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Grantchester star Robson Green has said he ‘burst into tears’ as he shared details of the final days of filming the last ever series of the ITV crime drama

Grantchester favourite Robson Green has revealed there are just five days of filming remaining on the final ever series of the beloved ITV drama.

The announcement came over the summer that the crime series would be drawing to a close after its 11th run.

The popular ITV programme features Robson, 60, as Detective Inspector Geordie Keating, whose character teams up with vicar Alphy Kottaram, portrayed by Rishi Nair, to crack cases in the Cambridgeshire village.

The series draws inspiration from James Runcie’s literary works.

During Tuesday’s This Morning appearance, Robson, who has been busy with another venture exploring the globe’s finest walking routes, spoke about Grantchester’s conclusion, reports Wales Online.

The performer, who has starred in the programme since its 2014 debut, revealed to presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary: “We’re filming the final series, I’ve got five days left, I finish next Tuesday!”

Speaking about his Grantchester colleagues both past and present, he continued: “That’s the saddest thing about it all, I’m going to miss that family of wonderful people, I’ve got so many wonderful memories.

“If you watch Grantchester, I play a character Inspector Keating, and I wear this one suit. A brown suit. In every scene, in every episode, and every series and I hung it up for the last time on Friday.”

Discussing the poignant moment, Robson confessed: “I burst into tears!”

It comes as Robson, reflecting on the show’s conclusion, said during the summer: “From the very beginning, I have had the incredible fortune to be part of this extraordinary team of talented, passionate, and dedicated individuals who have become more than colleagues. They have become family.

“I have made friendships forged through shared laughter, challenges, and triumphs.

“The bonds we’ve formed extend far beyond the camera lens, and I know that they will endure long after the final scene within the Grantchester world has been filmed.

“Thank you to everyone who has been part of this incredible journey.

“Emma Kingsman Lloyd and Daisy Coulam…. from that very first day you gave me the extraordinary opportunity to be part of this experience..

“It has been an honour to share in the magic of Grantchester, and I am forever grateful for the memories, the friendships, and the love that this journey has given me. I hope I made you proud.”

This Morning continues on weekdays at 10am on ITV and ITV X.

Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry says he “wouldn’t worry” about the NBA’s integrity despite a FBI investigation into illegal sports betting.

Miami Heat player Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups are among dozens arrested as part of a sweeping investigation that also includes allegedly rigged, mafia-linked poker games.

Rozier and Billups were named by federal prosecutors in two separate indictments on Thursday. Both men deny the allegations.

Rozier, 31, is among six people arrested over alleged betting irregularities. They include NBA players being accused of faking injuries to influence gambling markets.

There is greater concern about the impact of gambling on the integrity of American sports, with most US states having legalised sports betting since the US Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in 2018.

“I think on the whole, everybody’s very mindful of what to do, what not to do, and understanding the landscape of sports right now in general,” said Curry, who has twice been the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.

“And that’s not just a NBA thing, this is new territory for everybody. So I think, on the whole, we all are very responsible.

“The integrity of the game is fine, and then obviously we let the situation play out, whatever happens. But I wouldn’t worry about that too much.”

Warriors team-mate Draymond Green, who has won four NBA championships with Curry, added: “I was shocked. It’s a tough moment for the individuals involved, a tough moment for the league.

“But I’m not going to sit here and be like, ‘man, you all partner with a gambling company, you open a can of worms’. That can of worms can be open with partnering with gambling companies or not.

“Partnering with a gambling company is not going to make gambling more accessible to us. The accessibility is what it is.”

Aspiration Partners made a splash when it entered the green investing space in 2013.

The Marina del Rey firm billed itself as a socially conscious online banking company, offering investments and focusing its finances on the climate crisis. It also generated and sold carbon credits meant to help offset greenhouse gas emissions.

Soon, it collected celebrity investors such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Robert Downey Jr., and Steve Ballmer, the former Microsoft chief executive, philanthropist and owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.

But 12 years later, things have turned sour.

Earlier this year, the co-founder and another top company official agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud charges and scheming to bilk investors using falsified documents. Aspiration went bankrupt.

And now, the company is at the center of a NBA investigation into whether a $28-million deal the firm cut with Clippers star Kawhi Leonard was designed to help the team circumvent the league’s salary cap.

The Clippers have strongly denied that, and said neither the team nor Ballmer played any role in Leonard’s deal and that there was no intention to violate any NBA rules. Leonard has also denied any wrongdoing.

In a statement, the Clippers said Ballmer and his family are “focused on sustainability” and built the Clippers’ home arena at the leading edge of environmental design. Aspiration was part of that effort, the statement said, and Ballmer was “duped on the investment and on some parts of this agreement, as were many other investors and employees.”

A review of hundreds of pages of court records offers a window into how the once high-flying green company fell amid illegal dealings and multiple federal criminal investigations.

A company’s rise and fall

Founded by Joseph Sanberg and Andrei Cherny, Aspiration Partners reportedly raised $110 million from venture capital funds in just its first few years of existence.

It came at a moment of rising concern about climate change, and Aspiration seemed to capitalize. Sizable deals rolled in, including a $315-million pact with Oaktree Capital Management and Ballmer.

The firm even partnered with rapper Drake in 2021, using its reforestation program to offset the artist’s estimated climate impact. The company at the time claimed its business partners and customers had funded the planting of 15 million trees over the course of a year.

In September 2021, the Clippers announced a deal with the company as the first “Founding Partner” for its state-of-the-art arena in Inglewood. The idea was fans would be able to offset their carbon impact when buying a ticket to watch the team. Aspiration even bid unsuccessfully for the naming rights to the venue, now known as Intuit Dome.

The partnership, the news release announcing it declared, “set a new standard for social responsibility in sports.”

But behind the cadre of celebrity sponsors and investors, court documents reveal trouble was brewing inside Aspiration.

