My morning ritual is …

A double espresso – straight to the veins – then a run or to the gym, before a little NTS radio. Then it’s about making some eggs and journaling. All in that specific order.

I feel optimistic about …

The future of music. There is so much amazing music coming out right now. People are really holding on to art and creativity during these complicated times.

What makes me angry …

Being stuck in standstill traffic is the truest source of my rage. That is when I need to put on a podcast to chill myself out because it drives me nuts. It happens a lot, especially where I live in Los Angeles. 

If I wasn’t a singer-songwriter, I’d have liked to become …

A teacher. My dad’s a teacher, and I’ve always loved the idea of spending time with kids. My English teacher was such an inspirational, formative part of growing up. 

The habit that has served me best in life is …

Is being in the mindset of controlling the controllables. I’ve been able to navigate the ebbs and flows of everything by knowing that there are some things that are outside of my control. Now I try to focus on the things that I can change. 

The habit I’ve successfully kicked is …

I used to be an apple juice fend. I genuinely think I used to have litres of apple juice everyday. It was a fixation. I’ve slowly managed to wean myself off that over time.

My sources of joy are …

Cooking, especially for big groups of good friends. Sunsets and nature. Being in the studio until late at night, sparking off, coming up with new ideas. 

When things get tough I …

Spend time around the people I love the most. Being around my best friends and my partner and my family just really grounds me. I got to the point previously where I’d pushed myself too hard.[In 2022, Parks took a mental health break after experiencing burnout and exhaustion following long periods of touring.] I felt really lucky to be in the position I was in, and that led to me overextending myself quite a lot. When I came home after that, I wanted to boil it down to the simple things, like cooking meals, being with people I love, taking trips out to nature, journaling, coming back to myself and becoming a person again. 

Doing good and being a positive force in the world is what motivates me the most

The book I wish everyone would read is …

Bluets by Maggie Nelson. She’s one of my favourite authors. This book is a mix of poetry and prose. It’s about her fascination with the colour blue, and an exploration of a love affair falling apart. It’s a meditation on suffering, happiness, desire, and it’s such a beautiful book. I love it so much. 

What keeps me awake at night …

Ideas. I’m a ruminator. I feel like I’ve suffered from insomnia for so much of my life because thoughts are always whizzing round and round. 

The thing that motivates me most of all …

Doing good and being a positive force in the world. For me, it’s about making a difference on the scale that I can, either through the music and art that I make, or on a smaller level with the people around me. Just doing my best to be a good friend, a good partner, somebody that people can depend on, being open, and trying to do good.

My parents taught me …

To show up for people consistently and do small acts of kindness as much as possible.

I have this theory that …

Dogs always understand what you want them to do and they actively choose not to. I just dog-sat my friends’ dog, and anytime I would tell her to sit she knew exactly what I wanted her to do but she looked at me and refused.

I’d like to tell my younger self…

To keep going and to keep being me. Even in the moments where I felt lost to know that I was on the right track and that everything I was going through was all just part of the process.

Arlo Parks will be touring the UK to support her new album Ambiguous Desire, which is out now on Transgressive Records.

Main image: Sully 

Channel 4’s chief executive has given a statement after BBC Panorama revealed allegations that two women were raped, and a third was the victim of a non-consensual sex act, during the filming of Married at First Sight (MAFS) UK.

Priya Dogra expressed “huge sympathy” for the women, but said she could not comment on the specific allegations, which she noted that the men deny.

She said she believes Channel 4 has not failed in its duty of care to some of its contributors, and “based on what we knew at the time, we acted appropriately, quickly and with sensitivity”.

Asked if she would like to apologise to the women involved, Dogra said, “I’ve said everything I can in the statement,” and walked away from the interview.

Read more on the BBC Panorama investigation into MAFS UK here.

Pensioners, Universal Credit recipients, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Child Benefit, and other regular payments could all see earlier payments.

Government departments are reminding claimants to check their payment dates so they’re not caught off guard by early deposits over long weekends.

The two May Bank Holiday payments

For many households, this will be the second time payments have arrived early this month.

Payments due on Monday May 4 2026 (including pensions, Universal Credit, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Child Benefit, and other DWP support) arrived on Friday May 1 2026.

Now, payments due on Monday May 25 are scheduled to arrive on Friday May 22.

HMRC and DWP explain that bank holidays mean banks are closed, so payments are brought forward to ensure claimants still have access to funds.

Why do we have the Spring Bank Holiday?

The Spring Bank Holiday, also known as the Late May Bank Holiday, was originally tied to Whit Sunday (Pentecost), a Christian festival marking the descent of the Holy Spirit and traditionally celebrated seven weeks after Easter.

The holiday was once known as Whitsun Bank Holiday and moved each year with Easter.

In 1971, it was fixed to the last Monday in May, removing its direct religious link but keeping its timing as a key early summer long weekend.

Summer and autumn changes

Later in 2026, further adjustments apply depending on location:

• 3 August → 4 August (Scotland only)
• 4 August → 5 August (Scotland only)
• 31 August → 28 August (all UK)
• 28 December → 24 December
• 29 December → 30 December (Northern Ireland only)

Regional public holidays in Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee) and Northern Ireland can also affect payment timing.

