Celebrity Traitors viewers have taken to social media to point out that the show accidentally spoiled a huge detail about the final five mid-way through the penultimate episode
22:44, 30 Oct 2025Updated 22:55, 30 Oct 2025
Celebrity Traitors fans have spotted a massive editing error that gives away huge final detail
The final five of the Celebrity Traitors has been confirmed, with tonight’s penultimate episode revealing that Alan Carr, Cat Burns, Joe Marler, Nick Mohammed and David Olusoga have made it to next week’s finale. However, fans have spotted that the show already spoilt that detail mid-way through the episode.
Tonight’s episode saw the Traitors murder Celia Imrie in plain sight before the group banished Kate Garraway, leaving just five of them remaining. In between the exits, the final five plus Kate headed to their latest challenge, where they were tasked with dodging lasers to add money to the prize pot.
However, one eagle-eyed fan has spotted that the final five was actually spoiled in one shot mid-way through the episode. “Spoiler in the middle of episode 8,” they wrote on Reddit, alongside of a shot of Nick, Alan, Cat, Joe and David getting out of cars while back at the castle.
Just before, six of them had been seen travelling back in the classic black Celebrity Traitors cars – each of them wearing their own athleisure clothes. However, when the cars pull up outside the house, we see just the final five leaving the cars and they are all wearing long-sleeved green tops and black gilets.
It’s likely that the shot will have been taken from next week’s final episode – with the last five contestants taking part in one more challenge, which would explain the matching outfits and why only five of them are present.
During her exit, star Kate opened up about how life-changing Celebrity Traitors proved to be. She told her fellow castmates before leaving the show: “I’ve had a lot of years of being serious and very sad and you have all allowed me to play the most amazing game.
“But also you have allowed me to play and be silly and have fun. Every single one of you, I am going to take away an idea and a new kind of life.”
She then added: “I have and always have been totally myself. A Faithful.”
After the show, Kate said that she had “so much fun”. She added: “We were really into it and obviously we’re raising money for charity.
“Personally, I just felt genuinely lucky to be involved. Because, you know, it’s the first one. There’s been so much chat about it, and I never thought that I’d be included, so I was just like a wide-eyed kid in a candy shop for at least three days.”
Celebrity Traitors continues on Thursday at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Video appears to show mistakenly released hotel asylum seeker in Chelmsford
Police are continuing a manhunt for an asylum seeker who was mistakenly released from prison on Friday, weeks after being jailed for sexually assaulting a schoolgirl in Essex.
Ethiopian national Hadush Kebatu was meant to be sent to an immigration detention centre from HMP Chelmsford ahead of a planned deportation on Friday but Justice Secretary David Lammy said the 41-year-old is now “at large” in London.
Lammy said officers from the Metropolitan Police, British Transport Police (BTP) and Essex Police were working together to trace Kebatu, who was jailed for 12 months in September.
Sir Keir Starmer described the release as “totally unacceptable”.
The prime minister said Kebatu “must be caught and deported for his crimes”, adding that police are “working urgently to track him down”.
Neil Hudson, the MP for Epping Forest, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that people in his constituency were “deeply distressed” by the release.
He continued: “This sounds like an operational error, but the buck has to stop somewhere, and it has to stop at the top, at the justice secretary, the home secretary and the prime minister.”
John Podmore – a former governor of HMP Brixton, Belmarsh and Swaleside, and a former prison inspector – said the process of moving prisoners is “fairly complicated” and he hoped a “lower down official is not thrown under the bus”.
“This is not one person making one decision, there should be checks by a range of people up and down the hierarchy,” Mr Podmore told Today.
“It should be seen in the context of wider failure. I am afraid this is what happens in a broken system and the prison system is broken. This is a symptom of a wider failure of the prison and the probation service”
Essex Police
Hadush Kebatu posed a “significant risk of reoffending”, the judge said during sentencing
The Prison Service has removed an officer from discharging duties while an investigation takes place.
Essex Police said Kebatu boarded a London-bound train at Chelmsford station at 12:41 on Friday.
The force said it was informed by the prison services about “an error” at 12:57 on Friday.
A statement continued: “We understand the concern the public would have regarding this situation and can assure you we have officers working to urgently locate and detain him.”
Lammy said he was “appalled” and “livid on behalf of the public”.
He continued: “Let’s be clear Kebatu committed a nasty sexual assault involving a young child and a woman. And for those reasons this of course is very serious.”
A Prison Service spokesperson said: “We are urgently working with police to return an offender to custody following a release in error at HMP Chelmsford.
“Public protection is our top priority, and we have launched an investigation into this incident.”
It is not clear where Kebatu was being deported to but under the UK Borders Act 2007, a deportation order must be made where a foreign national has been convicted of an offence and has received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months.
Kebatu’s arrest in July sparked protests outside The Bell Hotel in Epping, where he had been living after arriving in the UK on a small boat.
In September, Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court heard Kebatu tried to kiss a teenage girl on a bench and made numerous sexually explicit comments.
The following day, he encountered the same girl and tried to kiss her before sexually assaulting her. He also sexually assaulted a woman who had offered to help him draft a CV to find work.
During the trial, Kebatu gave his date of birth as December 1986, making him 38, but court records suggested he was 41.
He was found guilty of five offences and sentenced to 12 months. He was also given a five-year sexual harm prevention order, which banned him from approaching or contacting any female, and ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years.
The court heard it was his “firm wish” to be deported.
In his sentencing remarks on 23 September, District Judge Christopher Williams said the time Kebatu had already spent in custody during his trial would count towards his sentence.
The judge added: “You will also be subject to an early release regime. The earliest date of your release will be calculated and you will be notified of this.”
Kebatu was arrested on 8 July and was released in error 108 days later and upon his release would have been eligible for a £76 discharge payment.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said the release was a “level of incompetence that beggars belief”.
“Conservatives voted against Labour’s prisoner release program because it was putting predators back on our streets,” she said on X.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “He is now walking the streets of Essex. Britain is broken.”
A report from His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service said 262 prisoners in England and Wales were released in error between April 2024 and March 2025, up from 115 in the previous 12 months.
Orion Kerkering picked it up and threw away the Philadelphia Phillies’ season.
With the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th in Game 4 of the National League Division Series on Thursday, that’s how the Dodgers secured a walk-off, series-clinching 2-1 win that sends them to the NL Championship Series.
On a throwing error from Kerkering, who initially booted the broken-bat grounder before retrieving the ball in front of the mound.
On a toss home that went sailing to the backstop, even as catcher J.T. Realmuto motioned for Kerkering to get the sure out at first base.
On a brutal, inexplicable decision from the Phillies’ 24-year-old reliever, one that allowed Hyeseong Kim to score from third and pandemonium to be unleashed inside Dodger Stadium.
Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Dodgers 5, at Philadelphia 3 (box score) Dodgers 4, at Philadelphia 3 (box score) Philadelphia 8, at Dodgers 2 (box score) at Dodgers 2, Philadelphia 1 (11) (box score)
Chicago vs. Milwaukee at Milwaukee 9, Chicago 3 (box score) at Milwaukee 7, Chicago 3 (box score) at Chicago 4, Milwaukee 3 (box score) at Chicago 6, Milwaukee 0 (box score) Saturday at Milwaukee, 5 p.m., TBS, truTV, HBO Max
AL Division Series
Detroit vs. Seattle Detroit 3, at Seattle 2 (11) (box score) at Seattle 3, Detroit 2 (box score) Seattle 8, at Detroit 4 (box score) at Detroit 9, Seattle 3 (box score) Friday at Seattle, 5 p.m., Fox
New York vs. Toronto at Toronto 10, New York 1 (box score) at Toronto 13, New York 7 (box score) at New York 9, Toronto 6 (box score) Toronto 5, at New York 2 (box score)
*-if necessary
LAKERS
From Broderick Turner: Lakers All-Star forward LeBron James will miss the season opener with what the team said was a sciatica nerve injury on his right side, the team announced after practice Thursday. The Lakers said James will be re-evaluated in approximately three to four weeks and that further updates will be provided at that time.
