The tearoom offers a selections of cakes among other things and one previous guest described it as the “best of English afternoon tea”

Cambridgeshire has some truly fantastic afternoon tea experiences. From an afternoon tea in a train carriage, to another one set on the sixth floor of The Varsity Hotel with panoramic views of Cambridge.

But one spot in the city of Ely, offers a marvellous afternoon tea dubbed as “the best of the best”. Sophie’s Afternoon Tea and Cakes opened in Ely in 2022, and is run by Sophie Elliot who has a passion for afternoon tea and cakes.

Sophie’s offers a range of cakes, homemade sausage rolls, paninis and other goods alongside her selection of afternoon teas. This includes a children’s afternoon tea for £11pp, so that even the little ones can give it a try.

The traditional afternoon tea offers a selection of finger sandwiches, a scone with clotted cream and jam, a selection of homemade cakes and a drink of choice. This is priced at £18pp.

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The place offers a traditional aesthetic with the afternoon tea set up on a beautiful patterned stand with pretty tea cups, and a warming atmosphere.

On Sophie’s website, she said: “I have loved baking ever since I learnt to make my very first Victoria Sponge and my mum and grandmother are my inspirations when it come to baking and cooking.”

The passion for her baking really shows and customers seem to think the same. The tearoom has built itself quite a reputation with glowing reviews.

One delighted guest captioned their review on Tripadvisor as “Best of the best!” They went on to say: “The best cakes, best sausage roll and super friendly staff! Little cosy café tucked away in the back streets of Ely.”

Another joyful guest dubbed the place as “Best of English afternoon tea”. They said: “Such a pretty place for a magnificent afternoon tea. My favourites were the fruit scones with jam and cream – or is that cream and jam!?”

The letter to Lord Mandelson, signed by representatives Robert Garcia and Suhas Subramanyam, said: “While you no longer serve as British ambassador to the United States and have stepped down from the House of Lords, it is clear that you possessed extensive social and business ties to Jeffrey Epstein and hold critical information pertaining to our investigation of Epstein’s operations.

It’s become so mad the owner says she is getting anxious about the whole thing

On a cold Saturday morning in mid-February you’d be forgiven for thinking everyone had lost their minds as a queue snaked around a city street with eager customers.

You might be even more surprised to know the huge queues at Whitchurch Road in Cardiff on Saturday were for pastries. But not any old pastries, we were reliably told when we visited Astrid’s Petite Cuisine on Saturday morning.

One customer says she got here at 8am to make sure she got her hands on the goods. “I think we got here at eight originally,” Eliza, one of the many queueing, said. “We went to get coffee because no one else was here, but we queued up because, honestly, we’ve never tasted a better pastry.”

A seemingly never-ending queue continued throughout the morning for Astrid Roussel’s monthly pop-up shop despite almost freezing temperatures, and it isn’t the first time it’s happened. At her previous pop-up her pastries sold out in less than an hour. For the latest restaurant news and reviews, sign up to our food and drink newsletter here

What’s all the fuss about? Eliza said: “I came about a year ago and had just a plain croissant and I’ve been to France and they don’t do them as good as Astrid. Everything she makes is literally incredible, it’s like a firework in my mouth every time.”

Trays of golden pastries are arranged in immaculate symmetry and filled with cream, fruit and praline. The weekend’s specials include a milk ganache bow, pink praline brioche, a macadamia, dulcey and raspberry nest, lemon meringue cruffins, blood orange and rhubarb danishes, palmiers, caramel and chocolate tartlets and rum and vanilla cannelés.

Classic options range from croissants and pain suisse to cinnamon buns, pistachio croissants, pecan “chonkas” and hazelnut praliné pain au chocolat.

Another customer, Lydia, says she has become a regular. “She has really good baked goods. Every pop up she has, she does different specials, so I queue early to make sure I get the specials that I want. For today I am looking at the lemon meringue and also the Valentine’s bowl.”

It’s so popular because it doesn’t come along all that often. Astrid began the business after quitting corporate life following the first lockdown in order to focus on her family.

Baking started as a way to relax and reconnect with her French upbringing, where daily trips to the bakery were routine, she says. After ordering an English afternoon tea at home, her husband suggested she offer a French version. She began practising more seriously and took her first orders in February 2021.

In spring 2022 she was offered a commercial kitchen in Cardiff as a production base, allowing her to increase capacity and take on more orders, but the economic climate of 2023 made the model harder to sustain. Working long hours left little time for her husband and two young children, she explains.

In April 2023 she shifted to operating one trading weekend a month while supplying local businesses during the week. She also launched workshops in June 2023 teaching aspiring bakers how to make French bread and pâtisserie.

