DISILLUSIONED by a decade of austerity and inefficiency, Bulgarians flocked to the banner of their former boy king Simeon II yesterday, won over by a promise that he will root out corruption plaguing the country.
Voters effusively compared his gentle demeanour with the arrogance of politicians from both the Left and Right that have ruled since the fall of communism. Todor Glavov, 64, a retired car mechanic, said: "The king is our hope. We've had the others before and they are all liars."
It is a sentiment echoed throughout the working classes in Bulgaria which has seen little economic improvement since it threw off communism more than a decade ago. Unemployment is high and £60 a month counts as a good wage.
Following the fall of the long-ruling dictator Todor Zhivkov in 1989, Bulgarians elected a staunchly anti-Communist government but it was voted out in favour of a Socialist Party when it failed to achieve rapid economic progress.
Under the Socialists, many of whom had surved under Zhikov, the economy worsened, leading to bread queues, an inflation rate of 1,000 per cent and popular unrest. In the past four years, a pro-Western coalition has ruled again but, despite sweeping reforms, many still live on a pittance.
As Simeon campaigned last week, Jordanka Stanoeva, 41, a housewife, watched with her two children. She said: "My husband is a driver but can hardly find work. We live off our savings and can only afford the basics. We have had the Left and Right in power but nothing has changed for the ordinary people. Simeon is the only one who has a grasp of things that matter to us."
Among the professional classes there is more scepticism about the king's rise to power. Rossitsa Vassileva Nozarova, 55, an economist, said: "My whole family was pro-monarchy. But he cannot be good for Bulgaria now. He should have stayed out of politics."
Some scoff at his choice of advisers and candidates, who include a magician, an Olympic athlete and a former beauty queen. Liliana Gigova, 50, a saleswoman, said: "I think he is wise and clever, but look at the people around him. Just as one bird doesn't make spring, one man can't change everything."
Others fear that after four years of unpopular but necessary reform by the Union of Democratic Forces, a new government could squander the benefits in a wave of populist measures.
The Western-oriented President Petar Stoyanov has been especially critical of the king, accusing him of dealing in fairy tales at a time when the country needs firm stewardship.
Despite the accusations levelled at him, the king has remained unruffled, even aloof, on the campaign trail, refusing to engage in political mud-slinging.
Whatever his course, Simeon will be judged harshly if he fails to deliver. Svetalka Petkova, 73, a nurse for 38 years before retiring, receives a pension of £20 a month. She said: "I'm not interested in the king or anyone else. I've made 20 stotinki (6p) for a morning's work.
"You show me who can change that, because what we have today is a crime."
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Poison spiders invade Windsor Castle(Evening Standard)
by Peter Gruner and John Gubba
Windsor Castle was on red alert today after a colony of "mystery" spiders was found living underground.
World renowned entomologist Graham Smith was called in after British Telecom engineers discovered swarms of the giant venomous creatures on underground cables at Windsor Great Park, metres from the Queen Mother's weekend residence Royal Lodge.
Mr Smith, a member of the Project-ARK conservation team with a mission to save endangered species, said the creatures can attack and will not be repelled by conventional means.
He believes the spiders, which have a leg-span of up to 9cm, may be a new species that must be preserved. "It's an extremely exciting find because they are probably a new species or a species that we thought had been extinct in this country for thousands of years," he said.
"Who knows how long these spiders have been in the royal park because they live under-ground. There could be literally thousands and thousands of them. It would be no surprise if they are living underneath Windsor Castle itself."
Mr Smith and fellow experts still need to find out how dangerous the spiders are to humans but great care is being taken not to get bitten.
"The species is certainly venomous and the jaws are strong enough to penetrate human skin," he said.
"It will take a few days before we can work out how dangerous they are."
The alarm was raised when a British Telecom engineer lifted a manhole to carry out maintenance work.
Royal park residents have been warned that the spiders should not be touched.
The creatures discovered so far have large fangs, hairy legs, an aggressive nature and a predominantly rusty red and black colouring.
"We've taken around a dozen samples so that we can make a positive identification and establish whether or not it is a new species. But we don't even know if they're fully grown," Mr Smith said.
"In the meantime, it is no good trying to fumigate the area. All that will do is force them out into a wider area. In any case they will probably be a protected species."
Mr Smith said: "It may take a couple of years to remove the spiders from the network of underground cables."
To track down the spiders in the underground labyrinth of tunnels, the Project-ARK team will use sophisticated electronic mole cameras, a device comparable to the endoscopes used on humans by doctors.
When the spiders are found they can then be enticed and captured, a lengthy process that may require strategic sites to be excavated depending on how far the spiders spread.
The team will spend the next few days observing their behavioural patterns.