Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton has been banned for 12 matches - six of which are suspended - and fined £25,000 after pleading guilty to a Football Association charge of violent conduct.The four-man panel, which included former England manager Graham Taylor, took just under two hours to reach their verdict, which now sees Barton ruled out of action until October 25 at least.

By Mike Collett-White and Silvia Aloisi VENICE (Reuters) - A late flurry of independent U.S. pictures at the Venice film festival has blown the competition wide open ahead of the awards ceremony on Saturday.

Ministers have denied caving in to the energy companies after Gordon Brown ruled out one-off payments to help families struggling to pay soaring energy bills. The Prime Minister faced an angry backlash after he used a keynote speech on Thursday night to make clear that there would be no "short-term gimmicks or giveaways" when the Government unveils its much-vaunted energy plan next week.