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Imagine a country with mind-boggling poverty, an incredible 26% annual rate of inflation, crippling strikes that left it at a standstill, a working week of only three days to conserve electricity after the miners (amongst many others) went on strike leaving millions of people living in darkness...

Prince Charles has become the hardest working member of the Royal Family - notching up 560 engagements in 2008. That means he has overtaken his little sister, the Princess Royal, who racked up 534. That's not bad for a 60-year-old. The number of engagements carried out by the Queen this...

English sports fans are celebrating today after the Australia cricket team, the world champions, suffered their first Series defeat in Australia since 1993, after losing by 9 wickets against South Africa. Now, their conquerors, South Africa, are aiming to take Australia's crown as world No1...

Thousands of spectators have braved the freezing temperatures to watch the annual MAD Club soapbox derby. The event, in Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, last year raised £78,000 for charity. MAD stands for "Meynall Arms Drinkers" after the pub where the event is held. Teams risk life and...

A mixed-race couple, Dean Durrant and Alison Spooner of Fleet, Hampshire, have given birth to black and white twins. But, incredibly, this is the SECOND time it has happened. The odds of this happening are half-a-million to one. Mixed-race couple give birth to black and white twins - for...

William Tyndale was an English scholar who from 1525, became the first person to translate the Bible into English. He was convinced that the way to God was through His word and that scripture should be available even to common people. Much of Tyndale's work eventually found its way into the...

As 2008 nears the end, who should be the person of the year? The Telegraph's Iain Martin thinks it should be Queen Elizabeth II, who has further shown why she is the world's best Head of State. From asking "Why did no-one predict the credit crunch?" to being a much needed non-partisan symbol...

The League of Gentlemen's Mark Gatiss stars in, and has written, the BBC's new Crooked House, a series of three spooky episodes that will put a chill up anybody's spine this Christmas. The three episodes, shown over the Christmas period, depict a creaky old manor whose spooks terrify...

Here we have a look behind-the-scenes of Britain's new aircraft carriers, the world's second-biggest warships. The Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers - HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales - will enter service with the Royal Navy between 2016 and 2018. They will be the world's...

The British are often described as being a nation of animal lovers, and St Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital in Buckinghamshire may be proof of that. It is the world's busiest wildlife hospital, with over 10,000 orphaned or injured animals. From foxes to doves, from hedgehogs to bats, and from...

Three movies are to be released in 2009 about the Battle of Hastings, and it's about time. Unlike other famous battles, such as Trafalgar, Agincourt and Waterloo, the Battle of Hastings has not received the same kind of interest from moviemakers. The Battle of Hastings way back in 1066 was...

Prince Edward, the youngest child of the Queen, has been condemned after he lashed out at his dogs with a large stick at the Sandringham Royal Estate in Norfolk on Boxing Day. It is traditional for the British Royal Family to take their Christmas break at Sandringham, and Prince Edward was...

England and India drew the Second Test, meaning India won the Series 1-0. England were praised by many people, including the Indians, for deciding to return to India to go ahead with the Series after the Mumbai terrorist attacks. England lost the Series but can leave India with their heads...

If you think you're having a bad Christmas, just think yourself lucky that you didn't have to experience the harsh realities of a British Christmas in the 19th Century. In Victorian Britain, a workhouse was a place where people who were unable to support themselves went to live and work, but...

Snow at Christmas may be a common occurence in Canada and some northern parts of the USA, but it's not so common in Britain, with its relatively mild winters. Despite most Christmas cards depicting a snowy scene, such truly snowy Christmases have occurred just SEVEN times in Britain since...

As Christmas approaches, British soldiers in Afghanistan take on the Taliban wearing Santa hats. Royal Marines, trying to bring a bit of festive spirit to their area of Helmand Province, held a festive service which was interrupted by enemy gunfire. So they rushed to their weapons and took...

The Queen will stress the importance of the family during the economic downturn in this Christmas's Queen's Speech. The speech was filmed in the Music Room at Buckingham Palace, and she highlights the support she and her husband have received from their family. Photos of her family are to be...

A book written in 1801 shows the types of games that were played during Christmas 200 years ago. The book, by Joseph Strutt, features games such as hoodman's blind, a predecessor to blind man's buff..... The 1801 games that made Britain great: For sale, a long-lost guide to old pastimes...

As Britain's New Labour Government, obsessed with Health and Safety and Political Correctness, releases a ludicrous guide to keeping safe during the Christmas period (which warns of the dangers of baubles falling on your head, dangerous shards of tinsel, wrapping paper which can cause serious...

Britain is the world's oldest surviving, unbroken democracy (Greece has only been a democracy again since 1974 and the British had 12 elected Prime Minister before the US came into being) and the British parliament is often described as the "Mother of Parliaments." Not so long ago, you could...