http://www.independent.co.uk/?service=Rss http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/airlines-agree-basis-for-merger-1819815.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/airlines-agree-basis-for-merger-1819815.html <p>British Airways and Iberia tonight agreed the basis for a proposed merger expected to be completed in late 2010, a BA spokesman said.</p> Business News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:30:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/maclaren-to-issue-uk-buggy-safety-kits-1819517.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/maclaren-to-issue-uk-buggy-safety-kits-1819517.html <p> UK-based baby buggy manufacturer Maclaren said today it will issue "safety kits" for parents who are concerned over reports that some children's fingertips have been cut off. </p> Business News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:40:47 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/red-arrows-announce-first-femail-pilot-1819645.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/red-arrows-announce-first-femail-pilot-1819645.html <p> The first woman pilot to join the Red Arrows said today she she had been inspired to go into the RAF by her father. </p> This Britain Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:03:13 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/rangers-fined-after-crowd-troubled-1819634.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/rangers-fined-after-crowd-troubled-1819634.html <p> Rangers have been fined 20,000 euros (£17,988) and been ordered to pay the cost of damage to the Steaua Stadium as a result of the improper conduct of their fans during the Champions League match against Unirea Urziceni in Romania last week. </p> Scottish Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:59:47 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/teaserpool/dsa-1819631.html http://www.independent.co.uk/teaserpool/dsa-1819631.html ]]> Teaserpool Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:56:56 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/gender-pay-gap-falls-to-an-alltime-low-1819625.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/gender-pay-gap-falls-to-an-alltime-low-1819625.html ]]> <p> The gap between the pay of men and of women has fallen to an all-time low, according to the Office for National Statistics. </p> This Britain Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:54:05 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/took-a-look-at-yourself-get-an-a-for-anthropology-1819620.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/took-a-look-at-yourself-get-an-a-for-anthropology-1819620.html <p> “The mobile phone has become the modern equivalent of the garden fence or village green.” Discuss. </p> Education News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:47:02 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/why-dimbleby-will-be-giving-bullocks-a-wide-berth-1819606.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/why-dimbleby-will-be-giving-bullocks-a-wide-berth-1819606.html <p> He has been a Question Time stalwart, seeing ‘heavyweights’ like Nick Griffin and Kelvin MacKenzie in the process. But David Dimbleby is tonight missing his first edition in more than 15 years after he finally met his match: a bullock, which injured him in a “farming accident.” </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:28:58 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/rugby-league/dave-hadfield-a-grand-strategy-for-england-four-nations-glory-1819604.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/rugby-league/dave-hadfield-a-grand-strategy-for-england-four-nations-glory-1819604.html Rugby League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:24:13 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/tv-bosses-act-over-election-debates-deadlock-1819601.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/tv-bosses-act-over-election-debates-deadlock-1819601.html <p> Broadcasters have proposed three American-style televised debates between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg at the next general election in a move likely to break the deadlock over leaders’ debates. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:23:43 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/old-firm-will-never-join-premier-league-says-scudamore-1819590.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/old-firm-will-never-join-premier-league-says-scudamore-1819590.html ]]> <p> Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore today insisted the campaign for Celtic and Rangers to be allowed to join the English top flight is over for good, saying: "No means no." </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:08:57 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/46-bbc-bosses-earn-more-than-the-prime-minister-1819364.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/46-bbc-bosses-earn-more-than-the-prime-minister-1819364.html <p> The BBC published details of the pay of its 107 most senior managers today, revealing that 46 earn more than the Prime Minister. </p> TV & Radio Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/voight-vs-jolie-is-hollywoods-most-famous-family-feud-near-an-end-1819579.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/voight-vs-jolie-is-hollywoods-most-famous-family-feud-near-an-end-1819579.html ]]> <p> Relationships between fathers and daughters have often been known to blow hot and cold. But that between the actress Angelina Jolie and her famous dad, Midnight Cowboy star Jon Voight, has been seen more downs than ups all of which have been played out in the glare of publicity. </p> News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:58:27 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/amol-rajan-failing-and-flailing-with-churchills-great-speech-1819578.html http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/amol-rajan-failing-and-flailing-with-churchills-great-speech-1819578.html <p> Ever since reading Christopher Hitchens' collection of essays, 'Love, Poverty, and War', I have maintained (usually quite forcefully) that Winston Churchill did not in fact read his "We shall fight them on the beaches" speech. </p> Commentators Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:58:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mps-back-hackers-extradition-fight-1819543.