If you want to break free of Amsterdam’s infamous party scene, there’s a more chilled-out alternative to the hedonistic Dutch capital.

Let the record show that I’m an Amsterdam girlie through and through. Many a happy weekend has been spent wandering its picture-perfect canals, indulging in sugary stroopwafel and tracking down a decent happy hour.

For anyone who has been on a stag do in Amsterdam, you know the drill. Try to find a cheap bar, load up on beer, wander the canals looking for clubs, party hard into the night, wake up with a deathly hangover and repeat.

It’s gloriously hedonistic, and I’m glad I spent some of my best backpacking years hanging out with Dutch pals in one of the world’s most exciting cities.

However, now I’m old and tired, I can’t face the stupidly late nights, emerging bleary-eyed in the morning, trying to hunt down coffee for less than 5 euros.

If, like me, you want to break free of the Dam’s blowout cycle, there’s a more chilled-out alternative to the party-hard Dutch capital.

Amsterdam is renowned for its historic canals, vibrant nightlife, and cultural attractions, and has long been a top tourist destination, welcoming up to 20 million tourists a year.

Its immense popularity has led to overcrowding, prompting the local government to take steps to manage mass tourism and address issues related to unruly visitors.

As a result, many travellers are seeking city break alternatives that offer similar Dutch charm without the crowds and high prices.

Utrecht, the fourth-largest city in the Netherlands, is fast emerging as a cheaper and less crowded alternative to party-hard Amsterdam and is easily reached by plane and train from Cardiff.

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KLM operates daily flights from Cardiff Airport to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, with an average flight time of 1 hour and 15 minutes.

From Schiphol, trains to Utrecht take about 30 minutes and depart every 15 minutes, and the railway station is situated directly below the airport. Gotta love those excellent European rail links.

Just a short hop from Amsterdam, Utrecht shares many similarities with the capital. It’s often called ‘Mini Amsterdam’ due to its pretty canals and well-preserved traditional Dutch architecture. It has all the beauty of Amsterdam but just a fraction of the crowds and, to some extent, the cost.

Here’s my guide on skipping Amsterdam this summer and heading to uber-cool Utrecht instead. Make sure to also follow me on TikTok for more travel recommendations.

Skip the crowds

As a predominantly university city, Utrecht has far fewer clog shops and less heavy tourist traffic than Amsterdam, making it a more pleasant place to visit, especially during the busy high season.

By contrast, the historic streets of Amsterdam are rammed with snap-happy tourists buying stroopwafels, posing at landmarks, clogging up canal walkways, and wandering into bike lanes.

In uber-cool Utrecht, however, you’ll find locals biking and walking around the compact centre and canals, and you can hear the expressive Dutch language all around you, with its guttural ‘g’s, diminutive ‘ties’, and pleasant sing-song accent.

You should visit Utrecht rather than Amsterdam to explore a Dutch city with a vibe and design similar to Amsterdam’s, but with much less foot traffic and selfie-taking visitors.

Amsterdam is a popular tourist spot, so everything is more expensive, from accommodation to food and attraction tickets, as demand is so high.

In under-the-radar Utrecht, there’s plenty to see and do, but the cost of hotels and eating out is inevitably slightly lower, meaning your travel money can go a bit further.

You can reduce costs further by staying in a backpacker hostel, booking self-catering accommodation, or seeking free city activities and events, such as a free walking tour of Utrecht.

There’s no better way to get to know the city than walking along the 12th-century Old Canal Area (Oudegracht), Europe’s only inner canal system with wharves and wharf cellars.

Ask your guide to take you along the waterside to see the cellars and learn more about the canals’ history and historic inhabitants.

You can also discover nature as a low-cost wellness activity by walking in Wilhelminapark, Lepelenburg Park, or the botanical gardens and appreciating the natural beauty in and around the city.

Explore Utrecht’s most unique feature

While Amsterdam has the iconic canals and dreamy waterways, Utrecht has its own architectural quirks.

The canals in Utrecht are split-level, meaning they are at street and water level and along the water, street-level cellars also date back to the 13th century.