James, who is entering an NBA-record 23rd season, was limited to mostly individual workouts while dealing with nerve irritation in the glute during training camp. He didn’t play in the Lakers’ first two preseason games.
The Lakers open the regular season Oct. 21 against the Golden State Warriors, but fans won’t get to see legends James and Stephen Curry share the court together at Crypto.com Arena.
From Gary Klein: Matthew Stafford has been regarded as one of the NFL’s top arm talents since he was selected No. 1 overall in the 2009 draft. The 17th-year pro ranks among the top 10 all-time in several passing categories.
But the Rams star quarterback has never finished a season No. 1 in yards passing.
Stafford, 37, came close a few times during his 12-season tenure with the Detroit Lions. He finished third behind Drew Brees and Tom Brady in 2011, second behind Brees in 2012, third behind Peyton Manning and Brees in 2013, and third behind Brady and Philip Rivers in 2017.
And in 2021, his first season with the Rams, he was third behind Brady and Justin Herbert.
Could this be the year Stafford finishes at the top?
Mason Marchment scored in his Seattle debut, Joey Daccord made 35 saves, and the Kraken beat the Ducks 3-1 on Thursday night to win their season opener for the first time in team history.
Vince Dunn and Jared McCann also scored for the Kraken, who had gone 0-3-1 in their previous four openers, including a 5-4 overtime loss to the Ducks in 2022.
Daccord, who last Friday became the first player in Arizona State hockey history to have his number retired, made 16 of his saves in the first period on 17 shots.
Beckett Sennecke scored for the Ducks in his NHL debut and Lukas Dostal made 28 saves.
1920 — The Chicago Cardinals play to a 0-0 tie with the Chicago Tigers in their first American Professional Football Association game. The game is held at Cubs Park, later renamed Wrigley Field.
1936 — Ohio State trumpet player John Brungart dots the ‘i’ in “Script Ohio” for the first time during halftime of the Buckeyes’ 6-0 loss to Pittsburgh at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. After Brungart, the honor began to go exclusively to sousaphone players, with exceptions made for well-known fans of the Ohio State program, like John Glenn, Jack Nicklaus and Bob Hope.
1964 — John Henry Johnson of Pittsburgh rushes for 200 yards to lead the Steelers to a 23-7 triumph over the Cleveland Browns.
1974 — Danny Gare of Buffalo scores 18 seconds into his first NHL game as the Sabres beat the Boston Bruins 9-5.
1979 — Quebec’s Real Cloutier scores three goals in his first NHL game, but the Nordiques lose 5-3 to the Atlanta Flames.
1981 — USC’s Marcus Allen rushes for 211 yards, his fifth straight 200-plus rushing game, in a 13-10 loss to Arizona.
1987 — Columbia sets an NCAA record with its 35th straight loss, 38-8 to Princeton.
1998 — New Hampshire’s Jerry Azumah becomes the first back in NCAA Division I-AA history to run for more than 1,000 yards in four consecutive seasons. He has 165 yards and one touchdown in a 22-13 loss to Richmond.
2004 — New England wins its 19th straight game, setting an NFL record for consecutive wins — counting the playoffs — with a 24-10 victory over Miami.
2011 — NBA Commissioner David Stern cancels the first two weeks of the season after owners and players are unable to reach a new labor deal and end the lockout. Games originally scheduled to be played from Nov. 1 through Nov. 14 are wiped out.
2011 — Anthony Calvillo becomes pro football’s all-time passing leader in spectacular fashion with a 50-yard TD pass to Jamel Richardson that cements the Montreal Alouettes’ 29-19 win over the Toronto Argonauts. Calvillo needed 258 yards to break Damon Allen’s all-time CFL record of 72,381 yards.
2017 — The United States are eliminated from World Cup contention with a shocking 2-1 loss to Trinidad and Tobago. Trinidad scores a pair of first-half goals and the United States will miss the World Cup for the first time since 1986. The 28th-ranked Americans needed merely a tie against 99th-ranked Trinidad, which lost its sixth straight qualifier last week.
2017 — The Vegas Golden Knights win their home opener and remain unbeaten three games into their inaugural season with a 5-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes. Marc-Andre Fleury makes 31 saves for the Golden Knights, who become the first team in NHL history to begin their debut season with three straight wins.
2020 — 19 year-old Iga Swiatek of Poland wins her country’s first singles major title as she beats American Sofia Kenin 6-4, 6-1 at the French Open.
THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY
1920 — Cleveland Indians second baseman Bill Wambsganns completes an unassisted World Series triple play.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
A brand new series of Have I Got News For You aired on TV recently but the first episode didn’t quite go to plan, forcing the show’s episode to be axed from BBC iPlayer
Victoria also went on social media to correct the error herself(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Hat Trick)
Have I Got News For You’s recent false claim has since been blamed on “digital natives”. The first episode in the new series of the iconic show included a segment where presenter Victoria Coren Mitchell incorrectly claimed that a contract to roll out the Government’s new ID cards has been handed to Multiverse.
Multiverse is a company run by the son of former prime minister Tony Blair, Euan. Jimmy Mulville, who is the founder of the show’s producer Hat Trick Productions, spoke about the mistake.
Speaking on Insiders: The TV Podcast: “What was interesting was this, and this is why I want to talk about it, is that because we now have generations of younger producers who are coming into the business, and they are digital natives, they’re called.
“They’re marinated in social media, and I said, ‘where did we get this story?’, and apparently, the story was put on by a freelance journalist, I won’t mention her name, a freelance journalist who put on her Twitter feed this story about Euan Blair and ID cards.
“And the producer said, ‘well, it had nearly three million views that day’, so it must be true, and no one questioned it. I went, ‘ok, and did we verify anywhere else?’, and then faces became very red around the table, and god bless them, they’re a fantastic team, and they felt terrible about this, really, really awful.
“Which is the right response, and so we’ve now got a new rule, we don’t take stories off social media.” He said that “normally” his team would make sure they had a second source before writing the script for the show but this time that didn’t happen.
The post which is referred to in the podcast is still on X which has been viewed almost three million times in total.
Mulville added: “It’s not defamatory in any way, in fact, the lawyers didn’t pick up on it, our lawyers and the BBC lawyers, didn’t pick up on it.
“It’s a low level mistake, but nevertheless, it is indicative, and it was good to spot it, because what you wouldn’t want to do is to make some kind of egregious claim about somebody and it is defamatory.”
The BBC apologised for the mistake after it was broadcast and the episode was removed from iPlayer last weekend. It was then edited and re-uploaded with the incorrect information removed.
Meanwhile, presenter Victoria also went on social media to correct the error herself as well.
No, it’s inconceivable that Philadelphia Phillies’ reliever Orion Kerkering would botch a grounder and throw it away with the season on the line.
Yes, it happened with the bases loaded and the Dodgers scored to steal a National League Division Series clinching 2-1 victory in 11 taut innings Thursday at Dodger Stadium!
Clinched, just in time.
Clinched, when they could have clenched.
Clinched, like a champion.
With their backs quickly approaching the wall, faced with a loss that would return the series to Philadelphia for a deciding Game 5, the Dodgers dug in and lashed out and, at the last possible minute, shoved the talented and favored Philadelphia Phillies out of their path to take a three-games-to-one series win and clear the way toward their second consecutive World Series title.
And they did it with a mad, mindless throw from a frozen, frightened reliever.
Has any postseason series ended with such an error?
It happened in the 11th, after Tommy Edman hit a one-out single to left, then moved to third one out later on a single by Max Muncy. Kiké Hernández walked to load the bases, bringing up the struggling Andy Pages, who entered the day with an .053 playoff average and had gone hitless in four previous at-bats.
