Trainee teacher Becky broke down in tears after millionaire Adam cleared her credit card and gave her a £2,000 garden makeover on the Channel 5 show
A single mother was moved to tears after she received a garden makeover and had her credit card debt cleared on Rich House, Poor House.
Advertisement
Trainee teacher Becky, who has previously battled cancer, participated in the Channel 5 show alongside her nine-year-old daughter Aimee and Nanny Bev. Earning just above the minimum wage, Becky resides in the Essex village of Hockley, in a two-bedroom terraced house with a single bathroom, reports the Mirror.
Originally from Essex, Adam relocated to Alicante 15 years ago to pursue a career as an estate agent. He has since amassed a fortune on Spain’s Costa Blanca, where he lives in a luxurious £2 million home complete with a pool, along with his girlfriend Ebbe and teenage son Jamie, and drives a Lamborghini.
In addition to swapping homes, the families exchange lifestyles, attending each other’s events and living on each other’s budgets. Adam must get by on £128.10p for the week, whilst Becky is astonished to find out that she has 2,500 Euros (nearly £2,200) for the same period.
Upon learning about Becky’s circumstances and discovering she was in debt, Adam decided he wanted to help. He and Ebbe contemplated how they could help and, following their home swap, he met with Becky and her family to discuss his ideas.
Adam told her: “We see that you have some debts that are just looking like they’re just mounting up. So we’re going to clear your credit card for you so you can sort of start from scratch and catch your breath and not have to worry about that.”
Becky appeared shocked, covering her face with her hands as she expressed her gratitude.
Adam continued: “And then we spoke about this in depth and we feel it’s not a problem that you spend too much because you just struggle to earn enough.
“But the problem is that you don’t have much time because you’re so passionate about working with the children and helping them. So one of the things that we have is a £10,000 digital marketing course that we’ve signed you up for.
“Yeah, if you’re open to it, I’ll personally mentor you and I’ll teach you how to get big clients and big businesses on board. And then by leveraging AI, you’ll only really have to work one to maybe two hours a day to work for these big companies to make an extra in between £1,000 and £5,000 a month.
“So we feel like that is something that you can do whilst continuing to work with the children and sort of get out of this rut and be able to live the life that you want to live.”
“That’s amazing,” responded Becky. “Thank you so much. I’ll bite your hand off. I will be your best student.”
Whilst visiting Essex, Adam had also transformed Becky’s garden, installing play equipment for Aimee.
Becky became emotional as she returned home and witnessed the outcome of the £2,000 transformation, confessing: “I was not expecting all of this. This is next level.”
Brushing away tears, she continued: “I can’t, I can’t tell you how much it is going to change our lives. The opportunities that they’ve given us and me, I’m going to grab 100% with both hands so I can improve the quality of our lives forever.”
Advertisement
For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website
It looked a pretty sobering weekend for McLaren to be so far off the pace after being the best car the last couple of years. Is it realistic to hope they can compete this year or is being best of the rest, as Lando Norris was in Melbourne, the best they will be able to do? – Tom
The fastest McLaren in Australia qualified more than 0.8 seconds slower than George Russell’s pole time, and Norris finished the race 51 seconds behind Russell.
McLaren – world champions for the past two years – admitted their car was not quite on the level of the Mercedes. As team principal Andrea Stella put it: “When we look at the GPS overlays, we see that Mercedes is faster in some of the corners.”
But the vast majority of McLaren’s deficit was down to usage of the power unit and the energy recovery system.
Advertisement
It’s clear the works team has more knowledge of how to get the most out of the engine, and it’s equally clear that, with software systems so complex, more information and knowledge translates into a significant advantage on track.
In Melbourne, the Mercedes cars were able to deploy a significant amount more energy on the long run from Turn Six to Turn Nine, where much of the lap time was being lost by McLaren.
F1 rules dictate that manufacturers must supply engines of exactly the same specification to all their teams – works or customer. However, they don’t say they have to share all the information about how to exploit them fully.
