General news

• Director James Toback accused of sexual harassment by 38 women

  22-10-2017 23:45 via theguardian.com
  Hollywood veteran denies allegations saying he never met his accusersToback, 72, received Oscar nomination for writing Warren Beatty movie BugsyThe Oscar-nominated writer and director James Toback has been accused of sexual harassment by 38 women in a report published by the Los Angeles Times.Related: How Harvey Weinstein’s accusers gave women worldwide a voiceContinue reading...
  
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• Dan Ashworth position at FA ‘untenable’, says Dame Heather Rabbatts

  22-10-2017 23:39 via theguardian.com
  • Former FA director says technical director Ashworth should go
  • Ashworth has ‘presided over a monoculture’ at St George’s ParkDame Heather Rabbatts believes Dan Ashworth’s position as the Football Association’s technical director is now “untenable” and feels he has presided over the development of a “monoculture” at St George’s Park.As Rabbatts, a Jamaican-born former FA board member, cast doubt on Ashworth’s suit
  
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• Niger is Trump's Benghazi, says congresswoman Frederica Wilson

  22-10-2017 22:53 via theguardian.com
  Florida representative and president trade tweets in ongoing feudSenators of both parties seek answers on US military deaths in west AfricaCongresswoman Frederica Wilson on Sunday demanded an apology from Donald Trump’s White House for false statements made about her by senior officials, as the president continued to attack the Florida Democrat. Related: White House under fire for suggesting general's remarks should not be questionedContinue reading...
  
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• Lewis Hamilton wins US Grand Prix to close on fourth world title

  22-10-2017 22:52 via theguardian.com
  • Briton beats Sebastian Vettel into second after German took early lead
  • Hamilton needs only to finish fifth in Mexico to seal fourth titleSpectators at Austin were treated to the spectacle of the planet’s fastest men on two feet and four wheels performing the “Lightning Bolt” celebration on the podium but Lewis Hamilton was not able to toast a fourth world title in addition to his usual first-place finish at the United States Grand Prix.Not quite, anyway, but this
  
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• China ‘compulsorily doped’ athletes in 1980s and 90s, claims whistleblower

  22-10-2017 22:06 via theguardian.com
  • Former China Olympic doctor alleges systematic doping in all sports
  • ‘More than 10,000 athletes’ were affected, says Xue YinxianA former doctor for the Chinese Olympic team has revealed that more than 10,000 of the country’s athletes were involved in a systematic doping programme across all sports – and that every one of China’s medals in major tournaments in the 1980s and 90s came from performance‑enhancing drugs.Xue Yinxian, a 79-year-old Chines
  
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• Jimmy Carter says he is willing to go to North Korea on peace mission

  22-10-2017 21:57 via theguardian.com
  Former president adopts markedly conciliatory tone about TrumpCarter: ‘We greatly overestimate China’s influence on North Korea’In an interview marked by conciliatory remarks regarding Donald Trump and his administration, Jimmy Carter said he was willing to travel to North Korea in an attempt to soften tensions between Washington and Pyongyang. Related: North Korea: CIA director says regime nearly capable of nuclear attackContinue reading...
  
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• Nathan Hughes ignites Wasps’ return to form against self-destructing Quins

  22-10-2017 21:24 via theguardian.com
  • Wasps 41-10 Harlequins
  • Christian Wade scores two tries while Joe Marler sees yellowWasps urgently needed something to brighten their season and finally there is light at the end of a depressingly dark tunnel. This five-try romp, their first win in six games, was partly overshadowed, however, by the indiscipline of two more of Harlequins’ England contingent with the national head coach, Eddie Jones, about to unveil his autumn internationals squad on Thursday.With Jones in the
  
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• Nicola Jennings on the standoff between Spain and Catalonia – cartoon

  22-10-2017 21:22 via theguardian.com
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• Spain Urges Catalonia Secessionists To Obey Madrid

  22-10-2017 21:07
  The Spanish government on Sunday urged Catalans to accept direct control from Madrid and ignore instructions from the restive region’s secessionist leadership once it has been removed from power.
  
