The judge who ordered a mentally ill pregnant woman to undergo a Caesarian section instead of a natural birth insisted that it was in her best interests.

If George W Bush thought he was done being controversial, it appears he was mistaken. Next week, the 43rd US president will deliver the keynote address at a fundraising event for the Messianic Jewish Bible Institute (MBJI), a global organisation that trains its members to convert Jews to Christianity, in the hope of bringing about the Second Coming of Christ.

“Everything that makes Britain great can be found right here in Northumberland,” announced Robson Green at the start of his new ITV series, Tales from Northumberland. It was a bold claim – do they even have a Nando's? – but this proud son of Hexham is so enthusiastic about the land that stretches from north of Newcastle to the Scottish border that we should give him the chance to prove it. And while Robson takes an eight-week trip around his home county, his accent will apparently be roving the length and breadth of the nation. Last night it took in West Kensington and Tyneside, plus a brief stop in County Down.

With her glossy black hair and glamorous red sari, Dr Nayna Patel swept on to our screens last night like a movie star – a particularly bossy movie star. In fact, she's the IVF practitioner at the centre of India's $1bn-a-year commercial surrogacy industry. At her clinic and dormitory in Gujarat, she not only oversees the pregnancies of 100 women at a time, but also likes to weigh in on many other aspects of their personal lives: what they should spend their fee on, what skills they should learn, and whether they should kick that no-good husband out on to the street. So was Dr Nayna an evil capitalist exploiting the desperate for her own gain? Or a pioneering scientist and feminist crusader to boot?

Court orders government to regulate medical testing amid fears over industry’s safety

Local authority says the group is too big for new facilities, while councillor condemns the decision

Model, actress and television personality Caprice is expecting a baby just a month after a surrogate mother is expected to give birth for her.

The gold standard for treating breast cancer which has held sway for twenty years is expected to change following results showing that death rates can be slashed further by extending drug therapy for longer.

Simple technique tchooses the best embryo

A Turkish woman who became the first person successfully to receive a donor womb is six weeks into a “healthy” pregnancy.

A woman from Turkey who became the first person to successfully receive the uterus from a deceased donor may now be pregnant, a hospital has said.

Police are worried that a vulnerable woman may have given birth and require medical attention

A third composer hovers, ghost-like, in pianist Cheng's beguiling recital with the Calder Quartet.

British women born without a womb will be given fresh hope this year when scientists attempt to help the woman who had the world's first successful womb transplant to conceive a baby.

Wealthy British couples who cannot have children are increasingly seeking “wombs for hire” from women overseas, according to figures obtained by The Independent.