People had queued outside of the Swatch shop ahead of a new launch

A shop in the Trafford Centre was forced to close today reports of huge queues and crowds rushing inside.

People had reportedly queued outside the Swatch store in the shopping centre ahead of the release of the brand’s new Royal Pop collection. When the store opened its doors this morning (Saturday, May 16), crowds of prospective buyers were then reported to have rushed inside.

The shop was then forced to close. A spokesperson for the Trafford Centre said the store will remain shut throughout the day with bosses remaining in ‘close contact’ with the brand.

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In a statement, the Trafford Centre spokesperson said: “We can confirm that the Swatch AP event at Trafford Centre has been cancelled and that the Swatch store is closed today. We remain in close contact with the brand and will share any updates in due course.”

Similar scenes were reported at the Liverpool One shopping centre this morning with the Swatch store on Paradise Street forced to keep its doors shut, the Liverpool Echo reports. Police were called in to surround the front of the queue and help manage the crowds of hundreds of people.

Crowds gathered for the release of the Royal Pop collection, a collaboration between Swatch and Audemars Piguet. The collection is only available in-store, with a limit of one watch per person per day. The £335 watch is already being pre-sold on websites such as eBay for quadruple the price.

If you want to make the perfect bacon sandwich, you need to know how to cook bacon properly – and it’s all down to not frying it in oil and using a cheaper and more natural ingredient instead.

It also tends to cook bacon fat rapidly, which can leave the white parts burnt while the pink meat remains undercooked, limp and rather chewy if you don’t fry it correctly. Bacon is fairly straightforward to prepare, but a major error many people make is drowning it in oil, which causes grease to splatter everywhere and fills the kitchen with smoke.

It also tends to cook bacon fat rapidly, which can leave the white parts burnt while the pink meat remains undercooked and quite chewy. However, Grumpy, the cook behind Grumpy Recipes who uses a pseudonym online, has revealed there’s a superior method to cook bacon for the crispiest rashers, and all you need is water.

He said: “I’ve been making crispy bacon for as long as I can remember. It’s so flavourful and adds an excellent crunch to anything you put it on…The method I’m showing today involves cooking the bacon with a few tablespoons of water. It might sound counterintuitive at first, but I promise it makes the crispiest bacon ever.”

Why cook bacon in water?

Few people understand that bacon fat renders at high heat and can essentially cook itself, and when you add oil, it tends to cook the meat far more quickly.

This frequently causes the white fatty sections of the bacon to become blackened and makes the frying pan smoky, leading people to believe the bacon is fully cooked.

Yet it often leaves the pink meaty portion of the bacon underdone, giving it an unpleasant leathery texture and making the rashers feel extremely greasy. Adding water keeps the pan at a consistent temperature, giving the fat enough time to melt properly and cook the bacon without the meat burning from excessive heat.

Bacon requires no oil whatsoever, as it naturally cooks in its own fat. Water simply ensures it cooks evenly throughout, resulting in a superior crispy texture across the entire rasher.

It also prevents the bacon from turning greasy and allows its natural, meaty flavour to shine through rather than being overpowered by oil, leaving you with far tastier strips.

How to make better bacon sandwiches

You will need:

• A frying pan with a lid
• Four to six strips of bacon
• Two tablespoons of water
• A buttered roll
• Any sauce of your choice

Method:

Start by cutting your bacon rashers in half and placing them into a cold pan. Don’t worry if they overlap slightly, as they will shrink during cooking.

Halving the rashers ensures they fit neatly in the pan and also means the fat renders more quickly, so you won’t be left waiting around for this technique to do its magic.

Pour two tablespoons of water into the pan and set the heat to low. Cover with a lid and cook for approximately seven to 10 minutes, or until all the water has completely evaporated.

Keeping the lid on retains the heat, helping the water to evaporate swiftly, while the trapped steam ensures the bacon cooks more uniformly.

Once the water has fully evaporated, the bacon will crisp up rapidly as it cooks in its own fat. Flip the rashers to ensure both sides are evenly cooked.

When the bacon is perfectly crispy, place it on a sheet of kitchen roll to soak up any excess fat, then pop it onto a buttered roll. Your bacon ought to be smoky, rich and perfectly crispy around the edges, allowing you to savour a delicious bacon butty without any unwanted grease.

