thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--Covid 'Close Contacts' To Be Spared Self-Isolation Under Daily Rapid Test Plan

A lateral flow antigen test PA
Close contacts of people with Covid-19 will be spared the need for any self-isolation under new government plans to give them a week’s supply of daily rapid home tests.
The radical proposal, dubbed “a game changer” by one insider, is being piloted across England in workplaces, schools and some universities with the aim of rolling it out more widely from the New Year.
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Under the plan, those identified as having had close contact with people who tested positive for coronavirus will not have to quarantine as long as they test negative every day for seven days.
It is understood that they will be sent a box of seven lateral flow devices, which give results within as little as 30 minutes, to use daily at home.
If they test negative in the morning, they will be free to go about their daily life. If they test positive, they are sent a free PCR test, which has a much greater sensitivity. A further positive test would result in 14 day self isolation.
Lateral flow tests have faced criticism in recent weeks because studies show that in Liverpool they failed to pick up half of Covid cases and 30% of people with high viral loads.
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But ministers are determined to press ahead with their widespread use.
Just a fraction of the public are currently following the full guidance to stay at home for 14 days if they have been in contact with someone with the virus.
Wales this week decided to cut the 14 day period to just 10 days in a bid to improve compliance with the rules, but England has yet to follow suit.
The new zero-quarantine proposal was highlighted in the NHS Test and Trace business plan published on Thursday, with fresh targets to improve its performance by March.
The service, which has faced heavy criticism, pointed to new research by government scientists that suggested it had already had a significant impact on reducing the R rate for the virus and its fresh plans could cut that number by a further 0.8 in Covid hot-spot areas.
It unveiled new targets, including reaching 90% of cases and 85% of the contacts they name by the end of January, and reaching 80% of contacts within 72 hours by March.
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The business plan said “increased use of rapid tests may allow for even faster
turnaround time in future, and those traced through the app are reached even faster.”
Test and Trace said that in October “testing, tracing and self-isolation (on symptom onset or following contact by Test and Trace) reduced the R rate by around 0.3–0.6, compared to a scenario with only social distancing, restrictions and no self-isolation”.
“When we have implemented the commitments in this document, which we expect to by March, we estimate the R reduction could increase to around 0.5–0.7.2 In high-prevalence areas that roll out rapid community testing, it could further reduce the local R number by around 0.6–0.8.”
The latest document also sets out Test and Trace will extend its work with local council leaders, backed by further funding worth potentially more than £200 million per month, in addition to over £780 million already been committed to local authorities.
It also pointed to new Apple data showing that the NHS Covid-19 App had been one of the most downloaded apps of 2020, second to Zoom but ahead of TikTok.
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From Thursday, the app can be used for the first time to allow a £500 self-isolation payment.
The business plan proposes to “increase adoption and use of the app to multiply effects of all interventions – testing, contact tracing, self-isolation and outbreak management”.
The latest weekly figures for Test and Trace showed a marked improvement in both its close contact tracing rate and its test turnaround times.
The proportion of “close contacts” of people with Covid in England reached was 85.7% for the week ending December 2.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--Sky News' Kay Burley Off Air For Six Months After Covid Rule Breach

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Sky News’ Kay Burley will be off air for six months following an internal review into a night out she shared with colleagues that breached Covid-19 safety rules.
Political editor Beth Rigby and north of England correspondent Inzamam Rashid will also remain off air for three months after attending Burley’s 60th birthday party, Sky News confirmed on Thursday.
Burley – the presenter of the network’s flagship breakfast show – celebrated her birthday in London at the weekend, while the capital was under tier 2 restrictions.
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Kay Burley will remain off air until the summer of 2021 Sky News
“Everyone at Sky News is expected to comply with the rules and the company takes breaches like this very seriously indeed,” Sky said.
“All those involved regret the incident and have apologised.”
Burley tweeted on Thursday: “It’s clear to me that we are all in the fight against Covid 19 and that we all have a duty to stick firmly by the rules.
“It doesn’t matter that I thought I was Covid-compliant on a recent social event. The fact is I was wrong, I made a big mistake, and I am sorry.”
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She continued: “Some dear friends and colleagues – some of the most talented and committed professionals in our business – have been pulled into this episode and I regret this enormously.
“I was one of the founding presenters on Sky News. No one is prouder of our channel’s reputation, the professionals on our team, and the impact we make.
“I very much look forward to being able to continue my 32-year career with Sky when I return.”
Hello everyone,
News about me. Thanks for all your kind wishes. pic.twitter.com/6LDNVB9Cns — Kay Burley (@KayBurley) December 10, 2020
In an internal email sent to Sky News staff – seen by HuffPost UK – Rigby told colleagues: “I let you down and I want you to know I’m very sorry and it will not happen again.”
She wrote: “It was wrong of me to attend the dinner ever, and it was wrong of me to hug Kay Burley goodbye as I was leaving to go home.
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“I’ve covered the guidelines throughout the pandemic and I should have known better. Everyone is making sacrifices and is restricted in many ways right now and mine was a huge error of judgement.”
Rigby added that she will use the time away from her role to “reflect on all of this and then come back ready to work with you all again in the new year”.
Beth Rigby and Inzamam Rashid Sky News
Rashid told co-workers in his own email: “I made a mistake and I feel awful for how my actions might reflect on Sky News and the amazing people who work here.
“What hurts the most is that I’ve seen the hard work, sacrifice and the very best from everyone during the most challenging of years. It’s been a horrendous year for the country and for Sky News there has been huge pressure to tell a global story all the while mixed with the personal sacrifices and hardship you have all had to contend with.”
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Burley had already confirmed reports she will not present Sky News until the New Year, but insisted this was because she had a holiday to Africa already planned.
She will now not return until the summer.
Burley initially said only that she had celebrated with a gathering at a “Covid compliant” restaurant on Saturday and afterwards “popped into another” venue to use the bathroom.
On Monday evening, the presenter tweeted an apology, writing: “I want to apologise to you all for an error of judgment. On Saturday night I was enjoying my 60th birthday at a Covid compliant restaurant. I am embarrassed to say that later in the evening I inadvertently broke the rules.
“I had been waiting for a taxi at 11pm to get home. Desperate for the loo I briefly popped into another restaurant to spend a penny. I can only apologise.”
Evening everyone
I want to apologise to you all for an error of judgment. On Saturday night I was enjoying my 60th birthday at a Covid compliant restaurant. I am embarrassed to say that later in the evening I inadvertently broke the rules. 1/2 — Kay Burley (@KayBurley) December 7, 2020
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I had been waiting for a taxi at 11pm to get home. Desperate for the loo I briefly popped into another restaurant to spend a penny. I can only apologise 2/2 — Kay Burley (@KayBurley) December 7, 2020
Burley was subsequently not on air on Tuesday, and her morning current affairs show was instead presented by Sarah Hewson.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--London Facing Tier 3 Coronavirus Restrictions From December 19, MPs Expect

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MPs expect London to be moved into the toughest tier 3 coronavirus restrictions from December 19, HuffPost UK understands.
In a call with MPs from the capital, health minister Helen Whately stressed that no decision had been made to move the city up from tier 2.
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But MPs who saw data presented by London public health director Kevin Fenton are expecting tighter restrictions to be imposed as London now has the highest case rate in England.
One of those on the call said a decision is expected at the review point for current Covid tiers on December 16, before being published the next day.
Areas would then move into their new tiers two days after that.
It means pubs, restaurants and cafes would once again be forced to close except for takeaways, and outdoor meetings would only be allowed in public places like parks and forests.
One MP at the briefing said the call was “grim” and that the data “100%” pointed to tougher tier 3 measures being imposed on the capital.
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“There’s no way from the data presented they would make any other decision,” they said.
Tory Stephen Hammond suggested schools in London could break up earlier than planned for Christmas as part of efforts to bring down high infection rates among teenagers, according to two MPs present.
But there are also concerns about worrying rises in cases among the over-65s, with hospitalisations also expected to increase.
The pressure on hospitals in the north-east of London is already “quite intense”, one MP said, and there is concern that the help they are getting from other areas may be unavailable soon with cases rising across the capital.
Some of the data used at the briefing also showed cases rising during the four-week lockdown which ended on December 2, with one MP suggesting London could be entering a similar phase of the epidemic to Manchester, which has suffered tough restrictions for months.
People drink outside a pub, amid the coronavirus on December 5 Simon Dawson / Reuters
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On the call, Whately urged MPs to stress to their constituents how important it is to follow the restrictions as London’s cases surge.
South London Tory MPs pushed for separate arrangements to the rest of the city but were told this is unlikely.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--So You Want To Go Back To Normal? This Is What Needs To Happen

