Winners of the “X Factor” talent show might be topping the charts just now but come the New Year, a song with the unlikely subject of bank overdraft charges might just be knocking them off the perch.

It will be the second pop song inspired by the world of personal finance in four months.

First the trio of Sheilas from car insurer Sheila’s Wheels released a single: they teamed up with legendary producers Stock, Aitken and Waterman to record their debut single “(I’m So) Happy Happy (You’re Mine)” in September.

Now, the bank charges debacle has been documented in song. “I Fought the Lloyds and the Lloyds Lost“, sung to the tune of The Clash’s “I Fought the Law”, will be released on Jan. 7.

Oystar’s singer Dan penned the song after successfully claiming back 530 pounds in overdraft charges from Lloyds TSB. He sings: “It’s us against the banks, time to sign that petition/ And play this song outside your local branch till they listen/ Come on you bankers! Give us our cash/ Cos we won’t stop singing till we get it all back.”

The tune proved so popular on the MoneySavingExpert.com chat forum and weekly e-mail to subscribers that music producers offered to release it as a single. “Hurray - the biggest consumer revolution since the council tax riots has its own music,” says Web site founder Martin Lewis. “While it’s a fun, catchy tune, make no mistake; this is a good old-fashioned political protest song like the best of them. It’s about taking on the power of the big banks and winning.”

If it succeeds in its chart bid, it will enter on Sunday Jan. 13 — a day before the Office of Fair Trading’s test case on the issue is expected to start. The High Court case, expected to last eight to 10 days, involves seven major banks and one building society and aims to decide the principles of reclaiming bank charges — levied when consumers go into the red beyond their agreed overdraft or when a cheque bounces, for example.

It takes roughly 15,000 downloads to get into the top 10 and 30,000 to be a number one. And with more than 4.4 million bank charges reclaiming template letters having been downloaded in the last year, the protest song might just succeed in its bid for the top spot.

Calls have been made for the words of "God Save the Queen" to be changed because they are out of date and are non-inclusive, the man tasked with reviewing citizenship for the government has said.

Lord Goldsmith, the former Attorney General, said there were problems with some of the later verses, particularly references to "rebellious Scots".

The patriotic song, which may date back to the seventeenth century, became the national anthem at the start of the 19th century.

Most people can remember the first few lines, but others are less well known. They include:

O Lord our God arise, Scatter her enemies, And make them fall; Confound their politics, Frustrate their knavish tricks, On Thee our hopes we fix, God save us all!

 From every latent foe, From the assassin's blow, God save the Queen! O'er her thine arm extend, For Britain's sake defend, Our mother, prince, and friend, God save the Queen!

Lord grant that Marshal Wade May by thy mighty aid Victory bring. May he sedition hush, And like a torrent rush, Rebellious Scots to crush. God save the Queen.

The author was anonymous, but you can put your name to a new 21st century version.  

Send us a verse for modern times.

A Northern Irish man is convicted of racial harassment for calling a Welsh woman an English bitch.

There may not be much love lost between the various parts of the United Kingdom -- particularly where the English are concerned -- but the judgment of Welshpool magistrates appears to add a new dimension to the relationship.

The man, Mick Forsythe, used the insult against Lorna Steele after a minor traffic accident in Wales. He says the sentence is political correctness gone mad; she says she couldn't let him get away with what he said.

What do you think? Was racial harassment too heavy a charge to bring or was it justified?

A survey has shown most workers think the atmosphere in their offices resembles a graveyard. How many ghosts are there in your office?

Nearly two-thirds of those asked told Microsoft and The Work Foundation that the main thing they look for in a job is friendly colleagues.

Only 11 percent said their workplace provides a creative environment.

Are you one of the lucky few? Tell us about your office life.

Is Britain in danger of getting stuck in the broadband slow lane?

That’s the question that ministers and industry leaders will chew over at an Internet summit this week.

A survey earlier this year found that Britain has one of the slowest average broadband speeds in Europe.

Countries around the world are investing in superfast broadband networks.

Minister for Competitiveness Stephen Timms says that Britain will fall behind if it fails to upgrade its mainly copper wire network.

The summit will look at the option of building a new fibre optic network across Britain to carry super-fast broadband. One report estimates it would cost 15 billion pounds.

“We need to be discussing how we can put this new network into place, because delay could be a barrier to the future success of our economy,” Timms tells the BBC.

While broadband prices have fallen, chatrooms and blogs are full of complaints that advertised speeds are often exaggerated.

One frustrated customer paying 24.99 pounds a month for a 8Mbps connection contacted the Guardian’s technology expert Jack Schofield last week complaining that the service was “unbelievably slow”.

Schofield advised that “there is no real guarantee of the speed of service”. That’s a headache for anyone trying to play games online or watch films online.

And it could spell disaster for businesses who rely on fast connections.

While everyone agrees that faster broadband is a good thing, the debate over who will build and pay for it is likely to run and run.

What is the best way to get people off long-term incapacity benefit and back into work?

The number signed permanently off work has trebled since 1979 and cost the country 12.5 billion pounds a year.

Work and Pensions Secretary Peter Hain says there is work that many on sick benefit can do — such as desk jobs using computer keyboards.

