Teenager found guilty of murdering fellow pupil during lunch break

A schoolboy who stabbed another pupil to death on their lunch break has been found guilty of murder.

Harvey Willgoose, 15, was stabbed in the heart in front of horrified children by another 15-year-old boy who had brought a hunting knife to All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield on February 3

Sheffield Crown Court heard how other pupils fled “in fear and panic,” with some locking themselves in a school cupboard, after the fatal attack.

The defendant, who cannot be named because of his age, admitted manslaughter but denied murder, saying he “snapped” after a long period of bullying and does not remember what happened.

But prosecutors said he “wanted to show he was hard” and “knew exactly what he was doing”.

On Friday, a jury found him guilty of murder by a majority of 11 to one after deliberating for over 14 hours.

Sheffield Crown Court heard the stabbing was probably an “act of retribution, to “get back at Harvey for something”.

The trial heard the two boys fell out several days before Harvey’s death after taking opposite sides in a dispute between two other boys.

Prosecutors said the defendant had an “unhealthy” interest in weapons and had photos on his phone of him posing with other hunting-style knives and a machete.

The court heard he also “had a significant history of becoming angry and using violence at school”.

Prosecutor Richard Thyne KC said the defendant had researched rage rooms and, just over a week before the fatal stabbing, searched “waiting for someone to swing so I can let out my anger”.

He told jurors that on the day of the stabbing, CCTV footage showed him trying to provoke Harvey, who remained “peaceful”.

The court heard Harvey told his friends that the defendant had been “acting like he had a knife” under his jumper in their science lesson that morning, but thought he was bluffing.

Jurors were told Harvey was happily talking to his friends in a courtyard as lunch break started, when the defendant approached him.

One teenage witness said there was an altercation and the defendant punched and pushed Harvey, causing him to stumble backwards, before pulling out a knife and stabbing him.

Another girl who gave evidence said: “We went inside to go and tell a teacher, but the teacher was frozen as well. She didn’t know what to do.”

She said: “People were running, screaming everywhere. It was, like, chaos.”

The defendant told the trial that suffering racist bullying and taunts about a medical condition meant he got angry quickly and “couldn’t control it”.

The boy told the jury his mother had mental health problems and his father, who hit him, was often not there.

He told the court he took the knife to school because he thought he was going to get hurt that day.

He said Harvey looked angry when he brought up a previous dispute, and had one hand in his trousers, which made him think the schoolboy had a knife.

Gul Nawaz Hussain KC, defending, told jurors: “Tragically, Harvey was a combination of being the final straw that broke (the defendant) and the unintended face of a series of threats of violence and bullying he had suffered in recent months.

“We say he suffered a loss of control, which resulted in horrific and tragic consequences.”

Police forces across the country preparing for fresh wave of anti-migrant protest

Police chiefs have warned they are ready to “mobilise significant and specialist resources” if unrest breaks out at a string of anti-migrant protests planned at hotels housing asylum seekers.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) is working with forces across the country and monitoring intelligence in preparation for a fresh wave of protests on Friday, with demonstrations planned at up to 14 hotels across the country.

It comes as the Metropolitan Police is also expected to come under pressure on Saturday, when a National March for Palestine is planned in the capital.

A separate pro-Palestine Action rally could result in mass arrests, with 500 people expected to hold signs saying: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”, in defiance of anti-terror laws.

Anti-migrant protesters are expected to return to the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, on Friday, where violence erupted last month after an Ethiopian refugee was charged with sexual assault for allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.

Demonstrators are also set to return to the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, where a group wearing face coverings and carrying smoke bombs made a “concerted effort” to break in last weekend.

Other anti-migrant demonstrations are planned at hotels in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Leeds and Norwich, among others, in what is being billed as UK-wide protests to “abolish the asylum system”.

Organisers have said the events will be “locally led peaceful protests” with no masks and no alcohol in posters shared widely on social media.

