Many know about the death by drowning of WS Gilbert; others are aware that in 1933 Ernest Hemingway, incensed by a review, trashed the Paris bookshop in which he read it. Few could point to these incidents' one degree of separation. Such surprises regularly punctuate the soberly engrossing chronicle which Robert Fraser has created around the life of a poet whose modest fame has burned steadily, almost brightly, since his Thirties emergence as a teenage prodigy.

British Olympic sailor Leigh McMillan swept into the lead on the third day of the Extreme Sailing Series regatta in Qingdao and Britain’s reigning world match racing champion, Ian Williams, pulled back up to third overall going into the final day.

With the daddy of them all taking a fallow year, 2012 is a chance for smaller festivals to show off their charm and diversity

Pakistan 237 England 241-6 (England win by four wickets)

A new theory has emerged about Lord Lucan – that he was living in Africa years after he disappeared following the 1974 murder of his children's nanny. Some of those other theories:

The artist's epic, tranquil paintings illuminate a little-visited corner of Yorkshire, says Christopher Hirst

No Pain, No Gain

She's joined the scouts, drunk Dom Perignon, and bagged a prince. As the Duchess of Cambridge turns 30 tomorrow, Matthew Bell, who follows suit in August, finds out how many must-do-before-you're-30 achievements Kate Middleton can tick off, and compares notes. How many have you done?

1. Cherrygood Premium Cherry

£2.29, cherrygood.com

Each glass contains 200 cherries and nothing else. Perfect after your New Year's Eve party.

A convicted paedophile lost a High Court damages action today over the practice of "slopping out" in prisons.

A 16-year-old boy who launched an unprovoked attacked on a soldier recovering from Afghanistan bomb blast injuries was today detained for six months.

Walk Of The Month: Isle of Wight - Where else can you stumble upon a 65 million-year-old oyster? Mark Rowe takes a step back on the Isle of Wight

Landmark ruling defends the right to social care – but may throw austerity plans into disarray