In 2020, the company explored a potential $55-million loan from an investor fund in exchange for 10.3 million shares of stock, according to federal court filings. But the investor fund wanted a “put option” — a sort of safety net guaranteeing it would be able to sell its stock if Aspiration defaulted on the loan, according to federal complaints.

Sanberg, according to federal prosecutors, turned to Ibrahim Ameen AlHusseini, a venture capitalist and then-board member of Aspiration Partners.

According to a federal criminal complaint, Sanberg was aware AlHusseini didn’t have the funds to cover the “put option.” So he allegedly coordinated with AlHusseini to falsify financial records and inflate AlHusseini’s worth by tens of millions of dollars.

Federal prosecutors allege AlHusseini sent Sanberg a spreadsheet showing his investment portfolio from several years back and told Sanberg the spreadsheet was not accurate but a “hypothetical.”

Sanberg, according to the federal complaint filed against him, revised the spreadsheet to read as if it were from Dec. 31, 2019, and sent it to an investment advisor.

AlHusseini also used a graphic designer from Lebanon to falsify financial documents at least 24 times between April 2020 and February 2023, according to the federal complaint filed against Sanberg. The records sent to the financial advisor made it appear that AlHusseini’s investments and assets were worth more than $200 million, the records show.

But in reality, federal prosecutors allege his Bank of America account balance in September 2021 was $11,556.89. His Fidelity investment accounts, according to court records from federal prosecutors, totaled $2,963.63 at the time.

According to a federal complaint, Sanberg then refinanced the loaned $55 million, securing $145 million from another investment firm, again using a “put option” from AlHusseini. This time, AlHusseini promised to buy the shares for $65 million from that firm if Sanberg defaulted, according to the federal complaint.

AlHusseini did not have the funds to back that deal, federal prosecutors alleged in court papers. But he still banked $6.3 million for his role in securing it, the complaint alleged.

There were other signs the company was in trouble.

Federal prosecutors allege Sanberg moved money from his personal checking account between Aspiration and another one of his companies in March 2022, making it appear on paper as if new investments were coming in.

On Nov. 2, 2022, Sanberg defaulted on the loan, and AlHusseini agreed the following month to boost the put option value to $75 million.

Some contractors began to complain that they were not being paid, according to court filings. Lawsuits followed.

In July 2022, Cherny also notified the company he would step down as chief executive. The day after he and the company signed a separation agreement in October, Sanberg threatened to sue him, according to a letter from Sanberg’s attorneys sent to Cherny.

Cherny would later file suit against Aspiration Partners, alleging the company didn’t pay him the entirety of his severance package agreed to in October 2022, according to a complaint filed in federal court. The suit was settled out of court earlier this year.

Federal prosecutors filed charges against AlHusseini in October 2024. He later agreed to plead guilty to one count of wire fraud, as well as to work with federal authorities in their investigation.

He is expected to appear in court for a sentencing hearing on Feb. 26, according to court filings.

Aspiration Partners filed for bankruptcy in March.

Sanberg originally entered a plea of not guilty to the charges, but in August he agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts of wire fraud, according to federal prosecutors.

Court filings show he is expected in court on Oct. 20 for a change of plea hearing.

An NBA star’s deal

Aspiration cut its deal with Leonard in 2022. Although players are allowed to have separate endorsement and other business deals, the NBA probe is trying to determine whether the Clippers participated in arranging the side deal beyond simply introducing Aspiration executives to Leonard.

The investigation follows information detailed in the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast, which reported that Leonard’s deal amounted to a no-work contract meant to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap rules.

The salary cap limits how much teams can spend on player payroll. It’s meant to ensure talent parity by preventing the league’s wealthiest teams from outspending smaller markets to acquire the best players.

Circumventing the cap by paying a player outside of his contract is strictly prohibited and can be severely punished.

Cherny, in a statement posted on X, disputed that the agreement with Leonard required no work from the basketball star.

“The contract contained three pages of extensive obligations that Leonard had to perform,” Cherny wrote in the Sept. 12 post. “And the contract clearly said that if Leonard did not meet those obligations, Aspiration could terminate the contract.”

In the statement, Cherny said he does not remember any conversations about the NBA’s salary cap when the contract between Leonard and Aspiration was signed.

“There were numerous internal conversations about the various things Aspiration was planning to do with Leonard once the 2022-23 season began, including emails from the marketing team about their plans,” he said.

Cherny declined to be interviewed for this article.

It was Aspiration’s collapse that shed light on the Leonard deal. According to bankruptcy filings, Leonard’s private company, KL2 Aspire, is listed as one of the company’s biggest creditors — being owed $7 million.

The Clippers are, by far, the biggest creditor listed for the company, with more than $30 million in outstanding debt.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Clippers said the team terminated its relationship with Aspiration during the 2022-23 season, when the company defaulted on the agreement.

Ballmer has said he was duped by Aspiration, and insisted the Clippers followed all NBA rules. He also said he welcomed the investigation.

The Clippers signed Leonard to a four-year, $176-million contract in August 2021. In an interview with ESPN last month, Ballmer said that the sponsorship deal with Aspiration was completed in September 2021 and that the Clippers introduced Leonard to Aspiration two months later.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Clippers said both the team and Ballmer were unaware of Aspiration’s suspicious dealings.

“Neither the Clippers nor Mr. Ballmer was aware of any improper activity by Aspiration or its co-founder until after the government instituted its investigation,” the statement read. “The team and Mr. Ballmer stand ready to assist law enforcement in any way they can.”

UEFA chiefs want to block clubs from playing domestic games abroad.

But they are powerless to prevent La Liga and Serie A chiefs heading out of Europe this season.

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In a measure that could stymy any long-term Prem plans to play matches out of the UK, Uefa President Aleksander Ceferin confirmed his deep personal opposition to the concept.

That is despite giving the green light for Barcelona to play Girona in Miami in December and Milan to face Como in Perth in February.

