years

Victoria Beckham is set to reunite with her former Spice Girls bandmates for a new animated project on the band, marking their first professional collaboration in a decade

Victoria Beckham is gearing up to join forces with her old Spice Girls pals for a huge new project. The animated venture, simply named The Spice Girls, will be their first professional reunion since they rocked the stage at the 2012 Olympic Games closing ceremony.

According to the official IMDb listing, The Spice Girls is currently in the early stages of production and will star all five original members: Geri Horner, Melanie Brown MBE, Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, and Lady Victoria, lending their voices.

The brief description reveals: “An animated project featuring the music group The Spice Girls as superheroes.” Details regarding the storyline, format, and release date are still hush-hush, with IMDb only revealing that the project will see the girls reprising their pop star alter egos, including Posh, Ginger, Scary, Sporty, and Baby Spice.

This exciting news broke as Victoria, 51, graced the premiere of her three-part Netflix docu-series Victoria Beckham at The Curzon Mayfair in London on 8 October. The fashion mogul and former pop sensation was accompanied by her husband, Sir David Beckham, 50, and their children, except for eldest son Brooklyn Beckham, who is reportedly caught up in a family dispute.

Her ex-bandmates Emma, Geri and Melanie Chisholm also showed up at the premiere to lend their support, striking a pose together on the red carpet. Melanie Brown, better known as Mel B, was the only member not present but sent Victoria a lovely bouquet of flowers ahead of the event.

Melanie had previous work commitments in the United States. Victoria hasn’t performed with the Spice Girls since their iconic Olympic appearance in London 12 years ago, despite the other four members reuniting for a UK and Ireland stadium tour in 2019.

Although Victoria opted out of that tour, she publicly expressed her support and has continued to honour the group’s legacy. The IMDb listing is the first official hint that the full lineup could once again collaborate on a professional project.

It remains unclear whether the animated production will be a feature film or a series. The Spice Girls became a worldwide sensation in the mid-1990s following the release of their debut single Wannabe in 1996. They went on to sell over 100 million records globally before Geri exited the band in 1998, leading to an official hiatus.

The band also reunited for a world tour in 2007 and again for their Olympic performance in 2012, which was widely hailed as one of the highlights of the Games. Since then, each member has embarked on individual ventures in music, television, fashion and business while maintaining a close personal bond.

But it seems that this isn’t the only Spice Girls project that Posh has in mind. During an interview with Andy Cohen, she admitted that she has been having several ideas about the chart-topping band, which will next year celebrate three decades of their debut single, “Wannabe.”

After saying she loved the idea of the band performing at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Victoria said: “It would be tempting. But could I take on a world tour? No, I can’t. I have a job… How good would the Spice Girls be at the Sphere! I love the idea of it. I mean, I don’t know if I could even still sing, I mean, I was never that great!” Host Andy soon interrupted saying: “You can sing, babe.”

The Mirror has approached Victoria’s spokesperson for comment.

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Nvidia (NVDA 0.86%) has grown to become the largest company in the world, but the question on many investors’ minds is if the company has more upside ahead in the coming years. The answer looks to be yes.

Powering the AI infrastructure ecosystem

Nvidia is much more than just a chipmaker that makes graphics processing units (GPUs). It is the company whose ecosystem is most responsible for powering the current artificial intelligence (AI) revolution that is taking place.

Nvidia’s biggest advantage starts with its CUDA software platform, which it developed to allow its chips to be easily programmable for tasks outside their original purpose of speeding up graphics rendering in video games. While it took time for other markets to develop, the company smartly gave CUDA away for free to universities and research labs that were doing early work on AI.

This led to nearly all foundational AI code being written on its software and optimized for its chips. Since rewriting code and retraining developers for another platform would be both costly and time-consuming, this has created a huge moat for the company. This can be seen both in the company’s market share and growth. Last quarter, it held a more than 90% market share in the GPU space, while its data center revenue climbed to $41.1 billion, up from just $10.3 billion two years ago.

Nvidia’s moat does not end with CUDA, though. It developed its NVLink interconnect to allow its GPUs to act as a single unit. That keeps customers from mixing in AI chips from other vendors in an AI cluster. Meanwhile, its 2020 purchase of Mellanox gave it a networking component that allows it to provide end-to-end AI factories. Last quarter, its data networking revenue nearly doubled to $7.3 billion, showing how important this has become to the company.

The company is not stopping there. Its up to $100 billion investment in OpenAI gives it a stake in one of the companies at the forefront of AI models and helps give one of its largest customers financing to buy or rent its chips. While OpenAI has struck deals with other chip companies, no one else is getting an equity stake in the ChatGPT maker.

AI infrastructure spending, meanwhile, is showing no signs of slowing. Nvidia estimates that the total addressable market for AI hardware and systems could climb from roughly $600 billion today to as much as $4 trillion in the next several years. Nvidia is bound to get more than its fair share of this spending directed its way.

Image source: Getty Images.

Nvidia’s two-year outlook

Nvidia has indicated that it has the ability to continue to grow revenue at a 50% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next few years. The revenue consensus for its current fiscal year ending in January is around $206.5 billion. At that pace of growth, its 2027 revenue (essentially its fiscal year 2028 ending in January) would be around $465 billion.

