The group, which also included a nude jogger, gathered near Millennium Bridge on Saturday afternoon (September 12) before setting off at 4pm on an 11km route around York.

It was the 18th World Naked Bike Ride event to be held in York, aiming to highlight the dangers faced by cyclists on roads dominated by motor vehicles while raising awareness about the environmental impact of fossil-fuel-dependent transport.

Organiser Sadie Tann, a naturist from near Manchester, said she decided to lead the group to ensure the message continued for another year.

“It’s a scream, it’s great!” she said when asked how it feels to cycle through York naked.

The naked bike ride returned to York for its 18th year on Saturday (September 12) (Image: Dylan Connell)

A naked bike ride attendee in York on Saturday (September 12) (Image: Dylan Connell)

Sadie, 36, said she has been a naturist – a person who practises non-sexual social nudity – since she was 12 after being brought up in foster care and struggling with her body and confidence.

“I always struggled with me – just the core of me,” she said. “But naturism is just a release from that.

“It helps me to feel like me, without all the stuff we weigh ourselves down with – all the modern-day stuff that we don’t really need to be worrying about. I manage to get rid off all that as soon as I take my clothes off.”

She started being a naturist in public around six years and with her partner, Colin Unsworth, now even goes to the pub and to gigs naked which she said is “amazing”.

“The village where we live has got quite used to us being naked,” she said, adding: “It makes getting ready really easy as well!”

Sadie and Colin made headlines in 2022 after they cycled naked from John O’Groats to Land’s End to raise money for mental health charity Mind.

“It was cold,” Sadie said of the more than 874-mile journey.

‘It’s a scream, it’s great’ … Naked bike ride returns to York on Saturday (September 12) (Image: Dylan Connell)

Sadie said she spends most of her life nude because “this is who I am”. “It’s more for acceptance.”

She said she has experienced misogynistic comments from men while clothed but not when nude because “they just don’t know what to do with it”.

“We do get the odd person who can see past that and is very inspired by it,” she added. “We don’t want people to run around naked – that’s not what this is about – it’s about making people feel that they can be themselves however that is.”

‘We are told to fear nudity before we are taught to understand it’

John Cossham was also in attendance at the naked bike ride and said attitudes towards cyclists “haven’t really changed much” in the almost two decades that he has been involved with the event in York.

He said cars have become larger and roads busier with fewer cyclists on the roads than there once were.

“Some cycling facilities have improved, some are still inadequate,” he said.

Read next:

John said he felt it was important to continue the ride’s calls for slower speeds and switching from cars to zero carbon transport.

“I’m not a naturist,” he said, “but I like it that people are comfortable with their bodies. And we shouldn’t be body shaming somebody.”

Barry Fairbrother, who travelled from near Skipton to attend the naked bike ride, added: “The problem with society is that we are told to fear nudity before we are taught to understand it.”

Greater Manchester Police have shared an appeal to find 13-year-old Lillia.

She was last spotted on Ainsworth Lane at around 9.15pm on Friday (September 11).

Lillia is described as a white girl who is approximately 5ft 5in tall, of slim build, with brown hair and glasses.

When last seen, Lillia was wearing a black zip-up hoodie, light blue ripped jeans and a Nike backpack.

Officers are becoming increasingly concerned about Lillia and want to make sure she is found safe and well.

Anyone who has any information on Lillia’s whereabouts is urged to immediately call police on 0161 856 2661, quoting MSP/06KK/0002168/26.

Members of the public should always call 999 in an emergency.

A former barrister who plotted a revenge attack with a gangster pal; a ‘highly organised’ burglary gang; and a ‘predatory’ sex offender are among the criminals locked up this week in Greater Manchester.

Samreen Akhtar told her criminal mate – and client – Tabish Ali ‘we get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him’ after he was shot amid a ‘turf war’ between rival gangs.

Also locked up this week were two arsonists who targeted a business causing £300,000 worth of damage and two brothers who attacked a man after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.

Click here to hear the latest from Manchester’s courts in our newsletter

Prison terms are handed out to the worst offenders. Each week Manchester Evening News court reporters are on hand to cover the most serious cases.

