Woman arrested for killing virtual husband

This weeks edition of Strange World is from our friends in Japan.

A Japanese woman has been arrested after she allegedly killed her virtual husband in an online game.

The 43 year old was apparently furious at finding herself suddenly divorced in the game Maplestory, reports the BBC.

Police say she illegally accessed login details of the man playing her virtual husband, and killed off his character.

The woman, a piano teacher, is in jail in Sapporo waiting to learn if she faces charges of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating data.

She was taken to Sapporo - where her "husband", a 33-year-old office worker lives - from her home in Miyazaki 620 miles away.

If charged with the offences, and convicted, she faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.

A Sapporo police official said the woman had used the man's ID and password to log into the game last May to carry out the virtual murder.

"I was suddenly divorced, without a word of warning. That made me so angry," she was quoted by the official as telling investigators.

The Watchmen cometh

Watchmen, the new comic book movie is gearing up now. As I have already mentioned in an earlier post, Watchmen aka The Greatest Comic Book Ever (TM) aka The Citizen Kane of Comic Books (TM) is causing a level of anticipation by fans of a level rarely seen.

Personally, if it is half as good as they say it could be then I will be very happy indeed. The Action/Fantasy genre is a favourite of mine, and when done right (The Dark Knight, X Men, Spiderman 2, LOTR) then it is the grandest of Hollywood spectacles.

So roll on Watchmen. Please be half as good as they say you are!

Ladybird childrens books updated for the 21st century

The Home Office doesn't like Indians

Quick update on my current Bollywood gig.

The Home Office have allowed 7 visas and refused 6, including the director. So I am on hold for a week and counting now until all the visas are allowed. Then finally I can get going (as I have lined up airports, courtrooms, and prisons for them), and I might also get fully paid as well!

Woe is me, maybe! Will keep you posted!

Stag

It was my very good friend Barrys stag do yesterday.

We started off with paint balling in Wakefield. That was an absolute scream, and all of us, me especially, are sporting large and attractive bruises all over our bodies. Paint balls hurt!! lol Barry got shot in the next a point blank range and has the nastiest big bruise (that looks like the love bit from hell), and was NOT a happy camper for a while lol. But then (with a pair of stag antlers on his head), did a sudden death run at the end where we all just shot him as many times as we could! lol. Good times :)



It was a great day also because virtually EVERYONE was there, including both Lois and Craig at the same event, which to those who know them and their history, is plain amazing! A sure sign that everyone is growing up now lol



I've known Barry for 10 years ever since we worked together at the infamous La Bergerie in Harrogate, and even dragged him to Egypt in 2000 for a holiday that he still has never forgotten lol ;) And now he's getting married! Bloody hell! lol


In the evening we went for a meal in Leeds, at a restaurant in Millennium Square and found that the Ladyboys of Thailand were putting on a show outside lol. We then went to The Birdcage in Leeds, a tranny club that puts on cabaret. Nothing to do with me, honest! lol. Someone got free tickets and I just tagged along. Much drunken dancing to 80's classics occurred.


Then back to Simon and Lois for many more drinks. Which ended with the last 6 of us drunken singing in their kitchen at 4 in the morning to American Pie! Honestly, what a fantastic night with my friends! :)

Next the wedding on the 7th November. Can't imagine that it'll be a quiet one ;) hehehe

I'm getting excited now!

Oh JJ, please don't screw this up!

Enceladus from Cassini

What a cracking photo! After Europa, Enceladus is my next bet for life in this solar system. Water, water, everywhere.........

"What telling impurities taint the ice plumes of Enceladus? To help answer this question, the robotic Cassini spacecraft dove last week to within 30 kilometers of Saturn's ice-plume emitting moon. At this closest-ever approach, Cassini attempted to sniff and obtain chemical data on particles ejected from Enceladus' regular surface, while at other times Cassini flew right through -- and sampled -- ice geysers directly. Searches in the data for impurity clues in the water-ice dominated plumes and surface ejecta are progressing. Although the main purpose of this flyby was particle analysis, several interesting images are emerging. Visible in the above image, for example, is an unusual gray sheen running vertically up the image center that might be water vapor escaping from surface canyons. Other notable features visible above include vast plains of craterless icy grooves, the day-night terminator across the image left, and an area near the top comparatively rich in craters."

