New research published by The University of Hertfordshire, a fine institute of higher learning, reports that the month of your birth dictates your fortune in later life.

The study, which surveyed 3,000 citizens of Edinburgh, concluded that those born in May will experience the greatest amount of luck, while those born in November will be the least fortunate.

Being born on April 23, I am happy that my birthday is sufficiently close to be included amongst the lucky ones.

Let us look at this in real terms. Being born in May is lucky, not because of astrological alignments or black magic, but because your birthday is a sufficient distance from Christmas to ensure that you get good presents and, on occasions, have a celebratory pint (or more) in the sun.

In Contrast, November Birthdays are too close to the day of our saviour’s birth and pub garden's are usually closed, unless there is enough snow on the ground to build a decent snow man.

Australian religious groups have translated the New Testament into text message format in an attempt to make Christianity more appealing to the young, reports the BBC Focus website.

The text messages, which encompass each of the 30,000 + verses of the New Testament, have been produced by the Bible Society of Australia.

The New Textament begins as follows:” In da Bginnin God cre8d da heavens & da earth. What a fantastic way to address falling standards of literacy and problems of anti-social behaviour. This is not only devaluing the Christian faith but also the English language.

What is next? Will Tony Blair catch on and introduce ‘drive-through’ prisons in order to address the problems of overcrowding?

Yesterday we welcomed the editor of BBC Wales online, Amanda Powell, to our fine institution of higher learning. I wore a clean shirt, sat up straight and listened with the enthusiasm of a boy scout making his first camp fire. It can only be a matter of time before the job offer arrives.

Saddam Hussein has pleaded not guilty during his first appearance in a Baghdad court-room.

Firstly is he related to his former Communications Director who denied that American troops had entered Baghdad, at the very time they had stormed the Iraqi capital and were all around him.

Secondly, how will they find 12 jury members who have never heard of him? I can't imagine.

Bird Flu is in Europe, and I don’t mean the kind where your lady friend sends you off to a 24-hour chemist at two in the morning. This is serious stuff, and it could affect all of us.

Bird Flu has been a global threat for months, but it was not until cases were unearthed in Romania on Friday that the main-stream media promoted the story to the front 10 pages of our papers.

Why has the media been so reactionary I am forced to ask? Experts have warned that we were not ready, and so it has proved. One can only envy the company who own the vaccine patent. Seek them out and buy some shares.