THE WEEK ROUNDING UP ALL THE NEWS

0 Comments | Sunday Herald, The, Feb 24, 2008

MONDAY It was revealed that Jude Law, Johnny Depp and Colin Farrell will assume the role played by Heath Ledger up until his accidental death on January 22, in unfinished film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. The process of painting the Forth Rail Bridge is finally set to end in four years' time, it was announced. Mohamed Al Fayed claimed that Princess Diana and his son Dodi were murdered at an inquest into their 1997 car crash in Paris. The US Department of Agriculture ordered the recall of 64.9 million kg of beef - the largest meat recall in the country's history. It came from a California company, which officials said allowed meat from cattle unable to stand at the time of slaughter to enter the food chain. A 70-million-year-old fossil of a giant frog was unearthed in Madagascar. UK and US researchers said the creature would have been the size of a "squashed beach ball" and weighed about 4kg.

TUESDAY BBC Radio 1 DJ Grooverider was jailed for four years in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for cannabis possession. He was arrested in November 2007 after flying into the country for a gig with 2.16g of cannabis in his luggage. Cuban leader Fidel Castro announced that he will not accept another term as president, ending the communist revolutionary's 49 years in power. The wife of Tommy Sheridan was charged over claims of perjury during the former MSP's defamation case against the News of the World. Gail Sheridan and her father Angus Healy, 71, were questioned at Gayfield police station in Edinburgh. It was announced that a new "superhospital" on the site of Glasgow's Southern General could cost the taxpayer GBP842 million. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde recommended public funding over private in its case to the Scottish government.

WEDNESDAY Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said he has no plans to resign, despite a sweeping victory by the opposition in the country's parliamentary elections. Health secretary Alan Johnson said he wants to see doctors take a lead in tackling the sick-note culture. He urged GPs to issue "well notes" setting out what tasks a worker can perform instead of certificates which sign them off. Kate Nash, main picture, won the Best British Female award at the Brits, while Mark Ronson won Best Male. A compulsive gambler who lost more than GBP2m began legal action against bookmaker William Hill. Greyhound trainer Graham Calvert, 28, from Houghton-le-Spring, near Sunderland, claims the company failed in their "duty of care". Asda's chief executive said the supermarket is to embark on large- scale expansion plans this year and will create 9000 new jobs and open 22 stores. Celtic lost 3-2 to Barcelona in the Champions League.

THURSDAY Jeremy Paxman, right, was named presenter of the year at the Royal Television Society's awards for journalism. Several hundred Serbian protesters attacked the embassy of the US and other nations in Belgrade, in anger at Western support for Kosovo's independence. Protesters broke into the US compound and briefly set part of the embassy alight. Steve Wright was found guilty of murdering five women in Ipswich. The bodies of Gemma Adams, Tania Nicol, Anneli Alderton, Paula Clennell and Annette Nicholls were found over a 10-day period in December 2006. Plans to move flight paths in and out of major British airports away from builtup areas were launched by National Air Traffic Services. Rangers drew 1-1 with Greek side Panathinaikos and Aberdeen lost 5-1 to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup.

FRIDAY Pop star and actress Jennifer Lopez became a mother for the first time after giving birth to twins. A 16-year-old Argentine girl gave birth to female triplets - for the second time. The girl, named only as Pamela, had her first set aged 15, having given birth to a son when she was just 14. Veteran entertainer Bruce Forsyth said he has no plans to retire as he celebrated his 80th birthday. British troops executed as many as 20 Iraqi prisoners after a gun battle in May 2004, lawyers claim. The UK's inaugural slacklining competition in Fort William was forced indoors due to bad weather. Microsoft warned Windows Vista users that a forthcoming service pack for the operating system may stop some third-party programs working. Turkey's army said its ground offensive in northern Iraq left five soldiers and dozens of Kurdish rebels dead.

SATURDAY An exhibition of pop singer Kylie Minogue's costumes helped Glasgow's flagship museum notch up one million more visitors than Edinburgh Castle last year, new figures revealed. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum attracted 2,232,475 people in its first full year since a multi-million pound refurbishment. Tate & Lyle white cane sugar is to be Fairtrade accredited, it was announced on the eve of Fairtrade Fortnight, making it the biggest UK firm to carry the label. The brand says it expects its entire range to follow by the end of 2009. Leaflets appealing for information about Shannon Matthews were distributed at a football match as the search for the missing nine-year-old continued. The West Yorkshire schoolgirl failed to return home from a swimming trip on Tuesday afternoon. Former No 10 spin doctor Alastair Campbell has struck a deal to publish his first novel in November, it emerged. Titled All in the Mind, the plot is based on a psychiatrist.