-Caveat Lector- Intruder Stabs Ex-Beatle Harrison By Kate Kelland HENLEY-ON-THAMES, England (Reuters) - An intruder armed with a knife stabbed former Beatle George Harrison four times in the chest in a pre-dawn attack at their home near London on Thursday, a police spokesman said. The spokesman said Harrison, 56, was in hospital in a stable condition after fighting off the intruder at his home in Henley-on-Thames on the outskirts of London. His wife, Olivia, was also wounded in the attack and was in hospital. ``The injuries aren't life-threatening,'' police spokesman Guy Bailey said. The 33-year-old attacker was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder at the 100-room mansion. Bailey said a member of the Harrisons' staff telephoned police to report the attack at 3:30 GMT on Thursday. He said it was not clear if the attack was an action by an obsessed fan similar to the 1980 assassination in New York of another ex-Beatle, John Lennon, or a robbery attempt. But the attacker was from Liverpool, the birthplace of Harrison and the other Beatles members. ``Taste in music is pretty far down the questions police initially ask a suspected murderer,'' the spokesman told Reuters. Bailey said Harrison fought with the intruder to protect his wife, who suffered head injuries in the struggle. ``The intruder has head injuries so there was a serious struggle put up by Harrison and his wife,'' Bailey added. The attack happened 19 years after Lennon was shot dead on December 8, 1980, by obsessed fan Mark Chapman outside his New York apartment building. ``It just brings a chill to you when you think about what happened to John Lennon,'' said radio DJ Jono Coleman who was a friend of Harrison. ``Suddenly, the day before the brand new century starts, another one of our prized, most fabulous people like George Harrison and his wife are attacked in their own home,'' he said. ``He's the one you'd least expect something dramatic to happen to,'' Beatles biographer Hunter Davies said. ``He's been a recluse in many ways in the lasts few years. He's gone into spiritualism, spiritual things.'' Other Ex-Beatles Informed Of Attack Harrison, the former lead guitarist of the Beatles, lived for many years in the shadow of Lennon and Paul McCartney and was rated a major musician in his own right only after the break-up of the ``Fab Four.'' During the group's reign as the kings of pop music, the Beatles' youngest member became devoted to oriental mysticism. He persuaded the other Beatles to travel to India to sit at the feet of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. ``George leads a very quiet life now,'' Sir George Martin, the former Beatles' producer, said after the attack. ``He's very down to earth. He likes nothing more than doing his garden.'' A spokesman for the Beatles record company Apple said McCartney, Lennon's widow Yoko Ono and Beatles drummer Ringo Starr had all been advised of the attack. ``Everyone is deeply shocked but relieved and thankful that George and Olivia are OK,'' Apple said in a statement. Like the other Beatles, Harrison came from a working class family in Liverpool in northwest England. He was born on February 25, 1943, the youngest of three sons. It was not until Harrison was 14 that he showed any interest in music, learning a few chords on a second-hand guitar bought from a classmate. He teamed up later with Lennon and McCartney and the group played at Liverpool's Casbah club. A rapid succession of hit singles and albums from 1962 on turned the Beatles into the most famous rock and roll group in the world. The wave of ``Beatlemania'' -- massive media coverage of their every move and the hysterical screaming of their concert audiences -- eventually led the four to give up touring in 1966 in order to concentrate on recording. In 1966, Harrison married the British model Patti Boyd. He immersed himself in mystical philosophy, became a vegetarian and gradually withdrew from the public glare. After the group's demise, Harrison scored remarkable success with the single ``My Sweet Lord'' and a series of albums. Harrison's wife Patti left her husband in 1974 after falling in love with his long-time friend, guitarist Eric Clapton. In 1978, Harrison married his present wife, Mexican-born Olivia Arias, who gave birth to Harrison's only child, son Dhani who is now aged 21. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://messenger.yahoo.com DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. 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