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• As #MeToo takes off, don’t let the right define misogyny | Zoe Williams

  22-10-2017 21:04 via theguardian.com
  After Weinstein, calling out sexism has gone mainstream. But as the Clive Lewis affair shows, this throws up new ethical dilemmas for feminists on the leftThe unmasking of Harvey Weinstein was like the breaching of a dam, against which decades of abuse, outrage, injustice, rumour, shameful complicity of employees, and unwarranted shame from victims had built. The awesome power of its bursting has already completely changed the territory, obliterating not just Weinstein’s nefarious power bu
  
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• Flashes and bangs at scene of hostage taking

  22-10-2017 20:55
  Flashes and bangs were seen and heard as police moved in to end the hostage crisis in Nuneaton.
  
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• Gunman at bowling alley told 'screaming' customers 'game over'

  22-10-2017 20:38
  A man who entered a bowling alley armed with a shotgun held the weapon above his head and shouted "game over" before taking two male staff members hostage.Dozens of people, including around 20 crying children, ran out of the building "panicking" and screaming" after the security scare at MFA Bowl in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, said witnesses.Alex Moore-Holland told Sky News that the gunman was white, with a "greyish beard" and "weird looking".
  
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• Arrest after bowling alley staff taken hostage in Nuneaton

  22-10-2017 20:27
  A man has been arrested after two members of staff were held hostage at gunpoint at a bowling alley in Warwickshire.
  
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• Bermuda Park incident: Mum tells how she 'popped daughters under table'

  22-10-2017 20:18
  A mother has told Sky News how she tried to keep her two young daughters safe by "popping them under the table".Laura Mjeshti was speaking at a Frankie and Benny's restaurant near Bermuda Park in Nuneaton where a gunman took two members of staff at the MFA Bowl complex hostage.Speaking just after police allowed people to leave the restaurant she told Sky News: "I panicked and popped my children under the table because I didn't know what was happening.
  
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• UK police end armed hostage-taking at English leisure complex - BBC

  22-10-2017 20:16
  British police ended an armed hostage siege on Sunday, the BBC reported, saying there were no casualties after a gunman took two staff members hostage at a bowling alley in a leisure complex in central England.Earlier, Warwickshire police had ruled out an connection with "terrorist activity" after saying they were dealing with an "ongoing incident" at the leisure park in Nuneaton.Mehdi Afshar, chief executive of MFA Bowl which owns the alley, was quoted by the BBC as saying the police had storme
  
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• Police storm bowling alley in Nuneaton to bring hostage situation to an end

  22-10-2017 20:16
  Police have stormed a bowling alley in Nuneaton where a gunman took two members of staff hostage on Sunday, bringing the incident to an end.Warwickshire police said a man was arrested and no one was injured in the incident.“At 2.30pm this afternoon Warwickshire police received reports of a man with a firearm in Nuneaton.
  
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• The Guardian view on the fall of Raqqa: as Isis loses, Iran wins | Editorial

  22-10-2017 20:08 via theguardian.com
  A swirling reorientation of alliances and enmities is under way in Syria and Iraq. The region is suffering a devastation that bears comparison with the thirty years’ warRaqqa, self-styled capital of the self-styled Islamic State’s self-styled caliphate in eastern Syria, fell to Kurdish and Sunni Arab forces last week. The event was an indisputable success for the US-led anti-Isis international coalition. For the city’s inhabitants, it meant the end of a terrifying three years u
  
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• Refuse Murdoch's Sky bid after $32m O'Reilly 'cover up', says Tom Watson

  22-10-2017 19:54 via theguardian.com
  Shadow culture secretary says revelations about Fox News presenter make Murdoch-owned 21st Century Fox an unsuitable owner for SkyTom Watson is to write to the competition watchdog urging it to refuse the Murdoch family’s takeover of Sky after it emerged that Fox News gave presenter Bill O’Reilly a new contract after paying $32m (£24m) to settle a sexual harassment suit against him.Labour’s deputy leader and shadow culture secretary said the revelations showed Fox “
  
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• Bowling chief: 'He's holding our staff hostage'

  22-10-2017 19:40
  The chief executive of MFA Bowl, Mehdi Amshar, tells Sky News the gunman is holding two of his staff hostage.
  
