Less than a year on from the release of her most recent album The Life Of A Showgirl, Taylor Swift has teased that she has more new music on the way.

Earlier this week, the Swifties began suspecting that something could be afoot when it was noticed that the Grammy winner had managed to sneak zeros into her Instagram bio and in the lyrics to some of her more recent musical offerings on Apple Music.

Finally, on Tuesday evening, she revealed that this was all intentional, as she has a new single titled Patient Zero coming later this week.

“I’ve been impatiently waiting to tell you that my brand new single Patient Zero will be out on 25 September (!!!!!!!!!!!!),” she confirmed on Instagram.

Meanwhile, it’s been suggested that Patient Zero could be the lead single from an upcoming deluxe edition of – or companion piece to – The Life Of A Showgirl, with the subtitle “Encore”.

Remember last week when Taylor appeared in a skit at the Emmys, poking fun at all of the Easter eggs she’s prone to including in her week?

Well, it seems that even this itself was an Easter egg, as the nonsense words she uttered to camera – “Saccharide. Ares. From the vineyard. North or south” – appear to allude to the word “encore”.

It seems she’s been teasing this new work for longer than many of us realise, as her Opalite music video also included a shot containing the message “patient for the encore”, in an apparent nod to her upcoming single and the collection of songs it’s taken from.

The Life Of A Showgirl was released in October 2025, reuniting Taylor with her Red and 1989 collaborators.

While it’s fair to say that it was far from her best-reviewed work, it did perform well commercially, and featured not one but two UK number ones in the singles The Fate Of Ophelia and Opalite.

It’s also been pointed out that the nonsense words she said at the Emmys are an anagram for “my first record’s re-record is out Nov Ten ha ha ha”:

Piers Morgan has claimed he will continue legal action against Earl Charles Spencer over what the divisive broadcaster previously described as “bullshit” claims written about him in Princess Diana’s brother’s new book.

Earlier this week, the former Good Morning Britain anchor called out some “complete lies” that had been written about him in Swan Song, a new memoir by Earl Spencer about his famous late sister.

This most notably included claiming that Piers was editor of The Mirror when the tabloid published illegally-obtained photos of Diana working out at a gym when, in fact, he didn’t become its editor until two years after this incident.

“Earl Spencer, you’ll be hearing – and your publishers [will be hearing] – from my lawyers, because I would like the complete lie that you’ve published about me and those photographs to be removed from your book,” he said on his YouTube channel Piers Morgan Uncensored.

A day later, Earl Spencer issued a public apology to Piers for what was referred to as an “incorrect assumption”.

In a statement, his rep told HuffPost UK: “As an historian, accuracy is important to Earl Spencer. He therefore wishes to clarify that his assumption was incorrect. Earl Spencer apologises to Mr Morgan for this error.”

However, Piers has maintained that this has not deterred him from pursuing legal action.

“Earl Spencer has apologised to me for his defamatory lies published in his new book, Swan Song, published today,” he said on X.

“But I am pursuing legal action against him and his publisher Penguin to have the lies removed, and damages paid to the King’s Trust.”

HuffPost UK contacted Penguin earlier this week for comment, but did not receive a response.

“The mere fact he has so speedily issued an apology should say it all,” Piers added during an interview on Radio 4 on Tuesday evening, before telling Earl Spencer directly: “You’re a self proclaimed historian – remove it immediately. And if that means you have to pulp your book, well, that’s on you.”

Prior to this, Swan Song made headlines in the lead-up to its publication, most notably over one passage in which Earl Spencer alleged that King Charles told him in the wake of Diana’s death that “we’ll forget her soon enough” – prompting a rare response from the Palace.

“While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss,” a royal spokesperson said.

Doubling down during a subsequent interview with ABC’s Maggie Rulli, Earl Spencer quipped that it’s “not every day you’re gaslit by a king”.

“I was really upset with that because I thought it was very, not only condescending, but not straight,” he noted.

Donald Trump stepped up his war on the media on Tuesday night with a new attack on the reporters who cover him.

