Hollie Gazzard: Ex Admits Killing Hairdresser

The former boyfriend of a hairdresser who was stabbed to death while working at a salon has pleaded guilty to her murder.

Asher Maslin, 22, admitted killing Hollie Gazzard at a Bristol Crown Court hearing on Friday.

He spoke only to confirm his name and enter a plea.

Miss Gazzard, 20, was killed as she worked at Fringe Benefits and La Bella Beauty salon in Gloucester on February 18.

A post-mortem examination found she died from multiple stab wounds.

Miss Gazzard had used her Twitter account to express her frustration with a relationship with an ex-boyfriend.

Miss Gazzard was stabbed several times at the salon where she worked

She wrote: "Why are people so selfish?! If a person isn't happy within the relationship why try and make them stay?!"

Since her death, Miss Gazzard's family has set up a charitable trust in her memory which sponsors training for young hairdressers and contributes to campaigns against domestic violence.

In April, hundreds of people took part in a walk from Gloucester to Cheltenham to raise money for the trust.

In a statement, they said: "She was full of life and we are very proud of her.

"The world has lost a treasure, she was so loved by all her family and friends and the brightest star in their lives has now gone out."

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is investigating contact between Miss Gazzard and Gloucestershire Police in the lead up to her death.

Judge Neil Ford QC, the Recorder of Bristol, remanded Maslin in custody.

He said: "Your sentencing will take place on a date to be fixed in the relative near future.

"You appreciate that the only sentence that can be imposed is one - imprisonment for life."

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Bean said: "Hollie was a popular and much-loved young woman and the tragic and very public nature of her death has affected a great many people across the community.

"Special tribute must be paid to Hollie's family, who have shown immense strength, patience and dignity in incredibly challenging circumstances."

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North Korea Detains US Tourist 'Over Bible'

Does Kim Jong-Un 'Makeover' Have Sinister Side?

Updated: 3:17pm UK, Friday 30 May 2014

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un's new look could be part of a ruse to help him develop a nuclear arsenal, Sky News has been told.

A series of images showing the despot laughing and smiling - often dressed in a straw hat with his jacket loose - have been released by the usually secretive state this month.

They were taken during visits to hospitals, children's centres and construction sites - and Leeds University lecturer Adam Cathcart, a leading commentator on North Korea, thinks the motives are clear.

"It's showing that maybe he's a bit of a reformer," Mr Cathcart told Sky News.

"They're trying to seduce the people who are willing to be convinced that maybe this generation is different. This buys them time to build their nuclear programme.

"It buys them time if there's less pressure from the West, and we're less likely to impose sanctions.

"Their real goal is to be seen as a de facto nuclear state."

North Korea has carried out three nuclear tests since 2006, eliciting a series of sanctions from the West.

In April US President Barack Obama issued a warning against a mooted fourth test.

Mr Cathcart believes the regime monitors closely its global perception - as illustrated when two officials confronted a London hairdresser over a poster of Mr Kim with the caption "Bad hair day?"

"They are sensitive to public opinion in the West," he said.

"They're reading what we're reading - they'll be reading this article on Sky News."

Mr Kim, 31, is modelling himself on his grandfather, Kim Il-sung, who ruled between 1945 and 1994 and is "unassailable" in North Korea, according to Mr Cathcart.

"The straw hat is harking back to the days of his grandfather, a period of nostalgia. Kim Il-sung died in 1994 before the famine kicked in and so was not as tainted by that.

"Kim Jong-Un has studied the way his grandfather acts, his mannerisms and the way he laughs - that's all deliberate."

As well as being seen across the world, images of Mr Kim appearing as a modern, amiable leader are designed to send an image to Koreans both north and south of the border, according to Mr Cathcart.

"It's the old story of a socialist government showing it is going in the right direction - especially as they have so many strikes against them with the killing of his uncle and all the sanctions.

"The office of Propaganda and Agitation are constantly trying to connect him to a new, prosperous image.

"You have to also recognise there are rumours about his health emanating from South Korea - it's part of an information war between the two countries.

"He has to be seen to be healthy, because what would happen if he wasn't around? Is his baby daughter going to take over?"

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IMF Sees Housing Market Threat To Recovery

Osborne Should Heed IMF House Market Warning

Updated: 11:57am UK, Friday 06 June 2014

By Ed Conway, Economics Editor

What would you like first: the good news or the bad?

Well, if you're George Osborne, the good news is that the long battle with the International Monetary Fund - the one that began last year when chief economist Olivier Blanchard told Sky News the Chancellor was "playing with fire" on economic policy - is over.

We knew as much in Washington earlier this spring, when Blanchard acknowledged that the Fund's forecasts for Britain had been overly pessimistic.

But today the saga has come to its end, with the Fund also giving the Chancellor's fiscal plans (those precise plans Blanchard had criticised) a ringing endorsement.

"The planned fiscal adjustment this year is appropriate," the IMF says in its annual survey of the UK economy - the so-called Article IV report.

This is a shift from last year, when the Article IV recommended that the Chancellor bring forward spending plans to try to boost the economy. So cause for celebration at the Treasury?

Not altogether, for there is also some bad news. The criticisms of the Treasury's tax-and-spend plans may have dissolved away, but they have been replaced with concerns of another variety: about the housing market.

Such concerns are hardly new: the European Commission already recommended earlier this week that the Government take action to prevent a housing bubble.

However, the Fund is a touch more authoritative - and more specific. Its suggestions are as follows: The Bank of England should leave interest rates on hold for the time being; it should impose limits on how much mortgage companies can lend homebuyers in relation to their incomes; it should also consider outright caps on loan-to-income levels and loan-to-value ratios.

