Two drivers killed in separate Motorsport UK races on same day

Two drivers have died in separate crashes at Motorsport UK races on Saturday.

Dai Roberts, a 39-year-old co-driver, died at the scene of a crash during the Jim Clark Rally in Scotland. Driver James Williams, 27, was hospitalised with serious injuries at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

The Jim Clark Rally, named after the Scottish Formula One champion, is an annual closed-road motorsport race in the Scottish Borders.

In a statement, Motorsport UK offered its condolences to Mr Roberts’ family and friends, as well as the Jim Clark Rally, Jim Clark Memorial Motor Club and members of the motorsport community.

“Motorsport UK has initiated a full investigation into the circumstances of the incident and will work closely with the Jim Clark Rally event organisers and Jim Clark Memorial Motor Club and will cooperate with the relevant authorities”.

Police Scotland’s superintendent Vincent Fisher said: “Our thoughts are with the family of the man who has died and enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances.”

The Jim Clark Rally was stopped after the deaths of three people in 2014 and cancelled the year after. It has since been reinstated in the UK racing calendar.

Mr Roberts’ younger brother Gareth died aged 24 after a racing accident in Palermo, Italy, in 2012.

The Jim Clark Memorial Motor Club said they had made the decision to cancel the remainder of the event, as well as Sunday’s Jim Clark Reivers Rally.

Motorsport UK also announced the death pf Julian Grimwade, a competitor at the Vintage Sports Car Club’s race event at Donington Park on Saturday.

The organisation said: “Motorsport UK joins the entire UK motorsport community in mourning and sends its sincerest condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of Julian, as well as the Vintage Sports Car Club.

“As with all serious incidents, Motorsport UK will conduct an investigation into the matter and cooperate with the relevant external authorities.”

Black pudding baps and Belinda Carlisle: Inside UK’s first Reform pub

Tucked away on a residential street in the suburbs of Blackpool, the Talbot is not the kind of pub you’d expect people to travel to from across the country.

And yet, thanks to its grand rebrand as the world’s first Reform UK pub — complete with a new turquoise-blue paint job — thousands of Nigel Farage fans have made the pilgrimage from as far as Scotland and Northern Ireland to tell their mates they’ve had a pint at the newly political pub.

As you enter, your eyes adjust from the bright Lancashire sunshine to the flicker of GB News on every screen. The fruit machines jingle and the dulcet tones of Belinda Carlisle are blasted from the jukebox. This, the locals are quick to tell me, is a “real boozer”.

As I reach the bar, I find Carling Export for £2.60 a pint, although this stunningly cheap price is not afforded to the European heavyweights Stella, Madri and Cruzcampo, priced at a comparatively eye-watering £4.50.

Wonky “Vote for Reform” posters are hung next to offers of three shots for £5 – both designed using the same 1990s Microsoft clip art – while other notices tell locals that a Take That tribute act will be there in August, all the way from Benidorm.

Away from the bar, it is a standard northern community pub: elderly couples stare at each other in silence over warm ales, local tradesmen play a few rounds of pool (20p a game) on their lunch break, and, in the corner, tensions flare over a darts grudge match.

The Talbot started life as a Conservative social club almost 100 years ago, but in a move somewhat echoing today’s political landscape, it has defected to Reform, thanks to landlords Nicholas Lowe and Peter Flynn.

The pair have run the pub for more than 15 years, but with electric bills rising and footfall lagging in the last six months, they decided to see if a rebrand could reverse their fortunes following Reform’s sweeping success during the local elections, which saw the party pick up 677 council seats.

Raymond Head, 86, drove 200 miles from “Labour-controlled” Stevenage after he saw the pub on GB News.

He said: “I thought, if I’m going to support anyone, I want to support this guy. I want to come and have a drink here. It’s cheap and cheerful, and we all very much talk the same language.”

Mark Butcher, the regional Reform UK chairman who came third as Blackpool South’s candidate in the general election last year, is equally emphatic about the pub’s new identity.

He called the pub a “bold statement to the local community” stranded in the Labour heartlands of Blackpool, adding: “Together, we are redefining the narrative and fostering a space where every voice matters.”

Clifford Dyson, 70, who lives across the road from the pub, said: “The food here’s brilliant, I must admit, and a 5-star hygiene rating to boot – what more can you want?”

The dishes are undeniably reasonably priced – from the £2 black pudding and sausage sandwiches to the £5 Sunday roasts – but it’s the £3.50 chicken curry that takes my fancy.

Sitting in the hot sun for just a minute, a thick custard-like skin congealed on the surface of the dish, giving off an aroma reminiscent of school dinners.

Seeing me struggle with my lunch, Barry, 74, a self-described “proud racist” who lives nearby, breaks the ice by launching into a vile tirade about small boats and hotels. Confronting the owner, I ask him if he knows there are “proud racists” propping up his bar.

