{"author":[],"cl_content":"The Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel - or the 'Pink Palace' as we locals call it - is always the epitome of Hollywood glamour and chic. Its luxurious leather booths are filled with Tinseltown's biggest stars who discuss multi-million dollar projects over \u00a335 dirty martinis and its signature McCarthy chopped salad. But this week - as the Pacific Palisades wildfires raged 13 miles away down Sunset Boulevard - the serene lobby looked like a war zone. A line of some of LA's wealthiest residents stretched out from the lobby and down the red carpet to the car park where harried, crying and distraught people arrived clutching children, dogs and, in one case, an African Grey parrot. 'They arrived in their Teslas and Bentleys in just the clothes they had on when they fled,' one hotel insider told me.\nDowning Street is said to believe that significant reductions are needed in the welfare budget, namely from personal independence payments (PIP). Yesterday, the pound fell sharply against the dollar and the Government's borrowing rates rose to a 27-year high. There were also warnings that the growing crisis could hit mortgage rates if it continues. Now, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is said to have made it clear to the Treasury that she wants to get \"tough\" on spending - meaning cutting areas in unprotected departments - rather than considering new tax rises, the Telegraph reports.\nEdward Bull, 44, described the moment a zebra was viciously attacked by a rhino whilst they visited the zoo with their 18-month-old son, saying the 'zebra was 'just [in the] wrong place at the wrong time.'\nOn a humid June evening in 2023, a middle-aged man called Liam Byrne was arrested on suspicion of firearms offences while dining with family at a restaurant in the Majorcan town of Alcudia. Byrne clearly hadn't seen it coming: CCTV footage from the local police station shows him dressed casually in shorts, T-shirt and flip-flops as he's escorted into a cell by officers from the National Crime Agency. In the event, the arrest was a low-key affair, although it had been months in the making, the result of a long-standing investigation by police in the UK and Northern Ireland linking the 44-year-old to a wider network of arms and drugs offences, including stockpiling handguns and sub-machine guns to supply to violent criminal organisations. After being extradited to the UK, Byrne was convicted on a series of arms charges last September at the central London criminal court and sent to prison for five and a half years.\nRichard Hammond reportedly 'tried everything' to save his marriage for almost 18 months before he eventually accepted that it was over for good with his wife Mindy. The former Top Gear star, 55, had been desperately trying to save his 28-year marriage until very recently, but the couple publicly announced they were splitting on Thursday. 'He tried everything,' a source told The Sun. 'He hoped they could live separately at the same address under different roofs, but Mindy pushed for a full divorce.\nAs a newly elected MP, Sir Keir Starmer chose an unusual destination for his first overseas 'jolly'. Instead of visiting one of the UK's major allies such as the United States, Germany or France , the rookie Parliamentarian decided in February 2016 to jump on a long-haul flight to Bangladesh. There, he spent a week visiting the cities of Dhaka and Sylhet, where photos showed him - looking a touch younger and thinner than today - walking in a designer suit through impoverished slums. 'As we chatted in our (very) broken Bangla with those living in the slum, we were struck by their spirit and resilience,' wrote Sir Keir, in a dispatch for his local paper. 'Running water and decent homes may be in short supply, but compassion and humanity overflow.' The trip, valued at \u00a31,200, culminated in a visit to the wood-panelled HQ of the country's autocratic female prime minister, Sheikh Hasina Wazed.\nThe Kardashians have all evacuated their Hidden Hills and Calabasas mansions amid the LA fires. A new apocalyptic, fast-moving inferno, named the Kenneth Fire, threatened to rip through the desirable neighborhoods - with the famous family all living just six miles from one another.\nOscar-winning actor Sir Anthony Hopkins has shared a poignant message of support to those impacted by the catastrophic wildfires in Los Angeles. The 87-year-old Welsh actor has lost his home in the Pacific Palisades fire , the largest raging within the LA area which has destroyed thousands of structures.\nMelania Trump certainly didn't look pleased to be back in Washington DC. Just 11 days shy of her husband's inauguration, the mood seemed a little grim as she accompanied her husband up the nave of the Washington National Cathedral and took her place at the far end of a second-row pew for the state funeral of the late President Jimmy Carter. With no near neighbors to converse with either to the front or back, Melania sat in silence while Trump chatted animatedly with his one-time foe, President Barack Obama.