Lord Snowdon (68), the former husband of Princess Margaret, has become a father, according to newspaper reports. Melanie Cable-Alexander (34) gave birth to a son on April 30th after a year-long relationship with the former Anthony Armstrong-Jones, according to the Mirror. The boy - Jasper William Oliver - was born a month before Snowdon and second wife Lucy (57) announced their separation after an 18-year marriage.
A family friend told the Mirror that Snowdon did not want to talk about the "extraordinarily sensitive story" in public. "He would not like people to think he is overjoyed by what has happened," he said.
"But he is doing the decent thing by taking an interest in Melanie and Jasper's welfare. He will be taking his obligations as a father seriously."
Before Lucy, Snowdon married Princess Margaret in 1960, and they divorced in 1978.
Czech President Vaclav Havel (61) is in stable condition with no complications following intestinal surgery on Sunday, his office said yesterday.
Zbigniew Herbert, one of Poland's most prominent post-second World War poets, died in Warsaw yesterday. He was aged 73. Herbert's poetry, in which opposition to totalitarianism combined with admiration for the civilising values of the ancient Greeks and Romans, encouraged opposition activists before the fall of the old regime in 1989.
Hollywood Oscar winner Sean Connery is to sell his Spanish home near Marbella and estate agents said yesterday it could fetch $9 million.
The actor famed for his suave portrayal of James Bond has spent up to four months of the year at the beach-fronted house. The decision to sell was due to Connery's increasing work commitments in Britain and the US, his estate agents said.