If the company’s adjusted operating expenses were to rise by an average of 7% quarter over quarter during this stretch and its gross margin remained around 73%, and we apply a 15% tax rate on its operating income, Nvidia could generate nearly $260 billion in adjusted earnings by 2028 (fiscal 2029), or $10.50 per share, at its current share count of 24.5 billion. Place a 25 times-to-30 times price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) multiple on the stock, and its share price would be between $265 and $315 in two years.

Here is a basic model of what its revenue and earnings growth would look like.

Data source: Estimates based on author’s calculations.

All this means that while its stock has been a huge winner already, Nvidia’s stock still has plenty of upside potential over the next two years and beyond.

I haven’t had a car payment in a decade.

No lease, no financing, no $749 a month disappearing into a lender’s account. Just my old 2007 Honda Element, still rumbling down the road. She’s not the prettiest girl at the bar anymore, but she’s all I need.

At some point, I realized every “small” car payment my friends were making could have been a serious savings engine.

The power of redirecting that $749 a month

The average new car payment today is a jaw-dropping $749 a month. Skip that for 10 years, and you’ve kept nearly $90,000 in your pocket before even earning a cent in interest.

But that money doesn’t have to sit idle. Over the past few years, the first place I’ve been putting what would’ve been my “car payment” is straight into a high-yield savings account. At around 4.50% APY, that’s earned me thousands in interest while staying completely risk-free.

While I don’t want to keep all of my money in an HYSA, I keep my emergency fund with a few months of living expenses there and just make sure it’s always topped off. Beyond that, everything flows into my favorite tax-advantaged retirement accounts.

Why I park my money in a high-yield savings account

I treat my HYSA like a first stop for the money I used to waste on car payments. It’s my emergency and peace-of-mind fund, and here’s what makes high-yield savings accounts so easy to love:

• Safe and FDIC-insured up to $250,000
• Instant access when you need your cash
• Rates still around 4.00%, even as the Fed starts cutting

You can compare today’s top high-yield savings accounts here and find one that’s actually worth your money.

What you could do instead of sending money to a bank

Once I saw how quickly my savings grew, I realized it was really about peace of mind. I never worry about an unexpected bill or repair anymore. My high-yield savings account is my safety net, and every month I go without a car payment, that net gets stronger.

If you want that same feeling, start by opening a high-yield savings account that actually rewards you for saving. Rates around 4.00% APY won’t last forever, but getting started now could give you years of financial breathing room.

BRITNEY Spears has furiously clapped back at her “gaslighting” ex husband Kevin Federline in a brutal takedown of his jaw-dropping allegations over her conduct.

The mom-of-two issued a passionate statement on her Instagram page after her baby-daddy told how he feared the pop star would die without help – and said “it’s impossible to pretend everything is OK.”

Kevin – who is set to release book You Thought You Knew on October 21 – has already teased many shocking revelations about his relationship with the Toxic singer and life raising their sons, Sean Preston, now 20, and Jayden James, 19.

The former professional dancer, 47, has used his tome to open up about his struggles co-parenting with Britney, 43, throughout her downward spiral from pop princess to troubled artist.

As well as claiming she watched her sons sleep with knives in her hand, he has suggested she snogged a female dancer while he refused a throuple.

Now, clearly having “had enough” of the stream of stories about her the book has leaked, Britney has taken action.

BRIT CHEAT?

Kevin Federline claims Britney cheated with female dancer & he refused throuple

In a text post written in black font on a white background, she wrote: “The constant gaslighting from my ex husband is extremely hurtful and exhausting.

“Relationships with teenage boys is complex. I have felt demoralized by this situation and have always asked and almost begged for them to be a part of my life.

“Sadly, they have always witnessed the lack of respect shown by own father for me.

“They need to take responsibility for themselves.

“With one son only seeing me for 45 min in the past 5 years and the other with only 4 visits in the past 5 years. I have pride too.

“From now on I will let them know when I am available.

“Trust me, those white lies in that book, they are going straight to the bank and I am the only one who genuinely gets hurt here.”

Britney was seen reuniting with her rarely-seen son Jayden back in June, with a picture showing the teen towering over her.

The Hit Me Baby One More Time hitmaker also revealed she had bought Jayden a brand new Mercedes AMG SL 63 roadster valued at $187K.

The US chart star then wrapped her emotive message with the words: “I will always love them [her boys] and if you really know me, you won’t pay attention to the tabloids of my mental health and drinking.

“I am actually a pretty intelligent woman who has been trying to live a sacred and private life the past 5 years.

“I speak on this because I have had enough and any real woman would do the same.”

MOM LOWDOWN

Britney lost full-time custody of her sons in 2007 after an infamous breakdown during which she shaved her head.

The US star was allowed only supervised visits to see her boys, then aged two and one, who went to live with her former husband Kevin.

She now has 30 per cent custody but her relations with her sons hit a rough patch after they chose not to attend their mum’s 2022 wedding to US model Sam Asghari, her now ex.

The teens were also said to be embarrassed by her semi-naked pictures and overtly sexual dance videos posted on Instagram.

MARRIAGE BREAKDOWN

Kevin and Britney got married on September 18, 2004, just five months after they met but they split in 2006.

