Manchester City have learnt details of their first game of the 2026/27 season, as a clash against Premier League champions Arsenal await in August

Manchester City will face Arsenal in the Community Shield on Sunday, August 16.

The game, which has been held at Wembley Stadium in recent years, will be played at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium for the first time since 2006.

There will be more to follow. We’ll bring you the very latest updates on this breaking news story.

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The disruption, first reported on Monday (June 1) remains unresolved today (Thursday, June 4), leaving customers facing continued difficulties accessing mobile signal and 5G data.

According to the signal checker website, customers on a number of major networks, including Three, Vodafone, Smarty, Lebara, Voxi, ID Mobile, Talkmobile and Asda, are still experiencing 5G connectivity issues across parts of the town.

Three connectivity in Darlington, parts of white show no connection, light red are where 5G connectivity is good outdoors only, dark red where it is good outdoors and indoors (Image: THREE)

Vodafone has apologised to affected customers and said network upgrade works are behind the problems.

Meanwhile, O2 has confirmed “vital” upgrade works are taking place in the Darlington area, warning customers they may experience intermittent disruption while the improvements are carried out.

Vodafone connectivity in Darlington, parts in grey show no connectivity, red is limited, orange is good outdoors only and green is good (Image: VODAFONE)

A spokesperson for Vodafone said: “We’re sorry to customers who are affected by issues with their services in Darlington.

“One of our infrastructure partner’s local sites is currently impacted and is undergoing network upgrade works.

“Our networks team and infrastructure partner is aware of the issue and are working hard to restore services.”

O2 connectivity in Darlington, parts of orange show areas where 5G connectivity is not good indoors, blue is where connectivity is good both indoors and outdoors. (Image: O2)

An O2 spokesperson previously said: “We’re carrying out upgrade works in the Darlington area to improve network performance and ensure customers continue to receive the best possible service.

“While this vital work takes place, there may be some intermittent disruption and we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Other masts in the area are providing normal service levels.”

“In the meantime, we’d encourage customers to enable Wi-Fi calling on their device, allowing them to make and receive calls and texts over any broadband network.”

Customers affected by the outage are being advised to enable Wi-Fi calling where possible to continue making and receiving calls and texts while work on the network continues.

No timescale has been given for when service will come back on, despite network providers being asked by the Echo.

While payouts aren’t automatic, Ofcom dictates you may still be entitled to a pro-rata refund or account credit if the outage is long and severe. You should reach out to your provider to request this.

Protests have broken out in Albania over Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner’s $1.4bn purchase of the abandoned island of Sazan, a communist-era military base.

In addition to the strip, the couple’s deal also includes a $4.7bn agreement on part of a protected coastal landscape in Zvërnec.

Albania’s government has championed the Adriatic coast development as a transformative venture for the nation, aiming to boost its high-end tourism sector and support its bid for European Union membership.

But the project on the lush island and stretch of seafront on Albania’s southern coast – referred to by Trump as a “fixer-upper” – has sparked criticism from environmental groups and detractors of the long-serving Socialist Prime Minister, Edi Rama.

President Trump’s daughter says she and her husband discovered the area while on a hike.

“We were on a friend’s boat, and we stopped for a swim. Effectively, that’s how we found it,” she said. “We swam to the island. We went on a hike, barefoot all the way up to the top, and we were just captivated.”

After the widespread backlash Prime Minister Rama insisted in an interview with CNN on Thursday: “There is not a project yet.”

“There is no such thing as a Trump family island, he added. “There is no such thing as the family of the American president taking over protected areas where flamingos will be killed by them.”

Nevertheless, Sazan has already been dubbed “Trump island” by angry locals who have made their displeasure at the reported deal clear. Below we take a closer look at the island, with its 3,600 nuclear bunkers, unexploded weapons, bomb shelters and miles of tunnels.

Strategic military location used by the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empires

Albania, situated in southeastern Europe’s Balkan peninsula, is an emerging tourist hotspot that has seen a 15 per cent rise in tourism over the last year as visitors flock to enjoy stunning landscapes at a fraction of the cost of similar destinations across Europe.

Located in the Adriatic Sea, Sazan is Albania’s largest island and is a designated military exclusion zone located in a strategically important location between the Strait of Otranto and the mouth of the Bay of Vlorë, marking the border between the Adriatic and Ionian seas that then flows into the Mediterranean.

It is just 59 miles east of the Salento coast in the region of Apulia in Italy and can sometimes be viewed from the Italian coast on a clear day.

The island has a long a storied history, being part of the Roman Empire before coming under Byzantine rule. It was captured by the Kingdom of Albania in 1279 and held under the protection of the Republic of Venice.

Prior to coming under Ottoman control in the 15th century, it served an important maritime and religious function, hosting a Marian Shrine to the Virgin Mary after an apparent apparition of the saint on the Island. It was also briefly under British protection following the Napoleonic wars before being ceded to Greece.

