Hammersmith and Fulham council is offering French for Sailors, a short course which includes weather forecasts, tidal terms and berthing. Call 081-846 9090 for details.

JOHN PATTEN, Secretary of State for Education, yesterday claimed he was pushed, shoved and struck with a placard as demonstrators screamed abuse outside a meeting of local Tories in west London.

The Lyric Hammersmith - the two words belong together, as much as the National Theatre or the Chichester Festival. If the Lyric in west London succumbs to the current threat of closure, the burghers of Hammersmith face the ignominy of being forever identified in public consciousness with Hammersmith Bridge, or the Hammersmith Flyover, becoming 'the place everyone just passed straight through' (unless they were headed for the Hammersmith Apollo).

DETECTIVES investigating the death of Stephen Milligan, the Conservative MP, still have a number of people to interview before they can be certain about the circumstances in which he died, an inquest was told yesterday.

Neil Bartlett: I wanted to run the Lyric because I've spent 10 years working on the road, from derelict warehouses to the National Theatre. And the thing I've learnt most of all is that a good night out in the theatre is not a hit-and-run business. There's too much starting from scratch in theatre and, in the end, people don't go and see shows, they go to buildings. That's the kind of ongoing relationship I want with my audience.

A TEENAGER who murdered a stranger for 26p during a robbery in a newspaper shop was yesterday ordered to be detained during Her Majesty's pleasure.

A TEENAGER was found guilty yesterday of the 'cold-blooded' murder of a man he robbed of 26p.

Remembering that London's winter light levels are sometimes only 10 per cent of summer brightness, it is not surprising that you often have a dull feeling arriving along the M4 from Heathrow. But this is exacerbated by the extraordinarily drab, dull brown architecture shadowing the route into the City. I'm referring to Hammersmith, of course. It's not just the dreary design of the buildings - it's the lack of quality human spaces at ground level and lack of good landscaping on the route.

A FATHER turned over his 16-year-old son to the police for a 'deliberate, cold-blooded murder', an Old Bailey jury was told yesterday, writes Nick Walker.

(First Edition)

SIX POLICE officers were injured last night when a 700-strong crowd that had gathered outside a London concert venue went on the rampage.

BRITAIN'S David Maugham and Reg Bamford, of South Africa, will contest the final of the British Open at the Hurlingham Club, London after they both overcame the disadvantage of being one game down in their respective semi-finals.

The British Open championships is the most prestigious event in the domestic calendar and stand second to the World Championships on a global scale. On Sunday, the doubles competition opens the week-long event in the peaceful surroundings of Hurlingham House in south-west London, though the ploys and tactics on court will be a different matter. The singles championship starts on Monday and the finals will be held next weekend. Robert Fulford, from Colchester, is the Open and World champion and such pedigree instals him as favourite, but opposing Fulford is the Great Britain captain and three-times winner of the Open, David Openshaw. However, Openshaw's last-minute entry means he is unseeded and has to play every round, a challenge which should spur him on to at least the semi-finals.

TWO LONDON health authorities were criticised by the High Court yesterday for breaching their statutory responsibilities in failing to enter consultation procedures over the closure of a pioneering bone marrow transplant unit.