U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s failed attempt to indict a group of Democratic lawmakers has been described as “stunning” by a former prosecutor in the D.C. office, according to a new report.

A grand jury recently rejected federal prosecutors’ attempt to secure an indictment against a group of Democratic lawmakers who made a video urging members of the military and intelligence communities to refuse illegal orders, according to several media outlets, including The New York Times and Politico.

The video, which was posted in November, enraged President Donald Trump and his allies. On Truth Social, Trump accused the lawmakers of “seditious behavior” and called for their arrests. At one point, he even wrote: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C., which Pirro leads, reportedly pursued the indictment. Now, a former prosecutor who once worked in the Washington office tells Politico Magazine it’s “stunning” for a grand jury to reject an indictment completely.

“The rules are skewed so heavily in favor of the prosecutor that it’s almost comical. But the public is essentially saying, ‘We do not trust you. We are skeptical of you,’” they said.

The former prosecutor described the current Washington office as a “hollowed-out core of increasingly inexperienced and overworked D.C. [assistant U.S. attorneys] spending their time reviewing the [Jeffrey] Epstein files and wondering what their ‘red line’ for resignation is.”

“I think good cases aren’t being brought because people are either afraid or lack bandwidth. D.C. had one of the most prestigious U.S. Attorney’s offices in the country, and to see it become a shadow of itself in a year is sad,” the former prosecutor told Politico Magazine.

Pirro told Politico Magazine her responsibility is to “follow the law.”

“Our system of justice allows grand juries and trial juries to review evidence and make their own decisions, that’s their function, that’s the way the system works,” she said. “All victims matter to us. We are about the law, and we are singularly focused; the passions of others, political and otherwise are irrelevant.”

The Independent has contacted the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C., for comment.

After the failed indictment attempt was revealed, Democratic lawmakers who appeared in the video spoke out against the Trump administration.

Senator Mark Kelly, a former NASA astronaut and retired U.S. Navy Captain who participated in the video, said the “most patriotic thing any of us can do is not back down.” Senator Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who was also in the video, said she hopes the grand jury’s rejection “ends this politicized investigation for good.”

This isn’t the first time Pirro’s office has failed to secure a high-profile indictment.

Last year, her office tried and failed to bring a felony charge against a man accused of throwing a sandwich at a federal agent. The case received nationwide attention, and the man was quickly dubbed “Sandwich Guy.”

The charge was downgraded, and a jury later found him not guilty of misdemeanor assault.

MANY York residents are not aware that there is a Roman bathhouse under the Roman Bath public house in St Sampson’s Square – and that it is open to the public as a museum.

That York was the location of a Roman fortress and a city has been known for over two centuries, and discoveries are still being made.

The fortress lies under the city centre and is huge, covering 20 hectares (50 acres).

It was so large because it was the base for a legion of heavy infantry over 5,000 strong. The fortress was built by the Ninth Legion Hispana, probably in the year AD71.

‘Hispana’ was the Roman name for Spain and indicates that the legion was raised there.

Around the time that the Emperor Hadrian visited Britain and ordered the building of Hadrian’s Wall in AD122, the Ninth Legion was replaced by the Sixth Legion Victrix; ‘Victrix’ means victorious and is a battle honour.

Roman Bath pub York

The fortress, with its high stone walls, remained a stronghold in Anglo-Saxon and Viking times.

The medieval city walls alongside Gillygate and Lord Mayors Walk are the latest version of the defences and directly overlie the fortress walls.

If anyone dug deep enough in the city centre – to lay a sewer, for example – they would encounter the remains of the fortress. The question is, which part of the fortress would they find?

In 1929, the decision was made to demolish the old Mail Coach Inn in St Sampson’s Square and replace it with a modern pub.

St Sampson’s Square,York, in the 1930s, showing The Mail Coach Inn before its alteration and refurbishment. On the left is the Black Bull Hotel.

A photograph of that year shows that part of the stables was already being taken down. By the middle of 1930, the stable block had been removed but the ‘public house’ part of the establishment was still standing.

