In a Recession, One Counts Swans Oneself

Nearly $222M, according to newly filed documents

(NEWSER) - A penthouse in London broke records by selling for nearly $222 million, which makes it the UK’s most expensive flat. Oddly, the deal was made in 2007, but details were just recently filed, the Metro reports. The three-story apartment overlooks Hyde Park, and the as-yet-anonymous buyer is likely a foreign tycoon who paid cash. More»

Anna Chapman loses UK passport 'for public good'

(NEWSER) - So much for Anna Chapman's wish to return to the UK, where she lived from 2002 to 2006 with her British then-husband: UK authorities have sent Chapman a letter revoking her British citizenship. The spy lost her British passport under a law that enables the UK to revoke dual nationals' citizenship in cases in which doing so would be "conducive to the public good," the Daily Telegraph reports. More»

Tory-Liberal Dem coalition talks continue

(NEWSER) - Gordon Brown stepped down as prime minister and resigned as head of the Labour Party today, as it became clear that the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are on the verge of forming a coalition government. David Cameron, the head of the Tories, is expected to visit Buckingham Palace today to accept the queen's formal invitation to form a government, the BBC reports . More»

The birds usually mate for life, but not this time

(NEWSER) - A pair of British swans has done the unthinkable for the loyal species, which usually mate for life: It split up. Sarindi and Saruni had been together for two years, but both returned to an English bird sanctuary from their annual Arctic migration with brand new partners. It's only the second time in a 40-year survey of 4,000 pairs that researchers at the center have observed a swan “divorce.” More»

(NEWSER) - Surveillance cameras are nearly worthless in the fight against crime, a London police report concluded, with fewer than one crime solved annually for every 1,000 cameras.The UK is one of the world's most monitored countries, with one camera for every 14 people and 1 million cameras in London alone. Yet the internal report, obtained by the Telegraph, says that untrained officers used images ineffectively when they bothered to look at all. More»