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Ivory Coast ‘on edge of genocide’

Mr Gbagbo’s supporters have said they will storm the hotel where Mr Ouattara is holed up

Ivory Coast’s newly appointed ambassador to the UN has warned the country is “on the brink of genocide”.

In a TV interview, Youssoufou Bamba said there had been large scale violation of human rights as a result of the ongoing political unrest.

Laurent Gbagbo is refusing to step down despite his rival, Alassane Ouattara, being internationally accepted as the presidential election winner.

The UN has accused state media of inciting hatred against it.

Mr Gbagbo has said Mr Ouattara’s victory in November was illegitimate. Both men have been sworn in as president.

Mr Bamba, who was appointed by Mr Ouattara, was formally welcomed at the UN’s New York headquarters on Wednesday, solidifying UN support for Mr Ouattara.

At a press conference, Mr Bamba said Mr Ouattara had been elected in a “free, fair, transparent, democratic election”.

“To me the debate is over, now you are talking about how and when Mr Gbagbo will leave office,” he said.

Ivory Coast UN ambassador Youssoufou Bamba with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in New York (29 Dec 2010)

The UN’s acceptance of Mr Bamba as ambassador solidifies its support for Mr Ouattara

Mr Bamba said Mr Ouattara’s main concern now was the “massive violation of human rights” in the past few weeks.

He said 172 people had been killed “only because they want to demonstrate, they want to speak out, they want to defend the will of the people”.

“We think it’s unacceptable. Thus, one of the messages I try to get across during the conversations I have conducted so far, is [that] we are on the brink of genocide.”

Mr Bamba said some houses had been marked according to the residents’ tribal background, and that he was concerned about what could happen next.

“Something should be done,” he said.

Mr Bamba said he hoped to meet with every member of the UN Security Council and “explain to them the gravity of the situation”.

“We expect the United Nations to be credible and the United Nations to prevent violation and to prevent the election to be stolen from the people,” he said.

In a news conference earlier on Wednesday, UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy launched an unprecedented attack on Ivory Coast’s Gbagbo-controlled state TV.

Analysis

It’s good to talk, they say, and even though all the mediation efforts so far seem to have yielded little fruit, Ecowas are prepared to give more time to discussions.

On the ground, as people await the prospect of an intervention force with a good degree of fear, life continues to be disrupted by the transport strike called in support of Mr Ouattara.

The indefinite strike was called on Monday, but only really kicked in the next day. For those coming from outlying areas of Abidjan without access to private vehicles, it is extremely difficult getting into work. Reports from elsewhere in the country suggest the strike has left most towns quiet.

“The declarations I hear on the RTI are concerning us and shocking us, because they clearly instigate the population to turn against ONUCI [UN mission in Ivory Coast],” he said.

He said an incident where a peacekeeper was wounded with a machete when his patrol was encircled by angry crowds was a “direct consequence of all the appeals to hatred, lies and anti-ONUCI propaganda”.

On Wednesday, the presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde left Ivory Coast without having reached deal with the two rivals.

The leaders had been sent by regional bloc Ecowas, which had threatened in a statement to send in troops to force Mr Gbagbo to step down.

Ecowas said the three men would return to the country on 3 January for more talks.

Despite international support, Mr Ouattara and his Prime Minister Guillaume Soro remain holed up in a hotel in the main city of Abidjan, protected by UN forces.

Supporters of Mr Gbagbo, known as “young patriots”, have threatened to storm the hotel.

Young patriots leader Charles Ble Goude, who is also Mr Gbagbo’s youth minister, also warned Ecowas not to send troops.

“They should prepare themselves very well because we are thinking about totally liberating our country, and soon I will launch the final assault,” he said.

Mr Ble Goude is renowned for his fiery rhetoric and has reportedly made such threats before without carrying them out.

But analysts have warned that inflammatory rhetoric could help push the nation back into civil war, seven years after a previous conflict resulted in it being divided between a rebel-run north and government-controlled south.

The UN has some 9,500 peacekeepers in the country.

Mr Gbagbo has told them to leave, accusing them of interfering in Ivorian affairs. But the UN has refused to do so.

Almost 20,000 people – mostly women and children – have fled Ivory Coast for neighbouring Liberia, fearing further unrest.

Mr Ouattara was initially declared the winner of the elections but his victory was overturned by the Constitutional Council.

