The gardens have many features and flowers that will be blooming in the spring

As the weather starts to improve thanks to the new spring season, you might be thinking of places you can visit to enjoy some time in the outdoors. Cambridgeshire has plenty of green spaces to see with your family but you also do not need to travel too far if you want to go somewhere new.

The National Garden Scheme puts on open days of gardens across the UK for people to enjoy throughout the year. The garden surrounding the Tudor Kirtling Tower will be open for one day on Sunday, March 29, and might be worth a visit if you love history.

The tower can be found right on the border of Cambridgeshire with its main feature nowadays being the three-storeyed Tudor gatehouse. The origins of Kirtling Tower date back to 1219 when it was a castle with a moat, a ditch, and a palisade.

The castle went through a range of rebuilds including in the 1550s by architect Francis Adams when it was renamed Kirtling Hall. The hall continued to be developed and by the 1660s, it was the largest country house in Cambridgeshire.

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The property went into decline in the 19th century with most of the castle being pulled down in 1801. In the 1830s, the gatehouse was turned into a residential property and was renamed Kirtling Tower.

During the open day, guests will have a chance to walk around the 25 acres of parkland where you can see views of the surrounding countryside. The dry moat has been planted with daffodils and trees alongside the “beautifully designed garden”.

The garden has a range of historical features such as a Walnut Avenue and an ancient Tudor Walk. You can follow the grass paths to see lots of spring flowers blooming and take a look at the Cutting Garden, which is full of roses and sweet peas.

The Cloister Courtyard has been planted with hydrangeas and roses. There will be some craft and plant stalls to take a look at as well as light refreshments on offer.

Tickets for the open day costs £6 for adults and are free for children. Tickets can be booked through the National Garden Scheme website.

The gardens around the tower will be open from 11am until 4pm. Kirtling Tower can be found on Kirtling Road, which is around a 38 minute drive away from Cambridge via the A1303.

“The reckless actions of these youths could have caused serious injury or worse”

A pedestrian was struck by a scrambler in West Belfast on Friday, police have said.

West Belfast Neighbourhood officers are now seeking witnesses to the incident, and dashcam footage to be brought forward. The incident happened “in the vicinity of the crossing at the Dairy Farm, Stewartstown Road” at around 3pm yesterday.

“Around six youths were riding scramblers in an obviously dangerous manner when the collision occurred,” a police statement read.

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“The reckless actions of these youths could have caused serious injury or worse. If you were in the Dairy Farm area at this time, did you witness this incident? If you have dashcam footage, we would urge you to check this and contact police with any information you can provide us with by calling 101 and quoting serial 877 of 13/03/2026.

“Due to the rise in offences involving e-bikes and scramblers, we also appeal to parents, if you know your child is a rider of one of these, please ensure they do not ride them illegally on the roads and in a dangerous manner which could potentially be fatal. Police are working alongside the community to help educate young people regarding the dangers of these bikes but we really need support from parents.

“Before you buy your child one of these bikes, please think twice as to whether they will be used in a safe and legal manner without causing a risk to the public and to themselves.”

Sinn Féin MLA Danny Baker said “the issues of E-bikes/scramblers and scooters has continued to grow”.

In a statement posted on social media, he said: “This afternoon, a woman was struck by a scrambler/E-bike on the Stewartstown Road as she crossed the road at the Dairyfarm.

“Thankfully, she is okay but badly shaken up. We’ve worked over a number of years to try and reduce scrambling on our roads, including harm reduction programmes, active policing, and community awareness.

“However, the issues of E-bikes/scramblers and scooters has continued to grow, lads flying up and down in dark clothes and faces covered. Ultimately, responsibility falls to the people riding these high-powered bikes illegally, and when underage, which they often are, their parents.

“Parents really need to ask themselves – will it be your son that kills or seriously hurts someone or themselves? This happened at 3 p.m. and involved a group of around 5/6 bikes.

“Police have deployed resources to try and find those responsible but are appealing for dashcam and other footage to help catch those responsible. If you have anything that could be useful, please contact 101.”

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Jeff Goldblum, Jennifer Saunders, Vanessa Williams and Tom Allen joined the presenter for the first episode of her new chat series.

A new venture from the makers of the beloved Graham Norton Show, viewers couldn’t help but compare Claudia’s new show to the revered Irishman’s.

One viewer said on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Very entertained by everyone getting angry that this is “replacing”the Graham Norton Show which just got renewed for 3 more years #TheClaudiaWinklemanShow”

Another said: “I’m enjoying this but the “well conveniently we have a person who is an expert in the thing you randomly brought up” is a bit much… #TheClaudiaWinklemanShow”

If this was Graham Norton, this line up would be disappointing, but Jeff Goldblum is interviewing gold, simply because he has a tendency to agree with everything you say to him. Perhaps it should be Claudia asking *all* the questions though.