In an interview with The New York Times, Kevin previously revealed he’s kept his distance from his ex-wife and they “haven’t spoken in years,” following their divorce nearly two decades ago.

However, in the book, the DJ also revealed some of Britney’s alarming behavior, which he learned mainly from their kids.

“They would awaken sometimes at night to find her standing silently in the doorway, watching them sleep — ‘Oh, you’re awake?’ — with a knife in her hand,” Kevin wrote.

“Then she’d turn around and pad off without explanation.”

In a statement provided to Us Weekly, Britney’s representative said, ‘Once again [Federline] and others are profiting off her, and sadly it comes after child support has ended with Kevin.

‘All she cares about are her kids, Sean Preston and Jayden James, and their well-being during this sensationalism,’ they added.

In 2023, Jayden and Sean moved to Hawaii with their dad and his new wife, Victoria Prince, and the their two half-sisters. 

There were rife reports of a rift between the two sons and their famous mother, which was sparked after her conservatorship was terminated in November 2021.

Previously, the bubblegum pop queen apologized for “not being perfect.”

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Meanwhile, we exclusively revealed the secret Mother’s Day phone call which saw her attempt to rebuild her connection with her sons.

We told how Britney is now at pains to rebuild a loving relationship with her sons — who were once by her side for everything, from Smurf movie premieres to Dodgers baseball games and trips to Disneyland.

TV star and model Vogue Williams has reportedly signed up to this year’s I’m A Celebrity, 10 years after her husband Spencer Matthews was removed from the ITV camp

I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! will be back on screens in a matter of weeks, and bosses are doing all they can to secure another star-studded lineup. The celebrities taking part in the ITV show will be kept under wraps, but rumours have already been circulating over who is taking part.

Model and reality TV star Vogue Williams is the latest famous face to be tipped to be heading Down Under for the gruelling Bushtucker trials. She would follow in her husband Spencer Matthew’s footsteps, but would hope to have a very different experience from him.

The Made in Chelsea star was removed from camp after three days back in 2015 because he was taking steroids and didn’t tell producers beforehand. Now, Vogue has been tipped as “one of the most glam signings” in years.

READ MORE: Thomas Skinner wishes he’d never done Strictly as he fumes he didn’t ‘fit the bill’READ MORE: UK hit rapper Aitch makes history as he ‘signs up’ for I’m A Celebrity

“She is really fun and gets on with everyone, so bosses reckon she will be a hit with viewers,” a source explained. “It has been a hard decision to go on the show, because it will mean so much time away from her kids, but she wants to fight her fears and go for it.”

They added to the Sun: “Spencer is a massive thrillseeker and is always off on an adventure, but now it is Vogue’s turn to have one.” Vogue and Spencer married in 2018, and they share three children together.

She already has experience with tough shows, having won Bear Grylls: Mission Survive. Vogue might not be the only model in camp as it has been rumoured Kelly Brook will appear despite saying she would never do it.

In 2018, Kelly insisted she would never take part in the series. At the time she said: “I can just think of a million things I’d rather do. I’d rather go and work in my local pub.”

She added: “Even if I had a huge tax bill and I had to pay it really urgently, I still wouldn’t do it.” Kelly went as far as saying doing I’m A Celebrity would be the “beginning of the end”.

However, a source told the publication over the weekend that Kelly has signed up. Other famous faces said to be taking on the jungle include Emmerdale’s Lisa Riley and Shona McGarty who quit her role on EastEnders this year.

Rapper Aitch is also reportedly to be on the bill, which would make him the first in 11 years. The musician is best known for his successful career which includes nine Top Ten hits and working with Stormzy and Ed Sheeran.

TV bosses are hoping that the 25-year-old brings a younger generation of fans. Aitch, whose real name is Harry Armstrong, originally comes from New Moston, Manchester and began his career when he was just 15.

But, ITV are yet to confirm a full list of while celebrities will be on the latest series. A spokesman for ITV said: “We do not comment on speculation about I’m A Celebrity contestants.”

READ MORE: Beauty fans bag luxurious skincare advent calendar worth £894 for under 10% of cost

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For years, I parked my savings at Wells Fargo because it felt safe and familiar. The problem is it was earning almost nothing.

Wells Fargo’s standard savings account still pays just 0.01% APY, which means every $10,000 earns $1 a year in interest. One dollar.

Then I finally moved my money into a high-yield savings account (HYSA) paying around 4.00% APY, and it completely changed the math. Even if rates dip as the Fed starts cutting, I’ll still earn over $1,000 in interest over the next two years.

Here’s how that adds up, and why I keep telling everyone I know to switch.

Earning hundreds more, even if rates fall

Right now, the best HYSAs are still offering between 4.00% and 4.50% APY.

To stay realistic, let’s assume rates drop gradually:

• Year 1: 3.60% APY
• Year 2: 3.20% APY

I keep about $20,000 in savings. Here’s what that earns me:

Data source: Author’s calculations.

Now compare that with Wells Fargo:

Data source: Author’s calculations.

That’s a $1,356 difference, just for moving my money to a better bank.

Lower balances still earn serious money

You don’t need a big balance to make this work. Even smaller amounts can grow fast in a high-yield account.

Data source: Author’s calculations.

