However big you think the universe is, it’s almost certainly bigger.

Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is 100,000 light-years across (one light-year is about six trillion miles).

And according to some estimates, there could be one to two billion galaxies in the universe. So perhaps it’s no wonder scientists have long wondered whether we can really be alone in that endlessness.

In fact, our intergalactic solitude seems so unlikely to some that a puzzle – the Fermi paradox – centres on its improbability. Given how statistically likely other life seems to be, it asks: where are all the aliens?

Of course, we’ve only been looking for other extraterrestrial beings since about the ’60s, and the very vastness that makes alien life so probable might also make our likelihood of meeting them next to impossible.

But a paper published in Nature Astronomy shows that most scientists agree they’re probably out there, somewhere.

This research involved four surveys, all sent out to scientists like astrobiologists (those who study life outside our planet), biologists, and physicists.

These were all about “the likely existence of basic, complex, and intelligent extraterrestrial life”. That means they wanted to know whether experts thought anything from bacteria to plants or even conscious beings were probable.

When the results came back, 86.6% of astrobiologists said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that this was likely.

While 12% were more neutral on the topic, only 2% outright disagreed.

Among non-astrobiologists, meanwhile, the response was even more strongly positive. A whopping 88.4% reckoned there probably is life out there somewhere.

“Extraterrestrial life” does not mean ET, or any other thinking, communicating being you might imagine when you hear the word “alien”. It could be as simple as a single-celled amoeba.

So it’s a good thing researchers also asked scientists how probable they thought “complex” and “intelligent” forms of life were, too.

67.4% of astrobiologists agreed this is likely, compared to 58.2% of other scientists.

Only 10.2% of astrobiologists outright disagreed that this was plausible.

These results, the study reads, “offer a snapshot of community opinion and reveal a significant degree of consensus that extraterrestrial life is likely to exist”.

In 1999, she introduced herself with clarity and unimpeachable purpose. “There is nothing worse,” she wrote, “than going out for Christmas lunch and finding someone’s done something interesting.”

Please, she beseeched us, leave the Armagnac lobster and experimental sides for another day. We cannot beat turkey, sprouts, and stuffing – nor should we presume to try.

Since then, I’ve noticed a trend in her recipes. She respects, but is not beholden to, culinary tradition (there’s a tried-and-true feel to her “old-fashioned” chocolate cake, except for the fact that she makes it in a blender).

Her common-sense practicality (don’t “bother” peeling carrots for her lasagne ragu; you “don’t need soap” when rinsing out a pan between sauces) means that when she tells you to go the extra mile, you listen.

In that same lasagne recipe, for instance, she asks you to infuse the milk for your béchamel, which really does make a difference.

There is a strictness to Nigella’s decadence and a decadence to her strictness. No, you cannot call them roast potatoes unless they are “sweet and soft inside and a golden-brown carapace of crunch without”. But isn’t there something atavistically gleeful about giving “the potatoes a proper bashing so that their edges fuzz and blur a little”?

Combine that with a frankly childish hedonism (she has a crumble recipe for two, because sometimes she’d share a whole tray for dinner), and it’s no wonder her recipes are so often delicious. What if the kid in the proverbial candy shop knew how to flambé a crêpe, and also quite liked Gentleman’s Relish?

Is it naff to call this “a classic for a reason”? It’s certainly the best I’ve tried.

Yes, it takes a long time to make. But every possible shortcut (blending the veg, skipping handmade pasta, cooking the mince and onions together) has been identified and included.

Everything that remains is absolutely crucial for an eye-wateringly delicious depth of flavour. And, if it lasts that long, this lasagne tastes even better the next day.

2) “Old-fashioned” chocolate cake

Here’s my hot take: most cake is bad. The invention is good, but its failed interpretations (dry sponge; sickly, grainy buttercream) far outnumber more successful specimens.

Of course, Nigella would never do that to us. This luxurious cake – which, I’ll remind you, is made in a blender – is fudgy, moist perfection.

Man cannot, it transpires, live off cake and hours-long lasagne alone. For a speedy, healthy-ish midweek meal that won’t offend your sense of dignity, this zippy pasta comes together in 15 minutes.

Rocket, chilli, and lemon render tuna’s solemn meatiness fresher and more fun. The texture’s great too – neither too slick nor too dry.

It’s a recipe Nigella herself said is “embarrassingly easy to make and unembarrassingly easy to eat,” which ought to be obvious from the name alone.

All you’ll need is a blender, a big bowl, and a cake tin for this dangerously simple fridge cake. Somehow, despite its masses of sugar and chocolate, the recipe’s tangy sour cream, salty Digestives, and nutty topping make it surprisingly well-balanced.

