To mark the occasion of Sotheby’s 40th anniversary in Asia, they have put on a spectacular sale.

There are 332 lots in total with the main emphasis on spectacular coloured gemstones and diamonds. This sale includes gems that years ago would not have been recognised as precious let alone been able to command high prices. There is a wonderful selection of single stones such as peridots, pink sapphire, yellow sapphire, demantoid garnet, padparadscha sapphire, chrysoberyl cat’s eye, tsavorite garnet and star sapphire. But the fact is, good quality untreated gemstones are very rare, the earth will not keep producing these stones, while the demand for them just keeps on growing. Here is my pick of the sale highlights.

Lot 1932: A spectacular oval diamond, the largest diamond ever to appear at auction.118.28cts D colour, flawless type IIaEstimate: in the region of US$28 - 35millionRealised: $30,600,000 (£19,040,141) World record price for a white diamond

I had the wonderful opportunity to view this stone with my loupe. It is so perfect that I was trying to look for any small imperfections that would make me feel it was real… the only thing I could find was that the faceted girdle (the stone’s edge) was slightly uneven – seeing that seemed to give the stone character.

Discovered in Southern Africa in 2011 - a whopping 299 carats in the rough - after months and months of careful cutting to achieve perfection they had to loose 60 per cent of the weight. Type IIa, which for all those wondering means that the diamond crystal is made with pure carbon without any trace of nitrogen, which happens to be about 2 per cent of the world’s diamond production.

The lucky owner will be able to name the stone, and become part of the ‘Over 100 Carat Club’.

Lot 1925: The world’s largest round fancy vivid blue diamond, The Premier Blue7.59cts internally flawlessRealised: Unsold

These are a freak of nature created when boron - a trace element -gets into the carbon crystal lattice and turns the diamond a blue colour making it a Type IIb. Other famous blue diamonds are the Hope, The Wittlesbach-Graff (previously the Wittlesbach) and the Tereschenko. Coloured diamonds are extremely rare indeed and to get a colour that is true blue without displaying any grey is exceptional.The record price per carat for a blue diamond is the 5.3 ct Fancy deep-blue diamond sold at Bonhams, London in April 2013 with a record $1.8million per carat. So the battle is on.

Lot 1766: Ruby and diamond ring by Cindy ChaoSet with an oval Burmese ruby weighing 8.03cts in 18 carat white and blackened gold Estimate: £2.3 – 2.723 millionRealised: $3,843,306 (£2,390,747)

Cindy Chao is an exciting new artist who strives for perfection with stunning results. Born in Taiwan into an artistic family, her father was a sculptor and this led her to develop her skills as a jewellery wax molder where she strives to achieve precision so she can get the prototype just how she wants it before giving it to her craftsmen.Chao's pieces are already highly sought after, each one of a kind, sometimes taking a year to complete a jewel from the initial design. She has successfully combined the use of modern technology alongside traditional skills. Having said all this, the majority of this estimate for the ring is reflected in the Burma Ruby – where all the best rubies come from.

Lot 1725: Conch pearl and diamond necklaceEstimate: £200- 230kRealised: Unsold

These conch pearls (pronounced conk) as the name suggests come from the Queen Conch shell. They are the shell that you see in old films set in the Caribbean or Hawaii where they are being blown into to make a horn sounding noise.The magnification of a conch pearl shows the flame-like pattern known as “chatoyancy”. Some people mix these up with pink coral, but if you look closely, the surface patterns are very different.

Lot 1892: Rare melo and diamond hair ornament by Cartier, measuring 27.48 - 28.40mmEstimate: £107.5 – 123kRealised: £128,362

There is a thirst for the unusual and these rare pearls from various pearl producing mollusks are very sought after. This melo pearl, which has an orangey/creamy colour, comes from the Baler shell which live mainly in the South China Sea and off Singapore and Malaysia.There are some you can see in the Pearls exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Lot 1927: Natural pearl necklace, 11.60 - 7.70mmEstimate: £743 – 908kRealised: Unsold

Natural saltwater pearls are still soaring in price. In the last 5 years they have probably increased by at least 300 per cent. The pearls do have to have a very good skin and luster though, which some people call the “orient”. Oysters cannot grow in polluted waters and most of the saltwater pearl beds, if not all, are now extinct. Where they used to grow you’ll now mostly find oil rigs.

Lot 1654: Multi-coloured jadeite, gem-set and diamond brooch, signed by Mason TsaiEstimate: £13.3 – 16.5kRealised: Unsold

Chosen for a bit of fun, I find it quite charming and guarantee it would start any conversation when worn. This is a brooch to wear if you are a bit shy and want your jewellery to do the introductions for you.

I would like to wear both together...

Lot 1897: Lavender Jadeite BangleEstimate: £562 – 660kRealised: £580,839

There is a wonderful intensity of colour and because jade is quite hard it would be quite safe to wear. I love this colour and with jade’s greasy /oily surface it seems to always glow.

Lot 1896: Fine Jadeite BangleEstimate: £454 – 578kRealised: unsold

This is an extremely translucent jadeite bangle of a rich emerald green colour which is what you look for. Sometimes it is described as “apple green” jade or Imperial jade.

Asia has a special infinity with jade and the Hong Kong sale has some rather spectacular pieces with some astonishing estimates. Imperial Jade has been mined in Burma for hundreds of years and at first it was used for tools and weapons, until 2000BC when China started to revere jade as talismanic.

Summary: Joanna Hardy selects her pick of the lots to watch at Sotheby’s Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite sale on October 7.


Over 100 dancers and musicians bring Nutcracker to life with exquisite dancing, beautiful sets and Tchaikovsky’s glorious score played live.

On a sparkling Christmas Eve in a frost-dusted Edwardian London, Clara and her enchanted Nutcracker doll discover a magical world, where she battles with the Mouse King and meets a handsome stranger. As the air grows colder, Clara and her valiant Nutcracker take a hot air balloon ride across London to the glistening Land of Snow where her adventure really begins.

From the sound of the orchestra tuning up, to the final bows and cheers, a trip to English National Ballet’s Nutcracker in the splendour of the London Coliseum is an unforgettable Christmas treat.

Nutcracker returns in 2016 following hugely successful performances last year, where over 73,000 audience members – young and old – made it part of their holiday celebrations last year.

Summary: Get information and buy cheap theatre tickets for Nutcracker - Coliseum with Telegraph Tickets. Discount tickets for London shows and attractions, presented by Telegraph Tickets.


Jack LaLanne, whose obsession with grueling workouts and good nutrition, complemented by a salesman’s gift, brought him recognition as the founder of the modern physical fitness movement, died Sunday afternoon at his home in Morro Bay, Calif. He was 96.

The cause was respiratory failure resulting from pneumonia, his family said.

A self-described emotional and physical wreck while growing up in the San Francisco area, Mr. LaLanne began turning his life around, as he often told it, after hearing a talk on proper diet when he was 15.

He started working out with weights when they were an oddity, and in 1936 he opened the prototype for the fitness spas to come — a gym, juice bar and health food store — in an old office building in Oakland.

“People thought I was a charlatan and a nut,” he remembered. “The doctors were against me — they said that working out with weights would give people heart attacks and they would lose their sex drive.” But Mr. LaLanne persevered, and he found a national pulpit in the age of television.

“The Jack LaLanne Show” made its debut in 1951 as a local program in the San Francisco area, then went nationwide on daytime television in 1959. His short-sleeved jumpsuit showing off his impressive biceps, his props often limited to a broomstick, a chair and a rubber cord, Mr. LaLanne pranced through his exercise routines, most notably his fingertip push-ups.

He built an audience by first drawing in children who saw his white German shepherd, Happy, perform tricks.

“My show was so personal, I made it feel like you and I were the only ones there,” he told Knight-Ridder Newspapers in 1995. “And I’d say: ‘Boys and girls, come here. Uncle Jack wants to tell you something. You go get Mother or Daddy, Grandmother, Grandfather, whoever is in the house. You go get them, and you make sure they exercise with me.’ ”

His show continued into the mid-1980s.

“He was perfect for the intimacy of television,” Robert Thompson, a professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, told The San Jose Mercury News in 2004. “This guy had some of the same stuff that Oprah has and Johnny Carson had — the ability to insinuate themselves in the domestic space of people’s lives.”

Long before Richard Simmons and Jane Fonda and the Atkins diet, Mr. LaLanne was a national celebrity, preaching regular exercise and proper diet. Expanding on his television popularity, he opened dozens of fitness studios under his name, later licensing them to Bally. He invented the forerunners of modern exercise machines like leg-extension and pulley devices. He marketed a Power Juicer to blend raw vegetables and fruits and a Glamour Stretcher cord, and he sold exercise videos and fitness books. He invited women to join his health clubs and told the elderly and the disabled that they could exercise despite their limitations.

At 60 he swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf handcuffed, shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat. At 70, handcuffed and shackled again, he towed 70 boats, carrying a total of 70 people, a mile and a half through Long Beach Harbor.

He ate two meals a day and shunned snacks.

Breakfast, following his morning workout, usually included several hard-boiled egg whites, a cup of broth, oatmeal with soy milk and seasonal fruit. For dinner he took his wife, Elaine, to restaurants that knew what he wanted: a salad with raw vegetables and egg whites along with fish — often salmon — and a mixture of red and white wine. He sometimes allowed himself a roast turkey sandwich, but never a cup of coffee.

Mr. LaLanne said he performed his exercises until he experienced “muscle fatigue,” lifting weights until it was impossible for him to continue. It produced results and, as he put it, “the ego in me” made the effort worthwhile.

The son of French immigrants, Jack LaLanne was born in San Francisco on Sept. 26, 1914, and spent his early years on his parents’ sheep farm in Bakersfield, Calif. By the time he was 15, the family having moved to the Bay Area, he was pimply and nearsighted, craved junk food and had dropped out of high school. That is when his mother took him to a women’s club for a talk by Paul C. Bragg, a well-known speaker on health and nutrition.

That talk, Mr. LaLanne often said, turned his life around. He began experimenting with weights at the Berkeley Y.M.C.A., tossed aside cakes and cookies and studied Gray’s Anatomy to learn about the body’s muscles. He graduated from a chiropractic school, but instead of practicing that profession he became a pitchman for good health.