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• Social care funding and the cost of short-term thinking | Letters

  22-10-2017 19:38
  ‘As long as social care is provided almost entirely by the private sector it will be impossible both to plan strategically and operate efficiently,’ says Gillian Dalley.You suggest (Editorial, 17 October) that “the gradual extension of free care, starting with critical care and extending to those with substantial needs as money became available” would be a key part of the reform of social care funding.A solution on these lines has been available to governments since 1999
  
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• Only option is to kill British Isis fighters in Syria, says minister

  22-10-2017 19:34 via theguardian.com
  Rory Stewart says Islamic State members pose a serious danger and ‘the only way of dealing with them will be to kill them’The only way of dealing with most of the British Islamic State fighters in Syria is to kill them, a British government minister has said.Rory Stewart, an international development minister, said converts to the terror group believed in an “extremely hateful doctrine” and fighters could expect to be killed given the threat they posed to British security
  
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• British novelists need not fear an American takeover of the Booker prize | Letters

  22-10-2017 19:28 via theguardian.com
  American writers won’t scoop up every prize, says former Man Booker judge Alastair Niven; while Robynn Ormond puts in a word for Mártín Ó Cadhain’s literary experimentTibor Fischer argues (Opinion, 17 October) that by opening up the Man Booker prize to writers from countries other than the UK and the Commonwealth – ie to Americans – there is no longer a level playing field. It’s true British authors are not eligible for the main US awards, but i
  
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• Paddington 2 backers thought to be seeking to cut ties with Weinstein Company

  22-10-2017 19:17 via theguardian.com
  Backers thought to be seeking to scrap US distribution deal claiming family film should not be associated with studio at centre of sex harassment scandalThe backers of the Paddington films are thought to be seeking to scrap the Weinstein Company’s lucrative deal to distribute the upcoming sequel in the US, in the wake of the sexual harassment and assault allegations against its co-founder Harvey Weinstein.A source close to Heyday Films, the co-producer of Paddington with the French company
  
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• Don Armand’s double inspires epic Exeter victory in Montpellier

  22-10-2017 19:16 via theguardian.com
  • Montpellier 24-27 Exeter
  • Flanker’s two tries boost hopes of England call-upMontpellier had a formidable home record and an average score in front of their own fans this season of 45-14 but, while visiting teams in the Top 14 reach a point when they accept defeat, Exeter do not care to remind themselves of the word’s meaning and after conquering England they are on the march in Europe.There was a moment in the second half on Sunday when, after Montpellier’s bu
  
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• Catalonia weighs up declaration of independence

  22-10-2017 19:16 via theguardian.com
  Move comes after imposition of direct rule by Madrid – described by Carles Puigdemont as worst attack on institutions since FrancoThe Catalan parliament will meet over the coming days to agree its response to the Spanish government’s unprecedented decision to impose direct rule as speculation mounts that the regional president, Carles Puigdemont, is planning to press ahead with a unilateral declaration of independence.
  On Saturday night, Puigdemont described Madrid’s move as th
  
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• Viewers shocked by violent scenes in BBC drama Gunpowder

  22-10-2017 19:14 via theguardian.com
  Three-part series chronicling plot to blow up the House of Lords in 1605 features Game of Thrones actor Kit HaringtonThe BBC’s new primetime drama, Gunpowder, was described as unnecessarily gruesome and brutal over graphic scenes of violence, which aired minutes after the watershed on Saturday night.The three-part series chronicles the plot to blow up the House of Lords in 1605, with Game of Thrones star Kit Harington playing his ancestor Robert Catesby, the mastermind behind the plot. Con
  
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• Pedro Caixinha under pressure after Rangers slump to Motherwell defeat

  22-10-2017 19:12 via theguardian.com
  Cup competitions are providing such embarrassment to Pedro Caixinha that it is looking increasingly doubtful he will be afforded the luxury of a full league season.The League Cup could have offered salvation to a Rangers manager whose reputation was tarnished by a European exit at the hands of opposition from Luxembourg. Instead, Motherwell inflicted yet another bloody nose on the itinerant Portuguese coach in this semi-final. The listless nature of Rangers’ display at Hampden Park was eve
  
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• Harry Kane double leads Tottenham Hotspur to emphatic win over Liverpool

  22-10-2017 19:05 via theguardian.com
  At times in this intriguing test of Premier League aspirations it was hard to work out which was the more remarkable thing – Tottenham’s vivacious, springing attacks or Liverpool’s dozy, fluffy underbelly. Both aspects were in sharp focus as Mauricio Pochettino’s team marauded through what passed for the defensive efforts of the visitors. Diego Maradona was in attendance – interviewed as part of the half-time entertainment thanks to his trusty translator Ossie Ardil
  
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• Looted antiquities allegedly on sale at London Frieze Masters art fair

