World newsDoctors 'begged' twins to call off surgeryDoctors begged the twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani not to go ahead with surgery to separate their fused heads, it was revealed last night.
Both women insisted, however, that the controversial operation - which led to the deaths of them both - should be carried out, said a senior member of the surgical team.
Dr Ben Carson, director of paediatric neurosurgery at Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University Hospital, said he never thought the operation had a reasonable chance of success, and claimed the team made 'a great deal of effort' to try to talk the twins out of it. Read More...
Music blogMusicDub be good to meCurious about dub reggae but don't know where to start? Here's five classic albums to get the riddims startedStretching the boundaries ... Lee "Scratch" Perry. Photograph: Marilia Ogayar/EPA
I had an interesting conversation with a friend about dub reggae. Dub, like jazz, world, tropicalia, lounge or classical, can present a total conundrum to the outsider. Curious about the genre but completely at a loss as to where to start, he asked me which dub albums would make a good primer. Read More...
PornographyThe actors say they’re happy, the makers say it’s guilt-free – but what exactly is ‘fair trade’ porn? We find out
They mainly call it ethical porn, though some people call it “fair trade”. The term “free range” was essayed, but its agricultural connotations have proved too strong. “It’s the kind of porn you would buy in Waitrose,” is how D, 40, described it. He is one of the boyfriends and sometime co-star of Pandora Blake, 29, who runs a site called Dreams Of Spanking. Read More...
