Hi everyone, I'm desperate to start a Phd this october but it might be to late so don't know what to do. Someone suggested writing directly to a supervisor and asking if he's got anything going on in his lab. What exactly should I write,how do I mention funding... please help

It's not to late...one of my friends found a PhD this time last year. Keep looking on this site for new projects and in science magazines.

If you are looking for funding, then it might be too late. Deadlines for funding at the universities that I know of have passed already. The latest were in May.

As for what to write, you have to say that you are interested in the area that professor is working on, that you are interested in working with him, that you have such and such background in terms of education and research experience (if any), and you wonder if any PhD places are still available. I would leave funding issue for the second email if he answers you positively.

Just keep looking at the available projects on this site and you should find there will still be plenty available over the coming weeks. I didn't get around to applying until the end of july/start of august last year and still ended up with a good (and fully funded) project in a 5* department!

thanks for your support guys, I won't give up searching