In a recent episode of behind-the-scenes showbiz podcast The Rest Is Entertainment, a fan asked co-hosts Richard Osman and Marina Hyde: “What happens if the makeover [on an interior design show] is awful? Does the production company pay to put it right?” 

It’s a good question, as in shows like Alan Carr’s Interior Design Masters, some people hand over their businesses to TV competition show participants for a total design redo. 

Luckily, none other than Alan himself answered the question on The Rest Is Entertainment ― explaining: “Sometimes, the people who own the shops or the hairdressers’ or the hotel room really hate what [the contestants have] done.” 

OK... so, then what? 

Then “what we do is we go back, we paint it back to how it originally was, so no one is offended,” Alan revealed.

In 2021, a Reddit post that asked people who’d been on TV home makeover shows to share their experiences revealed the phenomenon is international. 

One contractor who’d worked for an American home makeover channel said: “The homeowners picked some fancy Moroccan tile for the floors at some upscale NYC boutique and the host of the show decided it would look better without grout... which went about as well as you’d expect.“

As with Interior Design Masters’ disgruntled shop owners: “Filming wrapped, and we were called back out a few weeks later to replace the fancy tile that immediately chipped and became dangerous with some boring tile. Had to sign NDAs, etc.”

Still, some people said not every show follows up on design grievances

Some Redditors who wrote into the thread claimed that in their experience, the design looked great on screen – but crumbled once the cameras left, without getting fixed. 

One person said: ”[The redesign] looked so pretty, they decorated it to look like a fairy woodland with huge tree murals on the walls and a nights sky of stars hanging from the ceiling. But it held up really badly, all the murals on the wall peeled off and it looked bad pretty quickly.” 

And yet another site user confirmed that the effect was mostly for the cameras, and in their case, they weren’t offered a fix ― “It was a super intense three weeks of filming and the redesign looked great on camera. In reality, it was literally things stuck together with staples and tape.” 

The redo took two weeks to repair, they said. 

Marriage is full of highs, lows and a whole bunch of ordinary moments in between. Somehow the married people on X, formerly known as Twitter, continue to find humour in the minutiae of wedded life.

Every week, we round up the funniest marriage tweets on the platform. Read on for 20 relatable ones that will have you laughing in agreement.

The fact of the matter is that in 2024, if you’re a female celebrity with a certain level of fame, you need to accept that at some point you’re going to be called on to play Jenny in 2:22 A Ghost Story – regardless of whether you actually have any acting experience.

Just ask Cheryl Cole. Or Laura Whitmore. Or Frankie Bridge. Or Giovanna Fletcher.

Well, the wheel of huns has spun again. And this time it has landed on documentarian and former Strictly Come Dancing champion Stacey Dooley.

On Tuesday afternoon, it was announced that Stacey would be taking over the role of Jenny when 2:22 A Ghost Story returns to the West End later this year.

She’ll be sharing the stage with The Inbetweeners actor James Buckley, who’ll be playing Stacey’s on-stage husband Ben, with further casting information to be announced in due course.

2:22 A Ghost Story opened on the West End in 2021, in the wake of theatre closures due to pandemic.

The play’s first Jenny was pop singer Lily Allen in her major acting debut, earning the Brit Award winner a nomination at the Oliviers that year.

In the years since, much has been made of the wave of celebrities who have succeeded Lilyin the role of Jenny, which has included Jaime Winstone and Doctor Who star Mandip Gill, as well as the aforementioned host of singers and TV personalities.

Male actors who have appeared in the show have included EastEnders favourite Jake Wood, Harry Potter star Tom Felton, It’s A Sin’s Nathaniel Curtis and pop stars Matt Willis and Jay McGuiness.

Victims of torture and human trafficking will be deported to Rwanda under Rishi Sunak’s plan to tackle illegal immigration, a minister has confirmed.

Michael Tomlinson made the admission as he clashed with Mishal Husain on Radio Four’s Today programme this morning.

His comments came after parliament finally passed the prime minister’s flagship Safety of Rwanda Bill last night.

The PM said yesterday that the first deportation flights to east Africa will take place in 10-12 weeks and that it would deter people from trying to make the perilous crossing.

It came as five people including a seven-year-old girl died while trying to make the crossing on Tuesday morning.

Tomlinson, the illegal migration minister, was asked by Husain whether some asylum seekers will be exempted because of the circumstances behind their arrival in the UK.

She said: “If you’re a victim of torture, can you still be removed under this?”

The minister replied: “Rwanda is a safe country and yes, it will be possible to remove those to Rwanda.”

Husain said: “Understood. So any victim of torture, no point applying [for exemption] on that basis. Victim of trafficking?”

Tomlinson responded: “Rwanda is a safe country, Mishal.”

As Husain tried to interrupt, the minister said: “This is rather frustrating. You’ve asked me a question. You could ask me a series of questions: could you do this challenge, could you do that. You could ask me an infinite number of challenges.

“You’re not going to get that clarity because the Act hasn’t yet come into force.”

Husain replied: “You’re trying to stop the legal challenges, aren’t you? For example, that’s why a lawyer could say ’OK, if my client is a victim of torture there’s no point applying on that basis because that doesn’t rule them out.

“Whatever physical or mental state they are in, they’re still eligible to be on a place to Rwanda.”

Tomlinson admitted there were “likely to be legal challenges” but he added: “We will meet them and the planes will take off.”

Earlier, Tomlinson had been shown footage on BBC Breakfast of asylum seekers trying to set off from France for the UK this morning.

Presenter John Kay told him: “It has been the case that people crossing the Channel for a year or so have known that they could be sent to Rwanda and yet what we’re seeing right now on our screens this morning are people still prepared to take that risk. They are not deterred.”

Rishi Sunak’s controversial Rwanda bill finally passed through parliament late last night – but what does that really mean?

While it was a major step in turning this bill into law, flights will not be taking off until July at the very earliest.

But, it was still a major win for the prime minister. Here’s what you need to know.

Why is the UK sending people to Rwanda? 

To recap, the Conservative Party is keen to send people arriving in the UK via small boats to Rwanda to prove it is tackling the country’s so-called illegal immigration issue.

The government wants to send asylum seekers – people looking for the UK’s protection who do not have authorisation from another safe country – to Rwanda.

That generally means those who came across the channel in small boats.

There are approximately 52,000 people in the UK who fall under this definition.

Migrants waiting to get their asylum claims processed are currently waiting in Home Office-funded accommodation, unable to get a job as they wait in limbo.

The policy – first publicised when Boris Johnson was still in No.10 – was put at the forefront of Sunak’s premiership when he made “stopping the boats” one of his five pledges for 2023.

The threat of deporting asylum seekers to another continent is meant to act as a deterrent – although boat crossings have actually crept up by 24% this year, compared to 2023.

What about migrants with a legal right to stay in the UK?

This is one of the major problems with the Rwanda plan – these asylum seekers are being sent overseas for processing.

That means the government is deporting them there before even deciding if they have a legal claim to be granted UK protection.

However, it is very unlikely these people will be found to have a genuine claim.

If those deported do have a claim, it’s unlikely it will be processed in time before the PM manages to call a general election.

When might flights take off?

The earliest a flight could take off is 12 days after the King has given the bill royal assent ( the final stage which formally turns it into law).

However, the PM said on Monday that they do not expect flights to take off for  the next 10 to 12 weeks.

So deportations would not start until late June to early July, despite Sunak’s previous Spring deadline.

He said on Monday: “That is later than we wanted, but we have always been clear that processing will take time.”

It will also take around two weeks to deport someone.

Officials first have to identify people who fit the bill, then the asylum seekers need a week’s notice they could be deported; and then they need five days’ notice when it has been confirmed.

That length of time extends if someone is not being held in an immigration removal centre – and this might get longer if they want to challenge it in the courts.

According to the BBC, even if the Home Office managed to deport 15,000 people – a number last seen in 2012 – it would take more than three years to relocate everyone.

What could still delay the Rwanda flights?

The plans have been weighed down with legal challenges ever since the first flight tried to take off back in June 2022.

The ECHR ruled it was unlawful, declaring that British judges needed to examine arguments against it thoroughly before any flights could take off.

Then the UK Supreme Court ruled it was unlawful, too.

The only way the PM has managed to work around this was to instruct judge stop ignore human rights safeguarding issues.

But migrants could still go to the European Court of Human Rights over the issue.

Unions for workers in the immigration system or civil service may also present significant opposition, if employees say they feel like they’ve been told to ignore human rights laws in the plan.

One major sticking point for the legislation is the claim Rwanda is a safe country – which the Supreme Court denied only in November.

A legal rule means refugees have to be removed to safe countries – and not sent somewhere they could face a risk to their life or poor treatment.

The government unveiled the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill to counter this in November, and Sunak revealed on Monday that he has a large body of legal experts ready to deflect any legal challenges.

Prince Louis is 6! 

Kate Middleton and Prince William shared an adorable new photo of their youngest child on Tuesday, his sixth birthday. 

“Happy 6th Birthday, Prince Louis!” read the post on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ social media accounts. “Thank you for all the kind wishes today.”

The photo was credited to the Princess of Wales.

Prince Louis Arthur Charles was born on April 23, 2018, at St. Mary’s Hospital in London. He is fourth in line to the throne, behind older siblings Prince George and Princess Charlotte. 

Royal followers learned last year that Kate has a sweet nickname for her youngest son, whom she called “Lou Bugs” at a coronation event. 

Though the Prince and Princess of Wales have always released photos of their children for their birthdays and other special occasions, this one comes at an especially difficult time for the royal family. 

The Princess of Wales shared in March that she was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer, after she was away from the public eye for an extended period of time.

Kensington Palace announced in January that Kate had undergone a planned abdominal surgery and would be away from royal duties until sometime after Easter. Her condition was initially thought to be noncancerous. 

Prior to Kate’s diagnosis being shared in late March, the palace released the first official photo of the princess since she’d undergone surgery, a portrait in honour of Mother’s Day. 

Multiple photo agencies later alleged that the family photo was digitally altered, prompting the Princess of Wales to issue an apology the following day. 

“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” the royal wrote in a tweet released on X. “I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day.” 

A funnel is one of these things, like a letter opener or a shoe horn, that I need regularly enough to buy but which feels like a niche Victorian purchase. 

So, I go about my week trying to decant cheap soap into its narrow-necked, fraudulent posh bottle ― and inevitably end up with a bubbly, sticky, oddly hard-to-clean mess on my sink. 

Thankfully, former nail tech @finallyjordan shared a hack on TikTok which works brilliantly, no funnel needed. 

What do I have to do?

“Without a funnel, this is gonna be damn near impossible,” she said while pouring liquid from a huge mason jar into a thin-necked bottle. 

“If you don’t have a funnel and you don’t want to make a mess, I would recommend either using a chopstick or a straw,” she added. 

She placed a chopstick into the receiving bottle and then placed the lip of her pouring container right up against the chopstick while pouring. 

“This is going to give your liquid a path to travel down”she explained, pouring a neat stream of liquid squarely into the other bottle “without spilling and without use of a funnel.” 

She had shared before revealing the hack that she’d learned the trick in her days as a nail tech, when she’d had to transfer liquids from one container to another pretty regularly ― and grew tired of the constant spillages it created.

People were pretty impressed by the hack 

“The way my jaw dropped,” none other than the TikTok app’s official account commented on the video. 

“Ma’am... my flabbers are once again ghasted,” another person wrote.

“You had absolutely no business changing my life in a 60-second video,” yet another commenter said.

Personally, I’m just glad I don’t have to purchase another niche but useful kitchen product ― my drawers are already bursting. 

If you love Call The Midwife as much as I do, you might have wondered where they get their supply of newborn actors. 

Well, you’re not alone ― a fan of the behind-the-scenes showbiz podcast The Rest is Entertainment asked its co-hosts Richard Osmsan and Marina Hyde: “Where are they getting their supply of newborn babies from? Do they get paid?” 

Journalist Marina Hyde began her answer: “The sourcing of newborn babies for Call The Midwife is a big deal.” 

So how do they do it? 

Well, there are specialist agents, Marina said. The show needs “a huge number” of newborns per season (60 to 70, per MyLondon), and “they have to be newborns because of the nature of the show”. 

So, she says there’s one particular specialist talent agency called JAM2000 which are responsible for an awful lot of TV newborns.

“To be a TV newborn in our country, you can start working ― as long as you’ve got the paperwork ― within a few hours of your birth,” Marina added. She shared that this is not the same in the States, where you have to wait 15 days. 

