Carol was thrilled two years ago when she heard that, after several interviews, she had landed an office job in Thailand working as a typist. Her flight out there would be paid, food provided and there was free housing on top of her £600-a-month salary.

She had recently lost her job in hospitality in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi and life was tough. She was struggling to pay her rent, food bills and school fees for her eight-year-old daughter. So this seemed like a heaven-sent opportunity.

But the reality was very different. After arriving in Bangkok, she was taken on a long journey to the border with Myanmar and then smuggled into the war-torn country. There, she was forced by guards at gunpoint into a massive compound, and ordered by Chinese gangsters to take part in scamming operations targeting Americans, Britons and Canadians thousands of miles away for their cash.

The job advertisement and the interviews were a cruel trick. Carol had been duped into working in a vast ‘scam factory’ run by Chinese gangs, and forced through beatings and torture to find potential victims via social media who might fall for scams involving property, crypto investments, romance and online shopping.

Any hint of disobedience, any failure to meet their daily targets, led to savage punishments that included electric shocks to the head, being beaten with metal pipes, locked in a tiny, dark room for days on end or even chained to a cage containing a terrifying tiger.

‘It has been total hell,’ said Carol, speaking to me from Myanmar four days after escaping a 19-month nightmare, during which she worked in three different compounds. She was freed alongside 12 fellow Africans with the help of a network of Thai activists.

Scores of these giant scam complexes – many ringed with sinister walls of barbed wire and some with menacing watchtowers – can be seen from Thailand across the narrow brown waters of the Moei River that divides the two countries.

Many of the scam complexes there are surrounded by barbed wire and menacing watchtowers

They have been purpose-built over the last four years in lawless regions of Myanmar run by militia fighting the country’s endless civil war. They have a single aim: To hoover up vast sums of money online from greedy, lonely or unfortunate people around the planet.

The scale of these industrialised scam operations is staggering. The complexes hold tens of thousands of people from at least 78 countries – and one expert told me 135 nations have been hit by the scammers. ‘This is a global problem,’ said Mechelle Moore, chief executive of Global Alms, an anti-trafficking charity based in Thailand.

Many of those working here are taken to the complexes by ethnic Chinese gangs.

Most are conned like Carol – but some are kidnapped. They are made to sign bogus contracts – then told they must pay punitive sums to cover all their costs of travel, food and accommodation if they want to leave. ‘The idea is that once you’re in, there is no way out except by paying a big ransom,’ explained Moore.

Across South East Asia, where similar operations have sprouted up from Cambodia to the Philippines, it is estimated these factories extort up to £60billion a year. Some of the centres in Myanmar are also used to manufacture drugs such as crystal meth.

This is criminality in plain sight on an extraordinary scale.

From my vantage point on the border, I could see clearly the suburban-looking homes of the scam-factory bosses as well as accommodation blocks up to eight storeys high that held human-trafficking victims, often eight to a room in bunk beds.

I saw workmen building two compounds along a short stretch of the river, demonstrating that this is a rapidly growing industry.

The 60 compounds along this stretch of the border are run like well-organised business parks, with a main director, subordinates who rent out offices and dormitories to crime syndicates, supervisors monitoring performance and targets, and teams allocated differing tasks.

They contain brothels and gyms; some even have a basketball court, football stadium or swimming pool.

A Burmese woman prepares to take food to the compound… the 60 compounds along this stretch of the border are run like well-organised business parks, Ian Birrell writes

Thai activist groups that do deal with Myanmar militia, often struggle to help those who manage to escape the compounds

‘The better you are at scamming, the more access you get to their amenities,’ said Moore. ‘It’s all about controlling you.’ Yet these criminal enterprises have a veneer of business normality.

‘The operations work like companies – they have key performance indicators, quarters, bonuses if you perform well, but torture if you don’t perform well,’ said Ivan Franceschini, a lecturer in Chinese studies at the University of Melbourne and co-author of Scam: Inside Southeast Asia’s Cybercrime Compounds.

At one point I heard sounds of artillery fire, a reminder of the long-running civil war between the Myanmar government and various rebel groups – and of the risks for the trafficked workers trapped in a nearby compound. Later, I met a man whose finger had been blown off by shrapnel in an attack that killed fellow captives from China and Uganda.

This man, hired as a translator after studying for six years in China, was among the small group of Africans freed after they had used phones and computers to contact activists and diplomats in Thailand. Their release was negotiated with a local militia, whose leaders are sanctioned by the UK and US for links to scamming.

The 13 men and women came from Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda and Zimbabwe. Some were articulate and highly educated, others from simpler backgrounds. All had applied for jobs with good salaries offered by respectable-looking agencies on social media or through friends, before being interviewed.

‘I was running a business buying and selling clothes, making $300 [£225] a month, so when a friend in China called about work abroad offering $1,500 [£1,124] it was tempting,’ said the 37-year-old translator, who speaks fluent English, French and Chinese.

Another man was earning £37 a month as a barman in Lagos, Nigeria, when his wife became pregnant with their second child, so he was delighted to be offered a £637 monthly salary in Asia to work as a data engineer.

But when they reached Bangkok, the promised jobs turned out to be very different. Carol told me she was collected with others at the airport by a smart minivan and taken to a mall for food – then, after a 15-hour car journey, the group was dumped at midnight by the river, pushed on to boats and met on the opposite bank by gunmen in uniforms.

