inews--2020-06-04--Schools reopening: Teachers with medical conditions threatened with pay cuts and disciplinary action

Schools reopening: Teachers with medical conditions threatened with pay cuts and disciplinary action for shielding

Schools reopening : Teachers with medical conditions threatened with pay cuts and disciplinary action for shielding Exclusive : NASUWT union has received cases of schools threatening shielding teachers with pay cuts and disciplinary action Teachers with underlying medical conditions have been threatened with pay cuts or disciplinary action if they do not come into school , i has been told .
The claims came as further questions were asked about the Government ’ s plan to return all primary pupils to school before the summer holidays .
Mr Roach said he thought this was “ probably symptomatic ” of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for “ clinically extremely vulnerable ” people who are shielding , allowing them to go outside .
“ We ’ re now seeing some schools insisting that shielding is over and that those individuals who are clinically extremely vulnerable should be back in the workforce , ” he said .
Only a third of primary schools in England reopened according to the terms announced by the Government , a union poll suggests ( Photo : ISABEL INFANTES/AFP/Getty ) “ We ’ ve come across one or two examples of schools threatening to deduct @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if they don ’ t come into the workplace .
“ Of course we ’ ll continue - and have done - pushing back with those employees with some success , but nevertheless this shouldn ’ t be happening out there.
” Mr Roach also said the NASUWT had received “ a lot of calls ” from black and minority ethnic teachers worried about their safety in returning to school .
He said this had “ further spiked in the last day or so ” in the wake of the publication of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bame people are twice as likely to die from coronavirus as a white person in England .
Figures on how many pupils have returned to school will not be available until next Tuesday , but the Prime Minister ’ s official spokesman said on Thursday that attendance was “ in line with expectations ” .
“ We expect that attendance will grow over time , ” he said .
“ We know that each school faces unique circumstances and some may need more time to prepare . ''
A poll by the National @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of schools had opened on the terms asked for by the Government .
There is also continuing scepticism that the Government will be able to meet its goal of getting all primary school pupils back for a month before the holidays .
Mr Roach said the Government had “ gone a little bit quiet ” on the plan .
“ Wider reopening of primary schools to all children , frankly that would be a step too far for the Government to be taking at this stage , ” he added .
It has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by former education secretary Michael Gove to cut minimum classroom dimensions in 2014 will make it difficult for primary schools to safely reopen to all pupils this term .

Teachers with underlying medical conditions have been threatened with pay cuts or disciplinary action if they do not come into school, i has been told.
The claims came as further questions were asked about the Government’s plan to return all primary pupils to school before the summer holidays.
On Monday primary schools in England began reopening to children in reception, Year 1 and Year 6.
Patrick Roach, the general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union – which opposed the reopening plan – told i his union had received “lots of worries” from members this week.
Shielding teachers
“We’ve had a lot of traffic in relation to teachers with underlying health conditions,” he said.
Mr Roach said he thought this was “probably symptomatic” of the fact the Government had changed its advice for “clinically extremely vulnerable” people who are shielding, allowing them to go outside.
“We’re now seeing some schools insisting that shielding is over and that those individuals who are clinically extremely vulnerable should be back in the workforce,” he said.
“We’ve come across one or two examples of schools threatening to deduct pay or put people on disciplinary procedures if they don’t come into the workplace.
“Of course we’ll continue – and have done – pushing back with those employees with some success, but nevertheless this shouldn’t be happening out there.”
Bame teachers
Mr Roach also said the NASUWT had received “a lot of calls” from black and minority ethnic teachers worried about their safety in returning to school.
He said this had “further spiked in the last day or so” in the wake of the publication of a report by Public Health England showing that Bame people are twice as likely to die from coronavirus as a white person in England.
Figures on how many pupils have returned to school will not be available until next Tuesday, but the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said on Thursday that attendance was “in line with expectations”.
“We expect that attendance will grow over time,” he said. “We know that each school faces unique circumstances and some may need more time to prepare.”
A poll by the National Education Union suggested that only a third of schools had opened on the terms asked for by the Government.
School opening target
There is also continuing scepticism that the Government will be able to meet its goal of getting all primary school pupils back for a month before the holidays. Mr Roach said the Government had “gone a little bit quiet” on the plan.
“Wider reopening of primary schools to all children, frankly that would be a step too far for the Government to be taking at this stage,” he added.
It has also been claimed that a decision taken by former education secretary Michael Gove to cut minimum classroom dimensions in 2014 will make it difficult for primary schools to safely reopen to all pupils this term.
Guy Shackle, a school architect, warned that many newer classrooms are not adequate for housing standard half class groups of 15 and allowing two metre spaces to be maintained between students.
Writing for Planning Learning Spaces magazine, he said: “Classes of thirty pupils will need to be split over three rooms so further reducing access to face-to-face learning.”


inews--2020-06-04--Bored cat owner creates fleet of cars to entertain her pet during lockdown

Bored cat owner creates fleet of cars to entertain her pet during lockdown Toltex , 10 , has an array of vehicles to choose from — they include a Jurassic Park-inspired Jeep and an ambulance A bored cat owner has occupied her time during lockdown transforming cardboard boxes into cars for her pet to play in , keeping them both entertained .
After noticing that her cat , Toltex , enjoyed hopping into the empty boxes she had accumulated in her home from shopping during lockdown , greetings card designer Jen Prior decided to get creative .
Ms Prior , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vehicles including a Jurassic Park-inspired Jeep and an ambulance , so Toltex , 10 , can preside over the garden in style .
The cat-car creator began alleviating her boredom during quarantine by watching clips on the video sharing platform Tik Tok , and was inspired by the footage of animals she saw there .
Her sister read about pet owners making cardboard tanks for their cats during lockdown and suggested Ms Prior follow suit .
“ T absolutely loves cardboard boxes anyway - when I ’ m working inside on my dining @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cardboard box , he ’ ll just jump in it ... he falls asleep in them , ” said Toltex 's owner , who lives in Bracknell , Berkshire .
To make the tank , Ms Prior used an H & M cardboard box for the base , and other leftover cardboard for the details .
While she spent more than two hours every night for a week building most of the creations , the Jurassic Park one “ definitely took longer ” .
She constructed the Jeep using part of the tank @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` ages '' researching its appearance using Google Images .
Ms Prior and her boyfriend plan to make a Batmobile and a James Bond Aston Martin next - and they might attempt a Spitfire aircraft .
“ It ’ s just a bit of fun to cheer people up during such a difficult time , ” Ms Prior said .
“ We all need a good laugh .
”

A bored cat owner has occupied her time during lockdown transforming cardboard boxes into cars for her pet to play in, keeping them both entertained.
After noticing that her cat, Toltex, enjoyed hopping into the empty boxes she had accumulated in her home from shopping during lockdown, greetings card designer Jen Prior decided to get creative.
Cardboard cat cars
Ms Prior, 29, has crafted a series of vehicles including a Jurassic Park-inspired Jeep and an ambulance, so Toltex, 10, can preside over the garden in style.
The cat-car creator began alleviating her boredom during quarantine by watching clips on the video sharing platform Tik Tok, and was inspired by the footage of animals she saw there. Her sister read about pet owners making cardboard tanks for their cats during lockdown and suggested Ms Prior follow suit.
Putting in the hours
“T absolutely loves cardboard boxes anyway – when I’m working inside on my dining table, if I’ve got a cardboard box, he’ll just jump in it…he falls asleep in them,” said Toltex’s owner, who lives in Bracknell, Berkshire.
To make the tank, Ms Prior used an H&M cardboard box for the base, and other leftover cardboard for the details. While she spent more than two hours every night for a week building most of the creations, the Jurassic Park one “definitely took longer”.
She constructed the Jeep using part of the tank and part of the ambulance after spending “ages” researching its appearance using Google Images.
Read More: Greedy cats are the big losers from coronavirus community WhatsApp groups
Batmobile plans
Ms Prior and her boyfriend plan to make a Batmobile and a James Bond Aston Martin next – and they might attempt a Spitfire aircraft.
“It’s just a bit of fun to cheer people up during such a difficult time,” Ms Prior said. “We all need a good laugh.”
@kt_grant


inews--2020-06-04--Anti-smoking MP criticises tobacco firm for leaking data on rival’s products, after EU's ban on ment

Anti-smoking MP criticises tobacco firm for leaking data on rival’s products, after EU's ban on menthol cigarettes

