Daily Post

Life in Libya ; Perrott Phillips Visitsa Country Gradually Returning to the Tourist Map

WELCOME to Libya. "First, the bad news", said the ship's officer. "Alcohol is forbidden in Libya, and that includes Libyan waters. So bars will be closed and sealed while we are in port and no alcohol will be served at meals." The crowd of passengers aboard the 24,500-ton Saga Rose looked thunderstruck.

Tales of Stately Home Debauchery ; If These Walls Could Speak, What Tales Would They Tell? Peter Elson Hears About the High-Jinks and Horrors in Britain's Great Houses

WONDERING what stories the rooms in an old house have witnessed is a familiar game of the imagination. The bigger and more important the house the better. Bigger stories, but not necessarily better people, inhabited some of most famous stately homes, as writer Jamie Douglas-Home discovered for his latest book Stately Passions.

Plea of Insanity Saved Double Killer From the Hangman's Noose

ONE of the greatest dramas set in a stately home in modern times occurred in Knowsley Hall, Liverpool. The then Lady Derby was dining alone at about 8.15pm on October 9,1952, in the smoke room at the palatial property when a trainee footman entered with a Sten gun and fired at her, wounding her in the neck. Then there was another burst

2,000 Line City Streets in Rice Visit Protest ; Huge Police Presence Maintains Order

MORE than 2,000 protesters from all over the country converged on Liverpool last night, in a mass demonstration against Condoleezza Rice's visit to the city. Although the tone for one of the city's highest-profile visits in recent years remained largely peaceful - with just two men arrested - huge numbers of police intervened to keep anti-war campaigners well away from the US Secretary of State.

Protests - and a Hug for Dr Rice ; Sam Lister Reports On Condoleezza Rice's Eventful Day Onmerseyside

CONDOLEEZZA RICE'S visit to Liverpool may have been one of the most controversial political tours of the city in its recent history, but she was given a warm welcome by one cultural figure. Dr Rice arrived at the Lipa flanked by bodyguards who inadvertently swept her straight past its founding principal, Mark Featherstone-Witty.

Liverpool Council Leader Hands Over Shopping List of Demands On Iraq, Guantanamo Bay and Climate Change

LIVERPOOL Council leader Warren Bradley, left, seized the opportunity to appeal to Condoleezza Rice for the immediate closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention centre. The Liberal Democrat passed a letter to the US Secretary of State demanding answers on the Iraq war, and asking for assurances that no detainees held by America are subject to torture. He also appealed to the US to address the issue of climate change and sign up to the Kyoto treaty.

No Scouse for Rice, Say City Protesters

MORE than 2,000 anti-war campaigners from all over the country descended on Liverpool last night to protest against Condoleezza Rice's visit. A sea of people carrying placards and banners swarmed around the Philharmonic Hall as the US Secretary of State arrived with Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, at 6.30pm.

Sound and Fury but ; Mike Chapple Describes the Noisiest Night in Liverpool's Recent History

IN ANY context other than an anti-war protest, the object of hostile attention being female and black would have had the moral censors reaching for the crucifixes and holy water in a PC equivalent of a Catholic exorcism. And talking of Catholicism, the last time the city was subjected to such a high security "ring of steel" was the visit of Pope John Paul II in May, 24 years ago.

The Many Faces of Condoleezza. Her Views On Violence, Terror and Making It Big in America ; Condoleezza Rice in the Nw a Dignified Demonstration

Racism "They [her parents] had to explain why I could not have a hamburger in a restaurant but I could be president anyway." - October 2001

In Brief: Strike by Meat Inspectors Off

In Brief: 'Rape Attempt' Victim, 101

In Brief: Dance Peril

In Brief: Not so Scatty

In Brief: Licence Move

Can There Be a Stronger Case for Cash?

IT SEEMS that scarcely a day slips by without another overwhelming need emerging for funding from the increasingly hard- pressed resources of the NHS. Yet it would take the hardest of hearts not to warm to the case for providing some level of official financial support for organisations like the Claire House children's hospice.

Taste for Canned Drinks Causes Raider's Downfall

AN ARMED raider was caught after he left soft drinks covered in DNA at the scene of his crimes. Zach Mortimer escaped with almost pounds 100,000 after holding up security guards outside businesses and post offices. But the 25- year-old discarded cans in getaway cars.

Accrington Who? Now They're No Laughing Stock

IT WAS the TV advert featuring two little Liverpudlians that made the nation laugh and turned a football club into something of a laughing stock. Now soccer manager John Coleman is having the last laugh as he stands on the threshold of a dream fulfilled by taking Accrington Stanley back into the Football League, 44 years after being relegated into non-league wilderness.

Judge Delays Verdict On Dyslexic's Pounds 500,000 Claim

A JUDGE has delayed his ruling on the case of a dyslexic 28-year- old who says he is a victim of "educational negligence", partly on Merseyside, and is suing for pounds 500,000. Judge Richard Seymour, QC, was expected to give a decision in Richard Smith's case yesterday but has opted to reserve judgment until a later, unspecified date. Mr Smith says teaching failures during his education in Knowsley and Portsmouth to spot and deal with his severe dyslexia have left him with the literacy skill...

Palmistry Case Dropped in Court

A COUNCIL dropped its legal case yesterday against a palm reader who allegedly claimed he could reunite a woman with her ex- boyfriend using voodoo dolls. Naseem Mohammed, 42, an Indian palmist, was charged with seven counts of deception and one count of recklessly making a false statement to Jasuir Mahill, of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs.

Power to the People

KNOWSLEY residents will have a say in where money from a cash pot will go to try to transform some of the borough's most deprived areas. Under new plans announced yesterday, hundreds of thousands of pounds will be passed down to residents and councillors with detailed knowledge of places like Huyton and Kirkby.