Which pensioners are paid on Mondays?

The day your pension is paid depends on your National Insurance number. Your payment day is based on the last two digits of your National Insurance number.

State Pension payment days by National Insurance number:

• 00 to 19 — Monday
• 20 to 39 — Tuesday
• 40 to 59 — Wednesday
• 60 to 79 — Thursday
• 80 to 99 — Friday

How to check your payment

• Look at your bank statement – payments normally appear with references like “DWP Pension” or “HMRC Child Benefit”
• For those on Universal Credit, check the online account for exact payment dates
• If a payment seems late, check with your bank first, then contact the DWP or HMRC if necessary

“Knowing when payments will arrive helps households manage their budgets, especially around busy bank holiday weekends,” a DWP spokesperson said.

Andreescu was plagued with injuries – issues with her abdomen and ankle kept her away from the court, and her 2025 season was delayed by appendectomy surgery.

Her form suffered and she has failed to go beyond the fourth round at a Grand Slam since her US Open triumph, with her ranking tumbling from a high of world number four in 2019 to 228 earlier this year.

At the start of 2026 she decided to return to an environment where she hadn’t played since 2018, swapping life on the WTA Tour for that on the ITF.

The tournament rankings work from W15 – the lowest level – up to W100. Andreescu was competing in W35 and W75 editions, with the total prize pot for a W35 tournament about £26,000.

The make-up of the ITF tour tends to be youngsters who are trying to make their mark on the sport, women who were unable to break on to the WTA Tour or players who are using it to regain previous form.

The crowds might be tiny and line judges rare, but competition on the court is fierce.

“The hunger the women had that I was playing against, every match was so difficult, and I feel like maybe on the WTA Tour, the athletes are maybe a bit more comfortable with certain things,” Andreescu says.

“Certain things are getting paid for [on the WTA Tour]. But on that [ITF] level, nothing’s getting paid for, and you’re barely breaking even. I was there too at one point, so I know how it is.

“I don’t want people to get the idea that the ITF tour is Mickey Mouse compared to the WTA Tour, because that’s not the case.

“I feel a lot of admiration and respect for the women that continue to grind on the tour, because it’s not easy, even on the WTA Tour, it’s just not easy.”

Vemic, who joined Andreescu’s team in September 2025, echoed those thoughts.

“Every player there needs to prove themselves and everyone is hungry and they’re not bored of playing many years on tour,” he says.

“They’re all driven by their dreams and passion because a lot of them are younger athletes.

“So sometimes it’s a transitional part or stage of coming from juniors into professional waters and some of them carry a lot of confidence.”

Enzo Maresca is set to replace Pep Guardiola as Manchester City manager before next season.

As BBC Sport reported on Monday, iconic City boss Guardiola is expected to leave the club following this Sunday’s home game against Aston Villa at Etihad Stadium, their final game of the season.

Former Chelsea head coach Maresca has been identified as the leading contender to replace the legendary Spaniard for the 2026-27 season.

With City preparing for Guardiola’s summer exit for more than six months, talks with Maresca are at an advanced stage.

The 46-year-old wants the job and is expected to be confirmed as Guardiola’s successor in due course.

The Italian manager, who won the Club World Cup and Conference League while securing Champions League qualification during his only full season at Stamford Bridge, previously worked at City.

He worked directly under Guardiola during City’s treble-winning 2022-23 campaign and played a key role in the club’s academy prior to joining the first team.

The former West Brom and Juventus midfielder left City in 2023 to manage Leicester, whom he guided to promotion to the Premier League in his only season.

Guardiola said previously: “One of the best managers in the world, Enzo Maresca, I know him quite well but, the job he has done at Chelsea does not get enough credit.

“Winning the Club World Cup, Conference League, qualification for the Champions League in a league that is so tough with a young team. It is exceptional.”

Dr Caitlin Todd (Caroline Harker), Emmerdale’s most twisted medical professional since John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth), is truly a wretched creature.

A vicious bully at work and an arch manipulator in every other aspect of her life, she’s even managed to take on and almost entirely destroy the usually indomitable Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins).

We were introduced to Todd as the spiteful boss of young student doctor, Jacob Gallagher (Joe-Warren Plant), who she took an instant dislike to, proceeding to make his working life a living hell. Not satisfied with torturing him at work, she also moved to the village and became Vanessa Woodfield’s (Michelle Hardwick) roommate, allowing her to continue to victimise him when he’s at home, too.

Jacob took to the proper channels by formally reporting Todd to HR at the hospital, though Todd’s discovery that baby Leyla, believed to be Jacob and wife Sarah Sugden’s (Katie Hill), is actually the child of not-so-surrogate, Charity, led to her using this ammunition to force Charity to get Jacob to withdraw his complaint.

Clever enough to know her time was running out, and that Jacob may well resume his official complaint in the future, thus tarnishing her precious career, Todd changed tack and decided to retire early. Though Sarah was insistent that Jacob see his original complaint through, Jacob could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and looked forward to a working life without Todd constantly holding his feet to the fire.