The 12th-century Oudegracht (old canal) was built to divert the Oude Rijn (old river). Connecting the river Vecht in the north to the Vaartsche Rijn in the south, the Oudegracht was destined to become an elongated harbour.

Large city castles were built along the canal, and in the 13th Century, shipyards were built along the street at water level. The deep cellars, serving as storage spaces, ran through to below the houses.

What used to be warehouses, workhouses, and factories have now been refurbished into trendy restaurants, cafes, shops, and bars that sit right by the water, a feature you won’t find in Amsterdam.

Utrecht is also the only city in the Netherlands with restaurants with terraces at water level. Enjoy an alfresco meal or drink on these waterfront terraces as you watch boats gracefully glide by.

Get cultured

Amsterdam has many world-famous art museums and galleries, including the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum. However, Utrecht also offers plenty of art and culture for visitors.

Utrecht proudly flies the flag for De Stijl, (Dutch for “The Style”) an eye-catching art movement born in 1917 in Leiden, known for bold lines, strict geometry, and a lot of horizontal and vertical action.

At the heart sits the offbeat Rietveld Schröder House, Utrecht’s star architectural attraction and a must-see for art, design, and photography lovers.

Built in 1924, Rietveld Schröder was commissioned by Ms Truus Schröder-Schräder and designed by the architect Gerrit Thomas Rietveld.

With its transformable kitchen/dining/living area, this unusual property brings De Stijl’s core principles to life in living colour (and shape).

Today, it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site where curious visitors can poke around on guided or audio tours, prepare to geek out on form and function equally.

Don’t miss a trip to the Centraal Museum while you’re in town either. It’s Utrecht’s main museum and a fabulous mishmash of old and new, having opened its doors in 1838.

It’s now home to an eclectic modern art collection, including the world’s biggest stash of Rietveld pieces, ideal for funky furniture and design-flair fans. Keep an eye out for special exhibitions; there’s always something fresh and fascinating to discover here.

Check out the food scene and nightlife

The city’s youthful population means plenty of trendy bars and restaurants where you can sample international cuisine and traditional Dutch dishes like Poffertjes and Bitterballen.

Eating out in Utrecht is slightly cheaper than in Amsterdam too.

Head to the canals for wharf-side dining and drinking, and enjoy the cafe buzz of terraces packed with students and professionals. Talud9 Wijnbar is an excellent spot for a strong espresso by day and a cheeky wine at night.

For zingy international flavours, BLAUW is the place to go for quality Indonesian dining and is very popular with locals. Order their famous ‘meat and fish rice table’ and feast upon a vast selection of dishes, including Beef rendang, chicken rica rica, goat satay, mackerel pepsin, codfish meeting, shrimp satay, and lamb gulai.

For a steak dinner in the city, head to STAN in the centre for meaty dishes cooked on the charcoal-fired Josper grill at this swish dining venue. They also have Buddha bowls, breakfasts and massive sharing plates on the menu.

A night out in Utrecht is a chance to escape the noisy crowds of tourists and have a more relaxed evening surrounded by chilled-out locals, rather than slurring stags on a 48-hour bender.

The city has an active cultural life, with theatres, cinemas, music festivals, live music, clubs, and bars to suit all tastes. Its large student population means a big night out on the town has a youthful and vibrant feel.

If live music is your jam, there are several venues where you can see indie bands and artists. Ekko is a famous alternative pop stage in the city where you can have a meal, grab a beer and enjoy a live gig.

Utrecht bars worth a visit include Kafé België, a beer lover’s paradise with a large selection of brewed and bottled beers, and Winkel van Sinkel, for a glass of wine in a lovely outdoor seating area.

Stylish Street Food Club is an eclectic venue for getting expertly stirred and shaken signature cocktails and Asian & Peruvian street food.

Explore green spaces

While Amsterdam has the busy Vondelpark, Utrecht also offers beautiful green spaces to escape the urban surroundings, which are often less crowded than Amsterdam’s parks.

Rent a budget bike from the tourist centre and bike to the botanical gardens, Máximapark, and the large urban park Amelisweerd.

