The home secretary will change the law so the freed ringleader of a Rochdale grooming gang can be deported, the BBC has been told.

As first reported by the Telegraph, Shabana Mahmood is expected to set out on Monday how she plans to amend the 1971 Immigration Act which currently stops Shabir Ahmed being removed from the UK.

Ahmed, 73, was jailed for 22 years in August 2012 for a number of child sexual offences including rape. He was released on licence last week.

Known to his victims as “Daddy”, Ahmed had dual British-Pakistani citizenship but was stripped of the former following his 2012 conviction.

At the time of his release, his victims were told he could not be deported to Pakistan due to the 55-year-old Immigration Act, which bars the removal of any Commonwealth citizen who arrived in the UK before 1973 and had been in the country for five years.

After leaving prison, Ahmed was sent to 24-hour staffed accommodation and fitted with a GPS electronically monitored tag.

Some of his victims said they were “frightened” by his release, and they felt “unsafe”.

While he is in the UK, the government has said any breach of Ahmed’s strict licence conditions would result in him being immediately returned to prison.

Chris Philp, the Conservative shadow home secretary, has been urging the government to back an amendment to the Immigration and Asylum Bill that would allow Ahmed to be deported.

This week, Home Office minister Alex Norris told MPs the government would not give up in its efforts to deport Ahmed for his “heinous” crimes.

It is not known how long it would take to change the law but one government source suggested it could potentially be up to a year.

It is also understood there is currently no agreement in place with Pakistan to allow the UK to return Ahmed there.

The street artist believes England can bring it home

A Cambridgeshire street artist has commemorated Harry Kane in a new mural – amid England’s triumphant World Cup journey so far. England did the unexpected and beat Mexico in the early hours of Monday (July 6), taking them through to the quarter finals against Norway on Saturday (July 11).

Fans across the country are excited, with some thinking it may finally be coming home. Popular Peterborough street artist and avid England fan Nathan Murdoch is one who has hope.

To mark England’s successful journey so far, Nathan has painted a mural featuring captain Harry Kane, just off the A47 in Eye. The mural replaces one of Gareth Southgate, which Nathan painted in the last Euros competition.

Nathan said: “For me, Gareth Southgate is in my lifetime one of the greats. It felt like he got a lot of negativity [at the time], which was unjustified.

“I would have liked to see him stay for this tournament, but I thought it’s time to bring it into current times.” Nathan believes Kane is “well on his way to making English history”. He added: “I thought he was the guy to do.”

The painting took around six to seven hours to complete. Nathan said it was an “absolute battle” to paint due to the corrugated surface. He added: “I have been spray painting for nearly 30 years, but working on corrugated, you can’t get the same level of detail.”

Nathan posted a video on social media of him painting the mural and it has gained nearly 500,000 views, making it one of Nathan’s most viewed social media videos in years.

He added: “I didn’t expect it to get nearly 500,000 views.” While England has been in the later stages of tournaments in the last few years, Nathan hopes they could win the whole tournament.

He said: “The older I get, I’ve followed England and I’ve shed many tears. After that Mexico performance, I believe.

“I said to someone the other day, when you get to this stage we’ve usually scraped through. But that Mexico game was a well deserved win. It was well earnt and changed my feeling. Anything is possible and it’s anyone’s tournament.”

Anyone who would like to see the mural can see it at What3Words location piglets.lousy.mere.

The result means the first-round qualifier remains very much in the balance, but Haveron feels his men should perform better on home turf

Gary Havreon admitted he was “disappointed” Larne didn’t beat Tre Fiori more emphatically but took pride in the club’s first ever Champions League win.

The Irish League champions were the dominant side in San Marino on Tuesday night as they came away with a 1-0 first-leg victory thanks to Matty Lusty’s strike at the end of the first half.

But the margin of victory could have been greater, as Lusty also had a goal ruled out after VAR judged Josh Ukek to have committed a foul in the build-up, while Larne’s final ball let them down at times.

It means the first-round qualifier remains very much in the balance, but Haveron feels his men should perform better on home turf.

“It’s a really proud moment first and foremost for the club to get a win in the Champions League,” said the Larne boss. “This is the premier competition in club football, so to get a result away from home, I’ve got to be pleased with the result.

