UK news in brief

Cambridge: Veterinary dentist Peter Fordyce was worried he had bitten off more than he could chew when he was asked to operate on a 66lb (30kg) puma.

Dr Fordyce, 51, who teaches at Cambridge University Vet School, normally operates on small pet cats.

Torbay: Torbay and the Isle of Wight lead the way when it comes to swimming in clean sea water, a survey of English beaches has found.

The coastal resort areas were each awarded 14 Blue Flags and Quality Coast Awards (QCAs) for 2010 by anti-litter campaign group Keep Britain Tidy.