Train

MAJOR railway lines are closed due to a gas leak leaving commuters stranded in rush hour – with the disruption expected to last all day.

Passengers are urged not to travel between Reading and Swindon as engineers frantically attempt to fix the issue, while other routes are seeing significant delays.

The gas leak close to railway land at Didcot Parkway in South Oxfordshire is expected to cause severe disruption throughout Wednesday.

The Reading-Didcot section of the route is the gateway from Paddington towards Swindon, Bristol, Bath, South Wales, Cheltenham and other parts of the West Country.

Diversions are in place but Great Western Rail is cancelling some services outright because trains can’t get through Reading-Didcot.

A total of 72 services to and from Didcot are cancelled, while 39 have been axed at Oxford and 45 at Reading.

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One social media user posted a photo from Swindon showing trains to Paddington cancelled at 6am.

They wrote: “Apparently there’s been a gas leak around Didcot Parkway so they’ve cancelled most of the services, and no replacement bus services running either.

“The staff at Swindon reckon this will last all day and probably tomorrow.”

Another person responded: “Absolutely ridiculous… not good enough.”

GWR is running roughly one train an hour Paddington-Bath/Bristol via a diversionary route – a fraction of the normal capacity.

It has warned only to travel if absolutely necessary.

Replacement buses are running between Swindon, Didcot and Reading but Network Rail says capacity won’t be enough for everyone.

CrossCountry is also telling passengers not to travel between Reading and Oxford – with one person responding to the company’s X post with: “Thanks for ruining my whole day.”

Network Rail said: “Engineers from gas distribution company SGN are on site working to rectify the problem as quickly and safely as possible.

“Network Rail and train operators are working together to manage the impact on passengers, but normal services cannot operate until the leak has been repaired because the railway falls within the safety exclusion zone.

“Severe disruption is expected to long-distance services that would usually travel through Didcot, and passengers are being warned that trains able to run either side of the affected area will be extremely busy.

“GWR will continue to operate as many trains as possible either side of the incident.”

GWR expects to be able to operate services between:

• Reading and London Paddington
• Swindon and Cheltenham Spa
• Swindon and Chippenham/Bath/Bristol
• South Wales to Bristol Temple Meads
• Worcester and Oxford
• An hourly service between London Paddington and Bath/Bristol via an alternative, diversionary route
• Oxford and Didcot
• An hourly service Bristol Temple Meads and Didcot
• Usual timetabled services that do not run between Reading and Didcot
• A limited bus replacement service will operate between Swindon, Didcot and Reading

A NEW train ticket rule has officially rolled out to make life much easier for travellers.

Passengers on Britain’s biggest train operators will now spend much less money when their train is cancelled.

For the first time, passengers left stranded at stations can use an alternative operator’s service to complete their journey free of charge.

The new rule which came into force on Sunday, September 20 hopes to end limbo at stations following cancellations and end the need for costly re-bookings.

Many regular travellers will be aware that this scheme already operates across all 13 publicly-owned operators, such as LNER, Southern, South Western Railway and Greater Anglia.

However, from now, Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry and Great Western Railway will also be involved, offering more stability on a host of key intercity routes across the UK.

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East Midlands Railway will also be joining the scheme at a later date.

The new scheme comes ahead of the establishment of Great British Railways (GBR) – a programme to transfer all rail services to public ownership and to create a “one-stop shop” for train travel.

Valid ticket holders can travel with another train operator on a direct or reasonable alternative route, but the service must depart within two hours before or after the original cancelled train.

To claim the new ticket, passengers will need to show their original ticket to customer support staff as a proof of purchase, and will not be required to download the new one.

When the new scheme was unveiled, Rail Minister, Lord Hendy, said: “This is a simple, common-sense change that puts passengers first.

“No one should be left stranded because of a fragmented railway when their journey is disrupted.

“From this weekend, if your train is cancelled, you can get on another operator’s service and carry on your journey without paying again.  

“We’re fixing the railway from the ground up, making it simpler, fairer and easier to use, as we move towards Great British Railways and put public service back at the heart of our railways.”

