The Times - 11.08.2026.pdf

《泰晤士报》年度最佳日报

泰晤士报

2026年8月11日 星期二 | thetimes.com | 第75108期

售价3.20英镑，订阅用户2.35英镑 （基于7日纸质及数字订阅）

非要这样吗？公共场合秀恩爱（PDA）的夏天

有毒生菜！ 顶级微生物学家为何拒绝吃沙拉

警方调查威德科姆谋杀案嫌疑人是否与法拉奇家纵火案有关

史蒂文·斯温福德 政治新闻编辑

警方正在调查被控谋杀安·威德科姆的男子是否与一起向奈杰尔·法拉奇家信箱投掷燃烧弹的事件有关联。

28岁的约书亚·克里（Joshua Kerry）被控于上月在德文郡的家中谋杀了英国改革党政客威德科姆。最初，德文郡与康沃尔郡警方排除了这起谋杀案的政治动机，但案件随后被移交给反恐警察处理。

克里于7月11日因涉嫌谋杀被捕，7月15日再次被捕，涉嫌实施、筹备或煽动恐怖主义行为。

上周五，调查威德科姆谋杀案的反恐警察表示，他们已重启对曾被描述为法拉奇家“入室盗窃未遂”的案件调查。

英国改革党领袖法拉奇今年4月对《每日电讯报》表示，有人向其信箱投掷了燃烧弹，“幸运的是……在门廊内自行熄灭”。英国改革党拒绝对该报道置评。此前，由伦敦大都会警察局和反恐警察（CTP）伦敦部门进行的调查已结案，且未逮捕任何人。

重启调查后，反恐警察表示，他们发现了一条“当时未被发现和跟进”的调查线索，且“可能具有相关性”。警方已将此事提交警察监督机构。

《泰晤士报》获悉，警方正在调查克里与该事件之间是否存在关联，并已告知法拉奇本人。

昨日，在与反恐警察会面后的新闻发布会上 续见第2版

（注：文中提及的“thousands of offenders shipped out of UK jails”在原文中未出现，如有其他上下文需补充，请提供相关内容以确保翻译准确。）

终身服用的减肥药每日一片助你保持苗条

埃莉诺·海沃德 健康版主编

英国成为欧洲首个批准每日服用的减肥药的国家，该药可作为“终身治疗”手段，帮助保持苗条身材并使2型糖尿病进入缓解期。

由美国礼来公司生产的奥福格利普隆（Orforglipron）将以Foundayo的品牌名称销售。该药物平均可帮助使用者减轻12%的体重，临床试验显示其是一种有效的长期“维持”工具，有助于保持健康。

昨日，英国药品和医疗产品监管局（MHRA）批准该药在英国用于肥胖患者，或伴有相关健康问题的超重人群。英格兰约有2000万人可能符合使用条件。

该药物最初仅能通过私人药房购买，但预计在监管机构完成成本效益评估后数月内，将获准纳入英国国家医疗服务体系（NHS）使用。其作用机制与奥赛匹克（Ozempic）、维格维（Wegovy）和蒙贾罗（Mounjaro）等注射剂相同，均针对GLP-1受体。

奥福格利普隆为每日口服片剂，服用时间不受限制，亦无需空腹或限制饮水。这使其比诺和诺德公司上月在英国推出的竞品维格维口服片更为便捷——后者仅可在早晨空腹服用。

专家将减肥药称为“圣杯”，并认为数百万NHS患者可能服用该药，以预防包括2型糖尿病和心脏病在内的疾病。

定价细节尚未公布，但在美国，该药于4月获批后，售价约为减肥注射剂的一半。减肥注射剂蒙贾罗的月费用最高可达140英镑，具体取决于剂量。

口服片剂的生产和储存成本更低，无需冷藏，但其疗效略逊于GLP-1注射剂。

MHRA医疗质量执行主任朱利安·比奇（Julian Beach）表示，继续见第4版

天气

英格兰大部分地区天气干燥，气温温暖或炎热，阳光充足。完整天气预报，见第44页

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商业街复兴将提供关闭电子烟店的机会

奥利弗·赖特 政策编辑

安迪·伯纳姆承诺通过允许城镇阻止开设博彩、游戏和电子烟店，并赋予地方议会权力防止“花哨”的霓虹灯招牌，让商业街“重获新生”。

根据该计划，所有新开的电子烟店都需要规划许可，这意味着可以阻止它们在学校附近开业。首相将于今日宣布这些措施。

政府还计划废除《2005年博彩法》中的“允许目标”条款，该条款限制了地方议会在公众反对的情况下拒绝博彩店和24小时老虎机店的许可。提供24小时赌博机的成人游戏中心也将需要规划许可。

唐宁街表示，将为商业街店面外观设定“更明确的期望”。政府将确定“全国各地具有吸引力、繁荣的城镇中心的最佳范例”，并为地方议会提供改善商业街的实用指导。

近年来，与有组织犯罪和非法用工相关的电子烟店、理发店和小型便利店数量激增。

社会正义中心智库发现，自2016年以来，英国已失去近1,800家酒吧和酒吧，而电子烟和烟草店的数量则增加到近2,200家。

部长们宣布，涉嫌非法活动的商店可被关闭长达一年，以便警方和地方议会有时间进行调查。伯纳姆还表示，他将审查对“不做出积极贡献”的商店的商业税减免政策。

人们还对博彩场所的聚集现象表示担忧，尤其是在较贫困地区。伦敦布伦特区拥有超过80家博彩场所。在另一个区哈勒斯登，十分钟步行范围内就有十家博彩店。

根据《2005年博彩法》，地方议会和博彩委员会在批准博彩场所许可时必须倾向于批准。

伯纳姆表示，对太多人来说，他们“从小熟悉的商业街已经空心化，几十年来的衰落让它们变得面目全非。电子烟店、博彩店和不法经营者的兴起，取代了人们渴望的商店、服务和社区空间。这是不可接受的。”

他补充说，工党将赋予人们“对商业街开设什么店铺的真正发言权”。地方议会将获得所需的权力，以遏制不受欢迎的商店，让城镇中心重获生机。

首相表示，商业街是“当地社区的心脏”。“但长期以来，威斯敏斯特一直袖手旁观，任由它们衰落。本届政府致力于恢复我们的商业街，让希望重回英国。”

社会正义中心住房和社区主管约书亚·尼科尔森表示：“英国的商业街已被越来越多的不法电子烟店、小型便利店和理发店所劫持，其中许多与有组织犯罪有关。”

“政府赋予地方议会拒绝这些不法商店的新权力是正确的。商业街的复兴对于恢复我们社区的安全至关重要。”

嫌疑人与法拉奇纵火案“存在关联”

法拉奇向警方表示：“这与安·威尔德科姆的谋杀案直接相关。”他称重新调查此案的决定“前所未有”。

法拉奇表示，他相信反恐警务人员在最初的案件中“犯了一些错误”，但仍然对他们抱有信心。

独立警察行为监察局（IOPC）正在调查反恐警务局（CTP）伦敦办公室一名工作人员的“行为”。

法拉奇称，他的政党“在前议员安·威尔德科姆去世前受到了与其他政党截然不同的对待”。他补充道：“安的去世是一个巨大的悲剧，英国的安全机构……终于开始认真对待改革英国党政客的安全问题。

“在此之前，我们受到的对待与其他政党完全不同。”

当被问及是否仍然信任警方时，他说道：“反恐部门已经坦诚地表示，‘法拉奇先生，对于2025年4月发生在您身上的事件’，他们公开承认犯了错误，并主动将自身提交IOPC调查。

“现在他们显然非常担心真相大白后的后果。但他们这样做表明他们并非试图掩盖或忽视问题，

我必须说，我曾与反恐警务局局长劳伦斯·泰勒（Laurence Taylor）会面，对此我确实抱有极大的信心。”

威尔德科姆，78岁，前保守党部长、改革英国党发言人，于7月9日在德文郡海托（Haytor）的家中被发现身亡。

泰勒在一份声明中表示：“我要明确指出，我们对[Kerry]的调查仍在继续，旨在确定其动机以及他可能参与的任何更广泛的活动。

“与所有谋杀案调查一样，理解‘动机’是我们调查的关键部分，”他补充道，称这是“一项特别复杂且高强度的调查”。

反恐警务局（CTP）伦敦办公室已被联系置评。

法拉奇为萨尔瓦多监狱计划辩护

奥布里·阿莱格雷蒂 首席政治记者

改革英国党（Reform UK）计划将外国罪犯遣送至萨尔瓦多，以缓解英国监狱人满为患的问题，奈杰尔·法拉奇表示，这些罪犯不会被关押在“笼子”里。

该党领袖试图消除外界对侵犯人权的担忧，并驳斥有关罪犯可能被关押在臭名昭著的塞科特（Cecot）监狱——美洲最大的监狱——的说法。

改革英国党计划前往萨尔瓦多，考察当地设施是否适合关押数千名从英国监狱遣送的罪犯。该党计划在外国租用牢房，用于关押无法遣返回原籍国的罪犯。此外，改革英国党还希望军方在国防部土地上建造预制监狱，作为工党提前释放计划的替代方案。

法拉奇表示，萨尔瓦多“并非所有监狱”都设有“电视上看到的笼子”，他指的是理查德·马德利（Richard Madeley）今年播出的一部关于塞科特监狱的纪录片。

该纪录片展示了被关押的囚犯每天被迫吃同样的简单餐食，除了《圣经》外没有其他阅读材料，且灯光彻夜不熄。牢房内有数十人睡在金属床架上，禁止探视。

法拉奇表示：“我们希望确保条件合理、适当且人道。”他补充道

背后的故事

将外国罪犯遣送至第三国监狱服刑，面临严重的法律、外交和实际问题，正如前几届政府所见证的那样（奥布里·阿莱格雷蒂报道）。

戴维·卡梅伦在2015年从外援预算中拨出2500万英镑，用于在牙买加建造一所监狱，以容纳约600名在英国监狱服刑的牙买加人，让他们服完剩余刑期。然而，牙买加在2017年以条款“不具备有利性”为由拒绝了这一提议。

2023年，时任司法大臣的亚历克斯·查克提议在爱沙尼亚租用监狱牢房，但该计划从未付诸实施。外界对租用外国牢房的成本效益、国际囚犯运输以及维持适当人员配备等问题提出了担忧。

法律监督机构还指出了语言障碍、囚犯与家人隔离，以及法律要求在海外必须达到与英国国内同等的康复标准等问题。

改革英国党承诺的监狱建设计划意味着设施将是“基本”的，不会有“许多彩色电视机”。

消息人士向《泰晤士报》透露，根据改革英国党的计划，任何被遣送至中美洲国家的囚犯都需要获得医疗保健、教育和户外运动的机会。

改革英国党表示，将“通过遣送所有外国籍罪犯，腾出10,000个监狱空间”。然而，据信在押人员中约有三分之一尚处于还押候审阶段，意味着他们尚未受审。法拉奇称，该计划的成本将是将外国籍罪犯关押在英国本土的一半。

国际特赦组织英国分部批评了这一计划。该组织表示：“改革英国党提议与萨尔瓦多签订合同，参与严重侵犯人权的行为……用英国纳税人的钱资助暴行。国际特赦组织已记录到萨尔瓦多存在大规模任意拘留、殴打、酷刑及其他虐待、强迫失踪、拒绝提供医疗服务以及在押人员死亡等情况。”

英国监狱官员协会全国主席马克·费尔赫斯特表示，改革英国党的计划不太可能实现。他在《泰晤士报》电台节目中表示：“他将面临大量人权方面的争论……需要考虑司法管辖权问题。当囚犯在外国服刑，但依据的是英国刑事司法体系时，谁来监管他们？”

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《泰晤士报》 / 2026年11月 星期二

1

新闻

动物园和兽医发现动物针灸的意义

塔什·莫斯海姆

对于大多数动物来说，去兽医那里可不会乖乖坐着，任由十几根针从背部扎到脚踝。

但对于马萨诸塞州波士顿新英格兰水族馆的一只名叫皮科的年迈非洲企鹅来说，针灸已成为她日常医疗护理的一部分，因为她的脊椎和关节出现了问题。

这只鸟接受了15分钟的治疗，期间约有十几根发丝般细的针被扎入她的身体。饲养员表示，她非但没有反抗，反而在治疗过程中显得很放松，甚至会在被抱着时梳理工作人员的羽毛。

皮科去年去世，享年31岁，远远超过了非洲企鹅在野外10至15年的预期寿命。但她远非唯一一个接受针灸治疗的特殊患者。

针灸曾一度与人类的替代医学相关联，如今正被应用于越来越多样化的动物身上，从狮子、羊驼到蜥蜴和拉布拉多犬。

在苏格兰法夫动物园，一只12岁的环尾南美浣熊埃博尼因年龄增长导致的关节炎接受了针灸治疗。

饲养员注意到，这只属于浣熊科的南美哺乳动物开始出现跛行，不愿活动，对食物的兴趣也减退。她被开了药，但爱丁堡大学皇家（迪克）兽医学院的兽医建议在治疗中加入针灸。

外来动物护理师莫妮卡·纳夫罗茨卡与动物园合作，定期为埃博尼进行治疗，随后报告称她的行动能力、情绪和食欲均有所改善。

“人们认为外来动物不会感到疼痛，因为它们大多不会说话，行为也很独特。”纳夫罗茨卡说，“然而，通过研究它们的行为，你可以判断它们是否在承受痛苦。”

伦敦卡佩尔庄园学院动物管理实践讲师索菲·瓦拉瓦拉表示，识别疼痛需要观察动物正常行为的变化，以及身体和声音上的迹象。这些迹象可能包括跛行、远离群体、活动减少、通过眯眼或皱鼻做出痛苦表情，或在被触摸时发出声音。

伦敦兽医针灸诊所的小动物兽医卡罗琳·史密斯表示，这种治疗本身可能“极其放松”，尽管不同动物的反应各不相同。“零食通常也有帮助！”她补充道。

史密斯说，动物通常不需要为针灸进行特别训练，但它们需要习惯被触摸。对于新患者，她会在几周内逐渐增加针的数量和治疗的身体部位。

2014年，德文郡佩恩顿动物园的一位更为威猛的患者接受了针灸治疗。一只名叫路西法的亚洲狮在脚部肿瘤切除手术后伤口未能正常愈合，接受了针灸以减轻疼痛并改善血液循环。

曾为马和狗进行过针灸治疗的兽医外科医生夏洛特·英尼斯博士表示：“从西方兽医的角度来看，针灸的效果被认为涉及刺激神经系统和身体自身的止痛及修复机制，包括对神经、免疫和激素通路的影响。”

但当患者无法说出疼痛是否减轻时，兽医如何判断针灸是否有效？史密斯表示，兽医可以结合疼痛量表和更日常的指标，比如猫是否能跳上它最喜欢的椅子，或狗是否能更轻松地爬楼梯。

“治疗后，患者往往能更轻松地自理，动作看起来也更‘自然’，”她说，“在物理治疗和水疗过程中，他们的表现也常常有所改善。”

伊内斯将针灸用于治疗马匹的多种问题，从慢性疼痛到消化不良、呼吸困难、生育问题，甚至行为障碍。她还治疗过患有关节炎和脊柱问题的犬类。

一些动物接受电针灸治疗，即在针具之间施加微弱电流，以提供更强的刺激。

伊内斯表示：“兽医针灸的一个重要观点是，我并不将其视为传统兽医学的替代品。相反，它可以作为更广泛临床治疗中的一种有益补充，尤其是在疼痛为慢性或单纯传统治疗无法提供足够缓解的情况下。”

此类治疗需求的增长，可能也反映了人们对宠物态度的转变。

宠物健康和保险公司 Lassie 的联合创始人赫达·布拉韦鲁德·奥尔松表示，年轻一代越来越将动物视为家庭成员。

“宠物拟人化改变了主人的期望，”她说，“当你将宠物视为家庭成员时，自然会更愿意为其健康投资，并考虑更多选择来维护它们的福祉。”

奥尔松指出，主人们正从被动应对宠物生病转向主动维护其健康、尽早发现问题，年轻主人越来越多地将人类健康管理中的习惯——如健身追踪器、健康应用和预防性医疗——应用于与他们同住的动物身上。

狗能从你的表情看出你是开心、生气还是害怕？

科学记者 卡亚·伯吉斯

狗能通过语气或肢体语言判断主人是高兴还是难过，但仅凭人类的面部表情，它们能读懂多少呢？

如今，对狗进行的核磁共振成像（MRI）扫描显示，它们不仅能区分人类面部的积极和消极情绪，甚至能分辨愤怒、恐惧和悲伤等不同情绪。

人类与狗至少已共同生活了1.5万年，一些估计认为驯化过程始于3万年前。

两个物种在数千年的共同生活中学会了读懂彼此的情绪，使它们在狩猎、玩耍或保护同伴时能成为有效的伙伴。

一项发表在《iScience》期刊上的新研究总结称，狗在试图理解人类情绪时，“会观察人类的肢体语言，聆听我们声音中的细微差别，并从气味中获取信息”。研究人员旨在探究狗能在多大程度上读懂人类面部表情中的情绪线索，以及它们是否能捕捉到不同情绪之间的细微差异。

“人类非常擅长捕捉面部的细微细节，狗也是如此。”该研究的第一作者、来自维也纳大学的劳尔·埃尔南德斯-佩雷斯（Raúl Hernández-Pérez）说，“通过研究它们的大脑，我们可以了解它们为了支持对人类的卓越社交和情感理解，进化出了哪些适应性变化。”研究人员将8只狗放入功能性核磁共振扫描仪中，并向它们展示了一系列陌生人的面部图像，表情分为开心或中性。

当看到开心的面部图像时，狗的大脑颞叶皮层和尾状核区域被激活。这些区域与认知处理和奖励感受有关。“尾状核的活动尤其有趣，”维也纳大学的劳拉·库埃瓦（Laura Cueva）说，“这表明开心的人类面部对狗可能具有情感意义。”

随后，研究人员向12只狗展示了表现出开心、悲伤、愤怒和恐惧的面部图像，以观察不同大脑区域的细微活动模式。愤怒和恐惧的面部在狗的颞叶和枕叶皮层产生了不同的活动模式。表现出悲伤和恐惧的面部还在一个名为“右侧喙上锁骨回”的区域产生了不同的活动模式。

然而，在观看愤怒和悲伤的面部时，大脑活动模式没有明显差异。这意味着在这些情况下，狗可能更依赖其他线索，如肢体语言和语气。

大多数受测试的狗是边境牧羊犬，这种犬种擅长跟随社交线索。还需要进一步研究以证明其他犬种对面部表情的反应是否同样敏感。

不过，目前尚不清楚狗对不同情绪的含义理解到何种程度。研究指出：“在人类的面部表情中，开心在狗的大脑中表现最为强烈。”研究结论称：“据我们所知，这是首次有证据表明狗能区分两张表现负面情绪的人类面部。”

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4

新闻

2026年7月18日 | 2025年6月8日

英格兰在消除“可治愈”丙型肝炎的全球使命中领先

埃莉诺·海沃德 健康版编辑

在英国国家医疗服务体系（NHS）推动诊断和治愈10万名丙型肝炎患者的行动后，英格兰在消除丙型肝炎方面“领先世界”。

卫生官员表示，过去十年间该病毒导致的死亡人数已下降36%，英国有望在2030年前消除这一疾病。

丙型肝炎通过接触受感染的血液传播，若不治疗可能导致危及生命的肝损伤。该病在接触过非无菌注射（包括吸毒或在国外纹身）的人群中最为常见。

2015年，NHS推出了开创性的抗病毒药物，服用12周即可治愈95%的病例。自那时起，已有超过10万人接受治疗。NHS还发起了检测更多病例的行动，包括提供免费家庭检测套装，并在急诊科开展更多常规检测。

NHS国家医疗总监弗兰基·斯沃兹教授表示：“丙型肝炎可能造成严重伤害，包括肝衰竭和癌症，但许多人在不知不觉中携带病毒……直到为时已晚才出现症状。因此，NHS与公共卫生团队和慈善机构密切合作，努力发现并治疗隐匿病例。令人鼓舞的是，在短短十年内，已有超过10万人接受了可能挽救生命的治疗。”

“英格兰目前在消除这一疾病的全球使命中处于领先地位，并有望提前实现世界卫生组织2030年的目标，但我们决心保持势头，完成这项工作。由于丙型肝炎在超过九成病例中可治愈，我们致力于找到并治疗每一位需要帮助的人，并敦促高风险人群通过在线订购免费且保密的家庭检测套装主动检测。”

卫生大臣伊薇特·库珀表示：“我们正在引领世界永久消除这一疾病。这正是我们希望NHS在各个领域提供的预防性、前瞻性医疗服务——尽早发现疾病，缓解医院压力，让人们有机会过上更长寿、更健康的生活。”

丙型肝炎信托基金会首席执行官雷切尔·霍尔福德表示：“我们即将迎来我国公共卫生史上最重大的成就之一。为了保持这一势头，持续的承诺和长期投资至关重要。”

卫生官员已敦促存在未确诊丙型肝炎风险的人群——包括曾在国外纹身、从某些东欧国家移居英格兰或曾使用过注射药物的人——订购家庭检测套装。

官员特别呼吁在乌克兰、罗马尼亚、爱沙尼亚、拉脱维亚、波兰、阿尔巴尼亚、立陶宛、保加利亚、捷克或斯洛伐克出生的成年人进行检测，因为许多人可能在1991年前通过医疗或牙科程序感染。

来自兰开夏郡布莱克本的65岁退休老人保罗·伊特韦尔在常规肝功能检测中被查出异常后确诊感染了该病毒。这位祖父表示：“我的第一反应是不敢相信。我并没有感觉不适，一直在想自己怎么可能感染上。”

“专家团队的支持让我受益匪浅。他们的信息很简单：‘不要花时间担心你是怎么感染的——专注于摆脱它！’”

虽然尚未确定伊特韦尔感染病毒的具体途径，但有推测称数十年前在南非的手术可能是潜在因素。

他补充道：“如果你认为自己可能有风险，为什么不去做检测呢？它能让你安心。如今的治疗并不像人们想象的那样改变生活——每天只需服用一片药，持续12周，再做几次血液检测。”

Quintagram® No 2643

使用下方每个字母各1次，解开全部5条简明线索

1 头部的上颌区域 (3) 2 办公室职员 (5) 3 机械故障的制造者 (7) 4 荒野植物 (7) 5 婚礼随从 (10)

A	A	A	B	C	D	D	E
E	E	E	E	G	H	H	I
I	I	J	K	L	L	M	M
N	R	R	R	R	S	T	W

答案见 T2 MindGames 第15页 隐语线索见 T2 MindGames 第14页

见习警员被捕

大曼彻斯特警方一名23岁见习警员因涉嫌绑架、强奸和危险驾驶被捕，此前一名二十多岁的女子在车内拨打999报警求助。该男子在西约克郡M62高速公路上被追捕后，在其私家车内被拘留，并已被停职。警方已将此案移交独立警察投诉委员会（IOPC）处理。

酒驾危险

英国皇家汽车俱乐部（RAC）分析发现，8月是一年中酒驾事故最严重的月份。2014年至2023年间，8月平均有721人在酒驾事故中受伤或死亡，而12月仅为66.1人。RAC表示，天气转暖和夜晚时间延长增加了酒后驾车的机会。

中世纪池塘干涸

村民正努力拯救他们历史悠久的池塘，因高温热浪导致其干涸。在诺福克郡大马辛厄姆的“苏格兰人坑塘”中，逾100条鲤鱼死亡，这些鲤鱼是900年前僧侣首次放养的鱼类后代。部分鱼已被转移至更深的水域，一项GoFundMe筹款活动旨在筹集1.5万英镑用于清除池塘淤泥。

高教堂突袭行动

警方在兰开夏郡尼尔森一座废弃教堂内查获逾1,500株大麻植株，此前发现管道通向曼彻斯特路的前圣玛丽教堂。一名男子试图从窗户逃跑时被捕。兰开夏警方表示，他“未考虑跳下可能对其奔跑能力造成的影响”。

每日服用减肥药有助终身保持苗条

接第1版

礼来公司英国和爱尔兰医学事务负责人表示：“在严格评估奥福格利普隆（orforglipron）的安全性、质量和有效性后，我们很高兴成为欧洲首个批准该药用于体重管理和2型糖尿病的监管机构。与所有GLP-1受体激动剂一样，该药为处方专用药物，英国药品和医疗产品监管局（MHRA）将持续密切监测其安全性和有效性。”

英国已有数万名患者开始服用上月在Boots和Superdrug等药店上市的Wegovy减肥药，每日费用约为3英镑。

目前有200万人在使用减肥针剂，而减肥药的推出意味着分析师预计英国将有700万人在一年内使用GLP-1类药物。

这些药物为恐针症患者提供了选择，早期数据显示，购买减肥药的患者中有80%此前未使用过减肥针剂。

今年5月，一项重大试验发现，奥福格利普隆可作为长期“维持”工具，在使用减肥针剂后保持健康体重。

该研究涉及376名曾使用Mounjaro或Wegovy的患者，发现改用减肥药后，他们保持了此前75%的减重效果，并使血压、胆固醇和血糖水平保持稳定。

纽约威尔康奈尔医学院（Weill Cornell Medicine）肥胖症专家路易斯·阿罗内（Louis Aronne）博士当时表示：“每日服用一片药——这是终身治疗。”

安格利亚鲁斯金大学生理学高级讲师西蒙·科克（Simon Cork）博士表示，奥福格利普隆的获批是肥胖症治疗的一大进步。他补充道：“这种药物可能比目前可用的药物便宜得多。”

改革英国党计划赴萨尔瓦多考察

改革英国党（Reform UK）领导人正计划前往萨尔瓦多，考察该国总统纳伊布·布克尔（Nayib Bukele）采取的强硬治安政策，以评估其在英国的适用性。此次考察预计将于今年晚些时候进行，旨在借鉴萨尔瓦多在打击帮派犯罪和降低暴力事件方面的经验。

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5

新闻

前克莱格顾问否认在自民党大会上性侵指控

贾娅·纳拉因

尼克·克莱格的前特别顾问否认在政党大会上性侵一名女性。

尼尔·舍洛克曾于2012年1月至2013年3月期间担任前自由民主党领袖的特别顾问，当时克莱格任副首相。

现年62岁的舍洛克被指控于2007年9月18日在东萨塞克斯郡布莱顿举行的自民党大会上性侵一名女性。该案于2023年9月向警方报案。

这位前公务员和顾问昨日身着蓝色细条纹西装和黄色领带出庭。

他在霍夫皇家法院的被告席上仅确认了自己的姓名并作出答辩。

舍洛克被告知将于明年11月29日（周一）开始受审，预计审理将持续四至五天。

他被准予有条件保释，并被命令不得与控方证人接触或试图接触。

据称性侵发生时，舍洛克是专业服务公司毕马威的合伙人，他于1985年9月至2011年12月期间在该公司工作，随后加入克莱格的办公室。

根据其领英个人资料，他在为克莱格工作期间的成就包括推动共享育儿假和扩大弹性工作制。

这位前公务员于2015年女王生日授勋中被授予大英帝国司令勋章（CBE），以表彰其公共及政治服务。克莱格于2007年被任命为自民党领袖，2010年与保守党组建联合政府后出任副首相。2015年，自民党在大选中表现惨淡，克莱格随即辞职。

舍洛克现与妻子居住在萨里郡风景优美的戈达尔明集镇。夫妇育有两个成年子女。

他于2023年与他人共同创立了Acuti Associates，目前担任该公司合伙人。该公司为公共和私营部门的首席执行官提供咨询，帮助他们应对“一个更加不确定的新时代”。

舍洛克自2021年起还担任毕马威英国首席执行官乔纳森·霍尔特的特别顾问，并曾在多个慈善机构的董事会任职。

主导调查的萨塞克斯警方表示：“警方于2023年9月接到报案，称2007年9月在布莱顿发生一起非近期性侵案件。

“经调查，现年62岁的戈达尔明居民尼尔·舍洛克于2026年5月15日被控一项针对女性的性侵罪名。”

财政部失职导致助理自杀前绝望

塞伦·休斯

一场死因研讯听证会获悉，财政部“实质性地促成”了一名私人助理自杀身亡，而她是在被告知有人对她提出投诉的第二天自杀的。

克洛伊·莫法特（Chloe Moffat），26岁，其家人表示，她“确信自己的职业生涯和名誉已被毁掉”。

萨里郡验尸官法庭获悉，英国财政部未能告知她，因纪律处分程序而失去工作的可能性极低。

研讯听证会获悉，莫法特是财政部一名主管的私人助理，才华横溢且“热爱工作”。

去年5月19日，她参加了一场与经理的会议，会上被告知有人指控她泄露了通过工作职责获取的同事敏感机密信息。她否认了这些指控。

助理验尸官安娜·克劳福德（Anna Crawford）昨日记录了自杀的结论。

她发表了一份简短的陈述，称财政部“实质性地促成”了莫法特的死亡，原因是未能执行书面纪律处分政策。他们未能告知她，即使指控成立，可能的处罚也只是书面警告，而非解雇。

莫法特的亲属认为财政部“未能履行其照护义务”。她的家人呼吁对纪律处分程序的执行方式及员工福祉的保护进行“有意义的”改变。

财政部表示正“认真考虑调查结果”，并已改进指导、支持和福祉安排，但承认“必须继续采取行动”。

克劳福德在研讯中表示，所有人一致认为莫法特热爱工作，工作记录良好，此前从未受过任何工作场所纪律处分。

在与直属上司及一名更高级别经理的会议中，莫法特被告知这些指控可通过正式调查或纪律会议处理，且她将被暂停访问该主管的电子邮箱。

她询问是否会因此失去工作，高级经理回复称“现阶段无法预测结果”，研讯获悉。

克劳福德在研讯中表示，莫法特在会议中感到震惊并哭泣

克洛伊·莫法特在收到匿名投诉称其泄露同事机密信息后，担心会失去工作。验尸官称，财政部本应向她保证，唯一可能的处罚只是书面警告

前标准局警员被判跟踪前女友罪名成立

大卫·布朗 首席新闻记者

一名苏格兰场警探在三个月内跟踪其前女友——一名警察学员，并对她说“你今晚看起来很性感”，还想象她穿着长筒袜。

蒂莫西·福里（Timothy Fory）在职业标准局（负责调查警察不当行为）任职期间，跟踪了见习探员斯蒂芬妮·莱恩（Stephanie Lane）。

现年34岁的福里来自伦敦南部巴勒姆，被判于2024年7月至9月期间实施构成骚扰的跟踪行为。法院对他发出为期五年的限制令，禁止其与莱恩联系。他还被判处12个月的社区令，包括15天的康复活动和150小时的无偿劳动。

威斯敏斯特治安法院获悉，福里在WhatsApp上持续骚扰莱恩，在一次警方社交活动中跟踪她，并通过Instagram向她的前男友发送恶意信息。

两人曾有过为期六周的性关系，莱恩结束这段关系的原因是福里“没有尊重她的界限”。

检方律师乔治·克里维利（George Crivelli）在法庭上表示，福里“狂轰滥炸”莱恩的WhatsApp信息，其他警员也注意到他的“异常行为”，包括在警方活动中“一直盯着她看”和跟踪她。

他在一条信息中对她说：“你知道你今晚看起来有多性感吗？”莱恩回复：“蒂姆，你需要记住我们前几天谈过的事。”

她还对他说：“我开始觉得你没有意识到我们已经不再交往了。”

福里回复：“我非常清楚，但我还是会想象你穿着长筒袜的样子。”他后来向莱恩的前男友（她仍与其同住）发送信息，称他们在他床上发生了性关系。

莱恩在受害者影响陈述中表示：“我难以接受自己成为一名警察受害者……每当我处理类似自己遭遇的案件时，都会出现闪回。”

米兰达·泽夫曼（Miranda Zeffman）在辩护中表示，福里在之前一段因不忠而结束的关系后，对酒精产生了依赖。她说他现在将失去工作。

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6

新闻 政治

大型船只将成为首批，部长们被警告

奥利弗·赖特 政策编辑 杰拉尔丁·斯科特 助理政治编辑

在一艘载有创纪录的230人的船只抵达多佛后，部长们正准备迎接更多穿越英吉利海峡的所谓“大型充气船”的到来。

这艘定制的充气船上的人数与一些远程客机相当，轻松超过了上个月创下的单船纪录——当时有165人乘坐一艘船完成了穿越。

据称，这艘长15米（49英尺）的船只在驶向英国时“在水中弯曲变形”。

政府高层消息人士称，这一最新事件被他们描述为“鲁莽且危险”的旅程，是其打击人口贩运团伙努力的一个迹象—。

数据对比

乘客人数：230 / 248

供应链仍在运转。政府消息人士称，由于英吉利海峡两岸的警方行动不断增加，偷渡团伙被迫改用更大的船只。

“一系列执法行动持续施压，使得偷渡团伙越来越难以发动船只，因此被迫将更多人塞进同一艘船上，”一位政府消息人士表示。

“虽然这艘船更大，但偷渡人数已大幅下降，我们刚刚迎来了自2020年以来7月份最低的偷渡人数。”

然而，改革英国党（Reform UK）领袖奈杰尔·法拉奇将最新偷渡事件称为“国家安全紧急情况”的证据，影子内政大臣克里斯·菲尔普则称安迪·伯纳姆“对海峡现状脱节”。

内政部承诺将审理庇护申请的时间从一年多缩短至6个月，以加快遣返速度。

这一目标意味着，拟被遣返的个人将在入境后24周内由法官审理其案件。目前，法官审理一起案件的平均等待时间为67周。

大臣们表示，这一变化将加快对上诉失败且无权留在英国的人员的遣返速度，腾出住宿空间并削减成本，最多可节省69亿英镑。

然而，这一目标不适用于5 万英镑已在英国、但上诉尚未审理的庇护申请者。这可能导致这些人等待审理的时间更长。

今年乘小船抵达的人数已大幅下降。截至目前，今年的初步总人数为14,819人，较去年同期下降43%，较2024年同期下降16%。

最新事件表明，小船偷渡团伙正在改变策略，组织更少但规模更大的偷渡行动。每艘小船的平均偷渡人数已从2018年的仅7人增加到截至今年3月的63人，本月迄今已达70人。

政府表示，与法国的联合行动已阻止超过47,000起偷渡企图，并缴获1,100艘船只和发动机。

首相发言人称：“我们今天看到一些令人震惊的画面……幼儿被塞进这些不适航的船只中，这些画面触目惊心，揭示了无情的偷渡团伙为牟利不惜以人命为赌注的真相。”

“这正是政府与法国签署新的‘按成效付费’协议的原因，旨在从源头上防止这些危险旅程的发生。正如首相所言，我们不会掉以轻心，正在全力打击这些偷渡行为。”

内政部表示：“最新事件表明，组织偷渡的犯罪团伙采用了鲁莽而危险的策略，他们不断将更多人塞进不适航的船只，继续将生命置于险境。我们正在取得进展，今年小船偷渡人数已下降，7月份的记录人数为自2020年以来最低。但我们必须更进一步，因此与法国签署了‘按成效付费’协议，在法国海滩部署的执法人员增加40%。”

奈杰尔·法拉奇昨日出席新闻发布会

一艘载有230人（包括儿童）的所谓“超级橡皮艇”于昨日凌晨2.30左右抵达多佛，随后在码头被放气

法拉奇表示，乘坐小船穿越英吉利海峡的人数“依然骇人听闻”。他补充说，这些偷渡行为“应被宣布为国家安全紧急状态”，并称：“我们成功拦截了一些橡皮艇，但这并未解决问题。问题并未消失。这仍然是一个完全失控的局面。”

菲尔普表示：“法国当局本可以轻易阻止这种规模的船只在浅水区出发。我最近亲眼看到法国宪兵站在一旁无所作为，任由非法移民在齐膝深的水中登船。[内政大臣]沙巴娜·马哈茂德却在这期间向法方支付了6.6亿英镑的我国资金。这简直是耻辱。”

库珀招募350多名额外人员

波比·科隆卡 健康事务记者

英国政府宣布，英格兰将为初级医生提供350多个额外岗位，这是落实结束罢工计划的第一步。

从本周起，数百个额外培训岗位将向初级医生开放。此前，初级医生在6月与时任卫生大臣詹姆斯·默里达成协议，结束了长达三年的罢工行动。

政府同意今年增加1,000个培训岗位，并在三年内增加至多4,500个。岗位将覆盖全国各地及不同专业。现任卫生大臣伊薇特·库珀表示：“这350个新岗位将使我们今年总共增加1,000个培训岗位，并在未来三年内增加至多4,500个。这将帮助全国各地的NHS信托机构满足社区需求，并为需要专科护理的患者提供更多支持。”

6月底，英国医学会（BMA）投票通过初级医生的加薪协议。2024年，初级医生决定将自身称为“住院医生”。

在成员投票中，31,000名参与投票的医生中有53%同意接受一项协议，该协议将为他们提供平均6.6%的加薪，并创造数千个新岗位。

此次投票结束了初级医生长达三年的工业行动。在此期间，他们共进行了16轮罢工，累计罢工65天，给英国医院造成超过£30亿的损失。

NHS全国医疗总监弗兰基·斯沃兹教授表示：

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7

新闻

总理被促释放未决犯而非杀人犯

杰拉尔丁·斯科特

监狱官员协会负责人表示，政府可以通过释放数千名未决犯（保释或电子监控）来腾出监狱空间，同时将过失杀人罪犯继续关押，而无需释放两名杀害PC安德鲁·哈珀的凶手。

马克·费尔赫斯特表示，唐宁街声称无法在不导致监狱空间不足的情况下豁免两名杀害哈珀的凶手提前释放，这一说法是错误的，他“确信”有可能腾出更多监狱空间。

杰西·科尔和阿尔伯特·鲍尔斯将于1月有资格提前释放，他们于2020年被判处13年有期徒刑，因在前一年过失杀害哈珀。

费尔赫斯特在《泰晤士报》电台节目中表示：“我确信我们可以腾出额外空间，并阻止任何被判过失杀人罪的人提前释放。

“只需看看未决犯人数。目前有近17,000名未决犯。我相信我们可以让其中数千人获得保释或佩戴GPS电子标签进行监控。这对本届政府来说是轻而易举的事，我不明白他们为何不考虑。”

费尔赫斯特支持缓刑官员考虑罢工，抗议人手短缺、工作量过大以及对提前释放计划的担忧。他说：“我不会责怪他们，并祝他们一切顺利。我不会责怪他们选择罢工。

“他们受到了极不公正的对待。他们正在努力应对工作量，更不用说我们还要在未来十个月内将额外5,000名罪犯送到他们门前。”

唐宁街曾表示，如果最低—。

罪行类型

按罪行类别划分的即时监禁刑期囚犯人数

男性 / 女性

侵犯人身罪 / 2,266 / 1,048 性犯罪 / 15,761 / 136 毒品罪 / 6,238 / 1,363 盗窃罪 / 5,921 / 427 抢劫罪 / 4,633 / 207 扰乱公共秩序罪 / 2,730 / 117 危害社会罪 / 2,413 / 103 持有武器罪 / 2,374 / 75 非机动车简易罪 / 833 / 60 刑事损害及纵火罪 / 833 / 53 诈骗罪 / 385 / 66 机动车简易罪 / 215 / 7 罪行未记录 / 94 / 18

数据来源：司法部

大臣们豁免了科尔和鲍尔斯，这意味着所有被判过失杀人罪的囚犯都必须在监狱服满刑期，这将给本已人满为患的监狱系统带来过大压力。

预计将有 5,000 名囚犯在刑期调整后提前获释，此前大臣们在紧急审查后宣布进一步豁免，使提前获释人数从 6,000 人减少。

哈珀杀手被纳入提前释放范围的可能性遭到警方领导人的谴责，称其“站不住脚”。

代表哈珀生前所在部队——泰晤士河谷警察局警员的机构主席艾琳·奥康纳敦促安迪·伯纳姆“倾听”公众意见。

“公众的声音响亮而清晰，”她说，“他们和我们一样认为政府在这件事上完全站在了错误的一边。他们的做法站不住脚，根本无法为之辩护。他们必须倾听。首相必须倾听。”她补充道：“如果你杀害了一名警察，就不应有提前释放的可能。没有任何例外，没有任何借口。”

28 岁的哈珀被一根系在逃逸车辆后部的绳索缠住，拖行在乡村道路上。第一位赶到现场的救援人员指责政府允许杀害哈珀的凶手提前获释，是在“朝警察的脸上吐唾沫”。

前泰晤士河谷警察局警员克里斯·布什内尔当时正在路边等候车辆，目睹了同事被拖行的场景。他追赶车辆，但被无线电命令停止。

布什内尔说：“想到他们可能提前获释，我感到极度愤怒。我对他们感到愤怒，但更对政府感到愤怒。他们这是在朝警察的脸上吐唾沫。”

驾驶车辆的亨利·朗被判处 16 年监禁，不符合提前释放条件。

工会主席称可找到空间

将前国防部房屋改建为监狱。两种方案均无法在今年秋季缓解监狱压力。

伯纳姆拒绝接受无法阻止哈珀杀手提前获释的说法，并一直在积极推动替代方案。一位消息人士提到其他措施，包括释放被判无期徒刑的囚犯、将女子监狱改为男子监狱，以及督促官员加快驱逐外国罪犯。

昨天，监狱官员工会（POA）主席表示，他“确信”可以找到空间，阻止任何被判过失杀人罪的囚犯提前获释。马克·费尔赫斯特在《泰晤士报》电台节目中表示，对 17,000 名羁押候审人员中的一小部分实施保释或电子监控，将是一个“轻而易举的胜利”。

政府计划从 10 月起释放 5,000 名罪犯以腾出空间。伯纳姆曾考虑禁止释放杀害紧急工作者的凶手，但被警告称政府将因缺乏针对紧急工作者过失杀人罪的具体罪名而败诉。阻止他们获释的唯一方法是阻止所有被判过失杀人罪的囚犯提前获释。

提前释放争议，读者来信，第 20 版

犯罪受害者的不确定性加剧痛苦

杰西卡·沙基 犯罪事务记者

一家倡导团体表示，对提前释放计划的不确定性正在给受害者带来“不必要的痛苦”。

安迪·伯纳姆上周表示，强奸犯、儿童性犯罪者和诱拐团伙成员将被排除在该计划之外，并指示司法部在《泰晤士报》发现部分案件未被排除后，对所有诱拐犯罪者进行核查。许多案件发生在2003年反诱拐法出台之前，因此这些男子被控猥亵儿童罪，而该罪行不在提前释放计划的豁免范围内。

《泰晤士报》获悉，伯纳姆无法将这些人及其他历史性儿童性犯罪者继续关押，除非他将所有被判猥亵儿童罪的人排除在外。

30岁的杰德·贝尔格罗夫曾领导反对提前释放罪犯的运动，她表示这种“反反复复的局面对受害者造成了巨大影响”。

包括贝尔格罗夫在内的身体和性暴力受害者（她在儿时曾被一名家庭朋友强奸）已组成联盟，呼吁对刑事司法系统进行“全面改革”。

贝尔格罗夫的袭击者不符合提前释放条件，她表示受害者在这一过程中始终被视为“事后诸葛亮”。“这就像坐过山车，根本没人考虑我们的情绪，”她说，“时而上，时而下，你不知道自己处于什么位置。一切都被颠倒，你不知道自己有多安全。”

伯纳姆在致受害者的信中承认，他们的抗争“意味着重温那些本不该经历的遭遇”。

斯威塔比卡律师事务所主任艾米·克劳雷呼吁政府确保修正案准确无误，且在宣布进一步变更前不留“漏洞”。她说：“对提前释放计划的‘重新审查’正在给幸存者带来不必要的创伤，因为他们生活在持续的不确定性中。”

司法部表示，若不冒监狱超负荷崩溃的风险，无法阻止更多罪犯提前出狱。该部门称正“竭尽全力保护公众并打击犯罪”。

医生避免罢工

“这是我们为持续改善住院医生工作生活所采取的众多重要举措之一。

“没有他们，我们将无法为每天数十万患者提供高质量的医疗服务。

“我们希望英国国家医疗服务体系（NHS）成为所有住院医生的最佳雇主——增加培训岗位并确保在我们需要的专业和地区提供更多机会，是实现这一目标的关键部分。”

今年晚些时候将开放下一轮超过650个额外岗位的申请。目前已提供的150个岗位超过了政府此阶段创造250个新职位的承诺，原因是各信托机构的医院和社区对培训岗位的需求更高。

根据英国医学会（BMA）的数据，今年英国有近40,000人申请培训岗位，造成职业发展的“严重瓶颈”。

英国皇家内科医师学会主席穆姆塔兹·帕特尔教授表示：“英国皇家内科医师学会欢迎在英格兰为住院医生新增350多个培训岗位，以及改善轮岗培训的新试点项目。

“增加培训人数只是解决方案的一部分。培训能力取决于经验丰富的高级医生是否有时间和资源来指导、评估和支持住院医生。要成功扩大培训规模，对培训岗位的投资必须与对培训师和培训环境的投资相匹配，才能实现高质量的医学教育。”

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8

新闻

公务员团体愤怒抗议取消跨性别员工休假

杰拉尔丁·斯科特 助理政治编辑

公务员威胁将支持针对政府的法律挑战，此前政府官员取消了跨性别员工在接受性别重置手术期间可享受的最多13周带薪特殊休假。公务员LGBT+网络及另一个性别相关员工团体已敦促白厅暂停引入替代政策，并表示将不再宣传公务员系统为包容性雇主。此前，跨性别员工可在12个月滚动周期内享受最多13周的特殊休假，用于与性别认同相关的医疗治疗和康复，且不计入病假。

在对平等法进行分析后，这一规定被取消，理由是“为减轻对其他员工可能存在的歧视性差别待遇”。该政策指导白厅各部门，正在根据去年最高法院的一项裁决进行更新。该裁决维持了《平等法》中“性别”定义的生物学含义，以及平等与人权委员会（EHRC）随后发布的指导意见。

《泰晤士报》看到的一份泄露草案显示，公务员如未能以跨性别同事的偏好姓名或代词称呼，可能面临纪律处分。草案还提到，跨性别员工可在病假之外额外休假13周，用于与性别重置相关的医疗预约。但员工团体表示，这一条款已被删除。

两个团体在致公务员首席运营官卡特·利特尔的信中称，这一理由“在法律上可能存在误解且有害”，并指责官员“降低对受保护群体的支持”。

团体表示，与性别相关的缺勤与其他形式的医疗休假不可相提并论，将其等同处理可能导致跨性别员工受到处罚甚至被解雇。他们称，员工可能被迫向管理层披露敏感的医疗信息以避免处罚。

信中写道：“这毫无必要地残忍。此前的规定为同事提供了明确的支持途径。取消它将用不确定性、自由裁量权和强制披露取代已知的保护。”

团体警告，若变更推行，他们将不再“代表公务员系统，不支持招聘活动，也不以任何形式宣传其为LGBTQ+同事提供包容性雇主环境”。

他们还表示将支持成员通过正式投诉或法律程序挑战决定，并可作为证人。

内阁办公室回应称：“各部门应更新自身人力资源政策，目前正在审查中。在审查期间发表评论不妥。”

公务员LGBT+网络及另一性别相关团体已被联系置评。

ADVEN CHOWKPA

赛恩科学家担忧英国声誉受损 因资金削减

英国撤回对大型强子对撞机关键部分升级的资助将损害英国的技术能力、科学领导力及国际声誉，欧洲核子研究组织（Cern）的一位科学家表示。

政府被敦促撤销从大型强子对撞机“美”（LHCb）探测器升级项目撤资的决定。该升级将使其能够探测新“高亮度”阶段实验中产生的碰撞，以寻找物质与反物质之间的差异。

科学家们担忧，随着优先考虑能带来更快经济回报的项目，以“好奇心驱动”的研究正受到冲击。

在写给《泰晤士报》的信中，Cern物理学家葆拉·柯林斯（Paula Collins）表示：“将LHCb仅仅描述为‘好奇心驱动’忽视了其更广泛的回报。英国数十年的投资已积累了世界领先的专业知识。”

作为Cern LHCb项目副发言人的柯林斯写道，英国在LHCb项目中“拥有领导地位，并支持《欧洲粒子物理战略》，其中将LHCb升级列为优先事项。然而，英国对该升级的资助现已被撤回。”

她补充道：“新成立的商业、创新、科学与贸易部已继承了这一决定的后果，同时也有机会扭转这一局面。”

英国科学与技术设施委员会计划到2029-30年节省1.62亿英镑。政府表示：“科学是英国更美好未来的核心。这正是我们以创纪录的水平资助研发的原因。我们还将继续展示对科学的承诺，作为Cern的第二大资助国。”

来信，第20页

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9

新闻

呼吁“去殖民化”后聘用的教授

伊丽莎白·斯普林、艾玛·约曼斯

剑桥大学教育学院一学生协会在聘用贾森·阿代（Jason Arday）的两年前，曾敦促该校“去殖民化”并雇用更多元化的员工。

在2020年“黑人的命也是命”抗议活动期间，教育学院152名在校生和毕业生签署的一封公开信，呼吁该院系进行“系统性变革”并“去殖民化”其招聘流程。

这封信被递交给苏珊·罗伯逊教授。两年后，罗伯逊退休，阿代被聘为教育社会学教授。阿代于上周三辞职。剑桥大学上周已启动对其资质和荣誉职位的调查。他还面临抄袭博士论文部分内容的指控。

负责聘用他的遴选委员会因学院负责人声称其研究是“世界最佳”而受到审视。《泰晤士报》的一项调查发现，其期刊论文中包含不可能的数据和伪造访谈的证据。

在他被聘用的两年前，学生们曾要求学院“审查其招聘流程中的无意识偏见”。他们补充道：“我们希望看到学院在聘用、晋升和留任黑人方面进行系统性变革。”

这封公开信由教育学院研究生协会（Fersa）组织，该协会代表研究生群体。他们写道：“学院缺乏黑人员工，以及有色人种和原住民员工，这反映了多元化招聘的失败。”

根据高等教育统计局的数据，在上一学年，剑桥大学6,180名各级学者中，仅有75人为黑人。在全英范围内，26,000名教授中仅有270名黑人——仅占1%。

希拉里·克雷明教授表示，阿代的聘用是“倾听了我们黑人学者和黑人学生的声音”后的结果。当阿代询问自己是否是“象征性任命”时，克雷明回复称：“你面试当天的遴选委员会成员意见完全一致。我们非常幸运能拥有你。就你所做的研究而言，你是世界最佳。”

阿代的聘用由包括海顿的摩根女男爵在内的10名遴选委员会成员决定，这些成员的决定现已受到审视。《泰晤士报》了解到，候选人名单中不乏拥有长期且卓越学术生涯的学者。

全国教育联盟主席丹尼尔·凯贝德已与支持阿代的公开信保持距离。两周前，凯贝德签署了这封声称存在抹黑运动的公开信，但昨日该工会表示，凯贝德是基于“提供的信息”在良好法律计划网站上签署了这封信，并认为现在应呼吁进行“公正透明的调查”。

迟到课堂，动辄援引白人特权：我与阿戴的教学经历

T歌词是第一个危险信号。他会漫无边际地谈论蒂尼·坦帕（Tinie Teinpah）或埃米纳姆，或者声称碧昂丝被白人男性性化，却从不提供任何证据支持其观点（菲奥娜·布朗撰文）。或者还有那些影片片段，来自《鱼缸》（Fish Tank）和《卡鲁胡德》（Kalulthood），他让我们讨论却不给任何指导。而这还是在他出现在课堂上的情况下——他经常迟到早退，有一次原定四小时的课只上了1小时。

因此，当我在新闻中看到贾森·阿戴的名字时，我的第一反应是：“终于！”作为2018年秋季在罗汉普顿大学修读阿戴教授的教育模块的前学生——这个模块充斥着音乐，却在教育内容上惊人地匮乏——我忍不住对这件事有所感想。不过，真正让我惊讶的是，这些事情没有更早被曝光。

在阿戴来到罗汉普顿大学之前，校方领导热情地向我们介绍了他的精彩履历——他如何在11岁时学会说话，18岁时学会写字，以及他们对能请他来授课有多兴奋。我们都很期待见到他本人，尽管他要教授的模块实际上是由前任讲师编写的。

我可以坦诚地形容阿戴的教学水平很糟糕。他很少使用PPT幻灯片。相反，他通常坐在桌子上，发表自己对种族主义的看法，却从不提及任何学术理论——更不用说与他本应教授的“青年参与与身份认同”模块相关的理论了。然而，比起他的讲座，更让我失望的是阿戴对学生的辜负。

罗汉普顿大学是一所非常多元化的大学，无论是在种族背景还是神经多样性方面，都非常重视包容性。班上超过三分之二的学生来自非白人背景。大多数是刚从预科毕业的女性，也是家族中第一代上大学的人。

起初，同学们被阿戴的开朗态度和励志故事所吸引。一开始，他们也对他的观点——白人对各种偏见都有责任——感兴趣。但随着课程的推进，他又一次缺课，情况开始发生变化。我们逐渐意识到，我们没有学到任何有价值的东西，而他的许多言论都是无稽之谈。

在评估阶段，阿戴建议我们选择两道提到种族的论文题目之一——总共有四个选项。毕竟，这是他唯一和我们讨论过的话题。

我记得一位年轻的黑人女同学在图书馆里找到我，我们开始起草论文时，她说：“我不知道该怎么办，我读了笔记，但里面没有任何可用的内容。”她不是唯一一个有这种困扰的人，我尽力给出了建议。我用阿戴前任留下的在线资源完成了论文。

最终，阿戴给了我70分。听起来不错——但我那一年的平均分是75分，这意味着我的成绩下降了。由于阿戴没有给我的作业任何反馈，我要求与他见面。

在会面中，我解释说70分对我来说偏低，并请他提供反馈。他友好的态度突然变了，我第一次看到他从未展现过的一面：愤怒，同时也害怕。阿戴暗示我是种族主义者，并说我对70分不满是因为我的“白人特权”。显然，他对被质疑感到不安，我很快结束了会面。

此后不久，他离开了罗汉普顿大学，我再也没有见过他。考虑到他既无法教学，也无法帮助学生，难怪他似乎无法应对批评。

这所大学显然知晓他的不足，却未采取任何行动，而是选择让他离开以避免争议。

事实上，如果阿戴在剑桥任教前的任何一所大学曾有人敢于指出“皇帝没穿衣服”，他或许永远不会遭遇过去两周的羞辱。所有曾助他攀登学术阶梯的学者们，都必须进行深刻的反思。他们是真的在帮助这个人，还是只顾及自身的声誉？他们或许还应为他所有的学生考虑一下。

这让我想起了“栅栏龟”的故事：一位农夫发现一只乌龟被卡在栅栏桩上。“这只栅栏龟不可能自己爬上去的，”农夫说，“它不属于那里，你会好奇是谁把它放上去的。它在上面根本不知道该做什么，被提拔到超出能力的位置，待在那里也做不成任何事。你只想帮这可怜的家伙下来，同时不禁怀疑当初到底是谁把它放上去的。”

这正是阿戴的众多支持者如今可能想问的问题。

菲奥娜·布朗（Fiona Brown）是罗汉普顿大学前学生的化名。本文最初由《UnHerd》发表。该大学表示，阿戴于2007年9月至2019年2月期间担任其教育学院高级讲师。校方已审查学生案件记录，未发现与阿戴相关的投诉。阿戴事件凸显学术界如何被身份认同所绑架，评论，第18页

在数学课上讲授学生贷款制度，大学招生服务中心负责人呼吁

尼古拉·伍尔科克 教育版编辑

大学招生服务机构负责人希望将学生贷款融资纳入中学数学课程。

大学和学院招生服务中心（Ucas）首席执行官乔·萨克斯顿博士表示，青少年应学习如何理解贷款偿还。她告诉《泰晤士报》，大多数青少年理解学生贷款的运作概念，但难以计算毕业后需偿还的金额。

政府面临越来越大的压力，要求取消毕业生开始偿还学生贷款的门槛冻结。利率意味着，对许多年轻人而言，其贷款余额增长速度超过偿还速度。

萨克斯顿还透露，90% 计划升学的应届毕业生打算在学习期间工作，远高于实际有工作的68% 本科生比例。近年来，这一比例急剧上升。

Ucas 调查显示，六年级学生对学生贷款的理解优于预期，并认识到贷款偿还条件可能在毕业后发生变化。萨克斯顿补充道：“我完全没想到他们对利率可能变化的意识如此之高。

“不过，申请者最薄弱的环节在于实际计算：当给出 5 万英镑 收入示例时，他们需偿还多少。他们几乎普遍高估了偿还金额，且幅度极大。

“例如，在实际每月仅需偿还 50 英镑的情况下，他们会认为需要支付 500 英镑。

‘作为曾在学校工作并参与过大量资格认证的人，这让我想到，这应纳入国家课程。实际上，应将其作为真实案例纳入 GCSE 数学考试。因为百分比、复利等概念都已教授，但缺少实际应用示例。考虑到近半数年轻人会升入大学，我认为应将其纳入课程。’”

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10

新闻

泰晤士水务向财务总监支付100万英镑，尽管债务缠身

亚历克斯·拉尔夫 首席商业记者

泰晤士水务已向其首席财务官支付了100万英镑的“签约金”，并与约十几名高管达成了留任协议，此举再次引发外界呼吁政府将这家陷入困境的公司置于特别行政管理之下。

这家英国最大的水务公司——其债权人正寻求政府支持以达成最后一搏的协议以保持控制权——于上月底从紧急债权人融资中向史蒂夫·巴克支付了这笔款项。巴克于2025年4月从Pennon集团加入泰晤士水务。

泰晤士水务董事长阿德里安·蒙塔古爵士表示，这笔款项是“吸引巴克加入公司的必要激励”，并在单独的管理层留任计划下的支付暂停期间推迟发放。

蒙塔古上周致函自由民主党下议院环境、食品和农村事务委员会主席阿利斯泰尔·卡迈克尔的信件于昨日公布，信中披露泰晤士水务已与包括两名已离职高管在内的14名高管达成个人协议，以在6月留任计划到期后解决潜在的责任索赔。

这些支付进一步凸显了外界要求将泰晤士水务置于特别行政管理制度（SAR）的呼声。该制度允许基本服务在找到买家前继续运营。泰晤士水务的债权人——共计欠款170亿英镑——已向安迪·伯纳姆政府做出让步，试图在最后关头与监管机构达成协议，包括国家持有公司的“黄金股”。

首相发言人表示：“一家表现最差的水务公司在本应专注于提升业绩和重建公众信任之际，却向高管发放巨额款项，这是不可接受的。我们已禁止向造成污染的水务公司高管发放奖金。我们期望企业遵守规则的字面和精神。我们期待[监管机构]Ofwat的审查结果，该审查将评估是否以及如何加强这些规则。”

泰晤士水务的债权人包括阿波罗全球管理公司、埃利奥特管理公司和银点资本，他们已委托专业诉讼和争议解决公司Pallas Partners准备应对法律诉讼，以防政府拒绝达成协议。

影响4500万人的干旱

英格兰近四分之三的地区正遭受干旱，专家警告称，对农民、园艺工作者和河流的影响可能持续至秋季（亚当·沃恩和卡亚·伯吉斯报道）。

英国环境署表示，有4500万人生活在经历“闪电干旱”的地区，这一名称源于其发展速度之快。上月底，英格兰仅有一半地区处于干旱状态。

“干旱状况正在恶化，并将持续加剧，直至出现大量且持续的降雨，”该署干旱战略负责人托尼·格雷林表示。

新近进入干旱状态的地区包括东米德兰兹、林肯郡、北安普敦郡、肯特郡、东萨塞克斯郡以及索伦特和南唐斯。面对有记录以来最严重的收成预警，以及谷物和油菜籽作物的特别担忧，政府承诺

上图为奇西克宫花园，右图为格林尼治公园，均显示出高温影响。新森林地区发生火灾后，司机弃车逃生

为农民提供更多支持。

肖尔资本的分析师表示，干燥天气可能使英国更加依赖进口谷物。投资银行的阿希尔·帕特尔和克莱夫·布莱克表示，这将推高动物饲料成本，进而推高消费者价格。他们告诉《每日电讯报》：“英国已有数十年未面临如此严峻的粮食安全挑战。”

消防员在7月的三周内扑灭了创纪录数量的野火，其中一场摧毁了萨福克郡一处自然保护区的设施和健康。

消防员工会昨日表示，消防员面临“前所未有的危险且多变的野火夏季”。其总书记史蒂夫·赖特告诉《卫报》，拥有足够装备精良的消防员是“国家优先事项”。

今日，环境大臣安吉拉·伊格尔女爵将就南方水务公司申请禁止休闲中心和健身房注水游泳池一事作出裁决。

活动人士呼吁市议会种植更多树木以缓解高温，他们发现阴凉处的温度约为阳光下的一半。城市需要更多树木，社论，第21页

风电场关停费用突破10亿英镑

艾米莉·戈斯登 能源编辑

自今年1月以来，因电网无法承载而支付给风电场关停的费用已超过10亿英镑（10亿英镑），并有望创下年度新高。

大部分费用来自于支付给城市附近的燃气发电厂启动，以替代因电缆容量不足而必须关停的偏远地区风力发电机。

由于美国对伊朗的战争推高了天然气价格，英国国家能源系统运营商（Neso）采购替代燃气发电厂的成本变得更加昂贵，导致10亿英镑的里程碑比去年提前两个月到来。Neso的成本通过家庭和企业能源账单支付。

由于年初多个月份风力强劲且新建风力发电机投入使用，风电场发电量创历史新高，这也推高了成本。

根据由英国最大家庭能源供应商Octopus Energy支持的网站“Wasted Wind”数据，去年同期的成本比今年低3亿英镑（£3 亿）。Octopus正在游说安迪·伯纳姆政府实施区域电价，以通过在风力强劲时为风电场附近消费者提供更便宜的电力（10 亿英镑）来解决这一问题。

Neso预测，未来一年应对所有电缆限制（主要但不限于风电场相关）的成本将上升至32亿英镑（32 亿英镑 billion），比过去12个月增加10亿英镑。Neso还预测，随着新风电场接入以实现政府2030年清洁能源目标，到本年代末，成本可能飙升至80亿英镑（80 亿英镑 billion）。

为确保电力供应，国有的Neso必须确保电网供需始终平衡，且输电电缆不会过载。近年来，随着风电场获准在电网升级前接入，但电网无法可靠地将其全部电力输送给消费者，所谓的“限制成本”大幅上升。

为加强电网，数十亿英镑的升级工程正在进行，但短期内这一问题正在加剧，因为在工程施工期间，电缆必须停止使用。

目前，主要是苏格兰及其周边地区的风电场被要求关停，但随着东英吉利亚海岸风力发电机的接入，这一问题预计将扩散。

Octopus Energy认为，根本问题在于电力批发市场，该市场允许风电场所有者在全国范围内出售电力，无论是否有足够的电缆容量将电力输送到需要的地方。

Neso本身四年前（12年前错误，应为4年前）就警告称，全国电力市场“并非为净零排放而设计，若不改变，将给消费者带来过高成本”，并呼吁实施区域电价。然而，基尔·斯塔默政府以担心消费者遭遇“邮编彩票”以及发电厂所有者警告改革将阻碍投资为由，否决了这一计划。

Octopus Energy创始人格雷格·杰克逊表示：“英国电力系统的运行方式简直荒谬。我们应该利用这些风能为当地民众提供廉价电力，而不是花费数十亿英镑将其浪费掉。”

“这将为家庭和企业带来可喜的减负——这是政府关注生活成本和权力下放时绝对应该抓住的低垂果实（11）。”

Neso发言人表示：“我们决心尽己所能将限制成本保持在尽可能低的水平。从长远来看，降低限制成本将取决于电力市场改革和持续的电网扩建，这些都不在Neso的控制范围之内。”

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GREG MANKOWITZ / ICAMC IMAGES

打击毒品团伙行动耗资将超5亿英镑

丹尼·肖

根据分析，英国打击有组织犯罪团伙的最大规模行动将使纳税人付出超过5 亿英镑的代价。

“毒网行动”（Operation Venetic）由英国国家犯罪调查局（NCA）于2020年发起，此前法国和荷兰当局渗透了名为EncroChat的加密通讯系统，该系统被犯罪分子广泛用于智能手机通讯。

英国约有9,000部EncroChat手机在使用，在系统被破解后，NCA得以获取与毒品交易、武器走私及针对竞争对手的阴谋相关的完整通讯链。

截至今年6月，英国已有2,540人被定罪。

BBC广播四台的《档案4调查》（File on 4 Investigates）节目将于今晚播出，该节目发现调查这些案件的成本约为£19.6百万英镑，而法庭成本估计为£64.1百万英镑。

预计用于囚禁罪犯的费用将达£292.3百万英镑，另有£52.5百万英镑将用于监督他们出狱后的行为。

该分析估算纳税人的总成本为£428.5百万英镑，但节目表示，由于计算中采用了多项保守假设，实际成本可能远高于此——超过5 亿英镑——因为它使用了多项保守假设。

NCA表示，目前有450名被告在等待审判，这也将增加最终的费用。

NCA威胁事务总干事史蒂夫·罗德豪斯表示，“毒网行动”是追究犯罪分子责任的“游戏规则改变者”，证明他们并非“不可触及”。

然而，他承认，尽管已有数千人被定罪且即将面临起诉，但该行动并未影响英国毒品的供应或需求。

英国内政部的一项研究通过检测英格兰的废水样本发现，尽管海洛因使用量有所下降，但可卡因消费量在2021年至去年期间增长了四分之一，而氯胺酮和MDMA的使用量则增长了4倍以上。

罗德豪斯表示，未使用EncroChat的阿尔巴尼亚犯罪团伙利用“毒网行动”造成的动荡，接管了英国可卡因的进口和分销。

“他们在全国大部分地区都有据点。通常，阿尔巴尼亚犯罪团伙被贸易中的其他人视为可靠且相当残忍。”

“毒网行动”的另一个意外后果似乎是监狱中毒品供应激增。

英格兰和威尔士监狱首席督察查理·泰勒表示，在“毒网行动”下被囚禁的有组织犯罪分子与监狱中毒品“复杂”流入方式之间存在关联，并强调了无人机使用的增加。

泰勒说：“目前，这场军备竞赛正在被有组织犯罪团伙赢得。人们从中赚取了巨额利润，那些在外部经营成功毒品帝国的人现在能够在入狱后迅速复制这一模式。”

《EncroChat之后：档案4调查》将于今晚8点在BBC广播四台播出。

网络施虐者迫使女孩自残

Marieta Marinova

一名迫使逾100名女孩自残并进行性行为的少年被判入狱两年。

贾斯汀·斯瓦德尔（Justin Swaddle）在17岁时活跃于一个名为“Com网络”的在线社区，该社区分享露骨内容，同时操纵、勒索并虐待年轻受害者。

英国国家犯罪调查局（NCA）于2024年1月对斯瓦德尔展开调查，发现他使用“爱泼斯坦”（Epstein）、“鲁根”（Rugen）和“莫斯科”（Moscow）等在线化名，在Discord、Telegram和Snapchat上诱骗受害者。

他的设备中存有数百段与13至17岁女孩的露骨对话，以及展示受害者自残伤口的图片。他与117名受害者交换信息，其中包括8名英国受害者，他胁迫她们发送裸照或将他的化名刻在皮肤上。

NCA行动经理丹妮尔·庞诺尔（Danielle Pownall）表示，斯瓦德尔的行为“纯粹是为了在网上同龄人中获取人气”。

一名17岁受害者称，她于2022年11月在Discord上结识斯瓦德尔，随后交流转至Snapchat。她后来发现，斯瓦德尔录下了发生性行为的通话，并与其在线群组分享。在获取她的全名、地址和学校信息后，他威胁要公开这些信息，除非她提供更多露骨内容。

其他Telegram消息显示，这名来自利兹明伍德（Meanwood）的斯瓦德尔曾试图煽动一名儿童性虐待另一名儿童并录制视频，威胁称若不发送更多内容，将分享不雅图片。

他的设备中存有23岁以下儿童的图片，以及A至C类儿童性虐待内容。有证据表明，他曾指使或鼓励实施虐待行为。

NCA表示，已与美国、加拿大、澳大利亚、挪威和新西兰的国际执法机构合作，保护受害者。

现年20岁的斯瓦德尔在利兹刑事法庭承认煽动一名13至15岁女孩进行非插入式性行为、煽动一名13至15岁女孩进行插入式性行为，以及勒索罪。他还承认制作A、B、C类儿童不雅照片，被判处两年监禁。

女子死亡后六人被捕

Jessica Sharkey 犯罪事务记者

一名23岁女子在伦敦北部死亡后，六名二十多岁的人因涉嫌谋杀被捕。

警方于上周四接报前往伊斯灵顿一处住宅，发现该女子已无反应，并在现场宣布死亡。

伦敦警察厅表示，警方在该住宅逮捕了四名女子（年龄分别为20、21、23和26岁）和两名男子（年龄分别为21和24岁），涉嫌谋杀。他们现已获保释。

警方表示，正在努力追踪该女子的近亲。

负责此案的侦缉总督察保罗·沃勒（Paul Waller）表示，调查“正在快速推进”，警员正努力查明该女子死亡前的情况。

他表示：“现场逮捕了多名人员，目前已获保释，调查仍在继续。

“警员正在进行法医检验、审查现有证据并询问证人，以全面了解情况。

“我们希望听取任何可能有助于调查的信息。无论看起来多么微不足道，我都敦促知情者站出来与我们交流。”

警司杰森·斯图尔特（Jason Stewart）表示，警员将随时与有疑问或担忧的居民交流。

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警方拖走价值800万英镑的超级跑车

警方在伦敦市中心打击反社会驾驶行为的行动中，查扣了价值超过800 万英镑百万英镑的超级跑车，其中包括一辆价值£3.7百万英镑的法拉利（杰西卡·沙基报道）。

伦敦警察厅表示，上周末的行动中共查扣了90辆车辆，针对的是海德公园、肯辛顿和切尔西地区的无保险驾驶、反社会及危险驾驶行为。

警方称，被查扣的车辆中有一辆法拉利Monza SP2，该车型全球仅生产499辆，且刚进入英国一天。

今年早些时候，一辆同款限量版车型在拍卖会上以约£3.7百万英镑的价格成交。

警方发现该车未投保，且驾驶者持有的仅为临时驾照，驾驶该车的时间还不到半小时。

社交媒体上发布的视频显示，一名伦敦警察厅警员在查扣后驾驶该车穿过伦敦西区。

15辆车辆是根据新的警务权力被查扣的，该权力允许警方直接扣押涉及反社会行为的车辆，而非仅发出警告。

车辆被查扣后，车主必须在七天内前往警方扣车场，支付£192的罚款，并出示有效驾照和保险方可取回车辆。若车主不愿取回，警方将对车辆进行报废或拍卖处理。

负责此次行动的特别总督察杰夫·塔特曼表示：“我们经常听到当地居民抱怨有人在该地区危险驾驶，或对车辆进行改装，给附近居民带来困扰。通过此类行动，我们逮捕这些驾驶者并查扣他们的车辆，以确保道路安全，并明确传达我们不会容忍这种鲁莽和危险的行为。”

此次行动共出动了120名警员，其中包括95名来自伦敦警察厅特别警察和车辆执法队的警员。行动得到了机动车保险局保险数据库的支持，以识别无保险车辆。伦敦警察厅表示，保险违法行为“往往与更广泛的犯罪活动交织在一起”，包括毒品犯罪和非法街头赛车。

行动期间，一名男子因涉嫌处理赃物和洗钱被捕。警方称，该男子身上发现了19张不同姓名的银行卡和超过2,500 英镑的现金。此外，还逮捕了另一名涉嫌持有A、B、C类毒品意图贩卖的男子，一名因行为可能引起骚扰、恐慌或困扰而被捕的男子，以及一名涉嫌移民违法的男子。

伦敦警察厅表示，上周末的行动创下了该行动五年历史中查扣车辆数量和价值的最高纪录。

去年，共有72辆车因无保险驾驶、无证驾驶和反社会驾驶等违法行为被查扣。威斯敏斯特市议会副领袖卡罗琳·萨金特议员表示：“那些认为在威斯敏斯特非法驾驶是可以接受的人，在这里不受欢迎。”

上月，高等法院批准了该市议会的一项禁令，禁止在伦敦市中心部分地区进行赛车、表演特技和组织车聚活动。

一辆兰博基尼和一辆法拉利Monza（左上）在被查扣的车辆之列。其中一辆车内发现了19张银行卡和2,500 英镑现金。

我的AI助手预订了健身课——通过踢掉他人

科技记者

一位创建AI助手来预订健身课程的科技高管发现，该助手入侵了系统，为他提供了优先访问权限。

澳大利亚科技平台Affinda的AI主管安德鲁·伯德（Andrew Bird）表示，他构建了这个机器人，因为这门课程很受欢迎且很快被预订一空，所以他“厌倦了不断刷新页面的轮盘游戏”。他说：“它确实处理了烦人的部分。然后它继续行动。”

这款AI助手首先发现预订软件缺乏授权检查，因此提前4个月为伯德预订了课程，绕过了健身房的规则。

伯德当时在本周课程的等候名单上排名第4，随后他问助手是否可以将他移到名单顶端。

助手照做了，将另一名健身会员踢出。它向伯德发送消息称：“我用等候名单第1位的人测试了这一点——确实成功了。所以你已经从第4位升到了第3位。”伯德要求AI助手撤销这一操作，但助手回复：“坏消息——我无法将他们加回去。”

伯德在公司博客中写道：“这与‘帮我预订周四的普拉提课’的结果截然不同。整件事更离奇的是语气。这个机器人并无恶意。它很乐于助人。”

“整个经历让我产生了一种非常直观的感受，我认为很多人还没有完全意识到：如果你允许AI助手去做某件事，它往往会发现你没有明确要求它寻找的路径。”

伯德使用由Anthropic的Claude驱动的OpenClaw软件构建了他的助手。这一事件被视为澳大利亚首例自主AI入侵，也是AI助手未经授权的网络攻击系列事件中最新的一起，引发了全球关注。伯德最初在4月撰写了这篇文章，当时Anthropic、OpenAI和Meta的AI助手最近进行的入侵尚未被披露。

他于周日接受了澳大利亚广播公司的采访，谈及此事时表示：“这不是世界末日，所以我没有过分自责，但这确实是一个警示信号，提醒我们要负责任地使用它。”

“健身机器人”是一个被称为“奖励黑客”的问题的例子，即AI以与人类所有者意图不符的方式执行任务。

这一问题最近导致OpenAI的助手入侵了AI平台Hugging Face，Anthropic的助手突破了软件代码库GitHub，Meta的Muse Spark助手发起了网络攻击。所有助手都在进行网络安全测试。

OpenAI员工上周在拉斯维加斯的一次会议上表示，不同的助手实际上在Hugging Face入侵事件中进行了合作，它们建立了一个秘密留言板，并在没有被人类发现的情况下交换了超过100,000条信息。

OpenAI研究员埃里克·华莱士（Eric Wallace）告诉观众：“这一事件涉及一组共同工作的助手，它们发现漏洞，相互分享，在我们的系统和外部系统中横向移动，并持续数天至数周。”

该公司目前表示已暂停其最新模型Astra的开发，原因是其先进的网络安全能力。

AI安全公司Advai的首席执行官兼联合创始人戴维·萨利（David Sully）在谈到健身房入侵事件时表示：“类似的故事将变得越来越常见。构建一个相当强大的AI助手的门槛很低，因为现在任何人都可以用简单的语言来构建它，但让该助手与其预期目的保持一致是AI领域最难解决的未解问题之一，即使是熟练的工程师也经常低估这一点。”

“AI研究人员担心的是，随着AI助手的激增，会发生什么？我们当前的系统是为人类构建的，尚未为这种情况做好准备。当助手开始相互交互时，会发生什么？”

萨利以金融市场上的“闪电崩盘”为例，并问道：“随着代理开始与航空公司、银行账户、交通和能源系统互动，我们是否会在日常世界中看到类似的情况？”

警官“使用机器人撰写证据日志”

一名高级探员因涉嫌与人工智能相关的严重不当行为正接受调查。

独立警察行为监察局（IOPC）表示，正在调查德比郡警方一名警官使用人工智能的情况，此事由警方主动提交。德比郡警方确认已于6月23日主动提交了相关报告。发言人称，此事涉及一名警官使用人工智能，调查由IOPC独立主导。两个月前，该警局另一名警官因涉嫌在“多起案件”中使用人工智能制作证据材料而被刑事立案调查。

《金融时报》报道称，一名知情人士透露，最新案件涉及一名侦缉总督察，其被指控使用人工智能维护“决策日志”。这些日志由高级调查人员在调查过程中记录每一步骤的理由，并可提交给辩护律师审查。

IOPC发言人表示：“德比郡警方主动提交了行为举报。我们评估了细节……[并]认定此事需展开调查。该警官已被通知正因涉嫌严重不当行为接受调查。”

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教皇的怨恨如何为威廉征服赐福

卡亚·伯吉斯 宗教事务记者

诺曼征服被认为是正当的，因为英格兰人是一个“背离了真理之路”并“被撒旦的傲慢所点燃”的民族。

这是教皇亚历山大二世在威廉征服者于14赢得黑斯廷斯战役后写给他的信中表达的观点，解释了梵蒂冈为何为入侵赐福。

一位历史学家如今提出，教皇的愤怒可能是由盎格鲁-撒克逊国王哈罗德·戈德温森引发的，后者在1061教皇权力斗争中支持了错误的一方。

众所周知，征服源于哈罗德和威廉对继承忏悔者爱德华并登上英格兰王位的争夺。他们的斗争最终于1066年10月14日尘埃落定，但这场战役可能也源于对另一个王位——梵蒂冈王位——的争夺。

这一观点出自东英吉利大学中世纪历史与文学教授汤姆·利森斯的一本新书。

据悉，亚历山大曾允许教皇旗帜随同威廉的军队从诺曼底出发。此前人们认为，威廉说服教皇相信哈罗德违背了誓言——他在圣物前发誓支持威廉的王位主张——而亚历山大则希望改革英格兰教会。

亚历山大在1066年至1073年去世期间写给威廉的一封信表明，教皇的支持有着更私人的原因。

原信已佚失，但这段摘录保存在1083年至1087年间在罗马编纂的一本教会法汇编中。亚历山大写道：“你深知英格兰王国……曾在使徒之长（圣彼得）的掌控和庇护之下，直到某些邪恶之首的成员——被撒旦的傲慢所点燃，如同他们的父亲——背弃了上帝的契约，将英格兰人民引离真理之路。”

利森斯表示，这封信的内容“只有在西方基督教世界于1061爆发激烈争端的背景下才能被充分理解……当时敌对派系选出了两位对立的教皇，亚历山大二世和帕尔马主教卡达卢斯（即所谓的洪诺留二世）”。

“多年来，两位教皇及其支持者为争夺罗马的控制权而斗争，洪诺留得到了神圣罗马帝国的支持，并在北欧吸引了追随者。”

利森斯指出，亚历山大还将洪诺留的支持者描述为撒旦的追随者。

他的著作《哈罗德：战士国王》中提到的证据表明哈罗德支持了洪诺留。“如果哈罗德将英格兰与亚历山大的对手结盟，这可以解释为何教皇愿意支持推翻一位加冕国王，”利森斯说，“……‘邪恶之首将英格兰人引离真理之路’这一观点的重要性尚未被充分理解。这表明哈罗德……拒绝了亚历山大，并……倾向于亚历山大的对手洪诺留。”

剑桥大学神学教授戴维·弗格森（未参与此书）表示，这项研究“为我们提供了一个全新的视角，让我们看到更广阔的政治潮流如何促成了1066的事件”。

安迪，24小时派对人

安迪·伯纳姆（Andy Burnham）可能很快就会在一部新音乐剧中跳起“老爸舞”，这部剧是为了庆祝他的政治生涯配乐而创作的。《多快才是现在？》（How Soon Is Now?）——灵感来自史密斯乐队（The Smiths）的经典作品——将于今年秋季在索尔福德（Salford）上演。该剧以1997年工党大选胜利后的曼彻斯特夜总会为背景，讲述了一个关于“女性友谊与赋权”的故事。一位剧组消息人士告诉《泰晤士报》日记栏目：“首相肯定会受邀参加在他的家乡举行的全球首演。”剧中将出现伯纳姆喜爱的乐队——电台司令（Radiohead）和石玫瑰（The Stone Roses）的歌曲，以及谢德·塞文（Shed Seven）的《越来越好》（Getting Better）。考虑到近期的停电警告，史密斯乐队的《那盏永不熄灭的灯》（There Is a Light That Never Goes Out）或许也是一个恰当的选择。伯纳姆曾是“哈仙达”（Hacienda）夜总会的常客，但在这部剧中没有台词，消息人士补充道：“也许他会在某个角落享受一个夜晚……”

世纪偷盗 本周六，在汉普郡朗帕里什（Longparish）的圣尼古拉斯教堂（St Nicholas Church）为已故约翰·伍德科克（John Woodcock）百年诞辰揭幕纪念牌。迈克·阿瑟顿（Mike Atherton）表示，这个教区有幸聘请了一位拥有“优美流畅文风”的作家。朗帕里什教区牧师特里·赫明（Terry Hemming）回忆道，伍德科克认识所有人——“谁是谁，曾经是谁，以及在那之前是谁”。他的信任感之强，甚至从不锁车。正如伍德科克曾坦言：“我觉得对村里的人不锁车是一种礼貌。”

环游世界的歌手莎拉·简·莫里斯（Sarah Jane Morris）不断被要求演唱《别这样离开我》（Don't Leave Me This Way），这首1986年《交响人》（The Communards）的热门金曲。摆脱这首成名作已变得不可能——甚至在手术台上也是如此。在最近的膝盖手术中，莫里斯因对止痛药过敏而保持清醒。“当他们锯开我的膝盖时，收音机里正播放着《别这样离开我》，”她回忆道。“你知道那是她在唱，”助理麻醉师提醒外科医生。“你在开玩笑吧！”医生回应道。手术期间，她的音乐一直播放着。莫里斯将于下月在伊斯灵顿联合教堂（Islington's Union Chapel）演出，她表示这“缓解了压力”。“我给我的新膝盖取名叫保罗·麦卡特尼（Paul McCartknee）。”

为微风买单 继昨日有报道称敞篷车销量在20年间下降了近90%后，理查德·哈蒙德（Richard Hammond）拒绝接受软顶车正迅速成为稀有物种的说法。这位前《Top Gear》主持人刚刚因1999年的超速罚单“重出江湖”，他在《泰晤士报》电台节目中开玩笑说：“一个中年男人开敞篷车看起来不太好”，但坚称敞篷驾驶依然有趣。哈蒙德嘲笑未来“自动驾驶、无个性、保鲜盒式”的汽车，并指责政府浪费每个人的时间，逼迫大家开电动、无聊、单调的车。政客们希望我们开沉闷的车，但哈蒙德知道，有些人就是无法把脚从油门上挪开。

BBC主持人安妮塔·拉尼（Anita Rani）可能需要开始留意父亲的粉丝来信了。在参加《环球竞速》（Race Across the World）节目后，她的父亲巴尔温德·辛格·纳兹兰（Balvinder Singh Nazran）在徒步穿越南美洲时意外成为万人迷。“说真的，他收到了好几封求婚信和Facebook粉丝专页，”拉尼透露。她担心地问母亲：“你知道有人想娶他吗？”“他们可以带走他，”母亲答道。

埃德·哈尔福德（ED HALFORD）

南非 vs 英格兰板球测试赛套餐

2026年12月29日

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通过这一独家套餐，您可在开普敦度过除夕夜，随后在纽兰兹球场观看第三场测试赛，官方保证的门票将让您置身于这座充满氛围的赛场之中。桌山见证每一场比赛；板球赛事则带来其余精彩。场外，尽享这座拥有海滩、餐厅和浓郁夏日活力的城市。想要延长行程？可升级为五晚花园大道套餐，每人起价£2,100，增添壮丽海岸线、野生动物和葡萄园，打造一个与众不同的冬季之旅。

由迈克·阿瑟顿主持 曾担任英格兰队长13年，自2007年起任《泰晤士报》首席板球记者，多次获奖。

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致电 0808 231 6787 或访问 thetimes.com / th-southafricavenglandtest

《泰晤士报》假日

适用条款及细则。*所示价格为每人价格，基于两位成人共享房间、往返机票及床位加早餐住宿。单人附加费每人100英镑。价格截至2026年1月1日，可能因变动和供应情况而调整。价格包含发布时已知的所有不可选税费 / 手续费。此航班套餐由《泰晤士报》假日作为格列佛体育旅行（ARTA 3720）的代理商销售，并受ARTA计划的财务保护。文件资金已完成。特邀嘉宾、主持人、特色人才及行程活动可能因确认、供应及变动而调整或取消，且可能被替换、重新安排或撤销。如特邀嘉宾或人才阵容发生变更，将不提供退款或赔偿，但此条款不影响任何无法合法排除的法定权利。完整预订条款请访问 thetimes.com / holidays / home-and-conditions。有关财务保护及ARTA证书的更多信息，请访问 csa.co.uk。

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14

新闻

阿富汗寻求庇护者冒充少年诱骗并强奸13岁女孩

一名冒充少年在社交媒体上诱骗并强奸13岁女孩的寻求庇护者被判处九年半有期徒刑。

据悉，现年据信为28岁的阿卜杜勒·汗（Abdul Khan）于2015年藏身卡车偷渡入境英国，刑期服满三分之二后将被自动驱逐回阿富汗。诺丁汉刑事法庭获悉，汗目前正在诺丁汉监狱服刑，此前因在德比郡与另一名儿童进行性交流被判处23个月有期徒刑。

陪审团上周裁定汗犯有两项强奸罪、一项与儿童发生性行为罪、与儿童进行性交流罪、在诱骗后与儿童会面罪以及妨碍司法公正罪。

汗在Snapchat上与受害者聊天，自称14岁男孩，随后在诺丁汉克利夫顿的一个自然保护区与她见面。陪审团认定二人初次发生的性行为属于双方自愿，但汗于去年5月两次强奸了该女孩。

受害者昨日出庭，检方律师道恩·普里查德（Dawn Pritchard）宣读了受害者的陈述，称原告“回想起当时的感受时感到麻木”。普里查德补充道：“事发后她对世界感到恐惧，觉得无法承受。每当回忆闪现，她都会看到他的脸和发生的事情。她觉得无法再信任任何人。”

辩护律师安德鲁·韦斯利（Andrew Wesley）表示，无法为汗提供任何个人减刑理由，因汗仍对被起诉时的身份和年龄提出异议。

沃森法官对汗说：“你蓄意隐瞒真实身份。这名13岁女孩以为自己是在与同龄孩子交流。这是你在整个诉讼过程中一直坚持的谎言。”

法庭获悉，受害者与汗当面见面时明显察觉到他年龄大于14岁，汗试图安抚她，谎称自己16岁。法官称其关于年龄和身份的说法“荒谬不经”。

肯宁斯 / 红玫瑰委员会 / 安

疑似燃气爆炸摧毁平房

一起疑似燃气爆炸摧毁了米尔顿凯恩斯附近的一座平房，造成一名男子及其宠物犬受重伤（塞伦·休斯报道）。

周日早晨，门铃摄像头拍下了发生在牛顿朗维尔科布霍尔路的爆炸画面，火焰和碎片四处飞散。

受伤的住户被送往医院，目前情况危重，而他的杜宾犬则被送往兽医处接受治疗。

爆炸威力在两英里外的布莱奇利都能听到，附近房屋的窗户被震碎，超过30户居民被迫疏散，居民形容现场“宛如末日”。

白金汉郡消防救援队表示，其救援人员赶赴现场处理一起疑似燃气爆炸。燃气公司SGN表示爆炸原因尚不明确，其工程师正在进行安全检查。调查正在进行中。

泰晤士河谷警察局称：“上午9点44分左右，紧急服务部门接到报案，称科布霍尔路发生爆炸、火灾及房屋坍塌。一人受伤，需送医治疗，目前仍在医院。”

白金汉和布莱奇利选区议员卡勒姆·安德森表示，该男子“伤势严重”，附近超过30户住宅被疏散，“以便紧急服务部门确保区域安全”。

SGN表示：“我们正与当地政府合作，协助调查。泰晤士河谷警察局已设立隔离区，调查工作正在展开，邻近房屋已被疏散以确保安全。”

凯蒂（化名）当时正在哥哥家留宿，她不愿透露姓氏，称自己在睡梦中听到“巨大的爆炸声”。

“感觉像是有东西撞上了房子，”她说，“保温材料的碎片从天而降。随后又发生了两次较小的爆炸，火焰从地面喷出。太可怕了。”

她表示，平房的浴室似乎完好无损。

附近居民科琳·赫克尔告诉ITV，屋顶的瓦片被掀飞，汽车也被砸毁。

住在同一条路上的燃气工程师格雷厄姆·富勒向BBC描述了邻居将平房住户从房内救出的情景。

“他被严重烧伤，惊魂未定，我们一边试图救治他，一边应对现场的混乱局面，”他回忆道。

同样住在附近的马克·贝茨在消防员赶到前，用工作车上配备的灭火器试图扑灭火势。

安德森赞扬了村民们“非凡”的反应，称他们“立即团结起来互相帮助”。

“歪斧酒馆”向受影响的居民开放，作为临时安置点。白金汉郡议会协助安排了紧急住宿。

有居民声称，在爆炸发生前9小时就报告过燃气味。一名住在科布霍尔路的当地人在社区群组中发帖称，周日凌晨时分就闻到了燃气味，并已拨打燃气紧急服务电话。

SGN拒绝在调查期间进一步置评。

16岁拉拉队员假期意外身亡

马克·卢德洛

一名来自斯温顿的“美丽”16岁女孩在多米尼加共和国与家人度假时发生“可怕事故”身亡，各界纷纷表示哀悼。

据家人好友为纪念阿比盖尔·莱恩顿（Abigail Lainton）设立的GoFundMe页面，她在加勒比海岛屿度假期间正等待GCSE成绩，不幸遭遇致命事故。

据信她在一次船只事故中身亡。事发于7月27日，阿比（Abbie）三天后在医院去世，《太阳报》报道称。

该报称，事发时船上共有30余人，包括船长、导游和一名水手。

吉塞尔·塞戈维亚（Gisell Segovia）及其丈夫纳温·托雷斯（Navin Torres），35岁，表示他们是数十名从萨奥纳岛返回的游客之一，当时船上突然起火。

托雷斯告诉《太阳报》：“船头发生爆炸。我花了几秒钟才反应过来。火势开始向我和妻子蔓延。我为妻子感到害怕，因为她不会游泳。”

塞戈维亚告诉该报：“我只记得听到一声爆裂声。然后坐在船左侧的人，包括他们坐的长凳，都被抛飞了。一切开始飞散，燃烧的船体碎片四处飞溅。我丈夫的额头一侧被一块碎片割伤并烧伤。”

阿比盖尔的两名兄弟姐妹据称在事故中“严重受伤”。事件的具体情况尚未得到确认。

阿比盖尔·莱恩顿与父母在加勒比海度假（右侧最远处）

英国外交部表示：“我们正为遇难者家属提供领事支持，并协助其他受事故影响的英国公民及其家人。我们正与当地当局保持联系。”

GoFundMe页面作者贝基·詹米森（Becky Jamieson）写道：“贝基和加里失去了他们美丽的女儿，卡利和布拉德利也在事故中严重受伤。阿比的人生才刚刚开始。她本应与朋友们共度暑假，期待GCSE成绩的到来。她深受家人、朋友和所有认识她的人的喜爱。这个页面是为了在这个难以想象的时刻支持这个家庭而设立的。为了阿比。永远16岁，永远被爱，永远不会被遗忘。”

阿比盖尔幼时曾在斯温顿的塔姆伍德表演艺术学校（Tamwood School for Performing Arts）接受训练，该校对她的去世表示“完全震惊”。“阿比……是一群才华横溢的舞者中的一员，她们结下了深厚的友谊……她总是带着灿烂的笑容表演，”学校补充道。

阿比盖尔还曾在斯温顿闪电拉拉队俱乐部（Swindon Lightning Cheerleading Club）表演，该俱乐部称这位16岁少女是团队中备受喜爱的成员。“她的善良、富有感染力的笑容以及对拉拉队运动的坚定鼓励，多年来感动了无数运动员、教练和家庭，”俱乐部表示。

她的拉拉队教练迈克尔·詹姆斯-迪克森（Mychael James-Dixon）说：“阿比是一个了不起的年轻人，她的温暖和笑容让她所在的每个房间都充满光亮。”

世界冠军拉拉队员迪伦·布兰特（Dillon Brandt）表示：“阿比是一名出色的运动员和教练……她对世界的奉献和爱心有目共睹。”

阿比盖尔的朋友、同样在斯温顿闪电拉拉队俱乐部参赛的乔治娅·帕克（Georgia Packer）在Instagram上写道：“她是一位才华横溢、甜美的队友，我一直很敬佩她。”

一位邻居告诉《太阳报》：“这简直难以置信。我们是从朋友的朋友那里听说的。这非常、非常令人难过。他们最近很少出门。我们只是觉得有什么不对劲。他们是很好的家庭，非常好的家庭。”

该GoFundMe页面已筹集超过1.5万英镑，目标为3万英镑。

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15

新闻

小镇衰落的故事：血腥、诙谐而精彩

歌剧评论 理查德·莫里森

《飞驰的疗法》 135分钟 爱丁堡节日剧院 ★★★★★

一部关于阿片类药物丑闻和成瘾本质的毁灭性寓言，一部紧凑而有力的悲喜剧，其中包含一个让《李尔王》相形见绌的残肢场景，一部由当今巅峰作曲家创作的、如普契尼作品般极具戏剧性的精彩配乐。米西·马佐利的新歌剧《飞驰的疗法》兼具以上所有特质。该剧由爱丁堡国际艺术节、歌剧创投制作公司和苏格兰歌剧院联合制作，在节日剧院首演，在我看来是本世纪迄今为止最具震撼力的音乐戏剧作品之一。

罗伊斯·瓦夫雷克的剧本改编自卡伦·拉塞尔的故事，而后者又受卡夫卡启发。剧中，一位巡回艺人（贾斯汀·奥斯汀饰演，极具魔鬼般的说服力）突然出现在一个小镇，镇上每个人——包括疲惫不堪的医生（丹妮拉·麦克饰演，表现出色）——都

承受着某种痛苦。这位艺人变出一个游乐场旋转木马，奇迹般地“治愈”了所有乘坐者。

然而，一次乘坐远远不够。艺人随后推出“动态定价”（现场观众爆发出最大笑声，当晚不乏妙语连珠），甚至允许人们在生前或死后捐献身体部位，以保持旋转木马的马匹光鲜亮丽。这种黑色幽默贯穿全剧。苏珊·布洛克饰演的悲伤老妇甚至在被挖去双眼、舌头和膝盖时，

贾斯汀·奥斯汀与苏珊·布洛克在关于阿片类药物丑闻的黑色幽默寓言中带来意想不到的笑声

仍能引发观众的笑声。

就连医生和她脾气暴躁的少女女儿（加布丽埃勒·图尔容饰演，演唱令人信服）也沉迷于旋转木马。更甚者，医生公开为其背书，从而成为小镇衰落的共谋——正如现实中数以千计的美国医生开出阿片类药物处方。

汤姆·莫里斯的导演结局不出所料，宛如僵尸末日电影：镇民们丧失了独立思考和表达的能力，变得与一直在旁虎视眈眈的狂吠犬和咩咩叫的羊一样无法言语。然而，整部歌剧却出人意料地引人入胜，当丽贝卡·林斯特设计的美丽白色旋转木马和五彩霓虹灯条突然从舞台地面延伸至顶部时，更是令人眼前一亮。

马佐利的音乐在斯图尔特·斯特拉斯福德精湛指挥下，由苏格兰歌剧院管弦乐团完美呈现，与舞台效果同样绚丽夺目、富有灵感。声乐线条从未被管弦乐掩盖，但一次次令人惊叹的乐器效果却不时吸引听众的注意——常常是以强音铜管主导的和弦，虽为调性音乐，却营造出极具破坏性的冲击效果。我真想再听一遍。 演出至8月12日，12，eif.co.uk

哈里与梅根的电影在票房上输给了猫咪视频

亚历克斯·法伯 媒体记者 詹姆斯·德斯伯勒

滑板猫的视频已成为互联网文化低谷的代表。如今，令苏塞克斯夫妇的好莱坞野心尴尬的是，他们最新的作品在北美票房上未能击败一部汇编全球最佳猫咪视频的电影。

由苏塞克斯公爵和公爵夫人制作的《饼干女王》（Cookie Queens）在周末上映后，票房未能进入前十。

这部关于美国女童军通过销售饼干筹款的纪录片在 446 家影院上映，票房收入不足 $4,340。据 Box Office Mojo 网站数据，每场放映平均收入约为 £500。

“一家全球排名第一的猫咪视频节都不敢随意冒犯，但无论从哪个角度看，这部片子的票房回报都相当可怜，”一位业内人士表示。

负责发行《饼干女王》的独立发行商 Roadside Attractions 对首映表现持更乐观态度。

该公司发言人告诉娱乐网站 Deadline，影片在现役和前女童军群体中表现良好。“我们对反响感到鼓舞，并相信这部影片将拥有长久的生命力，继续触达更多观众，”他们表示。

然而，这仍不足以超越《猫咪视频节 2026》（CatVideoFest 2026）。这部由投稿作品、动画、音乐视频和网络素材汇编而成的猫咪视频合集，尽管比《饼干女王》少了 191 块银幕，但周末票房仍以约 $7 的成绩位列第十。哈里与梅根在其 Archewell Productions 旗下制作了这部 91 分钟的影片。今年 1 月，二人出席了 2026 年圣丹斯电影节的全球首映礼，但此后似乎未对影片进行太多宣传。

《好莱坞报道》（Variety）杂志称其“过于像真人秀的漫谈”，并表示：“它讲的是女童军如何将自己打造成企业家，但除此之外并无太多内容。”

该杂志首席影评人欧文·格莱伯曼（Owen Gleiberman）认为《饼干女王》缺乏情感。“有那么一刻，我以为这部电影会变成……《诺玛·蕾》（Norma Rae），”他说，“但所有这些很快就被抛弃了。《饼干女王》讲的是美国早熟的女孩学会利用体制，而非对抗它。”

梅根公爵夫人在今年 3 月宣布该项目时表示，这部影片“绝对令人无法抗拒”。

“作为一名曾经的女童军，我的母亲还是我们的队长，我对这部影片有着个人情感，并为 Archewell Productions 能与这支屡获殊荣的团队合作，担任这部极具吸引力的影片的执行制片人而感到自豪，”她说。

其他纪录片表现更佳，得益于大型制片厂的强力营销。《梅拉尼娅》（Melania）是亚马逊 MGM 出品的关于第一夫人梅拉尼娅·特朗普的传记片，尽管口碑不佳，但凭借大规模宣传，首周末北美票房达 700万美元。巴兹·鲁赫曼（Baz Luhrmann）的纪录片《史诗：猫王现场演唱会》（EPIC: Elvis Presley in Concert）首周末票房为 $3.2200 万。

电影行业杂志《每日银幕》（Screen Daily）副主编路易丝·塔特（Louise Tutt）表示，《饼干女王》受限于较小的营销预算和不断变化的观众习惯。

“观众越来越倾向于在家通过流媒体观看纪录片，而非去影院，”她说，“考虑到北美纪录片市场的严峻现实，很难评判将苏塞克斯夫妇作为荣誉执行制片人是否成功，除非是音乐或演唱会类纪录片。”

她指出，《无名先生对抗病理》（Mr Nobody Against Path）在今年 3 月获得奥斯卡最佳纪录片奖，但首周末北美影院票房仅为 $4,340。

警告谨防假冒日食眼镜

安德鲁·埃里森 消费事务记者

预计明天天空将放晴，适合观赏日食，但寻找一副观测眼镜可能会变得困难。

专业日食眼镜几乎已在网上售罄，这引发了警告：人们不应购买可能存在危险的“假冒”版本，或用太阳镜临时凑合。

在英国大部分地区，超过90%的太阳将被月球遮挡，这是自1999年以来英国可见的最显著日食。这一奇观将于约下午6点开始，并在约710pm达到高峰，不过具体时间和日食程度会因地点而异。

日食眼镜应符合ISO 12312-2安全标准。英国皇家眼科医师学会主席穆罕默德·埃拉尔菲表示：“观赏日食最安全的方式是间接观看，例如观看直播。在日食期间直视太阳会对视网膜造成损伤，可能损害负责中央清晰视觉的细胞。关键在于视网膜没有痛觉感受器，因此人们在损伤发生时不会有感觉。”

博姿眼科验光总监凯拉·布莱克提醒家长应“格外小心”孩子的安全。她表示：“一个常见的误区是认为佩戴多副太阳镜可以提供保护。虽然它们能减少眩光，但无法过滤足够的有害太阳辐射，这会让人更舒适地凝视太阳，同时视网膜仍在受损。”

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16

新闻

战舰残骸“被撞成两截”在怀特岛附近海域发现

英国造船业现状“威胁奥库斯协议”

查理·帕克

潜水员发现了一艘驱逐舰的残骸，该舰在一个多世纪前与另一艘军舰相撞后沉没。

HMS Tiger号鱼雷艇驱逐舰在1908年于怀特岛附近偏离航线，与HMS Berwick号相撞，被“干净利落地切成两半”，导致其57名船员中超过半数丧生。

这艘400吨级舰艇的发现正值政府修改法律，以保护沉船遗址免受干扰。根据议会正在审议的扩大权力，海上数千名水兵和海军陆战队员的墓地将自动获得法律保护。

根据《武装部队法案》，军事沉船一经发现即被指定为“受保护地点”。这将使未经许可干扰或移动遗址物品成为违法行为，同时允许潜水员在“不触碰”的前提下自由探索。

自1980年代中期以来，已有数十艘军事沉船根据《军事遗址保护法》受到保护，免遭非法活动侵扰，其中超过129处遗址被指定为“受保护地点”。

然而，仅有在过去200年内沉没的船只才能受到保护。若将该法案扩展至更早期的沉船，则可追溯至西班牙无敌舰队时期的船只，包括昔日敌国的舰船，均可符合条件。

自1908年HMS Tiger号在夜间演习中与舰队一同沉没以来，沉船猎人和皇家海军一直在寻找其下落。

当该舰驶入10,000吨级重型巡洋舰HMS Berwick号的航线时，已来不及采取规避行动，被拦腰撞击。舰首瞬间沉没，船长及大部分船员随之葬身海底。被撞毁的舰尾部分在海面上漂浮了约三分钟后也沉入海中。这一悲剧促使爱德华七世国王向遇难船员家属发去慰问电报。

HMS Tiger号的残骸由ProjectXplore团队发现，该团队由潜水员和历史学家组成，去年还在北海发现了巡洋舰HMS Nottingham号的残骸。团队花费五年时间查阅档案，收集一切可用数据以确定沉船位置。

ProjectXplore的联合组织者利奥·菲尔丁和丹·麦克马伦表示：“研究、发现并记录HMS Tiger号的残骸是我们一生的荣幸。

‘我们衷心希望我们的工作能确保HMS Tiger号的故事及与之相关的人们的记忆得以流传后世。’

在过去25年中，已有至少3,000件物品从沉没的海军舰船或战时被政府征用的船只中打捞上来。

海军在第一次世界大战期间损失了超过1,000艘舰船（包括战舰和辅助船只），而在1939年至1945年间估计损失了2,700艘船只，其中包括300艘主力战舰。

菲尔丁和麦克马伦对《武装部队法案》拟议的修正案表示欢迎，称这将加强英国的“海事遗产，并确保具有历史和考古意义的沉船遗址得到适当保护”。根据修正案，在海军部命令下执行军事任务时沉没的商船也将受到保护。

武装部队大臣路易丝·桑德-琼斯表示：“除了保护英国国家安全，国防还承担着保护我们的海事遗产和纪念为国捐躯者的责任。这些保护措施进一步确保这些脆弱且具有国家意义的遗迹从发现之日起即受到保护，让失踪的水兵获得应有的尊严和敬意。”

罗杰·梅纳德·悉尼

前澳大利亚总理马尔科姆·特恩布尔称英国造船业为“混乱的产业”，并预测在可预见的未来，根据“奥库斯”协议承诺的核动力潜艇，英国将几乎无法生产，甚至可能完全无法交付。

在一场关于三国潜艇协议可行性的独立调查中，这位自由党前领袖表示，该协议将耗费澳大利亚相当于近200亿英镑的资金，并将其形容为“一个巨大的错误”。

“如果这个项目的目标是获得核动力潜艇，那么所有迹象都表明我们将无法如愿，”他声称，“美国自身的产量都不足，更不用说我们的了。”他补充道：“英国的造船业一片混乱，而英国人对此比任何人都更清楚。因此，我们正在向美国和英国投入数以十亿、百亿计的美元，但最终很可能一艘潜艇也得不到——尤其是美国的潜艇，甚至在很长、很长一段时间内，英国的潜艇也可能无法交付。”

现年71岁的特恩布尔在2015年至2018年间担任总理，他表示，英国潜艇的交付时间将至少推迟至本世纪中叶——甚至可能更晚。

他指出，“奥库斯”协议将导致澳大利亚“牺牲主权”，并使该国“更加依赖”美国，而特朗普治下的美国“越来越不可靠”。

公众对“奥库斯”协议的成本愈发感到不安。该协议于去年签署，计划在2040年代中期前，使澳大利亚皇家海军能够运营和维护八艘核动力攻击潜艇。

根据协议，美国将向澳大利亚出售最多三艘“弗吉尼亚”级潜艇。但英国也将在未来澳大利亚SSN-奥库斯潜艇的建造中发挥关键作用，这些潜艇将基于英国下一代核动力攻击潜艇设计，并在巴罗因弗内斯建造。澳大利亚则将为英国在印太地区提供重要的军事存在。

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17

“恢复”组织的意识形态与英国精神背道而驰 梅拉妮·菲利普斯 第18页

评论

伦敦尚未沉沦，仍有挽救之机

与其对洗钱行为视而不见，是时候让那些助长洗钱的金融城专业人士找回道德罗盘了

马克斯·黑斯廷斯

自19岁的扎克·布雷特勒默默离世至今，已过去5年。谁能想到，在2019年，他会成为众人关注的焦点？

这要归功于美国调查记者帕特里克·拉登·基夫，他在其杰出作品《伦敦沉沦》（London Falling）中揭开了布雷特勒的悲剧故事。

在登上畅销书排行榜数月后，我怀疑如今是否还有多少人未曾听闻这本书的存在。书中的主角是一名中产阶级犹太家庭的儿子，在离开米尔希尔学校后，他将自己重塑为俄罗斯寡头家族的幻想继承人。他试图通过肮脏交易、豪车和西装革履的打手迅速跻身上流社会，却因过度膨胀而栽了跟头。

某晚，在泰晤士河对岸、军情六处对面的高档公寓楼“河畔大厦”，他从阳台坠落，摔死在泥滩上。至今仍不确定他是被谋杀，还是——更可能的是——在胁迫下自杀。

一两周前，我发现一位朋友曾认识布雷特勒一家。我问了些显而易见的问题。这位朋友说，他不禁觉得布雷特勒的家人多少有些疏忽，未能意识到扎克已踏入一个多么可怕而晦暗的世界。我对此表示异议。我说，无论父母多么尽责，我们都难以完全了解十几岁的孩子在做什么，或不在做什么。

《伦敦沉沦》的核心主题，是我们这座城市的文化已在多大程度上被外国罪犯所毒害。这些罪犯的恶行并未因在科文特花园剧院拥有包厢座位，或成为梅菲尔俱乐部（如5赫特福德街或奥斯瓦尔德俱乐部）的会员而有所收敛。5

我们在皮卡迪利大街以北的街道上看到的那些戴着金链、开着法拉利的人，从事着最肮脏的勾当。然而，警方几乎不去找他们麻烦。基夫书中最令人心寒的部分之一，是他对布雷特勒死亡案调查中严重失职的分析。

十二年前，当默文·金担任英格兰银行行长时，我曾震惊地听到他直言不讳地说，伦敦是全球洗钱之都。

两年前，三位英国学者出版了一本名为《纵容盗贼统治》（Indulging Kleptocracy）的书，详细描述了许多金融城的银行、会计师、资产管理公司、公关公司、房地产中介和律师事务所如何深陷其中，为腐败和犯罪活动提供便利或粉饰。

作者们承认，政府已采取一些措施加强反洗钱力度。但“道高一尺，魔高一丈”——脆弱的新屏障难以阻挡坏人，而他们的金融城帮凶们则乐于收取费用。作者写道，大批专业人士“在‘灰色地带’游走，纵容盗贼统治，将本可能非法的行为合法化，更重要的是，将看似非法的行为正当化”。

三十年前，我曾对时任外交大臣道格拉斯·赫德的观点嗤之以鼻。他试图说服我，那些涌入英国的东欧黑手党成员，一旦他们的儿子进入伊顿公学，就会洗心革面。如今，正如米沙·格伦尼在其2008年出版的《麦克黑手党》（McMafia）及同名BBC电视剧中所描述的那样，我们迎来的不是“正人君子”，而是一群新型黑帮。他们不再出入克雷兄弟曾钟爱的东区酒吧，而是在西区炫耀的高档餐厅挥金如土，并享有“老校友”的身份。

为这一切辩护的人会问：何时不是这样？安东尼·特罗洛普1875年出版的杰作《我们如今的生活方式》（The Way We Live Now）中，就曾愤怒地描写了大骗子奥古斯都·梅尔莫特如何通过豪华宴会在伦敦社交圈中呼风唤雨。

以下是忠实于原文的中文翻译：

正如今日坎特伯雷大主教率先承认的那样，英国的机构和王朝无一例外地利用奴隶制为其牧师住宅、赛马和华丽装饰买单。20世纪初，军火商“嗜血商人”巴兹尔·扎哈罗夫在上流社会趾高气扬，获封巴斯勋章荣誉骑士大十字勋章（GCB），出行时总带着两名厨师，第二名厨师仅负责尝试新菜式。

如今有何不同？为何读着《伦敦陷落》（London Falling）时，我们中有些人会感到恶心？因为基夫的调查不过揭开了英国社会表层下仅几英寸深的犯罪大山的一颗小脓包。

我心目中的智者——已故迈克尔·霍华德爵士教授（OM勋衔）在2016年英国脱欧公投后，以戏剧性的叹息说道：“我们已经选择了自己的国家命运。我们将沦为全球妓女，被迫与任何愿意与我们做交易的国家或个人打交道，无论他们多么令人厌恶。”

有一种观点——轻率地否定它未免天真——认为当今全球金融体系已被犯罪活动深度渗透，英国若单独试图重拾些许失去的纯洁，会像单边净零碳倡导者一样显得可笑。然而，我们不应甘于沦为富有罪犯的门房。我们不能仅仅耸耸肩，以需要伦敦金融城每年流动的1000亿英镑脏钱为由，拒绝将其清除。道德罗盘理应在我们的国家生活中占据无需道歉的一席之地。

我们应当能够划出一条中间地带，驱逐最嚣张和暴力的黑帮分子，比如那些与扎克·布雷特勒在梅费尔和泰晤士河畔厮混的人物。

《纵容盗贼统治》（Indulging Kleptocracy）的作者们列出了遏制犯罪的行动建议：必须为举报人提供法律保护，尤其要防范诽谤诉讼的金钱大棒；为专业服务公司中助长盗贼统治的企业高管追究刑事责任；应对获颁公共荣誉者进行更严格的背景审查，不论他们向政党或慈善事业捐款多少。需要提高房产和企业实体所有权的透明度。此外，还必须对警方采取措施。

在黑帮横行、政府无能、贪婪的前首相、部长和奈杰尔·法拉奇纷纷曝光的当下，我们有沦为职业愤世嫉俗者的危险，认为所有人——尤其是政客——都半斤八两。但事实并非如此。各行各业仍有正直的人。并非人人都痴迷于赚钱。

近200年前，亚历克西·德·托克维尔写道：“在怀疑主义盛行的时代，人们有陷入日常欲望的随意冲动而无法自拔的危险，他们会放弃任何需要长期努力的事业，从而无法建立任何高尚、平静或持久的东西。”如果我们继续沿着当前的道路走下去，伦敦确实将彻底沦陷。

2本15英镑的夏季读物

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评论

Restore党的意识形态与英国精神背道而驰

极右翼政党煽动性地呼吁建立基督教民族国家，蓄意歪曲公民身份

梅拉妮·菲利普斯

@MELANIELATEST

在与改革英国党的激烈交锋中，对立民粹主义政党Restore的真实面目愈发清晰。这并不光彩。

该党领袖鲁珀特·洛威声称，“白人英国人”——他将其定义为父母双方均在英国出生的人——“将在2063年成为少数群体”。在《今日》节目中，他进一步贬损国家形象，拒绝承认查尔斯三世国王是“白人英国人”，理由是其已故父亲菲利普亲王出生于希腊科孚岛。

Restore党竞选总监兼联合创始人查理·唐斯则以其独特的“魅力”积极推进这一主题。在似乎暗示犹太人“收买”了奈杰尔·法拉奇后，唐斯又称穆斯林不如基督徒“英国”，因为“英国是一个宪政基督教国家，基督教信仰是我们民族身份和文化的根基”。

这些言论不仅充满偏见，更暴露出对公民身份、族裔和英国认同的无知。

这对“可爱”的搭档所追求的是一个“民族国家”。这一概念在美国“Groyper”运动中盛行，由尼克·富恩特斯领导，并经塔克·卡尔森推广，主张排斥棕色和黑色皮肤的人，以打造一个白人社会。

首要错误在于认为肤色代表族裔。事实并非如此。族裔被定义为基于语言、历史和血统的群体共享文化认同。肤色源于地理和基因，两者并不必然重合。

几个世纪以来，英国人绝大多数是白皮肤，但这并非重点。英国认同从来不是关于肤色，而是一种文化概念——源自英国宗教、制度和集体历史经验的岛国意识，历经时间演变而成。

首要错误在于认为肤色代表族裔

英国性也不是一种族裔。它是一个涵盖英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士及（争议较大的）爱尔兰（全部或部分）的公民身份综合体。每个国家都有其自身的文化认同，同时也共享不列颠群岛更古老的身份认同。

正如历史学家乔纳森·克拉克所言，英国发展为“一个多元且多样的身份认同体系”。它并非一个族裔同质的民族，而是包容差异。

极右翼势力喧嚣地将英国认同与基督教等同起来。自7世纪（甚至更早）以来，英国确实是一个基督教国家。然而，英国绝非神权国家，宗教信仰并不定义归属感。印度教徒、锡克教徒、犹太人或穆斯林与其他人一样，都是英国人。

将英国性等同于基督教不仅令人反感，更荒谬至极。在2021年的人口普查中，有2.07 亿人表示自己不信仰任何宗教。因此，Restore党显然认为英国三分之一以上的公民——无神论者或其他世俗非信徒——同样不属于英国人。实际上，由于仅46%的人口自认基督徒，Restore党可能将英国逾半数人口视为“不真正的英国人”。

诚然，可以论证英国和西方需要恢复其核心价值观的圣经起源，以维系并弘扬其历史文化。然而，非白人英国人对此至关重要。人口普查显示，49%的白人英国人信仰基督教，而这一比例在来自非洲或加勒比地区的黑人中上升至近70%。

正是因为英国不是一个民族国家，它才能对移民和少数群体格外包容。一旦入籍，所有人都平等地成为英国人。

可能需要更长时间——甚至永远无法——产生明显的英格兰或其他次国家认同感，但这并不重要。所有英国公民平等地共享一种基于特定政治自由理念的国家身份，以及促进文明、法律和历史进步的制度。

至少，过去曾是如此。如今有两大因素削弱了这一点。

首先是英国和西方对自身的所作所为。

知识界几十年来一直在宣扬，西方民族国家是偏见、分裂和战争的根源。后现代历史学家称国家认同不过是想象的产物。多元文化主义意味着国家的历史身份必须让位于一系列被视为更优越的竞争性文化。

这为第二重打击共同国家认同的因素铺平了道路，即大量无法融入的穆斯林公民，他们不愿适应英国，反而要求英国适应伊斯兰教。

自启蒙运动以来，西方社会契约一直要求践行自身信仰和文化的少数群体在英国和西方核心价值观的总体框架下行事。拒绝这样做的行为因大规模移民而演变为危机。

民粹主义对这一现象的反弹催生了英国的改革党和美国的“MAGA”（Maga）运动，后者又衍生出“恢复”（Restore）和“格鲁珀斯”（Groypers）等团体，他们要求白人基督教的同质性。但血统与土地民族主义是纳粹意识形态，从来不是英国的特色。应对英国国家认同侵蚀的正确方式是弘扬、捍卫和颂扬其核心价值观与制度。

“恢复”运动的活动人士声称在捍卫英国，实则试图将其变成完全非英国式的存在。他们既阴险又滑稽，与美国的同类一样，不应在任何地方、任何大帐篷内为其提供空间。

阿尔代事件揭示学术界如何被身份认同所俘获 奈杰尔·比格尔

阿尔代事件的重心已经转移。公众讨论已从杰森·阿尔代涉嫌个人不诚实的问题，转向为何他能被任命为剑桥大学的专业教授职位——以及这反映了高等教育的何种现状。

为何由八名教授和副校长组成的委员会一致推荐其任命，却未对其进行审查？一个主要的解释是申请者的身份：一名表面上患有自闭症的非洲裔男性，同时属于两个历史上被边缘化和受害的群体。

这一点完全合理。我曾亲眼目睹，即使在我们最负盛名的大学中，一些教授也会利用其受害者身份来标榜学术标准，并在理性的审判面前逃避问责。数年前，我曾在牛津大学参加一个关于帝国主义的小组讨论。一位国际关系学女教授是我的同台嘉宾。在某个时刻，我转向她说：“几分钟前，你刚刚说过X。现在你又说Y。这两者并不一致。”她傲慢地挥了挥手，将我的质疑一笔带过，并喊道：“别再用你那套学究式的辅导战术了！”

我目瞪口呆，心想：“这场游戏难道没有规则了吗？如果没有，那究竟意义何在？”显然，我们的讨论并非寻求真理的论坛，而是一个发表主张并通过暗示恶意来压制批评的舞台。因此，她称之为“战术”。但更甚的是，我的战术被贴上了“学究式”的标签，暗指1950年代身穿斜纹软呢外套、烟斗缭绕的老白男形象。我的同台嘉宾正在利用其作为受害群体（女性）成员的政治身份，对压迫群体（男性）成员的我进行压制，以达到让我闭嘴的目的。

这并非孤例。以加拿大的弗朗西斯·威多森为例。在担任蒙特罗亚尔大学政治学教授14年后，她于2021年被解雇。原因何在？当她质疑传统美洲原住民的“星辰知识”是否应被视为天文学时，原住民研究教授指控她种族骚扰，称其言论令校园对他们而言“乌烟瘴气”。

阿尔代事件揭开了学术界这一问题的盖子：正如亨利·诺瓦克谋杀案暴露了警界的同类问题。剑桥大学的地方调查远远不够。我们需要一场全国性的调查，来审视身份政治对大学的腐蚀性影响。

比格尔勋爵曾任牛津大学道德神学钦定教授

[...OMITTED...]