“But I’m probably disappointed, if truth be told. I think the boys feel we could have been more convincing than the 1-0 win suggests.

“For the dominance and the amount of box entries we had, we really should have come away with a couple more goals.

“I’m disappointed with the one that gets chalked off. It looks very, very soft to me to be chalked off.

“I think the lad took a big risk and Josh has caught him (out).

“Matty finished it brilliantly, like he did his first, so we’re really disappointed that it hasn’t stood.

“But listen, we came to get a result to take back to Inver Park on Tuesday night and that’s what we’ve done.”

The 45-year-old hopes that will be another night to remember for the club, and is confident the home support will turn out in their droves after being heartened by the backing his men received from 150 travelling fans on Tuesday.

He said: “I thought they were unbelievable from start to finish. The numbers that came out, it was unbelievable.

“I said it to the players before the game. The effort that they go to and the money that they spend is not lost on me.

“We really appreciate each and every one of them who made the effort to be here.

“I’m so proud of them. I’m so proud to represent the club in Europe and they’ve done us proud yet again.”

Regarding the home leg, he added: “I don’t think they’re going to bring much of a crowd, so I don’t know why we can’t fill Inver Park.

“We need to take every seat we possibly can. We need to get people in the stands, support the boys and get them over the line.

“We’re a force to be reckoned with and we want to be progressing to the next round of the Champions League.”

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The guidance would typically see applications for new hot food takeaways within walking distance of schools and other places where young people gather refused.

Peter Roderick, City of York Council’s public health lead, said high numbers of takeaways were linked to childhood obesity which could go on to cause heart disease, diabetes and other problems.

Cllr Michael Pavlovic, the council’s Labour planning spokesperson, said officials had a responsibility to support healthy living amid controversy over the proposals.

It comes as part of a raft of planning guidance approved amid work on York’s Local Plan for development in the city in the coming years.

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The guidance approved on Tuesday, July 7, covering a range of areas including housing and the green belt, also follows changes to national planning policies.

They include calling on councils to refuse applications for new takeaways and fast food restaurants if they are within walking distance of schools or other places where young people congregate.

National planning policies state outlets should be blocked if there is evidence growing numbers of them in areas outside urban centres are harming health and fuelling antisocial behaviour.

Guidance for York approved on Tuesday would see applications typically refused for new takeaways 800m from schools or places such as nurseries, play areas, libraries and parks.

The restrictions would apply outside of York city centre and the district centres of Acomb and Haxby.

Cllr Michael Pavlovic, York Council’s Labour administration’s housing and planning executive member (Image: City of York Council)

Officials stated the 800m distance was roughly equivalent to a 20-minute round trip on foot.

Future applications would be  judged based on their potential impact on local health, litter, noise, antisocial behaviour and road safety.

The guidance excludes York city centre and the district centres of Acomb and Haxby.

But the guidance sparked a backlash when it was unveiled, with the council’s opposition Liberal Democrats claiming it would effectively ban new outlets.

Liberal Democrat planning spokesperson Cllr Andrew Hollyer said it would hit small, family-run businesses as the amount of schools and other places with young people would rule out swathes of the city.

Council Public Health Director Mr Roderick said the guidance came after data showed obesity rates among Year Six pupils, 10 and 11 year olds, was increasing.

More than a third, 34.7 per cent, of York children that age were obese in 2024/5, up from 28.3 per cent a decade earlier.

Mr Roderick said: “The evidence is clear that children who have access are more likely to have excess weight in adulthood.

“That affects every area of human health and often shortens life, awe also recognise the link between obesity and mental health with the stigma and bullying that comes with it.”

Cllr Pavlovic said he welcomed the approach taken to plans for new takeaways.

He said: “Do we have a responsibility to support healthy living? Absolutely, we do.

“Some work argue this is nanny-statism but in my view it’s part of what any public health department in a council should be doing.”

The actress played PE teacher Megan Walsh on the ITV soap, and her character has played a huge part in Coronation Street’s emotional grooming storyline since joining the cast in 2025.

Megan Walsh was an evil character who was first seen on the cobbles in November as an athletics coach.