Alongside this, she developed a range of artisan “bake at home” frozen pastries, made with a small number of ingredients and designed to replicate the same result as those sold at her pop-ups.

And Astrid can’t quite believe how well it’s gone – so much so she’s quite nervous about the whole thing. “It makes me feel nervous if I’m honest with you,” she says of the mad queues.

“Because you feel obliged to have all this stock for these people who have been waiting a very long time and took time out of their day to come here.

“More often than not we don’t because we are only a small bakery with two ovens so we do the best we can. It is quite nerve wracking but lovely at the same time. I think it’s the longest queue even with Christmas.”

Gina Knight (Francesca Henry) and Harry Mitchell (Elijah Holloway) have been EastEnders’ very own Ross and Rachel for a long while now. Will they? Won’t they? Could they? Should they?

I mean, admittedly, Ross was never sucked into a drug dealing and exploitation racket, held prisoner in a trap house, force fed drugs, killed the man who fed him said-drugs and had to go to rehab. Although we might have preferred that to the ‘Emily’ storyline.

But suffice to say, Harry and Gina have been circling each other for quite some time

It all started back in April of last year when Harry gave Gina a very intense induction as she began working at Harry’s Barn, owned by his mum, Nicola Mitchell (Laura Doddington). She was hardly smitten at first, but a bit of Mitchell magic, combined with a glowing reference from Kojo Asare (Dayo Koleosho), Gina’s uncle and Harry’s bestie, seemed to work!

There were more shenanigans as Harry sought to free both himself and Kojo from the horrific drug dealing ring they’d found themselves trapped in, but his feelings for Gina were clear and it seemed that the new twosome were destined for a fully fledged relationship.

But the path of true love never did run smoothly. Especially in Soapland.

Gina was crestfallen when Harry, alongside Kojo, suddenly disappeared on a ‘lads holiday’. What she didn’t know was that Harry hadn’t actually stepped foot outside of Walford, he was being held in captivity by ‘Okie’ Okyere (Aayan Ibikunle Shoderu), who’d begun to feed him drugs.

He added to Harry’s torture by promising to romance Gina while he rotted away in the base of their drug operation. Gina agreed to a drink with Okie, though she immediately sensed that something was very wrong.

The Harry that emerged from captivity wasn’t the Harry that went in and, after hitting rock bottom as his addiction threatened to destroy his life, he went to rehab. Though Gina was keen to rekindle their relationship when he returned, Harry explained that he still had a way to go and he didn’t want to risk a relapse. Though heartbroken, Gina understood.

Next week sees Kojo determined to return to his flat, the same flat that was the location of their captivity and Harry’s slaying of Kojo.

Though his brother, George Knight (Colin Salmon), worries about what this means for Kojo, Harry takes a massive step for his best friend and, despite massive hesitation, decides to move into the flat with Kojo.

As the boys head out with Gina and Penny Branning (Kitty Castledine) to celebrate moving day, things turn awkward when a characteristically acerbic Penny makes some digs at Harry’s expense regarding his previous ‘player’ behaviour.

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As quick as she is to cause an issue, though, she also puts it right, when she suggests that Harry fix things with Gina once and for all.

Harry takes her advice and before long, he and his flame are back in each others arms and sharing a reconciliatory smooch in the Square.

With all obstacles removed, is this finally the time for Harry and Gina and the burgeoning love story? Or does Walford have another grim twist in store for them?

MORE: George and Nicola’s big news is marred by Kojo’s decision in EastEnders

MORE: Nicola issues a denial in EastEnders after being accused of violent crime

MORE: Priya forced to intervene in EastEnders as broken Ravi snaps

The Prime Minister’s authority has been rocked in recent weeks by the controversies surrounding the appointments of Lord Mandelson and Lord Matthew Doyle despite their association with sex offenders, three departures from Downing Street, and a call from the Scottish Labour leader for him to resign.

This evening (February 14), Moth, Toastie and Conkers battled it out to be crowned the 2026 champion of the popular ITV show.

They all performed in front of judges Jonathan Ross, Davina McCall, Mo Gilligan and Maya Jama (as well as guest judge Samantha Barks) for one last time.

Conkers sang Keep on Movin by 5ive as one of their songs, while Toastie performed their own version of Jocelyn Brown’s A Star is Born.

Shortly before the identity of Moth was revealed at the end of the final, fans found out Conkers was in fact Ben Shephard, while Toastie was none other than Mica Richards.