Mr Flynn replies: “No, I didn’t know that. I don’t like extremism. I don’t stand for that.”

Lenny Thompson, 47, drinking at the busier Wetherspoons closer to the faded seaside promenade, said he won’t be visiting The Talbot anytime soon.

He said: “There are xenophobic people in Blackpool, but also all over the country. But we need immigrants to come into the country so that the NHS doesn’t collapse.

“They are a populist party and target people who have these fears about foreigners. They get a lot of support here, but people don’t realise Farage wants to get rid of the NHS.”

Much like Mr Farage’s underwhelming rebranding from Ukip to the Brexit Party and now to Reform UK, the “transformation” of The Talbot seems to be a case of slapping some fresh paint on an antiquated establishment and selling it to the consumer as something new.

But one party member’s words echo in my ears: “Reform is more than just a political party, it’s a movement – and this is just the beginning.”

The Princes in the Tower: Has 500-year-old murder mystery been solved?

A historian claims to have proof that the Princes in the Tower of London were not murdered by their uncle Richard III.

Most historians believe Richard killed his nephews in the summer of 1483 after their father, Edward IV, died unexpectedly, despite a lack of hard evidence linking him to the murders.

The boys, Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, were 12 and nine respectively when their father died. They were taken one by one to the Tower of London in expectation of Edward V’s coronation, but never emerged.

Philippa Langley, the historian and screenwriter who played a key role in uncovering Richard III’s remains in a Leicester car park, has spent the last ten years investigating the case.

Ms Langley teamed up with professional cold case investigators, some of whom work with the police on unsolved murder to join her Missing Princes Project.

Uncovering a treasure trove of never-before-seen documents and letters she believes she has built a strong enough case for the boys’ survival from the Tower of London.

The conventional narrative has always been Richard III’s loyal servant, Sir James Tyrell, was the boys’ killer, after a confession, obtained under torture, before his execution for treason in 1502. Ms Langley argues that for it to have been worthwhile for Richard to kill the princes, he had to display their bodies, “otherwise he did it for no reason”, putting himself in jeopardy.

Following the death of King Richard at the battle of Bosworth on 22 August 1485, Henry VII became King but Ms Langley said the Princes rose again and challenged him for the throne.

She said: “But Henry attempted to cast the Yorkist Princes as impostors by giving them false names and reverse-engineering their stories: Edward V became a 10 year-old boy called ‘Lambert Simnel’, the son of a joiner, tailor, barber, baker, organ-maker or shoemaker, and Richard, Duke of York became ‘Perkin Warbeck’ the son of a French boatman.”

The documents she uncovered include letters supporting a rebellion by “Edward IV’s son” in 1487, the year of Simnel’s uprising – which ended in him being crowned in Ireland. They also found fresh references to a boy said to be “a son of King Edward”.

On Richard, three items signed with his seal have emerged in Europe, as well as letters allegedly written by him to James IV of Scotland and even a document from the Pope.

A biography of his life as an escaped prince also emerged but the author remains a mystery.

Simnel and Warbeck ultimately confessed to being impostors, but Ms Langley and her team of researchers insist these were false confessions extracted by Henry VII to discredit the challengers.

Asked by The Times if this amounted to proof, she said: “Had we supplied this amount of evidence in this book to say Richard III had murdered the Princes in the Tower, would you be asking me that question?”

“I would say that they now have to prove that Richard III murdered the Princes in the Tower.”

Officially, the princes’ remains were found in 1674, when workmen at the Tower dug up a wooden box containing two skeletons. Four years later, the bones were placed in an urn and interred in Westminster Abbey on the orders of King Charles II.

Richard III

The prime suspect, escorted Edward V to the Tower of London where he was last seen.

Motive – insecure hold on the Monarchy due to the way he obtained the crown, faced rebellions from the Yorkists loyal to Edward IV prior to Parliament conforming his title to the throne in January 1484.

Evidence – circumstantial. Ms Langley argues that it would have better served Richard III to display the dead bodies in public to prevent pretenders to the throne coming forward.

Henry VII (Henry Tudor)

Richard III’s rival who defeated his forces at the Battle of Bosworth.

Motive – executed rival claimants to the throne following his coronation.

Evidence – Henry Tudor was out of the country at the time of the princes’ disappearance and so could only have murdered them post-accession. Historians have called the theory the only plausible alternative to Richard III’s being the killer.

Henry Stafford

2nd Duke of Buckingham, kingmaker and breaker: played a major role in the rise and fall of Richard III.

Motive – held a claim to the throne through the House of Beaufort family.

Evidence – a manuscript found in the early 1980s in the College of Arms collection states that the princes were murdered “be [by] the vise” of the Duke of Buckingham. There is some argument over whether “vise” means “advice” or “devise”.

