With his critically-acclaimed play Invincible being translated into several languages and his recent adaptation of the iconic film Get Carter garnering great reviews, playwright Torben Betts is at "a really good moment" of his career.

But for all his recent success, Betts says "you are only as good as your last play", which means all eyes are on The National Joke, a "tragi-comic" tale of an MP's "very dysfunctional family who come together on the south coast of England to view a total solar eclipse".
Betts says the idea for the play came to him while reading a book about eclipses.
"I was reading Totality, which is about total eclipses and had all the myths that have sprung up around them and what they meant to people in cultures before we understood the science.
"You are often looking for a reason to trap a group of individuals together or have them gathering together.
"So as I was reading it, I thought this would be an interesting way to frame a play."
And he says that while it tells the story of a Tory MP on the periphery of the party, he is "not promoting a left or right-wing view".
"A lot of my recent plays have been explorations of the left-wing and I thought I'd have a look at the other side.
"But it looks at the fact that there's no point having these values and identifying yourself with a position when you are unable to love each other properly.
"That's what the play looks at. There's a definite lack of nurture and love in it."
Ultimately though, he says the work, like "most of my plays - or even most plays full stop", is about the "symptoms of human madness".
"Most of us are slightly mad. The human mind is a dysfunctional entity in many ways and the system we're forced into can make us mad and make us unable to live in the present moment and love each other properly.
"I'm trying to demonstrate this is what we're like and there is a way to make ourselves slightly more sane. I'm trying to lay it bare and show what is going on.
"Maybe there is something beyond personalities sticking to fixed political positions, which is where the eclipse comes in - there's this huge natural event which dwarfs all these petty squabbles that the family have and makes them put things into context.
"It's an examination of where we are at the moment."
Associate artistic director Henry Bell, who is helming the production of The National Joke at Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre, says when he read the play, he "found it really funny".
"I was taken on a comic journey with it, which then becomes a more intense experience,," he says.
"It wasn't until I finished that I went 'ah, this is actually a state of the nation play' - that wasn't running through my head when I was reading it.
"That was a good sign, because if you can see what the playwright is trying to do, that's usually a sign that it's a preachy play or an ego piece."
He says he thought about bringing Betts's new work to his stage because of the playwright's history with the theatre, which he admits he used as a "carrot to dangle in front of him and say 'it's been a while and you're grown - come back to what you know'".
Betts became the theatre's writer-in-residence in 1999 at the invitation of then-artistic director Sir Alan Ayckbourn and says it is "nice to be back", though he finds the comparisons of their work "a bit trying".
"Even when I'm being praised, it's always because Alan mentored me in the correct fashion, which is slightly galling because he was just the artistic director of the theatre that put my play on.
"I'm 50 in a couple of years and in reviews, I'm still the protegee. But there can't be that many reviews that haven't mentioned him.
"My plays are very different to his. Some of them do cover similar landscapes - middle-class dysfunction with laughs and a bit of tragedy - but they are angrier and darker."
Bell says  the comparison "reduces how prolific Alan's been as a writer and it does the same to Torben".
"There's crucial differences - Torben's much more interested in the actual specific political landscape of this country, whereas I think Alan tends to be more universal in how he presents things.
"If you see this play, you won't think that it's an Alan Ayckbourn play. But the one thing I will say they have in common is that they have an ability to make the dark seem comic.
"Alan's a master at that and Torben has that in his plays too."
Betts admits when he's in Scarborough, "there's no avoiding it, so I just go with it".
As far as he's concerned though, he has more important things to consider, like writing his next work.
He says the burden of success "doesn't weigh on my shoulders", though admits "you always put a pressure on yourself to make your stuff as good as it can be".
"I've been trundling along with maybe a production a year, but the last couple of years, it's got a lot busier," he says.
"The nice thing is that the more exposure and the more success you get, the more chance you've got of getting something else on."
The National Joke is at Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre until 20 August.


The Ministry of Defence has ruled out a Scottish site as a possible location to store waste from nuclear submarines.

Chapelcross near Annan was on a shortlist of five potential locations.
Capenhurst in Cheshire has been selected to store the nuclear components, with Aldermaston in Berkshire as a "fall back" option.
The Scottish site was ruled out along with Sellafield in West Cumbria and Burghfield in Berkshire following public consultation.
Chapelcross was home to Scotland's first commercial nuclear station, which was built on old airfield in Dumfriesshire. The site ceased generation in 2004.
The nuclear components are from 18 redundant submarines and nine still in service.
The redundant Royal Navy submarines are currently stored afloat at Devonport in Plymouth and Rosyth in Fife, but cannot be dismantled until the reactor components have been removed.
The radioactive parts will be stored until after 2040, when the UK's Geological Disposal Facility, for the permanent disposal of spent fuel and nuclear waste, is planned to come into operation.
Defence Minister Philip Dunne said: "When submarines in the Royal Navy fleet reach the end of their lives, we need to dispose of them in a way that is safe, secure and environmentally sound.
"We have worked closely with the local communities around potential sites to listen carefully to their views, and the opinions and feedback we received has played an important part in formulating our final decision.
"With Capenhurst as our recommended site, we know that the radioactive waste from our decommissioned submarines will be dealt with properly and responsibly."


Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned as "treason" a call by prominent Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas for Kurdish autonomy.

"What the co-leader has done is treason, provocation," Mr Erdogan said, referring to Mr Demirtas, co-leader of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP).
At the weekend the HDP and other pro-Kurdish groups called for self-rule in Turkey's mainly Kurdish south-east.
Turkish prosecutors have launched an investigation into those comments.
The Turkish military has stepped up operations against the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is fighting for Kurdish self-rule. The army says it has killed more than 200 PKK militants in the latest fighting.
The PKK is regarded as a "terrorist" organisation by Turkey, the US and EU.
The HDP won 59 seats in Turkey's 550-seat parliament in the 1 November elections. It came third, behind Mr Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Republican People's Party (CHP).
Speaking on Tuesday, Mr Erdogan said Mr Demirtas and other Kurdish leaders would be "taught a lesson" by the people and the law.
He accused Mr Demirtas of challenging Article 14 of the constitution, which bans activities deemed to "violate the indivisible integrity of the state".
On Sunday Mr Demirtas backed a declaration by a Kurdish umbrella group - the Democratic Society Congress (DTK) - which called for "autonomous regions" and "self-governance bodies".
After 30 years of fighting between Turkish security forces and PKK militants, there has been little progress on the Kurdish issue.
The AKP has taken some steps towards improving the cultural rights of the Kurds, including on the official use of the Kurdish language, during its 13-year rule. But many of the Kurds' demands, such as the right to an education in Kurdish, have not been met.
Self-rule has been discussed for decades. The idea is now being promoted by a legitimate political party, the HDP, and the umbrella organisation DTK.
But with the recent upsurge in fighting in Turkey's mainly Kurdish south-east - with government-imposed curfews and Kurdish militias fighting in the streets - there is little room to talk about rights.
The declaration, issued in the mainly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir, said the "rightful resistance" of Kurds against Turkish state policies "is essentially a demand and struggle for local self-governance and local democracy".
It called for the "formation of autonomous regions, to involve several neighbouring provinces in consideration of cultural, economic and geographic affinities".
The PKK has been battling the Turkish military for three decades, in a separatist conflict that has killed more than 40,000 people.


A woman was assaulted and had money stolen from her by a man in an attack in the Dalneigh area of Inverness last week, police have said.

The incident happened near a church between 17:00 and 18:00 on Wednesday 29 March.
The 30-year-old woman was taken to hospital for treatment to what police described as a minor injury.
Police Scotland said they want to trace a man who is in his 40s, about 5ft 5in tall and of a slim build.
He was described as having short dark hair and was wearing a light grey top.
The woman, who was wearing a red jacket and dark jeans, had a two-figure sum of money taken from her.
Det Con Sophia Ross, of Police Scotland, said: "We understand that there would have been people in the area at the time who would have witnessed the incident.
"I would therefore ask if anyone remembers seeing an incident in the area last Wednesday, involving a female as described, to contact us with any information they have."


Boreham Wood have signed right-back Kane Smith on a two-year deal on a free transfer from Hitchin Town.

Smith scored 11 goals and provided 30 assists in 120 games over two seasons for the Southern Premier League side.
The 21-year-old former Luton Town youngster has previously had trials at Premier League side Crystal Palace and as well as Football League clubs.
"I think that I can bring a lot of pace and excitement to the club," he told the National League club's website.


Several thousand people have rallied in the centre of the Ukrainian capital in the first anti-government protest of the new year.

Ex-heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko encouraged the crowd to continue occupying Kiev's Independence Square.
The protesters oppose President Viktor Yanukovych's policy of strengthening ties with Russia rather than the EU.
They began a series of rallies in November calling for his resignation.
The protests, and occupation of the square by activists, were sparked by Mr Yanukovych's decision to abandon plans to sign an association agreement with the European Union.
Instead, Ukraine struck a deal with Russia in December, which has seen big cuts in the price of gas imports from Russia.
Moscow also supported Ukraine's finances with a $15bn purchase of government bonds.
Some 10,000 people are estimated to have gathered for this latest rally - considerably fewer than the peak of the campaign in December which saw crowds estimated at 200,000.
Many protesters have stayed camped out in Independence Square since the opposition campaign began.
There have been occasional outbreaks of violence as police tried unsuccessfully to clear the square using tear gas.
"The authorities are pretending they cannot hear us. I know it's hard for us, but we have enough strength to win," Mr Klitschko told the crowd.
He called for renewed demonstrations after the Orthodox Christmas holidays on Monday and Tuesday and warned of a general strike.
The last major opposition protest at the end of December was given further impetus by an attack on activist and journalist Tetyana Chornovol, who was severely beaten up on Christmas Day.
She had accused Mr Yanukovych of corruption over his financing of his official residence outside Kiev.
Mr Yanukovych denied any allegation of corruption and called for an investigation into the attack on Ms Chornovol.