Uefa explained its ruling executive committee had “reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis” the requests from Spain and Italy, citing a lack of rules to prevent the games being switched.

But Euro chiefs pledged to work with Fifa to “uphold the integrity of domestic competitions and the close bond between clubs, their supporters and local communities”. 

Ceferin said: “League matches should be played on home soil.

“While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent. 

“Our commitment is clear – to protect the integrity of national leagues and ensure that football remains anchored in its home environment.”

Prem chief Richard Masters has emphasised his total opposition to the prospect of English games being played overseas.

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However, that policy could change if 14 of the 20 top flight clubs voted to explore the option.

Fan group Football Supporters Europe said: “We regret the decision to allow the requests but all 55 national associations have committed not to make further requests for domestic matches abroad without first consulting UEFA. 

“The onus is now on FIFA to plug this regulatory gap. We welcome UEFA’s commitment to work with FIFA to ensure that future rules uphold the integrity of domestic competitions.”

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Former Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin, now at Real Betis, talks to BBC Sport’s Elizabeth Conway about his attempts to live a more sustainable life after being named global champion at the BBC Green Sport Awards.

READ MORE: Bellerin – the footballer who cycles to work

A VAST “mini-city” of 5,500 homes, schools and green space is set to rise on the edge of Birmingham.

Council chiefs gave given the go-ahead for the first stage of works.

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The Langley development, near Walmley in Sutton Coldfield, will eventually see around 5,500 homes.

There will also be schools, community facilities and green spaces, built across a huge swathe of land.

Described by developers as an “unparalleled opportunity to establish a new sustainable community”, the scheme promises to transform the area.

Ahead of the latest council planning meeting, permission was sought to begin “strategic infrastructure” works on the site.

These include demolishing Langley Park House, creating open space and play areas, carrying out major earthworks, and building new highway, cycle and pedestrian networks.

But concerns were raised over how future residents will travel.

Conservative councillor Gareth Moore argued that Labour’s transport policy risks being “outdated” and could turn the new neighbourhood into a “heavy car-use area.”

“Despite the best will in the world, the council is not going to change that,” he said.

“I’m really concerned that long-term this is going to build up problems because we’re going to try and discourage people from owning cars.

“We’re going to try and encourage everyone to walk, cycle and get the bus – but they’re not.

“They’re going to own cars and they’ll be parked all over the place. Yes, in 50 years’ time that might be different but the important thing is the here and now.”

A council report defended the plans, pointing to an “extensive network” of new walking and cycling routes across the site.

This is including segregated cycle paths, bus-only connections and a traffic-free bridge linking eastwards over the A38.

It said: “The intention is to not give equal priority to all modes through the road space allocation, instead encouraging sustainable travel which adheres to the objectives of the Birmingham Transport Plan.”

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Officials have previously stressed that prioritising active travel and public transport will help cut road danger, connect communities and tackle the climate emergency.

According to the scheme’s official website, the new development will also bring schools, leisure facilities and large areas of “well-connected green spaces.”

“We are committed to working with the local community to deliver a beautifully designed scheme that puts placemaking at its heart and provides long-term benefits for both new and existing residents,” it said.

With the application now approved, work can begin on laying the groundwork for one of the biggest housing projects Birmingham has ever seen.

This follows after reports of a huge new town with up to 25,000 homes is set to be built in the UK, as part of a government scheme.

The ambitious plans are set to ease Britain’s housing crisis, and the project is expected to create 30,000 jobs.

The Brabazon development, in South Gloucestershire, is set to become a “thriving new town, designed around people, nature and opportunity: the best place in the UK to live, work and play”, according to YTL, the group facilitating its construction.

Proposals for the project include 6,500 homes (which could rise to 25,000), and student accommodation big enough to house 2,000 people.

The new town will also have a 20,000 capacity arena, three new schools and community facilities, and is predicted to add £5 billion to the GVA.

A new train station, Metrobus links, cycle routes and walking paths will ensure the town is well connected to Bristol and over 3.6 million square feet of commercial space will house shops, businesses and offices.

Brabazon will also have an abundance of parks and green spaces, including a 15 acre park and lake, which will be the largest in the South West for 50 years.

The government has thrown its backing behind the development, as part of a £48 billion scheme to build 12 new homes across the nation.

Work has already begun on Brabazon, with 500 homes completed, and £400 million invested by YTL.

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Hector Bellerin

Former Arsenal footballer Hector Bellerin is one of the highest-profile footballers to use their significant platform and voice to talk about sustainability.

Now a Real Betis player, the 30-year-old has taken a leadership role as the chief ambassador for Forever Green – his club’s non-profit sustainability programme.

Bellerin’s passion for sustainability has also seeped through into his clothes. Last year, he released his own clothing brand, which works with deadstock materials to reduce waste.

He previously set up an initiative to plant 3,000 trees in the Amazon for every win his team achieved during his time at Arsenal, and has spoken critically about the plans Fifa – football’s world governing body – has for the 2030 World Cup.

Earlier this year, Bellerin was named in National Geographic’s 33 for 2025 list, and became an ambassador for Green Football’s Great Save campaign.

Jessie Diggins

The most successful American cross-country skier of all time, Jessie Diggins has won three medals at the Olympics and seven at World Championships.

In April 2025, Diggins and her American team-mates wore special-edition ski suits at the World Championships that depicted a melting ice cap as a way of speaking up about global warming.

The 34-year-old has devoted her platform on social media to raising awareness about climate change, with consistent public speaking through interviews and media appearances, discussing the effects global warming has on snow sports.

Sebastian Vettel

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel continues to carve out a new legacy for himself away from the racetrack.

Since retiring, Vettel has taken on many projects – big and small.

In 2023, he launched a bee sanctuary at the Suzuka F1 circuit in Japan – a symbolic project that combines his racing career with his passion for the environment. That first bee sanctuary has now expanded to a bee meadow in his native Germany.

