Nigerian Times

Mirza Masroor Ahmad (Urdu: مرزا مسرور احمد) (born September 15, 1950) is Khalifatul Masih V, the spiritual leader of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. 14 Feb 2012 18:52 Africa/Lagos Muslim Leader Speaks of Islamophobia at Opening of New Mosque LONDON, February 14, 2012/PRNewswire/ -- Muslims urged to cast aside differences of religion, ethnicity and nationality for the sake of peace and unity A clarion call to Muslims to set aside differences and work relentlessly for peace and unity in the UK has been made on the occasion of the opening of a new mosque in South East London. To mark the opening, and as part of its ongoing commitment to serving mankind, the Ahmadiyya Muslim community donated thousands of pounds to British charities. Representatives of all major religions had gathered for the inaugural ceremony of the new GBP675,000 mosque in Catford, which had been funded entirely from voluntary donations from the Ahmadiyya Muslim community - many of whom had donated jewellery, savings an...

Julian Barnes on Tuesday night. London based writer Julian Barnes, 65, has won the £50,000 Man Booker Prize for Fiction for his novel The Sense of an Ending . The announcement was made the evening of Tuesday 18 October, 2011. The Sense of an Ending went straight into the bestseller list on publication by Jonathan Cape. The novel is the eighth Man Booker Prize winner to be published by Jonathan Cape, a Random House imprint. Barnes has been shortlisted on three occasions without him winning the prize and said "as much relieved as delighted to be receiving the prize." He was previously shortlisted in 1984, 1998, and again in 2005. He is the author of ten previous novels with translations in over 30 languages so far. Barnes is the only writer to have won both the Prix Médicis (for Flaubert's Parrot) and the Prix Femina (for Talking it Over) in France. His other important awards include the Austrian State Prize for European Literature and the David Cohen Prize. Amazon's...

28 Jul 2011 17:45 Africa/Lagos British Airways Celebrate One Year to go to the London 2012 Olympic Games CRAWLEY, England, July 28, 2011/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- British Airways, the official airline partner of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, is emblazoning 'One Year to Go' onto the belly of an Airbus A318 aircraft, to celebrate the milestone 365-day countdown to the start of the Olympic Games. Flight 'BA001' from London City Airport to New York will display the celebratory message on its underbelly, as it departs at 1.05pm flying past the Olympic Park just minutes later. It is expected that the message will be visible to those in parts of East London and at the Olympic Park. Footage will also be made available at youtube.com/flybritishairways. Garry Copeland, British Airways director of engineering, said: "This is the first time in the history of British Airways that we have branded the entire underbelly of an aircraft with a celebratory message. W...

Tony Bennett is the last person to work with Amy Winehouse. 23 Jul 2011 21:55 Africa/Lagos Tony Bennett Statement on the Passing of Amy Winehouse PR Newswire NEW YORK, July 23, 2011 NEW YORK, July 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Singer Tony Bennett, who recorded the classic pop standard "Body And Soul" with Amy Winehouse at Abbey Road Studios in London this past March, made the following statement upon news of her passing: "Amy Winehouse was an artist of immense proportions and I am deeply saddened to learn of her tragic passing. She was an extraordinary musician with a rare intuition as a vocalist and I am truly devastated that her exceptional talent has come to such an early end. She was a lovely and intelligent person and when we recorded together she gave a soulful and extraordinary performance. I was honored to have the opportunity to sing with her. It had been my sincere hope that she would be able to overcome the issues she was battling and I send my deepest sympathy ...

Nigerians in UK inspire British Author’s new book for Children A new book Tópé Arrives is about a Nigerian orphan who was forced against his will to continue his life in England. It is a Nigerian story written by a new British author Wendy Hue who told me why she wrote this emotionally compelling children’s book that has been endorsed by Richard Damilola , the father of Damilola Taylor , the 10-year-old Nigerian child murdered on his way from Peckham Library on November 27, 2000, in south London in 2000. The book was on the long list of the The Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition . Tópé is suddenly orphaned and against his will he has to leave Nigeria. Worried about starting a new life in England, he feels he is an outsider in his new school. It is a time of tears and tussles. Will his nimble football skills and precious wooden boat somehow help him to carve out a new beginning? Will he ever again be able to believe in himself and drum in with the dundun drums his rene...

UNLAWFUL KILLING – SYNOPSIS The Unlawful Killing was finished on 9 March 2011, after three years of research and production, culminating (after a decade of delay) in an Inquest held at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. Keith Allen (father of Lily Allen) was at the centre of the inquest, covertly observing proceedings in the courtroom and amongst the press. His groundbreaking documentary recreates key moments from the inquest, and demonstrates how the cover-up was perpetrated. It shows how vital evidence of foul play was hidden from public scrutiny, how the royal family was exempted from giving evidence, and how journalists, particularly those working for the British media, systematically misreported what was happening. This is not about a conspiracy before the crash, but about a provable cover-up after the crash.

23 Jan 2008 15:54 Africa/Lagos Counter Terrorism Bill 2008 Published London, 23 January/GNN/ -- HOME OFFICE News Release (Opno003/2008) issued by The Government News Network on 23 January 2008 ATTENTION: HOME AFFAIRS AND SECURITY CORRESPONDENTS COUNTER TERRORISM BILL 2008 PUBLISHED You are invited to attend an off-camera, on-the-record, briefing ahead of the publication of the Counter Terrorism Bill 2008 on Thursday 24 January 2008. Briefing on the bill will be provided by the Home Secretary and the Minister of State for Security, Counter-terrorism, Crime and Policing, Tony McNulty. The embargoed briefing will take place between 11.45am and 1pm, when the Bill will be published. Date: Thursday 24 January Time: Arrive 11.30am for 11.45am Venue:Press Briefing Room Home Office 2 Marsham Street London SW1P 4DF The Home Secretary will be available for one-to-one, pre-recorded broadcast interviews in the Home Office following the briefing. The content of the briefing and pre-recorded ...

25 Nov 2007 12:32 Africa/Lagos Fire on board Oil Production platform London, 25 November/GNN/ -- MARITIME AND COASTGUARD AGENCY News Release (3) issued by The Government News Network on 25 November 2007 Aberdeen Coastguard is co-ordinating assistance to the Thistle Alpha Production Platform, which has an escalating fire, 124 miles north east of Sumburgh. The Coastguard was called at 8.10 am this morning to report that assistance was required. There are 159 people on board. The onboard fire team is working to extinguish the fire. The decision has been made by the oil production company Petrofac to begin down manning of the platform. Aberdeen Coastguard has scrambled the Gullfacs helicopter and the Coastguard helicopter Mike Uniform from Sumburgh. For further information please contact: The out of hours duty press officer on pager 07699 704430 or mobile 07703 584024 or during office hours: Maritime and Coastguard Agency Public Relations Office: (023) 8032 9401 Press releases and ...