Hello there and welcome to the midweek edition of the Levy Letter. I hope it finds you well. Its now just over a week until Christmas. Have you managed to do all your shopping yet or are you waiting to bag some more bargains nearer the day? Everywhere does seem to be much busier at the moment so I can understand why some people are turning online to buy their gifts.
Mamma Mia! Ive been reading today that the film version of the musical Mamma Mia! has become the highest grossing movie cinema release in the UK beating the 1997 film Titanic. Mamma Mia! has now taken just over £69m at the box office, narrowly passing the record set by Titanic. The record was broken just a few days after the film picked up two Golden Globe nominations including best actress for star Meryl Streep. The film is now in its 23rd week of release and the movie has become the number one film in 15 countries. David Kosse, president of Universal Pictures International, said breaking the record set nearly 10 years ago was "truly phenomenal". He added: "This film has exceeded our expectations and delighted audiences around the world since it opened in July." Have you seen it yet? If youve not had the chance, maybe put it on your Christmas list! Face Transplant It sounds like something out of a film but surgeons at a clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, have performed Americas first almost total face transplant. The surgeon in charge of the operation, Dr Maria Siemionow, replaced 80% of a woman's face with that of a dead female donor. The transplant which took place in Cleveland is only the fourth to be carried out in the world. The world's first face transplant took place in France three years ago, on Isabelle Dinoire, a woman who had been mauled by her dog. Her nose, mouth, lips and chin were replaced by donor tissue. Two other such operations have been carried out since then; one on a Chinese farmer who was mauled by a bear while trying to protect his sheep, and the other on a French man who had become disfigured by a genetic condition. Doctors in Cleveland said the operation had been carried out two weeks ago and they would release more details on Wednesday. After the procedure, all patients have to take medication for the rest of thei! r lives, which suppresses their immune system to prevent the transplanted skin being rejected. The new face does not look like the donor because its shape is altered by the muscles and bones of the patient's face. The Frenchwoman who had the first transplant has said she is satisfied with the results. But some experts warn of possible psychological side-effects which may include remorse, disappointment, or grief and guilt towards the donor. Facebook Now I know that many people use Facebook to catch up with their friends, but what do you think to this one? An Australian couple have been served with legal documents via the site. Mark McCormack, a lawyer in Canberra, persuaded a court to allow him to use the unusual method after other attempts to reach them failed. The couple's home is being repossessed after they reportedly missed payments on a loan of over A$100,000 (£44,000). It is believed to be the first time Facebook has been used in this way. Mr McCormack says he resorted to Facebook to trace the couple after unsuccessful attempts to contact them at their home address and via email, and they failed to attend a court appearance on 3rd October. He found the woman's page, and used details listed there such as her date of birth to argue in the Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court that she was the person in question. Her partner was listed as one of her friends. In granting permission to use the social networking site, the judge stipulated that the papers be sent via a private email so that other people visiting the page could not read their contents. "It's somewhat novel, however we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of a defendant," Mr McCormack said. Well there you go, more new ways in which the internet is being used. Thats all for todays Letter. On my radio show tomorrow I will be chatting to award winning actress Samantha Bond. You may remember her from the James Bond films as Miss Moneypenny and her new film, A Bunch of Amateurs with Burt Reynolds is released this Friday. Ill also be speaking to celebrity duo Paul Daniels and Debbie McGee. Thats on BBC Radio Humberside 95.9FM, 1485AM or on DAB. You can also listen live at bbc.co.uk/humberside, between 12pm and 2pm. If you cant wait until then join me for Look North tonight on BBC One at 6.30pm. Enjoy you day, Peter And for the latest news and more where you live, go to: http://bbc.co.uk/humber and http://bbc.co.uk/lincolnshire ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the BBC Look North newsletter, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/looknorthhull/newsletter/newsletter_index.shtml, enter your email address in the unsubscribe box. Your email address will be held by the BBC and kept confidential, and will only be used in relation to this newsletter. You will be given the option to unsubscribe from this newsletter each time you receive it. Please visit the BBC's Privacy & Cookies Policy (www.bbc.co.uk/privacy) for more information.
