Locals come to the wine bar to make new friends and have a chat

A wine bar in Cambridgeshire offers its visitors a place to relax and enjoy a range of different wines with the owners on hand to help with finding the ideal wine for each customer. Greg Clifton recently took over Wine in the Willows in Somersham with his partner Emma and wants it to be a “very unpretentious” spot to serve the community.

He said: “It’s a great place to come and have a glass of wine, a chat, and just relax really. We’ve just got our pavement license so we have seats outside. It’s bringing that kind of Mediterranean vibe of summer to Somersham.

“We used to be customers of the wine bar and when the previous owner said she was going to close it, me and my partner said we should take it on. We took it on to kind of keep the bar in the village. It was always dog-friendly and there were some great wines on the menu so the idea of it closing was really quite disappointing. It was the natural step for us to take it over.”

The wine bar has a strong community focus with plenty of events happening each month including a book club that draws in around 20 people to chat about the books they’ve read alongside a glass of wine. Mr Clifton added: “We do the book club once a month. We have a wine and walk once a month, which is for dog owners. We do it on a Saturday afternoon. People bring their dogs, have a glass of wine and then go out for an hour-long walk. They then come back to the wine bar and have a chat.

“It has been great because it brings people together. People are making friends with people in the village they didn’t know so it’s building a real sense of community.”

The owners have a “real love of wine” that they want to share with people and are willing to give customers a little wine tasting and talk them through the menu if they don’t know what to have. The menu has been kept “simple” with five whites, five reds, three rosés, and a few sparkling and champagne options.

All of the wines have been “very carefully chosen” with a special wine that changes every month that has “a bit of a story”. Mr Clifton said: “Our first summer wine is a Vermentino that we’ve sourced from the south of France, which is something a little different that I love to share with people. The bar is somewhere people can come in and try something that perhaps they wouldn’t usually choose. Every wine is a great wine that I’ve tasted and put on the menu.”

Out of all of the wines on offer, Mr Clifton has one that is his particular favourite. He said: “We have a gewürztraminer Riesling, which is a bit of a mouthful to say, but it’s one of my favourite wines. It’s really different and it’s great for the summer. When you smell it, it’s quite floral. It reminds people a lot of roses and lychees and it’s quite tropical but when you taste it, it’s quite dry and citrusy. It’s a bit of a chameleon kind of wine. It’s unusual and a lot of people, when I suggest they try it, absolutely love it.”

Wine in the Willows wants to create an “Italian or Mediterranean vibe” for the bar during the summer with its outdoor seating while keeping it cosy with candles on the tables and “subdued lighting” for the winter. Mr Clifton believes the bar stands out in Cambridgeshire thanks to him getting to know each of his customers and chatting to them to create a familiar and relaxed atmosphere.

He added: “We get to know people. We want people to feel like they can meet new people, make friends, and chat with us if they want to. The bar is small with only 20 seats so it’s quite cosy. I think that’s what makes a big different. We don’t want to look like every other bar. We want to stand out and be a little different.”

Wine in the Willows can be found at 103 High Street in Somersham. The wine bar is open from 6pm to 10pm on Thursdays, 5pm to 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 4pm to 10pm on Sundays.

The visitors were awarded their penalty when Fi Morgan bundled the ball goalwards and Seker swatted it off the line

Megan Bell’s penalty was in vain as Northern Ireland slipped to a controversial 2-1 defeat by Turkey in their World Cup qualifier in Istanbul.

Bell converted an equaliser from the spot after a blatant handball on the goal line by Turkey forward Busem Seker just before half-time.

Seker somehow avoided a red card, and then popped up with the winner in the second half.

Michael McArdle’s side are already assured of a play-off spot but remain third in the group, now four points behind their hosts.

Goalkeeper Jackie Burns made two superb saves to keep out headers from Selen Altunkulak and Seker, but she had no chance in the 26th minute when Melike Pekel curled an unstoppable shot into the top corner.