The part-demolished pub was photographed in August of that year when the adjacent property, the Walpamur wallpaper and paint store (now a Pizza Express) burnt to the ground in a spectacular fire. Fortunately, nobody was hurt and the pub suffered only water damage, from a successful attempt to prevent the fire spreading.

Walpamur fire in St Sampson’s Square on August 25 1930. Photo – Explroe York archive

But the Mail Coach Inn had already hit the headlines by the time of the fire. The new pub was to have a cellar, and in May of 1930 the excavations for the cellar had revealed a massive wall 4 metres (13 feet) below the ground.

Further newspaper reports speak of another, curved wall; and finally, two rooms with raised floors standing on brick pillars were found.

Recommended reading:

How York has changed over time – 10 old photos from the past

Story of historic York pub that survived scandal and 300 years of changes

How one of York’s oldest pubs with a gruesome past got its historic name

These rooms clearly had underfloor heating and they could only be on thing – the bath house for the soldiers. Further discoveries were made in 1931, following the demolition of the remainder of the Mail Coach Inn.

The notable local historian, the Reverend Angelo Raine, was able to make a record of the discoveries and these were published in Volume 1 of the YAYAS Proceedings in 1933.

The legionary bath house would have been one of the first buildings in the fortress built of stone, as it had an important role in the hygiene and fitness of the soldiers.

The suite of heated rooms (and an unheated room) would have enabled the soldiers to sweat, bathe and relax. The baths were part of a leisure complex the size of a football field that would have included a vast exercise hall and an outdoor exercise area with swimming pool.

St Sampson’s Square in about 1890. Finkle Street is in in the middle of the picture. There are three public houses in view in this small area. From left to right: the Hand and Heart (landlord Benjamin Robson) which was absorbed into the Black Bull in

Although the discovery of the Roman baths was a complete surprise to the owners of the pub, John Smiths, the brewery commendably decided to leave the baths undisturbed in the cellar.

In 1971, the 1900th anniversary of York being founded by the Roman, the name of the pub was changed to the Roman Bath – so the Roman bath is not so hard to find!

The Roman Bath Museum is open 11am to 4pm Tuesdays to Sundays; there is an admission charge (find out more at:www.facebook.com/YorkRomanBathMuseum)

Can you help?

Other than the building found at the Roman Bath pub, the only other evidence for the Roman baths is in Church Street at the corner with Swinegate, where another building with underfloor heating was found in the 1970s.

The impressive Church Street sewer, found in the same excavations, would have taken waste water away from the baths. This is precious little to go on if we want to better understand the layout and history of the baths.

The Church Street sewer was discovered by contractors in 1972 while digging at the corner of Church Street and Swinegate and was investigated by York Archaeological Trust. [This sewer would have taken waste water away from the legionary baths.] Roman

If anyone in the Swinegate/Grape Lane area thinks there is a Roman wall or some other ancient structure in their cellar, let us know; it could be part of the legionary baths!

We would also like to hear from anyone who has information on, or photographs of, the discovery of the Roman bathhouse under the pub in 1930. Contact info@yayas.org.uk

Kurt Hunter-Mann is a local archaeologist and honorary secretary of the Yorkshire Architectural and York Archaeological Society (YAYAS).

YAYAS developed from its foundation in 1842. It publishes the York Historian and YAYAS Times, with articles and news items about York and its surrounds.

Its archives include photographic illustrations that can be used for research or reproduction with copyright acknowledgement.

Visit the website www.yayas.org.uk for more information about the organisation, its publications and how you can support it.

With vulnerable victims reportedly being conned out of hundreds of pounds, insurance experts at MoneySuperMarket say knowing the warning signs could protect both your property and your wallet.

What is a locksmith scam?

Kara Gammell, Insurance Expert at MoneySuperMarket, says rogue operators often take advantage of homeowners at their most stressed.

