born

The airline made an announcement this morning

easyJet has today made an announcement, aimed at people aged above 17 and three months. The airline is launching applications for its 2026 engineering apprenticeship programme, with roles available at a number of major UK airports.

This comes at a time when the UK Civil Aviation Authority estimates that 27% of the aircraft engineering workforce is set to retire within the next decade, and after new research commissioned by easyJet suggests more needs to be done to encourage young Brits to consider a career in engineering.

Some 65% of the 2,000 16-24 year olds surveyed said they had never considered a career in the field, with many deterred by misconceptions about their suitability for the profession. Over half (59%) believed they lacked the right qualifications, while 34% said engineering was never presented as an option at school and 21% thought it was too expensive to pursue.

The study also highlighted a gender gap, with only 36% of young women considering a career in engineering, compared to 52% of young men. In reality, an apprenticeship offers an accessible alternative route into the profession, providing the skills, experience and confidence needed for a successful career in engineering.

As well as this, the research revealed a growing trend among 16-24 year-olds expressing an interest in pursuing a career with a purpose. Over half (52%) expressed a desire to be in a role that benefits society, with more than two-fifths (44%) stating they aspired to a career that would help tackle climate change.

A further 43% identified engineering as a profession that could help achieve these goals through activities such as developing lower-emission technologies. In an effort to dispel misconceptions and support young 16–24 year olds in their ambition of a purpose-driven career path, easyJet is welcoming its next batch of aspiring engineers, offering an apprenticeship programme that will provide essential skills while earning and learning on the job, without the barriers of traditional routes to access the profession.

Speaking about the call for more apprentices to join its ranks, Brendan McConnellogue, Director of Engineering and Maintenance at easyJet said: “Today’s young people are motivated by purpose – they want to solve problems, travel, innovate and play their part in building a more sustainable future.

“Our engineering apprenticeships give candidates the chance to gain valuable experience working on our state-of-the-art fleet of aircraft while helping to deliver on aviation’s commitment to decarbonisation.

“This programme not only provides a pathway to grow professionally but also allows apprentices to make a meaningful contribution to the success of our operations throughout our network. We’re looking forward to opening the doors to applicants from all backgrounds who are ready to take their first step into a rewarding career in aviation.”

Aviation Minister, Keir Mather, said: “This engineering apprenticeship scheme marks an important step in continuing to build a highly skilled aviation workforce fit for the future.

“Initiatives like easyJet’s unlock exciting, flexible routes into aviation, backing an expanding sector whilst offering young people valuable opportunities and long-term careers – helping deliver our Plan for Change.”

Applications for the 2026 intake are now open, with spots up for grabs across all of easyJet’s major engineering bases nationwide including Luton Airport, London Gatwick Airport, Manchester Airport, Liverpool Airport, Bristol Airport, Edinburgh Airport and Glasgow Airport. Those with a minimum of 2 GCSEs at grade 3 and above or equivalent (SCQF Level 4) Scottish Qualifications in English and Maths are urged to apply here

A Grammy Award for best new artist. Four top 10 hits since September 2024. Sold-out gigs packed with admirers in pink cowgirl hats wherever she goes.

At 27, Chappell Roan has unquestionably become one of pop’s new queens. But let it never be said that this powerhouse singer and songwriter rules without mercy.

As her band vamped on the intro to her song “Hot to Go!” on Friday night, Roan surveyed the tens of thousands spread across the leafy grounds surrounding the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

“We’re gonna teach you a dance,” she said, though few in the audience probably needed the lesson at this point in Roan’s ascent. For more than a year, social media has been awash in video clips of Roan’s fans doing a “Y.M.C.A.”-like routine in time to the frenzied chorus of “Hot to Go!”

But wait a minute: “There’s a dad in the crowd that’s not doing it,” Roan reported with practiced disbelief. The band stopped playing. “There’s a dad that’s not doing it,” she repeated — less incredulous than reproving now.

“But he looks really, really nice, so I’m not gonna do anything about it.”

Roan’s show Friday was the first of two in Pasadena to wrap a brief U.S. tour.

(Brian Feinzimer/For The Times)

Friday’s show, which Roan said was the biggest headlining date she’d ever played, was the first of two at Brookside at the Rose Bowl to conclude a brief run of U.S. concerts she’s calling Visions of Damsels & Other Dangerous Things. The performances in New York, Kansas City and Pasadena can be seen as something of a victory lap after the slow-building success of her 2023 debut album, “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” which beyond “Hot to Go!” has spun off numerous other hits including “My Kink Is Karma” and the inescapable “Pink Pony Club.”

That last song, which has more than a billion streams on Spotify and YouTube, documents a young queer woman’s sexual awakening at a West Hollywood gay club; Roan’s music sets thoughts of pleasure, heartache and self-discovery against a gloriously theatrical blend of synth-pop, disco, glam rock and old-fashioned torch balladry.

