Leicester's rivals for the 2017 City of Culture title are being given a polite warning they have a fight on their hands.

Postcards showing the delights of our city are being dispatched by the Leicester Mercury to civic leaders in 10 parts of the UK challenging them to say why they feel they would make more worthy winners than us.

Mercury editor Richard Bettsworth said: "We're sending postcards to the other places bidding to be the City of Culture in the spirit of friendly rivalry.

"We want to show them a glimpse of what Leicester has to offer and we hope they respond by telling us about their cities.

"Obviously, we think Leicester should win, but we also think this competition is great for Britain in general, and by bringing together the responses from those vying for the title we can showcase what a great country we live in."

Bosses from Leicester's arts scene are working with politicians and business leaders on a bid they hope will see the city inherit the title from current holders Londonderry, in Northern Ireland.

Leicester's bid will need to be submitted to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport by the end of the month.

So far, rivalry between the cities bidding to win has been muted. Southend MP David Amess sparked some controversy when he banded other contenders as "absolute dumps" in a radio interview.

Mr Amess insisted his remarks were tongue-in-cheek and intended only to liven up the contest.

However, his comments prompted an angry response from Leicester's mayor Sir Peter Soulsby, who said the Essex seaside town looked at its best at midnight and visitors struggled to wash the smell of fish and mud from their clothes.

Dundee, another of Leicester's rivals, have recruiting Hollywood star Brian Cox and telly presenter Lorraine Kelly to front its bid.

Mr Cox, who recently appeared in BBC political comedy Bob Servant, told The Scotsman: "Dundee has an outstanding case to be the UK City of Culture 2017 and to involve everyone in the city, right across the social scale, in something truly special."

Ms Kelly also told the paper: "Dundee has always been a brilliant city but there has been a real renaissance recently."

It is anticipated the city that wins the title when it is announced in November will see a surge in tourist numbers and will benefit from a multi-million boost to its economy.

A teenager accused of raping a girl at a sleepover claims he was sleepwalking during the alleged incident.

He denies the offence, claiming he was suffering from a condition which has recently been termed "sexomnia".

The 16-year-old girl said she woke up on a friend's sofa to find the 18-year-old on top of her, it was claimed.

In a filmed police statement played at Leicester Crown Court yesterday, she said: "I remember just waking up and realising what he was doing. He was raping me.

"It was without my consent or knowledge beforehand because I was asleep and he woke me up. It was the middle of the night.

"I pushed his shoulders and chest. I was confused and afraid and managed to scramble away from him.

"I fell off the end of the sofa. He moved away and said, 'I haven't done anything'.

"He kept trying to grab me, saying I'd imagined it."

The alleged victim said she had slept fully dressed on the sofa of the house in Loughborough, while the teenager had slept on the floor.

She claimed the defendant later told a friend sleeping upstairs he had not done anything and suggested swapping rooms – and that if he left the room she would later wake up and think it was "all a dream".

She claimed the defendant, also from Loughborough, had undone her belt buckle and pulled down her briefs, leggings and shorts to carry out the alleged attack while she slept on April 26, 2011.

The girl claimed the accused was earlier "staring" at her, making her feel uncomfortable, as she and others watched the movie, Taken.

She said she was reluctant to share the lounge with the defendant overnight, but did not make "a big deal" of it.

She said: "I didn't think he'd do something like this."

The girl claimed she fell asleep while watching television, after others, including her friend's mother, went to bed. She said she last remembers the defendant, also a house guest, arranging his sleeping bag on the floor.

Felicity Gerry, prosecuting, said: "The defendant denies rape on the basis he was asleep and doesn't accept he penetrated her.

"The Crown says you can be sure he was not asleep, but she was. He raped her and got caught. He claims he was sleepwalking."

She said it was linked to a recognised condition known as "sexomnia."

Miss Gerry said: "It wasn't a particularly rowdy evening, although there was some evidence cannabis had been smoked."

The trial continues.

A 21-year-old walker from Leicester has escaped with cuts and bruises after falling more than 1,200 feet down a mountain.