“If you’ve ever been locked out of your home, you’ll know how quickly panic can set in — and unfortunately, that’s exactly the moment rogue locksmiths are ready to exploit. These operators often draw people in with low quotes over the phone before dramatically increasing the price once they arrive, using a classic bait and switch tactic that can leave households paying far more than expected.”

She also warned that the problem can go beyond inflated fees.

“What’s more troubling is that some rogue locksmiths carry out unnecessary or poor-quality work, leaving properties more vulnerable and forcing people to spend even more money putting things right.”

Some scammers imitate genuine local businesses by copying names, logos and websites, making it harder for customers to verify who they are hiring.

“When you’re stressed and standing outside your home, it’s easy to make a snap decision — but taking a moment to check reviews carefully, confirm business details and get a clear price upfront can help you avoid paying over the odds for work that isn’t up to scratch.”

Does home insurance cover a locksmith?

Many homeowners assume their insurance will step in if something goes wrong. However, Kara says that is not usually the case.

“Home insurance typically excludes damage caused by tradespeople or emergency call-out services, which means that if a locksmith damages your property, it’s unlikely you’ll be covered for repairs or replacements.”

She adds: “Even policies that include accidental damage often exclude poor workmanship, leaving homeowners footing the bill when things go wrong.”

Recommended reading:

Three warning signs of a rogue locksmith

1. Suspiciously low prices

If the quote sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

“According to Checkatrade, average locksmith prices are around £65 an hour, with emergency callout fees estimated to cost between £50 to £150. If a locksmith is advertising or offering a lower price than that, it’s most likely a scam.”

Low initial quotes can quickly escalate once the locksmith arrives.

2. Vague answers about costs or identity

“When you call a locksmith, the person on the phone should be able to tell you exactly who is coming out and how much the job will cost. You should always get a clear, upfront quote — not a vague estimate that leaves room for unexpected add-ons later.”

Kara warns that some rogue traders operate through call centres to appear local when they are not.

Consumers can check whether a locksmith is approved via the Master Locksmiths Association database.

3. False police claims

One of the biggest red flags is any claim of being “Police approved”.

“Some rogue locksmiths claim they’re Police approved or Police recommended — but this is simply not true. The Police never endorse or work with individual locksmith companies, so if you see this claim on a website, advert or van, it should be treated as an immediate red flag.”

She advises homeowners to walk away if such claims are made and instead seek a verified, reputable local locksmith.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. military forces boarded another sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking the vessel from the Caribbean Sea in an effort to target illicit oil connected to Venezuela, the Pentagon said Sunday.

Venezuela had faced U.S. sanctions on its oil for several years, relying on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. President Donald Trump ordered a quarantine of sanctioned tankers in December to pressure then-President Nicolás Maduro before Maduro was apprehended in January during an American military operation.

Several tankers fled the Venezuelan coast in the wake of the raid, including the ship that was boarded in the Indian Ocean overnight. The Defense Department said in a post on X that U.S. forces boarded the Veronica III, conducting “a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding.”

“The vessel tried to defy President Trump’s quarantine — hoping to slip away,” the Pentagon said. “We tracked it from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, closed the distance, and shut it down.”

Video posted by the Pentagon shows U.S. troops boarding the tanker.

The Veronica III is a Panamanian-flagged vessel under U.S. sanctions related to Iran, according to the website of the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. The Panama Maritime Authority said Sunday in a brief statement that the ship was no longer registered there and had been canceled in December 2024.

The Veronica III left Venezuela on Jan. 3, the same day as Maduro’s capture, with nearly 2 million barrels of crude and fuel oil, TankerTrackers.com posted Sunday on X.

“Since 2023, she’s been involved with Russian, Iranian and Venezuelan oil,” the organization said.

Samir Madani, co-founder of TankerTrackers.com, told The Associated Press in January that his organization used satellite imagery and surface-level photos to document that at least 16 tankers left the Venezuelan coast in contravention of the quarantine.

