Press Association (PA) the UK's biggest national multimedia news agency brings you their best pictures of 2013.
The PA Images database has more than 12 million photographs available online dating back 150 years.
Hundreds if not thousands of pictures are filtered through onto the site on a daily basis. Images from breaking news to entertainment events from across the globe.
These striking images come to us through the hard work and sheer determination photographers put themselves through to bring news to our front door and without them we would sadly otherwise not see.
PA editor's choice of images has delved deep to select their most monumental moments of 2013 in pictures.
Photographer Lewis Whyld on his image of lightning striking behind the London Eye on the day the Royal Baby was born
I'd previously shot Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament with lightning behind and thought at the time that the London Eye would make a dramatic weather picture. I had to wait a couple of years for the right storm and when it came along it was the day Kate gave birth to the Royal baby.
I should have stayed in bed as the following day was going to be a long one, but having waited years for the right storm I couldn't resist going out to shoot it. I used my car as a faraday cage to protect me from the lightning and data from a boltec lightning detector to plot the path of the storm and waited in place for the shot. I then went straight to the Lindo wing to wait for the Royal baby.
Photographer Owen Humphreys spoke of his dramatic shot of waves crashing at Seaham Habour and his stunning Starling murmuration images he captured
The waves at Seaham was my favourite weather picture i've taken this year, the night before there were reports on the weather of an arctic blast coming down from Scotland down the east coast so I headed down for high tide at Seaham.
When I got there I was amazed as i've photographed the lighthouse before but never seen a swell and waves as big crashing over the lighthouse, some were over 100ft. The thing that really makes this picture is the black stormy clouds but the sun still shining backlighting the waves as it hit the harbour wall.
Over the years I have been up to Gretna Green in the Boarders to photograph the murmuration of starlings which is an amazing spectacle which happens from November through until January. This year I thought I'd go up there once a week for 4 weeks and try and capture them arriving and there behaviour. I had been up 3 weeks and got all the feature type pictures but didn’t have the big shot of them making the amazing shapes I knew they could. On my final visit at the end of November I got extremely lucky, not only did I have the starlings making the most incredible shapes but I got the chance to see some kind of hawk or bird of prey trying to attack them which is why they make the shapes to warn off birds of prey.
I've been shooting for PA now as there North East staff photographer for 17 years, strangely enough one of my first big jobs was photographing Nelson Mandela with Tony Blair. The best thing about working for the Press Association is the Variety of jobs, as I also shoot a lot of sport and have been lucky enough to cover many major events such as the Olympics, World cup, major Golf tournaments and Wimbledon. Being a area photographer you have to be constantly in the know of what's going on in that area as the desk in London rely on you to keep tabs on all the events going on around you which is one of the good things of being a patch man, but leaves little time to switch off.
Press Association Pictures Of The Year
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The Duke of Cambridge (right) sings with Taylor Swift (left) and Jon Bon Jovi at the Centrepoint Gala Dinner at Kensington Palace, London. (credit:PA)
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The Kelpies, a public art and visitor attraction created by artist Andy Scott, which forms a gateway to the Forth and Clyde canal at the Helix, Falkirk, Scotland on its completion. (credit:PA)
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Threlkeld and Caldbeck cricket clubs taking part in the world's first underground cricket match within Fleetwith Pike, Borrowdale, Keswick. (credit:PA)
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TV cook Nigella Lawson leaving Isleworth Crown Court in west London after giving evidence in the case two of her former personal assistants, Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo, who are accused of committed fraud by abusing their positions as PAs by using a company credit card for personal gain. (credit:PA)
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Former Tory chief whip Andrew Mitchell outside his north London home ahead of the Crown Prosecution Service announcement following the conclusion of the police investigation into the dispute at the gates of Downing Street between Andrew Mitchell and a Metropolitan Police Officer on 19 September last year. (credit:PA)
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Charles Saatchi leaving Isleworth Crown Court in London, where the trial of sisters Elisabetta 'Lisa' and Francesca Grillo (right), the former personal assistants to Mr Saatchi and Nigella Lawson is being held. (credit:PA)
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Olly Murs performing on stage during the 2013 Capital FM Jingle Bell Ball at the O2 Arena, London. (credit:PA)
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Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond and Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon holding copies of the White Paper after it was launched at the Science Centre in Glasgow. (credit:PA)
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Former Doctor Who actors (left to right) Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Matt Smith at the Doctor Who Official 50th Anniversary Celebration at the Excel Centre, in east London. (credit:PA)