Series producer Ann Trickleback told Radio Times: “Lots of eager parents contact us and say, ‘We are having a baby, would you like it on the show?’ But the reality is that we need our newborns at very specific times due to the filming schedule, and so we get most of our babies through a specialist talent agency.” 

Ann added: “We use babies up to about eight weeks old, and sometimes we have special demands, for example with regard to ethnicity. Or perhaps if we’re covering a premature birth, we will need a tiny baby.” 

Turns out babies have to worry about camera distortion too

Marina added that the camera doesn’t just supposedly “add ten pounds” to adults ― it’s even true of babies, she says. 

“What they want is small newborns, because otherwise, the camera apparently adds quite a lot of pounds.” 

She shares that a lot of the babies in Call The Midwife are two to four days old ― and the agencies prefer twins, as not only can they get double the work out of them, but they also tend to be smaller. 

The babies can also only go on for 15 minutes (true divas) and must be chaperoned at all times on set. So, Trickleback shared that they often rehearse with a silicone dummy baby. 

“We rehearse the birth with what we call a ‘jelly baby’, which is essentially a silicone model that feels and looks just like a real baby,” she told Radio Times.

“But when the time comes to shoot, we use a real baby. We pass it under the actor’s thigh and she brings it up, holding the baby and its umbilical cord, which is made of silicone, and then she holds it against its tummy.”

Ah, TV magic...

The Rwanda bill passed through parliament late on Monday night, moments before St George’s Day began – a detail many of the government’s critics have pointed out.

The plan to deport asylum seekers to the African country has been long contested by the UK Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights over safety concerns.

But, now it has passed through parliament, the government is one step closer to sending migrants arriving via so-called illegal means to a different continent.

So what does this have to do with St George?

St George’s Day, usually celebrated on April 23, is typically associated with a sense of British patriotism.

The English flag – two red lines on a white background – is even known as the St George’s cross.

The figure is remembered as someone who died for his Christian faith in the 3rd Century (possibly around April 23).

He reportedly refused to make a sacrifice in honour of the pagan gods under the Roman Emperor Diocletian, and so is remembered across Europe as a martyr.

His story has also become mythical, with some accounts claiming he fought  a dragon in what is modern day Libya.

Many believe this fictional battle represents the fight between good and evil.

Over time, St George has come to represent English ideals, and Henry VIII put him on the country’s flag during the Tudor period.

But, his links with the UK are tenuous, to say the least – in fact, he never even visited England.

He was actually born in the 3rd Century CE (Common Era) in modern day Turkey, then known as Cappadocia.

According to English Heritage’s website, the saint is said to have died in the Roman province of Palestine (modern day Israel), in 303 CE, and canonised in 494 CE.

He’s also seen – and celebrated – as a patron saint in Venice, Genoa, Portugal, Ethiopia and Catalonia, to name a few.

So it’s a bleak coincidence that, on the day the UK celebrates a international saint, that the government is celebrating cracking down on asylum seekers. 

This significance seemed to pass the prime minister by, though, judging from his post on social media first thing this morning.

He posted a photo of himself with a St Georg’s Day mug on X (formerly Twitter) and the caption: “Perfect way to start the day. Happy St George’s Day!”

His critics were pretty quick to address the coincidence of this timing, though.

Have you ever wondered what happens to your body after you die? Well, yeah, me neither because isn’t the world CHILLING ENOUGH without considering what happens when we’re no longer in it?!

However, while you may be aware that we slowly decompose, you may not know that our bodies actually sort of... eat themselves after we die. A feast for bacteria, if you will.

Sorry if you were eating.

How the body eats itself after death

So, right after death, the body starts to go through pallor mortis. This causes the body to pale because blood has stopped moving through capillaries, the smallest of our blood vessels.

Then comes the feast.

In a process called ‘Autolysis’, the body begins decomposition. According to Britannica: “Autolysis, which begins the process of decomposition, is also called “self-digestion”: enzymes begin to digest the membranes of oxygen-deprived cells. Damaged blood cells pour out of their broken vessels in a rush of movement.”

The feasting doesn’t end there, though.

Of course, within our bodies, we have multiple bacterias. While we’re alive, these are concentrated in the gut but our immune system keeps them away from our other organs. Once we pass, though, these are free to feed on the whole body. 

They start with intestines and nearby tissue before moving on through capillaries, making their way to the heart and brain.

One study found that it takes bacteria 58 hours to reach the liver, spleen, heart, and brain.

How embalming slows the decomposition process

According to Life Science: “To delay decay, embalmers can drain the blood and other fluids from a corpse and replace it with embalming fluids they inject into the veins. These chemicals, which act as preservatives, stop the bacterial activity that breaks down the body.”

Well, now that we know all of that, I’m off to cleanse my brain with photos of puppies and kittens.

The UK will spend 2.5% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defence by the end of the decade, Rishi Sunak has announced.

The move is a major U-turn by the prime minister, who has previously refused to make the multi-billion pound spending pledge.

It comes barely a week after Keir Starmer said an incoming Labour government would spend 2.5% on defence “as soon as resources allow that to happen”.

Sunak has come under intense pressure from military chiefs and Tory MPs to increase military spending after last month’s Budget contained no new cash for the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

He announced the about-turn at a press conference in Warsaw with Nato general secretary Jens Stoltenberg.

He said: “I believe we must do more to protect our country, our interests and our values.

“So today I am announcing the biggest strengthening of our national defence for a generation.

“We will increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5% of GDP by 2030. That starts today and rises steadily in each and every year.”

Sunak said he was putting the UK defence industry on “a war footing”.

Last year, the government spent 2.2% of GDP on defence.

Sunak said increasing that to 2.5% would mean an extra £75 billion for the MoD over the next six years.

Shadow defence secretary John Healey said: “As Keir Starmer recently set out, Labour wants to see a fully funded plan to reach 2.5%, but the Tories have shown time and time again that they cannot be trusted on defence and we will examine the detail of their announcement closely.

“The British public will judge ministers by what they do not what they say. Since 2010, the Conservatives have wasted more than £15 billion mismanaging defence procurement, shrunk the Army to its smallest size since Napoleon, missed their recruitment targets every year, and allowed morale to fall to record lows.”

The parents of X (formerly Twitter) love to describe the fulfilment and delight of using dinosaur-shaped cookie cutters to make fun sandwiches and filling multicolored muffin cups with fresh-sliced fruits and veggies — each accompanied by a delectable homemade dip. Naturally, their children eat every bite, leaving their lunchboxes spotless and empty, and, upon arrival home, they declare, “Lunch was so delicious, Mom, I’ll take care of making dinner for you tonight!”

Just kidding! 

These are real parents. Below, enjoy their funny tweets about packing lunches for kids. 

In a speech about what he calls “sick note culture” last Friday, Rishi Sunak said that he would never “dismiss or downplay the illnesses people have,” but suggested that some of the millions of people deemed ineligible to work by the government may be part of a “growing trend” of “over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life.”

In the welfare speech, which has been roundly slammed, the Prime Minister said “we are going to tighten up the Work Capability Assessment... such that hundreds of thousands of benefit recipients with less severe conditions will now be expected to engage in the world of work – and be supported to do so.” 

NHS GP Martin Brunet was among those appalled by the PM’s comments. In a TikTok video which has gained over 800k views at the time of writing, the GP said, ”[Rishi Sunak] said that there’s been a surge of people on welfare who say that they have a medical health condition.

“Prime Minister, when you use language like that, you strongly imply that you don’t believe them,” the doctor added. “And people with mental health conditions are fed up with not being believed.” 

Dr. Brunet says that Rishi Sunak’s government has only been paying “lip service” to mental health needs

In his April 19th speech, Sunak commented on how Work Capability Assessments have deemed 65% of applicants unable to work in 2023 vs 20% in 2011. 

But Dr. Brunet told HuffPost UK that Sunak’s suggestion that people only seem “three times sicker than they were a decade ago” due to “over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life” is “frankly ridiculous.” 

“The real interpretation is that the assessments in 2011 were so poorly done that a huge number were overturned in appeal,” the doctor told HuffPost UK.

“Does he really think that only one in five people signed off work are genuinely unwell? Even the 65% rate is probably too low.” 

“He says that it’s not reasonable that somebody with mild anxiety and depression should be out of work on welfare... Well I can tell you, there’s nothing mild about any health condition that means you’re not able to work, or even that you end up temporarily on welfare,” the NHS GP said in his video.

“Sunak’s claim that this is a moral mission is perverse” 

The doctor told HuffPost UK that “Sunak’s claim that this is a moral mission is perverse.” 

“In threatening people with mental health conditions in this way he has made so many people more anxious and more low as they feel their condition is not believed; it is not just those on benefits who have felt attacked by his words,” the GP shared with HuffPost UK. 

“He says he rejects the claim that he lacks compassion for people with mental health conditions, but we don’t have to accept this ― the hostility of his words speak for themselves.” 

Dr. Brunet also told HuffPost UK, ”[Sunak] says repeatedly that people should have support, but his speech made no mention of what that support should be or any suggestion that there would be any attempt to improve that support.

“If anything, by taking the issue of sick notes from GPs to external assessors, he is removing one line of support, the GP, since we will no longer be the ones having the discussion about work with the patient.” 

His video caption ends, “I have never known mental health services to be in a worse state than they are right now.” 

The doctor’s video and comments come as multiple charities and health professionals have spoken out against the PM’s speech.

An embattled Tory leader facing intense criticism domestically announces a major defence spending boost while on an overseas visit.

No, not Rishi Sunak unveiling his pledge to spend 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on the military by the end of the decade.

Just weeks before he was forced to resign as prime minister after dozens of his ministers quit, Boris Johnson made exactly the same promise at a Nato summit in Madrid in June 2022.

A clip of Johnson making his announcement resurfaced as Sunak appeared alongside Nato general secretary Jens Stoltenberg at a press conference in Poland.

In the video, Johnson says: “We need to invest for the long-term, in vital capabilities like future combat air while simultaneously adapting to a more dangerous and more competitive world.

“And the logical conclusion of the investments on which we propose to embark is that we will reach 2.5% of GDP on defence by the end of the decade.”

Users of X (formerly Twitter) were quick to point out the similarity with Sunak’s own announcement, in which he said: “We will increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5% of GDP by 2030. That starts today and rises steadily in each and every year.”

Sunak sudden enthusiasm for increased defence spending comes amid mounting speculation that he could face attempts to oust him in the wake of next month’s local elections.

Discontent is building on the Tory backbenches at the PM’s failure to improve the Tories’ fortunes since he succeeded Liz Truss in October 2022.

That has led to speculation that Sunak could announce a general election for July to head off a leadership challenge.

Rishi Sunak intervened to stop Nato’s general secretary answering a question from a journalist who wanted to know what would happen to a newly-minted defence spending pledge if the Tories lost the election.

On Tuesday, Sunak put the UK’s defence industry on a “war footing” by increasing military spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030 amid Nato concerns over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

It represented a huge shift in policy as the prime minister has previously refused to make the multi-billion pound spending pledge.

Sunak, whose Tory party has a 20-point deficit to Labour in some polls ahead of an election expected this year, made the commitment during a press conference in Warsaw with Nato general secretary, Jens Stoltenberg.

During the question-and-answer session, The Guardian’s political editor Pippa Crerar asked the Nato boss: “All the polls in the UK suggest that we may end up having a different government after the election.

“How reassured are you by this really important defence commitment given by Mr Sunak?

“And if he then ends up finding himself out of office later this year, have you had discussions because of that – taking the precautionary principle – with the British opposition?”

Sunak answered a Guardian question about UK welfare reform first, then said: “It’s probably not right to draw Jens into domestic politics actually, given that wouldn’t be appropriate for him.” 

The PM went on to attack Labour’s stance on defence, and made references to the party’s former leader Jeremy Corbyn. 

Crerar later defended her question on X: “To be clear: this was not a question about domestic politics – it was about our long-term defence commitment.

“If, as polls suggest, the Tories lose next election then all their future plans go with them. Anybody who cares about our security will want to know what comes next.”

Shortened versions of the exchange were being shared on social media. 

Sunak has come under intense pressure from military chiefs and Tory MPs to increase military spending after last month’s Budget contained no new cash for the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Last year, the government spent 2.2% of GDP on defence. Sunak said increasing that to 2.5% would mean an extra £75 billion for the MoD over the next six years.

A decade ago, Nato leaders agreed to commit 2% of GDP to defence spending. Britain has spent above that over the past decade but never higher than 2.35% in 2020.

