HOLIDAYMAKERS travelling to and from a major UK airport will now be able to catch overnight trains.
The airport welcomes over 40million passengers a year, making it the second busiest in the country.
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New overnight train services have been introduced between Reading and GatwickCredit: AlamyThe GWR trains operate along the North Downs Line overnight on Mondays and SaturdaysCredit: Alamy
Passengers commuting to London Gatwick can now travel on a new overnight rail service as part of a Great Western Rail (GWR) trial.
The service links Gatwick Airport with Reading along the North Downs Line, allowing travelers to arrive in time for early flights, and leave after late-night departures.
Along the North Downs Line, the service calls at Reading, Wokingham, Guildford, Dorking Deepdene, Reigate, Redhill, and Gatwick.
GWR started this overnight service on June 6 as part of a 12-week trial running throughout summer up until mid-September.
The trial aims to test popularity of round-the-clock rail access between Reading and Gatwick.
The managing director of GWR, Mark Hopwood, said on the launch: “The trial will help us understand whether overnight services can work operationally and commercially on this route.
“We’ll monitor performance closely and will review feedback before considering options to improve services in the future.”
The trial operates two services from Reading to Gatwick at 2:28am and 3:30am on Saturday mornings, as well as three return journeys at 12:30am, 1:24am and 4am.
One service from Reading to Gatwick at 3:24am, and two returns from 12:24am and 4am, will take place on Monday mornings.
Historically, passengers travelling between the west and London Gatwick Airport faced difficulty because GWR services restricted between a 4:30am to 23:30pm window.
This largely cut commuting options for those on early departures and late arrivals – a group of Gatwick visitors that make up 20 per cent of its daily traffic.
Now, the service aims to sync with flights from major airlines such as easyJet, Jet2, and British Airways, bringing a sense of ease to travellers requiring this route.
Jonathan Pollard, chief commercial officer at London Gatwick, said: “We’re delighted to work in partnership with Great Western Railway to introduce these new overnight services, which will make travelling to and from London Gatwick even easier for both passengers catching early flights and staff working at the airport.
“Strengthening sustainable, reliable public transport links is vital as our route network grows, and this trial represents a significant step in improving choice and convenience for our passengers across the region.”
If GWR’s trial is successful, overnight trains between Reading and Gatwick could become a permanent feature.
PM Starmer is ‘unable to commit resources the nation needs’, John Healey says in letter.
Published On 11 Jun 202611 Jun 2026
Britain’s defence minister says he has resigned over a disagreement with the prime minister about defence spending.
In a letter addressed to Keir Starmer and posted on X on Thursday, Defence Secretary John Healey accused the prime minister of failing to commit the government resources that are needed to defend the country.
Britain’s’s defence and finance ministries have been locked in talks for months over how to meet rising demands to expand military spending, delaying Britain’s Defence Investment Plan since last year.
“You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats,” Healey said in his letter to Starmer.
The delay has infuriated Britain’s defence industry which says it cannot invest in long-term programmes for the country’s security at a time of huge geopolitical volatility and as the United States pivots away from protecting Europe.
It’s just past midday and I appear to be inside a rain cloud. Soaked to the skin, my walking boots squelching through tufts of grass and black bog mud, I can hear hundreds of streams rolling off this wide mid-Wales peak, each vying to be the fastest. I’ve hiked around more than 8 miles (13km) of Hafren Forest trails to the top of Mount Pumlumon Fawr (Plynlimon), to reach a wooden post carved with the words Source of the Severn. And I’m here, alone, because I’m hoping to meet a river goddess.
It’s perhaps not as strange as it first sounds. Starting about 150 years ago, the folklorist John Rhys travelled across Wales to archive as many local myths as possible, and among them was the very tale that brought me to this peak: the story of the birth of the River Severn, in which three sisters – Hafren (Severn), Rheidolyn (Rheidol) and Gwy (Wye) – each choose their own route to the sea. My trip to the river’s source was itself a moment of mythically inspired travel, something that has been common practice in the British Isles for as long as we’ve told stories, not least as a means of passing them on.
The writer channels her inner goddess at the Gower peninsula, south Wales. Photograph: Ben Holbrook
Folklore is experiencing a revival in Britain, whether it’s in wild tales told around festival campfires or in the rise of Mabinogion-inspired romantasy fiction. I was here on my own adventure, travelling around the islands to rediscover our lost goddess myths and what they mean for modern womanhood, for my new book, No Fair Maidens. My journey took me from Somerset to Skye, from Gower to Eryri, and was less about archaeological sightseeing and more a journey into the landscape and waterways themselves: the river sources, lakesides, spring wells and seashores that feature so vividly in old lore.
Water, it seems, is often the site of powerful women and magical happenings. In Roman and perhaps pre-Roman times, Britannia was a network of waterways represented by goddesses, from Sulis’ hot spring in Bath to Coventina’s well near Carrawburgh on Hadrian’s Wall. For centuries, wells and river sources have been places of pilgrimage for people to bring their wishes, throwing in stones and coins and asking for help from forces unseen. They are also places where magic can sometimes cross over. In local Welsh myth, the Ffynone waterfall is regarded as a portal to the mystical Otherworld, where the goddess Rhiannon lived before riding her white horse into the real world to choose a husband. Up the road at Llyn y Fan Fach in the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons), the mountain lake is known as the home of a beautiful nymph who agrees to marry a mere mortal, only to return to the waters, taking her large dowry with her, when he breaks their covenant.
Legend has it that Ffynone waterfall is a portal to the mystical Otherworld. Photograph: Birds Online/Getty Images
The shores are also home to some of our most renowned female fighters. On the Isle of Skye, in the dark ruins of Dunscaith Castle on the edge of Loch Eishort, we meet Scáthach: a fearsome Scottish warrioress from eighth-century Irish mythology, who was tasked with training Celtic princes to become warriors. She was said to be invincible, wielding supreme combat skills and a giant spiked spear, leading many a man to seek out her tutelage. Today, it is easy to picture her on the battlements, battered by wind and rain, wearily awaiting the next wannabe hero.
Indeed, as I travel across the island, powerful women weave through our folklore so readily that they feel like a source code, even though their stories are mostly unmarked in the landscapes from which they come. In England on the River Stour, I hear the 12th-century legend of Gwendoline, who was said to have raised an army in Cornwall and seized the crown from her cheating husband’s dead hands, making her the mythic first queen of a peaceful, united England. Further down the road as I climb Glastonbury Tor, it’s the matriarchal myth of Avalon that’s calling me, the tale of a magical island of sisters bound by the powers of shapeshifting, healing and prophecy. It’s wild to imagine that Britain might once have been home to that benevolent circle of women.
Llyn y Fan Fach in Bannau Brycheiniog (the Brecon Beacons) has its own lady of the lake legend. Photograph: James Osmond/Getty Images
It seems as if, across Britain, the landscape is brought to life through story. As I discuss in my book, exploring the island through the lens of myth and folklore invites us to see Britain in a different light; as a place full of wonder, where wild and strange things are possible. And with more of us investigating how to build a stronger, healthier connection with the natural world, folklore and myth can create a kind of bridge, inviting us to see waterways less as “resources” and more as living beings with their own stories and a curious will of their own. This is Britain, but not as you know it; and perhaps by travelling through the landscape with myths as our guides, we might find new inspiration too.
