Owner Terry Whatmough, 80, opened Decorsave in 2000 after spending years in the painting and decorating trade himself.

He announced the closure of the Westhoughton business at the beginning of June, shutting its doors for the final time on Thursday (July 2).

Terry locking the door at Decorsave (Image: Charlie Whatmough)

Terry said: “It feels very unusual – I keep waking up at quarter to seven even though I don’t need to.

“I’ve been clearing all the stock out. I’m going to go back on Monday to finish it.”

One of the items Terry will be taking with him is the ‘free paste tomorrow’ sign.

The ‘free paste’ sign refers to a long running joke. When customers would come in and buy wallpaper, they’d ask if there was any free paste to go with it. (Image: Charlie Whatmough)

This is a running joke between Terry and his customers, who regularly, when buying wallpaper, asked if it came with free wallpaper paste.

Unable to give it away for for no charge, the sign tells customers the free paste will be in stock tomorrow – a tomorrow that, of course, will never arrive.

When asked ifTerrywas going to take up any hobbies.

“I don’t really have any hobbies!” he responded.

(Image: Charlie Whatmough)

“I don’t do fishing, I don’t do football. Politics is just a lot of talking, and if I hear Andy Burnham’s name one more time I’m going to get up and turn my TV off!

“But the last few weeks have been really positive – lots of people have come into the shop to say goodbye.”

It was at his recent 80th birthday that Terry’s daughter, Rachel, told him that he should start thinking about retiring.

He had a few recent health scares too, including a heart attack in 2023 that required open heart surgery.

Terry outside Decorsave (Image: Dan Dougherty)

Terry was born in Salford in 1940, taking up the painting and decorating trade because of his father, who was in the same line of work.

“In them days, what you did for a living was based on what your father did,” said Terry.

Having spent so many years in the area, Terry has kids and grandkids dotted around Westhoughton, Bolton, Horwich, and Wigan. They’re also dotted all over the wall behind the Decorsave counter.

Anthony, one of his 11 grandchildren, owns the barber shop Troy’s on Wigan Road – just round the corner from Decorsave.

Mr Burnham, who was released to Westminster last month for the Makerfield constituency, is widely expected to replace Sir Keir Starmer as Prime Minister within a matter of weeks.

The former Greater Manchester Mayor has posted on professional networking social media site LinkedIn saying that he hopes to replicate his approach with the city region across the country.

Mr Burnham said: “To introduce myself here, I wanted to talk about how I left Westminster a decade ago because I wanted to build a politics that put problem-solving before point-scoring.

“And it worked.

Andy Burnham was recently elected MP for Makerfield (Image: Newsquest)

“In that time, I’m proud to have championed Greater Manchester’s economic revival, seeing it grow at twice the rate of the rest of the country.

“We made this happen by putting place before party, by bringing people with us, and crucially, working in partnership with business.

“The growth we created wasn’t abstract.

“It was felt by ordinary people and businesses every day, on their high streets and in their pockets.

“But everything we achieved during my time there felt like it was done despite Westminster, not because of it.

“Politics hasn’t been good enough—across the country people have struggled to make ends meet, businesses have struggled to stay open.

“Westminster hasn’t given them the support they need. That needs to change.

“I want to do things differently, to put power back in the hands of local communities and build an economy that works for everybody.

“Problem-solving, not point-scoring. Place-first, not party-first.

“Long-term thinking over short-term politics. I want this new era to be about hope.”

Mr Burnham has previously been Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017 before stepping down after being elected as MP for Makerfield.

He won the Makerfield by-election with just under 55 per cent of the vote, around 20 per cent ahead of Reform UK’s Rob Kenyon in second place.

Sir Keir Starmer announced the following Monday that he would be stepping down as leader of the Labour Party and as Prime Minister.

Seventy years ago, London choked. For five days in December 1952, a toxic smog smothered the city. Visibility collapsed. Transport failed. Thousands died. It was not a natural disaster. It was the product of policy failure.

Out of that catastrophe came one of the most important environmental laws in UK history: the Clean Air Act 1956. It was a turning point. It showed that science, when taken seriously, can transform public health.

