PCC Joy Allen, who is also the national joint lead for road safety for the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC), said urgent action is needed to tackle dangerous driving behaviours that continue to claim lives on UK roads.

Government figures show that 21 per cent of all road fatalities involve drink or drug driving.

A quarter of those killed or seriously injured were driving for work or commuting.

Ms Allen said: “These statistics are a stark reminder that dangerous driving behaviours continue to devastate families and communities across the country.

“Saving lives must be our absolute priority.

“That means taking a comprehensive approach which combines stronger legislation, better education and robust enforcement.

“Drug and drink driving remains one of the most significant threats on our roads with those who continue to flaunt the law putting the lives of innocent road users at risk.”

She has called for the wider use of random workplace drug and alcohol testing.

This is already in place at the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner and within Durham Constabulary.

Ms Allen said: “We need to look seriously at expanding random workplace drug and alcohol testing, particularly in roles where driving is essential, to help identify problems early, support intervention and ultimately prevent tragedies before they happen.”

She has also called for a lower drink-drive limit, an even lower limit for novice drivers, mandatory regular eyesight testing for those who wear glasses or lenses, and tougher action against dangerous behaviours such as not wearing seatbelts, mobile phone use, and illegal number plates.

However, she believes the Government’s current approach does not go far enough, especially for young and inexperienced drivers.

She said: “For too long we have delayed introducing measures that we know work.

“While proposals for a minimum learning period are welcome, they stop short of fully embracing graduated driver licensing (GDL), a proven, evidence-based approach that saves lives.”

GDL introduces restrictions for newly qualified drivers during the highest-risk period after they pass their test.

Countries that have implemented GDL have seen significant reductions in collisions involving young drivers, and Northern Ireland has already taken the decision to move forward with the approach.

Ms Allen said: “The evidence is overwhelming and the cost of delay is measured not in reports, but in funerals, life-changing injuries and devastated families.”

She has been lobbying nationally for the introduction of GDL in England and Wales.

International data shows the approach can reduce young driver collisions by between 20 and 40 per cent.

Ms Allen said: “Too many young people are being killed on our roads and I am determined to do everything I can to save precious lives.”

Road safety remains a top concern for residents in County Durham and Darlington.

Earlier this year, a public survey found it was one of the top three issues for communities, with around 80 per cent of respondents saying they were worried about drink and drug driving.

Road safety is a key focus in the commissioner’s Police, Crime and Justice Plan, which supports the long-term Vision Zero aim of eliminating deaths and serious injuries on the roads.

The plan calls for a lower drink-drive limit, mandatory driver retraining for dangerous driving convictions, licence suspension for those charged with drink or drug driving until court proceedings conclude, improved roadside testing technology, and expanded workplace drug and alcohol testing.

Ms Allen said: “Targets without funding will not deliver change, and we must address that.

“Stronger enforcement against drink and drug driving, uninsured vehicles, ghost plates and persistent speeding requires sustained investment in roads policing, forensic testing capability, technology and prevention work.

“If we are serious about reducing deaths and serious injuries, then we must match ambition with resources.

“Every road death is one too many.

“Through stronger laws, better education and properly funded enforcement, we can save lives and prevent more families experiencing the kind of heartbreak that follows a knock at the door.”

Officials say injuries at Virginia State University are not life threatening

Several people have been shot at, forcing an American university into lockdown. The horrific incident is unfolding at Virginia State University, where there are understood to be several suspects following the shooting in the area of Boisseau Avenue and Third Street in Etrrick.

Virginia State University Police say that victims have been rushed to hospital and an investigation is underway. The Mirror reports it does not appear at this stage that any of the injuries are life threatening.

The university campus remains in lockdown and people are being urged to avoid the area, while anyone with information on what happened should contact the police.

A statement from the police read: “A shooting occurred in the area of the Quad Annexes involving multiple victims, who were transported to area hospitals.

“Police are on scene and request that you avoid the area. Campus remains on lockdown, Updates to follow, VSU Police.”

A post on the Virginia State University Facebook page reads: “Virginia State University remains on lockdown following a shooting involving multiple suspects near the Quad Annexes in the area of Boisseau Street and Third Avenue.