On top of this, the Government should "consider whether [Help to Buy] should be modified or even remains necessary for the full three years of the policy. And as the volume of high-LTV transactions rises, the FPC will need to evaluate if the program is contributing to financial risks."

Like the Commission (and, well, every economist out there), it suggests that Britain needs to build more homes. However, there are no silver bullets in this enterprise, and it acknowledges that all of the above "can only be temporary palliatives to an underlying problem."

The best it can suggest is that the Government reconsider "unnecessary constraints on brownfield and greenfield developments; tax policies that discourage the most economically-efficient use of property; and underdeveloped rental markets with relatively short lease terms."

Some might see the final point as a note of support for the rental reforms recently suggested by Ed Miliband. The problem for politicians of every stripe is that the housing market's structural problems are no secret: but mending them will take many years.

Reforms to the planning system have been desperately needed for decades, but only now are they being implemented; changes to green belt regulations are an economist's dream but a local politician's nightmare – so are unlikely to be implemented before the election, if at all.

However, it is clear that the Chancellor would be foolhardy to ignore the tone of the IMF's report. For there is a growing risk of a housing bubble, and with it the political risk that George Osborne could be remembered not as the austerity Chancellor who got it right, but the man who generated yet another housing market bust.

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Relatives 'Got Cards From Murdered Couple'

By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent

Relatives of a couple who were shot dead and buried in their back garden received Christmas cards supposedly from them after their deaths, a court has heard.

The bodies of William and Patricia Wycherley lay undiscovered for 15 years at their home in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, until a tip-off led police to the house.

Their debt-ridden daughter, Susan Edwards, and her husband Christopher, are accused of murdering the couple in May 1998 and stealing £245,000 in pension payments and benefits, up until their arrest last year.

Other relatives were unaware of the deaths.

Vivian Steenson, a niece of Mr Wycherley, told Nottingham Crown Court she had received correspondence from "Uncle Bill" before and after his death, that was supposedly from him, including a Christmas card in 2007.

A statement was read to the jury from another niece of Mr Wycherley, Christine Harford, who described getting a call from Mrs Steenson to ask if she'd "seen the news" about the couple's deaths.

She said Mrs Steenson said: "Maybe it was a suicide pact and I remember saying that didn't explain all the Christmas cards my mum had received."

Peter Joyce QC had earlier told the court that in 2011 Mrs Edwards sent a Christmas card to relatives saying her father was "having his second youth" and her parents were travelling in Ireland.

Susan Edwards and her husband Christopher deny murder

She stated that "I cannot really keep up with where he is planning to settle!" and "it is really good to see them with such zest".

A statement was read out saying Hilary Rose, another relative, recalled receiving a card from Susan Edwards saying her father was touring Ireland and "was going to travel until he died".

Ms Rose said her mother had received a Christmas card signed "Bill and Pat".

"She told me she'd been trying to call Bill but it kept ringing and ringing, she was concerned, she asked my husband to check on them in Mansfield but he was working in London and didn't have time," she stated.

The court has been told Mrs Edwards admits killing her mother due to "severe provocation".

In her account, her mother had already killed her father and an argument developed whereby Patricia Wycherley told her daughter she knew that she had been abused by her father.

She said her mother also claimed to have had a sexual relationship with Christopher Edwards in the early 1990s.

The prosecution does not accept the account.

Dafydd Enoch QC, defence counsel for Christopher Edwards, asked Mrs Steenson about how William Wycherley had reacted when his daughter married Mr Edwards.

Mrs Steenson said he had been "irrationally jealous".

The Edwards deny murder, but admit burying the couple.

The trial continues.

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D-Day: Sacrifice Of Troops 'Must Be Honoured'

French President Francois Hollande has said nations owed it to the sacrifice of those who took part in the D-Day landings to build "a fairer world".

Paying tribute to the courage of troops 70 years ago, he said their spirit will always be felt on the Normandy beaches, where they came ashore.

The Duchess of Cambridge attended a tea party with British veterans

And Mr Hollande said the appreciation of France to the liberating forces "will never die".

He was speaking at the main ceremony at Sword Beach in Ouistreham, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of history's biggest amphibious invasion.

Veterans, politicians and members of the Royal Family including the Queen had gathered in Normandy to mark the events of June 6, 1944.

The D-Day operation, involving 150,000 Allied troops, changed the course of the Second World War.

Normandy veteran Ken Scott, 98, remembers his fallen comrades War veterans arrive for the service at Bayeux Cathedral

Mr Hollande said: "We have to be faithful to their sacrifice to build in their name, and the name of future generations, a fairer world and a more human world."

He also said freedom is a fight, and continued to be threatened around the world.

"There are always men and women who have to get up and defend freedom," he said.

Soldiers landing on Juno Beach in Bernieres-sur-Mer on June 6, 1944

The same courage shown by the troops on D-Day must now be shown in defeating the "ills" of the modern world, including terrorism, and crimes against humanity.

He said:  "It's up to us to have the same vision, the same courage, to be just as bright and have the same determination as those who came to these beaches 70 years ago."

Earlier, David Cameron had also called for leaders to set aside their differences on the "incredibly moving" anniversary of the landings.

The events of D-Day "show the importance of standing up together ... for freedom and security", he said.

The Queen joined world leaders to mark the 70th anniversary Mr Obama applauds US veterans during the ceremony in Colleville-sur-Mer

Described by wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill as "undoubtedly the most complicated and difficult (operation) that has ever taken place", D-Day proved to be a pivotal moment of the Second World War.

It marked the start of an 80-day campaign to liberate Normandy, that involved three million troops and cost some 250,000 lives.

Services marking their sacrifice were held at beaches and war cemeteries across the region.

