In a statement read out by barrister Charlotte Proudman following the appeal court ruling, the family of victim C1 – who has been referred to as Jazmine (not her real name) – said that they had lived through “a nightmare that no family should ever have to endure”.

They added: “Today’s judgement cannot erase what our daughter has suffered but it does acknowledge the seriousness of these offences.”

She also read the words of Jazmine, who said: “I feel like I am the one who has been sentenced, I feel like I am the one living in a prison even though I did nothing wrong.”

“What happened to me has left me harmed so severely that I do not think I will ever be the same,” she said.

The statement continued: “We also wish to thank Laura Kuennesburg and the BBC for giving us a platform to be heard. Attorney general Lord Hermer for swiftly recognising the need for this appeal.”

Jazmine’s family have set up the Stronger Than Silence Foundation – a charity providing support to survivors of sexual violence and their families.

In a statement, the family of the victim C2 said the original sentences had been “devastating”.

“[They] left us feeling that the harm caused to our daughter had not been fully recognised.

“While no sentence can undo the trauma she has endured, today’s decision gives us a greater sense that justice has been served and that those responsible have been held properly accountable.

“We are immensely proud of our daughter’s courage and strength throughout this long and difficult process.”

Warning: This story contains details some may find distressing

At the time of the rapes, X and Y were 14 and Z was 13. They were convicted of 10 rape offences between them.

When Judge Nicholas Rowland passed the initial sentences at Southampton Crown Court in May, there was an outcry from the girls and their families as well as from politicians. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described it as “an appalling case”.

In her statement, Carr said Rowland had carried out a “careful sentencing exercise” but the non-custodial sentences for X and Y were “unduly lenient” as they did not take full account of the psychological harm caused to both victims.

Rowland had given X and Y three-year Youth Rehabilitation Orders (YRO) with 180 days of intensive surveillance and supervision.

Z, now 14, was given an 18-month YRO.

All three boys were also made subject to a three-month curfew and given a restraining order for 10 years not to contact their victims.

One of the girls – C1 – was 15 when she was raped by X and Y in November 2024 at an underpass near a river in Fordingbridge after first engaging in some consensual sexual activity with X. Parts of the rape were filmed.

The second girl – C2, who was 14 – was raped by X and Y in January 2025 in a recreation ground in Fordingbridge. Again there had been some consensual sexual activity before the rape began and, again, parts of the rape were filmed, this time by boy Z.

During the appeal hearing, the Lady Chief Justice Sue Carr criticised the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for putting out an inaccurate press release suggesting a knife was involved in the rapes.

Nintendo draw a veil over the original Switch, with their final first party game for the system and a revival of a rhythm action classic from the Game Boy Advance era.

And so, we come to the end of the Nintendo Switch’s long and glorious career, at least in terms of being a recipient for new first party Nintendo games. A good case can be made that the Switch is both Nintendo’s best console and the best video game hardware of all time, but inevitably its software support has been a case of fading away rather than going out with a bang. Although as finales go, Rhythm Paradise Groove is a lot better than most other consoles manage.

To be clear, new games will continue to be released on the original Switch, especially when it comes to indie titles, but currently there are no plans for Nintendo to release any new, internally developed games for it. But while the original intention seems to have been for Rhythm Paradise Groove to draw a line under Nintendo’s support for the console, they have subsequently hinted that there may be more titles in the future – no doubt a reflection of the ever-increasing cost of making high-end video games.

Rhythm Paradise Groove is part of a series, known in North America as Rhythm Heaven, that has been around since the Game Boy Advance and celebrates its 20th anniversary in August – although this is the first new entry in 10 years. Back in the mid-2000s rhythm action games were all the rage but Rhythm Paradise has always taken a very stripped down, minimalist approach to the concept, mixing its hardcore rhythm-based gameplay with surrealist imagery. And that is still the case in this latest sequel.

The series’ origins on the Game Boy Advance are still very obvious, given that most of the 80+ minigames in Rhythm Paradise Groove require the use of only one or two buttons. Even with the wackier minigames there’s a strange kind of utilitarianism to the gameplay, as the visuals are often very limited, with little or no background detail or animation, and the music is all chirpy little chiptunes rather than famous songs or other extravagances.

In terms of the presentation, the vibe is of a featherweight distraction, but the reality for most people is a game of punishing difficulty, that offers no alternative but hard graft and being a literal slave to the beat. There are no perks or buffs that will save you here and while rote learning can help to a degree, your one and only goal remains to keep in time with the beat by pressing the buttons at the right time.