“Multiple people were shot. At this time, none of the injuries appear to be life threatening. VSU Police and the Chesterfield County Police Department are actively investigating.

“The campus community should continue to avoid the area and follow all law enforcement instructions. Anyone with information is asked to contact VSU Police on 8045245411.”

One person wrote on Facebook: “I called my youngest and he answered his phone and said that he and his brother are in their rooms, they are roommates, and they are safe. Hallelujah! God keep our children safe and please stop all this violence.”

Others offered prayers with a comment reading: “God protect our children! Continue to clean up the community for all who live, work and go to school there.”

The United States has seen multiple university shootings in recent months. In April five people were wounded at a shooting just off campus at the University of Iowa.

And in March a gunman opened fire inside a university building in Norfolk, Virginia, targeting a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) group. One ROTC instructor was killed, and two cadets were injured before the shooter was subdued and killed.

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Those who drive on a sloped road will notice something very mysterious

I tested a hyper-local secret about an eerie road on the Cambridgeshire border that appears to defy gravity. Nestled between Royston and Great Chishill is Bogmoor Road – a road that has remained mysterious among locals for a long time.

We all know that to drive our cars towards a specific location, we need a power source. However, passed around by word of mouth, is a long-lived theory that Mother Nature plays its part in flouting physical limits by dragging vehicles up the hill.

I decided to test the theory on the bizarre road that has left motorists puzzled and has been glitching out of reality by breaking the rules for years.

Setting myself in a position on the road, I put the car into neutral. Not believing the locals’ tales, I didn’t expect my car to move an inch. Yet, within seconds my car was picking up speed and rolling ‘uphill’, as if it was directing me straight towards Great Chishill.

The eerie questions of spirits and real-world magic rushed through my brain as I convinced myself that me and my car had done the impossible. It completely tricked my human brain.

I remained sceptical as I said to myself ‘once is an anomaly but twice is suspicious’. However, the stubborn road quietly laughed at me as it dragged me upwards the second time. My brain was tricked once again.

I left the experiment feeling as though I had certified the local-legend that having no power does not necessarily mean your car will remain stationary in a neutral position.

Bringing myself back to reality, I know that spirits and magic may not be the scientific answer – although it’s interesting to ponder about. Bogmoor Road is possibly what is known as a gravity hill, which can also be known as a magnetic or mystery hill.

This is a place where the layout of the surrounding land produces an illusion, making a slight downhill slope appear to be an uphill slope. Therefore, a car left out of gear will appear to be rolling uphill against gravity in a somewhat magical experience.

Treating natural spaces like theme parks is ruining the outdoors

It feels like only yesterday I was writing about hikers booing a man at the top of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) for breaching absurd queuing rules, and little did I know another such incident would present itself so soon.

In May this year, a TikTok video of hospitality manager Richard Thiedeman being booed for failing to queue to touch the summit marker on Yr Wyddfa went viral.

Richard had hiked to the summit of Yr Wyddfa (3,560ft) on May 24th 2026, but was booed by those in line when he didn’t respect the unwritten ‘rules’ of waiting for your turn to approach the summit marker to get a photo.

The caption on the 34-year-old’s TikTok video reads: ‘Climbed Snowdon via Y Lliwedd – Watkins Path to raise money for a friend’s funeral… and instead of being cheered, I was booed for not queuing up.’

Richard, who was raising money for a “send-off” for his friend with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), even wore a T-shirt that read “I am hiking to raise money for a funeral!”, but this did not stop crowds from booing and jeering as he reached the summit and swerved past the long queue as he didn’t want a photo.

The incident sparked much debate online, with many siding with Richard (including me) and describing queuing on mountains as “ridiculous”.

So imagine my surprise to see the queuing discourse kicking off again this week, with another hiker facing dirty looks and comments when he committed the outrageous crime of skipping the self-appointed queue for the summit of Yr Wyddfa.

A video shared by WalesOnline showed Marc Screeton being criticised by queue-abiding hikers for walking past a huge queue on the mountain to reach the top. Having just completed the five-hour trek, the 27-year-old decided he had no chance of waiting any longer to see the peak.

