Martin samuel: judge rio on what he does now, not what he did then
Do we continue down this route where every captain of the England football team must have lived a retrospectively blameless life?
Spurs striker crouch tips liverpool for fourth place in the premier league
Tottenham striker Peter Crouch believes Liverpool have timed their run to perfection and insists Rafa Benitez's side are favourites to clinch the final Champions League place.
Willpower works better than patches if you want to quit smoking
Smokers desperate to quit should put their faith in willpower rather than expensive patches and gums, researchers said last night.
He was only joking of course, but when Sunderland's new striker Benjani made contact with his former Portsmouth team-mate Kanu earlier in the season, he had one simple taunt. 'You're going down'.
India's richest man mukesh ambani denies liverpool takeover talk
The world's seventh-richest man has denied he is planning a takeover at Liverpool as the pressure increases on Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr to sell the club.
Terry thanks 'incredible' chelsea fans for getting him through a difficult time
Chelsea captain John Terry has described the support he has received from the club's fans as 'incredible'. The 29-year-old broke his silence to speak to club's TV channel.
Now the heat is on mancini... summer axe threat for man city boss
Roberto Mancini does not need an interpreter to understand that the first serious questions are being asked of his ability to deliver a top-four place for City.
Captain Peter Burkill and co-pilot John Coward were hailed as heroes for averting catastrophe when the plane came down 330 metres short of the runway but within the airfield boundary on January 17, 2008.
Police handed me a £150 bill to get vauxhall back after carjacker drove off with my daughter
After being reunited with her daughter following a high-speed carjacking Sarah McDonald-Lee's relief turned to anger when she received a bill for abandoning her car.
Win tickets for wales v scotland at the millennium stadium courtesy of rbs
Sportsmail has teamed up with the Royal Bank of Scotland Group to offer two fans the opportunity to win a pair of tickets to watch the match at the Millennium Stadium on February 7.
Vernon kay admits sending racy text and twitter messages to page 3 girl behind wife tess daly's back
Family Fortunes host swapped numbers with Rhian Sugden after meeting in a Bolton nightclub.
Chelsea star ballack taunts wenger: it's just too easy to beat arsenal now
Michael Ballack inflamed the row between Arsenal and Chelsea by calling Arsene Wenger a bad loser and branding the Gunners predictable.
Tymoshenko bloc to contest result
Yulia Tymoshenko's bloc says it will contest the conduct of Ukraine's presidential vote in court after her reported defeat.
Robinho was not up to it - bowen
Mark Bowen, Manchester City's former assistant manager, says Robinho "massively underperformed" at Manchester City.
Nissan reports return to profit
Japanese carmaker Nissan has reported a return to profit for the last three months of 2009.
Crunch vote on new eu commission
The new 27-strong team of European commissioners is expected to get the approval of Euro MPs in a vote shortly.
Gascoigne held in second incident
Former England footballer Paul Gascoigne is quizzed by police for the second time in two days after a disturbance at a hotel.
Gianfranco Zola and his highly-paid West Ham flops will be asked to take a 25 per cent pay cut - while Arsenal were closing in on the signature of Marouane Chamakh last night after the Bordeaux striker's proposed move to Liverpool collapsed amid some acrimony.
Spring comes 11 days early (at least that's what birthing british wildlife think)
Four out of five animals and plants are breeding earlier as spring arrives sooner, research has found.
Could a virus have caused your back pain? (and will a simple dose of antibiotics cure it for good?)
It's thought that up to one in four cases may actually be caused by infection and not by mechanical problems such as poor posture or improper lifting.
Autism risk rises 50% for older mothers, say scientists
A major study found the risk is 50 per cent higher for mothers aged 40 than for a woman in her late 20s. But the father's age has far less impact.
Roberto Mancini believes Patrick Vieira can have a huge impact for Manchester City after being impressed with the Frenchman's debut on Saturday.
Meals with the family can 'cut risk of child obesity by 40%'
Children who ate an evening meal with their family more than five times a week, slept at least 10.5 hours a night and watched under two hours of TV on weekdays were much less likely to be obese.