Ahead of the widespread action, Chief Constable BJ Harrington, chair of the NPCC operations coordination committee, said: “We have robust and well-tested proactive plans in place, with the ability to mobilise significant and specialist resources, if necessary.

“Public order response officers will be supported by investigation teams who will gather evidence and ensure those responsible for any acts of criminality, should they occur, are identified and held to account.

“Policing is not anti-protest, we are anti-crime and we will continue to work with local communities to ensure that they are safe and serious disruption is prevented.”

The Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, has warned that another summer of unrest places forces and officers under strain.

“Public order duties often mean long shifts, cancelled leave, missed family time and real risk,” a spokesperson added.

“That takes its toll. This isn’t just about numbers; it’s about resilience, wellbeing, and a system under strain.”

It comes ahead of the possibility of yet more mass arrests in London on Saturday, after the Met vowed to continue its crackdown on those showing support for Palestine Action.

Campaign group Defend Our Juries has said more than 500 people are ready to be arrested by holding placards supporting the banned direct-action group in Parliament Square. They have warned their demonstrations will continue until a legal challenge over its proscription as a terror group is heard at the High Court in November.

At least 221 people have been arrested across the country under terror laws for supporting Palestine Action since it was banned in July, with 10 people charged so far.

Despite plans for a large-scale demonstration with what a Met spokesperson called the “intention of placing a strain on the police and the wider criminal justice system”, the force is prepared for “any eventuality”, and anyone showing support for the group should expect to be arrested.

Vicki Evans, senior national coordinator for Prevent and Pursue at Counter Terrorism Policing, said that they have “robust plans” in place to respond to activity in support of Palestine Action.

“At this time, it remains illegal to be a member of or encourage support for the group Palestine Action,” she added.

“This legislation is specific to that group and does not interfere with the right to protest in support of the Palestinian cause.

“Operational plans are in place to ensure this right can be preserved over the coming days with protests expected in several major cities, including London.”

Despite pressures on prison capacity, a Ministry of Justice spokesperson insisted the system is prepared to “act quickly” if more cells are needed.

Officials will not hesitate to use contingency measures if they are faced with a sudden influx to the prison estate, The Independent understands. This could include activating Operation Early Dawn, which allows defendants to be held in police cells until prison beds become available.

“The swift and coordinated response to last year’s unrest shows the criminal justice system is prepared to act quickly if needed to maintain stability and keep the public safe,” the spokesperson added.

France’s largest wildfire in 75 years could ‘reignite at any time’

The biggest wildfire in France for 75 years which devastated an area of southern France the size of Paris could “reignite at any time”, officials warned.

The blaze, which killed a woman and injured 18 others, scorched through 39,537 acres of forest and villages after it erupted on Tuesday afternoon in the village of Ribaute in the Aude region.

The largest to rip through the landscape since 1949, it destroyed 36 houses, damaged 20 others, and forced around 2,000 residents and tourists to flee.

Regional authorities said the fire had been brought under control after the spread slowed down but warned the inferno could erupt again at any point and firefighters are continuing to work at the scene.

“The battle isn’t over yet, the fire could reignite with greater force,” Outre-mer prefect Christian Pouget warned.

At the height of the crisis, 5,000 homes lost power, and as of Thursday evening, around 1,500 homes were still without electricity, authorities said.

Residents have been urged not to return home while operations continue, with 17 temporary accommodation sites opened up.

“We don’t have water, internet and electricity anymore. We have nothing. It’s the apocalypse,” said resident and farmer Alain Reneau, who lives in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse.

Thousands of firefighters rushed to put out the fire, which environment Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher said was caused by climate change.

“Never in my life (have I seen) fires like this,” 77-year-old retiree Simon Gomez said in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse.

Smoke from the fires and large areas of burnt land could be seen from satellite images on Thursday, highlighting the scale of the devastation across the region.

Jacques Piraud, mayor of the village of Jonquières, where several houses burned down, told Le Monde that around 80 per cent of the village was burnt. “It’s black, the trees are completely charred,” he said.

France’s weather office has warned of a new heatwave with temperatures of up to 40C starting in other parts of southern France on Friday and due to last several days.

