A woman seeking a sex-change is accused of harassing a staff member for her former school.

From a commodity hunted for its bone and blubber to a potent symbol of the environment, the whale has long held value. And the 150-year-old novel Moby-Dick is remarkably prescient about its fate, says writer Philip Hoare.

"To have the ball in your hands with no one in front of you and 30m to the try-line is as good as it gets"

BBC Scotland news reader Jackie Bird keeps a diary of her journey to see Scots troops in Afghanistan.

It is the stuff of escapist fantasy. A tall, dark and handsome type sweeps a cream-and-roses Home Counties heroine off her feet. In its 100 years of publishing, the exotic alpha male has been a staple of the Mills and Boon romance.

Seth Gilliam, star US drama The Wire, criticises the Emmys for being obsessed with sex after his show gets only one nomination.

Former England opener Geoffrey Boycott has compared Stuart Broad to West Indies great Sir Garry Sobers after his batting display against South Africa.

The public has been asked to select the best Booker winner ever. How is today's market for 'literary fiction' shaped by book awards?

The BBC's Martha Kearney sees something strangely familiar in the swarming of her bees.

Fluffy, funny and frankly outrageous to its fans, Sex and the City has long baffled a sizeable constituency of the TV-watching public - namely men. As the film of the show premieres in London, what is its appeal?

Shortcomings are found in the mental health care of a man and a woman who both killed strangers.

Lord Laidlaw of Rothiemay has admitted to receiving treatment for "sex addiction" at a private clinic, likening it to alcohol dependency. But is it really?

Man Utd go six points clear at the top of the Premier League with a win over Arsenal that all but ends the Gunners' title hopes, while Liverpool beat Blackburn 3-1.

Graffiti. Muggings. Fly tipping. Drug taking. Vandalism. What to do when a housing estate is this blighted? Knock it down and start again is one solution, but it's extreme.

Jim Fitzpatrick of BBC NI's Politics Show looks at the appeal of the political world to young people.

The Ski Sunday presenter visits Morocco

Romantic fiction publishers Mills and Boon are going to India. But will their books be a success, asks Shilpa Kannan?

A man described who admits plotting to behead a British soldier wanted his daughter to marry a militant, a court has heard

How can banks and cash depots combat the temptation for their employees to sell inside information to robbers?

A woman who tried to kill her husband with anti-freeze had earlier sought a hitman, a court hears.