After the race, Stella came quite close to expressing frustration with the lack of information McLaren had from Mercedes and their engine company HPP.
Advertisement
“We remain a little puzzled by the difference we see in the data between the speed of our car and the speed of other cars using the same power unit,” Stella said.
“The discussion with HPP about having more information has been going on for weeks because even in testing, we were pretty much going on track, run the car, look at the data, ‘oh, that’s what we have’, good, now we react to what we have.
“That’s not how you work in Formula 1. In F1, what happens on track, you simulate [beforehand]. You know what is happening. You know what you are programming. You know how the car is going to behave.
“You also have your plans as to how you evolve it that you have figured out before because you know what you are expecting from the car.
Advertisement
“This is the first time since we have been a customer team that we feel we are on the back foot even when it comes to the ability to predict how the car will behave and to anticipate how we can improve the car.”
Mercedes’ argument would be that, as a customer, McLaren can’t expect as close a relationship with the engine department as the works team has.
McLaren would probably counter that they accept that, but they feel they should be a lot better informed than they are.
The McLaren car is believed to be a little overweight, so there is lap time to be gained there – even without aerodynamic upgrades, which are in the pipeline.
Advertisement
In theory, the knowledge of how to exploit the engine will come.
The key questions are how long it will take to learn it, and whether starting with extra knowledge is an advantage that keeps on giving.
The systems in the cars keep learning and improving. It’s yet to be seen whether this is a virtuous circle that never stops, or whether Mercedes will reach diminishing returns and McLaren can catch up.
Nick Woltemade only joined Newcastle United last summer (Picture: Getty)
Dietmar Hamann has described Nick Woltemade’s struggles at Newcastle United as ‘remarkable’ and says it has presented Eddie Howe with a ‘really tricky situation’.
The 24-year-old enjoyed a bright start to his St James’ Park career, however, scoring six goals before the start of November and impressing with his all-round play.
Advertisement
But Woltemade’s contributions began to fall away over the winter period and the German has now scored just once in his last 20 appearances in all competitions.
The towering forward has even been used slightly deeper by an increasingly desperate Howe but Newcastle legend Alan Shearer has dismissed the notion he can play in midfield.
Hamann insists his compatriot’s drop-off is ‘very strange’ and has raised the possibility that Woltemade will now be sold after just one season.
Your football fix
Metro‘s Head of Sport James Goldman delivers punchy analysis, transfer talk and his take on the week’s biggest stories direct to your inbox every week.
Woltemade enjoyed a bright start to his Newcastle career (Picture: Getty)
‘I couldn’t believe the developments in the last few weeks and months regarding Nick Woltemade,’ Hamann told BoyleSports.
‘There was a story in one of the German papers that he hasn’t settled in the North-east, which I personally think is a paradise for a footballer, because if you’ve got a bit of success, they treat you as a hero.
Advertisement
‘He had a great start and was adored by the faithful, adored by the fans. It’s obviously a very strange situation because if you had told me this after six or eight weeks, where he scored a few goals, I would have said he’s going places and he’ll be one who might be there for a few years, who is loved and adored by the people.
Eddie Howe is faced with a ‘really tricky situation’ (Picture: Getty)
‘To have the turnaround now in a short space of time is really remarkable. What you hear and what you see probably makes me think that there might be a summer exit, which is obviously not a good situation for the club because they paid an awful lot of money.
‘Do you force him to stay here? Is that a good solution? And who’s going to pay the money for him now?
‘So, yeah, I think it’s a really tricky situation for both of them, for both parties, but especially for the club.’
If Newcastle do end up selling Woltemade, Hamann believes former Manchester United and Chelsea transfer target Victor Osimhen would be the ‘perfect’ replacement.
Advertisement
Victor Osimhen has long been linked with a Premier League move (Picture: Getty)
Osimhen has scored an impressive 55 goals in 67 games since joining Galatasaray in 2024 and helped Napoli win the Serie A title before his move to Turkey.
