PORTRAIT OF THE WEEK
The number of governments forbidding their countries' athletes from competing in the Commonwealth Games rose to 30, including those of India, Zambia, Zim- babwe, Guyana and the Seychelles, but not Botswana. The Sunday Times reported that the Queen is dismayed by Mrs Thatch- er's uncaring and divisive approach to problems, including the Commonwealth. Some Tory MPs demanded the dismissal of whichever of the Queen's advisers had betrayed her trust by making her supposed views public. Others, described as 'gran- dees', were said to be using the Queen to get at Mrs Thatcher, or at least to be enjoying the Prime Minister's discomfi- ture. Sir Geoffrey Howe said that 'further measures' might be necessary if his mission to southern Africa did not produce 'sub- stantial progress', and flew to Johannes- burg. Mr Botha unveiled the Cheetah, a South African fighter which is a modified version of the French Mirage 111, and told the world: 'We are not a nation of jelly- fish.' The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Shi- mon Peres, flew to Morocco to talk to King Hassan. The US Senate approved a treaty with Great Britain which will make it easier to extradite IRA terrorists. It was rumoured that up to 40 RUC men would face disciplinary or criminal charges as a result of the Stalker report. In north Belfast three Roman Catholics were mur- dered within the space of 11 days by the `Protestant Action Force'. Lord Boothby and Sir Stanley Rous died natural deaths, Lord Crawshaw while preparing for a parliamentary regatta held in aid of St Margaret's, Westminster. Mr James Cal- laghan fell into the Thames but lives. Prince Andrew was created Duke of York. He and Miss Sarah Ferguson were married by the Archbishop of Canterbury in West- minster Abbey.
THE Government was defeated by 44 votes when the Commons decided to in- crease MPs' secretarial allowances to £20,140, instead of the £14,004 proposed by the Leader of the House, Mr John Biffen. The House also decided by one vote to ban corporal punishment in schools, but Tory supporters of caning complained that a dozen MPs had been unable to vote, being held up in chaotic traffic caused by the royal wedding. The Labour Party held Newcastle-under-Lyme by only 799 votes at a by-election. The Liberals came second and were accused of underhand tactics, the Tories came a poor third. Mr Roy Hattersley, shadow Chan- cellor of the Exchequer, announced plans to tax the rich more heavily. Shares and the pound fell because of doubts in the City about the Government's electoral pros- pects. A robot camera explored the wreck of the Titanic, directed by three Americans from a small submarine, and found an intact chandelier. Philip Larkin's will was published: it stated that his unpublished work should be 'destroyed unread'. Frank Bruno lost his fight against the world heavyweight boxing champion, Tim With- erspoon. The Cobham Wood Hermit said he would resist attempts by Rochester council to destroy his hut, which is on land belonging to him. In Semarang, Indonesia, a student called Sunardi stood still for 15 hours and 25 seconds, wresting the world record from Nugent, an Englishman who had stood still for 13 hours. AJSG
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