He proceeded to hit into his fifth out… except Kerkering muffed the grounder. When the pitcher finally picked up the ball, he still had plenty of time to throw out Pages at first. Instead, he panicked and threw it home, launching it far over catcher JT Realmuto’s head.
Pinch-runner Hyeseong Kim scored the winning run as Kerkering stood stunned on the mound and the Dodgers danced wildly across the field.
How the Dodgers defeated the Phillies in the 11th inning in Game 4 of the NLDS.
They now advance to the National League Championship Series, where they will be heavy favorites against either the Milwaukee Brewers or Chicago Cubs.
A victory in that seven-game set will land them back in the World Series, where they will be even heavier favorites against whatever inferior team the American League can muster.
Yeah, the rest of their journey should be the easy part, the Dodgers already conquering their Goliath equal in a Phillies series that was essentially the World Series.
Remember last fall when they defeated the San Diego Padres in a tense five-game fight before cruising to the title? This was that. This was the two best teams in baseball. This was the Dodgers once again swallowing all the pressure and refusing to relent.
After a breathtaking six-inning scoreless pitching duel between the Dodgers’ Tyler Glasnow and the Phillies’ Cristopher Sanchez, the Phillies struck first in the seventh with a single, an error by reliever Emmet Sheehan, and a double by Nick Castellanos.
The Dodgers countered in the bottom of the seventh with two walks and a single followed by a bases-loaded walk drawn by Mookie Betts against closer Jhoan Duran.
This set the stage for the Error Heard ‘Round The World. This set the stage for what should absolutely be a second consecutive World Series championship.
Before these playoffs there was a lot of talk about the Dodgers’ late-season struggles that were symbolized by that blown no-hitter in Baltimore. They had no bullpen depth. They had no offensive patience. They were headed for another early October exit.
At least, that’s what outsiders thought. That’s not what the veteran, pressure-proof Dodgers thought.
“I think it boils down to the guys we have in the clubhouse,” said Max Muncy earlier this week. “We have a lot of experience, a lot of really good players. We’ve been there before. We accomplished it.”
Turns out, nobody knew the Dodgers like the players wearing the uniform.
“We knew who we are as a team all year long,” said Muncy. “Even though we weren’t playing up to it at certain points, we trusted who we were. Like I said, we knew who we were in the clubhouse, not one person faulted in there, even in the rough times.”
They were impressive in the four games against the Phillies. Here’s predicting they’re going to get even better before the month ends.
“I still think there’s another gear in there,” said Muncy. “I don’t think we fully reached where we can be at. And that’s not saying we are, and that’s not saying we aren’t. But I still think there’s a whole other level in there we haven’t reached yet.”
The Times’ Bill Shaikin quickly asked, “What would tell you you’ve reached it?”
An outstanding outfielder in his first three major league seasons, Russell moved to the infield full time in his fourth year. It was a disaster.
“It was something I lost a lot of sleep over,” said Russell, who led the majors with 34 errors that year. “After the season, I just collapsed for a few weeks.”
Then he picked himself up and went to work on getting better and in his second year as a shortstop he led the majors with 560 assists, led the National League in defensive WAR and made the first of three all-star teams.
He went on to play more games for the Dodgers than any player in Los Angeles history.
It was a remarkable career, one that hardly needed a second act. But even after he left the stage, Russell never left the theater. Six months after his last at-bat — he struck out as a pinch hitter in the final week of the 1986 season — Russell was back in uniform as the team’s bench coach.
He later managed in the Dodgers’ minor league system, replaced Tommy Lasorda in that job at the major league level and, for the past 13 years, has worked in the team’s community relations department, coaching youth camps and appearing at schools, fan fests and other events. Since 2002 he’s also served as an umpire observer, partly because the job gets him a good seat behind the plate at Dodger Stadium.
If the team were to a pick a Mr. L.A. Dodger, someone emblematic of the team’s history and values since moving to Southern California, the soft-spoken, humble Russell, a Dodger for nearly half a century, would have to be in that conversation.
But it was his dedication to mastering the switch from the outfield to shortstop — becoming the first prominent player since Honus Wagner to make the move — that literally changed the direction of the franchise. If he hadn’t made it work, the Dodgers may never have had the courage to turn a minor league outfielder named Davey Lopes into a second baseman, where he became Russell’s double-play partner.
If he hadn’t made it work, the Dodgers may never have tried pushing a scatter-armed third baseman named Steve Garvey across the diamond to first, opening up the position to Russell’s right for Ron Cey. The resulting infield of Garvey, Lopes, Russell and Cey played together for 8 ½ seasons, longer than any quartet in baseball history, winning four pennants and a World Series.
“Each one of us had different talents,” Russell said. “It was tough at first but all of a sudden we started having success. It’s four brothers.”
From left, Ron Cey, Bill Russell, Davey Lopes and Steve Garvey pose before an old-timers game at Dodger Stadium in 2013. The infield quartet won four pennants and a World Series together.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Now Betts, a six-time Gold Glove-winning outfielder, has mastered the move too, helping the Dodgers to the cusp of their 12th division title in 13 seasons. However if Betts perfected the shift, Russell pioneered it.
“He was a great athlete,” said Steve Sax, Russell’s double-play partner his last five seasons. “He was maybe the fastest guy in the organization. The whole genesis of being able to move guys around was the thought they’re so athletic, why can’t they make the transition?
“And he proved that to be true.”
At 76, Russell is nearly four decades removed from his last of his 2,181 big-league games, all with the Dodgers. But he’s still fit, not far off his playing weight of 175 pounds. And while he was once among the fastest players in the majors, he now moves at a purposeful saunter rather than a sprint. Wire-rim glasses crease his once-boyish face and the mop of straw-blond hair he once tucked under his cap has gone white, leaving him looking more like a college English professor than a once-iconic athlete.
“I just enjoyed going to the park and being with the guys. They just make you feel young again,” said Bill Russell, who turns 77 in October.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
What hasn’t changed is his love for a game that has been his life and for a team that has become his family.
“I just enjoyed going to the park and being with the guys. They just make you feel young again,” said Russell, who often wears a wry smile that suggests he’s in on a joke no one else knows about.
“Billy’s very special,” said Peter O’Malley, the Dodgers’ owner and president throughout much of Russell’s career.
“He was stable. Popular with the fans for sure. He deserves more credit that he’s received.”
Russell grew up a short drive from both the Missouri and Oklahoma state lines in the kind of nondescript Kansas town where everybody knew their neighbors and hard work wasn’t a virtue, it was an expectation.
The middle child in a family of five children, he attended a high school so small it didn’t have a baseball team. So he played basketball during the winter and baseball on sandlots and with American Legion teams during the summer. He was the kind of player scouts once described as “an athlete,” meaning he was smart enough and talented enough to excel at any position, though the Dodgers listed him as an outfielder when they selected him in the ninth round of the second amateur draft in 1966.
He gave most of his $14,000 signing bonus to his parents, minus the money he needed to buy a second-hand Chevy like the one his best friend drove.
Russell shot up the minor-league ladder, playing just 221 games before making the jump from Class A Bakersfield to the majors in 1969, doubling in his first big-league at-bat.
The adjustment from the minors to the majors was far easier than the change from the tiny mining town of Pittsburg, Kan., to the technicolor sprawl of Southern California.
“Coming to Los Angeles, you’ve got to be kidding me. A big city like this?” said Russell, who had rarely traveled more than 30 miles from Pittsburg before signing with the Dodgers. “My town was only 10,000 people so I had to grow up fast.
“I’m 20 years old, I’m in the major leagues and the minimum salary is $10,000. It wasn’t even $1,000 a month. But that was more money than I’d ever thought of. And I’m playing in Hollywood.”