A man was left with head and back injuries after being seriously assaulted in the east end of Glasgow.

The 33-year-old man was attacked on Westmuir Street, near Parkhead Cross, at about 19:20 on Wednesday.
He was approached then assaulted by two men, which left him with laceration injuries. He was taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary for treatment.
Police said the suspects ran off in the direction of Crail Street following the attack.
One of the men was white, aged 30 to 40, about 5ft 6in tall and had a dark beard. He was wearing a dark fleece jacket, dark jeans and navy boots.
Police said there was currently no information on the second man.
Det Con Eilidh Marshall said: "This is normally a busy area with people and traffic, so I'm sure there were people around at the time of the incident.
"A young man has been attacked for no apparent reason and we need to find out why this happened.
"I am appealing to anyone who was in the area around the time of the attack to contact us with any information which could assist in progressing our inquiries."


Manchester United has reported that overall quarterly revenues to 30 September went up 39.3% to £123.6m.

The record revenues were boosted by sales of its new 2015-16 Adidas replica kit, and Champions League football.
The club expects overall revenue for the year to be between £500m and £510m. No club has exceeded £500m before.
The team are fourth in the Premier League, two points behind rivals Man City, and also top their Champions League group table after four games.
The Old Trafford club failed to qualify for Europe's premier club competition last season but its return to Champions League competition has seen a big leap in matchday and broadcast revenues.
In July 2014 it signed a record-breaking deal with Adidas, worth £750m over 10 seasons.
Club executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward said the revenues demonstrated "the continued strength of our businesses".
During the quarter, the club also brought the management of its Old Trafford Megastore in-house and signed a licensing deal with South Korean footwear brand Sbenu.
In total, four sponsorship deals were signed in the quarter, including a global deal with Marathon Bet.
Mr Woodward added: "During the quarter, we entered into an agreement with HCL to be our Digital Transformation partner, which will enable us to connect with our fans around the world in innovative ways and further strengthen and grow our commercial revenues."
Profit for the period was £5m, down 43.8% from the £8.9m figure a year previously.
The drop in profit was partly caused by a loss on player trading of £7.4m.  There was a negative impact from the sales of players Angel Di Maria, Robin van Persie and Nani, which was partly offset by the profit made on the sale of Javier Hernandez.
That compared with a profit of £18.3m a year before - that sum being largely due to the sale of Danny Welbeck to Arsenal for £18m.
The EBITDA figure, which indicates the underlying profitability of a company, was up more than 100% to £41.6m.
The club also confirmed it had approved a quarterly cash dividend shareholders of $0.045 per share, a move which will see the six Glazer children, who own the club and about four-fifths of the club's shares, paid millions of dollars in dividends annually.
Despite their strong start to the season, there have been complaints from some fans and former players that the club's current possession football is less exciting in comparison with the more attacking sides of the past.


CCTV footage of a man being stabbed in what police have called a "frenzied and unprovoked" attack in east London has been released.

The victim, aged 50, was stabbed 10 times in Barking and spent weeks in hospital recovering from his injuries.
The suspect is described as aged between 20 and 30, wearing a dark hooded top with the hood up, light-coloured trousers and light trainers.
No-one has been arrested in connection with the attack, said police.
The Metropolitan police said they hoped issuing the footage of the incident may encourage anyone with information to come forward.
The victim was attacked from behind while walking home from a social club on 28 October on Pelham Avenue at around 21:45 GMT.
The suspect then ran off along Sterry Road towards Denham Way.
The victim staggered a short distance before collapsing where he was discovered by his wife.
Police were called and the first officers on the scene administered first aid before the London Ambulance Service arrived.
The victim was taken to the Royal London Hospital in a critical condition where he spent two days in a coma.
Det Con Roxanne Dawe, from Barking and Dagenham CID, said: "This was an incredibly violent attack on a married father-of-two who was just walking home after a night out as he did every Friday.
"He had not had an argument or a dispute with anyone that night and we can find no motive at all for what happened. Nothing was stolen from him.
"We hope the release of CCTV footage showing what happened will prompt someone to come forward with information."
She added the victim "very nearly lost his life" and that the attack was being treated as attempted murder.


Crowds have been gathering to see the world's largest cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, at the port of Southampton.

18 May 2016 Last updated at 16:15 BST
The ship boasts an impressive 23 swimming pools, over 10,000 plants and a 10-storey high water slide. It's even staffed by robots!
The gigantic floating town has earned the title of world's largest cruise ship.
It's taken 32 months to build, and it will set off on its first cruise at the end of May.
Watch the video to take a look at some record-smashing giant vehicles from around the world...


Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino says Dele Alli "has a lot to learn" after the England international appeared to kick an opponent during Thursday's 1-1 Europa League draw at Fiorentina.

Alli, 19, was booked for a foul on Nenad Tomovic and caught the defender with a boot when he was on the ground.
Pochettino said he did not see the incident at the time, but planned to talk to the midfielder after he had watched a replay.
"We need to try to teach him," he said.
"He is a young player and he has a lot to learn about elite football."
Alli moved to Tottenham from MK Dons last year after making 62 appearances at League One level.
"It is his first season in the Premier League at Tottenham," added Pochettino.
"He came from League One, he needs to learn a lot. But I didn't see it. Some people say 'yes', say 'no', so I don't know."
Pochettino said before Thursday's last-32 first-leg tie that Tottenham are capable of challenging for success both at home and in Europe this season.
Spurs are second in the Premier League, two points behind Leicester, and are also still in the FA Cup. They face Crystal Palace in round five on Sunday.
Pochettino made six changes for the Fiorentina game, with the visitors taking the lead through Nacer Chadli's penalty before Federico Bernardeschi equalised.
It means Tottenham head into the second leg at White Hart Lane on 25 February with an away goal, and Pochettino said: "We have a strong squad to try to fight for every competition, we need to use all of the squad.
"It is not important to talk about using the squad. It is important how we compete, we have big motivation."


Leicester beat Watford to move five points clear at the top of the table as Riyad Mahrez scored his 15th Premier League goal of the season.

After second-placed Tottenham drew with third-placed Arsenal, the Foxes took a step closer to English football's most unlikely title win.
Mahrez almost set up Jamie Vardy for an early goal as the Foxes started well.
And a similar start to the second half saw the Algerian rifle high into the net after Jose Holebas cleared to him.
The 25-year-old, who has scored or assisted 26 goals this season, worried Leicester after he seemingly pulled his hamstring late in the game and was substituted but Mahrez later said it was only cramp.
Despite good chances for Watford strikers Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo, the visitors, who flirted with relegation last season, held on and now have nine games between them and a historic first title triumph.
The victory also takes them 11 points clear of fifth-placed West Ham as the Foxes close on a Champions League spot and they are 41 points better off than they were at the same stage last season.
Relive Leicester's crucial victory over Watford
Each week the character and quality of Claudio Ranieri's side is further tested as the pressure is ramped up on the team with the least title-chasing experience.
But since the Foxes drew with West Brom on Tuesday, they have seen rivals Tottenham and Arsenal both beaten, before the two north London sides drew in a fiercely contested derby earlier on Saturday.
Watford did not offer the toughest opposition for the visiting team, but an opportunity to eke out a five-point gap presented its own examination.
And they passed it once again thanks to a solid defensive display, energy from the returning N'Golo Kante, and the skill and accuracy of Mahrez, who proved the difference.
The winger was still able to walk off the pitch after picking up his injury, but any problems for Leicester's star player could yet derail their challenge.
The Hornets suffered a second consecutive 1-0 defeat after their midweek loss at Manchester United, but while they were unlucky not to earn a draw at Old Trafford, here their ambitions were quickly snuffed out by the league leaders.
Foxes centre-back Wes Morgan had a running battle with Ighalo, who missed a close-range header late on, with Nordin Amrabat and Jose Holebas both having shots saved by Kasper Schmeichel.
Nathan Ake also clipped the top of the crossbar with a header but the hosts rarely threatened the Leicester goal.
Ake only moved into central defence after a late injury to Miguel Britos but it looked a stroke of good fortune as his pace twice got Watford out of trouble early on.
Quique Sanchez Flores' team have now failed to score in five of their past six Premier League games and Ighalo has scored only once in 2016.
Promoted last season, they still need one more win to reach the 40-point total that is the usual benchmark for Premier League safety.
Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri: "It was an important win, a big battle. Now there will be only battles for everybody not just for us. A tough match. We created four or five chances, they created two or three. We are so happy now.
"The title is not ours. We have to fight a lot, step by step and keep our feet on the ground. At the end we can see what happens. I'm sorry, we know every team can win or lose so it has to be slowly slowly."
On Riyad Mahrez hamstring: "No injury, he was tired and had a little cramp so I changed him in the late minutes. His goal was so important."
Media playback is not supported on this device
Watford manager Quique Sanchez Flores: "It was very difficult, they defended very well, lots of intensity through the middle. We created some attempts, we make one mistake and when they score first it is very difficult."
On his strikers' goal drought: "Of course. We have problems to score in the last matches. For me it will be interesting not to look at the strikers in this case, it's important to get goals from the other lines, I don't want to put pressure on the strikers."
Leicester now have a nine-day break until they host Premier League strugglers Newcastle at home, while Watford face either Arsenal or Hull in the FA Cup quarter-finals next weekend before hosting Stoke in the league the following weekend.


New Bath forward David Denton says he is mentally and physically ready to make his first start for the club.