"Big problems require big solutions." NurPhoto via Getty Images
With a vaccine on the horizon, one feels like a dog hearing the rattle of kibble in the food bowl. In a particularly unsubtle bit of wish fulfilment supplied by my unconscious, my nightly dreams are filled with all the banal stuff which the pandemic rendered verboten.
Sniffing perfumes I have no intention of buying, unmasked, in a shop. Hugging my grandmother, or inventing new ways to irritate my clinically vulnerable sister. Staying in on a Friday night because I’m lazy, and not because every nightclub in the land is either shut or rebranded as a substantial meal dispensary.
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While some on the left demand “no going back to normal”, the slogan is fatally counter-intuitive. Most people don’t have wage stagnation in mind when they’re talking about a return to pre-pandemic life. What we’re thinking about are the simple joys of socialising without having to worry about whether you’re endangering the people around you.
It’s true that, far from being an indiscriminate leveller, coronavirus has laid bare the inequalities which have been marrow-deep in our society for decades.
While millions of households saw their incomes decimated, with a 47% jump in food bank use, billionaire wealth increased during the pandemic.
Disabled people, low-wage workers, and those from BAME communities have been overrepresented in covid fatalities. Children from impoverished households have experienced greater disruption to their education than those from middle class ones.
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The skewing of England’s economic activity towards London has resulted in Westminster’s political abandonment of the North and Midlands, while lockdown has accelerated the decline of British high streets.
Hot on the heels of the biggest pay squeeze since the Napoleonic Wars, Rishi Sunak is poised to implement a public sector pay freeze as an unemployment crisis looms.
But there are lessons to be learned from this pandemic.
Firstly, it has rendered visible the topsy-turvy nature of the economy, the workers most integral to the functioning of our society being the ones who couldn’t stay safely ensconced at home.
Shelf stackers, bus drivers, cleaners, porters, nurses, carers, security guards and waste collectors: as a general rule of thumb, the social usefulness of your job turns out to be inversely proportional to how much you get paid for it.
“Without pressure from both in and outside Westminster, there’s good reason to fear that it’ll be the poorest who’ll be hardest hit once more.”
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Furthermore, facing a choice of staying home when sick or being able to pay the bills, all too many people have been forced into work when they should have been self-isolating over the course of this pandemic.
Secondly, the unprecedented pace at which a vaccine has been developed shows just what can be achieved when governments unite and chuck money at the world’s most pressing issues. The same things which make a return to normal so appealing – being able to live less anxiously, more socially, and with a greater sense of security – are precisely why we need a new, fair economic settlement.
Without pressure from both in and outside Westminster, there’s good reason to fear that it’ll be the poorest who’ll be hardest hit once more.
As one civil servant remarked in 1963, the dominant view at the Treasury tends to be that “Spending money, like eating people, is always wrong.”
Despite Boris Johnson’s earlier promise ruling out a return to austerity, it would be wise to question whether instinctively hawkish Sunak shares the same commitment in face of nearly £400bn of borrowing.
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But the impact of public spending cuts, kamikaze privatisation and wage stagnation on the country’s finances has been nothing short of catastrophic.
Far from balancing the books and returning the economy to good health, 10 years of Conservative austerity policies shrank the economy by £100 billion, leaving the average household £300 worse off a month. And as reported by a senior UN health envoy, economic inequality and precarity have had a devastating impact on the UK’s mental health. We cannot live happy or free lives without economic security.
In order to aid recovery, the government needs to prioritise increasing the spending power of those on low and middle incomes. The touted public sector pay freeze would not only be a grave insult to all those key workers who risked their lives to keep the country going over the pandemic, it would be economically illiterate.
The combination of a decade’s wage stagnation and the soaring cost of living has already butchered the financial resilience of too many households. Boosting the nation’s spending power after many people saw reductions to their income over the pandemic by increasing public sector pay and investing properly in the social safety net injects money into the economy, rather than stripping demand out of it.
The cost of borrowing has dropped by over £20bn for the government. Sunak would be wise to take advantage of historically low interest rates, deferring deficit reduction in favour of ambitious spending on job creation.
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Big problems require big solutions. If the government is serious about the health of our economy even after most of us get the vaccine, that will mean a little more inspiration from FDR than from George Osborne.
State-backed public works programmes, which create jobs in infrastructure intended for the public benefit, are an idea whose time has come around again.
Johnson ought to nick a bit more from Labour’s 2019 manifesto than the snappy titles: his Green Industrial Revolution has just a fraction of the budget allocated to the opposition’s decarbonisation plans. An investment of 1.9% of GDP per year could yield a net benefit of £800 billion within a decade, and the creation of 850,000 new jobs (as opposed to Johnson’s 250,000). Borrowing-to-invest is cheaper than it’s ever been – the government has the power to bring in a “new normal” of a green economy, with jobs for all.
The freedom offered by a vaccine means little if the government immediately decides it’s time we tighten our belts, queue up at the food bank, dip into non-existent personal savings, and balance the Treasury’s books on the backs of the poor.
The pandemic stole from us our ability to socialise, to enjoy ourselves, to spend time with the people who matter the most to us. That’s why it’s up to all of us to make sure that the government does not impose an economic cure that’s worse than the disease.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--The Royal Family Got Together — At A Distance — For The First Time This Year

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Even the Royal Family is opting for socially distanced meets.
The senior royals took their first group portrait of the year at Windsor Castle on Tuesday. But because it’s 2020, they had to make it a wide shot, with all the households maintaining six feet of distance from one another.
Queen Elizabeth met with her eldest son Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; her youngest son, Prince Edward, and his wife, Sophie, Countess of Wessex; and her grandson Prince William and his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge. They gathered to thank frontline workers and volunteers who are helping the country get through the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Pool/Samir Hussein via Getty Images From left: Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
The royals have been personally affected by the virus. Prince Charles contracted Covid in March. Prince William also reportedly tested positive in April.
In the spring, the Queen — who rarely gives public addresses, outside of her regular Christmas speech — gave a hopeful address about the pandemic.
“If we remain united and resolute, then we will overcome it,” she said.
When the photos were taken on Tuesday, Prince William and Kate Middleton had just completed a train tour of the UK where they thanked frontline workers across England, Scotland and Wales. But the tour wasn’t without controversy: when asked about the tour by the BBC, Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething replied, “I’d rather that no one was having unnecessary visits.”
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Despite the safety protocol, the royals all seemed in good spirits on Tuesday — particularly the Queen, who was all smiles, decked out in a bright red coat and matching hat.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--Taylor Swift Is Releasing Another Surprise Album Just Months After Folklore

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Vintage tee, brand new phone, Taylor Swift has recorded yet another surprise album to make you feel less alone.
Less than five months after she dropped her eighth studio album, Folklore, without any warning, the Grammy-winning singer has announced the surprise release of her new record titled “evermore,” which will be made available everywhere on Thursday night.
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For the album, Swift Taylor collaborated with her Folklore co-writers Aaron Dessner of The National, Bleachers frontman and producer Jack Antonoff, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver and, of course, songwriter William Bowery, who she recently revealed is a pseudonym for her boyfriend, actor Joe Alwyn.
“To put it plainly, we just couldn’t stop writing songs. To try and put it more poetically, it feels like we were standing on the edge of the folklorian woods and had a choice: to turn and go back or to travel further into the forest of this music. We chose to wander deeper in,” Taylor wrote on Instagram on Thursday.
“I’ve never done this before. In the past I’ve always treated albums as one-off eras and moved onto planning the next one after an album was released. There was something different with folklore. In making it, I felt less like I was departing and more like I was returning.”
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She added: “I loved the escapism I found in these imaginary/not imaginary tales. I loved the ways you welcomed the dreamscapes and tragedies and epic tales of love lost and found into your lives. So I just kept writing them.”
Evermore will span 15 tracks, and the deluxe digital album will include two bonus songs.
Haim, The National and Bon Iver will all feature on the record.
The singer went onto reveal that album serves as an early present for her fans to coincide with her 31st birthday on Sunday, noting that the milestone is her lucky number 13 in reverse.
“You’ve all been so caring, supportive and thoughtful on my birthdays and so this time I thought I would give you something,” she added. “I also know this holiday season will be a lonely one for most of us and if there are any of you out there who turn to music to cope with missing loved ones the way I do, this is for you.”
Taylor also revealed that she’ll be releasing a music video for the album’s lead single, “willow,” along with the record, adding that “every precaution was made” to ensure the safety of cast and crew members on set.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--Test And Trace Hits Contact Tracing Target For First Time Since May