After playing 18 seasons with the Dodgers, Bill Russell managed the ballclub from 1996-98.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Playing exclusively in the outfield, too, although Monty Basgall, a fellow Kansan and the former minor league infield instructor who scouted Russell as an athlete, was already plotting the move to shortstop, the most challenging defensive position after catcher.
“Shortstop is a difficult position,” said Derrel Thomas, a former teammate who played everywhere but pitcher during a 16-year big-league career. “A lot of people don’t give Monty Basgall any credit for what he did helping with the infielders.”
After some preparation in the instructional league and the minors, Russell made his major league debut at shortstop on the final day of the 1970 season, then played 47 games as a middle infielder a year later. But the move didn’t become permanent until Russell’s fourth season when he replaced an aging Maury Wills.
“I wasn’t in a position to say anything, really,” said Russell, who still speaks with a noticeable Midwestern accent.
“I had doubts about it, no question. But I figured my longevity in the big leagues, if I had [any], would come with moving to the infield.”
In fact, the move nearly ended his career. Russell made his first poor throw seven games into the season and by the all-star break he had as almost as many errors as extra-base hits. By then, he was also looking over his shoulder, expecting the Dodgers to put an end to the experiment.
“I’m surprised they didn’t,” he says now. “The fans got involved too. It wasn’t a standing ovation when I was coming back to the dugout after making some errors.
“At that time people brought transistor radios to the stadium. You could hear [Vin Scully] doing the game. I could hear him say something about me at shortstop. Talk radio was just coming on board and they were on me. It was a lot of negative stuff.”
Quitting, however, wasn’t an option.
“Maybe I was too dumb, I don’t know,” Russell said with a shrug. “I never thought about giving up or going back home. What am I going to do back home? I did say to myself, ‘I’m going to show these people I can play this position.’
“And I did. For 13 years.”
Through hard work and determination, Russell turned his fielding from a liability into an asset and the Dodgers began to win, reaching the World Series four times over the next nine seasons. And while Russell never won a Gold Glove — he twice led the majors in errors — he finished in the top five in fielding percentage by an NL shortstop three times, was in the top five for putouts four times and in the top three for assists six times.
He was understatedly brilliant, so much so that Cincinnati Reds’ shortstop Dave Concepcion once mocked Russell’s critics saying he didn’t know who the best fielder was “but I sure watch Bill Russell in the playoffs a lot.”
“He would never quit. Never,” O’Malley said. “Making that transition at the major league level, he deserves extraordinary credit for that.”
Almost lost in the focus on his defense was the fact Russell was a tough out, hitting better than .271 six times and excelling in clutch situations.
“That went all the way back to high school,” said Russell, who hit the shot that took his underdog team to the final of the Kansas state tournament. “It’s just a calmness. You can’t describe it. You can’t teach it. It is something that comes over you and you get a calm feeling that you’re going to succeed.”
As a high school infielder at Arroyo High in El Monte, James Baker was given his choice of uniform numbers. He didn’t have to think long before selecting one.
“I wore No. 18,” he said. “Because of Bill.”
It was the same number he had worn in Little League and American Legion ball.
“He was Mr. Clutch,” Baker, 61, said of Russell. “He was the dean of the infield.”
“The great thing about Bill Russell,” added Rick Zubiate, 57, Baker’s brother-in-law “is he wasn’t flashy. He made all the plays he was supposed to. Not only that, he had a presence and he commanded everybody around him to be better and expect more of themselves.”
Russell may be little more than a face on an old baseball card to Generation Z. But for children of the ‘60s like Baker and Zubiate, he remains the archetypal Dodger, one with a Dodger Blue resume that is unassailable. Which is why Baker and Zubiate braved rush-hour traffic last week to drive to Ontario, where Russell was appearing at an event for the Dodgers’ newest minor league affiliate.
“I loved him,” Baker said after asking Russell for an autograph.
And what’s not to love? He played more games and has more World Series at-bats than any player in L.A. Dodger history. He trails only Willie Davis and Garvey in hits and only Clayton Kershaw has matched Russell’s 18 seasons at Dodger Stadium.
Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, right, hugs Bill Russell in the dressing room after the Dodgers beat the Phillies, 6-5, in Game 3 of the 1977 NLCS.
(Associated Press)
But he also managed in the team’s minor league system, was the bench coach under Lasorda for seven years, then managed the big-league team for parts of three seasons, posting the fourth-best winning percentage by a manager since the franchise left Brooklyn. And he still pulls on his old uniform — with the bright red 18 over his Dodger blue heart — several times a year to join former teammates including Garvey, Sax and Steve Yeager in reminiscing with fans at fantasy camps and clinics.
“We have fun out there,” he said. “People come from all over the country. [It’s] like you’re still involved in the whole scene of being a major league player.”
If the speed and power of Willie Mays is synonymous with the San Francisco Giants and the style and grace of Ted Williams is emblematic of the Boston Red Sox, Russell’s blue-collar work ethic and country-boy humility is the embodiment of the Dodgers since they moved to Southern California.
“Quintessential Dodger?” O’Malley said. “Absolutely right. From start to end, he deserves the credit. He was respected and liked by everybody.”
Russell stood out, O’Malley said, partly because he blended in.
“He was quiet,” he said. “But keen sense of humor. If he wanted to make a point or be heard, he could nail it with a comment. It was pretty darn funny.”
Yet Russell’s silent excellence often went unappreciated. A .263 lifetime hitter who had fewer home runs in his career than Shohei Ohtani has this year alone, he received just three Hall of Fame votes the only time his name appeared on the ballot. For a time, even his loyalty to the Dodgers went unrequited; for years after his last game as manager Russell felt unwelcome at Dodger Stadium, the result of a toxic stew of bruised egos, Machiavellian maneuvering and corporate mismanagement.
It began midway through the 1996 season when Lasorda, the manager who had groomed Russell in the minors then won with him in the majors, had a heart attack. A month later Lasorda stepped down and Russell took over on an interim basis, guiding the Dodgers to a playoff berth.
That earned him the job full time but it didn’t earn him unquestioned support throughout the organization. The low-key Russell was a striking contrast to the colorful and bombastic Lasorda, more Mr. Rogers than Bobby Knight.
“He’s named the manager following Tommy. That’s not easy,” O’Malley said. “And he did it in his own way.
“But things didn’t work out. Following Tommy was not an easy task.”
Critics who had preferred hitting coach Reggie Smith, Mets manager Bobby Valentine or triple A manager Mike Scioscia — all former Lasorda pupils — over Russell quietly worked to undermine him and 74 games into his second full season as manager, Russell was fired by the team’s new overlords at Fox, who also sacked general manager Fred Claire, replacing him with Lasorda.
By then a major rift had developed between Russell and his former manager, who privately questioned Russell’s performance to management and publicly questioned his qualifications to manage. As a result many pointed fingers for the firings at Lasorda, who strongly denied being involved.
Bill Russell observed umpires on behalf of MLB during Sunday’s Dodgers-Giants game at Dodger Stadium.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Either way, the relationship was irrevocably broken.
Russell left with a .537 winning percentage over parts of three seasons, a better mark — albeit over a far shorter span — than the one that took Lasorda to the Hall of Fame. After firing Russell, the Dodgers never made the playoffs under Fox, with the seven-season postseason drought matching the team’s longest since the late 1960s-early 1970s.
The hard feelings have softened some with the passing of both time and Lasorda, who died in 2021. (Russell, pointedly, was not invited to the funeral; Scioscia, Valentine, Garvey and Cey were.)
“I knew him better than anybody. I was like his son,” Russell said earlier this month, sitting at a patio table near the neat two-bedroom Valencia house where he’s lived for 20 years.
“I don’t want to bad mouth him but he wanted to keep managing. He just couldn’t accept not being there. That’s just the way it was.”
The slight wounded Russell, who took off his Dodger uniform for what he thought would be the final time. O’Malley, who was in the room when Bob Graziano, the former banker Fox put in charge of the team, fired the manager, invited Russell back to the stadium later that season. But the place where he had grown from a boy to man wasn’t the same.
