₦airaland Forum

By Laura Bicker
BBC News, Seoul

Illustration of family watching South Korean TV
image caption

Though illegal, many in the North watch South Korean programmes
North Korea has recently introduced a sweeping new law which seeks to stamp out any kind of foreign influence - harshly punishing anyone caught with foreign films, clothing or even using slang. But why?

Yoon Mi-so says she was 11 when she first saw a man executed for being caught with a South Korean drama.
His entire neighbourhood was ordered to watch.
"If you didn't, it would be classed as treason," she told the BBC from her home in Seoul.

The North Korean guards were making sure everyone knew the penalty for smuggling illicit videos was death.
"I have a strong memory of the man who was blindfolded, I can still see his tears flow down. That was traumatic for me. The blindfold was completely drenched in his tears.
"They put him on a stake and bound him, then shot him."

'A war without weapons'
Imagine being in a constant state of lockdown with no internet, no social media and only a few state controlled television channels designed to tell you what the country's leaders want you to hear - this is life in North Korea.
And now its leader Kim Jong-Un has clamped down further, introducing a sweeping new law against what the regime describes as "reactionary thought".

Anyone caught with large amounts of media from South Korea, the United States or Japan now faces the death penalty. Those caught watching face prison camp for 15 years.
And it's not just about what people watch.
Recently, Mr Kim wrote a letter in state media calling on the country's Youth League to crack down on "unsavoury, individualistic, anti-socialist behaviour" among young people. He wants to stop foreign speech, hairstyles and clothes which he described as "dangerous poisons".

Kim Jong-un
IMAGE COPYRIGHTEPA
image caption

Mr Kim has referred to foreign speech, hairstyles and clothes as "dangerous poisons"
The Daily NK, an online publication in Seoul with sources in North Korea, reported that three teenagers had been sent to a re-education camp for cutting their hair like K-pop idols and hemming their trousers above their ankles. The BBC cannot verify this account.
All this is because Mr Kim is in a war that does not involve nuclear weapons or missiles.

Analysts say he is trying to stop outside information reaching the people of North Korea as life in the country becomes increasingly difficult.
Millions of people are thought to be going hungry. Mr Kim wants to ensure they are still being fed the state's carefully crafted propaganda, rather than gaining glimpses of life according to glitzy K-dramas set south of the border in Seoul, one of Asia's richest cities.
Orphans are volunteering as miners, North Korea says
The South Koreans enslaved in the North's mines
North Korea's sidelined human rights crisis
The country has been more cut off from the outside world than ever before after sealing its border last year in response to the pandemic. Vital supplies and trade from neighbouring China almost ground to a halt. Although some supplies are beginning to get through, imports are still limited.

This self imposed isolation has exacerbated an already failing economy where money is funnelled into the regime's nuclear ambitions. Earlier this year Mr Kim himself admitted that his people were facing "the worst-ever situation which we have to overcome".

What does the law say?
The Daily NK was the first to get hold of a copy of the law.
"It states that if a worker is caught, the head of the factory can be punished, and if a child is problematic, parents can also be punished. The system of mutual monitoring encouraged by the North Korean regime is aggressively reflected in this law," Editor-in-Chief Lee Sang Yong told the BBC.
He says this is intended to "shatter" any dreams or fascination the younger generation may have about the South.
"In other words, the regime concluded that a sense of resistance could form if cultures from other countries were introduced," he said.

Choi Jong-hoon, one of the few defectors to make it out of the country in the last year, told the BBC that "the harder the times, the harsher the regulations, laws, punishments become".
"Psychologically, when your belly is full and you watch a South Korean film, it might be for leisure. But when there's no food and it's a struggle to live, people get disgruntled."

Will it work?
Previous crackdowns only demonstrated how resourceful people have been in circulating and watching foreign films which are usually smuggled over the border from China.
For a number of years, dramas have been passed around on USB sticks which are now as "common as rocks", according to Mr Choi. They're easy to conceal and they're also password encrypted.

"If you type in the wrong password three times in a row, the USB deletes its contents. You can even set it so this happens after one incorrect input of the password if the content is extra sensitive.

Illustration of family watching TV powered by a car battery
image caption

Sometimes, TVs would be powered by car batteries
"There are also many cases where the USB is set so it can only be viewed once on a certain computer, so you can't plug it in to another device or give it to someone else. Only you can see it. So even if you wanted to spread it you couldn't."

Mi-so recalls how her neighbourhood went to extreme lengths to watch films.
She says they once borrowed a car battery and hooked it up to a generator to get enough electricity to power the television. She remembers watching a South Korean drama called "Stairway to Heaven".
This epic love story about a girl battling first her step-mother and then cancer appears to have been popular in North Korea around 20 years ago.

Mr Choi says this is also when fascination with foreign media really took off - helped by cheap CDs and DVDs from China.

The start of the crackdown
But then, the regime in Pyongyang started to notice. Mr Choi remembers state security carrying out a raid on a university around 2002 and finding more than 20,000 CDs.
"This was just one university. Can you imagine how many there were all over the country? The government was shocked. This is when they made the punishment harsher," he said.
Kim Geum-hyok says he was only 16 in 2009 when he was captured by guards from a special unit set up to hunt down and arrest anyone sharing illegal videos.
He had given a friend some DVDs of South Korean pop music that his father had smuggled in from China.

Stairway to Heaven, 2003
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSBS
image caption

Stairway to Heaven was a popular show in North Korea about 20 years ago
He was treated like an adult and marched to a secret room for interrogation where the guards refused to let him sleep. He says he was punched and kicked repeatedly for four days.

"I was terrified," he told the BBC from Seoul where he currently lives.
"I thought my world was ending. They wanted to know how I got this video and how many people I showed it to. I couldn't say my father had brought those DVDs from China. What could I say? It was my father. I didn't say anything, I just said, "I don't know, I don't know. Please let me go."
Geum-hyok is from one of Pyongyang's elite families and his father was eventually able to bribe the guards to set him free. Something that will be near impossible under Mr Kim's new law.

Many of those caught for similar offences at the time were sent to labour camps. But this didn't prove to be enough of a deterrent, so the sentences increased.
"At first the sentence was around a year in a labour camp - that changed to more than three years in the camp. Right now, if you go to labour camps, more than 50% of the young people are there because they watched foreign media," says Mr Choi.

"If someone watches two hours of illegal material, then that would be three years in a labour camp. This is a big problem."

media captionA defector tells the BBC about TV choices in North Korea.

We have been told by a number of sources that the size of some of the prison camps in North Korea have expanded in the last year and Mr Choi believes the harsh new laws are having an effect.
"To watch a movie is a luxury. You need to feed yourself first before you even think about watching a film. When times are hard to even eat, having even one family member sent to a labour camp can be devastating."

Why do people still do it?
"We had to take so many chances watching those dramas. But no-one can defeat our curiosity. We wanted to know what was going on in the outside world," Geum-hyok told me.
For Guem-hyok, finally learning the truth about his country changed his life. He was one of the few privileged North Koreans allowed to study in Beijing where he discovered the internet.

"At first, I couldn't believe it [the descriptions of North Korea]. I thought Western people were lying. Wikipedia is lying, how can I believe that? But my heart and my brain were divided.
"So I watched many documentaries about North Korea, read many papers. And then I realised they are probably true because what they were saying made sense.

