thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--How To Have The Best Lockdown BBQ This Bank Holiday Weekend

BRETT STEVENS via Getty Images Mans hand picking up lamb and chicken skewer from table
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Whether you’ve been having pre-dinner drinks, Zoom discos, balcony BBQs, solo gigs, or neighbourly garden catch-ups, it looks like the sun is set to shine again this bank holiday weekend.
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Those lucky enough to have outdoor space might be thinking about alfresco dining and firing up the grill, but for those not blessed with gardens there are still get arounds to ensure maximum sunshine and good food.
Barbecues are supposed to be a time for getting together with friends and families, but since seeing them in-person is off the cards. why not try something different? From buying better ingredients to menu planning and making playlists, here’s how to have the best lockdown barbecue.
Blacklock Blacklock
Menu plan ahead of time.
The centre of every barbecue is the food, so why not use your time wisely to write down what you want to eat and cook? Being organised and planning out dishes might seem over the top for a humble backyard barbecue, but it’s a great way to ensure you have all bases covered and you’re not overcooking.
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We know it’s not always possible, but if you can, shop locally and seasonally. Opt for butchers and they’ll be able to guide you through any questions or dilemmas you might have. “Regarding meat, buy the very best that you can,” advises Gordon Ker, owner and founder of London steak and chophouse Blacklock, which has launched its own meat hamper. “Ask your butcher where the meat comes from, how long has it been aged for, and what the breed is.”
Blacklock Blacklock Meat Hamper
Pen a virtual date in the diary.
Mass gatherings and family get-togethers might be prohibited right now, but there are still ways to feel connected even when we’re miles apart. Coincide with other friends who are planning time in the sun and plan a group video session together. Try prepping, cooking and eating together, so it feels as if you’re in the same space. Sure, it won’t be the same as actually seeing each other IRL, but it’ll feel less lonely and it’s still a good chance to catch up.
Dance, dance, dance.
Set the mood with the right tunes, you can even team up with friends and family to create a collaborative playlist on Spotify. Prepare for an all-night dance-a-thon or a big musical clash that can make or break a quarantine family: you decide.
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Maria Bell Smokestak
Go low and slow for meat.
Typically, meat gets all the limelight when we think about barbecues, it’s worth keeping quality over quantity in mind. Lamb, chicken, and pork can work well being brined and marinated beforehand.
“Use aromatics such as rosemary, garlic, lemon, olive oil. Put it in the fridge for a day to really maximise on flavours,” suggests David Carter, owner and chef of London-based barbecue restaurant Smokestak. “But, for good beef a little bit of sea salt goes a long way, you needn’t fuss over too much.”
With everything in place, now we’re cooking. It’s important to check temperatures and one of the biggest mistakes grillers tend to make is to start cooking too soon. No matter what you’re cooking, wait until the flames die before you start loading your ingredients.
“Gently does it when it comes to meat. Start low and you can always gradually build the heat,” Carter advises. “When you go in too hot there’s no going back. Grilling is all about patience, you shouldn’t go too fast with it and learn to take your time.”
Give the sides time to shine.
What’s a burger without a side salad? Or, pulled pork minus the coleslaw? Don’t overlook the sides, they’re just as important as the main event and deserve your attention too. And if you’re vegetarian or vegan, make them the main event.
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“You need three to four sides max at a barbecue,” explains On The Side cookbook author and food writer Ed Smith. “A leafy salad, potato side (probably lukewarm or cold salad of boiled baby potatoes, dressed as you see fit), and something that’s been charred on the barbecue slathered with butter, olive oil. This weekend, try charred vegetables such as asparagus, courgettes, hispi cabbage, and corn on the cob.”
Joe Woodhouse Grilled hispi cabbage
Drink it all in.
As we welcome the warmer weather with open arms, cool yourself down with refreshing cocktails that you can easily rustle up using whatever bits you have in your drinks collection. Nothing says ‘cheers to the weekend’ like a virtually raised glass.
“Go for something with acidity to cut through, or tannins that marry with the protein,” recommends Ryan Chetiyawardana, owner and bartender of Lyaness Bar in London. “Citrus, teas, fortified wines all are great ingredients to reach for. Keep it light though. Think: whisky highballs or spritzes to match the day drinking.”
For a stress-free party beverage whip up a big batch cocktail that can last all day long, which saves time and effort.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--9 Funny And Feel-Good Tweets To Kick Off Your Bank Holiday

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Zoran Milic via Getty Images
We’re here to guide you through the coronavirus lockdown. Sign up to the Life newsletter for daily tips, advice, how-tos and escapism.
The sun is shining and a bank holiday is upon us, which means it’s time to take a break from lockdown life and have a giggle. To help, we’ve rounded up our favourite laugh-out-loud and downright lovely tweets from the week.
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Enjoy the long weekend if you’ve got time off work, or take two minutes to laugh at a sausage dog if not – you deserve it.
1. Oscar the ingenious sausage dog
All hail Oscar, who’s figured out the key to social distancing.
How to keep people 6 feet away.
pic.twitter.com/NY8BywDtyb — Austin Kellerman (@AustinKellerman) May 3, 2020
2. The bride who’s still dancing
Having your wedding cancelled due to coronavirus sucks, but journalist Anna Silverman hasn’t let it destroy her spirit. The “fuck it” energy in this video is contagious.
Well if you can’t drunkenly roam the streets singing Human League in a veil on your would-be-wedding-day-before-corona-fucked-it, when can you!!??? pic.twitter.com/BBCwFbUtPe — Anna Silverman (@AnnaSilverman1) May 3, 2020
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3. Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s kitchen discos
If you haven’t yet checked out SEB’s kitchen discos, you need to. Every Friday she goes live on Instagram, singing disco classics alongside the occasional curveball (see below). Highlights are posted on Twitter.
Sophie’s great and all, but her kids are the stars of the show, sometimes dancing along, sometimes looking utterly bored in the background.
Every week after the kitchen disco, you can come to the aftershow party at around 7pm where I'll sip my cocktail & sing an extra song that isn't disco but might be FUN (or just a bit deranged, but what the hey). This is from Friday's. Julie Andrews ALWAYS makes me feel better. ❤ pic.twitter.com/F3FIQwrIoO — Sophie Ellis-Bextor (@SophieEB) May 3, 2020
5. The confused cows
A case of mistaken identity – but the pup looks like he’s loving every minute.
This is hilarious, they must have thought it was one of their calves pic.twitter.com/26RoFd8HIG — Giles Paley-Phillips (@eliistender10) May 2, 2020
6. This remix of the BBC News theme
There have been a lot of remixes of the BBC news theme during lockdown, but Ben Howell’s mashup with Dua Lipa’s ‘Hallucinate’ made it onto the actual news. Props to Greg James for getting it on the telly.
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7. Just a priest, having a rave
We do not need context because this video is already everything.
belfast tiktok is truly a wild west if it's not kneecapping videos it's priests cutting about streets in holymobiles pic.twitter.com/ty9Wm1X35g — Anna Cafolla (@AnnaCafolla) May 5, 2020
8. If you know, you know
Actor Fionn O’Shea is no-doubt a lovely human being. The character of Jamie, however...
9. The clingy cat
Us at the first sign of physical contact with another human being after lockdown.
Would never let you go. pic.twitter.com/cTu19a8fAT — Cats Being Awkward (@SoVeryAwkward) May 1, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--'Their Story Is An Important One': Lockdown Through The Eyes Of Teenagers

Harry, aged 16 Captured by Harry, aged 16
We’re here to guide you through the coronavirus lockdown. Sign up to the Life newsletter for daily tips, advice, how-tos and escapism.
Harry, 16, is curled up among a pile of books and papers, in a self-portrait that’ll no doubt resonate with teenagers across the country trying to study at home.
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“I wanted to convey the stressful feeling of having to learn by myself in isolation with the looming fear of A Level exams next year,” the year 12 student says. “It seems like my bedroom turned into my classroom before I knew it. A ‘work-life balance’ topples over when your life is put on hold.”
Harry’s photograph is just one of the striking images in ‘Through Our Lens’, a photo series captured by 12- to 18-year-olds to show their everyday lockdown experiences.
Jennifer, aged 16 Captured by Jennifer, aged 16
The project is being overseen by artist and photographer Carolyn Mendelsohn, who has three teenage children herself. She thinks their voices have been missing from public discourse during the pandemic.
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“Their lives have been turned upside down,” she tells HuffPost UK. “All major exams cancelled, rites of passage like the prom, the school timetable, the ability to meet up with their friends and social groups. The structure of their lives has completely changed, and many are very isolated.
“I feel passionately that their story is a very important one, and should be made visible.”
Morgan, aged 16 Captured by Morgan, aged 16
Mendelsohn’s own work, including a major exhibition, was cancelled during lockdown, which she says was “a huge shock and a blow”. Instead, she launched this photo project with the help of Bradford City Council’s ‘Response’ fund – a grant being given to artists to find ways of responding to the situation.
She found teenagers to take part by creating a visual flyer that was shared with local schools and on social media.
After getting permission from parents, Mendelsohn hosted weekly Zoom sessions, teaching the teens who wanted to be involved the basics of photography. She covered key topics such as composition techniques, light and portraiture, but largely left the group to their own devices.
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“I think it’s important to encourage them to use their own creativity when expressing their personal situation through photography,” she says. “They, in return, surprise me with their original ideas and ingenuity. It’s important to me that the work is truly theirs, and represents them.”
Ella B, aged 14 Captured by Ella B, aged 14
Mendelsohn believes the project has already had a beneficial impact because it’s helped the teens involved express themselves and boosted their wellbeing.
“I hope that people will be moved and want to see more,” she adds, “that the amazing ability of these young people to communicate their lives through their image leads to a greater understanding about teenagers’ extraordinary experiences at this time.”
When social distancing restrictions end, Mendelsohn’s dream is for the images to be exhibited in a public space to give recognition to the teens.
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But for now, you can check out a selection of the images below or follow Through Our Lens on Instagram to see more.
Chester, aged 15 Captured by Chester, aged 15
Alice, aged 17 Captured by Alice, aged 17
Holly, aged 15 Captured by Holly, aged 15
Hamza, aged 14 Captured by Hamza, aged 14
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Amy, aged 15 Captured by Amy, aged 15
Scout, aged 16 Captured by Scout, aged 16


