On a grey Tuesday morning, a handful of people are milling around the centre of St Helens.
It is market day but the town is quiet, with just a handful of locals making their way between the offerings of clothes, phone cases, flowers and fresh produce.
Among them is Janet Wylde, who has always called this corner of Merseyside home, but doesn’t mince her words when asked about how it has changed.
“It’s awful”, Janet tells The Independent in no uncertain terms.
Advertisement
She and her sister Sandra Hilton, 75, meet up in the town centre every week but they don’t claim to enjoy it.
“There’s no joy coming here – we look at the markets because there’s no shops”, she adds.
Now retired, the 79-year-old used to work in the head office of glass company Pilkington. Founded in 1826, it revolutionised production and, alongside coal mining and pharmaceuticals, powered St Helens’ growth as a thriving industrial town.
Pilkington is the only remaining large employer – itself now stripped back and a subsidiary of a Japanese firm.
Advertisement
Janet and Sandra believe the town centre, punctuated by empty units, takeaways and vape shops, is indicative of its struggles. It is a story seen in post-industrial towns across the North West.
St Helens town centre, Merseyside (The Independent)
As concise as her sister, Sandra describes the scenes around her as “horrendous”. They are in agreement that St Helens feels forgotten about, with Janet offering a reason why: “I think Liverpool gets the most money”, she says.
St Helens may be part of the Liverpool City Region, but this is not Liverpool. It is around 15 miles away from the city and you will not hear many Scouse accents here. Most prominently though, this is a rugby league town, with football very much secondary.
But what Liverpool and St Helens do share is a story of post-industrial decline.
While the port city’s docks endured a slump in the second half of the 20th century, coal and glass jobs left this part of Merseyside.
Advertisement
There’s no joy coming here – we look at the markets because there’s no shops
Janet Wylde
Whereas urban regeneration, culture and a thriving hospitality industry powered Liverpool’s recovery from the dark days of post-war deindustrialisation, there is a strong feeling here that they are still waiting for their turn.
Change is on the horizon, however. Much of the town centre is now a building site as work continues on wide-ranging upgrades – made up of a new market hall, a hotel, homes and shops – while a new £35m transport interchange is also being built nearby.
Advertisement
It might be the change that many in the town have been asking for, but it could have come too late.
Market trader Paul Donovan, 61, is not sold on the idea that a hotel will change its fortunes.
Paul Donovan believes St Helens town centre has suffered from a loss of shops (The Independent)
“It needs people”, he says. “And it needs more shops. Because all it’s got is a bakery, bookies and barbers.
“All the big boys have left, all the big shops have gone to the retail park. Each time the town has gone boom, onto the floor.”
St Helens will go to the polls next week to elect its borough council.
Advertisement
As an industrial town, its ties with the Labour party run deep. Other than a six year period of no overall control in the 2000s, it has always been run by Labour, which has 28 of its 48 councillors.
But there is growing feeling that this could be the first area in the red stronghold of Merseyside to fall for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
On a visit to nearby Southport in early April, Mr Farage told the BBC his party will give Labour a “run for their money” in elections on Merseyside, having last year enjoyed success in the wider region when it took control of Lancashire County Council.
“I don’t want to overly raise expectations, but what I will say is the map of local government will look very different after 7 May across the North West”, he said.
Advertisement
Speaking to the Daily Mail last week, Mr Farage mentioned the borough by name as he said that Reform could win in dissatisfied ‘red wall’ areas which did not even contemplate voting for Boris Johnson and the Conservatives when he swept parts of the north in 2019.
“Boris never got a sniff of winning Gateshead,” he said. “Or Barnsley, or Tameside or St Helens.
“This is going way beyond anything that remarkable Brexit election produced in 2019, and my view is that this switch is not a one-off… this is a fundamental shift away from the Labour Party.
The Labour mood on the ground in St Helens appears to be rather despondent – Reform poses a new threat, one which is not burdened with the baggage that the Conservative name carries here.
Advertisement
Regeneration work is ongoing in St Helens town centre (The Independent)
Latest figures from PollCheck suggest a huge swing to Reform would give it 25 councillors required to control the local authority, with Labour set to fall to nine.
A Merseyside Labour source tells The Independent that it is “inevitable” that Reform will control the council after next month’s elections.
“I think the best case scenario for Labour is that it’s the largest party but not a majority”, the insider adds.
