Daily Post

Baby Joy at Start of Capital of Culture Year

Ambulance Service Responds to 700 Calls in Six Hours

THE region's ambulance service has reported one of its busiest New Year's Eve nights ever, with more than 700 callouts. Across Cheshire and Merseyside, emergency calls for the entire 24- hour period of December 31 totalled 1,045, according to the North West Ambulance Service.

Police Launch Investigation As Man Shot in Stomach

A MAN was shot in the stomach yesterday in Anfield. The victim was taken to hospital with injuries which are not thought to be life-threatening.

House Prices 'May Fall 7% in 2008'

UP TO pounds 20,000 could be wiped off the average value of a home during the coming months, it was predicted yesterday. House prices could end 2008 10%below the peak they reached in August last year, according to analysts at accountants Grant Thornton.

In Brief: Man Fighting for His Life After Stabbing

A TEENAGER is being questioned by police after a man was stabbed and left fighting for his life. The 19-year-old was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after officers were called to an address in Amlwch, Anglesey, North Wales, at around 1.40am yesterday.

In Brief: Peace Award for Bhutto

In Brief: Murder Charge

Britartist to Light Up Cathedral ; Controversial Emin to Make Neon Work of Art

SHE is more commonly associated with unmade beds, and has been accused by some critics of cynically exploiting the public's darkest levels of voyeurism. But now the controversial and internationally famous "Britartist" Tracey Emin is to take another giant stride towards artistic respectability by bringing a newly-commissioned work to Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral in 2008.

Comic Vows He'll Be Back On Stage Soon After Operation

COMEDIAN Ken Dodd will be back on stage next month after undergoing surgery for a hernia, his agent said last night. Robert Holmes said the operation at the Royal Liverpool Hospital had gone well and there had been no complications.

Former Death Row Man Back Soon

A BRITON who has spent 20 years on Death Row is expected to be released and returned to the UK in a week, his lawyer said last night. Kenny Richey, 43, has agreed a plea deal to let him walk free and come back to Britain.

In Brief: Man Died After Collapse Near Fight Scene

POLICE were yesterday investigating a possible link between a fight outside a central London hotel and the discovery of a man nearby who had collapsed and later died. Officers discovered two men attacking another who was on the ground outside the Park Lane Hotel, in Piccadilly, in the early hours of the morning, the Metropolitan Police said. The two men were arrested and a third was taken to hospital and was later discharged.

In Brief: Fatal Fall From Hotel Balcony

In Brief: Designer Dies

In Brief: Attacker Freed

Newborns Help Proud Parents Mark 2008 ; Babies Welcomed Into the World

EXCITED and tired parents were celebrating the New Year yesterday, as the first babies of 2008 were born into the world. Midwives at Arrowe Park and Liverpool Women's Hospitals were kept busy delivering several new arrivals on January 1.

Baby's Birth a Miracle, Says Proud Father, After Proving the Doctors Wrong

A MAN who was told he would probably never have children after being struck by lightning is now a proud father. Campbell Gillespie, from Prescot, said it was a miracle after Brogan Thomas Alexander was born at 12.23am on New Year's Eve at Liverpool Women's Hospital.

Teenagers Arrested After Car Crash

TWO teenagers are being questioned by police after a stolen car crashed into a roundabout following a high-speed car chase. A patrol car spotted a stolen black Mercedes being driven in Ainsdale after a burglary at a house in the area at about midnight on Sunday.

Arrest After Teen's Death

A FOURTH person was arrested last night in connection with the murder of a 16-year-old student who was attacked as he celebrated the New Year. Bradley Whitfield is thought to have been stabbed with a broken bottle shortly after leaving a party near his home in Leicester in the early hours of yesterday.

Second Suspect Held Over Policewoman's Shooting ; Officer Blasted by Gunman After Pub Raid

DETECTIVES hunting a gunman who shot a policewoman in the leg have made a second arrest, Lancashire police said. The 37-year-old, from the Manchester area, was detained last night on a railway line close to where Ormskirk dog handler PC Katie Johnson, 29, was shot as she responded to a robbery in Bamber Bridge, near Preston.

You May Laugh, but We're Really Just Aping Monkeys

LAUGHTER was not developed first by humans but by our close biological cousins the apes, according to new scientific research. Scientists at the University of Portsmouth have found that orang- utans have a sense of empathy and mimicry which is an essential part of laughter.