The Repair Shop star Dom Chinea is to make a guest appearance in one of the BBC’s longest-running soaps as part of a milestone episode and has called the opportunity a “pinch-me moment”

The Repair Shop’s Dom Chinea is to make a guest appearance in one of the BBC’s longest-running soaps for a special anniversary.

The TV star, 40, will make soon be heard on The Archers for a 75th anniversary episode of the BBC radio soap, and listeners will be able to tune into all the action as he arrives in the programme’s fictional village of Ambridge.

The metal expert will appear in the Radio 4 show in Sunday’s episode where he will stop off at the village’s annual Flower And Produce Show, while an upcoming episode of The Repair Shop will also see the team work on an Archers item.

Ahead of the guest appearance, said: “This was quite the pinch me moment being part of The Archers – it’s such an iconic show.

“Having only worked on factual TV series, I found it fascinating to be involved in the recording of a scripted drama, it’s the first time I’ve ever played a cameo scripted role. I’m not going to lie I was a little out of my comfort zone and I hope I did The Repair Shop team proud.”

The show will see one of its characters, Leonard Berry, ask Chinea to help fix Robert Snell’s broken toaster without realising he is famous for fixing things.

Chinea will then meet Tony Archer, who shows him a toy tractor that used to belong to his son, John, who died at the age of 22, and Chinea agrees to help Tony fix it.

During discussions about the episode, editor of The Archers Jeremy Howe also suggested that there was a production item that was in need of some real-life Repair Shop attention, in a doorbell board.

The item, which is a sound board of 12 various doorbells used in the long-running drama only has two bells still functioning, and Spot FX producer Vanessa Nuttall and Louiza Patikas, who plays Helen Archer, took the board to The Repair Shop barn.

Howe said: “As huge fans of The Repair Shop, we thought we would give them an unusual challenge from the huge array of oddball props we use to make our Ambridge sound effects.

“Without giving too much away, I think The Repair Shop geniuses – Mark (Stuckey, electrical expert) especially – rose to the challenge and some. We are delighted with our good-as-new gizmo.”

A Repair Shop episode featuring the doorbell board will be shown next year, while the episode of The Archers featuring Chinea will air on Sunday at 7pm.

The Archers was first broadcast in 1951, some nine years before Coronation Street hit screens on ITV and more than three decades before the BBC launched their own television soap in the form of EastEnders. Others to have made guest appearances over the years include Queen Camilla, Dame Judi Dench and Sir Terry Wogan.

The late Patricia Greene was the soap’s longest-serving actress having starred as matriarch Jill Archer from 1957 until September 2025, and Felicity Jones voiced the role of Emma Carter for a decade before going on to find success in Hollywood.

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The Tockholes Scarecrow Festival has become one of the Lancashire village’s most popular annual events and this year proved no different, while also raising money for worthy causes.

Photographer Henry Lisowski was out and about in Tockholes over the course of Saturday, September 5 to see in the start of autumn by documenting some of the best scarecrows.

Tockholes Scarecrow Festival made a triumphant return (Image: Henry Lisowski)

With no shortage of weird and wonderful examples scattered throughout the village, the festival has once again well and truly lived up to its billing.

Saturday marked the start of the festival from 10.30am to 4pm, with a scarecrow trail, craft activities and events taking place in the village hall.

Tockholes Scarecrow Festival made a triumphant return (Image: Henry Lisowski)

Festivities continued throughout Sunday from 11am until 3pm, with the village hall open throughout the day and refreshments available for visitors.

But as well as providing fun for all the family, organisers say the event has also been put on with the aim of raising money for Cancer Research UK and for East Lancashire Hospice.

Raffle tickets raising money for the two charities to help them continue their work in the community were on sale throughout the weekend.

Ian Wright fears Chelsea’s decision not to address a glaring weakness in their squad during the transfer window will impact their chances of competing for the Premier League title.

After another summer of upheaval at Stamford Bridge, a new-look team under the management of Xabi Alonso has emerged and made a promising start to the new season.

Victories over Fulham and Brighton with goals flowing for a formidable looking front three hinted at the potential Alonso has at his disposal.