Danger remains high across the Mediterranean coast with temperatures expecting to reach 35C in inland Mediterranean areas.

“In the Aude region, the risk of fire spreading remains very real, although less severe than on Tuesday,” Meteo France said, adding that national temperatures could peak at the beginning of the week.

President Emmanuel Macron said on X that “all the nation’s resources were mobilised”, while prime minister François Bayrou said the fire was a “catastrophe on an unprecedented scale”.

“We’re at war, but also, we will win the war,” said Xavier Guille, a local vinyard owner who was helping firefighters battle the blaze. Guille lost woodland to the fire but his vineyard was unharmed.

“My in-laws lost their home in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, it was one of the first homes that burned,” he added.

Ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe mistakes charity rowers for ‘illegal migrants’

Ex-Reform member Rupert Lowe has pledged £1,000 to a fundraiser after he mistook a charity rowing team for illegal migrants.

The now-independent MP for Great Yarmouth had posted a picture on social media on Thursday night showing a boat near some wind turbines off the Norfolk coast.

“Dinghies coming into Great Yarmouth, RIGHT NOW,” he wrote on X.

“Authorities alerted, and I am urgently chasing. If these are illegal migrants, I will be using every tool at my disposal to ensure these individuals are deported.”

But the vessel pictured was in fact an ocean rowing boat crewed by ROW4MND, a team of four who are attempting to row from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for motor neurone disease (MND).

The crew – Matthew Parker, Mike Bates, Aaron Kneebone and Liz Wardley – said they had been contacted by the Coastguard and asked if they could see a dinghy nearby, but it soon became clear the Coastguard was asking about his own boat.

After satisfying the Coastguard that their boat was not carrying migrants, they continued, but several hours later were contacted again by the Coastguard because the police had “asked if they could send a lifeboat out to check who we were”.

Eventually, a friend forwarded Mr Lowe’s post, which Mr Bates said provided “a moment of light relief”.

He said: “We found it hilarious. I’ve not been mistaken for a migrant before.

“The best comment was the one asking where the Royal Navy were when you need them. I’m a former Royal Marine, so the Royal Navy were on the boat.”

He added: “But it was almost like a vigilante-style, people following us down the beach.

“They hadn’t twigged that we were parallel to the shore for hours and not trying to land.”

After realising his mistake, Mr Lowe pledged £1,000 to the team’s fundraiser, but said he will not apologise for “being vigilant”.

“Good news. False alarm!” he posted on X.

“The unknown vessel was charity rowers, thank goodness. As a well done to the crew, I’ll donate £1,000 to their charity – raising money for MND. Keep going, and watch out for any real illegal migrants!

“We received a huge number of urgent complaints from constituents – I make no apologies over being vigilant for my constituents. It is a national crisis.

“No mass deportations for the charity rowers, but we definitely need it for the illegal migrants!”

After the Coastguard checked their identities, the quartet set off from Land’s End on July 25 and initially headed north into the Irish Sea before bad weather forced them to stop at Milford Haven in Wales.

They then decided to return to Land’s End and start again, this time heading in the other direction, which Mr Bates said had been “about us showing resolve and resilience and hope”.

The journey is the first of four challenges over four years, with the group aiming to row from John O’Groats to Land’s End next year, from California to Hawaii in 2027 and New York to London in 2028, with a target of raising £57 million for MND research.

So far, they have raised £107,515 for the charity.

Mr Bates said: “We’re rowing for hope, we’re rowing to find a cure, and hopefully we’ll raise £57 million – we certainly will if MPs keep talking about us. Maybe Rupert will give us a donation.”

Why we’re in the middle of a ‘rest revolution’

A few weeks ago, in a dusty field at Glastonbury Festival, I bumped into a number of peers who asked (predictably) how work was going. “Yeah, good,” I heard myself telling them. “Although I’m kind of decentering work at the moment.”

