An osteopath says we should change positions regularly (Picture: Getty Images/Westend61)
Too often, women are told to ‘sit like a lady’, which usually results in one knee being crossed over the other.
If I had to bet on it, I’d guess you’re sitting in this exact position now, while reading this. Am I right?
For some, sitting this way is just comfortable, but for others, it’s about modesty. And a few will have had it drilled into them that it’s the most ‘lady-like’ way to sit. Sigh.
Some celebs, such as Billie Eilish and Lady Gaga have rebelled against this notion, being praised for adopting more ‘masculine’ seating positions during interviews.
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If you’re thinking of doing the same and spreading out on your seat, we’ve got even more reason for you to do so, as experts warn this ‘lady like’ position could actually be damaging your health.
Always sit like this? (Picture: Getty Images)
Why is sitting with one knee over the other bad for you?
Anisha Joshi, an osteopath with two decades of clinical experience, tells Metro that the reason this particular position is considered harmful is because of one primary reason: ‘asymmetry.’
She explains: ‘Sitting cross-legged on a chair rotates one hip while the other stays relatively neutral, which means one side of your pelvis, hip, and lower back is working differently to the other.
For some it’s about comfort, but we’ve all been told to ‘sit like a lady’ before (Picture: Getty Images)
‘Over time, that imbalance may contribute to tightness in the hip rotators, uneven load through the lower spine, and discomfort that people often can’t immediately trace back to how they’ve been sitting.’
Another thing to consider is blood flow.
When you cross your legs, particularly at the knee, it can temporarily increase blood pressure as the top leg exerts pressure on the veins of the bottom leg.
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Is sitting ‘like a lady’ really that lady like?
If you think sitting with one knee over the other maintains your lady like dignity and decorum, think again.
In fact, according to etiquette experts of days gone by, this wasn’t the right way to go about sitting down at all.
Famous 1920s etiquette expert, Emily Post, wrote that ‘no lady of dignity ever crossed her knees.’
She also added: ‘No lady should cross her knees so that her skirt goes above them.’ Heaven forbid.
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In fact, the most dignified position is one you might see the likes of Kate Middleton adopt during public appearances, known as the Duchess Slant.
Made famous by her mother-in-law, Princess Diana, it’s about keeping the knees, legs and ankles together, and slanting them to one side.
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What is the best position to sit in?
If you’re going to be seated for a long stretch, there’s an alternative option for you.
Anisha says: ‘A good starting point is both feet flat on the floor, knees roughly at hip height or lower, and your lower back lightly supported.’
However, she adds that ‘movement is really what matters most.
Anisha continues: ‘More important than getting the ‘perfect’ position is changing it regularly. Even if that means shifting your weight, stretching your legs out, or standing up for a couple of minutes every 30 to 40 minutes.’
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The main thing to remember is to keep moving your position regularly (Picture: Getty Images)
While Anisha recognises the specific impact the ‘ladylike position’ can have, she notes that when we when we hold any position for a long time, the muscles supporting that posture start to ‘fatigue, circulation slows in the areas under pressure, and the joints aren’t getting the fluid movement they need to stay healthy.’
‘That’s true whether you’re sitting upright, slouched, or cross-legged, the problem is the stillness, not just the shape.’
This is how long you should be able to hold a squat for, according to your age
Confident about your posture and wanting to test yourself in a different way? Why not see if your squat skills stand up to the test.
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Vehicular and pedestrian access will be permitted where practical during the closures.
Wishaw drivers have been warned over a number of road closures in the coming weeks.
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Between June 22 and 26, Earn Crescent will be closed due to carriageway resurfacing works to be carried out.
Vehicular and pedestrian access will be permitted where practical during the closure.
Drivers on the southwest side of the closure wishing to access the northwest side should proceed via Gair Crescent and Earn Crescent.
Vehicles on the northwest wishing to access the southwest should proceed vice versa.
