The reign of the cupcake may be at an end

In great news for patisserie purists and weight watchers everywhere (but a potential catastrophe for fans of icing): the cult of the cupcake may at last be coming to an end.

i Newspaper
 
TheIPaper
The Independent around the web
E-break Time
Independent Crossword

Raytheon talks may herald US tie-up

McDonnell Douglas is believed to be in talks with Raytheon about combining their aviation and defence businesses or even possibly an outright merger, which could herald one more big consolidation of the US defence industry.

Obituary: Vermont Royster

Vermont Connecticut Royster, who was born in North Carolina and lived most of his life in New York, was one of the most distinguished and unflagging journalists produced in America this century.

how to complain

Did you snigger at the farmer who, after reaching an impasse in a bitter dispute with NatWest bank, emptied his muckspreader on them? Well, control yourself. This excitable vigilante (right) is pounds 2,000 poorer. The bank, being unable to see the funny side of their front door, sued him to recover the cost of removing his unauthorised, ahem, deposit.

Defensive buy-up by Chrysler

Chrysler Motor Company is strengthening its defences against a possible fresh bid attack by tycoon Kirk Kerkorian, doubling its stock buy-back programme to $2bn, writes David Usborne in New York.

ITT and Dow Jones to buy TV channel

ITT and Dow Jones have agreed to buy television channel WNYC-TV from the City of New York for $207m (pounds 129m) cash. The companies plan to create a business and sports channel offering professional and college sports from ITT and financial and

Making a mint out of murder

OJ industry / one year on

Change of mind at NationsBank

Change of mind at NationsBank

Chastened Hillary faces down her critics

HEALTH CARE reform may be dead, but political obituaries of its most celebrated architect are decidedly premature. Hillary Clinton, make no mistake, is a chastened, saddened and perhaps wiser woman in the wake of the most crushing failure of her husband's presidency. But she is not about to turn to a life of cookie-baking.

Clinton's poll ratings soar as troops invade

WASHINGTON (Reuter) - President Bill Clinton's handling of Haiti has helped him in the polls, according to a survey released yesterday by the Wall Street Journal and NBC News.

BOOK REVIEW / Rage and contempt to lift the spirits: It all adds up - Saul Bellow: Secker & Warburg, pounds 20

AT THE END of this collection of essays, Saul Bellow is asked whether he despairs of modern life. 'Do I look or sound despairing?' he replies. 'My spirits are as high as ever. Not despair - anger. Contempt and rage.' It is not all that common to find a man - especially a shy, sensitive type such as a Nobel prize-winning novelist - whose spirits are given a lift by sheer anger at the world. But that's Saul Bellow for you: strong stuff. Other writers cheer themselves with vodka and tonic; Bellow prefers contempt and rage - shaken, stirred and almost on the rocks.

Arson and threats amongst test tubes

NEW YORK - In what police say is tale out of a whodunit, a senior researcher at Rockefeller University is the suspect in a case involving poison, arson and threatening letters aimed at fellow workers. John Hill, the Assistant Chief of Police, said the hunt centres on someone in a genetics unit with 40 staff.

US black 'summit' seeks single voice: The civil rights movement is in danger, Rupert Cornwell reports from Washington

THE MEDIA attention, inevitably, was on Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan and on the 50 or so Jewish demonstrators who turned out to greet him. But the real topic of this week's gathering of the great and good of black America is far more sombre - how to tackle what one historian has called 'perhaps the greatest crisis since slavery.' Of that crisis, the fuss caused by Mr Farrakhan's periodic anti- Semitic outbursts is only a small part.

