Masked Singer act pulled due to ‘insensitivities’ after Swiss bar fire

An act has been withdrawn from Saturday’s premiere episode of The Masked Singer due to “potential insensitivities” following the tragic Swiss bar fire that claimed 40 lives. T

he character, Red Panda, was removed from the 2026 series opener of the popular singing competition, which features celebrities performing in elaborate disguises.

An ITV spokesperson said: “In light of the tragic events in Switzerland, we took the decision to remove Red Panda’s performance on The Masked Singer in tonight’s programme owing to potential insensitivities within the theme and lyrics of the song.

“Viewers will get to see Red Panda perform in the coming weeks.”

Images appear to show Red Panda wearing sooty hi-vis firefighter overalls and a helmet with a flames and bucket symbol.

ITV has not revealed what song the character was to perform.

There were 119 people injured in the blaze at the Crans-Montana resort that started while revellers were celebrating New Year’s Eve.

The Masked Singer is hosted by comedian Joel Dommett and on Saturday it aired at 6.40pm rather than its usual 6.30pm start.

It saw the first celebrity unmasked as the BBC’s The One Show host Alex Jones.

The Welsh presenter performed Pink Pony Club by American pop star Chappell Roan.

Asked if she prefers her usual job or The Masked Singer, she told ITV: “It’s a tough call but I think I should probably stick to speaking. I’ve had such fun.

“I’ve never sung in my life – in fact, it was a bit of a phobia. When I was little, I always used to have a cold and they just chucked me out of the choir.

“From then on, I thought ‘that’s it, singing is not for me’. But I was convinced to do this because the kids love the programme so I thought, ‘OK let’s do it’. So it’s been a big thing to overcome.”

Her message to her children was “to know that overcoming fear is a good thing”.

“They’ll think ‘god, our mother, do you remember when she dressed as a disc jockey and she sang on national television without any sort of voice?’.”

The 2025 series was won by musical theatre star and Les Miserables actress Samantha Barks who was dressed as a pufferfish.

The Masked Singer continues on Sunday at 6.30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.

Murderer among two inmates on run after absconding from prison

A convicted murderer is one of two inmates who remain at large after absconding from a prison on New Year’s Day, police have said.

Matthew Armstrong, 35, was convicted in 2009 of a murder that occurred during a robbery in Warwickshire, police said.

He and Daniel Washbourne, 40, who has previous convictions for offences of violence against a person and false imprisonment, are believed to have left HMP Leyhill, in South Gloucestershire, between 5pm and 8pm on Thursday.

Police explained they are not from the local area, and have links to various parts of the country.

Avon and Somerset Police appealed to the public for information after a third inmate suspected of absconding at the same time was arrested in Bristol earlier on Saturday.

“Two prisoners have absconded from HMP Leyhill and we want to hear from anyone who has information around their whereabouts,” police said.

“The pair are not originally from Avon and Somerset and have links to various parts of the country.”

Armstrong is described as a white male about five feet and nine inches tall, with ginger hair and scars on his forehead.

“He was last seen wearing a burgundy/orange coat, grey cap, grey tracksuit suit bottoms with blue on the side, and black boots,” police added. He is also thought to know “links to Warwickshire”.

Washbourne was described as a white male about five feet and six inches tall, with brown hair and clean shaven.

He was last seen wearing a cream fleece, blue tracksuit bottoms, blue hat and black trainers and has known links to Herefordshire, police said.

The absconders were reported by HMP Leyhill on Thursday evening and police attended the location at about 9.45pm to begin their investigation.

CCTV footage has been released showing the men were wearing on New Year’s Day.

“Urgent actions have already been completed, including circulating the men as wanted via national police systems,” Avon and Somerset Constabulary said.

“Intelligence work to trace the men’s movements is ongoing.

“Address checks have been made out-of-force too and proved negative so far.”

Police have urged members of the public to not approach the men if they recognise either of them, instead they have been asked to call 999, quoting the reference number 5226000700.

Train worker sacked after passengers served sausage rolls taken from a bin

A train worker has been sacked after first class passengers were served sausage rolls taken from a bin.

Peter Duffy, who was an employee for London North Eastern Railway (LNER), was accused of preparing sausage rolls “retrieved from a bin” for first-class passengers, which a colleague then served.

