Robbie Williams performing live

There hasn’t been an entrance quite like it since the ‘Queen’ arrived at the Olympics opening ceremony. Robbie Williams dropped in by zip chord from a position at the top of a colossal effigy of his head.

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Jewish families from London and Manchester have been going on holiday in Aberystwyth for 20 years

Orthodox Jews’ annual getaway to Aberystwyth falls foul of health and safety

University authorities have said the holidaymakers are no longer allowed to light candles on a Friday night to usher in Shabbat

Bright: This tealight candelabra will make a dramatic centerpiece on a table. Klein candelabra, £35, habitat.co.uk

iStyle: Table service

Whether it’s for fine dining or just having a few friends over, Trish Lorenz  has all you need to lay on a sophisticated spread

Album: Suede, Bloodsports (Warner)

Well, what did you expect? A sad attempt to recapture former glories? You were half-right.

Was Justin Bieber's ‘worst birthday’ really so terrible?

It can be tricky to remember that Justin Bieber is a real human being.

James Moore: Heathrow's bid to charge the airlines more is just increasing turbulence

Outlook. Plus: It doesn't look as if bank bonus cap is going to fit; It could be time to can those Carlsberg shares

The Experts: The best beauty products for Valentine's Day

We may have survived the arduous slog that was January, but don't breathe a sigh of relief yet – Valentine's Day is looming.

Bright in winter's depths: why the flawless flower of Candlemas is a joy forever

Our Environment Editor on the enduring beauty of Snowdrops

Metallics are still on trend and brass, copper and gold will add warmth and depth to a neutral scheme. We like this Tom Dixon Void Light. £235, tomdixon.net

Neutral territory

After years of bright design and statement pieces the inside of our homes are about to get a lot more subdued

Will Hoskins is mobbed after scoring for Brighton on Saturday

Newcastle in a battle to avoid Premier League drop, says Alan Pardew

Manager admits his side 'are not too big to go down' following insipid cup defeat to Brighton

A banner on a home in Newtown, Connecticut

'We choose love' - Newtown remembers its dead

At 6.30 pm on a rainy Tuesday night in Newtown, one week before Christmas, hundreds of people stand in the St Rose of Lima parking lot, lined up to attend a wake for one of the 20 children killed last week in the shooting at Sandy Hook School.

Howl great thou art: Douglas Gordon in his Berlin studio

In The Studio: Douglas Gordon, artist

'I've always loved fire. But it does get out of control at times...'

Page 3 Profile: Hans Christian Andersen, writer

Experts have found an undiscovered work?

End of the world?

Are they being a bit premature? Nasa releases Mayan apocalypse video 10 days early

Nasa appears so confident about their prediction that he world will not come to an end that they have released the video early

IoS album review: Rachel Zeffira, The Deserters (Ref records)

Canadian opera soprano Zeffira came to attention through her Cat’s Eyes collaboration with The Horrors’ Faris Badwan.

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Special report: How my father's face turned up in Robert Capa's lost suitcase

Special report: How my father's face turned up in Robert Capa's lost suitcase

The great war photographer was not one person but two. Their pictures of Spain's civil war, lost for decades, tell a heroic tale
The unmade speech: An alternative draft of history

The unmade speech: An alternative draft of history

Someone, somewhere has to write speeches for world leaders to deliver in the event of disaster. They offer a chilling hint at what could have been
Funny business: Meet the women running comedy

Funny business: Meet the women running comedy

Think comedy’s a man's world? You must be stuck in the 1980s, says Holly Williams
Wilko Johnson: 'You have to live for the minute you're in'

Wilko Johnson: 'You have to live for the minute you're in'

The Dr Feelgood guitarist talks frankly about his terminal illness
Lure of the jingle: Entrepreneurs are giving vintage ice-cream vans a new lease of life

Lure of the jingle

Entrepreneurs are giving vintage ice-cream vans a new lease of life
Who stole the people's own culture?

DJ Taylor: Who stole the people's own culture?

True popular art drives up from the streets, but the commercial world wastes no time in cashing in
Guest List: The IoS Literary Editor suggests some books for your summer holiday

Guest List: IoS Literary Editor suggests some books for your summer holiday

Before you stuff your luggage with this year's Man Booker longlist titles, the case for some varied poolside reading alternatives
What if Edward Snowden had stayed to fight his corner?

Rupert Cornwell: What if Edward Snowden had stayed to fight his corner?

The CIA whistleblower struck a blow for us all, but his 1970s predecessor showed how to win
'A man walks into a bar': Comedian Seann Walsh on the dangers of mixing alcohol and stand-up

Comedian Seann Walsh on alcohol and stand-up

Comedy and booze go together, says Walsh. The trouble is stopping at just the one. So when do the hangovers stop being funny?
From Edinburgh to Hollywood (via the Home Counties): 10 comedic talents blowing up big

Edinburgh to Hollywood: 10 comedic talents blowing up big

Hugh Montgomery profiles the faces to watch, from the sitcom star to the surrealist
'Hello. I have cancer': When comedian Tig Notaro discovered she had a tumour she decided the show must go on

Comedian Tig Notaro: 'Hello. I have cancer'

When Notaro discovered she had a tumour she decided the show must go on
They think it's all ova: Bill Granger's Asia-influenced egg recipes

Bill Granger's Asia-influenced egg recipes

Our chef made his name cooking eggs, but he’s never stopped looking for new ways to serve them
The world wakes up to golf's female big hitters

The world wakes up to golf's female big hitters

With its own Tiger Woods - South Korea's Inbee Park - the women's game has a growing audience
10 athletes ready to take the world by storm in Moscow next week

10 athletes ready to take the world by storm in Moscow next week

Here are the potential stars of the World Championships which begin on Saturday
The Last Word: Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale's art of manipulation

The Last Word: Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale's art of manipulation

Briefings are off the record leading to transfer speculation which is merely a means to an end