Everything you need to know as car crashes off the M6 into water shutting motorway for over nine hours – Manchester Evening News
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One casualty was rescued by firefighters
The empty southbound carriageway of the M6 in Cheshire this morning during the closure
M6 closed for hours after car crashes into water near Greater Manchester
A stretch of the M6 in Cheshire was closed for more than nine hours this morning (Sunday, March 29) after a car left the motorway and landed partially in water
The serious crash was reported at around 12:40am between junction 19 for Knutsford and junction 18 for Middlewich and Holmes Chapel.
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said they were responding to “a road traffic collision where a car has left the M6 south carriageway and come to rest on the edge of a brook with the rear of the vehicle partially in the water.”
One casualty was rescued around 45 minutes later and handed over to paramedics. Their condition is not yet known.
A fire service technician was deployed into the water to help rescue the casualty and stabilise the car, which was then winched to a fire engine.
The carriageway was shut for more than nine hours whilst the vehicle was recovered and repairs carried out to the barriers before it eventually reopened at around 10:30am
Little Lever and Darcy Lever Councillor David Meehan said: “I welcome this long-awaited and overdue one-way scheme for Dearden St.
“This scheme was originally promised following the completion of the Lever Court development, and I’m pleased to see it now delivered after continued engagement and enquiries on behalf of the local residents.
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Dearden Street, Little Lever (Image: Google Maps)
“It’s important to highlight that full consultation was carried out with residents directly affected, alongside the Highways Dept. to ensure the scheme reflects local needs and concerns.
“I recognise that this change has raised a range of different opinions, which is entirely understandable.
“I know how congested traffic is in the Village particularly during school drop-off times and peak rush hours.
“I want to reassure residents that I am listening carefully to these concerns.
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“This scheme has been long overdue and was promised to local residents, and it is important that it is delivered while continuing to respond to genuine feedback.
“I also want to note that Rydal Road has been recently resurfaced, demonstrating that improvements are being made in the area.
“We will be closely monitoring how the new one-way system will work in practice, particularly the flow of traffic once it comes into effect.
Dearden Street links Church Street and Lever Street in Little Lever, and was often used as a shortcut between them due to its location.”
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Many residents felt this was more than the narrow street could handle, causing traffic, collisions, and full crashes.
Concerns first started being raised in 2020 when the Lever Gardens housing development was proposed in the area, which saw the creation of 64 new homes just off Dearden Street and Lever Street.
The plans for the street (Image: Bolton Council)
Residents raised concerns that Dearden Street was already bad enough as it was without the influx of upwards of 64 more vehicles.
In fact, highways officers had discussed turning Dearden Street into a one-way system even earlier, holding a consultation in 2017.
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At the time, highways officers decided that they would not proceed with the one-way system.
New plans for the system were revived in March 2025, with the council receiving four individual representations in favour of the proposals and four against
Plans for the system were approved by the highways team in December 2025, and have now been ‘signed off and legalised’, according to Cllr Meehan.
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Signage and road markings have not yet been installed , however, meaning the system will not become fully operational until early April.
Roman’s Cotton Crochet Tunic Top is back in stock in a new sophisticated shade with shoppers praising its flattering fit and versatile style
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
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Spring has arrived and fashion brands are wasting no time adding fresh pieces ahead of the new season for shoppers to snap up. In previous years, Roman’s Cotton Crochet Tunic Top has proved enormously popular with customers for its flattering finish, and it has now returned to stock in a brand new colour.
Shoppers can get their hands on the crochet top in a sophisticated navy shade, alongside a restock of existing colours white, teal, black and cream. The top is available in sizes 10 to 20, but if previous sell-outs are anything to go by, it may not hang around for long.
The crochet top ordinarily retails at £40, however shoppers can save 10% using the code BLOOM, bringing the price down to £36. It has accumulated hundreds of five-star reviews since its launch, with customers describing it as so ‘versatile’ it can be worn ‘in spring and autumn’.