So he went on to work as an advisor with a team in Taiwan, spent a season as bench coach in Tampa Bay and managed in the minors for both the Rays and Giants.
None of it felt comfortable.
“I was in the Dodger organization 30 years,” he said. “To go somewhere else, it wasn’t right.”
After managing the Shreveport Swamp Dragons to a last-place finish in the Texas League in 2001, he returned to Southern California — and Dodger Stadium — as an umpire observer for Major League Baseball, a job that lets him sit behind the plate and watch games.
As if he could imagine doing anything else.
“He’s brought a different perspective because he played at the highest level and he managed,” said Matt McKendry, MLB’s vice-president of umpire operations. “But, you know, Bill loves being at the ballpark and if he wasn’t doing what he’s doing for us, I think he’d be at Dodger Stadium almost every night anyway.”
Because for Russell it’s never been a stadium. It’s home.
MORE than a few eyebrows were raised at the Emirates when Arsenal’s starting line-up was announced.
In particular the midfield three of Mikel Merino, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi.
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Declan Rice started in a three-man midfield against Manchester CityCredit: Getty
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Martin Zubimendi joined Rice in the midfieldCredit: Reuters
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Mikel Merino was a more surprising name in the Gunners midfieldCredit: AP
It was a defensive-minded decision by Arteta to put pressure on City’s Rodri and limit his influence from deep while keeping things tight until he found the courage to fling on his attacking game-changers at the right moment.
It backfired massively.
Those who criticised Arteta for playing not to lose instead of going for the win at Liverpool last month – eventually losing 1-0 – have even more fuel to chuck on the now-blazing fire.
He had a fully-fit Eze on the bench, and yet kept the handbrake on with a safety-first approach. The question remains: does Arteta have the bravery to win a league title?
The sort of midfield that would have been Jose Mourinho-approved, but one that Arteta must NEVER start again in a title-defining game again if Arsenal are to compete for the Prem.
That trio had no pace, no drive, no attacking intent – and Arsenal have no hope of glory come May should they combine from the off again.
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Pep Guardiola and Sir Alex Ferguson in 2011Credit: Getty – Contributor
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Liverpool boss Arne Slot and GuardiolaCredit: Reuters
MARTINELLI MORE THAN JUST A ‘FINISHER’
MIKEL Arteta made it clear after Arsenal’s Champions League opener just how much it pains him to leave Gabriel Martinelli on the bench.
The Brazilian came on away at Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday night and after 36 seconds he netted before creating another for Leandro Trossard.
It was not enough for Arteta to reward Martinelli with a first start for nearly a month against Manchester City, revealing that he prefers to call his subs “finishers” to give them more meaning and motivation.
But after yet another late goal to snatch points, there is now a dilemma for Arteta: continue using him as a super-sub – or super-finisher – or recall him to that left-winger spot.
Martinelli would admit himself that he has not been in good form over the last 18 months with just 18 goals in all competitions over the past two seasons.
But he is certainly knocking on the door. Is this the start of his North London renaissance?
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Gabriel Martinelli rescued a point for ArsenalCredit: Getty
EZE SHINING IN GOOD COMPANY
WITH England boss Thomas Tuchel watching on, Eberechi Eze proved why he is so special and belongs on the biggest of stages.
Eze would have been more than frustrated to be left on the bench for this one, desperate to build some momentum in an Arsenal shirt with next summer’s World Cup looming.
But boy did he deliver when he was thrown on at half-time with Mikel Arteta desperate for some magic after playing it safe for the first 45 minutes.
His beautifully-crafted long ball over the top to put in Gabriel Martinelli for a late, late equaliser is exactly why Arteta snatched him from Crystal Palace, lured from the grasps of rivals Tottenham at the last minute.
Once again for large parts, the Gunners struggled to break down a low block, just like they did last season, but Eze is the player with the key to unlock the most stubborn of defences – if he is given the chance.
It cannot be clearer now – Arteta must start Eze as much as possible between now and the end of the campaign if Arsenal are going to claw the Prem title away from Liverpool.
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Penny Moyses and her family, who are from Hertfordshire, had hoped to see the beautiful sights of Croatia but a last-minute snag dashed the group’s travel plans
Penny Moyses warned parents not to make the same mistake she did
A mum had to leave her five-year-old son at home during the start of their holiday due to a basic admin error.
Penny Moyses, 37, has today warned fellow parents to always ensure their children’s passports are valid after she discovered her eldest son’s document expired. Penny only realised this was the case just days before they were due to depart from Stansted airport, dashing her family’s hopes to attend a wedding in Croatia and spend time enjoying the country’s beautiful sights.
Panicked, the mother of two rushed to secure an emergency one – but was stunned to find out children’s passports need to be applied for at least one week in advance. So, the tragic admin error meant Penny had to leave husband James and their five-year-old son at home, while she flew to Croatia with their youngest child.
“Fear totally went through me – I felt sick to my stomach. I just had a quick peek just to double-check I had the exact right passports and just happened to notice that my eldest son’s passport expired,” Penny said today.
“I thought ‘It’s fine we can get an emergency passport, you can get those in a day” Turns out that for kids you have to wait a week as there’s a lot of safeguarding regulations, which I totally respect.”
Despite missing their flight and a few days in the sun, James eventually managed to secure their eldest’s emergency passport. The pair met the group at the port and, with their outfits in tow, quickly changed on the boat transfer before stepping off in their suits – much to Penny’s relief.
Penny, who lives in Hertfordshire, said: “My eldest ended up missing the first two days of the holiday. Luckily we managed to intercept the passport at our local sorting office and they arrived just in time for the wedding, literally the boat transferred them to the wedding.”
The traumatic event has encouraged Penny to take charge of what she refers to as the “silent load” of life admin that swirls around her head on a daily basis. One new trick in particular is helping her brain take a break from constant worries about planning.
Martin Lewis gives clear advice to UK citizens on passports
The mum is using an app called Fyio, a digital filing cabinet that helps users keep track of their most important personal documents. She said: “The silent load is often what can fall on a woman for various reasons but typically the person that is running the household.
“It’s something that I certainly can’t switch off. By using Fyio I can now keep track of my important documents; if I had the passport expiry dates in there, I would’ve completely avoided the Croatia disaster and saved myself hundreds.
“My son wouldn’t have missed two days of our holiday. For me, it’s those family moments that paperwork can really impact. I totally underestimated what it was like going back to school with kids.
Penny first came across Fyio when it launched at her 2022 ‘Clean & Tidy Home Show’. Since then, her event has evolved into ‘Home, Life & You LIVE’, which returns to Excel London in October 2025.
She is now an avid user of the app, which allows for everything from passport renewal reminders to managing prescriptions, uploading files in seconds and sharing documents safely with others, with them set to expire after a chosen time.
The platform uses military-grade security and even Fyio’s own team cannot access the data. She said: “Now, I have all the important documents in my online filing drawers, such as school uniform regulations ” and, of course, passport info.
“The app helps with the silent load I used to feel and helps me take ownership of my life admin in a simple way. Finding ways to save time ” especially as a parent ” means I can be present with my family instead of worrying if I’ve forgotten something. This app makes my life easier and takes some of the pressure off my shoulders ” something every mum could do with.”
Rachel Smith spent over 200 days backpacking around Southeast Asia so she’s learned a thing or two about packing along the way – but early on she made a crucial mistake
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(Image: Rachel and Omio)
Packing for holidays can be a timely process, whether you’re off on a short city break, spending a week on a beach in the sunshine, or prepping your hiking boots for a walking getaway.
Rachel Smith, 25, is a solo travel influencer who shares her adventures on TikTok, and recently spent 210 days backpacking across Southeast Asia, so she knows a thing or two about how to pack efficiently.
