The News Matrix: Friday 17 January 2014

Healthcare professor struck off register

A professor knighted for services to healthcare has been ordered to be struck off the nursing register for “sexually motivated” misconduct towards an 83-year-old widow. Sir George Castledine, who addressed the pensioner as “my little tinkerbell” and told her he loved her, was found guilty of a string of allegations by the Nursing and Midwifery Council earlier this week.

People are starving in Palestinian camp

Residents of the Palestinian camp of Yarmouk in Syria are facing deteriorating conditions, with food, heat, water and medicine all becoming scarce. Dozens of people have died of starvation in the last few months and aid is struggling to get through to help those in need. MORE

Teen feared rape by DJ Travis at concert

A woman has told how she feared she was going to be raped at a Showaddywaddy concert by Dave Lee Travis. Speaking to a court yesterday, she told how the DJ beckoned her to a backstage trailer when she was 15 years old and told her he had “never seen boobs as big”. MORE

Fire at dump picked up on Nasa satellite

Pictures of smoke from a fire at a British recycling plant has been picked up on a Nasa satellite. People living near the blaze at the plant in Sherburn in Elmet, North Yorkshire, have been told to keep windows closed after up to 15,000 tons of material, including tyres, caught light yesterday.

Actors pay tribute to ‘loved’ Lloyd-Pack

Stars have paid tribute to Roger Lloyd-Pack – Trigger in Only Fools and Horses – who has died from pancreatic cancer. Sir David Jason called him a “fine actor capable of many roles”, while Nicholas Lyndhurst said: “He was the most accomplished actor and loved by millions.” MORE

Three arrested over wildfires

Three suspects, in their 20s, have been arrested in connection with a wildfire that saw 2,000 people evacuated from their homes and up to two square miles of dry bush charred. The fire started yesterday in the dangerously dry foothills of Southern California’s San Gabriel Mountains.

Homosexual man given 20 lashes

A Nigerian man has received 20 lashes after an Islamic court in the northern city of Bauchi convicted him of homosexual offences. The man, Mubarak Ibrahim, 20, faced being stoned to death but the judge took account of the fact that he carried out the acts seven years ago and had stopped the practice.

US monitors millions of texts

British spies are able to look at texts scooped up in a secret operation which collects hundreds of millions of the messages, according to the latest leak from former US spy Edward Snowden. It is claimed that British spies are given backdoor access to the NSA’s secret SMS database called Dishfire. MORE

Contenders for the Oscars announced

American Hustle and 12 Years a Slave 10 Oscar nominations apiece yesterday, while 12 Years a Slave is up for nine. In all, nine films were nominated for best picture, including the Somali pirate drama Captain Phillips, the biographical drama Dallas Buyers Club, and Her, a sci-fi romantic comedy-drama. MORE

Three Diana outfits to go on display

Bespoke outfits worn by Princess Diana will take centre stage at a new fashion exhibition. Three dresses – including the cantaloupe silk outfit worn by the Princess of Wales as a new bride – will go on display next week as part of a collection donated to Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Fashion Museum.

Morrissey signs a new recording deal

Morrissey has signed a new record deal to release his first new album in more than five years, days after taking a swipe at the music industry. He signed for Universal, which released his 2008 album Years Of Refusal, having claimed that “the majority of people have lost faith in the music industry”.

Boffins invent way to tidy up Earth’s orbit

Scientists are to trial a device intended to help clean up space by pulling junk out of Earth’s orbit. Researchers at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency have developed an electro- dynamic tether that will slow down the junk and pull it into a lower orbit, until it enters the Earth’s atmosphere and burns up.

Doctor Who loo proves a big draw

A pub landlord who transformed his gents’ toilet into a Tardis has spoken about the unlikely tourist attraction. Andrew Mitchell, owner of The White Hart in Dorking, Surrey said: “When we get tourists in, they pop in for a drink and take photos.” He added: “It’s become known locally as ‘The Turdis’.”