The Doctor Who actress was diagnosed with womb cancer and underwent a hysterectomy and radiation treatment in 2024

Alex Kingston has revealed how Strictly Come Dancing was the ‘perfect antidote’ to her cancer treatment as she provided a candid health update.

The Doctor Who and ER actress competed on the BBC dancing competition with professional dancer Johannes Radebe last year. Early on in the series, Alex was one of the favourites to lift the glitterball as she wowed fans with her commitment.

Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. And don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.

Sadly, she and Johannes were eliminated during Musicals Week in November after landing in the dance-off with EastEnders actress Balvinder Sopal and Australian native Julian Caillon.

During her time on Strictly, Alex shared that she had been diagnosed with womb cancer and underwent a hysterectomy and radiation treatment in 2024. Speaking in a VT, Alex said of her cancer diagnosis: “It has made me fearless…

“It’s made me want to encourage people to just go for it. I do hope to help others by speaking out about what I have gone through. I hadn’t made it public, and I just thought, ‘I’m going to because I haven’t been voted off yet!’

In a new interview with Saga Magazine, Alex, who played River Song on Doctor Who, has opened up about how performing on Strictly provided an escape from her turbulent personal period.

“I knew I could hear a beat and that I didn’t have two left feet, and I love dancing to Latin music, but I certainly didn’t think that I was going to be able to do any ballroom dancing.

“I have to say, I truly loved my experience, and it was the perfect antidote to coming through cancer treatment. To be paired with Johannes Radebe was a dream. He’s got a beautiful soul,” she said.

Speaking about her diagnosis, she added: “I was due to start another TV show when I was diagnosed with cancer and had to walk away – something I’d never done before and which felt very uncomfortable.

“Like many actors, you always fear you won’t work again and I worried people might think I was unreliable.”

Alex is currently preparing for her new ITV drama Secret Service, which based the novel of the same name by Tom Bradby. The series follows the head of the Russia Desk of the British Secret Intelligence Service learning that a senior British politician could be a potential Russian asset.

Quantum of Solace’s Gemma Arterton, Men in Black: International’s Rafe Spall, Alexander Terentyev, Game of Thrones’ Roger Allam, The Walking Dead’s Avi Nash, Happy Valley’s Mark Stanley, The Responder’s Amaka Okafor and United 93’s Khalid Abdalla.

Speaking about the drama, Alex said: “Secret Service was the first job I was offered after treatment and it felt perfect – not a huge role but enough to ease me back in.”

Asked about how her diagnosis impacted her outlook on life, Alex noted: “I’ve always been a positive, glass half-full type of person, and going through a cancer journey has made me double down on that. It makes you confront your mortality but I intend to live to 100.”

Meanwhile, Alex has previously spoken about her struggles with fertility and has been open about undergoing multiple rounds of IVF treatment to conceive her daughter Salome, who was born in 2001.

When asked what the most challenging time for her has been, she said: “Going through IVF to have my daughter Salome was very tough.

“It builds up incrementally because you’re on this track and you knuckle down and do it because you have this end game. But it is hugely debilitating, and I think when one’s in it, one’s not fully aware of how debilitating it can be, particularly if you go through several cycles as I did…

“I was diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2024 and I do wonder whether it’s connected in some way.”

Cadbury Creme Eggs are a staple in many Brits’ homes around Easter, but what the ‘goo’ in the middle of the chocolate treat is actually made from is a mystery to many

Easter is right around the corner, and shop shelves are filled with Cadbury Creme Eggs. The small egg-shaped sweet treats are one of the UK’s most beloved chocolates, and even though you can only buy them around Easter, Brits gobble up millions of them every year.

Mondelez International, the parent company of Cadbury, previously disclosed that approximately 220 million Creme Eggs are sold in Britain annually, accounting for 44 per cent of the worldwide total. But there’s one question that has perplexed chocolate lovers for generations – what is the gooey centre in the middle of a Creme Egg actually made of?

Cadbury fans on social media have previously expressed their bewilderment over the delectable creamy concoction, which is designed to look like an egg with its white and orange colouring.

One perplexed X user queried: “I have a huge problem weighing on my mind: what is the substance in the middle of a Creme Egg called? What is it? A goo?”

Another puzzled chocolate enthusiast asked: “I have a question. What is the goo made from in a Creme Egg?”

So, with Easter Sunday around the corner on April 5th, we set out to settle the mystery once and for all. Brits can enjoy their Creme Eggs in peace – without pondering what it is they’re actually putting in their mouths.

The two halves of the chocolate shell are filled with a soft fondant. The fondant is designed to replicate the yolk and egg white of a real egg, hence why the ‘goo’ is both white and yellow.

The fondant is also the reason the product tastes really sugary – because there genuinely is a lot of sugar in it.