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mps-back-hackers-extradition-fight-1819543.html <p> An influential committee of MPs today threw its weight behind the campaign to stop computer hacker Gary McKinnon's extradition to the US. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:42:32 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/calls-over-boy-rapist-were-ignored-says-judge-1819509.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/calls-over-boy-rapist-were-ignored-says-judge-1819509.html <p> A judge criticised a social department today for ignoring pleas from a child psychiatrist who said an 11-year-old boy needed to be taken into care. </p> Crime Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:22:45 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/liverpool-hit-with-benayoun-and-riera-injury-blows-1819505.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/liverpool-hit-with-benayoun-and-riera-injury-blows-1819505.html ]]> <p> Liverpool pair Yossi Benayoun and Albert Riera could be out for at least three weeks with hamstring injuries. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:18:14 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mandelson-named-undisputed-alpha-male-of-westminster-1819504.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mandelson-named-undisputed-alpha-male-of-westminster-1819504.html ]]> <p> Lord Mandelson was dubbed the "undisputed alpha male of the Westminster village" today after scooping one of the top accolades at a Westminster awards ceremony. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:16:20 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/balloon-boy-parents-to-plead-guilty-1819397.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/balloon-boy-parents-to-plead-guilty-1819397.html ]]> <p> The Colorado parents who reported their 6-year-old son floated away aboard a helium balloon will plead guilty to some charges and serve probation so that the family can stay together, the attorney for the boy's father said today. </p> Americas Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:10:18 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/loans-still-delayed-pot-noodle-saves-the-da-1819488.html http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/loans-still-delayed-pot-noodle-saves-the-da-1819488.html <p> Thousands of UK students have still to receive their loans from the Student Loans Company (SLC), even though they are more than a month into term. Latest figures show that 109,000 students, with approved application forms, have still not seen any of the money they are due. Of these, 31,000 loan applications are still being processed, 39,000 are waiting for further information from students and 39,000 have only received basic funding, as their applications have only had a provisional assessment. With the increase of financial hardship during the recession, spurring an increase in applications, should the SLC not have expected a greater number of student loan requests? </p> News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:47:29 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/worldwide-recordbreaking-mania-strikes-1819480.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/worldwide-recordbreaking-mania-strikes-1819480.html ]]> <p> More than 200,000 people around the world came together today to break some wacky and wonderful records on the fifth annual Guinness World Records Day, which commemorates the day in 2004 when Guinness World Records became the world's bestselling copyright book. </p> Home News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:41:05 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/falling-out-with-fergie-1819477.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/falling-out-with-fergie-1819477.html ]]> <p> You can't help but feel that the Portugese winger Nani has taken his career in his hands with his attack on the management style of Sir Alex Ferguson. </p> News & Comment Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:36:21 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/plan-at-last-to-tackle-liquid-cosh-dementia-drugs-1819368.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/plan-at-last-to-tackle-liquid-cosh-dementia-drugs-1819368.html ]]> <p> Twelve years after the Royal College of Physicans warned about the practice of “switching the patients out with the lights” in old people’s homes, and a decade since the Alzheimer’s Society first demanded an end to the use of the “liquid cosh”, the Government yesterday announced an action plan to tackle over-prescribing of anti-psychotic drugs to elderly people. </p> Health News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:35:04 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/more-troops-uareu-needed-in-afghanistan-1819443.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/more-troops-uareu-needed-in-afghanistan-1819443.html <p> Nato believes more troops are needed in Afghanistan despite the objections of a senior US official, its secretary general said today after talks with Gordon Brown. </p> Asia Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:21:33 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/sailing/origin-crashes-to-first-defeat-1819441.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/sailing/origin-crashes-to-first-defeat-1819441.html ]]> <p> Friday the 13th came a day early for the star-studded talent in Britain’s America’s Cup team as Origin crashed to its first defeat of the Louis Vuitton Trophy series today. Triple gold and silver Olympic medallist skipper Ben Ainslie was as much the architect of his own demise as his opponent, the American Terry Hutchinson. </p> Sailing Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:15:53 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/motor-racing/briatore-will-demand-huge-payout-from-f1-1819420.