It’s basically a normal tiramisu, but Nigella puts Bailey’s in the coffee part. Need I say more?

6) A highly adaptable crumble topping

If I’m being honest, I never really crave a balanced, proper crumble. I actually just want a pan of thick crumble topping, with a teaspoon-high layer of fruit somewhere deep below and a lake of custard on top.

This, of course, poses challenges. Layer the topping on too thick, and it risks staying soggy and gluey in the middle while the top grows dry and dusty.

Nigella’s solution – mixing baking powder into the flour – might have originally been meant to make a regularly proportioned dessert lighter and less stodgy. As it happens, it works for my less respectable purposes, too.

To be fair, I didn’t just rely on Nigella’s advice here – tips from Mary Berry and Gordon Ramsay have helped me to achieve my own go-to carrot cake recipe. But her version provided some of the more structurally important elements of my dessert.

For instance, she recommended adding a teaspoon of baking powder to plain flour rather than using the self-raising kind. This kind of control is needed in such a damp recipe.

Nigella deems ginger a non-negotiable here, and so do I. She also taught me to add some butter to the cream cheese icing, which gives it some extra hold at room temperature.

This is the cake my partner always requests for their birthday, and they like two layers of icing. Still, if I were making it for myself, I’d follow the GBBO host’s instructions there too: apply it “only on top, not running through the middle as well”.

Gordon Brown has a very unique way of communicating his thoughts with the new Labour chancellor, according to a new interview.

Brown – Tony Blair’s chancellor and later the prime minister who steered the country through the financial crisis of 2008 – is known for having strong opinions on the way the country should be governed.

And, Speaking to The Sunday Times, the new chancellor John Healey did indeed reveal that the former PM had been in touch.

The cabinet minister said: “I’ve talked to him.

“I’ve had his block cap emails in the middle of the night. But the man is driven and an inspiration to those that he works with.”

Brown was appointed as Special Reviewer on Global Finance and Cooperation under Keir Starmer and has been kept on under Andy Burnham, meaning he continues to be an influential voice for government.

Healey also has a prior working relationship with Brown, having spent five years working as a minister in his Treasury.

He told The Sunday Times he sees Brown as an “inspiration, a mentor”.

He added: “He captured for me the best of a Labour chancellor.”

Healey welcomed the idea of balancing an appreciation that “private investment creates jobs” with a belief the government can help in “partnership” with business.

His praise comes after Opinium polling revealed last week that 56% of Labour supporters think the current government is doing about as well (26%) or better (30%) at running the country than New Labour did.

However, 31% say it is doing much worse.

Labour is heading into its first annual party conference under Burnham’s leadership after Starmer was ousted from office in July.

The new prime minister has secured a real boost in the polls for the party while support for Reform UK has dipped.

However, More in Common think tank believes Labour would still fall short of an absolute majority in a general election.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Andy Burnham has promised to set up free social care in England if Labour wins the next general election.

However, the prime minister said it cannot be developed without consensus, and so he would put the plan to the public at the next general election.

Burnham said that meant he would, for now, be sticking to Keir Starmer’s manifesto which secured a landslide victory for Labour in July 2024.

He said: “We stick to the manifesto because I have to keep people’s trust and there are commitments in this manifesto that would make it hard [to set up free social care].”

Burnham was alluding to Starmer’s promise not to hike the main rates of VAT, income tax or National Insurance contributions for employees.

The prime minister said the system would be free at the point of use for everyone with “precise explanation as to how it is going to be funded”.

He added that while some might see this vow as making a “rod for his own back”, he had no intention of doing “politics as usual”.

“Why is the country in the position that it’s in? Because politics have let people down,” Burnham said.

He also claimed the annual cost is “not as high” as some claims which put it at £18 billion a year though the details are yet to be hashed out.

He said: “The challenge in public finances is real so it has to be done carefully to avoid putting pressure on the public purse.”

When the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg suggested his major pledges so far had not been fully funded, Burnham said his proposals stop public money being spent further down the line.

“If you support people with bus fares, you support people into jobs and training,” he said.

“The policies are carefully thought through because they are policies which are quite productive because of the effect they have. They then reduce pressure on the wider public purse.”

The next general election is not scheduled until 2029, as Labour won a landslide majority in July 2024.

Burnham has also ruled out sending the public to the ballot box following the party’s revival in the opinion polls.

He said on Friday that he was “not particularly” tempted to call an early election, saying he would “knock that [idea] dead”.

