EDITOR’S NOTE: When U.S. President Gerald Ford and leaders of five other leading democracies gathered for talks at a castle outside Paris on Nov. 15, 1975, they planted the seed for what subsequently became the Group of Seven nations.

The initial six industrial powers that huddled at the Château de Rambouillet for three days of brainstorming about fixes for the global economy became the G7 the following year when Canada joined the elite club.

During and after the Cold War, the G7 became a powerful tool of influence, enabling Western allies and Japan to hammer out common positions not only on economic issues but also their foreign policy and security priorities.

The combined economic, industrial, military, and diplomatic strength of G7 nations ensures the summits they hold annually, rotating hosting duties, are always major news events.

The next G7 summit is in France next week.

As part of its coverage, The Associated Press is republishing extracts of the story that AP correspondent Arthur L. Gavshon wrote on the first day of the inaugural summit in 1975, hosted by French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing and also including the leaders of West Germany, the U.K., Italy and Japan, as well as Ford.

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By ARTHUR L. GAVSHON

RAMBOUILLET (AP) — President Ford called on leaders of five other major industrial nations Saturday to set themselves the task of transforming the world’s economic slump into prosperity by 1977.

Addressing the opening session of an economic summit meeting amid the splendor of the 14th-century Chateau de Rambouillet, Ford “categorically rejected the view” that expansion in the industrial world is impossible at pre-recession rates, an aide told newsmen.

He added that Ford said America’s economic recovery has been stronger than anticipated and forecast a growth rate of between 6 and 7 percent through 1976.

The first meeting with leaders of France, Britain, West Germany, Japan, and Italy began shortly after the President arrived at the historic chateau, 30 miles south of Paris.

The free-flowing talks broke nearly three hours later for dinner, and the host, French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, told newsmen: “I am optimistic. I think we can arrive at something concrete.”

Quiz fell into administration back in February, for the second time in 12 months, after a “tough start” to 2026, with Alistair McAlinden and Geoff Jacobs from Interpath appointed joint administrators.

Interpath announced last month that Quiz would implement a “closure plan” for its final stores, with all 37 remaining shops to shut before the end of June.

Mr Jacobs, managing director at Interpath and joint administrator, said: “We’d once again like to say a huge thank you to Quiz staff who have shown such dedication and professionalism under difficult circumstances.”

Full list of Quiz stores set to close

Interpath confirmed that three Quiz stores had already shut before its “closure plan” announcement last month:

• Belfast (Castlecourt Shopping Centre)
• Leeds
• Romford

Administrators have continued to wind down Quiz‘s store estate, with a further six shops having now shut down for good, according to Drapers:

• Aberdeen
• Basingstoke
• Bracknell
• Dunfermline
• Inverness
• Warrington

Another 11 stores are set to close within the coming days:

• Hanley (June 13)
• Mansfield (June 13)
• Carlisle (June 14)
• Eastbourne (June 14)
• Watford (June 16)
• Clydebank (June 17)
• Irvine (June 19)
• Portsmouth (June 20)

Quiz’s Northampton location could also close this weekend if remaining stock sells through, Drapers added.

While exact dates are yet to be confirmed, Quiz stores in Castleford and Leicester are also expected to shut down by the end of next week.

The remaining 20 Quiz sites are set to close by the end of June:

• Cardiff, Wales
• Craigavon, Northern Ireland
• Derby, Derbyshire
• Gateshead Metro, Tyne and Wear
• Glasgow Braehead, Scotland
• Glasgow Buchanan Galleries, Scotland
• Glasgow Fort, Scotland
• Glasgow St Enoch, Scotland
• Hull, East Yorkshire
• Livingston, Scotland
• Manchester Arndale, Greater Manchester
• Manchester Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester
• Merryhill, West Midlands
• Newry, Northern Ireland
• Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland
• Norwich, Norfolk
• Sheffield Meadowhall, South Yorkshire
• Stirling, Scotland
• Telford, Shropshire
• Thurrock Lakeside, Essex

The number of workers impacted by all these closures remains unknown.

Heavy discounts of up to 80% will be on offer at these remaining Quiz stores as administrators seek to sell off as much as possible to help pay the collapsed firm’s outstanding debts.

Mr McAlinden, head of Interpath in Scotland and joint administrator, said: “We would encourage shoppers to visit their local store as we commence our final closing down sale.”

Quiz concessions in New Look and Matalan stores in the UK are not included in the administration and will remain open.

Other UK companies that have closed or entered administration/liquidation in 2026

It has been a tough year for the UK high street, with several retailers entering administration and others announcing widespread store closures.

Major high street brands LK Bennett and Claire’s both closed all their stores in April, having previously fallen into administration.

