thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--How To Cope If You're Dealing With A Breakup And Social Distancing

LOADING ERROR LOADING
That’s how it happened for Scott, a writer in Austin, Texas: He and his on-and-off girlfriend of almost five years officially split up on Friday 13 March. A day later, he self-isolated.
The timing was purely coincidental, but the abruptness of it all made the experience so much worse.
“I can honestly say this is the most isolated I’ve ever felt,” said Scott, who, like others in this article, asked to use his first name only for privacy. “The weight of loneliness feels exponential: I am also carrying the sadness of the end of our relationship. This is the most difficult emotional and psychological challenge I’ve ever faced.”
Advertisement
He and his ex are texting, but rarely. He can tell it’s over for good.
Under normal circumstances ― say, ones that didn’t involve a global pandemic ― Scott said it would have been incredibly painful to envision a future without his ex. With the coronavirus, it’s hard to envision what the future looks like at all.
“That’s an anxiety we all share, but the breakup forces me to prepare and plan and think about a future I wasn’t expecting and didn’t want,” he said. “To come to terms with that and the future the pandemic has foisted on us, it feels impossible. It feels emotionally paralysing.”
Scott isn’t alone in going it alone after a breakup right now. Therapists we spoke to say they have many clients struggling to navigate the strange new world of social distancing while also disentangling from a relationship.
“In addition to weathering the pain of a breakup, you truly feel alone because of quarantine,” said Virginia Gilbert, a marriage and family therapist in Los Angeles. “Ordinarily you’d commiserate with friends, but everyone’s at home.”
Advertisement
For Leah, an IT project manager in Southern California, it was a triple whammy of big life changes: Her fiance left her a week before Los Angeles established stay-at-home orders across the city. She had just started a new job, too. (She was onsite for four days before having to work from home.)
“It’s been a major mind shift, having to be alone in a half-empty house with holes from where his stuff used to be and memories associated with the relationship,” she said. “Plus, to be honest, he also took all the video games, so I have nothing to do!”
“I joked to a friend that there are two things I need to help me recover from this breakup: a hug and a bartender. Unfortunately I don’t have access to either.” - Scott, a newly single writer in Austin, Texas
It’s not much better when you’re newly single and living with family, though. That’s what Jen Lee, a managing partner at a private equity firm in Washington, D.C., is currently doing.
“I have family in from out of town that hasn’t been able to go home due to travel restrictions. So I can’t even get a good cry in,” she said. “Can I cry myself to sleep in peace?! No, no I can’t.”
Advertisement
Lee’s current situation ― being surrounded by family ― could be a benefit for some, especially men, said Caroline Madden, a marriage and family therapist in Burbank, California. Of her clients who are struggling with a breakup amid the pandemic, her male clients are taking it particularly hard.
“In my opinion, breakups are more difficult for men during this time because they don’t have access to an emotional support system,” she told HuffPost. “Men usually rely on their female partners for their emotional support, so when their partner or spouse breaks up with them, it is an incredible loss that isn’t easily replaced.”
Madden said she’d normally tell her clients, both men and women, to take respite in their friendships: Go hit a bucket of balls on the golf course or take a spa day. She can’t advise that now.
“Because of social distancing, all you have to do is group video chat or games,” she said.
For his part, Scott, the aforementioned writer from Texas, said there’s nothing he’d love more right now than to hang out and commiserate with friends at a bar.
“I joked to a friend that there are two things I need to help me recover from this break-up: a hug and a bartender,” he said. “Unfortunately I don’t have access to either.”
Advertisement
Clearly, there’s a shortage of socialising options for the brokenhearted. But there are things you can do to stay healthy and put the focus on your well-being while quarantined. Below, therapists ― and our newly single sources ― offer breakup advice they’re learning on the fly.
First, acknowledge the pain.
As with any breakup, Gilbert said she recommends her clients practice mindful awareness under these admittedly rougher-than-usual circumstances.
“Observe what it’s like in the moment to feel un-partnered during a pandemic. Resisting those observations will actually make the breakup harder,” she said. “Observing the experience and practicing non-judgment will help you detach from emotional chaos so you can make thoughtful choices.”
How do you act “mindful” about your breakup, exactly?
“Take the example of stalking your ex on Instagram or Twitter. That’s compulsive and will just make you feel lonelier,” Gilbert said. “Instead, look for an alternative: Mindful choices for managing heartbreak include exercise, journaling, yoga, or therapy.”
Malte Mueller via Getty Images “It’s been a major mind shift, having to be alone in a half empty house with holes from where his stuff was,” Leah, a newly single IT manager, told us.
Advertisement
Use your time wisely. (No Instagram stalking!)
You have an excess of free time right now. As Gilbert mentioned, don’t use it to stay current on what your ex is up to on social media. (For starters, you already know they’re doing the exact same thing as everyone else: Staying at home, going on the occasional walk and maybe taking selfies in their new Etsy face mask. No need to see that.)
“My number one piece of advice is definitely to stop virtually stalking your ex, Madden said.
Instead of torturing yourself with your ex’s Instagram stories, Madden suggests some reading.
“Download and read some books on relationship dynamics,” Madden said. “Not ‘how to get the girl/guy’ type books but books that explore why relationships are good in the beginning but then you end up breaking up. I highly recommend ‘Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find—and Keep—Love’ by Amir Levine. It’s a book about how our attachment styles influence how we form relationships, for better or worse.”
Lean into your work and healthy activities as a distraction.
Instead of dwelling too much on the breakup, Lee said she’s leaning into her work life. Emails and jumping on Zoom calls are a welcome distraction right now, she said.
“That’s what’s allowing me to keep it all together right now — maintaining normalcy through running my business’ day-to-day operations,” she said.
If your work life is tenuous right now ― maybe you’ve been laid off or furloughed ― focus on the good in your life (your family and friends, for instance), and activities that put the focus on your well-being. “I’ve also started back my rigorous race training schedule with running,” Lee said. “It’s been helpful for me ― maintaining my fitness as a means of self-care and mental wellness.” (For tips and routines that can help you stay physically and mentally healthy during the coronavirus outbreak, head here.)
CSA Images via Getty Images Journaling is a great way to gauge how you're doing since the start of self-quarantine and your breakup, Gilbert said.
Journal to measure your growth. Scott, the writer from Austin, said one of the things he’s struggling with most is not having any way to gauge the progress he’s made in moving on from his ex. Usually, going out and being around old friends helps him measure his recovery, he said. “At least then, you can ask yourself: Are you feeling depressed around other people, or are you noticing yourself starting to smile again? Am I wholly uninterested in the women in the room, or does the one over there look interesting? Do I feel good about myself?” he said. “Without being around other people, I can’t tell. There are no measuring sticks for my recovery.” Gilbert understands that angst. But there’s not a total absence of ways to measure your growth post-split, the therapist said. “One way to do that during this pandemic is to keep a gratitude journal: Each day, write down 5-10 things you’re grateful for (a hot shower, food in the refrigerator) and reflect on those things,” she said. “After a while, if you do this practice consistently, you’ll notice that you’re able to more easily shift your focus from what you don’t have to the positive things you do have.” Gilbert also stressed that healing from a breakup doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t feel pain. Healing, she said, “means that you learn to stop reacting unskilfully to your problem narrative ― ‘I’ll be alone forever!’ ― and start focusing on positive thoughts.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Charles Ingram 'Floored' By ITV's 'Terrifyingly Accurate And Horribly Cringeworthy' Quiz Drama

HuffPost is part of Verizon Media .
Click ' I agree ' to allow Verizon Media and our partners to @ @ @ @ @ to access your device and use your data ( including location ) to understand your @ @ @ @ @ measure personalised ads .
We will also provide you with personalised ads on partner products @ @ @ @ @ we use your data in our Privacy Centre .
Once you confirm your privacy choices @ @ @ @ @ changes at any time by visiting your Privacy dashboard .
Click 'Learn more ' to @ @ @ @ @ Media and our partners collect and use data .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Charles Ingram has said he has been “floored” by the new ITV drama Quiz, which is based on his infamous appearance on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? in 2001.
The series recounts how he, his wife Diana and an accomplice, Tecwen Whittock, were accused of cheating their way to winning £1 million on the quiz show with an elaborate scheme involving coughing.
Advertisement
The story sparked a national scandal and saw the trio face trial for “procuring the execution of a valuable security by deception”, of which they were later found guilty.
While Charles and Diana have always maintained their innocence, he has been full of praise for Quiz, which is currently airing over three consecutive nights.
Charles Ingram on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? in 2001 Shutterstock
He gave the first episode a five-star review, posting from his account (which a rep confirmed to HuffPost UK was genuine): “WOW. The cast, the story, the scenes, simply brilliant. Terrifyingly accurate and oh yes, horribly cringeworthy. Floored by the pure talent on show tonight.
Advertisement
“Well done too to @ITV. Gutsy.”
#Quiz. WOW.
The cast, the story, the scenes, simply brilliant. Terrifyingly accurate and oh yes, horribly cringeworthy. Floored by the pure talent on show tonight.
Well done too to @ITV. Gutsy.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐#StayHomeSaveLives — Charles Ingram #FBPE #RejoinEU (@gallantfive) April 13, 2020
Charles later made a comparison between the case and Brexit, tweeting: “p.s., It really shouldn’t matter what you’re politics are re., #Quiz. Populists have carved out their chance to make #Brexit work and I hope for all our sakes they can at least match the challenges.”
p.s., It really shouldn’t matter what you’re politics are re., #Quiz. Populists have carved out their chance to make #Brexit work and I hope for all our sakes they can at least match the challenges. 🤔 — Charles Ingram #FBPE #RejoinEU (@gallantfive) April 15, 2020
Charles and Diana are portrayed by former Spooks star Matthew MacFadyen and Fleabag’s Sian Clifford in Quiz, and the former army major admitted the actor had captured him brilliantly.
He tweeted: “Matthew is so damn good-looking I can’t sleep. Trying to kid myself I looked like that 19 years ago but failing miserably. Diana called me ‘Matthew’ as I was brushing my teeth.”
Advertisement
👇 Totally. Matthew is so damn good-looking I can’t sleep. Trying to kid myself I looked like that 19 years ago but failing miserably. Diana called me ‘Matthew’ as I was brushing my teeth. 😧 #Quiz @ITV https://t.co/HuTJoM1vac — Charles Ingram #FBPE #RejoinEU (@gallantfive) April 14, 2020
As well as the drama’s performances, Charles admitted he had been astounded by some of the smaller details in the show, including how producers had used a similar car and bed to the ones he and Diana once owned.
“I loved that old Honda. Loaded and such a smooth ride. The attention to detail is unnerving,” he tweeted.
I loved that old Honda. Loaded and such a smooth ride. The attention to detail is unnerving. #Quiz @ITV — Charles Ingram #FBPE #RejoinEU (@gallantfive) April 14, 2020
He also wrote: “That’s our BED! How the heck did they find our bed?”
That’s our BED! How the heck did they find our bed? #Quiz @ITV — Charles Ingram #FBPE #RejoinEU (@gallantfive) April 13, 2020
Advertisement
The Ingrams had been constantly consulted about Quiz and also met the actors on set during filming.
Writer James Graham had previously turned the story into a West End stage play in 2017, and approached the couple after he signed up to adapt it into a TV drama for ITV.
Charles and Diana Ingram are played by Matthew MacFadyen and Sian Clifford in Quiz Matt Frost/ITV
Revealing he met people on “both sides of the debate” including ITV and Celador execs, James said of the Ingrams: “They both came to see the stage play and talked to me then. And we’ve been in contact ever since all the way through developing and producing the TV drama, including them visiting the actors on set one day when we were filming. So that has been a constant journey.
“The Ingrams were understandably maybe a little bit wary at first and not hugely enthusiastic about dredging up, essentially, a 15 year old story just as they try to maintain as normal a life as is possible.
“However… because they understood we would be asking the question that possibly it didn’t play out exactly as people think, they were happy to give their point of view.”
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Watch: Here’s The Latest On Coronavirus

