This week's UK news: 13 May 2011
13 May 2011


No ordinary home

Outside, Robert Burns' house looks very ordinary. Inside it is anything but ordinary.
Mr Burns is a decorator, and has spent the past few years painting the rooms of his home to look like the Sistine Chapel in Rome. There are nativity scenes and copies of works by famous Italian painters.
Mr Burns says he was very bored painting everybody's walls the same cream colour. "One day I saw some photos of the Vatican in Rome and thought, 'I could do that". I never looked back,'" he said.
Mr Burns could not afford a trip to Italy to see the Vatican for himself and has based his works on art books.
He rents his home from Brighton council and is worried that if he moves out the walls will be painted cream again.

Attacker gets big shock

A man who attacked a man in a car park and then ran away thought he had got away with it. He even laughed when Natalie White started to chase him.
But when Miss White had chased him around the streets of Keswick in the Lake District for five minutes he realised his mistake.
Miss White, 28, is a champion mountain runner and had just run up and down 42 mountains in the Lake District in 24 hours. She said: "He was breathless and just gave up. I said I had told him I would catch him," she said.

Royal Wedding hat for sale

The most famous hat worn at the Royal Wedding has gone up for sale on eBay. The hat, worn by Princess Beatrice, got its own Facebook page because many people hated it so much.
It looks like a giant bow on top of an O, and sat on the front of the Princess's head.
Now the Princess is hoping the hat will raise money for charity. She said: "I hope whoever wins the auction has as much fun with the hat as I have."
Money raised will go to Unicef UK and Children in Crisis.

London police asked to help find missing girl

One of the biggest news stories in the UK has been the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.
Madeleine was taken from her bed on holiday with her family in Portugal four years ago when she was three. She has never been found.
Her mother has just published a book about Madeleine to raise money for her search. Now the Prime Minister has promised "new action" involving the London Metropolitan police.


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