Back on Mount Plynlimon, I was never quite sure how to go about meeting a river goddess, lacking the rituals and training our ancestors might once have known. But perhaps it was enough simply to know her story, so I could appreciate the land a little better. Whenever I see a river now, I can’t help saying hello, still in awe of how vast she has become, and how quickly she grew from nothing.
Kim Willis is the author of No Fair Maidens: A Wild Journey with the Lost Goddesses of Britain (Doubleday, £20). To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.
THE UK’S biggest strawberry-picking field that spans more than 150 acres is an affordable day out.
A trip to a pick-your-own fruit farm is a wholesome activity that should be on everyone’s summer checklist.
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Strawberry picking is a sweet summer activityCredit: GettyGarson Farm in Surrey has the UK’s largest pick-your-own fieldsCredit: GARSON FARM
And a Surrey farm, 19 miles from London, boasts Britain’s largest strawberry picking field, with acres of plants to harvest your own fruity treats from.
Garson Farm in Esher has been growing crops for over 155 years and now welcomes visitors to have a field day picking strawberries every summer.
Open now for the season, guests can take to the expansive greenery and help themselves to the tunnel-grown strawberry plants.
Open rain or shine every day of the week, the farm costs just £2.50 per person to enter, while under twos go free, with bookings limited to eight tickets.
The farm is open from 9am to 6pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 5pm on Sundays and the ticket price does not cover any crops picked during the outing.
While fruit fans can expect supplies of strawberries in the field to be booming in the height of summer, the farm warns that crops can be limited during the early season.
“The 2026 PYO season has begun with delicious early-season strawberries,” the Garson Farm website states.
“During the early season, crops may not yet be available in abundance. In this phase, we may need to rest the crops to allow them time to grow and produce more fruit.”
Typically, the UK’s strawberry season is between June and late August, with mid-July being peak time.
The farm also offers its pick-your-own deal for plenty other fruits and veggies when they are in season, although it’s just strawberries up for grabs right now.
There are apples, blackberries, carrots, broccoli, cucumbers, cherries, onions, plums and more growing in the fields – but the farm states that “these crops need more time to grow” for now.
THE best 100 beaches in the world have been named – and two can be found in the UK.
Announced by Corona, the 2026 Corona Beach 100 has revealed the best spots around the world from well-known spots to hidden coves.
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Two UK beaches have been named as some of the best in the worldCredit: AlamyFistral Beach Newquay made the listCredit: Alamy
Three criteria were analysed – Beachside Culture, Connection to Nature and Scenic Aesthetics.
A new entry on the list this year is Barafundle Bay in Pembrokeshire.
The first Welsh beach to make the list, it was praised for its “remote and dramatic landscape, as it is “accessible only by clifftop walk through a medieval archway.
It wrote: “Barafundle Bay feels hidden even when people talk about it.
“Reached only by a clifftop walk along the Pembrokeshire coast, this crescent of pale sand sits tucked between limestone cliffs with nothing built around it.
“No road, no cafés, no signal, just seabirds overhead, cold clear water below, and the kind of quiet that makes you slow down without realising it.”
And returning to the list this year was Fistral Beach in Cornwall, praised for being a “social and cultural hotspot” by being the UK’s surfing capital after hosting the first British Surfing Championships in 1966.
It added: “Facing the full force of the Atlantic, it’s where you go to chase sets, drink tea with cold hands, and feel like you’re part of something.
In Europe, Agia Anna on Naxos island in Greece was praisedCredit: GettyOne Croatia beach was listed, which was Zlatni Rat Beach on the island of BolCredit: Getty
“The beach delivers all year, with consistent swell, golden sands, and a surf scene that’s as seasoned as it is welcoming.
“From world-class comps to waist-high rollers, Fistral doesn’t need sunshine to shine — just wind, water, and the right kind of restlessness.”
Europe featured heavily on the list as well.
When it came to Greece, Agia Anna Beach in Naxos and the famous pink Elafonissi Beach in Crete made the cut, as well as Sarakiniko Beach on Milos.
For Spain, there was Aiguablava Beach, as well as Ibiza’s Casa Salada and Majorca’s Cala Mondragó.
Beaches across Italy, France and Croatia were also included, as well as other holiday spots such as Turkey, Morocco and Thailand.
The Hawkstone Farmers Choir was crowned the winner of Britain’s Got Talent 2026 after they sang an original song called This Is Home in the final on ITV last night
01:02, 31 May 2026Updated 01:04, 31 May 2026
(left to right) Ant McPartlin, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon, Simon Cowell, KSI and Declan Donnelly (Image: PA)
Amanda Holden has expressed her delight following the crowning of the 2026 Britain’s Got Talent winners, The Hawkstone Choir.
The 10 acts, which include Golden Buzzer winner and singer Matty Juniosa and PowerPoint comedian Ted Hill, performed again for the judges – Simon Cowell,Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and KSI. The winner, Hawkstone Farmers Choir, won £250,000 alongside the Royal Variety spot, and was ultimately decided by a public vote.
For the final, The Hawkstone Farmers Choir sang an original song called This Is Home. The choir sang the emotional song whilst stood in front of a backdrop of the local countryside through the changing seasons. They dedicated the song to anyone who is struggling.
In a video shared to Simon Cowell’s Instagram, Simon and Jeremy Clarkson could be seen celebrating together moments after Hawkstone Farmers Choir’s win.
“Wow, wow, wow,” Simon started before panning the camera so that Jeremy could join in from over his shoulder. That was incredible,” Jeremy said. Simon remarked that he could see how nervous Jeremy got upon seeing the choir perform and whislt waiting to see in they would win. Jeremy continued: “They worked so hard, thank you for having us.”
Simon added: “They did deserve it.” He wrote in the caption: “Wow wow wow. I am genuinely thrilled. A very very very happy choir, and so they should be.”
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Amanda Holden also took to social media to express her joy that her golden buzzer act won for a second year running. Captioning the post: “Omfg. I couldn’t be more delighted that the brilliant @thehawkstonefarmerschoir won the whole thing @bgt!! I haven’t stopped crying. They deserve every second of the elation and joy!!! So BLOODY PROUD!!”
One user commented: “Sooo super happy they won! Well done. I couldn’t hold back the tears. So glad they have a voice – what a special final,” another said: “So bloody proud of them all absolutely smashed it, massive congratulations guys such hard working worthy winners chuffed to bits for them.”
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HOLIDAYMAKERS are to get twice as many trains to one of Britain’s busiest airports after the country’s largest rail operator was taken into public ownership.
The Government has pledged to double the frequency of Gatwick Express services between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport from December, as Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) became the latest train company to be nationalised today.
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Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander hailed it as “a defining moment in our reform of the railway”, with GTR’s four brands – Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Gatwick Express – carrying one in six of all train journeys made across Britain.
As well as the boost for Gatwick passengers, more early morning services on Saturdays and Mondays will be introduced from this summer.
The Government also pledged to crack down on graffiti in Thameslink train toilets, upgrade signalling between Farringdon and Blackfriars to cut delays, and deploy 110 new travel safe officers to tackle anti-social behaviour across the network.
Ms Alexander said millions of passengers across the South East and East of England would now be “travelling on rail services back in public hands — run for the public good, not private profit.”
She added the nationalisation gave the Government “an opportunity to tackle the bread and butter issues people want, like driving down cancellations and improving the frequency of services to Gatwick Airport.”