He opened his first health studio when he was 21, and a decade and a half later he turned to television. He was first sponsored by the creator of a longevity pill, a 90-year-old man, but it sold poorly and he obtained Yami Yogurt as his new sponsor. “It tasted terrible, so I mixed it with prune juice and fruits,” he told The New York Times in 2004. “Nobody thought about it until then. We made the guy a millionaire.”

Mr. LaLanne, 5-foot-6 and 150 pounds or so with a 30-inch waist, maintained that he disliked working out. He said he kept at it strictly to feel fit and stay healthy. He built two gyms and a pool at his home in Morro Bay, and began each day, into his 90s, with two hours of workouts: weight lifting followed by a swim against an artificial current or in place, tied to a belt.

“The Jack LaLanne Show” may have run its course in the mid-1980s, but it had a second life in reruns on ESPN Classic. “We have over 3,000 shows,” Mr. LaLanne said in 2004. “I own everything.”

In September 2007, “Jack LaLanne Live!” made its debut on the online VoiceAmerica Health and Wellness Radio Network. He appeared on it with his wife and his nephew Chris LaLanne, a personal trainer.

In addition to his wife, Elaine, Mr. LaLanne is survived by their son, Jon, of Hawaii; his daughter, Yvonne LaLanne, of Walnut Creek, Calif., from his previous marriage, and a stepson, Dan Doyle, of Los Angeles, from Elaine LaLanne’s previous marriage.

Mr. LaLanne promoted himself and his calling into his final years, often accompanied at events by his wife, a physical fitness convert but hardly a fanatic. He brimmed with optimism and restated a host of aphorisms for an active and fit life.

“I can’t die,” he most famously liked to say. “It would ruin my image.”

A version of this article appears in print on January 24, 2011, on page A25 of the New York edition with the headline: Jack LaLanne, 96, Fitness’s Father, Dies. Order Reprints| Today's Paper|Subscribe

Summary: Mr. LaLanne found recognition through his obsession with grueling workouts and nutrition, complemented by a salesman’s gift.


Black people are more likely to be stopped by police but — once they are stopped — they are less likely to be shot than whites, new research finds.

The study could not say whether blacks, Hispanics and American Indians are more likely to commit crimes and thus be arrested, but they are more likely to be arrested once stopped, the research finds.

The study doesn't claim to be the last word on whether police are unfairly targeting blacks, but does shed some light on an issue that's been made volatile in recent months with cellphone videos that show upsetting incidents, said Ted Miller of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in Maryland, who led the study.

"I wanted to better inform the discussion," said Miller, an economist specializing in public health.

Related: Police Shoot Unarmed Caregiver With His Hands Up

His team pulled together statistics from wherever they could find them: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, FBI, state police websites, hospital records and two investigative series by the Washington Post and Guardian newspapers.

"U.S. police killed or injured an estimated 55,400 people in 2012," they wrote in the journal Injury Prevention.

"Blacks, Native Americans and Hispanics had higher stop/arrest rates per 10,000 population than white non-Hispanics and Asians."

Rates are important because they take into account each group's proportion of the population. Blacks make up about 13 percent of the U.S. population, but accounted for 28 percent of arrests.

RELATED: Most iconic photos of the Black Lives Matter movement

Most iconic photos of Black Lives Matter movement since Ferguson

FERGUSON, MO - AUGUST 17: Tear gas rains down on a woman kneeling in the street with her hands in the air after a demonstration over the killing of teenager Michael Brown by a Ferguson police officer on August 17, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. Despite the Brown family's continued call for peaceful demonstrations, violent protests have erupted nearly every night in Ferguson since his August 9, death. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

A demonstrator protesting the shooting death of Alton Sterling is detained by law enforcement near the headquarters of the Baton Rouge Police Department in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. July 9, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

FERGUSON, MO - AUGUST 11: Police force protestors from the business district into nearby neighborhoods on August 11, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. Police responded with tear gas and rubber bullets as residents and their supporters protested the shooting by police of an unarmed black teenager named Michael Brown who was killed Saturday in this suburban St. Louis community. Yesterday 32 arrests were made after protests turned into rioting and looting in Ferguson. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

ST LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 12: A demonstrator protesting the killings of 18-year-olds Michael Brown by a Ferguson, Missouri Police officer and Vonderrit Myers Jr. by an off duty St. Louis police officer gets help after being maced by police on October 12, 2014 in St Louis, Missouri. The St. Louis area has been struggling to heal since riots erupted in suburban Ferguson following Brown's death. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 3: A demonstrator cries while gathering in Philadelphia to protest the Eric Garner grand jury decision during a Christmas Tree lighting ceremony at City Hall December 3, 2014 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Organizers called for the demonstration after a grand jury in the Staten Island borough of New York City declined to indict the police officer who used a chokehold on Garner, resulting in his death. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)

FERGUSON, MO - NOVEMBER 25: Police confront demonstrators during a protest on November 25, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. Yesterday protesting turned into rioting following the grand jury announcement to not indict officer Darren Wilson in the Michael Brown case. Brown, an 18-year-old black man, was killed by Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson police officer, on August 9. At least 12 buildings were torched and more than 50 people were arrested during the night-long rioting. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Neal Blair, of Augusta, Ga., stands on the lawn of the Capitol building during a rally to mark the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March, on Capitol Hill, on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015, in Washington. Thousands of African-Americans crowded on the National Mall Saturday for the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Black Lives Matter supporters embrace after Minneapolis police poured water to extinguish an encampment fire as they continued their protest, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015, outside the Fourth Precinct in Minneapolis. The fatal shooting of Jamar Clark, an unarmed black man by a Minneapolis police officer, has pushed racial tensions in the city's small but concentrated minority community to the fore, with the police precinct besieged by a makeshift encampment and many protesters. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

A spray painted message of âBlack Lives Matterâ was painted on a monument to former Confederate President Jefferson Davis on Monument Avenue in Richmond, Va., Thursday, June 25, 2015. The vandalism comes after a mass shooting in Charleston South Carolina has sparked a nationwide debate on the public display of Confederate imagery. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

FILE - In this March 12, 2015 file photo, police shine a light on a helmet as they investigate the scene where two police officers were shot outside the Ferguson Police Department in Ferguson, Mo. The one year anniversary of the shooting of Michael Brown, which sparked months of nationwide protests and launched the "Black Lives Matter" movement, is on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2015. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 20, 2014 file photo taken with a long exposure, protesters march in the street as lightning flashes in the distance in Ferguson, Mo. The one year anniversary of the shooting of Michael Brown, which sparked months of nationwide protests and launched the "Black Lives Matter" movement, is on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2015. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

A protester has some words with Minneapolis police officers on bikes as a Black Lives Matter protest continued, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015, at the Minneapolis Police Department's Fourth Precinct in Minneapolis. It was the fourth day of protests of the killing of 24-year-old Jamar Clark, an unarmed black man, by a Minneapolis police officer. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

Black Lives Matter activist DeRay McKesson leaves the Baton Rouge jail in Baton Rouge, La. on Sunday, July 10, 2016. McKesson, three journalists and more than 120 other people were taken into custody in Louisiana over the past two days, authorities said Sunday, after protests over the fatal shooting of an African-American man by two white police officers in Baton Rouge. (AP Photo/Max Becherer)

Jamine Clark points to the name of his brother, Jamar Clark, on an upside-down flag bearing names of people killed at the hands of police outside the Minneapolis Police Department's Fourth Precinct, Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015, in Minneapolis. Black Lives Matter demonstrators have set up an encampment at the precinct which is near the site of the Sunday shooting of Jamar Clark by a Minneapolis police officer. Clark has been taken off life support. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

BLOOMINGTON, MN - DECEMBER 20: Thousands of protesters from the group 'Black Lives Matter' disrupt holiday shoppers on December 20, 2014 at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)

FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2014 file photo, Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James wears a T-shirt reading "I Can't Breathe," during warms up before an NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets in New York. Celebrities have long played a significant role in social change, from Harry Belafonte marching for civil rights to Muhammad Aliâs anti-war activism. James and other basketball stars made news in 2014 when they wore T-shirts to protest the death of Eric Garner. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)

A demonstrator chants during a rally in downtown Manhattan in New York, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, during the Justice for All rally and march. In the past three weeks, grand juries have decided not to indict officers in the chokehold death of Eric Garner in New York and the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. The decisions have unleashed demonstrations and questions about police conduct and whether local prosecutors are the best choice for investigating police. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Parents of Michael Brown, Michael Brown Sr. and Lesley McSpadden listen to a speaker during a rally, Sunday, Aug. 17, 2014, for their son who was killed by police last Saturday in Ferguson, Mo. Brown's shooting in the middle of a street, following a suspected robbery of a box of cigars from a nearby market, has sparked a week of protests, riots and looting in the St. Louis suburb. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

A police officer stands over activists, demanding justice for the death of Eric Garner, as they stage a 'die-in' during rush hour at Grand Central Terminal in the Manhattan borough of New York on December 3, 2014. A New York City grand jury on Wednesday returned no indictment against a white police officer who used a chokehold on an unarmed black man who died as police tried to arrest him for illegally selling cigarettes, local media reported. The grand jury in the city's borough of Staten Island decided against criminal charges for New York police officer Daniel Pantaleo in the death of Eric Garner. The deadly encounter on July 17 was captured on a video that quickly spread over the Internet and helped fuel debates about how U.S. police use force, particularly against minorities. REUTERS/Adrees Latif (UNITED STATES - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY TRANSPORT)

A man protesting the shooting death of Alton Sterling is detained by law enforcement near the headquarters of the Baton Rouge Police Department in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. July 9, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Pastor Charles Burton lies on the driveway at the Ferguson, Mo., police station as a chalk drawing is made as a memorial to Michael Brown, Monday, Oct. 13, 2014. Activists planned a day of civil disobedience to protest Brown's shooting in August and a second police shooting in St. Louis last week. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

"Those with the highest arrest rates per 10,000 population were ages 15-29 years, black or Native American," the team wrote.

There are many violent interactions, Miller found.

"On an average day, three people die and 150 people are treated at a hospital because they are injured by police," Miller told NBC News.

Related: Michael Jordan Speaks Out on Race Issues

"During 2012 an estimated 67,000 law enforcement personnel were assaulted, with an estimated 18,600 medically treated for injury and 48 killed."