But the story does not end in 1956. Because the same forces that delayed action then continue to shape air pollution policy today.

The Clean Air Act was born from evidence. The Beaver committee’s 1954 report, named after its distinguished chairman, Sir Hugh Beaver, made a simple but powerful case: air pollution was not inevitable. It was a social and economic problem that could be solved.

The law followed. Smoke-control areas were introduced. Dirtier fuels were phased out. Emissions were regulated. Over time, air quality improved dramatically.

This model spread globally. Evidence-led regulation became the foundation of air pollution control in many countries such as the US, Japan, Germany and Australia. Monitoring improved. Health effects became measurable. Courts began to hold governments accountable.

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These colourful diagrams show how air quality has changed in over 100 countries around the world since 1850

Major global successes followed this template. The Montreal protocol, a landmark treaty agreed in 1987 after the discovery of the ozone hole, showed how fast action based on strong science could prevent a planetary crisis. When science leads, lives are saved.

But the 1956 Clean Air Act was not passed easily. Industry resisted. Industrial interests feared the cost of cleaner technologies. Political leaders hesitated.

Historical analysis shows that senior figures, including the government’s housing minister, Harold Macmillan, emphasised economic concerns and downplayed the risks of smoke and sulphur pollution during the early 1950s.

The science was already clear. The political response was not. It took pressure from outside government to break the deadlock. Public health advocates, local politicians and media campaigns all contributed. Only then did policy shift.

This pattern is one that continues today.

Even after 1956, action often came slowly. Leaded petrol remained in use in the UK until 2000, despite decades of evidence on neurotoxicity. Acid rain warnings were initially dismissed before international cooperation emerged. Air quality standards improved gradually, often only after legal or public pressure to cut pollution.

The lesson is uncomfortable. Science alone does not drive policy. Power does.

The modern era

Today’s air pollution looks different. It is less visible. More chemical. More complex. But it remains deadly.

According to the Royal College of Physicians, around 40,000 people die every year in the UK due to air pollution. Globally, the burden is far greater. An estimated 5 million deaths are linked directly to fossil fuel air pollution annually.

The sources are modern. Traffic emissions. Domestic heating. Agriculture. Industry. But the core issue remains unchanged. Pollution follows the money.

A growing body of evidence suggests that fossil fuel interests continue to shape political decision-making across multiple political systems. In the UK, investigative analyses indicate that the Conservative party has received substantial funding from fossil fuel-linked donors, while networks of industry-aligned thinktanks and lobbying groups have influenced policy direction. Similar patterns have been identified in Reform UK, whose funding base has been heavily concentrated among fossil fuel interests.

The trend is global. In the US, the Republican party and the campaigns of Donald Trump have received extensive support from the fossil fuel sector, alongside significant lobbying expenditure designed to shape policy outcomes.

These networks do not just fund politics. They shape it. Evidence suggests they have contributed to subsidies to the fossil fuel industry alongside delays and reversals in climate and air-quality policies, including the weakening of emissions targets and support for new fossil fuel extraction.

Scientific consensus is clear. Burning fossil fuels drives both climate change and air pollution. Reducing emissions delivers immediate health benefits.

Yet policy decisions often move in the opposite direction. Expanding oil and gas extraction. Delaying the transition away from petrol and diesel vehicles. Weakening environmental regulations. These choices directly conflict with the evidence. They also follow a pattern familiar from the 1950s. Economic arguments are used to justify delay. Uncertainty is emphasised. Long-term health costs are discounted.

The difference today is scale. Air pollution is no longer just a local issue. It is global.

The health burden of air pollution is vast. In the UK alone, tens of thousands of premature deaths are linked to exposure to fine particulate matter known as PM2.5 – tiny particles 2.5 micrometres or smaller that can penetrate deep into the lungs and bloodstream – each year. These people have heart disease, stroke, respiratory illness and their life expectancy is reduced.

The health effects are far from equal. Pollution exposure is higher in deprived communities. Health consequences are unevenly distributed.

