During the long years of Margaret Thatcher's dominance of Conservative and national politics, Nicholas Lyell occupied a somewhat anomalous position on the political spectrum and never gained the advancement which, his friends believed, his talents merited. He served for seven years from 1979 as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Sir Michael (later Lord) Havers, who became » Read More
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The Noughties were never going to be good for pessimists. The tone for the decade was set in 1997. As a grinning Tony Blair romped home to a soundtrack of "Things Can Only Get Better", an American psychologist named Martin Seligman, renowned in his field for his work on "learnt helplessness", was elected president of » Read More
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Impeccably groomed and holding back a smirk, he looked more like an off-duty polo player than one of the world's most wanted drug barons. But this was Edgar Valdez Villarreal, the brutal gangland enforcer whose pale skin, blond hair and occasionally sunny disposition meant that he became known across Mexico by the incongruous nickname "La » Read More
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Are you terrified of earthquakes, floods or tsunamis? Does the prospect of terrorist attack or nuclear holocaust fill you with dread? Or does it take that ancient Mayan stuff about 2012 to get your juices flowing? Whatever your paranoia, fear not: if the End Times really are coming, then a small financial investment is all » Read More
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She was the prime minister at the height of her powers, using every arm of the state to crush the striking miners. He was the Soviet heir apparent who had authorised a large donation to help striking comrades in the UK. Now newly released Downing Street documents have shed fresh light on the relationship between Margaret » Read More
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The bid by the US Federal Drug Administration to approve the first genetically modified animal – a modified salmon – for human consumption will certainly not be an isolated addition to our cuisine. A host of domestic animals, including several other species of fish, have also been genetically altered by scientists – mostly to improve » Read More
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Al-Qa'ida showed that it has the strength to strike all over Iraq yesterday by making a string of attacks that left at least 56 dead, half of them policemen and soldiers, and 250 wounded, across at least thirteen cities and towns. The bombings came a day after the US cut the number of its troops in » Read More
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A dog has made an amazing recovery after munching his way through 2lb of stones. Springer spaniel Samson, from Musselburgh, East Lothian, was admitted to the PDSA pet hospital in Edinburgh by his concerned owner who noticed he had lost his appetite and appeared bloated. Cheryl Douglas, 36, thought her pet might have been suffering from a » Read More
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In a few months, Chris Clarkson has gone from part-time player and bricklayer to one of the more unlikely building blocks in Leeds' Wembley-bound team. The 20-year-old back-row forward, who is in line to play against Warrington in Saturday's Challenge Cup final, was still working with his father on porches and conservatories earlier this year after » Read More
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England's beleaguered football coach Fabio Capello was back in the line of fire yesterday after an attack on his laboured attempts to speak English. The man dubbed "Flop Fabio" after the England team's lousy showing in the World Cup, which saw them limp home after a 4-1 drubbing from an inspired German side, was the target » Read More
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