The storyline saw her sexually groom teenage schoolboy Will Driscoll.

Beth Nixon shares behind-the-scenes pictures with Corrie cast

Eventually, Megan went on trial, where she was sent to prison last week.

Beth’s dramatic final scenes saw Megan call Will a “liar” and plead with her mum to “do something” as she was jailed following the jury’s verdicts.

Now, the actor is no longer part of the cast and has shared some snaps on her Instagram account, with the caption: “Megan, you’re a cow and I’ll miss you like a hole in the head 🖤

“thank you thank you thank you to every single person at @coronationstreet you’ve changed my life! Peace out ✌🏼”.

Among the carousel of photos, Beth shared pictures of her as Megan with blood running down her nose, props from the show and moments with the cast on set.

Corrie fans applaud Beth Nixon on “utterly incredible” performance as Megan Walsh

Corrie star Sydney Martin commented: “you are just incredible⭐️

“can’t wait to watch you soar xxx”.

Farrel Hegarty, another Corrie co-star of Beth’s, said: “Amazing you are🔥🔥”.

A fan said: “You’ve been magnificent in the role!

Corrie’s top 5 villains

“Really enjoyed watching you.”

Someone else commented: “She may not have been the nicest characters but you smashed it I hope we get to see you on something on the telly soon because your amazing”.

Another person said: “You’ve been utterly incredible👏👏👏”.

What’s your favourite Coronation Street storyline? Tell us in the comments below.

Arthur Fery was given a surprise greeting by the Queen as he prepared to enter centre court for the biggest match of his career.

The young Briton appeared to be tying his shoelaces while alongside his opponent Flavio Cobolli in the players’ entrance when Camilla walked up behind him.

As Fery stood up and turned around, he faced the Queen who shook his hand. Fery could be heard saying: ‘Nice to meet you.’

The royal blessing is part of the whole new world for the breakout tennis star, who has truly made a mark during the Championships this year.

For viewers at home this Wimbledon fortnight, it must appear as though Arthur Fery has dropped from the clear-blue sky.

Barely known outside British tennis circles, the 23-year-old had only two Tour-level wins in his life before the grass season began – a total he has more than quadrupled in less than a month. 

In beating Grigor Dimitrov on his Centre Court debut on Monday, he became the first wildcard in more than a decade to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

Fery’s leap from outside the top 150 to – at a minimum – 63rd in the world may have happened in the blink of an eye, but he has been preparing for this all his life.

It follows an upbringing as the son of high-achieving parents, an early life playing every sport under the sun, a brief addiction to cliff diving and a refusal to be defined by his stature.

And as he faces off Flavio Cobolli, he is cheered on by some very famous faces.

It was a royal affair at Wimbledon this afternoon, as the Queen enjoyed a day out with her younger sister Annabel Elliot, alongside newlyweds Peter and Harriet Phillips. 

Camilla, 78, looked chic in a cerulean Anna Valentine dress – the same one she wore to the Ascot races last month – as she took in the action at SW19 on Day 10 of the championship.

As Fery stood up after tying his shoelaces, he found himself in front of the Queen, who shook his hand. Fery could be heard saying: ‘Nice to meet you.

It’s a tradition for the sisters, who go to the sporting event nearly each year, to sit front and centre in the Royal Box.

Annabel, 77, channeled tennis whites in an ivory frock, standing by her sister as she was greeted by The All England Lawn Tennis Club Chair Deborah Jevans.

The King’s wife was all smiles as she greeted former British number one Heather Watson, as well as Ball Boy Zebedee, 15, and Ball Girl Aniya, 15.

She also spoke to Morag Ranford, who has spent 50 years working at Wimbledon in the press operations team, and Peter Dobson – who is this year retiring after 25 years of working as Safety Officer at the Championships.

Elsewhere, the Queen also met with Richard Gammage, CEO of City Harvest  a charity tackling food waste.

Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips, 48, meanwhile, looked dapper in a light-grey blazer and navy trousers, while his wife Harriet, 45, stunned in a £1,330 checked lime-and-blue ensemble from Emilia Wickstead.

It’s been a busy social calendar for the couple – who tied the knot in June – as they also joined the King and Queen for Ascot last month.