The Trump administration has been seizing tankers as part of its broader efforts to take control of the Venezuela’s oil. The Pentagon did not say in the post whether the Veronica III was formally seized and placed under U.S. control, and later told the AP in an email that it had no additional information to provide beyond that post.

Last week, the U.S. military boarded a different tanker in the Indian Ocean, the Aquila II. The ship was being held while its ultimate fate was decided by the United States, according to a defense official who spoke last week on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing decision-making.

—-

Associated Press writers Konstantin Toropin in Washington and Alma Solís in Panama City contributed to this report.

Clint Bentley’s lyrical Denis Johnson adaptation “Train Dreams ” won the top film award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards on Sunday in Los Angeles, while “Adolescence” dominated the television categories. Both were released on Netflix.

Bentley also won best director for the film starring Joel Edgerton, whom he thanked profusely for “being the heartbeat of our film.”

“We’re so grateful to Netflix,” Bentley said. “It’s very, very hard these days to film in the United States, but it’s worth it and we’re proud to be able to pull it off.”

Edgerton missed out on the top acting prize, however, which went to Rose Byrne for “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.” The organization switched to gender-neutral acting categories in 2022.

Byrne was one of the few actors nominated for both a Spirit Award and an Oscar, for her performance as a mother on the edge.

“I share this with Mary Bronstein, my writer-director who fought for eight years to get this movie made,” Byrne said.

She added that this was a film that could have only been made independently. Her character, she said, is “fierce and ferocious and a middle-aged woman.”

“Adolescence” won new scripted series, best actor for Stephen Graham, best supporting actor for Erin Doherty, and the breakthrough prize for Owen Cooper.

The show, which serves as a fundraiser for Film Independent’s year-round programs, was held at the Hollywood Palladium for the first time since 1994, as its longtime beachside perch in Santa Monica undergoes renovations. Comedian and “Saturday Night Live” veteran Ego Nwodim hosted the celebration of independent film and television, which was livestreamed on YouTube.

“In the spirit of independent filmmaking, we don’t have a permit,” Nwodim said in her opening. “If I shout ‘cameras down,’ you know what to do.”

“The Secret Agent” won the international feature prize. The film is also nominated for best picture and best international film at the Oscars.

“I really believe that programming films in the cinemas is more and more a political act,” said director Kleber Mendonça Filho.

He dedicated the award to the late actor Udo Kier, who was part of the ensemble of “The Secret Agent.”

“The Perfect Neighbor,” about a deadly shooting incident in Florida constructed primarily from police bodycam footage, won best documentary. Filmmaker and producer Geeta Gandbhir thanked Netflix for “giving us a global platform.” It’s also up for the best documentary Oscar.

Eva Victor won the screenplay prize for “Sorry, Baby.” Naomi Ackie also won the supporting award for Victor’s film, over fellow nominees like Zoey Deutch (“Nouvelle Vague”), Kirsten Dunst (“Roofman”), Nina Hoss (“Hedda”) and Archie Madekwe (“Lurker”).

The awards sometimes overlap significantly with major Oscar contenders and winners, as it did with “Anora,” and “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” and sometimes not. Organizers limit eligibility to productions with budgets less than $30 million, meaning more expensive films like “One Battle After Another” are not in the running.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Tyler Reddick won the Daytona 500 in a car owned by Michael Jordan when Chase Elliott crashed as he and Reddick were battling for the win in NASCAR’s season opener.

Reddick, in a Toyota for 23XI Racing, led only one lap Sunday: the one to the checkered flag for the team owned by the NBA Hall of Famer and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin.

“Just incredible how it all played out. Just true Daytona madness,” said Reddick, the 25th different driver to lead a lap for a new Daytona 500 record. “I’ve already lost my voice from screaming. Never thought I’d be Daytona 500 champion.”

Neither did Jordan, who met Reddick in victory lane for a bear hug before they jointly hoisted the Harley J. Earl trophy. Jordan, who turns 63 on Tuesday, will get a Daytona 500 ring for his birthday and made it known in victory lane he wears a size 13.