The incident was reported by another train crew member, who overheard laughter from the kitchen before service and later noted the bin was empty, despite being told earlier that no sausage rolls were available as they had been thrown away.

Mr Duffy claimed he had “gone too far for the customer”.

On May 7 2023, Mr Duffy and a fellow train crew member were working onboard an LNER service departing York, when two passengers in first class requested sausage rolls.

The colleague who reported concerns said: “Myself and a host from standard class had been in the kitchen to get ourselves food when the host who was cooking told us the sausage rolls had just gone in the bin.”

Later, the member of staff reported hearing “lots of laughing” from inside the kitchen where Mr Duffy and his colleague were based, before reminding them a passenger was sat nearby.

They added: “A couple of minutes later one of the hosts from first class took the sausage rolls to Coach K.

“After I had finished my food I took my rubbish to the bin in the kitchen and this is when noticed the bins were empty and there were no sausage rolls in the bin.”

The member of staff claimed Mr Duffy had retrieved the food from a bin before plating and reheating them.

His colleague from the kitchen was then said to have served the food to the customers sitting in first class.

Mr Duffy was told that CCTV footage had been retrieved and appeared to show that items of food that were disposed of in a bin had been retrieved by him in the presence of his colleague.

The footage suggested the food was then plated and re-heated by Mr Duffy and subsequently served to customers by his colleague.

Both were suspended by the train company pending an investigation into the alleged breach of food hygiene standards.

At an investigatory meeting on May 17 2023, Mr Duffy said he was “a person who goes over and beyond for the customer”.

“I clearly took them out as there were none left for people in first class but they were wrapped in foil,” he said.

“We had totally ran out, I have just gone too far for the customer in my mind.”

He said he suffered from anxiety and depression, was on medication and had been stressed with work but added: “That was me trying to do the best for the customer which I am well known for.”

A union representative present at the investigation said Mr Duffy “had suffered from a recognised condition that day, known as transient global amnesia”.

Transient global amnesia is a sudden, temporary interruption of short-term memory.

Mr Duffy’s colleague denied seeing him take the sausage rolls out of the bin and said they were laughing because she had passed wind but the tribunal found her evidence was unreliable as was likely to be self-serving.

Mr Duffy was found to have committed gross misconduct and was dismissed in July 2023.

He claimed unfair dismissal and discrimination at a tribunal in Newcastle in August 2025 but both complaints were dismissed.

In reasons published on Wednesday to support the judgment, the tribunal judge said LNER had acted reasonably in deciding to dismiss Mr Duffy and the actions which prompted his dismissal were not something that arose in consequence of his disability.

Littler writes name among darts greats with stunning world final win

Come at the king, you best not miss. A record 128 players started the World Darts Championship and seven took their shot at reigning champion Luke Littler along the way. Some fans turned on him too over the three weeks and his walk-ons were regularly accompanied by a smattering of noisy boos. Yet no one could knock him off his stride, not even rising star Gian van Veen, who was ripped limb from limb by a ruthless Littler on the Alexandra Palace stage as the champion retained his crown.

At times he seemed to think the whole world was against him. This was a different Littler to the boy who triumphed 12 months ago against Michael van Gerwen on the same platform: a snarling, snorting Littler, hurling darts like he’d pinned the face of a sworn enemy to the board, ripping them out of the treble-20 bed after each of his 16 180s with feeling.

His onslaught was stalled only twice, first by a wasp that attacked his head during the fifth set, and then when the board had to be changed after Van Veen smeared a spot of blood across single five in the latter stages. Minutes later he bled out in a brutal 7-1 thrashing.

“This is why we are here and it’s not stopping any time soon,” Littler said, holding the giant trophy in his arms. “It’s very special. We have to keep going, keep adding more titles. We can’t stop here. This year, last year, the year before, we are still on this rollercoaster.”

Most teenagers haven’t yet left their hometown: Littler is 18 and has already lost one world final, returned to win the crown 12 months later and come back again to emphatically defend his title. In doing so he has cemented himself as one of the greats of the game, even though most of his astonishing career still yawns ahead of him.