The old disability assessment — which included trying to walk 400 metres unaided — will be scrapped next October in favour of a test to find out what kind of work claimants are fit for.

Hain says it’s not about punishing people but helping them.

But with 40 percent of claimants signed off for mental health problems such as depression and stress there are concerns some will suffer.

What should the government be doing? Send us your comments.

The culture shock certainly does startle you, writes Paul Majendie.

One moment you are wandering through darkened galleries
admiring exquisite jewellery that adorned the tomb of
Tutankhamun over 3,000 years ago in ancient Egypt.

Then it’s through the swing doors and out into the glaring
lights of the souvenir shop. Roll up, roll up to buy the
inflatable mini-mummy. Made in China. Blows up to 20 inches in
height.

Or at the other end of the scale for the Egyptologist who
has everything, why not try the Tutankhamun Tomb wine rack. It’s
a steal at 450 pounds.

For kids eager to relive the Pharaoh dream, there’s the
hieroglyphic stencil pencil or adorn your playroom with a King
Tut mini-bubble head. Living history. A real case of mummies in
motion.

Anyone wanting to look like the boy king who ascended the
throne at the age of nine can grab a Tut t-shirt and top it with
a Scarab baseball cap Egyptian-style.

And for playtime there is the mini-excavation kit complete
with hammer and chisel. Again it’s Made in China.

But for cynics who complain that mass-produced Pharaoh
baubles cheapen the majesty of the Tutankhamun exhibition, it’s
not all about the temple of capitalist mammon.

A slice of the profits goes towards restoring ancient
monuments in Egypt and building the first children’s museum
there.

But the venue may still jar with ardent Pharaoh fans.

However beautifully the exhibits are laid out at the
grandiose O2 stadium on the banks of the River Thames, it does
feel a bit like a corporate funfair being staged in the former
Millennium Dome.

The contrast could not be more stark than the setting
for Britain’s other big blockbuster of the year – China’s
Terracotta Army.

That exhibition is being staged in the historic reading room
at the British Museum, where in 1972 almost 1.7 million people
queued for up to eight hours to see London’s last Tutankhamun
exhibition.
   

How long should rapists be jailed?

The Conservatives are to review rape sentencing in the light of falling conviction rates and shortening sentences.

Conservative Leader David Cameron points to statistics showing Britain’s rape conviction rate is the lowest of any leading European country, at less than 6 percent of reported cases, down from nearly a third 30 years ago.

Even when there are convictions, sentences have been falling, down to an average of just under seven years.

Cameron says the length of sentence must be “proportionate to the crime”.

But how long should that be? Send us your comments.

Is the government going too far with its plans to clamp down on speeding?

It is considering plans to double the number of penalty points drivers can lose if they are caught speeding, to six from the usual three. With 12 points within three years adding up to a ban, that means just two flashes of the camera could be enough.

Already 4.5 million drivers have points on their licences for speeding and 21 percent of them are just one conviction away from a ban.

The government says slower speeds save lives and wants to make speeding as unacceptable as drinking and driving. Opponents of all the humps, cameras, chicanes and “slow down”smileys that we have to negotiate these days say education of drivers is the answer, not money-spinning enforcing devices.

What do you think?  

    Barely a day goes by now it seems without someone calling for the resignation of Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair over the botched police operation that led to the death of Jean Charles de Menezes.

    The country’s top policeman was in the dock at a meeting of the London Assembly on Wednesday as his opponents made full use of the chance to attack him in the glare of the massed TV crews and reporters.

    “Don’t you think you should resign?” Richard Barnes, the Conservative leader on the Assembly asked, or rather demanded.

    One Liberal Democrat member put it more politely. “I have no
doubt if you don’t go, you are going to be pushed and that’s
regrettable,” she told Blair, shortly before the authority
passed a symbolic but meaningless vote of no confidence in him.

    These are worrying times for London’s police chief as
politicians have a habit of going in for the kill when they see
their target is vulnerable, and the Conservative and Lib Dem
vultures who have called for his head can smell blood.

    For the time being at least, Blair can count on the support
of the government, which sees him as an ally over controversial
issues such as ID cards and extending pre-charge detention times
for terrorism suspects.

    He also insists he has the full backing of his officers and
senior management team. But regular leaks and private
conversations with those in the know at the Met suggest not
everyone is happy — something even Blair admits.

    With a staff of 53,000 people “it’s very unlikely there
won’t be some that aren’t concerned” he told the assembly.

    In the face of some hostile questioning at the assembly and
equally damning criticism from some newspapers, Blair remains
defiant.

    He can also point to his successful record in the job which
he believes is ultimately of far greater concern to Londoners.

    Crime has fallen by 13 percent since he took over the post
in early 2005, and 12 counter-terrorism plots had been foiled in
the last four years.

    “That work is absolutely fundamental and that’s what I have
to get on with,” he told the assembly members, sometimes barely
concealing his disdain for the political drama he has found
himself caught up in.

    At least he could count on one supporter.

    “Don’t let the politicians stop you,” shouted one old man
who had sat quietly watching Blair’s 90 minute grilling.

    For the first time since he had arrived in the Assembly
chamber, Blair smiled.