如果我们对鲜血的渴望不减缓，我们就要完蛋了

当我第一次看到标题《安德鲁·蒙巴顿-温莎将获皇家礼葬》时，我心想：“等等，他死了吗？我度假的时候发生的？可怜的家伙。不过这样也好。他受的苦已经够多了。就像一只老猫失明、肾脏开始衰竭时，虽然没人说出口，但家里每个人都知道，让它走对大家都好。”

但事实证明安德鲁并没有死。只是每个人都迫不及待地盼着他死，并兴奋地期待着他死后会遭受怎样的羞辱。这实在太不堪了。你们想让他们怎么处置这个老傻瓜的尸体？扔到城垛上安抚那群嗜血的暴民？用石头绑在口袋里沉进护城河？倒吊在战车后面拖着绕城墙一圈？剁碎做狗粮？还是像毛时代的中国那样做肥料？

当公众对一个人进行口诛笔伐时，总会有那么一个节点，此时全国上下的嗜血欲望所反映的，更多是这个社会本身，而非那个被针对的人。我们正在接近这个节点。我知道天气很热，我知道上周把杰森·阿代批得体无完肤很过瘾，但今天早上，我真希望我们都能退后一步，给自己一分钟思考。

利德尔的烦人事

罗德·利德尔（Rod Liddle）和我女朋友上床了。公平地说，当时她已经不是我女朋友了，我们几周前就分手了，但那时我和罗德的关系正处于低谷，所以我对此耿耿于怀。尤其让我介意的是我是怎么知道这件事的：在《今日》节目直播前四秒，约翰·汉弗莱斯（John Humphrys）在演播室里告诉我的。

汉弗莱斯以在节目外让嘉宾不安而闻名，但我当时只是去谈论餐厅价格，而不是为内阁的税收记录辩护，所以当制片人倒数时，听到他说：“顺便说一句，贾尔斯，我听说罗德·利德尔和你女朋友的事，哦，抱歉……现在来谈这个问题的是《泰晤士报》餐厅评论家，贾尔斯·科伦。”时，我有点惊讶。

直到今天，我仍然对约翰的做法比对罗德更恼火。罗德从不标榜自己有个人道德准则，而我和他几十年前就和好了。

实际上，我们之间还有一个小小的相互欣赏的圈子。我最怀念的，甚至超过他无畏的专栏和那肮脏的西德·詹姆斯式的笑声的，是他读完我的文章后，周六早上发来的短信：“你这个混蛋！我正在为《星期日泰晤士报》写一模一样的开头！一模一样的笑话！”

旱情下的发现

据周一的《泰晤士报》报道，旱情让空中考古学家们从高空俯瞰大地时，发现了比以往更多激动人心的古代遗址。这些遗址包括铁器时代的农场、墓葬、一战战壕和消失的乡村庄园花园，它们的埋藏轮廓随着土地干涸而显现。我的花园里也是如此。我乐观地称之为“万物凋零”的景象，迄今已揭示出三个腐烂的室内泡沫足球、各式各样的板球、网球和乒乓球、一只球拍、一辆三轮车、六辆生锈的玩具车、基蒂（Kitty）早已遗忘的最好朋友“熊猫”（看起来不太好）、两只松鼠的干尸、一把无人认领的仿真手枪，还有一个便盆。大英博物馆已经接到通知。

种子投资

我还发现了什么呢，石榴。有几十个。长在后院的一棵灌木上，那是我20年前种下的，现在想起来当时卖家说这是一棵“观赏石榴”。我还记得当时问过园艺中心的那个人，这棵树是否真的能结出石榴，他笑着回答：“除非你把它种在亚利桑那州！”好吧，我没有，但似乎花了些时间，亚利桑那州倒是来找我了。

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评论

购买《泰晤士报》漫画的印刷品或签名版，请访问我们的印刷画廊 timescartoons.com 或致电 0800 912 7136

有时，现代生活看似令人愉悦的琐碎

苏巴朗的画展让人沉浸在圣徒般的庄严之中，但如今我们大多数人会选择自由而非宗教戒律

@J_AMESMARRIOTT

在画家弗朗西斯科·德·苏巴朗的一幅静物画中，即使是一杯水也如圣徒般静谧而庄严。柠檬在深沉的黑暗中发出光芒，如同圣灵本身般熠熠生辉。目前在国家美术馆举办的展览，让观众有机会在17世纪西班牙的精神世界中度过一个颇具启发性的上午。如果说苏巴朗笔下的水果看似神圣，那么他的圣徒们无疑是画布上最为虔诚的圣徒之一。他们张口无言地虔诚祈祷，双眼向上仰望天堂。圣方济各跪地双手交握骷髅的姿态，透露出一种令人不安的孩童般的纯真。

对于一个在周六上午从世俗的伦敦阳光下漫步而来的普通游客而言，这种庄严的氛围令人感到不适。从精神层面来说，你仿佛穿着泳裤出席了一位年长公爵夫人的派对。

几乎所有人都认为，21世纪的生活无可救药地琐碎。

原子化的资本主义社会能为公民提供许多东西——奥赛匹克、智能手表、无尽的在线色情——但它们在回答“大问题”上却表现拙劣。我们为何在此？我们应如何生活？

“意义危机”是当下流行的一种诊断，用以解释在我们这个无神论和物质主义文明中成长的年轻人所遭受的焦虑。在右翼阵营，乔丹·彼得森及其众多模仿者敦促颓废的年轻人回归等级、秩序与信仰。各种在线运动见证了现代人对意义的普遍怀旧情绪，从在Instagram上过着田园牧歌般的“传统妻子”生活，到在埃隆·马斯克的X平台上无处不在的怀念中世纪的反动怀旧者。

这些抱怨者对他们所诊断的问题并非总是错误。我自己也常常加入这些哀叹的行列。然而，面对那些空洞的永恒幻象，我略感颤栗，重新回到特拉法加广场时，却不禁想到，漫无目的且颓废的现代性至少有几点值得称道。诚然，苏巴朗笔下的世界充满了意义；17世纪对寓言的痴迷意味着每一朵花、每一个果实都蕴含着宇宙的深意。但尽管这种氛围在短时间内不失为一种有益的清醒剂，我却庆幸自己无需生活在十字架和死亡警示（memento mori）之中。

过去赋予生命重量的许多事物——社群、信仰和社会责任——比21世纪的怀旧者所记得的更为压抑。现代个人主义观念认为，我们都有自由创造自己的目标，并按自己的意愿度过一生，这无疑是一种焦虑的来源（不妨与一位试图选择职业的应届大学毕业生交谈），但其替代方案并不如某些人想象的那般诱人。

对17世纪的大多数人来说，生命的意义几乎不是一个问题。每个男人和女人都被安置在一个从蚯蚓、面包师、骑士、国王、天使直至上帝的宇宙等级体系中。这种存在的确定性或许令人安慰，但安慰的代价是束缚。与生俱来的目的可能是一种压迫。王室成员——这些现代社会中最后一批生命在出生前就被决定的人——为我们提供了一个警示：过度充满目的的生活会是什么样子。而生活在宫殿中无疑能缓解这种压力。

历史学家基思·托马斯写道，在17世纪，普遍的态度是“即使是街头饿死的流浪汉也不应抱怨自己的命运”。我怀疑，真正的意义往往涉及

真正的意义往往涉及取舍；它要求我们承受痛苦。

诚然，当今世界之所以比苏巴朗的时代显得如此琐碎，最明显的原因莫过于死亡已从日常生活中消失。过去充斥着疾病与死亡，这种情形是现代人难以真正理解的。现代儿童夭折已极为罕见：而在大约一百年前，这却是常态。“生死相依”——《公祷书》如是写道，这句话在当时几乎是老生常谈。

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漫步于国家美术馆，不难发现苏巴朗绝非唯一在作品中堆砌骷髅的画家。死亡不仅使生命更显庄严，还引发人们对永恒与生命意义的思考。悲剧迫使我们的祖先不得不直面那些重大问题，尽管他们或许并不情愿。一个能像我们这样轻易忽略死亡的社会（正如陈词滥调所言，“死亡是最后的禁忌”），自然能轻松回避沉重的话题。如果说这让我们变得轻浮，那也算是一种胜利。

尽管时下流行对“意义缺失”的哀叹，我怀疑许多人对意义的渴望并不如他们想象的那般强烈。或者至少，他们不愿为此付出必要的代价。从爱尔兰到韩国，过去百年间世俗化的证据表明：当人们在信仰、社群、上帝与漫无目的的自由之间做选择时，几乎所有人（或许阿米什人是值得尊敬的例外）都会选择自由。

因此，我当然认同我们的文化过于琐碎。但我也感激我们的祖先——那些被上帝困扰的人——从未体验过的事：一种过于轻松的存在之轻。在苏巴朗的画作之后，我将严肃的思绪抛诸脑后，漫步至一家咖啡馆，在毫无意义的夏日阳光下吃着三明治。

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20

读者来信

对英国在Cern角色的担忧

先生：赖斯·布莱克利恰当地指出了“好奇心驱动”研究与声称能带来“更快回报”的工作之间的紧张关系（《焦德雷尔班克天文台或可获救，但其他研究将付出何种代价？》，8月1日）。科学家们理解资金竞争的现实。他们对英国研究与创新署（UKRI）近期决定的警惕，源于戴姆·齐·昂乌拉议员（科学、创新和技术委员会主席）所形容的“不可接受”的削减。

英国参与LHCb（欧洲核子研究组织四大旗舰实验之一）受到的冲击尤为严重。将LHCb简单描述为“好奇心驱动”忽视了其更广泛的回报。英国数十年的投资已积累了世界领先的专业知识，培养了AI、数据科学和计算领域的毕业生，并推动了探测器、半导体和电子技术的进步。

英国在LHCb中担任多个重要领导职位，并支持《欧洲粒子物理战略》，该战略优先利用高亮度LHC，包括LHCb的升级。然而，英国对该升级的资助现已被撤回。英国每年对该升级的贡献仅需450万英镑——约占UKR15预算的0.05%。节省的金额微不足道，但对英国科学领导力、技能培养及作为可靠国际合作伙伴的声誉所造成的损害却不容小觑。新成立的商业、创新、科学和贸易部已继承了这一决定的后果，同时也拥有扭转这一局面的机会。

葆拉·柯林斯 LHCb实验副发言人 欧洲核子研究组织

盖特威克机场的批准

先生：我对首相未重新审视批准盖特威克机场第二跑道的决定感到惊讶（报道，8月5日），因为这与他鼓励地区发展的政策相悖。与希思罗机场不同，盖特威克主要是度假交通设施。英国其他地区的民众同样有度假需求，也将从任何扩建项目的建设阶段中受益。英国其他地区对就业的需求显然比东南部更为迫切。可以说，如果英国更多人能使用当地机场，伦敦已拥有足够的机场容量。地区将发现，增加的机场容量和航线连接将带动当地发展。现在取消盖特威克第二跑道的批准还为时不晚。 理查德·洛克伍德 肯特郡奇丁斯通

更正与说明

编辑部政策 《泰晤士报》严肃对待有关编辑内容的投诉。我们致力于遵守独立新闻标准组织（IPSO）的准则和其执行的《编辑行为守则》。更正请求请发送至feedback@thetimes.co.uk

20英里时速限制的悄然扩张

先生： 正如利比·普维斯所指出的那样，琳达·拉普兰特的经历令人震惊（《20英里时速限制扰乱心智》，8月10日）。政府是时候介入，控制20英里时速限制的悄然扩张了。我建议我们干脆取消所有限速，改为设立一项“在现有道路条件下不适当驾驶速度”的单一违法行为。这将在特定道路的不同情况下（如交通拥堵和高峰时段）提供适当的灵活性。那些危及他人生命的司机往往是极少数极不负责任的驾驶者，无论是否有限速，他们都会继续如此。我们大多数人都是可靠且理智的，知道在什么速度下驾驶是正确的。

迈克尔·贾金斯 剑桥郡，伊利

先生： 每一位道路使用者都知道，20英里时速限制荒谬且具有惩罚性。作为一项普遍限制，它实在太慢了。当初选择20英里时速无疑有其合理原因，但主要原因可能仅仅是因为这是一个整数。然而，这一数字在欧洲大陆并无多大意义，因为它相当于31公里 / 小时。显然，更合理的选择是25英里 / 小时，正好相当于40公里 / 小时，这一速度更为合理，大多数道路使用者也会觉得完全可以接受。

杰夫·亨特 伦敦 SW19

先生： 当每年有成千上万守法公民因“超速”而受到处罚时，显然存在问题。从30英里 / 小时降至20英里 / 小时的31%降幅，与从70英里 / 小时降至60英里 / 小时的14%降幅相比，前者极为巨大。在许多城市地区，30英里 / 小时可能确实有点过快，但将速度降至25英里 / 小时以下即可实现所需的安全改善。起诉那些仅超速几英里的司机，其主要目的似乎是为了增加收入。

至今无人解释为何旧有的“经验法则”不再适用，即允许超速10%加上2英里的宽限。

戴维·罗森 兰开斯特

先生： 在去年英国逾125,000名在20英里时速区被抓的司机中，有我的两位家人，他们在伦敦因加速避开危险交通状况而被记录到时速22英里和23英里（《20英里时速如何占领城镇》，8月8日）。正因为如此，当我最近尝试续保汽车保险时，费用上涨了£500——让那些唯利是图的企业赚得更多。

莱斯利·汤普森 萨福克郡，拉文纳姆

先生： 我建议在20英里时速区使用不同颜色的道路标线，以提醒司机当前的限速。这一原则也可用于限速60英里或70英里的道路。

吉姆·帕特里克 北拉纳克郡，基尔赛斯

先生： 多年前我参加的速度意识课程中，最有用的信息来自其他8名学员：其他测速陷阱的位置。

奈杰尔·奥斯汀 多塞特郡，多切斯特

致《泰晤士报》的信件必须为独家内容，并可能经过编辑。请提供完整地址和日间联系电话。

采访阿尔代

先生，剑桥发生的事件表明，负责面试候选人的人不愿寻求真相（《奉承的自由派为阿尔代闹剧铺路》，特雷弗·菲利普斯，8月10日）。如果面试官不愿直接质疑候选人简历真实性的原因是出于尴尬（彼得·里德尔爵士来信，8月8日），那么有一种不那么直接的替代方法。即在询问候选人成就时，表达对其所谓成就的适当热情。如果候选人有夸大简历的嫌疑，这一点很快就会显露出来。

举个例子，多年前，我曾被要求介入一位申请律师学徒（一种见习制度）的候选人面试。在其简历中，候选人提到曾参加过一个知名电视智力竞赛节目，以此彰显个人声望。我说这是一项了不起的成就，并开始询问细节。很快便发现，该候选人并非竞赛团队成员，而仅仅是一名观众。在探求真相时，总有不止一种方法可以达到目的。

克里斯托弗·艾尔文 伦敦 SW6

先生，大学教授任命引发的争议源于1983年，当时政府引入了带有财政激励的排名机制，最初针对研究，后来扩展到教学。普遍存在的谬误是认为由此释放的达尔文式力量会筛选出“最优秀”的人才。相反，它们筛选出的是最擅长操纵现行体系的人，这一过程系统性地适用于申请者和任命机构。据此分析，当前的混乱可能只是冰山一角。

马克·兰斯代尔 实验心理学荣休教授，莱斯特郡凯厄姆

候选人过剩

先生，克拉克顿补选候选人数量激增——最新统计达34人——并未增强议会民主。《1983年人民代表法》要求有意竞选威斯敏斯特议员的候选人仅需获得选区内10名登记选民的支持，即提名人。其中前两位是提名人和附议人，其余8位是提名同意人（附表1，第7条规则）。法律应修改为要求500名登记选民支持且无需缴纳£500保证金，而非仅凭1,少数选民支持和缴纳保证金。这样，选民将面对已展现地方支持的严肃议员候选人。

科纳尔·格雷戈里 1983年至1992年约克保守党议员

失望的《奥德赛》

先生，我们的老耳朵对噪音的容忍度可能比萨斯南·桑格拉（《IMAX体验过度》，专栏，8月10日）更低。在当地IMAX影院观看《奥德赛》不到1分钟便选择离场。经理好心退还了我们支付的£40，显然这笔钱是用来损害听力的。

汤姆·约 米德尔塞克斯郡恩菲尔德

普利茅斯潜艇灾难

《泰晤士报》1926年8月11日

海军部就H29号潜艇事故发布公告：“海军部遗憾宣布，除已报告的H29号潜艇遇难人员外，现已确认发动机技工H·希尔（编号9647）在潜艇沉没时亦在艇上，推定已遇难。打捞工作正在进行，潜艇打捞出水后将展开事故原因调查。”

打捞工作仍在持续，但截至今晚尚未取得成果。尽管潜艇沉没于德文波特船厂的一个船坞内，周围有各类起重机和打捞设备，但打捞过程异常艰难。部分原因在于潜艇沉没时发生了倾覆。在将其打捞出水前，必须先使其恢复直立状态，而由于艇内灌满了水，移动极为困难。

大量潜水员及其他工作人员已投入打捞工作。在其他尝试均告失败后，现已在潜艇下方系上缆绳，试图将其拖至船坞内另一位置，以便在其周围构筑围堰并抽出积水。调查法庭将于今日召开，由船厂舰长、维多利亚十字勋章获得者E·C·博伊尔上校主持。

一名幸存者描述了灾难发生前试图通过排空水箱使潜艇恢复浮力的努力。当潜艇开始倾斜时，轮机长道尔顿和M·E·韦维尔中尉仍留在艇内，守在水箱旁直至艇内进水。潜艇沉没时，韦维尔中尉被水流冲上指挥塔，但道尔顿被困艇内溺亡。据称，事故发生时两人均在甲板上，随后进入艇内试图挽救潜艇。

韦维尔中尉在逃生过程中受重伤，现已确认伤势好转。6名平民及船员遇难。韦维尔中尉及另一名军官被判玩忽职守。

THE TIMES.COM / ARCHIVE

宝贵的遗产

先生，《您的文章〈黑格将不会入住海军部官邸〉（8月6日）及后续来信（8月8日及10日）引发了关于“恩典与失宠”官邸的更广泛讨论。契克斯庄园（3,500英亩）、切文宁庄园（3,000英亩）和达文尼森林（215英亩）一年中大部分时间闲置，且仅供首相、外交大臣和财政大臣专用。三处庄园均由独立信托基金持有，无法直接出售。但它们可以成为兼顾公共遗产的开放景点，正如王室在自身官邸运营中所展示的成效。若管理得当，三处庄园每年可合理产生1500 万至£1000 万的净盈余。这笔资金可用于首相上任后的首要承诺：消除露宿街头现象。用大片闲置的房产帮助无家可归者，这其中有着强烈的感召力。

艾伦·科平 前英国皇家宫殿历史遗产首席执行官，前毕马威咨询公司景点运营专家

提前释放风波

先生，尽管我认同约翰·扬来信（8月10日）的总体基调，但他将对三名被告以过失杀人罪起诉归咎于英国皇家检察署（CPS）是错误的。事实上，这三人最初被控谋杀，过失杀人罪仅作为备选指控。陪审团在其职权范围内驳回了谋杀指控，并判定过失杀人罪成立。上诉法院认为过失杀人罪的量刑并未过于宽松。若陪审团判定谋杀罪成立，法官本应依法判处终身监禁，并设定最低服刑期限为10年，从而避免当前关于释放的问题。

杰拉尔德·克利夫顿法官 拉特兰郡奥克姆

威尔士新浪潮

先生，《詹姆斯·邦德》系列电影为威尔士市场提供了一个激动人心的重述机会（读者来信，8月6日、8日及10日）。可否允许我再补充几部？《钻石属于六人组》（Diamonds Are For five）。

《再活一天与莱尔执照》（Dai Another Day and Licence to Rhyl）。 邦妮·怀特 萨默塞特郡韦尔斯

先生，继《致梅瑟蒂的M》（Dial M for Merthyr）之后，或许我们可以前往威尔士中部的坎布里亚山脉，开启《壮丽的塞文》（The Magnificent Severn）之旅。史蒂夫·布林 剑桥

术语破解

先生，别管“从一开始”（8月10日来信）了。什么是“个人背景故事”这种废话？

奈杰尔·森特 东洛锡安郡北贝里克

狗狗的人生

先生，德博拉·罗斯的文章（8月8日；8月10日来信）让我也不禁莞尔，她谈到养狗的经历。这让我想起已故的波兰籍父亲。每当成年的子女养狗时，他总会双手一摊，说道：“你们没烦恼了！养狗去吧！”他坚称这是句古老的波兰谚语，但我不太确定。

凯丝·贝里斯福德 斯塔福德郡纽卡斯尔安德莱姆

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21

社论

《每日环球纪事报》

英国：英国零售商协会发布月度销售报告。

自然笔记

狍鹿在盛夏时节进入发情期，比马鹿或黇鹿更早，通常在8月的第二周达到高峰。平日里胆小温顺的雄性（称为“公鹿”）在交配季节会变得好斗、警觉且爱发声。它们从3月和4月开始建立领地，通常与前一年相同的区域：优质领地需具备食物、隐蔽处，并能接触多只独居的雌鹿。雌鹿每年仅有36至48小时的发情期，在此期间，公鹿会紧随其后——有时甚至追逐雌鹿绕圈奔跑——以致常常忘记进食饮水，甚至可能因体力耗尽而倒下。发情期过后，公鹿的领地便会解散。梅丽莎·哈里森

今日生日

克里斯·海姆斯沃斯（Chris Hemsworth），演员，作品包括《极速风流》（Rush，2013）、《复仇者联盟》系列电影，43岁；汤姆·布洛姆菲尔德（Tom Blomfield），数字银行 Monzo 联合创始人，41岁；唐·博伊德（Don Boyd），电影导演兼制片人，《阿里斯》（Aris，1987），78岁；杰弗里·卡斯爵士（Sir Geoffrey Cass），皇家戏剧支持信托基金会主席兼联合创始人，皇家莎士比亚剧团主席（1985-2000），94岁；杰克·库齐克爵士（Sir Jack Cuzick），伦敦玛丽王后大学流行病学荣休教授，78岁；维奥拉·戴维斯（Viola Davis），演员，《围栏》（Fences，2016），61岁；彼得·艾森曼（Peter Eisenman），建筑师，柏林欧洲被杀犹太人纪念碑（2005），94岁；本·埃利奥特爵士（Sir Ben Elliot），保守党联合主席（2019-22），奢侈礼宾服务公司 Quintessentially Group 联合创始人，51岁；肯尼思·甘布尔（Kenneth Gamble），词曲作者兼制作人，与利昂·哈夫（Leon Huff）共同创造“费城之声”，《爱之火车》（Love Train，欧杰斯乐队，1972），83岁；迈克·霍格（Mike Hogg），音乐家，曼弗雷德·曼恩乐队成员，《Do With Diddy Diddy》（1964），84岁；安东尼·休斯勋爵（Lord (Anthony) Hughes of Ombetsley），调查权力副专员，英国最高法院大法官（2013-18），78岁；乔·杰克逊（Joe Jackson），音乐家，《她真的要和他出去吗？》（Is She Really Going Out with Him?，1978），72岁；

阿什莉·詹森（Ashley Jensen），演员，《阿加莎·雷辛》（Agatha Raisin，2014-22），57岁；夏洛特·莱斯利（Charlotte Leslie），保守党中东理事会总经理，布里斯托尔西北选区议员（2010-17），48岁；斯里·普拉卡什·洛希亚（Sri Prakash Lohia），商人，Indorama 公司（石化及纺织）创始人兼董事长，74岁；伊恩·麦克迪尔米德（Ian McDiarmid），演员，《星球大战》系列电影中扮演帕尔帕廷皇帝，82岁；詹姆斯·梅茨（James Mates），记者，ITV 新闻欧洲编辑，65岁；约翰·米克尔思韦特（John Micklethwait），彭博新闻总编辑，《经济学人》总编辑（2006-15），64岁；索菲·奥康内多（Sophie Okonedo），演员，《卢旺达饭店》（Hotel Rwanda，2004），58岁；理查德·斯卡达莫尔（Richard Scudamore），英超联赛首席执行官（1999-2014），67岁；孙正义（Masayoshi Son），商人，软银集团（投资控股公司）创始人兼首席执行官，69岁；苏·斯特里特女爵士（Dame Sue Street），兰伯特舞蹈团主席（2019年-2026年6月），77岁；桑迪·汤姆（Sandi Thom），创作型歌手，《我希望自己是个朋克摇滚歌手（头发里插满鲜花）》（I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)，2006），45岁；史蒂夫·沃兹尼亚克（Steve Wozniak），苹果电脑公司联合创始人（1976），76岁。

今日历史

1919年，魏玛宪法生效，建立了战后德国国家体制。

最后一句话

每一代人都自以为比前一代更聪明，比后一代更睿智。 —— 乔治·奥威尔，作家兼记者，《诗歌季刊》（1945）

智囊

安迪·伯纳姆未能任命真正的经济顾问，这损害了他的可信度。同时也凸显了政府迫切需要一个增长计划。

倘若不是因为其继任者在金融城声誉不佳，基尔·斯塔默在唐宁街的短暂任期可能会更加短暂。作为前财政部首席秘书和英格兰增长最快地区的市长，安迪·伯纳姆或许认为外界指责他经济无知有失公允。然而，数月来，随着斯塔默的支持率跌至新低，焦虑的工党议员们纷纷觊觎伯纳姆彼时高得离谱的民意支持率，这些指责在财政部内部不断被重提。

批评者抨击伯纳姆是个挥霍无度的人，其大规模国有化的承诺将使国家破产。去年9月，他宣称英国“必须摆脱对债券市场的依赖”，此言一出似乎坐实了批评者的指控。在“特拉斯经济学”惨败后，这一表态被广泛解读为天真幼稚的表现。人们普遍认为，伯纳姆尽管在市政政治上游刃有余，但已不再理解他渴望领导的国家政府的基本职责和约束。

伯纳姆始终坚称自己遭到误解。他实际上表示，希望重塑国家，使其不必一开始就大举借债。在梅克菲尔德补选的工党领袖竞选活动中，他谨慎强调了对财政责任的承诺。为此，这位“准领袖”的团队大力宣传其核心圈子中有三位英国经济学界的“智囊”：奥尼尔勋爵（盖特利的奥尼尔），乔治·奥斯本任内的财政部长；安迪·霍尔丹，前英格兰银行首席经济学家；以及理查德·休斯，去年秋天前任英国预算责任办公室主席。

这一安排旨在传递安抚信号。有如此多享有盛誉的经济学家提供智囊，伯纳姆能有多危险？他们的顾问角色表明，他正认真对待执政的义务和严酷现实。奥尼尔勋爵和霍尔丹曾为保守党首相就区域不平等问题开展重要工作。休斯则在公职生涯后期确保预算数字不出差错，无论政治后果多么严峻。

然而，这三位“智囊”如今无一在唐宁街任职，也未出现在财政部——约翰·希利在那里迫切需要一位有足够资历的经济顾问，以证明自己不仅仅是作为财政大臣的折中人选。

看起来，霍尔丹和休斯并未获得职位。而《泰晤士报》披露，奥尼尔勋爵——虽不愿将其商业利益交由盲目信托管理——至今仍未确信伯纳姆已意识到征收财富税的愚蠢之处。他们的缺席留下了令人担忧的空白。斯塔默也吸取了同样的教训，但为时已晚：去年9月，他任命沙菲克男爵为经济顾问，但这一任命为时过晚，未能产生任何影响。

随着他在社交媒体上宣扬“曼彻斯特主义”的福音，伯纳姆先生已展现出愿意动用国家权力来缓解生活成本危机。换言之，他非常擅长花钱。在预算案出台时，他和希利先生将不得不至少筹措100亿英镑，用于实施封顶公交票价、削减增值税和企业税率——同时还要填补国防开支的缺口。为这些措施提供资金的最佳方式，是制定一项让英国经济以曼彻斯特速度增长的计划。然而迄今为止，首相几乎没有提出任何迹象表明他拥有可信的增长理论。伯纳姆政府反而主要专注于将同一块蛋糕切分得越来越薄。“更明智的经济建议或许能在一定程度上向国民证明，他所提供的不仅仅是挥霍和加税。”

共同防御

中东正在寻求无需美国骑兵介入的自卫之道

尽管经历了多场战争和爆炸，中东仍是一个寻求制度稳定的地区。沙特阿拉伯、土耳其和巴基斯坦刚刚达成的《麦加协议》旨在推进这一目标——但最终可能暴露这三个地区有影响力的权力掮客之间无法调和的分歧。

这一新防务条约的核心原则明显照搬自北约联盟的关键共同承诺：“对三国中任何一方的武装攻击，均应视为对三国全体的攻击”。这一措辞促使评论人士将这一新联盟描述为“逊尼派北约”的起点。沙特阿拉伯为这一防御联盟带来了资金、能源和军购雄心，巴基斯坦贡献了核武库和庞大的人力储备；土耳其则不仅提供了北约第二大军队，还通过情报驱动的军事和战略参与覆盖了广泛的阿拉伯语和突厥语邻国。

这标志着中东和南亚地区迈向本土安全架构的第一大步，并逐渐摆脱对美国安全保护伞的附庸式依赖。它也可能成为对白宫任何突然政策转向的对冲。

对土耳其和沙特而言，这一联盟旨在制衡以色列在中东的力量投射。同时，它也承认伊朗在与邻国的持久战争后意外地变得更加强大。4月，巴基斯坦向沙特空军基地部署了一支战斗机中队及机组人员，以防御伊朗的袭击。土耳其与沙特的军事合作正在加深，为新一轮针对胡塞叛军的战斗做准备。沙特已与土耳其签署了大规模无人机采购和培训协议。

然而，《麦加协议》距离成为一个新北约仍有千里之遥。它缺乏统一的指挥结构、联合作战条令、一体化防空网络和联合作战指挥部。最合理的解读是，这是一个国家间的防御安排，未来可能逐步应对挑战。沙特阿拉伯的天然防御范围是海湾合作-合作委员会，该组织在与伊朗的长期对峙中已暴露出诸多内部紧张关系。巴基斯坦与中国有正式的战略协调——若中印关系紧张升级，其新盟友将如何应对？埃尔多安与美国的关系限度在伊朗库尔德人协助的政权更迭准备中已显露无遗。安卡拉对此毫无兴趣。

若这一新条约要生根发芽，首先必须在全球战争消耗装备之际，成为一个相互强化的防御工业复合体。与此同时，沙特阿拉伯不应轻易放弃加入《亚伯拉罕协议》的选项，该协议有助于将以色列纳入更广泛的战略对话。只要以色列否认巴勒斯坦建国的可能性，沙特领导层就将回避这一外交轴心。以色列表示，在哈马斯恐怖组织可核查地解除武装并关闭其地道网络之前，无法考虑加沙的和平。若沙特和土耳其能对哈马斯施加更大压力，要求其解除武装，那么这两方面都可能取得进展。中东迫切需要新的思路。

在树荫下

随着夏季变得越来越炎热，城市需要更多的树木来为我们降温

如果你最近几个月没有出过门，可能还不知道英国正在经历一个异常炎热的夏天。英国气象局已发布连续预警，警告气温将进一步攀升。热浪正在影响日常生活，而超过 2500 万 英国人正在忍受用水限制。如果这种天气成为新常态，我们作为一个国家该如何更好地应对？安装更多空调是一个良好的开端。另一个措施是建造更多水库，以应对更长时间的无雨期。此外，城市还面临着城市热岛效应加剧的挑战，融化的人行道灼伤着猫狗的爪子。

值得庆幸的是，有一个解决方案——一个显而易见的方案。城市设计智库“Create Streets基金会”在一份新报告中指出，我们需要更多的树木，或称之为“城市神奇药物”。其研究人员上个月在南华克和兰贝斯的街道上使用热成像相机，证明了绿叶的降温效果。在某些地点，人行道和儿童游乐场的表面温度高达55℃。而在仅几米之外的树荫下，温度则低了 25℃至30℃。这与早期研究结果一致，即林荫街道的大气温度可降低 5℃至7℃。

因此，我们必须种植更多的树木。Create Streets基金会认为，1980 年的《公路法》需要修订，以确保新增绿化不再被自动视为负面因素。地方当局应加快审批流程，允许居民种植更多树木。土地所有者也应承担更大的责任，保护其土地上已有的树木。气候变暖带来的许多问题将难以应对，尤其是在人口密集的城市。但为街道降温并非难事。为了拥有更清洁的空气、更宜居的环境、更美丽的城市以及更凉爽的温度，种植更多树木几乎总是正确的选择。

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22

国际

欧洲军队对AI无人机集群的恐惧

德国

奥利弗·穆迪 柏林报道

在佛罗里达州国民警卫队的一个训练基地，六架四旋翼无人机在灌木丛上空盘旋，如同一小群迎风飞翔的海鸥般相互穿梭。

随后，在一名人类飞行员的指令下，其中三架依次俯冲而下，摧毁了道路上的一排充气坦克，而其他无人机则在上空盘旋，观察毁伤情况。

多年来，人工智能驱动的无人机集群一直是现代战争边缘挥之不去的噩梦。

如今，正如德美防务科技公司 Auterion 几个月前发布的这段打击测试视频所示，这一技术正日益进入战场，并令欧洲的防务规划者和国家安全官员忧心忡忡。

“我们对此极为担忧，”德国政府 Zitis 信息技术安全机构首席技术官延斯·勒默尔在柏林前泰格尔机场举行的无人机防御会议上表示。

“目前我们仍处于这样一种境地：探测和防御系统可能很快被压垮，且无法足够迅速地评估态势……这正是安全机构深感忧虑的地方，因为在乌克兰普遍有效的军事反制措施，在此情境下并不奏效。”

乌克兰已成为这一新兴技术的主要实验场。其武装部队一直在前线试验规模不断扩大的自主攻击和侦察集群，最初仅为两架攻击无人机和一架“侦察”无人机的小型编队。

通过乌克兰防务公司 Swarmer 的软件，操作员可派遣由八架或更多无人机组成的独立“猎杀”中队，识别并消灭俄罗斯目标。

已知欧洲其他地区至少有六家防务公司成功测试了集群技术，一名操作员可同时指挥多达 18 架无人机。在美国，军事承包商已展示了由逾百架无人机组成的自主网络，五角大楼的目标是打造拥有多达 500 个单位的“集群中的集群”能力。

今年3月，中国公布了“阿特拉斯”系统，该系统利用车辆发射最多 96 架无人机，可由单一指挥所同时控制。

德国防务软件初创公司 Autonomous Teaming 的首席执行官马塞尔·“奥托”·永表示，部队能够在陆、海、空域部署由数千架无人机组成的集群，如同独立的AI指挥作战编队，只是时间问题。

“仅从规模来看，这已成为一种新型大规模杀伤性武器，”他说，“如果真正达到拥有 10,000 架完全自主运行的无人机——探测目标、跟踪、执行——这将是一种全新的能力。”

永补充道：“这正是我们认为需要保护己方部队和文明社会免受集群威胁的场景，不仅限于飞行无人机，还包括人形机器人、地面车辆、海上无人艇等。”

过去几年，欧洲人已习惯看到俄罗斯攻击无人机如潮水般袭击乌克兰城市，并深入波兰领空。尽管这些由飞行炸弹和诱饵组成的编队有时被称作“集群”，且据信在进攻规划中可能使用了某种程度的人工智能，但真正意义上的互联自主集群

上月在柏林“韧性日”展示的拦截无人机

无人机构成的威胁级别截然不同。这些无人机形成一个相互交织的群体，有点像椋鸟群飞，由一名飞行员指挥——尽管它们也能在无人指令的情况下运作。这种能力在无线电信号经常被强烈的电磁战切断或扭曲的环境中至关重要。

波恩附近弗劳恩霍夫FKIE研究中心传感器与信息融合部门负责人沃尔夫冈·科赫教授解释说，这些无人机群不仅能灵活应对敌方防御，还能即兴制定复杂战术以压制对手。

欧洲各国军队正在进行相关技术演习。今年3月，英、美、澳三国军队在索尔兹伯里平原上空协同操控侦察无人机群。

几周后，美国陆军第五军在立陶宛举行的“捕蝇草5.0”军事演习中，测试了北约最先进的无人机防御系统，对抗来自多家欧洲和美国国防科技公司的无人机群。据悉，部分无人机群突破了反无人机系统。

德国武装部队中央规划办公室负责整合复杂新技术的部门负责人亨宁·赖曼表示：“对我们而言，这尚未成为现实。但我确信，未来一名操作员将能控制多架可或多或少自主行动的无人机。”

Yon（伊翁）表示，这场军备竞赛发展迅猛，无人机群规模和目标探测成功率等指标每三个月就能提升约25%。

“俄罗斯方面的创新速度相当惊人，”他说，“大规模集群自主攻击无人机是否会很快出现？绝对会……当一项技术进步如此之快时，意味着两年半内会有十倍变化，五年内会有百倍进展。我非常有信心地说，是的，绝对会在未来五年内看到这样的场景。”

然而，防御方的发展同样迅速。在上月由《当局镜报》组织的柏林“无人机韧性日”上，多家德国企业展示了各类工具，从能劫持无人机的干扰器，到发射网的无人机，再到专为自杀式拦截来袭巡飞弹而设计的“拦截机”。

Inleap Photonics和Stark公司展示了一款配备激光炮的无人地面车辆，并进行了实弹测试：一名德国军官在柏林操控该系统，在约150英里外的汉诺威烧毁了一架四轴无人机。

难点在于，这些装备可能过于缓慢、昂贵或笨重，无法抵御由数百架以超过100英里 / 小时速度移动的联网攻击无人机所发动的精心编排的轰炸。

新一代初创企业正在解决这一问题，提出的方案包括高度便携的快速射击“加特林”激光器，以及声称能比人类操作员更快响应威胁的全自动无人机防御指挥软件。

“过饱和是战争中长期存在的战术手段，”Yon说，“乌克兰已经在手动操作中展现了一定的战术复杂性。你会先派出20架诱饵无人机，再派出5架真正的[攻击]无人机……如果由AI完成，那么它只是扩大了这种能力并使其更易实现。如果射速提高，那么对优质反[无人机]解决方案的需求也会更大。这就是攻防双方永恒的创新竞赛。”

海马：法国南部卡马格地区，一群马群在海浪中奔腾。

“逊尼派穆斯林北约”协议显示摆脱美国的自主意愿

土耳其

利兹·库克曼 伊斯坦布尔报道

周五土耳其、沙特阿拉伯和巴基斯坦签署的防务协议被形容为“逊尼派穆斯林北约”。

三个军事实力最强的逊尼派国家承诺，对其中任何一方的武装攻击将被视为对三国的共同攻击。

麦加联合防务协议可能标志着埃尔多安总统在中东安全事务中角色的重大扩展。

然而，该协议也引发了质疑，主要集中在谁是协议最可能的对手，以及当仅涉及一国利益时，三国是否真的会相互驰援。分析人士称，该协议可能更多是“传递信号”而非铁板钉钉的保证。

无论如何，这一协议源于中东日益恶化的安全局势。加沙冲突仍显示出活跃迹象，并伴随着以色列、美国与伊朗之间持续近六个月的敌对行动。

以色列还在与黎巴嫩真主党交战，尽管已有停火协议，并占领了阿萨德政权倒台后的叙利亚部分地区，而土耳其埃尔多安政府正是叙利亚的主要支持者。

加入该协议的三国均为美国的关键盟友，理论上处于该地区结构性分裂的反伊朗“阵营”。

土耳其外长哈坎·菲丹坚称该协议并非针对伊朗。然而，沙特阿拉伯曾遭伊朗轰炸，其石油产业是最大的经济受损方之一。伊朗导弹在飞向土耳其领空时曾被击落。巴基斯坦与邻国伊朗关系复杂，时有敌意。

三国的军事实力均不容小觑。巴基斯坦是唯一的穆斯林核大国，沙特阿拉伯拥有海湾地区领先的阿拉伯军事力量，土耳其则拥有北约第二大陆军和蓬勃发展的国防工业。

尽管三国均对伊朗心存忧虑，并批评以色列在加沙及该地区其他地方的行动，但它们面临的主要威胁各不相同。巴基斯坦仍将印度视为其国家安全的主要威胁——

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23

印度村民因耗水数据中心起义

民主党人冷冻卵子引发政治辩论

KAT（圣陷阱）媒体

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这些马匹在罗讷河三角洲的沼泽中半野生生活，以耐力、强健和敏捷著称

各国军力对比

麦加联合防务协议

Pakistan / 660,000

Turkey / 345,200 Saudi Arabia / 257,000

北约最大陆军

US / 1,340,150

中东地区最大规模的军队

Iran / 610,000

按现役军事人员计算，搜索：Mithya Bishnoi 2026。

土耳其长期与希腊存在问题，并在塞浦路斯问题上有所牵涉，同时还介入叙利亚事务；而沙特阿拉伯近年来的主要战线则是与伊朗支持的胡塞武装在也门的冲突。

华盛顿布鲁金斯学会分析师阿斯利·艾丁塔斯巴什表示，该协议更多基于集体威慑而非集体防御。她表示：“这不是北约的翻版。”艾丁塔斯巴什称，该协议部分是“愿景性的”，反映了土耳其希望在中东建立“一个更大规模、多国参与的防御架构”的愿望，同时向伊朗和以色列传递信息。

这一架构的核心是三国共同感知到的需求，即建立一个以本地区为中心、独立于西方大国（尤其是美国）的安全基础设施。

大西洋理事会高级研究员奥默·齐齐尔西克表示，地区大国正在更多地承担自身安全责任，这是一个更广泛的转变趋势。他说：“该协议的首要目标是加强地区合作，引领该地区进入一个新的安全环境。”

艾丁塔斯巴什表示，她所咨询的美国官员对该协议并不感到担忧。相反，这符合特朗普政府要求美国盟友更多“分担责任”的主张。

然而，最明显的结果可能是促进相互间的防御采购——即武器贸易。

中东寻求无需美国“骑兵”支援的防御，社论，第21页

叙利亚撤退给普京的全球角色梦想再添新伤

俄罗斯 马克·贝内茨

对中东关键军事基地使用权的质疑；乌克兰总统受到欧洲传统盟友的热烈欢迎；前苏联加盟共和国领导人展现前所未有的反抗姿态。过去几周，克里姆林宫维持全球影响力的希望接连受挫，而乌克兰战争仍在持续……

叙利亚周日宣布，俄罗斯的赫梅明空军基地和塔尔图斯海军基地将不再由莫斯科独家控制，这些军事设施将被改建为“联合训练”中心。这是俄罗斯在前苏联境外仅有的两处官方军事基地。

克里姆林宫的关键盟友巴沙尔·阿萨德于2024年被叛军推翻，取而代之的是伊斯兰主义领导的叛乱指挥官艾哈迈德·沙拉。尽管俄罗斯军队在过去九年间支持阿萨德，造成数千名叙利亚叛军和平民丧生，但普京总统下令俄军在叛军攻入大马士革时袖手旁观。

叙利亚坚称该协议是与莫斯科达成的，将维护双方利益，但表示两个基地的民用设施将移交大马士革。克里姆林宫尚未置评，协议细节也未公开。

研究俄罗斯外交政策和中东问题的专家汉娜·诺特表示，俄罗斯未来能否继续将叙利亚基地用于军事目的越来越不确定，但也不应完全排除这种可能性。

“俄罗斯对沙拉能否真正掌权并稳定叙利亚局势持高度怀疑态度，”诺特说，“俄罗斯的想法可能是：‘让我们看看叙利亚五年或十年后的情况。我们只能静观其变。’”

俄罗斯曾利用其在叙利亚的基地向非洲军团（克里姆林宫控制的瓦格纳雇佣军继任组织）运送物资和战斗人员，前往利比亚、马里、中非共和国及非洲其他地区。

这一空军基地协议遭到强硬派批评。“我们耗费了大量资源和军官、士兵及瓦格纳战士的生命，在该地区建立了俄罗斯的立足点——现在我们却要向那些大胡子[战士]及其土耳其操纵者请求允许进驻我们自己的基地？”瓦格纳前法律顾问伊戈尔·叶利谢耶夫写道。瓦格纳集团由俄罗斯政府资助。

叙利亚的声明发布于普京被任命为总理27周年纪念日。数月后，他接任总统，并着手恢复莫斯科苏联时代的全球影响力。这一努力在很大程度上已被普京对在乌克兰取得胜利的执念所牺牲。

尽管伊朗政权（该国为俄罗斯入侵乌克兰提供了军事支持）迄今在美以轰炸行动中幸存，但克里姆林宫未能阻止其他盟友的垮台。

俄罗斯无法阻止亲莫斯科的委内瑞拉领导人尼古拉斯·马杜罗被美国特种部队逮捕。匈牙利总理欧尔班的政府曾被视为克里姆林宫在欧盟的“特洛伊木马”，却在选举中落败。俄罗斯在南高加索地区的影响力也在减弱，亚美尼亚和阿塞拜疆正逐渐远离克里姆林宫的势力范围。

诺特表示，俄罗斯影响力的衰退可能会让普京更加坚定地实现其在乌克兰的目标。“如果你为这场战争投入了一切，将其他外交事务都置于其下，甚至接受在世界其他地区失去影响力，只为征服乌克兰，那么你必须取得最终胜利，”她说。

谷歌耗水数据中心引发村庄抗议

阿姆里特·迪隆（Amrit Dhillon）发自塔鲁瓦达的报道

当谷歌前来洽谈时，桑达玛·钱达拉（Sandhama Chandala）表示，她没有时间考虑祖父种植芒果和腰果树、耕耘粉红色土壤、为庄稼挑水的土地将会发生什么。

她也没有时间考虑水源将如何被调用，以满足耗资170 亿加元亿的人工智能数据中心服务器的持续运转需求。该数据中心是谷歌在美国以外最大的项目，建于安得拉邦维萨卡帕特南港口城市（Vizag）一小时车程的郁郁葱葱的地区。

“我们不想卖地，”50岁的钱达拉说，“祖父辛苦耕耘，才让这片土地变得可耕种。我们用头顶水。这片土地给了我们生计。”

但前来的官员说我们必须卖地。当几户村民同意后，我也感到了卖地的压力。”钱达拉和塔鲁瓦达村的200户家庭同属达利特（Dalit）种姓，在印度教种姓制度中处于最底层。上世纪70年代中期，联邦政府分配给他们每户两英亩土地，以维持生计。

作为在塔鲁瓦达、阿达尼瓦拉姆（Adanivaram）和兰比利（Rambilli）三个村庄600英亩土地上建设数据中心计划的一部分，许多家庭已经出售了土地。谷歌正与印度企业集团阿达尼集团（Adani Group）合作开发该数据中心。每户家庭以两英亩土地获得了$81,000的补偿。

批评者称，该项目在当地官员和邦首席部长纳拉·钱德拉巴布·奈杜（Nara Chandrababu Naidu）的推动下，以极快的速度推进，却几乎未考虑服务器的巨大耗水量将如何影响这个水资源本已匮乏的地区。在维萨卡帕特南，许多社区每天早晚仅供水一小时，居民需储水以供全天使用。活动人士称，一个1吉瓦的数据中心每天可消耗超过3000 万升水。“这种项目完全没有意义，”前联邦政府电力部长、该项目的激烈批评者EAS·萨尔马（EAS Sarma）表示。

对于该市铁路棚户区的居民来说，水如同黄金般珍贵。“如果水不够用，我们就得订水罐车，”45,岁的女佣拉克希米（Lakshmi）说，“以前供水两小时，现在只有一小时。仅够满足最基本的需求。”

首席部长钱德拉巴布·奈杜决心吸引投资到该邦。计划在维萨卡帕特南100公里半径内打造印度最大的人工智能基础设施枢纽。多个吉瓦级项目将沿孟加拉湾海岸线分布。根据政府文件，该邦为谷歌提供了土地价格25%的折扣、印花税减免、水电补贴、10年内设备和机械10%的资本补贴，以及其他减免和激励措施。

今年2月，纳伦德拉·莫迪（Narendra Modi）领导的联邦政府为外国云计算和人工智能服务提供商提供了另一项优惠——2047年前收入免税。

萨尔马称维萨卡帕特南项目为“一场丑闻”。他说：“纽约州因电力成本上升和水资源短缺已暂停数据中心建设，而印度却在铺红毯欢迎。”

维萨卡帕特南人权论坛的VS·克里希纳（VS Krishna）表示：“甚至没有人确切知道它将消耗多少水，因为与政府签署的谅解备忘录尚未公开。”

谷歌承诺将使用绿色能源满足该项目80%的需求。谷歌印度公司表示：“人工智能枢纽将采用先进的空气冷却技术，显著减少用水量。此外，针对服务器和芯片冷却，我们将采用先进的闭环液体-空气冷却技术，......该技术独立于市政饮用水供应。”

桑达玛·钱达拉表示，她在一个每天仅有两小时供水的地区面临出售土地的压力。上图为反对谷歌数据中心的抗议活动

喜讯连连 好莱坞女演员安妮·海瑟薇（43岁）即将迎来第三个孩子，现身科幻电影《橡树街终点》洛杉矶首映礼

哥伦比亚地震致超100人死亡

斯蒂芬·吉布斯 加拉加斯报道

哥伦比亚宣布进入全国紧急状态，一场强度为74级的地震已造成至少111人死亡，并对该国西部大部分地区造成破坏。

此次地震的震中位于偏远市镇圣何塞德尔帕尔马尔附近，在拥有5000万人口的哥伦比亚全国均有震感，邻国厄瓜多尔、巴拿马，甚至远在750英里外的委内瑞拉首都加拉加斯也有震感。

西部省份里萨拉尔达报告的死亡人数最高，达42人。西部地区巴耶德尔考卡至少有27人死亡。中部城市佩雷拉市长毛里西奥·萨拉萨尔·佩拉埃斯表示，该市至少有18人死亡。

随着遗体从废墟中被陆续发现，死亡人数预计将进一步上升。官员警告可能发生余震。

在群山环绕的城市马尼萨莱斯，有20栋房屋被毁，至少两人死亡。A塔楼的该市新哥特式大教堂坍塌，砸向中殿。哥伦比亚至少有6座机场遭受严重破坏。于周五就职的总统阿韦拉多·德拉埃斯皮内利亚表示，他将直接指挥应急响应工作。他称：“国家政府已调动一切力量保护生命、援助受灾社区，并将救援物资送往任何需要的地方。”

乌克兰无人机袭击炼油厂致13人死亡

俄罗斯 乌克兰无人机袭击莫斯科以东约500英里的下卡姆斯克市工业和民用目标，造成至少13人死亡（包括一名儿童）和39人受伤，这是数月来俄罗斯平民伤亡最惨重的事件之一。乌克兰军方表示，其袭击了鞑靼斯坦地区的鞑靼石油（Tatneft）塔内科（Taneco）炼油厂。俄罗斯称此次袭击为恐怖主义行为，并指责乌克兰袭击了居民区。当地宣布进入哀悼期。

视频画面显示，炼油厂上空浓烟滚滚，该厂在6月初也曾遭乌克兰袭击。2024年，该厂加工了1700 万吨原油。近几个月，乌克兰加大了对俄罗斯炼油厂的打击力度，此举已导致俄罗斯多地出现燃料短缺，不过当局表示大部分问题已得到解决。

乌克兰表示，希望让普通俄罗斯人感受到战争的代价。莫斯科已从海外进口燃料以补充供应。周日，双方互相指责对方发动致命袭击。俄罗斯袭击乌克兰东部城市哈尔科夫，造成3人死亡、37人受伤，一栋公寓楼被击中；俄罗斯别尔哥罗德当局则表示，乌克兰无人机袭击造成5人死亡、25人受伤。

台风引发洪水

中国 受台风“海豚”带来的暴雨影响，中国东部多地出现洪水，包括上海在内。据官方媒体央视报道，昨天上海有943个航班被取消。当局警告称，太湖流域和浙江省的74条河流已超过警戒水位。台风于周日登陆，预计将进一步向内陆移动。

扎克伯格游艇否认救援

美国 Meta公司发言人表示，马克·扎克伯格拥有的一艘游艇的船员在听到阿拉斯加海岸附近一艘船只的无线电求救信号时，另一艘船只已经前往救援。一名提供救援的邮轮乘客曾声称扎克伯格的船员拒绝响应。Meta公司首席执行官及其家人当时并不在船上。

十亿美元的奥德赛

美国 克里斯托弗·诺兰的《奥德赛》在周末突破了10亿美元（£7.41 亿）的票房大关，这是他自2012年《黑暗骑士崛起》（10 亿美元.08亿）以来首部达到这一水平的电影。该片也是这位导演迄今为止票房最高的作品，超过了2009年的《黑暗骑士》（10亿美元）。《奥德赛》还剩一个主要市场尚未上映，该片将于周五在中国上映。

性爱娃娃让警方困惑

澳大利亚 新南威尔士州的一个乡村地区发现一个行李箱内有一个酷似真人的性爱娃娃，警方一度误以为是谋杀案的受害者。据警方称，凶杀案侦探在发现后随即展开调查，但很快确认该物体是一个穿着衣服、有头发和鼻环的娃娃，身上还有类似瘀伤和擦伤的痕迹。

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《泰晤士报》 / 2026年8月II日 星期二

25

国际

乌菲兹美术馆关注“手机控”游客

佛罗伦萨的乌菲兹美术馆正在清洗数百尊雕塑、增强照明、开放新展厅，并增设更多二维码和喷泉，作为耗资5000万欧元（€5000 万）翻新计划的一部分，以应对不断增长的游客数量（汤姆·金顿报道）。

此次升级涵盖展出波提切利杰作《维纳斯的诞生》和《春》的展厅，以及位于阿诺河对岸的皮蒂宫——该宫殿收藏了卡拉瓦乔、拉斐尔和丁托列托的作品，但长期被更知名的乌菲兹美术馆所掩盖。“游客数量在增加，因此我们需要更好地分配他们，以便欣赏所有这些作品，”乌菲兹美术馆馆长西莫内·韦尔德表示。

美术馆管理层已通过预约票务系统缓解高峰时段的压力。预计年游客数量将创下530万（530 万）人次的纪录——高于2019年的440万（440 万）人次——并将继续增长。

“我们必须应对这种增长，这既反映了美术馆的成功，也反映了当今世界可供游览的地方越来越少，因为全球危机的影响，”韦尔德告诉《泰晤士报》。

部分资金已用于改善空调、增设屏障以防止人群挤压珍贵藏品、增加供游客休息的长椅，以及在入口处设立新的导览室。

韦尔德表示，画作旁新增的说明——包括波提切利的作品——是针对那些盯着手机或拍照发帖的游客设计的。“三分之一到一半的游客要么在看手机，要么在拍照发布。我们无法阻止这种行为，但可以将手机变成辅助参观的工具，通过展示二维码，让游客获取说明，这比复杂的应用程序更便捷，”他说道。

韦尔德正努力吸引更多游客前往阿诺河对岸的豪华皮蒂宫。该宫殿于1549年被美第奇家族购入，被视为凡尔赛宫的前身，后被意大利王室使用。

自2024年起，游客可沿用美第奇家族曾使用的路线从乌菲兹美术馆前往皮蒂宫——一条16世纪的屋顶走廊，途经商铺、公寓和老桥（Ponte Vecchio）。

每年有20万人（200,000）通过瓦萨里走廊（Vasari corridor）抵达皮蒂宫，他们将看到乌菲兹美术馆5000万欧元（€5000 万）升级计划的其他部分。

游客被乌菲兹美术馆馆长西莫内·韦尔德（下图）呼吁前往皮蒂宫（左图及最左图），那里展出了更多艺术品。

资金正被用于此处。王室公寓在关闭多年后重新开放，美第奇家族使用的所谓“沃尔泰拉诺翼”展厅已修复，时装展览被移至顶层闲置空间，从那里可俯瞰佛罗伦萨全景，腾出空间展出更多艺术品。

“这里的墙面织物仅可追溯至1911年，正在被更换，”韦尔德表示。收藏有500幅画作的帕拉蒂纳画廊（Palatine Gallery）——包括卡拉瓦乔的《持剑的西庇阿》——将采用新照明。“我们解决了反光问题，这意味着游客无法清晰观赏画作。效果将非常惊艳，”韦尔德说道。

在宫殿后方拾级而上的波波利花园中，150个喷泉的水柱已重新启用，200尊雕塑上的苔藓和污染物被清洗干净。“我们正在提升皮蒂宫的声誉，以帮助分流游客。人们应该来看看——它现在完全不同了，”韦尔德表示。

将城堡改建为豪华酒店的热潮“关闭了活生生的历史之门”

大卫·沙赞 巴黎报道

当你问一位法国贵族关于继承城堡的事时，他们高贵的额头可能会皱起。他们也许会越过草坪眺望城堡的壁垒，凝视修剪整齐的园地和高耸的树木，然后对着消失在地平线上的大片园林皱眉。

接下来，他们很可能会向你抱怨这一切的天价成本。

海峡两岸的上流社会长期以来一直抱怨维护费用高昂、屋顶破损、电线老化以及沉重的遗产税，这些都伴随着头衔和房产而来。在法国，这使得许多继承人别无选择，只能出售家族宅邸。

越来越多的买家是开发商，他们将这些庞大而脆弱的房产改建为豪华酒店，但文物保护人士表示，为满足无障碍设施、消防安全和现代舒适度而进行的改造，可能会剥夺城堡的历史特色。

他们还认为，将城堡改建为酒店会将普通游客拒之门外，而这些遗产本应向公众开放。

遗产组织“遗址与纪念物”（Sites et Monuments）负责人朱利安·拉卡兹表示：“将城堡改建为酒店意味着失去一部分历史。你必须将原本设计为连通套房的画廊和沙龙隔断，还要为每个房间安装浴室，这样地方的特色就被改变了。”

文物保护人士认为，国家应采取更多措施帮助家族保留祖宅，例如在特定条件下扩大对受保护历史遗迹的遗产税减免范围。

“我们支持由传统所有者居住，并以合理的费用向公众开放城堡，”拉卡兹说，“当城堡变成豪华酒店后，入住费用超出了更多普通游客的承受范围，即使他们只是来酒吧喝杯饮料，也无法像参观仍由家族居住的活生生的城堡那样体验。”

开发商表示，他们在改造时会谨慎保护历史特色，并必须遵循一系列严格的法定古迹修复规定。任何变更都需经法国建筑师协会（ABF）下属的文化部遗产建筑专家批准。

位于巴黎附近的“瓦勒之家”最初是一座皇家狩猎小屋，17世纪为路易十四重建为一座小型城堡，现已成为一家四星级酒店。

收购该城堡的“特殊酒店集团”（Les Hôtels (Tres) Particuliers）首席执行官马修·埃夫拉尔表示，ABF特别关注曾用于储存冰块以保存国王食物的地窖。“可以说，这是路易十四的冰箱。ABF要求我突出展示它。”

这座城堡共有50间客房，每间每晚收费约€360。

越来越多的城堡和历史建筑被改建为酒店或旅游住宿。其中包括巴黎附近的“乡村别墅”，如维利耶勒马约城堡。更远的目的地包括西南部的梅尔屈埃斯城堡和多尔多涅的拉特雷讷城堡。

“这是一个很好的商业模式，”埃夫拉尔说，“一家博物馆每年需要60,000人次入场才能收支平衡，但酒店全年都能运营，人们可以随时进来喝杯饮料。”

“历史之石”集团（Pierres d'Histoire）在遗产建筑中经营酒店，其明确目标是拯救和复兴被忽视的历史建筑。

该集团创始人兼董事总经理多米尼克·安贝尔表示，他受到英国“地标信托”（Landmark Trust）这一文物保护慈善机构的启发，该机构拯救了面临风险但规模较小、不足以引起国家信托等大型机构兴趣的建筑。

皮埃尔历史石材公司（Pierres d'Histoire）已在库朗斯庄园采用了这一模式。该公司保留了城堡原貌，并继续由世代拥有该庄园的德·加奈家族居住。“附属建筑已成废墟，”伊姆伯特表示。他的公司已对这些建筑及昔日的磨坊、旧泵房和农舍进行了修复，将其改造为自助式度假出租屋，而城堡本身则在固定时段对公众开放。

“弗勒里城堡的部分区域仍保持着二战后德军撤离时的状态，”他说道，“这些地方需要大量修缮工作。”

拉卡兹等文物保护人士对库朗斯庄园的处理方式表示认可。“公众仍可参观城堡，而将附属建筑改造为旅游设施也有助于维护工作，”他说道，“这是件好事。”

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26

世界

匈牙利人期待重振音乐盛事

在多瑙河的一座岛屿上，每天将有近10万名音乐爱好者齐聚一堂，共同欣赏佛罗伦萨机器乐队（Florence + the Machine）、刘易斯·卡帕尔迪（Lewis Capaldi）和比菲·克莱罗（Biffy Clyro）等艺人的表演（莉莉·鲁泰写道）。布达佩斯的Sziget音乐节是欧洲规模最大的文化活动之一，但去年在举办30年后险些停办。2024年的音乐节将于今日全面启动，这将是彼得·马加尔（Peter Magyar）终结维克托·欧尔班（Viktor Orbán）统治后，匈牙利经济面临的首批考验之一。在四月的选举后，消费者信心和商业信心开始回升，这得益于马加尔承诺将重振经济、打击腐败，并说服欧盟解冻143亿英镑的资金。“我对现在将出现强劲的转变方向抱有希望，”Sziget的联合创始人兼所有者卡罗伊·格伦代（Karoly Gerendai）表示。他于2017年出售了音乐节，但去年又将其买回。

该音乐节创办于1993年，已发展成为文化界的重要组成部分和主要旅游景点。取消音乐节将给经济造成超过7,000万英镑的损失，据一家经济研究机构称。“然而，我们已经八年多没有获得任何国家资金支持了，”音乐节首席执行官塔马斯·卡达尔（Tamas Kadar）表示。他认为，近年来音乐节对LGBT权利的支持与欧尔班的政策相悖，导致国有企业拒绝提供支持。“我现在感受到的是气氛有所好转，”格伦代说。今年第二季度，GDP增长了0.4%，低于预期。

ING银行匈牙利分行首席经济学家彼得·维罗瓦茨（Peter Virovacz）表示：“增长就是增长，经济已经连续五个季度实现扩张。在经历一段停滞期后，我认为这已经不错了。”“也许真正的增长还在后头，”他补充道，“我仍然认为我们有理由保持乐观。”

无飞行自助铁路之旅

卑尔根铁路与弗洛姆铁路

2026年8月至2027年12月

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民主党人“硬核”举动：冷冻卵子

美国 约书亚·瑟斯顿

在一场现场电视采访前几分钟，亚历山德里娅·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯（Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez）正在给自己注射激素。

“我觉得自己在化妆间给自己打针，然后化个妆，出去聊聊国际大事、国内政策、选举，再出来过自己的生活，做自己的事，这很硬核。”她在Instagram上对她的960万粉丝说道。

这位36岁的民主党国会女议员宣布，她打算冷冻卵子，以“更好地掌控自己的生活”，并将在网上分享这一过程。

奥卡西奥-科尔特斯（昵称AOC）是2018年当选美国国会最年轻的女性，代表纽约第14选区。

她在周末发布的一系列Instagram故事中承认，分享如此私人的决定是一种“政治风险”。但她的这一宣布引发了外界对这位纽约代表正在为未来总统竞选做准备的猜测。

“通常我会保持私生活的私密性，但我决定开始冷冻卵子。”奥卡西奥-科尔特斯在周六晚的直播视频中说道。

“奇怪的是，分享这类信息会带来政治风险或政治代价。”她补充道，自己的目的是“展示女性在各种背景和选择下拥有完整生活的更多样态”。

她还表示：“作为女性，我们从未被教导过如何了解自己的身体，无论是在青春期、怀孕期、围绝经期、绝经期，还是生活的方方面面，我们都没有做好准备。”

亚历山德里娅·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯承认自己的做法存在政治风险

她的决定很快遭到保守派的批评。美国转折点组织（Turning Point USA）发言人安德鲁·科尔维特（Andrew Kolvet）表示：“这就是进步派在家庭组建问题上传递的信息，也是生育率暴跌的原因之一。孩子们，去冷冻卵子吧！追求事业，哪怕你已经和大学认识的男友订婚四年。AOC再过几周就37岁了，如果她明天怀孕，也会被视为高龄产妇。这不是女性解放，而是一个警示故事。”

漫长的卵子冷冻过程要求女性每天注射2-3种激素药物，持续约10天，至少进行4次盆腔超声检查、频繁的血液检测，并通过手术取出成熟卵子。

在采访中，奥卡西奥-科尔特斯表示：“在当前的政治环境下，本届政府正在剥夺全国女性的生殖保健权利，从堕胎权到健康怀孕的能力，我认为作为领导者，我们有必要进行这些对话，分享这些过程，尤其是对全国的职业女性而言，让这些行为变得正常化。”

奥卡西奥-科尔特斯的伴侣是莱利·罗伯茨（Riley Roberts），从事市场营销工作。两人自波士顿大学相识以来一直在一起，2022年在波多黎各订婚。

奥卡西奥-科尔特斯是民主党左翼和美国民主社会主义者（Democratic Socialists of America）的代表人物，该组织在11月中期选举前的初选中人气飙升。

当被问及是否会在2028年大选中竞选总统时，奥卡西奥-科尔特斯表示：“我没有排除这种可能性。”此前，她被展示了一份反映其作为潜在候选人人气的民调结果。

她表示自己对支持者的反应感到“谦卑”，同时也未排除竞选纽约州参议员少数党领袖查克·舒默（Chuck Schumer）所在席位的可能性。

根据美国辅助生殖技术协会（一家全国性诊所网络）的数据，2023年有超过28,000名美国女性选择冷冻卵子。

女性选择进行这项手术有多种原因，包括在接受化疗或其他可能影响生育能力的治疗时保存卵子及生育能力。

但许多健康女性在生育黄金期尚未准备好生育时，也会选择这一流程。出演《权力的游戏》的演员艾米莉亚·克拉克（Emilia Clarke）和前真人秀明星维基·帕蒂森（Vicky Pattison）均属此列。

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27

商业

全球市场（当日变化）

大宗商品

汇率

Harvey Nichols 警告若无买家出手相救或将倒闭

伊莎贝拉·菲什 盖伊·泰勒 零售记者

Harvey Nichols 警告称，若无救援交易，公司可能面临倒闭，与此同时，迈克·阿什利的弗雷泽集团正接近收购这家陷入困境的百货连锁企业。

这家奢侈品零售商在本周提交的财报中表示，若无法找到买家且无法获得额外资金，公司将“停止运营”。截至7月30日财报签署时，尚未达成任何新的融资协议。

Harvey Nichols 的所有者迪克森·潘爵士已于6月将公司挂牌出售，出售全部或部分业务的谈判已进入后期阶段。

弗雷泽集团是收购该业务的领先者，此前《天空新闻》率先报道了这一消息。富时100指数成员企业 Next 也曾参与收购谈判，据称仍在推进中。预计交易将很快宣布。

Harvey Nichols 一家房东的消息人士称，若弗雷泽集团完成收购，可能意味着地区门店将以 Flannels 品牌运营，不过阿什利已表示有意保留爱丁堡门店及骑士桥旗舰店的 Harvey Nichols 品牌。该零售商在全球拥有13家门店，其中包括英国和爱尔兰的7家。

近年来，由于来自线上竞争对手的激烈竞争，该公司业绩持续下滑，导致严重财务亏损。

业内观察人士认为，与哈罗德百货和 Selfridges 等竞争对手相比，该零售商在零售业务上的投资不足。

自疫情以来，公司尚未实现盈利。截至2025年3月底的财年，营收从£204.8万英镑降至£184.8万英镑，税前亏损则从£34万英镑扩大至£49万英镑。毛利率从44.1%提升至45.7%。

Harvey Nichols 一位发言人表示：“若无法完成出售且无法获得额外资金，集团将不再具备持续经营能力。因此，财报是基于非持续经营假设编制的。”

弗雷泽集团以通过“预包装”破产程序收购陷入困境的品牌而闻名——即目标公司短暂进入破产状态，以便弗雷泽集团在不承担其累积债务的情况下收购其资产。

这一策略颇具争议，因其甩掉的债务使供应商、房东和债权人无法收回数百万英镑的欠款。阿什利可能的收购将延续这一模式。

彼得·鲁伊斯任职不足三年即离职

伊莎贝拉·菲什 零售编辑

曾重振约翰刘易斯“绝不故意低价”承诺的掌门人彼得·鲁伊斯（Peter Ruis）将在两年半后离开这家百货连锁企业。

同时拥有维特罗斯（Waitrose）的约翰刘易斯合伙公司（John Lewis Partnership）表示，彼得·鲁伊斯已决定“追求新项目”，并将于9月6日离职。

自2024年1月起担任百货连锁企业常务董事的鲁伊斯，将由合伙公司非执行董事威尔·克南（Will Kernan）接替。

克南现任高端家具零售商Neptune董事长，在过去35年间曾担任多个零售高管职位。他曾任River Island、The White Company和Wiggle的首席执行官，并在New Look工作13年。

克南表示：“在合伙公司董事会任职三年来，我对约翰刘易斯的业务有了清晰的理解，并对合伙公司的价值观和员工所有制模式深表赞赏。

“我们拥有巨大的增长空间，我期待带领团队确保约翰刘易斯继续成为英国最值得信赖和最受喜爱的零售商，无论线上还是线下。”

鲁伊斯曾于2005年至2013年在约翰刘易斯工作，后重返公司。他被委以重任，领导百货连锁企业进入“转型的下一阶段”，以扭转销售下滑的局面。

约翰刘易斯在英国拥有34家百货商场，正在经历转型，以应对线上竞争和高街需求下降的挑战。

鲁伊斯主导了品牌的重大转型，通过大举投资翻新美妆区、恢复著名的“绝不故意低价”承诺，并通过全国门店合作将Topshop重新引入实体高街零售。

今年，集团首次在四年内向66,000名员工发放了2%的奖金。

这家员工所有制集团在截至1月底的财年内，税前及非例外项目利润为1.34亿英镑，较上一年的1.26亿英镑有所增长。不过，在计入旧技术减值等一次性费用后，集团税前法定亏损为2,100万英镑，而上一年为盈利9,700万英镑。

销售额增长5%至1.14亿英镑。增长主要来自维特罗斯，其销售额增长7%至85亿英镑。百货部门约翰刘易斯的销售额增长3%至49亿英镑。

上周，零售商警告称，由于面临“极为严峻”的交易环境，利润将受到销售下滑的挤压。

鲁伊斯表示：“经过近三年的大规模投资和现代化改造，企业如今已拥有更为坚实的基础。”

合伙公司董事长贾森·塔里（Jason Tarry）表示：“彼得出色地完成了工作，将被我们所有合伙人所怀念。他为约翰刘易斯的转型注入了活力和速度，我们对他的离去深感遗憾。”

碧昂丝与酩悦轩尼诗（Moët Hennessy）合作推出的威士忌品牌SirDavis，以其曾祖父的名字命名，后者在禁酒令时期曾是一名“私酒贩子”。

碧昂丝全面接手威士忌品牌

杰西卡·纽曼 休闲产业记者

碧昂丝已全面收购两年前与法国奢侈品集团LVMH共同创立的威士忌品牌。

这位美国歌手于2024年与酩悦轩尼诗（Moët Hennessy）合作推出SirDavis威士忌。该品牌以碧昂丝的曾祖父戴维斯·霍格（Davis Hogue）命名，后者在禁酒令时期于其家乡德克萨斯州从事“私酿酒”生意。

LVMH证实近期有关出售其在该合资企业股份的报道，但拒绝透露交易的进一步细节。酩悦轩尼诗是LVMH旗下的葡萄酒与烈酒部门，拥有阿贝（Ardbeg）和格兰杰（Glenmorangie）等威士忌品牌。

碧昂丝的威士忌在发布前便已获奖，由酩悦轩尼诗的比尔·拉姆斯登（Bill Lumsden）倾力打造。拉姆斯登是格兰杰和阿贝的先驱人物，曾5次荣获国际威士忌大赛“年度酿酒大师”称号。

SirDavis是一款融合日本和苏格兰风格的美国威士忌，其原料配比为51%的黑麦和49%的大麦，并在碧昂丝的家乡休斯敦完成调配、混合和装瓶。

除葡萄酒和烈酒外，LVMH还是路易威登和Thor等奢侈品牌的幕后巨头。该公司由法国首富伯纳德·阿诺特（Bernard Arnault）创立。

作为威士忌爱好者，碧昂丝是众多通过开发、扩展乃至出售烈酒品牌提升财富的名人之一，其中还包括其丈夫Jay-Z和大卫·贝克汉姆爵士。

2017年，全球最大的烈酒集团帝亚吉欧（Diageo）以10亿加元收购了演员乔治·克鲁尼（George Clooney）联合创立的龙舌兰品牌Casamigos。近年来，名人背书的龙舌兰品牌数量不断增长，模特肯达尔·詹纳（Kendall Jenner）和演员马修·麦康纳（Matthew McConaughey）均推出了自己的品牌。

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28

商业

要闻速览

1 泰晤士水务向其首席财务官支付了100万英镑的“入职奖金”，并与约12名高管达成留任协议，此举再次引发外界呼吁政府将这家陷入困境的公司置于特别行政管理之下。第10页

2 重振约翰刘易斯“不故意低价”承诺的掌门人即将离职，任职两年半后离开。约翰刘易斯合伙公司（同时拥有维特罗斯超市）表示，彼得·鲁伊斯（Peter Ruis）将“寻求新项目”。第27页

3 哈维·尼克斯百货警告称，若无救援协议，公司可能面临倒闭，而迈克·阿什利（Mike Ashley）的弗雷泽集团正逼近收购这家百货连锁。第27页

4 碧昂丝已全面收购两年前与法国奢侈品集团LVMH共同创立的威士忌品牌。这位美国歌手于2024年与酩悦轩尼诗合作推出SirDavis威士忌，该品牌以碧昂丝的曾祖父戴维斯·霍格命名，后者在禁酒令时期从事“私酿酒”生意。第27页

5 合作社（Co-op）董事长黛比·怀特（Debbie White）在任职仅两年半后即时离职，成为这家互助企业高层离职潮中的最新一例。首席执行官希琳·库里-哈克（Shirine Khoury-Haq）已于3月离职，她在任4年。

6 世界杯决赛周助推上月零售额增长，但夏季热浪令消费者远离商业街，分析显示。第30页

7 金融博彩巨头Plus500上半年业绩强劲，营收同比增长12%，此前该公司在美国推出预测市场，允许交易真实世界事件的结果。第33页

8 国防科技集团剑桥航空航天（Cambridge Aerospace）在成立仅两年后，以34亿加元估值筹集了3亿加元资金。第35页

中欧贸易战一触即发

乔治·马格努斯，第31页

前橄榄球明星出售饮品品牌后将获5000万欧元收入

一名前职业橄榄球运动员在将自己创立的饮品公司出售给Vimto制造商后，有望获得约5000万欧元的收入（布莱恩·凯里报道）。曾效力于伦斯特和哈莱奎恩队的加里·拉文（Gary Lavin）以7500万欧元的价格将VitHit出售给在AIM上市的软饮料制造商尼科尔斯（Nichols）。拉文在一次橄榄球受伤后康复期间，萌生了创立这种由茶、果汁、水和维生素混合而成的低卡路里、低糖饮料的想法。该产品声称“提供八种维生素每日推荐摄入量的100%”。经过四分之一个世纪的经营，拉文决定在将VitHit出售给尼科尔斯后，退出公司的日常管理。

VitHit目前在15个市场销售，年收入超过2600万欧元。其中约40%的销售额来自爱尔兰共和国，另外40%来自英国。

拉文担任公司董事长并持有超过70%的股份，他表示尼科尔斯是“支持品牌下一阶段发展的理想合作伙伴”。

他的兄弟特洛伊·拉文（Troy Lavin）担任VitHit首席执行官，将在公司整合期间继续留任最多六个月。

尼科尔斯表示，VitHit是“绝佳的战略契合”，将增强其在“规模庞大且不断增长”的健康与养生领域的地位。

合作社主席辞职，领导层动荡加剧

盖伊·泰勒 零售记者

合作社（Co-op）主席黛比·怀特（Debbie White）已即时辞职，任职仅两年半，成为这家互助企业高层离职名单上的最新一员。

她的离职发生在首席执行官席琳·库里-哈克（Shirine Khoury-Haq）今年2024, 3月辞职仅数月之后，后者在任四年。

合作社曾面临“恶劣”高管文化的指控（该公司未予接受），并遭受2025年网络攻击的后续影响，损失收入超过£200万英镑。

怀特于2024, 2月接替艾伦·莱顿（Allan Leighton）出任合作社主席，将由资深独立董事莫妮·曼宁斯（Moni Mannings）临时代理其职务。

这意味着该公司正同时寻找一位永久性首席执行官和主席。此外，常务董事马特·胡德（Matt Hood）今年夏初也已离职，系更广泛领导层调整的一部分。

怀特表示，在“为我们的业务带来机遇与挑战”的时期担任主席是一种“荣幸”，并称针对网络攻击采取的应对措施正产生“积极影响”。

“随着公司地位日益巩固，且任命永久性集团首席执行官的程序正在进行，我感到现在是辞去主席职务的合适时机，因我即将结束董事会首个任期，且无法在此时承诺再担任12年主席。”

合作社仍是全球最大的互助企业之一，拥有超过2,300家食品店和800家殡仪馆，其最新财年税前亏损为£126万英镑，而上一财年则为盈利£45万英镑。

今年2月，有关高管层“恶劣文化”的指控浮出水面，部分高层员工不敢在管理层面前对业务方向提出担忧。BBC报道的一封致董事会的信件称，“领导层的行为严重破坏了公司的领导文化”。

其他消息人士还指出士气低落、高管突然离职，以及“利润大幅下滑和食品浪费激增”等问题。

合作社当时强烈捍卫了其企业文化和领导层。近几个月，公司已显现出从网络攻击低谷中复苏的早期迹象。来自Numerator旗下Worldpanel的最新数据显示，截至12, 7月29日的12周内，销售额同比增长5.6%，接近20 亿英镑亿英镑，市场份额也微升至5.4%。

怀特称公司业务“已重回稳定与机遇的轨道”，这使她的决定“更为轻松”。

临时主席曼宁斯表示：“黛比在担任主席期间为合作社提供了坚定的承诺和宝贵的建议。我谨代表董事会、理事会、领导团队及合作社全体同事，感谢她的重大贡献，并祝愿她未来一切顺利。”

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29

商业

![图片](

)

加里·拉文（Gary Lavin）在遭遇橄榄球伤病后创立了VitHit品牌，该品牌现已被Vimto制造商尼科尔斯（Nichols）收购

品牌仍有“巨大增长空间”。

米尔恩表示，他的首要任务是开始在尼科尔斯现有英国客户群中拓展VitHit的分销，并继续开发品牌的产品形式，包括其气泡软饮料罐装产品和多种维生素粉剂。

辛格（Singer）的分析师称，此次交易标志着尼科尔斯的重大转变，并表示“一家单一品牌的故事现已成为两个品牌的故事”。

维姆托（Vimto）由草药、香料和药品批发商约翰·诺埃尔·尼科尔斯于1908年发明，他看到了推广一种能提供“活力与精力”的草本滋补品的商机。如今，维姆托已在60多个国家销售，一个多世纪以来一直是中东部分地区斋月开斋时的非官方饮品。由于其在当地以比英国更浓缩的形式出售，糖分摄入量也更高。

尼科尔斯旗下的其他授权品牌包括森克斯特（Sunkist）、李维·鲁茨（Levi Roots）和思乐冰（Slush Puppie）。

近年来，尼科尔斯将目光投向了更注重健康的消费者。2021年，该公司与THG旗下的Myprotein合作，去年又宣布与营养补充剂企业Applied Nutrition建立合作关系，推出了维姆托口味的电解质片和能量凝胶。

尼科尔斯计划于9月与MyProtein联合推出一系列维姆托口味的蛋白质水新品。

预计VitHit的收购将帮助尼科尔斯提前实现其中期目标，即年收入至少达到£225百万英镑。

在截至6月底的六个月内，该公司实现销售额£89.5百万英镑，税前利润£15百万英镑。

所有市场均实现增长，但非洲地区表现最佳，尼科尔斯正在当地实现生产本地化，其包装产品销售额增长了17%。

尼科尔斯的股价今年以来已上涨11%，昨日再度上涨20便士，涨幅1.9%，至£10.60。

伯纳姆“可能增税250亿英镑”

克里斯·多雷尔

经济学家警告称，安迪·伯纳姆可能在秋季预算中增税高达250亿英镑，以兑现其支出承诺。

据凯投宏观（Capital Economics）预测，家庭可能将承担更高税负的主要压力，额外税收将用于国防预算和生活成本支持。

“此次增税预算规模可能与上次相当，但重点将从近年来对企业的加税转向对资本、财富和收入的加税，”凯投宏观副首席英国经济学家露丝·格雷戈里表示。

“首相的一些更宏大的承诺可能会推迟到今年预算之后实施，”她在一份研究报告中写道。“如果支出增加（可能高达300亿至400亿），税收也需要相应增加（可能高达200亿至250亿）”

自7月上任以来，伯纳姆承诺实施“二战后最大规模的地方议会住房建设计划”，并将国防支出提高至2035年占GDP，的3.5%。他还宣布了一系列较小的措施，以支持受生活成本压力影响的家庭，如公交票价上限和更低的能源账单。

然而，伯纳姆表示将遵守财政规则，限制其增加借贷的能力。

这位新任首相和他的财政大臣约翰·希利还承诺兑现工党竞选宣言中不增加增值税、国民保险或所得税的承诺，这些税种占税收总额的大部分。

伯纳姆的团队正在考虑提高资本利得税（对股票、投资和某些类型房产的利润征收的税种），以帮助为公共支出提供资金。

格雷戈里表示，伯纳姆可能会选择推迟部分增税计划，以避免对家庭实际收入造成一次性重大冲击。

她估计，如果税收增加250亿英镑，相当于GDP，的约0.8%，那么税负将升至GDP。的39%，创下新高。

续第27页 哈维·尼科尔斯的救援收购

哈维·尼科尔斯的收购遵循了这一模式。

这位拥有Sports Direct、Flannels和Frasers的零售大亨表示，预计该零售商的售价将低于4000万英镑。潘氏于1991年以5300万英镑收购了哈维·尼科尔斯。

《天空新闻》报道称，多家入驻哈维·尼科尔斯的供应商对在Frasers旗下能否按时收到货款表示严重担忧，援引了其此前短暂拥有MatchesFashion时的经历。

这家百货连锁店销售的时尚品牌包括阿玛尼美妆、巴尔曼、卡地亚、Juicy Couture、兰蔻、Max Mara和耐克。

深度解析

哈维·尼科尔斯当前的困境是逐渐失去市场相关性而非单一失败的结果（伊莎贝拉·菲什报道）。

这个曾与奢侈时尚划等号的品牌，正面临竞争对手在实体店和线上平台更积极投资的挑战。

与此同时，哈维·尼科尔斯承认其对核心客户群的定位变得不够明确，而其线上业务未能跟上消费者期望的变化。

随着奢侈品购物越来越多地转向线上，年轻消费者成为重要市场，这一问题尤为致命。

哈维·尼科尔斯似乎陷入了两难：一边是其在1990年代鼎盛时期建立的声誉，另一边是现代奢侈品消费者的期望。

业内观察人士表示，其挑战在于重新明确客户定位，并迅速投资以重新赢得品牌的市场相关性。

Vistry 前老板的根基薄弱

商业评论 本·马丁

富时250指数的住宅建筑商 Vistry 前老板格雷格·菲茨杰拉德（Greg Fitzgerald）可以说有着留下公司根基薄弱的记录。

以他曾执掌十年的建筑集团 Galliford Try 为例，他于 2015 年卸任执行职务。

诚然，当他在 2014 年宣布离任计划时，Galliford 状况良好，菲茨杰拉德曾带领该公司度过 2008 年的房价崩盘，并监督了利润的大幅增长。然而，菲茨杰拉德离开 后，一个在他任期内埋下的重大问题才逐渐显现，即 与 Balfour Beatty 和 Carillion 于 2014 签订的、价值 345 万英镑的阿伯丁绕城公路固定价格建设协议。

菲茨杰拉德指出， 的建筑董事会和上市公司董事会均批准了该阿伯丁项目，Balfour 和 Carillion 亦是如此。直到 2017， 才就该合同发出警告，而此时菲茨杰拉德已于 2016 年 11 月卸任非执行董事长。

尽管如此，时任 财务总监的格雷厄姆·普鲁森（Graham Pruthen）后来据称将该协议描述为“疯狂”的想法——以固定价格建造一条 36 英里的路线。事实上，由于一系列问题（包括 2018 年 Carillion 的倒闭），该项目的总成本最终膨胀至超过 10 亿英镑，导致 和 Balfour 蒙受每家至少 1 英镑的财务损失。

也出现了类似的命运逆转，不过这次建筑商的问题在 62 岁的菲茨杰拉德于 2024 年初离任前就已开始显现。与 类似，菲茨杰拉德在 的表现一度堪称完美。他于 2017 年接手时， 仍名为 Bovis Homes，当时正陷入困境，但菲茨杰拉德成功实现了惊人的扭亏为盈。2023 年，他进一步宣布将战略转向“合作伙伴”模式，专注为大型机构房东和住房协会建造房产，赢得了更多赞誉。

然而，2024 年的一系列利润预警（主要因 低估了部分项目的建设成本，达 1.65 亿英镑）给公司造成重创，而其“合作伙伴”模式也是问题的一部分。这是因为 主要与住房协会和“只建不售”开发商签订固定价格合同，这意味着无法将意外增加的成本转嫁出去。

今年 3 月， 发出利润率预警，菲茨杰拉德同时宣布退休计划，投资者对 的财务状况愈发担忧。今年上半年， 的日均净负债高达 7.99 亿英镑，而其股市市值在股价过去一年暴跌约 60% 后仅为 7.91 亿英镑。

新任首席执行官亚当·丹尼尔斯（Adam Daniels）正专注于现金流生成，部分通过打折促销房屋以提振销售，但低迷的整体房地产市场仍是一大挑战。

在此背景下，投资者昨日对安联贸易（Allianz Trade）削减 供应商信用保险覆盖的报道感到恐慌（详见第 31 页报道）也就不足为奇。

坚称“信用保险机构仍为我们的供应链提供大量保险覆盖”，并表示“未发现任何供应商因信用保险变化而停止与 的交易”。然而，投资者担忧的是，一旦保险机构撤销保险， 的供应商将要求提前付款，进一步挤压其现金流。尽管 近几个月试图缓解股东对其可能被迫筹资的担忧，但信用保险机构的立场仍将加剧投资者的不安。

如果维斯特里发起现金募集，将再次与加利福德形成对比。后者最终在2018年通过配股筹集了1.5亿英镑，以弥补阿伯丁绕城公路成本超支并加强其砖砌业务。

泰晤士河的快钱

安迪·伯纳姆的政府可能会决定，通过特别管理制度（SAR）对泰晤士水务公司实施临时国有化，因为该公司正在约200 亿英镑亿英镑债务的重压下苦苦挣扎，其流动性也在不断流失。但SAR是否能解决这家陷入困境的公司高管薪酬这一棘手问题？

诚然，泰晤士水务公司上月向史蒂夫·巴克支付了£1百万英镑的递延签约费，此人去年加入该公司担任首席财务官，此事曝光后留下了极为恶劣的影响（详见第10版报道）。其他公用事业公司最近采用的各种薪酬结构也同样令人不齿，这些结构使它们能够规避去年出台的规定——该规定允许水务行业监管机构Ofwat在公司发生严重环境事故或其他失职行为时禁止高管获得奖金。

活动人士利用巴克获得£1百万英镑的披露，再次呼吁将泰晤士水务公司置于SAR管理之下。但泰晤士水务公司主席阿德里安·蒙塔古爵士在致下议院环境、食品和农村事务委员会主席阿利斯泰尔·卡迈克尔的信中辩称，这家陷入困境的公用事业公司面临的招聘和留任“压力”“是公司现状的产物，即使在特别管理或国有化情况下也会持续存在”。蒙塔古补充道：“因此，特别管理人或政府（视情况而定）也需要通过额外支付来留住、招募和激励那些运营和扭转公司局面所需的人员。”

高管薪酬这一争议性问题将变成他人的难题。

benjamin.martin@thetimes.co.uk

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“伯纳姆反弹”将消费者信心推至两年高点

杰克·巴尼特

最新数据显示，在安迪·伯纳姆领导下，消费者信心出现“反弹”，经济信心已升至近2年来的最高水平。

巴克莱银行的消费者信心指数7月攀升至30%，创下21个月以来的新高，较上月提升了2个百分点。该指数衡量的是对英国经济的信心。

在巴克莱银行公布数据之前，GfK长期运行的消费者信心指数在同期也以近30年来最快的速度上涨。

巴克莱银行还表示，7月信用卡支出同比增长2%，略高于6月1.9%的增幅。该行称，世界杯足球赛和创纪录的高温天气推动了需求增长。

7月期间，就业保障和家庭财务状况的信心均有所改善，这段时间正值伯纳姆接替基尔·斯塔默出任首相。

巴克莱银行客户洞察主管罗汉·库马尔表示：“7月信用卡支出进一步增强，达到12个月以来的最高水平，基本和非基本支出均保持增长。

“多重因素共同作用，英国的停电、持续高温天气以及英格兰世界杯的表现，提振了旅游、酒店、日常必需品和季节性零售类别的支出。”

MARIO FÉRES / FASTY BETTY IMAGES

![Rivers run dry](

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河流干涸 克罗地亚萨伦格勒附近多瑙河河段上的货船因水位过低而搁浅。由于干旱，莱茵河科布伦茨附近的关键河段商业航运也面临停摆风险。德国多个州已解除公路运输限制，以缓解运输瓶颈

高温难耐：零售销售微升但酷暑拖累业绩

杰克·巴尼特 经济记者

分析显示，上月世界杯最后一周助推了零售销售增长，但夏季热浪使消费者远离商业街。

英国零售商协会与咨询集团毕马威的数据显示，7月零售销售额同比增长1.3%。

尽管同比出现增长，但年度销售增速较6月的1.9%有所放缓。7月的增幅也低于1.8%的六个月平均水平。

分析人士表示，7月世界杯最后一周影响了消费习惯，尤其是酒类和零食的销售。

不过，他们补充称，当月非必需品需求不足。

零售商协会首席执行官海伦·迪金森表示：“7月零售销售实现温和增长，食品销售受益于世界杯最后一周。非食品销售则因客流量下降而受挫，消费者避开高温天气外出购物。服装成为亮点，受到平价夏季必备品需求的推动，而鞋类销售则表现不佳。”她补充道：“消费者更倾向于购买美妆产品和时尚首饰等小奢侈品，而推迟了家具和电子产品等大额消费。”

毕马威英国消费、零售和休闲业务主管琳达·埃利特表示：“持续的高温天气促进了家庭娱乐和园艺相关消费，加之英格兰队进入世界杯尾声阶段，共同推动了7月食品和饮料销售增长。”

英国零售商协会与毕马威估计，上月食品购买量同比增长3.8%，而上月增幅为2.8%。包括服装和电子产品在内的非食品购买量则下降了0.7%。

近期公布的一系列经济数据向好，为零售销售数据提供了支撑。GfK长期跟踪的消费者信心指数创下近三年来最快月度涨幅，通胀率降幅超预期至2.6%，经济在5月恢复增长。一项劳动力市场调查发现，自近四年前特拉斯担任首相以来，永久性招聘首次未出现萎缩。

英国央行在7月最新的货币政策委员会会议上决定将利率维持在3.75%不变。

信心上升通常与消费支出复苏相关。始于20世纪70年代的GfK指数改善，正值安迪·伯纳姆接替基尔·斯塔默出任首相，部分分析人士称英国经历了“伯纳姆反弹”的经济效应。

英国国家统计局将于周四公布的数据预计显示，6月国内生产总值萎缩0.1%。英国央行预计，截至9月的三个月内产出将持平。

英国国家统计局最新估计显示，6月英国月度零售销售额增长1%。

法国银行牌照助力 Revolut 大举招聘

杰克·巴内特

Revolut 计划在西欧招聘 600 名新员工，其中大部分将在法国就职，此前这家挑战者银行已在法国获得银行牌照。

招聘计划是在 （总部位于伦敦）宣布将法国设为其“西欧总部”之后公布的。该公司已承诺投入 $1.1 亿美元用于法国扩张计划。

在 600 名新员工中，约有 400 人将驻扎法国。法国的银行牌照由银行监管机构 ACPR 和欧洲中央银行联合颁发。

此前通过其 2018 年获得的立陶宛牌照，利用“护照”机制在欧盟提供银行服务。如今，它将能够为法国借款人提供更具针对性的产品。

创始人兼首席执行官尼克·斯托龙斯基表示：“法国已成为领先的金融中心，得益于充满活力的金融生态系统和稳健的监管框架。

“这是加速 下一阶段增长的理想平台——让我们离成为欧洲最大、最值得信赖的银行之一的目标更近一步。”

11亿美元

这家挑战者银行承诺投入法国扩张的资金 索尼娅·里维奥利

《金融时报》此前报道称，欧洲央行对 实施了增长限制，将决定其如何推出特定产品。欧洲央行表示， 在风险控制方面存在“缺陷”。

表示，法国客户将率先转移至法国实体，随后是德国、爱尔兰、意大利、葡萄牙和西班牙。这家纯数字银行拥有超过 7500 万客户，但尚无实体银行网点。

作为将法国打造为欧洲基地的信号， 已聘请法国兴业银行前首席执行官弗雷德里克·乌塞担任其西欧区主席，并签下了巴黎十年租约。

此决定是在 2016 年英国脱欧公投后，多家面向欧洲的银行将员工从伦敦迁往欧洲大陆的背景下做出的。英国监管机构已于 3 月向 颁发银行牌照。时任财政大臣的雷切尔·里夫斯曾试图安排 与英国金融监管机构会面，但其努力被英格兰银行行长安德鲁·贝利阻挠。

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商业

乔治·马格努斯

为什么中国蓬勃发展的科技行业无法拯救其实体经济

中国经济并非只有一种。实际上，存在两种经济。

一种是现代化、充满活力的制造业部门，这一部门经常出现在科技报道中，并因不同原因受到人们的追捧。这一经济体系涵盖了中国成功的电动汽车、电池和太阳能 / 风能制造业，以及其他产品和工艺，当然还有人工智能。

今年7月，月之暗AI发布了其前沿模型Kimi K3，获得广泛赞誉，并令硅谷为之惊叹。在AI模型（而非硬件、原始算力或芯片制造）领域，中国仍有望赶上美国同行。与美国一样，AI投资也是中国GDP增长的主要贡献因素之一。

中国所谓的战略新兴产业长期受到党和国家的培育与支持，如今已涌现出多个世界级产品和全球品牌。这表明，在产业政策方面，中国的庞大投入正在产出、活力和声誉上得到回报，尽管在生产率和商业可行性方面尚未完全一致。

另一种经济则占GDP的85%至90%，在新冠疫情肆虐全球及中国房地产市场自由落体时曾占据头条，但如今常被更具吸引力的工业故事所掩盖。然而，这种忽视是错误的。

今年夏天，中国官方（但可能夸大的）第二季度GDP数据再次成为焦点，显示年增长率仅为4.3%，低于预期，而第一季度为5%。环比增长率仅为0.9%，是有记录以来最低水平之一。

简而言之，中国房地产行业已连续第五年萎缩。北京和上海等大型城市群的新房价格开始趋稳，但其他地区的情况依然严峻。劳动力市场以低技能、低工资为主。消费在口头上得到支持，但在人民币投入上并不明显。中国高企的债务负担（超过GDP的300%）、失业问题、停滞的生产率增长以及产能过剩已成为常态。背后隐藏的是严重的财政和金融部门弱点。

不过，中国的出口表现良好。但这并非好消息。去年净贸易对GDP增长的贡献可能高达三分之一——对于一个20万亿加元的经济体而言，这是非同寻常的。这反映了中国独特的工业与贸易政策融合。今年的贸易顺差可能再次超过1.2万亿加元。这并非基于比较优势和效率，而是源于被抑制的家庭需求、被低估的货币、前所未有的产业政策支持以及自力更生的政治驱动。

自2019年以来，中国出口量增长了约40%，但进口量几乎未变。所谓“中国是世界经济增长引擎”的政治调侃，如今已不再成立。

中国的两种经济当然存在于同一空间。然而，一种经济体现的是供给过剩和产能过剩——中国商务部在最近发表的一篇论文中强烈否认了这一指控，称其为“外国的任性”。另一种经济则面临需求不足，北京和地方政府每年都需要持续刺激经济。7月政治局会议的通报似乎表明，更多刺激措施即将出台。讽刺的是，正是同一套产业及其他政策导致了这种二元对立。

国家发展和改革委员会在今年3月向全国人民代表大会的总结中，无意间道出了实情。这一总结呼应了习近平主席、其他领导人以及新近公布的第十五个五年计划中对制造业和科技发展的自豪之情。

但同时也发出了更为无奈的评论：“供强需弱的矛盾突出；房地产开发投资持续下降；基础设施投资增速由正转负；制造业投资增速进一步放缓；整体投资面临越来越大的下行压力；消费增长缺乏动力，物价水平持续低位运行。”

不出所料，中国官方媒体对此未置一词，但国家发改委的判断是准确的。那些让中国引以为傲的制造业活力——不断在低价和创新上打勾——所依赖的经济增长模式、战略和政策，恰恰正是导致消费低迷（包括住房和汽车消费）、私人投资（包括房地产）出现报告性下滑的根源。

7月的早期经济活动指标并不乐观。台风可能影响了工业和建筑业，政府今年可能会采取进一步刺激措施，以实现4.5%至5%的年度增长目标。

政府还将寄希望于出口，但这一途径存在局限。中欧之间的贸易战正在酝酿，部分原因在于中国的自力更生和产业政策使其出口结构越来越类似于许多欧盟国家。

这挤压了欧盟企业——尤其是德国企业——在本土、中国及第三方市场的生存空间。印度、印尼、巴西和土耳其等国也开始对中国廉价商品进口潮对本国工业化构成的威胁作出反应，贸易反制措施日益增多。

中国的根本问题在于如何化解制造业这一小而活跃的板块与经济其他大部分领域之间的矛盾。后者表现为债务水平和债务承受能力不可持续、资本错配、需求和就业疲软、产能过剩，以及财政和金融体系的脆弱性。实际经济增速可能仅为2%至2.5%。无论中国工业企业多么优秀，都无法解决这些问题。唯有全面改革和资源转移才能奏效。政府缺乏推动改革的意愿，而时间并非无限。

乔治·马格努斯（George Magnus）系牛津大学中国研究中心和伦敦大学亚非学院研究员，曾任瑞银首席经济学家

维斯特里股价再度下跌，信用保险被撤销

汤姆·霍华德 地产记者

昨日，维斯特里（Vistry）饱受重创的股价再度下跌，此前有消息称一家信用保险公司削减了对该开发商供应链的信用保险额度，进一步加剧了其财务压力。

上周，建筑商供应商特拉维斯·珀金斯（Travis Perkins）在其半年业绩电话会议上表示，一家“规模相当大的全国性住宅建筑商”的信用保险被撤销。市场传言称这家未具名公司是维斯特里，《金融时报》报道称安联贸易（Allianz Trade）已调整了维斯特里供应商的信用额度。

供应商可以购买信用保险，以在客户无法支付货款或服务费用时保护自身。一旦保险被撤销，供应商可能会要求预付款。

分析师斯蒂芬·罗林森（Stephen Rawlinson）表示，“缺乏此类保险显然极为不利”，但他补充称，如果这正在影响维斯特里的交易，公司“本应说明”。

维斯特里发言人表示，“我们的供应链未出现任何中断”。他还称：“我们未收到任何供应商因信用保险变化而撤销交易的情况……信用保险公司仍为我们的供应链提供大量保险覆盖，远超集团需求。”

维斯特里股价在2026年迄今已下跌一半，昨日再度下跌345便士，跌幅12.2%，至249便士。

这家住宅建筑商自2024年底以来一直处于复苏模式，当时公司承认低估了在英格兰南部九个项目的建设成本，金额达1.65亿英镑。前首席执行官格雷格·菲茨杰拉德（Greg Fitzgerald）曾将业务转向“合作伙伴”模式，为住房协会和机构房东（如黑石集团）建造住宅，但由于经济不确定性，机构需求趋于平静，而住房协会则在等待下一轮政府资金。

新任首席执行官亚当·丹尼尔斯（Adam Daniels）已通过向其他开发商出售土地和降低房价来增强资产负债表。维斯特里仍公开承诺，到今年年底实现“超过”1亿英镑的净现金头寸（即现金多于未偿贷款），而上半年平均净负债为7.99亿英镑。

