Author: Darren Smith

Ben Stokes has announced his retirement from international cricket, bringing the curtain down on one of the most celebrated careers in English cricket history, with the 35-year-old set to play his final Test at Trent Bridge. The announcement comes in the wake of a nightclub incident following England’s 115-run victory over New Zealand in the first Test at Lord’s, in which Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson broke the team’s curfew and became involved in a fracas with Saracens rugby player Totoa Auvaa. An England security officer was left needing stitches. The ECB launched an immediate investigation and Stokes was…

A major police investigation is underway after a 20-year-old man was stabbed in Manchester’s Northern Quarter in the early hours of Sunday morning, with Greater Manchester Police appealing for witnesses as no arrests have yet been made. Officers were called to Oldham Street at around 2.18am following reports of a stabbing. The victim was taken to hospital with injuries described as consistent with a stab wound, though Greater Manchester Police confirmed they are not believed to be life-threatening or life-changing. A large police cordon was established at the junction of Oldham Street and Thomas Street as emergency services worked at…

Eleven people have been killed after a light aircraft carrying a group on an introductory skydiving experience crashed near the city of Nancy in northeastern France at around midday on Saturday, in one of the country’s deadliest civilian aviation accidents in recent years. The plane, which took off from Nancy-Essey Airport in Tomblaine in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department, came down on a grassy area near Rue Salvador Allende, close to residential zones and a local cemetery. Local authorities and media reported eleven fatalities. Those on board were understood to be taking part in a baptême de parachutisme — an introductory parachuting…

An 11-year-old boy has been pulled alive from the rubble of a collapsed building in Venezuela days after twin earthquakes killed more than 1,400 people, as a British volunteer rescue team with specialist life-detection equipment remains stranded at Madrid airport, desperate to reach survivors before it is too late. Footage shared by Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez showed a large team of emergency workers carrying the boy down from a mountain of debris in Caraballeda, placing him on a stretcher as rescuers attended to him. “A short while ago, an 11-year-old boy was rescued alive in Caraballeda. In these hours,…

An NHS trust in London is allowing biological males who hold gender recognition certificates to use women-only wards and facilities, despite a landmark Supreme Court ruling that established the term “sex” in equality law refers to biological sex, the Daily Telegraph has revealed. West London NHS Trust, which runs mental health services across Ealing, Hounslow, and Hammersmith and Fulham — including women-only units at St Bernard’s Hospital — updated its transgender policy in April and instructed patients they can use single-sex facilities based on their “legal gender.” The policy explicitly states this can include those with a gender recognition certificate,…

The number of homes selling at auction in Sydney and Melbourne has fallen to levels not seen since the Covid pandemic, as sellers across Australia’s two biggest property markets rethink their plans amid persistently weak clearance rates and growing frustration over the Albanese government’s tax reforms. New data from property research firm Cotality shows Sydney recorded its weakest week of auction sales in more than six years last week, while Melbourne’s clearance rate dropped to its lowest point in almost five years. The capital city average clearance rate — the proportion of homes sold at auction compared to those listed…

A 20-year-old delivery driver has died after jumping into a rip current to rescue a father and son from drowning, with friends later discovering a heartbreaking note on his phone revealing his only wishes for 2026 were to save enough money to buy his father a minivan. Jin Xiaowu was walking along a riverbank in Guizhou, China, with his colleague Wang Fangyang when they heard cries for help from the water. A father and his son had accidentally stepped into deep water and been caught by a powerful current, leaving them fighting for their lives. Jin and his colleague immediately…

Iran has launched ballistic missiles and suicide drones at American military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, triggering air raid sirens across both Gulf states and raising fears that a fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran is collapsing into full-scale conflict. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps confirmed via Iran’s IRNA and Tasnim news agencies that its Navy and Air Force targeted the US Army at Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait and the US Fifth Naval Fleet at Port Salman in Manama, Bahrain. Kuwait’s armed forces said its air defence systems were actively intercepting the incoming threats, warning residents: “The…

Kuwait’s military has activated its air defence systems in response to what it described as “hostile missile and drone threats,” in a dramatic development that threatens to widen regional tensions amid the already volatile situation in the Gulf. The Kuwaiti Armed Forces General Headquarters announced the alert on its official X account, urging citizens and residents to adhere to safety instructions as the country’s defences engaged the incoming threats. No further details about the origin of the missiles and drones were immediately provided. The announcement comes as the region remains on a knife edge following the fragile US-Iran ceasefire agreement,…

Steve Clarke has stepped down as Scotland manager after his side crashed out of the World Cup 2026 at the group stage, bringing to an end a seven-year tenure the Scottish FA described as the most successful in the national team’s history. The Scottish FA confirmed Clarke’s departure this evening, with the 60-year-old addressing supporters directly in an open letter that paid tribute to his players above all else. “The most emotional part of this goodbye is for my players, without whom we wouldn’t have had any of the memories that we’ve accumulated from 2019 until now,” Clarke wrote. “They…