Edwin Morgan, one of Scotland's best known
and most prolific poets, has been awarded the
prestigious Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry.
Mr Morgan, who is 80 later this week, is
Glasgow's poet laureate and a former professor
of English at Glasgow University.
The Gold Medal was
set up by George V in
1933 and previous
recipients include Ted
Hughes, Philip Larkin,
John Betjeman,
Siegfried Sassoon and
WH Auden.
It is awarded on the
recommendation of a
committee chaired by
the Poet Laureate,
Andrew Motion.
He said: "The Queen's Medal for Poetry is a
golden opportunity to give honour where it is
deserved, to praise a valuable body of work
and to mark the fact that one individual's
passion for poetry has enriched and inspired
the lives of others."
Wide focus
Professor Morgan said he was delighted at the
prize which recognises his lifetime's work.
He said his work had not always attracted the
limelight across the border.
He said: "It may be that the English critics
don't always keep their eye on what's
happening in Scotland.
"It's possibly that they quite find me quite
difficult to pin me down exactly, to put me in a
category.
"I write many different kinds of poems. I write
in different styles, so it is not so easy to see
me in focus if you like, in the way that you
might perhaps see someone like Seamus
Heaney."
~*~
Jordan's king visits
Israel(BBC News)
By Barbara Plett in Amman
Jordan's King Abdullah is making his first visit to
Israel since coming to power just over a year
ago.
The young monarch doesn't have the warm
relationship with Israeli leaders that
distinguished his father, the late King Hussein.
But he is committed to the Middle East peace
process and closely following Israeli-Palestinian
final status talks, which will directly affect
Jordan.
Peace process
King Abdullah has travelled all over the world
during the past year. But this is the first time
he is visiting his Jewish neighbour.
A scheduled trip in February was postponed
because of tension over Israel's attacks on
Lebanon.
The king's restraint has been appreciated by
his people, who feel they haven't benefited
much from peace and were uncomfortable with
his father's close ties to Israel.
But there is no question that the young
monarch strongly supports the peace process,
and the topic is expected to be high on the
agenda.
Refugee issue
King Abdullah will want an update on last
month's Israeli-Syria summit, and especially on
Israel's final status negotiations with the
Palestinians.
Amman has direct interest in these talks
because they are supposed to determine the
fate of Palestinian refugees.
Jordan has the highest number of displaced
Palestinians in the world and they are
demanding the right of return.
The king supports their claim, but the Israeli
response so far hasn't been encouraging, and
few here expect Palestinians in Jordan to be
satisfied with the outcome.
Analysts say the king may have tried to
pre-empt opposition to the final deal by
shutting down the Amman offices of the
Palestinian resistance group, Hamas.
It was a radical departure from the policy of
his father and welcomed by Israel and the
United States.
But observers note with dismay that the
youthful monarch doesn't yet carry the weight
of the late King Hussein.
They say Jordan is being sidelined in the peace
process at the very moment it matters most.
~*~
Charles rallies to veterans
over Falklands trauma (UK Times)
Christopher Morgan
THE Prince of Wales has privately criticised the senior
officers of the Welsh Guards, of which he is the colonel, and
Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials for failing to tackle
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within the regiment.
Forty former Welsh Guardsmen who served in the Falklands
war are among 280 veterans suing the MoD over PTSD in
one of the largest group actions ever brought against the
British military.
Charles summoned experts in the field of PTSD - a disabling
mental condition associated with combat - to a special
summit at his country home, Highgrove, in February. Those
invited included representatives from the Welsh Guards, the
MoD, the Royal British Legion and Sama 82, the Falklands'
veterans association.
The prince asked whether PTSD was a problem in the
Welsh Guards. According to one source, he was told it was
not a particular problem: "When he learnt this was not the
case - that some veterans were preparing to sue - he was
furious at having the wool pulled over his eyes."
Sources confirm there is "strain" between the Welsh Guards
and Charles, but say the prince feels his power to act is
constrained. In recent weeks, it is understood, Charles has
decided to "back off" the issue because he does not want to
be seen to be interfering in what is likely to be a controversial
court case.
The prince gave a reception for Sama at Highgrove in July.
Chris Pretty, chairman-designate of Sama, said: "Charles has
given personal support to some PTSD veterans. But he has
to tread carefully."
Surgeon Captain Rick Jolly, chief medical officer in the
Falklands and chairman of the Falklands veterans'
association, was at the February meeting. Last night he
refused to comment on it but said: "The Prince of Wales has
taken a close interest in the continuing care of servicemen
who have been discharged for psychiatric reasons. I do not
know whether he is angry with the Welsh Guards."
The 40 Welsh Guardsmen suing the MoD are survivors of
the Argentine attack on the Sir Galahad, the Royal Fleet
Auxiliary landing ship that was bombed at Bluff Cove during
the Falklands war. Almost 50 men aboard the ship died.
Many survivors suffer what they say are PTSD symptoms
which have left them unable to concentrate, socialise or hold
down jobs.
The former soldiers say more should have been done to
diagnose and treat the mental injuries they suffered. The
MoD says PTSD was only fully recognised in 1980 and
treatment was "in line with contemporary best practice".
~*~
World's First Stamp To Be Recreated(Yahoo:PA)
The world's first postage stamp is to be recreated using the original printing press to coincide with a
major international exhibition in London.
The Royal Mail will print reproduction Penny Blacks 160 years after the stamp was first issued on May
6 1840.
The printing will take place during The Stamp Show 2000 next month and will make use of the Perkins,
Bacon printing press loaned by the British Library Philatelic Collections.
The Royal Mail says the printing process will use the original Victorian printing method and would be "extremely slow", with
only 10 sheets printed a day - and a maximum of 70 sheets produced during the show.
David Beech, curator and head of the British Library Philatelic Collections, said the historic press was given to the British
Library in 1963.
It has been lent before, he said, most recently for the international stamp exhibition, Stamp World London 90, but has not been
used.
Peter Jennings, fellow of the Royal Philatelic Society, said: "This Penny Black reproduction is surely the ultimate philatelic
souvenir for collectors and non-collectors alike.
"It's a great introduction to the absorbing and stimulating hobby of stamp collecting."
A £5 presentation pack containing a block of four of the Penny Black reproductions will be on sale from the Royal Mail
Collectibles stand at the show at Earls Court on May 22-28.