A pensioner nearly died when his spleen ballooned to 12lb (5.5kg) - more than 30 times its usual size and began crushing his vital organs. The organ had grown to the size of a bowling ball by the ...

There are exacting specifications for competition balls, including size (to the hundredth of an inch), hardness, roughness, external markings and even coefficient of friction.

Jeff Scriven, 56, (pictured) was working from home in Clanfield, Hampshire, when a ball of ice the size of a bowling ball shattered his conservatory roof.