Who won The Masked Singer UK 2026? Moth’s identity revealed

After each character was given the chance to duet with the likes of Lionfish, Snail and Pufferfish from previous series, Moth beat both Toastie and Conkers to victory.

During Saturday’s episode, Moth sang I Wanna Know What Love Is by Mariah Carey before duetting with Lionfish (Will Young) to perform Die With A Smile by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars.

Commenting on their first performance, Davina said: “Since the beginning, you have absolutely blown our mind every week with your incredible performances.”

Just some of the guesses from the judges throughout the night included Fleur East, Jamelia, and Ashley Roberts – but were they right?

Moth was finally unmasked as the one and only Keisha Buchanan from the Sugarbabes, much to Maya’s delight after week’s of guessing the singer.

The new winner of The Masked Singer UK said: “Honestly I’ve had the best time, I’m more of an introvert than an extrovert, and without the girls by my side it’s really brought me out my shell.”

Who was Can of Worms and Sloth on The Masked Singer UK 2026?

Radio host and former JLS singer Marvin Humes was unmasked as Can of Worms on The Masked Singer last week during the semi-final – he was one of two unmaskings.

The 40-year-old was eliminated from the ITV singing competition and joined English broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle, 52, who was unmasked earlier on in the episode as Sloth.

Prior to his elimination, Marvin performed two songs – a rendition of the Cha Cha Slide by DJ Casper, before a version of Ordinary People by John Legend.

Mo was the only member of the panel to guess his identity correctly.

Following his unmasking, he said: “Been the best show I’ve been a part of.

“Thank you so much to everyone.

“It’s been amazing.”

He later added: “What’s really strange for me is I haven’t sung by myself in a long time. I’m used to being with three other guys on stage and that’s quite a comfort. A bit of security.

“Although I’m completely masked, it’s still been quite strange being out on my own singing. Which I’ve enjoyed, and even when the mask came off, I fully enjoyed it.

“It was nice doing something by myself where singing was concerned. When the band (JLS) finished, I didn’t really do any solo music that way, so yeah, it’s been really cool.”

After he was unmasked, Marvin also waved to the camera to his youngest kids, Valentina and Blake, who did not know he was performing.

Meanwhile, Ben, who sang an enthusiastic rendition of We All Stand Together by Sir Paul McCartney and the Frog Chorus, was eliminated just before Marvin.

Among the guesses the judges put forward were Made In Chelsea star Spencer Matthews, Gossip Girl actor Penn Badgley and financial journalist Martin Lewis.

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Ben described the experience was “so joyous” and “so fun” after he was unmasked.

He said: “I am so happy to have got this far.

“I’m not a natural-born singer, but it’s been so joyous.

“I think one of the reasons I really wanted to do this is that we so often stereotype people, and we make assumptions about who they are, what they can do, stick in your lane, but I think you reach a point in life when you can’t take yourself too seriously.”

ITV’s beloved gameshow returned for its seventh series in 2026, and there was plenty of guessing to be done before Moth was crowned the winner.

Presented by Joel Dommett, viewers across the nation tuned in over the last month or so to see if they could figure out who was behind the latest batch of masked characters.

From Can of Worms to Red Panda, there were 12 characters taking part in this series, with all now revealed.

Along with judges Jonathan Ross, Davina McCall, Mo Gilligan and Maya Jama, the studio audience and those at home have been guessing who was behind the masks for weeks.

Here is everyone who has been revealed in the latest series of The Masked Singer, including the new champion – did you guess any correctly?

Who has been unmasked on The Masked Singer 2026? Full list

Warning: If you haven’t seen the most recent episodes, including tonight’s (February 14) final, spoilers are ahead.

During the series, as well as the famous faces taking part, there have also been some separate unmaskings for celebrity guest panellists.

To avoid confusion, here are the celebrities behind the main 12 characters that have been unmasked on The Masked Singer 2026:

• Disc Jockey – Alex Jones – TV presenter on BBC’s The One Show (episode 1)
• Teabag – Professor Green – Rapper, singer and songwriter (episode 2)
• Yak – John Lydon – Sex Pistols frontman (episode 3)
• Gargoyle – Marcella Detroit – singer from Shakespears Sister (episode 4)
• Monkey Business – Kate Nash – singer and actor (episode 5)
• Artic Fox – Anton Du Beke – Strictly Come Dancing judge (episode 5)
• Red Panda – Harry Hill – comedian (episode 6)
• Sloth – Ben Fogle – TV host (semi-finals)
• Can of Worms – Marvin Humes – Radio host and singer (semi-finals)
• Toastie – Mica Paris – singer and presenter (final)
• Conkers – Ben Shephard – This Morning host (final)

Who won The Masked Singer UK 2026?