‘They were shouting, searching bags, throwing away our documents, then took us to a hospital where they tested us for HIV. I was so scared. I thought of my daughter [left back in Kenya with Carol’s sister] and how, if anything happened, my family did not even know where I was,’ she said.

The next day they were ordered to start working at midnight – to dovetail with California’s office hours – and began 15-hour shifts in which they built fake social- media identities and researched property markets in the US to target sellers.

‘You start making friends with them,’ she said. ‘When they become your friends, you start committing them emotionally and tell them how you make money out of crypto, that you have a good trade.’ As soon as anyone took the bait, her ‘client’ would be taken over by a Chinese supervisor. ‘I would send out up to 500 greetings a day – and you were meant to have three clients by the end of each day. If you don’t, you get punished,’ said Carol.

The punishments were horrific. She said beatings and electrocution were routine, along with being locked in the dreaded dark rooms for days. ‘It is very scary – like a very small cupboard with hardly any room to move and nowhere to use the toilet.’

Others talked of mock executions; being forced to stand still all day under fierce summer sun or monsoon rains; ordered to do 300 squats then beaten if wobbling when walking; having their heads half shaved as humiliation; and being sold like slaves between scamming companies.

Perhaps most feared was the ‘tiger’s cage’. ‘If you don’t have clients, they beat you mercilessly with pipes and then lock you on to the cage, so it is scratching your hand or your neck. Then they shock you constantly on the head with tasers,’ said Carol.

Others confirmed this hideous torture, several showing me their scars. One said they also used a caged white lion and huge python to terrify them into compliance. ‘They say they will kill you – every day they cock a pistol on your head to scare you.’

Each of the five scam centres I saw across the river reputedly held at least 5,000 people. And I heard of a Kenyan man who had been trapped for five years, Ian Birrell writes

These were not idle threats. A young Ghanaian said he saw a Chinese man killed after trying to help a friend escape. Others said Chinese workers, often from rural areas, were treated worst of all. Some were left unable to walk after their wounds from beatings became badly infected.

Women told of rape. ‘If some bosses like you, if they think you have a good body or are pretty, they call you into the office any time. Then they do what they want with you. It happened to me when I was new,’ said one East African in tears.

Each of the five scam centres I saw across the river reputedly held at least 5,000 people. And I heard of a Kenyan man who had been trapped for five years. ‘He’s given up the will to live – he is just a shell of himself,’ said a friend.

Power and telecoms cables from Thailand to the companies have been cut in attempts to stop the criminality – but the gangs simply switched to generators and the use of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite systems.

Eric Heintz, a global analyst at the International Justice Mission charity who uses data monitoring to map their activities, called on Starlink to shut down their access. ‘Each dish has a subscription, so it should be possible to switch them off,’ he said.

Last year, his anti-slavery group issued a report suggesting that some of Myanmar’s compounds were taking part in child sextortion – engaging children in online conversations, posing as potential friends or doctors to persuade them to send nude or sexual images that would then be used to blackmail them into sending money.

The scamming operations are very sophisticated. They use artificial intelligence, deep fakes and the dark web to gather data along with social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Telegram and WhatsApp to find and fool their targets.

One woman from Cameroon showed me lists of names and numbers she was given to call daily, offering remote work to them and even sending over a few dollars at the start to win their trust. Another said she had to juggle as many as 40 faked Facebook accounts.

They showed me the detailed scripts they had to follow and images of a Ukrainian model and German journalist used to construct alluring fake social media sites. One was even told to pose as the managing director of Goldman Sachs in New York.

Their task was to befriend people and slowly draw them into the net. ‘When I was doing Facebook dating, I spoke to a man in the UK every day, selling him the scam,’ said Carol. ‘They told us to target older people, from 45 years old, since if people are lonely, they believe anything. We could not help the people getting scammed.’

Workers were given detailed scripts to follow when making scam calls, and some used images of models and journalists to construct alluring fake social media sites

When she secretly tipped off one elderly American that he was being scammed – after he had handed over £10,500 then started taking out a second mortgage to give more cash to the crooks – she was caught and locked in the dark room for two weeks. ‘They are killing people,’ she told me. ‘One time the Chinese were posting in their group about an American guy committing suicide because he lost all his money, $300,000 [£225,000]. He was a young man, 33 years old, who had just got married, and the Chinese were all celebrating.’

Chalerm Duangchan, deputy headman of a Thai border village, said he had seen three Chinese women drown in the river after trying to escape a compound during a crackdown last year. ‘I felt very sorry for them.’

Another man told of lines of people being delivered to a river crossing beside his home in cars, motorbikes and vans. He said he had seen them beaten, handcuffed and poked with electric prods when resisting.

Local Thai communities warn people against working there. One young man said he signed a contract for an administrative job, only to discover he had agreed to join the scamming teams. His family was given until midnight to pay a £500 ransom for his release from the compound.

‘I saw a friend inside and I asked why he was there,’ said Pariwat, 25. ‘He said he had been tricked but did not have the money to ransom himself out so had to stay.’