GTR chief operating officer John Whitehurst said the railway “carries millions of people to work, to school, and to see friends and family every single day,” adding that public ownership “gives us the chance to go further to deliver the railway that millions of people across the South East deserve.”
GTR is the fifth operator to be nationalised under the current Government, joining c2c, Greater Anglia, South Western Railway and West Midlands Trains. LNER, Northern, Southeastern and TransPennine Express had already been brought into public hands before Labour came to power.
The nationalisation is part of a sweeping overhaul of Britain’s railways, with a new body called Great British Railways (GBR) set to bring responsibility for both tracks and trains under a single roof for the first time since privatisation in the mid-1990s.
Legislation to create GBR was included in the recent King’s Speech, and the first train carrying its branding — a Southern service — was unveiled in Brighton earlier this month.
Chiltern Railways is next in line to be nationalised on September 20, followed by Great Western Railways on December 13, with the full programme expected to be completed by the end of next year.
GTR’s takeover into public hands comes years after Southern became notorious for chronic delays and cancellations.
At its worst, the 7.29am Brighton to London Victoria service failed to arrive on time during any of its 240 runs throughout 2014.
The operator blamed high demand and congestion, though it was also hit by a bitter industrial dispute with drivers and conductors over staffing, including a row over who should operate train doors.
There have been 18 winners of BGT so far – seven music acts, two dog acts, two magicians, three comedians and four dancers/dance groups.
The first winner was crowned in 2007, when opera singer Paul Potts impressed with his rendition of Nessun Dorma. The following year, 14 year-old George Sampson won after showing off his break dancing skills.
The third winner was Diversity, who are perhaps one the best known BGT acts. Their leader, Ashley Banjo, has gone on to become a TV presenter. Dancing seemed to be a big hitter with audiences, as dance group Spellbound won the following year.
In 2011, singer Jai McDowall broke the dancers’ winning streak, and the next year, the crown went to Ashleigh Baker and her dog Pudsey. But, in 2013, the winners were once again dancers, as Attraction, a dance troupe that used movement to create images and tell a story came first.
2014 saw singing group Collabro win with their musical theatre performances. Jules and Matisse, another dog act, won the next year’s series. The first magician to win was Richard Jones, who won in 2016, while in 2017, pianist Tokio Myers won next.
Comedian Lee Ridley, who went by Lost Voice Guy, won in 2018. Singer Colin Thackery won in 2019. Comedy singer Jon Courtenay won in 2020 and comedy continued to be winner in 2022 and 2023, when Axel Blake and Viggo Venn were announced as the winner.
2024’swinner was musical theatre singer Sydnie Christmas and the most recent winner was musician Harry Moulding.
Acrobatic group Spellbound won in 2010(Image: ITV)
SITTING on the beach pier with a chippy tea, washed down by a pint of something cold, is what I believe to be the best-of-a-British-day-out.
If that’s what you’re after, there’s a seaside spot that boasts the world’s biggest chippy and smallest boozer within a half-hour walk.
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Cleethorpes is home to a huge fish and chip shop on the pierCredit: AlamyCleethorpes has everything to for a great British breakCredit: Alamy
I headed to Cleethorpes on the Lincolnshire coast to check out the UK’s biggest fish and chip shop, which takes up the whole of the pier.
The 150-year-old boardwalk itself -won Pier of the Year after its refurb a decade ago and Papa’s Fish and Chips opened in its historic pavilion the same year.
It’s so big the restaurant can feed 500 at a time and now attracts two million diners annually – but was still heaving in the hot weather .
It’s definitely not your average chippy, with mood lighting, plush fixtures and fittings and a bank of windows looking out over the sand and sea.
We decided to use the takeaway and eat alfresco, but even that took an hour before we were tucking into our tasty treats – a testament to Papa’s popularity.
The staff were wonderful, serving everyone with good grace despite the fact that it must have been sweltering behind the counter.
My top tip would be to sign up online for a loyalty card, which not only saves you cash, but also gives you the option to order online to pick up at your chosen timeslot to beat the queues.
I got a £5 off birthday voucher, so feeding my family of four only came to £18.50 – we split an £8.50 Papa’s Combo (a small haddock, sausage, portion of chips and a side of peas, beans, curry or gravy), a £10.50 Papa’s Classic (medium haddock, chips and a side).
That also included a £4.10 portion of cheesy chips and a couple of 20p sauce sachets.
It was well worth the wait, but next time I’ll order in advance or book a table to eat in if it’s cooler weather.
The Signal Box claims to be the ‘smallest pub on the planet’Credit: Catherine Lofthouse
Outside of the chippy, there’s a seal sanctuary down the coast at Donna Nook so if the sands aren’t full of holidaymakers and daytrippers, you might even spot a bit of local wildlife bobbing past or basking on the beach.
And just around the corner from the pier is the Coliseum Picture Theatre, now a Wetherspoons, boasting a gorgeous 1920s frontage, chandeliers inside and even a rooftop terrace.
Downstairs is very much a typical Spoons, but upstairs feels light and airy with a Roman-style fresco as a nod to the building’s past, so if you like a bit of whimsy with your Wetherspoons, I would take a seat up there if you can.
We opted to visit the smallest pub on the planet to wash down our takeaway, with space for just three punters inside the Signal Box Inn at the town’s heritage railway.
Luckily there’s a big beer garden to make up for the small inside space.
We ordered two pints and two soft drinks for less than £15, so it’s not too pricey, and it’s a lovely spot to enjoy the comings and goings at Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway.
Trains run down to Humberston, where you’ll find England‘s biggest Haven holiday park Cleethorpes Beach.
Home to 1827 caravans and lodges, it is also home to one of the first Wetherspoons on a Haven site, The Humber Stone, which opened last year.
There are plenty of seals to see at Donna Nook Nature ReserveCredit: Alamy
If you ask me, Cleethorpes’ secret weapon is the location of its mainline railway station, a few steps away from the pier and right by the beach.
I can’t think of many other towns where you hop off the train and straight onto the sand.
At only two hours’ train ride from Nottingham, this could be a brilliant bet if you want a day at the beach but don’t drive.
I loved the look of the original railway waiting room, now the Mermaid fish and chip shop – it’s had extensive work done recently to its ironmongery, roof, wood and stonework, with a striking paint job in heritage colours ahead of its centenary next year.
It feels like the whole town is undergoing a bit of a makeover, with the Pier Gardens currently closed while they are dug over and new planting put in.
The market place is also being pedestrianised so I look forward to returning to see what these redesigns bring to the town.
Near the smallest pub is the historic boating lake, which celebrates 100 years in 2028, with a project to clean up the waters on the cards.
We can get fish and chips for £18.50 – and that was for the whole familyCredit: Catherine Lofthouse
Hopefully the 2020s will end up being as successful for attracting visitors as the 1920s obviously were.
As a Midlander who grew up visiting Skegness and Mablethorpe just down the coast, I’m not sure why a trip to Cleethorpes hasn’t been on my radar before.
But one thing that I think has made a huge difference is the two holiday parks in Humberston being reinvented in recent years.
Away Resorts, where we stayed, took over the Beachcomber caravan park and renamed it Cleethorpes Pearl, while Haven’s site was previously called Thorpe Park, which caused some confusion with the theme park of the same name down near London.