Watch: Here’s The Latest On Coronavirus

Watch: Here’s The Latest On Coronavirus
US President Trump halted funding for the World Health Organisation saying he wants to investigate their handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Canada has extended its lockdown with prime minister Justin Trudeau encouraging people to be disciplined. New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Arden and cabinet ministers will take a 20% pay cut in a move of solidarity with the people of New Zealand affected by coronavirus. And toy maker LEGO has modified their machines to manufacture personal protective equipment for frontlines workers.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--McDonald's Apologises For China Restaurant's Sign Banning Black People

LOADING ERROR LOADING
McDonald’s has apologised after video shared online showed signage at a restaurant in China that said Black people were barred from entering.
“We’ve been informed that from now on black people are not allowed to enter the restaurant,” the laminated sign said, as seen in footage circulated on social media.
Advertisement
In a statement provided to HuffPost, a spokesperson for McDonald’s Corp. said the sign was “not representative of our inclusive values.”
“Immediately upon learning of an unauthorised communication to our guests at a restaurant in Guangzhou, we immediately removed the communication and temporarily closed the restaurant,” the statement said.
McDonald’s said the closure would be used to “further educate managers and employees on our values, which includes serving all members of the communities in which we operate.”
Again, for those who still doubt that Black people and particularly #AfricansinChina are being targeted we feel it is our duty to share this. A sign at a @McDonalds restaurant seems to make this perfectly clear pic.twitter.com/FaveKrdQHi — Black Livity China (@BlackLivityCN) April 11, 2020
Advertisement
Guangzhou, an industrial city in China’s southern Guangdong province, is host to China’s biggest African community and serves as a hub for African traders and businesspeople. For weeks, tensions between Africans and locals in the city have been escalating.
Hundreds of Africans in the city have been evicted from their homes or hotels and turned away from accommodations, local African residents told BBC and CNN. China’s warnings about imported coronavirus cases stoking the country’s possible second wave of infections has inflamed anti-foreigner sentiments in the city. Many African community members said they were discriminated against despite having no recent travel history or contact with known coronavirus cases.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--The UK Is Aiming For 100,000 Coronavirus Tests A Day By April 30. It's Not Even A Fifth Of The Way T

The UK Is Aiming For 100,000 Coronavirus Tests A Day By April 30. It's Not Even A Fifth Of The Way There

Get the latest on coronavirus. Sign up to the Daily Brief for news, explainers, how-tos, opinion and more
At the start of April the government made it clear that testing would be a key weapon in the country’s arsenal against coronavirus.
Advertisement
Testing would help restore some of the uncertainty stolen by the virus, health secretary Matt Hancock reassured Britons in a statement. “It’s a big part of how we’re going to defeat this disease,” he wrote.
But with just three days to go until the end of the month, the country is less than halfway to completing this mission.
On Sunday, just over 37,000 coronavirus tests were carried out, health secretary Matt Hancock said at Monday’s press conference.
Advertisement
Nonetheless, the government has insisted it’s “on track” to meet its target, with health minister Edward Argar telling the public to expect “very dramatic increases” in daily tests.
So what do ministers expect to change before the deadline? Here’s what you need to know.
What did the government actually promise?
Health secretary Matt Hancock at Downing Street's daily coronavirus conference ASSOCIATED PRESS
When it comes to the government’s aims on coronavirus testing, it’s fair to say it has put out some mixed messages in recent weeks.
At different moments, ministers have variously said that the UK target was for 25,000, 100,000 and 250,000 Covid-19 tests a day.
But the main target the government has set for itself is for the UK to carry out 100,000 daily tests by the end of April.
Advertisement
In a statement on April 2, Hancock said this would be achieved by increasing testing across five key pillars:
NHS swab testing for patients and critical key workers
Commercial swab testing for critical key workers at testing sites across the UK
Antibody tests to determine if people are immune to the virus
Population surveillance testing – this involves Public Health England testing people’s blood to work out what percentage of the population has already had the virus
British life sciences companies turning their resources to mass testing
“These five pillars represent a comprehensive strategy to put in place the testing that is mission-critical as we fight this battle against Covid-19,” Hancock said.
While it is not exactly clear how testing in each of these pillars will grow in order to reach the 100,000 mark, we do know that the government wants to scale up NHS swab testing (pillar one) from 10,000 tests a day to 25,000 by the end of April.
We also know that the government has had a serious issue finding reliable anti-body tests (pillar three). These tests determine whether someone has already had the virus by looking for signs of immunity.
Advertisement
Public Health England’s Professor John Newton told MPs on April 8 that the government did not expect to be doing antibody tests at all by the end of the month.
“We’re not relying on antibody tests to make up that target,” he said, according to the Guardian.
“We were optimistic that a number of companies have been offering us these quick antibody tests and we were hoping they would be fit for purpose. They all work to some extent, but are not good enough to rely on.”
How many tests is the UK carrying out at the moment?
On Sunday, the UK carried out 37,024 coronavirus tests, Hancock confirmed during the daily Downing Street press conference on Monday.
The figure represents a significant day-on-day jump in tests, increasing by around 8,000 from Saturday.
But it also means that, with just three days to go until the deadline – and four days to go until the result of the testing campaign is revealed – the government is well under halfway to reaching its 100k target.
Advertisement
To meet its aim, the UK needs to be carrying out an extra 63,000 tests a day by Thursday.
The rise in daily tests seen on Sunday comes after the government announced last week essential workers and their households would be able to book Covid-19 tests online.
The move was made to ensure symptomatic key workers – or those with symptomatic family members – were not stuck at home in self-isolation and away from work when they didn’t have Covid-19.
On Monday, there were no more coronavirus home testing kits available to order just 70 minutes after they first went online.
So, how does the government plan to make up the difference?
Samples are tested for respiratory viruses at a pathology lab WPA Pool via Getty Images
Despite the numbers, the government has insisted it is on track to meet its target – and has placed a lot of emphasis on the ability of its three “Lighthouse Labs” to increase the number of tests it’s able to carry out.
Advertisement
Ministers hope that each of these newly-created coronavirus “mega-labs” – located in Milton Keynes, Glasgow and Cheshire – will be able to test thousands of patient samples a day as they each scale up capacity.
The labs have been set up to test samples from drive-through testing sites, with plans to build 50 of these across the UK. As of Monday, 30 of the drive-through sites were in operation.
Meanwhile, the government announced on Sunday that the Armed Forces would operate mobile Covid-19 testing sites, travelling to frontline workers in places such as care homes, fire stations and prisons. There are currently 90.
On Monday, health minister Edward Argar told LBC radio that the target to complete 100,000 tests a day “is still very much there”.
“It is a government target and we are massively ramping up the efforts to do this,” he said.
“There is a few days to go but we are confident that we are on target for that, not least with the expansion last week with who is eligible to actually access those tests now.
Advertisement
“It is huge numbers of people and we have seen how many have tried to access those tests in the past few days. I expect we will see exponential increases every day up to that target being met.”
However, Downing Street said it will be “difficult to know” if the government has hit its target on Friday.
Under the current system, the government reveals the number of coronavirus tests carried out the day before, suggesting the number of tests carried out on April 30 should be confirmed on Friday.
But the prime minister’s official spokesperson cautioned on Monday that the testing numbers often have a “significant time lag”.
He said it will be “difficult” to know on Friday, adding: “For example, home testing kits can take up to 72 hours to get the results for and therefore show up in the numbers.”
Advertisement
“It’s going to take a little while longer for that to be clear.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--99-Year-Old Army Veteran Raises £4.5m For NHS With Back Garden Laps

Captain Tom Moore Raises Millions For NHS With Back Garden Laps
Army veteran, Captain Tom Moore, raised more than £10m to help the NHS during the pandemic, more than clearing his original fundraising target of £1,000. He did 100 laps of his back garden in Bedfordshire ahead of his 100th birthday later in the month.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--I'm Quarantined With My Abuser And Don't Feel Safe At Home