During the 2022 season, he stopped travelling to grands prix by plane, instead choosing to drive to as many of the circuits as he could to avoid taking internal European flights.

In the past 12 months, the 38-year-old has particularly focused his attention on what is happening within the Amazon rainforest – one of the most endangered ecosystems on the planet.

While in Brazil, he visited the Kayapo people – an indigenous tribe who live in, and depend, on the Amazon. By highlighting this, Vettel is bringing many new eyes to the devastating effects of deforestation.

Sofie Junge Pedersen

Danish footballer Sofie Junge Pedersen has become well known for environmental activism throughout her career, and last year was named by the Guardian as its footballer of the year for her work in this area.

When playing for Inter Milan, she persuaded the team to not fly to matches in the 18 months she was there.

The 33-year-old’s commitment to environmentalism is long-standing.

In 2023, she led a group of 44 players to offset their flights to the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. And over the past 12 months, she has continued to call upon European football’s governing body Uefa to mandate clubs to take trains instead of planes where possible.

Published on 25/09/2025 – 14:39 GMT+2
•Updated
15:05

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Negotiations over the sustainability chapter of the trade agreement with India are proving “challenging” the Commission’s chief negotiator Christophe Kiener told a meeting of the European Parliament’s trade committee on Thursday.

“We will need to adjust the approach we usually take on trade and sustainable development to make sure this is something India can live with,” said Kiener, adding: “Not having a chapter on trade and sustainability is not an option, but we must also make sure that this chapter cannot be an empty shell.”

The EU and India aim to conclude negotiations on a trade agreement by the end of the year. On 12 September, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen travelled to New Delhi for a new round of talks. However, no breakthrough was achieved.

One of the main sticking points is the dispute settlement mechanism the EU seeks to include in the deal to ensure India complies with environmental standards.

“The notion that there would be a dispute settlement, let alone sanctions applying to those commitments, the idea that the commitments would be legally binding, that civil society would be involved in the management of the agreement from that perspective, but also that those commitments would apply at the sub-federal level — these are elements that are very difficult for India,” Kiener told MEPs.

India ‘not like New Zealand’

Since its last mandate, the Commission pushes for inclusion of environmental provisions in its trade agreements, including mechanisms to oversee their implementation and enforce compliance.

This same chapter proved contentious during the EU’s talks with the Mercosur countries — Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay — until a deal was finally reached in December 2024.

The Mercosur agreement includes a dispute settlement mechanism involving an external review by independent experts and participation from civil society. It also identifies adherence to the Paris Agreement — the legally binding international climate treaty adopted in 2015 — as an “essential element” of the deal. This means the agreement can be suspended if one party seriously breaches or withdraws from the climate accord.

“We should not fall into the delusion that India is a country like New Zealand,” Kiener said, referring to the EU-New Zealand deal that entered into force in May 2024 and is considered a benchmark for integrating green standards into trade agreements.

EU green legislation, in particular the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) adopted in 2023, has raised concerns among Indian negotiators, Kiener told MEPs. CBAM introduces a levy on imports into the EU of certain carbon-intensive goods, a measure India perceives as potentially protectionist.

IF you’ve managed to end this summer with a lush green lawn, and no unexplained bald patches or a depressing brown sheen – then well done you.

The majority of people I’ve spoken to have been left with grass that’s definitely looking a bit under the weather (literally).

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But fear not.

One of Britain’s biggest shorts-wearing lawn lovers has got some golden rules for Sun Gardening to whip that outside space back into shape.

Jonny Hinks – AKA @gardenwithjonny on social media – describes himself as a self-taught gardener, firefighter and full time garden obsessive from Warwickshire.

And with nearly two million followers on instagram alone – it’s not just his comedy videos that have caught the attention of garden lovers everywhere.

His lawn is spectacularly well maintained – and even in the midst of one of the hottest summers on record, it still managed to look a lot better than most.

“Now is the perfect time for Autumn lawn care”, he told Sun Gardening.

“It’s nice and moist, the soil is warm from the summer. So in terms of germination for grass seed, it’s just the perfect conditions.

“And it’s also a good time because the grass is still growing and if you get it all sorted now –  the roots will be established enough to take the Winter cold that’s on its way.

“Everyone’s lawns have been suffering and turning brown from all the sun – and although it will come back if it hasn’t already, there’s a few things you can do now to help it along.”

FEEDING

“Be careful you buy the right feed. What you need now is high potassium Autumn feed, which helps the grass improve its root strength.

And low nitrogen – as you don’t want too much leaf before Winter as there’s a risk if it’s too leafy it will be prone to disease.

SCARIFY

“This is like exfoliating your face. Basically you just need to take off all the moss and thatch, which is a layer of dead grass and roots – and too much of it prevents water and nutrients from reaching the grass.

It lets the lawn breathe, which is so important. I use a battery-powered scarifier, but there are manual ones, or you can use a rake.

Go diagonally in one direction and then again in the other direction. It’s a great work out

AERATE

“This is when you create air pockets within the lawn which reduces compaction, and like scarifying, allows water and nutrients to penetrate the earth.

“This makes for better root systems. I don’t like using a fork or aerating shoes for this – that just spreads the soil apart.

“Instead I have a tool a bit like a fork, but with hollow tines,  that takes plugs out the lawn.”

TOPSOIL AND SEED

“As soon as I’ve finished all these jobs – I scatter a covering of grass seed over the area – and then cover with a thin layer of topsoil.

“I have been known in the past to do a mix of both together, but I’ve found this way works well. And then water, of course.”

Also in Veronica’s Column this week…

Top tips, Gardening news, competition and Plant of the Week

FOR more gardening content, tips, news and competitions, follow me @biros_and_bloom

PLANT OF THE WEEK! Nemesia Melody Morello Ice – still bringing colour to your garden now – this lovely Nemesia is totally hardy, with masses of dark green foliage, flowers from March to October, perfect for filling baskets, containers, beds and borders and has a sweet scent. Grow in moist well drained soil in sun or partial shade.

