Month: July 2026

A MASSIVE travelling attraction is set to return to a seaside hotspot next week – and it’s perfect for the whole family.

The popular spot will be open for more than a month throughout the summer.

Cardiff Bay Fun Park will descend on the Welsh capital once more, as the family-friendly destination is set to return to Roald Dahl Plass next weekend (July 18).

This year also marks the attraction’s newest arrival, Skyfall – the tallest travelling drop tower in the UK.

At 262 ft (80 metres) high, thrill-seekers will be treated with 360-degree panoramic views of Cardiff and the Bristol Channel, before plunging down at speeds of up to 75mph.

The tower even dwarfs the tallest roller coaster in the UK, Hyperia, which stands at 236 ft (72 metres).

Remaining in the city until August 31, visitors can also ride fun fair classics including Dodgems, Funhouse, Bungee Trampolines and Water Walkers.

The summertime staple is also set to host magic shows, princess sing-a-longs and character meet and greets for younger guests.

The destination will be open on Sunday to Thursday from 11am to 8pm, and on Friday and Saturday from 11am to 9pm.

Residents have shared their excitement online about the return of the much-loved fair, with many saying they “can’t wait” until next weekend.

One enthusiastic user said: “This looks so much fun! I definitely need to check it out.”

Meanwhile, another shared their reservations about the attraction’s newest arrival, commenting: “Omg, this looks terrifying.”

My dinner course is served. It is a Campbell’s-inspired soup can, lightly angled so strands of broccoli are peeking out. I lift the can to uncover a slow-braised short rib and mashed potatoes. An American dish to represent an American artist, here Andy Warhol.

The room is overtaken with projections, scenes of bustling New York traffic paired with bachelor-pad-like guitar riffs. Shown on a wall above a dinner table is a selection of Warhol silkscreens. It’s a Friday night in West Hollywood, and I’m surrounded by a mix of out-of-towners and those celebrating an anniversary. And while this is a special occasion, we’re urged to get a little messy with our food — to use our hands, to paint with a salad, to draw on a cookie.

Play is the primary side dish at “7 Paintings,” a tech-infused dinner theater that aims to be a crash course in fine art. That selection of veggies paired with multiple mini cups of colorful dressings? Guests are encouraged to mix and match the vinaigrettes into a mess of hues, a nod to abstractionist Jackson Pollock. And yellowfin tuna with dashes of avocado and taro chips? That’s an edible tribute to Banksy, of course. What does raw fish have to do with stenciled street art? It’s bold, heavily angled and has a short shelf life? Maybe? Perhaps don’t overthink it.

“Have you ever eaten a painting before?” says Nadine Beshir, the Dubai-based creator of “7 Paintings.” “We try to get people out of their comfort zones and eating paper. I want to bring out the child in them.”

“7 Paintings,” held at Sunset House L.A. through the end of August, is the latest example of immersive dining to arrive in this city. These experiences often involve guest participation and are accentuated with advanced multimedia technology and sometimes theatrical elements.

Worldwide, there have been standouts. For instance, Eatrenalin at Germany’s Europa-Park, a dining room-meets-ride where participants are whisked around the space on trackless “floating chairs,” has just received a coveted Michelin star. Ibiza’s Sublimotion has similar haute ambitions, pairing 12 diners together in a room that will come alive with otherworldly projections and performers. At times, diners will win don virtual reality headgear.

But tech-driven immersive dining experiences have never quite taken off in Los Angeles as a trend. Last year, the Gallery, where fantastical cityscapes and projections surrounded downtown L.A. diners, stood just a couple months before the concept was abandoned.

“The economics of a restaurant are not the same as the economics of theater and the challenge of combining the two lies in thinking outside the box with respect to pricing and cost structure, such that the customer perceives high value from both the food and the experience,” says the Gallery co-founder Daren Ulmer.

Entrepreneurs keep aiming for that careful balance. “Le Petit Chef and Friends” is currently running at Tangier at downtown’s Hotel Figueroa, an event in which a fully animated film is projected on our plates and tables. Long-running pop-up event Fork N’ Film leans more dinner and movie, pairing dishes directly inspired by what is happening on screen. Upcoming films include “Ratatouille” and “Lilo and Stitch.”

The field comes with challenges. “The costs are very high,” says Joanna Garner, an immersive designer and former creative director with experiential art firm Meow Wolf. Garner has been experimenting herself with communal, immersive dinner events, and her next, the flirtatious “Please Open Your Mouth,” is set for July 11. (No tech there, as Garner is after a more sensual, adult-focused gathering.) Tickets for her event are $150 and a spot in the “7 Paintings” dining room runs $175, priced on par with a number of city’s most acclaimed restaurants.

There is also the reality that all public dining is in some fashion immersive, usually requiring varying combinations of engagement, communication and presentation. And then, are all these added elements distracting?

Throughout “7 Paintings,” for instance, an animated Mona Lisa, situated on the wall next to the main dinner table, will provide brief biographical details of each artist represented.

“Being able to nail the food, and nail the story, those are two very difficult threads to weave,” Garner says. “I do think, ultimately, people come to a dinner table to talk to the people at the table and to have intimate experiences. To have an experience where you’re constantly being taken away from the food, I’m not so sure if that’s what people are looking for.”

Food is framed as a star of “7 Paintings” but tasting it is just one component. At one point, we must uncover a cheese course in a tiny treasure chest, the code for the lock hidden in the projections (don’t stress, it’s not a hard puzzle). Beshir highlights the Pollock-inspired salad course, which is accentuated with a jazz soundtrack, as the thesis of the evening.

“This course is really about getting people to free their minds from preconceived ideas,” Beshir says. “Like, you have to eat with a fork and knife, or the salad comes and then the dressing. No, the dressing comes and then the salad, and it’s trying with big brushes to paint the way he did. A lot of people do not understand Abstract Expressionism, and they think it’s people just splashing colors around. But when you understand the link between the rhythm of the music and painting, you live it. We give you time to paint with your salad dressing.”

In L.A., Beshir has partnered with nightlife impresario Kim Kelly, who is plotting a “Sleep No More”-inspired walk-around theatrical show for the Sunset House venue later this year. “7 Paintings,” however, is fully seated, and purposefully a little silly. Beshir and Kelly have been evolving it during its L.A. run, recently adding a stronger painting component by giving guests their own canvas to work on throughout the evening. Each night crowns a winner.

“Everyone comes over to look at their art,” Kelly says. “It just kind of changed the whole thing, to be honest. People are now being creative throughout the entire evening. Instead of just watching and occasionally painting, you’re now painting the whole time.”

As for what, perhaps, soba noodles with edamame and mushrooms have to do with Pablo Picasso, or why Salvador Dali gets an unexpected dessert course of a white chocolate potato souffle, Beshir clarifies the goal of the evening. While the animated Mona Lisa will provide backstories on each painter, this isn’t an educational night. “It’s fun dining, not fine dining,” Beshir says.