Seventy years after the Clean Air Act, the lessons are clear. Disasters should not be required to trigger action. The Great Smog forced change. But policy should anticipate risk, not respond to tragedy.

We are now at another turning point. Air pollution remains one of the leading environmental causes of death worldwide. At the same time, the tools to reduce it have never been more available. Clean energy. Cleaner transport. Better regulation. Stronger data. Policy just needs to follow the science.

The new insulated-style tumblers arrive in eye-catching Mango orange and Dragon Fruit pink, complete with a reusable straw, straw cover and ribbed sleeve, giving shoppers a budget-friendly alternative to the premium reusable cups dominating TikTok and Instagram.

With reusable drinkware continuing to fly off shelves, Costa’s latest merchandise could prove just as popular as previous limited-edition collections.

The new reusable cups go on sale in Costa stores from today, Thursday, July 2, alongside the chain’s refreshed summer menu.

They are available while stocks last, meaning shoppers hoping to grab one may need to move quickly.

Costa is also releasing matching refresher-inspired keyrings in bright pink and lime green

There’s a new high-protein coffee too

Alongside the new merchandise, Costa is trialling its first-ever High Protein Latte and High Protein Iced Latte in selected stores.

Made using Costa’s signature Mocha Italia coffee and semi-skimmed milk, each drink contains 23g of protein and can be ordered hot or iced.

Customers can also personalise the drinks with flavoured syrups.

Costa Coffee cream tea bundle (Image: Costa Coffee)

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New cream tea-style deal joins the summer menu

Costa is also introducing a new scone bundle, available between 11am and 5pm in selected stores.

The offer includes an All Butter Sultana Scone, Bonne Maman strawberry conserve, Cornish clotted cream and a handcrafted small or medium drink.

Costa is also giving away free samples of its new Smooth Medium Blend At Home Instant Coffee in stores nationwide while stocks last.

The new reusable cups, keyrings and seasonal menu are available from Thursday, July 2, with merchandise expected to be available only while supplies last.

People are often treated as unreliable narrators of their own past, and this scepticism runs especially deep around emotionally charged early experiences.

Researchers have long worried that memories of abuse and neglect might shift depending on someone’s mood, mental health or current circumstances, meaning what someone tells a researcher, doctor or social worker one year might not match what they’d say the next.

Our new research, published in Nature Mental Health, suggests that these fears may be overstated. We found that reports of childhood maltreatment remain highly stable over time – at least over a period of a few years.

Childhood maltreatment covers experiences of physical, sexual or emotional abuse or neglect. Most research into how these experiences affect mental and physical health relies on retrospective self-reports. Essentially, it involves asking people to describe what happened to them based on memory.

These reports show consistently stronger links with mental health outcomes than reports from outside observers. But this has raised an uncomfortable question: are these stronger links genuine, or are they artefacts of people’s current mood, colouring how they remember their past?

Whether memories of maltreatment are stable isn’t just an academic curiosity; it has serious practical consequences. If people’s accounts of what happened to them shift over time, a single snapshot survey could misclassify who did and didn’t experience maltreatment, muddying research findings and making it harder to identify what’s actually driving poor outcomes.

The stakes are just as high outside the lab. Clinical, legal and social care decisions can hinge on someone’s account of childhood experiences, often given only once.

To test this, researchers have asked the same people about their childhood experiences at two or more points in time, then compared their answers. We pulled together 49 such studies, spanning almost 40,000 people, to see how consistent people’s memories really were.

We found they were remarkably consistent. Over an average gap of two and a half years, people’s memories of maltreatment barely budged, supporting the case for using a single time-point assessment in both research and clinical practice. That said, we still don’t know whether this stability holds over longer stretches of time, so more research is needed.

That’s not to say memory is perfect. About one in five people did change their response over time. This shouldn’t be read as evidence that someone was lying, though.

Memories can shift for all sorts of reasons, such as how someone comes to interpret what happened to them, ordinary quirks of memory, how comfortable someone feels disclosing sensitive information in a given setting, or simple human error.