“The worst-case scenario, which is much more likely, is that Reform win an outright majority.
“I think Reform will clean out the Labour party. I think they’ll clean out the Green party and take out most Labour councillors.”
Advertisement
There is no love lost for Labour among those who speak to The Independent in the centre of this town, which is the 29th-most-deprived local authority in the country.
The feeling is that the party they have always voted for no longer represents areas like this – a factor that Mr Farage will hope to take advantage of – and that nothing has changed while Labour has been in power.
Janet is just as withering about the Labour Party as she is about St Helens itself.
Sandra Hilton and Janet Wylde in St Helens town centre (The Independent)
“We were always Labour”, she says. But asked if she will be voting for the party next month, she is clear.
“Definitely no – and don’t get me wound up on them. It’s not Labour. That’s a cover. It’s not the old Labour we had.”
Advertisement
Her sister Sandra asks: “What have they done? We’ve got family waiting for houses and they can’t get one.
“I’m sorry, but they put all the immigrants in the new houses and they’re still waiting.”
She is not the only person to raise concerns about immigration in this town, which at the last census saw 93.5 per cent of the local population say they were born in England.
It is high on the list of concerns for market trader Ray Watt, who travels to St Helens from Liverpool for work.
Advertisement
Ray Watt, a market trader in St Helens (The Independent)
“The country can’t cope with it”, the 58 year old says. “The country can’t cope with that and Labour are just soft in my eyes.
Though Ray says he “probably wouldn’t vote for Reform”, he has a theory on why Labour has held power in towns like this for so long.
“I don’t even think some people think too much about it”, he says. “I think they’re on autopilot – well we’re working class so we’re Labour. We’re just Labour. Well, they’re f***ing useless.”
The Liverpool City Region’s Labour mayor Steve Rotheram believes that a Reform win in St Helens, a prospect he describes as a “big if”, would threaten the “trajectory” of regeneration projects his combined authority is working on in the town.
“That genuinely all has a question mark against it if you have somebody who doesn’t believe in the same things that Labour in St Helens does”, the mayor tells The Independent.
Advertisement
However, Mr Rotheram is concerned that noise in Westminster is distracting from his party’s local campaigning and a flurry of u-turns in government has meant its successes have not cut through.
Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, Steve Rotheram (PA)
“There’s definitely a feeling that the ‘own goals’, the number of U-turns that the party made, have reflected really badly on everything else,” he says.
The mayor adds: “I think the way in which we need to approach these elections is a hyper-local, a really granular level – knocking on every single door and explaining that it’s not currently an election for national issues. It’s who’s going to run your town hall.
“Once we break beyond the people who are not supporting the likes of Keir Starmer, when we get beyond that and explain the type of town hall that Labour are proposing, then we get a much fairer hearing.”
Labour face an uphill struggle to hold onto this town. Even if the mayor is right and the local elections will be fought on local issues, people in St Helens will need convincing that their loyalty to the party should remain.
Advertisement
Sitting on a bench in the town centre, Keith Twist, 68, is looking over the town centre and sums up the dilemma Labour faces.
“I vote Labour but I don’t think I’ll be doing so this time”, he says,
Asked why, Keith says: “Well, can you see what’s happening here?”
The poll predicts that a Reform breakthrough and a Scottish Green surge could push Labour into fourth place.
The SNP is set for a majority at the upcoming Holyrood election while Labour and the Tories are set to suffer historic collapses, according to a new poll.
Advertisement
The MRP poll for the Herald, conducted by the company which most accurately predicted the results of the 2024 general election, predicts the Scottish Greens could push Anas Sarwar’s Labour into fourth place with Reform UK in second.
First Minister John Swinney and the SNP has argued that winning an outright majority would, in effect, deliver a mandate for a new referendum on independence.
In its final model the polling firm Stonehaven has the SNP on course to win 66 seats, just above the 65-seat threshold needed for a majority.
Reform UK would end up in second place with 21 seats, the Scottish Greens on 14 in third and Scottish Labour on 13 in fourth, according to the poll. If the polling is correct then the two pro-independence parties would have 62 per cent of all MSPs in the Scottish Parliament. Russell Findlay’s Scottish Tories would lose out considerably by returning just seven MSPs – down from 31 in 2021.
The Scottish Conservatives are forecast to return just seven MSPs, down significantly on the 31 won in 2021. The Lib Dems would have eight MSPs.