The 25-year-old Scotland international joined from Edinburgh in November and, after two appearances from the bench, he will start against Wasps on Sunday.
"It's been a whirlwind of a month for me. It all happened so quickly," Denton told BBC Radio Bristol.
"I appreciate the time the coaches have given me to get ready. I feel like I'm ready to give it a good shot."
Bath face Wasps at the Ricoh Arena in the European Champions Cup and Denton feels he can help the club improve their inconsistent form this season.
Last season's Premiership finalists have suffered back-to-back defeats in their domestic league.
"I feel I've got something to add to this team," he said. "The way I play is a very direct style of rugby and I think I can get this world-class backline on the front foot.
"I'm looking forward to getting a start and imposing myself on the game.
"We want to get back to winning ways, we need to be winning these big games to be winning big competitions and I'm looking forward to the game."
Having lost to Wasps earlier in the season, Denton also says the squad are looking forward to setting the record straight.
"It's a tough game," he said. "It's a place where they don't lose often but we are going to take the game to them.
"If we play to our full potential - I've seen hints of it in training - we are going to be a very difficult team to stop."


Former Doctor Who companion Karen Gillan has said an actress succeeding Peter Capaldi in the lead role of the long-running TV series "would be cool".

Scottish actor Capaldi is appearing in his final series as the Doctor.
He has said whoever replaces him - whether a man or woman - will be "wonderful".
Inverness-born Gillan, who played Amy Pond alongside Matt Smith's Doctor, said she would respect whatever decision was made on the role.
A man has been chosen as Capaldi's successor, according to newspaper reports.
Speaking at the Los Angeles premiere of her latest film, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2, Gillan said: "It's OK, maybe next time.
"I trust the BBC and their choices and they haven't failed us yet with the Doctor.
"But it would be cool to see a woman in the role one day because a woman could absolutely play that role."
The BBC said no casting decisions have been made.
In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, Gillan plays blue-skinned space pirate Nebula.


Wigan Warriors full-back Lewis Tierney has signed a new three-year deal with the Super League side until 2019.

The 21-year-old, who has also played on the wing, has progressed through Wigan's youth system.
Tierney is the son of former England dual-code international Jason Robinson, who also played for the Warriors.
"It is a huge achievement for me to agree this contract extension and I'm very happy to be staying at my hometown club," said Tierney.
His new deal also includes the option of a further year.
"Lewis is a good young Wigan kid who knows what it means to play for this great club," added head coach Shaun Wane.
"He has improved a greatly in the last few years and it excites me that there is still a lot more improvement to come."


A diabetic MP who asked Coca-Cola not to take its Christmas truck to Leicester has been accused of hypocrisy for opening a sweet shop in the city.

Labour MP Keith Vaz said Coca-Cola was marketing a "real health hazard".
But Conservative city councillor Ross Grant told the Leicester Mercury that opening the sweet shop in 2013 "put him into the hypocrite category".
Keith Vaz has not responded, but previously said he opposed the way Coke is promoted, rather than the product.
"What we want to do is to make sure Coca-Cola indulges in a proper debate and has a proper engagement with health campaigners, such as Members of Parliament who are part of the All Party Diabetes Group, to make sure that they are much more responsible in the way in which they promote and sell their products," said the Leicester MP.
Public Health England also has concerns about the marketing of Coca-Cola.
Its chief nutritionist, Dr Alison Tedstone, said: "The evidence shows that this type of advertising increases children's preference for and consumption of sugary drinks, which are linked to tooth decay and too many calories leading to obesity.
"Worryingly, children and teenagers are having three times more sugar than the maximum recommended amount and the biggest source is sugary drinks."
Public Health England said evidence showed that restrictions on marketing, advertising and promotion of high-sugar products are likely to be more effective than adding a tax to sugary drinks, along with reducing the added sugar in processed foods and drinks.
Dr Tedstone said: "There is no place for sugary drinks in a child's daily diet - lower fat milks and water are ideal but swapping to no added sugar, diet and sugar free alternatives is fine."
35g
sugar in a 330ml can of Coca-Cola
53g
sugar in a 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola
19g advised maximum sugar intake per day for children aged 4 to 6
24g maximum daily sugar intake for children aged 7 to 10
30g maximum sugar intake for adults and children over 11
Coca-Cola Great Britain said its Christmas truck would offer two sugar-free variants.
"We're delighted to be visiting Leicester this year as part of the Coca-Cola Christmas truck tour," it said in a statement.
"Our Christmas truck tour also operates in line with our responsible marketing policy so we don't sample our drinks directly to under-12s."
Mr Vaz was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes 13 years ago at a health awareness event in his constituency.


David Cameron has - to put it mildly - never been a big fan of Brussels.

But his whirlwind trip to Belgium was born of necessity. He needs cooperation and support from the European institutions if his renegotiation is to succeed.
European Parliament President Martin Schulz promised a constructive approach if Britain were to vote to remain in the EU. But parts of the proposed UK deal need changes to be made to EU legislation - including regulations on welfare payments and social security.
Downing Street said senior lawmakers promised to act as swiftly as possible. But Mr Schulz said no parliament could guarantee in advance what the outcome would be.
"This is not possible in a democracy," he said.
Fair enough, but that will allow David Cameron's opponents to chip away at the idea that this proposed deal is set in stone. It is an argument that will recur throughout the referendum campaign.
And it is by no means the only potential obstacle that has been highlighted over the past couple of days. The deal itself is still to be done.
Four eastern European countries - Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic (known as the V4) - are demanding that reductions in child benefit payments only apply to new applicants, not to their citizens who are already in the UK.
Prime Minister Cameron has already had to back away from what he has called for in the past - an outright abolition of all child benefit for foreign nationals with children living abroad. Now he is being asked to give even more.
On a visit to the Czech Republic, the European Council President Donald Tusk, said there was still a lot of talking to do.
"The position of the V4 is very clear," he said. "In view of that I have no doubts: There is an extra mile we will have to walk to reach an agreement."
Then of course there are still unresolved issues with France and others over language in the proposed deal that sets out the relationship between countries that use the euro and those that don't.
Much of it involves quite technical but extremely important financial detail.
One clear positive for David Cameron is that no-one wants these negotiations to drag on, and a deal still seems the most likely outcome of this week's EU summit.
But the prime minister is already under attack from critics who say he hasn't achieved enough. So any sense that his proposed deal could be watered down still further could be difficult for him to accept.
'Audacious demand': UK's wish list seriously taken by EU leaders
Guide: All you need to know about the referendum
Referendum timeline: What will happen when?
Q&A: What does Britain want from Europe?
More: BBC News EU referendum special


Police have returned to the scene of an attempted bomb attack on a police officer in Eglinton, near Londonderry, to appeal for information.

A bomb was found under a PSNI officer's car at Glenrandel on 18 June.
On Wednesday night, officers mounted checkpoints at various parts of the village and spoke to motorists and residents.
Leaflets with "detailed appeal points" were handed out to anyone who spoke to police.
The officer leading the investigation, Det Ch Insp Gareth Talbot, said: "It is surprising just how many people were out and about in the early hours of Thursday, 18 June in Eglinton.
"We want to make sure we have spoken to each and every one of them to ensure every possible piece of information has been fed into our investigation.
"This was an attempt to kill a police officer and his family. It also posed a risk to other residents and caused considerable disruption and upset to the local community."
He said police want to speak to anyone who saw individuals or vehicles in the Glenrandel area of Eglinton between midnight and 03:00 BST on Thursday 18 June.
"We are also interested in hearing from anyone who noticed anything unusual or suspicious in Glenrandel in the two weeks before 18 June," he added.
"Our inquiries are continuing. Five arrests have been made, vehicles seized and properties searched in various parts of Northern Ireland and in the Republic.
"We have conducted a trawl of CCTV and are continuing to liaise with colleagues in An Garda SÃochÃ¡na [Irish police]."
The wife of the officer targeted is also a member of the PSNI.
A neighbour of the police officers said that the policewoman disturbed someone outside her house by knocking the window.
All five people arrested over the attack have since been released without charge.


Jane Horrocks' If You Kiss Me, Kiss Me has been described as "part gig, part dance piece" - but it appears critics are not quite sure what to make of it, giving mixed reviews.

The Young Vic show sees Horrocks perform the music of bands including The Smiths and The Fall, accompanied by dancers and a live band.
The Independent says it is "a personal project that never feels personal".
And Lyn Gardner in the Guardian said it "springs few surprises".
Horrocks takes to the stage - dominated by an enormous plug socket - in a boilersuit and unlaced boots, later changing into leggings and a T-shirt.
She speaks very little in the hour-long piece, instead letting the music and dancing do the talking.
Horrocks, who previously showed off her singing talent in Little Voice, told the BBC she wanted to bring music from her past to the show.
"Most of the songs are from northern, male bands in the late 1970s and early 80s," said the Absolutely Fabulous star.
"Some of them are very loyal, but most are reinvented. They've got a bit more of a contemporary edge to them."
But Gardner in The Guardian said she longed "for more variety, for something less emotionally remote" in the work.
"There is no Desert Island Discs-style explaining of the significance of the songs Horrocks has chosen to cover," she noted. "Instead, If You Kiss Me, Kiss Me - which takes its title from an unperformed Marc Almond song - occupies the shadowy territory between a fully fledged theatre show and a gig."
Zoe Anderson, in the Independent, complained that "it's all very glossy, cleaned of sweat and guitar feedback" and gave two stars - while Gardner gave it three, later admitting on Twitter her rating had been "too generous".
"Whether deconstructing love songs, or actually singing them, Horrocks is sophisticated and remote," Anderson wrote. "These songs weren't part of my adolescence, but If You Kiss Me, Kiss Me doesn't show me why they were so important to hers."
The Telegraph gave it four stars, with dance critic Mark Monahan noting "this is a show she's probably been wanting to put on ever since she was about 13".
He added that it is "one of the crispest and kookiest hours of entertainment you're likely to encounter all year, and oddly elating in the way that only expertly delivered tragedy can be".
Mark Trueman, in What's on Stage, said the show is "several things at once". He admitted not being part of the target audience, but added: "The songs don't sit right in her mouth."
"The whole thing feels like an extended music video - slick, easy on the eye, pretty vapid," he said. "There's a thump to the music, but I should have come out wanting to set up a playlist and I just didn't."
The Stage review, by Natasha Tripney, also admitted she was not moved by the piece, writing: "This is not my music. I suspect it might make a considerable difference if it were."
She gave three stars, as Trueman did, and said: "The show is, says Horrocks, an archaeological exercise, but it's one performed with gloves on.
"The whole production feels a little bit too clean; your lungs stay pink and smoke-free throughout, the soles of your shoes un-sticky, your hair remains free of dubious fluids."