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Despite only wanting to touch the top and head back down, Marc was slammed by a group who glared at him from the queue. In the clip, you can hear them shouting ‘there’s a queue, you know’ and ‘it’s out of order’.

One woman even shouted at someone to ‘chuck his phone off’ the mountain. What a time to be alive.

As a horrified observer, I’ve written and posted on my TikTok several times that I’ve been hiking for many years and have watched the way we hike and connect with nature shift dramatically, and it’s not always for the better.

Since the pandemic and the meteoric rise of social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok, interest in UK beauty spots has soared.

In recent years, there have been increasing reports of national parks, beaches, and popular hiking trails being overrun by crowds, litter, and queues as people descend on the great outdoors, often armed with drones and tripods, hoping for the perfect snap for social media.

Images this week show scores of hikers lined up on the slopes of Yr Wyddfa waiting for their photo at the trig point. Many wait for over an hour just to get a selfie at the peak – which sits at 3,560ft above sea level.

It’s a depressing sight, even if you love outdoor photography as I do. There’s zero chance you’ll catch me joining a queue anywhere to get a photo. I simply don’t have the patience, and I think treating natural spaces like theme parks is ruining the outdoors.

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As I settle into middle age, I can’t help but feel that a mountain summit, traditionally associated with achievement, community, and endurance, has become akin to a tourist attraction, subject to queuing rules and hostile public policing.

Somewhere along the way, parts of outdoor culture seem to have lost sight of why we venture out at all. Mountains, lakes, beaches, and waterfalls, once cherished for their beauty, are now too often reduced to mere backdrops for online content.

At first glance, it seems harmless enough. If people want to queue for summit selfies or film TikTok dances at the top, isn’t that their choice?

“The problem is scale”, says Julia Hartley, founder of Guided Outdoor Adventures. “Social media has turned summits into bucket list checkboxes, and the footfall is now causing real environmental damage. The litter is the most visible sign of it.”

Julia says that their mountain leaders handle summit photos “practically” and “find the shot somewhere else.”

“There are viewpoints on almost every route that are more dramatic than a crowded summit cairn, and a good guide knows where they are.”

“A qualified mountain leader knows those quieter routes. They can take you to summits and landscapes that most people walking the famous peaks will never find, and the experience is richer for it.”

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The desire for ‘bucketlist’ summit photos appears to be the main cause of the lines on mountaintops like Yr Wyddfa, where there shouldn’t be a need for queues, leading to unnecessary bottlenecks.

Mountain leader Gemma Smith points out in a TikTok video that many people may see videos of climbers queuing to reach the top of Mount Everest in Nepal and assume it is a regular occurrence, but it isn’t.

The expert mountain leader and hiking guide shared her honest thoughts on whether people should queue to reach the summit of Yr Wyddfa after seeing people booed for not queuing.

She said: “This might be controversial, but as a mountain leader I do not think you should be queuing to get to the summit of a mountain unless it is for safety reasons.

Gemma explains that on mountains like Everest, queuing is for safety; you’re following a fixed line to the summit.

“You’re one behind the other on this line, and if you are overtaking, that can be an exceptionally dangerous situation if you slip.

On Snowdon, that queue is purely there because people want to take a photo, that’s it.”

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As many other outdoor leaders have told me, the summit of Yr Wyddfa is vast. Unlike narrow scrambling sections on other mountains where queues form naturally for safety reasons, the summit queue here exists almost entirely for photographs.

Nobody has appointed summit marshals on Yr Wyddfa. The queues are entirely self-imposed, not rules set by the National Park.

And increasingly, there appears to be social pressure to participate. As booed hiker Richard says, “These people believe that a queue is the right thing to do. But since when has it been okay to boo people because they don’t believe in what you believe in?”

While jeering is undoubtedly unpleasant, these summit queues can also create genuine safety concerns, says Julia Hartley.

“The queuing at Yr Wyddfa poses a specific danger that is not talked about enough. When people have waited a long time to reach a summit, they become reluctant to turn back even when conditions change.