Most HYSAs are easy to open online with no fees and low (or no) minimums. I opened mine in minutes and started earning interest the same day. Check out some of the best account options and start earning today.

The best part? It’s effortless

Switching accounts used to sound intimidating, but now it’s incredibly simple. Once you open a new HYSA, you can link it to your checking account, transfer funds, and start earning immediately.

Your money stays FDIC-insured up to $250,000, just like it was at Wells Fargo — only now it’s actually working for you.

If I’d switched years ago, I’d probably have several thousand dollars more by now. Don’t make the same mistake I did.

Don’t let your bank keep your interest

It takes less than 15 minutes to move your savings to a high-yield account that pays you what your money deserves.

See the best high-yield savings accounts available today and find one paying 4.00% or more before rates start to fall.

Martin Clunes is making an unlikely return to the Doc Martin universe – three years after the ITV drama ended with fans devastated over the news

Martin Clunes is making an unlikely return to the Doc Martin universe. The actor, 63, played Doc Martin in the ITV show from 2004 and 2022, where he starred as the rather awkward GP of a small British village.

The show wrapped in 2022, with fans up and down the country devastated. At the time, ahead of the UK show’s final season, Martin and Philippa Braithwaite released a joint statement, which read: “We have loved making nine series of Doc Martin.

“When we launched the series in 2004 we could never have imagined how much our loyal viewers would take to the grumpy Doc like they have. The series has avid fans both in the UK and throughout the world and we are thrilled that Doc Martin has topped the ratings every time. However, after sixteen years we now feel that the time has come to say goodbye to Portwenn.

“We will be making the tenth and final series in 2021 and we are very much looking forward to returning to Cornwall to film it.”

At the time, Martin insisted there was no bad ratings that caused the end of the series – but they just felt it was time.

He said: “All good things have to come to an end. And I’m sure there are lots of people who aren’t fans of the show who think it’s terribly repetitive anyway, but we’re at huge pains not to repeat ourselves. I just think we’ve sort of done everything. I mean, it would be so great to just sort of carry on, but I don’t think we can keep it as good.”

However, Martin is back in the world of Port Wenn once more – but in a very different capacity. Martin will be returning to the show as the father of Dr Martin Best is the United States reboot of the show, titled Best Medicine.

Josh Charles, 54, will star as Dr Martin, who has left his career as a surgeon in Boston and heads to the East Coast fishing village of Port Wenn, but with a few secrets up his sleeve. Martin’s wife Philippa Braithwaite will also serve as executive producer on the new show.

The synopsis for Best Medicine teases drama ahead, as it reads: “A brilliant surgeon leaves Boston to become a small-town doctor where he spent childhood summers. Despite his medical skills, his rude manner alienates locals as he battles hidden phobias and struggles with personal connections.”

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“Unfortunately, there will always be organisations that seek to pirate our game for potential financial gain.

“They don’t invest in pathways or the development of players. They simply exploit the hard work of others, putting players at risk of financial loss while profiting themselves.

“They are, in reality, counterfeiting a code.”

R360 is co-founded by former England World Cup winner Mike Tindall and backed by private investors.

After the prospective rugby union bans were announced last week, it said it wants to “work collaboratively as part of the global rugby calendar,” and that all players would be released for international matches.

“History shows that when athletes are offered free choice and given fresh opportunities for them and their families then threats to those sportsmen and women follow,” R360 co-chief executive Mark Spoors said on Wednesday.

“R360 is about empowering players, giving them, rugby lovers and the next generation of fans opportunities and new platforms to enjoy the sport we love.

“We know there is much interest in understanding more about the global series we’re building. We remain on plan and look forward to sharing and discussing the detail in the coming months.”

R360 will seek approval for its plans from World Rugby, rugby union’s governing body, at its council meeting next year.

British vloggers Dan Howell and Phil Lester — known for their gaming and comedic slice-of-life style videos — are taking ownership of their long-rumored romance after more than a decade of incessant fan “shipping” online.

The longtime collaborators revealed Monday that they have been dating for more than a decade, pretty much since they gained popularity in the late aughts. The YouTubers confirmed they have been an item in a 46-minute video titled “Are Dan and Phil in a Relationship?”

“We fell into it hard and fast in 2009,” Howell, 34, said. “And here we are almost 16 years later.”

Before Howell and Lester, 38, spoke about the origins of their couple-dom, the YouTubers— who both came out as gay in 2019 — talked extensively about why they waited go public with their relationship. First, they tackled some fans’ obsessive behavior.

Howell and Lester began appearing in each other’s YouTube videos in the late aughts and eventually, in 2014, launched their shared gaming channel — that page currently boasts 2.95 million subscribers. The pair documented their lives together, opening the door for fans to speculate on their relationship and foster a parasocial connection, Howell explained in the video. Among the most prominent internet personalities at the time, Howell and Lester often became the subject of fan fiction and fan edits on Tumblr.

“Some think that shipping real-life people is problematic. I think that humans cannot stop this natural tendency,” Howell said, later adding that “a line gets crossed” when fan speculation turns into investigation.

The pair recalled fans combing through their old social media posts, reaching out to their loved ones and filming them out in the real world. “If all this digging, investigating was small it could’ve been ignored,” Lester said.