Kim Geum-hyok (L) and Yoon Mi-so (R)
IMAGE COPYRIGHTCOLLAGE
image caption

Kim Geum-hyok (L) and Yoon Mi-so (R) are no longer living in North Korea
"After I realised a transition was going on in my brain, it was too late, I couldn't go back."
Guem-hyok eventually fled to Seoul.
Mi-so is living her dreams as a fashion advisor. The first thing she did in her new home country was visit all the places she saw in Stairway to Heaven.
But stories like theirs are becoming rarer than ever.

Leaving the country has become almost impossible with the current "shoot-to-kill" order at the tightly controlled border. And it is difficult not to expect Mr Kim's new law to have more of a chilling effect.
Mr Choi, who had to leave his family behind in the North, believes that watching one or two dramas will not overturn decades of ideological control. But he does think North Koreans suspect that state propaganda is not the truth.

"North Korean people have a seed of grievance in their heart but they don't know what their grievance is aimed towards," he said.
"It's a grievance without direction. I feel heartbroken that they can't understand even when I tell them. There is a need for someone to awaken them, enlighten them."

aidameoryou:
[color=#000000]this country has tired me
its been over 2years since i left this country but my heart still bleeds everytime i read all these rubbish especially because of my family.
over 2 years and i have never had to run or scamper for safety ever.[/color]
GOD WHEN

Boss,do me well.
Bless me this afternoon with 5,000, Thanks God bless you.
UBA,2117761797
Adebayo Israel Oluwakayode

This fayemi they fly aswr.
Now sanwo olu go wan do Lagos own this week
And am resuming back to school soon, chai.

This is more reasons why I don't do night sub, I haven't.
I don't do night reading. The least I can wait is 12am,I must sleep.

Once it's getting to 2am,3am and i sleep, it's all severe pains on my whole body when i wake up. But I observed my family and most people still feel okay after waking up even tho they sleep late, no effect.

Is anything wrong pls?

During the lockdown, I guess many people had more data than usual.

Let's hear everyones own

greatnaija01:
I am in Ikorodu but I have traveled to different countries.... Niger, Togo, Ghana, South Africa.... I'm considering Rwanda next or Kenya. I travel every year. So far Ghana has been the best and safest. So I advice you, to go to Ghana

really? Ghana? And your sure I won't have to come back in a month?

I have been wondering, when that graceful opportunity finally comes for me to travel out of Nigeria ��where can I go to?

I have never been out of Nigeria before, Ikorodu, Lagos all my life. but since secondary school, I have always fantasized England, UK but tax and high cost of stuff there is doing me one kind.

so is Canada or Australia or where? the best place to travel to (considering housing, school, food, cost of living generally)?

of a truth, if I see a legit means to leave this country tomorrow, I'll but no money.

please I want everyone's opinion, thanks

A representation of Bitcoin in front of some pound notes

Bitcoin's value has soared over the past year
Bitcoin has passed $30,000 (£22,000) in value for the first time, continuing a recent sharp rise.

The virtual cryptocurrency hit $30,823.30 at 13:13 GMT on Saturday, just weeks after soaring above $20,000 for the first time.

In the past year Bitcoin has almost quadrupled in value thanks to interest from large investors looking for rapid profits.

Some analysts think it could rise even further as the US dollar drops further.

While the value of the US currency rose in March at the start of the coronavirus pandemic as investors sought safety amid the uncertainty, it has since dropped due to major stimulus from the US Federal Reserve. The currency ended last year with its biggest annual loss since 2017.

Bitcoin is traded in much the same way as real currencies like the US dollar and pound sterling.

Recently it has won growing support as a form of payment online, with PayPal among the most recent adopters of digital currencies.


But the cryptocurrency has also proved to be a volatile investment.

A previous rally in 2017 saw it come close to breaking through the $20,000 level. But it has also hit extreme lows and has fallen below $3,300 previously.

It passed $19,000 in November last year before dropping sharply again.


Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey cautioned over its use as a payment method in October.

"I have to be honest, it is hard to see that Bitcoin has what we tend to call intrinsic value," he said. "It may have extrinsic value in the sense that people want it."

Mr Bailey added that he was "very nervous" about people using Bitcoin for payments pointing out that investors should realise its price is extremely volatile.

Brexit
Union Jack flag outside European Parliament in Brussels

A new era has begun for the United Kingdom after it completed its formal separation from the European Union.

The UK stopped following EU rules at 23:00 GMT, as replacement arrangements for travel, trade, immigration and security co-operation came into force.

Boris Johnson said the UK had "freedom in our hands" and the ability to do things "differently and better" now the long Brexit process was over.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the UK remained a "friend and ally".

UK ministers have warned there will be some disruption in the coming days and weeks, as new rules bed in and British firms trading with the continent come to terms with the changes.

Officials have insisted new border systems are "ready to go" amid fears of hold-ups at ports.


The UK officially left the 27-member political and economic bloc on 31 January, three and half years after the UK public voted to leave in the 2016 Brexit referendum.

But it has stuck to the EU's trading rules for the past 11 months while the two sides negotiated their future economic partnership.

After trade talks went down to the wire, a landmark treaty was finally agreed on Christmas Eve. It became law in the UK on Wednesday after it was approved by Parliament.

Under the new arrangements, which came into force at 24.00 CET, UK manufacturers will have tariff-free access to the EU's internal market, meaning there will be no import taxes on goods crossing between Britain and the continent.

But it does mean more paperwork for businesses and people travelling to EU countries while there is still uncertainty about what it will happen to banking and services, which are a major part of the UK economy.


Analysis box by Jessica Parker, political correspondent
It a moment that some will regard with huge optimism, others with deep regret.

And while this historic move happens at a moment in time, the impact, in some areas, may be less instant or obvious than others - for example, it's expected there'll be relatively little traffic at Dover on the first day of 2021 as new border checks kick in.

Nevertheless, significant changes are here - whether on trade, travel, security or immigration.

And while coronavirus continues - for now - to shut down much of society those changes could well become more apparent in the months ahead.


PM hails 'amazing moment'
Mr Johnson - who was a key figure in the Leave campaign during the 2016 referendum and who took the UK out of the EU in January six months after becoming prime minister - said it was an "amazing moment" for the UK.

In his New Year message, the PM said the UK was now "free to do things differently, and if necessary better, than our friends in the EU".

Laura Kuenssberg challenges Boris Johnson on Brexit and vaccines
"We have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it," he said.

Lord Frost, the UK's chief negotiator, tweeted that Britain had become a "fully independent country again" while veteran Conservative MP Sir Bill Cash said the outcome was a "victory for sovereignty and democracy".

But opponents of Brexit maintain the country will be worse off than it was while in the EU.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, whose ambition it is to take an independent Scotland back into the EU, tweeted: "Scotland will be back soon, Europe. Keep the light on."


Analysis box by Katya Adler, Europe editor
In Brussels, there is a sense of relief the Brexit process is over, but there is regret still at Brexit itself.

Basically, the European Union thinks that Brexit makes it - the EU - and the UK weaker.

But they think this is less bye-bye Britain and more au revoir, because there are so many loose ends between the two sides.

The two sides still need to talk about the practicalities. We still have to find out what access Brussels is going to give to UK financial services to the single market, there's that cooperation on climate change, and in this new trade deal there is a renewal clause every five years.

For all of those reasons and more, the EU thinks this is not an end to its conversation with the UK for the foreseeable future.