Lee Anderson has faced ridicule for a social media post celebrating St George’s Day – where some dodgy spelling was arguably the least of the problems.  

The former Tory deputy chairman announced in March that he was switching to Reform UK following the fall-out from saying “Islamists” had “control” over London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan.

The Ashfield MP already has a history of making controversial statements – he has argued food bank users “cannot budget” and criticised England footballers for taking the knee. Last summer he said migrants should “fuck off back to France”.

Now free of the governing party, “30p Lee” on Tuesday posted a special message to mark the day that celebrates the dragon-slayer of legend and England’s patron saint.

He wrote in an X message introducing a video: “Trigger Warning. 

“If you are a Guardian reading, advacado eating, Palestinian flag waving, Eddie Izzard supporting Vegan then this clip is probably not for your consumption.

“Happy St George’s Day!”

Note the spelling “advacado”.

In an accompanying video, he points to his St George’s flag cufflinks and says: “Look at these here look, flag of St George.

“It’s St George’s Day today and this country of ours has been a gift to the world. Look at the industrial revolution, culture, art, music, sports.

“Everywhere you look on this planet, you see some of that. Oh by the way, happy birthday William Shakespeare.”

But many had problems with his interpretation of, well, most of it.

The website of English Heritage, the charitable trust that looks after the national heritage, points out that St George was born in what is now Turkey, and died in a Roman province of Palestine.

The Christian martyr St George, who is the patron saint of Georgia and Portugal among others, is also a “Palestinian hero”.

It’s this background that informed many of the mocking responses to Anderson’s post.

The Ashfield MP already has a history of making controversial statements – he has argued food bank users “cannot budget” and criticised England footballers for taking the knee. Last summer he said migrants should “fuck off back to France”.

David Pecker, former publisher of the National Enquirer, testified at Donald Trump’s hush money trial Tuesday about the “catch and kill” agreements between the former president and the tabloid, detailing arrangements involving Trump’s former doorman and an ex-Playboy model.

Pecker’s testimony comes a day after prosecutors alleged that Trump greenlighted the catch-and-kill schemes in which the National Enquirer would buy exclusive rights to someone’s purported damaging information about Trump in order to stop it from being released by anyone else and then not publishing the story itself. The tabloid’s former chief said he and Trump’s legal team agreed to the schemes in an August 2015 meeting, which prosecutors claim constitutes criminal conspiracy.

The first of those incidents involved Trump’s former doorman, Dino Sajudin, who was peddling a story about Trump allegedly fathering a child with a Trump Tower maid in the 1980s, Pecker told jurors. Pecker said he reached out to Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen, who told him the story was “absolutely not true” but asked him to look into it regardless.

Pecker eventually agreed to buy rights to the story from the doorman for $30,000. He said Cohen then told him, “The boss will be very pleased,” referring to Trump, who had announced his presidential campaign in June 2015. Prosecutors then showed jurors a copy of the November 2015 agreement.

If the story were true, Pecker testified, “it would be probably the biggest sale of the National Enquirer since the death of Elvis Presley.” However, Pecker said that, per a conversation he had with Cohen, the National Enquirer would have waited until after the 2016 election to publish anything if the story could be verified, but he told the jury it turned out to be untrue.

Pecker also testified Tuesday about learning that former Playboy model Karen McDougal was shopping around a story about an alleged romantic affair with Trump in 2006 and 2007, while Trump was married to Melania. Pecker said Cohen told him the story was a fabrication but to still look into it. He said Cohen then asked that they move their conversation from a landline to the encrypted app Signal.

After a National Enquirer editor interviewed McDougal, Pecker said, Trump called him to discuss it. Pecker said he suggested that Trump buy the exclusive rights to her story himself but that Trump refused. Pecker added that Cohen “kept on calling me” to ask about the interview with McDougal and that he was “very agitated. It looked like he was getting a lot of pressure to get the answer, like, right away.”

American Media Inc., the National Enquirer’s parent company, confirmed earlier that it paid McDougal $150,000 for the story specifically to help protect Trump’s 2016 campaign. Prosecutors alleged that Trump and Cohen planned to create a shell company to reimburse AMI but that it fell through, according to Forbes.

Court ended Tuesday with just over two hours of testimony from Pecker. The trial will resume Thursday morning.

Sara Boboltz contributed reporting.

The US Senate has approved long-awaited aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the bill to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature and reaffirming America’s commitment to its allies abroad after months of delays caused by intra-party Republican warfare on Capitol Hill.

Senators voted 79-18 in favour of the $95 billion foreign aid package, which includes $61 billion for Ukraine, $8 billion for Taiwan and $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid.

The legislation also includes a controversial provision forcing the popular social media app TikTok to be sold or to face a ban in the US.

The bill picked up more support since the last time the chamber voted on a similar package in February: 10 senators changed their votes to advance the measure on Tuesday.

“Today the Senate sends a unified message to the entire world: America will always defend democracy in its hour of need,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on the Senate floor on Tuesday.

“We tell our allies: We will stand with you. We tell our adversaries: Don’t mess with us. We tell the world: We will do everything to defend democracy and our way of life.”

“This is an important day for America and a very important day for freedom-loving countries around the world,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell taking a bit of a victory lap after spending months trying to build Republican support for the bill. 

“I think we’ve turned the corner on the isolationist movement,” the retiring Republican leader added, blaming commentators on the far right, including former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and former President Donald Trump, for contributing to the delays. 

Whether the Republican Party has rejected isolationism for good is debatable, however. In the House, 112 Republicans voted against the foreign aid package, more than a majority of the conference. And the job of House Speaker Mike Johnson still hangs in the balance as a small but vocal band of far-right members continue to push for his demise over spending and US aid to Ukraine.

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene is keeping everyone in suspense about whether she will trigger a vote to oust him from the speakership once the House returns from a recess next week.

In the Senate, more Republicans ended up supporting the foreign aid package even though it didn’t include provisions to toughen security on the US-Mexico border that they had initially demanded last year. When a bipartisan deal on border provisions finally came together in February, Trump urged Republicans to kill it, sending Congress back to square one. 

“There’s no question the delay was harmful,” McConnell admitted on Tuesday.

Senator Lindsay Graham, one of the Republicans who switched his position in support of the bill, argued that allowing Russia to win in Ukraine would mean more costly US engagement in the future.

“It is better to help Ukraine fight the Russian invaders with military assistance and aid in the form of a loan. If Russia succeeds in Ukraine, it will mean a fight between Russia and NATO nations,” Graham said. 

Only three senators who caucus with the Democratic Party opposed the bill because of its approach to Israel: Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Peter Welch and Senator Jeff Merkley.

Sanders said he was disappointed the Senate rejected his request to vote on an amendment that would have ended unconditional US support for Israel, “which has killed and wounded over 100,000 Palestinians, two-thirds of whom are women and children.”

Other Democrats who support placing conditions on aid to Israel stressed that Congress needed to urgently act on Ukraine and that any changes to the bill could have added to the delays.

“This bill also has a TikTok provision that I think makes no sense, but right now we need to get this aid to Ukraine, and we don’t have the luxury in the Senate of voting on individual pieces,” Senator Elizabeth Warren said.

The TikTok provision would ban the popular video-sharing app in the US in nine months unless it is divested from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. It also allows the White House to delay that deadline by an additional 90 days. 

Many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle view TikTok as a national security threat, fearing the Chinese government could use the app to mine American users’ data for leverage while inundating them with political propaganda. The Chinese embassy in Washington has been quietly lobbying on Capitol Hill against the measure.

Trump on Monday said that young voters should blame Biden if the US government bans TikTok, even though Trump supported such a ban when he was president. 

Though some Democrats have come out against the TikTok legislation, many in the party have embraced efforts to rein the platform in, dismissing the political effects on the 2024 election.

Akbar Shahid Ahmed contributed reporting.

In her new memoir, Rebel Rising, Rebel Wilson says that she was invited to what she thought was a medieval costume party by an unnamed member of the British royal family in 2014.

However, towards the end of the night, she realised it was less innocent than she initially thought, according to People.

“I got thrown a last-minute invite to a tech billionaire’s party ― the guy who invited me, who’s like fifteenth or twentieth in line to the British throne, had said to my male friend, ‘We need more girls,’” the book reads, per the magazine.

The Pitch Perfect star described the location as a remote ranch outside of Los Angeles. Due to the theme, she came dressed in a “buxom damsel outfit complete with cone hat”.

“The party was insane. Men were jousting on horses in a field, girls dressed as mermaids were in the pool,” Rebel wrote. “The property was massive, and because it was quite a drive, people had been assigned rooms to sleep there overnight.” 

Despite not getting a little tipped off by the sleepover invite, Rebel initially seemed to be enjoying the party that she described as “a vibe.” She said that around two in the morning — and after a firework display — “a guy comes out with a large tray piled with what looks like a ton of candy”.

When Rebel inquired about the confections, she was informed that they were actually “molly”.

“I turned to the screenwriter I’ve been talking with, confused. He says, ‘Oh, it’s for the orgy… the orgies normally start at these things about this time’,” Rebel wrote.

And this is when the How To Be Single star had a bit of an epiphany.

“Now the comment by the Windsor about needing more girls started to make a lot more sense,” Rebel wrote. “They weren’t talking about a boy-girl ratio like it was a year-eight disco. They were talking about an orgy!”

And although there is nothing wrong with attending a sex party, it didn’t seem like Rebel consented to participating in one.

“Needless to say, I hike up my damsel dress and run out of there as fast as I can,” she wrote.

Another reason why Rebel may have felt uneasy once she realised she was at an orgy is due to a few other revelations she shared in her memoir.

She wrote in her new book that she didn’t lose her virginity until she was 35 years old, which could make a sex party a pretty intimidating environment.

Just a few days after Taylor Swift released her song thanK you aIMee, which is rumoured to be about the singer’s long-held feud with Kim Kardashian, the reality star has seemingly responded by posting a photo with Karlie Kloss.

To wish her friend Derek Blasberg a happy birthday, Kim posted a series of photos on Instagram on Tuesday, including one of herself with Derek, Karlie and Khloe Kardashian.

Swifties were quick to notice that the photo appears to be a throwback taken in 2022, and they believe Kim posted it to get back at Taylor, who was once best friends with Karlie until a rumoured falling out.

“Kim Kardashian posting Karlie Kloss right now is truly fucking crazy oh my god,” one person posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

A Swiftie suggeste that Kim must be “big mad” about Taylor’s song if she is posting a photo with Karlie.

“Kim posted a picture with Derek and Karlie oh i am so seated,” one Swiftie wrote on social media. 

“NOT KIM POSTING A PHOTO WITH KARLIE KLOSS OH ITS WAR,” another person wrote.

Taylor and Kim’s feud traces back to 2016, after Kim leaked an abridged recording of a phone call of Taylor seemingly giving Kim Kardashian’s ex-husband, then known as Kanye West, permission to release his song Famous,  on which he raps about the Grammy winner: “I made that bitch famous.”

Taylor shot back and said Ye never told her about the “bitch” lyric, but still, the internet piled on Taylor, causing her to take a step back from the spotlight until she released her album Reputation in 2017.

Even though it’s been almost a decade, Taylor seemingly hasn’t let it go.

On her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, which was released last week, she includes a song called thanK you aIMee, which has three letters conveniently capitalised, leading fans to believe it’s about Kim Kardashian. 

On Watch What Happens Live in 2019, Kim said she was “over it” and felt like everyone had “moved on” from the feud, but in a 2023 Time magazine article, Taylor opened up about how the leaked phone call took her “down psychologically”.

“[It was] an illegally recorded phone call, which Kim Kardashian edited and then put out to say to everyone that I was a liar,” Swift said.

Neither Karlie nor Taylor has ever publicly acknowledged any kind of falling out, but fans have watched closely as the two, who once called themselves sisters, have distanced themselves.

And in 2021, Taylor released the song It’s Time To Go, which include the lyrics: “When the words of a sister come back in whispers / That prove she was not / In fact what she seemed, not a twin from your dreams / She’s a crook who was caught,” leading some fans to think Taylor was calling out her old friend.

Still, Karlie attended Taylor’s Eras tour last year in the Los Angeles area, but instead of watching from the VIP tent, where other celebrities, including Austin Butler, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Travis Kelce, were gathered, she was in the crowd with the non-famous Swifties.

Zoe Ball has paid a heartfelt tribute after the death of her mother, Julia.

The Radio 2 host has recently been taking time away from her daily show in recent weeks to help care for her mum, after she was diagnosed with cancer.

It was later revealed last week that Julia had entered hospice care.