Sazan was used as a base for German and Italian submarines during the Second World War . Albania relied heavily on the Soviet Union during the Cold War and after the split from Communism, the area has been used as been largely unused but has occasionally been used by the British Royal Navy for training exercises and a shelter for boats.

Bunkers, bomb shelters and miles of secret tunnels

Sazan Island is home to at least 3,600 Soviet-style nuclear bunkers built during the Cold War.

The mushroom-shaped shelters are situated sporadically across the Island and Kushner has said they plan to incorporate the bunkers into their plans for the tourist resort and that some of the shelters will be preserved.

Because of its military background, experts have warned about the presence of mine-like weapons and other unexploded ordnances dotted across the landscape that will need to be cleared in order for the destination to become safe for visitors.

The 1,400 acre Mediterranean island is also home to at least ten miles of underground tunnels from the Communist era. Several bomb shelters and buildings designed to store military supplies and ammunition are also arranged around the area.

Maritime National Park and Wildlife reserve

The coastal development in the Narta Lagoon area includes a wildlife reserve and the surrounding crystal-clear waters make up the Karaburun-Sazan maritime national park.

The development is to be built within a nature reserve and one of Albania’s most valuable biodiversity areas, a key stopover for migratory birds along the Adriatic coast.

The couple’s real-estate plans for the mega-resort have subsequently drawn major complaints and protests from environmental groups who are worried about the impact the development will have on the ecology of the landscape.

Albania has 450 kilometers (280 miles) of coast that remained largely underdeveloped during decades of communist rule.

Protesters have carried cardboard cut-outs of pink flamingos, one of the protected migratory bird species, at rallies in the capital Tirana.

Since late May, excavators and other heavy machinery have entered the area in order to open access routes, dig into the sand and have begun clearing land among pine trees and installing fencing.

Environmental groups from Albania and elsewhere in Europe condemned the work, with one prominent local group charging that long-protected habitats are being “irreversibly destroyed.”

A multi-billion dollar bonanza?

Albania’s state anti-corruption agency has confirmed it opened an investigation related to the project but has not disclosed details.

The government says the land earmarked for the project is privately owned but competing claims have emerged questioning the privatisation, a common dispute on similar deals.

Prime Minister Rama remains committed and says the development would align with Albania’s ambition to become a major global tourism destination.

“Albania should not be a country that fears an extraordinary project like this one, where exceptional partners have come together to invest 4 billion euros ($4.6 billion),” Rama said. “There is no chance for this investment to stop as long as I am here.”

However, in the interview with CNN on Thursday, Rama said: “The investigation is about that. It’s not about the investment. It’s not about the project. It’s not about Kushner. It’s not about Trump.

“It’s not about anything that is being brought in this melting pot to create a sensational fake news that Albania is a place where we are killing flamingos.”

The woman was last seen wearing a grey tracksuit top and bottoms

Police are searching for a missing 33-year-old who is now believed to be in Cambridgeshire. Police said that Harley, 33, was reported missing from the Ingoldmells area in Lincolnshire but investigators now believe she may be in the Peterborough area.

Harley was last seen wearing a grey tracksuit top and bottoms. Lincolnshire Police has asked the public to report any useful information regarding Harley’s whereabouts. The force said it is “keen to locate her as soon as” it can.

Anyone who believes they have information that could help is urged to call 101 quoting the incident number 130 of June 2, 2026.

Marcus Rashford hoped to make his temporary move to Barcelona permanent this summer but it’s looking more unlikely than ever.

And so the Marcus Rashford saga continues.

Manchester United thought they had struck a deal with Barcelona last summer that would signal the end of Rashford’s Old Trafford career. A £26million option to buy was included in the loan deal that took Rashford to the Nou Camp, and with 14 goals and 14 assists for the La Liga giants last season he looked set to secure his dream move to Spain.

And then they went and splashed £69m on Anthony Gordon and threw the whole thing back up in the air.

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Barca have until 15 June to make Rashford’s move permanent, but they’re doing a fine job of keeping their excitement under wraps if they are keen on doing so.

United have always insisted they would move on should Barcelona refuse to pay the agreed fee, with no room for negotiations or talk of another loan deal set to be entertained. The problem United have is: if not Barca then where?

A decent showing at this summer’s World Cup will improve United’s chances of moving him on, but shifting a player who earns £325,000-per-week is never an easy task.

If United can’t offload Rashford this summer, would you be open to giving him another chance at Old Trafford? Or do you think too many bridges have been burnt to see him back in a United shirt?

Have your say in the poll below:

Italian Antonelli, 19, has won four races in a row, while Russell’s only grand prix victory this year was in the season-opening race in Australia.

Russell, 28, did win the sprint events in China and Canada.