The Council, led by an ally of Mr Gbago, ruled that votes in parts of the rebel-held north loyal to Mr Ouattara were invalid.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

UK migration ‘unlikely to plunge’

Last year there were big increases in the number of immigrants coming from Lithuania and Latvia

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The UK’s net migration rate is unlikely to fall significantly in 2011, according to a think tank’s analysis.

The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says the figure for immigrants to the UK minus the number leaving will be around 200,000.

One reason it points to is that only about 30,000 UK citizens are emigrating – the lowest for almost a decade.

The government said it was committed to reducing net migration from its current 215,000 to less than 100,000 by 2015.

As well as pointing to the emigration rate, the IPPR report says that the relative strength of the British economy compared with some Eurozone countries is likely to attract migrant workers from Spain, Portugal, Greece and the Irish Republic.

The government has announced a cap on skilled workers from outside the European Economic Area and is planning to curb the number of foreign students.

But the IPPR says the cap will have only a limited effect while the student restrictions will not take full effect next year.

IPPR director Nick Pearce said: “Ministers must be careful to manage down public expectations.

“The cap on skilled migration from outside the EU, which the government has already put in place, could hurt the economic recovery. Other hasty measures to reduce numbers artificially would be even more damaging.

“Bringing down the level of immigration, which has been high in recent years, is a legitimate policy goal, but this should be done by making long-term and sustainable reforms to the structure of our economy and labour market.”

The IPPR also points out that last year there was a big rise in the number of immigrants from Lithuania and Latvia – up 21,000 and 19,000 respectively compared with increases of 13,000 and 12,000 the previous year, and it predicts further rises.

Immigration Minister Damian Green said the government remained “absolutely committed” to reducing net migration “from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands within the lifetime of this Parliament”.

“Throughout 2011 we will be introducing extra controls to affect every immigration route,” he said.

“We will exert steady downward pressure on immigration numbers through the course of this Parliament, which is the sensible way to deal with the uncontrolled immigration system we inherited.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Miliband attacks cuts in message

Ed Miliband speaks to supporters in Oldham

Ed Miliband believes the coalition government’s honeymoon period is over

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The coming year will be one of consequences for hard-working families as the reality of the government’s cuts bite, Labour leader Ed Miliband says.

In his new year message, Mr Miliband said the coalition’s deficit reduction plan was “irresponsible”.

He denied the cuts were necessary and claimed they were instead “born of political choice”.

Mr Miliband, who beat his brother David to the leadership, said Labour offered a “better and more optimistic future”.

The former energy and climate change secretary said: “2011 will be a year of consequences for Britain. Consequences that will be felt by hard-working families across the country.

“Consequences of the decision taken to reduce the deficit at what I believe to be an irresponsible pace and scale.”

Mr Miliband, who has been leading the Labour Party since September, said: “Many people feel powerless in the face of these decisions that will affect their lives, families and communities.

“The political forces in Whitehall which have made these choices appear forbidding and unheeding.”

Mr Miliband also criticised the removal of a cap on university tuition fees in England and the pending abolition of the educational maintenance allowance for teenagers.

He said: “Labour’s challenge and duty in 2011 is to be people’s voice in tough times and show that these are changes born of political choice by those in power not necessity.

“And we will take the next steps on the journey to win people’s trust that we offer a better, more optimistic future for Britain,” he added.

Mr Miliband said Labour had to do a lot to regain voters’ trust and said the party would be arguing for a “proper” economic strategy rather than just “cuts, cuts, cuts”.

He also pointed to recent government U-turns over funding school sport and the Bookstart scheme as signs that the coalition would back down if enough pressure was brought to bear on them.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Rangers announce Ibrox memorial

Football fans were crushed on stairway 13 on 2 January 1971

Plans to mark the 40th anniversary of the Ibrox disaster in which 66 people died have been unveiled by Rangers Football Club.

Fans and former players will remember the tragedy when Rangers play Celtic at Glasgow’s Ibrox stadium on Sunday.

It will be 40 years to the day since the game on 2 January 1971 when fans were crushed on stairway 13.

Teams will be led out by John Greig, Rangers captain in the 1971 derby, and former Celtic captain Billy McNeill.

A minute’s silence will be held before kick-off and both teams will wear black arm bands while Rangers will wear a commemorative shirt with a special badge.

On 3 January a memorial service will be held at the stadium which will be attended by relatives of the 66 victims and supporters.

John Greig, whose statue stands outside Ibrox as a permanent memorial to the disaster, said: “Leading the team out of the tunnel will be a very proud moment for me and a very humbling moment.

“Anything that I can do to pay my respects, I’m only too happy to do so.”