PA
Boris Johnson’s Test and Trace service has hit a key contact tracing target for the first time since May.
The proportion of “close contacts” of people with Covid in England reached was 85.7% for the week ending December 2, new figures showed.
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It’s only the second time that the controversial service has passed the 80% target, which the government’s scientific advisers say is needed to make the whole project viable in stemming the spread of the virus.
The contact tracing rate was up from 72.5% the previous week, which was itself a big jump on the 60.5% of the week before that.
The last time that Test and Trace passed the key milestone was in May, when 90.6% of close contacts were reached. Since then the number fell steadily, prompting heavy criticism of chief Dido Harding.
The big driver for the improved performance was a key decision to phone households only once when they have been in contact with a positive coronavirus case, instead of calling individual household members.
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Test and Trace has decided to stop making multiple phone calls to the same house to talk to each individual adult, and instead is using one call to communicate with all the residents.
The service had been getting complaints from the public about being “bombarded” with phone calls to the same home and decided in mid November to change its practices.
Last week’s figures were the first time that under-18s in a household were no longer contact traced individually, provided the parent or guardian in the household confirmed they have completed their legal duty to inform their child to self-isolate.
From 27 November, this change was extended to cover adults in the same household, so they have the option to be traced via a single phone call.
“These operational improvements have resulted in an increase in the proportion of contacts reached and the proportion reached within 24 hours,” the department for health and social care said.
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One former call centre handler for Test and Trace, Tracey Dunlop, explained on Twitter how ineffective the previous system was.
It was even worse that that! I was on phones when started .. for a couple with 3 kids you had to ‘trace’ each separately.. different tracers & nothing to link the records.. could end up with family handing 8*5 calls/vms a day.. from different people. — TC Dunlop (@tc_dunlop) December 10, 2020
Test and Trace now has a £22bn budget, equivalent to nearly a fifth of the entire NHS budget each year, and has faced heavy criticism for its use of private sector firms like Serco and Deloitte.
Although it has hugely expanded testing capacity, its testing turnaround times and its poor contact tracing have prompted critics to suggest taxpayers’ money has been wasted on the project.
Overall, the latest Test and Trace figures – which cover the final week of the second national lockdown – reflect the fall in cases seen in recent weeks.
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A total of 96,415 people tested positive for Covid-19 in England at least once in the week to December 2.
This is down 13% on the previous week and is the lowest total since the week ending October 7.
Some 195,355 people were identified as coming into “close contact” with someone who had tested positive – defined as spending more than 15 minutes with them at a distance of less than two metres.
The number of contacts identified has notably decreased across the last two weeks.
Testing turnaround times have improved too, with 64.9% of “in-person” test results received within 24 hours.
That’s up on the 54.2% in the previous week, but still well short of the 100% promised by the prime minister in the summer.
Dido Harding, interim executive chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, said: “NHS Test and Trace continues to build on partnerships across national and local government, with business and with the public, and we are now seeing some of the fruits of that work.
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“These improvements will help stop transmission of the virus and help protect our communities. This week’s figures show that as the number of people who have used NHS Test and Trace continues to increase, so the service is constantly evolving and improving.”
Health Minister Lord Bethell said: “Today’s figures represent a milestone for NHS Test and Trace and a breakthrough in terms of the effectiveness of its tracing capability.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-10--The Best (And Worst) Pigs In Blanket Offerings – Ranked By Us

Huffpost UK
We all know there’s only one breakout star item from the Christmas dinner menu that’s worthy of the ’god tier’ status: pigs in blankets.
Traditionally, it’s a chipolata sausage wrapped in streaky bacon, but over the years its repertoire has expanded into veggie and vegan versions. Meat or no meat, they’re still crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside – and Christmas dinner just isn’t complete without these delicious cylindrical little bastards.
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But year after year, pig in blanket items seem to be popping up for shock value. Not content with merely wrapping a sausage anymore, other much-loved everyday foodstuffs have been given the porky treatment. Mayonnaise? Spritz some eau de pigs in blanket in there. Noodles? Wrap them up with pigs in blanket. Mac and cheese? Let’s sneak in a little sausage.
As much as we love them, we must ask ourselves – have we reached peak pigs in blankets? We put all the festive culinary pork items to the test and tried them all to find out. Here’s our ranking – from worst to best.
Sainsbury’s Pigs In Blankets Noodles, £1
Rating: -1/5
Reviewed by: Angela Hui, life reporter
Angela Hui Sainsburys Pigs in Blanket Noodles
If 2020 had a taste, this would be it. A sad grey noodle that tastes of overcompensated sage and nothing else. Texturally, it’s so wrong. It’s far too soft with no bite and it disintegrates whenever I pick it up with my chopsticks. To make this soggy wet strand edible, I add a lot of chilli oil (I mean, a lot) to make it palatable. My recommendation? Go to an Asian supermarket, stock up and buy two packs of instant ramen (for the same price) and treat yourself to the good stuff.
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Iceland’s Caroline Reaper Super Spicy Pigs In Blankets, £2 for 12
Rating: 2/5
Reviewed by: Amy Packham, life editor
Amy Packham Carolina Reaper Pigs In Blanket
I can handle spice – but I wouldn’t say I love it. My boyfriend and I cook six spicy pigs, hoping we’ll be able to stomach three each. Alas, I only eat half and he mistakenly eats a whole one. The texture and taste of the pigs in blanket are great, but then the spice hits – and it’s too much. My other half coughs, chokes, gulps down some water, and chugs some milk. I have half a pig and can’t have anymore. I scratch my nose, forgetting my fingers still have spiciness on them. Big mistake. This’d be fun as a novelty present, but I think a lot of people would find these too much. I guess we can’t blame Iceland after all – there’s a caution on the packaging. We end up with a nearly full side plate of them, untouched.
Sainsbury’s Pigs In Blankets Flavour Mayo, 75p
Rating: -2/5
Reviewed by: Angela Hui, life reporter
Angela Hui Sainsbury's Pigs in Blanket Mayo
This bright salmon-coloured congealed blob looks as bad as it tastes. I wince at the strong vinegar scent when I open it. The stench smacks you hard in the face, my poor nose feels bruised. I can tell I’m going to immediately regret putting any of this pungent stuff in my mouth. Taste-wise, it’s overly oily and vinegary, it doesn’t contain any part of the pig and only has a hint of liquid smoke to replicate a fake smokiness. This truly is the stuff of nightmares. When you search the word ‘nightmare’ in the dictionary a picture of this mayo will appear.
Aldi Two-Metre Pig In Blanket Swirl, £4.99
Rating: 2.5/5
Reviewed by: Rachel Moss, life reporter
Rachel Moss Aldi Two-Metre Long Pigs in Blanket
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I expect some sort of giant, comedy sausage to turn up at my door after being assigned Aldi’s two-metre long “socially distanced-compliant” pig in blanket to review. I’m almost disappointed when a neat swirl arrives, but I do wonder if this novelty product could actually make a classy centrepiece. Things go downhill when I cook it. It’s hard to get an even cook on such a dense spiral and the outside layer begins to catch, while the centre remains underdone. Turning the oven down and covering with foil helps, but I take a peek at the underside and decide this baby needs flipping, which (it turns out) is easier said than done, without the spiral unravelling. The end result looks like a sad, slightly burnt snail – I’m choosing to blame the design, rather than my cooking ability. It’s tasty (it’s sausage and bacon, what’s not to love?), but I wouldn’t buy it again – individual PIBs are easier to cook, taste exactly the same and (probably) look better.
Iceland Pigs In Blankets Mac And Cheese, £3
Rating: 2.5/5
Reviewed by: Amy Packham, life editor
Amy Packham Pigs in Blanket Mac and Cheese
I’m a little disappointed to only see four piggies in blankets when I open the meal to put it in the oven – but maybe I’m just a piggie myself. It takes 45 mins to cook from frozen, and the top breadcrumb layer looks so incredibly good, my tummy rumbles. The main event underneath, though – the actual mac and cheese – is pretty bland and not very cheesy. I add (quite a lot of) salt and pepper to give it some flavouring. Still, the pigs in blanket are amazing and go really well with it, I just wish there was more! Have a large festive dessert planned for afters if you’re hungry.
Sainsbury’s Pigs In Blankets Tree Tortillas, £1
Rating: 3/5
Reviewed by: Angela Hui, life reporter
Angela Hui Pigs in Blanket Flavour Tortilla Trees
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A solid, moreish crisp that makes for an excellent vessel to dunk into other dips. There’s a slight porky taste that’s not too overpowering, with hints of sage and paprika coming through – but add sage to anything and it’ll remind you of sausages. The tree-shaped tortilla is a festive nod to get you in the Christmas party snacking mood, because the sight of a crunchy Nordmann Fir is enough to send anyone crackers for Christmas.
Sainsbury’s Pigs In Blankets Christmas Tree, Taste the Difference, £6.50
Rating: 3/5
Reviewed by: Angela Hui, life reporter
Angela Hui Pigs in Blanket Christmas Tree
While it certainly looks the part with fresh festive cranberries and rosemary tinsel (their words not mine), it’s a big shame I can’t taste either of those things after cooking. The bacon that’s wrapped around the sausage is doing all of the heavy lifting, giving a lovely dry-cured and smoky flavour, which masks the under-seasoned tree-shaped sausage. The tree shape is cute, but it’s a little gimmicky which makes for uneven cooking where the ends are more frazzled and crispy, but the centre is cooked just right and it’s juicy. It isn’t terrible, but it could be better.
Asda Extra Special Pigs In Blankets Crisps, 85p
Rating: 3/5
Reviewed by: Natasha Hinde, life reporter
Natasha Hinde Pigs in Blankets Hand Cooked Crisps
I’m actually very excited to try these crisps as I wonder how they’d infuse the flavour of pigs in blankets – which is quite a unique taste – into them. When I bite the first one, I realise I’m basically eating smoky bacon flavoured crisps. I wouldn’t say they’re distinctly pigs in blankets-flavoured, however they are tasty for those who are partial to a bit of smoky bacon.
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Asda Candied Pigs In Blankets, £2.25
Rating: 4.5/5
Reviewed by: Natasha Hinde, life reporter
Natasha Hinde Candied Pigs in Blanket


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--I'm A Celebrity's Victoria Derbyshire Shares Secret Exchange With Jordan North They Had Before Enter

I'm A Celebrity's Victoria Derbyshire Shares Secret Exchange With Jordan North They Had Before Entering Castle