Americans still prefer their leaders in uniform

WHEN Downing Street was pondering what to give Bill Clinton as a D-Day gift on his arrival in Britain last weekend, one bright spark came up with the idea of presenting him with a video of Darryl F Zanuck's epic The Longest Day. Given that John Major's original suggestion had been a Surrey county cricket tie, the idea of the video won on points - until somebody in the Clinton camp told Number 10 that Bill and Hillary had in fact watched their own copy of the film recently in a private White House screening, to get into training for Normandy.
Career Services

Day In a Page

Independent Travel Shop See all offers »
Dordogne, Albi and Carcassonne
Seven nights from only £1,039pp Find out more
South Africa
15 nights from only £1,899pp Find out more
Paris and the Cote d’Azur city break
Seven nights from £579pp Find out more
Seville, Granada and Malaga break
Seven nights from £549pp Find out more
Venice city break
Two nights from only £199pp - third night free on selected dates Find out more
Grand Elysée, Hamburg
Up to 47% off
OFFER ENDS 19 MAY Find out more
5* Turkey holiday
Up to 20% off
OFFER ENDS 19 MAY Find out more
La Maltese, Santorini
Up to 63% off
OFFER ENDS 19 MAY Find out more
The price of pacifism: Refusing to go to war is finally being recognised as a brave act

The price of pacifism

From the Second World War refusenik to the 19-year-old Israeli, Holly Williams talks to five people who risked shame and suffering to take a stand as conscientious objector.
'It was mass hysteria': Jason Isaacs on groupies, theatre bores and snogging James Bond

Jason Isaacs: Groupies, theatre bores and James Bond

To millions, Jason Isaacs is one of Harry Potter's arch enemies – but his wife prefers him as a Scottish TV detective.
Notes from a small island: Is Sealand an independent 'micronation' or an illegal fortress?

Sealand: 'Micronation' or illegal fortress?

Thomas Hodgkinson spent a week at the tiny platform off the Suffolk coast to find out.
Not a bad bone: Mark Hix cooks with cutlets and ribs

Mark Hix cooks with cutlets and ribs

If you ignore cutlets and ribs, you'll risk missing out on some delicious and easy meals, says our chef.
The experts' guide to summer: From getting fit for the beach to recreating that Olympic buzz

The experts' guide to summer

From getting fit for the beach to recreating that Olympic buzz
Sex, drugs and fast cars: The legend of James Hunt has set Hollywood hearts racing

Legend of James Hunt has set Hollywood hearts racing

Early glimpses of Ron Howard's film Rush suggest it will portray Hunt as a high-living lothario, with an insatiable appetite for partying.
Macklemore: 'I don't have moderation when using drugs and alcohol. It was hurting my life'

Macklemore: 'I don't have moderation'

The next Vanilla Ice or the next Eminem? Macklemore doesn't have a record contract – but he does have the UK's biggest-selling single of the year.
Don't be shy: Bill Granger's Sri Lankan recipes

Don't be shy: Bill Granger's Sri Lankan recipes

Sri Lankan cuisine is light, sunny, wonderfully spiced – and so easy to cook from scratch. Just as soon as you've broken into the coconut, that is.
Sir James Dyson’s latest project: Cleaning up hospitals

Sir James Dyson’s latest project: Cleaning up hospitals

Doctors are hailing the revamp of a Bath neonatal unit, where babies sleep more and feed better, as the model for patient care
One man returns to Argentina's town that drowned

One man returns to Argentina's town that drowned

Epecuen was submerged under 10 metres of water in 1985. Now the floods have gone – and 83-year-old Pablo Novak has moved back in
The real thing? Historian publishes Coca Cola's 'secret formula'

The real thing?

Historian publishes Coca Cola's 'secret formula'
Gordon Ramsey's worst nightmare: A restaurant he cannot save

Gordon Ramsay's worst nightmare: A restaurant he cannot save

The pugnacious chef finally met a shambolic restaurant he couldn't save. John Walsh on when TV makover refuseniks fight back
Join Ryanair! See the world! But we're only paying you for nine months a year

Join Ryanair! See the world! But we're only paying you for nine months a year

Glamorous myth of the flight attendant lifestyle undermined by angry employee's claims of 'exploitation'
Braising saddles: Did the recent furore scupper sales of horse meat? Neigh, far from it!

Braising saddles: How to cook horse meat

Did the recent furore scupper sales of horse meat? Neigh, far from it! Will Coldwell hoofs it to the kitchen.
Why bitters are back on the bar: A few little drops pack a big punch in cocktails

Why bitters are back on the bar

A few little drops pack a big punch in cocktails. No wonder we're learning to love them again...