That sunk cost thinking on a mountain is genuinely dangerous. Weather moves fast in Eryri (Snowdonia), and a queue creates pressure to stay when the right decision is to descend.”

In extremely hot weather like we’re currently experiencing in Wales, hikers standing still for long periods can also suffer sunstroke and other heat-related illnesses, prompting callouts to already overstretched Mountain Rescue Teams.

Llanberis Mountain Rescue recently posted on their Instagram account: “Over the Bank Holiday Weekend, our team responded to 14 incidents on Yr Wyddfa, with the majority believed to be linked to the exceptionally warm weather conditions.”

Elfyn Jones, Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team Volunteer and Coordinator, said: “People often underestimate how quickly warm weather can become dangerous in the mountains.”

“We’ve seen several incidents this weekend where the heat appears to have played a significant role, including serious cases of suspected sunstroke requiring helicopter evacuation.”

Even several heatwaves haven’t reminded us that mountains are wild and unpredictable, not amusement parks with photo ops and lines where the prize is a perfect hashtagged post.

The real achievement is simply reaching the summit. There’s no need to queue for a staged photo or a tap of the trig point; the climb itself is reward enough.

Frankly, these bizarre summit queue incidents have made me even more resolute that I will not join an unnecessary queue on a mountain.

I won’t wait an hour to touch a trig point, and I certainly won’t be booing strangers and calling for their heads if they swerve a line. Instead, I’ll try to find a quiet spot where I can appreciate the view away from a turf war over selfie rights.

If you want to wait in a long line, may I suggest Alton Towers instead of our wild and precious mountains and stop ruining them for the rest of us.

The event will take place from August 22 to 31 and will include free open days at racehorse training yards, studs, and retraining centres across the country, including several in the North East.

Visitors will be able to meet the horses, see family-friendly demonstrations, and learn more about the sport in a hands-on setting.

Olly Murphy, a racehorse trainer based in Warwickshire, said: “National Racehorse Week is a brilliant initiative that I am proud to have been a part of across the last four years.

“It is an incredibly important event for our sport, and it is great to welcome newcomers, curious minds and sport lovers to learn more year in year out.

“With 2025 seeing around 700 people visiting us at Warren Chase, I hope to see even more faces joining us this year.”

The week is designed to offer the public a rare glimpse into the daily lives of racehorses and the people who care for them.

Visitors can watch horses in training, meet retired equine stars, and even chat with some of Britain’s best-known jockeys.

Every event is free to attend, and organisers hope to inspire a new generation of racing fans, especially as 2026 is the Chinese Year of the Horse.

To mark the occasion, Great British Racing has pledged to give 8,000 young people the chance to meet a Thoroughbred in person this year.

Seventeen events are scheduled across the North East, with more than 17,000 spaces available nationwide at over 100 open days.

One of the first events in the region will be held at Girsonfield Race Yard near Otterburn in Northumberland on August 22.

National Racehorse Week aims to highlight the care and training that goes into preparing these athletes for the track, while also celebrating their role in British culture and sport.

It also offers a broader understanding of how the industry supports the well-being of racehorses throughout their lives, including their careers after racing.

To check for events near you or book a space, visit nationalracehorseweek.uk using the postcode search tool.

NEW YORK (AP) — Hate crime charges have been filed against a man who disrupted Shabbat services in Manhattan’s Central Synagogue and struck two people while being hustled outside Friday night.

“As synagogue security was escorting him out, he struck a member of the congregation, damaged synagogue property, and then spit at and head-butted a member of the security team,” a statement from Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

A police sergeant working as a paid security detail at the synagogue immediately took the man into custody and no one was seriously injured, Tisch said.

Larry Montes, 46, of the Bronx, faces two counts of assault as a hate crime and one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, among other charges, Tisch said.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the assault during the livestreamed service “horrifying.”

“Every New Yorker must be able to observe their religion without fear of violence,” he posted on social media.

Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer were among those who also condemned the attack.

Additional police security was added and Shabbat services continued Saturday.

