Melting glaciers threaten to wipe out European villages - is the steep cost to protect them worth it?

28 minutes ago Share Save Imogen Foulkes Geneva correspondent Share Save

BBC

In a small village in Switzerland's beautiful Loetschental valley, Matthias Bellwald walks down the main street and is greeted every few steps by locals who smile or offer a handshake or friendly word. Mr Bellwald is a mayor, but this isn't his village. Two months ago his home, three miles away in Blatten, was wiped off the map when part of the mountain and glacier collapsed into the valley. The village's 300 residents had been evacuated days earlier, after geologists warned that the mountain was increasingly unstable. But they lost their homes, their church, their hotels and their farms. Lukas Kalbermatten also lost the hotel that had been in his family for three generations."The feeling of the village, all the small alleys through the houses, the church, the memories you had when you played there as a child… all this is gone."

Hotel Edelweiss Blatten's residents were evacuated days before the disaster

Today, he is living in borrowed accommodation in the village of Wiler. Mr Bellwald has a temporary office there too, where he is supervising the massive clean-up operation - and the rebuild. The good news is, he believes the site can be cleared by 2028, with the first new houses ready by 2029. But it comes with a hefty pricetag. Rebuilding Blatten is estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, perhaps as much as $1 million (USD) per resident. Voluntary contributions from the public quickly raised millions of Swiss francs to help those who had lost their homes. The federal government and the canton promised financial support too. But some in Switzerland are asking: is it worth it?

Shutterstock Houses were destroyed after a large part of Blatten was buried under masses of ice, mud, and rock

Though the disaster shocked Switzerland, some two thirds of the country is mountainous, and climate scientists warn that the glaciers and the permafrost – the glue that holds the mountains together – are thawing as the global temperature increases, making landslides more likely. Protecting areas will be costly. Switzerland spends almost $500m a year on protective structures, but a report carried out in 2007 for the Swiss parliament suggested real protection against natural hazards could cost six times that. Is that a worthwhile investment? Or should the country - and residents - really consider the painful option of abandoning some of their villages?

The day the earth shook

The Alps are an integral part of Swiss identity. Each valley, like the Loetschental, has its own culture. Mr Kalbermatten used to take pride in showing hotel guests the ancient wooden houses in Blatten. Sometimes he taught them a few words of Leetschär, the local dialect. Losing Blatten, and the prospect of losing others like it, has made many Swiss ask themselves how many of those alpine traditions could disappear.

Angus MacKenzie 'I'll never forget it. The earth shook.' Fernando Lehner recalls the day of the landslide

Today, Blatten lies under millions of cubic metres of rock, mud, and ice. Above it, the mountain remains unstable. When they were first evacuated, Blatten's residents, knowing their houses had stood there for centuries, believed it was a purely precautionary measure. They would be home again soon, they thought. Fernando Lehner, a retired businessman, says no one expected the scale of the disaster. "We knew there would be a landslide that day… But it was just unbelievable. I would never have imagined that it would come down so quickly. "And that explosion, when the glacier and landslide came down into the valley, I'll never forget it. The earth shook."

Landslides are 'more unpredictable'

The people of Blatten, keen to get their homes back as soon as possible, don't want to talk about climate change. They point out that the Alps are always dangerous, and describe the disaster as a once in a millennium event. But climate scientists say global warming is making alpine life more risky. Matthias Huss, a glaciologist with Zurich's Federal Institute of Technology, as well as glacier monitoring group Glamos, argues that climate change was a factor in the Blatten disaster. "The thawing of permafrost at very high elevation led to the collapse of the summit," he explains.

Matthias Huss Glaciologist Matthias Huss argues that climate change was a factor in the Blatten disaster

"This mountain summit crashed down onto the glacier… and also the glacier retreat led to the fact that the glacier stabilised the mountain less efficiently than before. So climate change was involved at every angle." Geological changes unrelated to climate change also played a role, he concedes - but he points out that glaciers and permafrost are key stabilising factors across the alps. His team at Glamos has monitored a record shrinkage of the glaciers over the past few years. And average alpine temperatures are increasing. In the days before the mountain crashed down, Switzerland's zero-degree threshold – the altitude at which the temperature reaches freezing point – rose above 5,000 metres, higher than any mountain in the country. "It is not the very first time that we're seeing big landslides in the Alps," says Mr Huss. "I think what should be worrying us is that these events are becoming more frequent, but also more unpredictable."

Angus MacKenzie Blatten's residents lost their homes, church and farms: living below a mountain, as many Swiss do, looks increasingly precarious

A study from November 2024 by the Swiss Federal Research Institute, which reviewed three decades of literature, concurred that climate change was "rapidly altering high mountain environments, including changing the frequency, dynamic behavior, location, and magnitude of alpine mass movements", although quantifying the exact impact of climate change was "difficult".

More villages, more evacuations

Graubünden is the largest holiday region in Switzerland, and is popular with skiers and hikers for its untouched nature, alpine views and pretty villages. The Winter Olympics was hosted here twice - in the upmarket resort of St Moritz - while the town of Davos hosts world leaders for the World Economic Forum each year. One village in Graubünden has a different story to tell. Brienz was evacuated more than two years ago because of signs of dangerous instability in the mountain above. Its residents have still not been able to return, and in July heavy rain across Switzerland led geologists to warn a landslide appeared imminent.

Angus MacKenzie Average alpine temperatures are increasing, say scientists. Meanwhile glaciers are shrinking

Elsewhere in Switzerland, above the resort of Kandersteg, in the Bernese Oberland region, a rockface has become unstable, threatening the village. Now residents have an evacuation plan. There too, heavy rain this summer raised the alarm, and some hiking trails up to Oeschinen Lake, a popular tourist attraction, were closed. Some disasters have claimed lives. In 2017, a massive rockslide came down close to the village of Bondo, killing eight hikers. Bondo has since been rebuilt, and refortified, at a cost of $64 million. As far back as 2003, the village of Pontresina spent millions on a protective dam to shore up the thawing permafrost in the mountain above. Not every alpine village is at risk, but the apparent unpredictability is causing huge concern.

The debate around relocation

Blatten, like all Swiss mountain villages, was risk mapped and monitored; that's why its 300 residents were evacuated. Now, questions are being asked about the future of other villages too. In the aftermath of the disaster, there was a huge outpouring of sympathy. But the possible price tag of rebuilding it also came with doubts. An editorial in the influential Neue Zürcher Zeitung questioned Switzerland's traditional - and constitutional - wealth distribution model, which takes tax revenue from urban centres like Zurich to support remote mountain communities. The article described Swiss politicians as being "caught in an empathy trap", adding that "because such incidents are becoming more frequent due to climate change, they are shaking people's willingness to pay for the myth of the Alps, which shapes the nation's identity." It suggested people living in risky areas of the Alps should consider relocation.

Preserving the alpine villages is expensive. And Neue Zürcher Zeitung was not the first to question the cost of saving every alpine community, but its tone angered some. While three quarters of Swiss live in urban areas, many have strong family connections to the mountains. Switzerland may be a wealthy, highly developed, high-tech country now, but its history is rural, marked by poverty and harsh living conditions. Famine in the 19th century caused waves of emigration. Mr Kalbermatten explains that the word "heimat" is hugely important in Switzerland. "Heimat is when you close your eyes and you think about what you did as a child, the place you lived as a child. "It's a much bigger word than home." Ask a Swiss person living for decades in Zurich or Geneva, or even New York, where their heimat is, and for many, the answer will be the village they were born in. For Mr Kalbermatten and his sister and brothers, who live in cities, heimat is the valley where people speak Leetschär, the dialect they all still dream in.

Imogen Foulkes Traditional wooden masks called Tschäggättä are unique to that valley

The fear is that if these valleys become depopulated, other aspects of unique mountain culture could be lost too - like the Tschäggättä, traditional wooden masks, unique to the Loetschental valley. Their origins are mysterious, possibly pagan. Every February, local young men wear them, along with animal skins, and run through the streets. Mr Kalbermatten points to the example of some areas of northern Italy where this loss of culture has happened. "[Now] there are only abandoned villages, empty houses, and wolves. "Do we want that?"

Angus MacKenzie Lukas Kalbermatten believes the site can be cleared by 2028, with Blatten's first new houses ready by 2029.