JOB OF THE WEEK! Prune climbing and rambling roses, remove any leaves covering pumpkins to get them ripe for halloween, if you’ve got rotten apples on the tree, remove them to prevent disease.

TOP TIP! It can be confusing as to which bulbs should be planted when – so here’s a few tips. This month – September – you can go for early spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils, hyacinths and crocus.
Especially daffodils – as it will help with their root establishment.
You can also get hardy summer flowering bulbs like Alliums and Lillies in now as well. None of the above mind the soil still being warm.
But wait until November for Tulips – as they much prefer the colder soil to get them going. Always plant bulbs in groups to get a better display. And they like the warmth and sun – so keep that in mind. Try and plant them three times the depth of the bulbs – this is when a sturdy bulb planter comes in handy.

TOP TIP! If you’ve noticed dead patches, loose turf and even holes appearing in your lawns, you could be under attack from Leatherjackets – the destructive larvae of crane flies, AKA daddy long legs.
They feed on grassroots and seedlings, and can also attract birds, badgers and foxes that dig up turf in search of a snack, adding to the damage. But there is help at hand.
Nowadays you can basically water in a beneficial nematode – called Steinernema feltiae – which are basically microscopic worms that naturally target and kill leatherjackets. They enter the grubs body and then release bacteria that kill the pest from within. Sounds grim, but it works. There aren’t many brands on the market – I’ve used Nemasys, which was great – but you can also find them from Dragonfli and Dobies online.

TOP TIP! Clean out old pots to make sure they don’t have old compost/bits of dead plants – that can hide pests and diseases over winter and check online to see if you’ve got local recycling – some garden centres take them. 

NEWS! Great Comp Garden’s Bulbs N Things Autumn fair has doubled in size this year. Taking place at the seven-acre Kent garden, it will have a huge range of unusual bulbs, including dwarf iris, crocus, anemone, hyacinth, erythronium, fritillary, hermodactylus, leucojum, muscari, puschkinia, scilla and more. There will also be gardenware, handmade gifts, rare and unusual plants and curated sellers at the two day event October 11 and 12. 

WIN!! Two lucky winners will receive a Westland Autumn Lawncare bundle worth £100 each – including feed, seed, a scarifying rake and aerator. To enter visit www.thesun.co.uk/WestlandAutumn or write to Sun Westland Autumn Lawncare competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. September 27, 2025. T&Cs apply

Jordan Love throws for two touchdowns and 292 yards, while Josh Jacobs scores a rushing touchdown in his 11th straight game as the Green Bay Packers maintain their impressive start to the NFL season.

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Micah Parsons has been traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers in a blockbuster deal one week before the start of a new NFL season.

The defensive end will sign a four-year, $188m (£139m) contract with the Packers that will make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league’s history on $47m (£35m) a year, NFL Network reported.

The Cowboys will receive two first-round draft picks and three-time Pro Bowler Kenny Clark as part of the deal.

The move ends a long-running contract dispute between Parsons and Dallas, which had escalated over the summer.

“I never wanted this chapter to end, but not everything was in my control,” Parsons said in a statement on X, confirming his move to the Packers.

“My heart has always been here, and it still is. Through it all, I never made any demands. I never asked for anything more than fairness. I only asked that the person I trust to negotiate my contract be part of the process.

“This is a sad day, but not a bitter one. I’ll never forget the joy of draft night, the adrenaline of running out of the tunnel, or the brotherhood I shared with my team-mates, coaches and the staff who prepared me for every single game. Those memories are mine forever.”

Parsons, 26, has earned four Pro Bowls and two All-Pro honours with the Cowboys since joining them in 2021 but he was entering the fifth and final year of his rookie contract this season.

He had removed references to the Cowboys from his social media and released a statement earlier this month saying he “no longer wanted to play for the Dallas Cowboys.”

The Packers will take on the Detroit Lions in their regular season opener at Lambeau Field on 7 September and face Dallas in week four.

Irish kicker Mark McNamee made his debut for the Green Bay Packers just a day after landing in the United States.

The Dubliner took all three kick-offs for the Packers in a 30-10 NFL pre-season defeat to the New York Jets on Saturday.

The 25-year-old was part of the 2025 International Player Pathway programme and signed a contract with the Packers in July.

Despite this, his arrival in Wisconsin was delayed as he waited to be granted a visa, which he received last week, leading to him landing in the US the night before the game.

“I landed at about 11pm [the night before the game],” he told reporters after the game.

“The Packers and the immigration lawyers have been great with me in just getting it done, it’s not an easy thing to get a visa. It felt like a long time, but it was only two weeks. It was really quick and I’m really grateful to be here.

“It feels like it’s the beginning, it’s a good moment for me and my family.”

Elsewhere, Derry native Jude McAtamney kicked a 43-yard field goal and an extra point in the New York Giants’ 34-25 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday.

On the surface, all this seems positive. Certainly, reports from inside the club say the sports science team were delighted with the numbers from the early training sessions after Amorim’s players returned for the start of pre-season on 7 July.

This, they reasoned, suggested the players had stuck to a pretty detailed and strict fitness programme to work on during their time off.

This is Manchester United, so there were some commercial appearances, but they have reduced from previous tours.

In fact, potentially the most significant commercial event as far as the club was concerned had no player involvement at all as Lord Coe, chair designate of the Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC) for the Old Trafford regeneration project, was part of a delegation who addressed an audience of Wall Street investment banks and US financiers in New York to try to generate interest in helping to fund the planned £2bn new stadium project.

The fact neither Coe nor chief operating officer Collette Roche, who spoke at length to travelling media about the stadium plans in Los Angeles 12 months earlier, met the press this time suggests strongly nothing significant has changed and the feeling is growing United will not meet an initial five-year timeline minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe spoke of in March.

