Must Reads

Police are investigating after a couple who cancelled a carpet cleaning job because of a miscarriage claim they were told by the firm: "you deserved to lose your baby". Distressed Dean and Charlotte Coutts booked a session with Clean Carpets Plymouth but called it off when she was rushed to hospital. Two weeks after losing what would have been their first child they were stunned to receive an £85 invoice for the job - but refused to pay. They claim...

A dedicated pensioner has been named as Britain’s oldest supermarket worker – aged 91. Hardy Tom Brogan spends three mornings a week pushing trolleys at Asda and he has no intention of retiring. The great-granddad packed in work almost three decades ago at the age of 63 but he only managed 14 months of retirement before he was lured back to employment. He picked up a car parking attendant job at the Asda store in Wigan, Gtr Manc., over 20...

Artists, writers, journalists and campaigners are among the candidates shortlisted for the 2017 Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards. Drawn from more than 400 crowdsourced nominations, the shortlist celebrates the people fighting for freedom of expression against immense obstacles, with many of the 16 shortlisted nominees regularly targeted by authorities or by criminal and extremist groups for their work: some face regular death threats, others criminal prosecution or exile. Nominees include Pastor Evan Mawarire whose frustration with Zimbabwe’s government led...

Railway buffs were left distraught after parts of their model railway were stolen by metal thieves - worth just £36. The entire 720 foot circuit was stripped of its aluminium running rails and almost a third of the track itself was stolen. But the callous thieves' hard work will earn them just £36, and cost the owners thousands. The track was taken during the early hours of Sunday morning from the Canterbury and District Model Engineering Society, based in Sturry,...

    A prolific burglar who appeared in an infamous set of prison selfies boasting about the cushy regime inside is back behind bars - after reoffending when he was released. Simon Inker, 42, starred in a series of Instagram pictures taken on a smuggled camera showing inmates using PlayStations, cooking steaks and taking drugs. He had been released on licence by the time the scandal broke in November and had returned to his life of crime, committing a string...

This is the moment a ‘locked in’ lad who learned to write using his EYES met his hero Michael Morpurgo – and the author agreed to champion the schoolboy’s own book. Jonathan Bryan, ten, was born with severe cerebral palsy after his mum Chantal was in a car crash while pregnant, leaving him unable to walk and speak. His family were told he had ‘profound and multiple learning disabilities’ and teachers did not teach him to read and write. But...

A grandmother has praised the quick-thinking efforts of her grandson after she fell down a flight of stairs in the early hours of the morning. Paula Robbins was at her daughter’s home when she plunged from the top to bottom and was unable to move. As she lay in agony on the hallway floor, Oscar, aged eight, heard her screams and leaped out of bed to help her. He grabbed his 61-year-old gran’s phone, dialled 999 and calmly answered the...

A tattoo artist appeared in court accused of splitting a customer's tongue, removing an ear and slicing off someone's NIPPLE. Brendan McCarthy, 47, is accused of committing the bizarre offences at his salon, called Dr Evils Body Modification Emporium. The tattooist was arrested in December 2015 after concerns over his lack of medical qualifications, the unsuitability of his salon and unregulated actions. Today, McCarthy appeared at Walsall Magistrates Court charged with three counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent...

Four teenage thugs who hurled a brick through a taxi window which hit an elderly woman passenger leaving her with a fractured skull, have walked free from court. The 77-year-old victim, who hasn't been named, was returning from a performance of 'The Sound of Music' with her husband when they were ambushed. But as the driver came to a junction, four yobs, aged between 15 and 17, leapt from behind trees and threw a brick at the vehicle. Shocking footage...