In 2013 Pope Francis had a lot to celebrate. Not only was he named Time magazine person of the year, but was also awarded the title of Esquire's best-dressed man.

Eighty five years ago the carrier that was to become Hawaiian Airlines started commercial flights using a plane dubbed the "ugly duckling".

A baby was feared to be among the victims as six people died and eight were injured when a rubbish truck careered out of control and into crowds of Christmas shoppers.

Justine Tyerman ends up with a squashed nose after travelling on Swiss trains ...

You can take a role in testing the effect of warming skin on memory. Or you can involve yourself in a bid to land a spaceship on the Moon....

Fifa President Sepp Blatter declared "the crisis at Fifa is over" after the executive committee of football's governing body agreed to publish their confidential report into corruption in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids....

Being fat is a disability, EU judges have ruled, meaning that European companies must offer obese staff bigger chairs, special parking spaces and a lighter workload.

All politicians like to have props, and in Vladimir Putin's case, some are taken from the box marked Macho and others from the box marked Mother Russia.

Scotland Yard is investigating claims that a Tory MP throttled a young boy to death during a depraved sex party in the 1970s and that two other boys were killed by a VIP paedophile ring.

It has housed the world's largest water chute, welcomed the Empire of India exhibition and hosted David Bowie and the most disastrous concert of his career.

Jennifer Ennion finds exhilaration in Kuhmo's bracing waters.

For tourists who've tried everything else, there's nothing more invigorating than a float down Finland's icy Pajakkajoki river wearing a dry suit.

For further information see wildtaiga.fi.

The UN's refugee agency has revealed "the most lethal route in the world" after a record number of deaths.

A British MP has apologised after he was photographed playing Candy Crush Saga on his tablet during a committee in Parliament.

A tunnel will remove a road that had cut off part of the heritage site, and restore some tranquility to the mystic setting.

A fruit fly infestation has ravaged orchards across Italy, one of the world's top producers of olive oil, sending prices soaring.

New Zealand won't be able to claim unfamiliarity with their opponents when they play Australia tomorrow morning for a spot in the Champions Trophy final.

After nearly three years of tough talking, British Prime Minister David Cameron is facing a crunch moment in his troubled strategy towards the European Union.

Former President Nicolas Sarkozy seems set to clear the first obstacle in a once-improbable bid to return to France's highest office this weekend when he secures the leadership of the conservative UMP party.

Former footballer Sol Campbell has become the latest monied public figure to battle Labour's proposed "mansion tax" in Britain, claiming it is a levy on aspiration which he cannot afford to pay.

"Mad" Frankie Fraser, a gangland enforcer who mixed with many of Britain's most notorious underworld figures, has died in hospital aged 90.

A European Parliament bid for legislation splitting up Google may send a message that's too loud to ignore.

Justine Tyerman meets Hungary's daring csikós and learns about the country's 'red gold'.

The Prince of Wales intends to continue making "heartfelt interventions" in matters of national importance when he becomes king, rather than adopting the Queen's blanket impartiality on public affairs, close friends have said.

Make a plan before you leave ship and reap the rewards of your research, Pam Neville says. She shares some shore excursions from a recent Mediterranean cruise.

PK Stowers travels to France's Loire Valley and discovers its historic chateaux.

Named after the country's longest river, the Loire Valley is referred to as the 'cradle of the French language' because of its rich history of human habitation going back thousands of years. It's also renowned for its magnificent chateaux, from mediaeval fortresses to renaissance palaces, all within a relatively short distance of each other.

'We're confident at some stage it'll wake up again.' The Philae lander has been quiet since sending back initial photos, but sunshine could revive it.

The Latvian capital has reopened the KGB's former headquarters to keep alive the memory of past atrocities, writes Mike Collier.