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The new BMW Mini being unveiled at their plant in Oxford to coincide with the 107th anniversary of the birth of the car's designer, Sir Alec Issigonis. (credit:PA)
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Scottish Fire and Rescue firefighters and USAR (Urban Search and Rescue) teams at the scene of a helicopter crash at the Clutha Bar in Glasgow. (credit:PA)
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Bidders admiring the 17 metre long specimen of a long-necked Diplodocus Longus which will be auctioned at Summers Place Auctions in West Sussex. (credit:PA)
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Murmuration of starlings above the the small village of Rigg, near Gretna, in the Scottish Borders. (credit:PA)
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(Left-right) Michael Palin, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam and John Cleese announcing their new plans for Monty Python at the Corinthia Hotel in London. (credit:PA)
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Charity swimmer Sean Conway, 32, arriving at John O'Groats, in the north of Scotland, after being the first person to swim from Lands End to John O'Groats. (credit:PA)
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Crossrail worker Sam Agyeman, inspecting the first completed section of Crossrail tunnel, after tunnelling machine Phyllis completed the 6.8 kilometre, 18-month journey between Royal Oak and Farringdon. (credit:PA)
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Barry Humphries in character as Dame Edna Everage at the announcement of the Barry Humphries' Farewell Tour at The London Palladium, London. (credit:PA)
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Malala Yousafzai during a photocall at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, before a talk with the Southbank Centre Artistic Director Jude Kelly to launch her memoir, I Am Malala. (credit:PA)
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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their son Prince George arriving at Chapel Royal in St James's Palace, ahead of the christening of the three month-old Prince George of Cambridge by the Archbishop of Canterbury in central London. (credit:PA)
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Prime Minister David Cameron meeting Tamil refugees in the welfare village of Sabapathopillaia, in northern Sri Lanka, who were made homeless during the 26 year long civil war. (credit:PA)
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The Duchess of Cornwall being shown some Indian dance moves by girls from Asha Sadan (House of Hope) for children who have been abandoned or abused, in Mumbai, on the fourth day of their official visit to India and Sri Lanka. (credit:PA)
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The Duchess of Cambridge, Patron of SportsAid, playing volleyball during her visit to the Copper Box at the former Olympic Park, in east London, to see how young athletes are benefiting from help from one of her charities. (credit:PA)
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Vintage sports car enthusiasts spending the weekend powering their way up a 2,126ft fell in the Lake District as part of an annual pilgrimage to Honister Slate Mine. (credit:PA)
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Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and his long time girlfriend Kim Sears at Buckingham Palace in central London, where he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by the Duke of Cambridge. (credit:PA)
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Waves crashing near Brighton Pier in East Sussex, as England and Wales faced a battering from the worst storm in five years, forecasters warned. (credit:PA)
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Rebekah Brooks arriving at the Old Bailey in London as the prosecution case in the trial of former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks and ex-spin doctor Andy Coulson was due to open. (credit:PA)
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Labour leader Ed Miliband, accompanied by his wife Justine, being applauded following his keynote speech during his Party's annual conference at The Brighton Centre, Brighton. (credit:PA)
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Specialist painters sending a message to the outside world as they continue to live and work on Beachy Head Lighthouse near Eastbourne, Sussex, during the process of repainting the structure following a successful fund raising campaign to save the stripes. (credit:PA)
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Air-to-air stills with RAF and French Air Force fast jets on exercise as a C130 Hercules aircraft was used as a platform to record RAF Typhoon (top) flying with French Air Force Mirage 2000 jet. (credit:PA)
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Prime Minister David Cameron with his wife Samantha following his keynote speech on the final day of the Conservative Party Conference at Manchester Central in Manchester. (credit:PA)
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Soldiers from the 1st Battalion Royal Regiment Fusiliers walking down a ridge as they conduct a dawn foot patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand Province, Afghanistan after leaving base Sterga 2. (credit:PA)
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Model Kate Moss posing in front of an image by Craig McDean, during a preview of Christie's 'Kate Moss From The Collection of Gert Elfering' sale. (credit:PA)
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Demolition work beginning on Mick and Mairead Philpott's old family home on Victory Road, Derby, where the two parents set a deadly fire which killed their children. (credit:PA)
