THE SPEAKER of the House of Commons, Betty Boothroyd has had a rose named in her honour.
The Madam Speaker, a hybrid tea rose, is described as vigorously healthy, pungent and very resistant to disease. Its petals are deep red, with a creamy yellow border.
Ms Boothroyd conducted the naming ceremony on the private Speaker's Terrace at the Commons.
The rose will be on sale in the UK from autumn 1997.
Princess Diana and the Duchess of York had an ideal opportunity to discuss their respective divorce arrangements at a "secret" lunch together in London. Most of the tabloid papers carried photos of the two, known to be close friends, leaving Marks in Mayfair.
The papers had no details on what the estranged wives of Prince Charles and Prince Andrew actually discussed, but the Sun was able to reveal that their lunch companion was the Hong Kong based tycoon David Tang, a friend of both for several years.
A year after her marriage to former international cricket star Imran Khan of Pakistan, British heiress, Jemima Goldsmith, is three months pregnant.
Jemima (22), daughter of Franco British billionaire James Goldsmith, changed her faith when she married Khan. A spokesman said the child will be raised as a Muslim.
Yoko Ono is enjoying a revival of her reputation and career.
Late last year, the widow of John Lennon released Rising, her first album in 10 years, winning the kind of reviews she never expected and never got before - good ones.
Rising has the same wailing, warbling vocals that have irritated critics since Ono began her recording career after marrying Lennon - a marriage some disgruntled fans claim led to the breakup of the Beatles.