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CNN Live At Daybreak

Euro Edition: Morning Papers

Aired January 05, 2004 - 05:45   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It's time now to check what's making headlines overseas in this morning's 'Euro Edition.' Liz George live for us in London.
So what are the front pages looking like this morning -- Liz?

LIZ GEORGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of pictures of Tony Blair. He went out and had a seven-hour quick flash visit to troops, the U.K. troops, which are based in Basra in the south of Iraq. And this is the photograph that has come through. And in fact on most of the serious newspapers, most of the broad sheets, you have got that exact same picture. So it was definitely the picture that caught people's attention and people's imagination there.

He dropped in to Basra on the way back from his holiday. He was actually in the Red Sea holiday on the Red Sea. So he dropped in there to basically give troops a morale boost, but also to capture that very important photo opportunity so that voters back here in the U.K. can see that he is out there doing his bit.

One little gaffe that he made while he was out there, during his speech he talked about weapons of mass destraction instead of weapons of mass destruction.

COSTELLO: Oops.

GEORGE: So that was -- that was his little goof, a bit of an embarrassment there. And -- but talking very much, you know, as you would expect him to do, about the noble and good cause that the troops were out there supporting. And also warning them, really, that they are going to be in there for the long run. Not likely that the U.K. is going to withdraw troops before 2006 now. So that's one of the stories that's definitely hitting our front pages.

More stories as well. Of course you've been talking about it on your program, the Mars landing. This is the U.S. robot that actually managed to get to Mars. Now if you were in the U.K., you may well think that it's actually on a recovery mission to try and recover our robot that didn't manage to make it, the Beagle, or at least they think that it made it, but they're not quite sure where it's gone. So if you are here, you might well think that the Spirit, perhaps, is there specifically to search for the Beagle.

COSTELLO: That's right, because the Spirit...

GEORGE: But of course that's based on the pictures and the photographs. COSTELLO: The Spirit may take a picture of the rover.

GEORGE: Yes, exactly. Exactly. I think that's what everyone is hoping might happen. I think today is the last day that they are really expecting to have any likelihood of linking up with the Beagle, if it's out there, if it's buried itself under some sand dune. What on earth has happened to it? I don't know. Might well be the fact that it only had 3 airbags to land on compared to the Spirit, which had something like 24 airbags. So you never know. Maybe one of those airbags didn't work for the Beagle or something.

COSTELLO: That's true. Our airbags are bigger than yours.

Any word about this British...

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Any word about this British Airways flight continually being delayed on the front pages this morning?

GEORGE: I think, to be honest with you, it's not really hitting our front pages so much today. But of course there is an awful lot of talk about this and specifically say people are looking forward at what's happening with pilots. Pilots are meeting up and discussing about security measures now going forward. And particularly security measures having air marshals onboard with guns and that sort of thing.

One of the stories that is really hitting our front pages, and I know you have talked about it a little bit, but this has absolutely caught the attention of the tabloids, is that wedding. Mr. Britney. Britney Spears and the boy next door. And you can imagine it's gone absolutely mad for this. Photographs, pictures, I mean there's five pages of it in this tabloid.

COSTELLO: You're kidding? That's not her in the wedding dress, Liz, because she got married in jeans and a baseball cap.

GEORGE: I know. No, but that's from one of her -- one of her music videos on MTV. She dressed as a bride.

COSTELLO: OK.

GEORGE: So of course they are digging all of those out again. I mean wouldn't you expect it?

COSTELLO: That is so funny. Is it in the paper that -- it's in the "New York Post" here, that the two people who married her, they are being offered a million dollars for the wedding videotape?

GEORGE: Well I haven't seen that one yet. But I did read that apparently her dad was so furious that he rushed round to his neighbors next door, because of course this is the boy next door, and said you are not allowed to talk to any of the press. Don't say anything. It never happened. I think that's a man in denial.