For many, the answer is no: An opinion poll from research institute, Sotomo, asked 2,790 people what they most cherished about their country. The most common answer? Our beautiful alpine landscape, and our stability. But the poll did not ask what price they were prepared to pay.

Trying to tame a mountain

Boris Previsic, the director of the University of Lucerne's Institute for the Culture of the Alps, says that many Swiss, at least in the cities, had begun to believe they had tamed the alpine environment. Switzerland's railways, tunnels, cable cars and high alpine passes are masterpieces of engineering, connecting alpine communities. But now, in part because of climate change, he suggests, that confidence is gone. "The human induced geology is too strong compared to human beings," he argues. "In Switzerland, we thought we could do everything with infrastructure. Now I think we are at ground zero concerning infrastructure."

Boris Previsic Boris Previsic says that many Swiss, at least in the cities, had begun to believe they had tamed the alpine environment

The village of Blatten had stood for centuries. "When you are in a village which has existed already for 800 years, you should feel safe. That is what is so shocking." In his view, it is time to fight against these villages dying out. "To fight means we have to be more prepared," he explains. "But we have to be more flexible. We have always also to consider evacuation." At the end of the day, he adds, "you cannot hold back the whole mountain". In the village of Wiler, Mr Previsic's point is greeted with a weary smile. "The mountain always decides," agrees Mr Bellwald. "We know that they are dangerous. We love the mountains, we don't hate them because of that. Our grandfathers lived with them. Our fathers lived with them. And our children will also live with them."

Angus MacKenzie Helicopters carry debris from the disaster site at Blatten. Even the military is involved in the operation.

At lunchtime in the local restaurant in Wiler, the tables are filled with clean-up teams, engineers and helicopter crew. The Blatten recovery operation is in full swing. At one table, a man from one of Switzerland's biggest insurance companies sits alone. Every half hour, he is joined by someone, an elderly couple, a middle aged man, a young woman. He buys each a drink, and carefully notes down the details of their lost homes. Outside, along the valley's winding roads, lorries and bulldozers trundle up to the disaster site. Overhead, helicopters carry large chunks of debris. Even the military is involved. Sebastian Neuhaus commands the Swiss army's disaster relief readiness battalion, and says they must press on despite the scale of the task. "We have to," he says. "There are 300 life histories buried down there." The abiding feeling is one of stubborn determination to carry on. "If we see someone from Blatten, we hug each other," says Mr Kalbermatten. "Sometimes we say, 'it's nice, you're still here.' And that's the most important thing, we are all still here." Lead image: The village of Blatten after the disaster. Credit: EPA / Shutterstock

Hamas refuses to disarm until Palestinian state established

4 hours ago Share Save Thomas Mackintosh BBC News Share Save

EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock A file picture from February shows a group of armed Hamas fighters during the handover of Israeli hostages

Hamas has reaffirmed that it will not agree to disarm unless a sovereign Palestinian state is established, in response to one of Israel's key demands in talks about a ceasefire in Gaza. The Palestinian armed group said it was responding to remarks it attributed to US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff that Hamas had "expressed its willingness" to lay down its weapons. Israel considers the disarmament of Hamas one of several key conditions for any deal to end the conflict. Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas to secure a ceasefire and the release of hostages stalled last week.

In the past few days, Arab governments have urged Hamas to disarm and surrender control of Gaza, after a number of Western countries - including France and Canada - announced plans to recognise a state of Palestine. The UK said it would if Israel did not meet certain conditions by September. Hamas - a proscribed terror group in the US, UK and EU - said in its statement that it could not yield its right to "resistance and its weapons" unless an "independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital" was established. The Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) Lt Gen Eyal Zamir warned on Friday that there would be no respite in fighting in Gaza if negotiations failed to quickly secure the release of hostages being held by Hamas. And on Saturday, the family of hostage Evyatar David issued a statement after Hamas released a video showing him shirtless and emaciated in a dimly-lit tunnel. They accused Hamas of starving him as part of a propaganda campaign and appealed to the Israeli government and the United States to do everything possible to save him.

Reuters Lishay Lavi, the wife of hostage Omri Miran who was kidnapped in the deadly October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, sits amid security wire during a protest in Tel Aviv

Witkoff has been visiting Israel as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government faces mounting pressure over the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Gaza. UN agencies have warned there is man-made, mass starvation in Gaza, and have blamed Israel, which controls the entry of all supplies to the territory. Israel has insisted there are no restrictions on aid deliveries and that there is "no starvation". Earlier on Saturday, Witkoff met in Tel Aviv with families of Israeli hostages who are still in Gaza. Footage posted online showed the Washington negotiator being greeted with applause and pleas for help by supporters of the hostages' families as he arrived in a square that has become known for protests.

Witkoff said peace efforts should focus on ending the conflict and bringing home all the hostages, instead of what he called a partial deal. As part of Witkoff's trip, he met Netanyahu on Thursday and on Friday he inspected a widely-criticised aid site in southern Gaza. Latest figures from the United Nations say at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed seeking food since late May. The majority have been killed by the Israeli military near Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution sites, the UN says. Israel has accused Hamas of instigating chaos near the sites and says its troops do not intentionally open fire on civilians.

Office of United States Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff went to the Gaza Strip on Friday to see the humanitarian situation

Family condemns Hamas video showing emaciated Israeli hostage

3 hours ago Share Save Jaroslav Lukiv BBC News Share Save

PA Media Ilay David holds a poster of his brother Evyatar David, who is held hostage in Gaza, in November 2023

The family of Israeli hostage Evyatar David held by Hamas in Gaza has accused the group of deliberately starving him as part of a "propaganda campaign". The family statement on Saturday came a day after Hamas released a video showing an emaciated David in a narrow concrete tunnel. David, 24, has been in captivity since his seizure by Hamas at a music festival in southern Israel on 7 October 2023. "We are forced to witness our beloved son and brother, Evyatar David, deliberately and cynically starved in Hamas's tunnels in Gaza - a living skeleton, buried alive," the family statement added.

The hostage's family also urged the Israeli government and the world community to do "everything possible to save Evyatar". In the video released by Hamas, Evyatar David is heard saying "I haven't eaten for days... I barely got drinking water" and is seen digging what he says will be his own grave. During its attack on Israel nearly two years ago, Hamas seized 251 hostages. David is one of 49 hostages who Israel says are still being held in Gaza. This includes 27 hostages who are believed to be dead.

Other A still showing Israeli hostage Evyatar David being held in a Gaza tunnel from the video released by Hamas

Israel has been accused by aid agencies of pushing Gaza towards famine by weaponising food in its war against Hamas - an allegation it denies. Israel has said there is "no starvation" and it is not imposing restrictions on aid entering Gaza - claims rejected by its close allies in Europe, the UN and other agencies active in the Strip. On Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was "continuing the series of actions aimed at improving the humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip". It said that 90 aid packages containing food for residents in southern and northern Gaza had been airdropped in the past few hours as part of co-operation between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, France and Germany. Meanwhile, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said seven more people, including a child, died of malnutrition in the territory on Saturday. The health ministry said the total number of malnutrition deaths since the start of the war has reached 169, including 93 children. Also on Saturday in Gaza, the health ministry said at least 83 had been killed and 1,079 injured as a result of Israel's military offensive in the past 24 hours. Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat told the BBC it had received the bodies of three people killed by Israeli forces near an aid distribution point on Salah al-Din street, south of the Wadi Gaza area in central Gaza, run by the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). The hospital said at least 36 people were injured. The IDF said its troops "fired warning shots" hundreds of metres away from the aid distribution site, and not during its operating hours, after a crowd did not comply with their calls not to advance towards them "in a manner that posed a threat". "The IDF is not aware of any casualties as a result of the warning shots, and the details of the incident are still being examined," it said. GHF said there was "nothing at or near our sites today". International journalists, including the BBC, are blocked by Israel from entering Gaza independently, making it difficult to verify claims.

Arrests after asylum hotel protests in England

2 hours ago Share Save Imogen James BBC News Share Save

Reuters Police form a line between anti-immigration demonstrators and counter protesters outside the Barbican Thistle hotel, in London

Fifteen people have been arrested after protests across England outside hotels used to house asylum seekers. Anti-migrant groups and counter demonstrators clashed in London and Newcastle, and before a march in Manchester city centre. Nine people were arrested in the capital, seven for breaching Public Order Act conditions, the Metropolitan Police said. A series of protests outside the migrant hotels have been taking place in recent weeks.