“We might want to be focusing on the beauty of our liturgy and the sanctity of Shabbat, and somehow the feeling of the imperfect and cruel world keeps flooding in,” Rabbi Rebecca Thau told congregants.

Bill Maher has taken aim at Republican lawmakers after dire reports emerged of conditions aboard a U.S. warship.

Sailors have said that say life on the USS Abraham Lincoln has grown unbearable after more than eight months at sea in the Middle East.

Concerns have been raised about a lack of food, water contamination and the deteriorating mental health of staff on board.

Speaking on the latest episode of his talk show Real Time, Maher said: “I’ve used this phrase before, but Republicans, they have this patriotic immunity.”

He continued: “They can do things that are so unpatriotic and they don’t seem to pay a price for it the way a Democrat would. When I hear about troops being on a ship where the toilets aren’t working and there’s not enough food and they’re so morose about this that at least one of them jumped off the ship… it just makes my blood boil.”

Maher first used the phrase “patriotic immunity” almost a decade ago, when he suggested in 2017 that Republican politicians can “get away with pretty much anything when it comes to selling out, cursing out or compromising your own country” simply because they profess to be more patriotic than their opponents.

During this week’s Real Time episode, pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson suggested that issues on the USS Abraham Lincoln stem from service members not feeling like there is “any kind of mission that’s worth fighting.”

However Maher pushed back at this idea, saying: “I disagree with that. There was a mission worth fighting. We f***ed it up how we did it.”

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He went on: “Iran having a nuclear weapon, Iran being the actor in the Middle East that has f***ed everything up in that region for the last 50 years, changing that dynamic was not an unreasonable thing to try. They did it at the wrong time. They f***ed it up. They should have done it when the people were in the streets. They didn’t and now we’re here where we are.”

The US military is understood to be preparing to replace the Lincoln with the USS George Washington as part of a scheduled Middle East deployed, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing US officials.

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth played down concerns during a trip to Panama on Thursday, saying they were “completely misrepresented”.

”We make sure every ship, every crew, every captain has everything we can provide them at every single moment. Some deployments are longer than others, and I have more respect and gratitude for those sailors than anybody,” he said.

Cragside is described as being “Britain’s original smart home at the heart of a grand fantasy garden”.

Cragside House is surrounded by a landscaped garden with different areas to explore.

If you need somewhere to entertain your children for a day, Cragside could be the perfect place, thanks to its miles of “paths and twists and turns to discover”.

What is the National Trust site, Cragside, like?

The content creator, Geordie Hiker, visited the site and said it was “like stepping into a fairytale”.

She added: “Nestled in the heart of Rothbury, Cragside is a must-visit gem in Northumberland.

“Famous for being the first home in the world to be powered by hydroelectricity!

“Explore the stunning architecture, 1,000-acre estate, and beautiful gardens.”

Cragside House is a Victorian mansion with many rooms to look around, including a library, Turkish bath suite, and kitchen.

While going around Cragside, “there are lavish luxuries and timesaving inventions across the house to seek out and find”.

There are lots of gardens and pathways to explore. (Image: Tripadvisor)

After exploring the house, you can take a walk through one of the many gardens, including the Pinetum, where you can see some of the tallest trees around the grounds.

If you want more of an adventure, you can try the Rock Garden and walk along the maze of pathways to the Iron Bridge, where you can get a great view of the house.

For children, there are several spots to explore, including a play area with equipment for young children and teens, including tunnel slides, climbing frames, and a zipline.

They might also like the Labyrinth, which is a giant maze cut into the forest, where they can hunt for William the Wizard and find Nelly’s Den.

There are several trails to follow as well.

Entry to Cragside costs £27 for adults and £13.50 for children aged between five and 17, with a few family tickets available.

What do visitors of Cragside think of the site?

Cragside has a score of 4.8 out of 5 on Tripadvisor with 3,924 reviews.

One reviewer wrote: “Immense estate brimming with history.

“Far too much to do in one visit – we barely scratched the surface – visited the house and walked to the formal gardens.

“Didn’t have time for any of the nature walks, so will be back.

“Fascinating history of the house and owners.”

Another reviewer wrote: “So this National Trust property was unknown to us before our holiday in the area and we found it to be a great day out.