In Colleville-sur-Mer, Barack Obama joined Mr Hollande for a service at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, where more than 9,000 soldiers are buried.

"These men waged war so that we might know peace, they sacrificed so that we may be free, they fought in hope of a day that we would no longer need to fight and we are grateful to them," the US President said.

Cemeteries along the French coast are a focal point for the commemorations

In nearby Bayeux, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh visited the Commonwealth War Graves cemetery, where 4,144 soldiers, 338 of them unidentified, are buried.

Further along the coast in Arromanches, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended a tea party with British veterans.

The Normandy Veterans' Association had also organised a day of events. This anniversary will be the group's last as it plans to disband later this year.

Commemorations began at midnight when Mr Cameron attended a memorial at Pegasus Bridge, the first strategic landmark to be captured.

American veterans gathered at dawn on Omaha Beach, where a statue of two soldiers was unveiled.

The Queen is to attend a State Banquet hosted by Mr Hollande at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday evening.

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Ukraine: Leaders Talk Ceasefire At D-Day Event

Ukraine's President-elect Petro Poroshenko has met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for informal talks on the sidelines of the D-Day commemorations in France.

French President Francois Hollande told a war veteran at the ceremony that world leaders had wanted to use the 70th anniversary commemorations to bring the two men together to discuss the Ukraine crisis.

An official in Mr Hollande's office said the two leaders discussed how Russia could recognise the Ukrainian elections and a possible ceasefire.

Their brief interaction, which some reports said was as short as one minute while others said lasted 15 minutes, took place after world leaders gathered for a group photograph.

The two men spoke for up to 15 minutes, according to some observers

Mr Hollande, responding to a question about Mr Putin during a conversation with the war veteran, described the meeting as "friendly".

He said: "Yes we talked to him and with President Poroshenko, we made Ukraine and Russia talk."

After the photo, Petro Poroshenko, Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel remained outside as they talked.

No plans have been announced for a formal meeting between the two men despite a week of intense diplomacy aimed at resolving the crisis in Ukraine.

The talk is the first meeting between the two leaders since Mr Poroshenko was elected.

Mr Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a statement that he and Mr Poroshenko had called for a "soonest end to bloodshed in southeastern Ukraine and combat action by both parties, the Ukrainian armed forces and supporters of the federalisation of Ukraine".

US President Barack Obama also spoke to Mr Putin at the commemoration ceremonies, marking their first face-to-face conversation since the crisis began in Ukraine.

The White House said the conversation was informal and lasted around 15 minutes as the leaders ate lunch inside a chateau.

"President Obama made clear that de-escalation depends upon Russia recognising President-elect Poroshenko as the legitimate leader of Ukraine, ceasing support for separatists in eastern Ukraine, and stopping the provision of arms and material across the border," said US deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes.

"If Russia does take this opportunity to recognise and work with the new government in Kiev, President Obama indicated that there could be openings to reduce tensions," added Mr Rhodes.

Mr Putin also held meetings with Prime Minister David Cameron, Mrs Merkel and French president Francois Hollande this week to discuss sanctions imposed on Russia after it annexed the Crimean peninsula.

It comes after 15 pro-Russian rebels were killed at a border crossing on Thursday.

Anton Herashchenko, an aide to the Ukrainian interior minister, said guards clashed with armed men who approached the border in trucks from the Russian side of the border close to the village of Marynivka.

Five Ukrainian soldiers were also injured during the clashes. Parts of the border in eastern Ukraine were closed after the incident.

Officials have claimed more than 200 people have died in fighting between Ukraine government troops and pro-Russian rebels in recent weeks.

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D-Day Veteran's Great Escape From Care Home

An 89-year-old Royal Navy veteran has turned up in Normandy for the D-Day commemorations after ignoring a travel ban imposed by his care home.

Police were called to the man's nursing home in Hove, Sussex, on Thursday night when staff realised he had gone out at 10.30am and had not been seen since.

The man has since been named on social media as Bernard Jordan, a former mayor of Hove, and his carehome has tweeted a photo of him.

The pensioner 'went AWOL' wearing his war medals covered by a grey jacket and secretly boarded a coach to France.

Mr Jordan with a picture of when he was mayor (Pic: Gracewell Healthcare)

Police initially searched the Hove area, speaking to bus and taxi companies and checking local hospitals in case something had happened to him.

Then, at 10.30pm on Thursday - 12 hours after he was last seen - a younger veteran called to say he had met the pensioner on a coach on the way to France.

He said the pair were sitting in a hotel in Ouistreham, Normandy, where world leaders have been mingling with veterans to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

Mr Jordan is said to be safe and well.

A Sussex Police spokesman said: "We have spoken to the veteran who called the home today and are satisfied that the pensioner is fine and that his friends are going to ensure he gets back to Hove safely over the next couple of days, after the D-Day celebrations finish."

Chief Superintendent tweeted: "Love this - 89-year-old veteran reported missing to us by care home who said he can't go to Normandy for D-day remembrance. We've found him there!"

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Baby Poisoning: Dad Says Child 'Was Suffering'

The father of a baby who died after contracting an infection from a suspected contaminated drip says he hopes his death will prevent other babies dying.

Nine-day-old Yousef Al-Kharboush, who was born eight weeks premature, passed away on Sunday while being treated at St Thomas' Hospital in London.

With three new cases, 21 babies have now been struck down with blood poisoning in neonatal intensive care units in 10 hospitals.

It is believed an intravenous fluid supplied by the London-based pharmaceutical firm ITH Pharma is to blame.

All the babies were given a fluid called parenteral nutrition, which is supposed to deliver a variety of nutrients intravenously when a baby is unable to eat on its own.