Brussels is an ideal destination for a short city break, thanks to its impressive medieval architecture, relaxed atmosphere and more than 100 museums

A European city with a lot of history and beauty at odds with its negative reputation is quicker to get to from the UK via train than by plane.

New research from global travel booking site Omio has identified 25 European routes where travelling by train is actually faster than flying once airport transfers, security queues and boarding times are taken into account. While many holidaymakers automatically book flights for a weekend escape, the findings suggest they’re often overlooking rail journeys that are not only quicker, but also less stressful.

They’re also much less environmentally damaging, with the emissions per plane passenger typically several times higher than those of train passengers.

A trip from London to Brussels is one of the biggest examples of where rail beats air. The Eurostar takes just 125 minutes, making it 83 minutes faster than flying once airport transfers, security checks and boarding times are factored in. Tickets start from around £148, with passengers arriving directly in the heart of the Belgian capital.

Whether or not the city is worth a visit is a different matter. Brussels is, according to some people, a boring city.

“As much as I tried, I still could not shake the feeling that Brussels was undeniably boring,” one travel blogger recently wrote of Brussels following a trip there. Back in 2008, it was awarded the title of the world’s dullest city in a survey of international travelers, who judged it duller than Zurich and Warsaw.

Having made a short visit to the city in recent years, the criticism does seem a little just. Brussels does have a functional, workman-like feel to it, thanks to the huge number of governmental buildings. And yes, it does look like an AI picture generator’s attempt to ‘simulate a standard European capital’, as one online commenter complained.

However, there are plenty of redeemable qualities of Brussels. The atmosphere is pleasant enough, many of the buildings are beautiful, and it is home to two of the Continent’s great contributions to culinary culture – waffles and chips – even if there is a distinct Sunday afternoon feel to the place.

“Brussels is an ideal destination for a short city break, thanks to its impressive medieval architecture, relaxed atmosphere and more than 100 museums. Visitors can spend the day wandering the city’s historic streets before stopping for Belgian beer and world-famous chocolate. With average July temperatures of 23°C, it’s also an ideal city to explore on foot,” writes Omio.

Given Brussels’s closeness to the UK, a day trip is well on the cards. If you do go down that route, I suggest the following one-hour tour of the city:

Starting at the famed Manneken Pis statue depicting a urinating child (who had been dressed up in a miniature gown and hat to celebrate the city’s graduating students when I was there), dash to the Monument a Everard t’Serclaes, helping the reclining lady’s leg become even shinier with a quick, traditional good luck rub.

Pausing in the central Grand Place square for a moment, take in the opulent Baroque guildhalls and the neo-Gothic King’s House. Not wanting to waste any more time or spend six euros, read the first paragraph of the Grand City Museum’s Wikipedia entry while looking at its exterior.

Culturally enriched, next up was a portion of mayonnaise-covered frites eaten while looking at a René Magritte painting on the side of a house, before a crispy waffle powers you up the hill towards the Royal Palace. Glance back at the impressive view of the city’s rooftops as you barrel onto a coach and out of there, catching a glimpse of one of Auguste Rodin’s Thinkers through the window before quickly stopping to stand in front of ‘Belgium’s Eiffel Tower’, the futuristic Atomium statue.

TWO picturesque UK train routes will close for a number of weeks as part of a £22million upgrade.

The first route to close will be the West Highland railway line, which is well-known for being used in the Harry Potter films, from November 9 to 17.

The picturesque train journey which links Glasgow to Oban and Mallaig and crosses the Glenfinnan Viaduct, will undergo a £13million upgrade.

Work will be carried out between Helensburgh, Fort William and Mallaig and includes repairing parts of the track.

There will be replacement buses during the closure period.

Gerry McQuade, capital delivery director at Network Rail Scotland, said: “The West Highland Line is one that people really depend on, whether they’re travelling to work, visiting family or exploring some of Scotland’s most spectacular scenery.

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“This work is about making sure the route continues to provide a dependable service for the communities and visitors who use it every day.”