His mother Debra Bell told the world how cannabis turned him into a thieving monster. Now, with chilling cogency, 22-year-old Will Bell gives his side of the story.
India refinery 'threatens locals'
An alumina refinery in east India run by a UK-based firm causes pollution threatening the health of locals, a rights group says.
Online safety for five-year-olds
Children as young as five are being targeted in a safety campaign launched as part of EU Internet Safety Day.
North korean diplomacy heats up
North Korea tells China it is committed to a non-nuclear peninsula, say reports, as a top UN envoy heads to Pyongyang.
Colombia mounts major drugs raids
More than 20 people are arrested in Colombia in what the authorities say is the biggest anti-drug operation in a decade.
The film star's designer sister poses coquettishly as the paparazzi go crazy. There is scarlet lipstick on her wide smile and thick black liner rings her eyes.
Burberry follows avatar's lead as first label to stream 3d show at london fashion week
Red and green glasses are not much of a fashion statement - but this appears little obstacle for British fashion label Burberry, which is set to make history by broadcasting its upcoming catwalk show live in 3D.
Toyota in global recall of prius
Toyota recalls thousands of its flagship Prius cars worldwide over braking problems, in the latest blow to the carmaker.
Iran 'ups nuclear fuel enriching'
Iran has begun the process of enriching uranium to 20% at its plant at Natanz in defiance of the West, state media says.
Chinese quake activist sentenced
An activist who questioned why so many died in a huge quake in China in 2008 is jailed for five years for subversion.
Hero pilot on the Heathrow crash landing
Metropolitan Police Commander Ali Dizaei's downfall
Swiss bank ubs returns to profit
Swiss bank UBS reports its first quarterly profit for a year, helped by lower costs and a large tax credit
Minogue privacy complaint upheld
The press watchdog upholds two complaints by Dannii Minogue against a newspaper which revealed her pregnancy.
'third-hand smoke' risk warning
Lingering residue from tobacco smoke that clings to upholstery, clothing and the skin releases cancer-causing agents, warn experts.
Sri lanka opposition mulls move
Opposition politicians in Sri Lanka begin talks to decide what to do following the arrest of their defeated presidential candidate.
Pakistan leader survives attack
A senior Pakistani politician survives an attempt on his life after gunmen fire at him in the city of Rawalpindi.
Uk to launch civilian aid group
A UK civilian stabilisation group is to be launched later to help rebuild countries hit by conflict or disaster.
Murder inquiry into skeleton find
Police investigate the death of a woman whose skeleton was found wrapped in carpet at a Manchester building site.
Dragons arrested after fracas in leeds
Five Catalan Dragons were held in police cells as their team-mates flew back to France yesterday, following a brawl in Leeds city centre in the early hours of the morning.
World no 2 stricker targets woods
Steve Stricker has become the new world No 2, taking the mantle from fellow American Phil Mickelson, after he overcame a late charge from Britain's Luke Donald to win the Northern Trust Open on Sunday.
Lloyd goes green with davis cup squad
Britain will travel to Lithuania next month with a team lacking any players who have won a live Davis Cup rubber. Following Andy Murray's decision to make himself unavailable for the Europe Africa Zone Group Two tie in Vilnius, the captain, John Lloyd, yesterday named an initial six-man squad notable mainly for its lack of experience.
Stravinsky dance team face the music
Ante-post punters are prepared to accept not getting a run for their money, or even losing it. A cancellation because of bad weather, an injury to a horse is fine, all part of the nature of the long-range gamble. But to miss out because an amateur jockey withdraws his horse because he can't get to the track in time to ride it – even in his hired helicopter – is, apparently, unacceptable.
Ancelotti uses his guile to thrive where scolari failed
Carlo Ancelotti has not won anything yet, but tonight he can crack open a bottle of decent red wine and raise a glass at having passed something of a minor landmark. He has lasted longer in the job of Chelsea manager than Luiz Felipe Scolari did.
Wenger should stop the excuses, says ballack
Michael Ballack, the Chelsea midfielder, has accused the Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, of making excuses for his team's inability to win key games against their closest rivals.