Mountain rescue experts said the man, who has not been named, was lucky to be alive after falling near the summit of Mount Snowdon on Monday. The man was airlifted to hospital by an RAF search and rescue Sea King helicopter belonging to 22 Squadron, the unit in which Prince William (pictured) is a pilot.

The man was in a hypothermic state when found but was released yesterday with superficial injuries.

Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team spokesman Phil Benbow said: "This young man is very lucky to be alive. When you slip off a mountain in an uncontrolled fall like that it is a lottery as to whether your head hits a rock or not.

"When your head hits a rock there tends to be only one winner. It is no exaggeration to say he could have been killed."

The man slipped at about 12.25pm as he and friends made their way down after reaching the summit of Snowdon – the highest mountain in Wales at 1,085 metres (3,560ft).

Mr Benbow said the walker, who was wearing crampons and carrying an ice axe, slipped on Watkin Path and fell into Cwm Tregalen.

Mr Benbow, who co-ordinated the rescue, said: "One of his party raised the alarm by mobile phone.

"He would have been sliding very quickly down hard snow and ice.

"As it happened, members of the rescue team were enjoying a day on the slopes nearby so he was lucky again that we could get to him relatively quickly."

Mr Benbow said the man was conscious and spoke to the 18-man rescue team as they waited for the helicopter, which took him away at 1.30pm.

The man was taken to Bangor Hospital, where he spent the night.

Mr Benbow said it was windy and cloudy on the mountain with hard-packed snow underfoot.

He said: "As it turned out, the young man only suffered superficial injuries in this incident.

"He was released from hospital the next day. "

"How lucky he was is demonstrated by the fact that about two hours later we dealt with another man who fell 200 metres (650ft) on Snowdon.

"He sustained serious head injuries and was taken to hospital in a bad way."

A spokeswoman for RAF Valley declined to confirm whether Prince William was piloting the helicopter that rescued the Leicester man.

Do you know the man who was rescued? Call newsdesk on 0116 222 4241, send a tweet to @thisisleics or e-mail:

newsdesk@ leicestermercury.co.uk

A retired bakery worker helped to save a dog's life after hearing the distressed animal howling in the early hours of a freezing morning.

Dave Carvell, 64, who suffers from the disabling breathing conditions asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), donned his dressing gown and grabbed a torch to look for the tormented animal.

He found an ageing black labrador up to its shoulders in thick mud and freezing water in the pitch dark at 4.15am on Monday, in a brook 100 yards from his home in Brook Drive, Ratby.

Dave called the fire service and, as he waited for them to arrive, tried to keep the terrified animal calm by stroking its head and talking to it.

He said: "My partner was woken up by a dog barking. It was making distressed, howling noises and sounded like it was in trouble.

"I decided to go out and have a look – someone had to. I thought it might have been tied to a tree or something.

"When I got to it, the water was three-quarters of the way up it.

"He was struggling to get out of the mud at the bottom of the brook.

"He was quite an old fella, puffing and panting, and looked on his last legs. I felt so sorry for him.

"While I was waiting for the fire service, I was talking to him and stroking his head.

"His eyes were bulging, he was really stressed out.

"I couldn't have gone in the brook because I suffer from asthma and COPD – it was difficult enough to breathe in the freezing air.

"The firemen were here very quickly.

"One of the blokes had waders on and he got into the water and picked him up. The firemen asked if I had a locked yard I could keep him in, but he was freezing cold, so I took him into my kitchen, dried him off and gave him some dog food that I borrowed from a neighbour.

"He was such a lovely dog, so obedient," he said.

The dog, tired out by the ordeal, later went to sleep on a towel in the kitchen.

"The firemen said from the look of him he would have died if he had been left there much longer because the water was freezing," said Mr Carvell.

The dog was found to have a microchip and was taken to Leicester Animal Aid at Huncote by the RSPCA before being later reunited with his owner.

Two fire crews from Leicester's western station and the technical rescue team from the city's southern station freed the dog just after 4.45am.

Nigel Pearson has urged his under-performing players to take some responsibility.

The Leicester City manager, staff and players held a meeting yesterday to discuss their poor run of form, which has seen them pick up just two points from the last 21 on offer.

