London

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London Mayor Hit With Huge US Tax Bill

New York-born mayor agrees to pay up before US visit

(Newser) - Many Londoners might not know their mayor has an American passport as well as a British one—but Uncle Sam is certainly aware of it. Boris Johnson was born in New York, and as an American citizen, he's liable to pay American taxes, which he has reluctantly agreed to...

Fare-Skipping Banker Banned From Industry

Guy said to be making $1.5M didn't want to pay full $31 train fare

(Newser) - A multimillionaire British banker's system for dodging around $20 a day in train fares has cost him $65,500 and his career. Investigators say Jonathan Burrows, 44, would save cash by boarding a train at an unmanned rural station outside London without a ticket every morning, then use a...

Computer Glitch Snarls Air Travel in London

Airspace was closed briefly

(Newser) - Air travel around London is a mess today. The airspace over the city was briefly closed in the afternoon because of what authorities said was a computer failure at one of Britain's two air traffic control centers. NATS, Britain's national air traffic body, said the glitch at its...

Deadly Spider Found in Family's Bananas

World's most dangerous arachnid gnawed its own leg off in escape attempt

(Newser) - The last thing you'd expect to find lurking in your bananas is a creature whose Greek scientific name means "murderess." But that's exactly what one London family found after a grocery delivery from the Waitrose supermarket chain, the Daily Mail reports. The family patriarch (known only...

Brits Unwittingly Give Up Firstborns for Free WiFi

Security experiment uses 'Herod clause' to show vulnerabilities in public hot spots

(Newser) - What would you give for free WiFi? A handful of Londoners would apparently sacrifice their oldest child, according to F-Secure, a security firm that set up a public hot spot in June as part of an experiment to show how insecure public WiFi is, the Guardian reports. While connecting to...

LiLo Messes Up Mamet in London Stage Debut

Audience laughs as Lindsay Lohan needs 'Speed-the-Plow' prompts read to her

(Newser) - Spilled champagne and wardrobe malfunctions may sound like a typical Lindsay Lohan night on the town, but this time it happened during her stage debut in London. During her first-night performance in David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow on Tuesday, Lohan—who's "been a fixture of the London nightlife circuit...

Wait, You Thought Hello Kitty Was a Cat?

 Hello Kitty 
 Isn't Exactly 
 a Cat 
UPDATED
Aug 28, 2014 11:25 AM CDT

Hello Kitty Isn't Exactly a Cat

Her name is Kitty White and she's a 3rd-grader from outside London

(Newser) - She may sport what appear to be whisker lines across her expressionless face, but the iconic Hello Kitty may not be a cat. In fact, the cartoon character created 40 years ago has a whole backstory that will soon be on display at an exhibit at the Japanese American National...

Assange: I'm Leaving Embassy 'Soon'

He says 2 years inside has taken toll on health

(Newser) - After more than two years holed up in Ecuador's London embassy, Julian Assange says he will be leaving "soon." In a press conference today—which the Guardian says left people "more flummoxed than enlightened"—the WikiLeaks founder confirmed rumors that he would be departing soon...

Boy Gets New Ears Made From His Ribs

British 9-year-old had microtia of both ears

(Newser) - An operation in London has given 9-year-old Kieran Sorkin a pair of ears—made from his ribs, no less. Born deaf with no ears, Kieran was able to hear because of an implanted hearing aid, but he still wanted ears. "I want people to stop asking me questions,"...

George Clooney Got Himself a Marriage License

It was publicly displayed in London for 21 days

(Newser) - This is really happening. George Timothy Clooney, 53, and Amal Ramzi Alamuddin, 36, will soon be tying the knot in Italy, according to the marriage license recently spotted outside Chelsea Old Town Hall in London, reports the AP . A register office spokesman confirmed "that the couple posted a legal...

Teens Fall to Their Deaths While 'Having Sex'

Students were studying in London, met at party

(Newser) - Two teens died in a "tragic accident" in London on Tuesday—which witnesses say involved sex. The international students—an 18-year-old from Mexico known only as Miguel and 19-year-old Anastasia Tutik of Russia—hit it off at a party celebrating the end of exams, the Daily Mail reports. "...

The Black Death Had a Silver Lining

'Strong force of natural selection' left behind a much healthier population

(Newser) - If you can find an upside to the decimation of tens of millions of Europeans, a new study has it, per the BBC : It seems that the Black Death, which killed some 30% to 50% of Europe's population between 1347 and 1351, had the accidental effect of leaving survivors...

Thieves Steal $34K Pair of Sneakers

Gone are Usain Bolt's cleats he wore setting 100M world record

(Newser) - A pair of Usain Bolt's orange cleats were on display in London—until someone stole the signed shoes, which are reportedly worth $34,000. The Jamaican athlete wore the cleats when he set the world record in the 100-meter race in 2009, the Los Angeles Times reports. Now, he'...

Cat Cafe a Big Hit in London

Two expected to open in US this year

(Newser) - Would you like some kitten with your coffee? Feline company is exactly what one of London's newest cafes is offering—and stressed-out city-dwellers are lapping it up. "People do want to have pets, and in tiny flats, you can't," said cafe owner Lauren Pears, who opened...

Saharan Dust Chokes London
 Saharan Dust Chokes London 
Apr 2, 2014 9:07 AM CDT

Saharan Dust Chokes London

Of course, industrial pollution is also to blame

(Newser) - London is exceptionally smoggy right now, and at least some of the air pollution can be blamed on dust that traveled all the way from the Sahara. "We usually see this happen several times a year when big dust storms in the Sahara coincide with southerly winds to bring...

Skeletons Reveal Black Death Secrets

Victims led hard lives before dying, scientists say

(Newser) - Skeletons dug up in London last year are indeed the remains of people who died from the Black Plague—and who suffered a tough life before falling ill, the BBC reports. Forensic analysis shows that teeth taken from at least four of the 12 corpses discovered during excavation for a...

Bird Starts Fire With Cigarette
 Bird Starts Fire With Cigarette 
Mar 7, 2014 12:18 AM CST

Bird Starts Fire With Cigarette

It carried smoldering butt to roof of London building

(Newser) - Fires started by carelessly discarded cigarettes are nothing new to the London Fire Brigade—but the culprits are usually people, not birds. Investigators were initially baffled by a fire on the roof of a building in south London, but they eventually concluded that it had been started by a lit...

World's Oldest Holocaust Survivor Dies at 110

Pianist featured in Oscar-nominated documentary

(Newser) - The world's oldest Holocaust survivor, a pianist who gained international recognition in the 1930s, has died in London at age 110. Alice Herz-Sommer, the subject of Oscar-nominated documentary The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life, was born in Prague, where her music earned her fame as a...

Crowdfunding Pays to Get Homeless Man Home to Jamaica

London woman's plea for 'Michael' smashes goal quickly

(Newser) - A British woman's plea on Go Fund Me to help a homeless man evidently struck a chord. Jenny Baker asked people to chip in to buy a plane ticket to help a 64-year-old man she met in Dalston achieve his one wish: to return to his native Jamaica, reports...

100 Feet Under London, a Farm Sprouts

Carbon-neutral operation housed in WWII air-raid shelter

(Newser) - A pair of Londoners have taken up farming in the city—about 100 feet underground. Their business, supported by TV chef Michel Roux Jr., uses a former air raid shelter from World War II as a place to grow vegetables and herbs. The project, called Growing Underground , spreads across about...

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