And by the end of my night, strangers were socializing, showing off their painted cookie creations, sharing Banksy tidbits and asking for recommendations on various vinaigrette combinations. Ultimately, it’s an evening of discovery, packed with surprises like finding an entire course hidden under a canvas.

“We try not to have too much sophistication, like fried ants or something. I’m personally very adventurous in how I eat, but if I want to have this in 100 cities around the world, I cannot be too meticulous.”

And Beshir has big goals.

“I want this be your movie and dinner thing,” Beshir says. “I want people to be waiting for our next show, and to be able to afford to come every couple months.”

And to come home not with leftovers, but perhaps a painting of their own.

Lost luggage? Tarmac delays? Rental-car blues? No whining about measly travel headaches with the mother of all bad-trip sagas looming on the big screen.

“The Odyssey,” Christopher Nolan’s epic take on the Trojan War’s fallout, debuts July 17. Spoiler alert, if you somehow avoided Homer in community college: Nobody, save biblical Job, has had more misery hurled at them.

Outflanked by cruel and fickle gods at every turn, legendary Greek hero Odysseus outsmarted a one-eyed giant, suffered through the bewitching Sirens’ song and braved the Underworld’s dead denizens. He battled oversize cannibals, outmaneuvered a witch and lost scores of men at every turn. Then made it back to Ithaca after 10 years only to find his home overrun by suitors wooing his wife.

It’s a tale packed with bad decisions, failure, heartbreak and death. Perfect story fodder, given how much we love bad-trip stories. We consume lists of the worst airports and wonder at accounts of illness-plagued cruises. We scroll through videos starring unruly passengers or mangled bags, and read about the last resting place for lost luggage.

Hollywood has created a whole franchise around road trips gone wrong. Think of “The Hangover” or “Sideways” or “Little Miss Sunshine.” Screenwriter-director John Hughes perfected the big-screen comedic treatment of travel gone south with classics such as “Home Alone,” “National Lampoon’s Vacation” and “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.”

Let’s not even talk about the “three-hour tour” that left Gilligan and friends stranded on a deserted island for 98 episodes, or how Jack Dawson’s voyage ended aboard 1997’s “Titanic.”

A significant body of evidence even indicates that travel makes us sick. Trip-related problems are so common, in fact, that consumer advocate Christopher Elliott has stitched an entire career out of resolving them — from timeshare scams to horrible airline customer service and beyond.

Still, we keep buying tickets and packing our bags to sail into the great unknown, across Homer’s wine-dark sea. Why? Elliott attributes it to what he terms “traveler’s amnesia.”

“It amazes me that travelers are not up in arms about the way they get treated,” he said. “They take a trip, have a terrible experience, and forget about everything that went wrong and only remember what went right.”

He suggests that avoiding a bad trip starts with choosing companies noted for strong customer service. He cited some name-brand examples: Marriott for hotels, Alaska Airlines, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car. He avoids cruises as much as possible.

Which is funny, because when I think about cruising, I don’t revisit the miserable 36 hours that norovirus confined us in our cabin. I instead recall coasting past a flotilla of icebergs in Alaska’s Glacier Bay.

When I think about Mexico, I don’t wallow in memories involving Montezuma and his gastrointestinal revenge. But I do cherish thoughts of snorkeling with playful sea lion pups.

And when I consider airports, I blot the memory of the woman next to me at Gate 66 who insists on blaring a video call at maximum volume. Instead, wielding my noise-canceling earbuds, Odysseus-like, I plan to smother this screeching sound to preserve my sanity. But before I can insert them, a voice speaks to me.

To all of us, to be technically correct, since it emanates from the speakers of Los Angeles International Airport’s Terminal 6.

“It’s time to play TSA’s favorite game!” says the voice, mimicking a game-show host’s hustle. “You lost it, we found it!”

The speaker explained that someone had left a laptop computer at a checkpoint. The two were reunited moments later, which set my feet in motion, wondering whose voice it was. There at the checkpoint I met Carl Revis, a TSA supervisory officer with a penchant for comedy.

“You don’t have to be a jerk to get things done,” he told me. “I think reaching people through comedy is a lot easier than screaming and yelling at them.”

Taken together, my trip recollections probably qualify me as living proof of Elliott’s traveler’s amnesia theory. The final diagnosis should be clear soon. I’m retiring from full-time work this year, and people inevitably ask what’s next.

It’s not completely clear, I tell them. But I’ll definitely have more time to travel. Maybe sail across the Aegean … what could go wrong?

“We’re putting on social, immersive figure drawing events for neurodivergent, queer nerds,” says Jennifer Martina, the producer at Nest of Friends, the nonprofit production company that stages biweekly figure drawing at Geeky Teas & Games in Burbank.

Martina and artist Sketkh Williams, Sketch by Sketkh’s host, provide a welcoming atmosphere across identities, skill levels and nerdy interests, while also playing to their own backgrounds in theater. The sessions feature dramatic lighting, staging and soundtracks, and use professional cosplayers as models. Embodying characters from “Star Wars,” video games, anime and other IP, these pros don’t just dress the part, they take pains to hit their characters’ canonical stances for attendees to capture.

For Martina and Williams, the events are an alternative to nude or more traditional figure drawing sessions. “That just doesn’t interest us,” says Martina. “We’re both theatrical people, so for us part of putting on a show is seeing characters, some cool costume design and a theme.”

• Best for: Practiced amateurs with nerdy interests
• When: Every other Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
• Ticket price: Starts at $23.18

It looks like cream top beverages are sticking around L.A.’s coffee scene.

“You can’t open a coffee shop in L.A. without having a cream top, fortunately or unfortunately,” said Ryan Solomon, director of wholesale at the Little Marionette, on bringing the cafe from Sydney to L.A. in 2024.

A whipped topping typically made from condensed milk or heavy cream, fans of embellished beverages can’t get enough of the now-standard flourish that local coffee shops add to iced coffee and matcha drinks. The trend evolved from the Austrian Einspänner coffee drinks that first overtook Seoul’s coffee scene in 2016 before landing in L.A. not long afterward.

The verdict on cream tops is split among cafe owners, with some claiming that the rich, luscious topping can overpower the flavors of carefully curated coffee drinks. Last year, prominent L.A. cafes Maru Coffee and Mandarin Coffee Stand limited the add-on on their menus, with Mandarin Coffee Stand owner Sherry Gao saying that the trend went “a little bit out of control.”

But for Arian Behboodi and Jared Sielski, co-owners of Lynx Coffee in Sherman Oaks, the pros outweigh the cons.

“We appreciate the cream top drinkers, and we appreciate the coffee fanatics, and we really do try to have a little bit of both,” Behboodi said.

Now, local cafe menus are evolving beyond neutral cream top flavors and offering whipped toppings that pull inspiration from all parts of the world, such as an iced honey latte garnished with a Vegemite cream top at a Palms coffee shop and a cajeta cream top that recalls the gooey Mexican caramel sauce at a new cafe in Hermosa Beach.