UK fashion retailer Leading Labels is set to close its remaining 15 stores after falling into liquidation.

Other retailers have been forced to close stores this year, including:

Four UK travel companies have closed in 2026:

Luxury UK holiday company Salamander Voyages also shut down back in April after entering administration.

Meanwhile, four UK airlines have fallen into administration or liquidation:

UK delivery company Yodel is set to be phased out over the coming months after being acquired by InPost.

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It’s also been reported that Morrisons is looking to sell some of its in-store pharmacies as it continues to cut costs.

It’s not been all bad news for the UK high street, with several major brands announcing new store openings for 2026, including Aldi, M&S, and Superdrug.

Plus-size clothing brand Evans has also returned to the UK high street in 2026 after closing all its stores and concessions in December 2020.

Is there a Quiz store closing near you? Let us know in the poll above or in the comments below.

A British couple arrested yesterday for abandoning their children at their Costa del Sol hotel ‘to go out partying’ have been sentenced.

The kids, a baby aged six months, a toddler aged one and a four-year-old, were found alone inside their hotel room at the Holiday World Resort in Benalmadena.

They were taken to hospital, while their British parents, a man aged 41 and a 28-year-old woman, were arrested and charged with abandonment.

The youngest child had also tested positive for cocaine at a Malaga hospital before being taken into care, according to some reports. Although the parents did not admit to this.

The parents were given prison sentences, suspended for a year and a half and have also been banned from seeing their kids for two years.

Emergency foster families had now been found to look after the youngsters.

A spokesman for Andalucia’s High Court of Justice said: ‘They are disqualified for two years and eight months from exercising parental authority, and for a period of two years they will be prohibited from going within 500 meters of the children.

‘The children are under the guardianship of the Social Services of the Regional Government of Andalusia, which, in compliance with this judgment, plans to contact the British consulate so that it can arrange for the three children to be transferred to their home country.’

The National Police in Malaga said: ‘A specialist branch of the National Police called UFAM, a family and women assistance unit, is involved and the Junta de Andalucia’s social services’ unit has taken temporary charge of the children.’

They are understood to have spent a night in police custody before being hauled to court.

It later emerged the family were staying at Holiday World Resort, a massive complex made up of three hotels and a collection of premium apartments totalling more than 850 rooms.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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You have a 3pm appointment. It’s now 10am and somehow your entire day already feels out of reach. Maybe you find yourself unable to start anything properly. You feel on edge, waiting for something to begin, or end. You check the time again and again. Even a positive, planned event, like a friend visiting later, can leave you feeling stuck.

For many neurodivergent people, this experience has a name: “waiting mode”.

Waiting mode describes a state of mental standby before an upcoming event, where focusing on anything else becomes difficult, sometimes even impossible. The event itself does not have to be negative. In fact, it can be something anticipated, neutral or even enjoyable. What matters is that it exists in the near future – later that day, or sometimes days ahead – shaping everything that comes before it.

It is not only triggered by fixed appointments either. In fact, vague time-frames can make it worse: “this afternoon”, “sometime today”, or a delivery due “between 8am and 1pm” can cause anxiety and feelings of being overwhelmed. Without a clear boundary, the waiting expands to fill the entire day.

Waiting mode can be experienced differently person to person. For some, it is cognitive, described as a kind of fog, mental disorientation or even “torment” that makes it hard to concentrate. For others, it is physical – a slowing down, a heaviness, an inability to get started. Many report a sense of paralysis, as though they are suspended in time.

A mind in standby

The feeling of not being able to do anything until it’s over is a commonly discussed phenomenon in online discussions. Tasks that would normally be manageable suddenly feel impossible to begin. Time is watched closely, but not used particularly effectively. There is often an underlying anxiety too: a fear of forgetting, of being late, of getting the timing wrong.

That anxiety can turn inward. People speak about replaying the upcoming event in their minds, running through possibilities, planning for what might go wrong in an attempt to feel more prepared. But this rumination can deepen the sense of being stuck. With no clear sense of what can comfortably be achieved before the event, even small decisions, like what task to start or what to prioritise, can become overwhelming.

Delays and uncertainty tend to intensify the experience. When a plan shifts or remains undefined, it can feel as though control over the day has been lost entirely.

Despite how widely recognised this phenomenon is within neurodivergent communities, waiting mode is not a formal clinical term. Instead, it overlaps with several well-documented traits, particularly in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). For example, researchers have explored differences in time perception, sometimes referred to as “time blindness”, “time dilation” or “time agnosia”. This affects how people estimate time, judge duration and track its passing.