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--When You Have Autism, Consent And Communication During Sex Is Even More Complicated

HuffPost UK Getty Images
You’re reading Sex Diaries, a HuffPost UK Personal series about how we are (or aren’t) having sex. To share your story, get in touch on ukpersonal@huffpost.com
Read any advice on improving your sex life, from Cosmo columns to online how-tos, and the first thing you’ll see will be about the value of communication. It is incredibly important – but when you are autistic like me, it’s not always so simple.
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While autism affects every person differently, difficulty with communication is one of the most unifying experiences. I used to be anxious about whether I was reading body language, facial expressions and those subtle nuanced changes, and worry about whether or not I was interpreting things correctly. As a result, I became nervous not only about sex, but about any situation which might lead to it – from nights out with friends to casual dates.
At one point, I actually swore off sex forever, resigning myself to spinsterhood. I was 20 and being slightly melodramatic, but the reality was that I could not envisage being calm enough about sex to consider being intimate with someone. I’ve had plenty of social mishaps and awkward moments derived from me not understanding the tone or subtle social nuances – but when it comes to intimate relationships, where both you and your partners are vulnerable with each other, those miscommunications can mean greater ramifications.
“When friend would recount their experiences flirting and getting off with strangers, I would sit there confused as to how they even knew other people were interested.”
Not having exciting sexual escapades during my first few years at university was isolating. While my friends at university were enjoying the freedom that comes with not living with your parents, I was sat at home alone. When they would recount their experiences flirting and getting off with strangers, I would sit there confused as to how they even knew that other people were interested.
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To try and counter this, I make it clear to partners from the start that I’m autistic and that I can need clear directions – vague flirting and an expectation to read body language is more likely to stress me out than turn me on. For some, this might sound like the most unsexy thing in the world, but it doesn’t seem to be for me and potential partners – if anything we are reassured each of us feels safe enough to even have that discussion.
When I came out as a lesbian at fourteen I became the go-to person to ask about sex, queer or otherwise. For some reason, that came with an assumption that I was a font of all knowledge when it came to things like scissoring and how to flirt with women (oh, how I wish that were true). As a result, I have always been fairly clued up about sex and where to find information about it. That being said, there’s been a lot of trial and error to get to this point. There have been times where partners and I caused inadvertent (but never serious) harm to one another, caused physical pain, or frankly just did not enjoy the sex we were having.
In spite of this, I had found almost nothing about sex and disability. Even now, years later, so little has been written on autistic people and how we have sex – even by autistic people ourselves – that you might be fooled into thinking we were not doing it at all.
“As a queer disabled girl, I never received any sex education that would be relevant to me, and was forced me to find out things for myself.”
That’s because autistic folks, like many disabled people, are seen as wholly non-sexual. Disabled people are seen as undateable, and those of us with autism as heartless or empathetic. As a queer disabled girl, I never received any sex education that would be relevant to me, and was forced me to find out things for myself – through both theoretical and let’s just say more practical research. It was incredibly difficult, but being forced to find these things out for myself meant that I was better educated than my peers. I’m more empowered and able to articulate what I want and need with clarity and confidence as a result.
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Still, I would not want this for others. In hindsight, I was at a lot of risk. I was never taught about navigating boundaries, taught about how to know people’s intentions, even taught about my own safety and communicating my own needs. There’s little data on the subject, but what we do have indicates that autistic people are at higher risk of being victims of sexual abuse.
Sex and disability is still a topic society has not learned how to discuss. Even now, writing this piece, I know there will be people perturbed by the idea of disabled people having sex. That risks the safety and enjoyment of many different people who at could be deprived of the sex life they desire and at worst be put at risk of abuse.
Communication is, after all, a two-way street. The struggles autistic people like me might have are as much about people not knowing how to communicate with us as it is us struggling to communicate with them.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--Queen Says 'Never Give Up, Never Despair' During VE Day Address To Nation In Lockdown

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The Queen has delivered a poignant message to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day – praising the nation’s response to the coronavirus outbreak that has filled empty streets with “love and care”.
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As she remembered Britain’s Second World War sacrifices and the “joyous celebrations” that followed the end of fighting in Europe, the head of state paid tribute to the positive qualities of today’s generation.
The tireless efforts of NHS staff, care and key workers, and communities helping the vulnerable, reflected a nation “those brave soldiers, sailors and airmen would recognise and admire,” said the Queen.
And she highlighted the message of VE (Victory in Europe) Day that resonates with the country’s plight today – “Never give up, never despair”.
Her televised address came at the end of national celebrations, curtailed due to the lockdown, marking 75 years to the day Britain and its Allies formally accepted Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender, following almost six years of brutal warfare.
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PA Media
Speaking from Windsor Castle’s white drawing room, the Queen said in her pre-recorded message: “The wartime generation knew that the best way to honour those who did not come back from the war, was to ensure that it didn’t happen again.
“The greatest tribute to their sacrifice is that countries who were once sworn enemies are now friends, working side by side for the peace, health and prosperity of us all.
“Today it may seem hard that we cannot mark this special anniversary as we would wish. Instead we remember from our homes and our doorsteps.
“But our streets are not empty; they are filled with the love and the care that we have for each other.
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“And when I look at our country today, and see what we are willing to do to protect and support one another, I say with pride that we are still a nation those brave soldiers, sailors and airmen would recognise and admire.”
After the broadcast, the nation was invited to open doors and windows and take part in sing-a-long of Forces’ Sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn’s wartime anthem We’ll Meet Again, during the BBC’s VE Day 75 show.
The Queen’s words were her second televised address during the coronavirus outbreak and followed her speech to the country on April 5, when she delivered a message of hope, saying if we remained resolute in the face of the outbreak “we will overcome it”.
And she echoed Dame Vera’s words by telling those in lockdown “we will meet again”.
The Queen’s father King George VI was an important part of her speech which was broadcast at 9pm, the exact time of his radio address to the nation on May 8 1945.
The Royal Air Force Red Arrows pass over the London Eye on the bank of the River Thames during a flypast in central London to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day. EMPICS Entertainment
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A picture of the King was next to the Queen on her desk as she spoke, and her address began with black and white footage of her father’s wartime speech.
George said: “Let us remember the men of all the services and the women in all of the services who have laid down their lives. We have come to the end of our tribulation and they are not with us at the moment of our rejoicing.”
The Queen, then Princess Elizabeth, started the war as a schoolgirl but ended it in uniform as a junior commander with the Auxiliary Territorial Service.
Speaking about the beginning of the conflict she said: “At the start, the outlook seemed bleak, the end distant, the outcome uncertain. But we kept faith that the cause was right – and this belief, as my father noted in his broadcast, carried us through.
“Never give up, never despair – that was the message of VE Day.
“I vividly remember the jubilant scenes my sister and I witnessed with our parents and Winston Churchill from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
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“The sense of joy in the crowds who gathered outside and across the country was profound, though while we celebrated the victory in Europe, we knew there would be further sacrifice.”
During the Queen’s address black and white footage was shown of the famous Buckingham Palace balcony moment when the Queen, her family and Sir Winston acknowledged the crowds.
There were scenes of revellers conga-ing through the streets, others ballroom dancing in celebration and street parties being staged with tables full of food.
Even the Queen ventured out with a group of friends, including her sister Princess Margaret, to experience the excitement, with the events forming the basis of the film A Royal Night Out.
The monarch went on to say in her broadcast, screened at the end of VE Day 75, a programme of music and memories presented by Sophie Raworth: “It was not until August that fighting in the Far East ceased and the war finally ended.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--Government Minister Urges McDonalds Drive-Throughs To Reopen

Environment secretary George Eustice during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus (COVID-19). PA
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A government minister has urged the reopening of some restaurant take away services, saying “a McDonalds drive-though is made for the social-distancing situation we are in”.
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Speaking at the the daily No.10 press briefing on Friday, environment secretary George Eustice said he had been in touch with “food-to-go outlets” about how they could serve the public safely while lockdown measures are in place.
Many restaurants including McDonalds and KFC chose to close all their stores despite being exempt from the government’s lockdown rules.
Eustice said: “It is the case that when we originally did the lockdown, we were quite explicit that it didn’t cover take away food. While clearly restaurants and pubs had to close, we were quite keen to keep capacity.”
He suggested reduced footfall in town centres, staff anxiety and a sense of what was “socially acceptable” given the stay-at-home message had led to places such as McDonald’s and KFC closing.
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He added: “I think it is quite possible for these venues to reopen and reopen safely, we never mandated that they should close.
“We have learned a lot from supermarkets and other food outlets about how you can do social distancing and do it well.
“I think some of those food-to-go businesses will probably be seeking to learn lessons from what supermarkets have done as they consider tentatively reopening.”
McDonald’s has unveiled the location of the 15 restaurants it plans to reopen for deliveries next week, after the fast food chain closed all its sites in March at the start of the coronavirus lockdown.
The stores, which are clustered around London and the South East, will offer a limited menu, including some vegetarian options, delivered within their local areas.
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KFC, which has over 900 sites nationwide and employs around 24,000 people, shut all its restaurants last month due to the coronavirus lockdown.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-08--Questions Raised After Footage Emerges Of Police Tasering Man In Front Of Child In Manchester

