Keyword – Media
Trefwoorden – Jeremy Clarkson, Prostate cancer, Cancer, Media, Television, Culture, UK news
Title – Jeremy Clarkson shares ‘aggressive’ prostate cancer diagnosis | Jeremy Clarkson | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/donna-ferguson
Link – Jeremy Clarkson shares ‘aggressive’ prostate cancer diagnosis | Jeremy Clarkson | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T08:29:41.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jun/17/jeremy-clarkson-aggressive-prostate-cancer-diagnosis

Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he was diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer last summer and had an operation to remove 10% of his prostate, eight months after he underwent heart surgery for blocked coronary arteries.

In the final two episodes of the fifth series of his Prime Video documentary, Clarkson’s Farm, the 66-year-old presenter told his farm manager, Kaleb Cooper, and his land agent, Charlie Ireland: “I’ve got cancer.”

In the scenes, which were filmed last year and released on Tuesday night, the former Top Gear host added: “I had a medical, remember, back in May? I disappeared off the other week and I had a biopsy and it is cancer, and it’s aggressive.”

He said he “wasn’t thrilled” to receive the diagnosis but that it had been caught at a “really early stage”.

He said: “If I hadn’t have got myself checked out and they hadn’t caught the problem early, this could well have been my last harvest. It’s only because they did catch it early, there’s every hope that I’ll be harvesting this farm for many, many years to come.”

When Cooper asked him what type of cancer it was, he replied: “Where it is, is of no concern to anybody.”

But in later scenes, after undergoing a procedure, he revealed it was in his prostate. “The prostate, 10% of it’s dead,” he said. “The 10% where the cancer is.”

At the end of the series, he is filmed in a hospital bed. “So we started season five in a hospital bed and here we are at the end of season five, I’m back in a hospital bed,” he said, referring to the earlier heart operation. “Some of the treatment has gone awry, let’s say. I’ll probably be here for a little while.”

He told his viewers: “What I wanted to say was: if this is all successful, I’ll see you for season six. And if it isn’t, I won’t. Take care, everyone.”

On Tuesday evening he warned fans on social media he had some “sombre news” with regard to Clarkson’s Farm. “Ordinarily we try to keep the show bucolic and charming and cheerful. But the final two episodes which drop in the middle of the night tonight are none of those things, really – they’re a difficult watch.”

He sounded emotional as he added: “They’re really, really difficult.”

Following the episodes’ release, charity Prostate Cancer UK thanked Clarkson for sharing his diagnosis and treatment saying it would raise “vital awareness”.

Chiara De Biase, the charity’s fundraising and health strategy director, said: “Thankfully he found the disease at an early stage, but sadly this is still not the experience of many men across the UK.

“Over 10,000 dads, brothers, sons and friends are diagnosed too late for a cure every year, and today the responsibility to know if you’re at higher risk and to act on it rest entirely on men’s shoulders. This must change.

“Any men worried by Jeremy’s story should take our 30 second online risk checker or have a chat with their GP about a quick and simple blood test to check for any signs.”

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK , accounting for 28% of all new male cancer cases, according to Cancer Research UK.

Last June, Clarkson had urged men to go for prostate checkups , saying: “I’ve had too many friends go down with prostate cancer, and all it takes to get on top of the situation early is a moment or two of being a bit cross-eyed. You get the all-clear and the doc goes home happy. What’s not to like?”

There is no national NHS screening programme for prostate cancer, but men aged 50 or over – and those aged 45 or older who have a strong family history of prostate cancer or are of a Black or African-Caribbean ethnicity – can request a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test from their GP.

Keyword – Music
Trefwoorden – Music, Culture, Classical music
Title – From penalties to Pavarotti and Beckham to Bruckner: classical music and football are closer than you might think | Music | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/tomservice
Link – From penalties to Pavarotti and Beckham to Bruckner: classical music and football are closer than you might think | Music | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T14:43:26.000Z
Category – Culture
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/jun/17/world-cup-classical-music-nessun-dorma-terrace-chants

F rance ’98, when Scotland last faced Morocco at a World Cup – as they do this Friday – and lost a crucial game three-nil. ( John McGinn’s winner against Haiti in Boston on Sunday rewrites all the recent records and sets the team on a path to almost certain glory this time around. Obviously.)

