Britain

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Obamas Visit the Queen, Bearing Gifts: iPod, Songbook

(Newser) - President Obama and Michelle Obama visited Buckingham Palace for a private meeting with Queen Elizabeth II, the AP reports. They brought gifts, ABC News reports: a personalized iPod and a rare songbook signed by the legendary American composer Richard Rodgers. Several thousand well-wishers crowded the traffic circle in front...

'Imprisoned' Cruise Ship Passengers Threaten Revolt

Passengers trapped on board after repairs delay round-the-word voyage

(Newser) - Furious British cruise ship passengers on a $12,000 around-the-world voyage threatened mutiny yesterday unless they're allowed to disembark to visit ports. Some 600 passengers on the Aurora have only been allowed to visit three cities in 22 days after the 76,000-ton ship was held up for repairs. Passengers,...

Madoff 'Used London Office as Piggy Bank'

Brits considering charges against Madoff's UK employees

(Newser) - British investigators believe Bernard Madoff's London operation played a central role in his Ponzi scheme, the Times of London reports. Authorities suspect the business was either "a cog in the giant washing machine" laundering Madoff's billions, his personal piggy bank, or both. Ruth Madoff received $2 million from Madoff's...

UK Eyes Youth Terror Threats
UK Eyes Youth Terror Threats
Mar 28, 2009 4:05 AM CDT

UK Eyes Youth Terror Threats

Outreach program IDs 200 kids in danger of turning to Islamic extremism

(Newser) - A counterterrorism project in Britain has intervened with at least 200 children as young as 13 believed to be in danger of turning to Islamic extremism, the Independent reports. Police have been working with educators and Muslim communities to identify children vulnerable to being radicalized, and are stepping in where...

Body of Pirate Victim Found at Sea
Body of Pirate
Victim Found at Sea
Mar 27, 2009 6:13 AM CDT

Body of Pirate Victim Found at Sea

Attackers said they were desperate for a boat to get to shore, according to police

(Newser) - The body of a British yachtsman murdered by pirates off the coast of Thailand was found by a fisherman yesterday floating in the sea, reports AP. Malcolm Robertson, 64, was beaten with hammers and his throat slit as his wife lay bound in the cabin of their sailboat earlier this...

DNA Test: 13-Year-Old Isn't Father
DNA Test: 13-Year-Old
Isn't Father
Mar 26, 2009 2:23 PM CDT

DNA Test: 13-Year-Old Isn't Father

Swab results sink claims about UK tabloid sensation

(Newser) - The British 13-year-old who became a tabloid sensation because he fathered a child with his teenage girlfriend isn't the dad after all, reports the Mirror, via the Mommy Files blog of the San Francisco Chronicle. A DNA test shows that Alfie Patten is not the UK's youngest father. The boy's...

Boy George Replaces Queen on Fake Bills

British shop workers fooled by his-head-for-hers forgery

(Newser) - Boy George made a convincing stand-in for the Queen on a counterfeit note found in Britain this week, the Daily Telegraph reports. The £20 note was passed at a stationary shop and the staff didn't realize it was a fake until a bank worker checked the anti-forgery watermark and...

Vandals Target Former RBS Boss, Vow Further Action

Goodwin target of public outrage over his pension

(Newser) - After the Edinburgh home of the former boss of the Royal Bank of Scotland was vandalized last night, an unknown group is warning of further attacks on financial figures, the Scottish Daily Record reports. Sir Fred Goodwin has been the focus of controversy since he took early retirement—complete with...

I Say, Old Chap, Big Brother Is Watching Twitter

UK government weighs monitoring social sites for security threats

(Newser) - The British government wants to keep an eye on what people are doing on Facebook. On the lookout for terrorist plots, the Home Office has provoked an outcry from civil libertarians by floating a plan to track users of social networking sites, which were previously free of government monitoring, reports...

Brits to Stop Saving Stranded Whales

Marine experts say refloating causes suffering and rarely works

(Newser) - Whales who get stuck on British shores will now get a lethal injection instead of a lift back to the ocean, the Independent reports. The policy is backed by marine experts and animal welfare groups as the more humane option, based on new research showing that refloated whales usually die...