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has demanded an urgent review after a man was tasered by police in front of his distressed young child earlier this week.
Mobile phone footage widely shared on social media showed an apparent altercation between a man and two police officers at a petrol station in Stretford on Wednesday night.
The man is seen standing next to a marked police car and puts down his crying child before moments later he falls to the ground as a Taser is fired by one of the officers, PA Media reports.
The child then becomes hysterical and screams “daddy”.
The footage goes on to show the man being ordered to put his hands behind his back while he is on the floor, as the child is carried away.
It is understood the child was kept safe by officers after the incident and then taken to a close family member.
On Friday, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said Desmond Ziggy Mombeyarara, 34, had been been charged with a number of offences including two counts of resisting a constable in the execution of their duty.
It is alleged Mombeyarara was seen by officers driving at high speed in Chester Road, Stretford, shortly before 11pm on Wednesday and he was subsequently stopped and arrested.
GMP confirmed a Taser was deployed during the arrest and the matter has been voluntarily referred to the Independence Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
The force added the referral followed a review by its professional standards branch and it would “ensure transparency and independence in terms of reviewing the circumstances of the arrest”.
Superintendent Mark Kenny said: “We are aware of public concern regarding this arrest and I want to reassure the public that this matter is being reviewed and treated seriously.”
In a statement, Burnham said: “On Friday morning a video was brought to my attention of a police incident at a petrol station in Greater Manchester involving two police officers, a man, a child and the user of a Taser.
“I was concerned about what I saw and immediately asked GMP to look into it and provide me with an explanation of what had happened.
“From what I have been told, it would appear that the officers were right to apprehend the individual who was putting his child and others at risk by his actions.
“He has subsequently been charged. But it is not at all clear that the level of force used in this instance, particularly in front of a child, was proportionate or justified and that is why I have asked for an urgent and independent review to be carried out.”
Mombeyarara, of Cornbrook Park Road, Old Trafford, was due to appear at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Friday to also face other allegations including driving at excess speed, driving while unfit through alcohol, failing to stop and unnecessary travel.
Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds tweeted that he had spoken to Burnham about the incident.
He wrote: “Have been in touch with @AndyBurnhamGM about this incident, and I am glad to see that he has asked for an urgent and independent review of what has happened”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Trump Says Coronavirus 'Will Go Away Without A Vaccine', Contradicting Top Health Official (And Hims

Trump Says Coronavirus 'Will Go Away Without A Vaccine', Contradicting Top Health Official (And Himself)

He added: “There are some viruses or flus that came and they went for a vaccine, and they never found the vaccine.
“And they’ve disappeared. They never showed up again. They die, too, like everything else.”
But even as he attempted to defend his position – which directly contradicts that of health experts – he acknowledged that a vaccine would be “very helpful”.
Trump said: “Eventually it’s going to go away. The question is will we need a vaccine?
“At some point it’s going to probably go away by itself. If we had a vaccine that would be very helpful.”
Trump’s comments came just weeks after Dr Anthony Fauci – a leading immunology expert at the scientific forefront of the US’ response to Covid-19 – said the exact opposite.
When asked on Fox News in April whether or not Joe Bidens’ assertion that “this isn’t going to be over until we have a vaccine” was correct, Fauci said there was “truth” in the democrat frontrunner’s claim.
He added: “It’s not going to be over to the point of our being able to not do any mitigation until we have a scientifically sound, safe and effective vaccine.”
Days earlier, Fauci had been asked during a White House briefing if the country could “truly get back to normal... before there’s an actual vaccine that’s available to everybody.”
At the time he responded: “If ‘back to normal’ means acting like there never was a coronavirus problem, I don’t think that’s going to happen until we do have a situation where you can completely protect the population.”
But the US president didn’t just stop at contradicting his leading expert – he also contradicted himself.
Just days ago, during a virtual Fox News town hall event, Trump told viewers that the US “needs the vaccine” – predicting it would be available by December.
He said: “I want it — I need the vaccine.
“We need — this country needs the vaccine. And you’re going to have it by the end of the year. I firmly believe it.
“I may be wrong.”
Meanwhile, Trump also said on Friday during a meeting with Republican lawmakers that he expected the nation’s death toll to reach at least 95,000. The US currently has more than 1.3m confirmed cases of the virus.
It was confirmed on Friday that vice president Mile Pence’s press secretary Katie Miller had tested positive for coronavirus, sparking concern that members of the White House inner circle were at serious risk of infection.
Miller is married to Trump’s immigration adviser and speech writer Stephen Miller. On Thursday it was announced that one of Trump’s personal valets had tested positive for the virus.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Miriam Margoyles Says She Wanted Boris Johnson To Die Of Coronavirus During Appearance On The Last L

Miriam Margoyles Says She Wanted Boris Johnson To Die Of Coronavirus During Appearance On The Last Leg

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Miriam Margolyes has divided viewers of The Last Leg after saying she wanted Boris Johnson to die after he was hospitalised and admitted to intensive care with coronavirus.
The controversial actor made the comments about the prime minister during an appearance on Friday’s episode of The Last Leg Locked Down Under.
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Miriam Margolyes PA
When the Harry Potter star was asked how she thinks the government is handling the coronavirus pandemic, she said she had “difficulty not wanting Boris Johnson to die”.
Miriam Margolyes has no filter - that's why her v.blunt feelings about Boris Johnson and #Covid19 are no surprise. pic.twitter.com/aE8vv0y0H4 — Lorna Cooper🏴🇯🇲🇬🇾 (@Coops_tv) May 9, 2020
“It’s a disgrace, it’s a scandal,” she said. “It’s a public scandal. I had difficulty not wanting Boris Johnson to die.
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’I wanted him to die. Then I thought that will reflect badly on me and I don’t want to be the sort of person that wants people to die.
“So then I wanted him to get better, which he did do, he did get better. But he didn’t get better as a human being. And I really would prefer that.
“So we’re in the shit, basically, here.”
Her comments received a mixed response by viewers on Twitter...
Miriam Margolyes appears to be struggling with this lockdown. But that does not excuse what she said on live TV last night. Truly appalling #thelastleg — Sam Murray (@sammurraytory) May 9, 2020
I like her but that comment was a step to far #MiriamMargolyes pic.twitter.com/S1j2I2rZD7 — Martin Marson (@Marson099) May 9, 2020
Memo to Miriam Margolyes: If your sense of morality is not drastically superior to Myra Hindley's, you probably wanna buck your ideas up a bit. pic.twitter.com/RmFZKBcg2j — Alf Garnett (@FunnyAlfGarnett) May 9, 2020
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Here's the video of #MiriamMargolyes stating she wished that @BorisJohnson would die. What a VILE woman https://t.co/G2wKYxBpIN — David Vance (@DVATW) May 9, 2020
However, many viewers saluted the star’s honesty...
Me considering the fact people are getting their knickers in a twist about Miriam Margolyes but not getting equally upset at holding the government accountable for avoidable deaths, including those of NHS workers #MiriamMargolyes pic.twitter.com/N0ZaPl54dP — Rachel Love-Howseman ♥ (@rachlove31) May 9, 2020
I love how Miriam Margolyes has absolutely no filter whatsoever 😂 #thelastleg — Emma (@EmzieLangan) May 8, 2020
Miriam Margolyes is trending and I couldn't be happier she is without a doubt the woman I want to grow up to be.She's 100% amazing at all times. pic.twitter.com/KRxpRO9yga — Emma Flinders (@FlindersEmma) May 9, 2020
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The right: "I really like Katie Hopkins, she just says what she thinks and is being honest!"
Miriam Margolyes says what she thinks and is honest.
The right: "Not like that" — Richard Allen (@Richard_J_Allen) May 9, 2020
Johnson is responsible for thousands upon thousand of actual deaths.
Save your outrage for him — Miriam Margolyes is just voicing a thought that must have crossed many people's minds.pic.twitter.com/pSwtA5QUmI — JD Black #UTFC (@_JD_Black) May 8, 2020
The 78-year-old star is known for shooting from the hip and telling people exactly what she thinks, and things were no different when she was asked about the lockdown on This Morning last month.
Speaking to hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield on the ITV daytime show, she said: “I actually don’t give a stuff about the economy, I want people to survive. So I think Boris Johnson is completely right about that. He’s not right about anything else, but he is right about that.”
David M. Benett via Getty Images
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On how she was coping with the situation herself, Miriam said: “Not very well actually, I don’t like it but I’m keeping all the rules and doing the right thing. It’s the only time I ever thought that I would agree with Mr. Johnson, but I do and we’ve all just got to stick it.
“I didn’t think that I was going to have to spend the rest of my life sitting in my kitchen. But I have got a garden… and that’s lovely.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--'Heartbroken' Gogglebox Stars Pay Tribute To June Bernicoff Following Her Death, Aged 82

