Joseph Lord

Perhaps wanting to broaden perceptions of Great Britain beyond Downton Abbey, the British Consulate in Chicago is hosting a five-day "pop-up consulate" in Louisville in March.

The pop-up consulate will include a bourbon vs. scotch event and a performance by the Band of the Scots Guard and the Pipes, Drums, Highland Dancers of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion.

Bagpipes, apparently.

The automatic federal spending cuts set to take effect on Friday would pare several Kentucky programs that help families, including a child-care subsidy program that state officials have already cut back, says a state-by-state study from the White House.

Jennifer Lawrence won the Academy Award for Best Actress on Sunday night for her role in Silver Linings Playbook, making her the second-youngest winner in the category and the first Kentucky native to win an acting Oscar since George Clooney in 2006.

Kentucky Auditor Adam Edelen found a dozen issues with the state's cyber security efforts in the 2011-12 fiscal year—and he's vowing to closely monitor the state's measures in that area in the coming months.

The findings were reported in Edelen's statewide audit, in which he gave the state an "unqualified or clean" opinion of the state's finances.

Each week, members of the WFPL News team spotlight interesting stories we've read and enjoyed, for your weekend reading pleasure:

Going into tonight's Academy Awards, Louisville native Jennifer Lawrence is the favorite to win Best Actress—but no shoo-in.

Lawrence, star of Silver Linings Playbook, would become the second-youngest Best Actress winner in history and the win would be another indicator—on top of the $408-million domestic gross for last year's Hunger Games, in which she also starred—that the 22-year-old is among Hollywood's elite.

Little hope remains for staving off drastic cuts a child care subsidy program for low-income, working Kentucky families to pay for child care costs before the first round of cuts go into effect in April.

A new face for Louisville violence prevention efforts, an interview with new Kentucky poet laureate Frank X. Walker and the happenings in the General Assembly are coming up on Byline.

Mayor Greg Fischer recently announced that Anthony Smith will be the city's new safe neighborhoods director. WFPL's Devin Katayama will discuss what this means.

Louisville motorists should be cautious Thursday evening of slick roads as the temperature drops and anticipated rainfall turns into freezing rain, the National Weather Service said.

The most likely times for freezing rain are after the evening commute hours through midnight, after which temperatures are expected to rise above freezing, said Mike Callahan, hydrologist for the National Weather Service in Louisville. 

"I think we'll get through the rush hour OK," Callahan said on Thursday morning.

Just as the deadline for filing new bills was to expire, a bill to amend the Kentucky constitution to allow for casino gambling was introduced Tuesday afternoon in the state House.