Steve Potts survived the 1980 Tenerife Dan Air crash by one last minute decision, and two IRA bombings. If he had made three slightly different decisions any one of these incidents would mean he was not here today.
It sounds like something from the plot of a horror film like Final Destination – someone who escapes plane crashes, bombs, and impending doom.
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But rather than a screaming blonde heroine, this real-life death-dodging man, up on his luck, is a normal, open, divorcee from Bognor Regis.
Steve Potts, 71, first escaped death in 1974. A regular at the Horse and Groom in Guilford, Steve would be at the bar most weekends, especially a Saturday night.
On October 5, 1974, a Saturday, Steve was instead at a wedding down the road in Guilford.
Steve told The Daily Star: “I’m not religious or spiritual or anything, but do feel I may have a guardian angel watching over me. And I’m very happy it continues, I may say.”
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“One of the rare Saturdays I was not there the IRA bombed that pub plus another one called the Seven Stars, killing and injuring a lot of innocent people. By sheer chance I was at a wedding reception in Woking that night about 8 miles away so I dodged a bullet then.”
And so the first skirt around death was made. In 1980, Steve had been married to his wife for a little over a year. He and his wife have been divorced for many years now but at the time they would to go on lots of long weekends away for free thanks to his wife’s job.
She worked for a now discontinued holiday company in Bognor Regis and one day phoned Steve up at work and asked if he wanted to go to Tenerife the next day for a few days for free as there were spare seats on a plane from Manchester.
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This plane was the Manchester Dan Air flight which crashed in Tenerife, becoming the deadliest UK aviation accident, killing all 146 souls on board.
Their tickets were booked and they were ready to make the drive to Manchester from Surrey, when the couple started to think going all the way to Manchester would be an inconvenience, but that flight would take them to the North of the island, where their hotel was.
Steve said: “I said yes, and we were both booked on to go and all was well but very late in the day she called and said 2 tickets are available from Gatwick on another plane but into the south Tenerife airport so we would have to transfer up to-the north area so it was 50/ 50 what to do, almost a flip of a coin. But we decided to go from Gatwick and travel to the North area by transfer. That decision saved our lives.”
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Steve found out about his second duck from death in the most pedestrian way.
He explained: “Two days into the holiday we saw a local guy reading a paper with pictures of an air crash on it. We asked a waiter and he explained what had happened and we realised it was the plane that we were originally due to fly out on and sadly all those poor people had perished on that plane.”
The paper did not hold its punches when illustrating the tragedy, with Steve’s alternate reality splayed out on two sheets of newspaper, clear as day.
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He said: “From my distant memory, I sort of remember that they were not very censored in those days in Spain. The images were very graphic It was a very, very sad thing for them and their families.
“I never forgot how fate sometimes can be so close to making the difference between life and death. I was very scared to fly back after seeing the story in the local papers and the pictures of the crash. It was scary. I think from memory it was only my third flight ever in my life so it had a very big effect on me then and for a few years afterwards.
“I always tried to remember my ex-RAF father’s advice that flying is hugely safer than driving up the road in a car. I trusted his advice.”
Steve said reading about the crash decades later helped understand the full scope “of this terrible tragedy and the loss of so many lives that terrible day in 1980.”
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Then came Steve’s third and final miracle. It was 14 years since the Dan Air crash and 20 since the first IRA bomb in 1994.
This time, Steve had his children with him. He was loading his food shop into the car in the car park directly behind Woolworths when “an enormous explosion went off.”
He said: “It was so loud and scary as shop windows were shattering.”
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The IRA had left a bomb made of 2.5lbs of Semtex packed into the pannier of a cycle left locked to the cycle rack outside Woolworths.
Steve said: “That definitely shook all of us up but thankfully nobody was killed or injured including my family thank God.”
It seems bad things may come in threes, as Steve, now retired, lives a peaceful life on the coast in Bognor Regis, and it has been over two decades since his last brush with death
Barcelona superstar Alejandro Balde was heavily linked with a move to Manchester United towards the end of the summer transfer window
Former Manchester United transfer target Alejandro Balde was an unused substitute in Barcelona’s most recent Champions League clash.
