UK's week in pictures: police to investigate 'partygate', Assange appeal, and Banksy

'The National' selects the most striking photos from across Britain over the past week

Stella Moris, wife of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, addresses the media outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London, on Monday. The High Court ruled Assange can seek permission from the Supreme Court to appeal against his extradition to the US. Getty Images

Environmental activists dressed as a white elephant protest outside the Curzon Street Station site in Birmingham on Monday, as part of a national day of action against the HS2 high-speed railway. PA

A Household Cavalry horse rears up outside Horse Guards Arch in London, on Monday. Reuters

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick appears before the London Assembly's police and crime committee on Tuesday. She announced an investigation into a 'number of events' in Downing Street and Whitehall in relation to potential beaches of coronavirus laws. PA

A man views Francis Bacon's last work, 'Study of a Bull', on Tuesday. It is part of the Francis Bacon: Man and Beast exhibition at the the Royal Academy of Arts in London. PA

Stonemason Gregor Przeklasa unveils an 124-year-old statue of poet Robert Burns at a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the return of its home on Baltic Street in Leith, Edinburgh. The statue was removed in 2019 as part of Edinburgh's tram works. PA

Dancers take to the restored Blackpool Tower Ballroom dance floor on Tuesday, after restoration work on the famous sprung wooden floor. Getty Images

Clare Brown, curator of natural science, moves a 150-year-old Indian elephant skull, one of more than a million objects at the Leeds Discovery Centre, as the museum storage and conservation facility prepares to reopen its store room for public visits on Tuesday. PA

Protesters gather in Parliament Square, London, on Wednesday. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to face further questions over a police investigation into 'partygate', as the government braces for the submission of a report by a leading civil servant into possible lockdown breaches. PA

Boris Johnson visits Hanson Aggregates sand and gravel producer at Penmaenmawr, North Wales, on Thursday. Reuters

On Thursday 'Merrivale Model Village' by artist Banksy sold for £800,000 at the Anderson & Garland Auctioneers in Newcastle. Reuters

A rare six-week-old southern white rhino calf called Zawadi explores her paddock for the first time on Thursday, at Africa Alive! in Lowestoft. She is part of the European breeding programme for the species. PA

Workers unload a statue of Morph, one of 20 sculptures of children's TV characters, in Whitley Bay on Thursday, ahead of the launch of 'Morph's Epic Art Adventure' sculpture trail. PA

The Siberian Husky Club of Great Britain held its 38th Aviemore Sled Dog Rally on Thursday in Feshiebridge, Scotland, after a year out due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Getty Images

Europe's oldest surgical theatre celebrated it's 200th anniversary on Thursday. The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret, in the attic of St Thomas' Church in London, is in the surviving building of the original St Thomas' Hospital. Getty Images

An early morning jogger passes the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in Westminster, London, on Friday. The building was lit up purple overnight to mark Holocaust Memorial Day. PA

A group practises yoga as the sun rises near Fordingbridge in the New Forest, Hampshire. PA

This week, Cressida Dick, the Metropolitan Police’s Commissioner, announced a criminal investigation into allegations of parties in Downing Street during lockdown, heaping more pressure on British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange won the right to appeal to the UK’s highest court in a final attempt to avoid extradition to the US, and Banksy artwork 'Merrivale Model Village' sold for £800,000.