Woman in labour attacked by crowbar gang
A gang of five men beat up a pregnant woman with crowbars while she was in labour in a “shocking” attack. Fractured skull »
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Katie Price shows off 'natural' chest
Katie Price has shown off her "natural" breasts for the first time. The 36-year-old star had to have her most recent implants removed last month after suffering from complications from the breast reduction operation. Katie has now unveiled the size of her normal bust by posting a photo on her YouGossip page.
Bang Showbiz -
Prince Charles frustrated by Middletons
Britain's Prince Charles is reportedly frustrated by the influence Duchess Catherine's parents have in Prince William's life. The 66-year-old heir-to-the-throne is said to feel upset that his son and daughter-in-law - who are expecting their second child together - spend so much time with her parents Michael and Carole Middleton, including a recent holiday to Mustique, while he rarely gets to see his grandson Prince George, 19 months. The family have made few, if any, trips to Charles' Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire over the past year, with insiders speculating William is keen to protect his family from a similar "stiff" upbringing to the one he endured, while Carole is said to not get along particularly well with William's stepmother Duchess Camilla.
Bang Showbiz -
Most expensive house (we could get into): New York City
Ownership of a posh penthouse is a true luxury, but being able to call a two-story one in New York City's iconic Plaza Hotel your home takes the meaning of luxury to another level. This 6,000-square-foot duplex soars 18 floors above Central Park and is home to fashion mogul Tommy Hilfiger. Tortoiseshell borders adorn the walls in the formal living room, the dining room has a gilded gold leaf ceiling and there is an impressive art collection, with paintings from Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
CNBC -
Where the most millionaires are moving-and fleeing
According to a new study from global real estate consultant Knight Frank with Fragomen, the immigration specialist for the wealthy, more millionaires than ever are looking for homes in other countries. So where are millionaires moving from and going to to? The second largest millionaire loser is India, which saw 43,400, or 27 percent of its millionaires, leave the country in those 10 years.
CNBC -
Kim Kardashian dyes hair platinum blonde
The reality star thanked colourist Lorri Goddard, who is also behind Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Lawrence’s colour, for getting the colour in “one try.” If you know anything about going platinum, that is an impressive feat. This isn’t Kardashian’s first go at lighter locks, but it’s definitely the most dramatic.
Yahoo Lifestyle -
When to retire? The answer may surprise you
The average retirement age seems to have stabilized at 62 for women and 64 for men, according to new research from Boston College's Center for Retirement Research. "An individual who delays claiming Social Security from age 62 to age 70 receives a monthly benefit that is 76 percent higher," said Alicia Munnell, director of the center. The retirement age is stabilizing largely because the forces pushing it higher have been played out.
CNBC -
IPhone 6's popularity drives Apple's China share to record
A consumer survey showed the popularity of the iPhone 6 has driven Apple's market share in China to its highest ever while Samsung has continued to lose ground. Kantar Worldpanel ComTech said Thursday that its latest survey of 15,000 people living in Chinese cities showed Apple's market share reached 25.4 percent in the November-January period, up from 20.9 percent a year earlier.
Associated Press -
Willy & Natalia: Wowed at last
Tough-talking Willy Moon and Natalia Kills didn’t expect to be overly wowed by Kiwi singing talent when they joined the X Factor NZ judging panel. ‘I think Mel and Stan did a fantastic job in 2014. Natalia, Willy’s wife of almost 10 months, says she was more curious than pessimistic about what she would find when they arrived from New York for the reality TV show.
New Idea -
All Blacks dominate world's Top 100
New Zealand has produced 21 of the world’s top 100 rugby players, according to a British newspaper’s latest rankings. The Telegraph has published their 'Top 100 rugby union players' and the list was dominated by Kiwis, with All Blacks taking out the top four spots. Unsurprisingly, Richie McCaw was named as no 1, where they described him as “Mr Indestructible, Mr Noble, Mr Success – you can hang any number of complimentary monikers on the New Zealand captain and all would be appropriate.
Yahoo Sport -
Advancing Iraq troops enter strategic town on edge of Tikrit
Iraqi government forces and Iran-backed militiamen entered a town on the southern outskirts of Saddam Hussein's home city Tikrit on Friday, pressing on with the biggest offensive yet against Islamic State militants that seized the north last year. Military commanders said the army and mostly Shi'ite militia forces had retaken the town of al-Dour on Tikrit's outskirts, known outside Iraq as the area where executed former dictator Saddam was found hiding in a pit near a farm house in 2003. Some officials said the troops were still only in the south and east of the town, which had been rigged with bombs by retreating Islamic State fighters.
