COLD forced judges to abandon one trial halfway through and cancel another when the heating at York Crown Court broke down.

The building's lighting, phones and computers also failed, leaving juries sitting in overcoats, judges' fingers too cold to write and emergency heaters working overtime throughout the building.

The thermometer inside read 11C.

But today although the boiler was still out of action, the court was open with emergency heating in place and staff and judges were hoping to start two new trials.

Yesterday, Judge Michael Murphy QC, sitting in Court Two, told his jury that he was shivering on the Bench within 20 minutes of starting work, despite being "well clad" in judge's robes over a suit.

Several of the jury were wearing overcoats in the jury box as he continued: "If this were a factory or office, it would be closed down. I would have to say, please jurors, could you put up with conditions you would not put up with in ordinary life."

Although they had already heard most of the prosecution case, he said he had to abandon the trial and start again at some future date.

And he apologised to the 12 men and women on behalf of "the system".

He was sitting in the case of Andrew McIntee, 37, of Brackenhill Close, Brayton, and Errol Shaun Thackray, 36, and Ruth Elizabeth Golton, 30, both of Percy Street, Goole. All three face a drugs charge.

In the slightly warmer Courtroom One, Judge Peter Charlesworth said it was "freezing".

"I am having difficulty even writing at times," he told the barristers and adjourned the trial of an alleged child abuser before it was begun.

"I thought boilers only broke down in schools."

The electricity failure kept the phones and most of the lighting out of action for more than three hours. Emergency lighting illuminated the darkened areas.

The heating problem began last week. But though emergency heaters were in use on Friday, the building still had some residual heat from when the boiler was working properly.

But over the weekend, the inside temperature fell and by yesterday morning, even the heaters could not prevent cold gripping the building.

Updated: 08:23 Tuesday, December 18, 2001