And it isn’t the only route in Scotland that will close for an upgrade.

The scenic Kyle Line between Dingwall and Kyle of Lochalsh will close for three weeks starting at the end of November.

No trains will run between Dingwall and Kyle of Lochalsh from November 28 to December 18.

Work will be carried out on the Carron Viaduct, as well as Inverness Station.

The £9million project is expected to take a few weeks with four miles of track being renewed.

McQuade said: “The Kyle line is one of Scotland’s most scenic and important routes, connecting communities across the Highlands.

“This £9m investment will allow us to carry out a significant amount of work in a short period of time, helping us keep the railway safe, reliable and resilient for the future.”

A NEW train ticket rule will be rolled out this weekend, allowing passengers to switch to rival operators for free.

The changes look to make disrupted journeys smoother for travellers and mean they won’t be forced to purchase last-minute pricey tickets.

Those left stranded after a train cancellation will be able to travel on services run by different operators at no additional charge, the government has announced.

The changes are set to be introduced on Sunday, September 20, and promise a smoother travel experience for those facing disrupted journeys.

Many travellers will be aware that cross-operator ticket acceptance is already available across all publicly owned operators.

However, as of Sunday, CrossCountry, Great Western Railway, Avanti West Coast and Chiltern Railways will all become part of the scheme too.

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Passengers travelling on any of the services included in the scheme can hop onto the next train if their original route is cancelled, even if it is a different service run by a different operator, without needing to buy a new ticket.

It must be departing two hours before or after your original cancelled service, and the new journey must be a “direct or reasonable alternative route”.

All that is required to complete a journey is showing customer support staff your original ticket to serve as proof of purchase.

Rail Minister, Lord Hendy, said: “This is a simple, common-sense change that puts passengers first.

“No one should be left stranded because of a fragmented railway when their journey is disrupted.

“We’re fixing the railway from the ground up, making it simpler, fairer and easier to use, as we move towards Great British Railways and put public service back at the heart of our railways.”

It is just one of the moves that comes as part of the government’s overhaul of the rail system.

Ahead of the establishment of Great British Railways, travellers can also expect to see pay-as-you-go services rolled out across Greater Manchester, the Midlands and the south-east thanks to a £156million investment by the Government into new ticketing scheme.

A new GBR website and app is also being designed to act as a “one-stop shop” for those heading out on a rail journey.

PARIS: Investigators suspect that a train derailment in northwest France which injured 44, one gravely, was the result of sabotage, a police source told AFP on Saturday.

A fragment of rail was found on the track, with the possibility of a malicious act being treated as the main line of inquiry as a result, the source said.

Carrying 186 passengers, the train was running between the Normandy cities of Rouen and Caen when it derailed around 7:45 pm (1745 GMT) Friday.

Authorities activated a mass-casualty response plan, with 130 firefighters, five medical teams and 80 vehicles drafted in.

Rouen prosecutor Sebastien Gallois said 44 people were injured including an 18-year-old woman evacuated “in a critical condition”, while tests for drugs and alcohol on the train driver had come back negative.

SNCF Reseau, which controls the French rail network, told AFP that traffic on the line has been suspended and power to the tracks cut to allow emergency services to operate.

A BELOVED UK seaside town is set to get a new, faster train to London – slashing journey times by 15 minutes.

Visitors and commuters travelling to and from the coastal area will soon be able to make it to London in just over an hour.

The new rail service will connect the capital with the East Sussex town of Hastings and its set to launch in December of this year.

Hastings boasts a charming shingle and pebble beach and plenty of pubs, cafes and restaurants.

Journeys from London to the quaint seaside town can currently take as long as 1 hour and 47 minutes.

The new Southeastern Railway service will connect the two locations with a train that takes just 1 hour and 18 minutes to get to London Bridge.

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The new service will depart from London’s Charing Cross before calling at Waterloo East, London Bridge, Tunbridge Wells, Battle, St Leonards Warrior Square before arriving in Hastings.

