Lenny Lottery loses the suit off his back

Lenny Lottery, the Mirror's new Lottery correspondent, who defected from the Sun a week ago, was last night ordered by a High Court judge to hand back his lucky trade-mark suit and tie to his former newspaper.

Mr Lottery, who changed his name from Aiden McGurran by deed poll in 1994, was not in court to witness the unceremonious surrender of the hotly disputed garment.

Mr Justice Neuberger saw lawyers for the Mirror drag the crumpled white suit, decorated with numbered red lottery balls, out of a holdall and pass it over to the Sun's jubilant legal team.

While the bizarre event unfolded, rival teams of scantily clad models from the two tabloid newspapers paraded outside London's Law Courts.

Although the Lenny Lottery lawsuit had its lighter moments, it was not all joviality. Behind the farce were serious issues of intellectual property rights.

Following Mr Lottery's defection, the Sun had asked for the suit back, without success, leaving its new lottery game promoter Sir Lenny Lottery - reporter Brian Flynn - with nothing to wear but a Sun T-shirt or appearing in the paper with his head superimposed on the suited figure of his predecessor.

The judge had heard that Mr Flynn also recently changed his name to Lenny Lottery by deed poll, although he had sensibly not officially attempted to include the title "Sir" - which would be against the law.

Meanwhile, the Mirror flaunted the original Lenny and his white suit.

Now, the Sun's Sir Lenny can be suitably clothed - no doubt to the delight of his "bosom companion", Lady Lucinda Lottery.

Mr Justice Neuberger observed: "It seems to me that the Mirror will now have to have a Lord Lottery."

The Mirror's QC, Richard Spearman, was quick to dispel any such thought. "We are a working people's newspaper, m'lud, and the name Lenny will do for us."