  22-10-2017 19:03 via theguardian.com
  Ancient Greek vases identified as having once been in possession of convicted dealer Gianfranco Becchina In January 2015, the art squad of the Italian carabinieri hosted a press conference in Rome at which they proudly displayed more than 5,000 illicit antiquities, with an estimated value of €50m (£45m), that they had repatriated to Italy from a Switzerland-based Sicilian dealer named Gianfranco Becchina. He had been linked to widespread looting networks and his eventual conviction wa
  
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• UK police rule out terrorism at leisure complex incident

  22-10-2017 18:42
  British police said on Sunday they were dealing with an "ongoing incident" at a leisure park in Nuneaton, central England, that was not connected to "any terrorist activity" after reports that a gunman had taken two staff members hostage at a bowling alley.Warwickshire police in central England said on Twitter: "Officers are dealing with ongoing incident at Bermuda Park, Nuneaton and confirm this incident is unconnected to any terrorist activity", but gave no further details.
  
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• Safe standing’s surprise byproduct? It might help a home team’s display | Sean Ingle

  22-10-2017 18:39 via theguardian.com
  The possible widespread return of standing at professional football grounds could turn round the decline in home advantage that dwindled with all-seatingSlowly the barriers to safe standing in English football are tumbling. Most supporters want it. The majority of top-flight clubs back it. And, as we learnt last week, Shrewsbury Town will soon become the first league side to introduce it. Yet while the advantages for fans – and club finances – are repeated ad nauseam, another po
  
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• Gunman at bowling alley was 'shouting and swearing'

  22-10-2017 18:38
  A man has described how a gunman armed with a shotgun at a bowling alley was shouting and swearing.Witness Lawrence Hallett said he was with his family enjoying a game when a member of staff told him to leave the area as the gunman was inside MFA Bowl in Nuneaton, Warwickshire.Mr Hallett and his family then ran "hell for leather" out of the alley before the gunman later also came out and started swearing.
  
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• Feminist campaigner accuses Oxford professor of rape

  22-10-2017 18:37 via theguardian.com
  Lawyer for Tariq Ramadan says he denies Henda Ayari’s allegation and will sue her for defamationA feminist campaigner has filed a police complaint alleging she was raped by an Oxford University professor, Tariq Ramadan, whose lawyer said he denied the accusation and would sue for defamation.
  Henda Ayari, 40, who heads the women’s organisation Les Libératrices, filed a complaint on Friday with prosecutors in the Rouen, France, alleging rape, sexual violence, harassment and inti
  
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• Gunman takes staff hostage at Nuneaton bowling alley

  22-10-2017 18:36
  A man armed with a shotgun has taken two members of staff hostage at a bowling alley.Mehdi Amshar, chief executive of MFA Bowl, told Sky News it is believed the gunman is an ex-husband or ex-boyfriend of one of the members of staff who is being held.Another witness, Lawrence Hallett, said he saw a man walking towards him carrying a shotgun and then ran "hell for leather" out of the bowling alley, which is in the Bermuda Park leisure complex.
  
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• Incident in central England not connected to 'terrorist activity' - police

  22-10-2017 18:32
  LONDON (Reuters) - British police said on Sunday that an "ongoing incident" at a leisure complex in central England was not connected to "any terrorist activity".
  
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• Anti-establishment billionaire Andrej Babiš to be named Czech PM

  22-10-2017 18:12 via theguardian.com
  Babiš’s ANO took largest share of vote in election but may struggle to find coalition partners as leader faces fraud allegationsThe Czech president, Miloš Zeman, has said he will name Andrej Babiš as prime minister, but the tycoon leader of the anti-establishment ANO party may struggle to find coalition partners despite his emphatic election win. ANO won 29.6% of the vote in the election on Friday and Saturday, nearly three times as much as its closest rival, but many
  
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• Gov could ban Gazumping to help buyers

  22-10-2017 18:10
  Gazumping could be banned as part of Government plans to make buying and selling a home "cheaper, faster and less stressful".
  
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• Universal credit’s flaws hurt the people who most need it | Letters

  22-10-2017 18:09
  Iain Duncan Smith, the brains behind universal credit, should try living on benefits.Your editorial on universal credit sets out what it describes as its “unimpeachably sensible” goal of simplifying benefits so they mimic a monthly pay cheque (19 October).For those on low incomes (in and out of work), stretching the budgetary period over a longer time frame can make managing resources harder still.
  
