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In a small mountain town you may stumble across hundreds of half-built., abandoned homes that resemble castles. While this development had big dreams, the plans never came into fruition

Imagine living in your very own miniature château, a three-storey villa that had gothic-inspired architecture with turrets and balustrades that made it resemble Cinderella’s castle at Disney World.

One housing developer had this dream, and it was set to build 732 of these unusual homes in a small town not far from Istanbul. But sadly, despite many homebuyers looking to buy into this unique community, it now lies abandoned 12 years after construction began.

While the houses looked straight out of a Disney film, they were actually inspired by Istanbul landmarks including the medieval Galata Tower and the Maiden’s Tower from Istanbul. The name of the development, Burj Al Babas, translates as ‘tower of Babas’ in Arabic, and came from the nearby Babas thermal springs. Each castle was set to have its own pipeline to the waters to create luxurious indoor swimming pools.

But the plans didn’t stop at rows and rows of castles. If completed, lucky residents would have had access to a huge domed complex with a shopping centre, mosque, cinema, and hammam, creating an entire community in the mountains. The relatively cool weather in the area was also seen as a selling point, allowing people from nearby Middle East countries to escape the worst of the summer heat.

The castles were listed in a glossy brochure, with prices ranging from $370,000 to $530,000, about £278,500 and £400,000, a modest sum to live in your own château. But despite half the castles being sold in advance, mostly to buyers from the Gulf states, not a single moving van made it to the complex.

As soon as construction began in 2014, with the aim of finishing in four years, it started to hit several snags. Firstly, contractors complained that the disposal of rubble had breached environmental laws, and a year later, workers protested that they hadn’t been paid. Contractors soon pulled out and started the long legal process of trying to reclaim their lost wages.

Add a failed military coup and bad luck with weather, and the construction soon fell behind schedule. Sales stalled too, due to the country’s instability at the time, and the lack of cash flow soon put the developer into bankruptcy.

Not a single castle was completed as of 2022, and there are 587 half-built castles on the plot, with the exposure to the elements likely causing water damage in many of them as time goes on.

As recently as 2024, there was renewed interest in the development with the Emir of Kuwait visiting President Erdoğan, and it was reported that Burj Al Babas was discussed. The Guardian were also given a tour of the site in the same year by Adem Tekgöz, a representative of developers the Sarot Group, who claimed: “It gets cold in the winter, so we stopped construction. We’re preparing to restart next summer”.

However, as of 2026 there appears to be no trace of the Sarot Group online and still no word as to whether the project will ever be restarted, leaving a ghost town rather than a fairytale village.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

In the United Arab Emirates, women hold half of all parliamentary seats, a threshold reached by only six national legislatures on Earth. In Afghanistan, a fellow member of the same fifty seven nation bloc, girls are barred by law from any education beyond primary school, the only country where that is true. On July 12 and 13, 2026, delegates from all fifty seven states gathered in Islamabad to adopt a single shared declaration on women’s empowerment. The distance between those two realities is the actual subject the declaration had to confront, whether its authors framed it that way or not.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation represents fifty seven states and close to 1.9 billion people, a demographic scale matched by few multilateral bodies. What it conspicuously lacks is a shared starting point on gender equality, and the scale of that lack is easy to understate until the two ends of the distribution are placed side by side. The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2025 ranks the United Arab Emirates 69th of 146 economies overall, with full parliamentary parity and women occupying nearly two thirds of federal leadership roles. It ranks Bangladesh 24th of 148, the strongest performer in South Asia for a second consecutive year, having closed 73 percent of its overall gender gap after decades of expanding a legislative quota from 7 percent of seats to 30. At the opposite pole, three of the only five economies anywhere in the world governed by an entirely male cabinet, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia, are OIC members, and Oman remains the sole national parliament on the planet with no women seated in it at all. Afghanistan sits outside even that range. It is the only country on Earth barring girls from secondary and higher education by law, a policy that currently excludes close to 2.2 million girls from formal schooling altogether.

This is the span the Islamabad Declaration was written into, and it is worth pausing on what that span actually implies. A framework broad enough to be endorsed by both Abu Dhabi and Kabul’s immediate neighbors within the same bloc can, almost by construction, say very little about what any single government is actually required to do. Language capacious enough to cover a country with full parliamentary parity and a country that bars girls from secondary school is language calibrated for consensus, not for consequence. The more useful question, then, is not whether the declaration reads as ambitious, most instruments of this kind do, but whether the bloc has built, or shows any sign of building, a mechanism capable of moving its weakest performers rather than simply narrating the achievements of its strongest.