What is changing?
The culmination of the Brexit process means major changes in different areas. These include:

The free movement of people between the UK and EU countries has ended - and has been replaced in the UK by a "points-based" immigration system
Anyone from the UK who wants to stay in most of the EU for more than 90 days in any 180-day period now needs a visa
Duty-free shopping has returned, with people coming back to the UK from the EU able to bring up to 42 litres of beer, 18 litres of wine, four litres of spirits and 200 cigarettes without paying tax
EU citizens wanting to move to the UK (except those from Ireland) face the same points-based system as people elsewhere in the world
UK police have lost instant access to EU-wide databases on criminal records, fingerprints and wanted persons
Traders in England, Scotland and Wales must complete more paperwork when dealing with EU countries
British firms exporting goods to the continent will have to fill out customs declarations straight away.

But checks on goods entering Britain from the continent will be phased in over a six-month period up to July 2021, although some new customs procedures have already come into force, on imports of alcohol, tobacco, chemicals and controlled drugs.

The first customs checks at the Eurotunnel following the UK's departure from the single market went smoothly, the company said.

Spokesman John Keefe said: "It all went fine, everything's running just as it was before 11pm. It's very, very quiet, there are very few trucks around, as we predicted."

In other major breaks from the past, the European Court of Justice will cease to have any role in deciding disputes between the UK and EU.

New Irish Sea trade border begins operating
And the UK will gradually be able to keep more of the fish caught in its own waters.

Unlike the rest of the UK, Northern Ireland will continue to follow many of the EU's rules, as its border with the Republic of Ireland remains all but invisible. The UK government said on Thursday online retailers in Britain will not have to make customs declarations when sending parcels to customers in Northern Ireland.

How prepared is the UK?
Intensive preparations have been taking place over the past two weeks to ready the UK for the coming changes, although concerns remain many small business are not ready.

The UK's Countdown Plan has involved operational testing of infrastructure at the border and close co-operation with France, Holland and Belgium.

Brexit: Are the borders ready?
Dover-Calais route 'will work well on 1 January'
A government spokesman said: "The border systems and infrastructure we need are in place, and we are ready for the UK's new start."

Lorries arriving at the Port of Dover

Vehicles trying to take goods across the channel without the correct documentation face being turned back while drivers of HGVs weighing more than 7.5 tonnes who do not have permits to enter Kent risk being fined.

Traffic volumes are expected to be lower than normal on 1 January due to the pandemic but are expected to pick up from Monday, when the new procedures and the UK's contingency measures are expected to be tested.

The government said 450 "Kent access" permits had been issued to HGV lorries intending to cross the channel at Dover on 1 January and hauliers arriving without them would be identified and subject to a £300 fine.

Meanwhile, the UK and Spain have reached an agreement meaning the border between Gibraltar and Spain will remain open.

A leading scientist who identified a new coronavirus variant in Nigeria has cautioned against comparisons with new strains found in South Africa and the UK.

Christian Happi, head of the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics and Infectious Diseases in Nigeria, said more studies were needed to see whether the country's new variant was linked to a recent spike in infections.

Nigeria's new strain was found in two out of two hundred samples collected between August and October.

South Africa said its new variant could explain a recent increase especially affecting younger people.

It has become the first country on the continent to register more than one million Covid-19 cases.

Last week, South Africa recorded a daily average of 11,700 new infections - a rise of 39% on the previous week - and from Wednesday to Friday, the daily number of new cases was above 14,000.

Nigeria recorded a 52% increase in cases last week, Reuters news agency reported.

It has recorded more than 82,000 cases and 1,200 deaths.

Zhang Zhan
The former lawyer was detained in May
A Chinese citizen journalist who covered Wuhan's coronavirus outbreak has been jailed for four years.

Zhang Zhan was found guilty of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble", a frequent charge against activists.

The 37-year-old former lawyer was detained in May, and has been on hunger strike for several months. Her lawyers say she is in poor health.

Ms Zhang is one of several citizen journalists who have run into trouble for reporting on Wuhan.

There is no free media in China and authorities are known to clamp down on activists or whistleblowers seen as undermining the government's response to the outbreak.

Wuhan scientist 'welcomes' visit over lab leak claim
"Zhang Zhan looked devastated when the sentence was announced," Ren Quanniu, who was one of her defence lawyers, told news agency AFP.

Mr Ren added that Ms Zhang's mother, who was in court, sobbed loudly as the verdict was read out.

'Rebellious soul'

In a video interview with an independent filmmaker before her arrest, Ms Zhang said she decided to travel to Wuhan in February after reading an online post by a resident about life in the city during the outbreak.

Once there, she began documenting what she saw on the streets and hospitals in livestreams and essays, despite threats by authorities, and her reports were widely shared on social media.

The rights group Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders said her reports also covered the detention of other independent journalists and the harassment of families of victims who were seeking accountability.

"Maybe I have a rebellious soul... I'm just documenting the truth. Why can't I show the truth?" she said in a clip of the interview obtained by the BBC.

"I won't stop what I'm doing because this country can't go backwards."


Ms Zhang went missing on 14 May according to the CHRD. One day later, it was revealed she had been detained by police in Shanghai, more than 400 miles (640km) away.

She was formally charged in early November. The indictment sheet alleges she sent "false information through text, video and other media through [platforms like] WeChat, Twitter and YouTube".

She is also accused of accepting interviews with foreign media outlets and "maliciously spreading" information about the virus in Wuhan. A sentence of four to five years was recommended.

'Alarming sentence'
In protest against her arrest, Ms Zhang has gone on a hunger strike and is said to be in very poor health.

One of her lawyers said in a statement that when he visited her in early December she had told him she was being force-fed via a feeding tube. He also said she was suffering from headaches, dizziness and stomach pain.

"Restrained 24 hours a day, she needs assistance going to the bathroom, and she tosses and turns in her sleep," the lawyer Zhang Keke said. "She feels psychologically exhausted, like every day is a torment."

The lawyer had applied for a postponement of the trial given the state of Ms Zhang's health.

Ms Zhang had previously been detained in 2019 for voicing support for activists in Hong Kong.

Leo Lan, a research and advocacy consultant at the CHRD, said Ms Zhang's latest sentencing was "alarming".

"[Her] sentence is so heavy. The Chinese government is very determined to silence her and intimidate other citizens who tried to expose what happened in Wuhan," he told the BBC.

"I'm concerned about the fate of other detained citizens who also reported news about the pandemic."

Several other citizen journalists who reported from Wuhan - Li Zehua, Chen Qiushi and Fang Bin - went missing earlier this year.

Li eventually resurfaced, saying he was forcibly quarantined, while Chen is reported to be staying with family but under government supervision. The whereabouts of Fang Bin are still unknown.

Messi celebrates
Messi scored in Barcelona's most recent game, a 3-0 win over Valladolid on 22 December
Barcelona captain Lionel Messi says he hopes to one day play in the United States but is unsure of his future when his contract runs out in June.

The Argentina forward, 33, can begin negotiations with overseas clubs in January.

Speculation over his future has been intense since he handed in a transfer request in August.

"I don't know what I'm going to do yet," Messi told Spanish television channel La Sexta.

"I'm going to wait until the season ends. I would like to play in the United States and experience life and the league there, but ultimately come back to Barcelona in some capacity.

"Right now the most important thing is to focus on the team and finish the season well, to focus on trying to win trophies and not get distracted by other things."