Anti-smoking MP criticises tobacco firm for leaking data on rival ’ s products , after EU 's ban on menthol cigarettes Exclusive : Bob Blackman , the Conservative chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health , said it was 'inappropriate' Bob Blackman MP , the Conservative chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health , said efforts by British American Tobacco ( BAT ) to pass information on another company ’ s range of products designed to replace illegal menthol cigarettes were “ completely inappropriate ” .
Mr Blackman , who was among @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the legal smoking age to be raised to 21 last year , said he received a letter from BAT that claimed it had data showing that a new range of cigarettes from rival Japan Tobacco International ( JTI ) still contained menthol .
Mr Blackman added he had forwarded a copy of the letter to the public health minister Jo Churchill Mr Blackman told i : “ BAT ’ s letter offered to share evidence in confidence that one of their competitors was still selling menthol-flavoured cigarettes after the ban came into effect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ completely inappropriate , their public duty is to share the evidence with the appropriate authorities without delay.
” Mr Blackman added he had forwarded a copy of the letter to Public Health Minister Jo Churchill , who responded that the issue was “ being followed up ” by her officials to investigate .
A spokesman for BAT said the group had conducted `` scientific analysis '' on a number of the JTI products , which it claims `` shows that they do have menthol characteristics '' .
`` BAT has written to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Trading Standards with this analysis , '' BAT added .
`` It is up to these authorities to establish if these products are in breach of the law .
`` For our part , BAT believe both the letter and spirit of the law is clear and we have not launched any cigarette brands or accessories with menthol-type properties . ''
The row follows the ban of all menthol cigarettes last month , and the introduction of JTI ’ s “ New Dual ” range across its Benson & Hedges , Mayfair @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was brought in as part of efforts to prevent young people from smoking .
A spokesman for JTI said : “ JTI UK no longer sells cigarettes with characterising flavours ( including flavoured capsule cigarettes ) .
Cigarettes with a characterising menthol flavour have been banned from 20 May 2020 .
We are confident that all our products are fully compliant with UK law .
Some JTI cigarettes and rolling tobacco sold in the UK do still contain very low levels of menthol .
This is not prohibited under the law , provided @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not produce a clearly noticeable smell or taste other than one of tobacco – which they do not.
” “ The menthol tobacco ban was put in place to reduce the appeal of deadly tobacco products , and prevent young people from starting to smoke , ” said Ms Cox .
“ Reports that some tobacco companies are getting around the ban by developing new products that still taste like menthol clearly undermines the whole point of the ban and is deeply worrying .
“ There should be a thorough and transparent investigation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these new tobacco products being sold in the UK adhere fully to the regulations .
Tobacco remains the leading cause of cancer in the UK , and measures like the menthol ban must be upheld in their entirety to protect public health.
” Deborah Arnott , chief executive of Action of Smoking & Health ( ASH ) , added : “ ASH has written to the Government to ask for an investigation into these new ‘ green ’ cigarettes which Japan Tobacco International say contain a special tobacco blend which tastes like menthol @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any ingredient other than tobacco , then these products are illegal .
If they are made of a magical new tobacco blend that tastes like menthol , then JTI may be found to have obeyed the letter of the law but in no way can the company be said to be following the spirit .
”

An anti-smoking MP has criticised one of the world’s largest tobacco groups for leaking information about a rival firm’s products, following the ban on menthol cigarettes sold in the European Union.
Bob Blackman MP, the Conservative chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health, said efforts by British American Tobacco (BAT) to pass information on another company’s range of products designed to replace illegal menthol cigarettes were “completely inappropriate”.
Mr Blackman, who was among a number of MPs who argued for the legal smoking age to be raised to 21 last year, said he received a letter from BAT that claimed it had data showing that a new range of cigarettes from rival Japan Tobacco International (JTI) still contained menthol.
BAT has ‘public duty’ to share test results
Mr Blackman told i: “BAT’s letter offered to share evidence in confidence that one of their competitors was still selling menthol-flavoured cigarettes after the ban came into effect. As I responded their offer is completely inappropriate, their public duty is to share the evidence with the appropriate authorities without delay.”
Mr Blackman added he had forwarded a copy of the letter to Public Health Minister Jo Churchill, who responded that the issue was “being followed up” by her officials to investigate.
A spokesman for BAT said the group had conducted “scientific analysis” on a number of the JTI products, which it claims “shows that they do have menthol characteristics”.
“BAT has written to the Department for Health and Social Care and to Trading Standards with this analysis,” BAT added. “It is up to these authorities to establish if these products are in breach of the law.
“For our part, BAT believe both the letter and spirit of the law is clear and we have not launched any cigarette brands or accessories with menthol-type properties.”
JTI claims products are not illegal
The row follows the ban of all menthol cigarettes last month, and the introduction of JTI’s “New Dual” range across its Benson & Hedges, Mayfair and Silk Cut products. The ban was brought in as part of efforts to prevent young people from smoking.
While JTI admitted the new cigarettes do contain menthol, it maintained they did not break the new laws.
A spokesman for JTI said: “JTI UK no longer sells cigarettes with characterising flavours (including flavoured capsule cigarettes). Cigarettes with a characterising menthol flavour have been banned from 20 May 2020. We are confident that all our products are fully compliant with UK law. Some JTI cigarettes and rolling tobacco sold in the UK do still contain very low levels of menthol. This is not prohibited under the law, provided that the use of such flavourings does not produce a clearly noticeable smell or taste other than one of tobacco – which they do not.”
Cancer charity calls for investigation
However, Alison Cox, director of cancer prevention at Cancer Research UK, believes JTI’s new products are worthy of further scrutiny.
“The menthol tobacco ban was put in place to reduce the appeal of deadly tobacco products, and prevent young people from starting to smoke,” said Ms Cox. “Reports that some tobacco companies are getting around the ban by developing new products that still taste like menthol clearly undermines the whole point of the ban and is deeply worrying.
“There should be a thorough and transparent investigation of these claims, to ensure that these new tobacco products being sold in the UK adhere fully to the regulations. Tobacco remains the leading cause of cancer in the UK, and measures like the menthol ban must be upheld in their entirety to protect public health.”
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action of Smoking & Health (ASH), added: “ASH has written to the Government to ask for an investigation into these new ‘green’ cigarettes which Japan Tobacco International say contain a special tobacco blend which tastes like menthol. If this required the addition of any ingredient other than tobacco, then these products are illegal. If they are made of a magical new tobacco blend that tastes like menthol, then JTI may be found to have obeyed the letter of the law but in no way can the company be said to be following the spirit.”


inews--2020-06-04--Coronavirus latest: Alok Sharma tests negative for Covid-19 — but questions over MPs' safety remain

Coronavirus latest : Alok Sharma tests negative for Covid-19 — but questions over MPs ' safety remain Members still concerned over end to virtual voting in Parliament The Business Secretary , Alok Sharma , revealed he had tested negative for Covid-19 amid an ongoing row over whether MPs should be physically returning to Parliament .
Mr Sharma sparked alarm in the House of Commons by going into self-isolation on Wednesday and undergoing a coronavirus test after being seen at the Despatch Box mopping his brow and sweating .
The negative result will be a relief to Downing Street , where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ self-isolate for 14 days under new test and trace guidelines because he had spent 45 minutes in a meeting with Mr Sharma and Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Tuesday .
Mr Sharma tweeted : “ Huge thanks to everyone for their really kind messages over the last 24 hours and my grateful thanks also to the parliamentary authorities and Speaker for their support yesterday .
Just had results in and my test for # COVID-19 was negative.
” Boris Johnson committed to turning around all Covid-19 tests in June ( Photo : Parliament TV @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do little to quell fears among some MPs that the ending of virtual voting and contributions by MPs via Zoom poses a risk to themselves and parliamentary catering staff , clerks , security guards and cleaners .
The row was fuelled when Grant Shapps , the Transport Secretary , told workers at the daily Downing Street briefing : “ If you can work from home you should continue to do so.
” The PCS union , which represents around 800 parliamentary workers including clerks , security guards and kitchen staff , has written @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being put unnecessarily at risk .
No 10 insisted the Government would not back down on its decision to end virtual voting .
But it will allow MPs who are over 70 or are shielding to vote using a proxy .
Yet Lib Dem MP Jamie Stone , who is a carer for his disabled wife , is not covered by the exemption .
In the Commons , Liberal Democrat former minister Alistair Carmichael likened the long queues to “ exercise hour in a category C prison for white collar criminals ” .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rees-Mogg : “ The current Leader of the House is rapidly building a strong claim to the title of the worst holder of the job in living memory … “ Can he show some bravery and make time next week for us to debate his disastrous record and perhaps even call for his resignation ?
” Mr Rees-Mogg replied : “ What she has said is so overcooked , exaggerated , we poor members , we couldn ’ t queue for a little time to do our public duty , how hard was @ @ @

The Business Secretary, Alok Sharma, revealed he had tested negative for Covid-19 amid an ongoing row over whether MPs should be physically returning to Parliament.
Mr Sharma sparked alarm in the House of Commons by going into self-isolation on Wednesday and undergoing a coronavirus test after being seen at the Despatch Box mopping his brow and sweating.
The negative result will be a relief to Downing Street, where Boris Johnson had been preparing to potentially self-isolate for 14 days under new test and trace guidelines because he had spent 45 minutes in a meeting with Mr Sharma and Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Tuesday.
Mr Sharma tweeted: “Huge thanks to everyone for their really kind messages over the last 24 hours and my grateful thanks also to the parliamentary authorities and Speaker for their support yesterday. Just had results in and my test for #COVID-19 was negative.”
Safety fears
Yet the development is expected to do little to quell fears among some MPs that the ending of virtual voting and contributions by MPs via Zoom poses a risk to themselves and parliamentary catering staff, clerks, security guards and cleaners.
The row was fuelled when Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, told workers at the daily Downing Street briefing: “If you can work from home you should continue to do so.”
The PCS union, which represents around 800 parliamentary workers including clerks, security guards and kitchen staff, has written to the Prime Minister warning lives were being put unnecessarily at risk.
No 10 insisted the Government would not back down on its decision to end virtual voting. But it will allow MPs who are over 70 or are shielding to vote using a proxy.
Just found out that I won't be able to virtually participate in substantive business from next Monday. So I can talk in questions, but I can't speak in @wendychambLD's debate on electoral reform… pic.twitter.com/4atBbsiDSr — Jamie Stone MP (@Jamie4North) June 4, 2020
Yet Lib Dem MP Jamie Stone, who is a carer for his disabled wife, is not covered by the exemption.
He tweeted: “To exclude us speaks volumes about this Govt’s attitude to carers in general.”
‘Show some bravery’
MPs will hold an emergency debate on the Commons operation on Monday.
In the Commons, Liberal Democrat former minister Alistair Carmichael likened the long queues to “exercise hour in a category C prison for white collar criminals”.
Labour former minister Angela Eagle told Mr Rees-Mogg: “The current Leader of the House is rapidly building a strong claim to the title of the worst holder of the job in living memory …
“Can he show some bravery and make time next week for us to debate his disastrous record and perhaps even call for his resignation?”
Mr Rees-Mogg replied: “What she has said is so overcooked, exaggerated, we poor members, we couldn’t queue for a little time to do our public duty, how hard was it?”