PEA RIDGE, Ark. (AP) — Walmart and Amazon are racing to speed up online order deliveries in rural areas of the U.S., a rich source of untapped sales that major retailers long wrote off as too sparsely inhabited, too remote or too impoverished to serve profitably.

Walmart has a running start in the contest to build a loyal customer base in rural America. Roughly 90% of U.S. residents live within 10 miles of a Walmart store, and 45% of the company’s full-service Supercenters are in places with populations under 20,000, according to a report by investment bank Morgan Stanley.

Competition for the underserved market, which the bank’s analysts estimated could be worth up to $1 trillion in annual sales, has intensified as remote workers swell the populations of small towns and communities on the far fringes of metropolitan areas.

The same technology that makes it possible for more people to do office work from wherever they want is making it easier for the nation’s two biggest retail companies to get merchandise to them more efficiently.

Amazon last year invested $4 billion to bring same-day or next-day deliveries to 4,000 smaller cities, towns and rural communities. They included places like the coastal town of Lewes, Delaware, Milton, Florida, a city hat is considered the state’s canoe capital, Padre Island, Texas, which is about 37 miles from Corpus Christi, and Abbeville, Louisiana, known for its Cajun food scene.

In a letter to shareholders last month, CEO Andy Jassy said the average monthly number of Amazon customers receiving same-day deliveries doubled in 2025 compared to the year before. Amazon is using artificial intelligence-based tools to better forecast demand, while opening small micro hubs in rural areas.

“While other companies have been backing away from these customers, we’ve been running to them,” Jassy wrote.

The turf battle between the Goliath of e-commerce and Walmart is taking place as FedEx, UPS and the U.S. Postal Service are scaling back or slowing deliveries to some rural areas to cut costs or to concentrate on more profitable businesses.

“These folks want the same types of opportunities, services, experiences, as folks that maybe are more familiar with things like ultra-fast delivery that have been available in places like Manhattan,” David Guggina, now the CEO of Walmart U.S, told The Associated Press last fall.

Here’s a look at why and the many ways Walmart and Amazon are cultivating customers in rural America:

Changing demographics

The final step of a package’s journey from a distribution hub to a shopper’s home has always presented challenges in rural areas. Delivery drivers have to travel longer distances between stops and sometimes navigate narrow or unpaved roads in thinly populated areas, adding time that increases per-package labor and fuel costs, experts say.

Rural areas also used to be thought of as less financially well-off and therefore less desirable for retailers. But over the past decade, rural counties have shown steady growth in productivity and income, according to consulting firm McKinsey.

The median household income in rural counties rose 43% between 2010 and 2022, reaching an all-time high of nearly $60,000 a year, McKinsey said. Since the pandemic, more exurban communities located as far as 60 miles from a major city’s downtown have been among the fastest-growing places in the U.S., the U.S. Census Bureau reported.

The $1 trillion rural shoppers spend annually on electronics, clothing, home furnishings and other merchandise accounts for 20% of all retail purchases in the U.S. except for cars and gasoline, according to Morgan Stanley.

The shifting retail landscape

Amazon and Walmart are not the only companies that see potential demand from former city dwellers who grew accustomed to having groceries, clothes and other products brought to their doors quickly.

In an apparent move to stave them off in the countrysides and small towns where it staked a claim, Dollar General in January extended its same-day delivery service to more than 17,000 of the discount chain’s 20,000 stores. More than 80% of Dollar General’s same-day orders arrived in an hour or less, CEO Todd Vasos told investment analysts in March.

Rural lifestyle retailer Tractor Supply is increasing its direct delivery services to shoppers, particularly for bulky items like fence panels and riding lawnmowers. It announced plans in January to add more than 150 delivery hubs this year for a total of 375, covering more than half of its stores and reaching over 15 million customers.

Different approaches

Both Amazon and Walmart are expanding their use of delivery drones to speed up shipments from stores or order fulfillment centers. They also using methods that reflect their own roots and taking pages from each other’s playbooks.

Befitting its origins in traditional retail, Walmart is equipping its physical stores with robotic technology technology that picks and packs online orders from a storage area stocked with the most popular delivery items for each location.

The automated retrieval system helped a Walmart Supercenter in Bentonville, Arkansas, home to Walmart’s headquarters, deliver groceries within a 30-mile radius, up from 10 miles just a few years ago, Doug Sanders, Walmart’s senior director of e-commerce store fulfillment, said late last year.

