April 2009 Archives

THOUSANDS of pounds have been spent on surveys and temporary fencing at a Cheshire development - to protect newts that weren't there.

The measures were put in place at the £2.5m Tattenhall Marina after an initial survey seemed to indicate there was a pair of Great Crested Newts close to the site.

Evidence of the newts was found off-site during an initial wildlife survey, meaning that landowner Bolesworth had to spend £26,000 employing a licensed ecologist and carrying out surveys at the site plus an additional £30,000 for a perimeter fence.

The specially-designed newt fencing has now been thrown away as there is no further use for it.

Watch the video shot by Canadian Marty Wilbur from his Chester flat of a strange orange object flying over the city on Sunday (April 26) night.

What do you think of the video?

(Safe for work language - audio edited to remove profanity)

A woman who changed her name to Pudsey Bear for a charity appeal has been refused a new passport.

The receptionist, 37, switched from Eileen De Bont by deed poll to raise £4,000 for Children in Need.

Bank and credit cards say the divorced mum-of-two is "Mrs P Bear" and that name is on her driving licence. She is also taxed as Pudsey Bear.

Track Swine Flu around the world with this handy Google Map!

How to read the map:

• Black markers are deaths
• Grey markers are unconfirmed deaths
• Red markers are confirmed infections
• Pink markers are unconfirmed infections
• Blue markers are flu-like illnesses

(One problem is the map seems to default to the middle of the Pacific ocean - so just scroll out as far as possible to begin with)...

View 2009 Swine Flu (H1N1) Outbreak Map in a larger map

The oldest official nudist beach in Britain is to close after it was stripped of its sand by coastal erosion.

The 200-yard stretch of shoreline at Corton, Suffolk, is having its naturist status dropped because there is less space for covered bathers.

But Waveney Council's decision sparked naked fury from British Naturism, which represents 1.5 million nudists.

A wife ordered by a court to stop her noisy love-making was behind bars yesterday.

Caroline Cartwright, 48, is accused of flouting her anti-social behaviour order three times in 10 days.

The four-year order was imposed on April 17 and prevented Cartwright "making excessive noise".

The conditions banned Cartwright from knocking, shouting, screaming or "vocalisation" that can be heard in neighbouring properties or outside the house.

This is pure genius...

Some might say only in America could such an idea be launched...

The 10-team Lingerie Football League will kick off this autumn.

Basically, seven-woman teams will play each other clad in bikini tops, short shorts and helmets, starting with the Miami Caliente and Chicago Bliss on September 4 in Chicago.

More on this (including image galleries and player profiles) can be found at the official Lingerie Football League website.

And Finally... Do we think a similar version of this sport could take off in Britain? Let us know your thoughts/ideas!

A new driving test could transform White Van Man into the most polite and courteous of motorists.

The aim is to give those using vans a similar status and pride as lorry drivers, who need HGV licences.

Ministers and delivery firms hope advanced lessons VANTASTIC will teach respect for other drivers and end a reputation for rudeness and aggression.

A piddling little problem aboard the International Space Station is reported to have brought about an "almost Cold War-like stand off" between Russian and American astronauts.

Gennady Padalka, 50, has told Russia's Novaya Gazeta newspaper that the three cosmonauts aboard the ISS are no longer permitted to use the toilet, blaming the petty bog ban on differing commercial priorities for the space mission.

"Cosmonauts are above the ongoing squabble, no matter what officials decide," he told the newspaper.

"It's politicians and bureaucrats who can't reach agreement, not us."

According to the Novaya Gazeta report, the new policy means the Russians have also been denied the use of the gym facilities and stick firmly to their own, internationally-regulated rations.