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/motor-racing/briatore-will-demand-huge-payout-from-f1-1819420.html ]]> <p> Former Renault boss Flavio Briatore will demand €1 million damages from Formula One's world governing body when he appeals against his indefinite ban from the sport later this month. </p> Motor Racing Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:44:21 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/channel-4-to-crash-300seat-jet-into-desert-1819415.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/channel-4-to-crash-300seat-jet-into-desert-1819415.html ]]> <p> Two pilots will parachute from a passenger jet before it crash-lands at high speed in an empty desert as part of a scientific experiment to be screened on television next year. </p> TV & Radio Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:41:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/lampard-ruled-out-of-brazil-friendly-1819414.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/lampard-ruled-out-of-brazil-friendly-1819414.html ]]> <p> Frank Lampard is out of England's friendly with Brazil in Qatar on Saturday. </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:40:31 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/tottenham-keeper-cudicini-badly-hurt-after-accident-1819413.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/tottenham-keeper-cudicini-badly-hurt-after-accident-1819413.html ]]> <p> Tottenham goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini has fractured his wrists and injured his pelvis after he was involved in a serious road accident earlier today. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:38:52 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/old-firm-rejected-by-premier-league-clubs-1819410.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/old-firm-rejected-by-premier-league-clubs-1819410.html ]]> <p> Premier League clubs today overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to allow Celtic and Rangers to join the English top flight. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:31:13 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/ferguson-handed-fourmatch-touchline-ban-1819402.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/ferguson-handed-fourmatch-touchline-ban-1819402.html ]]> <p> Sir Alex Ferguson was today handed a four-match touchline ban for his comments about referee Alan Wiley after Manchester United's 2-2 draw against Sunderland. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:18:47 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/liverpool-consider-pavlyuchenko-loan-deal-1819387.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/liverpool-consider-pavlyuchenko-loan-deal-1819387.html ]]> <p> Want-away Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko has emerged as a loan target for Liverpool. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:15:06 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/court-desperate-to-get-stuck-into-the-aussies-1819363.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/court-desperate-to-get-stuck-into-the-aussies-1819363.html <p> There is something incongruous about hearing of a desire to “get stuck into the Aussies” when the sentiment is expressed in a clear Australian accent. </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:22:03 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/rangers-fans-consider-mass-ownership-1819362.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/rangers-fans-consider-mass-ownership-1819362.html ]]> <p> Several Rangers supporters groups have united to urge fans to explore a mass ownership scheme for the club. </p> Scottish Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:19:34 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/enke-funeral-to-be-held-on-sunday-1819359.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/enke-funeral-to-be-held-on-sunday-1819359.html ]]> <p> The funeral of former Hannover and Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke, who took his own life on Tuesday evening, will be held on Sunday. </p> News & Comment Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:17:00 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/woman-attacked-by-chimp-reveals-face-on-oprah-1819358.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/woman-attacked-by-chimp-reveals-face-on-oprah-1819358.html ]]> <p> A woman who was attacked by a 200-pound chimpanzee revealed her heavily disfigured face on television last night, saying she is blind and has to eat through a straw, but isn't angry. </p> Americas Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:13:19 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/ba-and-iberia-boards-meet-to-discuss-merger-deal-1819357.html http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/ba-and-iberia-boards-meet-to-discuss-merger-deal-1819357.html <p> British Airways today looked to be on the brink of a merger with Spanish airline Iberia after the boards of both firms met to consider a deal. </p> News & Advice Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:10:56 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/ashes-and-qualifiers-set-for-freetoair-return-1819356.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/ashes-and-qualifiers-set-for-freetoair-return-1819356.html ]]> <p> A review of sport's 'listed events' will tomorrow recommend that the England cricket team's home Ashes Tests should be screened on free-to-air television. </p> Cricket Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:06:46 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/waterlow-murder-hunt-police-think-suspect-is-still-in-sydney-1819355.