Sunday’s London derby against Arsenal represented a chance to lay down a significant marker but the Blues came up short, falling to a narrow 2-1 defeat.

With Moises Caicedo injured, Alonso and Chelsea ultimately finished the match with Malo Gusto as a makeshift central midfielder, while Arsenal were able to bring on World Cup winners Mikel Merino and Martin Zubimendi.

Having lost Enzo Fernandez on deadline day and lost Andrey Santos earlier in the summer, Wright believes Chelsea’s current midfield woes are of their own making and should’ve been addressed much earlier than the frantic scramble to recruit Lamine Camara from Monaco which ultimately proved fruitless.

Asked if Chelsea would threaten Arsenal’s supremacy at the top of the table, Wright told Sky Sports: ‘I think that their front three is going to cause a lot of people problems but I feel it is going to come down to the midfield.

‘I genuinely believe they probably would’ve known that Enzo was going to definitely go, Santos went earlier and they tried to get Lamine Camarra from Monaco at the end. They could’ve just done that earlier because Enzo was always going to go.

‘The only problem they will have is the midfield and the problems they may have with a couple of injuries from players in their midfield.

‘In respects of their team and the front guys they’ll be able to beat a lot of teams in the league and once they know exactly what he (Alonso) is doing.

‘When Xabi finished at Leverkusen they averaged 62% possession so they’re going to change, they will play in a different way and be a team that challenges up there.’

Asked for an update on Caicedo’s fitness ahead of Chelsea’s midweek Carabao Cup game against Leeds United, Alonso was cautiously optimistic.

He said: ‘Not longer term but it is about assessing the risk.

‘Probably last week we took him too early and I don’t want to take the same mistake again.’

The woman claimed it ‘felt like it was 35C’ in the hotel room during one of the August heatwaves – despite the hotel’s website promising air conditioning

A woman said she could not last longer than 10-minutes in a four-star Cambridge hotel room because the air conditioning did not work during a heatwave. The 37-year-old, who wished to remain anonymous, had booked to stay at the Turing Locke hotel in Eddington between August 16 and August 18.

The Turing Locke website advertises air conditioning on its list of amenities. The hotel, which cost the woman £67 per night, reportedly did not inform guests during booking or check in that the air conditioning was not working.

The Cambridge resident said: “You should be told that in the middle of a UK heat wave, there is no AC, considering that they are hosting humans as well as animals.”

On arrival, the hotel, on Eddington Avenue, offered the guest a room upgrade prior to her complaint about the air conditioning. When entering the room, the guest said that she “felt like it was 35C”. She said: “I just can’t sit in that room for longer than 10 minutes.”

“I don’t feel like I could breathe in that room,” she added. She made a complaint to the hotel about the air conditioning and was moved to another hotel nearby. An email seen by CambridgeshireLive showed that she was offered a 50 per cent refund as a result of the complaint.

However, the 37-year-old has questioned why staff did not inform her that the air conditioning was not working. She questioned whether they would have offered her the reduction if she hadn’t complained.

The guest said: “It meant that, in my impression, all the other people that were staying without making a complaint [about] the AC were paying full price.”

She feels it is “misleading” people and “false advertising” as well as “making a bad name for Cambridge”. The guest added: “Cambridge has a lot of professors visiting, a lot of scholars and I don’t think they should be representing Cambridge like that.”

The guest added: “In the middle of the heatwave, the reason why I didn’t stay in the Airbnb and stayed in the hotel is because of the air con.” Had she known, she said she would have cancelled the booking “because of how hot the days were”. She is urging the hotel to repair the air conditioning.

Turing Locke has been contacted for comment.

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — FIFA President Gianni Infantino will stand for re-election, world soccer’s governing body said Sunday.

Infantino has faced increasing pressure over his failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup.

Despite widespread calls for him to step down, FIFA said Infantino will seek next year to win a fourth and final term in office through 2031.

“The FIFA President announced in April that he will stand for re-election in 2027. Of course, nothing has changed. Mr. Infantino will be standing for re-election,” a FIFA spokesperson said.

UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, has led the calls for Infantino to go, saying it had lost confidence in him and previously threatening to boycott FIFA tournaments, including the World Cup. A number of national associations, such the English FA, have withdrawn support for Infantino’s re-election.

On Saturday Infantino refused to comment about his future when arriving for the opening of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland.

“There will be a lot to say, but there will be a right place and a right time to say this. It’s not today, it’s not here, but here and today, we are enjoying football,” he told Sky News.

FIFA apologized for errors made over its controversial plan to sell profits in the World Cup through a commercial subsidiary and committed to “ensure they do not happen again.”

But that hasn’t been enough to ease the pressure on Infantino’s position.

Nov. 18 is the deadline for candidates to enter the next presidential contest, exactly four months ahead of the vote.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See AP’s full soccer coverage here

The crash, believed to have involved one vehicle which collided with a tree, was reported on Radcliffe Road at around 10.53pm on the night of Friday, September 4.

Police said at the time that four people were injured, some of them with life-threatening injuries, and confirmed on Sunday afternoon that the incident is now fatal.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: “Sadly, this is now confirmed a fatal collision so if anyone has any information, please come forward.

“This includes anyone who witnessed the incident, or has CCTV, dashcam, doorbell or mobile phone footage from the area.”

Radcliffe Road cuts through the Haulgh, Darcy Lever and Little Lever on the eastern side of the borough.

Police said previously that a Toyota Yaris travelling east along the road where it appeared to have lost control and to have collided with a tree at the side of the road.

Anyone with any further information can contact police via 0161 856 4741 or on their Live Chat service at gmp.police.uk, quoting log 3750 of September 4, 2026.

Alternatively, members of the public can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

National Highways anticipates that the road will be permanently repaired in 2027

A damaged part of the A1 that has been undergoing repairs since a fatal crash in 2024 needs more “extensive” work next year. A lorry crashed on the A1 southbound at Water Newton, near Peterborough, in November 2024.

The lorry driver, a man in his 40s, died. The crash also caused significant damage to the Billy Brook culvert at Water Newton.

Since the crash, a section of the road has seen lane closures and reduced speed limits. National Highways said the bridge is expected to be “permanently repaired” in 2027.

National Highways has since said it needs to replace the culvert rather than repair it. A highways spokesperson said: “We restored the A1 southbound at Water Newton back to two lanes last year and have since been planning the best solution for a permanent repair.

“This will be extensive and complex work to plan and construct an entirely new culvert to replace the damaged structure. We will begin preparations this year so we can start work on the permanent repair in 2027.”

A reduced speed limit will remain in place during the works.

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By LILY JOBSON, SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER

Published: 19:13 BST, 6 September 2026 | Updated: 19:25 BST, 6 September 2026

Alicia Vikander looked incredibly glamorous in a blue ruffled gown as she joined her husband Michael Fassbender at The Echo Chamber premiere in Venice on Sunday.

The Swedish actress, 37, oozed elegance in the thigh-high split dress adorned with a huge bow on the front.

Alicia was the star of the show on the red carpet before sharing a sweet kiss with her supportive husband in front of the cameras.

Michael, 49, looked dashing in a black tuxedo and sunglasses while smiling for photos alongside Alicia.

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The couple, who met on the set of The Light Between Oceans in 2014, tied the knot in October 2017 during a private ceremony in Ibiza, Spain.

They welcomed their first son in 2021 and their second son, whose name has not been revealed, earlier in 2024. They now reside in Lisbon, Portugal, with their two children.

Alicia Vikander looked incredibly glamorous in a blue ruffled gown as she joined her husband Michael Fassbender at The Echo Chamber premiere in Venice on Sunday

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The Swedish actress, 37, oozed elegance in the thigh-high split dress adorned with a huge bow on the front

Alicia was the star of the show on the red carpet before sharing a sweet kiss with her supportive husband, 49, in front of the cameras

The Echo Chamber is a somber, intimate love story following a drug-addicted music producer Leo (played by Luca Marinelli), and an enigmatic physiotherapist, Anne (played by Alicia). 

Their codependent relationship circles through intense attachment, care, control and separation.

