War reporter Max Hastings and wife Penny (right) were left shocked after a lawyer contacted them to say a house she owned in west London (left) had been sold for £1.3million. But after further investigation it turned out the real victim was the buyer, who handed over the money to a fake vendor. It is the latest in a series of frauds on 'high value' homes being investigated by the Metropolitan Police.

They wed in secret last year after a whirlwind three-month romance. But now Cheryl Fernandez-Versini is battling mounting speculation that her marriage is on the rocks. Sources say she is struggling to cope with husband Jean-Bernard's 'party lifestyle' and 'regrets' rushing into the union. Pictured: Cheryl breaks down on The X Factor last week during a performance of Love Is A Losing Game (left), and she and her husband are seen at Ant and Dec's 40th birthday party in October (right).

Buried deep in formerly secret files, now held at the National Archives in Kew, is a startling indication that a Russian princess known as Mira may not only have had an affair with our present Queen's uncle, the Duke of Kent, pictured right, but also have given birth to his love-child in July 1933. If so, then the daughter, Nadejda Dmitrievna, pictured left with her mother, was the Queen's first cousin.

Vicky Pattison, the Geordie Shore star, (left) seems to have redeemed herself in I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, where she was crowned queen of the jungle (right) - much to the delight of her mother. Ever since her daughter's triumph, long-suffering Caroll has been floating on air. For once people are saying nice things. Acquaintances who shunned her suddenly want to know her again. Her mobile hasn't stopped ringing. This is a new experience for charity boss Caroll, 58, who not so long ago was 'living on tenterhooks' waiting for the next disaster to befall her wayward, publicity-hungry daughter. Vicky graduated Liverpool John Moores University with a 2:1 in media and culture studies (inset).

Whatever you might have read about the Calais Jungle (inset), for those living in it, this is Hell, writes PAUL BRACCHI in a terrifying dispatch from the ever-growing camp of migrants attempting to reach Britain. Scabies, dysentery and gangrene are common, while a recent analysis revealed the water supply was infected with E. coli. And the French camp is expanding constantly: new faces arrive by the day, but few leave. Pictured: A heavy police presence at the camp (main) after a young man was stabbed to death, migrant Haji Shekho stands in front of his tent reading 'I need to go UK' (top right) and two other migrants tear into food handouts (bottom right).

The disturbing footage, named 'Meeting at Dabiq', is focused on the notion of a deadly battle for world domination, in which ISIS 'believers' will fight western 'crusaders' in Rome, Italy. Filmed in Iraq, it depicts the terror group's shock troops and gunners (top left) charging out of armoured personnel carriers (top right), before opening fire on practice targets, such as a special forces unit. It also features jihadists exchanging hugs as they depart on suicide missions, an ISIS armoured unit heading toward the Colosseum (left), and other parts of Rome including Vatican City (bottom right).

He films all the news footage of the Queen you see on TV. Now, as a new documentary celebrates his work, Peter Wilkinson (pictured right) reveals some of the highlights of his career with her majesty. He recalls her reaction following the 7/7 bombings and admits that she can be a bit of a chatter box.

Songs that capture the imagination and reappear every year earn fortunes - even if they didn't top the Christmas charts, writes RAY CONNOLLY. Slade's Merry Xmas Everybody (bottom, second left), from 1973, still mugs us every December in shops and pubs across the country - and it earns £500,000 a year. And Paul McCartney (top, far left) is thought to make £260,000 a year from Wonderful Christmastime alone. Other enduring favourites include Cliff Richard's evergreen hit Mistletoe And Wine (right) and The Beatles' Christmas Records (bottom, far left). However, the Jackson family's version of Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town in 1970 made it to only No 43 in the UK chart.

A US pupil answered an exam question about tornadoes by highlighting the instruction to 'circle one' as their response. The paper (main) has gone viral after being seen 2,300,000 times on image sharing site Imgur. The internet is behind the student though, pointing out 'he wasn't wrong' (middle) and saying 'This kid is going places. But not in a tornado' (bottom left). Another gave the kid 11.10 for his reading comprehension (bottom right).