However, the travel pro admitted to the experts at Omio that she quickly realised she’d made one crucial error when she planned for her seven-month trip.
She explained: “I originally packed with the ‘just in case’ in mind; however, this just used unnecessary space, and ended up untouched. When travelling now, I only pack what I truly know I’ll wear. Another thing that I forgot to do that I wish I had was to check the weather differences between countries, which is especially important when country-hopping. For example, while places like Malacca and Kuala Lumpur are hot and humid year-round, I was freezing when I visited Northern Vietnam. Thankfully, I had a lightweight jacket with me, which also came in handy on buses where the air-conditioning was blasting.”
Rachel has become a pro at packing efficiently(Image: Rachel and Omio)
Rachel went backpacking for seven months(Image: Rachel and Omio)
Luckily, she quickly learned her lesson, and now she’s been sharing her top tips with other intrepid explorers, to help them get the most out of their baggage allowance without having to spend a fortune on excess baggage.
Her must-haves include a hanging wash bag which “keeps all my toiletries in one place and off hostel floors”, two microfibre towels o she has “one for the beach, one for showering”, a worldwide travel adapter that “works everywhere”, a power bank that’s “essential for long travel days and safety as a solo traveller”, travel locks “for securing valuables in hostels” and a waterproof phone case, although she warns to test the latter in a sink before heading off!
She regularly shares her packing essentials with her TikTok followers(Image: Rachel and Omio)
Another top tip from Rachel is to pack clothes which you can mix and match throughout the trip. She explained: “For clothes, I had plenty of mix-and-match outfits so I could create lots of looks without packing too much. I also brought makeup and a couple of nice dresses for when I wanted to feel good on nights out. I ended up using almost everything I packed, but the items I used daily were: my packing cubes, microfibre towel, power bank, and travel locks. My makeup and dresses weren’t everyday essentials, but I was so glad I had them when I wanted to feel a little extra.”
It’s a similar trick to using the 5-4-3-2-1 packing method which experts say can help you pack 30 different outfits in just the one suitcase. The idea is to stick to a simple formula; five tops, four bottoms, three pairs of shoes, two bags, and one destination-specific item. Then if you have the space and think you might need an extra item or two, you can add those in. (There’s the extra bonus of sticking to one bag and therefore not needing to pay extra for a second bag too!).
Do you have a travel story you want to tell us? Email us at [email protected].
United’s expensively-assembled new forward line draw a blank as Arsenal began title campaign with a tight win at Old Trafford.
Arsenal kept Manchester United’s expensively assembled forward line at bay and scored again from a set piece to win 1-0 at Old Trafford in the marquee match in the opening round of English football’s Premier League.
Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori nodded in from close range in the 13th minute on Sunday after United back-up goalkeeper Altay Bayındır flapped at the ball from a corner whipped in by Declan Rice.
After finishing second for the past three seasons, the pressure is on Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta to deliver the club’s first league title since 2003-04.
The Spaniard was left to depend on his reliable defence and goalkeeper David Raya to secure a huge three points as the visitors never fully got going as an attacking force.
United, meanwhile, fell to a loss that is all too familiar under Ruben Amorim following a woeful 15th-place finish last season by the struggling giants of English football.
United spent around 200 million pounds ($270m) on revamping their attack in the preseason, with Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha starting the match and Benjamin Sesko coming off the bench in the second half.
Cunha and Mbeumo unsettled Arsenal’s normally unflappable centre-back pairing of Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba early on.
However, United’s good work was undone by a glaring error from Bayindir, who was deputising for Andre Onana.
Patrick Dorgu came closest to a United reply before half-time with a powerful effort from distance that came back off the post.
Manchester United’s Patrick Dorgu reacts after hitting the woodwork [Peter Powell/Reuters]
Mbeumo and Cunha saw tame efforts easily saved by Raya, while the Spaniard did brilliantly to divert another Cunha shot across the face of goal.
Arsenal had held interest in Sesko for well over a year before instead pursuing a move for Viktor Gyokeres as the solution to their need for a number nine. The Swede had a quiet Premier League debut and was replaced before the hour mark by Kai Havertz.
Sesko made his entrance moments later to a hero’s welcome after rejecting the advances of Newcastle for the lure of the 20-time English champions.
United continued to enjoy the better of the play without finding the finish as Mbeumo saw a powerful header expertly clawed out by Raya.
But Arsenal held firm to keep pace with title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City, who also won on the opening weekend of the campaign.
Calafiori told Sky Sports after the match that his side have room to improve, despite the win.
“Like always, we were working a lot on our set pieces, and that is what we showed today. We have to improve if possible and keep going,” he said.
“If we want to compete at the high level, we have to be good in every position. My teammates are ready to play, and it is not easy to play every game. The confidence we have inside is going to bring up the level. Hopefully, I play a lot but if not there is another teammate that can play.”
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes said that while his team played well, they need to be more clinical in front of goal.
“We created lots of chances and didn’t score, so we have to do better next time. We controlled the game well, we were good on the ball,” he told Sky Sports.
“[Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo] created a lot [of opportunities and] they were in the right positions. We know they are dangerous, and they are a threat. We are very aware of what they can give to the team. It was a good first impression for them, but I’m pretty sure they will do much better.”
Elsewhere in the Premier League on Sunday, Chelsea failed to score in their opening league game, as they were held 0-0 by Crystal Palace in the Blues’ first competitive match as the Club World Cup champions.
A month after stunning Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup final, Chelsea toiled at Stamford Bridge after a short preseason because of the team’s exertions in the United States.
Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest hit the ground running with a 3-1 win over Brentford, with striker Chris Wood – the team’s top scorer last season, with 20 goals – netting twice in the first half, on either side of a goal by Dan Ndoye on his debut.
All matches on Sunday featured a period of silence before kickoff as a tribute to Diogo Jota and Andre Silva, the brothers who were killed in a car crash in Spain last month. Jota was a player for Liverpool at the time.
A pair of British golfers have been booted out of a Donald Trump Invitational event.
England‘s Sam Bairstow and Scotland‘s Calum Hill were among the DP World Tour pros in action for the Nexo Championship at Trump International Golf Links in Scotland this week.
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Sam Bairstow endured a disaster at a Donald Trump Invitational eventCredit: Getty
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Calum Hill followed suit with a round two ejection from the Nexo ChampionshipCredit: Getty
However, disaster struck as the duo endured a nightmare time on the green.
Bairstow, who had been among the bookies’ favourites to win a maiden DP World Tour title event, saw his game go off course with a major error at the end of his opening round.
The 26-year-old had noted down a five on the par-4 14th hole, when he had actually shot a seven after missing a fairway with his tee shot and forced to hit a provisional.
And having not found his original tee shot, the Englishman played a tap-in thinking he had made a bogey, a mistake neither of his playing partners had picked up either, when he actually made a triple bogey
He had headed into the scorers’ tent believing he was one-over with a score of 73, but it was later revealed to him that he was actually three-over 75.
Bairstow then dropped another stinker with a double-bogey at the par-5 closing hole.
And less than 24 hours later, Hill was also ejected from the Championship after failing to hole out at the eighth – his penultimate shot of the day.
The two-time DP World Tour winner endured a frustrating afternoon in tough conditions as he finished round one on four-over courtesy of a torrid back nine holes on Thursday.
A bogey on par-5 on Friday gave way in the second round to a birdie on the par-4 15th – only for that to be immediately cancelled with a dropped shot attempt on the following par-3.
At six-over he then suffered another birdie-bogey before adding another bogey on the fourth.
Paige Spiranac goes braless in new career venture as golf beauty says ‘I think I’ve found my calling’
His tournament then ended on hole 17 as Hill missed a par putt from inside nine feet – with the cut-off line being three-over. – before he decided to call it a day.
The duo won’t collect anything from their efforts on Scotland’s north-east coast either.