Sleepwalk - Say 'No' to 42 Days!

The video that I worked on for Amnesty International has been released to the world. And a mighty fine piece of filmmaking it is too.

http://www.protectthehuman.com/videos/sleepwalk-say-no-to-42-days-

"Protesters against the government's planned 42-day detention limit for terror suspects are to walk through Leeds in a "mass sleepwalk".

Amnesty International campaigners will march through the city on Monday night wearing dressing gowns and slippers, and clutching pillows and blankets.

The move symbolises the organisation's belief that the UK is "sleepwalking into an assault on our human rights".

A film about its campaign against the limit extension has also been made.

Ministers argue that the new maximum detention period - an extension from the current 28 days - is vital to allow the security services to deal with increasingly complex terror plots.

The proposal was passed by just nine votes after a rebellion by 36 Labour MPs in the House of Commons in June and now faces tough opposition in the House of Lords before it can become law.

Peers began debating the Bill's detailed committee stage last week and are due to vote on the 42-day plans later.

Amnesty International said it had chosen Leeds to launch its campaign because it was targeting MPs who voted for a 42-day limit in June, but who voted against Tony Blair's earlier plan for a 90-day limit.

It said Yorkshire had a high proportion of MPs who fell into this category.

This film is Amnesty's wake up call - we have got to stand up for our basic freedoms
Amnesty's UK director Kate Allen

Currently police can question terror suspects for up to 28 days before charge.

The protest is due to start at 1915 BST at City Square, Leeds followed by a screening of the film "Sleepwalk" at the Hi Fi Club in Central Road at 1945 BST and then speeches from Amnesty's UK director Kate Allen and 7/7 bombing survivor Rachel North.

Ms Allen said: "There's a real danger that people in Britain are sleepwalking into an assault on our human rights.

"This film is Amnesty's wake up call - we have got to stand up for our basic freedoms.

"We can't rely on Westminster rumours that 42 days won't become law - this is too important, hard-won liberties are at stake.

"Plans to extend detention without charge should be abandoned once and for all."

Amnesty's has also set up a new online petition urging MPs to oppose the 42-day proposal."

Moon Rays, Milky Ways, and Prominences

On September 7th, the first quarter Moon and passing clouds contributed to a dramatic night sky over the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory. This panoramic view begins at the left looking toward the eastern horizon and the rising stars of the constellation Perseus. Sweeping your gaze to the right (south), you'll find the large observatory dome, housing a 2.6 meter diameter telescope, backlit by lights from nearby Yerevan, capital city of Armenia. Fittingly poised above the observatory dome is the bright, giant star Enif in the high-flying constellation Pegasus. Farther to the right, the brightest celestial beacon just above the clouds is our Solar System's ruling gas giant Jupiter. At the far right, the Moon is nearly hidden by an approaching cloudbank, but the clouds themselves actually cast shadows in the bright moonlight, creating the effect of Moon rays across the evening sky.


Is there any place in the world you could see a real sight like this? Yes. Pictured above is single exposure image spectacular near, far, and in between. Diving into the Earth far in the distance is part of the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy, taken with a long duration exposure. Much closer, the planet Jupiter is visible as the bright point just to band's left. Closer still are picturesque buttes and mesas of the Canyonlands National Park in Utah, USA, lit by a crescent moon. In the foreground is a cave housing a stone circle of unknown origin named False Kiva. The cave was briefly lit by flashlight during the long exposure. Astrophotographer Wally Pacholka reports that getting to the cave to take this image was no easy trek. Also, mountain lions were a concern while waiting alone in the dark for just the right exposure


On September 29, this magnificent eruptive solar prominence lifted away from the Sun's surface, unfurling into space over the course of several hours. Suspended in twisted magnetic fields, the hot plasma structure is many times the size of planet Earth and was captured in this view by the Sun-watching STEREO (Ahead) spacecraft. The image was recorded in extreme ultraviolet light emitted by ionized Helium, an element originally identified in the solar spectrum. Seen against the brilliant solar surface in visible light, such prominences appear as dark filaments because they are relatively cool. But they are bright themselves when viewed against the blackness of space, arcing above the Sun's edge.