inews--2020-06-04--Madeleine McCann: Timeline of what happened on the day she disappeared 13 years ago

Madeleine McCann : Timeline of what happened on the day she disappeared 13 years ago Madeleine disappeared from flat 5A at the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz on 3 May 2007 This is how what happened on the day she went missing .
Police in Britain and Germany are now investigating a new suspect who is believed to have taken a phone call in Praia da Luz that night .
The new suspect in the case of missing Madeleine McCann is serving a seven year jail sentence in a German jail ( Photo : PA Wire ) 7.30am @ @ @ @ @ @ @ breakfast why they had not been in the apartment when she woke up and cried the night before .
Kate and Gerry McCann make a mental note to constantly check their children are settled when they go for a meal later that night .
The family spend time around the pool during the day and the children go to a kids ’ club while Gerry and Kate have a tennis lesson .
3.30pm to 5.30pm : There are four separate sightings of bogus charity collectors in Praia da Luz .
E-fits of two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
One man approaches a property on the Rua do Ramalhete , near the Ocean Club .
4pm : A man is seen near the 5A apartment .
According to witnesses , he is white , has blondish fair hair , described as being quite close-shaven , and is aged between 30-35 years old .
7.32pm to 8.02pm : The new suspect in the case , Christian Brueckner , is known to have received a phone call in the area of Praia da Luz from a person who was not in the area @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police as a “ key witness ” .
8.30pm : With three-year-old Madeleine and their twins asleep , Kate and Gerry McCann leave apartment 5A at the Ocean Club resort in Praia Da Luz and go to a tapas restaurant 100 yards away in the resort ’ s grounds to eat with a group of seven friends .
9.05pm : Gerry McCann returns to the apartment .
He sees all three children fast asleep – the twins in a travel cot next to Madeleine ’ s bed – before returning to the restaurant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to chat to a guest .
9.15pm : Another parent in the group , Jane Tanner , walks past the McCanns ’ apartment as she checks on her own children .
She sees a man carrying a child near the McCanns ’ apartment .
In 2013 , police disregard the sighting after a British holidaymaker says it was him carrying his own daughter from a crèche .
File photo of the Ocean Club in Praia Da Luz in Portugal , where Madeline McCann went missing .
A German prisoner has been identified as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , detectives have revealed 9.30pm : Matthew Oldfield , a friend eating with the couple at the tapas bar , offers to check on the McCanns ’ children as he checks his own in the apartment next door .
Hearing no noise from the children ’ s bedroom , he assumed all was fine and left without seeing Madeleine .

Madeleine McCann disappeared from her parents’ holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on the Algarve on 3 May 2007 – sparking a search that has continued for 13 years.
This is how what happened on the day she went missing. Police in Britain and Germany are now investigating a new suspect who is believed to have taken a phone call in Praia da Luz that night.
7.30am: Madeleine McCann asks her parents at breakfast why they had not been in the apartment when she woke up and cried the night before. Kate and Gerry McCann make a mental note to constantly check their children are settled when they go for a meal later that night. The family spend time around the pool during the day and the children go to a kids’ club while Gerry and Kate have a tennis lesson.
3.30pm to 5.30pm: There are four separate sightings of bogus charity collectors in Praia da Luz. E-fits of two Portuguese men are later issued by police. One man approaches a property on the Rua do Ramalhete, near the Ocean Club.
4pm: A man is seen near the 5A apartment. According to witnesses, he is white, has blondish fair hair, described as being quite close-shaven, and is aged between 30-35 years old.
5pm to 6pm: Kate gets the children ready for bed while Gerry goes to play tennis again.
7pm: Gerry returns and Madeleine is read a bedtime story and the twins are put in a travel cot next to Madeleine’s bed.
7.32pm to 8.02pm: The new suspect in the case, Christian Brueckner, is known to have received a phone call in the area of Praia da Luz from a person who was not in the area. The caller is described by German police as a “key witness”.
8.30pm: With three-year-old Madeleine and their twins asleep, Kate and Gerry McCann leave apartment 5A at the Ocean Club resort in Praia Da Luz and go to a tapas restaurant 100 yards away in the resort’s grounds to eat with a group of seven friends.
9.05pm: Gerry McCann returns to the apartment. He sees all three children fast asleep – the twins in a travel cot next to Madeleine’s bed – before returning to the restaurant. On the way back he stopped to chat to a guest.
9.15pm: Another parent in the group, Jane Tanner, walks past the McCanns’ apartment as she checks on her own children. She sees a man carrying a child near the McCanns’ apartment. In 2013, police disregard the sighting after a British holidaymaker says it was him carrying his own daughter from a crèche.
9.30pm: Matthew Oldfield, a friend eating with the couple at the tapas bar, offers to check on the McCanns’ children as he checks his own in the apartment next door. Hearing no noise from the children’s bedroom, he assumed all was fine and left without seeing Madeleine.
10pm: An Irish family returning from a night out see a man carrying a blonde-haired child, aged about three or four, possibly wearing pyjamas walking down a street towards the beach a few minutes’ walk from the McCanns’ apartment.
10pm: Kate McCann returns to the apartment and discovers that Madeleine is missing. The bedroom window is open and the shutter raised. Police are called and 60 staff and guests search the complex for Madeleine until daybreak.


inews--2020-06-04--Madeleine McCann 'assumed' to be dead, say German prosecutors questioning paedophile Christian Bruec

Madeleine McCann 'assumed' to be dead, say German prosecutors questioning paedophile Christian Brueckner

Madeleine McCann 'assumed ' to be dead , say German prosecutors questioning paedophile Christian Brueckner German Police are treating Madeleine ’ s disappearance from her parents Kate and Gerry McCann ’ s holiday apartment as a murder investigation The new suspect in the case of missing Madeleine McCann is serving a seven year jail sentence in a German jail ( Photo : PA Wire ) The German magazine Der Spiegel reported he is currently serving a prison sentence in Kiel , having been initially extradited from Portugal in 2017 and convicted of drug trafficking .
It said his criminal record @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including child abuse while he was a teenager .
It comes after Christian Hoppe , from Germany ’ s Federal Criminal Police Office ( BKA ) , said in a television interview that German police have not ruled out a sexual motive for the alleged crime against Madeleine .
He said that the suspect may have broken into an apartment in the Ocean Club complex before spontaneously kidnapping her .
He had access to a distinctive VW T3 Westfalia camper van from at least April until sometime after May 2007 ( Photo : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : “ There is reason to assume that there are other persons , apart from the suspect , who have concrete knowledge of the course of the crime and maybe also of the place where the body was left.
” Two vehicles linked to the suspect , one of which was re-registered to a different person the day after Madeleine disappeared , have both been seized by German police .
They said there is information to suggest the suspect may have used one of them in the alleged offence .
The BKA is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forward , while an appeal on German Crimewatch-style programme XY said the suspect was linked to houses in Portugal , including one between Praia da Luz and Lagos .
'We will never give up hope' Kate and Gerry McCann said in a statement : “ We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive , but whatever the outcome may be , we need to know as we need to find peace.
” Clarence Mitchell , a spokesman for the family , they felt the development was “ potentially very significant ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an instance when the police had been so specific about an individual ” in the 13 years since she disappeared .

Madeleine McCann is “assumed” to be dead, according to German prosecutors who are investigating a child sex predator on suspicion of her murder.
The suspect, a 43-year-old German national named in reports as Christian Brueckner, 43, is serving a seven-year prison sentence for raping a 72-year-old American woman in Portugal in 2005.
German Police are treating Madeleine’s disappearance from her parents Kate and Gerry McCann’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on the Algarve in May 2007 as a murder investigation.
Hans Christian Wolters, a spokesman for the Braunschweig Public Prosecutor’s Office, said: “We are assuming that the girl is dead.
“With the suspect, we are talking about a sexual predator who has already been convicted of crimes against little girls and he’s already serving a long sentence.”
Suspect questioned
Scotland Yard said it will continue to deal with it as a missing person inquiry, saying detectives were keeping “an open mind.”
Brueckner is known to have lived on the Algarve at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance.
The German magazine Der Spiegel reported he is currently serving a prison sentence in Kiel, having been initially extradited from Portugal in 2017 and convicted of drug trafficking. It said his criminal record contains a total of 17 entries, including child abuse while he was a teenager.
It comes after Christian Hoppe, from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), said in a television interview that German police have not ruled out a sexual motive for the alleged crime against Madeleine. He said that the suspect may have broken into an apartment in the Ocean Club complex before spontaneously kidnapping her.
A BKA appeal said: “There is reason to assume that there are other persons, apart from the suspect, who have concrete knowledge of the course of the crime and maybe also of the place where the body was left.”
Two vehicles linked to the suspect, one of which was re-registered to a different person the day after Madeleine disappeared, have both been seized by German police. They said there is information to suggest the suspect may have used one of them in the alleged offence.
The BKA is asking for other potential victims to come forward, while an appeal on German Crimewatch-style programme XY said the suspect was linked to houses in Portugal, including one between Praia da Luz and Lagos.
‘We will never give up hope’
Downing Street said the latest developments appeared to be significant and added that Number 10’s thoughts were with the McCann family “who have had to endure so much”.
Kate and Gerry McCann said in a statement: “We will never give up hope of finding Madeleine alive, but whatever the outcome may be, we need to know as we need to find peace.”
Clarence Mitchell, a spokesman for the family, they felt the development was “potentially very significant” and that he could not “recall an instance when the police had been so specific about an individual” in the 13 years since she disappeared.
He told BBC Breakfast: “Of all the thousands of leads and potential suspects that have been mentioned in the past, there has never been something as clear cut as that from not just one, but three, police forces.”