The company further credits the adoption of a hexagonal mapping system with making same-day deliveries available to 12 million more households. The system replaced traditional service boundaries like ZIP codes, which can leave out small areas at the edges, executives said.

The switch also gives Walmart an expanded view of which nearby stores might have the items needed to fulfill customers’ orders. Instead of shoppers having to place separate orders from multiple locations to get everything they want, drivers now can retrieve packages from more than one store in their service area.

Amazon, which started as an online bookseller and this year closed its Amazon Fresh supermarkets and Amazon Go convenience stores, is putting local infrastructure in place to shorten the distance between its warehouses and rural areas.

The company is setting up small delivery stations to serve a group of nearby communities based on travel drive time, customer demand, and delivery efficiency, the company said. Packages that were assembled at Amazon’s massive fulfillment centers are sent to the hubs for sorting before local gig workers and contractors pick the up for delivery.

The goal is to halve the time it takes from when a customer places an order to when it arrives, from as many as five days to less than two days, according to Holly Sullivan, Amazon’s vice president of worldwide economic development.

For example, a newly opened station in Roanoke, Virginia, delivers tens of thousands of packages every day that previously weren’t getting to the customer nearly as quickly, station manager Patrick Hamilton said. Delivery routes from the facility can reach customers roughly 90 minutes away by road, spanning both the city and surrounding rural communities.

Dalton Klinger is the operations manager of the Chamber of Commerce for St. George, Utah, a city with a population of 100,000 located in the northeastern part of the Mojave Desert. The city’s mountainous surroundings are difficult for deliveries, but an Amazon station has helped speed them up.

Klinger, who has lived in St. George since 2021, said his Amazon orders of essentials like canned tuna and jars of tomato sauce that used to take four days now get to him in two.

“People are wanting faster deliveries,” he said. “It’s all about instant gratification.”

The facility at New Road, Crook, has been approved by a planning inspector despite the authority’s safety concerns. 

Durham County Council’s planning committee voted down the plans after hearing from residents who were fearful of increased crime in the area after a spate of incidents. 

But now, an inspector has ruled that the location of the children’s home is “suitable” and would not directly lead to disorder. 

Oliver Knowles, of Karoo Group Limited, applied to convert the property, known as Applegarth, to accommodate up to two children, with carers working shifts to provide 24-hour care. 

Durham Constabulary and the council’s children and young people’s services raised no objections to the proposal, stating that there is a need for smaller children’s homes in the area. 

But Mr Knowles faced opposition from 31 letters of objection and Crook’s Reform county councillor, Robbie Roddis. 

Other concerns noted the high number of crime incidents reported in Crook, including within Glenholme Park and the grounds of Lidl, which are a short walk from the property. 

Cllr Roddis said: “Crook is a town that has sadly gained a reputation over several years for anti-social activity. Due to these activities, it has been the subject of several countrywide reports concerning the criminality of a growing minority.  

“We all have a responsibility to children. Applegarth is not the solution to this responsibility and certainly will cause more issues than it is expected to solve.”

Joy Allen, Durham and Darlington’s Police and Crime Commissioner, also warned that children from outside the area could be housed inside the facility and that responding to incidents could take up a large amount of police resources.

But the inspector said it could not refuse the proposal based on the concerns. 

The decision read: “I acknowledge perceived fears of some residents about the potential for antisocial behaviour, arising from the use of the property as a children’s home. 

“It is possible that some of the children living in the property may need additional support, but there is no reason to doubt that they would be properly cared for and assisted.

“I do not find that it would be reasonable to refuse planning permission, based upon the perceived fears of some, about possible anti-social behaviour or criminal activity.”

“There is also no substantive evidence to suggest that children living in the home would affect police resources any more than children living in a family home.”

Do you agree with the decision? Have your say in the comments.

The Labour government is consulting on two new tests — a cognitive assessment and mandatory eyesight checks — for six million older drivers in England.

Two new compulsory tests are being considered for drivers over 70 in England. The Labour government is consulting on introducing cognitive assessments and eyesight checks for six million motorists across the country.

Motorists could face being removed from the roads if they fail to pass a “cognitive” test. Mandatory vision checks for the over-70s could also be brought in amid concerns the existing self-declaration system is open to misuse, reports Birmingham Live.

Labour’s Local Transport Secretary Lilian Greenwood said: “Consideration will be given in the future to other fitness to drive measures, such as cognitive assessments.

“I want to support drivers as they become older. I recognise that having a driving licence is a lifeline for many and provides independence and freedom.

