Louis Tomlinson: ‘Fame can be really dehumanising’

While checking into the hospitality area at Glastonbury Festival this summer, the entertainment journalist Ellise Shafer heard a stranger behind her yelling: “Glastoooo!” Only it wasn’t really a stranger, she later wrote. It was an exuberant Louis Tomlinson with a gaggle of friends, hauling a rucksack and primed for a week of live music.

Tomlinson laughs when I tell him about this. The solo artist and former One Direction member has become a regular fixture at Glastonbury – last year he was heralded as a “hero” when he brought a TV to the campsite so revellers could watch England play Slovakia in the Euros. “It’s the kind of place [where] I’m just in a better mood,” he says. “People might see me out and about looking a bit grumpy. At Glastonbury? Definitely not.”

You can understand why he might balk at the idea of going anywhere with large crowds. It’s just over 15 years since One Direction formed on The X Factor and became a global phenomenon, producing four No 1 albums and selling more than 70 million records. Its five members couldn’t go anywhere without being mobbed; their hotels were surrounded; cars blockaded; concerts rammed. Almost 10 years after the band split, the jitters remain. “It’s not about how many times you get recognised – it could just be once, or not at all,” explains Tomlinson. “It’s the potential of being.”

When One Direction split in 2016, he and his fellow band member Liam Payne – who died last year after falling from a balcony in Buenos Aires – appeared to be the ones who struggled most. “I felt a bit petulant about it at the time,” Tomlinson told The Independent in 2020. “It actually hit me like a ton of bricks.” Meanwhile, Niall Horan benefited from his Irish cheeky chappy persona, Harry Styles was singled out as “the star” with his rock’n’roll charm, and Zayn Malik – who quit the band in 2015 – had that brooding, mysterious thing going on (at the same time enduring his own struggles with anxiety).

This is Tomlinson’s – indeed any of the former 1D members’ – first newspaper interview since Payne’s death. I’ve been told that he expects questions about Payne; in fact, the only topic I’ve been asked to avoid is Tomlinson’s girlfriend, TV personality Zara McDermott. “I naively thought that, at this point, I’d unfortunately be a little bit more well versed with grief than other people my age,” the 33-year-old Tomlinson says wearily. “I thought that might mean something, but it didn’t at all.” He’s talking about the loss of his mother, Joanna Deakin, who died from leukaemia in 2016, and the death of his 18-year-old sister Félicité from an accidental overdose just three years later. “It’s something I’ll never really accept. I don’t think,” Tomlinson says of Payne’s death. His eyes are watering a little.

It’s easy, he thinks, in the wake of such devastating news, to “point the finger”. After Payne died, fellow celebrities were quick to demand better protection for artists, particularly those thrust into the spotlight at a relatively young age. But in previous interviews, Tomlinson has said he believes the adults working with One Direction did a good job. “I would probably still stand by that statement,” he says. “Obviously, that statement was made before… [and] I can only speak about my own personal experience, [which] was fine.” He sighs. “Look, in any situation similar to this, hindsight is a really powerful thing. I don’t blame anyone for my experience in One Direction. Was it really hard work? Yes. Did we not have enough days off? Yes. But what was really challenging, more than any of those things, was being young and really famous and having people outside the hotels. If you wanted to just go and get a coffee… even wanting to go for a s*** and having to walk [there] with your security. It’s dehumanising, those kinds of things.” Although at least, in the band, they had each other. “No matter what, there was this feeling of togetherness.”

If there is fault to be found, he believes, it lies in the whirlwind of social media comment and online “journalism” that surrounded everything they did. There was a notorious 2022 interview with Payne on Logan Paul’s podcast, Impaulsive, on YouTube, which today makes for an even more uncomfortable watch than it did at the time. Payne, who appeared to be drinking whisky throughout the conversation, received a huge backlash from fans and the media for what were perceived as “arrogant” remarks about his role in the band – claiming that Simon Cowell formed One Direction around him – and for comments he made about his ex-bandmates, Malik in particular. Payne later apologised (“I was so angry at what was going on around me… I took it out on everybody else”) and revealed that he’d spent 100 days in rehab after the interview aired.

