THE FAMILY of a murdered teenager who was beheaded staged a protest after the killer appealed against his conviction.

A dozen relatives of Christopher Hartley, 17, who lived in Burnley and went to school in Darwen, yesterday protested outside the high security hospital in which his killer, Stuart Diamond, is being held and vowed: "We will fight this to the end".

They stood outside Ashworth High Security Hospital in Maghull, Liverpool, waving placards and banners while shouting "no holiday camp for Stuart Diamond."

Christopher, who lived in Burnley, went to Blackpool to find work in 1997, but was strangled by Diamond in his bedsit and hacked up in the bathroom.

Police never found a motive for the killing.

Remains of Christopher's body were found in a bin at the back of the new Central Hotel, Blackpool, and in a sports bag dumped just before New Year's Day that year.

Despite a massive police search Christopher's head was never found.

Diamond, now 28, was jailed for life in 1999 for murder.

On Monday he was granted the chance to challenge his conviction in the Court of Appeal.

The Criminal Cases Review Commission declared he had grounds to attempt to get his conviction reduced to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

Christopher's aunt, June Hunt, 46, from Burnley, waved a banner reading life for Stuart Diamond'.

She said: "We were all sickened to find out that he had appealed and are prepared to fight this all the way."

Another aunt, Pauline Seiga, 51, said the family would be spending Christmas and New Year with Christopher's parents, Philip Jean, both 53, from Burnley, to help support them through their "toughest time of the year."

Pauline, who lives in Scotland, said: "It never gets any easier. We will never forget what happened.

"It's too horrific.

"Christmas and New Year is the worst time of year for the family. His mum still has his presents she kept after he died and still buys him presents each year.

"Nobody can move on. Every knock she gets at the door, she thinks it's going to be the police saying that they have found his head.

"He was buried without his head and that's just awful."

Christopher attended Myrtle Bank and Hargher Clough primary schools in Burnley and Tullyalan Special School in Darwen.

He wanted to join the army but moved to Blackpool where his brother and sister, Stephen and Michelle were living, to find work in the resort.

After Diamond was found guilty of murder at Preston Crown Court, details of his past came to light.

It included two convictions for violence and a psychiatric report drawn up from a previous conviction showed how Diamond fantasised about carrying out a murder.

He was on licence from prison when he carried out the gruesome murder of Christopher.