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/waterlow-murder-hunt-police-think-suspect-is-still-in-sydney-1819355.html <p> Australian police hunting the killer of a British art curator and his daughter said they had no reason to believe their prime suspect - named by sources as the victim's son - had left the country. </p> Australasia Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:05:15 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/five-ways-ireland-can-beat-france-1819350.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/five-ways-ireland-can-beat-france-1819350.html ]]> <p> It is the question that Giovanni Trapattoni, Marco Tardelli, Shay Given and pretty much every member of the Irish camp has been asked and is related to an outcome which analysts in Paris cannot even bring themselves to contemplate. How can Ireland beat France? </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:52:24 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/judge-banned-for-motorway-drinkdriving-1819351.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/judge-banned-for-motorway-drinkdriving-1819351.html <p> A former judge caught on the motorway nearly three times the drink-drive limit was banned from driving for two years today. </p> Crime Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:49:51 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/george-best-punched-me-in-rage-admits-son-1819348.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/george-best-punched-me-in-rage-admits-son-1819348.html ]]> <p> The son of football legend George Best has told how his father punched him to the floor and roared “you are not mine” during a drunken rage. </p> News & Comment Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:43:41 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/rooney-says-england-must-improve-1819347.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/rooney-says-england-must-improve-1819347.html ]]> <p> Wayne Rooney believes England have a lot of improving to do if they are to stand a chance of lifting the World Cup in South Africa next year. </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:31:24 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/government-to-crack-down-on-rogue-showbiz-agents-1819335.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/government-to-crack-down-on-rogue-showbiz-agents-1819335.html <p> A Government crackdown on the ugly face of the modelling and entertainment industry was announced today. </p> News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:19:44 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/police-guide-to-riding-a-bicycle-given-thumbs-down-1819333.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/police-guide-to-riding-a-bicycle-given-thumbs-down-1819333.html <p> Police officers were ridiculed today after drawing up a step-by-step guide to riding a bicycle. </p> Home News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:12:46 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brown-details-tighter-immigration-rules-1819238.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brown-details-tighter-immigration-rules-1819238.html <p> Prime Minister Gordon Brown today announced a review of student visas to clamp down on people applying to study in the UK with the intention of working illegally when they get here. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:07:52 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/child-rape-accused-priest-first-suspended-in-1964-1819307.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/child-rape-accused-priest-first-suspended-in-1964-1819307.html <p> An elderly Irish Catholic priest facing extradition from the US over charges of child sex abuse was first suspended from service 45 years ago, it was revealed last night. </p> Europe Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:57:28 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/griffin-announces-alliance-of-eu-nationalist-parties-1819266.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/griffin-announces-alliance-of-eu-nationalist-parties-1819266.html <p> BNP leader Nick Griffin today announced a new political alliance to fight "this monstrous federal Europe". </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:52:09 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/karen-hanton-driving-the-uk-out-of-recession-1819265.html http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/karen-hanton-driving-the-uk-out-of-recession-1819265.html <p> There is no doubt that 2009 has been a hard and worrying year for business owners and, with recent figures showing that GDP has contracted for six consecutive quarters for the first time since reporting began, the outlook might quash even the most ambitious entrepreneurs’ tenacity and enthusiasm. </p> Commentators Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:50:24 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/others/mike-tyson-in-scuffle-at-la-airport-1819261.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/others/mike-tyson-in-scuffle-at-la-airport-1819261.html ]]> <p> Police are investigating conflicting accounts of an airport scuffle between Mike Tyson and a photographer that resulted in both men being booked and released on suspicion of misdemeanor battery. </p> Others Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:39:55 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/doranjones-keen-to-make-england-impression-1819260.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/doranjones-keen-to-make-england-impression-1819260.html <p> England newcomer Paul Doran-Jones is determined to hit the headlines for all the right reasons this week after being catapulted into the squad to face Argentina. </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:35:36 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/south-africa-coach-frustrated-by-trott-choice-1819259.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/south-africa-coach-frustrated-by-trott-choice-1819259.html <p> South Africa coach Mickey Arthur is frustrated by the sight of Jonathan Trott playing for England. </p> Cricket Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:31:44 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/ea-changes-focus-with-playfish-purchase-1819258.