The Mother & Baby magazine ordered by dad Paul Edwards finally arrived, a whopping 19 years after he actually bought it – an amused Mr Edwards said the late arrival ‘tickled’ him

A dad was stunned to finally receive a magazine in the post 19 years after he actually bought it.

Paul Edwards, 52, was awaiting the arrival of his son in 2007 when he bought a copy of Mother & Baby magazine. His daughter was 18 months old at the time. Now, his children are now aged 18 and 20 and at university.

“Like a lot of relatively new parents, you sign up for subscriptions for things to give you advice, offers and provide things to do with the children – then obviously everyone realises you have to work it out for yourself,” Mr Edwards told the BBC, calling the experience “really bizarre”.

“I’m not sure we realised at the time that the magazine was missing. Then it’s suddenly arrived in the post. You get a half-torn screwed up bag and you think, ‘what on Earth is this’, with the ‘sincere apologies’ on it.”

The magazine finally arrived last Friday with a note from the Royal Mail that said it apologised for “any inconvenience caused”. It is less likely the magazine was lost by the Royal Mail, which said it checks its dorting machines and delivery offices every day. It was more likely that the item was put back into the postal system by someone.

Mr Edwards, an author, said he had been rushing to the door to find out about potential publishing deals when he was suddenly given the magazine through his letter box. “It just really tickled me – it’s the contradiction,” he said.

“You’re constantly checking for any publishing offer then this turns up. It’s just marvellous. What really got me was the ‘apologies for the inconvenience’. My two children have now left home.”

It comes as OFCOM as opened an investigation into Royal Mail’s failure to meet its delivery targets for the last year, it has said. Under the watchdog’s targets, 90 percent of first-class mail should be delivered the next day, and 95% of second-class mail should be delivered within three days.

But Royal Mail announced last week that it had missed targets for another year running, achieving 75.7 percent of first-class mail arriving the next working day over the 12 months to the end of March, according to the latest quality of service report. This was slightly less than the 76.3 percent achieved the prior year.

For second-class mail, 90.2 percent was delivered within three working days – less than the 92.2 percent achieved the year before. Last July, OFCOM “modernised” obligations placed on Royal Mail to reflect steep declines in the number of letters being sent, allowing second-class letters to be delivered on alternate weekdays among changes to delivery targets.

Royal Mail expected to complete it rollout of the new delivery model by Christmas, OFCOM said. While Royal Mail was now making progress, it had taken almost a year to begin the process of implementing the delivery reforms and service levels remained unacceptable, the regulator added.

OFCOM enforcement director Ian Strawhorne said: “A reliable postal service is vital to many people across the country. We share the deep frustrations of customers who have missed important letters because of Royal Mail’s consistent failure to improve its service over the years. While the company is now making progress through its improvement plan, we will continue to hold it to account for its unacceptable performance to date.”

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “Improving quality of service is a top priority and we are delivering a major programme of change through the rollout of our new delivery model which underpins our Improvement Plan, backed by £500 million of investment over five years. These reforms are designed to deliver long-term quality improvements for customers as we modernise the postal service and deploy the new delivery model, enabled by the changes to the Universal Service regulations that OFCOM introduced in July 2025.

“At a time when significant investment is being made to improve reliability across the network, any financial penalty would reduce funding that could otherwise be used to support service improvements for customers. We will engage fully with OFCOM throughout their investigation.”

North Yorkshire Police said the fatal collision happened on Sir John’s Lane in Sherburn in Elmet at 7.55pm on Saturday, June 6.

It involved a blue Mazda vehicle and a silver Suzuki motorcycle.

A police spokesman said: “Sadly, the rider of the motorcycle was pronounced dead at the scene. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this very difficult time.”

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The force is appealing for anyone who witnessed the collision, who has any relevant dashcam footage, or who may have seen either vehicle prior to the incident, to come forward.

If you have any information that could assist the investigation, please contact the police online in the first instance:

• Email: Serious Collision Investigation Unit at SCIU@northyorkshire.police.uk

• Online: If you have any information that could assist the investigation, please follow this link and quote reference 12260104599: https://orlo.uk/vDnmr

• Live chat: Available via our website, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

If you are unable to use these options, please call North Yorkshire Police on 101.

Please quote reference 12260104599 when providing information.

Charity Dingle became the victim of sexual assault during Sunday’s episode of the ITV soap

Emmerdale aired an uncomfortable scene as Charity Dingle was assaulted by Dr Caitlin Todd at the end of Sunday’s installment.

