Michaela has been awarded £32,000 by police, but it is understood two other alleged victims of the same perpetrator whose evidence in the same case was also lost, received about £10,000, paid jointly by South Wales Police and Gwent Police – both forces apologised for their failures.

The circular trail around Werneth Low in Hyde is firmly in the second category, and the fact that a welcoming historic stone pub sits right on the hilltop makes it one of the finest afternoon outings in the whole of Greater Manchester.

Rising to 279 metres above sea level on the eastern fringes of Tameside, Werneth Low offers views right across the city region and, on the clearest days, as far as the Welsh mountains on the horizon.

It is the kind of panorama you might not expect to find just nine and a half miles from Manchester city centre, but that is exactly the surprise Werneth Low has in store.​

Views from the pub Hare and Hound Inn (Image: Google Maps)

The three-mile circular route starts from the free car park off Higham Lane and takes in open heathland, sheltered wooded cloughs and the commanding hilltop war memorial before looping back to the start.

Dogs are very welcome throughout, though leads are required between mid-March and the end of July to protect ground-nesting birds.

The 80-hectare country park also connects with the Tameside Trail and the Trans Pennine Trail for those who fancy a longer outing.

The story behind the park itself is worth knowing before you set off.

In 1920, following a public appeal that raised over £14,000, Hyde Borough Council purchased Lower Higham Farm and its surrounding land as a living memorial to the 710 men from the town who died in the First World War.

The war memorial on the summit was unveiled on 25 June 1921, and a wreath is still laid there each year to mark the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.

The inscription “In honour of the 710 men of Hyde who gave their lives for King and Country” gives the hilltop an atmosphere that no guide can quite prepare you for.

The park’s varied habitats, heathland, meadows and ancient woodland cloughs attract a wealth of wildlife through the seasons, from pollinators and ground-nesting birds in summer to migratory geese passing overhead in winter.

Volunteers have also been creating new ponds to encourage great crested newts back to the site, and traditional dry stone walling work continues on the park’s historic field boundaries.

As for the reward waiting at the end, the Hare & Hounds Inn sits right on Werneth Low Road at the top of the hill, a handsome stone building dating back to 1728.

The Hare and Hound Inn (Image: Google Maps)

CAMRA describes it as having “fantastic views over the whole of Greater Manchester from front windows and outside seating”, and it is currently rated the number one pub in Hyde on TripAdvisor, with more than 2,000 reviews.

Recent visitors have praised the food, the friendly staff and above all, that view from the beer garden. It serves food daily, is dog-friendly, and opens from 9am seven days a week.

LIVEUpdated 21 mins ago

Stockport County will take on Bolton Wanderers in the League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium this afternoon, May 24, with kick-off at 1pm

Avid’s Angels Cat Rescue, based in Tonge Moor, was named Best Cat Rescue Charity 2026 – Greater Manchester, and also received the Feline Rescue & Rehoming Excellence Award 2026.

The charity, founded by Jenny Rimmer, rescues, rehabilitates and rehomes cats and kittens in need across the region.

Ms Rimmer said: “It’s great, we are very proud to accept the award.

“It has been a giant effort by all my volunteers and me. We could never have done it if it weren’t for all the joint effort.”

The rescue said the recognition reflected years of work caring for abandoned and vulnerable cats, including late-night rescues, bottle feeding kittens and fundraising for veterinary treatment.

The charity also thanked supporters, adopters, fosterers and volunteers for helping it continue its work.

Ms Rimmer added: “To be truly honest, it has taken me by surprise.

(Image: Avids’ Angels)

“We plod on because we are that busy. If it wasn’t for all of us as a team, we wouldn’t have won the award.”

Avid’s Angels Cat Rescue was recognised in the LUXlife Pet Products & Services Awards 2026.

The charity operates from Bolton and recently expanded its cattery facilities to help meet growing demand for rescue spaces.

Ms Rimmer said the team remained focused on helping cats in need despite the recognition.

She added: “We don’t think we have anything planned because we’re too busy.”

North Yorkshire Police is on the scene of the crash at Langburn’s Bank, near Castleton, on Sunday morning (May 24).