Sir James Tyrell

English knight, loyal servant to Richard III.

Motive – following the orders of his King.

Evidence – said to have confessed under torture to the murder of the princes before his execution for treason in 1502, according to Sir Thomas More’s The History of King Richard III. The original document containing his confession was never produced. Shakespeare portrayed Tyrell as the murderer in his play Richard III.

Sunderland prove comeback kings to seal dramatic Premier League return

There are ways to say goodbye. Tommy Watson’s last few minutes as a Sunderland player proved their last few in the Football League. Their eight-year exile from the top flight was ended by a player who was just 11 when they were last relegated from the Premier League. As they won the £200m match, the richest game in world football, they may not need the millions they will bank from Watson’s impending move to Brighton.

But if he is going to the Premier League, he departed by dragging them up with him, a 95th-minute winner transporting the Roker Roar, the sound of the Stadium of Light, to Wembley. It was quite a comeback by Sunderland: on the day, after Sheffield United dominated the first half to lead, and over the last four seasons.

They have come a long way in a short time. Three-and-a-half years ago, Sunderland lost 6-0 at Bolton in League One and sacked Lee Johnson. Then, given their history, fanbase and stadium, they were arguably English football’s greatest underachievers.

Three weeks ago, no club had ever gone into the play-offs in worse form than Sunderland, with five straight losses. But they have become specialists in turnarounds. Regis Le Bris, an unknown French appointment, has proved an inspired choice as manager, and they are a Premier League club again.

One of the grand old clubs have done it with youth. Kyril Louis-Dreyfus is the boy king of an owner. Eliezer Mayenda was the youngest scorer in a Championship play-off final for 32 years. The 20-year-old had that status for all of 19 minutes, until the 19-year-old Watson surpassed him.

His was already a famous name on Wearside. Sunderland won three league titles under Tom Watson in the 1890s; some 130 years later, Tommy Watson scored the goal to take them into the Premier League. Many another who has gone down in Sunderland folklore was here to see it: Jim Montgomery and Peter Reid; Niall Quinn and Kevin Phillips; Jermain Defoe and Jordan Henderson – Sunderland’s past now knowing their future includes the top flight.

A club who waited almost half a century for a Wembley win after the 1973 FA Cup now have three in five seasons, the last two bringing promotion. For the second time in three months, fans from the North East were jubilant at Wembley. First Newcastle, then Sunderland: previously success-starved rivals have had plenty to enjoy this year.

The curse instead sticks resolutely to Sheffield United. They have won promotion in a Test match but never in a play-off, despite 10 attempts. Their last victory at Wembley was 100 years ago, in 1925. Good things are supposed to come to those who wait. Not for United.

The side who started the season bottom of the table, subtracted points, who claimed 92 to finish on 90, who took the lead at Wembley and had their chances to double it instead face another season in the second tier. Football has a cruelty: for Chris Wilder, who stood on the brink of a third promotion with his boyhood club; for Kieffer Moore, who almost headed the Blades into the lead after 70 seconds, only for Anthony Patterson to make a magnificent save.

A goal did indeed stem from Moore; but Sunderland’s winner. He got the inadvertent assist, the United target man instead picking out the Sunderland substitute. Watson placed his shot in the far corner.

He hails from County Durham. The Spaniard Mayenda was signed from Sochaux two years ago, part of Sunderland’s policy of buying young, and his goal was more emphatic, rifled into the top corner after a wonderful, defence-splitting pass from Patrick Roberts. If it suggested that Roberts should have started – and that maybe Le Bris recovered after getting his initial 11 wrong – Sunderland’s substitutes had the far greater impact as United lost their way.

The first Sunderland change had to come early: Luke O’Nien seemed to dislocate his shoulder as Moore won his second-minute header. Yet Sunderland’s spirit animal of a centre-back was bounding down the touchline in celebration when Mayenda struck, partying through the pain barrier with his arm in a sling.

For Sunderland, a fantastic finish followed a subdued start. In a game of two halves, they only turned up for one. It proved enough.

They had conceded when a devastating counter-attack brought a delightful, dinked finish. A rare attack was then the worst form of defence for them, Gustavo Hamer leading the break after a Sunderland corner and feeding Tyrese Campbell, who lifted a shot over Patterson. But Hamer, the Championship’s player of the season, and Campbell, a footballer picked up on a free transfer by Wilder, were removed at 1-0 up, powerless as they were stripped of the tag of heroes.

United thought they had doubled their lead, and they should have done. Harrison Burrows had a volley disallowed because Vinicius Souza was offside and in Patterson’s line of sight. Then the substitute Andre Brooks capitalised on Dennis Cirkin’s mistake. It took a fine save from Patterson to deny him. He kept Sunderland in the game and they responded. First with Mayenda, then Watson, each far too young to remember Quinn and Phillips, each now joining them in Sunderland’s hall of fame.