In the end, it was Moth who claimed victory against Conkers and Toastie, after performing I Wanna Know What Love Is by Mariah Carey and duetting with Lionfish (Will Young) to Die With A Smile by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars.

Recommended reading:

Moth was unmasked as the one and only Keisha Buchanan from the Sugarbabes, much to Maya’s delight after week’s of guessing the singer correctly.

The new winner of The Masked Singer UK said: “Honestly I’ve had the best time, I’m more of an introvert than an extrovert, and without the girls by my side it’s really brought me out my shell.”

Who was your favourite on The Masked Singer this year? Let us know in the comments below.

Large parts of the UK are experiencing relentless rainfall, with some places seeing rain for 41 consecutive days and counting. In Reading, in the south east of England, our university’s official rain gauge has recorded precipitation on 31 consecutive days – unprecedented in records stretching all the way back to 1908.

The pattern has not just made 2026 a bit dreary. It also reveals one way in which climate change is making the already naturally variable (some would say gloriously variable) British weather increasingly extreme.

In those 31 days, Reading has received 141mm of rain, compared to the 30-year average over that period of just 58mm – well over twice what we would expect at the time of year.

Higher than average rainfall totals are expected, well, half of the time. This is just how mean averages work. But it’s the nature of this current weather pattern that is so unusual, and is in keeping with the type of wetter winter situation for UK weather that climate scientists have been warning us to expect – even if we are still only just learning why exactly this is happening on a regional level.

Over the full breadth of a British year, the bigger picture is even more revealing. Last year, the UK was grappling with one of the hottest and driest summers on record. A succession of hot spells, combined with long periods that saw less than average rainfall, meant water supplies dwindled and widespread hosepipe bans were put in place.

As a whole, 2025 from spring onwards was exceptionally dry. Fast forward to the new year, and we’re facing the opposite – weeks of rainfall and flooding. These extremes are what we expect to see in this part of the world, as heat builds up in the global atmosphere and oceans. For British people, this is what climate change right now feels like.

More rain, more intense rain

What is causing this link between a warmer planet and wetter British winters? One fundamental link is in basic physics of the atmosphere as temperatures rise. Warmer air can hold more moisture – about 7% more for every one degree celsius of warming. This means that when it rains, on average it rains harder. Bigger, heavier downpours become more common.

Climate change is also disrupting the patterns of currents and cycles within the atmosphere and oceans that bring the UK much of its weather. As an island archipelago on the edge of three competing climate masses – the wet, mild Atlantic, the cold, dry Arctic, and the wildly variable temperatures of the Eurasian landmass – it is used to variability.

But one constant feature plays an oversized role in the type of weather we get: the jet stream – a ribbon of fast-flowing air high in the atmosphere. The position of the jet stream makes a big difference. Sometimes it flows to the north of Scotland, sometimes it is hundreds of miles further south towards Spain. This location matters, because the jet stream helps to blow whole weather systems – think of a big “bubble” of air carrying its own weather with it – from the Atlantic towards the UK.

Currently, the jet stream is positioned further south than typical for the time of year, steering consecutive wet and often windy weather systems directly towards the UK. At the same time, a high pressure system is sitting over parts of northern Europe, blocking the wet weather from moving further east.

The impact of climate change on the jet stream is complex, because this river of air circling the north pole from west to east is influenced by a lot of different factors. One thing we do know: the Arctic, at surface level, is warming faster than other parts of the planet. This means that the temperature difference between the poles and the equator, for air at lower levels at least, is not as big as it used to be. This may be influencing the jet stream to weaken and meander.

With less energy to push them along, these weather patterns can get stuck in one location, meaning that the systems of low air pressure associated with rainfall and storms can slow down or get stuck. When a system bringing rain parks itself over the UK for days on end, only to be followed by another system, and another, the result is relentless rainfall.

To complicate things further, high up in the atmosphere where the jet stream blows, climate change is actually making the temperature difference between equator and poles increase. This may be strengthening the speed and turbulence within the jet stream itself, and just adds to a complex picture of varying influence on UK rainfall.

The challenge of managing extremes

These rapid swings between drought and deluge pose serious practical challenges for everyone in the UK. Water companies must plan for both droughts and floods, even within the same year. Farmers face uncertain growing conditions, with crops rotting in the wet soil one month, and drying out in droughts a few months later. Infrastructure designed for the climate of the past may not cope with the extremes of the future.

Understanding these changes isn’t just an academic exercise. It’s essential for helping communities, businesses and governments prepare for what’s coming. As Britain experiences these climate extremes at first-hand, it is crucial to build resilience into plans for hotter and drier summers, and warmer wetter winters.