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/ea-changes-focus-with-playfish-purchase-1819258.html <p> As its packaged video games business lags, Electronic Arts has snapped up Playfish, the creator of popular social networking games such as Who Has the Biggest Brain and Pet Society, for $275 million (£165 million). </p> News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:29:26 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/bosingwa-injury-may-force-chelsea-to-spend-1819257.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/bosingwa-injury-may-force-chelsea-to-spend-1819257.html ]]> <p> Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti may now delve into the transfer market in January after Jose Bosingwa was ruled out for three months. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:27:34 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/emergency-meeting-for-england-world-cup-bid-1819256.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/emergency-meeting-for-england-world-cup-bid-1819256.html ]]> <p> England's 2018 World Cup bid leaders will hold an emergency meeting later today to get the campaign back on track as the Government appealed for an end to the turmoil that has engulfed the campaign. </p> News & Comment Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:25:26 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/ireland-has-no-republic-regrets-1819253.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/ireland-has-no-republic-regrets-1819253.html ]]> <p> Stephen Ireland has no regrets about turning his back on the Republic of Ireland. </p> International Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:23:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/mcleish-backs-old-firm-to-head-south-1819251.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/mcleish-backs-old-firm-to-head-south-1819251.html ]]> <p> Alex McLeish has become the latest Barclays Premier League manager to back plans for the Old Firm to join the competition. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:21:02 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/classical/reviews/bryn-terfel-bad-boys-royal-festival-hall-1819250.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/classical/reviews/bryn-terfel-bad-boys-royal-festival-hall-1819250.html <p> Bryn Terfel arrived in the capital armed with countless sneers and as many ways to make mischief. His latest album <i>Bad Boys </i>– a comprehensive gallery of operatic rogues and villains – was now a tour, and there was a big, glossy, souvenir programme to prove it. But at least this latest participant in the South Bank's "International Voices" series offered value for money – the big Welshman doesn’t short-change us, not even when he's in the guise of that prize quack Dr Dulcamara whose lotions and potions are cheap for a reason. </p> Reviews Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:20:19 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/nani-reveals-ferguson-fury-1819249.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/nani-reveals-ferguson-fury-1819249.html ]]> <p> Winger Nani has described Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson as a "complicated man" while also admitting to being on the receiving end of some of his infamous rants. </p> Premier League Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:18:51 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/bayern-in-crisis-as-hoeness-slams-lahm-comments-1819248.html http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/bayern-in-crisis-as-hoeness-slams-lahm-comments-1819248.html ]]> <p> Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness has responded to claims made by Philipp Lahm in an interview last weekend, saying he is "almost wrong with every point". </p> European Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:16:56 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/corrections/diana-jenkins-1819664.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/corrections/diana-jenkins-1819664.html <p> In Christina Patterson's column yesterday, we referred to Diana Jenkins as Serbian. She is in fact Bosnian . We apologise for the error. </p> Corrections Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:00:10 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/house-and-home/property/home-repossessions-rise-by-3-1819237.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/house-and-home/property/home-repossessions-rise-by-3-1819237.html <p> The number of people who lost their homes rose by only 3 per cent during the third quarter of the year despite rising unemployment, figures showed today. </p> Property Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:54:30 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/a-crew-cut-for-hollywood-heartthrobs-jungle-role-1819235.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/a-crew-cut-for-hollywood-heartthrobs-jungle-role-1819235.html ]]> <p> Hollywood smoothie George Hamilton has revealed how he prepared for his stint in the I'm A Celebrity jungle - with a "seven dollar" crew cut. </p> News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:46:04 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/double-deal-is-a-boost-for-inm-as-shares-rise-by-15-1819247.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/double-deal-is-a-boost-for-inm-as-shares-rise-by-15-1819247.html <p> Independent News & Media (INM) shares jumped 15 per cent yesterday as the publisher said bondholders had accepted a deal that gave the company a "significantly reduced debt profile" while banks have extended the time to repay a separate loan by more than four years. </p> Business News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:01:29 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/where-mod-bonuses-could-have-been-spent-1819228.