Getty Images HuffPost UK
This was supposed to be the year I left an unhappy marriage of almost 20 years that came with psychological and emotional abuse. I still believe this will be my year of freedom since it’s only April, but I’ve had to put my plans and dreams on hold while I wait out the stay-at-home order and all the “nonessential” institutions and services remain closed.
To the outside world, when I post on social media or buy groceries, which has become my only public outing now, I may seem to exude happiness. However, I am constantly nervous about what I or my children will do that could anger my husband. How can I keep him from yelling at me? What new list of demands will he issue? Will I find his orders tolerable or soul-crushing? Will he take offence at something and retaliate with more threats and restrictive rules for me and my children?
Advertisement
Anyone familiar with living in the same household with an abuser while going through a divorce knows that arguments, intimidation and retaliation can be the fodder of daily life. But usually when this happened, the courts were open, most of the country wasn’t under stay-at-home orders, a deadly pandemic wasn’t killing people and we didn’t have more than 16 million Americans unemployed in less than a month.
For those living in fear with their abusers, the coronavirus has compounded the time that they must spend together. It has magnified the stress levels in our homes and surely increased incidents of domestic violence. For many of us, the toxic spouse leaving for work provided needed relief from the barrage of intimidation, verbal battery and abuse. Now many of these significant others are either working from home or unemployed.
The very nature of this virus isolates people. If we show symptoms of the disease, we must quarantine ourselves from our families and from society itself for at least 14 days. To end up at a hospital can mean lingering and ultimately dying separated from loved ones because no one will be allowed into our rooms as we struggle for our last breath. For weeks we’ve learned concepts like ‘social distancing’, where now we must not intrude within six feet of one another’s personal space. Steadily all of our in-person social groups and institutions have closed. Some connections have moved online, but this new norm of personal interaction and socialisation by computer has left many people anxious, lonely and disconnected.
“For many of us, the toxic spouse leaving for work provided needed relief from the barrage of intimidation, verbal battery and abuse. Now many of these significant others are either working from home or unemployed.”
Advertisement
Some have joked that this forced confinement will result in a baby boom in nine months. Most of the media focus has been on those affected medically or financially by this crisis. But the pandemic’s upheaval is also exacerbating the pain of those living in homes where they have been mentally, emotionally and/or physically abused. And this often overlooked group needs help, too.
I feel fortunate that over the past month several friends have reached out to check how I’m doing because they know the stress and hostility I experience with my husband. Having them to text, email and talk with during this period of isolation has been vital to my staying positive and hopeful.
Now that we have more hours together in the same house, there are more opportunities for my husband to hurl criticisms at me. As the arguing intensified over the past month, several friends have urged me to move out as soon as possible. There were times I didn’t feel safe as he hounded me with his lists of demands, threatened me about the divorce terms, screamed, name-called and incessantly ordered me to explain why something was put in the wrong place.
I reached the decision to seek a divorce unexpectedly last year. Over the years, I had been conditioned to living with the constant fear of what he would be upset about next. Even the “good” times were never really pleasant because I always knew that he could suddenly turn and become infuriated with me about something. He exerted control sometimes by implementing consequences but mainly by issuing endless threats. Beyond my own fears, I could see that accepting this mistreatment was damaging my children’s view of women as they watched their mom being denigrated by her husband.
So I got a lawyer, but I’m still stuck in place now.
“My lawyer told me to make up with my husband, do my best to get along, wait until I could work for a few months at my new job, and hope that the courts reopen by July.”
Advertisement
Being under a stay-at-home order when I don’t feel safe at home is frightening. I recently called my lawyer to tell him that the threats and constant bullying were getting to be more than I could handle and I needed to make a plan to leave earlier than September. My lawyer told me to make up with my husband, do my best to get along, wait until I could work for a few months at my new job, and hope that the courts reopen by July. I understood his reasoning and resolved to do whatever I could once again to be agreeable and endure this time amicably. It appears this will be yet another life stage during which I have to tolerate my husband, my freedom be damned.
I feel like if my resident state truly cared about my freedom, then its divorce law wouldn’t require one of us to move out in order to file for a divorce. As long as I can’t afford to move to a place that will house my three children, I can’t file for a divorce. I looked into my options last summer and discovered that without an income above $160,000 or a letter from someone qualified to guarantee my rent, no landlord would lease to me in my children’s school district.
So when we wonder why abused spouses stay in miserable situations, it’s partly because our society still doesn’t offer much support to those who are financially dependent on a spouse and have children but still wish to leave. I never felt the pain was bad enough to move to a shelter before, but now it feels like I’m forced to choose between continuing to endure psychological abuse or going to a place where I and my children might be exposed to a life-threatening virus.
In addition, I was going to start a new job at the beginning of April to earn some income, but that was delayed another month because of this virus. When you haven’t supported yourself financially as an adult, starting anew as a single mother of three is intimidating.
“I never felt the pain was bad enough to move to a shelter before, but now it feels like I’m forced to choose between continuing to endure psychological abuse or going to a place where I and my children might be exposed to a life-threatening virus.”
Advertisement
I am an optimist by nature and have staggered through this marriage by focusing on whatever I could that was positive. Like any mother during this lockdown time, I do try each day to make sure that my children are able to engage in some fun activity like playing a board game, throwing a ball in the yard or baking.
In responding to external crises that I cannot control, I find comfort in the writings of Austrian psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl. I hope everybody making the best of confinement and abusive situations might find solace in this quotation as well. He wrote, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms ― to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
There are times in life when we have to reevaluate, grit our teeth and make the best of our circumstances. We can choose our response and our outlook. And if we know someone having a tough time right now, try to check in on them and remind them that they are not alone and that there is a future on the other side of this crisis.
This article first appeared on HuffPost Personal
Have a compelling personal story you want to tell? Find out what we’re looking for here, and pitch us on ukpersonal@huffpost.com
Advertisement
If you, or someone you know, is in immediate danger, call 999 and ask for the police. If you are not in immediate danger, you can contact:


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Nine Things You Need To Know About Coronavirus Today

