Certainly this muscular and hugely effective version of the renowned ‘Scottish play’ will leave you making comparisons with the political shenanigans which currently afflict the world.

A co-production with Hull Truck and Derby Theatre, Macbeth marks a return to the Octagon for former artistic director Mark Babych. Currently artistic director at Hull, he has avoided the Braveheart world of the original work and reset it into a modern, unspecified war torn country ravaged by conflict.

It’s hugely effective and highlights the relevance of a play written so long ago.

Too often directors taking on the Bard feel compelled to throw every toy in the box at a production to make it ‘different’. Bar a few neat little tricks this version lets the story unfold at a cracking pace taking the audience with it.

Oliver Alvin-Wilson and Macbeth and Daniel Poyser, Banquo (Image: Tom Arran)

Oliver Alvin-Wilson is a physically imposing yet ultimately emotionally crippled Macbeth. In combat fatigues he is a commanding figure whose prowess in the on-going war makes him a favourite of the king.

Clearly we are in uncertain, lawless times where might is strength. Alvin-Wilson’s Macbeth is a man torn; he has ambition but you sense he knows that should he unleash that ambition, along with it comes a dark side which he fears he can’t contain.

But the lure of power is too much. The three mysterious witches who prophesy he will be king unlock the dark side, raising the question just how far are you willing to go? The old adage of power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely has never been better demonstrated.

Jo Mousley as Lady Macbeth is his more than willing partner in crime. We first see her in sensible yet stylish clothes looking every the inch the perfect hostess. But given that first tantalising glimpse of what might be she becomes the driving force behind her husband’s merciless rise.

Oliver Alvin-Wilson, Macbeth, and Jo Mousley, Lady Macbeth (Image: Tom Arran)

Her gradual descent into madness is very well done and utterly believable. She’s as much a victim of the pursuit of power as her husband.

This version of Macbeth doesn’t pull its punches. It’s hard hitting, at times brutal and always compelling.

Daniel Poyser as Banquo and Simon Trinder as Macduff  are both  played with real character and belief. The scene involving Banquo’s ghost has the potential to be farcical but in blood soaked shirt and with almost Zombie-like tics, it’s compelling stuff.

The witches – Livie Dalee, Josie Morley & Deborah Pugh – in Macbeth (Image: Tom Arran)

The role of the witches in Macbeth is often the most divisive. In this version they look like extras from a Mad Max film and yes, it does require a little suspension of disbelief, but they are pretty unnerving – the scene in which they channel their prophecies through babies on their lap is absolutely chilling.

All the supporting cast help guide the audience through the ever-increasing madness. Benjamin Wilson as Ross acts as part narrator and Colin Hurley’s porter eases the tension briefly with a well observed comic scene.

Colin Hurley as the Porter in Macbeth (Image: Tom Arran)

The staging and lighting is impressive and the fight scene at the end is very realistic.

The production pretty much stays true to the original text with just a few edits to help the audience along.

There will always be those who say ‘oh it’s Shakespeare, it’s not for me’ but honestly they are the ones who are missing out.

This version of Macbeth takes a story of doomed ambition and turns into a pretty compelling (that word again) work of theatre. At its heart is the performance of Oliver Alvin-Wilson; he’s a Macbeth we come to feel sorry for rather than despise in spite of the awful acts he commits. There’s a vulnerability behind that imposing physique which adds an extra dimension to the character.

Overall this is a very accessible, surprisingly relevant and at times challenging interpretation of one of the great works.

Don’t be put off by the fact it’s Shakespeare. Just follow the action – there’s plenty of it – and the story will come to you. One you’re in, you’ll be hooked.

 Until Saturday, March 28. Details from www.octagonbolton.co.uk

Manchester United have announced that the cost of season tickets at Old Trafford will go up by five percent next season.

The club intend to invest the extra revenue in football and facilities after spending more than £200m in the transfer market last summer.

The cheapest season tickets at Old Trafford next year will be £646, an average of £34 for the 19 Premier League home matches.

But United came under fire from the Manchester United Supporters Trust for moving 600 supporters from the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand to make way for extra, and more lucrative, hospitality seats.

United, who are on course to qualify for the Champions League, said they had consulted their Fan Advisory Board and that season-ticket holders would not pay more than one-nineteenth of the cost of their season ticket for any home European game.

