Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 23 Jul 2013

1. ROYAL BABY: PUBLIC MUST WAIT FOR NAME

Prince William has said he and his wife "could not be happier" after the Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to boy. The Duchess was in labour for more than ten hours before the official announcement of the birth at 4.24pm. Kensington Palace said the name of the baby boy would be announced in due course.

2. DRIER, COOLER WEATHER ON WAY

Drier, cooler conditions are on the way next week after the UK's heatwave came to a dramatic end last night with a series of thunderstorms. Britain experienced its hottest day for seven years yesterday, with temperatures of 33.5C (92.3F) recorded at Heathrow and Northolt in west London.

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3. BOMB MADE SAFE ON PAPAL VISIT TO BRAZIL

Pope Francis has been greeted by vast crowds in Rio de Janeiro at the start of his visit to Brazil. There are concerns about the pontiff's safety, however, after a home-made bomb was found at a shrine which he is due to visit. There have also been demonstrations against the cost of the pontiff's six-day trip, his first as Pope.

Pope Francis empowers priests to forgive abortion

4. MET CHARGE BROADWATER SUSPECT

Nicholas Jacobs, 44, has been charged over the 1985 murder of PC Keith Blakelock who was stabbed to death during the Broadwater Farm riots. Jacobs, who was a juvenile at the time, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court tomorrow. The death of the 40-year-old officer is one of the Met's most notorious unsolved cases.

5. LYNTON CROSBY: 'I NEVER LOBBIED PM'

The Conservative Party election strategist Lynton Crosby has emphatically denied lobbying the PM or the health secretary over the issue of plain-packaging on cigarettes. The Australian's statement came after questions were raised about a potential conflict of interest between his work as a paid lobbyist and a political adviser.

Lynton Crosby must drop lobby interests, Tories tell Cameron

6. TEN HURT IN NEW YORK PLANE CRASH

Ten people have been left with minor injuries after a plane's nose wheel collapsed on landing at New York's LaGuardia Airport. Six of the casualties were taken to hospital after Southwest Airlines Flight 345, which had 143 passengers and six crew on board, skidded off the runway. The airport was shut temporarily while the emergency was dealt with.

7. UK'S OLDEST PERSON DIES AT 115

A woman believed to be the UK's oldest person has died at the age of 115 years and 199 days. Sant Kaur Bajwa, from Southall in west London, was born on 1 January 1898 in Pakistan. She has been in the UK since the 1960s. Her family said they believed she was the UK's oldest person, but the record has not been confirmed.

8. ALISON SAUNDERS IS NEW DPP

Keir Starmer QC has announced that the new director of public prosecutions will be Alison Saunders. A barrister who has prosecuted some of the country's most infamous criminals, Saunders joined the CPS in 1986, the year it was formed. Saunders will make a "first rate DPP", Starmer said.

Who is Alison Saunders, the lawyer announced as the new DPP?

9. HORSE-RIDER FINED FOR MCDONALD'S VISIT

A female horse-rider has defended her decision to allow her daughter to take her pony into a branch of McDonald's. CCTV of the incident last Saturday in Whitefield, Greater Manchester, shows customers looking on in astonishment as the horse “ended up doing his business on the floor" of the fast food outlet. Police were called.

'She likes McFlurrys': woman defends pony in McDonald's

10. HOT TICKET: DYNASTY WARRIORS RETURNS

A new instalment of the popular Dynasty Warriors video game has been released in the UK. Dynasty Warriors 8, based on Chinese writer Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, allows players to take part in a series of territorial conflicts in ancient China. "Great," says IGN.

Dynasty Warriors 8: the most satisfying, complete game yet

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