A simple chicken pie is an easy way to solve a weeknight dinner, and there is one that will deliver on flavour, price and size.

Sometimes the easiest weeknight dinner isn’t a takeaway or a quick pasta – it’s the humble pie.

We have been a country of pie enthusiasts for many hundreds of years. From fruit-laden to suet-crusted pies were on the British menu since at least the 13th century.

Chicken pie is a crowd-pleaser, but if done wrong, it can turn your evening sour – as I know now all too well. To ensure you do not suffer a chicken pie disappointment, I have tested all the supermarket chicken pies to help you decide where to put your money.

I looked at steak pies from MandS, Waitrose, Aldi, Sainsbury’s and Tescos to find out which chicken pie delivers best on price and taste.

The winner was clear from the first spoonful – and it will come as a welcome surprise to your wallet. I was looking for crumbly pastry, a good flavour, and value in portion size – all of these pie prices are for two.

Marks and Spencer is somewhat of a UK national treasure, but this comes at a premium. As the most expensive pie by quite some margin, I was expecting the Gastropub Chicken, leek and smoked bacon pie to be the best. It was delicious, but another pie’s performance eclipsed it for a fraction of the price.

Of all the pies, the leek and bacon varieties were definitely more flavourful than the classic chicken pies. This was delicious.

The cooking instructions were accurate, and it was perfectly cooked through. The pastry was flaky, and there was no soggy bottom. The sesame also made for a nice pop of flavour on the crust.

Here’s the game-changer: Aldi’s chicken, bacon and leek pie tastes exactly the same as the MandS pie to me.

As a bonus, its over £3 cheaper.

The Aldi pie has a very similar rich flavour , a good amount of chicken and bacon content, and a strong pastry with sesame seeds on top.

It came out with a perfect golden crust and the first mouthful persuaded me this was a contender for the top spot.

It easily fed two people with a side of veg and would make for an easy, cheap weeknight dinner if you can’t be bothered to slave over an oven for hours.

Waitrose delivered, but it was a very mediocre, yet solid delivery. There was a good amount of chicken, bacon and leek in the filling – but the flavour was not quite there.

The pastry was good, and it cooked well. However, I felt this was just a little bland even though the price was reasonable.

This didn’t burn – it cooked well in the oven, but other than this, it was fairly unremarkable.

This was bad. The filling was easily the worst – it was watery and gelatinous. There was hardly any chicken in it and the pastry burnt despite me following the cooking instructions to a tee.

For £4.00 this is the cheapest pie but it is certainly not worth the pound discount. It tasted of very little, and the bottom was soggy. This pie needs to go back to the drawing board.

This was the only shortcrust pastry pie, and it was a nice change from the typical puff pastry – making it feel more like a substantial, traditional British pie.

Tesco says this feeds three, although it is a very similar size to the portion for two pies above. If you want to go for one of the cheaper pies this is a solid choice.

The flavour was good, the pastry was delicious and well cooked through and there was a decent amount of chicken in the filling. I would buy this again.

It is clear for me who is a winner and a looser. Aldi is in first place. I couldn’t tell it apart from the MandS pie, it was delicious and only £4.99.

Tesco is next in line for both price and taste. This was the second cheapest pie, but delivered on flavour, size, and pastry quality.

MandS followed next. I was surprised as I expected this to perform better due to it being the most expensive – but as it was so similar to the Aldi pie I cannot warrant ranking it in my top two.

Then it was Waitrose – this was a solid pie but nothing to write home about, but was cheaper than MandS and only one penny more than Aldi.

In last place – it is very firmly Sainsbury’s. The flavour was awful, the pastry burnt, and it had hardly any filling. This may be a good case study in getting what you pay for.

More surprisingly still, Waitrose was cheaper than MandS and Tesco and delivered the best pie.If you’re aiming for an affordable national pie week dinner in, I would recommend Aldi’s pie wholeheartedly.

ATLANTA (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice is asking a judge to recuse herself in a fight over Georgia election records, arguing that she attended an event honoring Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who prosecuted President Donald Trump, raising questions about the judge’s ability to be impartial.

A federal judge in 11th Judicial Circuit received a “private reprimand” after a court investigation found that the judge had sex in the courthouse with a high-ranking uniformed police officer within earshot of staff, attended a partisan event and then initially lied to deny the allegations.