😳😳😳 #TheClaudiaWinklemanShow

— VoiceOfTheMysterons (@Mysteron_Voice) March 13, 2026

Someone else commented: “If this was Graham Norton, this line up would be disappointing, but Jeff Goldblum is interviewing gold, simply because he has a tendency to agree with everything you say to him. Perhaps it should be Claudia asking all the questions though.”

One viewer was rather aggrieved at the lack of coverage Claudia’s show had received: “Claudia Winkleman’s chat show has barely had any press! Where has been the promotion?

“Rather odd to me.

“Taped show from weeks ago and little to nothing promo. Is this Claudia’s Davina McCall’s 2006 chat show all over again?”

Another person wrote: “If this was Graham Norton, this line up would be disappointing, but Jeff Goldblum is interviewing gold, simply because he has a tendency to agree with everything you say to him. Perhaps it should be Claudia asking all the questions though.

Claudia will be joined next week by comedians Joanne McNally and Guz Khan, stage and screen star Rachel Zegler and singer-songwriter Niall Horan.

The third episode will boast Jimmy Carr, alongside actors Chase Infiniti and Lisa Kudrow.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has hailed Michael Carrick’s impressive spell in charge of Manchester United – but refused to be drawn on whether he is closing in on the permanent gig.

Ruben Amorim was sacked in January with Carrick drafted in until the end of the season, tasked with steadying the ship and salvaging something from the 2025-26 season.

The former midfielder enjoyed a wonderful start with wins over Manchester City and Arsenal, taking 19 points from a possible 21 across his first seven games in charge.

While he suffered his first defeat to Newcastle United last time out, United are still in third place and firmly in the race for Champions League qualification.

Whether United qualify for next season’s competition could ultimately decide Carrick’s fate but his start has him sat as the bookmakers’ favourite for the permanent job.

Ratcliffe was in Shanghai  this morning for qualifying ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix with Sky Sports’ Craig Slater quizzing on Carrick’s chances of getting the permanent job at the end of the season.

‘He’s doing an excellent job, absolutely,’ Ratcliffe said. Asked whether he will get the job permanently if current form continues, the United co-owner said:  Not going there!’

Ratcliffe is viewing Champions League qualification as a very realistic prospect, adding: ‘Yes, clearly we are thinking about that. But there are still seven or eight games to go so still a while to go.’

United have not made any decision on Carrick’s future at this stage with there still the possibility they turn to a new face at the end of the season.

Oliver Glasner, Andoni Iraola and Unai Emery are among the Premier League managers who have been linked with the role with Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann another possible candidate.

Two names seemingly out of the frame are Thomas Tuchel and Carlo Ancelotti. Tuchel, who was interviewed for the United job before England came calling, has signed a new contract with the Three Lions through to 2028, seemingly placing him out of United’s reach.

Ancelotti meanwhile is prepared to extend his stay as Brazil boss beyond this summer’s World Cup.

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Residents are being encouraged to share their thoughts

Residents of Hampton Beach in Peterborough are being encouraged to have their say on council proposals to establish parking restrictions across the neighbourhood.

Peterborough City Council has announced it intends to install parking restrictions along 15 roads located around the area.

However, the council is welcoming input from local residents who would like to have their say on the matter.

These are the roads that will be affected by the new restrictions:

• Adlington Close
• Benington Close
• Berrington View
• Brodie Place
• Chalice Close
• Clovelly Drive
• Emmetts Grove
• Florence Road
• Harmony Grove
• Hartland Avenue
• Kentwell Road
• Rosewood Way
• Waterhouse Way
• Westbury Drive
• Stockwood Close

Copies of the proposals, along with a statement of the council’s reasons for making them, can be requested by contacting Peterborough City Council’s Traffic Regulation department on 01733 747474.

Anyone who would like to object to the proposals must submit their opposition by April 2, clearly stating their reasons for objecting.

In short, if you don’t understand the HMRC tax rules, you could pay more than you need to.

This guide breaks down how State and private pensions are taxed, when you can take money tax-free, and what happens if you live abroad or pass your pension on.

What income counts for Pension Tax?

Question: Which pensions and income are taxed?
Answer:
“You pay tax if your total annual income adds up to more than your Personal Allowance, says gov.uk.

This includes:

• State Pension (basic or new)
• Additional State Pension
• Private pensions (workplace or personal) — some tax-free
• Employment or self-employment earnings
• Taxable benefits
• Other income such as investments, property, or savings

Your Personal Allowance is usually £12,570. Income below this is normally tax-free.

Can I take any of my pension tax-free?