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Sandra Bullock arriving at the 57th BFI London Film Festival official screening of Gravity at The Odeon, Leicester Square, London. (credit:PA)
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David Beckham at a photocall for the opening of Belstaff House, New Bond Street, during London Fashion Week. (credit:PA)
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Dani Marlborough from Gromit Unleashed among some of the giant Gromit sculptures, decorated by celebrities and artists, as they are prepared for auction in aid of Bristol Children's Hospital charity, Wallace and Gromit's Grand Appeal, at a top secret location in Bristol. (credit:PA)
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Labour leader Ed Miliband and his wife Justine take their children Daniel (right) and Sam (left) for a walk along Brighton beach on the eve of the Labour Party annual conference. (credit:PA)
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Stella McCartney attending the Adidas by Stella McCartney presentation as part of London Fashion Week. (credit:PA)
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Hannah Davey, from London, touching the world's largest polar bear puppet, unveiled by Greenpeace at North Weald airfield in Essex. (credit:PA)
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Northern Lights are visible at Porsanger Garrison near Lakselv, Norway. (credit:PA)
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Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell being hugged by his sister Sue outside Manchester Crown Court after he was cleared of child sex offences. (credit:PA)
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Double amputee soldier Lance Bombardier James Simpson tackling the fire obstacle during the Spartan Super Race at West Midlands Water Ski Centre, Warwickshire. (credit:PA)
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Rihanna at the launch of her Autumn/Winter range from her Rihanna for River Island collection at an exclusive fan event at their flagship store on Oxford Street, London. (credit:PA)
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Edinburgh Zoo's giant panda, Tian Tian, in her enclosure as she has was put on 24-hour surveillance after the latest hormone tests revealed she could have been pregnant. (credit:PA)
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Police officers escorting a lorry heading to the Cuadrilla exploratory drilling site in Balcombe, West Sussex, as anti fracking demonstrations continued. (credit:PA)
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The Prince of Wales holding a bald eagle called Zephyr during a visit to the 132nd Sandringham Flower Show at Sandringham House in Norfolk. (credit:PA)
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Harry Styles arriving for the World Premiere of One Direction: This Is Us, at the Empire Leicester Square, London. (credit:PA)
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DJ Dave Lee Travis arriving at Westminster Magistrates' Court in central London, to face 11 counts of indecent assault and one of sexual assault against nine alleged victims. (credit:PA)
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Environmental activists marching through Balcombe, West Sussex, as anti fracking demonstrations continued at the Cuadrilla exploratory drilling site. (credit:PA)
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Police during a clash with loyalist protestors in Belfast city centre as they attempted to block part of the route of the Anti-Internment League parade. (credit:PA)
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Veteran entertainer Rolf Harris, with his wife Alwen, arriving at the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London where he is charged with nine counts of indecent assault and four counts of making indecent images of a child. (credit:PA)
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Labour leader Ed Miliband after he was pelted with eggs during a campaign visit in East Street market in Walworth, south London. (credit:PA)
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Kate, who was named after the Duchess of Cambridge, starting to shed her plumage in the annual seasonal Gentoo Penguin moult, which lasts for about three weeks at the London Aquarium on the south Bank of the Thames. (credit:PA)
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The wreckage of the Super Puma L2 helicopter which went down in the North Sea with the loss of four lives, around two miles west of Sumburgh airport on Shetland as it was returning to the island from the Borgsten Dolphin platform, floating in the sea. (credit:PA)
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The Astrid tall ship which ran aground off the south coast of Ireland as it waits to be surveyed to determine whether it is possible to salvage. (credit:PA)
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Lightning strike as seen from The View at the Shard in London. (credit:PA)
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Gibraltarians waving Union Flags as the Royal Navy warship HMS Westminster arrived into the harbour at Gibraltar for a scheduled visit ahead of exercises in the Mediterranean. (credit:PA)
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People throwing brightly coloured powder in the air during the Holi One Festival, at Battersea Power Station in London. (credit:PA)
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Tony Phoenix-Morrison from Hebburn at the launch of his 40 marathons in 40 days challenge in Newcastle. (credit:PA)
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General view of the damage left by flash floods in Walsden, near Todmorden, West Yorkshire. (credit:PA)