The ransoms – or ‘compensation’, as it is termed by the crime gangs – are far bigger for foreigners. Experts said they averaged about £7,500, although one said she knew of a captured forensic accountant paying £101,000 to escape the horrors.

Pariwat added that his friend was still working there, earning money as a successful scammer with big commissions – showing how the gangs can turn people. ‘He makes a lot of money from doing this scam work.’

This underlines the problems for the authorities in dealing with people who do manage to get out of the compounds, whether as a result of successful escape attempts, pressure from diplomats and foreign nations, or the efforts of Thai activist groups that do deals with Myanmar militia, aided by sympathetic police.

Critics complain that the Thai authorities often fail to screen survivors properly, preferring to charge them with illegal entry to their own country and then deporting them back to their own homeland.

Jay Kritiya, co-ordinator of the Civil Society Network for Human Trafficking Victim Assistance, which aided rescue efforts for the group of 13 Africans, said it was vital to gather intelligence through in-depth interviews with victims and to expand global efforts to crack down on both the crooks and the online platforms enabling them. ‘The truth that would help rescue the victims and protect the world from these transactional criminals is not being told,’ she said.

‘At least I am out,’ said Carol, when we met as monsoon rain poured down after she crossed back over the river to Thailand. ‘But everyone must know there are many people inside those terrible places going through hell.’

Additional reporting by Max Pratch

* Carol’s name has been changed to protect her identity.

Pope Leo XIV has called on European leaders to rise to the “momentous challenge” of handling migration as he visited the Italian island of Lampedusa.

The pontiff urged Europe to help new arrivals integrate better and improve conditions in their home countries, during a mass on the island, which receives tens of thousands of migrants a year.

“Those who have lost their lives in this sea are victims both of decisions that were made and of decisions that were not made,” the Pope said.

Since becoming the head of the Catholic Church in May 2025, the American Pope has repeatedly called for greater support for migrants and criticised the US government’s anti-immigration policies.

He began the trip with a visit to a cemetery on Lampedusa and prayed at the graves of migrants who had died while making the dangerous journey from Africa to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea.

The Pope also stood at the “Door of Europe” memorial for those who had perished attempting the crossing and spoke to a migrant family.

“From this far-flung corner of Europe on the Mediterranean Sea, one can more clearly perceive the momentous challenge that the phenomenon of migration poses to European societies,” he told Catholics on the island.

“Europe is capable of addressing the crisis in this region in a comprehensive manner, integrating immediate relief efforts into a long-term strategic plan capable of receiving, protecting, supporting and integrating migrants” while “assisting developing countries so that no one is forced to emigrate”, he said.

The island of Lampedusa – which sits 90 miles (145km) off Tunisia’s coast – is home to a migrant reception centre that is overcrowded with challenging living conditions.

Those who make the journey often travel in poorly maintained and overcrowded vessels, making sea crossings more perilous for those aboard.

More than 1,400 people have died or gone missing while attempting to cross the ⁠Mediterranean this year, including 28 children, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration.

Air pollution is often portrayed as something that affects entire cities. In fact, levels can vary enormously over just a few metres.

Our research shows that one of the greatest challenges for academics is not simply measuring air pollution, but making it visible and meaningful enough for people to recognise how it shapes their everyday lives.

Traditional air quality monitoring relies heavily on fixed monitoring stations, which are positioned at specific locations around a city. These stations provide highly accurate and valuable measurements, but they can only represent conditions at a limited number of points.

Air quality varies significantly across environments. It can also change dramatically over short distances and timescales depending on things like traffic volume, street layout, weather conditions, and local or regional sources of emissions. So, two people travelling along the same route at different times of the day may experience very different levels of exposure to pollutants in the air.

Combining scientific methods with creative approaches can help people better understand environmental issues that are otherwise difficult to perceive. We used our expertise in creative design and atmospheric science to create the York air map, an online resource designed to make complex environmental data more accessible, meaningful and relevant to people’s lives.

This project investigates urban air pollution using 16 small monitors attached to bicycles. We involved people as citizen scientists to collect data over six-week blocks during their daily cycling commutes across the city, which has a population of just over 200,000.

Through citizen science projects like this, people can collaborate with researchers and contribute to data monitoring programmes. And because these bicycles are being ridden through a wide range of spaces that might usually go unmeasured, this provides us with new data.

Each cyclist can see the data change in real-time through a commercial air quality sensor and accompanying phone app, so any spikes in air pollution can be attributed to what they are currently experiencing on the route. This helps people connect to the statistics in a more tangible way.

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Using art to tackle air pollution: a story from a Nairobi slum

Our findings show that air pollution exposure is not evenly distributed across the city. Despite recognising some pollution hotspots, we have found that fluctuations can occur within short distances depending on external factors and the rider’s actions and movements.

For instance, are there road works happening? Are there high-polluting vehicles in front of you? Are you riding through a park or along a canal? Are you riding past active construction sites?

Because air pollution is so complex and is constantly changing, this research can challenge people’s perceptions of air quality. It is easy to assume, due to yearly averages, that pollution exposure in a city like York is low. But people can be exposed to high concentrations over short timescales – and repeated exposure in this way may cause long-term health effects.

Beyond scientific measurements

Our project champions citizen scientists to engage with the information in different ways.