Where the record earns genuine credit

Some of what the OIC claims for itself withstands scrutiny, and is worth crediting on its own terms rather than dissolved into a general skepticism about summit diplomacy. Female enrollment in tertiary education has expanded meaningfully across member states, and the bloc’s own reporting places women at just over 39 percent of researchers across OIC countries, ahead of the roughly 34 percent global average. Maternal and child health outcomes have improved alongside it. But the most persuasive evidence for what actually moves the needle sits not in the declaration’s language but in the legislative record beneath it. Global data from the Inter Parliamentary Union shows that countries employing electoral quotas elected women at a rate of 31.2 percent in 2024, against 16.8 percent in countries without them, a gap of nearly two to one that survives across regions and income levels. Bangladesh’s own trajectory, from a 7 percent quota to 30, tracks that pattern almost precisely, and the United Arab Emirates reached full parliamentary parity through a comparable top down legal commitment rather than the slow accretion of social change. Where OIC member states have adopted binding, specific instruments, quotas above all others, the results are visible and replicable in the data. That is a genuine and transferable finding, and it rests on firmer ground than most of the rhetoric surrounding it.

The economic weakness the whole bloc shares, to varying degrees

Set the political headlines aside and the bloc’s collective vulnerability comes into sharper focus around economic participation. The OIC’s own assessment puts female labor force participation across member states at roughly 41 percent against 76 percent for men, and estimates some 106 million young people across the bloc as neither employed, in education, nor in training, with young women disproportionately represented among them. Southern Asia, the region anchoring several of the OIC’s most populous members, registers the weakest economic participation score of any region tracked in the Global Gender Gap Report, a full thirty five points separating its best and worst performing economies from one another. Even the UAE and Bangladesh, the bloc’s clearest political success stories, have not resolved this dimension with anything like the completeness they have brought to representation, which suggests economic inclusion answers to different levers than legislative quotas do, and that the declaration’s language on finance, entrepreneurship, and employment access is, whether by design or accident, aimed at the harder of the bloc’s two structural problems.

The test the declaration cannot argue its way around

Afghanistan is where the claim that voluntary declarations carry real weight meets its sharpest and least forgiving test. At the same Islamabad conference, delegates stated plainly that the Taliban’s restrictions on women harm the image of Islam and are inconsistent with Islamic teaching, echoing an OIC position from previous years that described the restrictions as contrary to the faith the bloc exists to represent. The Muslim World League, the largest Islamic non governmental organization in the world, has separately and repeatedly urged the Taliban to reverse the bans. The response from Kabul has been unambiguous. Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has told international audiences that women’s rights are fully protected under the group’s interpretation of Sharia, and Taliban officials have characterized the education ban as an internal matter closed to outside comment, a position firm enough to have stalled unrelated talks over frozen central bank assets as recently as May 2026.

The stakes of this reach well beyond Afghanistan’s borders. If the bloc’s most unified and most theologically grounded criticism, the accusation that a member state’s policy is contrary to Islam itself, produces no observable change in that state’s conduct, it becomes a reasonable proxy for how much practical force softer, less unified language on labor force participation or quota adoption is likely to carry anywhere else in the bloc. The Islamabad Declaration has no enforcement mechanism for Afghanistan, and, tellingly, does not appear to need one in order to be adopted, since adoption requires only consensus on wording, not compliance with it.

Taking the structural counterargument seriously

There is a coherent case that expecting more than this from the OIC misreads what kind of institution it actually is. A consensus body spanning constitutional monarchies, parliamentary republics, and a Taliban administered emirate cannot plausibly issue binding standards on domestic labor law or family structure without member states either declining to sign or signing without any intention of compliance, an outcome arguably worse than the present voluntary model. Under this reading, the declaration’s proper function is to establish a shared reference point and let reputational pressure and peer example, the UAE and Bangladesh held up as internal proof of concept, do the work that binding law structurally cannot. The newly launched Islamabad Initiative on Women’s Digital Inclusion, a voluntary platform for digital literacy, entrepreneurship, and technology access, is built entirely on that theory of change: participation by choice rather than compliance by mandate. Judged against that more modest theory rather than against an enforcement standard it was never designed to meet, the declaration may be performing precisely as intended, and the fair critique is not that it fails at its stated purpose, but that its stated purpose may simply be too modest for the scale of the problem it describes.