The San Fernando Valley has lost many of the great spots that made it a hot dog mecca over the years — among them, the Weiner Factory, Rubin’s Red Hot, Vicious Dogs, QT Chicago Dogs and the Infield, late home of the fried Twinkie dog. It was a relief, then, to find Fab Hot Dogs in Reseda still open and thriving. Best of all, the shop still makes an excellent Bald Eagle Ripper, the original owner’s homage to New Jersey’s Rutt’s Hut, “home of the ripper.” The dogs are deep fried just until the casing rips and on top, is a version of Rutt’s mustard relish, which at Fab is browner and said to include Hatch chile powder, shredded cabbage and carrots, garlic, oregano, onions, celery seeds, cider vinegar, and Düsseldorf mustard with sweet relish. Fab’s ripper dogs first got the attention of this paper’s late restaurant critic Jonathan Gold not long after it opened in 2008 and then Guy Fieri for a 2009 Food Network segment. Since then, Fab has become known not only for the ripper but for its many dog variations, including a very good Chicago dog with the right pickle, neon relish and sport peppers; several bacon-wrapped franks (with jalapeños and peppers on the L.A. Street dog; barbecue sauce and cheddar on the Kansas City dog, and Swiss cheese and baked beans on the Boston dog). A rotation of whiteboard specials includes a Santa Fe dog with Hatch green chiles and cotija cheese, and even a mac ‘n’ cheese dog. Together they make up what Gold once called a display of “the American frankfurter diaspora.”

A POPULAR destination in Europe is cracking down on tourists – with fines dished out to rule-breakers.

The small village of Varenna, near Lake Como, is banning anyone from walking around its historic streets either bare-chested or wearing swimwear.

The new rules come as the village, which is home to only 650 people, is experiencing high levels of tourism each summer.

Tourists heading to the town will still be able to have a bare chest or wear their swimwear if they are at one of the lake’s beaches or if they are enjoying a boat trip on the lake itself.

However, if they are caught in the wrong place in the swimwear or with no shirt on, they could be fined between €50 (£42.74) and €200 (£170).

Varenna isn’t the only Italian spot to ban being shirtless and wearing swimwear in the town centre.

It is also banned to walk shirtless, barefoot or in a bikini in the town centres of Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast, with fines ranging from €25 (£21.37) to €500 (£427.48).

Varenna has also introduced a number of other rules impacting tourists.

There’s also a clampdown on crowds, as tour groups are now capped at 25 people.

The aim of this is so that the village’s lanes will not be blocked.

Guides have been banned from using speakers as well.

According to The Guardian, Mauro Manzoni, Varenna’s mayor, said: “Varenna is a wonderful village, and we are proud to welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world every year.

“However, our residents’ quality of life cannot be sacrificed on the altar of mass tourism.”

Japan’s ispace is expanding its role in the commercial lunar economy after two unsuccessful moon landing attempts in 2023 and 2025. The company is developing its next-generation Ultra lunar landers, including a mission under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme, as competition intensifies in the race to build sustainable infrastructure for future lunar exploration.

Ispace partners with SpaceX for shared lunar transport

Japanese lunar transport company ispace said on Wednesday it would launch a new lower-cost lunar cargo business using SpaceX’s Starship rocket and lunar landing system, marking a significant expansion of its commercial Moon ambitions.

Tokyo-based ispace has purchased 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) of payload capacity aboard a future Starship mission expected to land on the Moon as early as 2030. The agreement, valued at $50 million, will allow the company to transport customer payloads through a shared-ride service while developing a lunar surface vehicle capable of carrying cargo from multiple clients.

The company described the new offering as a “lunar access integrator” service, providing a cost-effective way for governments, research organisations and commercial customers to send equipment to the Moon without requiring dedicated spacecraft.

Shared rides aim to cut lunar mission costs

Hideari Kamiya, ispace’s executive vice president, said the service would complement the company’s ongoing development of dedicated lunar landers described as “taxis” by functioning more like a shared transportation “bus” for lunar cargo.

The partnership expands an existing relationship between the two companies. ispace previously relied on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets for its lunar missions in 2023 and 2025, although both attempts ended unsuccessfully before achieving a soft landing.

Ispace continues long-term Moon ambitions

Despite those setbacks, ispace continues to pursue its long-term lunar programme and plans to land three next-generation Ultra landers by 2030, including one mission under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative.

Chief Executive Takeshi Hakamada said working with Starship would “exponentially” accelerate the company’s growth in the emerging lunar infrastructure market while allowing it to continue developing its own landing technology.

SpaceX expands commercial lunar partnerships

SpaceX welcomed the expanded partnership, saying Starship’s reusable design could significantly improve access to the Moon for commercial customers.

Stephanie Bednarek, SpaceX’s vice president of commercial sales, said ispace’s integration services would provide an important pathway for smaller payloads seeking affordable lunar transportation.

Although the agreement is not exclusive, NASA plans to use Starship for its first crewed lunar landing under the Artemis programme in 2028, while U.S.-based lunar rover developer Astrolab has also reserved space on future Starship missions.

Hakamada said SpaceX initially approached ispace with the idea of creating a shared lunar cargo integration business, adding that while competitors may eventually enter the market, few companies currently possess both the transportation expertise and the capability to continue supporting payloads after landing on the Moon.

Future outlook

The partnership reflects the rapid commercialisation of lunar exploration, with companies increasingly seeking lower-cost and more flexible ways to reach the Moon. If Starship enters operational lunar service on schedule, ispace could establish itself as a key provider of shared lunar logistics, expanding opportunities for governments, research institutions and private companies. However, the project’s success will depend on Starship meeting its development milestones and sustaining a reliable launch cadence, making the coming years critical for both companies’ ambitions in the emerging lunar economy.

With information from Reuters.

GREG James has revealed details from inside Taylor Swift’s Madison Square Garden wedding to Travis Kelce over the weekend.

The BBC Radio 1 host was one of the many A-listers to attend the lavish nuptials – after the singer publicly declared he could come along during an October 2025 interview, and stuck to her word.

Greg attended the New York City wedding with his wife Bella Mackie, joining stars such as Brad Pitt, Adam Sandler, Gigi Hadid and more.

And returning to the airwaves, the radio star finally divulged on what the nuptials were really like.

Beginning with his shock to actually be invited, he said: “I still can’t quite believe that it happened, it does feel like an amazingly strange but exciting dream.

“First things first, it was unbelievable fun, that’s the main headline, It was so fun.”

“Everyone is texting saying stop playing songs, just give us the wedding tea, and we’ll do that now,” said Greg on his breakfast show, who went on to reveal he actually received the invitation back in March.

Greg then said he couldn’t tell anyone about the invite, other than his wife who was coming along.

Divulging on the day itself, he explained: “Then we got to the weekend of it, now obviously, I don’t want to be the guy that ruins this for everyone and then Taylor never speaks to me again.

“Because it was a wedding and there’s lots of nice family things that they did, so I don’t want to speak about all that stuff but I can give you some fun stuff.