‘I think Victor Osimhen is one of the top five centre forwards in Europe,’ ex-Newcastle, Liverpool, Manchester City and Bayern Munich midfielder Hamann added.
‘I couldn’t believe that he ended up in Turkey. Obviously, Napoli paid an awful lot of money for him, but I’m very surprised that none of the English teams signed him, because they all struggled for centre forwards in the summer.
‘They tried for players like Benjamin Sesko, and other players who have come in are only just starting to adapt now because they obviously needed some time.
‘I think he’s an outstanding player and I think he’s probably the reason why Galatasaray is doing well in the league and also in the Champions League.
Advertisement
‘I love watching him and I think, if he were to play in the Premier League, there are teams he would make much better.
‘Obviously, Liverpool have got two players there now, so he won’t end up there, but he’s an outstanding player. He’s got pace, he’s got power, he can finish, a wonderful player.
‘If Newcastle do sell Nick Woltemade, he could be the perfect fit.’
Despite millennials’ reputation for avoiding phone calls and opting for texts instead, new research has found there is one conversation they are always willing to have – with their mum.
Half of Brits (53%) call their mum more often than they did 10 years ago – with the average call lasting over an hour, new research has found.
Advertisement
Brits in their early 30s speak to their mum five times a week, with two-fifths calling at least once a day according to Three UK, while data also showed that 10am was the preferred time for “calling home”.
And the calls are very welcome, with four in five mums saying they would rather receive a phone call or coffee catch-up than an expensive gift ahead of Mother’s Day.
While the national average call lasts just over an hour, where you live can make a dramatic difference. In Wolverhampton, conversations last just 34 minutes on average, while in Middlesbrough they stretch to the length of a feature film – at 101 minutes.
In honour of the maternal figures in our lives, Three has unveiled some special Mother’s Day treats on the Three+ rewards app, including cards, cakes, flowers and beauty bundles.
Unsurprisingly, many of us rely on our phones to organise special moments for our mum, such as sending a card digitally (36%) and ordering flowers (34%).
This year, Three is helping customers turn everyday conversations into meaningful gestures with its Three+ rewards app, making it easier to celebrate the maternal figures who are always at the end of the phone.
A free Mother’s Day (or Easter) card from TGJones, worth up to £4.99 (available until March 15)
Say it with flowers – 40% off selected Mother’s Day bouquets from Appleyard London (available until March 15)
Cake and a catch-up? Two-for-one sweet treats at Caffe Nero (available until March 15)
Luxury beauty bundle for £29.99 (inc. p&p, worth over £66) from Real Beauty Bargain (available until April 30)
Gruum spring skin & hair bundle for £XX (worth up to £34) (available until March 29)
Plus, £3 weekend cinema tickets, £1 coffees and £5 off at thousands of restaurants and takeaways.
Death Valley in California – the hottest place on Earth and the driest place in North America – is currently carpeted in wildflowers in what is shaping up to be the best bloom in a decade.
The National Park Service (NPS) officially categorised this as an above-average bloom year on 22 February, with low-elevation flowers blooming throughout the park.
It is the best event the site has seen since 2016, with swathes of the desert transformed and covered in golden and violet flora.
He will join the funniest doctor in medicine, Dr Kevin Jones, for the annual Bury Hospice Comedy Festival.
Dr Jones, recently retired as a consultant physician at the Royal Bolton Hospital, and still lives in Bolton, will compere the festival, which over the years has attracted some big name comedians, including Mick Miller, Scott Bennett, Nina Gilligan and Justin Moorhouse.
Dr Kevin Jones Image: Dr Kevin Jones
And this year is no exception. Performing on both nights are Big Lou (Lewis Jones) and Rod Woodward.
Big Lou is a local lad from Prestwich who is a great favourite in the area with a comedy style which is a mixture of Les Dawson and Jimmy Carr.