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Carriageway resurfacing works will also be completed on Hawick Street in Coltness. The work will be carried out from June 22 to 24.
Motorists on the south side of the closure wishing to access the north side should proceed via Hawick Street, Kilmeny Crescent, Hazeldean Crescent and Hawick Street. Vehicles on the north side wishing to access the south side should proceed vice versa.
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WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT The boy was found lifeless on the bank of the Vilaine River in the city of Rennes in northwestern France
Paige Ingram Multimedia Journalist and Annette Belcher
08:09, 26 May 2026
Police have questioned two teenagers after an 11-year-old boy was reported to have been found dead near a river with a wet towel tied around his neck. The unnamed child was discovered lifeless on the bank of the Vilaine River in the city of Rennes, located in northwestern France.
The alarm was raised at just after 4.30pm on Sunday when a fisherman heard the cries of a child near the river. He immediately contacted emergency services, prompting firefighters to rush to the location by 4:50pm. However, despite all desperate efforts, the young boy was tragically pronounced dead at the scene.
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Following the tragic discovery, French police launched a murder investigation, leading to two arrests. Rennes prosecutor Frederic Teillet confirmed that on Monday, a 16-year-old boy was detained at his home, whilst a 15-year-old girl was arrested after turning herself in at a police station, reports The Mirror.
“It is therefore the two young people who were seen with the victim at the scene on the afternoon of the incident who are currently in police custody” on charges of “murder of a minor,” he said in a statement.
Teillet confirmed the victim had been 11 years old, not 12 as initially announced.
Local media report that the boy’s mother had been searching for him at the time the riverside ordeal unfolded. He had told her he was going fishing in the area with a friend. According to authorities, the ordeal took place “in a wooded area at the foot of several apartment buildings, below the bridge that crosses over the Vilaine River”.
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It remains unclear how the three children knew each other.
The organised and specialised crime division has taken charge of the ongoing investigation.
Almost 90 drones fell into the water of Sydney’s Darling Harbour during a light festival on Monday.
The malfunction was due to “unforeseen technical difficulties”, according to organisers Vivid Sydney, an annual three-week festival that features large light installations.
Two upcoming aerial displays have now been cancelled.
A Vivid Sydney spokesperson apologised for the “disappointment and inconvenience caused to attendees” and said the drone operators cancelled the show “in line with standard safety protocols”.
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Cabin crew were reportedly asking for any passengers with medical training to come to the pilot’s aid
Tannur Anders UK & World News Reporter and Olivia Bridge Reporter in Live News Network
07:52, 26 May 2026Updated 07:52, 26 May 2026
A flight travelling to the UK was forced to make an emergency landing after the pilot suffered a suspected heart attack mid-flight.
The Jet2 flight LS1266, bound for Birmingham, had departed Tenerife on Friday (May 22) when it was forced to divert to Portugal. The plane, carrying 220 passengers, was cruising at 30,000 ft when it had to make the unscheduled landing at Francisco Sa Carneiro Airport near Porto.
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Passengers said how cabin crew rushed down the aisles, asking if anyone onboard had any medical training. They said lights were flicking as the plane plummeted into a rapid descent and children cried as it quickly lost altitude, reports The Mirror.
“My partner and I were asleep when we were woken by chaos,” a passenger told The Sun.
“Lights began flashing and hostesses who were visibly upset, seeking a doctor. Our two-year-old began crying like many other children on board because the aircraft was dropping so quickly for an emergency landing.”
The aircraft landed in Porto at 2.11 am local time and emergency services boarded immediately. Medical staff attended to the pilot in the cockpit before he was taken to the hospital.
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Passengers are understood to have remained on board for over an hour before disembarking and then spent about 13 hours in the terminal while the airline organised replacement crew.
A pilot flew in from Manchester to take travellers to Birmingham on a different aircraft.
“We were stranded in Portugal for over 13 hours without accommodation… There was nowhere to stay. They said accommodation was too expensive,” one passenger reportedly said.