The Home Office has said the number of hotels being used for asylum seekers has decreased from more than 400 in summer 2023, to less than 210. It also announced plans to end the use of hotels to house migrants by 2029, which Chancellor Rachel Reeves says will save £1bn a year. Meanwhile, in an interview with the Sunday Times, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper says she wants to "restore order and control" to the asylum system by fast-tracking the appeals process. She told the paper changes will take place in the autumn, adding: "If we speed up the decision-making appeal system and also then keep increasing returns, we hope to be able to make quite a big reduction in the overall numbers."

Rescuers race to save Chile miners after collapse kills at least one

Rescuers in Chile are continuing to search for four miners trapped in a mine that collapsed after an earthquake two days ago, after the body of one was found.

The state-owned Codelco company said that human remains have been found at its El Teniente copper mine, about 70km (43 miles) south-east of the capital Santiago.

The firm says that rescuer efforts are continuing. The fate of the other four employees is unclear.

The collapse of some of the mine's underground tunnels was caused by a 4.2 magnitude tremor on Thursday. The trapped miners at the time were working deep below the surface.

Dua Lipa granted Kosovo citizenship

7 hours ago Share Save Imogen James BBC News Share Save

President of the Republic of Kosovo Lipa was greeted by President Vjosa Osmani in the ceremony on Friday

Pop star Dua Lipa has said it "feels like my two sides are now one" after being granted Kosovo citizenship. The singer was born in London to Kosovan-Albanian parents, and she lived in the capital Pristina briefly from the age of 11 when her parents returned after Kosovo gained independence. President Vjosa Osmani, who hosted the ceremony, said it was an "honour" granting Lipa citizenship, hailing her as "one of the most iconic cultural figures in our country's history". In a statement, Lipa added: "It completes the duality I have always had within. I love this country and this means so much to me and my family."

Sharing photographs of the ceremony on X, Osamni wrote: "Dua and Kosovo have always been inseparable. From the world's biggest stages to the hearts of millions, she's carried our story with strength, pride, and grace... "Our gratitude is endless for everything Dua has done, and continues to do for Kosovo." "Kosovo's gem - welcome back home," she added in a separate post. Lipa is currently in Kosovo for the three-day Sunny Hill Festival, which she headlined on Friday. Lipa has often spoken of her love for the country, and set up a charity that focuses on helping vulnerable communities in Kosovo. The Radical Optimism singer was greeted at the ceremony by a children's choir, singing a rendition of her hit Levitating. Also in attendance was UK Ambassador to Kosovo, Jonathan Hargreaves. He posted a picture smiling alongside Lipa on X, and said the UK and Kosovo were proud to call the pop star "one of our own". Lipa now has citizenship for Britain, Albania and Kosovo. She was granted Albanian citizenship in 2022 for promoting the country through her music and fame. Dua Lipa is granted Albanian citizenship

President of the Republic of Kosovo

The mystery of Winston Churchill's dead platypus was unsolved, until now

43 minutes ago Share Save Tiffanie Turnbull BBC News, Sydney Share Save

Australian Museum Before koalas became Australia's animal ambassadors, the country tried platypus diplomacy

In 1943, a camouflaged ship set off from Australia to England carrying top secret cargo - a single young platypus. Named after his would-be owner, UK prime minister Winston Churchill, the rare monotreme was an unprecedented gift from a country desperately trying to curry favour as World War Two expanded into the Pacific and arrived on its doorstep. But days out from Winston's arrival, as war raged in the seas around him, the puggle was found dead in the water of his specially made "platypusary". Fearing a potential diplomatic incident, Winston's death – along with his very existence – was swept under the rug. He was preserved, stuffed and quietly shelved inside his name-sake's office, with rumours that he died of Nazi-submarine-induced shell-shock gently whispered into the ether. The mystery of who, or what, really killed him has eluded the world since - until now.

Two Winstons and a war

The world has always been fascinated by the platypus. An egg-laying mammal with the face and feet of a duck, an otter-shaped body and a beaver-inspired tail, many thought the creature was an elaborate hoax; a taxidermy trick. For Churchill, an avid collector of rare and exotic animals, the platypus's intrigue only made him more desperate to have one – or six – for his menagerie. And in 1943 he said as much to the Australian foreign minister, H.V. 'Doc' Evatt. In the eyes of Evatt, the fact that his country had banned the export of the creatures - or that they were notoriously difficult to transport and none had ever survived a journey that long - were merely challenges to overcome. Australia had increasingly felt abandoned by the motherland as the Japanese drew closer and closer – and if a posse of platypuses would help Churchill respond more favourably to Canberra's requests for support, then so be it. Conservationist David Fleay – who was asked to help with the mission – was less amenable. "Imagine any man carrying the responsibilities Churchill did, with humanity on the rack in Europe and Asia, finding time to even think about, let alone want, half-a-dozen duckbilled platypuses," he wrote in his 1980 book Paradoxical Platypus.

Getty Images Among Churchill's animals were lions, a leopard, and a flock of black swans

On Mr Fleay's account, he managed to talk the politicians down from six platypuses to one, and young Winston was captured from a river near Melbourne shortly after. An elaborate platypusary – complete with hay-lined burrows and fresh Australian creek water – was constructed for him; a menu of 50,000 worms – and duck egg custard as a treat – was prepared; and an attendant was hired to wait on his every need throughout the 45-day voyage. Across the Pacific, through Panama Canal and into the Atlantic Ocean Winston went - before tragedy struck. In a letter to Evatt, Churchill said he was "grieved" to report that the platypus "kindly" sent to him had died in the final stretch of the journey. "Its loss is a great disappointment to me," he said. The mission's failure was kept secret for years, to avoid any public outcry. But eventually, reports about Winston's demise would begin popping up in newspapers. The ship had encountered a German U-boat, they claimed, and the platypus had been shaken to death amid a barrage of blasts.

Australian Museum David Fleay is known as the "Father of Conservation" in Australia

"A small animal equipped with a nerve-packed, super sensitive bill, able to detect even the delicate movements of a mosquito wriggler on stream bottoms in the dark of night, cannot hope to cope with man-made enormities such as violent explosions," Mr Fleay wrote, decades later. "It was so obvious that, but for the misfortunes of war, a fine, thriving, healthy little platypus would have created history in being number one of its kind to take up residence in England."

Mystery unravelled

"It is a tempting story, isn't it?" PhD student Harrison Croft tells the BBC. But it's one that has long raised suspicions. And so last year, Mr Croft embarked on his own journey: a search for truth. Accessing archives in both Canberra and London, the Monash University student found a bunch of records from the ship's crew, including an interview with the platypus attendant charged with keeping Winston alive. "They did a sort of post-mortem, and he was very particular. He was very certain that there was no explosion, that it was all very calm and quiet on board," Mr Croft says.

Renee Nowytarger/University of Sydney Records about Winston's life have ended up in museum collections in Australia and the UK

A state away, another team in Sydney was looking into Winston's life too. David Fleay's personal collection had been donated to the Australian Museum, and staff all over the building were desperate to know if it held answers. "You'd ride in the lifts and some doctor from mammalogy… [would ask] 'what archival evidence is there that Winston died from depth charge detonations?'" the museum's archive manager Robert Dooley tells the BBC. "This is something that had intrigued people for a long time." With the help of a team of interns from the University of Sydney, they set about digitising all of Fleay's records in a bid to find out.

Renee Nowytarger/University of Sydney Ewan Cowan (second left) and Paul Zaki (second right) were among a team of interns who helped solve the case

Even as far back as the 1940s, people knew that platypuses were voracious eaters. Legend of the species' appetite was so great that the UK authorities drafted an announcement offering to pay young boys to catch worms and deliver them to feed Winston upon his arrival. In the platypus attendant's logbook, the interns found evidence that his rations en route were being decreased as some of the worms began to perish. But it was water and air temperatures, which had been noted down at 8am and 6pm every day, that held the key to solving the mystery. These readings were taken at two of the cooler points of the day, and still, as the ship crossed the equator over about a week, the recorded temperatures climbed well beyond 27C - what we now know is the safe threshold for platypus travel. With the benefit of hindsight - and an extra 80 years of scientific research into the species - the University of Sydney team determined Winston was essentially cooked alive. While they can't definitively rule out the submarine shell-shock story, they say the impact of those prolonged high temperatures alone would have been enough to kill Winston.

