Culture news Christmas festivities in full swing at Santa Claus Village in Lapland Father Christmas is busy at work preparing presents for children all around the world. Luckily for everyone, he's been granted 'key worker' access to deliver his gifts. 15/12/2021
Culture news Penélope Cruz pays tribute to Almodóvar as she receives MoMA honour New York welcomed a host of a stars in support Penélope Cruz as she was honoured by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. On the red carpet, the Spanish actress paid thanks to eight-time director and close friend Pedro Almodóvar. 15/12/2021
Culture news Congolese rumba dances into UNESCO's cultural heritage list The Democratic Republic of Congo has delighted in the addition of its traditional dance to the United Nations' cultural summit's list of intangible cultural heritage list, made for expressions, knowledge, and skills. 15/12/2021
Food and Drink Why are eels so expensive and what is the future of the Japanese dish? Eels are a much-loved delicacy in Japan - but the animals are now so endangered that they command eyewatering prices. 14/12/2021
Art The Russian exhibition exploring the country's rich Christmas history Hundreds of trinkets and decorations from three centuries of Christmas and New Year celebrations are on display at the Kolomenskoye Museum-Reserve in Moscow. 13/12/2021
Culture news Lights dazzle in swimming pool to celebrate Santa Lucia Day in Sweden Children and teenagers from the Neptun Synchronised Swimming Club got together to perform for the Santa Lucia festival of light in one of Stockholm's grandest pools. 13/12/2021
Culture news Norway's Magnus Carlsen takes home fifth World Chess Championship Bonafide Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen retained his world class chess title as he recorded a fourth win over Russian challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi. 13/12/2021
Culture news Chopin's last piano gets its 19th century magic back The last piano Frederic Chopin ever played is currently being restored in the Polish capital. The historic instrument is being given back its original mid-19th century characteristics using expert knowledge and a lot of patience. 10/12/2021
Culture news Killing time with Pakistan's lonely clock collector Hundreds of antique clocks fill a small hall in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, where collector Gul Kakar swears he will spend all the time he has left caring for them. 10/12/2021
Culture news Green-eyed 'Afghan Girl' star of Steve McCurry exhibition in Paris Inside a new retrospective exhibition of Steve McCurry's most beautiful photographs as it opens at the Musée Maillol in Paris. 09/12/2021
Art Priceless Rembrandt painting to be stretched to reverse deformations Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum has announced plans to re-stretch Rembrandt van Rijn's iconic painting 'The Night Watch', reverse deformations found in its top-left corner. 09/12/2021
Culture news French tightrope walker stuns Rio beachgoers with latest daring walk Nathan Paulin elegantly manoeuvred the peaks of two hills on the sands of Rio's Red Beach. 07/12/2021
Culture news Romanian COVID clinic makes Christmas tree out of vaccine containers Staff at one the largest COVID-19 vaccination centers in Bucharest, Romania, have built a three meter tall Christmas tree out of the empty vaccine containers. 07/12/2021
Culture news Abdulrazak Gurnah receives his Nobel Literature Prize in London British novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah, winner of this year's Nobel Prize for Literature, received his medal on Monday in London. 07/12/2021
Art The world's largest teddy bear exhibition delights visitors in Russia Hundreds of teddy bears, all under one roof and some with a price tag of $700. More than 500 exhibitors brought their cuddy toys to 'Hello Teddy' in Moscow for the annual teddy bear display. 06/12/2021
Culture news Spectacular Chinese lantern festival lights up French town of Blagnac The festival goes back to the time of the Tang Dynasty, between the 7th and 10th centuries. 06/12/2021
Culture news Find out why a medieval Spanish king was known as 'Alfonso the Wise' These works gather the ancient knowledge of different cultures which visited the Iberian Peninsula: from texts by Aristotle and Ptolemy to Latin, Arabic and Hebrew works, and of contemporary contributions developed both in the Latin West and the Islamic world 06/12/2021
Culture news Netflix's 'Prayer for the Stolen': Childhood cartel tale set for Mexic In her feature debut, documentary filmmaker Tatiana Huezo offers a harrowing tale of three girls growing up in a place terrorised by a Mexican drug gangs. 03/12/2021
Culture news Romanian prisoners take to the stage in annual theatre festival Every winter, inmates from Romanian jails begin rehearsals for an on-stage production performed at the 'Liberation Through Culture' festival. Organisers say it's an immense help to what they do with the rest of their sentences. 02/12/2021
Food and Drink Spicy delights shared at South Korea's annual kimchi making festival More than 150 people joined Buddhist monks to prepare the traditional dish to give to South Korean families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 02/12/2021