Edinburgh city centre turned into a sea of red and white yesterday as the annual Santa Run got under way.
Around 800 Santas of all ages sprinted, walked or toddled around the 1.5-kilometre route in West Princes Street Gardens.
The event raised cash for the children’s charity When You Wish Upon A Star.
The run went ahead despite the capital experiencing the heaviest snowfall for decades over the last fortnight. (PA)
Italian doctors asked not to snort cocaine at work
An Italian hospital director sent a memo to doctors and nurses asking them not to snort cocaine while on duty, the Ansa news agency reported on Saturday.
Giuseppe Di Maria now faces possible disciplinary action following the memo sent to medical staff at the Santa Catarina Novella di Galatina Hospital near Lecce.
The memo was sent after Mr Di Maria received anonymous tip-offs about the practice at the hospital.
Social services chiefs have opened an internal inquiry into the affair and also referred it to the local prosecutor’s office. (AFP)
Two-storey snowman
A group of Poles have decided to make the most of winter, building a 31-foot snowman dubbed Milo-cinek, who wears a barrel for a hat and a road safety cone for his nose.
Several people worked for six days on the creation, which stands eye-level with surrounding two-storey homes.
The snowman was completed near the town of Trzebnica in south-western Poland. (PA)
Toy story
A two-year-old girl spent 15 minutes stuck inside a toy crane vending machine in a Pittsburgh-area shopping centre, US authorities said.
Moon Run Fire Chief Paul Kashmer said the girl did not seem upset by the ordeal in the food court at the Mall of Robinson, in Robinson Township.
The girl apparently climbed up the chute into which the coin-operated crane drops prizes. (PA)
Penguins show cancelled
A shopping centre cancelled a show involving live penguins amid fears wildlife protesters would stage a demonstration.
In a statement on its website, the open air Riverside Shopping Centre in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, said the event was called off because the centre “could not guarantee the absence of a demonstration”.
The move came after an event involving live penguins at world-renowned toy shop Hamleys in London was cancelled after it sparked fury from protesters. (PA)
Virtual justice
A police force has launched a new way of dealing with those suspected of drink-driving which sees them dealt with in a virtual court within hours of being arrested.
Kent Police said four people have been arrested under the scheme since its launch at the beginning of the month.
Anyone caught under the influence has their case heard in the virtual court, which connects North Kent police station with Medway Magistrates’ Court by video link. (PA)
‘Last minute man’
Stores will be cashing in on the panic-stricken “Last Minute Man” on Christmas Eve, according to a survey.
He is the man who has not bought a present for his wife or girlfriend until the very last minute, according to the poll.
Last Minute Man was identified in a survey of Christmas shopping types by Business Intelligence and mystery shopping company Retail Active, which said it has even been called in to coach staff at leading retailers on how to spot him and make sure he buys something. (PA)
Berlusconi offers to pick out train ‘hostesses’
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi joked he would personally select female train attendants for a new high-speed rail line as he inaugurated a station in Rome last Friday.
“If you change your mind and you decide to put hostesses on the high speed trains, I’m volunteering to do the casting,” Mr Berlusconi told rail managers on the sidelines of the ceremony in Rome’s Tiburtina station.
Last year Mr Berlusconi said that soldiers were needed to protect Italy’s “beautiful girls” from rape. He also once advised a woman to marry a millionaire like his son after she described her precarious employment outlook. (AFP)
Cop’s machete horror
New Zealand’s government faced calls for police to carry guns after a lone constable was attacked with a machete, severing a finger and leaving him with fractures to his head and arms.
Senior constable Bruce Mellor, 57, was left for dead after he stopped two teenagers driving a stolen car. A passing motorist spotted the bloodied policeman lying on the roadside and called emergency services. (PA)