The model is based on interviews with 3379 people, carried out in seven rounds of polling between early February and late April 2026, with the most recent figures coming from 1289 people surveyed between April 16 and 21.
Advertisement
Keith Brown, the SNP’s depute leader, said: “The SNP is the only party focused on people’s priorities – putting in place a cap on the cost of essential food items, delivering a £2 bus fare cap and rolling out GP walk-in centres across the country. Meanwhile, Labour have nothing positive to say and are fighting it out in fourth place.
“They want people to vote for an opposition to stop things happening, I am asking people to vote for an SNP Government to get things done. “
A Reform spokesperson said: “This shows support for Reform UK is continuing to surge while Labour and the Tories are now irrelevant. If you want to beat the SNP and the extremist Greens vote Reform UK.”
A Scottish Conservative spokesperson said: “This poll highlights the very real threat of an SNP majority, which John Swinney has repeatedly said he will use to push for another referendum.
Advertisement
“But pro-UK voters can prevent that constitutional chaos by backing the Scottish Conservatives on their peach ballot. It’s the tried and tested way to stop an SNP majority.”
Get more Daily Record exclusives by signing up for free to Google’s preferred sources. Click HERE.
Steven Spielberg’s 1991 adventure film Hook starring Robin Williams has been praised as “one of the greatest childhood films ever made”
Monde Mwitumwa TV and Celebrity Reporter
12:54, 02 May 2026
A classic film hailed as a “masterpiece” by audiences is showing today.
Boasting a truly impressive cast, led by the late Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman, Julia Roberts, Dame Maggie Smith and Bob Hoskins, Hook mesmerised audiences when it first premiered in 1991.
Advertisement
The film, helmed by Steven Spielberg, follows the famous Captain James Hook as he abducts Peter’s children, forcing the now adult lawyer (Robin), who has forgotten all recollection of his past, to return to Neverland and the Lost Boys to reclaim his youthful essence and confront his former enemy.
Roberts led the cast as Peter Pan, Bob played the part of Smee, while Dame Maggie gave a profoundly touching portrayal as Granny Wendy, following her childhood adventures with Peter.
The cast also featured music legend Phil Collins, Caroline Goodall and Dante Basco as the beloved Rufio, leader of the Lost Boys, reports the Mirror.
Surprisingly, upon its debut, Hook struggled to win over (adult) reviewers and received a 29% score from professional critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
Reviewers pointed to its unevenness and “terrible child roles”, yet audiences score it almost 50% higher, at 76%. Numerous devotees have condemned the programme’s poor rating, maintaining that the beloved film is a “masterpiece.”
One audience member posted on Reddit: “I think the critic rating was abysmally wrong. Imo this movie is a masterpiece. I think Spielberg hated it because it hits too close to home.
Advertisement
“Sometimes as artists we make things that we don’t understand or embrace until much later, where unintended meaning slips through.”
They went on: “His biggest complaint and his thoughts on changing it – adding green screen/mocap – are wild to read about when to me the overt set reinforces the hallucination/dream framing of the entire movie. Hook with a green screen would be terrible.”
Another remarked: “I was well into my twenties before I even realized that this movie was widely disliked. It was always a classic in my mind, and still is.”
Advertisement
A third viewer praised on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, “This is truly one of the greatest childhood movies. I just introduced my 4and5 year-old to this movie this evening and they were engrossed from the second it started.
“even cried a few times with pure happiness for the memories it brought back,.”
Another said it was ‘the best childhood film of all time’. One insisted: “Hook is a masterpiece of film. There is nothing more to say. It’s perfect,”
Meanwhile another fans added: “This defined my childhood. I was completely enthralled by this movie. I watched it for the first time in 25 years this past weekend and it was just as perfect as it was then.”
Advertisement
Hook airs on Channel 5 at 2.45pm on Saturday, May 2
Here are our top picks of the good cops from the bad ones (Picture: BBC)
When our descendants look back upon the genre that has most governed the British TV-watching public’s tastes, they could very likely land upon the crimethriller.
It’s gritty, it’s darkly humoured, it’s occasionally bleak – what could be better suited to our national sensibilities?
Thanks to some robust commercial partnerships (wait, don’t fall asleep), there is an embarrassment of riches when you stumble upon Netflix‘s binge-worthy British crime shows. They literally have an entire genre category for it.