Gogglebox’s executive producer Tania Alexander confirmed that June died earlier this week following what she described as a short illness.
June Bernicoff (1937-2020) Anthony Devlin via Getty Images
This week’s episode was dedicated to the former teacher, who left the show in 2017 following her husband Leon’s death.
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At the end of last night’s episode, the show paid tribute to June with a title card that simply read: “In loving memory, June Bernicoff, 1937-2020.”
Many of the show’s stars - past and present - have also paid tribute.
Scarlett Moffatt - who originally found fame on the show before winning I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! - shared a snap of June and her husband Leon to Instagram Stories, writing: “You will be missed by all. Reunited with your true love. Sending love to your family and all that knew you and loved you.”
Other stars of the popular series also paid tribute June on Twitter...
Such sad news that June has passed away so so sad such a lovely lady 💔💔re-united with Leon 🌹🌹sending our Condolences to family and friends RIP much love Jenny and Lee ♥xx #RIPJune #Gogglebox pic.twitter.com/tvOHpATC0d — Lee And Jenny (@leegogglebox) May 8, 2020
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Rest in peace our June , reunited with Leon! Forever in our hearts ♥ — GOGGLEBOX STEPHEN (@Stephenwebb71) May 8, 2020
So it’s gogglebox Friday and today we will remember the lovely June @LeonAndJune she was always so kind to us and we always loved to hear from her . Big love #Gogglebox #GoggleboxFriday #junebernicoff — #gogglebox daniel lustig-webb (@lustig75) May 8, 2020
Heartfelt condolences to June's family and friends.Reunited with her beloved Leon xxRIP XX You will be sadly missed xx https://t.co/NSnG4y7Gwh — Gogglebox Malones (@TheMalonesGB) May 8, 2020
So heartbreaking to ear of the sad passing of june, a truly lovely lady ,when she meets up with leon she will Hoover the crackers of his jumper stay happy forever now the two of you #Gogglebox ❤❤❤ — Dave And Shirley (@DaveAndShirley) May 8, 2020
I will never forget the many conversations between June & I. The grandmother I never had. Always asking after my son's & wanting a catch up of their lives. The first to welcome us into the #gogglebox family.
May you and Leon be dancing in eternal happiness again
Heartbroken — GeorgiaGoggleboxWobblebottom (@McCormicksGogg1) May 8, 2020
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Rest in peace June. It was an honour to be on Gogglebox with June and Leon for all those years.
June always took the time to message kind words to me and the boys which shows how lovely a person she was. All my love, thoughts and prayers to the entire family.❤ pic.twitter.com/WGCO1Ar7o7 — Baasit Siddiqui #gogglebox (@baasitsiddiqui) May 8, 2020
We’re so devastated to hear the news that such a wonderful woman June has sadly passed away😪❤ Our love and thoughts go out to her family at this awful time for them❤ being reunited with your beloved Leon😇 #gogglebox #junebernicoff — GoggleboxAbbie&Georgia (@absandge) May 8, 2020
So sad the beautiful June Bernicoff has sadly passed away She starred with her husband Leon in Gogglebox Sending my Condolences to her family and friends May she REST IN PEACE ❤❤❤🙏🏾🙏🏾🌹🌹😔😥 pic.twitter.com/CWXOeNvlYN — OFFICIALSANDIBOGLE (@theSandiBogle) May 8, 2020
June was one of the original stars of the Channel 4 show, appearing in a total of 10 series, alongside her late husband, Leon.
June ultimately decided not to return to Gogglebox following Leon’s death in December 2017, but noted it had been a “great adventure” to be a part of the show.
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Leon and June Bernicoff Mike Marsland via Getty Images
She later admitted she wasn’t watching as much television, as that had been something they enjoyed doing together.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Stranger Than Fiction: Is There A Future For Soaps In A Coronavirus World?

Going to the pub, gossiping with mates, falling in (and out) of love: soap operas are supposed to mirror our daily lives.
So what happens when our reality becomes staying indoors to avoid catching a potentially deadly virus?
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Well, it makes the filming of soaps pretty much impossible. And even throws the whole concept of the genre into doubt.
Silence has fallen over the Coronation Street set. ITV/Shutterstock
Spreading out episodes means that viewers will be served their favourite soaps for another month, perhaps two: but ultimately, delaying the transmission of these serial dramas is a short-term solution to a longer-term problem. Eventually, they will run out of pre-recorded episodes and potentially go off air as it remains unsafe for cast and crew to return to TV studios.
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BBC producers have said EastEnders can stay on screens until early summer without recording any new episodes. Over at ITV, there are enough episodes of Coronation Street in the can to last until the end of June, and Emmerdale until the end of May.
Soap bosses may just about be able to keep shows on air, at least for the time being, but will the inconsistency and unpredictability harm ratings and viewer relationships?
“Soaps haven’t had the opportunity to do a carefully crafted cliffhanger to leave people begging for more when they go off air."”
“There is a worry that a soap is a habit, and will this crisis break that habit with viewers?” reasons Steven Murphy, Editor of Inside Soap magazine.
Steven fears that episodes suddenly stopping could be incredibly jarring. “The soaps haven’t had the opportunity to do a carefully crafted cliffhanger to leave people begging for more when they go off air,” he says.
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On top of the practical challenges with filming, being unable to respond to the daily reality of people’s lives could be a big problem.
Soaps often feature significant public events, such as general elections and royal milestones, so shouldn’t viewers expect something as news-worthy as Covid-19 to be given airtime?
Murphy doesn’t necessarily agree. “I think for the moment viewers are forgiving,” he says. “I think a lot of people are finding it quite comforting to see people do normal things like go to pubs and have parties – a bit like when you watch a travel show on TV and wish you were in that far and distant place.”
An aerial view of the now closed EastEnders set at the BBC's Elstree studios in Hertfordshire. All production at the studios has stopped during the Coronavirus outbreak. LNP/Shutterstock
Glenda Young, a soap fan who runs the Coronation Street Updates fan site, has actually warmed to the new rules of soap life under Covid-19.
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“I’m enjoying only three episodes each week,” she says of Corrie’s new scheduling. “It gives a good breathing space and builds up suspense.”
Glenda also agrees that Coronation Street should swerve the pandemic altogether. “It should remain an escape from reality.”
The trouble is, even if the current format of fewer episodes per week is working for viewers, the practical challenges of keeping shows on air long-term are so tough, none of the major UK soaps were ready to talk to HuffPost UK about their approach to resuming filming.
However, there is one that has managed to get cast and crew back on set amid the virus.
“After 35 years, one of the great strengths of Neighbours is that we can adapt to just about anything – even Covid-19,” says Neighbours Executive Producer Jason Herbison.
The Aussie show is currently paving the way in their approach to filming under lockdown, which began again at the end of April.
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The Ramsay Street sign, home of Neighbours Fremantle Media/Shutterstock
“We spent four weeks developing our return-to-work plan and telling the cast and crew how things were going to run,” says Jason.
Social distancing rules are being respected on set, where satellite teams of cast and crew are socially distancing from each other as a contingency plan to enable the show to keep running if workers fall ill with the virus in one of the teams.
Temperatures are checked daily, and editors are using clever editorial strategies, such as close-ups and individually-shot scenes edited into one frame, to make characters seem closer together.
Snogging, and any other type of physical bodily contact, is strictly off-limits, and the smallest number of people possible are allowed on set. One of the resulting factors of this is crew members replacing extras for the time being.
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“I’m not sure we have any closet actors among the crew,” laughs Jason. “I think they’re all happy to be behind-the-scenes. However, everyone understood that we have to do whatever it takes to keep the cameras rolling... suddenly our Assistant Director is serving coffees in the cafe!”
The Neighbours cast and crew are the first soap to return to work amid social distancing Fremantle BOXAdministrator
It wasn’t Neighbours’ intention to lead the charge with social distance filming.
“We were in a position where we felt our scripts could be adapted to avoid intimacy, which not every show can do,” says Jason.
“This preparation helped everything to go smoothly. The biggest challenges are just around everyone forming new habits. It’s the little things that add a little extra time to the day, but after a couple of days, they become second nature.”
He adds: “We will still be the Neighbours viewers know and love, which feels more important than ever in these tough times.”
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But given how Covid-19 can go undetected in carriers for up to 14 days, are Neighbours’ social distancing strategies truly safe?
Professor Paul Hunter, an expert in infectious diseases at The University of East Anglia, asserts that, given how the rate of new cases has fallen from nearly 600 per day to around 20 in Australia, the country is in the position to responsibly restart filming again, given the correct measures are in place.
“But if they’re going to do that then they must screen for temperature. Anyone who is febrile needs to be tested, and treated accordingly,” says Professor Hunter.
“Suddenly our Assistant Director is serving coffees in the cafe."”
But what about the UK?
“Once we’re down to that sort of level, going back to film again is much less of a difficult decision,” he says - but we aren’t there yet.”
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There’s another, perhaps more surprising reason, for countries getting soaps back up and running as soon as they physically can.
“They’re one of the most effective ways of getting messages across to people,” says Professor Hunter, who remembers the classic BBC radio show The Archers was at one point supported by the Ministry of Agriculture for promoting educational messages about animal health.
Although the professor suggests that resuming filming on UK soaps could feasibly begin at the end of this month if we continue to see decreases in infection rates, he has a sobering reminder.
“We’re not there yet… The daily number of cases is still in the thousands and we need to be getting that down a bit more before you would be starting to want to film.”
The one thing we know for certain right now is, for soaps, there’s no easy answer. While some fans clearly praise the escapism, others will be questioning, perhaps even mocking, how their favourite soap isn’t reflecting the Covid-19 crisis at all.
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Filming has halted at the Coronation Street studio at Media City in Salford, Manchester. MCPIX/Shutterstock
Corrie boss Iain McLeod has announced the soap will tackle the pandemic when it resumes production, revealing it will be addressed but won’t “dominate” the action on the cobbles.
“We took the view that it has to exist in our world,” he explained. “However, I am also aware that people tune into Coronation Street for escapism, to some degree, and to see drama and stories that they would never normally experience in their own lives, and stuff they would normally never see in their own living rooms played out on screen.
“While the virus will exist in Coronation Street, we were also keen that it wouldn’t dominate every single story and every single scene.”
He continued: “If your lives are anything like mine, certainly coronavirus is pretty much the only topic of conversation in my house, but people wouldn’t want to tune into Coronation Street and see every scene was people talking about coronavirus.”
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Iain went on to say that he was initially considering not including the outbreak in any future Corrie scenes, but ultimately felt that would go against the show’s values.
And it’s too early to say what the damage of fewer episodes - or even no episodes at all - will do to viewing figures, although it’s clear that this is no one’s ideal scenario.
Jason from the Neighbours crew sums up how impossible this situation is, even if they seem to be ahead of the pack, offering some useful insight to showrunners here in the UK who are busy making decisions on narrative and the practicalities of filming right now.
“While it might sound timely to incorporate the pandemic into the story, it’s actually very challenging,” he says. “We plot the show six months in advance so if we were to write a new story now, it could feel very outdated by the time it airs.
“If we were to somehow incorporate it into the stories already plotted but not yet filmed, then we have the issue of the characters breaking the rules all the time.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Queer Eye’s Bobby Berk Shares His Decorating Ideas For Lockdown