Advertisement
Rod Woodward is from Cardiff and has the almost unique distinction of being invited not once but twice to entertain in front of royalty at the Royal Variety Performance.
On Friday night, Martin Gold will appear who was voted Comedian of the Year for two years running by the Variety Club of Great Britain.
Paul Sinha is also known as The Sinnerman on The Chase Image: ITV
On Saturday, the Sinnerman from the Chase is headlining.
Dr Jones is a Trustee at Bury Hospice and has been dubbed Britain’s funniest doctor.
Advertisement
He said: “ I am delighted to be able to help with the Comedy Festival. I have worked with all the comedians previously and was very keen to get them to come to Bury to perform. The comedians at the previous shows have all loved the experience and so have the crowds. There is a wonderful atmosphere and of course it is all for a very important cause.”
The festival will take place Festival will take place at the Polish Social Centre in Back East Street BL9 0RU Friday, March 20th and Saturday, March 21st.
It is being sponsored by JD Sports.
Tickets for the shows can be bought from the Bury Hospice website
Neil Simpson and his guide Rob Poth won Great Britain’s first medal of the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics with silver in the alpine combined.
It is a third Paralympic medal overall for the visually impaired skier, who had recorded two fourth-place finishes earlier in these Games.
In the alpine combined, skiers complete a run of both the super G and slalom, with their factored times combined to determine the final standings.
Simpson and Poth had sat in fourth after the morning’s super G, 0.57 seconds short of third place.
Advertisement
But in the slalom, they recorded the fastest time of the day to move up two places as Canada’s Kalle Ericsson and his guide Sierra Smith fell out of contention.
Italy’s Giacomo Bertagnolli and guide Andrea Ravelli won gold, finishing 0.65 seconds ahead of Simpson and Poth overall, while Austria’s Johannes Aigner and Nico Haberl won bronze.
“I’m really chuffed with the performance, some good skiing on the second run and we carried out the plan we had,” said Simpson, 23.
“The visually impaired men’s [category] is really strong, there are lots of really quick guys in there so I’m pleased to get on the podium.”
Advertisement
Four years ago, Simpson, guided by his brother Andrew, won GB’s only gold of the Beijing Games with victory in the super G, a win that cemented him as the first British man to win gold at a Winter Paralympics.
His medal at Milan-Cortina adds to the bronze he won in the alpine combined at the last Games, while it improves on the fourth-place finishes he recorded in both the downhill with his brother and super G with Poth in recent days.
For Poth, 28, it is a first Paralympic medal at his maiden Games.
“I’m buzzing. For me it was a little bit of a relief, but our slalom is in a great place,” he said.
Advertisement
Simpson and Poth have two further chances of medals at these Games, in Friday’s giant slalom and Sunday’s slalom.
That they set the fastest time in the slalom run of the alpine combined, crossing the line in 42.52 seconds, one-tenth of a second quicker than the next fastest run, bodes well for both events.
“With the giant slalom, we feel pretty ready for that, and for the slalom, we’re feeling really good and hopefully we can do well,” said Simpson.
Poth added: “Run by run, we are building up the confidence, that has definitely taken it up a notch and we’re getting closer to that top step.
Advertisement
“We’re on a high and hopefully we can continue on that trajectory.”
Alternatively, if there were still high gas and oil costs from the war, he stressed: “If in May, we are still in this position and it looks like the October, so the winter price cap, is going to stay high and there are no cheap fixes because wholesale rates haven’t come down, that is where we start to get talking about intervention points when it comes to energy bills.”
Merseyside Police said the 43-year-old, from Widnes, is accused of section 18 wounding with intent, along with a second man, Gary O’Grady, 50, from Huyton, Merseyside.
Emergency services were called at around 9pm on Sunday after a man suffered serious injuries to his face and body near Huyton and Prescot Golf Club.
He is in a serious but stable condition in hospital.