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• Cub Scout kicked out of group after grilling Colorado Republican on guns

  22-10-2017 18:09 via theguardian.com
  Ames Mayfield, 11, posed questions to Vicki Marble at group meetingState senator was also asked about comments on African AmericansA Cub Scout was kicked out of his group after he questioned a Colorado Republican lawmaker about gun control and contentious comments she made about African Americans. The story, which spread via social media, represents another political flashpoint for the Boy Scouts of America, of which the Cub Scouts is a part. The organisation faced harsh criticism this summer, a
  
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• Housing crisis shake-up could be planned for Autumn Budget, Javid hints

  22-10-2017 18:04
  A minister has called for more borrowing to solve the UK's housing crisis, in a hint at measures in next month's Budget.Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said the Government should "absolutely be considering" using "record-low interest rates" to build more homes.In a significant departure from party policy, he told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: "What I want to do is make sure we're using everything I have available to deal with the housing crisis.
  
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• UK's divorce bill figure will come in final Brexit deal - Liam Fox

  22-10-2017 18:01
  Britain can only come up with a figure for a financial settlement with the European Union when Brexit has been agreed, trade minister Liam Fox said on Sunday, warning leaders not to believe London is bluffing over a no deal.Prime Minister Theresa May won a reprieve last week in the talks to unravel more than 40 years of union, when EU leaders offered a signal that the negotiations could move on to a discussion of future ties in December.
  
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• 'Why should newspapers not be accountable?'

  22-10-2017 17:54 via theguardian.com
  To mark the 20th anniversary of the Guardian readers’ editor role, the incumbent asked his three predecessors to recall their time in the post. Ian Mayes was the first
  I became the Guardian’s, and the UK’s, first readers’ editor, or resident ombudsman, on 5 November – fireworks night – 1997.There had been attempts at various forms of self-regulation in the past but nothing quite like this. Continue reading...
  
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• Briton jailed for touching man at Dubai bar - newspapers

  22-10-2017 17:28
  A Briton accused of touching another man at a bar in the United Arab Emirates was sentenced to three months in jail by a Dubai court on Sunday, local newspapers reported.State-linked daily The National said 27-year-old Jamie Harron from Scotland was arrested for allegedly touching the behind of a German expatriate, who reported him to police.Media reports say the alleged sexual assault, which Harron has strongly denied, happened at the rowdy Rock Bottom bar - a popular haunt for the many well-he
  
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• 'Hostage situation' reported at Nuneaton retail park

  22-10-2017 17:22
  Warwickshire police have told people to stay away from a retail park in Nuneaton because of an “ongoing incident” involving an armed man who has taken hostages.Warwickshire police’s Twitter account confirmed that officers were on the scene as pictures on social media showed a number of police cars outside the MFA Bowl bowling alley in Bermuda Park.West Midlands ambulance service said there had been no casualties at the scene.
  
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• Police Storm Nuneaton Bowling Alley After Gunman Takes Two Hostages

  22-10-2017 17:18
  The public is being urged to avoid Bermuda Park in Nuneaton due to “ongoing incident”, Warwickshire Police said.
  
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• Bermuda Park In Nuneaton Scene Of 'Ongoing Incident' Say Police

  22-10-2017 17:18
  The public is being urged to avoid Bermuda Park in Nuneaton due to “ongoing incident”, Warwickshire Police said.
  
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• Moomins and more: UK show to exhibit Tove Jansson's broader work

  22-10-2017 17:02 via theguardian.com
  Britain’s first major retrospective of Finnish artist, at Dulwich Picture Gallery, aims to enhance her reputation as serious artistHalfway through the first major UK retrospective of paintings by Tove Jansson, which opens this week at the Dulwich Picture Gallery, visitors will recognise some little blobby creatures in a glass case – the Moomins. The stars of some of the most famous children’s books of the 20th century, they have become deeply familiar in their incarnations as f
  
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• When Do The Clocks Go Back In October 2017?

  22-10-2017 17:01
  A blessed extra hour in bed for all of us will materialise at the end of this month as the clocks change.
  
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• When Do Clocks Go Back In October 2017?

  22-10-2017 17:01
  A blessed extra hour in bed for all of us will materialise at the end of this month as the clocks change.
  
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• Jamie Harron Sentenced To Three Months In Dubai Prison For Touching Man's Hip

  22-10-2017 16:52
  A British man has been jailed for three months in Dubai for touching a man’s hip.
  
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