Briton is stabbed at Radio One party in Cyprus

A British man was seriously ill in a Cyprus hospital yesterday after being stabbed several times during a brawl at a Radio 1 beach party in the popular resort of Ayia Napa.

A British man was seriously ill in a Cyprus hospital yesterday after being stabbed several times during a brawl at a Radio 1 beach party in the popular resort of Ayia Napa.

Police are hunting three British male tourists following the attack on Andrew Delarno Gray, 35, on Saturday evening. The party was part of a three-day roadshow organised by BBC Radio 1.

The mood is said to have turned nasty at about 6pm when two groups of men started fighting, and, according to Nicosia police, Mr Gray was then stabbed several times. He is still too ill to talk to police.

Inspector Andreas Koutsoftis said: "The suspects are unknown but witnesses at the party said they saw them together where Mr Gray was stabbed. We do not know if they are still on the island but we are looking for them. The victim is black and the three men we are looking for are also black. He was injured in many places. He was stabbed many many times."

A Radio 1 spokesman said the stabbing occurred away from the party and said: "We are doing all we can to assist the police and authorities in this very tragic incident."

Mr Gray is being treated at the Lito clinic in Paralimni, near Ayia Napa. A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that a Britishnational was involved in a stabbing incident in Cyprus last night. His condition is serious but stable. The Foreign Office is in contact with the family." It is not known where the family are from.

The garage scene, which originated in pubs and clubs in south London, is hugely popular in Ayia Napa which is regarded as the number one garage music resort in Europe. Saturday's event was hosted by the BBC's R&B chart DJ Trevor Nelson and featured the UK garage bands Damage and Slum Village.

The incident is the latest of a string of violent incidents involving young Britons in Ayia Napa. They have often involved off-duty British soldiers attached to the United Nations' presence on the island. The most infamous case was the killing of Danish tour guide Louise Jensen, 23, in 1994 by three Royal Greenjackets. Ten days ago, a 27-year-old from Coventry died hours after being arrested following an incident in which he tried to jump naked from a guesthouse balcony.