Advertisement
Barton and O’Grady, who appear on England Golf lists as members of the Huyton and Prescot Golf Club, are due to appear at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday afternoon.
Earlier, at a High Court hearing on Tuesday over a libel claim involving Barton, Gervase de Wilde, representing former England footballer Eni Aluko, said his instructing solicitor had “received a call from a duty solicitor in a police station in Liverpool” shortly before the hearing.
Mr de Wilde told the court on Tuesday that Barton, who has managed Fleetwood Town and Bristol Rovers, “was arrested yesterday and is currently being held in custody”.
Former Manchester City and QPR midfielder Barton has one England cap and also played for Rangers, Burnley and Marseille.
Advertisement
He now hosts podcast Common Sense With Joey Barton, which is described as an “unfiltered” look at issues in sport, society, politics and more.
The Cheltenham Festival is back and the 2026 edition promises to be action-packed and, perhaps, a little unpredictable though there is sure to be four incredible days of racing culminating in Friday’s Gold Cup with Inothewayurthinkin attempting to win the trophy for a second successive year.
First up however is Champion Day. Tuesday sees the Festival begin in all its splendor and glory and there are some previous winners and big name horses on display for the British and Irish trainers.
The New Lion headlines the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival (PA)
The Supreme Novices Hurdle kicks off proceedings with Nicky Henderson’s Old Star Park leading the way in the odds markets and with Nico de Boinville set to ride him it could be an early victory for the English trainer. In the Arkle, Willie Mullins’ Kopek Des Bordes (who won the Supreme Novices in 2025) is being backed to triumph again while Dan Skelton’s The New Lion, another former Cheltenham winner, is going for glory in the Champion Hurdle.
But, which horse do our experts fancy for this opening salvo at the Festival? Read on to find out.
Find the latest Cheltenham offers and free bets with Independent Sport ready to provide daily coverage from the festival and get our free betting newsletter for the latest Cheltenham tips. Sign up here.
Advertisement
Our racing correspondent Jonathan Doidge will be at Cheltenham all week to share his thoughts, insights and tips. Plus legendary former jockey Ruby Walsh has shared his tips with Paddy Power.
Champion Day – Tuesday, 11 March
1.20: Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1 )
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Leader D’Allier
Advertisement
“A smaller field than expected, but this still looks a deep Supreme. I have a few concerns about some of the market principals, and I like the look of Leader d’Allier. He has the ideal profile, he’s a solid jumper and he should see this trip out strongly.”
Jonathan Doidge’s tips: Old Park Star and Talk The Talk (both E/W)
“Nicky Henderson knows how to win this race and the type that it takes to do so. I’m not sure Old Park Star is as nippy as some he’s sent this way but he’s definitely not slow and I think he’ll get the strong pace he needs to enable him to do his best work up the hill.
“I’d also added in a second each-way play on Talk The Talk, in the belief that he’d eventually come here. I think he’d be 4-4 over hurdles but for that stumble after he’d jumped the last at Leopardstown in front and if anything beats Old Park Star, it could be him.”
Advertisement
Sky Bet ambassador Ed Chamberlin’s tip:Old Park Star
“The big question is who will be standing at the top after the Sky Bet Supreme, and I think the answer is Old Park Star. Mighty Park has been talked up as the next coming, which makes Old Park Star a backable price with Sky Bet. I know the Henderson team think the world of him now.”
2.00: My Pension Expert Arkle Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Kopek Des Bordes
Advertisement
“Kopek Des Bordes surprised me with how nimble he was over fences at Navan, and he looked very impressive when I saw him schooling at Fairyhouse. They even let me sit on him one day, and I got off with a big smile on my face. He’s a proper racehorse and my best bet on day one.”
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Lulamba
“He’s barely put a foot wrong and he’s officially 5lb superior to the favourite Kopek Des Bordes, and I am still happy to be with Lulamba in the Arkle. He impressed with his jumping at both Exeter and when winning the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown.”
2.40: Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle
Advertisement
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Glen to Glen
“Saratoga has been on plenty of punters’ minds, but I’m siding with Glen To Glen. He was a very decent performer on the Flat, and the drying ground should really suit him. He looks to be on a fair mark and has a solid chance for Joseph O’Brien.”
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Mustang Du Breuil (E/W)
“There’s been a further nibble atManlagaand I do think Nicky Henderson’s charge has claims in this juvenile handicap. However his stablemate Mustang Du Breuil is twice the price and they are rated only 1lb apart on their form to date. That looks like value.”
Advertisement
3:20: Ultima Handicap Chase (Grade 3)
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Resplendent Grey (E/W)
“I’ve gone off Jagwar, who I thought might develop into a graded performer this season. Instead, I’m taking a chance on Resplendent Grey at a big each-way price. He gets blinkers on for the first time, which will be a huge help to him. He was placed at the Festival last year, the drying ground should suit, and with Sean Bowen booked, he looks a solid value play.”
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Jagwar
Advertisement
“Whichever way I look at this race, and there are a number who may well be well treated, I keep coming back to the favourite Jagwar. He loves it around here, those form figures of 1132 are clear evidence of that.”
4.00: Unibet Champion Hurdle (Grade 1)
Ruby Walsh’s tip: The New Lion
“Lossiemouth will sport cheekpieces for the first time in an attempt to help her keep up with the early pace. She’s better suited to more steadily run races over this trip, and Brighterdaysahead could set a frantic gallop, which just puts me off her. It could set up perfectly for The New Lion if he can keep his jumping together. He just gets my vote.”
Advertisement
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Lossiemouth (E/W)
“Lossiemouth is unbeaten at this venue and is just such a consistent and reliable mare. Detractors will say that, at her best, she wouldn’t be good enough to beat a top Champion Hurdle winner. That may still be the case shortly after four o’clock on Tuesday but I think she’s definitely good enough to finish in the first three.”
“Tutti Quanti is overpriced in the Champions Hurdle and I’m the only one seemingly blabbering on about it. I was so impressed with him at Newbury – yes he has to improve, but I think he’s really talented.”
Advertisement
4.40: TrustATrader Festival Plate Handicap
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Downmexicoway
“I was siding with Downmexicoway, whether he turned up here or in the Grand Annual. He was beaten 23 lengths in the Irish Arkle, but that margin could have been much closer. He’s on a lovely mark, and it’s Downmexicoway all the way for me.”
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Zurich (E/W)
Advertisement
“Zurich has got C&D winning form against his name, in what was presumably a reconnaissance mission for this race. He showed a bit more improvement there and there’s no obvious reason why he can’t do so again in a true-run contest like the vast majority of Festival races provide.”
5.20: National Hunt Chase
Ruby Walsh’s tip: Newton Tornado
“It’s Newton Tornado for me in the last. Rebecca Curtis was keen for Paul Townend to take the ride, but he respectfully declined. She’s very strong on his chances, and she knows how to get one ready for this race, having won it twice before, including last year’s renewal. I’m hoping she can go back-to-back and end day one with a winner.”
Advertisement
Jonathan Doidge’s tip: Iceberg Theory (E/W)
“Trainer Paul Nolan doesn’t send his inmates to these shores if he doesn’t think they’ve a chance and I think Iceberg Theory has too. He won at both Limerick and Cork to make it 2-3 over fences. He also looks well treated from a current mark of 133.”
“Newton Tornado later on in the card, I think Rebecca Curtis has primed this horse to run a big race with Sean Flanagan on board. I’m landing on Winston Junior for Faye Bramley, who bolted up last time and could be well treated.”
According to Richmond council documents, Lime marginally outscored Forest, and another operator, Voi, on “quality”, but Forest won by some distance on “pricing schedule”, which is based on how much each firm was prepared to pay to the council to win the contract, and how much they would charge users in bike hire fees.