“Decentering work” – those were genuinely the words I used, much to my own bemusement and presumably others’ too. They were drawn directly from an emerging lexicon of rest I had started out absorbing by cultural osmosis on social media and, before long, began to invest in. It’s all catchy lingo, of course – “micro-retirement”, “quiet quitting”, “lazy girl jobs” – easily dismissed as internet ephemera. But collectively, I soon learned, these terms point to something important: a subtle, but significant shift in the way people are approaching the relationship between work and rest.

It’s not just emerging in the language we use, but actively playing out in offices all over the country, too. This week, research by the British Chambers of Commerce found that one in 10 UK businesses has seen staff quit rather than comply with return-to-office mandates.

Experts have put forward various theories as to why workers are choosing freedom over stability, or autonomy over loyalty – but to me, it seems a natural response to a working world that has only become more extractive and less stable.

On initial inspection, though, “decentring work” sounds suspiciously like code for “I’m unemployed” – which wouldn’t be too far from the truth, given I was made redundant from my last full‑time job almost a year ago. It was a blow in many ways – a knock to my ego as well as a disruption in the steady forward march of my career.

But in others, it was incredibly liberating. I’d been a freelance writer for five years before that last job and had always loved being mistress of my own destiny. I figured I’d simply go back to working for myself. Pitch, write, repeat.

But when the time came to get back to the grind, I found myself dragging my feet. I was hit by a slow, baggy kind of ennui – not quite burnout but an insurmountable feeling of resistance to the hustle. Over the past few months, I’ve found myself taking on less, resting more, and not immediately filling every quiet hour with productivity.

Some of it is personal, but it’s also reflective of a broader movement. The working landscape has grown noticeably more hostile in recent years. We’re being asked to do more for less: less money, less stability, less long‑term reward, and that’s not just in the beleaguered media industry. The environment – chronic stress, overworking – increasingly (understandably) pushes professionals towards burnout.

In her book The Rest Revolution, Amanda Miller Littlejohn argues that now many people are “on the verge of burnout, pushed … to keep working … at the expense of their physical and mental wellbeing”.

Rest, then, has become revolutionary because burnout is tailored into the very architecture of modern work culture. Instead, she says, we should reframe rest as an active, intentional practice rather than a luxury or reward – even (perhaps especially) those who have been conditioned to equate their worth with their output.

Across sectors, job security is shrinking. In 2023, an estimated 6.8 million workers (21.4 per cent) were in severely insecure roles – zero‑hours contracts, low‑paid self‑employment or casual/seasonal work – a rise of 600,000 from the previous year. That means roughly one in eight workers now lacks basic stability. Payrolled employment declined by 0.4 per cent (135,000 jobs) between May 2024 and May 2025, and data for June 2025 shows a further 178,000 jobs lost in the year prior. In industries from hospitality to healthcare, people are working harder for less and with little idea of what tomorrow holds.

Writing in Vogue Business, Amy Francombe, a journalist and consultant who specialises in divining the values of Gen Z consumers, pointed out that “instead of clinging to long-term plans that no longer feel plausible, like buying a house or securing a well-paid job, many are overspending in the present and living beyond their means as a form of emotional survival. Financial logic,” she added, “has splintered, and in its place a new consumer mindset is emerging.”

And this mindset, she tells me, extends beyond purchasing choices. “Everything has become so out of reach – whether it’s job stability or getting onto the housing market – that it almost feels like you’re an idiot if you’re overworking because it’s not going to get you anywhere.” Rest, downtime, timewasting have all become more aspirational than luxury goods, reflecting, she explains, “a shift in logic”.

The concept of micro‑retirements – deliberate pauses from work to recharge, reassess, or simply exist outside of the grind – went viral earlier this year, with many pointing out that career breaks (however you want to brand them) would have a profound impact on pension contributions. But as Francombe – who is Gen Z – points out, “I simply can’t connect this Amy to 70-year-old Amy in my mind. Maybe bankers will gamble away our pensions on AI, maybe stem cell therapies will mean that I can’t retire until I’m 100, maybe I’ll die in the climate emergency at the age of 40. It’s all so uncertain that I might as well just go on holiday rather than pay into a pension.”