Often, it’s not clear what you’re even supposed to be doing at first, but as difficult as the game can be for the rhythmically challenged you’re never punished for failure – just encouraged to try again. And yet even the very first minigame, where you’re getting weird circular creatures to jump through a hoop, is very difficult, until you learn to pay less attention to the visuals and more to the beat itself. In fact, some minigames purposefully emphasise this, by blanking the screen at certain points, so all you have is the music.

When Rhythm Paradise first came out it was right around the time Brain Training and its many spin-offs were becoming popular and although it’s never been as clinical as those titles it does feel almost equally instructional. You may start the game convinced that you have no sense of rhythm (or convinced you do, only to be rudely disabused) but by the end it really does feel as if you’ve learnt something, or you’ve at least got in touch with a previously unexploited talent.

Unfortunately, the minimalist presentation, and thoroughly weird concepts behind some of the minigames, has always limited the game’s audience and Groove can be no less off-putting. Helping a dog catch a Frisbee or mopping a steel girder are positively mundane tasks compared to other minigames that involve everything from feeding a walking plant monster to playing as a programmer debugging a platform game and bouncing fruit off a muscle builder’s biceps.

There’s no direct connection between Rhythm Paradise and WarioWare – they’ve always been made by different developers – but here the sheer strangeness of the minigames (and the fact that previous games had nowhere near as many) and the similar art styles make the comparison more obvious. But whereas WarioWare microgames rarely require much in the way of skill to complete, that’s not the case with Rhythm Paradise Groove.

The greater number of minigames not only adds variety to the gameplay but also the modes, with a number of four-player co-operative games and Remix stages which having you playing four games in a row and then a new fifth one that combines elements from all the previous ones. Unlike the regular games this also involves actual licensed Japanese pop songs, although that underlines the fact that most of the music in the normal minigames is pretty basic and uninteresting.

There’s also an unavoidable problem with modern TVs, which often suffer from lag compared to playing the game in handheld mode. There’s nothing Nintendo can do about that, and the game goes to a lot of effort to try and calibrate the screen properly, while actively acknowledging the problem, but before you try it there’s no guarantee the game will work well on your set-up.

The only other disappointment is the Beatspell role-playing mode, which promised a longer and more complex gameplay experience but proves to be very undercooked and repetitive. You could probably make a fun action role-player out of the basic concept, but it’d need a lot more variety and depth than Beatspell provides.

Whether Rhythm Paradise will continue beyond the Switch 1 is unknown but it’s fascinating to see the indie style sensibilities of the original still shining through 20 years later. The Switch is certainly the only format you could imagine such a game existing on, while still being published by a major company, and that fact alone makes it a good point to end on. Although if it later turns out there’s to be an encore, we won’t complain at all.

Formats: Nintendo Switch
Price: £33.99
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo EPD
Release Date: 2nd July 2026
Age Rating: 7

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Katie Swan became the latest home player to exit Wimbledon after being beaten in straight sets by Madison Keys, as British interest in the women’s draw ended on day four of the Championships.

Against a player ranked 174 places above her who claimed her third Eastbourne title last month, Swan was always going to face a tall order to reach the third round. But she should take heart from how she fronted up to the hard-hitting American, whose ferocious forehand reached speeds of 80mph.

Not so long ago, Swan was ranked outside the top 1,000 and, blighted by back injuries, began contemplating an early retirement from tennis. The way she handled the free-swinging Keys, who was twice broken by the Brit in a topsy-turvy second set, could breathe new momentum into the 27-year-old’s career.

In truth, Swan’s 6-1, 6-4 was not a reflection of her industriousness, at times belying her world no 196 ranking against Keys. Last year’s Australian Open champion mixed power with precision but delivered an under-par performance by her lofty standards. Her ball toss was all over the place in the first set, but she mixed finesse with firepower in the crucial moments.

Despite showing more resolve in a rollercoaster of a second set – which at one point saw both players trade consecutive breaks – Swan will rue her missed opportunities. The Briton had eight break points in this match and only converted two of them, before netting a forehand at 4-4, paving the way for Keys to reach the finish line.

More to follow…

Lady Louise Windsor has graduated from St Andrews University with a Bachelor’s degree in English. 

Lady Louise, 22, was beaming as she collected her certificate during her graduation ceremony at the prestigious university in Scotland that was once also attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales. 

The young royal could be seen in her formal robes, chatting to fellow graduates – and walking alongside her rumoured boyfriend Felix da Silva-Clamp, who is also a student at the university.

She was also supported by her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, who were seen speaking to college staff amid the festivities.

