UNITED KINGDOM

Shakespeare, 18 years on death row in a Pakistani jail, and a famously alcoholic writer are just a few of the serious dramas that balance the zany comedy shows at this year's 63rd Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Canadian John Wrenshall stands accused of bringing American child predators to Thailand to have sex with children, filming their crimes and then distributing the images over the Internet.

Obama Attacks Health Firms; Madoff's Accomplice?; VMware's Big Grab

A court in army-ruled Myanmar on Tuesday sentenced opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to 18 months in detention, a verdict that drew condemnation abroad and will keep her off the political stage ahead of next year's elections.

European private equity firms are keen to start bringing their best-performing portfolio companies to market, encouraged by early successes on the other side of the Atlantic.

Cuts=Productivity; Clinching a Big Insurer Deal, 230 miles per gallon

Britain's Resolution , an acquisitions vehicle founded by tycoon Clive Cowdery, clinched the first of a hoped-for trio of deals with the 1.86 billion pound ($3.1 billion) takeover of insurer Friends Provident .

Britain's Resolution , an acquisitions vehicle founded by entrepreneur Clive Cowdery, clinched its first deal on Tuesday with the 1.86 billion pound ($3.1 billion) takeover of insurer Friends Provident .

Adecco, the world's largest staffing group, said on Tuesday it had still not seen any recovery in its main European and U.S. markets and launched a new round of cost-cutting to protect profitability after a sharp drop in sales in the second quarter.

Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 rose 0.2-0.3 percent, pointing to a firmer start on Wall Street on Tuesday.

Adecco, the world's largest staffing company, missed forecasts with a second-quarter loss as one-off charges weighed, and said it was buying the UK's Spring Group to boost its professional staffing business.

Despite some slightly disappointing home loan and investment lending data out of Australia yesterday the Aussie dollar edged higher in Asia bouncing back from an early Monday morning sell off to 0.8330.

McDonald's Corp said sales at restaurants open at least 13 months rose a better-than-expected 4.3 percent in July, helped by gains in Britain, France and the United States.

McDonald's Corp said sales at restaurants open at least 13 months rose a better-than-expected 4.3 percent in July, helped by gains in Britain, France and the United States.

Police, councils and the intelligence services made more than 500,000 requests to access private emails and telephone records in the UK last year, according to an annual surveillance report.

UK-based waste treatment company New Earth Group aims to raise 15 million pounds ($25.14 million) to diversify into power generation and says it can generate 20 percent-plus returns under new incentives.

Iran accused the West on Monday of meddling in its state affairs for criticizing its mass trial of moderates charged with spying and trying to topple the clerical establishment after the disputed president vote.

Children should not routinely be given flu drugs like Tamiflu since there is no clear evidence they prevent complications and potentially harmful side effects may outweigh any benefits, British researchers said on Monday.

Britain's MGT Power Ltd plans to build a second major biomass power generator in northern England, scheduled to start powering around 600,000 homes from 2014, the company said on Monday.

The US Dollar lost considerable ground against the Pound and EURO early last week with both currencies breaking through the physiological resistance barriers of 1.70 and 1.44 respectively.

The Aussie dollar rallied momentarily following Friday's release of the RBA's quarterly statement on Monetary Policy spiking from 0.8395 to an intraday high around 0.8420.