Having spent this past summer on the European festival circuit, she’s said that Visions of Damsels represents “the chance to do something special before going away to write the next album”; the mini-tour also keeps her in the conversation as nominations are being decided for next year’s Grammys, where she’s likely to vie for record and song of the year with “The Subway,” one of a handful of singles she’s released since “Midwest Princess.”

Yet as clearly as it showcased her natural star quality — the stage was designed like a gothic castle with various staircases for Roan to descend dramatically — this was really a demonstration of the intimate bond she’s forged with her fans, many of whom came to the show dressed in one of the singer’s signature looks: harlequin, majorette, prom queen, construction worker.

An hour or so into her 90-minute set, Roan sat in a giant throne with a toy creature she called her tour pet and recalled her move to Los Angeles nearly a decade ago from small-town Missouri.

“I had a really, really tough time the first five years,” she said, adding that she’d lived in Altadena when she first arrived. (In a bit of now-infamous Chappell Roan lore, she was dropped by Atlantic Records in 2020 after the label decided “Pink Pony Club” was not a hit.) She talked about how much she loves this city — “F— ICE forever,” she said at one point to huge applause — but bemoaned the “weird professionalism” she can feel when she’s onstage in L.A.

“I know there’s a lot of people in the music and film industry here, and I don’t want you to think about that,” she said. “Don’t f—ing talk about it. Don’t talk about work here. I just want you to feel like you did when you were a kid — when you were 13 and free.” She laughed.

“I’m just gonna shut up — I’m so dumb,” she said. Then she sang the lovelorn “Coffee” like someone confessing her greatest fear.

Roan said Friday’s show was the biggest headlining date she’d ever played.

(Brian Feinzimer/For The Times)

Though the castle set was impressively detailed, Roan’s production was relatively low-key by modern pop standards; she had no dancers and no special guests and wore just one costume that she kept removing pieces from to end up in a kind of two-piece dragon-skin bikini.

But that’s because at a Chappell Roan show, Chappell Roan is the show: a fearsomely talented purveyor of feeling and attitude whose campy sense of humor only heightens the exquisite melancholy of her music.

Her singing was immaculate yet hot-blooded, bolstered by a killer band that remade songs like “Good Luck, Babe!” and “Red Wine Supernova” as slashing ’80s-style rock; Roan covered Heart’s “Barracuda” with enough strutting imperiousness to compete with Nancy Wilson’s iconic guitar riff.

“The Giver” was a stomping glitter-country hoedown, “Naked in Manhattan” a naughty electro-pop romp. For “Picture You,” which is about longing to know a lover’s secrets, Roan serenaded a blond wig plopped atop a mic stand — a bit of absurdist theater she played completely straight.

The heart of the concert was the stunning one-two punch of “Casual” into “The Subway,” Roan’s most grandly emotional ballads, in which her voice soared with what seemed like total effortlessness.

After that is when the singer noticed that kindly dad shirking his duties in “Hot to Go!” Maybe the poor guy was just too dazzled to take part.

IT is often a shock when celebrities suddenly find themselves sprayed orange and squeezed into a skimpy outfit for Strictly.

But for proud Geordie Vicky Pattison it is not a problem, because that is how she has spent most Saturday nights since she was as a teenager.

5

5

5

For the TV star, getting dolled up to the nines every weekend is not being Strictlyfied, it is just being a lass from Newcastle.

Vicky, 37, said: “Everybody knows I’m super nervous about this entire process, I’m just a gobby girl from the north east doing her best.

“The dancing, the being out my comfort zone, learning something new, being judged by the public is also terrifying.

“But the one element that made me feel really excited and I had no reservations about at all was definitely being Strictlyfied.

“I’m sorry but the tan, the hair, the glam! I’ve been preparing for this for like 25 years.

“Like, I didn’t even have to change my fake tan routine at all — this girl was ready.”

Although Vicky, who is partnered on this series with pro Kai Widdrington, admits she likes a party her blind spot is actually the dancing.

She said: “I’ve joked that this is the first time I’ve danced sober but it’s probably not that far from the truth.

“You normally see me at people’s parties at the bar or chewing someone’s ear off in the kitchen. Definitely the last place you’d find me is on the dance floor.

“Everyone is gonna think I’m a novice — and they’d be right. But I am ready for a challenge and desperate to prove myself and some people wrong along the way.”

‘Reality TV scum’

Vicky admits people constantly underestimate her and in the 14 years since she shot to fame on MTV series Geordie Shore, has always been a bit of an underdog.

It was something Vicky, who last year married fashion brand businessman Ercan Ramadan, faced when she was a contestant on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity . . . Get Me Out Of Here a decade ago.

Cynics would do well to remember she won that contest after a substantial public vote.