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Don’t let lockdown dampen your spirits. Seeing as we’re spending so much time indoors use this opportunity to revamp up your home and give it a new lease of life. You can actually style your home without buying anything new or spending a fortune, especially when money can be tight during this time.
From rearranging furniture or simply adding a minor detail or two, you can make your home look like a brand new space. We turn to Bobby Berk, skilled interior designer and one fifth of Netflix’s Queer Eye, for his pearls of wisdom on how we can update our space whilst in quarantine.
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Bobby Berk Bobby Berk
Clean home, clean life.
This might seem obvious, but giving your house a spring clean can do wonders for zhuzhing things up. It’s okay to feel a little deflated and unmotivated at the moment, start small and take on little tasks such as decluttering and taking inventory of what you actually need and muse makes it less daunting.
“Allow yourself to purge all of the clutter in your home that you never use. If it’s in good condition and someone else could get some use out of it, donate it to a local cause” Berk tells HuffPost UK. “Less visual clutter in your space will clear your mind to help you stay positive and focused while working from home.”
Discover a style that suits you.
Do you opt for bright patterns and colours? Or, something more neutral and calm? Don’t fret about not knowing where to start or what sort of decor you like. Be inspired by your own space and let that influence the style of the interiors.
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“Lean into the architecture first and that might give you a jumping-off point for your home. For example, an old craftsman home will feel weird having sleek and minimal furnishings,” he suggests. “If you’re still having a hard time determining your style take a look inside your closet. Taking cues from what you love to put on your body can help determine what type of space you’d like to live in.
Huffpost UK Bobby Berk Interior Design
Move it all about.
If you’re looking to switch things up around the house, try moving pieces from one room to another to make things feel different. A different layout can achieve a different way of thinking.
“The first step to arranging a room is to decide what your focal wall is and that wall will act as the North Star to your room design,” Bobby explains. “Is it your fireplace, a wall of windows, a TV console? Once you determine that wall, then I like to place the sofa directly across from it and build out from there. Playing ‘musical chairs’ with the things you already own can make things feel fresh when you can’t invest in new pieces.”
Attention to detail.
It’s the little things in life that can make a big difference and the same rules apply for decorating. Small details such as swapping hardware, adding a mirror, or being creative with wallpaper for furniture can give a quick refresh.
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“Never underestimate the power of a quick coat of paint on an old piece of furniture. I love bringing in graphic elements to help my designs stay modern and fresh,” he recommends. “Black is my go-to, not only does it give life to the new piece but the black colour can help modernise the room it is in.”
If you’re in a small space a mirror is your best friend and can help give the illusion of making a room feel bigger. “Go big! I always like to go overscale with mirrors, it reflects and bounces light around the room,” Bobby suggests. “If you’re looking for a formal look you can always flank a mirror with two sconces (plug-in), which will give it some symmetry.”
Bobby Berk Queer Eye's Bobby Berk
Dim down the lights.
It’s not the first thing on people’s minds when transforming a space, but lighting plays an important part when it comes to giving your home a quick makeover.
“Find a fixture that has more bulbs than your current fixture and install a dimmer. By adding more light at a dimmed setting, it will fill the room with more light that is softer and at a better colour,” Bobby suggests. “If you aren’t feeling up to installing a new light fixture, then the same trick works with table and floor lamps. A dimmer plug can allow you to turn the brightness down.”
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Let’s take it outside.
With temperatures set to soar this bank holiday weekend get those gardens in order and take your outside space from drab to fab in just a few minutes with little-to-no handy skills.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Gordon Ramsay's 10-Minute Fish And Chip Recipe Is Perfect For The Bank Holiday

Heat the oil in a large frying pan (or saucepan) on a medium-high heat. But don’t use too much oil, he says, as the aim is to shallow fry, not deep fry. Aim to have an oil depth of a couple of centimetres.
Grab a bowl and whisk together the 120g flour, tsp baking soda, tsp curry powder and 160ml beer.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until there are stiff peaks, adding a bit of salt part of the way through. Fold the egg whites into the batter mix once they’re ready. If the batter is too heavy, add some water. “You want the batter dropping through the whisk,” says Ramsay.
Pop your additional flour into a bowl and add a teaspoon of curry powder to it for a bit more flavour (this bit is optional). Season the fish with salt and then coat it with the flour.
Knock off the excess flour and put the fish into the batter mixture. Make sure the fish is fully covered in batter and then put it in the frying pan.
Get a spoon and baste the fish with the hot oil from the side of the pan (watch the video for the proper technique). Let the first side cook until it’s golden brown, then flip it and baste the other side. Take the pan on and off the hob so that the oil doesn’t get too hot throughout the cooking process. All in all, the fish should take about three to three-and-a-half minutes to cook. Once it’s done, put it on a paper towel on a plate (to soak up the oil) and stick it in a warm oven.
Now for the chips! Ramsay shows us how you should chop your potato into a square to give you a chance at easily slicing it into skinny fries – the thinner, the better. Dry off the fries with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Then add them to the pan (you can use the same oil) and cook the potatoes at a high heat – again, shallow frying them.
Once the fries are a lovely shade of golden brown, remove them from the oil, place on a paper towel, and then transfer to a plate, adding salt.
Grab the tartare sauce ingredients and mix them together in a bowl. Add some salt to taste.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Should You Take Extra Vitamins To Prevent Coronavirus Infection?

From the start of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been a focus on health, and ways to avoid becoming seriously ill. One of the methods people are relying on is taking vitamins targeted to bolstering immunity.
In a rush to buy necessities, both orange juice and vitamin C supplements have seen sales spiking, according to reports. In the US, orange juice purchases jumped approximately 10% in March, and frozen orange juice sales increased by 27%, NPR reported. Large vitamin distributors have also reported a shortage of supplements targeted to boosting immunity. It’s estimated that sales of vitamin C skyrocketed 146% around the time more news of the pandemic emerged in the US, according to a report from the New York Times.
But with no firm evidence that vitamin C can prevent coronavirus, is there any reason to supplement? Can you strengthen your immune system more generally using supplements or advanced nutrition? Here’s what experts say.
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You can boost your immune system to help fight off infections ...
According to Michael Roizen, chief wellness officer for Cleveland Clinic, strengthening the immune system is generally a reasonable goal.
When the coronavirus enters your system, in this instance, your body will almost immediately recognise the antigen (aka the virus) as foreign. When this happens, certain cells send up a signal to make antibodies to fight it off. We create these antibodies, the most common of which is called IgG, hoping they will “provide us immunity by neutralising the invader,” Roizen said.
Ideally, you want the IgG, or the neutralising antibodies, already present when an antigen comes in and sets off the immune response. Unfortunately, though, this isn’t always the case.
This is where enhancing the body’s preparedness for unwelcome invaders could come in; a healthy immune system can be a great defence ― and you can take steps to bolster it, according to experts. Even if you’re getting a vaccine, like the flu shot, healthy habits can help increase the “take” or “success” of the shot, Roizen said. Sleep, getting good nutrients and exercise are all part of that.
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Oleh_Kucheriavyi via Getty Images
... But you don’t necessarily need supplements, and they won’t protect you from Covid-19.
Nutritional compounds like vitamin C, antioxidants and zinc do “work with our immune system and help it function more effectively,” said Lona Sandon, an associate professor in the department of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. “But if you are already getting them from food, evidence and research does not promote the need to take more.”
And, most importantly, there’s scant evidence to support taking supplements to prevent Covid-19, according to Sandon. For instance, one review of vitamin D showed no link between a deficiency and likelihood of contracting the illness; supplementing didn’t seem to help treat or prevent Covid-19 either. The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases said there’s “no evidence” that loading up on vitamin C will prevent a coronavirus infection. Even Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health stated there was no direct evidence for or against certain nutrients to treat or prevent Covid-19, though there is evidence nutrition may bolster immunity in other ways.
It’s okay to take a daily multivitamin (but it should come at the recommendation of your doctor). Just don’t take “extra” or more than a regular dose, Sandon said. It certainly won’t make you any more immune to the coronavirus.
In fact, there’s a ceiling to how much your body can manage at any one time. If you take a multivitamin, it covers your daily dose of B vitamins, vitamin C and other minerals, so stop there.
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“Don’t take a multivitamin and a bunch of other things, like vitamin water or extra B vitamins,” Roizen said, adding that too much of a vitamin can be dangerous. Instead, spread out your daily dose if you take one. Roizen suggested splitting a multivitamin in two and staggering it throughout your day.
“Take a half a multivitamin in morning and in the evening,” he said. “You urinate out the water soluble components within 12 hours or so, so to keep a steady level, take part of it in the morning and the other part at night.”
There are some cases in general where an added supplement to your daily multivitamin could help, Roizen said. Just don’t expect them to rid you of any specific disease, and make sure to talk to your doctor first. He recommended DHA for immunity, noting there’s evidence to show the fatty acids can reduce the symptoms associated with upper respiratory infections.
“You can take 900 milligrams a day, or get it through three six-ounce portions of wild salmon a week,” he said. You also can add vitamin D if you are not able to get outside enough while sheltering in place, but just 1000 IU or 2000 IU. (Again, your physician will know what to recommend based on your health history and previous blood-work.)
But mostly, focus on what you put on your plate; balance is important for combatting most infections. “It comes back to basic nutrition and common sense,” Sandon said. “Start with a healthy baseline diet, and if you cannot get your needs met in some way, maybe you do need a vitamin.”
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Sandon said to focus on the healthy building blocks of your immune system. Vitamin B6, found in whole grains, nuts and legumes, allows your body to make antibodies. Lean protein, like skinless chicken and fish, can help as well. Vitamins A, C and E are also critical components of healthy immune function, and are plentiful in lean proteins, fruits and vegetables like sweet potatoes, leafy greens, oranges, carrots, nuts and seeds.
Grace Cary via Getty Images
What you should do about vitamins if you get sick.
According to Sandon, any time “we become sick from viral or bacterial infection and there’s a fever,” we may need a little extra nutrition, like vitamin C and protein.
For instance, people in the ICU, where their body is working extra hard, may benefit from extra vitamin C supplementation and there is evidence for that, she said. “When someone is in that situation, they use up their vitamin C stores more quickly,” she added.
For the average person at home, a few dietary tweaks will suffice.
“Usually you can accomplish this by eating a little more,” she said. “You could get this through supplements, but if you just have a light touch of illness, and are eating a balanced diet of lean protein, nuts, seeds and root vegetables, you typically won’t come up short.”
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If you’ve been sick for a week or two, and you’re generally not eating well, you might feel better consuming a nutrient-packed drink, so you can get the nutrients along with your daily calories, Sandon said.
“[Supplements are] not coming with the calories, healthy fats and proteins. You still need macronutrients,” she added.
The research on the efficacy of upping your vitamin intake when you’re sick is somewhat mixed. Roizen said there’s some evidence to suggest increasing zinc and vitamin C when you’re sick from your normal daily requirement may help shorten the duration of a cold respiratory illness; other reports show that it isn’t a miracle worker.
If you do increase your dosage of zinc and vitamin C, you should only do so during the period you are experiencing symptoms, and that’s it, Roizen said.
“With zinc and vitamin C, you can have side effects if you take too much,” which can include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and headache, among other symptoms. Consult with your doctor before taking or increasing a dose of either of these supplements.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--We Are Single Parents In A Pandemic. We're Coping But Don't Forget Us