York air map translates complex environmental data into forms that are accessible, engaging and relevant to wider audiences. One of us (Clare Nattress) has transformed air quality data into maps, visualisations, an informative zine, public exhibitions and community workshops designed to encourage discussion about air quality and environmental health.

We encouraged our 16 citizen scientists, seasonally, to write pollution diaries and record their daily experience of commuting to work or taking a leisurely bicycle ride. The diaries showed that riders became more attuned over time to their surroundings, noticing smells and sources more clearly when spikes showed up on the app.

One exhibition displayed smellable filters. These are small white filters that have been exposed to various sources in the laboratory. Visitors were invited to smell each one and guess which sources they came from.

This helped people recognise sources of air pollution such as wood burning, BBQs, perfumes and household cleaning products. They could then link our statistics with real sources of air pollution in their surroundings.

We each take roughly 20,000 breaths a day – and the quality of the air we breathe changes depending in part on the choices we make. Air pollution isn’t just a problem for big factories or capital cities; it’s happening right here on our streets and in our homes.

The British woman who has been charged with stabbing her partner to death with a 20-inch hunting knife at their luxury villa in Thailand has been named and pictured for the first time.

Thai police believe Isabelle Violet Carreras, 20, ‘was responsible for the killing’ of Thomas David Powell, who was found dead with stab wounds at the plush villa in the party resort of Pattaya.

The 33-year-old UK businessman’s body was discovered on Thursday morning after a friend became concerned when he could not reach Mr Powell on the phone.

The friend rushed to the luxury estate in the Bang Lamung district and recorded the moment he found the horrifying bloody scene at the villa on video, with Mr Powell’s dead body lying in the shower and the house in disarray.

He called the police, and footage shows officers confronting Carreras – a UK firefighter – over Mr Powell’s corpse, but she professed innocence and claimed that he had taken his own life.

She showed cops the huge hunting knife in a bloody sink before she was arrested. Her partner’s body appeared to have been moved and arranged to lie in the shower with a pillow under his head.

After claiming Mr Powell’s death was a suicide, Carreras added that he was ‘really into grass recently’ and that he ‘had been taking six strips of Valium daily’.

Investigators believe that the businessman had been dead for around six hours before being discovered and said that evidence at the scene contradicted Carreras’ claims.

Carreras showed police who attended the scene the massive 20 inch hunting knife believed to have been used in the alleged murder. It was wiped clean which investigators called an ‘attempt to conceal evidence’ by Carreras

They found cuts on her fingers as well as blood stains and signs of a struggle throughout the luxury property. The hunting knife found in the sink had allegedly been washed and wiped clean.

Mr Powell – who ran a large cannabis farm in Soi Bang Lamung 14 – also had two stab wounds in his back, as well as three to his torso and one in his left hand.

Police Colonel Nattapon Phongsuksakul, superintendent of the Nongprue district station, said: ‘Based on the evidence gathered so far, investigators believe Ms Isabelle Violet Carreras was responsible for the killing.

‘She has now been formally charged with murder, but she continues to deny the allegation during questioning.

‘The investigation is still ongoing. We are still awaiting the full autopsy report, forensic examination results and DNA analysis before finalising the case file.’

He added: ‘There is evidence that cannabis was consumed, and we believe it is possible that cannabis intoxication contributed to the suspect’s actions.’

Police believe the alleged murder happened shortly after 4am but that no one was notified until 9.30am when Carreras called a friend back in England.

Colonel Phongsuksakul previously said: ‘It appears the wife did not know who to call, so she made a WhatsApp call to a friend in England, saying that a murder had occurred and that her boyfriend was dead inside the house.

‘The friend then contacted another friend, who lives in Thailand, and asked him to check the house. Instead of calling a doctor or the police from around 4.30 am, when his life might still have been saved, she chose not to do so.’

The couple was initially believed to have been married, but Colonel Phongsuksakul has now said that this could not yet be confirmed. 

The police chief said that a motive for the alleged killing is as yet unclear because ‘the suspect has declined to provide any information’, and that officers are now reviewing CCTV which was recording inside the home to determine what really happened.

Carreras is a firefighter back in the UK at Rising Brook firestation in Stafford

Thomas David Powel (passport pictured) was found dead in the shower of the luxury property. He had been stabbed twice in the back, three times in the torso and once in his left hand

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His body was found by a friend who had rushed over after not being able to contact him. It appears to have been arranged in the shower with a pillow under his head. Blood stains and signs of a struggle were found throughout the house

Carreras has been in police custody since Thursday and denies all charges against her. Police say she has not provided any information about a potential motive

Investigators believe that cannabis was consumed at the scene and that ‘it is possible that cannabis intoxication contributed to the suspect’s actions’

He noted that ‘neighbours have told reporters they frequently heard the couple arguing’, though these claims have not been verified by police.

The couple had been staying at the villa for just seven days before Mr Powell was found dead, and police are currently investigating if they had been in the country beforehand. 

One neighbour of the villa reported hearing loud barking the night before Mr Powell’s alleged killing. At around 2am, a courier arrived to deliver dog food, but no one answered the door, raising suspicions.

Colonel Phongsuksakul said previously that Carreras had ‘denied committing the murder. However, based on the wounds, it is difficult for us to accept that claim because there was clearly a stab wound to the back.’