Jet2 said the incident was due to one of the pilots feeling unwell.
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“Flight LS1266 from Tenerife to Birmingham diverted to Porto on Thursday (21st May), due to one of the pilots feeling unwell,” Jet2 told The Sun.
“At no point was safety compromised, and customers subsequently continued their journey. We would like to apologise to customers for this unforeseen delay.”
She has felt unwell and very vulnerable, suffering from depression and feeling like her ‘life was over’ at times.
00:01, 26 May 2026Updated 07:37, 26 May 2026
A Belfast woman says arthritis diagnosis delays are leaving many people like herself in pain and in limbo.
Pat O’Connor, 68, from Belfast is one of the 550,000 people in Northern Ireland living with a musculoskeletal (MSK) condition like arthritis.
She has felt unwell and very vulnerable, suffering from depression and feeling like her ‘life was over’ at times. She’s taken it upon herself to research her condition but has felt left in the dark.
Pat started getting pain in her left knee around 20 years ago , but it went away, then, four years ago, it started again becoming worse. About three years ago Pat went to the doctor and an x-ray showed she had arthritis in her knee.
Following her x-ray, she was given painkillers and two physio appointments after being diagnosed with arthritis and believes that a lack of information and support was instrumental in her being forced to retire early.
Despite having her x-ray and physiotherapy appointment over three years ago Pat still feels in the dark about her condition, with no one ever giving her a full diagnosis, or being told what type of arthritis she has and how to manage it.
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“It has been an incredibly difficult process to receive a diagnosis and treatment. There are many hurdles and dead ends to overcome at a time when you are feeling unwell and very vulnerable.
“Ultimately it cost me my job as work became harder and I retired in April 2024, even though I felt I’d so much more to give, which left me feeling useless and wondering what my life was going to be.
“I was very low and at times felt so depressed, like life was over for me. There was such a lack of information. If someone had just taken a few minutes rather than assuming I knew where to start with researching myself—just a few minutes to tell me, to explain different types of arthritis and the effect—then it may have had less of an impact on my life.”
A new report today from Arthritis UK says too many people with arthritis are being left in pain, uncertainty and without vital support while waiting for a diagnosis.
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With more than 10 million adults, young people and children in the UK living with arthritis, the charity warns that delays in an arthritis diagnosis can have major consequences for people’s health, work and independence.
The uncertainty of not knowing what is wrong can also take a major toll on mental well-being, make conditions harder to treat, while creating wider costs for the NHS and the economy.
The Silent Treatment: Why an Arthritis diagnosis matters reveals that delays are often caused not by one single long wait, but by a series of barriers across the diagnosis pathway.
Symptoms may be dismissed as minor, mistaken for ageing or work-related strain, or not recognised as arthritis at all. Once people seek help, they can face further hurdles such as difficulty getting appointments, delays accessing tests, or long waits for specialist referrals.
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Last year, Arthritis UK’s report, Left Waiting, Left Behind: The Reality of Living with Arthritis, highlighted the scale of the problem. Among respondents with a diagnosis, 38% said getting a diagnosis took too long and 54% reported unreasonable waits or delays to see the relevant specialist.
This new report, launched as part of Arthritis Awareness Month, builds on that evidence by piecing together how these delays are experienced in real life.
Drawing on lived experience workshops and focus groups, as well as input from health and care professionals, the report found that diagnosis is about far more than a medical label. For many, it provides reassurance, recognition and a route to treatment, information and support after months or years of pain and uncertainty.
The sense of finally knowing that pain and symptoms were real and recognised was an area many found hugely comforting. This benefit is reflected in the charity’s previous findings, with 62% agreeing that receiving a diagnosis validated their experiences.
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Arthritis UK says these experiences highlight the urgent need for UK governments to prioritise arthritis and related conditions and support health and care professionals operating in an already stretched system.
