The NHS avoided testing its staff for coronavirus en masse because it was afraid they would have to go off sick and leave hospitals without workers, scientists claim. In damning meetings with politicians, some of the country’s leading scientists this morning slammed Britain’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and said a refusal to prepare had … Read more
Most young siblings spend their summer holidays building dens together, or imaginary castles out of cardboard boxes. But playtime for Paul Walters and his sister Vicky, from Essex, was somewhat more dangerous – usually landing them in hospital. Those of a faint disposition may want to stop reading now. They’d often be found attempting to pull … Read more
The Queen was not told Gough Whitlam was about to be dismissed as Australian Prime Minister to protect her from a constitutional crisis. Governor-General Sir John Kerr sacked the Labor PM on November 11, 1975, after a protracted fight to pass the budget between him and Malcolm Fraser. In the leadup to his decision, Sir … Read more
Theresa May often liked to talk about ‘strong and stable’ leadership during her premiership. Well, her political currency certainly is, even though she has long since departed Downing Street. I can disclose that the former Prime Minister was paid a staggering £56,000 for a speech she gave online last month. The event was held by … Read more
From grannies who encouraged you to climb tall trees and mothers who let you roam unsupervised as long as you were home in time for tea, a captivating new book recalls the school summer holidays of yesteryear. Returning home from his Sheffield primary school one summer’s afternoon in 1966, eight-year-old John Mullan asked his mother … Read more
An influencer has set out to shatter the illusion of perfection often found on our social media feeds by sharing less than glamorous shots of herself next to her posed photographs. Rianne Meijer, 26, from Amsterdam, boasts a 648,000 following on Instagram but believes it is unfair to only show filtered and edited versions of herself … Read more
A mother-of-four who did not know she was pregnant has revealed she gave birth to a healthy baby girl on the toilet, while her husband was on the waiting list for a vasectomy. Grace, 32, and James Meachim, 34, from Littlehampton, West Sussex, were adamant they would only have three children until 7lbs 5.5oz Sienna … Read more
President Trump didn’t know Britain – one of America’s closest allies – was a nuclear power; thought it would be ‘cool’ to invade Venezuela, and thought Finland was in Russia, a new book says. The book, ‘The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir,’ was written by Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton, who left … Read more
Talk about perfect timing! Amateur wildlife photographers share snaps that didn’t quite go to plan – from a swearing squirrel to a VERY angry emu Wannabe wildlife photographers shared their worst snaps on a Facebook group Includes frog which sat in the way of the lens as snapper tried to capture blue jay Another image … Read more
Minister Grant Shapps says chief nurse Ruth May ‘will be back here again’ amid claims she was dropped from a coronavirus press conference after refusing to back Boris Johnson’s aide Dominic Cummings over alleged lockdown breaches’ May asked her views and blocked from appearing after declining to support aide Cummings admitted driving 260 miles from London … Read more