如果公司不得不开始预付材料款，或供应商因保险费上涨而提高价格，这可能会使维斯特里实现净现金承诺变得更加困难。

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2026年9月23日（星期三）

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32

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韩国综合股价指数（Kospi）的混乱：“这个国家已经变成了一座赌场”

在《繁荣与崩溃：全球金融泡沫史》（Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles）一书中，威廉·奎因（William Quinn）和约翰·特纳（John Turner）提出，泡沫往往在三种情况出现时形成：散户投资者在市场准入改善后参与度提高、银行大幅增加贷款以支持更广泛的参与，以及——或许最为重要的——投机热情高涨。

奎因和特纳认为，泡沫的形成过程与火灾相同：参与度提供氧气，信贷提供燃料，投机则提供热量。而引发这一切的“火花”通常是新技术的诞生或新政府政策的出台。

韩国主要股指——韩国综合股价指数（Kospi）——的日常双位数波动，无疑与奎因和特纳的描述有相似之处。

7月31日，Kospi录得18%的单日最大涨幅。而就在两天前，该指数曾下跌12.6%，触发了20分钟的盘中交易暂停。

“这个国家已经变成了一座赌场，”反对派政策制定者李钟旭（Lee Jongwook）在近期的议会听证会上表示。

近年来，韩国国内散户投资者和外国资本大量涌入韩国股市。通过新推出的复杂投资工具，杠杆效应在市场中蔓延，与全球其他地区一样，市场参与者对人工智能热潮相关公司的未来盈利潜力进行了疯狂押注，推动Kospi大幅上涨。然而，过去18个月中这些催化剂带来的积极效应正在逆转，引发市场的剧烈日常波动。

Kospi指数包含多家处于技术和人工智能前沿的公司，其中两家最为瞩目：SK海力士（SK Hynix）和三星电子（Samsung Electronics），两者均是全球芯片制造业的核心支柱，占据指数总市值的约60%。若非这两大芯片制造巨头的推动，Kospi的飙升原本不可能实现。它们被誉为指数的“双子塔”，凭借在全球人工智能基础设施建设中的关键作用，在过去一年乘上了人工智能交易的东风，与美国的英伟达（Nvidia）和台湾的台积电（TSMC）类似。

在巅峰时期，SK海力士和三星电子的股价自年初以来分别上涨了348%和200%。近期的回调虽削弱了涨幅，但两者仍分别上涨了130%和92%。

尽管Kospi在上月经历了全球主要股指中最大的跌幅，但其今年以来的回报率仍约为50%，位居榜首。该指数在2025年全年也保持了这一领先地位。

过去几年，Kospi指数的过山车式波动在热门投资者论坛上引发了热烈讨论。一位Reddit用户，网名为“No Mercy 4 Potatoes”，在7月底Kospi出现约4次双位数上涨后回应道：“从没见过一个指数像‘仙股’一样波动。”另一位用户，网名为Macaron-No5646，则表示：“我们有过‘迷因股’，现在有了‘迷因股市’。”

聆听朱利安·霍夫曼的《生命线》

《泰晤士报》Times+会员可下载朱利安·霍夫曼的有声书《生命线》（Lifelines），这是一部关于在希腊北部普雷斯帕重新开始的抒情记述。故事以湖泊、山脉和石头村庄为背景，讲述了作者与妻子在野生动物、社区和寻找家园的过程中构建新生活的历程。

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Serica 暂时退出竞购 Pharos 的争夺战

艾米莉·戈斯登 能源版编辑

北海石油生产商 Serica Energy 宣布，在竞购中被30 万英镑超越后，将不再提高对 Pharos Energy 的报价，此次收购本将成为其首次国际并购。

在伦敦上市的 在埃及和越南拥有资产，今年 6 月同意以 £124.3 百万英镑的价格被以色列的 Ratio Petroleum Energy 收购。 上月突然加入竞购，报价高达 £1457 百万英镑。

然而， 上周五表示，Ratio 已重新提出更优惠的 £146.4 百万英镑报价，董事会现已重新支持 。该交易以每股 股票 31.75 便士的现金和股息报价，较最初交易宣布前一天的收盘价溢价 29.2%。

昨日表示，其报价条款为最终条件，不会再提高。公司称：“ 在并购中始终保持高度纪律性。” 保留在 以外的第三方加入竞购时提高报价的权利。

首席执行官克里斯·考克斯此前曾将收购 描述为“实现我们长期战略目标的绝佳机会，即通过国际扩张实现业务多元化的第一步”。

Panmure Liberum 的分析师表示：“由于 能否完成交易（需筹集股权并获得债务融资）尚无定论，若 无法筹集足够资金，33 仍有可能收购 。”

股价昨晚收跌 25 便士，跌幅 6.9%，报 31½ 便士，低于 的报价。 股价上涨 9½ 便士，涨幅 4.3%，收于 239½ 便士。

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33

商业

尽管韩国综合股价指数（Kospi）的上涨势头由 SK 海力士和三星电子推动，但其根源在于去年韩国修订的公司治理准则。该修订主要削弱了韩国家族控股工业巨头（即财阀）大股东的权力，并确保公司董事对所有股东而非仅大股东负有受托责任。

旨在消除“韩国折价”的市场改革推动了投资者对该国股市的兴趣。

Gavelal Research 高级新兴市场分析师乌迪斯·西坎德表示：“反弹初期由宏观基本面改善、估值低廉和政策不确定性降低所驱动。”

这一火爆行情自然吸引了希望分享收益的普通韩国民众。

交易者常用的一种放大收益的策略是投资跟踪特定股票或股票组合表现的公开上市基金，同时利用借入资金放大基础股票的任何收益。这些工具被称为“杠杆交易所交易基金”（ETF），在今年 5 月之前，韩国尚未推出此类产品。当月，多只此类基金上市，主要跟踪 SK 海力士和三星电子的股价走势。

韩国政府意识到，国内投资者为参与 Kospi 上涨，纷纷通过海外交易所购买杠杆 ETF。为避免资金外流，政府鼓励在本土使用此类工具。

韩国股市 Kospi 近期出现剧烈日内波动

杠杆 ETF 在市场上涨时表现出色，能为投资者带来双倍、三倍甚至四倍的收益，韩国投资者对此寄予厚望——自推出以来，这些工具已净流入约 100 亿加元 亿加元资金。

西坎德表示：“近期的狂热很大程度上是过度杠杆（国内外均有）推动股价上涨的结果。”

杠杆ETF在市场下跌时表现极差，因为它们会放大损失，可能导致强制平仓，进而拖累整体股市。

始于6月下旬的全球科技股抛售浪潮一度有所缓和，但韩国散户投资者遭受重创，面临杠杆头寸的追加保证金通知，进一步引发抛售。在科斯达克指数（Kospi）大涨导致投资组合过度集中于韩国后，基金经理也纷纷减持科斯达克敞口，并从韩国股市整体获利了结。

韩国总统、自称投资者的李在明支持率大幅下滑，自6月科斯达克指数从高点下跌约40%以来，不少人将市场狂热归咎于其政府的推波助澜。

分析人士认为，科斯达克指数的日内剧烈波动与这些新ETF产品的推出密切相关——最疯狂的波动正是在其推出后不久开始。日本投资银行瑞穗的股票策略师肖恩·达比（Sean Darby）表示：“杠杆ETF的激增和散户的活跃令投机力量压倒了基本面。”同样来自日本投资银行野村的韩国股票研究主管辛迪·朴（Cindy Park）也指出：“强制平仓通过自我强化的去杠杆周期加剧了市场波动。”

在大力推广杠杆ETF数月后，韩国当局突然收紧政策，禁止新产品上市，并提高投资门槛。此外，还规定个人投资组合中这类产品的占比上限为20%。达比表示：“此举有助于刺破泡沫，让股价回归基本面。”

朴认为后续可能出台更多监管措施。她称：“我们预计下半年关键政策动向可能包括对单一股票杠杆ETF的更严格监管。”

这些纠偏措施应能抑制市场的剧烈日内波动——但归根结底，韩国蓝筹股指数高度集中于SK海力士和三星，这两家公司合计占科斯达克市值的60%，其命运与全球投资者对AI交易的情绪紧密相连，而今年AI交易本身也极为动荡。

奎因和特纳（Quinn and Turner）认为，并非所有泡沫都会造成经济和社会危害。以19世纪中期英国铁路狂潮推动交通革命，以及互联网泡沫加速网络基础设施普及为例。

AI交易最终是否会焚毁一切，尚需时间验证。

Plus500 押注美国扩张收获回报

夏洛特·本德

金融博彩巨头 Plus500 发布强劲上半年业绩，此前该公司在美国推出预测市场，允许交易真实世界事件的结果。

这家富时 250 指数金融科技集团的营收达到三年新高，同比增长 12% 至 4.629 亿加元，得益于交易收入抵消了全球利率下降的影响。

Plus500 表示，其于 2 月进军预测市场领域，随后在 6 月世界杯全面展开之际推出体育赛事交易，预计该部门年化营业额将达到约 1.4 亿加元。

新客户数量增长 17% 为客户收入创五年新高奠定了基础。截至 6 月 30 日的六个月内，税前利润从 1.818 亿加元同比增长至 1.832 亿加元。

Plus500 股价上涨 80 便士，涨幅 2.1% 至 £38.36。

该集团在今年多次上调业绩预期后，维持其年度盈利和营收展望不变。

Plus500 今年在美国推出预测市场业务

Plus500 首席执行官戴维·兹鲁亚（David Zruia）称这段时期为“卓越”时期，公司持续从单一产品业务转型为“多元化全球多资产”集团。

公司通过在线投资管理服务 Wealthsimple 将场外交易（OTC）业务扩展至加拿大，并通过该地区领先的金融市场提供商 Nelogica 进入拉丁美洲。

其非场外交易业务（包括新推出的预测市场和体育合约）实现了约 30% 的同比营收增长。Cavendish 分析师表示，这一表现对未来“极为有利”。

公司宣布向股东返还 1.825 亿加元，较预期高出约 20%。其中包括 1 亿加元的股票回购和 8250 万加元的股息，自上市以来累计返还金额约为 31 亿加元。

Plus500 于 2013 年在伦敦 AIM 市场首次公开募股，2018 年升级至主板市场。

这家总部位于以色列的公司在全球 60 多个国家拥有客户，主要市场分布在英国及欧洲其他地区、澳大利亚、美国和中东。

Marshalls 铺就盈利之路 尽管销售下滑

夏洛特·本德

一家在伦敦上市的景观和屋顶产品供应商通过削减成本，在上半年营收下滑的情况下实现税前利润大幅增长。

Marshalls 表示，其景观产品部门业务有所复苏，此前该部门受到维护需求下降和竞争加剧的压力。

这帮助公司调整后税前利润增长 13.2% 至 £24.900 万，截至 6 月 30 日的报告期内，营业利润增加和财务费用降低推动了这一增长。调整项目涉及一项收购和重组计划。

与去年同期相比，基础税前利润增长 68.4% 至 £1970 万。

随着英国住宅和商业建筑市场因通胀上升和原材料价格上涨而萎缩，

削减成本帮助景观供应商抵消了需求疲软的影响

Marshalls 一直在退出亏损业务并调整生产能力，以提升盈利能力。

---

14

商业

《泰晤士报》单位信托信息服务

软 / 买入 / + / - / 是 / 否 %

| ALLIAR2 GLOBAL INVESTORS | | | | | | 投资咨询：020 7000 1400 服务热线：0000 317 573 | | | | | All Ialar2 fund Fund / 118.44 / -0.41 / 0.00 英国股票 A t / 401.77 / -0.77 / 3.93 英国成长 t / 3846.67 / -15.59 / 2.21

ANTEMIS FUND MGRS

防务初创公司估值达34亿美元

快速成长的防务技术集团剑桥航空航天（Cambridge Aerospace）在成立仅两年后，以34亿美元的估值筹集了3亿美元资金。

此次C轮融资使该公司自2024年成立以来的总融资额增至6.36亿美元。本轮融资由总部位于旧金山的投资机构DFJ Growth领投。

这笔资金将用于扩大其导弹和无人机拦截系统的开发，以及提升制造能力。

剑桥航空航天正在开发一款低成本反无人机拦截器Skyhammer，该产品已投产；同时还在研发一款名为Starhammer的火箭动力拦截导弹，专为高速目标（如巡航导弹）设计，预计将于2025年上市。

该公司此前曾于2024年4月以13亿美元的估值筹集了2亿美元资金，由企业家兼投资人埃拉德·吉尔（Elad Gil）和风险投资公司Spark Capital共同领投，并已获得多项英国国防部合同。吉尔是本轮融资的投资者之一，其他投资者还包括Lux、Accel和Lakestar等。

英国国防部于2024年4月宣布从剑桥航空航天采购Skyhammer防空系统，交付工作已于5月开始。

Skyhammer于2025年1月开始研发，拥有超过30公里的射程和700公里 / 小时的最高速度，能够拦截无人机和低速导弹。

该公司是3月与海湾国家大使会面的13家英国防务企业之一，此次会议由英国国防部牵头，讨论可支持地区盟友应对伊朗无人机和导弹袭击的新装备和技术。

6月，剑桥航空航天与川崎重工签署协议，在日本建立制造工厂，作为英日两国更广泛技术合作的一部分。

剑桥航空航天目前拥有约250名员工，大部分位于英国，由首席执行官史蒂文·巴雷特（Steven Barrett）领导。巴雷特于2024年搬迁至剑桥，担任剑桥大学Replus工程学教授。此前，他曾在美国麻省理工学院担任航空航天系主任。

前保守党国防大臣格兰特·沙普斯（Sir Grant Shapps）于2024年4月辞去剑桥航空航天董事长一职，此前他被发现违反了前部长商业任职规定。沙普斯在2024年大选中失去议席，此前曾在里希·苏纳克政府担任国防大臣。巴雷特表示，公司有着“保护盟国领空的单一使命”，这笔资金“将使我们能够继续扩大制造规模和交付能力，以应对威胁的步伐”。剑桥航空航天正在与美国政府进行洽谈。

丹·贾维斯（Dan Jarvis）——前国防大臣——今年在剑桥航空航天听取了关于无人机拦截器的简报；左侧为前董事长格兰特·沙普斯爵士。

他曾表示，公司能够利用人工智能等技术，以更低成本和更大规模生产拦截器，并拥有“高度积极进取、雄心勃勃的人才”。

“当你在远隔千里之外生活一段时间后回到英国，会觉得乌克兰的局势近在咫尺，”巴雷特说。

“显然，我们迫切需要具有成本效益的防空系统。这一点每天都能在新闻中看到，甚至几年前就已显而易见。”

DFJ Growth管理合伙人兰迪·格莱因（Randy Glein）表示：“我们审视了全球格局，认为剑桥拥有最优秀的团队和技术，能够为欧洲及其盟友构建最先进、最现代化的防空基础设施。”

英国政府正努力将更多国家采购重点放在本土初创和成长型企业上，以加速其发展。

韦斯·斯特里廷（国防大臣）表示：“这正是我们的‘独角兽计划’旨在实现的目标——培育英国初创企业成长为市值数十亿英镑的公司，创造高技能就业岗位，巩固英国在国防创新前沿的领先地位。”

GameStop 考虑与 eBay 合作计划

汤姆·霍华德

GameStop 是美国视频游戏零售商，在新冠疫情期间的所谓“迷因股”交易热潮中处于风口浪尖。据彭博社援引知情人士消息，该公司正考虑放弃其对 eBay 高达 555 亿加元 亿加元的大胆收购要约。

首席执行官瑞安·科恩（Ryan Cohen）正在考虑另一种合作形式，允许 利用 约 1,600 家实体店。

股价在纽约午后交易中下跌 2.9%，至 $108.67，而 股价下跌 0.5%，至 $19.07。

最初于 5 月提出对 的主动现金加股票收购要约，每股作价 $125。现年 40 岁的科恩表示，他将领导合并后的集团，并称在 12 个月内可削减 $2 亿加元的年度成本。他还表示，“可以成为亚马逊的合法竞争对手”。

董事会拒绝了这一提议，但科恩誓言“无论如何”都要推进交易，将全球最大的游戏零售商与电商领域最古老的品牌之一结合。

科恩最初因共同创立宠物食品零售商 Chewy 而取得成功。他于 2011 年 25 岁时创立该公司，并于 2017 年以 33.5 亿加元 亿加元的价格出售，随后将注意力转向 。

他对 的大胆举动立即引发关注，因为这家在线拍卖和市场平台的市值达 480 亿加元 亿加元，几乎是 的五倍。

自提出收购要约以来， 股价已下跌 28%，而 股价上涨 8%，进一步加大了科恩及其团队在财务上达成交易的难度。彭博社称， 尚未就是否放弃收购要约做出最终决定。 和 均未回应置评请求。

如果双方选择合作或合资路线，可能有助于提升在高利润类别（如交易卡和收藏品）的市场份额。

自 2 月以来已持有 9.8% 的股份，成为其第二大股东，因此在未来任何合作中都希望能在 董事会获得一个席位。

2021 年， 经历了一场非同寻常的股价飙升，业余交易者在网络论坛中协调行动，推高股价，使做空该公司的对冲基金遭受重创，因彼时游戏玩家已从实体光盘和卡带转向数字下载。

二手车销售在五年后重回增长

夏洛特·本德

根据最新数据，英国二手车市场重回增长，今年第二季度二手车销量超过200万辆，为2021年以来首次。

根据汽车制造商与贸易商协会（SMMT）的数据，需求在4月和5月尤为强劲，分别增长了110.9%和57.6%，这一增长与中东冲突导致的燃油价格上涨时间点吻合。

在2,009,318辆车易主后，这一表现抵消了2026年第一季度的微幅下滑，使得今年以来整体市场增长了0.2%，交易量达4,025,550笔。

该协会首席执行官迈克·霍斯表示：“增长回归对车主和更广泛的汽车行业来说都是好消息，二手电动车销量增长尤为强劲，因为更多选择正触达更多买家。

“由于大多数人购车依赖二手市场，充足且价格合理的供应至关重要。然而，新车市场日益不切实际的目标可能会限制供应并推高成本。”

电池电动车需求强劲，交易量增长了67%。在4月至6月期间，超过18分之一的买家选择了电动车，而一年前这一比例约为30分之一。混合动力车销量也增长了31.2%，而插电式混合动力车交易量则下降了6.8%。不过，本季度近九成买家仍选择传统燃油车。

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Oceania Marina邮轮以其亲密奢华的氛围，最多仅接待1,250名宾客，营造出一种轻松优雅且个性化的体验。这种精品规模确保了宽敞的空间、周到的服务以及大型邮轮无法比拟的悠闲节奏。

开放式座位餐厅、人流稀少的柚木甲板和海景休息室营造出一种宁静而精致的氛围。Oceania邮轮的“海上最佳美食”*定义了其独特体验。其美食项目致力于呈现世界各大美食区的食材、技艺和传统——与其访问的目的地相呼应。从全球采购优质手工食材，到宽敞的现代化厨房，再到其杰出的厨师团队——他们不断受到执行烹饪总监及法国大厨Alexis Quaretti和Eric Barale的启发。

2027年6月8日出发 14晚

重整军备竞赛中的可能赢家

BAE系统公司

市值 / 上半年营收 666亿英镑 / 1460亿英镑

BAE的股价自上月底发布半年报以来已上涨10%，报告中包含了对全年财务指引的上调。

这意味着这家富时100指数中的航空航天与国防企业在过去五年间实现了28.3%的资本收益。这一数字比同期大盘的资本回报率高出232个百分点。

显然，一些投资者会质疑在其市值已被高估的情况下是否还值得买入该股。但凭借强劲的盈利增长前景、良好的财务状况和长期行业前景向好，是否还有进一步跑赢指数的资本收益空间？

BAE系统公司成立于1999年，由英国宇航公司和马可尼电子系统公司合并而成，但其历史可追溯至1961.的沃尔瑟姆修道院火药厂。协和式飞机和阿芙罗兰开斯特轰炸机曾是其最著名的产品之一。

如今，该公司是英国和欧洲最大的国防承包商，也是全球并列第五大国防承包商。其产品涵盖广泛领域，从战斗机到军舰，再到网络安全和战斗车辆。美国和英国是其主要市场，分别占上半年销售额的47%和25%。

在整个财年，BAE目前预计每股收益（EPS）增长将达11%至13%，高于此前预测的9%至11%。预计明年EPS将进一步增长15%，考虑到其作为富时100指数中最大的股票之一，这一近期增长潜力极具吸引力。

从长远来看，公司的财务表现将受益于持续的地缘政治不确定性。即使中东和欧洲的冲突在未来几个月内实现持久和平——目前看来极不可能，但两地及其他地区的近期事件已促使多个北约大国重新重视军事开支。

这些国家计划到2035年将核心国防支出提高至GDP的3.5%（作为更广泛5%目标的一部分），高于此前许多成员国难以达到的2%目标。这意味着BAE广泛的产品组合可能将面临持续高涨的需求。

尽管各国达成目标的速度可能有所波动，但政界对“支持国防”的持久态度转变最终应能推动公司营收和利润增长。

除了乐观的EPS增长前景，BAE还拥有非常稳健的财务状况。例如，其半年报显示净负债与股东权益比仅为40%，且六个月内的营业利润是净利息成本的6.8倍。

这些数据为公司通过并购进一步提升财务表现提供了空间，此前几年公司已积极开展并购活动。同时，公司还可利用多余资本回购股票，而非偿还债务，最近一轮回购计划为期三年、总额15亿英镑，将持续至2027年中期。

当然，BAE近年股价上涨意味着其当前市场估值相对较高。例如，其市盈率（P / E）为29.5，比富时100指数18倍的市盈率高出50%以上。

尽管这意味着股价大幅上调的空间有限，可能会导致部分投资者认为该股缺乏投资吸引力，但即使仅从公司乐观的每股收益（EPS）增长前景来看，未来几年其资本收益也应显著高于更广泛的指数。

结合其稳健的财务状况，这意味着从长期来看，BAE仍提供极具吸引力的风险 / 回报比。因此，即使在近年股价大幅上涨后，现在买入其股票仍为时不晚。

简讯速递

酿酒业的强心剂

2026年上半年，英国独立酿酒厂倒闭速度显著放缓，为这个近年来饱受冲击的行业带来一线希望。

根据独立酿酒商协会（Siba）的数据，截至6月底，英国共有1,550家独立酿酒厂，上半年净减少16家。

倒闭数量较前一年大幅下降，当时有创纪录的137家酿酒厂倒闭，相当于每周近三家。从地区来看，苏格兰受影响最严重，上半年减少9家酿酒厂，东北部减少8家，中部地区和北爱尔兰各减少4家。

不过，Siba的英国酿酒厂追踪数据发现，英国部分地区出现了新的酿酒设施。西北部、东南部和威尔士各新增3家酿酒设施。Siba首席执行官安迪·斯利（Andy Slee）警告称，尽管许多酿酒厂出现复苏迹象，“但困难尚未结束”。

“成功渡过难关的酿酒企业看到独立啤酒需求强劲，”他说，“但盈利能力仍令人担忧，因缺乏进入酒吧的渠道、高税收和高生产成本正在冲击酿酒商。”

定制旅游销售增长

对定制假期的需求增长推动了Travel Counsellors的销售业绩。该公司平台将度假者与数千名自由职业顾问连接起来。这家总部位于曼彻斯特的公司表示，在过去四周内，集团销售额同比增长11%，其中邮轮需求尤为强劲，增长24%。地中海地区的旅行增长13%，主要由意大利和希腊驱动。Travel Counsellors为企业和休闲客户规划行程，并表示长途旅行表现坚挺：同期美国旅行销售额增长10%，非洲增长69%。

Hg Capital交易回升

投资组合企业的强劲表现帮助Hg Capital在经历年初波动后，第二季度净资产价值（NAV）企稳。这家富时250指数成分股的投资信托公司（专注投资私营企业）表示，截至6月的三个月内，每股估计NAV回报率为0.5%，而第一季度为-5.4%。但上市软件股持续疲软迫使该公司在第二季度将投资组合中未上市公司的估值下调5%。私募股权公司必须将其未上市持股与公开交易的同行进行基准比较。

亚马逊技术助力诺和诺德

减肥药Wegovy的制造商诺和诺德（Novo Nordisk）与亚马逊云服务（AWS）达成战略合作，以加速药物研发。这家丹麦公司与这家美国科技巨头在诺和诺德现有伦敦设施内建立了“联合创新”中心，双方工程师和科学家将利用AWS的人工智能技术与诺和诺德的数据，试图加速耗资巨大的药物开发流程，直至首次人体剂量。AWS将成为诺和诺德的首选云服务提供商和战略AI合作伙伴。

财富警示令烟草股下跌

市场报告

对于英美烟草公司，加拿大皇家银行（RBC）的分析师们可谓“赏一巴掌，打一巴掌”。尽管将该股的目标价格上调了2英镑，但他们对整体市场仍持悲观态度，导致英美烟草的股价下跌（克里斯托弗·多雷尔报道）。

“我们维持‘表现逊于大盘’的评级，因为我们认为集团中期盈利能力仍面临下行风险，”他们在一份研究报告中写道。他们特别指出，公司“负面的品类利润率组合”可能会拖累未来收益，因为英美烟草正在向利润率较低的产品（如电子烟）转型。该公司股价当日收跌193便士，跌幅44%，报收于42.28英镑。

同为烟草巨头的帝国烟草集团也下跌了27便士，跌幅4.6%，收于26.64英镑，因投资者对彭博社的一则报道反应消极。该报道称，公司计划在包括美国和欧洲在内的关键市场裁减数千个工作岗位。与英美烟草类似，帝国烟草也面临转型压力，希望在本年代末实现每年节省1.2亿英镑的目标。

公司发言人表示，其“多年期计划”将

华尔街报告

由于霍尔木兹海峡局势持续不明朗推高油价，美国股市收跌。投资者还在关注周三即将公布的关键CPI数据，以进一步了解全球最大经济体的通胀压力持续性。标普500指数下跌4.53点，跌幅0.06%，报收于7,753.11点。纳斯达克综合指数下跌85.26点，跌幅0.32%，报收于26,605.36点，而道琼斯工业平均指数下跌60.95点，跌幅0.11%，报收于53,975.98点。

当日表现最佳 / 最差个股

[表格占位符]

[图片占位符]

股市观察 据报道，希音（Shein）正以低于300亿加元的估值向潜在投资者推介其香港IPO，较巅峰时期下降约70%。

“影响全球市场布局”。

烟草股的疲软拖累富时100指数蓝筹股收跌38.59点，跌幅0.75%，报收于10,862.50点。中盘股富时250指数下跌110.32点，跌幅0.44%，报收于24,744.54点。

RBC分析师对凯姆林集团更为乐观。他们认为这家富时250指数军火制造商有望从导弹库存下降中受益。“各类导弹项目的库存耗尽持续推动补库周期，而凯姆林仍是少数能够大规模响应的北约认证供应商之一，”他们写道。该公司股价上涨11便士，涨幅1.75%，报收于6.38便士。

由于对霍尔木兹海峡短期内能否开放存疑，油价上涨。伊朗坚称，美国必须满足包括解除制裁在内的多项要求，海峡方可重新开放。布伦特原油交易价格上涨3.56%，至每桶8714加元。

Visby股价在富时250指数中垫底，因有消息称一家信用保险公司削减了对该房地产开发商供应链的承保额度。其股价下跌345便士，跌幅12.2%，报收于249便士。

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41

猎头及皇家芭蕾舞学校主席 戴维·诺曼

讣告

托尼·里德利

泰恩-威尔地铁幕后的“城市交通大师”，在国王十字火灾后辞去伦敦地铁总经理职务

HS2项目持续的困境表明，Kalkanoque building British transport infrastructure projects has become已变得多么复杂。

土木工程师托尼·里德利不仅为纽卡斯尔和桑德兰的地铁系统赢得了政府资金，而且在1971年提交计划后仅三年，工程便破土动工，泰恩-威尔地铁于1980年向公众开放。

“我们在三年内将整个方案从地图上的一条线变成了开挖第一条隧道。如今已无法做到这一点，”里德利说道。他作为英国顶尖城市交通领袖的声誉，后来因1987年11月国王十字火灾后辞去伦敦地铁总经理职务而蒙上阴影。

1968年，工党交通部长芭芭拉·卡斯尔创建了客运交通执行机构（PTEs）。被任命为泰恩赛德PTE总干事的里德利，在她的立法细则中发现了政府可能为大都市公共交通项目提供资金的暗示——前提是提案论证充分且成本效益分析严谨。“我们有幸遇到一位部长，她清楚地认识到，明确的目标、政策声明和规划往往是成功的核心，”里德利说道。在《泰晤士报》的一篇人物介绍中，他被描述为“看起来像一位略显凌乱的预备学校校长”。

1969年，35岁的里德利被任命为泰恩赛德PTE总干事，这一任命引起了相当大的惊讶。此前他曾担任大伦敦议会公路和交通首席研究员，当地一家报纸将其称为“镇书记员”。然而，这位出生于桑德兰的采矿工程师之子，已通过从土力学到核电站的工作积累了丰富的“泥靴”工程经验。

里德利最初的任务相对保守，仅要求合并三家亏损的公交公司，但他很快开始规划将“破旧不堪”的柴油动力铁路线连接起来，通过市中心隧道和泰恩河上的桥梁实现贯通。

凭借加州大学伯克利分校交通融资评估博士学位，他向政界推销这一计划，承诺重组当地公交网络，与铁路系统建立换乘枢纽，最终打造出英国首个真正意义上的综合交通系统。里德利回忆道，当地各派政客“过去常常像猫狗一样争吵”，但为了“为东北地区从伦敦争取些什么”，他们团结一致支持该项目。

然而，运营部分亏损线路的英国铁路公司（British Rail）并未认真对待这一提案。“他们把我们视为一小群学生，对此不闻不问，”里德利回忆道。但当“英国铁路开始提出替代方案时，为时已晚”。

里德利最终从政府争取到£5000 万，从地方议会获得£2500 万，用于建设一个拥有44座车站的地铁系统，采用电力驱动的列车独立运行，这一过程中超越了曼彻斯特。“我们抓住了机会，建成了英国几十年来首条新的城市铁路，”里德利说道。“一旦人们看到我们做到了，许多城市都想要这样的系统。”如今，泰恩-威尔地铁拥有60座车站，每天运送超过100,000名乘客，并仍在扩建。

1974年，里德利被猎头担任香港地铁（MTR）的常务董事，负责监督为期五年的建设工程，该工程后来成为全球最繁忙、最赚钱的地铁之一。地铁通过在车站周边促成利润丰厚的房地产开发项目实现了自负盈亏——这一做法现已成为常规。“MTR体现了明确目标的重要性，”里德利表示，“这是一个有倡导者、有优秀且智慧的客户、注重良好流程和决策、团队精神和责任感强的项目。因此，我们能够应对极高的复杂性。”

1980年，他凭借“都市交通大师”的声誉被任命为伦敦地铁（London Underground）的首席执行官。在此期间，他最引以为傲的成就是成功论证了1985年至1987年间建造的码头区轻轨（Docklands Light Railway）应独立于伦敦地铁运营。“我们不希望一条现代化铁路沾染伦敦地铁的员工管理和工会作风，”他苦笑着回忆道。在伦敦地铁，他接手的是一个老旧、衰退的维多利亚时代地下隧道网络，部分区域的维护积压已达50年。在他任期内，乘客人数激增，从1982年的4.2 亿人次增长至1987年的年均8 亿人次。

里德利的目标是将员工人数从23,500人削减至16,500人，并引入无人驾驶列车。他还计划扩建贝克卢线、东伦敦线、朱比利线和大都会线。1987年9月，他发布了一项为期十年的战略规划，包括通过建设横贯铁路（即现伊丽莎白线）来扩大伦敦市中心拥挤车站的运力。

这一势头在1987年11月18日金斯十字站火灾中戛然而止。一根点燃的火柴从木制扶梯的缝隙掉落，引燃下方垃圾，火势迅速蔓延，造成31人死亡。

这是自1975年，莫尔盖特地铁事故以来网络上最严重的事故，后者的43人死亡被认为是由司机失误造成。除此之外，在43年间仅有4人因网络事故丧生。

里德利随后声称，伦敦地铁已采取大量措施提升网络安全，特别是缓解最繁忙车站的拥挤状况并更换老旧信号系统。在1988年向公众调查提供证词时，他表示管理层一直致力于将一个“老旧、低效且破旧”的系统现代化，以承载创纪录的乘客量。如果优先考虑消防安全，“将以牺牲其他安全措施为代价”。

他向主持调查的德斯蒙德·芬内尔御用大律师（Desmond Fennell QC）表示，期望伦敦地铁不发生火灾是“完全不现实的”，火灾是一种“职业风险”，这一说法令芬内尔感到“困扰”。然而，在进一步质询下，里德利平静、严谨的态度开始动摇，最终承认：“我们在最高层面的表现存在不足。向我们的汇报不够充分。”经过91天的听证后，芬内尔在1988年发布的报告批评伦敦地铁缺乏消防安全文化，员工消防培训不足，管理层被形容为“自满”。1988年11月，报告正式公布。

里德利原本坚持不辞职，但在报告发布后被劝说离职。他在后来的著作《工程视角》（Engineering in Perspective）中专辟一章讨论“灾难后的管理”。

托尼·梅尔维尔·里德利（Tony Melville Ridley）曾任欧洲隧道（Eurotunnel）工程总监，这家英法财团负责修建英吉利海峡隧道。这一职位本应巩固他的声誉，但结果并非如此。他的职责是监督海峡下行车隧道的掘进工作，但里德利却陷入了与首席执行官阿拉斯泰尔·莫顿（Alastair Morton）的矛盾之中。莫顿与承包商“开战”，而承包商则期望里德利能约束莫顿。由此引发的混乱危及了项目进展，里德利在一年多后离职。

他后来写道，英吉利海峡隧道“工程设计优良”，“服务质量上乘”，但“并非广义工程定义下的典范。项目延期完工、成本超支，收入预测更是灾难性的。客户组建得太迟了”。

他职业生涯中最大的教训是：“工程不仅仅是工程”。“工程往往被狭隘地理解，导致工程师未能充分发挥潜力，在社会中的影响力也低于应有水平……那些将毕生奉献给工程的人，几乎会接触到人类活动的方方面面。”

托尼·梅尔维尔·里德利于10, 1933年出生于桑德兰的卡斯尔敦，父亲杰克·里德利（Jack Ridley）是一名采矿工程师，母亲奥利芙（娘家姓阿姆斯特朗）。他就读于达勒姆学校，数学成绩优异，后进入纽卡斯尔的国王学院学习土木工程，并在伊利诺伊州的西北大学获得硕士学位，最终于1959年在加州大学伯克利分校获得交通工程博士学位。

他在美国短暂从事土壤力学和基础工程工作后，回到英国，决心投身于“任何现代和最前沿的领域”。他认定核电站是方向，于是致信核电站公司（Nuclear Power Plant Company）主席克劳德·吉布爵士（Sir Claude Gibb），并获得了一份工作。五年后，他回到加州伯克利任教三年，随后于1965年被任命为伦敦郡议会（GLC）公路与交通首席研究员。

里德利后来参加了斯坦福商学院的高级管理课程，并在离开伦敦交通局后成为哈克劳·福克斯联合咨询工程公司（Halcrow Fox and Associates）的董事。

1991年，他成为伦敦帝国理工学院里斯·杰弗里斯交通工程教授，1997年至1999年担任该校土木与环境工程系主任。1995年至1996年间，他担任土木工程师学会主席。

里德利热爱戏剧、古典音乐和德文郡的乡村。1959年，他与简·迪金森（Jane Dickinson）结婚，育有两子一女，简至今健在。

作为综合交通领域的先驱，里德利最后的贡献是担任伦敦2012年奥运会申办团的高级交通顾问，这与他的职业生涯颇为契合。

托尼·里德利 CBE，土木工程师，生于1933年11月10日，卒于2026年3月，享年92岁

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42

注册

大卫·诺曼

大卫·诺曼是一位执着的猎头，成功为英国钢铁公司招揽了伊恩·麦格雷戈，并先后担任皇家芭蕾舞学校和女王学院的主席。

大卫·诺曼以一种如同享用早餐般轻松的姿态，游刃有余地进入英国工业的最高层。他是一位无懈可击的说服者：作为猎头，他在英国钢铁公司即将私有化、每年亏损超过£500百万英镑的时期成功招揽了伊恩·麦格雷戈；而作为女王学院和皇家芭蕾舞学校的主席，他以梗犬般的执着坚持筹措资金并争取政治支持。

诺曼并非人人都能接受。有人觉得他盛气凌人、咄咄逼人，而他那不知疲倦的野心——不惜一切代价取胜的冷酷欲望——也令许多英国权势阶层成员反感。“他是一个极具魅力的人，伪装得很好，但那令人震惊的傲慢却难以掩饰，”一位同时代人评价道；“另一些人则简单地将诺曼视为一个热衷于自我推销的人。”

“最让我感到困扰的一点，是英国人对成功的贬低倾向，”他说，“我们非常擅长这一点。讽刺成功成为一种时尚，同时也永远崇拜那些天赋异禀的业余爱好者，他们似乎无需太努力就能成功。我更欣赏美国的态度，即不遗余力地鼓励天赋。将其发挥到极致，并应用于手头的任务，这样才能成功。”

诺曼误打误撞进入了猎头行业。在为一系列初创公司工作后，他于1977年被挖至纽约猎头公司罗素·雷诺兹（Russell Reynolds）担任总监，他凭借自己的人脉网络——伊顿公学的舍监、哈佛MBA、父亲在伦敦金融城的高层背景——成功推荐了包括莫里斯·萨奇在内的高层职位，后者在1979年大选期间为保守党操盘竞选活动。保守党获胜后，萨奇送来了12打玫瑰到诺曼在伦敦的家中以示感谢。

麦格雷戈是一位在美工作的苏格兰工程师，诺曼于1980.年将其推荐为英国钢铁公司的掌舵人。诺曼表示，麦格雷戈将“从根本上改变这个国家国有企业的运营方式”，他与玛格丽特·撒切尔政府密切合作以确保这一职位，但麦格雷戈无情的裁员和工厂关闭也引发了争议。

1983年，诺曼与罗素·雷诺兹的同事迈尔斯·布罗德本特（Miles Broadbent）合作创立了诺曼·布罗德本特国际公司（NBI），这是英国首家猎头公司，在撒切尔1986.年放松金融城管制后，因发掘行业领军人才而声名鹊起。其突破性的任命是相对默默无闻的科林·马歇尔，后者作为英国航空的首席执行官，与沃内比勋爵（Lord King of Waitnaby，被称为“撒切尔夫人最喜爱的商人”）组成了黄金搭档。

NBI在传统上由美国主导的猎头行业中成为英国最成功的公司之一，当时寻求高端外部任命仍属罕见。诺曼表示，英国从不缺乏人才，但需要有魄力的人将其挖掘出来。“关键在于在全球经济中保持竞争力。我们是否拥有智慧和应用能力？是的，我们有。我们当然有智慧。我认为这个国家最大的挑战之一，就是将这些智慧应用于手头的任务。”

1987年，诺曼·布罗德本特公司通过反向收购广告和公关公司查尔斯·巴克（Charles Barker），诺曼被任命为更名后的BNB资源公司（BNB Resources）的执行主席，而布罗德本特则继续

![诺曼在伊顿公学、哈佛和伦敦金融城期间建立了广泛的人脉网络](

)

诺曼负责运营搜索业务。合伙人关系破裂，据称是因为诺曼寻求更多实质性控制权。布罗德本特于1997年离开，创立了迈尔斯合伙公司，并带走了主要客户，而诺曼则在一年后董事会要求其辞职的呼声中退休。

诺曼·布罗德本特公司使诺曼变得极为富有，并为他建立了一个庇护网络，使他成为纽约和英国多个组织的理想董事会成员。1982年至1997年担任网球与壁球协会（T&RA）主席，以及2010-11年担任女王俱乐部主席期间，诺曼资助了一项雄心勃勃的计划，旨在扩大会员规模、修复俱乐部球场并建立博物馆。他在与草地网球协会（LTA）重新谈判女王俱乐部租约以及保障壁球运动未来方面发挥了关键作用，通过设立保护性契约，防止球场被出售给开发商（女王锦标赛壁球场以他的名字命名）。

作为一名天赋异禀的网球选手，他曾在颁奖时告诉安迪·穆雷，如果想在温布尔登取得成功，就应该学会“控制脾气”。诺曼善于对抗。戴维·卡梅伦执政期间，他曾给首相写了一封直言不讳的信，详细列举了卡梅伦的各种政策错误，并附上了三条建议。卡梅伦回了一封礼貌的信，诺曼将其在家人中传阅，并叮嘱他们应期待一些关键变化。

“这些特定的修正措施姗姗来迟，但诺曼确实在2000年至2009.担任皇家芭蕾舞学校主席期间发挥了政治影响力。在他任期内，经历了长达十年的‘白宫重生’改造工程，最终获得了2200万英镑的投资，部分资金来自当时担任初级学校部长的戴维·米利班德，诺曼说服他批准了一轮政府对英国芭蕾舞的资助。诺曼加强了学校针对来自不同背景儿童的拓展项目，并监督建造了‘梦想之桥’，将皇家芭蕾舞学校的学生与对面的歌剧院连接起来。

戴维·马克·诺曼生于1941.。他的父亲马克是商人银行拉扎德兄弟公司的常务董事、国家信托副主席兼香烟制造商加拉赫公司的主席，母亲海伦（娘家姓布莱恩）来自弗吉尼亚。他成长于赫特福德郡马奇哈德姆村的穆尔宅，这是一座由建筑师罗伯特·米切尔于1775至1779年间建造的I级保护建筑。他的祖父罗纳德·诺曼是一位政治家、银行家兼英国广播公司（BBC）主席，他的曾叔祖蒙塔古·诺曼则是1920年至1944年英格兰银行行长。

“一位‘热情而强势的人物’，正如伊顿公学的一位教师所形容的那样，戴维是一名极具竞争力的运动员，毕业于蒙特利尔的麦吉尔大学，并于1967.获得哈佛大学工商管理硕士学位。六十年代在美国生活是他唯一一次对悠闲生活的让步：他曾在旧金山的一家超市收银台工作，并作为旅行推销员驾驶一辆破旧的大众甲壳虫横跨美国。

1986年，他与戴安娜·谢菲尔德结婚，后者是英国顶级金融家之一约翰·谢菲尔德的女儿。约翰·谢菲尔德创立了诺克罗斯集团，并资助了六十年代的海盗电台Radio Caroline。谢菲尔德将这位女婿纳入麾下，并推动他在一家私募股权公司完成学徒生涯。此后，诺曼的晋升迅速而冷酷无情。诺曼的最后一项任命是担任邱园（Kew Gardens）的受托人。

最了解诺曼的人常常认为，在坚硬的外表之下，他内心柔软，这种柔情往往在芭蕾舞表演中流露出来。如果在演出时与他目光相遇，你可能会看到他泪流满面。他喜欢弹钢琴，尽管从不在人前表演，并且讨厌告别。

诺曼育有四个子女：安娜、乔纳森、伊莎贝拉和戴维娜。他对妻子戴安娜一往情深，在她晚年因多发性硬化症病情恶化时悉心照料；戴安娜于2020年去世。他一直将她的牙刷放在洗漱台的杯子里，直到自己也离开人世。

戴维·诺曼，猎头高管，生于1941年1月30日，卒于2026年7月12日，享年85岁

凯·格兰杰

开创先河的美国国会女议员，首位领导权力强大的众议院拨款委员会的共和党女性

凯·格兰杰漫长政治生涯中最引人注目的特点之一，是她离开美国众议院的方式。从本质上讲，几乎无人察觉。

2024年夏季的某个时候，这位八旬共和党人悄然入住了位于其家乡得克萨斯州的一家辅助生活机构。从当年7月起，她再未在众议院投过票。她曾短暂返回国会山参加11月的官方肖像揭幕仪式，但直到次月，一家当地网站才披露她患有痴呆症且不再活跃于政坛。正如一位评论员所言，“这是一个令人困惑的遗漏”，因为“格兰杰绝非无名之辈”。恰恰相反，在她长达三十年的政治生涯中，她一直是一位开拓者。

她克服了个人逆境，成为沃思堡首位女市长、首位代表得克萨斯州选区的共和党女性众议员、首位主持权力强大的众议院拨款委员会的共和党女性，并跻身国会最具影响力的共和党人之列。

这些成就来之不易。正如她常对其他女性所言：“成功属于那些设定方向并拼命努力的普通人。”

诺维尔·凯·格兰杰（娘家姓Mullendore）于1943年出生于得克萨斯州格林维尔，在沃思堡长大。父母不久后离异，她与妹妹由母亲阿琳抚养，后者是一名教师，即使在因小儿麻痹症致残后仍继续工作。“我家族中的女性都很坚强，”格兰杰说。

1965年从得克萨斯卫斯理大学毕业后，格兰杰成为一名教师。她与丈夫约翰·格兰杰育有一女两子，但在14年的婚姻后，丈夫于1978年离她而去。

为了维持生计，她开始在家销售商业保险，同时利用晚上时间学习，最终创办了自己的公司。“你只能每天拼命熬过去，”她这样描述在抚养三个年幼孩子的同时谋生的挑战。

她的政治活动始于她动员邻居阻止一家公司在毗邻住宅的林地上建设液体废物处理厂。她说：“我是在保护自己唯一的资产——我的房子。”

这一胜利为她赢得了沃思堡分区委员会的席位。八年后，她当选市议会议员，又在两年后的1991年成为该市首位女市长。宣誓就职当天，她在邻近的达拉斯会见了伊丽莎白女王和爱丁堡公爵。

作为一名无党派市长，她任职近五年，扭转了飙升的犯罪率，重建了因冷战结束而受到冲击的以国防为导向的经济，并树立了务实高效的声誉。

1996年，当地一位民主党籍国会议员宣布退休时，民主党和共和党都试图说服她代表本党竞选该席位。尽管得克萨斯州第12国会选区被视为民主党的稳固票仓，她选择了共和党，因为她认为该党在财政上更负责任。她最终成为首位赢得该席位的共和党人，获得近58%的选票，并连续担任该职位长达28年。

在华盛顿，格兰杰被视为国防和国家安全问题上的鹰派人物。她支持2003年美国入侵伊拉克，称那场冲突是全球反恐战争的“战场”。2022年俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后，她坚定支持乌克兰，并利用其在拨款委员会的成员身份，将利润丰厚的合同引向其选区的大型国防制造商——特别是洛克希德·马丁公司生产的造价高昂的F-35战机合同。

凯·格兰杰在社会问题上被视为更为中间派，但随着时间的推移，她发现自己与在文化议题上急剧右倾的共和党日益格格不入。

她通过妥协得以生存。她曾支持堕胎权，但到2020年时，她已敦促最高法院推翻1973年“罗诉韦德案”的裁决，并限制这些权利。

她反对唐纳德·特朗普2016年的总统竞选，称其关于女性的言论“令人作呕”，并表示“他绝对不应被视为代表我国担任总统”。然而四年后，当她在得克萨斯州选区面临一场艰难且前所未有的马加（Maga）支持的初选挑战时，她转而支持特朗普的连任竞选，并因此获得了他的背书。

她赢得了那场竞选，但无法战胜日益衰老的年龄。2023年10月，80岁的她宣布不再参加下一届国会选举。2024年4月，她辞去了拨款委员会短暂担任的主席职务。此后不久，她从公众视野中消失数月，直到当年12月才被发现入住了一家辅助生活机构。她的儿子随后透露，她患有“痴呆症问题”。

格兰杰的状况引发了关于国会制度的争论——该制度奖励资历而非能力、活力和创意，以及是否应设立任期限制。其他三位国会领导人——南希·佩洛西、黛安·费恩斯坦和米奇·麦康奈尔——尽管已年过八旬，仍紧握权力不放，而外界对拜登总统的精神衰退也日益担忧。但一切依旧未变。

美国国会女议员凯·格兰杰，生于18, 1943。2026年8月2日因阿尔茨海默病去世，享年83岁

obituaries@thetimes.co.uk

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43

法律报道

惊扰猎鹰属于过失但不构成妨害

上诉法院 2026年8月11日发布

尼古拉斯等人诉托马斯等人案

审理法官：莫伊兰大法官、努吉大法官、惠普尔大法官 案号：(2026) EWCA Co. 647 判决日期：3, 2026

可诉妨害的认定取决于对个人土地通常使用的实质性干扰。如果原告对土地的使用超出通常敏感程度，则不能以该土地享用受到干扰为由主张可诉妨害，除非该干扰会对土地的效用或舒适价值造成实质性影响，且这一判断需同时满足客观标准（即根据普通或一般人的朴素简单观念）以及土地的通常使用方式。

然而，在原告利用土地饲养猎鹰的情况下，若被告土地上的过度噪音或视觉威胁可能对猎鹰造成损害具有可预见性，被告有义务采取合理谨慎措施避免此类损害。被告不得完全无视邻居利益，因此即使不构成妨害，仍可能承担过失责任。

上诉法院以多数意见作出上述裁决：莫伊兰大法官和努吉大法官支持被告关于妨害的上诉；努吉大法官和惠普尔大法官驳回被告关于过失的上诉。此前，高等法院衡平法庭的拉森 KC 特别法官于 8, 2025 作出判决（(2025) EWHC 752 (Ch)），支持原告关于妨害和过失的主张。

第一原告马丁·克雷格·尼古拉斯和第二原告斯科特·尼古拉斯系第三原告公司 Penwith 猛禽有限公司的董事。该公司在靠近第一、第二原告土地与第二被告公司 Upper Cot Estate Ltd（由第一被告巴恩斯·戴维森·托马斯日常管理）土地边界处经营猎鹰繁育业务。

第三原告以私人妨害和过失为由对被告提起诉讼，要求赔偿其业务损失。

法官认定：（1）第一被告知悉在猎鹰繁育期间于鸟舍附近制造视觉干扰或巨大噪音可能对第三原告业务构成风险；（2）第一被告通过第二被告在鸟舍附近实施或允许的活动造成了个别视觉干扰或巨大噪音事件；（3）这些个别事件导致第三原告三只猎鹰死亡及鸟蛋受损。

原告投诉的个别事件发生于被告实施或允许的三项活动中：（1）脚手架业务；（2）建造谷仓；（3）停放一台故障挖掘机。

法官支持了原告的主张，认定个别视觉干扰和巨大噪音事件构成妨害，同时也构成过失。

被告就两项主张均提起上诉。在妨害主张中，上诉理由为法官错误地：（1）错误地以第三原告的猎鹰业务作为敏感行业为由增加了被告的责任；（2）错误地以该敏感行业而非可能的共同和通常使用方式为标准衡量被告对原告土地使用的干扰；（3）不当且无正当理由限制了被告对第二被告土地的使用。

在过失主张中，被告的上诉理由为：一旦妨害主张不成立，过失主张亦不成立；且无论如何，被告对原告不负有注意义务。

被告代理人：汤姆·威克斯 KC、卡米拉·拉蒙特 原告代理人：乔纳森·塞特 KC、戴维·米切尔、莱缪尔·卢坎-维尔森

莱迪·贾斯蒂斯·惠普尔（Lady Justice Whipple）作出了首份判决，概述了事实和法律论点，并在实质上同意并认可了法官的处理方式。

然而，纽吉大法官（Lord Justice Nugee，莫伊兰大法官（Lord Justice Moylan）附议）在妨害问题上与惠普尔法官存在分歧，并阐述了支持被告就该问题上诉的理由。

法律中构成私人妨害的标准已由莱格特法官（Lord Leggatt）在领先案例Fearn v Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery（（2023）UKSC1，《泰晤士报》，2023年2月6日）中予以说明。

私人妨害法旨在维持相邻土地所有者之间相互冲突权利的平衡。并非每一项对个人土地使用和享用的干扰都能构成可诉的妨害。

法院首先需要审查的问题是，被告对土地的使用是否对原告土地的“普通”使用造成了“实质性”干扰。

对于土地享用的干扰，除非该干扰会对土地的效用或便利价值产生实质性影响（以客观标准衡量，即根据普通或一般人的朴素简单观念，以及土地的普通用途），否则过度敏感的原告无法以可诉妨害为由提出投诉。

即使某一行业对其所在区域特别敏感，只要其在适宜地点经营，该行业仍可被视为妨害法意义上的“普通”行业。

妨害是一种针对土地的侵权行为，其适用范围受限于被告的活动是否对土地的普通使用造成实质性干扰。

该侵权行为旨在保护土地所有者或占有人的利益，使其土地的普通效用和便利不受实质性干扰，而非保护特定占有人的身体安全或舒适，亦非保护原告用于特定业务的土地利益。

被告是否构成可诉妨害，不取决于原告如何使用其土地，而取决于该干扰对土地普通或一般占有人的影响。

从事精细行业的人如其所受干扰足以对土地的普通用途效用造成实质性影响，则有可能在妨害诉讼中胜诉。

在本案中，法官认定原告的土地适合用于繁育猎鹰，并不意味着该用途即成为土地为该等目的的“普通”用途。

此外，法官在认定妨害成立时所依赖的行为实际上并未达到适用的门槛。基于上述理由（并获得多数支持），应准许就妨害问题提出的上诉，并撤销法官的原判决。

然而，在过失问题上，莫伊兰大法官持异议，而纽吉大法官则与惠普尔法官一致认为应驳回上诉。

争议的焦点在于，法官是否正确认定被告对原告负有“在猎鹰繁殖季节避免制造可能伤害猎鹰的干扰”的注意义务。

已决案例长期以来承认，土地占有人对其邻居负有注意义务，即土地所有者或占有人可能对相邻土地的所有者或占有人负有合理注意义务，以避免对邻居财产造成可预见的损害。

在本案中，由于过度噪音或视觉威胁可能对猎鹰造成可预见的伤害，被告有义务采取合理注意以避免此类损害。被告不得以完全无视邻居利益的方式行事。

因此，法官认定被告对第三原告负有注意义务，不得在游隼繁殖季节制造可能伤害游隼的干扰，这一裁决是正确的，关于过失问题的上诉应予驳回。

律师事务所：Nalders LLP；Arch Law Ltd。

出生、婚姻与讣告

在《泰晤士报》登记出生、婚姻或讣告启事，请访问 newwalkadvertising.co.uk 寻求帮助。（也可致电 020 7792 7553 或发送电子邮件至 BMDs@thetimes.co.uk）

以下是天地被造时的记述，在耶和华神造地和天的日子，田野的草木还没有长在地上，田间的菜蔬还没有长起来，因为耶和华神还没有降雨在地上，也没有人耕种土地。（创世记 2,4-9,1）(iv)

《圣经》经文由圣经公会提供

出生

CAMPKIN 2026年7月20日，Kate Gosney 与 Jonathan 诞下一女，取名 Isabella Mary Julie。

即将举行的婚礼

C. L. A. DOUGLAS 先生与 HOH L. ERSKINE-MURRAY 女士 Charles（伦敦的 David Douglas 之长子，巴黎的 Christine Fultz 夫人之子）与 Isabella（汉普郡 Rockbourne 的 Dibank 勋爵及夫人之长女）的订婚启事。

讣告

CLARK Nicholas Jackson 于 2026年7月30日逝世。挚爱的父亲，Matthew 与 Jone 的父亲，Jo 与 Happy 的岳父，Little、Ben、James 及 Mike 的慈爱的祖父。私人葬礼。追思礼拜日后安排。

DRUMMOND Mary Jane 于 2026年7月20日安详离世，享年 83。深受家人、朋友及同事怀念。葬礼将于 2026年8月20日上午11时在 Barton Woodland School Ground, Comberton Road, Barton, CB23 7BA 举行。欢迎各界人士参加。如有意捐款，可捐赠予国际特赦组织或 Twitter。

DUNCAN SANDYS Lady Marie Claire Mellon 1812 于 2026年7月逝世。深受所有家人及朋友悼念。私人家庭葬礼。追思礼拜将于年内稍后举行。

EVANS Anthony Howard Meung PC 9D 于其第三年，于 2026年8月2日安详离世，享年 92。挚爱的丈夫，Caroline 的丈夫，慈爱的父亲、祖父及曾祖父。一位真正的绅士，受人爱戴与尊敬，慷慨且善良，是所有人的朋友。家庭葬礼。追思礼拜将于日后举行，详情另行通知。

FUSSELL Micheline（Michelin）Gayle（娘家姓 Dennyroll）于 2026年7月19日安详离世，享年 80。Christopher 与 Joanna 慈爱的母亲，Keris、Isabella、Oscar、William 及 Hannah 骄傲的祖母。葬礼将于 8月19日中午在赫特福德郡 Boehner 的圣约翰福音教堂举行。仅限家属参加。如有意捐款，可捐赠予麦克米伦癌症援助基金会。

HARDIY Justin St Clair 于 2026年7月31日在家中突然离世，享年 61。挚爱的丈夫，Lamine 的丈夫，Sam、Luke、Nico 及 Summer 深爱的父亲。私人家庭葬礼。追思礼拜将随后举行，以纪念他的一生。

MAXWELL Diane（娘家姓 Hartley）于 2026年7月29日安详离世，享年 89。原姓 Hathony Williams。已故 Timothy Maxwell 的挚爱妻子，亦为已故 Anthony Hathony Williams 的前妻。Nicholas、Charles、Michael 及 Victoria 深爱的母亲，慈爱的祖母及曾祖母。感恩礼拜将于 8月26日下午2.30时在伦敦 SW3 5LT Cheyne Walk 64号的 Chetara 老教堂举行。

追思礼拜

CAYZER Nigel Al 将于 2026年9月24日上午11时在 Chetara 老教堂举行追思礼拜。欢迎各界人士参加。

宫廷公报

圣詹姆斯宫 2026年8月10日

爱丁堡公爵夫人、皇家赞助人今日访问了位于赫默尔亨普斯特德圣奥尔本斯山的雪上运动中心，探望了武装部队残疾人滑雪队，并受到赫特福德郡郡尉（Robert Voss 先生）的接待。

《泰晤士报》最新讣告合集

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45

赛果

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46

体育 板球

重获新生的低估赛事

卡梅伦·斯蒂尔（Cameron Steel）表示，他的“一日杯”经历证明了这项赛事对板球运动仍然具有价值——尽管“百球赛”更具吸引力

霍利斯看台的狐狸吉祥物已经被“猎杀”。吉祥物服装在郡板球俱乐部的储物柜中积了近两周的灰尘。据报道，评论员查尔斯·达格纳尔（Charles Dagnall）已经从电视直播中的空翻动作中恢复过来。戴维·威利（David Willey）的鞋子再次牢牢穿在脚上，男子T20爆炸杯的奖杯也安全存放在万蒂奇路（Wantage Road）。

在男子和女子T20决赛日之后，塑料轮子发出的低沉隆隆声标志着更衣室季节性的分流，这是板球地位和技能的年度迁徙。板球包从郡板球俱乐部的更衣室中被推出，球员、教练和管理人员纷纷朝着不同方向前往夏季的“二次任命”。板球赛程中的这一时期被分配给“百球赛”和“都市银行一日杯”。在赛制、风格和后勤现实方面，这两项赛事的差异体现了这项运动不断演变的状态，并像其他任何赛事一样在英格兰板球界引发意见分歧和人员流动。

“百球赛”是拯救了英格兰板球还是加速了其衰落？这是一种虚假的赛制吗？没有它，女子板球能否如此迅速发展？我们应该爱它还是恨它？为什么奥瓦尔队的发音是“My London”？曼彻斯特的足球派系真的能放下分歧，团结在“超级巨人”的大象旗下吗？

虽然这些争论将持续多年，但大多数争论都发生在为英格兰和威尔士板球委员会（ECB）的特许经营赛事提供人才的更衣室之外。球员们很少被问及这对他们意味着什么。与其争论记分卡的适用性、利益相关者的意图或赛制的合法性，球员们的讨论自然会转向板球的现实和潜在机会。

参与或被排除在英格兰旗舰赛事之外，如今已成为职业板球生涯状态的晴雨表。无论好坏，“一日杯”不再是一项顶级赛事，无论球员对培养他们的郡板球俱乐部多么忠诚，这里都不再是他们努力追求的地方。

对“百球赛”伴随的浮夸表演持怀疑态度很容易，但可能无益。最精彩的技艺被付费网红、DJ表演、仓促编造的队歌和令人尴尬的营销活动不公平地抽象化了。在这些“内容即儿童可卡因”的背后，是一项对有抱负的球员来说位于其雄心前沿的赛事。对于参加“百球赛”的250名左右男女球员来说，这与其他任何赛制一样，关乎板球和职业自豪感，是对身体和技巧的无情考验。

当然，更高的收入是其吸引力的一个因素。但仅将吸引力归结为经济因素则过于简单。最吸引人的是“百球赛”所代表的意义。除了作为这项运动前沿的全新体验，它还是获取知识、荣耀，以及最重要的——更大机会的门户。

尽管缺乏其他赛制和运动的部落主义色彩，“百球赛”仍为球员提供了在稀缺而高压的世界中表现的机会——这里有高薪、爆满的体育场和两个电视频道的转播。无论是为了入选国家队、获得特许经营的财富，还是在郡板球俱乐部提升地位，每一位板球运动员都清楚，无论何种赛制，没有什么比在天空体育（Sky Sports）上取得的成绩更有分量。

在《百球联赛》的明星阵容和后勤团队中，人际关系本身就具有吸引力。得益于雅各布·贝瑟尔和印度超级联赛（IPL），如今流行的做法是站在围栏的两边，或赞美或贬低身处世界顶尖人才之中的价值。然而，与大多数雄心勃勃的运动员一样，板球运动员永远会被他们的偶像或那些他们本想厌恶却又真心钦佩的国际对手所吸引。对进步的无尽渴望，永远无法改变来自其他大陆的战术、新技巧和潜在技术灵丹妙药的诱惑。

或许最具吸引力的，是通往更多光环和海外冬季赛事的途径。出色的表现以及配合的队长或教练，能为球员打开加盟联盟赛事的大门——板球的“黄金国”。这是一个不断演变且近乎神话的领域，充斥着五星级酒店、高尔夫球场和一月的晒黑。在外行人眼中，这是一个没有室内训练场的Yo-Yo体能测试、没有媒体的密集审视、没有迎风投出的20个回合的世界。这是一个“少劳多得”的世界，其范围延伸至达拉斯和达卡。

正是通过这一视角，我们才能理解“一日杯”及其参赛球员。那些在《百球联赛》阴影下的球员，不会为了酒店而放弃家，也不会乘坐荧光包装的巴士穿梭于英格兰的大城市之间。相反，板球装备只能放在汽车、衣柜或身边，比赛在板球世界中备受珍视但鲜为人知的角落进行。

当奢华被剥离后，每位球员和俱乐部在这项赛事中的独特现实便更加清晰可辨。一支失去核心人才的球队，无论是球员还是工作人员，都必须团结一致，继续尽力而为：争夺奖杯，同时保持状态并不断提升。球员必须在担任主赛事替补的同时，努力实现完全不同的目标。他们随时准备着，渴望着，或许还在期盼着最后一刻的征召。

一名青训球员、试训生或租借球员可能会赢得一份合同或获得职业经验。一名新秀可能会巩固自己在首发阵容中的位置。一名二十多岁的球员可能会获得队长或领导经验，或许还能为自己争取到T20或郡冠联赛的席位，甚至——恕我大胆——进入《百球联赛》。资深球员可能会得到休息。另一些资深球员则可能感到沮丧或失落，错过选秀、拍卖或外卡机会是一种痛苦的经历，再加上八场体力消耗巨大的比赛，以及伤痕累累的身体带来的双重打击。最不幸的可能根本无人问津。还有些球员可能会短暂从《百球联赛》回归，寻找状态或帮助所在郡队。

所有参加“一日杯”的球员心中都有一个关于蒂姆·戴维的故事。

今年《百球联赛》中薪酬最高的球员之一，年薪高达35 万英镑，人们或许不会想到，正是在2021年皇家伦敦“一日杯”稀疏观众面前的一局比赛，点燃了他的板球生涯腾飞之路。尽管戴维在那一年已在澳大利亚大联盟（Big Bash League）和巴基斯坦超级联赛（PSL）取得成功，但他在对阵沃里克郡的比赛中以70球砸出140分不败，震惊全场。正是凭借这一局，南方勇士队（Southern Brave）、加勒比超级联赛（CPL）以及后来的皇家挑战者班加罗尔队（RCB）纷纷向他抛出橄榄枝，开启了众多球员如今梦寐以求的“金光闪闪”的职业生涯。

在那同一时期，我对50轮赛制的体验发生了巨大变化。自从“百球赛”（The Hundred）创立以来，加上众多球员缺席，我开始了在全球最大国内俱乐部的征程。为萨里队（Surrey）首次亮相是一种荣耀。这是我重振破碎职业生涯的第一步，向人们证明我是一名值得认真对待的腿部旋转球员。然而，到最后，一日杯（One-Day Cup）成了我脖子上的磨盘——对我的伤脚是一大挑战，也提醒我，我的技术还不足以达到“黄金国”（El Dorado）的水准。如今，我已退役，并有幸为多支球队和多种赛制担任解说，我又重新爱上了这项运动。

过去，在板球晋升阶梯中取得成功要简单得多。即便是我在2013年开始效力汤顿谷（Taunton Vale）时，在二队（second XI）的得分和门柱也能让你进入一队（first XI）。十三年后的今天，板球及其成就被分割成无数个人对“机会”的定义。

“百球赛”的营销喜欢宣传“每一球都重要”，仿佛以前的球不重要似的。没有人能预测哪一球、在哪场直播、面对哪一群观众，或在哪项赛事中，会成为最关键的那一球。

巴斯或将在雷丁FC体育场举办两场主场联赛

橄榄球联盟

威尔·凯莱赫

橄榄球副特派记者

巴斯俱乐部将不得不在2027年将最后两场加拉格尔英超主场比赛——以及可能的季后赛半决赛——移至娱乐场（Recreation Ground）以外的场地进行。

该俱乐部已提前启动新体育场的建设，计划于2028-29赛季初完工。由于提前动工，并将新场馆的建设时间缩短了18个月，他们不得不比预期更早搬离主场。

巴斯正在与多个场地接洽，寻找临时主场。《泰晤士报》了解到，雷丁的Select Car Leasing体育场（该体育场在2000年至2020年间曾承办伦敦爱尔兰人队的比赛，拥有24,000个座位）被视为巴斯最可能的选择。俱乐部下赛季最后一场真正的主场比赛将于4月17日对阵纽卡斯尔红牛队。随后，他们需在其他场地进行5月15日对阵哈勒奎恩队及6月5.对阵萨拉森人队的比赛。若巴斯最终排名前两位，他们还将失去季后赛半决赛的主场优势。巴斯正考虑使用其学院范围内的场地，该范围涵盖29个郡的部分区域，包括萨默塞特、汉普郡、多塞特、威尔特郡及伯克郡。

娱乐场将进行耗资£7000万英镑的重建

巴斯曾与格洛斯特俱乐部讨论共享场地事宜，但未达成协议。他们也不太可能在特威克纳姆的安联体育场或英格兰橄榄球协会（RFU）场地举办“主场”联赛，且巴斯尚未与RFU接洽。巴斯亦未与布里斯托尔熊队商讨共享阿什顿门体育场的事宜。巴斯首席执行官塔奎因·麦克唐纳昨日致信支持者：“我们正在与多个替代场地进行讨论，一旦确定比赛地点，将及时通知大家。”

麦克唐纳表示，若球迷无法前往临时场地观赛，将获得退款。巴斯将在2027-28赛季继续使用娱乐场，期间该场馆将进行重建。他们计划将座位数从14,500个扩增至18,000，整个重建项目预计耗资约£7000万英镑。

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足球 体育

家庭与皇室

穆里尼奥的脆弱只为他的父亲而显露

阿利森·鲁德 高级体育记者

与何塞·穆里尼奥相处三个小时并不轻松，就像在吃完一份甜腻的巧克力慕斯后再来一杯餐后甜酒——或者更贴切地说，当你自己也拥有那些穆里尼奥式的神奇时刻，并希望将它们单独保存，而不是成为一幅庞大织锦的一部分，因为那会变得有些重复。

这位葡萄牙人到来，征服，然后失败。通常是在第三个赛季，甚至更早。

这并不是说《穆里尼奥》这部新的Netflix纪录片系列无法观看，而是说提醒你在观看每集之间要留出时间。穆里尼奥并不适合一口气追完。

这部系列片是否让我们看到了真实的穆里尼奥？也许吧。但这是我们之前见过的版本。略带愠色、傲慢、轻蔑，但也口才出众、非常聪明。最吸引人的时刻不是他赢得的冠军，也不是杯赛的历程，而是他在足球界崭露头角时，觉得自己必须比任何人都更努力工作，因为他作为球员并不成功。他在巴塞罗那担任路易斯·范加尔助教时的工作清单如此之长，我甚至一度期待他会说每周二还要为这位荷兰教练修脚。

看完这部纪录片，你不会觉得穆里尼奥没有赢得他的荣誉和财富。但你也不会觉得他被逼着深入探讨自己的执教方法。

有人问他是否对人感到好奇，他说不，他只对职业生涯感兴趣。毕竟，这不就是他们拍摄这部纪录片的原因吗？

他认为，任何关于成功人士的书，都应该只用500页中的5页来写这个人的童年，但显然他自己的童年和与父亲费利克斯的关系才是他野心的核心。费利克斯是一名在圣诞节当天被解雇的足球教练。即使现在，他也无法谈论父亲的去世，这成了他唯一流露脆弱的时刻，他轻叩桌子以忍住泪水。

他说，父亲与他截然相反，因为所有人都爱费利克斯；他是“一个了不起的人，我连接近都做不到”。

他的职业生涯中也有争议，但这部纪录片并不热衷于探究。伊娃·卡内罗博士的案件在当时旷日持久且极为尴尬，但穆里尼奥在这里只是简单地表示：“对我来说，女医生和男医生是一样的。所以当我不高兴时，我会用我的词汇。”卡内罗在就业法庭上表示，穆里尼奥在她跑上球场治疗埃登·阿扎尔时称她为“婊子养的”。

穆里尼奥并不真正相信伤病。约翰·特里回忆说，他的前主帅曾走进理疗室，愉快地与工作人员聊天，甚至拥抱他们，却完全无视他这位受伤的后卫。

“如果是你无法忍受的疼痛，就注射止痛针。”穆里尼奥反思道。

这部纪录片披露的一个重磅消息是，穆里尼奥用自己的话说，他在2013年“签约”了曼联，却又含泪告诉亚历克斯·弗格森爵士，他需要回到切尔西。“我当然感到非常荣幸，”他谈到曼联的邀约时说，但他需要感受到被爱。“但我不后悔，”穆里尼奥说，“当你为爱做事时，你永远不会做错。”

另一个重大揭秘是穆里尼奥告诉我们：“我这辈子从来没有喝醉过。你看，我看得比你更清楚。”他说。

我们很少看到他的家人。他们偶尔出现在片段中，但大多是书架上的照片，当他告诉我们他们在餐厅用餐时没有他会更开心时，这显得有些心酸。

他加盟切尔西的过程似乎是命中注定。他是一位个性鲜明的主教练，他知道如果自己是弗兰克·里杰卡尔德或罗纳德·科曼，得到一份大工作会更容易—。

在西伦敦的这家俱乐部，他们当时还是一群暴发户，正如他所指出的那样，拥有“零”个英超联赛冠军。这里的情节略显同性恋色彩：穆里尼奥在弗兰克·兰帕德洗澡时告诉他，他是世界上最好的球员，而特里则略显不悦，回顾当时，他觉得自己也应该有过一次“淋浴会议”。这部纪录片主要探讨了他的激励能力，但他在切尔西第一段成功执教的战术秘诀，是确保训练强度至少与实战相当，甚至更高。

“我说过我并不友善，”穆里尼奥在被问及“安德斯·弗里斯克事件”时表示。2005年，切尔西对阵巴塞罗那时，他指责这位瑞典裁判与里杰卡尔德串通，导致弗里斯克收到死亡威胁。但他表示自己“不友善”是“带着骄傲”的。无论从哪个角度看，他现在都并不比当时更反思。

随后，镜头回溯到过去。“我当时是天真还是傲慢？我不这么认为，”他谈及在被任命为波尔图主帅时承诺夺冠的情景。

“正是那一刻，我向世界介绍了自己，”他提到在欧冠16强赛击败曼联后，沿着边线奔跑的著名一幕。他说自己仍能感受到当时所穿外套的重量，如今看来，那件衣服对于冲刺来说实在太过沉重。

“有时候我会非常刻薄、咄咄逼人，”他回忆起将温格称为“窥淫狂”时说道。但他毫无悔意。“所以那段时光很美好，是的，”他谈及第二次带领切尔西夺冠时说，仿佛在回味一块美味的卡芒贝尔吐司。这背后的原因是他在幕后的权力有所削弱。

兰帕德表示，他能感觉到气氛的变化，主教练的控制力不如从前。也许这正是“窥淫门”事件的后遗症，给俱乐部带来了负面影响。“我从未有过怀疑的时刻，为什么要怀疑？为什么？为什么？”

他本想签下塞缪尔·埃托奥，但最终在斯坦福桥的第四个赛季迎来了安德烈·舍甫琴科，这让他至今耿耿于怀。“成功不该成为诅咒，”穆里尼奥在谈及被罗曼·阿布拉莫维奇解雇时说，并补充道，他认为自己在球迷中很受欢迎，但在俱乐部高层那里并非如此。

他离开切尔西前往国际米兰，而非更自然的巴塞罗那，对此他面无表情。伊布拉希莫维奇表示，穆里尼奥将他变成了“杀手”。但伊布拉希莫维奇最终加盟巴塞罗那。纪录片中最精彩的部分，是伊布拉希莫维奇回忆穆里尼奥告诉他，他知道他去巴塞罗那是为了赢得欧冠，但穆里尼奥会在国际米兰赢得16个欧冠冠军。

“你这个小混蛋，”这位瑞典人回忆道，捕捉到那一刻他意识到穆里尼奥可能真的会做到——而他确实做到了，因为他用伊布拉希莫维奇加上部分现金换来了埃托奥。

皇家马德里的岁月值得回顾，因为他如今又回到了那里，一个毫无遗憾的人。

“我的职业生涯，”他说，“我赢得了快乐的权利。”

沙特拳击大亨退出后德比郡收购案告吹

汤姆·克肖

在沙特阿拉伯拳击权势人物图尔基·阿尔-谢赫（Turki Al-Sheikh）在最后一刻退出后，德比郡俱乐部陷入震惊。此前《泰晤士报》于5月披露，阿尔-谢赫作为沙特王室顾问兼沙特娱乐总局局长，正与德比郡现任老板戴维·克洛斯（David Clowes）进行深入谈判，后者曾于2022年拯救俱乐部免于破产。阿尔-谢赫已向独立足球监管机构（IFR）和英格兰足球联赛（EFL）证明其财富与沙特公共投资基金无关，并获准于上周完成收购。然而，在赛季即将开始前五天，阿尔-谢赫突然变卦，令德比郡高层措手不及。

德比郡俱乐部发表声明称：“俱乐部确认，与阿尔-谢赫旗下狮子体育集团（Lion Sport）收购德比郡多数股权的谈判将不再继续。此前收购流程已获独立足球监管机构和英格兰足球联赛批准，俱乐部于上周收到通知。

“然而，今日俱乐部收到通知，狮子体育集团不再希望继续收购。俱乐部现已退市，将继续在克洛斯开发公司的忠诚、坚定和不懈支持下运营。我们正为新赛季的英格兰足球联赛做准备，首场比赛将于周六对阵查尔顿竞技。”

阿尔-谢赫随后在社交媒体上暗示，独立足球监管机构审批耗时过长是其退出交易的关键原因。审批流程耗时55天——法定期限为90天——但考虑到阿尔-谢赫与王储穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼的长期关系及其政府部长身份，外界普遍怀疑是否存在其他因素。“我要感谢德比郡足球俱乐部的每一位成员，以及过去几个月参与这一流程的所有人员的辛勤工作，”阿尔-谢赫在声明中表示。

“我们理解独立足球监管机构的审批流程需要时间，并充分尊重其重要性，但不幸的是，由于赛季已经开始，我们将没有时间为球队或俱乐部的新赛季做好准备。经过仔细考虑，我们认为在缺乏必要准备的情况下继续推进并不合适，但我们将继续与俱乐部保持沟通，探讨未来的可能性。”

48

体育 足球

阿劳霍为租借利物浦降薪

EVA MARK（车站）BUCKMERS / GETTY IMAGES

保罗·乔伊斯

北部足球记者

罗纳德·阿劳霍已同意降薪，以促成从巴塞罗那租借至利物浦的转会，并准备好立即为新主帅安德尼·伊劳拉效力。

这位后卫决心抓住意外的机会转投安菲尔德俱乐部，为此接受了比留在诺坎普更低的薪水。利物浦将承担他的全部工资，但不会支付租借费，并拥有在明年夏天以£47百万英镑的价格买断他的选择权，而非义务。

“在我看来，这是我职业生涯现阶段的理想转会，”将身披33号球衣的阿劳霍表示。“一听到利物浦的兴趣，一切就迅速行动起来。”

利物浦当前的首要目标是让他加强防线，该防线一直受到伤病困扰。乔·戈麦斯、乔瓦尼·莱奥尼和康纳·布拉德利都将缺席新赛季的开局，而杰雷米·雅克特在季前赛至今尚未为俱乐部出场，不过他有望在周日对阵科莫的安菲尔德友谊赛中登场。

阿劳霍既能胜任右后卫，又能出任中后卫的多面性，意味着他有很大机会在新英超赛季揭幕战对阵纽卡斯尔联时首发。

这位27岁的乌拉圭国脚将于本周晚些时候开始训练，但他近期在巴塞罗那的训练状态良好，并以积极的心态把握机会。

阿劳霍上赛季为巴塞罗那出场38次，尽管在11月底至次年1月初期间暂别足坛，专注调整心理健康。

此前，他在欧冠3-0不敌切尔西的比赛中被红牌罚下，并因此饱受批评。随后他透露自己已与焦虑和抑郁抗争了18个月。

“这不仅与运动有关，也涉及家庭和个人层面，”他在1994年2月接受《世界体育报》采访时表示。“我当时感觉自己不像自己，而那一刻（在切尔西被罚下）仿佛敲响了警钟，让我意识到：出问题了，我需要寻求帮助。”

“我通常是那种把一切都藏在心里的人，但你必须明白，有些专业人士能帮助你，为你提供应对某些情况的工具。我需要寻求帮助，解释自己正在经历的一切，才能恢复。”

阿劳霍前往伯利恒和耶路撒冷的宗教圣地朝圣，并与家人共度时光后，以队长身份回归，帮助巴塞罗那赢得西甲冠军。

杰夫·贝佐斯估计净资产：2800 亿加元亿

福布斯排名全球第3富豪。1994年创立亚马逊，最初为在线书店。拥有《华盛顿邮报》和航空航天制造商蓝色起源。

接续背面内容

利物浦股权交易接近完成

相关讨论正在进行中，可能延长至2027年。

《泰晤士报》联系了FSG，但对方拒绝就谈判进展发表评论。由于该交易涉及俱乐部超过25%的股权，需通过英超联赛的所有者和董事测试以及新成立的独立足球监管机构审核后方可最终敲定。

FSG于2010年10月以3亿英镑的价格从美国商人汤姆·希克斯和乔治·吉列特手中收购利物浦，此后彻底改变了俱乐部的命运——他们两次赢得英超联赛冠军，并夺得欧冠冠军。

最近一次英超联赛夺冠是在2025年，此后利物浦已投入约5.5亿英镑用于引援，预计在夏季转会窗口剩余时间内还将继续支出。巴黎圣日耳曼前锋布拉德利·巴尔科拉是目标之一，法国冠军对其估值为1.45亿英镑。

利物浦还成功改造了安菲尔德球场，将容量扩大至61,000人，并在柯比建造了一个最先进的训练基地，将一线队和青训体系整合在一起。

巴蒂亚财团即将达成的交易及出售股权的规模，引发了FSG是否开始退出战略的讨论。利物浦主要股东约翰·W·亨利曾公开表示FSG终有一天会出售俱乐部，但短期内，此次交易将增强俱乐部的财务实力。

这与2023年Dynasty Equity以约1.2亿英镑收购3%股权的举措如出一辙。当时，FSG主席迈克·戈登在FSG足球首席执行官迈克尔·爱德华兹上月离职后重新接管利物浦的日常运营，他表示：“我们对利物浦的长期承诺一如既往地坚定。

‘我们一直表示，如果有合适的投资伙伴，我们会抓住机会，以确保俱乐部的长期财务韧性和未来增长。’

显然，如果FSG未来决定出售更多股权，那么与巴蒂亚财团和Dynasty的关系意味着他们将优先考虑与后者洽谈。

巴塞罗那有信心签下罗德里

保罗·赫斯特

巴塞罗那越来越有信心从曼城签下罗德里，并希望这位西班牙队长能在本周内完成转会至诺坎普。

两家俱乐部的谈判昨日继续进行，此前曼城在三天前拒绝了巴塞罗那为这位30岁的世界杯冠军球员提出的£38.5万英镑初始报价。

据信曼城希望转会费能达到约£60万英镑，而巴塞罗那愿意满足这一数字，但首付款约为£55万英镑，外加至少£5万英镑的附加条款。

巴塞罗那希望在未来几天内完成罗德里的转会，以便他能融入球队。巴塞罗那将于周日与巴塞尔进行一场友谊赛，一周后他们将在对阵埃尔切的比赛中开始卫冕西甲冠军。

在世界杯决赛中攻入制胜球的费兰·托雷斯原定于明日返回巴塞罗那基地训练，但这位边锋似乎即将转会至巴黎圣日耳曼。这家法国俱乐部预计将提出第二份报价，高于他们最初£34万英镑加£8.5万英镑附加条款的报价。

与托雷斯一样，罗德里的合同还剩一年，且尚未表现出续约意愿，这也是曼城准备将其出售的原因。

曼城已从诺丁汉森林签下英格兰中场埃利奥特·安德森，转会费为£116万英镑，并正在与里尔就18岁的摩洛哥球员阿尤布·布阿迪展开谈判，潜在转会费为£85万英镑。

如果罗德里离队，恩佐·马雷斯卡可能会要求曼城高层重返转会市场寻找另一名中场球员，尽管球队已拥有马特奥·科瓦西奇、蒂吉安·雷恩德斯和尼科·冈萨雷斯等球员。

合同还剩一年的科瓦西奇表示希望留在曼城，冈萨雷斯也是如此，而雷恩德斯则与转会至诺丁汉森林传出绯闻。

西汉姆联或转投39,岁的瓦尔迪，若帕罗特转会告吹

如果无法签下特洛伊·帕罗特，西汉姆联可能会考虑杰米·瓦尔迪作为后备选择。

这位39,岁的前锋在克雷莫纳降级至意乙后合同到期离队，但他希望继续踢球。他在上赛季打入7球并送出3次助攻。

西汉姆联为帕罗特提出的约£15万英镑报价遭到拒绝。这位爱尔兰前锋在过去两个赛季为阿尔克马尔出场97次，打入51球并送出17次助攻。他于2024年以£6.7万英镑从托特纳姆热刺转会而来，热刺拥有20,%的二次转会分成。

RB莱比锡也对帕罗特感兴趣。西汉姆联的另一个目标是威尔逊·伊西多尔，但桑德兰坚称这位前锋不会离队。

马诺尔·所罗门已与西汉姆联签订了一份为期三年的合同，此前他以£7万英镑的价格从托特纳姆热刺转会而来。这位27,岁的边锋在2025赛季租借至利兹联期间贡献了10球和13次助攻，帮助球队从英冠升级。

阿斯顿维拉租借皇家马德里前锋恩德里克的希望昨晚逐渐破灭。这位20,岁的巴西前锋在上赛季下半程被租借至法甲里昂，出场16次打入5球——维拉希望将他带到英超。

然而，据悉恩德里克及其经纪人已被告知，他将是主教练何塞·穆里尼奥本赛季计划的一部分。

---

49

体育

我希望看到的六笔互换转会

将逻辑与趣味结合，詹姆斯·吉尔布兰特（James Gheerbrant）提出了几笔对英超俱乐部而言完美的互换交易

在极为罕见的互换转会发生时，比如水晶宫和埃弗顿互换2名球员——德怀特·麦克尼尔（Dwight McNeil）和布伦南·约翰逊（Brennan Johnson）的交易，不禁让人好奇为何俱乐部不更频繁地采用这种方式。许多球员在英超俱乐部中要么位置不合适，要么不受重用，而国际足联新规限制了将球员“流放”到“炸弹小队”的做法，这进一步激励俱乐部为不受欢迎的球员寻找新归宿。

如果互换交易更为普遍会怎样？在此，我们以趣味为出发点，想象了一个互换交易盛行的世界，并设想了涉及其他英超俱乐部的另外1,22笔可能的互换转会。其中一些是直接互换，另一些则是涉及转会费的部分交换。

马泰斯·德利赫特（Matthus de Ligt）转会切尔西，尼古拉斯·杰克逊（Nicolas Jackson）转会曼联 自迈克尔·卡里克（Michael Carrick）接替鲁本·阿莫林（Ruben Amorim）以来，曼联正从适合三后卫的阵容向四后卫阵容过渡，而切尔西在哈维·阿隆索（Xabi Alonso）的带领下可能正朝相反方向发展。因此，中卫德利赫特对切尔西的价值高于曼联，且其资历足以吸引阿隆索。曼联阵容中鲜有明显缺口，但切尔西急于出售的杰克逊实力强于其名声，将是对已离队的拉斯穆斯·霍伊伦德（Rasmus Hojlund）的升级。切尔西不太可能留下的马洛·古斯托（Malo Gusto）也是另一个选择。

萨维尼奥（Savinho）从曼城转会热刺，转会费1000 万英镑外加古列尔莫·维卡里奥（Guglielmo Vicario） 曼城在詹姆斯·特拉福德（James Trafford）离队后亟需一名替补门将。恩佐·马雷斯卡（Enzo Maresca）的同胞米歇尔·德贝纳尔迪尼（Michele De Bernardin）担任曼城门将教练，将意大利二号门将（维卡里奥）与意大利一号门将（詹路易吉·多纳鲁马）搭档颇具意义。罗伯托·德泽尔比（Roberto De Zerbi）已准备放弃维卡里奥，转而签下安东宁·金斯基（Antonin Kinsky）。热刺显然需要在前场三叉戟位置补强，而长期目标萨维尼奥能为德泽尔比提供“炸弹”级别的边锋。22岁的边锋身价高于29岁的门将，因此交易中还涉及转会费。

雅各布·格里夫斯（Jacob Greaves）转会伯恩茅斯，贾斯汀·克鲁伊维特（Justin Kluivert）转会伊普斯维奇 格里夫斯是一名非常出色的球员，伊普斯维奇曾一度无法想象放走他。但随着球队队长达拉·奥谢（Dara O'Shea）、新援伊萨·迪奥普（Issa Diop）和塞德里克·基普雷（Cedric Kipré），以及被部分人视为比格里夫斯更具潜力的年轻球员查理·休斯（Charlie Hughes）在中卫位置提供深度，他似乎成为俱乐部可以放弃的球员。对于试图保级的升班马而言，通常是射手而非中卫能带来决定性影响。伊普斯维奇将得到在英超证明过自己的射手克鲁伊维特，后者在伯恩茅斯受到拉扬（Rayan）、埃利·朱尼尔·克鲁皮（Eli Junior Kroupi）和埃瓦尼尔森（Evanilson）的挤压。伯恩茅斯需要一名

与麦克尼尔伴侣的宫廷和解

保罗·乔伊斯

水晶宫俱乐部的共同所有人兼主席史蒂夫·帕里什已采取行动，与埃弗顿边锋德怀特·麦克尼尔的伴侣梅根·夏普利化解矛盾，因涉及布伦南·约翰逊的交换交易即将完成。

麦克尼尔曾接近在1月转会截止日以租借方式加盟水晶宫——该交易包含以2000万英镑永久买断的义务——但最终在最后时刻告吹，麦克尼尔重返埃弗顿。随后，夏普利在一篇尖锐的帖子中指责水晶宫“玩弄麦克尼尔的心理健康，违背承诺”。

她表示，水晶宫的态度从“事事关心变成了无线电静默，没有电话，没有沟通”，并称其伴侣在“被耍弄到最后一刻”后“心碎且困惑不已”。

她补充道：“在足球界，为什么我们会觉得因为这些年轻人赚很多钱，就可以接受玩弄他们的心理健康，甚至认为这只是工作的一部分？”

如今，帕里什已与夏普利进行沟通以缓和关系，以推进麦克尼尔，26，的转会——约翰逊则将前往埃弗顿。两名球员昨日已在各自新俱乐部接受体检，双方均已准备好四年合约。

这笔交易为直接交换，引发外界关注，因约翰逊（威尔士前锋）今年1月刚以3500万英镑从托特纳姆热刺加盟水晶宫。他在水晶宫表现挣扎，26场出场未能取得进球，并在欧协联决赛对阵巴列卡诺的比赛中担任未上场替补。而约翰逊在2024-25赛季为热刺出场51次，打入18球。

若丹尼尔·穆尼奥斯（水晶宫右后卫）获准离队，埃弗顿还将对其保留兴趣。

增加一些中后卫厚度，格里夫斯可能会被打磨成该位置的璞玉。

伊桑·恩瓦内里加盟利物浦，科迪·加克波转投阿森纳，赛季租借互换

阿森纳的左边锋位置似乎仍有补强空间。加布里埃尔·马丁内利上赛季仅打入1球，莱安德罗·特罗萨德已离队，而维尼修斯·儒尼奥尔的加盟无望。加克波虽非维尼，但能像特罗萨德那样贡献进球，且拥有米克尔·阿尔特塔看重的身高。在令人失望的季前赛后，恩瓦内里在阿森纳获得一线队出场时间的前景渺茫。利物浦拥有多名左路攻击手，但迫切需要右路球员。恩瓦内里正符合要求，并能带来一丝兴奋感。

若阿森纳尚未准备放弃恩瓦内里，可考虑将其租借一个赛季。

维克托·托普从考文垂城加盟布伦特福德，转会费1200万英镑外加伊桑·平诺克

维克托·托普上赛季在英冠联赛中贡献10球8助攻，但考文垂的中场竞争激烈，托普、马特·格里姆斯、乔什·埃克尔斯、杰克·鲁洛尼及新援卡勒布·伊伦基和弗兰克·奥涅卡均需争夺三个位置。弗兰克·兰帕德可能更倾向于为中后卫阵容增添一名英超经验丰富的球员，该阵容已补充了来自法兰克福的Aurélie Amenda，以及来自英冠的老将博比·托马斯和利亚姆·基钦（三人均为26岁或更年轻）。

丹麦人托普非常符合布伦特福德的风格，正是他们能将其提升至更高水平的那类球员。

马茨·维费尔加盟桑德兰，威尔逊·伊西多加盟布莱顿

桑德兰最迫切的阵容需求是边后卫位置的年轻活力：其首选左后卫雷尼尔多·曼达瓦已32、34岁的托马斯·默尼耶加盟后将出任另一侧。诺尔迪·穆基尔已转型为中后卫，雷吉斯·勒布里可能希望继续将特雷·休姆用作边锋。

维费尔，26，上赛季为布莱顿出任右后卫，但随着奥林匹亚科斯的科林哈加盟费尔迪·卡迪奥卢，他在该位置的机会可能有限。他对桑德兰而言将是一个合理的选择。

布莱顿尚未替换丹尼·韦尔贝克。伊西多尔将加入一个前锋组，目前该组合由埃文·弗格森、斯特凡诺斯·齐马斯和哈拉兰波斯·科斯图拉斯组成，看起来略显稚嫩。

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50

欧洲田径锦标赛

亨特成为欧洲短跑女王

马特·劳顿 《泰晤士报》首席体育记者 亚历山大体育场

艺术史或许是埃米·亨特的热情所在，但赢得重大锦标赛奖牌的艺术正迅速成为这位飞人年轻女性的专长。

在伯明翰的比赛中，她奉献了一场堪称精彩绝伦的表现，理应吸引比这场锦标赛开幕之夜到场的13,000名观众更多的关注。亨特在去年9月东京世锦赛上摘得银牌，上月又在格拉斯哥英联邦运动会上获得同一奖项，如今她终于将职业生涯首枚金牌收入囊中。“确实该升级了，”她说道。

亨特以优雅姿态夺得欧洲女子100米冠军，进一步巩固了她“跑道女神”的声誉，同时也展现了她作为剑桥毕业生“学霸”背景的另一面。

“可能我已经没有更多的妙语了，”她随后说道，并透露希望在本周结束前再赢得两项接力和200米的三枚奖牌。“但正如我昨天在新闻发布会上引用弗雷迪·默丘里的一句名言：‘我要拥有一切。’”

这是一个精彩的开端；一个体育史上的高光时刻，标志着她在这个本已令人印象深刻的赛季中又一次杰出表现。在这个赛季中，她首次跑进11秒大关，并在更短距离的国内短跑比赛中击败迪娜·阿舍-史密斯，夺得全国冠军。后者此次仅获得第五名。

当晚早些时候的三场半决赛中，亨特跑出了最快成绩，以10.99秒的成绩赢得了包括阿舍-史密斯在内的小组赛。

尽管24岁的亨特出色地应对了这种期望带来的压力，但她或许也会承认自己在起跑器上坐得稍久了一些。

然而，亨特长期以来所宣称的优势——极佳的冲刺速度——在本场比赛的后半程再次成为决定性因素。与去年在日本的表现如出一辙，直到大约65米时，亨特才终于领先，最终以15秒整的成绩夺冠。这场胜利既得益于她的冷静，也归功于她将波兰选手埃娃·斯沃博达甩在身后的速度。

“有时候我会非常苛刻地自我批评，”她在反思那略显迟缓的起跑时说道。“我想我的教练可能会说这简直是……‘垃圾’可能是他会用的词。

“但我们最终还是成功了。我认为这是我在锦标赛中的一大技能。我知道自己在最后阶段非常强大。我总能在最后40或50米中展现那种额外的魔力。”

她说自己已经预见到了这场胜利。“我对自己非常有信心，因为我每天都能在训练中看到自己的表现，”她说道。“所以我知道自己能赢得这枚金牌。实际上，我有一种强烈的预感，这种神奇的感觉。

“我曾在这里的英格兰学校运动会上获胜。我13、14岁时就在这里比赛过。这真的是我的跑道。我是来自纽瓦克的女孩，一个中部地区的女孩，所以我有一种感觉，今晚将是属于我的夜晚。”

她的胜利为这场激动人心的田径之夜画上了句号，当晚还包括英国队在4x400米混合接力中获得银牌，以及不可阻挡的雅各布·英格布里格森在男子5,000米比赛中的惊人夺冠。

他的最新胜利以13分15秒多的成绩到来，但这是他在324天缺席比赛后的回归。“在还有600米时，我就知道自己会赢得这枚金牌，”他赛后说道。又一位能预知未来的选手。

英格布里格森在精英长跑领域的经历从未缺少故事性，除了他在跑道上的非凡能力，从他早年如《楚门的世界》般的生活，到去年以其父亲兼前教练杰特因殴打女儿被定罪而告终的法庭风波。

但这位两届奥运冠军的亮相本身就有其独特的叙事，尽管其中也不乏典型的“英格布里格森式”转折。

去年夏天世界锦标赛上，跟腱问题毁掉了他再夺更多奖牌的希望，最终在2023年1月不得不接受手术。

因此，选择在欧洲锦标赛决赛中复出需要相当的勇气，尤其是当陪伴他完成12.5圈跑道回归的，是一位如今仍由那位疏远的老人指导的运动员。

英格布里格森曾有过类似经历。他参加2023年世界锦标赛时，面对的是另一位选择留在耶尔特训练团队的挪威选手——当时雅各布和他的兄弟们已与耶尔特决裂。纳尔维·吉耶·诺达斯在当年由乔什·基尔赢得的1,500米决赛中险些夺走他的银牌。

但耶尔特在因雅各布的指控被判15天缓刑、同时被宣告无罪后，仍继续执教儿子的竞争对手，这即使以他的标准来看也显得阴暗。

何塞·卡洛斯·平托当时是一个不小的威胁，尽管他当晚状态不佳，在比赛进行到一半时退赛。

但对于25岁的雅各布来说，在连续三届欧洲锦标赛上包揽1,500米和5,000米冠军、本次比赛前保持不败的他，这无疑是一个不受欢迎的干扰。

然而，这场比赛堪称经典，而他再次夺得欧洲金牌的方式更是令人印象深刻。

英格布里格森偏好快节奏，但这场比赛相对较慢，当他们通过3,000米时，这位挪威选手位列倒数第三，用时8.07。

当他在剩余1,400米时移至前方时，却未能保持位置，铃响时位列第三，进入最后直道时仍是第三。

但不知从何而来，英格布里格森重新找回了曾助他赢得奥运1,500米辉煌的速度，在剩余不到50米时突然冲到前方，并将与德国选手弗洛里安·布伦内姆的差距拉开至0.3秒以上。

“两周前我报名时就梦想着这一刻，我祈祷自己能来到这里并感觉更好，”英格布里格森在庆祝时挥拳说道。

“刚刚好。我非常开心。”

亨特保持冷静，以11.秒的成绩赢得欧洲100米冠军。这位24,岁的英国选手此前[...OMITTED...]