Bollywood celebrities have been congratulating top filmmaker Karan Johar on becoming a father.

Johar, who is believed to be gay, announced the birth of his twins through a surrogate on Sunday.
The director said in a statement that it was an "emotional but "well thought-out" decision.
Homosexuality is illegal in India, and individuals becoming parents through surrogacy, although legal, is not very common.
Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's son Abram was also born through surrogacy in 2013.
Top stars, including Alia Bhatt and Priyanka Chopra, were among the first to congratulate the director.
Many people have also congratulated Johar for taking the "bold decision" to become a single parent.
Johar has never spoken publicly about being gay, but he recently wrote in his autobiography that everybody knew "what his sexual orientation was, and he didn't need to scream it out".
"The reason I don't say it out aloud is simply that I don't want to be dealing with the FIRs [first information reports, or police complaints]. I'm very sorry. I have a job, I have a commitment to my company, to my people who work for me; there are over a hundred people that I'm answerable to," he wrote.
Commercial surrogacy, including for single parents, is currently legal, but a draft bill plans to limit it to childless couples who have been married for at least five years.


A protected bird of prey found shot in a field was killed in a "shocking act of cruelty", police have said.

The red kite was discovered injured by a walker on farmland around Nidd, near Harrogate, on Saturday.
North Yorkshire Police said it had been shot multiple times while it was flying and had to be put down by a vet because "its wing was so severely damaged".
It is the second rare bird to have been shot in the county within the last month.
An adult female red kite was found injured at Low Marishes, near Malton, on 25 March and was treated at a rescue centre.
Red kites are protected under schedule 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and anyone found killing one can face up to six months in jail.
Officers said the rare bird had survived the shooting but was unable to fly. It was found by the walker two days after it had been shot in the chest and underside of its wing.
PC Gareth Jones said: "Red kites are majestic birds that mainly feed on carrion and pose no threat to game birds, farmed animals or pets. It has taken many years to re-introduce red kites after their extinction from the UK by persecution.
"People in Harrogate have become used to seeing red kites soaring above the town and will be shocked by this meaningless and cruel act.
"I would ask members of the public who were in the areas of Nidd, Brearton and Scotton on Thursday or Friday last week to contact North Yorkshire Police if they have any information that could assist the investigation."
There are about 1,000 red kites in England.


A change in housing benefit rules, introduced in April 2013, has been dubbed the "bedroom tax" by Labour and, for many, the name has stuck.

Strictly speaking, though, it is not a tax at all.
The government says it is simply removing the "spare room subsidy" which put social sector tenants in a better position than those in the private rental sector.
Ministers argue the changes will encourage people to downsize to smaller properties, and in doing so,  help cut the £23bn annual bill for housing benefit, free up living space for overcrowded families, and encourage people to get jobs.
But housing charities have warned that the result will be higher levels of rent arrears and greater homelessness.
The government estimates that over half a million tenants are affected by the new rules, which took effect in April this year.
More than half of those affected have a disability causing them "significant difficulty in one or more areas of the individual's life", the Department for Work and Pensions has said.
The government predicts that savings to the taxpayer will amount to £505m in 2013-14, and £540m in the year after.
What has changed?
The new rules affect housing benefit, which is paid to less well-off tenants to help with rent. Typically claimants receive between £50 and £100 a week.
But since April 2013 families deemed to have too much living space by their local authorities receive a reduced payment.  Under the government's so-called "size criteria", families are assessed for the number of bedrooms they actually need.
Who is affected?
This change affects council tenants, and those who rent from housing associations, who are housing benefit claimants. It does not affect private sector tenants who are already subject to certain rules.
The government estimates that 660,000 households will have their benefit cut, roughly a third of social sector claimants. Only those of working age will see reduced payments.
But there are some other exemptions too.
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said the 5,000 approved foster carers in the UK would continue to receive rent payments towards an "additional room" as long as they have fostered a child or become an approved foster carer in the previous 12 months.
And families with adult children serving in the armed forces will also be exempt from the changes, even when they are on overseas deployment. They will be treated as if they were continuing to live at home.
How much have people lost?
If tenants are deemed to have one spare room, the amount of rent eligible for housing benefit will be cut by 14%. If they have two or more spare rooms, the cut will be 25%.
The government says that means an average loss of about £14 a week for council tenants. Those who rent from housing associations are facing an average loss of about £16 a week.
Tenants can downsize, but problems have arisen in some areas where there is a shortage of smaller homes. Campaigners say those affected face being forced to move long distances to find a property, or move into the private sector, where rents could be higher.
How many bedrooms are you allowed?
The new rules allow one bedroom for each adult or couple. Children under the age of 16 are expected to share, if they are the same gender, and those under 10 are expected to share whatever their gender.
Following a legal challenge, the government said severely disabled children unable to share a room would be exempt - although campaigners say there is still uncertainty about this.
Disabled tenants will be allowed a bedroom for full-time live-in or overnight carers. If a full-time carer is a husband, wife or partner, then they will be expected to share a room. However, they can apply for a discretionary housing payment from their local authority if the disability means the partner needs to sleep in another room.
Discretionary support should remain in place for "priority groups" such as disabled people whose homes have had to be significantly adapted and those with long-term medical conditions which create difficulties in sharing a bedroom.
The number of bedrooms in the property will be determined by the landlord's tenancy agreement, so you cannot claim a bedroom is actually a living room.
A group of disabled families challenged the rules in the High Court. What was their argument?
The families believe the new rules break the law by discriminating against disabled people in social housing because they fail to allow for extra space needed for individuals who cannot share a bedroom because of the nature of their disability.
They also argued that they need extra space to store their mobility equipment, such as wheelchairs.
The court ruled on 30 July 2013 that there was no discrimination, but the families plan to appeal against this.
Can I keep a spare bedroom?
Not without losing benefit. Parents who are separated are not allowed to keep a vacant bedroom for a child who visits.
Bereaved families will be given a year's exemption to rearrange their housing affairs.
What about students?
Since April, parents are not penalised if a student is away, as long as he or she sleeps at home for at least two weeks a year. But when universal credit comes in from this autumn, students will need to be at home for at least six months to avoid a benefit cut.
What about lodgers?
As of April, claimants with a paying lodger are allowed to keep the first £20 of weekly rent. But housing benefit will be then be cut, pound for pound, on the rest of the rent they receive.
After universal credit is established, housing benefit will be cut, but tenants will be allowed to keep all the rental income (although only the first £4,250 of annual rent is free of income tax).
Are pensioners exempt?
If either one of a couple is of pensionable age, their housing benefit does not get cut.
Under universal credit, both will need to be over pensionable age, or one will need to be in receipt of pension credit, in order to qualify for the maximum benefit.
What is the situation for tenants of private landlords?
Councils calculate housing benefit for private tenants using the Local Housing Allowance. This is based on typical rent prices in an area and the number of bedrooms deemed necessary for a household. The latter is worked out along broadly similar lines to those now in place for social housing tenants.
The maximum amount of housing benefit someone can receive as a private tenant is capped at £250 per week for a one bedroom property, £290 for two bedrooms, £340 for three bedrooms and £400 for four bedrooms.


Alex Wakely and Rob Keogh both scored centuries as Northants continued to assert their authority over Leicestershire, before setting them a victory target of 394 at Northampton.

After the start of day three had been delayed until 17:15 BST, Wakely (112) and Keogh (105 not out) combined to move the hosts from 60-3 to 214-3.
The pair's 171-run stand put Northants in command, allowing them to declare on 289-7 with 16 overs left in the day.
The visitors reached 44-0, 349 behind.
Paul Horton (20 not out) and Arun Harinath (20 not out) survived a testing final hour to leave Northants needing 10 wickets - and Leicestershire 350 runs - for victory on the final day.


Olive oil can help prevent strokes in people over 65, a study suggests.

Researchers followed around 7,000 people aged 65 and over living in three French cities, for at least five years.
They found those who used a lot of olive oil in cooking or as a dressing or dip had a lower risk of stroke than those who never used it.
The researchers say older people should be given new dietary advice regarding olive oil, based on the findings, which are published in the journal Neurology.
Lead author, Dr Cecilia Samieri, of the University of Bordeaux, said: "Our research suggests that a new set of dietary recommendations should be issued to prevent stroke in people 65 and older.
"Stroke is so common in older people, and olive oil would be an inexpensive and easy way to help prevent it."
The researchers studied the medical records of 7,625 people aged 65 and older living in Bordeaux, Dijon and Montpelier.
They were asked whether they used olive oil in cooking, on salads or with bread intensively, moderately or never.
Most used extra virgin olive oil, which is common in France.
After around five years, 148 of the men and women had had a stroke.
The study found the stroke risk was 41% lower in those who regularly used olive oil compared with those who abstained, once other factors such as diet, exercise and weight were taken into account.
This works out as a 1.5% risk over six years, compared with 2.6%.
Commenting on the study, published in Neurology, Sharlin Ahmed of the Stroke Association, said: "Olive oil has long been known to have potential health benefits.
"It is believed that it could protect against conditions such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and heart disease and so it's promising to see that it could have a similar protective function against stroke.
"However, it's important to note that a person's risk of stroke would only be reduced through consuming olive oil as an alternative to other cooking fats and as part of a healthy balanced diet that is low in saturated fat and salt.
"This is also a study based on responses from the public and not a clinical trial. A lot more research therefore needs to be carried out to scientifically test the effectiveness of olive oil as an ingredient that can protect against stroke."


