The second inaugural address has rarely been memorable. Save for Abraham Lincoln’s, which struck a series of soaring notes, including “Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty source of war may speedily pass away”, they are fraught with difficulty.

The Conservatives’ new tactic is a betrayal of all that Cameron stood for when he became leader

The President prepares to make some savage cuts

Although he clocked up dozens of screen appearances over more than half a century, the American actor Robert Easton's greatest claim to fame was as dialect coach to some of film's biggest stars. He called himself the Henry Higgins of Hollywood, after the professor of phonetics in My Fair Lady. Perhaps most successful was his contribution to Forest Whitaker's performance as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland (2006); Whitaker's East African accent and use of Swahili combined with his large physical presence and chilling portrayal of Amin's menacing stare and unnerving mood changes to win him a Best Actor Oscar.

Patriots 'will be unhappy' that their most admired president will be portrayed in movie by a Briton

The crude sacking by Chelsea of Carlo Ancelotti's assistant manager, Ray Wilkins, may not be the most significant convulsion at the club since Roman Abramovich decided to carry it into an entirely new dimension.

Letter to a schoolboy on yellowed paper, valued at $60,000, shows a new face of the President

Our Film Forum is your chance to pass judgement on a recent release. Here's a selection of your views on the comedy sequel to the comedy Night at the Museum: 'Battle of the Smithsonian'

Barack Obama paid a visit to the Lincoln Memorial at the weekend, publicly honouring the man who inspired his career and whose legacy is to provide a major theme for the inauguration in eight days.