World Briefs

A British train station has erected a no kissing sign to stop lovers going full steam ahead with their over-amorous farewells.

The sign has gone up at the drop-off point at Warrington Bank Quay station in the town of Warrington, between Liverpool and Manchester in northwest England. A man in a hat and a woman with a curly-looking hair-do puckering up show people where they must not indulge in full-on lip-locking.

A similar sign, this time permitting kissing, has been erected elsewhere in a zone where smooching is considered tolerable.

A spokesman for operators Virgin Rail, "But... we have put the sign up at the drop-off point because it is not a very big area and it often gets busy with lots of traffic.

However, another station is trying to rescue love from the tracks. High Wycombe, northwest of London, is having none of it and is actively urging commuters to get frisky.

"Kissing is welcome here! ... we would never dream of banning kissing," says a poster of a cartoon couple embracing, framed by a pink heart.

"Railway stations are romantic places," insisted Kirsteen Robertson from Chiltern Railways. "They are where fond farewells and emotional reunions take place, where relationships start with a glance." (AFP)

Georgians take a swipe at Putin

Still smarting from war with Russia six months ago, Georgians have picked a song for this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow that takes a swipe at Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

The disco song We Don't Wanna Put In by Stefane & 3G was chosen by a jury and public vote on Georgian television, and has already caused a stir on the internet.

It promises to receive a cool reception in Moscow on May 12-16.

The band has not hidden the fact the song alludes to Mr Putin, the former Russian president who evokes strong feelings in Georgia.

"Since we (Georgia) decided to take part, we need to send a message to Europe and first of all to Moscow," song producer Kakha Tsiskaridze said on Thursday.

"The song is called "Put In" and its text carries a double meaning," he said. "I think everyone will understand what we want to say. It's important for us to say what Georgia wants to say as a country." But Georgia's public broadcaster denied the song contained a political message. The contest rules prohibit lyrics, speeches, or gestures "of a political or similar nature." (Reuters)

Forgets thousands of euros in toilet

A German businessman lost more than 10,000 euros in a plastic bag after forgetting the cash in a public toilet, authorities said Thursday.

Hesse state police said the man took the "five-figure" sum with him as he stopped to relieve himself in a motorway service station near Haiger in western Germany. He then drove off.

A police spokesman said it was not clear why the man took half an hour to notice his loss - by which time the money had gone. (Reuters)

Drunken couple both lose licences

A married couple in a Czech town both lost their driving licences on the same night after each taking a turn behind the wheel of the same car, CTK news agency reported Thursday.

Police in the eastern Czech town of Frydek-Mistek first stopped their car because the 50-year-old man showed signs of being drunk, according to a police spokesman.

The man dutifully handed his driving licence to the police, locked the car and left with his wife, only to return two hours later and ask his intoxicated 37-year-old spouse to drive home.

"Police officers then incidentally stopped them on the other side of town, and a breathalyser showed the woman... was even drunker than her husband," the spokesman added.

The couple are facing a year in prison or a fine, as well as a driving ban, the police said. (AFP)

Jailed for failed ATM break-in

A blundering bank robber in China has been jailed for 11 years after a failed attempt to pry open an automatic teller machine with a pair of scissors, according to state press.

Despite the seemingly harsh sentence of 11 years, the court in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou said the man had been treated leniently because he failed and confessed to his crime, Xinhua news agency reported.

The man, surnamed Liu, used a pair of fold-up scissors and a debit card to try to open the ATM at a bank in Hangzhou, Xinhua reported.

The court sentenced him yesterday, Xinhua said, giving no other details. (AFP)