On Wednesday morning, a “bereft” Zoe announced the news on Instagram that her mum had died.

“Sleep tight dear Mama,” she wrote alongside a photograph of Julia as a young woman.

“Thank you for teaching us how to love unconditionally, to always show courage and empathy, and how, even in the darkest of days, laughter is the greatest of gifts.

“We are bereft without you but will hold so tight to each other. Your grace and your smile that lit up every room you were in, will light the stars to guide us.”

Stand-in presenter Gaby Roslin also paid her respects at the beginning of Wednesday’s edition of Zoe’s Radio 2 show.

“It’s no secret Zoe has been off for a little while looking after her mum, Julia,” Gaby explained to listeners, before confirming that she and the team were “all obviously sending so much love to Zoe and the whole family” following Julia’s death.

Gaby added: “It’s a horrible, awful time – and I know so many of you have been through this, loving a parent and a loved one, and I think the one thing I’d like to pass on is: grief has no rule. There are no rules about this at all.”

Zoe shared in early March that she and her family were going through “extremely tough times” as a result of her mum’s diagnosis.

“My brother Jamie and I are completely in awe of the brilliant doctors, nurses and support teams looking after Mum. Thank you.

“Gratitude to our families and our extended family and friends at home and at work for their support at this time.”

“Sending out love to people reading this who are battling cancer, or awaiting diagnosis and also to the folk looking after their dear ones who are poorly,” she added.

Baby Reindeer star Jessica Gunning has spoken out against those trying to work out the identity of creator Richard Gadd’s real stalker.

Jessica plays Martha in the hugely popular Netflix miniseries, which is based on creator and star Richard’s actual life experiences.

Since it began streaming earlier this month, Baby Reindeer has been hugely popular with critics and barely budged from Netflix’s list of most-watched shows.

However, that popularity has come with some downsides, namely amateur internet sleuths trying to work out the real-life figures that inspired characters in the show.

“I didn’t know that was happening,” Jessica admitted to Glamour magazine when asked how she felt about people online trying to unearth the “real” Martha.

She continued: “I would urge people not to be doing that.

“I think if that is happening, I think it’s a real, real shame, because it shows that they haven’t watched the show properly. That’s not the point of it in any way.

“Netflix and Richard [Gadd] went to extreme lengths to try and make sure that the identities were kept private for a reason.”

Jessica urged the people in question to “try and watch the show again, and really see what the point of it was”, because “it definitely wasn’t that”.

“I deliberately didn’t want to do an impersonation of somebody,” she insisted. “I wanted to do an interpretation of this character.”

Richard previously wrote on his Instagram story earlier this week: “People I love, have worked with, and admire […] are unfairly getting caught up in speculation. Please don’t speculate on who any of the real life people could be.”

“That’s not the point of our show,” he added.

He told The Independent in 2019 of his real-life stalker: “I can’t emphasise enough how much of a victim she is in all this.

“When we think of stalkers, we always think of films like Misery and Fatal Attraction, where the stalker is a monstrous figure in the night down an alleyway.

“But usually, it’s a prior relationship or someone you know or a work colleague. Stalking and harassment is a form of mental illness.”

“It would have been wrong to paint her as a monster, because she’s unwell, and the system’s failed her,” he added.

Sally Nugent left Grant Shapps squirming amid claims the amount of extra money being spent on defence is actually £55 billion less than Rishi Sunak claimed.

The prime minister yesterday said the government would plough an extra £75 billion into the military between now and the end of the decade.

But an economist at the highly-respected Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), Ben Zaranko, has said the real figure is only £20 billion.

He posted on X (formerly Twitter): “To get the £75 billion number, the government has assumed a baseline with spending frozen in cash terms and then added up all of the differences.

“If you instead assume a baseline of spending frozen as a % GDP, it’s an extra £20 billion over 6 years.”

On BBC Breakfast this morning, Nugent told the defence secretary that the government was misleading the public.

She said: “I’m particularly interested in information from an economist at the IFS this morning, who has said ‘to get to the £75 billion number, the government is assuming spending is frozen in cash terms and then added up all those differences’.

“If you instead assume a baseline of spending frozen as a percentage of GDP it’s not actually £75 billion extra, it’s £20 billion because you would have been spending that £55 billion already.”

Shapps insisted the amount of the extra money had been calculated “in the highly standard way”.

But Nugent told him: “It’s a little bit confusing though, isn’t it? That headline of the £75 billion is a little bit confusing to people who might just be quickly listening to a headline this morning or looking at the front page of a newspaper because it’s not absolutely completely straightforward about the actual number? I guess what I’m saying is it’s not new.”

Shapps insisted “it is new money”, but Nugent interrupted him to say: “Some of it is.”

Announcing the spending boost yesterday, the prime minister said he was putting the UK defence industry “on a war footing”.

He said: “I believe we must do more to protect our country, our interests and our values.

“So today I am announcing the biggest strengthening of our national defence for a generation.”

Celine Dion is reflecting on her experience at this year’s Grammy Awards, an event which marked her unofficial return to the spotlight after going public with her stiff-person syndrome diagnosis nearly two years ago. 

In a Life In Looks video interview to accompany Vogue France’s May issue, the French-Canadian chanteuse described her surprise appearance as “very nerve-wracking, but at the same time, a big honour,” and later gushed about the “magic” and “excitement” of returning to show business once more.

And as it turns out, the much-discussed mustard yellow Valentino coat she wore over her pale-pink gown served a very specific, and emotional, purpose. 

“I was like, ‘I can walk onstage with a coat?’ Oh, yeah! You can do whatever you want in fashion. Have a good time, wear that coat, own that coat, go for it,” Celine explained.

“And it made me feel better for a moment to hold onto this coat, to hide myself a little bit from all these little things.”

She then broke into a song with a few impromptu lines from her 2019 single Imperfections, which appeared on her most recent album, Courage.

Watch Celine Dion’s Life In Looks interview with Vogue below. Her remarks on the Grammy Awards begin around the 12:04 mark:

Celine was greeted with a standing ovation as she walked out onstage ― accompanied by her 23-year-old son, René-Charles Angélil ― during the final moments of the Grammys in February, where she presented Taylor Swift with the award for Album Of The Year. 

It was one of just a handful of public appearances that Celine has made in several years, and by far the most high-profile.

In December 2022, the five-time Grammy winner announced she’d been diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a rare and incurable neurological condition that has impacted both her livelihood and ability to perform live. 

Speaking to Vogue France in an interview, Celine stressed that she hadn’t “beat the disease,” noting that she undergoes a regimen of “athletic, physical and vocal therapy” each week

“The way I see it, I have two choices,” she explained. “Either I train like an athlete and work super hard, or I switch off and it’s over, I stay at home, listen to my songs, stand in front of my mirror and sing to myself. I’ve chosen to work with all my body and soul, from head to toe, with a medical team. I want to be the best I can be.”

As for a possible return to the concert stage and the recording studio, Celine appeared optimistic but did not specify a time frame. 

“As things stand, I can’t stand here and say to you: ‘Yes, in four months.’ I don’t know ... My body will tell me,” she said.

“On the other hand, I don’t just want to wait. It’s morally hard to live from day to day. It’s hard, I’m working very hard and tomorrow will be even harder. Tomorrow is another day. But there’s one thing that will never stop, and that’s the will. It’s the passion. It’s the dream. It’s the determination.” 

For now, fans hoping to catch more of Celine can check out her forthcoming Amazon Prime Video documentary, I Am: Celine Dion.

Due out on 25 June, the film promises an in-depth look at the singer’s “journey toward living an open and authentic life amidst illness”. 

Kim Kardashian does not have six toes, but she did confirm a few other details about herself on Jimmy Kimmel’s US talk show on Monday night — and a handful are pretty kooky.

Near the end of their chat, Jimmy decided to ask the Skims owner if a few “interesting” rumours about her were true or not.

The reality TV star was game, and Kim confirmed two pretty banal facts about herself: She knows how to change a tire, and she washes her feet every night before going to bed.

But she also admitted that she blow-dries her jewellery before putting it on. 

“Because I hate being freezing,” Kim explained. “And when you put on cold jewellery or like anything with a zipper — I just need it warm.”

OK, sure, we kind of get that, but nothing can explain the weirdest tidbit Kim confirmed — which is that she makes someone else take the cardboard sleeve off her Starbucks coffee because she hates the sound the cardboard makes.

“Yes … and I hate the feeling,” Kim admitted.

She said she doesn’t even like watching the sleeve come off.

“The cardboard getting moved off the cup is like nails on a chalkboard to me,” she explained.

Most of the rumours Jimmy mentioned turned out to be accurate — except the myth that she has six toes, which was at least one thing she was able to debunk. 

“Were some of these not supposed to be true, but they really are, and you guys didn’t know?” she joked.

Elsewhere on Monday’s edition of Jimmy’s, Kim did admit that she once made a workout video with an extremely cheesy name. Check out the video above!

David Cameron was asked outright by a journalist if the government’s controversial Rwanda bill is a result of the UK’s departure from the EU.

Speaking shortly after parliament finally passed the legislation to deport asylum seekers to Africa on Monday night, the foreign secretary defended the policy – but dodged the questions about his main legacy, Brexit.

ITV News’ deputy political editor Anushka Asthana asked: “Hand on heart, if this had come up when you were PM, would you have gone for this policy?”

Cameron, who was in No.10 from 2010 to 2016, said: “Well, we had a totally different situation, because we had a situation where we could return people directly to France.

“Now I would love that to be the case again – that’s the most sensible thing.

“People land on a beach in Kent, you take them straight back to France, you therefore break the model of the people smugglers.”

“Shouldn’t you be trying to get that?” Asthana asked.

“Well, that’s not available,” the foreign secretary replied.

The journalist asked: “Because of Brexit?” 

Cameron ended up resigning as prime minister in 2016 because his campaign to stay in the EU lost.

He did not answer Asthana directly and just said: “Well, because of the situation we’re in.”

The foreign secretary did not explain what he meant by that.

Rishi Sunak has also threatened to take the UK out of the European Court of Human Rights if its judges try to stop the Rwanda policy altogether.

Cameron told Asthana that the UK has to deal with illegal immigration, but added: “I don’t think it’s necessary to leave the ECHR, I don’t think that needs to happen to make this policy work.”

Well, it wouldn’t be a Lana Del Rey concert without a little drama, would it?

For the second time in the space of a year, the singer’s less-than-stellar time-keeping is making headlines, as the Coachella festival is facing a $28,000 (£22,524) fine due to Lana’s headlining set running over.

The Grammy winner closed out the second Friday (April 19) of the California music festival last week, which ran 13 minutes over her allotted performance slot.

A rep for the City of Indio, where the annual music festival takes place, told TMZ that those 13 minutes were enough to trigger the fine.

However, the US outlet noted that this is still an improvement from last year’s festival, where $117,000 (£94,121) in fines were reportedly handed out for just the first weekend alone due to all three headliners running over time. 

The festival’s curfew is 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, and midnight on Sundays.

Aside from the costly consequences, Lana’s weekend two set saw her bring out Camila Cabello to perform the star’s new song I Luv It. This came after Billie Eilish joined as her special guest on weekend one to deliver live renditions of Video Games and Ocean Eyes.

This is hardly the first time the Summertime Sadness singer has run over during her live performances.

At Glastonbury last year, her headline appearance on The Other Stage was abruptly cut short after she arrived on stage 30 minutes late.

Following her weekend one Coachella performance, Lana opened up about the behind-the-scenes chaos that almost prevented her from appearing at the festival altogether. 

In an Instagram post, the artist said she rehearsed for her Coachella show in a chilly warehouse, where “it was so cold that I caught laryngitis that literally left just a few hours before I hit the stage”.

She also accused her former tour manager of 15 years of quitting around a month before her performance with seemingly no notice.

Lana’s weekend one headline set receivedmixedreviews from both fans and critics, with some attendees reporting sound issues and low energy from the alt-pop star.

I don’t know about you, but when the jury service letter comes in, I can almost feel my eyes roll into the back of my head. Yes, it’s important in a democracy to be part of a jury... but that doesn’t stop it feeling like a slog.

However, one thing I’ve always wondered is what happens when a celeb is invited to jury duty?

In the UK, you cannot serve on a jury if you know or have any knowledge of the accused. But, what if they know you? What if you’re Elton John? What happens then?

Luckily for me and other questioning minds, somebody asked this very question to Richard Osman and Marina Hyde’s entertainment podcast The Rest Is Entertainment.

What happens when a celebrity is called up for jury duty?