Over the last few weeks, Dr Caitlin Todd has been demanding money from Charity Dingle with the promise of keeping the secret that baby Leyla isn’t Sarah and Jacob’s. However, on a rare Sunday episode the storyline took a dark turn.

Charity has been struggling to cope under the pressure that her secret about baby Leyla could be exposed at any second, and she ended up turning to drink as Dr Todd continued to make more demands.

As Todd continued to get more menacing, things took an even darker turn as she arrived at Charity’s home later on where the latter was lay asleep on the sofa.

Noticing she’d finished a bottle of wine, Dr Todd hovered over Charity and sneered: “Wake up. Drunk, disgusting w****! One too many? Bad, bad girl. You should know better… ..than to lose control.”

It was then that the horrific assault aired as she could be heard unzipping Charity’s trousers before she awoke and realised what was happening. Begging Todd to get off her, Charity sat upright as she tried to process what had just happened to her.

In the coming weeks, Charity will struggle to come to terms with the attack, having to choose between confiding in her loved ones or internalising the trauma.

Viewers expressed how uncomfortable they felt during the latest installment of Emmerdale. On X (formerly known as Twitter), @emmerdale2dae wrote: “I admire Emmerdale for tackling such a huge storyline but it was such an uncomfortable watch and I know it’s supposed to be, that’s the point, but wow was it dark for an 8pm soap. Todd is beyond sick and Caroline Harker plays a very VERY good villain! Still shaking.”

@meeshyjay added: “I don’t think Dr Todd can sink any lower ffs i feel sick” as @bagflea75 penned: “That was really uncomfortable, it felt like you were witnessing something rather than just watching.”.

Ahead of the storyline airing, Emmerdale issued a warning for viewers of the ITV soap on their social media. It reads: “In today’s episode, (Sunday, June 7) Emmerdale will show scenes depicting sexual violence that viewers could find distressing.”

Emmerdale producer, Sophie Roper, explains the importance of the storyline: “Charity’s storyline will explore the impact of sexual violence, and though this heinous act is fundamentally about power, we’ll explore the complexities of how Charity processes her trauma when the perpetrator is a woman.

“With little conversation surrounding female-on-female assault, we’ll explore the overwhelming feelings of isolation many survivors experience and will examine the disparity between the legal term sexual assault and the fact that many women in Charity’s position feel this minimises what’s happened to them, because they feel like they’ve been raped. Though difficult viewing at times, Charity’s resilience will inspire hope as she confronts what has happened to her.”

Emma Atkins commented: “This has been one of the most demanding and significant storylines I’ve had to navigate as Charity. We know her as a tough, resilient character, but this trauma will expose a deep, raw vulnerability that has been heartbreaking at times to play.

“I hope this storyline gives even one person the courage to speak out or helps others understand the quiet devastation of trauma.”

Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 8pm and is also available to stream on ITVX and YouTube from 7am.

NEW YORK (AP) — There was a time when Donald Trump was just another celebrity sitting courtside at New York Knicks games. He was famous, but not yet flanked by Secret Service agents or defined by the politics that have left him deeply unpopular in his hometown.

Now, more than a decade after attending his last Knicks game at Madison Square Garden, Trump is making a rare trip back to New York City as president to cheer for them in Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night. Invited by Knicks owner James Dolan, he will be the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game.

The Knicks are seeking their first championship since 1973, when Trump was 26 and a relative newcomer to the family real estate business that vaulted him to wealth and fame. Two years after that triumph, the team’s owners at the time hired him as a consultant as they looked to sell the arena.

Trump has been to more major sporting events than any of his predecessors, including the Super Bowl and Daytona 500, golf’s Ryder Cup in the New York City suburbs, where he was cheered, and last year’s U.S. Open men’s tennis championship in Queens, where he was booed and blamed for long security lines.

On June 14, when he turns 80 while wrestling with myriad crises including the war with Iran, economic unease and court rulingsblunting his agenda, he will host a UFC fight on White House grounds. Trump also has expressed interest in attending soccer’s World Cup, which kicks off this week across the United States, Mexico and Canada.

New Yorkers love the Knicks more than they love Trump

Trump is an avid sports fan, but the affinity he professes for the Knicks is different.

It speaks to the Republican president’s identity as a New Yorker and harkens to a bygone era where a front-row seat at a Knicks game was a chance for him and other boldface names to see and be seen.