The visitors were awarded their penalty when Fi Morgan bundled the ball goalwards and Seker swatted it off the line.

Seker escaped with a yellow card, much to Northern Ireland’s surprise, before Bell dispatched the spot-kick.

The winner came moments after half-time when Burns’ clearance was charged down by Altunkulak, who kept the ball in play before crossing for Seker to head in at the far post.

Teenager Mirra Andreeva won her first Grand Slam title as Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska was denied a fairytale French Open victory.

Andreeva, 19, fulfilled the potential she has long shown with a 6-3 6-2 victory over an opponent who was a 500-1 outsider before the tournament.

Russian eighth seed Andreeva is the youngest woman to win the Roland Garros title since Monica Seles in 1992.

After securing victory in one hour and 22 minutes, Andreeva fell to the court in elation before quickly running up to the stands for a warm embrace with her coach Conchita Martinez – herself a former major champion after winning Wimbledon in 1994.

Andreeva overcame a tense start, where nerves and a swirling wind led to the final starting with four successive breaks of serve.

It was world number 114 Chwalinska who held first – much to the delight of the 15,000-strong crowd who gave her vociferous support throughout.

Despite thousands of Polish fans cheering Chwalinska on, Andreeva showed her increased maturity to maintain her composure and reel off the next nine games to take a 6-3 5-0 lead.

There was more tension when Andreeva was unable to serve out victory at the first attempt, but she recovered to take her first championship point on Chwalinska’s serve with a backhand winner.

I moved to Ireland in 2019, a year after abortion had become legal. As a woman born and raised in Germany, reproductive rights had never been a concern for me. I knew that if needed it, I had the option of termination.

I wasn’t aware of my privilege at the time. But when I made Ireland my home, I realised the weight of choosing to live in a country with such a conflicted relationship with reproductive rights.

Legalisation only marks the beginning of processing historical trauma, as well as ensuring that abortion services are accessible to all women living in Ireland.

For most of Irish history, women’s bodies were treated as, in legal terms, the property of religious and nationalist ideologies. Savita Halappanavar, a dentist who passed away in a Galway hospital in 2012 after being denied a life-saving abortion, became the face of the fight for legalisation. Her death followed the devastating cases of Sheila Hodgers, Miss Y and many others, where the lack of necessary abortion care led to women’s decline in physical or mental health, or death.

As a writer, I turn to literature to seek answers. Despite the burst of activist poetry leading up to the 2018 referendum, there is very little literary engagement with the realities of post-repeal Ireland. But legalisation hasn’t drawn a line under the conversation. The shame and silence around abortion are still palpable, and at the time of writing, no poetry collection on the subject has come out of Ireland.

Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean there is an absolute silence in poetry: In 2024, Amelia Loulli published Slip, the first single-authored collection on the subject in the UK. Milena Williamson, an American poet living in Belfast, wrote on the the theme in her poem An Irish Woman Travels to England. And Irish poet Doireann Ní Ghríofa dedicated her poem Waking Again to Savita Halappanavar, in her 2021 collection To Star the Dark.

I believe that writing through that silence is an act of healing – and I am trying to start filling that void.

Representation of abortion in Irish literature

In pre- and early Christian Ireland, abortion was a common practice. In fact, Ireland had four saints associated with abortion: Brigid, Ciarán, Áed and Cainnech.

In their hagiographies, the books of the saints’ lives and the miracles they performed, St Brigid reportedly performed two miraculous “womb-healings” on women with unwanted pregnancies. St Ciarán, meanwhile, freed Bruinech, his mother’s young foster daughter, from conception following a rape.

St Áed and St Cainnech share similar abortion narratives: both made a nun’s pregnancy disappear, restoring the holy virgin’s “purity”. St Áed, however, at first fled when he discovered the nun’s pregnancy, only to return after she’d confessed her “sin” to the entire community. But the women’s perspectives in these stories are absent. A section of the poetry collection I am working on as part of my PhD seeks to give them a voice.