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The Catalans started their European campaign with a 5-1 dismantling of Feyenoord. Barcelona manager Hansi Flick deployed ex-Manchester City right-back Joao Cancelo at left-back against the Dutch side, despite having Balde, a natural left-back, at his disposal.
Ever since United attempted to sign the Spanish defender on loan in the summer transfer window, Flick has not used him in any capacity. Balde has sat on the bench in every match in all competitions this season, suggesting he is not of great importance for the Blaugrana.
Flick recently stated he wants to see more commitment from the 22-year-old and made it clear he will have to fight for his place on the team.
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Before the end of the transfer window, Flick, having excluded him from his match-day squad, which beat Elche in their first La Liga match, said: “No, I’m not asking him to leave.
“This morning I felt there was something wrong. I spoke to him and said: ‘At this moment, I have this feeling, and I think it’s best for you to clear your mind, sort out your thoughts, and then we’ll talk again tomorrow.’
“And he agreed as well. He agreed to it because there are so many things going around in his head, and that’s why he’s not here.”
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Flick reintegrated him back into the squad but has not brought him on from the bench at any point. Meanwhile, United’s only senior left-back at Michael Carrick’s disposal is Luke Shaw.
If the Englishman were to pick up an injury, Carrick would likely have to deploy Lisandro Martinez at left-back or move one of Noussair Mazraoui or Diogo Dalot to the opposite flank, which would be a far from ideal situation. He may have the opportunity to test a new solution this evening.
Shaw did not take part in the training session before United’s Champions League clash against Sabah at Old Trafford. Carrick suggested the former Southampton defender won’t feature and will instead rest ahead of this weekend’s Manchester Derby.
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When asked about Shaw’s absence from training, the United manager said: “We just gave him an extra recovery day today. We’ll see by tomorrow how he is.
“It’s not an ongoing thing or a plan or anything like that. It was just off the back of the game the other day. So, as normal, each individual has different little things that we manage.”
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Manchester United host Sabah FK in their opening Champions League fixture on September 10. Fans can watch the game live on TNT Sports via HBO Max or Prime Video’s TNT Sports channel.
Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood (19) talks with Chris Bracy (7) after an NCAA college football game against the Western Michigan Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026, in Ann Arbor, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Just like many viewers Saturday night, Top 25 voters were confused when one second was put back on the clock after it appeared time had run out at Michigan Stadium. And they were dazed when JJ Buchanan came down with Bryce Underwood’s second Hail Mary pass to turn the four-touchdown-underdog Broncos’ 12-7 upset into a 13-12 loss.
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The Mid-American Conference submitted appeals to the NCAA and the College Football Playoff administration asking for the result to be overturned to let the record show the Broncos actually won the game for purposes of rankings, evaluations and selection deliberations. The NCAA said its rules don’t allow a move like that and the CFP won’t release its first rankings until November.
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The Wolverines dropped from No. 16 in the preseason poll to out of the Top 25 altogether in the first regular-season poll. It was the biggest fall from ranked to unranked after a win since at least 2008.
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Michigan had appeared on all 69 preseason ballots and was listed as high as No. 10 on one. The Wolverines were on just 22 ballots Tuesday.
Bob Asmussen of the Champaign (Illinois) News-Gazette, in his 16th year as a voter, put Michigan No. 12 on his preseason ballot and said he knew that was a mistake as he watched Michigan’s offense sputter after scoring on its first possession. Voters sometimes hesitate to penalize a team that wins, but Michigan was going to drop off Asmussen’s ballot regardless. Forty-six other voters agreed with him.
“I saw them lose in my mind, but they didn’t technically lose,” Asmussen said. “It was so easy to drop them because of how horrible they were.”
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Kirk Bohls of the Houston Chronicle, in his fourth decade as a voter, had Michigan No. 20 on his preseason ballot but said the Wolverines looked nothing like a Top 25 team. Bohls said he was disturbed by the way the end of the game played out, and the Big Ten’s statement about why 1 second was put on the clock after it showed zeroes didn’t convince him.
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“We were all watching and the Big Ten told us don’t believe what you just saw with your eyes, and it’s kind of hard to unsee that,” Bohls said.