Their listener asked: “Having been called again, annoyingly, for jury service, I was wondering if celebs are exempt, as I can’t imagine David Beckham or Lorraine Kelly sitting in jury, deciding the guilt of a shoplifting case. How famous is too famous to serve?”

Richard actually thought that this was such a good question that he directly asked a high court judge.

According to the judge, if a famous person is filming a movie or is contractually obliged to work, they can get out of jury duty and defer a couple of times, if need be. However, there is nothing stopping celebrities being on a jury.

Richard decided to probe further and learned that even if it was weird to have, say, Lorraine Kelly on a jury, unless she was directly connected to the case. “Weirdness is not a grounds for deferring.”

So! There you have it! I was convinced celebrities would be able to duck out of it but not even fame exempts you from civic duties.

However, mega-fame does seem to impact proceedings a little

Of course, even if they aren’t excused from jury service, it must be hard as a member of the public to ignore the fact that there is a major celeb serving on the same jury as you.

Back in 2013, a prosecution lawyer thanked Tom Hanks for serving on a domestic abuse case, which brought the trial to a halt as the lawyer had broken court rules whereby lawyers cannot approach the jury.

A year later, Madonna was relieved to not be selected for jury service as there were concerns she would create a “distraction.”

Well, yes!

With the local elections coming up on May 2, you need to make sure you have some form of accepted photo ID so that your vote counts.

Today is the last day you can apply for free photo ID from the Electoral Commission in time for this batch of elections – they will not be accepting any further applications after 5pm.

But don’t panic, or let this put you off voting – you may already have a form of photo ID which is accepted.

Here’s what you need to know.

What is voter ID needed for?

Photo ID is needed to vote in some elections in England.

That includes by-elections, general elections and recall petitions, as well as local elections and police and crime commissioner elections.

You only need to show one form of photo ID but it does need to be the original and not a photocopy.

What are accepted forms of voter ID?

There are many forms of ID which are accepted.

This includes:  

1. Passport

2. Driving licence

3. A blue badge

4. A travel card, including:

• Older person’s bus pass funded by the government

• Disabled person’s bus pass funded by the government

• 60+ London Oyster photo card funded by TfL

• Freedom pass

• Scottish National Entitlement card

• 60 and over Welsh concessionary travel card

• Disabled Person’s Welsh concessionary travel card

• Senior SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland

• Registered Blind SmartPass or Blind Person’s SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland

• War Disablement SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland

• 60+ SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland

• Half Fare SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland

5. Identity card bearing the proof of age standards scheme hologram (a PASS card)

6. Biometric immigration document

7. Ministry of defence identity card

8. National identity card, issued by EEA state

9. Electoral identity card issued in Northern Ireland 

Even photo ID which is out of date is still accepted, as long as it still resembles you and the name on it is the same one you used to register to vote.

What if you don’t have any of these?

Do not worry if you do not already have a form of photo ID, if your old one no longer looks like you or if there’s another detail on your ID which you do not identify with – you can get a free ID through the Electoral Commission.

But, you only have until 5pm today to apply for one if you want it in time for the local elections.

You will need a recent, digital photo of yourself and your National Insurance number (or other documents to prove your identity if you don’t have one of these).

Then apply on for a Voter Authority Certificate on the Electoral Commission website.

What if you want to vote anonymously?

If you wanted to vote anonymously in the May 2 local elections, you have already missed the deadline (it was Tuesday, April 16).

Registration for anonymous voting also only last a year, so you have to reapply each time.

But, you may want to do this ahead of the upcoming general election.

If you think your name and address being on the electoral register may impact your safety – or someone else in your household – you can vote anonymously so your details are not on the electoral register.

Apply for an anonymous elector’s document by providing your name, address, date of birth, a photo of yourself, and National Insurance number.

You can still apply if you don’t have a National Insurance number but will need to offer alternative proof of your identity, such as a bank statement, utility bill or birth certificate.

You can also ask someone who knows you to confirm your identity to the electoral services team.

Find out more about how you vote anonymously on the Electoral Commission website.

Why did the government introduce voter ID?

The government introduced compulsory voter ID for the first time back in May 2023, for the local elections in England.

It was intended to prevent voter fraud and protect democracy.

However, campaigners and opposition parties say it was introduced as a form of “voter suppression” because those without the appropriate ID would not be counted.

Parents-to-be face all kinds of pressure when selecting a name for their baby. A name should be cute enough for an infant yet also sufficiently dignified for an adult professional, familiar enough to be pronounceable in the language of the child’s birth country and any other languages spoken in the family, and unique enough that they won’t share a first name with half of their preschool class but not so unique that anyone is seeing the word for the first time. In other words, not too weird, not too dull. Just right. 

But when parents finally settle on a name, they may find that grandparents or other relatives have feelings about it. Sherri Suzanne, a baby name consultant at My Name For Life, told HuffPost, “Rather than arguing over namesakes, the greatest conflicts I find come from generational differences in name styles.”

Today’s grandparents, Suzanne said, were part of a generation that broke away from traditional names and brought us choices like “Ashley, Brittany, Justin and Brandon,” and they don’t understand the draw of “antiques like Theodore and Hazel.”

However, some of today’s trends, such as “surname-type names, nature names, unisex names and ‘word’ names, don’t seem like names at all to many grandparents,” she added.

Many of the conflicts with grandparents that Suzanne has come across in her practice arose unexpectedly.

“In one [family], a grandfather was so saddened by the unexpected loss of his wife that he could not bear for his granddaughter to share her name, which is what the expectant mother wanted,” she said. “In another, two pregnant sisters claimed the name of a beloved relative, and the grandparents sided with one. In another, a daughter-in-law did not want her little boy to be ‘IV’ in a generation of fathers and sons with the same name.” 

If you do run into any sort of conflict with grandparents or other relatives over your baby name, Suzanne said that you should handle it just as you would any other unwelcome advice or overstepping of bounds. 

“Grandparents sometimes find it difficult when they realize they have less influence over their adult children’s decisions; adult children sometimes find it difficult when they realize they have to move forward without the approval of their parents,” she said.

Suzanne recommended that parents “kindly acknowledge the good intentions of grandparents” without overpromising by saying something like, “Nice name ideas. Thanks. We’ll think about them and make the best decision we can for the baby — just as you did for me.”

And if you can’t imagine saying all of that, a simple “thanks” works, too. 

In some European traditions, Suzanne noted, there is a “pecking order” designed to prevent intrafamily name conflict, such as the first child getting the paternal grandmother or grandfather’s name and the second getting the maternal grandmother or grandfather’s name.

There are other methods, too. A Jewish tradition is to give a child a name that shares a first initial with that of a recently deceased relative, while it is a Hindu tradition to give a baby a name that begins with the same letter as their solar sign, which is determined by the time and date of their birth. Today, parents can choose whether to honor a cultural tradition or select their child’s name through another method.

When it comes to resolving conflicts or tricky situations, Suzanne doesn’t advise that parents “forgo a name they love to ‘keep the peace.’” She has seen families come up with a number of creative solutions. 

If two siblings are fighting over who gets to use a family name, for example, they might both use the name for their child’s middle name. The middle name can provide an opportunity to honor any family name, Suzanna said. She added that she has noticed an uptick in parents choosing to honor their own grandparents (their child’s great-grandparents) with their name choices. 

In the case of the grandfather who did not want his granddaughter named after his late wife, the mother initially chose another name but was “distraught,” Suzanne said, and “legally changed the baby’s first name to honor her mother, which gave her joy and peace.” The family now calls the little girl by her middle name, which they feel suits her best. 

We asked the HuffPost Parents Facebook community to share their stories of baby name conflict or disappointment. Here’s what they said. 

“My husband’s grandmother told us we shouldn’t name our son Dante because that is a ‘Black kid name.’ We still named him Dante.” — S.K.

“All our family members were against us naming our son Ezra. In Brazil, it’s not a common name, so for months, my older daughter spelled his name for everyone who asked. And when they said it was too difficult a name, she replied: ‘I’m four! If I can learn to say it, so can you!’” — Michele Lempek Rosa

“We had a great aunt tell us our daughter’s name was a dog name.” — Shelene Crane 

“My maternal grandmother was slightly upset that we named our daughter after her father’s mother. But we explained that my mother would get to hold her in her arms and see her grow up. His mother lives overseas, so we could at least give her that, and should I have another daughter, I would sneak my mum’s name in there somewhere.” — Marie Flechas

“Was told my oldest was going to hate me for his unique name. At almost 17, he loves having a name that he doesn’t share with anyone else we know. Glad I didn’t listen to my parent in that situation.”  — Ashley Elder 

“My oldest’s middle name is an ‘old lady’ name because it’s after my great-grandmother. We paired it with a mildly trendy first name. My in-laws had a lot of opinions about the middle name and gave me grief about it for years.” — Carrie Mertens Montemarano 

“We made the mistake of sharing our three possible name options before our son was born. So everyone in the family picked a favorite. When we announced our decision after he was born, people reacted like they’d lost a contest.” — Joe DeProspero

“All the sons on my hub’s side were called by their middle names. With my son, David Isaac, they immediately started referring to him as baby Isaac before he was even born. My hubs was David, his father was David, and I would not let him be called Isaac. But even after his birth … it was ‘Isaac this’ and ‘Isaac that’ till I lost my temper and said, ‘No! It’s David! And if you don’t like it, tough shit!’ They came around pretty quickly after that.” — Leslie Stroud

“My ex had a grandfather whose name was Louis. When our first child was born, we honored him by using his first name as our son’s middle name. Well, my ex and his mother never told me how to spell it, and after his mother asked him if he was sure he wanted to sign the acknowledgment of paternity, I didn’t really care to speak to her again, and my ex did what he always did and disappeared. So when it was time to sign the birth certificate, I spelled it ‘Lewis.’”  — Jenny Jacobs

“We gave our second son my father’s middle name for his first name. When my dad came to the hospital and I told him he went, ‘Ugh, I hate my middle name.’ I said, ‘Dad! We named him after you!’” — Sarah Crossley

(Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.) 

When you think of pop iconPink, a few things probably come to mind. 

The cropped, peroxide-blonde pixie cut. The distinct vocals. And, of course, the So What singer’s amazing acrobatic abilities. 

Pink is a trained aerialist and often uses her skills in her concerts.

“I wanted to be an Olympic gymnast before I was a singer. And once you get to fly, why would you not?”she told People in 2023. 

“My mum was like, ‘Are you ever going to stay on the ground?’ I was like, ’Yeah, I’m going to stand there [and] lip sync. Sure, that sounds fun.′ No, why would I stay on the ground if I don’t have to?”

This makes the fact that Pink is apparently terrified of heights even more wild. 

Come again? 

You heard that right.Speaking to The LA Times in 2023, Pink said that the phobia actually encouraged her to take up acrobatics. 

“That’s why I started doing it — because I’m afraid of heights, and I don’t want to be afraid,”she said.

“I’ve been in some situations that don’t feel good. I wonder every night if my bungees are gonna work. But it’s a cool way to go if they don’t.” 

It might make matters somewhat easier for thethree-time Grammy winnerthat her kids aren’t particularly stressed about her safety in the skies.

After all, “They’ve got Carey Hart blood in them. I mean, he’s worse,”she explained (referring to her motocross racer husband). 

It doesn’t doesn’t look like the star’s going to stop soaring any time soon

DespiteScottish comedian Paul Black’s joke-y request that Pink “get doon” for once, the Lady Marmalade singer seems keen to stay in the silks.

“If there was a thing I would’ve stopped [arial acrobatics] for, it would’ve been my kids, but now they get to do it at soundcheck though — we’re all good,”she told People last year. 

The star will tour the UK and Ireland this June as part of her Summer Carnival jaunt, so expect to catch some flips and spins if you’re heading along.

Pet Shop Boys have responded after Drake sampled their hit song West End Girls without requesting their permission last year.

Back in October, the pop duo claimed that the Canadian rapper had sampled their 1984 song on his track All The Parties, taken from his eighth studio album For All The Dogs.

Drake’s track includes the lyrics: “And it’s 6, our town a dead end world/ East End boy and West End girls.”

This is almost identical to Pet Shop Boys’ lyrics: “In a West End town, a dead end world/ The East End boys and West End girls.”

On the day Drake’s song was released, the Pet Shop Boys wrote on their official X account: “Surprising to hear Drake singing the chorus of West End Girls in the track All The Parties on his new album. No credit given or permission requested.”

Speaking to NME in a new interview, Pet Shop Boys members Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe addressed the controversy directly.

