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The BFI London Film Festival is one of the most anticipated dates in the cultural calendar each year, and this year is no different. Over two weeks there will be 204 films shown including 13 world premieres, as well as dozens of special events involving directors, actors and crews. Running from the 12-27th October, the Festival is now in full swing, and below you can find some of the highlights that you should try and check out.

New figures released by Universities UK show that the number of overseas students coming to study in the UK has more than doubled in the last ten years. Whilst EU student numbers have increased by a third, non-EU students have gone up by a huge 121% since 2000.

The study- Patterns and Trends in UK Higher Education, reveals that there were 280,760 non-EU students and 125,045 EU students studying in the UK last year. Both of these represent huge increases and indeed, the report emphasises that "one of the main trends over the last 10 years has been the success of UK higher education institutions in attracting international students".

However, despite these increases, the figures show that EU students still make up just 5% of the total students in the UK, whilst non-EU students account for just over 11% of the total 2.5 million students taught in the UK each year.

Country by Country

In terms of individual countries, China remains the biggest sender of undergraduate students with over 29,000 students in the UK. To put that in context, that is three times as many as its closest rival- Malaysia which send less than 10,000. However, when looking at postgraduate instead, there is a very different picture.

A study abroad experience is not merely an academic experience. Actually, I would dare say that my time in the United Kingdom has been more socially than academically enriching. The importance of things I learned in the classroom cannot be compared to the lessons inherent in leading an independent life away from home, surrounded by people from all around the world.

Therefore, I was not surprised to find that my most memorable moments from this past year are not associated with my experience at LSE. Instead, they reflect a wonderful period of growth, fun and self-discovery in the most wonderful city of all.

- I never thought that my first camping experience would take place in such an urban setting. Yet, the only way to experience the Royal Wedding properly was to spend a night outside of Westminster Abbey (pictured above). Aside from the extraordinary pomp and circumstance, which exceeded all of my expectations, the truly unique aspect of this experience was participating in the heart of British tradition, immersing myself in the culture of my host country and understanding the sentiments responsible for monarchical stability.

The latest world university rankings table has been released by the Times Higher Education magazine, and it shows the strength of the top universities in the UK. There are three British institutions in the global top ten, with Oxford in 4th, Cambridge 6th and Imperial 8th, and there are 32 in the top 200.

However, compared to US universities, the UK loses out, as the list features seven American institutions in the top ten, and 75 in the top 200. It is also a US university that heads the list, but maybe not the one that you would guess. With Harvard dropping in to joint second place, it is the California Institute of Technology (above) that takes the coveted number 1 spot.

The rankings are based on a number of different factors, including the staff-to-student ratio, research income, PhDs awarded and the citation of research. It also rewards those with a high proportion of international staff and students, thus encouraging truly international universities.

Following the lead of Pisa, London now has its very own leaning tower- Big Ben. Engineers have revealed that the tower is very slowly tilting more and more to the northwest and the lean is now visible to the naked eye.

Big Ben is part of the parliamentary buildings in Westminster, and is one of the most iconic sights in the whole of London. Although technically the name Big Ben refers to the giant bell in the clock tower, generally it is also used for the tower itself. However, the famous view is slowly changing, with the top of the tower now one-and-a-half foot away from an upright position.

Engineers have suggested the reasons for the lean are to do with the decades of underground work that has been carried out beneath Big Ben. The Jubilee line of the Tube runs under Westminster, and an underground car park has been built under the tower itself, slightly weakening the foundations.

Not Quite Vertical

If the lean continues to worsen, Big Ben would eventually fall over, though you shouldn't be too worried just yet, as it would take another 4,000 years just for it to reach the same level of tilt as the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Indeed, whilst Big Ben is just 0.26 degrees off vertical, the famous tower in Italy is a massive 4 degrees and 12 foot away from being straight.