“The problem is this became so big we could not ignore it,” Howell continued.

Howell and Lester also recalled fans dissecting their on-camera interactions and spreading the romance rumors during live events. Ultimately, the rumors became “too loud to ignore,” Lester said.

Howell said he was wary about how going public with Lester would impact their professional dynamic and spoke candidly about how his struggles with his sexuality affected their relationship.

“I had an extremely homophobic childhood,” Howell said, adding that the constant fan pressure to address the rumors took a toll on his mental health. He said that when he and Lester gained popularity he felt he “had to hide the relationship because I was still hiding who I was to my friends, family, myself.”

Online chatter didn’t help and “hit a nerve,” he said. Howell said Lester was “like a literal ray of light in my life back then” and committed to protecting their relationship.

“So when other people tried to grab it and drag it into the light, I felt completely violated,” Howell continued. “Having all of these people trying to out us and being so hostile to me when I tried to hide it was so triggering. Honestly, it could’ve killed me.”

Lester added: “It’s sad because those should’ve been the happiest times of our life. It was so amazing and we were having so much fun personally.”

Invasive fan behavior hung over their success “like a curse” and that led to anxiety and panic attacks, Howell said. Lester also recalled a “breaking point” in their relationship where a personal video leaked on YouTube and spread online, with re-posters refusing to take it down.

As they acknowledged the negative impact of some fans’ invasive behavior, the YouTubers said they don’t hold a grudge. Howell said the skeptics “were just young people that had absolutely no idea what the effects of their actions were.”

“In the same way that we all want people in our lives to give us patience and grace and benefit of the doubt if we ever make a mistake, I have to extend that to the world in regards to this story,” he added. “So I understand and I forgive.”

Howell and Lester, whose work also includes BBC Radio programming and several live tours, ended their video announcing the launch of a new podcast.

A POLISH woman has been discovered in a shocking state after allegedly being locked in a tiny room by her parents for nearly three decades.

Mirella, now 42, was just 15-years-old when she vanished from public life in 1998.

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She lived in the city of Świętochłowice, in southern Poland.

Her parents reportedly told neighbours at the time that their teenage daughter had gone missing. For years, no one questioned it.

But this summer, police stumbled upon the horrifying truth.

Officers were called to an apartment block in July after residents heard a disturbance coming from inside.

When they knocked on the door, the elderly landlady, 82, denied anything unusual was going on.

Cops then spoke to Mirella directly. She reassured them that “everything was fine”.

But officers quickly noticed severe injuries on her legs and decided to call and ambulance.

She was rushed to hospital – and doctors determined she was just “days away from death” from infection.

Although Mirella’s discovery took place in July, the shocking case has only now come to light after locals launched a fundraiser to help her recover.

One of the organisers posted online: “Doctors determined that she was only days away from death due to infection.

“She has been in hospital for two months now due to her critical condition.

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“People who knew Mirella thought she left her ‘family’ home almost 30 years ago.

“Unfortunately, the truth turned out to be different.

“Much remains unknown, and several facts cannot be revealed at this stage. One thing is certain: the truth must come to light as to why this young, healthy 15-year-old stopped leaving her home and disappeared without a trace.

“It is unimaginable to spend so much time in one room.

“She herself says that she has never even seen her city develop, that it is behind in everything, that she has missed out on so many things, she has never been to a doctor, never obtained an ID card, never gone for a simple walk or even to the balcony…

“She’s never been to a dentist or a hairdresser.

“Her hair and teeth are in critical condition, even threatening her health, so visits to a private clinic are now necessary.”

Mirella’s nightmare began when she was just a teenager. Her parents allegedly confined her to a small room in their flat and cut her off from the outside world completely.

For 27 years, neighbours believed the couple’s story that their daughter was missing.

Residents assumed only two people lived in the flat: the elderly couple.

Her ordeal only came to an end at the end of July when neighbours heard noises and alerted the emergency services.

When police and paramedics entered the second-floor apartment, they were met with a devastating scene.

Witnesses said Mirella looked “extremely neglected,” and her legs “appeared to be necrotic.”

One neighbour said: “It’s unbelievable. I remember Mirella as a teenager. We used to play in front of the building when I visited my grandmother for the holidays.

“Then she suddenly disappeared under mysterious circumstances.”

After she was rescued, Mirella spent two months in hospital fighting for her life.

Authorities have now launched a criminal investigation.

Prosecutor Agnieszka Kwatera confirmed that the case is being formally investigated.

Junior Asp. Anna Hryniak from the Municipal Police Headquarters in Świętochłowice told Fakt: “After our intervention and transporting the woman to the hospital, the district police officer contacted the Social Welfare Center.

“We are awaiting feedback on this woman’s situation from the Social Welfare Center so we can take further action.”

It is not yet clear what legal consequences Mirella’s parents will face.

The shocking discovery comes just days after a separate case made headlines in Brazil.

A six-year-old girl who had spent her entire life locked inside a room was rescued by police in Sorocaba, São Paulo state.

Authorities were tipped off anonymously and found the child in a state of neglect. She had never been to school, received no vaccinations, and could not speak.

Child protection counsellor Ligia Guerra said: “The girl was very apathetic and dazzled by everything.”

