Mingle with the 400 athletes from 45 nations assembled in Manchester this weekend for the Paralympic World Cup and you will be uplifted by scores of heart-warming stories of courage and high achievement born out of adversity, not least that of the paraplegic padre.

A chronic lack of funding and an inadequate legal system is leading to a crisis in care for rape victims in Britain, campaigners said yesterday. They accused the Government of "failing to provide the support women want and need" in the aftermath of traumatic sexual abuse.

Sally FitzHarris's son was told he'd never use his legs again after an accident. But he refused to give up – and what happened next was little short of miraculous

Many of us worry about the future of the planet. It's both fashionable and cathartic. We can assuage our guilt over the fact that, say, the "carbon footprint" from our holiday to the Maldives has upped the official Dead Polar Bear Index by an additional 2.4, or that, thanks to our purchase of a mahogany nut bowl, the Amazonian Nukak tribe has just been wiped out, by recycling bean cans and paying £10 to adopt a stag beetle.

Primrose Hill's L'Absinthe is teaching flexible locals the French bistro method of beating stress

The mother of all plays – in a modern style

I have been diagnosed with an underactive thyroid gland, and now have to take thyroxine tablets every day. I was started on a low dose, and this has gradually been increased because blood tests still show my levels to be low. The starting dose was 50mcg a day, and I am now up to 300mcg a day. Is there a maximum dose that is safe? And could I take a dose as high as 400mcg a day, if it were necessary?

Inflation posted its biggest monthly jump for five years in April, according to official figures yesterday that reinforced forecasts that interest rates are likely to rise.

On Wednesday, a mentally ill remand prisoner, Victoria Robinson, hanged herself with a towel. She'd been imprisoned, awaiting trial, on charges of making threats to kill. It might appear obvious that a psychiatric ward was more appropriate for this woman than a prison. But even within HMP New Hall, West Yorkshire, the pleas of her solicitor for admittance to the hospital wing were refused. She is the fourth woman to have died at New Hall in the past year, and the 14th to have committed suicide in custody since January 2004.

The crisis at Marks & Spencer claimed a string of top management jobs today as the embattled retailer revealed trading had become even more difficult.

THE PRIME Minister has said he is determined that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will be reformed, saying that victims and witnesses in the criminal justice system are being treated unfairly.

ROBERT HOBSON was a creative and talented psychiatrist and psychotherapist whose work has had an enormous impact on clinical practice, training and research. He had a particular gift for bringing together diverse strands of his personal experience, wide reading, and a challenging professional life. Much of his personal biography was directly reflected in his work, via anecdotes, identifications, and enthusiasms.

You've found a lump. Do you wait for ever to see your GP - or do you surf the Internet? Your life is in your hands.

For disabled children, gardens are not just pretty, they are places where senses and skills can blossom. By Sally Ballard