The war of words between Prime Minister Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher over the European rapid reaction force spills over into the front pages.

The Mirror proclaims "Blair Force Won" with what it calls a trio of knock-out blows against Lady Thatcher, William Hague and the Eurosceptic press.

There is a general consensus that the prime minister has made a break with the past and what the Daily Telegraph calls his "Thatcher inheritance".

The Times says he has abandoned attempts to win over newspapers such as the Daily Mail, which describes Mr Blair's attack on Baroness Thatcher as petulant and arrogant.

The Guardian praises the break from the Thatcher legacy with "amen to that - and bravo".

Delhi express

Both The Sun and the Mirror have unflattering comparisons of the UK's crippled rail network.

The Sun goes back 170 years to George Stephenson's rocket to compare its one-hour journey-time from Liverpool to Manchester to today's First North Western service, which can now take nearly an hour and a quarter.

The Mirror takes a 30-mile journey into Delhi in 45 minutes while a similar distance commuting from Knebworth into London takes two and a half hours.

New crusader?

The papers have fun with profiles of the new owner of Express Newspapers, Richard Desmond, whose current stable includes a series of pornographic magazines.

The Express, while running a favourable article about its new boss, prefers not to make any editorial comment about the takeover.

Perhaps the reason lies in the state of its editor, Rosie Boycott, who the Times describes as "shell-shocked".

The Express' main rival, the Daily Mail, harks back to the days of Lord Beaverbrook, with the simple headline: "Crusader, Rest in Peace".

Flood defences

While many papers report further flood alerts in East Yorkshire, the windswept figure of John Prescott is pictured touring flood defences in The Netherlands.

The Independent says the deputy prime minister took an interest in two techniques - one for keeping water out and another for letting water in.

The Times says that a German scheme using mobile stainless steel walls is to be piloted at Bewdley and Shrewsbury - the latter a town that rejected the idea of a permanent wall.

Beijing beach

The Guardian reports that China is planning to bring beach volleyball to Tiananmen Square in Beijing if it is awarded the Olympic Games in 2008.

The paper wonders how the sport's image will be enhanced by being played in a venue synonymous with brutal repression.

It also suggests that Mao Zedong's body is spinning in its nearby mausoleum at the very thought.