The 2018 referendum ensured for the first time that the female body could feel like a safe home in modern Ireland, marking its shift from being public and debated property. Women can now make reproductive choices in private, without the risk of criminal charges. While academic and journalistic writing can provide facts and opinions, poetry has the power to bring emotion to the forefront and make diverse abortion experiences tangible for the reader.

A poem from my project is written in the form of a medical abortion consent form issued by the Health Service Executive as a standard procedure before medications are handed out. It begins:

You have been fully informed of, and understand to your complete satisfaction.

The poem then replaces the form’s clinical language with conflicting emotions, such as relief, grief and uncertainty that the bureaucratic forms do not hold space for:

You’ll ask the Tarot cards for their blessing. You will pull the 7 of Cups. After dreaming every possible scenario, you must choose your cup. All of them are cold to the touch.

Poetry can build a bridge between medical language and women’s lived realities. And what’s more, it can foster empathy without pushing political agendas. It holds space for the full spectrum of abortion experiences. Abortion is rarely a straightforward choice and a poem can balance contradictions without judgement.

Since 2018, Ireland has taken significant steps towards becoming a safer home for women, where women’s lives come first. But rights on paper do not automatically guarantee rights in practice and there are still improvements to be made in terms of access.

As a relative newcomer to Ireland, I haven’t had to carry the traumas that weigh on generations of women. Perhaps the silence on abortion in poetry has something to do with the processing and healing after the long fight for reproductive rights. My collection on the subject aims to uncover and gather stories from the past and to write into the present, while acknowledging that my perspective is only one voice among many.

Although poetry cannot make laws, it can help us process past trauma and create visions for the future. Poems can make us sit with the spectrum of complexity involved in reproductive decisions – the discomfort, grief, relief and joy. I’d like to see more poems about difficult choices, about owning our bodies and about the nuances beyond the yes/no binary of the referendum. That conversation has only just begun.

A 17-year-old boy had his leg amputated after he was stabbed on Barry Island on Bank Holiday Monday.

Emergency services were called to the seaside town, the setting of hit show Gavin and Stacey, on May 25.

A 17-year-old boy suffered life-changing injuries in the incident and underwent a leg amputation, South Wales Police said earlier this week.

He remains under critical care at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff.

Idris Ahmed, 18, has been charged with wounding with intent and possession of a knife in a public place.

He appeared at Cardiff magistrates today, and spoke only to confirm his name and address.

Defending, Ellis Worsley said he denied being involved, reports the BBC.

Angharad Jones, prosecuting, said: ‘This matter relates to a very serious incident, where the victim sustained a serious stab wound resulting in the amputation of his lower leg beneath the knee.

‘The offence was in a public place on a very busy Bank Holiday with hundreds of people around.’

A spokesman for South Wales Police said the victim and his family have been kept fully updated with the development and investigations are continuing.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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‘Bobby was a fighter until the very end. I felt overwhelmed on the day, but we did it for him’

A mum from Rochdale has managed to deliver hundreds of toys to sick children in memory of her beloved son who sadly died of cancer.

Naheed Akhtar’s son Mohammed-Subhaan, known to friends and family as Bobby, had just turned two when he was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma, a rare type of cancer affecting the nerve cells of babies and young children.

The pair spent much of the next year on the oncology ward of the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. “Being in hospital can be quite isolating,” Naheed said. “If you are really ill, you can’t leave your room, and as a parent it is a struggle.

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“You have hundreds of things on your mind and you’re in survival mode, you’re not really thinking about presents. We spent Christmas, Easter and Eid in hospital and there were these organisations that would bring in toys for kids.”

Bobby sadly passed away in February. “He was a fighter,” Naheed said. “He was very strong and he fought until the very end. And he loved playing with toys.”