Whether it’s hard-boiled coppers, cunning criminals or even citizen detectives, these criminally-minded thrillers have something for everyone.
Advertisement
So here are our top picks of the good cops from the bad ones, over on Netflix this very moment.
Get personalised updates on all things Netflix
Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro’s TV Newsletter.
Sign up to our newsletter and then select your show in the link we’ll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you.
Advertisement
Peaky Blinders
The Shelby dynasty rumbles on (Picture: BBC/Mandabach/Tiger Aspect/Robert Viglasky)
Obviously! The breadth and scale of Peaky Blinders warranted a franchise of TV and film content that is still going.
Advertisement
The Shelby dynasty is among Birmingham’s biggest cultural exports. Just look at the impact it’s had on David Beckham’s wardrobe.
Cillian Murphy shot to fame as swaggering Tommy Shelby, who heads up his family’s criminal syndicate in the wake of World War I.
The Gentlemen
Guy Ritchie’s first return to form in some time came with this TV remake/spin-off of his 2019 film of the same name.
It’s bold, brash and distinctly British.
Advertisement
Kaya Scodelario starred as aloof Susie Glass (Picture: Christopher Rafael/Netflix)
It was also his first decent female protagonist (despite the show’s title). Kaya Scodelario’s aloof Susie Glass heads up a series of underground marijuana plants, hidden on the enormous estates of our landed gentry.
This one’s heavy on crime and light on the coppers. It’s also incredibly good fun. Season two, coming soon.
Netflix was instrumental in the survival of the show, after it ended its run on Channel 4.
As gritty as it is heartbreaking (Picture: Ali Painter/Netflix)
Ronan Bennett’s saga has been touted as a hugely realistic portrayal of life on a crime-ridden Hackney council estate with ‘shotting’ (selling), ‘food’ (drugs) and ‘Ps’ (cash) in the mix.
As gritty as it is heartbreaking, of everything on the list, this probably best tackles what desperate people can be driven to in order to survive.
Advertisement
The Serpent
The Serpent takes on the true crime story of the icy serial killer and fraudster Charles Sobhraj, played by Tahar Rahim. It even manages to do so with some sensitivity.
This BBC export is a true crime drama (Picture: BBC/Mammoth Screen)
Doctor Who’s Jenna Coleman plays his inscrutable girlfriend Marie-Andrée Leclerc.
The show, originally on the BBC, is mostly set in Asia in the mid-’70s as Sobhraj drugs and kills Western travellers, hiding behind the absence of any joined-up international communication at the time.
Dept Q
Setting a dusty cold case file in front of a crack team of coppers isn’t reinventing the TV wheel. Making the detective in charge of said team the most disliked man in the police precinct is also nothing new.
But Dept Q is further proof that when it comes to bad-tempered, trauma-laden crime shows, the limit does not exist.
This one benefits from a violently unhinged baddie, who it’s impossible to look away from.
Advertisement
A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder
A bit of a different kettle of fish with this mystery thriller for young adults. AGGGTM follows teen citizen detective Pip (Emma Myers) and is set in a sleepy English town you’ll want to move to.
Summer vibes, but with a thrilling mystery (Picture: BBC/Netflix)
Alongside some boundless summer activities, Pip decides to take on the disappearance of schoolmate Andie Bell and crack the case.
It can be a bit ludicrous in parts (such as the fact that this is touted as part of her sixth form studies) but you’ll want to stick around to see whodunnit.
The Fall
This psychological thriller was the talk of British TV when it first hit screens, with avid discussion over whether it was glorifying its criminal.
A creepy Jamie Dornan as you’ve never seen him before (Picture: BBC/The Fall 3 Ltd/Helen Sloan)
Jamie Dornan stars as the perfectly detached Belfast killer of women in their thirties, who, to observers, is a regular-degular happily married dad of two.
Gillian Anderson is parachuted in from the Met to hunt the killer out, in what is a brilliant, creepy two-hander.
Advertisement
Line of Duty
To many, this will be the apex of the crime thriller. Jed Mercurio’s masterwork captivated the nation for years.
Now, with more on the way, this ultimate cop show needs to prove it can do it all over again.
The gold standard! (Picture: Aiden Monaghan/World Productions/BBC)
Starring the trio of Vicky McClure, Martin Compston and Adrian Dunbar, the show revolves around the anti-corruption police unit AC-12 as they try to root out sinister forces within the police and politics.
