Latest update: 10/11/2009 

- Afghanistan - Berlin Wall - Gordon Brown - International Press Review - Nicolas Sarkozy


Gordon Brown’s bad handwriting lands him in hot water.

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Bad spelling and handwriting is the bane of schoolchildren everywhere. But now the British Prime Minister’s grammatical shortcomings have led to an embarrassing outcry.

IN THE PAPERS
By Luke BROWN

 

The British Prime Minister writes a handwritten letter of condolences to the family of every service man that is killed in action
 
Since Sunday, the British tabloid newspaper The Sun has been reporting that one bereaved mother is outraged by his bad letter-writing skills.
 
Jacqui Janes says she received a letter following the death of her son in Afghanistion that was ridden with spelling mistakes.  She even says he misspelt her son’s surname.
 
Now, the Left-leaning Guardian newspaper has sprung to the Prime Minister’s defence
 
They, as well as the Labour party, say that the spelling mistakes are largely down to Gordon Brown’s admittedly bad handwriting.
 
They accuse The Sun of gratuitously attacking the Prime Minister. He’s blind in one eye, and they say that could hamper his penmanship.
 
They also got a handwriting expert  to analyse the letter.
His conclusions, from the gaps between the words, the errors, as well as the slanting line show that the British Prime Minister is overly reserved, suffering a crisis of confidence, but with a bid of optimism too. And optimism too, for people like me with awful handwriting, there is some hope.

 

To check out any of the other items that we covered during the international press review, click on the link below.

Sarkozy caught exaggerating Berlin Wall memories, makes waves around the world

Times of India

Independent

The Times of London (Paris bureau blog)

Huffington Post

Daily Telegraph

New York Times

Wall Street Journal

David Milliband's charm offensive in Berlin opens way for Brussels

The Times of London

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