Two mystic African fertility statues were on show in Piccadilly Circus after arriving from Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in the US. The statues were hand-carved by the Baule tribe, who live in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) in West Africa, and date back to the 1930s. Ripley’s acquired the figures in 1993 and put them in the lobby of the company headquarters in Orlando. Within months, 13 women, including some staff and office visitors, were pregnant. To celebrate the arrival, loved-up couple...

By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food With plenty of exciting restaurant openings constantly taking place across the Capital, here’s our pick of the best new restaurants arriving in London over the coming month. Cielo Blanco – Exmouth Market First opened in Leeds, Mexican restaurant Cielo Blanco is set to join the likes of Dirty Burger and Pizza Pilgrims in Exmouth Market as of this month. Launching as the restaurant’s first London outpost, Cielo Blanco is inspired by the Barbacoa markets of Oaxaca and although the new...

Reports of a sonic boom been heard over Doncaster and Leeds are filtering through over social media following a QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) Typhoon scramble. RAF Conningsbury has confirmed that QRA Typhoons were scrambled this evening, possibly down to an aircraft's Mode-S Transponder been turned off which could indicate a hijack. It is normal for Quick Reaction Alert Typhoons to be given Authority to break the sound barrier over land when scrambled & to be heard!!! — RAF Coningsby Info (@EGXCinfo) 2...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor A massive leak of documents could see the end of the TTIP trade deal, which includes provisions to allow American corporations to help change European law and also weaken consumer protections. Campaigners hope the leaked pages will bring an end to the TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) which has seen strong resistance from both sides of the Atlantic. Many opponents see it as a chance for big business to override the laws of the...

Three Earth-like planets have been discovered by scientists which offer the best chance yet of finding extraterrestrial life. A groundbreaking report, published in Nature, revealed that the Earth-sized planets that orbit around a small star nearly 40 light years away could represent astronomers' best chance yet of finding life outside our Solar System. The planets orbit close enough to their host star to maintain temperatures comparable to those on Earth, opening up the possibility that water could pool on their...

Owen Jones has described Zac Goldsmith as being "beneath contempt" for running a "dog whistle" campaign based on anti-Muslim prejudices. The political commentator says Goldsmith has become one of the "most loathed Conservative politicians in the country" for crude racial profiling and linking Sadiq Khan with radicals and extremists. He points out that even right-wing journalist Peter Oborne has decided to switch sides, describing Goldsmith's campaign for mayor as "the most repulsive I have ever seen as a political reporter". Watch the...

As the meeting point between the cultures and climates of the East and West, Turkey has a lot to offer on the gastronomic front. Search for typical Turkish cuisine and you might find meze, kebab, kofta, coffee and raki served up as common examples, but the reality is that finding ‘typical’ in a country stretching some 301,384 square miles and bordering one of the most diverse collections of civilisations on the planet (Greece and Bulgaria in the West, Syria, Iraq...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor The US President may be aiming for a job in comedy when he leaves the oval office. He is without doubt a funny man and has now poked fun at himself in a spoof retirement film clip, even though he doesn’t stand down for another eight whole months. Obama serves his nation until next January, however the race to choose the Republican and Democratic candidates mean the President is in wind down mode. The video...

by Beth Roberts, travel writer It’s 11.30pm on a Sunday night in Amsterdam airport - the tail end of a wild weekend, culminating in this most hideous of hangovers. Without warning, our long awaited London-bound flight disappears from the departures screen, cancelled due to the fog and marooning us in the city. Admittedly, there are worse places to be stuck. Yet conscious my boss would likely read ‘stranded in Amsterdam' as 'stranded in coffee shop’ and swiftly realising we had...