She added that the child’s hair was “tangled” and looked “as if it had never been washed.”

The girl had reportedly eaten nothing that day and survived only on liquids.

She communicated with police and counsellors through sounds rather than words.

The child was immediately taken to hospital for medical checks before being moved to a children’s home.

Both cases have horrified the public and raised questions about how such extreme abuse can go unnoticed for so long.

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NESTLED in the Northumberland countryside is a pretty village that dates back to the second century.

It has Roman roots, and looks like it goes back years thanks to its stone buildings and nearby historical ruins.

The village of Corbridge is 16 miles out of Newcastle and it caught the attention of The Times last year, all thanks to its high street.

The publication ranked it as number four in its list of seven loveliest high streets in the UK, praising its unique independent shops and cafés.

It said: “If you’re visiting this postcard-pretty Northumberland town to indulge one of these niche interests, the good news is there’s a fantastic high street too.

“Try Baby at the Bank for cute kidswear, sold in a former bank (babyatthebank.co.uk); or there’s RE for furniture (“an eclectic mix of the raRE, REmarkable, REcycled, REscued and REstored”; re-foundobjects.com) and Corbridge Larder, where you can stock up on fine local foods — chutneys, pies, cakes — after taste-testing them in the adjoining café (corbridgelarder.co.uk).

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“The Angel of Corbridge, built in 1569, is a lovely pub with rooms, moments from St Andrew’s Church and Market Place — the venue for many of the above events.”

Lots of the shops are independent, and there are lots of beauticians, hairdressers, cafés, restaurants, pubs and delis.

Part of the village’s charm is thanks to its buildings with stone exteriors that give it an old English look.

But Corbridge does itself have a rich history dating back to the Roman period.

On the outskirts of the village is the famous Hadrian’s Wall where visitors can walk on the original surface of its Roman main street.

The museum has artefacts like the Corbridge Hoard, which is a Roman time capsule that was buried in the 2nd century AD.

The site of Hadrian’s Wall is managed by English Heritage and is open daily, 10am – 5pm. Tickets for adults start from £12.70 and children from £7.70.

There’s the Steam Rally which annually takes place in the summertime, where there’s over 700 exhibits of steam engines, vintage cars, and tractors.

There’s also a bar, fairground, live music and food stalls.

It holds A Midsummer’s Evening in Corbridge which has market stalls, street food, live music, dance and late night shopping.

Each year on the first Monday in December, the village hosts Christmas in Corbridge with carol singing, food stalls and late night shopping.

To get to Corbridge, the best link is up to Newcastle then jump on the Tyne Valley Line to the village which takes just under 40 minutes.

Plus, there’s read more on the tiny pretty village in ‘trending’ English county that has its own castle and beach.

OMAZE-ING

I went from council flat to winning £4m house… But this is why I’m selling up

BOTTOMS UP

Wetherspoons reveals opening dates of 5 new pubs starting next week

And a historic English town in Northumberland that used to be a city and is now one of the happiest places to live.

Here’s The Times’ list of the seven loveliest UK high streets…

1. Lymington, Hampshire
2. Narberth, Pembrokeshire
3. North Berwick, East Lothian
4. Corbridge, Northumberland
5. Greenwich, London
6. Royal Hillsborough, Co Down
7. Stamford, Lincolnshire

In the last few weeks, USC has found itself caught in a political tug-of-war that could potentially change campus life permanently.

Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened on Oct. 2 to cut “billions” in state funding, including the popular Cal Grants that many students rely upon, if California schools bowed to pressure from the Trump administration.

Newsom’s messaging came in response to a White House directive that asked USC and eight other major national universities to commit to President Trump’s views on gender identity, admissions, diversity and free speech in exchange for priority access to federal dollars.

The topic was covered in depth by my colleagues Jaweed Kaleem and Melody Gutierrez.

Let’s jump into their article and see what options lie ahead for USC.

What the White House told USC

USC and other universities were asked to sign a “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” which commits them to adopt the White House’s conservative vision for America’s campuses.

The Oct. 1 letter also suggests colleges should align with Trump’s views on student discipline, college affordability and the importance of hard sciences over liberal arts.

The compact asks universities to accept the government’s definition of gender — excluding transgender people — and apply it to campus bathrooms, locker rooms and women’s sports teams.

But the White House letter to USC and other campuses is more stick than carrot.

The government says it will dole out new federal money and give preference to the universities that accept the deal over those that do not agree to the terms.

Signing on would give universities priority access to some federal grants, but White House officials say the government money would not be limited solely to those schools.

How Trump wants to cut back on international students

The federal compact would also severely restrict international student enrollment to 15% of a college’s entire undergraduate student body. Plus, no more than 5% could come from a single country.

That provision would hit USC hard, where 26% of the fall 2025 freshman class is international. Half of those students hail from either China or India.

Cutting into that rate would be a financial blow to USC, where full-fee tuition from international students is a major source of revenue. The university has already endured hundreds of layoffs this year amid budget troubles.

How Newsom is responding

Newsom wrote that “if any California university signs this radical agreement, they’ll lose billions in state funding — including Cal Grants — instantly.”

He added, “California will not bankroll schools that sell out their students, professors, researchers, and surrender academic freedom.”

