Awardwinning

EVERYONE loves a family day out, but let’s face it, everything is better when it’s free.

The much-loved Cotswold Farm Park run by Countryfile’s Adam Henson, has scooped up a Tripadvisor Traveller’s Choice Award for the last 15 years.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel.

To celebrate, the attraction is offering free tickets to children, toddlers and babies.

The T&Cs are that it’s one complimentary ticket to each paying adult and or senior guest, and the offer is only running until the end of May.

Families can take advantage of the offer through May half-term and on the bank holiday (but make sure to book in advance).

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The farm park is open seven days a week with plenty of activities to enjoy from feeding time with lambs and baby goats to jumping on its bouncy castle and trying out the zip wire.

When it comes to animals, visitors can get up close and personal with lots of breeds.

There’s Gillie the Jersey Cow, Marge the Middle White Pig, and Attenborough the Highland bull calf.

Feeding sessions with some of the youngest animals happen twice daily at 11.30AM and 3.30PM with lambs and baby goats.

There’s also a chance to watch chicks hatch as well as meet guinea pigs, rabbits and ducklings.

When it comes to playtime, children can head into the Adventure Barn – which is perfect for rainy days with didi cars and soft play.

Outside children can jump up and down on bouncy pillows, go on swings, zip wire, pedal tractors, explore the sandpit and climbing frame.

There’s a wooded area for bird-spotting and bee hive to take a look at too.

Between May 23 and May 31 the farm is celebrating Bee Wild Week with new activities like daily talks from the farm’s beekeeper-in-training.

When it’s time to eat, head to The Ox Shed Restaurant for all-day dining from breakfast to dinner, and pizza evenings every Saturday night.

Families from further afield can book to stay on-site at the campsites.

It has tent pitches to glamping tents, luxury lodges and new cabins.

A one-night stay on a grass tent pitch with electric starts from £67.

Head of Sun Travel (Digital) Caroline McGuire visited the farm park last year, she said: “Spring is easily the best time to visit any farm in the UK, as new lambs, chicks, calves and piglets all arrive noisily on the scene.

“Inside the Discovery Barn, which teaches children all about farm animals, my five-year-old son petted chicks and baby rabbits, and was lucky enough to see a lamb being born.

“We refuelled at the on-site Ox Shed restaurant, dining on burgers and loaded salads, washed down with apple juice and a glass of Adam Henson’s own pale ale for me.”

DAME Joan Plowright left nearly £3million to her children after she died last year.

The award-winning actress, who was married to Lord Laurence Olivier, left the sum to her three children.

She was known for her Golden Globe award-winning performances in TV biopic Stalin and Enchanted April, for which she was also nominated for an Academy Award.

The British actress died in January last year surrounded by her family at Denville Hall in Northwood.

Documents have now revealed that she had £2,814,901 in her estate at the time of her death – £2,711,847 after expenses.

Dame Joan’s fortune is to be divided between her three children Julie, Richard and Tamsin.

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Some of her personal items have been left to her friends, including singer Tracey Ullman.

Other gifts were left for fellow actress Dame Maggie Smith, who died four months prior, and Norma Heyman.

 Gawn Grainger, Anne Bell and Nicholas Grace were also recipients.

The star left £5,000 each to Clive McColl, Jean Wilson, Janet Macklam and Helen Johnson.

She requested that a sword used by Edmund Kean in Shakespeare’s Richard III which was given to her husband by Sir John Gielgud should be lent to the British Library or another appropriate British charity.

Dame Joan added that this was unless her children found it could be “properly be permanently preserved for exhibition or inherited by an actor generally thought to be as great as its previous owners”.

The actress had a 60-year career on stage and screen. She starred in the 2018 British documentary film Nothing Like a Dame alongside Maggie Smith and Judi Dench, as well as 101 Dalmatians with Glenn Close in the ’90s.

Dame Joan was also know for her role in Love You To Death with River Phoenix, and was a star of the West End and Broadway before her international movie success.

A family statement said: “It is with great sadness that the family of Dame Joan Plowright, the Lady Olivier, inform you that she passed away peacefully on January 16 2025 surrounded by her family at Denville Hall aged 95.

She enjoyed a long and illustrious career across theatre, film and TV over seven decades until blindness made her retire.

“She cherished her last 10 years in Sussex with constant visits from friends and family, filled with much laughter and fond memories.

“The family are deeply grateful to Jean Wilson and all those involved in her personal care over many years.

“Joan is survived by her loving family: Tamsin and Wilf, Julie-Kate and Dan, Richard, Shelley, Troy, Ali, Jeremy, step-granddaughter and great granddaughter Kaya and Sophia, and great grand-daughter soon to arrive.

“The family ask you to please respect their request for privacy at this time.

“We are so proud of all Joan did and who she was as a loving and deeply inclusive human being.

“She survived her many challenges with Plowright grit and courageous determination to make the best of them, and that she certainly did.

