A Polish woman has become the second person to give birth on London's Underground rail network since it opened 146 years ago, the capital's transport authority confirmed yesterday.
Julia Kowalska was travelling with her sister on the network's Jubilee line on December 19 when her contractions started. She got off at Kingsbury, in northwest London, and gave birth to a healthy baby girl in the station supervisor's office, assisted by an ambulance crew.
She was taken to the nearby Northwick Park Hospital and was discharged after four days, a hospital spokesman said. Brent Council, the local authority, said social workers were in contact with the woman, who was reported to be homeless.
The only other birth recorded on the 275-station underground network happened in 1924 when Marie Cordery was born at Elephant & Castle, an operator of Transport for London said.
Madoff get ethics lesson from thieves
Wall Street financier Bernard Madoff, accused of masterminding a massive investment fraud, has been handed an ethics lesson by thieves who stole a statue from his Florida mansion, and promptly returned it, according to New York press reports.
Robbers who swiped a 10,000-dollar statue from Mr Madoff's estate near Palm Beach, Florida on December 22, dropped it off at a nearby country club where he was a member, signing the return "The Educators".
Hanging from the 1.2-metre statue, which depicts two lifeguards sitting on a raised stand, was a note, reported the Palm Beach Post. "Bernie the swindler, lesson: return stolen property to rightful owners. signed by - The Educators," the note said. The statue was not damaged and police are continuing their investigation of the robbery, said the daily.
Mr Madoff, 70, is under house arrest in his Manhattan apartment on a 10-million-dollar bail.
Rare Bugatti car uncovered after 50 years
A rare Bugatti motor car, which has been parked in a garage gathering dust for nearly 50 years, is expected to fetch millions of pounds when it is auctioned next month.
The 1937 Bugatti Type 57S Atalante was left in the lock-up in Newcastle, northeast England, by its owner Harold Carr in 1960, with just 26,000 miles on the clock. The car, one of only 17 of its kind, remained untouched and was known to only a handful of enthusiasts until the surgeon's death in 2007.
Media reports said it could fetch up to £6 million (€6.25 million) when it is auctioned at Bonhams's Retromobile sale in Paris on February 7, which would make it the most expensive car to go under the hammer.
The car was originally owned by the first president of the British Racing Drivers' Club, Earl Howe.
Lost luggage in Afghanistan
A family enjoyed a Christmas break in Paris but were flabbergasted to find that luggage containing gifts for their children travelled to Afghanistan, it was reported yesterday.
David and Marie Bennett had packed two cases for their trip to the French capital, one for themselves and one for their children, Françoise, 13, and 10-year-old Remi, the Guardian reported. They flew from Southampton airport to Paris's Charles de Gaulle shortly before Christmas but were heartbroken when the children's bag, loaded with their presents and clothes, went missing.
The family, from Brockenhurst near Southampton, gritted their teeth and made the most of their time in Paris. It was only when they returned home that they discovered how far the suitcase had wandered when it turned up in England after six days away from its owners with the International Air Transport Association airport code "FAH".
When airport staff looked up the unfamiliar code they were astonished to find it stands for Farah, a city in western Afghanistan.
It remains a mystery how it got there as there are no direct flights to Farah from Charles de Gaulle or Southampton.
Most desirable celebrity neighbour
If they had to live next door to a celebrity, American adults would most like to be neighbours with Alaska Governor, Sarah Palin and chat show host, Oprah Winfrey.
But trouble-prone pop star Britney Spears would be the worst celebrity neighbour, according to a survey of the most and least desirable well-known faces Americans would have in their backyard.
Republican vice presidential candidate Mrs Palin topped the poll of most desirable celebrity neighbours with 14 per cent, closely followed by Ms Winfrey, who was particularly popular with women.
Olympic champion swimmer Michael Phelps was heavily favoured by men but came in third with nine per cent overall.
Paparazzi-magnets such as Ms Spears, actress Lindsay Lohan and British couple David and Victoria Beckham apparently don't make the best neighbours.
Spears, who was followed day and night by packs of photographers for much of 2008, was voted the least desirable neighbour by 19 per cent of adults, followed by Rosie O'Donnell (18 per cent), Joe the Plumber (eight per cent), who made headlines in the final stages of the US presidential elections, and Ms Lohan (seven per cent).
Only two per cent of those asked wanted to live next door to soccer player and his singer wife Victoria.