Get the latest on coronavirus. Sign up to the Daily Brief for news, explainers, how-tos, opinion and more.
As the UK gets through its fourth week in lockdown, the country is nearing 100,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 – though the true figure is likely to be much higher.
Advertisement
The latest figures show:
12,868 people in the UK have now died in hospital after contracting coronavirus, an increase of 761 in 24 hours
Nearly 16,000 coronavirus tests were carried out in England, Scotland and Wales on Tuesday
98,476 people have tested positive for coronavirus in those three nations
Meanwhile, two million people have now tested positive globally
As of 9am 15 April, 398,916 tests have concluded, with 15,994 tests on 14 April.
313,769 people have been tested of which 98,476 tested positive.
As of 5pm on 14 April, of those hospitalised in the UK who tested positive for coronavirus, 12,868 have sadly died. pic.twitter.com/Rm19fv4jv0 — Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) April 15, 2020
Here’s the latest.
Smugglers caught with 14kg of cocaine concealed in protective face masks
Border Force officers have prevented an attempt to smuggle approximately 14kg of cocaine into the UK in a consignment of face masks, the Home Office has announced.
On Tuesday, officers at the UK control zone in Coquelles stopped a Polish-registered van, which was attempting to enter the UK via the Channel Tunnel.
Advertisement
They searched the vehicle and found a box of 15 wrapped packages concealed within the van, which was transporting boxes of protective face masks.
Ian Hanson, Border Force regional director for Coquelles, said: “This seizure shows the lengths drug smugglers will go to. It is despicable to think they would try and exploit the current situation in this way to get their dangerous drugs on to the UK’s streets.”
106-year-old Covid-19 patient successfully beats virus
A 106-year-old woman is believed to be oldest patient in Britain to have overcome coronavirus.
Connie Titchen – a great grandmother from Birmingham – was given a clean bill of health by medics at City Hospital, three weeks after she first fell ill with Covid-19.
We'd like to give our own round of applause to Connie who at 106 is heading home from City Hospital having successfully beaten #Coronavirus.
She is our oldest patient to beat the virus - and may well be the oldest in the country to do so! #ClapForConniehttps://t.co/bKONIq4sTZ pic.twitter.com/zT28UPdT4A — SWBH NHS Trust (@SWBHnhs) April 15, 2020
Titchen, who has lived through two world wars and now a global pandemic, said: “I feel very lucky that I’ve fought off this virus. I can’t wait to see my family.”
Advertisement
Her granddaughter Alex Jones, said her nan was able to bounce back from anything.
“She has had a really active life,” she said. “She loved to dance, cycle and play golf.” When he grandmother had a hip operation back in December, she was walking again within a month, Jones said.
“She really is amazing and I know all the family can’t wait to see her. She has quite a few fans!“
Sister Kelly Smith, who looked after Titchen when she was in hospital, added: “It’s been fantastic to see Connie recover. She is amazing and we’ve been doing our best to nurse her back to health.
“We were really pleased when she was given the all clear. It’s nice to see patients leave our ward after having beaten this virus.”
99-year-old Army veteran raises £7m for NHS
So proud to be working with an incredible force - Captain Tom Moore!
You are incredible Tom, and we are all behind you! #walkwithtom #TomorrowWillBeAGoodDay pic.twitter.com/ysffWWLDDa — Daisarella (@DaisarellaBlogs) April 14, 2020
A 99-year-old Army veteran who is walking 100 lengths of his garden for the NHS has raised more than £7m – and counting.
Advertisement
Captain Tom Moore, who uses a frame to help him walk, originally aimed to raise £1,000 for the health service during the coronavirus outbreak.
But he has since been overwhelmed by donations from more than 340,000 people.
Speaking to the BBC, Moore – who lives with his family in Bedfordshire – said it was “amazing” people had donated more than £7 million to the cause.
“I think that’s absolutely enormous,” he said. “At no time when we started off with this exercise did we anticipate we’d get anything near that sort of money.
“It just shows that people have such high regard for matters of our National Health Service and it’s really amazing that people have paid so much money.”
His Twitter account said: “7 MILLION POUNDS!!!!
“The Great British public, your generosity is just incredible!
“THANK YOU!!”
Donald Trump blames World Health Organisation for spread of coronavirus outbreak
Donald Trump speaks during the daily briefing of the White House coronavirus task force in the Rose Garden Alex Wong via Getty Images
Advertisement
Donald Trump has blamed the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the global coronavirus pandemic, and taken the remarkable step of halting the USA’s payments to the agency.
The president said the Covid-19 outbreak could have been contained if the WHO had done a better job of investigating reports coming out of China, where the virus originated.
Trump’s decision came as his administration faced mounting criticism over its initial slow response to the crisis.
Attacking the UN health agency for “severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of coronavirus,” and for being “very China-centric,” Trump claimed one of the organisation’s “most dangerous and costly decisions” was opposing travel restrictions from China.
America’s review into its payments to the WHO is due to last two or three months, Trump said.
“This is an evaluation period, but in the meantime, we’re putting a hold on all funds going to World Health,” the president said.
Advertisement
The United States contributed nearly $900m (£711m) to the WHO’s budget for 2018-19, according to information on the agency’s website.
That represents one-fifth of its total budget for those years.
The American Medical Association (AMA) immediately called on Trump to reconsider his decision, calling it a “dangerous move at a precarious time for the world”.
“During the worst public health crisis in a century, halting funding to the World Health Organisation is a dangerous step in the wrong direction that will not make defeating Covid-19 easier,” AMA President Patrice Harris said.
Government promises Covid-19 tests for ‘everyone who needs one’ in care homes
RUNSTUDIO via Getty Images
All care home residents and social care staff suffering from coronavirus symptoms will be tested for the virus as capacity increases, the government has promised.
Advertisement
It comes as ministers face mounting criticism about the lack of testing in care homes, where hundreds of residents are believed to have died from Covid-19 in recent weeks.
However, their deaths have not been included in the government’s official coronavirus death toll, which only counts people who died in hospital.
On Wednesday, officials in Scotland revealed that a quarter of all deaths in the country related to Covid-19 had occurred in care homes.
Meanwhile, the deaths of eight people with suspected coronavirus at a care home in Waterloo, Merseyside, were also announced by bosses.
Health secretary Matt Hancock said he was “determined” to ensure that everyone needing a test should have access to one.
Advertisement
Currently, only the first five symptomatic residents in a care home setting are tested to provide confirmation of whether there is an outbreak.
As well as current residents and staff who need it, testing will also be provided to all potential residents before they are discharged from hospital, according to the department of health and social care.
Hancock said: “I am deeply conscious that people in residential care are among the most vulnerable to coronavirus. We are doing everything we can to keep workers, residents and their families safe.
“We have already begun testing social care workers and will roll this out nationwide over the coming days. And as we continue to ramp up our testing programme, we will test all current care home residents with coronavirus symptoms and all new care home residents who are discharged from hospital into care.”
Advertisement
Government furlough funds ‘not reaching businesses’, survey finds
JR Images via Getty Images
Around one in three British businesses has furloughed between 75% and 100% of its workforce due to the coronavirus crisis, according to a new survey.
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) also found two-thirds of those questioned said they had put some staff on the furlough scheme, which covers 80% of salaries up to £2,500 a month.
But just 2% of firms surveyed said they had successfully accessed the government’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), and concerns are being raised that businesses still need access to cash for wages.
BCC director general Dr Adam Marshall said: “Businesses on the front line need cash to start flowing from support schemes fast.
Advertisement
“With April’s payday coming up, we are fast approaching a crunch point, and both the furlough scheme and CBILS facilities need to be accelerated.
“While we’ve seen a high number of firms furloughing staff in anticipation of the Job Retention Scheme coming online, it is still unclear whether they will start receiving funds before their payroll date, which could exacerbate the cash crisis many businesses are facing.
“It is essential that the Job Retention Scheme makes payments to businesses as soon as possible. Any delay could mean more livelihoods under threat, more business failures, and more hardship in our communities.”
The results of the survey are based on 701 responses between April 8 and 10.
Separare figures published by UK Finance showed that more than £1.1 billion had been handed to UK businesses through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme.
However, less than a quarter of firms which have formally applied for the loans have secured cash support, with around 6,000 having currently been handed out.
Advertisement
5G arsonists target mobile phone mast serving Birmingham Nightingale hospital
Military personnel at the new temporary NHS Nightingale Birmingham Hospital at the NEC in Birmingham, which is being built to provide care for an increased number of patients requiring treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. PA
A mobile phone mast serving the Nightingale hospital in Birmingham was among 20 suspected to have been attacked by arsonists who wrongly blame 5G for spreading the coronavirus.
Conspiracy theories linking the technology to the outbreak are without any foundation and have been widely condemned by scientists, government and industry as unproven and “utter rubbish”.
The attack on the mast close to the hospital created to treat Covid-19 patients was revealed by Vodafone chief executive Nick Jeffery in a LinkedIn post.
He wrote: “It’s heart-rending enough that families cannot be there at the bedside of loved ones who are critically ill.
Advertisement
“It’s even more upsetting that even the small solace of a phone or video call may now be denied them because of the selfish actions of a few deluded conspiracy theorists.”
He added: “Burning down masts means damaging important national infrastructure.
“In practice, this means families not being able to say a final goodbye to their loved ones; hard-working doctors, nurses, and police officers not being able to phone their kids, partners or parents for a comforting chat.”
Labour demands lockdown exit strategy is published this week
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has demanded that the government's coronavirus exit strategy is published this week PA
Labour leader Keir Starmer has demanded the government’s coronavirus exit strategy be published this week as he warned of the “silent pressures on families”.
In a letter to Dominic Raab, who is deputising for Boris Johnson, Starmer said the restrictions are “not affecting people equally”, with the risk of poverty, mental health crisis, domestic abuse thought to be much higher
Advertisement
Ministers plan to announce that the lockdown will continue on Thursday after they meet top scientists.
But they refuse to be drawn on when it may end, often repeating that the government will “take the right measures at the right time”.
Starmer said Labour will support the first extension, but urged the first secretary of state to outline how and when the lockdown will be relaxed and how ministers will decide, before telling him ”overcoming this crisis requires taking the British public with you”.
“We agree the measures need to remain in place, but to maintain morale and hope, people need a sense of what comes next,” Starmer said. “The silent pressures on communities across the country cannot be underestimated.
“Many will be struggling with their mental health as well as other health conditions that may not receive the attention they normally would without the virus.
Advertisement
“For some it will be heightened concerns about their jobs or how they will make ends meet. For others the challenge will be loneliness and separation from loved ones, illness or losing someone to this terrible disease.
“This lockdown is not affecting people equally. In fact, it has exacerbated existing inequalities in our country. A family living in an overcrowded flat will have particular challenges.
“And it is hard to imagine the daily horror of someone trapped in a home with his or her abuser. The government has a duty to do what it can to alleviate these pressures on people.”
British and French drug companies team up to develop coronavirus vaccine
kuniharu wakabayashi via Getty Images
GlaxoSmithKline – one of Britain’s biggest drug companies – has teamed up with one of its French rivals to develop a coronavirus vaccine
Advertisement
GSK announced on Thursday that it was working with Sanofi to “address the urgent global need to protect people” from Covid-19.
The companies hope to test the treatment on humans in the second half of 2020, with the aim of making it available to the public by the second half of 2021.
It is the first time GSK and Sanofi have worked together on such a project.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Quiz’s Michael Sheen Is So Convincing Playing Other Famous People That Even ITV Is Getting Confused

LOADING ERROR LOADING
In fact, he’s so convincing as the former Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? presenter that ITV appears to have forgotten who’s actually playing him.
Ahead of the second part of the hit drama on Tuesday night, the continuity announcer thought he was someone else entirely.
Advertisement
Micheal (right) as Chris Tarrant in ITV's Quiz. ITV
Instead of calling him Michael Sheen, he was referred to as fellow actor Martin Sheen – and it didn’t go unnoticed by Michael (repeat Michael) Sheen.
Taking a leaf out of Greta Thunberg’s approach to social media, the British actor changed his name to the Hollywood star’s moniker on Twitter following the blunder.
He then tweeted: “Hey ITV the least you can do is get my name right in your trailers FFS.”
Hey @ITV the least you can do is get my name right in your trailers FFS. — martin sheen (@michaelsheen) April 14, 2020
Advertisement
Twitter saw the funny side...
To be fair, you do a better Chris Tarrant than Chris Tarrant. In their defence, they probably have no idea who you are 🤷🏻♀ — Tashy McTashface (@TashP351) April 14, 2020
Such an acting chameleon. You're confusing everyone, my love. 😘😘 — Alison Winter ☮ (@ofdiscontent) April 14, 2020
For a million pounds, who plays Chris Tarrant in Quiz?
A) Martin Sheen B) Michael Sheen
C) Barry Sheene D) Mr Sheen — jasemonkey (@jasemonkey) April 14, 2020
I was going to watch it, but the @itv trailer took the sheen off it...... — Sam (@HesamSaid) April 14, 2020
Quiz recounts how Major Charles Ingram, his wife Diana and an accomplice, Tecwen Whittock, attempted an “audacious heist” on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? back in 2001.
Advertisement
The trio were accused of cheating their way to win the show’s top prize when Whittock, who was sat in the audience during the recording, coughed in order to signify the correct answers to the multiple choice questions posed to Major Ingram by host Chris Tarrant.
After accusations of cheating were made against them, they were taken to trial where they were all found guilty of “procuring the execution of a valuable security by deception”.
Both the Ingrams and Whittock were each given suspended prison sentences and each fined £15,000. The Ingrams also had to pay £115,000 in additional costs.
Starring alongside Michael in the three-part drama are former Spooks star Matthew MacFadyen and Fleabag’s Sian Clifford.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Amy Schumer Just Changed Her Son’s Name Because It Sounded Like ‘Genital’

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Amy Schumer and husband Chris Fischer have changed the name of their firstborn son after realising they made a bit of a funny mistake with his moniker.
The comedian explained the name swap for their 11-month-old on her podcast, “3 Girls, 1 Keith” ― and apparently, some people saw this coming.
Advertisement
“So, do you guys know that Gene ― our baby’s name ― is officially changed?” Schumer said to co-hosts Rachel Feinstein, Bridget Everett and Keith Robinson during an episode released Tuesday on Spotify.
“It’s now Gene David Fischer. It was Gene Attell Fischer, but we realised that we, by accident, named our son ‘Genital,’” she said “Gene Attell sounds like ‘genital.’”
The guest on the show, actor and comedian Claudia O’Doherty, said her mom had noted the “genital” issue.
Advertisement
“My mom pointed that out to me actually,” O’Doherty said to laughs from the hosts. “My mom was like, ‘Amy’s called her son “genital.”’ And I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ And then, she was right.”
“And then, ‘genital fissure,’” someone on the podcast added, to which Schumer agreed and repeated her son’s former name so it sounded like “genital fissure.”
Even some media outlets thought the baby’s name was a prank when Schumer announced it back in May 2019.
Schumer and her husband originally gave Gene the middle name “Attell” after her friend, comedian Dave Attell. The “I Feel Pretty” actor said that Attell didn’t mind the name change.
Advertisement
Gene now shares a middle name, “David,” with Schumer’s dad. So in the end, it all worked out for everyone ― especially Gene.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Trump Shifts Blame For Coronavirus Crisis To World Health Organisation