The court’s investigation did not publicly identify the judge or the court location within the 11th Circuit’s jurisdiction, which includes Alabama, Florida and Georgia. The Justice Department is relying on media reports that identify U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross in Atlanta as the judge in question.

The Associated Press has not independently confirmed the judge’s identity. A person who answered the phone in Ross’ chambers Friday said the judge was unavailable and referred questions about the allegations to the court’s media office which said, “Judge Ross has no comment right now.” The media office did not immediately respond Saturday to a second email seeking comment about the Justice Department motion seeking Ross’ recusal.

Federal judges are appointed for life but can be subject to disciplinary action, including censure, public or private reprimands and temporary withholding of cases. They can only be removed through impeachment by Congress.

Ross was nominated in January 2014 by then-President Barack Obama, a Democrat, and she was confirmed by the Senate in November of that year. She had previously served as a state court judge in DeKalb County, which includes a small part of the city of Atlanta, since 2011. Prior to taking the bench, she had worked as a state and federal prosecutor, mostly in Atlanta, for more than a decade.

The election records fight

Ross is overseeing the election records case filed by the Justice Department against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

The Justice Department has sued multiple states seeking statewide voter lists. Raffensperger has said that Georgia law prohibits the release of voters’ confidential personal information unless certain qualifications are met and that the federal government hadn’t met those conditions. He has said that he sent the public part of the voter roll to the Justice Department in December.

Ross has scheduled a hearing in the case for Wednesday, though the Justice Department has asked to delay that hearing because of its request for the judge to recuse herself.

The judicial discipline case

In the disciplinary case against the unnamed federal judge, the Judicial Council of the 11th Circuit chose in a February order to impose a private reprimand that kept the judge’s name secret. The Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability of the Judicial Conference of the United States on May 22 affirmed that order.

An investigation report attached to the order says the judge went to an event hosted by a district attorney’s campaign. The judge acknowledged having gone to the event to visit with former colleagues in the district attorney’s office at a private mixer but said it was held in the same place but was separated from the prosecutor’s victory party. The investigative committee found that the mixer was part of the larger partisan event that was sponsored by the district attorney’s campaign or donors and that the judge should not have attended the event.

Ross previously worked in the Fulton County district attorney’s office and overlapped with Willis there before Willis was district attorney.

The 2020 Georgia election case

Willis began investigating Trump and others for possible interference in the 2020 election in Fulton County soon after becoming district attorney in January 2021. Among the things she looked at was a January 2021 phone call in which Trump urged Raffensperger to help “find” the votes needed to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s win in Georgia in the 2020 presidential election.

Willis in August 2023 obtained an indictment against Trump and 18 others, accusing them of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results. That case was ultimately dismissed in November after an appeals court found an “appearance of impropriety” created by a romantic relationship Willis had with the outside lawyer she had hired to lead the prosecution.

The Justice Department’s arguments

“A judge who attended a party celebrating the election of a Democrat best known for prosecuting a Republican President for alleged election interference cannot then preside over a case concerning that President’s efforts to ensure election integrity,” Justice Department lawyers wrote in their filing Friday.

The Justice Department argued that any “objective reasonable observer” would see Ross’ presence at Willis’ election night party as an endorsement of her election and her actions in office.

“If Judge Ross is indeed the Subject Judge, that conduct gives rise to an appearance of bias, which requires Judge Ross to recuse herself from this election-related case,” the Justice Department filing says.

The Justice Department filing makes passing mention of the allegations of improper sexual activity with a police officer in the judge’s chambers and the subsequent false statements the judge made to deny those allegations, but says “those are not the subject of this Motion.”

Separately, the Atlanta Police Department has said it has opened an investigation to determine whether the “high-ranking law enforcement officer” found to have had sex with a federal judge in the judge’s chambers is a member of their department.

Raheem Sterling has been arrested on suspicion of drug-driving after he allegedly crashed his car into motorway barriers.

The former England winger, who most recently played for Feyenoord in the Dutch Eredivisie, is suspected of crashing his Lamborghini into barriers on the M3 in Hampshire on Thursday morning.

The 31-year-old has been released on bail pending further enquiries.

In a statement, Hampshire Police said: “Just before 9am on Thursday, we received reports that a Lamborghini was in collision with barriers on the M3 southbound, close to the Minley Interchange.

“No other vehicles were involved and no injuries were reported.