Has there ever been a better advert for the video assistant referee?

Newcastle’s 3-1 FA Cup fourth-round win at Aston Villa was full of controversy with the video assistant referee (VAR) once again the big talking point – even though it wasn’t even in use.

For this season and the previous FA Cup campaign, it has not been used until the fifth round, with many fans looking forward to a return to football without interruptions from technology.

But referee Chris Kavanagh will have been wishing he had VAR to fall back on at Villa Park after an offside opener for the hosts, a blatant penalty for the visitors not awarded, plus at least three other controversial decisions that could have affected the outcome.

Ultimately, Newcastle – who were on the wrong end of the majority of the calls – progressed into the last 16, but manager Eddie Howe couldn’t hide his disappointment with the officials.

Tammy Abraham’s opener for Villa was offside, Lucas Digne’s second-half handball should have been given as a penalty rather than a free-kick outside the box, while the French full-back was also fortunate to escape a red card for a reckless challenge on Jacob Murphy.

Howe said: “I’m so torn because the game is better without VAR in terms of excitement and the spectacle for the supporters and us when we’re living a moment live.

“But it does give accurate results. It does make the game more precise in terms of decision-making. You have to respect those moments. They’re worth their weight in gold.

“When VAR is there, there is a tendency to think, ‘oh well I won’t give that because VAR is there to check it’. Then your decision-making isn’t as sharp as it would normally have to be. Maybe there is a difference there.

“I’m always torn on VAR because I love the raw emotion when a goal goes in and you don’t see a flag or hear a whistle and you know the goal is going to stand and nobody can take it away from you. But, on the other side of that, I was wishing there was VAR for the goal they scored against us – and probably throughout the entire game.”

Villa, themselves, will be reflecting on a straight red card for goalkeeper Marco Bizot in first-half added time when they were leading 1-0, and could argue Dan Burn was offside for the visitors’ equaliser through Sandro Tonali.

Boss Unai Emery, added: “Today it makes sense understanding that VAR is necessary. It’s necessary to help the referees.”

After a season so far, which has seen VAR the talking point on a weekly basis, has a weekend without it shown the potential problems?

Ex-England striker Alan Shearer told BBC Match of the Day: “For five or six months, they have been relying on VAR and they come into this situation and it all changes.

“In their defence, which is hard for me, they have VAR for five to six months, then come into a huge game without it, so it is difficult for them.

“I would like the officials to do their job properly. It is not too much to ask, is it.

“If you ever needed any evidence of the damage that VAR has done to referees, I think today is a great example of that. These guys look petrified to make a decision today because they didn’t have a comfort blanket.”

Epibatidine, the highly potent toxin Britain has linked to the death of Alexei Navalny, is reportedly 100 times more powerful than morphine.

This extremely toxic, nicotine-like compound originates from the Epipedobates genus of poison dart frogs, found exclusively in northern South America. Crucially, these amphibians are not indigenous to Russia.

Species such as the brightly coloured Anthony’s poison arrow frog and the Phantasmal poison frog secrete this substance onto their skin. Researchers theorise that the frogs acquire the toxin through their diet, as captive-bred animals lack it, and wild populations exhibit varying levels depending on their habitat.

Epibatidine has been investigated as a pain killer and for relief from painful inflammatory conditions of the lung such as asthma and pulmonary fibrosis.

However, it is about a hundred times more potent than morphine and because of its toxicity is not used clinically.

Professor Alastair Hay said Epibatidine acts to inhibit nerve action by blocking nicotinic receptors in the central and peripheral nervous systems.

The Professor (Emeritus) of Environmental Toxicology at the University of Leeds added: “The effect of blocking these receptors is muscle paralysis and paralysis of the respiratory system.

“So, breathing is blocked, and any person poisoned dies from suffocation.”

Professor Hay said the presence of the toxin in a person’s blood “suggests deliberate administration”.

He added: “Epibatidine toxicity can even be increased by co-administration of certain other drugs and these combinations have been researched.

“If epibatidine, a toxin, was indeed used to poison Alexei Navalny, this is in violation of the 1972 Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) and the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).

“The Soviet Union was a co-sponsor of the BTWC. Russia is a signatory of both the BTWC and CWC.

“If Russia used Epibatidine to poison Mr Navalny it has violated two treaties it has sworn to uphold.”

Epibatidine can be detected using a combination of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.

Gas chromatography helps separate out compounds of interest and mass spectrometry breaks up chemicals into particular fragments to create a unique fingerprint of the substance which can then be identified.