Scientists from Porton Down have been deployed in the UK a "number of times this year", a counter-terrorism chief tells MPs.

Action thriller Bioshock is named game of the year at the Spike TV awards in Las Vegas.

Unmovic, the inspectors who landed at the centre of the storm over Iraq, are packing up and shutting down.

Girls Aloud enter the new World Records book with the most consecutive UK top 10s by a female act.

Society is still not sure what to do about the problem with teenage boys, says Tim Egan.

A cheeky playfulness permeates the Spice Girls comeback press conference in London.

Luton turns to poetry in a bid to overturn the image that once led it to be dubbed "Britain's worst".

The Hammersmith Palais, which closes this week, was immortalised by The Clash's (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais, a song Joe Strummer ended his gigs with right up to his death in 2002. But what's the song all about?

The new laws against age discrimination that come into effect on 1 October should lead to some workers choosing to work on for a few more years in their early 60s

It's plastered on everything from yoghurts to newspapers, but what on earth does "lite" really mean?

Women who don't want to lose their name in marriage have traditionally opted for double-barrelling their surname, or keeping their maiden name. Now, from the US, comes a new option: meshing.

Flying abroad for a holiday is a sin against the planet, according to a leading bishop. So how do you go away without incurring the wrath of the church.

The interim report by the Council of Europe on the issue of "extraordinary renditions" is another sign of the suspicion with which sections of popular opinion in Europe holds the United States.

The BBC goes behind the cover of the New Yorker magazine, a literary institution.

New German Chancellor Angela Merkel calls for stronger ties with the US on her first full day in office.

Business leaders from a range of industries gather in London to hammer out ways to fight back against counterfeiters.

The BBC News website highlights six web logs of note.

Celebrities and dignitaries discuss the enduring legacy of Hans Christian Anderson as his 200th birthday is celebrated.

BBC Wales' news website looks back at some of the quirkiest and most popular stories of the year.

BBC Wales' Parliamentary correspondent records all the Welsh happenings in Westminster.