Image caption The duke launched his Twitter career by welcoming people to his account 
 
 The Duke of York has become the first member of the Royal Family to join Twitter. 
 
 Prince Andrew chose @TheDukeOfYork as his handle for the micro-blogging site. 
 
 But his arrival prompted mixed reactions from other tweeters, as some pointed to his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and others pretended to confuse him with a pub. 
 
 The prince served for 22 years in the Royal Navy as a helicopter pilot, and until 2011 was the UK's trade envoy. 
 
 His first tweet was "Welcome to my Twitter account - AY". If the tweets are signed AY, they will have been written by Prince Andrew himself. 
 
 The sign-off led one user to ask if his account had been hacked by Ali G, Sacha Baron Cohen's comedy character, who used a similar sounding catchphrase. 
 
 Another tweeted: "Yo how's Jeffrey Epstein?", a reference to the American billionaire and friend of the duke who was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution. 
 
 The duke is a champion of free speech. For him it's about telling people what he's doing Royal spokesman 
 
 But there were well-wishers and some friendly advice among those welcoming the royal to Twitter, a site where users communicate with their followers using 140 characters or less. 
 
 Television presenter Eamonn Holmes suggested "in a caring way" that Prince Andrew's account needed "a more personal touch to be effective". 
 
 BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said after the Royal Family first went on Facebook, an extra layer of security had to be used to block some of the abuse some people wanted to post. 
 
 The duke's decision to start tweeting coincided with the launch of the Duke of York Award for Technical Education as he visited the Black Country University Technical College - a new school offering year 10 and year 12 students the opportunity to focus on science and engineering subjects in a specialist environment. 
 
 A spokesman for Prince Andrew said he had long been someone who embraced new technology. 
 
 "He was in fact the first member of the British Royal Family to tweet on the British Monarchy (account) when he visited Tech City. The logical next step was to tweet individually." 
 
 Asked about the derogatory tweets, the spokesman added: "The duke is a champion of free speech. For him it's about telling people what he's doing." 
 
 Two golf clubs and two official Royal Family accounts - @BritishMonarchy and @ClarenceHouse - are among the organisations he is already following. 
 
 Within two hours of going online, the duke's account had amassed more than 3,000 followers. ||||| The two DJs at the centre of the royal hospital hoax call tragedy "have expressed a desire to speak" to the media. 
 
 Crisis talks are under way at the company that owns 2Day FM, whose presenters Mel Greig and Michael Christian duped Jacintha Saldanha into helping reveal details about the Duchess of Cambridge's health. 
 
 It led to Ms Saldanha's apparent suicide days later. 
 
 A spokesman for Southern Cross Austereo - 2Day FM's parent company - said: "They have expressed a desire to speak. We haven't ascertained when they're ready for that and how we're going to organise that, but they certainly want to." 
 
 Ms Saldanha was found dead days after the prank call 
 
 The firm also said it was reviewing its broadcast processes. 
 
 It comes as the Duke of Cambridge pulled out of attending the British Military Tournament on Sunday night so he can spend time with Kate. 
 
 She is recuperating after receiving hospital treatment for severe morning sickness. 
 
 The royal couple had both originally been due to attend tonight's event, billed as "the largest display of military theatre in the world". 
 
 But all of Kate's forthcoming public engagements were cancelled after she spent three nights at the King Edward VII's Hospital suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum. 
 
 A St James's Palace spokesman said: "The Duke of Cambridge will no longer attend the British Military Tournament at Earl's Court this evening, but will spend Sunday privately with the Duchess instead. 
 
 "It is well known that hyperemesis gravidarum often recurs and, until further notice, to allow the Duchess a degree of privacy during her pregnancy, we do not intend to offer regular condition checks or advise of routine developments associated with it." 
 
 Meanwhile police in Australia have been contacted by Scotland Yard over the death of Ms Saldanha. 
 
 New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner Nick Kaldas said officers had been in touch - but emphasised there was no suggestion that a crime had been committed. 
 
 He said: "There has been a request for assistance from London's Metropolitan Police to the New South Wales Police through the Australian Federal Police. 
 
 "The request has gone to the city central command - the area where the 2Day FM office is." 
 
 The radio station has responded in writing to a strongly worded protest from the hospital about the prank. The hospital accused the station of humiliating the tragic nurse in the "appalling" stunt. 
 
 The radio station response reads: "We are all saddened by the events of the last few days. They are truly tragic. 
 
 "It is too early to know the full details leading to this tragic event and we are anxious to review the results of any investigation that may be madeavailable to us or made public. 
 
 "We can assure you that we will fully cooperate with all investigations. As we have said in our own statements on the matter, the outcome was unforeseeable and very regrettable. 
 
 "I can assure you we are taking immediate action and reviewing the broadcast processes involved. 
 
 "Our company joins with you, all at the King Edward VII's Hospital and Mrs Saldanha's family and friends in mourning their tragic loss."
– Twitter is celebrating the end of the year by crowning 2010’s “most powerful tweets.” What constitutes a powerful tweet? Well, here’s the list, with context in italics. AnnCurry @usairforce find a way to let Doctors without Borders planes land in Haiti: http://bit.ly/8hYZOK THE most effective at this. (Reporter Ann Curry’s tweet is said to have convinced the US Air Force to give a Doctors Without Borders plane clearance to land in Haiti following the quake.) Whitehouse Welcome to @twitter President Medvedev! RT @KremlinRussia_E: Hello everyone! I'm on Twitter, and this is my first tweet. (When Dmitry Medvedev joined Twitter, the White House was quick to congratulate him. Later, Obama said that "the Twitters" could replace the red phones.) Leigh Fazzina I've had a serious injury and NEED Help! Can somone please call Winding Trails in Farmington, CT tell them I'm stuck bike crash in woods. (Fazzina, a triathalete, had no cell reception when she crashed in the forest, but saved her own life with this tweet.) BPGlobalPR Catastrophe is a strong word, let's all agree to call it a whoopsie daisy. (See story about the BP parody site.) Presidencia_Ec Gobierno declara estado de Excepción #Ecuador #30S (Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa announced a state of emergency with this tweet, amid civil unrest over a law cutting benefits for public servants.) ClarenceHouse The Prince of Wales is delighted to announce the engagement of Prince William to Miss Catherine Middleton - www.princeofwales.gov.uk (Clarence House actually created its Twitter account just to announce this engagement.) Click here for Twitter’s full list.