“I did speak to Taylor and I spoke to Travis, but look, on a wedding you know the bride and groom are very busy, so imagine that, but the bride and groom are Taylor and Travis.”

Greg continued: “They were just having a great time, they both looked amazing, they were on the dance floor, it was great.”

When quizzed over what food was served inside the reception, Greg admitted he didn’t want to give too much away, but confirmed it wasn’t a traditional sit-down meal.

“It wasn’t a sit-down dinner, I’ll say that. There were multiple cakes, there were a thousand people, there were loads of cakes,” said Greg of the food.

And it was a free bar, too, as he laughed: “Great food, unlimited food and drinks. The first 10,000 drinks were free.”

Greg then revealed that there was a stage at the reception that guests were encouraged to dance on top of.

He said: “There was an open invitation to get up on the stage and dance while the DJ was on, and I did. All the songs.”

Greg also divulged that he was sitting with Hugh Grant to watch the ceremony part of the day.

Following the wedding, Greg admitted he was suffering from quite the hangover as he took to Instagram to confirm his attendance.

During the press run for her latest album Life of a Showgirl, Taylor stopped in for a chat with Greg, who has interviewed her a few times before.

At the end of their segment together, Greg joked that he would love to meet NFL star Travis.

Taylor then made the executive decision to jokingly invite him to their wedding – but it turned out to be legitimate as he got the invite months later.

At 7:30pm last Friday, legendary music venue MSQ was lit up by a colossal sign which read: “JUST&T MARRIED!” to confirm that Taylor and Travis had tied the knot.

Graham Norton, Ed Sheeran, Beyonce, Jay z, and Dua Lipa were also amongst the celeb guests.

As well as Hollywood’s biggest stars, nearly every NFL player made an appearance at the wedding.

Shares fell on Wednesday in Europe and Asia, and oil prices surged nearly 6% after US President Donald Trump said the tentative ceasefire with Iran was over, raising the prospect of renewed military conflict between the two countries.

Asked whether the memorandum of understanding with Iran was over, Trump told reporters at the NATO summit in Ankara: “To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them,” according to Reuters.

This came after US Central Command said its forces struck more than 80 targets in Iran overnight, including command-and-control networks, coastal radar installations, anti-ship missile capabilities and vessels operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Washington also revoked a waiver that had allowed Iran to restart oil exports.

Brent crude, the international standard, jumped more than 6% by 10:45 CEST to $78.79 a barrel, while US benchmark crude rose 6.3% to $74.88 a barrel. Both had declined recently to around the levels seen before the war with Iran began in late February.

The latest flare-up, despite commitments to seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict, has added to uncertainty over oil prices after they fell from their peak well above $100 during the war. It also comes amid worries that the craze for artificial intelligence-related shares has pushed prices beyond the productivity gains and profits likely to result from massive investments in computer chip production capacity and data centres.

“As such, geopolitical headlines will likely determine market sentiment over the coming hours. A further deterioration in the situation could weigh further on equity valuations along with rising stress in technology,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote said in a commentary.

Stock markets fall

In share trading, Germany’s DAX shed more than 2.2%, at around 11 CEST, while the FTSE 100 in London lost 1.5%, and France’s CAC 40 fell more than 2%.

US stock futures were down about 1% at the same time.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 lost 2.1% to 66,819.05, while South Korea’s Kospi shed 5.4% to 7,246.79.

The South Korean index has soared and then fallen back, briefly surpassing the 9,000 level last month before succumbing to heavy selling in AI-related technology shares such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. Samsung fell 6.3% early Wednesday after dropping about 7% the day before. SK Hynix reversed early gains to fall 5.7%.

Taiwan’s Taiex rose 0.6%. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rose 3% to 24,193.56.

Shares in Chinese AI model start-up Zhipu, also known as Z.ai and traded as Knowledge Atlas Technology, rose nearly 14% on Wednesday.

The Shanghai Composite index declined 0.5% to 3,970.88.

On Tuesday, the roller-coaster ride for AI stocks turned lower again, dragging Wall Street down. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, though the majority of stocks within the index rose.

Losses among AI-related stocks dragged the Nasdaq Composite 1.2% lower, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%.

Advanced Micro Devices sank 6.5%, Intel shed 9.7%, and Micron Technology lost 4.7%.

SpaceX, which owns the xAI business, fell 6.8% on its first day of trading in the Nasdaq-100 index.

Rivian Automotive dropped 18.1% after the electric vehicle company said it would sell 75 million shares, diluting existing shareholders’ stakes.

In currency trading early Wednesday, the US dollar rose to 162.26 Japanese yen from 162.11 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1426 from $1.1414.

England and Norway renew a rivalry better known for one famous piece of commentary rather than football when they meet in the World Cup quarter-finals in Miami on Saturday.

It was 45 years before Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland were illuminating the current tournament that a Norwegian by the name of Bjorge Lillelien delivered the speech that has assumed legendary status.

Norway, nowhere near the dangerous force they are now in September 1981, had just beaten an England side boasting players of the class of Bryan Robson, Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan and Trevor Francis 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier.

The win was a seismic shock, regarded as a national embarrassment for England and Norway’s greatest triumph at Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo.

Lillelien was not going to let the opportunity to pile on the agony for England pass him by as he directed a message aimed at the country’s political and sporting figures – especially then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

A reserved man in private, he warmed up by accusing Polish referee Jerzy Kacprzak of being “close to receiving English citizenship” by playing what he felt was too much added time as Norway protected their lead.

When Kacprzak finally blew the whistle, Lillelien was ready to let rip on the airwaves as the main radio commentator for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, known as NRK.

A slightly edited version of his wonderfully excitable commentary is: “Lord Nelson. Lord Beaverbrook. Sir Winston Churchill. Sir Anthony Eden. Clement Atlee. Henry Cooper. Lady Diana. We have beaten all of them.”

And then came Lillelien’s most famous words.

“Maggie Thatcher. Can you hear me? We have a message for you. We have knocked your boys out of the World Cup. Maggie Thatcher. As they say in your language, in the boxing bars around Madison Square Garden New York, your boys took a hell of a beating.”

He then repeated for good measure: “Your boys took a hell of a beating.”

The last line, in particular, has been repeated – and altered to suit the occasion – ever since Lillelien delivered it.

England did, contrary to Lillellen’s claim, qualify for the 1982 World Cup in Spain, but no matter.

Social media did not exist in 1981. The impact and traction of his commentary, had it happened now, would be mind-boggling.

Lillelien, who was a hugely popular figure, died six years later aged 60, but has been immortalised by those words, which he always insisted were spontaneous, not prepared.

The emotional speech has been preserved forever by the wonders of YouTube, helped by Lillelien, fluent in English, switching from his native tongue when he said: “Maggie Thatcher. Can you hear me?” and “your boys took one hell of a beating.”

England’s defeat was one of the biggest shocks in their history, having won the first qualifier 4-0 at Wembley a year previously.

