Monaco mourns Prince of glamour

Monaco plunged into mourning, with its famed casino closing its doors upon news of the death of Prince Rainier III, the long-ruling monarch hailed for modernising the tiny principality once renowned as a “sunny place for shady people”.

Rainier, 81, whose marriage to American film star Grace Kelly brought elegance, glamour and world renown to what once was a Riviera backwater, died at 6.35am local time yesterday at the hospital treating him for heart, kidney and breathing problems. He had struggled with failing health for years.