Mexican officials have ordered Dell Computers to honour the sale of laptops that had been mistakenly advertised online for just 679 pesos (£27; $33).

The computers normally sell for up to 50,000 pesos (£1,990; $2,500).
But because of an apparent software malfunction, only the shipping costs - 679 pesos - were included in an advert published earlier this month.
When the US company realised the mistake, cancelled the sales and offered refunds, buyers complained.
Some created a Facebook group inviting other buyers to refer the case to Mexico's federal consumer protection agency Profeco.
Profeco agreed to consider the complaint and said on Thursday: "Dell will have to deliver the equipment offered to customers who received an email confirming the sale before the ad was withdrawn."
The agency also urged the company "to improve its customer service mechanisms".
Dell later acknowledged it had made a mistake and said it was "working with the relevant authorities" to rectify it.
It is not clear how many computers were sold before the ad was taken down.


A Commons committee has urged ministers to support plans for controversial shale gas drilling in the UK.

The energy select committee said environmental problems associated with it in the US could be overcome by tight regulation and good industry practice.
But the MPs said the UK government would need to be vigilant to ensure the technology did not pollute water or produce excessive greenhouse emissions.
Environmentalists said MPs should have called for a moratorium on shale gas.
Campaigners want a moratorium until research into allegations about the technology is complete.
Shale gas is significant to the UK in two ways. First, the massive expansion of shale gas in the US and also possibly in China may depress global gas prices and cause countries to favour gas over coal.
Some experts see this as a double-edged sword - low energy prices are a benefit, but might divert investment from the renewables and nuclear essential for the low-carbon future planned by the government.
The second issue over shale gas is one of energy security. The British Geological Survey estimates that onshore shale gas can supply 1.5 years of the UK's total gas needs.
The MPs say this is a useful but not major contribution - and they recommend that the government should encourage the development of offshore shale gas, where reserves may be far higher, albeit more costly to recover.
Test drilling for shale gas is currently underway in Lancashire near Blackpool. The company, Cuadrilla, believes that onshore deposits of shale gas in the UK may have been underestimated.
Critics fear this is industry hype, but Cuadrilla says the shale gas seam near Blackpool is so thick that it may not need the horizontal fracking (rock fracturing) characteristic of so many deposits in the US. Cuadrilla says vertical fracking may be achievable in Lancashire.
It is the fracking process - creating tiny explosions to shatter hard shale rocks and release gas 10,000 feet underground - that has caused so much controversy in the US. Some householders claim that shale gas leaking into their drinking supply causes tap water to ignite.
The MPs said this looks a case of inadequate regulation. Tim Yeo MP, chairman of the committee, said: "We can't see any evidence that UK water supplies might be at risk from shale gas - if it is done properly," he told BBC News.
"The  regulatory agencies have to keep their vigilance and monitor drilling closely - but the area where the fracking is being done is well below the water table so there really should not be an issue."
The other focus of environmental concern over shale gas is greenhouse gas emissions. A study at Cornell University warned that methane leaks from wells could be so high that in some cases the atmospheric warming effect of shale gas drilling might outweigh that of coal. The MPs dismiss this fear, pointing once again to the need for good practice and regulation to prevent leaks.
David Nussbaum, head of the green group WWF, says this is complacent. WWF is calling for a moratorium on shale gas drilling in the UK until the US Environmental Protection Agency has carried out a major report into the practice - probably next year. They also want to see more studies on the climate effects of shale gas.
He told BBC News: "Shale gas is a controversial source of energy. We've got to be very, very cautious before we go gung-ho for shale gas and we believe there has to be very good evidence before we decide this is the way forward."
The government says existing laws are strong enough to deal with the issues raised - and that bids for licences to extract shale gas (as opposed to prospect for it) will be considered in the normal way.
The new source of energy is proving controversial in Europe, with pro-nuclear France in the process of banning shale gas production and Poland, thought to have by far the biggest reserves in Europe, caught in a major industrial debate about whether to concentrate its efforts on coal or gas.
Some analysts warn that the shale gas phenomenon has provoked an unhelpful war of words between the gas and renewables industries, which complement each other in a way that nuclear power does not.
The argument runs that gas will be needed as a relatively low-cost transition technology, filling in the generation gap when the wind drops. Nuclear power, on the other hand, competes with wind because it produces baseload electricity that needs to be used.


England hooker Tom Youngs suffered his latest back injury changing a tyre on his car at home, but should be ready to lead Leicester in Europe next week, says Tigers boss Richard Cockerill.

Youngs missed Saturday's derby win over Northampton Saints after initially being named in the team.
The 29-year-old, capped 22 times by England, had back surgery in March.
"He was lifting the wheel in to the back of the car and his back spasmed," Cockerill told BBC Radio Leicester.
"He did it Friday morning, bizarrely changing a tyre on his car at home. He was hugely improved today, but just not quite right.
"We tried to get him to the start line - he has had back issues previously so the right thing to do was start with Harry Thacker, and George McGuigan did a great job off the bench."
Leicester, fourth in the Premiership after 10 games, travel to Munster next Saturday looking for their second European Champions Cup win of the campaign.
After two group games, Tigers are third in Pool One behind Minster and Glasgow.


The World Trade Organization says its 160 members have failed to agree a global customs pact drawn up in meetings in Bali last December.

The Trade Facilitation Agreement would have streamlined global customs procedures, and should have been finalised by Thursday.
But it was blocked over a number of rifts, including India's demands for concessions on the stockpiling of food.
The WTO said it had not been possible to find a breakthrough.
"We have not been able to find a solution that would allow us to bridge the gap," WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo said.
He asked WTO members "to reflect long and hard on the ramifications of  this setback".
And US ambassador to the WTO, Michael Punke, said that the failure to agree a deal had "put this institution on very uncertain new ground".
The WTO had seemed to be on the verge of reaching its first comprehensive agreement since it was founded in 1995.
But India vetoed the proposal at a late stage, demanding greater concessions over farm subsidies and agricultural stockpiles.
Analysis: Andrew Walker, BBC economics correspondent
"This is not just another delay which we can simply ignore." That is what the WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo told the member countries' trade negotiators.
The Bali agreement on trade facilitation was the one and only achievement to date from the Doha Round negotiations that were launched in 2001.
The struggle to make progress has already raised questions about whether the WTO has a future as the forum for international trade negotiations.
Many countries are seeking deals on a bilateral basis outside the WTO. It will only reinforce the doubts about the WTO if the members can't press ahead in the one area where they previously seemed to have made a genuine breakthrough.


Eight-time Olympic champion Usain Bolt says he may carry on running after the 2017 World Championships - but this will definitely be his final season.

The 30-year-old Jamaican had previously said he would run his final race at the London Stadium in August.
Speaking on Monday, Bolt revealed he had spoken to coach Glen Mills about whether to end his final "emotional" season after competing in London.
"We haven't fully made up our mind on what we're doing yet," he said.
The World Championships has been referred to as Bolt's "swansong", with many expecting his final appearance to come in the 4x100m relay final on August 12.
"I'm not worrying about that until the World Championships or at least getting close to it," he added.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Speaking before an IAAF world challenge event in Ostrava, Bolt continued: "Right now, I'm just focused on getting through the season.
"I just like entertaining the crowd. I definitely want to try and enjoy every minute of it - it won't be the same sat in the stadium."
He also reiterated he will not be competing in the 200m in London, saying: "People keep asking, but no."
Bolt became the first man in Olympic history to win both the 100m and 200m in record times, and twice successfully defended the sprint titles he won in Beijing in 2008.
"It's just been a great career. I've really enjoyed the ups and downs, all the experience I've gathered, all I've been through, the happiness and the sadness," he said.
"It's been a wonderful career and I've done everything I've wanted to do and it's coming to an end and I'm fine with it.
"It's an emotional season."


How does your life change after you film a funny video for your friends and it notches up some 164 million - yes, million - views?

This is what happened to Candace Payne, a 37-year-old from Texas who one day in May bought a silly mask and live-streamed herself chatting about her purchase.
The video, filmed in a shop car park, broke the record as the most-watched Facebook Live video ever.
You may remember this because it is pretty much four minutes of complete joy as the mother of two dons the Chewbacca mask, then laughs her head off as the toy mimics the sounds of the famous Star Wars character.  Here it is again, should you have missed this moment of sheer delight in 2016.
"Things are wonderful at the moment," Candace says.
Since Candace has shot to internet stardom she has appeared on a Late Late Show sketch with Star Wars director JJ Abrams, one of her heroes, released a cover of Michael Jackson's Heal the World and keeps being recognised in the street.
"People come up and ask if they can take a selfie with me," Candace says. "Most are pretty kind and many people want to say thanks for my video."
Candace says she recorded the video for her friends and family and made it publicly visible without really thinking about it.
Because it was public, people could share it and they did - over and over and over again.
"I remember seeing that I got 50,000 views within an hour - and thinking 'I don't know 50,000 people. What's going on?'"
By the time Candace went to bed - seven hours after she posted it - the video had one million views and she wanted to know what makes a video viral.
One reference said you needed five million views in 24 hours and she said: "I thought I might actually go viral."
By the time she woke up the next day, Candace had 24 million video views and 20 messages on her phone.
Her Chewbacca antics had shattered the previous Facebook Live record set by Buzzfeed's exploding watermelon - a video in which two people gradually add rubber bands to a watermelon until the inevitable happens.
Facebook had only rolled out live streaming video capability to all users a month before, in April.
"Within three days I had 78 million views and climbing. I refreshed my Facebook page and saw the number of views jump by 100,000."
Candace says she clearly remembers a moment being in the kitchen "on the floor, in tears".
"I said thank you to God."
She says she knew a "door had opened up" for something different in her life.
"I wasn't scared, I was grateful.
"I knew that being a stay-at-home mom was just a season.
"Once both my kids started at school and kindergarten, I was looking to go back to work again. But the right option never came up.
"And I always had dreams of doing something grand."
She also appeared on Good Morning America, where she remembers chatting off set about her new-found fame.
"Someone said to me: 'Not many people are ready for this. But you are'.
"I really took those words to my heart. It gave fire to my bones."
Candace now has some 800,000 followers on Facebook and another 50,000 on Instagram and she is looking forward to starting life as a video blogger for American network TLC.
Candace also has a small group of people looking after press inquiries and her engagements, while she delivers speeches on the theme of finding "joy in the everyday".
"We forget that joy calls us to play," says Candace. "That's what happened in the car that day. I didn't care who walked by and saw what I was doing."
Candace says she has landed the dream job for which she did not apply "which is being myself and going out there and meeting people, and sharing the joy".
Candace says she has not changed, but some things have changed in her life. Some people who are close to her think she might be too busy to see them and that space is filled with more strangers who want to meet her.
It is also difficult to teach her children to be careful with strangers, she says, when there are random people coming up and asking for a photo with their mother.
"But I haven't met someone I don't like yet. In general, I love people."
Candace has received negative messages on social media. But she says hateful things just "roll off" her back if they are from people she doesn't know.
Surely though, what we all want to know is why was the video so successful? Why did so many people love it and share it?
How did it become the top global live video of the year, beating others from major publishers covering stories such as the US election?
"I don't get it either," says Candace. "But laughter is a universal language. My video was just joyful and had nothing to do with any agenda."
Produced by the UGC and Social News team