“It feels like I won a championship, but until I get my ring, I won’t even know,” Jordan said.

Reddick, a 30-year-old from Corning, California, won for the ninth time in the Cup Series and first time since late in the 2024 season. Winless last year, Reddick was primarily focused on his infant son, who was found to have a tumor in his chest that affected his heart. Reddick opened last year with a runner-up finish in the Daytona 500.

He snapped the 38-race losing streak by finishing one place higher Sunday and winning to start a celebration that included multiple stars of NASCAR. Reddick is teammates with Bubba Wallace, who went to victory lane in tears after leading a race-high 40 laps before finishing 10th.

Jordan wrapped his arms around Wallace from behind and spoke closely into Wallace’s ear in a brief speech of encouragement.

“I don’t want my emotions to take away from the monumental day they just accomplished. Happy birthday, MJ. That’s a massive birthday present,” Wallace said. “I thought this was our week, the best 500 I’ve ever had, and come up short, sucks.

“Led a lot of laps, lap leader, I believe. It was a good day for us, but damn. Try again next year.”

Hamlin also was in victory lane after finishing 31st and falling short in his bid to become the third four-time Daytona 500 winner.

Hamlin, who drives for Joe Gibbs Racing, was involved in the final caution when he and teammate Christopher Bell collided with nine laps remaining. It set up the final push to the finish over the final four laps.

Elliott had control on the final lap after leader Carson Hocevar was spun off the track and it appeared the son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott would finally win his first Daytona 500.

Instead, Reddick made a huge surge with an assist from teammate Riley Herbst. He hit Elliott and sailed past to give Jordan a victory in NASCAR’s biggest event of the year.

Jordan was the face of the December federal antitrust lawsuit that NASCAR settled on the ninth day of trial. The settlement changed the revenue-sharing model in the United States’ top motorsports series.

Jordan watched the win from a suite overlooking the superspeedway built by the France family — NASCAR founders and private owners — he just beat in federal court. NASCAR chairman Jim France, who was personally a defendant in the suit, went to victory lane to congratulate the winners.

“I can’t even believe it. It was so gratifying,” Jordan said of the victory. “You never know how these races are going to end. You just try to survive. We hung in there all day. Great strategy by the team, and we gave ourselves a chance at the end. Look, I’m ecstatic.”

The victory marked a Daytona sweep for three team owners heavily involved in the trial. Bob Jenkins, who joined 23XI in suing NASCAR, opened the weekend with a victory when Chandler Smith won the Truck Series opener on Friday night for Front Row Motorsports.

Richard Childress, who testified on behalf of 23XI and Front Row and was the subject of disparaging text messages by since-departed NASCAR chairman Steve Phelps, was the winning team owner Saturday when Austin Hill won.

Then came “The Great American Race,” and Jordan and Hamlin, the two front-facing litigants, got their first Daytona 500 victory together.

Former race winners Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Joey Logano finished second and third as Toyota, Chevrolet and Ford each placed a driver on the podium. Elliott wound up fourth and sat dejected and in disbelief on the outside wall of the track after climbing from his car.

“We ended up kind of getting gifted the lead … and then at that point in time, you’re just on defense. Man, that’s a really, really tough place to be, truthfully,” Elliott said. “Obviously looking back, you can run it through your mind 1,000 times, do you do something different?”

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Now that the day one patch has fixed most of the technical problems, GameCentral offers a final verdict on the Justin Roiland-less sequel to High On Life.

Humour isn’t an easy thing to get right, especially in in video games, where players have such a large influence on when and how they experience the action and the dialogue that punctuates it. Comic timing is hard when you might not be listening to or even looking at whoever’s trying to be funny. The first High On Life went full Rick and Morty, appealing directly to the show’s considerable following, and thanks to the involvement of its creator, Justin Roiland, the anarchic first person shooter was an instant hit.