Speaking at a pre-inquest review at Southwark Coroner's Court, Yousef's father Raaid Sakkijha said: "My son has just died. I don't want more children to.

Yousef died at St Thomas' Hospital in London

"If you looked at Yousef, he was dying because of this product. He was suffering. He died because of this."

He added: "The hospital was very helpful. It was just an unlucky incident.

"I was hoping to hear this product would be completely stopped from production until they make sure that... no other babies are being contaminated.

"I won't have a baby in the next nine months but I hope other people who have babies will be safe."

Consultant neonatologist Dr Karen Turnock, from St Thomas' Hospital, said Yousef became "increasing unstable" before his death and tests showed evidence of the bacterium known as bacillus cereus.

ITH Pharma has said the suspected contamination has been traced to a "sourced" single raw material ingredient.

It is understood all of the other babies are responding to treatment with antibiotics.

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Madeleine McCann Police Search New Area

British police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann in Portugal have been looking at a new patch of scrubland close to where she went missing.

Police were seen inspecting a flat area of ground at the other end of the area they have been studying over the past week.

Yellow tape has been placed in various parts of scrubland in Praia da Luz on the Algarve, to highlight areas of interest to police.

Officers could be seen examining the grass-covered, uneven ground inside one marked-out area.

The search is in its fifth day - police had previously been focusing on a hole which had been covered in undergrowth.

A police officer checks soil samples

Forensics officers sifted through soil in large sieves inside a white tent set up to cover the hole, which was thought to have been used as a children's den.

An item of clothing, believed to be a man's sock, was removed from the scene but was thought to have been ruled out of the investigation.

Madeleine's parents said on Thursday they were "encouraged" by the progress made as police search for clues about what happened to their daughter after she disappeared from the resort in May 2007 at the age of three.

Writing on the Find Madeleine Campaign Facebook page, Kate and Gerry McCann thanked their followers for the support they had received.

"We are being kept updated on the ongoing work in Portugal and are encouraged by the progress," the message said.

"Thank you for continuing to stand by us and supporting our efforts to get Madeleine home."

Police officers clear an area of wasteland during the search

The land, which is a few minutes' walk from the Ocean Club resort apartment where Madeleine and her family were staying, has been searched before.

Two other areas are also expected to be searched by investigators.

The operation is likely to go into a second week after British police applied to the judiciary to spend an extra seven days there.

It is not clear whether they will work over the weekend and nothing is expected to be carried out on Tuesday as it is a public holiday.

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New Hope For Ferret Owners Over New York Ban

Campaigners calling for ferret ownership to be legalised in New York have been given a boost as the city's mayor says he is considering lifting a longstanding ban.

New York residents have been banned from owning ferrets since they were outlawed by former mayor Rudolph Giuliani 15 years ago on the grounds they are considered wild and dangerous animals under the city's health code.

He famously once told one ferret fancier that their "excessive concern with little weasels is a sickness".

Now, after years of lobbying, campaigners appear to be making headway.

Ferret owners say the creatures are safe

Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration has said there could a hearing on ferret ownership by the end of the year.

Underground ferret owners hope they will now finally be able to come out of hiding.

Sheilla Sumayang, who had a ferret in Brooklyn until it died in 2011, said the ban meant even trips to the vet were difficult.

"Every time I brought him to the veterinarian I had to cover his little carrying case so people would think he was a cat," she said.

She plans to adopt two new ferrets if the restriction is lifted.

Although ferret ownership is generally legal across the United States, bans also exist in California and Hawaii.

The US health department says there have been documented cases of "vicious, unprovoked attacks on humans".

But campaigners say ferrets are perfectly safe and only attack when they are starved or abused.

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Taliban Releases Video Of Hostage Handover

The Taliban have released a video showing American hostage Sgt Bowe Bergdahl being handed over to US forces in Afghanistan.

Sgt Bergdahl, clean shaven and dressed in white Afghan clothing with a shaved head, is seen waiting in a white pickup truck close to the Afghan border with Pakistan as Taliban militants outside lean in to talk to him.

He is blinking frequently in the bright light as he looks at and listens to his captors. He appears to struggle to speak English.

The 17 minutes of footage shows armed gunmen dotting the hills around the valley, as US Black Hawk helicopters overhead draw closer to the meeting point.

The Taliban reporter speaking over the clip explains: "We told them there are 18 armed fighters and the Americans said that's all right."

The Taliban's message to the Americans and Sgt Bergdahl

As one of the helicopters lands, throwing up a cloud of dust, Sgt Bergdahl is led to his rescuers by two men, one leading him by the hand, and another waving a white cloth tied to a wooden stick.

Most of the Taliban have their faces covered with scarves, while Sgt Bergdahl wears his over his shoulders.

After a brief exchange of handshakes between insurgents and US forces, Bergdahl moves unsteadily towards the helicopter.

Before boarding the helicopter the freed man is patted down to check he is not carrying any weapons.

The aircraft takes off and the message in English flashes up: "Don' come back to afghanistan (sic)."

Heaviliy armed Taliban fighters dotted the hillside around the exchange

The Taliban video, entitled Ceremony Of The American Soldier Exchange, is laced with religious music and chants of "Allahu Akbar", or "God is greatest".

At one point the voiceover says: "I congratulate all the mujahiedeen for this victory."

Sky's Diplomatic Editor Tim Marshall said: "The meaning of the pictures is that we see visual evidence that the Taliban are negotiating with the Americans on almost an equal basis.

"It is a propaganda coup for the Taliban."

US defence officials have said dozens of US special forces troops backed up by helicopters were sent for the handover.

Five years after he was captured by Afghan militants, Sgt Bergdahl was freed at the weekend in exchange for five militants held at Guantanamo Bay.