“However, we need to ensure older drivers can continue to drive safely as long as they are fit and healthy to do so.”

The Association of Optometrists stated: “Five consultations were launched by the Government, including one on the introduction of mandatory eyesight testing for older drivers. We provided a joint response with the College of Optometrists to the Department for Transport (DfT) for this consultation.

“The DfT requested views on potentially moving away from the current self-declaration system for eyesight standards for drivers aged 70 and over and introducing mandatory eyesight tests for older drivers as part of the licence renewal process.”

A 62-year-old driver told the Guardian in the wake of the consultation being launched: “As set out, this is ageism. I totally agree that there should be compulsory eye tests for drivers, but it should be a requirement for all drivers.

“Eyesight can fail at any age. Also, this is the stick, where is the carrot? Where is the better public transport to allow those who lose the ability to drive to get around, or are we planning to trap them in their homes?”

A second said: “This is basic common sense. Along with eye tests, there ought to be hazard perception tests and reaction speed tests.

“I realise that for many elderly people, driving is one of the last independent things they can do, but really, who wouldn’t want to be safe on the roads? It’s selfish to think otherwise.”

Woldgate School and Sixth Form in Kilnwick Road, Pocklington, has a new design and technology department.

The school, which part of the Wonder Learning Partnership, says it brings opportunities for independent design, creativity with materials and processes and provide pupils with the creative freedom to develop their designs.

Recommended reading:

Woldgate School pupils using the new design and technology department equipment (Image: Supplied)

Rachel Postill, director of studies for technology, said: “It is excellent to see a higher percentage of pupils opting to take GCSE design and technology, the vocational award in hospitality and catering, or both as well as a rise in A Level DT students.

“Our vision is to provide a diverse and enriching curriculum developing real-world and contextual skills. Industry links provide a strong foundation to enthuse and inspire the next generation of chefs, nutritionists, designers, engineers, architects and more.”

She said recent GCSE work has included a self-assemble children’s car designed to develop motor skills and the pupil’s design used plywood, vacuum‑formed high-impact polystyrene and a series of clever construction methods to create a functional and visually appealing product.

At A-level, students write their own design briefs and work directly with live clients.

One student with a strong interest in sport designed a set of ergonomic gym grips, carrying out extensive trials, modelling and testing to determine the most effective materials, shapes and mechanisms.

Another A‑level student, a talented seamstress, produced a beautifully constructed bespoke corset for a client, drawing on advanced textile techniques and using Angelina fibres and specialist fabrics.

Pupils at Woldgate School in Pocklington (Image: Supplied)

Mrs Postill said: “The combined investment by the school, Department for Education and the East Riding of Yorkshire Council in new technology has further enhanced the quality of pupils’ practical outcomes.

“Foam concept modelling, made possible through newly installed hot‑wire cutting equipment, enables students to create high‑quality prototypes quickly. This rapid modelling technique is now embedded across all key stages, supported by a specialist foam supplier that ensures consistent quality and sustainability.

“A new Thermoforming Centre also provides pupils with access to professional‑level polymer forming equipment. Pupils and students can explore vacuum forming, dome blowing, and heat‑forming processes, as well as injection moulding, plastic welding and extrusion. These facilities will be central to the upcoming Year 9 polymer project, offering pupils the opportunity to experience industry-standard manufacturing techniques first-hand.”

Recently, the school was delighted to welcome James Mackenzie from local Michelin starred restaurant Pipe and Glass.

“His visit captivated pupils as he demonstrated his culinary expertise preparing a venison and smoked haddock risotto live in the classroom. Thanks to the school’s new overhead camera linked to the interactive display board, pupils were able to observe every detail of his technique from multiple viewpoints bringing professional cookery to life,” said Mrs Postill.

Local businesses, professionals or community groups interested in working with the school on live projects, offering workshops or developing joint opportunities are warmly encouraged to get in touch. Please contact the school at office@woldgate.net to arrange a conversation.

For millions of Eurovision viewers, Graham Norton is essentially part of the contest itself at this point.

But while the presenter spends every year narrating Europe’s most chaotic musical event, his own love life has remained surprisingly private.

If your day job involves sitting in what Graham once described as a glorified ‘garden shed’ making jokes about Moldovan techno-folk acts to 160 million people, you probably want at least some parts of life to remain calm.