But once they stopped someone, police were just as likely to hurt or injure whites as people of any other race, they found.

"Blacks have high arrest and stop rates, and per capita [among the general population] are much more likely than whites to die at the hands of police," the team found.

"However, when blacks are stopped or arrested, they are no more likely than whites to be injured or die during that incident."

RELATED: Percent saying blacks are treated less fairly than whites

"Consistent with our findings, simulation studies find police are no more likely to fire on unarmed blacks than unarmed whites, and high rates of black speeding citations per capita result from high violation rates," the team wrote,.

"A systematic review identified 10 studies that found suspect race/ethnicity did not predict use of force or its escalation."

So now the important question to answer will be whether that increased rate of stop and arrest is unfair or biased, Miller said. He was not able to find out if police were more likely to stop blacks for trivial reasons — although they were more likely to let whites go once stopped.

"We know that low-income neighborhoods have more crime," Miller said. And minorities are more likely to have low incomes. "Some disparities could be due to income rather than race," he said.

And it could be that fear of police violence has caused blacks to be more polite than whites in their interactions.

Related: African-American Cops React to Violence

"Frequent police stops of young men have caused many black and some Hispanic mothers to teach their sons where to put their hands if approached by an officer, how to move and not move, to ask permission before reaching for their wallet, and to respond to police rudeness with respect," the team wrote.

"Those talks may have protective effects."

There's another factor. "Most of the people who die had a gun with them," Miller said. He compared the U.S. situation to Australia, where just as many people are injured, but fewer are shot to death in police stops. Australia has much stricter laws on carrying guns than the U.S. has.

"Police aren't as scared. The police are not as endangered," he said.

RELATED: Poll - Police use of deadly force

But Miller said the statistics show that there is far too much violence when police stop Americans in general, and he said it's up to police to do something about that.

"You and I might get stopped once in our lives. The police stop people every day. They need to be the ones trained to de-escalate," he said.

It's important for people not to make police angry, but it's also important for police to control their emotions, Miller said.

"The question is how to make the system forgiving enough so that when somebody makes a mistake, everybody lives," he said.

More from NBC News: In Philadelphia, Obama Will Pass Leadership of Party He Reshaped Texas Voter ID Ruling Offers Stinging Rebuke to Law's Backers How Trump Nod Could Cause Record Muslim-American Voter Turnout

Summary: The study doesn't claim to be the last word, but it aims to shed some light on an issue that's been made volatile in recent months.


The votes will be cast at a general meeting on November 19. The meeting will take place at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow at 11am.

The circular includes a "form of proxy". If a shareholder cannot, or does not want to, attend the meeting, they should complete and return the form of proxy to register their vote at the general meeting – it should be received no later than 11am on November 17.

HBOS will be contacting its shareholders separately about its shareholder meeting, which is due on December 12. If both sets of shareholders vote in favour, then court and regulatory approvals will be required before the transaction completes.

When new shares are issued, existing shareholdings are diluted – in other words, existing investors own less of the company than before. Existing Lloyds TSB shareholders will be given the chance to buy some of the newly issued shares in proportion to their existing holding at 173.3p per share. Lloyds says details will become clearer in due course.

Under the terms of the Government's purchase of preference shares, the merged group is unable to pay a dividend on its ordinary shares while any of the preference shares remain outstanding. Lloyds says it is committed to removing the dividend block during 2009 by early repayment of the £4bn of preference shares, so that dividend payments can start again.

A preference share carries a fixed rate of return which pays out ahead of any dividends due to ordinary shareholders. Preference shares don’t carry any voting rights in the way that ordinary shares do.

Lloyds is continuing to progress with the acquisition of HBOS and is working with HBOS management on all aspects of the transaction. “We firmly believe that the proposed acquisition of HBOS provides us with a unique opportunity to create the UK’s largest financial services company,” Lloyds TSB says.

As it stands the brand names such as Halifax will stay – but this will be subject to a review. On completion of the proposed acquisition, the name of the new combined group will be Lloyds Banking Group plc. Lloyds insists that no decisions have been made regarding any of the brand names currently in use in either group.

A special helpline has been set up to answer shareholders' questions. The number is 0845 600 3579 (+44 20 8495 4632 from overseas).

Customers who are deaf or hard of hearing or have speech impairments can use Textphone on 0845 602 9376 (+44 121 415 7028 from overseas).

The helpline operates 8.30am-8pm from Monday to Friday.

Summary: Lloyds TSB insists that its acquisition of HBOS is set to complete in January   and has sent out circulars to its shareholders outlining the timetable and   the implications.


The attorneys general of New York and Massachusetts are approaching daily fantasy sports companies quite differently.

Last week, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman sent cease-and-desist letters to DraftKings and FanDuel, the market-share leaders in the industry, demanding they stop taking paid entries in the state. FanDuel has since complied; DraftKings has not. Both companies have filed lawsuits against Schneiderman, and a legal showdown is set for November 25.

In contrast, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced on Thursday her proposed set of new regulations for daily fantasy operators in that state. Rather than make them illegal, as Schneiderman wants to do, Healey proposes regulating them closely.

Her most significant proposal is that playing be restricted to ages 21 and older, and that users be limited to depositing $1,000 a month. The latter rule would significantly hamper revenues for daily fantasy companies in that state. But both DraftKings and FanDuel quickly released statements voicing support for Healey’s plan, which is clearly much friendlier than Schneiderman’s. DraftKings called the proposal “a thoughtful and comprehensive approach.” FanDuel said it “makes a tremendous amount of sense.”

Healey also wants the companies banned from marketing on college campuses, a position that has already gained momentum in other corners. One of ESPN’s channels, the SEC Network, recently stopped running the DraftKings and FanDuel ads that the main ESPN channel shows. And the NCAA recently announced it would ban the companies from advertising during championship events.

Healey’s full list contains 14 bullet-point rules, in four sections: “Protecting minors”; “Leveling the playing field:” “Advertising and marketing;” and “Financial protections.”

Healey’s office cannot implement the new regulations immediately. Instead, it must accept public comments through January before making her proposals final. Thanks to the public comment period, the process will play out under a public microscope.

In an exclusive and candid phone call Thursday evening with Fortune, Healey spoke further about her views on the fantasy sports industry and her steps to regulate it. What follows is an edited transcript.

Fortune: These companies have been around for a few years but the flood of scrutiny didn’t come until now. Do you think it was the scandal last month that did it, with a DraftKings employee winning money on FanDuel, or was it their advertising assault? What alerted you?

Maura Healey: I agree. They’ve been around for a bit, but then they had this huge ad buy and everywhere you went, my impression is that even people with no interest in sports, you couldn’t get away from them.

We started looking at this several months ago, back in the late spring and through the summer. Certainly our review continued and continues to this day, but it’s something we have had on our screen here for quite a while. We have a gaming division in the office, and my gaming division was aware of the development of daily fantasy sports and what they were out there trying to do in the market, and so we started looking at it. We reached out to the companies, requested meetings with them, and over the last few months have been back and forth with them.

How much time have you spent with both companies?

We spent time with both companies in person. I can’t say the exact number of meetings, but there were multiple meetings, multiple telephone conversations, and I think real ample opportunity for us to get a sense of how this industry operates and what their business model is.

How much have the actions of other states affected your actions? Has it made you hurry up?

We are just focused on our own review and making sure we feel comfortable we are protecting players in Massachusetts. Frankly, what other states are doing or looking at or the actions they are taking is not something we take account of. We look at our own laws, look at consumer protection issues, and make sure we establish what doesn’t yet exist here, which is a legal and regulatory framework to address this industry.

We were looking at this issue well before there were allegations of ‘insider trading.’ But I think, as you said, it certainly was a catalytic event in terms of inspiring or leading to, it appears, any number of investigations and reviews by offices across the country. But look, we recognized this was an issue several months ago and we undertook our review at that point. And we have moved as expeditiously as possible. Not because of anything other than the fact that our governor, legislature, and consumers in Massachusetts are wondering what the rules are. So I thought it was important our office undertake a careful review and make our findings available as soon as possible. And they are robust consumer protections. I think they’re also fair. I think they reflect an understanding of the industry. I’m sure not everyone will agree, but we’ll see.

You’ve said that you believe playing daily fantasy is in fact gambling, but you want to regulate the companies, not make them illegal. Some people seem to see that as a contradiction. But those views– thinking it’s gambling but thinking it should be legal, if regulated– are not mutually exclusive, right?

You’ve got it right. I think a lot of people looking at this would call it gambling. I’ve called it gambling. The question is whether it’s gambling that currently fits within an existing legal and regulatory framework? And my response is that is something we need to create. And even people in the industry have agreed they need to be regulated. So I don’t see those as being mutually exclusive.

Do you think the companies have been forced to misrepresent themselves—to insist they are not gambling when they should have said from the start they were gambling operators?

Well, a couple of things here. Here’s the context in which we operate in Massachusetts: There was a 2006 federal law that addressed Internet gaming. It specifically carved out fantasy sports and left it to states to regulate. Five states have banned daily fantasy sports, Massachusetts is not among those states. [Author’s note: Those five states are Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana and Washington, but not all of those states outright banned it. DraftKings and FanDuel chose to not operate in those states because the law appears to be unfriendly. In addition, Nevada recently ruled that fantasy sports sites are gambling operators, so the companies do not currently operate in that state either.] Now, we have the original anti-lottery, anti-gambling statute here in Massachusetts, and I don’t think it is clear that that applies to this new industry that was never envisioned. That said, the way for us to take immediate action here in this state and protect young people is to put out these regulations. Different offices have different tools at their disposal and may approach it differently. I respect that. I’m just doing what I think is best for consumers here.

Our consumer protections would require adequate disclosures in their marketing, and financial protections so that people do not lose their shirts.

Your predecessor, former Mass Attorney General Martha Coakley, is now an adviser to DraftKings. Has that had an impact, have you talked to her about the industry or met with her?

Our office has not talked to her about it. She is in fact precluded from that under ethics rules. She has a one-year-off period before she can engage with this office. So the fact of the matter is, we haven’t spoken with her at all. The companies have quite a lot of lawyers—we’ve been working with them.

Are you eager to see other states follow your lead here?

