Neighbors not saluting 7-story 'flagpole' ... Auctioned car's GPS had royal address ... Woman recreates art with veggies ... No muskets for British town Christmas ... Watercooler stories from UPI.

WIMBORNE, England, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- The deputy mayor of Wimborne, England, said he has ended the town's 400-year-old tradition of firing muskets into the air to celebrate the coming of Christmas.

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- "Lost" and "Alias" mastermind J.J. Abrams has helped pen the script for a new $10 million U.S. television pilot for Fox, Variety.com reported Friday.

NEW YORK, Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Recently divorced model Christie Brinkley is focused on new beginnings through a wake-up call venture with U.S. Hyatt Hotels oriented toward empowering women.

EDINBURGH, Scotland, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Hundreds of people gathered inside and outside an Edinburgh cathedral to honor former British Foreign Minister Robin Cook.

LONDON, Aug. 7 (UPI) -- A former British Cabinet minister and critic of the Iraq war, Robin Cook, has died while taking a walk with his wife, the BBC reports.

INVERNESS, Scotland, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Former British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook died Saturday after collapsing while hiking in Scotland with his wife.

LONDON, June 1 (UPI) -- Prime Minister Tony Blair should step down after Britain's presidency of the European Union, former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook suggested Wednesday.

LONDON, May 11 (UPI) -- Liberal Democrat Leader Charles Kennedy Wednesday joined the chorus of politicians calling for British electoral reform.