The Queen was joined by her sister, right, in the Royal Box for Day 10 of Wimbledon, alongside The All England Lawn Tennis Club Chair Deborah Jevans

Camilla and Deborah Jevans looked to be in high spirits as she took in the action 

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It was a royal affair as Wimbledon, as the Queen enjoyed a day out with her sister Annabel Elliot, who she is known to share a close bond 

Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips looked dapper in a light-grey blazer and navy trousers, while his wife Harriet stunned in a £1,330 checked lime and blue ensemble from Emilia Wickstead

The pair held an ‘intimate’ wedding ceremony in the Cotswolds, in front of the King and Queen and other members of the Royal Family. 

The bride looked resplendent in a white Emilia Wickstead gown and the Pragnell family tiara – and the pair were the picture of wedded bliss as they sealed their marriage with a kiss outside All Saints Church.

Harriet’s wedding train was held by her three bridesmaids, her daughter Georgina, 14, and Peter’s children, Isla, 14, and Savannah, 15, with former wife Autumn Kelly – who all looked elegant in floral garlands and matching white dresses from the same designer.

And last week, Tatler crowned them ‘the new royal couple to watch’.

Yesterday, Camilla was out and about in East Sussex, as she visited Ashdown Forest near Hartfield to commemorate 100 years since the publication of the first Winnie The Pooh book in 1926.

Ashdown Forest was the inspiration for the original Hundred Acre Wood and former home of author, A. A. Milne.

The royal, who is Patron of the Royal Literary Fund, spoke with well-wishers and local school children at the event, as she was joined by TV presenter Gyles Brandreth, who gave a reading.

Later, she was praised as a ‘real character’ and a ‘lovely lady’ after dropping in at a nearby pub in Plumpton.

The 78-year-old visited The Half Moon Pub – which serves British classics and also doubles as a campsite – in the village where she grew up.

The Queen was all smiles as she greeted former British number one Heather Watson, as well as Ball Boy Zebedee, 15, and Ball Girl Aniya, 15 (pictured)

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Camilla greeted other guests as she attended today

Camilla, pictured with Wimbledon’s Deborah Jevans, was at the event with her sister, who is seen walking behind the Queen

It’s been a busy social calendar for the couple – who tied the knot in June – as they also joined the King and Queen for Ascot last month

Last week, Tatler crowned Peter and Harriet as ‘the new royal couple to watch’

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Camilla was raised at Plumpton’s The Laines, the seven-bedroom property she once described as ‘perfect in every way’.

‘Lovely to have Queen Camilla for lunch today,’ the Facebook post for the pub read, before a later comment added, ‘A real character and lovely to welcome her. Such a lovely lady!’

King Charles’s wife, dressed in a bottle green floral dress, was pictured smiling alongside two staff members.

Social media users took to the comments section to share their thoughts, with one writing: ‘Terrific! Home again!’

A second said: ‘I saw the helicopter in the front field of the college as I drove past; I wondered who it was. Congratulations, very cool.’

‘Got stopped by a police motorbike just before the pub and I thought in my head it must be the Queen,’ said another.

And today, Camilla was all smiles as she joined her sister – who she is known to share a close bond with – for Wimbledon.

In December 2024, the Queen’s sister was full of praise for her sibling and described her as the King’s ‘rock’ for a  BBC One royal documentary following Charles’s first year as monarch, Charles III: The Coronation Year.

Annabel, who acted as one of her sister’s two Ladies in Attendance on the day of the Coronation, added: ‘She is his rock, and I can’t actually emphasise that enough.

‘She’s somebody who is completely loyal and she isn’t somebody who has huge highs and lows.’

But she stressed that it wasn’t a one-sided relationship, explaining: ‘He brings to her everything. I’m not talking about all of this [she said, referring to Buckingham Palace], but… he has such a knowledge and interest in so many different things, which she wouldn’t really have been open to if she hadn’t met him.

‘They are yin and yang, really. They really are polar opposites. But I think it works brilliantly.’