The new transport project has been described as being in a “pilot” phase – and demand for the service will have to be shown for it to be made permanent.

It comes as part of an upcoming timetable shakeup that aims to better connect South East London, Kent and East Sussex.

The new service will run to London once in the morning, with a further return journey scheduled in the evening.

The morning train is set to depart Hastings at 8:05am and arrive at Charing Cross at 09:33am.

The evening train journey will set off from Charing Cross at 4:11pm and arrive in Hastings at 5:42pm.

Speaking about the introduction of the speedier service, Helena Dollimore, MP for Hastings, Rye and the villages, said: “Securing a faster train service for our town has been one of my top priorities as our local MP. When we are almost the same distance from London as Brighton, why should our train take twice as long?”

Highlighting the importance of the trains that serve both commuters and tourists, she added: “This new service is great news for commuters and for our local shops, hotels, pubs, and restaurants that rely on tourists coming down to visit us.

“This new fast train will be a pilot service. If we want it to stay, we all must use it to show the demand.”

As an astronomer who studies how stars develop over tens of millions of years, Ben Zuckerman instinctively takes the long view. What he sees in regard to future U.S. population numbers troubles his environmentalist’s heart: As many as a billion people on the American landscape by 2100, as many as 100 million in California, courtesy of liberal immigration policies.

Zuckerman, a 58-year-old UCLA professor given to running shoes and organic rice cakes, believes environmentalists should be loudly demanding curbs on legal immigration and an end to illegal immigration, which are fueling the country’s surging population growth. The influential Sierra Club, to which he has belonged for more than three decades, ought to be especially vocal on the matter, he thinks.

Zuckerman’s views conflict directly with the club’s official neutrality on immigration reform. Nonetheless, he recently was elected to the club’s board of directors with the most votes, 36,383, among the five successful candidates, despite not being anointed by the organization’s nominating committee.

His victory, he says, is a vindication of keen-eyed Sierrans who see that “the No. 1 environmental problem–and it’s not even close–is overpopulation. A billion Americans is a disaster. I don’t know how my colleagues in the Sierra Club can save species and wetlands and so on when there are a billion Americans.”

At the time of the first Earth Day celebration in 1970, with American fertility rates reaching replacement levels, environmentalists foresaw the U.S. population being stabilized within a single generation.

Then the immigration freight train came roaring down the track. By the time it barreled through the 1990s, it had quadrupled traditional figures for legal immigration, which has reached 1 million-plus per year. Illegal immigration is estimated to be an additional 200,000 to 500,000 annually. From 1990 to 2000, the U.S. population swelled by 13%, its largest 10-year increase ever (in the rest of the developed world, population grew by 2.5%). According to government demographers, immigration and immigrant fertility accounted for about 70% of the national increase, and 90% of California’s.

Throughout the 1970s and ‘80s, the Sierra Club supported immigration curbs. In the 1990s, however, the club’s leadership grew shy of the issue as it waxed in controversy. In 1998, Sierrans for U.S. Population Stabilization, a group co-founded by Zuckerman, forced a club referendum on the matter. The leadership pushed for neutrality, Zuckerman’s faction for support of immigration curbs. The leadership’s position won, but Zuckerman faction’s received 40% of the vote.

Now the club’s official posture is to focus on global, as opposed to U.S., population stabilization and to work for improved conditions in immigrant-producing countries.

What really motivates the club leadership, Zuckerman says, is fear. Fear of being called racist. Fear of losing minority-group members and fear of forfeiting financial support from big business and foundations.

Pro-immigration forces–including Latino politicians, the AFL-CIO and corporations, which covet both cheap labor and more consumers–are quick to swing the racism bludgeon. Zuckerman, a lifelong liberal and civil rights advocate, has borne such accusations painfully. “But the average person is overwhelmingly in favor of reduced legal immigration and an end to illegal immigration, and this cuts across every racial line,” he says. “How can it be racist to agree with a majority of every ethnic and racial group in the country?”