Within this context, waiting mode may be understood as a response to uncertainty. If time is difficult to measure or predict, staying in a kind of mental holding pattern can feel safer than misjudging it altogether. It also connects to executive functioning differences, which can make it harder to start or switch between tasks, particularly under pressure.

Differences in time perception have also been noted in dyslexic and autistic people. It may suggest that this experience is not limited to one group, but part of a broader neurodivergent relationship with time.

Taking back control of the day

For those who experience waiting mode, small adjustments can help. One of the most effective is scheduling important events earlier in the day, which reduces the amount of time spent in anticipation. Where that is not possible, adding structure can make a difference. This may include breaking the day into smaller, defined blocks, or choosing specific, low-pressure tasks to complete beforehand.

External supports are often helpful too. Timers, alarms and digital reminders can reduce the mental load of having to hold the event in mind. Setting multiple reminders, rather than relying on one, can also help interrupt periods of hyperfocus and provide gentle prompts to shift attention.

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Preparation can ease the pressure further. Laying out what is needed the day before, or planning the steps required to get ready, can create a sense of control and free up mental space. Over time, tracking how long tasks actually take can also make it easier to judge what is realistically achievable before an event begins. This is often accompanied by the creation of a schedule to follow.

But alongside these strategies, there is a quieter, more important element, which is recognising the experience for what it is. Naming waiting mode allows people to understand that this is not simply procrastination or poor time management, but a genuine way of experiencing time and anticipation.

For many, that recognition alone brings a degree of relief. The day may still feel fragmented, the hours still shaped by what is to come. But it is no longer a personal failing – just another way the mind tried to make sense of time.

The race for the golden boot at World Cup 2026 is expected to be fierce, with Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Lamine Yamal all leading contenders to finish as the tournament’s top scorer.

France captain Mbappe and England skipper Kane are the previous two winners of the award, after all. Mbappe scored eight in 2022, including a hat-trick in the final, while Kane struck six for England in 2018.

The first ever 48-team World Cup features an additional round of 32, offering the world’s top strikers an additional opportunity of bagging an extra goal as they dream of embarking on a deep run into the tournament.

If players are tied for goals, the number of assists will determine who ranks higher. If there is still a tie, it comes down to minutes played and the goals-per-minute ratio. Here are the latest 2026 World Cup golden boot standings.

World Cup golden boot standings

Two goals

1. Folarin Balogun (USA)

One goal

2. Hwang In-Beom, plus one assist (South Korea)

3. Eight other players (Jovo Lukic, Cyle Larin, Ladislav Krejci, Raul Jimenez, Julian Quinones, Mauricio, Oh Hyeon-gyu, Gio Reyna

The Hoppings returns to Newcastle’s Town Moor on Friday, June 19 and runs for 10 days.

This year, organisers promise an all-American experience with new entertainment, themed food, live music, and plenty of fun for all ages.

Families are being invited to enjoy a real‑life hoedown as The Hoppings brings a touch of Texas to Newcastle this summer. (Image: Supplied)

Ryan Crow of Crow Events, which organises The Hoppings, said: “We always aim to make sure every visitor has the best possible time – whether they’re coming for the rides, something to eat, to hear the music, or just to soak up the unique atmosphere of the Hoppings.

“The Live Lounge will, as always, appeal to all musical tastes.”

A new “Country USA” theme will feature at Feast Street, alongside the return of the Live Lounge.

Families are being invited to enjoy a real‑life hoedown as The Hoppings brings a touch of Texas to Newcastle this summer. (Image: Supplied)

The stage will showcase a daily programme of performances from 5pm (4pm on Sundays), featuring a mix of established and rising musical talent from across the region.

This includes country, rock, soul, and pop.

Saturdays will feature a special ‘Newcastle to Nashville’ country music set from 4pm to 5pm.

Among the performers lined up for this year’s event are award-winning line dancing singer Trey Jackson, as well as returning artists Sam Rea, Andrew Usher, and David Stoker.

Other names to watch out for include Sarah Connolly, Connor Haley, Peter Todd, Martin Marriott, Matty Fenny, Annis Rallis, Kieran Hooper, and Liam Cross.

Live bands will also feature, with performances from the Jam Junkies Band, the Big Bash Band, the Lewis Curry Trio, and the Tim Gambles Trio.

Feast Street, the event’s popular food village, has been rebranded as Feast Street USA.

It will offer a wide range of American-inspired street food from regional favourites and pop-ups.

New names this year include Primal Feast – an American style barbecue featuring brisket along with burgers and steaks – along with Outlaw Loaded Fries, Davey’s Smash Burger, Chicken Ting, Sully’s Slices, and Diamond Dogs.