This is why any record of maltreatment disclosure, whether in research or in clinical practice, should also capture the context in which it was made. This may well shape how consistently that account holds up later.

Memory also depends on the type of maltreatment

Some experiences also proved harder to remember consistently than others. Reports of neglect changed more often than reports of abuse, perhaps because abuse tends to involve specific, tangible events that anchor themselves in memory, whereas neglect is often about the absence of something – care, attention or resources that simply weren’t there. It’s harder to consistently recall something that didn’t happen than something that did.

Memories were also less stable in large, population-representative studies than among people who volunteered for research or who had been recruited through clinical services. One explanation is that people who sign up for studies on this topic may already have spent time reflecting on their past, and grown practised at answering these types of questions consistently.

People with poor mental health may also think about negative childhood experiences more often, and reflect on them more in treatment, making those memories more accessible and likely to be reported consistently.

Finally, we found that while adults’ memories of childhood maltreatment were very stable over time, young people’s memories of maltreatment were less stable and decreased over longer gaps between assessments.

This probably reflects the fact that children’s memory systems are still developing. Early memories may be laid down less firmly, leaving them more open to reinterpretation as children mature and come to understand their experiences differently.

Our findings carry a hopeful implication. Childhood and adolescence may be a particularly valuable window for offering support after trauma. Treatments such as trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy work by helping people to reinterpret traumatic memories and weave them into their broader life story in ways that ease long-term distress.

If young people’s memories are genuinely more malleable, that suggests adolescence could be an especially powerful moment to help them process traumatic memories, before those memories settle into a more fixed shape.

Andy Burnham will keep his cool with Donald Trump and quickly win over other European leaders after he becomes prime minister, Neil Kinnock has insisted.

The former Labour leader admitted pressure would be piled on to the incoming PM, but backed Mr Burnham to deliver in office and succeed on the world stage – including handling the prickly US President.

However, he signalled a potential foreign policy headache ahead for Mr Burnham as he hit out at Labour’s “counterproductive” international aid cuts.

He said his late wife Glenys, a minister under Gordon Brown, would never have stopped fighting the party over the policy.

“Andy’s got to deal with Trump like hedgehogs make love – carefully,” Lord Kinnock, who met Ronald Reagan in the White House in 1984, said in an interview with The Independent.

“That’s just basic, but nobody’s got to tell him that. That’s what he’ll do.”

He added: “The good thing about Andy, he is a very cool guy. He doesn’t burst into flames.

“I’d have had difficulty with Trump because my irritation level is very, very low.

“And Andy’s isn’t, which is a real plus. So he’ll keep his temper, and if he doesn’t actually bite his tongue, he’ll discipline it, so it’ll be okay.”

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When it comes to European leaders, however, they would be “quickly reassured by Andy” after Sir Keir Starmer built “real trust and admiration” across the bloc, he said.

Lord Kinnock, who was speaking to The Independent as part of its Europe: The Way Back campaign, which is calling for the UK to rebuild its relationship with Europe, said Mr Burnham’s passion for devolution, which he talked of in his first major policy speech on Monday, means that “quite a lot of what he’s proposing is conventional politics in much of the rest of Europe… they know what Andy is talking about when he’s talking about devolved empowerment”.

“I think it’ll be a relatively short bridge from trusting Keir to having trust in Andy,” he said.

Lord Kinnock also dismissed criticism from Sir John Major, in this publication last week, who suggested it was a leap to go from being in charge of buses in Manchester to mastering international relations.

Lord Kinnock said it was a “candid appraisal” and “the man on the whole planet who knows that best is called Andy Burnham”.

“He mustn’t be daunted by it, because of course John Major would be the first to recognise that there are some common requirements.”

These included a strong sense of purpose, confidence, the ability to persuade people to work together, to stop them being ideological or dogmatic and to negotiate, he said.

“Both in terms of the clarity of his direction and purpose, which is invaluable – and the fact that he’s a normal guy who can get on with just about anybody – Andy will be fine,” he said.

Lord Kinnock also criticised the government’s decision to fund higher defence spending through cuts to development aid, one of the key passions of Glenys, arguing the policy risked being self-defeating.

He warned that, in conflict situations such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, aid could mean the difference between a young person going to university or getting embroiled in a life of violence.

He said a “reordering of priorities is very much needed, and Glenys would have been arguing for that, ferociously.”

“I don’t think there’s anybody in the (Labour) movement who thinks that she wouldn’t have been disappointed, but she was never silently disappointed. Glenys could be lethally disappointed,” he said.

“She never stopped campaigning.”

He recalled one of her key slogans, which guided her politics: “It’s the duty of those with freedom to expand the liberty of others”.

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For prolific nightlife operator Steph Kay, the only way for her to enjoy the type of daytime event that she wanted to attend in the Gay Village was to host it and arrange it herself. So she did.

Almost exactly a year ago, the former manager of legendary 90s LGBTQ+ venue Manto and owner of Vanilla, held her first ever Afternoon Delights event at New York New York.

Billed as a ‘gay time disco’, Steph said at the time of its inception that she wanted the event to ‘capture the spirit’ of venues like Vanilla, which was the first lesbian venue in the area and had been ‘all about the music, the vibe, and the freedom’ on the dancefloor.

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Since its launch last July, Afternoon Delights has gone from strength to strength and now often sells out. The party will return to New York New York on Saturday (July 11) from 3pm to 8pm. Whilst online tickets have sold out, Steph said she is making a number of tickets available on the door.

“I’m a bit overwhelmed by the success of it all, to be honest,” Steph tells the Manchester Evening News. “I sold Vanilla eight years ago and ever since then, I’ve had people coming up to me telling me the Village is not the same. When I came up with this idea, I was like, well ‘put your money where your mouth is’ – and, I’m glad to say, they have.”

Steph said the concept of a daytime party came about after she and two friends went out in the Village and realised the concept of clubbing on Canal Street had become more expensive and revolved mostly around the evening.

“We’re older now and we prefer to get home by the time some people are just going out,” she laughs. “One of the best things about Afternoon Delights is that it finishes at 8pm and, for us, it feels like it’s midnight already by that point.”

Whilst it has become big with those looking for a club experience that comes with an appropriate bedtime, the event has also been popular with those who no longer live in Manchester and are looking to reminisce on their time clubbing out in the Village.

“A lot of the people who used to come to Vanilla now have grown up or moved out of Manchester,” Steph explains. “Not everybody can come here for a night out every weekend, but they still want the experience. That’s why we decided to do Afternoon Delights every three months – it becomes a special event and a moment for people, and they can get the train home afterwards.

“We have people who travel from Blackpool just for this event. We’ve even had people come up from Amsterdam as they’ve said there’s nothing like this there. There’s clearly a big interest in it!

“A member of my team recently got proposed to someone who she met at an Afternoon Delights event so we now have our very own wedding on the cards too.”

Steph said that once she had left Vanilla, she had considered herself a retiree of Manchester’s nightlife scene. But when she became frustrated with the lack of offerings in terms of what she was looking from the Village, she realised it was up to her to get an event running.

“I had to come out of retirement,” she says. “If I’m going to do something, I’m going to do it properly. I demand the best and that’s how we get the best. I’ve been doing this for 30 years now, so I like to think I know what I’m doing.”

Whilst the event is not directly aimed towards lesbians and queer women, it has attracted such an audience due to Steph’s links to Vanilla. But, she says that it has been great to see the event bring in audiences who are often not always represented within the village – and she hopes it will make other venues see the potential.

“It’s what the Village has been missing,” she says. “There’s not really been anything that has properly taken the space that Vanilla had, sadly. Quite frankly, I don’t think anybody has the balls to do it. Love me or hate me, Vanilla happened because I was confident enough and I had the funds to do it.”

Asked why the village doesn’t really have many lesbian bars or club nights right now, she adds: “I think there is generally a bit of a different approach to clubbing with women. I don’t think people think women want to go out clubbing every night, but somebody’s got to be the first do it, haven’t they?

