eclipse

TOURISTS in Spain are being urged to be cautious tomorrow when the rare solar eclipse takes place.

Anyone travelling to Spain or within Spain where you will be able to see the full solar eclipse, is being warned that there is a high risk of forest fires.

Six million people are expected to be travelling around the country to see the solar eclipse, across 660 official viewing spots.

And around half a million tourists are expected to travel to Spain for the rare event, with campsites across the country being booked out.

The roads are set to be busier too with around 1.5million journeys expected to be taken in the areas where you can see the eclipse fully.

According to The Olive Press, in Aragon for example, the eclipse will be fully visible and around 15,000 people are expected to camp the night in four spots in the area.

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In fact, around 70 per cent of Spain’s rental motorhomes, camper vans and caravans have already been booked for the eclipse period.

As a result, several regions are on high alert of wildfires while the solar eclipse takes place, especially as temperatures are expected to reach 40C in parts of Spain tomorrow.

Authorities are warning that the countryside is particularly at risk, warning tourists and locals to not light fires and park on dry grass.

People are also not allowed to park on hard shoulders, have barbeques or have fireworks.

As a precaution, the natural parks and rural footpaths in the Valencia region have all been closed too.

Spots like Madrid, Zaragoza, Bilbao and Valencia will see a 99.9 per cent eclipse.

According to The Guardian, environment minister, Sara Aagesen, said: “The vegetation is extraordinarily dry and the smallest spark or carelessness could lead to devastating forest fires.”

The day after the state’s Senate primary, I was at a gym in Michigan when I overheard a brief exchange about the results of the close race.

The small group of voters were all elderly and white. Most of them expressed disappointment that Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens lost. Most of them questioned victor Abdul El-Sayed’s ability to win in November against a Republican. One of them called El-Sayed — a born and raised Michigander who attended the University of Michigan and ran the Department of Health, Human and Veteran Services for the largest county in the state — “a radical.”

For a few seconds, the group went quiet.

The only sound heard was the echo from the dog whistle that was just blown.

The prejudicial rot at the heart of that comment is just one of the challenges facing El-Sayed in November, however it is the most significant.

MAGA Republicans may complain about identity politics, but they aren’t afraid to use them. During the primary campaign, both Republican gubernatorial candidates in the state continuously ran ads characterizing immigrants as violent criminals. That will likely continue. El-Sayed’s opponent, Mike Rogers, is endorsed by President Trump, who has been making racially offensive statements for more than half a century.

That’s documented as far back as the 1973 lawsuit the Nixon administration filed against him and his family for racial discrimination, and it’s documented as recently as the octogenarian’s latest social posts about people from Somalia and Haiti. Not to be outdone by his boss, Vice President JD Vance started his fearmongering during a supposed anti-fraud event this week. The 2028 presidential hopeful quipped “God forbid, you’re going to have President El-Sayed in three years” — a thought I had not considered until he said it.

Many of us hadn’t given El-Sayed much consideration at all until recent months. When Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) announced he was not seeking reelection in January 2025, El-Sayed was not considered a strong contender to replace him. Many establishment Democrats believed former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who quietly moved to Michigan after running for the White House in 2020, or Stevens, were the party’s best shot of holding on to the seat and helping Michigan do its part to flip the Senate.

They discounted El-Sayed’s chances in large part because they misread the moment we are in. The days of performative campaign endorsements, huge war chests and strongly worded posts started fading noticeably in 2016 — after Jeb Bush dropped out of the race early despite having north of $100 million at his disposal. Yet over the last decade, establishment Democrats have continued to replay the same playbook with mixed results. And in totality, Tuesday’s primaries in Michigan, Kansas, Missouri, Virginia and Washington are a mixed bag with no clear message beyond whatever you read into these facts: El-Sayed is a Muslim who has criticized the government of Israel, and yet he won a Democratic primary. Even so, the chatter before and after the vote is more revealing than the primary outcome. (On Tuesday, roughly 2 out of 10 eligible voters in the state cast a ballot in Michigan. Sweeping interpretations of El-Sayed’s narrow victory are rather bold when 80% of voters didn’t participate.)