Barcelona, who did not win a trophy last season, are fifth in La Liga after their worst start to a league campaign in 33 years.

Since joining at the age of 13, Messi has become the club's record goalscorer, won 10 La Liga tiles, the Champions League four times and the Ballon d'Or - awarded to the world's best player - six times.

His controversial summer request to leave Barcelona followed clashes with club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, who resigned in October.

Messi described Bartomeu's reign "a disaster".

"It's a difficult moment for the club, for everyone, but those inside the club know that it's in a really bad situation, things are very bad and it's going to be difficult to return the club to where it used to be," he added.

Cases of the more contagious variant of Covid-19 first identified in the UK have been confirmed in several European countries as well as Canada and Japan.

Infections linked to people who arrived from the UK were reported in Spain, Switzerland, Sweden and France.

A couple found infected in Ontario, Canada, had no known travel history or high-risk contacts, officials say.

Japan is to ban most non-resident foreign nationals from entering the country for a month from Monday.


Since reporting infections in five passengers who had all arrived from the UK, the country has confirmed two more cases, one of which is said to have been domestically transmitted.

News of the new variant triggered travel restrictions around the world last week.

Meanwhile, several EU countries have started to vaccinate people against the virus ahead of a co-ordinated rollout across the whole bloc on Sunday.

Health workers in north-east Germany said they were not prepared to wait another day to distribute the newly approved Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. They began by immunising elderly residents of a nursing home in Halberstadt.

In Hungary, the state news agency said the first recipient of the vaccine was a doctor at Del-Pest Central Hospital. The authorities in Slovakia also said they had begun vaccinating.

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has released a video on Twitter celebrating the vaccine rollout, calling it a "touching moment of unity.


Fresh air: The forgotten coronavirus weapon
Scientists say the new variant of Covid-19 may have been spotted in the UK first because of the strength of the country's surveillance system.

The new variant is considerably more transmissible than previous strains but not necessarily any more dangerous for those infected, experts say.

How far has the new variant spread?
Those infected in Canada are a couple from Durham, near Toronto, who are now self-isolating.

In Japan, the two new cases are a pilot in his 30s who returned to Japan from London on 16 December and a woman in her 20s, one of his family members with no history of visiting the country, Kyodo News reports.

Under the travel suspension coming in on Monday, Japanese nationals and non-Japanese residents who are abroad will be allowed to return, and some travellers such as businesspeople will be allowed to enter from a small number of mainly Asian countries.

In Spain, four cases of the new variant were confirmed in Madrid. None of the patients, all of whom travelled from the UK, were seriously ill.

Switzerland identified three cases, two of which are known to be British citizens currently in the country. Switzerland is alone in Europe in keeping its ski slopes open to tourism over the Christmas and New Year period, and thousands of tourists from Britain have arrived in the last couple of weeks.

In Sweden, the health agency said a traveller there was ill with the strain but had been self-isolating since he returned from the UK.


France confirmed its first case of the new variant - a French citizen in the central town of Tours who had arrived from London on 19 December, the health ministry said.

The man, who had been living in the UK, was asymptomatic and currently self-isolating at home, the ministry said.

France closed its border with the UK after the new variant was confirmed in Britain but ended its ban for EU citizens on Wednesday, providing people tested negative before travelling.

Thousands of lorry drivers spent Christmas Day in their cabs in Kent waiting to cross the English Channel.

Cases in Denmark, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Australia were reported earlier.

What is the new variant?
The new variant first detected in southern England in September is blamed for sharp rises in levels of positive tests in recent weeks in London, south-east England and the east of England

About two-thirds of people testing positive in these areas could have the new variant - but this is only an estimate, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) says.


Three things are coming together that mean the new variant is attracting attention:

It is rapidly replacing other versions of the virus
It has mutations that affect part of the virus likely to be important
Some of those mutations have already been shown in the lab to increase the ability of the virus to infect cells
All of these build a case for a virus that can spread more easily, says the BBC's health and science correspondent, James Gallagher.

Experts say the leading vaccines developed in recent months should still work.

wow
Just wow

Queen’s Christmas Speech 2020: ‘You are not alone’
The Queen has used her Christmas Day message to reassure anyone struggling without friends and family this year that they "are not alone".

She said what many people want "for Christmas is a simple hug or a squeeze of the hand" - but "even on the darkest nights there is hope in the new dawn".

The 94-year-old praised acts of kindness, saying the pandemic "brought us closer" despite causing hardship.

The Queen, like so many, is spending the day apart from her family.

"Remarkably, a year that has necessarily kept people apart has, in many ways, brought us closer," the monarch said in the broadcast, adding that the Royal Family has been "inspired" by people volunteering in their communities.

"In the United Kingdom and around the world, people have risen magnificently to the challenges of the year, and I am so proud and moved by this quiet, indomitable spirit."


She lamented that "people of all faiths have been unable to gather as they would wish for their festivals", but said "we need life to go on".

The Queen highlighted Diwali celebrations last month in Windsor - where she is spending Christmas with the Duke of Edinburgh for the first time in decades - as an example of "joyous moments of hope and unity despite social distancing".

"Of course for many, this time of year will be tinged with sadness - some mourning the loss of those dear to them and others missing friends and family members distanced for safety, when all they really want for Christmas is a simple hug or a squeeze of the hand," she added.

"If you are among them, you are not alone, and let me assure you of my thoughts and prayers."

She gave particular thanks to young people, to frontline workers, and to "good Samaritans [who] have emerged across society, showing care and respect for all".

The Queen, at a private ceremony to mark the burial of the Unknown Warrior

The Queen made a private pilgrimage to the grave of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey last month
"We continue to be inspired by the kindness of strangers and draw comfort that even on the darkest nights there is hope in the new dawn," she said.

Referring to the centenary of the Unknown Warrior's burial in Westminster Abbey, she said: "The Unknown Warrior was not exceptional, that's the point. He represents millions like him who, throughout our history, have put the lives of others above their own and will be doing so today.

"For me, this is a source of enduring hope in difficult and unpredictable times."

This year's message was recorded in mid-December with a pared-back film crew and in accordance with government guidance.

Presentational grey line
Analysis box by Nicholas Witchell, royal correspondent
She did not utter the words "pandemic", "coronavirus" or "Covid-19" but they were the dominant theme of this year's Christmas speech broadcast by the Queen.

Her words conveyed three particular messages. She spoke of the gratitude owed to all those who'd "risen magnificently to the challenges of the year", in particular to young people, frontline workers and the "amazing achievements of modern science."

She found hope in the actions of so many "Good Samaritans" who'd emerged across society to offer care.

There was hope too from the example of the "Unknown Warrior" buried at Westminster Abbey a century ago. He symbolised selfless duty: a source of "enduring hope" the Queen said.

And finally there was reassurance for all those who are mourning or missing friends or family. This was the most touching part of the broadcast. These were people who just wanted "a hug or a squeeze of the hand" the Queen said.

That is not language she often uses in public.

Presentational grey line
She added: "Let the light of Christmas, the spirit of selflessness, love and above all, hope, guide us in the times ahead."

The Queen and Prince Philip, 99, have been living at Windsor Castle during the pandemic with a small household staff.

It is thought to be the first year the couple have not spent Christmas at their Sandringham home since the mid-1980s.

The Royal Family usually spends Christmas Day together, but will not visit each other this year because of coronavirus restrictions.