However, Hill is not likely to fall any lower than his current 26th rank in the Race to Dubai, while Bairstow is set to fall four places from 54 to 58.
Two groups of commercial pilots reject initial probe into the deadly June 12 crash, calling it a ‘reckless and unfounded insinuation’.
Two groups of commercial pilots have rejected claims that human error caused an Air India plane crash that killed 260 people after a preliminary investigation found the aircraft’s engine fuel switches had been turned off.
The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) and the Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA India) issued statements on Sunday after the release of the initial findings, which showed that fuel control switches to the engines of Flight AI171 were moved from the “run” to the “cutoff” position moments before last month’s deadly impact.
The report sparked speculation by several independent aviation experts that deliberate or inadvertent pilot action may have caused the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner to crash soon after takeoff from Ahmedabad in western India.
Flight AI171 was headed to London’s Gatwick Airport when it crashed on June 12.
The report on the crash, issued on Saturday by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), did not offer any conclusions or apportion blame for the disaster but indicated that one pilot asked the other why he cut off the fuel and the second pilot responded that he had not.
After the switches flipped, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner immediately began to lose thrust and altitude, according to the report.
One pilot can be heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he had cut off the fuel. “The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report said.
It did not identify which remarks were made by the flight’s captain and which by the first officer or which pilot transmitted “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” just before the crash.
No more details about the cockpit dialogue between the pilots were revealed.
The ICPA said it was “deeply disturbed by speculative narratives, … particularly the reckless and unfounded insinuation of pilot suicide”.
“There is absolutely no basis for such a claim at this stage,” it said in a statement. “It is deeply insensitive to the individuals and families involved.
“To casually suggest pilot suicide without verified evidence is a gross violation of ethical reporting and a disservice to the dignity of the profession.”
The ICPA was referring to a number of aviation experts suggesting engine fuel control switches can only be moved deliberately and manually.
(Al Jazeera)
United States-based aviation safety expert John Cox earlier said a pilot would not be able to accidentally move the fuel switches that feed the engines. “You can’t bump them and they move,” he told the Reuters news agency.
ALPA India, which has 800 members, also accused the investigative agency of “secrecy” surrounding the investigation, saying “suitably qualified personnel” were not involved in it.
“We feel that the investigation is being driven in a direction presuming the guilt of pilots and we strongly object to this line of thought,” ALPA India President Sam Thomas said in a statement issued on Saturday.
ALPA requested the AAIB be included as “observers so as to provide the requisite transparency in the investigations”.
Meanwhile, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the probe into last month’s crash is far from over and it is unwise to jump to any premature conclusions.
Wilson added: “The preliminary report identified no cause nor made any recommendations, so I urge everyone to avoid drawing premature conclusions as the investigation is far from over.”
The crash killed all but one of the 242 people on board as well as 19 people on the ground.
BBC Sport pundits Anne Keothavong and Tracy Austin praise Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s ability to bounce back from being denied a game winning point due to “an operating error” deactivating the automatic line calling system in her fourth round win over Sonay Kartal at Wimbledon 2025.
TORONTO — Myles Straw scored the winning run on a throwing error by pitcher Sam Bachman in the 10th inning, and the Toronto Blue Jays extended their winning streak to six games by beating the Angels 4-3 on Friday night.
Straw, the automatic runner, scored from second when Bachman fielded Ernie Clement’s sacrifice bunt and overthrew first base.
Bachman (1-2) entered in the 10th and walked leadoff hitter Nathan Lukes, putting runners on first and second with nobody out for Clement.
Chad Green (3-2) worked a scoreless inning for the win.
Jo Adell tied it for the Angels with a three-run homer in the seventh.
Andrés Giménez drove in the first run with a single for Toronto in the sixth. Giménez advanced to third on George Springer’s single before leaving with an ankle injury.
Giménez tweaked his left ankle covering second base on a steal Wednesday and did not play Thursday. He was scheduled for an MRI.
Blue Jays left-hander Eric Lauer set down his first 12 batters before Adell doubled to begin the fifth. Adell was initially called out trying to advance but the Angels challenged and the call was overturned following a replay review.
Giménez hit Adell in the face trying to tag him out at second. Adell was treated on the field and remained in the game.
Toronto’s Will Wagner doubled to open the sixth and advanced on a sacrifice before scoring on Giménez’s hit.
José Fermin replaced Angels starter Kyle Hendricks after Springer’s single. Bo Bichette hit an RBI single and another run scored when shortstop Zach Neto bobbled Addison Barger’s grounder for an error.
Mike Trout and Taylor Ward chased Lauer with back-to-back singles to begin the seventh, and the Angels tied it when Adell greeted reliever Nick Sandlin with his 19th homer.
Key moment
Bachman’s high throw sparked a celebration at home plate as Toronto improved to 30-16 at home.
Key stat
The Angels faced the Blue Jays on Independence Day for the eighth time, going 4-4 in those meetings.
Up next
Blue Jays RHP Max Scherzer (0-0, 4.85 ERA) is scheduled to start Saturday against Angels RHP Jack Kochanowicz (3-8, 5.44).
A woman was left almost crying as she was told she may not be able to make her journey to Paris as there was something wrong with her passport – but she had no idea there was a problem
11:56, 28 Jun 2025Updated 11:56, 28 Jun 2025
There was an issue with her passport (stock Image)(Image: Getty Images/Image Source)
A woman was left almost sobbing as she realised she’d made a big passport mistake when she was travelling from Sydney to Paris. Jane Lu was trying to board her flight with a passport she’d recently used on two trips to America when she was told that she may not be able to fly due to there being something wrong with it.
Over the top of the video, she wrote: “Help?! Has anyone ever had this happen?” as she explained the situation to her followers. Jane explained that she couldn’t get onto her flight because staff told her her passport was invalid due to “water damage”.
“They’re saying that I’m flying by China, and they might not let me through, and Paris might not let me through, but I’ve already flown twice with this passport to the US,” she seethed, almost in tears.
She said that because she’d gone to America twice on the passport when it was damaged, she “didn’t think it would be a problem”.
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In a follow-up video, Jane explained that she had to “sign a waiver” that said if she got turned away in Paris, she’d have to make the journey back to Australia, so she was nervous about what would happen, because she had an over-24-hour journey ahead of her.
She said that she hoped they’d be “super chill” as she arrived in Paris, and it turned out they were, as she managed to get in and could complete her business trip successfully.
In the comments, someone wrote: “I think the people at the check-in in Australia are just way too thorough. This happened to my sister. They told her she had to board the flight at her own risk as her passport had a water stain. But when we landed in Singapore, they did not even notice”.
Another defended the airport, however, saying “border security is paramount”. A woman warned her to “apply for a new passport” and to ensure she “keeps it perfect,” rather than allowing it to get water-damaged.
“What I wanna know, how do SO many people get water damage on their passports? Are ya’all taking them for a swim?” someone fumed.
A travel agent shared her advice, penning: “Travel agent here – a passport is a legal document, so, therefore, it must not have any damage. If an airline sends you to a place and you are denied entry, they receive a massive fine.
“Also, you can be detained on arrival for having a damaged passport. Much better to be denied here than to be put in jail or be turned around at the other end. If it’s damaged, it needs to be replaced.
“Some countries take this pretty seriously. I had a customer detained when their family went overseas and their kid spilt water on their passport and risked it. It’s not about intention, it’s about being safe”.
According to My British Passport, if a passport is too damaged, then the owner of the passport may not be able to fly. They share that the extent of the damage determines whether it can still be used.
Minor wear and tear might be acceptable, but if the passport cannot be read or the chip is damaged, boarding may be denied.
According to the Post Office, the HM Passport Office classifies a passport as damaged if the following conditions are met: the details are indecipherable, the laminate has lifted enough to allow the possibility of photo substitution and the bio-data page is discoloured.