Mr Greig, 68, was there as bodies were laid at the side of the pitch. He said: “It’s something that will never leave me, it’s etched on my mind.”

“It didn’t matter what football team you supported, or even if you were a football fan, the city united in grief”

Walter Smith Rangers manager

Former Rangers defender Sandy Jardine said it was very important for the families and fans to remember what happened that day.

He said: “At this time of year, particularly on 2 January, your thoughts are always with the families who unfortunately lost their loved ones.

“I’m quite sure it lives with every player who played that day. I remember every single detail.

“I remember walking to the edge of the tunnel and seeing all the bodies behind the goal and the huge amounts of ambulances.

“It was a very, very sad day and something that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”

Rangers manager Walter Smith, who was there as a spectator in 1971, said: “Men, women and children lost their lives that day and they will never be forgotten by this club or our fans.

“They will also never be forgotten by the people of Glasgow who came together in the days and weeks following the disaster.

“It didn’t matter what football team you supported, or even if you were a football fan, the city united in grief.”

Despite the passing of four decades, the memories are still fresh for relatives of those who died.

Mother-of-three Josie McLeay, 67, of Stenhousemuir, near Larbert, lost her husband Richard and his younger brother John.

“I still see him as a young boy,” she said, “My memories are there. They are clear. It seems like yesterday.”

Speaking about the memorial service to be held at Ibrox, Mrs McLeay said: “I’m terrified of going here because I hate crowds and I hate New Year after what happened, but it’s nice that they are remembered.”

The only woman among the dead was 18-year-old Margaret Ferguson. Her sister Mary Gibb, 65, will lay a wreath during the memorial service.

Mrs Gibb, of Maddiston, near Falkirk, said: “That night, when it first happened, we were watching television. We realised it had happened and I just said: ‘I hope our Margaret’s not there.”‘

Mrs Gibb said her sister had been told by her father not to go to game, but the family later discovered Margaret had been carried from the stairway and died in the dressing rooms.

She said of Margaret: “She loved going dancing. She loved going to Rangers. Her bedroom, from top to bottom, was covered in Rangers stuff.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Jailed US sisters offered release… if one donates kidney to other

September 2010 protest for Scott sisters in Mississippi

Activists had argued the sentence was too harsh

Two US women convicted of armed robbery can be released but only if one donates a kidney to the other, the governor of Mississippi has said.

Jamie and Gladys Scott were convicted in 1994 of taking part in a robbery that netted a mere $11.

Their lawyer, Chokwe Lumumba, hailed Gov Haley Barbour’s decision as a victory.

The sisters were eligible for parole in 2014 and rights activists had criticised their sentence as harsh.

Jamie, 38, who requires daily dialysis, and Gladys, 36, are serving life sentences.

Mr Lumumba told Associated Press news agency: “I think it’s a victory. I talked to Gladys and she’s elated about the news. I’m sure Jamie is, too.”

He said Gladys had volunteered the donation.

Mr Barbour, a Republican, will agree the indefinite suspension of their sentences, which can be reversed if terms are broken.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Call for post network guarantees

MPs on the committee want assurances on the future of the post network

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MPs have demanded more assurances that Scotland’s Post Office network will be fully preserved, particularly in rural and deprived urban areas.

Members of the Scottish Affairs Committee warned that despite a planned funding rise, many post offices “remain vulnerable to closure”.

The Postal Services Bill is currently making its way through the Commons.

Private buyers will be allowed to own up to 90% of the Royal Mail, with at least 10% of shares going to employees.

The UK government would also assume responsibility for the group’s pension deficit.

The committee was given assurances that the “universal service obligation” – which maintains the six-days-a-week delivery and collection service and ensures customers pay the same price across the UK – could only be changed following a vote in both the Commons and the Lords.

Committee chairman Ian Davidson said: “What is much less clear is the long-term future of the Post Office network. Good intentions are all very well, but the lack of solidity in assurances regarding the postal network is worrying.

“It is not clear how the bill, or the increase in funding, will protect consumers over the long-term, in deprived urban, rural and remote areas of Scotland”

Scottish Affairs Committee report

“Postal services and the postal network are the life-blood of many rural, remote and island communities throughout Scotland and the survival of many small businesses depends on the network.

“Yet it remains unclear how the Postal Services Bill will protect consumers in deprived urban, rural and remote areas of Scotland.”

Scotland currently has 1,446 post offices – 12% of the UK network – with 70% of branches in rural areas and 171 post offices in the most deprived communities.