Neil clarified: “It’s all sorted now, but I must say I thought it was a really nice bit in the record. He sang it very well.”

The pair went on to explain how a track called New London Boy from their new album Nonetheless uses spoken-rap, in the style of West End Girls.

Neil continued that “modern rap takes up a lot more words, whereas the classic early ’80s Grandmaster Flash style, which is the school I belong to, doesn’t take up as many words”. He added: “Also, I like the rhythm of it because you can understand the lyrics.”

To that, Chris added: “We should have just autotuned you and turned you into Drake!”

Neil added that he doesn’t think people regard West End Girls “as a rap record, even though we did”, to which his bandmate joked: “Hang on, you won the bloody Brit Award for Best Hip-Hop/Rap/Grime Artist this year!”

This was a reference to Neil’s contribution to Casisdead’s album Famous Last Words, which later earned the musician a Brits win.

The NHS recommends that adults between the ages of 19 and 65 do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity a week.

While this is all well and good, and makes sense for having a long, healthy life, getting into the habit of exercising when you’re just... not that interested, can be difficult and actually put you off it entirely.

However, if you are looking to get started and feel intimidated by just the thought of pulling on running shoes, what if you started just at your sofa? It is possible and works important muscles!

Exercises that can be done from the comfort of your sofa

Usually done in short sets, these can be done one after the other or, if you just want to do a little exercise to begin with, just do one at a time! All movement is good.

Chair dips

This exercise is actually considered by some experts to be one of the best ways to work your triceps and doing them in 10-15 sets to begin with is a great way to get started. 

Healthline recommended: 

• Sit on your chair or bench with your arms at your side and your feet flat on the floor, hip distance apart
• Position your hands so that your palms are down beside your hips. Your fingers should grip the front of the chair seat
• Move your torso forward off the chair with your arms extended. Your buttocks should hover over the floor and your knees should be slightly bent. Your heels should touch the floor a few inches in front of your knees
• Breathe in as you slowly lower your body, hinging at the elbows until each forms a 90-degree angle
• Breathe out as you push up to your starting position with your arms fully extended

Sofa punches

Speaking on ITV last summer, fitness expert Shakira Akabusi spoke about the benefits of “cosy cardio” and introduced the presenters to an exercise that she dubbed “sofa punches.”

Shakira recommended: “Whilst sitting down on the sofa start punching with both arms outwards while lifting your knees.”

Easy! 

Glute bridges

Shakira also recommended glute bridges. Technically this does involve getting off your sofa but only to lie down and rest your legs on it. 

To do this, you simply lie on the floor with your feet resting on the sofa, lay your arms flat and slowly raise your hips whilst engaging your glutes.

Side-lying hip raise

This exercise will help to work your glutes and core muscles and is really simple to do. Simply lie down on your side with your legs stacked, bend your knees to a 90-degree angle, keeping your feet behind you and still stacked.

Then, according to CNN, you simply: “Extend your top leg straight out in front of you, positioned somewhere between your opposite knee and hip, depending on how tight your leg feels.

“Internally rotate your hip to point your toes down and lead with your heel as you raise your leg up above hip height and then lower down below the front of the couch.”

 Once you feel you’ve done enough reps of this, simply rotate around the sofa and do it again, flipping the legs so there’s an equal workout.

Sofa squats

According to the BBC, this exercise builds strength in the legs, buttocks, bones, and back.

The BBC advises following these two steps and then repeating.

Step one:

• Sitting on the edge of the sofa, have you feet shoulder width apart and back straight
• With the weight going through your heels push up as you stand
• Use the armrest if you need to at first
• Make sure that you’re keeping your back straight. Stop yourself from bending forward
• As you stand up, tense your buttocks and steady yourself on the spot
• Keep your back straight – this is really important. That is why we keep saying it

Step two:

• Standing up straight, with your feet shoulder width apart, lower yourself down slowly to the count of 5 seconds
• Lead with your buttocks, keeping your back straight as you sit back down into the sofa
• Keep the movement slow and controlled - this is what builds strength. If you go down too fast you won’t feel any resistance and you won’t get any of the benefits
• Use the armrest if you need to at first
• When you feel your behind on the sofa, gently ease your pelvis back just a little to support your lower back

Fitness without even having to turn off Gilmore Girls? Sold.

We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about how adding cornstarch to your scrambled eggs can make them restaurant-level creamy and smooth. 

And now it turns out that there’s a way to make your DIY American-style pancakes taste like you got them from an expensive brunch spot, too. 

YouTuber and former chef @SenpaiKai9000, who’s worked in Michelin-starred kitchens, shared a YouTube Shorts video explaining that not only should you cream your eggs and sugar before adding the rest of the pancake ingredients, but you should be using browned butter in the mix too. 

Why and how? 

Well, creaming the butter and eggs first ― rather than mixing all the ingredients at once ― introduces more air into the batter, making for a lighter, fluffier pancake. 

You do this by whipping the sugar and eggs “for a very long time” until pale and fluffy (about ten minutes). @SenpaiKai9000 also adds orange or lemon zest at this point, or says you could opt for “cinnamon or vanilla” if that’s what you fancy.

After adding your flour in three or four batches, ensuring you don’t over-mix, it’s time for the butter. The former chef then makes some clarified brown butter by heating some butter until it foams up, removing it from the heat, and straining it. 

“Keep all this cold and when you want to cook [the pancakes], fry it in that browned butter,” the YouTuber advises.

You can then shallow fry the cooled batter in the gloriously toasted dairy “until it gets crazy crispy.” Browned butter’s nutty, rich flavour adds depth and an almost maple-y note to the hot cakes. 

The YouTuber isn’t alone 

The former chef isn’t the only one who swears by browned butter pancakes.

Baker John Whaite swears by the addition, though he pours his over the crepes rather than frying them in the stuff.

In fact, the King’s chefs themselves use the method for his royal brekkie. They say that the “buerre noisette” (browned butter) “adds great flavour and keeps the pancakes moist.” 

Right, I’m off to make some batter...

You say “bunny,” I hear “carrot.” But it turns out that in nature, the iconic duo never meet (I know, right?). 

According to the RSPCA, “while carrots are fine as an occasional treat, rabbits don’t actually eat fruit or vegetables in the wild.” In other words, rabbits CAN eat a bit of carrot ― but don’t by nature.

So, why do we have such a strong association between Leporidae and the root veg? Well, TikToker @deadboydetective explained that part of the reason so many of us make the association is because of Bugs Bunny ― but “the weird part is why Bugs Bunny eats carrots in the cartoon in the first place.” 

Which is? 

It’s not just a misconception on the animators’ part, which is what I thought. 

Instead, “This was actually a specific reference to a specific movie that was popular [when] Bugs Bunny was created ― because you see Bugs Bunny’s entire character was a reference [to] or parody of the actor Clark Gable.” 

In the movie It Happened One Night, Clark Gable’s character Peter Warne was seen leaning up against a fence snacking on a carrot. 

The movie, which came out in 1934, was popular by the time Bugs Bunny came out in 1940. “It’s a movie reference that at the time everybody understood,” the TikTok creator explained. 

“But now it’s been so long that nobody realises it’s referencing a movie” ― instead, many of us (myself included) think rabbits naturally chow down on carrots, even though they’re actually a bit sugary for the small snifflers.

People were pretty surprised

While many people commented that their rabbits love carrots (again, we’re not saying they can’t ever eat them, just that they shouldn’t have too much and don’t usually go for the root veg in the wild!), others were wowed by the info. 

“This is my new fun fact,” one TikTok user commented. 

“I always thought the carrot was meant to represent a cigar,” another said. 

What a time, eh?

In a Reddit post shared to r/AITAH (am I the asshole), site user No_Kiwi_2 asked whether or not they were in the wrong for announcing their wife’s pregnancy at their brother’s wedding. 

“My brother got married last weekend. Instead of a ‘welcome to the family’ toast, I used the time to announce that we were expecting our first baby,” the poster shared. 

They added that they knew it might ruffle some feathers, and it did. “My mum says I was an asshole for taking attention away from my brother on his wedding day,” the poster wrote. 

But they had a good reason

Though they knew the announcement would detract from the day, the poster said they did it as a form of revenge.

“My brother said he was going to propose at my wedding. I told him no. That it was a day about myself and my wife and we did not want any distractions,” he said of his brother’s own mid-nuptial show. 

Their mother was on the proposing brother’s side during the poster’s wedding, he claims. “She said that he wanted family he might not see again for a while to be a part of the proposal. I said I did not give a shit and that if he did it I would have him kicked out.” 

However, their mother said she’d leave too if her son was thrown out for his proposal. The post’s subject line revealed that the brother proposed regardless ― it reads “AITAH for announcing our pregnancy at my brother’s wedding after he proposed at mine?”  

So, when OP announced his wife’s pregnancy at his brother’s wedding, “My mum was upset but my grandmother told her to sit down and shut up.” 

He added, “We spent most of the reception talking to family we would not see again for a while about our coming baby.” 

Most people agreed with the poster ― and it went so viral that it ended up on X 

So many people agreed with the post author that a screenshot of the Reddit entry ended up on X, with over 600k views as of the time of writing. 

In the original Reddit thread, commenters said “Grandma was the queen” and “You’re the justified asshole. He got what he deserved.” 

Meanwhile, a responder to the viral X said “In Portuguese, we have a saying that goes something like ‘swapped lead does not hurt,’ which [means] something like ‘this is a dick move, but an equivalent inverse situation has happened before, so it’s all good.’”

“Love to see it,” yet another X user commented under the screenshot titled “This is hilarious. Huge w for the OP.” 

What do you think?

Nick Robinson has launched a furious attack on GB News amid a row over broadcasters’ impartiality during the general election campaign.

The veteran BBC journalist took issue with the Ofcom watchdog after it ruled that politicians could continue to host TV programmes in the run-up to polling day.

In particular, he took aim at GB News presenters Nigel Farage, Lee Anderson, Richard Tice and Jacob Rees-Mogg.

Posting on X (formerly Twitter), the BBC Radio 4 Today programme host said: “So, Nigel Farage - one of the founders and owners of Reform UK - can present an “impartial” programme on a TV “news” channel during the general election according to the broadcasting regulator Ofcom.

“The leader of the party, Richard Tice, and its only MP, Lee Anderson, can present programmes in the run up to the campaign alongside Jacob Rees-Mogg. Is that your idea of impartiality.”

He was responding to a statement by Cristina Nicolotti Squires, Ofcom’s broadcasting and media group director, who said there was “no clear consensus” among TV viewers for a ban on politicians presenting programmes.

She said: “People are clear that they expect broadcasters to maintain the highest standards of due impartiality. It follows that, given politicians’ partial viewpoint, audiences don’t want to see or listen to politicians presenting news – full stop.

“But while many  are instinctively uncomfortable with politicians presenting current affairs, there was no clear consensus for an outright ban.

She added: “As we approach the local elections and edge ever nearer to a general election, we’re also sending a clear warning to broadcasters – and particularly those that use politicians as presenters – that nothing short of the highest standards of compliance with the heightened impartiality rules during this period will be acceptable. Should any broadcaster fall short, we’ll move swiftly to enforce those rules.”

Last month, Ofcom found that GB News programmes presented by Rees-Mogg had broken impartiality rules.

They said they were putting the channel “on notice” and would impose sanctions if the rules are broken again.

Lee Anderson - who defected from the Tories to Reform UK earlier this year - hit back at Robinson.

In a post on X, he said: “I have more confidence in Nigel Farage being impartial than you or the station you work for. Its actually laughable that you talk about impartiality.”

Of all the roles that might have influenced Hannah Waddingham’s casting in Ted Lasso, we would not have put our money on her brief-but-memorable Game Of Thrones character.

The British actor and all-round national treasure played Rebecca Welton, owner of the AFC Richmond football club, in all three seasons of Ted Lasso.

But before landing her Emmy-winning role in the feel-good comedy, fans of Game Of Thrones will remember Hannah as Septa Unella, perhaps better known as the “shame nun” in season five of the US fantasy series.

Hannah’s character was introduced as a member of the Faith of the Seven clergy, a devout follower of the High Sparrow (played by Jonathan Pryce).

And although she wasn’t on the show for long, she took centre stage in an unforgettable scene which depicts Cersei (Lena Headey) doing a naked walk of atonement through the city, with Septa Unella ringing a bell and yelling “shame!” behind her.

Hannah’s performance impressed Game Of Thrones creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss so much that, believe it or not, it was what led to her bagging her role in Ted Lasso. 