“I f***ing forever despise [Logan Paul], horrible, horrible little f***er,” Tomlinson says with quiet venom. “I think that’s also the problem with some of this new ‘media’… I would like to think most journalists” – he corrects himself – “some journalists have a duty of care.” Quite a lot of the fan upset appeared to be motivated by Payne’s claims that he was the de facto band leader. Yet Tomlinson confirms that this was essentially the case. “It was, definitely,” he says. “It was definitely a role that was assigned to him. That is the truth.”

The others looked up to him, he says, including himself (Tomlinson was the eldest of the five), because Payne was already a seasoned performer – “he’d already played at half time [at Molineux, at a Wolverhampton Wanderers game], we’d done s****y school shows” – having been told by Cowell to come back for a second audition after getting more experience. Tomlinson described Payne in a tribute shared after his death as the most “vital” part of the band, and stands by that today. “In between him playing that role and also doing a huge chunk of the songwriting… it’s not even up for debate.”

What are Tomlinson’s fondest memories of him? He smiles. “So many. Just real, fun moments. Liam would always entertain me. If I was bored and wanted to have a laugh, he would play that role.” Payne always showed up, too, whether at the London premiere of Tomlinson’s 2023 documentary, All of Those Voices, about his life after One Direction, or as his guest when he was a judge on The X Factor in 2018. “This is in no way a comment aimed at the other boys – but I know if it was me, I would have struggled with that idea,” Tomlinson says. “There [would have been] a feeling of inferiority there, because you’re the guest. But any opportunity Liam got like that, he was always, always there for me. Even if he might have been struggling, he put himself second and still turned up. Those moments are really testament to the truth of who he was as a person.”

Did his death bring the band’s surviving members closer, in any way? “Definitely,” he says. He gets mildly frustrated with the cycle they end up in, where they will text, saying they need to meet up, then never manage to bring it off. I think this is a plight affecting most thirtysomethings, I reassure him. “Yeah, and the best kind of friends are the ones where, when you eventually do meet up, it’s like no time has passed,” he agrees. “It’s also just amazing to see everyone doing so well in their own right.” He loved Malik’s last record, 2024’s criminally underrated, Americana-influenced Room Under the Stairs: “Everyone got to see a side to him that I’ve always seen.”

Tomlinson has his own new solo record to celebrate. We’ve met not in a plush hotel suite or swanky restaurant booth, but at The Independent’s headquarters in central London. It’s a small but significant sign of how down to earth he’s managed to stay, for all that fame. He pulls up in a blacked-out people carrier and strides up the steps, offering a polite handshake. Clutching his visitor’s pass, he walks with me and his publicist through the lion’s den (the newsroom) with his shoulders slightly hunched, head down. Once we’re in the soundproofed seclusion of a podcast studio, though, he unfolds himself – stretching out and reclining against his chair, wearing artfully ripped jeans, white trainers and a smart zip-up jacket.

His new single, “Lemonade”, the first to be released from his just-announced third solo album How Did I Get Here?, is a big surprise given the rock and indie-leaning sound of his 2020 solo debut, Walls, or the 2022 follow-up, Faith in the Future. Both it and most of the eight other songs I’m sent from the record show Tomlinson embracing the pop music he seemed eager to shake off after One Direction split, despite his evident skill in crafting a hook or memorable lyric (the band co-wrote many of their biggest hits). With its fizzing funk-riff swagger, “Lemonade” is a fantastic thirst-quencher of a track that’s not dissimilar to the euphoric pop-rock Styles excels at. It feels as though Tomlinson has finally found his own sound.

It’s taken a while. The critical consensus around his first two albums was that he had become lost in a “a sea of influences”, from Oasis and Snow Patrol to Arctic Monkeys. Critics complained that it had become difficult to discern who he was, artistically or otherwise.

“I appreciate you being honest about that,” Tomlinson says when I bring this up. “It’s definitely something that I’ve been aware of.” When he first emerged blinking from One Direction, his instinct had been to “push back” and run as far as he could in the opposite direction. “But actually, the most confident thing I could [have done] was to really embrace those pop sensibilities and bring more people to the party. I’m ready now to accept what I’m great at, which is a cool thing to be able to say out loud, to be honest.”