Australian Museum The fateful entry in the platypus attendant's log book

"It's way easier to just shift the blame on the Germans, rather than say we weren't feeding it enough, or we weren't regulating its temperature correctly," Ewan Cowan tells the BBC. "History is totally dependent on who's telling the story," Paul Zaki adds.

Platypus diplomacy goes extinct

Not to be dissuaded by its initial attempt at platypus diplomacy, Australia would try again in 1947. High off the achievement of successfully breeding a platypus in captivity for the first time – a feat that wouldn't be replicated for another 50 years – Mr Fleay convinced the Australian government to let the Bronx Zoo have three of the creatures in a bid to deepen ties with the US. Unlike Winston's secret journey across the Pacific, this voyage garnered huge attention. Betty, Penelope and Cecil docked in Boston to much fanfare, before the trio was reportedly escorted via limousine to New York City, where Australia's ambassador was waiting to feed them the ceremonial first worm. Betty would die soon after she arrived, but Penelope and Cecil quickly became celebrities. Crowds clamoured for a glimpse of the animals. A wedding was planned. The tabloids obsessed over their every move.

Australian Museum Penelope and Cecil were the original Moo Dengs, Mr Cowan says

'Britain's real immigration crisis' and 'Carry on, doctor!'

14 minutes ago Share Save Share Save

BBC The Observer's front page is taken up with a stamped and faded image of the Royal Crest, headlined "Britain's real immigration crisis and the solution". The story promises to detail "Labour's push for digital ID for all". Also on the front page, "Reform UK councillors seek looser visa rules" and "the fear that haunts Jersey's migrant workers".

The Mail on Sunday continues with its lead story from Saturday - a new biography of Prince Andrew, whom it refers to as "Epstein's useful idiot". Also on its front page, two thirds of resident doctors "defy strike calls" in a "huge blow to militant unions' bid to wreak hospital havoc". "Carry on, Doctor!" says The Mail.

Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted associate of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has been "quizzed on three Brits" linked to the deceased paedophile financier, according to the Daily Mirror. US lawyers are focussed on "other pals apart from Prince Andrew", it adds.

"Gaza children to be flown in for NHS treatment" reads the headline of The Sunday Times. The government will let up to 300 of the seriously ill youths receive free medical care, it reports. Also on the front page, MP Chris Bryant tells The Times he was sexually abused by former National Youth Theatre head Michael Croft, and the summer camp host who gave children "sedative sweets" has been remanded. Businesses have pulled adverts over a Channel 4 documentary that children's commissioner says "risks glamourising degrading sex."

A "Strictly cocaine probe" is The Sun's lead story, as the tabloid says the BBC's law firm is leading an inquiry into "two stars" adding "it is said their drug use was "well known'." The BBC told the paper, "We have clear protocols and policies in place for dealing with any serious complaint raised with us." In other front page news, the prime minister has promised there will be "gongs for lionesses".

An interview with Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch leads the Sunday Telegraph. In it she says "Labour has not learnt from Truss 'mistakes'." She accuses the government of bringing the country "closer to a debt spiral". The Telegraph also reports that a senior civil servant "tried to gag" former immigration minister Robert Jenrick for saying terror suspects had arrived on small boats – in a piece written for The Telegraph after his tenure. The now Shadow Secretary of State was told the information "should not have been made public" and the Home Office neither confirmed nor denied his claims, the paper writes.

New offence to criminalise online migrant boats ads

1 hour ago Share Save Suzanne Leigh BBC News Share Save

PA Media

People advertising illegal Channel crossings online could face up to five years in prison under a new offence the government plans to introduce. The offence, which the government is seeking to create under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill currently going through Parliament, would form part of a crackdown on the number of migrants coming to the UK on small boats. Assisting illegal immigration to the UK is already a crime, but officials believe the offence would give police and other agencies more power to disrupt criminal gangs. Figures out last week showed more than 25,000 migrants have arrived in the UK via small boats in 2025 so far, a record for this point in the year.

The new UK-wide offence would criminalise the creation of material for publication online, which promotes or offers services that facilitate a breach of UK immigration law. This would include people using social media to advertise fake passports or visas, or the promise of illegal work opportunities in the UK, and as well as jail time could carry a large fine. According to analysis by the Home Office, around 80% of migrants arriving in the UK via a small boat have told officials they used social media during their journey, including to contact agents linked to people-smuggling gangs. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Selling the false promise of a safe journey to the UK and a life in this country - whether on or offline - simply to make money, is nothing short of immoral. "These criminals have no issue with leading migrants to life-threatening situations using brazen tactics on social media. We are determined to do everything we can to stop them." The National Crime Agency (NCA) already works with social media companies to target online posts promoting organised immigration crime, with more than 8,000 posts taken down in 2024. The NCA has taken action against a number of people-smuggling gangs where social media accounts have been used to promote crossings. A network operated by Preston-based smuggler Amanj Hasan Zada, who was jailed for 17 years, posted videos of migrants thanking him for helping him. NCA director general of operations Rob Jones said the proposed new offence would give them more options to target gangs and their business models. The Home Office said cases of Albanian people-smugglers, who have used social media platforms to promote £12,000 "package deals" to Britain including accommodation and employment upon arrival, would be within the scope of the proposed offence.

Policing minister Diana Johnson said the law would be drafted to enable "extra-territorial reach" which would mean that if an advert was produced abroad and the perpetrator then travelled to the UK then authorities in the UK "would be able to deal with them". She added: "We will be working, as we have done for many months now, with authorities in other countries, to hold these people to account, to close down these criminal gangs, to stop this business model." But the Conservatives said the plan was "too little, too late". Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: "Tinkering at the edges won't fix the problem." He added that the Conservative Deportation Bill would allow police and other agencies to "remove illegal arrivals immediately and remove them without delay".

Police pay rise of 4.2% 'barely treads water', staff body says

The home secretary said the increase, which is marginally above the current rate of inflation of 4.1% and is recommended by an independent review body, was "a clear signal of our gratitude".

The organisation, which represents more than 145,000 officers, said it would now ask its members whether they accept or reject the award.

The Police Federation said the pay rise was "worth the price of a Big Mac per shift" and would not stop "record levels of resignations, record mental health absences or the record number of assaults on officers".

A government-backed pay rise of 4.2% for police officers in England and Wales "barely treads water", the association representing front-line officers says.

The amount is also above the 2.8% proposed by ministers in December, for which police forces budgeted.

It will mean the starting salary for a police constable will go up by £1,256 to £31,164. The typical salary for a constable who has been in post for six years will be £50,256 and the average salary for a chief superintendent will be £98,500.

In addition, on-call, away from home and hardship allowances will be increased by £10 and London weighting will also rise by 4.2%.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Our brave police officers work day and night, often making enormous sacrifices to keep us safe."

She added: "We are committed to investing in the front line and supporting officers who work every day to tackle crime, keep our streets safe and protect our communities."

The pay award will be supported by £120 million from the Home Office to "help protect police force budgets", the government said.

The Police Federation said while it welcomed the government's decision to reject police chief constables' calls for a pay rise of 3.8%, the award was not enough.

Deputy national chair Brian Booth said: "After more than a decade of real terms pay cuts, this award does little to reverse the long-term decline in officers' living standards or address the crisis policing faces."

British Transport Police Federation chair Stuart Cowan said 4.2% "is simply nowhere near enough".

He said: "Officers who are battered and bruised and stretched to their physical and psychological limits are worth so much more than repeated paltry pay increases."

But the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) said the 4.2% increase was above inflation and "it is essential that we attract and retain the best people into policing through competitive pay".

NPCC lead for pay and conditions, Asst Ch Officer Philip Wells, said the pay award "is what we believe our officers deserve and reflects the nature of the work they are required to undertake to keep our streets safe".

He added it was "vitally important that additional costs for pay are fully funded if we are to maintain services and be able to continue to invest in areas such as neighbourhood policing and technology".

US officials open investigation into former special counsel Jack Smith

Jack Smith resigned as special counsel in January, weeks before Donald Trump took office.