In Norway’s moment of triumph, Lillelien’s colourful commentary meant those who represented England in that defeat will never be allowed to forget it.

Every time England meet Norway, Lillelien will be remembered with affection by everyone except those who still have to suffer those painful recollections.

The Iranian Striker: Mehdi Taremi offers a rare personal portrait of one of Iran’s most celebrated footballers during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Iranian team striker Mehdi Taremi reflects on the journey that shaped him – from growing up in Bushehr, to representing millions of Iranians at the World Cup.

In this Al Jazeera Originals short documentary, Taremi speaks about childhood, compulsory military service, sacrifice, criticism, national identity and why football means far more than the game itself. He also shares what it means to represent Iran before a global audience, and why he hopes football can help people better understand his country.

ALL over the planet are incredible islands – but these ones have been declared the best in the world.

Travel + Leisure has found the very top destinations from Asia to Africa and Australia – not to mention one spot went to the UK.

The best islands were declared from reader votes of which there were hundreds of thousands.

In top spot was the Thai island of Koh Samui which got a top score of 95.64 out of 100.

The publication said: “This first-time winner in the Gulf of Thailand—with an array of elevated accommodations, luscious jungles, and roaring waterfalls—has become a leading destination for self-care.”

It was also praised for its beaches, vibrant culture and waterfalls.

The island is south of Bangkok, known for its pretty beaches, not to mention bargain cocktails and tasty street food.

Travel Reporter Alice Penwill who went last year said: “The island has luxury resorts and picture-perfect beaches

“But the real Thailand is in the busy beach bars flogging happy-hour deals, tiny restaurants with garish tablecloths, and the constant thump of Thai boxing promotions from crackling loudspeakers.“

In second place was the beautiful Maldives followed by the Galapagos Islands and Bali.

But in 13th place is the first and only UK island to make the list – Skye and the Hebrides.

The wild Scottish archipelago is known for mountainous landscapes, rugged coastlines and rare white-sand beaches.

Travel Reporter Cyann Fielding, who visited Eilean Shona – part of the Inner Hebrides – described it as a “real-life Neverland”.

She said: “Whilst there isn’t much to do on the island, it is the perfect retreat away from the modern world and the stresses of day to day life.

“The island has an endless amount of walks you can take, and a couple of mine included heading to the summit and to the opposite side of the island where I found Shoe Bay, with a white sand beach and crystal clear waters.

“And whilst exploring the island, make sure to keep an eye out for wildlife as birds of prey often circle overhead.

“In less than 24 hours I had completely fallen in love with the island.”

Other top islands close to the UK include Malta which is dubbed one of the ‘jewels of the Mediterranean’.

Its capital, Valletta, is one of the sunniest cities in all of Europe – it gets on average 3,000 hours of sunshine each year.

The Italian islands of Sardinia and Sicily which are a short flight away for Brits also got high marks.

In Greece, Milos and Crete placed in the top 25 – as did Paros, which was last year’s winner, some of which are set to be the next big Greek island holiday destinations.

One writer visited Paros last year and loved the island for its “beautiful beaches, traditional villages and a buzzing nightlife.”

She added: “One thing I loved about the island is that it has everything you want out of a holiday.

“Whether that’s a quiet spot on a sandy beach to relax, head off on a wild boat party, or eat authentic Greek food on a candlelit table.”

NewsFeed

Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan has called for players and reporters at the World Cup to speak out about the killing of children in Gaza and Palestine. Hassan made the comments after his team’s controversial 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the last 16.

Prime Video’s It’s Not Like That ended on the ultimate cliffhanger and fans are keen to know what happens next.

Prime Video has left viewers with plenty to say following the latest news about It’s Not Like That.

Streaming giant Prime Video has quietly axed a drama that fans hailed as an “emotional rollercoaster” after just a single season. Deadline reported that the eight-episode series, which follows a newly-divorced woman and a recently widowed man as they explore the possibility of a romantic future together, has been shelved.

The show only made its debut at the start of 2026, yet it has been widely reported that it will not be returning for a second run, leaving the couple’s fate hanging in the air. It’s Not Like That is the series in question, sitting alongside major hits such as Clarkson’s Farm.

Deadline noted: “The cancellation of It’s Not Like That is somewhat surprising. In addition to its strong reviews, it seems to have been doing well. Prime Video is not releasing viewership numbers, but it started putting out weekly Top 10 rankings, and the first one, which came out June 3, featured It’s Not Like That at No. 9 on the global series list.”

The Mirror has reached out to Prime Video seeking clarification on the cancellation, which has left devoted fans absolutely furious.

On X, formerly Twitter, one viewer raged: “@PrimeVideo what is this you are doing, cancelling #ItsNotLikeThat?! Great TV. Great writing! Great talent! We have loved this. Why are you doing this? ! Bring it back! Bring it back!”

Over on Reddit, another viewer added: “I actually found it charming and was hoping for more. It was extremely corny, though.”

The finale saw recently widowed minister Malcolm (played by Scott Foley) finally confessing his feelings for Lori (Erinn Hayes), though it emerged this was merely happening inside his own head.

Viewers will now never discover whether Malcolm ultimately chose to share his true emotions with Lori.

Prior to the programme’s axing, one fan wrote on IMDb reviews that they would be “absolutely devastated” if it wasn’t brought back. They said: “I love everything about this show, and will be absolutely devastated if it’s not renewed! It was a beautiful ride through faith, family, friendship, love, relationships.”

Another viewer remarked: “It’s not overly dramatised and doesn’t give you that feeling that the producers are trying too hard for ratings.

“Character development met with healthy emotional moments had me reflecting on my own life and really connecting with the families and their circumstances.

“It was a breath of fresh air in the sense that families of all ages could watch this together without having any inappropriate content to worry about.”

A final fan pleaded: “Please renew this! This show is so raw and emotional and everything I didn’t know that I needed right now. I cried, I laughed, I felt all the emotions with these 2 families.”

It’s Not Like That airs on Prime Video.

ARLINGTON, Tex. — Alejandro Osuna hit a three-run homer during a five-run eighth inning and the Texas Rangers pulled away for an 8-3 win over the Angels on Tuesday night.

Osuna’s first homer of the season followed RBI singles by Ezequiel Duran and Justin Foscue in the six-hit inning off Sam Bachman (1-2). Foscue also hit a pinch-hit home run in the seventh, tying the score 3-3.

Peyton Gray (4-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win for the Rangers, who pulled within one-half game of first-place Seattle in the AL West.

The last-place Angels have lost seven consecutive games, tying their longest losing streak of the season.

Rangers starter Jacob deGrom left after throwing 80 pitches in five innings because of an issue with his left hip and leg. DeGrom said he’s often felt tightness there between starts, but it usually goes away before he pitches again. This time it remained, preventing him from throwing changeups, and tightened in the fifth inning. He expects to make his next start.

DeGrom suffered first-inning struggles before settling in, his pattern this season. He gave up a pair of two-out runs in the first on Jorge Soler’s double that one-hopped the left-field wall and Josh Lowe’s single to shallow left after a wild pitch.

