News about Mark Thomas

The nest, which was perched high a cliffs of a defunct quarry in southern Scotland, seemed to be a good spot to start investigating international organised crime. It belonged to a female peregrine falcon, one of Britain's most protected species, whose attempts to breed there were mysteriously ended in failure. When falcon specialist George Smith and PC Gavin Ross examined the nest, they discovered two of the four reddish-brown eggs they had noticed that the bird had been sitting on had vanished. As the guys began to leave, they discovered a footprint that wasn't related to either of them. Someone else had taken a different route up to the nest.

The bedbugs are on the march. Experts in France's unprecedented outbreak of the blood-sucking parasites has warned that it was only a matter of time before they made their way to the United Kingdom. The situation in France has deteriorated from bad to worse. Schools have been forced to close due to infestations, while Marseille people have been dumping mattresses on the streets in a desperate attempt to get rid of the creatures. To counter the threat, even sniffer dogs have been sent.

EXCLUSIVE: A sobbing schoolgirl was pulled from the wreckage of a bus accident that killed a 14-year-old and the coach's guide. At 8.30 a.m. today, the haunting sight welcomed emergency services after a bus carrying schoolchildren crashed with a bus and flipped onto its side in Hooton, Cheshire. In Merseyside, the coach was taking students from West Kirby all-girls grammar and Calday Grange all-boys grammar school. In a press conference this afternoon, thirteen children are in hospital, two of whom are critically wounded, according to police. Both children were taken straight from the scene to Alder Hey Children's Hospital. A paramedic who arrived quickly to the hospital said he'd come across one girl who was weeping in the aftermath, who said the incident was'very scary' and 'I thought I was going to die'.

A school bus in a horrific accident on the M53 this morning has been turned upside down, with a 'number of casualties' and students still trapped inside. Children are reportedly escaping from the back window and standing on the hard shoulder after the bus arrived late and had a reservation just after 8 a.m., according to witnesses. According to the local councillor for Upton By Chester, Sherin Akhtar, the children from Calday Grange Grammar School and West Kirby Grammar School for girls are injured in the accident.

A South African man claims he was 'taken for a ride' by an ancestry website that told him he was a DNA match with the mythical 'Cheddar Man', who died 10,000 years ago. Declan - who never stepped foot in the United Kingdom until last year - has denied the test's legitimacy after it told him he was a 'top 99% match to Cheddar Man's sample.'

The RSPCA has issued a snake warning as warmer weather makes the animals more active and 'escape a lot more.' Calls to its snake hotline have hit an all-time high, according to the charity, with the problem being particularly difficult in summer. 'The warmer they are, the more active they are,' Evie Button, senior scientific officer with the RSPCA, said.' So, they don't get a lot more in summer.' According to Ms Button, the organization received more than 100 calls a month relating to escaped pet snakes.

For the second year in a row, eight bee-eaters, with distinctive blue, yellow, and orange birds, have returned to a Norfolk quarry. It's the first time the birds, which are usually seen in Africa, have flowed to the same location in a row, and it's the seventh attempt in England in 20 years. Hundreds of birdwatchers have been drawn by the small birds after they were spotted by local twitcher Andy Chamberlain at the end of May. Bee-eaters migrate north from southern Africa to breed in the Mediterranean and north African continent, and have even appeared in the United Kingdom when deviating from their traditional routes.

STEPHEN POLLARD: For many years I deluded myself that the point of a comedian was to be amusing. Eddie Izzard - or Suzy, as he now wants to be known - was on the show, and I realised how wrong I was. The result was a rant, an hour of moaning about the government, the Right, and anything that didn't fit with modern oh-so-woke prejudices. It took me only an hour because that was when I stepped out. I had better things to do with my time. Izzard is just another of the phalanx of achingly dull, yawningly predictable knee-jerk Lefties - as well as Marcus Brigstocke, Mark Thomas, and Nish Kumar, who have spent their entire career complaining about 'the Tories.'

At 3 a.m. on Sunday, Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service (MFRS) crews were dispatched to a semi-detached home in Litherland, near Aintree Racecourse, where they discovered the ground floor ablaze. Four firefighters escaped the fire without using hose reel jets and searched for occupants simultaneously. Two people were discovered in the home and escorted out of the house by firefighters. CPR was administered by crews and paramedics who were on the scene, but they were unable to save one of the occupants. The other is in a serious hospital, while a third individual, who was able to flee the house and raise the alarm after being alerted by smoke alarms, is also treated by doctors for smoke inhalation.

DR MEGAN ROSSI: Although we have more bacteria than fungi, the fungi on our bodies (also known as the mycobiome) have a major effect. Saccharomyces boulardii, for example, is one of the most studied probiotics, and it shields the gut from an invasion of 'poor' microbes when taking antibiotics. (Although many people use the term probiotic to describe good bacteria, the term actually refers to 'friendly' organisms, such as yeasts.) The same situation applies with our personal fungi, as we can become sick as the make-up of our gut bacteria becomes unbalanced, allowing certain species to outgrow others.

A juvenile one-punch murderer who ran away laughing after an unprovoked assault on his victim has been sentenced to six years in prison. Kieran Scott (left), 19, struck out at defenceless Daniel Thomas (right), 53, while sitting on a bench in Hull on June 14 this year. Scott was chastised by Mr Thomas, also known as Mark, for 'getting lairy' with him and being 'cheeky,' according to the Hull Crown Court.

The physical characteristics of a 0 to 3-year-old boy also included blue eyes and red hair, the latter being a feature associated with European Jewish historical stereotypes. The group is believed to have originated from Rouen, Normandy, and spoke French. They were discovered to have certain genetic disorders, for which modern-day Ashkenazi Jewish populations are at a higher risk.

The issue is likely to take place nine days before waste collection in Edinburgh's strikes take place, but it is already high. At a time when the city is brimming with tourists, wrappers and takeaway containers are lining up in the streets. Members of the Unite and GMB unions representing the city council walked out on Thursday after rejecting a 3.5 percent wage offer from local government umbrella body Cosla. The strike is expected to last until Tuesday. On Friday, an improved pay package that will give employees an average 5 percent raise was considered, in an attempt to prevent more industrial action. During the strike, Edinburgh council leader Cammy Day has alerted people and businesses that chaos is inevitable.