Tomlinson and I are the same age, but it feels as though he’s lived a few extra lives. During our conversation, I’m moved by how thoroughly decent he seems, and how surprisingly open he is, despite having every reason to clam up or be a bit prickly. Many of his friends are getting married, having kids. He’s a father himself to nine-year-old Freddie – born from Tomlinson’s brief relationship with Californian stylist Briana Jungwirth – and spends a lot of time in Los Angeles, where Freddie lives with his mum. “I’m pretty much playing full-time dad when I’m out there,” he says. “I don’t do loads of work or even [much] socialising.” Freddie is “good as gold”, according to Tomlinson, who loves dropping him off at school. “I’m still the youngest dad there,” he says, flashing a smug grin. “It kills me in the mornings though… I’ve never been great at early starts.”

Despite being three albums deep into his own solo project, he’s still afflicted by feelings of imposter syndrome. But he knows he has enough love from his fan base not to worry about them too much. “On my rainiest day, vocally, performance-wise, my fans are still going to be there for me,” he says. “I just got a cover shoot for Rolling Stone UK, and they told me that I was one of the most requested people to be on [the cover]. I wonder if I would have got that gig if my fans didn’t fight so hard for it. They get me what they think I deserve, which is beautiful. It’s really lovely.” That same humility shows up again when he speaks about the fellow artists and producers he got to collaborate with on this record, who helped bring a new vulnerability to his songwriting. “When I entered the music industry, I was in a band where we were working for each other as well as ourselves,” he says. “I think I’ve been chasing that feeling ever since.”

‘How Did I Get Here?’, the new album by Louis Tomlinson, is out on 23 January 2026. The single ‘Lemonade’ is out now

‘I contacted Nigel’: Reform MP Danny Kruger on defecting from Tories

It might already be a month since Reform’s newest MP Danny Kruger jumped ship to join Nigel Farage’s right-wing camp, but walking to the ex-Tory devotee’s Westminster office, you’d be forgiven for questioning if it really happened.

Two signs for his office – deep within the Palace of Westminster’s labyrinth of carpeted corridors and creaky stairwells – still show Mr Kruger as shadow minister for work and pensions under Kemi Badenoch.

Then inside, hung on the wall alongside Imperial War Museum recruitment posters and a painting of conservative philosopher Roger Scruton, is a framed map of Boris Johnson’s landslide 2019 election victory.

Swathes of Tory blue dominate many of the UK’s regions. The outcome of the snap election steered by Brexit not only saw Mr Kruger, then Mr Johnson’s parliamentary secretary, return his boss to No 10, but also got him his first seat in parliament as the new MP for Devizes.

“I’m not putting the 2024 election map up,” he jokes. “We need that whole map to go turquoise don’t we,” he adds with a smile.

Breakups in any walk of life are hard, but for Mr Kruger, it’s clear to see his split from the Tories was a particularly painful one.

“I regret to say, having been a member and an employee and an MP for the Conservative Party for many years, my whole adult life… I think the time for the Conservatives as that principal opposition, that main challenger from the right, has finished,” the married father of three explains.

His exit, probably the biggest scalp for Reform yet, was announced at a press conference alongside Mr Farage last month. A few weeks later, he wrote a letter to his 71,000 East Wiltshire constituents to explain his decision.

Reform, currently 14 points ahead of the Tories in the latest polls, was now the new opposition to the Labour Party, he said, bemoaning a loss in voter confidence in the Conservatives on issues such as mass migration and Brexit.

“We now have – in Nigel Farage’s party – the opposition that we need to Labour, so it’s not just a rejection of the Conservatives, which I deeply regret making on a personal level, it’s an active, positive choice to join Reform because I think they represent the change we need,” he says.

I push him on the emotional impact of his departure from the party he became involved in more than 30 years ago.

As a self-described “horrible little Thatcherite” in his youth, the Etonian later joined Conservative HQ in 2003, and would later work with former Conservative leaders Iain Duncan Smith, Michael Howard and David Cameron.

“It’s a very painful move,” he says, adding that he’s conscious he has “let people down” in Wiltshire where party members worked closely with him since his election win in 2019. “I regret that,” he says.

On those in Whitehall, he says: “I have good friends on the Conservative benches who I know feel dismayed, betrayed by me.” Although, he’s thankful of no personal attacks from former colleagues, including Ms Badenoch.