These are the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester this week…

David Owen, Wayne Jones, Lucas Staines, Rohan Brown and Liam Dodds

A ‘highly organised’ burglary gang brought terror to Greater Manchester in a £500,000 crime spree over 16 months, with children forced to hide as masked thugs broke into homes.

The gang were behind a ‘persistent burglary network’ which saw family gold and jewellery stolen from homes, as well as designer handbags and other valuable goods.

Greater Manchester Police said ‘affluent households’ across Salford, Bury and Trafford were targeted between January, 2024 and May, 2025.

Masked burglars smashed down doors and windows to access homes, with most of the break-ins taking place in daylight when the gang believed they would be empty.

But GMP said that in one burglary, a child hid inside a wardrobe while crooks searched a bedroom. In another break-in, another child also ran to a bathroom to hide as they tried to get inside.

David Owen, 24, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years and four months for nine counts of burglary. Lucas Staines, 20, of HMP Forest Bank, was jailed for the same period for 15 counts of burglary.

Liam Dodds, 34, from Salford, got six years, four months in relation to eight counts of burglary. Wayne Jones, 23, of Dunedin Drive, Salford, was jailed for eight years for five counts of burglary.

Rohan Brown, 22, of Riverside Way, Salford, got five years, four months for seven burglaries.

Read the full story here: ‘Highly organised’ burglary gang brought terror to Greater Manchester in £500k crime spree

Samreen Akhtar

A barrister plotted a revenge attack with a gangster friend after he was shot by a would-be assassin amid a violent turf war fought between rival drugs gangs.

Samreen Akhtar, 38, was a qualified barrister specialising in criminal law. On September 14 2021, client and family friend Tabish Ali was shot in a violent incident in Blacker Road, Huddersfield. A court heard he was blasted as a bitter war between opposing gangs was fought.

The day after Ali was shot, Akhtar suggested in a recorded phone call they ‘locate and cause serious harm’ to the gunman.

Manchester Crown Court heard Akhtar suggested Ali that once the man’s location was known: “We get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him.”

Akhtar, of Sufton Street, Birkby, was jailed for three years and three months.

Read the full story here: Barrister hatched revenge plot with gangster pal after he was shot by would-be assassin amid violent turf war between rival drugs gangs

Sohail Aurangzeb

A man left a pensioner with fatal injuries after smashing into her in his wife’s car. Sheila Rowan, 70, was knocked down by Sohail Aurangzeb in his partner’s Nissan Juke, which he took without her permission on the afternoon of August 10 last year.

Aurangzeb, 42, had no driving licence and wasn’t insured. He said he got lost and drove onto a rural, cobbled road in Ashton-under-Lyne. He claimed he drove into a ditch, which caused the car to swerve and hit Mrs Rowan.

Manchester Crown Court heard Aurangzeb drove away and didn’t report the incident. Mrs Rowan was found by passers-by who called 999. She died in hospital later that day.

Aurangzeb was jailed for seven years and four months. He earlier pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, with court documents stating Ms Rowan’s death was ’caused by accident’.

Read the full story here: When his wife finally got hold of him, he didn’t even mention the horrific events that unfolded hours earlier

Jacob Berry

A thug who ‘abused and terrorised’ four women has been jailed for life.

Jacob Berry left his victims with ‘lasting emotional and psychological trauma’.

Berry, 34, was found guilty of seven counts of rape; four counts of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour; and one count of assault by penetration following a trial, Greater Manchester Police said.

Read the full story here: Thug ‘abused and terrorised’ four women

James Davidson

Advertisement

A ‘predatory’ sex offender has been jailed again after he was found to have been posing as a teenage boy during sick chats with young girls.

James Davidson, 60, from Stockport, was first sent to prison in 2020, being sentenced to two years behind bars for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to meet a girl under 16 following sexual grooming, and attempting to cause a child under 16 to watch a sexual act.

As part of his sentence he was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), which restricted his online activity and was monitored by Greater Manchester Police’s Sex Offender Management Unit.

In March 2025, officers from the unit raided his home after a tip-off he was breaching the order. After interrogating a number of devices, they found he had been communicating with multiple girls while using aliases and pretending to be a 17 year-old boy.

Davidson admitted sexual communication with a child and 25 breaches of his SHPO and was sentenced to two years and seven months.

Read the full story here: The Stockport monster who said he ‘didn’t care about age’ and thought he could hide from police

Jody Lynam

Jody Lynam targeted an innocent family’s home by setting it alight.