Questions about his electability have little to do with his résumé — the Rhodes scholar led Columbia University’s research on global population health — and more to do with him being the son of Egyptian immigrants who prays five times a day. The president takes photos holding an upside-down Bible and has a 22-foot gold statue of himself, but it is El-Sayed’s faith that should worry good Christian folks?

Over the weeks leading to Tuesday, we saw entire interviews with El-Sayed — an epidemiologist — that dwelled solely on his thoughts about Israel, while voters in his state were dealing with a cyclosporiasis outbreak. He has plenty to say on other topics. Getting “money out of politics” is not only central to his campaign messaging, but also is an actual grassroots ballot initiative in Michigan. Yet the talk about El-Sayed mostly orbits around one foreign policy topic.

To be clear: The issue for establishment Democrats isn’t that something like “Medicare for all” is too radical of an idea to champion. Both President Obama and President Clinton campaigned heavily on healthcare, and history views them both as centrist. No, the concern is how easy it is for Trump, Rogers and other Republicans to “other” El-Sayed, so when he does question our spending priorities it can be painted as un-American or antisemitic. As a result, election analysis is indirectly being dictated by his identity, all but ignoring he’s one of the top healthcare experts in a state still reeling from a foodborne illness.

What El-Sayed and his supporters are questioning isn’t Israel’s right to exist. They’re wondering why the United States, the richest of all the developed democracies, is still the only one that does not guarantee healthcare to its citizens? The list of nations that do guarantee access includes Israel, which receives billions in U.S. aid. For a doctor who has written a book on healthcare access and co-authored about 100 scholarly articles on health, that line of questioning doesn’t seem radical at all.

It is who is doing the asking that unnerves some.

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Before the game against Morocco, former England striker Ian Wright called Deschamps’ side “one of the most clear favourites for a World Cup tournament I have ever seen”.

After a dominant victory in Boston, in which France had 22 attempts compared to only five from Morocco, who had their only shot on target in the 83rd minute, Wright remained impressed.

“It is difficult to see the weakness,” said Wright. “If Spain get through they have the quality to maybe pass through them and maybe the pace of Lamine Yamal to try and punish them, but France look imperious. Then you have got individual brilliance.”

As well as Mbappe and Dembele, France also have plenty of further attacking options in their squad, including Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, Paris St-Germain pair Bradley Barcola and Desire Doue, Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki and Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta.

At the opposite end, France have now only conceded two goals in six games – late on in a 3-1 win over Senegal and once in the 4-1 victory over Norway, albeit a side that had rested most of their first 11 having already qualified for the knockout phases.

“France have got more gears to go,” said former Manchester United captain Roy Keane. “France were so much better in every aspect of the game, but it doesn’t mean they cannot be beaten.

“France are in a great place. You have your attacking players scoring goals and your individual players going past people. Any chance of beating France you have got to score the first goal. Even if they get the first goal, teams have to come at them, and they will pick you off for fun.”

Bonnie Tyler, the husky-voiced, powerhouse vocalist who performed memorable and dramatic pop rock songs including “Total Eclipse of the Heart” in the 1980s, has died.

The Welsh singer died in a Portugal hospital on Wednesday night, according to a statement on her official website and social media accounts Thursday morning. Prior to her death, Tyler was hospitalized and underwent emergency intestinal surgery in May 2026. She was placed in an induced coma to aid her recovery which she awoke from in mid-June but remained “very unwell,” her family said at the time. She was 75.

“Bonnie’s family and team are heartbroken to announce that Bonnie unexpectedly passed away last night in hospital in Portugal as a result of the illness that she was being treated for,” the statement read.

A three-time Grammy Award nominee, Tyler first rose to fame in the late 1970s. She was known for her raspy vocals, offering listeners an edgier sound that also melded rock and pop. Tyler released a total of 18 studio albums, beginning with her debut, “The World Starts Tonight,” in 1977. But she solidified her place in music with collaborations with songwriter-producer Jim Steinman, a hitmaker who worked with Meat Loaf, Air Supply and Celine Dion.