Born in Dublin and raised in County Cork, Norton first rose to fame in the 1990s with his chaotic late-night Channel 4 chat shows before becoming one of the BBC’s biggest stars through The Graham Norton Show, where he has interviewed everyone from Hollywood A-listers to pop icons.

Alongside his long-running talk show career, Norton has become a central part of the Eurovision Song Contest for UK viewers, serving as the BBC’s commentator since 2009 following in the footsteps of the late Terry Wogan.

He has also hosted radio programmes, written novels and become a fan favourite judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Eurovision host’s private life before the grand final on Saturday.

Graham Norton’s ‘secret’ wedding in Ireland

The Graham Norton Show host married filmmaker Jonathan ‘Jono’ McLeod in July 2022 after several years together, with the pair tying the knot in a low-key ceremony in West Cork, Ireland.

While around 120 guests reportedly attended — including several famous faces — the wedding itself was notably private, with Graham largely keeping details away from the spotlight.

Reports later claimed Lulu even performed during the celebrations, proving it wasn’t a glamourless affair despite the privacy.

The location was chosen partly so Graham’s mother could attend comfortably.

‘We had our wedding party near where my mother lives in Ireland just so she could come,’ he later explained. ‘She wouldn’t have been well enough to come to London.’

Despite now sounding suspiciously like somebody who owns matching towels on purpose, Graham previously admitted marriage was something he never truly expected would happen.

‘I’m from that generation of gays who assumed it was never going to be on the cards,’ he said before the wedding. ‘So it’s extraordinary that it can happen.’

In classic Graham Norton fashion, however, romance is always balanced with just enough existential dread to stop things becoming too sincere.

Speaking to The Guardian, he once joked about married life: ‘We only have to put up with each other for a couple of decades. And then I’ll be out of here.’

But he’s also spoken about it more earnestly, saying of married life: ‘It’s good! I feel like I’ve turned on my tribe. You know when people in relationships, or who are married, want it for you? You just want me to do it to validate the choice you made!

‘But I am enjoying it. I was older, so I went into it with my eyes wide open. You know the pitfalls of relationships, the dangers. But I met someone who I was willing to take a bet on,’ he told Attitude.

Graham Norton’s past relationships

Before meeting McLeod, Graham had several high-profile relationships, including with music marketing consultant Andrew Smith and former partner Trevor Patterson.

Patterson, a fashion consultant, later told The Mirror of Norton: ‘In the early stages of our relationship I was aware of his dating history and knew I was one in a line of 20-somethings, so I never saw it as long-term. I just knew to enjoy the time while it lasted – and we did have great times.

Trevor, who was 30 when the pair began dating in 2011, said of the star: Graham’s a really magnetic guy. He could really tell a story. He’s engaging and always makes people feel at ease when he meets them for the first time. Those are the things that really stand out.’

Norton has also spoken candidly over the years about the strange pressures fame placed on those relationships, admitting he often felt male partners struggled to find a clearly defined role in his intensely public world.

‘This will sound sexist but that doesn’t mean it’s any less true. If I were a straight man, my female partner would have a role in the eyes of society. She would be the mother of my children, my hostess, the person on my arm at red-carpet events.

She would have a defined function. But that’s not the case if your partner is male,’ he told the Sunday Mirror.

At one point after his breakup from Andrew, Graham even dramatically declared he would rather live alone forever than deal with incorrectly folded towels.

He said in a chat with Radio 2 show co-presenter Maria McErlane at the time: ‘You have your own rules as you get older. I would prefer to live alone for the rest of my life rather than live with towels that were folded incorrectly. Petty is important. That’s why marriages break up. Marriages don’t break up because of big things.’

Graham Norton’s relationship with Drag Race star Tina Burner

The presenter also briefly dated future RuPaul’s Drag Race star Tina Burner, whose real name is Kristian Seeber.

Seeber later described Graham as ‘such a great guy’, while Graham himself admitted in his memoir, The Lives and Loves of a He Devil, that moving in with Seeber was a mistake: ‘The experiment lasted for about six months and it was a disaster.

‘I realise that even to a perfect stranger the outcome would have been glaringly obvious, but when you are in the middle of something and you are desperate for it to work, you’ll try anything.’

Despite years of tumultuous relationships and his public insistence that he was perfectly content alone, Graham now seems genuinely settled.

And while Graham continues spending every May trapped inside his tiny Eurovision commentary booth trying not to accidentally offend Poland again, he now returns home to something he long assumed might never happen for him at all: a happy marriage quietly unfolding away from the cameras.

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After emerging as the largest party in the Senedd (Welsh Parliament) election, Plaid Cymru is now establishing itself as the next Welsh government. It’s the first administration not led by Welsh Labour since devolution began 27 years ago.

For UK Labour, Plaid’s breakthrough could become one of the most significant constitutional and political challenges of the coming years.

The clearest guide to Plaid’s immediate priorities is its “first 100 days” programme for government. This was published during its February 2026 conference. It includes calls for a new devolution bill to be passed in the UK parliament giving Wales the same devolved powers as Scotland and new funding arrangements for Wales.

The party’s manifesto provides more detail on its package of constitutional demands. These include further powers over taxation, policing and justice, welfare, broadcasting, renewable energy, migration and the Crown Estate.

During the election campaign, Plaid deliberately played down its longer-term goal of Welsh independence in an effort to broaden its appeal beyond pro-independence voters. But now in government, the party will want to begin laying the groundwork for a longer-term constitutional change.

Its manifesto proposes a new national commission for Wales to prepare for a document exploring the challenges and opportunities that independence could bring for Wales. For Westminster, this may evoke comparisons with the SNP government’s Scotland’s Future which was published ahead of the 2014 independence referendum.

Another reset in UK-devolved relations

In the aftermath of the election, Plaid leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said he intended to “take the fight” to the UK government as first minister. It reflects the party’s campaign promise to “always stand up for Wales”.

Plaid has also pledged to “reset” relations with Westminster. The UK Labour 2024 manifesto also committed to a “reset” of the UK government’s relationship with the devolved governments.

Structures intended to improve co-ordination between the UK and devolved governments were introduced in 2022 under the then Conservative UK government. These included a council bringing together the prime minister and devolved leaders, alongside policy-focused inter-ministerial groups.

The outgoing Welsh Labour government argued that relations had improved since Labour entered power in Westminster in 2024. But it also pointed to examples of “limited or uneven engagement” across some policy areas.

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After a complete collapse, where does Welsh Labour go from here?

Our research has raised questions about the UK government’s willingness to make full use of the intergovernmental arrangements.

Plaid now wants those arrangements strengthened and placed on a firmer legal footing. In particular, it supports recommendations made by the Independent Constitutional Commission on the Future of Wales in 2024 to give intergovernmental structures a statutory basis, rather than relying largely on political convention.

The party also wants stronger protections for the Sewel convention. This is the principle that Westminster should seek consent before legislating in areas of policy that have been devolved.

A new alignment among devolved governments

Plaid’s victory could also reshape relationships between the three devolved governments. Co-operation between Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland has often been limited. This reflected their different political leaderships and constitutional settlements. But following the 2026 elections, parties supportive of greater national self-determination now lead all three governments.

That raises the prospect of more co-ordinated pressure on Westminster. Rhun ap Iorwerth has already signalled he wants to pursue greater cooperation.

One probable area of shared interest is the UK’s relationship with the EU. As debates over trade, regulation and economic alignment continue, devolved governments may seek a stronger voice in shaping UK-EU policy. Plaid’s manifesto argues Wales should have a “seat at the table” in discussions directly affecting Welsh interests.

Plaid was able to use Labour’s years of partnership with the previous Welsh government to argue that the UK government had become increasingly indifferent towards Wales.

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The Welsh Conservatives survived the Senedd election – now they must decide what they stand for

For Keir Starmer’s government, demands for deeper devolution and constitutional reform may struggle to compete with mounting political and economic pressures elsewhere. Some of Plaid’s proposals may remain low on the list of priorities. But there are risks in dismissing them entirely.

A perception that Wales is being ignored by Westminster could deepen political frustration. It could also simultaneously strengthen support for further constitutional change. In the longer term, that may create more fertile ground for Plaid Cymru’s case that a journey to independence is the only option for Wales to achieve its own interests.

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s government is in turmoil and the man many think could save it isn’t even eligible for the job.

Not yet, at least, though a path is now open for Andy Burnham, the popular mayor of Greater Manchester, to try to unseat beleaguered Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

It’s far from a sure thing, as there would be big hurdles to clear.

Burnham would first need to return to Parliament, where he could then try to mount a challenge to Starmer’s leadership.