I think we have proposed a robust roadmap here for Massachusetts. To the extent other states are interested in copying that, we’ll see what happens. I wouldn’t be surprised if they do, because we have spent considerable time on this issue. These are the first consumer protection regulations of this kind in the country. I think they provide a much needed framework for what has been an unregulated industry. And I hope and expect the companies to begin implementing them immediately.

But they don’t have to, until January or later.

Yes. Per our rule-making, there’s a comment period over the next couple months and a public hearing, and we will continue to take input from all stakeholders, including the companies. Then they will become effective early in the year, at the end of January or after that.

I want to make sure we get it right.

For more about fantasy sports, watch this Fortune video:

Summary: Attorney General Maura Healey wants daily fantasy sports regulated in her state.


Anh quốc bị tấn công khủng bố chỉ là vấn đề “xảy ra khi nào”, chứ không phải có khả năng hay không, là lời nhận định của Cảnh sát trưởng Sở cảnh sát đô thành London.

Viết cho tờ The Mail, số ra Chủ nhật, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe đề cập đến các vụ tấn công tàn ác xảy ra ở châu Âu và một số âm mưu bị chặn đứng ở Anh quốc.

Tuy nhiên, người đứng đầu Sở cảnh sát London nói việc Anh quốc chấp nhận sự khác biệt và “chia sẻ những giá trị” đã tạo nên một môi trường khó khăn cho những kẻ khủng bố.

Nguy cơ khủng bố ở Anh quốc được đặt ở mức “nghiêm trọng”- đồng nghĩa với khả năng bị khủng bố rất cao- kể từ 2014.

Đây cũng là mức cảnh báo đứng thứ hai trong số năm mức báo động về sự đe dọa đối với nước Anh.

Sir Bernard nói những vụ tấn công gần đây ở khắp nơi trên thế giới đã tạo nên “tâm lý lo sợ” ở trong nước Anh.

Đó là những vụ tấn công như ở Paris khiến 130 người thiệt mạng hồi tháng 11/2015, 32 người chết trong vụ đánh bom ở Bỉ vào hồi tháng Ba, và 84 người bị sát hại khi một chiếc xe tải đâm vào đám đông ở thành phố Nice của Pháp vào hồi đầu tháng Bảy.

Sir Bernard nói: “Tôi biết với mỗi vụ tấn công, đặc biệt là những vụ xảy ra ngay tại châu Âu, đã tạo ra tâm lý nước Anh sẽ là mục tiêu tiếp theo cho những vụ khủng bố thảm sát hàng loạt.

“Tôi cảm nhận và hiểu nỗi lo sợ này, và hiểu mọi người muốn tôi, với tư cách một sĩ quan cảnh sát, có thể đưa ra một lời đảm bảo sẽ ngăn chặn các vụ tấn công khủng bố.

“Tôi phải nói rằng tôi không thể đảm bảo một cách hoàn toàn chắc chắn.”

Cảnh sát trưởng London cũng nói về những âm mưu khủng bố bị chặn đứng ở nước Anh, kể từ vụ sát hại Lee Rigby vào hồi tháng Năm 2013, trong đó có vụ nhắm vào những sĩ quan của đồn cảnh sát ở Shepherd’s Bush ở phía tây thành phố London, và một vụ khác tương tự như vụ Lee Rigby đối với những quân nhân ở East Anglia.

Ông cũng cho biết sự phối hợp giữa cảnh sát và các cơ quan tình báo của Anh “rất hiệu quả”.

Các điều luật về kiểm soát súng của Anh quốc và trên thực tế do nước Anh là một hòn đảo nằm riêng biệt đồng nghĩa với “những kẻ khủng bố sẽ rất khó khăn để vận chuyển vũ khí vào Anh và tiến hành các vụ tấn công tương tự như ở trong lục địa (châu Âu),” Sir Bernard nói.

“Điểm thứ nhì là do lòng khoan dung và sự chấp nhận của chúng ta.

“Các tiếp cận Hồi giáo của chúng ta không có gì khác biệt vì mục đích của những cuộc tấn công khủng bố đều nhân danh Hồi giáo.

“Chúng ta không gắn những cái mác cho hàng triệu người Hồi giáo ở Anh, là những người hiểu giá trị và có đức tin ngược với những lời lẽ thù hận của những kẻ cực đoan.”

Cảnh sát trưởng London cũng cho biết số lượng cảnh sát vũ trang đã tăng từ 600 lên đến 2.800 người.

Nhưng ông cũng nói đa số cảnh sát không trang bị vũ khí và nói: “Tôi tin là điều này giúp mối quan hệ giữa cảnh sát và người dân tốt hơn rất nhiều”.

Summary: Anh quốc bị tấn công khủng bố chỉ là vấn đề “xảy ra khi nào”, là lời nhận định của Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, Cảnh sát trưởng London.


NEW HAVEN Lyle Lovett and His Large Band. Aug. 9 at 8 p.m. $55 to $85. Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires. Aug. 11 at 8 p.m. $25 to $35. College Street Music Hall, 238 College Street. 877-987-6487; collegestreetmusichall.com.

NEW MILFORD Griffin Anthony. July 30 at 8 p.m. $10 online; $15 at the door. Merryall Center for the Performing Arts, 8 Chapel Hill Road. 860-354-7264; merryallcenter.org.

NORTH STONINGTON Mystic Blues Festival, featuring Dr. John and the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Aug. 12, 13 and 14. $35 to $75. North Stonington Fairgrounds, 21 Wyassup Road. 860-536-9604; mysticbluesfestival.com.

NORTH STONINGTON Jonathan Edwards, country. July 31 at 6:30 p.m. $40. Jonathan Edwards Winery, 74 Chester Main Road. 860-535-0202; jedwardswinery.com.

OLD SAYBROOK Ronald Thomas, Alice K. Dade, Robert Belenic, Scott Yoo and Anna Polonsky perform Schubert. Aug. 5 at 8 p.m. Music by Brahms, Bartok and Dvořák. Aug. 12 at 8 p.m. $30 and $35. The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main Street. 860-510-0473; thekate.org; chestnuthillconcerts.org

PORT CHESTER Hot Tuna, blues, with Leftover Salmon. Aug. 6 at 8 p.m. $45 to $70. The Capitol Theater, 149 Westchester Avenue. 914-937-4126; thecapitoltheatre.com.

RIDGEFIELD KC and the Sunshine Band. July 31 at 8 p.m. $125. Glenn Miller Orchestra. Aug. 5 at 7:30 p.m. $38. Grand Funk Railroad. Aug. 6 at 8 p.m. $90. The Go Go’s, farewell tour. Best Coast also performs. Aug. 10 at 8 p.m. $150. Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge Road. 203-438-5795; ridgefieldplayhouse.org.

SALISBURY The New Baroque Soloists. Wednesday through Aug. 10. Donations. St. John’s Church, 12 Main Street. stjohnssalisbury.org; 860-435-9290.

UNCASVILLE Huey Lewis and the News. July 31 at 7:30 p.m. $39. Counting Crows with Rob Thomas. Aug. 6 at 6:45 p.m. $36 and $56. Deftones with Refused and Spotlights. Aug. 7 at 7:30 p.m. $39.50. Mohegan Sun, 1 Mohegan Sun Boulevard. 888-226-7711; mohegansun.com.

MILFORD “Spirits of Milford Ghost Walks,” 90-minute lantern-lit tours of downtown Milford that blend tales of the macabre with local history. Weekends through Aug. 27. $15. Hotchkiss Bridge. 203-214-7554; spiritsofmilford.com.

ANSONIA Rocks in Space: Perseid Meteor Showers. Viewing of the night sky with Bob Carruthers and the New Haven Astronomical Society. Aug. 12 at 8 p.m. Free; registration requested. Ansonia Nature Center, 10 Deerfield Road. 203-736-1053; ansonianaturecenter.org.

LITCHFIELD “Amour Provence,” discussion and book signing with the author Constance Leisure. Aug. 4 at 7 p.m. “Harper Lee: A Book Discussion Series,” led by Joseph Montebello. Aug. 14 at 1 p.m. Free. Oliver Wolcott Library, 160 South Street. 860-567-8030; owlibrary.org.

HARTFORD “If/Then,” a Broadway musical. Aug. 3 through 7. $25.50 to $88.50. Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, 166 Capitol Avenue. 860-987-5900; bushnell.org.

NEW MILFORD “[title of show],” musical comedy by Jeff Bowen and Hunter Bell. Through July 31. $21 and $26. TheaterWorks, 5 Brookside Avenue. theatreworks.us; 860-350-6863.

SHERMAN “Tartuffe,” comedy by Molière. Through July 31. $11 and $22. Sherman Playhouse, 5 Route 39 North. 860-354-3622; shermanplayers.org.

STRATFORD “Love’s Labour’s Lost” and “Richard III” in rotating repertory, featuring college-age actors from the United States and the United Kingdom. Through Aug. 7. Free; donations welcome. Shakespeare Academy at Stratford, 1850 Elm Street. shakespeareacademystratford.org.

WEST HARTFORD Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival, outdoor performance of “Othello.” Preshow music, lectures and more. Picnics welcome. Thursdays through Sundays, through July 31. $10 and $15. Carol Autorino Center, University of Saint Joseph, 1678 Asylum Avenue. hartfordshakespeare.org; 860-231-5555.

WESTPORT “The Invisible Hand,” play by Ayad Akhtar, directed by David Kennedy. Through Aug. 6. $25 to $85. Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court. 203-227-4177; westportplayhouse.org.

BRIDGEPORT “Vision and Line,” pencil drawings, acrylics and sculptures by Tony Calendrillo. Opening reception on Aug. 13 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 13 through 31. Free. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Framemakers Gallery, 3004 Fairfield Avenue. 203-338-0332; framemakersblackrock.com.

COS COB “Close to the Wind: Our Maritime History,” Greenwich history. Through Sept. 4. $8 and $10; members and children under 6, free. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Greenwich Historical Society, 39 Strickland Road. 203-869-6899; greenwichhistory.org.

DANBURY “Luminous Intervals: Extended Exposures in Alternative Photography,” Colin Burke. Through Sept. 30. Free. Weekdays, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Gallery at Still River Editions, 128 East Liberty Street. stillrivereditions.com; 203-791-1474.