\nWhen it comes to a proposal, choosing the right ring is vital for any suitor. Author Dominic Holland neatly summed up the challenges yesterday, when recalling his own proposal 30 years ago: 'For most blokes, the stress of purchasing an engagement ring is being able to afford it.' But then he went on to add: 'I suspect that this was the least of Tom's worries, more concerned with the stone, its size and clarity, its housing, which jeweller...' Because while Dominic made something of a name for himself as a comedian, these days he's more famous as the father of Hollywood actor and Spider-Man star Tom Holland. And Tom, we now know, proposed to his girlfriend, the American actress Zendaya , in the US over Christmas , having (apparently) asked her father's permission, bought a ring and planned it out.\nMoving on after a bitter marital breakdown is never easy. But when your former husband was movie boss Harvey Weinstein, one of the most reviled and notorious men of recent times, the notion of starting life again - never mind finding new love - must seem a task of Sisyphean proportions. And yet this week, Weinstein's ex-wife, Georgina Chapman, the privately educated British fashion boss, showed she has managed just that - and then some. For the beautiful Ms Chapman was back on the red carpet at the Golden Globes, making an assured re-entry into elite circles, on the arm of her new beloved: acclaimed actor Adrien Brody.\nMichelle Keegan is reportedly being eyed up by TV bosses for a new fly-on-the-wall series as she prepares to welcome her first child with her husband Mark Wright. The actress, 37, shared the happy news that she was expecting her first child with her husband Mark, also 37, at the end of December and she is said to be due next month. And the couple are now reportedly being targeted for their own fly-on-the-wall series which will document their journey into parenthood.\nA classic British dish has been dubbed one of the 'worst rated' dishes in the world. Travel guide TasteAtlas has put together a list of the 100 dishes readers liked least, with results coming in from all over the world from nearly 600,000 ratings. In last place was 'blodpalt' dumplings from Finland, which was awarded just 1.6 stars out of five. Pictured: A selection of dishes that made the top 10 worst in the world.\nGladior Kwesiah, 26, of Pawtucket, was arrested and charged with assault and battery for allegedly slamming Hailea Soares, 31, of Somerset. The tiny mother of two waited to hear if she'd ever walk again.\nThe Take That star and his family have been forced to flee their LA home after the wildfire spread through the ritzy enclave of Pacific Palisades on Tuesday. And Taking to Instagram on Thursday night, Emma issued an update as she urged people to recognise that the majority of people affected are not celebrities, but instead normal people who have truly lost everything.\nJennifer Garner has begun volunteering to help feed firefighters amid the LA fires after ex Ben Affleck rushed to her home following the catastrophe. On Friday, the actress, 52, was seen lending support to World Central Kitchen (WCK) which is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organization that provides food relief.\nThe Princess of Wales proved she's the perfect 'modern and relatable royal' in a previously unseen photograph posted by Prince William for her birthday, experts have claimed. The Prince of Wales, 42, shared a deeply personal message this week to mark Kate's 43rd birthday, calling her the 'most incredible wife and mother'. The sweet post was shared with an unseen picture of the Princess of Wales (right) taken by royal photographer Matt Porteous, in Windsor, last summer. Style experts have now told FEMAIL that Kate's choice to wear 'classic basics' for the photo is a perfect example of her 'down-to-earth charm' and success as a modern royal. Kate is also pictured left, at Sandringham on Christmas Day.\nWORLD AT A GLANCE\nThe Czech suspect arrested over the murder of a British man who vanished in Benidorm was hauled to court in handcuffs today. The 32-year-old scowled as he was led into the court building in the Costa Blanca town of Torrevieja flanked by two armed police officers. He was appearing before an investigating judge in a behind-closed-doors hearing this morning, and has since been released on bail pending an ongoing criminal probe. His court hearing came three days after his arrest the same day father-of-two John George's body was found hidden under lemon trees in an orchard off a main road running between the towns of Rojales and Torrevieja. Officials signalled after releasing him investigators suspected at least one other person was involved in the crime although no new arrests have yet taken place. A spokesman for the Valencian Community's High Court of Justice, which covers the town of Torrevieja where the suspect appeared before a judge, said this aft...