Prince Edward and Sophie – as well as Louise’s younger brother, the Earl of Wessex – will undoubtedly be proud of Lady Louise, who has been hailed as the Royal Family‘s ‘secret weapon’. 

The ‘conscientious’ royal and the late Queen’s ‘favourite’ grandchild is reportedly considering a career in the military – meaning her nickname as The Firm’s ‘secret weapon’ may soon materialise.

Last November, it was reported that Lady Louise had ‘fallen in love’ with army cadets alongside her university degree at St Andrews – much like her father did a generation earlier.

Lady Louise, 22, was beaming as she collected her certificate during her graduation ceremony at the prestigious university in Scotland that was also attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales

Sophie, Louise’s mother, was elegant in a blue dress for the event

She was also supported by her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, who were seen speaking to college staff amid the festivities

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A source told The Sun: ‘She talks about being very keen on a career in the military, serving the King and country. She is all about the Army Cadets and has fallen in love with it.’

Speculation that Lady Louise is in a relationship with Felix – who was perfectly in step with the royal today – began in 2024 after they were cast in the first student-written play to be performed at the Byre Theatre at St Andrews.

The duo were part of the cast of Dragon Fever, described by the Peerage news as ‘an ambitious cross between an Agatha Christie mystery and Tolkien’s The Hobbit’.

Dragon Fever reportedly told the story of nine strangers on a mission to slay a dragon, which ultimately turns into a murder mystery ‘full of riddles, twists, and love affairs’, the outlet reported.

Lady Louise is believed to have played Rigeon, inspired by the hero of Spanish novelist Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote and Lord Byron’s fictional libertine Don Juan.

Meanwhile, Kensington-born Felix portrayed ‘over-the-top’ character Grant.

Photos from a fundraiser for the university’s drama society showed Lady Louise snapping selfies with Felix as the pair looked happy and loved up. 

One picture showed the duo with their arms wrapped around each other, while in another image, Lady Louise is seen snuggling up to Felix, placing her hand on his chest and her head on his shoulder. 

Felix was born in London’s Kensington and is the son of solicitor Jonathan Charles William da Silva-Clamp – who contested the 2022 local Wandsworth elections as a Tory candidate for Shaftesbury and Queenstown.

The senior Silva-Clamp married an Australian woman, Kendall Anne Searle on October 2, 1998 – nearly six years before they welcomed Felix in August 2004. 

The ‘conscientious’ royal, who is believed to have been the late Queen’s favourite grandchild, is reportedly considering a career in the military – meaning her nickname as The Firm’s ‘secret weapon’ may soon materialise

Lady Louise Windsor attends her graduation ceremony as she graduates from the University of St Andrews

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If Lady Louise, who has kept a low profile while completing her studies, goes down the military path, she will be the first female royal since her late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, to do so

Last November, it was reported that Felix had joined Lady Louise in their university’s army reserve unit, signalling a growing bond for the couple. 

Both looked smart in their military uniforms as they took part in the St Andrews Regiments’ Day Parade over the 2025 Remembrance Day Weekend. 

It is not known whether he was part of the students’ unit before or after Lady Louise joined, but seems to show yet another sign that the pair could be on track to be the next William and Kate.

They sported matching solemn expressions as they marched alongside fellow cadets in camouflage ensembles, all wearing red poppies, walking from Holy Trinity Church to the War Memorial in town, where wreaths were laid down.

If Lady Louise, who has kept a low profile while completing her studies, goes down the military path, she will be the first female royal since her late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, to do so.

The King’s niece has also been compared to the late monarch due to their shared love of horses, with royal biographer Ingrid Seward noting: ‘There are shades of the young Elizabeth. There is something about her – a capability. She’s obviously a very gentle young woman.’

On the occasion of her 22nd birthday last November, royal experts suggested the ‘stylish and conscientious’ Lady Louise could be given a bigger role during Prince William’s reign – especially considering the crisis involving his disgraced uncle, former Duke of York, Andrew. 

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Richard Fitzwilliams noted that William – who has previously expressed his desire to ‘change’ the monarchy – will ‘undoubtedly need extra help if it wants it to continue its charitable activities at a significant level’.