Starmer, who has vowed to lead on, has been on the ropes, facing plummeting approval ratings and questions about his judgment, and seeing the Labour Party take a beating in U.K.-wide local elections this month. One key Cabinet member has already resigned, and more than a fifth of the party’s lawmakers in the House of Commons are urging him to stand down.

A return home yields a new look and nickname

Burnham, 56, is seen as Starmer’s biggest would-be rival, partly because he’s perceived to be to the political left of the prime minister.

The mayor is known as the “King of the North,” and his Labour backers will be hoping that moniker reaps rewards.

The allusion to the popular Jon Snow character in “Game of Thrones” is a sign of respect earned for Burnham’s fierce backing of northern England, its working class culture and heritage. It projects an image that he’s not part of the London political establishment. For many northerners, that counts for a lot.

His three sizable mayoral victories since 2017 show he can win elections.

But he hasn’t always. Burnham, who was in the Cabinet of Gordon Brown’s government from 2007 to 2010, ran twice for the leadership of the Labour Party and lost badly — first in 2010 and then in 2015. Looking back on those campaigns, he was pretty stiff.

Ending his 16-year tenure in Parliament yielded smoother speaking skills and a sleeker look. Suits and ties were largely replaced by a smart-casual look, often paired with sneakers.

That may seem superficial, but it broke down barriers with voters.

More importantly, his stint as mayor made him a more effective operator and, arguably, the best communicator in Labour’s ranks.

His standing grew during the COVID-19 pandemic when he became the de facto spokesman for northern England by constantly haranguing Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson for a “London-centric” approach to the crisis.

Burnham is ready to quit his job as mayor if he wins a special parliamentary election in the constituency of Makerfield, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) west of Manchester.

The road of return to Parliament must run through Reform UK

His route back to the House of Commons opened up Thursday when Josh Simons, of the Labour Party, said he would step down to make way for Burnham. Though Burnham was blocked from running for a seat that came up earlier this year, Labour’s executive body said Friday that he could run in the special election, which is expected to take place in the next two months.

It will likely be a bruising battle in one of, if not, the most consequential special elections in U.K. history. Burnham acknowledged as much.

“I truly do not take a single vote for granted and will work hard to regain the trust of people in the Makerfield constituency, many of whom have long supported our party but lost faith in recent times,” he said when announcing his intention to run.

Simons secured the seat by about 5,400 votes two years ago, but that was in Labour’s landslide victory of 2024 that swept Conservatives out after 14 years.

Times have changed dramatically, and Labour’s recent battering came at the hands of the ascendant anti-immigrant Reform UK party on the right and, to a lesser-extent, the eco-populist Greens on the left. All the wards in the Makerfield constituency were won by Reform in the local races.

Reform’s leader, Nigel Farage, said the party would “throw absolutely everything at it.”

Despite those results, Burnham can capitalize on his reputation as someone who gets things done, said Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London.

“Andy Burnham is a big name in the northwest. There will be a lot of people who would like to see him get back into Parliament, not least to take down Keir Starmer,” Bale said. “In some ways, it’s a useful test for Burnham because if he can’t beat Reform in that constituency, then quite frankly, he’s not much use to the Labour Party as leader.”

One battle after another

Labour has never ousted one of its leaders mid-term in government, but there is a process.

If Burnham can get a House of Commons seat, he would either have to trigger a leadership contest or join one. To do so, a member of Parliament needs the support of a fifth — or 81 — of Labour’s 403 members. Starmer, who has vowed to fight on, would automatically be entered to defend his position.

Wes Streeting had been expected to announce a bid for the top job Thursday after he resigned as Starmer’s health secretary and castigated his former boss for failing to offer effective solutions to the U.K.’s many problems. But he stopped short of that and, in what seemed to be a nod to Burnham, instead called for a “broad” field of candidates to debate the party’s future.

Streeting followed up Friday by endorsing Burnham, saying on X that Labour needs its “best players on the pitch.” He did not, however, say he wanted to see Burnham as prime minister.

If there is a leadership battle, both Burnham and Streeting could run. Others said to be considering doing so are former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, defense minister Al Carns and former party leader Ed Miliband.

For now, all permutations go through Makerfield and that result could have a seismic impact.

“Were Burnham to win the by-election, it’s unlikely that Keir Starmer will actually stand in that leadership contest,” Bale said. “If Burnham fails, then Starmer might feel he has a chance against Streeting and Rayner.”

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Associated Press writer Danica Kirka contributed to this story.