Families of up to six can stay in a Luxury Caravan for as little as £6pppn for a five-night stay in September.
I’m a little bit in love with this Lincolnshire location – it’s the Costa del Clee for me if you love a chippy tea and a pint by the sea.
During the last semi-final, The Hawkstone Farmers Choir performed Bastille’s Pompeii and managed to bag their place in the final next week but Simon Cowell had a cheeky dig at their founder Jeremy Clarkson
Simon and Jeremy are friends but Simon couldn’t resist a cheeky dig(Image: ITV)
Britain’s Got Talent judge Simon Cowell made a cheeky dig at Jeremy Clarkson on last night’s show.
The former Top Gear host founded The Hawkstone Farmers Choir after scouring the country for 34 British farmers who wanted to work together and create ads to save pubs and farms.
Earlier this year Hawkstone Farmers’ Choir auditioned for the ITV reality competition and managed to win Amanda Holden’s Golden Buzzer, sending them straight through to the semi-finals after wowing with a rendition of Elbow classic One Day Like This. Just prior to belting out the famous track, member Katrina explained to the judges that Jeremy himself had set the choir up, having been sponsored by the Hawkstone Brewery that the TV star co-owns in the Cotswolds.
At the time in response to the golden buzzer audition While visibly holding back tears Jeremy thanked Amanda Holden for pressing the Golden Buzzer. He said: “It shows that people quite like farmers. They were very very good, well done all of you. I’m a very happy man tonight.”
During the last semi-final, the 32-strong chior performed Bastille’s Pompeii and managed to bag their place in the final next week.
Simon said to the choir: “You’re not a professional choir, however I love what you stand for. It might be quite annoying to see Jeremy Clarkson‘s smug face, that’s the only downside. He’s a friend of mine. However more importantly this is about you and you did brilliantly well congratulations.”
While Simon’s comments were not all positive, it was clearly only banter between two friends.
Jeremy was over the moon at the chior’s win and in celebration filmed a short video at farm-fest with partner Kaleb Cooper. The duo filmed themselves congratulating the singers in front of a cheering crowd at Farm Fest.
Britain’s Got Talent fans have been left baffled after grandad Frankie and grandson Lucciano were missing from the semi-final line-up and the duo have now addressed their absence
17:55, 23 May 2026Updated 17:58, 23 May 2026
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Fans of Britain’s Got Talent have been left scratching their heads after a popular grandfather and grandson act failed to appear in the line-up for tonight’s semi-final.
ITV has announced that The Hawkstone Farmers Choir will face off against leading drone art specialists Celestial, sideshow and suspension pair Baron and Vesper, magician Jake Banfield, vocalist James Miller, schoolboy dancer Juan Carlos, Japanese comic Mr Cherry and rock boyband SOS in tonight’s (Saturday, May 23). last live semi-final of the series.
Yet fans were swift to spot that Lucciano and Frankie were absent from the roster, despite receiving four enthusiastic yeses from the judging panel of Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and KSI during their audition.
During their initial appearance, Lucciano revealed to the star-studded panel that his passion for singing stemmed from performances at care homes alongside his grandfather during the school breaks. The youngster then delighted both the crowd and his grandfather by inviting him to share the stage.
The duo delivered a rendition of One Direction’s History, earning a standing ovation, and supporters are now questioning their absence from the semi-final line-up, reports Bristol Live.
Flooding social media, one puzzled viewer wrote: “I’m surprised the little boy and his grandad haven’t been chosen for the semis.” Another questioned: “What happened to the boy and his grandad!? Whatttt.”
A third enquired: “Where is the boy and his grandad?” while a fourth asked: “Is this the last semi final? Where is that sweet boy and his grandad?”
Following their disappointment at not securing a place in the BGT semi-finals, Frankie and Lucciano have reached out to their supporters with a heartfelt message, posted on both their Instagram accounts alongside a touching photograph from their audition performance.
The extensive post stated: “ANNOUNCEMENT. NO SEMI FINAL FOR LUCCIANO and GRANDAD. 4 yeses from the judges, a viral social media explosion, the whole nation routing for us and over 50 MILLION views across all social platforms.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t made it through to the semi-finals amongst such an incredible and talented group of acts on Series 19. What an AMAZING opportunity and experience to take away with me forever. Surprising my Grandad was truly magical and performing in front of Simon Cowell was a dream come true @simoncowell.
“Thank you all so much for the support – the likes, the love, the shares, the follows and all the positive comments. Me and my Grandad want to thank each and every one of you for all the love and support you’ve shown us.
“A huge thank you to @bgt for the opportunity and for believing in me, thank you to the team behind the show, all of the show producers, researchers, camera crew and the one and only @antanddec for making it such a fantastic journey for me. So… what’s next for Lucciano and Frankie?. STAY TUNED. #sharethelove #dream#happyplace #singing #surprise.””
The Britain’s Got Talent grand finale takes place next Saturday, May 30 at 7pm, when the 2026 champion will be crowned. Last year, magician Harry Moulding secured the title and walked away with a life-changing £250,000 prize and a coveted slot at the Royal Variety Performance.
Britain’s Got Talent continues tonight on ITV1 and ITVX at 7pm
The first-ever winner of Britain’s Got Talent has spoken out about the ITV show’s format and says it needs to change to survive.
Shivon Watson Screen Time Reporter
09:25, 23 May 2026
Paul Potts tells GMB how he feels watching his Britain’s Got Talent audition back
Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts has spoken out about the iconic talent show and its current format.
The 55-year-old, who claimed the inaugural title on the ITV programme back in 2007, has voiced his concerns about international acts who have already reached the semi-final stages on other Got Talent franchises subsequently competing in the British version.
While making clear he has “no problem” with overseas performers appearing on the show, Paul insisted the programme must “adapt” to remain relevant.
Speaking exclusively to Sky Vegas, he said: “I’ve got no problem with international acts because British people have won America’s Got Talent before. Paul Zerdin won America’s Got Talent, so it works both ways. Some of the international acts this year have been fantastic and they bring real quality to the competition.”
He continued: “But I don’t think people who’ve already made a Got Talent final anywhere in the world should then be allowed to compete in another regular Got Talent series. Otherwise, it just becomes the same people endlessly auditioning across the franchise.”
“For me, if somebody has already reached a live semi-final, they should maybe get one more shot and that’s it. It’s not just meant for amateurs and complete novices. Professionals can absolutely compete, but it can’t just become a revolving door of career talent show contestants.”
Paul also suggested that the programme needs to venture across the UK in search of potential performers. He went on: “The format of Britain’s Got Talent needs to adapt.
“I think they need to start going around the country again like they used to instead of concentrating everything into one or two locations. Go out to seven or eight cities and really search for more homegrown talent. That would encourage more people from around the UK to audition.
“They also need to focus purely on quality once it gets to the semi-finals and finals. Bring novelty acts back to perform in the live shows for entertainment, but don’t have them there as actual semi-finalists because it feels a little disrespectful to the contestants who genuinely have a realistic chance of winning.”
Paul further noted that he believes the Golden Buzzer is ineffective in the semi-finals and that Piers Morgan ought to make a comeback to the programme, reports the Daily Star.
He continued: “I think it’s good to have diversity on the panel. KSI brings energy, and I don’t think there’s really anything wrong with the judging panel itself. The issue for me is more about the structure – you either need one more judge or one fewer judge, so you don’t keep ending up in deadlock situations.