Three paths from here

The most probable trajectory, roughly half of plausible outcomes by our estimate, is that the demonstration effect model continues largely undisturbed: the UAE and Bangladesh keep improving and are cited internally as proof the model works, the bloc’s lowest tier, Afghanistan most starkly, remains unmoved by rhetorical pressure however strongly it is worded, and the aggregate figures stay roughly flat because gains concentrated at the top fail to transmit downward through the distribution.

A second and less likely path, perhaps three in ten, sees middle tier member states, those possessing neither the UAE’s resources nor Afghanistan’s total exclusion, adopting elements of the proposed Gender Equality Dashboard or the digital inclusion platform in a genuine if partial way, narrowing the bloc’s middle even while its extremes remain fixed in place.

A third and least likely path, perhaps one in five, involves the range widening further still, driven by continuing instability among the bloc’s weakest performers, Afghanistan foremost among them but potentially compounded by conflict or governance stress elsewhere, at a pace that outstrips whatever gains the top and middle of the distribution manage to produce.

The indicator worth watching

The clearest available test is not whether the OIC issues further statements on Afghanistan, since it plainly will, but whether the Gender Equality Dashboard or the Digital Inclusion Initiative produces any actual, published, comparative country level data within the current reporting cycle. A voluntary framework that generates public comparison functions differently, in practice, from one that generates only communiques, since comparison is the mechanism from which reputational pressure, the model’s only real lever, actually derives. A second and narrower indicator is whether Afghanistan’s formal relationship with OIC gender programming registers any change whatsoever, even nominal engagement, as distinct from continued flat rejection, since that alone would be the first sign that unified religious framing carries weight the bloc’s other instruments do not.

What this means for institutional readers

For Western multilateral institutions and United Nations agencies, the OIC’s internal variance means that a single engagement strategy toward the bloc on gender issues is analytically weak on its face. The UAE and Bangladesh are credible technical partners on quota design and implementation, while engagement on Afghanistan specifically should continue to run primarily through humanitarian and human rights channels, given that the OIC’s own most unified criticism has already been tested there and found to carry no observable weight.

For investors and development finance institutions assessing exposure across OIC economies, a female labor force participation range running from roughly 22 percent to over 70 percent within a single fifty seven member bloc constitutes one of the more differentiated and independently checkable indicators available for human capital and productivity due diligence on any individual member state, and merits assessment country by country rather than reliance on the bloc’s aggregate language.

For rights focused organizations and donors, the quota evidence, 31.2 percent representation where legal quotas exist against 16.8 percent where they do not, is the single most defensible, causally grounded policy argument available to press within OIC forums, considerably more persuasive than the broader declaratory commitments on empowerment that lack a comparably rigorous evidentiary foundation.

It was a very warm homecoming at the box office this weekend for Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” as the star-studded epic grossed $124.5 million in the U.S. and Canada, a welcome and massive jolt for theaters after a series of slower weeks.

The Universal Pictures film’s haul outperformed studio expectations of a $117 million domestic opening and set a record for the highest-grossing opening weekend for a live-action or R-rated film so far this year.

“The Odyssey” now ranks as the third-highest domestic debut of 2026, trailing only Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story 5” ($159.7 million) and Universal, Illumination and Nintendo’s “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” ($131.7 million).

The film, which stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, brought in a total of $264.1 million worldwide, according to studio estimates. That marks the biggest global opening ever for a Nolan film.

“The Odyssey” was produced by Nolan and his wife and producing partner Emma Thomas for their company, Syncopy, and had a production budget of about $200 million to $250 million.

“It delivers on every sort of promise,” said Jim Orr, Universal’s president of domestic distribution. “It is totally immersive. It is great emotional storytelling. It is something that truly has to be experienced on the big screen.”

The nearly three-hour epic is the first feature to be shot entirely on Imax cameras, a feat that required extensive cooperation between Nolan and the Canadian entertainment tech company, which operates out of Playa Vista.

Nolan first told Imax Chief Executive Rich Gelfond in early 2024 that he was considering making an entire film with Imax cameras and laid out what he’d need for that to happen, including a quieter and lighter camera, a way to make film reloads easier and getting enough trained projectionists.