Tyler contributed her powerful voice to Steinman’s dramatic “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” which was released in 1983 ahead of her fifth studio album, “Faster Than the Speed of Night.” Steinman initially envisioned the power ballad as a core piece in a musical adaptation of “Nosferatu,” but with Tyler, the number took on a different life.

“Total Eclipse of the Heart” climbed music charts and earned Tyler a Grammy nomination for female pop vocal performance in 1984. In addition to its commercial and critical success, Tyler’s moody hit became a mainstay in pop culture, covered in the musical TV series “Glee” and finding new life in versions by One Direction, Kelly Clarkson and several other musical acts.

“When I first heard it, I couldn’t believe it had been given to me to record. I just cried at the intense emotion of it and was so happy to have that song,” Tyler told the Guardian in 2009. “Now when I go on stage and sing ‘Total Eclipse,’ everybody sings with me. So many people say they fell in love to it and it means a hell of a lot to them. It’s such an anthem, and such a wonderful feeling, I never get tired of singing it.”

“Total Eclipse of the Heart” wasn’t the only celebrated hit from Tyler.

A year later, she performed “Holding Out for a Hero,” produced by Steinman and co-written by Dean Pitchford, for the 1984 film classic “Footloose,” starring Kevin Bacon. The energetic anthem, which features Tyler’s thunderous voice over a racing beat, also climbed the Billboard Hot 100 (it peaked at No. 34) and went on to be featured in other screen projects, including a pivotal scene in the animated comedy “Shrek 2,” with Jennifer Saunders performing the hit.

Tyler, also known for “Bitterblue,” written and produced by Dieter Bohlen, continued releasing music throughout the ’90s and early aughts. Amid the process of creating her 16th album, “Rocks and Honey,” Tyler joined the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013 to represent the United Kingdom. Though she finished 19th, she said at the time she was glad she competed “because it was an incredible experience,” likening it to the Grammy Awards. She released “Rocks and Honey” that same year, her penultimate album, “Between the Earth and the Stars,” in 2019 and her final album, “The Best Is Yet to Come” in 2021.

In 2022, she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire during Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, recognizing Tyler’s contributions to music.

Tyler was born Gaynor Hopkins on June 8, 1951, to homemaker Elsie and coal miner Glyndwr, and was one of seven children. She was raised Protestant and cared for by her grandparents in the small Welsh town of Skewen. Her passion for music could be traced to watching British charts program “Top of the Pops” with her father, writing down lyrics to the hits of the time and singing them herself. Tyler officially caught the singing bug after placing second at the talent show hosted by a local rugby club.

After the contest, the singer continued her artistic pursuit, performing with a handful of bands including Bobby Wayne & the Dixies and, later, Imagination. She was eventually scouted and traveled to London to record a few demos but did not immediately hear back. “After two years, someone called me out of the blue and told me I’d got a record deal on the same label as Elvis,” she recalled to the Guardian.

The singer underwent several name changes over the course of the career. First she pivoted to Sherene Davis to avoid confusion with fellow Welsh vocalist Mary Hopkin. Then once more, at the behest of RCA Records, to Bonnie Tyler — a name she conjured up by mixing and matching names she read in a local newspaper.

Now Bonnie Tyler, the singer released her debut single “My! My! Honeycomb!” in 1976 and her debut album the following year. However, she would not come into her signature sound until the spring of 1977. Tyler suffered nodules on her vocal cords and underwent surgery to remove them. She feared her career would end as a result, though that would be far from the case.

Tyler, after a brief recovery period, returned to the recording studio with a huskier, edgier voice. “It turned out losing my voice was not too treacherous for me,” she told the Guardian. She released “It’s a Heartache” in 1977 with her raspy voice front and center.

“I had my first hit in America with my new husky voice on ‘It’s a Heartache,’” she said. “Maybe my husky voice was what that song, and my career, needed.”

After her tenure with RCA Records, Tyler signed with CBS Records in 1982, leading to her memorable collaborations with Steinman. At the end of the ’90s, Tyler signed with Hansa/BMG Ariola and, eventually, with EastWest Records and continued to find success in continental Europe. In addition to her albums, Tyler embarked on several tours, most recently her Between the Earth and the Stars live tour in 2019. Her most recent release was “Together” in July 2025, produced by electronic music artist David Guetta, which samples the chorus of “Total Eclipse of the Heart.”