“If they were going to add another judge, I’d say bring Piers Morgan back. I’m sure he’d shake things up a bit. I’m not sure he’d do it again, but it would certainly make things interesting.”
Britain’s Got Talent continues Saturday, 23rd May at 7pm on ITV1.
SUNNY weather in the UK often makes you want a refreshing swim – and there is one spot that families are claiming is the best in the country to do this.
The Wave in Coventry is no normal indoor waterpark.
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The Wave in Coventry is the UK’s biggest wave poolCredit: The Wave
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Instead visitors can expect the biggest wave pool in the UK.
The further into the pool you go, the bigger the waves get, reaching a total height of up to half a metre and will operate at specific times during a swim session.
How do you know the waves are coming? A warning signal will blast out.
During the 10:15am to 12:15pm session, the waves will run at 10:30am, 11am, 11:30am and 12pm, for 10 minutes at a time.
During the 1pm to 3pm session the wave pool will run at quarter past and quarter to each hour for 10 minutes at a time, which is the same for the 4pm to 6pm session.
In addition to the wave pool, there are also six slides including a water coasterCredit: Instagram
And across these sessions, the wave pool churns around 20 million litres of water, everyday.
But visitors get more than just waves when they visit as the waterpark also has six slides.
These include The Torrent, where – rather scarily – the floor disappears from beneath you, making you plunge into a pool below (though this is currently closed for the foreseeable due to technical issues).
There’s also The Crestar, which has two giant enclosed spheres you whirl around in as lighting effects flash around you.
And like any good waterpark, there’s a water coaster – The Rapids – which hurls riders up the ride before dropping them through a series of tunnels.
Other rides include The Cyclone, which is one of the fastest at the park and The Riptide.
For those who aren’t a fan of waterslides and rides, then there are other attractions too including a lazy river with bubbles and water jets.
Little kids are included as well, with The Reef splash zone, which includes mini slides, tipping buckets, jets and fountains.
Some include a plunge into water below and others including lighting effectsCredit: thewavecoventry.com
Another added: “This was the best water park I’ve ever been to!
“It had a great DJ, loads of amazing slides and lots of fun for the whole family.
“The facility and how it is run is very slick. Would definitely recommend!”
Off- peak tickets cost £15 per adult and £13 per child and peak tickets cost £19.70 per adult and £15 per child.
If one parent fancies a little R&R while the other enters the waves with the kids, there is also the Mana spa onsite with a swimming pool, aromatherapy room, steam room, sauna and foot spa.
There’s also a lazy river and splash zoneCredit: thewavecoventry.com
A three hour pass costs from £35 on weekdays, or £45 at weekends and on bank holidays.
If you do want to have a treatment, options include facials, pedicures and back massages.
There’s also a gym onsite.
What’s even better is that The Wave is just a 10-minute walk from Coventry train station.
A BELOVED lido, boasting elephant slides and splash pads, is set to reopen this Bank Holiday weekend.
This beloved outdoor pool is the last riverside tidal lido in Britain.
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The Strand Lido in Kent is set to reopen for the scorching Bank Holiday weekendCredit: Instagram: The riverside lido boasts elephant slides, a lazy river and a brand-new splash parkCredit: instagram/@medwaysport
The Strand Lido Pool in Gillingham, Medway, will welcome back visitors this Saturday.
Listed as the UK’s only riverside salt water pool, this Kent-based lido uses cleaned river water that is safe for public swimming.
Opened back in 1896, Medway’s only lido has been inviting families to swim for over 130 years.
This Victorian-era lido includes a host of swimming facilities for all ages, including an outdoor leisure pool and toddler paddling pool.
Susanna Reid was joined by Richard Madeley during the latest edition of Good Morning Britain
10:12, 21 May 2026Updated 10:20, 21 May 2026
Susanna Reid announced a break from GMB(Image: ITV)
Good Morning Britain star Susanna Reid will be taking a short break from the programme.
Susanna returned to the ITV studio on Thursday (May 21), alongside Richard Madeley, to deliver the day’s biggest headlines from across the UK and around the world.
At the end of the show, Susanna and Richard interviewed a woman who had saved up to £800 a month as part of a new ITV programme called Rising Bills: How Can You Save Money?.
Wrapping up the interview, Susanna said: “I love it. Thank you both for coming in. You can catch Rising Bills: How Can You Save Money? tonight [at] 7.30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.”
The 55-year-old presenter then confirmed that she wouldn’t be on screen next week, which happens to be the May half term.
“Now, I am off next week, but Good Morning Britain is back tomorrow from 6am. Now, it’s time to join Lorraine. Have a great day,” she said.
It’s not yet known which presenter will stand in for Susanna while she’s away, but it usually tends to be either Kate Garraway, Ranvir Singh, or Charlotte Hawkins. Susanna’s announcement comes over a month after her last break from the show, which took place during the Easter holidays.
Elsewhere during today’s GMB, Susanna and Richard discussed the topical headlines with regular commentators Kwasi Kwarteng and Nels Abbey.
Ranvir also announced breaking news after EasyJet confirmed that summer flight bookings are lower than this time last year due to uncertainty linked to the Middle East conflict.
“However, last minute bookings made in the month that you want to travel have increased compared with a year ago,” Ranvir said.
“The airline also reported a pretax loss of £552 million for the six months ending in March.”
Susanna and Richard also interviewed Race Across the World stars Mark Blythen and Margo Oakley, who are competing in tonight’s grand final.
After racing over 11,000km, the final four teams will face one final test of endurance as they embark on the last leg of their journey. To finish the race, the teams must head north from Kharkhorin to reach the shores of the “Blue Pearl of Mongolia”, Lake Khövsgöl.
As they leave the checkpoint, they will face a crucial decision. They could head directly north, a shorter route but one which requires them to go off-road, or add 500km to their journey with a detour via the capital, Ulaanbaatar. Who will reach the finish line first? We’ll have to wait and see.
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 6am
THE UK’s largest dinosaur themed adventure park is set to open its longest ride yet – and it’s just in time for summer.
Families will be able to enjoy the new attraction from July onwards.
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The outdoor adventure park has rides suitable for children up to 12 years oldCredit: Roarr!The Dino-themed adventure park is the largest in the UKCredit: Roarr!
ROARR! theme park in Norfolk has revealed a new 105-metre long attraction, dubbed the site’s “longest ride to date.”
The Fossil Falls experience will allow visitors to soar down a winding slope, set inside the park’s 85 acres of natural woodland.
The course also features a launch platform, brake ramp and 12-metre tunnel, which riders will be able to glide down inside of an inflatable ring.
The £250,000 investment marks the latest addition to the adventure park’s 25 other attractions.
Other rides include the Swing-o-saurus and Dippy’s Raceway, with an off-peak day pass priced at around £60 for a family of four.
Ben Francis, park director at ROARR!, told Eastern Daily Press: “Fossil Falls is a fantastic new addition to ROARR! and one we’re really excited to open this summer.
“At 105 metres, it’s our longest ride to date, and we think it’s going to be a real highlight for families visiting the park.
“We’re always looking at ways to invest in and improve the ROARR! experience for our visitors, and Fossil Falls is a brilliant example of that – adding real value for the families who choose to spend their day making memories with us.”