Expect tense interrogation scenes, jaw-dropping twists and high-octane action – maybe all you can ask from a thriller.
Got a story?
Advertisement
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
In hazy spring sunshine on Saturday, hundreds of young Seoulites turned up at a park by the Han river at the invitation of the city government to try to do something many overworked South Koreans never get enough of – sleep.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government staged its third annual spring event, dubbed a power nap contest, from 3pm local time, under a refreshed set of admission requirements for the participants: wear outfits befitting either a sleeping beauty or prince, come tired, with a full belly.
For a metropolis that famously runs on 24-hour shopping malls, competitive hustle and iced Americanos, the underlying exhaustion on the lawn was palpable.
“Between exam prep and part-time jobs, I survive on three or four hours of sleep a night, patching it up with desk naps during the day,” said Park Jun Seok, who showed up draped in the silken, crimson robes of a Joseon Dynasty monarch.
Advertisement
Participants take a nap during the 2026 Hangang Nap Competition in Seoul (AP)
“I’m here to show off my napping skills, and to demonstrate exactly how a king sleeps,” Mr Park, 20, a university student, said.
Nearby, Yoo Mi Yeon, 24, an English teacher from Ilsan north of Seoul, stood out in a plush, oversized koala-themed onesie.
A participant dressed as Snow White takes a nap during the 2026 Hangang Nap Competition (AP)
“I’ve always suffered from insomnia, I struggle to fall asleep, and wake up easily,” she said. “Koalas are famous for their deep slumber. I came dressed as one hoping to borrow a little of their magic.”
Now in its third year, the sleep competition underscores a chronic issue for South Koreans. Data shows that South Korea is one of the most overworked and sleep-deprived nations among the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development members, and, as a consequence, people post some of the fewest sleep hours.
Seoulites dressed in their comfiest night suits take a nap in Yeouido Hangang Park (AP)
As the clock struck 3pm and eye masks descended across the park, officials went around to measure participants’ heart rate to make sure they had a stable reading – an indicator of deep, peaceful sleep.
The winner of the contest was a man in his 80s.
A participant sleeps during the 2026 Power Nap contest at Han River park in Seoul (Reuters)
Hwang Du Seong, a 37-year-old office worker, was a runner-up.
“I was completely drained, having done night shifts often on top of going to work everyday plus I also drive a lot for work. So when I saw the contest I was determined to sleep to fully recharge amid river breeze, and I’m very happy to be placed second place, luckily.”
The Shepherd Group Youth Band, based in Huntington, achieved impressive results at this year’s Holme Valley Contest, marking another important milestone in the ensemble’s growing reputation.
Competing against talented youth and community bands from across the region, the group delivered a confident and polished programme that impressed both adjudicators and audience members.
Recommended reading:
The band is conducted by Craig Brown and features many players from across York and beyond.
Advertisement
Mr Brown said: “Their disciplined playing, musicality, and strong stage presence earned them high praise, reflecting months of dedicated rehearsals and they were crowned first winners and also received a separate award for performing the ‘Best Hymn Tune’.
Shepherd Group Youth Band with conductor Craig Brown (Image: Supplied)
“Players regularly perform and compete representing our city on stages like Birmingham’s Symphony Hall, York Barbican, and The Glasshouse, Gateshead.
“They form part of the Shepherd banding organisation who off performance opportunities throughout their 6 bands, as well as tuition and ensemble playing for absolute beginners of any age.”
For more information or to see where you can next see one of the bands visit www.shepherdbrass.org.uk
Advertisement
Craig Brown Shepherd Group Youth Band conductor (Image: Supplied)
Anne Hathaway used this exact lightweight foundation for her flawless complexion as she walked the red carpet at the Devil Wears Prada 2 premiere, and it’s 20% off for a limited time
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Advertisement
The promo tour for The Devil Wears Prada 2 might be over, but with the film only just landing in cinemas this weekend it’ll be a while before we stop obsessing over the cast and their looks. During the recent premiere in Shanghai, Anne Hathaway walked the red carpet in a candy-coloured tulle dress, which was complemented perfectly by her soft, romantic makeup.
For hours spent doing publicity under the hot lights, picking the right foundation was essential to making sure it not only lasted all day but prevented shine too, which is why she wore the Westman Atelier Vital Skin Foundation Stick. It gives a radiant, natural finish without looking shiny, with a formula that doesn’t budge even after hours of wear.