Stuart and Claire Marsden had enjoyed a night out together before returning home and going to bed just before 1am. But they were woken up shortly after by a ‘loud crash’. Mr Marsden went to investigate and found a large fire in their rented end-of-terrace home in Bury.

He and his wife were able to escape the blaze, but their house was severely damaged and nine months on, remains uninhabitable. Their children had been staying elsewhere for the night.

Police recovered footage which showed Jody Lynam and a second, unknown offender approaching the house, at about 1.40am on January 18 this year. The unknown man smashed a window before Lynam poured petrol inside. An ‘explosion’ was caused and the pair fled.

Lynam was caught after DNA from a balaclava which he discarded nearby was traced to him. Minshull Street Crown Court was told that drug addict Lynam and his co-offender had been acting on orders from a drug dealer, who pressured them into targeting a rival dealer to ‘send a message’ and intimidate.

Lynam, of Hardfield Street, Heywood, pleaded guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered. He was jailed for six years and nine months.

Read the full story here: Innocent family caught up in gangland feud as men in balaclavas poured petrol into wrong home and set it ablaze while they slept

Reece Taylor and Paul Taylor

Two brothers brutally attacked a man in broad daylight after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.

Reece Taylor threw his victim to the floor before punching and kicking him outside a block of flats in Ashton-under-Lyne. Minshull Street Crown Court heard the ‘unprovoked’ attack came after the man had asked Taylor to stop ‘hitting his dog’.

Taylor denied he had hit his dog and was not convicted of an animal cruelty offence. He then proceeded to attack the man, before his brother Paul Taylor became involved after mistakenly believing his sibling had blood on his face, after the victim had sprayed Reece Taylor with red dye.

The pair have now both been handed extended sentences for public protection.

Read the full story here: ‘Dangerous’ brothers in the dock following ‘absolutely brutal’ attack – before one decides he can’t behave and goes back to the cells

Diogo Cabral and Emanuel Simoes

Arsonists were caught on CCTV breaking into a business and starting a fire while one of them was still inside. Portuguese nationals Diogo Cabral, 21, and Emanuel Feliciano Simoes, 36, organised the attack on Snapchat, carried out with an unknown third man.

“Let’s do this mission today,” one message discovered by detectives read. Manchester Crown Court heard they were seen pulling up in a car outside Shzsr Enterprises Ltd, on Broughton Street, Cheetham Hill at around midnight on March 1, 2023.

They prised open the shutters with crowbars before two of them ran back to the car and grabbing bottles of accelerant. One of the three remained inside the building after a door was smashed and a fire started.

There was a ‘spontaneous explosion of light and flames’, prosecutor Henry Blackshaw said. The third man, who was behind the shutters, was seen on CCTV fleeing like a ‘scalded cat’, appearing to be on fire.

After the flames died down, he joined the other two in the car before it sped off. Firefigthers raced to the scene and the blaze was extinguished. Around £300,000 of damage was caused at the bedding supply business.

Cabral, of no fixed address, was jailed for five years and four months. Simoes, of Smedley Lane, Cheetham Hill, was jailed for three years.

Read the full story here: ‘Let’s do this mission today’: Snapchatting arsonists thought they had the perfect plan – now they’ve been locked up

Cameron Caswell

A Salford drug dealer hid a gun behind the fridge at his mum’s house. Cameron Caswell, 23, was arrested after police made the discovery following a raid at the Salford property in 2024.

Manchester Crown Court heard cops executed a warrant on Aspinall Crescent in Little Hulton, on December 14. A black bag was found behind a fridge freezer in the pantry. Inside was a gun and ammunition.

Experts determined the weapon was a Turkish-manufactured Zoraki 917. Caswell was jailed at Manchester Crown Court on Friday (September 11).

Read the full story here: Salford drug dealer behind bars after police make discovery behind fridge at his mum’s house

Daragh Burke, 37, is taking on the world’s biggest half marathon in place of PC Matthew Blades, determined to make sure the number his friend was due to wear still crosses the finish line.

PC Blades and his colleague, PC Tom Clough, died when a VW travelling the wrong way along the A66 at South Bank hit their marked police car head-on on Saturday, August 22.

