Breaking bad
A Ming vase sold for £550,000, having had a hole drilled in it to turn it into a table lamp. Without the hole it would have been worth four times as much. Owners of antiques work hard to keep them safe from thieves, but they are themselves often the problem.
— Last year the owner of a £14,000 Japanese porcelain vase reduced its value to £2,000 by chipping it while he packed it for BBC’s Antiques Roadshow.
— Last November the owner of a Qing vase took £200,000 off its value after she decided to chisel off the rim to even it up a bit.
— Last week a $20m Stradivarius cello at the Royal Palace in Madrid was broken after it fell off a table during a photoshoot.
Children in need
The government wants to cut the number of pupils on the register of special educational needs.
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