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Directed by Andrea Pallaoro, the film serves as a highly anticipated Golden Lion contender and is adapted from the final screenplay penned by legendary Italian film-maker Bernardo Bertolucci before his death.

Alicia was joined on the red carpet by her co-stars Luca Marinelli, Susan Sarandon and director Andrea.

Susan, 79, displayed her incredibly youthful looks in a simplistic strapless black gown and opted for a swipe of red lipstick.

Orlando Bloom made an appearance dressed in an all-black tuxedo as he smiled for photographs.

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Meanwhile, Irina Shayk, 40, showcased her model physique in a vintage Dolce & Gabbana dress with racy tie up detailing.

The model recreated fellow runway star Bella Hadid’s 21st birthday look, wearing the exact same dress. 

Michael looked dashing in a black tuxedo and sunglasses

The Echo Chamber is a somber, intimate love story following a drug-addicted music producer Leo (played by Luca Marinelli), and an enigmatic physiotherapist, Anne (played by Alicia)

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Alicia was joined on the red carpet by her co-stars Luca Marinelli, Susan Sarandon and director Andrea (L-R)

Susan, 79, displayed her incredibly youthful looks in a simplistic strapless black gown and opted for a swipe of red lipstick

Orlando Bloom made an appearance dressed in an all-black tuxedo as he smiled for photographs

Meanwhile, Irina Shayk, 40, showcased her model physique in a vintage Dolce & Gabbana dress with racy tie up detailing

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She flashed her underwear in the daringly-cut gown on the red carpet

The model recreated fellow runway star Bella Hadid’s 21st birthday look, wearing the exact same dress

Arsenal came from behind to see off Chelsea with Mikel Arteta’s side dominating as they look to evolve into a side that dominates games with an eye-catching style

They won the title last season by outmuscling opponents. Now Arsenal are threatening to win it again but this time with real style and an extra swagger.

Mikel Arteta’s reigning champions have gone from set-pieces to slick, beautiful football as Martin Odegaard’s winner was an absolute cracker.

It was hard fought, tense and a superb London derby as Chelsea gave Arsenal a really tough examination and showed they will be a force to be reckoned with under Xabi Alonso. But Arsenal passed the acid test, they showed they are determined to retain their title and they are playing with the shackles off even if the dying minutes felt rather nervy.

Incredibly, Chelsea have not beaten Arsenal in 12 meetings which dates back to August 2021 and the gap is still there because the Gunners look embolden by last season’s success.

Furthermore, Odegaard is well and truly back. The Arsenal captain missed so much of last season through injury and, when he was around, he was nowhere near his best. But Odegaard showed in the World Cup for Norway that he has got the bit between his teeth again and is getting back to the levels which made him one of the best midfielders in Europe.

Chelsea do possess a dangerous forward line of Morgan Rogers, Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer but they were up against the Premier League’s meanest defence. And when Chelsea substitute Estevao Willian did produce one piece of late magic he was thwarted by Arsenal keeper David Raya’s incredible last-gasp save.

This really felt like a big moment for Arsenal because it was without the biggest game of the Premier League season so far and it sent a clear message to the rest.

The only strange thing was to see Arsenal actually concede a goal which was their first this season. It was messy and came after just 77 seconds. All that talk about mean defences and the clean sheet record is gone in just over a minute. Reece James’ free kick was not cleared properly. Jorrel Hato then headed it and the ball fell for Rogers who hit it full on the volley.

Rogers’ shot then bounced past Arsenal keeper David Raya’s despairing dive and the reigning champions had conceded their first goal of the season after just 77 seconds. The Emirates was stunned. But Arsenal then produced some of their best football this season. Arsenal had so much play, so much possession and pressure. They pinned Chelsea back.

Riccardo Calafiori had the ball in the net but it was disallowed because VAR showed Ezri Konsa was offside. They were putting Chelsea keeper Emiliano Martinez under real pressure.

It eventually told when Arsenal leveled after 25 minutes. Declan Rice’s short pass set up Kai Havertz and the Arsenal striker cut inside the box and then fired a low shot which caught out Martinez at his near post.

This was a really top quality London derby. Chelsea were dangerous on the break and Pedro Neto led one counter attack in first half injury time and his long range effort hit the far post.