In his first final he was the 16-year-old prodigy Luke, and we watched to see how far he could go, to see whether a boy from Warrington could conquer the world. He couldn’t could he? Well, no, not quite. Then came his arrival to the summit, the natural culmination of his freakish talent. He tore down the great Van Gerwen in a symbolic passing of the torch from one era to the next.

This third instalment was something different. He was back as a man, with millions of pounds and a sackful of trophies and even a driving licence. The narrative had shifted from young star to kingpin with a target on his back. Humphries said he would beat him and called it a “war” between them. Van Gerwen said he was Littler’s most feared competitor and anything else was a lie. Neither were right. Instead it was a new rival, Van Veen, standing between Littler and the trophy he most coveted.

Littler is five years Van Veen’s junior but he was the veteran in this arena, the one who had been there before and done it, and failed too. It is a space he owns now. Van Veen has been brilliant for several months, winning the European Championship and blitzing his way to the final here with dominant wins over Humphries and Gary Anderson. Had he replicated his 105 average against Humphries then the Dutchman might have come close, but perhaps he can take some solace from the fact that he still wouldn’t have beaten Littler in this form.

Littler finished with a 106.02 three-dart average – the highest in any world final since Rob Cross in 2018 – and took out 46 per cent of his doubles, compared to Van Veen’s 101.77 average and 38 per cent finishing.

“It wasn’t the greatest game of my whole tournament, but Luke wasn’t in the mood to give me more chances,” said Van Veen, who is the new world No 3 and took away a cheque for £400,000, as Littler collected a record £1m prize. “I would have liked to lift up the title, I would have liked to have given Luke a game, but that’s what I didn’t do today.”

The build-up to this final was a valiant effort to shape this into the sport’s new rivalry. They are different people, and the rugby league town of Warrington probably doesn’t share much in common with the tiny Dutch village of Poederoijen. They are different characters, too. Littler likes kebabs and Xbox; Van Veen has a degree in aerospace engineering. One is instinctive, the other calculated. Littler is precocious and confident and wears an aura; Van Veen is altogether more discreet, with little fist punches and wry smiles under his thin-rimmed glasses, the kind of man who might apologise for being bumped into.

He has a steeliness under that gentle facade but it abandoned him here, understandably so. A lifetime before Littler kissed the trophy, Van Veen had actually made the perfect start, winning the bull-up backstage to throw first and then beginning the first leg with 140, 140 en route to a 10-darter. The first set went to a deciding leg, where Littler wasted the chance and was furious with himself, chuntering under his breath as Van Veen took out double four to lead 1-0.

Littler later admitted that anger fired him up after a sluggish start. “I was frustrated, and I definitely played better after that first set.”

Set two was astonishing as both players averaged more than 110. Van Veen took out 145 to win the first leg against the throw, and followed it with a 127 finish to take a stranglehold. He was a wire’s width from taking out 127 again to clinch the set and a 2-0 lead, but missed, and Littler made him pay with a nerveless 116 finish and a roar to the ceiling. “He could have gone 2-0 up and that would have changed everything,” Littler said.

He ripped through the third set, finishing it with the big fish and a fishing celebration for good measure. As “walking in a Littler wonderland” rang out around Ally Pally, Van Veen looked a little shellshocked. Littler took down the fourth set in double-quick time to lead 3-1 before they took a break.

Littler raced through the next two sets with his average hovering around 107, and the match seemed more about whether he could finally deliver a nine-darter in this tournament. Twice he went close, only to miss dart seven or eight without giving himself a shot at the magic ninth. When Van Veen made his own chance at a nine-darter, not only did he miss but Littler stole the leg, and with it the seventh set, to lead 6-1.

He finished needing only one dart at double 15 and celebrated by bending over double, beating his own shins with his palms, which felt in keeping with his darts, doing something no one has ever seen before on that stage. He was utterly supreme.

Could he hunt down Phil Taylor’s record tally of 16 world titles? “That’s so far away, but 14 to go, so I might need 15, 16 years,” Littler grinned. “If it happens, it happens. I’ll be around for a very long time.” This is not the era of Littler-Humphries or even Littler-Van Veen. It is simply the age of Littler, and he is going nowhere.

Inside the quest for the origin of Stonehenge’s Altar Stone

“It was one of those kind of serendipitous occasions – a Eureka moment,” says Professor Richard Bevins.