inews--2020-06-04--Who is Christian Brueckner? What we know about German Madeleine McCann suspect serving jail sentence

Who is Christian Brueckner? What we know about German Madeleine McCann suspect serving jail sentence for sex crime

Who is Christian Brueckner ?
What we know about German Madeleine McCann suspect serving jail sentence for sex crime The man , named by Portuguese police sources as Christian Brueckner , spent 12 years living on the Algarve The new suspect in the case of missing Madeleine McCann is serving a seven year jail sentence in a German jail for the rape of an American woman in Portugal two years before Madeleine McCann disappeared .
Christian Hoppe , from Germany ’ s Federal Criminal Police Office ( BKA ) told the country ’ s ZDF television channel that the suspect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ German or British police , is serving a prison sentence for a sex crime and has two previous convictions for “ sexual contact with girls ” .
The man , named by Portuguese police sources as Christian Brueckner , spent 12 years living on the Algarve and is known to have frequented the Praia da Luz area ( Photo : REUTERS/Rafael Marchante ) The German newspaper Braunschweiger Zeitung reported he is serving seven years for the rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Portugal in 2005 after being convicted in the city of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was extradited from Portugal in 2017 and initially convicted of drug trafficking .
He had access to a distinctive VW T3 Westfalia camper van from at least April until sometime after May 2007 ( Photo : PA Wire ) He had access to a distinctive VW T3 Westfalia camper van from at least April until sometime after May 2007 , which was used in and around Praia da Luz .
It is an early 1980s model , with two-tone markings , a white upper body and a yellow skirting , with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was living in for days , possibly weeks , and may have been using on the day Madeleine disappeared .
He has also been linked to a 1993 Jaguar XJR 6 , with a German number plate , which is believed to have been in Praia da Luz in 2006 and 2007 .
The car was originally registered in his name , but was re-registered to someone else in Germany the day after Madeleine ’ s disappearance , although the vehicle is believed to have still been in Portugal .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place and it was disgusting , absolutely vile .
It had been trashed , with broken stuff like computers all over the place , ” the neighbour said .

The new suspect in the case of missing Madeleine McCann is serving a seven year jail sentence in a German jail for the rape of an American woman in Portugal two years before Madeleine McCann disappeared.
The man, named by Portuguese police sources as Christian Brueckner, spent 12 years living on the Algarve and is known to have frequented the Praia da Luz area between 1995 and 2007.
A German national, now aged 43, Brueckner was 30-years-old at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance on 3 May 2007 and may have looked between 25 and his early 30s.
Christian Hoppe, from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) told the country’s ZDF television channel that the suspect, who has not been named by German or British police, is serving a prison sentence for a sex crime and has two previous convictions for “sexual contact with girls”.
Extradition from Portugal
The German newspaper Braunschweiger Zeitung reported he is serving seven years for the rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Portugal in 2005 after being convicted in the city of Braunschweig in December. Der Spiegel reported he was extradited from Portugal in 2017 and initially convicted of drug trafficking.
According to reports, Brueckner has appealed to the European Court of Justice over his conviction.
Hans Christian Wolters, of the Braunschweig Public Prosecutor’s Office, said the suspect regularly lived in the Algarve, where he worked in a variety of jobs.
He also funded his lifestyle by thefts from hotel complexes and apartments, as well as drug dealing.
He lived a “transient lifestyle” in a camper van for days at a time. He was linked to houses in Portugal including one between one between Praia da Luz and Lagos.
He had access to a distinctive VW T3 Westfalia camper van from at least April until sometime after May 2007, which was used in and around Praia da Luz.
It is an early 1980s model, with two-tone markings, a white upper body and a yellow skirting, with a Portuguese registration plate, which detectives believe he was living in for days, possibly weeks, and may have been using on the day Madeleine disappeared.
He has also been linked to a 1993 Jaguar XJR 6, with a German number plate, which is believed to have been in Praia da Luz in 2006 and 2007.
The car was originally registered in his name, but was re-registered to someone else in Germany the day after Madeleine’s disappearance, although the vehicle is believed to have still been in Portugal.
A former neighbour told Sky News he rented a farm building from an English owner from the mid-1990s, leaving a year before Madeleine McCann disappeared.
“I was asked to help clean up the place and it was disgusting, absolutely vile. It had been trashed, with broken stuff like computers all over the place,” the neighbour said.
“We found a bin bag and inside were wigs and exotic clothing – whether just fancy dress or something stranger I couldn’t tell.”


inews--2020-06-04--How billions of tiny gold flecks could help restore vision and treat blindness

How billions of tiny gold flecks could help restore vision and treat blindness Scientists have come up with an extraordinary treatment for blindness that involves injecting 10 billion small flecks of gold into each eyeball .
They are hopeful that their technique could be available on the health service within a decade – although they caution that much more work is needed to determine the process is safe and effective first .
Experiments on mice showed the new technique effectively restored sight in mice with macular degeneration , a leading cause of blindness .
“ We are very excited indeed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hillier , of the German Primate Center in Göttingen .
`` We believe that near-infrared stimulation is an important step towards providing useful vision to blind patients so that they can regain their ability to read or see faces '' , said Dr Hillier .
The technique involves implanting billions of gold miniscule ‘ nanobars ’ into the retina .
These capture near-infrared light rays , absorbing their heat and slowly releasing it into the eye .
The heat makes the damaged photoreceptors vibrate and that movement helps them bind with functional genes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time through a separate injection - and sight is restored .
`` We want to give hope to blind people with these findings and will further intensify our research activities in this area .
We have also demonstrated this method in cultured human retinas [ in the lab ] , so the next step is clinical trials , ” said Dr Hillier .
“ The good thing is that the core component [ the delivery system for the functional genes ] is already approved for clinical use .
Therefore I expect the human @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he said .
Macular degeneration is one of the major reasons for visual impairment , with nearly 200 million people affected worldwide .
Photoreceptors in the retina are responsible for capturing the light .
Diseased photoreceptors lose their sensitivity to light , which can lead to impaired vision or even complete blindness .

Scientists have come up with an extraordinary treatment for blindness that involves injecting 10 billion small flecks of gold into each eyeball.
They are hopeful that their technique could be available on the health service within a decade – although they caution that much more work is needed to determine the process is safe and effective first.
Experiments on mice showed the new technique effectively restored sight in mice with macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness.
It will now be tested on humans in a huge clinical trial.
Golden Eye
“We are very excited indeed by our findings,” said Daniel Hillier, of the German Primate Center in Göttingen.
“We believe that near-infrared stimulation is an important step towards providing useful vision to blind patients so that they can regain their ability to read or see faces”, said Dr Hillier.
The technique involves implanting billions of gold miniscule ‘nanobars’ into the retina. These capture near-infrared light rays, absorbing their heat and slowly releasing it into the eye.
The heat makes the damaged photoreceptors vibrate and that movement helps them bind with functional genes delivered to the retina at the same time through a separate injection – and sight is restored.
Hope for blind people
“We want to give hope to blind people with these findings and will further intensify our research activities in this area. We have also demonstrated this method in cultured human retinas [in the lab], so the next step is clinical trials,” said Dr Hillier.
“The good thing is that the core component [the delivery system for the functional genes] is already approved for clinical use. Therefore I expect the human trials to be relatively straightforward,” he said.
Macular degeneration is one of the major reasons for visual impairment, with nearly 200 million people affected worldwide. Photoreceptors in the retina are responsible for capturing the light. Diseased photoreceptors lose their sensitivity to light, which can lead to impaired vision or even complete blindness.
The study is published in the journal Science.


inews--2020-06-04--21 books to read in translation in lockdown - from Karl Ove Knausgaard's auto-fiction to Elena Ferra

21 books to read in translation in lockdown - from Karl Ove Knausgaard's auto-fiction to Elena Ferrante

