It’s something I’ve written about before, but even so, I adore Japanese food. Over the past ten years, the UK has become far more accustomed to the land of the rising sun’s national cuisine. And with so many specialist restaurants constantly opening across London, I couldn’t be happier. There’s just something so heart warming about giant bowls of ramen noodles in silky bone broth, demanding to be slurped; slivers of fresh raw fish; dominoes of sticky rice laced with sugar...

This morning's Metro led with the news that British taxpayers footed a £1 million bill for the Daesh bomber who is suspected to have blown himself up in Iraq. Manchester-born Ronald Fiddler had been freed from Guantanamo in 2004 following a legal case that reportedly ran into the millions. On Sunday he drove an explosives-packed 4x4 at an army Base near Mosul, killing and injuring a number of troops. That it comes as a shock that confinement in a known...

The global festival scene is thriving, with a diverse array of unique festival escapes in exciting new destinations. From mountain top snow festivals and exotic Moroccan escapes, to adventures in the Costa Rica jungle, wallet friendly Eastern European hotspots and amazing city festivals to combine with long weekends of culture, gastronomic delights and sightseeing, there’s something for every festival adventurer. Need some inspiration? Here’s 10 unforgettable festival escapes for 2017... Rave in an igloo at Snowbombing Snowbombing. Where to start......

The secret of the buttercup's shiny petals has been discovered by scientists. For over a century biologists have sought to understand why the iconic flower stands out. Now they have shown the petals have an extremely thin outer layer - or epidermis - that measures just one-cell thick. It contains a yellow pigment under which is an air chamber. Dr Casper van der Kooi split the light coming from the petals into rainbow patterns called spectra. He said: "We discovered...

As the UK crime rate falls, there is one crime that is on the rise. Recent figures show that shoplifting has consistently grown by an annual 6% against a wider backdrop of reduced crime. This statistic is surprising considering the vast amount of time, money and effort that goes into developing anti-shoplifting technology. So why isn’t it working? How does anti-shoplifting technology work? The vast majority of retail stores are equipped with several high tech security measures. CCTV cameras are...

A thug who was caught on camera STAMPING on his pet dog during a drunken rampage, that lasted half an hour. Somehow he has avoided jail, after telling a judge: “I love animals," it is hard to see how he does after watching the video. Evil Richard Cheshire, 34, was captured on CCTV kicking the poor animal, before he gives a thumbs up for the camera, as if he was proud of what he had done. He threw his pet  dog –...

By Stephen Mayne @finalreel Massimo is a man who should have it all. He lives in a world of elegant apartments and swanky parties before heading out to fashion shows, football games, and war zones, the varied diet that comes with his journalism job. Yet for a man living such an interesting life, he’s not actually lived a single minute of it. Sweet Dreams is a surface deep attempt to show how childhood trauma can destabilise everything that follows. Marco...

A traditional ballroom and music hall with an 80-year history fears it will have to close its doors - after the world famous The Ritz Hotel has demanded it changes its name. The Ritz in the unassuming town in Brighouse, near Halifax, West Yorks., is a far cry from the refined elegance of its five-star namesake in London. While the London venue attracts wealthy aristocrats, the Brighouse version is a hub for Northern Soul and rock and roll fans as...

As the conflict in Yemen approaches its third year with no end in sight, wide spread devastation has forced millions from their home, and the worsening nutrition situation is threatening more lives than ever before. Mothers and young children are amongst those most heavily affected. Doaa Kutbi, International Medical Corps’ Health Programme Officer based in Aden, knows the struggle better than anybody. She has recently returned to work mere two months after her youngest son was born. Life has changed...