Get off your bike and connect with nature by hiring a boat and exploring the scenic waterways. Hire a Canoe from De Rijnstroom and paddle through the Amelisweerd nature reserve.

Glide through peaceful waters and appreciate the wildlife and swimming Dutch locals, who wave languidly from the water.

Paddle through fields, forests, and bridges on this gentle expedition and soak up some rays while on it. Along the way, you can stop and picnic at one of the picnic fields you will pass or feast upon delicious Dutch-style pancakes at the waterside Rhijnauwen tea house.

Plan your trip to Utrecht

Getting there from Cardiff

The easiest way to reach Utrecht from Cardiff is by flying to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, which has daily departures from Cardiff Airport.

The flight takes about 1.5 hours. From Schiphol, you can catch a direct train to Utrecht Central Station. Trains run frequently throughout the day, taking approximately 30 minutes. You can purchase tickets at the airport or in advance via NS Dutch Railways.

To find the best flight deals, compare prices on platforms like Skyscanner or Google Flights and book as early as possible to secure the best rates.

Accommodation

Utrecht offers a range of accommodation options, from charming canal-side boutique hotels to budget-friendly hostels and modern apartments.

You can easily search and book hotels through trusted platforms such as Booking.com, which lets you filter by price, location, rating, and facilities. Look for hotels near the city centre or within walking distance of Utrecht Central Station for easy access to attractions and transport links.

Getting around

Utrecht has an efficient and easy-to-navigate public transport system, including buses and trams operated by U-OV.

The best way to get around is with an OV-chipkaart, a reusable travel card you can top up and use on most public transport in the Netherlands. You can also purchase disposable travel cards or make contactless payments for single journeys.

Cycling is a popular and practical way to explore the city. With extensive bike lanes and rental options (such as OV-fiets and local bike hire shops), you’ll find it easy to join locals on two wheels.

The GB News presenter worked two jobs after landing his first TV role at 21, fearing his television career wouldn’t last

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Eamonn Holmes may have enjoyed a career in broadcasting for decades but the Irish TV host could have ended up woith a very different career.

When he was younger, he had an evening job that he continued even as his broadcasting career began to take shape, until his boss eventually urged him to concentrate solely on his television ambitions.

His first foray into television came in 1979 as a reporter and presenter for Ulster Television (UTV) in Northern Ireland, a springboard from which his career would go on to flourish considerably.

Yet Eamonn remained so anxious that his television career might suddenly dry up that he was reluctant to abandon his pub work, showing absolutely no urgency to hand in his notice before he ultimately did relinquish his evening shifts to dedicate himself fully to broadcasting.

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Speaking to the Express at the Young Chef, Young Waiter, Young Mixologist awards where he was a judge, Eamonn reflected: “Nobody in the UK had been given tea time programmes at 21, so when I did, it went in my favour.

“But I was working in a pub, and the head barman said to me, ‘what is this? You serve them up the news until seven o’clock and then you’re in here at 7.30pm’.”

He recalled his response to his manager at the time: “But does this TV business ever last?”

The barman firmly assured him it would, encouraged him to share a drink, and told him to chase his dreams, with Eamonn concluding: “That was my last night in the bar.”

Eamonn credits his bar work with helping him break into television, explaining that it drew out his character and taught him the art of conversing with people.

He explained: “It taught me to be more relaxed with a TV audience and how to talk to people in television, so that was amazing. It was a bit strange, I didn’t know anybody who was in television or presenting, but that’s what happened.”

His breakthrough in Ireland marked just the beginning of his television journey, joining the BBC in 1986 before moving to GMTV in 1993, where he remained until 2005 while simultaneously taking on numerous other television projects, including stints on Sky News, the BBC programme Jet Set, and occasional appearances on GMB.

Eamonn’s latest position has seen him comfortably settled at GB News presenting the breakfast programme.

GB News’s Breakfast Show is on weekdays at 6am

NEW YORK (AP) — Savannah Guthrie was back and almost all business at NBC’s “Today” show anchor desk on Monday, marking a return for the first time in more than two months since her mother’s disappearance. “Here we go, ready or not,” Guthrie said as the show opened. “Let’s do the news.”