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Bohls said he’ll be curious as to how the CFP selection committee will look at the game if Michigan ends up under consideration for an at-large playoff bid.
“Some people probably on the selection committee might view it as a loss or at the very least a tainted victory,” he said. “It could ultimately be a tie-breaker that goes against Michigan.”
Lots of choices for No. 1
Ohio State is No. 1 by a wide margin going into its showdown at No. 4 Texas this weekend but there is far from universal agreement on which team is best in the land.
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Seven teams received first-place votes, the most since the same number got first-place votes in the 2016 preseason poll. It’s the most in a regular-season poll since seven teams got first-place votes Sept. 2, 2014.
No. 8 LSU’s five first-place votes made the Tigers the lowest-ranked team to get at least one since ninth-ranked Texas A&M on Oct. 11, 2015. LSU hammered Clemson 51-10 in Lane Kiffin’s first game as coach.
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SEC flex
The Southeastern Conference occupies seven of the top 12 spots in the poll with No. 2 Georgia, No. 4 Texas, No. 8 LSU, No. 9 Mississippi, No. 10 Texas A&M, No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 12 Alabama. The SEC has a total of nine ranked teams with No. 18 Tennessee and No. 23 Missouri.
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The SEC is the only conference to ever have seven teams in the top 12. The SEC also had that many in the top 12 the week of Oct. 5, 2025.
The Big Ten’s 1-2 punch was short-lived: Ohio State and Oregon had given the Big Ten the top two teams in the preseason rankings for the first time in 65 years. The Buckeyes did their part to stay No. 1 with their rout of Ball State. The Ducks, tied with Boise State in the middle of the fourth quarter before winning 34-27, dropped to No. 6.
Still, the Big Ten has seven ranked teams with No. 5 Indiana, No. 14 USC, No. 16 Penn State, No. 19 Washington and No. 21 Iowa joining Ohio State and Oregon.
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Extra points
The Group of Six, which has not had a Top 25 team yet this season, does have Boise State with the most voting points among unranked teams while Memphis has the fifth-most. Those teams meet in Boise, Idaho, on Saturday for a game that could have major CFP implications. … No. 7 Miami is ranked in the top 10 in a Week 1 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2003-04. … Six Top 25 teams play opponents from the Football Championship Subdivision this week.
Olson is an Associated Press college football writer based in Omaha, Nebraska. He also covers the Big Ten, the NCAA, the College Football Playoff alongside local teams Nebraska and Creighton.
Prince George has started at Eton College, and the young Royal was joined by his parents, Prince William and Princess Kate, on his first day. However, his father appears to have been pictured in an “unlikely fight”
Katie-Ann Gupwell Content Editor
10:17, 09 Sep 2026Updated 12:54, 09 Sep 2026
It’s been a big week for the Royal family, as Prince George recently stepped through the gates of Eton College as a pupil for the very first time. However, though it was a huge day for the young prince, it was his father, Prince William, who appeared to catch people’s attention.
Images have surfaced on X showing Prince George arriving at Eton accompanied by Prince William and Princess Kate, though one particular moment caught observers off guard. Numerous onlookers drew attention to the incident after it was captured on camera, and it certainly proved a distraction for more than a few royal enthusiasts.
Reacting to Prince William’s incident on the school journey, one social media user commented: “Prince William knows how to put his son at ease. Struggle with your umbrella.”
Another shared photographs alongside the caption: “Prince William got in a fight earlier today (September 8), with an umbrella. Clearly the umbrella won and he said ‘sod it, I’ll get wet’.”
The images sparked considerable amusement, depicting the future King apparently wrestling with an unruly umbrella as photographers snapped away. The brolly turned inside out and William visibly struggled to keep it under control in the rain — a sight that appeared to leave Kate, George and onlookers alike thoroughly entertained.
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One user wrote: “He must have so much knowledge about Eton that he’s passing down to George.” Another added: “I have a perfect record of losing every umbrella fight I’ve ever had.”
A third replied: “Some light entertainment for George who was probably a bag of nerves.” Meanwhile, a fourth commented: “I love how the other two are enjoying his tussle!”