Naheed and her friends – affectionately calling themselves Team Bobby – decided to organise a toy appeal ‘in loving memory’ of Bobby. “We thought, why not deliver joy to children battling illnesses and put smiles on their faces?” she said.

The toy appeal, shared with friends, family and work colleagues, had a ‘massive turn out’, gathering over 500 toys. “We had to take a couple of cars with the seats down to fit it all in,” Naheed said. “Donations were pouring in from lovely people.”

The donations were dropped off on May 21 ahead of Eid al-Adha at several wards of the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, the Proton Beam Centre at the Christie Hospital, and at the Christie Suite of the StayCity Hotel.

The children chose their own toy and a goodie bag donated by Sunshine Snacks, while teenagers and parents were gifted £20 in cash and pocket hugs.

Naheed said it was a ‘mad’ day. “When we delivered the presents, it was around three months on from when Bobby passed away,” she said. “I felt overwhelmed but we were doing it for him.”

The restrictions will take effect on Marine Parade from Saturday (July 6) under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) introduced by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council.

They aim to address concerns about long-term motorhome parking while balancing the needs of residents and visitors.

Carl Quartermain, cabinet member for highways and transport at Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, said: “We have listened to feedback from both householders in Saltburn and motorhome owners who wish to spend time visiting the town.

“The new restrictions will provide an area for motorhomes to park while introducing a time limit on how long they can stay, helping to ensure parking spaces remain available for residents and visitors alike.

“We recognise that people hold strong views on this issue and that is precisely why we are introducing the measures through an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order.

“We will continue listening to residents, businesses and visitors throughout the trial period, carefully considering any comments, concerns and evidence before deciding on the long-term future of the scheme.”

Under the new rules, motorhomes will only be allowed to park in marked bays on the north side of Marine Parade.

These bays will be limited to a four-hour stay, with no return permitted within the following four hours.

The restrictions will apply from Monday to Saturday between 9am and 5pm.

Outside these hours and on Sundays, no time restrictions will apply to the designated bays.

Motorhomes will be banned at all times from parking on unmarked sections of Marine Parade, both north and south.

These areas will be marked with single yellow lines and signage. Other vehicles will still be able to use these sections without restriction.

The restrictions stop short of an outright ban on overnight parking. However, they do limit where motorhomes can park and for how long.

No new parking charges are being introduced as part of the scheme.

The ETRO will remain in place for a maximum of 18 months.

During this time, the council will gather feedback and monitor the scheme before deciding whether to make it permanent.

Formal objections can be submitted within the first six months of the order coming into effect.

In addition to the motorhome restrictions, a residents’ parking permit scheme is being introduced.

Eligible properties on Marine Parade, between Garnet Street and Saltburn Road, can apply for a permit.

Permit holders will be allowed to park in marked bays without a time limit. Eligible residents will be contacted by letter with details on how to apply.

Applications must be made within four weeks of receiving the letter.

They can be submitted by post or in person at any Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council library.

Each residential property can apply for one permit per registered vehicle and up to two visitor permits.

Businesses can apply for one business permit.

Enforcement officers from the council will monitor compliance with the new parking rules. The council has confirmed that no disabled parking bays will be removed as part of the scheme.

Disabled badge holders can continue to park for free in council car parks.

On Marine Parade, badge holders who are not in motorhomes can also use the areas marked with single yellow lines.

Full details of the scheme, including maps and frequently asked questions, are available on the Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council website under the Saltburn ETRO section.