But a MUST spokesman said: “It is disappointing that the club has ignored our call, as part of the FSA’s league-wide campaign, for a ticket price freeze. Supporters are paying more and more to watch their team, and as the FSA campaign said: enough is enough.

“We’ve also learned that 600 more loyal fans are being moved for ever more hospitality. Those people will be understandably furious, and need to be better treated by the club than those who went through the same thing last year were.

“That said, we are pleased the club listened to some of our concerns and there are no further restrictions on season ticket holders forwarding their tickets and no increase in the minimum usage rules. Football clubs make better decisions when they listen to fans – they should do it more!”

All players are currently given mandatory rest periods during the off-season. For example, England players who tour with the national side in the summer are then given five weeks mandatory rest before starting pre-season with their clubs, and then another five weeks before playing a match.

However when surveyed by the RPA, 36% of players said they were doing contact training in their first week of pre-season. This would mean an international player could conceivably be involved in contact training for as many as 47 weeks a year.

Under the new guidelines, which will be in place for the 2026/27 season, players will now experience a graduated return to contact, with no contact at all in week one and no full contact until the fourth week of their return. Clubs who fail to adhere to the new regulations could face a fine or a disciplinary case.

England’s most-capped men’s player Ben Youngs presented a BBC documentary exploring the issue of safety in rugby, and he believes regulation of training is a big move forward.

“Monitoring and limiting the amount of collisions and contact done within a training week is really, really important. That is the next step for elite rugby,” Youngs told the Rugby Union Weekly podcast.

Those involved in the agreement believe these changes to contact training will place the Prem at the forefront of player welfare as a league.

“Prem Rugby’s vision of becoming the best league in the world can only be achieved by ensuring our players are given world-leading support off the pitch,” said Phil Winstanley, rugby director at Prem Rugby.

“Working together with the RPA and our clubs, we will continue to raise standards off the pitch so our players can perform to the highest level on the field of play.”

While these regulations apply to the men’s Prem, similar guidelines are also likely to be implemented across Premiership Women’s Rugby.

Two suspects were seen fleeing one of the pubs empty-handed

Two pubs in a Cambridgeshire city have been broken into this week. The Cutter Inn pub, in Annesdale, Ely was broken into at around 12.35am on Tuesday, March 3, and two suspects were seen fleeing empty-handed.

A social media post shared by both businesses said: “It’s incredibly frustrating for any business to deal with this, particularly small independent venues that are part of the local community.”

The posts continued: “A special thank you to the scumbags responsible for targeting family run local businesses that work hard to provide jobs, hospitality and places for the community to enjoy. Your efforts are truly appreciated.”

A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Police said: “A crime has been raised following a business burglary at The Cutter Inn, Annesdale, Ely, at about 12.35am on Tuesday (3 March).”

In another incident, police were called at about 12:40am on Thursday, March 5 with reports of a smashed window at the Riverside Bar & Kitchen restaurant in Ship Lane, Ely. A crime has been raised for criminal damage.

Anyone with information regarding either incident is asked to contact Cambridgeshire Police online or call 101 if you do not have internet access. Quote reference 35/16061/26 for the first incident and 35/16638/26 for the second.

Anyone with any information is urged to contact us online here quoting crime reference 35/16061/26. Call 101 if you do not have internet access.

Both residents and visitors in the country are receiving alerts to “seek immediate shelter” as the conflict reaches its seventh day

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People in Dubai are being told to take shelter as new alerts are being sent to their mobile phones due to threats of Iranian missiles.

The conflict in the Middle East is entering its seventh day as of Saturday, ignited by the joint US-Israeli ‘operation epic fury’ against Iran which saw Tehran strike back by targeting US air bases in Dubai, Kuwait and Bahrain.

Holidaymakers, visitors and residents in Dubai now say they are receiving emergency alerts on their devices from a possible imminent attack, reports The Mirror. The emergency alert has urged people to “seek immediate shelter”.

The sound alert and written warning on phones comes as dozens of Brits have recalled the “nightmare” situation across the United Arab Emirates this past week. Iran sent drones and missile strikes to target Dubai in the aftermath of the US attack which killed Iranian leader Ali Khamenei.

In recent days people have been given alerts on their phones warning of missile attacks, which have not been that frequent, but there have been two this morning. The UAE Ministry of Defence has said that since the start of the conflict it has intercepted 196 missiles and over 1000 drones.