The officer continued: ‘We firmly believe this was not a suicide as she claimed. What makes us doubt her account further is that she washed the knife.

‘The weapon used was a knife, and washing it suggests an attempt to conceal evidence. There is also CCTV footage from inside the house.’

Investigators believe that the alleged murder happened in another room to where Mr Powell’s body was found in the shower and that he had been dragged there.

Colonel Phongsuksakul said that he does not intend to interview the person in the UK who Carreras called at 9.30am on the morning of Mr Powell’s death.

He previously said: ‘We cannot yet confirm whether she was intoxicated by cannabis at the time of the incident, but it is confirmed that cannabis had been smoked.

‘There is evidence at the scene and a strong smell of cannabis throughout the house. We are treating this as a murder case, not self-defence.’

Thailand decriminalised marijuana in 2022, making it the first Asian nation to do so.

However, the lack of regulations caused a surge in unregulated sales and use, especially in tourist areas like Bangkok, Phuket, and Pattaya, alongside reports linking the drug to violence and public disorder.

Government officials are now seeking to outlaw recreational cannabis use by requiring medical certificates to purchase the drug.

Love Island star Gabriel Garland has broken his silence after he was removed from the villa over his connection to a stabbing. 

The model, 24, entered the villa last week as a Casa Amor bombshell but was removed from the show after just a day, with his appearance scrubbed from the programme. 

ITV confirmed he had been axed from the show due to ‘a situation in his past’, with it later being claimed that he was removed after producers were made aware that he had been involved in an altercation in which a man was stabbed.

Now, Gabriel has posted an Instagram video addressing the reports, saying that it was ‘very disappointing’ that he had been removed and clearing up that he had not been found guilty of any wrongdoing. 

Gabriel explained: ‘After everything that’s been said about me, I just wanted to clear a few things up. There was an incident that happened at a party I was at when I was a teenager. 

‘This incident is obviously one that should not be taken lightly and was very traumatic for everyone concerned.’

Gabriel continued: ‘I just wanted to make it clear, the legal judge found no wrongdoing against me and I don’t have a criminal record. 

‘This has obviously resulted in me leaving Love Island, which is very disappointing, especially from a personal perspective.

‘I was also forming a really, really strong connection in there which you guys didn’t get to see, which is sad. But I wanted to tell you this directly.’

Gabriel concluded his post by thanking people for their ‘kind and supportive messages’.

He shared: ‘It really means a lot, and I’m very grateful, because I do just wanna move forward from this in a positive way.’

Earlier this week it was reported that shortly after he entered the villa, ITV were made aware that he was referenced in court documents relating to the conviction of Vitor Mazzer.

Mazzer was found guilty of two counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent following a party in Casewick Road, London, on New Year’s Eve in 2019.

Court documents state Gabriel attended the party with Mazzer, and say that two victims had an altercation with Gabriel before Mazzer stabbed them.

Gabriel’s mother Joanne Garland, gave a character statement for her son – who was 17 at the time of the incident – in court.

Mazzer was jailed for 42 months, and his appeal against conviction was refused in April 2024.

When contacted by the Daily Mail, a representative for ITV said: ‘Gabriel has now left the Villa and will not be returning.’

The official Instagram account for the show had teased Gabriel and the other Casa Amor bombshells’ arrival in a post last week.

In comments still visible on the post one fan wrote: ‘Love Island gotta fix up their background checks.’

The model, 24, entered the villa last week as a Casa Amor bombshell but was removed from the show after just a day, with his appearance scrubbed from the programme

Gabriel’s exit comes after Islander George Knight was reportedly axed from the villa after receiving a warning from bosses for using an offensive slur.

Just days after heading to Mallorca ITV announced that the professional footballer would be leaving the show for ‘private reasons’.

George has since insisted he quit the villa after learning that a member of his family had a health concern, but sources have now shared the real reason behind his departure.

It’s claimed that while George’s story about his family is true, he has used it to hide the fact that he was axed after receiving a formal warning for using ‘unacceptable language’ in the villa.

George then learned of his family news at the same time, but there is no suggestion that ITV bosses attempted to cover up his behaviour.

A spokesperson for ITV said: ‘For private reasons George has left the Love Island Villa.

‘We have a duty of care towards George so will not be commenting further.’

A source went on to tell The Sun: ‘The situation for George hasn’t been easy, coming out of the villa earlier than expected and returning home to a very difficult family time.’

The publication has not repeated the language George used.

Gabriel’s exit comes after Islander George Knight was reportedly axed from the villa after receiving a warning from bosses for using an offensive slur

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George previously shared the reason for his Love Island exit on The Showbiz Fix podcast, saying: ‘I was expecting just to receive a usual question, like ask how I’m doing or what’s the plan for the day.

‘And they just said that one of the producers on site was going to meet me at the front door and that they had some information for you and the execs wanted to see you.

‘And I was thinking, oh God, what could this be about? Once the execs put you in, you don’t see them again, really.

‘They said that my parents had been in touch and that they had some news for me and that they were going to give me a call.

‘It is all very private. But it was a health concern with a member of the immediate family.

‘They said they felt like they weren’t doing their role as a parent if they didn’t let me know. And with what was said, I just felt like it was the right thing to come home.’