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The BBC journalist has shared an exchange she had with the Radio 1 presenter, who she knew prior to them appearing on the ITV reality show together.
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Jordan used to work behind the scenes on Victoria’s BBC Radio 5 Live show, revealing on I’m A Celebrity that he used to make her tea.
And prior to entering the Welsh castle, they were messaging each other trying to work out if the other was taking part.
Victoria Derbyshire and Jordan North knew each other prior to I'm A Celebrity ITV/Shutterstock
Sharing their messages on Instagram, Victoria wrote: “Ha just remembered this - @jordannorth1 and me in quarantine in separate places in Wales skirting around the fact that we were both doing @imacelebrity.”
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In the screenshot of their chat, she wrote to Jordan: “Oh my god are u doing I’m a celeb?!?!?!?!!!”
Jordan replied: “Are you!? Is it true? Xx”
Victoria responded: “Can’t confirm or deny - same for you?!?!” to which Jordan said: “Haha yep.”
The newsreader then wrote: “I bet we’re even near each other RIGHT NOW!!! It’s gonna be the biggest laugh EVER.”
“100%,” Jordan added.
Victoria and Jordan messaged prior to entering the castle Instagram
Victoria ended up finishing in ninth place on this year’s I’m A Celebrity, which concluded last week.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--The UK's Coronavirus R Rate Has Risen

The UK's Coronavirus R Rate Has Risen

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The reproduction number, or R rate, of coronavirus transmission across the UK has risen to between 0.9 and 1, according to the latest government figures.
It represents an increase from last week’s estimate of between 0.8 and 1.0.
R measures the number of people, on average, that each sick person will infect.
If R is greater than 1, the epidemic is generally seen to be growing; if R is less than 1 the epidemic is shrinking.
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The estimate represents the situation over the past few weeks rather than a snapshot of the situation on Friday, due to the time delay between initial infection, symptoms appearing, and the need for hospital care.
The Government Science Office has also published regional R rates across England as supplied by NHS England. A similar regional breakdown for other UK nations is not revealed.
Regional R numbers across England
England: 0.8 - 1.0
East of England: 0.9 -1.1
London: 0.9 -1.1
Midlands: 0.8 - 1.0
North East and Yorkshire: 0.7- 0.9
North West: 0.7- 0.9
South East: 0.9 -1.1
South West: 0.8 -1.0
In Scotland the R number is estimated to be between 0.8 and 1. In Wales it is estimated to be between 0.8 and 1.1. And in Northern Ireland
The weekly survey by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) also reported on Friday that infection rates across England “continued to decrease”.
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But it warned the percentage of people testing positive in London has increased and there are early signs of increase in the East of England.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--How Mass Testing Thousands Of Secondary School Kids Will Work

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Hundreds of thousands of coronavirus tests will be rolled out to secondary school children in the worst-affected areas of London, Kent and Essex, Matt Hancock has confirmed.
The health secretary said the targeted testing drive aimed to combat a “very specific rise” in Covid-19 infection rates among 11- to 18-year-olds in these areas.
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“We need to do everything to stop the spread in school-age children now,” Hancock said at a Downing Street press conference on Thursday.
On Friday, further details regarding the mass testing drive were published by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
Here’s what we know so far.
Areas in London, Essex and Kent targeted
Pupils in “certain schools and colleges” in the worst-affected parts of London, Essex and Kent will be offered tests immediately.
In London, those areas are Barking and Dagenham, the City of London, Hackney, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.
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In Essex: Southend, Basildon, Canvey Island, Harlow, Brentwood and Southend.
The government has not revealed which secondary schools will be targeted, or which areas of Kent are affected.
Groups to be tested
Secondary school and college-age children in those areas above, as well as teachers, staff and their families, will all be offered testing, regardless of symptoms.
Speaking at the Downing Street press briefing, Hancock said “targeted action” was needed “immediately” because of a “sharp rise” in infection rates in those areas among teenagers.
“By far the fastest rise is among secondary school age children 11 to 18 years old, while the rate among adults in London is broadly flat,” he said.
“But we know from experience that a sharp rise in case in younger people can lead to a rise among more vulnerable age groups later.”
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Testing will be voluntary, but all staff, students and their families in those areas have been urged to get tested this weekend.
Additional mobile testing units will be set up to provide testing for secondary school pupils, staff and their families. Andrew Matthews - PA Images via Getty Images
Mobile testing units and home tests
In north-east London, an extra 15 mobile testing units will be deployed in or near schools, providing about 75,000 tests for staff, students and their families.
Some 40,000 school staff will be given home test kits to use before returning to work in January.
In Essex, an additional 10 mobile testing units will be deployed over the weekend for staff, students and their families. This will provide approximately 75,000 additional tests over and above existing test sites in the county.
Two mobile testing units will be deployed on Saturday in Kent, with a further 10 by the start of next week.
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Both polymerise chain reaction (PCR) – or swab tests – and lateral flow tests will be used as part of the pilot, although the majority of tests will be PCR.
How to apply for tests
Schools and colleges have been given information on how to get involved.
Parents or carers will be able to apply for tests using an online testing portal.
Children under 16 attending a mobile testing unit will need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Schools will continue to stay open
The health secretary said mass testing was necessary in order to keep schools open, but schools in England will be allowed to close a day early for Christmas.
“We want to keep schools and colleges open, because it is right both for education and public health, but in the face of rapidly rising cases we must act to target rising rates in secondary school pupils,” he said.
On Wednesday, schools minister Nick Gibb told MPs schools could close a day early to allow “six clear days” before Christmas Eve, but teachers unions have called for greater flexibility over school term dates.
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HuffPost UK reported on Wednesday that schools had resisted even calls from clinically vulnerable families for their children to be taught online.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--No-Deal Brexit Now 'Very, Very Likely', Says Boris Johnson

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Boris Johnson has said it is now “very, very likely” that the UK will leave the EU without a trade deal.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen also said on Friday there were “fundamental issues” that remain unresolved.
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During the Tory leadership contest in June 2016, Johnson had claimed the chances of a no-deal Brexit were a “million-to-one against”.
The UK’s transition period out of the EU ends on December 31. If a deal is not struck then it will have to trade on World Trade Organisation terms from January.
The British Retail Consortium has warned that supermarkets and their shoppers would be hit with a £3.1bn annual “tariff bombshell” without a deal, with 85% of foods imported from the EU expected to face tariffs exceeding 5%.
Speaking on a visit to Blyth in Northumberland on Friday, the prime minister said he was “hopeful” a deal could be reached and negotiations were continuing in Brussels.
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But he said there would need to be “a big change” in the EU’s negotiating position.
“I’ve got to tell that from where I stand now, here in Blyth, it is looking very, very likely that we will have to go for a solution that I think would be wonderful for the UK, and we’d be able to do exactly what we want from January 1 – it obviously would be different from what we’d set out to achieve but I have no doubt this country can get ready and, as I say, come out on World Trade terms,” he said.
Johnson told the cabinet on Thursday to “get on and make those preparations” for a no-deal departure, euphemistically referred to as “Australia-style” by ministers. Australia has no trade deal with the EU.
But Malcolm Turnbull, a former Australian prime minister, said the UK should be “careful what you wish for” as Australia’s relationship with the EU is “not one from a trade point of view that I think Britain would want, frankly”.
Direct talks between Johnson and von der Leyen in Brussels on Wednesday failed to produce a breakthrough.
The paid said Sunday was now the new deadline by which the future of the talks would be decided.
If a trade deal is reached, it will have to be voted through by the UK Parliament as well as the EU Parliament.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--I’m Not Spending Christmas With Family This Year. You Shouldn’t Either

"While I completely understand this desire to return to some normality, albeit for a few days, I just don’t think it’s worth it." Klaus Vedfelt via Getty Images
While this Christmas will be far from “normal”, the government seem to be going to great lengths to allow families to gather and celebrate as they would every other year.
For many, the announcement of a break in the rules between 23 and 27 December was met with relief. Crucially, it would allow three households to form a Christmas bubble.
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While I completely understand this desire to return to some normality, albeit for a few days, I just don’t think it’s worth it. It is hard to tell if such a move by the government is an attempt to momentarily boost the economy, or is merely a popularity stunt. Either way, I just don’t see the point.
In addition to the threat of a third lockdown at the beginning of the new year further disrupting the economy, I just can’t bear the thought of unknowingly passing on Covid to an elderly or vulnerable relative.
Despite cases reducing by a third since the beginning of the second lockdown four weeks ago, the disease is still very much in circulation. The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) warned in a report published on November 19 that “Any relaxation over the festive period will result in increased transmission and increased prevalence, potentially by a large amount”. The report even compared the mass movement that would take place over the Christmas period to the return of students to universities in September “albeit on a different scale”.
Furthermore, many schools will not break up for Christmas until December 18. This would mean there could potentially be a period of just five days between children being in close contact with other pupils and travelling to see friends and families in an intimate proximity.
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“Surprisingly, our decision not to meet for Christmas was met with some relief by my grandparents.”
Although Boris Johnson has issued government advice that celebrations should include “No touching, no games or rowdy singing”, I feel that such measures are not sufficient.
We know the virus can be airborne and that people do not need to physically touch for the virus to be passed on. Shockingly, according to the SAGE report, it is estimated that on average “up to 50% in one household becom[e] infected from one infected member”.
After the government announced the relaxation of rules, my family did consider visiting elderly relatives for Christmas. However, due to their age we knew that we would not be able to carry out the celebrations outside. We decided that any meals would need to be indoors, and we would therefore need to isolate for 14 days before the visit.
However, we realised that even a period of isolation would not guarantee us being Covid free. Despite not meeting people outside of our own household, we would still need to visit supermarkets to shop for both ourselves and our elderly relatives and could in theory pick up the virus there.
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Surprisingly, our decision not to meet for Christmas was met with some relief by my grandparents. It seemed that they themselves had been anxious about the potential gathering.
Despite this, I understand that for some elderly or vulnerable individuals, not seeing friends or family would mean spending Christmas alone. I think in these cases the creation of a support bubble is important. I also know that for those who are ill, there is the fear that this could be their last Christmas. Therefore, I believe that it is up to the rest of us to sacrifice seeing our friends and family so that these individuals can have a Christmas.
While I of course do not judge those who are choosing to see relatives this Christmas, I want those who aren’t sure to know it is OK to say “no”. Many people this year have felt under pressure from family or friends to do things that have made them uncomfortable and no one should be made to feel that way. By being careful, we can stay safe and protect others.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Louis Theroux Confirms Great British Bake Off Secret We'd Long Suspected

