Splash Instablog

After this week's tragedy, even the most loyal fans of "Stannis the Mannis" may have trouble sticking with him   Dear readers, I have an apology to make. A few weeks ago, I wrote an article defending someone I felt was a chronically under-appreciated character in the “Game of Thrones” TV universe: Stannis “The Mannis” Baratheon, would-be king of the Andals and the First Men and, in my opinion, actually a pretty cool dude! Sure, Tyrion and Daenerys are the flashy characters who get all the love, but Stannis – a besieged underdog, a competent leader, a loving father (uh… my bad) – seemed to be getting short shrift for all the dogged hard work he has been doing since the show began. Well, I have now had a day to process Sunday’s events, in which Stannis, prompted by religious freak Melisandre, took his daughter Shireen – an emblem, as our recapper Libby Hill writes, of “all things good and loyal and sweet” in the show – and burned her alive at the stake while she ...

 Scientists have watched Bossou chimpanzees hold "drinking sessions" in Guinea   Paris: Scientists have discovered a group of booze-loving apes who may hold the key to why humans enjoy drinking alcohol. A new study says wild chimpanzees enjoying opportunistic booze-ups on palm wine has shed light on a theory about evolution. Chimps in the west African country of Guinea discovered a free treat in raffia palms tapped by local people to extract a sweet, milky sap which then ferments into an alcoholic drink. Advertisement   The apes scrunched up leaves in their mouths, moulding them into spongy pads that they then dipped into the sap-gathering container, which villagers attach to the tree near its crown. Tests showed that the beverage's alcoholic content varied from 3.1 per cent to a whopping 6.9 per cent, the equivalent of strong beer. Some of the chimps went a little, well, ape. "[They] consumed significant quantities of ethan...

Ex-House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, arriving at court in Chicago on Tuesday, is accused of lying about cash withdrawals.   CHICAGO — After days of silence, J. Dennis Hastert, a former speaker of the House of Representatives, on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he illegally structured bank withdrawals and lied to the authorities about millions of dollars he had promised to pay someone for misconduct that occurred decades ago. In a dark pinstripe suit and with his familiar helmet of gray hair, Mr. Hastert, 73, stood slightly stooped before the judge, flanked by lawyers, quietly answering the judge’s questions with a simple “yes” or “yes, sir.” It was the first time the once-powerful former congressman had appeared in public since the charges were announced last month, and he was met with a chaotic crush of news media in the federal courthouse here. The provisions of his release were routine yet stark for a man whose career arc had ...

German tour operator TUI Deutschland says it has canceled all excursions to Luxor for the time being, following the suicide bombing at the city's famed Karnak temple earlier in the day. The attack — the second this month at or near a major tourist attraction in Egypt — has raised concerns for the country's tourism industry. A pool of blood and an abandoned sandal are seen at the site of a suicide bombing, near Karnak Temple in Luxor, Egypt, Wednesday, June 10, 2015. A suicide bomber blew himself up on Wednesday just steps away from the ancient Egyptian temple in Luxor, a southern city visited by millions of tourists every year, security and health officials said. No tourists were killed or hurt in the late morning attack. TUI's spokeswoman Anja Braun says further measures would depend on guidance issued by the German foreign ministry. She added that the resort Red Sea city of Hurghada has been by far the most important destination for German TUI customers.   ...

Tourists walk on the street at the resort of Magaluf, in Calvia town, on the Spanish Balearic island of Mallorca, Wednesday, June 10, 2015. Magaluf, the super popular Spanish resort notorious for the alcohol binges and drunken misbehavior of foreign tourists _ mostly young Britons _ is hoping a package of new municipal regulations will help clean up its image.  Police officers patrol the resort of Magaluf, in Calvia town, on the Spanish Balearic island of Mallorca, Wednesday, June 10, 2015. Magaluf, the super popular Spanish resort notorious for the alcohol binges and drunken misbehavior of foreign tourists _ mostly young Britons _ is hoping a package of new municipal regulations will help clean up its image. Tourists walk on the street at the resort of Magaluf, in Calvia town, on the Spanish Balearic island of Mallorca, Wednesday, June 10, 2015. Magaluf, the super popular Spanish resort notorious for the alcohol binges and drunken misbehavior of foreign tourists ...