News

Yesterday Twitter unveiled the top trends of 2012 in the UK. Some of the results are exactly what you'd expect, whilst others are pretty surprising. Here we have the full run down:

Top Ten Trending Issues

1. NHS
2. Syria
3. #Assange
4. Prince Harry
5. Samantha Brick
6. #NHS
7. Afghanistan
8. VAT
9. Leveson
10. Rebekah Brooks

People love to use Twitter to ‘debate' issues (/push their opinion forward). Various issues have dominated the headlines in 2012, often for weeks on end. From the ongoing farce that is the Julian Assange situation, to the challenges to the NHS, to ridiculous articles appearing in the Daily Mail (Samantha Brick we're looking at you).

With Christmas just two weeks away you should be in a festive mood by now. To help celebrate this time of year, loads of attractions and events pop up around London. Here we round up some of the very best Christmassy things going on this year.

Christmas Markets

There is nothing quite like a good Christmas market to get you in the spirit. There are the smells of the delicious food and drink, brass bands playing all the old favourites and loads of last-minute, unusual gifts. There are great markets all over London, but there are some that really stand out.

Covent Garden at Christmas is always nice, and the Christmas market based around the piazza is one of the highlights (plus there is a giant Lego advent calendar and reindeer petting!). Centring around the Southbank Centre, there is a huge market stretching along the Thames. The traditionally German themed market has a wide selection of gifts and toys, as well as choirs singing carols, whilst the Real Food Market has all the amazing meats, cheeses and mulled wine you could want.

If you're looking for something a little bit different, then the Camden Lock Night Market is perfect, offering vintage items, fashion, arts, crafts and home ware, all in the typical Camden style.

The Royal family have announced that the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton is pregnant. After marrying Prince William in a huge national celebration in April 2011, speculation has been rife as to when their first child would be announced.

A spokesman for St James's Palace said she is currently in hospital due to severe morning sickness and is expected to stay for at least a few days, but that the royal family are delighted about the pregnancy. 

Details are vague at the moment, though expect to hear much, much more about baby, who is likely to one day become the King or Queen of England. He or she will be third in line to the throne.

The statement from the palace revealed:

"Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting a baby."

"The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry and members of both families are delighted with the news."

It also downplayed the fact that the expecting mother is in hospital, explaining:

"As the pregnancy is in its very early stages, Her Royal Highness is expected to stay in hospital for several days and will require a period of rest thereafter."

London Mayor Boris Johnson has continued to welcome Indian students to Britain as part of his tour of the country. All this week he has been in India promoting British universities and strengthening ties with their Indian counterparts, whilst also taking the opportunity to slam the recent changes to international student visas.

India has a population of 1.2 billion people, and half of them are under the age of 25, making it the perfect country to target for growth at British universities. Indeed, during a visit to Amity University, south of Delhi, the Mayor emphasised London as a study option for the university's students:

"As Mayor I will do all I can to promote London as a place that is open for business and open to the brightest talent in the world. International students not only bring bright ideas that cement the reputations of our leading universities, they have huge spending power that boosts the UK economy."

Amity University already has a small campus in London and Mr Johnson encouraged the idea of it expanding. The Chancellor of the university, Atul Chauhan explained:

London's mayor Boris Johnson has repeatedly come to the aid of foreign students during his visit to India, calling for fewer restrictions on student visas.

Boris's trip to India has been used to send a clear message to Indian students that London is still welcoming international talent as it re-establishes itself as a 'global centre for education'. 

This comes at a time when last summer's chaos surrounding London Met university sparked uncertainty amongst Indians abroad over whether the UK was mistreating its overseas visitors.