Picking over a set of 15 sample stones from Stonehenge passed on to him by a former colleague, the experienced geologist was asked to make a quick observation on the source of rock believed to have been brought from west Wales some 5,000 years ago.

“I said I can tell you what they are in terms of rock type, but this rock type – I’ve never seen in west Wales, never seen it at all,” Prof Bevins recalls. “So I wrote it up [his report], but before it was published, I had a Eureka moment and thought ‘there’s an outcrop that I have got material from but that I’ve never looked at before’.

“It led to the excavation of a Neolithic quarry [Craig Rhos-y-Felin] and the discovery of the exact location where the stone samples came. A perfect match. It was a special moment.”

That major discovery in 2011 was the first time a definite source for any of the stones for the world-famous monument had been found, reinvigorating the long-running debate on how the stones were transported all the way from Pembrokeshire to Wiltshire.

Now, today, 14 years on, Prof Bevins believes he could be on the verge of his next ground-breaking find; the source of the monument’s Altar Stone.

Having declared that the six-tonne megalith was not one of the bluestones hauled from Pembrokeshire last year, he and his team ventured to the archipelago of Orkney after determining it came from sandstone deposits in the Orcadian Basin, an area encompassing the isles of Orkney and Shetland and a coastal strip on the north-east Scottish mainland.

Detailed study of the stones in Orkney, however, came up with no match – and now Prof Bevins is staring at a mapped area 125 miles by 93 miles, determined to discover the exact location the stone was quarried, before being transported more than 500 miles to the West Country.

“It’d be fantastic to find the exact source,” Prof Bevins says. “It’s been a rollercoaster to get this far, having found it doesn’t come from Wales but now from north-east Scotland. It’d certainly be the icing on the cake for all the work we’ve put in.”

Finding the source would open excavation works for archaeologists at the source site, who would then be able to trace the people behind the construction of Stonehenge and find out everything from their society to their tools to what they ate and drank.

It would also, Prof Bevins says, add more substance to the theories behind how the huge stones were moved the hundreds of miles, with current thoughts, due to the hilly landscape in Scotland, that it was instead moved by sea.

The discovery of the location could also strengthen research that the building of Stonehenge was an act of unification across the UK against a foreign threat, with materials coming from all corners of the British Isles.

But for now, Prof Bevins says he needs to work with his small team to pinpoint locations within the huge region.

“If we just went up there and went randomly walking across the whole area, we’ll probably retire and be a long time underground before anything were found, so we’ll be picking out some target areas within that region,” says Prof Bevins.

But it takes time, and operating in the field is expensive and time-consuming.

And after funding finished on ruling out Orkney last year, Prof Bevins and his team need to build a new case for money to pay for the next part of their project. Part of their case will be the public’s thirst for information on one of the UK’s most famous monuments, Stonehenge, which had a record 1.4m visitors in 2024.

“People like to know about other people, they like to know about their history, they like to know why Stonehenge built, what do the pyramids mean? It’s that fascination with people and cultures,” says Prof Bevins.

“When we publish a paper [on Stonehenge] you can almost clock it going around the world across time zones. News, television channels, online. It really is quite astonishing. We’re hoping to achieve the same results again soon.”

‘Tis the season to connect: How to maximise your mobile

Our mobile phones are a vital part of our everyday lives, providing us with connection, entertainment and information. We rely on the device in our pocket to help us work, socialise, learn and so much more – so we want to make sure we’re getting the most we can from it.

Tesco Mobile’s new Pay as you go Essentials tariff can help you do just that, offering increased flexibility and benefits. It keeps things simple and lets you add 30-day bundles of data, minutes and texts that best suit your needs.

The tariff will replace Rocket Pack, Triple Credit and Lite tariffs for all existing Tesco Mobile Pay as you go customers.

Customers who prefer traditional Pay as you go can continue to use top-up balance for calls, texts and data at the standard rate: 25p per minute, 10p per text, 10p per MB.*

So whether you’re an existing Tesco Mobile customer or thinking of making the switch, here’s seven reasons why Pay as you go Essentials is the perfect option…

We all use our phones differently. For some, it’s all about streaming favourite shows and music, so having enough data is vital. Others just want to be able to text and call friends and family whenever they want. Tesco Mobile make it easy to find the right Pay as you go Essentials bundle for your needs. New customers can choose the best bundle for their needs, with bundles auto-renewing every 30 days using available top-up balance.