The Dino adventure park is located in just off the A47 and A1067 near Lenwade, and can be reached in just 25 minutes from Norwich by car.
It also holds a variety of activities suitable for children aged zero to 12 years old.
The park will be open from 10am to 5pm, seven days a week, in July and August.
How often do you look down and wonder who created the path your feet are following? Or ask the cause of its curves and dips? Formed over thousands of years, paths form an “internet of feet” – a web of bridleways and hollow ways, drove roads and ridgeways, coffin tracks, pilgrimage trails and city pavements. Whether you’re hiking a National Trail or pottering along a National Trust footpath, there’s a good chance you’re following ancestral steps.
It’s thoughts like these that led me on a journey to track the evolution of British paths for my book, The Path More Travelled. Eleven thousand years ago ice age hunter-gatherers arrived from Europe’s heartlands, moving through the wilderness along broad “routeways”, that later widened to tracks when horses and then wheels were adopted in the bronze age. For more than 2,000 years, traffic moved no faster than the speed of a horse, until the internal combustion engine drove pedestrians off the road just over a century ago.
In search of the capillaries that gave life to every community in Britain, I revisited coast paths, tramped shepherds’ trails and followed the serpentine curls of rivers. Here are a few of my favourite paths that bring history to life.
Sweet Track, Somerset Levels
A replica of the neolithic Sweet Track though wetland at Shapwick Heath national nature reserve. Photograph: Craig Joiner Photography/Alamy
The hunt for prehistoric paths took me deep into the wetlands of the Somerset Levels, where the Sweet Track was discovered in 1970. Built nearly 6,000 years ago (3806BC) by early farmers who needed access to an island, the collapsed boardwalk was preserved in peat. But a short walk from the Avalon Marshes centre (with an excellent cafe and open-air museum), woodland paths explore Shapwick Heath nature reserve, where a replica section of the Sweet Track teeters through the reeds. Visitors can walk in single file along this narrow, timber causeway and imagine the world of the Neolithic pioneers who colonised Somerset’s reflective waterways long before they were drained and converted to farmland. For modern versions of the Sweet Track, visit the Norfolk Broads and Norfolk coast path, where stilted, planked boardwalks wend their way through reedbeds, salt marshes and swamp woodland known locally as alder carr.
Street of the Dead, Iona
The coffin road leading to Iona Abbey. Photograph: Charles Hutchison/Alamy
Writing this book led me to the far west of Scotland and the tiny island of Iona, where, after decades of tramping Britain’s paths, I walked for the first time along Sràid nam Marbh, the Street of the Dead. Across Britain, coffin roads, or corpse ways, were used by remote communities to convey their dead to cemeteries. Iona’s is no more than a few hundred metres in length, and most of it takes the form of a narrow, kinking lane leading from the ancient landing beach of Port nam Mairtear (Martyr’s Bay) to the site of a monastery founded in 563. Along this ancient road came the bodies of great Gaelic lords, bound for burial close to the monastery. For many, it’s a “thin place”, where the space between this world and the next narrows. You pass the ruins of an Augustinian nunnery established in around 1200, and the MacLean’s Cross, whose intricately carved floral and animal motifs and outstretched Christ captivated pilgrims. Then the abbey appears and the Street of the Dead, angling across the grass, the final section a short avenue of red granite slabs, sunken by the weight of time into the turf of the abbey precinct. There are very few roads in Britain where you can place your feet on to slabs that have been trodden by so many generations.
Bure Valley Path, Norfolk
The Bure Valley Path runs next to a vintage steam train line. Photograph: David Chapman/Alamy
One of my favourite walks traces the banks of the River Bure between the market town of Aylsham and the railway village of Hoveton. It’s a typical, gentle Norfolk valley of slow meanders, cascading willows, kingfishers and herons. It was like this 100 years ago, when huge timber sailing barges, wherries, used to glide silently upriver to Aylsham’s mills. Close to the river ran a steam railway line linking Hoveton and Aylsham. Today, the nine-mile Bure Valley Path is a shared walking and cycling route that follows the course of the old railway, now relaid as a narrow-gauge steam line, the Bure Valley Railway. Cycling the path is fun, but a superb walk awaits those who take the steam train from Hoveton to Aylsham then walk back towards Hoveton on the Bure Valley Path for about two miles, where a footpath on the left drops down to the waterside church of St Mary’s in Burgh-next-Aylsham. From here, riverside footpaths head downstream past white-painted watermills and old navigation locks while occasional steam locomotives contribute to the sylvan backdrop. At Coltishall, you can rehydrate at The Rising Sun, stroll along Anchor Street where wherries were built, and then return to the Bure Valley Path for the final two miles back to Hoveton. I know of no other walk so closely related to the eras of wind and steam.
The Ridgeway, Hertfordshire to Wiltshire
The Uffington White Horse. Photograph: John Henshall/Alamy
The Ridgeway runs for 87 miles from Ivinghoe Beacon high in the Chiltern Hills to the prehistoric stone circle at Avebury in deepest Wiltshire. On its rolling heights, you can walk back to the iron age, when formidable hill forts commanded the vales. The ghosts of warrior-farmers can be sensed most powerfully on the western end of the Ridgeway, where the chalky trail climbs past the ramparts of Uffington, whose banks and ditches – once braced with timber and chalk rubble – enclose an area twice the size of a football pitch. Right beside the fort, a 110-metre long white horse gallops across the down, cut deep into the turf during the late bronze age or early iron age. One mile to the west, the Ridgeway passes the chambered long barrow known as Wayland’s Smithy, which once contained the remains of 14 people dated to between 3590 and 3550BC. The Ridgeway’s knack of time travel has long appealed to writers and photographers, from Thomas Hardy and Richard Jefferies, to Richard Mabey and Fay Godwin, whose book The Oldest Road: The Ridgeway(1975), unravelled the path connecting deep history with a modern national trail.
Holloways, Surrey Hills
A holloway path at Holmbury St Mary in the Surrey Hills, near Leith Hill. Photograph: Matt Mawson/Getty Images
A holloway is a sunken path, an old way worn into the land by centuries of feet and hooves. Holloway walls can be almost vertical, cut back to raw rock and roots. Some are like ravines. Others are virtual tunnels, roofed with living trees. Some appear unexpectedly as gentle troughs in the landscape. They occur most dramatically in softer geologies like chalk, sandstone and greensand. Most are just a few minutes’ walk in length, but there are parts of the country where exploration will produce some very enjoyable clusters. There are three modest holloways right beside the White Horse of Uffington on the Ridgeway, cut perhaps in prehistoric times by cattle being moved from their winter quarters in the vale to the summer grasses of the high downs. In Holloway (2012), Robert Macfarlane wrote so poetically of a buried path in the Chideock valley of south Dorset that it’s become a cause of pilgrimage for those of us who look for these places. The Surrey Hills are laced with secretive holloways. Among my favourites are the sunken tracks on the greensand of Leith Hill and farther west, the old holloways of Hascombe Hill and Hydon’s Ball. It’s along these semi-subterranean trackways that you’re most likely to detect the steady plod of Saxon cattle. Or Hobbits.
