Two turkeys have been released from a possible death sentence, thanks to the unconditional pardon given by President Bush himself. The distribution of the pardon for the two fowls was done during the 60th annual pardoning ceremony of the National Thanksgiving Turkey, in which the White House saves at least one bird from the blade of the axe.

Not about to run out of ideas, beverage company Jones Soda Co. is giving a new twist to ham this Christmas season - it's in liquid form. The Seattle-based firm launches Sunday is holiday-themed limited-edition flavored soda packs and ham-flavor soda is included in the outrageous roster this year.

"Better convert it into fertilizer than let the consuming public suffer," stressed the National Meat Inspection Commission (NMIC) as it ordered Wednesday the burning of 10 tons (10,000 kilos) of rotten ham. The meat seized by police authorities during a sting operation at Pasay City, south of the capital Manila. The 10 tons of processed ham were contained in 20-foot long van and were being unloaded in front of the house of the consignee known as Susan Co. The foul odor coming from the van led to the discovery of the seized pork, which the NMIC declared as unfit for human consumption.

It was supposed to be the centrepiece of a display at a Norwich art gallery but local police has to turn the bronze Buddha statue with a banana and two eggs on its lap around after the sculpture was declared to be offensive. The Daily Telegraph reported that the gallery also features Christ crucified on the back of a flying bomber and Hindu god Ganesh sitting beneath a Nazi helmet, but only the Buddha has been deemed offensive.

Britain's Prince Charles has had to halt the renovation work on his recently purchased Welsh farmhouse after bats were found roosting in an outbuilding. The prince is converting his remote $2. 4 million Llwynynwormwood estate in Myddfai, Carmarthenshire, into a holiday complex and an initially report into bat and owl activity concluded building work would have minimal impact on the wildlife. But common pipistrelle and brown long-eared bats have now been found roosting in a building on the estate which Charles has applied to transform into nearly $4 million luxury 11-bed resort.