COSTELLO: It's just a crazy story. Thank you. Liz George reporting live from London for us this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired January 5, 2004 - 05:45   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It's time now to check what's making headlines overseas in this morning's 'Euro Edition.' Liz George live for us in London.
So what are the front pages looking like this morning -- Liz?

LIZ GEORGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of pictures of Tony Blair. He went out and had a seven-hour quick flash visit to troops, the U.K. troops, which are based in Basra in the south of Iraq. And this is the photograph that has come through. And in fact on most of the serious newspapers, most of the broad sheets, you have got that exact same picture. So it was definitely the picture that caught people's attention and people's imagination there.

He dropped in to Basra on the way back from his holiday. He was actually in the Red Sea holiday on the Red Sea. So he dropped in there to basically give troops a morale boost, but also to capture that very important photo opportunity so that voters back here in the U.K. can see that he is out there doing his bit.

One little gaffe that he made while he was out there, during his speech he talked about weapons of mass destraction instead of weapons of mass destruction.

COSTELLO: Oops.

GEORGE: So that was -- that was his little goof, a bit of an embarrassment there. And -- but talking very much, you know, as you would expect him to do, about the noble and good cause that the troops were out there supporting. And also warning them, really, that they are going to be in there for the long run. Not likely that the U.K. is going to withdraw troops before 2006 now. So that's one of the stories that's definitely hitting our front pages.

More stories as well. Of course you've been talking about it on your program, the Mars landing. This is the U.S. robot that actually managed to get to Mars. Now if you were in the U.K., you may well think that it's actually on a recovery mission to try and recover our robot that didn't manage to make it, the Beagle, or at least they think that it made it, but they're not quite sure where it's gone. So if you are here, you might well think that the Spirit, perhaps, is there specifically to search for the Beagle.

COSTELLO: That's right, because the Spirit...

GEORGE: But of course that's based on the pictures and the photographs. COSTELLO: The Spirit may take a picture of the rover.

GEORGE: Yes, exactly. Exactly. I think that's what everyone is hoping might happen. I think today is the last day that they are really expecting to have any likelihood of linking up with the Beagle, if it's out there, if it's buried itself under some sand dune. What on earth has happened to it? I don't know. Might well be the fact that it only had 3 airbags to land on compared to the Spirit, which had something like 24 airbags. So you never know. Maybe one of those airbags didn't work for the Beagle or something.

COSTELLO: That's true. Our airbags are bigger than yours.

Any word about this British...

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Any word about this British Airways flight continually being delayed on the front pages this morning?

GEORGE: I think, to be honest with you, it's not really hitting our front pages so much today. But of course there is an awful lot of talk about this and specifically say people are looking forward at what's happening with pilots. Pilots are meeting up and discussing about security measures now going forward. And particularly security measures having air marshals onboard with guns and that sort of thing.

One of the stories that is really hitting our front pages, and I know you have talked about it a little bit, but this has absolutely caught the attention of the tabloids, is that wedding. Mr. Britney. Britney Spears and the boy next door. And you can imagine it's gone absolutely mad for this. Photographs, pictures, I mean there's five pages of it in this tabloid.

COSTELLO: You're kidding? That's not her in the wedding dress, Liz, because she got married in jeans and a baseball cap.

GEORGE: I know. No, but that's from one of her -- one of her music videos on MTV. She dressed as a bride.

COSTELLO: OK.

GEORGE: So of course they are digging all of those out again. I mean wouldn't you expect it?

COSTELLO: That is so funny. Is it in the paper that -- it's in the "New York Post" here, that the two people who married her, they are being offered a million dollars for the wedding videotape?

GEORGE: Well I haven't seen that one yet. But I did read that apparently her dad was so furious that he rushed round to his neighbors next door, because of course this is the boy next door, and said you are not allowed to talk to any of the press. Don't say anything. It never happened. I think that's a man in denial.

COSTELLO: It's just a crazy story. Thank you. Liz George reporting live from London for us this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com