The Queen also worshipped privately rather than attending a church service, as she usually does - in order, it is understood, to avoid crowds of well-wishers congregating.

On Christmas Day, the Royal Family tweeted a video of St George's Chapel choir singing.

� � Wishing all our followers a very Merry Christmas!



� St George’s Chapel choir sing ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year’.



The Chapel, situated in the grounds of Windsor Castle, has a unique Royal history. Find out more: https:///zB4IbaTcbi pic.twitter.com/dYDvfKW4Cx

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) December 25, 2020


The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge acknowledged those going through a particularly difficult time this year because of the pandemic, tweeting pictures of people working through the festive season.

This Christmas our thoughts are with those of you who are spending today alone, those of you who are mourning the loss of a loved one, and those of you on the frontline who are still mustering the energy to put your own lives on hold to look after the rest of us. pic.twitter.com/VvW3rV4fRz

— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) December 25, 2020


Meanwhile, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall sent their Christmas wishes on social media, telling followers, "Here's to a better new year."

Wishing you all a happy Christmas and here’s to a better New Year! �� pic.twitter.com/M8479EHfZI

— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) December 25, 2020

The Queen's address marks the end of a year that saw her go for seven months - March to October - without carrying out public engagements outside of a royal residence.

During that time, her eldest child, Prince Charles, 72, contracted coronavirus and displayed mild symptoms.

Palace sources also told the BBC that the Prince William tested positive in April - though Kensington Palace refused to comment officially.

The royals have spent some time together during the pandemic.

The Queen and several other senior royals attended a socially-distanced Christmas carol concert at Windsor Castle this month.

She was also joined by family members at a scaled-back Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in London's Whitehall in November.

Streets not empty as filled with love, says Queen
Queen: 'We will succeed' in fight against virus
The Christmas broadcast was the Queen's third televised address this year, which is unusual for the monarch.

In April, as the first wave of the pandemic saw people across the country told to stay at home, she vowed that the the UK "will succeed" in its fight against the virus.

In a rallying message, she lamented the "painful sense of separation from their loved ones" that social distancing was causing people - but said it was "the right thing to do".

In April, the Queen said: "We will be with our friends again, we will be with our families again, we will meet again"
The following month, in a poignant address to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, she said people's response to the virus had filled empty streets with "love".

In last year's Christmas speech, she described 2019 - which saw intense political debate over Brexit and a number of personal events affecting the Royal Family - as "quite bumpy".

She said the path is never "smooth" but "small steps" can heal divisions.

Channel 4's alternative Christmas message will be delivered by a deepfake of the Queen this year.

Kai.
One-day for Nigeria ��

South Africans have been questioning the result of the draw (file picture)

An unusual sequence of numbers drawn in South Africa's national lottery has sparked accusations of fraud after 20 people won a share of the jackpot.

Tuesday's PowerBall lottery saw the numbers five, six, seven, eight and nine drawn, while the PowerBall itself was, you have guessed it, 10.

The organisers say the sequence is often picked. But some have alleged a scam and an investigation is under way.

It is extremely rare for multiple winners to share the jackpot.

The organisers said 20 people purchased a winning ticket and won 5.7m rand ($370,000; £278,000) each.

Another 79 ticketholders won 6,283 rand each for guessing the sequence from five up to nine but missing the PowerBall.

What do lottery winners spend their money on?
The chances of winning South Africa's PowerBall lottery are one in 42,375,200 - the number of different combinations when selecting five balls from a set of 50, plus an additional bonus ball from a pool of 20.

The odds of the draw resulting in the numbers seen in Tuesday's televised live event are the same as any other combination. Competitions resulting in multiple winners are rare, but this may have something to do with this particular sequence.

"Congratulations to tonight's 20 winners of the PowerBall draw," lottery operator Ithuba tweeted, adding: "These numbers may be unexpected, but we see many players opt to play these sequences."

Congratulations to 20 new multimillionaires who each won over R5 million on the PowerBall jackpot! 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 � � What will your winning numbers be? Check your tickets now to see if you’re a winner #FestiveYamaMillions pic.twitter.com/7DYpDjTL4R

— #PhandaPushaPlay (@sa_lottery) December 2, 2020
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

On Wednesday, people took to social media to share their thoughts.

One Twitter user, Mr Tee, alleged a "scam". Another user, Lungaz, suggested there was "absolutely no way in hell that's a coincidence".

Others called for an inquiry into Tuesday's winning lottery result and the competition's regulator, South Africa's National Lotteries Commission (NLC), said it would investigate the draw, which it called unprecedented.

A spokesman for NLC, Ndivhuho Mafela, said the body would review the incident and report its findings.

Grammy Awards
A collection of Grammy Awards

The nominees for the 63rd Grammy Awards have been announced. Here's a summary of the key categories.

Album of the year

Chilombo - Jhené Aiko
Black Pumas - Black Pumas
Everyday Life - Coldplay
Djesse vol. 3 - Jacob Collier
Women in Music Pt. III - Haim
Future Nostalgia - Dua Lipa
Hollywood's Bleeding - Post Malone
Folklore - Taylor Swift


Record of the year

Black Parade - Beyoncé
Colors - Black Pumas
Rockstar - DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch
Say So - Doja Cat
Everything I Wanted - Billie Eilish
Don't Start Now - Dua Lipa
Circles - Post Malone
Savage (Remix) - Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé

Song of the year

Black Parade - Beyoncé
The Box - Roddy Ricch
Cardigan - Taylor Swift
Circles - Post Malone
Don't Start Now - Dua Lipa
Everything I Want - Billie Eilish
I Can't Breathe - H.E.R
If the World Was Ending - JP Saxe and Julia Michaels

Best new artist

Ingrid Andress
Phoebe Bridgers
Chika
Noah Cyrus
D Smoke
Doja Cat
Kaytranada
Megan Thee Stallion

Best pop solo performance

Yummy - Justin Bieber
Say So - Doja Cat
Everything I Wanted - Billie Eilish
Don't Start Now - Dua Lipa
Watermelon Sugar - Harry Styles
Cardigan - Taylor Swift

Best pop duo/group performance

Un Dia (One Day) - J Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny and Tainy
Intentions -Justin Bieber featuring Quavo
Dynamite - BTS
Rain on Me - Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande
Exile - Taylor Swift featuring Bon Iver

Best pop vocal album

Changes - Justin Bieber
Chromatica - Lady Gaga
Future Nostalgia - Dua Lipa
Fine Line - Harry Styles
Folklore - Taylor Swift

Best progressive R&B album

Chilombo - Jhene Aiko
Ungodly Hour - Chloe X Halle
Free Nationals - Free Nationals
F*** Your Feelings - Robert Glasper
It Is What It Is - Thundercat

Best rap song

The Bigger Picture - Lil Baby
The Box - Roddy Ricch
Laugh Now Cry Later - Drake featuring Lil Durk
Rockstar - Da Baby featuring Roddy Ricch
Savage (Remix) - Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé

Best rap album

Black Habits - D Smoke
Alfredo - Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist
A Written Testimony - Jay Electronica
King's Disease - Nas
The Allegory - Royce da 5'9

Best melodic rap performance

Rockstar - Dababy featuring Roddy Ricch
Laugh Now Cry Later - Drake featuring Lil Durk
Lockdown - Anderson .Paak
The Box - Roddy Ricch
Highest in the Room - Travis Scott