Each 40g egg contains 177 calories, 6.2g of fat (3.5g of which is saturates), 0.06g salt and 29g of carbohydrates, a staggering 26.5g of which are sugars.

While the information on the website claims that the egg is around 28% of the Guideline Daily Amount of sugar, the NHS actually recommend that adults and children over 11 only have 30g of “free sugar” a day – meaning one Creme Egg is almost your entire daily allowance.

Free sugars are sugars that are added to food or drinks, including sugars in biscuits, cakes, chocolates, flavoured yoghurts, breakfast cereals, and fizzy drinks. Sugar found naturally in milk, fruit, and vegetables does not count as a free sugar, so while we don’t need to cut down on these, they do still count toward our total daily allowance.

Creme Eggs do contain free sugars, so while they are only 28% of our overall sugar intake allowance, they are almost all of our free sugar allowance. This means that for a healthy and balanced diet, having one Creme Egg means the rest of your sugar intake for the day should only come from natural sugars found in things like fruit.

However, we do love treating ourselves to a Creme Egg all the same! Cadbury previously claimed that around two-thirds of the Creme Eggs made globally are sold in the UK. In monetary terms, that equates to around £70 million spent on the fondant-filled eggs every single year.

The Cadbury website previously stated: “Cadbury Creme Egg is the most popular and over 500 million Creme Eggs are made every year, with about two-thirds of that number being enjoyed in the UK. That is 3.5 Cadbury Creme Eggs for every person in this country to enjoy.”

So, next time you tuck in to a Creme Egg, remember that the “goo” is really just sugary fondant!

“While the Democrats continue to put the safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel at risk, President Trump is taking action to deploy hundreds of ICE officers, that are currently funded by Congress, to airports being adversely impacted,” the DHS spokesperson said on Sunday.

With prices at the pumps rising rapidly due to the war in the Middle East, saving pennies wherever possible is vital to many motorists.

The average price of diesel is around 160.3p per litre, with petrol at about 141.5p per litre, at the time of writing.

With this in mind, experts have revealed a clever feature on Google Maps that can help you save money.

Google Maps feature that can help drivers save on fuel

Graham Conway, managing director of Select Car Leasing, explained how the feature on one of the most popular sat nav apps only takes seconds to set up but could shave more than £100 off your annual motoring bill.

 He said: “Google Maps is full of great features, but there’s one in particular that is commonly ignored, which can prove a huge boost for motorists.

“All you have to do to take advantage of it is to enter your destination into the app and choose ‘directions’, then look for the three small vertical dots in the top right-hand corner of the screen.

“Select ‘options’ and then look for the ‘prefer fuel-efficient routes’ toggle, which you can switch on by moving to the right.

“You can also select it via the settings in your profile.

“The software will then use a selection of specific data to make sure you’re not only saving on fuel but also being kind to the planet.”

The ‘prefer fuel-efficient routes’ software can reportedly help to save more than £100 annually on fuel bills (Image: Getty Images)

The Google feature uses real-time traffic data, road conditions and your vehicle type – including motorbikes and electric cars – to find the route that burns the least fuel.

Rather than just picking the greenest route regardless, it weighs up efficiency alongside speed, so you still arrive on time.

A study found that the fuel consumption of the most eco-friendly path is 9% lower than that of the shortest travel time, although journey duration is 9% longer.

This means that if you’re not in a rush to get to your destination, based on the average annual fuel bill of £1,200, you could be saving £108.

Mr Conway revealed some of the other features worth exploring in Google Maps.

He said: “You can change your vehicle icon to make it more suitable, use the app to remember exactly where you parked your car, plot trips with multiple stops and also avoid toll roads and bridges.”

What is the penalty for being on the phone while driving?

As explained on the Gov.uk website, it is illegal to hold and use a phone, sat nav, tablet, or “any device that can send or receive data” while driving or riding a motorcycle.

It stressed that this means you must not use a device in your hand “for any reason” even if it is offline.

The law applies if you’re:

• stopped at traffic lights
• queuing in traffic
• supervising a learner driver
• driving a car that turns off the engine when you stop moving
• holding and using a device that’s offline or in flight mode

Recommended reading:

There are some exceptions, such as if you need to call 999 in an emergency and it’s “unsafe or impractical to stop”, if you are safely parked or if you are making a contactless payment in a stationary vehicle, such as at a drive-through restaurant.

You can get 6 penalty points and a £200 fine if you hold and are caught using a device while driving.

Mr Conway concluded: “The best approach is to plan your journey before you set off, make sure your phone is securely mounted, keep your hands off it and use the voice prompts rather than looking at the screen.”

Do you have any hidden gem apps you use on your phone? Let us know in the comments.

Devonshire Road Primary School in Heaton is among 42 North West schools set to open or expand school-based nurseries from September.

The plans will create around 700 new childcare places across the region, making it easier for parents to balance work and family life while cutting childcare costs.