Circumstances can change and you might find yourself needing more data or minutes some months than others. Depending on how much you use your phone, a bundle is often more cost-effective than using your top-up balance and being charged standard rates for calls, texts and data usage. Pay as you go Essentials is a flexible top-up tariff designed to give users full control over their spend, letting them add bundles of data, minutes and texts to suit specific needs. You can change your bundle as often as you like or cancel at any time. If you decide to opt-out of a bundle you can continue to use your top-up balance for calls, text and data at the standard out-of-bundle rate (25p per minute, 10p per text, 10p per MB).

Pay as you go Essentials offers a range of five great-value bundle options that all include data, minutes and texts. Pay as you go Essentials bundles start from just £5 for 30 days (minimum £10 top-up at activation), while every bundle from £10 and up includes unlimited calls and texts (subject to Fair Usage Policy) – making it easy and affordable to stay connected. If you’re an existing Tesco Mobile Pay as you go customer you’ll get a free 30 day Essentials bundle based on your previous use so you can see if its the right one for you.

The new Tesco Mobile app is packed with useful features to help you make the most of your Pay as you go phone. It’s a quick and simple way to manage or change your bundles, check usage, top-up your balance change auto-renew settings and more. You can easily see your remaining data, minutes and texts, so you know whether you need to add a new or different bundle. Need a hand with something? Chat with the customer care team via live in-app messaging. This is a new app for Pay as you go customers, and customers will no longer be able to use their old Tesco Mobile Pay as you go apps.

Phone calls cutting out, videos buffering, texts that don’t send… an unreliable phone signal can be hugely frustrating. Tesco Mobile shares O2’s network, which means 99 per cent UK coverage, and a better connection in hard-to-reach rural areas – so you won’t be searching for a signal. Tesco Mobile’s 4G and 5G networks are constantly being improved, and with Pay as you go Essentials, customers can use 4G Calling (also known as VoLTE) means you’ll use your 4G connection to make and receive calls, enjoying clearer calls. You can find this option in your network settings.

With Tesco Mobile, you get a Clubcard point for every £1 you spend. Just link your Clubcard to your phone (text the word CLUBCARD to 28578 free from your Tesco Mobile phone) and watch the points add up. You can then convert your points to vouchers to save on your weekly grocery shop or exchange the vouchers for Reward Partner codes to save money on meals out, entertainment, day trips, travel and more. For a limited time, Tesco Mobile customers can get 500 Clubcard points every time they add a £15 Pay as you go Essentials bundle when they link their Clubcard within the first 28 days of adding the bundle. Clubcard points will be automatically issued within 30 days.

For more information on Tesco Mobile’s Pay as you go Essentials, including all available bundles, visit Tesco Mobile

*Offer ends 01/02/2026. See Terms And Conditions for full terms.

Starmer to tell cabinet to slash cost of living in new year message

Keir Starmer will warn his cabinet to slash the cost of living when they meet for the first time this year, after new figures suggested the poor were getting poorer under Labour.

With his beleagured government still trailing Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the polls, and expected to suffer heavy losses in May’s local, Scottish and Welsh elections, the prime minister will tell ministers to find ways to cut household bills.

“I know families across the country are still worried about the cost of living,” he will say. “There will be no let-up in our fight to make life better for them.”

As he tries to woo disgruntled voters, the Labour leader will use an event on Monday to highlight steps his government has already taken, but the renewed push follows weeks of negative economic headlines, including warnings that workers will get “hammered” by Rachel Reeves’ stealth taxes.

In her Budget in November, the chancellor said she was “asking everyone to make a contribution” to fund public services and investment after months of sluggish economic growth.

But her decision to drag millions more people into paying higher rates of tax, by freezing the thresholds at which they kick in, will “hammer” workers, while pensioners and those on benefits will see their incomes increase, a new analysis found.

An employee currently earning £50,000 would be £505 worse off in real terms by 2030-31, despite a forecast that their salary will increase by more than £6,000, an analysis by the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) think tank found.