“However, in this business, you have to put what you think is the interests of your constituents and your country ahead of your personal loyalties,” he says. “Loyalty matters. Parties matter. We couldn’t exist without them, but we have to put country ahead of party, and even if that is personally painful, we must do it in practice.”

Has slipping into Reform – where the slogan is family, community, country – been an easy political marriage? Mr Kruger says so.

He already knew Reform MP Lee Anderson, and after “informal conversations” he says he went to speak to Mr Farage about joining the party, and was gratefully accepted.

“I expect there will be other MPs who move from the Conservatives to Reform,” he predicts, although rather hesitantly adds: “That’s assuming that Nigel actually invites them to do so.”

Mr Kruger’s defection to Reform was particularly surprising, not least following some of his recent criticism of the party.

Only in May he accused members of piggybacking on work by the Conservatives during a Commons debate on Brexit in a “desperate search to be relevant”. In July, he said Reform “would spend money like drunken sailors” during a debate on welfare.

“Well, literally since then, Nigel Farage stood up at his party conference and committed to significant welfare cuts,” says Mr Kruger.

“Tax cuts aside, we have to make spending reductions, not simply for the sake of the public finances, although that imperative is very, very real, but for the sake of the people who are currently languishing on out-of-work benefits.

“It is a scandal and a disgrace and a tragedy that so many people are being written off for life by a welfare system that is essentially inhuman in its judgement of what people’s capabilities are.”

And what about the two-child benefit cap?

Reform pledged to scrap the restriction, in a move that could appeal to left-leaning voters but would cost an estimated £3.5bn.

Mr Kruger supports the idea, but only for working families. “It’s right that the public are concerned that people whose livelihoods is benefits are able to have large families at the public’s expense,” he says.

Next month, Mr Farage will deliver a speech on Reform’s plans for the economy in what has been seen as a bid by the party to bolster its economic credibility, after its manifesto for £90bn in tax cuts, including an increase in tax-free allowance to £20,000, was widely questioned.

“We have to demonstrate, if we are to cut taxes, where the money is coming from for that,” says Mr Kruger.

Aside from the economy, immigration is at the centre of Reform policy, with plans unveiled last month to deport thousands of legal immigrants and scrap migrants’ indefinite leave to remain.

Mr Farage blames a so-called “Boriswave” of migration following the relaxation of post-Brexit rules by Boris Johnson. Mr Kruger agrees. “I’m afraid, yes, he does have to take responsibility as leader of the government,” he says.

The party also wants to deport 600,000 asylum seekers, while building detention centres for 24,000.

Asked where the centres will be, he says: “I don’t want to get into the details of where, but we will be able to stand up facilities that will accommodate all of the asylum seekers and illegal immigrants that arrive.” He insists, through, they won’t be enormous.

The Senedd elections next year should provide some indication on the prospect of a Reform UK government. There is also the Scottish Parliament elections coming up, too.

“We are the new national party of the right and my hope is that we take power in those countries and can demonstrate what a Reform government looks like ahead of the general election,” Mr Kruger says.

Winning power, so quickly after being formed – can Mr Farage’s achievement leading the Brexit referendum be replicated, perhaps heightened, by entering No 10 in a few years’ time?

Mr Kruger appears cautious. Such is the state of the economy and the Labour Party, he says an election could happen “sooner than you think”.

But an “enormous job” lies ahead in creating policy and showing it can work. “We can’t just arrive on day one with a couple of slogans and ask the civil servants to do it for us,” he insists.

There is also the task of bringing together candidates for 650 seats. There will be “very strict vetting”, Mr Kruger says.

“If we play our cards right, we will be in contention for government,” he adds.

After 35 minutes, the interview ends. Mr Kruger quickly makes his excuses and rushes out for a meeting. It gives me a chance to look up at his bookshelf.

There, among Lisa Nandy’s All In, David Skelton’s The New Snobbery and two books on Stonehenge (the ancient monument sits within his constituency), is Oliver Letwin’s book Apocalypse How?, which imagines a tech-dependent UK in crisis in 2037.

As the former minister looked into the future, I wondered if even he could have predicted a new party overtaking the Tories as the party of the right.

