Tower

ONE destination in the Midlands known as the ‘City of Kings’ thanks to its links to the Crown.

It’s had connections to royalty throughout history, both fictional and in real-life – plus for visitors, it has some great attractions.

The city of Leicester is the final resting place of King Richard III and the birthplace of the Shakespeare’s mythical King Leir.

Leicester Cathedral is where the remains of King Richard III can be found – after they were excavated from a car park in Leicester in 2012.

Other attractions include the King Richard III Visitors Centre, and the King Power Stadium.

Another popular attraction is Jewry Wall Museum, which immerses visitors in the stories of Roman Leicester – and it reopened after renovations earlier this year.

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It’s where you can see Jewry Wall which was once part of a public bathhouse and it’s one of the largest surviving Roman masonry structures in Britain.

Inside the museum are plenty of Roman artefacts from soldiers’ helmet pieces to brooches and rings.

Tickets for adults are £12.50, those for children between 5-15 are £6.25 – families can get group tickets for £32.

The city in the Midlands is known for many things – but one must-see is the National Space Centre.

The museum is the number one attraction in Leicester followed by Tropical Birdland and the Retro Computer Museum.

The National Space Centre is not just top in Leicester, it’s the UK’s leading visitor attractions dedicated to space science and astronomy.

It has interactive exhibits throughout the year and the UK’s largest planetarium.

Heading into the city, you’ll be able to spot it thanks to Rocket Tower – which is 42 metres high.

It has Blue Streak and Thor Able rockets, as well as the Gagarin Experience, Apollo Lunar Lander and real Moon Rock.

For those who want even more, stay for Space Lates — exclusive evenings of talks, activities, and galleries.

Entry for adults starts from £20.95, tickets for children between 5-16 are £18.95.

For anyone who fancies a night out on the town after day of wandering about the local attractions, Leicester is a great place to do it.

The city in the east midlands was also previously named the country’s nightlife capital thanks to its nightclubs and pubs.

Mosh is a three-storey nightclub house inside a Gaudi-inspired building in the city and an underground club called the Basement.

There’s also the Fanclub, which has been open since 1985, and it’s well-known for its retro-themed club nights.

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This much-mocked UK city is set to be huge next year – according to National Geographic…

According to National Geographic, one of ‘best places in the world to travel to in 2026’ is Hull – all thanks to its lively bar scene, award-winning aquarium, and completion of a huge project costing millions.

Hull, is a port city in East Yorkshire that sits on the north bank of the river Humber.

National Geographic has named it as one of the best places in the entire world to visit next year, but it’s not always been so up and coming. For example in Hull took top spot in the book Crap Towns: The 50 Worst Places to Live in the UK back in 2003.

However, it’s set to become more popular in 2026, and National Geographic mentioned that one of the reasons why is Hull’s investment into conserving its rich maritime history.

Hull was a very important trade route during the 13th and 14th centuries. Thanks to this, you can see Dutch-influenced architecture buildings that line the streets of the quaint Old Town. 

Since 2020, the Maritime Museum has been undergoing a huge revamp worth £11million, but it will finally reopen to the public next year. This has been part of a wider £27.5 million project to promote Hull’s maritime history which has gone into restoring the museum and ships.

Another reason is the city’s new leisure spots that have transformed warehouses and the old waterside Fruit Market to become bars, restaurants, and art galleries.

The publication added: “There’s also a spectacular performance amphitheater, called Stage@TheDok, overlooking River Hull where it meets the Humber Estuary.

“And a former shipyard has for over 20 years been the base for The Deep, one of the United Kingdom’s most highly respected aquariums and marine conservation centers.”

Hear from one writer who lives in one of the UK’s coolest cities – five lesser-known neighbourhoods tourists forget about and are much more fun.

Plus, one writer opens up on his home city which is Lonely Planet’s coolest UK destination for 2026 – here’s why it trumps London and Manchester.

SEOUL, Nov. 6 (UPI) — South Korean rescue crews are searching for workers believed to be trapped after a large structure collapsed at a power plant in the southeastern city of Ulsan on Thursday, according to reports from authorities and local media.

At least seven people were trapped when a 200-foot-tall boiler tower gave way at the Ulsan branch of the state-run utility Korea East-West Power, news agency Yonhap reported, citing the National Fire Agency. The collapse occurred shortly after 2 p.m. local time.

Two people were pulled from the debris earlier, while emergency responders continue to search for others feared buried beneath twisted metal and concrete.

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok ordered the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, National Fire Agency, Korean National Police Agency and local authorities to “mobilize all available equipment and personnel to prioritize saving lives.”

“In particular, we will make every effort to ensure the safety of firefighters working on-site and thoroughly implement safety measures such as on-site control and evacuation guidance for residents,” Kim said in a statement.

Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung also issued an emergency directive calling for mass mobilization of personnel and equipment to the accident site, adding that a situation-management officer had been dispatched to coordinate on-site operations.

Photos shared by local media showed a massive steel structure toppled on its side with a heap of crumpled beams and scaffolding at its base.

The disaster has renewed scrutiny of South Korea’s industrial safety regime, which has faced criticism following a series of fatal workplace accidents.

President Lee Jae Myung has repeatedly called for tougher safety enforcement to curb such tragedies.

“When fatal accidents occur in the same way, it ultimately amounts to condoning these deaths,” Lee said at a July cabinet meeting.

In August, he ordered that every workplace fatality be reported directly to his office and proposed sanctions such as revoking business licenses and restricting bids from companies with repeated deaths.