The force said the road is closed due to the crash.

“We are currently dealing with a road traffic collision on Langburn’s Bank,” a police spokesperson said.

“The road remains closed at this time.”

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday Russia used the powerful hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile during a mass drone and missile attack on Kyiv on Sunday which killed at least two people, marking the third time the weapon has been used in the four-year war.

The intense aerial assault damaged buildings across the Ukrainian capital, including near government offices, residential buildings and schools.

The Oreshnik, which is capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads, struck the city of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region, Zelenskyy said in a post on Telegram. The target was not immediately clear.

Russia first used the multiple-warhead Oreshnik on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro in November 2024. It was used a second time in January in the western Lviv region.

The combined attack included 600 strike drones and 90 air, sea and ground-launched missiles, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. Ukrainian air defenses destroyed and jammed 549 drones and 55 missiles. Around 19 missiles failed to reach targets, the Air Force said.

Earlier, Zelenskyy warned that Russia was planning to use the Oreshnik, citing intelligence from the U.S. and Western partners.

President Vladimir Putin said the Oreshnik, which means “hazelnut tree” in Russian, streaks at 10 times the speed of sound, or Mach 10, and is capable of destroying underground bunkers “three, four or more floors down.”

The weapon travels “like a meteorite” and is immune to any missile defense system, Putin said, adding that several such missiles, even fitted with conventional warheads, could be as devastating as a nuclear strike.

Air raid sirens blared through the night as smoke billowed across the city from strikes. Associated Press reporters heard powerful explosions near the city center and close to government buildings.

The attack was ongoing at sunrise Sunday, with more missiles and drones expected to reach Kyiv.

Damage was recorded in 40 locations across several districts of the capital, including residential buildings, Kyiv military administration head Tymur Tkachenko said in a Telegram post.

“It was a terrible night, and there had never been anything like it in the entire war,” said Kyiv resident Svitlana Onofryichuk, 55, who has worked in the market that was damaged for 22 years.

“I am very sorry that I have to say goodbye to Kyiv now, I am not staying there anymore, there is no possibility,” she added. “My job is gone, everything is gone, everything has burned down.”

Yevhen Zosin, 74, a Kyiv resident who witnessed the attack, said the moment he heard the explosion he rushed to grab his dog.

“Then there was another explosion and she and I were thrown back like a pin by the shock wave. We both survived, she and I. My apartment was blown to pieces,” he said.

In Kyiv’s Shevchenko district, a five-story residential building was hit, which caused a fire, and one person was killed, Ukraine’s state emergency service reported.

A school building was damaged by an attack while people sheltered inside, Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said. Local authorities reported supermarkets and warehouses across the city also were damaged.

Multiple communities recorded damage throughout the Kyiv region, according to Mykola Kalashnyk, the regional governor.

ANGELES, Philippines (AP) — A nine-story building under construction in a city north of the Philippine capital of Manila collapsed before dawn and at least 21 people were missing Sunday morning, authorities said.

Rescuers were “hearing voices” in the rubble, while 24 workers managed to dash to safety or were rescued, police and other officials said.

The building collapsed after a fierce thunderstorm in Angeles City in Pampanga province. More than 100 police and other government personnel were scrambling to rescue those believed to be trapped in the rubble, police Brig. Gen. Jess Mendez said.

Mendez and other officials at the scene said there were no immediate reports of deaths but some of those who got out safely sustained injuries.

Among the 21 people who remained unaccounted for, most were believed to be workers at the building, according to Francis Pangilinan, who heads Angeles City’s disaster mitigation office and was at the scene.

Two other people, including a Malaysian tourist, were injured when their lodgings were hit by debris from the collapsed building, officials said.

Rescuers including firefighters, police and disaster-response teams used their hands and sniffer dogs in a dangerous scramble to search for the trapped survivors, Public Works Secretary Vinzon Dizon told reporters near the rubble of concrete slabs, twisted iron bars and other debris.

“There are some signs of life … There are voices that are being heard,” Dizon said, adding that rescuers were moving with extreme caution. “It’s a very very unstable site and the priority is to get the people out.”