Such is the unpredictability of politics today.

Tommy Robinson is no one’s saviour – he is division in human form

On Thursday the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on the visit to the area around Gaza of “the leader of Britain’s growing far-right movement”, Tommy Robinson. Robinson is currently the guest of the Israeli government. He was invited by Israel’s minister for the diaspora and combating antisemitism, Amichai Chikli, who said he was “proud to host British patriot” Robinson.

On the same day I caught a clip of a news item from last month that featured residents of a southern English suburb talking about the flag campaign, largely run by supporters of Robinson. One middle-aged white woman said they didn’t bother her because they were just national flags. But her friend, who was Black, hesitantly told the interviewer that the flags made her worried for her family. She said she felt that the intention behind them was to say to people like her that they weren’t welcome in their own country.

It all testified to the rise from the far fringe to the edge of the political stage of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, aka Tommy Robinson. And where he has led, others – including politicians who were once mainstream Tories – have followed.

Mainstream Jewish organisations have expressed horror at the invitation. Many of us have experienced the antisemitism that Robinson followers are routinely capable of expressing – indeed recently Robinson himself talked about how the “liberal Jews” had been selling out to Islam. For many on the far right, Israel is exactly where they would like all their Jews to be.

To anyone who desires a peaceful and harmonious society, it is beyond obvious that different faiths and different ethnicities have to find ways of cooperating. The casting of long-established communities as an existential threat to the nation can have only one long-term aim – their expulsion. That’s the logic of Tommy Robinson and why I now see him as so dangerous. Like many others, however, for a long time I thought of him as an irritation.

But Robinson’s rise from fringe pariah owes a lot to Elon Musk and the tycoon’s boosting of the far-right Briton on his X (Twitter) platform. It has brought Robinson an international audience of millions – Musk has 220 million followers and Robinson currently has 1.7 million – more than four times as many as the leader of the opposition. It has brought Robinson money, not least in the form of Musk paying for Robinson’s legal costs in a trial now interrupted by his Israel visit.

Ideologically, Robinson now fits squarely into a narrative of the threat to the West that is deployed by right-wing politicians all over the democratic world (and beyond – Vladimir Putin was one of its earliest proponents). It’s a narrative that serves different purposes in different countries, and in Israel it currently very much suits the government of Benjamin Netanyahu. After attracting initial almost total support, Israel has become isolated during the bloody, prolonged Gaza war, in which so many civilians have been killed. The recognition by several important countries of a Palestinian state has been a bitter blow to a coalition administration that contains at least two ministers who can credibly be described as fascist.

One part of the fightback has been to talk up disruptive far-right figures in these countries; figures who, for whatever reason, now express complete and unwavering support for Israel’s military campaign. The battle between Israel and Hamas is now reframed as the battle between Western civilisation and Islam. Indeed, when Chikli first made his invitation he described Robinson as “a courageous leader on the front line against radical Islam”, adding “together with friends like Tommy Robinson we will build stronger bridges of solidarity, fight terror, and defend Western civilisation and our shared values”.

And there is one other function served by this two-pronged attack on progressive Jews: distraction. October 7 happened on Amichai Chikli’s watch. There is yet to be a reckoning within Israel for the incompetence, bad strategy and low-level corruption that helped lead the region into a humanitarian catastrophe. Polarisation – and Robinson is the very expression of division – is Netanyahu’s friend; his saviour almost.

The capacity for this new internationalisation of extreme politics to cause trouble or exacerbate tensions outside the region where they originated is illustrated by the aftermath of West Midlands Police considering banning fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv FC from coming to Birmingham for their team’s match against Aston Villa. As the debate over this stance was playing out in Britain, from Israel, Robinson – still the doyen of ageing football hooligans in the UK – posted a picture of himself in a Maccabi shirt and attached an invitation: “Who’s coming to support Maccabi at Villa Park on November 6th?”

If his followers do show up, one thing is for sure: it won’t be the football they are interested in. Last year Elon Musk delightedly predicted civil war in Britain: this autumn it seems his protege will be doing his best to fulfil the prophecy.

Flights at Bangladesh’s main airport halted by major fire

Flights out of Bangladesh‘s main airport have been halted after a significant fire erupted in the cargo terminal, officials have confirmed.