As he declares there can be no let-up in the fight against high living costs, the PM is expected to highlight the six interest rates cuts in recent months, which Labour says has left mortgage costs at their lowest since Liz Truss’ disastrous mini-budget.

Millions of households will also see £150 off their energy bills from April, while low paid workers will see an increase to the national living wage worth £900.

Speaking at an event on Monday, Sir Keir will say more families this year will begin to feel the impact of Labour’s policies.

He will tell families: “This Labour government is on your side, doing everything we can to ease the cost of living – and make life better. In 2026 the choices we made will mean more people begin to feel that positive change.”

He will add: “This is real change that you will be able to feel day in day out. Britain is turning the corner and 2026 is the year more people will feel renewal becoming reality.

“We’ll use every tool we have to help you with the cost of living and make your lives better. That’s my promise to all of you.”

The first cabinet meeting of the year will be on Tuesday.

Scrapping the OBR could be Nigel Farage’s Liz Truss moment

Nigel Farage says that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is “a Blairite-style quango” in an interview with the Telegraph this weekend – as if being Blairite is a bad thing.

“I have questioned the need for it,” he says. “We have to discuss whether we would be better off without the OBR. I am giving that very serious thought.”

This could turn out to be a significant moment. The Independent’s poll suggested that allegations that Farage was a racist bully at school did not affect his popularity. But if voters think that he would struggle to manage the public finances, that may prove far more damaging, and could yet turn them away from voting for Reform.

The democratic argument against the OBR is an obvious temptation for Farage. His case against the “Blairite-style quango” is that it is “effectively dictating to elected politicians what they should or should not do”.

That complaint is heard on both left and right: that the OBR prevents politicians from giving people what they want. It mirrors the argument against the independence of the Bank of England in setting interest rates – another Blairite innovation that constrains elected politicians. Farage and Richard Tice, Reform’s deputy leader, have also hinted at ending the Bank’s independence.

Farage’s opponents must be hoping that he will be tempted to fall into this trap. Ultimately, the case for the OBR is far stronger than the case against it. It is a vital part of what keeps politicians honest – and a crucial defence against fiscal disaster.

We know this because it was only four years ago that Liz Truss provided a real-world experiment in what happens when you try to govern without it.

Kwasi Kwarteng, her chancellor, got himself into a terrible tangle when he spoke to students at King’s College London recently. He said he thought the OBR was “probably too powerful”, adding that “it really constrains the radicalism that you want to see”.

But it did not constrain your radicalism, Ed Balls, a professor at King’s, pointed out, because “you cut it out – and your radicalism was still constrained; there was something else constraining it”.

That “something else” was the government’s credibility with those who might lend it money. That constraint exists whether the OBR is involved or not. The difference is that it is less of a constraint when a government sets credible fiscal rules and has an independent body such as the OBR marking its homework.

If Farage were to abolish the OBR, he would quickly find himself in the same position as Truss and Kwarteng: rising interest rates, collapsing confidence and an embarrassingly brief tenure in 10 Downing Street.

Whether he pursues this idea will be a test of Farage’s seriousness. I think he will quietly drop it. I think his opponents are making a mistake if they assume he will make the mistakes they need to keep him out of power.

Even if Farage was only thinking aloud about ditching the OBR, there is a lesson here for those determined to stop him. His weak point is competence – specifically, his ability to manage the public finances.

Liam Byrne, the Labour chair of the Business and Trade Committee, and Best for Britain, the anti-Brexit campaign founded by Gina Miller, commissioned YouGov last year to research which arguments were most likely to dissuade people from voting for Reform.

At the top of the list was not Brexit, nor Farage’s friendship with Donald Trump. It was the economy. The single biggest reason given for not voting for Reform was that “Farage has made billions in unfunded promises that would drive up mortgages and bills”. Next came concerns about employment rights, pensions and the NHS.

Sir Keir Starmer should take note. He should ignore those voices urging him to be “bold” in setting out a pro-EU policy for the next election. Just as he should ignore the strident demands that he hold Farage to account for his slavish admiration of President Trump, one of the few people who is even more unpopular in Britain than the prime minister himself.

That is not how to change the minds of those who may be considering voting Reform at the next election. The spectre of Liz Truss – and the chaos that followed – is a far more effective deterrent.