If only! On June 18, 2014, the airwaves and the internet lit up in collective awe at one of the greatest athletic feats in modern history. Clayton Kershaw recorded 15 strikeouts in a 107-pitch no-hitter that many consider the best single-game pitching performance of all time. The asterisk of this epic Dodgers game was the one error in the seventh inning that prevented its official recognition as a “perfect game”: When the Rockies’ Corey Dickerson tapped the ball toward the mound, Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez botched a throw to first base, and Dickerson made it to second.
If only Ramirez had made the play at first! If only coach Don Mattingly hadn’t substituted the ailing Ramirez one inning prior! Los Angeles was one bruised right finger away from celebrating perfection.
Baseball has a celebrated history of quantifying value. No professional sport embraces numbers and statistics in the way baseball does. Statisticians are as much a part of the game as the dirt, chalk and grass. Although baseball has been collecting data since the late 1800s, the empiric statistical analysis that is part of our game today dates back to 1977 with the introduction of sabermetrics.
It’s critical to the game: How else are we to determine success when the majority of what we see is failure? The best hitters in baseball are those who only fail less than 70% of the time; in other words, have a batting average over .300. These perennial all-stars will experience the dissatisfaction and humility of an out in 7 out of every 10 plate appearances. In what other profession can you fail 70% of the time and be considered one of the greats? Consider the mental strength required to accept failure as part of the game and the focus to view each at-bat as an opportunity to fail a little bit less.
We need a similar kind of thinking in life to quantify value in our failure rates.
A “perfect game” is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a team pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. It’s so rare because failure — by pitchers as well as batters — is expected as a matter of course. Francis Thomas Vincent Jr., the eighth commissioner of MLB, is quoted as saying: “Baseball teaches us, or has taught most of us, how to deal with failure. We learn at a very young age that failure is the norm in baseball and, precisely because we have failed, we hold in high regard those who fail less often — those who hit safely in one out of three chances and become star players. I also find it fascinating that baseball, alone in sport, considers errors to be part of the game, part of its rigorous truth.”
On June 19, 2014, the fans and commentators of baseball praised in dramatic fashion Kershaw’s dominant no-hitter, but with a subtle tone of confusion and denial of the ugly blemish recorded across the team’s box score: 0-0-1. Zero runs. Zero hits. One error. One base runner. An imperfect game. If only!
The collective hope for perfection is understandable. Most people are afraid to fail.
Parades aren’t held for the runner-up. Grades aren’t given just for trying. Job promotions aren’t offered for making mistakes. Placing perfection on a pedestal relieves the collective anxiety — but prohibits the opportunity — of accepting failure as an integral part of life. For an individual, failure is an opportunity to grow and become a better person. For a business, failure is an opportunity to pivot and redefine success. The opposite of perfection is not failure. It is accepting the opportunity to learn from transgressions. Winston Churchill once quipped, “The maxim, ‘Nothing prevails but perfection,’ may be spelled P-A-R-A-L-Y-S-I-S.”
Almost to the day, 75 years before Kershaw’s no-hitter, the world of sports witnessed the catastrophic reality of paralysis. In June 1939, after a week of extensive testing at the Mayo Clinic, Lou Gehrig announced to the world that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This announcement happened to fall on his 36th birthday. This represented the end of Gehrig’s illustrious baseball career. But 75 years later, what is remembered about this man is not his career batting average of .340, seven-time All-Star appearances, six-time World Series championships, winning of the Triple Crown or two-time league MVP. Sabermetrics could not possibly explain Gehrig’s value to the sport. What endures is what no statistic can capture: his grace. His humility. His courage in the face of loss. What is remembered and honored is his response to the ultimate “failure”: a failure of upper and lower motor neurons to make necessary connections that ultimately leads to rapidly progressive muscle weakness and atrophy. In defiance to an illness that is uniformly fatal, Gehrig paid homage to his teammates, professional members of the MLB and its fans by proclaiming himself “the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.”
Similarly, sabermetrics misses the true greatness of Kershaw’s no-hitter. What could never be displayed in statistics or numbers was Kershaw’s response to the error. After Ramirez’s throwing error, his hat lay at the base of Kershaw’s pitching mound. As I watched from the stands, I could not hear what Kershaw said to Ramirez as he picked it up, dusted off and handed the hat back to his humiliated teammate. But his body language appeared unbelievably humble, accepting and supportive, as if to recognize the lesson of baseball, which is that errors are a celebrated part of the game. To dwell on errors and think “if only” leads to disappointment and blame, but to accept and embrace imperfections with a positive and optimistic attitude defines the ultimate success.
If only we could all be that perfect.
Josh Diamond is a physician in private practice in Los Angeles and a lifelong Dodgers fan. Some of his earliest memories are of attending games with his father; he now shares his love of the Dodgers with his son.
Spain has introduced a number of new regulations for tourists this summer, with fines of up to £2,500 for those who make ‘one drinking error’
Brits visiting Spain have been warned(Image: MJS/SOLARPIX.COM)
Brits jetting off to Spain could be hit with hefty fines of up to £2,500 if they fall foul of the country’s strict drinking laws this summer.
As the holiday season approaches, travel experts are warning UK sunseekers to brush up on Spanish regulations or face penalties.
Organising “unauthorised gatherings” could see Brits forking out as much as €750 for blasting tunes too loudly. In places like Valencia, setting up unapproved tents or shelters might land you a fine ranging from €1,501 to €3,000.
Spain’s beaches are increasingly becoming smoke-free areas, with lighting up potentially costing you up to €450 in fines, while sipping a drink on the sands or promenade could set you back between €1,501 and €3,000.
The Spanish authorities have tightened the rules on public alcohol consumption, banning it on streets, parks, and beaches, reports the Express.
Caught with a tipple in public?
You could be coughing up to €3,000. Majorcan hotspots such as Llucmajor, Palma, and Magaluf have even curtailed alcohol sales from 9:30pm to 8am and clamped down on happy hour promotions.
For those who throw loud parties without permission, a €750 fine awaits, and Valencia’s crackdown includes hefty charges of up to €3,000 for unsanctioned tent pitching.
Many beaches have now become smoke-free zones, with a fag potentially costing you up to €450 in fines, and penalties for boozing on the beach or promenade ranging from €1,501 to €3,000.
Spain has also put a cap on daily visitors at certain beaches in the Balearic and Canary Islands. Platja d’Aro, in Costa Brava, has announced fines up to €1,500 for appearing in public “with clothing representing human genitals” in a crackdown on stag and hen dos from Blighty.
The bylaw specifically bans people from appearing “on the public thoroughfare without clothing or only in their underwear or with clothing or accessories representing human genitals or with dolls or other accessories of a sexual nature”.
There’s also new information required for those wanting to book digs or hire motors. Information gathered by hotel owners, private rental providers and car hire companies will now be passed on to the Spanish Ministry of Interior to bolster the country’s national security.
Visitors will now have to provide their:
Gender
Nationality
Date of birth
Home address
Landline phone number
Mobile phone number
Payment details and method
Relationship to any children in the travelling party under the age of 14.
Chris Harrington, Managing Director at travel experts hoppa, said: “Spain is introducing a wave of new travel regulations in 2025, following record-breaking visitor numbers. These new regulations have been put in place to manage mass tourism and public behaviour, and are extremely important to follow.”
“Failure to comply with new regulations can lead to holidaymakers being slapped with hundreds of euros, with more serious offences potentially incurring fines between €1,500 and €3,000.
“To help holiday makers enjoy their jolly without facing any unwanted charges, we’ve compiled a list of the 4 regulations you should be aware of.”
Chris added: “Spain is an incredibly popular tourist destination for British holidaymakers. But it’s more important than ever to be mindful and respectful when holidaying.
“By travelling with awareness of the local culture and regulations, you can contribute to a positive travel experience for yourself and others. Before travelling, it is a good idea to check the Spanish tourism board and ensure that you are abiding by the rules of the municipality you are visiting.”
