Catch up on the week

After winning an election in which he was the only candidate, Robert Mugabe was sworn in as president of Zimbabwe.

SUNDAY
His challenger, Morgan Tsvangirai, was forced to drop out after his supporters were attacked and murdered.

MONDAY
Luxury knitwear firm Pringle, above, announced plans to close its manufacturing site in the Scottish Borders. That part of production is to move to Italy, where operating costs are 30% lower.

TUESDAY

A state of emergency was declared in Mongolia after allegations of fraud in last weekend's election spawned violent protests across the capital. At least five were killed and more than 300 injured.

WEDNESDAY
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Nicol Stephen resigned, plunging his party into turmoil during the summer recess. The politician will remain MSP for Aberdeen South, but stepped down as leader to spend more time with his family.

THURSDAY

Senior Chinese party officials met envoys of the Dalai Lama in a fresh bid to unify relations in Tibet. The Chinese have promised further negotiations before the end of the year.

FRIDAY

It was revealed that one of the key men in Britain's fight against terror has collapsed with a mystery condition. Alex Allan, 56, chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee, fell ill at home. Experts are cool on speculation that it could have been an assassination attempt.


BEST OF THE BLOGS

A well informed co-conspirator alerts Guido to more nuisance phone calls to Glasgow from Gordon. Labour is so desperate to see a high profile candidate in the Glasgow East by-election in the hope of stopping the SNP wiping out their 13,000 majority. Last weekend alone Gordon Brown phoned Glasgow Council leader Steven Purcell four times pleading with him to stand. Purcell apparently has more sense. Gordon then phoned former Scottish General Secretary Lesley Quinn asking if she would stand.

Guido Fawkes, www.order-order.com

I hope those of you fans of Andy are not too upset. I think I played my absolute best tennis on half of the first set and the whole second set. I felt really good today. But I wanted to mention specially the crowd. They were just fantastic. I have said in the press conference that they were extremely fair but I would add now that they were simply the best crowd. I felt really appreciated when I stepped on court. The round of applause was extraordinary considering I was playing against their player. I only have thank you words for them and repeat that I have always felt really good here at Wimbledon with the crowd. I would also like to say that Andy Murray is a great player and I have no doubts that he will be very soon in the Top 5. Not Top 10, but Top 5. He has the talent to be there and he will be there soon.

Rafael Nadal, http://timesonline.typepad.com/rafael_nadal/
GOOD WEEK

WHAT THE PAPERS SAID..

...about plans to reform prisons

THE HERALD
The SNP government has been presented with a series of radical recommendations, the essence of which is to advocate a presumption of community sentences for all but the most serious offenders. The proposals are measured and merit serious consideration.

THE SCOTSMAN
The key idea is a new mandatory community supervision sentence to replace the current six-month jail term for most low-level offenders... At the very least the commission's ideas deserve to be debated in detail rather than rejected instantly by those seeking to grab populist headlines.

THE SUN
On paper it sounds like a plausible scheme. But it must not be used as a cop-out by a government desperate to empty overcrowded prisons at any price. It is essential that these punishments are actually unpleasant and will serve as a deterrent.

THE DAILY MAIL
Scotland is not safe in the SNP's hands... The report amounts to a formal proposal for the phasing out of what remains of law and order in Scotland... The SNP came to power on a promise to end soft-touch policies on crime: instead, it has expanded them.

Kylie Minogue

Less than two months after receiving France's highest cultural honour, the pint-sized pop star has another award to add to her jewellery box: an OBE. The Prince of Wales bestowed her with the award on Thursday for her services to music.

BAD WEEK

Jeremy Clarkson

A BBC watchdog has rapped Jeremy Clarkson for glamorising drink driving by imbibing a gin and tonic while sitting behind the wheel. Clarkson and fellow presenter James May enjoyed the drinks during the show's hit Polar Special.

TABLOID TALK

What's a GI to do when he splits up from his wife? How does he get over the heartache? How to find something new to do with those lips that are no longer being used to give a peck on the cheeks as he sets off to work, and perhaps a war zone?

The unlikely answer, for Sergeant Tony Gillilan, from Oklahoma, was to start playing the bagpipes. Tony, 35, told The Sun that he received a letter from his wife asking for a divorce while he was serving in Iraq.


He took solace in a leave trip with pals to Inverness, where he fell in love with the bagpipes. Tony has been practising with a chanter and CD recordings and yesterday was due to take part in a mass blow-off in Dundee.

WEEK ON THE WEB

Translate standard English into Scots through the wonders of online technology. The site also features a Scouse, Brummie, Geordie, Yorkshire and Irish-English translation service.

www.whoohoo.co.uk/scottish-translator.asp

Take your revenge on the windbags of Westminster by hurling (virtual) eggs at MPs past and present. A great stress reliever, but be warned, it does contain traces of Ann Widdecombe! www.panlogic.co.uk/splat_the_MP.html

So far it's been a pretty miserable summer, but the drizzle can't last forever. When the clouds finally clear make the most of it with this invaluable guide to creating the ultimate barbecue. www.barbecuebible.com/featured/

RIP

CHARLES WHEELER

March 26, 1923 – July 4, 2008

Wherever the world's great news events were taking place, Charles Wheeler would be among the first there. As the BBC's man in America from the mid-1960s, he covered Watergate, Beatlemania and the assassination of Martin Luther King with his customary mix of gravitas and style.

His speciality was telling it as it was, and after he retired, he accused the BBC of dumbing down and becoming infected by the cult of personality.