Boxing: degale hyped up for london clash
Hammersmith-born James DeGale makes his London homecoming on Saturday. The 2008 Olympic middleweight champion makes his long-awaited return to the capital a year after turning professional when he meets Matthew Barr in his sixth paid fight at Wembley Arena.
Kimi raikkonen: 'in formula one too many unpleasant things are going on'
Paris, not quite in the springtime but a place for new beginnings nonetheless. Kimi Raikkonen could have been in Valencia last week, exchanging gunslinger glances with Michael Schumacher. Instead the former Formula One world champion is preparing for his sabbatical as a much-needed, glitzy adornment to a revamped World Rally Championship that is thirsty for the limelight.
Walcott admits: we lie down in big matches
The Arsenal winger Theo Walcott has admitted the club need to learn how to be more clinical following Sunday's 2-0 defeat at Chelsea. It is a lesson they will have to take on board quickly, as they play Liverpool tomorrow in a game they cannot afford to lose.
Steyn rips apart india with spell of 5 for 3
Dale Steyn confirmed his status as the world's premier quick bowler with a career-best 7 for 51 for South Africa on the third day of the first Test against India in Nagpur yesterday.
David lister: a theatre where new writing has flourished
Individual theatres fall in and out of vogue and usually not too much can be read into a flurry of award nominations for any one playhouse. But the 15 Olivier nominations for the Royal Court are significant. It is the key centre for new writing in Britain, and if the Royal Court is doing well then it says something about the health of contemporary playwriting.
Fa delays anti-homophobia film
The FA yesterday defended its decision to delay the launch of a film aimed at tackling homophobia in football. The governing body came under fire from gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell for postponing the launch of the video, part of a campaign to stop supporters' homophobic chants and insults.
Football in brief: fuller arrested after incident in nightclub
The Stoke City striker Ricardo Fuller has been arrested after an incident at a nightclub in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Cycling: sky blown off course – and lose arvesen in freak accident
On a high after Sunday's team time trial win in the Tour of Qatar, Team Sky came down to earth with a bang yesterday, losing both Edvald Boasson Hagen's overall lead as well as one of his team-mates, Kurt Asle Arvesen, the latter before racing began.
Portsmouth 'hopeful' of new deal
Portsmouth will today seek to reach an 11th-hour agreement with HM Revenue and Customs that would save the club from being forced into liquidation at the High Court tomorrow.
Jones set for second chance despite twickenham trip
When it comes to prime examples of sporting irony, the sight of the Wales lock Alun Wyn Jones trudging towards the Twickenham sin bin with the word "Brains" – a sponsor's logo – scrawled across his shirt will surely take some beating. As Warren Gatland, his coach, more or less said in the aftermath of a defeat that had more than a little to do with Jones's football-style trip on the England hooker Dylan Hartley, it may have been the most brainless act yet witnessed in the decade-long history of the Six Nations Championship.
Treasury is failing to force banks to lend, warn mps
Britain's bailed-out banks are still not lending to cash-strapped businesses and there is little the Treasury can do to improve the situation, a group of MPs will warn this morning.
Boost in half-term bookings leaves butlins on a hi-de-hi
The budget holiday operator Butlins yesterday attributed a buoyant start to the year on its decision to continue investing in its resorts. The company said bookings for the February half-term were up by 15 per cent on last year and the availability of accommodation at its three beachside holiday camps was "disappearing fast".
Hughes holds talks on taking charge of turkey
Mark Hughes is in the frame for a rapid return to football as manager of the Turkish national side, though West Ham's new owners also believe he could be the man to take over if Gianfranco Zola fails to persuade them he can move the club forward.
James lawton: arrogant wenger has lost the plot in his quest for perfect football
It's a hard question, especially if you believe that even if Arsène Wenger never wins another trophy he will remain unassailably one of the great benefactors of English football. But there is simply no way around it. You just have to wonder whether the Arsenal manager has lost it. His hold on reality, that is.
Frustration for cahill as world cup hopes end with blood clot
It does not take much to end a World Cup dream, as Bolton Wanderers' Gary Cahill is finding out to his cost. Owen Coyle, his club manager, revealed yesterday that a blood clot has ended Cahill's hopes of further participation this season – and this summer.