The OSC does not have authority to lay criminal charges against Mr Smith, but it can initiate disciplinary action or refer its findings to the Department of Justice.

Mr Smith was appointed as special counsel in 2022 to investigate Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents and his alleged attempt to interfere in the 2020 election.

The Office of the Special Counsel (OSC) confirmed to the BBC that an investigation into Mr Smith is underway, but declined to add further details.

US federal officials say they have opened an investigation into former special counsel Jack Smith, who led two federal criminal cases against President Donald Trump before resigning from his post earlier this year.

As an independent federal agency, the OSC's main function is to investigate and address federal rules violations by members of the US civil service.

It operates separately from special counsel's offices under the Department of Justice - like the one formerly headed by Mr Smith - which, unlike the OSC, can lay federal criminal charges under the Department of Justice.

• Jack Smith resigns from Justice Department

• Triumph over legal cases seals Trump's comeback

US media reported on Saturday that the OSC is investigating Mr Smith for alleged violations of the Hatch Act, a law that prohibits political activities by government officials.

It comes after Tom Cotton, a Republican senator from Arkansas, called on the OSC to investigate Mr Smith for "unprecedented interference in the 2024 election."

Mr Smith was tapped by former Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022 to oversee federal investigations into Trump.

Both of the cases he investigated led to criminal charges being laid against the president, who pleaded not guilty and sought to cast the prosecutions as politically motivated.

The cases were later closed following Trump's presidential election win in November 2024, as Justice Department regulations forbid the prosecution of a sitting president.

In a post on X earlier this week, Cotton cast the investigations and charges as "nothing more than a tool for the Biden and Harris campaigns."

"It is very likely illegal campaign activity from a public office," Cotton wrote.

The BBC has asked Mr Smith's lawyer for comment on the OSC's investigation.

The OSC investigation comes after Trump fired its former head, Hampton Delligner, in February after Dellinger advocated for probationary federal employees laid off by the Trump administration to be reinstated.

A judge later ruled that Mr Dellinger's firing was unlawful, but a federal Circuit Court ruled that the Trump administration could replace Mr Dellinger while his legal battle against his removal makes its way through the courts.

Mr Dellinger abandoned the legal case in March, saying that he did not expect the Supreme Court to rule in his favour.

"Meanwhile, the harm to the agency and those who rely on it caused by a Special Counsel who is not independent could be immediate, grievous, and, I fear, uncorrectable," he warned in March.

Mr Smith is not the first former government official to be investigated under the Trump administration.

In May, the Secret Service launched an investigation into former FBI director James Comey after he shared then deleted a social media post of seashells that Republicans alleged was an incitement to violence against Trump. Comey, who was FBI director from 2013 to 2017 under Barack Obama, has denied the allegations.

Earlier this month, US media reported that Mr Comey and former CIA director John Brennan were under also investigation for allegedly making false statements to Congress as part of their probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Mr Brennan later told NBC that he believes the investigation into him is an "example of the continued politicisation of the intelligence community" under Trump.

MP investigated over late filing of overseas trip

MP Cat Eccles registered a trip that she made to Israel and Palestine in May after the 28-day deadline

Stourbridge MP Cat Eccles is being investigated by the parliamentary standards watchdog over claims that she was late declaring a trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The standards commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, announced that he was looking into a possible breach under rules about the declaration of an interest and the late registration of an interest.

In the most recent filings, Eccles listed a trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories, sponsored by Labour Friends of Israel, with flights, accommodation and meals totalling £2,600.

Ms Eccles has been contacted for a comment.

Murdered mum and children 'together and finally safe', family say

9 hours ago Share Save Catherine Doyle BBC News NI Reporting from Barefield, County Clare Share Save

PA Media Mourners were asked to wear bright and cheerful colours in their memory

A woman and her two children who were murdered last week in County Fermanagh were "taken from this world in a cruel and vicious manner", one of the victim's sisters has said. Veterinary surgeon Vanessa Whyte, 45, her 14-year-old son James Rutledge and 13-year-old daughter Sara Rutledge were shot dead in Maguiresbridge. Vanessa's sister, Regina Whyte, said there were "no words available to express how this has impacted" their family and friends as she delivered the eulogy at their funeral in Barefield, County Clare. They were buried together in nearby Templemaley Cemetery after the funeral Mass.

"We as a family have been robbed of both a relationship with our sister and a chance to see James and Sara grow up, and they have been robbed of the remainder of their lives," Ms Whyte said. She added that the family's "only comfort" is that Vanessa, James and Sara are "together and finally safe".

PA Media There was a guard of honour outside the church in Barefield for Vanessa Whyte and her children Sara and James Rutledge

The Bishop of Ferns, Ger Nash, spoke of how "heartbroken" the community is at the "tragic and unspeakable loss". Bishop Nash added that the condolence messages left by some women who do not know the family highlight "the vulnerability of women to pain inflicted by others", and that the messages are "signs of solidarity in the face of that pain". The congregation heard that Vanessa was "hardworking, honest and always ready to lend a helping hand" as a blue card and cattle tags, which help to identify animals, were placed beside her coffin to symbolise her career as a vet. A hurl was placed next to James' coffin as the pitch was his "second home" and he spent countless hours there with his friends and teammates. Mourners were told he played with pride, but that it "was the spirit he carried off it - loyalty, dependability and kindness" that defined him. A cat toy was placed in tribute to Sara's "love for animals" and her "gentle presence". She was remembered for her love of life's simple joys, including baking a cake and playing sport, as well as her "soft yet strong" spirit.

Handout Vanessa Whyte and her daughter Sara and son James were fatally shot at a house in Maguiresbridge last Wednesday

Mourners attending the funeral were asked to wear bright and cheerful colours in their memory. Pupils from Enniskillen Royal Grammar, where James and Sara went to school, were among those who came to pay their respects. Just before 11:30 local time, three black hearses returned to the church of the immaculate conception in Barefield, County Clare. Hundreds of people lined the route from St Mary's GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) in Maguiresbridge and St Patrick's Hurling club in Lisbellaw where the family were members. The purple and navy of Vanessa's childhood club, St Joseph's Doora Barefield, was represented in even bigger numbers. A representative from the Irish Government and the GAA president Jarlath Burns were also among those in attendance.

People gathered to pay their respects in Barefield where the funeral of Vanessa, James and Sara was held

Long delays for passengers at Port and LeShuttle

At the Port of Dover, travellers are being warned of a processing time of 90 minutes at the French border as they check in (stock image)

People leaving the UK via the Port of Dover or Eurotunnel Le Shuttle at Folkestone are facing delays as the summer holiday getaway continues.

At Dover, travellers are being warned of a 90-minute processing time at the French border during check-in.

Traffic is building in the town, with TAP procedures in place. The port has urged drivers to stick to the A2 and A20 routes to help ease congestion.

P&O Ferries and DFDS said all sailings are scheduled to depart on time, and passengers will be placed on the first available crossing once checked in.

When Ollie Pope found out he was going to lead England this week, he cheekily asked Ben Stokes if he could have the captain's suite in the team hotel. Stokes declined.

Pope probably knew he was on a hiding to nothing. This final Test against India at The Oval is the fifth time he has deputised as skipper, so Pope would also have been well aware of the biggest challenge that faces anyone who replaces Stokes as England captain - not having Stokes the all-rounder.

This has been a gruelling series, not helped by the condensed nature of the schedule. Bodies on both sides have been broken.

England have bowled almost 315 more overs than India in the series and paid through the loss of Stokes. India have had to deal with injury problems of their own - Rishabh Pant and Nitish Kumar Reddy have gone down, while Jasprit Bumrah has been limited to only three Tests.

We have entered the final act. England have recent form for run chases, but knocking off 374 on this Oval pitch would be truly remarkable.

Starting day four on 50-0 would have been a position of promise, but the loss of Zak Crawley from the penultimate delivery of day three tipped the balance further towards India ending with a 2-2 draw.

If they do, they will have won the two Tests Bumrah has missed. They have managed their resources better than England.

Lewis Hamilton said he was "just useless" after qualifying 12th for the Hungarian Grand Prix while his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc took pole position.

Hamilton failed to progress beyond the second qualifying session after struggling for pace compared to Leclerc all weekend.

Leclerc took Ferrari's first grand prix pole position of the year, although Hamilton won the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race from pole at the second event of the season.