The Sierra Club’s timidity on the issue muddies its integrity. (How, he asks, can the club rail against polluters for breaking environmental laws but keep silent about immigrants who break immigration laws?) To save itself, he says, it must refocus on protecting the American environment and opposing growth for growth’s sake, which he calls “the ideology of a cancer cell.” Emboldened by Zuckerman’s victory, more Sierrans of his persuasion are certain to run in next year’s annual election for five of the 15 board seats.

The Sierra Club is headquartered in San Francisco. Presumedly, the people who run it have to commute every day through the congestion of the Bay Area. I have to wonder, do they ever ponder the discomfort of it? Do they really imagine, with residential development devouring space and wildlife habitat from San Diego to Sacramento, that natural California can survive the 50 million residents that demographers are projecting for 2025, much less the 100 million that could be living here by the end of the century if current patterns hold?

Bruce Hamilton, the Sierra Club’s national conservation director, says the organization remains committed to its long-standing goal of population stabilization. It just takes a global approach now rather than a national one. Immigration to the U.S. will dwindle, the club believes, when conditions in immigrant-producing countries no longer compel people to leave home.

Or, I might point out, when conditions here become equally bad, the swollen masses just as poor, the environment just as degraded.

SEEING the Northern Lights tops many a traveller’s bucket list.

The problem is, they can be elusive and costly to find and because they are at the whim of nature, there are never any guarantees . . . until now, that is.

There is a new Northern Lights Train in Norway which promises to take you where there’s a greater chance of spotting the Aurora Borealis than ever before. It costs £115pp and looks so good I booked a ticket.

Meeting point: Narvik Station, high in the Arctic Circle. Waiting on Platform 1 is a four-carriage train, guide Lill and buckets of white stuff. It’s been snowing non-stop from thick, heavy clouds.

Spotting the Aurora normally requires a clear sky, so these conditions are far from ideal. Do we really have a chance of seeing them? Lill consults an app and smiles. “Yes,” she says.

I’m nonetheless sceptical as I hop on board.

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The three-hour experience includes a 90-minute stop in the Arctic wilderness and, as the train pulls off, lights are dimmed to better see the Aurora.

After we’ve rattled past Narvik’s fjord and suspension bridge, a fellow passenger points excitedly at the window. Outside, a green plume is painting the sky.

Well I never — our first sighting.

From here, we climb north into the mountains towards the Swedish border. This historic track was built in 1902 and is still used to transport iron ore from Sweden’s Kiruna mines to the port of Narvik and beyond.

Our destination is Katterat — a remote, 373m-high (1,224ft) outpost accessible only by train or foot.

There’s no light pollution or civilisation and, thanks to its altitude, the sky is usually clear here when elsewhere else it’s not.

Once we’ve arrived and descended on to the platform, nobody budges — we’re too busy looking up.

Streaking overhead are bands of green criss-crossing a starlit sky.

Necks crane, photos are taken and the excitement is palpable. A trail leads to a makeshift camp where there are snowshoes to try, fires to warm hands and an indigenous Sami tent called a “lavvu” for shelter, with hot drinks, biscuits and sausages.

Despite the sub-zero temperatures (it’s -20C), nobody cares about warming up because we’re all too fixated on the sky show.

One moment the aurora shines to the right, the next to the left.

They come, they go; they fade, they flare; they keep us guessing, eyes peeled. It’s a magical night.

This train is one of many ways to chase the Northern Lights but there’s still magic to be found when the Green Lady plays shy.

On an excursion with Arctic Moments the next night, we sip hot chocolate and toast cinnamon buns on a fire in a Narnia wonderland.

No Aurora but happy memories with photos included in the package.

Narvik’s also a superb base for other adventures. There’s downhill skiing — it’s hosting the 2029 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships — as well as cross-country skiing, considered Norway’s national sport.

I give it a go but it’s harder than it looks — even on flat terrain.

There are also historical links. A fierce World War Two naval battle was fought and lost in Narvik in 1940 — Norway was occupied by Germany afterwards — and the town’s War Museum tells this story.

