1. Paris attacker identified by severed finger
French citizen Omar Ismail Mostefai has been named by local media as one of the attackers who killed 129 people in Paris. The 29-year-old had a criminal record and was believed to have been radicalised. He was identified by investigators after his severed fingertip was found at the Bataclan concert hall, according to the AFP news agency.
2. UK ramps up street security in wake of Paris
Special forces have been deployed on the streets of Britain to monitor rail stations, shopping centres and crowded public places amid fears the UK could be the next target for an ISIS attack. Personnel from the elite Special Reconnaissance Regiment are working alongside undercover armed police officers to protect the UK in the wake of the Paris massacre.
3. Most Conservative MPs ‘oppose tax credits plan’
Most Tory MPs oppose George Osborne’s “extreme” tax credit cuts, the Conservative leading the rebellion against the government has told The Observer. Less than a fortnight before the chancellor’s autumn statement, Stephen McPartland said most of his colleagues feel that the £4bn of proposed cuts would “hurt, not help” families on very low incomes.
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4. Obesity epidemic among horses and ponies
Is there an obesity epidemic among ponies and horses? The Sunday Times says that “excessive pampering” has left up to four out of 10 ponies overweight or obese, while horses are also overeating and under-exercising. Roly Owers of the World Horse Welfare equine charity, said: “People are killing their horses with kindness. We have an obesity epidemic.”
5. BBC’s Porridge to return with Fletch junior
The legendary comedy character Fletch is on his way back, says The Sunday Times. The BBC is to revive its classic comedy Porridge, with icon Norman Stanley Fletcher and his grandson sharing a prison cell. The new Fletch, the child of Norman’s son, Ray, will be serving a sentence for computer hacking. Writer Ian La Frenais said the new character “has what I could call attitude”.
6. How you can sing a song of sixpence this Xmas
The legendary sixpence is on its way back, says the Sunday Mirror. The Royal Mint has announced plans to give away 2,015 sixpences to put in Christmas puddings. According to tradition, sixpences were hidden in homemade Christmas puddings, with the lucky finder keeping the coin - worth 2.5p - but the tradition, called ‘Stir Up Sunday’, has died out.
7. Boris: Cameron must beef up EU negotiations
Boris Johnson is calling on David Cameron to give parliament an emergency veto over EU law. Throwing down the gauntlet on Europe, the mayor of London said the PM should drastically ramp up his renegotiation of Britain’s relationship with Brussels by making a change in British law to give MPs the power to overturn new and old EU regulations.
8. Comedy actor Warren Mitchell dies at 89
Warren Mitchell, who played Alf Garnett in TV series Till Death Us Do Part and In Sickness and in Health, has died aged 89. His family said the star died in the early hours of Saturday "surrounded by his family", adding that he was “cracking jokes to the last”. Ricky Gervais tweeted: "Alf Garnett was one of the most influential and important characters and performances in comedy history.”
9. Phone manufacturers ‘must develop bedtime mode’
Smartphones, tablets and e-readers should have a ‘bedtime mode’ option to stop them disrupting people's sleep, according to a leading doctor. Prof Paul Gringras says a setting is needed to filter out the blue light that delays the body clock and keeps people awake later into the evening. The doctor, from Evelina Children's Hospital in London, warned that every new model was "bluer and brighter".
10. Football star’s cousin killed in Paris attacks
France football star Lassana Diarra says his cousin was killed in the attacks in Paris. "It is with a heavy heart that I heard this news," ex-Chelsea, Arsenal and Portsmouth player Diarra wrote on Twitter. A number of sporting fixtures in France were postponed, but Tuesday's international friendly against England at Wembley is set to go ahead.
