Mel Brooks has given the finger to Hollywood ­– the extra finger, that is.

Brooks, the writer, producer and actor responsible for classic movie comedies such as The Producers and Blazing Saddles, sank his hands and feet into cement in front of the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood in a ritual followed by decades of movie legends.

But Brooks, who is 88, wore a fake extra finger on his left hand.

He said he left the unique mark “just in case somebody from Des Moines, Iowa, says ‘Harry! Harry! Look, Mel Brooks has six fingers on his left hand!’.” (PA)

Making democracy more human

New Hampshire’s House of Representatives may be getting a little more human next year.

A candidate who legally changed his name to “human” is running against incumbent Democratic state representative Rose Marie Rogers in the primary.

David Montenegro changed his name in 2012. He made headlines this year when the state’s highest court ruled he could have a licence plate that reads COPSLIE.

He had sued after the division of motor vehicles said he could not have the plate because it denigrated police officers. (PA)

Topless sunbathing? C’est passé!

France’s summer is fast becoming a memory, and so is one of its beach sights: topless women.

As few as two per cent of French women under 35 now say they want to bare their breasts, according to an Elle magazine poll.

It’s a far cry from the once-ubiquitous semi-nudity on the French Riviera, epitomised by 1960s blonde bombshell Brigitte Bardot.

“It’s seen as vulgar. People are more prudish these days,” explained 60-year old Muriel Trazie, keeping her breasts out of the public eye while sunning herself on Paris Plages, the French capital’s summer beach. Sandra Riahi, 22, in a bikini, added: “I’ve never done it. I’d be too embarrassed.” (PA)

Red panda pair at home in zoo

Two rare red pandas native to southeast Asia are settling into their home at a British zoo and have now been named.

The twins, a boy and a girl, have been called Mya and Anmar following an invitation to name them by Facebook followers of Drusillas Zoo Park.

The names of the 12-week-old animals reflect their origins as red pandas are normally found in the high-altitude forests of Myanmar, or Burma.

Keepers at the zoo park in Alfriston, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, said their once-pale fur has now deepened into a red-brown coat.

The pair have also started to eat bamboo leaves that have been part-chewed by their mother, Mulan, to make them more digestible. (PA)

Cell-ing out to Norwegian convicts

Norway plans to rent prison space in the Netherlands as the queue of convicts awaiting cells is growing and renovation work at Norwegian jails is expected to cut capacity, the justice ministry said.

“At the moment, the queue is at 1,300 custodial sentences, and there is a great demand for detention space,” it said.

“The Netherlands has already leased prison capacity to Belgium for several years.” (Reuters)