DESPITE being back in Hampshire for just a few days Canon Andrew White was looking forward to taking part in the annual Christmas Day Service at Liphook Church Centre for his annual appearance in the parish.

Village vicar Reverend Valentine Inglis-Jones, who was taught by the 'Vicar of Baghdad', was delighted to introduce his mentor to a small congregation gathered at the Portsmouth Road Centre to hear his sermon.

The president of the Foundation for the Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East explained he had been forced to leave St George's Church, in Baghdad, earlier this year, when ISIS surrounded the city.

For full story, see this week's Liphook Herald.