Lady Louise was praised for her humility last December, when she was pictured sitting cross-legged on the floor of a packed train carriage, while tapping away on her laptop diligently

The young royal could be seen in her formal robes, chatting to fellow graduates – and walking alongside her rumoured boyfriend Felix da Silva-Clamp, who is also a student at the university

Prince Edward and Sophie – as well as Louise’s younger brother, the Earl of Wessex – will undoubtedly be proud of Lady Louise, who has been hailed as the Royal Family’s ‘secret weapon’

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Lady Louise Windsor attends her graduation ceremony

Lady Louise (pictured graduating today) was praised for her humility last December, when she was pictured sitting cross-legged on the floor of a packed train carriage, while tapping away on her laptop diligently

Lady Louise Windsor attends her graduation ceremony as she graduates from the University of St Andrews

Considering the scandal surrounding their father has ‘cast a shadow’ over Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie’s future roles, Lady Louise is certainly a frontrunner to lead the younger royals, Mr Fitzwilliams continued.

‘William will have appreciated the excellent way the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh support the Firm,’ he told this newspaper.

He added: ‘The signs are surely that with only four working royals currently under 70 and the Waleses’ children still young, that Lady Louise might be persuaded to carry out some royal duties in the future.’

Chief among these are Lady Louise’s ‘particularly appropriate’ course of study at William’s alma mater St Andrew’s, her desire to follow in the late Queen Elizabeth’s footsteps and pursue a military career, and her presence at numerous royal events.

‘It would certainly be in the interest of the monarchy and all of us if she [carried] out royal duties,’ Mr Fitzwilliams mused.

For Mr Fitzwilliams, it is Lady Louise’s down-to-earth nature and her parents’ unwavering support for the Firm through choppy waters that make her the perfect candidate for any future promotion by William.

Lady Louise was praised for her humility last December, when she was pictured sitting cross-legged on the floor of a packed train carriage, while tapping away on her laptop diligently.  

Neither Lady Louise nor her brother James uses HRH titles in what is thought to be a deliberate decision by her parents, so they could grow up ‘with the understanding that they are very likely to have to work for a living’.

This has seemingly resonated with Lady Louise, who even took up a job at her local garden centre before starting her studies at St Andrew’s University. 

Whether it is her mature approach to life,  her sporting pursuits (she is a skilled carriage driver) or her decision to take a part-time job before university, the first cousin of Princes William and Harry has proved herself to be dedicated, disciplined and ambitious.

Indeed, such traits are hugely valuable amongst royals and have led to the suggestion that Louise might be the Firm’s ‘secret weapon’ in years to come.

Actress and presenter Lisa Faulkner has revealed she is recovering after undergoing surgery for breast cancer two weeks ago.

The Celebrity Masterchef winner told her Instagram followers, external that she had received her results following the operation, and “it’s all good, they’ve got everything out, so it’s all clear and I just need some radiotherapy in a few weeks”.

Faulkner said she had been diagnosed in “the very early stages of breast cancer” and had had “quite a big op”, adding that she still had “quite a bit of healing to do. But I’m good, I’m well. And feeling so much better”.

She told fans: “I’m so grateful that I went for my mammogram. Don’t put them off, go, because they found this – without this mammogram, it wouldn’t have been picked up.”

Faulkner, 54, added: “I want to say thank you to our wonderful NHS and the fact that we can have these mammograms, and we can get treatment early.”

The actress is best known for her roles in EastEnders, Holby City and Spooks.

Former EastEnders star Tamzin Outhwaite was among those sending good wishes: “Love you Lise. You’ve got this my darling.”

Faulkner, who is also a food writer, is married to chef John Torode. The pair hosted a cooking show together on ITV, John & Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen.

Torode was sacked from BBC show Masterchef last year after an allegation against him using “an extremely offensive racist term” was upheld. He said he had “no recollection” of it.

The crash involved three vehicles

A woman has suffered serious injuries in a crash on the A14. Emergency services were called to a crash at J21 in New Ellington just before 10am today (Thursday, July 2).

The crash involved three vehicles. A Cambridgeshire Police spokesperson said a woman was taken to hospital with “serious but not life-threatening injuries”.

The police spokesperson added: “The eastbound carriageway was closed while the collision was dealt with and the vehicles are now in the process of being recovered.”

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue also attended the crash. A fire spokesperson said: “At 10.29am crews from Huntingdon and St Neots were called to a road traffic collision involving three vehicles on the A14 near Ellington. Using specialist equipment firefighters released a casualty who was left in the care of ambulance crews.”

The A14 eastbound remains closed as of 1.10pm.

Traffic monitoring site Inrix reports there are severe delays along the road. It said: “Severe delays and one lane closed due to multi-vehicle accident on A14 Eastbound from J20 (Ellington) to J22 A1 (Huntingdon). Congestion to J16 (Catworth / Kimbolton).”

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