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/where-mod-bonuses-could-have-been-spent-1819228.html <p> Bereaved families said almost £300 million which has been spent on bonuses for civil servants at the Ministry of Defence since the start of the war in Iraq should have been spent on equipment for troops instead. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:43:28 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/anger-over-mod-civil-servants-bonuses-1819227.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/anger-over-mod-civil-servants-bonuses-1819227.html <p> Families of soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq today reacted angrily to news that civil servants at the Ministry of Defence shared performance bonuses of almost £300 million since the start of the war in Iraq. </p> UK Politics Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:41:18 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/nursing-changing-to-graduateonly-entry-1819207.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/nursing-changing-to-graduateonly-entry-1819207.html <p> All nurses will need to be educated to degree level from 2013, the Government announced today. </p> Health News Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:01:32 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/us-envoy-opposes-afghan-troop-increase-1819187.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/us-envoy-opposes-afghan-troop-increase-1819187.html <p> The US envoy in Afghanistan, a former Army general who once commanded troops in the country, has objected strongly to emerging plans to send tens of thousands of additional forces to the country, a senior US official said last night. </p> Asia Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:01:02 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/the-travellers-guide-to-christmas-markets-1818053.html http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/the-travellers-guide-to-christmas-markets-1818053.html ]]> Europe Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:55 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-ten-best-grinders-1818751.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-ten-best-grinders-1818751.html ]]> Features Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:17 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/mbas-guide/cheer-up-it-still-pays-to-go-to-business-school-1818629.html http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/mbas-guide/cheer-up-it-still-pays-to-go-to-business-school-1818629.html <p>When the financial crisis erupted just over a year ago a collective frisson went down the spines of business schools and their graduates. Was this the end of a bull run for MBAs which had mirrored that of the markets? Did the MBA and other courses need reform? Would business schools have to reinvent themselves? The broad answer to all these questions from a new report by the Association of MBAs is that the fears were exaggerated and life has continued largely unaffected.</p> MBAs Guide Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/student/career-planning/getting-job/buying-and-selling-houses-is-hot-again-1818630.html http://www.independent.co.uk/student/career-planning/getting-job/buying-and-selling-houses-is-hot-again-1818630.html <p>At the beginning of the decade, a career in the property industry was a guaranteed money-spinner. Glossy TV programmes told us that all we needed to do was stick some decking in the garden and create an "inside-outside space" and we'd all be millionaires.</p> Getting a Job Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/students-get-new-courses-for-the-21st-century-1818633.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/students-get-new-courses-for-the-21st-century-1818633.html ]]> <p>In 1495 a medieval bishop established a university in the small northern Scottish port of Aberdeen, famous today for its bracing climate and offshore oil. Columbus had just discovered America and witches were still burnt at the stake. </p> Higher Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/steve-mccormack-why-do-we-spend-so-much-money-on-schools-1818632.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/steve-mccormack-why-do-we-spend-so-much-money-on-schools-1818632.html <p>Like all public sectors, the education world is holding its breath to see where and when the spending axe will fall. The ubiquitous question: who will suffer when the funding tap – free flowing since the early Blair days – is squeezed? But I have a different question. Are we, in our blinkered British bubble, deluding ourselves in assuming that less money will necessarily mean a less effective education system? And the reverse applies equally. Does more money necessarily mean more learning?</p> Schools Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/leading-article-good-start-for-fees-review-1818631.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/leading-article-good-start-for-fees-review-1818631.html <p>Lord Mandelson has managed to secure an impressive line-up for his review of university funding, which is expected to recommended that top-up fees be increased. Lord Browne, who spent his life in BP, rising from lowly graduate recruit to CEO, is widely admired for his expertise and will be ably supported, among others, by Sir Michael Barber, the former head of Tony Blair's delivery unit, the economist Diane Coyle, formerly of this newspaper, and Professor David Eastwood, Vice-Chancellor of Birmingham University and one of the cleverest minds in higher education. Moreover he has managed to keep the NUS happy by including a young person, Ranjay Naik, who used be on the English Secondary Students Association.</p> Higher Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/passedfailed-an-education-in-the-life-of-allegra-mcevedy-chef-writer-broadcaster-and-restaurateur-1818634.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/passedfailed-an-education-in-the-life-of-allegra-mcevedy-chef-writer-broadcaster-and-restaurateur-1818634.html ]]> <p> <b>Allegra McEvedy MBE, 38, was one of the presenters of BBC2's Economy Gastronomy and is co-author of the book of the series. She is also a co-founder of the nine award-winning Leon restaurants. She will be speaking at the National Everywoman Conference on 18 November at the Hotel Russell, London (www.everywoman.com).