21 books to read in translation in lockdown - from Karl Ove Knausgaard 's auto-fiction to Elena Ferrante Here are some of the best examples of world literature from the past 20 years as translated books finally get the recognition they deserve The final novel of WG “ Max ” Sebald , the German writer and academic who made his home in the UK as a young postgraduate , but wrote his hybrid books in his native German , a deeply personal mingling of fact and fiction charting memory and dislocation in the lost 20th century .
In Austerlitz , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ architectural historian who had been a Kindertransport refugee , attempts to retrace and rebuild his early life – and with it a vanished Europe .
Sebald died in a car accident in December 2001 ; his singular , unclassifiable works continue to astonish .
The appearance of Suite Française , more than 60 years after its manuscript disappeared – when Némirovsky , a naturalised French author from a Russian-Jewish family , was deported to Auschwitz in August 1942 – was an international publishing coup .
The first in a planned sequence of five @ @ @ @ @ @ @ never to be realised – was to write the story of the German occupation of France in real time .
Inspired by Tolstoy ’ s War and Peace , it is a beautifully observed , devastating critique of French society on the brink of war .
Tolstaya ’ s short fiction is as languid and piercing as anything by Chekhov .
Her first novel , by contrast , is a brilliantly fashioned satire of a post-apocalyptic Russian future .
Two hundred years following The Blast , which brought about the end of civilisation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , howls in the wasteland on the outskirts of Moscow .
Tolstaya ’ s dystopian landscape mixes feudal and Soviet Russia to create a country of serfs and doublethink , in a book set in a cruelly mutated future while firmly grounded in the great literature of Russia ’ s past .
Simultaneously one of China ’ s most fêted and most banned writers , Yan ( below ) used his own birthplace inthe vast Henan province in central China ’ s Yellow River valley to create , in The Explosion Chronicles , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a work of magic realism .
The story of one village , the fictional Explosion , painfully transformed with alarming speed from rural peasant backwater to a megalopolis of skyscrapers within the space of just 50 years , is a blistering condemnation of political corruption and excess .
Kafka is Blasim ’ s and the reader ’ s guide through this collection of fantastical tales , which owe as much to European and Latin American influences as they do to the culture closer to Blassim ’ s native Iraq , such as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bloody aftermath stalk the streets of Baghdad , in a world which can be survived only by turning its horrors into dazzling metaphor .
Blasim won the penultimate Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for this stunning and subversive array of short fiction .
Szerb was an intellectual giant of Hungarian literature , who was murdered in a concentration camp in 1945 .
His elegant , deadpan worldview found its outlet in his 1937 masterpiece Journey by Moonlight , acclaimed as an instant classic upon its eventual translation into English in 2001 .
A man @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – or on purpose – boards a different train to his new wife and heads off on a Dante-esque quest across Italy .
In Szerb ’ s playful and capricious telling , his anti-hero recklessly pursues his past self in order to make sense of his future – and obliquely , that of a civilised world fast disappearing into the maw of history .
A comic-book bestseller and then a film : this memoir by Satrapi ( above ) of her early life growing up in Iran under the rule of the ayatollahs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In the voice of the stroppy teenager sent away to France at 14 in order to escape notice by the Revolutionary Guard , Persepolis ( the Greek name for Persia/Iran ) is a sarcastic , punkish and opinionated love letter to family and country , beautifully illustrated with Satrapi ’ s stark black- and-white drawings .
Spanish-Argentine Neuman ’ s intimate novella manages to speak more profoundly about love , death and sex in its 160 pages than most novels do at three times the length .
A man with terminal cancer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ road trip ; his wife , meanwhile , attempts to put a lid on her grief by embarking on an intense affair with her husband ’ s doctor .
Each of the three main characters takes turn in narrating their stories to create a work of great honesty and force .
A summerhouse built by an architect for his family on a forest lakeshore outside Berlin in the late 19th century is the backdrop and silent witness to some of the most extraordinary events of the 20th .
Each of the house ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ others as a result of occupation and invasion , in a stunningly original mosaic work and meditation on the meaning of Heimuschung ( “ Homeland ” , the German title of the novel ) based on Erpenbeck ’ s own family history .
A terrifying fairy tale of unearthly beauty set in Kazakhstan in central Asia .
Ismailov ’ s young protagonist , Yerzhan , grows up a folk music prodigy near the largest nuclear test site in the former Soviet-ruled Kazakh steppes .
An atomic bomb blast near the Dead City has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the children are forbidden to swim .
In a bid to impress his neighbour ’ s daughter , Yerzhan dives into the lake , to be changed forever by its poisoned waters , in a dark parable which compares with Günter Grass ’ s The Tin Drum .
Much more than a riposte to Camus ’ s classic of alienation The Outsider : Algerian journalist and writer Daoud not only fleshes out the backstory of the nameless Arab man randomly killed by Meursault on the beach , but also gives him an avenger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The book transcends simple plot reversal to be simultaneously both a smouldering critique of colonialism and post-colonial disillusion , its rich imagery and fervent storytelling deeply contrasting with that of the icily existential Camus .
The border between Mexico and the US takes on a mythical resonance in Herrera ’ s thrillingly unusual novel of a young migrant woman ’ s search for her brother who has crossed to “ the other side ” .
The opening of the book , in which a giant sinkhole swallows a man , a dog and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the inauspicious signs signalling the end of the world in nine brief chapters , packed with glorious language , as much psychological as physical.A disorienting , dizzying work of death and rebirth .
The first , and to my mind the best , in the series ( but that doesn ’ t mean you shouldn ’ t read the other five books ) .
Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard ’ s auto-fiction epic on the life of his narrator , also called Karl Ove Knausgaard , has made its author ( above ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Aside from the controversy and scandal surrounding his books – and about who has the right to tell their own story – it should be read for its blazing account of a feared father set on self-destruction , the boredom and bewilderment of adolescence , and its flashes of sheer brilliance .
Before the phenomenal success of her Neapolitan Novels ( with a fifth in the series due this autumn ) the pseudonymous and reclusive Ferrante published four stand-alone novels .
In The Days of Abandonment , a woman psychologically unravels in her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after her husband , for whom she gave up her dreams of being a writer , abruptly leaves her and their two young children for another woman .
Visceral , mordant and austere by turns – Ferrante excels at depicting a world in which ordinary events become seismic .
A tightly written absurdist novel , with echoes of Faulkner ’ s As I Lay Dying , in which three quarrelling siblings seek to honour the last wish of their dead father : that he be buried in his home village .
To ensure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Syria divided by war .
Their journey , which deftly mirrors the conflict outside their minibus , is a modern classic in a era of civil uprising and strife .
In Poland in the Second World War , Izolda manages to escape the Warsaw Ghetto in search of her husband , Shayek .
The urgent question throughout this illuminating , passionate novella where nothing is ever quite what it seems , is : “ Is it fair to have to stay alive and save people when there is , increasingly , no one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her name , hair colour and religion in order to survive brutal experiences , convinced , rightly orwrongly , that her belief in love will save her and Shayek , her less-than-deserving “ king of hearts ” .
“ Other people ’ s memories gave us a place in the world.
” With this impressionistic fictional memoir of the years 1941 to 2006 , Ernaux ( above ) , one of the great chroniclers of women ’ s lives in France in the post-war 20th century , has written a work which has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of autobiography… private and collective ” , Beginning from her own birth to the present day , while never using the first-person pronoun , Ernaux ’ s is at once a personal story and the story of a generation , a book of her time and for all times .