A new boat excursion even sends a drone underwater so you can see the shipwrecks on the ocean floor.

Narvik has everything from self-catering apartments to hotels offering Scandi-style breakfasts — think herring and smoked salmon — to the deluxe glass cabins of Camp 291, which cling to the mountainside.

This is my favourite accommodation, with superb fjord views.

Hiring a car allows you to explore even further. Polar Park is home to lynxes, musk oxen, moose and wolves. I’m taught how to howl and, amazingly, they howl back.

Best of all is the Arctic fox experience. You get to feed them but be prepared — they’re playful and love nothing more than clambering all over you.

For a final treat, I head to Narvik’s floating Arctic Sauna where a hole and a ladder lead directly from the heat into the chilly sea.

But the ultimate thrill is the Aurora Borealis. Travellers have been trying to find the best and most reliable way to see them.

Norway’s Northern Lights Train may just be the coolest way to do just that.

A MASSIVE £4.3billion ‘superhub’ that will connect passengers to over 100 locations is edging closer to completion.

The huge train station will welcome 250,000 travellers every day and will connect London, the Midlands, the North and Scotland.

Old Oak Common station in West London is part of the new High Speed 2 (HS2) line, which aims to connect London to Birmingham and the West Midlands.

The station has been under construction for the past five years, but an important milestone has been completed in recent days, according to Secret London.

HS2 has now finished construction of six underground platforms at the station.

All of these platforms are 450-metres long and will be used by HS2’s high speed trains.

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A total of 14 platforms will be constructed at the station, six of which will be underground and eight will be built above ground.

Kim Kapur, HS2’s Old Oak Common Area Director, told the outlet said: “The scale of the work – and the station now taking shape – is remarkable.

“However, there is much more to do. This includes construction of the conventional, surface level platforms, completion of tunnels either side of the underground box and installation of the impressive station roof, which will begin next year.

“Old Oak Common will be transformative for the local area, providing a new transport hub, with a new vibrant neighbourhood developing around it.”

A public green space is also being constructed, which will include pocket gardens and a wetlands.

The station is not expected to open until between 2036 and 2039, so passengers have a while to wait before they can enjoy the features.

WE ALL love a Maccies, but instead of you bog standard local, you could head into one where there are dining train carriages.

Along one of America’s most iconic roads, Route 66, you will find a McDonalds like no other.

Barstow McDonalds in California is made from renovated train carriages and sits roughly halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

The restaurant opened back in 1960 and soon became such a popular spot that it needed to be expanded.

The destination then became Barstow Station, where several buildings are attached by several train cars.

Currently there are 17 train cars that make up the Barstow Station complex, four of which are now McDonald’s Dining Cars.

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In 2013, Barstow Station McDonald’s also underwent an extensive renovation to make it more contemporary.

The location even still features a life-sized Ronald McDonald figure in the lobby.

Customers head inside the main restaurant to order, before walking through to the carriages where you can eat.

Inside the carriages, you can expect a barrel-roof with booths for seats and historic photos of the Old West and Route 66.

Don’t just head to the McDonald’s though – next door you will find a huge souvenir shop selling Route 66 merch as well as a giant sweets counter.

You’ll find the McDonald’s in the city of Barstow in the Mojave Desert in South California.

In the city, make sure to visit Harvey House Depot, where you will find the Route 66 Mother Road Museum.

You an also explore a number of street art murals.

There are several places to stay in Barstow including Route 66 Motel, which costs as little as £37 a night.

And just down the road are two Holiday Inn’s, a Hampton Hotel and a Marriott Hotel.

A MAJOR UK railway firm is giving travellers the chance to secure £2 tickets.

As part of a flash sale, customers can snap up train trips for next to nothing.

Northern Rail’s generous offering means four million £2 advanced single tickets are up for grabs.

The chance to snap them up won’t last long and there is just hours left to make the most of the flash sale.

Lasting between September 2 and September 4, the ticket discount is available for travel between September 9 and October 23.

Taking advantage of the deal is a great way to explore the UK for less as autumn begins.