After running through a series of news headlines, Guthrie said that “we are so glad that you started our week with us and it’s good to be home.” Her co-host, Craig Melvin said that “it’s good to have you back at home.”

She greeted longtime co-worker Al Roker with “Good morning, Sunshine,” when he noted that it was good to see her on the set. At the end of the first 25-minute portion of the show, she offered Melvin a high-five.

Emotions got the better of her before the last half hour, when she joined her colleagues in front of fans gathered at the show’s Rockefeller Center studio. She fought back tears when one fan was seen with a “Welcome home Savannah” shirt, and clutched colleague Jenna Bush Hager’s arm and thanked people for their support.

Guthrie says it’s hard to go forward not knowing what happened

Guthrie, one of morning television’s most recognizable faces, has been a “Today” host since 2012. She has acknowledged that she’s a changed person and that it’s hard to go forward not knowing what happened to Nancy Guthrie, who authorities believe was taken against her will from her Arizona home.

Despite an intense search involving thousands of federal and local officers and volunteers, there has been no sign of the 84-year-old mother of three since she was reported missing Feb. 1.

The “Today” show has followed the story closely for the past two months, but it wasn’t mentioned during the first hour of her return on Monday. Bringing things back to normal was clearly intentional: Her return wasn’t referenced during interviews with NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez at the White House and military analyst Steve Warren on the show’s set.

Hoda Kotb, the former anchor who had filled in for Guthrie for much of the past two months and interviewed her former colleague, wasn’t on set Monday.

“Today” has seen a ratings boost over the past two months and has even eclipsed ABC’s “Good Morning America” as the leader in the morning show ratings. The shows aren’t the profit generators they once were for the networks, but the rivalry is still intense.

“Today” averaged 3.1 million viewers for the first three months of the year, up nearly 9% in an era most broadcast programs lose viewers. It’s hard to tell how much the Guthrie story had to do with that: NBC also aired the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics in February, and both events tend to help a morning show’s ratings.

“Good Morning America” averaged 2.93 million viewers, up 2% over 2025 while “CBS Mornings” plunged 17% to 1.76 million, according to the Nielsen company.

As part of a video message released by her New York church on Easter Sunday, Guthrie spoke about feeling “moments of deep disappointment with God, the feeling of utter abandonment.” But she said the resurrection is not fully celebrated “if we do not acknowledge the feelings of loss, pain, and yes, death.”

In announcing her return to NBC’s flagship morning show, Guthrie said she was uncertain whether she’ll feel like she still belongs.

“It’s hard to imagine doing it because it’s such a place of joy and lightness,” she said just over a week ago on “Today” during her first interview since the disappearance. “I can’t come back and try to be something that I’m not. But I can’t not come back because it’s my family.”

She didn’t anticipate faking her way through the show, which is normally light-hearted with a mix of serious, breaking news.

Guthrie’s mom had made occasional visits to show’s set

There had been a great deal of speculation about whether she would return.

“I want to smile, and when I do it will be real,” she told Hoda Kotb, who came back to “Today” to fill in while Guthrie focused on the search. “Being there is joyful, and when it’s not I’ll say so.”

Nancy Guthrie made occasional appearances on “Today” over the years, once taking part in a cooking demonstration and surprising her daughter on the set. When Savannah Guthrie returned to her hometown of Tucson in 2025 for a segment recorded for the show, the two visited one of their favorite restaurants and talked about their love of Arizona.

The Guthrie family has offered a $1 million reward for information leading to the recovery of their mother.

Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will after finding blood near the doorstep of her home in the foothills outside Tucson. The FBI later released surveillance videos showing a masked man on the porch that night. Volunteers and search teams scoured the nearby desert terrain filled with cactuses, bushes and boulders in the first weeks after she vanished.

But attention has faded from an investigation that was declared to be a top priority for the FBI and local authorities. Investigators have not released new evidence in weeks and say the number of tips has slowed. The FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department both said late last week that they had no updates.

Early on, some media outlets reported receiving ransom messages tied to the case. Guthrie said she and her siblings responded to two that they believed were real and offered to pay.