That is not Amorim’s concern, of course.

He must deliver on the pitch. And to that end, United did look much better than last season.

It was obvious the much-discussed three-man defence splits when Amorim’s team have the ball so, when the build-up begins, the right and left-sided defenders operate as normal central defenders with the middle man of the three – Matthijs de Ligt is in pole position for that role – moves into midfield alongside the deeper of the two chosen for those jobs.

Matheus Cunha definitely brings more invention to Amorim’s attack and Amad Diallo, if selected, is a massive danger offensively at right wing-back, even if questions are asked defensively.

It is clear Amorim feels he can find an upgrade on Rasmus Hojlund, even if many would argue a better use of the funds United do have would be to find someone who can bring physicality and energy to midfield.

Watching the industry of Bournemouth’s Alex Scott emphasises it is a significant weakness in Amorim’s squad.

Nevertheless, as tours go, this has been a fairly calm one. Amorim’s group of players, in general, seem happy enough and the positive spirit needed for any team to be successful does exist.

Yet the reality of modern football is that everything in seen through, and judged by, the prism of results.

The walk through might be an advancement. If United win it will be seen that way. If they lose it will be written off as a terrible idea – even though it is the exactly the same process.

Conceding the winning goal to Tottenham in the Europa League final through a flick off Brennan Johnson – that took a deflection at close range off Luke Shaw and then squeezed in at the corner despite Onana’s desperate attempt to keep it out – has nothing to do with training and everything to do with the small margins managers across the league talk about.

This does seem to be a better United. Amorim is getting his ideas across.

But Arsenal’s upcoming visit to Old Trafford and the 37 Premier Leagues games afterwards will decide whether the progress is real or if pre-season 2025 was just another false dawn.

El Capricho Park, Madrid

El Capricho, on the outskirts of Madrid, is one of the city’s lesser-known parks. It was built in 1784 by the Duke and Duchess of Osuna, and visited by 18th-century artists such as Francisco de Goya. Its 17-hectare gardens were designed by Jean Baptiste Mulot, who also worked on the Petit Trianon gardens at the Palace of Versailles. They are in three sections: Italian, French and English landscape. The park also has a small lake, a labyrinth, a bandstand and a mansion. One fascinating feature is an underground bunker, built in 1937 during the Spanish civil war – there are free guided tours at weekends.
Open weekends and public holidays, 9am-9pm, April to September, then 9am-6.30pm, October to March, esmadrid.com

Onion Garden, London

You’re never far from a garden in London: 20% of the city is public green space, including about 3,000 parks, and it became the world’s first National Park City in 2019. As well as eight royal parks and vast areas of greenery such as Hampstead Heath, the city has numerous hidden havens. One of them is the tiny Onion Garden near Victoria Station and St James’s Park. According to the tour guide Jack Chesher, it was a “derelict concrete corner” until late 2021, when it began to be transformed into the “hanging gardens of Westminster”. The pocket park now has more than 200 species of plants – including a fair few onions – and displays artworks such as mosaic wall art and sculptures. There is a cafe and events including singing, craft workshops and poetry recitals.
Open weekdays 7.30am-5.30pm (until 10pm on Thursdays), weekends 8.30am-4.30pm, theoniongarden.org

Anne Frank Garden, Paris

This little-known walled garden, found down a dead-end road in the Marais, once belonged to the Hotel de Saint-Agnan. The hotel is now the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaisme (mahJ), and the garden, dedicated to Anne Frank, is open to the public. The central plot dates to the 17th century, and there is a small orchard, vegetable garden, pergola and children’s play area. Most moving is the chestnut tree, planted in 2007 from a graft of the tree Anne looked at from her window in Amsterdam and wrote about in her diary. As well as the mahJ, the Pompidou Centre is a short walk away.
Open 10am-9pm in summer, paris.fr

Brera Botanical Garden, Milan

Hidden behind the south wall of the Palazzo Brera in the centre of Milan is an ancient medicinal garden. Humiliati priests grew plants and meditated here in the 14th century, followed by the Jesuits. In 1775, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria ordered it be turned into a botanical garden, and it has been managed by the University of Milan since 1935. The 5,000sq m garden still has its original layout: two oval ponds; an arboretum containing two centuries-old Ginkgo biloba trees and other exotic specimens; and themed flowerbeds (medicinal, Mediterranean, plants used for dyeing, textiles, paper …)
Open 10am-6pm, Monday to Saturday, until 31 October, then 9.30am-4.30pm, until 31 March, ortibotanici.unimi.it

Centralbadets Garden, Stockholm

Right in the middle of Stockholm, off the main shopping street of Drottninggatan, is a hidden courtyard garden. In the 18th century, it was the garden of the farm where the architect Carl Hårleman lived – two of the pear trees are thought to date from this period. Another architect, Willhelm Klemming, bought the property in 1901, renovated the garden and built the Centralbadets in 1904 – still an affordable day spa today. The lush little garden has a pond with a water sculpture, flowerbeds, winding paths and shady places to sit. There are three adjacent restaurants, all with outdoor tables.
Closed at night, parker.stockholm

The Garden of the Royal Library, Copenhagen

Hidden between Christiansborg Palace and the Royal Library in a historic part of central Copenhagen is a tranquil public garden. The garden was built in 1920 on top of Tøjhushavnen, an old naval port. Reminders of this maritime past include a pond in the middle of the garden, with an eight-metre-high column that shoots a spout of water every hour on the hour, and an old mooring ring at one end. There is also a statue of the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, whose manuscripts are in the library’s collection and occasionally go on display. There are benches under the trees to sit quietly with your own book.
Open 6am-10pm year-round, visitcopenhagen.com