Question: What pension income is tax-free?
Answer:

• You do not usually pay tax if your total income is below your Personal Allowance.
• Up to 25% of any pension pot can be taken as a tax-free lump sum, with a maximum of £268,275.

Example:
“Your whole pension is worth £60,000. You take £15,000 tax-free. Your pension provider will then take off the tax from the remaining £45,000.”

Special cases:

• Small pots: Up to £10,000 lump sum — 25% tax-free.
• Trivial commutation: Total private pensions £30,000 or less, take it all — 25% tax-free.
• Serious illness: Life expectancy under one year, may take the whole pot tax-free if under 75 and within allowance.

Find out more about individual lump sum allowances

How is pension tax collected?

Question: Who takes the tax?
Answer:
“Your private pension provider will usually take off any tax you owe before they pay you,” says gov.uk.

• State Pension only: HMRC may send a Simple Assessment.
• Pension plus working income: Tax usually handled via payroll.
• Other untaxed income: You may need Self Assessment.

Recommended reading:

What happens if I live abroad?

Question: Will my pension be taxed if I retire abroad?
Answer: It depends on your residency and any double taxation treaties with the country you move to.

What If I Take a Large Lump Sum?

Question: Can I be taxed more if I withdraw a big amount?
Answer: Yes. Taking amounts over your allowance may trigger higher-rate Income Tax. Find out about lump sum charges and allowances on on the gov.uk website

What about inherited pensions?

Question: How is a pension taxed if someone inherits it?
Answer: Different rules apply to State and private pensions. Beneficiaries should check the tax treatment because there are different rules if someone inherits your pension

• Know your total income — that’s what determines tax.
• Up to 25% of pensions can be tax-free. Check your allowances.
• Small pots, trivial commutation, and serious illness have special rules.

Matthew Rawcliffe, 40, of Union Terrace, York, pleaded guilty to theft of seven cans of alcohol, theft of chocolates and sweets worth £246.60, theft of chicken and Easter eggs worth £43.95, theft of chocolate and sweets worth £159.75 and theft of chocolate and sweets worth £142.25, all from Tesco Express in Gillygate on different occasions.  

He was given a 12-month community order with 20 days’ rehabilitative activities and 100 hours’ unpaid work and banned from the Tesco store for 12 months.

Christopher Bullivant, 42, of Fishergate, York, pleaded guilty to theft of a mattress worth £179.99 from The Range on Jockey Lane and theft of gin worth £48.50 from Waitrose in York.

He was given a 24-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months. He must pay £48.50 compensation.

Craig Spurr, 47, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to theft of Lego from B&M Home Bargains in Clifton Moor, obstructing police, theft of £50 meat from Tesco’s Goodramgate store, theft of meat from a M&S BP Garage, theft of butter and meat worth £39.68 from Sainsbury’s in Burtonstone Lane, Clifton, theft of meat worth £280.60 from Sainsbury’s in Haxby and possessing amphetamine. 

He was given a 24-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months and must pay £39.68 compensation.

Donna Ward, 54, of Burtonstone Lane, Clifton, pleaded guilty to stealing food worth £245 from Marks and Spencer in Parliament Street, York, food worth £131.90 from the Co-op store in Tang Hall Lane, and food worth £92.55 from Morrisons in Crichton Avenue, Clifton.

She was given a 12-month community order with 15 days’ rehabilitative activities and must pay £100 compensation.

Neil Friar, 43, of St Matthias Street, Burley, pleaded guilty to stealing electric toothbrush heads worth £98.88 from B&M in Selby and failure to attend court.

He was jailed for eight weeks and ordered to pay £98.88 compensation.

Common therapy topics among ‘otrovert’ clients

Confusion about their energy levels

How their energy levels affect their relationships

Worrying about how others perceive them

Struggling in social settings and after social events

Overfunctioning in social settings (and secretly feeling exhausted after)

Feeling like something is “wrong” with them

How therapists respond to those common concerns

Noko LTD via Getty Images

Normalise the experience

Encourage self-compassion

Help with boundary-setting

Adjust unhelpful thoughts

After the sensational reception of her novel Butter (2017, translated into English in 2024), Asako Yuzuki is back with Hooked (translated by Polly Barton) – a novel about loneliness and the sometimes twisted and complicated relationships between women.

The book revolves around two very different women in their 30s in Tokyo. Eriko is a career-driven woman with a stable income in a trading company, born and raised in Tokyo. Shōko is a housewife and blogger who writes about her daily life with her husband.

Despite having taken such different life courses, what they have in common is a sense of loneliness and a struggle to create meaningful connections with other women. When the pair form an unlikely and intense friendship, they experience a brief euphoric connection, feeling like they have become “an invincible duo” for a while.

Japanese fiction in translation, especially contemporary women’s writing, is on the rise. Bestselling translated fiction from Japan – from Sayaka Murata’s Convenience Store Woman (2018) to Emi Yagi’s Diary of a Void (2024) – often focus on single women in Tokyo. Not necessarily career-driven or looking for success in a corporate world, they also typically have no intimate partners or children.

To some extent, the main characters in these novels are not conventional heroines. They don’t need or want to be rescued by Prince Charming; instead, they navigate the expectations placed on them to offer care in other forms. Such pressure comes from their families, workplaces and, more broadly, from society. Amid all of this, they feel a profound sense of loneliness which mirrors growing concerns in Japan.

Japan has long grappled with the issue of severe social isolation. Often, the focus of this loneliness epidemic has been on young men; however, women are starting to feature more in such conversations.

The number of women referred to as hikikomori (extreme social recluses) is increasing. In a 2023 survey by the Japanese government, women represented 45% of hikikomori between the ages of 15 and 39, and 52% of those between 40 and 64. The survey found such social withdrawal was driven by a range of reasons, from domestic violence and abuse to financial hardship and job loss.

In Hooked, as the title suggests, female loneliness is explored through how it can give way to intense female friendships and the dangers of obsession.

Eriko appears to be the epitome of a modern city girl, raised by a happy family and holding a high-earning job. Yet her achilles heel is that she has never had close friendships with other women.

Infatuated with Shōko after their encounter, Eriko advances from being a fan of Shōko’s blog to first being her friend and then her stalker. Shōko, despite also feeling a sense of inferiority about not having female friends, is shocked by Eriko’s obsessive behaviour and rejects her suffocating approach. Their fallout leads to secrets, blackmail and coercion.

The Japanese title, Nairupāchi no Joshikai (Nile perch’s ladies night out), is indicative of the murkier elements in women’s relationships with each other. A Nile perch is a carnivorous fish that grows up to two metres long and weighs up to 200 kilos. Their literal involvement in the story comes from Eriko’s work: she has been preparing to reopen a trade route from Tanzania to distribute them to places like sushi restaurants.

Eriko’s fascination with the fish is not only for their business value, but also their ferocity. She admires how the Nile perch totally desecrates any surrounding ecosystem it enters:

Even in waters across Japan, ecosystems are being destroyed by the unregulated influx of invasive species. The creatures have to compete for food, ecosystems and mates. It doesn’t end until one of the species is wiped out. The result? The creation of a monster.

The Japanese title puts these monstrous fish into a joshikai, which translates as a meeting or gathering (会) of girls or women(女子). This is usually where women gather to eat, drink, chat, console each other and have fun. It is (hopefully) a place for them to support each other.

However, considering the ferocity and vitality of Nile perch, this novel recasts a joshikai as a site of intense competition for survival. As Eriko says to Shōko:

The reason that women’s competitiveness over minor issues like marriage, kids or looks stops them from getting along, even now, isn’t through any desire of their own. It’s because society foists all these standards on us. The world we live in is specifically designed to make us compete.

Yuzuki’s intense and obsessive novel explores the tensions of female solidarity through women seeking the hope and possibility of connection, in a quest to feel less lonely. It interrogates the difficulties that obstruct these connections and how they are rooted in gender inequalities, class differences and precarious employment.

What is fascinating about Hooked is how Yuzuki allows moments of madness to erupt into daily life. At times, the intensity of the characters can make it hard to keep engaging with the book, yet readers will find themselves drawn back to the lives of Eriko and Shōko. These characters are well-rounded figures, powerfully relatable for anyone navigating the complicated dynamics of gendered issues.

Phil Woolas, a former Labour minister and MP, has died at the age of 66, his family and close friends have announced.

Mr Woolas, who died in the early hours of Saturday, served as a minister in both the Blair and Brown governments, and as MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth between 1997 and 2010.

A statement attributed to his family and close friends announcing his death said he had been battling bran cancer for more than a year.

“Phil Woolas, former Labour MP and minister, has died aged 66”, the statement said.

“For more than a year he battled the brain cancer, glioblastoma. He leaves his wife Tracey, his sons Josh and Jed and a new grandson, and many friends and former colleagues who will all miss him greatly.

“Before entering Parliament, Phil was NUS president, TV producer and GMB union communications director.

“He served as MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth from 1997 to 2010, and a minister in both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s governments – appointed successively: whip, deputy leader of the Commons, local government minister, environment minister and immigration minister.”

The statement from his friends and family added: “From 2011 onwards, Phil set up and ran his own political and risk consultancy.

“For more than 25 years, Phil was the chair of The Ace Centre, an Oldham charity helping people with communication difficulties, that he led to become a national charity leader in assistive technology for severely disabled people.”

This is a breaking news story. More to follow…