Handmade from the tough bark of the Tara Wing-Celtis or Blue Sandalwood tree and rice straw, Xuan paper is known for its strong, smooth surface, its ability to absorb water and moisten ink, and fold repeatedly without breaking.

UNESCO: Culture

He will say Jack Straw invited Ms Rice despite opposition to her arrival from anti-war in Iraq campaigners.

BBC: NEWS | UK | England | Lancashire | Rice's visit 'a source of light'

During a stop in Blackburn, Straw summoned up his Beatles trivia to tell Rice that Lennon -- who was murdered in New York by a deranged fan in 1980 -- penned those words after reading a story in the Daily Mail newspaper.

CNN: Musical mystery solved on tour

It followed a visit by Straw to Rice's home state of Alabama in October, where she gave him a high-profile taste of life in the Deep South.

CNN: Musical mystery solved on tour