DeGrom didn’t give up another run, giving up five hits and two walks. In 18 starts this season, deGrom has a 9.50 ERA in the first inning and 2.29 afterward.

Texas tied the score 2-2 in the second on Nicky Lopez’s two-out, opposite-field single to left after two walks by José Soriano, who leads the AL with 51. Soriano didn’t walk another batter and gave up only two hits in six innings.

Rookie Wade Meckler’s RBI single off Chris Martin in the seventh gave the Angels a 3-2 lead before Foscue homered off Tayler Saucedo.

The Angels won the first three games against the Rangers this season.

July 8 (UPI) — Iran’s military said Wednesday it conducted retaliatory strikes against the United States, targeting dozens of U.S. assets in Bahrain and Kuwait, as the fight over control of the Strait of Hormuz threatened to escalate the war.

In a statement carried by state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, Iran’s Armed Forces said they had attacked 85 “key U.S. military installations” at Salman Port and the 5th Fleet, both in Bahrain, and Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait.

The statement was followed by a second one announcing a “new wave” of missiles targeting U.S. bases in Bahrain.

The extent of the damage, if any, was not immediately clear, but the Kuwait Army confirmed in a statement that its air defenses were confronting “hostile missile and drone attacks.”

“We will not allow U.S. interference in the affairs of the Strait of Hormuz,” Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran’s top military command body, said in a statement. “Transit through the SoH is only permitted via the routes designated by Iran.”

The strikes came hours after the U.S. military announced late Tuesday the completion of its attacks in Iran, a response to three commercial vessels being struck while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

The maritime chokepoint has become a dangerous fault line in the war between the United States and Iran.

Washington is seeking to re-establish navigational freedom within the strait, while Iran is attempting to exert and maintain control of the waterway it has sought to exercise since the war began. Neither side appears to be budging, threatening the end of cease-fire negotiations and a return to all-out war.

Both sides accuse the other of violating conditions of the memorandum of understanding they agreed to implement last month to halt the fighting. Indirect negotiations held early this month in Doha produced little to no progress and the renewed fighting may upend the process altogether.

After three commercial vessels were recently struck while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. military said it hit more than 80 targets inside Iran.

Before launching its retaliatory attacks early Wednesday, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters vowed in a statement carried by state-run Fars News Agency that it would “give a crushing response to America’s aggression and terrorist action.”

It said that “under no circumstances” would it allow U.S. interference in the affairs or management of the Strait of Hormuz.

Mérida, July 7, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Venezuelan government has launched a reconstruction program to recover damaged housing and infrastructure in the wake of the June 24 double earthquake.

Acting President Delcy Rodríguez oversaw the official launch of the Great Mission Venezuela Renace (“Venezuela reborn”) on Monday, with dozens of brigades simultaneously deployed to evaluate the condition of affected structures. Officials have estimated 190 flattened buildings and 856 with some level of damage.

“Venezuela is a seismic country and we have to ensure that, from a technical standpoint, families are protected from risk,” she said during a televised broadcast in Caracas. “This reconstruction is a task for the whole country, and it’s not just about infrastructure.”

Technical brigades will classify buildings using a traffic-light code, with green meaning they are safe to be occupied, yellow meaning that they require work before families can move back in, and red that they must be cleared for significant repairs or demolition.

On Sunday, the acting president appointed Jacqueline Faría to head the new government program. She will be “responsible for coordinating and leading housing and infrastructure recovery efforts to provide timely assistance to families affected by the earthquakes.”

During a meeting with governors from affected states, Faría detailed the mission’s first purpose as generating “a diagnosis for action.” The Venezuelan official underscored the need for an exhaustive structural census for reconstruction work.

Faría, who has held multiple cabinet posts since 1999, will be replaced by Francisco Garcés as minister of transport.

The new mission is going to unify the existing infrastructure-oriented social programs “Barrio Nuevo, Barrio Tricolor,” “Juntos Todo Es Posible,” and “Venezuela Bella” to execute repairs and allow families to reoccupy their homes as soon as possible. 

Rodríguez announced that an initial US $200 million fund, set up with resources frozen by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will be used for the reconstruction and recovery of the affected areas.

During a Saturday meeting with her economic team, the acting president reported talks with public and private banks “to activate the mortgage portfolio,” adding that loans would be subsidized up to 80 percent. Rodríguez went on to announce the exoneration of fees and taxes related to property transactions and a temporary ban on the export of construction materials.

The June 24 twin earthquakes, with 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude and their epicenter near Morón, Carabobo state, have left an official death toll of 3,685 and more than 16,000 injured. The search for bodies continues to be a priority task for Venezuelan teams and volunteers, especially in the coastal La Guaira State where most of the building collapses are concentrated.

Coordination of these search and rescue operations has been transferred to Venezuela’s Civil Protection agency. Unofficial counts estimate over 40,000 missing people.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has noted a growing displacement of affected families from La Guaira to other regions and has warned of the “many needs” of the population.

The wind-down of the search and rescue operations to find survivors has seen most of the foreign specialized teams leave the country in recent days. Venezuelan authorities have acknowledged the role played by international brigades and decorated them.

On July 4, acting President Delcy Rodríguez decorated US rescue teams with “Hero of Venezuela” and “Canine Heroes of Venezuela” medals. During the ceremony, the acting president thanked the American people for their help, expressing her wish that the rescuers “carry in their hearts part of the Venezuelan people.”

US emergency rescuers included the Los Angeles USAR International Team and Virginia’s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 1.

In addition to its emergency brigades, Washington also deployed hundreds of military personnel to the Caribbean nation following the natural disaster. US forces have taken control of operations at the Simón Bolívar International Airport and La Guaira port after executing repair works. Helicopters and surveillance drones are likewise flying daily over the capital and surrounding areas.

Venezuela’s earthquake recovery efforts have also seen the controversial arrival of a diplomatic and military delegation from Israel led by Home Front Command Chief of Staff Brigadier General Elad Edri.

The Israeli mission has held multiple meetings with Venezuelan officials and, according to Edri, was asked by the Rodríguez government to evaluate infrastructure conditions and formulate a reconstruction plan.

In a press conference, the acting president expressed her appreciation for the arrival of the “highly trained and professional” Israeli team.

Caracas and Tel Aviv have not held diplomatic relations since former President Chávez severed ties in 2009. Both Chávez and his successor Nicolás Maduro recurrently condemned Israel for genocide and excoriated its war crimes in Gaza and Lebanon.

The Maduro administration publicly endorsed South Africa’s activation of the Genocide Convention against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2024.

Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Caracas.

AN influencer has died after her BMW flipped and slammed into a tree in a horror crash.

Ayzia J, 22, was killed in the deadly collision in New Jersey alongside her friend.

Her friend Henrietta Carter, 22, was riding in the front passenger seat at the time of the crash and was killed.

A third person, who had been in the back of the car, survived the deadly collision with minor injuries.