DANBURY “Billions & Billions of Blocks Project,” Chris Durante. Through Aug. 13. Tuesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; or by appointment. Trailer Box Project, 15 Great Pasture Road, Unit 15. 203-797-0230; trailerboxproject.com.

DARIEN “The Art of Relaxation and Awareness,” paintings by Lori DuBois-Caruso. Through July 30. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Geary Gallery, 576 Boston Post Road. 203-655-6633; gearygallery.com.

DARIEN “Darien 1925-1950: Golden Age of Art and Design.” Through Sept. 11. Suggested donation, $5. Tuesdays through Thursdays, noon to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 3 p.m. The Darien Historical Society, 45 Old Kings Highway North. 203-655-9233; darienhistorical.org.

ESSEX “Travel Details,” paintings by Merrill French. Through July 31. Wednesdays through Fridays, noon to 5 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cooper & Smith Gallery, 10 Main Street. 860-581-8526; coopersmithgallery.com.

FAIRFIELD “Animals and Emotions,” work by Art Gerstein and Alice Katz. Through July 31. Thursdays through Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m.; Sundays, 2 to 5 p.m. Art/Place Gallery, 70 Sanford Street. 203-856-3181; artplacegallery.org.

FAIRFIELD “Fabulous Animals: The Illustrated World of Robert Lawson.” “Connecticut, 1940: Farms, Factories and the Photographs of Jack Delano.” Through Sept. 18. $5 for adults; $3 for students and seniors; children 5 and under, free. Daily, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fairfield Museum and History Center, 370 Beach Road. 203-259-1598; fairfieldhistory.org.

FAIRFIELD Marine Art exhibition and sale: A. D. Blake, Christopher Blossom, Don Demers and others. Through Sept. 3. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and by appointment. J. Russell Jinishian Gallery, 1899 Bronson Road. 203-259-8753; jrusselljinishiangallery.com.

GREENWICH “Topographies + Origins: A Group Exhibition of Painting, Monotype and Digital Fusion,” Eric Jiaju Lee, Leslie B. Weissman and Rosalind Schneider. Through Aug. 6. Free. Art and Sound Gallery, 101 Mill Street. artandsoundgallery.com; 203-813-3410.

GREENWICH “Electric Paris,” Edgar Degas, Jean Béraud, Mary Cassatt and more. Through Sept. 4. $6 and $7; members and children under 5, free. Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bruce Museum, 1 Museum Drive. brucemuseum.org; 203-869-0376.

GUILFORD “Upon Reflection,” Thomas Sarrantonio. Aug. 5 through 28. Thursday to Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Greene Art Gallery, 29 Whitfield Street. 203-453-4162; greeneartgallery.com.

HAMDEN “The Seed of the People: 1916 Remembered,” Irish history exhibition. Through Sept. 30. Quinnipiac University, 275 Mount Carmel. 203-582-7809; quinnipiac.edu.

HARTFORD “Surface Work,” abstract group exhibition. “Distracted Driving,” conceptual sculpture. “Road to Ruin,” fabric-text constructions by Rita Valley. Through Sept. 11. Suggested donation, $3; members and cinema patrons, free. Daily, 2 to 9 p.m.; and by appointment. Real Art Ways, 56 Arbor Street. 860-232-1006; realartways.org.

HARTFORD “40 Acres: The Promise of a Black Pastoral.” Through Oct. 23. $5 to $15; members and children under 12, free. Wednesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; weekends, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, 600 Main Street. thewadsworth.org; 860-278-2670.

LITCHFIELD “Heal,” Erin Tapley, fiber scrolls. Artist talk on Aug. 13 at 3:30 p.m. Through Oct. 1. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Marie Louise Trichet Art Gallery, Wisdom House, 229 East Litchfield Road. wisdomhouse.org; 860-567-3163.

NEW BRITAIN “Eric Aho: An Unfinished Point in a Vast Surrounding.” Through Aug. 14. “New Media: Maya Jeffereis, Fallout Shelter.” Through Sept. 11. “Masterpieces of the Sanford B. D. Low Illustration Collection.” Through Oct. 2. $10 to $15; members and children under 12, free. Sundays through Wednesdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. New Britain Museum of American Art, 56 Lexington Street. 860-229-0257; nbmaa.org.

NEW CANAAN “Waterways IV,” group exhibition. Through Sept. 10. Free. Mondays through Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; and by appointment. Heather Gaudio Fine Art, 66 Elm Street. 203-801-9590; heathergaudiofineart.com.

NEW CANAAN “Character of Place,” mixed media by Maria Lara and Susan Newbold. Through Aug. 20. Mondays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Curtis Gallery at New Canaan Library, 151 Main Street. 203-594-5003; newcanaanlibrary.org.

NEW HAVEN “Fourplay,” paintings by Roberta Friedman, Jane Harris and Mary Lesser, ceramic sculptures by Sheila Kaczmarek. Through July 31. Thursdays through Sundays, noon to 4 p.m.; and by appointment. City Gallery, 994 State Street. 203-782-2489; city-gallery.org.

NEW HAVEN Emilia Dubicki, Aspasia Anos and Becky Yazdan. Through Aug. 5. Mondays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and by appointment. Fred Giampietro Gallery, 1064 Chapel Street. 203-777-7760; giampietrogallery.com.

NEW HAVEN “Artist as Curator III.” Through Aug. 21. Thursdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Kehler Liddell Gallery, 873 Whalley Avenue. 203-389-9555; kehlerliddell.com.

NEW HAVEN “Art in Focus: Relics of Old London.” Through Aug. 14. “Modernism and Memory: Rhoda Pritzker and the Art of Collecting.” Through Aug. 21. “The Poet of Them All: William Shakespeare and Miniature Designer Bindings from the Collection of Neale and Margaret Albert.” Through Aug. 21. “Britain in the World,” an exhibit reinstalled after completion of building conservation project. Through Dec. 31. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Yale Center for British Art, 1080 Chapel Street. 203-432-2800; britishart.yale.edu.

NEW MILFORD “Whatchama Callit,” mixed media paintings by Mario Zecca. Through Aug. 14. New Milford Public Library, 24 Main Street. 860-355-1191; newmilfordlibrary.org.

NEW MILFORD “Strange Paradise,” photographs by Martin Parr. Through Aug. 27. Thursdays through Saturdays, noon to 8 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 3 p.m. The Harts Gallery, 20 Bank Street. thehartsgallery.com; 917-913-4641.

NORWALK “Coney Island: Visions From the Boardwalk,” Gail Ingis-Claus. Reception on Sept. 8 at 5:30 p.m. Through Sept. 30. $6 to $10; members and children under 8, free. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, 295 West Avenue. 203-838-9799; lockwoodmathewsmansion.com.

OLD LYME “The Artist’s Garden: American Impressionism and the Garden Movement, 1887-1920.” Through Sept. 18. $8 to $10; children under 12, free. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme Street. 860-434-5542; flogris.org.

OLD LYME “American Waters: A Marine Exhibition.” Through Aug. 26. $5 suggested donation. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 5 p.m.; and by appointment. Lyme Art Association Gallery, 90 Lyme Street. lymeartassociation.org; 860-434-7802.

RIDGEFIELD Kim Jones, David Brooks, Peter Liversidge and Virginia Overton, including sculpture-, drawing- and performance-based works. Through Feb. 5. $5 and $10. Members, teachers of kindergarten through 12th grade, active-service military families and children under 18, free. Mondays and Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, 258 Main Street. aldrichart.org; 203-438-4519.

ROXBURY “On the Edge: The Littoral and the Liminal,” coastal photographs by Jay Kaplan. Opening reception on Aug. 6 at 2 p.m. Aug. 6 through Sept. 17. Minor Memorial Library, 23 South Street. 860-350-2181; minormemoriallibrary.org.

SHARON “Diamonds and Rust,” Moira Kelly. Through Aug. 21. Thursdays through Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Darren Winston, Bookseller, 81 Main Street. 860-364-1890; darrenwinstonbookseller.com.

SOUTHPORT “Pages From Pequot — The Birds and the Bees: Preserving Their Habitat,” exhibition from Special Collections. Through Aug. 8. Free. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pequot Library, 720 Pequot Avenue. 203-259-0346; pequotlibrary.com.

SOUTHPORT “Mind Maps,” abstract canvases by Katy Ferrarone. Through Aug. 20. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Southport Galleries, 330 Pequot Avenue. 203-292-6124; southportgalleries.com.

STAMFORD “The Exquisite Corpse,” group exhibition. Through Aug. 28. Free. Weekends, 1 to 4:30 p.m. Loft Artists Association, 575 Pacific Street. 203-247-2027; loftartists.com.

STAMFORD “Far Away Places,” group multimedia exhibition. Through Aug. 18. Thursdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; weekends, noon to 3 p.m. Stamford Art Association, 39 Franklin Street. 203-325-1139; stamfordartassociation.org.

STAMFORD “Counterpoint,” group exhibition. Aug. 8 through Sept. 15. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. University of Connecticut Stamford Art Gallery, One University Place. 203-251-8450; artgallery.stamford.uconn.edu.

STORRS “Blow Up: Contemporary Inflatable Art.” Twenty-one inflatable works, among them a 10-foot-tall White Elephant and a 17-foot-long Pontiac Trans Am replica of the 1977 car in “Smokey and the Bandit.” Through July 31. Free. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; weekends, 1 to 4:30 p.m. William Benton Museum of Art, University of Connecticut, 245 Glenbrook Road. 860-486-4520; benton.uconn.edu.

WALLINGFORD “Landscapes, Figures and Flowers,” oil paintings by P. L. Corbett. Opening reception on Aug. 13 at 3 p.m. Aug. 1 through 28. Wednesdays through Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m.; and by appointment. Camelot Gallery Of Fine Art, 310 North Main Street. 201-803-3766.

WASHINGTON DEPOT “the thing of it is,” group exhibition. Through Aug. 20. Free. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Washington Art Association, 4 Bryan Memorial Plaza. washingtonartassociation.org; 860-868-2878.

WATERBURY “Tea Day 1931: The Art Community at Old Lyme,” William Chadwick, Frank Dumond, Lydia Longacre, Bessie Potter Vonnoh and others. Through Sept. 4. “Nature’s Patina: Elizabeth MacDonald.” Through Sept. 6. “The Hand of the Maker Speaks to Us: Renee Iacone.” Through Sept. 6. “What a Woman!,” work by Rosalind Russell. Through Oct. 30. Free. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Mattatuck Museum, 144 West Main Street. 203-753-0381; mattatuckmuseum.org.