And we're off again

I have just landed my first feature film as Location Manager!

It is another Bollywood film, and came around from my involvement with the previous one Showman. The Line Producer Umran is the brother of someone I worked with on Showman, called Danni who was the bodyguard of Govinda when he was on the shoot.

They originally wanted Sue Bellarby, the Location Manager of Showman who was my boss, but she is already doing 2 Bollywoods back to back in Newcastle lol. So Danni said, what about Martin?

Its a small production with only 15 crew, so they are going to give me my first shot at the big job lol

I has some rather interesting stuff for me to find, including a hospital with operating theatre, a courtroom, a prison cell and an airport! lol. Another day at the park.

Oh, and thats by 15th October! When start shooting then.

Wish me luck. I'll be firing on all cylinders for the next few weeks!

My raspberries have been decimated

Funny, but also not funny. 8 crimes on the increase since the credit crunch kicked in.


1. Employee fraud

OK, so perhaps we have all swiped a bottle of Tippex from the office stationery cupboard at some point. But as companies struggle, jobs are less secure and pay and bonuses get frozen, many employees turn theft into a cottage industry.

Recent figures from accountants BDO Stoy Hayward show that employee fraud has cost UK companies more than £77m in the first half of this year - up from just £10m in the same period last year. Some staff are making extra cash through fake expenses claims or stealing company stock or software for resale. Even if you're not ripping off your company, be aware that the finger of blame may be pointed. Disgruntled colleagues who fake more sick days will also leave more work for you.

2. Supermarket theft

Perhaps the saddest example of the crunch is that many supermarkets have had to step up their security. Sainsburys and Tesco have both attached security tags to their chicken and meat - in particular, the more expensive organic items. The devices have to be removed at the till, and let of a shrill alarm if anyone walks out of the door without having the tag removed. Until now, the electronic tags have been attached to small, expensive goods which are easy to sell on such as perfume, batteries, razor blades, booze and DVDs. But with a whole organic chicken costing nearly £10 on average, temptation has increased.

Even more bizarrely, the latest 'must-have' for shoplifters is Slim Fast shakes. Yes, really. The £7 six packs of the meal replacement drinks have been security-tagged after disappearing en masse from supermarket shelves.

3. Allotment theft

Perhaps put off by extra security in supermarkets, food thieves are finding other sources of swag. If you or someone you know has one of Britain's 250,000 allotments or even an impressive vegetable patch there is a new threat to be aware of. Growers who are used to six or four-legged pests are now finding a big increase in two-legged thieves.

Now some angry growers have reached boiling point, forming teams of night-time "vegilantes". In picturesque Ottery St. Mary, Devon, the gardening gloves are off as allotment holders team up to patrol the plots. Local grower Adrian Forster told the Mirror newspaper: "We've always had a bit of pilfering but these days they'll nick anything.

"My raspberries have been decimated. I caught a whole family picking them from my plants and when I challenged them the dad had the cheek to say, 'There's an abundance here. You'll never eat them all.'"

"It's the worst I've known it in 22 years. With the credit crunch, people think they can save money on their food bills. They're running off with our beans, peas and gooseberries. I'm miffed about my goosegogs. They were giant - would've made lovely pies - and they've stripped the bushes bare."

Fellow grower Jackie Roche explained: "I am a vegetarian and totally self-sufficient, so when people pinch the stuff I grow they are literally taking the food out of my mouth."

Adrian added: "These thieves haven't experienced the sweaty effort of wheeling barrows of dung up here, digging it in and tending it all summer. I produce a lot, but I share it with family and friends and swap it for different produce with other growers."

4. Car insurance fraud

Dodgy claims for car crashes are up by 70% with dishonest motorists deliberately writing off their cars to clear their debts. Investigators having uncovered 24,000 fraudulent claims worth £260 million over the past year, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI). At the same time the police forces and the Insurance Fraud Bureau have uncovered a tide of "cash for crash scams" with accidents being staged to raise money.

And if you think insurance fraud is a victimless crime which just affects big businesses, then you're wrong: it pushes up the cost of insurance for everyone.

