Radio wind-up master to play his jokes on TV

CAPITAL Radio's master of the windup, Steve Penk, has landed a contract to bring his brand of humour to the small screen, writes Sarah Shannon. Penk, right, who once rang up Tony Blair on air pretending to be William Hague, will star in a six-part series for Central Television which will be a combination of Simon Mayo's Confessions and Beadle's About. It will have a studio audience, ready to become the stars of the show, and celebrities who will help Penk play his practical jokes. The series starts filming in a month and is due for transmission in March.

Producers Pearson Television said they were "very excited" about their new signing.

CONMEN are exploiting hard-up families still struggling to pay off their Christmas debts, London's consumer watchdogs warned today. Trading standards officers working for London boroughs have received many complaints from residents who have been left disappointed and out of pocket after signing up to what looked like lucrative home-working schemes. The "jobs" are often advertised on postcards in shop windows and sound attractive. Aimed at women at home, the unemployed, single parents and pensioners, they offer the chance to earn money working from home with little or no experience. Dave Fordham, Islington's chief trading standards officer, said: "Many of these schemes ask you to send money up front to register your interest and to receive more details. This may be the last you see of your cash. "One of the most widespread scams is envelope filling and addressing schemes. Another involves assembling small goods like costume jewellery." Hospital staff 'lose' body of dead baby MATERNITY services have been criticised at a London hospital where staff "lost" a dead baby. In 1997 a grieving mother who asked to see her dead baby was told by staff at the Whittington Hospital on Highgate Hill: "Sorry, we can't find it." After a desperate search lasting three hours the hospital discovered that the baby had been sent to a funeral director by mistake. The Health Service Ombudsman ruled that the "delays and confusion which occurred merit strong criticism". District Auditor Les Kidner is also concerned about staffing levels at the hospital. He found that the ratio of midwives to mothers was below the minimum level required to provide continuous support. Milestone for model as second pet clinic opens FORMER model Celia Hammond, who gave up her jet-setting lifestyle to become an animal welfare campaigner, has reached another milestone in her battle to create a string of pet clinics throughout the capital. Her animal trust opens its second London clinic on Monday in Canning Town. Miss Hammond, a former model for Vogue and Harpers and Queen, opened her first clinic, which concentrates on neutering and vaccinating cats and dogs, three years ago in Lewisham. She said: "We were at one time going round rescuing pets, but I soon realised you have to solve the problem at its root. If you stop pets breeding, you do not get any unwanted animals." Teddy makes it bearable TEDDY bears are being carried in police patrol cars based at Amersham to ease the trauma for young children involved in road accidents.

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