London And Finally News

Carer Gemma Anscomb explains how with the help of a fluffy toy duck, keepers at Chessington Zoo have taken over mother duties for Lila.

• UK
• Chessington zoo
• Meerkats

I'm on my way sis. Boarded and ready to leave. Thank you everyone. http://t.co/zmw2AnMfpf

From @jpfpreston on Twitter: ( 8:10 pm, Thu 16 May 2013)

Joshua Preston has tweeted to say that he has left the UK on his way to visit his seriously ill sister in Australia.

He raised the money from friends, family and donations on London's streets.

• And Finally

A computer engineer from Peckham has raised over £300 in just six hours to help pay for his flight to visit his sister in Australia, who is suffering from a life threatening condition.

Joshua Preston took to the streets of London after receiving around £700 from friends and family, but donations helped him reach the £984 he needed.

Joshua's 14-year-old sister, who lives in Melbourne, suffers from a life threatening diabetic condition.

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Many of you might remember the 50-foot high rubber duck that travelled upriver in December - a stunt with the simple aim of trying to encourage Londoners to be daft. Everything hunky-dorey.

But what happens when big ducks become a let-down? Hong Kong knows.

It welcomed a 54-foot high duck - created by a Dutch artist - and which has been on a world tour since 2007, spreading a message of peace and harmony.

But sightseers were left disappointed when it deflated.

Organisers denied it was sunk by wind and rain, saying it the duck was flattened simply to allow maintenance to be carried out.

WATCH: VIDEO OF THE LONDON DUCK

• And Finally
• Hong Kong

Marc Quinn's sculpture of the disabled artist Alison Lapper was displayed from September 2005 until October 2007.

Lapper, who was born with no arms and shortened legs due to a congenital disorder, posed naked for Quinn when she was eight months pregnant.

"Alison Lapper Pregnant" was replaced with a very different artwork - an architectural model of a 21-story building.

The coloured glass sculpture by German artist Thomas Schutte, "Model for a Hotel 2007" was unveiled in November 2007 and occupied the plinth until the end of May 2009.

Next came Anthony Gormley's "One and Other" - a "living monument" which involved members of the public taking to the plinth.

The space was occupied by different people - chosen by ballot - every hour, 24 hours a day, for 100 days.

From 2010 to 2012, the plinth was home to Yinka Shonibare's "Nelson's ship in a bottle" which commemorated the Battle of Trafalgar.

And currently in position is a giant bronze sculpture of a boy astride a rocking horse. It is called "Powerless Structures Fig 101".

• And Finally
• Arts
• Trafalgar Square

The top 10 postcodes for big-money National Lottery wins are:

• 1. RM – Romford
• 2. SR – Sunderland
• 3. NE – Newcastle Upon Tyne
• 4. L – Liverpool
• 5. EN – Enfield
• 6. WA – Warrington
• 7. BR – Bromley
• 8. WV – Wolverhampton
• 9. DA – Dartford
• 10. DD - Dundee

These areas have more "top-tier" winners, per head of population, than anywhere else in the UK. High tier prizes refer to prizes of over £50,000 across all National Lottery games.

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• Romford
• National Lottery

The National Lottery has presented Romford with a ceremonial flag, to honour its status as "the UK's luckiest town".

Since the National Lottery launched in 1994, 40 millionaires have been created in the RM postcode, and 317 prizes of at least £50,000 have been banked.

That means there are more big-money prize-winners, per head of population, in Romford than anywhere else in the country.

A spokesman said:

"Romford is the first postcode to ever fly The National Lottery ceremonial flag, let’s hope it brings a further dose of luck for RM residents in the year to come."

• And Finally
• Romford
• National Lottery

"What a total waste of time, money & effort...LEAVE OUR MONUMENTS ALONE!"

An "insult to Nelson".

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• Arts
• Trafalgar Square

"It looks cheap, tacky and is more likely to be linked to Tottenham Hotspur than historic victory. Poor Nelson with that shoved under his nose!"

" I think he would have a good laugh, the French at his feet".

"I don't suppose anyone has considered how the pigeons might feel".

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• Arts
• Trafalgar Square

The exhibition of Katharina Fritsch's sculpture in Trafalgar Square has only just been rubber-stamped by planning bosses in Westminster - but the artist originally won the commission back in January 2011.

Here is how we reported on it at the time.

• And Finally
• Arts
• Trafalgar Square