OUR members of parliament should really know better...
Government Sports Minister Helen Grant fluffed her lines badly when she was subjected to a surprise TV quiz, reports the Daily Mirror.
The Maidstone MP visited a hockey match to publicise tax breaks for sports club when her local ITV Meridian news caught her out with questions about football, rugby, tennis and the Paralympics and she got every one wrong!
She insisted her performance should not disqualify her from the Government job, commenting: “My sports pub quiz knowledge may not be encyclopaedic, but I understand the positive impact that participating in sport has on people’s lives.”
In an ever-changing world, the Daily Express says that some church congregations will be singing karaoke-style carols this Christmas instead of using traditional hymn books.
The paper says that some churches will be installing giant screens using an iTunes app to guide the congregation through the words.
The Rev David Green, from West Malling, Kent, told the Express: “Screens get people’s heads up, they are singing up and out and not looking down. The volume is noticeably much louder.”
Apparently at least a fifth of all churches have followed Mr Green’s example by adopting the screens.
Thomas Allain-Chapman, publishing manager for the Church of England said: “It’s happening everywhere, even in some traditional rural churches” but Anthony Kilmister, vice-president of the Prayer Book Society, said: “I’m not keen. It’s a distraction from the liturgy, but they are probably more used in churches with a lot of free thinking.”
Another story with a seasonal flavour in the Express warns that cheese lovers may be hit in the pocket this Christmas. Industry bosses fear that the cost of some cheeses has risen by more than 10 per cent, blaming last year's bad weather which has caused the price dairy farmers paid for silage to feed their herds to increase. The cost of other essentials such as fertiliser and fuel also on the up and supermarkets say seasonal favourites such as Stilton and Camembert have been hit by the biggest price increases this year.
A tale in the Guardian could change the way police forensic dramas are shown on telly. The UK's first dedicated digital autopsy centre opens has opened in Sheffield.
The paper reports that three-dimensional visualisation software and a scanner will take the place of a scalpel at the £3m facility. It also means that the process is intended to be less harrowing for relatives.
London's controversial Mayor Boris Johnson has once again stirred things up. The Mirror reports the Tory has saying that the growing gulf between rich and poor is inevitable because millions of people are too stupid to get on in life.
He said the resentment felt towards the super rich in the wake of the financial crisis and “fives years of recession” was irrational.
“It is surely relevant to a conversation about equality that as many as 16 per cent of our species have an IQ below 85, while about 2 per cent have an IQ above 130. The harder you shake the pack, the easier it will be for some cornflakes to get to the top.” Food for thought...
Three cheers for Jack Russell terrier Ruby who, says the Daily Star, has been named as the pet slimming champion of the year by the charity PDSA.
Ruby was said to be 'morbidly obese' after reaching 9.1kg, more than 50 per cent overweight.
But after a six-month fitness regime run by the charity she has lost 7in from her waist and weighs in at just over 6kg.
What's in a name? According to the Daily Mail, more parents are giving their children middle names than ever before – their use has doubled in a century.
Research by the Ancestry.co.uk website revealed that 80 per cent of children are now given a middle name, compared with the 37 per cent revealed in an audit of the 1911 census.
A website spokesperson said: “Middle names are a relatively new phenomenon, having only become the norm over the last 100 years, driven by the desire to commemorate ancestors.
“This will have become particularly prominent following the two world wars. These affected the entire country and resulted in millions of Britons commemorating lost loved-ones as babies were born following the conflicts.
“As a result, middle names are less likely to follow popular culture and more likely to reflect age-old traditions or names that were popular in our parents’ or grandparents’ generation – hence the very traditional make-up of today’s top middle names.”
Reference lists:
The Express(www.express.co.uk)
The Guardian (www.guardian.co.uk)
Daily Mail (www.dailymail.co.uk)
Daily Mirror ((www.mirror.co.uk)
Daily Star (www.daily star.co.uk)