“The driver, a 31-year-old man, from Berkshire, has been arrested on suspicion of driving a vehicle whilst unfit through drugs, driving dangerously, possession of a Class C drug and failing to provide a specimen. He has been bailed while our enquiries continue.”

A source close to Sterling confirmed the arrest but told BBC Sport there was “no proof” of drugs in his system.

The source added the player had faced “an extremely tough couple of years” and had been made to “feel worthless” and “forgotten about”.

Sterling joined Feyenoord in February on a deal until the end of the season, having left Chelsea in January, but made just eight appearances in the Netherlands.

He left the Blues by mutual consent after agreeing a settlement package with the Stamford Bridge club over the final 18 months of his contract, worth in excess of £300,000-per-week.

In four years at Chelsea – including a season-long loan at Arsenal – he made just 59 league appearances after signing from Manchester City in 2022.

With City he won four Premier League titles, having started his senior career with Liverpool before moving to Manchester in 2015.

Sterling has 82 England caps, the last of which was won at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Freya Kemp breathed life into England’s preparations for the T20 World Cup as they levelled their series against India with a 26-run victory in Bristol.

After being outclassed in the first T20 on Thursday, England were pedestrian with the bat until Kemp took 24 from the last over to finish 39 not out from 13 balls.

That lifted England to 168-5, a total that had looked well beyond them just two overs earlier, though India were still well placed at 70-1 in the ninth over of their chase.

But Kemp, only just returning to bowling after more than a year of back injury restrictions, came to the fore again by having the classy Smriti Mandhana caught at deep square leg for 32.

Her wicket sparked an impressive fightback from England’s bowlers as they first halted India’s scoring through Charlie Dean and Sophie Ecclestone and then claimed a flurry of wickets.

After India retired out Yastika Bhatia for 33 from 36 balls – the first instance of the tactic being used in a women’s T20 between major nations – Kemp had her replacement Jemimah Rodrigues caught with a slower ball.

Needing 39 from the last two overs, India crumbled to 142-9

Though parts of the batting remain a concern and England also dropped two catches, the win is a significant boost to England as they build towards their opening match of the World Cup at Edgbaston on 12 June.

Rather than facing a dead rubber after another demoralising defeat, they can now clinch the series in a decider in Taunton on Tuesday.

Thomas Reynolds, 21, is believed to have dropped his phone and lost his footing while trying to retrieve it – leading to his tragic death, as tributes pour in from family, friends and football clubs

Tributes have been paid to a Glasgow University student who died after falling from a bridge. Thomas Reynolds is believed to have dropped his phone and lost his footing while attempting to retrieve it.

The 21-year-old’s family said he had been missing on Tuesday, 26 May, before police discovered his body the following morning. His sister Ellen paid tribute to the popular business student on Facebook.

She wrote: “I’m devastated to share that my brother Thomas Reynolds was found dead in Glasgow early this morning.

“He was missing all day yesterday and the police believe that he dropped his phone and tried to retrieve it but fell from the bridge and it was instant.”

“Obviously my family and I are heartbroken but I know he was always very popular and many people will share our sadness and deserve to know.”

Thomas played for Hutchison Vale Community Football Club as a boy and the club paid tribute to the ‘caring lad’ following the news of his death, reports the Daily Record.

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They said: “A lovely, caring, popular lad, Tommy is a prime example to any youngster looking to work hard to develop their game. His journey is all the more incredible given he was a December birthday.

“All at Hutchison Vale FC send heartfelt condolences to his Mum Sandra, Dad Tony, sister Ellen and all of his family and friends.

“Rest easy Tommy, you you were an absolute star and will be sorely missed by all the Hutchie family.”

Glasgow University’s football club, where Tommy played as a right back, paid tribute to a “kind soul and true friend”.

A spokesperson said: “We are devastated to share the news that our right back Tommy Reynolds has passed away. Aged only 21, Tommy was studying Business at the Uni, and was a valued member of the First Team squad.

“Everyone that knew him realised he was a kind soul, a true friend and great teammate.”

Police Scotland has been contacted for a response.

Sleights, in the Esk Valley just a few miles from Whitby, is quietly becoming one of North Yorkshire’s most treasured villages, according to travellers and tourists to the area.

Located between Whitby and Pickering on the edge of the North York Moors, the village has long been appreciated by locals, walkers and holidaymakers, but increasing numbers of tourists are now finding Sleights through social media, word of mouth and countryside drives through the moors.