Over the weekend, Trump banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House and had the journalists’ press credentials deactivated. Then, just before midnight on Tuesday, he posted on Truth Social:

“All of the SLEAZEBAGS, like Third Rate ‘Reporter,’ Kaitlan Collins, of Fake News CNN, a truly unhappy person, said they weren’t going to be covering me. Then why were they ranting and raving like Lunatics, in the Press Area, at the United Nations? Why was she there?”

Although no network or news organisation said it wouldn’t cover Trump, TV pool coverage was suspended in protest of the ban. That means no video of certain events, but not a lack of coverage of the president. As for Collins, she was at the United Nations to cover the General Assembly in New York City.

Trump continued to attack her.

“She’s got a ‘TRUMP’ addiction, and so does CNN and MSDNC. They’re all sick, treasonous, and demented!”

For good measure, he also blasted the judge who is overseeing the federal lawsuit the news outlets filed against him in an attempt to overturn the ban.

“The ‘good news’ is that they have a great, for them, and totally disloyal Judge,” Trump wrote, referring to U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, whom Trump appointed in 2017 but who ruled against him in another media case.

Minutes later, Trump posted a strange video of a man putting on a dress and makeup so he could pretend to be a “fake news” reporter for CNN.

On Tuesday night, Trump’s Justice Department also tried to justify his media ban in a legal filing. Read more about that here.

We’ve been relatively spoiled for sunshine in the UK this year – perhaps a little too spoiled, given the ongoing drought covering most of England and Wales.

But if you’re looking to keep the sunny vibes going well into autumn (particularly the half-term break), there’s one Mediterranean island in particular that’s been named the best for October sun.

Travel experts at Solmar Villas ranked 105 holiday destinations on how reliably they deliver great weather between September and November, alongside affordability of flight prices.

They then compiled a list of the best autumn sun destinations in Europe for Brits hoping to head abroad.

Cyprus was the overwhelming winner, with Ayia Napa, a lively coastal resort town known for its beach-side nightlife, ranking as the overall best destination for Autumn sun, followed by Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos (all cities in Cyprus).

Coming in at number five was Athens Rivera in Greece, followed by Lanzarote (Spain), Fuerteventura (Spain), Rhodes and Kos (both in Greece) and Malta.

Each destination was scored on four measures: average daily sunshine hours, average rainy days per month, average daytime high temperature, and flight cost for September to November.

Cyprus tends to experience consistent temperatures sitting between 24C and 29C in October, with little rainfall. According to Skyscanner, flights can be as little as £31 one-way.

Travel experts highlighted Limassol as the perfect spot for those who love a combination of city and coast, while Larnaca is a peaceful port-city, and Paphos is great for history buffs, with plenty of World Heritage sites to visit.

Sharon Bradbury, travel expert and managing director at Solmar Villas, said: “Whilst we can’t predict the weather, this data is as close as we can get to determining the best spots for the perfect autumn sun holiday.

“Whilst Cyprus seems to be a clear winner, other locations on the list are also fantastic choices based on your personal preferences.”

She added that if the prospect of rain is a dealbreaker for your family, the Canary Islands should be your top choice, “with the least rainy days predicted this autumn season”.

If a bargain break is important to you, Spain has some of the cheapest flights available from September to November, she added. Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol have one-way flight tickets from as little as £16 and £17 respectively.

Zia Yusuf has been mocked online after launching another thinly-veiled swipe at some of his own Reform UK colleagues.

The party’s home affairs spokesman hit out at “former Tory ministers”, despite the fact that most of Reform’s senior figures served in the last Conservative government.

In a late-night rant on X, Yusuf said they were “the most nefarious people outside of those in prison”.

That seemed to be a direct attack on the likes of Robert Jenrick, Suella Braverman, Nadine Dorries, David Jones and Nadhim Zahawi, who all served in Conservative cabinets before switching to Reform.

His attack came just a day after he hit out at “deadbeat Tory ministers” in another social media post.

Yusuf’s latest tirade seems to have been triggered by the fact that Rishi Sunak and Jacob Rees-Mogg are back in the news.

Former PM Sunak won praise for hitting back at claims non-white people cannot be English, while Rees-Mogg warned about the threat of war with Russia.

Yusuf said “people are furious” at what the two senior Tories were saying.

He said: “They’re former Tory Ministers. The most nefarious people outside of those in prison. They betrayed our country and caused incalculable harm. Ignore them. Vote Reform. Then we will hold them to account.”

