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  1. Blackleaf

    UK's Christian heritage stressed in PM's Christmas message

    Britons should "take pride" in their country's Christian heritage at Christmas, Theresa May has said. In her Christmas message, the prime minister said there is a "confidence... that in Britain you can practise your faith free from question or fear". She also praised the emergency services for...
  2. Blackleaf

    UK scientists create the world's smallest Christmas card

    Scientists in the UK have unveiled the world's smallest Christmas card. Produced by the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) at Bushy Park in London, the tiny Christmas card measures just 15x20 micrometres - thinner than a human hair. The card is so...
  3. Blackleaf

    How the food of Charles Dickens defined Christmas

    Charles Dickens was a serious foodie and his literature introduced a festive menu that has barely changed since the Cratchits gathered round their table in A Christmas Carol... How the food of Charles Dickens defined Christmas By Emma Jane Kirby Broadcasting House, BBC...
  4. Blackleaf

    Cyclist draws 88-mile snowman

    A cyclist has "drawn" an 88-mile virtual snowman across London. Anthony Hoyte, from Cheltenham, spent 10 hours cycling the streets of the city, using the exercise and route sharing app Strava to "draw" the giant festive artwork. Virtual snowman created by cyclist using app on London streets...
  5. Blackleaf

    Fire at London Zoo kills an aardvark

    London Zoo is shut "until further notice" after a fire which injured staff and killed an aardvark. At its height, more than 70 firefighters tackled the fire which started in the Animal Adventure section and spread to the adjacent shop. One person was taken to hospital and eight were treated at...
  6. Blackleaf

    Cambridge relics of '18th Century Starbucks' found

    Artefacts from an 18th Century coffee shop have been found in a disused cellar at the University of Cambridge. Clapham's operated in the mid-to-late 1700s on a site now owned by St John's College, and the discovery of more than 500 relics has shed light on it. Cambridge relics of '18th Century...
  7. Blackleaf

    UK should welcome Trump. He's not as bad as Hillary or Zuma

    The big day is coming and the children are already getting very, very excited. No, not Christmas. I mean the visit to our country of US President Donald Trump. It’s going to happen, early in the new year. And by children, I mean the hundred thousand or so petulant, intellectually...
  8. Blackleaf

    Roman grave with 250 coins discovered in a field

    A Roman grave containing a lead coffin and more than 250 Roman coins has been discovered in a field. The artefacts - which are believed to date to around 400 AD - were found near Ilminster, Somerset, by a member of the Detecting for Veterans group. There are about 200 similar lead coffins...
  9. Blackleaf

    Archaeologists discover three 16th century TURKEY bones under a street in Exeter

    While many of us enjoy turkey as part of our annual Christmas dinner, the animals have only been in Britain since 1524, when they were brought over from the Americas. Now, researchers believe they may have evidence of the first turkey dinner, in the form of three turkey bones dating back to...
  10. Blackleaf

    Druids and pagans gather at Stonehenge for winter solstice

    Thousands of people have gathered at Stonehenge to celebrate the first sunrise after the winter solstice. Pagans and druids dressed in traditional clothing joined families and a choir to mark the end of the longest night of the year. Thick cloud at the prehistoric site in Wiltshire meant the...
  11. Blackleaf

    Catalonia crisis could tear the EU apart

    The poll result in Catalonia is a disaster for the Spanish government. But voters in Spain’s most restive region have also presented the EU with a full-blown crisis that could threaten its very existence. By ignoring the European Commission’s preference for pro-Madrid candidates and...
  12. Blackleaf

    Back and blue: UK to get its iconic dark blue passport back after Brexit

    Brits will get their iconic dark blue passports back after Brexit, ministers announce today — in a stunning campaign victory for The Sun. The Government has agreed to our demand to scrap the EU's burgundy model, enforced on the nation from 1988. Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said...
  13. Blackleaf

    Private lives of the monarchs

    There is Victoria, the sour-faced and dowdy widow; George III who was barking mad; and Henry VIII who, we have learned, was a tyrannical, overweight womaniser. Yet just when you think there is nothing more to discover about these great figures from history, a new documentary series promises to...
  14. Blackleaf

    What explains the idiocy of the liberal elite? It’s their education

    Enough! Enough! For months, the so-called liberal elite has been writing articles, having radio and TV discussions, giving sermons (literally) and making speeches in which it has struggled to understand those strange creatures: ordinary people. The elite is bemused by what drives these people...
  15. Blackleaf

    60 million-year-old meteorite impact found on Skye

    Geologists have found evidence of a 60 million-year-old meteorite impact on the Isle of Skye. They made the discovery while exploring volcanic rocks on the island, including at a site just south of Broadford. Meteoritic minerals found below layers of lavas, dated to volcanic activity as...
  16. Blackleaf

    Belgium ends 19th Century telegram service

    Belgium's telegram service is about to stop. Stop. One hundred and seventy-one years after the first electronic message was transmitted down a line running alongside the railway between Brussels and Antwerp the final dispatch will be sent and received on 29 December. Belgium ends 19th...
  17. Blackleaf

    Man dies after spontaneously combusting in London street

    Bewildered cops are investigating after a pensioner appeared to spontaneously combust during a quiet Sunday afternoon walk. Horrified passersby desperately tried to douse the flames after John Nolan, 70, mysteriously caught fire near Tottenham Hotspur's White Hart Lane stadium in North...
  18. Blackleaf

    The Thames Beater: How Neolithic weapons were made to kill with one strike

    A weapon used by Neolithic people could kill with one blow, according to a new study which used forensic detection methods to recreate violence from the period. Experts created a replica of a 5,500-year-old wooden club to inflict damage to a synthetic human skull. They found the...
  19. Blackleaf

    Reconstruction technology reveals the face of 17th century Scottish soldier

    The face of a 17th century Scottish prisoner of war who died after being captured by Cromwell’s troops has been revealed using the latest digital technology. The soldier was among 3,000 marched south in 1650 following the short but bloody Battle of Dunbar to the then-abandoned Durham...
  20. Blackleaf

    'Special site' for Bronze Age burials is found near Loch Ness

    A 4,000-year-old grave has been found near Loch Ness, which archaeologists increasingly believe was a 'special site' for Bronze Age burials. The grave has been found in the village of Drumnadrochit in the same area a stone-lined grave was found two years ago. Archaeologists believe the...