For Daragh, who says “we couldn’t have been closer”, taking Matthew’s place is a fitting tribute to a friendship that stretched from primary school to adulthood.

The pair went through primary school, secondary school, college and university together, remaining inseparable into adulthood.

PC Matthew Blades, Daragh Burke and Conan. (Image: DARAGH BURKE)

Matthew asked Daragh to be his best man and Daragh later became godfather to Matthew’s children.

The business owner said: “We couldn’t have been closer.

“Since the incident I just feel like I’m waiting for him to get in touch as he was always at the other end of the phone.

“That’s one of the hardest parts for me.”

PC Blades was due to complete the Great North Run for Parkinson’s UK tomorrow (September 13).

“I didn’t want to see his number go to waste.

“Me doing it will get that number over the line and hopefully raise a bit more money.”

Unlike many runners who spend months training for the 13.1-mile challenge, Daragh has had only weeks to prepare.

He said: “I haven’t done much running over the past few years but I’ve given it my all in the weeks I’ve had.

“Matthew would be laughing his head off at me doing this as I’ve only had two weeks training but he would be immensely proud as I know Parkinson’s UK is something he felt so strongly about helping.”

The challenge carries added emotion after Daragh joined Matthew’s family, friends and colleagues at his funeral this week.

He said: “I was in the police for a period of time so I know what the job entails, but for all those police officers to come out and show their support was unbelievable.”

Daragh remembered the final weeks he spent with Matthew.

Daragh’s son Conan was christened just over a month before Matthew died.

Matthew became Conan’s godfather and wrote him a card saying: “Dream big, always believe in yourself.”

Daragh said: “That sums him up, that was just who he was.”

On Sunday, thousands of runners will race from Newcastle to South Shields.

Matthew’s funeral took place on Emergency Services Day, a national day of remembrance for those who have died in the line of duty.

Hundreds of people packed St Joseph’s Church in Hartlepool to pay their respects to the 37-year-old father of two who died on duty. Standard bearers from every force across the country lined the route as PC Blades’ hearse made the journey to the church.

His coffin was draped in the Union Jack flag. The hearse carried a floral tribute at its front: “Dad”.

Donate to the fundraiser here: Parkinson’s UK – Matthew Blades

Sir Jeremy was promoted to assistant director-general in May 2025, as part of a broader leadership shake-up. He joined the WHO as chief scientist in 2023, after almost a decade at the Wellcome Trust.

Along with Dr Tedros, the director-general, and other senior figures, Sir Jeremy was closely involved in implementing a painful down-sizing of the WHO following the US departure.

Historically, the US had been the agency’s top donor, and the funding cuts have hit the agency hard.

It has committed to slashing nearly a quarter of its global workforce and shrinking its headquarters in Geneva. Under a new organisational structure, 10 divisions were merged into four.

Sir Jeremy was responsible for one of these: Health Promotion, Disease Prevention and Control.

Speaking in March, he said: “2025 was a very difficult year. When you imagine any organisation – public or private – reducing its workforce by 30 per cent, it is extremely painful. Many institutions usually do this gradually: 10 per cent one year, another 10 per cent the next. Doing it all in a single year was awful, and the organisation lost many good people. Human resources did their best.

“I participated in the architectural overhaul and organisational redesign of WHO,” he added in an interview with the Swiss daily, Le Temps. “It is far from perfect, but the reform we have undertaken is as strategic as possible to ensure the organisation is better adapted to the health challenges of the next 20 years.”

While Sir Jeremy’s position at the WHO was a senior posting, working at the WHO, like other parts of the UN, can be frustrating, owing to its structure and governance.

The WHO is beholden to member states and is subject to enormous pressure at international level, which determines its funding stability, influences outbreak investigations, and tests its ability to act on issues that require consensus, such as the pandemic treaty.

But it is also riven by internal politics, and at the moment several senior officials, including several regional directors, have stepped back from their roles to campaign for Mr Ghebreyesus’s job as head of the organisation. His second and final term as director-general will end on August 15 next year.

It was also the location of a queen’s execution

Just a few miles over the Cambridgeshire border near Oundle, marks a site of major importance in Tudor history. Fotheringhay Castle is the remains of a large, medieval motte-and-bailey castle.