Tyler married former Olympic martial artist Robert Sullivan in 1973. The pair never had their own children — the singer suffered a miscarriage at age 39 — but experienced “no shortage of children,” she told the Guardian in 2012. Tyler had numerous godchildren, more than a dozen nieces and nephews and multiple great-nieces and great-nephews. With her fame, Tyler supported her family and purchased several properties including a home in Mumbles, Wales, and a home in Portugal.

When Tyler reflected on her decades-long career for the BBC in 2019, she said she had long exceeded her own expectations.

“I didn’t expect ever to be making records,” she said at the time. “I was just happy being in a band, singing.”

BONNIE Tyler fans have some incredible songs to remember her by after the sad news of her passing in Portugal on Wednesday night.

On Thursday it was confirmed that the singer had died aged 75, weeks after undergoing emergency surgery and being put in an induced coma.

The star was put into a coma back in April at Faro Hospital, later suffered complications, but woke up from the coma in June.

Her heartbroken family shared a statement that she had passed away from an illness last night.

Bonnie, who was born in Gaynor Hopkins in Mumbles, South Wales, shot to fame in the 70s and has had an amazing singing career.

Over the years, according to Official Charts, Bonnie has had one UK No.1, five UK top 10s, seven UK top 40s, and 12 UK top 75s.

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Her single Total Eclipse Of The Heart, which was released in 1983, peaked at No.1 and was there for a total of two weeks.

Meanwhile the 1984 tune, Holding Out For A Hero, peaked at number 96 in the charts.

It’s A Heartache, which was released in 1977, got to number 4 and was in the charts for 12 weeks.

And the 1976 tune Lost In France hit number nine and was there for a total of 10 weeks.

Married Men, which was released in 1979, peaked at 35 and was in the charts for 42 days.

The 1983 song Fasted The The Speed Of Night was in the charts for 35 days and managed to get to number 47.

And Have You Ever Seen The Rain?, released in 1983, hit number 47 and was in the charts for three weeks.

She’s also had a number of other chart-topping songs including A Rockin’ Good Way, Getting So Excited, Holding Out For A Hero, and Believe In Me.

Over the years she also released over 15 studio albums.

Her album, Faster Than The Speed Of Light, peaked at No.1 in 1983 and was there for one week.

It stayed in the charts for an amazing 45 weeks.

The Greatest Hits peaked at number 18 in 1986 and was in the charts for 21 weeks.

Her other albums include The World Starts Tonight (1977), Natural Force (1978), Diamond Cut (1979), Goodbye to the Island (1981), Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire (1986).

Some of her others are Hide Your Heart (1988),Bitterblue (1991), Angel Heart (1992), Silhouette in Red (1993), Free Spirit (1995), All in One Voice (1998), Heart Strings (2003), Simply Believe (2004), Wings (2005), Rocks and Honey (2013) and Between the Earth and the Stars (2019).

And most recently, The Best Is Yet to Come, which was released five years ago.

It comes after a statement published on the singer’s website today (9 July 2026) confirmed the legendary singer passed away last night following an illness.

It read: “Bonnie’s family and team are heartbroken to announce that Bonnie unexpectedly passed away last night in hospital in Portugal as a result of the illness that she was being treated for.

“We will issue a further statement shortly but for now ask for privacy to deal with this tragedy.”

In April, she began to feel intense abdominal pain shortly after arriving in Portugal, where she has a second home, following tests in London.

It was announced in May that Bonnie had been rushed to hospital with a serious tear in her bowel and had to have emergency surgery.

But complications from the operation meant doctors had to place the singer in an induced coma.

Portuguese media claimed Bonnie went into cardiac arrest when doctors first tried to bring her out of her induced coma several weeks ago.

She was due to perform at the Sunshine Festival in Worcester this summer, along with a number of European dates.

Bonnie had also been booked to perform at Cardiff’s Utilita Arena on December 17.

The singer who was married to property developer Robert Sullivan since 1973.

She competed at the Eurovision Song Contest for UK in 2013 and finished the competition in 19th place with her song Believe In Me.