Families can also enjoy meet-and-greet sessions with princesses and cartoon characters on June 20, 21, 27, and 28, between 1pm and 4pm.

Full details of the entertainment, performers, and attractions can be found at www.hoppingsfunfairs.com.

The work is taking place between Leeds, Micklefield and Selby from Saturday (June 13) to Sunday (June 14).

A National Rail spokesperson urged passengers to plan their journeys ahead of schedule – with some services from York and Leeds diverted, operating to and from different services to normal, or cancelled.

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Northern trains between York and Blackpool North will terminate and start in Leeds, and trains between Halifax and Hull will run between Halifax and Leeds and between Selby and Hull.

Replacement bus services will operate between Leeds and York, and Leeds and Selby.

National Rail said: “Except for trains which start or terminate at Leeds, CrossCountry services will not call at Leeds or Wakefield Westgate.

“Trains will be diverted to run via Doncaster, additionally calling there.

“You can use alternative train services at no extra cost for travel to/from Leeds and Wakefield Westgate.”

Other services affected include those travelling between Manchester Airport and York and Manchester Victoria and Scarborough.

You can plan your journey using the National Rail Planner – here.

If you need to travel on a rail replacement service, please see here for advice and information.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In 1976’s “ Rocky,” heavyweight champion Apollo Creed arrives for the title fight dressed as George Washington, reenacting the crossing of the Delaware as models costumed as the Statue of Liberty lead the way.

After entering the ring, Apollo switches into an Uncle Sam costume. “I want YOU!” he roars as he points to Rocky Balboa, the far less flamboyant palooka he’s chosen for this bicentennial bout in Philadelphia.

Then the two boxers pound the daylights out of each other.

It’s as accurate a representation of the American bicentennial vibe as has ever been put on film — plenty of fireworks, but not much thought about how 200 years of independence led to this.

I was 13 years old in 1976. Kids my age — the tail end of the Baby Boom, or the vanguard of Generation X — grew up skeptical of the government. We had outlasted the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal, with the occasional moment of joy — the moon landing, say — to break the gloom. The state of the union was intact, even if many Americans were still on edge.

My family lived in Newport News, Virginia, not far from the Historic Triangle of Jamestown, Yorktown and Williamsburg. So there was plenty of buzz surrounding the bicentennial. President Gerald Ford and his wife, Betty, took a carriage ride through Colonial Williamsburg, foreign leaders came to visit, and the living museum regularly staged reenactments of the events leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Ford and plenty of other dignitaries went to New York for what the president called “the greatest Fourth of July any of us will ever see.” Operation Sail was a floating parade of 16 tall ships and more than 100 smaller vessels from around the world — including, even, the Soviet Union. It was a boon for the beleaguered Big Apple, proving that “New Yorkers could get along, even during difficult times,” according to the Gotham Center for New York History.

All aboard the Freedom Train

For history buffs who couldn’t make the trip east, there was the American Freedom Train, a 26-car behemoth that toured all 48 contiguous states. It displayed two centuries of artifacts like George Washington’s copy of the Constitution, the original Louisiana Purchase, Judy Garland’s dress from “The Wizard of Oz” and a moon rock. Merle Haggard even released a song about it.

I had a nifty 3D poster of the Freedom Train on my bedroom wall. A different poster captured everyone’s eye later in 1976 — one featuring “Charlie’s Angels” star Farrah Fawcett-Majors.

It’s patriotic in its own way. There’s Farrah, sporting big hair, a blinding white smile and a red swimsuit, posed in front of a red, white and blue blanket. The color scheme may not have been intentional, but it might as well be titled “All-American Girl” for its presentation of what much of society saw as one.

There were plenty of more deliberate anniversary collectibles out there. A quick search of eBay in 2026 digs up hundreds of collectible plates, glasses, beer mugs and bumper stickers. The government unleashed special quarters, stamps and license plates. And of course Madison Avenue jumped in, selling bicentennial cereal, candy, beer and soda. You could get a different 7-Up can for each of the 50 states.

Even the creator of the Pet Rock — the preposterous 1975 phenomenon that was, yes, a rock in a box — tried to get in on the act. That fad, alas, had run its course, and the Bicentennial Pet Rock flopped. You’d have been better off buying a Pez dispenser with the head of Paul Revere or Betsy Ross.

Broadcast television — remember, we only had three networks — was more subdued. For kids, ABC’s beloved “Schoolhouse Rock!” spun off “America Rock.” But while that cartoon did include some history, it’s best remembered for the mournful civics lesson “I’m Just a Bill.”