Best dance recording

On My Mind - Diplo and Sidepiece
My High - Disclosure featuring Amine and Slowthai
The Difference - Flume featuring Toro y Moi
Both of Us - Jayda G
10% - Kaytranada featuring Kali Uchis

Best dance/electronic album

Kick I - Arca
Planet's Mad - Baauer
Energy - Disclosure
Bubba - Kaytranada
Food Faith - Madeon

Best rock performance

Shameika - Fiona Apple
Not - Big Thief
Kyoto - Phoebe Bridgers
The Steps - Haim
Stay High - Brittany Howard
Daylight - Grace Potter

Best metal performance

Bodycount - Bum Rush
Code Orange - Underneath
The In-between - In This Moment
Bloodmoney - Poppy
Executioner's Tax (Swing of the Axe) - Live by Power Trip

Best rock album

A Hero's Death - Fontaines DC
Kiwanuka - Michael Kiwanuka
Daylight - Grace Potter
Sound & Fury - Sturgill Simpson
The New Abnormal - The Strokes

Best alternative album

Fetch the Bolt Cutters - Fiona Apple
Hyperspace - Beck
Punisher - Phoebe Bridgers
Jaime - Brittany Howard
The Slow Rush - Tame Impala

Best R&B performance

Lightning and Thunder - Jhené Aiko featuring John Legend
Black Parade - Beyoncé
All I Need - Jacob Collier featuring Mahalia and Ty Dolla $ign
Goat Head - Brittany Howard
See Me - Emily King

Best country album

Lady Like - Ingrid Andress
Your LIfe is a Record - Brandy Clark
Wildcard - Miranda Lambert
Nightfall - Little Big Town
Never Will - Ashley McBryde

Best Country Solo Performance

Stick That in Your Country Song - Eric Church
Who You Thought I Was - Brandy Clark
When My Army Prays - Vince Gill
Black Like Me - Mickey Guyton
Bluebird - Miranda Lambert

Best Country Duo/Group Performance

All Night - Brothers Osborne
10,000 Hours - Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber
Ocean - Lady A
Sugar Coat - Little Big Town
Some People Do - Old Dominion

Best musical theatre album

Amelie
American Utopia on Broadway
Jagged Little Pill
The Prince of Egypt
Soft Power
Little Shop of Horrors

Producer of the year, non-classical

Jack Antonoff
Dan Auerbach
Dave Cobb
Flying Lotus
Andrew Watt

Best music video

Brown Skin Girl - Beyoncé
Life is Good - Future Featuring Drake
Lockdown - Anderson .Paak
Adore You - Harry Styles
Goliath - Woodkid

Lol, wetin oh ,am just asking after watching a movie and I've been curious

I've been wondering, 95% American movies I see, except the movie makes it obvious, they sleep without condom. Ancient or now, you'd just see two lovers pants down having sex and nothing happened, so I begin to wonder, is it really possible to avoid pregnancy without condom or anything in sex?

Please I wanna hear everyone's take on this.

Its just really annoying mate. stayin at home is bleeped up. My whole rent which I paid Jan, all gone. STARTED lectures February, came BK home March all cos of this country.

I wish things could or would get better
I can't wait to get back to school, finish my stuff n move on with life

By Justin Harper

Business reporter, BBC News


Three million workers, helped by 4,000 planes and ships, are getting ready for the world's biggest online sale - with "revenge spending" tipped to be one of this year's biggest trends.

China's Singles Day on 11 November is the world's biggest 24-hour online shopping event, with 1.9bn products ordered and delivered last year.

But it is thought pent-up demand from the pandemic will break new records.

Robot cleaners, vacuums and toolboxes are all expected to be popular.

However, luxury brands are also hoping to get a boost, as millions of Chinese who have been unable to travel overseas on shopping trips go online for what experts are dubbing "revenge spending".

"We anticipate ongoing international restrictions will cause a meaningful shift in Chinese consumers buying luxury online," said Michael Norris, at market research firm Agency China, an e-commerce consultancy based in Shanghai.

"Luxury brands have also risen to the occasion, with an estimated doubling in the number of luxury brands participating in Singles Day."

Singles Day in China - also known as 11.11 or Double 11 - was originally created by online retailer Alibaba to celebrate the unattached, an antithesis to the romantically-involved on Valentine's Day.

Alibaba's online shopping rival JD.com runs a similar event but Alibaba's Singles Day is bigger in terms of goods sold and revenue.

Last year, the gross merchandise value reached more than 210bn yuan (£23bn, US$31bn), double that of Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined, with sales hitting $1bn in a little over one minute of trading.

This year, Singles Day kicked off early with an online selling spree between 1 - 3 November to cater to the growing demand from Chinese consumers.

Wednesday will feature more than 350,000 local and international brands and even includes cars and houses for sale.

A logistical feat
Cainiao, the logistics arm of Alibaba, said it is using more than 3,000 chartered flights and long-haul cargo ships to bring goods into China.

Meanwhile, a total of three million people across Cainiao and its partners will be involved in the logistics globally at warehouses and ports.

It will also be using more than 10,000 mobile lockers to allow customers to pick-up parcels without human contact.


Cainiao also plans to operate more than 700 chartered flights to deliver parcels outside China.

"The use of cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, predictive algorithms and big data analytics will empower merchants with demand forecast data and allow them to accurately pre-stock their goods in the right quantity and location," said James Zhao, general manager of global supply chain at Cainiao.

Pandemic products
Now in its twelfth year, health products such as vitamins and air purifiers are expected to be among the best-selling products on Singles Day, given the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last year, the most popular imported goods included pet food, healthcare and beauty products, with a 3,000% spike in beauty products for men.

Cainiao will use more than 10,000 mobile lockers to allow customers to pick-up parcels.
"I expect beauty product sales to soar with foreign brands like L'Oreal doing very well. Sports apparel and vitamins will do well and consumers are placing increased importance on health," said Shaun Rein, founder of China Market Research Group.

"Companies like Vinda which sells toilet paper will do well as will soap companies like Unilever as consumer stock up in bulk on must-have items," he added.

But for those looking to spend a little more, there are also about 800,000 properties on offer at a discount along with more than 200,000 cars.

Ken Spears, the co-creator of the cartoon series Scooby-Doo, has died at the age of 82.

Spears, who created the animated characters alongside his creative partner Joe Ruby, died of complications from Lewy body dementia.

Their original show, Scooby Doo, Where Are You! only ran for two series from 1969-1970, but established a template that spawned 50 years of stories.

Spears's death comes three months after that of his co-creator, Ruby.

His son, Kevin, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that Spears died in Los Angeles on Friday.

Warner Bros president Sam Register said in a statement: "Warner Bros. Animation is saddened to learn of the passing of Ken Spears and we send our warmest thoughts to his loved ones.

"He was a true innovator in the industry whose gifts of humour and storytelling continue to delight audiences.

Register added: "You cannot find a screen in the world that has not played a version of Scooby-Doo. We continue to be inspired by his work at Warner Bros. Animation and are honoured to carry on the legacy of his beloved characters."

Sam Register, president of Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios, honors #ScoobyDoo co-creator Ken Spears: "He was a true innovator in the industry whose gifts of humor and storytelling continue to delight audiences" https:///OIwI8woYvW

— Variety (@Variety) November 10, 2020
Ken Spears was born in Los Angeles on 12 March 1938, and first met Ruby when both were sound editors and staff writers at animation studio Hanna Barbera.