A further user shared comparable photographs with the caption: “Another cute photo from Eton yesterday. Prince William dealing with a malfunctioning umbrella right before they walked across the quad for the photo call.”
On Tuesday (September 8), the Prince and Princess of Wales also released photographs of the young Prince on his first day, posted alongside the caption: “George’s first day at Eton.”
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The images show George grinning broadly, dressed in pinstripe trousers, a white shirt and a black jacket, beaming as he posed for the cameras.
The photographs have garnered over 900,000 likes since being posted, with numerous comments from followers struck by how tall and smart he appeared.
One wrote: “Aww! Prince George! It feels like you were born five minutes ago. Happy first day at Eton!”
Another commented: “He looks so grown up. And such a lovely mix of both William and Catherine! Wishing Prince George good luck and every success as he studies at Eton.”
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A third person added: “These pictures are so beautiful! Prince George isn’t a baby anymore and he is looking more and more like his dad. I wish him all the best at Eton! I’m sure he will have a great time there.”
A busy shopping centre has issued a warning over two scams that could leave shoppers vulnerable. The Grand Arcade in Cambridge has said it was made aware of scams using the shopping centre’s name or contact details.
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In a statement on social media warning visitors of the scams, a spokesperson said: “A Gmail account has been approaching local food businesses and offering spaces at a Christmas event at Grand Arcade.
“We are also aware of an unaffiliated website using our address and phone number. Neither is connected with Grand Arcade.”
The statement explained that official Grand Arcade emails use @grandarcade.co.uk domain. The spokesperson for the shopping centre has urged anyone who receives an unexpected offer of payment request to check the full sender address and contact them using the details accessed on its official website.
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The statement added: “Please do not send money, follow suspicious links of provide personal information.” Grand Arcade can be found on St Andrew’s Street in the city centre.
Suspicious emails can be forwarded to report@fishing.gov.uk. Suspicious websites can be reported through the NCSC website.
The shopping centre houses stores such as Hollister, JD Sports, Mango, Apple and Pandora among others.
Jennifer Jones, 69, is on a layover at Heathrow from Phoenix, Arizona, and said: “(We) had to wait on the plane for the bus to come get us because everybody was trying to get on the buses, so we finally got on the bus and got inside, and it was chaos because everybody’s flights were cancelled, and by the time we figured out ‘well, I’m going to have to stay the night’, the hotels were all booked.”
Donald Trump’s Air Force One travel delay caused a stir at Joint Base Andrews after the presidential aircraft’s emergency slide was reportedly deployed on the runway
Matt Jackson Live News Network Reporter and Christopher Mallett
At approximately 2.20pm local time, the inflatable chute was spotted unfurled on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. Reports indicate the slide emerged from the right side of the aircraft, rather than the side customarily used by the president.
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Trump was understood to be waiting in Marine One nearby at the time. When questioned about the incident, the Republican leader informed reporters that crew members were conducting “checks” on the plane.
“They were doing a check on the slide. I think it takes 15 minutes,” Trump said. “They wanted to make sure it’s going to work perfectly.”
When pressed further with the query, “Are you sure the plane is safe to fly?” the 80-year-old president responded, “Yeah. I am.. or I wouldn’t be on it.”
Images captured at the scene depicted the aircraft stationary on the runway, prompting widespread speculation about the cause, reports the Mirror. Following an extended exchange with journalists, Trump climbed aboard while cameras continued filming.
This incident follows revelations just weeks earlier that the president had switched aircraft using a catering van in response to an alleged threat from Iran.
The politician reportedly deployed the presidential Boeing as a decoy, travelling on an alternative aircraft when departing the NATO summit in August.
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As the new Telegraph Fantasy Football season approaches the fantasy football experts at Fantasy Football Hub, will continue to bring you the very best in fantasy football knowledge, tips and tools to help you rise up the ranks and win your mini-leagues.
To join the Hub and get access to all their great resources and expert tips you can take advantage of its 50% pre-season discount.