He has bemoaned a series of events going against him – including technical issues in qualifying in China, a safety-car intervention in Japan that handed the lead to Antonelli and the Canada problems – but says he has no reason to feel he cannot bounce back.

“I don’t feel like I need to get every single result possible, because the season’s long enough that over the course of the season, it will swing if you’re the guy who’s on top.

“So I just need to continue being the guy who’s coming out on top, even if he’s the one at the moment who’s getting the results.”

Russell said that his retirement in Canada “hurts” but added: “That’s just the way racing goes.”

And he pointed to his own junior career as a reason to stay positive.

“In Formula 2 (in 2018), I had, I think, five failures over the course of a year,” he said.

“I came to Monaco, never been to Monaco before, and I broke down on the out lap in practice. And then went into qualifying, 15-minute session, four laps, and didn’t qualify anywhere decent.

“I broke down on other occasions. The engine stalled, but then still went on over the course of a year to win the championship.

“So I take inspiration from those moments. And I think for everyone every year, you have a run of races where, I don’t know why or how, everything just goes your way.

“And that’s just how it goes sometimes when things turn. It’s just a mentality I’ve got. I’m in a very good head space. The pressure feels off now. And there’s just a huge amount of time to go.”

Flight LH450 from Frankfurt to Los Angeles, which was due to take off at 13.50pm CEST (12.50pm BST) today, has been cancelled following the incident.

The Dreamliner, registration D-ABPQ, sustained significant damage after nosediving onto the runway while it was at the gate, Frankfurter Rundschau reports.

​Reform’s Cllr Thomas Murray, the town mayor of Scarborough, has said he is not fundamentally opposed to fracking, just weeks after plans for a controversial gas drilling rig near the town were refused by members of North Yorkshire Council.

​Local campaign group Frack Free Coastal Communities described the mayor’s comments as “absurd”.

​The Reform-led Scarborough Town Council voted last year unanimously to oppose Europa Oil & Gas’ plan for a 38m gas rig in the village of Burniston and expressed its “full and unwavering support for local residents in their opposition to the proposed fracking-style hydrocarbon development”.

​Europa’s plan proposed the use of a proppant squeeze method that has been likened to “small-scale fracking” and is allowed under current legislation. The company said it will appeal the refusal.

​Reform UK has said it would lift a ban on fracking which was introduced due to concerns about earthquakes and environmental impacts.

​“As a town council we voiced our opposition to [Europa’s proposal] in Burniston, on the basis that it didn’t have the community behind it and it was causing undue anxiety and stress for homeowners,” Cllr Murray said.

Asked how the town council’s stance squared with national Reform UK policy, Cllr Murray said: “If you look at Reform’s policy, it is with local consent and on that basis, that proposal in Burniston didn’t have local consent.”

​He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “It was really close to the town. I would say, if it was out further away from society, where it is not going to affect the local community, then frack ahead.”

​More than 1,600 objections were submitted against the plan by residents, local MP Alison Hume, parish councils including Burniston, Cloughton, Newby & Scalby and Scarborough town councils, and Friends of the Earth, among others.

​Professor Chris Garforth, Chair of Frack Free Coastal Communities’ steering committee, said the group appreciated the stance that Scarborough Town Council took in opposing the planning application by Europa Oil & Gas “despite the party’s national policy stance in favour of fracking”.

​He said: “They joined the local coastal parish and town councils to present a unified opposition that North Yorkshire’s strategic planning committee could not ignore.”

Prof Garforth described the town mayor’s comments as “a valiant attempt to square that stance with the national party line”.

​He said: “However, the idea that in this country there are oil and gas reserves in places which are ‘out further away from society, where [fracking] is not going to affect the local community’ is absurd.

​“All the areas where exploration licences are still in play and where companies are eyeing up the prospects if a pro-fracking government were ever to come to power are close to communities whose lives would be turned upside down if they get the go-ahead.”

Anti Fracking Protest March In Burniston. Courtesy Numminen/LDRS

​The proposed gas rig near Burniston and the North York Moors National Park had been recommended for approval by North Yorkshire Council, which said there were “no material planning considerations that warrant its refusal”, adding “there would be no unacceptable adverse environmental impacts resulting from the proposed development”.

​Europa said its scheme would be beneficial to the local economy and maintains that there is no ‘loophole’ in the moratorium on fracking.

​The campaign group FFCC said it remained focussed on ensuring that “drilling and fracking for gas at Burniston does not happen. That will include contesting the appeal against planning refusal that Europa have said they are considering.”

Wellbore Illustration. Europa Oil And Gas

​Prof Garforth added that the campaign group was “firmly against fracking in all its forms, anywhere”.

​“Fracking is being pushed by oil and gas companies to squeeze more and more climate-wrecking fossil fuels from the rocks beneath the UK. The science is clear – this will simply accelerate our descent to environmental, economic and societal disaster. We should be investing in a more rapid transition to renewable energy.”

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