The car left the road, then overturned and smashed into a tree, according to New Jersey State Police.

Police have launched an investigation into the deadly crash.

Ayzia’s family have launched a fundraising appeal to help them cover funeral costs.

The influencer has more than 300,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok.

The ‘UK’s poshest Premier Inn’ has all of the perks of a budget stay, but there was one feature that impressed me before I’d even dropped off my bags

I checked into the ‘UK’s poshest Premier Inn’, and was impressed before I even got to my room.

As the UK’s largest hotel chain, Premier Inn promises a restful night’s stay in more than 85,000 rooms across the country in over 800 locations. Owned by Whitbread, the brand is known for its budget-friendly accommodation, plush white crisp beds, and those iconic Lenny Henry adverts that are hard to forget.

Offering even more choice to Brits, they’ve expanded even further with Zip by Premier Inn and hub by Premier, which provide smaller rooms at a lower price. While they might be more compact, they certainly don’t compromise on comfort.

One hub has even earned a reputation as the ‘UK’s poshest Premier Inn’, despite only opening in February this year. Its location in a former Victorian Old Bailey in the heart of London might just have something to do with its label, that and its trendy interiors that could easily compare to an independent boutique, as I found out.

Finding a hotel in London can be somewhat of a minefield, with thousands to choose from, so when the hub by Premier Inn London Farringdon (Old Bailey) hotel popped up, I was intrigued. Not only was it nestled in a lively and convenient area of central London, with plenty of amenities nearby, but it also proved to be much more than a hotel.

That’s because this particular hub, or hotel, is housed inside the former Snow Hill Police Station, a 1870s Grade II-listed building that combines its original Victorian features with contemporary interiors for a unique and affordable stay. With rooms starting from £75, you can’t fault the price, and as soon as I peered up at the historic Old Bailey and walked through its grand doors, it felt far from a budget hotel.

What really stood out among its authentic features was the striking white-tiled stairway, with tall ceilings, arched windows, and a concrete floor that made me feel as though I was about to turn myself in rather than check in. It even boasted a historic blue, square police lantern that once guided residents to the station.

It genuinely felt as though I had travelled back in time as its heritage permeated every corner. It was only when I reached reception that I remembered it was a hotel, as its modern design gleamed throughout.

Just to the side of the front desk is a communal lounge where guests can unwind on one of its elegant sofas and armchairs. Beneath its white, ornate ceiling, the space is thoughtfully divided by a metal shelf adorned with vibrant cases and plants, making it feel like a home from home.

There’s also a bar serving up drinks and a dining area where breakfast is served up – I was even able to get my hands on one of their pizzas when I returned to the hotel at 1am – what more could you want?

For my stay, I checked into one of their standard rooms, boasting a double bed and en-suite. While it was compact, it certainly made full use of the 11sqm space I would call home for the night.

There was storage under the bed big enough for a large suitcase, alongside a pull-out drawer, and opposite a small desk area with even more space to keep bags out of the way, shelves and a built-in wardrobe without a door. Even the glass-door bathroom with its green tiles made use of its space, with the bin tucked neatly out of the way.

The double bed was fixed up against the wall to maximise the room, with the wall decorated in a funky London map, and the duvet neatly rolled up at the foot of the bed – perhaps to really show off its clever simplicity. There was even a small shelf beside the bed, along with plug sockets, to easily charge and store personal items.

And in its easy and efficient manner, the lighting and air conditioning are electronically controlled – so there was no need for me to wander around the room in the dark. The hub was the ideal place to spend a night in London, and I felt safely tucked away in my pod-like room, proving that you don’t have to sacrifice comfort, but perhaps just a little bit of space to secure a bargain stay.

Plus, not many people can say they’ve stayed in a former police station, or what I can now agree, is the UK’s poshest Premier Inn.

Rooms start from £75 a night. For more information or to book your stay, visit the hub by Premier Inn website.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

Here’s a theory: It’d sure be easier for politicians to get away with flip-flops if there weren’t a bunch of their old tweets lying around like crime-scene DNA.

Check out this exchange from Monday night’s presidential debate.

HILLARY CLINTON: “Donald Trump thinks climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese. I think it’s real.”

DONALD TRUMP: “I did not. I did not. I do not say that. I do not say that.”

Except there’s this.

Even though it was four years old, Trump’s old tweet began picking up tens of thousands of retweets as the presidential debate raged on. (Reports that Trump’s team had deleted the tweet mid-debate were inaccurate. Also, while we’re here, the evidence is overwhelming: Climate change is real.)

It’s hard to imagine similar mass-sharing happening with a hard copy of a newspaper article, a years-old clipping suddenly passing through thousands of curious hands again. But thanks to Twitter, one of this election’s great accountability machines, what was old became new(s) again.

The phenomenon is also thanks in part to Trump himself, a prolific social-media user who, throughout this election, could have avoided storms of unfriendly retweets by deleting his old tweets — but he hasn’t, leaving himself a little more vulnerable to the searching eyes of his opponents.

Social media has been a dominant campaign medium in 2016, not just for the candidates but also for professional and amateur fact-checkers who have been doing their work with ferocious speed.

For gumshoes, it’s an arena of political argument aided by keyword searches, hyperlinks and screenshots, the kind of work that can be done on a smartphone while sitting on the couch. Opposition researchers, journalists and nonprofessionals alike have seen their handiwork go viral.

That means, for casual Twitter users, a candidate’s real-time remarks at a rally or a debate might appear in their feeds side-by-side with other users posting footage or transcripts of contradictory past statements.

Trump, who fact-checkers say routinely peddles fake information — like the lie that President Obama was born in Africa — has disproportionately seen his old tweets become targets, emerging again and again as objects of criticism, renewed with as little effort as hitting the retweet button. (Retweets are definitely not always endorsements.)

Twitter in particular has long been known as a place where professionals can lose their jobs or come under international pressure for saying something — well, often something pretty stupid, if not merely controversial. In recent years, online guides have offered recommendations for how regular users can delete old tweets lest they become liabilities.

The pressure is much higher on public figures. When comedian Trevor Noah won the job of hosting “The Daily Show,” he soon drew heat for old politically incorrect Twitter jokes; the same thing happened last week to new “Saturday Night Live” cast member Melissa Villasenor.

Some politicians have also gone on tweet-deleting escapades when a political situation suddenly goes sideways. Several lawmakers who welcomed Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl home from captivity in Afghanistan in 2014 later backtracked when information emerged suggesting Bergdahl may have deserted from his platoon. (Bergdahl goes to trial in 2017.)

Hoping to prevent politicians from editing the historical record, the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based transparency advocacy group, runs a tool called Politwoops that tracks and preserves a record of when politicians delete tweets.

Many of the deleted tweets snared by Politwoops are innocuous typos. But a few reveal statements withdrawn after second thoughts, like U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller’s (R-Fla.) 2012 tweet, “Was Obama born in the United States?”

Yet Trump has not scrubbed his own notorious “birther” tweets, which he only recently publicly disavowed. (Trump’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.)