It combines a foundation and concealer in one, so you can use it for touch ups on blemishes or dark circles, or use it all over your face for a solid base. It melts into the skin which is what gives it a more natural-looking finish, and the stick formula makes it easy to apply on the go, so if you do need a top up you can do it in seconds.
Content cannot be displayed without consent
We love makeup that includes some skincare benefits, which is why the Vital Skin Foundation Stickis a top pick. It’s packed with antioxidants, calming actives and camellia seed oil, so it not only covers up imperfections, but helps combat redness, even out your skin tone and soothe irritated skin, all whilst boosting moisture.
For the Bank Holiday weekend, Space NK has slashed almost all of Westman Atelier’s makeup productsby 20%, which is good news for anyone hoping to copy Anne’s red carpet look. Her makeup artist Gucci Westman(founder of Westman Atelier) used a full face of products from the brand on Anne, including the Vital Skin Foundation Stickwhich is also on sale. It usually retails for £62, but is currently available for £49.60 making it a big saving.
If this is still a little bit of a splurge for your beauty bag, some similar formulas include the Unreal Skin Sheer Glow Tint Hydrating Foundation Stickwhich is £37 from Charlotte Tilbury, and The Minimalist Perfecting Complexion Stickfrom Merit which you can pick up for £34. Both come in a stick formula, with a hydrating, glow-boosting finish and a broad shade range to choose from.
Advertisement
But despite its high end price tag, the Vital Skin Foundation Stickworn by Anne is a firm favourite, racking up over 1000 five-star reviews from Space NK shoppers.
One said: “This is my favourite make up and I have repeatedly repurchased it. It’s compact and great for travelling. It has a beautiful matte finish and lasts all day. During the winter I apply a richer moisturiser and it still works great. The packaging is very pretty and expensive looking. I want to try the blush and other products in the range too.”
Another wrote: “This stick foundation is of really high quality and there is a wide range of colours available. It is easy to apply and buildable. I had my foundation stick for over a year and found it great as an everyday go to. Also ideal for hand luggage, as it is not classed as a liquid! Beautiful packaging/case too. I’m very fond of this beauty brand.”
Advertisement
Some were less pleased, with one saying: “As much as I wanted to like it, it’s not worth the money that I spent on it. First of all, it’s not really clean, as it contains a lot of allergens; secondly, it disappears from my oily skin quite quickly. On a positive note, however, the shade was chosen correctly and it didn’t oxidize throughout the day.”
On Thursday, the terrorism threat was raised in the wake of the Golder Green stabbing, meaning a terror attack is “highly likely”.
The force in Greater Manchester have said that the safety of everyone in the community remains their “highest priority” and they will work, “day and night”, to keep residents safe.
A spokesperson said: “The safety of everyone within our communities remains our highest priority, and Greater Manchester Police will continue to work, day and night, to keep you safe.
Advertisement
“Following the terror attack in Golders Green, London, earlier this week, extra patrols were deployed around the city-region, with a particular focus on providing a high-visibility presence within our Jewish communities, and this will continue.
“We will work closely with our partners, and the approach will be continually reviewed in light of the change in threat level.
“Our neighbourhood policing teams will remain visible and accessible in your area, and we will continue to engage with all our communities across Greater Manchester.
“While you, the public, are urged to remain alert, not alarmed, we ask you trust your instincts, and if something doesn’t feel right, please report it to gov.uk/ACT. In an emergency, always call 999.”
Advertisement
The decision is not solely a result of the Golders Green attack, the Home Office said, adding that the terrorist threat level in the UK has been “rising for some time, driven by an increase in broader Islamist and extreme right-wing terrorist threat from individuals and small groups based in the UK”.
It also comes against a backdrop of “increased state-linked physical threats which is encouraging acts of violence, including against the Jewish community”, it added.
In October, two people were killed at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue.
The Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester issued a statement on social media that said “a growing sense of vulnerability and concern” had been reinforced within Jewish communities across the country.
Advertisement
The statement read: “The JRC is deeply shocked by the terrorist attack in Golders Green targeting members of the Jewish community. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families at this painful time.
“This attack, like the recent terrorist incident at Heaton Park Synagogue, sends shockwaves far beyond those directly affected. It resonates deeply with Jewish communities across the country, reinforcing a growing sense of vulnerability and concern.