But you could have read the runes of Scottish doom in that World Cup by the tunes that Scotland fans had in their ears. Scotland’s song that year was Del Amitri’s masterpiece of melancholy, Don’t Come Home Too Soon , the most downbeat, honest, and lyrical World Cup song ever written – alas, the team didnae listen. And there was the BBC’s World Cup titles for 1998: Fauré’s Pavane , which lifted the moodometer from melancholic all the way to apathetic. (Not that England did much better, despite the surreal street party of Vindaloo , Engerland’s unofficial anthem, and the self-satisfaction of Three Lions , they went out in the round of 16, after David Beckham’s red-card against Argentina.)

In using Fauré for football, the BBC were building on a long history of the beautiful game and classical music, which have always gone together like Scott McTominay and majestic overhead kicks . Edward Elgar’s contribution to Wolverhampton Wanderers’ musical heritage sadly isn’t still sung on the terraces, but his scoring of “He Banged the Leather for Goal!”, setting words he’d read in a match report about his beloved Wolves, might be the first bespoke football chant by a major composer, written in 1898. (It’s also a harmonically dense and chromatically complex wee tune.) Dmitri Shostakovich’s football obsession – he was devoted to the team that’s now called Zenit St Petersburg – was marked in 2016 when Zenit celebrated their 90th anniversary with a Shostakovich-themed pre-match show, inspiring them to beat Spartak Moscow 4-2. And listen to the Football March movement from Shostakovich’s ballet The Golden Age from 1930 to hear how Shostakovich created the drama and noisy energy of a team in orchestral sound , starting with the referee’s whistle and plunging into chaos on the park.

But the moment when football and classical music became indelibly linked was the summer of 1990, when the BBC used Luciano Pavarotti’s rendition of Nessun Dorma as the theme tune for its coverage. Puccini’s aria from his final opera, Turandot , (Nessun Dorma means none shall sleep) tells of Calaf’s plea for insomnia. Princess Turandot has a single night to learn his name. If she succeeds, she can execute him, if she remains ignorant of her suitor’s actual name, she has to marry him and Calaf will be victorious. (Spoiler alert – Calaf wins Turandot’s heart by the end of the show.)

But none of that context was important for the significance of the high As and Bs at the end of the aria (also sung by the Three Tenors as a triple-headed Calaf at their concert on the eve of the final of Italia 90 in Rome ) It’s a freak of performance practice, by the way, that the highest and most famous note in the whole aria, that final high B, was marked by Puccini in the score as a slightly slowed-down semiquaver – it should be a very short note. But that “vinceroo-oooo” (I will win) is extended by Pavarotti et al into a whole bar and more, dozens of times longer than Puccini intended. Tenors gonna sing, tenors gonna milk it. Germany duly did win, beating Argentina 1-0.

Current proof of the ongoing classical connections that bind football fans together is the team- and nation-crossing phenomenon of the White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army, which is sung everywhere from club matches to international fixtures from Bruges to Boston. (Club Brugge KV was where it all started in 2003) And, as every fool knows, Jack White borrowed his riff from the first movement of Bruckner’s Fifth Symphony – alas a story too good to be true. White came up with the riff at a sound check in Melbourne , consciously or unconsciously drawing on Bruckner’s symphony.

Yet the musical connection is real. So even if the BBC and ITV have ditched any classical references in their title sequences for this current World Cup, they can’t take Bruckner out of the terraces .