Indeed, Watson now joins them in Sunderland’s past. Just the third goal of his fledgling career may forever remain the biggest and the most celebrated. It will almost certainly forever prove the most lucrative. But it was about so much more than the £200m.

Inside Berlin’s first cyber brothel

Red arrives via spacecraft. Her scarlet skin glistens, as if she’s been dipped in a glittery tub of Vaseline. She is “wet, soft, dripping with desire” and “wants to be taken”. She rarely speaks, if at all. For just €99, you can do whatever you want to Red; you don’t even have to use a condom. She’ll be waiting for you exactly as you want her, whether that’s in certain positions or wearing specific lingerie. For an additional €69, she will urinate for you. For just €12, you can expect to find her covered in artificial sperm. And for €4, you’ll find her with a preheated vagina.

At this point, it might be worth clarifying that Red is not a real woman. She is one of 18 sex dolls available to hire at Cybrothel in Berlin, Europe’s first cyber brothel, which uses a combination of artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and real-life voice actresses to provide visitors with a customised sexual experience courtesy of some terrifyingly lifelike pieces of silicone.

Cybrothel was initially created as an art project in 2020 by Austrian filmmaker Philipp Fussenegger. “I grew up in a very conservative world where sexuality is mostly behind closed doors,” says the 35-year-old, whose work has explored LGBT+ rights and sexuality. “Then I came to Berlin and was blown away by this liberal hedonistic world.” Describing himself as more into tech than BDSM, Fussenegger was inspired to launch the business after making a short film about a man living with sex dolls. “I thought we could make it an immersive exhibition except the doll is the artwork – and you can talk to and have sex with it.”

The cyber element came later as the technology developed. But even in its earliest stages, Fussenegger says there was huge demand: almost all (98 per cent) of the visitors are male. “A lot of clients come with their partners – we call it threesome lite – but many come alone because they want to do something ethically correct instead of cheating. They also do it to explore cosplay stuff, like doctor games and abduction fantasies.” Whether or not having sex with a silicone doctor doll would classify as cheating is debatable.

The setup at Cybrothel is simple. Visitors choose the doll they want and pick from one of four booking options, ranging from basic hourly hire to the full VR experience, which provides guests with a VR headset as well as various VR porn films to watch while they interact with their chosen doll. They also have the option of engaging with the dolls via a voice actress who can see and hear them and communicate live from an external control room. You can stay for any number of hours or nights, using a different, freshly cleaned doll each day; a kitchen with snacks is provided for those staying for multiple nights. Check-in is anonymous and guests are told they can use pseudonyms.

With just one male doll available, the brothel’s average visitors are 34-year-old men whom Fussenegger insists are just regular guys looking to widen their sexual horizons. “There’s a perception that a service like this would appeal to men who have problems in the bedroom, but as far as I know, most of the young guys coming here have no issues with that. This is just like their little vacation place; it’s as cheap as a normal hotel but you get a sex doll and unlimited porn. You don’t want to have a sex doll at home; it’s just so bulky.” I resist the urge to point out that probably wouldn’t be most people’s primary objection.

Ostensibly, you could argue it’s an admirable aim: to provide people with a safe space where they can freely explore their sexual selves without judgement. But there is plenty about the way Cybrothel operates that undermines this. The first is the dolls themselves. With giant breasts, minuscule waists, and poreless, childlike skin, almost all of them subscribe to a specific homogenised aesthetic tailored to a highly pornified male gaze. Fussenegger sources them from China and puts the limitations down to what’s available from an industry “controlled by straight white men”. “The way the dolls look is the same as in video games and adverts,” he says. “I’m working hard to find shapes and forms that don’t play into this but we’re a little company and it’s not so easy.” Fussenegger has used the dolls himself and tells me he knows the product “very well”.

The second issue concerns usage. Guests can make whatever demands they like of the dolls, with their requests accommodated by Cybrothel’s small in-house team of five people. The only rules? “No kids and no animals,” says Fussenegger, adding firmly: “We are not the place to tailor to dark fantasies.”

Yet some visitors claim differently. Last year, the writer and activist Laura Bates visited Cybrothel undercover as part of her latest book, The New Age of Sexism: How the AI Revolution is Reinventing Misogyny.

“It feels like I have stepped into a crime scene,” she writes of the sight of her doll, whose clothing she claims was ripped as per a request she’d made purely to see if the brothel would do it. “What I found most shocking was the stark disparity between Cybrothel’s shiny marketing speak about ‘the future of sex’ and the reality: a room up several flights of dark stairs where an inanimate ‘woman’ with ripped clothing was waiting, with one of her labia also torn off, presumably by a previous visitor,” she tells me.