“With Vanilla, we did loads of events which were hailed as the first one of its kind for the Village. We were the first bar that hosted Black Angel, which was an R&B and Urban night. We also did events tied into Asian music. People followed us at the time, but when we left, nobody really filled that gap.

“But I do also think the approach to the Village is different today. I feel like Manchester is, as a whole, so cool that being gay is not an issue anymore. Most people do not care. With the internet and social media, it’s changed how people go out now.

“That being said, you will always know when Afternoon Delights has taken place because you will see loads of women in one place in the village – something which is still quite a rarity!”

Afternoon Delights will be held at New York New York on Saturday (July 11), tickets will be £10 on the door, and from £7.75 online.

The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust formed in 2006

The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) has celebrated two decades since its formation.

On Wednesday, July 1, the Trust marked 20 years since it was first established through the merger of three services: Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Ambulance and Paramedic Service NHS Trust, East Anglian Ambulance NHS Trust, and Essex Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Simon Chase, Chief Paramedic and Director of Quality at EEAST – who witnessed the 2006 merger first-hand – has worked for the ambulance service for more than 30 years.

He said: “The ambulance service has changed significantly over the past 20 years and continues to evolve, adapt and improve. What has remained constant is the dedication of our staff in serving their communities, many of whom… have devoted decades to the ambulance service and experienced its transformation first-hand.”

One person who has been part of that journey from the very beginning is paramedic Brent Sylvester. Now a Hospital Ambulance Liaison Officer (HALO), Brent transferred from Essex Ambulance Service at the time of the merger.

He said: “I love the job today as much as I did when I first started with the Essex Ambulance Service in 1986. You experience both wonderful and difficult moments, but that is all part of the role. Making a difference to patients’ lives, at some of the best and worst times, is incredibly rewarding.”

Brent admitted he had seen much change over the course of his working life: “The ambulance service has changed so much during my career, and the care we provide today is more advanced than ever and continues to improve.”

Since 2006, EEAST has worked in close partnership with the region’s three air ambulance charities: East Anglian Air Ambulance, Magpas Air Ambulance and Essex & Herts Air Ambulance:

Dr Simon Lewis MBE, Executive Medical Director of Magpas said: “EEAST isn’t simply a partner to Magpas Air Ambulance, they’re part of the foundation on which everything we do is built. Operating alongside EEAST crews every single day, our partnership runs far deeper than shared geography; at every level of our organisations, we share a common goal of improving outcomes for patients by providing outstanding pre-hospital care 24/7.

“As EEAST marks this milestone, Magpas Air Ambulance is proud to be part of its story.”

The tournament organisers have issued a statement ahead of the final batch of last-16 fixtures

FIFA has been told it should postpone the World Cup last-16 match between France and Paraguay on Saturday, with the game set to be played in sweltering conditions that could pose a threat to life.

A heatwave has hit eastern and central areas of the United States and is expected to continue over the weekend, with the tournament organisers already forced into making changes to its Fan Festival event in Philadelphia due to the dangerous and potentially record-breaking temperatures expected.

France and Paraguay will face each other in the city at 5pm on Saturday, with the head index – which includes humidity – expected to be between 37C and 46C at the uncovered Philadelphia Stadium.

Under FIFA’s current heat guidelines, any match could be postponed if the wet bulb temperature – accounting for heat and humidity – reaches 32C.

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With rising concerns for the safety of players, officials and fans, the governing body has been urged to postpone the match and delay kick-off until the evening, when temperatures will be slightly cooler.

One critic added that playing the fixture as it stands puts those involved at “unnecessary risk”, with a postponement of just a few hours making conditions “considerably more playable”.

Director of the Heat Lab at the University of California, Bahart Venkat, told the Associated Press: “When you’re exerting yourself on a particularly hot day, the likelihood of experiencing heat related illness or even death is much higher.”

He added that players’ decision-making could also be negatively impacted by the sweltering temperatures.

This year’s World Cup matches have featured mandatory three-minute hydration breaks midway through each half.