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump used Tuesday’s White House press briefing on coronavirus to blame the World Health Organisation for thousands of deaths in the pandemic while not acknowledging his administration’s faulty response in the US.
Trump announced that the US would be halting funding to the WHO while it conducts a review of the organisation’s response to the pandemic. This comes as the Trump administration has faced mounting criticism over its initial slow response to the crisis.
Advertisement
Attacking the WHO for “severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of coronavirus,” as well as for being “very China-centric,” Trump claimed one of the organisation’s “most dangerous and costly decisions” was opposing travel restrictions from China.
Trump then credited himself with “saving untold numbers of lives,” adding without evidence that “thousands and thousands would have died” if he hadn’t restricted travel from China on January 31. (The virus is believed to have originated in the country).
However, Trump’s ramped-up criticism of the WHO shifted blame away from his own failings just as his administration has come under increased scrutiny. A New York Times report over the weekend detailed how Trump was slow to listen to early warnings from senior aides about the urgency of the spreading virus.
Advertisement
The president spent late January through early March largely downplaying the threat of the virus.
Trump leads Tuesday's daily briefing of the White House Coronavirus Task Force in the Rose Garden at the White House. Alex Wong via Getty Images
On Tuesday, Trump attacked the WHO for its delay in declaring a public health emergency, which he said “cost valuable time.” The WHO declared a global health emergency on January 30.
Trump, however, has still not issued a national stay-at-home order, despite calls from public health experts to do so.
“So much death has been caused by their mistakes,” Trump said of the WHO, claiming without evidence that the group’s reliance on China’s information “likely caused a twentyfold increase in cases worldwide.” He also criticised the organisation for not acknowledging its mistakes, “of which there were many,” he said.
Advertisement
On Tuesday, when a reporter brought up the tens of thousands of deaths in the US and said people in some places say they still can’t get tested and aren’t taking social distancing seriously, Trump disparaged the reporter — as he has other reporters in previous briefings — calling him a “showboat” and “loudmouth.”
Partway through the briefing, Trump began to shift future responsibility for reopening the largely closed US economy on state governors, one day after declaring he has “total” authority as president when he was asked about restarting state economies.
“The governors are responsible. They have to take charge,” he said, explaining he’d authorise each governor to implement the reopening plan for their state.
“The governors will be held accountable,” Trump said, after noting that over 20 states were in “extremely good shape” when it came to the spread of the coronavirus.
Pressed on how the president would ensure workers were not sent back to their jobs under unsafe conditions if a governor were to reopen a state’s economy too early, Trump pushed the onus back on governors, saying: “That’s going to be up to the governors. The governors are going to want to make sure everything’s safe.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Tom Hanks’ Wife Rita Wilson Warns Of ‘Extreme Side Effects’ Suffered From Coronavirus Treatment

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Rita Wilson has given her first interview since recovering from coronavirus and warned of the “extreme side effects” she suffered from the treatment she received.
The actress and her husband Tom Hanks were the first high profile names to test positive for Covid-19 last month.
Advertisement
The couple, who were in Australia where Tom was working on an Elvis Presley biopic, have both since made a full recovery.
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson SIPA USA/PA Images
On Tuesday, Rita appeared on the US daytime show The Talk, where she discussed her ordeal with host Gayle King.
Detailing her symptoms, the 63-year-old said: “I felt extremely achy, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched, and then the fever started.
Advertisement
She added that she suffered from “chills like I never had before.”
Rita said her fever reached its highest temperature about nine days following the positive test results, saying it “got close to” 39C.
She also revealed she had been given the drug chloroquine, which is usually used to prevent and treat malaria and is being studied as a possible Covid-19 treatment, but is not sure what impact it had on her.
John Nacion/STAR MAX/IPx
She said: “I can only tell you that I don’t know if the drug worked or if it was just time for my fever to break, but my fever did break.”
Revealing that the drug had “extreme side effects”, she said she felt “completely nauseous” and could not walk, adding that “my muscles felt very weak.”
Advertisement
“I think people have to be very considerate about that drug,” she warned. “We don’t really know if it’s helpful in this case.”
She also said her Toy Story star husband, also 63, had less severe symptoms than her.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Trump's Name Will Appear On Stimulus Cheques

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump’s name will be printed on the economic stimulus cheques that will be distributed by the Internal Revenue Service to individuals to help mitigate losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
The addition, which was ordered by the Treasury Department, is expected to delay the delivery of paper cheques by several days, according to the Post, which cited unnamed senior agency officials. The phrase “President Donald J. Trump” will be printed in a memo line on the left side of the cheques (most will total $1,200 for individuals), below a line that says “Economic Impact Payment.”
Advertisement
After the IRS adjusts its printing technology for this addition, tens of millions of Americans are expected to receive these checks in the mail in the coming weeks.
NBC News also confirmed the report Tuesday night.
President Donald Trump speaks during a bill signing ceremony March 27 for the CARES Act, an economic stimulus package meant to deal with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Erin Schaff/pool/Getty Images
The decision to add Trump’s name to the cheques was reportedly finalised late Monday and announced to the IRS’s information technology team on Tuesday, the Post reported, citing a Treasury Department official.
This is the first time a president’s name will appear on a payment from the IRS.
The White House did not immediately return HuffPost’s request for comment.
The cheques are a part of the government’s $2 trillion effort to stimulate the tanking economy as the coronavirus pandemic shuts down much of the country. The IRS will need to add computer coding to include Trump’s name in the cheques’ printing process, then test the system before sending out the checks, according to the Post.
Advertisement
The newspaper also reported that Trump privately suggested to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that the president should sign the stimulus cheques. However, the US president is not an authorised signer for payments made by the Treasury.
Senator Brian Schatz said in a tweet that Trump was directly causing the delay of these cheques to Americans who need them to continue paying bills.
“You are getting your money late because the President thinks it is more important that his name be on the cheque than that you are able to pay your bills on time,” Schatz tweeted. “This is not a rhetorical flourish. The checks are delayed. Because Trump.”
You are getting your money late because the President thinks it is more important that his name be on the check than that you are able to pay your bills on time. This is not a rhetorical flourish. The checks are delayed. Because Trump. — Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) April 15, 2020
Representative Steve Cohen described the addition as an “unprecedented, cheap political stunt.”
Coming to your $1,200 relief check: Donald J. Trump’s name// unprecedented,cheap political stunt by our Barnum’N Bailey ringmaster,our Joe Exotic!Gives Charlatan a bad name.#TrumpMadness #CARESAct https://t.co/BXwKgiWAKz — Steve Cohen (@RepCohen) April 15, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-15--Tom Hardy's Been Busy Recording More Bedtime Stories In His Back Garden

HuffPost UK BBC
We’re here to guide you through the coronavirus lockdown. Sign up to the Life newsletter for daily tips, advice, how-tos and escapism.
Yep, you read that right. CBeebies’ most popular Bedtime Stories reader ever, Tom Hardy, will soon be back on our screens with a load of new stories to settle down your kids before they go to bed.
Advertisement
The Hollywood actor and father of three wanted to make the coronavirus lockdown that little bit easier for children and parents, so he’s going to read a new story every day for a whole week from Monday 27 April to Friday 1 May.
Hardy made his CBeebies debut back in 2016 and since then, his stories have been played more than a million times on BBC iPlayer.
Helpfully, the new stories he’s reading – running during what the BBC have joyfully dubbed ‘Tom Week’ – it is what it says it is – have themes of long-distance friendship, problems shared, and courage in overcoming seemingly impossible challenges.
Advertisement
Hardy – who may be accompanied by his adorable French bulldog, Blue, for some of the stories – will read his first one, Hug Me by Simone Ciraolo, on 27 April at 6.50pm. It’s about Felipe, a young cactus who really needs a hug but his family isn’t the touchy-feely kind – so he sets off to find a friend of his own.
At the end, the actor reassures viewers: “It’s not always possible to hug the ones that you love. But they’re always there, in your heart.” Topical, eh?
Other stories include: Under the Same Sky by Robert Vescio and Nicky Johnston, about two children on opposite sides of the world who crave friendship; There’s a Tiger in the Garden by Lizzy Stewart, about the power of your imagination to take you anywhere; and Don’t Worry, Little Crab by Chris Haughton, which is about mustering the courage to try something new.
‘Tom Week’ will drawer to a close on 1 May with The Problem with Problems by Rachel Rooney and Zehra Hicks.
Let’s be honest, it’s as much for us adults as it is for the kids, right?


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Sue Perkins Reveals 'Painful' Paul Hollywood Fall Out That's Left Her 'Devastated'

LOADING ERROR LOADING
For years, they were the best of chums on The Great British Bake Off, but it seems like things have turned sour between Sue Perkins and Paul Hollywood.
The presenter has revealed she had a “painful” falling out with he former co-star that has left her “devastated”.
Advertisement
Sue and Paul worked together from Bake Off’s inception in 2010 until 2016, when she and co-presenter Mel Giedroyc quit along with Paul’s fellow judge Mary Barry, over the decision to move the show from BBC One to Channel 4.
Speaking on Jessie Ware’s Table Manners podcast, Sue described Paul as having been “like family” and admitted she was hurt how things had played out between them.
Paul Hollywood and Sue Perkins Ian West - PA Images via Getty Images
While she did not elaborate on the incident that cause the fall out, Sue said: “When we were there, Paul was really good fun - and stuff happened that made us incredibly sad and incredibly hurt.
Advertisement
“But he was always like family for years and years and years, and it’s painful when those things end, especially in the way that they did end.”
She continued: “I’m devastated about what happened, about lots of it.
“I just feel that talking about it is just really uncool and you start pointing the finger and then you become as bad as everybody else.”
The pair with former Bake Off co-stars Mary Berry and Mel Giedroyc BBC
After Sue, Mel and Mary left Bake Off, they were replaced by presenters Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig, while new judge Prue Leith joined Paul in the tent.
Sandi recently quit the show after three series, and will be replaced by Little Britain comedian Matt Lucas for the upcoming 11th series.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Sue recently revealed she and Mel came very close to never actually presenting Bake Off at all, after quitting on the first day of filming.
Describing it as not being a “kind show”, she told Radio Times last month: “They were pointing cameras in the bakers’ faces and making them cry and saying, ‘Tell us about your dead gran.’ So we had very stiff words about how we wanted to proceed. I think we can say that, now we’re out of it, can’t we?”
The full interview with Sue appears on the latest episode of Jessie Ware’s Table Manners, available to stream now.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Chris Tarrant Explains Why Quiz Failed To Change His Mind About Charles Ingram's Guilty Verdict