The committee report warned that the network in Scotland was in a “precarious position financially” with many rural post offices funded through a subsidy, leaving them vulnerable to closure.

The MPs urged the UK government to take appropriate measures to secure a “viable and sustainable network” in Scotland and to give assurances on preserving the existing network of branches.

The report recommended the bill should include a requirement for industry regulator Ofcom to consult with consumers, small businesses and vulnerable users in remote, rural and island communities in Scotland before any potential changes to the universal service obligation.

In response to the report, Scottish Liberal Democrat President Malcolm Bruce said protecting the Universal Service was at the heart of the government’s plans for the Royal Mail.

The MP for Gordon said: “There will be a change in public ownership, there will be no Post Office closure programme as Labour planned and the government will seek to support the Post Office network in efforts to diversify.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Work to do

By James Landale

Nationalist parties did not make the strides they were hoping for

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For a brief moment this year, Britain’s smaller political parties thought that finally their time had come.

An opportunity arose that, until then, had been the stuff of their dreams.

In the confusion following the indecisive general election, there was talk of a rainbow coalition taking office, a multi-coloured pantheon of political parties joining a government led by Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

Together they would make up the numbers to out-vote the Conservatives in the House of Commons.

Above all, the nationalist parties thought they could take power and protect Scotland and Wales from Tory spending cuts.

But in the end, it was not to be. The idea of a coalition of the election losers never got off the ground.

The complicated parliamentary arithmetic, the fear of an English backlash and the poor personal chemistry between Gordon Brown and Nick Clegg made it simply impossible.

It was just one more disappointment felt by the smaller parties this summer.

Many commentators thought that they would do better in the general election, predicting that voters would abandon the larger parties in disgust over their MPs’ expenses claims.

But the much-hoped-for breakthrough never happened. In the end, all the parties known as “the others” by the election experts raised their combined share of the vote by a paltry 1.7%.

Caroline Lucas and husband celebrate her victory

The Greens celebrated winning their first seat at Westminster

For the Scottish National Party, it has been a mixed year.

It failed to make much progress in the general election, winning just six seats, not the 20 looked for by First Minister Alex Salmond.

And it failed to make much progress towards its long-desired referendum on independence. Instead, it had to witness the coalition in Westminster offering to devolve greater taxation powers to Holyrood.

They also lost a minister who did not clear away enough snow.

And at next May’s elections to the Scottish Parliament, the SNP faces a Scottish Labour party no longer bound by the disciplines of national government, another option for voters wishing to protest against the coalition in Westminster.

The Welsh nationalists Plaid Cymru did little better.

In the general election, they won just three seats, and their share of the vote actually went down a touch.

They remain in coalition with Labour but to improve their position in the May elections, they are going to have to convince voters they can secure greater powers for the assembly in Cardiff.

As for the Green Party, it has been a big year.

Nigel Farage was lucky to survive this plane crash on election day

They secured their first Member of Parliament in Westminster as Caroline Lucas, the party leader, won Brighton Pavilion in the general election.

But their share of the vote nationally actually fell and there is only so much that one MP can do to shape the agenda at Westminster.

Unlike the Greens, the UK Independence Party failed to win its first seat in Parliament. Nigel Farage took on Speaker John Bercow in Buckingham and almost lost more than the election.

On polling day, the light aircraft carrying him and a party banner crashed and he almost died.

But UKIP did increase its share of the vote, coming fourth behind the three largest parties. And when the party leader Lord Pearson stood down, Mr Farage was re-elected to his old job.

So the challenge for the smaller political parties next year is to get heard, above all to have a voice in the debate over the coalition’s spending cuts. And yes, they have a few elections to fight in May.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

School boards call to save cash

The EIS said a revamp would ensure government targets were prioritised, as well as saving money

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A Scots teaching union has questioned the role of councils in running schools and managing education provision.

The EIS said a reduction in the number of education authorities should be considered to cut costs.

The union said schools could instead be governed by dedicated education boards, which it said would be best placed to deliver Scottish government priorities.

The education minister said he welcomed ideas on how to deliver services more efficiently across council boundaries.

However, Mike Russell also said the Scottish government had no plans to reduce the number of local authorities, which currently stands at 32.

His comments came after the EIS’s general secretary, Ronnie Smith, said education structures should be examined at a time when councils were looking to share services to cut costs.

Mr Smith said: “We live in difficult economic times, and all public services face the challenge of how to continue to provide a high level of service in a more cost-effective manner.