Sleights (Image: David Peacock/CAMERA CLUB)

Many visitors first stumble across the village while travelling along the A169, where the climb of Blue Bank and sweeping valley views leave a lasting impression on many.

One visitor described the village online as: “The perfect base for exploring the coast and moors. Quiet, friendly and surrounded by beautiful countryside.”

Another added: “It feels Yorkshire, scenic views, great local shops, properly, and everyone says hello.”

The village is home to traditional pubs, tea rooms, a popular butcher, Botham’s bakery, a Spar with a post office and a well-regarded fish and chip restaurant, all of which help give the village its welcoming atmosphere.

Locals often point out that despite its size, “you can get everything you need in Sleights.”

The village’s setting in the Esk Valley also makes it a favourite stopping point for walkers, cyclists and sightseers exploring the North York Moors National Park.

The Esk Valley Walk passes nearby, while the surrounding hills and woodland offer countless walking routes with panoramic views stretching towards Whitby Abbey and the coastline.

Sleights is perhaps best known for Blue Bank, the steep hill at the northern end of the village with its dramatic 1-in-4 gradient and emergency escape lane, which has become something of a talking point for visitors unfamiliar with the route.

Despite its challenging incline, many say the views from the top are among the finest in the area.

Though rooted in history, Sleights has found a new audience in the digital age.

Photos and videos shared on social media regularly showcase the village’s scenic valley setting, steam trains passing through the Esk Valley and sunsets over the surrounding moorland, helping attract new visitors looking for quieter alternatives to better-known tourist hotspots like Whitby and Scarborough.

Many describe Sleights as offering “the best of both worlds”, countryside alongside easy access to the Yorkshire coast.

The village also retains a strong community spirit through events such as the annual Sleights Horticultural & Industrial Society Show, which has been held since 1880 and continues to bring together residents and visitors with displays of produce, crafts, baking, photography and family entertainment.

The village remains a working community, with people gathering outside the bakery, walkers stopping at pubs after long hikes and families enjoying the sports field and playground overlooking the valley.

One tourist wrote online: “It’s the kind of place where you arrive for a quick stop and end up staying all afternoon.”

Another added: “Beautiful scenery, lovely people and a proper Yorkshire village feel.”

And for newcomers, there is one lesson locals are always quick to share, Sleights is pronounced “Slites”, rhyming with “heights.”

‘It’s really frustrating. It’s not fair.’

A number of residents living in the city centre next to the venue where a Mani tribute concert is being held today have blasted bosses for claiming they were not given enough notice regarding road closures.

Diecast, on Ducie Street, is hosting a Manichester tribute concert today which will feature a special one-off festival in memory of the Stone Roses legend, who passed away at the age of 63 back in November. The event will feature a host of music legends – many of who knew and were admired by the iconic bassist.

The tribute concert has been organised by Madchester and fashion label GIOGOI, the event has had the blessing of Mani’s family including his younger brother Greg Mounfield. It will raise money to support his twin sons.

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Residents living opposite Diecast have said that whilst they applaud the efforts of those running the large-scale concert to raise money for the star’s family, they claimed they have been kept out of the loop regarding the road closures that have been put in place for today’s festival – which is running from 12pm to 12am.

A number of tenants at the six-storey Whittles Croft apartment buildings alleged they only received a letter handed into their mailboxes last night (May 29) informing them of the road closures that would be in place from 6am today. One resident claimed they had seen the letters hand-delivered at around 5pm last night – around 13 hours before the closures on Ducie Street were to be made effective.

In the letter, which has been shared with the Manchester Evening News, residents were informed that temporary road closures would be in place from 6am on Saturday (May 30) until 6am on Sunday (May 31) with ‘all necessary permissions’ secured and signposted traffic diversions in place throughout. Residents were also advised that stewards would be on hand to maintain vehicle access for residents ‘wherever possible’ and to help minimise disruption.

“I feel like they really should have given the residents more notice to arrange things,” Maged Selim said. “One of my neighbours said the letter was only put in their mailbox at 5pm last night and now the road is closed with queues blocking the gates.

“I tried to ring the team at Diecast several times yesterday about it, and I was on hold for 14 minutes. I just ended up walking to the gate to speak to someone because the wait was getting silly. They couldn’t really give me any assurances.”