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

Michael J. Fox, Shrinking

Brett Goldstein, Shrinking

Hamish Linklater, Widow’s Bay

Christopher McDonald, Hacks

Rob Reinder, The Bear

Connor Storrie, Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Claire Danes, The Beast in Me

Sally Field, Remarkably Bright Creatures

Carey Mulligan, Beef

Sarah Pidgeon, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette

Sarah Snook, All Her Fault

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Riz Ahmed, Bait

Jason Bateman, Black Rabbit

Charlie Hunnam, Monster: The Ed Gein Story

Oscar Isaac, Beef

Matthew Rhys, The Beast in Me

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Linda Cardellini, DTF St. Louis

Dakota Fanning, All Her Fault

Laurie Metcalf, Monster: The Ed Gein Story

Joy Sunday, DTF St. Louis

Youn Yuh-jung, Beef

Constance Zimmer, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Jason Bateman, DTF St. Louis

Richard Gadd, Half Man

David Harbour, DTF St. Louis

Richard Jenkins, DTF St. Louis

Charles Melton, Beef

Nick Offerman, Death by Lightning

Outstanding Reality Competition Program

Dancing With the Stars

RuPaul’s Drag Race

Survivor

Top Chef

The Traitors

Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program

RuPaul Charles, RuPaul’s Drag Race

Alan Cumming, The Traitors

Kristen Kish, Top Chef

Ariana Madix, Love Island

Jeff Probst, Survivor

Outstanding Host for a Game Show

Steve Harvey, Celebrity Family Feud

Ken Jennings, Jeopardy

Colin Jost, Pop Culture Jeopardy

Jimmy Kimmel, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

Martin Short, Match Game

Outstanding Structured Reality Program

Antiques Roadshow

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Love Is Blind

Queer Eye

Shark Tank

Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program

America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

Love on the Spectrum

RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked

Summer House

Welcome to Wrexham

Outstanding Variety Series

The Daily Show

Jimmy Kimmel Live

Last Week Tonight With John Oliver

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Game Show

Celebrity Family Feud

Jeopardy

The Price Is Right

Wheel of Fortune

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

Outstanding Movie

Heads of State

Miss You, Love You

People We Meet on Vacation

Remarkably Bright Creatures

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War

Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series

The Diplomat (Peter Akerman and Debora Cahn for “Amagansett”)

The Pitt (Kirsten Pierre-Geyfman & R. Scott Gemmill for “1:00 PM”)

The Pitt (Valerie Chu for “12:00 PM”)

Mickey Down and Konrad Kay for “Dear Henry,” Industry

Pluribus (Vince Gilligan for “We Is Us”)

Slow Horses (Will Smith for “Scars”)

Task (Brad Ingelsby for “A Still Small Voice”)

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series

Abbott Elementary (Quinta Brunson for “Team Building”)

The Chair Company (Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin for “Life goes by too f**king fast, it really does”)

The Comeback (Michael Patrick King and Lisa Kudrow for “Valerie Does It All”)

Hacks (Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky for “Hacks”)

Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat (Anthony King for “Mergers and Acquisitions”)

Widow’s Bay (Katie Dippold for “Welcome to Widow’s Bay”)

Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

All Her Fault (Megan Gallagher for “Episode 8”)

The Beast in Me (Gabe Rotter and Daniel Pearle for “Sick Puppy”)

Beef (Lee Sung Jin for “All the Things We’re Never Gonna Have”)

DTF St. Louis (Steven Conrad)

Death by Lightning (Mike Makowsky)

Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series

The Gilded Age (Salli Richardson-Whitfield for “My Mind Is Made Up”)

Paradise (Hanelle M. Culpepper for “Exodus”)

The Pitt (Noah Wyle for “12:00 PM”)

Pluribus (Vince Gilligan for “We Is Us”)

Slow Horses (Saul Metzstein for “Scars”)

Task (Salli Richardson-Whitfield for “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a river”)

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series

Abbott Elementary (Randall Einhorn for “Ballgame”)

The Bear (Christopher Storer for “Bears”)

The Chair Company (Andrew DeYoung for “Life goes by too f**king fast, it really does”)

Hacks (Lucia Aniello for “Hacks”)

The Ms. Pat Show (Mary Lou Belli for “Give It Arrest”)

Widow’s Bay (Hiro Murai for “Welcome to Widow’s Bay”)

The York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Malton Hospital, said all patients and staff have been safely evacuated from the hospital after the fire broke out around 11.30am on Wednesday (July 8).