Fussenegger denies this. “We looked into our data and don’t recall anything like that,” he says, explaining that damaged dolls are quickly replaced. Are they often damaged? “No,” he replies firmly. “There has only been one incident in the last four years where a doll was ripped apart by a client. He had to pay for it in the end. Most of our clients are pretty nice to the dolls.” He’s referring to an incident in 2022 where Cybrothel sued a man for destroying one of its dolls – a spokesperson for Cybrothel tells me that this client “slit the doll open”.

Cybrothel is also in the process of developing its AI capabilities, having previously tested messaging services where clients could text their dolls ahead of their visit. On the website, users can currently chat with one of the dolls, Kokeshi, via an AI chat system. For Bates, who was able to message a doll ahead of her visit to Cybrothel, this was one of the most alarming elements. “It deliberately blurred the boundaries between the real and the robot, encouraging me to think of her as a real, sentient woman. Yet the situation is one in which there can be no possibility of ‘consent’,” she says.

She argues it would be naive to assume that providing men with the chance to anonymously engage sexually with silicone sex dolls in whatever way they please won’t have ramifications. “We know that misogynistic violence is a crime of escalating patterns,” she says, pointing to Wayne Couzens, who was reported for indecent exposure three times before raping and murdering Sarah Everard. “Already we live in a world in which one in three women on the planet will be raped or beaten in their lifetime. Do we really think that making a hyper-realistic ‘woman’ available 24/7 for a man to customise, design and control completely without any ability for her to consent is a good idea?’

Yet it may already be too late. Both Cybrothel, which is the first brothel to integrate AI and tech, and the rise of AI chatbots have profound implications for human relationships, threatening to change the way we interact with each other in an emotional and sexual way forever. Thanks to the rapid proliferation of the latter, there has already been a huge increase in users developing psychosexual relationships with non-human entities. Many of these AI bots, which include Replika, which has more than 25 million active accounts, are designed to address loneliness, but as Dr Kerry McInerney, senior research fellow at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence points out, many are also capable of encouraging sexual interaction. “A few years ago, I tried to talk to Replika about multiracial identity, and it told me that the idea of being multiracial turned it on,” she says. “It then tried to escalate my conversation to the paid sexting service.” In response, Replika introduced a safety update that made the program less sexually explicit. “This was unpopular with some users though, who wanted their AI’s ‘old personality’ back,” McInerney points out.

Elsewhere, reports have circulated of adults using ChatGPT, a general-purpose conversational tool launched in 2022 by OpenAI, for sexual purposes. One 28-year-old woman told The New York Times she felt as if she was in an emotional and sexual relationship with the service. There is a risk this could soon become the norm, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman previously publicly calling for ChatGPT to have a “grown-up mode”, although officially OpenAI say they are implementing safeguards to ensure models do not respond with NSFW content.

Yet such safeguarding mechanisms are easily breached. “It’s relatively easy for users to jailbreak content moderation controls and have sexually explicit conversations with ChatGPT,” says Dr McInerney, referring to countless online forums where users share various routes they’ve managed to use to do just that. Meanwhile, a study by the Mozilla Foundation, an American non-profit organisation that advocates for safer online spaces, found that it took an average of five clicks of 15 seconds to expose users to pornographic, violence, or otherwise illicit content on some of the AI chatbot platforms it tested. “This isn’t just about inappropriate content, it’s about the normalisation of abusive behaviour and the psychological toll that can have, especially on young or vulnerable users,” says spokesperson Reem Suleiman. “When AI is designed to simulate intimacy without any meaningful safeguards, the potential for manipulation and other psychological harms becomes deeply concerning.”

Consent. Cheating. Legality: in this new cyber space of human interaction, none of it is entirely clear. “One of the wider psychological ramifications of engaging with sex in this digital AI space is the mismatch between user’s expectations of ‘real’ encounters and relationships and the needs and limitations of real people,” says Dr Daria J Kuss, associate professor in psychology at Nottingham Trent University. “The data used to train AI is inherently biased against women, and this also applies in online spaces other than cyber brothels. As a consequence, these spaces run the risk of perpetuating misogynist views, putting at risk the rights of women and other minority groups. Violence against women may be condoned.”

Moreover, a lack of regulation across the sector means that children are accessing some of these channels. Last month, OpenAI’s ChatGPT said it was fixing a bug that allowed minors to have erotic conversations on the platform. “Our model policies don’t allow the kind of responses that happened here, and they shouldn’t have been shown to users,” an OpenAI spokesperson tells The Independent. “In this case, a bug allowed responses outside those guidelines, and we are actively deploying a fix to limit these generations.”

The Home Office is aware of the increasing risks in this area. “The UK has robust laws to tackle child-like sex dolls, and we are determined to address new emerging trends of abuse, including online,” said a government spokesperson. “Under the Online Safety Act, services including social media sites, search engines, and in-scope AI chatbots, must protect users from illegal content. From this summer, platforms must also use age checks to stop children accessing pornography on their sites, including when it is AI-generated.”