During the interview, George also spoke about accusations from fans that he’d used ‘microaggressions’ in the villa, after he branded Barbados-born Mica’s fashion ‘exotic’.

He said: ‘I don’t blame everyone because you don’t see everything.

‘You see such a small percentage of all the conversations and the relationships that you build. So I get it, I completely get it.

‘And there are, you know, standout moments where you think, oh, that doesn’t look the greatest.

‘I probably have said things that in reflection don’t look or sound great, but that’s just how I am in the moment.

‘And I know it will shoot me in the foot. I shoot myself in the foot a few times, but authenticity is – I think – what people are drawn to.’

LOVE ISLAND 2026: MEET THE ISLANDERS

Aidan  

Age: 23

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Job: Property Broker

From: Kent

His type on paper: ‘I wouldn’t say I have a strict type on paper. Personality is the most important thing for me.’

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Lorenzo  

Age: 28

Job: Business Owner

From: Hertfordshire 

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Are you here for the drama, or is finding love your only goal? ‘I think drama is fun! As long as no one is crying, all is fair in love and war. It’ll be interesting to see what unfolds…’

Samraj

Age: 25

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Job: Model 

From: Birmingham  

What’s your relationship strategy? Go straight for the goal or play it safe? ‘Without sounding arrogant, in the outside world I don’t really chase that much, I’m used to girls coming to me.’

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Sean 

Age: 25

Job: Primary School Teacher

From: Galway

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How do you plan to handle the competition? ‘If I see someone I like, I’m going for it and nothing’s gonna stop me.’

Yasmin

Age: 23

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Job: Recruitment Consultant

From: Kent

How do you plan to handle the competition? ‘There is no competition. I am a girl’s girl, but when it comes down to what I want, I’ll have to go for it!’

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Kavan

Age: 21

Job: Electrician

From: Kent 

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What kind of person are you hoping doesn’t walk through the villa door? Someone who always wants to be the centre of attention. You know, coming in loud, shouting, causing arguments and drama for no reason. That’s not really my thing. 

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Mica 

Age: 21

Job: Student

From: Barbados (lives in London) 

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Are you here for the drama, or is finding love your only goal? ‘I’ll dabble in both I feel. Obviously the whole point is finding love and that’s going to be my main goal. I’m not saying I’m going to start drama but if there is drama going on, I would obviously be a little bit nosey and want to know what’s going on.’

 Lola 

Age: 28

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Job: Detective

From: Kent

If VAR reviewed your flirting game, what foul would earn you a red card? ‘I can be a bit of a brat, I get really hangry! If you just feed me, I’ll be alright.’  

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Angelista 

Age: 24

Job: Nurse  

From: Staffordshire 

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What kind of person are you hoping doesn’t walk through the villa door? ‘Someone who wants to be in everyone’s face all the time, centre of attention all the time, that’s an ick! Someone that’s obnoxious I don’t like.’

 

Ellie 

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Age: 24

Job: Real Estate Videographer

From: West Lothian

Her type on paper: ‘Simple… tall, dark and handsome. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. It’s a classic for a reason. Nice teeth, nice tattoos, partial to a blonde as well.’

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Priya

Age: 25

Job: Business Development Manager

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From: Surrey

Her type on paper: ‘Very cliché, but somebody I would be attracted to would be tall, dark and handsome. It’s so cliché, but it is my type. Confidence as well! Someone you can tell is very confident. I’m quite confident and energetic so I look for someone that can match my energy.’

Jasmine

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 Age: 27 

Job: Fashion Business Owner

From: Dubai (lives in London) 

How do you plan to handle the competition? ‘Respectfully, what competition?’

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A mum-to-be is worried she may have ‘doomed’ her daughter for life over the name she’s chosen, as although she loves it, she believes people will struggle to pronounce it

Choosing a baby name isn’t always easy. Even when you’ve settled on a name that you love, there are considerations you have to make to ensure you’re not making a huge mistake, such as accidentally giving your child a name that can be turned into an unfavourable nickname.

Some parents choose to get a second opinion from family members or friends on the baby name they’ve chosen. However, as one mum-to-be on social media has found out, that might not be the best decision if you’re on the fence about a name – as their opinions could leave you regretting your choice.

In a post on Reddit, the mum said she and her husband have come up with a unique name for their child, but while she loves the name, she is now worried that she may have “doomed” her child with a moniker that is hard to pronounce.

She said: “I’m having a girl, and nobody has said anything about the name being weird, yet I just want to make sure I’m not dooming my poor kid. Me and the dad chose Araya (uh-ray-uh) with the middle name Avery, is this bad??”

Commenters on the post mostly told the mum that while the name isn’t “bad”, they found it “clunky” with the middle name, and believed the parents would constantly need to explain how its pronounced.

One person said: “It’s not terrible, but you’ll definitely always be explaining how to pronounce it.” Another added: “I really, really dislike it. It’s so clunky with Avery, too. Any chance you can go with Avery and find another middle name?”

A third wrote: “The fact that you had to explain how to pronounce it tells us it’s not a good name.”

Many people in the comments who had issues with the pronunciation claimed that they would assume Araya is either a variation of Aria (pronounced Ah-ree-uh) or Ariah (pronounced Ar-eye-uh). However, as the parents said they wanted to go for the “ray” sound in the middle instead of “eye”, they felt the name would be too complicated.