Sheffield Wednesday came back from two goals down at half-time to earn a point at fellow play-off hopefuls Cardiff.

Craig Noone put the hosts in front from the penalty spot after Tony Watt was fouled by Owls keeper Keiren Westwood.
Anthony Pilkington beat the offside trap from Joe Ralls' pass through, rounded Westwood and rolled in for 2-0.
But Fernando Forestieri brought his side back into it with a low drive, before Barry Bannan smashed home from Ross Wallace's cutback to level.
Bannan's first goal for Wednesday meant his side, now in eighth place, stayed level on points with the home side having lost just once in 14 league games.
Russell Slade's Bluebirds started the day in the top six, but dropped out following Ipswich's victory at MK Dons in the day's early kick-off.
After a slow opening at the Cardiff City Stadium, Watt broke through on goal, and Republic of Ireland keeper Westwood could only bring him down, allowing Noone to slot home his third of the season.
Joao came closest for Wednesday in the first half, but his effort from Liam Palmer's cross hit the post and landed into the arms of Cardiff keeper David Marshall.
Pilkington's brilliant effort doubled the lead, before Westwood denied Cardiff a third first-half goal with a superb save from Watt.
Kenwyne Jones then had a header ruled out for offside and Pilkington headed over unmarked from six yards.
Wednesday, who switched to a diamond formation after the break, were back in it when Forestieri opted to shoot with no passing options available.
And after Ross Wallace and Bannan both hit free-kicks just over the bar, the pair combined to bring the visitors level.
Noone almost grabbed a late winner for Cardiff, but Westwood was at his best to keep out his shot as Slade's side surrendered a two-goal lead for the second home game in a row - having done so against Burnley in November.
Cardiff boss Russell Slade:
"We had chances to kill the game off at the end of the first half and the start of the second half. But we looked open at times and for their goals we have simply not done our jobs.
"It is a balancing act we need to get right. It is not about any one man, we have to do the basics as a team.
"If you don't they prove costly. You have to get to the ball, close down, make a block and defend properly. It's about discipline."
Sheffield Wednesday manager Carlos Carvalhal:
"In the second half we were excellent We came on strong, we began to attack and we got the goals back. It was an exciting finish and there were chances for both sides to score and win the game, but I think in the end a draw was the correct score.
"We are not normally that open and when we do that we know we are taking risks but we know we can score goals.
"As they say in Portugal, we put all our meat on the fire in that second half. It was a fantastic effort, the fitness of the players is fantastic.
"But more important than this is the soul and the spirit we have. It is a good sign for us if we can do that against a big team in this division."


Torquay United manager Kevin Nicholson says his side must not allow themselves to get distracted as they look to avoid relegation from the National League.

Tuesday's 2-0 win over Chester put the Gulls three points clear of the drop zone, having been 12 points from safety less then two months ago.
"It is a bit harder not to get carried away when you start reading and hearing nice things about yourself," he said.
"But they also realise there's a job to be done and we haven't done it yet."
Torquay have only been beaten twice in their last 12 league games, having lost 17 of their previous 29.
The club have been affected by a number of off-field issues, but are set to be taken over by Gaming International Ltd after the current board agreed a deal in principle last week.
"In fairness to them, most of the time they get the message, most of the time they come into training, win lose or draw, with the same attitude, the same character and the same work rate," player-boss Nicholson told BBC Radio Devon.
"I try and do that myself because the last thing you need to see is a manager over the moon one minute and absolutely full-on depressed the next, but there's work to do."


A Middle Eastern restaurant in Montreal, Canada, has warmed hearts and stomachs by quietly giving away free meals to the hungry.

Marche Ferdous started handing out food about four months ago in a bid to help homeless people.
"We do not ask any questions, we do not judge people," Canadian media quoted the restaurant's co-owner, Yahya Hashemi, as saying.
"They want to eat, [we] give them the food. That's it, that's all."
The only sign of the eatery's generosity is a simple A4 sheet on the door.
"People with no money welcome to eat free," it reads in English and French.
Every day, four or five meals are given away, according to reports.
Mr Hashemi, who is originally from Iran, said he looked on it as a business expense.
Is Canada's food guide past sell-by date?
2016: The year Canadians fell in love with their country
Canadians warned over car-licking moose
He said helping the needy was part of his Muslim faith, and that he wanted to give something back to Canada, which he felt had given him so much.
He told CBC News that customers aware of the goodwill gesture had started backing it by leaving money to fund others' meals.
"They come here, they donate $20, $30, $50 Cdn [Â£12-Â£30] and they say, 'Okay, the next few people are on me'," Mr Hashemi said.
CTV News Montreal quoted the restaurant's chef, Abdelkader Bejaoui, who said the project was "not a big deal".
"It doesn't matter, because at night if you still have leftover food you end up throwing it out, so why not give to those in need?" he said.
Co-owner Ala Amiry agreed. "This is a small gesture that we hope can make people in a difficult situation feel a bit better," he told the Montreal Gazette.
March Ferdous has gathered an online fanclub since one customer reportedly decided to test the freebie policy.
Sean Jalbert, who works nearby, said he told staff he had no money and received a warm welcome and a cost-free meal. He said he was "blown away" - and duly paid in full as he could afford it.
Mr Jalbert shared his experience on Facebook, leading to a rush of comments in support of the restaurant.


Opening batsman Jason Roy has received the backing of England assistant coach Paul Farbrace before Saturday's Champions Trophy game with Australia.

Media playback is not supported on this device
Roy, 26, has managed just 14 runs in two innings in the tournament but is set to keep his place at Edgbaston.
Jonny Bairstow, who has a batting average of 38.05 in 26 one-day internationals, has yet to feature in the Champions Trophy for hosts England.
"We all want Jason to do well," said Farbrace.
"I thought there were signs in Cardiff against New Zealand that he really looked as though he was very close to getting a big score."
Despite Roy's poor form, England have already booked their semi-final spot on Wednesday, 14 June with victories over Bangladesh and New Zealand.
Surrey batsman Roy managed 13 in the 87-run win over New Zealand having been dismissed for one in the eight-wicket win in the opening match against Bangladesh.
In the one-day international series win over South Africa last month, Roy managed a total of 13 runs in three innings.
Farbrace said he was confident Roy was not far off a big score and that he had been "excellent" in practice.
"The only thing that is frustrating for Jason is everyone talking about when is he going to get runs," added Farbrace.
"He knows that once he gets to 30 or 40 the chances are he is going to get 100.
"We all want him to do well because we know how important he is to us as a player and how much he plays the game in the right way for us as a team."
Bairstow hit 174 off 113 deliveries for Yorkshire against Durham in the Royal London One-Day Cup on 3 May.
He also struck a half-century for England against South Africa on 29 May and an unbeaten 72 against Ireland on 7 May.
"He can count himself particularly unlucky not to be playing in this tournament because he is a fantastic player in great form," said Farbrace.
"But the other six [batsmen] have done a brilliant job for us over a long period of time and we feel it is right to back and support them through their tough times."


Women are 35% more likely to go to university than men, the widest gap so far, according to annual entry figures.

The Ucas admissions service says record numbers - 532,300 students - began courses in UK universities this autumn.
But there were wide regional variations - with youngsters in London 40% more likely to enter university than those in south-west or north-east England.
Ucas chief Mary Curnock Cook said poor white males should now be the focus of "outreach efforts".
The annual statistics from Ucas show the complete picture of university applications for those starting courses in autumn 2015, with a 3% increase in students compared with last year.
The removal of limits on student numbers saw universities competing for students - and the entry rates show it was easier this year to get into top universities with slightly lower grades.
In students going to the top universities, 26% of entries got places with A-level grades or equivalent below ABB. This was about three percentage points more than last year and 11 percentage points more than four years ago.
The numbers of unconditional offers to students, regardless of their grades, also increased sharply, doubling to 23,400 - or about 2.5% of total offers.
The annual figures show more people entering UK universities than ever before, including increases in students from the UK and overseas.
In England, about 42% of 18- and 19-year-olds will have university places, up by a quarter in the past decade.
Northern Ireland had the highest rate in the UK, with 42.8%. Wales the lowest, with 36.8%.
Ucas does not gather comprehensive figures on students entering higher education in Scotland.
But the admissions service has highlighted the big differences in the characteristics of who gets places.
The most likely are:
Those most likely to be under-represented at university are poor, white males.
White people, proportionate to their numbers in the population, are the least likely ethnic group to go to university, the admissions service says.
And there would be an extra 36,000 male students at university if they entered at the same rate as female students.
The regional gap is becoming even more accentuated.
Among 18-year-old school leavers, Londoners were already much more likely to get university places than those living anywhere else in England - but their success rate has increased even further and the gap grown wider.
The lowest entry levels are in the South West and North East - and 18-year-olds here, are 40% less likely to go to university than in London.
Ms Curnock Cook said these figures showed a narrowing of the gap between rich and poor, but other differences were widening.
"We have previously highlighted the unacceptably large and widening gap between entry rates for men and women, and this year shows young men, and especially young white men, falling even further behind," she said.
Universities Minister Jo Johnson welcomed the record number of students beginning university, including from poorer families.
"Students from disadvantaged backgrounds are now almost a third more likely to enter higher education than five years ago, but we have much more work to do," he said.
Mr Johnson said the government had an "ambitious programme" to double the proportion of people from disadvantaged backgrounds going to university by 2020.