Thirty-six firefighting units were battling the blaze on Saturday, Talha Bin Zasim, an officer at the Fire Service and Civil Defence Media Cell, said.

Operations at Dhaka‘s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport have been suspended, airport official Masudul Hasan said, adding that all aircraft are safe.

The cause of the fire remains unknown.

Both domestic and international flights have been affected.

An IndiGo flight from Delhi to Dhaka was diverted to Kolkata, and an Air Arabia flight from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates was sent on to Chittagong.

Meanwhile, a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong was seen circling in the sky after failing to land at Dhaka airport, officials said.

The army, navy, and air force joined the fire service in efforts to bring the blaze under control.

This is the third major fire reported in Bangladesh this week.

A fire on Tuesday at a garment factory in Bangladesh and an adjacent chemical warehouse killed at least 16 people and injured others.

On Thursday, another fire burned down a garment factory building in an export processing zone in Chittagong.

Putin wants Farage to win to divide Europe, says Lammy

David Lammy has claimed Vladimir Putin wants Nigel Farage and his “right-wing populist” allies to succeed in the hope that they divide Europe.

The deputy prime minister’s attack comes after a leading ally of Mr Farage – former Reform UK leader in Wales Nathan Gill – was found guilty of taking money from the Kremlin.

It also follows longer-standing concerns over Mr Farage’s “admiration” for the Russian autocrat even though recently the Reform UK leader described Putin as “a very bad dude” in response to criticism.

Mr Lammy used a major speech in Amsterdam on Saturday to claim that Labour and its centre-left allies “are winning” in holding back right-wing populism around the world.

This is despite a Find Out Now poll on voting intention putting Labour in third place on 15 per cent – less than half the support for Reform UK on 32 per cent and behind the Tories on 17 per cent.

But the speech echoes the new attacking strategy launched by Sir Keir Starmer at the Labour Party conference last month to take on Mr Farage, whose party he described as “racist” and “immoral”.

Speaking to the conference of European socialists, Mr Lammy highlighted the recent conviction of Mr Gill.

He said: “Nigel Farage says he’s stunned by the fact his former party leader in Wales took Russian bribes. But we’re not stunned

“Because the Kremlin has a proven track record of supporting the networks that want European unity to fail.”

Mr Lammy has made efforts as foreign secretary to form a bridge with Donald Trump’s populist right-wing White House administration. But now he has been freed from the foreign brief, he has turned his guns on the “international populist right network” linking Farage to figures like Steve Bannon in the US, Marine Le Pen in France and UK far-right leader Tommy Robinson.

He warned: “Right now the populist right, even as it champions barriers and borders, is organising and sharing more effectively as an international network than we are.

“From [Austrian far-right activist] Martin Sellner to Tommy Robinson, this is an international network. From Nigel Farage to Steve Bannon, they are supporting each other. From [German far-right politician] Alice Weidel to Marine Le Pen, they are learning from one another. To extraordinary effect.”

He admitted: “We all feel this stress and uncertainty because our people are suffering.

“And we all know they are looking both left and right for the change they crave. This means politics is wide open. Our polls are marked by extreme volatility at this point in the cycle – and those that are popular are those that offer change.”

But while he said the situation was “fraught with peril”, Mr Lammy insisted it was also “full of possibility”.

He said that while Brexit means the UK left the EU, it did not mean that Britain is no longer European and he said it stood with its allies.

But he believed that Labour’s victory last year, followed by others around the world, showed that they are winning in the struggle against populism.

“We are here today because we cannot fail. We are in a race to shape the politics of the 21st century with the populist right,” he said.

“We are winning worldwide. In July last year we won in Britain, with a historic majority that nobody ever thought was possible. Ending 14 years of Tory rule.

“Yes, the right has won elsewhere. But since then, we’ve kept winning. In April, we won in Canada, roaring back from deep mid-term lows. In May, we won in Australia with the same story. In September, we won in Norway, roaring back again from those mid-term blues.”

In a rallying cry he insisted that Mr Farage and the populist right “shall not pass” when it comes to future elections, adding: “When Nigel Farage attacks, judges and mobilises grievances against the courts, this is his playbook. This is the price he would have us pay.