Of course, the fetishisation of rest isn’t just down to the fact that work is unstable and kind of depressing right now. As Ellen Scott, digital editor at Stylist magazine and author of Working on Purpose, points out, “I think we are desperately hungry for true, restorative rest, but we can’t sate that hunger.” She argues that part of the reason that downtime is constantly being repackaged and sold back to us is because “true rest is so rare and difficult to get hold of nowadays”.

“The technology that we’re surrounded by and the capitalist culture of productivity mean it’s incredibly difficult to have a quiet, peaceful moment for longer than a few minutes,” she explains. “Our expectations have changed and we accept that we should have constant sensory stimulation, or constantly be ‘doing’.”

In the meantime, though, we feel both overworked and overstimulated. “Because true rest feels like such a remote, slippery thing, we eat up any offering that tells us how to get it, whether that’s a new trend to try (quiet quitting! Lazy girl jobs!) or a product that will act as a cheat code to the rest we’re craving.

“You can really see that in the rise of retreats; we’re desperate for rest, struggling to fulfil that need, and so we’ll happily hand over significant amounts of cash for someone to please tell us how to do it.”

Lately, I’ve been thinking about what it would mean to rest without performance – not to optimise it, brand it, or turn it into a “radical act”, but just to allow it. I’m still working, but I’m no longer trying to win at work. I don’t know if that makes me lazy, disillusioned, or ahead of the curve – probably a bit of all three. But I do know that stepping back hasn’t made me feel less valuable. If anything, it has sharpened my sense of what matters.

Maybe “decentring work” wasn’t just a throwaway Glastonbury line after all. Maybe it was my nervous system, trying to tell the truth before my brain caught up.

MasterChef suffers huge ratings blow after airing controversial series

The controversial new series of MasterChef, featuring fired hosts Gregg Wallace and John Torode, lost almost one million viewers compared with last year’s launch.

There appeared to be fewer jokes from Wallace and Torode in the first episode, which the BBC decided to air earlier this week following upheld allegations against the presenting duo.

However, the BBC has revealed that the headlines have had an impact, as the launch show was watched by just 1.96 million, as opposed to the 2.73 million who watched last year’s debut episode. The fact that this series launched in August, rather than in the usual April slot, may also have an effect on viewing figures.

This is considerably down from the series peak, which was 6.4 million viewers for the 2014 finale.

It raises questions about the future of the long-running cookery show, which already has a celebrity series in the can, presented by Torode and Grace Dent, as well as two Christmas specials.

Fans of MasterChef, which was revamped in 2005, have been left conflicted over the new series, with many feeling uncomfortable about watching Wallace and Torode following the misconduct allegations against them.

Culture secretary Lisa Nandy told BBC Breakfast that she “certainly won’t be watching this series”.

The BBC said the decision to air the 2025 series of MasterChef, which started filming before allegations surfaced against Wallace and Torode, had “not been an easy” one.

“In showing the series, which was filmed last year, it in no way diminishes our view of the seriousness of the upheld findings against both presenters,” a spokesperson for the corporation said.

“We have been very clear on the standards of behaviour that we expect of those who work at the BBC or on shows made for the BBC.

“However, we believe that broadcasting this series is the right thing to do for these cooks who have given so much to the process. We want them to be properly recognised and give the audience the choice to watch the series.”

Six amateur chefs feature in the first heat, and a message on the BBC media centre, alongside interviews with the contestants, states: “Please note this information is accurate at the time of filming, certain aspects may have since changed but this represents the contributors as the competition starts.”

It comes after one of the contestants, Sarah Shafi, agreed to be edited out of the series after objecting to it being broadcast.

During an interview with The Guardian, the 57-year-old explained that, during a “heated conversation” with a producer, she was urged to think about the life-changing opportunity the show provided to some contestants.

In November 2024, it was announced that Wallace had stepped away from his role on the BBC cooking show while historical allegations of misconduct were investigated. He was replaced towards the end of the latest series by Irish chef Anna Haugh.