Literature in translation has been having a moment for a while now, in part due to nearly a decade’s worth of international commercial success for writers such as Elena Ferrante and Karl Ove Knausgaard. The past 20 years have also seen the recognition and rise of the “star” translator, no longer hidden in copyright pages.
Austerlitz by WG Sebald, translated by Anthea Bell, Hamish Hamilton, 2001
The final novel of WG “Max” Sebald, the German writer and academic who made his home in the UK as a young postgraduate, but wrote his hybrid books in his native German, a deeply personal mingling of fact and fiction charting memory and dislocation in the lost 20th century. In Austerlitz, the eponymous main character, an elderly architectural historian who had been a Kindertransport refugee, attempts to retrace and rebuild his early life – and with it a vanished Europe. Sebald died in a car accident in December 2001; his singular, unclassifiable works continue to astonish.
Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky, translated by Sandra Smith, Chatto & Windus/Vintage, 2006
The appearance of Suite Française, more than 60 years after its manuscript disappeared – when Némirovsky, a naturalised French author from a Russian-Jewish family, was deported to Auschwitz in August 1942 – was an international publishing coup. The first in a planned sequence of five novels, Némirovsky’s ambition – never to be realised – was to write the story of the German occupation of France in real time. Inspired by Tolstoy’s War and Peace, it is a beautifully observed, devastating critique of French society on the brink of war.
The Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas, translated by Anne McLean, Bloomsbury, 2003
Javier Cercas somewhat controversially attempted to depoliticise the Spanish Civil War by inserting himself into his own narrative of the story of the leader of the nationalist Falangists, and his subsequent escape from execution. By consecutively playing the roles of investigative journalist, biographer and novelist, Cercas makes The Soldiers of Salamis both a multi-layered, gripping reading experience and a pointed commentary on the subjective nature of history.
The Slynx by Tatyana Tolstaya,translated by Jamey Gambrell, New York Review Book Classics, 2003
Tolstaya’s short fiction is as languid and piercing as anything by Chekhov. Her first novel, by contrast, is a brilliantly fashioned satire of a post-apocalyptic Russian future. Two hundred years following The Blast, which brought about the end of civilisation, a strange beast, the Slynx, howls in the wasteland on the outskirts of Moscow. Tolstaya’s dystopian landscape mixes feudal and Soviet Russia to create a country of serfs and doublethink, in a book set in a cruelly mutated future while firmly grounded in the great literature of Russia’s past.
The Explosion Chronicles by Yan Lianke, translated by Carlos Rojas, Chatto & Windus/Vintage, 2016
Simultaneously one of China’s most fêted and most banned writers, Yan (below) used his own birthplace in
the vast Henan province in central China’s Yellow River valley to create, in The Explosion Chronicles, a morality tale, a satire and a work of magic realism. The story of one village, the fictional Explosion, painfully transformed with alarming speed from rural peasant backwater to a megalopolis of skyscrapers within the space of just 50 years, is a blistering condemnation of political corruption and excess.
The Iraqi Christ by Hassim Blasim, translated by Jonathan Wright, Comma Press, 2013
Kafka is Blasim’s and the reader’s guide through this collection of fantastical tales, which owe as much to European and Latin American influences as they do to the culture closer to Blassim’s native Iraq, such as the Arabian Nights. Illegal invasion and its bloody aftermath stalk the streets of Baghdad, in a world which can be survived only by turning its horrors into dazzling metaphor. Blasim won the penultimate Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for this stunning and subversive array of short fiction.
Journey by Moonlight by Antal Szerb, translated by Len Rix, Pushkin Press, 2001
Szerb was an intellectual giant of Hungarian literature, who was murdered in a concentration camp in 1945. His elegant, deadpan worldview found its outlet in his 1937 masterpiece Journey by Moonlight, acclaimed as an instant classic upon its eventual translation into English in 2001. A man goes on honeymoon to Venice and accidentally – or on purpose – boards a different train to his new wife and heads off on a Dante-esque quest across Italy. In Szerb’s playful and capricious telling, his anti-hero recklessly pursues his past self in order to make sense of his future – and obliquely, that of a civilised world fast disappearing into the maw of history.
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, translated by Mattias Ripa, Jonathan Cape, 2003
A comic-book bestseller and then a film: this memoir by Satrapi (above) of her early life growing up in Iran under the rule of the ayatollahs is moving, funny, and anarchic. In the voice of the stroppy teenager sent away to France at 14 in order to escape notice by the Revolutionary Guard, Persepolis (the Greek name for Persia/Iran) is a sarcastic, punkish and opinionated love letter to family and country, beautifully illustrated with Satrapi’s stark black- and-white drawings.
Talking to Ourselves by Andrés Neuman, translated by Nick Caistor and Lorenza Garcia, Pushkin Press, 2012
Spanish-Argentine Neuman’s intimate novella manages to speak more profoundly about love, death and sex in its 160 pages than most novels do at three times the length. A man with terminal cancer takes his young son on one last road trip; his wife, meanwhile, attempts to put a lid on her grief by embarking on an intense affair with her husband’s doctor. Each of the three main characters takes turn in narrating their stories to create a work of great honesty and force.
Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck, translated by Susan Bernofsky, Portobello/Granta, 2010
A summerhouse built by an architect for his family on a forest lakeshore outside Berlin in the late 19th century is the backdrop and silent witness to some of the most extraordinary events of the 20th. Each of the house’s occupants becomes displaced and replaced by others as a result of occupation and invasion, in a stunningly original mosaic work and meditation on the meaning of Heimuschung (“Homeland”, the German title of the novel) based on Erpenbeck’s own family history.
The Dead Lake by Hamid Ismailov, translated by Andrew Bromfield, Peirene Press, 2014
A terrifying fairy tale of unearthly beauty set in Kazakhstan in central Asia. Ismailov’s young protagonist, Yerzhan, grows up a folk music prodigy near the largest nuclear test site in the former Soviet-ruled Kazakh steppes. An atomic bomb blast near the Dead City has created a radioactive lake, in which the children are forbidden to swim. In a bid to impress his neighbour’s daughter, Yerzhan dives into the lake, to be changed forever by its poisoned waters, in a dark parable which compares with Günter Grass’s The Tin Drum.
The Meursault Investigation by Kamel Daoud, translated by John Cullen, Oneworld, 2015
Much more than a riposte to Camus’s classic of alienation The Outsider: Algerian journalist and writer Daoud not only fleshes out the backstory of the nameless Arab man randomly killed by Meursault on the beach, but also gives him an avenger in the shape of a brother. The book transcends simple plot reversal to be simultaneously both a smouldering critique of colonialism and post-colonial disillusion, its rich imagery and fervent storytelling deeply contrasting with that of the icily existential Camus.
Signs Preceding the End of The World by Yuri Herrera, translated by Lisa Dillman, And Other Stories, 2015
The border between Mexico and the US takes on a mythical resonance in Herrera’s thrillingly unusual novel of a young migrant woman’s search for her brother who has crossed to “the other side”. The opening of the book, in which a giant sinkhole swallows a man, a dog and a cat, is just one of the inauspicious signs signalling the end of the world in nine brief chapters, packed with glorious language, as much psychological as physical.
A disorienting, dizzying work of death and rebirth.
My Struggle, Book One: A Death in the Family by Karl Ove Knausgaard, translated by Don Bartlett, Jonathan Cape/Vintage, 2012
The first, and to my mind the best, in the series (but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t read the other five books). Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard’s auto-fiction epic on the life of his narrator, also called Karl Ove Knausgaard, has made its author (above) as infamous as he is famous. Aside from the controversy and scandal surrounding his books – and about who has the right to tell their own story – it should be read for its blazing account of a feared father set on self-destruction, the boredom and bewilderment of adolescence, and its flashes of sheer brilliance.
The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein, Europa Editions, 2005
Before the phenomenal success of her Neapolitan Novels the pseudonymous and reclusive Ferrante published four stand-alone novels. In The Days of Abandonment, a woman psychologically unravels in her claustrophobic apartment in Turin one hot summer after her husband, for whom she gave up her dreams of being a writer, abruptly leaves her and their two young children for another woman. Visceral, mordant and austere by turns – Ferrante excels at depicting a world in which ordinary events become seismic.
The Vegetarian by Han Kang, translated by Deborah Smith, Portobello/Granta, 2015
Han and translator Smith won the Booker International Prize in 2016 in a break-out three-act novel confirming Korean literature’s rightful place on the world stage. Originally written in 2007, The Vegetarian is a darkly surreal tale, reeking with the symbolism of Korea’s divided present. Family and societal tension congeal into cold-sweat violence amid what Han has called “the impossibility of innocence” over the anger resulting from a young married woman’s sudden and increasingly extreme refusal to eat meat.
Death is Hard Work by Khaled Khalifa, translated by Leri Price, Faber, 2019
A tightly written absurdist novel, with echoes of Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, in which three quarrelling siblings seek to honour the last wish of their dead father: that he be buried in his home village. To ensure this, they must travel across a Syria divided by war. Their journey, which deftly mirrors the conflict outside their minibus, is a modern classic in a era of civil uprising and strife.
Chasing the King of Hearts by Hanna Krall, translated by Philip Boehm, Peirene Press, 2014
In Poland in the Second World War, Izolda manages to escape the Warsaw Ghetto in search of her husband, Shayek. The urgent question throughout this illuminating, passionate novella where nothing is ever quite what it seems, is: “Is it fair to have to stay alive and save people when there is, increasingly, no one left to save?” Izolda changes her name, hair colour and religion in order to survive brutal experiences, convinced, rightly or
wrongly, that her belief in love will save her and Shayek, her less-than-deserving
“king of hearts”.
The Years by Annie Ernaux, translated by Alison L Strayer, Fitzcarraldo Editions, 2018
“Other people’s memories gave us a place in the world.” With this impressionistic fictional memoir of the years 1941 to 2006, Ernaux (above), one of the great chroniclers of women’s lives in France in the post-war 20th century, has written a work which has been hailed as “ a new kind of autobiography… private and collective”, Beginning from her own birth to the present day, while never using the first-person pronoun, Ernaux’s is at once a personal story and the story of a generation, a book of her time and for all times.
Seeing Red by Lina Meruane, translated by Megan McDowell, Atlantic, 2017
Dark, and darkly humorous, Chilean author Meruane’s semi-autobiographical experimental novel about the sudden blindness of a young academic named Lina, is written in bold stream-of-consciousness style, fizzing with energy even as it charts its narrator’s impending dysfunction and isolation. Trying desperately to hold on to normality as her blood-clouded sight disappears, Lina’s memories of her own and Chile’s recent past become startlingly vivid: a newly heightened world of striking colour and imagery.
Flights by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Jennifer Croft, Fitzcarraldo Editions, 2015
A novel, a memoir, an anti-travelogue, a compendium of curious novelties, this winner of the Man Booker International Prize by Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk, is also a work of anthropology, history and philosophy. The unnamed narrator at its centre, a Polish author persistently on the move, journeys across the globe, accessing all of the accoutrements of modern travel at her disposal, incorporating them into what is essentially a meditation
on the living and the dead across time and space.


inews--2020-06-04--Lunar eclipse June 2020 date: When to see the penumbral eclipse in the UK, and what the full moon wi

Lunar eclipse June 2020 date: When to see the penumbral eclipse in the UK, and what the full moon will look like

Lunar eclipse June 2020 date : When to see the penumbral eclipse in the UK , and what the full moon will look like This Friday 's penumbral eclipse marks the second of four lunar eclipses to be expected this year This Friday 5 June a penumbral lunar eclipse will be visible to most regions of the world , marking the second of four lunar eclipses to be expected this year .
Known as the `` strawberry moon '' due to its slightly reddish colour , the moon will be slightly obscured by the Earth 's shadow .
But what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and how does one see it ?
When can I see the penumbral eclipse ?
This coming Friday 's Full Moon marks the start of the second eclipse season for 2020 , with a penumbral lunar eclipse , where the more diffuse outer shadow of Earth - known as the penumbra - falls on the moon 's face .
The eclipse will last for 3 hours , 18 minutes and 13 seconds , staring around 6.45pm and will be at it 's peak at 7.26pm , when 59 per cent of the moon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Earth .
For those in the UK , the eclipse will reach its greatest visible magnitude at 9.06pm .
What will it look like ?
You can expect to see very slight shading on the southern side of the Moon at maximum eclipse , and the colour of the moon near mid-eclipse may adopt a tea-coloured hue instead of it 's typically pearly white colour .
The most visible moment of Friday 's eclipse can only be seen in the remote sea off the eastern coast of Madagascar , as the Earth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ How is it caused ?
When this happens , the Earth blocks some of the Sun 's light from directly reaching the Moon 's surface and covers all or part of the Moon with the outer part of its shadow , known as the penumbra .
A total lunar eclipse is the most striking to view , as the Earth 's shadow obscures all of the moon 's surface .
When is the next penumbral eclipse ?