This week Tom has been listening to: {oh!}Orkiestra’ s new recording of Mozart’s 29th Symphony and Janiewicz’s Fifth Violin Concerto. It’s the freedom that Martyna Pastuszka and her players dare with all of this repertoire, and the Mozart in particular, that’s wonderful: here’s a symphony that sounds like a collective improvisation from the musicians – and the fortepianist in particular. There’s no other recording of the symphony like it. Listen on Spotify

Keyword – Info
Trefwoorden – Information, Football, Newsletter sign-up
Title – Sign up for the Football Daily newsletter: our free football email | Information | The Guardian
Author – Guardian Staff
Link – Sign up for the Football Daily newsletter: our free football email | Information | The Guardian
Publish date – 2022-11-14T09:05:50.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/info/2022/nov/14/football-daily-email-sign-up

Keyword – Football
Trefwoorden – Rangers, Football, Sport, Hearts
Title – Derek McInnes confirmed as Rangers manager after Danny Röhl joins Salzburg | Rangers | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/guardian-sport
Link – Derek McInnes confirmed as Rangers manager after Danny Röhl joins Salzburg | Rangers | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T18:46:22.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jun/17/danny-rohl-leaves-rangers-and-looks-set-to-be-replaced-by-derek-mcinnes

Rangers have confirmed the appointment of Derek McInnes as their manager on a three-year contract after Danny Röhl left for RB Salzburg by mutual agreement.

McInnes, a former Rangers player, joins from Hearts after leading them to second this season. He rejected the opportunity to manage Rangers in 2017 but said: “It is no secret that I grew up a Rangers supporter and I am convinced this is the right time to take on this prestigious role given the club’s structure and leadership.”

Rangers finished third last month, 10 points off the top, and McInnes said: “The demands here are clear, and our supporters rightfully have high expectations. It is up to me, my staff and my players to meet those expectations.”

Röhl, who replaced Russell Martin as head coach in October last year, will take charge of the Austrian Bundesliga side Salzburg after a seven-figure compensation package was agreed between the clubs. The performance manager Sascha Lense and first-team analyst Tristan Steiner will also depart Ibrox.

“I’d like to thank Danny for his service and commitment to Rangers,” the Rangers chairman, Andrew Cavenagh, said. “He and his staff put in a significant amount of hard work during his time in charge, which we are greatly appreciative of. We wish them the best of luck moving forward.”

Röhl made an encouraging start to his Rangers reign as he hauled the team into title contention after inheriting a side in the bottom six following a dire start under Martin. However, the 37-year-old German came under fire in the closing weeks of the season as Rangers capitulated after the split, losing four games in a row.

Keyword – Sport
Trefwoorden – Tennis, Wimbledon, Media, BBC, Sport
Title – Andrew Castle says this year’s Wimbledon will be his last as BBC commentator | Tennis | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/guardian-sport
Link – Andrew Castle says this year’s Wimbledon will be his last as BBC commentator | Tennis | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T09:07:08.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/17/andrew-castle-wimbledon-bbc-commentator-tv-sport-tennis

Andrew Castle has confirmed that Wimbledon this year will be his last at the commentator’s mic, the former British No 1 leaving the “best gig in sports broadcasting” after more than two decades as the BBC makes changes to its coverage.

The 62-year-old, who will remain in post as the All England Championships get under way on Monday, told the Times : “It’s been a hell of a journey. I can’t say I have enjoyed every minute because there have been moments of pressure and controversy, but it has been a huge privilege.

“To be honest, when I got the job 23 years ago, a lot of the more experienced commentators felt that they should have been first in line. Their noses were put out of joint. So, in the wider scheme of things, I am lucky that I had the best gig in sports broadcasting for so long, during the greatest age of men’s tennis.”

Castle was uncertain about his future, saying: “My wife Sophia and I are building a house and we’re about to have a third grandchild, so things are good. I am not sure what will come next professionally, but whatever it is, I’ll embrace it.”

Castle was Britain’s No 1 men’s singles player in 1986, and made the third round at the US Open in 1987, losing in four sets against Boris Becker. He established himself as a commentator at GMTV and has worked for Sky Sports as well as being a game-show host and DJ.