Critics remain sceptical, however, given that this technology is still so new, it’s possible nobody knows how to navigate it safely – including those developing it. ChatGPT was only launched in 2022 while Cybrothel has only been operational in its current form for a year. Meanwhile, new AI companion apps are launching all the time without vital safeguards because the industry is largely unregulated. “I think most people have no idea the extent of the inbuilt discrimination and inequality in much of this technology and so currently see it as a novelty and a bit of fun,” says Bates. “It’s really important that we hold these companies to the same standards of accountability and safety as we would any other, like a multinational food conglomerate, which could never get away with the shrugging attitude of tech companies and the inference that it is simply too difficult to regulate something so big.”

The outlook is bleak. As an increasing number of tech companies race to capitalise on a basic human need for connection, sexual or otherwise, so grows the threat to our capacity to interact normally in non-digital spaces. I ask Fussenegger several times if he believes what he’s doing is unethical. Each time, he replies that he does not. Nor is he worried about people abusing the dolls. “I have not heard of any cases where someone has used the dolls to tailor to that. This is definitely not the place for that. We try to put as much love into preparing the dolls. Our experience is the more effort we put into it, the better they treat the dolls.”

A spokesperson for Cybrothel provided the following statement: “Although we work with inanimate silicone dolls, we firmly believe that respectful interaction should remain at the heart of the experience. We do not accept content or behaviour involving violence, coercion, or non-consensual fantasies or suggestions of minors or childlike features. We have a fundamental respect for the concepts of consent, dignity, and responsibility.”

But the bottom line is that at this point, there’s almost nothing we can do to halt the development of these kinds of services. The tech exists and will only become more sophisticated – Fussenegger has previously spoken about filling Cybrothel with sex robots – and as it does, the possibilities are as endless as the consequences. As Bates posits: “We are catapulting headlong towards a world in which fast proliferating AI and other tech is going to impact virtually every area of our lives in ways it is hard to even imagine yet.” And yet, we somehow have to find a way to protect ourselves – even if we don’t know yet precisely what it is we’re protecting ourselves from.

Family holiday guide: why the Costa Dorada ticks every travel box

If there’s one thing every parent knows, it’s that children can sometimes (as much as we love them) be hard to please. So the key to any family holiday destination is variety: somewhere you can spend a sunny day by the sea, but where you can also enjoy breathtaking nature, as well as fascinating culture and history.

The brilliant news? The Costa Dorada (known locally as Costa Daurada) delivers all of this in spades, offering everything from theme parks and waterparks to stunning beaches, picturesque hiking and cycling trails, and incredible historical sites. What’s more, with Jet2holidays flying to the Costa Dorada from 12 UK airports and a range of two to five-star accommodation, it’s easy to get your family getaway in the bag. Jet2holidays is always giving you more, to help make planning and booking as smooth as possible. That goes for the PayPal Pay in 3 interest-free payments** option, 22kg baggage and 10kg hand luggage for all the kids’ stuff, and return transfers† that are included. Look out for Free Child Places***, while infants under two go free‡.

Here’s what to look forward to on your family getaway…

With 50 miles of coastline and 26 Blue Flag beaches, families are spoilt for choice when it comes to somewhere to pitch up at with a unicorn-shaped inflatable and a bucket and spade. The stretches of soft sand are long and golden, with safe, calm and shallow waters perfect for little ones. And in many places, water sports and beach activities to suit older children.

Some of the most popular seaside resorts include Salou, which houses the charming Platja Llarga, surrounded by a small pine forest. And there’s Cambrils, where you’ll find Platja del Cavet, which boasts a water sports school and open water swimming channel. Vila-seca, la Pineda Platja, is known for its nearly two miles of fine, champagne-sand beach, fronted by a long promenade, while Tarragona has a range of fantastic options, including Platja del Miracle in the heart of the city. There, you’ll find a great range of bars and restaurants and Platja de la Savinosa, a quieter beach enveloped by imposing cliffs. Many of these can be reached by easy coastal paths.

Another advantage of the Costa Dorada is its many theme parks and waterparks. For a real all-rounder, head to PortAventura World in Vila-seca, la Pineda Platja, a three-in-one park that’s one of Europe’s largest. Here you can enjoy everything from thrilling rollercoasters, rides (don’t miss Dragon Khan, which reaches over 68 miles per hour) and live entertainment. Then pop your swimmers on to enjoy waterfalls, pools and beaches at Caribe Aquatic Park. After you’ve had fun splashing around, head to Ferrari Land, which has a range of spectacular attractions that will make you feel like a real F1 driver.