WESTPORT “Solos 2016,” artist member exhibition juried by Douglas Hyland. Through Aug. 24. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Westport Arts Center, 51 Riverside Avenue. westportartscenter.org; 203-222-7070.

WETHERSFIELD “Textile Treasures Digging Deeper Tour,” a rare public tour of clothing, shoes, crewelwork and linens dating from the 1690s to mid-1800s. Aug. 13 at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. $15. Call for hours. Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, 211 Main Street. 860-529-0612; webb-deane-stevens.org.

WINDSOR “Made in the Shade: Reflections of the Tobacco Valley Industry,” Andrew Buck and Lucy Sander Sceery. Through Aug. 27. Thursdays, 6 to 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Windsor Art Center, 40 Mechanic Street. 860-688-2528; windsorartcenter.org.

Summary: “Acadia,” a black-and-white photograph by Jay Kaplan, will be on view in “On the Edge: The Littoral and the Liminal,” an exhibition of his coastal photographs.


LAS VEGAS--Intense thunderstorms pounded the Las Vegas area Thursday with golf ball-sized hail, gusty winds, destructive lightning and sheets of rain that swamped busy intersections and left at least one person hospitalized after she was plucked from a flooded wash, authorities said.

The woman was believed to have suffered a heart attack while she and two other people were rescued from rushing water near the Hard Rock Casino Hotel...

Summary: Hail, flooding in Las Vegas force rescues.


Signature Healthcare Services LLC has hired investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to help introduce it to a financial investor, said people familiar with the situation.

The deal could provide a rare chance for private-equity firms, which have typically backed smaller behavioral health-care companies, to back a sizable industry player.

The closely held Corona, Calif.-based company, which does business as Aurora Behavioral...

Summary: Signature Healthcare Services has hired investment bank Goldman Sachs to help introduce it to a financial investor, said people familiar with the situation.


It was hard to disagree with the garrulous Russian on a night like this. Daley did indeed get the pop star treatment, receiving a rapturous welcome from a full house of 3,000 underneath the exotic ceiling of this dramatic arena, with the scene set for the schoolboy to sprinkle the sort of Olympic stardust which Jessica Ennis and Sir Chris Hoy had sprayed around in competition at the weekend.

And after qualifying a little haphazardly in sixth place in the morning preliminaries, for a while during an absorbing final it was easy to believe Daley and his experienced 30-year-old partner might do just that as they lay in bronze medal position after four rounds, looking on course to emulate the women’s synchro pairing of Tonia Couch and Sarah Barrow 24 hours earlier.

Then came 1½ seconds of calamity. Attempting their most ambitious and difficult dive, a forward four and half somersault, the pair fouled up spectacularly.

Waterfield’s execution was poor but Daley’s was nightmarish, with the youngster barely having come out of the fourth somersault and was completely crooked as he hit the water. From third, they plummeted to seventh. It could only be interpreted as a loss of nerve at the vital time.

Daley shrugged afterwards that “it was just one dive that we missed and that’s what happens in a sport like diving. That was the difference between winning a medal and not.” Evangulov disagreed; he felt even without the dismal dive they would still only have been fourth at best.

Daley, unaware of the latest barbs being aimed his way, afterwards defended his training regime and also noted the recent injuries suffered by both him and Waterfield, as he insisted: “I know that I’ve been putting in all of the hours I can. Unfortunately today wasn’t our day.”

Waterfield, too, felt compelled to rush to his partner’s defence. “We didn’t miss a dive because Tom has been doing too much media. We missed a dive because we’ve had setbacks with injuries. It’s you guys [the media] who are saying it’s all about the media. You keep bringing it up.”

Except it was Evangulov who brought up the subject again here. It is actually easy to feel some sympathy for Daley because he has always handled himself, from his wunderkind days, with remarkable commitment and maturity.

Indeed, Evangulov wanted to express what a fan of Daley he remained but made it clear that he felt he still wasn’t doing enough work.

“Of course, the Mexicans [who finished second last night] train 12 times a week. Tom has increased his training from six to nine times a week, which is already a great achievement as he’s at school, but his rivals are professionals, they train as full-timers. As for the Chinese. Unbeatable.”

This was not even China’s first-choice pairing but Yuan Cao and Yanquan Zhang were so dazzling, they did not even seem to cause the merest splash on entry, finishing 62 points clear of the Britons. But Evangulov wanted to end his address on a positive note.

“Apart from the Chinese, the rest we can compete with. I’ve said Tom is a genius and I believe in him and Pete. We can still win a medal.”

1 Yuan Cao & Yanquan Zhang (Chn) 481.29pts 2 Ivan Alejandro Garcia & German Sanchez (Mex) 460.17 3 Patrick Hausding & Sascha Klein (Ger) 457.41 4 David Boudia & Nick Mccrory (USA) 444.93 5 Jose A Guerra & Jeinkler Aguirre (Cub) 432.30 6 Ilya Zakharov & Victor Minibaev (Rus) 432.27 7 Thomas Daley & Peter Waterfield (Gbr) 419.97 8 Kevin Alan Geyson & Eric Sehn (Can) 402.12 9 Oleksandr Bondar & Oleksandr Gorshkovozov (Ukr) 380.16 10 Jiho Park & Yitaek Oh (Kor) 378.30

Summary: After all the withering insistence that he is putting his image before his   sport and that he is not facing up to the realities of 2012 pressure, Tom   Daley could only offer a feeble riposte off the high board at the new   Olympic Aquatics Centre, as his harshest critic launched a fresh tirade.


He highlighted that the amount of trading based on short-term news meant companies such as these, which supply Apple, trade up and down in response to iPhone sales reports.

“What investors are missing is that the main growth area for these companies is not Apple. It’s other phone manufacturers and wireless devices. This provides opportunities to buy at cheap valuations.”

Some of the most compelling investment cases come from technologies that attack existing sources of profit and transform current business practices.

Benefiting from these themes is arguably much easier than attempting to pick a winner from the periphery of the tech world, where there are countless companies vying for attention.

“Cloud computing”, where computing power is hosted by a service provider online rather than on a company’s own equipment, is one example.

Mr Rogoff said: “You used to have to spend capital on equipment and people, put that against a problem and see whether it stuck. Now you can put a business together quickly, break even more quickly and see whether the concept works.”

He said cloud computing is now at the point where it is starting to profit at the expense of existing technologies, challenging established giants of the old order.

One element that has changed significantly since the tech bubble is the scale of user bases and how quickly they can grow. The growth of Pokemon Go, the smartphone game, to tens of millions of daily users almost instantaneously is testament to that.

But there remains the challenge of turning user numbers into money. Twitter is still struggling to convert its 300 million users into revenues, and media businesses face similar problems in making money from their online readership.

Mr Train said: “From our perspective, the most interesting thing in technology is what attracts millions or billions of eyeballs to a given place. There is clearly extraordinary value in places that can aggregate so much attention.

Summary: Nearly two decades after the spectacular boom and bust of the dotcom bubble, technology stocks finally appear to be delivering on their promise.


08/17/2016 AT 05:35 PM EDT

The time has come: After plenty of gold medals and Final Five domination, the gymnastics portion of the 2016 Olympics is over.

But if you feel a wave of gymnastics withdrawal coming over you, not to worry – there's plenty more where those killer routines came from.

Here, 10 need-to-see, pretty-much-perfect gymnastic routines that'll help to ease the post-Olympics void.

It's only been four years since Maroney pulled this off, but it's still as impressive as the day she did it.

Johnson became only the second American woman ever to win gold in the balance beam final in Beijing with this spot-on routine.

When you do something so well they name it for you, that's how you know you killed it.

Comaneci was only 14 years old when she nailed this routine, getting the highest-ever score in gymnastics.

She won the gold this year, too, but Russian gymnast Mustafina's routine from 2012 proves she's been queen of this event for quite sometime now.

Raisman took home one individual gold from London, for this routine.

Liukin's stuck landing helped her to cinch the all-around gold medal in Beijing.

Before she was the bars specialist of the Final Five, Kocian tied for gold at the World Championships.

At her second World Championships, Biles proved she wasn't just a one-hit wonder, winning her second consecutive gold in this event.

When Strug landed this, the U.S. all but cemented its first-ever team gold medal, and the team's place in history.

Lucky for us, the Final Five are set to make the media circuit upon returning to the U.S., so weâll see them on the small screen again soon!

Summary: Because two weeks of gymnastics every four years just isn't enough


The man allegedly crashed the car into a plane on the tarmac. (David Postier)

A man is in custody after allegedly crashing a ute into a plane on the tarmac of an airport in Omaha, Nebraska.

Omaha Airport Authority police chief Tim Conahan told KETV the man was seen acting strangely near a parking garage at Eppley Airport on Thursday night.

Airport officers reportedly tried to approach the man to calm him down, but he scaled the fence and ran into the construction area of the airport.

Security cameras then recorded the man climbing into a Southwest Airlines ute and crashing into a stationary airplane at high speed.

People were boarding the airplane at the time of the crash, but there were no major injuries.

"We all didn't fall over, but it shook us pretty hard,” passenger Callie Moran told KETV.

The man was transported to a local hospital and treated for injuries.

He is in police custody.

Mr Conahan said National Transport Safety and the FBI may be involved in further investigations into the crash.

© Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2016

Summary: A man is in custody after allegedly crashing a truck into a plane on the tarmac of an airport in Omaha, Nebraska.


Abercrombie & Fitch Co. posted a decline in quarterly sales and gave a more cautious outlook for the year, as the apparel retailer struggled to attract shoppers to its flagship properties.

Shares of Abercrombie tumbled 20% to $18.29 on Tuesday.

Sales at stores open at least a year are expected to “remain challenging” through the second half of the year, the company said. In May, the company expected “better results” in the back of the year following assortment changes and other investments.

Executive Chairman Arthur Martinez cited “traffic headwinds in the domestic mall business” and a “significant drop-off” in tourism. “We do not see those headwinds materially changing in the next few months,” he said in an interview.

