Sherlock Holmes is free, US judge rulesThe beloved British detective Sherlock Holmes is now free to be reimagined in the United States after a federal judge ruled that licensing fees are no longer required.
German growers push into craft beer market with new hopsIn a microbrewery in a trendy Berlin neighbourhood, Thorsten Schoppe, one of a wave of beer-makers using new German ingredients to create non-traditional brews, pours hop pellets into a copper vat.
27 December 2013
Fireworks but no joy as Latvia joins eurozoneFireworks will light up the skies above Riga when Latvia adopts the euro on January 1, but on the ground the feeling will be far from festive among those fearing the impact of the switch.
Coloured tattoos escape ban in FranceTattoo artists in France, who were up in arms about a government ban on certain dyes, say the health ministry has reassured them they will be able to keep using coloured ink, attributing the uproar to a misunderstanding of thousands of pages of regulations.
Turkey PM reshuffles cabinet amid graft scandalTurkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan replaced nearly half his cabinet in a dramatic reshuffle after a spreading graft scandal forced the resignation of three top ministers.
26 December 2013
Ralph Fiennes reveals other Dickens in 'Invisible Woman'For his second film as director, British actor Ralph Fiennes lifts the cover on a little-known secret about classic English author Charles Dickens: his decade-long adulterous affair with a young actress.
26 December 2013
Arctic protester vows to fight on after Russian case closedA British Greenpeace protester Tuesday said he was "jubilant" after Russia closed the criminal case against him for staging a protest on an oil rig, and vowed to keep fighting for environmental issues.
25 December 2013
Pope marks first Christmas as crowds flock to BethlehemPope Francis held his first Christmas Eve mass in the Vatican on Tuesday by highlighting the role played by humble shepherds in the Nativity, as thousands flocked to the historic site of Jesus's birth in Bethlehem.
25 December 2013
Italian 'Slave' posters pulled amid racism claimsThe US studio behind Golden Globe-nominated historical drama "12 Years a Slave," has asked the film's Italian distributors to withdraw posters which triggered an online storm over alleged racism.
Mining threatens unique culture of Sweden's SamisAs winter approaches, the Samis of northern Sweden move thousands of reindeer down from the snow-covered mountains for lowland grazing. They have done so for centuries, but they wonder how much longer they can continue.
Britain pardons gay 'father of computing' Alan TuringBritain on Tuesday granted a posthumous pardon to Alan Turing, the World War II code-breaking hero who committed suicide after he was convicted of the then crime of homosexuality.
BA airplane wing strikes Johannesburg airport buildingA British Airways airplane carrying 202 people struck an office building at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport with its wing while taxiing for take-off Sunday, injuring four.