Entrepreneur Touker Suleyman has announced he is leaving BBC business show Dragons’ Den.Suleyman, 72, who owns UK shirtmaker Hawes And Curtis and fashion label Ghost, has been a dragon on the programme, in which contestants pitch to entrepreneurs known as “dragons” for investment in their businesses, since 2015.In a post on Instagram, Suleyman said: “After ten extraordinary years as a dragon on BBC’s Dragons’ Den, I have made the decision to step down from the show.“It has been an immense privilege to sit in that chair, to meet so many passionate and talented entrepreneurs and to invest in business and people I truly believed in. View this post on Instagram A post shared by TOUKER SULEYMAN (@touker_suleyman)“The show gave me a platform not only to invest in leading British founders and companies but to share hard-won wisdom built over decades in business – and I hope that, in some small way, I made a difference to those who stood opposite me.“At 72, I find myself reflecting on what matters most.“I am proud of every deal made, every pitch challenged and every founder I had the honour of backing. But firmly believe that great institutions must evolve and it is time for new blood to take my seat in the den and bring their own vision to this brilliant show.“Fans of the series can still catch me in action one last time – my final episodes will be airing later this year.”Suleyman said he hoped fans would enjoy the last shows of his “truly memorable” time on the programme, and added that his departure will “give me more time mentor the entrepreneurs I have invested in, and to give back the 50 years of business experience I have accumulated”.He added: “If I can help the next generation avoid the pitfalls I’ve faced, seize the opportunities I almost missed and build businesses they are truly proud of, then that will be the most rewarding chapter of my career yet.“To the BBC, to my fellow dragons past and present, to the production team and above all to the entrepreneurs

DEXTER TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — On the kind of warm, bright afternoon that Michigan boaters wait all year for, Malik Amine and his brother readied their family’s pontoon boat for the summer.

The cover was off and Portage Lake sparkled in the sun. But before the brothers could leave a narrow wooden dock, they had a decision to make: how much gasoline to put in the pontoon’s 52-gallon engine.

Recreational boaters, like motorists, are feeling a pinch from the Iran war. U.S. gas prices have come down in recent weeks, but a gallon of regular gas still cost an average of 34% more Friday than it did a year earlier, according to motor club AAA. The price of diesel fuel, which is also used by some boaters, is up 53% from last year.

Ethanol-free gas, which many boaters, classic car owners and lawn mower users prefer, is anywhere from 20 cents to $1 per gallon more than regular fuel, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores, which also represents fuel retailers.

One gas station near Portage Lake, which is 60 miles west of Detroit, is selling ethanol-free fuel for $7 per gallon. Amine said he didn’t plan to fill the boat’s tank ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

“The cost is going to be a lot more than it was last year,” Amine said. “I think it’s probably a little bit smarter to do what you need and fill it as much as you need, because who knows when this conflict’s going to end.”

The National Marine Manufacturers Association estimates that 100 million Americans go boating each year, contributing to an industry worth $230 billion annually. The trade group, which represents companies that make boats, marine engines, boating equipment and accessories, said its conversations with boaters indicate that most still plan to head out on the water this year, but in some cases, gas prices are curtailing their plans.

“There were a number of people within that who said, ‘I am going to have to change my behavior’,” said Ellen Bradley, the association’s chief brand officer. “I may not go as far. I may not as fast. I may spend more time anchored and swimming. I may spend more time at the dock.”

Neil and Kathleen Donohoe sold their home in Colorado and now live aboard a 50-foot, diesel-powered boat dubbed the Granuaile, which is the Gaelic name of Grace O’Malley, a 16th century sea captain known as Ireland’s pirate queen. They’ve spent the last seven years cruising up and down the East Coast and to the Bahamas.

Maintenance on the boat – not fuel – is typically their greatest expense, Neil Donohoe said. But lately, the cost to fill up the boat — which can hold 1,500 gallons — is eye-popping. They talk to other boaters and use various marine apps to find the cheapest gas.

“It’s not driving us not to cruise, but it’s making a difference,” he said.

This summer, the couple plan to stick around the Chesapeake Bay area instead of heading further north. They’ve already been to Maine and to Canada, they reasoned, and they don’t feel the urge to go again while gas prices are so high.

“It seems a little gross to spend that kind of money when so many people are struggling,” Kathleen Donohoe said.

Gas prices are also impacting boating-related businesses. The Seattle Sailing Club, which offers lessons, chartered cruises and rentals, said its fuel bill has gone up 10.7% since the beginning of the war.