“In this context, it is right that we ask questions about the need for 32 individual local authorities to deliver national education policy, operating schools and providing education for our young people.”

Mr Smith’s suggestion provoked an angry response from the local authority umbrella body Cosla

He said sharing services in administration, procurement and human resources could “save a considerable amount of money and allow the vital frontline provision of learning and teaching to be protected”.

Mr Smith suggested a structural revamp would not only save money, but would also ensure the Scottish government’s priorities were more likely to be met.

He said: “The EIS believes that all too often important national policies have become diluted at a local level as local authorities identify their own policy priorities which are not always consistent with national policy.”

“With past experience of the difficulty in delivering national priorities through the concordat with local authorities, it is worrying that the Scottish government has again struck a budget deal with Cosla [council umbrella body] which provides a shopping list of desired government priorities without any levers to ensure that they are delivered.

“This sort of one dimensional, simplistic, off-the-shelf analysis will not get us very far”

Councillor Isabel Hutton Cosla

“As the concordat proved, you cannot seek to deliver such national priorities while at the same time promising more freedom to councils to set their own priorities on education.”

He added: “Education boards, focusing purely on education, would have a clear responsibility for school education at a local level and could have clear benefits in terms of ensuring consistent delivery of nationally agreed educational priorities and policies.

“However, it would be equally important that there was proper democratic accountability within the boards so that local views and priorities are not overtaken.”

The suggestion prompted an angry response from Cosla, the body which represents Scotland’s local authorities.

Councillor Isabel Hutton said: “There is a debate to be had about how the future shape of the public sector meets the financial challenge, but this sort of one dimensional, simplistic, off-the-shelf analysis will not get us very far.

“There are very good reasons why education should continue to be a local authority service, not least because of this year’s record exam results and the support of international bodies like the OECD.”

Mr Russell said: “As I’ve made clear, we face tough choices about what we spend our resources on.

“We need to prioritise and I want to be absolutely clear that frontline services should be protected by targeting reductions at bureaucracy that does not contribute directly to service delivery.

“I shall also welcome and support ideas that will deliver education services more efficiently through more effective deployment of resources across boundaries – such as those in Stirling and Clackmannanshire, and East Lothian and Midlothian.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

A year in pictures

Some of the pictures that told and made the news

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Celebrating Eric and Ernie

Victoria Wood as Sadie Bartholemew, Daniel Rigby as Eric Morecambe and Bryan Dick as Ernie Wise

Wood, Rigby and Dick star as Morecambe’s mother Sadie, Morecambe and Wise

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Victoria Wood insists her latest TV venture, which delves into the early career of Morecambe and Wise, “will not be one of those dark dramas”.

Far from being doom-laden, the show is a “celebration of their friendship”, revealing how they met as teenagers and were steered to stardom by Eric Morecambe’s canny mother Sadie.

“They were affectionate, it was like a very good marriage,” she says of the men’s relationship.

Comedienne and writer Wood, who plays Sadie, came up with the idea for the drama seven years ago.

But she is at pains to stress it is nothing like BBC Four’s Curse of Comedy series, which revealed the mental torture of performers including Kenneth Williams and Tony Hancock.

Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise were great friends as well as colleagues

“What we really find out is the immense lengths Morecambe and Wise went to to become the stars they did,” she says.

“They were two very different child performers, but Sadie spotted something in the two of them that would make something special when she put them together.”

The youngsters met in 1939 on the variety theatre circuit, where Ernie Wise was a child star who topped the bill, while Morecambe was at the bottom.

“Eric’s act was as a ‘daftie’, wearing long shorts and a beret, holding a big lollipop, and singing a song called I’m Not All There,” Wood explains.

But their pairing eventually led to an enormously successful TV series, The Morecambe and Wise Show, which featured sketches, song and dance and a skit with a celebrity guest leading it to peak at a huge 28 million viewers during the 70s.

“Eric’s wife Joan told me you always heard them laughing in the dressing room. Even by the end they were still laughing,” Wood says of the comics, who performed together until Morecambe’s death in 1984.

But the drama focuses on what happened before they hit the big time, depicting how a reluctant Morecambe was paired with a driven Wise.

Actress Glenda Jackson sang and danced with the comics

Their early career included several ups and downs, including a disastrous TV series in 1954 which nearly caused their professional demise.

Wood is obviously fascinated by the chemistry between the two, but despite her prolific writing career, she declined to write the script.

She thought the story was “better told by a man because it was about men’s friendship and really it’s about two boys”.