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Northern operates over 2,600 trains a day across the north of England, with services running to more than 500 stations.

With so many routes available, travellers can make journeys to and from the likes of Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Harrogate, Crewe, Chester, York and more.

While Railcards can’t be used alongside the offer, the half price children’s ticket offer still stands.

That means kids travel for just £1 with sale tickets.

There isn’t long left until the flash sale draws to a close – and when tickets are sold out, they’re sold out.

Tickets can be bought via the Northern website, app or at ticket machines and at ticket offices at participating stations.

Speaking about the rare offer, Alex Hornby, commercial and customer director at Northern, said: “With four million tickets up for grabs, this is one of our biggest Flash Sales yet, and there’s something for everyone.”

He added: “With millions of tickets available for just £2 each, our Flash Sale will make the railway even more appealing, and we believe it will inspire everyone to explore everything our fantastic region has to offer, from bustling cities to countryside and stunning coastlines.”

Long Lost Family is back with a new emotional episode on Thursday, where three brothers are reunited with a long-lost sister

A Long Lost Family guest makes an astonishing discovery on Thursday’s episode.

The emotional ITV series, hosted by Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell, sees the hosts strive to reunite family members who have never met, including twins separated at birth and young mothers who had to give up their babies.

In an exclusive clip obtained by the Mirror of Thursday’s episode, it sees guest Marie looking for her birth father. Marie is a train conductor working for Greater Anglia railways. She lives in Norfolk where she has lived her whole life.

It comes as Thursday’s episode also sees a guest called Avril, 77, reunited with her daughter after 60 years despite being told she’d never find her.

Marie grew up with her grandparents after her 17-year-old mother couldn’t look after her. She had a good childhood in a busy household as her grandparents had six children still living at home when they took on Marie.

The guest had some contact with her mother growing up but she was largely absent from her life. When Marie was 16, she wanted to know more about her birth father and confronted her mother. Marie recalls: “I just blurted it all out: ‘Where’s my dad?’, I wanted to know about my father!”

Marie was surprised to learn her birth father’s name and the fact he had visited her in hospital when she was born. In another shock, Marie discovered that her birth father had chosen her name. She admits: “That really touched me. Must have cared for me to do that.”

Over her life, Marie has often wondered about her birth father, wondering where he is and did he have more children, meaning she could have long-lost siblings. Marie emotional admits: “Even on the train, even at work, I’m constantly looking at people all the time wondering are they related to me.”

Sadly, Long Lost Family’s intermediaries are unable to find any trace of James in the UK but after uncovering his birth certificate they discover that before meeting Marie’s mother, James had been married and had three sons – Anthony, Paul and Ian.

The team manage to locate the brothers living in the same county as Marie, Norfolk. While Anthony wishes to meet Marie, he does not want to appear on camera, so Nicky goes to meet with Paul and Ian, who admit they didn’t really know their father or know where he is after years of trying to find him.

In an exclusive clip of the moment, it sees Nicky tell Paul and Ian about Marie, explaining that she works as a train conductor for Greater Anglia railways and lives in Norfolk too.

This discovery leaves the siblings floored especially as one of the brothers remarks: “I get the train to go to work in the mornings”, confirming it’s Greater Anglia railways. He adds: “So she could well be on that train taking my ticket, amazing.”

The brother is then shown a photograph of Marie, who he instantly recognises, as he exclaims: “Wow. I recognise her on the train. Yeah. Now I see the face, yeah. That’s amazing.”

He adds: “A couple of weeks ago, I actually had a slightly longer conversation with her. Yeah, talking about how they’re changing the timetables. I’ve always wanted to have a sister” to which Nicky sweetly replies: “Well you’ve got one and you never knew it!”

To which the guest admits: “No, 60 years I didn’t know. I live so close as well, all under our doorstep.”

The other sibling then reveals he recognises Marie from the train too, saying: “I think I may have done, I may have walked past, that’s uncanny! Looking forward to seeing her.”

Viewers will have to wait and see how Marie takes the news, and of course, the heartwarming and emotional reunion.