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Anti-fracking activists demonstrating against the Cuadrilla exploratory drilling site in Balcombe, West Sussex, as campaigners set up a six day Reclaim the Power action camp outside the village. (credit:PA)
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Mayor of London Boris Johnson viewing the new square at King's Cross station. (credit:PA)
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Comedian Steve Coogan, as his alter-ego Alan Partridge, attending the world premiere of his new film Alpha Papa at the Hollywood Cimema in Anglia Square, Norwich, Norfolk. (credit:PA)
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Firefighter battling a gorse blaze on Howth Head. (credit:PA)
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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge leaving the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in London, with their newborn son, Prince George of Cambridge. (credit:PA)
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Queen Elizabeth II, smiling as she watches Soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland 3 Scots, march past after she presented the regiment with a Pipe Banner, at Dreghorn Barracks in Edinburgh. (credit:PA)
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Rebecca Rigby the wife of Fusiler Lee Rigby, with son Jack leaving Bury Parish church in Bury, Greater Manchester, after a vigil on the eve of his funeral. (credit:PA)
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Zara Phillips in action during a charity polo match at the Tidworth Polo Club near Salisbury. (credit:PA)
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Prime Minister David Cameron greeting Wimbledon winner Andy Murray outside 10 Downing Street before attending a cross-party reception in the garden, Downing Street, London. (credit:PA)
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Loyalists clashing with police in North Belfast, following the decision by the Government-appointed Parades Commission to bar Orangemen from walking through Ardoyne in North Belfast, after a day of peaceful Twelfth of July holiday loyal order parades across Northern Ireland. (credit:PA)
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Mick Jagger (centre), Keith Richards (right) and Ronnie Wood (left) from the Rolling Stones performing on the Pyramid Stage during the Glastonbury 2013 Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts at Pilton Farm, Somerset. (credit:PA)
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Queen Elizabeth II talking to the Scottish First minister Alex Salmond during an audience at the Palace of Holyrood House in Edinburgh. (credit:PA)
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Staff watching The British Airways liveried Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger plane, arriving at Heathrow Airport as BA became the first UK airline to take delivery of the massive superjumbo. (credit:PA)
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Double Olympic gold medal winning athlete Mo Farah doing the 'Mobot' while wearing his CBE medal, after he received the award from the Prince of Wales during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in central London. (credit:PA)
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Julian Assange speaking to the media inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London ahead of the first anniversary of his arrival there on 19th June, 2012. (credit:PA)
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Prime Minister David Cameron welcoming President of the United States, Barack Obama, to this year's G8 Summit on Lough Erne near Enniskillen in Northern Ireland. (credit:PA)
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Teacher Jeremy Forrest who was found guilty at Lewes Crown Court in Lewes, East Sussex, of abducting a 15-year-old girl who he took to France when their sexual affair was about to be exposed. (credit:PA)
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Cyclists take part in the Hero Ride, in aid of the armed forces charity Help for Heroes along The Mall in central London. (credit:PA)
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Queen Elizabeth II and members of the Royal family leave Westminster Abbey following the service to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Coronation of the Queen at Westminster Abbey, London. (credit:PA)
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A model wears designs by Maiko Takeda during the Royal College of Art graduate fashion show, at the Royal College of Art, in Kensington, west London. (credit:PA)
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Mark Bridger leaves Mold Crown Court after he was given a whole life sentence for the abduction and murder of schoolgirl April Jones.. (credit:PA)
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The X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne arrives at the Grosvenor Hilton Hotel in Glasgow, Scotland, ahead of the first of this year's auditions. (credit:PA)
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Remains of a crashed World War II Dornier bomber, the only surviving German Second World War Dornier Do 17 bomber, lays on a barge near Deal in the English Channel after being raised from the sea bed. (credit:PA)
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Coronation Street star Bill Roache leaves Preston Crown Court after he was told that he trial in January over allegations of historic sexual offences. (credit:PA)
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The RAF Red Arrows performing a flypast over Chelsea, central London, following the Trooping of the Colour. (credit:PA)
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PR guru Max Clifford leaves Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, where he is charged with 11 historic counts of indecent assault against teenage girls.. (credit:PA)