Roiland also voiced the game’s first weapon. Because your protagonist was entirely mute, and each gun had its own distinct and exaggerated personality, they did all the talking for you, conversations changing radically depending on which gun you equipped. Since Roiland’s no longer involved with Squanch Games, his idiosyncratic vocal style and particular brand of brutal humour are also absent.

That gives High On Life 2 a different feel. For a start, it’s not as funny, with more of its bits landing with a wry smile rather than actual laughter, and long tracts of the game now relying on the boorish personalities of your weapons. While they certainly have their moments, they sometimes seem to rely on swearing as a substitute for jokes. It does manage to improve on the first game in some ways though, one being its more pointed satire.

In High On Life, aliens discovered they could smoke humans like pot and your character’s job was to gun down the galactic drug cartel responsible. In the sequel, humans are being farmed and turned into legally manufactured pills by an evil pharmaceutical conglomerate whose ruthless pursuit of profit, regardless of the human misery it causes, may not be too distant from actual big pharma.

Traversal has been streamlined with the addition of a skateboard. Now the sprint button hops you onto your board, letting you move faster and grind rails, something every environment in the game has plenty of. You also gain access to your knife’s grapple hook right at the start of the game, rather than towards the end. Along with your double jump and air dash, it makes getting around the game’s vertiginous, brightly coloured levels less painful than it could have been.

The final upgrade is to the gunplay. There was a lot wrong with High On Life’s shooting, from the apparent puniness of many of its weapons, to the annoyingly stodgy feel of aiming, and although the sequel improves on every aspect, it’s still some way short of being actively good. Despite being a first person shooter, its firefights are something to be endured rather than enjoyed, even if boss fights are occasionally more inventive.

You can tell Squanch knew things weren’t working properly because the game defaults to easy mode rather than normal. A quick experiment reveals why: in normal, fights are a mess. Enemies are inveterate bullet sponges and you regularly find yourself being killed by opponents you can’t even see. On easy, its untidy and defuse battles are at least manageable. The downside is that you’re practically invincible, making it feel as though little skill’s involved, the auto aim continually patronising you.

Puzzles, such as they are, are spelt out for you in the early part of the game, with both onscreen instructions and characters simply telling you what to do, often repeating themselves after a few seconds if you don’t act quickly enough. High On Life 2 emphatically isn’t a puzzle game, but it’s odd to include those elements, and then paper over them with overbearing announcements – the time it must have taken to add all that would have been better spent polishing the rest of its mechanics.

It also suffers from a clutch of technical issues. Until the day one patch arrived, an early boss fight was unplayable on PlayStation 5, crashing the console on every attempt. Even after the patch we soon found ourselves soft-locked after a Lugblob, one of High On Life 2’s grotesque key items, failed to spawn. Reloading the checkpoint and restarting the game didn’t help, although we did finally manage to glitch our way past it in what was clearly not the intended solution to the puzzle. Fortunately, that was the last significant problem in our playthrough.

Underneath its unrefined exterior, there’s a riot of offbeat and anarchic ideas, from its playable retro style arcade games to full length B-movies you can sit and watch; a boss that infiltrates your HUD and menus, forcing you to pause the game to fight him; and, of course, the absurdist weaponry. It’s even got an Agatha Christie style murder mystery. It’s just a shame they’re all so uninspiring to play.

High On Life 2 is frustratingly close to being a good game, but its rough edges predominate to the extent that they drown out much of the inventiveness. Shooting up groups of enemies just isn’t much fun, but neither are the minigames, and now that the dialogue isn’t as funny, there just isn’t enough joy to be had. With more polish those crazy ideas could really shine, but as it stands this feels more miss than hit.

Formats: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC
Price: £49.99
Publisher: Squanch Games
Developer: Squanch Games
Release Date: 13th February 2026 (20/4 on Switch 2)
Age Rating: 18

Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter.

To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here.

For more stories like this, check our Gaming page.