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Louis Theroux is known for his investigative journalism, and now he’s exposed a secret from the set of The Great British Bake Off.
The documentary maker appeared on a Stand Up To Cancer special of the Channel 4 show earlier this year, and has now spilled the beans on something we’d long suspected.
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Louis revealed that when the presenters inform the contestants how much time they have left during each round, it’s not actually true.
Louis Theroux appeared on Great British Bake Off earlier this year Channel 4
Speaking to Cosmopolitan, he said: “The secret I’m going to tell you is that when they say ‘Bakers, you have 15 minutes left,’ they do those irrespective of the time.
“They get them as a shot. They basically say to you, ‘Just ignore that – we need that shot.’”
Of course, Louis took part in the Bake Off before a number of changes were introduced for the most recent series due to the pandemic.
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All of the cast and crew had to live in a self-contained biosphere for six weeks at Down Hall in Essex so they could film without having to socially distance on camera.
The hosts, judges and bakers lived alongside 80 members of the production team, 20 hotel staff, and around 20 “children, chaperones and dog walkers” during the six-week shoot.
Prior to moving in to the hotel, people had to self-isolate for nine days and take three Covid tests to ensure they did not have the virus.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--It’s Harder For Black And Asian People To Trust The Covid Vaccine. Here’s What Needs To Happen

Concerns from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities about the Covid-19 vaccine have not been addressed by the government, campaigners have said, as structural inequalities and historical medical racism has led to “hesitancy” about the jab.
The UK on Tuesday became the first country in the world to start administering the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, in a seismic shift in the battle against the pandemic.
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But a recent poll by the Mile End Institute at Queen Mary University of London found little more than a third of ethnic minority Londoners (39%) said they were likely to take the jab compared with 70% of white people in the capital. That is despite Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities continuing to be disproportionately hospitalised and killed by Covid-19.
HuffPost UK has spoken to doctors, academics and members of the public, and discovered the concern stems from racial inequality in the healthcare system and the history of medical experimentation on Black people.
Professor Sophie Harman, who specialises in the politics of global health at Queen Mary University of London, said the survey’s findings are “unsurprising”.
She said: “Would you trust a government that accepts you’re more likely to die of Covid-19 than your white neighbours and does nothing very much about it? Vaccine hesitancy risks a double tragedy: racial inequality in deaths from Covid-19 and potential racial inequality in vaccine uptake.”
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VictorHuang via Getty Images
Dr Zubaida Haque, a member of the Independent SAGE group of scientists, told HuffPost UK the government had not done enough to make specific efforts to reassure BAME communities about the safety of the vaccine.
“There are so many myths surrounding the vaccination that it’s irresponsible of the government not to set up a dedicated website with frequently asked questions,” she said.
“You can imagine, ethnic minority communities will be very nervous. They need the government to engage with them, respect their concerns, acknowledge they’re reasonable concerns given that the government hasn’t really done anything to address their vulnerabilities.”
“Racism has plagued the healthcare service as well as the history of medical experimentation on Black individuals. Concerns from Black communities regarding the Covid-19 vaccine are not invalid” - Olamide Dada, founder of Melanin Medics
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Campaigners argue many in BAME communities are “nervous” because of a litany of questionable historical and modern day medical treatments, and repeated examples of healthcare benefiting white people disproportionately – with non-white people generally experiencing poorer health outcomes throughout their lives.
In April, two French doctors came under fire for racism after a TV debate in which one suggested trials in Africa to see if a tuberculosis vaccine would prove effective against coronavirus.
The comments received an angry response on social media, including from former footballer Didier Drogba who cautioned Europeans not to “take African people as human guinea pigs”.
Between 1845 and 1849, Dr James Marion Sims – widely regarded as the “father of modern gynaecology” – tortured enslaved Black woman while perfecting his medical surgeries on their bodies without consent or an anaesthetic.
He also invented the modern speculum, Sims’s position for vaginal exams, which he first used on slaves and has gone on to be used widely within healthcare. As such, Sims is viewed favourably by many historians and has several worldwide monuments, despite his brutality.
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During the Tuskegee Study in 1932, Black American men died of syphilis over 40 years in disproportionate numbers due to poor care during a series of unethical medical trials.
More recently, south Asian women have been known to complain about having their pain dismissed by doctors who claim they are suffering from the so-called “Mrs Bibi syndrome”, also known as “Begum syndrome”, HuffPost UK has reported.
Black women are five times more likely to die in childbirth than white women, a disparity the NHS acknowledges and regrets but does not have a target to end.
In a collaboration with Black Ballad this summer, Black women revealed the shocking racism they faced in the UK’s healthcare system during pregnancy and childbirth – including instances where doctors didn’t believe their pain.
What’s more, Black people are severely underrepresented in the UK’s database of Covid-19 vaccine clinical trial volunteers.
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Responding to BAME communities not being included on the vaccine priority list, Jacqui Burnett – a Black woman – said: “Blacks are fed up of being the ones vaccines are tried out on first historically. Our cup is full and running over.”
Someone else echoed this, saying: “I don’t want to be their experiment.”
A Black woman, Vanessa, said: “Give the politicians and top health advisers it first. Wait a year then come back and talk to me.”
Another person of colour expressed fear that they would be used as “lab rats for a vaccine that hasn’t been proven 100% safe now and in the future”.
In fact, there are no safety concerns about the vaccine. It has been tested on 43,500 people in six countries. Like some other foods and vaccines, people with a history of severe allergic reactions have been advised not to receive it, but that does not mean it is unsafe for anyone else.
Rather than the result of shortcuts or the loosening of safety standards, the speed with which Covid vaccines have been developed is due to the phenomenal money and effort thrown at the problem – the UK government alone has spent £6bn in total to develop and procure them. We put five popular vaccine myths to an independent scientist – here’s how she responded to each of them.
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Risk of Covid to BAME people
A Public Health England review published this summer found people from ethnic minorities were more likely to contract and die from Covid-19 and ministers promised to take steps to reduce disparities in these risk and outcomes. This pledge has not been not honoured.
Haque said: “Why have a review which showed that people from BAME backgrounds and those living in more deprived areas are more likely to be hospitalised and die from Covid-19 if you’re not going to address that risk?”
Anti-vaxxers have been responsible for peddling wild conspiracy theories about coronavirus vaccines, including false claims that the jab will modify people’s DNA and result in patients being implanted with a microchip that will be used to control the population. But campaigners have stressed the importance of not confusing vaccine hesitancy for anti-vaccination.
VictorHuang via Getty Images
Haque explained: “There is a difference between the anti-vaxxers and the vaccine hesitant group. It would be a big disservice to BAME communities to suggest that they are the anti-vaxxers because they tend to be irrational, have very different reasons for not taking vaccines and a lot of it isn’t necessarily based on the science so to speak.
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“Vaccine hesitancy isn’t necessarily irrational. It can be very reasonable doubt, anxiety, nervousness about the vaccine. What we really need is for the government to engage with that.”
As recently as Wednesday during a conference on ethnic minority health inequality, equalities minister Kemi Badenoch – a Black woman – dismissed the role of structural racism in medical outcomes for BAME communities.
Pointing to Badenoch’s responsibility in addressing ethnic disproportionality in transmission of the virus, Haque said: “That signals the government’s approach to how seriously they take the virus risk among ethnic minority communities. This isn’t an equalities issue – it’s a public health issue.
“Unless over 60% of the population takes the vaccine we will not get population immunity which means we won’t be coming out of this pandemic. At the moment there’s quite a high rate of vaccine hesitancy.”
Luton-based GP Dr Simisola Alabi described the concerns that some Black people have shared with her about the vaccine. It boils down to one fundamental question: is it safe?
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The jab is the fastest vaccine to go from concept to reality, taking only 10 months to follow the same steps that sometimes take a decade – although scientists have been able to assure the public no corners have been cut.
Dr Simisola Alabi Supplied
“The vaccine is relatively safe but the truth is a lot of the work that is supposed to have been done in developing the vaccine could not be done because of time constraints – such a how it interacts with other medicines, its effects on reproduction,” Alabi told HuffPost UK.
The vaccine was not tested on pregnant women, which is why the NHS says they should wait until after giving birth to take it.
“Black communities are ignored generally, in every scenario, so it’s an uphill task when you’re trying to get good health outcomes as a patient. I take exception to the fact that we haven’t been prioritised on the vaccination list – at least give us a chance to say no.”
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Alabi – clinical director at the multi-practice Titan Primary Care Network – said many Black people she knows have access to disinformation videos about the vaccine that consist of “utter rubbish” but are being shared widely across WhatsApp.
She said: “Given the lack of trust in the government, there is a responsibility on Black people to utilise sound resources available and educate themselves about what is and isn’t safe.”
Minority ethnic healthcare professionals are playing a key role in sharing reliable information about the vaccine on social media. Just last week on Clubhouse, a new invite-only voice-based app, UK Black doctors took it upon themselves to address concerns and misinformation about the vaccine.
The Ubele Initiative, a Black-led social enterprise, has been independently collating information regarding people’s vaccination concerns which it intends to share with the Greater London Authority.
Dominic Lipinski - PA Images via Getty Images
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Melanin Medics is a UK charity that promotes diversity in medicine. Its founder and chief exec Olamide Dada told HuffPost UK: “Given the events of this year, which have revealed the extent to which racism has plagued the healthcare service, as well as the history of medical experimentation on Black individuals, concerns from Black communities regarding the Covid-19 vaccine are not invalid.
“These events have contributed to a great degree of distrust within Black communities, questioning whether the vaccine really is in their best interest. We know that Black people are more at risk of Covid-19 and in light of this, both trust and transparency are needed to ensure that at-risk groups are well protected.
“Whilst years of distrust cannot be rebuilt in a single moment, it is imperative that these concerns are well-addressed in a timely manner in the best interest of Black communities. This is a pivotal step in addressing racial inequality that has manifested itself within the healthcare system.”
Nadhim Zahawi, minister responsible for Covid vaccine deployment, told HuffPost UK: “Vaccines save lives and are the most effective public health intervention since clean water.
“All vaccines go through a robust clinical trial process and are only rolled out to patients once they have met the strict safety, effectiveness and quality standards of the UK’s medicines regulator, the MHRA.
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“The NHS will provide advice and information at every possible opportunity, including working closely with BAME communities, to support those receiving a vaccine and to anyone who has questions about the vaccination process.”
Professor Wei Shen Lim, COVID-19 Chair for JCVI, said: “There is clear evidence that certain Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups have higher rates of infection, and higher rates of serious disease, morbidity and mortality. The reasons are multiple and complex.
“Tailored local implementation to promote good vaccine coverage in Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups will be the most important factor within a vaccine programme in reducing health inequalities in these groups.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Pam St Clement Recalls How Her Comical First Meeting With Barbara Windsor Involved Mooning