Eight masked gunmen held up an armoured money transport in the Chilean capital Santiago on Tuesday, making off with more than $10m (£6.2).

The robbery is the biggest in Chilean history.
The gang held up the guards unloading the money from a van belonging to US security firm Brinks at a cargo area at Santiago's international airport.
The cash had been destined for delivery to banks and mining operations in Copiapo, in northern Chile.
Security footage showed the gang arriving disguised as workers in a white van at 06:21 local time (10:21GMT).
The robbery itself was not captured on camera, but the footage shows the same van leaving the airport two minutes later.
Chilean Interior Minister Mahmud Aleuy said security at the airport was "an embarrassment".
He said the security measures should be in proportion to the value of the goods transported.
Security at the cargo area is handled by the civil aviation authorities, not by the police, he said.
The robbers fled in two vans in opposite directions, scattering nails on the road in their wake, local media reported.
One of the vans was later found empty and abandoned in a fallow field.
The size of the loot surpasses that of a similar robbery in 2006, when robbers stole $1.6m from a Brink's delivery at the same airport terminal.
The men behind that robbery were eventually captured and are serving time in prison.
Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo said the gang which carried out Tuesday's robbery was "highly organised".
He said the Ministry of Defence would help the police track those responsible.


Artemis Racing skipper Nathan Outteridge was thrown overboard as Emirates Team New Zealand took a 2-1 lead on a dramatic first day of the America's Cup challenger final.

The New Zealanders won the opening race in the best-of-nine contest before the Swedish side hit back to level matters.
Outteridge fell off his catamaran as it went through a manoeuvre in race three in Bermuda's Great Sound.
With the Swedish team hampered, New Zealand capitalised to claim the lead.
The challenger final resumes on Sunday with three more races.
Holders Oracle Team USA await the winners of the challenger final in the America's Cup.
The first to seven points wins the America's Cup, or the Auld Mug as the trophy is known, with a possible 13 races to be sailed on 17-18 and 24-27 June.
The America's Cup, the oldest competition in international sport, was first raced in 1851 around the Isle of Wight and has only been won by four nations.


Police looking after the Champions League final in Cardiff have been given a £1.4m grant to help with security.

Thousands of fans are set to descend on the city on 3 June for the final of football's biggest club competition.
The UK government said the security was of "paramount importance" and awarded the grant to South Wales Police.
Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns said ministers were determined "that Wales, and the UK, are seen in the best possible light on the worldwide stage".
He added: "The safety and security of the hundreds of thousands of people set to flood into the city and surrounding areas at this time is of paramount importance."


Congressman Paul Ryan will run for speaker of the US House of Representatives, he has announced.

He wrote in a letter to Republican colleagues that they "have an opportunity to turn the page".
Mr Ryan, who is widely expected to win the race to succeed John Boehner, will face elections next week.
If victorious, he will have a key role in US politics, second in line to the presidency and tasked with avoiding a looming government shutdown.
The House of Representatives, the lower chamber in the US Congress, has major budgetary and spending deadlines on the horizon.
If Congress fails to pass a budget by early December, the government could shut down again, as it did in 2013.
"I know you're willing to work hard and get it done, and I think this moment is ripe for real reform," said Mr Ryan in the letter.
"I believe we are ready to move forward as a one, united team. And I am ready and eager to be our speaker."
Earlier this week, Mr Ryan had said he wanted endorsements from all key elements within the Republican party to guarantee he could try to unify the party in the House after deep divisions emerged.
The 45-year-old from Wisconsin was the Republican vice-presidential nominee in 2012.


A third police officer has been investigated over the death of ex-Aston Villa star Dalian Atkinson who was shot with a Taser, it has emerged.

Three West Mercia Police officers had now been interviewed under criminal caution, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said.
Mr Atkinson died after contact with police in Meadow Close, Trench, Telford, on 15 August last year.
West Mercia Police said it continued to co-operate with the IPCC.
The three officers had been served with gross misconduct notices, the police watchdog said.
IPCC Commissioner Derrick Campbell said: "At the conclusion of our independent investigation I will consider whether to refer our investigation report to the Crown Prosecution Service to make a decision on any potential charges against police officers.
"A criminal investigation does not mean that criminal charges will necessarily follow."
Mr Campbell said its independent report would consider whether any officers should, in the watchdog's view, face misconduct proceedings.
Investigative inquiries had ended, but the IPCC investigation report could not be finalised "until the full pathology and toxicology reports are provided", the watchdog said.
It said IPCC investigators had spoken to about 15 other police officers as witnesses, along with more than 15 members of the public and paramedics.
Forensic experts had also been consulted.
A Taser used during the incident had been analysed and investigators had "transcribed relevant police Airwave radio transmissions and examined police policies on the use of force".
West Mercia Police Assistant Chief Constable Martin Evans said the force's "thoughts and sympathies" were with Mr Atkinson's family and friends and it continued to co-operate with the IPCC throughout its investigation.
He said: "It would not be appropriate for us to comment further at this time while that investigation is ongoing."
Mr Atkinson started his career at Ipswich Town before moving to Sheffield Wednesday, Real Sociedad, Villa and FenerbahÃ§e


Britain's triple world champion Adam Peaty won a 50m and 100m breaststroke double at the Amsterdam Cup.

Peaty, the 50m breaststroke world record holder, touched home in 27.42 seconds in the 50m to finish 0.26 secs ahead of Lithuania's Giedrius Titenis.
The 20-year-old City of Derby swimmer dipped below a minute for the 10th time this year in the 100m breaststroke, winning in 59.67 secs on Saturday.
He qualified for the 200m breaststroke final on Friday but did not race.


The Queen's planned meeting with Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness in Northern Ireland next week has sparked a flurry of reaction from politicians and others.

Sinn Fein leaders have boycotted previous Royal visits to Ireland but Mr McGuinness is now set to break that trend.
Mr McGuinness and First Minister Peter Robinson have been invited to attend a Co-operation Ireland reception along with the Queen and the Irish President Michael D Higgins.
Here is some reaction to the impending meeting between Her Majesty and Northern Ireland's deputy first minister.
"Despite the history, the bitter history, which has involved Royals as well - of course I think of Earl Mountbatten's assassination by the IRA - I think despite that bitter history, what this really puts the seal on is that the past is the past.
"And republicans, aside from some tiny minority groups who have very little, if any support in the community... actually see their duty as to make this new settlement work, and that they are benefiting from it as well.
"It does show in shining terms how everybody is turning their backs on the past of horror and violence and moving towards peace between previously bitter enemies.
"Inevitably past victims of IRA atrocities will be upset. Many Republicans will see it as a betrayal.
"But what it shows is that both Martin McGuinness and Her Majesty are saying that the future is much more important than the past. If we get stuck in the past we will never make any progress."
"It is something that demonstrates to ordinary people out there that we have gotten to the stage where we can acknowledge each other with respect. It does not mean that we have to agree.
"This is part of the healing process, of how do we make sure for the next generation of young people that we are not still revisiting these issues. It is our responsibility to fix those issues and not leave them to the next generation."
"The vast majority of people in both communities know the future is working together and coming together and understanding and sharing our future together and not forgetting our past, but not letting our past dominate the future and that's exactly what this meeting's doing."
"I assume he's accepted the world as it is, and the sovereignty of Her Majesty over Northern Ireland. If so, that's good. It doesn't of course excuse any of the things that were done with his support.
"I hope it's another step towards public repentance, the apologies, and the seeking of ways to offer recompense for the violence which was exerted by Sinn Fein-IRA over many years both in Ireland and on the mainland of Britain.
"I don't know [if repentance is the motive] but I am very glad they now accepting the sovereignty of Her Majesty over Northern Ireland.
"It is in mutual interest of both the people of the Republic of Ireland and those of the United Kingdom that there should be civilised relations between us. And future generations may come to, essentially, if not forget, to forgive what was done by their predecessors.
"And of course the Queen has played an important role in that, as indeed has the president of the Republic."
"I think it was inevitable. I am glad that Sinn Fein have seen sense to join the modern world. It would have reflected badly on them if had they not chosen to do it.
"It will be interesting to see the Queen, but I am sure that the Queen will conduct herself with a great deal of dignity. They murdered [her cousin, Lord Mountbatten], on many occasions they tried to murder her. There was a plan to murder her son and her daughter-in-law.
"So she's got a personal interest, I'm sure she'll be amused to see the faces of the people that have irrationally hated her so much, and she'll probably be wondering 'what was the big deal?'.
"[Those still carrying out violence] have never really needed that much justification to murder. These folks are living in the past, they're living in a world that does not exist any more. They're finding that difficult to cope with and their reaction is always to find more and better reasons to justify their campaign of murder."
"We acknowledge the suffering of all those who have been victims of the terrorist violence during the Troubles.
"But we're also looking to the future in Northern Ireland, a shared future, and it's welcome that Martin McGuinness is welcoming Her Majesty the Queen as our head of state.
"It's a step in the right direction, and it's all about moving forward and recognising each other's identity, the traditions, and of course - for the Unionist community - the Queen is very much a part of our sense of Britishness, our sense of belonging to the United Kingdom."
"When Martin McGuinness meets the Queen and when he shakes her hand, it will be a hugely symbolic moment, an historic moment.
"I have known Martin McGuinness and followed his career since 1972. But I never thought I would see the day when he became Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, and even less so, when he would meet the Queen and shake her by the hand.
"One of the reasons why Sinn Fein has decided this - they are party decisions - to go ahead and meet the Queen and shake her hand, is because he knows how it will play in the Republic. Her Majesty's visit to the Republic went a long way to changing attitudes in the north towards the Royal Family."
"From the Queen's successful visit to the Irish Republic in May of last year, I think there was a certain inevitably about this because the public reaction in Dublin to Sinn Fein not meeting Her Majesty was that they were being churlish.
"Given the fact that unionist politicians have been meeting with and shaking hands with Irish presidents for a number of years now, I think there was a certain inevitably about it."