More prominent was CBS News’ “Bicentennial Minute.” Starting July 4, 1974, barely a month before President Richard Nixon resigned, it ran every night in prime time, presenting the news from 200 years earlier. It was so unavoidable that sitcoms like “All in the Family” referred to it; “Saturday Night Live,” which debuted in 1975, paid tribute with a “Bisexual Minute.”

Still, all three networks pulled out the stops on July 4, 1976. Walter Cronkite led the pack with 16 hours of coverage on CBS, while “Bob Hope’s Bicentennial Star-Spangled Spectacular” (“the show that took 200 years to produce”) on NBC celebrated with Sammy Davis Jr., Captain & Tennille and Donny and Marie Osmond.

The bad news bearers

Certainly, not everyone was in the mood to celebrate. Richard Pryor released an influential album whose title was “Bicentennial,” followed by an ethnic slur. The title track is a monologue from a 200-year-old slave; it ends with “I ain’t gonna never forget it.” In the same album’s ”Bicentennial Prayer,” Pryor proclaims, “We are celebrating 200 years of white folks kickin’ ass.”

Popular music wasn’t in a particularly patriotic mood either. Elton John’s 1975 hit “Philadelphia Freedom” became a de facto anthem of sorts, even though it’s barely about Philadelphia and is more about individual independence.

Indeed, the prevailing pop attitude was: Let’s forget about this mess we’ve left behind and go to the disco. So the Billboard singles charts were topped by the likes of Johnnie Taylor’s “Disco Lady,” The Sylvers’ “Boogie Fever,” The Bee Gees’ “You Should Be Dancing” and KC and the Sunshine Band’s “(Shake Shake Shake) Shake Your Booty.”

On the album charts, California’s hippie culture was shaking off its hangover with haunted LPs like the Eagles’ “Hotel California” and Jackson Browne’s “The Pretender.” Something else was breaking loose in New York, though, with aggressive debuts from the Ramones and Blondie. The Ramones’ logo included an eagle holding an olive branch and a baseball bat, and their repertoire included the future stadium anthem “Blitzkrieg Bop.” What could be more American?

Speaking of America’s pastime, I’d be remiss if I didn’t bring up the year’s funniest movie, “The Bad News Bears.” It’s baseball the way it was meant to be played — by a bunch of foul-mouthed juvenile delinquents coached by a surly, alcoholic has-been embodied by Walter Matthau. Double 50-year-old spoiler alert: Like Rocky, the Bears don’t win in the end. But they do have fun.

The same can’t be said for the characters in most of 1976’s dramatic films. Hollywood did its best to get a patriotic movie — the World War II epic “Midway” — in theaters in June, but it quickly fizzled. The top box office draw on July 4th was “The Omen,” about an angelic-looking boy who turns out to be the Antichrist.

More prestigious films continued to wrestle with the paranoia of the Nixon era. “All the President’s Men” dramatized The Washington Post’s investigation of the Watergate scandal. In “Taxi Driver,” a Vietnam War veteran plots to assassinate a presidential contender. In “Network,” a TV anchorman urges his viewers to open their windows and scream, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”

All three are undisputed classics. All three were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar. All three lost to “Rocky.”

No trace remains of the building where injured soldiers were once taken to recover

Cambridgeshire is typically known for its rich history, particularly with many former RAF and military bases dotted across the county. One site holds the memory of a former military hospital used to treat casualties during the Second World War.

The site in Wimpole had a number of uses, ranging from a World War II casualty hospital known as “Wimpole Park Hospital” to a teacher training college.

In 1943, the British army requisitioned land from the owners of Wimpole Hall in order to build a large hospital. Located to the north east of the Arrington Gates in Wimpole, the hospital site was built to treat casualties from an expected future invasion of Europe, according to Imperial War Museums.

The site was initially planned to be used as a United States general hospital for the casualties expected from the Normandy Beach landings in 1944. It is thought that the hospital was also expected to act as a holding hospital for injured men waiting to be transferred to the United States.

Situated near Bassingbourn airfield and Melbourn railway station, the hospital was ideally located to receive injured soldiers from Europe and allow them to recover over time. This hospital continued to operate until 1946 before closing down.

After its use as a hospital, the buildings were then used for a training college, a school, and for emergency housing. It later returned to use as a hospital in 1952. This time, it was used as a United States Air Force Hospital before the land was finally restored to the Wimpole Estate in 1960.

The Wimpole Estate is managed by the National Trust. The National Trust states: “On the flat ground looking towards the Arrington gates, was the site of an American military hospital built during the Second World War. After the war, it was used for a short time as a teacher training college before it was demolished in the 1950s.”

There is no trace visible today of its former uses other than the flatness of the location compared with the rest of Wimpole park.