Speculation about Pearson's future was rife yesterday. But while he said he could deal with it, his message to the players was that they should to take a long, hard look at themselves.

"We will talk about it when we reconvene but I want my players to take a lot more responsibility for their performances," said Pearson after Monday's 2-0 defeat at Barnsley.

"At the moment it is clear to see we have a number of players out of sorts and out of form.

"The simple fact is that only towards the middle point of the second half did we at any point look dangerous. For me that is very disappointing with the players we had out there.

"We did the basics very badly at Barnsley and were fortunate to come away with just a 2-0 defeat. We have to look at how we move forward from here because we have to get a grip on the situation very quickly."

With so many players out of form, Pearson's decision to run a smaller squad has come under scrutiny. But he responded to suggestions he should have done more transfer business by stating his squad does possess strength in depth.

"It is about whether players are available," he said. "I don't want players in for the sake of it.

"We have enough numbers bearing in mind we had three players who didn't make it on to the bench who travelled with us to Barnsley.

"But, unfortunately, the players who have played well this season and got us in a good position at the moment are not individually doing enough.

"More importantly, we are not making enough good decisions or working hard enough at the moment."

An unemployed Leicester university graduate is one of three young interns hoping to impress former Dragons' Den star Hilary Devey in her new show tonight.

The Intern, which is on Channel 4 at 9pm, pits three hopeful youngsters against each other and sees them compete for a job at the £1,500-a-night Milestone Hotel, in Kensington, London.

Among the wannabe hoteliers is 21-year-old Princess Peprah, who graduated from De Montfort University last year.

Despite only ever visiting two hotels in her life, she is keen to prove to Hilary and hotel managing director Jonathan Raggett that she has what it takes to succeed.

The former business management student can be seen tonight attempting to cope with challenges set by ex-Dragon Hilary, 56, who runs haulage firm Pall-Ex, based in Ellistown.

One of the challenges set by Hilary features Made in Chelsea star Hugo Taylor, who gets caught in a compromising position when Princess finds him handcuffed to a four-poster bed in a hotel room.

Hidden camera footage documents how she copes with the situation.

Jonathan will then choose one of them to take on as a trainee hotel manager.

Police are hunting a sex attacker who assaulted a woman as she walked along a footpath

The 33-year-old victim was attacked in Groby at 2.30am on Saturday, March 30.

Police said the attacker pushed the woman against a fence and tried to undo her clothing.

He ran off when the victim screamed for help.

Police are trying to trace the man following the attack on the path between Laundon Way and Windsor Avenue.

The attacker was between 5 ft 6in and 5 ft 8in, and of slim build.

Detective Constable Gary Dickenson said: "It is very unusual for this kind of offence to be committed, let alone in an area of very low crime.

"The woman managed to scare off the attacker at an early stage, but it was very upsetting for her.

"I would like to hear from anyone who saw the incident, or saw a man acting suspiciously in the area that morning."

Contact Det Con Dickenson on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

A woman stabbed her boyfriend 24 times during an argument, a murder trial jury heard.

Michelle Mills left Edward Miller, 20, bleeding to death on the living room floor of their home in Scalford, near Melton.

The jury at Lincoln Crown Court was told she stabbed him repeatedly with a kitchen knife using such force that the blade broke away from the handle.

The court was told mother-of-two Mills (31), who denies murder, then dialled 999.

Paramedics arrived at the scene in King Street within minutes and Mr Miller was taken to Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre in an ambulance driven by a police officer, while the two paramedics continued efforts to revive him.

He was pronounced dead soon after arriving at the hospital.

Yvonne Coen QC, prosecuting, said the couple, who had been in a relationship for two years, often argued but were described as "smitten" with each other.

Earlier in the evening, they were seen being affectionate with each other at a Bonfire Night party at the Kings Arms, in the village.

However, back at their home they argued so loudly a neighbour turned up her television to drown out the sound.

Miss Coen said: "The neighbour heard banging and crashing which seemed like they were fighting and furniture was being knocked over.

"Mills was heard crying."

Just after 1am, Mills made a 999 call telling the operator, "Me and my boyfriend just fell out and I've just stabbed him. He's all over the place."