MORE: A Game About Digging A Hole reader review – Reader’s Feature

MORE: God Of War Trilogy Remake is a bad idea and makes me worry for the franchise – Reader’s Feature

MORE: Why did Sony and Valve fall out of love with making video games? – Reader’s Feature

Arsenal scored four times in 17 first-half minutes to cruise through to the fifth round of the FA Cup with an emphatic 4-0 drubbing of League One Wigan.

Noni Madueke sent Mikel Arteta’s rampant side on their way after 11 minutes before Gabriel Martinelli doubled the hosts’ advantage seven minutes later.

Jack Hunt headed through his own net after 23 minutes and Arsenal were four to the good inside half-an-hour when Gabriel Jesus struck.

Arsenal failed to add to their tally, but their one-sided victory at the Emirates saw them advance beyond the fourth round for the first time since they won the FA Cup in 2020 and kept alive their outside chance of completing an unprecedented quadruple.

Arteta made eight changes to the side which drew at Brentford on Thursday, but he was still able to boast a front five of Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Madueke, Jesus and Martinelli.

Eze was hooked at half-time against Brentford after an underwhelming 45 minutes. And, with just one assist and no goals since his hat-trick against Tottenham in November, his form had been under the microscope.

However, here he was, the architect of Arsenal’s opening two goals. Eze played an eye-of-the-needle, no-look pass to Madueke, who ghosted in off the right flank and made no mistake with a cool first-time finish.

Eze was soon at the wheel again when he found Martinelli, who slotted past Sam Tickle.

open image in gallery

Only five minutes had ticked on before Arsenal added to their lead.

Madueke raced past a flat-footed Morgan Fox and played in Saka. The England winger’s pull-back flicked off Jesus’s toes and a bamboozled Hunt headed past his own goalkeeper.

Wigan’s 6-1 defeat to Peterborough last weekend cost boss Ryan Lowe his job and the visiting supporters were chanting: “How s*** must you be, it’s only 3-0.”

The hymn sheet had to be revised in the 27th minute after Jesus latched on to Christian Norgaard’s long ball over the top and dinked his side’s fourth over the on-rushing Tickle.

Wigan are 22nd in League One, with six losses in their last seven, and stand-in boss Glenn Whelan might have been fearing the worst.

But his side navigated their way to the interval with the deficit still at four.

open image in gallery

Advertisement

Indeed, they might have pulled one back, but Joe Taylor’s shot was expertly kept out by Kepa Arrizabalaga.

With Wolves and Tottenham to follow across the next seven days, Saka, still working his way back to full fitness following a hip problem, was replaced by Viktor Gyokeres at half-time.

And the Sweden international nearly made it five, only to see his first-time deflected effort rebound off a post, with Eze then smashing into the side-netting on the hour mark.

Tickle then got a strong left hand to Martinelli’s close-range header.

To Wigan’s credit, they avoided a Six Nations scoreline, which had looked a real possibility when Jesus scored, as the game fizzled out after an explosive opening half-hour.

However, it is Arteta’s men in the hat for Monday’s fifth-round draw in a campaign where they will roll into March with the Premier League, Champions League, Carabao Cup and FA Cup all still up for grabs.

Áine O’Reilly was on her way to work at an out-of-hours GP service when the crash took place

Advertisement

A community is mourning a “kind” nurse who died in a three car crash in Co Limerick. Áine O’Reilly was in her 30s when was pronounced dead at the scene after the accident on the N24 near Grange West, Boher.

The incident happened at around 11.10pm on Friday (February 13). Ms O’Reilly was travelling to her place of work at Limerick’s out-of-hours GP service Shannondoc when the crash happened.

She was the only person in her car and was pronounced dead at the scene, the Mirror reports. A man in his 40s, who was in another car, sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to University Hospital Limerick.

Meanwhile a driver in a third vehicle fled the scene, leaving their car behind, reported the Irish Mirror. The N24 between R505 and L1132 was closed for a time to allow Garda Forensic Collision Investigators carry out a technical examination of the scene, but it has since reopened.

In an update on Sunday, Gardai thanked the public for their assistance, and said they “are following a definite line of inquiry.”