One of the key reasons people cite for loving it so much is because it ‘hides extra curves’. Amongst the wealth of reviews on Roman’s website, one customer remarked: “Lovely colour and top, nice and long, so covers belly and bum! Looking forward to wearing it.”
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Another shopper offered some styling suggestions, writing: “Wear with black jeans and a long sleeved black tee shirt for a winter’s look or cropped matching trousers and vest for a feminine summery look.”
Cotton Crochet Tunic Top
Roman have released a new colour of this bestselling crochet top that’s currently 10% off with the code BLOOM.
For shoppers seeking alternatives, there are other crochet tops worth considering, such as the Cotton Rich Pointelle Patchwork Short Sleeve Top from New Look. Available at £19.99, it comes in three colour options – oatmeal, light pink and light yellow, reports the Mirror.
Meanwhile, Debenhams stocks this Stone Crochet Top With Flared Sleeves for £24. It offers a longer-sleeved alternative for those who prefer a little more coverage and boasts a stunning boho aesthetic.
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Should it be Roman’s crochet top that takes the top spot, fellow shoppers would certainly agree with your choice. One five-star review reads: “This is very unique addition to my wardrobe, easy to wash, comfortable to wear and I always get compliments.”
A second customer enthused: “A gorgeous top, I’m so glad I bought it in two colours. It’s so easy and comfortable to wear and I had so many compliments about how lovely it looked. Another plus is that it washes well and if you dry it on a hanger you don’t need to iron it!”
A third reviewer was somewhat less impressed, noting that it ‘comes up quite large’. Nevertheless, another buyer was thoroughly pleased, commenting: “This is more stunning than it looks in the photo – and it looks great there. It goes so well with everything and is a perfect cover for imperfect arms.”
Other dancers Karen Hauer, Nadiya Bychkova, Luba Mushtuk and Gorka Marquez have also been ‘axed’ from the show.
Michelle, 30, who joined the show in 2022, danced with EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick during his time stint on the competition.
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The pair were eliminated in the tenth week, finishing in seventh place, and Michelle did not receive a celebrity partner the following year.
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In a new interview, Michelle has spoken of her sense of ‘grief’ which followed the bombshell news, and revealed that she’s seeking therapy to help navigate these emotions.
Michelle has taken the news hard (Picture: Getty Images)
Michelle joined Strictly in 2022 (Picture: Shutterstock)
Speaking to The Sun, Michelle claimed that she had been axed during a 30-minute Zoom meeting with a Strictly Come Dancing executive.
Michelle said: ‘I didn’t see it coming. I thought I had more time. When she told me I wasn’t coming back, there was a moment of shock. I felt my story was unfinished.
‘It felt out of the blue,’ she added, describing herself as ‘heartbroken’ by the sense of grief which followed the bombshell.
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She continued: ‘Everything I have known for the past four years has gone. Your brain goes through change and panic. It was so sudden, I had a feeling of hopelessness.’
She said that she was ‘not given a reason’ for her axing, which made the news even tougher to process.
Michelle says she was axed during a 30-minute Zoom call (Picture: TheLaughingDonkeysUK)
Earlier this month, an inquest ruled that Windsor had taken his own life after a considerable ‘mental health deterioration’ accumulated through childhood trauma, heartache and depression.
Describing mental health as ‘a huge thing,’ she went on to talk about the sense of whiplash which followed her sudden axing from the show.
‘Strictly brings so much fame and exposure and then to lose it in a moment is really tough mentally,’ she said.
‘It was really tough for Robin. For me, it’s been a couple of weeks now since I got the news and things are improving. I think it’s just that journey that you go through.’
According to the tabloid, Michelle has sought out a therapist to talk about her experience. Strictly is also said to have offered a welfare team to discuss her future after the show.
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Samaritans are here to listen, day or night, 365 days a year. You can call them for free on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or visit samaritans.org for more information.
Michelle was paired with EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick (Picture: Getty Images)
While Michelle doesn’t believe that the BBC axed her due to scandal surrounding her 2024 dance partner, she did say that she believes the cast cull is part of a concerted effort to move on from the past.