</b> </p> Profiles Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/time-for-change-how-a-young-woman-plans-to-shake-up-the-school-system-1818636.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/time-for-change-how-a-young-woman-plans-to-shake-up-the-school-system-1818636.html ]]> <p>Meet Rachel Wolf, who at just 24, is aiming to transform the school landscape. And, if the Tories come to power next year, she may well succeed. She plans to encourage parents, charities and for-profit companies to set up hundreds of new independent state schools. </p> Schools Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/education-quandary-i-am-very-physical-in-how-i-teach-drama--but-my-new-headteacher-has-told-me-to-change-the-way-i-work-do-i-really-have-to-1818635.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/education-quandary-i-am-very-physical-in-how-i-teach-drama--but-my-new-headteacher-has-told-me-to-change-the-way-i-work-do-i-really-have-to-1818635.html Schools Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/opening-doors-and-windows-by-james-rooseevans-1818833.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/opening-doors-and-windows-by-james-rooseevans-1818833.html ]]> <p>The theatre world is littered with self-styled gurus and shamans, but it is rare to find a director who is also an Anglican priest. In this charming and insightful memoir, 82-year-old James Roose-Evans takes us on a spiritual and creative journey from his literally tortured adolescence (he was prone to self-flagellation) to the twin heights of ordination in Hereford cathedral and Broadway success.</p> Reviews Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/reviews/the-kreutzer-sonata-gate-theatre-london-1818832.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/reviews/the-kreutzer-sonata-gate-theatre-london-1818832.html ]]> <p>The motion of a train loosens the tongue, confides Pozdnyshev, our companion in a railway carriage for the 85 minutes of this extraordinarily compelling stage adaptation of Tolstoy's great, warped novella The Kreutzer Sonata. In Natalie Abrahami's pitch-perfect production at the tiny Gate Theatre, this figure is a kind of bourgeois Russian Ancient Mariner, compelled to re-tell the story of how he murdered his arguably adulterous wife. She may have been playing more than piano with a newly arrived violinist, who had been a childhood friend of Pozdnyshev. Emphasising the subjective nature of the protagonist's testimony, this couple are seen here fitfully illuminated behind a scrim either making music or love in candle-lit flashes that are like the lingering neuralgic throb of an obsession that has survived Pozdnyshev's acquittal for homicide.</p> Reviews Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/just-jack-shepherds-bush-empire-london-1818831.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/just-jack-shepherds-bush-empire-london-1818831.html <p> A happy-go-lucky Jack Allsopp steps forward to meet the crowd, peers around and announces: "I just saw my mum and dad up there. That's pretty cool." He explains his usual trick of finding something to greet each new audience with, concluding, a little relieved, "We're home." </p> Reviews Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/hit-and-run/hit-amp-run-simplicity-computer-delivers-over50s-to-the-digital-age-1818830.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/hit-and-run/hit-amp-run-simplicity-computer-delivers-over50s-to-the-digital-age-1818830.html ]]> <p>If social networking is something you do at the bingo hall, windows require (net) curtains, and a Mac is to be worn in the rain, chances are you're old. Because, apparently, old people don't do computers. Things like Twitter and spreadsheets only bother them when they're on the One O'Clock News. But anyone watching the BBC's lunchtime bulletin yesterday will have seen a pensioner called Betty using a computer designed to deliver her generation to the digital age. </p> Hit & Run Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/monica-pidgeon-influential-editor-of-architectural-design-for-more-than-30-years-1818794.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/monica-pidgeon-influential-editor-of-architectural-design-for-more-than-30-years-1818794.html ]]> <p>For more than three decades Monica Pidgeon edited the Bloomsbury-based Architectural Design (AD). This influential and radical journal was a prime source of information on contemporary architectural culture, and had an international reach. It gave prominence to the work of such architects as Le Corbusier, Jose Luis Sert, Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius, Richard Buckminster Fuller, and Alison and Peter Smithson.</p> Obituaries Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/professor-thamsanqa-kambule-inspirational-teacher-who-fought-for-highquality-black-education-in-apartheid-south-africa-1818793.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/professor-thamsanqa-kambule-inspirational-teacher-who-fought-for-highquality-black-education-in-apartheid-south-africa-1818793.html <p>It was an article of faith among many whites in apartheid South Africa that blacks were incapable of doing mathematics. Their belief was that black brains were simply not up to it. Thamsanqa Wilkinson "Wilkie" Kambule mocked the myth and gave the lie to it: he was black and a gifted mathematician; he was also an inspiring teacher who spoke with pride of several pupils who emigrated and went on to study nuclear physics, a field denied to them at home. </p> Obituaries Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/gavin-hodge-celebrity-hairdresser-who-scandalised-sixties-society-when-he-eloped-with-a-teenager-1818792.