Sgt Bergdahl awaits the handover in a Taliban vehicle

There is a suggestion Sgt Bergdahl could face disciplinary action over claims from members of his unit that he was captured in 2009 after abandoning his post.

However, US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Wednesday that critics should not rush to judgement.

"It's not in the interests of anyone and certainly, I think, a bit unfair to Sergeant Bergdahl's family and to him to presume anything," he told reporters at a Nato defence ministers meeting in Brussels.

"We don't do that in the United States. We rely on facts."

Sgt Bergdahl's release has lead to sharp criticism of the Obama administration, with some US politicians fearing it poses a threat to Americans abroad.

He was the only US soldier held by the Taliban after being captured in Afghanistan.

The 28-year-old is now in a military hospital in Germany, undergoing physical and mental assessments.

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Ann Maguire Stabbing: Facebook Troll Jailed

An internet troll who wrote an offensive message about Ann Maguire, the teacher stabbed to death in her classroom, has been jailed.

Jake Newsome, 21, was sentenced to six weeks in prison for posting his comment on Facebook.

Mrs Maguire was stabbed to death at Corpus Christi Catholic College in Leeds on April 28.

Newsome's message said: "Personally, I'm glad that teacher got stabbed up. Feel sorry for the kid. He should have p***** on her too."

Newsome, from Harehills, Leeds, pleaded guilty when he appeared at Leeds Magistrates' Court last month.

Mrs Maguire had taught at the school for more than 40 years

Court officials confirmed that he was jailed when he appeared before a district judge on Wednesday morning.

The court had heard that Newsome posted the message on Facebook on the afternoon of May 1.

Facebook users reacted angrily to his post, adding a range of comments in response.

Soon afterwards Newsome was reported to West Yorkshire Police.

He admitted that he put the message on the site but told officers he did not think it was offensive.

Tributes from around the world have poured in for Mrs Maguire, 61, who was stabbed a number of times as she taught a Spanish lesson.

She had taught at Corpus Christi for more than 40 years and was due to retire in September.

:: A 15-year-old boy has been charged with the murder of Mrs Maguire and is due to go on trial later this year.

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Rolf Harris Brother: Grope Claims 'Ridiculous'

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter, at Southwark Crown Court

The brother of the veteran entertainer Rolf Harris has labelled as "ridiculous" claims that the star groped a TV make-up artist, a court has heard.

Harris, 84, is said to have put his hands up the woman's shorts and touched her bottom as she applied powder to his face as he prepared for a TV shoot in Australia.

Jurors at Southwark Crown Court have already heard how the singer and cartoonist was allegedly described as "the octopus" by some TV production staff because of his wandering hands.

Speaking via video link from Sydney, his brother and manager Bruce Harris said of the claim: "It's ridiculous. I would never have let him do that. He knew I wouldn't have let him do that.

"That's just not possible. I would have shouted at him and made him stop. It never would have happened. It's never something he would have done. I wouldn't have allowed him to do that."

Bruce Harris was also asked when he became aware of the allegations against his brother and he said it was when alleged Australian victim Tonya Lee gave a TV interview in 2013.

He said he then phoned Cathy Henkel, organiser of the 1985 theatre group tour to Britain, where the incident is alleged to have happened, to find out what exactly she knew.

Rolf Harris was accompanied by members of his family

He said that she had told him that she "hadn't seen anything of that kind but it could have happened".

Mr Harris said: "I leaned on her. I said surely you must have seen... they were your group. Surely you would have seen something like that happening. She said she hadn't."

Mr Harris added: "In retrospect I kept on niggling away at her... Tonya's documentary went into great detail about what happened.

"Cathy must have seen something of this. I didn't put any pressure on her."

Under cross-examination from Ms Sasha Wass QC, Mr Harris denied he had known his brother had been questioned by police about sex allegations in November 2012, six months before the TV programme aired.

Asked why he had called Ms Henkel, Mr Harris replied: "I'm protective of my brother. I just didn't believe it. It's not the way I have ever seen him perform."

Mr Harris told the court he would not have gone to the police if he had found the allegation to be true.

Harris, of Bray, Berkshire, denies 12 counts of indecent assault on four women aged between seven or eight and 19 years old between 1968 and 1986.

The trial continues and the jury is expected to retire next week.

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Madeleine McCann: Police Tents Erected

Madeleine: Key Events Timeline

Updated: 10:22am UK, Monday 02 June 2014

Here is a timeline of the key events since Madeleine McCann's disappearance.

2007

:: May 3 - Kate and Gerry McCann leave their three children asleep in their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz while they dine with friends at a nearby tapas restaurant.

Jane Tanner, one of the friends eating with the McCanns, later reports seeing a man carrying a child away earlier that night.

:: May 5 - Portuguese police reveal they believe Madeleine was abducted but is still alive and in Portugal, and say they have a sketch of a suspect.

:: May 14 - Detectives take Anglo-Portuguese man Robert Murat in for questioning and make him an "arguido", or official suspect.

:: May 25 - Detectives release a description of the man reported by Jane Tanner three weeks earlier after pressure from the McCanns, their legal team and the British Government.

:: May 30 - Mr and Mrs McCann meet the Pope in Rome in the first of a series of trips around Europe and beyond to highlight the search for their daughter.

:: August 6 - A Portuguese newspaper reports that British sniffer dogs have found traces of blood on a wall in the McCanns' holiday apartment.

:: August 11 - Exactly 100 days after Madeleine disappeared, investigating officers publicly acknowledge for the first time that she could be dead.

:: September 7 - During further questioning of Mr and Mrs McCann, detectives make them both "arguidos" in their daughter's disappearance.

