And Finally

An English lawyer has sworn a courtroom oath on a river instead of a holy book in what is believed to be a legal first. Paul Powlesland, a barrister who founded and chairs the River Roding Trust, made the oath in order to serve as a juror in a trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

A headless body reported to police turned out to be a "very realistic" sex doll. The doll — which would have cost thousands of euros — was discovered on a quiet beach in northern New Zealand by dog-walker Alice Cowdrey, RNZ News reports.

A lawyer's son allegedly used his father's name and AI technology to pose as a lawyer, appearing in court on behalf of clients before he was caught. South Carolina man Nathan Chambers last week apologised in court, saying that as he "watched my father and sister throughout my entire life practice la

Japanese traffic police are cracking down on tourists and travellers riding motorised suitcases. Under Japanese law, motorised suitcases — some of which can travel up to 13 kilometres or eight miles per hour — are classed as vehicles which can only be operated with a driving licence.

A postman is facing criminal charges after being caught with 13,000 undelivered letters in his garage. Police swooped on the home of the postal worker in the French town of Isle-d'abeau, near Lyon, following a tip-off from his disgruntled wife.

Germany has objected to Turkish efforts to impose rules across the EU on what can and can't be called a doner kebab. Turkey is trying to secure 'traditional speciality guaranteed' status for doner, strictly defining it as beef and lamb horizontally sliced into cutlets with a thickness of 3-5mm, or c

France's notoriously heavy-handed police have been ordered to be on their best behaviour as up to 1.5 million tourists descend on Paris for the Olympic Games. Some 3,600 officers have agreed to take foreign language lessons — mostly English — to offer better assistance to visitors, The T

Police officers are facing disciplinary action after two criminal suspects allegedly "turned into cats" and escaped. The two were among 11 suspects arrested for alleged possession of stolen goods in the small South African town of Meyerton.

A woman who fell out with her then-boyfriend after a Coldplay concert has been ordered by a tribunal to repay him for the cost of her ticket. The Civil Resolution Tribunal in British Columbia, Canada rejected arguments that the $450 CAD (around €300 or £250) ticket was a gift and held it

A journalist has been ordered to pay €5,000 to Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni after mocking her height on social media. Giulia Cortese, 36, was found guilty of defamation after a 2021 post in which she described Meloni as four feet tall.

The man who attempted to assassinate Ronald Reagan in 1981 has apparently disavowed the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. John Hinckley Jr, who was released from psychiatric care in 2022, wrote in a social media post following the attack: "Violence is not the way to go. Give peace a chance."

Fake olive oil worth almost $1 million (around €914,000 or £767,000) has been seized from an alleged criminal gang in Italy. Italian police arrested seven people and raided more than a dozen garages and warehouses in the major overnight operation last week, CNN reports.

An art gallery which became embroiled in a discrimination row over a women-only exhibition space has admitted the supposed Picasso paintings displayed there were fake all along. A court ruled earlier this year that Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) could not lawfully bar men from its Ladie

A battle between Greek and Mayan gods has begun in the Mexican courts. Lawyers acting for indigenous Mayan groups have taken legal action seeking the removal of a 10-foot statue of Poseidon erected on a beach near Progreso, Yucatan.

A tourist threatened by a blowtorch-wielding "pirate" was unexpectedly rescued by two naked men. Nudists Pete Sferra and Lloyd Fishback were taking a clothes-free stroll through the Castro neighbourhood of San Francisco when they spotted the person they described as a "crazy kind of pirate guy".