Many people have expressed their sadness at the tragedy with one person writing on Facebook: “Aine was such a lovely gentle soul and had a great sense of humour. We had great laughs over the years.

“She gave the best skin and hair care advice and loved animals. Such a great nurse she is such a loss to our community and her lovely family and friends.”

Another message read: “Such sad terrible news. Aine was a wonderful nurse and I’m lucky to have had the pleasure of working with her. Such a kind and caring person.

“My deepest condolences to her friends and family. Rest in peace my dear Áine.” And a further comment stated: “So sad, she was going to do good for others! May her good & gentle Soul rest in Peace.”

Parish priest of Pallasgreen and Templebraden, Fr Tomas O’Connell said the O’Reilly family are well known and respected in the community. “There was a palpable silence in Nicker Church at mass last night,” Fr O’Connell said, reported RTE.

“People are shocked at the terrible tragedy that has happened our lovely parish and community.”

He told how Ms O’Reilly was a caring young woman who had previously travelled to Lourdes as a youth worker. “That was the nature of the lady and the family,” he said. “That’s what the family is all about, giving and helping other people.”

Ms O’Reilly will be laid to rest in St. John the Baptist Church Nicker on Wednesday morning before she is buried in St. Columba’s cemetery Pallasgreen.

An RIP notice read: “Áine O’Reilly (Grove House, Pallasgreen, Co. Limerick), died tragically following a Road Traffic Accident on February 13th 2026. Sadly missed by her heartbroken parents Eugene and Ann, brothers Eoin, James and Conor, sister-in-law Aisling, nephew Dáire, aunts, uncles, relatives and a wide circle of friends.”

The No Work Club wants to be a space for people to escape from daily life

A new venue packed with activities for both children and adults is coming to Peterborough. The No Work Club, which already has a location in Lincoln, wants to be the “leading brand in social entertainment” and “create a place where people can unwind”.

The No Work Club has been described as an “after-hours playground” with escape rooms and axe throwing on offer. Rebe Hawes, the Operation Manager for No Work Club, said: “We want people to have a great time and escape from reality. Our whole mantra is saying we want to disrupt normal life.

“We managed to grab ourselves a perfect space with Nene Park and we are working with the Blind Tiger to rent their upstairs area. They have a bar downstairs. It was honestly a great deal, location, and area so we thought we’ve got to have it.”

The Peterborough site plans to have six axe throwing lanes, three escape rooms, and nine holes of crazy golf. The No Work Club will also have some interactive dart boards on offer.

Advertisement

Miss Hawes said: “What I’m most excited about is the escape rooms because they have been built from scratch. We’re currently getting that worked out and set up. They are going to have a mix of both technical things to work out and open as well as a mix of padlocks here and there. So I’m really excited to see how they come out.”

The site will be aimed at everyone and gives people a place to go with their whole families. Miss Hawes added: “I say it is for adults but obviously, it’s great for children as well. We have an age limit of 10 and above for the axe throwing but there is no age limit for the golf and escape rooms. In a way, we want the adults to come and have fun because we want them to get away from work and daily life.”

Miss Hawes believes having all of the activities “in one space” will help it to stand out in the city. Visitors will also be able to enjoy the drinks and food at the Blind Tiger so won’t need to leave the area if they want to spend a day there.

Advertisement

Miss Hawes continued: “I know there’s already axe throwing place in Peterborough, which is a bit more in the centre. We want to offer a bit more variety. We want it to be a hangout place where people cane stay for a couple of hours and they don’t need to go anywhere else. It’s not too far from the caravan site so we want people to know there are things to do in the area.”

Miss Hawes described the brand as “different” with a set colour scheme that is “quite grungy”. Miss Hawes said people should “keep an eye on social media” for any opening discounts the No Work Club might be offering to celebrate the new location.

The No Work Club is hoping to open on Saturday, March 28. It can be found on Ham Lane in Peterborough, above the Blind Tiger taproom.