:: September 9 - The McCanns fly back to England with their two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie.

:: October 2 - Goncalo Amaral, the detective in charge of the inquiry, is removed from the case after criticising the British police in a Portuguese newspaper interview.

:: October 25 - The McCanns release a new artist's impression drawn by an FBI-trained expert showing the man described by Jane Tanner.

2008

:: March 19 - Mr and Mrs McCann accept £550,000 libel damages and front-page apologies from Express Newspapers over allegations they were responsible for Madeleine's death.

:: April 7 - Three Portuguese detectives, led by Paulo Rebelo, fly to Britain to re-interview the seven friends on holiday with the McCanns when Madeleine vanished.

:: July 17 - Mr Murat receives £600,000 in libel damages from four newspaper groups over "seriously defamatory" articles connecting him with the child's disappearance.

:: July 21 - The Portuguese authorities shelve their investigation and lift the "arguido" status of the McCanns and Mr Murat.

:: August 4 - Thousands of pages of evidence from the Portuguese police files in the exhaustive investigation into Madeleine's disappearance are made public.

2009

:: January 13 - Mr McCann returns to Portugal for the first time since coming back to the UK without his daughter.

:: March 24 - The McCanns launch a localised new appeal for information focused on the area in the Algarve where Madeleine disappeared.

:: April 4 - Mr McCann goes back to Portugal to help film a reconstruction of the events on the night his daughter vanished.

:: April 22 - The McCanns fly to the US to record an interview with chat show host Oprah Winfrey to mark two years since Madeleine's disappearance.

:: June 14 - Dying paedophile Raymond Hewlett says he was in the Algarve when Madeleine disappeared and has an alibi - but has no plans to reveal it.

:: August 6 - Detectives say they are hunting a "Victoria Beckham lookalike" with an Australian or New Zealand accent, reportedly seen in Barcelona three days after the little girl went missing.

2010

:: Feb 18 -  Kate and Gerry McCann say they are "pleased and relieved" at a judge's decision to uphold a ban on a book by former detective Goncalo Amaral.

:: Mar 3 -  A newly-released file from Portugese police on possible sightings is called "gold dust" and could lead to a breakthrough, says a spokesman for the McCanns.

:: May 1 - Kate McCann reveals she had thoughts about being "wiped out" in a motorway crash to end the pain of losing Madeleine - but vows never to give up.

:: November 10 - Madeleine's parents launch an online petition to help force a UK and Portuguese joint review of all evidence in the case.

:: November 15 -  The McCanns sign a deal to write a book about their daughter's disappearance.

2011

:: May 13 - The Prime Minister David Cameron asks London's Metropolitan Police to help investigate the case.

:: November 23 - Kate and Gerry McCann appear at the Leveson Inquiry into media ethics.

They tell how media pressure affected their family life and accuse newspaper editors of hampering the search for their missing daughter.

Kate McCann says she felt "violated" when her diary was published without her permission.

:: December 5 - Scotland Yard detectives spend time in Barcelona as part of their re-examination of the case.

2012

:: March 9 - Portuguese police in Oporto launch a review of the original investigation.

:: April 26 - Scotland Yard says Madeleine McCann may still be alive and release an artist's impression of what she may look like as a nine-year-old.

:: July 6 - British detectives examine a claim that the little girl's body is buried near the apartment from where she vanished. It comes after a self-styled investigator sends police radar scans he claims show a burial site.

2013

:: February 11 - Gerry McCann calls for politicians to implement the conclusions of the Leveson Inquiry in full, backed by legislation.

:: February 13 - Police say the results of DNA tests on a girl in New Zealand who was mistaken for Madeleine reveal that she is not the missing British girl.

:: February 21 - Retired solicitor Tony Bennett who published claims that Madeleine McCann's parents caused her death is given a suspended jail sentence.

:: May 2 - Madeleine McCann's parents tell Sky News a police review into their daughter's disappearance is making "excellent progress" as they mark the sixth anniversary since she went missing.

:: May 17 - Scotland Yard say they have identified a number of "people of interest" they want to speak to. It believes it has found enough evidence to reopen the case but the Portuguese authorities are still resistant. 

:: June 15 - The Home Office agrees to fund a full-scale investigation by the Metropolitan Police.

:: October 13 - UK detectives reviewing the case say key details in the timeline of her disappearance have "significantly changed".

:: October 14 - A fresh appeal is launched in a bid to find a suspect detectives say is of "vital importance", with two new separate e-fits - thought to be of the same man seen on the night Madeleine went missing - released by police.

:: October 17 - Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood, who is leading the Scotland Yard team, Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, and Mr and Mrs McCann meet officers in Lisbon to be briefed on the Portuguese case.

:: October 23 - Britain's most senior police officer Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe defends the way the Portuguese dealt with the initial investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, saying it would have been "very difficult" to immediately know if they were dealing with a serious crime.

:: October 24 - Detectives in Portugal reopen the investigation into Madeleine McCann's disappearance after an internal review uncovers new lines of inquiry and witnesses who were never questioned during the original Portuguese investigation.

2014

:: January 3 - A family source says Kate and Gerry McCann have been denied permission to give evidence at a Portuguese libel trial over a book about the case by former local police chief Goncalo Amaral.

:: January 13 - British police investigate three burglars who were in the area when Madeleine disappeared, and whose phones were apparently "red hot" after she went missing. A letter is sent to Portuguese police asking for help to track them down.

:: January 29 - Scotland Yard officers, including the detective leading the case, fly to Portugal to meet police there and discuss the latest developments.

:: March 19 - Officers from Operation Grange launch a search for a man who sexually assaulted five British girls in the Algarve between 2004 and 2006.