Jade's Funeral Date Set
 Jade's Funeral Date Set 
GOSSIP ROUNDUP
Mar 24, 2009 10:28 AM CDT

Jade's Funeral Date Set

Plus, Rihanna house hunts, and more

(Newser) - The funeral for Jade Goody, the British reality star who died of cervical cancer, will be held April 4, the BBC reports. A funeral procession will go from her house to a nearby church. Elsewhere:
  • Rihanna was spotted house-hunting yesterday in the Hollywood Hills, the Sun reports.
  • Struggling-for-cash Lindsay Lohan
...

Jargon Not a Best Practice, Brit Bureaucrats Told

Confusing phrases are keeping people from using services: agency

(Newser) - This recession requires the British government to drop its jargon and get consensually transparent, er, clear. A government agency frets that people are missing out on services because they don't understand bureaucratic lingo like the following phrases, per Reuters:
  1. Slippage: Why not just admit the delay?
  2. A menu of options
...

OK! Prints Jade Tribute —but She's Not Dead

Gossip rag runs death issue while reality star lives

(Newser) - OK! magazine jumped the proverbial gun today with the release of an issue “in loving memory” of British reality-TV star Jade Goody—who is still alive, the Guardian reports. The edition bills itself as the "official tribute issue 1981-2009," containing photos and recollections of Goody along with...

Plucky Duck Thinks She's a Dog

'Hound duck' turns heads in British town

(Newser) - A duck who thinks she's a dog has been causing plenty of double-takes in Bournemouth, England, the Daily Telegraph reports. Nine-month-old Essy's owners say the duck wags her tail, tries to bark, and even goes on walks with the family's two Staffordshire terriers who are fiercely protective of their pal...

Brits' Drinking Solution: Double Booze Prices

Top doc says price hike will curb rising alcoholism

(Newser) - Britain's top medical officer wants to curb binge drinking by hitting Britons in the wallet, the Telegraph reports. Sir Liam Donaldson will tomorrow recommend a government-imposed price hike of 50 pence—about 70 cents—per unit of alcohol. The move would also double the price of many supermarket beers. "...

Brits Condoned Torture, Aided Extraordinary Renditions: UN

UK a full partner in US terror effort, report says

(Newser) - Binyam Mohamed, a recently released Gitmo detainee, alleges that he was tortured in Morocco while asked questions on behalf of Britian’s MI5. His story so far has amounted to his word against MI5’s, but a new report supports the former detainee’s claim, the Economist reports. A UN...

William Opens Up on Loss of 'Mummy'

He becomes patron of child bereavement charity

(Newser) - Prince William makes his first public acknowledgment about the grief he felt after losing his mother in a Daily Mirror essay. "Never being able to say the word 'Mummy' again in your life sounds like a small thing," he writes. "However, for many, including me, it's now...

Stimulus Sours Obama's European Honeymoon

US urges more spending; EU focused on regulation

(Newser) - European leaders’ love affair with President Obama has hit its first snag: Obama is pushing Europe to spend more to battle the financial crisis, while Europe would prefer to focus on stricter regulation, the Los Angeles Times reports. “The Americans should be more modest about giving lessons, because the...

Goody Goes Home to Die
 Goody Goes Home to Die 
Mar 11, 2009 9:27 AM CDT

Goody Goes Home to Die

(Newser) - Cancer-stricken reality star Jade Goody left her London hospital and returned home today, the Mail reports. New husband Jack Tweed, as well as a nurse from the hospital, accompanied her. Goody, who has only weeks to live, wants to die at home and was “thrilled” at the prospect of...

Brit Pol Lashes 'Unreachable' Obama Team

'You have a bunch of people who haven't been in government before,' official gripes

(Newser) - A British government official has ripped Barack Obama's "unreachable" team as leaders scramble to make arrangements with the White House to organize next month's G20 summit in London, reports the Independent. "There is nobody there. You cannot believe how difficult it is," said the Cabinet secretary. "...

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