LOADING ERROR LOADING
ITV’s latest hit drama Quiz came to an end on Wednesday night, leaving much of the nation second-guessing Charles and Diana Ingram’s guilty verdict.
The three-part series told the story of the infamous Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? “coughing scandal”, which saw the Ingrams accused of cheating their way to the gameshow’s top prize.
Advertisement
However, while the drama left many of us pondering whether the Ingrams were actually innocent all along, there’s one man who was less than convinced by the show, and that’s presenter Chris Tarrant.
During an interview with Radio X the morning after the Quiz finale aired, Chris insisted: “[There’s] no question in my mind at all that he was guilty!”
Chris Tarrant Chris Jackson via Getty Images
Although he conceded that Quiz was “very well made”, Chris noted: “It is a drama, it’s not factual. So most of those conversations were made up because that’s what playwrights do.
Advertisement
“I mean the bottom line is he’s a rotter and a cad and a bandit and he was guilty. No question in my mind at all that he was guilty!”
Addressing his biggest “beef” with the show, he continued: “There were so many things in there that they didn’t include.
“My beef with it is that they did a very strange but very convincing defence QC – that woman, Helen McRory – a very good defence wind-up, but they did not do any prosecution wind-up.
“Now, in any court of law the prosecution does the last bit and when the Major and his wife and Tecwen [Whittock, who also stood trial] were on the actual court case, the prosecution guy did the most brilliant sum up, bringing all the strands in – the coughing and the bleepers and all the stuff – and went to the jury and they went ‘guilty, guilty, guilty’.
“They didn’t do that last night at all, they just stopped on her, and you’re going ‘oh yeah, I think he might be… oh poor bloke, poor little man – all that – maybe he’s innocent’. I think it was – that bit was a bit of production company skulduggery basically. I mean, they wanted you to think ‘blimey I don’t think he was guilty’.”
Advertisement
Chris Tarrant with the Ingrams in 2001 Shutterstock
One aspect of the drama that Chris was impressed by was Michael Sheen, who portrayed the presenter in Quiz.
He told Good Morning Britain earlier this week: “I thought ’he’s going to be just like all my mates, and all the impressionists, Mike Osman, Rory Bremner, etc… but Michael Sheen is an actor, he’s not an impressionist, he’s a superb actor.
“And because I’ve spent so much time with headphones on, I know what my voice sounds like. Radio people know what their voice sounds like, and I know exactly what my voice is, and I’m [watching Michael Sheen] going, ‘it’s pretty close, actually’.”
Michael Sheen in Quiz ITV
Advertisement
Chris added: “And also, he does weird things with his body that I’m watching and going, ‘oh god, I do do that’. There’s a way he stands which… I don’t know, I actually do do that. He’s very good.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Quiz's Musical Interlude Was A Completely Unexpected But Amazing Addition To The Hit Drama

LOADING ERROR LOADING
From the incredible performances to the razor-sharp script, there was not one thing we didn’t absolutely love about Quiz – and that also includes one very unexpected moment during the final episode.
Wednesday night’s third instalment of the ITV drama featured a surreal scene that, for a moment, took us away from the drama of Charles and Diana Ingram’s trial.
Advertisement
The real-life story saw Charles accused of cheating his way to the jackpot on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? with a supposed scheme involving a series of coughs from his wife Diana and an accomplice.
Viewers of the ITV dramatisation saw Charles contemplating the case, before he was suddenly on the Millionaire set with Diana and Chris Tarrant – played by Sian Clifford and Michael Sheen respectively – to perform an all-singing, all-dancing rendition of Cole Porter’s Who Wants To Be A Millionaire from the film High Society.
Matthew MacFayden and Sian Clifford had a musical interlude as Charles and Diana Ingram in Quiz ITV
While Quiz was rooted in realism, the musical interlude certainly did not feature in the real-life story, but it went down a treat on social media...
Advertisement
Wow I wondered how they’d maintain interest in #Quiz in ep 3. Turns out they did it with a big musical number and Helen McCrory QC.
Then the Ingrams left court like pic.twitter.com/ENTg6Ldv5L — Sarah 🎬🎬🎬 (@cautionspoilers) April 16, 2020
Was not expecting the musical dream sequence but I am 12/10 here for it #Quiz — David Brisbane (@DavidB1996) April 15, 2020
Just when this show couldn’t get any more intriguing, they throw in a musical number for the heck of it.
Brilliant.
👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾#Quiz pic.twitter.com/Z9gce3pjwu — (feat. Jools Evelyn) (@joolsevelyn) April 15, 2020
My sister just had to come and check the musical interlude was a part of this drama and not a side effect of the Diazapam she's just taken. #Quiz — Laura N Way (@LauraNWay87) April 15, 2020
THE MUSICAL INTERLUDE HAS MADE THE ENTIRE SHOW #quiz — Max Turner (@maxturnerus) April 15, 2020
Advertisement
How do you make a great show even better? Add Helen McCrory and a fantasy musical sequence. #Quiz was just so, so good. — Ian Sandwell (@ian_sandwell) April 15, 2020
Didn't think the Ingham's doing a musical number with Micheal Sheen playing Chris Tarrent is something I need in my life but turns out it do 🤗 #Quiz — Abigail Walker (@NorthenLass97) April 15, 2020
Okay but Michael, Matthew and Sian singing “Who wants to be a millionaire?” from the musical High Society was definitely one of the best things in #Quiz — Tricksy Spirit Cosplay 😇 (@TricksyC) April 15, 2020
There were calls to turn it into a full West End musical...
I would pay very good money to see this Who Wants To Be A Millionaire musical. PUT IT ON THE WEST END! #Quiz pic.twitter.com/0vJxYsW5F1 — Sarah Doran (@sarahisnothere) April 15, 2020
I would pay so much for a @MillionaireUK musical on the West End #Quiz — Dave (@DavidMackayy) April 15, 2020
Advertisement
Once lockdown is over can we please have a full length #Quiz musical starring Michael Sheen, Matthew Macfadyen and Sian Clifford. — Laura N Way (@LauraNWay87) April 15, 2020
TURN THE QUIZ INTO A MUSICAL STARRING HELEN MCCRORY AND SIAN CLIFFORD @mrJamesGraham YOU COWARD — patsy stone (@teaistriumphh) April 15, 2020
Petition for Matthew McFadyean and Michael Sheen to do a full musical of this Millionaire bit <3 #Quiz — ~Daði, Daði Cool~ (@uisgebeatha) April 15, 2020
And a thinking that all shows should now include a musical interlude as standard...
A MUSICAL NUMBER!!! This is the content I want this on EVERY TV show!!! #Quiz — hannah (@HannahAMont) April 15, 2020
Quiz was actually based on a stage show of the same name, which was written by James Graham, who adapted his play for ITV.
Advertisement
While there were no musical numbers in the stage show, there were many more surreal moments than featured in the TV series, with actors also playing multiple parts.
Audience members also got to vote with a keypad at the end of the play as to whether they believed the Ingrams were guilty or not of deception.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--How To Interpret And Manage Your Pandemic Dreams