More than 3,700 jobs at risk after ethel austin hits the buffers again
The discount fashion retailer Ethel Austin collapsed into administration for the second time in less than two years yesterday, leaving the jobs of 3,714 staff at its 276 branches hanging in the balance.
Business diary: british airways brings down the wall
We reported last week that the British Airways boss Willie Walsh had put up a "graffiti wall" at its West London headquarters for staff to scrawl messages of support for BA in its dispute with Unite and cabin crew workers. The airline has now had to take the whiteboard down amid allegations that it was an attempt to bully employees.
Xstrata reinstates dividend as china supports metal prices
The mining giant Xstrata reinstated its dividend yesterday, adding that stimulus packages in developing economies were underpinning confidence in commodity markets.
David prosser: carbon prices are going the wrong way
The Confederation of British Industry says it is not convinced that a minimum price for carbon in the European Union Emissions Trading System would necessarily encourage greater investment in low carbon energy. Perhaps it needs to talk to more of its members from within the energy industry, which insists that the low price of carbon is one of the biggest issues it faces as it ponders whether to invest in low carbon electricity generation facilities.
Kirin calls off suntory takeover
Kirin, the Japanese beer giant, has ended $10bn (£6.4bn) takeover talks with Suntory because its rival wanted management control of the combined company. The failure to reach an agreement may now accelerate the overseas expansion of Kirin, which is the country's largest brewer.
Blair attacks his critics' tendency to 'conspiracy theories'
Tony Blair took a swipe at the Iraq Inquiry last night, claiming that it was part of a British obsession with conspiracy, deceit and scandal.
Farmer gets life for murdering estranged wife
A wealthy farmer has been jailed for a minimum of 18 years for murdering his wife, whose body has never been found.
Paramilitary groups decommission weapons
The British and Irish governments last night welcomed news that all paramilitary groups on ceasefire in Northern Ireland have now decommissioned their weapons.
Hunger strike at detention centre
Yarl's Wood, the Bedfordshire detention centre blighted by controversy since its opening in 2001, was in chaos yesterday after police were called to a disturbance involving around 50 women detainees on their fourth day of a hunger strike.
Students to miss out as university applications soar
A record number of students applied for university places this year but unions warned funding cuts would leave many disappointed.
Genetic disorder turns risk-averse into gamblers
The brains of people who risk everything when gambling may be wired up differently to those of the naturally cautious, according to a study that appears to have discovered a neurological basis for reckless behaviour.
Brian paddick: a bad day for race relations in the police
I first met Ali Dizaei in 1999 during three days of tests and interviews to get on a course that would be our ticket to the highest ranks in the police service. Even then his reputation preceded him. As the outspoken head of the Black Police Association he had been justifiably critical of the police service's, at times, half-hearted attempts to tackle racism within its ranks and institutions.
Champagne celebrations at scotland yard as 'universally hated' dizaei is exposed
The Statement from the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Paul Stephenson, was suitably sober and contrite. "Commander Ali Dizaei has been a police officer for nearly 25 years," he wrote. "It is extremely disappointing and concerning that this very senior officer has been found guilty of abusing his position and power."
Palm oil deal 'a threat to the rainforest'
Hundreds of millions of tonnes of palm oil look set to be pumped into Britain's vehicles despite scientific evidence showing that chopping down rainforests to make way for plantations exacerbates climate change, according to a leaked report.
Simon carr: clarity can be fatal, just ask jack
At the first recall of a witness, we got a glimpse of Chilcot's committee exerting itself. It was like watching nice girls fighting, in that slappy way they have. There was some hair-pulling. Lawrence Freedman talked over the witness more than once, and Roderick Lyne actually got something close to a concession.
Cameron: i'll give power to the petition
Campaigners who want to reintroduce hanging, oppose higher taxes for motorists, pull out of the EU, or any of the other causes overlooked by politicians have been promised by David Cameron that they can have their day in Parliament.