:: April 23 - Detectives identify five new cases where a lone intruder abused young British girls in holiday apartments in the Algarve.

:: May 1 - Kate and Gerry McCann give an interview to Sky News where they are desperate to find out what happened to Madeleine, even if it is the "worst case scenario" as they back calls for a Child Rescue Alert service similar to the Amber Alert system in the US.

:: May 6 - Scotland Yard plans to dig for evidence in three locations in Praia da Luz are approved, with officers set to use ground penetrating radar.

:: May 8 - British Officers reportedly use a military helicopter to photograph potential excavation sites and hold a four-hour meeting with Portuguese colleagues to agree a timetable for new searches.

:: May 22 - Met Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley says the investigation will enter a "substantial phase of operational activity" in Portugal in the coming weeks. 

:: June 2 - Portuguese police seal off an area of scrubland to the west of Praia da Luz as they prepare to examine the potential excavation site.

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Body Found In Search For Brit Gareth Huntley

Police on Malaysia's Tioman Island have confirmed that a body has been found in the search for British backpacker Gareth Huntley, who went missing after going on a jungle trek.

Local media reports say the body was found less than 100m from the conservation camp where he was working as a volunteer. 

According to Malaysian newspaper The Star, search personnel stumbled across the corpse in a pond close to a kayak storage unit at around 12pm local time.

The 34-year-old disappeared last week after attempting to find a waterfall nearly four miles away from the camp in the jungles of the paradise island.

Mr Huntley's mother has been notified of the discovery

Deputy Superintendent Johari Yahaya told the newspaper he could not confirm whether the body was that of the missing Briton.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "Malaysian police have confirmed that a body has been found on Tioman island in Malaysia.

"Foreign Office consular staff on the ground are continuing to work closely with the Malaysian authorities and are investigating with them as a matter of urgency.

"We continue to provide support to the family of Gareth Huntley at this very difficult time."

The area where the body was found. Pic: Thestar.com.my

Mr Huntley's mother, Janet Southwell, and his girlfriend, Kit Natariga, are on the island off Malaysia's east coast to assist the search effort.

Dozens of rescue personnel have been backed by paramilitary commandos, multiple helicopters, speedboats and sniffer dogs in the latter days of the search following initial criticism of the Malaysian authorities' response.

Mr Huntley's girlfriend (pictured) and his mother are both on the island

Prime Minister David Cameron reportedly spoke to Malaysia's prime minister Najib Razak after receiving an open letter from Mrs Southwell in which she urged him to seek more resources for the search.

The letter said: "Make one phone call to the Malaysian leader to insist that they deploy real help to find Gareth before time runs out".

The backpacker had been volunteering in a turtle sanctuary on the island

The 34-year-old from Hackney, east London, set off on May 27 telling friends at the Juara Turtle Project where he was volunteering that he would be back by 2pm but failed to return.

Mr Huntley, who was originally from West Yorkshire, was on a sabbatical from his job in the City.

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Queen's Speech: 16 Things You Need To Know

Amid cries of a "zombie Government", the coalition has laid out what it claims are "bold measures" in the Queen's Speech.

Sky News looks at the some of the key points from the annual address:

Pensioners can buy a Lamborghini with their savings if they choose

1) Pensioners can buy Lamborghinis - pensioners will no longer be forced to buy an annuity but will be able to spend their retirement savings as they wish. They will get free financial advice. Pensions minister Steve Webb came under fire for saying they should be free to buy Lamborghinis if they wanted to.

2) Change the EU - Britain will fight for reform in Europe and a "stronger role for member states".

3) Benefits cap - a limit on the amounts the Government can pay out in benefits is another of the key measures.

The Government's Help to Buy housing scheme will continue

4) Housing bubble? What housing bubble? - despite warnings Help to Buy could be potentially damaging to the housing market, there is a commitment for ministers to continue to promote the scheme.

5) Sack your MP - voters will be given the power to effectively sack their MPs if they are found to have broken the rules.

6) More academies and free schools - Education Secretary Michael Gove's drive for more state-funded schools that operate independently of the local authority will continue.

England will follow the rest of the UK's lead in charging for plastic bags

7) 5p plastic bags - charges on supermarket carrier bags will be introduced from October 2015.

8) Free school meals - every infant will get free school meals under Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's long-championed scheme.

9) Modern slavery - people traffickers will be given tougher sentences under moves championed by Home Secretary Theresa May.

A tax-free childcare scheme will be worth up to £2,000 per child

10) Childcare changes - working parents will get up to £2,000 of tax-free childcare vouchers. An extension of free nursery hours for more disadvantaged two-year-olds has also been outlined.

11) "Cinderella law" - parents could be jailed for up to 10 years for subjecting their children to emotional cruelty, including withholding affection.

12) Acts of heroism - do-gooders who step in to help others in trouble will be offered protection from prosecution.

Fracking projects have sparked protests in some parts of the country

13) Frack away - shale gas firms will be able to drill under private property without permission.

14) Forces complaints - a new ombudsman will be created to oversee complaints in the Armed Forces.

15) Workers' rights - measures to combat unfairness of zero hours contracts, higher penalties for those who fail to pay the minimum wage and moves to tackle employment tribunal delays are all included.

16) Golden goodbyes in the public sector - excessive redundancy payouts of public sector workers who then take up other posts within the public sector will be limited.

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Queen's Speech: Government's Agenda Set Out

A house building drive, pensions reform and a commitment to reform the EU have all been put on the agenda for the coalition in its last year.

The speech put the economic recovery at its centre, opening with a pledge to continue bringing down the deficit and cutting taxes "to increase people's financial security".

