MUNICH, Germany, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - A chic glass building, all curvy lines, the new BMW exhibition centre opened its doors over the weekend to thousands curious to take in the German carmaker's ultimate marketing experience.

More than 40,000 visitors came to admire the latest models, learn about new technologies or simply stroll around the 15,000 square-metre (161,400 square-foot) 'BMW Welt' (World), built on the site of the carmaker's original factory founded in 1916.

BILBAO, Spain, Oct 19, 2007 (AFP) - Bilbao celebrated the 10th anniversary Friday of its futuristic Guggenheim Museum, which helped transform this industrial Basque city into a cultural capital, with the inauguration of a massive new work of art outside.

The 'Red Arches', a huge metal structure over La Salve bridge next to the titanium shingles and swooping form of the museum itself, was lit up in a night-time ceremony.

'It's a kind of door,' said French painter and sculpture Daniel Buren who designed it.

BILBAO, Spain, Oct 18, 2007 (AFP) - Bilbao will on Friday mark the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Guggenheim museum which helped transform this Basque city from a rusty industrial place in northern Spain into a buzzy cultural capital.

The Frank Gehry designed building, with its titanium shingles and swooping form, has drawn an average of one million visitors per year, far above the 250,000 to 500,000 expected by authorities when it opened in 1997.

LONDON, Oct 16, 2007 (AFP) - Irishwoman Anne Enright was awarded the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, one of the literary world's most prestigious awards, for her family epic "The Gathering" on Tuesday.

The 45-year-old beat favourites Ian McEwan, who won the award in 1998, and Lloyd Jones to the 50,000-pound (72,000-euro, 102,000-dollar) prize, awarded to the best work of fiction by an author from the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland.

LONDON, Oct 16, 2007 (AFP) - Anne Enright won the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, one of the literary world's most prestigious awards, for "The Gathering", the committee awarding the prize announced on Tuesday.

The 45-year-old Irishwoman beat favourites Ian McEwan, who won the prize in 1998, and Lloyd Jones for the 50,000-pound (102,000-dollar, 72,000-euro) prize awarded to the best work of fiction by an author from the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland.

MADRID, Oct 15, 2007 (AFP) - Spain's Prado museum launched a more detailed version of its Internet site Monday ahead of the opening at the end of the month of a long-awaited new annex which will extend floor space by half.

Available in 12 languages, www.museodelprado.es provides online access to a greater number of works that comprise the Madrid museum's vast collection as well as a search engine that eases consultation of its database.

MANDALAY, Myanmar, Oct 13, 2007 (AFP) - As one of Myanmar's most beloved comedy acts, the 'Moustache Brothers' have made a living by risking prison every night with their biting parodies of the ruling junta.

But their luck ran out two weeks ago when the military clamped down on anti-government protests that posed the biggest challenge to the regime in nearly two decades.

Security forces on September 25 swept into the ramshackle home where they perform in Mandalay and arrested Par Par Lay -- the most outspoken of the trio, also known as Moustache Brother Number One.

PARIS, Oct 7, 2007 (AFP) - France's culture minister called Sunday for tougher penalties for vandalism against works of art after drunken intruders seriously damaged a painting by Impressionist painter Claude Monet in Paris.

The damage was done overnight Saturday to Monet's painting "Le pont d'Argenteuil" (The bridge at Argenteuil), after a break-in at the Musee d'Orsay, on the Left Bank.

"We have to see how we can toughen the penalties when there are break-ins to museums, churches and monuments," said Culture Minister Christine Albanel after visiting the museum to inspect the damage.

STOCKHOLM, Oct 8, 2007 (AFP) - The 2007 Nobel prize season kicks off Monday with the announcement of the medicine prize and runs through October 15, with the fight against climate change tipped for the prestigious Peace Prize.

As is tradition, the Nobel prize committees are keeping mum ahead of the much-awaited announcements, leaving observers to engage in a wild guessing game.

PARIS, Oct 8, 2007 (AFP) - Paris city hall on Monday blamed slack security for an incident in which a drunken gang broke into the city's Musee d'Orsay and punched a hole in a painting by Impressionist artist Claude Monet.

'It appears a lapse in security, during the museum's closing hours, made this stupid act of vandalism possible,' Christophe Girard, deputy mayor for culture, said in a statement.