Human remains found in plastic sheets in a garden in the village of Beddau, near Pontypridd, South Wales, have been identified as being those of missing John Sabine, last seen in 1997. His body was found just three weeks after his wife, Leigh Ann Sabine, died aged 74. Detectives investigating the grim discovery say his wife is the 'main suspect' in their probe. A photo released of Mrs Sabine appears to show her in the garden where the body was found (also inset).

Nicole Barr, 13, who now lives in Essex, has her sights set on Oxford after being invited to meet tutors, after scoring 162 points in a Mensa IQ test - two points higher than the geniuses. Although her attendance at primary school was patchy, after starting at Burnt Mill Academy in Harlow her life has been turned around. Her 36-year-old father said her achievement is 'the talk of the gipsy community'.

A man was shot dead (inset) by police after he 'came out firing' as armed officers (right) thwarted an audacious bid to spring a convicted carjacker from a nearby court. Two other men were arrested as the drama unfolded at 9am just yards from Wood Green Crown Court in north London. Police are believed to have been tipped off that an attempt would be made to free Turkish nationals Erwin Amoyaw-Gyamfi and Erun Izzet as they attended court to be sentenced for carjacking and firearms offences. Two other men were arrested in connection with the incident elsewhere in London. Enquiries into the circumstances surrounding the shooting in Bracknell Close (left), Wood Green, continue and the Directorate of Professional Standards have been informed. Video footage of paramedics attending to his wounded body has been shared online. In the dramatic recording, the man can be seen lying on the pavement while he is treated by emergency response personnel. The shooting has come in the week Scotland Yard launched a widespread crackdown on gun and knife crime in the capital.

Her beautiful, white face is everywhere in France these days. With her milky skin, opal eyes and perfectly straight nose, she smiles seductively from street posters and into the TV cameras, defying the bloodied and besieged French public not to adore her - and to trust her when she promises a bright new dawn.

More than half a million people liked a photo Facebook founder Mark  Zuckerberg shared of himself changing his newborn daughter Maxima Chan's diaper near Palo Alto, California, on Friday (pictured). Zuckerberg, who is sporting a huge grin in the photo, wrote: 'One more down, thousands to go.' The 31-year-old and his wife Priscilla Chan, 30, welcomed their baby daughter earlier this month. She weighed seven pounds, eight ounces when she was born and is now the heir to the Silicon Valley tycoon's $46billion fortune.

Venus the five-year-old tabby (main), who lives with her owners in North Carolina, has taken the Internet by storm thanks to her unique face, which is black on one side and orange on the other. Her eyes are different too - her black side has a yellow one while her orange side has a blue one (inset). Venus boasts 913,000 likes on her Facebook page, is featured in dozens of YouTube videos and even has her own website selling Venus-related merchandise. She has also appeared in National Geographic magazine and starred on numerous US TV shows.

As Lieutenant-General Ed Davis (pictured right) takes up his position as Governor of Gibraltar, military chiefs will continue efforts to keep a former Royal Marine jailed for murder in prison despite his legal team presenting them with a dossier of evidence they believe should lead to his release. A campaign to free Alexander Blackman (left) launched by his wife Clare (inset) and family and backed by The Mail has been gaining momentum and a new legal report of more than 1,000 pages will be delivered to the Criminal Cases Review Commission headquarters in Birmingham on Wednesday, urging them to send his case back to the Court of Appeal. But The Mail has learned senior officers will continue efforts to undermine the campaign and block any attempts to overturn his conviction.

Professor Judith Lathlean was won over by John Porter after they met online, but she has been left thousands of pounds in debt by the man who turned out to be an entirely fictitious creation. Now, financially and emotionally ruined, she will be unable to afford the retirement that she had so carefully planned, and even faces losing her beloved home.

Nude Yoga Girl has amassed over 54,000 followers who love her beautifully-shot nude yoga poses. The 25-year-old makes sure her 'intimate parts' are hidden with good angles and dark shadows. She's only had three snaps taken down, and now uses Photoshop to edit away visible nipples so as not to violate the app's terms. But he model and photographer, who is keeping her name anonymous, isn't looking to be hyper-sexual or provocative. In fact, her goal is to promote body-positivity and make her followers realize what amazing things their own bodies can do. She told Daily Mail Online that she's thrilled that people seem to understand her message so far.

