Ten Things of Spirit and Cycle

First-time solo nominees Cardi B, Gambino and Camila Cabello at MTV VMAs/Getty

1. Ariana Grande broke down in tears when talking about last year's Manchester attack and its aftermath, where a suicide bombing killed 22 people at her concert in May 2017 at the Manchester Arena, while Grande, Drake, Cardi B and Childish Gambino are all up for video of the year at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards - described as the strongest line-up since 2004.
2. The biggest impact of Pope Francis' long-awaited visit to Ireland is likely to be spiritual, but there's no doubt that the visit also represents a merchandising dream. Ahead of the visit, a range of items, from reusable canvas Pope bags to "lollipopes" have been flying off the shelves.
3. More than half of the British population identify as having no religion, while Lindsay van Dijk has become the first humanist (non-religious) lead chaplain in the NHS, after being appointed by Buckinghamshire NHS Trust.
4. New Zealand's minister for women has cycled to hospital to give birth to her first child at 42 weeks, while a British woman has survived 10 hours at sea after falling from a cruise ship off the coast of Croatia, the country's coastguard has said.
5. Humans have been making their mark through rock cairns and monuments for centuries. Now critics say building new ones spoils pristine environments and could be a threat to wildlife. Supporters say the health benefits of rock stacking far outweigh any damage.
6. Non-smoking adults have a higher risk of dying from serious lung disease if they grew up with parents who smoked, according to US research.
7. A 65 year-old Scot accused of running a precious metals fraud scheme in the US has been placed on the FBI's "most wanted" list, while President Donald Trump's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, has raised eyebrows by claiming that "truth isn't truth" during a television interview.
8. Greece has successfully completed a three-year eurozone bailout programme designed to tackle its debt crisis, after the biggest bailout in global financial history, totalling more than €260bn. The country will be paying loans off for several decades, but for the first time in eight years, it can borrow at market rates.
9. Large numbers of emus have been flocking to an outback mining town in New South Wales as Australia continues to struggle with extreme drought, while Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says his government has abandoned plans to set an emissions reduction target in legislation.
10. More than a third of farmed fruit and vegetables never reaches supermarket shelves in Scotland because it is misshapen or the wrong size, according to new research.

Read more news >>