This Friday 5 June a penumbral lunar eclipse will be visible to most regions of the world, marking the second of four lunar eclipses to be expected this year.
Known as the “strawberry moon” due to its slightly reddish colour, the moon will be slightly obscured by the Earth’s shadow.
The astronomical phenomenon will be visible across Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.
But what exactly is a penumbral lunar eclipse, and how does one see it?
When can I see the penumbral eclipse?
This coming Friday’s Full Moon marks the start of the second eclipse season for 2020, with a penumbral lunar eclipse, where the more diffuse outer shadow of Earth – known as the penumbra – falls on the moon’s face.
The eclipse will last for 3 hours, 18 minutes and 13 seconds, staring around 6.45pm and will be at it’s peak at 7.26pm, when 59 per cent of the moon is immersed in the umbral shadow of the Earth.
For those in the UK, the eclipse will reach its greatest visible magnitude at 9.06pm.
What will it look like?
A penumbral eclipse creates a subtle dark shading on the moon’s face.
You can expect to see very slight shading on the southern side of the Moon at maximum eclipse, and the colour of the moon near mid-eclipse may adopt a tea-coloured hue instead of it’s typically pearly white colour.
The most visible moment of Friday’s eclipse can only be seen in the remote sea off the eastern coast of Madagascar, as the Earth comes to partially eclipse the sun.
How is it caused?
A penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Earth, and the Moon are imperfectly aligned.
When this happens, the Earth blocks some of the Sun’s light from directly reaching the Moon’s surface and covers all or part of the Moon with the outer part of its shadow, known as the penumbra.
There are two other types of eclipses alongside penumbral – total and partial.
A total lunar eclipse is the most striking to view, as the Earth’s shadow obscures all of the moon’s surface.
When is the next penumbral eclipse?
Penumbral eclipses aren’t particularly rare, and there are two more to come in 2020.
The next is on 5 July, and will only be visible from the UK at moonset.


inews--2020-06-05--UK Black Lives Matter protests: What happened in the London protest, and the other George Floyd even

UK Black Lives Matter protests: What happened in the London protest, and the other George Floyd events this week

UK Black Lives Matter protests : What happened in the London protest , and the other George Floyd events this week Black Lives Matter organisers in London think the upcoming demonstrations are expected to be the largest ever seen by the movement in the UK People participate in a Black Lives Matter protest rally outside the St George 's Hall in Liverpool , in memory of George Floyd who was killed on May 25 while in police custody in the US city of Minneapolis ( Photo : PA ) Where and when are the protests ?
In an impassioned speech @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : `` Today is about innocent people who were halfway through their process , we do n't know what George Floyd could have achieved , we do n't know what Sandra Bland could have achieved , but today we 're going to make sure that wo n't be an alien thought to our young ones . ''
What are the current coronavirus travel restrictions ?
A march at Trafalgar Square to protest the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis ( Photo by Hollie Adams/Getty Images ) “ We need to find ways of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and to make the points that many of us want to be made and to be heard right now , but to do so in a way that is safe and is not putting people protesting or wider communities at risk.
” You can also write to your local MP , to demand the UK takes a stand against police brutality and racism , using this email template ; to demand the suspension of UK exportation of crowd control weapons to the US , using this email template ; and to ask them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's death , using this email template .

As demonstrations continue around the world over the murder of 46-year old African American George Floyd, who died at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis on Monday 25 May, thousands of people have protested in solidarity in the UK.
Cities including London, Liverpool, Cardiff and Manchester have witnessed protestors taking to the streets to highlight systemic racism in the UK, and the brutality of police forces, after Mr Floyd died from “asphyxiation from sustained pressure” when the Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over eight minutes.
On 3 June, Mr Chauvin was charged with second-degree murder, and the three other officers at the scene – Thomas Lane, J Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao – were charged for the first time with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
On Wednesday the Star Wars actor John Boyega joined thousands of protestors in a march from Hyde Park in central London organised by the anti-racist campaign group Black Lives Matter, with protestors chanting “no justice, no peace” as they took part.
Most of the protestors were aged under 30 and carried handmade signs, calling out names of Mr Floyd and others in the UK such as Mark Duggan, who died at the hands of police, or victims of racial injustice including the murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence.
Similarly, on Sunday thousands of demonstrators gathered in Trafalgar Square for a “Kneel for Floyd” protest, while hundreds marched through Peckham and Brixton in south London on Monday.
Placards displayed statements such as “Racism has no place” and “I can’t breathe”, in reference to Mr Floyd’s final words as Mr Chauvin knelt on his neck.
Demonstrations have also taken place in Cardiff and Manchester, and in Ireland, thousands protested outside the US embassy in Dublin on Monday.
Here’s what you need to know about the Black Lives Matter protests happening during the upcoming week.
Where and when are the protests?
On Tuesday hundreds of people gathered outside St George’s Hall in Liverpool, and according to Black Lives Matter organisers in London, the upcoming demonstrations are expected to be the largest ever seen by the movement in the UK.
Stand Up to Racism (SUTR) organised a socially distanced protest for 6pm Wednesday 3 June, as part of a day of action against discrimination in response to the murder of Mr Floyd.
Britons were urged to “take a knee” on their doorsteps – the protest stance made famous by American football star Colin Kaepernick in opposition to police brutality, now synonymous with the Black Lives Matter movement.
Wherever you are, at 6pm on Wednesday 3 June, #TakeTheKnee +/ hold a sign on your doorstep to say #BlackLivesMatter, #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd The millions who stand against racism must be heard. Details: https://t.co/GXJ4eYHf6F#BlackLivesMatterUK #ICantBreathe pic.twitter.com/dT70RqPz0b — Stand Up To Racism (@AntiRacismDay) June 2, 2020
Alongside kneeling, protestors were asked to hold signs to say #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd #BlackLivesMatter , in solidarity with protestors in the US, and to highlight the disproportionate number of BAME deaths in the Covid-19 crisis in the UK.
A separate protest took place on Wednesday in London’s Hyde Park against the rights of black people being abused globally, with protestors asked to “stand with us” and to wear red.
Frankie Clarence, 28, one of the organisers, said: “I feel we are now in a period where voices don’t need to be voiceless any more.”
The family of Belly Mujinga, a black ticket office worker who died from Covid-19, also joined the protests, which concluded at Victoria Station, where she had worked.
In an impassioned speech, Star Wars actor John Boyega said: “Today is about innocent people who were halfway through their process, we don’t know what George Floyd could have achieved, we don’t know what Sandra Bland could have achieved, but today we’re going to make sure that won’t be an alien thought to our young ones.”
On Saturday 6 June, people will gather at Parliament Square from 1pm in “peaceful protests against police brutality in the UK and US”, and are advised to wear face masks and be socially distant.
Similarly on Sunday 7 June, a protest at 2pm near the US Embassy in London calls for “justice for the multiple black people who have been killed and harmed by the police.”
In Birmingham, a protest has been set for Thursday 4 June, starting at Victoria Square.
In Manchester, demonstrators will meet in Piccadilly Gardens, in the city centre, to show their opposition from 1pm on Saturday 6 June.
Additionally, for those staying in their homes, on Thursday 4 June Black Lives Matter are asking supporters to play Jimmy Cliff’s the Harder they Come at 7pm from their doorsteps, specifically to raise awareness that racism is a public health crisis.
What are the current coronavirus travel restrictions?
Certain lockdown measures may have been eased this week, but large gatherings are still banned, and on Tuesday Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon asked protesters to find an alternative to physical demonstrations.
Speaking at her daily briefing in Edinburgh, she said: “Large gatherings of people could pose a risk to health and indeed to life.
“We need to find ways of allowing people to make their voices heard and to make the points that many of us want to be made and to be heard right now, but to do so in a way that is safe and is not putting people protesting or wider communities at risk.”
The Met Police said its approach was to engage with protesters and encourage them to follow social distancing rules.
There were 23 arrests during protests at London’s Trafalgar Square on Sunday, at least three of which were for breach of Covid-19 legislation.
In response to last night’s protests in Liverpool, Merseyside Police said: “We recognise the right of people to demonstrate peacefully and express their views but would continue to remind people they should adhere to social distancing guidelines at all times.”
Writing on their Facebook page, Black Lives Matter UK said: “If you are going to a march or demo right now, please do be mindful of the pandemic and consider taking measures such as social distancing or wearing a mask.
“Many of us have lost acquaintances – Covid 19 is very real and unfortunately it’s not over yet. Be safe out there whatever you choose to do.”
Black Lives Matter are also asking those attending peaceful protests to try and self-isolate for 2 weeks to prevent the further spread of Covid-19, and are suggesting people don’t actually attend all the protests, as they could then act as a vector to spread coronavirus.
How can I support remotely?
For those unable to take to the streets, there are many ways to be a good ally to the black community.
Vogue have now published writer Mireille Cassandra Harper’s “10 Steps to Non-Optical Allyship” which outlines the key principles to be actively anti-racist.
A good place to start is to donate to any of the following initiatives: George Floyd’s Memorial Fund, Belly Mujinga’s Memorial Fund, Black Lives Matter, Black Minds Matter, Show Racism The Red Card, Black Visions Collective, The Stephen Lawrence Trust, Stop Hate UK, The Innocence Project, Liberty UK, Say Her Name, Reclaim the Block, Black Journalists Therapy Relief Fund, The Movement for Black Lives and Black Protest Legal Support UK.
You can also donate to The Bail Project, which provides funds to pay bail “to prevent incarceration and combat racial economic disparities in the bail system”.
You can sign Change.org’s ‘Justice for George Floyd‘ petition, which has already gathered over 10 million signatures, as well this petition demanding the police officers involved in his death are arrested and charged with second degree murder.
Sign this petition to demand the immediate arrest of the three officers who were present when Mr Chauvin kneeled on Mr Floyd’s neck.
You can also demand justice for Belly Mujinga, the railway worker who died from coronavirus after she was spat on by a man claiming to have Covid-19, by signing this petition.
Likewise, sign this petition to demand justice for Breonna Taylor, the black emergency medical technician who was fatally shot in her apartment by the Louisville Metro Police Department.
You can also write to your local MP, to demand the UK takes a stand against police brutality and racism, using this email template; to demand the suspension of UK exportation of crowd control weapons to the US, using this email template; and to ask them to support further investigation into Ms Mujinga’s death, using this email template.
You can find your local MP’s contact details here.


inews--2020-06-05--Peter Falconio death: what happened to the backpacker whose disappearance is explored in Murder in t

Peter Falconio death: what happened to the backpacker whose disappearance is explored in Murder in the Outback on Channel 4