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/gavin-hodge-celebrity-hairdresser-who-scandalised-sixties-society-when-he-eloped-with-a-teenager-1818792.html ]]> <p>Gavin Hodge was a hugely fashionable hairdresser who, beginning in the London of the swinging Sixties, packed into his life an inordinate amount of drink, drugs and sex. While his claim to have bedded 2,000 women seems implausible, his frank admission that he was addicted to women had the ring of truth about it.</p> Obituaries Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/postgraduate-study/serenas-story-how-one-student-is-demanding-a-better-deal-for-postgraduates-1818660.html http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/postgraduate-study/serenas-story-how-one-student-is-demanding-a-better-deal-for-postgraduates-1818660.html <p>Postgraduate students who are struggling with the pressures of advanced academic work may find solace in the latest report from the National Student Forum (NSF). Set up last year to reflect the experiences of the 500,000 postgraduates in the UK, the forum argues that, while much progress has been made, the consistency and sometimes the level of support postgraduates receive still lags behind that given to undergraduates.</p> Postgraduate Study Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/postgraduate-study/postgraduate-queries-can-a-diploma-be-converted-which-green-course-is-best-1818659.html http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/postgraduate-study/postgraduate-queries-can-a-diploma-be-converted-which-green-course-is-best-1818659.html Postgraduate Study Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/how-low-can-you-go-do-reducedalcohol-wines-past-the-taste-test-1818842.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/how-low-can-you-go-do-reducedalcohol-wines-past-the-taste-test-1818842.html ]]> <p>Cough medicine? Ribena? Or is it just sparkling mineral water with a bit of fruit juice added to it? Has someone tipped a load of sugar into a perfectly decent white wine... ?? </p> Features Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/brian-viner/brian-viner-why-would-my-children-collect-sticks-when-they-could-be-on-facebook-1818841.html http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/brian-viner/brian-viner-why-would-my-children-collect-sticks-when-they-could-be-on-facebook-1818841.html <p>The time has come when I can no longer send my children into our little wood to collect kindling. This is partly because they are no longer the obliging creatures they used to be, and why would anyone want to be picking up twigs when they could be on Facebook, and partly because it's November, and even after a mostly dry autumn the twigs are damp.</p> Brian Viner Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/threeminute-therapy-can-speed-shrinking-fix-your-head-in-180-seconds-1818840.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/threeminute-therapy-can-speed-shrinking-fix-your-head-in-180-seconds-1818840.html ]]> <p>Three, two, one...Speed Shrink!" booms a voice over the loudspeaker. Having three minutes to spill your most intimate secrets to a stranger in a crowded room may not sound like everyone's route to good mental health, even in the world capital of psychotherapy. But for today's time – and increasingly cash – poor New Yorkers, it offers a potential quick fix that is hard to resist.</p> Features Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/opera-sheds-new-light-on-tchaikovskys-gay-lifestyle-1818839.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/opera-sheds-new-light-on-tchaikovskys-gay-lifestyle-1818839.html ]]> <p>An opera by Tchaikovsky? It must be about Fate, with a capital F. Duels in the frosty dawn, blood on the snow. A fragile, innocent heroine, doomed love, incipient madness. Tchaikovsky: the ultimate gloomy Russian bastard. You can hear it in his music, can't you? </p> Features Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/staff-benda-bilili-barbican-london-1818838.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/staff-benda-bilili-barbican-london-1818838.html <p>When Staff Benda Bilili spin wheelchairs, dance on their legs' stumps and pluck instruments created from abandoned debris, they are embodying their nation's contradictions. They are homeless youths and paraplegic men from Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, sub-Saharan Africa's most cursed country. But their UK debut proved that a history of colonial and local dictators, civil wars and corporate mineral-stripping can still fuel defiant art.</p> Reviews Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/recipes/twoapple-pizza-with-walnuts-1818837.html http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/recipes/twoapple-pizza-with-walnuts-1818837.html Recipes Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/the-week-in-radio-when-poetry-becomes-an-adventure-1818836.html http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/the-week-in-radio-when-poetry-becomes-an-adventure-1818836.html <p>If I had a fiver for everyone I've heard say, "I never watch any television apart from the news and David Attenborough", well, it would probably cover my licence fee. But while there being Nothing on TV has been a staple moan of British cultural life for some time now, radio is in far happier shape. The Rajar figures for the third quarter of the year were good for the BBC, especially Radios 3, 4 and 5 Live. There were all sorts of explanations, including the Ashes and the Proms and global economic meltdown to explain why people were reaching for the radio. Yet perhaps it comes down to the fact that radio simply does some things better. </p> Features Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/parent-power-sara-payne-on-being-an-ordinary-mother-in-whitehall-1818835.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/parent-power-sara-payne-on-being-an-ordinary-mother-in-whitehall-1818835.html ]]> <p>She was an ordinary mother, but her child's shocking death gave her a national platform – and the power to make a Prime Minister sit up, listen and respond to what she was saying.</p> Profiles Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:01 +0000