Five things you might have missed last week

1. Enforced parking

A car written off by a falling tree has been given a parking ticket. Nicky Claid, the Ford Fiesta's owner, was driving her 82-year-old mother to the doctor last Thursday when a tree crushed the car. They left the car by the roadside, later returning to find they had been landed with a fine by Worcester Council.

2. Move over, darling

A Colombian woman has been told she cannot become a Spanish citizen because of her name. Darling Velez's application was rejected by the public registry because Spanish law prohibits names that could expose a person to ridicule.

3. Couch potato

Mickey DeLorenzo, a Philadelphia resident, is 9lb (4kg) lighter after six weeks and 21 hours of playing on his Nintendo Wii, designed to incorporate physical movement as part of the game experience. "I set up a daily regime and went at it 100 per cent," said DeLorenzo, who tipped the scales at 181lb when he started.

4. Free post

Max Friedener, a convicted fraudster, escaped from a high-security prison in Germany by climbing into a cardboard box and posting himself to freedom - the second time in a month a convict has escaped using a post van.

5. Hi, I'm round a lamp-post

A US survey shows 81 per cent of Americans do more than drive when behind the wheel. More than 73 per cent surveyed by Nationwide Mutual said they talk on the phone; 68 per cent eat and 19 per cent text. Drivers also changed seats and put in their contact lenses.

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