A downcast Hamilton said: "I drove terribly. It is what it is."

He added: "I'm just useless," and said his lack of pace was "nothing to do with the car".

In Hungary, Hamilton was 0.247 seconds slower than Leclerc in the second part of qualifying, in which he was knocked out and the Monegasque was sixth fastest.

Hamilton is 12-5 down to Leclerc on their qualifying head-to-head this year, at an average pace difference of 0.146secs.

His form on Saturdays in 2025 continues the struggles in qualifying Hamilton had against George Russell in his final year at Mercedes last season.

Even so, his result in Hungary bucks a trend in which he has generally been much closer to Leclerc since the seventh race of the season.

Belgium last weekend, in which he was knocked out in the first session in qualifying for both the sprint and the grand prix after making mistakes, had been an exception to that run.

Although clearly frustrated by his own performance, Hamilton congratulated Leclerc on his pole.

"It's amazing for the team that the car is capable of being on pole," the seven-time champion said, "so big congrats to Charles."

Leclerc came into the weekend talking about how he had never gelled with the Hungaroring during his career, but he ends Saturday with arguably the most surprising and unexpected pole position of the year.

Leclerc had been third fastest behind the McLarens in all three practice sessions, but the world champions appeared out of reach.

However, a change in wind direction between the second and final parts of qualifying threw McLaren off their game and opened the door for Leclerc, who beat championship leader Oscar Piastri to pole with Lando Norris third.

Leclerc said he "didn't understand" because the car felt bad throughout qualifying. But he and the McLaren drivers put the shift in competitiveness down to a change in weather conditions, when not only did the wind change direction by 180 degrees, but the strength of the wind, the temperature and humidity level all changed.

"In Q3, the conditions changed for everybody," Leclerc said. "I basically just did a clean lap, which was a really good lap because those conditions were really difficult to get everything right, and I was really happy about the lap.

"It is probably the most surprising pole position I have ever done, so I'm very happy."

Leclerc said that revisions to the car at the last race in Belgium had helped his confidence when pushing to the limit over one qualifying lap.

Ferrari introduced a new rear suspension which in addition to being aimed at allowing them to run the car lower without risking damaging the floor to the extent that car failed its post-race legality tests was also intended to improve driveability when combined with a new floor introduced three races ago in Austria.

Leclerc said: "The upgrade in Spa definitely helped me to extract a little bit more.

"Before Spa, I had to set up the car in a very, very extreme way early on in the season to try and extract something out of this car in qualifying.

"It was making the car very, very unpredictable and very difficult whenever you go for the 0.1-0.15secs in Q3. It was extremely difficult to get it right. And if you just overstepped a little bit the limits of that previous car, then you will pay the price a lot.

"Whereas with this car, you can play a little bit more with the limits, and if you go over the limits a little bit, you just don't lose as much. So the car is more predictable, which is a good thing."

Long before the British and Irish Lions' searing experience in Sydney had concluded - a night of rugby drama, biblical weather, horrible injury and delays because of lightning warnings in the distance - a statistic was passed around the stadium concerning the gigantic Will Skelton.

The lock, who is about the size of one normal human being standing on the shoulders of another, was a colossal presence in Australia's victory, just as he was in the time he spent on the field in the second Test having not been passed to fit to play in the series opener.

The Lions beat Australia 39-22 in the time Skelton was not on the pitch. With Skelton on the field, the Wallabies won 38-24.

Can one man make such an enormous difference? When it is Skelton, unquestionably yes.

The Lions were fortunate that he was nowhere to be seen when they won in Brisbane and that he went off early in the second half in Melbourne. In Sydney, he was a huge influence, along with Taniela Tupou and Dylan Pietsch, two players who Schmidt only called on for this Test, when the series was already over.

At the end, there was to be no 3-0, no whitewash, no title of greatest-ever Lions, the title they had talked about and felt they were pursuing on Saturday.

There was a trophy and silver ticker tape and a lap of honour. There were words of triumph from Dan Sheehan and Maro Itoje that sounded a little forced. On a night when the heavens opened, the only devils out there were the ones in gold.

And so, it is done. A 36-day blur in Australia. Nine games, eight wins and one loss. From Dublin to Perth to Brisbane, from Sydney to Canberra and from Adelaide to Melbourne these Lions will have travelled more than 25,000 miles on a dozen different aircrafts by the time they get home.

Not exactly the boys of 1888, those 22 Lions pioneers who spent eight months gadding about New Zealand and Australia playing 35 games, but a fair old trip none the less.

Zharnel Hughes and Amy Hunt claimed the 100m titles at the UK Athletics Championships as pole vaulter Molly Caudery also starred on day one in Birmingham.

World bronze medallist Hughes clocked a wind-assisted 9.94 seconds to cross the line ahead of Jeremiah Azu (9.97) and Louie Hinchliffe (10.01) and secure his place on the Great Britain team at September's World Championships in Tokyo.

Rising star Hunt, 23, also secured qualification by dominating the women's final in a personal best 11.02 after defending champion Daryll Neita was disqualified for a false start.

Athletes must achieve a top-two finish in their events and have met the World Athletics entry standard to be assured of a place in the squad, which will be announced on 27 August.

Distance runner Hannah Nuttall and discus thrower Lawrence Okoye were among those to also triumph on Saturday and earn selection.

There are 26 gold medals to be won on the final day of action at Alexander Stadium.

Russell Martin has managed just 270 minutes of football as Rangers head coach, and already he has left his players without a name.

After the Ibrox side's 1-1 draw at Motherwell in their opening Scottish Premiership fixture, Martin said his players were "lucky to get a point".

An "extremely disappointed and hurt" Ibrox head coach said the impressive Fir Park side were "braver" and "more aggressive" than his team.

He lambasted "two men on the pitch who want to do what they want to do" and said some of his players "have to drop their ego".

"The default is to revert to type," he added. "It's not really tactical, it's a mentality problem."

It is the third straight season in which Rangers have failed to win their opening league match. But the first time Martin has publicly unloaded on his players.

Three more English players are within six shots of the lead heading into the final round.

Georgia Hall, the 2018 Women's Open champion, was another player to fly up the leaderboard thanks to a fast start.

Like Hull, Hall dropped her first shot of the day at the 14th and followed that up with another bogey at the 15th as she carded a four-under 68.

"Obviously I'm very happy with my round, but I think I let some go at the end," she said.

"I feel like it could be a bit better. I think if I can get started tomorrow like I did today, then we'll see what happens and see where I am."

Lottie Woad and Mimi Rhodes are both three under for the championship and just outside the top 10 following rounds of 71 and 70 respectively.

While many prospered in the Saturday sunshine, the challenge of world number one Nelly Korda faded with a two-over round of 74, which left the American level par for the tournament.

Josh Tongue takes five wickets as India are bowled out for 396 in their second innings, setting England 374 to win, with the home side losing Zak Crawley with the final ball on day three as they closed on 50-1 at The Oval, needing 324 runs to win the fifth and final Test.

MATCH REPORT: Crawley falls late as India take upper hand

Available to UK users only.

BBC launches probe into Strictly 'drug use' - report

The BBC said it had "clear protocols and policies in place" for dealing with any serious complaints raised with it.

It added that the corporation had hired law firm Pinsent Masons to lead the probe.

The Sun on Sunday claimed that the cocaine use by the stars - who have not been named - was widely talked about on the show.

The BBC has launched an investigation into alleged drug use by two Strictly Come Dancing stars, it has been reported.

According to the newspaper, the claims of alleged drug use were made in a legal submission to the BBC in March by law firm Russells on behalf of a former celebrity contestant.

The Sun claims others had also reported allegations of drug taking on the show to the BBC.

In a statement on Saturday night, a BBC spokesperson added: "We would always encourage people to speak to us if they have concerns.

"It would not be appropriate for us to comment further."

It is understood that it is not unusual for the corporation to appoint external law firms to help it deliver BBC-led investigations. In these cases, they would report back to an internal team.

Strictly, which has been airing since 2004, has faced multiple controversies over the past year relating to the behaviour of some of its professional dancers and celebrity guests.

Professional dancers Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima left the show last year following allegations about their behaviour towards their dance partners.

The BBC announced new welfare measures for Strictly last July. These include having chaperones in all rehearsal rooms, adding two new welfare producers and providing additional training for the professional dancers, production team and crew.

