It is the new vegetable of the moment, beloved of gourmet chefs – but harvesting it is a precarious business.

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There was no joyous ovation, no mention of him over the PA and little interaction with the home support – it was as if Ian Holloway had never set foot inside Bloomfield Road before.

More time and money will be needed to remove the Costa Concordia from the rocks off Tuscany where it capsized last year, in part to ensure the toxic materials still trapped inside don't leak into the surrounding marine sanctuary when it is righted, officials said yesterday.

The beleaguered entertainment retailer HMV faces a critical two day of trading before Christmas Day that could play a pivotal role in shaping whether it survives on the high street.

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has expressed his astonishment at Chelsea counterpart Roberto di Matteo's departure just six months after winning the Champions League.

Gloucester 16 Bath 10: Fly-half leads Gloucester's second-half comeback amid TMO controversy

Emergency personnel in Florida rushed yesterday to finalise contingency plans to postpone or relocate next week's Republican Party convention in Tampa, should the area be lashed by Tropical Storm Isaac.

At Wembley on 30 May 1999, Colin Shindler faced up to inevitable defeat for his beloved Manchester City, 2-0 down in the League Two play-off final against Gillingham as the 90th minute approached.

Sailing beyond the Arctic Circle is one of the few fast-growing sectors of the cruise industry. More ships are based at UK ports for the summer than ever, with many venturing to Norway, the Faroe Islands, Iceland and beyond. A voyage to the far north is immensely appealing. In one sense an Arctic adventure is the ultimate day trip, because the summer sun will not fall beneath the horizon all summer. And a thousand miles beyond the tree line, tourists can confront some of the world's rawest edges from the comfort of a cruise-ship cocoon. Mountains that no human has ever climbed soar from the ocean. Thick veins of snow trickle from the peaks and fuel the glaciers that gouge through the rock in geology's perpetual power struggle.

Plans to restore Rome's crumbling Colosseum have hit another snag, after Italy's anti-trust watchdog declared that a €25m lifeline thrown by a luxury goods company breaks competition laws.

Italy's culture ministry said that it is investigating reports that bits of rock have fallen from the Colosseum.

Ricky Gervais says "losers" are the real "interesting" characters in life.