While there, the pair created the supernatural kids show Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, which debuted on CBS in September 1969.

It followed the adventures of a cowardly but good-natured Great Dane, Scooby, who travelled the US solving spooky mysteries with a group of plucky teenagers - Daphne, Fred, Velma and his slacker sidekick, Shaggy.

Spears and Ruby wrote and story-edited all but four of the first 25 episodes.

The pair went on to create characters including Dynomutt, Dog Wonder and Jabberjaw and were asked to supervise the Saturday morning cartoon line-up at CBS, and later did the same job at ABC.

In 1977, ABC set up Ruby-Spears Productions as a subsidiary of Filmways - a studio which went on to spawn series such as Mister T and Alvin and the Chipmunks.

After his death was announced, the official Scooby Doo Instagram account paid tribute, with an image of the Scooby Doo gang, captioned: "Ken Spears 1938-2020."

View this post on Instagram
Thank you, Ken Spears, for co-creating a classic animated series that continues to impact generations.

A post shared by Scooby-Doo (@scoobydoo) on Nov 9, 2020 at 4:45pm PST

1px transparent line
"Ken will forever be remembered for his wit, his story-telling, his loyalty to family, and his strong work ethic," Kevin Spears said in a statement to Variety.

"Ken has not only made a lasting impression on his family, but he has touched the lives of many as co-creator of Scooby-Doo. Ken has been a role model for us throughout his life and he will continue to live on in our hearts."

Prince Fumihito leaves the imperial palace after being declared second in line to the throne
IMAGE COPYRIGHTREUTERS
image captionThe ceremony was delayed by seven months due to the coronavirus pandemic
Prince Fumihito, the brother of Japan's Emperor Naruhito, has been officially declared heir to the throne during a ceremony in Tokyo.

Fumihito is six years younger than his brother Naruhito, who became monarch last year after their father abdicated.

Emperor Naruhito has no sons and his daughter is barred from inheriting the throne, despite calls for reform.

The "Rikkoshi no rei" ceremony had been delayed by seven months because of the coronavirus pandemic.

It was attended by the imperial family and 46 guests, most of whom were wearing masks and maintained a distance from each other, according to Kyodo news agency.

Prince Fumihito leaves the imperial palace
IMAGE COPYRIGHTREUTERS
image captionFumihito's son is now third in line to the throne
During the ceremony, Naruhito declared Fumihito crown prince to the people of Japan and abroad.

Fumihito also received a sword passed down by crown princes.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said: "The people have revered the crown prince and the crown princess after seeing how they have shown kindness in their interactions with people, so it is a pleasure to see the Rikkoshi no rei being held."

Japan's emperor ascends throne in ancient ritual
Naruhito leads Japan into a new era
Country profile
Emperor Emeritus Akihito abdicated last year. He was given permission to abdicate after saying he felt unable to fulfil his role because of his age and declining health.

He was the first Japanese monarch to stand down in more than 200 years.

Under the Imperial Household law of 1947 only men can ascend to the throne. In 2004 the government began working on changing the law to allow for an empress but it was put on hold after Fumihito's wife gave birth to a son - Prince Hisahito.

Should Hisahito not grow up to have a son that would spark another succession crisis and could see the government pick up plans from 2004 and change the law.

Anthony Zurcher

North America reporter

@awzurcheron Twitter


US election 2020
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris
IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES
image captionBiden's choice of Kamala Harris as a running mate, helped keep centrist voters on-side
After nearly 50 years in public office, and a lifetime of presidential ambitions, Joe Biden has captured the White House.

It was not the campaign anyone predicted. It took place amidst a once-in-a-century pandemic and unprecedented social unrest. He was running against an unconventional, precedent-defying incumbent. But in his third try for the presidency, Biden and his team found a way to navigate the political obstacles and claim a victory that, while narrow in the electoral college tally, is projected to surpass Trump's overall national total by millions of votes.


These are the five reasons the son of a car salesman from Delaware finally won the presidency.

1. Covid, Covid, Covid
Perhaps the biggest reason Biden won the presidency was something entirely out of his control.

The coronavirus pandemic, as well as claiming more than 230,000 lives, also transformed American life and politics in 2020. And in the final days of the general election campaign, Donald Trump himself seemed to acknowledge this.

"With the fake news, everything is Covid, Covid, Covid, Covid," the president said at a rally last week in Wisconsin, where cases have spiked in recent days.

The media focus on Covid, however, was a reflection rather than a driver of the public's concern about the pandemic - which translated into unfavourable polling on the president's handling of the crisis. A poll last month by Pew Research, suggested Biden held a 17 percentage point lead over Trump when it came to confidence about their handling of the Covid outbreak.

media captionHow much is Covid-19 an election issue?
The pandemic and the subsequent economic decline knocked Trump off his preferred campaign message of growth and prosperity. It also highlighted concerns that many Americans had about his presidency, over its occasional lack of focus, penchant for questioning science, haphazard handling of policies large and small, and prioritisation of the partisan. The pandemic was a lead weight on Trump's approval ratings, which, according to Gallup, dipped to 38% at one point in the summer - one that the Biden campaign exploited.

2. Low-key campaign
Over the course of his political career, Biden established a well-earned reputation for talking himself into trouble. His propensity for gaffes derailed his first presidential campaign in 1987, and helped ensure that he never had much of a shot when he ran again in 2007.

Joe Biden - 40 years of political ambition
In his third try for the Oval Office, Biden still had his share of verbal stumbles, but they were sufficiently infrequent that they never became more than a short-term issue.

Part of the explanation for this, of course, is that the president himself was an unrelenting source of news cycle churn. Another factor was that there were bigger stories - the coronavirus pandemic, protests after the death of George Floyd and economic disruption - dominating national attention.

media captionTrump and Biden stage duelling rallies in Florida
But at least some credit should be given to a concerted strategy by the Biden campaign to limit their candidate's exposure, keeping a measured pace in the campaign, and minimising the chances that fatigue or carelessness could create problems.

Perhaps in a normal election, when most Americans weren't worried about limiting their own exposure to a virus, this strategy would have backfired. Maybe then Trump's derisive "hidin' Biden" jabs would have taken their toll.

The campaign sought to stay out of the way and let Trump be the one whose mouth betrayed him - and, in the end, it paid off.

3. Anyone but Trump
The week before election day, the Biden campaign unveiled its final television adverts with a message that was remarkably similar to the one offered in his campaign kickoff last year, and his nomination acceptance speech in August.

The election was a "battle for the soul of America", he said, and a chance for the national to put what he characterised as the divisiveness and chaos of the past four years behind it.

Donald Trump in Las Vegas, October 2020
IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES
image captionThe election became a referendum on Trump
Beneath that slogan, however, was a simple calculation. Biden bet his political fortunes on the contention that Trump was too polarising and too inflammatory, and what the American people wanted was calmer, steadier leadership.

"I'm just exhausted by Trump's attitude as a person," says Thierry Adams, a native of France who after 18 years living in Florida cast his first vote in a presidential election in Miami last week.

Democrats succeeded in making this election a referendum on Trump, not a binary choice between the two candidates.

Biden's winning message was simply that he was "not Trump". A common refrain from Democrats was that a Biden victory meant Americas could go for weeks without thinking about politics. It was meant as a joke, but it contained a kernel of truth.

