Dando trial set to start

The trial of the man accused of murdering TV presenter Jill Dando is expected to open at the Old Bailey today in front of a jury.

The seven women and five men sworn to try Barry George have been warned to put anything they may have read or heard about the case out of their minds.

George, 41, from Fulham, west London, denies murdering 37-year-old Miss Dando, who was shot dead on the doorstep of her home in Fulham on April 26 1999.

Trial judge Mr Justice Gage warned jurors not to allow any feelings of prejudice or sympathy about any person they had heard of before or during the trial to affect their judgment.

He said: "Reports, however fair, may be misleading. If sensational, they are even more misleading. You must put out of your minds anything you have heard or read about her death.

"It is vital you remember this so there can be a fair trial."

The judge said the case had attracted a great deal of media attention, adding: "I doubt throughout the United Kingdom there can be many adults - or even children - who have not read about her death or this case."

He added that it was their views and recollection of the evidence that counted not what someone else reported, asking the jury to keep an open mind.

The jury was sworn in on Wednesday. The trial is expected to last up to eight weeks. Prosecuting in the case is senior Treasury counsel Orlando Pownall. Michael Mansfield QC is defending George.