In January, Welsh opera singer Wynne Evans, who had been a celebrity dancer in last year's series, made what he described as an "inappropriate and unacceptable" comment during the Strictly live tour launch.

He took time off from his BBC Radio Wales daytime show after the incident, and the BBC said in May that he will not be returning to it.

EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick was suspended by the BBC last month after The Sun reported that he used a slur against people with disabilities while backstage during Strictly rehearsals in November. Borthwick apologised and the BBC said his language was "entirely unacceptable".

Jeremy Corbyn's new party needs a name and it's trickier than you might think

26 minutes ago Share Save Sam Francis Political reporter Share Save

Watch: Jeremy Corbyn asks for naming ideas for new party

The first thing anybody wants to know when a new political party is launched is what it's going to be called. But Jeremy Corbyn has decided to do things differently. The former Labour leader claims more than 600,000 people have registered as supporters for the new left-wing party he is setting up with fellow independent and ex-Labour MP Zarah Sultana. It is, so far, a party without a name. Initial reports that it was going to be called Your Party - because that's what the sign-up website is called - were quickly shot down by Sultana. She has said she thinks The Left or the Left Party would be a good title for the new venture. But the pair have said they want supporters to come up with a name, as part of their debate on what the new party will stand for. They will not be able to put forward candidates for election until they have registered a name with the Electoral Commission, which has strict rules about not copying other parties' names or sounding too much like them. But, apart from that, supporters have a blank canvas. "The name should sum up in one simple phrase the pure essence of what the party is all about," says Sheffield University's Prof Matthew Flinders. The time is also ripe for a political party named for the modern world, he says. Prof Flinders argues the mainstream parties' brands were forged in different times and "most young people don't really understand what Labour means, or Conservative". "The especially don't know what Liberal Democrat means." Whereas parties were once sustained by local branch or social meetings that has "eroded in a digital age, making the relationships thinner and putting more pressure on name and brand recognition to resonate with voters", Prof Flinders says. In the commercial world, brand names are everything. "There's a lot of power in a name and if you can clearly convey your point of view and use those words effectively it does a lot of work," says Laura Rogers, an executive creative director at advertising agency AMV BBDO, which counts retailer Currys and charity the RSPCA among its clients. The sweet spot, she argues, is something that works well for sharing online and sells well as "merch". Get the wrong name and you risk ridicule. Just ask the Post Office, which in 2001 wasted £2m to rebrand as Consignia, only to reverse course after the baffling name became a laughing stock.

A new political party must also be alive to the risks of social media that loves to turn everything into punchlines. "Make sure the first three letters don't spell a bad word," warns journalist Ash Sarkar of the left-wing media site Novara Media. "Like the word assembly can very easily be changed to 'ass'." While this may seem flippant ,"People experience and understand politics through the content they share online", Sarkar says. Allowing the general public to name a party would have been a disaster, leading to "Party McPartyface" says Sarkar - referencing the time Boaty McBoatface won a public poll to name a £200m polar research ship. Dominic Bailey, co-founder of branding and design agency Baxter and Bailey, thinks Corbyn's decision to ask supporters for names is a clever stunt that has created buzz and a sense of ownership for those signing up. "It also really fits with his brand to be social and democratic with the choice of name," Bailey says. "But being democratic in naming and design doesn't make a whole lot of sense," he warns.

Getty Images Zarah Sultana is closely involved in the new party

Political history is littered with cautionary tales for new parties trying to make a name for themselves. The Electoral Commission website shows a new party is registered almost every week in the UK, and most fade without making an impact at a national level. Even when a party launches with 11 MPs and a national profile they can collapse without ever really defining themselves - like The Independent Group (TIG), which launched at the height of the Brexit deadlock in 2019 as an avowedly centrist, pro–European Union political party. The party only lasted ten months but changed its name twice, first to Change UK and then to The Independent Group for Change after petitions website Change.org threatened to sue over the name. Heidi Allen, the ex-Tory MP who was the first leader of Change UK, recalls her party became "lost in admin", sapping the fledgling movement of oxygen. Choosing a name that speaks to your message and is not already taken by another political group of business is "trickier than you think", says Allen.

Getty Images Heidi Allen was leader of Change UK, formerly the Independent Group

Pamela Fitzpatrick, who runs the Peace and Justice Project with Corbyn, registered a party last month named "Arise" - a name drawn from one of Corbyn's favourite poems. But political strategist and pollster Chris Bruni‑Lowe, who has written a book on the history of politic slogans, would advise against using Arise as the new party's name. "Vague or overly poetic names will underperform, especially if the party is meant to be a corrective force," he says. Researching his book, Bruni-Lowe says he found "voters don't reward wordplay - they reward clarity and conviction". A name must also be "clear" rather than "clever", he says. And the most effective political brands "offer a vision or mission, not just an organisational label" and use "the electorate's own language and frustrations".

Corbyn has insisted the final decision will only come after "all the responses" are in. The plan is to settle on a name at the party's founding conference, in the autumn. But the discussions around the name are just a distraction, says Sarkar. Westminster tends to "hyper-fixate on things that don't really matter", she argues. "It's not going to live or die based on a name," insists Sarkar. "It will live or die based on its political strategy." "The fact that 600,000 people have signed up to the new Corbyn project with no name is an answer to the question on how much the name matters," she adds. In a message to supporters on Friday, the party with no name said: "Make no mistake: whatever the name, it is always going to be your party."

Harry Hill says his stepfather's death made him pursue comedy career

30 minutes ago Share Save Steven McIntosh Entertainment reporter Share Save

BBC Hill trained and worked as a doctor before pivoting to comedy in the early 1990s

Harry Hill says his stepfather's death at a young age prompted him to leave medicine to pursue a career in entertainment

Hill had qualified as a doctor but felt unsuited to a career in medicine, and pivoted to comedy in the early 1990s

As a doctor, Hill recalled breaking tragic news to a patient and feeling "completely out of my depth"

He later found success with his series TV Burp, but said he doesn't miss the stress of writing new episodes every week

Comedian Harry Hill has said his stepfather's death at a young age was what inspired him to quit his job in medicine and pursue a career in entertainment. The 60-year-old, best known for shows such as Harry Hill's TV Burp and You've Been Framed, studied at St George's Medical School and worked as a doctor before pivoting to comedy in the early 1990s. He told BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs: "It had been a long time coming, and then my stepfather died of cancer. "And I thought, here's a man who's worked all his life. And they [my stepfather and mother] had always talked about what they were going to do in retirement. And how old was he? Maybe 54. And I thought, I don't want that to be me."

"The other part of it," Hill laughed, "is I think if I'd said to him, 'I'm giving up to be a comedian', he would have been quite disapproving. "So it probably kind of set me free a little bit from that. But really, I was kind of at the end of my tether with [medicine]." Hill qualified as a doctor in 1988, and began his medical career working in orthopaedics. But, he explained, he was not passionate about the job and felt he did not have the right temperament. "I think it's difficult even if your heart's in it," he told presenter Lauren Laverne. "In the first six months, I had to break the news to this bloke whose wife had died in this operation, unexpectedly, and they had young children, and I was completely out of my depth. "I told him, he started crying, and then I started crying, and I thought, this isn't good. I mean, I certainly wasn't a very emotional [person]. Actually what it makes you do is bottle up your emotions." Asked how long he continued bottling his emotions for, Hill replied: "Until I had kids, I think. There's something about having kids that uncorks you. "I wasn't a bad doctor," he reflected. "If I'd stuck at it, I probably would have ended up as a GP."

Getty Images Hill (pictured with Simon Cowell in 2014) said he came to realise his X Factor musical was a "bad idea"

After having doubts about his suitability, Hill had a discussion with his consultant about his career, before telling his mother he was going to have a year off to try comedy. When leaving his job, Hill said: "I remember getting in the car, and this sounds impossible, driving out of the hospital car park, I turned on the radio, and the tune that came on was Eric Burdon and the Animals, with We Gotta Get Out of This Place. "I remember driving away, weight lifted, and I thought, wow, this is really exciting, and it was, and terrifying in equal measure."