Malton Hospital fire on Wednesday(July 8) (Image: Yorkshire Vision Media)

Group manager Andy Daw, from North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said it was a “significant fire” at the hospital’s Springwood unit, which provides mental health services for older people.

Mr Daw said 15 patients were evacuated from the hospital and taken to the nearby Malton School.

The building has been left destroyed by the blaze with around 40 firefighters from across North and East Yorkshire working at the scene.

At 5.40pm, the fire service said it had started to scale back its attendance to two appliances and an aerial ladder platform

“We are bringing [the fire] under control, but we do expect to be here for some considerable time,” Mr Daw said on late Wednesday afternoon.

Mr Daw said the Springwood unit is “out of action” but the rest of the hospital will be operational once crews restore gas to the site.

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People with appointments at Malton Hospital on Wednesday were asked not to attend them, as emergency services urged people to avoid the area.

Nearby residents have been asked to keep their windows and doors closed due to smoke in the area.

Malton Hospital fire on Wednesday(July 8) (Image: Yorkshire Vision Media)

Malton’s ward councillor Lindsay Burr said emergency services were quickly on the scene after black smoke was seen above the unit, with residents also reporting loud explosions in the area after the fire broke out.

Mr Daw said the reported loud bangs were oxygen cannisters from the hospital exploding.

Residents heard ‘huge explosions’

Nearby resident Ralph Taylor said he heard a loud bang at around 11.30am, which he thought was a car alarm, followed by three huge explosions.

He said he then saw patients being taken through the car park on hospital beds.

Max Downing, from Norton (Image: Karen Darley)

Max Downing, from Norton, said he was on the scene at Malton Hospital around 11.40am and heard an explosion then saw the smoke.

He got his drone in the air for a better view and said he saw a building “fully engulfed in flames”.

“It was very bad,” he recalled. “About 10/20 minutes later, I saw the Northallerton [fire crew] coming.

“All and all, the fire service has done a good job today.”

Malton Town Council said there was “some ash and debris falling from the sky”, as it asked people to “please be vigilant if you are in the area”.

Mayor praises residents who ‘stepped forward without hesitation’

Cllr Jason Aldrich, mayor of Malton, said the fire caused “extensive damage to part of the building” and it was “thanks to the swift and professional actions of our emergency services and hospital staff” that “no one was seriously injured”.

A rest centre for staff has been set up at the Milton Rooms to support the ongoing response, he said.

The mayor said he visited “all affected sites throughout the day and was overwhelmed by the outstanding teamwork and compassion shown across our community”.

Fire breaks out at the Springwood unit of Malton Hospital on Wednesday (July 8) (Image: Alan Pratt))

He said he also met with patients being cared for in the makeshift ward at Malton School, adding: “Although understandably shaken, they were in good spirits and deeply appreciative of the care and kindness shown to them.”

Cllr Aldrich praised Malton’s residents who he said “stepped forward without hesitation” to direct traffic and help transport patients to Malton School.

Local businesses also “provided food and drink to tired volunteers, demonstrating once again the strength of Malton’s community spirit”, the mayor said.

Cllr Di Keal, mayor of Norton, said it was a “huge relief that no one has been injured” in the fire.

“The emergency services are doing an amazing job and the hospital staff have managed to evacuate all the patients to Malton School,” she said.

“This is a huge shock for our community. Malton Hospital is greatly loved by the community who have fought so hard over the years to save it.”

Thirsk and Malton MP Kevin Hollinrake said he has been told all people are accounted for after the fire.

“I am monitoring the situation and in touch with local NHS and fire services,” the MP said.

Arthur Fery is into the semi-finals of Wimbledon after demolishing No 9 seed Flavio Cobolli in straight sets.

The 23-year-old world No114 had never previously passed the second round but is now just one match away from the final.

After winning a tense first set 6-4 and then taking the second on a tiebreak, he broke the Italian Cobolli three times in a row to rattle off all six games in the first, winning 6-4, 7-6, 6-0. 

more to follow 

Under the gaze of his country’s Queen, the dancing feet of the irrepressible and seemingly unstoppable Arthur Fery carried him within two matches of his own coronation.