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Recent strikes killed one person and injured seven others at the airport in the UAE capital city of Abu Dhabi.

Officials have tried to reassure residents and visitors that the country’s air defence system is among the best in the world, blasting down drones and missiles. This image of safety has also been boosted by images of fighter jets escorting commercial planes leaving Dubai International Airport.

Fallout from the attacks has undermined the Emirates’ efforts to de-escalate tensions with Iran despite long-time suspicions of its neighbour across the Gulf. The UAE closed its airspace Saturday, shuttered its embassy in Tehran on Sunday, and withdrew its diplomats because of the attacks.

“This decision reflects its firm and unwavering position against any aggression that threatens its security and sovereignty,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement at the time. It called the attacks an “aggressive and provocative approach” that threatens the region.

Airspace has since reopened and a limited number of flights have resumed as many tourists desperately seek to leave the region in conflict.

There are thousands of Britons looking to leave the region with some 4,000 returning on commercial flights before the first Government charter plane landed at London Stansted shortly before 1am on Friday.

There is a lot to play for Andy Farrell’s side who, despite losing dismally to France in round one, have bounced back with two wins.

Ireland appear in fine fettle ahead of their penultimate Six Nations clash at home to struggling Wales. A rout of England at Twickenham has banished most of the ghosts from the opening day defeat in France.

For Wales, it’s been one low after another – though their last display at home to Scotland gave reason for encouragement. They had a first round 7-48 defeat to England, a second round 12-54 defeat to France, and that third round 23-26 defeat to Scotland.

The margins have been coming down and confidence is starting to return.

Ireland make five changes from London, Jacob Stockdale, Tom O’Toole, Ronan Kelleher, Jack Conan and Nick Timoney come in.

Wales make three personnel changes to their team, fly-half Dan Edwards, wing Ellis Mee and flanker James Botham all start. Bath centre Louie Hennessey is set for his Test debut off the bench.

Here’s what you need to know about the game:

Who: Ireland vs Wales

What: 2026 Six Nations Championship – fourth round

Where: Aviva Stadium, Dublin

When: Friday, March 6th

What time is kick-off? 8.10pm

Referee: Karl Dickson (RFU) will be in charge of Friday’s game.

Assistant Referees: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia), Damian Schneider (Argentina).TMO: Andrew Jackson (RFU)Foul Play Review Process (FPRO): Tual Trainini (FFR).

What are the other fourth round matches? Scotland vs France, Murrayfield, Saturday 2.10pm; Italy vs England, Stadio Olimpico, Saturday 4.40pm.

Did you know? Caelan Doris and Nick Timoney played on the same Leinster Schools Senior Cup winning side for Blackrock in 2014. Doris was a fourth year no6, Timoney captain and try-scoring no8

Did you know? Wales have lost their last 14 games in the Six Nations since 2023, but showed signs of improvement last time out against Scotland.

Quotes corner

Andy Farrell, Ireland coach: “You heard a lot of us talk about ‘character’ in the autumn. You heard me say ‘presence’ today. They’re the same thing. There’s a different mindset to dealing with big occasions.

“That’s why last week against England was a big test because away from home, big stadium, big occasion, good team. You learn your lesson from that and we weren’t ready. We weren’t ready in France for whatever reason and that’s not good enough.

“Not furious,” he added of his post-match reaction at Stade de France. “I’m more glad that we took the learnings from it more than anything.

“We’ll see whether we can carry that on. That’s what we’re all chasing down. It’s very tough at this level to be improving week on week at international level. Yeah, I’m more proud of how we’ve responded then going into our shells.”

Wales coach Steve Tandy: “There were a lot of tough lessons from the England game but we’ve seen incremental growth in each game, to France and then to Scotland.It will be great to see if we have learned those lessons of playing in England when we go to Ireland.

“The boys are starting to grow in confidence around what they are doing. They are always speaking about they can win even more moments in their game and then back that up. Now we will see if we can back it up in Dublin.”

Betting odds: Ireland 1/40 draw 50/1 Wales 18/1

Handicap: Ireland -26 points 1/1

Total Points: +55.5 9/10

Six Nations outright: France 1/14, Scotland 17/1, Ireland 20/1, England, Italy 500/1, Wales n/a

Popular Bets: Ronan Kelleher first try-scorer 11/1, anytime try-scorer 11/10; Stuart McCloskey Man of the Match 10/1. Louis Rees-Zammit Man of the Match 50/1

What TV channel is the match on? Saturday’s match will be shown live on RTE2 and ITV, with live radio commentary available on RTE Radio 1.