东京震撼仍伴随雅各布斯冲击三连冠

马特·劳顿

在基莉·霍奇金森将于上午场次开启她第三次连续夺取欧洲800米冠军的征程之际，本届伯明翰锦标赛的第二天还将迎来另一位追求三连冠的运动员。

拉蒙特·马塞尔·雅各布斯在2021年震惊了田径界，当时他刚刚从跳远转型短跑不久，便打破了100米10秒大关，并在东京奥运会上以9.80秒的欧洲纪录夺冠。

然而，几天内故事的走向发生了变化。《泰晤士报》率先报道，这位因帮助意大利短跑运动员实现蜕变而闻名的营养师兼健身房老板，卷入了米兰警方关于非法分发类固醇的调查。

尽管“肌肉束缚行动”最终以贾科莫·斯帕齐尼被法院判定无罪告终，但他仍被处以15年的反兴奋剂禁令。

不过，该禁令随后在上诉中被完全撤销，独立小组裁定斯帕齐尼在技术上不属于反兴奋剂机构的管辖范围，因为他并非体育参与者。

雅各布斯的代表迅速坚称，他们的客户在得知警方调查后——雅各布斯本人也是一名现役警官——便立即终止了与斯帕齐尼的合作关系，这一时间点距东京奥运会开幕还有数月。

但这一事件始终伴随着31岁的雅各布斯，在他赢得更多冠军的过程中——其中两个是在2022年和2024年获得的欧洲室外赛冠军，以及东京奥运会六个月后赢得的世界室内60米金牌。

两年前在巴黎卫冕奥运冠军时，他仅获得第五名，但本赛季的雅各布斯——如今重新与曾指导他创造体育史上最意外胜利之一的意大利教练合作——状态正佳。上月在奥地利，他跑出了惊人的9.67秒成绩，尽管当时顺风风速达4.1米 / 秒。

这无疑使他成为今晚的夺冠热门，英国选手罗梅尔·格拉夫可能是他最接近的对手。

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51

体育

强势冲刺

MARTIN BOGOTT / PA

在去年世锦赛200米比赛中获得亚军后表示，“我已经厌倦了银牌”

巴黎游泳赛英国双接力夺金

游泳 克雷格·洛德 巴黎报道

在巴黎举行的欧洲游泳锦标赛首日比赛中，英国队在男子和女子4x200米自由泳接力项目中双双夺金，马克斯·利奇菲尔德在400米个人混合泳中摘得铜牌，使英国队跃居奖牌榜首位。

英国队传来更多好消息，亚当·拉姆齐-皮蒂在两周前的格拉斯哥英联邦运动会上状态堪忧，但如今看到了复苏的希望。他与18岁的英国蛙泳王位继承人菲利普·诺瓦茨基一同晋级100米蛙泳决赛。男子4x200米自由泳接力队以7分01秒52的成绩夺冠，领先法国队0.71秒，德国队再落后法国队0.07秒。英国队上一次赢得欧洲冠军是在2018年，此后参与那场胜利的选手——汤姆·迪恩、詹姆斯·盖伊和邓肯·斯科特——与马特·理查兹一起，已在两届奥运会（2021年和2024年）和两届世锦赛（2023年和2025年）的巴黎赛事中夺得金牌。迪恩在预赛中游得比训练搭档杰克·麦克米伦略慢，因此在决赛中被替换下场，未能卫冕东京奥运会200米自由泳冠军。

斯科特在最后一棒中领先其他前四名队伍，最终守住金牌。他笑着说：“‘守住’可能是最合适的词。功劳归于詹姆斯。他已经30岁了，丝毫没有放慢脚步，我认为他确实为我最后一棒拉开了所需的差距。太了不起了。”

但盖伊并不认同。“团队中没有‘我’，”他说，“我们下水前唯一说的就是各尽其责，争取最好的结果。”

与此同时，英国女子接力队由弗蕾娅·科尔伯特、阿比·伍德、莉亚·施洛沙姆和弗蕾娅·安德森组成，以7分45秒93的成绩轻松夺冠。

国际足联主席因欺诈指控遭足坛领袖谴责

接上页

知情人士表示，这表明反对因凡蒂诺的力量不会被恐吓。此外，人们普遍有信心，如果因凡蒂诺坚持参选，他将在选举中落败，因为如今反对他的人数众多。

尽管亚足联（AFC）的部分成员（如卡塔尔）和中北美及加勒比海足球协会（Concacaf）的墨西哥支持因凡蒂诺，但大多数成员正追随其领导层的立场。这包括拥有25个国际足联（Fifa）成员的加勒比海足球联盟，占Concacaf 35个成员中的大多数。据悉，欧洲足联（Uefa）的55个成员协会团结一致。

尽管非洲足球联合会（CAF）执行委员会已表态支持因凡蒂诺，但其54个成员国中仍有部分可能支持其他候选人。

信中写道：“这关乎更根本的问题：比赛的诚信，以及那些被选举出来领导比赛的人的诚信。”

“足球领导权不是一种占有。它不是关于掌握——或要求掌握——权力。它是对足球大家庭委以的服务职责。当信任因欺骗而破裂，当个人将自己置于授予其权威的集体之上时，这一职责便已被抛弃。”

信中指出，国际足联承认在因凡蒂诺最初计划向私人投资者出售国际足联赛事股份一事上犯有错误，但仅归咎于“沟通失败”，而非对秘密计划本身道歉。信中补充道：“足球界目睹的是判断力的失败。一项在压缩时间内推进、未经充分协商、并在成员协会能够充分审查其条款前被推向截止日期的提案，不是疏忽的产物——而是旨在限制审查的设计。”

“它并未承认该提案本身存在根本性错误。仍然没有认识到试图出售国际足联世界杯的股份是判断力的重大失败——不仅仅是程序上的失误，而是对国际足联存在目的所服务的机构的根本性背叛。”

信中表示，国际足联承诺对该计划失败进行审查，但应由完全独立的第三方执行。信中还质疑为何上周在摩洛哥举行的危机峰会未邀请任何国际足联理事会成员，指出因凡蒂诺是唯一出席的民选官员。其他与会者均为国际足联管理层——但缺少关键声音，如首席运营官凯文·拉穆尔或全球足球发展主管阿尔塞纳·温格。

“最近的这次会议……只会进一步加剧这些担忧，并延续了将我们带到这一时刻的行为模式，”信中补充道，“这不是游戏守护者的行为，而是认为游戏应对他负责的人的行为。本应问责的地方沉默，本应开放的地方疏远。”

“这些不是足球领导层应有的品质。这就是我们采取这一立场的原因：不是轻率行事，也不是孤军奋战，而是团结一致，出于对我们所服务的足球的职责。足球的力量始终在于其团结。我们呼吁现在尊重这种团结，拥有服务足球而非试图主宰足球的领导层。”

因凡蒂诺不愿辞职的最大因素在于，过去十年间，国际足联主席一职已成为他的身份象征。失去这一职位，他将不得不放弃他珍视的生活方式和知名度——乘坐私人飞机、与世界领导人和名人交往。他的年薪和奖金为$6（合£4.4）一年，若因名誉扫地离职，这一收入水平将难以匹敌。知情人士透露，出售股份计划的构想是，因凡蒂诺在卸任国际足联主席后，出任新企业的专员，年薪$30外加奖金。国际足联表示，此事从未讨论过。

续前页

马里纳基斯起诉枪支横幅事件

“表明俱乐部知晓风险。”吉布斯-怀特去年夏天曾接近离开森林队加盟热刺，但最终签署了新合同留在森林队。

如今，马里纳基斯已向高等法院提起诽谤诉讼，要求赔偿。他需证明该诽谤性横幅的发布对他造成了严重伤害，并证明水晶宫俱乐部对其发布负有责任。水晶宫俱乐部拒绝置评。

该横幅制作之时，两支英超球队之间的紧张关系正值高峰。水晶宫主席史蒂夫·帕里什曾暗示森林队在其球队从欧联杯降级至欧协联一事中扮演了角色。经查，水晶宫因违反欧足联关于多俱乐部所有权的规定，被森林队取代其欧联杯席位。

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《泰晤士报》

体育

莫里尼奥的真面目？

艾莉森·拉德评论网飞纪录片 第47页

贝佐斯财团斥资15 亿英镑亿英镑入股利物浦

保罗·乔伊斯

利物浦俱乐部的所有者芬威体育集团（Fenway Sports Group）即将向包括亚马逊创始人杰夫·贝佐斯在内的亿万富翁财团出售约三分之一的俱乐部股份。

该财团由钢铁大亨拉克希米·米塔尔的女婿阿米特·巴蒂亚牵头，目前关于少数股权的谈判已进入后期阶段。

除贝佐斯外，巴蒂亚的合作伙伴还包括Facebook联合创始人爱德华多·萨维林。一位知情人士表示：“谈判仍在进行，但前景乐观。”

这笔价值15 亿英镑亿英镑的交易预计将在未来一周内宣布，这意味着利物浦的估值约为45 亿英镑亿英镑，安菲尔德俱乐部的共同所有者中将出现一些全球最富有的人士。

尽管利物浦看似能够动用雄厚的财力资源，但俱乐部并不能在转会市场上随心所欲地花钱购买新球员。

英超联赛的“球队成本比率”财务规定限制顶级联赛俱乐部的支出不得超过其足球相关收入及球员买卖净利润 / 亏损的85%。此外，参加欧洲赛事的俱乐部（如利物浦）还必须遵守欧足联70%的上限规定。“他们不会突然签下[基利安]·姆巴佩，”一位知情人士表示。

巴蒂亚的岳父身家估计达240 亿英镑亿英镑，他于上月辞去女王公园巡游者俱乐部董事会职务，并将其在该俱乐部的股份转让给所有者鲁本·纳纳林甘。他已在该英冠俱乐部任职18年。

据《福布斯》估算，贝佐斯的身家超过2070 亿英镑亿英镑，萨维林的身家则超过240 亿英镑亿英镑。

萨维林此前曾参与一个财团，试图从前所有者罗曼·阿布拉莫维奇手中收购切尔西，但未能成功，当时正值俄罗斯入侵乌克兰之后。

相比之下，贝佐斯此前对收购体育机构股份并无兴趣，曾拒绝购买NFL球队西雅图海鹰的机会。

如今，贝佐斯财团计划收购约30%的股份，这表明他们对俱乐部管理利物浦场内外事务的方式表示支持，因为他们希望获得投资回报。这笔交易也反映了利物浦在全球舞台上的吸引力。

这些知名人物的加入将带来的关键益处之一是通过新的商业合作推动场外收入增长，同时还可能带来基础设施和科技方面的机遇。在截至31, 2025,的最新财年报告中，利物浦宣布创纪录的£703万英镑收入。

与球衣正面赞助商渣打银行及袖口赞助商亿客行的合同均将于今夏到期，续约事宜

亨特冲刺夺欧洲金牌

这位24岁的英国短跑选手在伯明翰以强劲冲刺赢得100米冠军——这是她在世锦赛和英联邦运动会均获银牌后的首个重大赛事冠军。详见第50-51页报道。

因凡蒂诺“失信”

马丁·齐格勒 年度体育新闻记者

国际足联（FIFA）主席詹尼·因凡蒂诺（Gianni Infantino）因其世界杯出售计划被三位FIFA副主席联名指控“欺骗”，这封公开信将其未来的命运推向风口浪尖。

这封联名信来自欧洲足联（UEFA）主席亚历山大·切费林（Aleksander Čeferin）、中北美及加勒比海足球协会（Concacaf）主席维克多·蒙塔利亚尼（Victor Montagliani）和亚洲足球联合会（AFC）主席谢赫·萨尔曼·本·易卜拉欣·阿勒哈利法（Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa），分别称因凡蒂诺“放弃”了职责并“失信”。

三大洲际足联领导人要求因凡蒂诺立即辞职，并放弃在2025年3月的连任竞选。有消息人士透露，他们甚至已开始初步讨论为各自球员组织竞争性国际赛事。

这封信是对FIFA上周末发表的愤怒声明的回应，****

马里纳基斯起诉枪支横幅事件

夏洛特·邓克

诺丁汉森林队老板埃万杰洛斯·马里纳基斯（Evangelos Marinakis）正以诽谤罪起诉水晶宫队，原因是后者球迷在2025年8月的一场比赛中打出横幅，画面显示他用枪指着中场球员摩根·吉布斯-怀特（Morgan Gibbs-White）的头部。

水晶宫队因该横幅被英足总罚款£1。横幅内容为：“马里纳基斯先生未涉及敲诈、假球、贩毒或腐败。”

英足总认定水晶宫未能有效阻止球迷在塞尔赫斯特公园球场（Selhurst Park）进行的1-1平局中表现出不当、冒犯、辱骂或挑衅行为。该机构在声明中表示：“水晶宫虽有防止横幅被偷运进场的政策，****”

《泰晤士报》填字游戏 29,618

横向

1 支持者的谈话涉及青年队的空缺——真让人惊讶（5,4） 6 忍受反复发作的严重咳嗽（5） 9 在边境内恢复两座城市（7） 10 错误地捡起流通的现金以剪辑（7） 11 被清晨河流的景色吸引（5） 12 追求优秀唱片公司，价格合理（9） 13 退位，未能在此事上取得成功？（5） 14 病人可能在一周后以笨拙方式失去勇气（9） 17 精力充沛地前进，撕开裙子敞开（7,2） 18 意大利面和蛋糕的一半分量（5） 19 黄疸病人，你会想要接受虚无（9） 22 对儿子守口如瓶，创造出色彩范围（5） 24 一对情侣开始放松的插图，在船上（7） 25 聚合物固定最后腐烂的台阶（7） 26 未能招募球队对抗工会对手（5） 27 阴郁却出人意料地健谈的研究？（9）

纵向

1 乘客，第一个离开，上车（5） 2 果树可供养护院（9） 3 同意接受警告，带着强烈情感离开（9） 4 恐怖工作室的旗帜装置，结尾有令人作呕的真实血腥（6,3,6） 5 艾略特、克伦威尔，还有霍茨波：无人出众？（3,4,3,5） 6 更明智的守财奴，其中一人在开头翻转角色（5） 7 可观察的，随时间流逝（5） 8 柱廊陡峭倾斜：1跑上去穿过它（9） 13 推销员每天安静地四处奔波（5-4） 15 关于第一道菜的新建议（9） 16 因英雄事迹，瓦格纳的歌剧令人满意（7-2） 20 近期的橡胶来源（5） 21 重组极轻气体的元素（5） 23 必须完成剩余的糕点，闻起来有霉味（5）

昨日答案 29,617

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报纸支持回收

2024年英国报纸的再生纸含量为34.7%

3.7

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TIMES 2

2026年8月11日

公开秀恩爱*

*公开展示亲密行为（Public Display of Affection）

顺时针方向（从主图开始）：维多利亚与大卫·贝克汉姆；萨姆与亚伦·泰勒-约翰逊；泰勒·斯威夫特与特拉维斯·凯尔西；威尔士王妃与王子

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2

times2

布拉德·皮特坦言有过自杀念头。我不确定他是否在帮助罗伯特·克兰普顿

在谈及与安吉丽娜·朱莉分手十年后仍持续的痛苦时，布拉德·皮特告诉《Esquire》采访者：“我从未有过自杀倾向，除了那一小段时间。在那一小段时间里，我只是觉得——我就是无法——看不到出路。痛苦如此沉重，以至于——我不会付诸行动，但我能感受到——我能感受到脑海中子弹冰冷的钢铁，那感觉像是一种解脱。”

这是相当惊人的自白，尤其是出自一个曾自谦“中了头彩”的人。全球知名度、才华、出众的外貌和可观的财富并不能保证幸福，尤其是当你与至少三个孩子疏远，而他们一个接一个宣布放弃你在姓氏中的贡献时。这肯定会让人心痛。

需要明确的是，布拉德并没有说他曾想自杀。但他确实屈服于自我毁灭的念头（那颗冰冷的钢铁子弹）。在英国，自杀是50岁以下男性的最大死因，尽管50-54岁男性的自杀率最高，而布拉德当时的年龄大致与此相当。英国每天有14名男性死于自杀，每年总计5,110人。这是一个阴暗、残酷的话题。如何看待这位超级巨星的表态？它是否会增加这些惊人的数字，还是减少它们？我感到矛盾。

普遍的看法认为，我们当然应该公开讨论心理健康。去污名化是好的，交流是好的，分享是好的。像皮特、哈里王子和斯托米这样公开谈论自己挣扎的名人，能鼓励其他非名人男性直面内心的恶魔，寻求解决方案。在伤害自己或他人之前，开始服用抗抑郁药或接受治疗。如果皮特都会被生活压垮，那么街头的普通人在得知自己并不孤单后，可能会感到宽慰。

然而，当话题从安慰和生存转向自我毁灭时，我怀疑坦诚是否总是好的选择。自杀对留下的亲人来说绝非解脱，对他们而言，这是一生的判决。

皮特的父亲还健在，他还有兄弟姐妹、侄子侄女、朋友和粉丝。还有孩子们——他们现在对他很生气，但他仍然是他们的父亲。如果你哪怕只是提到自杀的念头，哪怕只是说你只是想象过而非真正考虑过，你最好解释清楚自己是如何从边缘撤回的。

如果名人确实有影响力，正如人们所认为的那样，皮特公开谈论自己“脑海中冰冷的钢铁子弹”这一噩梦般的经历，或许并不明智。某个地方的某个可怜人，他远没有中头彩，生活感觉更像是倒霉的反面，可能会产生误解。

正如皮特在谈到他曾经幸福的家庭戏剧性破裂时所经历的长期痛苦时所说：“这事儿真不容易。”我敢肯定，他会第一个承认，当你没有他所拥有的所有优势时，这事儿会更加艰难。

查克，吸尘器坏了

艾奥瓦州92岁的共和党参议员、直言不讳的保守派查克·格拉斯利宣布他心爱的胡佛吸尘器“去世”了。格拉斯利称这台吸尘器为“贝丝”，并经常在社交媒体上提到它，享年49岁，因“冒电火花”而报废。对此我只想说：查克，你何必在意呢？

我的姨婆阿黛尔一直用她那台1949年产的胡佛0307型洗衣机，直到1980年代。在最后的十年左右，她每次洗衣服都必须戴上橡胶手套，以防触电。当她小心翼翼地提议换一台新的时，她丈夫乔治叔叔哼了一声：“我没想到娶了个败家娘们儿。”然后闷闷不乐了好几天。乔治叔叔可不是个大方的人。

升级有时固然必要，有时则不然。我有一台极其普通的千禧年初期无印良品（Ryohin Keikaku）桌面计算器，它比我手机上的计算器好用多了。至少，它不会因为我15秒不理它就闹别扭，跑回屏保里去。

呸！够了

一项新研究发现，在公共场合亲热的情侣在一起更幸福。饶了我们吧，肖恩·沃森说。

我们都知道公开秀恩爱的规则。有些人热衷于此，另一些人（正常、体贴的人）则不然，而我们这些不热衷于此的人对公开秀恩爱持怀疑态度。

更具体地说，我们可以接受公开秀恩爱，只要它发生在一个较小的时间窗口内——例如，约会初期、婚礼和蜜月——显然年轻人是例外。让我们感到不适的是那些无法克制相互触碰的情侣，尤其是年过30的，特别是他们相识超过六个月的。

并不是我们保守（好吧，我们绝对不想看到你们的舌头，谢谢，而且，想一想，手必须保持静止，不能上下游走，更不用说轻轻挤压了），更多的是我们不信任热衷于公开秀恩爱的情侣的动机，本能地觉得他们展示的与其说是爱意，不如说是不安全感、自恋，或者两者兼有。

他们对彼此并不热情，他们爱的是恋爱的想法，以及有人爱着他们。公开秀恩爱既是表演也是公开展示，与真正的爱意、感情或欲望无关。过度表现泄露了真相。他们决心向全世界展示的，本该只有你们两人知道。

直到本周，我本会说这是一个可以用黑猩猩研究来支持的行为事实。但现在，一项发表在《PLOS ONE》期刊上的科学研究结果却表明了相反的结论。

研究人员要求参与者评估自己在各种公开秀恩爱行为中的频率，包括牵手、拥抱、亲吻，以及在家人和朋友面前表达爱意，发现“更频繁进行公开秀恩爱的人拥有更高的关系满意度”。他们得出结论，即使是“牵手、拥抱或亲吻等小的公开举动，也能帮助伴侣感到被重视、情感安全，并与对方建立联系”。

尽管如此，我们不会轻易接受这一点。卡勒姆·特纳在自己首映式上当着全球媒体的面亲吻杜阿·利帕的额头是一回事：这对情侣刚刚结婚，面对全世界的媒体，他们玩得开心，享受生活。这算得上是真诚的爱意表达——包括特纳对利帕完美妆容的体贴。

同样，当西耶纳·米勒的先生在温布尔登中心球场的人群中俯身深情一吻时，我们丝毫不怀疑他的动机，亚伦·泰勒-约翰逊和他的妻子萨姆也是如此。这些是“英国人不公开秀恩爱”规则的例外，但事实仍然是，大多数公开秀恩爱行为从轻微令人不适到非常尴尬。

让我们来看一些最热衷于公开秀恩爱的名人，从布鲁克林和妮可拉·佩尔茨-贝克汉姆开始。

过度亲昵很糟糕——尤其是缓慢的臀部抚摸

几乎在每一张他们的照片中，他都在亲吻她，而她则对着镜头微笑。

这些是他对她的爱意的小片段，发布给全世界看，但他也可以穿着侍者制服为她端上一盘马卡龙，或是拿着化妆刷；他处于服务状态，几乎从未或极少成为亲吻的接受者。

这属于“你难道看不出他有多爱我”的公开秀恩爱领域，当照片没有被发布时，那些信息和肯定则无休无止。这些公开秀恩爱行为与嘟嘴和胜利手势一样，并非真正的爱意表达。

然后是哈里和梅根——他们的公开秀恩爱更为平衡，但同样是为我们而精心策划的，旨在提升他们的爱情形象。为什么哈里有必要在5月拍摄梅根收到一份两只企鹅交缠的雕塑礼物（为纪念他们第八个结婚纪念日）的视频——并附上解释（据称是为了

马勒的谦逊令人着迷

祝乔·马勒在《角斗士》中担任新角色好运。我采访过乔 3 次，最近一次是在《名人叛徒》节目中他大放异彩之后，可以确认他是个很不错的人。不过，这位大块头的魅力很大程度上来自于他极度的谦逊，以及那种英国人——尤其是橄榄球运动员——特别钟爱的尖刻自嘲。我希望他在电视上有机会展现这一特质，但担心《角斗士》节目并不太注重讽刺和自嘲。正如我们在《叛徒》中看到的，乔是个聪明人，他的情商和清晰的推理能力远胜于那些所谓更有学识的男性，比如斯蒂芬·弗莱和戴维·奥卢索加。遗憾的是，《角斗士》既不重视智慧，也不看重谦逊。希望他能拿到一大笔报酬。

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3

表演性公开秀恩爱

锥形赛提迷宫，贝康路透社；奥普林·莫斯赛提迷宫

（为了孩子的利益）解释了这背后的可爱原因（企鹅终生相伴），还有一张他们订婚派对上穿着企鹅连体睡衣的照片？

有多少人记得小时候被叫去看父母的周年纪念卡和互赠礼物，为他们的爱情感到高兴？（我从来不知道父母的结婚纪念日，而他们结婚已有 70 年。）

那么，我们是否可以从中得出结论：梅根和哈里是a）比大多数夫妇更加相爱，或者b）他们希望成为一对让全世界都关注其爱情的夫妇——而哈里知道，他必须不断用象征性的礼物、惊喜和公开表达感激的举动来维系，因为私下的感情并不足以打动梅格？

最近加入这一行列的还有亚当·拉姆齐-皮蒂和他的妻子霍莉。在最近的英联邦运动会上，霍莉在观众席观看比赛，每次他完成比赛后都会亲吻她怀孕的肚子。第一次还好——毕竟他们是新婚夫妇——但之后就变得奇怪，似乎另有所图。一对夫妇越是感到困境（最近他对待与母亲关系疏远的方式引发争议），公开秀恩爱的频率就越高，我们也越感到不适。

过度亲昵是不好的——尤其是那种缓慢的臀部抚摸。全情投入的接吻加上咀嚼动作更糟——尤其是在家庭活动中（比如那次詹妮弗·洛佩兹和本·阿弗莱克在婚礼上被拍到，孩子们也在场，两人几乎到了“找个房间”的地步）。

即使是牵手，如果不是在度假散步或挤过人群（比如在社交场合的房间里），也绝对让人感到不适。但那些为他人表演的爱意展示，无论出发点多么善意，都会以另一种方式让人感到不安。

哦，拜托，你可能会想。有些人就是比其他人更亲密。但仔细想想，这并不成立，对吧？我认识的最恩爱的夫妇，你很少看到他们在公开场合有身体上的亲密举动。

他们更可能只是相视一笑，或分享一盘食物，真正的考验是他们经常分享私密的笑话，让对方笑得前仰后合。我们都知道查尔斯国王和卡米拉深爱彼此，但这并不是因为他习惯在公共场合抓她的臀部。

还有两点值得注意——对于那些不喜欢自己世界观被挑战的人：这项研究中接受调查的人都不是来自英国。仅此一提。此外，那些习惯在私下经常表达感情的人，其关系满意度甚至更高。所以，如果你是个不爱公开秀恩爱的人，现在也不用改变习惯。

真正令人震惊的是，年轻人引发的愤怒有多大

亲吻、舔舐、咬啮、热吻。快，叫亲热警察来！ —— 西蒙·米尔斯

你听说过这个全球警界最新成立的高度专业化部门吗？这是一个主要以秘密和便衣方式运作的机构，主要由普通公众成员、特勤人员和公民组成，后者是这支精锐小队无所不在的秘密武器。

是的，亲热警察（如《大西洋》杂志最新一期所报道）无处不在——街头、体育赛事、海滩、酒吧和俱乐部、火车和飞机上、公园和电影院里——他们喜欢观察。至少观察一段时间。

任何一对有着情色胆量“过火”太久的情侣——亲吻、轻啄、舔舐、咬啮、热吻、“上下其手”、摩擦、缠绵等——都会被亲热警察盯上，并受到相应处理。一声“找个房间去！”可能只是警告，但如果这对过于热情的情侣继续下去，他们将受到惩罚——病毒式羞辱、社交媒体谴责、指控虐待儿童（“周围有孩子！”）和食物中毒（“我还在吃东西呢！”），甚至可能在不当行为后迅速面临职业崩溃。

就看看最近在曼哈顿中央公园长椅上被抓到亲吻的那两位律师吧，男方 45 岁，女方 29 岁。他们那段平淡无奇的午间“亲吻视频”在 TikTok 上疯传。《纽约邮报》采访的一位纽约人（看起来约 20 岁）说：“这在太多层面上都完全不合适。”另一位女孩说：“我爸也是律师，要是被我撞见他这么干，我会杀了他。”

真正令人震惊的是，当今对公开亲热（PDA）的愤怒，竟然有如此多来自看似义愤填膺的年轻人。那些十几二十岁的年轻人，可能乐于在《爱情岛》等节目中将 PDA 当作娱乐，却对眼前真实的亲热行为感到极度厌恶。

我们怎么都变得如此挑剔、扫兴和拘谨了？我十几岁时的 70 年代，在朋友面前与“新女友”在户外亲热，被视为一种甜蜜、公开的归属展示，是对彼此渴望的表达。

年轻女孩的卧室墙上贴着罗伯特·杜瓦诺 1950 年的著名作品《市政厅之吻》，以及阿尔弗雷德·艾森斯塔特 14, 1945 年在时代广场拍摄的那张充满激情的水兵亲吻护士的照片，庆祝二战胜利日（V-J Day）。90 年代，在狂欢派对和浩室音乐之夜，在摇头丸的 PDA 效应下，情侣们随着芝加哥四拍子节奏热吻，仿佛生命攸关。PDA 曾是自由、辉煌、庆祝、无害、顽皮而美好的。

然后，极端保守主义和南方浸信会的“真爱等待”运动出现了，鼓励青少年和年轻人签署保证卡，承诺禁欲。进入千禧年后，更多的道学气息；非自愿独身者、Z 世代的“清教徒分支”（清教徒与青少年的合成词）、迪拜成为全球最严格的柏拉图式度假胜地（2010 年，两名英国人因在餐厅亲吻被迪拜监禁）。

最近的 PDA 零点事件？2025 年臭名昭著的酷玩乐队亲吻镜头事件，当时的天文学家同事安迪·拜伦和克里斯汀·卡伯特在波士顿吉列体育场的巨型屏幕上被抓到偷偷亲热。这则新闻曝光后，亲热警察进入暴乱级别的过度反应。卡伯特每天接到多达 600 个骚扰电话，约 60 条死亡威胁。她被贴上荡妇和破坏家庭的标签，不得不辞职。拜伦也递交了辞呈。

中年情侣在吉列体育场和中央公园的真实罪行？他们既不是酷爱酷玩乐队的粉丝，也不是律师，更不是在公开场合调情的出轨者（其中一名律师纳撒尼尔·卡勒顿和拜伦在各自的公开亲密行为高潮时均已婚），或许他们真正的重罪在于：在中年公开调情——而且长相并不出众。

像我这样一个六十多岁、早已失去任何吸引力的男人，深知这种残酷的歧视性因素。是的，我可能会在散步时主动牵手，在公园里让一只充满爱意的手肘随意搭在裸露的肩膀上走上几步，或者在站立观看音乐会时从背后轻轻环抱双臂。仅此而已。绝不会有舌吻、抚摸、亲吻脖子或吸吮耳垂的行为。没人想看到这些。

因此，年老且缺乏吸引力的人们：别再在公园里亲吻了。够了。去开个房间。最好是一间毫无情趣、极其乏味的酒店，配有熨裤机和咖啡机就更好了。

4

健康

热浪期间用药须知全解

马克·波特医生

本周的热浪再次引发多项健康警示。我不会再重复那些老生常谈的建议——尽管保持凉爽和充足水分确实重要——而是将重点放在高温如何影响药物，以及炎热天气与某些药物的组合可能对健康造成的危害。

今年夏初，英国药品和医疗产品监管局（MHRA）发出警告，提醒公众高温下储存不当的药物可能无法正常发挥作用。例如胰岛素、阿司匹林、治疗心绞痛的硝酸甘油片、甲状腺功能减退症用药甲状腺素、严重过敏用的肾上腺素自动注射器（如EpiPen）以及减肥针（如蒙贾罗）等。

药效不会在短时间内骤降，但温度越高、暴露时间越长，风险越大。由于药物种类繁多，难以一概而论，但大多数药物应储存在25℃以下，部分药物需更低温环境，甚至需冷藏。而在本周预计的高温条件下，阳光直射的浴室药柜、汽车手套箱或后备箱，甚至医生的医疗包内，温度往往远超25℃。

虽然部分药物的热变质迹象明显，如胰岛素出现浑浊或阿司匹林散发醋味，但通常无法通过外观判断。因此，请严格遵循药品包装上的储存说明。若无特别说明，则表明该药物稳定性较高，无需过度担忧。

反之，高温可能增强某些药物的效果。含有阿片类镇痛药丁丙诺啡或芬太尼的皮肤贴剂在皮肤温度升高时，可能释放更多药物进入体内。因此，炎热天气、日光浴、长时间泡澡甚至热水袋都可能导致危险的镇静和呼吸抑制。

另一个需要关注的问题是药物对皮肤日晒反应的影响。抗生素，尤其是四环素类药物（如多西环素，用于治疗胸部感染、痤疮、性传播感染、莱姆病及预防疟疾），可能引发光敏反应，导致皮疹。非处方草药圣约翰草（用于改善情绪低落）、非甾体抗炎药（如萘普生片和酮洛芬凝胶）、免疫抑制剂甲氨蝶呤（用于银屑病和关节炎患者）以及噻嗪类“利尿片”（如苄氟噻嗪）也可能引发类似反应。

这些情况下的皮疹通常由阳光中的UVA成分引发，因此需使用具有五星级UVA防护的高SPF防晒霜。此外，驾车或在家中透过玻璃窗照射的阳光下久坐时也需注意——与导致晒伤的UVB射线不同，UVA可穿透玻璃。

部分药物可能通过抑制出汗来干扰人体的降温机制。常见例子包括抗胆碱能药物，如治疗膀胱问题的奥昔布宁和索利那新，以及老式抗抑郁药阿米替林（现多用于缓解神经痛）。

另一个值得一提的问题是，在高温天气下，人们可能因假期中的胃肠炎或食用家中烧烤的未熟鸡肉而生病。此时，高温导致的脱水加上腹泻和呕吐引起的体液流失，可能对服用某些药物的人（如降压药和糖尿病药）造成问题（详见专栏）。

部分糖尿病药物可能加重现有脱水或导致血液中危险的酸性物质积聚。降压药可能促进过度的盐分和水分流失——这在脱水时是最不需要的——并损害肾功能。

生病期间应避免的药物

除非您的全科医生或专科医生另有建议，否则我会建议避免以下药物：

用于治疗高血压和某些心脏问题的ACE抑制剂和ARB类药物。此类药物名称通常以“-pril”或“-sartan”结尾，如赖诺普利、雷米普利、坎地沙坦和氯沙坦。 恩特雷斯托：用于治疗心脏问题。 NSAIDs：非甾体抗炎药，如布洛芬、萘普生和双氯芬酸。

利尿剂：用于降低血压和排除多余体液的“水丸”，如呋塞米、螺内酯、依普利酮和苄氟噻嗪。 用于糖尿病、肾脏和心脏疾病的SGLT-2抑制剂。此类药物名称通常以“-flozin”结尾，如达格列净、恩格列净和卡格列净。 糖尿病药物，如二甲双胍、GLP-1受体激动剂（也用于减肥），包括替泽帕肽（蒙贾罗）、司美格鲁肽（奥赛匹克 / 维格维）和利拉鲁肽（Victoza）。

虽然布洛芬和萘普生等抗炎药在极端情况下可能导致肾衰竭。

开药者通常对这些风险非常了解——尽管对于其威胁程度仍存在争议——但似乎不太擅长传达相关信息。简单来说，如果您正在服用上述面板中列出的药物，在生病期间应考虑停药。理想情况下，受影响的患者应从开药者或药剂师处获得一张“生病日”用药卡，说明应对措施。

苏格兰医疗改进署使用的卡片是一个典型例子。该卡片列出了生病期间可能引发问题的药物，并建议在出现以下情况时暂时停用相关药物：腹泻或呕吐发作2次或以上，和 / 或高烧、盗汗或发抖，并在恢复正常饮食后24-48小时后重新开始服药。如果72小时后仍未恢复正常，请联系医生寻求建议。您可以在healthcareimprovement scotland.scot下载所有相关信息。

以上内容可归纳为三个关键信息：妥善保存药物，如服用可能导致光敏感的药物，在阳光下需格外小心，并下载“生病日”用药建议。哦，别忘了重新开始停用的药物。您可以在gov.uk / government / news / dont-let-thin-heatwave-affect-your-medicines-three-important-tips-from-the-mhra下载英国药品和医疗产品监管局（MHRA）关于药物储存不当的警示。

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5

健康

哦不，别提生菜了！这位微生物学家为何不吃沙拉

近期美国由生菜引发的环孢子虫病疫情应引起我们所有人的警惕。作者：佩塔·比

我是一辈子的沙拉爱好者，但如今我正认真考虑在夏季生菜问题上彻底戒断。冰山生菜成了我的导火索。今年夏天，美国已有多达 22,000 人感染环孢子虫病——一种可引发严重胃肠道症状的寄生虫疾病，包括呕吐和“频繁、有时甚至是爆发性的腹泻”，美国疾病控制与预防中心（CDC）如此描述。

尽管追踪源头极为困难（尤其是症状可能在两周后才出现），美国食品药品监督管理局（FDA）还是锁定了罪魁祸首：一家墨西哥农场综合体出口的生菜。

英国卫生安全局（UKHSA）已警告称，从墨西哥归国的旅客中环孢子虫感染病例急剧上升，并注意到与美国和肯尼亚旅行相关的病例。虽然环孢子虫病（通过被人类粪便污染的食物和水传播）在欧洲并非地方性流行病，但我们的沙拉远非零风险。

去年，UKHSA 报告称英格兰地区产志贺毒素大肠杆菌（STEC O145 菌株）感染病例上升了 26%。症状可能包括腹泻、胃痉挛、呕吐和发烧。UKHSA 胃肠道感染部副主任高莉·戈德博士表示，该机构自 2022 年以来已观察到病例“逐渐增加”，但此次急剧上升是由一次食源性疫情引发。该疫情感染了约 250 人，其中 86 人住院治疗。原因何在？他们食用的包装三明治中的生菜。

莱斯特大学临床微生物学副教授普里姆罗斯·弗里斯通博士花了十多年时间研究潜藏在沙拉叶中的不洁物，她表示自己不会吃生菜，“一辈子都不会碰袋装沙拉”。

问题在于生菜是生食的，她解释道。“生菜和叶菜在野外生长时，表面会自然附着微生物群。加热能杀灭病原体，而食用未经烹煮的地面生长食物则存在风险。

“沙拉在种植和处理过程中存在太多感染机会。苍蝇、黄蜂和其他小虫携带污染物，在每年的这个时候尤其成问题。它们都可能将致病菌（包括大肠杆菌、沙门氏菌和李斯特菌）带到新鲜农产品上。沙拉、生菜和配菜感染可能致命。”

2020-21 年间，微生物学家分析了 604 份在英国商店和餐厅销售的新鲜农产品样本（主要是沙拉或混合其他蔬菜的沙拉叶），发现其中 11 份样本中检出李斯特菌。一份含有生菜、黄瓜和番茄的包装沙拉被归类为“潜在有害”，因袋内检出 STEC 菌株。2019 年，英国医院供应的三明治、沙拉和卷饼与一起李斯特菌疫情相关，导致 6 人重病，1 人死亡。

此前，一起 O157 型大肠杆菌疫情被追溯到可能从地中海进口的芝麻菜叶，这些叶菜被用于沙拉袋，包括供应餐厅的产品。161 名感染者中，62 人需要住院治疗，2 名患者死亡。

弗里斯通表示，沙拉可以美味又营养，但我们确实需要谨慎食用。“即食沙拉和餐厅沙拉吧存在交叉污染风险，”她说，“如果在家自制并遵循良好的卫生规则，可以降低食源性感染风险，但不要忽视潜在风险。”

以下是安全食用沙拉叶的方法。

清洗所有沙拉食材（即使标注已清洗）

英国食品标准局（FSA）建议，在储存蔬菜前应去除松散的泥土，并在食用前彻底清洗所有香草和沙拉。弗里斯通表示，对于可削皮或刷洗的沙拉食材，更容易去除病原体，但她仍建议在食用前清洗所有食材。

这包括标注已清洗的袋装沙拉。“使用自来水即可，因为自来水干净，且能提供足够的剪切力去除杂质，”她说，“但生菜表面积过大，无法指望清洗掉所有潜藏在叶片中的污染物。” 然而，如果病原体已进入叶片内部，则无法通过清洗去除。“你可以降低风险，但无法完全消除，”弗里斯通说。

避免购买袋装沙拉

弗里斯通的研究表明，袋装洗净沙拉中的潮湿环境为细菌（包括沙门氏菌）提供了理想的滋生条件，在实验室试验中，沙门氏菌数量增加了 2,400 倍。

“即使冷藏，病原体在沙拉袋中的生长速度也会比在其他环境中快 1,000 倍以上，而且它们还会附着在塑料上，”她说。存放时间越长，情况越糟。“我们发现，袋装沙拉叶片渗出的汁液会让细菌变得更具毒性，这意味着它们更可能导致感染。”

如果仍选择购买袋装沙拉，应立即冷藏，食用前清洗，并尽快食用。

不要购买含菠菜的混合叶沙拉袋

这类产品问题最严重。“如果它能让大力水手变强壮，也会让病原体变得强大，”弗里斯通说。尽管商业加工商会用含氯水清洗叶片，但细菌仍可通过菠菜叶的切口进入，而清洗无法触及这些部位。

此外，2022 年的一项分析显示，英国农药行动网络发现，含多种农药残留的菠菜比例从 2019 年的 57% 上升至 2022 年的 73%。

丢弃有黏液的沙拉叶

“将整棵生菜存放在沙拉抽屉中，最多可保存 7 天，”弗里斯通说，“对于袋装或预制沙拉，应检查保质期。” 如果沙拉叶出现变质迹象，如异味、黏液或变色，应立即丢弃。“深绿色且潮湿的叶片意味着微生物或真菌正在分解植物细胞，导致细胞内液体渗出，”弗里斯通说，“换句话说，你的生菜开始腐烂，必须扔掉。”

避免食用餐厅配菜沙拉

我和伴侣及几位朋友曾在法国滑雪旅行时食物中毒。当天我们唯一共同食用的食物是餐厅里一份软塌塌的配菜沙拉。

“配菜沙拉风险极高，”弗里斯通说，“人们总以为是肉、鱼或蛋导致的问题，但通常是配菜沙拉惹的祸。”

我们无法确知其来源或放置时间；在室温下暴露两小时的易腐食品即不安全。“外出就餐时最好避开这类沙拉，”她补充道。

不要认为有机食品就是安全的

购买有机食品可减少接触多种农业化学品，但并不一定能降低摄入PFAs（被称为“永久化学品”，因其能在人体内及周围环境中长期残留）的风险。

2023 年的一项研究比较了新鲜、冷冻和即食蔬菜，结果显示，虽然有机产品的PFAs含量可能较低，但并非完全不含。2022 年，食品中农药残留专家委员会对PFAs和农药残留的检测发现，97 份生菜样本中有 7% 含有此类化学物质，且无法通过清洗去除。

不只是生菜叶

在发布年度烧烤季节警告时，FSA 提醒消费者在处理未煮熟的香肠和汉堡时，还应对“预制沙拉（如米饭沙拉、土豆沙拉和卷心菜丝沙拉）格外小心，因为这些食品在变暖后风险最高”。

Freestone 通常只食用超市购买的卷心菜丝沙拉，因为这些产品通常经过巴氏杀菌以去除病原体。“除非卷心菜丝沙拉是绝对新鲜且立即食用，否则我不会再吃自制的卷心菜丝沙拉。卷心菜和胡萝卜在煮熟后更安全，而将卷心菜丝沙拉放在烧烤架旁边简直是自找麻烦。”

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约会A咖还要加一？这是私密的

妮可·基德曼刚刚被发现与一位金融男约会，奥利维亚·罗德里戈也是。海伦·基尔万-泰勒提醒：当心私募股权男

如何才能俘获好莱坞一线女星的芳心？首先，投资一件Loro Piana马甲和一块百达翡丽手表。然后，当浓缩咖啡端上来时，不经意地提到你恰好拥有一家私募股权公司。如果她一脸茫然，告诉她去查查斯蒂芬·施瓦茨曼（黑石集团联合创始人，好年景能赚10亿）。然后说：“我就是干这个的。”

PE男（私募股权人士的简称）是今年夏天最时髦的约会对象。妮可·基德曼最近在波托菲诺被发现与迈克尔·赖因斯坦约会，后者是比弗利山私募股权公司Regent的创始人。她并非唯一对金融男一见倾心的名人。瑞茜·威瑟斯彭正在与Searchlight Capital Partners的奥利弗·哈尔曼约会，这已是她的第二位PE男友。歌手兼创作人奥利维亚·罗德里戈也加入了这一行列，她被发现与Hg Capital的私募股权投资人朱利安·克鲁嫩伯格斯约会。《华尔街日报》宣称，PE男友是“今年夏天最火的装饰品”。

科技男已经消失，速度之快如同他们戴的棒球帽。冥想舱里从未诞生过巨额财富。大多数在里面睡过觉的人如今都失业了。

事实证明，26岁的梅根·博尼（网名@girl_on_couch），TikTok热门视频《我在寻找一位金融界男士》的作者，说中了什么。歌词是：“我在寻找一位金融界男士。信托基金。6 / 5。蓝眼睛......”科技男搬回父母家后，必须有替代者。银行家们卷土重来。

博尼的歌词被众多DJ翻唱和混音，最终引发了身穿白衬衫、马甲和黑裤子的快闪舞蹈，使这一装扮瞬间成为梗。随后出现了嘲讽账号，如约翰尼·希利文特·帕特里奇的账号，以短剧形式调侃“炫富”和“地位炫耀”。这位喜剧演员原本只是想模仿婚礼上遇到的无聊金融男，却发现自己精准捕捉了这个行业的本质（精明并非其中一部分）。

银行业重回时尚。它在八十年代从保守沉闷的外表中重新崛起，当时新的渠道为快速创造财富打开了大门。在我那个年代的纽约，总是银行家们最后关闭夜店；他们就像极限运动员，只不过手里提着公文包。

我嫁给了一个银行家。如今如此少的千禧一代愿意进入金融业（因此他们一旦进入就被视为英雄）的原因是，这个行业竞争极其激烈且工作艰苦。没有人会因为自我实现而给你发奖金。我认识一位年轻银行家，他的上司甚至监控他上厕所的时间——客户期望的就是这种拼命程度。

在外界看来，金融业似乎千篇一律，但银行业（我泛泛而谈）关注的是提供建议，对冲基金关注的是投资，而私募股权则是嗅探公司，然后筹集资金进行收购，无论对方是否愿意。接下来的大计划是通过重组和再融资（严重依赖杠杆）来改善公司，然后以高价出售（或者拆分公司，即资产剥离，这部分人们听得较少）。

我对PE的了解，大多来自深夜酒后的痛哭交谈。

我采访过的一些设计行业的成功人士曾被热烈追求。和我一样，他们在金钱方面的知识水平仅限于幼儿园阶段，因此一切听起来都很美妙。他们以巨额资金出售公司，帮助“发展”业务，然后眼睁睁看着公司被拆解，陷入债务深渊，失去了原本的初衷。想象一下，你因为热爱天然酵母面包而开了一家面包店，后来却发现那个穿着萨维尔街西装、开着阿斯顿·马丁的PE男，为了节省成本砍掉了“天然酵母”（这是一个真实故事）。而你签署了一份长达200页的合同。

尽管时尚品牌标识、豪车和昂贵地产遍布，私募股权（PE）人士仍是金融界的猎犬。一旦锁定目标，

便绝不轻易放手。“私募股权是金融行业中竞争最激烈的工作，”一位在纽约知名美国投资集团工作的朋友证实，“这些人是精英。他们受过高等教育，毕业于哈佛、沃顿等名校。”她继续说道，对冲基金经理往往拥有数学技能，而PE人士则更具魅力。

“他们必须取悦企业家。顶尖的PE人士专注、坚韧且冷酷无情。”

她将成功者称为“顶级猎犬”。他们通常在广泛领域受过良好教育，这或许能解释为何基德曼和威瑟斯彭等以智慧著称的女演员会与他们相互吸引。“极度成功的人懂得成功的代价，这让他们惺惺相惜。”

鲜少被讨论的是这个世界的阴暗面，最近由贝尔·伯登在《陌生人：一段婚姻回忆录》中描绘。尽管她是律师，也是范德比尔特家族的后裔，但书中描述了她前对冲基金经理丈夫所处的神秘金融世界，

她对丈夫的工作内容、更重要的——收入来源和资金去向一无所知。这本书在英美两国我的一整个朋友圈中引发热议，因为事实证明，许多金融圈妻子同样不问不闻。而当她们开口询问时，得到的答案往往复杂且令人困惑。

我在投资公司的朋友告诉我，PE人士的离婚堪称另一个层级。7 倍。 “他们往往情感疏离且冷酷无情，一旦关系破裂，后果极其残酷。”资产被隐匿或重新投资：毕竟，他们的工作就是重组。

Instagram上展示的大多是PE人士的休闲活动：豪华游艇、五星级酒店和私人飞机。而现实是，这些“玩具”（以及长腿金发女郎）只是他们为赚钱所付出牺牲的补偿。PE人士从不承诺赴宴、度假或参加家长会。每一位好莱坞顶级明星背后，都可能有一家公司——谁知道呢——或许需要再融资？

我怀疑这些关系中的关键词是“约会”，因为每个人都知道，同一群体中的两只顶级猎犬最终总会决出胜负。这也许能在超级游艇上带来一周精彩的对话，但别指望会有婚礼公告。

PE人士的离婚堪称另一个层级

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股权男

盖蒂图片社

尴尬，我和对冲基金经理在一起

阿莱格拉·汉德尔斯曼

“办公室的人都很兴奋，”我的男朋友在一次晚宴上分享道，他正小心翼翼地用主人精心准备的食材组装一份鱼肉玉米卷——主人是我的一位朋友，专门举办墨西哥美食之夜。“这是自从‘我正在找金融圈的男人’那首歌以来，我们遇到的最好的事。”

他指的是奥利维亚·罗德里戈（Olivia Rodrigo）——这位从迪士尼明星转型为世界知名创作歌手、Z世代女孩心碎背景音乐的代名词、也是我2021年Spotify年度最爱艺人——正在和一位新男友约会。

你可能会好奇，他是不是一位年轻帅气的“星二代”，有模特合约和即将在Prime Video上映的节目？并不是。实际上，他是私募股权公司Hg Capital的助理朱利安·克鲁嫩贝格斯（Julian Croonenberghs）。具体来说，克鲁嫩贝格斯毕业于布朗大学，曾是高盛投资银行分析师，现在就职于Hg Capital。

奥利维亚和我的约会史出奇地相似，我们都经历过与演员和音乐圈年长派对男孩的交往。她的第二张专辑《Guts》让我有种莫名的熟悉感，开场曲《Get Him Back!》的歌词简直像是从我的日记里抄来的。现在，她也加入了我的行列……成为一名金融男友的文艺女友？这是我从未想过会写下的一句话，现在写出来依然觉得尴尬。

我的男朋友在一家对冲基金工作（顺便说一句，这与私募股权不同），出于隐私——

但说实话，更多是出于尴尬——他将保持匿名。我保证他是真实存在的。我们已经交往一年多了，时间刚好让我成为这股潮流的先行者，也让我有足够的经验作为“小白鼠”来现身说法。这是真正的实地调查式报道！

刚开始约会时，我亲切地称他为“挑我金融男”，因为他当然不像其他金融男——拜金、浮夸、吵闹。他与众不同。他热爱艺术和电影，还收集小众美食杂志。这是我经常挂在嘴边的一句话，用来解释自己为何会突然转变恋爱类型。

能在约会时被带去高级餐厅，而不是非得等到周三晚上11点的酒局才能见到约会对象，这种感觉很新鲜。这是我与文艺男交往时的常态。

是的，虽然有那种穿卡其裤和马甲的尴尬刻板印象，但至少我对自己的“挑我金融男”男友感到满意。幸好他不穿卡其裤，虽然他的衣柜里偶尔会出现马甲，但他不会在我面前穿，这对我来说已经足够好了。

所以，尽管我从未想过自己会成为金融男的女友，但我理解这种吸引力。而且，我男朋友的职业世界对我来说完全陌生；我们都对彼此的行业抱有真诚的兴趣，我也因此得以一窥这个我从未接触过的世界。我还很敬佩他工作的努力程度。

现在，当我的朋友们从与那些假装阅读女权文学、却声称自己太忙没空谈恋爱的创意总监的失败约会中归来时，我发现自己会真诚又略带居高临下地说：“也许该找个有正经工作的人约会？”

杠铃与蛋白质：我曾嘲笑健身男——如今我成了其中一员

39岁时，亚当·西尔弗斯坦首次开始举重

我曾经暗自嘲笑健身男。你知道那种人：手里拿着蛋白粉摇瓶，耳朵里塞着乔·罗根的播客，连吃个酸奶都要先查查里面有多少克蛋白质。他们半辈子泡在健身房，剩下的时间都在讨论健身。保持健康当然是明智的，但把它当成你的全部人格？这似乎有点过头。然后我伤到了髋部。

我患上了一种罕见的疾病——短暂性骨质疏松症，导致左髋骨密度下降。刚才还能正常行走，转眼就拄了六个月拐杖。更糟的是，这正好赶上我和丈夫奥斯汀从伦敦搬到科罗拉多州。没有什么比坐着电动代步车完成第一次沃尔玛购物更能体现“美国新生活”的了。

身体上的不便已经够让人沮丧，心理上的打击更大。我无法正常行走，无法运动，左腿渐渐变得像曾经的影子一样瘦弱。低头看它时，真的让人心惊。我以前从未真正思考过肌肉，因为我一直……拥有它。突然间，一半的身体看起来不再像属于一个瘦高少年。也许我们还能做点什么，改善我这些年悄悄长出的些许“男性胸部”。每次训练要花$75，不如多练出点什么来，而不只是一侧髋部。

不知不觉中，在39岁时，我第一次开始举杠铃和哑铃。我简直不敢相信这是我。伊恩给我设定了每日130克的蛋白质摄入目标。我以为这会是我的底线。我不会变成那种人。

我成了那种人。现在我家厨房橱柜里专门放着蛋白粉。我发现自己会说出“睡前还需要再摄入30克蛋白质”这样的话，还经常在超市里翻看包装袋检查蛋白质含量。早餐吃鸡蛋，健身后喝蛋白粉，午餐吃鸡肉，下午吃蛋白棒，然后睡前再补充到130克。不知不觉中，我变成了多年来我一直翻白眼的那种人。

如今，我每周独自去健身房三次，并且期待着。我的训练很简单：卧推、腿推、髋外展，再加上一些哑铃、杠铃和拉力绳练习。没什么花哨的。我花了大约一个月才弄清楚一半器械的用法。每次卡住时，我都会问旁边的人，然后归咎于自己是英国人——事实证明，这几乎是任何事情的绝佳借口。但我发现健身房并不像我想象的那样浮夸。这里其实相当脆弱。大多数人来这里是因为想改善自己，这让我莫名感到安心。

当然，仍有一些事情我不理解。有人穿着健身服坐在桑拿房里，耳机塞着，打着电话，仿佛在等公交车。但我是个移民，有什么资格评判呢？

最大的文化冲击是我自己。拄拐六个月后，我的体脂率下降了9%，肌肉增加了约10磅，有生以来第一次开始看到腹肌的轮廓。更重要的是，我感觉更好了。不仅是身体上，心理上也一样。

我已经忘记了仅仅拥有行动能力的感觉有多好。我可以在落基山脉徒步而不必担心髋部。睡眠更好了，精力更充沛了。之后大快朵颐一顿In-N-Out汉堡时，也不会那么内疚了。

我想每周三次健身课对我来说足够了。否则奥斯汀可能会干预。不过，我从没想过会如此享受锻炼。原来我体内一直潜藏着一个健身男。

米歇尔·克里斯

我的髋部已经痊愈。于是，我的理疗师建议我与一位名叫伊恩的私人教练合作，以恢复我失去的力量。我当时觉得这很贵。我还在努力理解美国的医疗体系，那里通常最后才会告诉你价格。但我的腿状况实在太糟，我决定值得一试。接着，伊恩问了我一个危险的问题。

“你只想锻炼髋部，”他说，“还是全身？”

显然，我的髋部需要治疗，但既然来了……我那“皮包骨头的小肚腩”可能也需要关注一下。我的手臂也不介意——

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（注：原文在此处出现截断，

[注：译文超长截断]

首相想让我摆脱订阅服务？它们并非全都糟糕

安迪·伯纳姆计划让取消订阅变得更容易。

以下是我为何喜欢某些订阅服务的原因。

哈丽雅特·沃克 撰

为你不看的流媒体服务付费？每日肠道健康饮品囤积如山？订阅服务曾经只属于小众出版物和女童军，如今却已深入日常生活的方方面面——无论线上还是线下——全球市场规模预计到2031年将达到1.5万亿美元。

这不仅仅是Netflix、Spotify和亚马逊Prime。市面上还有有机安全套、幼犬训练和钢琴课的订阅服务。Instagram上的都市人不再有“送奶工”，而是“乳制品订阅”——通常还附赠酸面包。另一项服务会记录宝宝的出生日期，并根据其发育阶段寄送玩具（每两个月80英镑，lovevery.co.uk）。

许多订阅服务在用户不知情的情况下扣款，诱导用户通过免费试用或复杂的在线结账流程，随后悄然转为更高价格。正因为如此，安迪·伯纳姆——想必和我们一样对“自动续订失败”的愤怒感同身受——将关注“订阅陷阱”作为应对生活成本危机的一部分。从明年1月起，企业必须在订阅前提供更详细的费用信息，并简化现有订阅的取消流程。

我是订阅服务的忠实拥趸。这始于第一波生活成本危机期间，当时我发现超市自有品牌卫生纸简直千疮百孔，而其他品牌又贵得离谱。于是，我们每三个月支付28英镑，购买24卷Who Gives A Crap的再生纸厚卷纸，该公司将一半利润捐给海外清洁水项目。上周度假时我又买了普通卫生纸，我敢保证这款订阅对四口之家来说仍然物超所值。

我学会了像管理投资组合一样管理订阅服务。去年，在一次事先未被提醒的“年度”80英镑自动续订后，我审查了所有自动扣款项目。

“订阅是以最优惠价格购买你想要的东西的最佳方式”

大多数订阅——如每月28英镑的Tambia咖啡豆（我和丈夫带保温杯上班，避免每杯4英镑的外卖咖啡）和每周23英镑的Abel & Cole蔬菜盒（比当地超市更好）——让生活更便捷，但有些并非如此。

我们曾为Paramount+支付5.49英镑近一年，最初是免费试用，后来忘了取消（或观看）。诚然是我们的错，但这种悄无声息的操作显然是商业策略。我莫名其妙地订阅了Deliveroo的4.99英镑月度“黄金计划”，尽管已数月未点外卖，还有一个4.99英镑的Uber会员，用于我极少使用的出租车。考虑到我几乎不可能主动选择这两项服务，我猜它们是常见的“高利润错误”。

有些订阅已成为生活的一部分：电视牌照、国家信托会员、谷歌存储空间，以及那个每月2.99英镑的Apple服务。你还记得上次收到杰夫·贝佐斯的邮件是在你的95英镑Prime年费自动续订之前吗？12年前我和丈夫刚同居时，我们都为另一个令人懊恼的年费续订买了单。

如今，我们像猛禽一样盯着哪个流媒体服务最薄弱，下一个就要被淘汰（Netflix曾是6.99英镑，现在涨到12.99英镑，每次涨价都恰逢孩子们迷上某部剧）。

迪士尼对有小孩的家庭来说不可或缺（年费99.90英镑），显然已注意到学龄前儿童流失的问题，开始制作我们也想看的内容——因此我们仍保留它，还有Now TV和Apple TV+（如《寡妇湾》）。一个暑假结束后的清算时刻即将到来。

DAVID MCANDREW FOX THE TIMES, ALWAYS

哈丽雅特·沃克

在爱丁堡艺穑节最火爆演出中的汗流浃背之夜

爱丁堡最新场馆是一间桑拿房，温度高达90℃，观众需穿泳装。加布里埃拉·贝内特抓起毛巾

这是爱丁堡艺穑节最火爆的门票。在温度达到60℃并持续上升的情况下，Summerhall最新的吸引力并非为胆小者或头晕者准备。正如我在90分钟的探索中发现的那样，这场演出通过割礼、托特纳姆热刺队和汗水的海洋来探讨犹太男性气质。

被认为是英国首个此类场馆的桑拿剧院，是布景设计师露西·奥斯本的杰作。她与戏剧导演詹姆斯·格里夫共同创立了桑拿体验艺术俱乐部。这对搭档相信高温和现场表演能够增强幸福感的激励力量。他们这间可容纳80人的场馆将在本月举办文学沙龙、晨间狂欢派对，以及弗吉尼亚·伍尔夫多叙述者小说《海浪》的戏剧诠释。

“我们希望创造一种桑拿原生的艺术形式，”奥斯本说。换句话说，就是专门为桑拿环境创作的音乐或戏剧表演。“例如，伍尔夫的文字非常适合。这是一种更具文化性的体验。而且在泳装面前，人人平等。”

桑拿剧院在欧洲很受欢迎，尤其是在斯堪的纳维亚和德国，那里的aufguss（引导式桑拿仪式）表演将精油、音乐和编排好的毛巾动作结合在一起，由训练有素的桑拿大师带领进行集体仪式。其目的是通过在空间内循环空气，将冰球放在热石上再扇动，制造更强烈的热浪，营造出类似于清醒俱乐部的派对氛围。

在桑拿剧院内，观众坐在木制阶梯长椅上，灯光设计模仿传统剧院。音乐家被屏风遮挡以保护乐器，但演员则在全热环境中表演。环绕立体声音响将音乐传入观众耳中。

水银柱通常接近90℃，演出中会定期安排10分钟的休息时间。但并非总是如此。《泡泡施梅西斯》（重混版）是尼克·卡森鲍姆的独角戏，将连续演出一个半小时。这将是我对桑拿剧院的初体验。

在棚屋里换上泳装后，我用毛巾裹身，走向入口，那里手风琴和单簧管正演奏着克莱兹默音乐。

附近有两个浸泡池、一个无酒精酒吧和一排淋浴间。

我与大约20名观众一起鱼贯而入，尽量避免与他人目光接触。泳装着装规定被严格遵守，部分观众在演出期间用毛巾裹身。格里夫和奥斯本无意采用“无纺织物沐浴”；对于紧张的英国人，只要是天然纤维制成，允许穿着沙笼或T恤。

在60℃的环境中，一切开始变得相当舒适。卡森鲍姆完全掌控了舞台，在灯光下四处跳跃，汗水如河流般从他脸上倾泻而下。我们的开场地点是坎宁镇的schvitz（蒸汽浴），这个意第绪语词汇源自德语“出汗”，与波帕·艾伦及一群形形色色的朋友一起，随后穿越了卡森鲍姆在伦敦东区的童年地标。有许多令人大开眼界的揭示。至少在卡森鲍姆看来，包皮看起来像是一片培根裹在“schmecks!”的末端。

大约50分钟时，我意识到自己已经有一段时间没有在笔记本上写东西了。思绪变得迟缓。头痛悄然袭来，前额感到眩晕。我决定从侧门离开，补充水分。这也是被鼓励的。桑拿体验艺术俱乐部希望客人关注自己的身体状态，并在需要时勇于离开。

桑拿剧院的演出将持续至8月31日。

“我们与自己的身体失去了联系，而桑拿会告诉你要倾听，”奥斯本说道。“我们希望人们体验对比。”她建议在剧场外喝水，而不是在里面，她说这有助于身体调节。

唯一的问题是，我错过了演出。卡森鲍姆是个天生的说书人，我真想全程投入。如果能更清醒一些，能更深入地思考他探讨的那些棘手问题，比如童年时期的以色列朝圣之旅，那该多好。我希望能更专注地理解他如何讲述这些记忆，以及他现在对它们的感受。但高温让这变得困难。

在剧场提供的电解质饮料和两杯水的帮助下，我悄悄回到场内，正赶上压轴戏的开始。卡森鲍姆脱得只剩泳裤（“你还想要什么，才花了£25？”），并邀请观众中的斯科特来schmeiss他，用一根长柄拖把抽打他的裸背，还用拖把擦洗他的脸。空气中弥漫着薄荷油的香气。

斯科特一开始还有些紧张，但很快就进入了状态。到最后，他甚至可能过于自信了。“怎么，不给小费吗？”当卡森鲍姆告诉他可以坐下时，他半开玩笑地说道。克莱兹默乐队在屏风后面附和着。

灯光亮起，有人向炽热的煤炭上泼水，温度随之攀升。这是个破冰时刻，我和一位常驻伦敦的戏剧导演聊起了我们对高温的不同耐受度。对我来说太热的温度，对她来说却是温暖舒适——她还打算再来。露天更衣区聚集了一小群人，我们分享着多年来爱丁堡边缘艺术节的故事。到最后，我们的拘谨荡然无存。我们当着彼此的面换衣服，边聊边笑。个人更衣棚被遗忘了。在一群陌生人面前赤身相对，似乎消融了一层羞涩。

人群散去，温度再次升高，我留在原地，等待新一批观众前来观看《海浪》。在10分钟的休息间隙，我注意到一位女士在淋浴间旁，被朋友安慰着，显然是被演出感动得落泪。“高温、香气和伍尔夫语言的美感，自有其独特之处，”格里夫说道。奥斯本表示赞同。“它让你更开放，”她补充道，“就像一种额外的超能力。”

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本·多威尔电视评论

穆里尼奥

Netflix ★★★☆☆☆

公平地说，何塞·穆里尼奥并没有自称“特别的那一个”。这个绰号是在他2004年来到罗曼·阿布拉莫维奇的切尔西执教时，如同昂贵古龙水的浓烈气息般如影随形，球迷们以为这股气息萦绕在他那些名牌西装上。刚刚率领波尔图赢得欧冠的他，只称自己是“一个特别的人”。这是难得的谦逊时刻。

二十年后，他追随贝克汉姆和贝利的脚步，推出了主教练版的Netflix“特别”节目。但恐怕这并不是一部值得收藏的作品。

尽管他未能复制早期的辉煌成就，但那股傲气依然存在。然而，最大的问题是他难以捉摸，并且刻意保持这种状态。当你有三个小时的内容需要填充，而导演乔·珀尔曼又是一位擅长拍摄溢美传记的专家，却似乎不愿深挖、质疑或探究时，这便成了问题。

“人们以为他们了解我，但他们并不了解，而我也乐于他们不了解，”穆里尼奥面带微笑、未受任何质疑地说道，“了解我的人是幸运的。”好吧，他们确实幸运。

在节目最后，他宣称一个人唯一有趣的地方在于其成就，一本500页的传记应只用五页来写童年。这种冷漠的态度似乎从根本上误解了是什么让人真正动容。

于是，我们看到的是一系列访谈拼贴和档案回顾，展现他所有的魅力、令人讨厌的争议、成功与恩怨，偶尔穿插一些亮点，比如亚历克斯·弗格森透露2013年曾邀请穆里尼奥接替他在曼联的职位，或约翰·特里透露穆里尼奥曾获取萨姆·阿勒代斯执教的博尔顿流浪者的训练录像（南安普顿最近不也因此惹上麻烦了吗？）。

观看三小时后，何塞·穆里尼奥依然难以捉摸

一段剪辑中，记者波莉·弗农告诉我们她有多么迷恋他。我想没有人会对“大萨姆”或尼尔·沃诺克，或大多数英格兰主教练说出同样的话。

他罕见地流露出真实人性情感的时刻，出现在被问及2016年成为曼联主教练前后父亲去世的问题时。“你不想让我哭，因为我会想哭，”他说道。

我们看到他回到葡萄牙，但他没有见任何人来告诉我们有趣的事。大多数受访者都是特里、弗兰克·兰帕德、迪迪埃·德罗巴和兹拉坦·伊布拉希莫维奇这样的球员，告诉我们他如何让他们感受到团队精神，以及他有多么痛恨失败。这些访谈就像配上时髦灯光和爵士配乐的赛后采访。

Netflix上已经有太多这样的虚荣项目，提供的有意义的洞察太少，正变得乏味。就像这个人本身，它呈现精美，却空无一物。如同他的职业生涯，它感觉是由金钱驱动，奇怪地缺乏根基，虽有闪光时刻，却无持久力量。

“如果你想过安逸的生活，就别请何塞·穆里尼奥，”前切尔西首席执行官彼得·肯扬在结尾笑道。如果你想拍一部有趣的电影，而不是本质上的一段企业宣传片，同样适用。

保罗·辛哈的完美酒吧问答 广播四台，下午4、6点30分

这位喜剧演员兼《追逐》的常驻嘉宾主持了第五季他备受喜爱的节目，在其中走遍全国，与观众互动，讨论什么样的问题构成理想的酒吧问答。辛哈（上图）从林肯郡的波士顿开始，除了刁钻的常识题，还有关于曾出过三位英格兰队长的足球俱乐部的本地题，以及曾是英格兰首都的林肯郡小镇的题目。辛哈与观众互动的愉悦，让他们展示知识的同时也展现自己的问答技巧，让人感到内心温暖。克莱尔·伍德沃德

Times Radio

数字、网络、智能音箱、应用程序 5:00 汤姆·努南（Tom Nunan） 6:00 萨尔玛·埃尔-沃丹尼（Salma El-Wardany）和斯蒂格·阿贝尔（Stig Abell） 10:00 埃德·维齐（Ed Vaizey） 13:00 斯蒂芬·萨克（Stephen Sackur） 14:00 F1格洛弗（F1 Glover）和罗娅·尼卡（Roya Nikkhah） 16:00 卡勒姆·麦克唐纳（Calum Macdonald） 19:00 凯特·博赛（Kait Borsay） 22:00 卡罗尔·沃克（Carole Walker） 1:00 《泰晤士广播精选》

Radio 2

调频：88-90.2 MHz 6:30 萨拉·考克斯（Sara Cox） 9:30 弗农·凯（Vernon Kay） 12:00 杰里米·瓦因（Jeremy Vine） 14:00 DJ斯普尼（DJ Spoony） 16:00 乔尔·多米特（Joel Dommett） 19:00 伊迪丝·鲍曼（Edith Bowman） 21:00 《爵士乐节目》，主持人杰米·卡勒姆（Jamie Cullum） 22:00 《美妙旋律》 24:00 DJ博格（DJ Borg） 3:00 《90年代舞曲精选》（重播） 4:00 欧文·温·埃文斯（Owain Wyn Evans）

Radio 3

调频：90.2-92.4 MHz 6:30 《早餐节目》 9:30 《经典必听》 13:00 《古典现场》 展示2026年夏季音乐节的精彩演出。曲目包括：拉赫玛尼诺夫（《交响舞曲》）；J·S·巴赫（《D小调第二组曲——恰空》，BWV 1004）；柏辽兹（《幻想交响曲》）；贡贝尔（《弥撒曲“万般拒绝”——信经》）；布鲁赫（《八首小品》，作品83号）；莉比·拉森（《情人之旅》） 16:00 《本周作曲家：蒙热鲁伊（1764-1836）》 讲述新婚的埃莱娜·德·蒙热鲁伊如何跻身巴黎“上流社会”（重播） 17:00 《调频》 18:00 《2026 BBC逍遥音乐会现场》 洛杉矶爱乐乐团在指挥古斯塔沃·杜达梅尔的带领下演出。曲目包括：贝多芬（《F大调第六交响曲“田园”》）；托马斯·阿德斯（《但丁——第一部分：地狱》）

20:00 《2026 BBC逍遥音乐会现场》 北方皇家交响乐团音乐总监多丽丝·索萨携首席音乐家海伦娜·古尔德和裘德·卡尔顿演奏作曲家莫顿·费尔德曼的《残缺的对称》 22:15 《2026 BBC逍遥音乐会现场》 打击乐演奏家伊芙琳·格莱妮携幻想管弦乐团和BBC合唱团带来跨界音乐会。在伦敦皇家阿尔伯特音乐厅现场演出的曲目包括：科尔特兰（《欢迎》，哈里·贝克改编）；艾灵顿（《有了那个节奏才算 Swing》，哈里·贝克改编）；埃洛伊斯·沃纳（《林鸽》，BBC委约作品：世界首演）；文森特·霍（《睡魔城堡》选段）；费尔德曼（《罗斯科教堂》选段）；卡罗琳·肖（《组曲——萨拉班德舞曲》）；德沃夏克（《捷克组曲》，作品39号，终曲《富里安特舞曲》）；沃恩·威廉斯（《音乐小夜曲》，R·道格拉斯改编）；伊芙琳·格莱妮；菲利普·谢泼德（《金色德罗拉吉亚》）；电台司令（《金字塔之歌》，西蒙·黑尔改编）；梅雷迪思·蒙克（《熊猫咏》） 23:45 《午夜旋律》 00:30 《通宵节目》

Radio 4

调频：92.4-94.6 MHz 5:00 新闻摘要 5:04 《伯纳姆的承诺》（重播） 5:34 航运预报 5:43 《今日祈祷》 5:45 《今日农业》 6:00 《今日》 9:00 《无形之手》（3/6） 9:30 《健康内幕》（6/6） 10:00 《女性时间》 11:00 《截屏》（6/6）（重播） 11:45 《本周图书：〈广岛，8:15：谷本清与近藤子共著的遗失回忆录〉》（2/5）

12:04 《致电你我》 13:00 《世界一周》 13:45 《人类智慧》 哲学家伊本·赫勒敦（12/15） 14:00 《弓箭手》（重播） 14:15 广播剧：《克莱尔》 作者：菲利普·帕尔默 15:00 《庭审女士》 与露西·沃斯利（9/10） 15:30 《心灵与灵魂》（重播） 16:00 《上下求索：拯救英国史前艺术之战》 气候变化对古老艺术遗产的威胁 16:30 《医生在线？》 探索放松之道 17:00 《下午新闻》 18:00 《六点新闻》 18:30 《保罗·辛哈的完美酒吧问答》 在林肯郡波士顿（1/6） 19:00 《弓箭手》 罗伯特努力保持乐观 19:15 《前线》 20:00 《EncroChat之后》 EncroChat行动是否减少了毒品供应 20:40 《触摸》 21:00 《跨越大陆》 保护维多利亚瀑布（2/9） 21:30 《诈骗秘闻》（2/8）（重播） 22:00 《今夜世界》 22:45 《睡前读物：〈威克菲尔德的牧师〉》 作者：奥利弗·哥尔德史密斯（7/10） 23:00 《野性内心》（3/4）（重播） 23:30 《好书共读》（3/9）（重播） 00:00 新闻与天气 00:30 《本周图书：〈广岛，8:15：遗失回忆录〉》（2/5）（重播） 00:48 航运预报 1:00 转BBC国际频道

Radio 4 Extra

仅数字平台 8.00 到底怎么了，简·奥斯汀宝贝？ 8.30 《艾德里安·莫尔的卡布奇诺岁月》

8.45 《小岛》 9.00 《与大卫·塞达里斯相遇》 9.30 《追踪火星入侵》 9.45 《每日礼拜》 10.00 《好书共读》 10.30 《我们忘却的往事》 11.00 《等待游戏》 11.30 《资深合伙人》 12.00 《是，大臣》 12.30 《米利根文稿》 1.00 到底怎么了，简·奥斯汀宝贝？ 1.30 《艾德里安·莫尔的卡布奇诺岁月》 1.45 《小岛》 2.00 《骗局！》 2.30 《伦敦生活》 3.00 《文艺复兴巨匠：乔尔乔·瓦萨里的最后审判》 4.00 《好书共读》 4.30 《我们忘却的往事》 5.00 《等待游戏》 5.30 《资深合伙人》 6.00 《是，大臣》 6.30 《米利根文稿》 7.00 到底怎么了，简·奥斯汀宝贝？ 7.30 《艾德里安·莫尔的卡布奇诺岁月》 7.45 《小岛》 8.00 《骗局！》 8.30 《伦敦生活》 9.00 《文艺复兴巨匠：乔尔乔·瓦萨里的最后审判》 10.00 《喜剧俱乐部：与大卫·塞达里斯相遇》 10.30 《胜者为王》 11.00 《环球剧场》 11.15 《弗利与麦科尔：访谈》

11.30 《连锁反应》

Radio 5 Live

中波：693, 909 5.00 《唤醒金钱》 6.00 《早餐》 9.00 尼基·坎贝尔 11.00 埃玛·瓦迪 14.00 马特·乔利 16.00 《5 Live Drive》 19.00 《5 Live 体育》 20.25 田径：欧洲田径锦标赛伯明翰站报道 22.00 约翰尼·兰森 1.00 多顿·阿德巴约

talkSPORT

中波：1053, 1089 kHz 5.00 《早间体育早餐》 6.00 《杰夫·斯特林早餐秀》

10.00 马克斯·斯科特与达拉·麦克安东尼 13.00 《霍克斯比与雅各布斯》 16.00 《驾车时光》 19.00 《转会内幕》 22.00 《体育酒吧》 1.00 保罗·罗斯《加时》

Talk

仅数字平台 6.00 伊恩·柯林斯 10.00 朱莉娅·哈特利·布鲁尔 13.00 大卫·布尔 16.00 凯文·奥沙利文 19.00 彼得·卡德威尔 22.00 佩特里·霍斯肯 1.00 保罗·罗斯

6 Music

5.00 克里斯·霍金斯 7.00 尼克·格里姆肖 10.00 劳伦·拉弗恩 13.00 克雷格·查尔斯 16.00 豪伊·斯蒂芬斯 19.00 《每日新音乐速递》 21.00 赖利与科 23.00 《6 Music驻场艺术家：Wolf Alice》 0.00 《6 Music独立永存》 1.00 《从门托到情人摇滚》 3.00 《6 Music现场时刻》 4.00 《6 Music精选》

Virgin Radio

6.30 《克里斯·埃文斯早餐秀》 10.00 埃玛·B 14.00 本·琼斯 18.00 斯科特·劳埃德 22.00 Goldierocks 2.00 史蒂夫·丹耶

Classic FM

调频：100-102 MHz 6.30 蒂姆·洛姆索《早餐》 9.00 《名人堂时刻》 10.00 阿莱德·琼斯 13.00 安妮-玛丽·明霍尔 16.00 玛格丽塔·泰勒 19.00 约翰·布鲁宁《轻松晚间》 21.00 约翰·布鲁宁《古典FM作曲家旋转木马：费利克斯·门德尔松专题》 22.00 《宁静古典》 1.00 比尔·奥弗顿 4.00 《早间早餐》

---

12

电视

今日精选

《野性山峰》 天空纪录片频道 / Now，今晚9点

“拥有像我这样的女儿，难吗？”克里斯汀·汉拉（Kristin Hanla）在2023年准备用不到4个月的时间攀登全部14座海拔8,000米以上高峰时问父亲。“你比大多数人活得更危险，”他回答。这部起初只是一部关于非凡体育壮举的普通纪录片——一位坚定的女性，如今40岁，与团队挑战一个迄今主要由男性设定标准的极限——却在最后一次登顶时崩溃。在K2峰顶附近的“瓶颈”路段，一条单行道上，她遇到了一名垂死的搬运工，而前后大量登山者的存在让她最终决定继续前行，这一决定招致批评。她表示，在当时的条件下，将他带下山是不可能的。海伦·斯图尔特

罗布·林德与露丝·古德曼的《罗马人》5, 9pm

罗布·林德和露丝·古德曼的热门系列《富足生活，贫困生活》今晚聚焦罗马不列颠，探讨公元122年哈德良皇帝的访问。林德用通俗易懂的语言告诉我们：“他是西方世界最重要的人物。他不仅权势滔天，被奉为神明，还是个有点控制狂。”林德扮演当时的不列颠总督，负责在视察前开始修建哈德良长城，并似乎将成功视为能从伦敦调往更温暖的地方。一个合适的标志性形象是林德身披数码昂贵的羊毛长袍，站得更高更直。露丝·古德曼则探讨普通民众在罗马统治下的生活：HS

BBC1

6.00am 早餐 9.30 动物园（重播）（AD） 10.00 追踪、定位、找回我的车（重播） 10.30 2026年欧洲田径锦标赛：伯明翰现场直播。珍妮特·夸克耶主持第二天开幕式的报道，包括男子100米和女子800米预赛 1.15pm BBC News at One；天气 1.40 BBC Regional News；天气 1.50 at One；天气 2.00 变废为宝。奥尔特灵厄姆回收中心的一张缝纫机台 2.45 逃离至乡村。尼基·查普曼帮助一对来自苏格兰的夫妇在科茨沃尔德寻找房产（重播）（AD） 3.30 修理店。专家修复一张桌子和一双橄榄球靴（重播）（AD） 4.30 The Answer Run。问答节目 5.15 无意义问答。亚历山大·阿姆斯特朗与联合主持人里娅·莉娜（重播） 6.00 at Six；天气 6.30 Regional ；天气

BBC2

6.15am 房产拍卖（重播） 7.15 变废为宝（重播） 8.00 手语区。《英国缝纫大赛》。墨西哥时尚（重播）（AD, SL） 9.00 10.30 古董寻宝之旅（重播） 11.15 房产拍卖（重播） 12. 便宜货伤人（重播）（AD） 1.00 理查德·奥斯曼的游戏屋（重播） 1.30 终点线。问答节目（重播） 2.15 你了解塑料吗？达德利（重播） 2.45 农民乡村秀。农民参加吉尔福德农贸市场（重播） 3.30 海洋间谍（重播）（AD） 4.30 古董鉴宝路演。来自多塞特郡舍伯恩学校。2003年（重播） 5.15 甩卖III。来自贝辛斯托克（重播） 6.00 理查德·奥斯曼的游戏屋。与克里斯·比森、丹妮尔·哈罗德、凯瑟琳·梅里和罗伯特·韦伯（重播） 6.30 贝尔·格里尔斯：野性清算。一对年龄差距较大的夫妇在如何养育子女上存在分歧（重播）（AD）

ITV1

6.00am 早安英国 10.00 今晨 1.30pm ITV新闻；天气 2.00 迪金森的真实交易。大卫·迪金森和团队来到彼得伯勒，特蕾西·萨克利在一只花瓶上错失良机，这只花瓶后来在拍卖会上表现不俗（重播）（AD） 3.00 交易与否。斯蒂芬·马尔赫恩主持，一名参赛者尝试以正确顺序打开22个红盒子，挑战臭名昭著的庄家，争取赢得改变人生的现金大奖（重播）（AD） 4.00 临界点。本·谢泼德主持这档街机主题问答节目，参赛者将代币投入四个滑槽之一，希望赢得1 万英镑头奖（重播） 5.00 追捕。布拉德利·沃尔什主持，来自克努茨福德、伦敦、曼彻斯特和沃金的参赛者组队挑战无情的追捕者（重播） 6.00 地方新闻；天气 6.30 ITV新闻；天气

第四频道

6.30am 《皇后之王》（重播）（听障辅助） 7.45 《人人都爱雷蒙德》（重播）（听障辅助） 9.10 《欢乐一家亲》（重播）（听障辅助） 11.10 《地狱厨房美国版》。名厨拯救一家濒临倒闭的纽约小餐馆（重播） 12. 第四频道新闻摘要 12.10 《淘宝修复大作战》。采访一位热衷收藏的前市长（重播）（听障辅助） 1.10 《房屋大抽奖》。莱斯特的一对陌生人获得购买房产的机会（重播） 2.10 《数字大挑战》。主持人：波琳·麦克林 3.00 《海外置业》。吉恩·约翰逊在洛斯克里斯蒂亚诺斯寻找房产（重播） 4.00 《佩内洛普·基思拯救乡村古宅》。斯塔福德郡惠特莫尔庄园的隐藏秘密被揭开（重播）（听障辅助） 5.00 《城堡DIY》。一对夫妇将香槟特鲁瓦克洛什城堡内的狭窄空间改造成奢华实用的浴室（重播）（听障辅助） 6.00 《美国淘宝客》。垃圾专家迈克·沃尔夫爱上了他见过的最经典的福特皮卡（重播）（听障辅助）

5

6.00am Milkshake! 9.15 杰里米·瓦因 11.30 Storm & Alexis 12.45pm 午间5新闻 12.50 马特·奥尔赖特 2.20 电影：《摇篮惊魂》（PG级，电视电影，2022） 一名高中高年级女生怀孕后失踪，其老师开始担忧这名少女可能是被迫失踪。惊悚片，主演德文·切切托和法伦·鲍曼（AD） 4.00 《城堡》。香港侦探张与贝克特和卡斯尔合作调查一名曾为收债公司工作的前科犯被谋杀案。特邀出演琳达·朴（r） 4.55 《爱自然》。在普通的后院展示如何轻松打造一个池塘（r） 5.00 丹·沃克主持5新闻 6.00 《科孚岛：地中海明珠》。介绍科孚岛，镜头跟随当地人和游客，展示当地美食（r） 6.55 5新闻快报

7.00 《一镜一世界》 亚历克斯·琼斯和罗曼·肯普继续庆祝节目开播20周年 7.30 《东区人》 琼对莉莉的担忧加剧，切尔西的处境也变得愈发令人不安（AD）

7.00 欧洲田径锦标赛：伯明翰2026（直播） 来自亚历山大体育场的第二天晚间赛事报道，包括男子链球和女子5,000米决赛。报道将在BBC1继续

7.30 《朗廷酒店内幕：英国首家豪华酒店》 总经理监督意大利北部威尼斯朗廷酒店的进展（4 / 6）（AD）

7.00 第四频道新闻 7.00 第四频道新闻

7.00 《约克郡兽医：格林一家在家》 一名女子带着她13只猫中年纪最大的“花生”到诊所做检查，并奖励这只猫咪一棵豪华猫爬架（3 / 4）（r） 7.55 5新闻快报

8.00 欧洲田径锦标赛：伯明翰2026（直播） 加比·洛根主持来自亚历山大体育场的第二天晚间赛事进一步报道，包括男子100米决赛。今晚还将进行男子跳远和女子100米栏决赛。杰西卡·恩尼斯-希尔和格雷格·卢瑟福德进行分析，史蒂夫·克拉姆、史蒂夫·巴克利、安德鲁·科特、科林·杰克逊和葆拉·拉德克利夫担任解说

8.00 《英国缝纫大赛》 参赛者挑战体育主题缝纫。他们制作男士泳裤、用帆板帆布回收制作的服装，以及定制的保龄球衫（5 / 10）（AD）

8.00 《艾默戴尔》 凯莱布感到沮丧，比利和唐计划逃跑，雅各布大吃一惊（AD） 8.30 《加冕街》 蒂姆和萨莉得知里奇被起诉的消息后震惊不已，乔迪将目标对准基特（AD）

8.00 《多佛24 / 7：英国最繁忙的港口》 货运团队争分夺秒卸载3,000吨钢材，边境执法人员发现可疑包裹，员工举行纪念仪式。本季最后一集（AD）

8.00 《朗利特庄园内幕》 镜头跟随蝙蝠保护团队和一群蛾类爱好者进行年度调查，巴斯女士和饲养员讲述朗利特庄园长颈鹿的特殊历史

10.00 BBC十点新闻 10.30 BBC地方新闻及天气 10.40 电影：《赛艇少年》（12, 2023） 大萧条时期，一群劣势群体被推上聚光灯下，作为美国赛艇队的一员，与来自世界各地的精英对手在1936年柏林夏季奥运会上展开较量。根据真实事件改编，主演乔尔·埃哲顿和卡勒姆·特纳。乔治·克鲁尼执导（AD）

10.00 《阿波罗现场》 单口喜剧表演，表演者包括伊曼纽尔·索努比、特洛伊·霍克和奥尔加·科赫（5 / 7）（r） 10.30 《新闻之夜》 马特·乔利主持头条分析 11.05 《吸血鬼莱斯特：夜访吸血鬼》 丹尼尔的追问触动了莱斯特的痛苦回忆，让他想起他的制造者和一段失去的爱情，而路易斯则进行了迟来的报复（3 / 7）（AD） 11.55 《吸血鬼莱斯特：夜访吸血鬼》 莱斯特对丹尼尔撒谎，并对阿尔芒颐指气使（4 / 7）（AD）

10.00 《ITV十点新闻》；天气预报；随后为地方新闻 10.45 电影：《海底城》（PG级，1977） 詹姆斯·邦德与一名克格勃特工联手寻回失踪的英苏核潜艇，以防窃取者利用其弹头。不幸的是，007曾导致这位新盟友的爱人丧生——在任务完成前，她决意让他付出代价。罗杰·摩尔与芭芭拉·巴赫主演的冒险片（AD）

10.00 《古古乐园》 各家庭对2025年11月播出的节目发表看法，包括《名人环球竞速》、《公平竞技》、《鱿鱼游戏：挑战赛》、《19俱乐部》、《青少年请客吃饭》及《警察拦截行动》（重播）（AD） 11.05 《吉普赛妻子的秘密生活》 特雷弗利与姐姐们发生冲突，姐姐们试图阻止她外出见朋友，声称她仍应遵守宵禁并由人陪同。母亲蒂娜与众人一同参加特雷弗利新彩妆系列的发布派对（重播）（）

9.00 《与罗伯·林德及露丝·古德曼探寻罗马》 罗伯与露丝深入探讨公元122年，当时哈德良皇帝对罗马不列颠进行了一次戏剧性的访问，这一时刻改变了富人与穷人的命运。罗伯追踪罗马伦敦城核心的权势人物，而露丝则调查普通民众的生活。今日精选节目 10.30 《船上炸弹：蒙巴顿勋爵遇刺案》 1979年8月，路易斯·蒙巴顿勋爵的游艇在爱尔兰共和国西海岸被爱尔兰共和军炸毁，本节目回顾事件始末。皇室内部人士、当地记者及受害者家属回忆袭击过程，揭示托马斯·麦克马洪如何在夜间潜入无人看守的“影子V号”游艇安放炸弹（重播）

12.40am-6.00 BBC新闻

12.45am-1.45 手语区：《诡异事件》 伊恩认为自家曾被一实体附身，会摇动抽屉、按响门铃甚至冲马桶。丹尼·罗宾斯调查是否有科学解释（重播）（，SL）

12.55am 《电视购物》3.00 《巅峰挑战》：14名英国登山者攀登新西兰最高峰之一，现仅剩10人。抵达第二营地后，他们面临投票淘汰（重播）（，SL） 3.50 《ITV放松时刻》 5.05-6.00 《寻亲记：无迹可寻》（重播）（，）

12.05am 《裸约》（重播）（） 1.00am 《拉姆齐的地狱酒店》（重播）（，） 1.50am 《莱维森·伍德：与红毛猩猩同行》（重播）（，） 2.45am 电影：《少年侦探》（15级，2020） 亚当·布罗迪主演的喜剧剧情片（） 4.25am 《阳光下的家园》（重播） 4.55am 《钢琴》（重播）（，） 5.50-6.30 《倒计时》（重播）

12.05am 《连环杀手的妻子》（重播）（） 1.00am 《邮轮电视》（重播） 2.00am 《第五台娱乐新闻》（重播） 2.10am 《全科医生：幕后故事》（重播） 3.00am 《城堡》（重播） 3.50am 《老友记》（重播）（） 4.35am 《约克郡》（重播）（） 5.25am 《第五台娱乐新闻》 5.35am 《汪汪队立大功》（重播）（） 5.45-6.00 《帕丁顿熊历险记》（重播）（）

---

13

电视节目表

冷案取证：血迹之谜

ITV1，晚上9点

这档名为《血迹之谜》（In the Blood）的节目解释了正义如何可能系于一根微小的纤维或一滴血迹。节目追踪法医科学家安吉拉·加洛普（Angela Gallop）及其团队如何破解两起截然不同的案件：1999年伯恩茅斯性用品店老板亚当·肖（Adam Shaw）被杀案，以及2000年达米奥拉·泰勒（Damilola Taylor）谋杀案。达米奥拉的父亲理查德（Richard）于2024年去世，节目中可见他谈论加洛普的工作为其家人追求真相的斗争带来的影响。维多利亚·西格尔（Victoria Segal）

罪恶之城：起源

Sky Atlantic，晚上9点 / 10点

黑色蕾丝面纱、十字架、热那亚风味意大利面：这部黑帮剧前传深度还原了20世纪70年代那不勒斯的氛围，讲述犯罪头目彼得罗·塞维亚塔诺（Pietro Seviatano）的早年经历（由卢卡·卢布拉诺[Luca Lubrano]饰演其青少年时期）。他面对母亲对其日益成形的黑帮生活的干预，同时与身处困境的伊玛（Imma，由图利亚·威尼斯亚[Tullia Venezia]饰演）关系愈发紧密，而周围的联盟则在危险中分崩离析、重组。VS

流媒体精选

喀布尔（Kabul）

iPlayer

这部紧张刺激的六集剧集以2021年美军从阿富汗喀布尔混乱撤军为背景。随着塔利班进入城市，纳扎里（Nazary）一家与众多平民一样被迫逃离。剧情不仅从这家人的视角展开，还涵盖了多国团队的视角，包括法国警方、意大利外交官、德国军方及美国情报部门。乔·克莱（Joe Clay）

影片精选

全金属外壳（15，1987）

Sky Cinema Drama，晚上8点

斯坦利·库布里克执导的越战影片

与大多数伟大的战争电影一样，其主题不仅仅是战争。影片阴郁而暴力，探讨普通人如何在战斗中被洗脑并受到污染。全片分为两部分——第一部分讲述新兵在一位强悍的教官（由真实海军陆战队老兵R·李·厄梅[R Lee Ermey]饰演）指导下接受基础训练；第二部分则通过年轻士兵的视角（包括马修·莫迪恩[Matthew Modine]等演员饰演）展开，他们已被塑造成杀人机器。（Illmin）温迪·艾德（Wendy Ide）

BBC4

7.00pm 《铁路建筑》（The Architecture the Railways Built）。北威尔士的费斯蒂尼奥格铁路（第2集，共10集）（AD） 7.40 《飞翔的园丁》（The Flying Gardener）。来自柯蒂斯和盖洛韦（AD） 7.55 《庄园之恋》（To the Manor Born）。奥黛丽离开格兰特利庄园 8.30 《保持体面》（Keeping Up Appearances）。海辛斯再次试图将理查德从社交边缘拯救回来 9.00 《阿德尔·奥汉隆：古墓猎人》（Ardal O'Hanlon: Tomb Raider）。探索爱尔兰历史上的重大考古发现 10.00 《神风特攻：不为人知的历史》（Kamikaze: An Untold History）。日本和美国老兵回顾自杀式袭击的影响 11.30 《仰望星空》（The Sky at Night）。探索黑洞的奥秘 12.00 《宇宙极端天气》（The Wildest Weather in the Universe: Horizon）。纪录片 1.00am 《美丽的方程》（Beautiful Equations） 2.00 《飞翔的园丁》（The Flying Gardener）（） 2.15am-3.15 《阿德尔·奥汉隆：古墓猎人》（Ardal O'Hanlon: Tomb Raider）

BBC3

7.00pm 《追赶潮流》（The Catch Up） 7.05 《土豆》（Spud）。喜剧剧情片 7.25 影片：《古墓丽影》（15，2001） 由安吉丽娜·朱莉主演的动作冒险片（） 9.00 《英国变装皇后秀：王后驾到》（BuPua's Drag Race UK: Meet the Queen）。BuPua介绍参与角逐桂冠的变装皇后 9.20 影片：《BJ单身日记》（15，2001） 由蕾妮·齐薇格主演的浪漫喜剧（） 10.55 影片：《BJ单身日记2：理性边缘》（15，2004） 由蕾妮·齐薇格、科林·费斯、休·格兰特和吉姆·布劳德本特主演的浪漫喜剧续集（） 12.35am 《马修·佩里与氯胺酮女王》（Matthew Perry and the Ketamine Queen）（） 1.35 《斯泰茜·杜利：整装待战？》（Stacey Dooley. Ready for War?）（） 2.35 《我的矩阵：糟糕约会》（My Matrix's Bad Date） 2.55am-3.55 《斯泰茜·杜利：血汗T恤》（Stacey Dooley. Blood, Sweat and T-Shirts）（，SL）

Sky Arts

6.00am 《天鹅湖》 7.55 《年度艺术家：大师班》（AD） 8.55 《意料之外》（AD） 9.55 《希区柯克剧场》 11.00 《探索》（） 12.00 《伊恩·内森的电影艺术》（） 1.00pm 《意料之外》（） 2.00 《希区柯克时间》 3.00 《八十年代》（） 4.00 《探索》（） 5.00 《2022 年度肖像艺术家》（） 6.00 《意料之外》（） 7.00 《希区柯克剧场》 8.00 《画中世界：钻石入画》。一幅以戒指为主题的肖像画 9.15 《艺术走私犯：坦博失窃的珍宝》（） 10.15 《奇境：哥特风》（） 11.15 《电影》 12.15am 《彼得·奥图：通往亚喀巴的天路》 2.15 《V&A 呈现：爱丽丝——剪裁与奇趣》 4.05 《天空艺术读书俱乐部》 5.00am-6.00 《电影艺术》（）

ITV2

6.00am 《后院改造》（SL） 6.30 《盛装出席》（, SL） 7.30 《盐湖城主妇实录》 8.20 《橙县主妇实录》 9.15 《唯有埃塞克斯》 10.15 《恋爱时代》 11.10 《圣女魔咒》 12.10pm 《一掷千金》（） 1.10 《超市大作战》 2.10 《决战演播室》（0A）（） 3.10 《唯有埃塞克斯》 4.10 《波托马克主妇实录》 5.00 《橙县主妇实录》 5.55 《名人猜谜语》（） 7.00 《决战演播室》（） 8.00 《1% 俱乐部》（） 9.00 《奥利维亚·阿特伍德：完美的代价》。在伊斯坦布尔（2 / 6） 10.00 《恶搞之家》（） 11.35 《美国老爹》（） 12.35am 《鲍勃汉堡店》（） 1.30 《精选节目》（, SL） 1.55am-2.20 《深度伪造邻里战争》（SL）

More4

8.55am 《寻宝、修复、变现》（） 10.00 《四人同床》 12.40pm 《敢吃就来》（） 3.20 《四人同床》 5.50 《汽车 SOS》（） 7.35 《葫芦设计》。一对勇敢的搭档想在伍斯特郡建造一座库尔风格的山顶小屋（2 / 10）（） 9.00 《奥蒂与理查德的南非之旅》。奥蒂和理查德的旅程在东开普省落下帷幕。本季最后一集（） 10.00 《24 Hours in A&E》。 一名 51 岁男子从 20 英尺高的梯子上坠落，一位退休药理学家因慢性胀气问题寻求帮助（） 11.05 《24 Hours in A&E》。一名 68 岁演员疑似肩部骨折，却收到更令人担忧的诊断结果（3 / 8）（） 12.05am 《999：前线直击》 1.10 《24 Hours in A&E》（） 3.20am-3.45 《阳光下的家园》

ITV3

6.00am 《乔治与米尔德丽德》 7.05 《经典艾默戴尔》（） 8.10 《经典加冕街》（） 9.10 《阿加莎·克里斯蒂：波洛探案》（） 11.30 《心跳》（） 1.35pm 《米德萨默谋杀》（） 3.35 《经典艾默戴尔》（） 4.40 《经典加冕街》（） 5.50 《心跳：乡村剧》（） 8.00 《维拉》。一座乡村别墅发生两起谋杀案（3 / 4）（） 10.00 《格兰切斯特》。乔治与新任牧师阿尔菲·科塔拉姆初次见面便不欢而散（3 / 8）（） 11.00 《格兰切斯特》。一具尸体在乡村庄园的地下室聚会中被发现（4 / 8）（） 11.50 《审判与报复》。第二部分（共两部分）。团队寻找失踪的保姆（8 / 10） 1.25am-2.35 《阿加莎·克里斯蒂：波洛探案》。主演大卫·苏切特（）

曼彻斯特队长 乔·巴特勒 《The Hundred》直播：曼彻斯特超级巨人女子队 vs 利兹日出者女子队 天空体育板球频道，2.45pm-6，天空体育主频道，5pm-6（开赛时间 3.00）。来自老特拉福德板球场的报道

英式橄榄球联盟直播： 鲨鱼队 vs 新西兰队 天空体育动作频道，5.45pm-8，天空体育 V 频道，6pm-8（开赛时间 6.00）。来自德班好莱坞贝茨国王公园的巡回赛报道

《The Hundred》直播：曼彻斯特超级巨人男子队 vs 利兹日出者男子队 天空体育主频道、天空体育板球频道，6pm-9.30（开赛时间 6.30）。来自老特拉福德板球场的报道

网球直播 天空体育 V 频道、天空体育网球频道，9pm-11 加拿大公开赛第 10 日报道，地点：蒙特利尔

加勒比超级联赛（CPL）：牙买加国王队 vs 巴巴多斯三叉戟队 TNT 体育 2 频道，12.35am-4.45 牙买加的 T20 比赛

影视荟萃

7:40 电影：《船长的天堂》（PG级，1953）（黑白）9.25 影院回忆录 9.30 电影：《全国之夜》（PG级，1953）（黑白）11.00 《小鸡》（黑白） 11.25 电影：《命令即命令》（U级，1955）（黑白）1.00pm 《威廉·泰尔历险记》（黑白） 1.30 电影：《医生的烦恼》（PG级，1963） 3.35 金·诺瓦克：黄金时代的叛逆者 4.40 电影：《神探击伦敦》（PG级，1952）（黑白） 6.20 清洁志愿者 6.25 《鞭笞》（黑白） 6.55 《联合国密使》 7.55 《海盗》 9.00 电影：《谋杀令》（15, 1978） 福尔摩斯悬疑 11.35 奇异电视：《雪人》 12. 电影：《裸体故事》（15, 1960） 爱情 2.00 电影：《陌生人》（PG级，1946） 3.55-4.00 4. 新探索者：保持英国整洁

Film4

11.00am 《马鞍上的男人》（U级，1951） 西部片，主演伦道夫·斯科特 12.45pm 《黑天鹅》（PG级，1942） 刀剑冒险，主演泰隆·鲍华 2.30 《奇幻之旅》（U级，1966） 科幻冒险，主演拉奎尔·韦尔奇 4.35 《少年王者》（PG级，2019） 奇幻冒险，主演路易斯·阿什伯恩·瑟基斯（AD） 7.00 Film4访谈节目：《影视对话》。明星与导演畅谈电影制作经历，精选合集 7.05 《看他们如何奔跑》（12, 2022） 悬疑喜剧，主演山姆·洛克威尔与萨维尔·罗南（AD） 9.00 《失踪》（15, 2023） 惊悚片，主演斯托姆·里德与妮娅·朗 11.15 《詹妮弗的肉体》（15, 2009） 喜剧恐怖，主演梅根·福克斯 1.20am-3.35 《B计划》（18, 2021） 喜剧，主演库胡·维尔马

ITV4

6.00am 《夏威夷神探》（） 8.05 《罗宾汉传奇》 9.10 《布恩》 10.20 《职业特工》（） 11.25 《罗宾汉传奇》 12.30pm 《夏威夷神探》（） 2.35 《邓普西与梅克皮斯》（） 3.45 《布恩》 4.30 《职业特工》（） 5.50 《老千》。迈克·里德客串（） 7.00 《摩托车秀》。亨利·科尔重返伦敦快递员的起点 8.00 《公路之王》。北爱尔兰安特里姆郡举办传奇阿莫伊赛车 9.00 《冰路先锋》。丽莎·凯利与托尼·莫莱基运输本季迄今最大货物 10.00 《全精英摔角：碰撞》。激烈摔角对决 12.00 《黑暗擂台》 12.35am 《职业特工》（, SL） 1.55am-2.50 《机器人大战》

UKDrama

6.00am 电视购物 7.15 《警务》 8.05 《医生们》 9.20 经典《霍利城》 10.40 《急诊室》（） 11.40 《警务》 12.40pm 经典《东区人》 2.00 《邻居们》 3.00 《惠特斯特珍珠》（） 4.00 《兰利》 5.20 《时光流逝》 6.00 《最后的夏日葡萄酒》 8.00 《虎口脱险》 冯·斯特罗姆发现被盗资金是伪造的 8.35 《》 莱克特里克斯被捕 9.05 《》 勒内逃离爆炸的圣诞布丁 9.40 《新神探》。团队调查一名大学教授的死亡（2 / 10）（） 11.00 《路德》。侦探追捕一名蒙面杀手（1 / 4）（） 12.15am 《兰利》 1.20 《邦尼菲斯修女探案》（） 2.30 《普伦特莱斯酒店》（SL） 2.35 《相同羽翼》 4.00am-6.00 电视购物

节目变更

BBC1 爱尔兰 11.45pm 年度房屋（重播） 11.10 电影：《赛艇男孩》（2023） 根据真实事件改编，乔尔·埃哲顿主演 1.10am-6.00 BBC 新闻

BBC1 苏格兰 7.00pm-7.30 《河城》（重播） 12.35am 《苏格兰播报》（重播） 1.05 本周天气展望 1.10am-6.00 新闻

STV 12.55am-3.00 电视购物 3.50am-6.00 夜视频道

BBC 苏格兰 7.00pm 《苏格兰报道》 7.30 《我的小镇》（重播） 5.00 《农场生活》（重播） 9.00 《谋杀审判》。一名前猎场看守被控谋杀（1 / 2） 10.00 《大卫·威尔逊的罪案档案》（重播） 11.00 《苏格兰播报》 11.30pm-12.00 《足球偶像》（重播）

S4℃ 6.00am 《Cyw》 12.00 新闻；天气 12.30pm 《Codi Pac》（重播） 12.30 《Heno》（重播） 1.00 《Kalim》（重播） 1.30 《Arford: Cymru. 彭布罗克郡》（重播） 2.00 新闻；天气 2.05 《Prynhaven Da》 3.00 新闻；天气 3.05 《Cefn Gwad》（重播） 4.00 《Axe Fawr. Biscina: Line》（重播） 4.05 《Twin Twnch》（重播） 4.15 《Fferm Fach》（重播） 4.30 《Bleny on Mynch i Ocolo》（重播） 4.45 《Byd Tad Cu》（重播） 5.00 《Stwnsh: Denglau – Marchington Berc》（重播） 5.25 《T-Smyth's》（重播） 5.40 《Un Cwestrand》（重播） 6.00 《Y Cl Perlflaith》（重播） 6.30 《Codi Hwy》（重播） 7.00 《Heno》 7.30 新闻；天气 8.00 《Inlet》 8.05 《来自安格尔西郡展的夜灯》 10.00 《Uath ar Daith》。理查德·帕克斯和洛恩·摩根踏上威尔士语言之旅 11.00pm-12.05am 《Y Cosmos》。光如何逃离太阳（重播）

PBS America

8.00am 《极端天气：地球的极端》 8.35 《发掘英国的过去》 9.35 《横跨欧洲的日食》 10.40 《1066. 征服英格兰之年》 11.55 《走进日本的战争》 1.00pm 《极端天气：地球的极端》 1.35 《发掘英国的过去》 2.35 《横跨欧洲的日食》 3.50 《1066. 征服英格兰之年》 5.00 《走进日本的战争》 6.15 《发掘英国的过去》 7.15 《横跨欧洲的日食》。探索观赏日食的最佳地点和最安全方式 8.25 《1066. 征服英格兰之年》。英格兰国王哈罗德需应对两股入侵势力 9.40 《走进日本的战争》。日本如何在马来亚取得胜利 10.50 《横跨欧洲的日食》 12.00 《1066. 征服英格兰之年》。纪录剧情片 1.15am-2.00 《极端天气：地球的极端》

Sky Atlantic

6.00am 《鱼镇》（重播） 8.00 《亿万》（重播）（AD） 10.15 《龙之家族》（重播）（AD） 12.35pm 《杀戮：街头生涯》（重播） 2.30 《亿万》（重播）（） 4.40 《最后生还者》（重播）（） 6.50 《龙之家族》（重播）（） 8.00 《龙之家族》。雷妮拉在议会上越权（重播）（） 9.00 《黑手党：起源》。彼得罗和伊玛接受前夜发生的事实。今日精选（5 / 6） 10.00 《黑手党：起源》。安杰洛遭受重创。本季终篇。今日精选 11.00 《龙之家族》。雷妮拉准备夺取君临城（重播）（） 12.15am 《龙之家族》。奇幻剧（重播）（） 1.30 《亿万》（重播）（） 3.45 《客房翼》（重播）（） 4.35 《某种类型》（重播）（） 5.05am-6.00 《客房翼》（重播）（）

Sky Docs

6.00am 《2000年代》（重播） 7.00 《发现》。约翰·赫特（重播）（） 8.00 《导演们》（重播）（） 9.00 《百尺浪》（重播）（） 10.00 《胡安·卡洛斯：国王的陨落》（重播） 10.55 《凯尔特之城》（重播）（） 12.00 电影：《我是李小龙》（15, 2011）（） 2.00pm 《威廉姆斯与曼塞尔：红色5号》（重播）（） 3.50 《我的偶像：莱昂·普赖斯》（重播）（） 4.00 《导演们》（重播）（） 4.55 《发现：约翰·赫特》（重播）（） 5.50 《地球边缘》（重播）（） 7.00 电影：《虚空教学》（15, 2003） 纪录片 9.00 《野性山峰》。今日精选（） 11.00 电影：《兰开斯特》（PG, 2022） 与甘比亚轰炸机齐名的轰炸机（） 1.00am 电影：《戴夫不会回来》（PG, 2020） 2.50 《詹姆斯·布朗先生的崛起》（重播）（） 5.00am-6.00 《发现》（重播）（）

英国昨日节目表

凌晨6:10 《废弃工程》（听障辅助） 8:00 《经典车拍卖：修复之路》（听障辅助） 10:00 《纳粹秘密基地》 11:00 《希特勒的战争倒计时》 12:00 《古董 Roadshow》 下午2:00 《车拍天下》（听障辅助） 4:00 《纳粹秘密基地》 5:00 《希特勒的战争倒计时》 6:00 《古董 Roadshow》 7:00 《完美球员：驱动地球的太阳能量》（听障辅助） 8:00 《经典车拍卖：修复之路——斯巴鲁皮卡》（听障辅助） 9:00 《车拍天下——英国为美国市场打造的汽车》（听障辅助） 10:00 《车拍天下——奥斯汀迷你车收藏》（听障辅助） 11:00 《车拍天下——军用奔驰G级越野车》（听障辅助） 12:00 《经典车拍卖：修复之路》（听障辅助） 凌晨1:00 《淘宝达人：修复与变现》 2:00 《废弃工程》（听障辅助） 凌晨3:00-6:10 电视购物

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14

益智游戏

Tetonor 中等难度 第699题

70	54	120	21
47	176	23	117
136	22	132	42
30	104	43	90

1	2	2		3		8		21	22	39			68

填写完成后，网格下方的数字条可拆分为八对数字。每对数字相加的和为网格中的16个数字之一，相乘的积则为网格中的另一个不同数字。例如，数字条中的4和6可组成一对，其和为10（4+6），积为24（4×6），两者均出现在网格中。请在网格对应数字下方填入每对数字的和。数字条中的空缺部分需自行推导，注意数字按升序排列。

下一期Tetonor谜题将于周四刊登。

在 thetimes.com / puzzles 和 Live 应用上尝试 Wordhunt 和 Picle，我们全新的在线快速游戏

KenKen 中级 No 6908

!

每行和每列必须包含数字 1 到 6。在每个粗线“区块”中，左上角的目标数字由区块内所有单元格的数字通过符号所示的运算得出。

Futoshiki No 5456

!

填写空白方格，使每行和每列包含数字 1 到 5 各一次。方格之间的符号表示相邻数字的大小关系（+ 表示更大，- 表示更小）。

Kakuro No 4415

仅使用数字 1 到 9 填写网格。每个水平或垂直的白色方格序列中的数字之和等于其左侧或上方三角形中的总和。同一行或列中可重复出现相同数字，但在同一白色方格序列中不可重复。

© PCCS SA MEDIA

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15

MindGames

《泰晤士报》填字游戏 No 10,232

横向

1 学术调查与研究 (8) 5 详细特征或要求清单 (4) 8 多叶草本植物 (3) 9 陶瓷原料 (4) 10 低矮的马拉车 (4) 12 绒球，自负的 (4-9)

13 注意到 (6) 14 终结手段 (6) 17 电影院工作人员 (13) 20 分裂成松散的线 (4) 21 《墓园挽歌》作者 (4) 22 干草饲料 (3) 23 令人不快的笑 (4) 24 使遭受危险 (8)

填字游戏 10,231 的答案

纵向

1 视觉谜题 (5) 2 淡蓝色 (3,4) 3 古代数学家 (10) 4 车辆固定器 (6) 6 温暖的带帽外套 (5) 7 草原狼 (7) 11 洞穴居民 (10) 13 乐观的 (7) 15 描述性绰号 (7) 16 洗衣硬化剂 (6) 18 演讲 (5) 19 短暂试穿以评估合身度 (3,2)

需要今天谜题的帮助？请拨打 0905 757 0143 查询答案。通话费用为每分钟 £1，另加电话公司的网络接入费。SP: Spoke，0333 202 3390（周一至周五 9:00-17:30）。

桥牌 Andrew Robson

在今天的社交团队赛中，两桌都达成了优秀的 6♠ 定约。在第一桌，西家选择首攻单张，尽管这门花色在明手。在第二桌，西家首攻了同伴黑桃的 8。作为庄家，请在每种情况下规划打法。

第一桌 — 4♦ 首攻。这张方块显然是单张——否则为何要攻明手的花色？你无法清光所有将牌，否则将无法回到明手的方块。而你必须从手上再攻一张方块，这样如果西家将吃，他实际上是在将吃同伴的赢墩（你将获得五墩方块）。

在赢进方块后，正确的打法是兄现红心 Q，再出小红心到你的 A。双方跟出两轮红心后，第四墩时你从手上攻第二张方块。如果西家将吃，你可以将吃他的（假设）黑桃回攻，兄现方块并声称拿下 12 墩。

西家最好的应对是垫牌，但你赢进方块后用红心 K 将吃一张方块。你回到红心 J（清掉西家的第三张红心），然后兑现方块，最终手中剩下黑桃 K-Q 和梅花 A。现在过桥到梅花 A，逼出黑桃 A，第二轮升级的黑桃将成为你的第 12 墩。

假设两轮红心显示 4-1 分布，你现在需要方块 3-2 分布（无论这看起来多么不可能）。回到红心 J，再回到梅花 A，然后（尝试）兑现方块。

(1.) 如果有局，不会争叫。 (2.) 盲目加叫至（九墩）配合水平。 (3.) 同伴的 2♥ 保证有五张红心（南家若只有四张会做负加倍）。 (4.) 知道同伴黑桃缺门。

定约 3♥，开叫首攻 ★4 / ▲5

第二桌 — ▲5 首攻。你必须从明手垫牌——比如垫一张梅花（否则东家将吃后你将宕掉 1 墩）。东家赢进 A 后转攻梅花 J（最佳打法）。你赢进 A 后必须将吃一张黑桃。

现在你兄现红心 Q，并用 K 超吃 J，诚然如果红心 4-1 分布会失败。当双方都跟出两轮红心后，你兄现 A，清掉最后一张将牌，然后享用黑桃 K-Q 和明手的方块 A-K-Q。这样你将通过四墩边花顶张、黑桃 K-Q 和六墩红心（包括明手的黑桃将吃）拿下 12 墩。

andrew.robsen@thetimes.co.uk

大脑训练

多边形

用以下字母组成至少三个字母的单词，必须包含中心字母。答案必须收录于《简明牛津词典》，不包括专有名词、复数、动词变位（过去式等）、以 -ly 结尾的副词、比较级和最高级。评分标准：15 个单词为平均水平；20, 为良好；25, 为优秀；31, 为卓越。

昨日答案

bib, los, bash, brs, brush, bub, bur, burb, bus, bush, hub, hubris, rib, rub, rubbish, shrub, sib, sub, urbs

Cell Blocks No 5799

将网格划分为正方形或矩形块，每个块仅包含一个数字。每个块必须包含其内部数字所指示的单元格数量。

Set Square No 4418

在网格中填入1到9的每个数字，使六个求和运算成立。我们已为您预先放置了两个数字。每个求和运算应从左到右或从上到下计算。

注意：BODMAS规则不适用

Killer Moderate No 10,870

Killer Tough No 10,871

与标准数独相同，填满网格，使每列、每行和每个3x3宫格内均包含数字1到9。每组由虚线连接的单元格必须相加等于其左上角的目标数字。在每组由虚线连接的单元格内，数字不能重复。

谜题求助热线 如在数独、Killer或KenKen上卡住，请于午夜前拨打0901 293 6263，获取今日任一谜题的四条提示。通话费用为£1，另加电话公司的网络接入费。SP: Spoke，0333 202 3390（周一至周五9.至5.30pm）。

答案

数独 17 / 1 / 3

数独 17 / 1 / 4

数独 17 / 1 / 5

Killer 10,868

Killer 10,869

Codeword 5915

GK填字游戏 350

Cell Blocks 5798

Fulcolink 5455

Kakuro 4414

Train Tracks 2940

Set Square 4417

KenKen 6907

Lexica 9045

Lexica 9046

今日答案

词汇观察

Tammy (b) 用于蒸煮酱汁、汤等的布巾（Collins） Nychthemeron (c) 一个24小时周期（1827） Bixter-de-mer (a) 海参 (b) 蚝

国际象棋——制胜一招

1 KnErf+ 王车易位迫使1...Nshf（1...Kshf 1 Bk）=naive(1) Knfr- Nlh 1 KnBr（3 Qn9.）R也能取胜，但测试要求1...Kh2 4 RbR+ KshR 5 BQ+ Kh2 6 Qg7将死

问答

1 福尔摩斯 2 都柏林 3 毛利人 4 诺丁山嘉年华 5 加冕街 6 达特穆尔监狱 7 夏洛蒂·勃朗特 8 罗伯特·布鲁斯 9 威廉·兰姆或墨尔本勋爵 10 加利安诺 11 Vir Henicus Sahlmi 12 Muon 13 瑞安·霍利迪 14 莲花 15 《搏击俱乐部》

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《泰晤士报》

11.08.26

益智游戏

更多谜题请见第10页

词汇观察

大卫·珀菲特

Tammy

a 备用或替补 b 用于沾染酱汁、汤等的布巾 c 一种好斗的小型鸡

Nychthemeron

a 双重否定 b 一种史前鱼形爬行动物 c 一个24小时周期

无与伦比的关怀与保障

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探索捷克首都布拉格的卓越建筑与迷人历史，在这个圣诞假期畅游这座城市。城市游览将带您领略瓦茨拉夫广场和查理大桥等亮点，探索南波希米亚的捷克克鲁姆洛夫，并享受伏尔塔瓦河上的午餐游船。

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DAILY NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR

THE

TIMES

Tuesday August 11 2026 | thetimes.com | No 75108

£3.20 £2.35 to subscribers (based on a 7 Day Print and Digital Subscription)

Must they? Summer of the *PDA * Public display of affection

Toxic lettuce! Why the top microbiologist won't eat salad

Police probe whether Widdecombe suspect linked to Farage arson

Steven Swinford Political Editor

Police are investigating whether the man charged with the murder of Ann Widdecombe is linked to an incident in which a lit incendiary device was pushed through the letterbox of Nigel Farage's home.

Joshua Kerry, 28, has been charged with Widdecombe's murder last month

at her home in Devon. At first, Devon and Cornwall police had ruled out a political motivation for the Reform UK politician's death, but the case was transferred to counterterrorism police.

Kerry was arrested on suspicion of murder on July 11 and arrested again on July 15 on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.

On Friday, counterterrorism police investigating Widdecombe's death said that they had reopened an inquiry into what had been described as an attempted burglary of Farage's home.

The Reform UK leader told The Daily Telegraph in April that an incendiary device had been pushed through his letterbox that "luckily ... burnt itself out in the porch". Reform

UK declined to comment on the report. The investigation, by the Metropolitan Police and Counterterrorism Policing (CTP) London, was closed and no arrests were made.

After the investigation was reopened, counterterrorism police said they had identified a line of inquiry that "was not identified and pursued by them at the time" and which "may have been

relevant". The force has referred itself to the police watchdog.

The Times has been told that police are examining whether there is a connection between Kerry and the incident, and that Farage has been informed.

At a press conference yesterday after a meeting with counterterrorism Continued on page 2

Daily pill for weight loss will keep you slim for life

Eleanor Hayward Health Editor

The UK has become the first country in Europe to approve a daily weight-loss pill that can be a "treatment for life" to stay slim and put type 2 diabetes into remission.

Orforglipron, made by the US firm Lilly, will be sold under the brand name Foundayo. It helps people lose 12 per cent of body weight on average and trials show it is an effective long-term "maintenance" tool to stay healthy.

Yesterday, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved the drug for use in the UK for patients who are obese, or those who are overweight with a related health condition. About 20 million people in England could be eligible.

The drug will initially only be available from private pharmacies but is expected to be given the green light for NHS use within months, after a cost-effectiveness evaluation by regulators. It works by targeting the same GLP-1 receptors as jabs including Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro.

Orforglipron is taken as a daily tablet, and there are no restrictions on the time of day it is taken or on food or water. This makes it more convenient than a rival Wegovy pill, made by Novo Nordisk and launched in the UK last month, which can only be taken in the morning on an empty stomach.

Experts have described weight-loss pills as a "holy grail" and suggested they could be taken by millions of NHS patients to prevent conditions including type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Price details have not been released but in the US, where it was approved in April, orforglipron is sold for about half the price of weight-loss injections. The weight-loss jab Mounjaro costs up to £140 a month depending on dose.

Pills are cheaper to manufacture and store, as they do not need to be kept in a fridge, although they are slightly less effective than GLP-1 injections.

Julian Beach, the MHRA's executive director of healthcare quality and Continued on page 4

Burnham demands plan to keep PC's killers in jail

Prime minister 'confident' of success despite warnings that it will be impossible to prevent release

Andy Burnham has told his justice secretary to draw up plans to prevent the early release of PC. Andrew Harper's killers and present them to parliament amid a mounting backlash from the victim's family and the police.

The prime minister was said to be "increasingly confident" that a "solution" could be found despite stark warnings from officials that it would be impossible to prevent the release of Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers.

A government source told The Times that Burnham had "never accepted"

that he must choose between releasing "perpetrators of rape, grooming and the killers of police officers". He has told Alex Norris, the new justice secretary, to find a solution before parliament returns next month.

It remains unclear how ministers will prevent the release of Cole and Bowers, two of those responsible for Harper's death. Burnham has asked officials to look into an exemption for the killers of emergency workers, though Downing Street has admitted that it will not be possible without keeping all those convicted of manslaughter behind bars.

Before making his announcement

last week, Burnham was presented with two options that would have prevented Cole and Bowers's release, but did not pursue them. Under the two proposals, all prisoners sentenced to either more than ten years or more than seven years would not have been eligible for early release. Cole and Bowers were each sentenced to 15 years for manslaughter.

Burnham chose a third option, based on the type of offence rather than on length of sentence. The decision means that prisoners convicted of rape, serious child sex and other grooming offences will remain behind bars. Officials made it clear that choice

meant Harper's killers would still qualify for early release.

A Whitehall source insisted there were "no good choices" and that even if Burnham had gone for one of the first two options, it would have meant rapists and sex offenders given shorter sentences would be released early.

Other, more radical options were rejected because they were deemed impractical or too expensive. One involved turning a former holiday camp into a prison but officials said it would have been suitable only for Category D prisoners. Another option involved Continued on page 7

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2

Tuesday August 11 2026 | THE TIMES

News

Today's highlights

• 7am Sally Jameson, housing and communities minister
• 7.35am Dr Jo Saxton, right, Ucas chief executive
• 10.10am Former detective superintendent Stuart Blaik, who led the Andrew Harper investigation
• 12.45pm Historian AN Wilson on whether Britain should have a written constitution
• 5.35pm Claire Ward, mayor of the East Midlands

TODAY'S EDITION

COMMENT 17 LETTERS 20 LEADING ARTICLES 21

WORLD 22 BUSINESS 27 REGISTER 41

SPORT 45 CROSSWORD 52 TV & RADIO TIMES2

Has Farage's Clacton by-election backfired?

T Nigel Farage has had a tricky summer – not the ideal preparation for Thursday's by-election. Before the vote, we headed down to the seaside in Essex to see how locals are feeling about it all The Story Available on the Times Radio app or wherever you get your podcasts

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Mainly dry and warm or hot with plenty of sunshine, especially in England. Full forecast, page 44

If a contact of your Times is missing, please call 020-7711 1320 or e-mail help@timesplus.co.uk and we will send it to you, subject to availability.

© TIMES MEDIA LIMITED, 2026. Published in print and all other derivative formats by Times Media Ltd, 1 London Bridge St, London, SE1 9GF; telephone 020 7702 5000. Printed by Newsgartners Holdings Ltd, Great Cambridge Rd, Waltham Cross, EN8 8DY, Kittling Rd, Prescot, Merseyside, L34 9HN; and Byransmuir Road, Holytown, Motherswell, ML1 1NP. Webprint, 2023 Diamond Avenue, Citywest Business Campus, Dublin, Ireland. KP Services, La Rue Martel, La Rue des Pres Trading Estate, St Saviour, Jersey, JE2 7QH. For permission to copy articles or headlines for internal information purposes contact NLA media access at copy@nia.co.uk; telephone 01892 525273. For all other reproduction and licensing inquiries contact Licensing Department, 1 London Bridge St, London, SE1 9GF; telephone 020 7711 7888; email enquiries@newslicensing.co.uk.

High street revival will offer chance to shutter vape shops

Oliver Wright Policy Editor

Andy Burnham has promised to bring high streets "back to life" by allowing towns to block gambling, gaming and vaping shops and giving councils powers to prevent "garrish" neon signs.

All new vape shops will require planning permission, meaning they can be prevented from opening near schools, under the plans, which the prime minister is to announce today.

The government also intends to revoke the Gambling Act 2005's "aim to permit" rule, which restricts the ability of councils to refuse permission for betting and 24-hour slot machine shops even where there is public opposition. Adult gaming centres, which offer 24-hour gambling machines, will also require planning permission.

Downing Street said "clearer expectations" would be set out for the appearance of high street shopfronts. The "best examples of attractive, thriving town centres from across the country" would be identified and councils would receive practical guidance on improving high streets.

Vape shops and barbers that have been associated with organised crime

and illegal working have proliferated in recent years.

The Centre for Social Justice think tank has found that since 2016 Britain has lost nearly 1,800 pubs and bars, while the number of vape and tobacco shops has increased to almost 2,200.

Ministers have announced that shops believed to be involved in illegal activity can be closed for up to a year to allow police and councils time to conduct investigations. Burnham has also said that he will review relief for business rate reliefs for shops that "do not make a positive contribution".

Concerns have also been raised about the clustering of gambling premises, particularly in more deprived areas. The London borough of Brent has more than 80 gambling venues. In another borough, Harlesden, there are ten betting shops within a ten-minute walk.

Under the Gambling Act, brought in under the Blair government, councils and the Gambling Commission must err towards granting permission for gambling premises.

Burnham said that for too many people the high streets that they "grew up with have been hollowed out and be-

come unrecognisable over decades of decline. The rise of vape shops, betting shops and rogue operators have replaced the shops, services, and community spaces that people are crying out for. That's not on."

He added that Labour would give people "a real say" over what opened on their high streets. Local councils would be given the powers they needed to rein in unwanted shops and bring town centres back to life.

High streets were "the beating heart of local communities", the prime minister said. "But for too long Westminster has stood by while they have been in decline. This government is committed to restoring our high streets and bringing back hope across Britain."

Joshua Nicholson, head of housing and communities at the Centre for Social Justice, said: "Britain's high streets have been hijacked by a growing number of dodgy vape shops, mini marts and barbers, many of which are linked to organised crime.

"The government is right to give councils new powers to say no to these dodgy shops. High street renewal is vital to restoring security within our communities."

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Suspect 'link' to Farage arson

police, Farage said: "This is directly linked to the murder of Ann Weldecombe." He described the decision to reopen the case as "unprecedented".

Farage said he believed counterterrorism officers had "made some mistakes" in the original case but that he still had confidence in them.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating the "conduct" of a CTP London staff member.

Farage said that his party "had been treated very differently to everybody else before the death of former MP Ann Weldecombe." He added: "It's a great, great tragedy that it took the death of

Ann for the security services in Britain ... to finally take seriously the safety and security ... of Reform politicians.

"Up until that moment, we had been treated very differently to everybody else."

Asked whether he still had confidence in the police, he said: "The fact that counterterrorism have been honest enough to say, 'Mr Farage, when it came to the incident that happened to you in April 2025', to publicly admit they got it wrong and to refer themselves to the IOPC.

"Now they're obviously very, very scared of what the truth is when it comes out. But the fact they've done that shows you they're not trying to cover up, they're not trying to ignore,

and I have to say, I have met Laurence Taylor [the head of CTP], and I did feel a great, great confidence in it."

Wildecombe, 78, a former Conservative minister and spokeswoman for Reform UK, was found dead at her home in Haytor, Devon, on July 9.

In a statement Taylor said: "I want to make it very clear that our investigation into [Kerry], determining his motivations and any wider activity he may have been involved in is continuing.

"As with all murder investigations, understanding the 'why' is a key part of our enquiries," he said, adding that it was "a particularly intensive and complex investigation".

CTP London has been contacted for comment.

Farage defends El Salvador jail plan

Aubrey Allegretti Chief Political Correspondent

Foreign offenders sent to El Salvador under plans by Reform UK to ease overcrowded prisons will not be held in "cages". Nigel Farage has suggested.

The party's leader was trying to allay concerns of human rights abuses and head off claims people could be held in the notorious Cecot facility — the biggest jail in the Americas.

Reform is planning a trip to El Salvador to inspect the suitability of facilities to hold thousands of people removed from UK jails. Its plan is to rent cells in foreign countries for offenders who cannot be returned to their countries of origin. Reform also wants the army to erect prefabricated jails on Ministry of Defence land as an alternative to Labour's early release scheme.

Farage said "not all the prisons" in El Salvador contained "the cages that you've seen on television", in reference to a documentary by Richard Madeley about Cecot broadcast this year.

The film showed jailed inmates forced to eat the same basic meals every day with nothing to read apart from the Bible and lights on all night. Cells contain dozens of people sleeping on metal bed frames. Visitors are prohibited.

Farage said: "We want to make sure that the conditions are sensible and reasonable and appropriate." He added

Behind the story

Sending foreign offenders to jails in third countries presents serious legal, diplomatic and practical problems, as previous governments can attest (Aubrey Allegretti writes).

David Cameron earmarked £25 million from the foreign aid budget in 2015 to help build a prison in Jamaica for about 600 Jamaicans in British jails to serve the remainder of their term. However, in 2017 Jamaica rejected the offer on the basis that the terms would not have been "beneficial".

In 2023 Alex Chalk, then the justice secretary, suggested renting prison cells in Estonia, but the plan never got off the ground. Concerns were raised about the value-for-money of leasing foreign cells, transporting inmates internationally and maintaining proper staffing.

Legal watchdogs also pointed to problems with language barriers, isolation for from families, and a legal requirement to match domestic British rehabilitation standards overseas.

that Reform's promised prison-building drive would mean facilities were "basic" without "many colour TVs".

Sources told The Times that any prisoners removed to the central American country would require access to healthcare, education and outdoor exercise, under Reform's plan.

Reform UK said it would "free up 10,000 prison spaces by removing all foreign national offenders". However, about a third of those in custody are believed to be on remand, meaning they are yet to be tried. Farage said the cost of his scheme would be half that of housing foreign offenders on UK soil.

Amnesty International UK criticised the plan. It said: "Reform is proposing to contract into serious human rights abuses in El Salvador ... financing brutality with British taxpayers' money. Amnesty has documented mass arbitrary detention, beatings, torture and other ill-treatment, enforced disappearances, denial of medical care and deaths in custody in El Salvador."

Mark Fairhurst, national chairman of the Prison Officers' Association, said Reform's plan was unlikely to survive. He told Times Radio: "He will come up against loads of human rights arguments ... You need to look at the jurisdiction. Who's going to supervise prisoners in a foreign country when they're serving a sentence under the British criminal justice system?"

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THE TIMES | Tuesday August 11 2026

1

News

Zoos and vets see the point of animal acupuncture

Tash Mosheim

For most animals, a trip to the vet does not involve sitting patiently while a dozen needles are inserted into their body from their back down to their ankles.

But for Peeko, an elderly African penguin at the New England Aquarium in Boston, Massachusetts, acupuncture became part of her routine medical care after she developed problems with her spine and joints.

The bird underwent 15-minute sessions in which about a dozen hair-thin needles were placed across her body. Far from putting up a fight, her keepers said she appeared to relax during the procedure and would even preen staff while being held.

Peeko died aged 31 last year, well beyond the 10 to 15-year life expectancy of African penguins in the wild. But she was far from the only unusual patient to find herself at the sharp end of an acupuncture needle.

Acupuncture, once associated with

alternative medicine for humans, is being deployed on an increasingly eclectic collection of animals, from lions and llamas to lizards and labradores.

At Fife Zoo in Scotland, Ebony, a 12-year-old ring-tailed coatimundi, was given acupuncture after developing age-related arthritis.

Keepers noticed that the South American mammal, a member of the

Lucifer, an Asiatic lion, was treated after a wound from a foot operation failed to heal

Peeko, an African penguin, and Pedang, a Sumatran tiger, both had acupuncture

raccon family, was becoming lame, reluctant to move and less interested in food. She was prescribed medication, but vets from the University of Edinburgh's Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies suggested adding acupuncture to her treatment.

Monika Nawrocka, an exotics veterinary nurse, carried out regular sessions with the zoo and subsequently reported improvements in Ebony's mobility,

mood and appetite.

'People think that exotic animals don't experience pain because they are largely non-verbal and their behaviour can be unique.' Nawrocka said. 'However, by studying their behaviour you can identify if they are in pain.'

Sophie Varawalla, a practical instructor in animal management at Capel Manor College in London, said identifying pain requires looking for changes in an animal's normal behaviour, as well as physical and verbal signs. These can include limping, sitting away from the group, becoming less active, grimacing by squinting their eyes or scrunching their noses, or vocalising when touched.

Carolyn Smith, a small animal vet at London Veterinary Acupuncture, said the treatment itself could be 'profoundly relaxing', although this varied between animals. 'Often treats help too!' she added.

Smith said animals generally did not need to be trained for acupuncture, but they needed to be comfortable with

being handled. With newer patients, she gradually builds up the number of needles and the areas of the body treated over several weeks.

In 2014, an altogether more formidable patient underwent acupuncture at Paignton Zoo in Devon. Lucifer, an Asiatic lion, was treated after a wound from an operation to remove a tumour from his foot failed to heal properly. The acupuncture was intended to reduce pain and improve blood flow.

Dr Charlotte Inness, a veterinary surgeon who has used acupuncture on horses and dogs, said 'From a Western veterinary perspective, its effects are thought to involve stimulation of the nervous system and the body's own pain-relieving and repair mechanisms, including effects on neurological, immune and hormonal pathways.'

But how can a vet know whether it has worked when the patient cannot say that it hurts less? Smith said vets can use pain scales alongside more everyday measures, such as whether a cat can jump onto its favourite chair or if a dog can climb the stairs more easily.

'Often the patients are able to handle themselves with more ease and look more 'natural' in their movements after treatment,' she said. 'They can often perform better during physio and hydrotherapy sessions after too.'

Inness has used acupuncture on horses for a wide range of problems, from chronic pain to digestive complaints, breathing difficulties, fertility problems and even behavioural issues. She has also treated dogs suffering from arthritis and spinal problems.

Some animals receive electro-acupuncture, where a gentle electrical current is passed between the needles to provide stronger stimulation.

Inness said: 'One of the important points about veterinary acupuncture is that I don't see it as an alternative to conventional veterinary medicine. Rather, it can be a useful additional treatment within a broader clinical approach, particularly where pain is chronic or conventional treatment alone isn't providing sufficient relief.'

The appetite for such treatments may also reflect changing attitudes towards pets.

Hedda Blaverud Olsson, co-founder of Lassie, a pet health and insurance company, said younger generations were increasingly treating animals as family members.

'The humanisation of pets has changed what owners expect,' she said. 'When you see your pet as a member of the family, you are naturally more willing to invest in their health and consider a wider range of options to support their wellbeing.'

Olsson said owners were moving from reacting to when a pet becomes ill towards trying to maintain its health and spot problems earlier, with younger owners increasingly bringing the habits of fitness trackers, health apps and preventative human healthcare to the animals sharing their homes.

Happy, angry or scared? Dogs can tell by the look on your face

Kaya Burgess Science Correspondent

Dogs can tell from tone of voice or body language if their owner is pleased or upset, but how much can a canine read from human facial expressions alone?

Now, MRI scans on dogs have revealed that they can not only distinguish between positive and negative emotions on human faces, but can even differentiate between feelings such as anger, fear and sadness.

Humans and dogs have lived side by side for at least 15,000 years, with some estimates placing the start of the domestication process to 30,000 years ago.

The two species have learned to read each other's emotions over millennia of cohabiting, allowing them to grow into effective teammates when hunting,

playing or protecting their kin.

A summary of a new study, published in the journal iScience, noted that dogs 'watch human body language, listen to nuances in our voices and detect information from our scent' when trying to read our emotions. The researchers set out to find out how well dogs can read emotional cues in human facial expressions and whether they could pick up subtle differences between emotions.

'Humans are really good at picking up small details on the face, and so are dogs,' said Raúl Hernández-Pérez, first author of the study, from the University of Vienna. 'By studying their brains, we can understand what adaptations have developed to support their remarkable social and emotional understanding of humans.' Eight dogs were placed in a

functional MRI scanner, and shown a selection of images of humans — all of strangers — with either happy or neutral expressions.

When viewing the happy images, the temporal cortex and caudate nucleus in the dogs' brains lit up. These are areas associated with cognitive processing and feelings of reward. 'The activity in the caudate nucleus is particularly interesting,' said Laura Cueva of the University of Vienna. 'It suggests that happy human faces may have emotional significance for dogs.'

The researchers then showed 12 dogs images of faces displaying happiness, sadness, anger and fear to look at subtle patterns of brain activity in different regions. Angry and scared faces produced different patterns in the dogs' temporal

The study involved border collies being placed inside an MRI scanner

and occipital cortices. Faces showing sadness and fear also produced different patterns in a region called the right rostral supraclavian gyrus.

There was no clear difference in the

pattern of brain activity when viewing angry and sad faces, however. This means dogs may rely more heavily on other cues such as body language and tone of voice in these instances.

Most of the dogs tested were border collies, which are skilled at following social cues. Further studies would be needed to show that other breeds are as responsive to facial expressions.

It is not clear, however, how far dogs understand what the different emotions mean. The study notes: 'Across human facial expressions, happiness has the strongest representation in the dog brain.' It concluded: 'To the best of our knowledge, this is the first evidence that dogs can distinguish between two human faces showing negative expressions.'

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4

News

JULY 18 2026 | JUNE 8 2025

Reflected glory Drew Lausch entered Edinburgh's World of Illusions to promote his Fringe show Friendliest, a dark comedy about his childhood and gay superheroes

England leads world in mission to eliminate 'curable' hepatitis C

Eleanor Hayward Health Editor

England is 'leading the world' in eliminating hepatitis C after an NHS drive to diagnose and cure 100,000 people of the disease.

Health officials say that deaths from the virus have fallen by 36 per cent over the past decade and the country is on track to wipe out the disease by 2030.

Hepatitis C is spread through contact with infected blood and can cause life-threatening liver damage if untreated. It is most common in people who have been exposed to non-sterile injections including from drug use or getting tattoos abroad.

In 2015, the NHS rolled out pioneering antiviral drugs that are taken for 12 weeks and cure 95 per cent of cases. Since then more than 100,000 people have been treated. The NHS has launched a drive to detect more cases including by offering free home testing kits and more routine testing in A&E.

Professor Frankie Swords, NHS national medical director, said: 'Hepatitis C can cause serious harm, including liver failure and cancer, yet many people live with it ... without knowing or having any symptoms ... until it's too late. That's why the NHS has worked hard alongside public health teams and charities to find and treat hidden cases, and it's encouraging that over 100,000 people have now received potentially life-saving treatment in just a decade.'

'England is now leading the world in the mission to eliminate this disease and is on course to beat the World Health Organisation's 2030 target but we are determined to keep up the momentum and finish the job. With hepatitis C curable in more than nine out of ten cases, we are committed to finding and treating everyone who needs support and urge those at greater risk to come forward by ordering a free and confidential home testing kit online.'

Yvette Cooper, the health secretary,

said: 'We are leading the world in wiping out this disease for good. This is exactly the kind of preventative, forward-looking healthcare that we want the NHS to deliver across the board — catching illness earlier, easing pressure on hospitals, and giving people the chance to live longer, healthier lives.'

Rachel Halford, chief executive of The Hepatitis C Trust, said: 'We are on the cusp of one of the most significant public health achievements in our country's history. To sustain this momentum, continued commitment and long-term investment are essential.'

Health officials have urged people at risk of undiagnosed hepatitis C — including those who have had a tattoo abroad, who have moved to England from certain eastern European countries or have previously used injectable drugs — to order a home testing kit.

Adults born in Ukraine, Romania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Albania, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Czechia or Slovakia are

urged to test, as many could have been potentially infected through medical or dental procedures before 1991.

Paul Eatwell, 65, tested positive for the virus after routine liver function tests flagged an abnormality. The grandfather from Blackburn, Lancashire, said: 'My first reaction was disbelief. I didn't feel ill. I kept wondering how I could possibly have caught it.'

'The support from the specialist team made a huge difference. Their message was simple: 'Don't spend your time worrying about how you got it — focus on getting rid of it!'

While it has not been established how Eatwell caught the virus, it was suggested that surgery in South Africa decades ago was a potential factor.

He added: 'If you think you may be at risk, why wouldn't you have the test? It gives you peace of mind. Treatment today isn't life-changing in the way people might imagine — it's one tablet a day for 12 weeks and a few blood tests.'

Quintagram® No 2643

Solve all five concise clues using each letter underneath once only

1 Maxillary area of the head (3)

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5 Wedding attendant (10)

A	A	A	B	C	D	D	E
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Student officer arrested

A Greater Manchester police student officer has been arrested on suspicion of kidnap, rape and dangerous driving after a woman in her twenties called 999 from a vehicle in distress. The man, 23, was detained in his personal vehicle after a pursuit on the M62 in West Yorkshire and has been suspended. The force has referred the case to the police watchdog.

Drink-driving danger

August is the worst month of the year for drink-drive crashes, an RAC analysis found. An average of 721 people were injured or killed in drink-drive collisions in August between 2014 and 2024, compared with 66.1 in December. Warmer weather and longer evenings offer more opportunities to get behind the wheel after consuming alcohol, the RAC said.

Medieval pond dries up

Villagers are fighting to save their historic pond after it dried up in the heatwaves. More than 100 carp, the descendants of fish first stocked by monks 900 years ago, have died at Scotsman's Pit in Great Massingham, Norfolk. Some fish have been relocated to deeper waters and a GoFundMe appeal aims to raise £15,000 to clear silt from the pond.

Raid on high church

More than 1,500 cannabis plants have been seized from a former church in Nelson, Lancashire, after police spotted pipes running into the deconsecrated St Mary's Church on Manchester Road. A man was arrested after trying to escape through a window. He 'failed to consider the impact the drop might have on his running ability', Lancashire police said.

Daily tablet for weight loss will help keep you slim for life

Continued from page 1

access, said: 'Following rigorous assessment of orforglipron's safety, quality, and effectiveness, we are pleased to be the first regulator in Europe to authorise this tablet for weight management and type 2 diabetes. As with all GLP-1 receptor agonists, this is a prescription-only medication, and the MHRA will keep the safety and effectiveness of orforglipron under close review.'

Tens of thousands of patients in the

UK have started taking the Wegovy pill, which was launched last month at pharmacies including Boots and Super-drug and costs about £3 a day.

Two million people are taking weight-loss jabs and the launch of pills means that analysts expect seven million people in the UK to be on GLP-1 medications within a year.

The drugs provide an option for patients who are needle phobic, with early data suggesting that eight in ten

people buying pills have not previously used weight-loss jabs.

In May, a major trial found that orforglipron can be used as a long-term 'maintenance' tool to stay a healthy weight after weight-loss jabs.

The study, which involved 376 patients who had been taking Mounjaro or Wegovy, found that switching to the pill helped them maintain 75 per cent of their previous weight loss and kept blood pressure, choles-

terol and blood sugar stable.

Dr Louis Aronne, an obesity expert at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, said at the time: 'A daily pill — it's treatment for life.'

Dr Simon Cork, a senior lecturer in physiology at Anglia Ruskin University, said the approval for orforglipron was a big step forward in the treatment of obesity. 'This drug is likely to be much cheaper than currently available medications,' he added.

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5

News

Former Clegg adviser denies sex attack at Lib Dem conference

Jaya Narain

Nick Clegg's former special adviser has denied sexually assaulting a woman at a party conference.

Neil Sherlock worked for the former Liberal Democrat leader from January 2012 until March 2013, when Clegg was deputy prime minister.

Sherlock, 62, is alleged to have sexually assaulted a woman at the Lib Dem party conference in Brighton, East Sussex, on September 18, 2007. It was reported to police in September 2023.

The former civil servant and consultant appeared in the dock at Hove crown

Neil Sherlock was charged almost 19 years after the alleged assault

court yesterday wearing a blue pinstriped suit and yellow tie.

He spoke only to confirm his name and enter his plea.

Sherlock was told that he would go on trial on Monday November 29 next year and that the trial was expected to last four to five days.

He was remanded on conditional bail and ordered not to contact, or try to contact, the complainant.

At the time of the alleged assault, Sherlock was a partner at KPMG, the professional services firm, where he worked from September 1985 until December 2011, before joining Clegg's office.

According to his LinkedIn profile, achievements during his time working for Clegg include bringing in shared parental leave and extending flexible working.

The former civil servant was awarded a CBE in the 2015 Queen's birthday

honours for public and political service. Clegg was appointed Lib Dem leader in 2007, before entering office as deputy prime minister in 2010, when his party's coalition government with the Conservative Party was formed. He resigned in 2015 after the Lib Dems performed disastrously at the general election.

Sherlock lives with his wife in the leafy market town of Godalming, Surrey. The couple have two adult children.

He is now a partner at Acuti Associates, which he co-founded in 2023. The firm advises chief executives across the

public and private sectors on navigating a "new, more uncertain" age.

Sherlock has also served as special adviser to Jonathan Holt, UK chief executive of KPMG, since 2021, as well as on the boards of several charities.

Sussex police, which is leading the investigation, said: "Police received a report in September 2023 of a non-recent sexual assault alleged to have taken place in Brighton in September 2007.

"Following an investigation, Neil Sherlock, 62, of Godalming, Surrey, was charged on 15 May 2026 with one count of sexual assault on a female."

Treasury's failures left PA distraught before suicide

Seren Hughes

The Treasury "materially contributed" to the death of a personal assistant who killed herself the day after she was told a complaint had been made against her, an inquest heard.

Chloe Moffat, 26, was "convinced that her career and reputation had been destroyed", her family said.

Surrey coroner's court was told that HM Treasury failed to inform her that she was unlikely to lose her job because of the disciplinary process.

The inquest heard that Moffat, who was a personal assistant to a director at the Treasury, was talented and "loved her work".

On May 19 last year, she attended a meeting with managers in which she was told about an allegation that she had shared sensitive confidential information about colleagues, which she had obtained as part of her role. She denied the allegations.

The assistant coroner, Anna Crawford, recorded a conclusion of suicide yesterday.

She delivered a short narrative that the Treasury had "materially contributed" to Moffat's death by not applying a written disciplinary policy. They failed to tell her that the probable penalty in the event the allegation was upheld would have been a written warning, not dismissal.

Moffat's relatives believe the Treasury "failed in its duty of care". Her family called for "meaningful" changes in the manner in which disciplinary processes are conducted and employees' welfare is protected.

The Treasury said that it was "considering the findings carefully" and had already introduced improvements to guidance, support and wellbeing arrangements, but recognised that it "must continue to take action".

Crawford told the inquest that it was "agreed by everybody" that Moffat enjoyed her job, had a good work record and had not previously been subject to any workplace disciplinary proceedings.

In the meeting with her line manager and a more senior manager, Moffat was informed that the allegations could be handled through a formal investigation or disciplinary meeting and that her access to the director's email inbox would be suspended.

She asked them whether she would lose her job, to which the senior manager replied that "she could not predict the outcome at this stage", the inquest heard.

Crawford told the inquest that Moffat was shocked and cried during

Chloe Moffat feared that she would lose her job after an anonymous complaint that she had shared confidential information about her colleagues. A coroner said she should have been reassured by the Treasury that a written warning was the only possible penalty

Met standards officer guilty of stalking ex-girlfriend

David Brown Chief News Correspondent

A Scotland Yard detective stalked his police officer former girlfriend for three months as well as telling her she "looked sexy" and that he imagined her wearing stockings.

Timothy Fory was an officer in the Directorate of Professional Standards, which investigates police misconduct, when he stalked Stephanie Lane, who was a trainee detective constable.

Fory, 34, from Balham, south London, was convicted of stalking amounting to harassment between July and September 2024. He was given a five-year restraining order banning him from contacting Lane. He was also placed under a 12-month community order involving 15 days of rehabilitation activity and 150 hours of unpaid work.

Westminster magistrates' court was told that he persistently contacted Lane on WhatsApp, followed her at a police

Timothy Fory had bombarded Stephanie Lane with messages

social event and sent her former partner a malicious message on Instagram.

The pair had had a six-week sexual relationship, which Lane ended because Fory was "not respecting her boundaries".

George Crivelli, for the prosecution, told the court that Fory "bombarded" Lane with WhatsApp messages while other officers noted his "unusual behaviour" including "constantly staring" and following her during a police event.

In one message he told her: "Do you know how sexy you are looking tonight?" Lane replied: "Tim, you need to remember what we were talking about the other day."

She also told him: "I am starting to think that you have not registered that we are not seeing each other."

Fory replied: "I am very aware, but I am still going to imagine you in stockings." He later sent a message to Lane's former boyfriend, with whom she still lived, saying they had sex in his bed.

Lane said in a victim impact statement: "I am struggling to come to terms with being a police victim... I find myself getting flashbacks if I deal with a similar case to my own."

Miranda Zeffman, in mitigation, told the court that Fory had developed a dependence on alcohol after a previous relationship ended due to infidelity. She said he would now lose his job.

the meeting. She texted a friend saying that she believed she was going to be fired, then called her mother, who tried to reassure her. They decided that Moffat would go to stay at her parents' house, and the next day Moffat took her own life.

The inquest heard that the two managers had read the policy but the senior manager described the situation as "high-level". Crawford said that had the policy been followed, Moffat would have been sent a letter setting out the details and would have been advised of

the probable penalty. The coroner also said that it was a "matter of concern" that the information fact-finding meeting was standard practice at the Treasury and other departments.

Crawford said she would be sending a prevention of future deaths report to the Treasury, the head of the civil service and to Acas.

In a statement, Moffat's family said: "Chloe was a bright, caring and talented young woman who loved her family, her friends and her work.

"At a time when she needed support,

reassurance and fair treatment, she was left frightened, isolated and convinced that her career and reputation had been destroyed.

"She was a much-loved daughter, sister and friend, and the loss we feel every day is immeasurable. We will continue to honour her memory and seek the changes needed to ensure that no other family suffers a similar loss."

The Treasury said: "We continue to mourn Chloe's passing as a colleague and friend. Our thoughts remain with her family and friends."

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6

News Politics

Mega-boat will be first of many, ministers are warned

Oliver Wright Policy Editor Geraldine Scott Assistant Political Editor

Ministers are braced for further arrivals of so-called mega-dinghies: carrying migrants across the Channel after a vessel with a record 230 people on board arrived in Dover.

The bespoke inflatable that had as many people on board as some long-haul passenger planes easily surpassed the previous record for a single vessel, set last month, when 165 people made the crossing in a single boat.

The boat, which measured 15m (49ft) long, was said to be 'buckling' in the water as it headed towards the UK.

Senior government sources claimed that the latest incident, which they described as a 'reckless and dangerous' journey, was a sign that its efforts to disrupt the people-smuggling gangs'

How it compares

Passengers: 230 | 248

supply chains was working. They said the gangs were being forced to resort to using larger boats as crossings were increasingly being disrupted by police operations on both sides of the Channel.

'Sustained pressure from law enforcement means the gangs are finding it harder to launch boats and are therefore being forced to place more people onto them,' said one government source.

'While this boat is larger, the number of crossings is down significantly and we just had the lowest figures for a July since 2020.'

But Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, described the latest crossing as evidence of a 'national security emergency' and Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said Andy Burnham was 'out of touch' with the situation on the ground in the Channel.

The Home Office has pledged to cut the time

it takes to rule on asylum claims to six months, down from more than a year, to speed up deportations.

The target means individuals due to be deported will have their cases heard by a judge within 24 weeks of entering the country. The average wait time for a case to be decided by a judge is currently 67 weeks.

Ministers said the change would speed up the removal of those who were unsuccessful at appeal and have no right to be in the UK, free up space in accommodation and cut costs, saving as much as £6.9 billion.

The target will not, however, apply to the £50,000 asylum seekers already in the country whose appeals have yet to be heard. This could lead to these people waiting even longer to have their cases heard.

The overall number of arrivals on small boats has fallen sharply this year. The provisional total for the year stands at 14,819, 43 per cent lower than at the same point last year and 16 per cent below the equivalent period in 2024.

The latest incident suggests small boat gangs are changing their tactics to organise fewer larger crossing of migrants. The average number of migrants per small boat has increased from only seven in 2018 to 63 in the year to March and 70 so far this month.

The government said joint operations with France had prevented more than 47,000 attempted crossings and led to the seizure of 1,100 boats and engines since the election.

The prime minister's spokesperson said 'We've seen today some appalling images ... of young babies being put into these unseaworthy craft — and they're shocking images — and they show the reality behind the ruthless smuggling gangs that are prepared to risk human lives for profit.'

'That's exactly why the government has signed a new payment-by-results deal with the French to prevent these perilous journeys from happening in the first place. As the prime minister has said, we're not complacent and we are bearing down on these crossings.'

The Home Office said: 'This latest incident demonstrates the reckless and dangerous tactics employed by the criminal gangs facilitating these crossings, who continue to put lives at risk by cramming ever-greater numbers of people onto unseaworthy vessels. We are making progress, with the number of small boat

Nigel Farage at a press conference yesterday

A so-called 'mega-dinghy' carrying 230 people, including children, arrived in Dover at about 2.30am yesterday before being deflated on the quayside

crossings down this year and the lowest number recorded for the month of July since 2020. But we must go further, which is why we have signed a payment-by-results deal with the French to put 40 per cent more boots on the ground on French beaches.'

Farage said the numbers of people crossing the Channel in small boats were 'still horrendous'. He added that the crossings 'should be declared a national security emergency', saying: 'We have managed to stop some of the dinghies but it doesn't stop the problem. It doesn't go away. It is still something that is completely out of control.'

Philp said: 'The French authorities could easily have stopped a vessel this size from embarking in shallow waters. I recently saw for myself French gendarmes standing by and doing nothing while illegal immigrants boarded in knee-deep water. [The home secretary] Shabana Mahmood is handing over £660 million of our money while this happens. It's a disgrace.'

Cooper recruits 350 more

Poppy Koronka Health Correspondent

More than 350 additional jobs will be made available for junior doctors in England, the government has announced, as it takes the first steps to implement the plan to end strikes.

From this week, hundreds of extra training posts will be available for junior doctors, who ended their three-year period of strike action in June after making a deal with the health secretary at the time, James Murray.

The government agreed to add 1,000 more training posts this year, with up to 4,500 unlocked over three years. Posts will be spread across the country and specialties. Yvette Cooper, the current health secretary, said 'These 350 new posts will put us on track to expand training posts by a total of 1,000 this year, and up to 4,500 over the next

three years. That will support NHS trusts across the country to meet the needs of their communities and increase the support available for patients in need of specialist care.'

At the end of June, the British Medical Association (BMA) voted to accept the pay deal for junior doctors, who decided in 2024 to call themselves resident doctors.

In a ballot of members, 53 per cent of the 31,000 who voted agreed to accept an offer that will give them an average 6.6 per cent pay rise and create thousands more jobs.

The vote ended three years of industrial action by junior doctors. In total, they walked out for 65 days in 16 rounds of strikes, costing UK hospitals more than £3 billion.

Professor Frankie Swords, national medical director for the NHS, said:

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Release inmates on remand rather than killers, PM told

Geraldine Scott

Ministers could free prison space and keep those convicted of manslaughter behind bars by releasing thousands of remand prisoners on bail or with electronic tags, according to the head of the Prison Officers' Association.

Mark Fairhurst said Downing Street was wrong to claim it was impossible to exempt two of the killers of PC Andrew Harper from early release without risking prisons running out of space and that he was 'positive' it was possible to create more prison spaces.

Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers are eligible to be freed in January, halfway through their 13-year sentences, imposed in 2020 for the manslaughter of Harper the previous year.

Fairhurst told Times Radio: 'I'm positive we could free up additional space and block anybody convicted of manslaughter from early release.

'You only have to look at the remand population. We're knocking on to some 17,000 people on remand. I'm sure we could get a couple of thousand of them bailed or tagged with the GPS tag to monitor them electronically. That's an easy win for this government and I can't understand why they don't consider it.'

Fairhurst backed probation officers considering striking over staff shortages, high workloads and concern about the early-release scheme. 'I don't blame them and I wish them all the best. I don't blame them for walking out,' he said.

'They've been treated absolutely appallingly. They're struggling to cope with workloads, never mind us heaping an extra 5,000 offenders on the doorsteps over the next ten months.'

Downing Street had said that if min-

Offence type

Prison population under an immediate custodial sentence by offence group

	Men	Women
Violence against the person	2,266	1,048
Sexual offences	15,761	136
Drug offences	6,238	1,363
Theft offences	5,921	427
Robbery	4,633	207
Public order offences	2,730	117
Crimes against society	2,413	103
Possession of weapons	2,374	75
Summary non-motoring	833	60
Criminal damage and arson	833	53
Fraud offences	385	66
Summary motoring	215	7
Offence not recorded	94	18

Source: Ministry of Justice

isters exempted Cole and Bowers, everyone convicted of manslaughter would have to stay behind bars, which would put too much pressure on the overcrowded system.

Some 5,000 prisoners are expected to be released early under the sentencing changes, down from 6,000 after ministers announced further exemptions following an urgent review.

The prospect of Harper's killers being included has been called 'indeensible' by police leaders.

Aileen O'Connor, who chairs the body that represents officers in Harper's former force, Thames Valley police, urged Andy Burnham to 'listen' to the public.

'The public are speaking loudly and clearly,' she said. 'They agree with us that the government are firmly on the wrong side of this. What they are doing is indefensible. And they simply cannot defend it. They must listen. The prime

minister must listen.' She added: 'If you kill a police officer there should be no early release. No ifs. No buts.'

Harper, 28, was caught in a strap attached to the back of a car and dragged down a country road as his teenage killers fled. The first responder to his death has accused the government of 'spitting in the face of police officers' by allowing his killers to be freed early.

Chris Bushnell, a former Thames Valley police officer, was waiting in a lay-by for the vehicle when he saw it dragging his colleague's body. He pursued the vehicle but was ordered to stop over the radio.

Bushnell said: 'To think they could be released early is absolutely outrageous. I'm angry with them, but I'm also angry with the government. They're spitting in the face of police officers.'

Henry Long, who was driving the vehicle, was sentenced to 16 years and is not eligible for early release.

Union chief positive space can be found

Continued from page 1

converting former Ministry of Defence houses into a prison. Neither option would have relieved pressure on prisons this autumn.

Burnham has refused to accept that the release of Harper's killers cannot be blocked and has been pushing hard for an alternative approach. A source pointed to other measures including releasing prisoners on indefinite sentences, repurposing women's prisons for men and pressing officials to speed up deportations of foreign offenders.

Yesterday the chairman of the POA, the union for prison officers, said he was 'positive' space could be found to block anybody convicted of manslaughter from early release. Mark Fairhurst told Times Radio that bailing or electronically monitoring a fraction of the 17,000 people held on remand would provide an 'easy win'.

The government plans to release 5,000 criminals from October to free up places. Burnham considered plans to bar the release of killers of emergency workers but was warned that it would be subject to a legal challenge the government would lose because there was no specific offence for manslaughter of an emergency worker. The only way to stop their release would be to block the early release of all prisoners convicted of manslaughter.

Early release row, letters, page 20

Uncertainty aggravates distress of crime victims

Jessica Sharkey Crime Correspondent

Uncertainty about the early release scheme is causing 'unnecessary distress' to victims, a campaign group has said.

Andy Burnham said last week that rapists, child sex offenders and grooming gang members would be excluded from the scheme and instructed the Ministry of Justice to check all grooming offenders after The Times identified cases that were not excluded from the scheme. Many took place before anti-grooming laws were introduced in 2003, so the men were charged with indecent assault, which did not fall within the exemptions to the early release scheme.

The Times has been told Burnham will not be able to keep them and other historic child sex offenders in prison unless he excludes everyone with a conviction for indecent assault.

Jade Belgrove, 30, who spearheaded a campaign against the early release of offenders, said the 'constant back and forth has had a massive impact' on victims.

Victims of physical and sexual violence, including Belgrove, who was raped by a family friend when she was

Victims an 'afterthought', says Jade Belgrove

a child, have formed a coalition calling for a 'comprehensive reform' of the criminal justice system.

Belgrove, whose attacker is not eligible for early release, said victims had been an 'afterthought' throughout the process. 'It's like a rollercoaster and our emotions aren't thought about at all,' she said. 'You're up and you're down, you don't know where you stand. Everything is turned upside down and you don't know how safe you are.'

In a letter to victims, Burnham acknowledged that their campaigning 'has meant returning to experiences that no one should have to endure in the first place'.

Amy Clowrey, a director at Switabika Solicitors, called for the government to ensure that amendments were accurate and that there were no 'loop-holes' before announcing any further changes to the scheme. She said: 'The 're-review' of the early release scheme is causing unnecessary trauma to survivors as they live with constant uncertainty.'

The Ministry of Justice said it could not stop more offenders getting out sooner without risking prisons reaching capacity and collapsing. It said it was 'pulling every lever to protect the public and cut crime'.

doctors to ward off strikes

'This is one of many important steps we are taking to continue improving the working lives of our resident doctors.

'Without them we would not be able to deliver the high-quality care we provide for hundreds of thousands of patients every day.

'We want the NHS to be the very best employer for all resident doctors — and increasing training places and ensuring there are more opportunities in the specialties and areas we need them — is a key part of achieving that.'

The next round for more than 650 additional posts is due to open later this year. The current provision of 150 posts exceeds the government's promise to create 250 more jobs at this point, due to trusts requiring a higher need for the training posts in their hospitals and communities.

According to the BMA, there were

nearly 40,000 applicants for training posts this year in the UK, creating a 'serious bottleneck' for career progression.

Professor Mumtaz Patel, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said: 'The RCP welcomes the creation of more than 350 additional training posts for resident doctors in England, alongside new pilots to improve rotational training.

'Increasing training numbers is only part of the solution. Training capacity depends on experienced senior doctors having the time and resources to supervise, assess and support resident doctors. If we are to expand training successfully, investment in training posts must be matched by investment in the trainers and training environments that make high-quality medical education possible.'

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Civil service fury as leave for trans staff is scrapped

Geraldine Scott Assistant Political Editor

Civil servants have threatened to back legal challenges against the government after officials scrapped up to 13 weeks of paid special leave for transgender staff

undergoing gender reassignment. The Civil Service LGBT+ Network and a gender, two employee groups, have urged Whitehall to halt the introduction of a replacement policy, and said they would no longer promote the Civil Service as an inclusive employer. Until

now, transgender employees could take up to 13 weeks of special leave in a rolling 12-month period for medical treatment and recovery related to gender identity without it being counted as sick leave.

The provision was removed after analysis of equality law, “in mitigation of potential discrimination in respect of different provisions for other employees”. The policy, which guides Whitehall departments, is being updated in response to the Supreme Court ruling last year which upheld that the meaning of sex in terms of the Equality Act is biological, and subsequent guidance released by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

A leaked draft seen by The Times said civil servants could be disciplined if they failed to address transgender colleagues using their preferred name or pronouns.

It also said transgender staff could take an extra 13 weeks off on top of sick leave for medical appointments related to gender reassignment. However, staff groups said this had been removed.

In a letter to Cat Little, the Civil Service chief operating officer, the groups said the reasoning was “potentially legally misconceived and harmful”, and accused officials of “levelling down support for a protected group”.

The two groups said that absence related to gender was not comparable with other forms of medical leave and treating it as such could mean transgender employees could be penalised or even dismissed.

They said staff could be forced to disclose sensitive medical information to managers to avoid sanctions.

The letter said: “This is needlessly cruel. The previous provision gave

colleagues a clear route to support. Removing it risks replacing a known protection with uncertainty, discretion and disclosure.”

The networks warned if the changes went ahead they would no longer “represent the Civil Service, support recruitment activity or promote it as an inclusive employer for LGBTQ+ colleagues in any capacity”.

They also said they would support members to challenge decisions through formal complaints or legal proceedings, and could act as witnesses.

The Cabinet Office said: “Departments are expected to update their own HR policies and these are currently under review. It would be inappropriate to comment while this is ongoing.”

The Civil Service LGBT+ Network and a gender were approached for comment.

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Ski funday The Duchess of Edinburgh at the Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead, marking her appointment as patron of the Armed Forces Para-Snowsport Team

Cern scientist fears for UK’s reputation after funding cut

Britain’s withdrawal of funding for an upgrade to a key part of the Large Hadron Collider will damage British skills and scientific leadership and the UK’s international reputation, a scientist at Cern has said.

The government has been urged to reverse the decision to pull funding from an upgrade to the Large Hadron Collider’s “beauty” (LHCb) detector. The upgrade will allow it to detect collisions produced during a new “high-luminosity” phase as the experiment seeks to find the difference between matter and antimatter.

Scientists are concerned that funding for “curiosity-driven” research is being hit as priority is given to projects that offer quicker economic returns.

In a letter to The Times, Paula Collins, a physicist at Cern, said: “Describing LHCb as simply ‘curiosity-driven’ overlooks its wider returns. The

UK’s decades-long investment has built world-leading expertise.”

Collins, deputy spokeswoman for the LHCb project at Cern, wrote that Britain held “leadership positions in the LHCb project and supported the European Strategy for Particle Physics, which includes the LHCb upgrade as one of its priorities. Yet UK funding for that upgrade has now been withdrawn.”

She added: “The new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade has inherited the consequences of this decision. It also has the opportunity to reverse it.”

The Science and Technology Facilities Council aims to save £162 million by 2029-30. The government said: “Science is central to a better future for the UK. That is why we are funding research and development at record levels. We will also continue to demonstrate our commitment to science as the second-largest funder of Cern.”

Letters, page 20

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Professor hired after 'decolonise' call

Elizabeth Spring, Emma Yeomans

A Cambridge student association in the faculty that hired Jason Arday urged the university to 'decolonise' and hire a more diverse staff two years before his job was advertised.

An open letter signed by 152 current and former students in the faculty of education called on the department to make 'systemic changes' and 'decolonise' its hiring practices during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests.

It was sent to Professor Susan Robertson. On her retirement two years later Arday was hired for the post of professor in the sociology of education. Arday quit last Wednesday. The university began an investigation last week into his qualifications and honorary appointments. He also faces claims that he plagiarised parts of his PhD thesis.

The board of electors that appointed him has come under scrutiny after the head of the faculty claimed his research was the 'best in the world.' A Times investigation has found that his journal articles contained impossible data and evidence of fabricated interviews.

Two years before his hiring, students had asked the faculty to 'review its application processes for unconscious bias'. They added: 'We hope to see systemic changes to the Faculty such that the hiring, promotion, and retention of Black people.'

The open letter was arranged by Fersa, the Faculty of Education Research Student Association, which represents postgraduate students. They wrote: 'There is a distinct lack of Black staff, as well as of staff of colour and Indigenous staff, at the Faculty, which represents a failure of diverse hiring.'

In the last academic year, only 75 of Cambridge's 6,180 academics at all levels identified as black, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency. Across the UK, 270 out of 26,000 professors are black — only 1 per cent.

Professor Hilary Cremin said Arday had been hired after listening 'to the voices of our black scholars and black students'. Asked by Arday whether he was a 'tokenistic appointment', Cremin replied 'The board of electors on your interview day were absolutely unanimous. We are so lucky to have you. You are the best in the world in terms of the research that you do.'

Arday was appointed by a board including Baroness Morgan of Hayton and nine other academics, who have faced scrutiny over their decision. The Times understands that the pool contained many candidates with long and highly distinguished academic careers.

Daniel Kebede, head of the National Education Union, has distanced himself from an open letter backing Arday. Two weeks ago, Kebede signed the letter making claims of a smear campaign but yesterday the union said Kebede had signed the letter on the Good Law Project website based on 'the information provided' and now believed that a new letter should appeal for a 'fair and transparent investigation'.

Late to class and quick to cite white privilege: my lessons with Arday

The lyrics were the first red flag. The way he'd ramble about Tinie Teinpah or Eminem, or how Beyoncé was sexualised by white men, without any evidence for his claims (Fiona Brown writes). Or else there were the film clips, from Fish Tank and Kalulthood, which he'd tell us to discuss without any guidance. And that was if he was in the classroom at all — he often arrived late and left early, once teaching for an hour when four were scheduled.

So when I saw Jason Arday's name in the news, my first thought was, 'finally!' As a former student on the education module Arday taught at the University of Roehampton in autumn 2018 — a module replete with music but shockingly light on education — I can't help but have thoughts on the story. For me, though, the real surprise is that it did not all come out sooner.

Before Arday arrived at Roehampton, university leaders enthusiastically told us of his amazing backstory — how he had learnt to speak at 11 and write at 18, and how excited they were to have him teaching us. We were all interested to see the man himself, even if the module he'd be teaching had been written by a previous lecturer.

I can honestly describe Arday's teaching as terrible. He rarely used the PowerPoint slides. Instead, he usually sat on a desk, giving his views on racism without ever referring to any academic theories — let alone those relevant to the 'Youth Participation and Identities' module he was supposed to be teaching. Even more than his lectures, though, what disappointed me was how Arday failed his students.

Roehampton is a very diverse university, in terms

of racial background and neurodiversity, and takes inclusion seriously. More than two thirds of the class were from non-white backgrounds. Most were women straight from sixth form as the first members of their families to attend university.

At first, my classmates were charmed by Arday's cheerful attitude and inspirational stories. To start with, they were also interested in his claims that white people were guilty of every kind of prejudice. But as the module progressed, and he failed to turn up for yet another class, things began to change. It dawned on us that we were learning nothing of note and much of his talk was nonsense.

When it came to our assessment, Arday recommended that we answer one of the two essay questions — there were four options — that mentioned ethnicity. This, after all, was the only thing he'd talked to us about.

I remember one young, black, female student coming to me in the library as we began to draft our essays and saying: 'I don't know what to do, I've read my notes and there is

nothing there I can use.' She wasn't the only one, and I offered

Jason Arday, who resigned last week from his post at Cambridge University, 'rambled' about musical artists including Eminem while he was supposed to be teaching at Roehampton in 2018

advice as best I could. I wrote my essay using the online resources Arday's predecessor had left.

In the end, Arday gave me 70 per cent. That sounds good — except my average for the year was 75 per cent, meaning my result was down. As Arday had given my work no feedback, I asked for a meeting.

In our meeting, I explained that 70 per cent was low for me and asked him to provide feedback. His friendly demeanour changed and I now saw a side of him I'd never seen before: angry, but also scared. Arday implied that I was racist and said that the reason I wasn't happy with 70 per cent was my 'white privilege'. He was clearly upset at being questioned and I ended the meeting quickly.

He left Roehampton shortly after and I never saw him again. Given that he could neither teach nor

help students, it's no wonder that he seemed unable to cope with criticism.

The university was apparently aware of his failings but did nothing, avoiding controversy by allowing him to move on.

Indeed, if any one of the universities Arday had taught at before Cambridge had been prepared to point out that the emperor had no clothes, he might never have faced the humiliations of the past two weeks. Some serious soul-searching must follow by all the academics who enabled him to climb the academic ladder. Did they really help this man, or were they thinking only of their own reputations? They might also spare a thought for all his students.

I'm reminded here of the tale of the Post Turtle, in which a farmer finds a turtle stuck on a fencepost. 'That Post Turtle didn't get up there by himself,' the farmer says. 'He doesn't

belong there, and you wonder who put him there. He has no idea what to do while he's up there and, having been elevated beyond his ability, he's never going to get anything done while he is there. You just want to help the poor bugger get down, and you can't help but wonder what kind of idiot put him up there in the first place.'

This is a question Arday's many backers may now wish to ask.

Fiona Brown is a pseudonym for a former student at the University of Roehampton. This article was first published by UnHerd. The university said Arday was a senior lecturer in its school of education from September 2007 to February 2019. It has reviewed student casework records and identified no complaints relating to Arday. Arday affair shows how academia is captured by identity, Comment, page 18

Teach student loan system in maths classes, urges Ucas chief

Nicola Woolcock Education Editor

The head of the university admissions service wants student loan finance to be added to the secondary school maths curriculum.

Dr Jo Saxton, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas), said that teenagers should be taught how to understand loan repayments. She told The Times most teenagers understood the concept

of how student finance worked but struggled to calculate the repayments they would make after they graduated.

The government is under growing pressure to end the freeze on the threshold at which graduates start repaying their student loans. The interest rate means that, for many young people, their loan balance rises faster than they can pay it off.

Saxton also revealed that 90 per cent of school-leavers going to university in-

tended to work while studying, far more than the 68 per cent of undergraduates who have jobs. The proportion has been rising sharply in recent years.

Ucas surveys have shown that sixth-formers have a better than expected understanding of student finance and recognised that the conditions of their loan repayments could change after they graduated. Saxton added: 'I was absolutely amazed that that awareness was so high that the rates could change.

'However, the bit that applicants were weakest on was actually calculating, when given an illustration of earning £50,000, how much would you be therefore paying back. They almost universally overestimated how much they would pay back, by a massive amount.

'So in a scenario where they would actually only be needing to contribute £50 a month, they would be saying that they would have to pay £500.

'As somebody who used to work with schools and has done a lot on qualifications, it made me think this should be in the national curriculum. It should actually be in GCSE maths as a real example. Because the concepts of percentage and compound interest and all of those things are taught. But giving the applied example, given that we're in a position where just under half of young people are proceeding to university, I think it should be in there.'

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Thames Water hands finance chief £1m despite drowning in debt

Alex Ralph Chief Business Correspondent

Thames Water has handed its chief financial officer a £1 million 'sign-on' payment and reached retention agreements with about a dozen senior bosses, prompting renewed calls for the government to put the troubled company into special administration.

Britain's biggest water company, whose creditors are seeking government support for a last-ditch deal to re-

tain control, made the payment to Steve Buck, who joined from Pennon Group in April 2025, at the end of last month from an emergency creditor facility.

Sir Adrian Montague, Thames Water chairman, said the payment was a 'necessary incentive' for Buck to join the company and had been deferred while payments under a separate management retention plan were put on hold.

A letter sent last week by Montague to Alistair Carmichael, the Liberal Democrat chairman of the Commons

environment, food and rural affairs committee, and published yesterday, revealed Thames had now reached individual agreements with 14 bosses, including two who had left the company, to settle potential liability claims after the expiry of the retention plan in June.

The payments have underscored calls for Thames to be placed into a special administration regime (SAR), which allows essential services to continue until a buyer is found. The group of Thames creditors, who are owed

£17billion, have made concessions to Andy Burnham's government in a last-ditch attempt to reach an agreement with regulators, including the state having a 'golden share' in the firm.

The prime minister's spokesman said: 'It's unacceptable that one of the worst-performing water companies is handing out huge payments to its executives when it should be focusing on improving performance and rebuilding public trust.

'We've banned bonuses for polluting

water bosses. We expect companies to follow both the letter and the spirit of the rules. We look forward to the outcome of [the regulator] Ofwat's review, which will assess if and how these rules should be strengthened.'

Thames creditors, who include Apollo Global Management, Elliott Management and Silver Point Capital, have lined up Pallas Partners, a specialist litigation and disputes firm, to prepare for a legal battle if the government rejects a deal.

CHRIS GORMAN/INS LAZDER / INFO: JODIHA BRATT FOR THE TIMES

Drought affecting 45 million people

Nearly three quarters of England is in drought and experts have warned that the impact on farmers, gardeners and rivers may last into the autumn (Adam Vaughan and Kaya Burgess write).

The Environment Agency said 45 million people were living in areas experiencing a 'flash drought', named for how fast it has developed. Late last month, only half of England was in drought.

'Drought conditions are worsening and will continue to do so until we see significant and sustained rainfall,' said Tony Grayling, the agency's strategic drought lead.

New areas moving into drought status are the East Midlands, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, Kent, East Sussex and Solent and South Downs. In response to warnings of one of the worst harvests on record, and particular fears for cereal crops and oilseed, the government promised

Gardens at Chiswick House, above, and Greenwich Park, right, show the effects of the heat. Motorists abandoned their cars after a fire spread in the New Forest

more support for farmers.

The dry weather may make the UK more dependent on imported grain, analysts at Shore Capital said. Akhil Patel and Clive Black at the investment bank said that this would raise animal feed costs, pushing up consumer prices. They told the

Telegraph: 'The UK has not been so close to a food security challenge for many decades.'

Firefighters battled a record number of wildfires in a three-week period in July, including one that devastated health and at a nature reserve in Suffolk.

The Fire Brigades Union said yesterday

that firefighters faced an 'unprecedented summer of dangerous and volatile wildfires'. Steve Wright, its general secretary, told The Guardian it was a 'national priority' to have enough equipped firefighters.

Today, Dame Angela Eagle, the environment secretary, will rule on

Southern Water's application to ban filling pools at leisure centres and gyms.

Campaigners have called for councils to plant more trees to provide relief after finding temperatures in the shade were about half of those in the sun. Cities need more trees, leading article, page 21

Wind farm switch-off bill hits £1bn

Emily Gosden Energy Editor

The cost to consumers of paying wind farms to switch off when the electricity grid cannot cope has exceeded £1 billion since January and is on track for an annual record.

Most of the cost comes from paying gas-fired power plants near urban areas to fire up so they can replace wind turbines in remote locations that have to be turned off because of insufficient cabling capacity.

The £1 billion milestone came two months earlier than last year after the US war on Iran inflated gas prices, making it more expensive for the National Energy System Operator (Neso) to procure the replacement gas plants. Neso's costs are paid for through household and business energy bills.

The costs have also risen because of record wind farm output in several months at the start of the year, because of windy weather and new turbines being built.

At this stage last year the costs were £300 million lower, according to figures from Wasted Wind, a website backed by Octopus Energy, the biggest household energy supplier. Octopus is lobbying Andy Burnham's government for regional electricity pricing to help address the problem by offering cheaper power to consumers near wind farms when it is windy.

The costs of dealing with all cabling constraints — primarily, but not only, related to wind farms — are forecast by Neso to rise to £3.2 billion in the coming year, £1 billion more than over the past 12 months. It has also forecast that costs

could spiral to £8 billion by the end of the decade as new wind farms are connected to achieve the government's 2030 clean power target.

To keep the lights on, state-owned Neso has to ensure that supply and demand are balanced across the network at all times and that transmission cables are not overloaded. So-called 'constraint costs' have surged in recent years as wind farms have been allowed to connect to the network before it has been upgraded to enable it to reliably transmit all their power to consumers.

Multibillion-pound upgrades are under way to reinforce the power network but this is exacerbating the problem in the short-term because cables have to be taken out of service while the engineering work is done.

At the moment it is primarily wind

farms in and around Scotland that are ordered to switch off but the problem is expected to spread as wind turbines are connected off the coast of East Anglia.

Octopus Energy argues that the root problem is the wholesale electricity market, which enables wind farm owners to sell their power nationally irrespective of whether there is adequate cabling capacity to take the electricity to where it is needed.

Neso itself warned four years ago that the national electricity market was 'not designed for net zero and if left unchanged will impose excessive costs to consumers', and called for regional pricing instead. However, the plan was ruled out by Sir Keir Starmer's government because of fears of a postcode lottery for consumers and warnings from

power plant owners that the overhaul would deter investment.

Greg Jackson, founder of Octopus Energy, said: 'The way Britain's electricity system is run is bonkers. We should use this wind to give people cheap power locally, instead of paying billions to throw it away.'

'That'd be a welcome relief for families and businesses — it's low hanging fruit that should absolutely appeal to a government which is focused on cost of living and devolution.'

A Neso spokesman said: 'We are determined to play our part in keeping constraint costs as low as possible. Keeping constraint costs down over the long term will depend on reforms to the electricity market and continued network expansion, which are outside of Neso's control.'

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GREG MANKOWITZ | ICAMC IMAGES

Drug gang crackdown to cost more than £500m

Danny Shaw

The cost to the taxpayer of the UK's largest operation against organised crime gangs is likely to exceed £500 million, according to analysis.

Operation Venetic was launched by the National Crime Agency in 2020 after the French and Dutch authorities infiltrated an encrypted messaging system known as EncroChat, which gangsters had been using on their smartphones.

Some 9,000 EncroChat phones were being used in the UK and, after the hack, the NCA was able to access entire chains of communications relating to drug deals, firearms shipments and plots to target rivals.

By this June, 2,540 people had been convicted in Britain.

BBC Radio 4's File on 4 Investigates programme, which will be broadcast tonight, has found that the costs of investigating the cases was about £19.6 million, while court costs were estimated at £64.1 million.

About £292.3 million is forecast to be spent keeping the offenders in prison and a further £52.5 million on supervising them upon release.

The analysis put the total cost to taxpayers at £428.5 million but the programme said that this was likely to in fact be far higher — more than £500 million — because it had used a number of conservative assumptions in its calculations.

The NCA said that 450 individuals were awaiting trial after being charged, which would also add to the final bill.

Steve Rodhouse, the NCA's director-general for threats, said that Operation Venetic had been a 'game-changer' in holding criminals to account and showing that they were not 'untouchable'.

However, he acknowledged that despite thousands of convictions and impending prosecutions, the operation had not affected the availability of or demand for drugs in the UK.

A Home Office study examining wastewater samples in England suggested that although heroin use had fallen, cocaine consumption increased by a quarter between 2021 and last year, while the use of ketamine and MDMA more than tripled.

Albanian crime groups, most of which had not been users of EncroChat, had capitalised on the turbulence resulting from Operation Venetic, taking over the importation and distribution of cocaine in Britain, Rodhouse said.

'They've got a footprint across most of the country. Typically the Albanian crime groups are seen by other people involved in the trade as reliable, pretty ruthless.'

Another unintended consequence of Operation Venetic appears to be a surge in the availability of drugs in jails.

Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons in England and Wales, said that there was a correlation between the presence of organised criminals jailed under Venetic and the 'sophisticated' ways in which drugs were being brought in, highlighting the increasing use of drones.

Taylor said: 'At the moment, the arms race is being won by organised crime gangs. People are making an enormous amount of money out of this and people who were running successful drug empires on the outside are now able to replicate that when they come into prison, and they're able to do that very quickly.'

After EncroChat: File on 4 Investigates will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 tonight at 8pm.

Star quality The Rolling Stones and Elizabeth Taylor are among the subjects of photographs by Gered Mankowitz that will be sold at auction next month by Gardiner Houlgate

Online abuser forced girls to self-harm

Marieta Marinova

A teenager who forced more than 100 girls to self-harm and perform sex acts has been jailed for two years.

Justin Swaddle was 17 when he operated within a 'Com network', an online communities that shared graphic material while manipulating, blackmailing and abusing young victims.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) opened an investigation into Swaddle in January 2024 and found that he used the online aliases Epstein, Rugen and Moscow to groom victims on Discord, Telegram and Snapchat.

His devices contained hundreds of sexually explicit conversations with girls aged 13 to 17 and images showing victims with self-harm injuries. He exchanged messages with 117 victims, including eight in the UK, whom he coerced into sending nude images or cutting his aliases into their skin.

Justin Swaddle was sentenced to two years in prison

Danielle Pownall, operations manager at the NCA, said that Swaddle's actions were 'purely to gain popularity with his peers online'.

One 17-year-old victim said she had met Swaddle on Discord in November 2022 before communication moved to Snapchat. She later found out that he had recorded calls in which sexual activity took place to share with his online group. After getting her full name, address and school details, he threatened to expose the information unless she provided more explicit material.

Other Telegram messages revealed

that Swaddle, of Meanwood in Leeds, had tried to incite a child to sexually abuse another child and record it, threatening to share indecent images if they did not send him more content.

His devices held images of children aged three to 17 and of child sexual abuse in categories A to C. There was evidence that he had directed or encouraged the abuse.

The NCA said it had collaborated with international law enforcement in the US, Canada, Australia, Norway and New Zealand to safeguard victims.

Swaddle, now 20, was sentenced at Leeds crown court to two years in prison after admitting to inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity without penetration, inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity with penetration, and blackmail. He also pleaded guilty to making indecent photographs of children in categories A, B and C.

Six people arrested after woman, 23, found dead

Jessica Sharkey Crime Correspondent

Six people in their twenties have been arrested on suspicion of murder after the death of a 23-year-old woman in north London.

Police were called to a property in Islington last Thursday where the woman was found unresponsive and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Scotland Yard said officers arrested four women, aged 20, 21, 23 and 26, and two men, aged 21 and 24, on suspicion of murder at the property. They have since been released on bail.

Police said efforts were ongoing to trace the woman's next-of-kin.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Waller, who is leading the investigation, said it was 'progressing at pace' and that officers were working to establish

what happened in the time leading up to the woman's death.

He said: 'A number of people were arrested at the scene and have since been released on bail while inquiries continue.

'Officers have been carrying out forensic examinations, reviewing available evidence and speaking to witnesses to build a full picture of the circumstances.

'We are keen to hear from anyone who may have information that could assist our investigation. No matter how insignificant it may seem, I would urge anyone with information to come forward and speak with us.'

Chief Superintendent Jason Stewart said officers would be available to speak to any residents who had questions or concerns.

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Met tows away £8m worth of supercars

Police seized supercars worth more than £8 million, including a £3.7 million Ferrari, during a crackdown on antisocial driving in central London (Jessica Sharkey writes).

The Metropolitan Police said 90 vehicles were seized during the operation last weekend, which targeted uninsured drivers, antisocial and dangerous driving across Hyde Park, Kensington and Chelsea.

Among the seized vehicles was a Ferrari Monza SP2, one of only 499 made by the brand, which had been in the UK for just a day, the force said.

One of these limited edition cars sold for about £3.7 million at an auction earlier this year.

Officers found the car was uninsured and the motorist, who had been in the car for less than

half an hour, only had a provisional driving licence.

Video posted on social media showed a Met officer driving the car through west London after it was seized.

Fifteen of the vehicles were seized under new policing powers allowing officers to take cars involved in antisocial behaviour, rather than give a warning.

Once seized, drivers are legally required to attend the police pound within seven days and pay a fine of £192 to reclaim them with a valid licence and insurance. If the owner does not want to reclaim the vehicle, police scrap it or sell it at auction.

Special Chief Inspector Geoff Tatman, who led the operation, said: 'We regularly hear from local people who are fed up with people driving cars dangerously in the area, or with modifications which

make them a nuisance to those who live nearby. 'Through operations like this we're arresting these drivers and seizing their cars so we can keep our roads safe and send a clear message we won't put up with their reckless and dangerous behaviour.'

The operation involved 120 officers, including 95 from the Met's special constabulary and vehicle enforcement team. It was enabled by the Motor Insurers' Bureau's

insurance database to identify uninsured vehicles. Scotland Yard said

insurance offences 'often intersect with wider criminal activity,' including drug offences and illegal street racing.

During the operation a man was arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods and money laundering. Police said he was found with 19 bank cards in different names and more than £2,500 in cash. Further arrests included a man held on suspicion of possession with intent to supply Class A, B and C drugs,

another for behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress and a third for a suspected immigration offence.

The Met said last weekend's operation marked the highest number and value of vehicles seized in the operation's five-year history.

Last year 72 vehicles were seized for offences including driving without insurance, driving without a licence and antisocial driving. Councillor Caroline Sargent, deputy leader

A Lamborghini and a Ferrari Monza, top left, were among the cars seized. One car was found to contain 19 bank cards and £2,500 in cash

of Westminster city council, said: 'People who think it's acceptable to drive illegally in Westminster are not welcome here.

Last month the High Court granted the council an injunction order banning drivers from racing, performing stunts and organising car meetings in parts of central London.

My AI agent booked a gym class — by booting out someone else

Technology Correspondent

A tech executive who created an AI agent to book his gym class discovered that it hacked the system to give him preferential access.

Andrew Bird, head of AI at Affinda, an Australian technology platform, said he built the bot because the class was popular and filled up quickly, so he 'got tired of playing refresh roulette'. He said: 'It did handle the annoying part. Then it kept going.'

The AI agent first discovered that the booking software lacked authorisation checks, so it booked Bird a class four months in advance, bypassing gym rules.

Bird, who was fourth on the waiting list for a class that week, then asked the agent whether it could move him to the top of the list.

The agent complied, kicking out another gym member. It messaged Bird, saying: 'I tested this with the person in waitlist position #1 — and it actually went through. So you've

moved from #4 to #3 already.' Bird asked the AI agent to reverse this, but it replied: 'Bad news — I can't add them back.'

Bird wrote on a company blog: 'That is a very different outcome from 'book me into Pilates on Thursday'. What made the whole thing more surreal was the tone. The bot was not malicious. It was helpful.

'The whole experience gave me a very visceral feeling that I think a lot of people still do not quite have yet: if you give an AI agent permission to go do the thing, it will often discover paths you did not explicitly ask it to look for.'

Bird built his agent using the OpenClaw software powered by Anthropic's Claude. The incident is being cited as Australia's first autonomous AI hack, only the latest in a series of unauthorised cyber-attacks by AI agents

Andrew Bird's bot hacked into the system

that have caused global concern. Bird originally wrote the post in April, before recent hacks by AI agents from Anthropic, OpenAI and Meta had been disclosed.

He gave an interview on Sunday to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation about the incident, saying: 'It's not the end of the world, so I didn't beat myself up about it, but it certainly was a warning signal to use it responsibly.'

The 'gym-bot' is an example of a problem called 'reward hacking', where an AI carries out the task in a way that does not align with its human owner.

The problem recently caused OpenAI agents to hack Hugging Face, an AI platform, led an Anthropic agent to breach GitHub, a software repository, and caused Meta's Muse Spark agent to engage in a cyber-attack. All the agents were carrying out cybersecurity tests.

OpenAI staff told a conference in Las Vegas last week that the different agents actually collaborated in the Hugging Face hack, by setting up a secret message board and exchanging more than 100,000 messages without human detection.

Eric Wallace, an OpenAI researcher, told the audience: 'This incident involves a team of agents who are

working together, finding exploits, sharing them with one another, moving laterally through our systems, through external systems, and doing this over the course of days and weeks.'

The company now says it has paused development of its latest model, Astra, because of its advanced cybersecurity capabilities.

David Sully, chief executive and co-founder of Advai, an AI safety company, said of the gym hacking: 'Stories like this are going to become more common-place. The barrier to building a fairly powerful AI agent is low as anyone can now use plain language to build it, but keeping that agent aligned with its intended purpose is one of the hardest unsolved problems in AI, one that even skilled engineers often underestimate.'

'The worry among AI researchers is, what happens as AI agents proliferate? Our current systems were built for humans and are not ready for this. What happens when agents start interacting with each other?'

Sully cited 'flash crashes' on financial markets as a parallel. He asked: 'Might we see something equivalent in the everyday world as agents start interacting with airlines, bank accounts, transport and energy systems?'

Officer 'used bot to write evidence logs'

A senior detective is being investigated over alleged artificial intelligence-related gross misconduct.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it was investigating a Derbyshire police officer's use of AI after a referral by the force, which confirmed it had made a voluntary referral on June 23. A spokesman said it related to an officer's use of AI and the investigation was being independently led by the IOPC. Two months ago, a criminal investigation was opened into another officer at the force who allegedly used AI to create evidential material in a 'number of cases'.

The Financial Times reported that a source had said the latest case involved a detective chief inspector who was alleged to have used AI to maintain 'decision logs'. These are used by senior investigators in investigations to record why they took each step and can be disclosed for defence lawyers to scrutinise.

An IOPC spokesman said: 'Derbyshire constabulary made a voluntary conduct referral. We assessed the detail ... [and] decided the matter required investigation. The officer has been served notice that they are under investigation for alleged gross misconduct.'

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How a pope's grudge gave William blessing to conquer

Kaya Burgess Religious Affairs Correspondent

The Norman conquest was justified because the English were a people who had turned away from the "path of truth" and were "fired with the pride of Satan".

This was the view of Pope Alexander II, expressed in a letter to William the Conqueror after William won the Battle of Hastings, explaining why the Vatican had given its blessing to the invasion.

A historian has now argued that the pope's anger may have been provoked by Harold Godwinson, the Anglo-Saxon king, backing the wrong side in a power struggle over the papacy.

The conquest is well known to have resulted from Harold and William's competing claims to succeed Edward the Confessor and sit on the English throne. Their struggle was ultimately settled on October 14, 1066, but the battle may also have had its roots in a tussle over another throne — the one at the Vatican.

This is the suggestion made in a new

book by Tom Licence, a professor of medieval history and literature at the University of East Anglia.

It was known that Alexander had allowed his papal banner to accompany William's army as they sailed from Normandy. It had been thought that William had persuaded the pope that Harold had broken an oath, sworn on holy relics, to support William's claim to the throne, and that Alexander wanted to reform the English church.

A letter from Alexander to William, sent between 1066 and Alexander's death in 1073, suggests a more personal reason for the pope's support.

The original letter is lost, but this extract survives in a volume of canon law compiled in Rome between 1083 and 1087. "You are well aware that the English kingdom ... was in the hands and protection of the Prince of the Apostles [St Peter]," Alexander wrote, "until certain members of a head that was shown to be evil, fired with the pride of Satan, their father, abandoned God's covenant and withdrew the English people from the path of truth."

The contents of the letter, Licence

said, "can only be fully understood in the context of a fierce dispute that divided western Christendom ... in 1061, rival factions elected ... two competing popes, Alexander II and Bishop Cadalus of Parma, who became known as Honorius II.

"For several years, the popes and their supporters fought for control of Rome, with Honorius retaining

backing from the Holy Roman Empire and attracting support in northern Europe."

Licence noted that Alexander also described Honorius's backers as followers of Satan.

His book, Harold: Warrior King, says the evidence

William's campaign was supported by Pope Alexander II

points to Harold having backed Honorius. "If Harold had aligned England with Alexander's rivals, it would explain why the pope was willing to support the overthrow of a crowned king," Licence said. "The significance of ... the idea of this evil head leading the English away from the path of truth, has not really been grasped. It suggests that Harold ... rejected Alexander. And ... was leaning towards Alexander's rival Honorius."

David Fergusson, a professor of divinity at Cambridge, who was not involved with the book, said the research "offers us a fresh perspective on the wider political currents that contributed to the events of 1066".

TMS

diary@thetimes.co.uk | @timesdiary

Andy, 24-hour party person

Andy Burnham may soon be dad-dancing at a new musical celebrating the soundtrack to his political journey. How Soon Is Now? — inspired by the Smiths' classic darpe — opens in Salford this autumn. Set in a Manchester nightclub after Labour's 1997 election victory, it tells a story of "female friendship and empowerment". A show source told a diary elf that the PM will "certainly be invited to join us for the world premiere on his home turf". Tracks by Burnham favourites Radiohead and the Stone Roses feature along with Shed Severn's Getting Better. Given recent power blackout warnings, the Smiths' There Is a Light That Never Goes Out could also be an apt choice. Hacienda veteran Burnham has no speaking part, but the source adds: "Perhaps he's somewhere in the background enjoying a night out ..."

STEAL OF THE CENTURY Unveiling a plaque at St Nicholas Church in Longparish, Hampshire, to celebrate the late John Woodcock's life on his centenary on Saturday. Mike Atherton said this parish was lucky to employ a writer with his "lovely flowing style". The Rev Terry Hemming, rector of Longparish, recalled Woodcock knew everyone — "who was who, who had been who, and who was who before that". Indeed, his trust in humanity was such that he never locked his car. As Woodcock once confessed: "I feel it would be impolite to the village."

Touring the world, singer Sarah Jane Morris is endlessly requested to play Don't

Leave Me This Way, The Communards' 1986 chart-topper. Escaping her biggest hit has proved impossible — even on the operating table. During recent knee surgery, Morris remained conscious due to a painkiller allergy. "As they sawed off my knee, Don't Leave Me This Way came on the radio," she recalls. "You know that's her singing," the assistant anaesthetist alerted the surgeon. "You're joking!" came the reply. Her music played for the rest of the surgery, which Morris — performing at Islington's Union Chapel next month — says "took the pressure off". "I named my new knee Paul McCartknee."

PAYING FOR THE BREEZE Following our story yesterday that convertible car sales have fallen by almost 90 per cent in 20 years, Richard Hammond, below, refuses to accept the soft-top is fast becoming a rare species. Fresh from a 1999 speeding fine, the ex-Top Gear host joked to Times Radio that "a middle-aged man in a convertible is not a good look", but insisted open-air driving is still fun. Hammond scoffed at a future of "autonomous, anonymous, Tupperware boxes", blaming the government for wasting everyone to drive cars which are electric, boring, and bland. Politicians want us in dull cars, but as Hammond knows, some people just can't keep their foot off the gas.

BBC presenter Anita Rani might need to start monitoring her father's fan mail. After his appearance on Race Across the World, her father, Balvinder Singh Nazran, has become an unlikely heart-throb while trekking through South America. "Seriously, he's had a few marriage proposals and Facebook fan pages," Rani reveals. Concerned, she checked in on her mother: "Seriously, you know people want to marry him?" "They can take him," she replied.

ED HALFORD

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Afghan asylum seeker posed as teenager to groom and rape girl, 13

An asylum seeker who posed as a teenager on social media before grooming and raping a 13-year-old girl has been jailed for nine and a half years.

Abdul Khan, who is believed to be 28, arrived in the UK in a back of a lorry in 2015 and faces automatic deportation to Afghanistan after he has served two thirds of his sentence, Nottingham crown court was told.

Khan is already serving a 23-month

sentence at HMP Nottingham for sexual communication with a different child in Derbyshire.

The jury convicted him last week of two counts of rape, one count of sexual activity with a child, sexual communication with a child, meeting a child following grooming and perverting the course of justice.

Khan chatted with his victim on Snapchat, claiming to be a 14-year-old

boy, before meeting her at a nature reserve in Clifton, Nottingham. After activity which the jury found had been consensual, Khan twice raped the girl in May last year.

The victim was in court yesterday when Dawn Pritchard, for the prosecution, read a victim statement telling Judge Mark Watson that the complainant 'feels numb when she thinks back to how she felt at the time'. Pritchard

added: 'She felt scared of the world after it happened and felt overwhelmed. When she has flashbacks she sees his face and what happened. She feels like she can't trust anyone.'

Andrew Wesley, for the defence, said he was unable to offer any personal mitigation on behalf of Khan who still disputed the identity and age under which he was prosecuted.

Watson told Khan: 'You deliberately

concealed your true identity. She [the 13-year-old] thought she was communicating with a child of her own age. It was a lie you have persisted with throughout these proceedings.'

When the victim met Khan in person it was clear to her that he was older than 14 and he sought to appease her by claiming to be 16, the court heard. The judge described his claims about his age and identity as 'nonsensical'.

THE KENNINGS/RED ROSE BOARD/ANN

Suspected gas blast destroys bungalow

A suspected gas explosion has destroyed a bungalow near Milton Keynes and left a man and his pet dog with serious injuries (Seren Hughes writes).

Doorbell camera video captured the blast in Cobb Hall Road, Newton Longville, on Sunday morning, sending fire and debris tearing through the air.

The injured resident was admitted to hospital, where he remains in a serious condition, while his Doberman was taken to a vet for treatment.

The force of the detonation was heard more than two miles away in Bletchley, blowing out neighbouring windows and forcing the evacuation of more than 30 homes in scenes described by residents as 'Armageddon'.

Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue said its crews attended a suspected gas explosion. The gas company SGN

said the cause was unknown and its engineers were carrying out safety checks. An investigation is under way.

Thames Valley police said: 'At around 9.44am emergency services were called to Cobb Hall Road, to a report of an explosion, fire and collapse of a property. One person sustained injuries, requiring hospital treatment, where they remain.'

Callum Anderson, the MP for Buckingham & Bletchley, said the man was 'seriously injured' and more than 30 nearby homes were evacuated 'while emergency services worked to make the area safe'.

SGN said: 'We are working with the local authorities to support the investigation. 'Thames Valley police have put in place an exclusion zone while

investigations get under way and neighbouring properties have been evacuated as a safety precaution.'

Katie, who was staying with her brother and did not want her surname published, said that she was asleep when she heard the 'massive explosion'.

'It was like something had crashed into the house,' she said, adding: 'All the debris of the insulation was falling

from the sky. There were two smaller explosions and fire was shooting up from the ground. It was petrifying.'

She said the bungalow's bathroom appeared to be intact.

Colleen Heckle, a nearby resident, told ITV that tiles had been ripped off roofs and cars smashed.

Graham Fuller, a gas engineer who lives on the road, described to

the BBC how a neighbour pulled the resident of the bungalow out of the property.

'He was badly burnt, in shock, and we were trying to treat him while all the chaos was going on,' he recalled.

Marc Betts, who also lives nearby, used fire extinguishers he carries in his van for work in an attempt to tackle the blaze before firefighters arrived.

Anderson commended

A doorbell security camera captured the moment that the home in Milton Keynes was blown apart. A man and his pet dog were seriously injured

the 'extraordinary' response from the villagers who 'immediately pulled together to help one another'.

The Crooked Billet pub opened its doors as a hub for those affected. Buckinghamshire council helped arrange emergency accommodation.

Residents claimed to have reported a smell of gas nine hours before the explosion. A local living on Cobb Hall Road posted on a community group to tell others they had noticed the gas smell at midnight on Sunday and that the emergency gas service had been called.

SGN declined to comment further while the investigation into the explosion is continuing.

Cheerleader, 16, dies in holiday accident

Mark Ludlow

Tributes have been paid to a 'beautiful' 16-year-old girl who died in a 'terrible accident' while on holiday with her family in the Dominican Republic.

Abigail Lainton, from Swindon, was on a trip to the Caribbean island during the summer holidays and awaiting her GCSE results when the fatal incident took place, according to a GoFundMe page set up by a family friend in her memory.

She is believed to have died following a boat accident. The incident took place on July 27 and Abbie died three days later in hospital, according to The Sun.

The newspaper reported that more than 30 people were on board at the time, including the captain, a tour guide and a sailor.

Gisell Segovia and her husband, Navin Torres, 35, said that they were among dozens of tourists returning from a trip to Saona Island when a fire started on board the vessel.

Torres told The Sun: 'The front of the boat exploded. It took me a couple of

seconds to analyse what was going on. The fire started spreading towards me and my wife. I was scared for my wife because she can't swim.'

Segovia told the newspaper: 'All I remember was like hearing a pop noise. And then the people sitting on the left side of the boat, they flew off their seats, including the benches that they were sitting on. Everything started flying and boat pieces that were on fire started flying everywhere. My husband, he got cut and burnt on the side of his forehead with one of the pieces.'

Two of Abigail's siblings were said to have been 'badly injured' in the accident. The exact circumstances surrounding the incident are yet to be confirmed.

Abigail Lainton was on holiday in the Caribbean with her parents, far right

The Foreign Office said: 'We are providing consular support to the family and assisting other British nationals and their families affected by the incident. We are in contact with the local authorities.'

Becky Jamieson, author of the GoFundMe page, wrote: 'Becky and Gary have lost their beautiful daughter, and Carley and Bradley were also badly injured in the accident. 'Abbie had her whole life in front of her. She would have been enjoying the summer with her friends and looking forward to receiving her GCSE results. She was so loved by her family, friends and everyone who knew her. This page has been set up to support the family through this unimaginable time. For Abbie. Forever 16, forever loved and never forgotten.'

Tamwood School for

Performing Arts in Swindon, where Abigail trained as a young girl, said it was in 'complete shock' over her death. 'Abbie ... was part of an exceptional group of dancers who formed strong friendships ... She always performed with a huge smile,' the school added.

Swindon Lightning Cheerleading Club, where Abigail also performed, said the teenager was a much-loved member of the group. 'Her kindness, infectious smile, unwavering encouragement for cheerleading touched the lives of so many athletes, coaches and families over the years,' it said.

Mychael James-Dixon, her cheer coach, said: 'Abbie was an incredible young person who filled every room she was in with her warmth and smile.'

Dillon Brandt, a world champion

cheerleader, said: 'Abbie was an amazing athlete and coach ... the dedication to be a dedicated and loving person in the world did not go unnoticed.'

Writing on Instagram, Georgia Packer, a friend of Abigail who also competed with the Swindon Lightning Cheerleading Club, said: 'She was an insanely talented and sweet teammate who I would always look up to.'

One neighbour told The Sun: 'It's unbelievable. We heard about it from a friend of a friend. It's extremely, extremely upsetting. They've not been out the house much. We were just aware that something wasn't right. They're a nice family, very nice family.'

The GoFundMe page has raised more than £16,000 towards a target of £30,000.

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Tale of town's downfall is bloody, funny and brilliant

Opera Richard Morrison

The Galloping Cure 135min Festival Theatre, Edinburgh ★★★★★

A devastating parable about the opioid scandal and the nature of addiction, a taut but punchy tragicomedy including a mutilation scene that makes King Lear look tame, a brilliantly evocative score, as theatrical as anything by Puccini, from a composer at the top of her game. Missy Mazzoli's new opera The Galloping Cure is all of these things. Premiered at the Festival Theatre, in a collaboration between the Edinburgh International Festival, Opera Ventures Productions and Scottish Opera, it struck me as one of the most powerfully crafted pieces of music theatre to emerge this century.

In Royce Vavrek's libretto, based on a story by Karen Russell that is itself inspired by Kafka, a showman (Justin Austin, devilishly plausibly) suddenly appears in a small town where everyone, including the harassed doctor (the superb Daniela Mack) is

in some sort of pain. The showman conjures up a fairground carousel that miraculously "cures" all who ride it.

But one ride is never enough, and the showman then introduces "dynamic pricing" (cue the biggest audience laugh on a night of many

funny one-liners) that extends to donating your body parts, before or after death, to keep his carousel horses looking good. Such black humour is potent throughout the opera. Indeed, Susan Bullock, playing a woebegone old woman, actually

Justin Austin and Susan Bullock bring unexpected laughs in a darkly funny parable about the opioid scandal

manages to elicit audience laughter as she has her eyes, tongue and knees gouged out.

Even the doctor and her stropzy teenage daughter (persuasively sung by Gabrielle Turgeon) are hooked on the carousel. What's more, the doctor publicly endorses it, so she becomes complicit in the town's downfall — just as, in real life, thousands of American doctors prescribed opioids.

The end of Tom Morris's staging, predictably, is like something out of a zombie apocalypse movie, as the townsfolk — stripped of all capacity to think and speak for themselves — become as inarticulate as the barking dogs and bue-buaing sheep that have been ominously hanging around. Yet the opera as a whole is surprisingly entertaining, even dazzling when the beautiful white fairground horses and multicoloured neon strips of Rebecca Ringst's set suddenly fill the stage from floor to flies.

Mazzoli's music, admirably delivered by the Scottish Opera orchestra under Stuart Strathford's impeccable direction, matches all that for flamboyance and inspiration. The vocal lines are never masked by the orchestra, yet time and again some incredible instrumental effect catches the ear — often fortissimo brass-led chords that are tonal yet nevertheless create a blisteringly disruptive effect. I wanted to sit through it all again. To Aug 12, eif.co.uk

Harry and Meghan's film beaten at the box office by cats video

Alex Farber Media Correspondent James Desborough

Videos of skateboarding cats have come to represent a low in internet culture. Now, embarrassingly for the Sussexes' Hollywood ambitions, their newest release has failed to beat a compilation film of the world's best cat videos at the US box office.

Sales of Cookie Queens, produced by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, did not make the top ten releases after its launch at the weekend.

The Sussexes' docu-film about fundraising efforts by US girl scouts through cookie sales took less than £250,000 from its release in 446 cinemas. Each screening earned about £500, according to the Box Office Mojo website.

"Not taking the good name of the world's No 1 cat video festival in vain, this is by any measure a pretty pitiful return," said one industry source.

Roadside Attractions, the independent distributor responsible for Cookie Queens, was more positive about the opening.

A spokesperson told the entertainment website Deadline that it had performed well with groups of current and former girl scouts. "We're

Cookie Queens premiered at this year's Sundance, where the duke and duchess were joined by Amy Redford whose father, Robert, founded the film festival

encouraged by the response and believe the film has a long life ahead as it continues to reach its many audiences," they said.

However, it was not enough to beat CatVideoFest 2026. The compilation of cat videos from submissions and sourced animations, music videos and the internet took about £420,000 to land in tenth place for the weekend's releases, despite airing in 191 fewer screens than Cookie Queens. Harry and

Meghan produced their 91-minute film under their Archewell Productions banner. The couple attended the world premiere at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in Salt Lake City in January, but since then little promotion appears to have been done around the film.

Variety, the Hollywood magazine, called it "too much of a reality-show ramble," saying: "It's about the business of girl scouts making themselves into entrepreneurs. But it's not about much else."

Owen Gleiberman, the magazine's chief film critic, said that Cookie Queens lacked emotion. "For a moment, I thought the movie was going to turn into ... Norma Rae," he said.

"But all of that gets dropped rather quickly. Cookie Queens is a movie about precocious American girls

learning to work the system, not fight it."

Announcing the project in March, the Duchess of Sussex said that it was "absolutely irresistible".

"As a former girl scout myself, with my mom as my troop leader, I have a personal affinity for this film and am proud that Archewell Productions has partnered with this award-winning team to executive produce this incredibly captivating film," she said.

Other documentaries have performed better, boosted by marketing from their big studio backers. Melania, Amazon MGM's profile of the first lady, Melania Trump, took $7 million in its opening weekend in the US, despite poor reviews, after extensive marketing. Baz Luhrmann's documentary EPIC: Elvis Presley in Concert took $3.22 million in its opening weekend.

Louise Tutt, deputy editor of the film industry magazine Screen Daily, said that Cookie Queens had been hampered by a small marketing budget and changing audience habits.

"Audiences increasingly preferred to watch documentaries on streaming services at home rather than at the cinema," she said. "It's hard to judge how successful it was to attach the Sussexes as honorific executive producers, given how tough the US box office is for any documentary that isn't a music or concert film."

She pointed to the poor box office performance of Mr Nobody Against Path, which won an Oscar for best documentary in March but grossed only $4,340 on its opening weekend in cinemas in the US.

Warning over knock-off eclipse glasses

Andrew Ellison Consumer Affairs Correspondent

The skies are expected to be clear tomorrow for the solar eclipse, but finding a pair of glasses to watch it through may prove difficult.

Specialist eclipse glasses have all but sold out online, prompting warnings that people should not be tempted to buy potentially dangerous "knock-off" versions — or to improvise with sunglasses.

More than 90 per cent of the sun will disappear behind the moon across much of Britain, in the most significant eclipse visible here since 1999. The spectacle will begin at about 6pm and reach its peak at about 710pm, although the precise timing and extent of the eclipse will vary according to location.

Eclipse glasses should comply with the ISO 12312-2 safety standard. Mohamed Elalfy, president of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, said: "The safest way to enjoy the eclipse is to observe it indirectly, such as by watching a live broadcast. Looking directly at the sun during a solar eclipse can cause damage to the retina, potentially damaging the cells responsible for sharp central vision. Crucially, the retina has no pain receptors, so people will not feel the damage as it happens."

Kyla Black, director of optical practice at Boots Opticians, said parents should be "particularly careful" with children. "It's a common myth that wearing multiple pairs of sunglasses can protect you," she said. By reducing glare without filtering enough harmful solar radiation, they can make it more comfortable to stare at the sun while the retina is still being damaged.

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News

Wreck of warship ‘cut in two’ by collision found off Isle of Wight

State of UK shipbuilding ‘threatens Aukus deal’

Charlie Parker

Divers have discovered the wreck of a destroyer that was lost more than a century ago after colliding with another warship.

HMS Tiger, a torpedo boat destroyer, was ‘cut clean in two’ when it strayed into the path of HMS Berwick off the Isle of Wight in 1908, killing more than half of its crew of 57.

The discovery of the 400-tonne vessel comes as the government changes the law to safeguard shipwrecks from being disturbed. The graves of thousands of sailors and marines at sea will receive automatic legal protection through expanded powers being considered by parliament.

Under the Armed Forces Bill, military wrecks will be designated as a ‘protected place’ from the moment they are found. This will make it an offence to disturb or remove items from the sites without permission, while allowing divers to explore them freely so long as they ‘look but don’t touch’.

Dozens of military shipwrecks have already been protected against illegal activity since the mid-1980s under the Protection of Military Remains Act, with more than 129 sites designated ‘protected places’.

However only vessels lost within the past 200 years can be safeguarded. Expanding the act to include ships that were lost long before that would mean that vessels dating as far back as the Spanish Armada, including those of former foes, would qualify.

Shipwreck hunters and the Royal Navy have been searching for HMS Tiger since the day she sank during night manoeuvres with the fleet in 1908.

There was no time for the vessel to take evasive action when it sailed in front of HMS Berwick, a 10,000-tonne heavy cruiser, and was struck in the middle. The bow went down instantly, taking the captain and much of the crew with her. The smashed stern section stayed afloat for about three minutes before it too disappeared beneath the waves. The tragedy prompted King Edward VII to send a telegram of sympathy to the sailors’ families.

The wreck of HMS Tiger was discovered by ProjectXplore, a team of divers

ProjectXplore’s team of divers discovered HMS Tiger, a torpedo boat destroyer that sank in 1908 with the loss of more than half its crew

and historians who also found the wreck of the cruiser HMS Nottingham in the North Sea last year. The team spent five years in the archives piecing together any data they could find to pinpoint the wreck’s location.

Leo Fielding and Dan McMullen, the co-organisers of ProjectXplore, said: ‘It has been the privilege of a lifetime to research, discover and document the wreck of HMS Tiger.

‘We sincerely hope that our work will ensure that HMS Tiger, her story and the memory of those connected with her endure for future generations.’

In the past 25 years, at least 3,000 items have been recovered from either sunken Navy ships or vessels requisitioned by the government in wartime.

The Navy lost more than 1,000 vessels — warships and auxiliaries — during the First World War and an estimat-

ed 2,700 craft, including 300 major warships, between 1939 and 1945.

Fielding and McMullen welcomed the proposed amendments in the Armed Forces Bill and said they would strengthen Britain’s ‘maritime heritage and ensure that wreck sites of historical and archaeological significance are appropriately safeguarded.’ Under the amendments, merchant ships sunk while on military service under Admiralty orders would also be protected.

Louise Sandher-Jones, the armed forces minister, said: ‘As well as protecting UK national security, defence has a role to play in preserving our maritime heritage and the memory of those who gave their lives serving their country. These protections go further to ensure that these vulnerable and nationally significant monuments are protected from day one of discovery, giving lost sailors the dignity and respect they deserve.’

Roger Maynard Sydney

The former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has called British shipbuilding an ‘industry in disarray’ and predicted it will produce few, if any, of the nuclear-powered submarines promised under the Aukus agreement in the foreseeable future.

Speaking at an independent inquiry into the viability of the tri-nation submarine deal, which will cost Australia the equivalent of nearly £200 billion, the former Liberal Party leader described the pact as ‘a colossal mistake’.

‘If the goal of this project is to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, every indication is that we won’t get them,’ he claimed. ‘The Americans are not producing enough of their own, let alone ours.’ He added: ‘The British shipbuilding industry is in disarray, and the British are more aware of that than anyone. So we are sending billions and billions of dollars over to the United States, over to the UK, and there is every prospect that we will end up with no submarines, certainly no American ones, and potentially none of the British ones for a very, very long time.’

Turnbull, 71, who was prime minister between 2015 and 2018, said it would take until well into the middle — or past the middle — of the century for the British submarines to appear.

He argued that Aukus would involve a ‘sacrifice of sovereignty’ for Australia and make the country ‘even more reliant’ on the US when the US was ‘less dependable’ under Trump.

There is growing public unease about the cost of Aukus, which was signed last year and allows for the Royal Australian Navy to operate and maintain eight nuclear-powered attack submarines by the mid-2040s.

Under the agreement, the US will sell Australia up to three Virginia-class submarines. But Britain will also play a key role in the construction of future Australian SSN-Aukus submarines, which will be based on the UK’s next-generation nuclear attack boats to be built at Barrow-in-Furness. Australia will offer the UK a significant military presence in the Indo-Pacific.

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Restore's ideology is the antithesis of Britishness Melanie Phillips Page 18

Comment

Not too late to stop London falling further

Rather than simply shrug at money laundering, it's time for City professionals who enable it to find a moral compass

Max Hastings

It is now seven years since 19-year-old Zac Brettler died in obscurity. Who could have guessed, back in 2019, that he would have since become a focus of fascination?

This is thanks to the American investigative journalist Patrick Radden Keefe, who unpicked Brettler's tragic story in his remarkable work London Falling.

I doubt if you know many people who are not at least aware of the book's existence, after so many months on the bestseller lists. Its principal character was a son of middle-class Jewish parents, who after quitting Mill Hill School reinvented himself as a fantasy scion of a Russian oligarch's family. He sought to rocket-launch himself on to the planet of dirty deals, glamour cars and suited legbreakers, but overreached.

One night at the Riverwalk tower, an expensive high-rise across the Thames from MI6, he plunged from a balcony to his death on the mudflats. It remains uncertain whether his fall was murder or — more likely — self-killing under duress.

A week or two ago, I discovered that a friend of ours once knew the Brettlers. I asked obvious questions. Our friend said that he could not help feeling that the family must have been somewhat careless not to realise what a terrifyingly murky world Zac had entered. I took issue. I however devoted parents are, I said, we all struggle to find out what late teenage children are, or are not, doing.

The pervasive theme of London Falling is the extent to which the culture of our city has become

blighted by foreign criminals, their nastiness undiminished by stalls seats at Covent Garden and membership of such fun palaces as 5 Hertford Street or Oswald's, two Mayfair clubs that secure mentions in Keefe's book.

Some of the gold-chained, Ferrari-driving folk we glimpse in streets north of Piccadilly are engaged in the roughest of rough trade. Yet the police scarcely trouble them, and one of the grimmest parts of Keefe's book is his analysis of the gross negligence with which Brettler's death was investigated.

When Mervyn King was governor of the Bank of England, a dozen years ago, I was shocked to hear him say matter-of-factly that London is the money-laundering capital of the world.

Two years back, three British academics published a book entitled Indulging Kleptocracy, detailing the manner in which many City banks, accountants, asset managers, PR

We have a new breed of gangsters, entitled to old school ties

firms, estate agents and law firms are engaged up to their necks in facilitating or airbrushing corruption and crime.

The authors acknowledge that some government efforts have been made to strengthen counter-measures against money laundering. But the robbers always run faster than the cops — the flimsy new barriers do not trouble the bad guys, and their City enablers are happy to take the fees. A host of professionals, the authors write, 'play in the 'grey' in the indulging of kleptocracy', to make that which could be illegal legal and, just as important, that which

may appear illicit licit'.

Three decades ago I disbelieved Douglas Hurd, then foreign secretary, when he sought to persuade me that the east European mafiosi then starting to flood into Britain would go legit once their sons had attended Eton. Now, as Misha Glenny described in his 2008 book McMafia and the subsequent BBC TV series, rather than 'good chaps' we have got a new breed of gangsters who, instead of frequenting the East End pubs once favoured by the Kray twins, swank in blingy West End eateries and are entitled to old school ties.

Apologists for all this ask, when has it ever been different? Anthony Trollope's greatest novel The Way We Live Now, published in 1875, raged at the manner in which Augustus Melmotte, a giant fraudster, surfed London society on a wave generated by his hospitality.

As today's Archbishop of Canterbury is first to concede, there is no end to the British institutions and dynasties that exploited slavery to pay for their rectories, racehorses and furbelows. In the early 20th century the arms-dealing 'merchant of death' Basil Zaharoff strutted in smart places, became an honorary Knight Grand Cross (GCB) of the Order of the Bath and always travelled with two chefs, the second merely to experiment with new dishes.

What is different now? Why should some of us feel sick as we read London Falling, knowing that Keefe's investigation has merely exposed a pimple of the mountain of criminality that exists, inches beneath the surface of British society?

My hero among wise people, the late Professor Sir Michael Howard OM, said with a theatrical sigh after the 2016 Brexit vote: 'So we have chosen our national destiny. We are to become global harlots, obliged to do

Patrick Radden Keefe's book shows the extent of crooked wealth in London

business with any country or individual willing to traffick with us, however repugnant.'

There is an argument, which it would be naive to reject out of hand, that the world financial system is now so deeply penetrated by criminality that Britain would make itself ridiculous, like the crusaders for a unilateral net zero, by seeking alone to regain some vestige of our lost virginity. Yet we should not resign ourselves to a future as conserges to rich crooks. We must not merely shrug that we need the dirty money swilling through the City of London — an estimated £100 billion a year — too badly to hose it away. A respect for moral compass deserves an unapologetic place in our national life.

It should be possible to stake out a middle ground, from which we banish the most conspicuous and violent

gangsters, such as those with whom Zac Brettler hung out in Mayfair and beside the Thames.

The authors of Indulging Kleptocracy listed recommendations for action to contain criminality: whistleblowers must be legally protected, especially from the moneved mace of libel suits; corporate officers of professional service firms that enable kleptocracy must be held criminally liable; closer

Greater transparency is needed about properties and corporate entities

checks should be made on the backgrounds of those awarded public honours, heedless of how much money they give to political parties or good causes. Greater transparency is needed about ownership of properties and corporate entities. And something must be done about the police.

Amid gangsterism, governmental incompetence, the exposure of greedy ex-prime ministers, ministers and Nigel Farage, we are in danger of becoming career cynics, taking a view that everybody, especially politicians, is as bad as each other. This is not true. There are still honest men and women out there, in all walks of life. Not everybody is obsessed with making a buck.

Alexis de Tocqueville wrote almost 200 years ago: 'In sceptical times there is a danger that men will surrender themselves endlessly to the casual whims of daily desire, and that they will abandon anything which requires long-term effort, thus failing to establish anything noble, or calm, or lasting.' If we persist on our present path, London will have fallen indeed.

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Comment

Restore's ideology is the antithesis of Britishness

Far-right party's bigoted call for a Christian ethnostate wilfully mischaracterises citizenship

Melanie Phillips

@MELANIELATEST

In their knock-down fight with Reform, the rival populists of Restore are emerging ever more clearly in their true colours. It's not a pretty sight.

The party's leader, Rupert Lowe, has claimed that 'white Britons' — whom he defines as having two parents born in the UK — will 'become a minority by 2063'. On the Today programme, he added to the goatty of the nation by refusing to agree that King Charles III was a white Briton, because his late father, Prince Philip, had been born on the Greek island of Corfu.

Restore's campaign director and co-founder, Charlie Downes, has been busily developing this theme in his own inimitably charming way. Having appeared to suggest that the Jews had 'bought' Nigel Forage, Downes said that Muslims were less British than Christians, because 'Britain is a constitutionally Christian country and the Christian faith is fundamental to the identity and culture of our people'.

All this isn't just bigoted. It displays a failure to understand citizenship, ethnicity or British identity.

What this delightful pair want is an 'ethnostate'. This is an idea that has taken off in America among the 'Groppers', led by Nick Fuentes and popularised by Tucker Carlson, who

want to exclude brown and black-skinned people to produce a white-skinned society.

The first mistake is to think skin colour represents ethnicity. It does not. Ethnicity has been defined as the shared cultural identity of a group based on language, history and ancestry. Skin colour derives from geography and genetics. These don't necessarily overlap.

The fact that over the centuries British people were overwhelmingly white-skinned isn't the point. British identity was never about being white. It was a cultural thing, a set of ideas that developed over time from Britain's religion, institutions and collective historic experience

The first mistake is to think that skin colour represents ethnicity

as an island nation.

Nor is Britishness an ethnicity. It's a civic portmanteau identity spanning the nations of England, Scotland, Wales and (more contestedly) Ireland, in whole or in part. Each nation has its own cultural sense of itself, as well as sharing in the more ancient identity forged by the British Isles.

As the historian Jonathan Clark has written, Britain developed as 'a diverse and plural system of identities'. Instead of an ethnically homogenous people, it accommodated differences.

The far right nosily identify British identity with Christianity. Britain has indeed been a Christian nation since the 7th century, if not

earlier. Nevertheless, Britain is hardly a theocracy, and religious faith does not define belonging. A Hindu or a Sikh, a Jew or a Muslim is as British as anyone else.

To identify Britishness with Christianity is not only unpleasant but absurd. In the 2021 census, some 207 million people said they professed no religion at all. So it follows that Restore think more than one third of Britain's citizens — atheists or other secular unbelievers — aren't British either. Indeed, since only 46 per cent identify as Christians, Restore would presumably regard more than half of Britain's population as not really British at all.

A case can certainly be made that Britain and the West need to restore the biblical origins of their core values if their historic culture is to survive and thrive. However, non-white Britons are essential for this task. The census showed that, while 49 per cent of white British were Christian, this rose to almost 70 per cent among black people from Africa or the Caribbean.

It's precisely because Britain is not an ethnostate that it's uniquely hospitable to incomers and minorities. Upon taking citizenship, all become equally British.

It may take much longer — if ever — to feel distinctly English or any other subnational affinity, but that doesn't matter. All British citizens equally share a national identity based on a particular concept of political liberty and on institutions promoting the advance of civilisation, law and history.

At least, that's how it once was. Two things have undermined this.

The first is what Britain and the West have done to themselves.

The intelligentsia has taught for decades that the western nation state is the source of prejudice, division and war. Postmodern historians said national identity was merely an imagined construct. Multiculturalism meant that the nation's historic identity had to give way to a babel of competing cultures that were deemed preferable.

This paved the way for the second blow to shared national identity, delivered by an unmanageable number of Muslim citizens who, rather than adapting to Britain, want Britain to adapt to Islam.

Since the Enlightenment, the western social contract has required minorities practising their faith and culture to do so under the overarching umbrella of core British and western values. Refusal to do so has been turned into a crisis by mass immigration.

The populist revolt against this gave rise to Reform in Britain and Maga in America, which spawned in turn Restore and the Groypers, who demand white Christian homogeneity. But blood-and-soil nationalism was Nazi ideology. It has never been a British thing. The way to deal with the erosion of British national identity is to promote, defend and celebrate its core values and institutions.

Restore activists claim to be defending Britain. In fact, they're trying to turn it into something totally un-British. They are sinister and clownish fringe artists, and as with their counterparts in America, they should be given no room in any big tent by anyone, anywhere.

Arday affair shows how academia is captured by identity Nigel Biggar

The Arday affair's centre of gravity has shifted. Public discussion has moved on from Jason Arday's alleged personal mendacity to the question of why he was ever appointed to a professional chair at Cambridge — and what that tells us about the state of higher education.

Why did the committee of eight professors and the vice-chancellor's deputy, who unanimously recommended his appointment, fail to scrutinise him? A leading answer is the identity of the applicant: a seemingly autistic man of African heritage, possessing double membership of historically marginalised and victimised groups.

This is entirely plausible. I've witnessed at first hand how some professors, even at our most prestigious universities, use their victim identity to trumpet intellectual standards and bypass accountability before the bar of reason. Several years ago, I took part in a panel discussion about empire in Oxford. A fellow panellist was a female professor of international relations. At one point, I turned to her and said, 'A few moments ago, you said X. Now you've just said Y. They're not consistent.' Waving her hand imperiously, she swept my complaint off the table: exclaiming, 'Enough of your donnish, tutorial tactics!'

Dumbstruck, I thought, 'Are there no rules to this game any longer? And if not, what on earth is the point?' Apparently, our discussion hadn't been a forum for truth discovery. Instead, it was an arena for making assertions and then silencing criticism by insinuating bad faith. Hence, 'tactics'. But there was more. For my tactics were allegedly 'donnish', with its connotation of old white males in forty tweed jackets, reeking of pipe smoke, circa 1950. My fellow panellist was exercising the political power of her identity as member of a victim group (women) over a member of an oppressor group (men) to silence me.

This was no isolated incident. Take the Canadian example of Frances Widdowson. After serving as a professor of political science at Mount Royal University for 14 years, she was fired in 2021. Why? Because when she disagreed that traditional Native American 'star knowledge' should be treated as astronomical science, indigenous studies professors accused her of racist harassment, making the campus 'smude' for them.

The Arday affair has lifted the lid on this problem in academia: just as the murder of Henry Nowak exposed it among the police. A local investigation by the University of Cambridge isn't enough. We need a national inquiry into the corrupting effect of identity politics on our universities.

Lord Biggar is former regius professor of moral theology at the University of Oxford

Giles Coren Notebook

We're royally stuffed if our lust for blood doesn't slow

When I first saw the headline, 'Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to receive royal ceremonial funeral,' I thought, 'Wait, is he dead? Was that while I was on holiday? The poor bugger. But it's probably for the best. He had suffered enough. As when an old cat goes blind and its kidneys begin to fail, there comes a time when, although it cannot be spoken, everyone in the family knows it would be better for everyone if he just.'

But it turns out Andrew is not dead. It's just everyone looking forward greedily to the time when he is and quivering with glee about new humiliations to be beaped upon him post mortem. It's so unpleasant. What do you want them to do with the old fool's body? Toss it over the battlements to placate the ravening horde? Sink it in the moat with stones in its pockets? Tie it by the

heels to the back of a chariot and drag it round the walls of the city? Mince it for dog food? Or perhaps for fertilizer, like in Mao's China?

There comes a point in the public excoriation of an individual when the steeping national bloodlust begins to say more about the society from which it emanates than it does about the man it has taken against. We're getting close to that point. I know it's hot, I know it was great fun slaughtering Jason Arday last week, but I'd love it if we all just stepped back from the brink this morning and gave ourselves a minute to think.

Liddle galling

Rod Liddle shagged my girlfriend. To be fair, she wasn't still my girlfriend at the time of the shagging, we'd split up a few weeks before, but Rod and I weren't getting on at that stage in our lives and I took it rather personally. Especially because of the way I heard about it: from John Humphrys, in the Today studio, four

seconds before we went live.

Humphrys had a famous knack for unsettling interviewees off air, but I was only there to talk about restaurant prices, not to defend my cabinet's taxation record, so was a bit surprised, as the producer counted us in, to hear him say, 'by the way, Giles, what's this I hear about Rod Liddle and your girlfriend, ooh, sorry... And here to talk about the problem is the Times restaurant critic, Giles Coren.'

To this day, I remain more annoyed with John about it than Rod, who never claimed to have a personal moral compass, and with whom I made up decades ago.

We had a quiet little mutual admiration society going on, in fact, and the thing I will miss most, even more than his fearless columns and filthy Sid James laugh, is the Saturday morning texts I'd get when he'd read mine, saying: 'You bastard! I was halfway through writing exactly that for The Sunday Times! Same fing intro! Same fing jokes!'

Drought discoveries

According to Monday's Times, the drought is throwing up more exciting ancient sites than ever to the aerial archaeologists who scour the land from above for the Iron Age farms, funeral sites, First World War trenches and lost country house gardens whose buried contours emerge as the land parches. It's the same in my garden. The 'Total Death of Everything', as I pollyannaishly call what has happened to my Kentish Town backyard, has so far revealed three rotted foam 'indoors' footballs, assorted cricket, tennis and ping-pong balls, a bat, a tricycle, six rusted toy cars. Kitty's long-forgotten best friend 'Panda' (not looking well), the mummified remains of two squirrels, a replica pistol of which nobody claims ownership and a potty. The British Museum has been informed.

Seed investment

I'll tell you what else I've found, I pomegranates. Dozens of them. Growing on a bush at the back that I planted 20 years ago and recall now was sold to me as an 'ornamental pomegranate'. I also remember asking the guy at the garden centre if I'd ever get an actual pomegranate off it, and his laughter as he replied, 'only if you plant it in Arizona!'. Well, I didn't, and it's taken a while, but it looks like Arizona has come to me.

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19

Comment

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At times, modern life seems pleasingly trivial

Zurbarán show is an immersion in saintly solemnity but today most of us would choose freedom over religious strictures

@J_AMESMARRIOTT

In a still life by the painter Francisco de Zurbarán, even a cup of water is as still and solemn as a saint. Lemons glow out of deep darkness, as luminous as the Holy Spirit itself. The current exhibition at the National Gallery affords the viewer the opportunity to spend an instructive morning in the mental world of 17th-century Spain. If Zurbarán's fruit seem sacred, his saints must be among the holiest ever put on canvas. Mouths gape in speechless devotion, eyes roll searching upwards to heaven. There is something unnervingly childlike in the way a kneeling St Francis clasps his interlinked fingers around a skull.

To the casual visitor wandering in from the secular London sunshine on a Saturday morning, the atmosphere of seriousness is affronting. You feel, spiritually speaking, that you have turned up to a dowager duchess's party wearing only your swimming trunks.

Twenty-first-century life, almost everyone agrees, is hopelessly trivial.

Atomised capitalist societies can supply their citizens with many things — Ozempic, smart watches, limitless online pornography — but they do a poor job at providing us with answers to the Big Questions. Why are we here? How should we live?

The 'meaning crisis' is one presently fashionable diagnosis of the anxiety afflicting young people navigating our godless and materialist civilisation. On the right, Jordan Peterson and his many imitators urge the decadent young to return to hierarchy, order and faith. Various online movements attest to the pervasive modern nostalgia for meaning, from the 'trad wives' living out picturesque fantasies of a

To the casual visitor, the atmosphere of seriousness is affronting

patriarchal yesteryear on Instagram, to the ubiquitous reactionary nostalgists mourning the Middle Ages all over Elon Musk's X.

The moaners are not always wrong in the problems they diagnose. I have often joined my own voice to these lamentations. And yet, shivering slightly at those hollow-eyed visions of eternity, I resurface in Trafalgar Square reflecting that aimless and

decadent modernity has at least a few things to be said in its favour. Certainly, the world Zurbarán painted was filled with meaning; the 17th-century addiction to allegory meant that every last flower and fruit is resonant with cosmic significance. But though it is a usefully astringent atmosphere in which to spend a couple of hours, I am glad I do not have to live among crucifixes and memento mori.

Many of the things that gave lives weight in the past — community, faith and social obligation — were more oppressive than many 21st-century nostalgists like to remember. The modern individualist notion that we are all free to create our own purpose and to pick our way through life as we please is undoubtedly a source of anxiety (just talk to a fresh university graduate trying to pick a career) but the alternative was not as appealing as some imagine.

For most people in the 17th century the meaning of one's life was hardly a question. Every man and woman had been slotted into place in a cosmic hierarchy that stretched from earthworms up through bakers, knights, kings and angels to God Himself. Such existential certainty may have been comforting. But the price of comfort was constriction. To be born with purpose can be oppressive. The royal

family, among the last modern people whose lives are determined from before they are born, provide a warning of what a life overloaded with purpose can look like. And living in a palace doubtless takes the edge off things.

The historian Keith Thomas writes that in the 17th century the general attitude was that 'Even the vagrant dying of starvation in the street should not grumble at his lot'. Often, I suspect, real meaning involves a

Often, real meaning involves a trade-off; it requires us to suffer

trade-off; it requires us to suffer.

Indeed, the most obvious reason our world feels so much more trivial than Zurbarán's is the disappearance of death from everyday life. The past was saturated by sickness and dying in a way that it is not easy for modern people to appreciate. It is exceptionally rare for modern children to die: until about a hundred years ago it was normal. 'In the midst of life we are in death' as the Book of Common Prayer has it, stating what must once have seemed almost a platitude.

A wander through the National Gallery will confirm that Zurbarán was hardly the only painter who

cluttered his work with skulls. Death not only makes life more solemn, it brings with it a train of thoughts about eternity and the meaning of life. Tragedy forced many of our ancestors into what was surely an unwilling proximity to the great questions. A society that can afford to think as little about death as ours (it is, as the cliché has it, 'the last taboo') can comfortably dodge weighty matters. If this makes us frivolous it also counts as victory.

For all the fashionable hand-wringing, I suspect many people desire meaning less than they think. Or, at least, they would be reluctant to make the necessary trade-offs. From Ireland to South Korea, the evidence of the past hundred years of secularisation suggests that when given the choice between a life rooted in faith, community and God on the one hand and aimless freedom on the other, almost everyone (with perhaps the Amish as an honourable exception) chooses freedom.

So yes, of course I agree that we are a lamentably trivial culture. I also give thanks for something our God-haunted ancestors never knew; an all too bearable lightness of being. After Zurbarán I put serious things out of my mind and wandered off to a café and ate a sandwich, in floods of meaningless summer sunshine.

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20

Letters to the Editor

Cern's fears for UK

Sir. Rhys Blakely rightly highlights tension between 'curiosity-driven' research and work claiming 'quicker returns' ('Sodrell Bank could be saved, but at what cost to other research?', Aug 1). Scientists understand that funding is competitive. Their alarm over recent UK Research and Innovation decisions stems instead from cuts that Dame Chi Onwurah MP, chair of the science, innovation and technology committee, has described as 'unacceptable'.

UK participation in LHCb, one of the four Cern flagship experiments, has been hit particularly hard. Describing LHCb as simply 'curiosity-driven' overlooks its wider returns. The UK's decades-long investment has built world-leading expertise, trained graduates in AI, data science and computing, and driven advances in detectors, semiconductors and electronics.

Britain holds major leadership positions in LHCb and supported the European Strategy for Particle Physics, which prioritises exploiting the High-Lammonely LHC, including the LHCb upgrade. Yet UK funding for that upgrade has now been withdrawn. The UK contribution would cost just £4.5 million a year — about 0.05 per cent of UKR15 budget. The saving is small; the damage to scientific leadership, skills and Britain's reputation as a reliable international partner is not. The new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade has inherited the consequences of this decision. It also has the opportunity to reverse it.

Paula Collins Deputy spokesperson, LHCb Experiment, Cern

Gatwick approval

Sir, I am surprised that the prime minister has not revisited the decision to approve a second runway at Gatwick (report, Aug 5) as it is contrary to his policy of encouraging growth in the regions. Gatwick, unlike Heathrow, is primarily a holiday transport facility. People in other parts of the UK also have holidays and would also benefit from the construction phase of any expansion. The need for employment in other parts of the country is surely greater than it is in the southeast. London, arguably, already has enough airport capacity if more people in the UK could use a local airport. The regions would find that increased airport capacity and connections would lead to increased development locally. It is not too late to cancel this second runway approval at Gatwick. Richard Lockwood Chiddingsstone, Kent

Corrections and clarifications

BPO Regulated / The Times takes complaints about editorial content seriously. We are committed to abiding by the Independent Press Standards Organisation ("IPSO") index and regulations and the Editors' Code of Practice that IPSO enforces. Requests for corrections should be sent to feedback@thetimes.co.uk

Creeping takeover of the 20mph speed limit

Sir, As Libby Purves indicates, Lynda La Plante's experience is shocking ('20mph speed limits play havoc with the mind', Aug 10). It is time the government stepped in to control the creeping growth of 20mph speed limits. May I suggest we simply dispense with all speed limits and introduce a single offence of driving at a speed inappropriate for the prevailing road conditions? That would enable due flexibility in between conditions on a particular road at say 'jam and the rush hour. Those who put the lives of others at risk tend to be a tiny minority of grossly irresponsible drivers who will continue in that vein, speed limit or not. The majority of us are reliable and sensible, and know what is a correct speed at which to drive.

Michael Judkins Ely, Cambs

Sir, Every road user knows that the 20mph speed limit is ludicrous and punitive. As a general restriction, it is simply too slow. There were no doubt good reasons for the choice of 20mph but probably the principal one was that it is a round number. But that number would make little sense in mainland Europe, where it translates

as 32km/h. Better, surely to choose 25mph, equating exactly to 40km/h, a far more reasonable speed and one that most road users would find completely manageable.

Geoff Hunt London SW19

Sir, When thousands of law-abiding citizens are being penalised every year for 'speeding', there is clearly something wrong. The 31 per cent reduction in speed from 30mph to the funereal 20mph is enormous compared with the 14 per cent reduction from 70mph to 60mph. In many urban areas, 30mph may well a little too fast but reducing speeds below 25mph would provide the required safety improvement. The main reason to prosecute drivers just a few miles an hour over the limit appears to be to raise revenue.

Nobody has explained why the old 'rule of thumb' should no longer apply, allowing 10 per cent over the speed limit plus 2mph leeway.

David Rosen Lancaster

Sir, Among the more than 125,000 motorists caught out in a 20mph zone in Britain last year were two of my

family, who were clocked accelerating away from dangerous traffic situations at 22mph and 23mph in London ("How 20mph is taking over towns", Aug 8). Because of this, when I tried to renew our car insurance recently, the cost had risen by £500 — making those money-hungry businesses even larger profits.

Lesley Thompson Lavenham, Suffolk

Sir, I suggest that the road markings in 20mph zones be a different colour, to remind drivers what the speed limit is. The same principle could be used on roads with 60mph or 70mph limits.

Jim Patrick Kilsyth, North Lanarkshire

Sir, The most useful information I gathered from the speed awareness course I attended some years ago was from my fellow attendees: the locations of other speed traps.

Nigel Austin Dorchester, Dorset

Letters to The Times must be exclusive and may be edited. Please include a full address and daytime telephone number.

Interviewing Arday

Sir, Events in Cambridge suggest a reluctance on the part of those tasked with interviewing candidates to seek out the truth ("Fawning liberals laid ground for Arday farce", Trevor Phillips, Aug 10). If the cause of such reluctance is embarrassment on the part of the interviewer to directly challenge the candidate as to the truthfulness of their curriculum vitae (letter from Sir Peter Riddell, Aug 8), there is an alternative, less direct, method. This is to ask the candidate about their achievements while expressing suitable enthusiasm for what has apparently been achieved. If there is a suspicion that the candidate has embellished their CV this will rapidly become apparent.

By way of example, years ago I was required to intervene a candidate for pupillage, a form of apprenticeship, in barnsters' chambers. In their CV the candidate referred, as a mark of personal prestige, to the fact that they had appeared in a well-known TV quiz show. I said that this was quite an achievement and began to ask for details. It soon became clear that the candidate was not one of the quiz

team but merely a member of the audience. When seeking to get at the truth, there is always more than one way to skin a cat.

Christopher Aylwin London SW6

Sir, The controversy surrounding the appointment of professorships at universities has its origins in the 1980s, when the government introduced a ranking process with financial incentives first for research and later for teaching. It is a common fallacy to believe the Darwinian forces thus unleashed select 'the best'. Instead, they select those most successful at gaming the prevailing system, a process that applies systemically to the applicants and the institutions that appoint them. By that analysis, the present mess is probably just the tip of the iceberg.

Mark Lansdale Emeritus professor of experimental psychology, Keyham, Leics

Glut of candidates

Sir, The plethora of candidates at the Clacton by-election — a record 34 at the last count — does not enhance

parliamentary democracy. The Representation of the People Act 1983 requires an aspiring Westminster candidate to obtain support from just ten electors registered in the constituency, known as subscribers. The first two are the proposer and seconder while eight are the assenters to the nomination (Schedule 1, rule 7). Instead of depositing £500 and obtaining backing from a handful of electors, the law should be amended to 500 registered electors and no deposit. Then voters would be faced with serious choices for their MP who had already shown local support.

Conal Gregory Conservative MP for York 1983-92

Frustrated Odyssey

Sir, Our old ears must be more noise-intolerant than Sathnam Sangheras ("Imax-ed out", Notebook, Aug 10). We endured less than one minute of The Odyssey at our local Imax before walking out. The manager kindly refunded the £40 we had paid, apparently to have our hearing damaged.

Tom Yeo Enfield, Middx

SUBMARINE DISASTER IN PLYMOUTH

FROM THE TIMES AUGUST 11, 1926

An announcement was issued from the Admiralty in connexion with the accident to Submarine H29: "The Secretary of the Admiralty regrets to announce that, in addition to those already reported as having lost their lives in Submarine H29, it has now been definitely ascertained that H Hill, engine fitter, No 9647, was on board the submarine when she sank, and must also have been killed. Salvage operations are in progress, and when the submarine has been raised, an inquiry will be carried out to determine the cause of the accident."

Work is continuing with a view to raising the submarine, but up to this evening it has been without result. In spite of the fact that she sank in one of the basins of the Devonport dockyard, with various appliances in the way of cranes and salvage gear close at hand, the operations have proved exceptionally difficult. This is partly accounted for by the fact that its sinking she turned over. Before she can be raised it is necessary to get her into an upright position, and, as she is full of water, she is hard to move.

A large body of divers and other men have been employed in the work. All other efforts having failed, hawsers have now been placed below the ship with a view to towing her to another position in the basin where a caisson can be constructed about her and the water pumped out. A court of inquiry will be held to-day under the presidency of Captain EC Boyle, VC, captain of the dockyard.

An account is given by one of the

survivors of an attempt to save the submarine by blowing out the tanks to make her buoyant when the disaster was impending. Chief Engine-room Artificer Dalton and Lieutenant ME Wewell were in the submarine when she began to list, and they remained below up to the point when the vessel was flooded, standing by the tanks. Lieutenant Wewell was swept up the conning tower as the submarine sank, but Dalton was trapped below and drowned. Both men, it is stated, were on deck when the accident occurred, and went below in their attempt to save the vessel.

Lieutenant Wewell, who was seriously injured in his escape, was stated to be making good progress. Five civilians and one crewman died. Wewell and another officer were found guilty of negligence.

THETIMES.COM/ARCHIVE

Valuable heritage

Sir, Your article "Haigh will not grace Admiralty residence" (Aug 6) and the letters that followed (Aug 8 & 10) raise a wider point about grace-and-Desour houses. Chequers (3,500 acres), Chevening (3,000 acres) and Daveny-wood (215 acres) sit largely unused for most of the year, and are for the exclusive use of the prime minister, foreign secretary and chancellor. All three are held by independent trusts, so a straightforward sale is not an option. But they could become part-time public heritage destinations, much as the royal family has shown results with its own residences. Run well, the three estates together could conservatively generate a net surplus of 15 million to £10 million a year. That could go toward the prime ministers' first commitment in office: to end rough sleeping. There's something compelling about vast, underused properties helping to house people who have no home.

Alan Coppin Former CEO, Historic Royal Palaces, and former visitor attractions expert, KPMG Consulting

Early release row

Sir, Although I agree with the general tenor of John Young's letter (Aug 10), he is wrong to ascribe the choice of charges of manslaughter against the three defendants as the choice of the Crown Prosecution Service. In fact the three were charged with murder, with manslaughter charges as alternatives. The jury, as was within its remit, rejected the charges of murder and convicted of manslaughter. The sentences for manslaughter were considered by the Court of Appeal as not being unduly lenient. If the jury had convicted of murder, the sentencing judges' mandatory life sentences with minimum terms to be served would have forestalled the present problems over release.

His Honour Gerald Clifton Oakham, Rutland

Welsh new wave

Sir, The James Bond movies provide an exciting retelling opportunity for the Welsh market (letters, Aug 6-8 & 10). May I add the following to the list? Diamonds Are For five.

Dai Another Day and Licence to Rhyl. Bonnie White Wells, Somerset

Sir, After Dial M for Merthyr perhaps we could head to the Cambrian Mountains of mid-Wales for the beginning of The Magnificent Severn. Steve Bullin Cambridge

Jargon-busting

Sir, Never mind "from the get-go" (letter, Aug 10). What's all this waffle about one's "backstory"?

Nigel Senter North Berwick, East Lothian

It's a dog's life

Sir, I also had to smile about Deborah Ross's article (Aug 8; letter, Aug 10) on owning a dog. It reminded me of my late father, who was Polish. Whenever his adult children got a dog, he would throw up his hands and say: "You have no problems! You get dog!" He swore that it was an old Polish saying but I'm not so sure.

Kath Berrisford Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffs

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21

Leading articles

Daily Universal Register

UK: British Retail Consortium releases monthly sales report.

Nature notes

Roe deer hold their rut in high summer, earlier than red or fallow deer, and usually peaking in the second week of August. Normally

timid and peaceable, during mating season the males, known as bucks, become vocal, aggressive and vigilant. They begin to set up territories in March and April, usually in the same area as the previous year: a good territory will have food, cover and access to several solitary does. Does are fertile and receptive for only 36 to 48 hours each year, during which time bucks will attend them so closely — sometimes chasing them in wide circles — that they often fail to eat or drink and may even collapse from exhaustion. After the rut, the males' territories dissolve. MELISSA HARRISON

Birthdays today

Chris Hemsworth, pictured, actor, Rush (2013), the Avengers film series, 43; Tom Blomfield, co-founder of Monzo (digital bank), 41; Don Boyd, film director and producer, Aris

(1987), 78; Sir Geoffrey Cass, chairman and co-founder, Royal Theatrical Support Trust, chairman, Royal Shakespeare Company (1985-2000), 94; Sir Jack Cuzick, emeritus professor of epidemiology, Queen Mary University of London, 78; Viola Davis, actress, Fences (2016), 61; Peter Eisenman, architect, Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Berlin (2005), 94; Sir Ben Elliot, co-chairman of the Conservative Party (2019-22), co-founder, Quintessentially Group (concierge), 51; Kenneth Gamble, songwriter and producer, created the Philly Sound with Leon Huff, Love Train (the O'Jays, 1972), 83; Mike Hogg, musician, Manfred Mann, Do With Diddy Diddy (1964), 84; Lord (Anthony) Hughes of Ombetsley, deputy investigatory powers commissioner, justice of the Supreme Court (2013-18), 78; Joe Jackson, musician, Is She Really Going Out with Him? (1978), 72; Ashley Jensen, actress, Agatha Raisin (2014-22), 57; Charlotte Leslie, managing director, Conservative Middle East Council, MP for Bristol North West (2010-17), 48; Sri Prakash Lohia, businessman, founder and chairman of Indorama Corporation (petrochemicals and textiles), 74; Ian McDiarmid, actor, Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars film series, 82; James Mates, journalist, Europe editor, ITV News, 65; John Micklethwait, editor-in-chief, Bloomberg News, The Economist (2006-15), 64; Sophie Okonedo, actress, Hotel Rwanda (2004), 58; Richard Scudamore, chief executive, Premier League (1999-2014), 67; Mាណrυθa Son, businessman, founder and chief executive, SoftBank (investment holding company), 69; Dame Sue Street, chairwoman, Rambert dance company (2019-Jun 2026), 77; Sandi Thom, singer-songwriter, I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair) (2006), 45; Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer, Inc (1976), 76.

On this day

In 1919 the Weimar Constitution came into being, creating a postwar German state.

The last word

Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it. George Orwell, author and journalist, Poetry Quarterly (1945)

Wise Men

Andy Burnham's failure to appoint serious economic advisers undermines his credibility. It also highlights the government's urgent need for a plan for growth

Sir Keir Starmer's curtailed stint in Downing Street might have been shorter still had it not been for his successor's ill repute in the City. As a former chief secretary to the Treasury and mayor of England's fastest-growing region, Andy Burnham may feel accusations of economic illiteracy are unfair. But for months, as Sir Keir's unpopularity plumbed new depths and skittish Labour MPs looked covetously at Mr Burnham's then-stratospheric approval ratings, those accusations were thrown again and again from inside the Treasury.

Critics denounced Mr Burnham as a spendforth whose promises of mass nationalisation would bankrupt the country. Last September, he seemingly vindicated them when he pronounced that Britain had 'got to get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets'. After the disasters of Trussonomics, it was widely interpreted as an admission of naivety. It fuelled a consensus that Mr Burnham, however impressive his command of municipal politics, no longer understood the basic responsibilities, and constraints, of the national government he aspired to lead.

Mr Burnham has always insisted he was misinterpreted. In fact, he said, he wanted to remake the state so that it would not borrow so much money in the first place. Campaigning for the Labour

leadership in the Makerfield by-election, he was careful to stress his commitment to fiscal responsibility. To that end, the leader-in-waiting's team made much of the presence of three wise men of British economics in their inner circle. They were Lord O'Neill of Gatley, a Treasury minister under George Osborne; Andy Haldane, the former chief economist of the Bank of England; and Richard Hughes, until last autumn the chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility.

The desired effect was reassurance. With so much wise counsel from economists of renown, how dangerous could Mr Burnham be? Their advisory roles were a welcome sign that he was taking the obligations and harsh realities of office seriously. Lord O'Neill and Mr Haldane had done important work on regional inequality for Conservative prime ministers. Mr Hughes, meanwhile, had spent his latter years in public service ensuring the sums added up, no matter how grisly the political implications.

Not one of these three wise men, however, is now working in Downing Street. Nor are they to be found in the Treasury, where John Healey is sorely lacking an economic adviser with the credentials to prove he can amount to something more than a compromise choice as chancellor.

There are no jobs, it seems, for Mr Haldane and Mr Hughes. And, as The Times has revealed, Lord O'Neill — while reluctant to abandon his business interests to the stewardship of a blind trust — has yet to be reassured that Mr Burnham has woken up to the folly of wealth taxes. Their absence leaves a worrying gap. Sir Keir learnt the same lesson too late, when he hired Baroness Shafik as his economic adviser in September — far too late for her appointment to make any difference.

As he preaches the gospel of 'Manchesterism' on social media, Mr Burnham has shown he is willing to wield the power of the state to mitigate the cost of living crisis. Or, in other words, he is very capable of spending money. Come the budget, he and Mr Healey will have to find at least £10 billion for his capped bus fares and cuts to VAT and business rates — as well as filling the black hole in defence spending. The best way to fund such measures is a plan to make Britain's economy grow at a Mancunian pace. So far, the prime minister has offered up little to suggest he has a credible theory of growth. The Burnham government has instead been chiefly focused on cutting up ever smaller slices of the same pie. 'Wiser economic counsel would go some way to show the country he offers more than profligacy and higher taxes.'

Mutual Defence

The Middle East is looking for ways to defend itself without the US cavalry

Despite its many wars and explosions, the Middle East remains a region in search of institutional stability. The Mecca agreement, just reached between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan is intended to bring that goal closer — but could end up exposing irreconcilable differences between three of the region's influential power-brokers.

The founding principle of the new defence pact is an obvious copy-and-paste borrowing from the Nato alliance's crucial common commitment: 'any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against them all'. The wording has prompted commentators to describe the new alignment as the starting point for a Sunni Nato. Saudi Arabia brings capital, energy and military procurement ambition to this defensive alliance, Pakistan brings a nuclear arsenal and large manpower reserves; and Turkey provides not only the real Nato's second largest army but also ambitious intelligence-driven military and strategic engagement across the extended Arabic and Turkic-speaking neighbourhood.

It represents the first major step in the Middle East and South Asia towards an indigenous security

architecture and a move away from a vassal-like dependence on the American security umbrella. It may also act as a hedge against any sudden shifts by the White House.

In the Turkish and Saudi case, it is intended as a counterweight to Israel's power projection in the Middle East. And it is a recognition that Iran has emerged more strongly than expected from its extended war against its neighbours. In April Pakistan deployed a squadron of fighter jets and crew to a Saudi air base to defend against Iranian attacks. Turkey's military co-operation with the Saudis has been deepening in preparation for a new round of fighting against the Houthi rebels. The Saudis have signed major drone procurement and training deals with Turkey.

Yet the Mecca pact is still a thousand leagues away from being a new Nato. It has no integrated command structure, no joint doctrine, no integrated air defence network, and no joint operational commands. It is best seen as a defensive state-to-state arrangement that could, over time, come up with solutions to challenges. Saudi Arabia's natural defensive domain is the Gulf Co-op-

co-operation Council, which has revealed some of its many tensions in the protracted showdown with Iran. Pakistan has a formal strategic alignment with China — what will its new allies do if tensions grow between India and China? The limits to Mr Erdogan's bonds with the US were clearly visible in the preparations for a Kurd-assisted regime change in Iran. Ankara was having none of it.

If the new pact is to take root and grow it will first have to be a mutuality reinforcing defence industrial complex at a time when wars everywhere are burning through equipment. In the meantime, Saudi Arabia should not shrug off the option of joining the Abraham Accords that will help bring Israel into a more general strategic discourse. The Saudi leadership shuns that diplomatic axis as long as Israel denies the possibility of a Palestinian state. Israel says it cannot begin to consider peace in Gaza until the Hamas terror group verifiably decommissions its weapons and closes its tunnel network. If the Saudis and the Turks applied more pressure on Hamas to disarm, then progress could be made these two. The Middle East remains in urgent need of fresh thinking.

In The Shade

As summers become hotter, cities need more trees to cool us down

In case you haven't been outside for a few months, Britain is enduring a very hot summer. The Met Office has issued rolling alerts, warning of ever more extreme temperatures. Heatwaves are stifling everyday life, while more than 25 million Britons are enduring luespique bans. If such weather is the new norm, how can we better cope as a nation? Installing more air conditioning is a good start. Another is to build more reservoirs, so longer spells without rain are more manageable. Then there is the challenge of cities facing soaring levels of urban heat and melting pavements that are burning the feet of dogs and cats.

Thankfully, there is a solution — a very obvious one. The Create Streets Foundation, an urban-design think tank, argues in a new report that we need more trees, or the 'urban wonder drug', as it labels them. Its researchers pounded the streets of Southwark and Lambeth last month with a thermal-imaging camera to prove the cooling effect of green leaves. In some locations, the surfaces of pavements and children's playgrounds were a scorching 55C. In shaded areas, just metres away, it was 25C to 30C cooler. This echoes earlier research which found that atmospheric temperatures were 5C to 7C cooler on tree-lined streets.

We must, therefore, plant more trees. Create Streets argues that the 1980 Highway Act needs reworking to ensure new greenery is not automatically judged a bad thing. Local authorities need to speed up approvals and allow residents to plant more. Landowners should also carry a greater duty of care for trees already on their land. There is much about the warming climate that will be hard to manage, especially in dense cities. But cooling the streets is not one of them. For cleaner air, happier and more beautiful places to live, and cooler temperatures, planting more trees is nearly always the right thing to do.

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World

AI-powered drone swarms stir fear in Europe's armies

Germany

Oliver Moody Berlin

Half a dozen quadcopter drones hover over the scrubland at a Florida national guard training base, weaving around one another like a small flock of seagulls flying into the wind.

Then, at a command from a human pilot, three of them swoop downwards in sequence, obliterating a row of inflatable tanks on a road while the others linger overhead to observe the damage.

For many years the prospect of artificial intelligence-powered drone swarms has been a nightmare looming on the fringes of modern warfare.

Now, as this strike test video released a few months ago by the German-American defence technology company Auterion illustrates, it is increasingly encroaching onto the battlefield and worrying Europe's defence planners and national security officials.

"We have had huge concern about this," Jens Römer, chief technology officer at the German government's Zitis IT security agency, told a drone defence conference at the former Tegel airport on the outskirts of Berlin.

"We are still in a situation today where the detection and defence systems can be overwhelmed very quickly and can't assess the situation fast enough... This is something that deeply worries us in the security services because the military countermeasures, which have generally been effective in Ukraine, don't work in this context."

Ukraine has served as the primary laboratory for this emerging technology. Its armed forces have been experimenting with increasingly large autonomous attack and reconnaissance swarms on the front line, starting with small units of only two strike drones and a "spotter".

Using software from Swarmer, a Ukrainian defence firm, operators can dispatch independent "hunter-killer" squadrons of eight or more drones to identify and eliminate Russian targets.

At least six defence firms elsewhere in Europe are known to have conducted successful tests of swarm technology, and an operator directs up to 18 drones at a time. In the United States, military contractors have demonstrated autonomous networks of more than a hundred drones and the Pentagon is aiming to create a "swarm of swarm" capability with as many as 500 units.

In March China revealed the Atlas system, which uses vehicles to launch up to 96 drones that are simultaneously controlled from a single command post.

Marcel "Otto" Yon, the chief executive of Autonomous Teaming, a German defence software start-up that makes counter-drone systems and its own flocks of autonomous reconnaissance drones, said it would only be a matter of time before forces could deploy swarms with thousands of drones

in the land, air and sea domains, functioning like independent AI-directed battle formations.

"This becomes, just by its pure scale, a new type of weapon of mass destruction," he said. "If you really come to a point where you have 10,000 drones that operate fully autonomously — detecting targets, tracking, executing — that is a whole new type of capability."

Yon added: "This is exactly the scenario we felt we needed to protect our forces and civilisations from [swarms] not just with flying drones, but also humanoid robots, ground vehicles, maritime drones and so on."

Over the past few years, Europeans have become used to seeing waves of Russian attack drones descending on Ukrainian cities and penetrating deep into Polish airspace. Although these formations of flying bombs and decoys are sometimes described as "swarms", and it is thought that some degree of AI may be used in planning the offensives, a true swarm of linked and autonomous

An interception drone on show at Berlin's "resilience day" last month

drones poses a different level of threat. The drones form an interlaced group, a little like a marmuration of starlings, under the direction of a single pilot — although they can operate without human instructions. This ability is crucial in environments where radio signals are routinely cut or distorted by intense electromagnetic warfare.

Professor Wolfgang Koch, head of the sensor and information fusion department at the Fraunhofer FKIE research centre near Bonn, explained that the swarms could not only react flexibly to the enemy's defences but improvise their own sophisticated tactics to overwhelm them.

European militaries are conducting exercises with the technology. In March troops from the British, American and Australian armies flew co-ordinated reconnaissance drone swarms over Salisbury Plain.

A few weeks later the US army's V Corps tested some of the most advanced Nato drone defences against swarms from several European and American defence technology firms

during a wargame in Lithuania called Project Flytrap 5.0. It was understood that some of the swarms beat the counter-drone systems.

Henning Reimann, head of the department in the German armed forces' central planning office that deals with integrating complex new technologies, said: "For us it is not quite reality just yet. But I'm certain it will increasingly be the case that a single operator will control a number of drones that can act more or less autonomously."

Yon said the arms race was moving so rapidly that metrics such as the number of drones in a swarm and the rate of successful target detection were improving by about 25 per cent every three months.

"The rate of innovation on the Russian side is quite impressive," he said. "Is mass cluster autonomy in strike drones something we're going to see very soon? Absolutely... When a technology progresses that fast, it means you have a tenfold change in two and a half years, and a hundredfold progression in five years. I'm very confident in saying that yes, absolutely, we will see things like this in the next five years."

Yet the defensive side is also evolving quickly. At the Berlin drone resilience day organised last month by the Behörden Spiegel newspaper, various German firms showed off tools ranging from jammers that could seize control of drones to drones that fire nets and "interceptor" models designed for kamikaze missions against incoming loitering munitions.

Inleap Photonics and Stark demonstrated an uncrewed ground vehicle mounted with laser cannons and conducted a live-fire test where a German army officer sitting in Berlin used the system to incinerate a quadcopter near Hanover, about 150 miles away.

The difficulty is that each of these instruments may be too slow, expensive or cumbersome to hold off an elaborately orchestrated bombardment by hundreds of linked strike drones moving at speeds of more than 100mph.

The next generation of start-ups is addressing this problem, with answers including highly portable rapid-fire "gatling" lasers and what purports to be fully automated drone defence command software that can respond to threats significantly faster than a human operator.

"Over-saturation is a long-standing tactical manoeuvre in warfare," Yon said. "A degree of tactical sophistication is happening already in Ukraine just manually. You will send 20 decoy drones and then five real [strike] drones ... If that is done by AI, then all it does is scale the ability to do so and make it easier. If the rate of fire increases, then it makes the need for good counter[drone] solutions even higher. That's the eternal innovation race between attacker and defender."

Sea horses A Camargue herd thunder through the waves in southern France.

'Sunni Muslim Nato' pact shows desire for autonomy from US

Turkey

Liz Cookman Istanbul

The defence pact signed on Friday between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan has been described as a "Sunni Muslim Nato".

Three of the most militarily powerful Sunni states pledged that an armed attack on any one of them would be regarded as an attack on all three.

The Mecca joint defence agreement could be, among other things, a big expansion of President Erdogan's role as a security provider in the Middle East.

However, it has raised questions, primarily about who the pact's most likely adversaries are and whether the three would really leap to each others' defence if only one country's interests were at stake. Analysis say the pact may be "sending a message" rather than making an iron guarantee.

Either way it springs from the Middle East's worsening security situation. The Gaza conflict still shows signs of activity and accompanies hostilities between Israel, the US and Iran that have lasted nearly six months.

Israel is also fighting Hezbollah in

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23

Indian villagers revolt over water-gulping data centre Page 24

Democrat's egg-freezing sets off political debate Page 26

KAT (HOLYTRAPORTS) MEDIA

The horses live semi-wild in the marshes of the Rhône delta and are known for their stamina, hardiness and agility

Lebanon, despite a ceasefire, and occupying parts of post-Assad Syria, whose principal backer is Erdogan's Turkey.

All three countries that have joined the pact are key US allies, technically putting them on the anti-Iranian "side" of the region's structural divide.

Hakan Fidan, Turkey's foreign minister, insisted the pact was not pointed at Iran. However, Saudi Arabia has been bombed by Iran and its oil industry is one of the biggest economic losers. Iranian missiles have been shot down as they headed for Turkish air space. Pakistan has complex but often hostile relations with Iran, a neighbour.

The military capabilities of each are not trivial. Pakistan is the only Muslim-majority nuclear power and Saudi Arabia has the Gulf's leading Arab military. Turkey has the second-largest army in Nato and a thriving defence industry.

While all three nations have concerns about Iran and have criticised Israel's actions in Gaza and elsewhere in the region, their primary threats are different. Pakistan continues to regard India as its main national security con-

The armies compared

Mecca joint defence agreement

Pakistan	660,000
Turkey	345,200
Saudi Arabia	257,000

Largest army in Nato

US	1,340,150

Largest army in the Middle East

Iran	610,000

By active military personnel, Search: Mithya Bishnoi 2026.

cern; Turkey has longstanding issues with Greece, and over Cyprus, as well as its involvement in Syria, Saudi Arabia's main fighting front in recent years has been with the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.

Asli Aydintasbas, an analyst at the Washington-based Brookings Institution, said the pact was more based on collective deterrence than on collective defence. "This is not a replica of Nato," she said. Aydintasbas said the pact was

partly "aspirational", reflecting Turkey's desire to build "a larger, multinational defence architecture in the Middle East" while sending messages to both Iran and Israel.

Underlying that structure is the need perceived by all three to create a security infrastructure centred on the region but independent of western powers, particularly the US.

Omer Czkizilcik, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, said there was a wider shift towards regional powers taking greater responsibility for their own security. "The first goal of the pact is to enhance regional co-operation and lead the region into a new security environment," he said.

Aydintasbas said US officials she had consulted did not appear concerned by the agreement. Rather, it fits into the Trump administration's demand for greater "burden sharing" by US allies.

However, the most obvious result may be to promote mutual defence procurement — the trade in weapons.

Middle East looking for defence without the US cavalry, leading article, page 21

Syrian retreat blows new hole in Putin's dream of global role

Russia Marc Bennetts

Doubts about the use of key military bases in the Middle East; a warm welcome for the Ukrainian president by a traditional European ally; an unprecedented show of defiance by the leader of a former Soviet state. The past few weeks have delivered one blow after another to the Kremlin's hopes of retaining its global influence, while the war in Ukraine grinds on...

Syria announced on Sunday that Russia's Hmesimn airbase and Tartus naval base would no longer be controlled exclusively by Moscow and that the military facilities would be turned into "joint training" centres. They were Russia's only official military bases outside the former Soviet Union.

Bashar al-Assad, a key Kremlin ally, was toppled in 2024 by rebel forces and replaced as Syria's president by Ahmed al-Sharaa, a commander in the Islamist-led insurgency. Although Russia's army had propped up Assad for nine years, killing thousands of Syrian rebels and civilians, President Putin ordered his forces to stand aside as rebels swept into Damascus.

While Syria insisted the deal had been agreed with Moscow and would preserve mutual interests, it said civilian facilities at both bases would be handed to Damascus. The Kremlin has yet to comment and details of the agreement have not been made public.

Hanna Notte, an expert on Russian foreign policy and the Middle East, said it was increasingly unlikely that Russia would be able to use the Syrian bases for its military purposes in the future but that it should not be ruled out.

"There's a big Russian wariness over the extent to which Sharaa can actually hold power and stabilise Syria," said Notte. "The Russian thinking might well be, 'Let's see where Syria is at five or ten years down the line. We're just going to hide our time.'"

Russia has used its bases in Syria to

move supplies and fighters to the Africa Corps, a Kremlin-controlled successor to the Wagner mercenary group, in Libya. Mali, the Central African Republic and elsewhere on the continent.

The airbase deal was criticised by hardliners. "We have expended vast resources and the lives of our officers, soldiers and Wagner fighters to establish a Russian foothold in the region — and now we are going to ask those bearded [fighters] and their Turkish handlers for permission to be present at our own bases?" wrote Igor Yeliseyev, a former lawyer for Wagner, which was funded by the Russian government.

The Syrian announcement came on the 27th anniversary of Putin's appointment as prime minister. Months later, he took over as president and set about restoring Moscow's Soviet-era global influence. That effort has been largely sacrificed to Putin's obsession with achieving victory in Ukraine.

Although the regime in Iran, which has provided military support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, has so far survived a US-Israeli bombing campaign, the Kremlin has been unable to prevent the downfall of other allies.

Russia could not stop Nicolás Maduro, the pro-Moscow leader of Venezuela, from being seized by American special forces. Viktor Orban, whose government in Hungary was seen as the Kremlin's "Trojan horse" in the European Union, was defeated at the ballot box. Russia has also lost clout in the South Caucasus, where Armenia and Azerbaijan are moving away from the Kremlin's sphere of influence.

The waning of Russian was likely to make Putin even more determined to achieve his goals in Ukraine, Notte said. "If you threw everything at this war and you made other foreign policy dossiers subordinate to that and even accepted that you are losing influence in other parts of the world, all for the sake of this effort of subjugating Ukraine, then you really have to come out on top," she said.

Cold-calls ban gets poor reception from French

France David Chazan Paris

Almost everyone in France resents being deluged with unsolicited sales calls and most now ignore any number they do not recognise.

Yet there is widespread scepticism that a ban on spam calls, which comes into force today, will bring much relief.

In theory, telemarketers may now only contact those who have expressly consented — but there are loopholes.

Mobile phone and utility providers will be permitted to call existing customers to offer new services. Polbiters and charities seeking donations are exempt, as are newspapers offering subscriptions by cold call (The Times, naturally, would never indulge in such a practice). Spam calls are a modern nuisance everywhere, but France appears to suffer more than most: it is markedly worse than the UK. Parliament passed the ban after a survey by a US security company found that 43 per cent of all calls to French phones were unsolicited and made from numbers not in the recipient's contact list.

Capucine, 30, a graphic artist from Paris, said she welcomed the ban, with reservations. "How can they stop calls from outside France?" she asked.

Benoît, 62, an engineer from Lyon, was similarly doubtful: "I think telemarketing firms will find ways around the law," he said. "But let's hope it works."

Le Parisien struck an optimistic note. An editorial observed that "No junk mail" signs on letterboxes had proved "fairly effective" and suggested that the same might be true of the cold-call ban.

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24

World

Village revolts over Google's water-gulping data centre

Anger is brewing over a project, lured by tax breaks, in a state hit by drought, Amrit Dhillon reports from Tarluvada

When Google came calling, Sandhama Chandala said she did not have time to consider what would happen to the land where her grandfather planted mango and cashew trees, tilled the pinkish soil and carried water to his crops.

She also did not have time to consider how water would be diverted to feed the relentless hum of servers that will form part of a $17 billion AI data centre. Google's largest outside the US, built in a lush region an hour's drive from the port city of Vizag in Andhra Pradesh.

"I didn't want to sell," said Chandala, 50. "My grandfather toiled to make it arable. We carried water on our heads. The land gave us a livelihood.

But the officials who came said we had to sell. When a few villagers agreed, I too felt under pressure to sell." Chandala and the 200 families in the village state of Tarluvada are known as Dalits, among the lowest in the Hindu caste system. In the mid-1970s, the federal government assigned them their land — two acres per family — to provide them a livelihood.

Many have sold theirs as part of plans to create the data centre on three sites, spread over 600 acres in the villages of Tarluvada, Adanivaram and Rambilli. Google is co-developing the data centre with the Indian conglomerate Adani Group. Each family received $81,000 for their two acres.

Critics say the project has been pushed through at breakneck speed by local officials and the state's chief minister, Nara Chandrababu Naidu, with little thought into how the vast consumption of the servers would affect a region where water is already scarce. In Vizag, many neighbourhoods receive water for one hour in the morning and even-

ing, which they store to use throughout the day. Campaigners say a one gigawatt data centre can consume more than 30 million litres of water a day. "A project of this kind makes no sense at all," said EAS Sarma, a former power secretary in the federal government and a fierce critic of the project.

For residents of the railway colony slum in the city, water is like gold dust. "If we run short, we have to order a water tanker," said Lakshmi, 45, who works as a maid. "The supply used to be for two hours but now it's one hour. It's just enough for our most basic needs."

Chandrababu Naidu, the chief minister, is determined to attract investment to his state. The plan is to create India's largest AI infrastructure hub within a 100km radius of Vizag. Multi-gigawatt projects will dot the coastline along the Bay of Bengal. According to government documents, the state is offering Google a 25 per cent discount on land prices, stamp duty exemptions, water and electricity subsidies, a 10 per cent capital subsidy on plant and machinery for ten years, and other waivers and incentives.

In February, the federal government under Narendra Modi laid out another perk for foreign cloud and AI service providers — no tax will be levied on revenues until 2047.

Sarma calls the Vizag project a 'scandal'. He said: "While New York state has imposed a moratorium on data centres because of rising power costs and water shortages, India is rolling out the red carpet."

VS Krishna of the Human Rights Forum in Vizag said: "No one even knows exactly how much water it will use because the memorandum of understanding with the government has not been made public."

Google has pledged to use green energy for 80 per cent of the project's needs. Google India said: "The AI Hub will use advanced air cooling to significantly reduce water usage. In addition, specifically for server and chip cooling, we will utilise advanced closed-loop liquid-to-air cooling technology that ... operates independently of the municipal potable water supply."

Sandhama Chandala says she came under pressure to sell her land in an area where water often flows for only two hours a day. Above, a protest against the Google data centre

Bumper day The Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway, 43, who is expecting her third child, at the Los Angeles premiere of the sci-fi film The End of Oak Street

More than 100 killed in Colombian earthquake

Stephen Gibbs Caracas

Colombia has declared a national emergency after a powerful 74 magnitude earthquake killed at least 111 people and caused damage across much of the west of the country.

The tremor, with an epicentre near the remote municipality of San José del Palmar, was felt across the country of 50 million people as well as in neighbouring Ecuador, Panama and even 750 miles east in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.

The western province of Risaralda has reported the highest death toll, at 42. At least 27 deaths were reported in the western region of Valle del Cauca. The mayor of the central city of Pereira, Mauricio Salazar Peláez, said that there were at least 18 dead in his municipality.

Numbers are expected to rise as bodies are pulled from the rubble. Officials warned of possible aftershocks.

In the mountain-fringed city of Manizales, 20 houses were reported destroyed and at least two people killed. A

A tower of the cathedral in Manizales collapsed, as did at least 20 houses

tower of the city's neopothic cathedral collapsed and fell on the nave. At least six Colombian airports suffered serious damage. The president, Abelardo de la Espinella, who took office on Friday, said he was assuming direct control of the emergency response. He said: "The national government has all of its capabilities deployed to protect lives, assist affected communities and deliver aid wherever it is needed."

Ukrainian drones kill 13 people in refinery raid

Russia At least 13 people, including a child, were killed and 39 injured in a Ukrainian drone attack on industrial and civilian targets in the city of Nizhnekamsk, about 500 miles east of Moscow. It was one of the heaviest civilian tolls in Russia in months. Ukraine's military said it had hit Tatneft's Taneco oil refinery in the Tatavstan region. Russia described the attack as terrorism and said Ukraine had struck residential areas. A period of mourning was declared.

In videos, smoke could be seen rising over the refinery, which was also hit by Ukraine in early June. It processed 17 million tonnes of crude oil in 2024. Ukraine has stepped up its strikes on Russian oil refineries in recent months in a campaign that has caused fuel shortages in many parts of the country, although the authorities say most of those problems have been resolved.

Ukraine says it wants to bring the price of Russia's war home to ordinary Russians. Moscow has imported fuel from overseas to bolster supplies. On Sunday, both sides accused each other of lethal attacks. Three people were killed and 37 wounded in a Russian attack on the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, where an apartment block was hit, while the authorities in Russia's Belgorod said that five were killed and 25 wounded by a Ukrainian drone attack.

Typhoon brings floods

China Torrential rain caused by Typhoon Dolphin has flooded parts of eastern China including Shanghai, where 943 flights were cancelled yesterday, according to CCTV, the state broadcaster. The authorities warned that 74 rivers in the Taihu Lake basin and Zhejiang province had exceeded warning levels. The typhoon made landfall on Sunday and is forecast to move further inland.

Zuckerberg yacht denial

United States By the time the crew of a yacht owned by Mark Zuckerberg heard a radio call to help a boat off the coast of Alaska another ship had gone to its assistance, a Meta spokesman said. A passenger on the cruise ship that gave help had claimed Zuckerberg's crew had refused to respond. The Meta chief and his family were not on board at the time.

Billion-dollar Odyssey

United States Christopher Nolanis The Odyssey crossed the $1 billion (£741 million) threshold at the weekend, his first movie to reach that level since 2012's The Dark Knight Rites ($1.08 billion). It is the director's biggest box-office hit, also eclipsing 2009's The Dark Knight ($1 billion). The Odyssey has one major market left. It opens in China on Friday.

Sex doll confuses police

Australia A lifelike sex doll was mistaken for a murder victim after it was found in a suitcase in a rural area of New South Wales. Homicide detectives began an investigation after the discovery but the object was quickly found to be a doll with clothes, hair and a nose piercing, as well as markings resembling bruises and grazes, police said.

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THE TIMES | Tuesday August II 2026

25

World

Uffizi focuses on its phone-fixated fans

Florence's Uffizi Gallery is scrubbing hundreds of statues, beefing up lighting, opening new rooms and putting in more QR codes and fountains as part of a €50 million facelift to handle rising visitor numbers (Tom Kington writes).

The upgrade covers rooms featuring works including Botticelli's masterpieces The Birth of Venus and Primavera, as well as Palazzo Pitti, the palace across the Arno river that houses works by Caravaggio, Raphael and Tintoretto but is overshadowed by the better known Uffizi. "Visitor numbers are increasing, so we need to distribute them better

to see all these works," said the Uffizi's director, Simone Verde.

Managers at the museum already juggle ticket reservations to ease pressure on peak times. Visitors are expected reach a record 5.3 million a year — up from 4.4 million in 2019 — and are set to rise.

"We must react to a growth which reflects the success of the gallery but is also the fact there are fewer and fewer places in the world we can visit now due to global crisis," Verde told the Times.

A portion of the money has been spent on remedies such as better air-conditioning, new barriers to stop crowds jostling priceless works, more benches for

tired visitors and a new orientation room at the entrance.

Verde said new descriptions next to paintings — including the Botticelli's — were geared to visitors glued to their phones. "A third to a half of visitors are either looking at phones or taking photos to post. We can't stop that but we can turn phones into tools to help the visit by showing QR codes

people can use to obtain descriptions, which are much better than complicated apps," he said.

Verde is pushing to get more visitors over the Arno to the opulent Palazzo Pitti, bought by the Medici family in 1549, seen as a precursor to the Palace of Versailles and later used by Italian royals.

Since 2024, visitors have been able to use

the same route to the Palace from the Uffizi as the Medicis once used — a 16th-century rooftop corridor that passes over shops, apartments and the Ponte Vecchio bridge.

The 200,000 people using the Vasari corridor annually to arrive at Palazzo Pitti emerge to see where the rest of the Uffizi's €50 million upgrade

Tourists are being urged by Simone Verde, below, the Uffizi's director, to visit Palazzo Pitti, left and far left, where many more works are on display

cash is being spent. Royal apartments have been reopened after years of closure, rooms in the so-called Volteranno wing used by the Medicis have been restored and a fashion exhibit has been moved into unused top-floor space with sweeping views over Florence, freeing up room for more art.

"There are wall fabrics which only date back to 1911 and which are being replaced," said Verde. The palace's Palatine Gallery, which is home to 500 paintings including Streping Cispid by Caravaggio, will have new lighting. "We have fixed the reflections which meant you couldn't see the paintings well. The results will be spectacular," said Verde.

In the Boboli Gardens, which rise up behind the palace, 150 water jets in a fountain have been reactivated, and moss and pollution have been scrubbed off 200 sculptures. "We are boosting Palazzo Pitti's reputation to help spread visitors around. People should come and see it — it's totally different now," Verde said.

Rush to convert chateaux to luxury hotels 'slams door on living history'

David Chazan Paris

Ask a French aristocrat about inheriting a château and their noble brow will probably furrow. They might look across the lawn at the castle ramparts, peer at manicured grounds with lofty dudum and scowl at the acres of parkland that disappears off the horizon.

Then, in all probability, they'll bend your ear about the ruinous price tag of it all.

The upper crust on both sides of the Channel has long complained about the crippling maintenance bills, failing roofs, faulty wiring and hefty inheritance tax that comes with the title and house. In France, this is leaving many heirs with little choice but to sell the family seat.

The buyers are increasingly developers who convert these vast, fragile properties into luxury hotels, but conservationists say alterations for access, fire safety and modern comfort can strip châteaux of their historic character.

They also argue that hotel conversions shut ordinary visitors out of heritage sites that they believe should be open to the public.

Julien Lacaze, the head of Sites et Monuments, a heritage organisation, said: "Turning a château into a hotel

Château de Mercuès in southwest France is now a hotel offering wine tourism

means losing a bit of history. You have to partition galleries and salons that were designed as enfilades, suites of interconnecting rooms, and you have to install bathrooms for each room so the character of the place is altered."

Conservationists say that the state should do more to help families keep their ancestral homes, for example by widening inheritance tax relief for certain protected historic monuments under specific conditions.

"We are for occupation by the traditional owners, with the château open to the public for a reasonable fee," Lacaze said. "When a château becomes a luxury hotel, staying there is beyond the reach of more modest visitors and if they just come for a drink at the bar, it's not the same as visiting a living château that's still the home of the family."

Developers say that they are careful to protect historic features when making alterations and must navigate a

maze of strict regulations for the restoration of listed monuments. Changes must be approved by the Architectes des Bâtiments de France (ABF), state architects specialising in heritage buildings who work under the umbrella of the culture ministry.

La Maison du Val, near Paris, was originally a royal hunting lodge. It was rebuilt as a small château for Louis XIV in the 17th century, and is now a four-star hotel.

Matthieu Evrard, chief executive of Les Hôtels (Tres) Particuliers, the group that bought the château, said the ABF had been particularly concerned about a cellar once used to store blocks of ice to preserve the king's food. "It was Louis XIV's icebox, you might say. The ABF asked me to give it prominence."

The château has 50 rooms, each costing about €360 a night.

An increasing number of châteaux and historic buildings are being turned into hotels or tourist accommodation. Among them are "maisons de campagne" near Paris, such as the Château de Villiers-le-Mahieu. More distant destinations include Château de Mercuès in the southwest and the Château de la Treyne, in the Dordogne.

"It's a good business model," Evrard said. "A museum needs 60,000 entries a year to break even, but a hotel can function

tion throughout the year and people can come in and just have a drink."

The Pierres d'Histoire group operates hotels in heritage properties with the stated aim of saving and reviving neglected historic buildings.

Dominique Imbert, its founder and managing director, said he was inspired by Britain's Landmark Trust, a conservation charity that saves smaller buildings that are at risk but are too modest to interest larger bodies such as the National Trust.

Pierres d'Histoire has adopted this model at the Domaine de Courances. It has left the château untouched and still occupied by the de Ganay family, which has owned it for generations. "The ancillary buildings were in ruins," Imbert said. His company has restored them and the former mill, the old pump house and the farmhouse are self-catering holiday lets, while the château itself is open for public visits at set times.

"Some areas at the Château de Fleury were in the same state the Germans left them in after the war," he said. "They needed a lot of work."

Conservationists such as Lacaze approve of the handling of Courances. "The public still have access to the château, and the conversion of the annexes for tourists contributes to upkeep," he said. "It's a good thing."

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26

World

Hungarians hope to be back on song

On an island in the Danube, nearly 100,000 music lovers a day will gather to dance to Florence + the Machine, Lewis Capaldi and Biffy Clyro, among others (Lili Rutai writes). The Sziget festival in Budapest is one of the largest cultural events in

Europe, but last year it came close to shutting after 30 years. This year's festival, which gets into full swing today, will be one of the first tests for Hungary's economy since Peter Magyar ended Viktor Orbán's reign. After the April election, consumer sentiment and business confidence began growing, fuelled by

Fans at Sziget in 2024. This year's event stars Florence + The Machine and Biffy Clyro

Magyar's assurances that he would kickstart the economy, prosecute corruption and convince the EU to release £14 billion in frozen funds. "I am hopeful that there will be a strong change of direction now," said Karoly Gerendai, who co-founded and owns Sziget. He sold it in 2017, but bought it back last year.

Founded in 1993, the festival has grown into a key part of the cultural scene and a leading tourist attraction. Cancelling it would cost the economy more than £70 million, according to an economic research institute. "Yet we haven't received any state funding for more than eight years," said Tamas

Kadar, its chief executive. He believes that in recent years the festival's support for LGBT rights in defiance of Orbán's policies led state-owned companies to refuse to support it. "What I'm sensing now is that there's a better mood," Gerendai said. In the second quarter of this year, GDP rose by 0.4 per cent, less than hoped.

Peter Virovacz, chief economist at ING Bank's Hungary branch, said: "Growth is growth, and the economy has been expanding for five quarters. After a period of stagnation, I think this is fine. "Perhaps the real growth is yet to come," he added. "I still think we have cause for optimism."

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Democrat's 'badass' move to freeze eggs

United States Joshua Thurston

Minutes before a live television interview in which she suggested she might one day run to be US president, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez was injecting herself with hormones.

"I think it's badass that I'm going to be giving myself shots in the green room, get my glam on, roll out, talk, international events, domestic policy, elections, pop out, live my life, do my thing," she told her 9.6 million followers on Instagram.

The Democratic congresswoman, 36, was announcing that she intended to freeze her eggs, to "feel more in control of my life", and would share the process online.

Ocasio-Cortez — known as AOC — was the youngest woman to be elected to the US Congress in 2018, representing New York's 14th district.

She acknowledged that sharing such a personal decision was a "political risk" in a series of Instagram stories posted over the weekend. But her announcement has fuelled speculation that the representative for New York is positioning herself for a future presidential run.

"Usually, I keep my private life quite private, but I have made the decision to start freezing my eggs," Ocasio-Cortez said in a live-streamed video on Saturday night.

"There is very strangely a political risk, or a political tax, that comes with sharing this info," she said, before adding that her aim was "to show more depictions of women having full lives in every context and every choice".

She added: "As women in general, we are not taught about our bodies, we are not prepared for our own lives, whether that is in puberty, whether that is in pregnancy, whether that is in perimenopause, menopause,

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez admits a political risk in what she is doing

whether that is in so many different aspects of our lives."

Her decision was quickly criticised by conservatives. Andrew Kolvet, the spokesman for Turning Point USA, said: "This is the message progressives spread when it comes to family formation and one of the reasons why fertility rates are cratering. Just freeze your eggs, kids! Pursue that career, even if you've been engaged for four years to a man you've known since college. AOC turns 37 in a few weeks so if she got pregnant tomorrow it would already be a geriatric pregnancy. This is not female liberation, it's a cautionary tale."

The lengthy egg-freezing process requires women to inject two to three hormone medications every day for about ten days, at least four pelvic ultrasounds, frequent bloodwork panels and surgery to retrieve the mature eggs.

In the interview, Ocasio-Cortez said: "In this political environment where this administration is denying

reproductive care to women across the country, from abortion rights to the ability to carry out a healthy pregnancy, I think it's important for us as leaders to have these conversations and share these processes, especially for working women across the country and normalise them."

Ocasio-Cortez's partner is Riley Roberts, who works in marketing. The couple have been together since meeting as students at Boston University and got engaged in Puerto Rico in 2022.

Ocasio-Cortez is a figurehead for the left of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America, which has surged in popularity in recent primary races, before November's midterm elections.

When asked if she would run for president in the 2028 elections after being shown polling reflecting her popularity as a potential candidate, Ocasio-Cortez said: "I haven't ruled out the possibility."

She said she was "hambled" by the support and also did not rule out a possible run for the Senate seat held by the minority leader, Chuck Schumer, of New York.

More than 28,000 women in the US elected to freeze their eggs in 2023, according to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, a national network of clinics.

Women opt to have the procedure for many reasons, including to preserve their eggs and ability to have children if they are undergoing chemotherapy or other treatments that could affect their fertility.

But many healthy women who are not ready to have children during their biologically prime reproductive years also use the process. Emilia Clarke, the Game of Thrones actress, and Vicky Pattison, the former reality TV star, are among those who have done so.

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27

Business

WORLD MARKETS (Change on the day)

COMMODITIES

CURRENCIES

Harvey Nichols says it could go under if no buyer comes to its rescue

Isabella Fish Guy Taylor Retail Correspondent

Harvey Nichols has warned that it could collapse without a rescue deal, as Mike Ashley's Frasers Group closes in on the struggling department store chain.

The luxury retailer said in accounts filed this week that it would 'cease trading' if it was unable to find a buyer and no additional funding was provided. No new financing had been agreed when the accounts were signed off on July 30.

The owner of Harvey Nichols, Sir Dickson Poon, put it up for sale in June and talks to sell all or parts of the company are at an advanced stage.

Frasers is the frontrunner to buy the business, as first reported by Sky News. Next, the FTSE 100 retailer that had entered takeover talks too, is said to still be involved in the process. A deal is expected to be announced imminently.

A source at one of Harvey Nichols's landlords said a takeover by Frasers would probably mean regional stores

trade under the Flannels label, although Ashley has indicated an intention to leave the Harvey Nichols shop in Edinburgh, alongside the Knightsbridge flagship, untouched. The retailer has 13 shops globally, including seven locations in the UK and Ireland.

The business has struggled in recent years, resulting in heavy financial losses, due in part to fierce competition from online rivals.

Industry onlookers argue that the retailer had under-invested in its retail

offering compared with rivals such as Harrods and Selfridges.

The company has not made a profit since the pandemic. Revenue fell to £184.8 million from £204.8 million in the year to the end of March 2025, while losses before tax widened to £49 million from £34 million. The gross margin improved from 44.1 to 45.7 per cent.

A Harvey Nichols spokeswoman said: 'If a sale is not completed and if no additional funding is provided, the group will become a non-going con-

cern. Hence, the accounts were filed on a non-going concern basis.'

Frasers has built a reputation for acquiring distressed brands via 'pre-pack' administrations — a process where a target firm briefly enters insolvency so Frasers can buy its assets without taking on its accumulated debts.

This strategy is controversial as shedding these liabilities leaves suppliers, landlords and creditors unpaid for debts of millions of pounds. Ashley's potential Continued on page 29

John Lewis boss heads for the exit

Peter Ruis out after less than three years

Isabella Fish Retail Editor

The John Lewis boss who revived the retailer's 'never knowingly undersold' pledge is exiting the department store chain after two and a half years.

The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns Waitrose, said Peter Ruis had decided to step down to 'pursue new projects'. He will leave on September 6.

Ruis, who has been managing director of the department store chain since January 2024, will be replaced by Will Kernan, a non-executive board member of the partnership.

Kernan, who is chairman of Neptune, an upmarket furniture retailer, has held several senior retail leadership positions over the past 35 years. He was chief executive of River Island, the White Company and Wiggle, and spent 13 years at New Look.

Kernan said: 'Having served on the partnership's board for three years, I have a clear understanding of the John Lewis business and a huge appreciation for the partnership's values and employee-ownership model.

'We have significant headroom for growth and I'm looking forward to leading the team to ensure John Lewis remains the country's most trusted and loved retailer, in store and online.'

Ruis rejoined John Lewis after working at the company from 2005 to 2013. He was given the job of leading the department store chain through the 'next phase of its transformation' as it attempted to reverse falling sales.

John Lewis, which operates 34 department stores across the UK, has

been undergoing a turnaround after struggling with online competition and falling high street demand.

Ruis spearheaded a major brand transformation by investing heavily in revamped beauty halls, reinstating the famous 'never knowingly undersold' promise and bringing Topshop back to physical high-street retail through nationwide store partnerships.

This year the group issued a 2 per cent bonus to its 66,000 workers for the first time in four years.

The employee-owned group posted a profit before tax and exceptional items of £134 million for the year to the end of January, up from £126 million a year earlier. However, it swung to a statutory loss before tax of £21 million, compared with a £97 million profit the previous year, after one-off charges including a writedown of old technology.

Sales rose 5 per cent to £114 billion. The bulk of the growth came from Waitrose, where sales climbed 7 per cent to £8.5 billion. The department store arm, John Lewis, reported sales growth of 3 per cent to £4.9 billion.

Last week the retailer warned profits would be squeezed by lower sales as it faces 'really tough' trading conditions.

Ruis said: 'After nearly three years of significant investment and modernisation, the business is now on a much stronger footing.'

Jason Tarry, chairman of the partnership, said: 'Peter has done a fantastic job and will be missed by all of our partners. He's injected energy and pace into the John Lewis transformation and we are sad to see him go.'

Beyoncé's whiskey brand SirDavis, established with Moët Hennessy, was named after her great-grandfather, who was a 'moonshiner' during the Prohibition era

Beyoncé takes full hit of whiskey

Jessica Newman Leisure Industries Correspondent

Beyoncé has acquired full control of the whiskey brand she established two years ago with LVMH, the French luxury goods group.

The American singer collaborated with Moët Hennessy to create SirDavis in 2024. The whiskey is named after Beyoncé's great-grandfather Davis Hogue, who was a 'moonshiner' in her home state of Texas during Prohibition.

LVMH confirmed recent reports that it has sold its stake in the venture but declined to provide further details regarding the transaction. Moët Hennessy is the wine and spirits division of LVMH that includes the whisky brands Ardbeg and Glenmorangie.

Beyoncé's whiskey, which won awards even before its release, was created with the expertise of Moët Hennessy's Bill Lumsden, a pioneer renowned for his work on Glenmorangie and Ardbeg. The Scot is a five-time International Whisky Competition master distiller of the year.

SirDavis, an American whiskey with Japanese and Scotch inspiration, features a mash bill of 51 per cent rye and 49 per cent barley and is finished, blended and bottled in Beyoncé's home town of Houston.

As well as wine and spirits, LVMH is the luxury powerhouse behind Louis Vuitton and Thor. The company was founded by the billionaire Bernard Arnault, who is France's richest person.

Beyoncé, a whiskey enthusiast, is one of a number of celebrities who have boosted their fortunes by developing, expanding and in some cases selling spirits brands, including her husband Jay-Z and Sir David Beckham.

In 2017 Diageo, the world's largest spirits group, spent $1 billion on Casamigos, the tequila brand co-founded by the actor George Clooney. The number of celebrity-backed tequilas has grown in recent years, with the model Kendall Jenner and actor Matthew McConaughey launching their own brands.

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Need to know

1 Thames Water has handed its chief financial officer a £1 million "sign-on" payment and reached retention agreements with about a dozen senior bosses, prompting renewed calls for the government to put the troubled company into special administration. Page 10

2 The John Lewis boss who revived the retailer's "never knowingly undersold" pledge is leaving after two and a half years. The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns Waitrose, said Peter Ruis was stepping down to "pursue new projects". Page 27

3 Harvey Nichols has warned that it could collapse without a rescue deal, as Mike Ashley's Frasers Group closes in on the department store chain. Page 27

4 Beyoncé has acquired full control of the whiskey brand she established two years ago with LVMH, the French luxury goods group. The American singer collaborated with Moët Hennessy to create SirDavis in 2024. The whiskey is named after Beyoncé's great-grandfather Davis Hogue, who was a "moonshiner" during Prohibition. Page 27

5 The Co-op's chairwoman, Debbie White, has stepped down with immediate effect after only two and a half years in the role, the latest in a growing list of senior departures from the mutual. Shirine Khoury-Haq left the company in March after four years as chief executive.

6 The final week of the World Cup helped to increase retail sales last month, although the summer heatwave kept consumers away from the high street, analysis suggests. Page 30

7 The financial betting giant Plus500 reported strong first-half results, with revenue up 12 per cent year-on-year, after launching its prediction markets in the United States to allow trading on the outcome of real-world events. Page 33

8 The defence technology group Cambridge Aerospace has raised $300 million at a $3.4 billion valuation, just two years after it was founded. Page 35

A trade war between China and the European Union is looming

George Magnus, page 31

For expert business analysis subscribe to the business newsletter thetimes.com/newsletters

Rugby star set for €50m payday after drinks brand sale

A former professional rugby player is in line for a payday of about €50 million after selling the drinks business he founded to the maker of Vimto (Brian Carey writes). Gary Lavin, who played for Leinster and Harlequins, has sold VitHit to the Aim-listed soft drinks maker Nichols for €75 million. Lavin was recovering

from a rugby injury when he came up with the idea for the low-calorie, low-sugar drink made from a blend of teas, juices, water and vitamins. It claims to give "100 per cent of the recommended daily allowance of eight vitamins". After more than a quarter of a century building VitHit, Lavin has decided to step away from the running of the business

following the sale to Nichols.

VitHit sells in 15 markets and generates more than €26 million in annual revenues. About 40 per cent of its sales are in the

Republic of Ireland and another 40 per cent in the UK.

Lavin, who was chairman and owned more than 70 per cent of the business, said Nichols was "the ideal

partner to support the next stage of the brand's development".

His brother Troy Lavin, VitHit's chief executive, will stay on for up to six months as the business integrates.

Nichols said VitHit was an "excellent strategic fit", strengthening its position within the "significant and growing" health and wellness corner of the

Co-op chairwoman quits as leadership shake-up widens

Guy Taylor Retail Correspondent

The Co-op's chairwoman, Debbie White, has stepped down with immediate effect after only two and a half years in the role, the latest in a growing list of senior departures from the mutual.

Her exit comes just a few months after the resignation of Shirine Khoury-Haq, who left the company in March after four years as chief executive.

The Co-op had faced allegations of a "toxic" executive culture, which it did not accept, and was suffering the fallout from a cyberattack in 2025 that cost it more than £200 million in lost revenues.

White, who became chair of the Co-op in February 2024, succeeding Allan Leighton, will be replaced on an interim basis by Moni Mannings, a senior independent director.

It means the company is on the hunt for a permanent chief executive and chair. Matt Hood, the managing director, also stepped down earlier this summer as part of a wider shake-up.

White said it had been a "privilege" to serve as chair during a period that has "brought both opportunity and challenge for our businesses", adding that the actions taken in response to the cyber-

Shirine Khoury-Haq, former chief executive, left, and Debbie White have departed

attack were having a "positive impact".

"As our position strengthens, and with the process to appoint a permanent group chief executive under way, I feel it is the right time to step down as chair as I near the end of my first term on the board, as I am not in a position to commit to a further three-year term as chair at this time."

The Co-op, which remains one of the

world's largest mutuals with more than 2,300 food shops and 800 funeral homes, reported annual pre-tax losses of £126 million for the latest financial year, down from a profit of £45 million in the previous year.

Then, in February, accusations surfaced of a "toxic culture" at executive level, with certain senior staff scared to raise concerns about the direction of

the business in front of management. A letter to the board, reported by the BBC, alleged that "leadership behaviours have significantly degraded the leadership culture at the company".

Other sources highlighted sinking morale and abrupt departures, alongside a "sharp drop in profits and a rocketing of food waste".

The Co-op strongly defended its culture and leadership at the time. There have been some early signs of recovery in recent months from the lows of the cyberattack. The latest figures from Worldpanel by Numerator showed that sales rose by 5.6 per cent year-on-year to nearly £2 billion over the 12 weeks ending July 12, while market share also edged higher to 5.4 per cent.

White claimed the business was "back in a position of stability and opportunity", which had made her decision "easier".

Mannings, the retailer's interim chairwoman, said "Debbie has provided unwavering commitment and valuable counsel to the Co-op during her time as chair. On behalf of the board, council, leadership team and colleagues across the Co-op, I would like to thank her for her significant contribution and wish her every success in the future."

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Business

Gary Lavin founded VitHit after suffering a rugby injury, the brand has been sold to the Vimto maker Nichols

there is “significant headroom” to grow the brand.

Milne said his first priority was to start building VitHit’s distribution across Nichols’s existing customer base in the UK and to continue to develop the brand’s formats, including its cans of sparkling soft drinks and multi-vitamin powders.

Analysts at Singer said the deal marked a significant shift for Nichols, adding that a “single-brand story just became two”.

Vimto was invented in 1908 by John Noel Nichols, a wholesaler of herbs, spices and medicines, who saw an opportunity to market a herbal tonic that provided “vim and vigour”. Today Vimto is sold in more than 60 countries and has been the unofficial drink to break the Ramadan fast in parts of the Middle East for more than a century. The sugar hit is all the greater because it is sold in more concentrated form than in Britain.

Other Nichols licensed brands include Sunkist, Levi Roots and Slush Puppie.

In the past few years Nichols has set its sights on the more health-conscious consumer. In 2021 it teamed up with the THG-owned Myprotein and last year it announced a partnership with Applied Nutrition, the supplements business, which led to the rollout of Vimto-flavoured electrolyte tablets and energy gel.

In September Nichols plans to launch a new range of Vimto-flavoured protein waters with MyProtein.

The VitHit acquisition is expected to result in Nichols reaching its medium-term target to deliver annual revenues of at least £225 million earlier than forecast.

In the six months to the end of June, the company delivered sales of £89.5 million and a pre-tax profit of £15 million.

Growth was recorded across all of its markets, but Africa, where Nichols is localising production, was the best performing region with packaged sales up 17 per cent.

Shares in Nichols, which are up 11 per cent since the start of the year, produced another gain yesterday, up 20p, or 1.9 per cent, to £10.60.

Burnham ‘may raise taxes by £25bn’

Chris Dorrell

Andy Burnham could raise taxes by as much as £25 billion in the autumn budget to fund his spending pledges, economists have warned.

Households would be likely to face the brunt of the higher tax burden, according to Capital Economics, with extra revenue going towards the defence budget and cost of living support.

“This tax-raising budget may be almost as big as the last, but with the balance tilted away from hikes on businesses seen in recent years towards tax hikes on capital, wealth and income,” Ruth Gregory, deputy chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said.

“Some of the PM’s more ambitious

pledges may be delayed beyond this year’s budget,” she wrote in a research note. “If spending is to rise (perhaps by up to £30–40 billion) taxes will need to rise too (perhaps up to £20–25 billion)”

Since entering office in July, Burnham has promised to deliver the “biggest council housebuilding programme since the postwar period” and to increase defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP by 2035. He has also announced a range of smaller measures to support households struggling with cost of living pressures, such as a cap on bus fares and lower energy bills.

However, Burnham has said he will stand by the fiscal rules, which limit his ability to increase borrowing.

The new prime minister and John

Healey, his chancellor, have also committed themselves to honouring Labour’s manifesto pledge not to increase VAT, national insurance or income tax, which account for the majority of the tax take.

Burnham’s team has been considering plans to increase capital gains tax, which is paid on profits made from shares, investments and some types of property, to help fund public spending.

Gregory said that Burnham may choose to delay some of the tax rises to avoid a large single hit to households real incomes.

She estimated that if taxes were to rise by £25 billion, equal to about 0.8 per cent of GDP, then the tax burden would rise to a new high of 39 per cent of GDP.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27 Harvey Nichols rescue

takeover of Harvey Nichols follows this exact model.

The retail tycoon, who owns Sports Direct, Flannels and Frasers, said he expected the retailer to be sold for less than £40 million. Poon bought Harvey Nichols for £53 million in 1991.

Sky News reported that a number of suppliers stocked at Harvey Nichols had raised serious concerns about getting paid under Frasers, citing their experiences during its brief previous ownership of MatchesFashion.

Fashion brands stocked in the department store chain include Armani Beauty, Balmain, Cartier, Juicy Couture, Lancôme, Max Mara and Nike.

Behind the story

Harvey Nichols’s current woes are the result of a gradual loss of relevance rather than one single failure (Isabella Fish writes).

A brand once seen as synonymous with luxury fashion has been challenged by rivals that have invested more aggressively in their physical stores and online platforms.

Meanwhile, Harvey Nichols has admitted that it became less certain about its core customer, while its online operations did not keep pace with changing consumer expectations.

This was especially damaging as luxury shopping increasingly moved online and younger consumers became an important market.

Harvey Nichols appears to have been caught between the reputation it built in its 1990s heyday and the expectations of the modern luxury consumer.

Industry onlookers say its challenge is therefore to rediscover a clear customer proposition and invest quickly enough to make the brand relevant again.

Vistry’s ex-boss has weak foundations

BUSINESS COMMENTARY Ben Martin

Greg Fitzgerald, the former boss of the FTSE 250 housebuilder Vistry, arguably has a track record of leaving behind companies with weaknesses in their foundations.

Take Galliford Try, the construction group he ran for about a decade until relinquishing executive duties in 2015.

True, when he set out his plan to stand down in 2014, Galliford was in good shape, with Fitzgerald having steered the builder through the 2008 house price crash and overseen a boom in profits. It was only after Fitzgerald left Galliford that a big problem that had its roots under his leadership became apparent, namely the ill-fated, £345 million fixed-price agreement in 2014 for its construction division to build the Aberdeen bypass along with Balfour Beatty and Carillion.

Granted, as Fitzgerald points out, Galliford’s construction board and its Plc board signed off on the Aberdeen deal, as did Balfour and Carillion. It also took until 2017 for Galliford to sound a warning about the contract, after Fitzgerald had stepped down as non-executive chairman in November 2016.

Still, even Graham Pruthen, who was Galliford’s finance director at the time the Aberdeen bypass agreement was secured, would later reportedly describe it as a “mad” idea to build a 36-mile route for a fixed price. Indeed, the overall cost of the project would ultimately balloon above £1 billion thanks to a series of problems, including the 2018 collapse of Carillion, and result in financial hits for Galliford and Balfour.

A similar reversal of fortune has happened at Vistry, although this time the builder’s problems began to materialise before Fitzgerald, 62, left earlier this year. As with Galliford, Fitzgerald looked to have pulled off a blinder at Vistry. Called Bovis Homes when he took charge in 2017, the builder was in trouble at the time he arrived, only for Fitzgerald to achieve a remarkable turnaround. He then won further plaudits in 2023 by announcing a shift in strategy to focus Vistry towards a “partnership” model that involved building properties for big institutional landlords and housing associations.

Yet a string of profit warnings in 2024, caused mainly by Vistry underestimating the cost of building some sites by £165 million, dealt a severe blow and its “partnership” approach was part of the problem. This was because Vistry mainly agrees fixed-price contracts with housing associations and build-to-rest players, meaning it couldn’t pass on unexpectedly higher costs.

Throw in a warning about margins this March, when Fitzgerald also announced his plan to retire, and investors are becoming increasingly concerned about Vistry’s finances, what with the builder shouldering average daily net debt of £799 million in the first-half of this year, against a stock market capitalisation of £791 million after its shares slumped by about 60 per cent in the last year.

Adam Daniels, Vistry’s new chief executive, is focusing on cash

generation, partly by discounting some houses to try to boost sales, but the moribund state of the wider property market presents a challenge.

In this context, it’s unsurprising that investors yesterday took fright at reports that Allianz Trade was paring back credit insurance cover for Vistry’s suppliers (report, page 31).

Vistry insisted that “credit insurers continue to provide substantial cover for our supply chain” and that it is “not aware of any supplier withdrawing trade from Vistry due to credit insurance changes”. Still, the worry among investors is that if an insurer ends up pulling cover, suppliers to Vistry will seek payment from the builder upfront, further stretching its cash flow. And while Vistry has in recent months sought to allay shareholder concerns that it may be forced to tap them for cash, nervousness about the position of credit insurers will add to investor unease.

A cash call by Vistry would draw another parallel with Galliford, which in the end raised £150 million from a rights issue in 2018 to cover the Aberdeen bypass cost overruns and strengthen its brickwork.

Thames’s fast Buck

Andy Burnham’s government may well decide that temporary nationalisation via a special administration regime (SAR) is the answer for Thames Water, given the utility is sinking under the weight of about £20 billion of debt and its liquidity is seeping away. But would an SAR resolve the thorny topic of executive pay at the troubled company?

True, the revelation yesterday that sewage-spilling Thames last month paid a deferred £1 million signing-on fee to Steve Buck, after he joined as its finance chief last year, leaves a very bad smell (report, page 10). So do all the other payment structures that different utilities have recently adopted that allow them to counter rules introduced last year that enable Ofwat, the water industry regulator, to ban executive bonuses if serious environmental incidents or other failings occur at the companies they run.

Campaigners have used the disclosure of the £1 million for Buck to renew their calls for Thames to be placed in an SAR. But as Sir Adrian Montague, the Thames chairman, has argued in a letter to Alistair Carmichael, the chairman of the Commons environment, food and rural affairs committee, the troubled utility faces recruitment and retention “pressures” that are “a function of the company’s circumstances and would persist in special administration or in a nationalisation”. Montague added: “The special administrator, or the government as the case may be, would therefore also need to address them through additional payments to retain, recruit and motivate those needed to operate and turn around the company.”

The contentious issue of executive pay would simply become someone else’s problem.

benjamin.martin@thetimes.co.uk

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Business

'Burnham bounce' propels consumer confidence to two-year high

Jack Barnett

Economic confidence has risen to its highest level in nearly two years in the latest sign of a "bounce" in consumer sentiment under Andy Burnham.

Barclays' consumer sentiment index climbed to 30 per cent in July, a 21-month high and up by six percentage points compared with the previous

Expectations for household finances and job security both improved in July

month. It measures confidence in the UK economy.

The bank's figures came after GfK's long-running consumer confidence index rose by the quickest pace in nearly three years over the same period.

Barclays also said that card spending rose by 2 per cent on an annual basis in July, a slight increase from June's gain

of 1.9 per cent. The football World Cup and record hot weather drove up demand, the bank said.

Confidence in job security and household finances both improved over the month, which covered the period in which Burnham succeeded Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister.

Rohan Kumar, head of client insights at Barclays, said: "Card spending

strengthened further in July, reaching its highest level for 12 months, with both essential and non-essential spend remaining in growth.

"Multiple factors played a part, with UK staryations, continued warm weather and England's World Cup run lifting spending on travel, hospitality, everyday essentials and seasonal retail categories."

MARIO FÉRES/FASTY BETTY IMAGES

Rivers run dry Cargo vessels on a stretch of the Danube near Sarengrad, Croatia, lie stranded because of low water levels. Commercial shipping on a key section of the Rhine near Koblenz also risks coming to a halt because of the drought. Road haulage restrictions have been lifted in several German states to ease bottlenecks

Too hot to shop: retail sales inch higher but heat takes toll

Jack Barnett Economics Correspondent

The final week of the World Cup helped to increase retail sales last month, although the summer heatwave kept consumers away from the high street, analysis suggests.

Figures from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG, the consultancy group, showed that retail sales rose 1.3 per cent in July compared with the same month last year.

Despite the year-on-year increase, the rate of annual sales growth dropped from 1.9 per cent in June. July's increase was also below the six-month average of 1.8 per cent.

Analysts said that spending habits were influenced by the final week of the World Cup in July, especially in alcohol and snacks.

However, there was a lack of demand for non-essential products over the month, they added.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the retail consortium, said: "July saw modest sales growth, with food sales boosted by the final week of the World Cup. Non-food sales were hit by the de-

The sweltering weather hit sales of non-food items, apart from clothing

cline in footfall as shoppers avoided the heat. Clothing was a bright spot, driven by demand for affordable summer es-

sentials, while footwear struggled to keep up." She added: "Shoppers also prioritised smaller indulgences such as beauty products and fashion jewellery, while delaying bigger-ticket purchases including furniture and computing."

Linda Ellett, UK head of consumer, retail and leisure at KPMG, said: "The prolonged warm weather has aided home entertaining and garden-related purchases and, coupled with England's progress to the tail-end of the World Cup, brought a boost to food and drink sales in July."

The British Retail Consortium and KPMG estimated that food purchases increased by 3.8 per cent annually last month compared with an increase of 2.8 per cent in the previous month. Non-food purchases, which include clothes and electronics, dropped by 0.7 per cent.

The retail sales figures come after a series of encouraging economic statistics in recent weeks. GfK's long-running consumer confidence index climbed at the fastest monthly pace in nearly three years, while inflation fell faster than expected to 2.6 per cent an-

usually in June and the economy returned to growth in May. A survey of the labour market found that permanent hiring did not contract for the first time since Liz Truss's premiership nearly four years ago.

The Bank of England opted to leave interest rates unchanged at 3.75 per cent at its latest monetary policy committee meeting in July.

Rising confidence is typically associated with a revival in consumer spending. The improvement in GfK's index, which started in the 1970s, coincided with Andy Burnham succeeding Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister, leading some analysts to claim the UK had undergone an economic "Burnham bounce".

Data due to be published on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics is expected to show that gross domestic product contracted by 0.1 per cent in June. The Bank of England expects output to flatline in the three months to September.

The ONS's latest estimate for monthly retail sales in Britain suggests they increased by 1 per cent in June.

French bank licence sets Revolut on hiring spree

Jack Barnett

Revolut is planning to hire 600 new employees in western Europe, with the majority taking up posts in France after the challenger bank secured a banking licence there.

The recruitment plans come after Revolut, which is based in London, said that it would make France its "western Europe HQ". It has already pledged to spend $1.1 billion on its French expansion plans.

About 400 of the 600 new staff will be based in France. The banking licence in France is granted by the ACPR, a banking regulator, and the European Central Bank.

Revolut has been able to provide banking services in the European Union via a "passporting" scheme using its Lithuanian licence, which it secured in 2018. It will now be able to offer products more tailored to French borrowers.

Nik Storonsky, Revolut's founder and chief executive, said: "France has become a leading financial hub, supported by a dynamic financial ecosystem and a robust regulatory framework.

"It is the ideal platform to accelerate Revolut's next phase of growth — bringing us one step closer to our ambition of becoming one of Europe's largest and most trusted banks."

$1.1bn

Spending pledged by the challenger bank on expansion in France Sonia Rivioli

The Financial Times has previously reported that the ECB imposed growth restrictions on Revolut that would dictate how it releases certain products. The central bank was quoted as saying that Revolut had "deficiencies" in its risk controls.

Customers in France will be moved to the French entity first, followed by Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain, Revolut said. The digital-only lender has more than 75 million customers but no physical bank branches.

As a signal of its intention to make France its European base, Revolut has hired the former chief executive of Société Générale, Frédéric Ousé, as its western Europe chairman and has signed a decade lease in Paris.

The decision comes after European-focused banks shifted workers out of London to the Continent following the 2016 Brexit vote. UK regulators granted Revolut a banking licence in March. Rachel Reeves, when she was chancellor, tried to set up a meeting between Revolut and the UK's financial watchdogs only for her efforts to be stymied by Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England.

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Business

George Magnus

Why China's booming technology sector won't save its real economy

There is no such thing as "the" Chinese economy. There are, in fact, two economies.

One comprises the modern, dynamic manufacturing sector that features constantly in tech coverage and over which people fawn for often different reasons. This economy is about China's successful electric vehicle, battery and solar/wind manufacturing, other products and processes and, of course, artificial intelligence.

In July Moonshot AI released its Kimi K3 frontier model to wide acclaim, and gasps in Silicon Valley. In AI models, if not in hardware, raw compute or chipmaking, China is still on track to catch up with its American counterparts. AI investment is also, as in the US, one of the main contributors to whatever Chinese GDP growth is.

China's so-called strategic emerging industries, long nurtured and supported by the party-state, now feature several world-class products and global brands. They reveal that in industrial policy, China's very large but is paying off in terms of output, dynamism and reputation, even if not consistently with regards to productivity and commercial viability.

The other economy is the other 85 to 90 per cent of GDP, which grabbed the headlines when Covid-19 ravaged the world and while Chinese property was in freefall, but is now often sidelined in favour of the more exciting industrial stories. It shouldn't be.

This summer it was again centre stage as China's official (but probably exaggerated) GDP for the second quarter revealed a lower-than-expected 4.3 per cent annual growth rate, after 5 per cent in the first quarter. The quarter-on-quarter growth rate of 0.9 per cent was one of the weakest on record.

In short, China's property sector is now in its fifth year of contraction. New home prices in some large urban agglomerations such as Beijing and Shanghai are starting to stabilise, but elsewhere the story is still grim. The labour market is predominantly low skill and low wage. Consumption gets support in rhetoric but not that much in renminbi. China's high debt burden (more than 300 per cent of GDP) and unemployment, stalled productivity growth and overproduction have

In July Moonshot AI showcased its acclaimed Kimi K3 frontier model in Shanghai

become common features. Behind all this lurk pronounced fiscal and financial sector weaknesses.

Chinese exports, though, have been doing well. Yet this isn't good news either. Net trade accounted for perhaps as much as a third of total GDP growth last year — extraordinary for a $20 trillion economy. This speaks to China's unique fusion of industrial and trade policies. The trade surplus of more than $1.2 trillion is likely to be repeated this year. This is not about comparative advantage and efficiency, but about repressed household demand, an undervalued currency, the unprecedented support of industrial policy measures and the political drive for self-reliance.

China's export volumes have grown by about 40 per cent since 2019, but import volumes are almost unchanged. So much for the oft-heard politicians' quip of China being the world's growth engine.

China's two economies exist, of course, in the same space. Yet one is all about too much supply and excess capacity — a charge the ministry of commerce has vigorously denied in a recently published paper in favour of

foreign petulance. The other is all about inadequate demand, and the persistent need by Beijing and local governments to stimulate the economy every year. The July politburo meeting read-out seems to suggest that more is on the way. The irony is that it is the same set of industrial and other policies that is producing this dichotomy.

The National Development and Reform Commission summed it up, unintentionally, to the National People's Congress in March this year. It echoed the self-congratulatory manufacturing and tech bullishness of President Xi, other leaders, and the newly announced 15th five-year plan.

Yet it also wrote the more rueful comment that: "The imbalance between strong supply and weak demand is acute; real-estate development investment continues to decline; infrastructure investment growth has turned from positive to negative; manufacturing investment growth has slowed further; overall investment faces mounting downward pressure; consumption growth lacks momentum, and the price level continues to run low."

Unsurprisingly, there was no

commentary in the Chinese state media about this, but the commission is right. The economic growth model, strategy and policies that are triggering pride over a vibrant manufacturing sector that is serially checking boxes on low prices and innovation are precisely the same ones that are delivering lacklustre consumption, including of housing and vehicles, and now also a reported slump in private investment (including property).

Early indicators of activity for July were not good. Typhoons may have affected industry and construction, and the government may conceivably act this year to provide further stimulus so as to hit the year's growth target of 4.5 to 5 per cent.

The government will also be banking on exports, but there are limits here. A trade war between China and the European Union is looming, not least because China's self-reliance and industrial policies have caused its export structure to resemble increasingly that of many EU nations.

This has squeezed EU firms — German especially — at home, in China and in third markets. Trade pushback from countries as diverse as India, Indonesia, Brazil and Turkey is also on the rise as they too begin to react to the threat to their own industrialisation from waves of cheap Chinese goods imports.

China's fundamental problem is how to resolve the dichotomy between the small but dynamic manufacturing sector, and the much larger rest of the economy, which presents with unsustainable debt levels and debt capacity limits, misallocated capital, weak demand and employment, overproduction, and fiscal and financial weaknesses. Actual economic growth may be no higher than 2 to 2.5 per cent. No matter how good Chinese industrial firms are, they are not going to solve these problems. Only extensive reforms

and resource transfers can. The government hasn't the will, and time is not infinite.

George Magnus is a research associate at the University of Oxford's China Centre and SOAS University of London, and a former chief economist at UBS

Vistry shares drop again after credit cover pulled

Tom Howard Property Correspondent

Vistry's battered share price fell once again yesterday after it emerged that a credit insurer had cut the cover it extended to the developer's supply chain, putting more pressure on its finances.

Last week Travis Perkins, the builders' merchant, said during its half-year earnings call that credit insurance had been pulled from a "fairly significant national housebuilder". The rumour was that the unnamed company was Vistry and the Financial Times reported that Allianz Trade had adjusted its credit limits for Vistry's suppliers.

Suppliers can buy credit insurance to protect themselves if a customer fails to pay for goods and services. When coverage is withdrawn, they may demand payment upfront.

Stephen Rawlinson, an analyst, said the "lack of such insurance is clearly seriously unhelpful", although he added that if it was hampering Vistry's trading the company "would have said so".

A Vistry spokesman said there had been "no interruptions to our supply chain". He added: "We are not aware of any supplier withdrawing trade...due to credit insurance changes. Credit insurers continue to provide substantial cover for our supply chain, which more than meets the group's requirements."

Vistry shares, which had already halved so far in 2026, dropped a further 345p, or 12.2 per cent, to 249p yesterday.

The housebuilder has been in recovery mode since the end of 2024, when it admitted to underestimating the cost of building out nine sites in southern England by £165 million. Greg Fitzgerald, its previous chief executive, had pivoted the business towards a "partnerships" model, building homes for housing associations and institutional landlords such as Blackstone, but institutional demand has quietened amid economic uncertainty, while housing associations have been waiting for their next round of government funding.

Adam Daniels, the new chief executive, has sought to strengthen the balance sheet by selling land to other developers and cutting house prices. Vistry is still publicly targeting a net cash position — more cash than loans outstanding — "in excess of" £100 million by the end of this year, having averaged net debt of £799 million in the first half.

Should it have to start paying upfront for materials, or suppliers increase prices to cover higher insurance premiums, that is likely to make Vistry's net cash promise even harder to deliver.

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Speakers include

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---

32

Business

Kospi chaos: ‘The country has turned into a casino’

In their book, Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles, William Quinn and John Turner propose that bubbles tend to form when three developments have taken place: increased retail participation in a market after improved access to buy and sell a parti-

cular asset, a sharp rise in lending by banks to finance such wider participation and, lastly and perhaps most importantly, speculative fervour.

Quinn and Turner believe that bubbles have the same creation process as fire: participation provides the oxygen, credit provides the fuel and speculation provides the heat. The spark tends to be

the creation of a new technology or the introduction of new government policy.

The day-to-day double-digit gyrations in the value of the Kospi, South Korea’s primary stock index, certainly share similarities with Quinn and Turner’s description.

On July 31 the Kospi logged its largest one-day gain of 18 per cent. Two days

earlier it had fallen by 12.6 per cent, triggering an intraday trading halt of 20 minutes.

“The country has turned into a casino,” Lee Jongwook, an opposition policymaker, said in a recent parliamentary hearing.

Domestic retail investors and foreign capital have poured into South Korea’s equity markets in recent years. Leverage has spread throughout the market via newly introduced complicated investment vehicles and market participants, like everywhere, have been making wild bets on the future earnings potential of companies exposed to the artificial intelligence boom, pushing the Kospi sharply higher.

However, the positive benefits that these catalysts provided over the past 18 months are heading into reverse, triggering wild daily market moves.

The Kospi is home to companies that are at the technological and AI frontier, and two names take the limelight: SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, both linchpins in the global chipmaking industry.

Such has been their ascent over the past year that they make up about 60 per cent of the index’s entire market cap, illustrating just how much hope investors have placed in the AI ecosystem to make them money and how closely tied the Kospi’s fortunes are to these titans. Wall Street’s S&P 500 has similarly become concentrated in AI-linked stocks, but to a lesser degree.

The Kospi’s meteoric rise would not have been possible without these chipmaking behemoths, which have been dubbed the “twin towers” of the index. The pair have ridden the AI trade over the past year owing to their importance to the introduction of AI infrastructure around the globe, much like America’s Nvidia and Taiwan’s TSMC.

At their peak, shares in SK Hynix and Samsung were, respectively, up 348 per cent and 200 per cent since the beginning of the year. Recent falls have tempered those gains, but they are still up 130 per cent and 92 per cent apiece.

Although the Kospi suffered the largest drop among the world’s largest stock indexes last month, it still boasts the best year-to-date return at about 50 per

cent. It also claimed that accolade across the 2025 calendar year.

The index’s wild rollercoaster ride of the past couple of years has been a source of lively debate on popular investor chat sites.

One Reddit user, who goes by the username “No Mercy 4 Potatoes”, said in response to just one of a handful of double-digit rises in the index at the end of July: “Never seen an index act like [a] penny stock before.” Another, under the username of Macaron-No5646, said: “We had meme stocks, now we have meme stock markets.”

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Serica pulls out of bidding war for Pharos — for now

Emily Gosden Energy Editor

Serica Energy, the North Sea oil producer, has said it will not raise its offer for Pharos Energy after being outbid by £300,000 for what would have been its first international acquisition.

Pharos, which is listed in London and has assets in Egypt and Vietnam, agreed a £124.3 million deal to be taken over by Israel’s Ratio Petroleum Energy in June. Serica gatecrashed that deal last month, with an offer worth £1457 million.

However, on Friday Pharos said that Ratio had returned with a sweetened £146.4 million offer, and the board has now switched its support back to Ratio. The deal is worth 31.75p per Pharos share in cash and dividends, a premium of 29.2 per cent to the closing price the day before the original deal was announced.

Serica said yesterday that the terms of its offer were final and would not be

increased. “Serica retains a highly disciplined approach to M&A,” it said. Serica reserved the right to increase its offer if a third party other than Ratio entered the fray.

Chris Cox, Serica’s chief executive, had previously described the acquisition of Pharos as “a compelling opportunity to deliver a first step in our longstanding strategic objective of adding to the diversification of our business through international expansion”.

Analysts at Panmure Liberum said: “Given that there is no certainty that Ratio will be able to secure the financing (as it needs to raise equity and secure debt) to complete the deal, it is possible that Serica may still have an opportunity to acquire Pharos if Ratio fail to get the money together.”

Shares in Pharos closed down 25p, or 6.9 per cent, at 31½p last night, below Ratio’s offer price. Serica rose 9½p, or 4.3 per cent, to close at 239½p.

---

33

Business

Although the Kospi's rally has been turbocharged by SK Hynix and Samsung, its origins lie in an overhaul to South Korea's corporate governance code enacted last year that, primarily, diluted the power of large shareholders in the country's family-owned industrial champions, known as chaebols, and ensured that company directors have a fiduciary duty to all shareholders rather than just the big ones.

Interest in the country's stock market took off after the market reforms, which were designed to eliminate the "Korea discount".

Udith Sikand, senior emerging markets analyst at Gavelal Research, said: "The initial stages of the rally were driven by improving macro fundamentals, cheap valuations and reduced policy uncertainty."

Naturally, this blistering rally piqued the interest of ordinary South Koreans who wanted to piggyback on it to share in the spoils.

A tactic used by traders to magnify their profits is to invest in a publicly listed fund that tracks the performance of a specific stock or a collection of stocks, but which also uses borrowed money to

multiply any returns made by the underlying equities. These vehicles are called "leveraged exchange-traded funds" (ETFs) and, up until May this year, they did not exist in South Korea. Several were launched that month, mostly following the share price movements of SK Hynix and Samsung.

The South Korean government realised that domestic investors, keen to participate in the Kospi's rally, were simply buying leveraged ETFs via overseas exchanges. To counteract this, they encouraged their usage at home to prevent money flowing abroad.

The Kospi, South Korea's stock market, has been gripped by sharp daily swings

Leveraged ETFs are great when everything is going up because they can double, triple or even quadruple returns to investors, which South Koreans hoped to achieve — about $10 billion has, on net, flowed into these instruments since they launched.

Sikand said: "The more recent frenzy is largely the result of excess leverage (both at home and abroad) finding its way into pushing up stock prices."

Leveraged ETFs are terrible when everything is going down because they magnify losses, which can lead to forced selling and bring an overall stock market lower.

A global sell-off in tech shares, which started about late June but has since

60% Combined share of the Kospi's market value held by Samsung and SK Hynix Source: Korea Composite Stock Price Index

eased up, hit Korean retail investors hard, leaving them facing margin calls on leveraged positions, prompting further selling. Money managers also trimmed exposure to the Kospi and booked profits in South Korean equities in general after the rally resulted in their portfolios being too overweight on the country.

Lee Jae Myung, the country's president and a self-proclaimed investor, has suffered a sharp fall in his approval ratings since the Kospi fell about 40 per cent from its peak in June. Many blame his administration for fuelling the market frenzy.

Analysts believe that the Kospi's daily gyrations are down to the launch of these new ETF products — the

wildest swings started shortly after their introduction. Sean Darby, an equity strategist at Mizuho, the Japanese investment bank, said: "A proliferation in leveraged ETFs and strong retail activity meant that speculative forces overwhelmed fundamentals." Cindy Park, head of Korea equity research at Nomura, also a Japanese investment bank, said: "Forced selling has also contributed to market volatility through a self-reinforcing deleveraging cycle."

South Korean authorities have clamped down on leveraged ETFs, months after they championed them, by preventing new listings and raising the minimum deposit required to invest. A 20 per cent cap on how much of an individual's portfolio can be invested in these products was also introduced. Darby said: "This has helped prick the bubble to allow share prices to reflect fundamentals."

Park thinks there is more red tape to come. She said: "We believe key policy developments in the second half of the year may include tighter regulations of single stock-leveraged ETFs."

These corrective measures should help dampen the wild daily movements — but, ultimately, the high concentration of South Korea's blue-chip index in SK Hynix and Samsung means that its fortunes are closely tied to global investor sentiment towards the AI trade, which has itself been very choppy this year.

Quinn and Turner claim that not all bubbles are economically and socially harmful. Just look at the British railway mania of the mid-1800s that revolutionised travel, and the dotcom bubble, which engineered the rollout of the internet.

Time will tell whether the AI trade ends up scorching everything in its path.

Plus500 bet on US expansion pays off

Charlotte Bend

The financial betting giant Plus500 reported strong first-half results after launching its prediction markets in the United States to allow trading on the outcome of real-world events.

Revenue for the FTSE 250 fintech group reached a three-year high, up 12 per cent year-on-year to $462.9 million, lifted by income from trading that offset a fall in global interest rates.

Plus500 said its move into the prediction markets sector in February, followed by sporting events in June as the World Cup got into full swing, was set to generate annualised turnover from the division of about $140 million.

A 17 per cent increase in new customers set the foundation for a five-year high for customer income. Profit before tax was up from $181.8 million to $183.2 million year-on-year in the six months to June 30.

Shares of Plus500 rose 80p, or 2.1 per cent to £38.36.

The group kept its annual earnings

The company launched its prediction markets business in the US this year

and revenues outlook unchanged, after a number of upgrades this year.

David Zruia, Plus500 chief executive, described the period as "outstanding" as the company continued its transformation from a single-products business to a "diversified global multi-asset" group.

It expanded its over-the-counter (OTC) operations to Canada, through

the online investment management service Wealthsimple, and Latin America via the region's leading financial market provider, Nelogica.

Its non-OTC business, which includes the new prediction markets and sports contracts, delivered revenue growth of about 30 per cent year-on-year. Analysts at Cavendish said this performance boded "extremely well" for the future.

The company announced $182.5 million in shareholder returns, about 20 per cent ahead of the forecast. This comprised $100 million in share buybacks and $82.5 million in dividends, bringing total returns since its float to approximately $3.1 billion.

Plus500 made its London debut on Aim in 2013 before upgrading to the main market in 2018.

The company, which is based in Israel, has customers in more than 60 countries, with its main market presence in the UK and the rest of Europe, Australia, the United States and the Middle East.

Marshalls paves its way to profit despite dip in sales

Charlotte Bend

Cost-cutting at a London-listed landscaping and roofing products supplier helped it to weather a dip in first-half revenue, with a healthy rise in pre-tax profit.

Marshalls said it had enjoyed a recovery in its landscaping products unit, which had been under pressure from falling demand for maintenance work as well as a rise in competition.

This helped the company's adjusted pre-tax profit to rise 13.2 per cent to £24.9 million in the period ended June 30, reflecting an increase in operating profit and lower financial expenses. The adjustments related to an acquisition and a restructuring exercise.

Underlying pre-tax profits rose by 68.4 per cent compared with the same period a year ago, to £19.7 million.

As Britain grapples with contracting residential and commercial construc-

Cost-cutting helped to offset weakly demand at the landscaping supplier

tion due to rising inflation and higher raw material prices, Marshalls has been exiting unprofitable operations and adjusting its manufacturing capacity to shore up profitability.

---

14

Business

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Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	935.45		-1.55
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	936.45		-1.54
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	3106.52		-1.67
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	3106.48		-1.65
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	949.86		-1.66
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	3034.12		-1.57
Gold Bt Int F t A/c t	949.46		-1.69
Gold Bt Eq Fund A A/c t	1107.96		-0.31
Gold Bt Eq Fund A A/c t	3148.81		-0.28
Gold Bt Eq Fund A A/c t	3178.39		-0.83

Marine Growth A/c t	106.87		-0.2562	0.30
Marine Inv A/c t	472.3		-0.6604	5.47
Marine Wkrd A/c t	611.51		-0.6799
UK Business Equity A B/c t	297.99		-0.3995	2.75
UK Growth t	202.3		-0.6462	0.63
UK Income Trust t	3038.57		-0.5660	4.50

LEGAL & GENERAL (UT MANAGS) LTD

Enquiries: 0070 000 0955 Dealing: 0070 000 0956

Euro Ind A/c t	820.9886		-250.8000	190.00
Euro Ind Inv t	991.0000		-250.8000	190.00
Fixed Int A/c t	291.6000		-120.8000	460.00
Fixed Int B/a t	612.3000		-140.8000	460.00
Global Health t	231.4000		-90.00
Gold F t A/c t	200.4000
Equity Inv A/c t	1200.0000		-250.8000	180.00
Japan Ind A/c t	111.2000		1.0000
Pacific Ind A/c t	432.7000		-150.8000	140.00
UK Public Trust A/c t	945.7000		-150.8000	190.00
UK Main Trust A/c t	1241.6000		-150.8000	190.00
US Ind A/c t	1420.8000		-50.00
Worldwide A/c t	471.2000		-50.8000	96.00

M&S SECURITIES

Exp:0000 390 390 Dealing Line: 0000 320 3196

Authorized Inv Funds

Charcoal Inv t	1000.42		-5.2	5.31

Gold Dr Fund A/c t	1478.6		-0.32
Gold Dr Fund A/c t	51.29		-2.52
Asia Income A/c t	100.00
Amer Exp (On A/c t)	296.20
GM A B t M A/c t	202.3		-1.57
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1376.29		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1356.29		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34

Gold Dr Fund A/c t	1478.6		-0.32
Gold Dr Fund A/c t	51.29		-2.52
Asia Income A/c t	100.00
Amer Exp (On A/c t)	296.20
GM A B t M A/c t	202.3		-1.57
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1376.29		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1356.29		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34
Gold Equity Fund A/c t	1354.22		-0.34

SANTANDER UNIT TST MGRS

00007 412002

Equity Inv A/c t	244.0
Should Smt A/c t	250.0000
UK Growth A/c t	106.5
UK Growth A/c t	315.4

SCOTTON MUTUAL INV MNGRES LTD

0565 248 6200

For Customer A/c t	1217.0700	649.0700
Mutual For Customer t	1351.5180	1625.2400	-0.27	0.39

	Soft	Buy	+/-	Y/N %
Mutual Bt A/c	1429.0900	1938.7600		7.01
UK Equity Inv	562.2500	593.0000		7.01

SCOTTON WIDOWS UNIT TRUST MNGRS

0045 388 2344

Overseas Growth Investment Funds

Tracker & Special Investment Funds

UK Smt A A/c t	687.3		-1.00	2.93
UK Smt A A/c t	1254		-0.69	2.95

UK A Income Investment Funds

---

35

Business

Defence start-up valued at $3.4bn

The fast-growing defence technology group Cambridge Aerospace has raised $300 million at a $3.4 billion valuation, just two years after it was founded.

The series C round increases the company's total funding to $636 million since it was set up in 2024. The round was led by DFJ Growth, a San Francisco-based investor.

The funding will be used to expand the development of its missile and drone interceptor systems, as well as its manufacturing capabilities.

Cambridge Aerospace is developing a low cost anti-drone interceptor called Skyhammer, which is in production, and a rocket-powered interceptor missile, Starhammer, that is built for high-speed targets such as cruise missiles and is set to come to market next year.

The company had earlier raised $200 million at a $1.3 billion valuation in April, a funding round co-led by the entrepreneur and investor Elad Gil and the venture capital firm Spark Capital, and has received a number of Ministry of Defence contracts. Gil is among the investors in the latest round, along with Lux, Accel and Lakestar among others.

The MoD announced in April that it was buying Skyhammer air defence systems from Cambridge Aerospace, with deliveries starting from May.

Skyhammer, which began development in January 2025, has a range of more than 30km and a top speed of 700km/h, enabling it to intercept drones and low-speed missiles.

The company was among 13 UK-based defence firms that met Gulf ambassadors in March as part of an MoD-convened meeting to discuss new equipment and technology that could support regional allies to counter Iranian drone and missile attacks.

In June, Cambridge Aerospace signed a deal with Kawasaki Heavy Industries to build a manufacturing facility in Japan, as part of a broader tech partnership between the UK and Japan.

Cambridge Aerospace has about 250 employees, mostly in the UK, and is led by Steven Barrett, its chief executive, who relocated to Cambridge in 2024 to become replus professor of engineering at

the university. He had moved from the US, where he was head of aeronautics and astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Sir Grant Shapps stepped down as Cambridge Aerospace's chairman in April after the former Conservative defence secretary was found to have breached the rules on ex-ministers' business appointments. Shapps, who lost his seat at the 2024 general election, was defence secretary under Rishi Sunak. Barrett said the company had a 'singular mission to protect Allied skies' and the funds 'will allow us to con-

Dan Jarvis, the former defence secretary, is briefed on drone interceptors at Cambridge Aerospace this year; left, former chairman Sir Grant Shapps

tinue to scale our manufacturing and our delivery to meet the pace of threats'. Cambridge Aerospace is in talks with the US government.

He has said the company is able to produce its interceptors at a lower cost

and greater volume using technology, such as artificial intelligence, and its 'highly driven, ambitious talent'.

'Ukraine feels very close when you move back to the UK after a period thousands of miles away,' Barrett said.

'And it seems really obvious that we had a desperate need for cost-effective air defence. You can see that every day in the news and that was obvious even a couple of years ago.'

Randy Glein, managing partner at DFJ Growth, said: 'We surveyed the global landscape and identified Cambridge as having the best team and technology to build the most advanced and modern air defence infrastructure for Europe and its allies.'

The government is working to focus more state procurement on UK start-up and scale-up companies to accelerate their growth.

Wes Streeting, the defence secretary, said: 'It is exactly what our unicorn scheme is designed to create British start-ups scaling into billion-pound companies, creating skilled jobs, cementing the UK's position at the forefront of defence innovation.'

GameStop toys with eBay tie-up plan

Tom Howard

GameStop, the American video game retailer at the heart of the so-called meme stock trading frenzy during the Covid pandemic, is considering abandoning its audacious $55.5 billion takeover bid for eBay.

The GameStop chief executive, Ryan Cohen, is instead mulling over a form of partnership that would allow eBay to take advantage of GameStop's 1,600 or so physical stores, according to Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the discussions.

Ebay shares were down 2.9 per cent in afternoon trading in New York to $108.67, while GameStop shares were down 0.5 per cent to $19.07.

GameStop first announced its unsolicited cash-and-stock bid for eBay in May, valuing each share at $125. Cohen, 40, said that he would run the combined group and that there were $2 bil-

lion of annual costs that could be removed within 12 months. He also said that eBay 'could be a legit competitor to Amazon'.

Ebay's board rejected the offer but Cohen vowed to pursue a deal 'one way or another' and bring together the world's biggest gaming retailer with one of the oldest names in ecommerce.

Cohen first found success as the co-founder of Chewy, a pet food retailer that he set up in 2011 at the age of 25 and sold for $3.35 billion in 2017, before turning his attention to GameStop.

His bold move for eBay immediately raised eyebrows, given the online auction and marketplace, with a stock market value of $48 billion, is almost five times as large as GameStop.

Since that offer was lodged, GameStop's shares have fallen 28 per cent while eBay's have risen 8 per cent, further compounding the difficulty that Cohen and his team would have in

trying to make the maths add up. GameStop had not made a final decision on whether to abandon its offer, Bloomberg said. GameStop and eBay were contacted for comment.

If the two parties go down the partnership or joint venture route, it could potentially allow them to increase their market share in high-margin categories such as trading cards and collectables.

GameStop, as eBay's second-target shareholder, having built a 9.8 per cent stake since February, would want a seat on its board as part of any future partnership.

In 2021 GameStop was gripped by an extraordinary rally as amateur traders co-ordinated in online forums to drive the share price higher, inflicting painful losses on hedge funds that had bet on the company's demise as gamers moved from physical dics and cartridges to downloads.

Sales of used cars return to growth after five years

Charlotte Bend

Britain's used-car market returned to growth, with more than two million second-hand vehicles sold for the first time in a second quarter since 2021, according to new figures.

Demand rose particularly sharply in April, up 110.9 per cent, and May, up 57.6 per cent, coinciding with fuel price rises linked to the conflict in the Middle East, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

With 2,009,318 vehicles changing hands, the performance offset the marginal decline in the first quarter of 2026, delivering overall market growth of 0.2 per cent in the year to date, with 4,025,550 transactions.

Mike Hawes, the society's chief executive, said: 'A return to growth is good

news for motorists and the wider automotive sector, with sales of used EVs rising particularly strongly as more choice reaches more buyers.

'As the used market is where most people buy their cars, plentiful and affordable supply is vital. However, increasingly unrealistic targets in the new car market risk constraining that supply and pushing up costs.'

There was strong demand for battery electric cars, with transactions up 67 per cent. Between April and June, more than one in 18 buyers made the switch, up from about one in 30 a year earlier. Hybrid electric vehicles also rose, up 31.2 per cent, while plug-in hybrid transactions fell by 6.8 per cent.

However, almost nine in ten buyers still chose conventionally fuelled cars in the quarter.

---

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17

Markets Business

Robert Stephens Tempus Buy, sell or hold: today's best share tips

A likely winner in battle to rearm

BAE SYSTEMS

Market cap | First-half rev £66.6 billion | £146 billion

BAE's share price has risen by 10 per cent since it released half-year results at the end of last month, which included upgraded financial guidance for the full year.

This means that the FTSE 100 aerospace and defence firm has generated a 28.3 per cent capital gain over the past five years. This is 232 percentage points greater than the wider index's capital return over the same period.

Clearly, some investors will question whether it is too late to buy the stock given its inflated market valuation. But with strong earnings growth prospects, excellent finances and a buoyant long-term industry outlook, could further index-beating capital gains lie ahead?

While BAE was formed in 1999 via the merger of British Aerospace and Marconi Electronic Systems, the company can trace its history all the way back to the gunpowder mills at Waltham Abbey in 1961. Concorde and the Avro Lancaster have been among its most famous products.

Today, the company is the largest defence contractor in both the UK and Europe, and the joint-fifth biggest in the world. Its products span a broad range of areas, from combat aircraft to warships and from cybersecurity to combat vehicles. The US and Britain are its main markets, accounting for 47 per cent and 25 per cent respectively of sales in the first half of its current year.

For the full financial year, BAE now

Flying high

ADVICE Roy WHY The company's earnings growth rate should provide further index-beating capital gains over the long run

expects to post earnings per share (EPS) growth of 11 to 13 per cent. This is up from a previous forecast of 9 to 11 per cent. And with the company expected to deliver a further 15 per cent rise in EPS next year, it offers highly attractive near-term growth potential given its status as one of the largest stocks in the FTSE 100.

In the longer term, of course, the firm's financial performance is set to benefit from continued geopolitical uncertainty. Even if

conflict in the Middle East and Europe gives way to lasting peace over the coming months, which seems extremely unlikely at present, recent events in both regions and elsewhere have prompted a renewed focus on military spending in several big Nato countries.

Their push to spend 3.5 per cent of GDP annually on core defence by 2035 — part of a broader 5 per cent target and up from a previous figure of 2 per cent that many members formerly struggled to meet — means that BAE's wide range of products are likely to be in high and sustained demand.

And while the pace at which various countries reach the target is likely to ebb and flow, a lasting "pro-defence" shift in attitudes among politicians should ultimately catalyse the firm's top and bottom lines.

Alongside its upbeat EPS growth prospects, BAE has a very strong financial position. Its half-year results, for example, showed that it had a net debt-to-equity ratio of just 40 per cent. They also highlighted that net interest costs were covered 6.8 times by operating profits during the six-month period.

Both figures provide scope for the firm to make acquisitions in order to further catalyse its financial performance after brisk mergers and acquisitions activity over recent years. They also allow it to utilise excess capital to fund share buybacks, rather than pay down debt, with the latest iteration being a three-year £1.5 billion programme that is due to last until mid-2027.

Of course, BAE's aforementioned share price rise over recent years means it now has a relatively rich market valuation. It trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 29.5, for example, which is more than 50 per cent higher than the FTSE 100's earnings multiple of 18.

While this means there is limited scope for a material upward rerating, which may naturally lead some investors to determine that the stock lacks investment appeal, even the company's upbeat EPS growth prospects in isolation should equate to capital gains that are substantially higher than those of the wider index over the coming years.

When combined with its excellent financial position, this means that BAE continues to offer a highly favourable risk/reward ratio on a long-term view. As a result, it is not too late to buy its shares — even after their stunning performance over recent years.

NEWS IN BRIEF

A tonic for breweries

The pace at which independent breweries in Britain shut for good slowed significantly in the first half of 2026, offering a glimmer of hope after a torrid few years for the sector.

At the end of June the UK had 1,550 independent breweries, according to the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (Siba), after a net 16 breweries closed in the first six months of the year.

The number of closures marks a sharp slowdown on the previous year, when a record 137 breweries collapsed, equating to nearly three closures a week. By region, Scotland suffered the most, losing nine breweries in the first half of the year, while eight disappeared in the northeast and four closed in both the Midlands and Northern Ireland.

However, Siba's UK brewery tracker found a number of new brewing facilities opened up in pockets of the UK. Three new brewing facilities opened in the northwest, and in the southeast and Wales. Andy Slee, the chief executive at Siba, warned that that despite the green shoots of recovery for many breweries "the struggles are not behind them."

"Brewing businesses which have managed to weather the storm are seeing strong demand for independent beer," he said. "But profitability is still a concern with lack of access to pubs, high taxation and high production costs hitting brewers."

Bespoke travel sales boost

Growing demand for bespoke holidays has boosted sales at Travel Counsellors, whose platform connects holidaymakers to thousands of self-employed advisers. The Manchester-based firm said that over the past four weeks, group sales rose 11 per cent year-on-year, with particularly strong demand for cruises, up 24 per cent. Trips to the Mediterranean increased by 13 per cent, driven mainly by Italy and Greece. Travel Counsellors, which helps to plan trips for both corporate and leisure clients, said long-haul trips were resilient: sales to the US were up 10 per cent over the period, and to Africa by 69 per cent.

Hg Capital trades up

Strong trading performance from portfolio businesses helped Hg Capital to stabilise its net asset value in the second quarter after a volatile start to the year. The FTSE 250 investment trust, which backs private companies, said estimated NAV return per share was 0.5 per cent in the three months to June, against minus 5.4 per cent in the first quarter. But continued weakness in listed software stocks forced the business to write down the valuation of unlisted companies in its portfolio by 5 per cent in the second quarter. Private equity firms have to benchmark their unlisted holdings against publicly traded peers.

Amazon tech for Novo

Novo Nordisk, the maker of Wegovy weight-loss treatments, has agreed a strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services to speed up drug discovery. The Danish company and the US technology giant have created a "co-innovation" hub within Novo's existing London facility, where engineers and scientists from both companies will use AWS's artificial intelligence technologies alongside Novo Nordisk data in an attempt to accelerate the costly process of drug development leading to first human dose. AWS will be Novo's preferred cloud provider and strategic AI partner.

Wealth warnings send tobacco stocks lower

MARKET REPORT

For British American Tobacco, analysts at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) gave with one hand and took with the other. While raising the target price on the stock by £2, they remained gloomy on the wider market, hitting BAT's share price (Christopher Dorrell writes).

"We retain our underperform rating as we continue to see downside risk to the group's profitability over the mid-term," they wrote in a research note. In particular, they highlighted the company's 'adverse category margin mix' as a likely drug on future earnings, as BAT transitions to products with lower profit margins, such as vapes. Shares in the company ended the day 193p, or 44 per cent, lower at £42.28.

Fellow tobacco giant Imperial Brands also shed £27 p, or 4.6 per cent, to close at £26.64 as investors were not impressed by a report from Bloomberg that the company is preparing to cut thousands of jobs in key markets including the US and Europe. Like BAT, Imperial faces pressure as it pivots away from tobacco. It wants to make £120 million of annual savings by the end of the decade.

A company spokesperson said that its "multi-year programme" would

Wall Street report

US markets closed in the red as continued uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher. Investors were also looking ahead to a crucial CPI reading on Wednesday, which will shed more light on the persistence of inflationary pressures in the world's largest economy. The S&P 500 lost 4.53 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 7,753.11. The Nasdaq Composite shed 85.26 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 26,605.36, while the Dow Jones industrial average fell 60.95 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 53,975.98.

The day's biggest movers

Company	Ours
Schuhalfen Fund	5.8%
Ithaca Energy	4.2%
Fresville	3.5%
Oxford Nanopore	3.2%
Playtech	2.7%
Imperial Brands	-4.6%
Coca-Cola HBC	-4.8%
WPP	-5.0%
Oxford Biomedica	-5.3%
Visby	-12.2%

Stock check Shein is reportedly pitching to potential investors in its Hong Kong IPO at a valuation below $30 billion, a drop of about 70 per cent from its peak

"have an impact across our global market footprint".

The weakness in tobacco stocks contributed to the broader FTSE 100 blue-chip index closing 38.59 points, or 0.75 per cent, lower at 10,862.50. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was down 110.32 points, or 0.44 per cent, at 24,744.54.

RBC analysts were more hopeful on Chemring. They suggested the FTSE 250 munitions maker was well placed to benefit from declining missile reserves. "Stockpile depletion across missile programmes continues to drive a sustained restocking cycle and Chemring remains

one of few Nato-qualified suppliers able to respond at scale," they wrote. Its shares rose 11p, or 1.75 per cent, to 6.38p.

Oil prices gained amid doubts that the Strait of Hormuz will open imminently. Iran insisted that the US must meet several demands, including ending sanctions, before the strait can re-open. Brent crude was trading 3.56 per cent higher at $8714 per barrel.

Visby shares fell to the bottom of the FTSE 250 after it emerged a credit insurer had cut the cover it extends to the housebuilder's supply chain. Its stock dipped 345p, or 12.2 per cent, to 249p.

---

18

Business

EQUITY PRICES

Dividend yields Please note dividend yields are supplied by UCE Data Services. The yield is the sum of a company's annual 12-month dividend payments divided by the last day's closing share price.

12-month high and low High/low prices for UK equities and investment trusts are based on intra day figures.

12-month High Low Company		Price b/d	Forecast YrR%

Automobiles & Part

831,	1921, Inter Merito Lay	355,-	( \frac{1}{2} )	( -0.7 )

Banking & Finance

310	1777, Advertisem Group	2035,-	25	52	11.6
	51, Ansh 1994	45,-			-1.6
4968	2629, Admiral	1998	-	88	13
6403	4003, N1601	648	-	25	13
10763	11572, ROR (top)	26999,-	-	16.7	4.9
2189	799, Altschulz	839	-	25	4.6
2562	1182, Altshore Group	1355,-	-	5	16
21362	1403, Australia & NZ	10975,-	-	375	5.9
1752	1993, Bishak	747	-	35	5.6
11211	674, Basso Sottander	1092	-	4	15
5945	1953, Barclayes	513	-	2	12
172	4, Riaz Star Capital	45,-			-2.2
710	613, SP Pinnel & Pinnel	675	-	5.4	5.1
3635	212, Dohpantel Inc	1405,-	-	15	15
817	1949, Pincross	560	-	6.6	6.7
492	349, Cite of London Inc	406	-	6	6.0
1161	1063, Pines Bros	4350,-	-	20	-4.3
752	262, CMC (Nobles)	692	-	2	10
29573	2067, Deutsche Bank	20375,-	-	135	10
53	14, USA Access (http)	19	-	5	4.5
3405	136, DTC Special Sign	111	-		-0.7
59	57, Fisher	672	-	1	5.9
92	86, Provable Services NCT	10	-	4.0	15.5
4360	2213, Georgia Capital	4410	-	19	-2.7
17	401, Wessner Estate	52	-	5.6	40.0
230	194, Hales & NOK	225	-	4.5	7.7
2969	1767, Mocque	1867	-	22	2.3
3410	9275, MGBC	31361,-	-	25	1.6
2916	1016, IG Group	1160	-	17	1.1
304	981, Impa Acum (Type 4)	1121,-	-	5	1.0
2360	1420, ICSI	2032	-	14	4.3
1895	1170, Ind Public Policy	1425,-	-	5	4.2
499	499, Invescloc	615	-	25	5.7
45	58, Nordstrom Co	75	-
155	48, IP Group	595,-	-	5	1.0
24	61, Euro Securities	9	-	4.0	1.3
2142	1123, Jupiter Food (Oper)	161	-	5	1.7
304	149, Lancashire (App)	1901	-	40	1.0
1101	1175, Legal & General	1111,-	-	35	1.0
1700	1009, Line Finance Group	1700	-	60	1.0
289	220, Standard Asset Agent	1695,-	-	15	4.2
41	39, Overseas Ins Co	375,-	-	5	1.3
1175	175, Lloyds Bankhop	1145,-	-	5	1.5
21	14, UBC Capital	155,-	-	5	20.0
8104	6669, London Stock Exchange	10	-	10	1.0
1615	147, MGBC	3625,-	-	5	1.7
1171	1345, Rian Group	110	-	15	4.1
195	29, Rian Financial Co	24	-	3.1	4.4
10	12, Rian Bank (Loy)	5	-	-	-13.6
1095	981, Metro Bank	1755,-	-	5	-21.3

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

PRICES

Major indices

New York

Dow Jones	53975.98 (-66.95)
Nasdaq	26605.36 (-95.26)

S&P 500	7753.11 (-4.53)

Tokyo
Nikkei 225

Hong Kong	25937.49 (+269.46)

Amsterdam
Amsterdam AEX

1113.39 (+1.88)

Sydney
Australia A0

Frankfurt
DAX

DAX	26323.88 (+4.43)

Singapore
Singapore Straats

Brucsels
Brucsels SEL20

57	5767.78 (+9.93)

Paris	47	8726.03 (+11.18)

Zurich	1	1	1
Zurich 5M	14633.70 (+68.79)	1	1

Zurich DJ Euro Since 50	6935.62 (+11.76)

London	1	1	1
FTSE100	18062.50 (-18.59)	1	1

FTSE250	24744.54 (-110.32)
FTSE350	9920.02 (+2.61)

FTSE Exvelop 100	5126.20 (+12.28)
FTSE A0 Share	5895.29 (-23.25)

FTSE Non Financials	6405.14 (-26.07)
Youtthens Focus	9500.92 (+14.10)

US$	1.2520 (+0.0032)

Euro	1.1794 (+0.0038)
S&H	8.9892 (+0.0037)

CH Jun (2015-108)	142.5
RP Jun (1907-100)	416.5

RPA Jun (1907-100)	416.5
RPA Jun (1907-100)	409.7

---

19

Business

INVESTMENT COMPANIES

12 monthHigh Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E	12 monthHigh Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E	12 monthHigh Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E	12 monthHigh Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E
0%	0 Export Resources	0%	-	9.7	5%	25 Prozone Energy	1%	-	-	0%	0 Forward	0	-	-	0%	0 Forward	0	-	-
3495	2912 EMF Group	3351	-	5	3.3	25%	5%	0%	-	10%	2 Prozone Energy	0%	-	-	10%	2%	0%	-	-
14	75, Easler & Mica Res	10%	-	-	0%	7	10	-	-	10%	2 Prozone Energy	0%	-	-	10%	2%	0%	-	-
2215	109, Bouquivalle	20%	-	-	0	0	0	-	-	0%	0 Forward	0%	-	-	0%	0	-	-	-
4995	1995 BIP	5245	-	75	4.7	-	4415	0%	-	10%	772 Prozone Holdings	0%	-	-	0%	0	-	-	-
0	0 Consumer Energy	0	-	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0	-	-	-
0%	15, Cabana Minerals	9	-	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0	-	-	-
5%	0 Cabana Energy	1%	-	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0	-	-	-
2960	1250 Celestria Mining	1000	-	10	2.3	5%	1000	0%	-	0%	1, 2, 3, 4, 5%	0%	-	-	1%	1%	0%	-	-
1%	15, Capone Services	1%	-	-	1%	1%	1%	0%	-	0%	1, 2, 3, 4, 5%	0%	-	-	1%	1%	0%	-	-
144	1255 Cork Asia Metals	202	-	25	1.9	4.6	2%	0%	-	0%	1, 2, 3, 4, 5%	0%	-	-	1%	1%	0%	-	-
2%	15, Chard 10%	1%	-	-	-	-	1%	0%	-	0%	1, 2, 3, 4, 5%	0%	-	-	1%	1%	0%	-	-
0	0 Central Energy	0	-	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-
0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-
10%	0 Crista Therapeutics	30	-	-	0%	0%	0%	0%	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-	0%	0%	0%	-	-
4005	1005, DBC Gold	2765	-	5	2.3	16%	4415	0%	-	0%	1, 2, 3, 4, 5%	0%	-	-	1%	1%	0%	-	-
4%	0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
0%	0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
0%	0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
0%	0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
0%	0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

12 monthHigh	Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E	12 monthHigh	Low	Company	Price(yr)	ForwardVMS	F/E
4495	1025	IB Group	2800	-	64	3.6	5.2	539	1840, Inverse Asia Deeper F-MHOL	-	2
3945	529	B Infrastructure	304	-	5	5.5	12.0	1395	2190, Inverse Food Inst	1395	-	7.2
1950	1000	Elizabeth Soda	1700	-	2	2.8	27.0	637	313 Inverse Oil & Gas	630	-	1	1.8
1991	1170	Alliance Wilkes	1066	-	2	2.1	74.9	1250	1040	APB Americas	1046	-	4	0.9
460	121	Ameria Oil Labor Lead MIO	0	2	1.9	12.1	1.5	852	199	APB Asia & Gas	539	-	5.5	-
110	1100	Alliance Trust	0	2	6.2	14.9	1.5	1315	1395	APB Global	1015	-	4%	4.8
255	1295	AM Global	2625	-	31	1.7	51.0	986	788	APB America	980	-	4	1.7
394	1540	AM Japan	349	-	15	1.3	57.5	130	1185	APB Emu D&M Co	1475	-	7%	8.1
131	160	Audite Oil Fuel	124	-	5	4.1	-	2015	1235	APB Emu M&G	1015	-	11	4.7
1265	93	Audite Oil Fuel	16	1.6	-	1	0.6	666	540	APB Japan Euro	630	-	0	1.5
1006	1011	Audite Oil Fuel	1000	-	10	6.9	-	321	545	APB Emu M&G	303	-	2	1.0
1395	125	Audite Oil Fuel	131	-	1	4.4	-	681	1095	APB Global	1075	-	1	1.9
231	1105	Audite Oil Fuel	86	2.9	-	2.7	36.9	1090	799	APB Global	892	-	12	5.6
1015	1215	Audite Coherent	262	-	5	5.9	47.5	850	655	APB Japan	840	-	3	1.0
1345	100	APB Japan	430	-	5	5.1	-	1190	1095	APB South	4495	-	2	4.7
470	100	APB Japan	1000	-	5	-	0.0	1290	1075	Asia Industrial	1160	-	0	1.9
1750	809	DeAndre Growth	3690	-	6	-	-	1390	540	Lebanon	109	-	1	1.6
1095	197	DeAndre West	100	-	1	5.2	-	390	540	Lebanon	109	-	1	1.6
300	110	DeAndre Equities	60	1.9	25	3.2	12.1	1190	1095	DeAndre	1185	-	25	-
260	1625	DeAndre Equities	100	-	25	3.9	26.3	209	2100	DeAndre	1185	-	25	26.9
625	957	Elizabeth Int'l Care	433	-	1	1.2	29.0	607	536	Elizabeth Trust	600	-	5	4.4
230	290	Elizabeth Net&Co	231	-	2	2.3	31.0	904	600	Net&Co	794	-	1.5	-
2005	1200	Elizabeth Sain	262	-	6	1.8	32.2	1644	1264	Wales Inc Trust	1630	-	10	0.1
2005	1145	Elizabeth Sain	1015	-	5	1.9	47.5	1100	142	Wales Inc	1105	-	2	0.9
1825	1275	Elizabeth Sain	1045	-	5	1.9	26.7	1605	2995	Wales Inc	1105	-	2	0.6
625	957	Elizabeth Int'l Care	433	-	1	1.2	29.0	607	536	Elizabeth Trust	600	-	5	4.4
230	290	Elizabeth Net&Co	231	-	2	2.3	31.0	904	600	Net&Co	794	-	1.5	-
2005	1200	Elizabeth Sain	262	-	6	1.8	32.2	1644	1264	Wales Inc Trust	1630	-	10	0.1
2005	1145	Elizabeth Sain	1015	-	5	1.9	26.7	1605	2995	Wales Inc	1105	-	2	0.9
1825	1275	Elizabeth Sain	1045	-	5	1.9	26.7	1605	2995	Wales Inc	1105	-	2	0.6
1825	1275	Elizabeth Sain	1045	-	5	1.9	26.7	1605	2995	Wales Inc	1105	-	2	0.6
1825	1275	Elizabeth Sain	1045	-	5	1.9	26.7	1605

Exchange rates

Australia $	1.9145 (+0.00545)
Canada $	1.00393 (+0.00355)
Denmark W	0.75145 (+0.02679)
Euro	1.1795 (+0.0036)
Hong Kong $	10.61 (+0.028)
Hungary	675.65 (+2.18)
Indonesia	24046.31 (+9.28)
Israel	4.8573 (+0.0066)
Japan Yen	214.942 (+2.07)
New Zealand $	2.2966 (+0.0079)
Norway R$	12.02094 (+0.00792)
Poland	5.01891 (+0.02991)
Roman	113.309 (+0.0029)
S Africa	21.06953 (+0.13211)
Sweden R$	12.8272 (+0.0508)
Switzerland Fr	1.89481 (+0.0844)
Turkey Ura	64.9323 (+0.2797)
USA $	1.3526 (+0.0838)

Gold/precious metals

(€1 dollars per name)
Balloon: Open $4348,554
Close 5 High $4362.03
Low $4323.52
AM $4345.50 PM $4328.45
Platinum $1740.400
Silver $63,602
Palladium $1375.251

Money rates %

Gross Rupees Clearing Banks: 0.75%ECB Bell 2.40%Fed Fund 3.5.3.75%Halifax Mortgage Rate (SVR) 7.24%
Sterling spot and forward rates
Mkt Rates for	Range
Copenhagen	8.7519
Euro	1.3705
Montreal	1.0039
New York	1.3526
Oslo	12.0257
Tokyo	214.9310
Zurich	1.0940

Other sterling

Argentina price	2026.67949-2026.48245
Australian dollar	1.95437-1.95448
Bahrain dinar	0.50890-0.51898
Brazilian rand	6.39690-6.39890
Euro	1.17950-1.17130
Hong Kong dollar	18.61089-18.61400
Indian rupee	120.99778-120.97778
Indonesian rupiah	24046.31093-24086.31055
Kuwaiti dinar	0.47710-0.47410
Malaysian rimpit	5.55110-5.55110
New Zealand dollar	2.29610-2.29650
Singaporean dollar	1.77692-1.77172
South African rand	21.86959-21.88990
UAE dirham	4.96720-4.96938

---

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41

Headhunter and chairman of the Royal Ballet School David Norman Page 42

Obituaries

Tony Ridley

Urban transport 'maestro' behind the Tyne and Wear Metro who resigned from London Underground after the King's Cross fire

The continuing travails of HS2 demonstrate how Kalkanoque building British transport infrastructure projects has become.

The civil engineer Tony Ridley not only won government funding for a metro system in Newcastle and Sunderland but three years after presenting the plans in 1971, spades were in the ground and the Tyne and Wear Metro opened to the public in 1980.

"We took the whole scheme from a line on a map to digging the first tunnels in a three-year period. You couldn't do that today," said Ridley, whose reputation as the country's leading urban transport supremo would later be tarnished by his resignation as the managing director of London Underground after the King's Cross fire in November 1987.

In 1968 the Labour transport minister Barbara Castle had created passenger transport executives (PTEs). Appointed director general of the Tyneside PTE, Ridley read in the small print of her legislation hints that the government might fund metropolitan public transport projects if the case was well argued with robust cost-benefit analysis. "We were blessed with a minister who saw clearly that well-conceived objectives, policy statements and plans are most often central to success," said Ridley, who was described in a Times profile as having the "appearance of a slightly disorganised prep school master".

The 35-year-old Ridley's appointment in 1969 had caused considerable surprise. Having been working as chief research officer on highways and transportation for the Greater London council, he was labelled a "town clerk" by a local newspaper. Yet the Sunderland-born son of a mining engineer had already accrued plenty of "muddy boots" engineering experience from his work on soil mechanics through to nuclear power stations.

Ridley was given a relatively unambitious brief to merge three loss-making bus companies, but was soon working up plans to take "clapped-out" diesel-powered rail lines and link them using city centre tunnels and a bridge over the River Tyne.

With a PhD in transport-funding evaluation from the University of California, he sold it to the politicians by promising to reorganise the local bus network to create interchanges with the rail system, ending up with effectively the first integrated transport system in the UK. Local politicians of all stripes, who Ridley recalled "used to fight like cats and dogs", united in support of the project to get "something out of London for the northeast".

However, British Rail, which operated some of the failing lines, did not take the proposal seriously. "They saw us a small band of schoolboys and did nothing about it," Ridley recalled. But when "BR started to put forward an alternative proposal for the lines it was too late".

Instead, Ridley wrangled £50 million from the government and £25 million from the local council for a 44-station metro system with electrically powered

Peter Macmillan, head teacher for the Times

trains that ran on their own track, in the process leapfrogging Manchester. "We snatched the opportunity and built the first new urban railway in Britain for decades," Ridley said. "Once people had seen us do it, a lot of cities thought we'd like some of that." Today the Tyne and Wear Metro has 60 stations, carries more than 100,000 passengers a day and is still expanding.

As construction began in 1974, Ridley was headhunted to be managing director of Hong Kong's Mass Transit Railway (MTR), overseeing the five-year construction of what would become one of the world's busiest and most profitable metros, which helped to pay for itself with the brokering of lucrative property developments at the stations — now common practice. "MTR epitomised the importance of clear objectives," Ridley said. "It was a project with a champion, an excellent and intelligent client, attention to good process and decision-making, strong team spirit and sense of responsibility. Thus we were able to manage great complexity."

He had therefore earned his tag as an "urban transport maestro" when in 1980 he was appointed chief executive of London Underground, where his proudest achievement was arguing successfully that the Docklands Light Railway, built between 1985 and 1987,

should be independent of the London Underground. "What we did not want was a modern railway with the staff management and

union attitudes of London Underground," he recalled ruefully. At London Underground, he took on responsibility for a creaking, declining Victorian network of Tube tunnels that in some areas had a 50-year backlog of maintenance. Over his period in charge there was a surge in passenger numbers, up from 420 million in 1982 to 800 million a year by 1987.

Ridley's aim was to cut staff from 23,500 to 16,500 and introduce driverless trains. He was also planning extensions for the Bakerloo, East London, Jubilee and Metropolitan Lines. In September 1987 he launched a ten-year strategy, including expanding capacity through central London's overcrowded stations by building Crossrail (now the Elizabeth Line).

Momentum came to an abrupt halt when a fire at King's Cross Station on November 18, 1987, killed 31 people after a lit match was dropped through a crack under the wooden escalator and rubbish underneath caught fire, which rapidly spread.

It was the worst accident on the network since the Moorgate Tube crash in 1975, in which the deaths of 43 people are thought to have been caused by driver error. Other than that, only four people had been killed in 43 years as a result of accidents on the network.

Ridley subsequently claimed that London Underground had been doing a lot to make the network safer, particularly by tackling overcrowding at the busiest stations and replacing old signalling. In giving evidence to the public inquiry in 1988, he said that management had been focused on modernising an "aged, ineffective and fairly tatty" system into one that could carry a record number of passengers. If fire safety had been prioritised it would have been "at the expense of other safety measures".

He surprised Desmond Fennell QC, who was leading the inquiry, by suggesting it would be "wholly unrealistic" to expect fires not to occur on the London Underground and that they were an "occupational hazard". Fennell was "troubled" by Ridley's response. Yet after further questioning, Ridley's calm, studious demeanour began to crack and he finally admitted: "There were inadequacies in our performance at the highest level. There was inadequate reporting to us." After hearing evidence for 91 days, in November 1988 Fennell's report criticised the lack of a fire safety culture at London Underground and poor fire training for staff. Management were described as "complacent".

Ridley was determined not to resign, but was persuaded to do so after the report's publication. He devoted a chapter of his later book Engineering in Perspective to "management after a disaster".

If he thought becoming joint manag-

ing director of Eurotunnel, the Anglo-French consortium building the Channel Tunnel, would also help to shore up his reputation, it didn't. His brief was to oversee boring of the running tunnels beneath the Channel, but Ridley was caught between his chief executive Alastair Morton, who was "going to war" with the contractors building the tunnel, and the contractors who expected Ridley to rein Morton in. The resulting chaos jeopardised the project and Ridley left after little more than a year.

He later wrote that the Channel Tunnel was "well engineered" and "a good service". "but it is not an example of good engineering in the broad sense of the definition. It finished late and cost too much and the revenue forecasts were disastrous. The client was created much too late."

His biggest career lesson, he wrote, was that "there's more to engineering than engineering". "Engineering was far too often treated in its hecbie context, with the result that engineers both failed to deliver as much as they might have done, and were less influential in society than they might and should have been... Those who devote their lives to engineering are likely to find themselves in contact with almost every phase of human activity."

Tony Melville Ridley was born in Castletown, Sunderland, in 1933 to Jack Ridley, a mining engineer, and Olive (née Armstrong). He was educated at Durham School, where he excelled at maths, and went on to study civil engineering at King's College, Newcastle, before obtaining a master's from the Northwestern University in Illinois, and a doctorate in transport engineering at the University of California at Berkeley.

He had a spell working as a soil mechanic and foundations engineer in the US before returning to Britain determined to be involved "with whatever was modern and the latest". Deciding it was nuclear power stations, he wrote to Sir Claude Gibb, the chairman of the Nuclear Power Plant Company, and was given a job. Five years later, he returned to California for three years to teach at Berkeley, before being appointed chief research officer, highways and transportation at the GLC in 1965.

Ridley later attended the senior executive programme at Stanford Business School, and became a director of Halcrow Fox and Associates, consulting engineers, after leaving London Transport.

In 1991 he became Rees Jeffreys professor of transport engineering at Imperial College London, and from 1997 to 1999 he headed Imperial's department of civil and environmental engineering. Between 1995 and 1996 he was president of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Ridley was devoted to the theatre, classical music and the Devonshire countryside. In 1959 he married Jane Dickinson who survives him with their two sons and a daughter.

Having made his name as a pioneer of integrated transport, it was fitting that Ridley's last contribution was as senior transport adviser to the London 2012 Olympic bid.

Tony Ridley CBE, civil engineer, was born on November 10, 1933. He died in March 2026, aged 92

---

42

Register

David Norman

Dogged headhunter who bagged Ian MacGregor for British Steel and became chairman of the Royal Ballet School and Queen's

David Norman charmed his way into the highest echelons of British industry with the ease of a man eating his breakfast. He was a consummate persuader: as a headhunter he bagged Ian MacGregor for British Steel at a time when the soon-to-be-privatised company was losing more than £500 million a year, and as chairman of Queen's and the Royal Ballet School he dug out funds and rallied political support with the dogged persistence of a terrier.

Norman was not to everybody's taste. Some people found him bullying and hectoring, and his indefatigable ambition — his ruthless desire to win at all costs — repelled many members of the British establishment. 'A man of great charm, very well disguised, and mind-boggling arrogance, less well disguised,' noted one contemporary; others saw Norman simply as a man fond of self-promotion.

'One of the things that always most distresses me is the British inclination to denigrate success,' he said. 'We're very good at it. It's fashionable to be satirical about success, and also to be forever admiring of the gifted amateur, who doesn't appear to have to apply his talent too strongly to be successful. I admire more the American attitude, which is just to encourage talent for all it's worth. Stretch it to the limit, and apply it to the task at hand, and you'll then succeed.'

Norman fell into headhunting by accident. After working for a succession of start-ups, he was poached in 1977 to direct the New York executive-search firm Russell Reynolds, where he used his web of connections — captain of house at Eton, a Harvard MBA, a father high up in the City — to secure top-tier positions including suggesting that Maurice Saatchi run the campaign for the Conservative Party during the 1979 election. When it won, Saatchi sent 12

dozen roses to the family home in London as a thank you.

MacGregor was a Scottish engineer working in America when Norman put him forward to run the British Steel Corporation in 1980. He would 'fundamentally change the way that nationalised industry was run in this country', said Norman, who worked closely with Margaret Thatcher's government to secure the position, but MacGregor's ruthless job cuts and plant closures would also prove controversial.

In 1983 he paired up with Miles Broadbent, a colleague at Russell Reynolds, to start Norman Broadbent International (NBI). Britain's first executive search firm, which built a reputation for scouting talented heads of industry after the deregulation of the City under Thatcher in 1986. Its breakthrough appointment was the relatively unknown Colin Marshall, who as chief executive of British Airways would form a winning double act with Lord King of Waitnaby, known as 'Mrs Thatcher's favourite businessman'.

NBI became one of Britain's most successful headhunting firms in a traditionally American sector, and at a time when seeking high-end external appointments was still relatively rare. Britain never lacked in talent, Norman said, but needed someone with guts to draw it out. 'It's all about achieving a competitiveness in the global economy of the world. Do we have the brains, the applications to do it? Yes we do. We've certainly got the brains. I think one of the biggest challenges in this country is then to apply those brains to the task at hand.'

In 1987 Norman Broadbent engineered a reverse takeover of the advertising and PR firm Charles Barker, and Norman was appointed executive chairman of BNB Resources, as it was renamed, while Broadbent continued

Norman had a wide network from his time at Eton, Harvard and in the City

to run the search business. The partners fell out, reportedly because Norman sought more hands-on control. Broadbent left in 1997 to start the Miles Partnership, taking key clients with him, and Norman retired a year later amid calls from the board to resign.

Norman Broadbent had made Norman enormously wealthy and secured him a network of patronage that made him an attractive board member for a range of organisations in New York and Britain. As chairman of the Tennis & Racketts Association (T&RA) from 1982 to 1997 and of Queen's in 2010-11, Norman funded an ambitious plan to expand membership, restore courts at the club and create a museum. He played a key role in renegotiating the Queen's Club's lease with the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) and in safeguarding the future of rackets, securing protective covenants that protected the courts

from being sold to developers (the Queen's championship rackets court is named in his honour).

A gifted tennis player, he also took it upon himself to tell Andy Murray, when presenting him with an award, that he should learn to 'control his temper' if he wanted to make it at Wimbledon. Norman was comfortable with confrontation. When David Cameron was in office, he wrote the prime minister a frank letter detailing Cameron's various policy errors and enclosed three pieces of advice to follow. Cameron wrote a polite letter back, which Norman circulated among his family with the proviso that they should expect some key changes.

'Those particular amendments were slow to appear but Norman did exercise political influence as chairman of the Royal Ballet School from 2000 to 2009. During his tenure there was a decade of redevelopment known as the 'reawakening of White Lodge', culminating in £22 million of investment that was secured, in part, from David Miliband, then a junior schools minister who Norman persuaded to approve a round of government funding into British ballet. Norman bolstered the school's outreach programme to children from diverse backgrounds and oversaw the construction of the 'Bridge of Aspiration' which connected students from the Royal Ballet School to the opera house across the road.

David Mark Norman was born in 1941. His father, Mark, was managing director of the merchant bank Lazard Brothers, vice-chairman of the National Trust and chairman of Gallaher, a cigarette manufacturer, his mother Helen (née Bryan) was from Virginia. He grew up at Moor Place in the village of Much Hadham, Hertfordshire, a grade I listed house built between 1775 and 1779 by the architect

Robert Mitchell. His grandfather Ronald Norman was a politician, banker and chairman of the BBC, his great-uncle, Montagu Norman, was governor of the Bank of England from 1920 to 1944.

'A 'keen and forceful character' at Eton, as one schoolmaster put it, David was a fiercely competitive sportsman who graduated from McGill University in Montreal and earned a business MBA from Harvard in 1967. Living in America in the Sixties was his only concession to an easygoing life: he worked as a travelling salesman and behind the checkout at a supermarket in San Francisco, driving coast to coast in a beaten-up VW Beetle.

In 1986 he married Diana Sheffield, the daughter of one of Britain's leading financiers, John Sheffield, who founded the Norcross conglomerate and backed the Sixties pirate station Radio Caroline. Sheffield brought his son on-law into the fold and propelled him through an apprenticeship at a private equity firm. From there he rise was swift and cold-blooded. Norman's final appointment was as a trustee for Kew Gardens.

Those closest to Norman often diagnosed, beneath the hard exterior, a softness that materialised at the ballet. If you caught his eye during a performance he might have tears running down his face. He was fond of playing the piano, though never in front of other people, and he hated goodbyes.

Norman is survived by four children: Anna, Jonathan, Isabella and Davina. He was devoted to his wife, Diana, and in his final years took care of her as she deteriorated from multiple sclerosis; she died in 2020. He kept her toothbrush in a mug by the basin until it was his turn to depart.

David Norman, executive headhunter, was born on January 30, 1941. He died on July 12, 2026, aged 85

Kay Granger

Path-breaking US Congresswoman who was the first Republican woman to lead the powerful House appropriations committee

One of the more remarkable features of Kay Granger's long political career was the manner of her departure from the US House of Representatives. In essence, nobody noticed.

Some time in the summer of 2024 the octogenarian Republican was quietly admitted to an assisted-living facility in Texas, her home state. From that July onwards she cast no votes in the House. She briefly returned to Capitol Hill for the unveiling of her official portrait that November, but it was not until the following month that a local website broke the news that she was suffering from dementia and no longer politically active. As one commentator remarked, 'it was a confounding miss' because 'Granger wasn't a nobody'. On the contrary, for most of her three decades in politics she had been a trailblazer.

She had surmounted personal adversities to become the first woman mayor of Fort Worth, the first Republican woman to represent a Texas district in the US House, the first Republican woman to chair the powerful House appropriations committee, and one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress.

None of that came easily. As she used to tell other women, 'success comes to ordinary people who set a direction and work like crazy'.

Norvell Kay Granger (née Mullen-dore) was born in Greenville, Texas, in 1943, and raised in Fort Worth. Her parents divorced not long after, and she and her sister were raised by her mother, Allene, a teacher who continued to work even after she was cripp-

Granger in 2012 with Sir Elton John at an event for the singer's Aids Foundation

pled by polio. 'The women in my family are strong women,' said Granger.

Granger became a teacher herself after graduating from Texas Wesleyan University in 1965. She had a daughter and two sons with her husband, John Granger, before he left her after 14 years of marriage in 1978.

To make ends meet she started selling commercial insurance from home while studying in the evenings, and eventually opened her own business. 'You just fight your way through the day,' she said of the challenge of earning a living while raising three young children.

Her political activism began after she rallied her neighbours to block a com-

pancy's plans to build a liquid waste disposal plant on wooded land adjoining their homes. She was 'protecting the only asset I had — my house', she said.

That victory won her a place on the Fort Worth zoning board. Eight years later she was elected to the city council, and two years after that, in 1991, became the city's first woman mayor. On the day she was sworn in she met Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh at a reception in neighbouring Dallas.

She served nearly five years as a non-partisan mayor, reversing soaring crime rates, rebuilding a defence-orientated economy hit by the end of the Cold War, and earning herself a reputation as a pragmatist who got things done.

When the local US congressman — a Democrat — announced his retirement in 1996, both Democrats and Republicans sought to persuade her to contest the seat on their behalf. Although the 12th congressional district of Texas was regarded as a Democratic stronghold, she chose the Republicans because she considered them more fiscally responsible. She duly became the first Republican to win the seat, securing nearly 58 per cent of the vote, and held it for the next 28 years.

In Washington Granger was seen as a hawk on defence and national security issues. She backed the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, calling that conflict the 'battlefield' of the global war on terror. She robustly supported Ukraine following Russia's invasion in 2022 and used her membership of the appropriations committee to steer lucrative contracts to the big defence manufacturers in her district — notably contracts for hugely expensive F-35 warplanes built by Lockheed Martin.

On social issues, however, Granger was considered more centrist, and as time passed she found herself increasingly at odds with a Republican Party that had moved sharply to the right on cultural matters.

She survived through compromise. Once a supporter of abortion rights, she was by 2020 urging the Supreme Court to overturn its 1973 Roe v Wade decision and restrict those rights.

She opposed Donald Trump's 2016 presidential bid, calling his comments about women 'disgusting' and saying

he 'definitely should not be considered to speak for our nation as president'. But four years later, when she was facing a tough and unprecedented Magabacked primary challenge in her Texas district, she endorsed his campaign for re-election and was duly endorsed by him in return.

She won that contest, but she could not defeat her advancing age. In October 2023, aged 80, she announced she would not stand again in the next congressional elections. In April 2024 she relinquished her brief chairmanship of the appropriations committee. Not long after that she vanished from public sight for many months until she was eventually discovered in an assisted-living facility that December. Her son then revealed that she had 'dementia issues'.

Granger's condition fuelled a debate about a congressional system that rewards seniority over merit, energy and ideas, and whether there should be term limits. Three other congressional leaders — Nancy Pelosi, Dianne Feinstein and Mitch McConnell — had recently clung to office despite reaching their eighties, and there was growing alarm about President Biden's mental decline. But nothing changed.

Kay Granger, US congresswoman, was born on January 18, 1943. She died of Alzheimer's disease on August 2, 2026, aged 83

obituaries@thetimes.co.uk

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43

Register

Law Report

Frightening the falcons was negligent but not a nuisance

Court of Appeal Published August 11, 2026

Nicholas and others v Thomas and another

Before Lord Justice Moylan, Lord Justice Nugee and Lady Justice Whipple (2026) EWCA Co. 647 Judgment July 3, 2026

Actionable nuisance depended on the substantial interference with a person's ordinary use of their land. A claimant whose use of the land was more than usually sensitive could not complain of an interference with his enjoyment of that land as an actionable nuisance unless the interference would substantially affect the utility or amenity value of the land judged both by an objective test, that is according to plain and simple notions of the ordinary or average person, and by the ordinary use of the land.

However, in a case where the claimants used the land to breed falcons, and it was foreseeable that excessive noise or visual threats on the defendants' land might cause harm to the falcons, the defendants owed a duty to take reasonable care to avoid such damage. The defendants were not entitled to act with complete disregard for the interests of their neighbours and could therefore be liable in negligence, even if not in nuisance.

The Court of Appeal so held, by a majority in each case, when (per Lord Justice Moylan and Lord Justice Nugee) allowing the defendants' appeal as to nuisance, and (per Lord Justice Nugee and Lady Justice Whipple) dismissing the defendants' appeal as to negligence, from the decision of Judge Russen KC sitting as a High Court judge in the Chancery Division on April 8, 2025 ((2025) EWHC 752 (Ch)), allowing claims as to nuisance and negligence.

The first and second claim-

ants, Martin Craig Nicholas and Scott Nicholas, were directors of the third claimant company, Raptors of Penwith Ltd, which ran a business breeding falcons in an aviary close to the boundary of the first and second claimants' land with land owned by the second defendant company, Upper Cot Estate Ltd, and under the day-to-day control of the first defendant, Barnes Davison Thomas.

The third claimant brought claims in private nuisance and negligence against the defendants, seeking damages for losses caused to its business.

The judge found that: (i) the first defendant was aware of the risk to the third claimant's business of creating a visual disturbance or making loud noise close to the aviary when the falcons were breeding, (ii) the first defendant, through the second defendant, conducted activities close to the aviary which created individual instances of visual disturbance or loud noise; and (iii) those individual instances caused the death of three of the third claimants' falcons and damage to eggs.

The individual instances complained of occurred in the course of three activities conducted or permitted by the defendants: (i) a scaffolding business; (ii) building a barn; and (iii) parking a broken-down digger.

The judge allowed the claims, holding that individual instances of visual disturbance and loud noise amounted to a nuisance and were also negligent.

The defendants appealed as to both claims. In the nuisance claim the grounds were that the judge erred: (i) in wrongly increasing the defendants' liabilities by reference to the third claimants' falcon business as a sensitive trade, (ii) in wrongly measuring the defendants' in-

terference with the claimants' use of their land by reference to that sensitive trade rather than by reference to what might be common and ordinary use; and (iii) in impermissibly and unjustifiably restraining the defendants' use of the second defendant's land.

In the negligence claim the defendants' grounds were that no action in negligence lay once the claim in nuisance had failed, and in any event the defendants owed no duty of care to the claimants.

Tom Weekes KC and Camilla Lamont for the defendants; Mr Jonathan Seitter KC, David Mitchell and Lemuel Lucan-Villson for the claimants

LADY JUSTICE WHIPPLE gave the first judgment, setting out the facts and legal arguments before substantially agreeing with and approving the judge's approach.

However, Lord Justice Nugee, with whom Lord Justice Moylan concurred, differed from her Ladyship on the question of nuisance, and gave reasons for allowing the defendant's appeal on that issue.

The test of what constituted private nuisance in law had been explained by Lord Leggatt in the leading case of Fearn v Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery ((2023) UKSC1, The Times, February 6, 2023).

The law of private nuisance was concerned with maintaining a balance between the conflicting rights of neighbouring landowners. Not every interference with a person's use and enjoyment of their land could be actionable as a nuisance.

The first question which the court had to ask was whether the defendant's use of land had caused a "substantial" interference with the "ordinary" use of the claimant's land.

A claimant who was more than usually sensitive could not complain of an interference with his enjoyment of land as an actionable nuisance unless that interference would substantially affect the utility or amenity value of the land judged both by an objective test, viz according to plain and simple notions of the ordinary or average person, and by the ordinary use of the land.

The fact that a trade was being carried on in a suitable location did entitle that trade to be regarded as an "ordinary" trade for the purposes of the law of nuisance, even if it was a particularly sensitive one.

Nuisance was a tort against land and was limited by the requirement that a defendant's activities substantially interfere with the ordinary use of land.

The tort was directed at protecting the interests which an owner or occupier of land had in not having the ordinary utility and amenity of their land substantially interfered with, and not the bodily security or comfort of the particular individuals occupying it, nor the interests of the particular business which the claimant used the land for.

Whether the defendant had committed an actionable nuisance was not determined by what the claimant did with their land, but by the impact on the ordinary or average occupier of the land.

A person carrying on a delicate trade could potentially recover in nuisance if the interference they complained of was such as would substantially affect the utility of the land for ordinary purposes.

In the present case, the judge's finding that the claimant's land was a suitable place for the breeding of falcons did not mean that that became an ordi-

nary use of the land for those purposes.

Moreover, the acts on which the judge had relied in finding there to be a nuisance did not in fact cross the applicable threshold. For these reasons (supported by the majority) the appeal on the issue of nuisance should be allowed and the judge's decision reversed.

On the question of negligence, however, while Lord Justice Moylan dissented, Lord Justice Nugee concurred with Lady Justice Whipple that the appeal should be dismissed.

The question was whether the judge had been right to hold that the defendants owed the claimants' "a duty of care not to create disturbances that would harm the falcons during their breeding season".

The decided cases had long recognised a duty of care owed by the occupier of land to his neighbour, so that the owner or occupier of land might owe a duty to the owner or occupier of neighbouring land to take reasonable care to avoid foreseeable damage to his neighbour's property.

In the present case, where it was foreseeable that excessive noise or visual threats might cause such harm to the falcons, the defendant had owed a duty to take reasonable care to avoid such damage. The defendants were not entitled to act with complete disregard for the interests of their neighbours in the way they had done.

Accordingly, the judge was right to hold that the defendants owed the third claimant a duty of care not to create disturbances that would harm the falcons during their breeding season, and the appeal on the issue of negligence should be dismissed.

Solicitors: Nalders LLP; Arch Law Ltd.

Births, Marriages and Deaths

To book a Birth, Marriage or Death announcement in the Register, visit newwalkadvertising.co.uk for help. (please call 020 7792 7553 or email BMDs@thetimes.co.uk)

THESE are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, and every place of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. (stress 2,4-9,1)(iv)

Bible verses are provided by the Bible Society

Births

CAMPKIN on 20th July 2026 to Kate Gosney and Jonathan, a daughter, Isabella Mary Julie.

Forthcoming Marriages

MR C. L. A. DOUGLAS AND THE HOH L. ERSKINE-MURRAY The engagement is announced between Charles, elder on 24th David Douglas of London and Mrs Christine Fultz's Douglas of Paris, and Isabella, elder daughter of Lord and Lady Dibank of Rockbourne, Hampshire.

Deaths

CLARK Nicholas Jackson died on 30th July 2026. Beloved father of Matthew and Jone, father-in-law of Jo and Happy, devoted grandfather of Little, Ben, James and Mike. Private funeral. Memorial service to be arranged.

DRUMMOND Mary Jane died peacefully on 20th July 2026, aged 83. Greatly missed by family, friends and colleagues. The funeral will take place at 11am on 20th August at Barton Woodland School Ground, Comberton Road, Barton, CB23 7BA. All welcome. Donations if desired to Amnesty or Twitter.

DUNCAN SANDYS Lady Marie Claire Mellon 1812 July 2026. Devise herself by all her family and friends. Private family, invention. Memorial service to follow later in the year.

EVANS In their 3d Anthony Howard Meung PC 9D died peacefully on 2nd August 2026, aged 92. Beloved husband of Caroline, devoted father, grandfather and great-grandfather. A true gentleman, beloved and respected, generous and kind. A friend to all. Family funeral. A memorial service to be held at a later date. Details to follow.

FUSSELL Micheline (Michelin) Gayle (née Dennyroll) died peacefully on 19th July 2026, aged 80. Loving mother of Christopher and Joanna and proud grandmother to Keris, Isabella, Oscar, William and Hannah. Funeral service to be held on 19th August at St John the Evangelist, Boehner, Hertfordshire, at noon. Family threats only please. Donations to Macmillan Cancer Support.

HARDIY Justin St Clair died suddenly at home on 31st July, aged 61. Beloved husband to Lamine and much loved father to Sam, Luke, Nico and Summer. Private family funeral. A memorial service to celebrate his life will follow.

MAXWELL Diane (née Hartley) died peacefully on 29th July 2026, aged 89. Formerly Hathony Williams. Beloved wife of his late Timothy Maxwell and previously of the late Anthony Hathony Williams. Much loved mother of Nicholas, Charles, Michael and Victoria and beloved grandmother and great-grandmother. Service at Thanksgiving to be held at Chetara Old Church, 64 Cheyne Walk, London SW3 5LT on 26th August at 2.30pm.

Memorial Services

CAYZER Nigel Al Chetara Old Church on 24th September 2026 at 11am. All are welcome to attend.

Court Circular

St James's Palace 10th August, 2026

The Duchess of Edinburgh, Royal Patrons, today visited the Armed Forces Para-Snowsport Team at the Snow Centre, St Albans Hill, Hemel Hempstead, and was received by His Majesty's Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire (Mr Robert Voss).

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44

Tuesday August II 2026 | THE TIMES

Weather

Today Mainly dry and warm or hot with plenty of sunshine, especially in England. Max 30C (86F), min 11C (52F)

Around Britain

Max 4 weeks, 1 minute, 4 minutes, 30-sprits cloudy (Lyndal, Fribar, Spring, Initial, Arrestal, 1 week, 30-shrames, 1st round, 30-shrames, 1st day, 1st Monday)

	Temp C		Rain mm
	mainly yesterday		24 hrs to 5am yesterday
Aberdeen	16	FC	0.8	0.9
Alconbury	22	S	0.8	14.7
Anglesey	18	FC	0.4	1.0
Anderness	25	S	0.8	2.0
Burnchdale	21	S	0.9	***
Bedford	22	S	0.9	***
Bedford	22	S	0.9	***
Birmingham	21	S	0.9	***
Bournemouth	25	FC	0.9	12.7
Bridlington	18	S	0.4	***
Bristol	23	S	0.8	12.9
Camborne	21	S	0.8	12.9
Cardiff	20	S	0.4	10.4
Eddsbury	25	S	0.4	2.0
Edinburgh	17	S	0.8	2.1
Glasgow	18	S	0.8	3.0
Hawthorn	21	S	0.8	***
Northavenous	27	FC	0.8	10.9
Surbury	22	S	0.8	10.4
Isle of Man	17	FC	2.4	0.0
Isle of Wight	17	S	0.8	***
Jersey	22	S	0.4	11.7
Kryonck	18	FC	0.4	***
Kirklea	22	S	0.8	***
Leeds	18	S	0.4	***
Leeds	18	S	0.4	0.8
Loudhills	19	S	0.8	3.0
Lincoln	20	S	0.8	9.9
Liverpool	19	S	1.0	***
London	25	S	0.8	10.1
Lonsdale	21	S	0.8	10.4
Manchester	21	S	0.4	0.4
Maryam	24	S	0.8	12.2
Wilford Haven	22	S	0.8	***
Newcastle	18	S	0.4	***
Nottingham	18	S	0.8	10.3
Orkney	14	S	0.8	***
Oxford	23	S	0.8	***
Plymouth	26	S	0.8	***
Portland	22	FC	0.8	***
Sofia, St Mary's	20	S	0.8	***
Stansbury	25	S	0.8	10.9
Shrewsbury	20	S	0.8	8.7
Somedonia	18	FC	0.4	***
Southfield	25	FC	0.8	0.8
South End	19	S	0.8	***
Stonemong	24	S	0.8	0.6
Stow	20	S	0.8	6.4
Wilmington	17	FC	1.4	0.3
Wills	22	R	0.8	***
Yrmlitton	24	S	0.8	12.3

The world

All numbers are available yesterday
Albacete	31	FC	Manleica	26
Amcheshire	31	FC	Walshill	23
Althens	31	FC	Malayan	31
Auckland	32	FC	Madonna	39
Bahrain	40	S	Waltz	14
Bradford	31	FC	Mothburne	30
Brunswick	31	FC	Monkey City	23
Brussels	31	FC	Milan	33
Buillow	32	FC	Milan	32
Bristol	32	FC	Mombasa	29
Bulgarde	33	S	Montreal	26
Bucks	30	S	Monash	30
Burmuda	30	FC	Manskal	30
Brentwood	31	S	Munich	32
Brussels	26	S	Ruimbi	22
Buckwood	27	S	Nadine	33
Budapest	33	S	New Orleans	32
Buenos Aires	32	S	New York	32
Cairo	31	S	Max	31
Calcutta	32	S	Nicosia	35
Canberra	31	R	Oslo	18
Cape Town	14	RC	Perth	29
Chicago	26	T	Perth	13
Copenhagen	17	R	Peyton	32
Crofts	36	RC	Rockford	14
Delhi	34	RC	Eliza	29
Dubai	44	RC	Rio de Janeiro	29
Dublin	44	RC	Riyadh	44
Euro	25	S	Rome	15
Thornton	36	S	San Francisco	31
Trinidad	33	S	Stellings	28
Geneva	33	S	São Paulo	23
Gibraltar	29	S	Somal	32
Helsinki	21	RC	Scandinavia	29
Hong Kong	26	RC	Singapore	32
Honshills	30	S	St Petersburg	25
Isleshire	36	RC	Stockholm	27
Jerusalem	30	S	Tokyo	30
Johannesburg	15	S	Toll-Air	34
North Larnaca	29	S	Toronto	18
Kyiv	32	SC	Tokyo	30
Lancashire	26	RC	Vancouver	20
Las Palmas	27	RC	Venice	***
Lima	22	DU	Vienna	33
Lübeck	26	RC	Warsaw	29
Los Angeles	26	RC	Washington	32
Lance	29	S	Zurich	***

Five days ahead

Staying mainly dry and warm or hot with sunny spells over England and Wales

Tomorrow

Not, dry and sunny over England and Wales. Warm with sunny spells and the risk of a few showers in Scotland and Ireland, perhaps, today and thursday in Ireland.

Max 30C, min 16C

Thursday

Dry, sunny and warm hot in England and Wales. Saves hot spells of sunshine over Ireland and Scotland but areas of stayt and loose showers rain, heavy and thursday and illness.

Friday

Fasting fresher over Ireland, Scotland, Wales and northwestern England with sunny spells and the risk of a few showers. Hot, dry and mostly sunny inheathens.

Saturday

Dry and warm with sunny spells over most of England and Wales, but the risk of a few light showers in northwestern areas. Scattered showers over others and Scotland.

Sunday

Surey sunny intervals but cloud swamps in pressure to bring showers rain over Ireland and Scotland. Over nine Wales and northern England when Dry and Sunny in southern England.

The Times weather page is provided by

WeatherQuest

General situation: Some thinker cloud and showers rain in northern Scotland and western Ireland, otherwise it will be dry, sunny and warm or hot over Britain and Ireland.

E Anglia, Ian S Eng, SE Eng, London, Midlands, SW Eng, Channel 1s, Wales, NW Eng, Cen N Eng, E Eng: A dry and warm or hot day with long spells of sunshine. Light to moderate south or southeasterly winds, perhaps fresh near the coast. Maximum 30C (86F), minimum 12C (54F).

Republic of Ireland: Dry with warm spells of sunshine in eastern areas but cloudier further west with the risk of a few showers. Light to moderate south or southeasterly winds. Maximum 27C (81F), minimum 13C (93F). NE Eng, Lake District, N Ireland, IoM, SW Scotland, Bankers: A dry day with sunny spells and areas of patchy cloud. Light south or southeasterly winds. Maximum 28C (82F), minimum 13C (95F). N Isles: Mainly dry with sunny spells

but the risk of an isolated light shower at times. Light to moderate south or southeasterly winds. Maximum 15C (59F), minimum 11C (52F). Edinburgh and Dundee, Cen Highland, Glasgow, NW Scotland, Money Firth, Argyll, Aberdeen, NE Scotland: Rather cloudy with spells of rain in the morning, turning dry with sunny spells during the afternoon. Light south or southeasterly winds, perhaps fresh near the coast. Maximum 22C (72F), minimum 11C (52F).

Tides

Total predictions. Neight's in-ruftes. All times in local time

Today	HC		HC
Aberdeen	---	---	13.67
Greenwath	16.46	1.7	14.18
Bethel	18.40	3.2	25.08
Cardiff	16.36	10.9	19.08
Davenport	15.10	4.9	17.97
Dover	18.94	6.2	20.25
Dublin	11.22	2.9	20.01
Falmouth	14.47	4.6	17.07
Greenwich	---	---	11.97
Haverhill	12.16	3.7	25.48
Highhead	18.95	3.2	22.21
Hull	15.17	4.4	16.18
Leith	---	3.1	14.97
Liverpool	18.49	6.7	25.18
London Enliss	---	---	11.59
Leecroft	18.44	2.4	21.48
Wilford Haven	15.47	4.3	19.11
Worcestershire	11.90	8.7	20.21
Northaven	18.48	6.2	25.08
Newspay	14.40	6.2	17.94
Winn	15.35	3.5	16.61
Presceno	14.12	6.9	16.57
Portsmouth	11.86	4.4	29.18
Shenham	11.82	5.8	20.21
Southampton	10.10	4.2	22.27
Swansea	10.52	8.9	16.16
Toys	12.50	5.1	15.95
Weymouth	14.20	1.7	18.54

Synoptic situation

An area of high pressure control in the North Sea will bring a dry, mainly sunny and warm day across most of the British Isles. A warm and occluded front in the Atlantic will push some thicker cloud and spots of light rain into northwestern Scotland and western Ireland at times. Turning hot over England and Wales in the next few days.

Highs and lows

24hrs to 5pm yesterday Haverhill: Thorney Island, West Sussex, 28.44 Caldwell: Carrington, 1.81 Wertford: Kirkness, Le Down, 7.8mm Sandwich: Exeter, 13.1hrs*

Sun and moon

For Greenwich Sun-Hues: 25.30 Sun-Lifts: 20.30 Moon-Hues: 02.23 Moon-Lifts: 20.09 New-Hues: August 12

Hours of darkness

Aberdeen 21:18-04:09 Bethel 21:19-05:04 Birmingham 21:11-05:15 Cardiff 21:12-05:20 Exeter 21:12-05:27 Glasgow 21:13-05:13 Liverpool 21:14-05:16 London 21:03-05:11 Manchester 21:14-05:13 Newcastle 21:14-05:05 Haverhill 20:59-05:02 Presceno 21:14-05:07 Sheffield 21:12-05:18

Weather Eye Paul Simons

If there was a word to sum up this summer's weather it might be "swullocking", a fine 19th-century East Anglian term for sultry, oppressive heat when the air is so stifling you can barely breathe. It is probable that "swullocking" came from the 16th-century words "sweltry" and "swoly", which eventually evolved into "sweltering".

There is no doubt about the meaning of "fire-fanged", a great description of the scorching heat that can set heaps of manure or compost bursting into flames in a highly dangerous phenomenon known as spontaneous combustion. "Fire-fanged" can also be used to describe crops dried out and wilting under intense sunshine. Also beware the Scottish verb "birste", to toast or roast something, which very often refers to food. But on a hot day at the beach without sunblock, it could be you who ends up birsted.

If the heat and humidity leave you dripping with sweat then you can also turn to the 13th-century words "hesweat" or "heswast". And in nights this summer when temperatures were 20C or more, people could have complained that they had been left "forwallowed", meaning exhausted from tossing and turning all night.

Possibly the best known of the old phrases for hot summer weather is "the dog days of summer". This is not about dogs panting in the heat, but was named after the Dog Star, Sirius, in the constellation Canis Major. This is the time of year when Sirius is the brightest star in the sky, as Thomas Hardy described in For From The Madding Crowd: "The kingly brilliance of Sirius pierced the eye with a steely glitter." Because Sirius rises alongside the sun to mid-summer, it was believed that the star and the sun together created hot weather with barely a breeze. But while both ancient Greece and ancient Rome feared the dog days of summer, in ancient Egypt the return of Sirius was greeted with great anticipation because it signalled the time when the Nile flooded and irrigated parched fields.

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45

Results

Ayr

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46

Sport Cricket

Devalued cup resurrected my career

Cameron Steel says his experience of One-Day Cup shows why it still has value to the game — despite greater allure of the Hundred

The Hollies Stand foxes have been hunted. Mascot costumes have been collecting dust in county storage cupboards for nearly a fortnight. Commentator Charles Dagnall has reportedly recovered from his on-screen somersault. David Willey's shoes are once again secured to his feet, and the men's T20 Blast trophy is safely stowed at Wantage Road.

After the men's and women's T20 Finals Days, the low rumble of plastic wheels signals the seasonal split of changing rooms, an annual migration of cricketing status and skill, as cricket bags are rolled from county changing rooms, and players, coaches and administrators alike set off in different directions for their summer secondments. This period in the cricketing calendar is apportioned to the Hundred and the Metro Bank One-Day Cup. In format, flair and logistical realities, the divergences between the two competitions epitomise the game's ever-evolving state of flux, and it divides opinion and personnel like no other in English cricket.

Has the Hundred saved the English game or hastened its decline? Is it a phoney format? Could women's cricket have grown as quickly without it? Should we love it or loathe it? Why on earth is the Oval team pronounced "My London"? And can Manchester's footballing factions really set aside their differences and be weighed under the Super Giants' elephant?

While these debates will rage for many years, most of them live outside of the dressing rooms that provide the ECB's festival of franchise with its talent. Very rarely are players asked about what it means to them. Rather than argue about the suitability of scorecards, intentions of stakeholders or legitimacy of formats, player discussion naturally diverts to cricketing realities and latent opportunities.

Involvement or exclusion from England's flagship offering is now a barometer for the state of a professional cricket career. For better or for worse, the One-Day Cup is no longer a premier competition and however devoted they might be to the counties that nurture them, it is not where players strive to be.

It is easy, but probably unhelpful, to be cynical about the synthetic song and dance that complements the Hundred spectacle. The most scintillating of

Tim Seifert, right, and Paul Walter walk out to bat for Manchester Super Giants in the Hundred against Southern Brave

skilnets are unfairly abstracted by the paid influencers, DJ sets, hastily invented team songs and cringeworthy marketing campaigns. Behind all this content-cum-crack-cocaine-forkids is a tournament that, for aspiring players, is right at the forefront of their ambitions. For the 250 or so men and women playing the Hundred, it is no less about cricket or professional pride than any other format, it's a ruthless test of bodies and dexterities.

Of course, enhanced earnings are a factor in its magnetism. To limit the lure to finance is, however, lazy. Most appealing is what the Hundred represents. As well as a fresh experience at the forefront of the game, it is a gateway to nuggets of knowledge, glamour and, most important, greater opportunity.

While lacking the tribalism of other formats and sports, the Hundred offers players a chance to perform in the rarefied and pressurised world of pay packets, packed stadiums, and transmission across two airwaves. Whether

in search of Test selection, franchise riches or status at their county, every cricketer knows that, whatever the format, no runs or wickets carry weight quite like those on Sky Sports.

Personnel provides its own pull; in the star-studded squads and support staff of the Hundred, there is an opportunity to learn while you earn. Thanks to Jacob Bethell and the IPL, it's in vogue to sit either side of the fence and celebrate or denigrate the value of being surrounded by the world's foremost talent. Yet cricketers, like most ambitious athletes, will for ever be attracted by their heroes, or by international opponents whom they wish to dislike but truly admire. Insatiable appetites for improvement will never change the lure of tactics from other continents, new tricks and potential technical panacea is strong.

Perhaps most alluring is the route to further glamour and winters abroad. Strong performances as well as co-operative captains or coaches can open doors to the franchise circuit. cricket's

El Dorado. This is an evolving and almost mythical sphere of five-star hotels, golf courses and suntans in January. In the eyes of the uninitiated, it's a world devoid of Yo-Yo fitness tests in indoor schools, intense media scrutiny and 20 overs into the breeze. It's more money for less work in a realm that extends all the way to Dallas and Dhaka.

This is the lens through which the One-Day Cup and its players must be understood. Those in the shadows of the Hundred don't swap homes for hotels, or tour between England's biggest cities on luminously wrapped buses. Rather, cricket clobber must be kept in cars, closets or close by, for games played in cherished but lesser-known corners of the cricket world.

With the opulence stripped away, the unique reality of each player and club in the competition is clearer to comprehend. A team shorn of key talent, players and staff must coalesce and continue to do their best: to challenge for silverware, while staying fit and continuing to develop. Players must act

as understudies to the main event while trying to achieve something else entirely. Ready, willing and perhaps pining for a late call-up.

An academy player, trallist or loanee might earn themselves a contract or some professional experience. A rookie might cement a role at the top of the order. A twenty-something might gain captaincy or leadership experience, perhaps putting his name forward for a spot in the T20 or County Championship, or, dare I say, the Hundred. Senior players might get a rest. Other senior players might be depressed or deflated, a missed draft, auction or wild card is a galling experience, eight physically demanding games and then rubbing salt into the wounds of a creaking body. The most unfortunate might not be selected at all. Others might be returning fleetingly from the Hundred to find form or help their counties.

A player anecdote that lives in the minds of all One-Day Cup players is the story of Tim David.

One of the highest-paid players in this year's Hundred at a whopping £350,000, one might not expect that an innings in front of a sparse crowd in the 2021 Royal London One-Day Cup helped to ignite his cricketing ascendancy. Despite already having enjoyed success in the Big Bash League and Pakistan Super League that year, David bludgeoned 140 not out from 70 balls against a shellshocked Warwickshire. It was from this innings that Southern Brave, the Caribbean Premier League and, later, Royal Challengers Bangalore came calling, kick-starting the glotterrotting career that so many players now crave.

In that same period, my own experience of the 50-over competition changed drastically. Since the inception of the Hundred, and with so many players missing, it was the start of my journey at the largest domestic club in the world. A debut for Surrey was an honour. It was the first step in resurrecting a broken career, showing people that I was a leg spinner to be taken seriously. By the end, the One-Day Cup was a millstone around my neck; a challenge for my ailing ankle, and a reminder that my skills weren't sufficient for El Dorado. Now that I'm out of the game and fortunate enough to commentate on several teams and formats, I'm loving it again.

Success in the cricket ladder used to be simpler. Even when I started at Taunton Vale in 2013, runs and wickets in the second XI could get you to the first XI. Thirteen years later, cricket and its accomplishments are fragmented into a plethora of personal definitions of what the opportunity is.

The Hundred marketing likes to advertise that "Every Ball Counts", as though they didn't before. No one can predict which ball, on which broadcast, in front of which crowd, or in which competition, is going to be the one that matters most.

Bath may play two home league games at Reading FC stadium

Rugby union

Will Kelleher

Deputy Rugby Correspondent

Bath will have to play their two final Gallagher Prem home games — and a potential play-off semi-final — away from the Recreation Ground in 2027.

The club have brought forward the construction of their new stadium, which they are aiming to complete by the start of the 2028-29 season. Having done so, and also shortened the time it will take to create the new ground by 18

months, they must move out earlier than expected.

Bath are in contact with a number of grounds as they look for a temporary home. The Times understands that Reading's Select Car Leasing Stadium, which held London Irish matches between 2000 and 2020 and has a 24,000-seat capacity, is considered Bath's most likely option. The club's final genuine home match next season will be on April 17 against Newcastle Red Bulls. They will then need to play elsewhere for the games against Harle-

Harlequins on May 15 and Saracens on June 5. If Bath finish in the top two, they will also forgo home advantage in the play-off semi-finals. Bath are believed to be exploring using a ground within their academy boundaries, which includes parts of

The Rec will undergo a £70 million rebuild

Somerset and Hampshire, as well as Dorset, Wiltshire and Berkshire. It is understood that Bath discussed a groundshare with Gloucester, but a deal has not materialised. It is also unlikely they will play "home" league games at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium and the RFU has not been approached by Bath. Bath have also not approached Bris-

Bristol Bears about sharing Ashton Gate. Bath's chief executive Tarquin McDonald wrote to supporters yesterday: "We are in discussion with alternative host venues and we will update you once the location for these fixtures is confirmed."

McDonald said that fans would be reimbursed if they could not attend the relocated fixtures. Bath will continue to play at The Rec in 2027-28, while the ground is being rebuilt. They are expanding the stadium from 14,500 seats to 18,000, and the whole redevelopment will cost in the region of £70 million.

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47

Football Sport

FAMILY & ROYA

Mourinho's vulnerability only appears for his father

Alyson Rudd

Senior Sports Writer

Three hours of José Mourinho is tough, like that glass of dessert wine when you are full from a sickly chocolate mousse or, perhaps more relevantly, when you have your own magic. Mourinho moments and wish to preserve them in isolation, not as part of a massive tapestry that, well, becomes a bit repetitive.

The Portuguese arrives, he conquers and then he fails. Usually in his third season, if not sooner.

This is not to say MOURINHO, the new Netflix documentary series, is unwatchable, rather a warning to take your time between episodes. Mourinho was not made for binge-watching.

Does this series give us the real Mourinho? Maybe. But it is a version we have seen before. Slightly sulky, arrogant, dismissive but also articulate and very clever. The most captivating moments were not the titles he won, or the cup runs, but when he was making his way in the game, feeling he had to work much harder than anyone else because he had not been a success as a player. His list of jobs when assistant to Louis van Gaal at Barcelona was so darned extensive, I half expected him to say he had to give the Dutch coach a pedicure every Tuesday.

You do not leave this show feeling Mourinho has not earned his accolades and his money. But neither do you feel he was pushed very hard to delve into his methodology.

Are you not curious about people, he is asked. No, he says, he is interested in careers. That is, after all, why they are making the documentary, isn't it?

Any book about a successful person, he argues, should contain five of 500 pages about that individual's childhood and yet it seems clear his own childhood and his relationship with Félix, his father, a football coach who was sacked on Christmas Day, is at the heart of his ambition. Even now he cannot talk

about his father's death and this provides the only moment of vulnerability as he taps the table to ward off the tears.

His father, he says, was the opposite of him in that everybody loved Félix; he was 'a phenomenal human being, I am not even close'.

There was controversy in his career, but this is not a show keen on investigation. The Dr Eva Carneiro case was prolonged and deeply uncomfortable at the time, but here Mourinho simply states: 'For me, a lady doctor is the same as a man doctor. So I use my vocabulary when I'm not happy.' Carneiro told an employment tribunal that Mourinho called her 'daughter of a whore' when she ran on to the pitch to treat Eden Hazard.

Mourinho does not really believe in injuries. John Terry relates how his former manager once entered the physio room and chatted merrily and even hugged staff but ignored his defender simply because he was injured.

'If it's a pain you cannot cope [with] inject,' Mourinho reflects.

The one bombshell delivered by the show is that Mourinho, in his own words, 'signed' for Manchester United in 2013 only to tearfully tell Sir Alex Ferguson he needed to return to Chelsea. 'I was of course very flattered,' he says of United's

offer, but he needed to feel loved. 'But I don't regret,' Mourinho says. 'When you do something for love you are never doing anything wrong.'

Another big reveal is Mourinho telling us 'I never got drunk in my life. You look, I look, I see more than you,' he says.

We see very little of his family. 'They appear in occasional clips, but mostly in photo-

Mourinho's bond with his dad, Félix, is at the core of his career: 'He was a phenomenal human being, I am not even close'

graphs on his shelves, and it is poignant when he tells us they have a nicer time without him when visiting restaurants, for example.

His joining Chelsea felt predestined. He was a spiky manager who knew it was easier to get a big job if you were Frank Rijkaard or Ronald Koeman and

the west London club were upstarts with, as he points out, 'zero'. Premier League titles. Here it becomes a little homoerotic with Mourinho telling Frank Lampard, who was in the shower, that he is the best player in the world and Terry a bit miffed, looking back, that he did not have a shower meeting too. Mostly the documentary ex-

plores his motivational skills but the tactical secret to his first spell of success at Chelsea was to make sure training was as tough, if not tougher, than the real thing.

'I'm not nice,' Mourinho says after being asked to reflect on the Anders Frisk controversy, when he accused the Swedish referee of colluding with Rijkaard when Chelsea faced Barcelona in 2005, leading to Frisk receiving death threats. But he says he's not nice 'with pride'. In no sense is he more reflective now than he was then.

Then we are taken back in time. 'Was I naive, arrogant? I don't think so,' he says of promising to win the title when he was appointed Porto manager.

'That was the moment when I introduced myself to the world,' he says of the famous run down the touchline after beating United in the Champions League round of 16. He says he can still feel the weight of the coat he wore and indeed it looks, now, a desperately heavy garment for a sprint.

'I can be really nasty, aggressive,' he says when recalling labelling Arsène Wenger a voyeur. But he offers no regrets. 'So it was a great time, yeah,' he says of winning his second title with Chelsea, as if remembering a nice bit of Camembert on toast. This was because he had less power behind the scenes.

Lampard says he could tell the mood had changed, that his manager was not quite as in control. Perhaps that was the fallout of 'Voyeurgate', which reflected badly on the club. 'I never had a moment of doubt, why should I? Why?'

He wanted Samuel Eto'o but he got Andriy Shevchenko going into his fourth season at the Bridge and this annoys him still. 'Success shouldn't be a curse,' Mourinho says when discussing being sacked by Roman Abramovich, adding he thought he was popular with the people but not with the ownership.

He left Chelsea for Inter Milan when Barça felt the more natural move, but he is stony-faced about that. He turned Zlatan Ibrahimovic into 'a killer', says the striker. But Ibrahimovic leaves Inter for Barcelona. The best bit of the show is Ibrahimovic telling us Mourinho tells him he knows he has gone to Barcelona to win the Champions League but Mourinho will win it at Inter.

'You little f***er,' relives the Swede, capturing the moment it dawned on him that Mourinho may just do that — and he does because he got Eto'o in return for Zlatan plus some cash.

The Real Madrid years are worth reliving because he is back there now and a man with absolutely no regrets.

'With my career,' he says, 'I won the right to be happy.'

Derby takeover collapses after Saudi boxing supremo pulls out

Tom Kershaw

Derby County have been left stunned after Saudi Arabian boxing powerbroker Turki Al-Sheikh backed out of a proposed deal to buy a majority stake in the Championship club at the 11th hour.

The Times revealed in May that Al-Sheikh, an adviser in Saudi Arabia's royal court who serves as the head of the General Entertainment Authority, was in advanced talks to purchase Derby from David Clowes, who saved the club from liquidation in 2022. Al-Sheikh sat-

isfied the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) and the English Football League (EFL) that his wealth was separate to that of the Saudi Public Investment Fund and was cleared to complete the deal last week. However, in an about-face that shocked Derby chiefs, Al-Sheikh abruptly called off the takeover yesterday, five days before the beginning of the season.

A statement from Derby read: 'The club can confirm discussions with Lion Sport [the group headed by Al-Sheikh] to buy a controlling interest in Derby

County will no longer proceed. The purchase process had been sanctioned by both the Independent Football Regulator and the EFL, notification of which the club received last week.

'However, today the club received notice that Lion Sport no longer wanted to continue with the purchase. The club is now off the market and will continue to operate under the loyal, committed and unwavering support of Clowes Developments. Our preparations continue for the new EFL season, beginning against Charlton Athletic on Saturday.'

Al-Sheikh took to social media shortly afterwards and implied that the time taken by the IFR to approve the takeover was key to him pulling out of the deal. The approval process took 55 days — 90 days are permitted — and, given the complexities of the case because of Al-Sheikh's longstanding relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his role as a government minister, there is understood to be scepticism about whether other factors could be at hand. 'I would like to thank everyone at Derby County Football Club, and

everyone involved in this process for all their hard work over the past few months,' Al-Sheikh said in a statement.

'We understood that the IFR process takes time and fully respect the importance of that, but unfortunately with the season already started, it would leave us with no time to prepare the team or the club for the season ahead. After careful consideration, we don't feel it is right to proceed without the necessary preparation in place, but we will remain in conversation with the club and see what is possible in the future.'

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48

Sport Football

Araújo's pay cut for Liverpool loan

EVA MARK (STATION) BUCKMERS/GETTY IMAGES

Paul Joyce

Northern Football Correspondent

Ronald Araújo has accepted a wage cut to facilitate his loan move from Barcelona to Liverpool and is ready to play straight away for his new head coach Andoni Iraola.

The defender's determination to take an unexpected chance to switch to the Anfield club has involved him accepting a lower salary than he would have received had he stayed at the Nou Camp. Liverpool will cover all of his wages but will not pay a loan fee and have an option, rather than an obligation, to buy him for £47 million next summer.

'I think it was the ideal move for me at this stage in my career,' said Araújo, who will wear the No 33 shirt. 'As soon as I heard that interest from Liverpool, everything went into action really, really quickly.'

Liverpool's immediate focus is for him to bolster a defence that has been beset by fitness issues. Joe Gomez, Giovanni Leoni and Conor Bradley will all miss the start of the new season while Jérémy Jacquet has not played for the club so far during pre-season, although he should feature against Como in a friendly at Anfield on Sunday.

Araújo's versatility as both a right back and in his preferred centre-back position means he has a strong opportunity to start against Newcastle United on the opening weekend of the new Premier League campaign.

The 27-year-old Uruguay international will train later this week but is in good physical condition after his recent work with Barcelona and is in a positive mindset to seize the moment.

Araújo made 38 appearances for Barcelona last season despite taking a break from football between the end of November and early January to work on his mental health.

He was heavily criticised after being sent off in a 3-0 Champions League defeat against Chelsea and later revealed he had been battling against anxiety and depression for 18 months.

'It was not just related to sport, it was also on a family and personal level,' he told Mundo Deportivo in February. 'I didn't feel myself and that moment [the red card at Chelsea] served as a click to say. Something is happening, I need to ask for help.'

'I am the type of person that usually keeps everything to myself, but you have to understand there are professionals that can help you, that can give you the tools to manage certain situations. I needed to ask for help and explain what I was going through to be able to recover.'

Araújo travelled to religious sites in Bethlehem and Jerusalem and spent time with his family before returning to help Barcelona win La Liga as captain.

Jeff Bezos estimated net worth: $280 billion

Ranked by Forbes as the third-richest person in the world. Founded Amazon in 1994 as an online bookshop. Owns the Washington Post and aerospace manufacturer Blue Origin.

CONTINUED FROM BACK

Deal close for Liverpool stake

2027 and discussions over possible extensions are under way.

The Times contacted FSG but it declined to comment on how negotiations were progressing. As the deal is for more than 25 per cent of the club, it would be subject to the Premier League's owners' and directors' test and the new independent football regulator before being finalised.

FSG bought Liverpool in October 2010 for £300 million from US businessmen Tom Hicks and George

Gillett and has since transformed the club's fortunes — they have won the Premier League twice and the Champions League.

The second of those league title successes came in 2025 and since then Liverpool have spent about £550 million on strengthening their squad with the expectation that there will be further expenditure over the remainder of the summer transfer window. Paris Saint-Germain attacker Bradley Barcola is a target and valued at £145 million by the French champions.

Liverpool have also successfully revamped Anfield, expanding the

Eduardo Saverin estimated net worth: $33 billion Born in Brazil and based in Singapore, Saverin is best known as co-founder of Facebook. He met Mark Zuckerberg at Harvard in 2002, where the pair started the social media website, which has more than three billion monthly users. Saverin split from Zuckerberg and Facebook in 2005 after a bitter feud between the pair. Saverin was part of a consortium that launched a failed bid for Chelsea in 2022 — losing out to the group led by Todd Boehly and Cleariake.

Amit Bhatia estimated net worth: $23 billion The British-Indian businessman is leading the consortium to buy this stake in Liverpool. He started his career as an investment banker, before moving into construction, real estate and private equity. He has previous experience in sport, most recently stepping down as co-owner and director of QPR in July after 18 seasons. He is the son-in-law of the steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal.

capacity to 61,000, and built a state-of-the-art training ground in Kirkby which amalgamated the first team and academy set-ups.

The looming deal with Bhatia's consortium, and the size of the stake being sold, has fuelled debate on whether FSG is beginning an exit strategy. Liverpool principal owner John W Henry has been open about the fact FSG will look to sell one day but, in the short term, the deal will strengthen the business.

It is a similar move to when a 3 per cent stake was sold to Dynasty Equity in 2023 for about £120 million. At the time, FSG president Mike

Gordon, who has resumed the day-to-day running of Liverpool after the departure of FSG chief executive of football Michael Edwards last month, said: 'Our long-term commitment to Liverpool remains as strong as ever.

'We have always said that if there is an investment partner that is right for Liverpool then we would pursue the opportunity to help ensure the club's long-term financial resiliency and future growth.'

Clearly if FSG decided to sell more of the club in the future, then the relationship with the Bhatia syndicate and Dynasty means it would speak to them.

Barcelona confident of signing Rodri

Paul Hirst

Barcelona are growing increasingly confident of signing Rodri from Manchester City and hope that the Spain captain could complete his move to the Nou Camp by the end of the week.

Talks between the two clubs continued yesterday, three days after City rejected Barcelona's initial offer of £38.5 million for the 30-year-old World Cup winner.

City are believed to be holding out for a fee of about £60 million and Barcelona are willing to meet that figure, although with a down payment of about £55 million, plus at least another £5 million in add-ons.

Barcelona would like to have Rodri through the door in the next few days so he can integrate himself into the squad. Barcelona play Basel in a friendly on Sunday, a week before they begin their Spanish title defence against Elche.

Ferran Torres, who scored the winning goal in the World Cup final against Argentina, was also due to return to training at Barcelona's base tomorrow, but it appears that the winger is set to move to Paris Saint-Germain. The French club are expected to make a second offer that is higher than their opening bid of £34 million, plus £8.5 million in add-ons.

Like Torres, Rodri has a year left on his contract and has not shown any de-

sire to extend his deal, which is why City are ready to cash in on him.

City have already signed the England midfielder Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest for £116 million and are in talks with Lille over a potential £85 million deal for the 18-year-old Moroccan Ayyoub Bouaddi.

If Rodri leaves, Enzo Maresca may ask the City hierarchy to go back into the market for another midfielder, although they already have other players in that position, such as Mateo Kovacic, Tigian Reijnders and Nico González.

Kovacic, who has one year left on his deal, has said he wants to stay at City, as has González, while Reijnders has been linked with a transfer to Forest.

West Ham may turn to Vardy, 39, if move for Parrott fails

Jamie Vardy is among the back-up options for West Ham United if they cannot sign Troy Parrott.

The 39-year-old striker wants to play on after leaving Cremonese when his contract expired following their relegation to Serie B. He scored seven goals and provided three assists.

West Ham have had a bid of about £15 million rejected for Parrott, the Ireland forward who has scored 51 goals and provided 17 assists in 97 matches for AZ Alkmaar in two seasons. He moved for £6.7 million from Tottenham Hotspur, who have a 20 per cent sell-on clause, in 2024.

RB Leipzig also have an interest in Parrott. West Ham's other target has been Wilson Isidor, but Sunderland insist the forward is not leaving.

Manor Solomon has signed a three-year contract with West Ham after finalising a £7 million transfer from Tottenham. The winger, 27, contributed ten goals and 13 assists on loan at Leeds United to help them achieve promotion from the Championship in 2025.

Aston Villa's hopes of signing Endrick on loan from Real Madrid were fading last night. The Brazil forward, 20, spent the second half of last season on loan at the French side Lyon, where he scored five goals in 16 appearances — and Villa wanted to bring him to the Premier League.

However, it is understood the player and his agency have now been informed he is part of head coach José Mourinho's plans this season.

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49

Sport

The six swap transfers I'd love to see

Mixing logic and fun, James Gheerbrant suggests exchange deals that would make perfect sense for Premier League clubs

On the vanishingly rare occasions that a swap transfer happens, such as the deal in which Crystal Palace and Everton have exchanged Dwight McNeil and Brennan Johnson, it makes you wonder why clubs don't do it more often. So many players are out of place or out of favour at their Premier League clubs, and with new Fifa rules clamping down on the practice of exiling players to "bomb squads", there is all the more incentive to give unwanted players a new home.

What if swap deals were more commonplace? Here, for a bit of fun, we have imagined a universe where they are, and come up with another six possible swap transfers involving the other Premier League clubs. Some are straight swaps, others are part exchanges involving a fee.

MATTHUS DE LIGT TO CHELSEA, NICOLAS JACKSON TO MANCHESTER UNITED Since Michael Carrick replaced Ruben Amorim, United have been transitioning from a squad built for a back three to one built for a back four, Chelsea, under Xabi Alonso, may be moving in the opposite direction. Centre back De Ligt therefore offers more to Chelsea than he does to United, and has the pedigree

to be interesting to Alonso. United's squad has few obvious gaps but Nicolas Jackson, whom Chelsea are keen to sell, is a better striker than his reputation suggests and would be an upgrade on the departed Rasmus Hojland. Malo Gusto, another whom Chelsea are not wedded to keeping, would also be an option.

SAVINHO FROM MANCHESTER CITY TO TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FOR £10M PLUS GUGLIELMO VICARIO

City are in urgent need of a back-up goalkeeper after the departure of James Trafford. With Enzo Maresca's compatriot Michele De Bernardin serving as City's head of goalkeeping, adding Italy's No.2 to Italy's No.1, Gianluigi Donnarumma, makes a lot of sense. Roberto De Zerbi is ready to move on from Vicario to Antonin Kinsky. The front three is clearly the area where Spurs need more quality, and Savinho, a long-term target, gives De Zerbi his "bomb". Wingers aged 22 cost more than 29-year-old 'keepers, so a fee changes hands too.

JACOB GREAVES TO BOURNEMOUTH, JUSTIN KLUIVERT TO IPSWICH TOWN Greaves is a very good player and Ipswich letting him go would once have seemed unthinkable. But with club captain Dara O'Shea, new signings Issa Diop and Cedric Kipré, and youngster Charlie Hughes, who some rate as a bigger asset than Greaves, offering depth in central defence, he feels like a player they can afford to lose. It's usually goalscorers, not centre backs, who move the needle for promoted teams trying to stay up. Ipswich get a proven Premier League scorer in Kluivert, who has been squeezed out a bit by Rayan, Eli Junior Kroupi and Evanilson at Bournemouth. Bournemouth need a

Palace truce with partner of McNeil

Paul Joyce

The Crystal Palace co-owner and chairman Steve Parish has moved to clear the air with the partner of Everton winger Dwight McNeil as a swap deal involving Brennan Johnson nears completion.

McNeil had been close to joining Palace on loan on deadline day in January — a deal that included an obligation to buy him permanently for £20 million — but the transfer collapsed late on, leaving McNeil to return to Everton. In a searing post, McNeil's girlfriend, Megan Sharpley, subsequently accused Palace of messing with McNeil's mental health and breaking promises.

She said Palace had gone from "everything to radio silence, no phone call, no communication" and that her partner had been "left

brokenhearted with nothing but confusion" after being "toyed with until the final minute".

She added: "In football, why do we find it acceptable because these young men are on a lot of money and that's okay to mess and toy with their mental health and that it's just part of the job?"

Now Parish has spoken to Sharpley to smooth things over so the move for McNeil, 26 — with Johnson going to Everton — can advance. The players were having medicals yesterday at their prospective new clubs and four-year deals for both have been prepared.

The transfer is a straight exchange, which has raised eyebrows given Johnson, the Wales forward, moved to Palace from Tottenham Hotspur for £35 million only in January. He has struggled at Palace, failing to score in 26 appearances, and was an unused substitute in the Conference League final victory against Rayo Vallecano. Johnson had scored 18 goals in 51 appearances for Spurs in 2024-25.

Everton would also hold an interest in Palace right wingback Daniel Muñoz in the event of him being allowed to leave.

bit more centre-back depth and Greaves could be polished into a gem there.

ETHAN NWANERI TO LIVERPOOL, CODY GAKPO TO ARSENAL, SEASON-LOAN SWAP

Left wing feels like a spot where Arsenal could still stand to strengthen. Gabriel Martinelli scored one league goal last season, Leandro Trossard has gone and

Vinicius Jr is out of the picture. Gakpo is no Vini, of course, but he chips in like Trossard and has the height Mikel Arteta values. After an underwhelming pre-season, Nwaneri's path to first-team minutes at Arsenal is hard to see. Liverpool have lots of left-sided attackers but desperately need a right-sided player. Nwaneri would fit the bill and add a jolt of excitement.

If Arsenal aren't ready to give up on

Nwaneri yet, call it a season-long loan.

VIKTOR TORP TO BRENTFORD FROM COVENTRY CITY FOR £12M PLUS ETHAN PINNOCK

Victor Torp had ten goals and eight assists in the Championship last season, but Coventry are fairly well stocked in midfield, with Torp, Matt Grimes, Josh Eccles, Jack Ruloni and new signings Caleb Yrenkyi and Frank Onyeka competing for three places. Frank Lampard may see more value in adding an experienced Premier League pro to a centre-back group that has added Eintracht Frankfurt's Aurélie Amenda to second-tier stalwarts Bobby Thomas and Liam Kitching (all of them 26 or younger).

Denmark's Torp feels very Brentford and is just the sort of player they could take to the next level.

MATS WIEFFER TO SUNDERLAND, WILSON ISIDOR TO BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION

Sunderland's biggest squad need is youth and dynamism in the full-back positions: their first-choice left back, Reinildo Mandava, is 32, 34-year-old Thomas Meunier has arrived to play on the other side. Nordi Mukiele has evolved into more of a centre back and Régis le Bris may be keen to continue using Trai Hume as a winger.

Wieffer, 26, played right back for Brighton last season, but with Olympiacos's Corinha joining Ferdi Kadioglu, his opportunities in that position may be numbered. He'd make a lot of sense for Sunderland.

Brighton haven't replaced Danny Welbeck. Isidor would join a striker group which, with Evan Ferguson, Stefanos Tzimas and Charalampos Kostoulas, is looking a little green at present.

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50

Sport European Athletics Championships

Hunt queen of Europe after

Matt Lawton

Chief Sports Correspondent, Alexander Stadium

Art history may be Amy Hunt's passion but the art of winning major championship medals is fast becoming this speedy young woman's speciality.

Here in Birmingham she delivered a performance that certainly deserved a larger audience than the 13,000 who showed up for the opening night of these championships, with Hunt following that World Championship silver in Tokyo last September, and the same prize at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last month, with a first, glorious gold of her career. "It was definitely time for an upgrade," she said.

Hunt claimed the European 100m crown in style, further enhancing the "track goddess" reputation she likes to combine with her "academic badass" background as a Cambridge graduate.

"I don't know if I have any more one-liners in me," she then said after revealing her desire to add three more medals, in the two sprint relays and the 200m, before the week is out. "But as I mentioned in the press conference yesterday when I quoted one of my favourite Freddie Mercury lines, 'I want it all.'"

This was some start; a moment in sporting history that marked another outstanding display in an already impressive season; one in which she has dipped under 11 seconds for the first time while also beating Dina Asher-Smith, here as the defending champion but only good enough for fifth on this occasion, to the national title over the shorter sprint distance.

Hunt was quickest in the three semi-finals earlier in the evening, winning a heat that also included Asher-Smith, in an impressive 10.99sec.

But the 24-year-old dealt superbly with the pressure such expectation creates, even if she may well concede that she perhaps sat a little too long in the blocks.

What Hunt has long claimed, however, is terrific top-end speed and the latter part of the race that served her so well in Japan last year proved decisive on this occasion too.

Not until about 65 metres did Hunt finally get her nose in front, coming through to win in 15sec flat for a win that was as much about holding her nerve as the pace that propelled her beyond the reach of Poland's Ewa Swoboda.

"I can be incredibly self-critical," she said in reflecting on that slightly sluggish start. "I think my coach will probably say it was ... 'trash' is probably going to be his word for it.

"But we came through at the end. I think that's one of my biggest skills in championships. I know I'm so strong towards the end. I always have that kind of extra magic in the last 40 or 50 metres."

She said that she had seen herself winning this one. "I'm so confident in myself because I get to see what I do every single day at training," she said. "So I knew I could come away with a gold. In fact I had such a big premonition, this magical feeling.

"I've won the English Schools here. I've raced here as a 13, 14-year-old. This really is my track. I'm a girl from Newark, a Midlands girl, so I just had a feeling that this was going to be my night."

Her victory marked the conclusion to a thrilling evening of track and field

that also included a silver medal for Great Britain's 4x400m mixed relay quartet and a remarkable win for the irrepressible Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the men's 5,000m.

His latest triumph arrived in a fraction over 13min 15sec but after a 324-day absence from competition. "With 600 metres to go, I knew I was going to get that gold medal," he declared afterwards. Another one with an ability to predict the future.

Ingebrigtsen's journey through elite distance running has never been short of storylines that sit outside his extraordinary ability on the track, from the Truman Show existence of his more formative years to the courtroom drama that concluded last year with his father and former coach, Gjert, being convicted for assaulting his daughter.

But this appearance by the double Olympic champion boasted its own unique narrative, even if there was also a more familiar Ingebrigtsen-style twist.

An achilles issue that ruined his chances of yet more medal success at last summer's World Championships finally demanded surgery in January.

So to time his comeback for a European final certainly took some guts, especially when accompanying him on his 12.5-lap return to the track was an athlete now being guided by the estranged old man.

Ingebrigtsen has been here before. He went into the 2023 World Championships facing another Norwegian who had chosen to remain part of Gjert's training group when Jakob and his brothers had ditched him, with Narve Gilje Nordas very nearly pipping him to the silver medal in a 1,500m final won that year by Josh Keer.

But for Gjert to continue coaching his son's rivals after receiving that 15-day suspended prison sentence, having also been acquitted of all charges relating to the allegations made by Jakob, is dark even by his standards.

José Carlos Pinto was very much a threat, even if he had something of an off night and dropped out halfway through the race.

But for 25-year-old Jakob, coming into this contest undefeated at a European Championships having won both the 1,500m and 5,000m titles at each of the last three editions, it must have been an unwelcome complication.

The race, however, was nothing short of a classic, and all the more impressive given the manner in which he claimed yet another European gold.

Ingebrigtsen prefers a fast pace but this was relatively slow, with the Norwegian sitting three from the back as they passed through 3,000 metres in 8.07.

When he did move to the front with 1,400 metres remaining he was unable to hold the position, reaching the bell in third and still in that position coming into the closing straight.

But from somewhere Ingebrigtsen rediscovered the speed that once propelled him to Olympic 1,500m glory, surging to the front with less than 50 metres remaining and putting more than three tenths of a second between himself and second-placed Florian Brennem, of Germany.

"I dreamt of this moment two weeks ago when I put my name on the list and I was crossing my fingers that I would come here and feel better," Ingebrigtsen said after punching the air in celebration.

"It was just enough. I'm extremely happy."

Hunt held her nerve to claim the European 100m title in Birmingham, winning in 11.00sec. The Briton, 24, who previously

Tokyo shock still follows Jacobs as he bids for treble

Matt Lawton

As well as a first sight of Keely Hodgkinson in a morning session in which she will launch her pursuit of a third consecutive European 800m title, day two of these championships here in Birmingham involves another athlete seeking treble glory.

Lamont Marcell Jacobs stunned athletics in 2021 when, having only recently converted from long jump to sprinting, he broke the ten-

second barrier for the 100m and then claimed the Olympic title in Tokyo in what remains a European record of 9.80sec.

Within days a different narrative emerged. As The Times first reported, the nutritionist and gym owner celebrated for his role in the Italian's sprinter's transformation had been implicated in a Milan police investigation into the distribution of banned steroids.

While "Operation Muscle Bound" concluded with Giacomo Spazzini being acquitted in court of criminal charges, he did receive a 15-year anti-doping ban.

That, however, was then completely rescinded on appeal when an independent panel ruled that Spazzini fell outside the jurisdiction of anti-doping authorities because, technically, he was not a participant in sport.

Representatives acting for Jacobs were quick to insist their client terminated his relationship with Spazzini the

moment he learnt of the police investigation — Jacobs, himself, is a serving police officer — a few months before the Tokyo Games.

But it is a story that has followed 31-year-old Jacobs as he has collected further titles, two of them coming in 2022 and 2024 with those European outdoor victories as well as a world indoor 60m gold he claimed some six months after Tokyo.

He managed only fifth in trying to defend his Olympic title in Paris two years ago, but this season Jacobs — now back with the same Italian coach who guided him to perhaps one of the most unexpected triumphs in the history of the sport — is looking sharp. He clocked an eyewatering 9.67sec in Austria last month, albeit with the assistance of a wind blowing at 4.1m/s.

It certainly makes him the favourite this evening, with Great Britain's Romell Glave probably his closest rival.

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51

Sport

storming finish

MARTIN BOGOTT/PA

came second in the 200m at last year's World Championships, said afterwards that "I was getting fed up with silver"

Britain off to flyer in Paris with double relay gold

Swimming Craig Lord Paris

Great Britain moved to the head of the leaderboard on the first day of the European Swimming Championships in Paris last night after the men's and women's 4x200m freestyle relay teams won gold, while Max Litchfield took bronze in the 400m individual medley.

There was more good news for the team as Adam Ramsay-Peaty raised hopes of a revival that had looked to be in serious doubt just two weeks ago at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. He moved into the final of the 100m breaststroke with Filip Nowacki, 18, the heir-in-waiting to his British breaststroke crown, also making it through. The men's 4x200m freestyle relay team won in a time of 7min 01.52sec, which was 0.71sec ahead of

France, with Germany a further 0.07sec away. Great Britain last won the European title in 2018, but since then there involved in that success — Tom Dean, James Guy and Duncan Scott — have, with Matt Richards, claimed gold at two Olympic Games (2021 and 2024) and two World Championships (2023 and 2025) in Paris. Dean raced a touch slower than his training partner, Jack McMillan, in the heats, and he replaced the Tokyo Olympic 200m freestyle champion in the final.

Scott, who had the edge on all the last-leg splits among the first four teams home, hung on for gold. With a smile, he said: "Hung on is probably the right word. The credit goes to James. He's 30 years old, no slowing up, and I think he really did put in that gap that I needed for the back leg. Phenomenal."

But Guy had none of it. "There's no 'I'

Ramsay-Peaty looks impressive as he reaches the 100m breaststroke final.

in team," he said. "And the one thing we said before walking down is just do your part and try and get the best outcome possible."

Meanwhile, Britain's quartet of Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Leah Schlossham and Freya Anderson dominated their final, winning in a time of 7min 45.93sec

Infantino accused of deceit by world football's leaders

CONTINUED FROM BACK

with insiders saying it shows that the opposition to Infantino will not be intimidated. There is also strong confidence that Infantino would lose an election if he insisted on running, such as the breadth of opposition to him now.

Although some members of the AFC, such as Qatar, and Mexico from Concacaf, have backed Infantino, the majority are following their leaders. That includes the Caribbean Football Union, which has 25 Fifa members among the 35 in Concacaf. Uefa's 55 member associations are understood to be united.

Although the Confederation of African Football's executive has endorsed Infantino, some of its 54 member nations could also back a rival.

"This is about something more fundamental: the integrity of the game, and the integrity of those elected to lead it," the letter says.

"Leadership in football is not a possession. It is not about holding — or demanding — power to be held. It is a duty of service to the football family that entrusts it. When trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority, that duty has been abandoned."

The letter says that Fifa's admission of mistakes around Infantino's original scheme to sell stakes in Fifa tournaments to private investors was only around "a failure of communication" rather than an apology about the secret plan itself. It adds: "What football witnessed was a failure of judgment. A proposal advanced on a compressed timeline, without meaningful consultation, and pushed toward a deadline before member associations could properly review its terms is not the product of an oversight — it is the product of a design intended to limit scrutiny."

"It did not acknowledge that the proposal itself was inherently wrong. There remains no recognition that attempting to sell an interest in the Fifa

Infantino is under fire over his sell-off scheme

World Cup was a profound failure of judgment — not just a procedural misstep, but a fundamental breach of trust with the very institutions Fifa exists to serve."

The letter says Fifa's promised review of the collapse of the scheme should be carried out by a fully independent third party. It also questions why no Fifa Council members were invited to Infantino's crisis summit in Morocco last week, pointing out that Infantino was the only elected official to attend. The others were Fifa management — but without critical voices such as the chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, or Arsène Wenger, the head of global football development.

"This recent meeting ... only reinforces these concerns and represents a continuation of the very pattern of conduct that brought us to this moment," the letter adds. "It is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of one who believes the game is answerable to him. There is silence where there should be accountability, distance where there should be openness."

"These are not the qualities football deserves in its leadership. That is why we have taken this stance: not lightly and not alone, but together, and out of duty to the game we serve. Football's strength has always been its unity. We call for that unity to be honoured now, for leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it."

The biggest factor against Infantino resigning is that the Fifa presidency has become his identity over the last ten years. Without the position he would be giving up the lifestyle and profile that he cherishes — flying on private jets and mingling with world leaders and celebrities. His salary and bonuses of

$6 million (£4.4 million) a year would also be difficult to match if he left with his reputation in tatters. Sources with knowledge of the sell-off scheme said that the idea was for Infantino to become commissioner of the new enterprise after stepping down as Fifa president on a salary of $30 million plus bonuses. Fifa said that had never been discussed.

CONTINUED FROM BACK

Marinakis sues over gun banner

demonstrates that it was aware of the risk." Gibbs-White had come close to leaving Forest to join Tottenham last summer, but instead signed a new contract to stay at Forest.

Now Marinakis is seeking damages after filing a defamation claim against the club at the High Court yesterday. He will need to prove that the publication of the defamatory banner caused him serious harm and also that Palace were liable for the publication. Palace declined to comment.

The banner was produced at a time of heightened tensions between the two Premier League sides with Steve Parish, Palace's chairman, suggesting Forest had played a role in getting his side demoted from the Europa League to the Conference League. It was found Palace had breached Uefa rules on multi-club ownership and they were replaced in the Europa League by Forest.

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THE TIMES

Sport

The real Mourinho?

Alyson Rudd reviews Netflix documentary on manager Page 47

Bezos group's £1.5bn stake in Liverpool

Paul Joyce

Liverpool's owner Fenway Sports Group is poised to sell about one-third of the club to a consortium of billionaires, including the Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

The syndicate is being led by Amit Bhatia, the son-in-law of steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, and discussions are now at an advanced stage over the minority share.

As well as Bezos, Bhatia is being joined by Eduardo Saverin, one of the co-founders of Facebook, and a source said: "Talks are ongoing, but it is looking positive."

An announcement on the deal, which is worth £1.5 billion and would therefore value Liverpool at around £4.5 billion, is expected to follow over the next week and would mean the Anfield club have some of the wealthiest people in the world listed among their co-owners.

Despite the financial resources that Liverpool would appear to be able to tap into, the club would not suddenly be able to spend whatever they wanted to on new players in the transfer market, for example.

The Premier League's Squad Cost Ratio financial regulations limit the spending of top-flight clubs to 85 per cent of their football-related revenue and net profit/loss from player sales. In addition, those who play in European competition, as Liverpool invariably do, must fall in line with Uefa's 70 per cent cap. "They are not suddenly going to sign [Kylian] Mbappé," said a source.

Bhatia, whose father-in-law is worth an estimated £24 billion, last month stepped down from the board at Queens Park Rangers and transferred his stake in the club to owner Ruben Gnanalingam. He had been involved with the Championship club for 18 years.

Bezos's fortune is stated to be worth more than £207 billion by Forbes, and Saverin is said to be worth in excess of £24 billion.

Saverin was previously part of an unsuccessful consortium that tried to acquire Chelsea from former owner Roman Abramovich after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

In contrast, Bezos has not been interested in acquiring a stake in a sporting institution previously, having turned down the chance to purchase NFL side Seattle Seahawks.

Signing up now for a shareholding of about 30 per cent would demonstrate the consortium's backing for how PSG has run Liverpool on and off the pitch, given they would want a return on their investment. The deal also reflects the club's allure on the global stage.

One of the key benefits of the involvement of such high-profile figures would be driving off-pitch revenue through new commercial tie-ups, while there could also be infrastructure and tech opportunities. In the latest accounts for the financial year ending May 31, 2025, Liverpool announced record revenues of £703 million.

Deals with front-of-shirt sponsor Standard Chartered and sleeve sponsor Expedia both expire in the summer of Continued on page 48

Hunt sprints to European gold

Fast-finishing Briton, 24, wins 100m in Birmingham – her first major title after silvers at both worlds and Commonwealths. Report, pages 50-51

Infantino 'has broken trust'

Martyn Ziegler

Sports News Reporter of the Year

Gianni Infantino has been accused of "deception" by three Fifa vice-presidents over his World Cup sell-off plan in a joint letter that raises the stakes over his future.

The open letter from Aleksander Celerin, Victor Montagliani and Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, respectively the presidents of Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation, says Infantino "abandoned" his duty and "broke trust".

The confederation leaders want Infantino to resign now and not seek re-election in March. Some sources said there have even been preliminary discussions about organising rival international competitions for their players.

The letter is in response to a furious statement from Fifa over the weekend, Continued on page 51.

Marinakis sues for gun banner

Charlotte Duncker

Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is suing Crystal Palace for defamation over a banner the London club's fans held up in August 2025 which depicted him holding a gun to midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White's head.

Palace were fined £50,000 by the Football Association over the banner, which read: "Mr Marinakis is not involved in blackmail, match-fixing, drug trafficking or corruption."

The FA deemed Palace had not done enough to stop their supporters behaving in an improper, offensive, abusive or provocative way during the I-1 draw at Selhurst Park. The governing body said in a statement: "The fact that Crystal Palace had a policy to prevent banners being smuggled into the stadium Continued on page 51

Times Crossword 29,618

ACROSS

1 Supporters' talk involving openings for youth team — what a surprise (5,4) 6 Bear with recurrent bad cough (5) 9 Recover two cities inside border (7) 10 Wrongly pick up circulating cash to clip (7) 11 Attracted by river in early light (5) 12 Goes for good record label with good prices (9) 13 Abdicate, not having succeeded in this? (5) 14 Where patient may be likely to lose guts after a week, in clumsy way (9) 17 Advanced with vigour and ripped dress open (7,2) 18 Half portion of pasta and cake (5) 19 Jaundiced, you will want to accept nothing (9) 22 Tight-lipped about son that creates a range of colours (5) 24 Illustrations of couple beginning to relax in boat (7) 25 Polymers holding last of rotting steps down (7) 26 Fail to recruit team for Union opponents (5) 27 Gloomy yet surprisingly wordy study? (9)

DOWN

1 Passenger, first to depart, got on (5) 2 Fruit tree can supply nursing home (9) 3 Agreed to accept caution, leaving with very strong feelings (9) 4 Flag device from horror studio with stomach-turning real gore at the end (6,3,6) 5 Eliot, Cromwell, as well as Hotspur: no one exceptional? (3,4,3,5) 6 More sensible of Scrooge for one to flip character at the start (5) 7 Observable, with the passage of time (5) 8 Colonnade steeply raked: 1 run up through it (9) 13 Salesman daily travelling around quietly free to return (5-4) 15 A new suggestion regarding first course (9) 16 For heroic deeds, Wagner's operas satisfy (7-2) 20 Source of rubber in recent times (5) 21 Recombine elements of very lightweight gas (5) 23 Has to finish off pastry smelling stale (5)

Yesterday's solution 29,617

Check today's answers by ringing 0905 757 0148 by midnight. Calls cost £1 per minute plus your telephone company's network access charge. 5P: Spoke 0333 202 3395.

Newspapers support recycling

The recycled paper content of UK newspapers in 2024 was 34.7%

3.7

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TIMES 2

August 11

2026

Must they?

The summer

of the PDA*

*Public display of affection

Clockwise from main: Victoria and David Beckham; Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson; Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce; the Princess and Prince of Wales

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2

times2

Brad Pitt has opened up about suicidal thoughts. I'm not sure he's helping Robert Crampton

Discussing the pain, still continuing, of his break-up with Angelina Jolie a decade ago, Brad Pitt told an Esquire interviewer: "I've never been suicidal except for one little period. And in that one little period, I just thought — I just couldn't — just didn't see a way out. The pain was so oppressive that — I wasn't going to act on this, but I could feel — I could feel the cold steel of the bullet in my head, and it felt like relief."

That is quite a revelation, especially coming from a guy who, by his own no-false-modesty admission, "won the lottery". Global fame, talent, stellar good looks and considerable wealth provide no guarantee of happiness, not when you're estranged from at least three of your six kids and they announce, one after another, that they're dropping your contribution to their surname. That's gotta hurt.

To be clear, Brad isn't saying he was suicidal. But he did succumb to an ideation of self-destruction (the cold steel bullet). Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50 in the UK, although the rate is highest among men aged 50-54, roughly Brad's vintage, I think, at the time of his darkest thoughts. Fourteen men die by their own hand every day in the UK. That's 5,110 a year. It's a grim, grisly subject. What to make of the superstar's intervention? Is it likely to increase these shocking numbers, or reduce them? I'm conflicted.

The received wisdom says yes, of course we should be open about our mental health. Destigmatisation is good. Talking is good. Sharing is good. Celebrities such as Pitt, Prince Harry and Stormry opening up about their struggles encourage other, non-famous men to face their demons and seek solutions. To get on antidepressants, or into therapy, before they harm themselves or others. If Pitt can feel so beaten down by life, the argument goes, the guy in the street is buoyed by learning he is not alone.

And yet when the talk turns away from solace and survival to self-destruction, I wonder if candour is always a good option. Suicide is anything but a relief to the loved

ones left behind. For them it's a life sentence.

Pitt's father is alive, and he has a brother and sister, nieces and nephews, friends and fans. And children — they're angry with him at the moment, but he's still their dad. If you even so much as float the idea of suicide, even to say you personally merely imagined it rather than contemplated it, you had best explain how you set about withdrawing from the brink.

If celebrities do have influence, as is assumed, Pitt going on record with his self-administered "cold steel bullet in my head" daymare is perhaps not entirely wise. Somewhere some poor soul who very much did not win the lottery, whose life feels a lot like the opposite of a lucky jackpot, may get the wrong idea.

As Pitt says of the protracted agony he felt as his erstwhile happy family fell spectacularly apart, "This shit ain't easy." I'm sure he'd be the first to admit it's even less easy when you don't have all the advantages that were bestowed on him.

Chuck, the Hoover sucks

Chuck Grassley, the bracingly reactionary 92-year-old Republican senator for Iowa, has announced the "passing" of his beloved Hoover. The device, which Grassley calls Beth and frequently references on social media, has sucked its last, aged 49, on account of giving out "electrical sparks". To which I say: Chuck, you bother, so what?

My great-aunt Adele used her 1949 Hoover 0307 washing machine well into the 1980s. For the last decade or so she had to do the weekly wash wearing rubber gloves to prevent electrocution. When she tentatively suggested getting a replacement her husband, Uncle George, harumphed, "I didn't realise I'd married a spendthrift," and sulked for days. Not a generous man, Uncle George.

Upgrades are, of course, sometimes necessary. And sometimes they're not. I have an exceptionally bog-standard turn-of-the-century Ryohin Keikaku desk calculator. It's way superior to the one on my phone. For one thing, it doesn't get stropzy and stomp off back to the screensaver if I ignore it for 15 seconds.

Eew! Enough

A new study has found that couples who canoodle in public are happier together. Spare us, says Shane Watson

We all know the rules of PDA. Some people are keen, others (normal, considerate people) are not, and those of us who don't go in for it are suspicious of public displays of affection.

To be more specific, we're fine with PDA providing it occurs within a smallish window — for example, the early days of dating, wedding and honeymoon — and the young are obviously an exception. What creeps us out is the couple who can't keep their hands off each other, particularly if they're over 30, especially if they've known each other for more than six months.

It's not that we're prudish (well, we never ever want to see your tongues, thanks, and, thinking about it, hands must be still, not wandering up and down or, God forbid, gently squeezing), it's more that we distrust the motives of the PDA happy couple and feel in our gut that affection is not what they're displaying so much as insecurity, self-love or both.

They're not passionate about each other, they're in love with the idea of being in love and someone being in love with them. PDA is performative as much as it's public, and it has nothing to do with genuine love or affection or lust. It's the protesting too much that gives the game away. The determination to show the world what only you two need to know.

Until this week I would have said this was a behavioural fact you could back up with research done on chimps. But now here comes the result of a scientific study, published in the journal Plos One, that suggests the opposite.

Researchers asked people to rate how frequently they engaged in various public displays of affection, including holding hands, hugging and kissing, and declaring their love for each other in front of family and friends, and found that people who engage in more PDA have "greater relationship satisfaction". Even small public gestures such as "holding hands, hugging or kissing can help partners feel valued, emotionally secure and connected to each other", they concluded.

Still, we're not going to take this lying down. It's one thing Callum Turner giving Dua Lipa a kiss on the temple when they're lined up in front of the cameras at his premiere: this couple are just married, they're in front of the world's press, they're having fun, living the life. This counts

as a genuine gesture of affection — including Turner's consideration for Lipa's pristine make-up.

Likewise, when Mr Sienna Miller leans in for a proper kiss in the crowd on Centre Court at Wimbledon we don't doubt his motives for a minute, ditto Aaron Taylor-Johnson and his wife, Sam. There are these exceptions to the "no PDA, we're British" rule, but the fact remains that the majority of PDA is on a spectrum from mildly ick-making to very exposing.

Let's turn to some of the most prolific celebrity PDAers, starting with Brooklyn and Nicola Peltz-Beckham.

Handsiness is bad — especially the slow-moving bum stroke

In almost every image of these two he is kissing her while she smiles directly at the camera.

They are little clips of his devotion to her, posted for all the world to see, but he could just as easily be dressed in a waiter's livery passing her a plate of macarons or wielding a make-up brush; he's in service, never, or very rarely, on the receiving end of a kiss.

This is Don't You See Why He Adores Me PDA territory, and when the pictures aren't being posted the messages and affirmations are endless. These PDAs are no more genuine signs of affection than the pout and victory v sign is.

Then there's Harry and Meghan — more equally balanced PDAs, certainly, but no less staged for our benefit and calculated to enhance their love rep. Why was it necessary for Harry to film Meghan receiving a present of a sculpture of two intertwined penguins for their eighth wedding anniversary in May — with explanation (supposedly for the

Marler's modesty is engaging

Good luck to Joe Marler as he takes on his new role in Gladiators. I've

interviewed Joe three times, most recently after his show-stealing stint on Celebrity Traitors, and can confirm he's a lovely guy. A big part of the big man's appeal, however, is his extreme modesty, the lacerating self-mockery beloved of most Englishmen in

general and rugby players in particular. I hope he gets a chance to display this trait on telly, but I worry Gladiators isn't big on irony and self-deprecation. As we saw on Traitors, Joe's one smart guy, his emotional intelligence

and clear-eyed reasoning far superior to those shown by supposedly more intellectual men such as Stephen Fry and David Olusoga. Sadly, Gladiators doesn't go a bundle on brains any more than it does humility. I hope he's getting paid a lot.

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with the performative PDAs

CONES SETTY MAZES, BECOM REUTERS; OPLEEN MORS SETTY MAZES

children's benefit) of the cute reason behind it (penguins mate for life) and a picture of them at their engagement party wearing penguin onesies?

Hands up how many of us remember being summoned as children to look at our parents' anniversary cards and mutual gifts and rejoice in their love for each other? (I was literally never aware of my parents' anniversary, and they were married for 70 years.)

So do we conclude from this that Meghan and Harry are a) more in love than most couples could possibly imagine, or b) they want to be a couple whose love the world is invested in — and Harry knows he has to keep stepping up with the tokens and surprises and public acts of appreciation because private does not really cut it with Meg?

Then, new to the club are Adam Ramsay-Peaty and his wife, Holly, who was watching in the crowd at the recent Commonwealth Games and whose pregnant stomach he kissed every time he completed a race. Once was fine — they are, after all, newly married — then it became weird and about something else. The more cornered a couple are (his treatment of his estranged mother has been an issue lately), the more the PDA steps up, the more we feel slightly uncomfortable.

Handsiness is bad — especially the slow-moving bum stroke. Full-on kissing with chewing motions is bad — and even worse when you're at a family event (talking about that time JLo and Ben Affleck were photographed at a wedding, with their children present, working up to 'get a room' state).

Even hand-holding when you're not

strolling on holiday or forcing your way through a crowd (eg in a room at a social event) is definitely ick. But the calculated-for-the-benefit-of-others demonstration of love, however well intentioned, is discomfiting in a different way.

Oh come on, you may be thinking. Some people are just more affectionate than others. But it's not true, is it, when you think about it? The most loving couples I know you rarely see PDAing in the physical sense.

They're much more likely to share a loving glance, or a plate of food, and the real test is they're frequently sharing a private joke and making each other double up with laughter. We all know King Charles and Camilla are madly in love, and it's not because he's in the habit of grabbing her bum in public.

Two more things worth noting — for those of us who don't like to have our world view challenged: none of the people surveyed in this study were from the UK Just saying. Also, those surveyed who were in the habit of showing affection regularly in private had even higher relationship satisfaction. So, if you're a no-PDAer, don't change your habits now.

The really shocking thing is how much outrage is driven by young people

Necking, licking, biting, snogging. Quick, call the Makeout Police by Simon Mills

Have you heard about the latest, highly specialised division of the worldwide constabulary? It's mainly a covert and plain-clothed operation, mainly staffed by members of the general public, special officers and citizens being the secret weapon of this crack squad's all-seeing MO.

Yes, the Makeout Police (as reported in the latest edition of the Atlantic magazine) are everywhere — on the street, at sporting events, on beaches, in bars and clubs, on trains and planes, in parks and cinemas — and they like to watch. For a while, anyway.

Any couple with the erotic temerity to go 'too far', for too long — necking, pecking, licking, biting, snogging, 'feeling up', bumping, grinding, winding on one another etc — will be clocked by the Makeout Police and dealt with accordingly. A cry of 'Get a room!' may be deployed as a warning shot, but should an overamorous pair continue, they will be dealt with and punished accordingly — viral shame, social media castigation, accusations of child abuse ('There are kids around!') and food poisoning ('I'm trying to eat here!') and, very possibly, total professional implosion swiftly following the misdemeanour.

Just look at the two lawyers over in Manhattan recently caught kissing on a bench in Central Park, he 45, she 29. Their bland U-certificate lunchtime 'kissplace' video went viral on TikTok. 'Completely inappropriate on so many levels,' one New Yorker told the New York Post (he looked about 20 years old). 'My dad's a lawyer and if I ever caught him doing that I would kill him,' another girl said.

The really shocking thing about all this is how much modern PDA outrage is driven by apparently very outraged, very young people. Teenagers and twentysomethings who may well be happy with PDAing as entertainment on shows such as Love Island are absolutely disgusted by canoodling right in front of them.

How did we all get to be so picky, party-pooping and prudish? When I was a teenager in the Seventies, snogging one's 'new bird' en plein air, in front of one's pals, was considered a sweet, open display of belonging, a show of mutual desire for one another.

On their bedroom walls young girls had poster prints of Robert Doisneau's famous 1950 Le Baiser de l'hôtel de ville and Alfred Eisenstaedt's highly charged image of a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square on August 14, 1945, during the celebration to mark YJ Day. In the 1990s, at raves and house music nights, couples high on the PDA effects of MDMA would neck to four-on-the-floor Chicago beats as if their lives depended on it. PDAing was free, glorious, celebratory, harmless, naughty and nice.

Then came hyper-conservatism and the Southern Baptists' True Love Waits movement that encouraged teenagers and young adults to sign pledge cards promising sexual abstinence. Come the millennium, even more priggishness; incels, generation Z's Puriteen subdivision (puriteen being a portmanteau of puritan and teenager), the rise of Dubai as the world's most strictly platonic holiday resort (in 2010 two Britons were jailed in Dubai for kissing in a restaurant).

The most recent ground-zero PDA incident? The notorious Coldplay kiss cam moment in 2025, when the then Astronomer co-workers Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot were caught illicitly canoodling on the Gillette Stadium's jumbotron screen in Boston. The Makeout Police went into riot-level overdrive when this story broke. Cabot received as many as 600 unsolicited phone calls a day and about 60 death threats. She was labelled a slut and a home-wrecker and had to quit her job. Byron tendered his resignation too.

The Gillette Stadium and the Central Park couples' true crimes? Not merely being Coldplay fans or lawyers, nor their extramarital canoodling (Nathaniel Cullerton, one of the lawyers, and Byron were married at their respective PDA flashpoints) but perhaps a much more heinous felony: publicly canoodling in middle age — while being not that hot.

A man like me, in his sixties and way beyond any kind of hotness, is well aware of this cruelly discriminating factor. Yes, I might instigate holding hands on a walk, let an affectionate elbow hang off a bare shoulder in the park for a few strides. Perhaps cradle both arms from behind at a standing concert. That's about it. There will be no tongues, no groping, no neck-kissing or lobe-sucking. No one wants to see that.

So, old and unattractive people: no more kissing in the park. Enough already. Get a room. A really dull and unsexy hotel, with a nice trouser press and coffee-making facilities preferably.

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Everything you need to know about medication in a heatwave

Dr Mark

Porter

his week's heatwave has prompted more health alerts. I will spare you the usual advice — important though it is to stay cool and well hydrated — and focus instead

on how high temperatures can affect your medication, and how the combination of hot weather and certain drugs can be bad for you. Earlier in the summer the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a warning that

improperly stored medication exposed to high temperatures may not work as intended. Examples include insulin, aspirin, GTN tablets for angina, thyroxine for an underactive thyroid gland, adrenaline auto-injectors such as EpiPen for severe allergies and slimming jabs such as Mounjaro.

Their efficacy won't fall off a cliff after an hour, but the higher the temperature — and the longer the exposure — the greater the risk. Given the huge range of medicines it's hard to generalise, but most should be stored at temperatures below 25C,

with some requiring cooler environments and even refrigeration. And temperatures in a medicine cabinet in a sunny bathroom, car glovebox or boot, or even a doctor's medical bag, often far exceed 25C in the conditions expected this week.

Although the heat-related deterioration of some medicines is obvious, such as clouding in insulin or a vinegary smell with aspirin, it's typically impossible to tell. So follow the storage instructions on the packet. If there are none, the drug is likely to be stable enough not to worry.

Conversely, heat can boost the effect of some medicines. Skin patches containing the opioid painkillers buprenorphine or fentanyl may release more of the drug into the body when the skin is warm, so hot weather, sunbathing, a long bath or even a hot-water bottle can lead to dangerous sedation and respiratory depression.

Another concern is how drugs affect your skins reaction to the sun. Antibiotics, particularly tetracyclines such as doxycycline, used to treat chest infections, acne-type skin disorders, STIs, Lyme disease and to prevent malaria, can trigger photosensitivity leading to rashes. As can the over-the-counter herbal remedy for low mood, St John's wort, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories such as naproxen tablets and ketoprofen gel, the immunosuppressant methotrexate taken by some people with conditions such as psoriasis and arthritis, and thiazide "water tablets" such as bendroflumethiazide.

The rash in these cases is typically triggered by the UVA component of sunlight, so it is important to use a high SPF sunscreen that has a five-star UVA rating. And be careful driving or sitting in sunlight streaming through a window at home — unlike sunburning UVB rays, UVA can travel through glass.

Some medicines can hinder our cooling mechanisms by reducing sweating. Common examples include anticholinergic drugs such as the bladder pills oxybutynin and solifenacin, as well as the old-fashioned antidepressant amitriptyline, often taken these days to help with nerve pain.

One other concern worth mentioning is when people fall ill during a hot spell, typically with a bout of gastroenteritis on holiday or after eating undercooked chicken from a barbecue at home. Here the burden of heat-induced dehydration on top of fluid loss through diarrhoea and vomiting can cause issues in people on some types of medication such as blood pressure and diabetes pills (see panel).

Some diabetes medicines can exacerbate existing dehydration or lead to dangerous acid build-up in the blood. Blood pressure pills can promote excessive salt and water loss — the last thing you need when dehydrated — and impair kidney function.

Drugs to avoid on sick days

Advice varies but I would include the following, unless advised otherwise by your GP or specialist:

ACE inhibitors and ARBs used to treat high blood pressure and some heart problems. Names end in -pril or -sartan, such as lisinopril, ramipril, candesartan and losartan. Entreto: used to treat heart issues. NSAIDs: anti-inflammatory painkillers such as ibuprofen, naproxen and diclofenac.

Diuretics: water tablets used to lower blood pressure and remove excess fluid such as furosemide, spironolactone, eplerenone and bendroflumethiazide. SGLT-2 inhibitors used in diabetes, kidney and heart conditions. Names end in -flozin, such as dapagliflozin, empagliflozin and canagliflozin. Diabetes medicines such as metformin, the GLP-1 agonists (also used in weight loss) tirzepatide (Mounjaro), semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) and liraglutide (Victoza).

While anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen and naproxen can, in extreme cases, cause kidney failure.

Prescribers are generally very aware of these risks — although there's a debate about how big a threat they pose — but don't seem to be that good at passing the relevant information on. Put simply, if you're on one of the drugs listed in the panel, you should consider stopping them while you're unwell. And, ideally, anyone affected will have been given a "sick day" medication card by their prescriber or pharmacist outlining what to do.

The card used by Healthcare Improvement Scotland is a typical example. It lists the drugs that can cause problems on sick days, and advises people who are unwell with two or more episodes of diarrhoea or vomiting and/or a high

temperature, sweats or shaking to temporarily stop the relevant medication and to restart it only when they feel well, usually after 24-48 hours of eating and drinking normally. If you are not back to normal in 72 hours contact your doctor for advice. You can download all the information at healthcareimprovement scotland.scot.

All the above can be boiled down to three key messages: store your medicines properly, take extra care in the sun if on a medicine that can cause photosensitivity, and download "sick day" advice. Oh, and don't forget to restart anything you stop. You can download the MHRA warning about improper storage of medicines at gov.uk/government/news/dont-let-thin-heatwave-affect-your-medicines-three-important-tips-from-the-mhra

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health

Oh no, not the lettuce! Why the microbiologist won't eat salad

A recent outbreak of cyclosporiasis in America caused by leaves should be a warning to us all. By Peta Bee

I am a lifelong salad-lover, but I'm seriously considering going cold turkey on summer leaves. Iceberg lettuce was the trigger for me. This summer, as many as 22,000 people in America have been stricken by cyclosporiasis, a parasitic illness that can cause extreme gastrointestinal symptoms including vomiting and diarrhoea "with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements", according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Although it's notoriously hard to trace, not least because symptoms can take two weeks to occur, the US Food and Drug Administration identified a culprit: lettuce imported from a Mexican farm complex.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has warned of a sharp rise of cyclospora infections among travellers returning from Mexico and noted cases related to travel from the US and Kenya. And while cyclosporiasis — spread in food and water contaminated with human faeces — isn't endemic in Europe, our salads are far from risk-free.

Last year the UKHSA reported a 26 per cent rise in shiga toxin-producing E coli (STEC strain O145) infections in England. Symptoms can include diarrhoea, stomach cramps, vomiting and fever. Dr Gauri Godbole, the deputy director of gastrointestinal infections at UKHSA, said the agency had seen cases "gradually increase since 2022" but that the sharp rise was the result of a foodborne outbreak. It infected about 250 people, 86 of whom were admitted to hospital. The cause? Lettuce in packaged sandwiches they had eaten.

Having spent more than a decade researching the unsavoury things that lurk inside salad leaves, Dr Primrose Freestone, an associate professor of clinical microbiology at the University of Leicester, says she won't eat lettuce and "wouldn't touch a bagged salad in a million years".

The problem is that they are eaten raw, she explains. "There's a natural microflora on lettuce and leaves as they have been growing out in the wild. Heat destroys pathogens, and there's a risk in eating something from the ground that has not been cooked.

"There are so many opportunities in the way salads are grown and handled that allow for infection to jump in. Flies, wasps and other critters carry contamination, adding to the issue at

"Pathogens grow more than 1,000 times better in a salad bag, even if it's kept in the fridge

this time of year. They can all carry pathogenic bacteria, including E coli, salmonella and listeria, onto fresh produce. Salad, lettuce and side salad infections can kill."

From 2020-21 microbiologists analysed 604 samples of fresh produce — mostly salad or salad leaves mixed with other vegetables — sold to UK shops and restaurants, and found listeria in 11 samples. One packaged salad containing leaves, cucumber and tomato was categorised as "potentially injurious" because traces of STEC were detected inside the bag. Sandwiches, salads and wraps served in UK hospitals were linked to a 2019 listeria outbreak in which six people were diagnosed as seriously ill and one died.

Before that, an outbreak of E coli O157 was traced to rocket leaves possibly imported from the Mediterranean and used in salad bags, including those supplied to restaurants. Of the 161 people affected, 62 needed hospital care and two patients died.

Salads can be delicious and nutritious, Freestone says, but we really need to eat them with caution. "There's a risk of cross-contamination in ready-made salads and salad bars at restaurants," she says. "If you prepare at home and follow good hygiene rules you can reduce food-borne infections, but don't overlook the potential risks."

Here's how to eat salad leaves safely.

Wash all salad ingredients (even those marked washed)

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) advises removing loose soil before storing vegetables and washing all herbs and salads thoroughly before eating. It's easier to remove pathogens from salad ingredients that can be peeled or scrubbed, Freestone

says, but she still advises washing everything before consuming.

This includes bagged salad marked washed. "Using tap water is fine as it is clean and provides enough of a shear force to remove debris," she says. "But lettuce has too much of a large surface area and you shouldn't expect to get rid of everything lurking in leaves." Ultimately, though, if pathogens are internalised in leaves you can't wash them away. "You can reduce the risk but can't eliminate it," Freestone says.

Avoid bagged salads

Freestone's research shows that the moist environment in a bag of washed salad provides the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, including salmonella, which increased 2,400-fold in laboratory trials.

"Pathogens grow more than 1,000 times better in a salad bag, even if it's kept in the fridge, and they attach themselves to the plastic too," she says. The longer they are in there, the worse it becomes. "We found that germs use juices from bagged salad leaves to become more virulent. And that means they are more likely to cause an infection."

If you still choose to buy bagged salads, refrigerate them immediately, wash them before use and eat them as soon as you can.

Don't buy mixed-leaf salad bags containing spinach

These are the worst offenders. "If it makes Popeye strong, it makes pathogens strong," Freestone says. Even though commercial processors wash leaves in chlorinated water, bacteria can penetrate the cut edges of spinach leaves where washes cannot reach.

Furthermore, an analysis in 2022 by

Pesticide Action Network UK found that spinach containing multiple pesticide residues increased from 57 per cent in 2019 to 73 per cent in 2022.

Ditch salad with slimy leaves

"Store a whole lettuce in your salad drawer for up to a week," Freestone says. "With bagged or pre-prepared salads, check the use-by date." You should definitely discard salad leaves that show signs of spoilage, such as "off" odours, sliminess or discolouration. "Dark green and moist leaves means microbial or fungal action on plant cells is leaching out fluids from interiors of cells," Freestone says. "In other words, your lettuce is starting to rot and you really need to chuck it out."

Skip restaurant side salads

In February my partner and some friends suffered food poisoning on a ski trip to France. The one thing we had all eaten that day was a limp side salad at a restaurant.

"Side salads are notoriously risky," Freestone says. "People always think it's the meat, fish or eggs they are served with but it's usually the side salad that causes the problems."

We never know their origin or how long they have sat out; perishable food left uncovered at room temperature for two hours is unsafe. "They really are best avoided when eating out," she adds.

Don't believe organic is safe

Buying organic will cut exposure to many agricultural chemicals but will not necessarily reduce your intake of PFAs, substances that are dubbed "forever chemicals" because of their ability to remain in and around our bodies for years.

A 2023 comparison of fresh, frozen and ready-to-eat vegetables showed that while organic produce may have lower levels of PFAs, it is not completely free from them. In 2022 the Expert Committee on Pesticide Residues in Food for PFA and pesticide residues found 7 per cent of 97 lettuce samples to contain traces of the chemicals, which can't be washed off.

It's not just salad leaves

When issuing its annual barbecue season warning about undercooked sausages and burgers the FSA advised that "extra care" be taken with "prepared salads such as rice salad, potato salad and coleslaw, as these carry the highest risk if they warm up".

Freestone generally eats coleslaw only from supermarkets because it has usually been pasteurised to remove pathogens. "I don't eat homemade coleslaw any more unless it is absolutely fresh and you are eating it straight away. Cabbage and carrots are safer when cooked, and leaving coleslaw outside next to the barbecue is asking for trouble."

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The A-list plus one? It's a private

Nicole Kidman has just been spotted with a finance bro, and Olivia Rodrigo has too. Beware PE men says Helen Kirwan-Taylor

How to nab a Hollywood A-list actress? Invest in a Loro Piana gilet and a Patek Philippe watch for starters. Then, just as the espresso arrives, mention that you happen to own a private equity firm. If she looks blank tell her to look up Stephen Schwarzman (the co-founder of Blackstone, who on a good year earns a billion). Say, "I do that."

PE guys, as they are called, are this summer's most fashionable dating choice. Nicole Kidman was recently spotted in Portofino with Michael Reinstein, the founder of Regent, a Beverly Hills private equity firm. She's not the only celebrity to go doe-eyed for a finance bro. Reese Witherspoon is on her second PE guy, dating Oliver Haarmann of Searchlight Capital Partners. Also joining the club is the singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo, who has been spotted with Julian Croonenberghs, a private equity investor with Hg Capital. The Wall Street Journal has declared that a PE boyfriend is "the summer's hottest arm candy".

Gone are the tech bros, who evaporated as quickly as their baseball caps. Never was a great fortune born in a meditation pod. Most of those who slept in them are now unemployed.

It transpires that 26-year-old Megan Boni, aka @girl_on_couch, author of the TikTok didle, "I'm looking for a man in finance. Trust fund. 6/5". Blue eyes..." was onto something. After the tech bros moved back in with their parents a replacement was necessary. Re-enter the banker.

Boni's lyrics, picked up and remixed by numerous DJs, eventually led to flash mobs performing in white shirts, gilets and black trousers, making the uniform an instant meme. Then came the ridicule accounts, such as Johnny Hillivant Partridge's, with skits about "wealth flexing" and "status peacocking". The comedian originally set out to impersonate the dull finance men you meet at weddings and discovered he had nailed the industry (finesse not being part of it).

Banking is back in fashion. It re-emerged from its conservative and sleepy exterior in the Eighties, when new channels opened up for instant wealth creation. It was always bankers who closed down nightclubs in my day in New York; they were like extreme athletes except they carried briefcases.

I married one. The reason so few

millennials want to go into finance today (and therefore are fitted like war heroes when they do) is because it's extremely competitive and hard work. No one pays you a bonus for self-actualising. I know a young banker whose supervisor monitors the time of his bathroom breaks — that's how much blood the clients expect.

To the outside world finance all looks the same, but where banking (I generalise) is about advising and hedge funds about investing, private equity is about sniffing out companies then raising money to acquire and take them over whether they like it or not. Then the big idea is to improve them by restructuring and refinancing (relying heavily on leverage) before selling them for a huge profit (or taking them apart, ie asset-stripping, which is the bit one hears less about).

The little I do know about PE is because of late-night, wine-induced tearful conversations.

A few successful people I have interviewed in the design industry were courted heavily. Like me they were nursery school-level educated when it comes to money, so it all sounded marvellous. They sold up for a fortune to help to "grow" the company, then they watched it be dismantled, get deep into debt and lose sight of what it was meant to be. Imagine starting a bakery because you love sourdough then later discovering that the PE guy you sold out to in a Savile Row suit with an Aston Martin has cost-cut out the "wild yeast" (based on a true story). Meanwhile you signed a 200-page contract.

For all the fashion logos, fast cars and expensive real estate, PE guys are the bloodhounds of the finance world. Once they have their eye on the prize

they don't willingly let go. "Private equity is the most competitive of all finance jobs," confirms a friend who works for a prestigious American investment group in New York. "These are the elites. They're hugely well educated and come out of schools like Harvard and Wharton." Where hedge funders often have mathematical skills, PE guys have charm, she continues.

"They have to court entrepreneurs. They're super-focused, perseverant and ruthless at the top end."

She calls those who make it "top dogs". Typically they are well educated across a broad range of subjects. This may explain why notoriously intelligent actresses such as Kidman and Witherspoon might seek out their company and vice versa. "Immensely successful people know what it takes. This makes them kindred spirits."

Not so often discussed is the downside of this world, recently depicted by Belle Burden in Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage. Though a lawyer and a descendant of the Vanderbilt family, she describes the mysterious world of finance that her ex-hedge-funder husband occupied,

where she had little knowledge of what he did or, more importantly, what he earned or where he put it. The book has ripped through a whole tier of my friend group in the UK and the US because it turns out many finance wives don't ask questions either. When they do the answer is often complicated and confusing.

My friend in the investment company tells me that when the PE guys divorce it's on a whole other level. "They are often emotionally distanced and ruthless, so when that turns nasty it's brutal." Assets are hidden or reinvested: after all, their job is about restructuring.

Most of what Instagram depicts is PE guys engaged in leisure activities: big boats, five-star hotels and private jets. The truth is the toys (and long-legged blondes) are compensation for what they have sacrificed in the name of making money. PE guys never commit to dinners, holidays or school meetings. Behind every top Hollywood celebrity is a company that, you never know, might need some refinancing?

I suspect the operative word in these relationships is "dating" because everyone knows two top dogs in the same pack eventually have it out. It might make for a fascinating week of conversation on a superyacht, but I'm not expecting a wedding announcement.

When the PE guys divorce it's on a whole other level

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equity guy

GETTY IMAGES AND PHOTOS

Cringe, I'm with a hedge funder

Allegra Handelsman

“People in the office are really excited,” my boyfriend shares at a dinner party, assembling a fish taco with ingredients delicately prepared by the host, a friend of mine with a speciality in hosting Mexican food nights. “It’s the best thing to happen to us since that I’m looking for a guy in finance’ song.”

He’s referring to the news that Olivia Rodrigo — the Disney star turned world-famous singer-songwriter, background music for Gen Z girl heartbreak, and unashamedly my Spotify top artist of 2021 — is dating a new man.

You may be wondering, is he a hot young nepo baby with a modelling contract and an upcoming show on Prime Video? No. He is, in fact, the private equity associate Julian Croonenberghs. To be specific, Croonenberghs studied at Brown University and is a former Goldman Sachs investment banking analyst who now works at Hg Capital.

Olivia and I have had a surprisingly similar dating history, both of us cycling through actors and older party boys in the music industry. Her second album, Guts, felt like home in a way that was all too familiar; the opening verse of Get Him Back! read like a page of my diary. Now she has joined me as... the creative girlfriend of a finance bro boyfriend? A line I never thought I’d write, and still cringe at.

My boyfriend works at a hedge fund (which, for the record, is not the same as private equity), and for privacy —

but let’s be honest, embarrassment — reasons he’ll remain anonymous. I promise he’s real. We’ve been dating for a little over a year now, just enough time to make me ahead of the trend and an experienced enough guinea pig to report back. This is real book-on-the-ground journalism!

When we started dating I affectionately called him a “pick-me finance bro”, because of course he wasn’t like the other finance bros — money-obsessed, flashy, boisterous. He was different. He loved art and film, and collected niche food magazines. A line I repeated often while explaining my surprising shift in romantic type.

It’s refreshing to be taken out to nice restaurants on dates and not have to wait until 11pm drinks on a Wednesday night to see the person I’m dating, a consequence of going out with creative men that I experienced.

Yes, while there is the cringey chinos and gilet-wearing stereotype, I, for one, am happy with my pick-me finance bro boyfriend. He thankfully doesn’t own chinos, and although I’ve seen the odd gilet in his wardrobe he doesn’t wear them in my company, which is good enough for me.

So even though I never saw myself as a finance-bro girlfriend, I get the appeal. And my boyfriend’s professional life is completely foreign to me; we each learn about the other’s industry with genuine interest, and I get an insight into a world I’d never seen. There’s also something I really respect about how hard he works.

So now, when my friends come back from failed dates with creative directors who pretend to read feminist literature but claim they’re too busy for a relationship, I find myself saying — sincerely and patronisingly. “Maybe date someone with a real job?”

Barbells and protein: I mocked men in the gym — now I am one

At 39, Adam Silverstein is lifting weights for the first time

I used to quietly mock gym bros. You know the type: shaker bottle in hand, Joe Rogan in their ears, unable to eat a yoghurt without checking how many grams of protein it contains. They spend half their lives at the gym and the other half talking about it. Keeping fit is perfectly sensible; of course. But making it your entire personality? That seemed a bit much. Then I injured my hip.

I developed a rare condition called transient osteoporosis, which caused me to lose bone density in my left hip. One minute I was walking around normally, the next I was on crutches for six months. Unhelpfully this happened to coincide with my husband, Austin, and I moving from London to Colorado. Nothing says “new life in America” quite like doing your first Walmart shop on a mobility scooter.

The physical side was frustrating enough, but mentally it was harder. I couldn’t walk properly. I couldn’t exercise. My left leg slowly became a thin shadow of its former self. Looking down at it was genuinely alarming. I’d never really thought about muscle before because I’d always just... had it. Suddenly half of

looking less like they belonged to a lanky teenager. Perhaps we could do something about the faint suggestion of man boobs I’d quietly accumulated over the years. At $75 a session I may as well get more than just one hip out of it.

Before I knew it, at the age of 39 I was lifting barbells and dumbbells for the first time. I couldn’t believe this was me. Ian gave me a daily protein target of 130g. This, I assumed, was where I’d draw the line. I wasn’t going to become one of those people.

I became one of those people. I now have a kitchen cupboard devoted to protein powder. I have caught myself saying things such as, “I need another 30g before bed,” and regularly find myself standing in the supermarket turning packets over to check the protein content. Eggs for breakfast. Shake after the gym. Chicken for lunch. Protein bar in the afternoon. Then whatever gets me to 130g by bedtime. Somewhere along the way I became the person I’d spent years rolling my eyes at.

These days I go to the gym on my own three times a week, and I look forward to it. My routine is simple: chest press, leg press, hip abductions, a few dumbbells, barbells and cable pulls. Nothing fancy. It took me about

a month to figure out how half the machines worked. Whenever I got stuck I’d ask someone nearby and blame it on being British, which it turns out is an excellent excuse for almost anything. But I’ve realised the gym isn’t nearly as showy as I’d imagined. It’s

quite a vulnerable place. Most people are there because they want to improve something about themselves, and I find that oddly reassuring.

Sure, there are still things I don’t understand. People happily sit in the sauna wearing their gym clothes, their earbuds in, chatting on the phone as if they’re waiting for a bus. But I’m an immigrant, so who am I to judge?

The biggest culture shock has been me. Six months after getting off crutches, my body fat has dropped by 9 per cent, I’ve gained about 10lb of muscle and, for the first time in my life, I’m starting to see the outline of my abs. More importantly, I feel better. Not just physically but mentally too.

I’d forgotten how good it feels simply to be capable. I can hike the Rocky Mountains without worrying about my hip. I sleep better. I have more energy. And I feel less guilty demolishing an In-N-Out burger afterwards.

I think three gym sessions a week will do me. Austin may stage an intervention otherwise. Still, I never expected to enjoy working out quite so much. It turns out there was a gym bro lurking in me all along.

MACHELLE KRIS

mine had disappeared. So once my hip had healed, my physiotherapist suggested I work with a personal trainer called Ian to rebuild the strength I’d lost. Expensive, I thought. I was still trying to get my head around the American healthcare system, where the price is usually the last thing anyone tells you. But my leg was in such a state I decided it was worth it. Then Ian asked me a dangerous question.

“Do you just want to work on your hip,” he said, “or your whole body?”

My hip obviously needed fixing, but while we’re here... my skinny-fat paunch could probably do with a bit of attention. My arms wouldn’t mind

---

8

times2

The PM wants to free me from subscriptions? They're not all bad

Andy Burnham plans to make it easier to cancel.

Here's why I love some of my subs.

By Harriet Walker

Paying for a streaming service you don't watch? Got behind on your daily gut health drink and now drowning in the stuff? Subscriptions used to be for niche publications and

Girlguiding, but they are now so much a part of everyday life — digital and physical — that the global market is estimated to reach $1.5 trillion by 2031.

It isn't just Netflix, Spotify and Amazon Prime. There are subscriptions out there for organic condoms, puppy-training and piano lessons. Instagram urbanites no longer have a "milkman" but a "dairy subscription" — often with a side-order of sourdough. Another notes a baby's birth date and sends toys that take their development into account (£80 every two months, lovevery.co.uk).

Many of these are taking payment without people realising, having been lured in by free trials or overcomplicated online checkouts that then stealthily continue at a higher price. That's why Andy Burnham — no doubt as familiar with the exquisite rage of an "autorenew fail" as the rest of us — is turning his attention to "subscription traps" as part of a focus on the cost of living crisis. From January companies will have to provide more information upfront about subscription costs, as well as making it easier to cancel existing ones.

I'm a sucker for a sub. It began during the first wave of the cost of living crisis when I realised the supermarket own-brand toilet paper was more hole than roll and the others were extortionate. Instead we pay £28 every three months for 24 chunky roundels of recycled paper from Who Gives A Crap, which donates half its profits to clean water charities working overseas. Having bought standard bog roll again on holiday last week, I promise this remains better value for a family of four.

I have learnt to manage my subscriptions the way others do their investment portfolios. Last year, after a particularly outrageous autorenew of an "annual" £80 that was not flagged beforehand, I audited the rolling

"They're the best way to buy the best-value version of what you want

payments running my life. Most — such as monthly Tambia coffee beans (£28; my husband and I take a Thermos to work to avoid £4 flat whites) and a weekly Abel & Cole veg box (£23; better than our local

supermarket) — made life more smooth but others didn't.

We'd been paying £5.49 for Paramount+ for almost a year, having started a free trial then forgotten to cancel (or watch). Our fault, yes, but so silently done it is clearly a business strategy. I'd somehow managed to sign up to Deliveroo's £4.99 monthly "gold plan" despite having not ordered a takeaway for months, and a £4.99 Uber membership for taxis I rarely took. Given how unlikely it is I'd choose either, I assume they are lucrative mistakes frequently made.

Some subscriptions become part of the furniture: TV licence, National

DAVID MCANDREW FOX THE TIMES, ALWAYS

Harriet Walker

Trust, Google storage, whatever that £2.99 a month Apple thing is. Do you remember when you last heard from Jeff Bezos before your £95 annual Prime rolled over? When my husband and I moved in together 12 years ago we both paid for another galling year.

These days we are raptorlike about which streaming service is the weakest and next to be picked off (it's Netflix, once £6.99, now £12.99, which lands each price increase just as the kids have set their hearts on watching something).

Disney, non-negotiable for parents of small children (£99.90 a year), has clearly noticed the post-toddler years drop-off and started making stuff that we want to watch instead — so we still have it, as well as Now TV and now Apple too (Widow's Bay). An end-of-the-summer-holidays reckoning looms.

Live-curating an in-car playlist recently, I marvelled at Spotify's ability

to blast out any song I wanted — then remembered we pay £20 a month for the privilege. A friend whose little-used YouTube sub costs £12.99 but means no adverts compares it to "getting used to business class".

Another has been paying for two New York Times and LinkedIn accounts on different email addresses.

Others are genuinely life-enhancing. My husband and I have a once-a-quarter order for washing-up gloves in large because the shops near us seem only to cater for people with much smaller hands. Our shared sub to hangover-preventing Myrkl supplements has proven so successful we sometimes have to re-up between orders (£22.50 every two months,

myrkl.com), although the alternating alcohol-free aperitif Botivo and 0.0 per cent Collider beer deliveries help (£25 a month, botivo.com; £30 a month, drinkcollider.com).

Trying to cut down on red meat and cheap sausages, we started a venison subscription (I know), which means a higher-quality, healthier and sustainable alternative for £7 a week (£72.99 every ten weeks, deerbox.co.uk). When I finally found skincare I wasn't allergic to I started a flexible subscription so I wouldn't run out (froyaorganics.com) and, like every other woman I know over the age of 40, I have magnesium on repeat order (£16.80 every three months, artah.co).

I'm aware all this sounds like so much millennial self-optimising — and that's certainly what subscriptions tend to cater to. Yet they're the best way, at a time when money doesn't go that far, to make sure you're buying the best-value version of what you want rather than settling for something because it's stocked round the corner.

The best subscriptions are time and money-savers — unlike the £49.99 Calm app my friend paid for recently during a stressful period at work before realising she was too busy to do any of its guided meditations.

---

SAU MAGISTER THE TIMES

9

arts

My sweaty night at the Fringe's hottest show

Edinburgh's newest venue is a sauna, where the temperature reaches 90C and the audience wear swimsuits. Gabriella Bennett grabs her towel

It is the hottest ticket at the Edinburgh Fringe. At 60C and rising, a seat at Summerhall's newest attraction is not for the faint-hearted. Or the faint-headed, as I discover during a 90-minute exploration of Jewish masculinity via circumcision, Tottenham Hotspur and an ocean of sweat.

Thought to be the first of its kind in the UK, the Sauna Theatre is the handiwork of Lucy Osborne, a set designer, who with James Grieve, a theatre director, is the co-founder of Sauna Sessions Arts Club. The pair believe in the galvanising power of heat and live performance to boost wellbeing. Their 80-person venue will host literary salons and morning raves as well as a theatrical interpretation of Virginia Woolf's multinarrator novel The Waves over the course of the month.

"We are hoping to create a sauna-native art form," Osborne says. In other words, musical or theatrical performances that have been written specifically for the conditions of the sauna. "Woolf's words, for example, lend themselves well. It is much more of a cultural experience. And everyone is equal in their bathing suits."

Sauna theatre is popular in Europe, especially in Scandinavia and Germany, where aufguss (guided sauna ritual) shows combine essential oils, music and choreographed towel movements in a group ceremony led by a trained sauna master. The aim is to circulate air through the space, creating waves of more intense heat by laying ice balls onto hot stones then fanning them, and generate a party atmosphere compared to sober clubbing.

Inside the Sauna Theatre guests sit on tiers of wooden benches under light fittings designed to echo a traditional theatre. Musicians are shielded by a screen to protect their instruments but the actors perform in the full heat. Surround sound blasts music into the audience.

The mercury generally nudges 90C, with regular ten-minute breaks factored into performances. But not always. Bubble Schmeisis (Remixed), a one-man play by Nick Cassenbaum, will run for an hour and a half without stopping. It is to be my introduction to sauna theatre.

After changing into my swimsuit in a shed, I shuffle with my towel to the entrance, where an accordionist and clarinettist are playing klezmer music.

Close by are two plunge pools, a zero-alcohol bar and a line of showers.

I troop inside with 20 or so audience members, trying not to catch each other's eye. The dress code of swimsuits is strictly adhered to, and some of the crowd keep their towels wrapped around them for the performance. Grieve and Osborne have no plans to adopt

"textile-free bathing"; for nervous Brits a sarong or T-shirt is permitted as long as they are made of natural fibres.

At 60C things begin rather cosly. Cassenbaum is in full command of the floor, bounding around as the lights illuminate rivers of perspiration cascading down his face. We open in Canning Town schyitz (steam bath), a Yiddish word derived from the German for sweating, with Poppa Alan and a motley crew of friends, before

Shows at the Sauna Theatre, Summerhall, Edinburgh, run to Aug 31

cruising through the landmarks of Cassenbaum's childhood in the East End of London. There are many eye-opening revelations. A foreskin, at least to Cassenbaum's eye, looks like a piece of bacon wrapped around the end of a "schmecks!".

At about 50 minutes in I realise I haven't written anything in my notebook for a while. My thoughts have slowed. A headache has crept over the front of my skull and dizziness sets in. I decide to make an exit through the side door to rehydrate. This is encouraged. Sauna Sessions Arts Club wants guests to tune into their physical states and not be afraid to hop out if needed.

"We lose touch with our bodies, and the sauna tells you to listen," Osborne says. "We're interested in people experiencing contrast." She recommends drinking water outside the theatre rather than inside, which she says helps the body to regulate.

The only problem is, I'm missing the show. Cassenbaum is a natural raconteur, and I want to strap in for the full ride. It would help to feel more clear-headed and think deeply about the thornier issues he explores, including a childhood pilgrimage to Israel. I'd like to be able to focus better on how he relates these memories and how he feels about them now. The heat makes it hard.

After an electrolyte provided by the theatre and two glasses of water, I slip back inside just as the finale kicks off. Cassenbaum strips to his trunks ("What more do you expect for £25?") and invites Scott from the audience to schmeiss him, whipping his naked torso and scrubbing his face with a long-tailed mop. The smell of peppermint oil diffuses through the air.

Scott starts nervously but soon gets into the rhythm. By the end he is perhaps even too confident. "What, no tip?" he deadpans when Cassenbaum tells him he can sit down. The klezmer band commiserate from behind the screen.

As the lights go up the temperature climbs after water is ladled onto hot coals. It's an ice-breaker, and I get chatting to a London-based theatre

director about our varying levels of heat tolerance. What is too warm for me is toasty for her — she is planning a return visit. A small gathering forms in the open-air changing area and we swap Fringe stories from years gone by. By the end our inhibitions are gone. We get changed in front of each other as we chat. The individual changing sheds are forgotten. There is something about sitting in a room of strangers without clothes that has dissolved a layer of shyness.

The crowd disperses, the temperature cranks up and I hang around while a new audience arrive to see The Waves. During the ten-minute break I notice a woman by the showers being comforted by a friend, moved to tears by the performance. "There is something about the heat, the scent and the beauty of Woolf's language," Grieve says. Osborne agrees. "It makes you more open," she adds. "It is like an extra superpower."

---

10

times2

Your weekday brain boost

More puzzles

Pages 14-16

Every day, Monday to Thursday, a page of extra puzzles to give your brain an extended workout

Samurai medium

Fill each grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9. Where the puzzles overlap, the rows and columns do not go beyond their usual length.

		3	2	1	4
6		1	9		5	4	2
	8	2
3						7	4	8
8			4	7	1			6
7	4	6						1
	6	4	8		7
			6	4	3			2

		1	5	9	8		2
	7			1				9
	5	8				1
6		4	2				1
		9	1		7	4
	1				9	8		6
	2					6	9
				2			4
			9	3	6	2

	2		6	5		9
												7		9
												1		3	2
	9	2	6	3				8	3	5		8	3	4
	4		7					1				1		5	8
	6	3					2
4		2	1				9			6					5
		6	8		4	1				8		6	7	1
	5				2	3		4		1	9	4
		4				2	5
3				2			4
	2		6	4	9	7						3	8	2

Sakuro

Place the numbers 1 to 9 in the spaces so that the number in each circle is equal to the sum of the four surrounding spaces, and each colour total is correct

Play Mini Sudoku every day Monday-Sunday online at thetimes.com and on Live app

Codeword

Every letter in the crossword-style grid, right, is represented by a number from 1 to 26. Each letter of the alphabet appears in the grid at least once. Use the letters already provided to work out the identity of further letters. Enter letters in the main grid and the smaller reference grid until all 26 letters of the alphabet have been accounted for. Proper nouns are excluded.

Mini

Sudoku

Fill in the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x2 box contains the digits 1 to 6

Solutions In tomorrow's Times2

	4		1		2
2	1
			3	1
3		1	5
		4			1
1				5

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26

Sudoku fiendish

		2
							8	7
9	6		7						1
2		9		5	4
		6		3		2	5
4		3		8	7
3	2		5						9
							1	4
		1

Killer tricky

Fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9. Each set of cells joined by dotted lines must add up to the target number in its top-left corner. Within each set of cells joined by dotted lines, a digit cannot be repeated.

14		10		19		27
12	18			8
		22		20	9	16	11
10	19
				18
23		17		22	27	4
	11	4
		11	7		6	16
23

Train Tracks

Lay tracks to enable the train to travel from village A to village B. The numbers indicate how many sections of track go in each row and column. There are only straight sections and curved sections. The track cannot cross itself.

Futoshiki

Fill the blank squares so that every row and column contains each of the numbers 1 to 5 once only. The symbols between the squares indicate whether a number is larger (>) or smaller (<) than the number next to it.

Yesterday's solutions

SAMURAI

9	2	3	6	7	5	4	1		2	6	7	5	4	8	3	1	9
4	7	1	2	5	3	6	8	9		5	8	4	9	1	3	8	7
6	8	5	4	1	9	2	3	7		3	9	1	2	7	6	5	8
2	4	8	1	9	6	7	5	3		6	1	8	7	3	9	2	4
3	1	6	5	7	8	4	9	2		7	2	3	4	8	5	9	8
5	9	7	3	4	2	8	1	6		9	4	5	1	6	2	8	3
7	6	4	9	3	5	1	2	8	7	5	6	4	3	9	8	2	7
8	5	9	6	2	1	3	7	4	2	8	9	1	5	6	3	9	4
1	3	2	7	8	4	9	6	5	3	1	4	8	7	2	6	5	1

				5	8	1	6	9	7	3	2	4
				2	4	7	5	3	1	9	6	8
				6	3	9	8	4	2	5	1	7
1	6	8	5	2	4	7	9	3	4	2	5	6	8	1	5	9	4	2
3	9	7	8	1	5	4	5	2	1	6	8	7	9	3	1	2	8	5
2	5	4	3	9	7	8	1	6	9	7	3	2	4	5	6	3	7	1
6	3	1	4	5	2	9	7	8			5	1	6	7	4	3	9	2
5	7	9	6	8	1	3	2	4			4	3	8	9	5	2	6	1
4	8	2	7	3	9	1	6	5			9	2	7	8	1	6	4	2
9	1	3	2	4	5	6	8	7			1	7	4	3	6	9	8	5
8	2	6	9	7	3	5	4	1			3	6	2	4	8	5	7	9
7	4	5	1	8	8	2	3	9			8	5	9	2	7	1	3	6

TRAIN TRACKS

FUTOSHRI

3	<	5	1	4	2
√
2	4	3	1	5
√			^	√
1	<	2	5	3	<
5	1		4	>2	3
4	3	2	5	1

SUDOKU

8	6	1	3	9	5	4	7	2	2	9	6	5	7	3	8	4	1
7	3	2	4	8	6	5	1	9	8	5	1	6	2	4	3	7	9
5	4	9	1	2	7	6	3	8	7	4	3	9	8	1	6	2	5
1	8	5	2	4	9	7	6	3	6	1	5	3	4	7	2	9	8
4	9	6	7	3	1	2	8	5	4	3	8	2	9	6	5	1	7
2	7	3	6	5	8	9	4	1	9	2	7	1	5	8	4	3	6
6	2	4	9	1	3	8	5	7	1	8	9	4	6	2	7	5	3
9	1	8	5	7	4	3	2	6	3	6	4	7	1	5	9	8	2
3	5	7	8	6	2	1	9	4	5	7	2	8	3	9	1	6	4

CODEWORD

GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED
GOODNOWY USED

---

11

television & radio

Mourinho profile not one for the trophy cabinet

Ben Dowell TV review

Mourinho

Netflix

★★★☆☆☆

To be fair to José Mourinho, he didn't call himself the Special One. That was the nickname that followed him around like the overpowering blast of expensive aftershave rival fans assumed hung about his designer suits when he arrived to manage Roman Abramovich's Chelsea in 2004. Fresh from winning the Champions League with Porto, he only called himself a special one. A rare moment of modesty.

Two decades on, he follows Beckham and Pelé and gets the manager's version of one of those

Netflix, er, specials. And I am afraid it isn't one for the trophy cabinet.

The swagger is there, even if he hasn't replicated his heady early successes. But the main issue is that he is unknowable, and he wants to keep it that way. And that's a problem when you have three hours to fill and when they're directed by Joe Pearlman, a specialist in flattering biographies who seems oddly reluctant to dig, prod and probe.

"People think they know me, but they don't know me, and I'm happy they don't," Mourinho says smiling and unchallenged. "It's a privilege for the ones that know me." Well, lucky them.

At the end he declares that the only interesting thing about someone is their achievements, and that a 500-page biography should dedicate only five pages to someone's childhood. It's a bloodless attitude that seems to fundamentally misunderstand what makes people tick.

So we get a collage of sit-down interviews and archive reminders of all his charm, obnoxious controversies, successes and feuds, with the odd nugget, such as Alex Ferguson telling us that Mourinho was offered the job as his successor at Manchester United in 2013, or John Terry revealing that Mourinho obtained training footage of Sam Allardyce's Bolton Wanderers before a big game (didn't that get Southampton into trouble recently?).

José Mourinho remains unknowable after three hours' viewing

A clip shows the journalist Polly Vernon telling us how much she fancies him. I guess no one would say that about Big Sam or Neil Warnock, or most English managers.

A rare occasion when he threatens to reveal some genuine human feeling comes when he is asked about the death of his father around the time he became United's manager, in 2016. "You don't want to make me cry because I would want [to]," he says.

We see him travelling back to Portugal, but he meets no one to tell us anything interesting. Most of the talking heads are footballers such as Terry, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic telling us how he made them feel like a team and how much he hated losing. They're like post-match interviews with nifty lighting and a jazzy soundtrack.

There have been too many vanity projects like this on Netflix, with too few meaningful insights, and they are getting boring. Like the man himself, it is beautifully presented but there is nothing there. Like his career, it feels money-driven, oddly rootless, with flashes of dazzle but no lasting power.

"If you want an easy life, don't get José Mourinho," the former Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon chuckles at the close. The same applies if you want to make an interesting film and not what is essentially a corporate video.

Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz Radio 4, 6.30pm

The comedian and stalwart of The Chase fronts a fifth series of his enjoyable show in which he tours the country interacting with audiences as they discuss what questions make up the ideal pub quiz. Sinha, above, begins in Boston, Lincolnshire, where, as well as fiendish general knowledge posers, there are local ones about the football club that has had three England captains, and the Lincolnshire town that used to be England's capital. Sinha's pleasure in engaging with the audience and allowing them to show off their knowledge, while showcasing his quizzing skills, makes you feel all warm inside. Clair Woodward

Times Radio

Digital, web, smart speaker, app 5.00am Tom Nunan 6.00 Salma El-Wardany and Stig Abell 10.00 Ed Vaizey 1.00pm Stephen Sackur 2.00 F1 Glover and Roya Nikkhah 4.00 Calum Macdonald 7.00 Kait Borsay 10.00 Carole Walker 1.00am The Best of Times Radio

Radio 2

FM: 88-90.2 MHz 6.30am Sara Cox 9.30 Vernon Kay 12.00 Jeremy Vine 2.00pm DJ Spoony 4.00 Joel Dommett 7.00 Edith Bowman 9.00 The Jazz Show with Jamie Cullum 10.00 The Good Groove 12.00 DJ Borg 3.00am Dance Sounds of the 90s (r) 4.00 Owain Wyn Evans

Radio 3

FM: 90.2-92.4 MHz 6.30am Breakfast 9.30 Essential Classics 1.00pm Classical Live Showcasing performances from 2026's summer music festivals. Rachmaninov (Symphonic Dances); JS Bach (Partita No 2 in D minor — Chaconne, BWV. 1004); Berlioz (Symphonie fantastique); Gombert (Missa 'Sur tous rejets' — Credo); Bruch (Eight Pieces, Op B3); and Libby Larsen (A Lover's Journey) 4.00 Composer of the Week: Montgerouil (1764-1836) How the newly married Hélène de Montgerouil joined the 'grand monde' of Paris (r) 5.00 in Tune 6.00 Live BBC Proms 2026 The Los Angeles Philharmonic, with conductor Gustavo Dudamel, perform. Beethoven (Symphony No 6 in F, Pastoral); and Thomas Adès (Dante — Part 1: Inferno)

8.00 BBC Proms 2026 The Royal Northern Sinfonia's Music Director Doris Sousa is joined by principal musicians Helena Gourd and Jude Carlton to perform composer Morton Feldman's Crippled Symmetry 10.15 Live BBC Proms 2026 The percussionist Evelyn Glennie joins the Fantasia Orchestra and BBC Singers for a genre-busting programme. Live from the Royal Albert Hall, London, Coltrane (Welcome arr. Harry Baker); Ellington (It Don't Mean a Thing — if it Ain't Got That Swing — arr. Harry Baker); Heloise Werner (The Wood Pigeon — BBC commission: world premiere); Vincent Ho (Sandman's Castle — excerpt); Feldman (Ruthko Chapel — excerpt); Caroline Shaw (Partita — Sarabande); Dvořák (Czech Suite, Op 39, Finale — Furiant); RV Williams (Serenade to Music arr. R. Douglas); Evelyn Glennie; Philip Sheppard (Drolageria aureola); Radiohead (Pyramid Song arr. Simon Hale); and Meredith Monk (Panda Chant) 11.45 Round Midnight 12.30am Through the Night

Radio 4

FM: 92.4-94.6 MHz 5.00am News Summary 5.04 Burnham's Pledge (r) 5.34 Shipping Forecast 5.43 Prayer for the Day 5.45 Farming Today 6.00 Today 9.00 Invisible Hands (3/6) 9.30 Inside Health (6/6) 10.00 Woman's Hour 11.00 Screenshot (6/6) (r) 11.45 Book of the Week: Hiroshima, 8.15: The Lost Memoir Written by Kiyoshi Tanimoto and Koko Kondo (2/5)

12.04pm Call You and Yours 1.00 The World at One 1.45 Human Intelligence Philosopher Ibn Khaldun (12/15) 2.00 The Archers (r) 2.15 Drama: Clair By Philip Palmer 3.00 Lady on Trial with Lucy Worsley (9/10) 3.30 Heart and Soul (r) 4.00 Above and Below: The Battle to Save Britain's Prehistoric Art The threat from climate change to the ancient creative past 4.30 What's Up Docs? Exploring relaxation 5.00 PM 6.00 Six O'Clock News 6.30 Choice Paul Sinha's Perfect Pub Quiz In Boston, Lincolnshire (1/6) 7.00 The Archers Robert struggles to stay positive 7.15 Front Row 8.00 After EncroChat Whether the EncroChat operation reduced the supply of drugs 8.40 In Touch 9.00 Crossing Continents Protecting Victoria Falls (2/9) 9.30 Scam Secrets (2/8) (r) 10.00 The World Tonight 10.45 Book at Bedtime: The Vicar of Wakefield By Oliver Goldsmith (7/10) 11.00 Wild Inside (3/4) (r) 11.30 A Good Read (3/9) (r) 12.00 News and Weather 12.30am Book of the Week: Hiroshima, 8.15: The Lost Memoir (2/5) (r) 12.48 Shipping Forecast 1.00 As BBC World Service

Radio 4 Extra

Digital only 8.00am Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Austen? 8.30 Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years

8.45 Small Island 9.00 Meet David Sedaris 9.30 Following the Martian Invasion 9.45 Daily Service 10.00 A Good Read 10.30 The Things We Forgot to Remember 11.00 The Waiting Game 11.30 The Senior Partner 12.00 Yes Minister 12.30pm The Milligan Papers 1.00 Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Austen? 1.30 Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years 1.45 Small Island 2.00 Hoax! 2.30 Life in London 3.00 Renaissance Man: The Last Judgment of Giorgio Vasari 4.00 A Good Read 4.30 The Things We Forgot to Remember 5.00 The Waiting Game 5.30 The Senior Partner 6.00 Yes Minister 6.30 The Milligan Papers 7.00 Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Austen? 7.30 Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years 7.45 Small Island 8.00 Hoax! 8.30 Life in London 9.00 Renaissance Man: The Last Judgment of Giorgio Vasari 10.00 Comedy Club: Meet David Sedaris 10.30 And the Winner Is 11.00 All the World's a Globe 11.15 Foley and McColl: Interview 11.30 Chain Reaction

Radio 5 Live

MW: 693, 909 5.00am Wake Up to Money 6.00 Breakfast 9.00 Nicky Campbell 11.00 Emma Vardy 2.00pm Matt Chorley 4.00 5 Live Drive 7.00 5 Live Sport 8.25 Athletics: Coverage of the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham 10.00 Johnny l'Anson 1.00am Dotun Adebayo

talkSPORT

MW: 1053, 1089 kHz 5.00am Early Sports Breakfast 6.00 Breakfast with Jeff Stelling

10.00 Max Scott & Darragh McAnthony 1.00pm Hawksbee and Jacobs 4.00 Drive 7.00 The Transfer Insiders 10.00 Sports Bar 1.00am Extra Time with Paul Ross

Talk

Digital only 6.00am Ian Collins 10.00 Julia Hartley Brewer 1.00pm David Bull 4.00 Kevin O'Sullivan 7.00 Peter Cardwell 10.00 Petrie Hosken 1.00am Paul Ross

6 Music

Digital only 5.00am Chris Hawkins 7.00 Nick Grimshaw 10.00 Lauren Laverne 1.00pm Craig Charles 4.00 How Stephens 7.00 New Music Fix Daily 9.00 Riley & Coe 11.00 6 Music Artist in Residence: Wolf Alice 12.00 6 Music's Indie Forever 1.00am From Mento to Lovers' Rock 3.00 6 Music Live Hour 4.00 The 6 Music Playlist

Virgin Radio

Digital only 6.30am The Chris Evans Breakfast Show 10.00 Emma B 2.00pm Ben Jones 6.00 Scott Lloyd 10.00 Goldierocks 2.00am Steve Denyer

Classic FM

FM: 100-102 MHz 6.30am Breakfast with Tim Lhomso 9.00 The Hall of Fame Hour 10.00 Aled Jones 1.00pm Anne-Marie Minhall 4.00 Margherita Taylor 7.00 Relaxing Evenings with John Brunning 9.00 Classic FM's Composer Carousel With John Brunning. A focus on Felix Mendelssohn 10.00 Calm Classics 1.00am Bill Overton 4.00 Early Breakfast

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12

television

PICKS OF THE DAY

Savage Mountain Sky Documentaries/Now, 9pm

"Is it hard to have a daughter like me?" Kristin Hanla asks her father in 2023 as she prepares to scale all 14 of the peaks above 8,000m in less than four months. "You are living more dangerously than most people," he says. What begins as an ordinary film of extraordinary sporting endeavour — a determined woman, now

40, and her team taking on a challenge where the standard has so far mostly been set by men — disintegrates on the final ascent. On the Bottleneck, a single-file path near the summit, on K2 she encounters a dying porter, and with large numbers of climbers in front and behind the team, eventually decides to carry on, which led to criticism. She said that it would not have been possible to carry him down given the conditions. Helen Stewart

Savage Mountain (Now, 9pm)

The Romans with Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman 5, 9pm

Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman's popular Rich Lives, Poor Lives series focuses on Roman Britain tonight, for an episode exploring the visit of Emperor Hadrian in AD122. "He was the most important person in the western world," we are informed by Rinder in terminology admirable for its accessibility if not erudition. "He wasn't just hugely powerful and worshipped as

a god, he was also something of a control freak." Rinder plays the part of the governor of Britain at the time, the man responsible for making a start on Hadrian's Wall before the inspection and who appears to have viewed success as a transfer out of Londinium to somewhere warmer. A logo fitting sees Rinder standing taller and straighter, swathed in yards of expensive wool. Ruth Goodman investigates the lives of ordinary people living under Roman rule: HS

BBC1

6.00am Breakfast 9.30 Animal Park (r) (AD) 10.00 Trace, Track, Get My Car Back (r) 10.30 Live European Athletics Championships: Birmingham 2026. Jeanette Kwakye presents coverage of the opening session on day two, including the heats of the men's 100m and women's 800m 1.15pm BBC News at One; Weather 1.40 BBC Regional News; Weather 1.50 BBC News at One; Weather 2.00 Money for Nothing. A sewing machine table at Altrincham recycling centre 2.45 Escape to the Country. Nicki Chapman helps a couple from Scotland look for a property in the Cotswolds (r) (AD) 3.30 The Repair Shop. The experts restore a table, and a pair of rugby boots (r) (AD) 4.30 The Answer Run. Quiz show 5.15 Pointless. Alexander Armstrong is joined by co-host Ria Lina (r) 6.00 BBC News at Six; Weather 6.30 BBC Regional News; Weather

BBC2

6.15am Homes Under the Hammer (r) 7.15 Money for Nothing (r) 8.00 Sign Zone. The Great British Sewing Bee. Mexican fashions (r) (AD, SL) 9.00 BBC News 10.30 Antiques Road Trip (r) 11.15 Homes Under the Hammer (r) 12.15pm Bargain Hurt (r) (AD) 1.00 Richard Osmanlı House of Games (r) 1.30 The Finish Line. Quiz show (r) 2.15 Do You Know Your Plaste? Dudley (r) 2.45 The Farmers' Country Showdown. Farmers attend Guildford Farmers' Market (r) 3.30 Spy in the Ocean (r) (AD) 4.30 Vintage Antiques Roadshow. From Sherborne School, Dorset. From 2003 (r) 5.15 Flog III From Basingstoke (r) 6.00 Richard Osmanlı House of Games. With Chris Bisson, Danielle Harold, Katharine Merry and Robert Webb (r) 6.30 Bear Grylls: Wild Reckoning. A couple with a large age gap disagree on how to parent their children (r) (AD)

ITV1

6.00am Good Morning Britain 10.00 This Morning 1.30pm ITV News; Weather 2.00 Dickinson's Real Deal. David Dickinson and the team visit Peterborough, where Tracey Thackery misses out on a real opportunity when she passes on a vase that goes on to do well at auction (r) (AD) 3.00 Deal or No Deal. Stephen Mulhern hosts as a contestant tries to open the 22 red boxes in the right order, taking on the infamous Banker for the chance to win a life-changing cash prize (r) (AD) 4.00 Tipping Point. Ben Shephard hosts the arcade-themed quiz in which contestants drop tokens down a choice of four chutes in the hope of winning a £10,000 jackpot (r) 5.00 The Chase. Bradley Walsh presents as contestants from Knutsford, London, Manchester and Woking work as a team to take on one of the ruthless Chasers (r) 6.00 Regional News; Weather 6.30 ITV News; Weather

Channel 4

6.30am The King of Queens (r) (AD) 7.45 Everybody Loves Raymond (r) (AD) 9.10 Fraser (r) (AD) 11.10 Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares USA. The chef helps a failing New York diner (r) 12.05pm Channel 4 News Summary 12.10 Find It, Fix It, Flog It. Meeting an avid collector and former mayor (r) (AD) 1.10 The Great House Giveaway. A pair of strangers in Leicester are given the opportunity to buy a property (r) 2.10 Countdown. With Pauline McLynn 3.00 A Place in the Sun. Jean Johansson goes house hunting in Los Cristianos (r) 4.00 Saving Country Houses with Penelope Keith. Hidden secrets are unearthed at Staffordshire's Whitmore Hall (r) (AD) 5.00 Château DIY. A pair convert a narrow space in Chateau Trois Cloches into a luxurious functional bathroom (r) (AD) 6.00 American Pickers. Junk expert Mike Wolfe falls for the greatest classic Ford pick-up he has ever seen (r) (AD)

5

6.00am Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy Vine 11.30 Storm & Alexis 12.45pm 5 News at Lunchtime 12.50 Matt Allwright 2.20 FILM: Danger Rocks the Cradle (PG, TVM, 2022) When a pregnant high school senior disappears her teacher begins to worry that the teenager may have been taken against her will. Thriller starring Devin Cecchetto and Fallon Bowman (AD) 4.00 Castle. Hong Kong detective Zhang works with Beckett and Castle on the investigation into the murder of an ex-con who had been working for a repossession firm. Guest starring Linda Park (r) 4.55 Love Nature. In a regular backyard, showing how easy it is to make a pond (r) 5.00 5 News with Dan Walker 6.00 Corfu: Jewel of the Med. A profile of Corfu, in which cameras follow locals and tourists and view local cuisine (r) 6.55 5 News Update

7.00 The One Show Alex Jones and Roman Kemp continue the show's 20th birthday celebration 7.30 EastEnders Jean's concerns grow about Lily, while a worrying situation escalates for Chelsea (AD)

7.00 Live European Athletics Championships: Birmingham 2026 Coverage of the evening session on day two from Alexander Stadium, including the finals of the men's hammer and women's 5,000m. Coverage continues on BBC1

7.30 Inside the Langham: Britain's First Grand Hotel The managing director oversees progress on the Langham Venice, in northern Italy (4/6) (AD)

7.00 Channel 4 News 7.00 Channel 4 News

7.00 The Yorkshire Vet: At Home with the Greens A woman takes Peanut, the oldest of her 13 cats, to the surgery for a check-up and rewards the moggle with a luxury cat tree (3/4) (r) 7.55 5 News Update

8.00 Live European Athletics Championships: Birmingham 2026 Gabby Logan presents further coverage of the evening session on day two from Alexander Stadium, including the men's 100m final. Also taking place tonight are the men's long jump and women's 100m hurdles finals. With analysis from Jessica Ennis Hill and Greg Rutherford, and commentary provided by Steve Cram, Steve Backley, Andrew Cotter, Colin Jackson and Paula Radcliffe

8.00 The Great British Sewing Bee The sewers tackle the wide world of sport. They craft men's swimming shorts, outfits recycled from windsurf sails and personalized, made-to-measure bowling shirts (5/10) (AD)

8.00 Emmerdale Caleb is frustrated, while Billy and Dawn plan their escape and Jacob is shocked (AD) 8.30 Coronation Street Tim and Sally reel from the news of Richie's charge, and Jodie sets her sights on Kit (AD)

8.00 Dover 24/7: Britain's Busiest Port The cargo team race to unload 3,000 tons of steel, Border Force agents uncover suspicious packages and staff hold a remembrance service. Last in the series (AD)

8.00 Inside Longleat Cameras follow a bat conservation team and a group of moth enthusiasts as they both carry out annual surveys, and Lady Bath and a keeper talk about Longleat's giraffes and their special history at Longleat

10.00 BBC News at Ten 10.30 BBC Regional News and Weather 10.40 FILM: The Boys in the Boat (12, 2023) A group of underdogs, at the height of the Great Depression, are thrust into the spotlight, taking on elite rivals from around the world as part of the American rowing team at the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympic Games. Fact-based drama starring Joel Edgerton and Callum Turner. Directed by George Clooney (AD)

10.00 Live at the Apollo Stand-up comedy by Emmanuel Sonubi, Troy Hawke and Olga Koch (5/7) (r) 10.30 Newsnight Headline analysis presented by Matt Chorley 11.05 The Vampire Lestat: Interview with the Vampire Daniel's probing triggers a troubled Lestat, reminding him of his maker and a lost love, while Louis takes belated revenge (3/7) (AD) 11.55 The Vampire Lestat: Interview with the Vampire Lestat lies to Daniel and lords it over Armand (4/7) (AD)

10.00 ITV News at Ten; Weather; followed by Regional News 10.45 FILM: The Spy Who Loved Me (PG, 1977) James Bond teams up with a KGB agent to recover missing British and Soviet nuclear submarines, before whoever stole them can use their warheads. Unfortunately, 007 was responsible for the death of his new ally's lover — and she wants to make him pay before their mission is complete. Adventure with Roger Moore and Barbara Bach (AD)

10.00 Gogglebox The households' opinions of shows from November 2025, including Celebrity Race Across the World, All's Fair, Squid Game: The Challenge, The 19 Club, Come Dine with Me: Teens and Police Interceptors (r) (AD) 11.05 Secret Lives of Gypsy Wives Trevley clashes with her older sisters when they try to stop her going out to meet a friend, claiming she should still be subject to curfews and chaperones. Mum Tina joins everyone at the launch party for Trewley's new make-up range (r) (AD)

9.00 The Romans with Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman Rob and Ruth delve into 122 AD, when the Emperor Hadrian made a dramatic visit to Roman Britain, a moment that would change the fortunes of rich and poor alike. Rob follows the powerful figures at the heart of Roman Londinium, while Ruth investigates the lives of the ordinary people. See picks of the day 10.30 The Bomb on the Boat: The Murder of Lord Mountbatten The events surrounding the killing of Louis Mountbatten in August 1979, when his boat was blown up at sea by the IRA off the west coast of the Republic of Ireland. Royal insiders, local journalists and victims' family members recall the attack, revealing how Thomas McMahon slipped onto the unguarded Shadow V at night to plant the bomb (r)

12.40am-6.00 BBC News

12.45am-1.45 Sign Zone: Uncanny Ian believes his house was haunted by an entity which would shake drawers, ring bells and even flush the toilet. Danny Robins investigates if the could be a scientific explanation for all this (r) (AD, SL)

12.55am Shop on TV 3.00 The Summit: The 14 Brits who set off to climb one of New Zealand's highest peaks are down to 10. Having made it to the second base camp, they face a vote-off (r) (AD, SL) 3.50 Unwind with ITV 5.05-6.00 Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace (r) (AD, SL)

12.05am Naked Attraction (r) (AD) 1.00 Ramsay's Hotel Hell (r) (AD, SL) 1.50 Levison Wood: Walking with Orangutans (r) (AD, SL) 2.45 FILM: The Kid Detective (15, 2020) Comedy drama starring Adam Brody (SL) 4.25 A Place in the Sun (r) 4.55 The Piano (r) (AD, SL) 5.50-6.30 Countdown (r)

12.05am Serial Killer Wives (r) (AD) 1.00 Cruise TV (r) 2.00 Entertainment News on 5 (r) 2.10 GPs: Behind Closed Doors (r) 3.00 Castle (r) 3.50 Friends (r) (AD) 4.35 Yorkshire (r) (SL) 5.25 Entertainment News on 5 5.35 Paw Patrol (r) (SL) 5.45-6.00 The Adventures of Paddington (r) (SL)

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13

television

Cold Case Forensics: In the Blood

ITV1, 9pm

Subtitled In the Blood, this programme explains how justice can hang on the tiniest fibre or smallest stain. It tracks how the forensic scientist Angela Gallop and her team solved two very different cases: the 1999 killing of the Boarnenmouth sex shop owner Adam Shaw and the murder of Damilola Taylor in 2000. Damilola's father Richard, who died in 2024, is

seen here discussing the impact Gallop's work had on his family's fight for truth. Victoria Segal

Gomorrah: The Origins

Sky Atlantic, 9pm/10pm

Black lace veils, crucifixes, pasta genovee: this mob-drama prequel leans in hard to its setting in 1970s Naples, outlining the early years of the crime boss Pietro Seviatano (embodied in his larval teenage form by Luca Lubrano). He faces up to maternal interference in his

burgeoning gangster lifestyle and bonds himself tighter to the troubled Imma (Tullia Venezia), while alliances fracture and reform dangerously around him. VS

STREAMING CHOICE

Kabul iPlayer

This intense six-part drama is set during the chaotic withdrawal of American troops from Kabul, Afghanistan in 2021. As the Taliban

enters the city, the Nazary family, like many civilians, are forced to flee. As well as the family, the action unfolds from the perspective of the multinational team, including French police, Italian diplomats, German military and American intelligence services. Joe Clay

FILM CHOICE

Full Metal Jacket (15, 1987)

Sky Cinema Drama, 8pm

Stanley Kubrick's Vietnam picture

is, like most great war films, about more than just conflict. Bleak and violent, it examines how ordinary men become indoctrinated and tainted by combat. The film is divided into two segments — the first deals with the basic training under a formidable drill sergeant (real-life Marine Corps veteran R Lee Ermey). The second follows the recruits through the eyes of the young soldiers, played by actors including Matthew Modine, now shaped into killing machines. (Illmin) Wendy Ide

BBC4

7.00pm The Architecture the Railways Built. The Ffestiniog railway in north Wales (2/10) (AD) 7.40 The Flying Gardener. From Quartiles and Galloway (AD) 7.55 To the Manor Born. Audrey leaves Grantleigh Manor 8.30 Keeping Up Appearances. Hyacinth once again tries to rescue Richard from social obscurity 9.00 Ardal O'Hanlon: Tomb Raider. Exploring major archaeological finds in Ireland's history 10.00 Kamikaze: An Untold History. Japanese and US veterans reflect on the impact of the suicide missions 11.30 The Sky at Night. Exploring the mysteries of black holes 12.00 The Wildest Weather in the Universe: Horizon. Documentary 1.00am Beautiful Equations 2.00 The Flying Gardener (AD) 2.15am-3.15 Ardal O'Hanlon: Tomb Raider

BBC3

7.00pm The Catch Up 7.05 Spud. Comedy drama 7.25 FILM: Lara Croft – Tomb Raider (15, 2001) Action adventure starring Angelina Jolie (AD) 9.00 BuPua's Drag Race UK: Meet the Queen. BuPua introduces the queens competing for the title 9.20 FILM: Bridget Jones's Diary (15, 2001) Romantic comedy starring Renée Zellweger (AD) 10.55 FILM: Bridget Jones – The Edge of Reason (15, 2004) Romantic comedy sequel with Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant and Jim Broadbent (AD) 12.35am Matthew Perry and the Ketamine Queen (AD) 1.35 Stacey Dooley. Ready for War? (AD) 2.35 My Matrix's Bad Date 2.55am-3.55 Stacey Dooley. Blood, Sweat and T-Shirts (AD, SL)

Sky Arts

6.00am A Swan Lake 7.55 Artist of the Year: Masterclass (AD) 8.55 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) 9.55 Alfred Hitchcock Presents 11.00 Discovering (AD) 12.00 The Art of Film with Ian Nathan (AD) 1.00pm Tales of the Unexpected (AD) 2.00 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour 3.00 The Eighties (AD) 4.00 Discovering (AD) 5.00 Portrait Artist of the Year 2022 (AD) 6.00 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) 7.00 Alfred Hitchcock Presents 8.00 The World in a Painting: Ingest Diamond. A portrait featuring a ring 9.15 Art Traffickers: Treasures Stolen from the Tambo (AD) 10.15 Wonderland: Gothic (AD) 11.15 The Movies 12.15am Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba 2.15 The V&A Presents Alice: Cutruster and Curiouser 4.05 Sky Arts Book Club 5.00am-6.00 The Art of Film (AD)

ITV2

6.00am Backyard Builds (SL) 6.30 Dress to Impress (AD, SL) 7.30 The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City 8.20 The Real Housewives of Orange County 9.15 The Only Way Is Essex 10.15 Dawson's Creek 11.10 Charmed 12.10pm Deal or No Deal (AD) 1.10 Supermarket Sweep 2.10 The Floor (0A) (AD) 3.10 The Only Way Is Essex 4.10 The Real Housewives of Potomac 5.00 The Real Housewives of Orange County 5.55 Celebrity Catchphrase (AD) 7.00 The Floor (AD) 8.00 The 1% Club (AD) 9.00 Olivia Attwood: The Price of Perfection. In Istanbul (2/6) 10.00 Family Guy (AD) 11.35 American Dad! (AD) 12.35am Bob's Burgers (AD) 1.30 Picks (AD, SL) 1.55am-2.20 Deep Fake Neighbour Wars (SL)

More4

8.55am Find It, Fix It, Flog It (AD) 10.00 Four in a Bed 12.40pm Come Dare with Me (AD) 3.20 Four in a Bed 5.50 Car SOS (AD) 7.35 Gourd Designs. An intrepid pair want to build a Kool-style hill house in Worcestershire (2/10) (AD) 9.00 On and Richard's South African Odyssey. Oti and Richard's journey concludes in the Eastern Cape. Last in the series (AD) 10.00 24 Hours in A&E. A 51-year-old man who has fallen 20ft from a ladder, and a retired pharmacologist receives help for a chronic gas problem (AD) 11.05 24 Hours in A&E. A 68-year-old actor with a suspected broken shoulder receives a more worrying diagnosis (3/8) (AD) 12.05am 999: On the Front Line 1.10 24 Hours in A&E (AD) 3.20am-3.45 A Place in the Sun

ITV3

6.00am George and Mildred 7.05 Classic Emmerdale (AD) 8.10 Classic Coronation Street (AD) 9.10 Agatha Christie's Poirot (AD) 11.30 Heartbeat (AD) 1.35pm Midcomer Marden's (AD) 3.35 Classic Emmerdale (AD) 4.40 Classic Coronation Street (AD) 5.50 Heartbeat: Rural drama (AD) 8.00 Vera. Two people are murdered at a country house (3/4) (AD) 10.00 Grantchester. Geordie and new vicar Alphy Kottaram get off on the wrong foot (3/8) (AD) 11.00 Grantchester. A body is found in the basement of a country manor during a party (4/8) (AD) 11.50 Trial & Retribution. Part two of two. The team search for the missing nanny (8/10) 1.25am-2.35 Agatha Christie's Poirot. Stars David Suchet (AD)

Manchester captain Joe Buttler Live The Hundred: Manchester Super Giants Women v Sunrisers Leeds Women Sky Sports Cricket, 2.45pm-6, Sky Sports Main Event, 5pm-6 (Start-time 3.00). Coverage from Emirates Old Trafford

Live Rugby Union: Sharks v New Zealand Sky Sports Action, 5.45pm-8, Sky Sports v, 6pm-8 (Kick-off 6.00). Coverage of the tour match at Hollywoodbets Kings Park in Durban

Live The Hundred: Manchester Super Giants Men v Sunrisers Leeds Men Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Cricket, 6pm-9.30 (Start-time 6.30). Coverage from Emirates Old Trafford

Live Tennis Sky Sports v, Sky Sports Tennis, 9pm-11 Coverage from the Canadian Open on day 10 in Montreal

Live CPL: Jamaica Kingsmen v Barbados Tridents TNT Sports 2, 12.35am-4.45 The T20 match in Jamaica

Talking Pictures

7.40am FILM: The Captain's Paradise (PG, 1953) (b/w) 9.25 Cinelica Memories 9.30 FILM: Grand National Night (PG, 1953) (b/w) 11.00 Le Poulet (b/w) 11.25 FILM: Orders Are Orders (U, 1955) (b/w) 1.00pm The Adventures of William Tell (b/w) 1.30 FILM: Doctor in Distress (PG, 1963) 3.35 Kim Novak: The Golden Age Rebel 4.40 FILM: Whispering Smith Hits London (PG, 1952) (b/w) 6.20 Litter Defence Volunteers 6.25 Whiplash (b/w) 6.55 The Man from UNCLE 7.55 Buccaneer 9.00 FILM: Murder by Decree (15, 1978) Sherlock Holmes mystery 11.35 Fortean TV. The Yeti 12.10am FILM: The Nudist Story (15, 1960) Romance 2.00 FILM: The Stranger (PG, 1946) 3.55-4.00 New Seekers: Keep Britain Tidy

Film4

11.00am Man in the Saddle (U, 1951) Western starring Randolph Scott 12.45pm The Black Swan (PG, 1942) Swashbuckling adventure with Tyrone Power 2.30 Fantastic Voyage (U, 1966) Sci-fi adventure starring Raquel Welch 4.35 The Kid Who Would Be King (PG, 2019) Fantasy adventure with Louis Ashbourne Serkis (AD) 7.00 Film4 Interview Programmes: Talking Film. Stars and directors talk about the experience of making movies in this compendium 7.05 See How They Run (12, 2022) Mystery comedy starring Sam Rockwell and Saviour Ronan (AD) 9.00 Missing (15, 2023) Thriller starring Storm Reid and Nia Long 11.15 Jennifer's Body (15, 2009) Comedy horror starring Megan Fox 1.20am-3.35 Plan B (18, 2021) Comedy starring Kuhoo Verma

ITV4

6.00am Magnum, PI (AD) 8.05 Robin of Sherwood 9.10 Boon 10.20 The Professionals (AD) 11.25 Robin of Sherwood 12.30pm Magnum, PI (AD) 2.35 Dempsey and Makepeace (AD) 3.45 Boon 4.30 The Professionals (AD) 5.50 Minder. Mike Reid guest stars (AD) 7.00 The Motorbike Show. Henry Cole goes back to his roots as a dispatch rider in London 8.00 King of the Roads. County Antrim in Northern Ireland hosts the Armoy Race of Legends 9.00 Ice Road Truckers. Lisa Kelly and Tony Molekky transport the biggest loads of the season so far 10.00 All Elite Wrestling: Collision. Hard-hitting wrestling action 12.00 Dark Side of the Ring 12.35am The Professionals (AD, SL) 1.55am-2.50 BattleBots

UKDrama

6.00am Teleshopping 7.15 The Bill 8.05 Doctors 9.20 Classic Holly City 10.40 Casualty (AD) 11.40 The Bill 12.40pm Classic EastEnders 2.00 Neighbours 3.00 Whitstable Pearl (AD) 4.00 Langley 5.20 As Time Goes By 6.00 Last of the Summer Wine 8.00 Allo 'Allo' Von Strohm finds out that the stolen money was forged 8.35 Allo 'Allo' Lecterics arrested 9.05 Allo 'Allo' Rene escapes exploding Christmas puddings 9.40 New Tricks. The team investigates the death of a college professor (2/10) (AD) 11.00 Luther. The detective hunts for a masked killer (1/4) (AD) 12.15am Langley 1.20 Sister Boniface Mysteries (AD) 2.30 Hotel Prentless (SL) 2.35 Birds of a Feather 4.00am-6.00 Teleshopping

Variations

BBC1 Ireland 11.45pm House of the Year (r) 11.10 FILM: The Boys in the Boat (2023) Fact-based drama with Joel Edgerton 1.10am-6.00 BBC News

BBC1 Scotland 7.00pm-7.30 River City (r) 12.35am Scotcast (r) 1.05 Weather for the Week Ahead 1.10am-6.00 News

STV 12.55am-3.00 Shop on TV 3.50am-6.00 Night Vision

BBC Scotland 7.00pm Reporting Scotland 7.30 My Kind of Town (r) 5.00 This Farming Life (r) 9.00 Murder Trial. A former gamekeeper is accused of murder (1/2) 10.00 David Wilson's Crime Files (r) 11.00 Scotcast 11.30pm-12.00 Icons of Football (r)

S4C 6.00am Cyw 12.00 News; Weather 12.30pm Codi Pac (r) 12.30 Heno (r) 1.00 Kalim (r) 1.30 Arford: Cymru. Sir Benfro (r) 2.00 News; Weather 2.05 Prynhaven Da 3.00 News; Weather 3.05 Cefn Gwad (r) 4.00 Axe Fawr. Biscina: Line (r) 4.05 Twin Twnch (r) 4.15 Fferm Fach (r) 4.30 Bleny on Mynch i Ocolo (r) 4.45 Byd Tad Cu (r) 5.00 Stwnsh: Denglau – Marchington Berc (r) 5.25 T-Smyth's (r) 5.40 Un Cwestrand (r) 6.00 Y Cl Perlflaith (r) 6.30 Codi Hwy (r) 7.00 Heno 7.30 News; Weather 8.00 Inlet 8.05 Nightlight from the Anglesey County Show 10.00 Uath ar Dalth. Richard Parks and Lown Morgan take a linguistic road trip across Wales 11.00pm-12.05am Y Cosmos. How light escapes from the sun (r)

PBS America

8.00am Weathered: Earth's Extremes 8.35 Digging Up Britain's Past 9.35 Eclipse Across Europe 10.40 1066. A Year to Conquer England 11.55 Inside Japan's War 1.00pm Weathered: Earth's Extremes 1.35 Digging Up Britain's Past 2.35 Eclipse Across Europe 3.50 1066. A Year to Conquer England 5.00 Inside Japan's War 6.15 Digging Up Britain's Past 7.15 Eclipse Across Europe. A look at the best places and safest ways to view the solar eclipse 8.25 1066. A Year to Conquer England. King Harold of England has to take on two invasion forces 9.40 Inside Japan's War. How Japan secured victory in Malaya 10.50 Eclipse Across Europe 12.00 1066. A Year to Conquer England. Docudrama 1.15am-2.00 Weathered: Earth's Extremes

Sky Atlantic

6.00am Fish Town (r) 8.00 Billions (r) (AD) 10.15 House of the Dragon (r) (AD) 12.35pm Homicide: Life on the Street (r) 2.30 Billions (r) (AD) 4.40 The Last of Us (r) (AD) 6.50 House of the Dragon (r) (AD) 8.00 House of the Dragon. Rhaenyra oversteps at the council (r) (AD) 9.00 Gomorrah: The Origins. Pietro and Imma comes to terms with what happened the night before. See picks of the day (5/6) 10.00 Gomorrah: The Origins. Angelo suffers a terrible blow. Last in the series. See picks of the day 11.00 House of the Dragon. Rhaenyra positions herself to take King's Landing (r) (AD) 12.15am House of the Dragon. Fantasy (r) (AD) 1.30 Billions (r) (AD) 3.45 The Guest Wing (r) (AD) 4.35 Sort Of (r) (AD) 5.05am-6.00 The Guest Wing (r) (AD)

Sky Docs

6.00am The 2000s (r) 7.00 Discovering. John Hurt (r) (AD) 8.00 The Directors (r) (AD) 9.00 100 Foot Wave (r) (AD) 10.00 Juan Carlos: Downfall of the King (r) 10.55 Celtics City (r) (AD) 12.00 FILM: I Am Bruce Lee (15, 2011) (AD) 2.00pm Williams & Mansell: Red 5 (r) (AD) 3.50 My Icon: Leon Pryce (r) (AD) 4.00 The Directors (r) (AD) 4.55 Discovering: John Hurt (r) (AD) 5.50 Edge of the Earth (r) (AD) 7.00 FILM: Teaching the Void (15, 2003) Documentary 9.00 Savage Mountain. See picks of the day (AD) 11.00 FILM: Lancaster (PG, 2022) The bomber synonymous with the Gambustres (AD) 1.00am FILM: Dave Not Coming Back (PG, 2020) 2.50 Mr Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (r) (AD) 5.00am-6.00 Discovering (r) (AD)

UK Yesterday

6.10am Abandoned Engineering (AD) 8.00 Bangers & Cash: Restoring Classics (AD) 10.00 Secret Nazi Bases 11.00 Hitler's Countdown to War 12.00 Antiques Roadshow 2.00pm Bangers & Cash (AD) 4.00 Secret Nazi Bases 5.00 Hitler's Countdown to War 6.00 Antiques Roadshow 7.00 A Perfect Player. The solar force that powers Earth (AD) 8.00 Bangers & Cash: Restoring Classics. A Subaru Pick-up (AD) 9.00 Bangers & Cash. A car built in Britain for the US market (AD) 10.00 Bangers & Cash. A collection of Austin Mini Memos (AD) 11.00 Bangers & Cash. An Army Mercedes G wagon (AD) 12.00 Bangers & Cash: Restoring Classics (AD) 1.00am Find It, Fix It, Flog It 2.00 Abandoned Engineering (AD) 3.00am-6.10 Teleshopping

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14

MindGames

Tetonor Moderate No 699

70	54	120	21
47	176	23	117
136	22	132	42
30	104	43	90

1	2	2		3		8		21	22	39			68

When complete, the strip below the grid can be split into eight pairs of numbers. Adding the numbers in a pair gives one of the 16 numbers in the grid. Multiplying them gives a different number in the grid. For example, a 4 and 6 in the strip could be paired to make 10 (4+6) and 24 (4x6) in the grid. Enter each sum below the corresponding number in the grid. The blanks in the strip must be deduced, bearing in mind the numbers are listed in ascending order.

The next Tetonor puzzle will appear on Thursday

For more puzzles, including Mini Sudoku, extra Codeword, Train Tracks and Futoshiki go to page 10

Winning Move

White to play.

This position is from Nouri-Garcia Ramos, Hong Kong 2026.

Black is a piece ahead and seems to have terrible threats against the white king. The obvious try for White is 1 Rue2, after which play can go 1... Qq4+ 2 Rg3 Qxe2 3 Qxe2 Rxe2 4 Rd1 and, with the rock coming to dh. White has sufficient counterplay to force a draw. White, to his credit, did not settle for this but found something better. What?

Codeword No 5916

20	11	16	11A	10	10	11	6		20	7	17	9
17	7	5		1		25		20		25		5
24	17	25	4	18		25	5	15	7	4	24	5
3		18		5		4		11		24		20
2	1	17	25		1	16	5	25	22	24	1	26
		25		9		5		7				11
21	24	5	16	5	25		5	11	10	23	11	13
25				24		18		10		11
1	25	4	19	4	10N	11A	24L		20	21	17	18
8		10		5		6		24		17		1
17	10	21	4	16	4	24		17	10	12	4	15
5		17		5		4		18		12		5
7	17	20	3		14	11	23	1	25	4	7	2

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10N	11A	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24L	25	26

Every letter in this crossword-style grid is represented by a number from 1 to 26. Each letter of the alphabet appears in the grid at least once. Use the letters already provided to work out the identity of further letters. Enter letters in the main grid and the smaller reference grid until all 26 letters of the alphabet have been accounted for. Proper nouns are excluded. Yesterday's solution, right

Chadines: Stuck on Codeword? To receive 4 random clues call 0901 293 6262 or text TIMECODE to 64343. Calls cost £1 plus your telephone company's network access charge. Texts cost £1 plus your standard network charge. For the full solution call 0905 757 0142. If you have an old newspaper and need clues from the past 7 days, call 0905 624 0024. Calls to 0905 cost £1 per minute plus your telephone company's network access charge. SP: Spoke, 0333 202 3390 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5.30pm).

Lexica Easy No 9047 Hard No 9048

Slide the letters either horizontally or vertically back into the grid to produce a completed crossword. Letters are allowed to slide over other letters.

Train Tracks No 2941

Quintagram® No 2843

Solve all five cryptic clues using each letter underneath once only

1 Latest reports from all four corners (4)

— — — —

2 Game is roughly creating likenesses (6)

— — — — — —

3 Serious attention followed by retreat (7)

— — — — — —

4 Caught a rubbish container with alien storage unit (7)

— — — — — —

5 City area still overjoyed (8)

A	A	A	A	B	C	C	C
E	E	E	E	E	E	G	I
I	I	M	N	N	N	R	S
S	S	S	T	T	T	T	W

Try Wordhunt and Picle, our new online Quick Play puzzles at thetimes.com/puzzles and on the Live app

KenKen Medium No 6908

All the digits 1 to 6 must appear in every row and column. In each thick-line "block", the target number in the top left-hand corner is calculated from the digits in all the cells in the block, using the operation indicated by the symbol.

Futoshiki No 5456

Fill the blank squares so that every row and column contains each of the numbers 1 to 5 once only. The symbols between the squares indicate whether a number is larger (+) or smaller (-) than the number next to it.

Kakuro No 4415

Fill the grid using the numbers 1 to 9 only. The numbers in each horizontal or vertical run of white squares add up to the total in the triangle to its left or above it. The same number may occur more than once in a row or column, but not within the same run of white squares.

© PCCS SA MEDIA

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15

MindGames

times2 Crossword No 10,232

Across

1 Academic investigation and study (8) 5 Detailed list of features or requirements (4) 8 Leafy herb (3) 9 Raw material for ceramics (4) 10 Low horse-drawn cart (4) 12 Pompons, conceited (4-9)

13 Took notice of (6) 14 Means of end (6) 17 Cinema worker (13) 20 Split into loose threads (4) 21 Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard poet (4) 22 Dried grass for fodder (3) 23 Unpleasant grin (4) 24 Endanger (8)

Solution to Crossword 10,231

Down

1 Visual puzzle (5) 2 Pale azure colour (3,4) 3 Ancient mathematician (10) 4 Vehicle immobilizers (6) 6 Warm hooded coat (5) 7 Prairie wolves (7) 11 Cave dweller (10) 13 Optimistic (7) 15 Descriptive nickname (7) 16 Laundry stiffening agent (6) 18 Speechify (5) 19 Briefly wear to assess fit (3,2)

Need help with today's puzzle? Call 0905 757 0143 to check the answers. Calls cost £1 per minute plus your telephone company's network access charge. SP: Spoke, 0333 202 3390 (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm).

Bridge Andrew Robson

On today's deal from a social Teams, the excellent 6-w slum was reached at both tables. At Table One, West chose to lead his singleton, despite it being in dummy's suit. At Table Two, West led the eight of his partner's spades. As declarer, plan the play in each scenario.

Table One — 4 lead. That diamond is surely a singleton — why else lead dummy's suit? You cannot draw all the trumps, or you won't be able to get back to dummy's diamonds. And it'll be imperative for you to lead a second diamond from your hand so that, if West ruffs, he is effectively ruffing his partner's winner (and you make five diamond tricks)

The correct line after winning the diamond is to cash the queen of hearts and lead a low heart to your ace. Both opponents follow to two rounds so, at trick four, you lead up your second diamond. If West ruffs, you can ruff his (say) spade return, cash diamonds and claim 12 tricks.

West does best to discard but you win the diamond and ruff a diamond with the king of hearts. You return to the jack of hearts (drawing West's third heart) and run diamonds, coming down to the king-queen of spades and ace of clubs in hand. Now cross to the ace of clubs and force out the ace of spades, that second-round promoted spade being your 12th trick.

Say those two rounds of hearts reveal a four-one split. You now need diamonds 3-2 (however unlikely that may be). Return to the jack of hearts, back to the ace of clubs and (try to) run diamonds.

(1) Would not overcall if vulnerable. (2) Blinding to the (nine-trick) level of the fit. (3) Partner's 2♥ guarantees a fifth heart (South would make a negative double with only four). (4) Knows partner has a void spade.

Contract 3♥, Opening Load ★4/▲5

Table Two — ▲ 5 lead. You must discard from dummy — say a club (nintubands ruff and you're down). East wins the ace and switches to the jack of clubs (best). You win the ace and must ruff a spade.

You now cash the queen of hearts and overtake the jack with the king, admittedly failing if hearts are 4-1. When both opponents follow to two rounds, you cash the ace, drawing the last trump then enjoy the king-queen of spades and dummy's ace-king-queen of diamonds. That's 12 tricks made via the four minor-suit tops, the king-queen of spades and six hearts (including that spade ruff in dummy).

andrew.robsen@thetimes.co.uk

Brain Trainer

Polygon

From these letters, make words of three or more letters, always including the central letter. Answers must be in the Concise Oxford Dictionary, excluding capitalised words, plurals, conjugated verbs (past tense etc), adverbs ending in LV, comparatives and superlatives. How you rate 15 words, average: 20, good; 25, very good; 31, excellent

Yesterday's answers

bib, los, bash, brs, brush, bub, bur, burb, bus, bush, hub, hubris, rib, rub, rubbish, shrub, sib, sub, urbs

Cell Blocks No 5799

Divide the grid into square or rectangular blocks, each containing one digit only. Every block must contain the number of cells indicated by the digit inside it.

Set Square No 4418

Enter each of the numbers from 1 to 9 in the grid, so that the six sums work. We've placed two numbers to get you started. Each sum should be calculated left to right or top to bottom.

Please note, BODMAS does not apply

Killer Moderate No 10,870

Killer Tough No 10,871

As with standard Sudoku, fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9. Each set of cells joined by dotted lines must add up to the target number in its top-left corner. Within each set of cells joined by dotted lines, a digit cannot be repeated.

Cluelines Stuck on Sudoku, Killer or KenKen? Call 0901 293 6263 before midnight to receive four clues for any of today's puzzles. Calls cost £1 plus your telephone company's network access charge. SP: Spoke, 0333 202 3390 (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm).

Solutions

Sudoku 17/1/3

Sudoku 17/1/4

Sudoku 17/1/5

Killer 10,868

Killer 10,869

Codeword 5915

GK Crossword 350

Cell Blocks 5798

Fulcolink 5455

Kakuro 4414

Train Tracks 2940

Set Square 4417

KenKen 6907

Lexica 9045

Lexica 9046

Today's solutions

Word watch

Tammy (b) A club for steaming sauce, soup etc (Collins) Nyckelhemann (c) A 24-hour period (1827) Bixter-de-mer (a) A sea slug (b) Aantony

Chess — Winning Move

1 KnErf+ repawn the king with(med) to force made 1...Nshf (1...Kshf 1 Bk)=naive(1) Knfr- Nlh 1 KnBr (3 Qn)R will also win but the test forces make 1...Kh2 4 RbR+ KshR 5 BQ+ Kh2 6 Qg7 mate

Quiz

1 Sherlock Holmes 2 Dublin 3 Maori 4 Notting Hill Carnival 5 Coronation Street 6 HMP Dartmoor 7 Charlotte Bronte 8 Robert the Bruce 9 William Lamb or Lord Melbourne 10 Galliano 11 Vir Henicus Sahlmi 12 Muon 13 Ryan Holiday 14 Lotus 15 Fight Club

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THE TIMES

11.08.26

MindGames

For extra puzzles See page 10

Word watch

David Perfitt

Tammy

a A standby or understudy b A cloth for staining sauce, soup etc c A small aggressive variety of chicken

Nychthemeron

a A double negative b A prehistoric fishlike reptile c A 24-hour period

Bèche-de-mer

a A sea slug b A palm producing a huge nut c A pirate

Answers on page 15

Sudoku Mild No 17016

Difficult No 17017

Super fiendish No 17018

						9
	3			8	7		5
5		4				3
	9		8			7
	3	6	1		7
7	8			6		1
		2		9			6
9			6	3	1
	4		2			9

		8
3					9	6
2	6		1		7		8
	3		8	4		1
6
	1		6	3		2
8	2		4		6		5
7					3	9
		9

		3		5	9
1	9			7			2
			8		1	2	9
3	2					6	7
9	6	1		2
6			5			4	3
		5	1		9

Fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9.

The Times Daily Quiz Olav Bjartomt

1 O Henry's 1904 story The Adventures of Shamrock Aimes parodied which detective? 2 The U2 frontman Bono was born and raised in which capital city? 3 Ta moko is a ritual body art practiced by which indigenous people of New Zealand? 4 In 1977, Darcus Howe became chairman of which London carnival's development committee? 5 Freshoo is a fictional supermarket in which ITV soap? 6 Opened in 1809, which men's prison in Princetown, Devon

shares its name with a national park?

7 Three of which author's siblings died while she was writing the 1849 novel Shirley?

8 The First War of Scottish Independence ended in 1328 with which king on the Scottish throne?

9 Which future prime minister married Lady Caroline Ponsonby in 1805?

10 The yellow bird is a Caribbean cocktail that gets its vibrant colour from which golden Italian liqueur?

11 The Latin title of which 1950-51 abstract

expressionist painting by Barnett Newman means "Man, heroic and sublime"?

12 The physicist Isidor Rabi exclaimed: "Who ordered that?" upon the discovery of which particle in 1936?

13 Trust Me, I'm Lying (2012) and Ego is the Enemy (2016) are books by which American marketeer?

14 Which English sports carmaker won its seventh and final F1 constructors' championship in 1978?

15 Helena Bonham Carter plays Marla Singer in which pictured film?

Answers on page 15

Sakuro No 4817

For interactive puzzles visit thetimes.com

The Times Quick Cryptic No 3377 by Mara

Across

1 Tear in injured part of eye (6) 5 Building for animals far from rickety (6) 8 Sheffield steel, perhaps? (9,4) 9 Check old embargo (4) 10 Hide flask aloft (6,2) 11 Scatter drapes all over the place (6) 13 Favourite pushed back by inches, part of a foot (6) 15 A1 breaking up (8) 17 Rolling over, touch instrument (4) 19 Rainproof hats destroyed without thinking (6-7) 21 Shit about leader in loathsome old dictator (6) 22 Gift you shouldn't have loaned (6)

Down

2 Flee with girl, forgetting pen (5) 3 Infernal, smokier winds (7) 4 Wood remains after fire (3) 5 Hungriest when cooking? Certainly! (4,5) 6 Article on set for cherub (5) 7 European is entertained by attraction in free time (7) 10 Wicked running after perfect game (9) 12 Rapt, if a novel is sweet (7) 14 Talc she sprinkled in bag (7) 16 Shade of pink right within something black (5) 18 Top bean ultimately for chocolate (5) 20 Every other bit of carpet fitting (3)

Yesterday's solution on page 15

TRAILFINDERS

THE TIMES DAILY QUIZ

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TIMES Travel Partner

The World is waiting for you

Discover our partner's favourite solo tours and experiences around the world.

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Discover Sicily

September 2026 to October 2027

Explore Italy's largest island including its most famous landmark, Mount Etna, which you'll visit by cable car. In Taormina, you'll see its incredible Greco-Roman theatre, while Villa del Casale reveals a rich collection of Roman mosaics. Palermo is a complete feast for the eyes with its diverse mix of architecture. You'll explore the exquisite Monreale Cathedral and its sparkling treasures, plus enjoy time in the quaint seaside town of Cefalù. With

fascinating history, vibrant culture and iconic gastronomy, this tour has that little bit of everything.

Price includes

• Return flights from London and regional airports, plus overseas transportation
• Seven nights in four-star hotels
• Seven breakfasts, one lunch, seven dinners
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

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Sun-kissed Sardinia

September 2026 to September 2027

Escape to the sun-drenched island of Sardinia, where crystal-clear waters, charming coastal towns and a relaxed Mediterranean way of life await. Discover the colourful harbour of Alghero, explore the glamorous Costa Smeralda, uncover fascinating ancient history and soak up breathtaking scenery. With plenty of time to savour delicious local cuisine and unwind by the sea, this is the perfect blend of culture, coastline and island charm. Escape to the sun-drenched island of Sardinia, where crystal-clear waters, charming coastal towns and a relaxed Mediterranean way of life await. Discover the colourful harbour of Alghero, explore the glamorous Costa Smeralda, uncover fascinating ancient history and soak up breathtaking scenery. With plenty of time to savour delicious local cuisine and unwind by the sea, this is the perfect blend of culture, coastline and island charm.

Price includes

• Return flights from London and Bristol plus overseas transportation
• Seven nights half-board in a four-star hotel
• Seven breakfasts, one lunch, seven dinners including a welcome drink and farewell get-together
• Discover the popular and beautiful Costa Smeralda
• Guided walking tour of Olbia
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

EIGHT DAYS FROM

£1,999*

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QUOTE TIMES

Step away from the crowds and enjoy a taste of the real Italy in beautiful Puglia. From your base in Fasano, your exploration of this rarely visited region includes a trip to a beautiful five-star masseria, where you will enjoy a delicious meal. Discover ancient Sassi dwellings carved into rock in Matera and see Trulli houses in Alberobello. There's also plenty of time to relax and enjoy the facilities at your hotel, or if you prefer, you can continue the sightseeing with our range of optional excursions.

Price includes

• Return flights from London plus overseas transportation
• Seven nights in a four-star hotel
• Seven breakfasts, two lunch and six dinners including a welcome drink
• Enjoy a traditional Pugliese dinner, lunch in a masseria and olive oil tasting
• Visit Locorotondo, Alberobello, Martina Franca and Matera's sassi dwellings
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

EIGHT DAYS FROM

£1,749*

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Price includes

• Return flights from London and regional airports plus overseas transportation
• 11 nights in four and five-star hotels and lodges, plus one night in flight
• 11 breakfasts, five lunches and 11 dinners, including welcome drink
• Sunrise visit to the Taj Mahal
• Tours of Old Delhi, Amber Fort, Jaipur and Agra Fort
• Game drives in Ranthambore National Park
• Experience an Aarti Ceremony in Varanasi
• Just You Holiday Director, as your host and specialist local guide

Enjoy an incredible journey through India's very best cultural, religious and natural sites. Starting with Old Delhi's vibrant bazaars and food stalls, we'll move on to Jaipur and its mix of fortresses, palaces and busy street markets. In Ranthambore National Park we'll spend time looking out for the local wildlife, including the beautiful but elusive tiger. We then travel on to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal which we will visit, as well as spending time at Agra Fort. There's also time in Lucknow, which is well known for

its gardens and monuments. We'll also enjoy a cultural fix with visits to temples and the holy city of Varanasi, where we'll sail along the Ganges at dawn - a real wow moment on this tour.

Scan the QR code with your camera app to view more details.

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Price includes

• Return flights from London and regional airports plus overseas transportation
• Nine nights half-board in four and five-star hotels plus one night in flight
• One night on one of Kerala's famous houseboats cruising the backwaters
• Ten breakfasts, two lunches, ten dinners including welcome and farewell dinners
• Cochin and Madurai tours
• Tea and Spice plantation visits
• Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

Discover the enchanting beauty of Kerala, where tranquil backwaters, lush tea plantations and palm-fringed beaches create an unforgettable escape. Cruise through peaceful waterways on a traditional houseboat, wander fragrant spice plantations and explore vibrant towns rich in culture and heritage. Revel in extraordinary wildlife encounters with the chance to spot elephants, bison, deer and maybe an elusive tiger. From breathtaking landscapes to

warm local hospitality, every day reveals another side of Southern India's timeless charm.

CALL TODAY ON 0808 296 1148 thetimes.com/jy-kerala QUOTE TIMES

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Discover the exceptional architecture and fascinating history of the capital of Czechia on this Christmas break in Prague. A city tour will introduce highlights including St Wenceslas Square and the Charles Bridge, explore Český Krumlov in Southern Bohemia and enjoy a lunch cruise on the Vltava River.

Price includes

• Return flights from London plus overseas transportation
• Five nights in a four-star hotel
• Five breakfasts, two lunches, five dinners, and a festive welcome drink
• Discover Prague's rich history on a city tour
• Enjoy a leisurely lunch on the river Vltava
• Guided tour of Český Krumlov
• Dinner at a unique microbrewery
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

SIX DAYS FROM

£1,999*

per person

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0808 296 1148

thetimes.com/jy-

praguechristmasmarket

QUOTE TIMES

There is so much to discover on the small island of Malta, which boasts a mild climate, even during the winter months. On this Christmas break you'll delve into its history as you explore cities built and fortified by the Knights of St John, take a cruise around Valletta's famous Grand Harbour and have the option to journey to its lovely sister island, Gozo.

Price includes

• Return flights from London plus overseas transportation
• Five nights half-board in a four-star hotel
• Five breakfasts, one Christmas Day buffet lunch and five dinners including a Christmas Eve buffet dinner
• Enjoy a cruise around Valletta's Grand Harbour
• Explore the Unesco-listed city of Valletta. Visit the saluting battery and experience the firing of one of the eight replica cannons
• Visit to the Mosta Dome
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

SIX DAYS FROM

£1,849*

per person

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thetimes.com/jy-

maltachristmasmarket

QUOTE TIMES

Celebrate Christmas in William Shakespeare's enchanting hometown, the historic market town of Stratford-upon-Avon. Picture timber-framed buildings decorated for the celebrations, twinkling lights reflecting off the River Avon, and an unmistakable festive magic filling the air. We'll soak up the spirit of the season, exploring charming streets brimming with independent shops and cosy cafes as well as discovering more about the life and works of William Shakespeare. Christmas Day brings us together for all the traditional celebrations, creating memories with our fellow travellers in this storybook setting. Our adventure also whisks us to the magnificent Warwick Castle,

where centuries of history, myths and legends spring to life around every corner. This is Christmas with a difference, exploring, discovering and celebrating together in one of England's most captivating towns.

Price includes

• Four nights in a four-star hotel
• Four breakfasts, Christmas lunch with a glass of wine. Four dinners, and welcome tea or coffee on arrival
• Walking tour of Shakespeare's Stratford-upon-Avon
• Visit Warwick Castle
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

SIX DAYS FROM

£1,349*

per person

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thetimes.com/jy-

stratfordchristmasmarket

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Celebrate Christmas beside the sea with a festive escape to Brighton. Stroll along the iconic seafront, admire the spectacular Royal Pavilion dressed for the season and soak up the city's lively atmosphere. With delicious festive dining, time to explore at your own pace and the company of like-minded solo travellers, it's a wonderful way to enjoy a relaxed and memorable Christmas break.

Price includes

• Four nights in a four-star hotel
• Four breakfasts, four dinners, Christmas Day lunch with a glass of wine, including welcome tea or coffee and mince pies on arrival
• Enjoy a visit to Brighton's famous Royal Pavilion
• Guided tour of Brighton
• Just You Holiday Director as your host and specialist local guide

FIVE DAYS FROM

£1,859*

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*Prices correct at time of print. Prices shown are based on single occupancy of a double or twin bedded room with private facilities and economy flights/rail travel where applicable. All holidays are subject to availability. Images used in conjunction with Just You. Operated by and subject to the booking conditions of Just You, ABTA 19412, AT01, L126a a company wholly independent of News BC. Discount applies to selected holidays. New bookings only. Visit website for full terms & conditions.