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Pam St Clement has recalled her comical first meeting with Barbara Windsor, revealing they first spoke after she’d mooned at her on stage.
The former Pat Butcher actor appeared on This Morning on Friday to pay tribute to her former EastEnders co-star, who died on Thursday at the age of 83.
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Pam described meeting Barbara as “fortuitous” as she appeared alongside Bab’s old friend Christopher Biggins.
Pam St Clement and Barbara Windsor BBC
Speaking to hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield, Pam sad: “I was working at Joan Littlewood’s theatre in Stratford East and I was doing a play where I had to turn to somebody. It was a period piece – I had a long frock – I had to turn to somebody and just moon, just flip the back of my skirt up and show them my bottom!
“I heard this ‘ha-ha-ha’ from the audience... ‘What’s that? It sounds like Barbara Windsor!’” Pam continued. “Indeed, that was the first time, how prescient that was the fact that I met her afterwards and she said, ‘I loved it.’
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“How prescient that was that many years later, actually, we were together on the set of EastEnders.”
Pam also shared her fond memories of working with Barbara on the BBC soap, where she played Queen Vic landlady Peggy Mitchell on-and-off from 1994 to 2016.
Pat and Peggy were old foes in the BBC soap BBC
She recalled: “It was such an extraordinary thing when we knew that Barbara was coming into the show. Oh my gosh, what are we going to do, Barbara is coming - I felt like curtsying!
“Of course, I was terribly worried about her stature. We always, in the old days, used to hang the glasses over the top of the bar and, of course, Barbara was quite small so after she washed up the glasses or wanted a glass to pour some beer into, how would she reach these? But, we soon organised that so she’d be comfortable.
“Bless her, she said to me, ‘Please, please tell me if I’m not doing anything right, if I’m, if there is anything you can help me with behind the bar.’ She probably had more experience behind a bar than I did! She settled into that beautifully.”
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Of her overriding memory of working with Barbara, Pam continued: “I think all those wonderful scenes that were written for Pat and Peggy, particularly over the storyline with the love story with Frank.
“We had such fun, we had such good times. We both had the same work ethic. And we just got in there and did it.”
Pat, Peggy and Frank's love triangle will long be remembered BBC
Pam also said she had been in “close contact” with Barbara’s husband Scott Mitchell throughout her illness, after she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 2014.
However, she told of her “sadness” of not being able to see her friend for a year due to the pandemic.
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She said: ”[Scott] has kept me up to speed as it were with everything that’s been happening. I have been out of the country for most of this year and so I wasn’t - nobody could go and visit her with the lockdowns and everything, it was impossible.
“Which is sad in a sense because I - it means I haven’t seen her for nearly a year. And that is a sadness to me.”
Following news of Barbara’s death, a number of EastEnders stars past and present paid tribute to her online, including Patsy Palmer, Danny Dyer and Jake Wood.
The soap also issued a statement on Barbara’s death on Twitter.
“We are all deeply saddened that that we’ve lost our Dame,” it read. “Barbara created an icon in Peggy Mitchell, our formidable Landlady.
“To all of us at EastEnders, she was our dearest friend, truly loved and adored by everyone. Our thoughts go out to Scott and Barbara’s family.”
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This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Self-Isolation Cut From Two Weeks To 10 Days

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The 14-day self-isolation period for “close contacts” of coronavirus cases will be cut to 10 days from Monday, the government has announced.
The new shorter isolation period will apply across the whole of the UK, having already been introduced in Wales.
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People arriving in the UK from countries not on the travel corridor list will also only have to quarantine for 10 days rather than two weeks.
It still means anyone who is found to have come into close contact with a positive Covid case after Tuesday will be told by NHS Test and Trace to self-isolate over Christmas Day.
But under the 14-day rule, that cut-off point would have been today.
App delay
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) admitted on Friday the NHS Covid-19 phone app would wrongly continue to tell people to isolate for the old period of 14 days until Thursday.
It said this was due to the time taken to develop and test technical changes.
Until the app is updated, people in England have to follow the instructions given by human contact tracers if phoned by NHS Test and Trace.
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If someone has been advised to isolate by the app, and not by NHS Test and Trace, then they will be allowed to leave isolation if their isolation countdown timer says before Thursday that three days remain. But from Thursday, the app will display the correct number of days, so you should follow its instructions precisely.
The chief medical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland announced the reduction in isolation time in a joint statement on Friday.
“Self-isolation is essential to reducing the spread of Covid as it breaks the chains of transmission,” they said.
“After reviewing the evidence, we are now confident that we can reduce the number of days that contacts self-isolate from 14 days to 10 days.
“People who return from countries which are not on the travel corridor list should also self-isolate for 10 days instead of 14 days.
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“People who test positive should continue to self-isolate for 10 days from onset of symptoms or 10 days from point of taking a positive test if asymptomatic.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--NHS Covid App Will Give Wrong Instructions Next Week, Government Admits

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The NHS Covid-19 phone app will incorrectly tell people to self-isolate for longer than they should next week, the government has admitted.
From Monday, people who are found to have come into close contact with a positive coronavirus case will only have to quarantine for 10 days rather than 14.
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But the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) said this change would not be reflected on the app until Thursday.
This is due to the time taken to develop and test technical changes.
It means people will be told to isolate for longer than necessary under the new rules.
Until the app issues the correct instructions, people in England have to follow the instructions given by human contact tracers if phoned by NHS Test and Trace.
If someone has been advised to isolate by the app, and not by NHS Test and Trace, then they will be allowed to leave isolation if their isolation countdown timer says before Thursday that three days remain. But from Thursday, the app will display the correct number of days, so you should follow its instructions precisely.
The chief medical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland announced the reduction in isolation time in a joint statement on Friday.
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“Self-isolation is essential to reducing the spread of Covid as it breaks the chains of transmission,” they said.
“After reviewing the evidence, we are now confident that we can reduce the number of days that contacts self-isolate from 14 days to 10 days.
“People who return from countries which are not on the travel corridor list should also self-isolate for 10 days instead of 14 days.
“People who test positive should continue to self-isolate for 10 days from onset of symptoms or 10 days from point of taking a positive test if asymptomatic.
“We urge everyone to self-isolate when appropriate. It will save lives.”
The delay is not the first time the app has experienced hiccups. In November it was revealed the wrong risk threshold was being used, resulting in thousands of people not being told to isolate.
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The government was also forced to upgrade the app in October to reassure users worried by alert messages suggesting they had been exposed to the virus.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Er, Bon Appétit? Apocalyptic Brexit Menu Serves Up Some Unappetising Choices