Károlyi-kert, Budapest

Tucked away in the palace district, the Károlyi-kert is thought to be Budapest’s oldest garden, and contains Hungary’s oldest mulberry tree. It was once the private garden of the Károlyi Palace, and has been a public park since 1932 (don’t be deterred by the forbidding-looking iron railings). It is a mix of styles: geometric central flowerbeds and fountain, and English-style paths and plant arrangements. There is a children’s playground and a statue of a beloved late resident: Károly, a Belgian giant rabbit. The wine bar and restaurant Csendes Társ is next to the park and has outdoor tables right outside the gate.
Open 8am-9pm in summer, welovebudapest.com

University Library Roof Garden, Warsaw

The landscaped garden on top of the University of Warsaw’s library is one of the biggest roof gardens in Europe, at more than a hectare (2.5 acres). It opened in 2002 and remains a little-known escape from the busy Powiśle district. A gentle slope leads to the lower garden, which has a duck pond and a series of granite sculptures. The upper garden is divided into four colourful sections: gold, silver, red and green. The areas are connected by paths, bridges and pergolas, and a cascading water feature joins the upper and lower parts. The garden has panoramic views of the Warsaw skyline.
Upper garden open from April to October, lower garden open year-round, en.uw.edu.pl

Vrtba Garden, Prague

Although it is close to sights such as Charles Bridge and Lesser Town Square, this terraced garden on Petřín hill is hard to find. Visitors who seek it out are rewarded with baroque beauty. The Italianate garden was created around 1720 on the site of Vrtbovský Palace’s former vineyards. Three terraced platforms, connected by steps, are full of hornbeams, yews, and tens of thousands of flowers and shrubs. The gardens are decorated with statues, vases and paintings, and a ceremonial lighting event is held twice a year. From the pavilion on the top terrace, there are views of the castle, cathedral and old and new towns.
£5 adults/£4 children/£15 families, open 10am-7pm, April to October, prague.eu

Diomedes Botanical Gardens, Athens

The National Garden in central Athens is a well-known attraction, but the city also has a lesser-known botanic garden, a 20-minute bus ride away. Most of this vast, 186-hectare (460-acre) green space is left as a natural habitat, but 11% (about 20 hectares) is cultivated and contains more than 2,500 plant species. Visitors can walk through the arboretum, with trees from most continents; the ornamental plants section, with 15 flowerbeds and 25 ponds; the historic plants sections, with species recorded by ancient Greeks; and many more – medicinal and aromatic plants, plants of economic importance, hothouse plants, rare plants … There is also a small cafe.
Open weekdays 8am-2pm, weekends and holidays 10am-3pm, closed in August, diomedes-bg.uoa.gr

ONE popular London swim spot is getting a huge makeover with new facilities and green spaces.

The West Reservoir Centre in Stoke Newington that’s been open to swimmers for 20 years is getting an upgrade.

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Found in north London the West Reservoir Centre sees thousands descend on the reservoir for open-water swimming, sailing and kayaking courses.

While the reservoir is about to undergo a transformation, the actual water isn’t – because it’s a reservoir.

Instead, the surrounding area will become much more accessible and greener, too.

The goal is to create “a more welcoming destination for both local residents and visitors.”

Designs reveal a new cafe, reception area, grass edge and two accessible entrances.

Other additions include modern changing rooms and cycle parking spaces to encourage biking to the reservoir.

There will be new accessible bridges built over the north and south parts of New River.

Plus, a new walkway on the east side of the reservoir will be created.

The website states that the centre will remain open throughout the project “for the thousands of people who visit the site each week for open water swimming and water sports.”

The work is expected to be completed by summer 2026 at a cost of close to £3.5 million.

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It’s all being funded by the Greater London Authority as an effort to improve community spaces and create a better space for the people of Stoke Newington.

Caroline Woodley, Hackney mayor, said that the changes are “about so much more than bricks and mortar”.

She continued to describe the centre as “one of Hackney’s hidden gems, a place where communities connect with nature, get active and enjoy some of the borough’s most stunning open-water views.”

The reservoir has a number of swim courses ranging from a 100m warm up lap to a 300m loop.

As it’s an outdoor course, they are dependent on weather conditions and water temperature.

At West Reservoir Centre, the cost for a single open water swim is £10 for non-members and £7.70 for Pay As You Go members.

Another popular lido is Brockwell which the AA revealed to be the best in the country.

The south-west London lido features a 1930s art deco, Grade II listed building, a large 50m pool and even it’s own cafe.

Anyone not keen on swimming can visit the sauna, and there are plenty of spots to sunbathe too.

Plus, I’ve found the little-known lidos in the UK to visit ahead of 33C weather – there are no queues and some are even free.

All the lidos in the UK mapped – with water slides, cocktail bars and some are even free to enter.

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to set aside an effort to impeach President Trump on a sole charge of abuse of power after he launched military strikes on Iran without first seeking authorization from Congress.

The sudden action forced by a lone Democrat, Rep. Al Green of Texas, brought little debate and split his party. Most Democrats joined the Republican majority to table the measure for now. But dozens of Democrats backed Green’s effort. The tally was 344 to 79.

“I take no delight in what I’m doing,” Green said before the vote.

“I do this because no one person should have the power to take over 300 million people to war without consulting with the Congress of the United States of America,” he said. “I do this because I understand that the Constitution is going to be meaningful or it’s going to be meaningless.”

The effort, while not the first rumblings of actions to impeach Trump since he started his second term in January, shows the unease many Democrats have with his administration, particularly after the sudden attack on Iran’s nuclear sites, a risky incursion into Middle East affairs.

Trump earlier Tuesday lashed out in vulgar terms against another Democrat, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, for having suggested his military action against Iran was an impeachable offense.

House Democratic leadership was careful to not directly criticize Green, but also made clear that their focus was on other issues. Impeachment matters are typically considered a vote of conscience, without pressure from leadership to vote a certain way.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Redlands), chair of the House Democratic caucus, said lawmakers will “represent their constituents and their communities.”