Although nowadays, there is very little left to see except a large mound of grass-covered earthworks – but it still remains a significant historic landmark. The castle, located north of Oundle, was likely founded around 1100 by Simon de Senlis, the Earl of Northampton.

The mound was once the site of a remarkable castle with an illustrious history. It overlooks a crossing point on the River Nene and it also acted as a royal palace and a prison from the 13th century.

Following its founding, the castle was under royal control, hosting a number of notable historic figures including King Henry III, Edward II, Richard III, and it was a favoured residence of several Dukes of York.

The castle was particularly famed as the birthplace of Richard III in 1452. Likely the most notorious Royal to spend time at the impressive castle was Mary Queen of Scots. She was the great-granddaughter of King Henry VII and first cousin once removed to Queen Elizabeth I.

She inherited the throne at just six days old when her father died. She briefly became queen consort in France before returning to Scotland. Mary had once claimed Queen Elizabeth’s throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics.

Seeing her as a threat, Queen Elizabeth I had her confined in various castles and manor houses across England. Following nearly 18 years in captivity, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth.

On the evening of February 7, 1587, Mary was told she was to be executed the next morning. She spent the last hours of her life in prayer, distributing her belongings to her household and writing her will and a letter to the King of France.

She was beheaded on a scaffold in the Great Hall, which was draped in black cloth. It is believed that Mary was not beheaded with a single strike as the first blow missed her neck.

Her request to be buried in France was refused by Queen Elizabeth I and her body was eventually taken to Peterborough Cathedral in July 1587 for burial. However, it was later reinterred in Westminster Abbey.

During the latter part of the Elizabethan period, the castle fell into disrepair despite its importance. The castle was later dismantled and only the grass-covered earthworks and some masonry remains.

Tina McDermont, from Washington, had hoped for a four-day break in Spain on August 30 with her husband, but tragedy struck on August 19 when her teenage son Billy lost his life in an accident

A grieving mother was denied a Ryanair refund for her Newcastle to Alicante flight after her 18-year-old son died in a tragic accident – because he passed away “too early”.

Tina McDermont, from Washington, had been looking forward to a four-day Spanish getaway on August 30 with her husband. However, on August 19, her teenage son Billy tragically lost his life in an accident.

Understandably devastated, Tina cancelled their holiday and contacted Ryanair customer support to inform them and request a refund. She had hoped to use the £350 owed for both tickets towards Billy’s funeral expenses.

Under Ryanair’s terms and conditions, passengers may claim travel credit if someone on the booking or an immediate family member (partner/parent/child only) dies within 10 days before the scheduled flight.

Tina was left “disgusted” when she discovered she wouldn’t receive any money back – purely because Billy had died 24 hours outside the policy’s timeframe.

She explained: “Billy’s death was a massive shock. He’d just turned 18. I could never have travelled and gone abroad. I just wanted to be at home with my family around me. I’m arranging my son’s funeral. There’s no way I could go. I thought when I got in touch with Ryanair there wouldn’t be an issue”.

Tina revealed Ryanair requested a copy of Billy’s death certificate, but she found the entire process increasingly distressing during an already heartbreaking period. “I thought we’d get that money back and put it towards Billy’s funeral and then I hit these barriers because of this 10-day policy that I hadn’t been aware of.”

She also revealed the struggle she faced trying to complete the claim form on Ryanair’s website.

“It was raw emotion all the time. It wouldn’t let me complete the form,” she said. “I looked at the terms and conditions and thought ‘That doesn’t really make sense.’”.

“I opened a chat on the app and they told me to ‘no show’ so I could get a letter off them and you can go to your travel insurance and claim off them. I thought ‘That’s passing the buck’.”

Tina claims she was subsequently informed she was ineligible for a refund as Billy’s passing had fallen outside the airline’s 10-day bereavement window.

“If he’d died a day later, I would’ve got my money back. It’s disgusting and petty.

“It was like a slap in the face. It should be done by a case by case basis. It’s a blanket policy, but it isn’t human. I felt very insulted. He wasn’t meant to die. It was a tragic accident, so surely there should be special circumstances. I was devastated. Everybody I’ve dealt with has been compassionate except for them. They’re greedy.”