This could be faster, clearer routes to diagnosis with improved training for healthcare staff, including better recognition of symptoms, timely referral to specialist care and tailored support for people while they wait and at the point of diagnosis.
Sara Graham, Head of Northern Ireland at Arthritis UK, says people here with arthritis are waiting far too long for answers and support while living with pain and worsening symptoms.
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She added: “Getting the right diagnosis quickly can be life-changing. When diagnosis is delayed, people are left in pain, uncertainty and without the support, treatment and information they need.
“In some cases, conditions may worsen while people wait, causing long-term damage and leaving people feeling isolated and alone.
“Delayed diagnosis has a wider cost. When people cannot access the care they need, it can affect their ability to work, care for families or live independently, while placing further pressure on our already stretched health services.
“Northern Ireland’shealth system cannot afford for arthritis and musculoskeletal conditions to continue to be overlooked. Faster routes to diagnosis, earlier intervention, better awareness and support must become a national priority.”
Donald Trump raised eyebrows this weekend after he yet again shared a series of provocative posts on his Truth Social platform, including one that appeared to depict Iran draped in the American flag.
The image showed a map of the Middle East labeled with countries Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
The country of Iran was filled in using the US flag.
It was simply titled, “The United States of the Middle East?”
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The post came as reports swirled of a potential US deal with Iran to end Trump’s war, which he launched in February. The possible negotiation, however, has drawn criticism from members of Trump’s own Republican Party.
The president also shared an image of himself gazing over Greenland, the semi-autonomous Danish territory he has repeatedly suggested the US should somehow take control of (alongside Canada and Venezuela).
A day earlier, he posted a photo showing an Iranian boat being blasted underneath the word, “Adios.”
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Kammy Hadiq is hiding a devastating reality (Picture: ITV)
The following article contains spoilers from the episode of Emmerdale dated May 26. It hasn’t aired on ITV1 yet, but can be viewed on ITVX and YouTube.
Brb, just picking up the pieces of my broken heart after watching secretly homeless Kammy Hadiq (Shebz Miah) hide under a blanket in the middle of a freezing cold barn in Emmerdale.
Belle stuck up for Kammy, but it was clear that Aaron’s words were playing on her mind. In the pub, Belle wondered if she could meet Kammy’s family soon, but he made an excuse and quickly rushed away.
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To celebrate Eid, Belle presented Kammy with a homemade card as today’s episode opened. He was touched, but then grew cold when she mentioned popping by his home to see his relatives. Belle didn’t want Kammy to feel pressured and suggested that she could just stick her head in the door and then go, but Kammy wasn’t keen.
He snapped at Belle and told her to forget the idea of meeting his family, and she was very surprised to see this side to her boyfriend.
The dynamic between Kammy and Belle didn’t get any easier when they arrived at The Hide a few hours later. When Kammy stepped out and Belle was left alone with his phone, she debated going through it.
Belle knew this was a bad move, but alarm bells were starting to go off in her mind. She was prevented from totally invading Kammy’s privacy though due to him returning to the table. Belle swiftly got up and claimed to a stunned Kammy that she needed to get back to work.
Dawn tried to reassure Belle, telling her that she doesn’t think Kammy is a bad person.
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As Belle convinced herself that her past was impacting her present, and that Kammy wasn’t at fault, his secret was revealed to us.
Inside one of the barns on Emmerdale Farm, Kammy was lighting up a camping stove ready to heat a tin of baked beans. As his makeshift meal bubbled away, a freezing cold Kammy hid under a blanket as it was confirmed to us that he is homeless.
Kammy’s week will go from bad to worse when he’s caught with a lighter and a can of petrol while on Robert Sugden’s (Ryan Hawley) land.
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Robert and Aaron immediately accuse Kammy of being the arsonist, but he then reveals that he was actually planning on torching his car. Due to the fact Kammy legs it from the conversation seconds later, it looks like he’s guilty.