Students become eligible for Cal Grants through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or California Dream Act Application. In 2024-25, $2.5 billion in Cal Grants were doled out to California students.

What is USC doing?

The school’s faculty members strongly denounced Trump’s offer at a meeting Monday, calling it “antithetical to principles of academic freedom.”

But interim President Beong-Soo Kim told the roughly 500 attendees that the university “has not made any kind of final decision.”

One of the nine schools presented with Trump’s deal, MIT, forcefully rejected the White House’s proposal last week. (It is unclear how the White House selected the nine schools that were offered the deal.)

Notes from a reporter’s notepad

Kaleem, one of the Times reporters on this story, noted that universities throughout Southern California, including USC, UCLA and others in the UC or Cal State systems, find themselves under siege from the White House, whether they were offered Trump’s proposal or not.

“Grants for funding and research are being held up because of investigations into antisemitism or diversity or other issues,” he said. “There are very few universities untouched by the push from Trump on higher education.”

Kaleem spoke with several politically active students and professors at USC who see Newsom’s gesture as a blessing in disguise.

“They felt the governor’s threat to take away money actually gives the USC campus cover to resist Trump more forcefully,” Kaleem said.

Now USC administrators could defy the White House under the guise of trying to avoid losing funding from the state, according to those who spoke with Kaleem.

“They could say they can’t be blamed because they’re being forced to resist Trump,” he said. “It’s an interesting potential strategy.”

For more, check out the full article here.

Today’s top stories

Part of the debate over the ongoing federal government shutdown focuses on funding for the treatment of undocumented immigrants at hospital emergency rooms.

(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

Trump claims Democrats want to use federal funds to give undocumented residents healthcare. That’s misleading

• Undocumented immigrants cannot access federal programs, but California law provides state-funded Medi-Cal coverage costing the state $11.2 billion annually.
• President Trump claimed recently that Democrats “want to have illegal aliens come into our country and get massive healthcare at the cost to everybody else.”
• Democrats called Trump’s assertion an absolute lie, accusing Republicans of wanting to slash federal healthcare benefits to Americans in need to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy.

Beutner launches bid for L.A. mayor, vowing to fight ‘injustices’ under Trump

• Former L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner kicked off his campaign for mayor on Monday with a video message that hits not just Mayor Karen Bass but also President Trump and his immigration crackdown.
• Beutner vowed to counter Trump’s “assault on our values,” while also criticizing City Hall over homelessness, housing costs and rising city fees.

Three more L.A. County deaths tied to synthetic kratom

• The deaths have been linked to kratom, a compound that is being synthetically reproduced and sold over the counter as a cure-all for a host of ailments, the county Department of Public Health announced Friday.
• The compound was found to be a contributing cause of death in three residents who were between the ages of 18 and 40, according to the county health department.
• That brings the total number of recent overdose deaths related to kratom in L.A. County to six.

What else is going on

Commentary and opinions

This morning’s must read

Other must reads

For your downtime

The Griselda’s Revenge cocktail from the Black Lagoon pop-up bar.

(Black Lagoon)

Going out

Staying in

A question for you: What frustrates you the most about parking in L.A.?

Karen writes: “My frustration is that the city started making people pay to park along the road up to the Griffith Observatory. That was the one free and delightful place to get both some sight-seeing and some good walking in after the hunt for a spot. It felt very unfair and opportunistic of the city to limit access to city parks by charging that fee.”

Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.

And finally … your photo of the day

Theatergoers take their seats to see “Les Miserables” on Oct. 8 in Los Angeles.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Today’s great photo is from Times photographer Jason Armond at opening night of “Les Misérables” at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre.

Have a great week, from the Essential California team

Jim Rainey, staff writer
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, reporter
Hugo Martín, assistant editor
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters

How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected]. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.

Is past and present stock market performance a good predictor of how the market will perform in the future? It can be sometimes. Otherwise, no one would bother incorporating historical stock data into models that attempt to project future performance.

With that in mind, investors might want to pay attention to what’s going on now with the S&P 500 (^GSPC 1.56%) in relation to what it’s done in years past. The benchmark index is poised to do something that’s only happened 11 times in 100 years. And it could signal a big move for the stock market in 2026.

Image source: Getty Images.

The third time’s the charm

The S&P 500 soared 26% in 2023. It followed with a 25% gain in 2024. As of the market close on Oct. 10, 2025, the S&P is up a little over 11%. As things stand right now, it’s on course to finish the year with a double-digit percentage gain for the third consecutive year.

Such an achievement is rarer than you might think. Over the last 100 years, the S&P 500 has delivered double-digit returns for three consecutive years only 11 times. Technically, the index has only existed in its current form, including 500 companies, for 68 years. However, the S&P 500’s predecessor — the S&P 90 — dates back to 1926.

Granted, the stock market could end 2025 on a negative note. President Trump’s latest threat of additional 100% tariffs on all Chinese imports, on top of 30% tariffs already in place, is causing significant angst among investors.

It doesn’t help matters that the S&P 500 has been trading at record highs. The Buffett indicator, a ratio of total U.S. stock market capitalization to GDP, is well above a level that its namesake, legendary investor Warren Buffett, has said was “playing with fire.”

