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/ 22 October 2004

No wild acclaim for Oscar Wilde musical

Like the career of its subject, London’s latest musical began in a blaze of publicity, set tongues wagging and ended, prematurely, in disgrace. Oscar Wilde: The Musical opened on Tuesday at the 500-seat Shaw Theatre. It closed the next day after receiving excoriating reviews and selling just five tickets for its second performance.

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/ 22 October 2004

On the money

After three days locked in deliberation, the judges still couldn’t decide between Tanya Poole and Phillip Rikhotso, so Brett Kebble was called in to exercise the judgement of Solomon. The Kebble awards have the power to change lives and are born out of boardroom battles, writes Chris Roper.

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/ 22 October 2004

Toll rises in Chinese mine blast

Rescue workers recovered more bodies on Friday from a coal shaft where at least 66 miners died and 82 were missing with little hope of survival after a gas explosion in central China’s Henan province on Wednesday. Officials said 29 miners were trapped by floods on Wednesday at another coal mine in neighbouring Hebei province.

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/ 22 October 2004

Bacteria scare at top Dutch hotel

Amsterdam’s luxurious Amstel hotel — a favorite with visiting rock stars and dignitaries — was evacuated after a dangerous bacteria was detected in the water, the hotel said Friday. A routine health inspection on Thursday uncovered the bacteria that causes legionnaires’ disease, the hotel said in a statement.

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/ 22 October 2004

Nuance gets its ‘but’ kicked

Whoever wins the United States election, nuance has become a no-no this year, bludgeoned by campaign attack ads and each side’s distortion of the other’s positions. Nuance, a trait most often associated with John Kerry and rarely with President George Bush, now is taken to mean flip-flop, wishy-washiness or appeasement.

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/ 22 October 2004

Rand Water warns of drought to come

Below-normal rainfall is likely until February next year, Rand Water said on Friday. It said the Vaal Dam is 37% full. Under normal conditions, a 37% water level would not be a problem. The South African Weather Service, however, has warned that rainfall will be below average over the next four months.