“It took a fair amount of time and investment” to figure out those challenges, Gelfond said. But by August 2024, the Imax team put together a series of tests to show cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema. Two months later, Nolan saw the tests and was impressed.

“As filmmakers and studios integrate Imax, we become an increasingly important part of the ecosystem,” Gelfond said. “When a film is released in Imax or shot in Imax, I think it’s a signal to audiences that it’s somewhat special, and the filmmaker is really leaning in in a unique way.”

Anticipation for the film has been building for at least a year, when the first Imax 70mm tickets went on sale. Pre-sales for “The Odyssey” shattered the previous Imax record by nearly double, the company said.

Enhanced formats made up 53% of the domestic weekend’s total, with both film and digital Imax revenue comprising 23.8%. Imax 70mm comprised about 4% of that total, with Imax digital making up the rest. Non-Imax 70mm film screening revenue totaled 3%, while 35mm showings made up 0.3%.

Adding to the film’s mystique is Nolan’s reliance on old-school Hollywood practical effects, such as his use of puppetry, animatronics and robotics in scenes with the Cyclops, as well as a real Viking boat that the actors learned to sail.

The massive reception for the film is a relief for theater owners, who weathered their own rough waters in the last few weeks, as Walt Disney Co.’s live-action “Moana” underperformed in its opening at the box office and Universal and Illumination’s “Minions & Monsters” had a softer debut.

“Moana” came in second at the box office this weekend with a domestic haul of $19 million. “Minions & Monsters” ($14.8 million), “Toy Story 5” ($14.8 million) and Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Evil Dead Burn” ($5 million) rounded out the top five, according to data from Rentrak.

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been arrested in the US after British authorities issued 38 new charges against the pair.

The UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Andrew was being charged with seven further counts of rape, as well as charges relating to sex trafficking and indecent images of a child.

Tristan’s charges include two counts of rape and three counts of arranging or facilitating trafficking for sexual exploitation.

The total number of charges against the brothers is now 59, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire police said.

The alleged offending is said to have taken place between July 2010 and August 2017. The Tates have previously denied any wrongdoing.

Following their arrest, prosecutors will begin legal proceeding to extradite the brothers, who are dual British-US citizens, to the UK, the CPS said.

“These charging decisions followed receipt of a further file of evidence from Bedfordshire Police and bring the total number of alleged victims in this case to seven,” Malcolm McHaffie, Head of the Special Crime Division at the CPS, said.

Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire police have been investigating a number of offences in what it called a “complex investigation”.

As a result, 38 new charges were authorised against the brothers, meaning Andrew, 39, faces a total of 42 charges in the UK and Tristan, 37, faces 17.

Ever wondered what it’s like travelling from the UK to Spain without any flying involved? One woman recently embarked on the journey and it surprised quite a few people

Travelling to another country is exciting, but not when you have a nervous fear of flying. Whether it’s the stress of airport security or even missing your flight, it can become a huge anxiety for many travellers.

One woman recently showed how you can travel from London to Spain – without any flight involved. The great thing is, once you’re in France, travelling across mainland Europe can be quite straight-forward. Although it’s a given travelling via plane is a lot more quicker than car or train, but you don’t get the sense of adventure as much as you would by train where you take in the sights.

Spending two days on her trip, Claire decided to embark on the journey from London St Pancras where she rode the Eurostar to Paris. She said on TikTok under the name Claire’s Footsteps: “You can travel overland from London to Malaga in two days and this is how much it costs.

“First take the Eurostar from London to Paris and there are trains available for around £49. You can either stay in Paris for a night or take the 2:42pm train to Barcelona, this costs around £89 and arrives into Barcelona at 9:32pm.”

She said hotels close to Barcelona Sants, which is the city’s largest and most important railway station, cost around £65, although this varies on time of year.

The traveller added: “You could stay for two nights and see more of Barcelona or stop off at any of these nearby cities – Figueres, Girona, Zaragoza and many more options – and see them too.”

As for the next day, Claire boarded a direct train to Malaga at around 11am, arriving just before 6pm – a journey that set her back £58.

In the clip, she revealed the total cost of the trip, including one night’s accommodation, came to £265. People in the comments section appeared amazed by the total cost, although someone said it was time-consuming.

Someone else said: “I would,” while a second added: “Yes absolutely.”

It’s worth bearing in mind the overall cost of the trip can differ depending on when you book as this is just a guideline.