The script was written by Blackpool and Desperate Romantics writer Peter Bowker, and Wood says this was where much of her inspiration for Sadie came from.

She also researched her role by talking to Morecambe and Wise’s wives Joan and Doreen about what Sadie was like.

“She definitely wasn’t a showbiz Mum,” says Wood. “She was a very intelligent person who realised Eric would never be happy in an ordinary job. She saw there was something in him that would only be fulfilled by going on the stage.”

What emerges from the drama, along with a portrayal of how funny the duo found each other, was that “Eric always had someone in charge of him. It was his mother, then Ernie, then his wife – he was like a big kid at times, he always had to be funny,” Wood says.

Victoria Wood’s favourite sketch by the duo was with Andre Previn

“Ernie structured it all, he was very bright, he always looked for residuals in the contracts.”

In order to depict their early lives, the drama has three sets of actors, from young boys through to young men. The two-month audition process in Manchester and Leeds saw 150 boys trying for the parts.

“We wanted raw diamonds,” Wood says. “We got lots of nice little Ernies, it was harder to get the Eric quality.”

The two adult versions of Morecambe and Wise, are played with stunning attention to detail by Daniel Rigby and Bryan Dick respectively.

They admits it was intimidating playing such comedic giants.

Rigby, 27, has done stand-up at the Edinburgh Festival as well as acting, so is no stranger to a challenge, but says he was well aware of how well-loved Morecambe and Wise are.

“I have huge respect for Morecambe and Wise, bound up in all the respect and nostalgia many people have for them,” he says.

“It was daunting playing them but it was a brilliant cast and the crew did a great job with hair, make-up, contact lenses.”

Jim Moir (R) plays Eric Morecambe’s father George

Trained dancer Bryan Dick, 32, who has appeared in Russell Crowe film Master and Commander and BBC series Bleak House, adds that although it was a tough call, once they were on set doing some of the famous early routines, it was “great, challenging fun”.

Morecambe’s father George also features in the drama. He is played by an understated Jim Moir, also known as Vic Reeves – the comic half of another famous duo, Reeves and Mortimer.

He says he would have been keen to play Morecambe had he been younger, but was drawn to the role of George “just because I liked the story, not because it was Morecambe and Wise”.

He describes George as being “just that ambivalent working-class bloke. He was just doing his job as a navvy and kept his head down”.

Moir adds that “George was more like Eric’s mate, he just wanted whatever made him happy”.

He was also able to shed some light on how a successful comedy double act works, confirming what Wood said about the importance of the men’s friendship.

The duo famously did sketches in bed together

“You need some strengths, the psychicness you get after working with someone for a long time. You need to know if you stray off a track onto something else, that they’re thinking the same thing,” he says.

“If you didn’t get on, it wouldn’t work, you’ve got to be best friends to do it.

“If you look at all double acts we’re all pretty much the same, one’s slightly stupider than the other stupid one.”

He adds that he thought Morecambe and Wise’s appeal was simple.

“I suppose it’s because you like them, that’s it really isn’t it? You could then go into the whole analysis of comedy, two bungling fools, but really it’s just because you like them.”

Eric & Ernie is broadcast at 2100 GMT on BBC Two on 1 January 2011.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

2010’s most read

Key images from the most-read news stories of 2010

Freezing weather and a volcano left air passengers fuming, Cameron and Clegg sent Brown packing, and student protests left Westminster – and a royal couple – reeling.

But there were happier moments among the year’s most-read stories: the UK’s biggest lottery win, two royal engagements and exultant scenes as 33 Chilean miners emerged after two months underground.

JANUARY

Satellite image of Britain under snow (Picture: University of Dundee)

Satellite images showing Britain under snow would return in December

Snow and ice dominated the headlines for more than a week at the start of the year, as Britain shivered in the longest cold spell for almost 30 years.

Thousands of schools closed, buses, trains and planes were delayed, and power supplies failed as winter chaos reigned.

Jonathan Ross provided some relief from the weather as he announced he was leaving the BBC after 13 years. The corporation’s highest paid star insisted his decision was not financially motivated.

Attention turned to England football captain John Terry and his private life after a court lifted an injunction stopping the media reporting allegations of an affair.

And another leader, at least formerly, Tony Blair, gave evidence to the Iraq inquiry saying he had “no regrets” about removing Saddam Hussein.

Apple launched its iPad in San Francisco at the end of the month.