She said: “Winning the jungle was the best moment of my life, maybe tied with the day that I got married to Ercan.

“Everybody just wanted us out initially. Obviously I was in there and in me bubble and I’m actually really grateful for that, you know.

“But I learned afterwards everyone was like: ‘Get her out. We don’t want her in here. Reality TV scum blah, blah, blah.’

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I’ve joked that this is the first time I’ve danced sober but it’s probably not that far from the truth. You normally see me at people’s parties at
the bar . . . not on the dancefloor

“I don’t know what they thought I was gonna do like, go in there and down a Jaegerbomb and punch a kangaroo or something?

“I just wanted a chance to prove myself, to show people that I could be something different than what they’ve seen before.

“I just want to put my best SELF forward and within about 24 hours I was the favourite to win. I’m so proud of me achievement there.

“This is a very different ball game. I’m totally aware of that. But, like I say, I have always been the underdog and if people wanna get behind us, that is really nice.”

Although the public have yet to be fully won over by her dance on last week’s first live show, she finished in fifth place on the scoreboard — which is pretty impressive given she is one of 15 celebrities competing.

Meanwhile bookies Ladbrokes have her as favourite to win at 5/1, ahead of West End star Amber Davies and ex-footballer Karen Carney whose sensational jive saw her top the scoreboard last week.

Vicky said: “I can’t believe anyone would have us down as favourite in the lasses to win. I mean, have you seen the women in this competition? They’re all incredible.

“Amber’s amazing, did you see Kaz Carney’s jive on Saturday night? I mean, come on, that’s my winner right there!

“Bal is beautiful inside and out and just has so much rhythm. Alex is so theatrical and emotional when she dances it’s so beautiful.

“Ellie’s energy is infectious, just don’t even get us started on La Voix, you can’t look anywhere else when she’s on the stage.

“Maybe there’s a mistake there with those odds.”

Despite being up against the likes of Amber, who has appeared in 9 to 5 The Musical and stage show Back To The Future, plus Lewis Cope who was in the stage version of Billy Elliot, she feels no resentment.

Instead she adopts a more philosophical approach to the issue which pops up each series.

I don’t know what people thought I was gonna do in the jungle . . . like go in and down a Jaegerbomb
and punch a kangaroo?

Vicky said: “Every year Strictly has people of different abilities, doesn’t it? Some people who have never danced before, totally inexperienced, and some people maybe did ballet before as kids, some people a bit more.

“I don’t think it’s a big problem.It’s part and parcel and there’s loads of different styles of dance isn’t there?

“Just because someone’s experienced in one, doesn’t mean they’re experienced in another.

“Also, I do think it’s nice for the viewers at home that they get to watch some really good dancers early doors, like you know when maybe the rest of us are just learning. There is some still really brilliant performances to watch and everyone goes on a journey.”

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Vicky sees her journey continuing after she has completed Strictly, whether that is after this weekend’s first eviction, or after potentially making her way to the final.

But she admits wherever her career goes, it won’t be in dance.
She said: “I honestly haven’t thought past getting through the first week.

“Like if I managed to stay in on Saturday I’ll be shocked and over the moon.

“I certainly haven’t got any Grand Designs on being a West End star or, you know, pivoting into the world of performing. There’s far more deserving and better people than me. I’m a big fan of Strictly, I’ve watched it since I was a kid.

“I watched it with me grandma — it was me grandma’s favourite. I think that’s why I’m doing it, great big tick off the bucket list.

“But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hoping it would take us to different opportunities.

“The BBC is British institution, it’s a great channel. I would love to make more TV with them so, yeah, maybe I am hoping it will lead to more things but probably not in the dance space to be totally honest.”

Vicky and Kai will be dancing a foxtrot to the track Rein Me In tonight, which has special meaning as its by Sam Fender who she describes as “a Geordie legend.”

She added: “I feel like I’ve got the weight of the world on my shoulders trying to do, like, all the Northeast proud, Ercan proud, Kai proud, myself and my family proud.

“I’m absolutely terrified. Everyone keeps saying like, ‘Oh do you feel a bit better now you’ve got the first show and the first live dance done?’ I’m like, no I’m not.

“I’m still nervous. I can actually go home you know. It’s just like we’re dancing for fun. It’s not even a pre-record, we’re live and I’m just not ready.

“I’m not ready to say goodbye to people. I’m not ready for this journey to be over so I actually feel sick to my stomach about it.

“By nature, I’m not a very confident person, despite appearances.”

• Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One today at 6.20pm.

Don’t expect country music stars Zach Bryan and Gavin Adcock to share a bill anytime soon. The two, who have been sparring verbally for weeks, got into a face-to-face altercation at a music festival in Oklahoma on Saturday.

The confrontation happened at the Born & Raised Festival in Pryor, Okla., just before Adcock stepped on stage to perform.