A teenager was raped during a Pokemon-themed A-level results party at a nightclub in Kent.

Police said the 18-year-old woman was raped in the toilets of Moo Moo nightclub in Tunbridge Wells in the early hours of Friday.
The attack happened between 01:30 BST and 02:03 at the Newton Road club, which held the party on A-level results day.
Officers seized CCTV from the nightclub as part of their enquiries.
The attacker is described as a white man with brown hair. He was wearing dark jeans and a short-sleeve T-shirt.
Moo Moo's Facebook page billed the event, from 21:30 to 03:00, as an "adventure as we go Pokemon mental to celebrate everyone's A-Level results when our three floors become three different Indigo League Locations."


"Navel-gazing - readers don't care": with that, coverage of and by the news media tends to be dismissed from editorial conference meetings.

Newspapers used to take a chunk of page two for the editor to trumpet the (sometimes selective use of) circulation figures, and "how much better we've been selling than our down-market, parochial rival rag" - or similar.
You don't see that so much now, because none of the sales figures are to be trumpeted.
Newspapers remain an important pillar of Scottish life, politics, culture and identity.  The four city-based titles are all more than 200 years old - The Scotsman and Courier reaching that milestone in the past year.
They don't do much to report on themselves. Yet there's rarely been so much interest and discussion of news and how it is reported.
The constitutional debates about Scotland and Brexit excite theories of newspaper conspiracy, and over-powerful proprietors.
Social media has given access to everyone, on an equal basis, to have their say, where many are contemptuous or dismissive of "the MSM" (mainstream media) or "dead tree press".
One such conspiracy theorist has taken up residence in the White House, and is using that "bully pulpit" to trash the big news brands.  Fake news, he says. Fake. Sad.  His people have "alternative facts".  There may be lessons there for us all. More of President Trump later.
Close to home turf for me, this week brought an unusual sensation. For the first time in 28 years as a journalist, I'm working for an organisation that has ambitious plans for significant expansion.
A digital TV channel for Scotland, including an hour-long news programme, viewing Scotland, the UK and the world from a Scottish studio, is an exciting prospect.
To have spent nearly three decades inside an industry in gradual and then more rapid decline, facing cuts, job losses and narrowing ambitions, takes its toll. It's more difficult to be creative and bold in that environment, or to take risks.
So this could change. It brings 80 more journalists at the BBC, and the opportunity to try new approaches to news.
To its credit, STV has got to a similar plan, and earlier. If there's one thing we envy of our broadcast rivals just along the south bank of the Clyde, it's the ability to take decisions quickly.
It is doing so by taking the city TV licences for Glasgow and Edinburgh, adding Dundee, Aberdeen and Ayr later this year, and making a sort of national network. That may somewhat undermine the intended spirit of local TV, but it's an innovative response in a changing market.
The newspapers gave the BBC's initiative far more coverage than their own part of the industry. Broadcasters fill a lot of column inches, from plundering political interviews to personal dramas about soap opera stars, generating a steady flow of on-screen celebrity.
It was down to the BBC, and to the media trade press and websites, to report the full-year sales figures for so-called 'regional' newspapers, which were published this week by the industry's audit organisation.
They were all down. The National led the charge, falling 30% to 8,500 daily sales. That somewhat undermines the arguments that other papers are suffering the consequence of being out of kilter with the political zeitgeist. Political slant doesn't matter half as much as political people think.
The National may yet be viable, because it has the back office management, advertising sales and printing capacity of the Herald and Evening Times group.
The National can pursue its strongly pro-independence agenda with very few resources; a small number of young journalists, a very imaginative graphic designer, and its in-house Wee Ginger Dug.
More worrying is the plight of The Scotsman. Sales were down 14% to below 20,000.  More than 2,000 of them are given away for free.
The daily provides the infrastructure for Scotland on Sunday, which saw sales down 26% on the second half of 2015. The Edinburgh Evening News, also in that group, was down 16% to 18,400 - more than the other three city "evening" titles. (They're not really evening papers now, so much as local. Almost all their content is in place before that day's morning titles.)
Many of these titles attract much bigger audiences for their online news, which is free to access. But few offer reliable, audited figures. The Scotsman's number is just under 100,000 visitors per day: The Herald at 88,000.
No-one is getting rich from the advertising that comes with online news. There's recent evidence that, for all its falling sales, print still gets much more time than the written word on screen, and advertisers pay heed to such evidence.
Saturday sales illustrate that.  Even at much higher prices, many titles see their print sales lift at the weekend.  The Guardian sells around 8,000 on the average weekday in Scotland, but that nearly doubles on Saturday. Many people seem to prefer a paper to a computer screen when they're kicking back over brunch.
The Scotsman group is burdened with its proprietor's enormous debts. Johnston Press, also based in Edinburgh, is under siege from an activist investor, now with a 20% stake, which seems to have lost faith in the JP management and strategy.
That strategy is to invest in its new acquisition of the 'i' low-price quick read, which grew out of The Independent. It gives Johnston a UK-wide reach for advertising.
The group has had to sell some of its 200-plus local titles, including those in Ireland, the Isle of Man and East Anglia.  More are on the sales block, though it seems Johnston want to retain The Scotsman as its best-known brand.
Industry insiders say DC Thompson, owner of The Courier, Press & Journal and Sunday Post, would be interested in taking on The Scotsman stable, at the right price.
The Dundee family firm has shown a knack for adapting in this exceptionally difficult market, by staying close to readers. But Johnston Press seems determined to soldier on as things are. It may be that the going price for The Scotsman falls far short of what its creditors require.
This has been good news for The Times, which is picking off chunks of the Edinburgh region up-market readership. Its editor, Magnus Llewellin, attributes that to investment in journalism. It has been poaching some of the more experienced writers in Scottish news and sport, including Mr Llewellin himself, formerly editor of The Herald.
Beyond that, it has been much smarter than others at bundling print sales with subscriptions.  It has sent the message that if you want quality news, you should pay for it, starting with teaser subscriptions rates.
It helps that the Times website is a coherent fit with the print product. Too many other papers want to draw readers across to their online journalism, only to find that it looks and feels very different. That can undermine the brand.
The Times' subscription approach takes time and deep pockets. The title's ultimate boss, Rupert Murdoch, did something similar with Sky television. It's worked, and squeezed out rivals, from BSB to Setanta.
All this is with the backdrop of conventional news sources being trusted less. As with other institutional pillars, there's a desire to kick over the old order, and replace it with... well, what?
Citizen journalism? Websites driven from a political conviction, and crowd-funded? The cacophony of social media? Getting attention by being outrageous? Endlessly challenging the mainstream media to be more accountable?
That is where Donald Trump is dragging the debate in the USA. The industry there is much more given to navel-gazing. It has been asking whether it covered the Trump campaign phenomenon as it should, and how it now covers the presidency.
If every unwelcome news report is to be challenged, or denounced as fake news, and if the mis-statements and hypocrisy of Mr President simply meet with a shrug, how should they cover the White House?
(And having seen some of these 'trash-the-messenger' tactics used in two referendums on this side of the Pond, how would a further Scottish referendum be reported any differently from last time?)
Today, the question is how you report the president when the awkward squad of mainstream news outlets  - including the BBC - is excluded from briefings.
I'm reminded of a friend who was a White House correspondent in the early 1970s. He was blacklisted by President Richard Nixon when he wrote that he had been given an ashtray with the presidential seal on it, which he was using as a water bowl for his dog.
One answer to being excluded, I'd humbly suggest, is: wear it with pride. Don't play their game. If you're not being excluded by the Trump White House, ask what you're doing wrong. You can do your job with the information that's publicly available.
In any case, what would you miss? Do we really think that the huddles of journalists around the spokesman are going to be any more newsworthy or revelatory than President Trump's attention-hungry, headline-grabbing government-by-tragi-comedy-Tweet/stump speech/monologue?


Manchester City will prioritise the Champions League above their FA Cup fifth-round tie at Chelsea on Sunday, according to boss Manuel Pellegrini.

City play the first leg of their Champions League last-16 match at Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday, four days before the Capital One Cup final.
The Chilean said: "The priority is always the next game, but we must make an exception because of many injuries."
City's visit to Chelsea will be shown live on BBC One on Sunday at 16:00 GMT.
The 2012 FA Cup winners are still in contention to a complete an unprecedented quadruple by winning the Premier League, League Cup, FA Cup and Champions League.
They will have to play a game in each competition in an 11-day span between 21 February and 2 March.
Pellegrini added: "We have just 13 players available to play and have to play the Champions League on Wednesday. We'll see the best team we can play on Sunday.
"I always try to play with a strong team in every competition. They are all important but we must prioritise the Champions League."
Chelsea, who are currently 12th in the Premier League, played their Champions League first-leg tie away to Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.
Interim manager Guus Hiddink, who won the FA Cup during his previous spell in charge in 2009, said: "We have a serious approach to the FA Cup."
Chelsea skipper John Terry has been ruled out of the tie.