Celtic manager Lennon hit by fan

 11 May 2011 Last updated at 16:34 ET  Celtic boss Neil Lennon is attacked during the game against Hearts A man has been arrested in connection with an attack on Celtic manager Neil Lennon during the second half of his team's game against Hearts.

A fan clambered from the Hearts section of the main stand at Tynecastle in Edinburgh after Celtic's second goal and made for Lennon on the touchline.

He connected with Lennon before being bundled to the ground and arrested.

Earlier this season parcel bombs addressed to Lennon, his lawyer and a politician were intercepted by police.

Celtic won Wednesday night's game 3-0 to ensure the Scottish Premier League title race goes to the final day.

The incident occurred after their second goal, in the 49th minute.

A supporter ran along the touchline towards Lennon and made contact with the Celtic manager before being pushed to the ground by police and stewards, handcuffed and bundled out of the stadium.

Trouble then broke out in the Celtic section of the ground between fans and police.

The Celtic manager looked stunned after the attack but was uninjured.

Lothian and Borders Police said a man had been reported to the procurator fiscal and would appear in court in connection with the incident.

Continue reading the main story James Cook Scotland Correspondent, BBC News

For a decade Neil Lennon has been a magnet for abuse, threats and violence.

A Roman Catholic from Lurgan in County Armagh, he stopped playing international football for Northern Ireland in 2002 after a death threat, said to be from loyalist paramilitaries.

Two men were sent to prison after assaulting Lennon in the street in the West End of Glasgow in 2008.

And in January this year bullets addressed to the Celtic manager were intercepted at a postal sorting office.

But the most serious threat was still to come.

A total of three parcel bombs addressed to Neil Lennon have now been intercepted in the west of Scotland.

The bomber has still not been arrested and Lennon and his family are living amid tight security which includes a panic button in their house.

"I've had this for 10 years", he said recently, "but I don't want to say you get used to it, because you never do."

A police spokesman said: "A number of incidents took place during this match including some violent disorder.

"Lothian and Borders Police will fully investigate all of the incidents that occurred at the match this evening and will work closely with both football clubs and the SPL."

Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan issued a statement, saying: "Clearly this kind of behaviour from supporters is wholly unacceptable.

"The safety of players, club officials and match officials is paramount on or around the field of play, and this clear breach of security is a matter I will be discussing with SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster tomorrow."

Mr Doncaster said he was "shocked and appalled" by the incident.

He said the incident would be investigated thoroughly.

First Minister Alex Salmond said: "This sort of behaviour is utterly unacceptable.

"The Joint Action Group formed after the recent football summit is developing the eight-point plan to present to ministers before the start of the new season to tackle all issues of violence and bigotry in relation to football, because we cannot have the safety of individuals endangered by such mindless incidents, and our national game tarnished."

Hearts vowed to give its full co-operation to the authorities during the investigation into the incident.

A club statement said: "An investigation into events which took place in the second half of tonight's game against Celtic is now under way.

"Hearts is a club which prides itself on its 'football for all' policy and these sorts of actions have no place in the game of football."

Former Northern Ireland player Lennon has been in the headlines regularly this season.

In January a package addressed to him containing bullets was intercepted at a sorting office in Country Antrim.

In March, the club confirmed Lennon was under 24-hour security surveillance after a suspicious package was intercepted at a Royal Mail sorting office in Saltcoats, Ayrshire.

On 19 April it emerged that Royal Mail intercepted a total of two "viable" parcel bombs addressed to Lennon.

Strawberry Fields not forever: Lennon gates go

 10 May 2011 Last updated at 10:55 ET  The new gates replaced the worn-out originals The ornate iron gates of a children's home which inspired John Lennon's psychedelic Beatles anthem Strawberry Fields Forever have been removed.

The Salvation Army, which owns the former home, is putting the red Victorian gates into storage.

It means Beatles fans who pass the Woolton site on bus tours will now be met with 10ft (3m) high replicas.

The charity said fans would still get an "authentic experience", but one tour guide said they were "aghast".

Replicas of the 100-year-old wrought iron gates have been made by metal work specialist Jim Bennett, from Aigburth, and gifted to The Salvation Army.

'Musical pilgrimage'

The originals are being taken to a secret location for storage, but could eventually be auctioned off.

The long-term future of the site, which closed in 2005, is yet to be determined but the charity hopes to develop a centre for children with learning disabilities.

"Although care has been taken to ensure the original gates to the site have remained in good condition, inevitably time has taken its toll," said Maj Ray Irving, director of social services for The Salvation Army.

"This means that the original gates can be kept safe from further deterioration and with the replica gates in place, allow for an authentic experience for the many thousands of people who come on a 'musical pilgrimage' to Strawberry Field."

Lennon wrote Strawberry Fields Forever, which was released in 1967, from his memories of playing in the area as a child.

The Salvation Army said time had taken its toll on the original gates

The site remains a popular stop on tours of the city's Beatles landmarks and Paul Beesley, chair of the Association of Liverpool Tour Guides, said he was worried about the effect of the gates' removal.

He said: "Last night I was bringing a group here and I decided to tell them they would have been the very final group who would see the gates and they were absolutely aghast."

Mr Beesley said he would like to see the gates placed in a museum, but that uncertainty over their future was not helpful.

"We don't know what's going to happen to them - that's really worrying and I know the fans are not going to be happy."

The original Strawberry Field, which housed a large number of children who had been taken into care, was demolished in the early 1970s and replaced with a smaller building.

It closed in May 2005 and has since been used by community groups and various Salvation Army projects.