A video, shared by Adcock on Instagram, shows Adcock and Bryan staring each other down and yelling through a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire.

“Hey, you want to fight like a man?” Bryan says in the video clip, calling for someone to open the gate separating the two men. Other clips show Bryan climbing over the barbed-wire top of the fence and Adcock standing back as security personnel come between them.

Text superimposed on Adcock’s Instagram video alleged that Bryan made “death threats” during the spat, along with the comment: “Eat a snickers bro.” He added another insult while signing someone’s cowboy hat later that day.

Adcock, who has 725,000 Instagram followers, released an album called “Own Worst Enemy” in August. He sparked controversy in June when he criticized Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” album on stage, brandishing a bottle while saying “that s— ain’t country music, and it ain’t never been country music and it ain’t never gonna be country music.” (Earlier this year, Beyoncé won Grammys for album of the year and country album for “Cowboy Carter.”)

Bryan, 29, who was in the Navy before reaching fame as country/American singer and songwriter, has 4.9 million Instagram followers. Bryan released his last album, “Zach Bryan,” in 2023. A New York Times profile labeled him “music’s most reluctant new star.”

Adcock and Bryan’s beef dates to July, when Adcock slammed Bryan for being thin-skinned and not doing a meet-and-greet appearance with fans after a show. Later, Adcock added more harsh words in an interview on Rolling Stone’s “Nashville Now.”

“I think Zach Bryan puts on a big mask in his day-to-day life and sometimes he can’t help but rip it off and show his true colors,” Adcock said. “I don’t know if Zach Bryan’s really that great of a person.”

Representatives for Adcock and Bryan did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

US President Donald Trump last month returned to Scotland, a country he often references as part of his family heritage. But the island village where his mother was born has long held mixed feelings about the president

Last month, US President Donald Trump returned to a nation he frequently cites as part of his family roots – Scotland. And there’s one tiny village that is particularly significant to the 79-year-old.

During the visit, which ran from July 25 until Tuesday, July 29, the President visited both of his Scottish golf courses, Trump Turnberry in South Ayrshire and the Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeenshire, and held talks in Aberdeen with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney.

Trump has consistently highlighted his deep personal ties to Scotland through his late mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, who was born and brought up on the Isle of Lewis in the breathtaking Outer Hebrides.

READ MORE: Idyllic town with great pubs and stunning gardens named best in whole of Scotland

According to VisitScotland: “With dramatic landscapes, a unique Gaelic culture and fascinating history, Lewis and Harris are a great place to start your Hebridean adventure. You will be blown away by wild mountains, immense white beaches, rugged coastlines and lunar landscapes.”

Like countless Scots in the early 20th century, Mary Anne emigrated to America seeking greater prospects, reports the Daily Record. Born in 1912 in the village of Tong, roughly three miles from Stornoway, she departed the island at the age of 18 to seek employment as a domestic servant in New York.

In 1936, she married Frederick Trump, a prosperous property magnate and the son of German immigrants. The pair had five children together, with President Trump—known locally as Donald John—being their fourth child.

Mary Anne gained American citizenship in 1942 and passed away in 2000 at the age of 88. Despite his regular mentions of his Scottish heritage, the president hasn’t always received a warm welcome from inhabitants of his mother’s birthplace.

Her relatives came from the surrounding region, with the MacLeods on her paternal side hailing from Vatisker, situated just north of Tong. Tong itself boasts a distinctive heritage of political and cultural identity.

From 1919 to 1921, the village, alongside neighbouring Coll and Gress, witnessed a sequence of land raids where local men confronted absent landowners by sowing crops and splitting sheep-grazing properties into agricultural plots.

Tong’s inhabitants were considered amongst the island’s most radical. In a 1990s compilation of the Stornoway dialect, Tong’s residents were still dubbed “Bolshiveeks.”

Village folk in Tong have previously expressed annoyance over Trump’s absence of backing for the community, drawing comparisons with his sister’s and mother’s contributions.

“He never gave a penny,” residents have previously remarked, highlighting that Mary Anne MacLeod Trump helped finance the village hall’s construction during the 1970s. His elder sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, also made a significant donation of £155,000 to a local care home and the Bethesda hospice.

Locals have claimed that the president is “feeding off” the legacy of his mother and sister without giving back to the island that shaped their early years.

Tong remains a traditional crofting village, located about four miles northeast of Stornoway. Crofting, weaving of Harris Tweed, and peat cutting are still part of daily life on the island.

The area is also renowned for hosting the annual Lewis Highland Games and the Western Isles Strongman competition. Historically, Lewis was part of Norway until the 13th century, and by the 1800s, Tong’s economy relied heavily on fishing, farming and weaving.

However, widespread land clearances in the late 19th century saw many tenants displaced in favour of large-scale sheep farms and deer forests.

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