LINE-UPS

Ireland: Jamie Osborne; Robert Baloucoune, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Tom O’Toole, Ronan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong, James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Jack Conan, Nick Timoney, Caelan Doris (capt).

Replacements: Tom Stewart, Michael Milne, Thomas Clarkson, Joe McCarthy, Josh van der Flier, Nathan Doak, Tom Farrell, Ciaran Frawley.

Wales: Louis Rees-Zammit; Ellis Mee, Eddie James, Joe Hawkins, Josh Adams; Dan Edwards, Tomos Williams; Rhys Carre, Dewi Lake (capt), Tomas Francis, Dafydd Jenkins, Ben Carter, Alex Mann, James Botham, Aaron Wainwright.

Replacements: Ryan Elias, Nicky Smith, Archie Griffin, Adam Beard, Olly Cracknell, Hardy, Jarrod Evans, Louie Hennessey.

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The Spanish film industry has historically been dominated by men and, perhaps unsurprisingly, by the Spanish language. The country doesn’t have a great track record for valuing minority languages, or the cultural outputs made in them.

Pioneering female directors including Icíar Bollaín and Isabel Coixet have paved the way for a new generation of female film-makers. Thanks to the influence of organisations such as CIMA (the Association of Women Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media in Spain), there is now increased support for women working across the industry.

In 2025, for the first time in the history of the Malaga Film Festival, there were more female than male directors nominated in the Official Selection. And many are bringing feminist themes and linguistic diversity to the big screen.

In building on the rich cinematic traditions of their homelands, these women have made some of the most exciting films in recent years in Basque, Catalan and Galician. Despite challenges such as limited financial support for cinema in non-state languages, their productions have achieved commercial and critical success.

International Women’s Day in Spain is known as 8M, in reference to the date of March 8, when many Spanish women take to the streets in purple, on strike from work and domestic labour. In the spirit of that defiant collective stance, here are five female film directors whose work is pushing boundaries.

Carla Simón

The Catalan film director Carla Simón is one of the most well-known film-makers working in Spain today – a leading light of what pundits have dubbed Catalonia’s New Wave. She has earned worldwide acclaim for her trilogy filmed mostly in Catalan. Estiu 1993 (Summer 1993), in 2017, was about a young girl orphaned by Aids. Alcarràs, in 2022, told the story of a family of peach farmers losing their traditional way of life. And in 2025, Simón released Romería, about a young Barcelona woman’s visit to her late father’s family in Vigo.

Simón’s auto-fictional works are characterised by strong female characters, intimate camerawork filmed as though through the eyes of a child, and non-professional actors bringing authenticity to the exploration of complex social issues.

Jaione Camborda

A director of Basque origin, Jaione Camborda has lived in Galicia for many years. She belongs to the wave of Novo Cinema Galego (New Galician Cinema), a group of film-makers creating experimental film that is rooted in the characteristic Atlantic landscape of Spain’s most north-westerly region.

Camborda’s second feature O Corno (The Rye Horn, released in 2023) was filmed in the Galician language with some dialogue in Portuguese. It tackles the timely issue of reproductive justice, following a healer’s clandestine journey to escape her tightknit community on the Galician island of Arousa after she is exposed for engaging in the local practice of using ergot (a fungus that grows on rye) to induce abortions.

With O Corno, Camborda was the first female Spanish director in the history of the San Sebastián Film Festival to win the festival’s top prize, the Golden Shell for Best Film.

Sonia Méndez

In her first feature film, a 2024 thriller titled As Neves, Vigo-born director Sonia Méndez worked with non-professional actors, shooting entirely in the Galician language. Set in a remote village engulfed in a snowstorm, the film is a frank exposé of the potentially disastrous effects of social media on young people, as a group of teenagers try to come to terms with the disappearance of their friend after an intimate video of her circulated online.

A key player in Galician cinema, Méndez’s is a varied filmography. A poeta analfabeta, released in 2020, is a docu-film about the emblematic Galician poet and activist Luz Fandiño. Méndez has directed several short films, including Perversa Lola from 2007 and Conversa cunha muller morta from 2012.

