A property tycoon left "broke" by the spectacular collapse of Ireland's construction boom plans to revive his fortunes by erecting gravestones instead of raising apartment blocks.

Bernard McNamara, who last month said his businesses had debts in the region of €1.5 billion, is seeking planning permission to develop a graveyard in west Dublin, the Irish Independent reported yesterday.

Other Irish builders, whose apartment blocks lay vacant in Dublin and housing developments empty in the so-called "ghost estates" outside the city, also plan to turn to filling cemeteries where space is at a far greater premium.

"There are currently 37 graveyards in use in the country, and many of these have reached or are nearing their full capacity," the newspaper quoted a submission to Fingal County council by McNamara's firm Versonwood as saying.

Fancy a fat-free camel burger?

A traditional Emirati restaurant in Dubai has added a new entrée to its menu billed as a fat-free choice for carnivorous but health-conscious diners: the camel burger. For 20 UAE dirhams (€3.95), the Local House restaurant offers a quarter pound camel burger, loaded with cheese and smothered in burger sauce, the Xpress weekly newspaper reported yesterday.

Ali Ahmad Esmail, Local House assistant manager, told the paper that the burger patties were fat- and cholesterol-free. But he declined to say how the outlet tenderised the tough camel meat. "It's a trade secret," he said.

The paper reported that Local House said it was the first to introduce the burger in the United Arab Emirates. A fast food outlet in neighbouring Saudi Arabia put baby camel burgers on its menu last year.

The camel burger, a hit with residents and tourists, could soon also be on offer in the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower formerly known as Burj Dubai, where Local House may open a branch, the paper said.

Online campaign to save banker's job

An online campaign has started to save the job of an Australian banker who became an internet sensation after he was caught on live television viewing images of scantily-clad supermodel Miranda Kerr on his computer.

The financial website Here Is The City News (http://news.hereisthecity.com) has set up a "Save Dave" page that encourages readers to e-mail the public relations department of Macquarie Bank to save banker David Kiely's job.

The web campaign lists four reasons for Mr Kiely to keep his job: He seems like a nice bloke; the photographs were not hardcore; he has suffered enough, and there's just too much political correctness in this world anyway.

Mr Kiely, who works in Macquarie Private Wealth in Sydney, opened e-mails containing pictures of Ms Kerr, unaware a colleague behind him was doing a live television interview about the Australian economy.

Protest hurts President's feelings

They say you need a thick hide for public office but Indonesia's President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has said he was hurt when his photo was affixed to a buffalo's bottom at a recent rally.

A highly politicised parliamentary inquiry into the 2008 bail out of a small bank has sparked several small and mostly peaceful protests in Indonesia.

One protest featured a buffalo with anti-government graffiti and a picture of the President stuck to its behind.

President Yudhoyono, who is often referred to as SBY after his initials, was quoted in the English language newspaper Jakarta Post on Wednesday saying the buffalo stunt was offensive.

"Then there was a group of protesters leading a buffalo. They said 'SBY is lazy, big and stupid, like a buffalo.' Was that really a demonstration?" the President was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Post, adding that he would discuss protest etiquette with several district governors and ministers.

Sharks kill US kite-board-surfer

Sharks bit and killed a Florida man who was kite-board-surfing off the state's southern Atlantic Coast, sheriff's investigators said yesterday.

It was Florida's first shark-bite death in five years, although the state averages about 21 shark attacks a year, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History.

Lifeguard Daniel Lund told Martin County Sheriff's investigators that he saw a man down in the water with his kite-board off Stuart Beach on Wednesday afternoon and swam out to him with a rescue board.

The injured man stopped talking as the lifeguard swam ashore with him in tow. Paramedics were unable to revive him, and the victim, 38-year-old Stephen Schafer, died at a hospital without regaining consciousness, the report said.

Mr Schafer had numerous bites on his hand and buttocks and a 20- to 25-centimetre gash on his thigh.

Seeks makeover to win back lover

A Chinese woman is seeking extensive plastic surgery to look like US actress Jessica Alba, mainly because she hopes to win back her boyfriend who she said always wished she looked more like the Hollywood star.

The 21-year-old, who would only give her name as Xiaoqing, said she was devastated after she broke up with her lover, an ardent fan of the actress who has starred in hit movies such as Fantastic Four and Into The Blue.

Ms Xiaoqing, who works at an internet firm in Shanghai, said that during their 18-month-long relationship, her 28-year-old boyfriend had been obsessed with Ms Alba, adorning their apartment with her photographs and talking about her constantly.

She said that while her boyfriend had not forced her to look like Ms Alba, he always hinted that the wanted her to resemble his favourite star and even bought her a blonde wig to wear.