The week that was at a glance
Scoops
The pintwill stay. The EU had been looking at standardising all measures, and had hoped that member states would switch from pints to litres by 2009. But it has decided the pint can remain - alongside Britain's attachment to miles, yards and feet. So we won't have to ask the barman for "568ml of plain".
Oops...
Britney Spears (left) made a comeback this week - but the Elvis 1968 Comeback Special it wasn't. Instead, her performance at the MTV Video Awards - in which she walked through some of the dance routine and mimed badly - gave us another opportunity to gasp at the latest twist in the Britney soap opera. The comeback, then, became only another setback.
The Numbers
3The number of aircraft forced to divert to Shannon last Tuesday.
$4.47bnBox office takings for the Harry Potter movies - now the most successful film franchise.
16,300 The number of species threatened with extinction, according to the World Conservation Union.
"It's coming along nicely"
Stephen Staunton on the 'progress' of the Irish soccer team
We Now Know...
Google Earthis being used in the search for missing aviator Steve Fossett.
Having an older sibling can stunt growth, according to a British study of 14,000 families.
The remaining members of rock legends Led Zeppelinare to reform for the first time in 19 years.