Bridget Phillipson, Education Secretary, said: “Our school-based nurseries are already helping fill the gaps in communities where childcare is hardest to find, giving children the strong start they deserve and helping parents access childcare close to home.

“By expanding these nurseries further and targeting them at the areas that need them most, we are making sure more families can benefit from quality early education while putting practical support in place to help with the cost of living.

“For too long, where a child grows up has shaped what they go on to achieve.

“This government was elected to change that – starting with giving every child the best start in life and making sure every family can access the childcare they need, wherever they live.”

The government estimates that eligible working families could save on average £8,000 a year per child through its funded childcare offer.

School-based nurseries are designed to make life easier for families by allowing parents to drop off children of different ages at the same location.

This reduces travel time and helps young children adjust to the school environment.

The next phase of the programme will be led by local authorities, who will use their understanding of community needs to plan and deliver new nursery places where they are most needed.

Families in Bolton, will benefit from the nursery expansion.

The rollout is part of the government’s wider support for families, including 30 hours of funded childcare.

It also includes free breakfast clubs and measures to reduce school uniform costs, together helping families save up to £8,500 a year.

Schools set to benefit have said the programme will make a huge difference for parents and children alike.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:

“As a parent, I know how hard it can be to juggle work and family life, especially in those early days where time is precious and sleep is short.

“School-based nurseries are already driving a seismic shift in how childcare supports families. Now we’re going even further to build on what works with over 300 new nurseries – cutting

 childcare costs, simplifying the school run, and helping parents at a time when household budgets are under real pressure.

“This is about targeting support where it’s needed most, easing the cost of living and giving every child the best start in life.”

An early spring bike ride ended in an unthinkable tragedy for one Pennsylvania family, after a beloved grandfather and avid cyclist hit a pothole that caused fatal injuries.

Joseph Kenas, 69, died at the hospital on Friday after his family made the heart-wrenching decision to take him off life support.

Kenas had been riding his normal route on Tuesday when his bike hit what his family described as a massive pothole on Morris Road in Fort Washington, a suburb of Philadelphia, NBC10 reported.

“It was such a beautiful day,” Stephen Kenas, Joseph’s son, told NBC10. “It was the 80 degree weather we had. He had to get out. He just couldn’t resist. So my mom was like, ‘Make it a shorter ride. We have dinner later. We have to get you back and get you ready.’”

But his father never made it home. After three days in a Philadelphia hospital, Kenas was declared brain dead, his family said, forcing them to make an agonizing decision.

“We were there in the hospital. They wanted to do an MRI to check for brain activity, and once we got results, we knew that his life was lifeless and there was no brain activity,” Stephen said.

“And that’s when we had to make the call. And that’s really hard.”

Kenas’ family told NBC10 that he was compassionate, social, and an avid cyclist who rarely passed up a chance to ride – especially on such a beautiful day.

According to his obituary, Kenas loved the outdoors and found joy in cycling, skiing, and spending summers at a family lake cabin shared across generations. He was remembered as a devoted father, grandfather, and a constant source of love and support.

Neighbors said the stretch of road where Kenas crashed has long been a recurring problem, though the specific pothole involved has since been patched.

“I really wanted to go and see for myself,” Stephen said. “It’s hard for me to believe a pothole took out such a strong man.”

According to PennDOT, more than 13,000 potholes were reported in southeastern Pennsylvania over the past year, including two on Morris Road.

“It was powerful to see the hole, and that helped me process a little better,” Stephen said. “But when you hear a pothole taking someone’s life, you don’t want to believe it. But when you see what it is, you’re like wow. I can’t believe it got to this point.”

The project on the edge of Manchester city centre will see 15,000 homes built across 390-acres of land

The huge Victoria North development has been named in a Government list of seven ‘new towns’, described as the ‘most ambitious housebuilding programme in more than half a century’.

Victoria North, which will see 15,000 homes built across 390-acres of land, is already well underway, with plans having first emerged seven years ago. Last year it reached a major milestone as the first tenants finally moved into their brand new council homes in Collyhurst.

Today (March 22), the Government announced that the National Housing Bank will launch on April 1, and that it will be backed with up to £16bn of financial capacity and will aim to deliver over 500,000 new homes.

Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. And don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.

The regeneration programme will see up to 15,000 new homes built between Victoria Train Station and Queen’s Park in Collyhurst over the next 15 years in seven new and existing neighbourhoods. Each neighbourhood will be linked by high quality green spaces that will open up and celebrate the River Irk.

Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “We are glad to see Victoria North getting this backing from the Government. It is one of the UK’s most ambitious regeneration projects right at the heart of its fastest-growing city-region. Victoria North will see the building of 15,000 new homes, including many for social rent, alongside high-quality green spaces close to our city centre.