Mar Coll

A graduate of Catalonia’s prestigious film school ESCAC, Mar Coll broke new ground in 2009 with the Catalan-language family drama, Tres dies amb la família (Three Days With the Family), which won her Goya and Gaudí Awards. She delved into a woman’s journey to self-realisation following a car accident in the 2013 feature, Tots volem el millor per a ella (We All Want What’s Best for Her). Coll’s latest feature, Salve Maria, was released in 2024. It is a complex exploration of motherhood based on a Basque-language novel by Katixa Agirre.

Sara Fantova

The youngest of the lot, Sara Fantova, born in Bilbao, is a rising star with a number of productions to her name. Her debut feature film, Jone, batzuetan (Jone, Sometimes), which was released in 2025, only secured funding after shooting was completed. Set in the director’s hometown during its iconic summer festival, it is an evocative coming-of-age queer romance in Basque and Spanish. It tells the story of Jone, a young woman who is navigating the impact of her father’s rapidly deteriorating health when she falls in love with Olga.

Elena Martín

Barcelona-born director Elena Martín Gimeno also shoots primarily in the Catalan language. She is also an actor and screenwriter who has starred in her own films. Júlia Ist (from 2017) is a semi-autobiographical production about the experiences of a student from Barcelona who embarks on a journey of self-discovery while studying abroad in Berlin.

This was followed by Creatura (in 2023), which won multiple accolades: Best European Film at Directors’ Fortnight, three nominations for the Goya Awards and six Gaudí Awards. It documents a woman’s reckoning with her upbringing marked by sexual repression.

Martín has spoken about the strong sense of community she has felt among her peers: “I am so close to so many directors who were coming on to the scene around the same time as I was,” she told journalist Rafa Sales Ross in 2025. “Isabel Coixet and Icíar Bollaín might have a different view of this and maybe they have felt alone when they were starting, but I hope they feel less lonely now with all of us here.”

RAF Wittering has explained why there may be more activity from the base in the coming days

A Cambridgeshire RAF base has explained why locals may see more aircraft activity over the coming days. RAF Wittering has announced that a major, long-planned RAF homeland defence training is launching this week.

The training is called the Exercise Agile Warrior 26 (AW26). This will mean that people may notice an increase in aircraft movements at RAF Wittering, compared to their usual flying profile.

A spokesperson for RAF Wittering said: “The exercise is designed to rigorously test the RAF’s ability to protect the United Kingdom in an increasingly contested and volatile global security environment and forms a critical step to ensuring the RAF remains ready to ‘fight tonight’ in defence of the nation.”

Personnel will practice rapid dispersal, improvised command-and-control arrangements, base defence, sustainment, and recovery activities. This is to ensure the RAF could continue operating even when under sustained pressure from adversary activity.

RAF Wittering has assured locals that the increase in activity is due to Exercise Agile Warrior 26 (AW26).

The draft budget proposals for 2026/27, which are currently out for consultation, include a major rise in Conservative Mayor Ben Houchen’s office budget, most of which is set aside for paying employees.

TVCA has attributed the increase to “a previous period of understaffing”.

The total mayoral office budget will rise from £272,000 in the current financial year (2025/26) to £486,000 in the upcoming financial year, from April 1.

The sum is broken down into different categories, with the big change coming in expenditure on employees, which is set to see funding increase from £263,000 to £452,000, providing that the budget is approved later this month, following the current period of consultation. 

The total mayoral office budget figure then rises by £12,000 to £13,0000 each year within the medium term financial plan, which can be put down almost entirely to expected pay awards for employees in Mayor Houchen’s office.

The other changes from this current financial year to 2026/27, within the mayoral office budget, include an increase from £9,000 to £13,000 in the transport budget, while new features for the upcoming year see £1,000 assigned for “supplies and services” and £20,000 for “support services charge”.

TVCA was contacted about the large increase in the mayoral office budget.

A spokesperson said: “This change in budget reflects a previous period of understaffing and an expected move towards more standard staffing levels in future years.

“As the draft budget makes clear these costs are funded directly from central government grants and not from local taxpayers.

“The mayor has repeatedly made clear he will never impose a mayoral tax, unlike in other regions where taxpayers are forced to pay millions of pounds to their combined authority.”