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Just when you thought the prospect of a no-deal Brexit couldn’t be any more unappetising… a picture detailing life beyond December 1 has unleashed a fresh wave of nausea on the public.
A handy graphic published in Friday’s Daily Mail has illustrated some of the foods we will no longer enjoy easy access to, should we crash out of the EU without a trade agreement. And it appears to be bad news for the nation’s arteries and livers.
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The apparent Achilles’ Heel of millenials – avocado toast – is out of the question from January 1, because the UK imports the majority of its fruit. But could this herald a surge in homeownership? Only the taste test, of time will tell.
Banana smoothies are out for the same reason – but fear not, the UK is positively oozing with home-grown dairy supplies – enough for a glass of milk and an egg on white toast per person per day. Vegans might want to improvise that one.
The Daily Mail's handy guide to foods and drinks that will still be available after a chaotic no-deal Brexit glosses over one teensy weensy point: we only produce about HALF the food we consume in the UK. So it's not just about substitution.https://t.co/jmbyAb3QE7 pic.twitter.com/j7OWB3APyo — Edwin Hayward 🦄 🗡 (@uk_domain_names) December 10, 2020
As well as broccoli and tomatoes and pizza dough, you must wave goodbye to your Norway or Iceland-sourced cod.
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However, the graphic – which manages to somehow look depressingly faded, like those photographs of greasy eggs and chips you see in the window outside British bars in Magaluf – assures us that the UK produces “an abundance” of crab, lobster and prawns.
Any EU-produced wine is out the window, but fear not, replacing that glass of Merlot will be flagons of Scottish whisky and home-grown beer.
The Daily Mail predicts that fruits and most veg are out, but it’ll be all the chips, lobster and whisky you can stomach.
Not only is a zero-tariff deal with the EU likely to leave you with furred arteries and cirrhosis, but your wallet will be lighter for it too.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has calculated that these tarrifs could cost retailers more than £3bn – and the extra cost is likely to be passed onto the consumer.
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The UK boasts an 'abundance' of fresh lobster victorn via Getty Images
Tesco’s chair John Allan has estimated that the average household food bill may increase by 5%, with some increasing even more.
Retailers have insisted there will always be food on the shelves, but your options may dwindle a little.
“The lack of a comprehensive trade deal could mean less choice in stores and a shorter shelf life for perishable products such as fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as an inevitable cost pressure from delays,” says Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at BRC.
“We import the vast majority of our salad vegetables and soft fruit from the EU in January, so delays at the Channel ports will inevitably have an impact.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--EU Says UK Will Still Be 'Sovereign' Under Its Terms For A Brexit Deal

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The EU has insisted Boris Johnson will be able to uphold his key demand of “sovereignty” under Brussels’ proposed terms for a Brexit deal.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen explained the EU’s stance on the so-called level playing field, which is the key obstacle to a deal, while acknowledging the two sides “remain apart on fundamental issues”.
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It came after the prime minister said on Thursday there was a “strong possibility” of no deal and the UK defaulting to World Trade Organisation terms for trade with the EU from January 1, which is predicted to be the most damaging Brexit outcome.
The talks are stuck on the issues of fishing rights and EU demands to impose tariffs on the UK if it does not in future raise standards in areas like the environment in line with Brussels.
Europe sees the so-called level playing field provisions as crucial to ensure fair competition between UK and EU businesses.
An all-night European Council summit spent just eight minutes discussing Brexit, with von der Leyen briefing EU leaders on the state of play.
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At a summit press conference on Friday, she insisted that the UK would remain “free” to do what it wants on standards under Brussels’ terms for a deal, and suggested it would be able to similarly take action against the EU for unfair competition.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Von der Leyen said: “I briefed the leaders on the negotiations with the United Kingdom: positions remain apart on fundamental issues.
“On the level playing field we have repeatedly made clear to our UK partners that the principle of fair competition is a precondition to privileged access to the EU market.
“It is the largest single market in the world and it is only fair that competitors to our own enterprises face the same conditions on our own market.
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“But this is not to say that we would require the UK to follow us every time we decide to raise our level of ambition, for example in the environmental field.
“They would remain free, sovereign if you wish, to decide what they want to do.
“We would simply adapt the conditions for access to our market accordingly (to) the decision of the United Kingdom, and this would apply vice versa.”
It came after culture secretary Oliver Dowden explained that the UK is not prepared to get a Brexit deal “at any price”.
He strongly criticised the EU’s stance, insisting that Brussels does not make similar level playing field demands of other countries which it has free trade deals with, such as Canada.
“There is no free trade deal in the world, whether that is the EU’s free trade deal with Canada or with Japan, that requires that, as the EU changes its regulations, the other country – in this case the UK – would be required to match them or face consequences,” he told BBC Breakfast.
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“That is not a free trade relationship, that is trying to keep the UK within the sphere of influence of the EU.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--'Japandi' Is 2021's Big Homeware Trend. Here's What It Looks Like

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Pinterest has revealed its trends forecast for 2021, with a big focus on ‘Japandi’ home styling – where “Japanese design meets Scandinavian minimalism”.
Searches for Japandi have increased 100% year-on-year, says Pinterest, and searches for ‘neutral colour palettes’ and ‘earth tones’ have tripled. There’s been an even larger rise in interest for modern, wooden bed designs and minimalist bathrooms and kitchens.
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The Japandi homeware trend is nothing new – it’s been on people’s radars for a couple of years now, but Pinterest predicts 2021 will see it really take off.
So, how can you achieve the trend in your own home? Think functional furniture, minimalist layouts (no clutter allowed!) and natural raw materials like clay and wood, as well as a focus on sleek lines, neutral colour schemes and calming setups.
Here’s some inspiration to get you going.
FollowTheFlow via Getty Images
The bedroom
Helen White, co-founder and creative director of Houseof, says the idea behind the trend is to give us space to breathe, which is exactly what we need in 2021. And what better place to up the calm factor than in your boudoir?
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“When trying to recreate this calming trend go for a ‘less is more’ approach and choose iconic pieces, giving each item a space to breathe,” she says.
While both regions celebrate soft, light colours and natural materials “they don’t always agree on texture”, she adds, so pair soft light wood with cosy knitted fabrics, and a minimalist style with fluted concretes and pleated materials.
Adele Shotton-Pugh, of home furnishings retailer Terrys, recommends keeping your bedroom space neutral in shades of white and beige, and bringing in the trend through inexpensive accessories. This could be a faux sheepskin rug, natural cotton throw or rattan accessories.
“Artwork is also a fantastic way to bring the trend to life,” she adds. “Look for neutral and abstract prints paired with black line drawings for a simplistic yet stylish look.”
One piece of advice from Nadia McCowan Hill, Wayfair’s resident style advisor: don’t get too hung up on the details. “This trend is all about finding beauty in imperfections, such as raw edged rope details or hand painted motifs on wood,” she says. “The more discreet and subtle designs will go hand-in-hand with a bedroom space, to create a soothing and sanctuary-like atmosphere.”
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The living room
One key way to view this trend is to declutter your home and focus on a few select statement pieces, suggests Tracy Appleby, head of interior design at I Love Wallpaper.
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“The rustic part of this trend can be easily and inexpensively achieved by opting for wooden accessories such as dark wood photo frames, natural wood shelves and bookcases,” she says.
As for the Japandi colour palette, muted tones of pink, blue and mint with a base of white or grey keeps things sleek, she adds, and functional yet decorative items such as vases and fruit bowls in these shades can add a pop of colour to brighten up a space at a low cost.
Shotton-Pugh, of home furnishings retailer Terrys, recommends keeping furniture simple with clean lines and neutral tones and accessorising “mindfully” – only introducing elements that are necessary. “A simple coffee table book, a woven basket to store throws and the introduction of pampas grass combine together to create a personal, functional space,” she explains.
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The kitchen
You might be wondering how to bring the Japandi trend to your kitchen, but there are simple ways to do this without having to fork out on new units.
“Japandi interiors look to embrace the natural by bringing the outdoors in, so incorporating a selection of plants into your kitchen is a great way to nail the trend,” says Shotton-Pugh.
“As well as foliage, this interior style is all about raw materials. For a quick and cost-effective Japandi update to a kitchen space, switch out chrome cupboard handles in favour of brass ones. These can be picked up in any hardware store and completely change the feel of a space.”
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McCowan Hill recommends bringing the trend to your dinner table through wonky ceramic tableware paired with rustic woven placemats.
The bathroom
Nowadays, bathrooms are less confined to clinical white, polished ceramic and a clean contemporary feel, says Abbie Schofield, head of design at Ribble Valley Bathrooms. Instead, people are becoming more confident about bringing the outside in by creating spa-like sanctuaries fusing the old and the new.
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“This perfectly reflects the draw to Japandi style interiors,” says Schofield. “The goal of creating a rich, sensory connotation with nature is still growing in popularity. A Japandi bathroom design will boast surfaces and neutral tones that reduce stress and improve creativity while featuring materials that emulate those found in the great outdoors.
“Victorian roll top baths will remain a crucial component in a 2021 chic bathroom, but this will be harmoniously blended with modern, sleek alcoves, warmer toned surfaces, real-looking wood and more curved lines as opposed to cold and harsh surfaces normally found in the bathroom.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--What Are The Side Effects Of The Coronavirus Vaccine?