The Mass Trespass Walk, Derbyshire
The path up William Clough on the Kinder Scout Mass Trespass walk. Photograph: Acorn 1/Alamy
The story of countryside access is written in the grit of Kinder Scout, whose frowning sandstone forms the highest point in the Peak District. In April, 1932, an excited gaggle of hikers climbed the footpath from the Derbyshire village of Hayfield up towards the brow of Kinder Scout, where they clashed with squads of gamekeepers intent on preventing public access to the moorland. Legislation followed and today the path up William Cloughis described on the National Trust website as the Kinder Scout Mass Trespass Walk. A vigorous eight-mile loop along the crags and back down to Hayfield, it offers the full Pennine repertoire in a single outing, from glittering reservoir to whispering moorland and monumental rocks. It includes Kinder Downfall cascade and a section of the Pennine Way, the earliest of Britain’s national trails. I walked the trail one blustery December day, ambushed by snow flurries and sunshine that spotlit Manchester like spilt crystals on the dark plain. I’ve climbed Kinder from many directions, but this is the route that tells the best story.
Nicholas Crane’s new book, The Path More Travelled, The Secret History of Britain’s Footpaths, is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson (£25). To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.
From castles and coastlines to moorland views, we drove the Northumberland 250 in an electric car to see how easy it was to manage the rural route
Octavia Lillywhite Acting beauty and wellness editor
07:30, 10 May 2026
Possibly the most beautiful road trip in the country, with amazing views all along the route(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
‘We’re driving the Northumberland 250,’ I told my husband. He looked at me cautiously.
‘It’s the most spectacular route in England, past more than 20 castles, up the Northumberland coast and over the Lindisfarne causeway – which you can only drive at low tide. Then it nips over to Scotland, to a town where Mary Queen of Scots stayed, and back down through England’s biggest forest and the UK Dark Sky Reserve, and along Hadrian’s Wall.’
‘That does actually sound brilliant,’ he said.
‘We’re doing it in an electric car so we can see how easy it is.’
‘Oh no,’ he said.
With petrol prices rocketing, a road trip feels like a luxury too far at the moment, and I liked the environmental appeal of not bringing our exhaust fumes all the way north with us. But we don’t actually have an electric car so – confident that we would find enough charging points – we borrowed one.
Our Škoda Enyaq was a nippy SUV, that made short work of brine-soaked causeways, forest track off-roading and 20% hills, even with junctions at the top (oh, hill starts with an electric engine – where have you been all my life?). It promised as much as 300 miles on a full charge but, bearing in mind that most road trips end up at at least double the loop mileage, we plotted two charging points every day, and kept our fingers crossed that they would a) be working, and b) not have petrol cars parked in them.
Electric car charging on a UK road trip: what to expect
Charging electric cars is still a bit of a lottery – slightly different at every machine. You never rock up at a petrol station forecourt and wonder, ‘how does this pump work, then?’ – but you do with chargers. Most have an app you have to download to use them, so there are moments standing in the rain trying to get signal. A saving grace is other electric car users who are amazingly helpful. Less helpful are petrol drivers who park on the charging spaces.
Charging anxiety got me once, as I poured over the map on our way to Jedburgh, where only one charger showed as working, and nothing else was reachable, but it turned out fine – it was a fast charger so we only had to wait 15 minutes for the previous car to top up before we could.
The Northumberland 250 route: castles, coast and countryside
Northumberland has so many castles. One could get castle-fatigue if they weren’t so incredibly impressive. Bamburgh makes a play for Most Spectacular Castle Anywhere. Alnwick is where Harry Potter learns to fly his Nimbus 2000. Lindisfarne is so remote it becomes an island twice a day. Most deserve at least half a day to do them (and their entrance fee) justice, so my advice is pick one or two and see the rest in passing.
Dunstanburgh was my favourite – a mighty, atmospheric ruin we saw on a sunset walk from the fishing village of Craster. It felt like going back in time – there wasn’t another soul about. But I also loved smaller, free-to-visit places like Edlingham and Twizzel. In Alnwick we skipped the castle in favour of super-sized cherry scones at the Strawberry Lounge café and at Bamburgh we marvelled at the fortress from the beach, but visited The Potted Lobster for lunch instead (one of my best decisions: the Smoked Haddock Chowder).
Holy Island (Lindisfarne) took a little planning around tide times and we arrived in a rainstorm (a rare letdown in a sunny trip). Too wet to even leave the car, we returned the next day to see it in sunshine – the causeway was worth driving four times.
Leaving the coast at Berwick-upon-Tweed I worried the best was behind us, but the drive only got more beautiful. We skipped back and forth over the Scottish border, and headed through Kielder Forest along the 12-mile off-road track, Forest Drive, then down to the wide horizons of the North Pennines.
Where to stay on the Northumberland 250: hotels, lodges and pubs
Picking our pitstops was one of the highlights of the trip. I favoured places with EV charging, but in the end, we only plugged-in for one overnight, fast-charging instead in towns where we lunched. There is a charger on Holy Island, for instance, and one at Kielder Castle – remoteness is no obstacle. I loved the pace this brought to the trip, forcing stops in places we’d normally have driven straight through. It meant we discovered little gems, like Fountain Cottage Café in Bellingham.
We stayed in the lakeside lodge at Blossom Plantation (no EV charging), and drank cava in the hot tub under the stars. The Most Northerly Hotel in England, Marshall Meadows just beyond Berwick, is a ritzy venue and country house hotel. The Pheasant Inn at Kielder Water is everything you could want from a cosy fireside pub, family run with home cooking by Robin, favouring local ingredients – some from their own garden.
I finished the trip with three revelatory resolutions. One, that Northumberland was an epic holiday destination, offering far more than you can pack into five days. Two, that driving the route in an electric car is not only possible, but adds something unexpected – a more thoughtful way to travel. And three, that my next car will be electric.
The Northumberland 250 Itinerary: 5-day trip breakdown
Day 1
Newcastle to Dunstanburgh, via Alnwick, Warksworth and Craster
Highlights and stops: Edlingham Castle (free), Alnwick town for cream tea at The Strawberry Louge, Warkworth Castle, Alnmouth village and beach, Caster village and walk to Dunstanburgh Castle.
Dunstanburgh to Berwick-up-Tweed, via Bamburgh and Lindisfarne
Highlights and stops: Holy Island causeway / Lindisfarne (first thing, due to tide times), Bamburgh Castle, beach and lighthouse, lunch at The Potted Lobster. Berwick-up-Tweed for fish and chips.
Overnight: Marshall Meadows Manor House Hotel, Scottish Border
Day 3
Berwick to Kielder Water, via Twizel, Jedburgh and the Kielder Forest Drive (with a quick return visit to Lindisfarne first thing)
Highlights and stops: Norham Castle, Kirk O’Steil church, Twizel Caslte and river walk to Twizel Viaduct, Jedburgh town, Hindhope Linn waterfall, Kielder Forest Drive
Westlife have paid tribute to Simon Cowell during an appearance on Britain’s Got Talent, with Shane Filan, Nicky Bryne and Kian Egan all taking to the stage without bandmate Mark Feehily
20:54, 09 May 2026Updated 20:58, 09 May 2026
Westlife on Britain’s Got Talent(Image: ITV)
Westlife have paid tribute to Simon Cowell during an appearance on Britain’s Got Talent.
The band – which features Shane Filan, Nicky Bryne and Kian Egan – performed their biggest hits ahead of their 25th anniversary tour. However, they were without bandmate Mark Feehily, who will also not appear on the tour.
