It's not easy being a member of the Swiss Guard. There's the silly uniform to wear, and occasionally you might have to step in and risk your life to save the boss.

Visitors to Italy will find its famed foods come in many gluten-free forms they'll love.

Former President Nicolas Sarkozy seems set to clear the first obstacle in a once-improbable bid to return to France's highest office this weekend when he secures the leadership of the conservative UMP party.

Former footballer Sol Campbell has become the latest monied public figure to battle Labour's proposed "mansion tax" in Britain, claiming it is a levy on aspiration which he cannot afford to pay.

"Mad" Frankie Fraser, a gangland enforcer who mixed with many of Britain's most notorious underworld figures, has died in hospital aged 90.

A European Parliament bid for legislation splitting up Google may send a message that's too loud to ignore.

Justine Tyerman meets Hungary's daring csikós and learns about the country's 'red gold'.

The Prince of Wales intends to continue making "heartfelt interventions" in matters of national importance when he becomes king, rather than adopting the Queen's blanket impartiality on public affairs, close friends have said.

Named after the country's longest river, the Loire Valley is referred to as the 'cradle of the French language' because of its rich history of human habitation going back thousands of years. It's also renowned for its magnificent chateaux, from mediaeval fortresses to renaissance palaces, all within a relatively short distance of each other.

'We're confident at some stage it'll wake up again.' The Philae lander has been quiet since sending back initial photos, but sunshine could revive it.

The Latvian capital has reopened the KGB's former headquarters to keep alive the memory of past atrocities, writes Mike Collier.

Beppe Grillo is the Mr Angry of Italian and, increasingly, of European politics.

A rare woman rider tells Susan Buckland about the famed Lipizzaners.

Security for Italy's most at-risk prosecutor has been increased because of claims that Cosa Nostra bosses have plans to assassinate him with a bazooka.

Imagine growing up not knowing your father because he has been declared an enemy of the people and has to live in another country you are forbidden to visit.

Pope Francis has ordered showers to be built for the homeless in the heart of St Peter's Square.

The graphic contents of an anonymous letter in which the Federal Bureau of Investigation called Martin Luther King a "filthy abnormal animal" have been made public.

This month we receive onto our shores the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, undoubtedly the most dominant political figure in the EU.

Surround yourself with the sights and smells of a Spanish summer, writes Anna Leask.

The East German border guard who gave the order to open the Berlin Wall 25 years ago this weekend has spoken about his momentous decision.

Whether its an 18-year-old Scotch or a fancy cocktail, you'll be spoiled for choice in Edinburgh, says Paul Davies.

Anna-Louise Taylor finds 'something very Wellington' in Britain's south-west.

Drop into any pub in Ireland and you'll not stay a stranger very long, Bruce Morris discovers.

Visiting Hitler's holiday home, Jamie Morton is astounded that evil was able to survive and flourish in the peaceful surrounds of the beautiful Bavarian countryside.

After 12 years in Auckland, Diane Clayton returns to the city of her birth, Paris. City of Light. City of Love. City of dog poo.

Pro-European parties look to have swept Ukraine's first parliamentary vote since the revolution that toppled Viktor Yanukovych's Government in February.

The recent detailed analysis of DNA collected from a shawl, allegedly of one of Jack the Ripper's first victims, appears to carry a fundamental maths error.

The Salvadore Dali Museum in Figueres and the Gala Dali Castle in Pubol are well worth a visit if you're holidaying in north-eastern Spain.

P.K. Stowers visits Dali's birthplace, home to an enormous range of his art.