31-year-old Jamie’s time on the show was wrought with controversy, first becoming caught up in a ‘sex toy’ row which involved fellow contestant Wynne Evans.
Michelle said that Jamie’s time on the show ‘wasn’t the easiest’ (Picture: BBC)
The alleged comment hit headlines in the wake of Wynne Evans’ infamous ‘spit roast’ gag and subsequent firing.
An insider told The Sun: ‘Wynne made a jokey comment, which was borne out of Jamie looking like a spitroast chicken because of how he warmed up on Strictly, and he got fired.
‘Jamie on the other hand boasted about engaging in a very explicit sex act and no one batted an eyelid.
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‘His message was joked about afterwards as well, as it was a shocking thing for the stars and pros to read.
‘Some of the Strictly lot think the BBC acted too hastily in removing Wynne, because in reality some of the cast were taking it a lot further.’
Jamie had only just resumed filming on EastEnders when a video emerged of him using a slur against disabled people – referring to the residents of Blackpool as ‘m*****s.’
Michelle wasn’t partnered with a celebrity in 2025 (Picture: BBC)
Reflecting on her time with Jamie, Michelle told The Sun that ‘it wasn’t the easiest.’
‘We were getting a lot of critical comments, so that felt like the narrative,’ she said, acknowledging that the star felt a lot of ‘pressure’ after winning the Christmas special in 2023.
She spoke out for the first time when she encountered photographers outside Otsi Mabuse’s dance studio in London last week.
‘It is what it is,’ she said, at the time, before thanking those gathered for their support.’
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Metro has contacted the BBC for comment on this story.
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The match referee had no option but to issue a red card following the ugly incident
Welsh starlet Stefan Emanuel was left writhing in pain after being dropped on his head in a horror tackle that saw a player sent off and made the crowd and match commentators groan.
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The Wales U20s co-captain – who is regarded by many as a future senior international star – was in action for Cardiff RFC in their Super Rygbi Cymru clash with Llandovery on Saturday when the incident occurred with less than quarter of an hour of the match played.
After taking the lead through Osian Darwin-Lewis, Cardiff were pushing for a second try as Emanuel received the ball just inside his own half and looked to offload to lock Ethan Phillips outside him.
While he got the pass away, however, the centre was smashed into by Llandovery scrum-half George Macdonald, who lifted Emanuel into the air and tipped him beyond the horizontal, before dropping him hard on the back of his head.
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The challenge immediately drew groans from those in attendance and the S4C commentary team, with the referee immediately bringing the game to a halt.
Former Wales international Josh Turnbull, on co-commentary duties for S4C, winced as Emanuel was slammed into the turf, with commentator Phil Steele saying: “That looked really nasty, Steff Emanuel it was. It was a really nasty clout.”
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Having hit the 4G surface hard, Emanuel was left holding the back of his head and neck in pain as a medic immediately ran to his aid and supported the player’s head.
Further medical staff from Llandovery also ran over, as referee Rhys Jones consulted with his assistants and confirmed that he was issuing a red card to Macdonald.
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Llandovery captain Joe Powell was taken aback by the decision, as Jones explained: “Red nine, lifts him and drops him on his neck, clearly. It’s nothing else but a red card.”
An incredulous Macdonald also questioned the colour of card, with the referee telling him: “You have lifted the player and twisted and driven him by his neck into the ground, so it’s a red card.”
As the scrum-half trudged off, Steele said: “There we are. If it’s a tip tackle, intent doesn’t come into it, it’s outcome,” while Turnbull added: “I’m not sure why the Llandovery boys are arguing with the ref.
“If he lifts him off the floor, you’ve got to bring him back down, haven’t you?”
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After being checked over by the medics, Emanuel was deemed OK to carry on and played all but 10 minutes of the clash, which Cardiff won 45-14.
A wide range of bluebells bloom between mid-April and May
Spring is the time of year when everything blooms, and everything becomes prettier. Situated near Sawtry is Monk Woods, a national nature reserve which is bursting with colour during spring. It’s considered one of the most famous and oldest nature reserves in the area.
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Natural England describes it as “one of Britain’s most essential lowland woods” and “pretty ancient”, as it’s over 900 years old. The woodland is home to lots of different wildlife and over 400 species of plants, including the greater butterfly orchid, violet helleborine, crested cow-wheat, small teasel and water purslane.
But the one thing that makes this nature reserve stand out is its beautiful bluebells. During the bluebell season which runs from mid-April to May, the floor of the woods is covered in a carpet of native bluebells. The age of the woodland means that its the ideal spot for several different types of bluebells to grow, including wood anemone and yellow archangel.
Once in bloom, the bluebells provide a picturesque place to walk, and also a place to take pretty pictures. Another thing the nature reserve is famous for is butterflies. In 1828, the first British record for a rare black hairsteak butterfly was recorded. This butterfly can still be found today.
During the spring and summer, the woods are the perfect place to have a picnic. The trees provide plenty of shade, making for the ideal spot to cool take a break from the sun on hot days.
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There are around two miles of woodland to explore, with various paths to stroll down. If you are visiting, it is worth knowing that there is not a lot of parking. The entrance to the woods can be found at the junction of the B1090 and Bridge Street, on a road leading to Woodwalton. A few spaces are available here.
An Only Fools and Horses favourite appeared on Alan Titchmarsh’s show to discuss the 45th anniversary documentary
Joe Crutchley Screen Time reporter
12:08, 29 Mar 2026Updated 12:09, 29 Mar 2026
An BBC Only Fools and Horses icon has spoken frankly about her involvement in an upcoming documentary.
The cherished sitcom marks its 45th anniversary this year, having originally aired between 1981 and 1991 across seven series, with a further sixteen specials broadcast intermittently until 2003.
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U&GOLD recently unveiled a brand-new two-part documentary series, Only Fools and Horses: The Lost Archive, to commemorate the milestone anniversary.
The television special will feature previously unseen footage, conversations with cast and crew members, and long-lost archive material. On Sunday (March 29), Tessa Peake-Jones appeared on Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh, where she spoke about the forthcoming documentary.
The actress portrayed Derek ‘Del Boy’ Trotter’s romantic partner Raquel Turner in the much-loved BBC sitcom, a role she inhabited from 1988 through to the programme’s conclusion in 2003, reports the Mirror.
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Yet, according to the television star, she found making the new Only Fools documentary challenging. In a poignant admission, Tessa, who also appears as Mrs Maguire in the ITV drama Grantchester, confessed: “It’s very odd looking at yourself.
“20, 30 years ago you’re a very different person then, you’re in prime, you’ve got the world ahead of you, and now at our age, we’re looking back at it.” Alan then interjected: “But you only see what you could have done better.”
Tessa responded: “And that’s why I don’t watch myself. Some people can watch playback when they’re filming things and they learn and they go ‘oh I’ll do that next time’. I just see the awfulness of it all, it doesn’t do me any good whatsoever.”
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Earlier this year, Tessa made an appearance on ITV’s Lorraine where she talked about the Only Fools documentary. Speaking to stand-in presenter Christine Lampard, she revealed: “They found unseen footage in a drawer at the BBC and they’ve put together two or three episodes.
“Cut scenes, some of it are scenes were things went wrong. They put it all together and got us to watch the various scenes. It was very odd though, and David Jason was very, very poignant about it all.
“There was one bit he watched and he said ‘Oh we were so young and successful back then,’ so it was quite depressing. But I know what he meant, seeing yourself decades ago, it was peculiar.”
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Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh airs every Sunday at 9:30am on ITV1.
The Americans who blazed the trail to the moon more than half a century ago were white men chosen for their military test pilot experience. This first Artemis crew includes a woman, a person of color and a Canadian, products of a more diversified astronaut corps.
None of them were alive during NASA’s storied Apollo program that sent 24 astronauts to the moon including 12 moonwalkers. They won’t land on the moon this time or even orbit it, but the out-and-back journey will take them thousands of miles deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts ventured, promising unprecedented views of the lunar far side.
Here’s a look at the Artemis astronauts whose mission aims to pave the path for future moon landings:
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Commander Reid Wiseman
Leading the nearly 10-day mission is a widower who considers solo parenting — not rocketing to the moon — his biggest and most rewarding challenge.
Wiseman, 50, a retired Navy captain from Baltimore, was serving as NASA’s chief astronaut when asked three years ago to lead humanity’s first lunar trip since 1972. His wife Carroll’s death from cancer in 2020 gave him pause.
He’d spent more than five months at the International Space Station in 2014, and his two teenage daughters, especially the older one, had “zero interest” in him launching again.
“We talked about it and I said, ‘Look, of all the people on planet Earth right now, there are four people that are in a position to go fly around the moon,” he said. “I cannot say no to that opportunity.”
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The next day, homemade moon cupcakes awaited him, along with his daughters’ support. The toughest part isn’t leaving them — “it’s the stress that I’m putting on them,” he said.
Open with his daughters about everything, he recently told them where he keeps his will.
Pilot Victor Glover
As one of NASA’s few Black astronauts, Glover sees his presence on the mission as “a force for good.”
The 49-year-old Navy captain and former combat pilot from Pomona, California, makes it a habit to listen to Gil Scott-Heron’s “Whitey on the Moon” and Marvin Gaye’s “Make Me Wanna Holler” from the white-dominated Apollo era.
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“I listen to those for perspective,” he said. “It captures what we did well, what we did poorly.”
The ability for him now to offer hope to others is “an amazing blessing and a privilege.” Despite having one spaceflight behind him — an early SpaceX crew run to the International Space Station — he finds himself in new personal territory. His four daughters are in their late teens and early 20s, “and I spend as an much time and thought preparing them as NASA does preparing me.”
He’s hyper-focused on running “our best race so that we can hand the baton off to the next leg” — a 2027 practice docking mission in orbit around Earth between an Orion crew capsule and one or two lunar landers. The all-important moon landing would follow in 2028 with yet another set of astronauts.
Mission specialist Christina Koch
The last time Koch blasted into space, she was gone almost a year, so she’s not sweating a quick trip to the moon and back.
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The 47-year-old electrical engineer from Jacksonville, North Carolina, holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman — 328 days. She took part in the first all-female spacewalk during her lengthy stay at the space station in 2019.
More than any one individual, “it’s about celebrating the fact that we’ve arrived to this place in history” where women can fly to the moon, she said.
Before she got called up by NASA, Koch spent a year at a South Pole research station. Between that and her space stint, she feels she’s “inoculated” most of her family and friends.
“So far, I haven’t gotten too many nerves from folks. Maybe my dog, but I’ve reassured her that it’s only 10 days. It’s not going to be as long as last time.”
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Her and her husband’s rescue pooch is named Sadie Lou.
Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen
The Canadian fighter pilot and physicist is making his space debut, stressful enough, but also serving as his country’s first emissary to the moon.
“Maybe I’m naive, but I don’t feel a lot of personal pressure.”
Hansen, 50, grew up on a farm near London, Ontario, before moving to Ingersoll and pursuing a flying career. The Canadian Space Agency selected him as an astronaut in 2009, and he was named to the Artemis crew in 2023.
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He realizes only now how much effort it took to send men to the moon during Apollo.
“When I walk out and I look at the moon now, it looks and feels a little bit farther than it used to be,” he said. “I just understand in the details how much harder it is than I thought it was watching videos of it.”
Dangers still loom — something he’s shared with his college-aged son and twin daughters. “The most likely outcome is that we will come back safe. There’s a chance we won’t, and you will be able to move through life even if that happens,” he assured them.
___
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The Insolvency Service announced this week that Sundas Ali, who’s last known address was in Great Lever, has been banned from running companies for four years.
The service said that Ali, 32, had breached her duties as a director of New Zak Services Ltd by failing to abide by The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.
A statement said: “Sundas Ali has breached her duties as a director of New Zak Services Ltd by failing to ensure that it complied with legislative requirements in that company did not comply with its statutory obligations under The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, resulting in the employment of one illegal worker.
The Insolvency Service issued a ban (Image: Newsquest)
“Home Office Immigration Enforcement (HOIE) after investigating the company issued a Notification of Liability for a Civil Penalty of £10,000 in respect of the employment of these illegal workers, payment of which was due on or before September 15, 2023.
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“Company has paid £2,222.24 of the fine due to HOIE.
“Sundas Ali was an appointed director of the company at the time of the breach of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality legislation.”
According to Companies House, the business was mainly a retailer that focused on food, drink and tobacco.
A winding up notice on Companies House said that New Zak Services Ltd’s trading address was found on Springfield Road in Kearsley, where it traded as MHP News.
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The registered office was moved to The Copper Room Deva City Office Park, Trinity Way, Manchester, as part of the liquidation process.
Companies House shows that New Zak Services Ltd was first incorporated on April 18, 2017.
It was dissolved on March 2 this year, with its last accounts made up to April 30, 2023, and its last confirmation statement dated July 8, 2023.
The Insolvency Service says that Ali had been a director of the company at the time the breach happened.
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It says her ban from being a company director will start from March 27, 2026 and will remain in force for the next four years.
Huge ‘No Kings’ protests against Donald Trump and the far-right have swept across the US.
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People opposing Trump’s policies, like the Iran war, ICE and rising prices, gathered in major cities yesterday, with banners and effigies against the US president, JD Vance and other government top brass.
Organisers of the protests said they hoped the latest No Kings outing could attract millions of people.
While most of yesterday’s action is believed to have been peaceful, in West Palm Beach, Florida, tensions were high after Trump supporters engaged in verbal altercations with No Kings protesters.
A woman dressed as the Statue of Liberty was apprehended by the police in Los Angeles (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
A protester is knocked to the ground by an LAPD mounted police horse as officers evacuate the area following clashes near the Metropolitan Detention Center during the ‘No Kings’ rally (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
The protesters came face to face with competing flags and signs, with swearing and shouting until the police intervened, CNN reports.
In the metropolitan Los Angeles region alone, 40 protests were planned, including at the police detention centres.
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Some clashes were reported between the demonstrators and the police, with officers launching tear gas at the people near the Metropolitan Detention Center, a federal prison, according to the LA Times.
Protesters carried a large baby Trump blimp at the protests (Picture: Reginald Mathalone/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
In London, an estimated half a million people gathered in London for ‘the biggest demonstration ever against the far right’, organisers said.
Protesters carrying placards saying ‘No to racism, no to Trump’, and ‘Refugees welcome’ marched through the capital to Whitehall amid a heavy police presence, with officers lining the streets.
Organisers said their estimates showed they had successfully outnumbered the Tommy Robinson-led Unite the Kingdom rally in London in September.
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Thousands marched in California’s Huntington Beach, Orange County, against Trump (Picture: Ron Lyon/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock)
That demonstration – organised by right-wing activist Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – was attended by between 110,000 and 150,000 people, while about 5,000 were involved in an anti-racism counter-demonstration.
There were several incidents of violent disorder which left some police officers injured on that occasion, and the event was condemned at the time by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who said it had left people feeling ‘more scared than they were before’.
On Saturday, organisers said people had gathered for a ‘peaceful’ demonstration against ‘hatred and division and racism’.
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Rally co-organiser Kevin Courtney, chairman of the coalition, told crowds gathered on Whitehall: ‘Our estimate is now that there are half a million people on this demonstration – the biggest demonstration ever against the far right.
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Protesters demonstrate during the ‘Together Against the Far Right’ protest in London (Picture: EPA)
‘And it gives us all confidence to carry on. Thank you very much.’
Speakers included former Labour MP Diane Abbott, who now sits as an independent in Parliament.
She told a cheering crowd: ‘The turnout today is the largest anti-racist march that I have seen in my lifetime, and you should all be proud of yourselves for coming out in such numbers today.’
Demonstrators carry a figure depicting US President Donald Trump (Picture: Reuters)
Sabby Dhalu, who is joint secretary of the Together Alliance and co-convenor of Stand Up To Racism, said the UK is seeing an ‘unprecedented growth’ in support for far-right organisations – but that she believed the size of attendance on Saturday had ‘intimidated the far right’ away from a counter-protest.
Speaking before the event, she said: ‘The Tommy Robinson-led Unite the Kingdom demonstration back in September 2025 was the biggest far-right mobilisation in British history.
‘We believe that the majority of British people stand against the hatred and division and racism that was being encouraged at that demonstration and by these types of organisations, and it’s time to act.’
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People take part in a Together Alliance march through central London (Picture: PA)
Organisers said their estimates showed they had successfully outnumbered the Tommy Robinson-led Unite the Kingdom rally (Picture: PA)
Asked if she was concerned about potential counter-protests and disorder, Ms Dhalu said: ‘We’re confident that the size of our mobilisation here today has actually intimidated the far-right, and I think they feel that they are not confident enough to stand against us because they know that we’re going to be out in big numbers.’
Singer Billy Bragg, who ahead of the march criticised US president Donald Trump as ‘a constant reminder of the cruel realities of the politics of division’, performed some protest songs onstage at Whitehall.
He said while concerns some have about migration might be justified, ‘their solutions are not justifiable in any way or sort’.
A person carries a placard as demonstators gather prior to a march against far-right extremism from Park Lane to Trafalgar Square (Picture: Reuters)
He added: ‘Re migration, the forced deportation of our fellow citizens, we’ve seen what that looks like in the United States of America.
‘And if it does come to that in this country then we will have to be as courageous as the people of Minneapolis who stood in the streets to deny (deportations).’
“It’s a lovely wool rug. Lovely to look at and lovely to walk on.”
Eleanor Fleming Regional Content Editor
11:34, 29 Mar 2026
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Adding a rug to a space can be a great finishing touch – whether it’s for extra colour, style or cushioning. At Dunelm, there is currently 50% off selected items, including one rug that shoppers are praising as ‘lively to look at and lovely to walk on’.
Dunelm’s half-price Elements Wave Natural Border Wool Rug is currently available from Dunelm for £49 to £229, depending on the size chosen. It is crafted from 100% wool for ‘a warm underfoot feeling’, and there are hand-carved scalloped edges for a ‘premium finish’.
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Dunelm’s Elements Wave Natural Border Wool Rug features a neutral central colour, with bolder colours on the scalloped edges, making it a standout piece. To care for it, Dunelm recommends using a suction-type vacuum to ensure that rotating brushes don’t damage the wool pile.
Or, in the case of an accidental spillage, shoppers should ‘blot with a clean and dry cloth’. It is also worth noting that due to the woollen composition of the rug, there might be some fibre loss, but shoppers can trim any loose fibres with household scissors.
For those with more traditional tastes, Dusk has the Zahra Persian Style Machine Washable Rug in the colour natural, which is ‘arriving soon’ and costs £35. This comes in two sizes and four colours, and is described as having a ‘modern take on classic Persian style’, with a detailed pattern and warm, earthy tones.
Or at Habitat, part of the Sainsbury’s Group, there’s the Habitat Scalloped Stripe Beige Flatweave Rug (120 x 170cm) for £48.75, down from£65. This features a ‘striking pattern’ and it is made from hardwearing natural fabrics, making it ‘neutral and timeless’, the site says.
But back to the Elements Wave Natural Border Wool Rug from Dunelm, shoppers have left an average overall 4.1 out of five rating. One said: “Good rug and good value, pleased with thickness and design, looks more expensive than it was.”
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A second said: “It’s a lovely wool rug. Lovely to look at and lovely to walk on.”
While a third wrote: “We bought this rug for our lounge and we love it, it’s just as described and good material, have received lots of compliments.” Others left some feedback, with one writing: “So chic and looks so expensive… has a lot of wool shed at the beginning which is pretty normal of a rug this price – but looks great.”
Someone else said: “It’s a soft and cushioned underfoot rug. Only thing you should be prepared (for is) that wool rugs naturally shed, so it’s shedding a lot… but as it was only a “not polyester” option, we knew and bought it.”
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