“The history of the house was fascinating and the grounds were immaculate.

“We took the long walk round the estate and halfway round the d visited the house.

“The way marked walking routes were easy to follow and the scenery was amazing.

“There is definitely scope for multiple visits to this wonderful place.”

Have you ever visited Cragside before? Let us know in the comments.

Oscar-nominated actor Adam Driver, Stranger Things star Sadie Sink and Obsession breakout Inde Navarrette have been cast in the new X-Men reboot.

Marvel chief Kevin Feige unveiled the new set of actors on Friday at the Disney fan convention D23, according to a report in Variety.

Sink, 24, has landed the part of Jean Grey, the boundlessly powerful psychic and telekinetic who at times assumes the nefarious alter ego Dark Phoenix.

Jean was played by Famke Janssen in the beloved 2000 film X-Men, in which Hugh Jackman immortalized the role of Wolverine.

Meanwhile Driver, 42, is playing the villainous eugenicist Dr Nathaniel Essex, aka Mister Sinister, who has previously never been committed to live-action cinema.

Navarrette, 25, has been tapped to portray Rogue, who siphons off other people’s energy by touching them and was played in the 2000 version by Anna Paquin.

Oscar-nominated actor Adam Driver, who is pictured at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, has also been tapped to play the villainous Mr Sinister

Girls heartthrob Christopher Abbott, 40, will feature as Charles Xavier, the wheelchair-bound psychic who as Professor X assembles the titular squadron of mutants.

In the 2000 movie X-Men, directed by Bryan Singer, Professor X was played by Patrick Stewart, while his nemesis Erik Lehnsherr, whose ability to manipulate metal earned him the sobriquet Magneto, was embodied by Ian McKellen.

The new reboot has also cast Heartstopper star Kit Connor, 22, as Scott Summers, known as Cyclops because of the lasers that shoot uncontrollably from his eyes unless he keeps a special set of sunglasses on at all times.

James Marsden became a star in the original 2000 X-Men as Cyclops, who is shown to be locked in a love triangle involving Wolverine and Jean.

In the new version, Samara Weaving will play Emma Frost, a psychic who can assume diamond form, while Maya Boyd will feature as Storm, the weather-controlling mutant unforgettably portrayed by Halle Berry in the original cast.

Directed by Jake Schreier, whose previous work includes Thunderbolts*, the new X-Men movie is scheduled for release on May 5, 2028. 

The 2000 movie X-Men dramatically expanded the comic book franchise’s global popularity and resulted in two sequels, the 2003 picture X2: X-Men United, also directed by Singer, and 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand, helmed by Brett Ratner.

In the original trilogy, Rebecca Romijn played the shape-shifter Mystique, Kelsey Grammer stepped into the role of Beast and Alan Cumming played Nightcrawler.

Sink, 24, has landed the part of Jean Grey, the boundlessly powerful psychic and telekinetic who at times assumes the nefarious alter ego Dark Phoenix

Jean was played by Famke Janssen in the beloved 2000 film X-Men, in which Hugh Jackman immortalized the role of Wolverine

Navarrette, 25, has been tapped to portray Rogue, who siphons off other people’s energy by touching them and was played in the 2000 version by Anna Paquin

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(from left) The original cast of Patrick Stewart, Anna Paquin, James Marsden, Shawn Ashmore, Famke Janssen, Halle Berry and Hugh Jackman are pictured in X2: X-Men United

(from left) James Flemyng, Nicholas Hoult, January Jones, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence and Kevin Bacon are pictured for X-Men: First Class

Jackman became an international household name in that cycle of pictures as Wolverine, a role he most recently reprised in the 2024 film Deadpool & Wolverine, starring Ryan Reynolds in his final blockbuster before the It Ends with Us scandal.

In 2011, the franchise was revived for a set of prequel films fronted by a younger cast that began with Matthew Vaughn’s picture X-Men: First Class.

James McAvoy starred as Professor X, with Michael Fassbender as Magneto, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, January Jones as Emma Frost and Kevin Bacon as the antagonistic Sebastian Shaw.