“We believe it is the model of what a new town should be, with modern homes linked to high-quality public transport. Only this week we agreed to invest £60m in a new tram connection for Victoria North from our ground-breaking Good Growth Fund.

“Greater Manchester is ready to deliver a decade of good growth, giving people quality jobs and truly affordable homes, and Victoria North is a crucial part of that.”

Victoria North stretches from Angel Meadow in town to Queen’s Park in Collyhurst. It’s one of the biggest regeneration projects in Manchester’s history – last year, it was officially backed as one of Labour’s new towns.

Manchester council has also teamed up with the Hong Kong-based Far East Consortium (FEC) on an even bigger project with seven new neighbourhoods spanning from the New Cross quarter near Ancoats, all the way up Rochdale Road to Smedley Dip in Collyhurst.

This project would see Red Bank revamped, a new tram stop built at Sandhills, a 46-hectare park along the River Irk and plenty of ‘affordable’ homes. New business would be expected to move in under the Red Bank railway arches.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said: “People want real homes they can actually afford and infrastructure that really works – this government is making that a reality for communities across the country. For Greater Manchester, that means at least 15,000 new homes and a new Metrolink stop that will connect communities to jobs right across Greater Manchester.

“Alongside this, our 40% affordable housing target will mean homes will work for ordinary people, not just those who can already afford it. Greater Manchester is ready to build, and together with the new National Housing Bank, we’re laying the foundations our communities deserve.”

Seven chosen locations for new towns are: Tempsford, Leeds South Bank, Crews Hill and Chase Park, Manchester Victoria North, Thamesmead, Brabazon and West Innovation Arc, and Milton Keynes. The Government also assessed six further new town locations: Adlington, Heyford Park, Marlcombe, Plymouth, South Barking and Wychavon Town — but decided they will not be taken forward.

The Government said that no decisions have yet been made on the names of new towns. The proposed names the Government is considering include Elizabethtown, after the Queen, Pankhurst, after the suffragette Emmeline, Attleeton, after former Prime Minister Clement Attlee, Athelstan, after the first King of England, and Seacole, after nurse Mary, the Times reported.

Manchester council hopes the first fruits of its £4bn project to be seen in Collyhurst will help sell the wider vision for the area which would effectively expand the city centre on mostly unused land and grow the local population by 40,000 over a 20-year period.

• A public consultation on proposed locations and draft planning policy is open until May 18

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Savannah Guthrie is renewing pleas to neighbors, friends and residents of Tucson, Arizona, to jog their memories in the hopes of sparking new leads in the disappearance of her mother Nancy.

The “Today Show” co-host posted a new family statement on her Instagram account Sunday morning, hours after the show’s Instagram account shared it.

After expressing gratitude to the community, the family said in its statement that it believes someone in Tucson or in southern Arizona may “hold the key to finding the resolution in this case.”

“Someone knows something. It’s possible a member of this community has information that they do not even realize is significant.”

The family urged people to go back over their memories between Jan. 31 — when Nancy Guthrie was last seen — and Feb. 1 as well as the evening of Jan. 11.

“Please consult camera footage, journal notes, text messages, observations, or conversations that in retrospect may hold significance. No detail is too small,” the statement said.

The family also acknowledged in the statement that their matriarch may no longer be alive.

“We cannot grieve; we can only ache and wonder.”

Nancy Guthrie was reported missing on Feb. 1. Authorities believe the 84-year-old was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will. The FBI released surveillance videos of a masked man who was outside Guthrie’s front door on the night she vanished.

The Guthrie family has offered a $1 million reward for information leading to the recovery of their mother.

Savannah Guthrie visited the NBC “Today Show” studio in New York City for the first time since her mother’s disappearance on March 5. The show said she plans to return to the air at some point but “remains focused right now supporting her family and working to help bring Nancy home.”

Tucson is a little over 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Phoenix and 70 miles (115 kilometers) north of the Arizona-Mexico border. The Catalina Foothills, the neighborhood where Nancy Guthrie lives, is known as an affluent area with popular hiking trails.

Savannah Guthrie has been a co-anchor of the venerable NBC morning show since 2012. One of her former colleagues, Hoda Kotb, has returned to “Today” to fill in while Guthrie has concentrated on finding her mother.

Asked on Friday about the possibility of the Carabao Cup being a springboard for Arsenal’s season, Arteta said: “Certainly, yes, because winning a trophy helps more for sure. It gives you confidence, it gives you the feeling that when it comes to that moment, you can do it, and you have enough resources to achieve what you want.”

The actor, himself nominated for a 2013 Bafta Television Award for playing Ken in the BBC’s sitcom Cuckoo, said: “I see the whole event as an opportunity to wave a flag for this beloved medium and, with the exception of one commissioner, two execs and a co-star that I have personal beef with, I will do everything I can to ensure it’s a night of warm celebration for all.”