Hill explained his stepfather, Tony, had met his mother in an amateur dramatics group, and often wrote pantomimes and starred in them as the dame. "He inherited four kids when he married my mum," Hill explained. "And I didn't think it at the time, but that's quite a guy to take that on." At the time, Hill said, it was unusual among his friends that his parents had divorced. "People didn't do it," he recalled. "Everyone's parents are divorced now, but back then, people just stuck it out."

'Stress' of writing TV Burp

Hill has presented a variety of TV programmes since leaving medicine, including Harry Hill's Tea Time, Harry Hill's Alien Fun Capsule, Harry Hill's World of TV and a revival of Stars in Their Eyes. Since 2019, he has hosted the Great British Bake Off children's spin-off, Junior Bake Off, on Channel 4. But his best known programme was Harry Hill's TV Burp, a satirical review of the previous week's television. It ran on ITV for 11 series, airing its final episode in 2012. Hill has previously indicated he would not revive TV Burp because of the intensive workload, a position he reiterated to Laverne. "I made a lot of TV shows, and most of them have been a lot less successful than TV Burp, but I don't look back at those years particularly fondly because of that stress," he said. "I would start the week with no show, knowing that on Saturday morning I'd have to sit down and write a show. We'd work one week in advance, off preview tapes, so I'd sit down with a blank page on a Saturday, and at the end of that day I'd have to email it to the producer." While the episode was being pulled together, Hill said he and his team "would watch TV all day long, there were no shortcuts, you did actually have to watch the full two-and-a-half hours of Emmerdale". "The best day was the recording day," he said, "but if you ask my wife, every time I came back from a recording, I'd go upstairs, she'd be in bed, and I'd say 'I've got to get out of this'. It was bad. "But then I'd watch it on the Saturday and think it was great, I did really enjoy watching it." Hill also co-wrote 2021's Tony! (A Tony Blair Rock Opera), and the X Factor musical I Can't Sing, which closed in 2014 after six weeks at the London Palladium. Reflecting on its failure, Hill said: "It became clear to me, that people who like the X Factor don't really go to musicals, and people who go to musicals don't really like the X Factor. It was just a really bad idea." But he added: "You can't be heartbroken, you'd be a complete baby if you got upset about a professional failure." Desert Island Discs is broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 10:00 BST on Sunday, and is then available on BBC Sounds.

Criminals cash in on TikTok Labubu trend with dangerous fakes

53 minutes ago Share Save Will Fyfe & Angharad Thomas BBC News Share Save

Born a monster, the elf-like creature from Chinese toy maker Pop Mart is now a viral purchase

At an anonymous industrial estate on the outskirts of London, a queue of police vans and empty lorries block the usual flow of lunchtime traffic. They are here to seize fake Labubu dolls. Thousands of them. After weeks of work, intelligence that started at a corner shop in south Wales has led Trading Standards officers to a labyrinth of rooms hidden above this retail outlet. Inside, they estimate millions of pounds worth of fake products are piled up, floor to ceiling, but what interests them most are the fluffy, mischievous-looking dolls at the centre of a global TikTok craze.

According to Forbes, the popularity of Labubu dolls helped parent company Pop Mart more than double its total revenue to £1.33bn ($1.81bn) last year. They are wanted by children and adults alike, with some telling us they queued for hours or travelled across the country just to secure an authentic one.

However, messages seen by BBC News also suggest scalpers may be buying hundreds of genuine products at a time to resell them at a profit, with authorities reporting a "flood" of counterfeits entering the market. Border Force has seized hundreds of thousands from UK ports in the past few months, meanwhile officers at the London industrial estate believe the dolls grinning up at them from the crates hide a darker secret. "The head comes off. The feet will pull off," explained Rhys Harries from Trading Standards, as one literally falls apart in his hands.

Six-year-old Harri's mum says the fakes she bought him began to fall apart within hours

Mr Harries first saw dolls like this after raiding a corner shop almost 200 miles away in Swansea, before tracing them back here. "I've found them in the bags where their eyes are coming off, their hands will come off." Mr Harries' team use a plastic tube, shaped like a child's throat, to measure how dangerous objects are - if it fits, it is a choking hazard. "These [parts] will all get stuck and then potentially cause choking," he said.

Officers say thousands of fake Labubu dolls seized from a London industrial estate were destined for customers across the UK

Mum-of-one Jade said she "100%" agreed the fakes were a choking hazard after some fell apart shortly after giving them to her son. The 34-year-old from Caerphilly knew she had bought fakes - sometimes nicknamed Lafufus - for her son Harri's sixth birthday as she could not justify the cost of the authentic dolls. But she felt "obliged to get him one" after all his friends got their own and found knock-offs for just over £10, compared to some genuine ones costing £80. However, just a few hours into Harri's birthday, Jade said the keyring came off, followed by part of one of the feet a few days later. When Harri was swinging his new toy the hook came off the keyring, only for Jade to spot it in his mouth. She said "luckily" her son was old enough to tell her about his toy falling apart, but she warned things could be different for younger children.

Swansea Trading Standards Officers say a number of fakes seized had eyes that had not been glued in

According to the Intellectual Property Office, the rush by criminals to get fakes to market often results in dangerous materials being used. "Counterfeiting is the second largest source of criminal income worldwide, second only to drug trafficking," said Kate Caffery, deputy director of intelligence and law enforcement. "It's in the interests of these criminal organisations to respond quickly to trends to maximise it, to get on the back of it and make the most money that they possibly can. "So that's why we see it happening so quickly and a complete disregard for safety concerns."

Intellectual Property Office Kate Caffery, from the Intellectual Property Office, says counterfeiting is the second highest earner for criminal networks, outside drug trafficking.

Ms Caffery dismissed claims these fakes were made in the same factories or using the same materials as the real thing as "absolutely not true", adding that they "could be made from anything". These range from the inferior to the dangerous, including toxic plastics, chemicals, and small parts that aren't properly attached "that can then pose a chocking hazard". Although fake Labubus are still relatively new to the market, investigators know from previous cases involving counterfeit toys that they can be made with banned chemicals, including some linked to cancers. Authorities say most counterfeit products, including Labubus, can be traced to China, Hong Kong or Turkey and people are being warned to look out for "too good to be true" pricing or packaging that feels cheap and flimsy.

Meg Goldberger bought her Labubus from a reseller who had been ordering hundreds at a time from Pop Mart

TikToker Meg Goldberger, 27, is no stranger to collecting in a market filled with fakes. She has about 250 Jellycat plush toys, alongside her new collection of 12 Labubu dolls. "The more people talked about it and the harder they became to get, the more I needed them. That's why I now have 12," she said. However, pretty early into her search, Ms Goldberger said she realised the odds were stacked against her in her hunt for the real thing.

Meg exchanged messages with a reseller who claimed they had been able to order hundreds of genuine Labubu dolls direct from Pop Mart

She said she spent about 12 hours over several days waiting for Pop Mart store's TikTok live video, where Labubus are released for sale at a set time, just like gig tickets. "It used to be they sold out within like a minute. It's now like literally two seconds. You can't get your hands on them," she said. Instead, she opted to find someone reselling them online, but also discovered why they may have been selling out so fast. When she asked an eBay reseller for proof the Big Into Energy Labubu series she was interested in was genuine, Ms Goldberger was sent "a screenshot of what could have been like almost 200 orders of Labubus". "These people will sit at home and somehow robots hack the websites and bulk buy them, which is why they go so quickly. Then they'll resell them."

How to spot a fake Labubu

President Donald Trump on Thursday reinstated the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools.

First instated in the 1950s to gauge young people's health and athleticism, the assessment included sit-ups, push-ups, pull-ups and a sit-and-reach test. It also featured a competitive component, recognising the best performers with the Presidential Fitness Award.

The test had been discontinued in 2012 and replaced with a fitness program during Barack Obama's term.

The BBC's Bernd Debusmann takes a look at the test's history and what Americans have to say about it.

Video by Alex Foster

Produced by Blanca Estrada and Madeline Gerber

United are waiting to decide their next move and there have been reports that the player would prefer to switch to Old Trafford.

United sources are adamant they could do a deal before selling players.

But it is accepted that there would have to be exits to ensure they remain compliant with the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.

And, if Sesko arrived, Hojlund would be marginalised.

If Hojlund was sold for £30m, it would effectively be a loss for United given the forward's 'book value' is £43m as he is two years into the five-year contract he signed.

United have spent almost £130m this summer on Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha.