The prime minister added that the government will “bring new powers that will give us the ability to crack down on the addictive elements of social media, stop the auto-play, the never-ending scrolling, that keeps are children hooked on their screens for hours, and stop kids getting around age limits”.

Both series are filmed in one of the most isolated corners of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, at Ravenseat Farm in Upper Swaledale, North Yorkshire.

Ravenseat Farm sits at the head of Whitsun Dale, high above Swaledale in rugged upland countryside.

Anty John’s (Image: CHANNEL4)

The hill farm spans around 2,000 acres and operates primarily as a sheep farm.

It has been associated with Amanda Owen, widely known as the Yorkshire Shepherdess, and her family for decades.

The landscape that viewers see on screen, sweeping moorland, dry stone walls, steep valleys and unpredictable weather, is entirely authentic.

The farm’s exposed position means harsh winters, heavy rainfall and strong winds are part of everyday life.

Amanda, Clive and Kids altogether outside Anty John’s (Image: CHANNEL4)

Its nearest settlement is Keld, approximately three and a half miles away.

Even that is a tiny hamlet with fewer than 100 residents and limited amenities.

There is no shop, and facilities largely cater to walkers passing through on the famous Coast-to-Coast route.

Further east lies Muker, one of the larger villages in Swaledale, known for its traditional stone buildings and village pub.

The More4 series Our Farm Next Door is filmed nearby at Anty John’s, a historic, long-derelict farmhouse close to Ravenseat.

The programme follows Amanda and Clive Owen as they work to restore the building while continuing to run Ravenseat with the help of their nine children

The renovation project has become central to the spin-off series, with filming documenting the transformation from structural repairs to interior restoration.

Amanda carrying wood to chop with Clive at Ravenseat (Image: CHANNEL4)

Ravenseat is widely regarded as one of the most remote farms regularly featured on British television.

The surrounding Upper Dales are sparsely populated, with long distances between services, limited mobile signal and few petrol stations or shops.

Although Ravenseat previously welcomed visitors for cream teas and overnight stays, public access was closed in 2022. It now operates solely as a private working farm.

Speaking about the challenges of filming before the third series aired on TV, Amanda said: “Oh, there’s always a challenge.

“For a start, the weather is always the big challenge, but I mean, if you just literally think of the number of variables we’ve got going on, there literally isn’t enough time in the day to get everything done.

“So, I also feel that as time goes on and the children are growing up and becoming more independent, there’s less likelihood of me actually knowing where everybody is!

“So, getting them rounded up to lend a hand is always a big deal.”

Police in Germany are appealing for witnesses after thieves broke into the basement of a bank and stole from customer safety deposit boxes.

Three individuals, who are thought to be men, were seen wearing blue overalls and walking from a Volksbank branch in Stuhr, northwestern Germany, at around 1.20pm on Friday (13 February), authorities said.

They added that the trio were walking towards a dark car, but witnesses have so far said they aren’t sure whether they got in and drove away or walked past.

The break-in comes just months after a huge heist in the city of Gelsenkirchen, a two-and-a-half-hour train journey from Stuhr.

A gang of thieves took advantage of the Christmas holidays and drilled into a vault to steal millions of pounds worth of valuables.

Witnesses saw several men carrying large bags into the stairwell of a garage next to the bank overnight on Saturday 27 December.

CCTV footage then captured a black Audi leaving early in the morning on Monday 29 December.

The men broke into thousands of deposit boxes, with initial estimates placing the value of the raid between €10m to €90m (£8.6m to £78m), according to a police spokesperson.

However, the Schoolwear Association – which represents the uniform industry – said new legislation had caused confusion in both retailers and schools, adding government plans could mean parents spend more on replacing lower-quality generic garments, which might not last as long as branded items.

And what a journey the show has been on since those fledgling days when the Lowry supported the team from SplitLip to develop an idea for a musical based on a scarcely believable moment which was pivotal to the Allies’ success in the Second World War.

When the show opens next week it will mark the beginning of a world tour; the production has also enjoyed extended runs on both Broadway and in the West End picking up a host of awards along the way.

For Holly Sumpton and Charlotte Hanna-Williams, the opportunity to take the musical unlike any other around the country was simply one they could not resist.

Both have been in the show before – Holly having been part of the West End cast for an extended run and Charlotte as an understudy for a limited time.

Holly said: “I’m so fortunate to have been part of the show’s journey from when it started in the West End. I was able to witness the elation of the team when they saw the set and the fact that their dream was actually happening.

“It’s a real privilege to be part of that next chapter.”

Charlotte added that the fact the tour begins at the Lowry makes it extra special.

Holly Sumpton as Ewen Montagu in Operation Mincemeat (Picture: Matt Crockett)

“It just feels as though Operation Mincemeat has become this sort of super power which is why it’s so wonderful for us to go back to where it all started; it’s such a full circle moment, it’s just fab.

“It’s also testament to investing in small shows and small theatre companies – just look where it can lead.”

Operation Mincemeat is based on the true story of a top secret mission to fool the Germans into thinking the Allies were about to invade Greece when in reality Sicily was the target.

To achieve this, they used the body of a homeless man, dressed him in military uniform, stuffed fake invasion plans in his pockets and left him for the Germans to discover.

The show sees a cast of just five performers play countless characters.

Holly said: “Looking at how far the production has come, what is so amazing and so charming is that it has grown in scale in terms of the size of theatres and number of venues but it has never lost its charm which allows five people to put on, it has never lost the essence.”

Charlotte added: “You could have a cast of 30 doing what we do and it would all be delightfully easy but then it would totally lose its charm. The challenge for us going into these bigger venues on tour is to retain that lovely fringe feel which is integral to the show.”

With lightning fast costume changes, actors playing multiple roles and, not forgetting that Operation is also a musical, the production can border on the chaotic but it never gets out of control.

“We always say there’s a second show going on backstage,” said Charlotte. “There’s so much running around, changing costumes but it becomes like clockwork. It is chaos backstage but that’s what makes it so exciting for us. You can never relax in this show but that keeps it exciting.

“And you know what, sometimes things do go wrong but that’s quite fun as well. Of course we try and rein he chaos in as much as we can.”

“I think you have to treat a show like this as a team sport,” said Holly. “You can’t be out there on your own just doing your thing; you have to put total trust in each other.”

At face value, the success of Operation Mincemeat is not something that could ever have been predicted.

“It’s testament to the audiences in some ways,” said Charlotte. “We purposely keep a lot of the details about the show under wraps because we don’t want to spoil it. So often audiences will come not really knowing a lot about the show – they know it’s a musical, about the war and they’ve just decided to give it a go.

“We are so privileged that so many come back again and again they love it so much. Audiences take a chance on not knowing what’s going to happen or what’s coming next and they love it.”

Being part of a show which has almost achieved legendary status – it has currently received 88 five-star reviews around the world and counting – does that put extra pressure on the cast?

“I suppose there is a lot of pressure,” said Holly, “and that pressure comes in different ways. We are telling this really important story which really happened involving real people so there’s a pressure there too. But it’s told in such a refreshing new way it makes whole thing very exciting.

“There are certain lines I’ll say which feel so topical. The piece itself is fun and irreverent and silly yet it is able to touch on very important things happening which don’t just feel like they have been shoehorned in.

“The show comes from a place of humanity which I think is what makes it so effective.”

Charlotte added: “One of the unique things is that many of characters are deeply flawed; they may have views or carry out actions that maybe are not great and yet you are rooting for every single one of them. It’s not a question of them being a good guy or a bad guy. As an audience member you know they may have flaws but you still want them to succeed, you want the characters to win.”

Having been part of the show in the West End, both Holly and Charlotte didn’t think twice about the opportunity to take Operation Mincemeat on tour in the UK for the first time.

“I was only in the show for three months so I felt as though I was just finding my feet when the run ended,” said Charlotte, “so I am so excited to come back.”

Holly added: “Just coming into rehearsals and hearing the music has been magical. It’s not something I’ve ever experienced before with any show.”

For the tour, the production will be using the set originally designed for Broadway.

“That’s made rehearsals even more exciting,” said Charlotte. “It’s the same story, that will never change, but we’ve now the set for larger spaces which takes technical elements that don’t fit into lovely Fortune Theatre in the West End.

“At its heart you have you have the story you would have seen all those years ago when it started out, just scaled up. That’s so exciting.”

Operation Mincemeat is at the Lowry, Salford from Monday, February 16 to Saturday, February 28. Details from www.thelowry.com

A man accused of killing 15 people by opening fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Australia’s Bondi Beach has appeared in court via video link from prison for the first time.

Naveed Akram spoke briefly during the short hearing at a Sydney court on Monday, which he joined remotely from high-security prison Goulburn Correctional Centre, Australian media reports.

The 24-year-old faces 59 charges ​over the shooting on 14 December, including 15 counts of murder, 40 counts of wounding with intent to murder ​and a terror offence.

Police allege he carried ‌out the mass shooting with his father Sajid, 50, who was shot dead during the attack.

Akram wore a green prison-issued jumper and only spoke to acknowledge that he had heard discussions about extending non-publication orders suppressing details of the victims.

His lawyer Ben Archbold told reporters outside the Downing Centre Local and District Court that Akram was ‌doing “as well as he can be” given the “very onerous conditions” in prison.

Mr Archbold said it was too early to indicate how Akram would plead to the charges and that he had not discussed details of the alleged attack ⁠with him.

“I haven’t spoken to him about the attack ​in that regard,” he said.

“All that we’re ​doing at the moment is starting the process… we’re ​waiting for the brief to be served. There’s nothing more I ⁠can say.”

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Mr Archbold added that he had visited Akram in prison.

“He’s just a client, and he’s a client that needs to be represented,” he said.

“And we don’t let our personal ​view get in the way of our professional obligations.

“The ​matter has been adjourned, I have nothing more to say.”

Akram attended his first court hearing remotely from his hospital bed in December.

The Bondi attack is regarded as Australia’s worst terror incident and biggest mass shooting since 1996.

It prompted the Australian parliament to strengthen gun control and hate speech laws.

The case is expected to return to court ‌in April.

Built in 1803 by Captain Horn, who lived next door in The Old Hall, Forte Horn was to provide an early lookout in the Dales should Napoleon decide to attack England.

For the men who served in the Loyal Dales Infantry until the regiment was disbanded a year after Waterloo – in 1816 – it also served as a garrison.

Drawing room with open fireplace, bay window and garden door (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

And a very fine one at that.

As the threat of war faded and it became clear that Napoleon and his men would not be marching across the Dales, Forte Horn was turned into a family home and remains so today.

Forte Horn is approached via a private drive which ends in a parking area with ample room for several vehicles.

Dining area adjoining kitchen (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

Step inside the front door and you’ll find yourself in an entrance hall with a flagstone floor and feature wooden beams – perfect for doubling up as a dining room, should its new owners wish to.

Off this is a drawing room of elegant proportions, with a large open fireplace with a Jet master fire in-situ, a large feature window and a bay window with a door giving access to the garden.

A door links the drawing room to a second, less formal, sitting room.

Drawing room with open fireplace, bay window and garden door (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

From there an inner hall leads, in turn, to a double bedroom and bathroom.

This area could form a separate cottage with its own front door should the buyer wish to create a private living space – and subject to the usual planning/listed building permission.

This was granted a few years ago but has since lapsed.

Sitting room (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

Completing the ground floor is the spacious kitchen/breakfast room.

The kitchen area has wooden flooring, a range of oak units made by County Kitchens of Leyburn and an Everhot cooker with extractor fan over.

Up a couple of steps is the adjoining dining area, and off that a rear hall that serves as part utility room, part boot room and has a door out to the garden.

On the first floor – in the turret that no doubt offered the fort its best vantage point – is the spacious master bedroom with a large bay window that frames the view over the garden, plus a small original built-in cupboard.

A second double bedroom is currently used as a dressing room, with the accommodation completed by a bathroom.

Upstairs again is a large double bedroom with a large bay window offering spectacular views over the garden and beyond, plus a shower room and eves storage space.

Garden laid to lawn with hedges, borders and views to Jervaulx Moor (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

Situated to the side of the main house is Garden Cottage which comprises a large sitting room with a log burner, a kitchen breakfast room, two double bedrooms and a family bathroom.

This versatile dwelling would serve a number of purposes, including being perfect for multigenerational living.

Forte Horn’s garden is laid mainly to lawn and includes well-maintained hedges and borders containing a variety of shrubs, plants and soft fruit trees.

It is walled on two sides to provide privacy and has spectacular views at the front over the village and up to Jervaulx Moor.

There is a side gate onto the village green, a small courtyard garden at the rear of the cottage and a large garage.

Kitchen/breakfast room with oak units and Everhot cooker (Image: Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property)

Forte Horn is located in the middle of the village of Thornton Steward, around four miles from Middleham (which also has a fascinating history dating back to Richard III) and around six miles from Leyburn, Masham and Bedale.

It is on the market at £1.1m.

For more information or to arrange a viewing, please contact Giles Edwards Yorkshire Property on 01765 688353.

First, Pakistan reversed their boycott. Then, the Colombo rain stayed away. Finally, India’s fixture with Pakistan in the 2026 Twenty20 World Cup – the game that international cricket cannot afford to be without – took place.

After all the tumult, the match fit within the trend of the meetings between these two foes in global events: a crushing Indian victory, on this occasion by 61 runs. The result added to the history of what is, given the hype, perhaps the most underwhelming rivalry in all international sport. Across the T20 World Cup and ODI World Cup, India and Pakistan have now met on 17 occasions. Sixteen times, the result has been an Indian win.

Thirty years ago, before the 1996 ODI World Cup, the greatest stars from India and Pakistan, Sachin Tendulkar and Wasim Akram among them, assembled in Colombo. They were there to represent a joint Indian-Pakistani team against Sri Lanka, in a special match arranged to prove that the country was safe to stage World Cup matches, following a recent terrorist atrocity.

“This proves to the world we’re all together,” India captain Mohammad Azharuddin said in Sri Lanka. “There’s nothing wrong as far as sport is concerned.”

Alas, no one watching this year’s clash would have got the same impression. India’s meetings with Pakistan have long taken on the feel of being less a cricket match than a grim contractual requirement. This was the 12th consecutive time in a major men’s global event that the two sides have been drawn together. The guaranteed annual clash is worth perhaps one-tenth of the International Cricket Council’s $3.1bn (£2.3bn) broadcasting deal from 2024-28.

Rather than an antidote to geopolitical tensions, this fixture now exacerbates them. Players from the two sides did not shake hands before or after the game.

Speaking at a special meeting of Bolton Council’s cabinet on Monday (February 9), the council’s business rates manager explained the relief pubs would receive.

He said the 40 per cent retail relief scheme for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses would be ending this year, but other support will be put in place.

These will limit increases of business rates, capping increases at either £800 per year or an applicable percentage – most likely to be 15 per cent for most businesses in Bolton.

For the following two years, business rates will “only increase by the level of inflation” which the officer said would likely be “of more value” than the additional 15 per cent relief.

The 15 per cent added relief announced by the government last month will be applied after the cap – and will only apply to pubs and live music venues.

‘Still not good enough’

Cllr Nadim Muslim (Image: Bolton Council)

Cllr Nadim Muslim, leader of the Conservative Group, said he appreciates that “this is not anything that you can control from council”, but that the support “still isn’t good enough”.

He said hospitality businesses are struggling with not just business rates, but increases in the minimum wage and national insurance.

He said: “We should look at as many options as possible where we can be doing more to support those in the hospitality sector because, as it stands, more will continue to go out of business.”

Cllr Nick Peel, leader of the council, said the transitional relief scheme – which does not include the added 15 per cent relief – is a £4.5bn investment and “significant amount of money”.

‘Need to ensure businesses are aware’

Cllr Nick Peel (Image: Bolton Council)

He said: “We need to ensure that businesses in Bolton who are worried about the revaluation are aware of the transitional relief scheme.

“These are significant amounts of money and that’s even before we get into the relief from the discount.

“It’s very complicated, perhaps we should do some basic online questions and answers somewhere to point people towards to get the basic stuff.

“And if there’s anything more complex, they can move on to have a face-to-face.”

In a joint letter published in the Guardian and German newspaper Die Welt, the pair of senior soldiers said they were speaking “not merely as the military leaders of two of Europe’s largest military spenders, but as voices for a Europe that must now confront uncomfortable truths about its security”.