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We’re here to guide you through the coronavirus lockdown. Sign up to the Life newsletter for daily tips, advice, how-tos and escapism.
It was assembling the dinosaur car for my son’s first birthday that did it. The burst of pride as I mastered the electric drill, then the pang of frustration as I realised the screw had pierced one piece of plastic rather than pinning two. It had taken half a week of spare moments to try (and fail) to assemble. I swore and cried quietly so my children didn’t see – a fittingly domestic final straw.
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I feel lucky. I’m in lockdown with the two people I love most, my three-year-old daughter Astrid and one-year-old son Xavi. As a solo mum, I’ve always been grateful for the support and love of friends, family and neighbours – and still feel that now, although everything is one step removed.
It’s been forty-eight days since I had an adult conversation without social distancing. I’ve spoken to neighbours from afar – one family made my children an amazing story book, another senses any time I need a virtual hug – and friends and family, with screens dividing us. But as many of the two million single parent families and eight million single adults living alone in the UK will have discovered, it’s not quite the same.
Before lockdown, practical support helped me maintain a career and spend the bulk of my children’s time with them – from the nursery they attend three days a week to the cleaner who transforms our house (now swimming in Lego soup). So, while I’ve been parenting solo, I’ve never been alone. Until now.
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There’s increasing concern among single parents we’ve been forgotten. A group of solo mums submitted evidence this week to the Women & Equalities committee on the unequal impact of Covid-19 on single mums. It’s also been sent to the Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament, and individuals are contacting their MPs in the hope single parents will be heard.
In New Zealand, from the beginning of lockdown, all single adults – with or without children – were able to extend their bubble and meet up with one other individual or family unit. In the UK, some solo mums have already taken this initiative themselves. Others are waiting, hoping to be remembered.
I support lockdown. But with friends in my solo mums network talking of increased levels of depression, I’m concerned. If single adults – with children and without – aren’t able to link up with other adults, will we have a new mental health curve to flatten, too?
Luci Schofield 'I miss the reassurance of an adult hug.'
Some parents have coping strategies. Claire Hickson, solo mum to Margot, 3, in south-east London, is enjoying her newfound social life of Zoom calls and streaming parties now everyone is in the same boat. “I can join drinks and watch theatre without finding a babysitter,” she says. “Long may that continue.”
Evenings are less predictable in our house. One night, when neither child showed any sign of sleep, I’d hoped to catch up with friends, then work, but realised I was too tired for either – and screamed. Immediately, I felt ashamed.
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I wasn’t shouting at my children, but because there was no one to give me a break. When bedtime does go well and I get an hour or two to myself – even just to clear the chaos of the day – I return to my room to find the children snuggled up and delight to see them. My daughter, like many others, had started having nightmares, but they’ve stopped now we’re all sharing a bed.
There have been moments when I’ve wished for a partner. Not just to row about toy assembly with, but to share my worries about the threat of sickness, which is always in the shadows. And for the life affirmingness of sex.
I say this mindful that friends with partners are longing for time without them, and that, far more seriously, lockdown has exposed the fragility and danger of home life for many adults and children.
Luci Schofield Genevieve Roberts with her daughter Astrid and son Xavi.
My worst fear is of the virus leaving my children orphaned or forcing them to grow up too quickly while I’m hospitalised. Or of them falling sick and being hospitalised. Like all those who haven’t lost a loved one, I count myself fortunate. But there’s a secondary fear for solo parents: the financial concerns facing everyone are magnified in families where only one person can work.
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For Anna Taylor, a self-employed childminder in Salisbury, it’s hard to ignore. “I have no money coming in. I’m also thinking hard about future work decisions, as I need to decide if I’m able to bring the ‘risk’ of other children into my home. I may be supported by the self-employed scheme, but they’ve changed the goalposts a lot with the childcare sector. The worry is overwhelming.”
Her daughter Eadie, 5, is missing her first year of school and she worries for her development as an only child, with so little play and stimulation from other kids. “The future is very uncertain and I find that hard, especially at a time when we are isolated. A social bubble would make things so much more manageable.”
“I keep thinking 'one day at a time' but worry how much longer this will go on for and how much longer I can sustain it.”
For single parents who are key workers, the juggle can be unsustainable. One solo mum in Scotland, who works as an obstetrician has been delivering babies throughout the crisis. She knew her risk of catching Covid-19 was high – so her son lived with her parents while she remained at home. Her instinct was right: she got sick and spent a feverish time seeing no one, and desperately missing her son. She’s now back on the wards.
Another friend from North Yorkshire has managed to fit her NHS work seeing patients around key worker childcare. “My youngest has started school early as her nursery shut,” she explains. “I’ve changed my hours of work to nine to three. I’ve lost my wraparound care and my family’s practical and emotional support. There’s this constant ‘what if’ anxiety. What if I get it from this lovely patient in front of me? What if I get really unwell? What if the worst happens?”
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Two of her NHS colleagues have died. “I am lonely. Sometimes I am sad and frightened. I keep thinking ‘one day at a time’ but worry how much longer this will go on for and how much longer I can sustain it. I try my best to be a good parent and do some schooling with my son (reading, writing and numbers) but I am so, so tired. I snap; sometimes I cry.”
Her children miss their grandparents and their sleep is disrupted. “My six-year-old says: ‘I love you more now that the virus is here. Sometimes I need to be next to you so I can touch you.’ I find myself jealous of anyone who says they have more time with their children when I have less.” The saving grace has been the kindness of others: “I’ve found food, baking, flowers on my doorstep.”
Luci Schofield 'Watching my children’s friendship grow is magical.'
An NHS worker in a scientific role in Northamptonshire told me her daughter, who will soon turn three, has moved childcare twice since March – and the increased cost without help from her parents is taking its toll. “My commute, which used to be my respite, is now nursery rhymes and tired crying. I haven’t even seen inside the nursery as it’s drop at the door,” she says.
Each day is a struggle – she’s been offered telephone counselling but it’s hard with a two-year-old needing attention. “One positive is the food bank is currently delivering so I don’t have to take my daughter and let her see us receiving bags of tinned food.” She wishes she could thank people for their generosity. Equally: “I don’t want her growing up remembering it and thinking it’s normal.”
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In Brighton, where we live, I’ve started running, pushing the buggy as I go. Not because I’ve got time on my hands or want a new hobby, but because I know, from when my dad died, that my way through grief is exercise.
As a family, we’ve created new rituals – each Sunday I roast a chicken, which the children love, and make soup from the leftovers, because who wastes food anymore? I’ve bought a cargo bike, a commitment to cycle rather than drive when lockdown eases. Watching my children’s friendship grow is magical.
My day is full of cuddles to comfort, to protect, to nurture. I wouldn’t trade them for anything – but I miss the reassurance of an adult hug.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--An Ode To Normal People's Lorraine And Honest Mother-Son Relationships

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Lorraine in Normal People is the mother we all want to be. Fierce, frank, funny – she tells it like it is, even when that makes for some hard truths.
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My awe and admiration for Lorraine, mum of the teenage male lead Connell Waldron, reached epic proportions in episode three, when – on a car journey home from her cleaning shift – she tells her son he is being a bad person.
Sarah Greene, who plays Lorraine in the BBC Three’s pitch perfect adaptation of Sally Rooney’s novel, conveys her horror perfectly when she heard that Connell – who has been having a secret sexual relationship with female lead, Marianne – is taking a different girl to the high school ball. Or ‘Debs’ as it’s known in Sligo.
BBC Three/Twitter BBC Three/Twitter
“Pull over,” she says grimly, looking straight ahead, as her son drives them home from the Sheridans where she works as a cleaner and Connell turns up periodically to sleep with Marianne. “You’re fucking her and you wouldn’t say hello to her in public? I think you’re a disgrace and I’m ashamed of you.”
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She then gets out, adding: “If I stay in the car I’m going to say things I regret.”
Bravo, Lorraine. Her speech is important and exquisite and boils things down to the inescapable fact that when your child is being a shitty person, you need to tell them – because you love them. If we can’t tell our kids when they’re doing something wrong or hurtful, who can?
I’d go further and say it’s our duty to act like Lorraine. I’m storing up what she said to use with my own son, should the situation ever arise in the future (at the moment, he’s only three). Woe betide him if it does.
In a later scene, back in their own house, Lorraine spells out to a moping Connell, no holds barred, what he did.
“You hurt her feelings,” she says – and when he retorts that that’s “an over-reaction”, she sets him straight. “You hurt her,” she says. “You did something really unkind, and you hurt her. I don’t want to be on your side on this one. I don’t think it’s a bad thing that you’re feeling bad about this.”
In that moment, Lorraine might not be on her son’s side – but in long the run she is, and I’m definitely on hers. I’ve fallen as much in love with Normal People as so many others, but for me, in a show that’s all about relationships, their mother-son dynamic really is one of the most important. It never veers away from being loving. But it’s also angry, precisely when needed.
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Lorraine, a single parent, is the perfect role model of what it means to develop honest, open communication and trust with your child. She shows the importance of holding people to account when they’re doing something wrong.
She’s also aware her son has sex and just wants him to do it safely – not just physically but emotionally safely – a conversation we should all be having with our children as early as possible.
It’s never too early to start teaching these vital life lessons to our kids – whether it’s age-appropriate conversations about consent, empowering them to use the right language for their body parts, or trickier issues such as porn and introducing a child to your new partner.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Watch Live: Grant Shapps Holds Daily Coronavirus Briefing