“We urge the Government to take decisive action to address the factors that are radicalising individuals to target British Jews in such violent and deadly ways. There must be a renewed commitment to tackling anti-Jewish racism in all its forms to ensure the safety and security of our community. The perpetrators must face the full force of the law”.
Head of Counter Terrorism Policing Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said officers have seen an “elevated threat” to the Jewish community.
Advertisement
Speaking outside New Scotland Yard, he said: “Our casework is increasing across a number of ideologies, and within that, we are seeing an elevated threat to Jewish and Israeli individuals and institutions in the UK.
“We’re also working against an unpredictable global situation that has consequences closer to home, including physical threats by state-linked actors.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood urged people to be “vigilant”.
“I know this will be a source of concern to many, particularly amongst our Jewish community, who have suffered so much,” she said.
Advertisement
“As the threat level rises, I urge everyone to be vigilant, as they go about their daily lives, and report any concerns they have to the police. And I can assure everyone that our world-class security services and the police are working, day and night, to keep our country safe.”
The Daily Records series on unsolved gangland murders this week looks at the deaths of two men who were murdered after a night out at the greyhound racing.
12:00, 02 May 2026
The remote dirt track running through an abandoned scrapyard had over the years been a place for fly tipping, courting couples and where joy riders would abandoned their stolen vehicles.
Advertisement
However it served a more sinister purpose one afternoon in October, 2001.
The bodies of two men had been found next to a burned out black Volkswagen Golf car at the spot in Larkhall, Lanarkshire.
Both victims had been shot and were quickly identified as small time Lanarkshire criminals John Hall, 45, from Carluke and 33 year old David Macintosh from neighbouring Wishaw.
The previous night they had visited an unlicensed greyhound track in Gretna Green on the Scottish Border and spotted in the same black Volkswagen which belonged to Macintosh.
They placed bets, had drinks, and watched the dogs run.
By the following afternoon both men were dead in the abandoned scrap yard alongside the rusting cars.
The murder scene was also next to one off Scotland’s best known go karting venues Summerlee Raceway, where racing drivers David Coulthard, Dario Franchitti, and Allan McNish had started off.
Advertisement
Soon it emerged that the two victims may have stepped out of their league with fatal consequences.
It was claimed they they had acquired a consignment of cocaine, worth around £120,000, on credit from a major underworld figure the previous year.
The drugs had been stashed by an associate in a locker at a cable television firm in Livingston, West Lothian where he worked as a storeman.
However the drugs were found by police after a tip off possibly due to the fact he was selling to colleagues.
Advertisement
The associate, who also owed the two men money, was arrested and jailed for six years in December 2000.
It meant Hall and McIntosh were left with nothing, no drugs, no money, and a debt they couldn’t repay.
Ten months later they were both dead.
Advertisement
Strathclyde Police launched a major inquiry led by Detective Superintendent John Carnochan.
Advertisement
A team of more than 50 police officers were involved in the hunt for the killer or killers.
However door-to-door inquiries, CCTV checks, and numerous witness appeals failed to provide any significant leads or evidence leading to an arrest.
Twenty-four years later no one has ever been charged.
The execution appeared a classic gangland hit with a message clearly being sent out – but by whom.
Advertisement
Police inquiries focused on a violent 46 year old career criminal from Paisley who shared the two victims’ interest in greyhound racing.
He owned several of the animals and had recently failed in a six figure bid to buy a dog track in West Lothian.
Detective Supt Carnochan revealed sightings of the two victims in Gretna at 8pm were the last time they had been seen alive.
Their bodies were found around 4pm the following day by two men out walking.
Advertisement
The focus of the police inquiry was the 20 hour window between when they were killed and their bodies dumped
It’s feared the man to whom they allegedly owed the drugs debt had run out of patience and did not want to lose face.
A source said at the time: “Your man was not prepared to wait any longer for his money. After 10 months and plenty of warnings he had to have them taken out.
“It was unfortunate for them but he couldn’t be seen to do nothing.”
Advertisement
Police described the two men as friends who were last seen by their families at 6pm before they left for Gretna.
Hall lived with his wife and two teenage daughters. He also had a 23-year-old son from a previous relationship. Mr McIntosh lived with his partner.
Mr Carnochan said at the time: ”We are being helped by the two families involved so far, who are understandably pretty distraught.
This is a father and a husband and it’s quite tragic circumstances that we are dealing with.”