FEBRUARY

Kate Moss was said to be devastated by the death of her “dear friend”

Showbiz relationships led February’s most-read stories as model Katie Price married her boyfriend Alex Reid and Cheryl Cole split from her footballer husband Ashley Cole.

The fashion world was in shock after designer Alexander McQueen was found dead at his London home.

And Newsnight presenter Jeremy Paxman himself made the news for swearing on air – and apologising afterwards.

There was tragedy in central Chile, as a massive earthquake killed more than 200 people and affected two million more. And in Orlando, Florida, when a trainer died after a killer whale attack at the SeaWorld park.

But it was all smiles in Gloucestershire as a self-confessed “white van man” scooped £56m in the Euromillions – Britain’s biggest ever lottery jackpot, for now at least.

MARCH

Chancellor Alistair Darling’s Budget was the most popular story this month as he set out battle lines for the general election.

He cut stamp duty for first-time buyers and raised taxes for the better-off, amongst a series of other measures.

“I was blessed by his passion and friendship”

Actor Peter Fonda mourns the death of Dennis Hopper

Away from politics, there was a sombre tone to many of the stories.

Memories of toddler James Bulger’s shocking murder on Merseyside in 1993 were re-ignited when one of his killers – Jon Venables – breached the terms of his release.

TV presenter Kristian Digby, who worked on BBC One’s To Buy or Not To Buy, was found dead in his London flat, aged 32.

Then Hollywood actor Dennis Hopper was revealed to be terminally ill with prostate cancer. He would die two months later.

But the glitz of the Oscars lightened the tone as Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win best director, for The Hurt Locker, which took six prizes including best film.

APRIL

Ash from a volcanic eruption in Iceland dominated the most-read list in April as all flights in and out of the UK were suspended.

The cloud triggered the UK’s worst airspace restriction in living memory and brought much of Europe to a standstill.

Brown makes ‘bigoted woman’ jibe to voter in Rochdale

Thousands of Britons were stranded as the UK remained a virtual no-fly zone for several days.

Gordon Brown’s gaffe on the election campaign trail in Rochdale also proved a popular read. The former prime minister said he was “mortified” after being caught on microphone describing a pensioner he had just spoken to as “bigoted”.

Elsewhere, The One Show presenter Adrian Chiles quit the BBC to join ITV and GMTV in a four-year deal.

Finally, in a twist on April Fools hoax stories, the BBC News Magazine produced a round-up of 10 seemingly fake newspaper stories which were actually true.

MAY

General Election month, and readers were captivated by every twist and turn in a genuine political drama.

Gordon Brown leaves 10 Downing Street with his wife Sarah and young children

A family leaves Downing Street

The tension built as millions cast their vote and Britain headed for a hung Parliament – but it was not until four days after polling day that Gordon Brown announced he was stepping down as Labour leader.

Defeat closed in on Labour then voters finally awoke to a new Conservative-led coalition government with the Liberal Democrats.

Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy Nick Clegg unveiled their policy programme, before Chancellor George Osborne outlined plans to cut £6.2bn of “wasteful spending”.

In other news, a man charged with murdering three Bradford prostitutes referred to himself in court as the “crossbow cannibal”.

The volcanic ash cloud reappeared in the most-read list as new rules allowing planes to fly at higher ash densities were agreed.

JUNE

Most read this month was the shooting rampage by taxi driver Derrick Bird which left a dozen people dead and 25 injured in Cumbria.

England football fans were inconsolable

The first fatality was in Whitehaven before the gunman drove south, apparently shooting people at random. His body was found in the Boot area.

Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget came next as he increased VAT and cut welfare spending to tackle Britain’s record debts.

Child benefit and public sector pay were frozen and public service spending cut by 25%.

The mauling of nine-month-old twins, reportedly by a fox, also grabbed headlines. The girls were sleeping in their cots when the animal apparently entered the house in east London through a ground-floor door.

And normal service resumed in England’s World Cup campaign as the team returned home from South Africa after a 4-1 second-round defeat at the hands of Germany.

JULY

Another month, another shooting rampage. This time, all eyes were on the town of Rothbury in Northumberland after gunman Raoul Moat shot three people and went on the run.

After shooting his ex-girlfriend and killing her new partner, the former bouncer shot policeman David Rathband in his patrol car, before eventually killing himself after a six-hour stand-off with armed officers.

A mishmash of other stories made it on to the most-read list. A five-year-old Irish boy wrongly accused of stealing a bag of crisps won his damages case against supermarket chain Lidl.

