Britain

U.S. marshals on Monday arrested a British priest wanted in Britain on child molestation charges, authorities said. Richard John James Robinson was arrested in Duarte under an extradition treaty between the U.S., Britain and Northern Ireland, according to an arrest warrant filed in federal court in Los Angeles. Robinson is charged in Britain with "buggery, attempted buggery, indecent assault on a male person and indecency with a child," court documents state. The charges stem from "a chain of sexual abuse starting in approximately 1959 and continuing for decades, even after Robinson was ordained as a priest in 1971," according to the arrest warrant.

If this sounds familiar, it is. Last year, American Airlines ran a "Fly to the U.K., Earn a Free Companion Ticket to the U.K. or the Caribbean" promotion. The deal: Now the qualifying dates have been extended. AAdvantage members who book round-trip first class, business class or select economy class fares between the U.S. and Britain and travel by March 31 will receive a free companion ticket for future travel to Britain or the Caribbean until Dec. 31. Enroll as an AAdvantage member and use promo code "UKCMP" to get the deal.

Duffy choked back tears as she picked up three Brit Awards in London. The members of Kings of Leon looked amazed at winning two, while hotly tipped Coldplay sat in stone-faced silence after getting frozen out at the United Kingdom's equivalent of the Grammys. Duffy, 24, won the best British album prize for "Rockferry," and also was named best British female and best British breakthrough act. Kings of Leon was named best international group and won best album with "Only by the Night."

The European Court of Human Rights found Britain guilty of unlawfully detaining nine men under an anti-terrorism law that was passed after the Sept. 11 attacks. The nine plaintiffs -- six Algerians, a Jordanian, a Tunisian and a man of Palestinian origin -- were suspected of ties to Al Qaeda. They were detained from December 2001 to October 2003. The court also ordered London not to deport one of the men, Jordanian preacher Abu Qatada, before it examined an appeal in which he said he risked torture in his own country.

A helicopter returning from a North Sea oil platform went down off the northeast coast of Scotland with 16 people on board, and police said at least eight were killed. Scotland's Grampian Police said eight bodies had been recovered from the sea and that the search for the other passengers was continuing. A spokesman for the BP oil company said the helicopter was working for the company and was returning to Britain from an offshore oil field.

Police arrested 10 men in a series of anti-terrorism raids across northwest England. The Greater Manchester Police said the suspects were detained in an area that includes the cities of Manchester and Liverpool. The department said several addresses were being searched, but would not give any details of the alleged plot. At least one of the raids was in the working-class Cheetham Hill area of Manchester, which has a large South Asian community. Witnesses said another raid was at Liverpool's John Moores University.

Re "Libel over there," editorial, April 9 As a British writer, I'm embarrassed that U.S. states are having to pass legislation to protect Americans from malicious court cases pursued under my country's draconian libel laws. It seems absurd that a British court can claim jurisdiction over an American who may never even have set foot here, simply because his book could be obtained in Britain via the Internet. State Sen. Ellen Corbett (D-San Leandro) is to be congratulated for acting to protect Californians from this legal anomaly.

What's next, a fake tan? Britain is buzzing over singing sensation Susan Boyle's mini-makeover, with some worrying that her new look may cost her some support in the "Britain's Got Talent" competition that catapulted her to international stardom. Boyle, 47, became an instant YouTube and Internet celebrity after appearing on the British TV show with gray, frizzy hair, bushy eyebrows and a jowly face above a remarkably unflattering dress. The contrast between Boyle's unadorned looks and her angelic singing voice endeared her to viewers the world over.

Bob Dylan is back at No. 1 on the United Kingdom album chart, 39 years after his last top-selling LP. "Together Through Life" (Sony/Columbia) is the 67-year-old singer-songwriter's 33rd studio album and seventh British No. 1, the Official Charts Co. said. Dylan, who has been touring Britain to mixed reviews, last was on top of the country's charts in 1970 with "New Morning." He now holds the record for the longest gap between solo No. 1 albums, beating the 31 years that Tom Jones set with "Reload" in 1999.

Henry Chu's "A King's Lasting Impression" was superb [Foreign Briefing, May 3]. King Henry VIII's founding of the British naval power not only changed the world of the early 1500s but was also instrumental in Britain's victory over Germany in WWII. Without Britain's emphasis on naval strength dating to Henry VIII's time, Germany would've invaded England and our world would be very different. Evan Dale Santos Adelanto