News

A bare, unassuming wall in Mayfair is quickly becoming one of the hottest outdoor art sites in London. Already covered in street art, a further addition to the collection appeared yesterday afternoon (30th April) depicting the Queen (above).

The disused building, on Bruton Lane, W1, first hit the headlines in November last year when an instantly recognisable piece by Banksy (below left) appeared two storeys above the ground. After we discovered and exclusively revealed the Banksy, it was quickly dubbed ‘Shop ‘Til You Drop', before it was confirmed as an official Banksy on his website.

The British are infamous for the amount of time we spend talking about the weather, but if the last month hasn't given us a valid reason to then we don't know what would. It was only a matter of weeks ago that we were bringing you news that parts of Britain were officially in drought, but since then the country has been hit by severe storms and flooding. Whilst all the time remaining ‘in drought'.

The country was officially thrown in to drought on the 5th April, after the driest 18 months since records began. With March temperatures soaring over 20^oc, hosepipes were banned as experts predicted the worst drought in the UK for 30 years. However, ever since the drought was announced, Britain has been hit with a pretty much constant downpour of rain.

The Wettest April on Record

As April ended yesterday, vast swathes of the country have been left battered by the weather. Overall, the UK experienced the wettest April since records began in 1910, with some areas receiving a month's worth of rain in a particularly bad 72 hours. There are still 36 flood warnings in place, as well as 150 less serious flood alerts, and the wet weather is expected to continue well into May.

East London residents received an unusual letter last week, warning them that surface-to-air missiles may be placed on their roof during the Olympics. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) sent the leaflets out to 700 people living on an estate in Bow, many of whom were not best pleased.

In leaflets handed out and posters put up, the MoD revealed that an old water tower (above right) that now houses flats may well be used as a base for a "Higher Velocity Missile system". They explained that "the location has been chosen as it is situated close to the Olympic Park and offers an excellent view of the surrounding area and the entire sky above the Olympic Park".

Despite these warnings, it is still unclear whether the MoD will even deploy ground based air defence systems during the London Olympics 2012. Though they have been a common feature of a number of previous Games, the logistics of placing them are proving difficult. A spokesman described how these specific missiles are "designed to counter threats from very high performance, low-flying aircraft", though would only be used "in response to a confirmed and extreme security threat".

Students at the University of Dundee officially have the best experience during their studies according to a freshly released survey. For the first time in five years, Loughborough University has been knocked off the top spot in the annual Times Higher Education (THE) Student Experience Survey, falling to second place.

The university ratings are based on the views of more than 14,000 undergraduate students in the UK. They were asked to rate their university in 21 different categories, including the quality of staff, structure of courses, social life and university facilities and student accommodation. These categories are then given different weightings depending on their importance to the overall student experience.

Dundee Fights Off Competition

Dundee rose to the top, from fifth position last year, after students praised the university's convenient facilities, cheap shops, excellent students' union and fair workload. The president of Dundee Students' Association, Iain Kennedy, explained:

The annual London Marathon took place on Sunday, with almost 40,000 runners raising millions of pounds for good causes. However, despite the usual excitement, fancy dress and fun, there was a tragic side to this year's Marathon. A 30-year-old runner collapsed during the final stretch of the race and died soon after.

Claire Squires was a hairdresser who had run the Marathon once before, and had even climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in March. Despite appearing in good health she collapsed near St James's Park for unknown reasons and paramedics were unable to revive her.

A statement on the London Marathon website yesterday confirmed her death, saying:

"The organisers of the Virgin London Marathon would like to express their sincere condolences to the family and friends of the deceased. We would like to emphasise that our immediate concern is for the family of the deceased. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with them at this difficult time."

Claire Squires is the tenth runner to die during the London Marathon since it began in 1981. Though the reason for her collapse is still unknown, five of the previous runners who died had been suffering from heart disease that they were unaware of.