Sunglasses wearer of the year

LONDON: Hiding behind shades got Princess Diana a place in the sun on Wednesday — along with fellow celebrity — shy celebrities Elizabeth Hurley, Michael Jackson and Imran Khan, reports AP.

A bevy of British fashion editors named Diana, shy of paparazzi since the collapse of her marriage to Prince Charles over two years ago. Sunglasses Wearer of the year.

Jackson, who has dodged the media ever since allegations of child molestation surfaced last year, was number two on the list

Elizabeth Hurley, who went underground last week after boyfriend Hugh Grant was caught on Sunset Boulevard in a BMW with a streetwalker, came in tliird.

Pakistani cricketer Imran Khan, who is doing his best to keep his recent marriage to British Ixiress Jemima Goldsmith out of the public eye, bowled eighth.

Others among the top ten included tennis star Andre Agassi (4) and supermodel EUe McPherson (9).

For those times she's ready to face the glare, Diana wins a 3,000-pound (4.800 dollars) glasses case hide the shades. She also wins a thousand pound J.(>00 dollars gift voucher at a Bond Street optician and a thousand pounds goes to the charity of her choice.

The other nine get 500-pound vouchers at the opticians — for those rare wiixkiw-shopping expeditions.

“No-win, no-fee"

LONDON: A firm of British lawyers took a big step towards US-style jurisprudence Wednesday by accepting a case under new regulations on a "no-win, no-fee" basis, reports Reuter.

In a clear break with British legal tradition, which prides itself a dignified and low-key’ approach, the firm of Shoosmiths and Harrison said it signed a coatract with a personal injury client as soon as the new rules went into force.

Tlx client. Mike Brown, is suing a company that organised and activity course on whkh he suffered a serious ankle injury in 1993-

If the suit succeeds. Shoosmiths will charge a success fee based on its costs. If it fails, an insurance fund will pay the court costs. This is slightly different from the US system in which lawyers take a percentage of damages awarded.

The new British regulations are at present restricted to personal injury , bankruptcy and European human rights cases. Critics of the new system fear lawyers will Like on only cases they are sure they will win and rake in double the fees.

Wife is better than nurse

LONDON: Wlxel chair-bound genius Stephen Hawking, who explained the mysteries of the universe in his bestselling book "A Brief History of Tune, is to marry a nurse hired by his former wife to help him deal with his crippling motor neurone disease, reports AFP.

The Daily Telegraph said Thursday the 53-yearold Cambridge University scientist will mam Elaiix Masson at Cambridge Register office on September 16.

Hawking divorced his former wife. Medieval Linguist Jane Hawking, four years ago after 26 years of marriage aixl three children to lire with Masson.

It was she who originally hired the nurse to help him, she told The Telegraph she kix-w nothing of her ex-husband's plans.

It's ok, if there is love

LANSING. Michigan: A tliird of the nation s voters believe that two people of the same sex should be able to get married if they love each other, a new poll showed Wednesday, reports AP.

The poll found 33 per cent believed same-sex marriages should be allowed. while 63 per cent disagreed. EPIC-MRA-Mitchell Research said. Four per cent were undecided.

Kobin Kane, a spokeswoman for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, found the 33 per cent figure encouraging, even though gay marriages are banned in eveay state.->

However. Glenn Clark, executive director of the Mkhigan Christian Coalition. said allowing the marriages would be "just another step toward erodtag the moral fiber of our nation. "

EP1C-.MR.A founder Ed Sarpoius said he expected the question on same-sex marriages would get only single-digit support because voters are becoming more conservative.

A ounger voters, those with higher incomes and those with more education were mon likely to say such marriages sixiuld be allowed, he said.

Jeffrey Nonlgomery. president of the Detroit Triangle Foundation, said the higher percentages fix y ounger people showed a cultural shift, due in part to the media.

Good news for animals

LA CHAUX-DE-FONDS, Switzerland: A man who abandoned his dog in a forest here after it chewed up his computer was given a suspended 9Oday jail sentence, justice sources said Wednesday. reports AFP.

The 24-year-old man said during his trial that the appettzeller, named Desiree. had chew ed his computer in November. Furious at the damage, he tied the animal to a tree in a forest north of this town in ixirthwest Switzerland.

Desiree was discovered by walker several days later "in agony, completely dehydrated and overcome with cold." said Charles Guggisbeg, had of the Animal Protection Society (SPA) which took in the pet, in the Daily Le Matin ixwspaper

"It is still affected by the trauma of its ordeal and we had to put it in a shelter, he said.

The SPA has announced it will protest the leniency of the sentence.