London is Europe’s costliest city for cultural activities, according to a survey.

It is even pricier than Paris when it comes to tickets for such attractions as ballet and opera, the survey from Post Office Travel Money said. The cost of culture is high in London despite some museums and art galleries being admission-free.

The survey looked at cultural costs in 12 major European cities. This was based on visits by two people to a museum, an art gallery, a heritage site, the ballet, the opera and a classical concert.

Best value was Warsaw in Poland where cultural trips cost just £70. The next-best value was Budapest (£80) followed by Prague (£93) and Dublin (£102). London, at £256, was the most expensive, with tickets for two to the Royal Ballet £91 and opera setting a couple back £117.50.

Evicted for using noisy sex swing

A landlady was within her rights to evict a man for persistently using a squeaky swing in his apartment late at night as a sex prop, a German court has ruled.

The court in Munich said the unidentified man installed the “very old” chain swing in his apartment in 2012 and regularly disturbed his neighbours with “sexual, athletic and squeaking noises” late into the night, causing multiple complaints.

It noted his rental agreement included a clause to be quiet between 10pm and 7am and said using the swing late at night “would no longer correspond to normal rental use, and must therefore not be tolerated as socially acceptable”.

Fined for lack of space in loft room

A landlord has been ordered to pay a total of £3,040 by the courts for renting out a loft room which tenants had to go on all fours up a staircase to access.

Barnet Council’s environmental health team found that the low ceiling above the staircase and small entrance hatch made it impossible for tenants to reach the room while standing upright, raising concerns that it could impede their escape in the event of a fire.

Head height along the course of the staircase was found to only be between 0.7m and 1.2m, and the door to the room was also reduced in size.

Pensioner wanted for bank hold up

Police are hunting a pensioner who tried to hold up a bank at gun point.

The suspect, described as being in his 60s or 70s with receding grey hair and a beard, threatened staff with what appeared to be a firearm, Norfolk Police said.

The incident happened at a branch of TSB in the High Street of Holt, north Norfolk, at about 3pm on Thursday.

The cashier refused and the man left empty-handed. The man, who was wearing a distinctive white, cream, blue and black stripy jumper and dark trousers, was caught on CCTV.

Fingerprinted before buying food

Venezuelans may soon need to have their fingerprints scanned before they can buy bread. President Nicolas Maduro has announced a mandatory grocery fingerprinting system to combat food shortages. He said it will stop people buying too much of a single item.

The socialist South American country has been grappling with shortages of basics such as cooking oil and flour for more than a year.