Five best fantasy football players
Take a look at these elite Telegraph Fantasy Football tips below:
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Erling Haaland (£8.3m)
Comfortably last season’s top points scorer with 254, the Norwegian striker will once again likely be the first name in TFF Managers’ XIs. Having come back late from his post-World Cup break, there may be nervousness about early-season minutes. However, if he keeps up his phenomenal August goals-to-games ratio, starting without him may mean playing catch-up against the field.
João Pedro (£5.1m)
Having missed out on the Brazilian squad for the World Cup, the forward looks rejuvenated after a rested summer, netting seven times and assisting twice more in pre-season. With no European distractions for the Blues this season, and attacking intent shown in new manager Xabi Alonso’s selections thus far, the 24-year-old looks primed for a successful season.
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Antoine Semenyo (£4.9m)
Perhaps one of the biggest surprises in the pricing for the new season was the City winger’s sub-£5m tag. The January recruit was the second-highest scorer in the game last season, and has looked the most dangerous of Enzo Moresca’s attacking assets in pre-season, so looks the stand-out midfield option.
Gabriel Magalhães (£4.9m)
Another that perhaps warranted a higher price increase, the Brazilian only missed out on breaking the 200-point barrier due to his injury late in the season. While there are cheaper options in the champions’ backline, including Christhian Mosquera (£3.7m), who looks likely to deputise for the injured William Saliba (£4.6m), getting the assurances over long-term starts and the additional attacking returns is enough to warrant paying the higher expense.
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Nico O’Reilly (£4.2m)
The England international has incurred a position change in TFF, and will now gain points for clean sheets as a defender on top of his attacking returns. Had he scored as a defender last season, he would have topped his position table; therefore, £4.2m seems too good value to turn down.
One notable omission from the list is Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes (£6.5m). It isn’t through the belief that the veteran won’t return heavily once again this season, but rather that there appears to be more value across a wide range of mid-priced options where TFF managers can optimise value across their starting XIs.
‘He is, fifteen seconds past 9:41 a.m. EST, the moment the picture is taken, in the clutches of pure physics, accelerating at a rate of thirty-two feet per second squared,’ Esquire Magazine wrote in 2003.
‘He will soon be travelling at upwards of 150 miles per hour, and he is upside down. In the picture, he is frozen; in his life outside the frame, he drops and keeps dropping until he disappears.’
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Jonathan was 43 and married to his wife Hillary when he went into work on September 11.
He had asthma. His sister, Gwendolyn, told Esquire that when she saw the picture, she knew that if it was her brother, he would have done ‘anything’ to breathe and escape the smoke and heat.
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But it was his outfit that made his family realise that Jonathan was likely the man in the photo.
The FBI found his body intact, and Jonathan’s brother went to identify it. In the photo, as the man is sailing through the air, his work uniform flutters and reveals a bright orange shirt below it.
That’s what Jonathan wore to work most days.
Jonathan was buried, but the photo of his last moments, falling past hundreds of storeys in central New York, has become a symbol of what the city lost that day.
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Jonathan was 43 when he died (Picture: Legacy)
His sister, Gwen Briley-Strand, 72, recently told the Daily Mail: ‘There are times when it feels like 25 years but, then again, there are times when it feels like yesterday.’
25 years after photographer Richard Drew began snapping photos of people falling from the Twin Towers, the infamous photo is now in a private collection belonging to Sir Elton John.
He said: ‘It’s the most beautiful image of something so tragic. It’s probably one of the most perfect photographs ever taken.’
Jonathan’s sister added: ‘We’re strong believers as Christians that there is an afterlife, and we all will be judged, but God isn’t this vindictive person. He’s a benevolent and loving God.
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‘I believe that all those individuals who jumped were caught. Their spirits were caught.’
A new romance for Summer Spellman could be on the horizon (Picture: ITV)
Summer Spellman’s love life is about to take an unexpected turn in Coronation Street next week, as newcomer Marco makes quite the impression, although his unusual way of getting her attention doesn’t exactly get things off to the best start.
Upcoming scenes see Summer (Harriet Bibby) encounter the mysterious newcomer in the café, where he takes an interest in her artwork.
Marco compliments Summer on her drawing, and there appears to be an immediate connection between them, but things take a rather bizarre turn when she briefly heads to the loo.