LOADING ERROR LOADING
I was roller-skating in a hockey arena last week, while Céline Dion judged me from the sidelines for not wearing a mouthguard. Over the Easter weekend, archaeologists threatened me with swords unless I helped them dig up dinosaur bones for the Pope.
Advertisement
FatCamera via Getty Images A totally real, absolutely factual discovery I made while social distancing. Sure, let's go with that.
Unless the Canadian icon is taking a break from inspiring quarantine masterpieces and the Vatican is suddenly into fossil-collecting, both occasions obviously didn’t actually happen — weird dreams are the new ordinary for myself and countless others, ever since the Covid-19 pandemic started.
Anyone else having super weird dreams since this CV stuff started? I guess the subconscious has a lot to process these days ... — Shannon Bream (@ShannonBream) April 7, 2020
By the way I had a dream that me and Oscar Isaac teamed up to rob a bakery and he paid me in pie, so...I take back that thing I said dismissing people having weird quarandreams. — Olivia Cole is social distancing & u should be too (@RantingOwl) April 14, 2020
People have puzzled over the strange phenomenon, with the Twitter account @IDreamofCovid socialising dreams that speak to life under lockdown.
Advertisement
I had a dream last night that I broke quarantine to go get a haircut and I ended up with a huge bald patch on the right side of my head. My brain is not playing with Covid. — LOVE & NAPPYNESS OUT NOW (@MattMuse12) April 12, 2020
I just dreamt that all my friends were in a zoom call without me and I was extremely salty. If that ain’t the most quarantine type dream idk what is. — Ismail Barkley (@ismailjavier0) April 12, 2020
An informal HuffPost callout for dreams got nocturnal visions from people both mundane and bizarre. One mum Marcia Steeves has been dreaming of meet-ups with former classmates and visiting their favourite hangouts.
“Our old teachers would wave from afar, it made us all feel warm and safe,” she told HuffPost Canada.
The pandemic’s timeline has affected nightmares too. In a direct message on Twitter, one dreamer from Saskatoon noted that theirs became vivid when locals started panic-buying toilet paper. A Toronto-based author’s nightmares were funny once he woke up, such as the imaginary fright he got when his house was trashed by partiers.
Advertisement
now having nightmares about roaming house parties busting into my place like i'm the square in a rock video — Midsgar (@ZaaackKoootzer) March 28, 2020
But as Ontario’s state of emergency continues, he’s been more troubled by dreaming.
“The most distressing one was about being in Honest Ed’s, repeatedly touching my own face and getting upset at myself,” he told HuffPost Canada.
Others have found themselves dreaming of former stressors, like 31-year-old Ottawa resident Kayla Spagnoli. She’s been having nightmares five times a week about her former job as an embalmer, plagued by imaginary bodies piling up and her calls for help going unanswered.
“I’m trying to sort and casket bodies upon bodies,” she told HuffPost Canada. “So who’s going to do pick-up at the morgue? I’m trying to problem-solve and nobody’s answering.”
Getty Images Bad dreams run rampant in the minds of many Canadians coping with the pandemic.
Advertisement
Experts shared with HuffPost Canada likely reasons for the spike in vivid dream recall, as well as how to interpret what you see at night and manage them should nightmares become too distressing. If you’re among the fitful sleepers, here’s what you should know about dreaming during a pandemic:
Sleep cycles, stress and late-night vices may play a role
Data is still emerging on pandemic dreaming, but early small-scale studies suggest the pandemic has caused more vivid dreaming and poor sleep quality: A YouGov poll of more than 2,400 adults found that nearly 30 per cent of respondents say their vivid dreaming has increased, and a SleepHelp survey found that one in five adults have been getting less sleep because of Covid-19.
The jury’s still out on why exactly we’re dreaming more vividly, but several dream experts have shared theories to explain the phenomenon.
One commonly accepted theory? We’re not having more weird dreams, but we are remembering them more. Scientific evidence has shown that we’re more likely to remember dreams that occur during the rapid eye movement (REM) cycle of sleep, which occurs right after the stage of deepest sleep. Because of this, both those who are sleep-deprived and trying to pay back their sleep debt because of a quieter schedule, as well as those who are sleeping in, may be prone to vivid dreaming, the New York Times reports.
“Many of us are not being woken by an alarm right now. When you wake up without disturbance, the chances of recalling a dream also improve,” Montreal Gestalt counsellor Layne Dalfen told HuffPost Canada.
Advertisement
Another line of thinking points the finger at crisis-related stress. New York City neuropsychologist Dr. Sanam Hafeez told HuffPost Canada that the subconscious is where the brain processes emotions and thoughts through memory associations.
Being in a crisis situation with uncertainty around when it will end would certainly give our minds plenty of overwhelming emotions that need processing.
“Our brains are going to places our conscious minds may not allow us to delve into while we are awake… When we are in REM sleep, [there’s a] confluence of all the anxiety and fears we might try to suppress during our waking hours,” she said over email.
Hafeez also points out that substances people may be using to cope — such as drinking alcohol before bed to fall asleep faster — actually disturbs one’s REM cycles.
“The body does something called ‘REM rebound’ as a means of compensation. It is in this phase that dreams become more intense,” she added.
Advertisement
How to interpret your pandemic dreams
Leading scholars like Harvard Medical school assistant professor Deirdre Barrett are collecting Covid-19 dreams for analysis. She told Vice that many have shared nightmares involving insects, from finding worms to encountering swarming bugs.
Others are bringing social distancing measures into their dreams, or are terrorised by nightmares of the virus personally affecting them or their loved ones.
my mum dreamt that i got the corona virus......... idk what to do with this information. — Rishtha Shuja (@_Rishthashuja_) March 3, 2020
While dreams like these might be helpful to take at face value ― worrying about Covid-19 all day would likely translate to those worries manifesting at night ― science has yet to definitively prove that what we see in our dreams speaks to anything concretely, with some neuroscientists theorising that dreams are just by-products of memory storage processes conducted by our brains. However, that doesn’t mean they can’t carry meaning based on how we feel about them.
“You have a worldview and I have a worldview. Every night we change that world view slightly but significantly, depending on what happens during the day. That is an important function of dreaming,” American psychiatrist Allan Hobson told South China Morning Post, to explain how the emotional meaning of dreams are significant from a survival standpoint. Dalfen emphasises there’s no one-size-fits-all dream dictionary that can interpret every fantastical image, as what you see in a dream is unique to your life experience. But if you’re hoping to get insight into a recurring feature in a dream or want to pinpoint what daytime anxiety you may be ignoring, it might be emotionally helpful to decode a dream. Using six “points of entry,” Dalfen says dreamers can figure out what aspect of a dream resonates most strongly with their waking self: how you feel during it, what action occurs, the plot of the dream, repeating patterns in the dream, symbols and wordplay. From there, a dreamer can draw their own conclusions and potentially address any real-life anxieties they have. For example, a recent client told Dalfen she dreamt of being in Target and found the store choice interesting when she was awake, as she had felt “targeted” since the pandemic started.
katiafonti via Getty Images How you interpret a dream will depend on how you feel about certain symbols, people, patterns or memories that take place in it.
For many, thinking about how they feel about a dream’s imagery has helped them process real-life worries. Spagnoli says she believes her embalming nightmares come from a place of guilt, as that’s how she feels both when she’s asleep and when she’s awake, thinking about not being on the front lines. Understanding that concern has helped her work towards alleviating her guilt.
“I’ve talked to people I trust [about feeling guilty], including my twin,” she said.
If your vivid dreams have been about mundane tasks like going to work or commuting, Hafeez says this may be because our brains are nostalgic for when times were better.
Steeves realised that how safe she felt in her schoolyard memories was a sign she was nostalgic for feeling like an invincible youth again. For her, it was helpful to look at how school was a symbol of security.
Advertisement
“Our teachers and the buildings represent the securities of our childhood that we are all yearning for right now,” the mom wrote to HuffPost Canada over Twitter.
Dr. Hafeez’s sleep routine for better dreaming
Drawing on her neuropsychology background, Hafeez shared a nighttime routine that may help reduce the likelihood of having a pandemic-related nightmare.
Don’t drink alcohol : This includes other stimulating substances like sugar, caffeine or narcotics before bedtime.
Unplug from bad news: Consuming grim Covid-19 updates non-stop can be detrimental to one’s mental well-being, which the neuropsychologist says can lead to anxiety that your psyche may need to address.
Use a calming ritual: A wellness or guided meditation app is an easy way to build relaxation into your routine, Hafeez notes. Other calming rituals might include making your sleep schedule more consistent, using soothing scents — Spagnoli recommends lavender — light stretches, low-intensity yoga poses, and writing what you’re grateful for in spite of the pandemic. Reducing technology use can reduce stress, too.
Watch or read something happy : Hafeez recommends capping off your night with something funny or uplifting.
Keep a dream journal: It may be helpful to track recurring patterns in dreams or nightmares, as externalising a dream can help process it and make nightmares less scary.
If your nightmares are consistently waking you up in the middle of the night because of how disturbing they are, or if they start affecting how you function during the day, Hafeez recommends seeking professional help. Ongoing vivid nightmares can be a symptom of PTSD or another mental disorder; Spagnoli, a longtime nightmare sufferer, says antidepressants and therapy for borderline personality disorder have equipped her to better handle pandemic-related bad dreams.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Watch: Here’s The Latest On Coronavirus Today

Watch: Here’s The Latest On Coronavirus Today
US President Trump’s push to halt funding to the World Health Organisation was met with widespread criticism from lawmakers and health officials, the UK has revised guidelines to allow close family members a chance to say goodbye to loved ones dying from coronavirus when possible and French President Emmanuel Macron is backing a world truce during the coronavirus pandemic. In Europe Italy, Spain and Finland are gradually starting to reopen and the world’s oldest coronavirus patient has recovered.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--The Chase Lands New Addition To Chasers Line-Up, Darragh Ennis

LOADING ERROR LOADING
ITV is welcoming a new member to one of its most exclusive clubs, with the introduction of a brand new quizzing expert on teatime gameshow The Chase.
On Thursday, The Mirror reported that former contestant Darragh Ennis has been invited into the fold, as the first new addition to the Chasers since 2015.
Advertisement
This appeared to be confirmed by a tweet posted by Darragh, which read: “I’m really excited to be the 6th chaser on #TheChase.
“I’ve been working hard on this for a while now and can’t wait for my episodes to air. Well the ones I win anyway.”
I'm really excited to be the 6th chaser on #TheChase . I've been working hard on this for a while now and can't wait for my episodes to air. Well the ones I win anyway. — Darragh Ennis (@bones_giles) April 16, 2020
ITV has confirmed to HuffPost UK that the Twitter account in question does belong to Darragh, meaning we should expect his episodes to air in the coming months.
Advertisement
Darragh first appeared on The Chase in 2017, scooping an impressive £9,000 for his team, who later all took minus offers from the Chaser, meaning his overall total was depleted.
The episode caused a stir online, with #JusticeForDarragh trending on Twitter after it aired.
Meet the new addition to The Chase ITV
Presenter Bradley Walsh previously told Radio Times: “We’re making more and more shows all the time, so we need to recruit more people all the time.
“So consequently, we have put our feelers out to find other people that will be suitable, and all will be revealed next year.”
He also insisted that none of the existing Chasers would be going anywhere, and that there may even be further additions to the group later down the line.
Advertisement
The current line-up of The Chase ITV/Shutterstock
The Chase launched in 2009 with just Mark “The Beast” Labbett and Shaun “The Dark Destroyer” Wallace as its resident Chasers.
Anne “The Governess” Hegerty joined the group a year later, with Paul “Sinnerman” Sinha being added in 2011.
More recently, Jenny “The Vixen” Ryan became the show’s fifth resident Chaser, making her first appearance in 2015.
In the past few years, the team have made names for themselves away from The Chase, with most of them performing a Wizard Of Oz medley on Let’s Sing And Dance For Comic Relief.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Keir Starmer Warns Labour Members To Stop Taking 'Lumps Out Of Each Other'