Claire, who provided a thorough breakdown of the journey in her caption, claimed: “The schedule shown allows travel across two calendar days: Day 1 London to Paris (and optionally Paris to Barcelona), overnight in/near Barcelona Day 2 Barcelona to Malaga.

“Staying two nights in Barcelona is an option if you prefer sightseeing or a more relaxed pace. What to consider before booking: Fares fluctuate with availability and sales; check Eurostar and rail operator sites for current prices.

“Connect times: allow buffer for delays between service if changing stations or transferring luggage. Accommodation near Barcelona Sants is convenient for the morning departure to Malaga.”

She also noted the overland journey from London to Malaga across two days is entirely doable and can amount to roughly £265 based on the example prices provided.

So will you be trying this trip? Let us know in the comments below…

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

LEGEND GONE

Bonnie Tyler dies aged 75 – weeks after undergoing emergency surgery

HEALTH FEARS

Bonnie Tyler wakes up from coma in Portugal after ‘suffering cardiac arrest’

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Over the years she also released over 15 studio albums.

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

It stayed in the charts for an amazing 45 weeks.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

United States goalkeeper Matt Freese makes a huge error in judgement when he gifts Belgium’s Hans Vanaken the ball, leaving him with an easy finish. Errors all around as Belgium take control of the last-16 tie.

REPORT: US 1-4 Belgium

Available to UK users only.

A new South Korean action thriller has taken Netflix by storm with fans desperate to see more.

Netflix fans are eager to find out what happens next following Agent Kim Reactivated’s jaw-dropping premiere.

Netflix has just unveiled a new action thriller starring So Ji-sub in the titular role of Agent Kim, and it is already climbing the UK Top 10 chart.

Based on the webtoon Manager Kim, the series, which is one of many Netflix k-dramas, follows an ordinary, hardworking father who is forced to reveal his secret identity to rescue his missing daughter.

The series premiered on SBS TV on June 26 and the episodes are also streaming on Netflix, however, only two instalments have been released so far. The epic premiere introduced Kim Do-hyeon, a former North-South Korean covert operative who retired to fulfil his late wife’s wishes.

But when his daughter, Min-ji, is kidnapped, Kim jumps back into action and he quickly draws the attention of the National Special Missions Bureau. Here is all you need to know about how many episodes are in the series.

How many episodes in Agent Kim Reactivated?

As the series continues, Kim comes across two other fathers who are also former operatives: Seong Han-su (Choi Dae-hoon) and Park Jin-cheol (Yoon Kyung-ho). Together, they face opposition from various figures, including a construction executive and a North Korean agent.

Fans have already been left hooked after two episodes and they are keen to find out how many there are in total.

The entire series is made up of 10 episodes, with two episodes airing each week, on Fridays and Saturdays. The final two episodes are expected to drop on July 24 and 25.

Viewership figures have been released for the first two episodes, with 1.9million people watching episode one and 3.2million people watching episode two.

The huge jump in viewership is expected to continue as fans eagerly await the next two episodes on July 3 and July 4. The weekly release approach is unusual for Netflix as the streamer tends to drop all episodes at the same time for most shows.

Fans have taken to IMDb reviews to share their thoughts on the series so far, with one saying: “One of the most brutal k-dramas. Emotional as well.

“I have watch a lot of Action-thriller film and series from Korea, most of them were the same. Thrilling, yes, but not emotional in a way that makes my heartbeat escalated. Yet this k-drama gave me that feeling.”

Another said: “I think the first episode was already superbly done, it was so much fun to finally watch it, and I’m already looking forward to the next episodes of the series.”

A third shared: “Agent Kim Reactivated has already pulled me in completely. The story starts on a strong note, setting up an intriguing plot with excellent pacing, suspense, and enough mystery to keep you wanting the next episode immediately.”

Agent Kim Reactivated airs on Netflix with two episodes airing each week, on Fridays and Saturdays.

His 7-6 record at USC in 2024 would go down as the worst mark of Lincoln Riley’s career as a head football coach. But in his third and rockiest year at the helm of the Trojans, Riley was still compensated like one of the kings of the sport.

Riley was paid more than $11.8 million in total compensation during the fiscal year 2024, according to USC’s latest federal tax returns, which were obtained by The Times. That total includes a $100,000 bonus and $10.4 million in base pay, believed to be more than all but three college football coaches that season: Georgia’s Kirby Smart, Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Ohio State’s Ryan Day. All three have won a national title.