While they have been criticised for disrupting the flow of games, they have remained in force to protect players from extreme heat illness.

In a statement, FIFA said it was taking proactive steps to protect fans heading to Saturday’s match in Philadelphia, such as setting up cooling tents and making water readily available.

“FIFA is committed to protecting the health and safety of all players, referees, fans, volunteers and staff through a tiered heat mitigation model,” a spokesperson told The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Through close collaboration with the City of Philadelphia, medical experts and emergency authorities, FIFA remains committed to delivering a safe, resilient and memorable tournament experience for everyone involved.”

It comes as England’s match against Mexico on Sunday was almost brought forward by six hours amid concerns over storms and fan safety.

What is 2026’s song of the summer?

There’s no easy answer. Algorithmic division is certainly a factor in why there isn’t an obvious pick this year. Where have the songs like “Despacito” in 2017 or “Old Town Road” in 2019 gone? Last year, some even wondered if Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” — a ballad, not a banger — qualified, a departure from the usual up-tempo, feel-good hits.

Whatever your summer mood or flavor, The Associated Press has found a song to soundtrack the season, collected in a Spotify playlist.

Biggest song of the year and therefore the default song of the summer: “Choosin’ Texas,” Ella Langley

Ella Langley broke out just last year with the throwback, spoken-word track “You Look Like You Love Me,” featuring Riley Green, but it’s her breakup banger “Choosin’ Texas” that has made her a crossover country star. Not only has it spent more time at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 than any other song this year, it also has some of the most distinctive lyrics of the year. “He always loved ‘Amarillo By Morning,’” she sings in a particularly melancholic verse, referencing the George Strait classic. “I should’ve taken that as a warnin’.” Indeed.

Past champion: “Luther,” Kendrick Lamar and SZA (2025)

Song of the summer for when you lose the beef but still have fight left in ya: “Janice STFU,” Drake

For the better part of 2025, Drake mostly made headlines for his feud with Kendrick Lamar. It’s safe to say he lost that war, but he’s clearly not going anywhere; he’s still one of the most streamed artists of all time. “Janice STFU” is the undeniable hit off May’s “Iceman,” with its familiar Lykke Li interpolation and moody production.

Past champion: “Nokia,” Drake (2025)

Song of the summer that shares a title with a film: “Midnight Sun (Girls Trip),” Zara Larsson and PinkPantheress

It’s the title of a 2018 romantic drama starring Bella Thorne and a term used to describe regions around the Arctic Circle. But in 2026, the phrase “Midnight Sun” belongs to Swedish pop star Zara Larsson. It’s the title of her last album and lead single, the inescapable Eurodance-pop “Midnight Sun,” with an elastic vocal performance. Last month, she released “Midnight Sun: Girls Trip,” a collection of remixes featuring everyone from Shakira and Robyn to Kehlani and rapper JT and, of course, PinkPantheress.

Past champion: “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” Deep Blue Something (1995)

Song of the summer for high-energy It Girls: “DANCE…,” Slayyyter

She’s the “Wor$t Girl in America,” if her cheeky album title is to be believed, but also one of pop’s great new provocateurs. At the album’s center is her buzzy electro-pop opus “DANCE…,” perfect for those who’ve been patiently awaiting her mainstream rise — and those who need a good excuse to hit the dance floor.

Past champion: “Bad Girls,” Donna Summer (1979)

Song of the summer for the throwback crowd: “I Just Might,” Bruno Mars

Earlier this year, hitmaker Bruno Mars returned with his first new album in 10 years, anchored by the feel-good, disco-pop-soul single “I Just Might.” The throwback tune is a funky reprieve from slow or boring days — and one that will be heard on wedding dance floors for the foreseeable future.

Past champion: “Red Red Wine,” UB40 (1983)

Song of the summer that arrived at the beginning of the year: “Dracula (Jennie Remix)”, Tame Impala and Jennie

There’s a long tradition of the song of the summer arriving at the top of the year — looking at you, “drivers license” and “Boy’s a Liar PT. 2.” This year, the title goes to Tame Impala’s “Dracula” — particularly the remix with Blackpink’s Jennie. “Run from the sunlight, Dracula,” they harmonize, in a vocal melody inescapable on TikTok and in the real world.