Guthrie said her celebrity status might be the reason her mother was taken, but said that possibility was “too much to bear.”

___

Associated Press correspondents John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, and Sarah Brumfield in Washington contributed to this report.

ITV doctor Dr Amir Khan has raised concerns about a common lunchtime habit many of us are guilty of

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A doctor has issued a stark warning about a common lunchtime habit, urging people to “stop doing this at lunch”. For many of us, the midday meal is often rushed. Whether you’re at work, studying, or caring for children, finding sufficient time to prepare food can be a real challenge.

Reheating leftovers or ready meals has therefore become a go-to option for countless people. However, this seemingly harmless routine could carry serious health implications.

Speaking on his podcast No Appointment Necessary, Dr Amir Khan elaborated on the issue. The medic, widely recognised from his appearances on ITV, cautioned people against both heating and storing food in plastic containers.

While the risks aren’t “definite”, he stressed they remain “possible”. His co-host Cherry Healey asked: “What about microwaving your food in a plastic container?”

Dr Amir responded: “So, to all of that, I would say is now that I know what I know about the dementia study, the carotid artery study, is something that I do not do anymore. Not because it’s definite, but because it might be possible.

“When you store food in plastic containers, even just storing it in a plastic container, increases the risk of that food absorbing some of the microplastics within that container. If you then put it in the microwave, the heat really ramps up that risk.

“The plastic becomes a little bit more unstable. And it gives off these microplastics into your food, you eat the food.” The caption beneath the video read: “Heating up your lunch today? This is one of those things you wish you hadn’t heard… Heating food in plastic doesn’t just warm it – it can release microplastics into it.

“Not definite but it might be possible. So, would you risk it?”

Research on this topic varies considerably. One study, published in the Journal of American Nutrition in 2023, indicated that two additives found in plastics have concerned toxicologists “for many years”. These are bisphenol A (BPA), commonly found in water bottles, and phthalates, regularly used in food packaging.

The study’s authors observed: “Both BPA and phthalates are believed by many authorities to be endocrine disruptors, sometimes called hormone disruptors, because they interfere with the biological effects of testosterone and oestrogen when introduced into the body.

“The hormone that BPA and phthalates are most suspected of imitating is estrogen, affecting the male hormone testosterone production. In one pediatric investigation, this substance was linked to childhood obesity.” Both of these chemicals, along with other additives in plastic, have been linked to a variety of fertility issues, immune system problems, cancers, and disabilities. They stated: “Therefore, either BPA or phthalate or both could be a human health concern.” However, the risk posed by consuming food and drinks that have come into contact with these chemicals remains unclear to scientists. The authors of the study stated: “There is considerable disagreement here among scientists and regulatory agencies.

“Because most plastics are quite stable, it is likely that contact with food or drink results in only tiny amounts of BPA or phthalates eaten.” However, they pointed out: “Because plastic use in humans has a relatively short history, whether BPA or phthalate released from food containers is safe requires further investigation into possible long-term effects.”

In 2024, the European Commission introduced a ban on BPA in “food contact materials”, which means it’s gradually being phased out from the production of everyday items such as water bottles. Britain is currently considering a similar ban, covering BPA and other harmful bisphenols, with a consultation on the issue concluding in December 2025.

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — For the second time, Israel has attacked Iran’s South Pars natural gas and its associated petrochemical complex – an energy lifeline for Iran that both helps keep the lights on for civilians and provides a key source of export earnings.

Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said Monday that Israel attacked a key petrochemical plant at Asaluyeh, the onshore industrial aspect of the gas field, which lies under the Persian Gulf.

Katz said the “powerful strike” hit what he called “the largest petrochemical facility in Iran … responsible for about 50% of the country’s petrochemical production.” Combined with an earlier attack, two facilities responsible for 85% of Iran’s petrochemical exports have been taken out of service, he said.

Attacks on South Pars are sufficiently provocative to Iran that an earlier Israeli attack on March 18 prompted Iran to target energy infrastructure in other Middle East countries in response, an escalation of the war that sent new shockwaves across the region and beyond.