"Honest motorists pay through higher insurance premiums - an extra £40 a year on average," says the ABI's Nick Starling. "Anyone committing insurance fraud is more likely to get caught, risks a criminal record, and will find future insurance and credit harder to obtain and more expensive."

5. Petrol theft

A few years ago during the petrol shortage, I woke up to find a length of hosepipe sticking out the petrol tank of my car. Luckily the thieves had not been able to siphon off the fuel but as fuel costs remain high, this trick is back in fashion. Petrol stations are also reporting many more cases of people driving off without paying. I always pay for petrol with cash now after so many people I know have had credit and debit cards cloned after filling up.


6. Mortgage fraud

As banks clamp down on lending, mortgage brokers are under increasing pressure to get applications accepted by bank and building societies, sometimes by any means possible. In July alone, the financial regulator, the FSA, took action against nine mortgage brokers, including four firms for mortgage fraud activity.

The FSA now plans to visit 200 financial firms to ensure that their systems protect customers from the risk of fraud. It has even doubled its mortgage fraud investigation team to help tackle the problem.

Michael Coogan, director general of trade body, the Council of Mortgage Lenders, says: "People may not think of lenders as victims of crime, but unless fraudsters are tackled then honest customers are the ones who end up paying more."

7. Travel insurance fraud

This summer has also seen travel insurance targeted by fraudsters. While false claims for things such as cameras, iPods and designer sunglasses are up a whopping 80%, inflated claims for cheaper items are ballooning too.

Some travellers who realise that they cannot afford holidays booked earlier in the year are believed to be cancelling trips after feigning illness and tricking doctors into issuing certificates stating that they are unwell. Most policies offer cancellation refunds when a traveller falls ill before a trip. Unexpected unemployment could also be the basis for a claim, as is the discovery of pregnancy after booking when the date of return home would be within 12 weeks before the due date.

The ABI's Malcolm Tarling says that insurance companies are now primed to spot "tell-tale signs" of false claims: "I won't say what those are though," he adds.

What is known is that claimants can expect forensic inspection of evidence of ownership, with insurers demanding receipts for cameras, phones, watches and other goods, as well as bank statements or money-changing receipts for any claims over mislaid or stolen holiday cash. Insurance company staff are being trained to detect nervy responses and other giveaway signs and are more likely to send investigators to interview claimants face-to-face.


8. Burglaries

Insurance giant Churchill has recently warned those consumers heading off on holiday of the risk of returning to find that they have been burgled. According to statistics released by the group, one in ten people have come back from holiday to find that their home had been broken into and household items had been stolen. Many of those interviewed stated that a burglary had occurred during the period of a short break or a day trip.

Of course it's more likely that an empty home with be targeted but the government appears to gearing up for an increase in break-ins and other crime as a result of the credit crunch. At the beginning of September, a leaked letter revealed that the Home Secretary believes the economic downturn will lead to rising crime levels.

The document predicted sharp rises in burglary and violence - but less funding to put police on the streets to meet the tide of lawlessness. The letter says: "We can expect additional pressures on acquisitive crime, police finances (and officer numbers), citizen attitudes to migration, and pressure on our free income."

In mid-July, Number Ten is believed to have asked a number of major departments how their responsibilities would be affected by the credit crunch - and what they were doing to prepare.

Now, with the Government's attention focused on more pressing financial matters, it looks likely that the carnage in our supermarkets, offices, cars, suitcases, homes and vegetable patches will continue for some time.

An Engineers Guide To Cats

Please watch and enjoy. Then discuss how Corporal Cuddling and Cat Yodeling can be brought to the world. ;)

The X Factor

A quick snap from the recent casting I attended for our up-coming Noon project www.thenoonproject.co.uk .

In the middle is the director Duncan as Simon Cowell, and Charlotte Gray our casting director and director of local York Am Dram society (who put on Terry Pratchett plays, Nick!!!) is our Dannii.

I suspect that makes me Louis Walsh then! ;)

LOLCATS - Quantum Physics edition*

* Plus other LOLCATS and one Anteater.

Porn

We don't have enough porn on this blog, in my opinion.

;)