A carefully-thumbed Bible and a worn wristwatch belonging to the infamous Kray twins while they served life sentences for murder are to go under the hammer at auction.

The two lots belonging to Ronnie Kray and later passed to Reggie Kray after his brother’s death in jail form part of a forthcoming auction of several of their belongings.

Among the other items which will be inviting bids is a “sinister” gift – a painting by one of the UK’s most notorious and violent serving prisoners Charles Bronson which he sent to Reggie in jail some time before 1999.

The lots have all come from a private seller, who wishes to remain anonymous, and are each expected to fetch hundreds of pounds, according to auctioneers JP Humbert’s of Towcester, Northamptonshire.

$1 million for treehouse insurance

A US man has been told he can keep a treehouse he built for his sons – if he takes out a $1 million insurance policy.

Zeb Postelwait, of Washington state, had always wanted to build the treehouse and got the chance last summer after moving into a Wenatchee home with a big tree in the front yard. But two months later he received his first notice from the city to tear it down.

Officials reportedly said the treehouse overhangs the pavement, threatening public safety. But Mr Postelwait disagrees and said he will not take out the insurance policy.

Chicago river turns emerald green

The Chicago River has been turned bright emerald green as the city kicks off its St Patrick’s Day celebrations.

Thousands of cheering onlookers gathered along downtown bridges as members of a plumbers’ union began dumping containers of dye into the river from boats. The annual tradition immediately precedes the St Patrick’s Day parade.

Organisers had feared that large chunks of ice would impede the process, but recent warm temperatures kept the river clear. The hue typically lasts about six to 12 hours.

Sea lions trekked LA’s Miracle Mile

Scientists have long known that years before tourists were trekking along Los Angeles’ Miracle Mile, dinosaurs were doing so.

Now, thanks to a subway dig, they have discovered that sea lions may have been there, too.

An exploratory subway shaft dug down the street from the La Brea Tar Pits has reportedly uncovered a treasure trove of other prehistoric artefacts in the land where dinosaurs roamed, including molluscs, asphalt-saturated sand dollars and possibly the mouth of a sea lion.

Survey reveals men’s ‘ideal day’

Men would spend more than four hours having sex and barely three-and-a-half hours working during an “ideal day”, a survey has found.

Research conducted for Unilever Compressed deodorants also found 64 per cent of men confessed to regularly using their smartphones and tablets while on the toilet – while 26 per cent planned a to-do list while being intimate with their partner.

The study found 51 per cent of men under 34 worry they are missing out on life experiences if they are not filling all of their time, with a quarter of all men questioned saying they try to find new ways to fit more and more into their busy lives.

Pain relief drug from snail venom

Experts are attempting to create a pain relief drug derived from snail venom used to paralyse their prey.

Scientists have reported creating five new “experimental substances” based on a tiny protein found in the venom of a cone snail.

The substances, which could potentially be stronger than morphine, could one day lead to the development of a drug to treat chronic nerve pain, they said.