Lee, who suffered a factory accident as a teenager, has pledged to reduce South Korea’s industrial accident mortality rate — the highest among the 38 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development member countries — to the OECD average within five years.

Ludlow is a beautiful market town in Shropshire, which has everything you could want, from regular food festivals to historic sites and stunning countryside walks

Those seeking a peaceful escape from Britain’s bustling cities should consider Ludlow, a picturesque market town in Shropshire that offers everything from regular food festivals to historic landmarks and breathtaking countryside walks. Whilst sometimes overshadowed by neighbouring Shrewsbury and Hereford, Ludlow remains an essential destination for anyone visiting the region.

From its medieval castle and museums to restaurants housed in ancient halls and pubs within 16th-century buildings, Ludlow’s rich heritage is proudly showcased throughout. The castle dates back to the Norman Conquest and ranks among the “finest medieval ruins” in Britain, according to the Ludlow Castle website.

Given its location near Wales, Ludlow Castle served a crucial function during the English-Welsh conflicts. In 1223, King Henry III and Welsh prince Llywelyn ap Iorwerth held peace negotiations at the fortress.

Throughout history, Ludlow Castle has housed many prominent personalities, including Roger Mortimer, who joined forces with Queen Isabella to depose her husband, Edward II, in 1327.

During the 15th century, Edward IV frequently visited Ludlow and established a governing council there to oversee his Welsh territories.

Edward IV also dispatched his sons, the future King Edward V and his brother Prince Richard, to reside at the castle. The brothers would subsequently become infamous as the Princes in the Tower, after they vanished from the Tower of London in 1483, reports the Express.

Ludlow Castle also holds profound historical significance as the place where Prince Arthur died in 1502, a tragedy that ultimately paved the way for his younger brother to ascend the throne as King Henry VIII.

Since the Civil War, Ludlow Castle has gradually crumbled into ruins, though much of its impressive exterior remains intact, making it well worth exploring.

Another must-see attraction is St Laurence’s Church, which, like the castle, traces its origins back to the Norman invasion. As Shropshire’s largest parish church, St Laurence’s has earned the nickname “Cathedral of the Marches”.

Those seeking outdoor relaxation can visit Ludlow Millennium Green or enjoy a walk along the Mortimer Trail, a long-distance footpath stretching from Ludlow to Kington on the Herefordshire-Wales border.

No trip to Ludlow would be complete without stopping at the renowned Ludlow Farm Shop, which promises a “one-of-a-kind” shopping experience, according to the town’s official website.

The town regularly plays host to Antique, Local Produce and Craft Markets. It’s worth checking the Ludlow Market website before your visit if you fancy attending any of these events.

As the festive season approaches, families will be delighted to learn that Santa will be taking up residence at Ludlow Castle from 6 to 23 December, giving children the chance to enjoy a magical encounter with Father Christmas in the castle’s stunning grotto.

A worker who was trapped after part of a medieval tower collapsed in the heart of Rome, has died, according to hospital officials.

Octay Stroici was pulled free at 23:00 local time (22:00 GMT), nearly twelve hours after a section of the Torre dei Conti, on the edge of the famous Roman Forum and close to the Colosseum, gave way and trapped him beneath.

His heart stopped in the ambulance, and doctors at the hospital he was rushed to were unable to save him.

The Romanian foreign ministry said Stroici was a Romanian national, as was another worker among three others pulled from the rubble. One is said to be in a critical condition.

Stroici’s rescue was initially described as an exceptional feat by firefighters who had worked late into the night. Rescue teams used drones and rubble clearers to try to reach him, despite the risk that the fragile tower could collapse further.

He had been conscious and talking to the emergency workers throughout the rescue. His wife was also at the scene.

Stroici had been carrying out conservation work on the medieval tower which is part of the Roman Forum, one of this city’s busiest tourist sites. But this particular building had been empty and abandoned for many years.

The Rome Prosecutor’s Office has opened an investigation into the incident.

Efforts to rescue Stroici – reported to be in his 60s – were interrupted when a second section of the 29m (90ft) high tower began crumbling again, with bricks raining down, creating a huge cloud of dust.

Earlier, Rome prefect Lamberto Giannini had described it as a “very complex situation”. Giannini said that after the initial collapse firefighters had “put up some protection” around the trapped man, so when the second collapse happened, “they obviously shielded him”.

He added that the rescue was a long operation due to having to “mitigate…the enormous risks faced by the people trying to carry out the rescue”.

One firefighter was taken to hospital with an eye problem, according to local media, but the rest were unharmed, eventually resuming their search for the man.

A police chief said there was no imminent danger that the tower will disintegrate.

“My thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to the person currently fighting for his life beneath the rubble, and to his family, for whom I sincerely hope that this tragedy finds a positive outcome,” wrote Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on X before the rescue was complete.

Another worker, 67-year-old Ottaviano, who was inside at the time of the collapse but escaped from a balcony uninjured, told the AFP news agency: “It was not safe. I just want to go home.”

Rome’s mayor and Italy’s culture minister visited the scene.

The 13th Century tower is part of the Roman Forum, a major tourist attraction in the centre of Rome, but it is separated from the main visitors’ area by a road. The streets all around have been taped off by police as a precaution.

The medieval tower was built by Pope Innocent III as a residence for his brother.

Video shows part of Rome’s medieval Torre dei Conti collapse for a second time during a restoration near the Colosseum. One seriously injured worker remained trapped Monday evening with firefighters continuing a high-risk rescue as the tower’s stability is assessed.