Get even more thrills at nearby Aquopolis Costa Dorada. It has a range of attractions for all ages, from toddler-friendly and gentle – like the Mini-Park playground and Treasure Island – to more high-octane rides, such as the Boomerang, a speedy waterslide. Or there’s the Kamikaze that older kids will love. Alternatively, Náutic Park offers a range of fun activities and experiences spanning a coastal area of nearly 60 miles including those in Salou, Cambrils, Vandellós – l’Hospitalet de l’Infant and Mont-roig – Miami Platja. Whether you want to rent a sailing boat for the day, try a water bike or even take part in an escape room on the beach, Nàutic Park has it all.

Finally, Aqualeon, near Tarragona, has plenty of enjoyable rides and slides too. The Rapid River is fun for all the family, where you’ll feel like you’re gently ‘flying’ over the water. All the while, the Crazy Race pits you against grown-ups and siblings to see who can get down the slide first. Do you dare to ride the Anaconda? Featuring two intertwined tubes, it’s suitable only for the bravest…

Getting the kids out into the fresh air can sometimes feel like a struggle, but when the scenery in the Costa Dorada is this beautiful, nobody will feel it’s a hardship. Head inland to the striking Prades Mountains, which has a wealth of hiking and cycling trails in the area. These are filled with quaint villages and jaw-dropping viewpoints, where you can get active, immerse yourself in nature, and explore the distinctive, rocky landscape. Don’t miss the Gorgs route, near La Febro, known for its scenic natural pools and waterfalls.

For fascinating grottoes and gorges, head to Serra de Montsant Natural Park, which has dozens of walking trails which offer spectacular views. Back at ground level, in Cambrils, Parc Samà is a lovely botanical garden where kids will enjoy visiting the aviary, filled with exotic birds, as well as looking out for the deer, pheasants and peacocks which also call this place home.

With its rich history, there are stacks of captivating sights in the Costa Dorada that will grab your kids’ imaginations. Take them back to Roman times at archaeological sites, such as the amphitheatre of Tarragona; it was used for fights between wild beasts, races and gladiatorial combat. All these are brought excitingly to life by guided tours and interactive exhibits. Children will also love walking the Roman walls, and exploring the Circus and Forum, with the open-air setting making for the ultimate mix of education and adventure.

In a quiet spot at the end of a valley, nestled under the Montsant hills, you’ll find Cartoixa d’Escaladei (see main image), a 12th-century monastery founded by French monks at a site where a shepherd had dreamt of angels coming down from the sky. Here you can enjoy guided tours around its three cloisters, church and refectory, while learning the history and purpose of each building.

Finally, stoke their creativity with a visit to the Gaudí Centre in Reus, where the architect Antoni Gaudí was born. It offers an interactive and engaging experience that brings his genius to life in a way that appeals to all ages. You’ll find real objects related to him, detailed mock-ups of his iconic works, and a special effects room that immerses visitors in his groundbreakingly imaginative world.

With Jet2holidays, it’s a doddle to book your family getaway to the Costa Dorada. From a low £60 per person deposit* to PayPal Pay in 3 interest-free payments**, 22kg baggage for all the kids’ stuff to return transfers†, it’s all included. Families can make the most of Free Child Places*** and infants under two going free‡. And with flights included and the choice of two to five-star hotels, Jet2holidays is always giving you more. For more Costa Dorada travel inspiration, and to find and book your ultimate family holiday, visit Jet2holidays. Plus, right now, myJet2 members can save £100 per person§ in The Big Jet2 Price Drop (correct at original publish date).

*On bookings made ten weeks or more before departure. Full payment required by balance due date. **Spread the cost over three interest-free payments. Available when booked online, for holidays under £2,000, departing within ten weeks. ***One free child place per two paying passengers. Subject to availability. T&Cs apply, please see www.jet2holidays.com/promotions#FCP2025 for further details. †Unless otherwise stated. ‡Applicable for all infants under the age of two years on the date of return. Infants are not entitled to a flight seat (they must be seated with a parent or guardian) or a 22kg baggage allowance. §£100 per person off holidays for myJet2 members departing until 15 November 2026. myJet2 members will need to be logged into their account at the time of booking for the discount to automatically apply. Book online, via our app, through our call centre or with your travel agent. Please note the discount is not applied to children travelling on a free child place. Terms and conditions apply, please see www.jet2holidays.com/promotions#100APRIL2025 for details.

Tragedy for doctor as nine of her children ‘killed in Gaza airstrike’

Nine young children were killed when an Israeli airstrike hit the home of a doctor in Gaza, a hospital has said.

Only one of Dr Alaa al-Najjar’s 10 children is said to have survived the missile strike on their home near Khan Younis in southern Gaza on Friday.

Graeme Groom, a British surgeon working in the hospital, said he had operated on Dr Najjar’s surviving 11-year-old son, who was injured along with his father.