“Rest in peace, Joan…”

Dame Joan’s wedding to Lord Olivier in 1961 was the sensation of the year.

Their marriage was an enduring one until the theatre great’s death in 2007 at the age of 86. She became his carer through a series of chronic illnesses, including cancer.

From the 1950s to the 1980s, Plowright racked up dozens of stage roles in everything from Chekhov’s The Seagull to Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

Dame Joan stunned in Eugene Ionesco’s The Chairs and George Bernard Shaw’s totemic two female roles Major Barbara and Saint Joan.

“I’ve been very privileged to have such a life,” Plowright said in a 2010 interview with The Actors Work.

“I mean it’s magic and I still feel, when a curtain goes up or the lights come on if there’s no curtain, the magic of a beginning of what is going to unfold in front of me.”

She was awarded the title of dame by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.

A picturesque walking route in the UK with award-winning gardens and views of a breathtaking castle has been praised as being just like a ‘fairytale’

A “real-life fairytale” destination in the South of England could be just what you need. We all crave an escape from the chaos of city living every now and then, and if you’re on the hunt for somewhere in the South of England to visit that is tranquil and peaceful, then a stroll through these breathtaking castle grounds could be exactly what the doctor ordered.

Getting out into nature can work wonders for both our physical and mental health, and the UK is brimming with stunning locations perfect for a leisurely walk. One particularly enchanting route, complete with magnificent gardens and awe-inspiring castle views, has recently been making waves on social media – and it’s located in the heart of West Sussex.

A Sussex-based couple, Cat and Nathan, shared the walk on their TikTok account, describing it as “a real-life fairytale” that they had no idea had been “on their doorstep” for years.

The destination in question is Arundel Castle, a beautifully restored and remodelled medieval fortress nestled in Arundel, West Sussex. It features spectacular gardens that visitors can explore at their own pace, and you can also venture inside the castle itself – or simply admire its magnificent exterior from the grounds.

Arundel Castle currently holds the Historic Houses Garden of the Year Award, having claimed the title back in November last year. Spanning an impressive 38 acres, the grounds are divided into a number of distinct areas, including a tropical garden, a rose garden, a wildflower garden, and a kitchen garden bursting with fresh fruits and vegetables.

It’s not solely about the blooms, however, as there are numerous striking landscape features, amongst them the Earl’s Garden, complete with Italianate terraces, pergolas, and the recently refurbished Antler’s Temple.

In the caption accompanying their video, Cat and Nathan wrote: “Can’t believe this has been on our doorstep for years. Honestly, this was the most beautiful day, seeing the castle up close and walking around the grounds, just wow. I’d definitely recommend bringing a picnic on a nice summer’s day, too!”

Viewers of the couple’s footage were left speechless by the breathtaking scenery captured in the clip, with many enquiring about how to visit. Those already familiar with the castle even jokingly urged the pair to take the video down, insisting they’d rather keep their tranquil retreat to themselves.

One viewer commented: “I went last week, and I try to go every year for the tulip festival. It’s just so beautifully stunning.”

Another added: “Absolutely amazing, just peace all the way through.”

A third posted: “Wow it looks so beautiful and peaceful! I have to add it to my list of places to visit.”

Getting to Arundel Castle will depend on where you live, but if you’re coming from London, it couldn’t be easier – and it only takes a little over an hour. Head to Victoria Station and board the Southern service towards Bognor Regis, getting off at Arundel. The journey takes approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes, with a leisurely 15-minute stroll from the station to the castle gates.

Admission to Arundel Castle comes at a cost, with pricing varying depending on what you’d like to experience. A combined ticket covering both the castle and its grounds will set you back £29 for adults and £13 for children. If you’d rather skip the castle itself, garden-only tickets are available at £17 for adults and £8 per child.

The castle gardens welcome visitors between 10am and 5pm, with last entry at 4pm. Do note that the gardens are shut on Mondays, with the exception of bank holidays and throughout August, when they remain open seven days a week.

April 24 (Asia Today) — South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Friday criticized an award-winning newspaper report on the Daejang-dong development scandal as a “tremendous fabrication” and called for the award to be canceled and the article corrected.

Lee made the remarks in a post on X after sharing an article about the Korean Newspaper Association giving the 2023 Korean Newspaper Award to the report.

“Would it not be proper, even now, to cancel and return the award, apologize and correct the report?” Lee wrote.

Lee said the award committee had cited the article for uncovering “powerful facts” in its coverage of the Daejang-dong issue.

“In reality, it was not fact-finding but a tremendous fabrication,” Lee said.

Lee accused the report of creating a link to him that he said did not exist in the Daejang-dong recordings.

“By reporting that ‘that person’ in the Daejang-dong recordings was Lee Jae-myung, even though that was not in the recordings, they caused the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate to lose the election and changed the history of the Republic of Korea,” Lee said.

Lee said the country had regressed as a result and that the public continued to suffer from the consequences.

“History must never again be changed by presidential election manipulation carried out by powerful institutions and the media,” Lee said.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260424010007824