For Tina, though, this goes far beyond the financial loss of a cancelled holiday. “It’s not about the money. It’s the principle. £350 for a huge company like Ryanair is chicken feed. It’s made the grieving process worse. I’m a mother who’s grieving. It felt very personal and I know the terms and conditions are not.”

Describing the ordeal as “deflating”, Tina is now urging the budget airline to rethink its approach to bereavement cases and introduce more compassionate provisions for extraordinary situations.

“Ryanair needs to change their policies. There needs to be a special circumstances clause for close relatives like children. Have a bit of heart and compassion.”

She added: “I’ll never fly with them again.”

The airline, however, has refused to budge on its stance, insisting Tina did not qualify for travel credit under its current rules. A spokesperson said: “Ryanair’s bereavement policy allows passengers to apply for travel credit where the death of an immediate family member occurs within 10 days of their scheduled flight departure.

“As this bereavement occurred outside of that period, this passenger was not entitled to travel credit. This passenger was provided with the documentation required to submit a claim through their travel insurance provider.”

By ED HOLT

Published: 12:16 BST, 12 September 2026 | Updated: 16:56 BST, 12 September 2026

An 88-year-old woman has been found dead at her home as police arrest a man, 36, on suspicion of murder.

Thames Valley Police rushed to a home in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, at around 2.20pm on Thursday following reports of an ‘unexplained death’.

Inside a property on Appleford Drive officers found the body of Jill Gant.

A murder investigation has been launched which led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man, from Abingdon, on suspicion of murder.

Advertisement

He remains in police custody. 

The force said that Ms Gant’s family have been informed and they are being supported by specially trained officers.

 Ms Gant’s family have asked for privacy at this time.

Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Brangwin said the police’s thoughts ‘remain with Jill’s family’.

Advertisement

Pictured: Jill Gant the 88-year-old victim who was found dead on Thursday afternoon

Pictured: Appleford Drive in Abingdon. Thames Valley found Ms Gant’s body in a property on the road

He also warned residents to expect a large police presence in the area. 

The detective continued: ‘I understand that incidents like this will cause concern in the community but we are investigating the death as a priority and there is an increased police presence in the area.

Advertisement

‘At this early stage we do not currently believe there is any threat to the wider public as we have made an arrest and we are not looking for anyone else, at this time.’

Anyone with information is urged to contact police by calling 101 or making an online report via the force’s website quoting reference 43260472268.

US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that ‘the UK will have something to say about it’

US President Donald Trump declared that Irish unification would be “a very cool thing” while acknowledging there was “no good answer” to such a loaded question.

Mr Trump offered these remarks while reflecting on an Irish unification query posed by the Press Association during an earlier press conference at Farmleigh House in Dublin, reports the Irish Mirror.

At the US ambassador’s residence in Ireland, Mr Trump said: “You have to understand with the press, with me, every question is a kill.”

Discussing the Press Association’s question, the US president continued: “But they’re going for the kill at all times, and they ask me a question: ‘What do you think about unification of Northern Ireland and Ireland? I said: ‘Oh, that’s a nice question’. I gave a nice answer, I think.

“We’ll read about it tomorrow. That’s one of those questions where, no matter what you say, no matter how well you say it, there’s no good answer, right?

“There are about four or five, I could tell you some other ones, but I’m not going to get you started. But that was one of the questions. But I actually said it would be, I think, a very cool thing.

“To be honest with you, I think it would be cool. As half the room clears out, they say: ‘Let’s get the hell out of here. I don’t like this guy. I liked him a lot 10 minutes ago. I don’t like him’.”

During an earlier meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Mr Trump said that he would “love” to see Ireland unified and that “it may as well happen now” as it is “going to happen eventually”.

Speaking while sitting alongside the Taoiseach, Mr Trump remarked: “Well, I don’t want to cause any problems, but I will tell you I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides, great people. They’re Irish people. How can they be bad, right?

“I’d love to see it unified. I think it would be a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually. You know what? The way I look at it, it’s going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now.

“We’re talking about it and you got the right man over here to get it moving. But, yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing.

“Now the UK will have something to say about it, obviously. But I think it would be a great thing. I mean, how can it be bad?”

Want to see more of the stories you love from Belfast Live? Making us your preferred source on Google means you’ll get more of our exclusives… To add Belfast Live as a preferred source, simply click here.