Advertisement
It was not clear if the two victims were alive or dead when they arrived at the murder scene.
Police said they did not appear to have been taken there forcibly.
They also discounted links to the unsolved murders two years earlier of two other Lanarkshire men John Nisbet and William Lindsay who had also been shot dead.
Their burned out bodies were found dumped next to a farmers track near the East Lothian town of Tranent.
Advertisement
The week of the double murder of Hall and McIntosh proved to be a bad one for Larkhall.
A few days later one of the areas biggest employers Daks Simpson said it was closing with the loss of 400 jobs.
That same week the families of the two men visited the spot where they were found and laid flowers.
Graeme Pearson, former Director General of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, says murders linked to organised crime can be more difficult to solve with people more reluctant to come forward with information.
Advertisement
He added:”There was information doing the rounds that indicated there had been a drugs debt.
“It was thought that someone came from down south to settle the thing and indeed they did by killing the two.
“Nothing came out of it thereafter. John Carnochan conducted a very energetic inquiry and was keen to have it resolved.
“But I didn’t think they got more than scraping the surface.”
Advertisement
Mr Pearson continued:”The victims were not part of any active well known criminal groups who were being monitored by the police at that time.
“It had become evident to whoever they owed the money that it wasn’t going to be paid.
“The dealer would reckon that if he is not seen to deal with it with it immediately. then it is going to happen again.
Advertisement
“When there is a drug debt the guy can’t allow that to happen to him or he becomes a joke.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “The murders of John Hall and David McIntosh remain unresolved. Unresolved murders are cases that are never closed and Police Scotland is fully committed to identifying those people responsible for all such cases.
“Police Scotland works closely with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and meets regularly to review outstanding unresolved murders from across the country. Working collaboratively, the potential for new investigative opportunities is regularly assessed to maximise the ability to deliver justice for grieving families, irrespective of the passage of time.
“As with any unresolved murder case, we would review any new information provided to police and investigate further if appropriate.”
I HAVE recently had to report a rouge trader to York police and trading standards as a relative had a large amount of money taken by deception but neither authority were interested.
Both advised that it should be a civil case and we should proceed down that route.
Both the trader and both authorities know that the civil case route would cost my relative more money as the trader would simply declare themselves bankrupt and set up again under another name which he has done four times before.
Advertisement
It seems to me that both sets of authorities are either not bothered and don’t know how to deal with this sort of case and as such are giving him carte blanche to carry out his criminality, or they are frightened to deal with him.
I once had to ring the police as a person (of no fixed abode) was seen and caught on camera urinating in a public street and was advised by the police not to do anything as there could be repercussions, how sad is this.
Name and address supplied
—
Advertisement
What a player!
WHAT’S the matter with these professional football wusses?
I am referring to Manchester City bellyaching over professional footballers expected to play three games over an eight-day period – they are wusses.
Roy of the Rovers used to work down the pit for 12 hours, and after a sponge bath, would eat two helpings of fish and chips, washed down with four pints of beer, smoke ten full strength cigs then, after missing the bus, cycle 40 miles to the match using borrowed kit and go on to score the winning goal.
Advertisement
The certainly don’t make football players of that standard anymore!
D M Deamer,
Penleys Grove Street,
Monkgate, York
Advertisement
—
A question
NOW the first class cricket season has started, selection of players good enough to play for England is a subject for discussion in many cricket clubs country wide.
One point often comes to the fore, why do we need a Kiwi with not the finest of CVs to coach our national team, particularly when he is rarely to be seen on the county circuit watching the potential talent available.
Advertisement
Peter Rickaby,
Moat Way,
Brayton
What do you think?
Advertisement
Feel strongly about an issue? Write us a letter. Please write no more than 250 words and you must provide your full name, address and mobile number. Send your views by email to: letters@thepress.co.uk
A crew attended and found a fire involving a container
Firefighters were called to a road in a Cambridgeshire village after receiving reports of a fire breaking out on Friday, May 1. Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service were called at 6.29pm to reports of a fire in the open on Furlong Way in Caldecote.
Advertisement
A crew from Cambridge attended and arrived to find a fire involving a container. The firefighters worked to tackle the fire using hose reels before returning to their station. A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue service has confirmed that the cause of the fire is believed to be deliberate.
Volunteers have been asked to help clear the debris on Saturday (May 2) by a local. The local claims the container had equipment inside believed to have been “destroyed” by the fire.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login