“That’s why in our elections, they shall not pass. Why in your elections, they shall not pass. Across Europe, they shall not pass.”

The Independent has contacted Reform UK for comment.

Hidden gem holidays: An insider guide to the Dominican Republic

The advent of autumn sees us thinking ahead to how to keep that sunshine feeling going through till winter; and there’s nothing better for keeping our spirits up than the idea of booking a holiday somewhere tropical. Enter the Dominican Republic, a warm and welcoming Caribbean nation perched to the south of the Turks and Caicos islands, and east of Jamaica. Known for its beautiful beaches, premium resorts and some legendary golf courses, there is, as the saying goes, genuinely something for everyone. If you want to make your holiday more than just a fly and flop, there’s plenty to explore, from Pico Duarte, the Caribbean’s tallest mountain, to historic sites in the country’s lively capital, Santo Domingo.

But first, where’s the best place to stay? Consider Costa Esmeralda, in the Miches area on the Island’s northeastern coast, a picturesque and pristine stretch of sand fringed with coconut palms that lean over the calm, turquoise waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Neighbouring Punta Cana and the wider Bávaro area combine to form what’s known as La Costa del Coco, or the Coconut Coast, an area of lavish, all-inclusive hotels which is also popular for windsurfing, kayaking and sailing.

Base yourself at Zemi Miches Punta Cana All-Inclusive Resort Curio by Hilton, an oceanfront resort boasting 800-metres of secluded beach on the shores of Playa Esmeralda. Located just 90 minutes’ drive from Punta Cana International Airport, the emphasis here is firmly on fun and relaxation. It features six restaurants, six bars and lounges, four pools and several water slides, and for those who like to keep fit while away, there’s a pickleball court, a paddle tennis court, and a full-service fitness centre which offers yoga and pilates classes. The Acana spa aims to reconnect soul and spirit with therapies inspired by ancient traditions, while you’ll also find a daily programme of art and cultural activities, plus live nightly entertainment. Bringing the kids? They’ll love spending time at the Coki Cove Kids Club or Palmchat Teens Club.

There’s a choice of rooms, suites or bungalows, all tastefully decorated with Caribbean flair, and offering stunning views. Select accommodations even feature private plunge pools, and Club Azure and bungalow guests have access to additional dining options and a rooftop pool. Talking of dining, you’ll experience a world of flavour, with menus inspired by the traditions of the Caribbean, Thailand, and the Amalfi Coast; think spicy, street-food inspired dishes, wood-fired pizzas, and local favourites. All this, and unlimited drinks and cocktails, too!

What’s more, booking with British Airways Holidays means you can secure your holiday now with a low deposit and spread the cost with flexible payments*. Once you’re ready to jet off, you can enjoy increased checked baggage allowance, a dedicated 24-hour helpline during your trip and the option of quality car hire with no hidden fees, 24-hour support and roadside assistance.

Upgrade to Club World and you’ll also get lounge access**, increased baggage allowance, priority check-in and boarding, and a spacious seat that converts to a fully flat bed. Members of The British Airways Club enjoy even more benefits in the form of collecting Avios (British Airways’ frequent flyer currency) and earning tier points, which unlock frequent flyer status and other benefits. Avios can also be used towards the cost of your holiday, presenting even greater value for money for members.

All this means you can totally relax during your stay at Hilton Zemi Miches Punta Cana All-Inclusive Resort, knowing you’re getting the quality and peace of mind you’d expect from a British Airways Holidays.

If you can tear yourself away from the resort – tough, we know – there’s lots to experience throughout the Dominican Republic. Take a day trip to Santo Domingo, one of the Caribbean’s oldest cities; its walled, cobblestoned, historic centre, the Zona Colonial, has impressive Spanish buildings dating back to the 16th century, including the Gothic Catedral Primada de America and the Alcázar de Colón palace, which sits on the laid-back, cafe-lined Plaza de España. The latter is now one of the city’s many museums, displaying striking medieval and Renaissance art. In the pretty Parque del Este is the Faro a Colón, a large mausoleum and museum dedicated to Christopher Columbus, who landed on the island known as Hispaniola (now divided into the Dominican Republic and Haiti) in 1492. For a taste of life in bygone times, visit Altos de Chavón, a fascinating replica of a 16th century Mediterranean village, featuring art galleries and studios, boutiques and a striking amphitheatre.