Watch Live: Grant Shapps Holds Daily Coronavirus Briefing
Grant Shapps holds the daily briefing to update on the coronavirus outbreak in the United Kingdom.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--The Ultimate Guide To Self Pleasure In Lockdown

The Ultimate Guide To Self Pleasure In Lockdown
Here's your guide to toys for women and disabled people, the benefits of prostate and anal play for straight men and how to approach self pleasure if you are trans or gender questioning? We’ve gathered those in the know for some practical and to the point advice on how to get off covering everything from butt plugs to nipple suckers, from sex furniture to your imagination.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Music Legend Little Richard Dies Aged 87

Little Richard, pictured here during a performance in New York in 2012. Jeffrey Ufberg via Getty Images
Rock and roll pioneer Little Richard has died aged 87.
The musician – real name Richard Penniman – was known to have been in poor health for a number of years, and had previously survived a heart attack and a stroke.
Rolling Stone magazine broke the news on Saturday, stating that the Tutti Frutti singer’s son had confirmed the news, but said the cause of his death was currently unknown.
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Richard’s bass guitarist, Charles Glenn, told celebrity website TMZ the musician had been sick for two months and that he died at his Tennessee home, surrounded by his brother, sister and son.
Glenn told TMZ he spoke with Richard on March 27 and the singer asked him to visit, but he could not because of the pandemic. He said Richard was like a father to him, and would sometimes tell him, “Not to take anything away from your dad, but you’re my son.”
At his peak in the 1950s and early ’60s, Richard shouted, moaned, screamed and trilled hits like “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally,” “Good Golly, Miss Molly” and “Lucille,” all the while pounding the piano like a mad man and punctuating lyrics with an occasional shrill “whoooo!”
Time magazine said he played “songs that sounded like nonsense ... but whose beat seemed to hint of unearthly pleasures centred somewhere between the gut and the gutter.”
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The music drew in both young black and white fans at a time when parts of the United States still were strictly segregated. Many white artists, such as Pat Boone, had their own hit versions of Richard’s songs, albeit considerably toned down and “safer” for the pop audience.
“I’ve always thought that rock ‘n’ roll brought the races together,” Richard once told an interviewer. “Although I was black, the fans didn’t care. I used to feel good about that.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--Trump Said He Could Kill Someone On 5th Ave. But How About 50,000 Across America?

President Donald Trump speaks during a Fox News virtual town hall at the Lincoln Memorial on May 3. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Donald Trump once bragged he could get away with murdering someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, but can he get away with letting tens of thousands die of the coronavirus on Main Streets across America?
The answer to that question — the actual consequences of a president’s inaction, as opposed to the boast of a candidate — could determine whether he gets another four years in office.
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With the US death toll likely to cross 100,000 before June, the cost in human lives of Trump’s failure to pay attention to his intelligence reports and take aggressive actions to curb the disease is already becoming clear.
By Friday afternoon, 76,706 Americans had died of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. That works out to a rate of 234 deaths for every million Americans. In contrast, South Korea and Germany, two countries whose responses have been praised by experts, have rates of 5 per million and 89 per million, respectively.
“This is malfeasance,” said Juliette Kayyem, who teaches emergency management at Harvard’s Kennedy School and worked in former president Barack Obama’s Department of Homeland Security. “This lays squarely with the White House.”
She and other crisis management and public health experts say that if Trump had quickly scaled up production of coronavirus tests by late January and instituted contact tracing to isolate those infected — as South Korea and Germany did ― the United States might have kept its death total at a fraction of what it is today.
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“This is malfeasance.” - Juliette Kayyem, former Department of Homeland Security official
The German death rate extrapolated across the United States’ larger population would have meant 29,193 Covid-19 fatalities to date. The even lower South Korean rate would have meant just 1,638 deaths.
Jeremy Konyndyk, who worked on the widely praised 2014 Ebola response under Obama, said South Korea clearly had an advantage in combatting this virus after it improved its infectious disease response following the Mers outbreak in 2015. “A South Korea-like performance was probably beyond us in the initial phase, because they had public health capacities in place that we didn’t,” he said. “But we could have had as good or better than Germany if we had adopted South Korea’s attitude: assuming it was here already or soon would be, and vigorously preparing for that eventuality.”
Kayyem said the US number could have been lower still — as low as 10,000 at this point ― if elder care facilities had been immediately safeguarded and New York City been locked down much earlier.
“January, February, March were the squandered months,” she said, adding that consequential decisions were left to governors and mayors who did not have access to the intelligence warnings that Trump began receiving in early January. “You cannot run a national response with an Articles of Confederation mindset.”
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Trump, nevertheless, has repeatedly claimed that his response has been outstanding. “What we’ve done is incredible,” he said on Friday at a White House meeting with Republican lawmakers. “They’re saying great things about me and the job we’re doing.”
Pressed for details of that response, however, Trump invariably falls back on the travel restrictions he imposed on January 31 on foreigners who had been in China in the previous two weeks. “We banned people from China coming in,” he repeated at Friday’s meeting. “It had never been done before. Nothing like that had ever been done before.”
Trump, however, never mentions that his “ban” came only after US airlines had already stopped flights from China and dozens of other countries had already imposed similar restrictions. What’s more, Trump’s order allowed another 40,000 travellers, primarily US citizens and legal residents, to return from China — for the most part, without being tested or quarantined.
Even more important, experts said, was Trump’s failure to mass produce functioning tests and to come up with a comprehensive plan to isolate those who tested positive for the virus. Had that approach been taken and properly executed, the proportionate number of cases and deaths could have been held to what has been accomplished by South Korea and Germany.
“We could have detected transmission chains on the West Coast and in New York City much earlier and greatly limited their growth,” Konyndyk said. “That in turn would have meant much lower spread to the rest of the country.”
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Trump instead spent seven full weeks downplaying the danger of the virus, describing it as milder than the seasonal flu, claiming it would go away on its own come April, and even calling concerns about it “a hoax” designed to hurt his reelection prospects.
Over that period, he continually redefined success to allow for ever higher numbers of fatalities.
In his first public statement on the pandemic threat on January 22, Trump claimed he was not worried about the coronavirus because it had infected just “one person” who had come in from China.
At a press briefing on Febuary 26, the first of what became a near-daily event for almost two months, Trump was still claiming that no deaths would take place. “When you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero. That’s a pretty good job we’ve done,” he said.
In a March 9 tweet, Trump wrote: “So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!”
It took another week for Trump to finally acknowledge that the number of deaths would be significantly higher from the coronavirus than from the seasonal flu. “And so if we could hold that down, as we’re saying, to 100,000 — it’s a horrible number, maybe even less — but to 100,000,” he said at the March 15 briefing. “So we have between 100 and 200,000, and we altogether have done a very good job.”
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But on April 20, Trump was claiming the total would be far lower. “We’re going toward 50 or 60,000 people. ... We could end up at 50 to 60.”
“'Better than complete inaction’ is quite the victory lap.” - Jeremy Konyndyk, a disaster response official in the Obama administration
As that figure was exceeded, Trump raised his estimate. During a May 3 Fox News town hall shot at the Lincoln Memorial, Trump said, “I used to say 65,000. Now I’m saying 80 or 90, and it goes up and it goes up rapidly.”
And by Friday morning, he had upped his estimate even further. “We’ll be at 100,000, 110,000, higher,” he said during a phone interview with one of his favourite television shows, Fox and Friends.
But even in that interview, Trump repeated a line he has used previously about what will constitute success in his mind: the upper bound of the estimate of how many people would have died had no action been taken at all. “Because if I didn’t, we would have lost two million, two and a half million, maybe more than that,” he said.
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“’Better than complete inaction’ is quite the victory lap,” Konyndyk said.
Victory, though, is exactly what Trump will claim, regardless of the actual facts, said Mac Stipanovich, a longtime Republican political consultant from Florida.
“He did shoot thousands of people in the street,” Stipanovich said, recalling Trump’s boast from the 2016 campaign. “Will he get away with it? I don’t know. He could. It’s going to be a ‘he said, she said’ thing.”
And what Trump has already been saying is that he has saved “millions” with his leadership.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-09--252 More Coronavirus Deaths Recorded In England, Scotland And Wales In 24 Hours