After the March attack, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Israel would not attack South Pars again, but warned on social media that if Iran continued attacking key energy infrastructure in Qatar, the United States would retaliate and “massively blow up the entirety” of the field.

Here are things to know about the South Pars natural gas field and its associated industries making chemicals using gas as a raw material:

Iran’s share of the world’s largest gas field provides both domestic energy and export earnings.

South Pars is Iran’s biggest source of domestic energy in a country that sometimes struggles to produce enough electricity. The gas field under the Persian Gulf — the world’s largest — is shared by Iran and Qatar. It’s called South Pars on the Iranian side and the North Field on the Qatari side.

Iran relies heavily on gas to produce electricity and heat homes. It is the fourth-largest consumer of natural gas in the world, behind the U.S., China and Russia, according to the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, even though its economy is much smaller. In contrast to other Middle East countries, it uses gas for heating due to its cold climate and much of that use is subsidized, which discourages efficient use.

Abundant, affordable gas from South Pars fuels industries making chemicals for export

While the South Pars gas is important at home, the petrochemical plant is a source of export earnings. The gas is used to make basic chemical building blocks like ethylene, propylene, methanol, ammonia and urea used to make other products such as plastic pipe, packaging, clothing, household products or fertilizer. Among the largest importers are Turkey, China, India and Southeast Asian countries, according to Iranian mining and petrochemical export company Irminex. Iran’s petrochemical industry gets a competitive advantage from low raw material costs due to its access to South Pars gas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says those earnings benefitted Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. “Today we destroyed the largest petrochemical plant in Iran,” Netanyahu said. “In other words, we are systematically destroying the money machine of the Revolutionary Guards.”

Iran has struggled with rickety energy infrastructure and shortages

Iran has suffered power shortages because of interruptions to gas supplies, even though on paper it has huge energy reserves. In July, public buildings had to shut down when a heat wave strained the power grid.

So an attack on South Pars could potentially target both civilian welfare and export earnings.

The village hosts a tranquil setting away from the hustle and bustle of city life

A picturesque Cambridgeshire village is known for its famous Roman burial mounds alongside an award-winning pub considered an “absolute gem” by customers. Bartlow is a small village located around 12 miles south-east of Cambridge and sits against the banks of the River Granta.

Perhaps one of the most popular features of this village is it being blessed with some truly tranquil areas away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Some people know Bartlow very well but others not so much so here are a few reasons why this village is such a lovely place to live.

Batlow has an intriguing history with one particularly interesting landmark. Barlow Hills consists of four remaining ancient burial mounds dating back to the Roman era that offer locals a glimpse of those who used to live there.

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The mounds reportedly contain cremated remains of high-ranking individuals and chambers. Standing 15-metres high, the tallest barrow is considered the largest Roman barrow north of the Alps.

What is even better than a village steeped with history is a village filled with history that one also home to a beautiful pub offering traditional classics.

The Three Hills, a dog-friendly, country pub, is hosted in a 17-th century Grade II listed building which initially opened as an alehouse in 1847. The kitchen has earned multiple awards including two AA Rosettes, a Michelin Plate for great food, and named Highest Newcomer in the Top 50 gastropubs in the UK in 2021.

This gastropub offers foods from haddock and steak dishes to lamb belly and a potato risotto.

Not only has this pub earned recognition through awards, it has also built a strong reputation of reviews online. With an average of 4.6 out of five stars on Tripadvisor, amongst over 450 reviews, new customers can feel assured to have a delightful experience.

One guest said that The Three Hills is an “absolute gem” while another said “I can’t recommend this place enough.”

Another wrote: “The location was prefect, the staff were friendly and professional and our room was lovely.

“The evening meals and breakfasts were delicious, fresh and beautifully presented and the staff in the kitchen and serving worked really hard. I cannot fault this place and will definitely be back.”

The pretty village is around 20-minutes away from Cambridge by car or regular bus routes from the village into the city are available.

Barlow is home to a nursery called Little Hands, that offers care for babies from six-months old. Nearby, families can send their children to Castle Camps Church of England School or Linton CE Infant School. For older ones, Linton Village College is the local secondary school and provides education between the ages of 11 and 16.