Diecast officially opened three years ago. The 250,000 sq ft night-and-day operation features its own kitchen, bars, and events spaces.

Tenant Daniel Tischer, who moved into the Whittles Croft property six years ago, said he had been completely unaware the event was taking place today until he saw the closures in place this morning. He said he has checked his mailbox and has not had any correspondence regarding the festival or the road closures.

“I looked out my living room window this morning and I saw that the entire street had been guarded off with fencing going up,” Daniel said. “I know some residents had letters last night, but I have personally received nothing about it. It’s not surprising to me – it’s not the first time something like this has happened. When they opened here, it felt like they had promised the world to us and said they would work with us to make everyone happy.

“It does feel like we’re not really being considered anymore. This is our home. We live here.”

Diecast has been approached by the Manchester Evening News for comment today. It is understood that the Ducie Street road closures were authorised two days prior to the event with venue bosses attempting to notify residents and those likely to be affected as much as possible.

In its letter to residents, bosses said there would be stewards patrolling the area to help minimise disruption, whilst also encouraging residents to get in touch with them directly about their concerns regarding access, parking or event logistics.

Set to take place until around midnight, the Manichester event will feature a host of big names, including The Smiths drummer Mike Joyce, former Happy Mondays icon Rowetta, and more.

There will also be a supergroup of performers who will honour Mani’s musical impact with renditions of some of his biggest and favourite songs. The event sold out weeks ago with fans keen to pay their respects in true fashion.

Two Illinois boys were airflited out of Matthiessen State Park Friday after a “roughhousing” incident during a school field trip turned dangerous.

Emergency crews responded to the park around 12:45 p.m. following a report that an adult chaperone began CPR on an unconscious juvenile near the Lower Dells area, Illinois Conservation Police Sergeant Phil Wire told Shaw Local.

The situation unfolded when an 11-year-old boy and a 12-year-old boy, part of the school outing involving more than 50 students, were “rough-housing and engaging in horseplay” in the water, Wire said. One of the boys inhaled water and briefly lost consciousness at the park, which is located about 90 miles southwest of Chicago.

First responders arrived about 15 minutes after the dispatch call and found both boys conscious and alert, though they were still showing signs of shock and distress, according to reports.

Out of an abundance of caution, the children were separately airlifted in two helicopters to OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois for further evaluation.

Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, according to CBS News Chicago.

The Independent has contacted the Illinois Conservation Police for comment.

The pair paid tribute to her as ‘a force field of life and love’ and a ‘dearly beloved mother, grandmother and sister’ whose life had taken ‘a remarkable trajectory’

Ed and David Miliband have paid tribute to their mother after she died aged 91.

The pair announced the death of Marion Kozak, a Holocaust survivor, and left-wing campaigner on Saturday.

They paid tribute to her as “a force field of life and love” and a “dearly beloved mother, grandmother and sister”.

The siblings said: “She lived an extraordinary life with a spirit of the utmost kindness, warmth and generosity. Her life had a remarkable trajectory, from the childhood trauma of the Holocaust in Poland to safety and joy in Britain. She became a teacher, campaigner and a passionate advocate for justice. We will deeply miss her, but will carry her spirit and values with us always.”

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Born Dobra Jenta Kozak in Poland in 1934, she escaped from the Czestochowa Ghetto in 1942 during the Nazi occupation along with her mother and sister.

She was sheltered by nuns and then a neighbour of her aunt in Warsaw, surviving the war thanks to what her son Ed told the 2012 Labour Party conference was “the kindness of strangers”.

On an official visit to Poland in 2009 while Foreign Secretary, David Miliband paid tribute to those who had protected his mother, saying her life was “saved by those who risked theirs sheltering her from Nazi oppression”.

Ms Kozak settled in the UK after the war, marrying left-wing academic Ralph Miliband and becoming a human rights campaigner and early activist for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

In his 2012 conference speech, his third as Labour leader, Ed Miliband said his mother “probably doesn’t agree with me”, but “like most mums is too kind to say so”.

But in the same speech he drew a link from her escape from the Nazis to his own political philosophy.

He said: “I believe we cannot shrug our shoulders at injustice, and just say that’s the way the world is. And I believe that we can overcome any odds if we come together as people.

“That’s how my mum survived the war. The kindness of strangers. Nuns in a convent who took her in and sheltered her from the Nazis, took in a Jewish girl at risk to themselves.”