During a recent interview with the Today show, Hannah recalled: “I got David Benioff and Dan Weiss to write an email to the powers that be. The subject was, ‘What are we even discussing here?’. It was such a beautiful, quiet, genuine endorsement of, ‘Let the girl play.’” 

While her Game Of Thrones stint may have helped land one of her biggest roles to date, the actor has previously opened up about the challenges of filming another crucial moment in character as Septa Unella.

One scene saw her character being “actually waterboarded” – which she previously described as the “worst day of my life”.

Opening up about filming the scene on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Hannah explained: “[Game Of Thrones] gave me something that I wasn’t expecting from it, and that’s chronic claustrophobia.

“I’ve talked about it since with David Benioff and Dan Weiss, the two executive producers on it, I was like, ‘good job it’s for them’, because it was horrific. Ten hours of being actually waterboarded. Like, actually waterboarded.”

Angela Rayner called Rishi Sunak a “pint-sized loser” as she called on the Tories to call a general election.

Labour’s deputy leader made fun of the diminutive prime minister’s 5ft 7in height as she stood in for Keir Starmer at prime minister’s questions.

She went head-to-head with deputy PM Oliver Dowden, who is reported to have urged Sunak to hold the election in June or July.

“I read with interest that the right honourable gentleman has been urging his neighbour in No.10 call an election because he’s worried they might get wiped out,” Rayner said.

“Has he finally realised that when he stabbed Boris Johnson in the back to get his mate into No.10 he was ditching their biggest election winner for a pint-sized loser?”

Sunak has repeatedly said his “working assumption” is that the election will be in the “second half” of this year - generally assumed to mean October or November.

Dowden said Rayner was “always looking to attack others’ failures” but was “never the one to take responsibility for her own”.

The session came amid Tory pressure on Rayner over allegations - which she strongly denies - that she might have broken electoral law with her living arrangements.

It is not the first time Labour has made fun Sunak for his height, last year Starmer asked the prime minister if the job of leading the country was “too big” for him.

The two deputies were taking part in PMQs as Sunak is abroad meeting German chancellor Olaf Scholz. 

According to the Office for National Statistics, the UK watches around 2 hours and 17 minutes of television every day. 

And, who can blame us? There’s never been a better time for settling into a binge-watching sesh. With shows like Baby Reindeer, Heartstopper and even Love Is Blind, it’s hard to drag ourselves away from our sofas.

However, one hormone expert, Mike Kocsis at BalanceMyHormones, is warning that our bingeing habits may be having a detrimental impact on our hormone health. 

The impact that binge-watching TV has on our hormone health

Kocsis said: “The symptoms of feeling scared or feeling excited mirror each other. As a result, the body reacts to watching dramas and thrillers in the same way as it does when it’s in love.”

He went on to explain that the heart rate rises by 42%, blood pressure increases and blood flow to the gut decreases as the body enters ‘fight or flight mode’. This mode sees the sympathetic nervous system spark a stress response that motivates the body to prepare for a threat. 

However, once the body realises that you’re not under threat and, in this instance, watching TV, the brain releases a hit of dopamine.

Kocsis explained: “Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is secreted from the brain’s hypothalamus. It’s a key part of the brain’s pathway to reward. In fact, the sudden release of dopamine is the reason that we ‘binge watch’ TV shows as its hit sparks a feeling of euphoria, like ‘runners high’.”

Of course, this is something the brain continues to crave. This is why we always find ourselves craving just one more episode. The brain will then steadily release dopamine as you continue to watch the show and become invested in the characters’ lives.

Kocsis: “This even leads to craving the TV show, like that of an addiction, when we switch channels or turn the show off altogether.”

The hormone expert also warned that lengthy amounts of TV viewing can manipulate testosterone levels. 

He explained that when a person relates to a character, the body reacts to their ‘wins’ and ‘loses’ as if they are their own. For example, if a character finds success, the body’s testosterone levels rise, if they encounter failure, levels of testosterone decrease.

Even the screens themselves can be harmful

Kocsis said: “Most people are inactive as they are watching TV, focusing solely on the blue light emitting from the screen. The blue light suppresses the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, leading the brain to believe that it’s still daytime and therefore delaying sleep.”

According to the sleep experts at Time4Sleep, over 50% (50.9%) of Brits have a TV in their bedroom.

Kcosis advised: “If you experience tiredness, low mood or even anxiety after watching prolonged levels of TV, implement a TV limit each evening, ensure that you are mindful of the number of hours you watch.”

Noted.

A migration expert has outlined a crucial detail about the controversial bill to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda – it’s not the only option we have to deal with high levels of refugees.

The bill finally passed through parliament on Monday, meaning it’s well on its way to becoming law despite ongoing concerns about human rights.

When three men, one woman and a seven-year-old girl died in the Channel early on Tuesday morning while trying to cross in a small boat, Rishi Sunak claimed the tragic incident “underscore why you need a deterrent” like this bill.

However, UK and EU refugees and migration expert, Zoe Gardner, told Channel 4 News last night that there was still a clear alternative.

She said: “The government says it would do anything to stop people taking these risky journeys and to stop these deaths.

“But the one thing it won’t do is give people a safe alternative way to travel.

“And that the one thing that would actually stop the deaths.

“We need to give people an alternative way to get across the channel.

“We could then know who they are, we could give them orderly paperwork in order to come here, and then put them in an orderly asylum system.”

Sharing the clip on her personal social media account, Gardner also suggested that without safe routes, “we’ll always be waiting for the next tragedy”.

The Care4Calais CEO, Steve Smith, told the channel that many migrants currently on the French coast had not even heard of the Rwanda bill.

He added that they have also been through major trauma, and so are happy to “take the risk” of being one of those the government is hoping to deport within the next year.

Ever find yourself wincing through the 30 seconds of mouthwash swilling after brushing your teeth because it’s stinging?

Until now, I perhaps shamefully thought that this stinging meant that the mouthwash was ‘working’ and was just something I had to deal with if I wanted fresh, healthy gums.

However, according to Dr Deepa Vakil, Lead Dentist and Clinical Director of Yor Dental, it doesn’t have to be this way and, actually, if your mouth is stinging or burning when you use mouthwash, it may be time to switch it for something a little less aggressive. 

Vakil said: “Mouthwash can be detrimental to oral health for a few reasons. Some contain alcohol, which can dry out the mouth and reduce saliva production, leading to bad breath and a higher risk of cavities.”

She warned that harsh ingredients can irritate the gums which could potentially cause inflammation or even damage to the gums over time. Additonally mouthwash that kills all bacteria, including the good ones, can disrupt the natural balance of your oral microbiome, which is essential for keeping harmful bacteria in check.

Vakil said: “It’s best to choose a mouthwash without alcohol and with gentler ingredients to avoid these potential issues.”

Why mouthwash makes your mouth burn

Alcohol content 

Vakil said: “Many mouthwashes contain alcohol, which can cause a burning sensation in the mouth. Alcohol is a common ingredient in mouthwash because it acts as an antiseptic, but it can irritate sensitive oral tissues, leading to a burning feeling.”

Antiseptic agents

The dentist advised that mouthwashes contain antiseptic agents like chlorhexidine, cetylpyridinium chloride, or essential oils like eucalyptol and thymol. While these do kill bacteria, they can also cause irritation or inflammation in the mouth, resulting in a burning sensation.

Essential oils

Vakil said that while some mouthwashes have a nicer smell and flavour thanks to essential oils, these can be harsh on sensitive oral tissues which leads to burning. 

When not to use mouthwash

Vakil said that, given these potential causes, she would advise against using mouthwash in specific scenarios:

• Dry mouth (Xerostomia): Mouthwashes containing alcohol can exacerbate dry mouth, as alcohol has a drying effect. People with dry mouth may find these mouthwashes uncomfortable
• Oral irritation: If you have cuts, sores, or other forms of irritation in the mouth, using alcohol-based mouthwash can be painful and worsen the irritation
• Overuse: Frequent use of antiseptic mouthwashes can disrupt the natural balance of oral bacteria, potentially leading to other oral health issues like oral thrush or increased risk of cavities

Alternatives to mouthwash

If you have sensitive oral tissue or often find yourself with a burning or stinging mouth following using mouthwash, Vakil advises trying these:

• Alcohol-free mouthwashes: These contain antibacterial agents without the alcohol, reducing the risk of irritation.
• Natural or herbal mouthwashes: These use ingredients like tea tree oil, aloe vera, or xylitol, which are gentler on oral tissues.
• Saline rinses: A simple mixture of salt and warm water can be an effective mouth rinse that is less likely to cause irritation.

This story was first published in October 2022, and was re-published in April 2024.

Since Rishi Sunak officially took the top job on October 25, 2022, becoming the first UK prime minister of Asian descent and the youngest one too, a lot of people have been obsessing over something else entirely. 

Nearly all of us have strong opinions about the government, but the public awaits to see how the latest leader of the Conservative Party will lead the country. His policies aren’t the only thing people are discussing though, the public have another obsession regarding Rishi: his height.

The UK’s prime minister is 1.7m, which means that he’s 5ft 7 – and people have strong feelings about this. The average height for men in the UK is 5ft 10, a fact which has made the PM’s height the talk of the town.

Some people are mocking his height

Others think the discussions around his height are unfair and mean

But some of the ‘short kings’ are celebrating

Jokes about men’s height aren’t new, but they’re getting old. If you know it’s wrong to comment on women’s appearances, the same grace should be applied to men.

Men are more than just their height, but unfortunately, people do take the height of men into consideration.

A study conducted by the researchers at the University of St Andrews in Scotland found a link between height and the perception of masculinity. Whilst another 2005 study stated that men who said they were 6’3” or 6’4” got about 60% more messages on dating sites than men who were 5’7” or 5’8.

But the tide is slowly changing for short men. The term ‘short king’ increased during awards season when celebrity couples Spider-Man’s Tom Holland and Zendaya took to the red carpet. Though she is taller than her partner, she clearly couldn’t care less about height.

So the next time you want to critique Rishi Sunak, make sure it’s about his policies, not his height.

For some of us, there can be instances where your kids are at home the same time as when you’re working. This can be either if they’re off sick or if you don’t have childcare available on certain days.

Working from home with a toddler can seem like an extreme sport. They’re demanding little humans who often want to smother you with love at the wrong moments – like when you’re about to sign on to a meeting.

Then to top it off, sometimes their big feelings can turn into tantrums during an important work call. Though it can seem difficult, here are some ways people have found a way to make it work as best they can. 

How can I work from home with a toddler? Here’s what parents say

1. ‘Organisation is key’

Adam Bennett who is the Head of Marketing at Digitalid says that working from home with toddlers is definitely challenging and as a manager, a lot of his time is taken up on team’s calls.

There are three things that helped Adam while working with a toddler.

Firstly, call planning — Adam says he tries to ensure that his important calls are between 1-3pm which is usually nap time and means less disruption. It doesn’t always go to plan so you need to make sure you have a good set of noise-cancelling headphones.

Secondly he advises to work in an open-plan space: “I’ve found this to work better than being in an office and going back and forth. My little one has been able to play around me and doesn’t require me to be watching their every move 24/7.”

Lastly he says to be patient. Working from home with toddlers often means interruptions and unexpected challenges and we’re all tying our best, so Adam advises to stay patient! 

2. ‘Wake up before your toddler’

Mum-of-one, Shaheera Anwar, has a four-year-old toddler who doesn’t go to school yet. She explains she’s been working from home since her son was born.

“I currently have a four-year-old who does not go to school yet. My son was born during peak-COVID and jobs that I’ve had or taken since then, have mostly been work from home. Thankfully, my current work arrangement allows the same flexibility, but despite that, balancing a full-time job alongside caring for a toddler is undeniably demanding,” she says.

One strategy that she says has proven somewhat effective is waking up at least two hours before her toddler.

She says that the early start allows her to mentally prepare for the day ahead and enjoy a peaceful breakfast without interruptions.

Shaheera explains: “I use this time to outline my tasks for the day and get challenging work tasks completed before my child wakes up. After his morning dressing and brushing routine, I involve him in making breakfast. This contributes to that parental bond, which I feel is essential.

“After breakfast, I encourage independent play with toys, starting off by playing them with him and then occasionally stepping in to rotate to a new set of toys. If I want to keep him occupied for longer, I take out the big guns — activities like painting, play dough or puzzles. While I try to limit screen time, it becomes a necessary tool during important meetings, with age-appropriate games allowed on the iPad. No YouTube. Not even YouTube kids.”

She concludes that in her experience, key strategies to work at home with a toddler include regularly rotating toys to maintain interest, engaging in creative activities and utilising screen time strategically during meetings.