Brisk south-easterly winds developing on Tuesday and Wednesday will drag in much warmer air from the European continent.

Temperatures will be around 6 to 10C above average for early April.

On Tuesday temperatures will rise to the high teens and low twenties in most parts.

Across the south Midlands and the west coast of Wales it is likely to reach 22C, making it the warmest day of the year so far.

The previous highest temperature this year was 20.9C, recorded on 31 March at Pershore, Worcestershire.

Tuesday will be a mostly sunny day, especially across England and Wales but cloud will build in Northern Ireland and western Scotland with a few showers.

By Wednesday temperatures will rise even further to 23C, perhaps even 24C in south-east England.

With sunshine continuing, temperatures across England and Wales will still be into the low twenties, so it will feel more like a typical summer’s day for most of us.

However, conditions will turn a little cooler in western Scotland, Northern Ireland and Irish Sea coasts with more cloud and rain moving in later in the afternoon.

Trump has given Iran the deadline of Tuesday evening to open the Strait of Hormuz, or else: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F*****’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.”

While council leaders previously described the move as an expression of humanitarian solidarity, promoting “cultural, social, economic and educational exchanges,” concerns were raised about possible links to extremist groups and individuals who celebrated the October 7 attacks on Israel and the Jewish people.

The south Manchester Sunday league side have landed another huge coup

It may not quite be Old Trafford, but Antonio Valencia will be in some illustrious company when he steps out for a Manchester Sunday league side.

Former Manchester United skipper Valencia, who retired in 2021, is to lace-up his boots again after signing for Wythenshawe FC’s Veterans side.

Valencia, 40 – who won nine trophies with the Reds including two Premier League titles after signing from Wigan Athletic for £16m in 2009 – has become the latest former pro to sign up with the south Manchester club.

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Former Manchester City players Stephen Ireland, Joleon Lescott and Nedum Onuoha; ex-England striker Emile Heskey; and former Newcastle forward Papiss Cisse are among the stars who once played at the very top of the game who have appeared for Wythenshawe Vets this season.

Others include Marc Albrighton, Maynor Figueroa, Jefferson Montero, Erik Pieters, Kieran Westwood, Cameron Jermone, Paul McShane, Danny Drinkwater, Adrian Mariappa, Oumar Niasse and Martyn Waghorn.

Former Hull City and Burnley winger George Boyd scored four times in the team’s most recent league game, a 7-1 win over Collegiate Old Boys last month.

The ‘Galactico’ approach has worked as they sit top of the Cheshire Veterans Football League Premier Division this season, with seven wins from seven games and a goal difference of plus 54.

They will be hoping former Ecuador international Valencia, who also won the FA Cup and Europa League and captained the Reds before leaving the club in 2019, can add even more star quality.

After leaving United he joined Ecuadorian top flight sight LDU Quito and was on their books for two seasons before moving to Mexican outfit Queretaro.

In a post on X they said: “We’re proud to welcome Premier League winner, Antonio Valencia to Wythenshawe Vets A Manchester United legend. Title winner. Now wearing our badge. Welcome to the club, Antonio! #UpTheAmmies.”

Owner Carl Barratt recently told the Manchester Evening News: ““Without financial aids, a club cannot exist, and I want to make sure that my managers, my players, my volunteers, everyone gets as much support as possible. We rely on funding, we rely on sponsorship, we rely on everything else.

“We happened to come across a Vets team which is helping make that a little bit easier, so suddenly people know who we are. When I go to people talking about sponsorship for this season, next season, I’m saying Wythenshawe and yes, they know we’ve got a successful women’s team, know we’ve got a successful men’s team, but they know ultimately at the moment we have a very popular Vets team.

“Ultimately, brand awareness is something which is key across many sort of businesses and what this does is it makes it an easy sell to them, the Vets team. But likewise, they’re just another team to me. One that I can utilise for the greater good of the club.”

Ireland previously told Sky Sports: “We’re all retired and it’s nice to get together to continue to play football, keep fit and also from the mental health side of things.

“A lot of lads can feel a bit stranded and alone when they come out of football. We all live in the same area so help each other.”