The News Matrix: Wednesday 8 October 2014

Man jailed for ‘gay acts’ granted appeal

A British pensioner jailed in Morocco for allegedly committing homosexual acts was last night released pending an appeal, his son said yesterday. Ray Cole, 69, from Deal in Kent, was jailed for four months after being detained in Marrakech last month while on holiday with a Moroccan friend. Adrian Cole said his father was being punished for being gay.

Cameron: both sides should move on

All sides should accept the result of the Scottish independence referendum and work together to bring more powers to Edinburgh, according to the Prime Minister. David Cameron said “Scotland will be the winner” from the process to bring further devolution to Holyrood.

Girl, 4, shared out heroin like sweets

A woman was arrested after her four-year-old daughter took 249 bags of heroin to day care, thinking they contained sweets, and began passing them to playmates. She found them in a backpack her mother gave her after the one she normally used was ruined by a family pet.

Staff to strike over ‘botched’ restructure

Staff employed by a rail union are to go on strike in protest at a “botched” restructuring exercise. Employees at the Transport Salaried Staffs Association will walk out today from the union’s offices in London, Bristol, Derby, Glasgow, Manchester and York.

Woman who killed rapist to be hanged

An Iranian woman convicted of murdering an alleged rapist as a teenager is set to be hanged today unless she wins forgiveness from the victim’s relatives. Reyhaneh Jabbari, 26, was sentenced to death for stabbing a man to death seven years ago. She said he tried to rape her.

Pro-Russia rebels fire on airport

Defence officials in Ukraine said there had been no stop in efforts by pro-Russia separatist fighters in the east to capture the airport in the main rebel-held city of Donetsk. Security spokesman Andriy Lysenko said rebels fired from tanks and artillery systems yesterday.

Brady’s short shrift for ‘short skirt’ contestant

Karren Brady said women do not need to wear short skirts and make-up to succeed in business. Baroness Brady spoke out when one of the contestants in the new series of The Apprentice told teammates to wear short skirts.

Ferry captain admits he left novice at helm

The captain of the ferry that sank, killing 300 people, testified that he left an inexperienced crew member at the helm as the ship capsized. But Lee Joon-seok denied playing games on his mobile phone when it sank on 16 April. He is charged with homocide through wilful negligence.

Pope lectured on the benefits of great sex

The Pope got an unexpected lecture on the joys of sex from a Catholic couple brought in to talk about what makes a marriage last. Ron and Mavis Pirola, parents of four from Sydney, Australia, told a Vatican gathering of some 200 prelates that great marriage boils down to great sex.

Varied diets helped dinosaurs co-exist

Multiple dinosaur species survived in the same habitats because of their different diets, researchers from the University of Bristol and the Natural History Museum have said. Large, long-necked plant-eating dinosaurs such as Diplodocus and Brachiosaurus would have required vast amounts of food.

Tommy the chimp in court bid for freedom

An appeals court will consider this week whether chimpanzees are entitled to “legal personhood”. A court in Albany will hear the case of the 26-year-old chimp Tommy, who lives in a “dark, dank shed” in upstate New York. His lawyer is seeking a ruling that Tommy should be released to a sanctuary in Florida.

Polke out of his shell in Tate retrospective

Maverick artist Sigmar Polke - a painter who extracted dye from boiled snails – is the subject of a new retrospective. The German artist, who came to prominence in the 1960s, also used meteorite powder, potatoes and soot in his work. The exhibition at London’s Tate Modern will open tomorrow.

Grant: I’m too old for rom-coms

Hugh Grant has declared himself too old for romantic comedy. Speaking at the European premiere of his new film The Rewrite, the 54-year-old Notting Hill star said: “Nowadays I pretty much turn everything down… because I just feel too old, certainly for romantic comedy... Occasionally, they wheel me out.”