David Cameron, Nick Clegg and Ed Miliband listen to the speech

With the threat that the Bank of England will increase the base rate before the General Election, there is also a pledge to keep mortgage and interest rates low and to continue to promote the Help to Buy scheme.

David Cameron had suggested he could amend the scheme after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney warned in an interview with Sky News that rising house prices were the biggest threat to economic recovery in the UK.

The Black Rod knocks on the door of the House of Commons before the speech

In an attempt to tackle the housing shortage, the Government announced plans to give developers powers to push through applications without council approval and allowing the Government to sell off unused land for development.

A new garden city will also be built in the Thames estuary at Ebbsfleet in Kent to tackle the housing shortage.

The Prime Minister and his Deputy Nick Clegg claimed the measures laid out in the Queen's Speech were "unashamedly pro-work, pro-business and pro-aspiration".

The Queen leaves the House of Lords after delivering her speech

Just 11 new bills were introduced by the Queen at the State Opening of Parliament, which will bolster Labour's claims the coalition is now a "zombie government" which has run out of steam. Last year there were 19 new bills.

Mr Cameron hit back at claims there was "not enough" in the speech.

The new carriage carrying Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh

He told the House of Commons: "We're creating new laws on producing shale gas... new laws to help build high speed rail... new laws to reform planning to build more homes... we're outlawing modern slavery; confiscating assets from criminals; protecting people who volunteer; cutting red tape and curbing the abuse of zero-hour contracts.

"This is a packed programme of a busy and radical government."

The moment a page boy collapsed during the speech

Labour leader Ed Miliband said: "We would have a Queen's Speech with legislation which would make work pay, reform our banks, freeze energy bills and build homes again in Britain. A Queen's Speech which signals a new direction for Britain, not one which offers more of the same."

Pension reforms set out in George Osborne's Budget, which would mean pensioners will no longer be forced to buy annuities with their savings, were also included along with a Recall Bill which could see voters given the power to sack MPs guilty of serious misconduct.

Other measures include:

:: 5p charge for plastic bags

:: Powers to allow fracking firms to dig under private property without asking

:: Parents to face jail for emotional cruelty to children in new Cinderella Law

:: Pledge to fight to keep Scotland in the union

:: Limit to excessive redundancy payouts for public sector workers

:: Tougher sentences for people traffickers

:: Free school meals for infants

:: Fines for employers who do not pay the minimum wage

:: £2,000 childcare vouchers for working parents

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Probe After Baby Dies From Blood Poisoning

A probe has been launched after a baby died from blood poisoning through an infection caught from a suspected contaminated drip.

Public Health England (PHE) said it is investigating 15 cases of septicaemia in babies at six hospitals in England.

The hospitals are: Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust (4 cases), Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust (3 cases), Whittington Hospital (1 case), Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust (3 cases), CUH Addenbrookes (2 cases) and Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (2 cases).

The hospital at which the baby died is not known.

PHE said the cases have been "strongly linked" with a number of batches of a liquid called parenteral nutrition, which was fed to the babies intravenously.

The liquid allows babies to be fed by bypassing the usual process of eating and digestion.

PHE said the affected babies were in neonatal intensive care units at the hospitals.

A statement said: "Many of the babies were premature and very vulnerable and one baby has sadly died but the others are responding to antibiotic treatment.

"Investigations are ongoing but so far indications show that the cases have been strongly linked with a number of batches of a particular form of intravenous liquid called parenteral nutrition which was given to the babies."

Professor Mike Catchpole, PHE's incident director, said: "We have acted quickly to investigate this issue alongside the MHRA and we have taken action to ensure that the affected batches and any remaining stock of this medicine is not being used in hospitals."

Parenteral nutrition is usually produced under sterilised conditions to cut the risk that the product could result in infections.

PHE said investigations with the company had identified an incident that might have caused the contamination. 

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a Class 1 Drug Alert over the batch of contaminated liquid.

Class 1 is the most critical alert and requires immediate recall. PHE said ITH Pharma Limited, which makes the batch in question, had already issued a recall notice.

The bacteria that has caused the infection is Bacillus cereus, which is found widely in the environment in dust, soil and vegetation.

PHE said most surfaces would test positive for the presence of the bacteria. It produces hardy spores that, in the right conditions, produce a toxin which causes illness.

More follows...

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Arrests Made Over Tower Hamlets Election

Two people have been arrested as part of a probe into alleged voting malpractice at elections in Tower Hamlets, east London.

A 38-year-old man was arrested on 13 May in connection with an allegation of potential false declarations on nomination forms.

A 24-year-old man was also arrested on June 3 on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud in relation to postal vote applications.

Police said they were eight ongoing investigations in Tower Hamlets relating to voting in the local and European elections on May 22.

"These refer to one allegation of failing to put a correct imprint on election literature; one of making a false statement about a candidate; four of false declarations on nomination papers; and two relating to postal voting."

Six further election-related offences are being investigated in other London boroughs, police said.

These relate to four allegations of false declarations on nomination papers, one allegation of bribery, and one of forgery.

A 33-year-old man was arrested in Enfield, North London, in connection with potential false declarations, while three more men were interviewed under caution.

All three men arrested were released pending further inquiries and are due back in custody in late June and mid July.

More follows...

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Anti-Terror Police Arrest Two Men At Dover

Two men have been arrested at Dover on suspicion of being involved in a terrorism plot, police have revealed.

The pair, both British nationals aged 44 and 26, were seized by officers from SO15 Counter Terrorism Command at around 11pm on Tuesday night.

They are being held in custody in south London and are due to be questioned in connection with "the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism".

Scotland Yard said officers have been searching two addresses in West London and an address in Hertfordshire as part of the investigation.

The men are understood to have travelled on a ferry from Calais to the Kent port when they were arrested.

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