Stefonknee Wolscht, 52, lived as Paul (pictured top right) with her wife (bottom right) until she realized she was trans at age 46 and was shunned by her family. After two suicide attempts and a bout of homelessness, she found hope in the transgender community in Toronto. She now resides with an adoptive 'mummy and daddy' and spends her time playing with dolls and the couple's young grandchildren (top left).

Driver Phil Foster (left in both frames) and an unnamed cyclist (right) traded blows on the streets of Stockport, Greater Manchester, after the dispute on a single carriageway residential road at around 9am. Footage recorded from the cab of Mr Foster's lorry captures an angry exchange between the two after the cyclist tried to get round the HGV, but didn't make it in time.

Joey Feek shared a heartwarming and inspiring photo with her fans on Friday of the terminally ill country star out of bed and playing with her toddler daughter Indiana. The picture (right) showed Joey and Indiana surrounded by toys, and the caption read; 'It's 60 and sunny outside today and even brighter inside.. Joey's out of bed teaching signs to Indy on the floor.'Late last month, Joey's husband Rory revealed in a letter to her friends and fans that his wife is no longer able to get out of bed (bottom left), so it seems she has rallied slightly. It has been a big week for Joey, who is stage IV cervical cancer, as she also learned on Monday that she and Rory (top left in 2010) had been nominated for a Grammy award for their song If I Needed You.

After a heated legal battle, the famous 'Taj Mahal' diamond (right) will be back up for auction. Elizabeth Taylor's estate and Christie's Auction House have reached an agreement to work together to get the diamond and ruby necklace sold. It initially was purchased by an anonymous buyer for $8.8 million in 2011, but the buyer returned it and demanded money back. Taylor's fifth husband Richard Burton (pictured left with Elizabeth) purchased the Cartier diamond necklace for her 40th birthday.

Joe Fraley, 34, of LA, posted the video of his 70-year-old mom Judy crying as she struggles to understand what is going on in order to raise awareness about the effects of Alzheimer's. The clip was recorded shortly before Judy entered an assistant living facility a year and a half ago, and she can now no longer walk or talk.

Brie Schwartz, a 31-year-old New York-based editor for Redbookmag.com, was inspired to live like the youngest Kardashian sister for one week, following Khloe's diet, fitness, and beauty regimen for seven days in celebration of the 31-year-old reality star's December/January cover of Redbook.

Joan Collins describes herself as a 'self-confessed hoarder' and in order to free up some closet space a 1000 of her fabulous pieces will go under the hammer this week in Beverly Hills. Pieces include a turban designed by Nolan Miller and worn for Dynasty (left), a ball gown that was exhibited at the V&A; (top right) and a 1980s silk Jean-Louis Scherrer Boutique wrap blouse and skirt (bottom right).

Holly Smith, 30, from Gorleston near Great Yarmouth, did the sweep in Tesco Lowestoft, Suffolk, with her husband Callum and gave the whole lot to charity. The 429 item haul included 200 packets of sausages, 63 pots of soup, hundreds of pounds worth of toys and 30 Quorn products. The extreme couponer, who has Asperger's Syndrome, spent months collecting thousands of shopping vouchers to help local homeless charity The Benjamin Foundation.

A New Jersey residence that once belonged to Muhammad Ali is up for grabs. The home, located in Cherry Hill, has an asking price of $750,000. The house built in 1965 features 6,688 square feet, and is situated on a 1.5-acre lot. It also includes a glass atrium, a 45-foot bar in its lower level. Outside there is a tennis court and an indoor pool. Starting in 1971 and ending in 1974, the boxer resided there.

Morgan Bailey, 32, Chelsea Poe, 24, and TS Foxxy, whose 'porn age is 27', shared their thoughts on the fetishization of transgender women and the difficulties they have faced while working in the adult film industry. Chelsea, who started working as a transgender adult film star two years ago, said she wants trans women to be 'treated like any other women in porn'.

Here's one occasion where the dentist might have been more afraid of the patient - when a 28-stone silverback gorilla needed treatment. Pertinax, a western lowland gorilla, exposed a nerve after fracturing a tooth and needed root canal surgery. Zoo staff feared the 33-year-old giant would develop an infection or abscess and called in animal dentist Peter Kertesz to take care of their great ape.