In a city whose wealthy gatekeepers largely turned their noses at Trump’s brash personality and playboy image in the 1990s and 2000s, the Garden’s Celebrity Row was one club where he felt at home.

“I’ve been a Knick fan for a long time,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office last week, a day after New York rallied to win Game 1. “I watched that end of the game and they were dominant — really amazing.”

After another win Friday in San Antonio, the Knicks head home with a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. They have won a remarkable 13 straight playoff games and last lost on April 23, uniting the city in a way unseen since the Knicks went to the NBA Finals twice in the 1990s.

Enter Trump. He returns to the Knicks zeitgeist not as the tabloid curiosity who once sat shoulder to shoulder with the late John F. Kennedy Jr. at a game in 1999, but as a president who is disliked by a majority of the city’s Democratic voters.

Trump, who gave up his lifelong New York residency for Florida in 2019, is making his first trip to New York City since he spoke at the United Nations in September. In 2024, he went on trial in the city and was convicted of 34 felony counts related to hush money paid on his behalf during his 2016 campaign.

Knicks fans, though, do not seem to be concerned so much with his politics, but that his attendance — and the hoopla accompanying it — could mess up the team’s momentum. The Knicks said people going to the game should arrive at least two hours before tipoff for airport-style security screening.

“Why does Donald Trump always have to ruin a good thing?” U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, an avid Knicks fan and the House Democratic leader, told CNN. “Like, literally, the Knicks haven’t been in the NBA finals for 27 years. The city is trying to celebrate this. We’ve embraced this team, and this guy has to inject himself.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat who struck up a cordial relationship with Trump after the two met in November, was more inviting.

“We’re excited to welcome anyone and everyone who’s rooting for the Knicks in this moment,” said Mamdani, who will also be at the game — albeit, not with Trump.

Last week, as Trump began floating the idea of attending a game, New York magazine published an article, “Is Trump Really a Knicks Fan? An Investigation.” The story, filled with pictures of Trump at Knicks games from 1991 to 2014, described him as a “textbook example of a celebrity bandwagon fan.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver disagrees.

“Before he ever ran for office, he was a big Knicks fan,” Silver told reporters last week. “I’ve been with the league for a long time. I was there at many Knicks games with him in the old days.”

A courtside regular in the 1990s

Trump and the Knicks came into existence the same year, 1946.

His affiliation with the team — at least in the public record — dates to 1975 when he acted as a real estate adviser to the then-owners of the Knicks and Madison Square Garden, who were looking to sell the building known in a bit of Trump-style branding as “The World’s Most Famous Arena.”

Trump claimed to reporters at the time that two groups of “Arab oil interests” were interested in paying $50 million to $75 million. But the arena’s leadership passed on the idea, saying it was “not conceivable” to make such a deal during the Middle East oil crisis raging at the time.

Trump was not much of a known entity when the Knicks won their only championships in 1970 and 1973.

By the time they rebounded in the 1990s, Trump was front and center, taking his then-wife Marla Maples to Game 3 of the NBA Finals in 1994 and his current wife, first lady Melania Trump, to Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals in 1999. In between, he added to his Knicks fan bona fides with a cameo in the Knicks-themed Whoopi Goldberg film “Eddie” in 1996.

Back then, Trump was a more of a mythic figure than a consequential one, known as much for the women he dated and married as the buildings he built.

But just as those Knicks came up short in the NBA Finals against Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets and David Robinson and the Spurs, Trump was running into problems of his own. His business empire was in disarray after his casinos fell into financial trouble and his airline, Trump Shuttle, went out of business.

Like the Knicks, Trump went into rebuilding mode and charted a new course: reality TV with NBC’s “The Apprentice” and “Celebrity Apprentice,” and then, politics. On a Knicks TV broadcast in 2010, he hinted at a possible presidential run.

That same year, as the Knicks struggled to recapture the magic of the 1990s, Trump recorded a video trying to persuade LeBron James to join the team.

“The real winners of the world want to be here,” Trump told him.

Russell had continued to insist everything was well – until Monaco. But now it’s out in the open, and he knows he has work to do to turn his season around in terms of pace. Getting on top of what he can control is the key for Russell. The luck, he has to hope, will return one day.

“Yesterday was a bad day for me,” he said. “And I take, I accept that. I need to get myself out of… yeah, I don’t know, how we keep ending up in the same position. Things will need to improve, for sure. But I know on clean weekends what I can do.