There was no specific mention of Mark, but the trio paid a heartfelt tribute to judge Simon, who was instrumental in their success.
“It’s been a long time since Simon Cowell suggested standing up from our stools on a key change,” Nicky said. Kian went on to pay tribute to Simon and said they wouldn’t have been there without him.
In June, it was confirmed Mark would be absent from the tour. The band said in a statement: “Sadly, Mark will be unable to join the celebrations. We hope he can join us back on stage when he is ready and able. He sends his love and positivity to you all as always.”
Mark announced he would be taking a break from Westlife just days before first ever tour of America in 2024. At the time, he shared: “Hello and much love to you all! It’s Mark here.. Most of you are aware that I have had some health challenges over the past while.
“It actually all started 3.5 years ago in August 2020 when I had surgery. Within a few days of this surgery I was in severe pain and was rushed into A&E. I eventually ended that awful day in ICU (Intensive Care Unit) where I was informed that due to a complication with the surgery, I had developed severe ‘Sepsis‘, a life-threatening infection that would require immediate emergency surgery to rectify the problem and basically save my life.”
He explained that he was in hospital for months during lockdown, and was later told he needed more surgery.
“It was physically and mentally a very difficult time, not to mention traumatic having to spend so long in ICU. In late 2021, I became very ill in Newcastle before a concert and ended up back in A&E, this time being told I had pneumonia. I was told I had to go straight home to recover and regrettably miss the rest of the concerts that December,” he said.
Speaking about Mark missing their big anniversary tour, Kian told us: “We’re devastated he won’t be joining us on this tour. We’ll be missing him every night just as much as the fans will. But he’s given us his full support. This is the 25th anniversary, it’s something that we all felt needed to be celebrated. We hope as soon as he’s ready he’ll be back with us and we look forward to that moment.”
Following a beating in local elections, Prime Minister Keir Starmer (L) said Friday that he took responsbility for the losses suffered by Labour candidates across the country but vowed he would not quit. Photo by Neil Hall/EPA
May 8 (UPI) — Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed Friday that he would not stand aside following a disastrous Labour performance in “mid-term” local elections in England, Wales and Scotland.
With early results from 46 of the 136 races in England showing Labour losing hundreds of seats in councils to Reform and the Greens, Starmer said while the situation was “really tough,” he had been handed a mandate to change Britain by the electorate in the general election in 2024 and that he intended to fulfil his promise.
He said he believed the message voters had sent in Thursday’s elections was about the “pace of change, how they want their lives improved.”
“Labour was elected to meet those challenges and I’m not going to walk away from those challenges and plunge the country into chaos. I led our party to that victory, that is a five-year mandate to change the country. It was a five-year term I was elected to do, I intend to see that through.”
Acknowledging his government hadn’t done enough to convince people that things could improve, their lives could be better and that there was hope, he said Labour would “in the coming days” set out steps it would take to win over the electorate.
Repeatedly pressed on whether he would lead Labour into the next election, Starmer would only say that he intended to serve the full five years of his term.
Large numbers of Labour MPs believe that the party will lose if Starmer leads it into the next election but do not want him to quit right now, favoring an orderly, consensual process of finding a successor, as opposed to an all-out leadership battle.
Sky News’ chief political correspondent said a member of Starmer’s “top team,” had messaged her saying that he was “the reason Labour risks handing the country to Reform.”
With counting still underway, or yet to begin, in the vast majority of contests for council and mayoral contests, as well parliamentary races in Scotland and Wales, the opposition Conservative Party were also close to 200 seats adrift.
The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats had each added dozens of seats.
Speaking in the London borough of Havering, which Labour lost overnight to Reform UK, leader Nigel Farage hailed what he said was a “truly historic shift in British politics.”
“The pattern that’s emerging across the country is that Labour are being wiped out by Reform in many of their most traditional areas. And what you’re going to see later on today is the Conservative Party being wiped out in their heartlands like Essex,” he said, noting that the county was the heartland of the leadership of the Conservative opposition.
“We’ve been so used to thinking about politics in terms of left and right, and yet what Reform are able to do is to win in areas that have always been Conservative. But equally, we’re proving in a big way we can win in areas that Labour have dominated, frankly, since the end of World War One.
“At the moment, we’re winning one in three of all the seats that are up. But I genuinely think the best is yet to come. I’m very excited about the north-east results, the Yorkshire results, some more to come in the West Midlands. So it’s a big day,” added Farage.
Forecasts put Reform’s eventual gains when the results are complete at as many as 1,000 seats of the 5,000 up for grabs.
In Scotland, where voters are electing all 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, the ruling Scottish National Party is hanging by a knife edge amid a 17% swing to Reform.
However, the insurgent party’s rise could inadvertently help deliver First Minister John Swinney‘s 65-seat target, thanks to Reform UK candidates taking votes away from challenger parties, particularly those that oppose Scottish independence.
Swinney has said he would treat an SNP majority as a mandate to mount a second bid to secede from the United Kingdom, following a failed independence referendum in 2014.
Swinney told an election debate between the leaders of the five Scottish political parties plus Reform UK last month that holding a second independence referendum by 2028 was “perfectly conceivable.”
In Wales, where voters are electing a Senedd legislature that has been expanded to 96 seats, the ruling Labour administration was on track to lose power for the first time since devolution in 1999 and ending more than a century of Labour dominance in the country.
Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalists, and Reform UK, who were neck and neck in the polls, were expected to be the biggest beneficiaries, projected to emerge with 38 and 35 seats, respectively.
Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies told the BBC that he didn’t think Labour would be in a position to form the next government, saying the party’s campaign had failed to “cut through” to Welsh voters.
Wreathes are seen amongst the statues at the Korean War Veterans Memorial during Memorial Day weekend in Washington on May 27, 2023. Memorial Day, which honors U.S. military personnel who died while in service, is held on the last Monday of May. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
A FAMOUS seaside town is getting a £50million rail link as part of a major upgrade.
Described as the “best service since the steam days”, the change will make it easier for tourists to visit “Britain’s Magaluf”.
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The Mid Cornwall Metro will launch its newly-improved service on May 17Credit: AlamyThe Cornish town of Newquay has received refurbished tracks and a newly-built platformCredit: Alamy
New and improved rail services will launch in Newquay on May 17, enhancing travel links for the Cornish coastal town.
Locals have hailed this project as “the best service since the steam days”, making rail transport a genuine option for commuting around the area.
The Mid Cornwall Metro, operated by Great Western Rail, has transformed every aspect of their service.
This comes after they received a £56.8million investment from the government, Cornwall Council and the rail sector.
Now, an hourly train will run between Newquay and Par, locations which are over 20 miles apart.
The journey will also extend to popular destinations such as St Austell, Truro, Penryn and Falmouth.
A convenient “tap in, tap out” system has been extended to cover the whole of Cornwall, letting passengers use a pay as you go scheme.
Trains will run seven days a week and all year round, with Mid Cornwall Metro hoping to offer 700,000 seats each way for passengers travelling between Newquay and Par.
The improvements have come in multiple forms, such as building new passing loops, replacing metres of tracks and installing new signal boxes.
Back in November, a second platform opened at Newquay station for the first time in 40 years, having shut due to a signal box closure in 1987.
As part of the £50million investment, the station was transformed with a completely rebuilt platform and brand-new track.
Now, commuters will be able to travel all around Cornwall in just over a week’s time.