In the 2014 follow-up X-Men: Days of Future Past, the old and new casts collided in a time-travel plot that proved to be catnip to the fanbase.

Game of Thrones actress Sophie Turner was added to that cast for the 2019 picture Dark Phoenix, which emerged as a titanic flop at the box office.

This year’s upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe picture Avengers: Doomsday, starring Robert Downey Jr as Doctor Doom, will feature several of the original 2000 cast.

Among them are Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer and Alan Cumming. 

Guiding us round the original Jackson family home in Gary, Indiana, flicking nostalgically through family photo albums, fooling around with assistants in his personal limousine… these never-before-seen videos show a pop superstar at the peak of his fame.

In 2001, defying lingering allegations of child molestation, Michael Jackson decided to make a fly-on-the-wall-style documentary which would show him chatting to celebrities, meeting ‘real’ fans and travelling back into his past.

There’s certainly no shortage of confidence as Jackson gives words of reassurance to a 19-year-old Beyonce, then emerging as a star in her own right. He even laughingly tells cameras he’s glad that ‘dirty pictures’ have been removed from the bedroom he once shared with his brothers and fellow performers in the Jackson Five.

Yet his world soon came crashing down.

In November 2003, with the new documentary still filming, officers from the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s department raided the star’s Neverland ranch in California, part of a criminal investigation into sex abuse.

It was a shattering blow. Two years later, he would be acquitted but for Jackson – who fled the US for Bahrain in the wake of the verdict – the doors were slamming shut.

TV networks lost interest in the documentary, leaving Jackson’s friend and producer Marc Shaffel with a mountain of unused footage.

Yet that might soon change. For, while his reputation has been battered in the 15 years since his death, the King of Pop is having a posthumous renaissance.

Included in the footage shot as part of the film, Jackson was seen meeting with a 19-year-old Beyonce

Filmmaker Marc Shaffel helped interpret a bizarre episode in another of the clips, in which Jackson is sprayed with perfume in his limousine

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The new biopic, Michael, has been a huge success and, grossing more than $1billion, has created a new generation of fans. A sequel is already in production.

Now Mr Shaffel believes that his own footage – one of the last sustained portraits ever made of Jackson – is relevant once again and plans to release a new film portrait of his own, tentatively titled The Real Michael.

Speaking to The Mail on Sunday, the producer said: ‘During the time these clips were shot Michael was about at the pinnacle of his second half of his career. The 1993 allegations made by Jordan Chandler had passed. He was in a great mood and the fans were very welcoming to him.

‘The material was originally shot to be a reality show I was making about Michael.

‘It was my long personal friendship with Michael that made filming this series possible. I own and have shot and paid for the footage and production.’

Now Mr Shaffel wants his film to see a wider audience.

‘This footage is a perfect real-life account of his life – and perfect to accompany the massive theatrical release of the Michael film.’

The clips he has shared with the Daily Mail are certainly striking – although not without their puzzles.

Now Shaffel wants his film to see a wider audience following the recent success of the biopic Michael

Explaining the extraordinary clutter on view in the Jackson family home Shaffel explained that, by the early 2000s, it had been occupied by an older relative who had been given little notice of the filming

Jackson relaxes in the back of a limousine, where he would later be sprayed with perfume

Explaining the extraordinary clutter on view in the Jackson family home, for example, Mr Shaffel explained that, by the early 2000s, it had been occupied by an older relative who had been given little notice of the filming.

Mr Shaffel also helped interpret a bizarre episode in another of the clips, in which Jackson is sprayed with perfume in his limousine.

‘Michael, being the consummate prankster with the people closest to him would over-do the cologne and perfume,’ recalled the producer.

‘At the time, he liked this very expensive perfume. His nickname for cologne was “smells” so when he asked for smells his cousin, who was his assistant on that trip, brought out the perfumes and started over spraying as a prank but unfortunately for all of us in the limo with him [it] was so strong we couldn’t breathe.’

• Daphne Barak is a senior interviewer and documentary film maker. Daphne is also a cancer survivor who has a fast-growing charity with the University of California, San Diego. www.gamechangerevents.org