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The Walking With The Wounded team during training on the Langiokull Glacier in Iceland. (credit:PA)
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Queen Elizabeth II is greeted by the Prince of Wales as she arrives at the Chapel Royal, at St James's Palace, central London, to attend a service for members of the Order of Merit. (credit:PA)
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Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha take a drink by a beach during their holiday on the Spanish Island of Ibiza. (credit:PA)
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A sheep in the hills above the Glens of Antrim. (credit:PA)
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Leader of UKIP Nigel Farage, reacts as he looks at an edition of Private Eye magazine during a visit to Ramsey in Cambridgeshire while on the local election campaign trail. (credit:PA)
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The Duchess of Cambridge gets her heel stuck in a drain as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visit the 1st Battalion Irish Guards to attend the St. Patrick's Day Parade at Mons Barracks, Aldershot. (credit:PA)
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Apprentice fabricator Nicole Mitchell, welds the date of Scotland's independence referendum onto steel at Steel Engineering Ltd in Glasgow, following it's announcement by First Minister Alex Salmond in Scottish Parliament. (credit:PA)
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Olympic Gold medalist Jessica Ennis and Andy Hill are showered with confetti after they wedding at St Michael and All Angels Church, Hathersage, Derbyshire. (credit:PA)
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Model Becca Ivory during the Irish Bodypainting Competition at Temple Bar in Dublin. (credit:PA)
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Hundreds of joggers, wearing special suits with led lights attached, arrive outside the Lowry Theatre in Salford Quays, Greater Manchester. (credit:PA)
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SAS sniper Sergeant Danny Nightingale with wife Sally outside the Court Martial Centre, Bulford in Wiltshire. (credit:PA)
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Labour leader Ed Miliband takes the tube back to Westminster after meeting shoppers, market stall holders and restaurants owners in Brixton, south London. (credit:PA)
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Prince of Wales during a tour of the Shirt Manufacturing Division of Turnbull & Asser to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the factory. (credit:PA)
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A cyclist takes a route alongside large snow drifts which still remain on the roads near Holme Moss on the edge of the Peak District National Park. (credit:PA)
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Coffin of Baroness Thatcher is carried into St Paul's Cathedral, central London, at the start of the funeral service. (credit:PA)
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The safe hands of the Duchess of Cambridge with her son Prince George of Cambridge who was born yesterday, leaving the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in west London. (credit:PA)
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Prince Harry tries his hand at sign language in a class at the Kananelo Centre for the Deaf, in the Maseru district of Lesotho. (credit:PA)
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Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne outside 11 Downing Street before heading to the House of Commons to deliver his annual Budget statement. (credit:PA)
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Most Reverend Justin Welby after his was installed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury during his enthronement service at Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent. (credit:PA)
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First Minister Alex Salmond (centre) with Millar Callaghan Engineering employees (left to right) Lee Weir, Ross McKinnon, Bryan McNall and Steven Campbell during a visit to Millar Callaghan Engineering to announce an unprecedented investment of almost £90 million that will help young Scots into work and support small businesses. (credit:PA)
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Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, Prime Minister David Cameron and Labour Leader Ed Miliband during a reception to mark the inaugural Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, at Buckingham Palace, London. (credit:PA)
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Ronnie Biggs gestures to the waiting press at the funeral of Bruce Reynolds, the mastermind behind the Great Train Robbery of 1963 at St Bartholomew The Great Church in Smithfield, London. (credit:PA)
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The coffin of murdered Fusilier Lee Rigby being carried from Bury Parish church in Greater Manchester, following his funeral service. (credit:PA)
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The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall hosting a reception for the Elephant Family, a charity working to save the Asian Elephant from extinction in the wild. (credit:PA)
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German artist Katharina Fritsch unveiling her Fourth Plinth sculpture 'Hahn/Cock' in Trafalgar Square. (credit:PA)
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Chancellor George Osborne emerging from the lift after meeting miners during his visit to Thoresby Colliery, Nottinghamshire. (credit:PA)
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Team Sky's Chris Froome of Great Britain (centre) celebrates with team mates as he crosses the line to win the 2013 Tour de France in Paris, France. (credit:PA)