A condom manufacturer in China has been ordered to stop the sales of condoms that bore the image of Lei Feng, a communist hero model worker from the 1960s.

The condom box displays the photo of Feng holding a gun and the manufacturer Zhang Zhiwen advertised them for sale on his website.

A businessman who sold condoms in a shop in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang was shut down by government officials for selling the latex products without instructions and with images deemed offensive, including the image of former Communist leader Chairman Mao Zedong, a state newspaper said Tuesday.

Having received numerous complaints about shop owner Zhang Zhiwen's condoms, which bear the likeness of several People's heroes, the industry and commerce administration raided the business and ordered the man to close down.

A 40-year-old woman from Bangkok, Thailand has authored a comic book on the life of deposed Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra. The deposed leader is depicted as a hero with an unfinished mission to help the poor.

Posatorn Butr-anan said the bloodless coup in September which ousted Thaksin, prompted her to write the book.

An American woman from Denver, Colorado has been hailed a hero after catching a baby which had fallen from the third floor balcony of an apartment.

Police said that Mary Bussey and her son Brandon, were on their way to attend a junior football game in Denver, Colorado when the cries of a baby caught their attention.

A self-proclaimed kilt-wearing Czech rebel, has been staging a one-man protest to demand independence for his home region. Called the "Czech Braveheart" after his idol William Wallace, the 27-year-old Alois Stuzka has managed to cause some public disruptions.

Stuzka said, "I want to give people in my home area pride in their heritage just like the Scots."