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The planned unveiling in London of a memorial to the 55,573 Royal Air Force Bomber Command airmen killed in World War II has sparked muted criticism in Germany, where many regard the Allied air raids that destroyed entire cities and killed over 500,000 civilians as unjustified and criminal. Helma Orosz, the mayor of Dresden, which was devastated in an Allied attack in February 1945, criticized the plans for the monument when they first became public in 2010, and spoke to London Mayor Boris Johnson about it. "The planned memorial triggered astonishment in Dresden and was judged critically by us in...

Don’t be fooled by the pomp and dazzle of the Queen’s royal Diamond Jubilee flotilla easing past the tourists, celebrity-spotters, and pickpockets on the Thames. Britain is a country rotting from the inside, the first nation on earth that elected to destroy its culture with political correctness.Asks British columnist Rod Liddle, “Who are the people who have made Britain what it is today, the ones who ensured that we became a limp-wristed and decrepit, post-imperial satrapy of incompetence, sanctimony, self-obsession and self-loathing?”Who indeed? (By limp-wristed, Liddle means lacking in conviction, not gay). The short answer is the new aristocracy,...

It rained on the grand flotilla on the Thames marking the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. How appropriate. It meant that at the center of all the pageantry of the 1,000-boat extravaganza, an 86-year-old woman stood in the elements and waved to her subjects for hours, without betraying a hint of discomfort or complaint. Queen Elizabeth is a miracle of dutifulness. In an era of irresponsibility, she always does what is expected of her. In an age of self-expression, she has subsumed herself in her institution. In a time of informality and ill manners, she observes all the rules,...

Wow! Talk about pomp and circumstance! Did you see the adoring crowds at the Queen’s jubilee on the Telly over the weekend? In London, I mean. Where Queen Elizabeth II, despite threatening skies, continued the celebration of her 60th year as head of the British monarchy. I don’t really understand what all the fuss is about. For heaven’s sake, what does Britain have that we don’t? A royal family? Do we not rock the royal red as well as any royal whatshername?

It can be a difficult time for many teens. But high school for Barbara Behlmann has been exhilarating. The 19-year-old has inspired her classmates at Hazelwood West High in St Louis - not because she was crowned homecoming queen or is a star cheerleader - but because she has Down's Syndrome. One of her teachers, Jodi Schutzenhofer, explained to STLToday.com: 'Unknowingly, Barbara has taught us all that nothing is impossible if you are willing to work for what you want.' As the website reports, Barbara was four-years-old when child welfare workers placed her in the foster home of Gary and...

Full Title: Her Majesty the Corgi Whisperer: Californian cowboy who became a close adviser to the Queen tells of her remarkable affinity with animals In his Stetson and red neckerchief he could be mistaken for just another American tourist on the streets of Windsor hoping for a glimpse of the Queen. But unlike the other sightseers, Monty Roberts is here at Her Majesty’s personal invitation, having served as a trusted adviser on her beloved horses and corgis for the past 23 years. Monty first arrived at Windsor Castle in 1989, after the Queen heard about the Californian’s ability to tame...

First lady’s office will not comment ‘as of right now’ on $2K SOTU dress By Caroline May - The Daily Caller 1:27 PM 01/25/2012 ADVERTISEMENT While the president spoke about the economic frustrations of average Americans in his State of the Union address Tuesday night, his wife, Michelle Obama appeared at the event in a sapphire blue dress from designer Barbara Tfank’s 2012 Resort collection, estimated to cost over $2k. The first lady’s press office, however is mum on dress, telling The Daily Caller that they will not offer comment “as of right now.” Tfanks, a West Coast designer, recently...

Dutch Queen Beatrix took on the fiery leader of her country's anti-Muslim party today by dismissing as 'nonsense' his criticism of her decision to wear a headscarf during a recent visit to a mosque. The queen made her unusually forthright comment to Dutch reporters covering her state visit this week to the United Arab Emirates and Oman, National broadcaster NOS reported. Her comments were not recorded, but Beatrix told reporters she wore the headscarf in the UAE on Sunday, and again on a visit to an Oman mosque today to show religious respect The popular monarch was responding to questions...

A murder investigation is under way in England after a woman's body was found on the grounds of Queen Elizabeth's Sandringham country estate. The remains were discovered on the vast estate in Eastern England shortly after 4 p.m. on New Year's Day, according to multiple reports. Sky News reported that the body was found by a member of the public in woodlands in Anmer, a tiny village 115 miles northeast of London that is situated on the 20,000-acre Sandringham estate. The remains were reportedly located about a mile from the main gate to Sandringham House, where the queen spent New...