Looking for something a little more adventurous? Get back to nature at Los Haitises National Park, where you can explore mangrove forests, caves and unique rock formations, or the 27 waterfalls of Damajagua, a series of tumbling falls perfect for swimming, splashing and jumping into. And don’t miss the incredible Hoya Azul, a cenote, or sinkhole, with crystal-clear, aquamarine waters; it’s located in Scape Park, a natural adventure park featuring lush jungles and jaw-dropping cliffs, where you can go zip-lining or explore the caves. There is whale watching in Samana Bay – humpback whales can be found here during their breeding season, January to March. While Lago Enriquillo, a salt lake with surrounding wetlands, is home to crocodiles and various bird species, including flamingos. All in all, your holiday to the Dominican Republic is guaranteed to be unforgettable; so get booking now!

British Airways Holidays packages include a generous baggage allowance for each customer and come with full ATOL protection for complete peace of mind. Secure your holiday to Hilton Zemi Miches Punta with a low deposit and enjoy flexible payments until you fly*.

*Based on two sharing. Full balance due seven weeks before departure. Subject to availability. T&Cs apply.

**Subject to availability

Budget airline jet almost dives into ocean moments after take-off

An investigation has been launched after a passenger plane leaving an airport in Sicily veered dangerously close to the sea, triggering an emergency pull-up message.

The Air Arabia Airbus A320 plane had just taken off from Catania airport, on Sicily’s east coast, and was bound for Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan.

The plane left at 9.57pm on 20 September and shortly after take-off started flying dangerously close to the Mediterranean sea. The plane’s ground proximity warning system (GPWS) went off and issued a pull-up message, alerting the pilots to what was happening.

The Italian aviation authority, ANSV, said the pull-up message “occurred as the aircraft approached the sea surface, reaching a short distance from it”.

ANSV has now launched a safety investigation, classifying the event as a “serious incident”, after a preliminary review of information from the operator.

In a statement issued this week, they said that the flight continued without further incident. There were no passengers on board, but two pilots and four cabin crew members were present.

According to Italian news website Corriere Della Sera, the plane reached a terrifying 200ft above the sea at a speed of over 480 kilometres per hour.

The bizarre sequence occurred in good weather conditions, the paper reported.

Two Airbus A320 captains interviewed by the Italian media outlet said they were surprised that the plane had made such a dangerous manoeuvre. One suggested that there could have been a bird strike or an error in calculating the takeoff weights.

A spokesperson for Italian aviation authority ANSV said: “On 20 September 2025, at 21.57 UTC, shortly after takeoff from Catania Airport, an Air Arabia Airbus A320 aircraft, registration CN-NML, bound for Queen Alia International Airport (Jordan), received a Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) pull-up message. This occurred as the aircraft approached the sea surface, reaching a short distance from it.

“The flight continued without further incident. There were no passengers on board, and two pilots and four cabin crew members were present.

“After a preliminary review of the information received from the operator, ANSV opened a safety investigation, classifying the event as a serious incident.”

Police launch investigation after bar worker, 19, found dead in flat

A 19-year-old bar worker has died at an apartment in Manchester, as police said three people arrested in connection to drug supply were released on bail.

The woman, who worked at Gorilla bar, was found after police officers attended a welfare call at a flat on Grosvenor street.

Gorilla bar posted a statement on social media saying that one of their team members tragically passed away at the apartment in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Greater Manchester Police said that three arrests were made in connection to drug supply but added that those arrested have since been bailed.

In a statement on Facebook, Gorilla bar said: “We do not have any detailed information as to what occurred at this time, and it would be inappropriate for us to comment further particularly whilst there is an ongoing police investigation.

“Naturally, we have reached out to Greater Manchester Police and informed them that we will assist in any way we can in terms of uncovering what has happened.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of our deceased colleague at this very sad time”.

A spokesperson for the Greater Manchester Police said: “Officers responded to an incident on Grosvenor street, Manchester after reports of a concern for welfare.

“Sadly, officers discovered the body of a 19-year-old woman. Three arrests were made in connection to drug supply. They have since been bailed. Enquiries are ongoing.”