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Argentine prosecutor was 'assassinated': family probe
The Argentine prosecutor who died mysteriously while pursuing a case against President Cristina Kirchner was assassinated, his ex-wife said Thursday, announcing the results of an unofficial probe commissioned by the family. Alberto Nisman, who accused Kirchner of shielding Iranian officials from prosecution over the 1994 bombing of a Buenos Aires Jewish center, "was killed," said Sandra Arroyo Salgado, a federal judge who is his ex-wife and mother of his two daughters. Nisman was found dead in his bathroom of a gunshot wound to the head on January 18, on the eve of congressional hearings where he was due to present his accusations against Kirchner.
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Rio Tinto looking to slash more jobs
Mining giant Rio Tinto is looking to slash hundreds of jobs as a new round of cost cutting gets underway. Iron ore managers have reportedly begun cutting dozens of positions at the company's Pilbara operations in Western Australia as part of a process unions fear will leave up to 800 employees out of work. Workers in the Pilbara are worried the axe will fall on hundreds of jobs over the coming weeks and have called for the company to release details of any layoffs.
AAP -
Indonesia rejects Australian proposal of prisoner swap for death row pair
Indonesia rejected on Thursday an Australian proposal for a prisoner swap made in an 11th hour effort to save the lives of two Australian drug smugglers expected to face a firing squad within days. The planned executions of Myuran Sukumaran, 33, and Andrew Chan, 31, have ramped up diplomatic tension between Australia and Indonesia after repeated pleas for mercy on their behalf. Indonesia's foreign ministry said there was no legal basis for Indonesia to act on the proposal that had been made by Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
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Mortgage rates lowest since 1968
Home loans have dropped to their lowest level in almost half a century after the Reserve Bank's surprise interest rate cut in February. Mortgage rates fell to 4.9 per cent after the cut, levels not seen since 1968 - the year Martin Luther King Jnr was shot in the United States and Hey Jude by the Beatles was at the top of Australian music charts. Home owners with a $400,000 mortgage in late 2011 - before interest rates started falling - paid about $27,200 a year in interest.
AAP -
Killing cancer from the inside
Australian biotech Phylogica is focusing on killing cancer "from the inside", which it says is a more effective way of fighting the disease. The Perth-based company's key objective is to get therapeutic drugs inside cells, where most drug targets are found. "We're about trying to take this new generation of smart drugs that they (big pharmaceutical firms) have been developing and deliver them much more efficiently inside the cells so they can access their targets," Phylogica chief executive Richard Hopkins says.
AAP -
As Bugatti 'supercar' legend bows out, others wait in line
They have fighter jet-type accelerations, custom-made interiors and seven-figure price tags: "supercars" are centre stage at the Geneva Motor Show, even as one of its legendary stars is bowing out. The last Bugatti Veyron ever to be made has pride of place at the show for auto enthusiasts to bid farewell after the brand announced last month that it had sold the 450th and final model of the car with its 16-cylinder monster engine that produces up to 1,200 horsepower. "With the Veyron we created a modern icon, and this show is an opportunity to put the car on a pedestal and celebrate, and say thank you to everyone involved, and close the chapter," Stefan Brungs, Bugatti's head of sales, told AFP.
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Van Gisbergen joins new V8 team
V8 Supercar champions Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes will have a new teammate from next season, with Red Bull Racing signing star driver Shane van Gisbergen. The Kiwi will leave Tekno Autosports to race a third entry for Triple Eight Race Engineering on a three-year deal from 2016, the team announced on Friday. Triple Eight boss Roland Dane said he felt it was the ideal time to add another car to his stable, given the growing trend of larger teams and more intense competition.
NZ Newswire -
Jada Pinkett Smith wanted to 'procreate' on Magic Mike set
Jada Pinkett Smith had the urge to "procreate" on the set of 'Magic Mike XXL'. The 43-year-old actress - who is married to 46-year-old Will Smith - stars as a strip club owner in the flick, starring Channing Tatum, and has admitted she almost felt overcome with erotic desires when she walked onto the set and saw all the men in a state of undress. "And for the first time in my life, that other head below started talking to me, 'Procreate, procreate, procreate.' And my top head was like, 'Jada, there is not a Will Smith on this set.
Bang Showbiz -
German graffiti vandals ordered jailed, caned in Singapore
A Singapore court on Thursday sentenced two young German men to nine months in prison and three strokes of the cane for spray-painting a metro train in the city-state, which enforces hardline rules on vandalism. Andreas Von Knorre, 22, and Elton Hinz, 21, were sentenced after pleading guilty to vandalism and trespassing. Both asked for mercy before sentencing and called their acts a "stupid mistake".
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Why some bosses are now banning work from home
Some team members' performance evaluations were declining. Some employees feel their lives are being disrupted. No. There will be cases where to maintain our competitive edge, we will need employees who are based far away or can offer extremely unique skills.
CNBC