Peter Falconio death : what happened to the backpacker whose disappearance is explored in Murder in the Outback on Channel 4 Back in 2001 the disappearance of British backpacker Peter Falconio made international headlines Channel 4 is reopening one of the most famous murder cases of the 21st Century with its new documentary series , Murder in the Outback : The Falconio and Lees Mystery .
Back in 2001 the disappearance of British backpacker Peter Falconio made international headlines , after he and his girlfriend , Joanne Lees , were attacked in the Australian outback .
Joanne managed to escaped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was shot , and his body was never found .
After a 16-month manhunt a man named Bradley John Murdoch was arrested and later convicted of Peter 's murder , but there have always ben question marks over whether police had the right man .
The Channel 4 series , which starts on Sunday 7 June at 9.15pm on Channel 4 and airs over four consecutive nights , dives deep into the case , examining key evidence and asking new questions .
The stretch of road where Peter and Joanne were attacked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Peter met in 1996 , and had been together four years before deciding to go travelling .
They visited countries including Thailand and Cambodia before taking a road trip through the Australian outback .
On 14 July 2001 , when Peter was 28 , the couple were driving through the desert at night in their camper van .
They were on a remote part of the Stuart Highway near Barrow Creek in the Northern Territory when another vehicle pulled up alongside them and flagged them down .
Peter got out of the car @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen sparks flying from the exhaust .
Joanne moved into the driver 's seat to rev the engine to check the problem .
She then heard a loud bang , which she believes was him being shot .
The man then came and pointed a gun at her , tied her hands behind her back and tried to abduct her , but she escaped and hid , before flagging down a truck hours later and making an emergency call .
Bradley John Murdoch was convicted of the murder in 2005 ( Photo : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the scene in the early hours they found a dirt-covered blood pool and the couple 's Kombi hidden some 80 metres into the scrub .
However , they had little luck with the manhunt .
After 16 months , while investigating owners of the 1991-1999 model Toyota Land Cruiser 4WD identified as the attackers ' vehicle , as well as CCTV evidence , they arrested a man named Bradley John Murdoch .
The investigating task force caught Murdoch 's drug-running accomplice , who told them details of his connections to the case , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brother also supported his involvement .

Channel 4 is reopening one of the most famous murder cases of the 21st Century with its new documentary series, Murder in the Outback: The Falconio and Lees Mystery.
Back in 2001 the disappearance of British backpacker Peter Falconio made international headlines, after he and his girlfriend, Joanne Lees, were attacked in the Australian outback.
Joanne managed to escaped but Peter did not. Joanne believes he was shot, and his body was never found.
After a 16-month manhunt a man named Bradley John Murdoch was arrested and later convicted of Peter’s murder, but there have always ben question marks over whether police had the right man.
The Channel 4 series, which starts on Sunday 7 June at 9.15pm on Channel 4 and airs over four consecutive nights, dives deep into the case, examining key evidence and asking new questions.
What happened to Peter Falconio?
Joanne and Peter met in 1996, and had been together four years before deciding to go travelling. They visited countries including Thailand and Cambodia before taking a road trip through the Australian outback.
On 14 July 2001, when Peter was 28, the couple were driving through the desert at night in their camper van. They were on a remote part of the Stuart Highway near Barrow Creek in the Northern Territory when another vehicle pulled up alongside them and flagged them down.
Peter got out of the car and a man told him he had seen sparks flying from the exhaust. Joanne moved into the driver’s seat to rev the engine to check the problem.
She then heard a loud bang, which she believes was him being shot. The man then came and pointed a gun at her, tied her hands behind her back and tried to abduct her, but she escaped and hid, before flagging down a truck hours later and making an emergency call.
When the police arrived at the scene in the early hours they found a dirt-covered blood pool and the couple’s Kombi hidden some 80 metres into the scrub.
However, they had little luck with the manhunt. After 16 months, while investigating owners of the 1991-1999 model Toyota Land Cruiser 4WD identified as the attackers’ vehicle, as well as CCTV evidence, they arrested a man named Bradley John Murdoch.
The investigating task force caught Murdoch’s drug-running accomplice, who told them details of his connections to the case, and a DNA examination of Murdoch’s brother also supported his involvement.
Murdoch then disappeared, but on 22 August 2002 he was arrested and tried on an unrelated kidnap and assault charge by South Australia Police.
He was convicted an sentenced to life imprisonment in 2005.


inews--2020-06-05--Scarlett Moffatt: The Gogglebox star on taking over Jay Flynn's Virtual Pub Quiz for tonight's speci

Scarlett Moffatt: The Gogglebox star on taking over Jay Flynn's Virtual Pub Quiz for tonight's special

Scarlett Moffatt : The Gogglebox star on taking over Jay Flynn 's Virtual Pub Quiz for tonight 's special The World Record breaking online quiz has already featured Stephen Fry and Jonathan and and has raise more than £500,000 for charities The presenter , who found fame on Channel 4 show Gogglebox , follows in the footsteps of Stephen Fry and Jonathan Ross who have raised tens of thousands for the charity during the two previous Friday night specials .
The quiz was the brainchild of Jay Flynn , who has now raised more than £500,000 for charities ( Photo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Last night the event , which has around 180,000 households taking part on a Thursday and Saturday night , passed the £500,000 barrier of funds raised for charities including Alzheimer ’ s Research UK , NHS Charities Together , anti-bullying campaign The Diana Award and Connections St Martin ’ s , the London charity that helped Flynn after he spent two years on London ’ s streets .
“ First and foremost , it 's for help in Alzheimer 's Research UK , ” she said .
“ So it ’ s to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
I actually lost both of my grandmothers to dementia , so I know that the work they do is just amazing .
“ Secondly , I feel like we just need fun right now .
I feel like we need a little bit of entertainment , something whether you ’ re on your own in the house or with the family , a quiz is something everyone can do and I just love doing them.
” “ Honestly , if I wrote them there would things like ‘ can you name all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
’ .
I did choose the rounds though.
” Getting to grips with tech She said : “ If there ’ s one good thing to come out of this whole self-isolate , lockdown , stay alert , whatever it ’ s called now , it ’ s that I actually think I could build a computer now .
The other day I actually had to do a PowerPoint .
I don ’ t think I ’ ve done a PowerPoint presentation since my GCSES .
I feel like I ’ m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I actually had to do a PowerPoint .
I do n't think I 've done a PowerPoint presentation since my GCSE .
I feel like I 'm getting to grips with technology now.
” Moffatt is also fulsome in her praise for Flynn , who holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular online quiz with more than 180,000 households taking part at the height of lockdown .
“ Jay ’ s so lovely .
I think it 's such an amazing idea to come up with the virtual pub quiz , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like everyone is missing the pub right now , so it ’ s nice to pretend to be there.
” As for what she ’ s been up to during lockdown , Moffatt has created a conspiracy theory podcast for the BBC with her boyfriend Scott called Scarlett Moffatt Wants to Believe .

TV star Scarlett Moffatt is set to become a quiz show host on Friday as she seeks to raise thousands for Alzheimer’s Research UK during a ‘takeover’ of the world recording breaking Jay’s Virtual Pub Quiz.
The presenter, who found fame on Channel 4 show Gogglebox, follows in the footsteps of Stephen Fry and Jonathan Ross who have raised tens of thousands for the charity during the two previous Friday night specials.
The quiz is the brainchild of Jay Flynn, a formerly homeless man who launched Jay’s Virtual Pub Quiz on YouTube just before the Covid-19 lockdown.
The event, which has around 180,000 households taking part on a Thursday and Saturday night, passed the £500,000 barrier of funds raised for charities including Alzheimer’s Research UK, NHS Charities Together, anti-bullying campaign The Diana Award and Connections St Martin’s, the London charity that helped Flynn after he spent two years on London’s streets.
Quiz has become a global success
Ahead of hosting the quiz, Moffatt explained her motivation for getting involved in the fundraiser.
“First and foremost, it’s for Alzheimer’s Research UK,” she said. “So it’s to help raise money for that amazing charity. I actually lost both of my grandmothers to dementia, so I know that the work they do is just amazing.
“Secondly, I feel like we just need fun right now. I feel like we need a little bit of entertainment, something whether you’re on your own in the house or with the family, a quiz is something everyone can do and I just love doing them.”
Singing the lyrics
However, Moffatt does admit she has not actually set the questions for the three-round quiz.
“Honestly, if I wrote them there would things like ‘can you name all of the seven dwarfs in Snow White?’. I did choose the rounds though.”
The three-round quiz will include a TV section, famous quotes, and a song lyrics round, during which Moffatt admits she will struggle “not to sing them” and give the answers away.
Getting to grips with tech
As for the technology involved in running an online quiz, Moffatt said she’s confident it will go smoothly.
She said: “If there’s one good thing to come out of this whole self-isolate, lockdown, stay alert, whatever it’s called now, it’s that I actually think I could build a computer now. The other day I actually had to do a PowerPoint. I don’t think I’ve done a PowerPoint presentation since my GCSES. I feel like I’m getting to grips with technology now.
I actually had to do a PowerPoint. I don’t think I’ve done a PowerPoint presentation since my GCSE. I feel like I’m getting to grips with technology now.”
Moffatt is also fulsome in her praise for Flynn, who holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular online quiz with more than 180,000 households taking part at the height of lockdown.
“Jay’s so lovely. I think it’s such an amazing idea to come up with the virtual pub quiz,” she said. “I feel like everyone is missing the pub right now, so it’s nice to pretend to be there.”
Cleaning, carbs and Tiger King
As for what she’s been up to during lockdown, Moffatt has created a conspiracy theory podcast for the BBC with her boyfriend Scott called Scarlett Moffatt Wants to Believe.
She added: “I feel like Mrs Hinch. I’m cleaning all the time. I haven’t been making banana bread and coming up with business ventures or anything. I’ve just been keeping sane really, eating lots of carbs and watching Tiger King.”
Scarlett Moffatt’s takeover of Jay’s Virtual Pub Quiz begins at 8.15pm on Friday on YouTube