For a politician who has routinely made news with his tweets — from retweeting white supremacists to congratulating himself after the Pulse nightclub mass shooting in Orlando, Fla. (“for being right on radical Islamic terrorism”) — Trump’s history of Twitter deletions in Politwoops is mostly for mispellings and bygone media appearances, rather than withdrawing substantive remarks.

Trump, for example, drew criticism in August for tweeting: “Dwayne Wade’s cousin was just shot and killed walking her baby in Chicago. Just what I have been saying. African-Americans will VOTE TRUMP!”

Critics accused Trump of using a person’s death to pander to black voters, pointing out he hadn’t even bothered to offer condolences, and the Trump account soon deleted the tweet — so it could put up a new version of the same tweet, this time with NBA star Dwyane Wade’s name spelled correctly.

It’s still there.

Clinton’s Twitter account deletes a few tweets a month, though in each instance it’s not clear why. Clinton is better known for her tweet to Trump, “Delete your account” — a popular Internet joke — which has earned nearly 500,000 retweets.

Now, the question arises of how Trump changes — or doesn’t change — after the election, win or lose.

“In this election, we’re talking more about the tweets that aren’t deleted than the tweets that are, and that’s an interesting reflection on where we are and how we view social media,” said Josh Stewart, a spokesman at the Sunlight Foundation. “It would be interesting to see if the use of social media by politicians changes after this election, or if he’s an outlier.”

Email: matt.pearce@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter: @mattdpearce

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In Shohei Ohtani, who on Tuesday became the first Japanese player to hit 300 home runs in MLB, the Dodgers had the first National League All-Star voted in this year.

They still have a chance for a late addition.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has been lobbying for two members of his pitching staff to be named replacement players: left-handed starter Justin Wrobleski and left-handed reliever Tanner Scott.

“There’s going to be some changes and some talks here,” Roberts said before the Dodgers’ 4-3 loss against the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium. “There’s continual talks about both guys.”

Earlier Tuesday, MLB announced replacements for three NL pitchers who won’t be eligible to appear in the All-Star Game. Pittsburgh’s Braxton Ashcraft, Philadelphia’s Jesús Luzardo and St. Louis’ Riley O’Brien claimed spots as Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes, Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski and Miami’s Max Meyer bowed out.

“Obviously it’s disappointing,” Wrobleski said after holding the Rockies to one run through seven innings. “You want to be an All-Star. It’s something that, regardless of the year, whenever, it’s always a big deal. It’s something I wanted to do. It’s frustrating to not get that nod. But like I said before, it’s just more reason to try and keep getting better. Hopefully I can gain the respect of players and everybody else and maybe be in there next year.”

There should continue to be movement on the All-Star roster, especially on the pitching side, with rotation schedules limiting which starters can participate. Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, for example, is lined up to start Saturday, which may take him off the table for the All-Star Game next Tuesday.

That could open the door for Wrobleski and Scott.

Asked to make his pitch for Wrobleski, Roberts pointed to his ERA (2.69, No. 8 among qualified NL pitchers), average of more than six innings per start and 10 wins.

“We run a six-man rotation, and I just don’t want him to get dinged for not making a couple more starts that he potentially could have had,” Roberts said. “I just think that he’s performed enough to earn that opportunity.

“And also, Tanner had a rough one [Monday], but I still think that … he’s one of the elite relievers in the National League.”

Scott, after notching just his second blown save Monday, compared to his 12 saves and 2.70 ERA, didn’t have an opening to improve on his All-Star campaign Tuesday.

Wrobleski, however, strengthened his.

He stayed true to his identity, pounding the strike zone and inducing weak contact to go with nine strikeouts. The only run he gave up came on a groundout in the sixth inning with runners on the corners.

In a nod to Wrobleski’s new nickname, “The Shark,” coined by Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martínez, Dodger Stadium organist Dieter Ruehle played a snippet of the “Jaws” theme to punctuate Wrobleski’s punchouts, and as he walked off the mound for the last time.

Once Wrobleski’s job was done, he paced in the dugout, interrupted once in a while by a hug or handshakes from a teammate. Catcher Dalton Rushing held his hand up to his forehead like a shark fin.

The name and attacking reputation had stuck. Would it be enough for an All-Star nod?

“If it happens, great,” Wrobleski said. “If it doesn’t happen, some time off and just chill for a couple days. Either way, I’m all good.”

On the offensive side, Ohtani’s leadoff homer made him the first player to notch 300 home runs and 100-plus stolen bases in his first nine MLB seasons, according to ESPN Insights. Tuesday was his 1,101st game with at least one plate appearance. By that measure, he was the fifth-fastest to 300 home runs, according to mlb.com and Elias Sports Bureau, behind only Aaron Judge (953), Ralph Kiner (1,086), Ryan Howard (1,091) and Juan González (1,093).

“It was quite the homer,” Roberts said. “I mean, it was [112 mph] off the bat, low launch angle. It was squared up, got out in a hurry. And 300 — he got there pretty quickly for us. I just marvel at him every day.”

Defense unravels late

The Dodgers widened their lead to two runs but gave it up in the eighth on a pair of errors, including one on a sacrifice bunt.

Shortstop Miguel Rojas, who botched a grounder to his left earlier in the inning that enabled a run to score, was late breaking to cover third, leaving the bag wide open. Second baseman Alex Freeland tried to hit Rojas in stride with his throw and was charged with an error when it got away and the go-ahead run scored.

“Physical errors happen, and I’m OK with that,” Rojas said. “I’m not perfect, and I’m going to make errors, and physical errors are OK. But mental errors are the ones that are disappointing. I should have been on third base, I shouldn’t be putting Alex Freeland in the situation of throwing the ball with me on the run there. That’s the one that I kick myself for.”

Said Roberts: “This guy’s as dependable as they come. So that it happens, we don’t like it, doesn’t feel good, but you know that player. I give him a lot of grace, because he is very dependable.”

Right-hander Evan Phillips made his first major-league appearance in 14 months, after undergoing Tommy John surgery last summer, and had two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning. But the Dodgers offense didn’t muster a comeback, as the top of the batting order went down in order with two runners on.

Ohtani on track

Ohtani is still in line to pitch Friday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Roberts said.

The right biceps issue that flared in Ohtani’s final at-bat last Friday, and sidelined him Saturday, raised the question of whether he should skip his last start before the All-Star break. But Roberts said Ohtani’s catch play has been normal and he hasn’t reported any concerns with his biceps.

“As he goes through the next couple days, if he doesn’t feel great, we’ll pivot, and we’re prepared to pivot,” Roberts said. “But as we sit here, I don’t see that changing.”

Roberts said he doesn’t think Ohtani will pitch in the All-Star Game or participate in the home run derby. But he does expect him to take an at-bat or two as the NL’s starting designated hitter.

“He understands the responsibility he has,” Roberts said. “So I do think that there’s a middle for what’s best for him, what potentially could be downside, but also what’s best for the game.”