He told ITV Calendar: “You know, people want me, new in office, to be getting on with the job of delivering on the things that we’ve discussed, rather than putting self-serving politics before that, which was what I would be doing if I call an election. I’m not going to do that.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Sex during the menopause can be a time of rediscovery for some, as changes like vaginal dryness and decreased sensitivity begin.

But, as the NHS says, the idea that your sex life dies out after your hormones shift is a “myth”.

Sexologist, relationship therapist, and author at Passionerad, Sofie Roos, told us that the women she sees in their 50s and beyond bring a wide range of topics to her door.

Here are just some of the concerns she regularly hears from this group, as well as what to do if you’re dealing with them:

Lower libido is common among menopausal and postmenopausal women, though hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can sometimes help.

“It’s so common to experience lower sexual desire as you get older… due to hormonal changes and the menopause, but also because you’re experiencing stress, lack of sleep, relationship problems, or are on medications,” Roos told us.

Often, she added, it’s down to a combination of multiple factors. And, the sexologist said, it’s “common for this group to be worried about [whether] their lust [level] is normal, or if there’s something wrong with them”.

Discomfort and pain during penetrative sex is officially called dyspareunia, and it’s common among women aged 50 and over.

“The bodily changes that come with the menopause often makes the vagina dryer and more sensitive, a combination that makes it more difficult to have penetrative sex in a pleasurable way,” Roos stated.

The pain can lead to a vicious cycle, she explained, as it might make you unable to relax, which means you tense up, and may then avoid penetration due to the discomfort.

“An ageing body often means a changed body,” the sexologist said, noting it can alter your weight, body shape and skin, which can all affect body image.

This, in turn, can make it hard for some to stay present during sex, as they’re consumed by thoughts of their own appearance.

“Sometimes, the issue is less about the sex itself, but rather about [a woman’s] relationship to [their] own body,” said Roos.

About 20% of menopausal women reported less frequent and/or intense orgasms in a 2024 paper. Roos describes this as “a very common issue” that women over 50 come to her with.

She added: “What used to make them climax doesn’t work any longer; they orgasm less often, it takes longer time to get there, and the orgasms don’t feel as pleasurable.”

Your partner’s desire might not wane or rise at the same time as yours, Roos pointed out.

While this discrepancy can happen “at all ages, it can [be] extra obvious for women when getting older, especially if they experience major changes in their body while their partner doesn’t”.

This, she added, is very common in heterosexual relationships, “as the man doesn’t go through menopause and often starts experiencing sexual struggles a bit later in life”.

On the flip side, some women experience more lust as they age, right as their partner might begin facing erectile dysfunction or other sexual challenges.

For some women, “sex therapy is less about orgasms or penetration, but more about finding [their way] back to the emotional closeness and everyday intimacy” they once had with their partner, said the expert.

She suggested that after many years together, some of the women she supports want advice on how to find their way back to feeling like a romantic couple, rather than just friends or roommates.

Though lots of women divorce in their 40s, a growing number split in their 50s, Roos shared. Re-entering the dating market after what may be many years out of it “makes questions about sex, new relationships and dating relevant again”.

Some women in menopause or perimenopause report a “sex surge”, or a sudden leap in physical desire, during this life stage.

Roos suggested many of them “have the idea that their sex lust should decline when hitting 50, which makes some middle-aged women with a high sex drive worried [that] there’s something wrong with them”.

“But I really want to highlight that there’s no right [or] wrong when it comes to sexual desire after 50,” she added.

The sexologist offered some general guidelines and advice for women over 50:

• There’s nothing wrong with you for facing changes: “The first step is always to make peace with the fact that changes in sexuality are normal and natural, as well as nothing that isn’t solvable.”
• Always take pain during sex seriously: “Sex should never hurt, so if you experience new or ongoing pain, it’s important to always seek professional help… Sometimes, it can be as easy as starting to use a good lube and vaginal moisturisers, or to explore other kinds of intimacy, while medical treatments are relevant in other cases.”
• Let go of the idea that sex always has to mean penetration: “If it doesn’t work for you, then invest more time and energy into oral and [digital] sex, kisses, roleplaying, the use of sex toys or anything else that you find thrilling.”
• Spend more time on foreplay: As we age, “it takes longer for the body to get ready for sex,” so building up desire slowly can be helpful.
• Give sex toys a go, especially if you have trouble reaching orgasm: “An air pulse vibrator is a lovely start,” Roos said.
• Talk openly about your lust: “Many people think that lust just pops up out of nowhere,” said the expert, yet most people have responsive desire, which means “you get in the mood after touch and closeness is initiated”. Therefore understanding your lust better will help you to have more joyful sex.
• Try to avoid criticism: Have “an open and honest chat with your partner about what you miss and are longing for, rather than focusing on what you or your partner is doing ‘wrong’,” said the expert.
• Take care of your overall health: “It really makes a difference to eat a balanced diet, do some cardio three to four times a week, drink less, give up smoking, and invest in better sleep, stress control, and your relationships.”
• Seek help if needed: You don’t have to accept pain, vaginal dryness, or other sexual issues just because you’ve passed 50, so don’t be put off from seeking help from a professional.

