A new variety of apple which is red to the core went on sale this week.
The Redlove was made by cross-pollinating different varieties such as Royal Gala and Braeburn with a secret variety that has no taste but pink flesh.
The apples have a berry nuance, are rich in antioxidants and took nursery owner Markus Kobelt 20 years to create at his fruit farm in Switzerland.
Devon-based company Suttons, which has exclusive rights to sell the sapling trees at £24.95 each in Britain, already has 1,500 orders from private customers. The trees will be ready for delivery in November and will start producing fruit in the second year. (PA)
Lemurs found in bar
Two young ring-tailed lemurs which had escaped from Salzburg zoo five days ago have been recaptured by their keepers in a hotel bar in a nearby village, according to local media reports yesterday. The two-year-old males had escaped from Salzburg's Hellbrunn zoo on Sunday afternoon, journeying around 25 kilometres over the next four days.
On Thursday morning, they crept through the open window of a hotel in the village of Wals, where staff lured them into the bar with fruits before calling the zoo to collect them. (AFP)
Gay honeymoon
Mexico City's tourism minister has offered a free honeymoon to the first gay couple to wed in Argentina after that country made Latin American history by legalising same-sex marriages. The offer was "in recognition of tolerance, but also to promote gay friendly tourism in Mexico City," said Alejandro Rojas, according to a statement.
Argentina on Thursday became the first country in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage, following a landmark Senate vote which stirred controversy in the majority Roman Catholic nation. (AFP)
'Dangerous' Vuvuzela ban
Cyprus police yesterday announced that they would confiscate any vuvuzelas taken into the island's football stadiums because the tuneless plastic horns were "dangerous".
Police said the announcement was prompted by the appearance of the horns made famous by the World Cup finals in South Africa on the stands during Cyprus clubs' Europa League and Champions League qualifying games in recent weeks. Police said that a dangerous object "is anything that can be used or thrown in a way which causes bodily harm or material damage". (AFP)
Viewers wins role in Aussie soap
Australian soap opera Neighbours - consistently more popular in Britain than in its homeland - has handed a new role to a UK competition winner, British broadcaster Five said yesterday.
The show, which launched the careers of Kylie Minogue, Guy Pearce, Natalie Imbruglia and Jason Donovan, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and offered female British fans the chance to appear as a character for a month.
Gabriella Darlington, 18, from Chelmsford, northeast of London, beat off competition from more than 1,600 hopefuls in Five's Be A Star contest. She will guest star as Poppy Rogers, described as a "free-spirited" backpacker who makes an impression on the local bachelors. (AFP)
Too hot to work? Go home
As Germany wilts in sweltering temperatures, a manager in a Berlin government office told his 260 sweating workers to go home, a newspaper reported yesterday, undermining Germans' reputation for efficiency.
According to the BZ local tabloid, the boss of the Berlin office for tax evasion investigations sent an e-mail to his employees saying: "Everyone should decide for themselves if they feel up to working in these temperatures."
"This decision should be taken before you pass out ... taking time off work today could in many cases be a wise decision which would have my full understanding," wrote Erik Schliephake in the e-mail printed by BZ. (AFP)