Apology over Liverpool origins of Luther King speech
Organisers of an art project have apologised over claims Martin Luther King Jnr's "I have a dream" speech was penned in Liverpool's Adelphi Hotel.
Liverpool Discovers, set up to "celebrate the greatest stories seldom told" about the city, published the claims in a tourist pamphlet.
The organisers issued the apology after biographers of Martin Luther King Jnr cast doubt over the claims.
They added they were "misled" by the "famous Liverpudlian sense of humour".
Liverpool Discovers is a public trail that tells the stories of the city from its people through art.
'Verified by historians'
It was created by Wild in Art, who were behind the Go Superlambanana and Go Penguin trails and has marked significant figures, inventions and discoveries from the city's past.
Installations around the city include a musical lamppost, giant sound mirrors and a large telescope.
The pamphlet apparently claimed Martin Luther King visited supporters in Liverpool three times.
It alleged the first draft of his famous speech was written on Adelphi Hotel notepaper.
A spokeswoman for Liverpool Discovers said: "Firstly, we'd like to offer our apologies to the public if we have accidentally mislead anyone or caused offence through the publication of this information.
"All the information published in our literature has come from a lengthy public consultation where the people of Liverpool were asked to tell their stories about the city.
"This was then verified by local historians."
She added: "We do recognise on this occasion that maybe the famous Liverpudlian sense of humour has had the last laugh but this is why we do use the word 'alleged' in relation to the information and are in no way trying to rewrite history or make factual claims about information that may or may not be correct."