The world's oldest woman celebrated her 115th birthday on Tuesday in a Japanese nursing home with her favourite mackerel sushi dish on the menu.

Misao Okawa, a descendant of kimono merchants in the city of Osaka, western Japan, told a broadcaster she had never expected to live to such a great age but had managed it "thanks to everybody".

An Italian man dressed up in fake ecclesiastical robes was escorted out of a meeting of Catholic cardinals by Swiss Guards on Monday after trying to sneak into the closed-door Vatican meeting.

The man had told reporters that his name was "Basilius" and that he was a member of the "Italian Orthodox Church", which does not exist.

The guests lean over the side of the boat to catch the morning breeze as their catamaran eases off from a jetty in Singapore. A typical cruise, except for the fact that the passengers are dogs.

"Actually, this is their third cruise," said Andy Pe, 43, the doting owner of two Black Labrador Retrievers, a Yellow Labrador, a Golden Retriever and two mongrels. "They enjoy the sea breeze and water so much."

Four people have been jailed in China for digging up corpses to sell as brides for traditional "ghost marriages" -- where dead single men are buried with a wife for the afterlife -- local reports said.

Marriage is an important part of Chinese society and, while the practice is increasingly rare, it is still kept up by some families whose young adult sons pass away before having a chance to wed.

Workers at an underground gold mine in Western Australia have been sacked for performing the Harlem Shake dance while on the job, reports said Monday.

After the success of Gangnam Style, the latest viral dance craze has swept the globe, resulting in thousands of Internet copycat clips daily. Its raunchy moves have even led to clashes in Tunisia and arrests in Egypt.

An auction of luxury cigar humidors in Cuba fetched $1.1 million, which will go toward the public health system, the state news agency said Sunday.

The sale came at an international cigar festival attended by celebrities such as American actor Danny Glover and German tennis great Boris Becker, Prensa Latina said.

The mayor of Peru's third-largest city inaugurated a book fair by saying he does not like to read.

"People close me to know that I do not read, that I never write. But I took time last night to go over some papers and be able to explain what a book fair is," said the mayor of Trujillo, Cesar Acuna.

British customs agents made a creepy discovery when an airline passenger was found with 94 kilograms (207 pounds) of caterpillars in his luggage.

The man claimed they were intended as food for personal consumption.

At 37 pounds (16 kilograms), Biscuit the cat is about the right weight for a 4-year-old — human, that is.

A U.S. animal shelter is trying to find him a new home.

A British man who has spent most of the past decade naked — and in jail — was back behind bars Friday after defying an order to cover up.

Stephen Gough, known as the "Naked Rambler," was arrested Thursday as he left a court in Southampton, southern England, wearing only boots, socks and a knapsack.