For Riley, his pay in 2024 marks just a slight increase from the 2023 season, when USC paid Riley more than $11.5 million in total compensation. The coach’s base pay increased by $145,143 between fiscal years 2023 and 2024, slightly less than it rose following his debut season in 2022 ($168,000).

At least in 2024, USC only had to pay one football coach, after paying Clay Helton a combined $9 million not to coach over the two previous years.

The school would, however, have to pay up a bit to bring in a new men’s basketball coach.

After Andy Enfield left to coach Southern Methodist after the 2023-24 season, USC shelled out more than $6.1 million total in 2024 to lure coach Eric Musselman from Arkansas, according to the university’s latest federal tax records. One million of that was paid to Arkansas to buy out Musselman’s contract.

That puts Musselman at a reported $5.1 million in total pay and benefits from the school in 2024, according to the school’s tax records. That total likely includes additional costs unique to a coaching change. But altogether, it would have ranked Musselman among the highest-paid coaches in the Big Ten for the 2024-25 season.

Musselman didn’t exactly deliver on that investment during the 2024-25 season, as USC bottomed out during its first Big Ten men’s basketball slate. The Trojans finished 17-18 and 7-13 in the Big Ten.

After including her information in tax forms from the previous year, the university did not disclose compensation figures from 2024 for USC athletic director Jennifer Cohen. Federal tax returns filed last May had credited Cohen with more than $3 million in reportable compensation in her first year on the job, $1 million of which was used to buy out Cohen from her Washington contract.

One savvy traveller has found an alternative way to jet off abroad that not only saves money, but also allows her to visit a plethora of destinations throughout the year

A woman has remarkably been able to visit seven countries in a year for less than £2,000.

Flights can be notoriously expensive, especially to those sought-after destinations. Even flights that are just for a few hours can quickly cost hundreds of pounds, leaving holidaymakers questioning their getaway to Europe.

Yet, that wasn’t going to stop Helen Dalling, 55, from travelling last year. Instead, she looked for alternative ways to travel that not only saved money but also ticked off a plethora of holiday destinations.

In a bid to travel as much as possible and to keep costs considerably low, Helen, from Milton Keynes, swapped longer getaways for short escapes. Some were extreme day trips flying to and from the destination within 24 hours, while others offered an overnight stay.

“I’ve always loved travelling, but as I’m getting older and I’ve got kids and I work full-time, I thought ‘I’m not going to see enough countries in the world’,” Helen told creatorzine.com. “‘If I don’t start going to see a few of them, I need to do them quick and cheap’. That’s really why I started doing it.”

While it’s certainly a little more hectic than a week-long beach getaway, the change in travel meant that the 55-year-old was able to visit seven countries last year for around £1,600. This included the costs of flights, airport parking, hotels, sightseeing, food and drink, and spending money.

In 2025, Helen travelled to Paris, Budapest, Alicante, Malaga, Split, Prague, Amsterdam, and Geneva twice. It varied how long she would stay in each destination, from just a few hours to an overnight stay.

“I went to seven brand new countries”, Helen said. “That’s what I really wanted to do, I thought, ‘I’ve never been to Hungary, so let’s go to Budapest’.”

To help keep costs as low as possible, Helen regularly looks out for deals from different airlines that fly from her nearest airport, London Luton. “When I went to Paris, I was basically just browsing on New Year’s Day, not doing much else, and I spotted that you could get a flight to Paris for £13, one way and £12 the other”, she revealed. “I just booked it – and then when I told a friend, she booked it too and came with me.”

Helen continued: “The Budapest flights were about £8.99 each way; you can’t even get them that cheap anymore. I’ve done others that were £15-£20 return; I just book them – when I see the price, I just go for it.”

While she sometimes travels solo, it’s often a great chance to catch up with friends on an extreme day trip. “Instead of going to London for lunch, let’s go somewhere for the day,” Helen said.

“I did Geneva twice last year, but the second one I did at Christmas was with a real old friend of mine who is really into her food. So we went and did a foodie trip to the Christmas markets in Geneva and just went for the day – she’d never done one.

“Everybody that I’ve done one with has said ‘Oh my God, that was amazing’. I’ve got a bit of a queue of people wanting to go as well, but only so much money.”