The mum later returned to her post to edit it after reading comments about the pronunciation, stating that she actually wanted it to be pronounced “Ar-eye-uh” first, but changed her mind after family and friends said they would intuitively pronounce it “Ah-ray-uh”.

She wrote: “I’m seeing the general consensus is that it’ll be mispronounced, and the middle name sounds clunky with it. Would like to say it originally was going to be pronounced (are-eye-uh), but funnily enough, the first group of people we texted about it thought it was pronounced the way we settled on!

“I also thought because it’s three standalone (a)s, with no (i)s or (e)s, most people would read it as (ay) instead of (eye) because (a) by itself doesn’t make that sound phonetically.”

The woman also said she would go back to the drawing board to find a more suitable middle name, but noted there would be little wiggle room in the first name as the dad is “pretty set” on the Araya spelling.

She continued: “I think I’ll workshop the middle name again, but the dad is pretty set on the spelling for the first name, it’s a mix of both of our first names, and the only one of the mixes we tried that didn’t stand out to me as letter vomit. (Are-eye-uh) does sound good with the last name at least, thankfully.”

Fingers crossed the couple get to the bottom of their dilemma soon!

Think about the last time you looked in the mirror and sighed at the sight of your hair. Maybe it was frizzing, flattening, greying, thinning or simply refusing to do what you wanted. For many people, hair comes with a running commentary – a private, near-constant negotiation that we rarely stop to notice, let alone question.

My new research suggests this relationship matters far more than we think.

Hair has long been linked to identity, confidence, body image and quality of life. Research has shown that hair loss can affect psychological wellbeing in both men and women, while changes in hair texture, colour or style can influence how people see themselves and how they believe others see them.

Yet despite decades of research into appearance and body image, psychology has paid surprisingly little attention to one simple question: what does it actually mean to have a positive relationship with your hair?

To answer that question, I interviewed men and women about their experiences of living with their hair, before developing a new psychological model of what a positive relationship with hair looks like. What emerged wasn’t a picture of people with “perfect” hair or even people who loved their hair every day. Instead, they related to it differently.

People with a positive relationship with their hair took the time to understand it. They were curious about how it behaved, willing to learn what worked for it and open to experimenting rather than giving up.

Instead of spending their energy trying to force their hair to become something it wasn’t, they worked with its natural characteristics. They cared for it, respected it and, crucially, didn’t allow a bad hair day to become a judgment about themselves.

That doesn’t mean they never felt frustrated. Frizzy hair still frizzed. Fine hair still fell flat. Curly hair still had a mind of its own. The difference was in the conversation they had with themselves. Rather than thinking, “I hate my hair,” they were more likely to ask, “What does my hair need?” or “Maybe I haven’t found the right way to work with it yet.”

That shift may sound subtle, but psychologically it represents a very different relationship.

Why it matters

A positive relationship with your hair is about far more than avoiding the occasional bad hair day. It can influence how confidently you move through the world, how authentically you express yourself, and how you experience life.

The people I interviewed described hair as being woven into their experiences and memories. One man spoke about riding his motorbike with his long hair flowing in the wind, calling the feeling “magical”.

Another woman described the decision to stop dyeing her hair and embrace her natural grey as one of the most empowering choices she had made. Rather than seeing grey hair as something to hide, she saw it as an opportunity to challenge stereotypes about ageing and hoped that, by wearing it proudly, she might help make grey hair more accepted for other women too.

Others talked about embracing their natural curls as freeing or finding hairstyles that felt true to who they were.

Hair featured in some of their happiest memories. It was a vehicle for self-expression and moments of freedom, confidence, creativity, playfulness and joy.

So what might a healthier relationship with your hair look like in everyday life?

It starts with getting to know it. Every head of hair has its own texture, density, growth pattern and quirks. Instead of asking why your hair won’t behave like someone else’s, spend time understanding what makes yours unique. What does it do well? What helps it thrive? What have you never really learned about it?

It also means working with your hair rather than against it. That might involve speaking to a hairdresser, seeking inspiration, trying different products or simply learning more about your hair. There’s never been more information available, much of it free. The goal isn’t perfect hair – it’s finding ways to care for your own.

Part of that is developing routines that fit your lifestyle. Hair care is much easier to maintain when it works alongside the realities of everyday life rather than competing with them.

Experiment

Give yourself permission to experiment, too. Try different styles, lengths or ways of wearing your hair and notice how they make you feel. The most meaningful question isn’t whether everyone else likes your hair. It’s whether it feels like you.

And when your hair disappoints you, resist the urge to turn that frustration against yourself. Respond with the same curiosity and self-compassion you might offer a friend. Ask what your hair needs, what you can learn and what you might try differently next time.

Like any relationship, the one you have with your hair will have good days and bad days. But my research suggests that when we stop trying to control our hair and start understanding it instead, we may find something more valuable than the elusive “perfect hair”: a healthier relationship with ourselves.

Oasis sent fans into a frenzy with their world tour last year and rumours are rife that Liam and Noel Gallagher are planning a spectacular 12-night residency at Manchester City’s stadium next summer

Liam Gallagher has teased fans with Oasis news after rumours the brothers are set to reunite again next year. Fans have begging for more after their Live 25 tour set the world alight following a 14-year hiatus.

