Girls get loud

London, Nov. 22 (Reuters): British pop group Girls Aloud blew Irish rockers U2 from the top of the UK singles charts yesterday with their cover of The Pretenders ballad I?ll Stand By You, the official UK Charts Company said.

The girl band got their second official number one with a single for the BBC?s annual fundraising drive Children in Need. Last week?s number one Vertigo dropped from its dizzy heights to number seven. More girls at number two with supergroup Destiny?s Child holding onto their place for a third week with Lose My Breath, the only top five remainder from the previous chart.

Lemar, his Time to Grow album due on the streets on November 29, came in at three with If There?s Any Justice?.

Stefani, making her first appearance in the UK top 40 as a soloist rather than fronting No Doubt, took fourth with What You Waiting For, topping McFly?s ode to hotel life, Room on the 3rd Floor.

Super slam

Lubia, Spain (Reuters): Bashing the boss, crushing computers and mashing mobile phones are some of the fun new stress-relief techniques offered at a Spanish junkyard. For 40 euros ($52) frazzled Spaniards can take out their frustrations on modern life?s most pernicious irritants like cars, computers, phones and photos of the boss. A scrapyard in the village of Lubia, 160 kms northeast of Madrid, provides sledgehammers, helmets, overalls, goggles and head-banging heavy metal music for ?damage therapy? sessions organised by a group called StopStress. ?Some people even bring photos of their bosses and put them on top of the cars before they start hitting them with their hammers,? StopStress co-founder Jorge Arribas said. Customers can spend up to two hours attacking appliances with sledgehammers.

Diner drag

Sydney (Reuters): Bemused diners watched as three hapless thieves unsuccessfully tried to kick open a sliding door in a botched attempt to rob an Australian seafood restaurant. The men, wearing balaclavas, ran off empty-handed but left their bootprints on the glass door in a robbery bid that Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio said could have been mistaken as ?a rehearsal for a comedy?. About 20 diners watched as the men tried to push open the door of the restaurant in the coastal village of Gerringong, 140 km south of Sydney, and then began kicking the glass.