After visiting seven countries last year, Budapest, which cost £191 for an overnight stay, stood out for Helen. “We just fell in love with Budapest,” she said. “Every time we did something else afterwards, I just said to my friend, ‘It’s not Budapest, though, is it? It’s not Budapest.’

“It was February when we did that, but the sky was blue, and we had the best time.

“It was super cheap, and everything just worked.” She added: “It was so lush. We were just sitting in these massive pools of boiling hot water with the cold air on our skin, just going, ‘This is amazing.'”

Following her extreme trips last year, Helen is determined to do the same this year. She’s already travelled to Palma in Mallorca with a friend for under £120, spent the night in Lithuania, and ventured to Albania for the day.

She confessed: “I’m always buzzing after a day trip. I would definitely do it again, it’s a great way to visit countries you’d never visit by going on one holiday a year.

“Last year I visited seven new countries, and it’s liberating.”

Price breakdown of Helen’s 2025 trips

• Paris – £139 (extreme day trip)
• Budapest – £191 (overnight)
• Alicante – £62 (extreme day trip)
• Malaga – £118 (extreme day trip)
• Geneva – £182 (extreme day trip)
• Split – £315 (overnight)
• Prague – £165.11 (overnight)
• Amsterdam – £290 (overnight)
• Geneva – £138 (extreme day trip)

Total – £1,600.11

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

Internet culture is showing up in a big way in theaters, as low-budget horror films “Backrooms” and “Obsession” led this weekend’s box office and beat out big franchise films like “Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu.”

A24’s “Backrooms” topped the charts with $81.5 million in the U.S. and Canada in its opening weekend, according to studio estimates. The film is directed by 20-year-old YouTuber Kane Parsons, who based it on his internet series of the same name.

“Backrooms,” which reportedly had a production budget of about $10 million, stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as a furniture store owner who finds a mysterious portal in his basement. The film made a total of $118 million worldwide.

In second place was Focus Features’ “Obsession,” which hauled in $26.4 million in its third weekend in theaters, up 10% from the previous weekend’s total. The film, which had a production budget of less than $1 million, has now grossed $104.7 million domestically for a global total of $148 million.

“Obsession” director Curry Barker is also known for his YouTube sketch comedy channel.

The success of two YouTube-native filmmakers at the box office indicates the growing power of the platform — and online culture as a whole — in attracting audiences to cinemas.

Walt Disney Co. and Lucasfilm’s “The Mandalorian and Grogu” fell to third place this weekend with a domestic gross of $25 million. Lionsgate’s musical biopic “Michael” ($11.7 million) and Sony Pictures’ family comedy “The Breadwinner” ($7.5 million) rounded out the top five at the box office, according to Comscore data.

A British historical fantasy drama series has left viewers on the edge of their seats

Fans of period dramas have been eagerly binge-watching a beloved series.

Britannia is a British historical fantasy drama created by Jez Butterworth and Tom Butterworth. The series is set in 43 AD, when the Romans invaded Britain – 90 years after Julius Caesar failed to conquer the nation.

General Aulus Plautius and his second-in-command, Lucius, are hell-bent on succeeding where Julius Caesar fell short, by whatever means necessary.

The series chronicles Rome’s conquest of the Celts across the British Isles – “a mysterious land ruled by wild warrior women and powerful druids who can channel the powerful forces of the underworld,” according to the official synopsis.

Celtic rivals Kerra and Antedia eventually join forces to repel the Roman invasion spearheaded by Aulus. But are they successful? You’ll need to tune in to find out, reports Wales Online.

Britannia originally aired on Sky Atlantic in the UK in 2018, with two further series following in 2019 and 2021. For those wishing to immerse themselves in the mystical era of the Roman Empire, all 27 episodes are now available to stream on NOW and Sky Go.

The programme boasts an impressive ensemble cast, featuring David Morrissey as Aulus Plautius, Hugo Speer as Lucius, and Yellowstone’s Kelly Reilly as Kerra. Further stars include Aaron Pierre, Zoë Wanamaker, Mackenzie Crook, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Eleanor Worthington Cox, and Ian McDiarmid.

The production was largely shot across Wales and the Czech Republic. In Wales, the dramatic coastline and untamed landscapes were captured in rural settings, including the nation’s “most beautiful” beach Rhossili Bay, along with Henrhyd Falls and Nash Point.

