai court sentenced the two to death for the 2014 murders of two young British tourists. The court convicted Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun of the brutal murder of Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, on the Thai holiday island of Koh Tao, a case mired in controversy and questions about the po
  
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• Got a new tablet? Here's how to get the best out of it

  25-12-2015 08:00
  
  This hunk of tech will only be as good as the apps you put on it and as secure as you make it If the holiday season has been kind enough to bestow upon thee a shiny new tablet, here’s what to do to get the best out of the first few hours and set it up right. Continue reading...
  
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• Five towns evacuated as Victoria bushfire nears but cyclone threat eases for Top End

  25-12-2015 07:40
  
  Victoria issues a Christmas Day evacuation alert for tourist towns including Lorne on its south coast as northern Australia faces stormsFive Victorian tourist towns, including Lorne, have been evacuated as an out-of-control bushfire threatens hundreds of homes on the Great Ocean Road.
  People in the holiday towns of Wye River, Separation Creek, Kennett River and Grey River were told evacuate at lunchtime on Christmas Day.Continue reading...
  
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• In praise of winter swimming: why it’s cool to take a dip on the wild side

  25-12-2015 07:30
  
  As thousands steel themselves for Christmas and Boxing Day swims around the UK, we asked 10 dedicated outdoor swimmers where they take the plunge in winter – and whyThis festive season, 10,000 people will brave biting cold water at one of the 100 or so Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day swims around the UK. For some, it will be their one outdoor dip of the year, but many who take to the water in mid-winter are dedicated cold-water swimmers, who plunge into the sea, rivers,
  
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• Days out on Boxing Day 2015: readers’ travel tips

  25-12-2015 07:30
  
  Attractions great and small are open on Boxing Day for people looking to enjoy calorie-burning walks and swims or a day in the city without crowdsBlow away the Christmas cobwebs on a picturesque revitalising morning walk in the footsteps of 13 monks, who in 1132 walked from Ripon to set up a new community by the river Skell. Follow their ancient path to Fountains Abbey and the Georgian Water Garden, ending with a carol service and prayers.
  • Free event, nationaltrust.org.ukLaranTours Contin
  
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• Christmas Day’s best TV: Stick Man; Doctor Who; Gogglesprogs; Downton Abbey – The Final

  25-12-2015 07:20
  
  Martin Freeman brings Julia Donaldson’s lovable character to life; children review the year’s TV; and the Doctor is reunited with River Song. Plus, Downton is all wrapped upFollowing adaptations of The Gruffalo books and Room On The Broom, animators Magic Light Pictures turn again to the work of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, and the tale of a wooden chap “who lives in the family tree”. Until, that is, he takes a jog around the park, and meets first a bounc
  
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• Nigeria gas blast kills more than 100

  25-12-2015 06:57
  
  People filling up cooking gas cylinders for Christmas were caught up in massive explosion sparked by tanker truck at plant in Nnewi city, say witnesses A butane tanker truck ignited a huge explosion at a crowded industrial plant in Nigeria on Thursday, killing more than 100 people lining up to refill their cooking gas cylinders in time for Christmas.The disaster took place in Nnewi, a predominantly Christian city in south-east Nigeria. An Associated Press reporter counted more than 100 corpses a
  
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• Bones of Utah outlaw who shot park ranger found in cave by reward seeker

  25-12-2015 05:47
  
  Student Caleb Shumway, 23, discovers remains of Lance Leeroy Arellano, 40, who wounded ranger Brody Young in 2010 encounter at trailhead near MoabThe remains of a man police believe shot and wounded a Utah state park ranger in 2010 and eluded more than 100 officers in a desert manhunt were found on Thursday, authorities said. Related: Country singer Randy Howard’s shooting death sparks scrutiny of bounty hunter lawsContinue reading...
  
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• Britons' £700m Online Christmas Day Spree

  25-12-2015 05:19
  A record number of shoppers will also spend "a significant proportion" of Christmas Day searching for deals online or arranging to return unwanted gifts. Figures from the data firm Experian and the online retailing trade association IMRG suggest £738m will be spent online this Christmas Day. "Though the post-Christmas sales period might not reach these heights, retailers are certainly in for more bumper sales as consumers look to take advantage of further Christmas offers.
  
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• Kei Taniguchi, pioneering female mountaineer, dies in fall from peak

  25-12-2015 05:10
  
  Fellow climbers found Japanese adventurer’s gloves after she unhooked from rope and went behind a boulder for a break on Mount Kurodake The Japanese mountaineer Kei Taniguchi has died in an accident while climbing in the snowy Daisetsuzan range in northern Japan’s Hokkaido. She was 43. Related: On strike at 8,848 metres: Sherpa and the story of an Everest revolutionContinue reading...
  
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• Tim Peake Calls Wrong Number From Space Station

  25-12-2015 04:14
  Major Peake, who is spending six months on the International Space Station, has apologised and insisted it was not a prank call. Later on today Britons could get a glimpse of the ISS as it soars 250 miles above the Earth.
  
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• Britain Defies Europe's Falling Fertility Rate

  25-12-2015 03:44
  
  The UK is bucking the trend of Europe's falling fertility rates with a significant rise in the number of births per woman over recent years. Women in the UK are giving birth at an average rate of 1.9 children each, significantly higher than other major European nations like Germany. The figure - which rose by 12% between 2003 and 2013 - ranks Britain third in the EU by fertility rate after France and Ireland.
  
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