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Keir Starmer has warned Labour Party members they will lose the next general election if they do not abandon the “factionalism” of recent years.
The new Labour leader’s first days in office have been hit by an explosive internal party row over a leaked dossier that detailed bitter ideological and personal splits between the so-called right and left of the party.
Advertisement
The report, seen by HuffPost UK, claimed Labour’s HQ in Westminster had been consumed by a “hyper-factional atmosphere” in which, for some staff opposed to Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, “the worse things got for Labour the happier they would be”.
In a Zoom video call with party members on Wednesday evening, Starmer, who took over from Corbyn on April 4, made a plea for unity.
“We have to stop the factionalism in our party. We have to create a different culture where we respect and support each other in a different way,” he said.
“We are going to have to have change here. We have got to bury this factionalism that has meant too many people seeing things through factional eyes instead of pulling tougher and supporting our party.
Advertisement
“If we carry on taking lumps out of each other we are heading for a loss at the next general election.
“If we lose the next general election, that will be five in a row, and we will be out of power as a party for longer than any period since the Second World War.”
Starmer warned that “everybody who is taking a lump out of somebody else” in the party was “letting down” the voters “that most need us”.
The Labour leader added he and deputy leader Angela Rayner would always present a “united” front.
“There won’t be any splits or differences between us,” he pledged.
Rayner, who hosted the call with party members from the flat she shares with former party leadership candidate Rebecca Long-Bailey, said she recognised the contents of the report had “upset” many party members.
Starmer and Rayner have commissioned an independent inquiry into the contents of the document as well as how it was leaked.
Advertisement
Rayner told party members it would not be “pushed into long grass” and would deliver a “swift response”.
“We do not believe that this is something that should go away,” Rayner added.
The 860-page dossier, first seen by Sky News, included WhatsApp conversations between some senior party staff privately expressing views hostile to Corbyn during his time as leader.
Matthew Horwood via Getty Images
In exchanges following the 2017 general election exit poll, which showed Labour had unexpectedly denied the Conservative Party a majority, staff opposed to Corbyn told each other “everyone needs to smile” and had to pretend “to be upbeat”.
One staff member said of the result, which – while still a loss for Labour – was better than most had predicted: “The people have spoken. Bastards.”
Advertisement
The report also details various disparaging comments, including one staff member referring to an ally of Corbyn as “pube head”. While Corbyn himself was described as a “lying little toerag”
One Labour MP seen to be on the left of the party was called “the biggest cunt out of the lot” while another was called “repulsive”.
The dossier was prepared as Labour awaits the conclusions of an Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) investigation into anti-Semitism in the party.
Corbyn’s time as leader was dogged by claims that he and officials did not act strongly enough against claims of anti-Jewish racism.
The leaked document argued there was “no evidence” of anti-Semitism complaints being handled differently from other forms of complaint, or of current or former staff being “motivated by anti-Semitic intent”.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Cardi B Teams Up With Bernie Sanders On Instagram Live To Scorch Trump’s Coronavirus Response

LOADING ERROR LOADING
It’s safe to say that Bernie Sanders and his superfan Cardi B do not like President Donald Trump.
Or at least that was the main takeaway from the very fiery conversation the musician and her “Uncle Bernie” had on Instagram Live on Wednesday night, in which both were extremely critical of the president’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Bodak Yellow rapper wouldn’t even call Trump by his name and instead referred to him as “45” (he’s the 45th president).
Advertisement
She began by slamming Trump and many of his high-profile supporters for initially trying to downplay the threat of the looming pandemic by claiming that Democrats were just using health crisis to hurt his re-election chances.
In late February, Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, said on Fox & Friends that Democrats hoped millions of Americans would die so “they can end Donald Trump’s streak of winning.”
In early March, Fox News’ Sean Hannity echoed that theory on his radio show, saying that the media and Democrats were “politicising” and “weaponising” the spread of the virus “to bludgeon” Trump.
Advertisement
The president himself went so far as to blame his predecessor, former President Barack Obama, in late March for his administration’s slow response to the pandemic by saying it inherited a “broken, obsolete system” for testing for a disease that did not exist until last year.
Cardi B said these tactics used by Trump and his allies “baffled my mental.”
“The thing is, honey, you don’t need the Democrats to make you look bad,” she said of Trump and his supporters. “You make your own self look bad.”
Cardi B also slammed Trump’s treatment of the media during his press briefings, saying the president has had plenty of opportunities to make himself look like “he actually cares” when answering journalists’ questions. But instead he “shushed them off or degrades” reporters.
Sanders detailed other shortcomings in Trump’s early responses to the outbreak, which included ignoring scientists and opting not to use the Defense Production Act “to tell private companies that instead of producing underwear right now or socks they got to start producing masks and ventilators.”
Advertisement
One day I’ll tell my grandchildren about the time I gaffe taped Bernie Sanders’ iPad to a cushion so he could talk with his hands while live streaming with Cardi B. pic.twitter.com/ggbqNBW7BM — Chris Witschy (@filmthebern) April 15, 2020
“He didn’t do any of that,” said Sanders, who ended his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination earlier this month and has endorsed the presumptive nominee, Joe Biden.
The independent also broke down why he thinks people should vote for Joe Biden this year as he offered a scathing analysis of Trump’s character.
“Donald Trump is to my mind the most dangerous president in the modern history of America,” Sanders said. “This is a guy who lies all the time, he doesn’t believe in science, he downplayed this whole coronavirus, which has led to the deaths of many thousands of people dying unnecessarily.”
He added: “He doesn’t believe in the Constitution, he thinks he’s above the law. So this is a bad-news guy that has got to be defeated and I will do everything that I can to defeat him.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--Coronavirus Killing Men At Twice The Rate Of Women In England And Wales

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Coronavirus is killing men at double the rate of women in England and Wales, new figures published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show.
The data, published on Thursday morning, also revealed that 91% of deaths related to the virus recorded in March involved at least one pre-existing condition.
Advertisement
Covid-19 was the underlying cause of death in 3,372 deaths in March: the equivalent of 69 per 100,000 people.
It accounted for 7% of all deaths in England and Wales that month – 9% of all deaths for males and 6% for females.
The mortality rate for men (97.5 deaths due to Covid-19 per 100,000 people) is more than double than that for women (46.5 deaths per 100,000 people), though it is important to note that men generally have a higher mortality rate than women.
There is not yet any publicly-available data in the gender breakdown of the number of overall coronavirus infections in the UK. While the rates of death from Covid-19 are clearly much higher in men worldwide, Global Health 50:50 – which tracks data on the virus and gender – has not yet found any clear pattern in the rate of diagnosis.
Advertisement
Earlier this month The Times reported that the higher mortality rate in men could be attributed to engaging in what is known by scientists as “risky behaviour” such as smoking or drinking, which can exacerbate the risk of underlying conditions such as heart or lung disease.
But while the difference in behaviour such as smoking is more pronounced worldwide (34% of men smoke compared with 6% of women according to 2016 figures published by WHO), it compares with a difference of just 4% in the Britain, with 17% of men smoking compared to 13% of women.
The answer to the question of why men have a higher mortality rate could also be found in genetics. Sharon Moalem, author of The Better Half: On the Genetic Superiority of Women, told BBC Radio 4 that the extra X chromosome could improve chances of survival.
He said: “Many immune-related genes are on the X chromosome, which means every female has an extra 1,000 genes over every male to be able to use to dip into that genetic knowledge when necessary.”
Other comparable viruses, such as Sars and Mers, have also historically disproportionately impacted men more severely, CNN reported, with a study in Hong Kong showing that men with Sars had a higher mortality rate than women. Similar studies, conducted in Saudi Arabia and South Korea, came to the same conclusion with regards to the Mers outbreak.
Advertisement
The ONS figures revealed that in March, coronavirus was the third largest cause of death in England and Wales – beaten only by dementia and Alzheimer disease and ischaemic heart diseases.
New statistics were released by the ONS on Thursday, Victoria Jones - PA Images via Getty Images
Those aged between 85 and 89-years-old made up the largest proportion of Covid-19 deaths in March. The figures show that 21% of men who died from Covid-19 were aged 80 to 84 years old, while 20% of the deaths in women were made up of those in the two highest age categories provided by the ONS – 85 to 89 years and 90 years and over.
The most common underlying health condition for those who died with coronavirus was ischaemic heart diseases – accounting for 541 deaths, and 14% of all deaths including Covid-19.
Pneumonia, dementia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were all in the top five most common pre-existing conditions.
Advertisement
The data reveals that, despite the thousands of deaths from coronavirus, March’s mortality rate was actually lower than the five-year average – however the number for last month is expected to increase as new registrations are accounted for.
The ONS have said this lower mortality rate could be attributed to the colder winters experienced in in 2015 and 2018, which led to a higher number of deaths in the winter months.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-04-16--How Was Quiz Star Michael Sheen Transformed Into Chris Tarrant?

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Michael Sheen’s incredible portrayal of Chris Tarrant in ITV’s hit drama Quiz has been a joy to watch.
In fact, he was so convincing even ITV got a little confused.
But as well as nailing his voice and mannerisms, the actor had to undergo a major physical transformation to resemble the former Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? presenter.
Advertisement
So just how did this dark, curly-haired actor...
Michael Sheen Jon Kopaloff via Getty Images
...end up looking so much like this blond, perma-tanned broadcaster?
Chris Tarrant Kieran Doherty / Reuters
Surprisingly, no major prosthetics were used
Chris Tarrant and Michael Sheen PA
Michael Sheen was against using them as he felt they would “restrict” his portrayal of Chris Tarrant.
Advertisement
Make-up artist Julie Kendrick told PA news agency: “This was a discussion very early on when I first met Michael about whether we did or didn’t (use prosthetics). In my mind, I was thinking we could do some form of prosthetics but Michael very much did not want to.
“He finds them quite restrictive and he also felt that it was his interpretation of Tarrant.”
Actually, there was one tiny piece of prosthetic make-up…
A small mole was added to Michael Sheen’s chin.
Other minor tweaks were also made to Michael’s regular appearance
ITV
These included bleaching his eyebrows, the use of a wig, “quite heavy” shading and a tan (obviously).
One of the biggest challenges was disguising Michael Sheen’s naturally very dark hair - including his eyebrows
ITV
Advertisement
Julie explains: “[Michael] was very much up for that because Chris Tarrant is very fair and Michael is very dark so in order to make a dark person blonde we had to completely eradicate his dark hair. So it was getting rid of his dark eyebrows and getting rid of his dark hair.
“He’s got such a beautiful head of gorgeous, dark, curly hair and it’s very springy. I plastered it down every single day with some form of hair glue so it was very tight to his head and then we put on some plastic sealer on top and then a bald cap on top of that, so there were three layers before the wig actually went on.”
Copies of Chris Tarrant’s teeth were created but never got used
ITV
Julie explains: “I did measure [Michael] for some teeth and we got some teeth made just in case.
“Because Chris Tarrant’s teeth are slightly off centre, when examining all photographs I had of him… that makes his smile very specific and I thought that might be a nice thing to give Michael to use and it’s all about giving actors things they can play with.
“So the teeth could have helped or hindered the performance and we tried them and he didn’t really want them.”
Advertisement
It was still a lengthy process getting Michael camera-ready each day
The actor spent two hours in hair and make-up every day of filming. “It was quite a lengthy process,” Julie explains.
“It was two hours pretty much, we managed to reduce it down to an hour and a half some days.”
Quiz is available to watch on the ITV Hub now.