The reluctant mullah, by sagheer afzal
Musa is an embryonic mullah in a British madrasah with a future of faithful study mapped out for him until he is booted out for dressing up as a (hijabi) woman; the next step, according to his parents, is an arranged marriage, post haste, to a cousin from their Pakistani hometown.
The hostage, southwark playhouse, london
England has, in the theatre, been symbolised as a decrepit theatre or a slipshod hospital. Some might feel Ireland should be represented as a church, but Brendan Behan knew better. In The Hostage, Ireland is a Dublin pub with rooms upstairs. These are rented by three whores (two of them female) and a dodgy lodger who brings in a hymn-singing salvationist. The proprietor, Patrick, has lost a leg in an IRA battle at Cork--or was it Mullingar? Given the alcoholic intake here, it is not surprising that he isn't sure; one suspects he has become legless without leaving the pub.
Pandora: cherie wades in to a right royle row
The row over the Labour Party's selection of the London-born Luciana Berger as their candidate for Liverpool Wavertree looks set to escalate.
Jeremy laurance: rising healthcare costs can only end in bankruptcy
The border town of McAllen, Texas, offers America a lesson in the ruinous expense of healthcare. The over-65s who live there ran up medical bills of almost $15,000 a head in 2006, twice the national average. The truly alarming statistic, however, is that this was $3,000 more than the average annual earnings of a McAllen resident.
John walsh: 'i thought the roads in kazakhstan were bad. but potholes in london...'
Welcome to London. You are, let us say, an important businessman from the Emirates, flying for the first time into Heathrow for talks about investing in a factory here. A black courtesy limo has been sent to pick you up and zoom you east on the M4. Your first glimpses of the Big Smoke – the stupendous GlaxoSmithKlein building, the hilarious plaster cows on the old Express Dairies HQ – are favourable. Then your driver comes off Hogarth Lane and, rather than go round the roundabout, hits the Chiswick Flyover. The next few minutes are a ghastly, jittery switchback ride of bumps and lurches and sickening thuds from the wheels, as your limo encounters one of the worst collection of potholes in Britain. By the time the car has settled onto the Great West Road, you (the distinguished foreigner) are thinking to yourself: "Jeez, I thought Albania was bad. I thought the roads in Kazakhstan were pretty rubbish, I thought the interior of the Turks and Caicos Islands left something to be desired. But this ... " And you'd be right. It's as though nobody has given a thought to mending this crucial little artery of west London since the Blitz. This is surely not how we want visitors to discover the capital.
Sweet, sour, salty, bitter... and now it's the fifth taste
Since its discovery 102 years ago by a Japanese scientist, "umami" has been the object of fascination by chemists and avant-garde chefs determined to discover the secret of the so-called "fifth taste".
The money man: super-economist joseph stiglitz on how to fix the recession
Anger doesn't sit easily on the urbane, vaguely cuddly frame of Joe Stiglitz. His beard and open-necked shirt lend him an unbuttoned air, and he has the veteran teacher's ability to put the intellectually inferior at their ease, which I am grateful for. A career that includes a spell as Chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers in the Clinton White House, chief economist at the World Bank and now a professorship at Columbia Business School has endowed him with patience. And yet I sense also some tension, that maybe he cannot quite struggle out from under the sense of pain many of us feel about the events of the last couple of years. Even in the calm, elegant surroundings of the Palm Court at London's Langham Hotel, where I join him for a cappuccino, his coffee his not the only thing that is, figuratively speaking, frothing away.
Last night's television - generation jihad, bbc2; getting our way, bbc4
Mock humility does not become Sir Christopher Meyer KCMG. The former British Ambassador to the US presents Getting Our Way, a three-part series about the history of British diplomacy based on his book of the same name, and in last night's opener mused that he would love to have played a part in the Byzantine international relations of Elizabethan times. "The nearest I got to it," he added, affecting disappointment, "was playing cat and mouse with the KGB in Soviet Russia."
Four years in jail for top officer branded 'criminal in uniform'
Britain's highest-ranking Asian police officer was jailed for four years yesterday after being convicted of falsely arresting a man and then inventing a claim of assault against him.