4. Stay in the centre
During the campaign to be the Democratic candidate, Biden's competition came from his left, with Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren who ran well-financed and organised campaigns that generated rock-concert sized crowds.

Despite this pressure from his liberal flank, Biden stuck with a centrist strategy, refusing to back universal government-run healthcare, free college education, or a wealth tax. This allowed him maximise his appeal to moderates and disaffected Republicans during the general election campaign.

This strategy was reflected in Biden's choice of Kamala Harris as his running mate when he could have opted for someone with stronger support from the party's left wing.

media captionWhat do young Democrats think of Joe Biden?
The one place where Biden moved closer to Sanders and Warren was on the environment and climate-change - perhaps calculating that the benefits of appealing to younger voters for whom the issue is a priority was worth the risk of alienating voters in energy-dependent swing-state industries. It was the exception, however, that proved the rule.

"It's no secret that we've been critical of Vice-President's Biden's plans and commitments in the past," said Varshini Prakash, co-founder of the environmental activist group the Sunrise Movement in July. "He's responded to many of those criticisms: dramatically increasing the scale and urgency of investments, filling in details on how he'd achieve environmental justice and create good union jobs, and promising immediate action."

5. More money, fewer problems
Earlier this year, Biden's campaign coffers were running on empty. He entered the general election campaign at a decided disadvantage to Trump, who had spent virtually his entire presidency amassing a campaign war chest that approached a billion dollars.

From April onward, however, the Biden campaign transformed itself into a fundraising juggernaut, and - in part because of profligacy on the part of the Trump campaign - ended up in a much stronger financial position than his opponent. At the beginning of October, the Biden campaign had $144m more cash on hand than the Trump operation, allowing it to bury the Republicans in a torrent of television advertising in almost every key battleground state.

Biden supporter in Housten, Texas
IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES
image captionA Biden supporter in Texas, where a cash advantage enabled him to spend campaign money
Money isn't everything, of course. Four years ago, the Clinton campaign had a sizeable monetary lead over Trump's shoestring operation.

But in 2020, when in-person campaigning was curtailed by coronavirus and Americans across the country spent considerably more time consuming media in their homes, Biden's cash advantage let him reach voters and push his message out until the very end. It allowed him to expand the electoral map, putting money into what once seemed to be longshot states like Texas, Georgia, Ohio and Iowa. Most of those bets didn't pay off, but he put Trump on the defence, flipping what was once reliably conservative Arizona and staying highly competitive in Georgia.

Money gives a campaign options and initiative - and Biden put his advantage to good use

US election 2020
Trump and Biden
IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES/TWITTER/FACEBOOK
Twitter has hidden some of Donald Trump's first tweets the day after a US election which remains undecided.

In one, the President wrote his vote advantage in key Democrat-run states had "started to magically disappear", and in another that 500,000 votes in key states were at risk.

The messages are now hidden behind warnings that say the claims are disputed and might be misleading.

The moves also limit users' ability to like and reply to the posts.

Twitter had earlier taken similar action over a post in which Trump said for the first time that his opponents "are trying to steal the election".

Facebook has added fact-check boxes to some of the messages on Mr Trump's profile on its platform, clarifying that final results might take longer than normal - but did not restrict engagement.

'Censor and silence'
One of the tweets said: "Last night I was leading, often solidly, in many key states, in almost all instances Democrat run and controlled.

"Then, one by one, they started to magically disappear as surprise ballot dumps were counted. VERY STRANGE."

Trump blocked tweets
IMAGE COPYRIGHTTWITTER
image captionTwitter has hidden some of Trump's posts and users can only see the contents if they click "view"
He followed that with: "They are working hard to make up 500,000 vote advantage in Pennsylvania disappear - ASAP. Likewise, Michigan and others!"

Twitter took just over half an hour to react on each occasion.

Mr Biden's first tweet of the day said "we won't rest until everyone's vote is counted".

Twitter has not acted on any of Mr Biden's tweets.

But it has hidden a post by the chair of Wisconsin's Democratic Party Ben Wikler who posted that "Joe Biden just won Wisconsin".

On Tuesday, the Trump campaign claimed that "Silicon Valley continues its campaign to censor and silence the president".

LIVE: US Election results
Social media's US election nightmare
Timeline alerts
Facebook has also been automatically adding labels to all recent posts on Trump and Joe Biden's accounts.

They inform readers that votes are still being counted and that the winner of the US presidential election has not been projected.

Facebook has begun placing notifications at the top of the timelines for all US users, explaining that the election had not yet been decided.

"Once President Trump began making premature claims of victory, we started running notifications on Facebook and Instagram that votes are still being counted and a winner is not projected," it said.

Once President Trump began making premature claims of victory, we started running notifications on Facebook and Instagram that votes are still being counted and a winner is not projected. We're also automatically applying labels to both candidates’ posts with this information. pic.twitter.com/tuGGLJkwcy

— Facebook Newsroom (@fbnewsroom) November 4, 2020
Twitter said it had labelled Mr Trump's tweet about the election being "stolen" because it violated the firm's civic integrity policy.

But the network appears to be allowing some claims of victory, despite warning that it would not.

An earlier tweet from Mr Trump that he had enjoyed "a big win!" has been left untouched, as has a carefully-worded tweet from Mr Biden that said "we believe we are on track to win this election".

Presentational grey line
Analysis: Time for false claims to grow
I voted stickers
IMAGE COPYRIGHTREUTERS
By Olga Robinson, disinformation specialist, BBC Monitoring

It's been a busy 24 hours on social media. There's been numerous unsubstantiated or false claims about election fraud, voter intimidation and conspiracy theories about attempts to steal the election doing the rounds.

And we are likely to see more misinformation like this in the days to come.

The delay in announcing the final result means a lot for time for misleading claims to flourish online.

Social media's US election nightmare
How social media is preparing for US election chaos
Conspiratorial claims about rigged elections can spread like wildfire, in particular if they are amplified by politicians and online influencers.

Premature claims of victory - like the one President Trump made while votes are being counted - can further fuel misinformation and potentially impact how people perceive the final result.

This is exactly what some experts have been concerned about: that viral misinformation about voter fraud and "rigged" elections might have the potential to undermine people's trust in democratic process for years to come.

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The clampdown comes after months of preparation for a disputed election.

The social media firms have overhauled their policies to deal with false claims of victory and other misinformation about the vote.

Both Twitter and Facebook said they had suspended a range of recently created accounts.

Twitter said the accounts it targeted had violated its spam and manipulation policies - particularly those that seek to artificially influence online conversations.

YouTube also shut down live-streamed fake election results which were being broadcast via several accounts on its platform.

3/ Before the video was taken down, it rose to become one of Google’s most widely circulated videos in swing states. This underscores how platforms have continued to struggle with misinformation despite the development of new policies. https:///g0TGlpvyr4 pic.twitter.com/2bKlkcbe7h

— Election Integrity Partnership (@2020Partnership) November 4, 2020
The Election Integrity Partnership said that one of them had come up as a top search result within YouTube when users searched election information in key swing states.

The research group estimated that more than 26,0000 people had viewed the fake results.

YouTube said it that "after careful review" it was removing livestreams that broke its rules.

In a separate incident of apparent election interference, the FBI has said it is investigating a series of robocalls.

According to the Washington Post, an estimated 10 million automated calls were made over recent days telling people to "stay safe and stay home".

They did not specifically mention voting, and their origin remains unknown.

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