<p>Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you’re having a lovely vacation. Because I’m not actually on vacation. Unless you consider drinking coconut coffee from the Keurig while I work in my office a vacation. Because I don’t. At any rate, I saved the US taxpayers nearly $4 million by not being First Lady and flying off for a 17-day vacation in Hawaii on the taxpayers dime. You can thank me later.</p>

Freddie Mercury died 20 years ago today. The Queen singer and songwriter had been secretly battling AIDS for four years, announcing that he had contracted the disease on Nov. 23, 1991, one day before he passed away of AIDS-related bronchopneumonia. He was 45. Known for his wide vocal range and unparalleled showmanship, the Zanzibar-born Mercury (nee Farrokh Bulsara) also wrote many of Queen’s biggest hits including the six-minute-long rock opus "Bohemian Rhapsody,” sports anthems "We Are the Champions" and “We Will Rock You” and throwback "Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”

Singer Marc Martel of Christian band Downhere is a sure fire candidate to make the semi-finals for "The Queen Extravaganza" tour. Queen drummer, Roger Taylor, will announce those who made the semi-finals Nov. 9 after almost six weeks of open auditions. Public voting will take place Nov. 14. The remaining members of Queen – Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon – who wish to retire from performing, are holding the contest. They are looking for the best replacement singers and musicians to create a Queen tribute group that can keep playing their music in future years. All submissions are...

Queen's We Are The Champions has been voted the catchiest pop song of all time – by a team of academics. The scientists observed thousands of volunteers to find out why certain songs inspired unabashed wedding guests and clubbers to belt out their favourites in public. Singalong hits had four key elements, they concluded: long and detailed musical phrases, multiple pitch changes in a song’s ‘hook’, male vocalists and higher male voices making a noticeable vocal effort. Top singalongs include Village People’s YMCA, Sum 41’s Fat Lip, Europe’s The Final Countdown and The Automatic’s Monster. Musical hits rely on ‘maths,...

Queen Elizabeth II signed Thursday an amendment to the United Kingdom's universal jurisdiction laws allowing frivolous arrest warrants. "The change will ensure people cannot file for warrants when there is no real chance of prosecution," British Ambassador Matthew Gold said," and prevent abuse of the British legal system for political ends." According to Gold, the chief prosecutor in the UK would have to approve requests for warrants under the universal jurisdiction statutes, thereby avoiding the issuance of frivolous warrants in cases not expected to reach trial. "The UK is committed to bring to trial those guilty of war crimes," the...

The actor and director, who played the Fonz in the classic US sitcom, said it was "humbling" to receive the honour, awarded at the British embassy in Washington DC. Having been diagnosed with dyslexia as an adult, Winkler has toured schools in Britain over the last two years to talk about the learning difficulty. He has also written books for children about Hank Zipzer, a boy with dyslexia, whose experiences are based on the actor's own childhood struggles. In a statement on the embassy's website, Winkler said: "Receiving this honour is a very humbling experience. "My goal when I started...

Freddie Mercury Day - on what would have been the Queen singer's 65th birthday - has been celebrated with a new Google doodle on the web giant's homepage. In the animated Google Doodle, Mercury is shown singing on stage in front of screaming fans, sat on a throne wearing a crown and dressed as a woman, and strutting about with a hoover. The accompanying video, over 90 seconds long, is set to 1978 Queen hit Don't Stop Me Now. Queen guitarist Brian May, writing on a special Google blog, said: "Freddie would have been 65 this year, and even though...

My first encounter with a royal dog came in November 1990, when I rather nervously accepted an invitation to lunch at Clarence House to discuss my forthcoming biography of Prince Philip. Ushered into a drawing room by an equerry, I was introduced first to the Queen Mother, then Princess Margaret and finally one of the small brown barrels of fur sitting on the carpet. The corgi gazed up... Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2029871/Queen-controls-Labradors-800-yards-just-using-hand-signals-whistles.html#ixzz1WEuqI8m0

Sonsoles Espinosa, José Luís Rodríguez Zapatero's wife, was the only one out of the Spanist statemen's wives not to meet Benedict XVI at WYD. But the Vatican overlooks it...“Never has a first lady failed to attend the Holy Father’s visit, but Zapatero isn’t one to eat priests for breakfast…” On Sunday morning, the only frowned upon absence in the Pope’s retinue, was that of Sonsoles Espinosa, the Socialist prime minister’s wife, who did not make one appearance throughout the entire 2011 World Youth Day event.  Lady Zapatero was the only one out of all Spanish statesmen’s wives who, unlike Queen...

There may have been no rioting in the Highlands, but no one has been watching the arson and looting of Britain’s cities more closely than the Queen. With fewer than six months to her Diamond Jubilee, when celebrations are planned for the length and breadth of the kingdom, the disorder has alarmed aides planning the extravaganza. Central to their concern is not just the damage to the country’s image overseas, but also how quickly the feelgood factor engendered by April’s Royal Wedding has been lost. From her summer home in Balmoral, the Queen has kept in touch with developments and...

"Al-Sharif, a 32-year-old computer security consultant, was arrested last month in the city of al-Khobar... The human-rights organization said al- Sharif was forced to sign a pledge that she wouldn’t drive again and was released 10 days later..." “Since her arrest, several women have reportedly been arrested on various occasions for driving..."