There was such an incredible reception for the Brit Pop icons, particularly from the home crowd in Manchester, that it’s been reported that the Gallagher brothers are planning a spectacular 12-night residency at Manchester City’s stadium next summer with more dates to follow.

The band’s PR team and the stadium are yet to comment on the speculation. However, responding to an excited fan on X, who tweeted: “12 night at the Etihad?”, Liam set the record straight. While appearing to confirm that Oasis would be performing in Manchester next year, there seemed to be come confusion over the dates as the Don’t Believe the Truth star replied: “12? I thought it was 10 ffs”.

Oasis are reportedly planning a string of shows for for 2027, with sources suggesting a 12-night residency at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester was on the cards as part of as part of a massive new tour set to be announced within weeks.

It marks exactly one year since the stupendously successful Oasis Live ’25 comeback tour launched with an unforgettable opening night in Cardiff.

The Etihad Stadium is now preparing to host an epic 2027 homecoming for the Champagne Supernova stars, following their record-breaking 2025 reunion tour, multiple sources have told the MEN.

Further dates are expected to be revealed, with speculation mounting over a return to Knebworth.

Meanwhile, bookies are already tipping the band as odds-on favourites to headline Glastonbury next year.

A music insider told the publication: “It will be 12 nights at the Etihad Stadium across May and June. It’s just massive for Manchester and for the local economy.

“They could even add more dates to that as well; there’s talk of up to 20. The wider tour is also going to include a return to Knebworth.”

After wowing global crowds with their greatest hits last year, Liam and Noel are now among some of the wealthiest people in the UK after their hugely successful reunion tour.

The Mancunian siblings joined the likes of Beatles legend Sir Paul McCartney and the Glastonbury Eavis family on the Sunday Time’s Rich List, which was published in May.

Liam and Noel are said to have amassed a projected fortune of £375million following their comeback – just £25million behind Emily Eavis and her family, the founders and organisers of Glastonbury Festival, who are listed as having a bank balance of a staggering £400 million.

For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

By ISABELLA MACHIN, REPORTER

Published: 11:09 BST, 4 July 2026 | Updated: 11:21 BST, 4 July 2026

Fans celebrating Egypt‘s historic World Cup victory brought chaos to the streets of London as they clashed with police, climbed on to a double decker bus and brought traffic to a standstill. 

Edgware Road in north west London descended into anarchy on Friday night as hundreds of supporters swarmed the street to celebrate Egypt’s dramatic penalty shootout win over Australia.

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But as celebrations intensified, the packed road spiralled into disorder. 

Dramatic footage from the scene captured police officers wrestling with shirtless fans as crowds spilled across the road, bringing traffic to a complete standstill, as the chant ‘Free Palestine‘ echoed down the street.

In one tense confrontation, two officers grapple with a fan as screaming supporters surround the struggle before other revellers drag him away. 

As music blared out in the background, fans weaved between marooned vehicles, which included a line of buses, while some chose to clamber on top of them. 

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Further along the road, topless fans who had scaled the roof of a double decker bus waved Egyptian flags while shouting down to the cheering and whistling crowd below. 

Edgware Road, long known as ‘Little Cairo’, is renowned for its links to Egypt, with numerous Middle Eastern and Arab cafes and shisha bars lining the street – many of which would have screened the game.

Dramatic footage from the scene captured police officers wrestling with shirtless fans as crowds spilled across the road

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Topless fans who had scaled the roof of a double decker bus waved Egyptian flags while shouting down to the cheering and whistling crowd below

As music blared out in the background, fans weaved between marooned vehicles, which included a line of buses, while some chose to clamber on top of them

The celebrations erupted after Egypt secured their first ever World Cup knockout victory since 1934, defeating Australia 4-2 on penalties at Dallas Stadium following the 6pm BST kick-off.

Elsewhere on Edgware Road, footage captured the moment a grey 4×4 car drove through a section of the crowd, where many were still celebrating while wearing Egypt football team shirts.

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Seconds later, the car collides with a man wearing a backpack as he crossed the road, leaving him sitting motionless in the middle of the road. Undeterred, the car continues to drive down the road. 

Bystanders sprinted down the road to help the injured victim, lifting him to his feet, while others ran after the fleeing driver in an attempt to catch the driver. 

National treasure and captain Mohammad Salah, named the ‘Egyptian King’, was in tears after Egypt made history. 

It joins Morocco in the last 16, which also made it the first time two African nations had won a knockout match at a single World Cup. 

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For Australia, the outcome marked a third defeat in as many World Cup knockout matches. 

With the Socceroos heading home, Egypt will have a last 16 tie with either Argentina or Cape Verde in Atlanta on Tuesday July 7 at 5pm BST. 

Footage captured the moment a grey 4×4 car drove through a section of the crowd, where many were still celebrating while wearing Egypt football team shirts

Seconds later, the car collides with a man wearing a backpack as he crossed the road, leaving him sitting motionless in the middle of the road

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Bystanders sprinted down the road to help the injured victim, lifting him to his feet, while others ran after the fleeing driver in an attempt to catch the driver

The Metropolitan Police has been contacted for comment.