Leddra chapman/hamel, jazz café, london
Leddra Chapman is the owner of a beautiful voice. It has a clear, pure tone, capable of delivering both dusky softness and considerable power. Performing live, she is every bit as assured as on record (her first album, Telling Tales, is out now), delivering pitch-perfect acoustic pop with strong backing from a band of double bass, guitar, drums and violin.
Gillian ayres at 80: new paintings and works on paper, alan cristea gallery, london
Late flowerings – that rage against the imminent dying of the light – are not especially unusual. Titian painted into his 80s; W B Yeats, late in his 70s, wrote, in the final stanza of a late, great poem, of nymphs and satyrs boisterously copulating in the foam. John Cowper Powys wrote the finest of his novels during his 70s. Call it, if you like, a kind of manic exuberance before the shutters come down.
Jeremy laurance: the golden age of gp care – that never actually happened
Ah, the good old days. Always bathed in the golden glow of selective hindsight. The scandal of out-of-hours GP care, exposed last week by the case of Daniel Ubani, the doctor who flew in from Germany and within 24 hours had killed a man, 70-year-old David Gray, with an injection of morphine 10 times the correct dose, has triggered rose-tinted memories of the past – and panicked promises to recreate it.
Bowel cancer: 'at 55, i thought my time was up'
One of the curious aspects of cancer is that while a tiny lesion can cause nasty symptoms in one person, a huge tumour may go unnoticed for years in another. Nick Arbuthnott was on a walking holiday with his wife, Vanessa, in the Pyrenees in 2007 when he first became aware that something was wrong. He didn't know then just how wrong.
Percy jackson: gods and monsters
This is about a family film. But it is not a family article. If you are a child, stop reading. If you are offended by genital slang, look away now. Because here comes a lyric from Chris Columbus's iPod: "I'm horny for beaver. Gimme a call, Sigourney Weaver."
Thinking of using ivf? try this first
After pregnancy, anxiety about infertility is the main reason women of childbearing age consult their GP. One in three women experience problems in getting pregnant, with seven out of 10 childless women over 30 worrying that they are infertile. Such fears may well be justified, as the trend towards older motherhood is creating an infertility epidemic that is turning conception into an event that increasingly commonly requires medical intervention – with a record 36,861 women having IVF in 2007. The treatment is so common that it is all too easy to forget how invasive it is, involving large doses of fertility drugs.
Pm faces labour revolt over vote reform
Gordon Brown is braced for a Labour rebellion today against moves to scrap the first-past-the-post voting system.
Dramatic renaissance of the royal court
Just over two years ago the Royal Court found itself languishing in a theatrical backwater with little hope of escape. Critics claimed the venue in Sloane Square, away from the buzz of the West End, had "lost its way", staging an endless stream of forgettable kitchen-sink dramas that left its fast-diminishing audiences at risk of falling asleep in its luxurious leather seats.
Forget cuts and keep spending, brown told
One of the world's leading economists has urged Gordon Brown to reject "fiscal fetishism", defy the markets and maintain, or even extend, the fiscal stimulus of the British economy.
Campari assessment Bankers often assess business loan applications against seven criteria known by the Campari acronym. This stands for: Character of business and management; Ability to repay borrowing; Margin over base rate; Purpose of loan; Amount of loan; Repayment period and terms: and Insurance against non-repayment. For a new business venture, the track record of the management team will be viewed as very important, and insurance against non-repayment (usually security over the personal assets of the management team, such as homes) will be required.
Not so long ago, office buildings were pretty straightforward places. There were large open spaces, filled with rows of desks and chairs, where the junior staff worked in clear view of their superiors, who had cubicles – of varying degrees of comfort – around the edge. This was the office life of The Apartment and Reggie Perrin.
Agile, smaller enterprises are leading a revival in the industry
The tiny improvement in Britain’s gross domestic product in the final quarter of last year may be raising fears about the strength of |the economy in general, but manufacturing appears to be on a roll. Figures just released by the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply show that last month’s growth in the sector was the highest since October 1994. This means that manufacturing production has grown for the last eight consecutive months.