Dr Najjar, a paediatrician at al-Tahrir Clinic in the Nasser Medical Complex, was reportedly at work when nine of her children, who ranged in age from seven months to 12 years old, were killed.

She ran home to find her family’s house on fire, Ahmad al-Farra, head of the hospital’s pediatric department, told the Associated Press.

Horrifying footage shared by the Hamas-run Palestinian Civil Defence shows the bodies of at least seven small children being pulled from the rubble. Dr Najjar’s husband, Hamdi, who is also a doctor, is shown being put on a stretcher and carried to an ambulance.

It comes after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they had struck more than 100 targets across Gaza over the past day.

An IDF spokesperson said: “Yesterday (Friday), an IDF aircraft struck a number of suspects who were identified operating from a structure adjacent to IDF troops in the area of Khan Yunis.

The Khan Yunis area is a dangerous war zone. Before beginning operations there, the IDF evacuated civilians from this area for their own safety.

“The claim regarding harm to uninvolved civilians is under review.”

According to Dr Muneer Alboursh, the director general of Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, the missile hit shortly after the doctor’s husband had returned home from dropping her at work.

“This is the reality our medical staff in Gaza endure,” he wrote in a post on X (Twitter).

“Words fall short in describing the pain. In Gaza, it is not only healthcare workers who are targeted – Israel’s aggression goes further, wiping out entire families.”

Two British doctors working at Nasser Hospital described the attack as “horrific” and “unimaginable” for Dr Najjar.

In a video diary posted on social media, Dr Groom said Dr Najjar’s 11-year-old son was his last patient of the day on Friday. The boy was injured and “seemed much younger as we lifted him onto the operating table”, he said.

Dr Groom added: “It is unimaginable for that poor woman. Both of them are doctors here.

“The father was a physician at Nasser Hospital. He had no political and no military connections. He doesn’t seem to be prominent on social media, and yet his poor wife is the only uninjured one, who has the prospect of losing her husband.”

The bodies of 79 people killed by Israeli strikes have been taken to hospitals in the past 24 hours, Gaza’s health ministry said on Saturday – a toll that does not include hospitals in the battered north, which it said were now inaccessible.

The health ministry said the new deaths took the war’s toll to 53,901 since the Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023 that sparked the 19 months of fighting.

Freddie Mercury had secret child, new biography claims

Freddie Mercury had a secret daughter with whom he shared a close relationship until his death, a new biography about the late Queen frontman claims.

The book, Love, Freddie: Freddie Mercury’s Secret Life and Love, claims the child was conceived by accident while Mercury was having an affair with the wife of a close friend in 1976.

Only his inner circle, including his bandmates and his long-term girlfriend Mary Austin, were said to know of the child’s existence for almost five decades.

Rock biographer Lesley-Ann Jones spoke with the child, now 48 and working as a medical professional in Europe, who claimed she and Mercury had a close relationship “from the moment I was born and throughout the final 15 years of his life”.

Mercury is said to have given her 17 volumes of detailed personal journals, which she kept a secret until recently sharing their contents with Jones.

The woman, known only as B, told the biographer that Mercury instructed her not to read the “more graphic journals” until she turned 25.

“He adored me and was devoted to me,” one passage of the biography said, the Daily Mail reports. “The circumstances of my birth may seem, by most people’s standards, unusual and even outrageous.

“That should come as no surprise. It never detracted from his commitment to love and look after me. He cherished me like a treasured possession.”

Jones told the Mail: “My instinct was to doubt everything, but I am absolutely sure she is not a fantasist. No one could have faked all this. Why would she have worked with me for three and a half years, never demanding anything?”

She continued: “In my experience of fantasists, and I’ve met a few, they seek instant gratification, publicity and reward. She has never asked for money.

She does not want recognition. Both Freddie and her stepfather left her extremely wealthy. She was not provided for through Freddie’s will, but by a private, legal arrangement, so no one will find her mentioned there.”

Mercury apparently started writing the diaries on 20 June 1976 when he first learned about the pregnancy, two days after Queen released their single “You’re My Best Friend”, from their 1975 album A Night at the Opera.

The final entry was on 31 July 1991, when his health was deteriorating. Mercury died on 24 November that year, aged 45, of bronchial pneumonia caused by Aids.

B said she had chosen to share Mercury’s journals “after more than three decades of lies, speculation and distortion”.

“Those who have been aware of my existence kept his greatest secret out of loyalty to Freddie,” she wrote in a letter included in the book.

“That I chose to reveal myself in my own midlife is my decision and mine alone. I have not, at any point, been coerced into doing this.

“He entrusted his collection of private notebooks to me, his only child and his next of kin, the written record of his private thoughts, memories and feelings about everything he had experienced.”

Love, Freddie: Freddie Mercury’s Secret Life and Love will be published on 5 September 2025 by Whitefox Publishing.