He’s then taken out of the village in a police car after Aaron makes the call, but will he tell anyone the truth about what he’s going through?
‘It’s that thing of peeling back the layers and just learning more about the character. One thing about Kammy is that he is the first Pakistani Muslim we’ve had on Emmerdale, and that itself is a big thing’, star Shebz Miah said, reflecting on Kammy’s new story.
‘And I think now we can finally start to truly understand what that looks like, especially in British soap as well. It’s not really common. So, I am excited and stoked to be able to finally tap into that. But also, the beauty is that I get to show Kammy as just a normal British Bradford lad as well. And it’s amazing that I’m able to blur the lines ever so slightly.
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Kammy is accused of being the farm arsonist (Picture: ITV)
‘But also show myself, as Shebz. I am also sort of Muslim, and South Asian background, I get to show that as well, and it’s a big thing. I am so glad. I went to the producer, I was like, “please let it happen.” I’m truly excited. And you know, a lot of the fans constantly are asking me, “When are we ever going to learn more about Kammy?” And I think now’s the perfect time.
He added: ‘I think from when I first came in to now, it’s been a slow burner, but I think we are starting to learn more about Kammy and see that there is more to him than this cheekiness that he’s got and this bravado that he puts on.’
‘The mask comes off, and we get to see this different version of what we’ve seen so far. Uncomfortable at times, but at the end of the day, he’s human, and there’s only so long you can keep the bravado for. But yeah, fans won’t expect it, and it will snowball into other things as well, but we start to see why and where it all came from.’
Pope Leo has called for a ‘robust legal framework’ to be put in place to regulate AI, warning that autonomous weapons systems have advanced ‘practically beyond any human reach to govern them’ in a sweeping new encyclical
Emma O’Neill Content Editor and Alice Scarsi
15:24, 25 May 2026Updated 15:29, 25 May 2026
Pope Leo has called on governments to decelerate and rigorously oversee the advancement of AI systems in his first major document, published on Monday.
Speaking at a Vatican event to launch the text, the first US pope voiced his alarm that certain autonomous weapons systems have progressed “practically beyond any human reach to govern them”.
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Pope Leo, who has adopted a more assertive stance in recent months and has attracted criticism from Donald Trump following his condemnation of the Iran war, made several passionate pleas to world leaders in the extensive document, known as an encyclical. The head of the Catholic Church argued that ownership of AI data should not rest exclusively in private hands, urged policy-makers to safeguard workers’ rights and protect children from the technology, and called for a reduction in rivalry between AI companies.
In the text, entitled Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity), he said: “What is needed is a more active political involvement that is capable of slowing things down when everything is accelerating.”
The pope called for “robust legal frameworks, independent oversight, informed users and a political system that does not abdicate its responsibility.”
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Encyclicals represent one of the most authoritative forms of teaching from a pontiff to the Church’s 1.4 billion members, reports the Express.
Monday’s eagerly awaited text, extending to nearly 43,000 words, has been under development almost since Leo’s election as pope just over a year ago. The document, which focused primarily on AI, also condemned the prevalence of armed conflicts across the globe.
He said: “The past 60 years have been marked by conflicts of astonishing brutality, often affecting civilian populations on a massive scale. Humanity is slipping into a violent culture of power, where peace no longer appears as a responsibility to be taken on, but as a fragile interval between conflicts.”
In his encyclical, Leo also delivered one of the most explicit papal rejections to date of the just war theory, a teaching the Church has employed since at least the fifth century to assess global conflicts.
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The teaching broadly states that military action should only be undertaken to counter aggression.
“The ‘just war’ theory which has all too often been used to justify any kind of war, is now outdated,” wrote Leo. “The use of force, violence and weapons reflects a relational poverty that always has disastrous consequences for civilian populations.”
The pontiff also stated that any deployment of AI in military operations “must be subject to the most rigorous ethical constraints” and declared it “not permissible” to allow AI systems to make lethal decisions.
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