The New Albany, Ohio, company said sales at stores open at least a year fell 4% in the fiscal second quarter ended July 30, matching the first quarter decline and the results in the same period last year. Analysts had expected a 4.2% decline.

The company’s Hollister brand, which has been a bright spot in past quarters, lost steam. Hollister sales at stores open at least a year fell 2%, while that metric fell 7% at Abercrombie.

The company’s namesake brand released a new assortment in recent months, reflecting a different look from its highly sexualized image of previous years. The clothing, however, still features denim and other basics—a market with many ailing competitors.

“What will set us apart is the quality we invest in the product, the patterns we use, particularly in the tops business, and the value for money,” said Mr. Martinez.

Total revenue fell 4% to $783.2 million for the quarter. The company’s net loss was $13.1 million, or 19 cents a share, compared with $0.8 million, or 1 cent, a year ago. Analysts had expected a loss of 20 cents a share on $783 million of revenue, according to FactSet.

The chain plans to close up to 60 stores in the U.S. and is evaluating other locations as about 50% of its U.S. leases expire by the end of fiscal 2017. The company has closed about a third of its U.S. locations over the past six years, leaving around 744 in its home market.

“We continue to have significant flexibility to strike the right channel balance, as we anticipate evolving shopping preferences,” said Finance Chief Joanne Crevoiserat.

Mr. Martinez said the company is continuing to hold the line on promotions. “We took our foot off the gas on discounting in the second quarter,” he said. “We believe it is right for the brand.”

One source of improvement was its digital performance. Direct-to-consumer sales grew to approximately 23% of total company sales for the second quarter, compared with 21% last year. Mr. Martinez attributed the increase to progress made on website design and omnichannel initiatives.

The company also recently expanded its reach across the web by entering into a wholesale agreement with Zalando SE , an online fashion retailer based in Europe. Last week, Abercrombie and Hollister products were made available to the site’s 18 million active customers. “It’s about creating ubiquity for the brand,” said Mr. Martinez.

Write to Khadeeja Safdar at khadeeja.safdar@wsj.com

Summary: Abercrombie & Fitch posted a decline in quarterly sales and gave a more cautious outlook for the year, as the apparel retailer struggled to attract shoppers to its mall-based outlets.


Police divers have again scoured Perth's Swan River as the investigation continues into the murder of a wealthy, reclusive artist whose body was found inside a suitcase floating on the waterway.

Annabelle Chen's body was found on July 2 but it took until September 5 to identify the 57-year-old after her Melbourne-based daughter reported her missing.

Her daughter travelled to Perth from Melbourne because she was worried that she had not been able to contact her mother since she saw her in Perth on June 30, two days before her body was found.

The divorcee had lived in the affluent suburb of Mosman Park since 1999 and was partly estranged from her large, extended family.

Distinctive ceramic tiles that were found in the suitcase - presumably placed there in a bid to weigh it down - were reportedly also in the bathroom of a home she previously owned on Wellington Street.

It's believed she sold the home several years ago, and the house has had different owners since then. There is no suggestion they knew Ms Chen.

Police, who scoured Ms Chen's Meath Mews property for clues when they revealed her identity on last week, say she suffered significant injuries and it's hoped the dive on Wednesday will provide more information about the circumstances around her violent death.

The divers are searching waters near the Fremantle Traffic Bridge where more of the distinctive tiles were previously found.

A kick scooter with a breadboard strapped to it was also found in the same area and may have been used to move the suitcase.

Police are seeking information from anyone who saw suspicious activity along the river from Thursday, June 30 to Saturday, July 2.

Summary: As police continue to investigate the mysterious murder of reclusive artist Annabelle Chen, divers are again searching the Swan River where her body was found.


09/28/2016 AT 10:00 PM EDT

says that her character, Zoey, goes "through what most teenagers go through" throughout season 3.

On Wednesday night's premiere, the eldest daughter in the Johnson family opts out of praying for the family's dinner and reveals that she is questioning her faith. "I don't know if I feel comfortable leading grace when I'm not sure if I believe in God," she states in the episode.

"I feel like Zoey is now at this place in her world in which after her parents basically telling her what to believe her entire life, she's now realizing that not everything goes as planned and she's wondering what that means, I guess, in terms of her belief. It's just not as simple as 'well, this is the truth,' " Shahidi, 16, exclusively tells PEOPLE.

She continues, "I think every person has gone through a period of time when they ask, 'Am I believing this just to be believe? Is this real? What is happening? There's so many bad things that happen in the world. Does that mean that there isn't a God?' "

Reflecting on her character's thought process, Shahidi says that Zoey is "going through what most teenagers go through" and that she voices her doubts with specific intention versus merely being a rebellious teen.

"Unlike other episodes in which you see her rebel for the sake of rebelling, she truly has a reason and she truly is trying to find an answer. It doesn't stem from her need to just be different or do differently, but you almost see her want to believe and want to fit in with the rest of her family," Shahidi tells PEOPLE. "The struggle is that she just can't blindly accept it until she comes to her own resolve or conclusion."

Although Shahidi says that she and Zoey started out as "complete opposites" in season 1, she and her character have become more alike through the passing of time and maturation.

"In this episode, you see her willingness to go into that uncharted territory even though she knows that it'll cause problems and even though she knows her father won't like," she explains of Zoey.

The season 3 premiere episode also saw

) brother – described by Shahidi as a "young, hipster skeptic" – who just got back to America after teaching for two years in France.

star told PEOPLE of filming with leading man

, "We were shooting a scene in a car – and spending most of the day with Anthony Anderson in a car is a thing I will never forget. I haven't taken a road trip with him, but this was like that."

airs Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

Summary: On the Sept. 28 season 3 premiere episode, Zoey questions her family's beliefs: "You almost see her want to believe and want to fit in with the rest of her family"


Whatever is the result of the United States presidential election, Australia is ready, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says.

Ms Bishop told a meeting of Liberal and National MPs in Canberra on Tuesday the outcome matters enormously, but Australia will continue to be a reliable ally no matter who wins.

The government is ready for either a Trump or a Clinton administration, she said.

Summary: Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says the Australian government is ready regardless of whether Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton wins the US presidential race.


Have you been groaning about your belly bloating?

Apple cider vinegar has been touted as a cure-all for decades.

Progress in the U.S. against obesity, food poisoning, and infections spread in hospitals has been uneven and disappointing, despite dedicated efforts to fight these health threats ...

You wouldn't be the first, experts say.

Plant-based diets are tied to a lower risk of health problems like heart disease, diabetes, obesity and certain cancers - and pretty much anyone can eat this way, according to a le...

Primary care doctors often use the wrong test to diagnose food allergies in children, new research shows.

- In U.S. adults, levels of fatty substances in the blood have continued to fall over the past few years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Giving people detailed information about their personal genetic risk of developing diabetes may not inspire them to change their behavior any more than just giving them basic facts...

Want to know why Americans are so fat?

Crushed leaves in bagged lettuces at the supermarket may leak juice that fosters the right environment for Salmonella growth, according to a new study from the UK.

Summary: Nutrition news articles and videos from FoxNews.com's Health section.


President Obama’s former national security adviser said Monday that President-elect Donald Trump’s phone call with the president of Taiwan should not be seen as a big deal.

Less than a week before President-elect Donald Trump spoke with Taiwan’s president over the phone, China flew a pair of long-range nuclear-capable bombers around Taiwan for the...

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl--held captive for five years after being captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan--has requested a pardon from President Obama, Fox News has learned from...

An Iranian small boat pointed a machine gun at a U.S. Navy helicopter flying off an American aircraft carrier in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, two U.S. defense officials...

The Russian military launched long-range bombers from an air base in southern Russia for the first time in a year to strike targets in Syria, two U.S. officials told Fox News...

A Russian fighter jet crashed in the Mediterranean Sea shortly after launching from its aircraft carrier near the coast of Syria Sunday, two U.S. officials told Fox News.

Russia is preparing to carry out a new round of strikes targeting Syria from a group of warships that recently arrived in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, two U.S. defense...

The U.S. military has ended its bombing campaign against ISIS in the Libyan coastal city of Sirte after three months of round-the-clock airstrikes beginning on Aug. 1, multiple...

North Korea is preparing to launch another intermediate-range ballistic missile in the next 24 to 72 hours, two US officials with knowledge of the latest intelligence...

ISIS is planning additional "significant" external operations against the West from its de-facto capital in Raqqa, Syria, the top U.S. commander in Iraq told reporters...

Summary: Browse stories from Lucas Tomlinson on FoxNews.com


An additional $2.6 million has been allocated to a road safety blitz for the holiday season as Western Australia faces its highest road toll in six years.

The funding will be put towards overtime for additional road traffic police, random breath testing, roadside drug testing, and regional police operations.

The campaign will target a 250km radius around Perth, where 70 per cent of regional road fatalities occurred this year, and includes roads such as Great Eastern Highway, Great Northern Highway and Albany Highway.

So far this year, 189 people have died on WA roads, 117 on regional roads and 72 in the metropolitan area, exceeding last year's total of 161 fatalities.

Police Minister Liza Harvey said while 2016 was the best in six years for metropolitan road fatalities, it was the worst for regional road fatalities.

"All of those crashes were preventable. Every single one of those crashes has involved speeding, people not wearing seatbelts, drink driving, drug driving, fatigue, distraction," she said on Thursday.

"We need motorists to make better decisions, we need the family of motorists to help them make better decisions.

"Don't let your drunk brother or sister get behind the wheel of a vehicle and kill themselves and other people."

Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan urged drivers to pay attention, particularly over the busy holiday period when many people were expected on the roads.

He said police did not have a magic bullet for road safety and they relied on people to be responsible with their driving.

Double demerits begin from midnight on Thursday until midnight on January 8.

Summary: The WA government is spending $2.6 million on a holiday road safety campaign, as the state faces the worst road toll in six years.


Fans looking forward to a sneak peek at Paul Rudd’s turn as Marvel superhero Ant-Man will have to break out their magnifying glasses: The new teaser for the film is scaled for insects.

Fear not, ye of human-sized eyeballs: the full-sized trailer will be released Jan. 6. In the meantime, as Derek Zoolander would say, the teaser has to be at least… three times bigger than this!

Ant-Man hits theaters July 17.