Britannia garnered a broadly favourable response following its launch, with numerous critics labelling it “the new Game of Thrones”.

Viewers have similarly praised the series, with one IMDb user commenting: “What an epic series! You’ll definitely not regret watching this show. It’s perfect.”

Another wrote: “Excellent production, breathtaking locations, amazing cast. One of the best series I have watched in a while,” while a third remarked: “A magical retelling of British history. Game of Thrones fans will love this.”

A further viewer posted: “One of the best series ever! Captivating story telling with superb locations. A wild tale brought to life. Couldn’t stop watching. I’m hooked!”

A fifth enthusiast concurred, stating: “The show is brilliant, the actors are phenomenal. Crazy, funny, and steamy. Total masterpiece.”

Yet another viewer noted: “Britannia is a mesmerising historical fantasy series that masterfully blends myth, mysticism, and warfare. The series stands out for its bold storytelling, rich character development and immersive soundtrack. If you’re a fan of historical dramas with a touch of the mystical, Britannia is a must-watch.”

Britannia is available to stream on NOW and Sky Go

The new cases in Uganda include a driver who transported the country’s first ⁠confirmed patient and a ​health worker.

Uganda has confirmed three new ⁠cases of Ebola, bringing ⁠the total number of infections in the country in this outbreak to five, as authorities stepped up contact tracing to try to contain the spread.

The update from Uganda’s Ministry of Health on Saturday came a day after World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the risk assessment for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola was being revised to “very high at the national level, high at the regional level, and low at global level”.

Nearly 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths ‌have been recorded in Uganda’s neighbouring country, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the centre of the outbreak.

First responders in the DRC say they lack basic supplies, which some have attributed to foreign aid cuts by major international donors, particularly the United States.

The WHO has said late detection, the absence of a vaccine or virus-specific therapeutics, widespread armed violence and high mobility among the population make the DRC especially vulnerable.

Uganda suspended all public transport to the DRC on Thursday after confirming two cases of Ebola – one infection and one death – involving Congolese nationals who crossed the border.

The new cases in Uganda reported on Saturday include a driver who transported the country’s first ⁠confirmed patient and a health worker ⁠exposed while caring for that patient.

Both are receiving treatment and were identified among known contacts, the Health Ministry said in a statement.

The third case is a woman ⁠from DRC who entered Uganda with mild abdominal symptoms and later travelled from Arua, close ⁠to the border, to Entebbe before seeking ⁠care at a private hospital in the capital, Kampala.

The patient initially improved and returned to DRC but later tested positive for Ebola after a follow-up prompted ‌by a tip-off from a pilot involved in transporting her.

All identified contacts linked to the confirmed cases are being closely monitored, ‌the ‌ministry said, urging the public to remain vigilant and report suspected symptoms.

“At this critical moment in the outbreak response, it is vital that authorities maintain high vigilance to control expansion of the virus,” Tedros said on Saturday.

“The WHO is working side by side with Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, and partners in the DRC and Uganda, to contain the outbreak, support affected people, and bolster a coordinated response.”

SAN DIEGO — The crack of the bat reverberated throughout Petco Park. The crowd let out a collective, “Oh.” And Shohei Ohtani started his trot around the bases.

Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill made a valiant effort to bring back the home run. But after leaping and stretching his entire torso over the top of the wall, the ball fell just out of his reach.

Ohtani, hitting while pitching for the first time in almost four weeks, had homered on the first pitch of the game.

Manager Dave Roberts has held Ohtani out of the batting order for each of his last three starts on the mound, in what’s become a start-by-start decision. But Wednesday, he handled pitching and hitting duties, with immediate positive feedback.

“Obviously it’s a big series, and with the way he’s swinging the bat, I feel it gives us the best chance to win,” Roberts said before the game. “And last week, giving him a couple days off to reset, I thought that was beneficial. We’re on the heels of an off day [Thursday]. So I think all that in total, it just made sense to have him hit today.”

Roberts has also witnessed a “recharged” Ohtani on this trip, as evident on the basepaths and in the batter’s box.

Roberts and Ohtani differ in how much they credit his offensive turnaround to the two-day break from hitting that Roberts gave the two-way phenom last week, versus the progress he was already showing. But Ohtani entered Wednesday with four doubles and 10 hits total in five games against the Angels and Padres.

“I think he’s getting there,” Roberts said before the game. “I wouldn’t say he’s back; I think he’s getting there.”