In July, a statement from Banijay UK and the BBC said they had agreed that “Mr Wallace’s return to MasterChef is untenable”.

This came after a review, published by the legal firm Lewis Silkin, upheld 45 of 83 allegations against the chef, including claims of inappropriate sexual language and one incident of unwelcome physical contact.

Wallace issued an apology saying he was “deeply sorry for any distress caused” and that he “never set out to harm or humiliate”.

Meanwhile, one allegation of racist language was upheld against Torode, who said he had “no recollection of the incident” and was “shocked and saddened” by the claim.

The first three episodes of the new series of MasterChef are available to stream on iPlayer. Episodes air on BBC One from Wednesday to Friday each week.

Trans women to be banned from single-sex spaces under EHRC guidance

Transgender women will be banned from single-sex public spaces under new guidance to be published by the UK’s equalities watchdog, reports say.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is set to submit its statutory guidance to ministers this month in response to the UK Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling that trans women are not legally women under the Equality Act.

The new guidance appears to be similar to its interim guidance issued in the wake of the ruling, which has been criticised by trans rights campaigners as discriminatory and has seen legal challenges launched against it.

According to The Times, the guidance will mean trans women will be banned from spaces such as women’s toilets and changing rooms.

It will apply to any organisation that provides a service to the public, including schools, shops, hospitals, prisons, leisure centres and government departments.

Private organisations or charities will also be subject to the guidance if they are providing a public service, and it is also reported that it will say transgender people can be excluded from single-sex sporting competitions.

The EHRC told The Times that the code has not yet been finalised, but that it will “remain consistent with the law as set out by the Supreme Court”.

The guidance will be submitted to Bridget Phillipson, the women and equalities minister, who will approve it if she deems it to be in line with the law, before putting it before parliament.

Trans rights campaigners have criticised the EHRC for its handling of the ruling, with legal challenges brought against the watchdog over its interpretation of the law.

The Good Law Project is one group that has launched legal action against the EHRC, arguing the guidance “goes far beyond” what the For Women Scotland judgment requires.

It argues: “It amounts to a bathroom ban for trans people, violating people’s right to privacy in their everyday lives.”

Following reports detailing the watchdog’s updated guidance, the Good Law Project executive director, Jo Maugham, said: “The EHRC’s guidance is subject to legal challenge – a hearing is scheduled for later this year – and a court will decide whether it is compatible with the Equality Act.

“Given the evident hostility of the guidance to the rights and dignities of trans people we are confident the Commission will lose.”

Campaigners have also criticised the EHRC’s consultation process, questioning how 50,000 responses could have been analysed so quickly.

The Good Law Project also wrote to the EHRC, accusing them of “ignoring” transgender people’s views as it used artificial intelligence to categorise the replies.

A spokesperson for the EHRC told The Independent: “We are using a combination of approaches to analyse the responses received to our consultation. With more than 50,000 responses received, we have commissioned an external supplier to support us in analysing them. Our approach will involve supervised use of AI alongside our expert legal assessment to ensure a balance of robustness, accuracy and speed, including promoting consistency and helping to avoid bias in managing this scale of responses.”

The Times reported the guidance, which is still being finalised, will not say services must provide single-sex spaces, but that if they do, they must only be used by biological women.

It will also reportedly allow services to request birth certificates and make inquiries about a person’s birth sex, but this could be discriminatory if not handled in a sensitive way.

The guidance will also say services need to consider if there is an alternative for trans people to use, and that, in cases such as toilets, it would not be proportionate to leave a trans person with no facilities.

A spokesman said: “The code of practice has not yet been finalised. We received an extremely high volume of responses to the consultation and are grateful to everyone who shared their feedback.

“To ensure we give these responses the consideration they merit, we are working at pace to analyse them and are amending the draft code of practice text where necessary to make it as clear and helpful as possible.

“But our code will remain consistent with the law as set out by the Supreme Court.”