The sexologist ended that sexual health isn’t about performing, but is more about feeling “safe, free and comfortable”.

Angela Rayner has rejected any suggestion of a split within the cabinet hours after she openly criticised Shabana Mahmood’s immigration plans.

The housing, communities and local government secretary condemned the home secretary for “changing the goalposts” and making it harder for foreign social care workers to live in the UK permanently.

Mahmood has increased the amount of time foreign social care workers need to spend in the UK from five years to 15 years for everyone who has come to the UK since 2021.

Speaking to The Times shortly before the party’s annual conference in Liverpool, Rayner said she stood by her previous criticisms that these changes are “un-British”.

Rayner said: “Especially in regards to the carers, who were asked to come to this country to care for some of our most vulnerable and then we changed the goalposts years down the line, I think that’s very disruptive.

“I do have concerns about that … when you ask someone to come here and look after your most vulnerable and they spend years dedicating themselves, moving their lives here to look after our loved ones.”

However, Rayner told Sky News’ Sunday Morning show that Mahmood had a consultation on the transitional arrangements.

“She’s been really clear we have to have a fair system that is fair for people who contribute today and for the people who come to this country to contribute,” the minister said.

“I have absolute support for Shabana in that and I’m sure she’ll come to a good conclusion on that.”

She added: “We’re all united. We’ve seen on illegal migration those figures coming down so I think she’s doing a fantastic job, so there’s no split story there unfortunately.”

Asked by host Kate McCann if “collective responsibility is dead”, Rayner said: “No. The prime minister was clear, we are going to do politics differently. And that means reaching out to other politicians as well, having that conversation.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Labour is on course to be the largest party in a general election, according to a new poll, leaving Reform UK a distant second.

The More in Common think tank has predicted Labour would win 250 seats in a hung parliament – 76 short of a majority – if Brits were to head back to the ballot box now.

Reform UK would win 147, the Conservatives 125, the Liberal Democrats 63 and the Greens just three.

The major MRP survey, which polled more than 15,000 British adults, will be a welcome boost to Labour just before its annual party conference in Liverpool begins.

The poll suggested Andy Burnham’s leadership had transformed Labour’s electoral chances since replacing Keir Starmer in July.

More in Common carried out a similar survey three months ago and found Reform would win 293 seats and Labour just 110.

The think tank found 214 seat projections – 143 of them to Labour – have changed since Burnham got the keys to No.10.

Labour appears to be recovering in Scotland too, as the poll shows it would win 18 seats up from just five.

However, More in Common did predict the SNP would remain the largest party with 27 out of 57.

And Labour is evidently not out of the woods yet, being still 161 seats down from their July 2024 landslide victory.

The survey found nearly half of all seats (48%) would be won by fewer than five points, making it an incredibly marginal election.

Even so, the poll also suggest Burnham’s focus on devolution has helped win over voters as Labour’s support has moved away from London.

In July, 44% of Labour’s projected seats were in the capital, but that has now decreased to 21% due to a surge in the North East, North West and Wales.

Meanwhile, Reform is struggling due to the split in the right-wing vote as splinter group Restore Britain takes crucial support, possibly costing Farage dozens of seats.

UK director at More in Common, Luke Tryl, said: “On the eve of last year’s Labour Party Conference, our MRP projected Reform could get close to a three figure majority, while both Labour and the Conservatives dropped to below triple figures.

“Fast forward to today, and it is clear the electoral landscape has transformed dramatically with Andy Burnham as prime minister. “

Tryl continued: “But far from representing a return to politics as normal, volatility has become the new watch word of our electoral system.

“The model projects that almost half of the seats would be won on margins of less than 5 per cent, meaning small swings in either direction could see any of the Tories, Reform or Labour ending up on top.

“And while the Labour advantage in seats is comfortable even on these numbers, they would still be forced into a multi-party coalition or arrangement to maintain power.”

Tryl added that Burnham’s decision to rule out an early election “is a sensible one”.

He said: “While Labour is off its death bed, the party’s recovery is far from complete.

“To call a poll the prime minister would have had to be willing to risk the careers of scores of his colleagues including his chancellor and foreign secretary, while even small shifts in the current numbers would have left him vulnerable to having a stint in Downing Street only longer than that of Liz Truss.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.