Articles

And the winner is... who? by Lisa Jardine
(from BBC News Magazine)
"His name is largely unknown in Britain and the United States, but the recipient of the most feted prize in literature has much he could tell them about their lives today". A very interesting article, primarily the bits that open it about the self-obsessed snobbery ("why don't we win?! I've never heard of him!") of British and American literary snobs.

Aussie boy breaks into zoo, feeds animals to croc by Kristen Gelineau
(from Mail.com)
A horrible story, yet morbidly fascinating. Worst of all, the little shit can't be punished.

British burglar says 'sorry' with flowers
(from Mail.com)
"A repentant robber in England sent his elderly victim a bouquet of flowers to apologize for frightening her... A 91-year-old woman received the flowers and a note after confronting a burglar in her home around 4 a.m. on Oct. 9, police said. The card explained that the burglar thought the property in Halifax, about 200 miles north of London, was empty and apologized for breaking in." What a lovely burglar. It also amuses me that US news describes Halifax as being "200 miles north of London".

Dork talk (18/10/08) by Stephen Fry
(from The Guardian)
Another affinity I feel with Stephen Fry: "I shall also take my iPhone 3G, without which I'm pretty much an empty vessel these days... and my unlocked first generation iPhone... I will also pack one of the new iPod Nanos... As for reading, well, I have a Sony eReader, a Kindle and an Iliad, all dedicated electronic book readers, but the fact is, the iPhone has already proved itself (according to Forbes Magazine) the most popular ebook reader on the market. Nearly half a million people have downloaded the free Stanza application for iPhone (from the iTunes store)... For photography I shall take the Canon 1000D... I shall also pack a Sony Cybershot-W170, a competent all-round compact digital camera... my Nintendo DS Lite, dozens of game cartridges... I shall flip a coin to decide whether to take a MacBook Air, the lightest of the MacBook range, or the Livono ThinkPad X300. Whichever I choose will come preloaded with as many films and TV shows as I can download. Their weightlessness will save me having to lug DVDs about." I don't have so much technology, sadly, but my two desktops, laptop, iPod, iPhone 3G, Nintendo DS, Fuji camera, Sony camcorder, and (newly acquired) S8mm film camcorder all attest to a similar mindset. [I may retrospectively link-up this article later, but the 15+ links needed are too much hassle right now.]

Jamaica puzzled by theft of beach by Nick Davis
(from BBC News)
Best. Headline. Ever. (Today.) Go on, read it.

Lloyd Webber pens Eurovision song
(from BBC News)
Make sure to visit this one for the amusing/amusingly bad advert, in which Lord Lloyd Webber lets you know how much your country needs you. This year, said entry will be chosen with a standard-style TV talent show, presented by the always-excellent Graham Norton. Hurrah! This is somewhat in lieu of another West-End-star-finder shower, although those will be back in 2010...

Webber rules out 2009 talent show
(from BBC News)
He's too busy doing Phantom of the Opera 2, you see. Though don't be too disheartened, faithful viewer, as we can look forward to a Wizard of Oz-themed show in 2010. Title betting starts now! We're Off to See the Wizard? Over the Rainbow? Ding Dong the Witch is Dead?