Angeles City hosted one of the largest U.S. Air Force bases outside of the American mainland until it closed in the early 1990s, helping develop Angeles and outlying cities and towns into entertainment and commercial hubs in the main northern Philippine region of Luzon.

The former air base, now called the Clark Freeport Zone, is about 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Metro Manila.

Officers were called to Wigan Road around 6.10pm on Saturday due to reports of an assault.

Officers attended the scene and found a man in his 40s with an injury to his back, which police have described as a ‘knife-related injury’.

(Image: Phil Taylor)

A 17-year-old was then arrested on suspicion of Section 18 assault, wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: “At around 6.10pm yesterday (Saturday, May 23), we were called to reports of an assault on Wigan Road in Bolton.

(Image: Phil Taylor)

“Officers attended the scene and located a man in his 40s with an injury to his back.

“He was taken to hospital with the injury being described as non-life-threatening or life-changing.

“A 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of Section 18 assault and remains in police custody for questioning.

“Investigations are ongoing.”

(Image: Phil Taylor)

Several police vans and ambulances attended the scene, as well as the Criminal Investigation Department and CSI.

A cordon was set up where the incident took place, on the junction between Wigan Road and Carley Fold.

“Fionntán donating his organs hasn’t just helped the people that got them but also impacted their family and friends’ lives”

When Belfast footballer Fionntán McGarvey tragically died at just 18-years-old, his parents said they would take great comfort knowing he gave others the gift of life through organ donation.

The engineering student at Queen’s University Belfast was involved in an assault outside a bar on Finaghy Road North in the early hours of December 27, 2021 and later died in hospital in January 2022.

A simple conversation with his father while filling out his driving licence forms meant that he was able to save two people’s lives through the donation of his kidneys.

READ MORE: ‘I donated stem cells and offered a total stranger a second chance at life’READ MORE: Donate4Dáithí: Campaign gives update on young boy as he moves to urgent list

Fionntán’s family and friends decided that they wanted to do something in the talented sportsman’s memory that would make an impact and encourage more people to have these important conversations.

At the end of 2022, they decided to set up a Belfast branch of the UK-wide student-led charity We Are Donors – a network of groups aiming to increase the number of organ and blood donors across the UK through education at schools and universities.

They decided to name it ‘We Are Donors Fionntán’ and it is led by a group of his friends, set up through Queen’s University where he was studying before his death.

Fionntán’s friend Oliver Marken, local lead for the Belfast branch of the charity, spoke to Belfast Live as the charity launched a powerful video campaign featuring Fionntán’s parents, organ donation campaigners Máirtín and Dáithí Mac Gabhann, and transplant recipient Megan.

In over three years, We Are Donors Fionntán have spoken to hundreds of students across Northern Ireland about the power of organ donation with the hopes of solving the waiting list crisis across the UK.

Oliver told Belfast Live: “We are Donors was initially started up in 2016 over in Newcastle University – initially, the aim of the charity was to promote organ and blood donation to young adults.

“The Fionntán branch started up in late 2022, early 2023. His family had the idea of doing something positive for him becuase its especially tragic whenever someone dies at 18 years old.

“They found out about We Are Donors and got in touch with them and from that, fundraising was done for them in Fionntán’s memory at the 2022 Belfast Marathon, where they raised over £100,000.

“From then, we were able to establish the Fionntán branch of We Are Donors which was actually the first branch in Northern Ireland.”

Oliver, Lorcan, who also feature in the video, and a number of Fionntán’s other friends have visited around 15 schools so far and have carried out up to ten talks a year – answering any questions or myths that young people may have about organ donation so they can make informed decisions about what is right for them.

“A lot of the ones who have been carrying out the talks were initially all Fionntán’s friends,” Oliver explained.

“But we also have people who just wanted to get involved and have a passion for organ and blood donation who didn’t even know him.

“Fionntán was quite well known too through school, university and sport so there has been quite a great backing for it and lots of people wanting to get involved.

“As his friends, we just want to help carry on his legacy and try and make some kind of positive from such a young and tragic death.”