“I’m in a very weird state of mind because I’ve had very low moments in my career where I’ve maybe had a run of two or three bad races on my own personal performance. I’ve never had a run of bad luck as such like this.

“It didn’t happen when the car was a P7 car two years ago or a P4, P3 car last year.

“Now I’ve got the car, it feels very painful, but a long way to go. I still very much believe in myself. I still believe we’re going to be fighting for race wins for the end of this year. There’s no reason why we won’t be continuing into next year, but right now it’s tough.”

Wolff said: “Luck swings in your direction, and then sometimes it doesn’t. And it’s not a question of not knowing how to drive. It’s about having a car underneath that you feel confident with, and that you can go fast. And that’s the fact.

“Formula 1 is about physics and not mystics. You don’t unlearn how to drive, and you don’t become a miracle wonder driver. I’m not stressed at all for his performances, because we know he’s one of the best.

“In Monaco, even more than on many other circuits, you need to be one with the car and really in the zone. That’s also why on George’s side, once you lose that confidence, it’s very difficult to be fast here.

“George is really good at analysing and assessing the situation, and we forget, and I told him, when was Montreal, a week ago, two weeks ago? He was on pole, right? He won the sprint race, he was leading the main grand prix, there was no discussion about lack of speed, so that was two weeks ago.

“So, we’ve got to stay with both feet on the ground, work through the data, see why this one was a difficult one, and Miami was a difficult one, but it is not a pattern that I have seen through the season.

“I couldn’t wish for a better combination of the two in a car, and I have no doubt that George will come back very strong.”

The 34-year-old previously suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch in 2021

Danish footballer Christian Eriksen has collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s friendly against Ukraine.

The former Tottenham and Manchester United midfielder went down on the pitch in Odense. Medical personnel immediately rushed to attend to the Dane as team-mates formed a circle around him.

The match was swiftly abandoned, though Eriksen was conscious and transported away in an ambulance.

A statement from the Danish FA said: “Christian Eriksen is conscious and feeling well according to the circumstances. The match has been called off.”

Supporters inside Nature Energy Park instantly broke into chants backing Eriksen as medics attended to him.

Eriksen previously suffered a cardiac arrest and required resuscitation on the pitch while playing against Finland in 2021.

The Wolfsburg midfielder underwent treatment for ten minutes before getting to his feet, prompting the entire stadium to give him a standing ovation.

Speaking on Danish TV, national team doctor Morten Boesen said he believes Eriksen’s pacemaker saved his life.

“I think it has done what it was put in place to do,” he said

In an encouraging update, he added: “He asked to leave the field himself. That’s a really good sign.

“Christian is doing well, and he asked me to greet all the players and say that he was okay.”

Former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner fought back tears as he covered the distressing incident while working as a pundit for Danish TV channel TV2.

“These are horrible pictures, and it completely overshadows the rest of the evening,” said Bendtner.

“My thoughts are with the family and the children, and it’s a difficult situation to be in right now.

“This is the second time it has happened, and as Christian’s friend also… it’s really terrible.”

Denmark were ahead 2-1 at the time, courtesy of goals from Manchester United star Patrick Dorgu and defender Joakim Maehle.

Viktor Tsygankov had pulled one back for Ukraine just before the interval.

Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed on the pitch in June 2021 when Denmark were facing Finland at that year’s European Championships.

He received CPR on the pitch before being rushed to hospital, where he was stabilised by medics.

Doctors fitted a defibrillator implant into his heart, and he made a remarkable comeback to professional football with Brentford eight months later.

A handsome market town on the River Ure at the foot of Wensleydale, with one of the largest market squares in England, two of the country’s most beloved breweries, and a high street almost entirely made up of independent businesses, Masham has been called an ‘unsung gem’ of the region.

The market square

The heart of Masham is its vast cobbled market square, ringed by Georgian townhouses and independent shops.

Markets have been held here since 1250, and it shows.

In its heyday the square was used to sell up to 70,000 sheep every year – a scale of trade that explains why the square is so disproportionately large for a town of Masham’s size.

A market still takes place every Wednesday and Saturday, while the Masham Sheep Fair returns each September to mark that heritage.

The square is surrounded by cafes, pubs and galleries, making it an easy place to spend a morning even before you have touched a drop of beer.

(Image: NORTHERN ECHO)

Two breweries, one family feud

The story of Masham’s breweries is one of the best in British brewing — and it starts with a family falling out.