The 23-year-old – who stands at 5ft 9in and plays with the heart of a giant – beat No9 seed Flavio Cobolli in straight sets to become the first wildcard to reach the Wimbledon men’s semi-finals since Goran Ivanisevic 25 years ago.

Two more wins and he will celebrate his 24th birthday on Sunday with the Wimbledon title.

Fery’s run to this stage had been hugely impressive but there were caveats. He had not played anyone inside the world’s top 35; his third-round opponent Zizou Bergs choked spectacularly; in the fourth he met Grigor Dimitrov, a fabulous player but one who had won only x matches in 2026 before this year.

No caveats this time: Fery faced the No9 seed, a French Open finalist last month, and made him look ordinary. What a performance and what an occasion awaits in Friday’s semi-finals.

With respect to Cam Norrie, who made the last four here in 2022, we have not seen grass-court tennis like this from a British player since the heyday of Andy Murray.

In the relentlessness of his double-handed backhand, the aggression of his return, the subtlety of his hand skills and the sophistication of his tactics, Fery looked like the great Scot with x inches sawn off and a handful of Xanax in his system.

For while Murray played with sound and fury, Fery operates with utter tranquility as the storm of excitement rages around him.

Just seconds before he and Cobolli were about to walk out on court, Queen Camilla appeared to wish them luck. What a symbol of the scale of the occasion; what a dose of added nerves.

And yet Fery reacted as if an old friend had popped by unannounced. ‘You snuck up on me there,’ he said, then shouldered his bag, strode on to Centre Court and played the match of his life.

There has been a growing school of thought that grass is losing its uniqueness as a surface – that players can just show up and blaze away as they do on hard or clay. Fery has been a wonderful antidote to that notion and he made Cobolli – a player who took Novak Djokovic to four tough sets in the quarters here last year – look as if he had never played a match on grass in his life.

Fery’s slices off both forehand and backhand, his drop shots and his delicately crafted volleys left Cobolli utterly discombobulated. It was as if the Italian with his modern, muscled topspin forehand had been dragged back into the era when men played here in starched shirts and flannels.

For all Fery’s hand skills, what has really set him apart this fortnight is his feet. He moves so beautifully on a grass court, shimmering over its surface like a bird skimming over water.

As he always has, Fery made a tranquil start and the first nine games passed without threat of a break. Then the Centre Court crowd appeared to come to his aid in a peculiar manner.

At 4-5 in the first set, Cobolli threw up the ball to serve and had to bail out of his action as the pop of a champagne cork split the polite silence. Umpire Arnaud Gabas intervened, telling the crowd: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy your drinks but wait until the end of the point before opening a bottle’ – a ticking off that was the Wimbledon equivalent of firing tear gas at hooligans.

All very silly but it seemed to affect Cobolli’s rhythm, for in the three points that followed he coughed up two unforced errors, a double fault and thus the opening set.

They traded breaks early in the second set and we found ourselves in a tiebreak. Fery took it 7-4 and he has now won all five of the tiebreaks he has played here this fortnight – he is at his very best in the biggest moments.

If one looked at these players’ rankings – No10 in the world vs No114 – the scoreline was absurd. If you looked at the respective quality of their tennis it made perfect sense.

One of the advantages of being a bolter at a Gr is the field does not have much of an idea how to play against you. Cobolli looked like he did not know whether he was trying to blast Fery off court or grind him down.

Still, surely we would see a response from the Grand Slam finalist in the third set? Instead, we saw a capitulation. Fery, playing with utter freedom, demolished him.

To pick out one from the many beautiful points he crafted, lets take the one to take a 5-0 lead. After a baseline exchange Cobolli came into the net and chopped a forehand volley diagonally across the net. Fery was way out on the other side of the court, he was nowhere near it, but he sped across the grass and slid it down the line. Cobolli lobbed – not a bad idea against a small man – but Fery did enough with the smash.

As he served out, Cobolli smashed a ball at him and it clipped the net tape, reversing in the other direction. Fery readjusted danced to his left and hit the winner. An ace sealed the hold to love.

You could go to the National Ballet and not see footwork like this. What a performance.