X users were quick to point out to Yusuf that many of those “former Tory ministers” are actually his Reform frontbench colleagues.

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Cate Blanchett has made a plea for theatre audiences to keep their phones away while they’re watching people performing.

The two-time Oscar winner is currently starring at the National Theatre’s Electra/Persona, and during her curtain call on Friday, she took a moment to get something off her chest.

She began: “There are few places on this planet where we can simply be together, and be present.

“I understand you like filming the curtain call – and it is kind of flattering in a way – but for anyone who was filming the show, please don’t.”

Cate continued: “It spoils it for the next group of people who come in and are present with us. So, thank you very much.”

One Instagram user commented on a clip of Cate’s message: “I was there on Friday, so just to clarify what happened: after the first act, while they were changing and preparing for the second, latecomers were being let in, the staff were cleaning the stage, and the cast were doing their makeup onstage.

“Cate noticed someone recording during that break. She came towards the front of the stage and gestured ‘no, no, no’ with her finger for them to stop. She also mentioned it to the audience at the very end before they left.

“The person wasn’t filming the actual performance, but the interval between the two acts while the cast were still onstage. To be fair, people do this quite often and the staff usually don’t say anything. It was my third time seeing the play, and I’ve seen people film during that break every time. Friday was simply the first time I saw Cate notice it herself, just after she had finished doing her makeup.”

Another added: “I was there. Great show. And I was appalled she felt she had to make this statement.

“I didn’t see anyone taping from where I was. But clearly people were. Get a life. If you’re only going so you can put it on Instagram then don’t bother. You’re not wanted.”

Cate is far from the first performer to call out people’s phone use in theatre during recent memory.

Back in June, Rosamund Pike called out an audience member during the curtain call of her show Inter Alia for using their phone in the auditorium, while Cynthia Erivo went as far as pausing a performance of Dracula when she noticed she was being recorded.

Since then, Amber Davies also made her feelings known on the “selfish actions” of those who chose to use their phones in a theatre environment.

Meanwhile, Broadway legend Patti LuPone has been vocal on this issue for years, infamously once swiping an audience member’s phone after seeing them on it during a performance in 2015.

Similarly, Gemma Arterton once claimed during an interview on The Graham Norton Show that she had done the same thing when she spotted a patron filming her while she was performing in the West End musical Made In Dagenham.

I’ll be honest: I always thought that solstice lasted an entire day. But the Met Office explained that it’s actually a “very specific moment which is over almost as soon as it has begun”.

“Solstice” comes from the Latin for “sun standing still” and refers to a moment in which the sun appears to stall in the sky. This year, the winter solstice will happen on December 21 at 8:50am GMT.

It’s the astronomical opposite of the equinox (the next of which is due on Wednesday, 23 September at 1:04am GMT ).

Here’s what the word means, as well as what’s actually happening in the sky when the phenomenon occurs.

Equinox comes from two Latin words: “aequus”, meaning “equal”, and “nox, which means “night”.

Given that daytime and nighttime last roughly the same amount of time in an equinox, the name’s pretty apt.

There is, however, another day when light and dark hours are exactly even. This is called an “equilux” and happens “a few days before the spring equinox and a few days after the autumn equinox,” per the Met Office.

The Earth is tilted at an angle, which is why we have seasons. If we weren’t angled, the amount of light we get throughout the year would stay stable.

This means that there will be a point in the year where the North Pole is the closest, or furthest away, it’ll be to the sun in that cycle. This is a solstice (either the longest or shortest days).

Meanwhile, an equinox happens when the sun is as close as possible to the equator. This is why night and day seem equally divided: the amount of light we recieve depends on our angle in relation to the sun, so with minimal tilt, sunshine is divided about evenly.

Without that slant, the Earth would have an equinox everyday.

If you remember from earlier, the day in which we actually get equal sunlight is called an “equilux,” not an “equinox”.

Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, told the BBC this is because sunlight has to get through Earth’s atmosphere before it reaches us.

“This means when the sun’s near the horizon it appears to be slightly higher than it is because the light is refracted through the atmosphere. So, you get slightly longer than the 12 hours of sunlight,” he explained.