3. ‘Communicating with work is key’

Caroline Marshall, Founder of Upsource and mum-of-two who is also the host of Bump to Business Owner says communication is key.

She says parenting a toddler is a full-time job but there are three things she does when she has to WFH with a little one.

• Communicate — so the team know if they need you they can expect a delayed response, or contact on Whatsapp if urgent.
• Boundaries — no meetings or calls on Wednesdays unless urgent (the day she has her toddler at home).
• Manage expectations of what she can achieve on her business and parenting.

4. ‘Don’t be ashamed to ask for help’

Self employed business owner Emma Stokes says for her there are some advantages of working from home as she can take on more freelance work.

“I have a 14-month old who has only just started childcare (1 day per week!) with the hope of slowly increasing in the next few months. I also have a 4-year-old who is now at school, so I had to learn quite quickly since having children on how to juggle the load.

“Being a freelancer during the pandemic also allowed me to work in various freelance jobs whilst still being on maternity leave,” she says.

Over the years, Emma says she’s learnt a few tips and tricks to help with the juggle of being a working-from-home parent, and running online businesses around the kids.

“Full time childcare isn’t always affordable or accessible, so I’m not ashamed to ask for help from family members if they can come over and support me when I have a big project on,” says Emma.

She also recommends having a designated workspace that allows her to focus and minimise distractions. Alongside this she has firm boundaries which enables her to establish a routine.

“I leverage nap time by scheduling important tasks. I embrace the flexibility of my job, which allows me to shift my work schedule as needed to accommodate the school runs/children’s needs. I’m a huge advocate for screen time, usually educational, as it allows me to tackle work tasks while they are distracted,” she comments.

Most importantly, she communicates with her clients that she is a parent that works from home, so she sets clear expectations from the start.

The bottom line is, if you are working from home with a toddler, don’t be too hard on yourself! Try to stay as organised as you can and communicate clearly with your colleagues or clients.

No judgement here but when was the last time you cleaned your washing machine? I’ll be honest and say that I think it might have been a good few months for me. 

According to Good Housekeeping, we should be thoroughly cleaning our washing machines every three to six months and considering that they are the second dirtiest appliance in the home, that’s not really a big ask.

However, if you have noticed a rotten egg smell coming from your washing machine, now is the time to really get in there and do some scrubbing. According to Fred’s Appliance Academy, this nasty smell is likely the result of a build up of grime, mould, mildew or old soap in the machine.

Lovely.

How to thoroughly clean your washing machine

Fortunately, many modern washing machines have a self-clean function that only requires you to empty your machine and follow the manufacturer’s instructions to clean it.

However, if you still have to follow the old-fashioned route, cleaning influencer Ann Russell offered some simple advice on her TikTok account. 

She said: “Put a mug full of ordinary bleach [in the machine], run it on a hot cycle, and when it’s finished, leave it open. Never close your washing machine up while you’re not using it, always leave the door open.”

Russell also advised leaving the washing machine drawer open just a little, if you can. 

If this doesn’t quite get rid of the smell, Russell advises checking the piping behind the machine for any ‘kinks’ in the pipes that could be straightened out, as they may be contributing to build-up.

Finally, run a thin cleaning brush down the overflow pipe, followed by boiling water.

Several horses were seen running through central London on Wednesday morning, leaving the general public pretty mystified.

Unfortunately, four people ended up being injured and taken to hospital, and the police had to try and track down the animals before they ended up causing even more harm.

Here’s why the horses were on the loose – and why one was covered in blood.

Where did the horses come from?

The five escapees came from the Household Cavalry, which is made up of the two most senior regiments in the British Army – the Life Guards and Blues & Royals.

According to the Cavalry’s website, these soldiers “have acted as the monarch’s trusted guardians, as well as being the public face of the British Army both at home and abroad”.

A group of seven horses and six soldiers were out for their morning exercise in Hyde Park Barracks when the trouble began and four of the riders were thrown off their horses.

Five horses ended up escaping, having been spooked by building work.

Where did they go?

Moving away from Hyde Park Barracks, the horses ran through Belgrave Square – injuring two people – then went down Lower Belgrave Street.

Passers-by caught the first horse when it collided with a car on Buckingham Palace Road.

The remaining four horses continued running, with one hitting a tour bus.

Witnesses said one then crashed into a taxi outside Clermont Hotel and broke its windows – which is why it was covered in blood.

The blood was actually the animal’s own; according to a driver who spoke to LBC, the horse had cut itself when it went careening into his car.

The owner of a silver Mercedes-Benz people carrier, Faraz, said a white horse smashed into his windscreen when he was picking up a client outside Clermont Hotel near Victoria Station.

Four people were treated by ambulance workers in three separate incidents – Buckingham Palace Road, Belgrave Square and the junction between Chancery Lane and Fleet Street – triggered by the horses spread across just 10 minutes.

Were the horses captured?

All five were caught pretty quickly, although the horses had run pretty far in that time – two of them were found in Limehouse, five miles away from the origin of the incident.

Westminster Police posted on X (formerly Twitter): “We’re pleased to confirm that all of the horses have been accounted for. We are continuing to liaise with the Army.”

A courtroom sketch artist said Donald Trump’s mood changed quite dramatically on Tuesday during testimony about former Playboy model Karen McDougal at his hush money trial.

David Pecker, former publisher of the National Enquirer, has been testifying for the prosecution about a “catch and kill” scheme that he allegedly helped Trump carry out before the 2016 election to find and bury potentially damaging stories. 

In 2016, McDougal signed a $150,000 (£120,000) agreement with American Media Inc., which owned the Enquirer, for the rights to her story that she had an affair with Trump a decade earlier. 

Pecker discussed some of the events leading up to that payment on Tuesday, describing how Michael Cohen, Trump’s then-attorney, had asked him to look into the story. 

Elizabeth Williams, who has a decades-long career in creating court artwork, told CNN on Tuesday that Trump started out the day with his eyes often closed.

“But then when they start talking about McDougal ... the eyes are open, the arms start folding,” she said.

Williams said she has drawn the former president several times now and has observed a theme.

“When he folds his arms ... that means something is not right with Donald Trump,” she commented, noting that he did so several times during the E Jean Carroll defamation trial and when he was arraigned on federal charges in Miami.

“He’s now laser-focused on David Pecker,” she continued. “Prior to that, I looked at him quite a bit, and he was somewhat paying attention. But the McDougal testimony — that, that seemed to really get to him.”

McDougal claims she had a sexual relationship with Trump for about 10 months between 2006 and 2007, when he was married to his current wife, Melania Trump.

Trump has denied her allegations.

Prosecutors say Cohen was supposed to reimburse AMI, on Trump’s behalf, for the money McDougal was paid, but the deal fell through.

The McDougal payment is not part of the indictment against Trump, but it is relevant to the charges, which centre on a hush money payment from Cohen to porn star Stormy Daniels, who says she had an affair with Trump. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges in the case.

Prosecutors say Trump falsified business records when he reimbursed Cohen for that expenditure, in an attempt to obscure the true nature of the payments.

Liz Truss’s recent interview with GB News America may be her most uncomfortable one to date, judging from a clip circulating online.

The former prime minister is securing headline after headline as she promotes her new book, Ten Years To Save The West – but, unfortunately for the current backbencher, most of the news around her is focusing on her gaffes.

And, it seems her latest sit-down with GB News is no exception, despite her previous efforts to champion the right-leaning channel.

Journalist Steven Edington asked: “Why do you think Dominic Cummings called you a human hand grenade?”

Cummings, once the top aide to Boris Johnson, claimed in 2022 that the ex-PM supported Truss in her Tory leadership bid because he supposedly hoped “she’ll blow and he can make a comeback”.

Despite that insult being almost two years old, Truss paused for a long moment before saying: “Well, I – I say in the book that I am somebody who is prepared to take on the establishment.”

“Was he the establishment?” Edington asked, even though Cummings has a reputation for being anti-establishment. 

“You’ll have to ask him,” Truss replied.

In another awkward exchange, Edington asked her: “Why did you describe yourself as an LGBT ally at the Tory conference in 2021?”

When he bizarrely dubbed this terminology as “activist’s language”, Truss – who was the equalities minister for three years – laughed and said she “probably shouldn’t have done” done that.

Edington also asked: “Other than Churchill and Thatcher I wonder who are your favourite Tory leaders?”

She paused for a while, and eventually said: “Well, I like Javier Milei.” 

That’s the president of Argentina who was elected back in December, known for his polarising economic views.

Thousands are currently protesting in his country over his education cuts.

Edington also questioned Truss about how her views have become increasingly right-wing over the years.

He called out her past attempts to promote someone he called the UK’s “wokest civil servant” considering she has repeatedly lashed out at “wokeness” in recent years.

Watch a round-up of the best moments here: 

An Iranian man who crossed the English Channel in a small boat to seek asylum from persecution has described in detail the treacherous journey he took.

Nima Moradi spoke to BBC’s Newsnight in the aftermath of legislation being passed to underpin the Rwanda deportation plan, and three men, one woman and a seven-year-old girl dying in a small boat Channel crossing.

The Rwanda policy to send illegal migrants on a one-way journey to east African country is key to Rishi Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats” by deterring people from making risky journeys and breaking the business model of people-smuggling gangs.

Nima, who was granted asylum by the UK’s Home Office last year, explained to Newsnight that he fled Iran after criticising the hardline Iranian regime and being persecuted along with his friends; one friend was executed.

He went to Turkey and then Greece, where he was granted asylum, but left because he was “living in a tent without having access to electricity, without having access to hygiene facilities”.

Nima said he wasn’t thinking about his destination, “I was thinking about being safe”, and opted to head to the UK because he spoke English. He paid around £3,000 to a smuggler and explained the desperation that was fuelling his decision to make the cross-Channel journey on the fourth attempt.

He said: “You are risking your life. You know it’s dangerous. You know you might die. But you want to gamble because you have no other option. It is scary. I cannot swim. And I thought, ‘maybe I will die’. But did I have another option to make it here? No.”

The Rwanda policy had been announced at the time “but that didn’t stop me”, and people will say continue to say “it’s not going to apply to me” now it’s passed parliament.

Nima said there is “no other way” to seek asylum, and he would have sought a claims centre outside the UK if there was one. He had an interview with Home Office officials two weeks after arriving in the UK and was granted asylum.

You can watch the full interview below.

Ben Habib, the deputy leader of Reform UK, has suggested there are circumstances when people crossing the English Channel in small boats should be left to drown.

In comments on TalkTV that shocked presenter Julia Hartley-Brewer, Habib said migrants should “suffer the consequences of their actions” if they scupper their vessels and refuse new dinghies.

Hartley-Brewer said his position was “not a policy that a civilised country should endorse”.

The statement came as five more people died in the Channel on Tuesday. The migrants, including a seven-year-old girl, died when their boat got stuck on a sandbank off the coast of Pas-de-Calais in northern France. 

In the interview, Habib, a parliamentary candidate for the party polling around 12%, suggested Border Force should “use force” to repel migrants in boats, and that rescue services should provide them with another dinghy if they jumped into the water.

But he urged Hartley-Brewer not to “infantilise these people, they have free will”, adding that if people “choose to scupper” a rescue dinghy then “they have to suffer the consequences of their actions”.

Hartley-Brewer then asked: “Then you would leave them to drown?”

“Absolutely,” he replied. “They cannot be infantilised to the point that we become a hostage to fortune.”

You can watch the full exchange below.

Crucial part of the exchange below.

Ben Habib: “I said that we could, as an idea, provide them with another dinghy into which to climb and then go back to France. And if they choose to scupper that dinghy, then yes, they have to suffer the consequences of their actions.”

Julia Hartley-Brewer: “Then you would leave them to drown?”

BH: “They cannot ... absolutely, they cannot be infantilised to the point that we become a hostage to fortune.”

JHB: “I have no doubt that’s a policy that would work quite well. However, that is not a policy that a civilised country should endorse.”

BH: “Why is that uncivilised, Julie?”

JHB: “Because we don’t leave people to drown. Because we’re civilised human beings. I don’t want these people here. I don’t think they should be infantilised either. But I would never, I wouldn’t leave someone to drown. No, I wouldn’t. And I don’t think there’s anyone in Border Force or the Royal navy who would do that.”

The clash comes in the aftermath of legislation being passed to underpin the government’s Rwanda deportation plan. 

The policy to send illegal migrants on a one-way journey to east African country is key to Rishi Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats” by deterring people from making risky journeys and breaking the business model of people-smuggling gangs.