Past champion: “NUEVAYoL,” Bad Bunny (2025)

Song of the summer for those looking for a club classic: “Chévere (premium_remix),” by Aria Vega and Ryan Castro

A club-ready contender for song of the summer should be easy, breezy and amorous. Such is the case of Aria Vega and Ryan Castro’s “Chévere (premium_remix),” where reimagined, romantic reggaeton is perfect for a house party or finding the love of your life. Ideally both.

Past champion: “Break My Soul,” Beyoncé (2022)

Song of the summer for people who know the power of a good bridge: “The Cure,” Olivia Rodrigo

In the lead up to her career-best album, “You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love,” Olivia Rodrigo released “The Cure.” It marked a giant step forward for the young songwriter, with dreamy guitars, orchestral strings and most impactful of all: its explosive bridge.

Past champion: “Hollaback Girl,” Gwen Stefani (2005)

Song of the summer for people who love music, fashion and film in equal measure: “SS26,” Charli xcx

So long, “BRAT.” The contemporary pop landscape’s preeminent party girl is in for a bummer of a summer. “SS26,” one of the first tracks released from Charli xcx’s forthcoming “Music, Fashion, Film,” is shockingly minimalistic, with little more than distorted guitar riffs and production that sounds like a simple Casio keyboard preset. It’s rock music, as she’s promised — but done her own way.

Past champion: “Rhinestone Cowboy,” Glen Campbell (1975)

Song for people who live like it’s summer year-round: “E85,” Don Toliver

“On the highway with my significant lover (I love),” the singer-songwriter-rapper Don Toliver declares with ease in the chorus of “E85.” “High octane, more fuel for your consumption.” If there is an image more primed for the hot summer months than rolling down the freeway on a trip with a loved one, we have yet to see it.

Past champion: “Mi Gente,” J Balvin and Willy William (2017)

Song of the summer for seaside dreamers: “Swim,” BTS

The game-changing K-pop boy band BTS returned after a nearly four-year musical hiatus with “ARIRANG.” The comeback was led by “Swim,” a reserved, alt-pop track that brings a kind of intimacy to their stadium-sized output. The “Swim” here is metaphorical — as is the “dive” in its chorus — of having a crush, but the aquatic language works in conjuring dreamy, poolside imagery, too.

Past champion: “Waterfalls,” TLC (1995)

Song of the summer for the yearners: “Raindance,” Dave ft. Tems

British rapper Dave and Nigerian singer Tems team up for the Afroswing single “Raindance,” a sweet, sexy song about wanting to lock things down. “Hold me close, don’t tell me goodnight / Are you down to get me?” the pair dreamily duet on the second verse. “Tell me when you’re ready, I’m ready.”

Past champion: “Nineteen,” Tegan and Sara (2007)

Song of the summer for the sports crowd: “Dai Dai,” Shakira and Burna Boy

This summer is all about soccer, so, of course, we had to include one of the official songs for the 2026 FIFA World Cup: “Dai Dai.” The Colombian superstar Shakira and Afrobeats icon Burna Boy team up on an energetic, undeniably global pop track. It exists at the intersection of all their strengths: Afrobeats and Latin rhythms, separate, complementary verses and a strong chorus about unity.

Past champion: “The Final Countdown,” Europe (1986)

Song of the summer for those ready to stop feuding and enjoy life again: “Horses & Divorces,” Kacey Musgraves and Miranda Lambert

Look, there’s no shortage of great songs from Kacey Musgraves’ latest album, “Middle of Nowhere.” A case could be made to include “Mexico Honey” or “Dry Spell” here, but what about a song with norteño accordions and slide guitar that doubles as a cheeky punchline to a fight? The capital-c country “Horses & Divorces” brings musicians’ feud to an end over a shared love of drinking and Willie Nelson. What could be sweeter?

Past champion: “Girl, so confusing,” Charli xcx and Lorde (2024)