Todd’s new focus on Charity, though, is every bit as cruel and vindictive as it was with Jacob, only without the professional veneer she previously employed. Charity knows of her true, dark nature, thus no haughty or accomplished masquerading is needed.

Initially demanding only £10,000 for her silence regarding Leyla’s true parentage, Todd saw pound signs when she realised that Charity actually owned half of the Woolpack, and multiplied her demand by ten: she now wanted £100,000 to keep her mouth shut and disappear.

With few options to scrape the cash together left, Charity turned to her well-off cousins, Caleb and Ruby Miligan (William Ash and Beth Cordingly), with an offer to purchase her share of the pub. Caleb was instantly aware that something was seriously wrong; Charity would never be so desperate to flog her beloved Woolpack and attempted to dig deeper into what was driving her.

Though Charity kept shtum, Caleb made it abundantly clear that should Charity need his support, he’d be there for her.

Witnessing their exchange made Todd uneasy, and she later let herself into Charity’s house, picking up baby Leyla while landing more threats on Charity. With an ice cold warning that she had no idea what Todd was truly capable of, Charity was left more terrified than ever that her secret was about to be exposed, which would lead her life to ultimately explode.

But will she take Caleb up on his offer?

Caleb is equally as terrifying an enemy as both Charity and Todd, possessing a deeply ruthless streak and a determination to destroy all those that cross him. He appeared in the village initially, determined to claim Home Farm as his true birth right, being the son of Frank Tate (Norman Bowler), with every intention of annihilating Kim Tate (Claire King) on his way to his ultimate goal.

Don’t miss a Soaps scoop! Add us as a Preferred Source

As a loyal Metro Soaps reader, we want to make sure you never miss our articles when searching for stories. We have all the latest soaps news, spoilers, videos, and interviews, with a vibrant community of highly engaged readers.

Click the button below and tick Metro.co.uk to ensure you see stories from us first in Google Search.

Advertisement

Add us as a Preferred Source

He even used his son, Nicky (Lewis Cope) to seduce Gabby Thomas (Rosie Bentham) as part of the scheme, seeing her as little more than collateral damage.

Caleb and Charity together would be nearly unstoppable; a manipulative, devious force that could truly spell the end of Dr Caitlin Todd and put her reign of terror down for good.

But would Charity risk more people discovering that the baby she carried for Sarah and Jacob is actually hers and Ross Barton’s (Michael Parr)?

If she doesn’t, Charity may well have to accept defeat, and be left with absolutely nothing by the time that Todd has bled her dry, but that doesn’t sound very Charity-like, does it?

MORE: Charity saves Vanessa from sinister Dr Todd in Emmerdale

MORE: Emmerdale’s Doctor Todd makes a new discovery about Charity that could see her lose everything

MORE: All Emmerdale spoilers for next week as casualty of Tate-Dingle war ‘confirmed’

The Unite union says nearly 500 HGV drivers employed by Eddie Stobart supplying Morrison’s supermarkets across the north of England are being balloted for strike action over what it calls ‘union-busting’.

The workers, based at Morrison’s three distribution depots in Wakefield, Stockton-on-Tees and Northwich in Cheshire, are angry over Eddie Stobart’s increasing use of agency drivers to undermine terms and conditions.

Unite says around 40 per cent of drivers in Stockton and Northwich are now agency.

RECOMMENDED READING:
Unite union agrees 3.9 per cent pay rise with Nestle

Instead of hiring new drivers directly when people leave, Eddie Stobart is gradually replacing its unionised workforce with individuals on insecure contracts and significantly diminished terms and conditions.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Eddie Stobart’s attempts to undermine drivers’ pay and conditions, creating a race-to-the-bottom on employment standards is appalling.

“This disgraceful union-busting will not be allowed – these workers have Unite’s absolute backing.”

As well as excluding temporary workers from the collective bargaining rights permanent staff are entitled to, Unite says Edie Stobart Limited has confirmed if it does hire any new directly employed drivers in the future that they will also be on inferior terms and conditions.  

Press advert (Image: NQ)

The workers are being balloted until  June 4. They are responsible for delivering every type of grocery to Morrison’s supermarkets and strike action would result in empty shelves across the north of England.

Unite regional officer Neil Howells said: “Morrison’s will be extremely angry that it is facing empty shelves because Eddie Stobart is union-busting. There is still time to avoid strikes, but that will require Eddie Stobart reaching a fair agreement with Unite.” 

A spokesperson for Morrisons told the Press: “We understand that Eddie Stobart Limited and Unite remain in discussions on this issue and encourage both parties to engage constructively to find a solution.

“We note that deliveries continue as normal.”

Eddie Stobart Ltd has been approached for comment.

What: Beachfront resorts home to award-winning restaurants and next-level dining

Where: Idyllic coastal locations in Mexico and the Dominican Republic

Don’t miss: The freshly caught fish and seafood dishes, whichever location you’re in

Highlight: Knowing you don’t have to leave the resort to get a taste of the region’s traditional cuisine