al wrote:
I'm a little stuck! I have a light in my kitchen which works fine. I want
to add another light at the other end. To achieve this, I have been able to
run cable from that other end back to the switch box for the original light.
I cannot draw live feed from the ring as it is not accessible without
destroying stuff!

From where are you getting your neutral for the new light? And lighting
circuits aren't rings, they're radials.

I have tried connecting the cable from the new light directly into the back
of the old one. However, this bridges the switch completely and creates a
valid live circuit for the new light when the switch is off (curiously when
the switch is on, that light goes out and the original light comes on - I
thought the new light would always stay on?).

No, you are shorting the new light when the switch is on.

Anyway, saw the mistake there and tried adding a 2nd switch (both are 1 way
switches). Ran a mini-cable common to common and L1 to L1. Still a similar
effect to the first time, but with both switches.
How can I make this work so that either one switch makes them both come on
together or two switches control them independently. The only live feed I
can take is from the switch spur on the original light. Is this one botch
too far?

Your problem is not the live, it's the neutral. There is not normally a
neutral at the switch, so you must take neutral (and switched live,
because they *must* run in the same cable) from the ceiling rose of the
original light.

Get yourself a good DIY electrics book with clear diagrams, as Usenet is
a little limited in the visual illustration regard, and bear in mind (if
you are in England and Wales) that electrical work in kitchens is
covered by Part P of the Building Regulations, which means you must
either get an electrician in or DIY and apply to the Council.

Owain