Long Lost Family returns at 9pm to ITV and ITVX on Thursday 3rd September

That Girl is back.

Olympic gold medalist Jordan Chiles announced her intention to train for the L.A. Olympics on Wednesday, publicly beginning her attempt for a third Olympic Games in a video narrated by NBA legend Michael Jordan.

“Why again?” says Jordan, whom Chiles is named after. “Because the dream is still there.”

Chiles helped the United States to a team gold medal in 2024, competing in all four events in the final. She won her first individual Olympic medal, a bronze on floor with her energetic Beyoncé-inspired routine, but that result still is being considered by the Court of Arbitration for Sport after controversy involving the inquiry process that led to Chiles’ score being upgraded to overtake Romania’s Ana Barbosu.

Chiles is the fourth member of that gold medal-winning team to announce a comeback for the 2028 Olympics, joining Suni Lee, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera. Simone Biles, the 29-year-old, 11-time Olympic medalist, has not officially come out of retirement.

Before Biles, a U.S. female gymnast had not competed in three Olympic Games in 24 years. Dominique Dawes, who competed in her third Olympics in 2000, Linda Metheny and Muriel Grossfield are the only other American women to accomplish the feat. But in a sport no longer dominated by teenage one-hit wonders, there will be three women vying to join the exclusive triple Olympian club in 2028.

Chiles used college experience to help raise her game after winning a team silver in her first Olympic experience in Tokyo, and after returning from Paris with gold, she finished a standout college career at UCLA. The 23-time All-American won her second and third individual NCAA titles, on bars last year and floor this year, and won the AAI Award, which goes to the top senior gymnast in the nation. She had 19 perfect 10s in her college career, which ranks third in UCLA history. On Tuesday, UCLA announced Chiles would return to the team as a student coach.

“Jordan has made an incredible impact on our program over the years,” UCLA gymnastics coach Janelle McDonald said in a statement. “I’m excited to watch her continue that influence in a new capacity as she steps into this next chapter with student coaching. Her energy, passion, leadership and gymnastics experience will make a unique and positive impact on our team this coming year!”

Outside of the gym, Chiles has capitalized on her Olympic stardom. She was a finalist on “Dancing with the Stars” and authored a memoir, “I’m That Girl: Living the Power of my Dreams.” She was named to Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in sports this year and has been a ubiquitous presence on red carpets and at major sporting events and galas.

With her post-gymnastics life rolling, Chiles still is choosing to return to training with less than two years remaining until the 2028 Games.

“When the world asks why she’s back for a third time,” Jordan says in Chiles’ announcement video, “the answer’s simple.”

“Why not?” Chiles chimes in.

A SMALL village in Oxfordshire could get a new £29million railway station.

The village itself is small, home to around 700 people – but is right next to Bicester Village and a new attraction currently being built nearby too.

Oxfordshire County Council has the potential for a new station on the Chiltern Main Line in a small village called Ardley.

It’s location is a nine-minute drive away from Bicester Village, a luxury designer outlet shopping centre.

A possible location being considered for the new railway is the site of the previous Ardley station, which closed in 1963.

Plans to build the new station forms part of part of the council’s bid to improve rail connectivity across the region.

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The cost of the station is estimated to be between £24-£29million.

If built it would be added to the existing OxRail 2040 proposals, which includes new stops at Oxford Cowley, Oxford Littlemore, Begbroke and Wantage and Grove.

The location of the potential train station will mean it won’t be far from the proposed Puy du Fou theme park.

It’s set to be built on a site north of Bicester near the M40.

Plans were submitted last year for the 370-acre attraction which is set to have four ‘villages’ based on different periods of time, with 13 different live shows.

Three on-site hotels would be part of the theme park and each themed on different periods of British history.

Being primarily outdoors, the park would be open between April and October.

If approved, the first phases of the park will open in 2029, with nearly 1.5million visitors a year.

The theme park is already popular in both France and Spain – it doesn’t have any rides but lots of historical re-enactments and immersive villages.