Riddle of British backpacker found badly injured in Sydney

A British backpacker is in a critical condition in an Australian hospital and his family is flying out to be at his bedside as police try to discover what happened to him.

Daniel Moore, 21, from Redcar, Yorkshire, was found unconscious and badly bleeding in the road after spending a night with friends in bars in Manly, Sydney. He was taken to hospital with a fractured skull, broken ribs and internal bleeding.

Police, unsure of whether he was beaten or the victim of a hit-and-run, have appealed for a taxi driver to come forward. He dropped Mr Moore off at 4am yesterday and was the last person to see him before he was injured.

"It's a bit of a mystery," said Inspector Bob Bell. "Daniel is the one bloke who can throw light on the whole thing and we haven't been able to speak to him because of his condition."