When the main We Are Donors branch in the UK was given the opportunity to make a short film about the impact of organ and blood donation, they selected the Belfast group due to the strong personal story behind the Fionntán branch.

Following three different perspectives, parents whose child gave the gift of life, a family desperately waiting on a donor and a recipient whose life was transformed through donation, Oliver said he hopes the video brings around important conversations.

“Whenever we die, there is no coming back from that but if we are able to donate, then we are able to save someone’s life and we can give so many people more time.”

Oliver continued: “We live to emphasise in the talks that it isn’t a particularly nice topic but it’s the unpredictability of life – for many people, this might never be relevant to them as only around 1% of deaths actually get the chance to donate their organs.

“It really is such a gift and through the charity, we’ve met people whose lives have been changed through donation and you don’t even appreciate the ripple effect it has on not only them but the people around them.

“We just try to emphasise that to the kids we speak to – Fionntán donating his organs hasn’t just helped the people that got them but also impacted their family and friends’ lives.”

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Fionntán’s friends and the other We Are Donors volunteers hope that young people come away from their talks less shy about the topic of organ and blood donation and understand it is a decision entirely down to them but something to really consider.

“We summarise the talks by asking them to go home and if they’re at the dinner table, just have that conversation and bring it up.

“We’re not forcing anyone to be an organ donor but we want people to know that even with Dáithí’s Law, your family says no if they don’t know your wishes.

“So talk about, make your decision known – Fionntán first discussed it with his family through applying for his provisional.

“If you are ticking that box, even a 5 or 10-minute conversation about it just to make it known could save a life.”

To find out more or donate to We Are Donors, see here

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here

Josh Widdicombe is waltzing into the Strictly spotlight as one of three new hosts – but he almost decided to turn down the opportunity.

The comedian will present the show alongside Emma Willis and former professional Johannes Radebe, two years after appearing as a contestant on the Christmas special.

However, he wasn’t initially sure he wanted to step into Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s shoes after being offered a chance to audition for the role due to the high-profile nature of the gig.

“When the call came initially just for the meeting, I thought, ‘I really like my life, would I want to throw it into flux?’ Because it’s a big thing, it’s a defining thing that you’re suddenly doing it. But I just thought, ‘What an incredible thing to experience’.”

Widdicombe said he was more shocked than anyone to get the job, stating on his Parenting Hell podcast: “When I started out in stand-up, no one foresaw this. It’s wild. It’s one of the biggest shows in the 21st century, alongside I’m a Celeb.

He said he’s glad the news is out there as he’s been having to lie to people, including his kids as he couldn’t trust them.

“I’m incredibly excited — there is a real fun vibe to the three of us, there is something for everyone, it’s the ultimate modern family. It feels weird now, as it’s four months away.”

Rumours had been swirling ever since Daly and Winkleman announced they were stepping away from the BBC competition, and Willis emerged as a frontrunner in recent weeks.

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However tough the task, producers are hoping to recapture Daly and Winkleman’s dynamic styles, with the former’s sleek professionalism in the main studio and Traitors presenter Winkleman’s mastery of controlled chaos in the “Clauditorium”.

Willis and Widdicombe are expected to be the main hosts, with Radebe rumoured to be taking on a “roving reporter” role.

He said of his promotion to host: “This show has always stood for joy, heart, and togetherness, and I feel deeply honoured to now help carry that magic forward. To do it alongside the formidable Emma Willis and the utterly brilliant Josh Widdicombe makes it even more special. I’m ready – sequins, nerves, and all, please bear with me.”

Meanwhile, former Big Brother host Willis said that she’s a “huge fan” of Strictly and “can’t quite comprehend” becoming a presenter on the show. “It’s impossible to fill the shoes that Tess and Claudia have left behind – two wonderful, iconic women who have been the beating heart of Strictly for so long.

“I can only hope that we are able to help to steer the ship as beautifully as they have, into this new chapter. I can’t wait to spend my weekends with Josh and Jojo, the incredible dancers and the judges. Fingers crossed for a 10 from them!”