Summary: You'll have to squint to see it


Monday, November 3th 1997, 2:03AM

Six admitted members of the Bloods including two young women were charged in the gang rape of a 19-year-old woman at a Halloween party in Brooklyn, police said yesterday.

As the women one only 15 held the terrified victim down, the four men took turns raping and sodomizing her inside a Flatbush apartment house early Saturday as other partyers looked on, police said.

Then in a bizarre Bloods "punishment," one of the women whipped the victim's back 31 times with a belt because the gang felt she didn't resist them enough, sources said.

"Their logic makes no sense," a police source said. "They hold her down, then whip her for not fighting stronger against the rape.

"She did push and shove them, but not enough to the degree they thought was acceptable."

Although other party guests several of whom were not Bloods members witnessed the half-hour attack, none tried to stop it, police sources said.

About dawn, the woman ran from the house at 1299 Ocean Ave. and called police. She was treated and released from Coney Island Hospital.

Investigators said the six suspects, all Brooklyn residents, admitted their Bloods allegiance in video-taped statements. One suspect, 18-year-old James London, who threw the party at his home, was identified as a "midlevel manager" of the gang in Brooklyn.

All six were charged with first-degree rape and sexual abuse, cops said. They include the 15-year-old, who was not identified because of her age, London, and Pierre Roland, 25, of 1207 Eastern Parkway.

In addition, Zaquan Jackson, 19, of 1558 Schenectady Ave., was charged with sodomy. Lamaya Hill, 19, of 1299 Ocean Ave., and Jimmy Smith, 17, of 179 Conklin Ave., were charged with assault.

Summary: Six admitted members of the Bloods including two young women were charged in the gang rape of a 19-year-old woman at a Halloween party in Brooklyn, police said yesterday. As the women one only 15 held the terrified victim down, the four men took turns raping and sodomizing her inside a Flatbush apartment house early Saturday as other partyers looked on, police said. Then in a bizarre Bloods "punishment,"one of the women


By AUSTIN FENNER and MIGUEL GARCILAZO

Friday, March 14th 1997, 2:02AM

A 3-year-old boy visiting his father's Bronx apartment died yesterday after falling three stories through an open window, police said.

Little Selwin Adams Jr. plummeted nearly 30 feet to the concrete courtyard on Morris Ave., Fordham, shortly before 9 a.m., witnesses told police.

"The father [who lived alone] was making breakfast in the kitchen and [the boy] was playing in the living room," said Officer Eve Serrano, a police spokeswoman. "The window had no guards and the child fell out the window."

Startled neighbors, who later speculated that the windows in the apartment might have been open because of the excessive heat and humidity in the building, peered from their rear windows as Selwin's grief-stricken mother began to scream hysterically.

"I heard screaming, apparently from the [boy's] mother. The father came running down to get the baby," said Tony, the building superintendent.

"The baby was alive. His eyes were open, but he looked like he was in pain," the superintendent added. "He was groaning and he couldn't talk this breaks my heart. I have kids, too."

The boy's father, Selwin Adams Sr., quickly scooped up his son and jumped into a passing livery cab.

The cab rushed to nearby Union Hospital, where doctors worked for nearly four hours to stabilize the badly injured child.

Before the child could be transported to Montefiore Medical Center's pediatric emergency department, he died about 12:45 p.m.

Meanwhile, the residential building's management company yesterday said there were no window guards in the Adams apartment because no children lived there.

"There are no children in that apartment," said building manager Isadore Fishman. The mother and child "were not the tenants of the apartment."

According to building residents, there was a plumbing leak in Adams' apartment. His son and the boy's mother had come to housesit while the repairs were under way, presumably while Adams was at work, one neighbor said.

City regulations require landlords and managing agents to properly install window guards to protect children under the age of 11. In addition, tenants can request window guards whether or not there are children in the household.

Summary: A 3-year-old boy visiting his father's Bronx apartment died yesterday after falling three stories through an open window, police said. Little Selwin Adams Jr. plummeted nearly 30 feet to the concrete courtyard on Morris Ave., Fordham, shortly before 9 a.m., witnesses told police. "The father [who lived alone] was making breakfast in the kitchen and [the boy] was playing in the living room,"said Officer Eve Serrano, a police spokeswoman. "The window had


A year that began with a bang was interrupted by a

, and now is ending with a whimper. Next year is projected to be better — but not for everybody.

The March earthquake and tsunami in

, which put a months-long halt to automobile production, combined with a moribund job market and a steady drumbeat of bad economic news to slam the brakes on television advertising sales.

Early in 2011, economists predicted that TV advertising revenue in the U.S. would increase 6% this year to an all-time high. But during the summer the TV ad market cooled considerably, with the pace of growth slowing to less than 2% for the year. TV ad revenue is expected to end the year at nearly $68 billion — still a record, but the slowdown is a reminder of TV advertising's vulnerability.

"The ad market has been slowly drifting downward over the course of the year," said Jon Swallen, senior vice president of research at Kantar Media, which monitors advertising spending. "Traditional media sectors are lagging, experiencing softness, which suggests broad-based caution on the part of advertisers."

Seismic shifts in spending continue to roil the media industry. Those changes come on top of the recession, which prompted advertisers to reduce spending. Some of the biggest ad buyers — retailers, automakers, car dealerships and home sellers — have been particularly hard hit, and few are predicting a speedy economic recovery.

Overall ad spending in the U.S. is expected to grow a meager 1.8% this year to $144 billion, Swallen said. MagnaGlobal recently cut its 2012 forecast to 2.9% growth in total ad spending, down from the nearly 5% that the agency was predicting just a few months ago.

During the first quarter of 2011, media companies that owned TV networks and prominent cable channels were riding high and assuming the recession was in the rearview mirror. Advertisers were paying 25% premiums over last year's rates to buy commercial spots that were still available. TV network chiefs figured they would reap double-digit rate increases for their commercial time when the annual television ad sales season revved up in June. The networks sell nearly 80% of their commercial time for the coming season during the "upfront" TV advertising market.

But those heady days came to an end in March when a magnitude 9 earthquake and devastating tsunami hit Japan. The quake damaged car factories, slowing production of major models from

Supply lines also were interrupted, leading to a shortage of parts. With fewer cars to ship to the lots, Japanese companies slashed their ad purchases.

"There was a slowdown in car sales and so other automakers did not advertise as aggressively," Kantar's Swallen said. "They figured they didn't need to advertise as much to meet their sales quotas."

By late summer, the Japanese car inventory had returned, and auto companies were kicking into gear their big-budget marketing plans. Then came devastating floods in

"Now, those floods are threatening to severely curtail production from Japanese automakers because they source a lot of their parts from Thailand," Swallen said.

The sluggish economy also continues to take its toll. Spooked by the weak job market, stagnant wages and falling home values, consumers have not been spending as freely. Retailers, in particular, have been feeling the pinch.

Hollywood movie studios, traditionally heavy spenders, have been cutting back too — but for a different reason. Major studios have been releasing fewer big-budget films in recent years, so they haven't needed to spend as much on marketing.

's studio, for example, is releasing 14 films this year, down from 19 released in 2000 and 32 released in 1995, according to box-office tracker Hollywood.com.

"It's a very complex market," said Lisa Herdman, director of national programming at RPA, a Santa Monica ad agency. "There is not one thing that is driving it, but it seems that the root of all of this can be tied back to the consumer confidence level."

Wall Street analysts have been monitoring the performance of Disney,

and other large media companies, searching for worrisome trends.

Lower ratings for TV programs have become a concern, said Doug Creutz, media analyst at Cowen & Co. Although networks are commanding higher rates for their commercial time compared with last year, ad revenue is shaping up to be flat or down because programs are drawing smaller audiences.

For the first seven weeks of the TV season,

is averaging 7.3 million viewers a night — down 9% compared with a year earlier. Several new NBC shows have bombed, and once-trusty veterans, including "Law & Order:

" and "The Biggest Loser," have bled more than 1 million viewers.

"Without football, NBC's ratings would be approaching basic cable channel levels," Creutz said.

David Campanelli, senior vice president of national broadcast for ad-buyer Horizon Media Inc., said, "CBS is in the strongest position of the broadcast networks based on their current prime-time ratings performance. And sports programming has been strong and reliable. Sports have become a safe haven for advertisers."

CBS is averaging 13 million viewers a night, up 2% compared with the first seven weeks of last season. Disney's

is fetching 9.66 million viewers in prime time, down 1%.

Broadcasting, helped by a World Series that stretched seven games, boasts an average of 10 million viewers a night, a 22% increase over the same period last year. However, the network over-estimated the size of the audience for two of its big bets, the

singing competition and the sci-fi family drama

Because those shows have delivered lower ratings than promised, Fox now must compensate advertisers by giving them additional commercial time — spots the network could otherwise have sold.

For some media companies, hope is on the horizon. Next year will bring a bounty of political advertising dollars as candidates and interest groups spend as much as $2.4 billion to promote themselves and their causes.

"We think 2012 will be the biggest year ever for political advertising," said Vincent Letang, director of global forecasting for MagnaGlobal, an arm of advertising behemoth

in London should also generate at least $600 million in ad spending, Letang said. The concurrence of the

and political contests — including a presidential election that could generate as much as $1 billion in spending — combine to create the "quadrennial effect," which occurs every four years.

Still, that $3-billion bonanza will not be spread evenly over all media sectors, nor will it help those suffering the most.

, which has the TV rights to the

, will rake in the Olympics money. The bulk of the political campaign cash will flow to media companies that own TV stations — especially those in battleground states such as Nevada, Colorado, Ohio and Florida. Newspapers, magazines and other print media, which have been under assault as advertising dollars migrate to the Internet, will be relegated to the sidelines.

A key question heading into 2012 is whether political candidates will follow the broader advertising trend by scaling back local TV commercial purchases to put a larger chunk of their money on the Internet.

Overall, Creutz said, the U.S. advertising market for 2011 is still below 2007 levels, when spending hit $149 billion.

Since that time, he said, Internet advertising has soared, but the amount spent on local media — including TV stations, radio, newspaper and direct mail — has decreased by a much greater margin.

"Local media has been crushed," Creutz said. "The Internet is replacing local media, but it is not replacing it dollar-for-dollar."

Summary: A year that began with a bang was interrupted by a  quake , and now is ending with a whimper. Next year is projected to be better — but not for everybody.