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Like most vaccines, there will probably be mild to moderate side effects of the Covid-19 vaccines.
But experts believe the benefits of getting vaccinated outweigh potential issues if it means people are protected against the coronavirus.
“That is really critical for the general population — keeping people healthy so that they can go back to work, go back to school and so we can really reopen society in a way that we would like to,” said Yvonne Maldonado, a paediatric infectious disease epidemiologist at Stanford University.
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Below, experts share some side effects that people may experience after receiving their Covid-19 vaccine.
Short-term side effects can include injection site pain, headaches and fever.
There are a number of Covid-19 vaccine candidates, but at this point, experts know the most about the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.
“The safety of these vaccines is studied in a very rigorous way, through phase one trials, phase two and, most recently, in large phase three trials where tens of thousands of study participants received these vaccines,” said William Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
The short-term side effects that some people experienced during the vaccine trials are in line with what is normally seen following a routine vaccination, Moss said, and these issues appeared in only about 5% to 15% of participants.
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“What we know is individuals who receive these vaccines have inflammation ― the technical term for this is reactogenicity ― and this represents the body’s immune system response to the vaccine,” he said.
Post-vaccine side effects can include soreness at the site of injection, a low-grade fever, headaches, muscle aches and fatigue, Moss said. These effects can last around 12 to 36 hours after injection.
In the vaccine trials, the side effects after the second vaccine dose were stronger than after the first dose.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccine candidates both require two doses, meaning you’ll need two shots over a short period of time to be protected. In both of their trials, there seemed to be more of a reaction after the second dose, but side effects remained mild to moderate in about 90% to 95% of cases, Maldonado said.
“In some of the studies from Moderna, about one-third of people had a fever after the second dose, and they didn’t after the first,” Maldonado said, adding that people also reported higher rates of headaches and general aches and pains after the second dose.
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With the Pfizer vaccine, there was also an increased rate of headache, fever and aches and pains after the second dose. But Maldonado stressed that the reported side effects were largely mild to moderate.
In more severe cases, she said physical responses such as a fever or bad headaches could keep people out of work for a day, but that has not been common so far.
SeventyFour via Getty Images
The long-term side effects still have to be studied.
The accelerated development of these vaccines and the relative newness of the coronavirus make it impossible to study long-term side effects in the present moment.
“We know about short-term side effects, and the vast majority of side effects following vaccination occur within the first 30 to 40 days,” Moss said.
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The current vaccine trial participants have passed this timeline.
“There is at least a two-month follow-up in at least half of the participants. So we know a lot about the short-term side effects of these vaccines,” he said.
But understanding the long-term side effects will require additional follow-up in the months to come.
Remember that side effects are not bad — they are an expected immune response.
There is no reason for alarm if you experience any of the anticipated side effects. It’s actually a good thing ― it means your body is responding to the injections.
“Most vaccines will have some degree of minor side effects. It is, in fact, the body’s immune and inflammatory response to the vaccine,” which is supposed to happen, Maldonado said.
The nature of an immune response will involve some degree of inflammation, whether that means redness, pain at the site of injection, swelling, headaches or a low-grade fever, she said.
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Moss added that side effects can be treated in part with anti-inflammatory drugs. Ultimately, the benefits of taking a Covid-19 vaccine should outweigh the discomfort.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Ellen DeGeneres Says She's 'Feeling Fine' After Testing Positive For Covid-19

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Ellen DeGeneres announced this week that she tested positive for Covid-19 and paused production of her daytime talk show as a result through early 2021.
In a note posted to her social media platforms, the US chat show host said she was “feeling fine” after her diagnosis.
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She also promised to return “after the holidays” but did not specify a date.
“Anyone who has been in close contact with me has been notified, and I am following all proper [Centres for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines,” she wrote.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show kicked off its 18th season in September, returning to the studio after much of the previous season shot from DeGeneres’ home as most of Hollywood shuttered production to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
In October, the show began inviting audience members to attend tapings in studio, albeit at a reduced capacity, for the first time since March. Most of the show’s celebrity guests, however, continued to appear virtually.
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Ellen DeGeneres Daniele Venturelli via Getty Images
The creative team behind The Ellen DeGeneres Show, including Ellen herself, made visible efforts to rebrand since returning to the airwaves. The show suffered a major backlash over the summer over allegations by current and former staff members who said they experienced a “toxic” work environment that included acts of racism and sexual misconduct.
BuzzFeed in July published a lengthy probe into the allegations, most of which were directed at executive producers and senior managers. Still, Ellen said she took the claims “very seriously” in her opening monologue on the September 21 season premiere broadcast and vowed to start a “new chapter.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Notorious Rapist Joseph McCann Has Jail Term Increased To 40 Years

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Two sex attackers, one of whom was dubbed the UK’s most prolific serial rapist, have had their 30-year jail terms increased by a decade each.
Reynhard Sinaga, 37, was sentenced to life in January at Manchester Crown Court for a total of 159 offences, including 136 counts of rape, committed against 48 men – although police have linked him to more than 190 potential victims.
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Sinaga preyed on lone, drunk young men around nightclubs near his flat in Manchester, posing as a Good Samaritan who offered them a floor to sleep on or promised them more drink.
Reynhard Sinaga PA
The Indonesian student drugged the men then filmed himself sexually violating them while they were unconscious, with many of his victims having little or no memory of the assaults.
Judge Suzanne Goddard QC, who originally sentenced him to a minimum of 30 years, described Sinaga as “an evil serial sexual predator” and a “monster”.
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Joseph McCann, 35, was given 33 life sentences at the Old Bailey in December for a string of horrific sex attacks on 11 women and children during a 15-day cocaine- and vodka-fuelled rampage.
McCann carried out a series of sex attacks in London and the north-west in April and May 2019, just two months after the convicted burglar was wrongly freed from prison following “major failings” by probation staff.
He was found guilty in December of 37 charges relating to 11 victims, aged between 11 and 71, and was described by the sentencing judge, Mr Justice Edis, as a “classic psychopath”.
Joseph McCann PA
It is the first time two separate offenders’ sentences had been challenged jointly as being unduly lenient.
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But a panel of five judges refused to impose a whole-life term on either man, as sought by the Solicitor General Michael Ellis QC at a hearing in October.
Giving the court’s ruling on Friday, the Lord Chief Justice Lord Burnett said: “The offending in the cases of McCann and Sinaga, very serious indeed though it is, does not, in our judgment, call for either to receive a whole-life tariff.
“This is not to minimise the seriousness of their offending but instead to ensure that the most severe sentence in our jurisdiction is reserved, save exceptionally, either for the most serious cases involving loss of life, or when a substantive plan to murder of similar seriousness is interrupted close to fulfilment.”
However, the judge said their minimum terms would be increased to reflect the serious nature of their crimes.
Lord Burnett said that, in the collective experience of the senior judges who heard the case, McCann and Sinaga’s crimes are some of the most serious offences of rape to have been tried within England and Wales.
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He added: “Neither man has shown any remorse and the long-term psychological damage for at least some of the victims in both trials is profound and will only be understood in the years to come.”
The judge said that, whether either man is in fact ever released from prison will depend on the Parole Board’s assessment of the risk they pose after they have served their minimum jail terms.
Ian Rushton, north-west deputy chief Crown prosecutor, said in January: “Reynhard Sinaga is the most prolific rapist in British legal history.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Reynhard Sinaga And Joseph McCann: Prolific Rapists Have Jail Terms Increased To 40 Years


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-12-11--Barbara Windsor's Illustrious Career Celebrated In 33 Stunning Pictures

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With a career spanning seven decades, Barbara Windsor was a screen icon and soap legend, who was adored by millions.
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It’s not hard to see why – Barbara had been a regular fixture on the stage and screen since the late 1950s and quickly earned her place in the nation’s hearts, thanks to a number of high profile roles.
Barbara Windsor's Career In Pictures See gallery
After years of hard work as a young actor, Barbara made her way into the spotlight in the the 1960s, starring in the Carry On films alongside the likes of Sid James and Kenneth Williams. Her famous bra scene in Carry On Camping became one of the most memorable in British film history.
During this time, she also picked up a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in Broadway’s Oh, What a Lovely War!.
After starring in her last Carry On in 1974’s Carry On Dick, Babs went on to enjoy a number of further stage roles, and in 1981 she played a sex-mad landlady in Entertaining Mr Sloane at the Lyric Hammersmith, which was directed by friend and former Carry On co-star Kenneth Williams.
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Barbara Windsor in Carry On Camping in 1969 Rex
Over a decade later, she was to land arguably her biggest role to date - the landlady of the Queen Vic in EastEnders, Peggy Mitchell.
After the BBC relaxed its policy of only casting unknown actors in the soap, Barbara took over the role of the Mitchell matriarch from previous actress Jo Warne in 1994.
With the exception of a two year break between 2003 and 2005 when she battled the Epstein Barr virus, she remained as a regular on the BBC soap until 2010, when she quit to spend more time with her husband Scott Mitchell.
However, she couldn’t stay away for too long, and returned for guest appearances in 2013 and 2014, as well as for the soap’s 30th anniversary in 2015.
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Barbara with EastEnders co-star Mike Reid in 1999 John Stillwell - PA Images via Getty Images
She made her final appearance on the soap in 2016, as Peggy took her own life after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.
That same year, she accepted a Damehood at Buckingham Palace, where she was recognised for her services to entertainment and charity,
Unbeknown to fans, Barbara had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease two years earlier, and went public with the news in 2018.
She died peacefully in a care home on 10 December 2020 where her husband Scott had spent the previous seven days at her bedside.
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