‘Worst place to live in England’ revealed
And other stories from the stranger side of life

Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire has been voted the worst place to live in England, scoring 25% more votes than runner-up Huddersfield in an annual poll. Luton, Liverpool and previous winner Peterborough made up the top five. Rotherham, Stoke-on-Trent, Nottingham, Rochdale, Doncaster and Keighley were in the top six last year, but managed to escape the top 10 this time.
Comedy to be prescribed for trauma patients
Trauma patients will be invited to free comedy sessions after health experts concluded that laughter is sometimes the best medicine. Professional comedians Charmian Hughes and Jack Campbell will help to deliver the sessions, which are available through the Bristol Wellspring Settlement Social Prescribing Team. Comedy lecturer Angie Belcher said comedy is “a force for good”, adding that people do not realise how much it “can change people’s lives”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Man finds love with robot woman
A man who “never thought he would find love” has revealed he plans to marry a robot woman. Geoff Gallagher, from Queensland, Australia, had given up all hope of finding a partner until he read an article about AI robots and decided to splash out £3,000 on a synthetic girlfriend. He told 7 News: “The robots were very lifelike. Their skin even warmed up like a real human. I decided on a robot called Emma. With pale skin and beautiful blue eyes, I thought she looked lovely.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books.
-
Why Rikers Island will no longer be under New York City's control
The Explainer A 'remediation manager' has been appointed to run the infamous jail
-
California may pull health care from eligible undocumented migrants
IN THE SPOTLIGHT After pushing for universal health care for all Californians regardless of immigration status, Gov. Gavin Newsom's latest budget proposal backs away from a key campaign promise
-
Is Apple breaking up with Google?
Today's Big Question Google is the default search engine in the Safari browser. The emergence of artificial intelligence could change that.
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical