Drivers have been told to expect heavy delays

A major road near Ely has been closed by police following a fatal crash. The A10 is currently closed between the Grange Lane roundabout in Littleport and the B1411 roundabout.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary confirmed to CambridgeshireLive that the incident was a fatal road traffic collision. One person is understood to have died.

A Facebook post by Policing East Cambridgeshire at around 6am this morning (May 17) said: “Please be aware that there is a road closure on the A10 currently between the Grange Lane roundabout and the B1411 roundabout. Expect heavy delays and road users may wish to look at alternative routes.”

CambridgeshireLive is waiting for further information.

We were all flying without wings back in the heyday of Irish boy band Westlife. The group were formed in Dublin in 1998 and rose to international popularity during the early 2000s. The new release of their anniversary album, 25: The Ultimate Collection, affords an opportunity to reflect on the band’s story. They emerge as bold and brash, but also as airbrushed as an advertisement for a new housing development in Dublin.

Irish music manager Louis Walsh took five young men and handed them to British music mogul Simon Cowell. Some of the band members were from the west of Ireland, from a generation whose older brothers had left for London and Boston in the 1980s with a bag and a prayer.

The songs were almost aggressively un-Irish. Free from political statement or critical reflections on the place they came from. Instead, they put out American soft rock from the 1970s and 80s, which they delivered in close harmony and in matching knitwear, sitting on stools, off which one of them would occasionally rise for the key change.

It was, in the most literal sense, a performance of aspiration. And Ireland in 2001 understood aspiration.

The Irish comedian Tommy Tiernan once described a trad music (Irish traditional music) session as a frenetic spinning and spiralling whirl where kids fuelled on Fanta were thrown around and everyone felt like the spiral might get so strong as to free everyone from the pull of Earth’s gravity. Much of the way we were in Ireland in the 2000s was similar to that whirl.

The country had been experiencing rising economic statistics for long enough that we started believing that we were actually rich. It was dubbed the Celtic Tiger economic boom.

Ireland had emerged from the poor man of Europe moniker to become something shinier and less complicated. Westlife were simply doing the same thing, at volume, on Top of the Pops.

All this growth came under the guidance of that Taoiseach in the anorak, Bertie Ahern. He was a leader so confident in the fiscal strength of the country that he thought any economists who thought any different should do away with themselves – the same man who didn’t feel the need to have a bank account.

As Westlife was topping the music charts in 2001, Ireland was dubbed the “world’s most globalised country” – top of a list of the countries most integrated into the global network of trade, capital, information and people. More than the US, more than Singapore, little Ireland was considered the most open of them all.

Consider all of this growth for a country which five decades earlier was a place where nearly one in every two people made their living off the land, the grip of the Catholic church was strong and faith in local industry was unquestioned. It was an Ireland that considered itself an island on its own.

By the start of 2001, however, Ireland had gone so far down the road of liberalisation that it would be difficult to find its way back. What wealth had been accumulated from the start of the Celtic Tiger was finally starting to be spent. We were building major motorway networks to connect the country and we even went as far as building a light rail system in the capital city.

The nation turned to housing as the “spatial articulation of wealth”. For many, one home was not enough. For a country tied to the fiscal and monetary unions of much larger countries, which were faring much worse in terms of economic metrics, low interest rates and easy access to money acted as the propellant to fuel a bubble that would take a full seven years to burst.

The Flood Tribunal (established in 1997 and later called the Mahon Tribunal) exposed how corrupt the new developments could be. Land zoning, planning applications and suburban sprawl were leaving permanent scars on the countryside. The wealth the country had accumulated became manifest in hotels, shoddy apartments and three-bed semi-detached houses built too far away from where everyone wanted to be.

Amid all this, Westlife were gaining international popularity, which came to its apex in 2001 when the group set off on their first world tour and released their third album, World of Our Own.

There was something almost too neat about the whole arrangement of the band. Boys from the west of Ireland – historically the part of the country most associated with emigration and with the Famine in the mid-1800s – were now being exported not as labour, but as a product. They weren’t going to England to build roads, as boys like them traditionally had; they were going to conquer the charts. The geography was the same. The power dynamic had, apparently, reversed entirely.

Except, of course, it hadn’t really reversed at all. The money, the decisions, the creative control – all of that remained firmly in London, in the hands of Cowell, a man who had identified that pop music could be industrialised like any other product. Find the ingredients, test the recipe, remove anything interesting, repeat.

What Cowell understood, better than anyone, was that the audience didn’t want to be surprised or challenged or moved in any direction they hadn’t already been moved before. They wanted the familiar, delivered with a cheeky smile.

And Westlife, to their credit, delivered the familiar with lovely smiles. They were professionally polished and almost completely without edges. Every rough corner that might have connected them to an actual place or an actual feeling had been sanded back to a smooth, radio-friendly finish.

Ireland, with all its bounty of beautiful complexity – its landscape, its history, its complicated relationship with leaving and returning – was not something that fit in a Cowell product. So it was removed.

What remained were five young men who could hold a note, sing Billy Joel’s songs, and look sincere on cue. International financial capital fuelled by Fanta did the rest, flying as it does, without wings.

That is exactly what me and my husband Ben did earlier this week, booking a table at Saltfish in Darlington for a seafood feast.

Tucked inside Houndgate Townhouse, Saltfish has gone from strength to strength since opening in 2021, with owners Jack Bowles and Ellie Richmond building a name for quality, locally sourced produce in a stunning setting.

It felt like the perfect place to celebrate — even for a decidedly unromantic couple like us.

We booked a Tuesday night table, dressed up, and were welcomed with a glass of prosecco each, a thoughtful touch that set the tone for the evening.

Having scoped out the menu in advance, we both opted for the large seafood platter: crab mornay, king prawns, prawn cocktail, smoked salmon, bread and dips — plus oysters, scallops and mussels. The oysters were the main draw, as neither of us had tried them before.

On a friend’s recommendation, we paired it all with a bottle of Gran Cerdo Blanco Rioja, quickly dubbed “the pig wine” in our house, a smooth, well-balanced white that complemented the food beautifully.

Presentation was spot on from the start, with oysters served on ice and a neatly arranged bread basket. Then came the platter — generous, beautifully presented and more than enough to silence any doubts about portion size.

The oysters? Bracing and unmistakably of the sea, but in a good way. A proper first-time experience.

From there, it was hard to pick favourites, but a few dishes stood out. The prawn cocktail was a classic done well, with tender prawns and a rich, creamy sauce.

The crab mornay was indulgent and cheesy, especially paired with bread and seaweed butter. But the highlight for both of us was the Queenie scallops — soft, buttery and served in a rich sauce that tied everything together.

We added chips we didn’t really need, though they were exactly as they should be, fluffy inside, crisp outside.

Despite being full, dessert was non-negotiable.

I chose the rhubarb fool pavlova, perfectly balancing tart fruit with sweet meringue and cream, while Ben went for the apple and oat crumble, piping hot with a well-judged filling-to-crumble ratio, though he wouldn’t have minded a little more ice cream.

A surprise ‘Happy Anniversary’ plate rounded things off nicely.

With one final clink of glasses, we left having discovered new favourites, from oysters to wine, and enjoyed a genuinely memorable meal.

Our bill came to £198.75, which included a 10% service charge, which our server explained that she was happy to remove, but our experience was exceptional, and we were more than happy to pay it.

It’s not cheap, but for the quality of food, service and overall experience, it felt well worth it for a special occasion.

Ratings
Service: 9
Surroundings: 10
Food Quality: 10
Value for Money: 9

The details

11 Houndgate, Darlington, DL1 5RF

Phone: 01325 486011

Have you had a meal here? Let us know what you thought about it in the comments.

It took three months of hard work to change Amorim’s mind.

On 6 March 2025, he started the first leg of the Europa League last-16 draw with Real Sociedad. He kept his place for the league game against Arsenal and, from that point, has started every major game United have played.

“Football changes. Life changes,” Casemiro said in his recent interview with former United captain Ferdinand.

“For me, [with] the best players in the world, it’s about the mentality. I might not play good – I’m not a robot and I know. But the next [game], I give everything on the pitch. The mentality is next, next, next.”

It is a mentality that has brought Casemiro back into the Brazil squad – he is expected to be Carlo Ancelotti’s captain at this summer’s tournament.

This season, the 34-year-old’s influence has noticeably increased.

Of all the players in Michael Carrick’s squad, it is widely accepted if Casemiro had been injured in February, after the transfer deadline had closed, his absence would have been the hardest to cover in the ultimately successful quest for Champions League qualification.

“He has been an absolute pleasure to work with,” Carrick says in his programme notes for the Forest game.

“He will always have a special connection with Manchester United.”

Carrick has felt the early clarity around Casemiro’s exit – announced on 22 January, days after the manager’s own return as Amorim’s temporary replacement – has been beneficial for player and club.

Aside from the mentality aspect, the player’s influence at Old Trafford should extend far longer than his physical presence.

When Casemiro arrived from Real Madrid in 2022 in a deal worth up to £70m, Kobbie Mainoo, then aged 17, felt he would learn huge amounts from one of the most decorated players in the game.

Amid the Brazilian’s collapse in form, Mainoo ended up battling for a start with Casemiro, which wasn’t a situation he envisaged.

The clear by-product of Amorim’s exit has been the partnership between the pair, who have played alongside each other in 13 of Carrick’s 15 matches in charge – a one-match absence for both players because of minor injuries the only reason it was not 15 out of 15.

“Kobbie is my friend,” Casemiro explained earlier this month in a separate interview with the respected United We Stand fanzine.

“I have an excellent relationship with him. We are always joking – in English because he doesn’t speak Portuguese.

“He is a complete player, the present and the future of Manchester.

“Why? Because he has already taught us that he can play to a high level for his club and country. The one thing he needs to improve is to play more with the ball, to touch the ball more, because he has so much quality.

“Then it’s the decision-making which comes with experience. That improves with age.”

When coming up with a new fragrance what is your starting point? Eleanor, South East

In my head, I have a library with all of these fragrance notes. I see it as a big, spiral staircase and it goes up and up, and around it are all these shelves with bottles or things on.

Each one is a memory; a walk in the park, riding my horse, lying on a cashmere blanket in the middle of the desert. I pick those bottles, smell them and start to add it to the fragrance. Each one is a story, each note is words, music or touch.

Then you put together what’s called accords. They’re often single notes, and I’ll take them and twirl the papers round and round. Do they match? Are they a disrupter? Are they a magnet? Do they want to draw and control everything in that fragrance?

If you could only wear one scent for the rest of your life, what would it be? Ali, South West

That’s impossible. I love creating, I love smelling fragrances and I love accords.

But, if I could only take one bottle, it would be ‘Jo by Jo Loves’. I created that many years ago and it’s the story of my life through the ingredients of grapefruit, pomelos, lime and citrus. It reminds me to remember who I am. It was the second business I built and a part of my life where I was really trying to discover again who Jo was.

Or, it’s always the one I’m currently creating. So at the moment it would be ‘Sunkissed Orange’, the code name of my current working project.

What was the biggest risk you took that defined your career and what did it teach you? Andrew, East of England

I think one of the biggest risks was opening our first shop in Walton Street, 32 years ago. My husband and I had this tiny pool of money for rent and for products and all we could think about was “Can we survive?”. And within five years we’d sold that business, so it paid off.

Then, I left Jo Malone London in 2006 and I had a five year lockout, so I was non-compete. After those five years, an opportunity came to me and I missed fragrance so much that I decided I wanted to take it, but that was a risk.

Just because you’re successful once in your life, it doesn’t give you the right to be successful again. You have to go from the ground, and let me tell you, the first two years of building Jo Loves were torturous. I lost lots of money. I got it all wrong.

But often when you take risks in business and you push through, you build business muscle and find different solutions. Never be frightened of risk. It’s always going to come, but we have to push on.

What is one piece of advice that you would give to a young person today, setting out in the world of work? Andrew, East of England

Well, it’s going to be an adventure. I left school at 15 years old. I have no qualifications. I had a whole heap of dreams, I set to work and I have built and helped build great global brands. When I was 15 to 16 years old, my first job was in a florist. I never wasted any opportunity to learn something. Learning that you don’t like something is often as valuable as knowing you love it, because you can eliminate a lot.

Surround yourself with people that you find creative and inspiring and learn from them. If you don’t know how to do it in the beginning, mimic them. Mimic some of their thought processes and conversations. Listen to every word. Read stories of other entrepreneurs.

The next question will probably be: “Well, I don’t know whether I’m an entrepreneur?” You may not be, but you have an entrepreneurial instinct, because the minute you were born, you were born to learn and be creative.

The school says that “all necessary improvements are already underway”

A Cambridge primary school has been told it ‘needs attention’ by Ofsted. After dropping from an overall ‘good’ rating in their previous inspection, staff members at St Philip’s CofE Aided Primary School said they have recognised “some areas need continued attention” and that “all the necessary improvements are already well underway”, which Ofsted noted.

The report, which was published on Thursday, May 14, judged the primary school ‘expected standard’ in four areas assessed and ‘needs attention’ in three including in attendance and behaviour and achievement, and curriculum and teaching.

The report states that over time, pupils have “not achieved as well as they should”. It added: “Outcomes in national tests at the end of key stage 2 in reading, writing and mathematics dipped significantly in 2025. Although outcomes in reading and mathematics for all pupils were close to national averages, outcomes for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) were significantly below.”

However, the inspection also identified that leaders have “taken steps to address weaknesses in pupils’ writing and have transformed support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils”. They have also “refreshed their approach to teaching phonics to improve achievement”, and Ofsted noted that this new approach has not been in place for sufficient time to be reflected in national test outcomes yet.

The safeguarding standards were met and early years, inclusion, leadership and governance and personal development and wellbeing were graded at ‘expected standard’.

The report said that leaders acknowledge that “too many pupils are or have been persistently absent and missing school”, and, as a result, a revised approach to improving attendance was introduced.

Inspectors found that teachers “do not consistently provide pupils with meaningful opportunities to develop the important knowledge they need in English and mathematics” and at times, pupils “do not receive helpful guidance and support to develop the accuracy of their reading or the clarity of their writing”.

“In some other subjects, leaders have not ensured that pupils learn the key vocabulary that they need to understand and explain their learning. This hinders the progress that pupils make”, the report continued.

However, Ofsted noted that leaders have an accurate view of curriculum strengths, have identified areas for development and have begun to bring about improvements.

A spokesperson for St Philip’s CofE Aided Primary School said: “We are pleased that the inspectors showed a balanced understanding of what St Philip’s does well, and what we are working to develop. The school has faced challenges in recent years; however, we now have a capable and committed new Headteacher.”

Ofsted praised the staff for being “passionate, knowledgeable and enthusiastic leadership” and noted that children “recognise the positive recent changes to their school” , “are proud to have roles and responsibilities that help them to contribute to school life” and “take these responsibilities seriously”.

A spokesperson for St Philip’s CofE Aided Primary School said “Although some areas need continued attention, the inspectors fully endorsed leaders’ decisions and priorities. They judged that only minor improvements need to be made for the school to be ‘Expected standard’ in all areas, and they noted that all the necessary improvements are already well underway.

“We are particularly pleased that the school met all Safeguarding criteria, and that our Leadership & Governance met the expected standard. Being a safe, well-led environment gives us solid foundations to grow and develop.

“Furthermore, the inspectors praised pupils’ wellbeing and behaviour, commenting on the kindness and consideration they had observed during their visit; this is endorsed by the 95% of respondents to the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire who agreed that ‘My child is happy at this school’. (Although Attendance & Behaviour was graded as ‘Needs attention’, this was only because recent improvements in attendance have not yet been sustained over sufficient time.)

“We feel that the Ofsted summary of ‘What it’s like to be a pupil at this school’ gives an excellent and balanced picture, noting recent improvements in teaching and concluding that ‘the school prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain’. Perhaps that’s why 95% of respondents to the Parent View questionnaire said that they would recommend St Philip’s to another parent.”

The ex-Wales and Premier League star underwent a curious career pivot

Former Wales star Sam Ricketts walked away from football to pursue a career in construction. Ricketts, now 44, played 103 games for Swansea City and earned 52 caps for Wales.

Sam Ricketts’ tenure at Swansea City from 2004 to 2006 marked a meteoric rise from non-league football to the international stage following his free transfer from the defunct Telford United. He became an immediate fixture in Kenny Jackett’s side, earning a place in the PFA League Two Team of the Year and helping the club secure promotion during their emotional final season at the Vetch Field.

During his second year, Ricketts was instrumental in Swansea’s transition to the Liberty Stadium and their 2-1 victory over Carlisle United in the Football League Trophy final at the Millennium Stadium. Although his time in South Wales ended after a heartbreaking play-off final defeat in 2006, his 103 appearances paved the way for a successful career in the higher divisions and the Premier League.

He went on to play a pivotal role in Hull City’s remarkable promotion to the Premier League in 2008/09 with the Tigers once more on the brink of the top flight this season, with the play-off final just days away.

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Following his departure from Hull, Ricketts, turned out for Bolton in the Premier League, Wolves, Swindon Town and Coventry. Managerial spells with Wrexham and Shrewsbury Town came next.

After departing Shrewsbury in November 2020, the former right-back embarked on a fresh chapter as a construction merchant, stepping away from the game. He revealed in 2021: “I’m done at the minute – I’ve opened a builder’s merchants instead.

“I’ll do that for a couple of years and pick and choose what I do in football. I don’t want to move, stay away from home five nights a week, that’s just me.”

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Although he was born in England, Ricketts was eligible to feature for Wales due to his grandmother being Welsh. However, Ricketts will forever be associated with the Tigers’ historic season and promotion under former manager Phil Brown.

The side rose from 18th in early October to second by mid-April. The former defender has warm recollections of that memorable campaign, even drawing parallels with Leicester City’s remarkable Premier League title success in 2016.

“We didn’t come into that season wanting to get promoted,” said Ricketts in 2018. “I’m not sure that was the aim for anyone. But we gradually built as the season went on and improved as a team.

“We had good players who worked incredibly hard for each other. Everyone bought into what we were trying to do. The team was full of players who had never been in the Premier League before, so once all those eyes were fixed on the possibility of winning promotion, it galvanised everyone.

“It was a bit like when Leicester won the Premier League. They never thought they were going to win the Premier League at the start of that season, but I will guarantee you that for the last few months of that season, they ate, slept and breathed those possibilities. That was us in 2008.”

Ricketts called time on the game in 2016 following injury concerns. In a statement, he revealed how he was going to gain his coaching badges with the Welsh FA: “Today, I am announcing my decision to retire from the game after having received medical advice that I should stop playing with immediate effect due to injury.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped me to fulfil every boy’s dream of becoming a professional footballer. I am grateful to all of the managers, coaches and teammates that I have had the honour of working with and learning from throughout my career.

“I would also like to express my gratitude to the brilliant supporters of the clubs I have played at for always offering me their wholehearted support.

“It has been a fantastic journey and one which has provided me with so many unbelievable experiences and memories. As my playing career comes to an end, I am now looking forward to embarking on a new chapter.

“A few years ago, I started working towards my coaching badges and am currently in the process of completing my UEFA A Licence with the Welsh FA. I am excited about the challenges that lie ahead and now hope to be able to give something back to a game which has given me so much.”

Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package

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Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.

Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.

The 2026 competition was held in Vienna, Austria, after their act JJ won the 2025 contest with the song ‘Wasted Love’.

Favourites going into the final included the Finnish duo Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius, and Australian singer Delta Goodrem.

Meanwhile, the UK’s entry was Sam Battle (known by his stage name Look Mum No Computer), who is known for his unusual electronic music.

But how did the votes stack up, and who impressed the juries and viewing public the most?

Who won Eurovision 2026?

The full leaderboard for Eurovision 2026 is as follows:

Bulgaria’s Dara secured victory, with her song ‘Bangaranga’ scoring 516 points.

A tense finale saw Israel in first place until the last points were announced, eventually finishing second with 343 points.

The country’s entrant, Noam Bettan, sang his song ‘Michelle’, in English, Hebrew and French.

Some chants and booing could be heard in the crowd, where many Israeli flags and banners could also be seen.

There were a number of protests in Vienna this week over Israel’s inclusion in the contest amid its actions in Gaza.

Romania’s Alexandra Capitanescu, with the intense pop metal song Choke Me, finished third on 296 points.

Speaking at a press conference after her win, Dara said: “I want to thank my husband, because he was the one to push me to come to Eurovision.

“Because in the beginning I was not sure if I want to come or not, because I had anxiety and doubt with myself, and he was the one that he just pushed me, and he was like, ‘you need to go right now to Eurovision, right now, pick up your phone tell them you’re going’.”

She added: “I’m so thankful that I (got) the chance to be in Eurovision, and every day I’ve been here in this place, I felt safe, protected, loved, supported.

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“I felt that I can do everything, that everything is possible, and I really, truly think that this community is so amazing.

“I will miss you so much, today I woke up, and I almost cried, because I will miss this place, and you all.”

Dara’s win means next year’s contest will take place in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia.

What did you think of Eurovision 2026 this year? Let us know in the comments.

The trick, shared by content creator Armen Adamjan, costs just 1p and uses something found in almost every home.

Mr Adamjan said: “Did you know if you grab a tea bag and put it in hot water for about five minutes then pour it into a spray bottle, what you have right now is a homemade natural chemical-free mirror cleaner.

“The tannic acid in tea leaves your mirrors streak-free and crystal clear.”

The reason why tea bags are so effective is because they contain tannins, which are a natural type of plant compound found in foods and beverages including tea, coffee, chocolate and wine.

How to Get Rid of Ants from Your Home

This acts as a mild and acidic agent that can be used to break down dirt, grease and fingerprints which so easily build up on our mirrors.

It is thought black tea bags contain the highest tannin concentration and steeping the tea bag for at least five minutes increases the tannin extraction.

With most Brits already having their cupboards stocked up with teabags and with them being available for as little as 1p it is a cheap and effective hack.

To carry out the cleaning hack, the content creator advises Brits to grab a tea bag and leave it in hot water for around five minutes.

After leaving the tea bag to brew, tip the contents into a spray bottle ready to spray onto your mirror.

For the final step, grab a cloth and wipe the tea bag water off the mirror until it’s dry.

Armen claims this will leave your mirrors looking shiny and clean.

Tea bags are a staple in most British households and can be bought for as little as 1p each.