Arsenal then produced a moment of pure magic for the winner. Havertz started the move in the centre circle. Calafiori carried it on. Then Christos Tzolis played a low cross field pass, Havertz dummied it and the ball went straight to Odegaard who calmly slotted past Martinez.

Tzolis will get credited with the assist but he should really share it with Havertz. What a dummy. It left the Arsenal fans marveling at the brilliance of the goal. Arsenal really should have put the game to bed. Bukayo Saka saw a terrific curling effort saved by Martinez and the Chelsea keeper also made a couple more last gasp stops.

Arsenal were well worth the win.

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US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Kyiv on Sunday for high-stakes negotiations with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, capping a high-wire weekend of shuttle diplomacy aimed at breaking a long-standing stalemate in the war.

The diplomatic mission follows a three-hour meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Moscow a day earlier, and represents Washington’s most direct effort to revive peace talks since the outbreak of the US-Iran war in February.

The trip marks the American envoys’ first official visit to the Ukrainian capital after traveling by train from Poland, having previously made eight visits to Moscow.

While details of the discussions have not yet been made public, Witkoff said the US team had been “very encouraged” by what he described as “substantive, important” dialogue in a statement made to reporters after the first round of discussions.

White House officials added that the envoys discussed “plans for next steps”, with a formal announcement anticipated in the coming weeks.

The delegation’s arrival has brought with it a temporary three-day agreement between Moscow and Kyiv to pause air strikes targeting each other’s capitals through to Monday.

The localised truce allowed the American emissaries to travel safely into Kyiv where Zelensky greeted Witkoff and Kushner in Sophia Square – just hundreds of metres from where Ukraine’s SBU intelligence headquarters were struck by a Russian drone on Friday – before hosting them at Saint Sophia Cathedral for bilateral talks.

In spite of the brief lull over Kyiv and Moscow, however, intense combat continued unabated along the 1,200km front line, with Ukrainian authorities reporting at least eight civilians were killed and nearly 70 injured over the previous 24 hours.

Russian air defences claimed to have intercepted 258 Ukrainian drones across 14 regions in the same period.

Ukrainian forces launched deep drone strikes overnight against the Ryazan oil refinery roughly 300 miles inside Russia, sparking a major fire at the facility.

Russian retaliation has since pounded regional Ukrainian targets outside the capital and claimed missile strikes against two commercial cargo vessels near Odesa on Sunday, alleging they were transporting Western military supplies through the Black Sea.

The ongoing violence underscores the severe friction surrounding the negotiation efforts.

During Saturday’s discussions at the Kremlin, foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov stated that Putin presented a comprehensive assessment of the battlefield, expressed complete confidence in Russian advances, and insisted that any lasting peace must address the “root causes” of the conflict.

Mr Ushakov characterised the talks as constructive and candid, noting that discussions also touched on potential long-term economic cooperation between Washington and Moscow, although no concrete breakthroughs were announced.

Previous talks were stalled over Russian refusal to compromise on its demand for Ukraine’s total withdrawal from fortified towns in the Donbas and Kyiv’s formal renunciation of Nato membership.

The Kremlin’s uncompromising tone appears largely unchanged, further underscored by foreign minister Sergei Lavrov’s warning that German accusations over a foiled airport drone plot mark what is “by and large the start of a real war”.

Accusing Berlin of escalating direct confrontation, the aggressive rhetoric highlights a widening rift between Moscow and European capitals even as US mediators seek common ground.

In Kyiv, Ukrainian officials have expressed firm limits on what concessions they would consider.

Citing the extent of Russian losses, foreign minister Andrii Sybiha has argued that Moscow is in “no position” to dictate peace terms.

The talks come just weeks ahead of forecasted temperature drops, with Ukrainian authorities racing to fortify municipal heating systems and shore up power generation before autumn cold sets in.

A significant portion of Sunday’s talks in Kyiv are believed to have centred on Ukraine’s urgent winter energy needs following previous Russian strikes that destroyed 9GW of power generation, with national security advisers from the UK, France, and Germany expected to join expanded discussions focused on coordinating long-term energy and security guarantees.