However, even if the S&P 500 falls over the next few weeks, a rebound to get the index back into double-digit gain territory would still be quite possible. Stocks often enjoy momentum at the end of a year thanks to a phenomenon known as the Santa Claus rally.

A history of big moves following three double-digit years

What could a third consecutive year of double-digit gains for the S&P 500 potentially mean for stocks in 2026? History shows that big moves often follow.

In three of the 11 cases over the last 100 years where the S&P jumped by double digits for three years in a row, the trend soon came to an abrupt end. For example, the S&P 500’s predecessor began with a bang in 1926, racking up three back-to-back double-digit returns. However, any student of history knows what happened in 1929: The stock market crash in October of that year brought a screeching halt to the previous momentum. The S&P finished the year down 8% and continued to decline for the next three years.

More recently, the index generated strong double-digit returns in 2019, 2020, and 2021. But the S&P 500 plunged 18% in 2022 as the Federal Reserve cranked up interest rates.

In four of the 11 cases, though, the strong momentum extended into a fourth year. The first occurrence came during World War II. The S&P soared 20% in 1942, followed by a gain of nearly 26% in 1943 and a 36% jump in 1944. The best was yet to come, with the index skyrocketing 36% in 1945 as the war ended.

Another great example of a three-year streak continuing into a fourth year was during the heady dot-com boom of the 1990s. The S&P 500 delivered returns of 22% or more in 1995, 1996, and 1997. It slowed only slightly in 1998, with a nice gain of 21%.

^SPX data by YCharts

How will the S&P 500 perform in 2026?

History shows that big moves are common after three consecutive years of double-digit gains by the S&P 500. Unfortunately, stocks tumble nearly as often as they jump in the following year. How will the S&P 500 perform in 2026? It’s impossible to know for sure.

What is possible to know, though, is that the S&P 500 has always risen over the long term in the past. The Rolling Stones weren’t talking about the stock market when they sang “Time Is on My Side,” but their premise definitely applies to investing. Regardless of what the S&P 500 does next year, investors who maintain a long-term perspective are likely to make money.

Identifying companies that are well positioned to serve a massive growth opportunity can help you land those elusive multibaggers. All you need is one growth stock to work out better than you could have imagined to change your life. Focusing on the companies that are helping build the future, and showing strong growth because of it, can steer you toward the right stocks.

To help you in your search, here are two growing companies playing important roles in the global adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).

Image source: Getty Images.

1. SoundHound AI

SoundHound AI (SOUN 10.20%) has seen its stock skyrocket 455% over the last three years (at the time of this writing). Businesses are turning to it for AI-powered voice assistants, a technology SoundHound has been investing in for 20 years. It has gained a strong foothold in the restaurant industry, with Red Lobster recently partnering with SoundHound on AI-powered phone ordering. But the company has set its sights on serving all enterprises, which could spell monster returns for investors.

SoundHound AI was recently named a leader in the IDC MarketScape for Worldwide General-Purpose Conversational AI Platforms 2025 Vendor Assessment. Its growing revenue indicates a business with huge momentum. Revenue more than tripled in Q2 to nearly $43 million. That brings its trailing-12-month revenue to $131 million, up 137% year over year.

While acquisitions have partly boosted its growth, SoundHound AI has a fundamentally profitable business model. Over the long term, it can monetize its technology through royalties, subscriptions, and advertising. Management expects to be profitable on an adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) basis at the end of 2025.

SoundHound is making great progress expanding beyond the restaurant market. In the second quarter, it made deals with companies across healthcare, retail, and financial services.

As it grows, SoundHound AI is building a strong competitive advantage built on data. It recently exceeded 1 billion queries per month on its platform. This data can help improve its AI capabilities and reflects its growing presence across multiple industries.

SoundHound’s stock has a relatively low market cap of nearly $8 billion at the time of writing. The addressable market it is tapping into is estimated well above $100 billion, so this is a stock that could be worth significantly more in 20 years than it is today.

Image source: Getty Images.

2. Cloudflare

More than 20% of all websites use Cloudflare (NET 4.01%). It acts as a security check between a visitor and a company’s website. The stock has soared 292% over the last three years, but as the company pivots to meeting demand for AI-driven web traffic, investors could see a lot more gains over the long term.

Cloudflare’s main competitive advantage is an extensive global network that covers over 335 cities. This allows it to deliver efficient and scalable service to internet service providers. As it adds more servers to the network, the company’s competitive moat widens from greater efficiency.

Cloudflare has consistently delivered year-over-year growth of about 25%. In Q2, its revenue grew 28% over the year-ago quarter, and this momentum should continue as AI begins to introduce a whole new avenue of growth for the company.

It just signed a $15 million deal with a rapidly growing AI company for its Workers AI product. This service allows companies to run AI models on edge computing devices on the company’s network. Cloudflare has relationships with several leading AI companies, which positions it well for growth as AI agents and models begin to generate an increasing amount of web traffic. Management is enthusiastic to leverage this competitive position to serve new opportunities, such as autonomous transactions completed online between AI agents.

Analysts expect the company’s earnings to grow at an annualized rate of 24%. With AI enhancing its growth prospects, Cloudflare should be a solid growth stock to hold for many years.