BNP leader Nick Griffin was denied entry to a Buckingham Palace garden party over claims he “overtly” used his invitation for political purposes.

And pictures of a luxury car – worth £1.2m – clamped outside Harrods in central London also attracted widespread attention.

AUGUST

A meteor streaks past stars in the night sky over Stonehenge in Salisbury Plain

The annual display, seen here over Stonehenge, is caused by debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle

August threw up a mixed bag of news in keeping with its traditional “silly season” tag.

Skywatchers enjoyed “fantastic views” of the annual Perseid meteor shower and a US man taken to hospital for a collapsed lung was told he had a pea plant growing in his lung.

Comedian Tim Vine won a prize for the funniest joke of the Edinburgh Fringe. His gag: “I’ve just been on a once-in-a-lifetime holiday. I’ll tell you what, never again.”

The BBC also made headlines. Chris Evans’ Radio 2 breakfast show lost a million listeners in three months. Weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker made rude on-air gestures, and the corporation became embroiled in a court battle over the identity of Top Gear’s The Stig.

There was interest, too, in an MI6 worker whose body was found in a hold-all in the bath at his London flat.

And model Naomi Campbell attracted attention at the war crimes trial of ex-Liberian President Charles Taylor, with her testimony that she was given “dirty-looking stones” after a dinner he attended.

SEPTEMBER

The Pope’s visit took in Glasgow, Edinburgh, London and Birmingham

Sibling rivalry topped the most-read list in September as Ed Miliband was narrowly elected Labour leader over his brother David.

Their political rival David Cameron’s father Ian died, then it was revealed his daughter Florence, who was born last month, slept in a box rather than a cot.

Despite some arrests by counter-terrorism officers, Pope Benedict XVI’s four-day state visit went without a major hitch, although there were protests. It was the first official trip by a serving pontiff since 1982.

Two deaths at the end of the month made the list: Segway boss Jimi Heselden fell from cliffs riding one of his firm’s motorised scooters, then Hollywood star Tony Curtis had a cardiac arrest at his home in the US.

And at just 70cm (27ins) tall, a Colombian was confirmed as the world’s shortest living man.

OCTOBER

There was huge interest in the conclusion of a drama in Chile as 33 miners were successfully rescued after two months trapped deep underground.

The miners were trapped 700m (2,300 ft) underground

That only just beat George Osborne’s Spending Review to the top slot, as the chancellor unveiled the biggest UK cuts for decades and axed child benefit for higher-rate taxpayers.

The scrapping of 192 quangos – public bodies like the Film Council – was also well read.

As were plans to ditch Harrier jump jets, the Navy’s flagship HMS Ark Royal and cut thousands of jobs in the strategic defence review.

Showbiz again proved popular as X Factor singer Gamu fought her expulsion from the UK and Take That fans crashed sites selling tickets for a tour with Robbie Williams.

But the ticket everybody really wanted was the one which scooped first prize in the Euromillions draw – it was the biggest single lottery win in UK history and worth £113m.

NOVEMBER

Freezing weather returned to the UK, as forecasters warned of the earliest significant snowfalls since 1993.

William gave Kate his mother’s diamond engagement ring

Hundreds of schools closed and motorists and air passengers faced long delays. In Cornwall, meanwhile, floods and gales caused travel chaos across the county.

There were heated scenes in Westminster as protests against plans to treble tuition fees turned violent. Demonstrators stormed buildings and smashed windows, overshadowing the planned day of action.

News that Prince William was to marry long-term girlfriend Kate Middleton in 2011 also drew strong interest. Clarence House announced the date and venue a week later.

Elsewhere, comedian Jason Manford quit The One Show and Nigel Havers walked out of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

DECEMBER

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall's car was attacked during student protests in London

The royal couple were unharmed in the attack as they headed to the London Palladium

Freezing temperatures and heavy snow returned with a vengeance as one of the coldest starts to December for 20 years took its toll.

Schools shut again and there was more travel chaos, which left thousands of people’s Christmas plans in disarray.

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall were caught up in violent student protests and the Queen’s oldest granddaughter, Zara Phillips, got engaged to her long-term boyfriend – England rugby star Mike Tindall.

The publication of thousands of US embassy cables by the Wikileaks website continued, but the focus of the story shifted later in the month to its founder, Julian Assange, who is fighting extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegations.

Showbiz again proved popular as some of the most watched TV shows reached a climax. Matt Cardle won The X Factor,Stella English became The Apprentice, and actress Kara Tointon took the Strictly Come Dancing title.

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