Theakston’s was established in Masham in 1827, initially brewed in the basement of the Black Bull Hotel before moving to its current site.

It became one of Yorkshire’s best known brewing families, producing Old Peculier — the famously dark, strong ale named after the ancient Peculier of Masham, an ecclesiastical court with its own set of laws.

In 1992, after Theakston’s was sold to a larger brewery group, one family member — Paul Theakston — refused to go along with it.

(Image: TRIPADVISOR)

He set up his own brewery just up the road instead, naming it Black Sheep at the suggestion of his wife Sue. The two breweries have operated in the same small town ever since, a few hundred metres apart, both producing award-winning ales from the same corner of Wensleydale.

Both offer visitor tours.

Theakston’s runs guided tours of the brewery including its cooperage, one of the last working barrel-making operations in England.

Black Sheep runs hour-long tours with tastings at the end, and has a bistro and shop open throughout the week.

Beyond the breweries

Masham’s identity goes well beyond beer, though it helps.

The town has a strong arts and crafts scene, with several galleries and studios including ArtisOn, which runs courses for visitors.

A glassmaker producing hand-blown ornaments operates from the town.

The Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park at nearby Swinton Estate is one of the most unexpected attractions in North Yorkshire — 16 acres of ornamental gardens planted with Himalayan species, a short drive from the market square.

For walkers, Masham sits on the eastern edge of Nidderdale National Landscape and is well placed for riverside walks along the Ure, as well as longer routes into the lower Dales.

Getting there

Masham is in Lower Wensleydale, North Yorkshire, approximately six miles north-west of Ripon and easily reached from the A1 via the A6108.

There is free parking in and around the market square. The town is served by bus from Ripon, Leyburn and Bedale.

Have you visited Masham?

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Bayern, though, will not let Olise go without a fight. They have been on a media charm offensive since Perez issued his promise, telling anyone who will listen that the ex-Crystal Palace winger, who racked up a remarkable 53 goal contributions in 52 appearances this season, is strictly not for sale.

Italian fashion house Prada has unveiled the inner-layer garment destined for NASA astronauts, signaling its strategic push to become the first major luxury player to establish a significant presence in the burgeoning space industry.

The body-hugging suit, developed in collaboration with Houston-based space infrastructure developer Axiom Space, incorporates advanced ventilation tubes knitted directly into the fabric.

“We have really a broad spectrum of capability and know-how,” stated Lorenzo Bertelli, Prada’s chief marketing officer, at an event in the brand’s Manhattan store, where a mannequin showcased the new Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment.

Jonathan Cirtain, CEO of Axiom Space, echoed this sentiment, noting that expertise for developing space exploration products “can come from lots of seemingly unrelated industries.”

This latest innovation follows Prada’s high-profile foray into space fashion in 2024 with the unveiling of a spacesuit slated for NASA’s Artemis 3 Earth orbit mission in 2027, and the anticipated Artemis 4 moon landing in 2028.

While luxury brands have historically drawn inspiration from space travel, Prada has moved “beyond inspiration into an actual partnership,” according to Thomai Serdari, a luxury brand strategist and marketing professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, as the space exploration and tourism sectors continue to evolve.

Serdari highlighted two key motivations behind Prada’s interest in the space industry: gaining access to affluent consumers considering space travel and aligning the brand with avant-garde thinking.

This strategy mirrors the efforts of companies like Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which have increasingly focused on space tourism for the wealthy.

The renewed focus on space exploration and human missions to the moon is “bound to attract a lot of eyeballs,” observed Luca Solca, global head of luxury goods at Bernstein, emphasizing the need for luxury brands to maintain relevance and visibility.

Prada’s ambitious venture also unfolded against the backdrop of a struggling luxury goods sector, which, after two years of contraction, had shown signs of stabilization until the Iran war began in late February, disrupting travel and dampening luxury spending far beyond the Middle East.

Other apparel companies have already entered the space arena, with Under Armour partnering with Virgin Galactic for space apparel and Columbia Sportswear collaborating with Intuitive Machines on space fabric technology.

However, it remains uncertain whether other luxury players will follow Prada’s lead. “In luxury, it is important to be the first to do something, to be a trend-setter,” Serdari explained, suggesting that while brands like LVMH’s Louis Vuitton, Hermès, and Chanel are interested in space travel, they would likely seek unique avenues for their involvement.

“You will never see the upper crust of the luxury sector copying each other,” she concluded.