While Summer is away from the table, Marco rips the page containing her drawing out of her notepad, and then promptly disappears with it.
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Understandably, Summer has no idea what has happened to her work, but it isn’t long before she makes a surprising discovery.
Later, while passing the tattoo shop, Summer spots something familiar in the window; her missing drawing is on display!
Is there more to Marco than meets the eye? (Picture: ITV)
Realising Marco is responsible, she wastes little time confronting him outside the shop and demands to know why he stole her design.
Marco, however, has an unexpected explanation.
He admits taking the picture was actually an excuse to ensure he would get the opportunity to see Summer again.
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Marco then offers to buy the drawing from her and, making his intentions even clearer, suggests the pair could meet for a drink.
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Despite their unconventional introduction, it seems Summer is intrigued enough to give the newcomer a chance.
She later catches up with best friends Asha Alahan (Tanisha Gorey) and Amy Barlow (Elle Mulvaney), revealing that she has agreed to go on a date with Marco.
However, Summer admits she still has reservations about the situation, and after the way they first met, perhaps that’s understandable.
The conversation soon turns to the trio’s respective relationship troubles (Picture: ITV)
Asha has worries of her own as she prepares to return to work and face Sienna again, while the friends find themselves sympathising with one another over their failed romances.
For Summer, though, it looks as though there could finally be something new on the horizon.
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Whatever concerns she initially has about Marco apparently aren’t enough to put her off completely, as she subsequently tells Asha and Amy that she has arranged another date with him.
A second date certainly suggests the first goes well enough for Summer to want to find out more about Weatherfield’s newest arrival.
But viewers might still have questions about Marco. Stealing someone’s artwork to get their attention is certainly a memorable introduction, and Summer herself initially appears unsure about his intentions.
Is Marco simply a cheeky romantic who went about asking Summer out in a very strange way, or could there be more to him than meets the eye?
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Whatever the answer, sparks are clearly beginning to fly, with that all-important second date confirming Summer is willing to see where things go.
Could Weatherfield have a brand new couple on its hands?
It will provide a ‘desperately needed new transport link’
The government has approved plans for a controversial new busway linking Cambridge and Cambourne. The Cambourne to Cambridge guided busway route, known as C2C, was first proposed in 2014 with a two-month public inquiry finishing in November of last year.
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There were concerns about safety after the deaths of three people on a different busway in the county between 2015 and 2021. The project is estimated to cost £180m and will run through the century-old Coton Orchard, and has led to more than 300 objections to the route.
The plans will be delivered by Cambridgeshire County Council on behalf of the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP). The planned route will go via the new Bourn Airfield development, Hardwick, Coton and the university’s Cambridge West site.
The GCP said Cambourne is expected to grow “significantly” over the next few years, with plans for up to 13,000 new homes, and hope the busway will provide 10,000 daily passenger trips. The secretary of state approved the plans on Tuesday evening (September 8).
Cllr Brian Milnes, chair of the the GCP’s executive board, said that with thousands more homes planned for Cambourne, the route will be a “desperately needed new transport link”.
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He said: “We all know how difficult it can be for residents to get from Cambourne into Cambridge. Whilst many objectors wanted Cambourne to Cambridge to take a different route, almost all of them agreed that improved public transport is essential for our area.”
Cllr Lucy Nethsingha, leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, said the link would give “tens of thousands of residents” easy access to “low carbon and low congestion transport into Cambridge city”. Cllr Katie Thornburrow, leader of Cambridge City Council, said the route was an “important component” of an “integrated transport solution for the region”.
She said: “Offering fast, efficient public transport along with options for active transport like cycling gives everyone more choice. I am confident this scheme will ease congestion and delays on key routes into the city, improve journey reliability and contribute to better air quality, while supporting sustainable growth for communities both now and in the future.”
Cllr Bridget Smith, leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “It’s vital our growing communities have a reliable, sustainable, and affordable way to travel between Cambourne and the city – giving them a genuine alternative to driving.
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“It will be particularly transformational for younger residents – giving them better access to Cambridge’s opportunities.”
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