“At this time, at this moment, we are focusing on what this big, ugly bill is going to do,” he said about the big Trump tax breaks package making its way through Congress. “I think anything outside of that is a distraction because this is the most important thing that we can focus on.”

Trump was twice impeached by House Democrats during his first term, in 2019 over withholding funds to Ukraine as it faced military aggression from Russia, and in 2021 on the charge of inciting an insurrection after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by his supporters trying to stop Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory.

In both of those impeachment cases, the Senate acquitted Trump of charges, allowing his return to the presidency this year.

Green, who had filed earlier articles of impeachment against the president this year, has been a consistent voice speaking out against Trump’s actions, which he warns is America’s slide toward authoritarianism.

The congressman told the AP earlier in the day that he wanted to force the vote to show that at least one member of Congress was watching the president’s action and working to keep the White House in check.

Mascaro and Freking write for the Associated Press. AP writer Joey Cappelletti contributed to this report.

Phoenix Suns All-Star forward Kevin Durant will join his fifth NBA team after being traded to the Houston Rockets.

The Houston Rockets are acquiring 15-time All-Star forward Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for guard Jalen Green and forward Dillon Brooks as well as the number 10 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and five second-round picks, ESPN reported on Sunday.

The trade can be completed when the new league year for the US National Basketball Association (NBA) begins on July 6. At that point, Durant will be eligible to sign a two-year extension worth up to $122m.

Durant has one season left on his current deal and is set to earn $54.7m in 2025-26.

Durant will join a Rockets team that finished the regular season as the second seed in the Western Conference. The star forward will join All-Star Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson and Fred VanVleet, among others, in Houston.

Durant, who turns 37 in September, played in 62 games with the Suns in 2024-25. He averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 blocks, not far off of his career averages. He also shot 43.0 percent from three-point range.

Selected to the All-NBA first team six times, Durant has appeared in 1,123 games with the Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder (2007-16), Golden State Warriors (2016-19), Brooklyn Nets (2020-23) and Suns. He has career averages of 27.2 points, 7.0 rebounds. 4.4 assists and 1.1 blocks, shooting 39 percent from long distance.

Green, 23, averaged 21.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists while starting in all 82 games this season. He now ventures to Phoenix to join All-Star Devin Booker in a potent backcourt.

He has contributed 20.1 points, 4.3 boards and 3.4 assists in 307 games since being selected by the Rockets with the second overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft.

Brooks, 29, averaged 14.0 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 75 games this season.

He has contributed 14.2 points, 3.2 boards and 2.0 assists in 492 games with the Memphis Grizzlies (2017-23) and Rockets. He was selected by Houston in the second round of the 2017 NBA Draft.

The Trump administration has argued that Khalil, a Columbia University student, did not disclose past affiliations.

A United States federal judge has allowed the administration of President Donald Trump to keep student protester Mahmoud Khalil in custody based on allegations of immigration fraud.

On Friday, Judge Michael Farbiarz of Newark, New Jersey, ruled that Khalil’s legal team had not adequately shown why his detention on the charge would be unlawful.

It was a major setback for Khalil, who had been a negotiator for the student protesters at Columbia University demonstrating against Israel’s war on Gaza. He was the first high-profile protester to be arrested under Trump’s campaign to expel foreign students who participated in pro-Palestinian advocacy.

Just this week, Farbiarz appeared poised to order Khalil’s release, on the basis that his detention under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 was unconstitutional.

That law stipulates that the secretary of state – in this case, Marco Rubio – has the power to remove foreign nationals who have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States”. But Farbiarz ruled that Rubio’s use of the law violated Khalil’s freedom of speech.

Still, the Trump administration filed additional court papers saying it had another reason for wanting to deport Khalil.

It alleged that Khalil, a permanent US resident, had omitted information from his green-card application that would have otherwise disqualified him from gaining residency.

The Trump administration has long accused Khalil of supporting terrorism through his protest-related activities, something the former graduate student has vehemently denied.

In the case of his green-card application, it argues that Khalil failed to disclose his work with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), a humanitarian organisation. Politicians in Israel and the US have accused UNRWA of ties to the armed group Hamas, an allegation reportedly made without evidence.

Khalil, however, has denied he was ever an “officer” in UNRWA, as alleged. Instead, his legal team points out that he completed a United Nations internship through Columbia University.

The Trump administration also argues that Khalil did not accurately identify the length of his employment with the Syria Office of the British Embassy in Beirut. Khalil and his legal team, meanwhile, say he accurately identified his departure date from the job as December 2022.

Judge Farbiarz had set Friday morning as a deadline for the Trump administration to appeal Khalil’s release on bail. But that deadline was extended to give the government more time to challenge Khalil’s release.

Ultimately, Farbiarz allowed the Trump administration to continue its detention of Khalil. He advised Khalil’s lawyers to seek release on bail from the immigration court where his deportation trial is being held in Louisiana.

Farbiarz had been weighing a separate habeas corpus petition from the Khalil team that called into question the constitutionality of his continued detention.

Marc Van Der Hout, a lawyer for Khalil, told the Reuters news agency that immigration fraud charges are exceedingly rare, and the Trump administration’s use of such charges was simply a political manoeuvre to keep Khalil in lock-up.

“Detaining someone on a charge like this is highly unusual and frankly outrageous,” said Van Der Hout. “There continues to be no constitutional basis for his detention.”

Another lawyer representing Khalil, Amy Greer, described the new allegations against his green-card application as part of the government’s “cruel, transparent delay tactics”. She noted that Khalil, a new father whose child was born in April, would miss his first Father’s Day, which falls this Sunday in the US.

“Instead of celebrating together, he is languishing in ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] detention as punishment for his advocacy on behalf of his fellow Palestinians,” Greer said in a statement.

“It is unjust, it is shocking, and it is disgraceful.”