Paramedics arrived within minutes to discover Mr Miller bleeding heavily from multiple stab wounds.

Mills was arrested and told police, "I grabbed the knife and I went mental. I don't know how many times I stabbed him".

Miss Coen told the jury "There is no dispute that Ms Mills stabbed Eddie Miller and that she caused his death. She accepts she is guilty of causing his death.

"The prosecution suggests that Ms Mills, in drink, became aggressive and lost her temper with her boyfriend.

"She was apparently thinking fondly of her ex during the row with Eddie Miller and texted him in affectionate terms.

"After Eddie, on her account, had grabbed her and pushed her on the sofa she got away from him. It could have stopped. All he wanted to do, it seems, was to sit having a drink. It would seem that she wasn't going to leave it there.

"She wasn't going to let him ignore her so she took it to the next level by taking a knife to him repeatedly, perhaps to punish this young man for what may have happened between them before, but clearly to hurt him very severely and during the course of it she actually broke the knife. If that is right, this is a plain case of murder."

The jury was told the couple had moved in together just two months earlier after previously living at Mr Miller's mother's home in nearby Eastwell.

Miss Coen said: "This was his first grown-up relationship with a woman. She was an older woman and a mother of two."

The couple's next door neighbour Geraldine Paynter told the jury she was kept awake by arguments from their property.

Ms Paynter said that on the night Mr Miller died she heard him screaming at the top of his voice, "It's you. It's your fault."

Later, she said she heard Mills repeatedly shouting, "get off me" before hearing her sobbing uncontrollably.

Pathologist Prof Guy Rutty, who carried out a post-mortem examination on Mr Miller's body, told the jury that death was due to stab wounds to the chest and abdomen.

He said the injuries on Mr Miller's body included 24 incised wounds, together with a number of other injuries.

One of the stab wounds damaged a major vein, while his lung was also punctured.

Another blow damaged the right shoulder bone.

Prof Rutty said: "He has been stabbed to the front and back of his body. Considering the injuries I found to his hands he will have grabbed the blade in an attempt to defend himself from the attack."

Blood tests on showed he had 297 mgs of alcohol per 100 mls of blood – almost four times the legal limit for driving.

Prof Rutty said: "It was a significant amount of alcohol.

"If it was somebody not used to alcohol they would be approaching the point where they would be losing consciousness."

Mills, of King Street, Scalford, denies murder on November 6 last year. The trial continues.

Dancer Eliza Delite's path to stardom is continuing as she is set to compete in the world's biggest burlesque event in Las Vegas.

The 24-year-old, from Leicester city centre, scooped the title of best British female at the World Burlesque Games held in London last year and since then has been working non-stop.

In June, she will compete for the title of "best debut" at The Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend's 23rd Annual Tournament of Tease.

"I'm really excited – it's the world's biggest burlesque event," she said. "There are only two of us from this country going over and I'm absolutely terrified of the competition.

"This is the biggest thing I've done and it will probably be a large audience, too.

"Like in London, I won't be going there expecting to win it."

Burlesque dancer Eliza has been working every weekend since her win in London in May and dancing on stage has become her main career.

She said: "A lot has changed in the past year.

"I've performed all over – including Milan, in Italy – and it's exhausting but I'm really enjoying it."

Dozens of performers, chosen from 300 applicants from around the world, will be performing over four days and nights at the tournament at the Orleans Casino in Vegas.

Eliza plans to spend a week in Vegas for the event, which begins on June 1.

The act will be her signature "Virgin Mary" routine, which won her the title last year. She said: "It's just me dancing on stage.

"Some performers like to use big props but this routine is just me in the Virgin Mary outfit.

"It's a very opulent costume, with a design based on Catholic paintings of the Virgin Mary and the red Sacred Heart on my chest.

"I might add a few more sparkles for Vegas."

The Burlesque Hall of Fame is a non-profit organisation that has a museum in Las Vegas and aims to educate the public about the history and heritage of vintage American Burlesque.

Executive director Dustin M Wax said: "We received a record number of applications this year.

"The members of the selection committee had their work cut out for them, and we are pleased to announce that Eliza DeLite will be among this year's competitors."