Lindsey Brown, the club’s office manager, said its fleet of 30 boats usually rely on wind power, but they all have gas or diesel backup engines. In April, the marina where the boats are docked charged $6.50 per gallon for diesel, she said. By late May, that had risen to $7.99 per gallon.

“We are just heading into our busy season, so we may see a more dramatic effect on our business if the price of fuel doesn’t change or continues to increase,” Brown said. Brown, who lives on a sailboat at the marina, said the service she uses to pump out wastewater just added a fuel surcharge to her bill.

It’s also the busy season for Melissa Kunnert, who owns NautiMi On the River, an ice cream and gift shop near Portage Lake. She rents out a tiki-themed pontoon boat for parties and hosts three-hour evening cruises for $50 a person starting after Memorial Day.

Kunnert decided not to raise her prices this summer even though it costs more to fill up the pontoon. She wonders if the higher gas prices affecting all forms of travel might benefit her business by keeping more potential customers closer to home.

“I’m interested to see if we’ll have the same amount as previous years (or) if we will have more because people don’t want to use their gas, they want ours,” Kunnert said.

In Traverse City, Michigan, a few hours north of Portage Lake, Robert Hinds decided to add a $50 fuel surcharge to the fishing trips he offers as the owner and operator of Central Coast Angling. He tows his 22-foot boat from port to port on Lake Michigan depending on where the fishing is best, so he has to fill up his truck in addition to his boat.

Hinds said he’s had multiple cancellations as customers do their own math on gas prices. One regular customer from Nebraska didn’t make the trip this spring.

“It’s really tough. People do want to get out and I still believe people will,” he said. “But everybody comes from different walks of life.”

Hinds recently ruled out his own fishing trip to Wisconsin after figuring out it would cost him $400 in diesel fuel for the truck that tows his boat.

“I can just stay home and fish here,” he said.

___

AP Video Journalist Mike Householder contributed to this report.

The monument can still be visited today and has been given Grade II listed status.

Cambridgeshire is a county packed full of history that can often be found in the strangest of places. If you have ever taken a walk along St Margaret’s Mount, also known as Maggot’s Mount, near Little Shelford, you might have seen a strange obelisk in the middle of the field.

You might not have taken a closer look at the monument if you have walked past it but it does hold a very sweet story behind it. The obelisk was built in 1739 by James Church in memory of his friend Gregory Wale.

Gregory Wale was a Justice of the Peace for Cambridgeshire and a Conservator of the River Cam. Gregory Wale and James Church would often meet up at the mound and agreed that when one of them died, the other one would put up a monument at the spot where they would meet.

The monument had an inscription on it to commemorate the life of Gregory Wale. It reads: “To the Memory of Gregory Wale Esq, Justice of the Peace for this County. Deputy Lieutenant. County Treasurer. Conservator of the River Cam. He lived an advocate for liberty. A good subject. An agreeable companion, a faithful friend, an hospitable neighbour, and in all parts of life a useful member of society. He died June 5th 1739 in the 71st year of his age: universally lamented, and was buried in the parish church of Little Shelford. This obelisk was erected by his surviving friend James Church Esq as a public testimony of his regard to the memory of so worthy a gentleman.”

The obelisk was restored in 1909 by the Wale Family and William Marshall with a concrete base was constructed around the foundation of the monument. The last restoration of the monument was recorded in 1985 and was carried out by Rattee & Kett.

After his death, his granddaughter, Margot Wale, would often be seen walking up to the obelisk and enjoyed visiting it. Near the end of the her life, she would watch the hill from her window.

People in the area started calling the little hill ‘Margot’s Mount’ but it was later changed to ‘Maggots Mount’, as it is more commonly known as today. The monument is still in good condition today and can be reached via a footpath found on a road from Little Shelford to the B1368.

The obelisk has been given Grade II listed status by English Heritage. The monument was first listed in August 1962.