The latest figures were published on Saturday. Leon Neal via Getty Images
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The number of people who have died in hospitals in England, Scotland and Wales after contracting coronavirus has risen by 252 in 24 hours.
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The increase consists of 207 in England, 36 in Scotland and 9 in Wales. Numbers for Northern Ireland are yet to be released.
UK-wide figures from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) are yet to be published, so the data are taken from each nation’s individual reporting.
It brings the working total to 31,493.
But the government tally, when it is released later today, will be significantly higher as it includes deaths in care homes and the community. Here’s a quick primer on what all the different numbers mean and how to understand them.
In England, patients were aged between 37 and 100 years old. Nineteen of the 207 patients (aged between 60 and 95 years old) had no known underlying health condition.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-10--Boris Johnson Announces New 'Stay Alert' Coronavirus Strategy Amid Backlash Over Slogan

The government's new "stay alert, control the virus, save lives" slogan. PA / Sky News
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Boris Johnson has released more details on the government’s new “stay home, control the virus” amid calls for clarity on the softer new approach.
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But with the UK still recording the highest number of coronavirus-related deaths in Europe, politicians and members of the public alike have heavily criticised the softer approach.
Johnson will address the public via a televised statement at 7pm on Sunday evening, during which he will set out a “road map” for a gradual relaxation of the nation-wide lockdown.
Sharing the new slogan in a tweet, the PM wrote: “Everyone has a role to play in helping to control the virus and following the rules.
“This is how we can continue to save lives as we start to recover from coronavirus. #StayAlert”
His message was accompanied by a new image, which sets out the new “stay alert” approach.
Everyone has a role to play in helping to control the virus by staying alert and following the rules.
This is how we can continue to save lives as we start to recover from coronavirus.#StayAlert pic.twitter.com/2z9yl1Fxs4 — Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) May 10, 2020
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While much of the messaging remains consistent with government advice shared alongside the now-familiar “stay home, protect the NHS, save lives” slogan, the new information published by the PM on Sunday states the public should “stay alert” and “stay at home as much as possible”.
For the past seven weeks, the message has been that the general public should leave home for just one of four specific reasons; shopping for basic necessities, one form of exercise, any medical need, or travelling to work when you can’t work from home.
In a near-identical message to the one shared online by the PM, a Downing Street spokesperson said the public can stay alert by “staying at home as much as possible”, “limiting contact with other people” and keeping two metres apart where possible.
“We can control the virus by keeping the rate of infection (R) and the number of infections down,” they added.
“This is how we can continue to save lives and livelihoods as we start to recover from coronavirus.
“Everyone has a role to play in keeping the rate of infection (R) down by staying alert and following the rules.”
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The emergence of the new slogan, which first emerged when it was unveiled on the front page of the Sunday Telegraph, has been met with significant backlash, with the leaders of Scotland and Northern Ireland both publicly stating their rejection of the message.
Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon wrote: “The Sunday papers is the first I’ve seen of the PM’s new slogan.
“It is of course for him to decide what’s most appropriate for England, but given the critical point we are at in tackling the virus, #StayHomeSaveLives remains my clear message to Scotland at this stage.”
The Sunday papers is the first I’ve seen of the PM’s new slogan. It is of course for him to decide what’s most appropriate for England, but given the critical point we are at in tackling the virus, #StayHomeSaveLives remains my clear message to Scotland at this stage. https://t.co/zrnEgTC15H — Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) May 10, 2020
Almost 31,600 people have now died in the UK after contracting coronavirus – with 1,847 deaths recorded in Scotland.
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Reinforcing her message, Sturgeon tweeted the old slogan, “STAY HOME. PROTECT THE NHS. SAVE LIVES” hours later.
STAY HOME. PROTECT THE NHS. SAVE LIVES. — Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) May 10, 2020
Northern Ireland’s first minister and DUP leader Arlene Foster also rejected the new slogan, telling BBC Northern Ireland: “On the whole, the message is to stay at home. We will say we are not deviating from the message at this time.”
Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister Michelle O’Neill also tweeted an image of the current messaging on Sunday morning, with the “stay at home” slogan featured.
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The governments communities secretary Robert Jenrick said he hoped that all four nations would agree to the same approach when the PM convenes leaders for a Cobra meeting on Sunday afternoon.
“We hope that they will agree to a consistent approach across the country, that’s our strong preference,” Jenrick told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday.
But he struggled to concisely explain exactly what the new advice means, when questioned on the BBC.
“Stay alert will mean stay alert by staying home as much as possible,” he told The Andrew Marr Show.
“But stay alert when you do go out by maintaining social distancing, washing your hands, respecting others in the workplace and the other settings that you will go to.”
Jenrick insisted “we’re not going to take risks with the public” but said “we want now to have a message which encourages people to go to work”.
Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth called for the PM to give “crystal-clear clarity” on how the public must behave amid concerns that the lockdown is in jeopardy.
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“We need absolute clarity from Boris Johnson. There’s no room for nuance in this,” the Labour MP told Ridge.
“This virus exploits ambivalence, it thrives on ambiguity, and I think the problem with the slogan that has been briefed to the newspapers is people will be looking slightly puzzled, questioning ‘What does it mean to stay alert?’”
Outside of politics, the new slogan has also been met with significant backlash – with many people making their own changes to the new graphic.
One Twitter user likened it to a slogan dreamt up on an episode of the Apprentice, while author Irvine Welsh took a picture of the scene outside his window, writing: “I think I spotted some Covid-19 hanging around in the street outside, but I’m not sure. Should I call the authorities? #StayAlert.”
What would happen if you gave an Apprentice candidate 2 hours to design a pandemic slogan.
'We should make it look as radioactive as possible'
'And it should say #StayAlert'
'But that doesn't make any se.....
'Print it, I'm team leader on this task and we've a deadline here' pic.twitter.com/XmehxZk4jc — Paddy Ross (@PaddyRoss1) May 10, 2020
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I think I spotted some #COVID19 hanging around in the street outside, but I’m not sure. Should I call the authorities? #StayAlert pic.twitter.com/iw9vEfE43c — Irvine Welsh (@IrvineWelsh) May 10, 2020
Dave Ward, general secretary of the Communication Workers Union, said: “The messaging from this Government throughout this crisis has been a total joke, but their new slogan takes it to a new level.”
He wondered: “Stay alert? It’s a deadly virus not a zebra crossing.”
Comedian and former junior doctor Adam Kay joked that it would be “difficult to stay alert to something that’s 0.0001 millimetres in diameter. This pandemic is going to have as many spikes as a coronavirus”.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-10--No.10 Coronavirus Press Conferences 'Not Trustworthy', Says Leading Statistician

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The daily Downing Street coronavirus press conferences led by ministers including Boris Johnson are “not trustworthy” and “completely embarrassing”, a leading statistician has warned.
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Professor David Spiegelhalter, who has in the past been invited to take part in meetings of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) which advises government on how to respond to the pandemic, said ministers were not treating the public with “respect”.
Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show on Sunday morning, Spiegelhalter said the UK death total was “far more” than being announced at the briefings.
And he said the figures given on the number of tests being carried out each day were also misleading.
“The public, who are broadly very supportive of the measure, they are hungry for details, for facts, for genuine information yet they get fed what I call number theatre,” he said. “Frankly I found it completely embarrassing.”
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“I just wish the data was being brought together and presented by people who really knew its strengths and limitations and could treat the audience with some respect.”
The government’s daily briefings on #Covid_19 are "not trustworthy communication of statistics" says Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter from the University of Cambridge#Marr https://t.co/TTJMcT0lgb pic.twitter.com/BEKFRhg23H — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) May 10, 2020
Spiegelhalter, the Winton professor of the public understanding of risk in the statistical laboratory at the University of Cambridge, said the daily televised events were “not trustworthy communication of statistics”.
The press conferences are each day led by a minister including health secretary Matt Hancock, foreign secretary Dominic Raab, and the prime minister.
They are usually joined by two scientists such as chief medical officer Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance.
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Spiegelhalter earlier this week rebuked the prime minister for citing an article he wrote for The Guardian to claim it was not possible to yet make international comparisons on how coronavirus has been dealt with.
Spiegelhalter said while it was hard to compare countries on a similar path such as the UK and Itlay, it was perfectly reasonable to compare countries that had fared much differently, such as the UK and Germany.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-05-10--Suranne Jones Says Coronation Street Bosses ‘Used’ Her To Appear in ‘Dodgy’ Lad Mag Photoshoots

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Suranne Jones says she was “used” by soap bosses at the start of her career after stripping to her underwear for lad mag photoshoots.
The actor shot to fame playing factory worker Karen McDonald in Coronation Street between 2000 and 2004.
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Suranne Jones John Phillips via Getty Images
But in a new interview with the Give Me Strength podcast, the 41-year-old says although the photoshoots were “fun” at first, she quickly realised it wasn’t what she’d “signed up to”.
“The first few months was about me being whisked off and put in a bikini in Barbados,” she said.
“At this time I’d only been on one holiday abroad to Spain with my mates. I was like, ‘Wow’.
“Then I was on a celeb special for Stars In Their Eyes, then put in a magazine with a bra and knickers on. They’d give you a glass of champagne to get you a little loose.”
She added: “I remember thinking it was fun at first, but I realised it wasn’t what I signed up to.”
Suranne, who has gone on to star in Scott & Bailey and Gentleman Jack, admitted some of the photoshoots were “dodgy”.
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“There’s one in a diner where I am squirting ketchup and mustard,” she said.
She added: “I don’t think Coronation Street was alone in that. I think all of the soaps used their girls in that way.”
Anthony Devlin via Getty Images
Surannne left Corrie in 2004 and went on to win a Bafta for her portrayal of Dr Gemma Foster in the BBC’s hugely popular Doctor Foster.
Last year the star opened up about the anxiety that led to her collapsing backstage during a performance of her London play, Frozen, and led to her eventually pulling out of the run altogether.
“I’d been feeling edgy, nervous around people, not being able to converse properly,” she told The Guardian.
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“Being in the theatre didn’t help. I don’t think theatre was the cause, but I think it heightened it. You’ve got a 1,000-seater full of people staring at you.”
She added: “You try and resist what’s happening, keep working… And in the end something gives. I think that’s what happened,” she added.