A BBC spokesperson said: “We wanted Andrew to continue with the BBC at Wimbledon next year, but he has now decided that this year will be his last. We look forward to working with him at the 2026 Championships and thank him for his great work leading our commentary team there for more than 20 years.”

Keyword – World news
Trefwoorden – US-Israel war on Iran, Middle East and north Africa, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, US foreign policy, Trump administration, Hezbollah, Donald Trump, Strait of Hormuz, World news
Title – Middle East crisis live: Iran agrees to destroy enriched uranium stockpile, memorandum read out by US officials says | US-Israel war on Iran | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/taz-ali,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/tom-ambrose,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/joseph-gedeon,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/jakub-krupa,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/patrickwintour,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/william-christou,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/geneva-abdul
Link – Middle East crisis live: Iran agrees to destroy enriched uranium stockpile, memorandum read out by US officials says | US-Israel war on Iran | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T18:56:31.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/jun/17/middle-east-war-iran-israel-us-donald-trump-hezbollah-lebanon-peace-deal-netanyahu-latest-news-updated

Iran concedes its enriched stockpile must be destroyed

The MOU says that at minimum, Iran conceded, its enriched uranium stockpile “will be destroyed” through “down-blending”(or diluting the uranium) on Iranian soil, under IAEA supervision.

“The two parties also agreed to discuss the issue of enrichment and other mutually agreed matters related to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear needs, based on a satisfactory framework being agreed upon in the final deal.”

Officials were emphatic that down-blending is a starting point, not the endpoint. “That’s the floor,” one said, “and we will push for more than that.”

Tehran floats a presidential signing of MOU in Geneva

Iran’s foreign ministry has confirmed it is weighing a proposal for both countries’ presidents to sign the MOU in Geneva, a significant symbolic step up from the arrangement that had previously been on the table.

“Regarding the signing of the memorandum of understanding, one idea is that it be done by the presidents of the two countries, which is currently under review,” ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said.

Until now, the plan had been for JD Vance and the Iranian parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, to represent their respective countries at the ceremony.

A head-of-state signing would carry considerably more political weight, and for Tehran, would amount to a public acknowledgment from Washington of Iran’s standing as a negotiating equal.

60 days to negotiate, but deal is fragile

Finally, the MOU gives both sides 60 days to negotiate a comprehensive final agreement, extendable by mutual consent. A binding UN security council resolution would be required to endorse any final deal.

“The United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran commit to negotiating and achieving the final deal in maximum 60 days extendable with mutual consent.”

But the fragility shouldn’t be understated: one senior US official explained that “either side can walk away at any time”.

The official added that the Trump administration would know within “days or weeks, not months” if Iran was stringing it along.

And if talks collapse, they indicated the US was prepared to tighten the economic pressure significantly.

Iran wanted its frozen assets on signing but didn’t get them

According to the officials on the call, the text makes clear that access to Iran’s frozen funds is contingent on the regime actually implementing the agreement’s terms.

“Such funds … shall be made fully usable for payment to any ultimate beneficiary designated by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran … upon the implementation of the MOU.”

Officials on the call said Iran had pushed hard for the opposite: immediate access to its frozen assets the moment the MOU was signed.

Netanyahu says he hasn’t seen the document, but US says he didn’t ask

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly stated he had not been given a copy of the MOU.

Senior US officials on the call did not dispute that Netanyahu may not have received the final text, but pushed back on the suggestion Israel had been kept in the dark.

“He has not asked us for a copy of it… but we’ve been briefing him and his team very frequently on what’s happening.”

One senior official said Netanyahu had told the US team privately that if Iran delivers on its commitments, “he thinks that it would be a historic deal”, though both the US and Israel remain skeptical.

Iran had stopped firing on vessels in strait of Hormuz

Senior officials said for the first time in the hundred days of war, Iran fired on no vessels in the strait of Hormuz the day before the call.

“Yesterday, which I believe for the first time in the 100 days of this conflict, Iran did not fire at any vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Under the MOU, Iran is required to ensure toll-free passage for commercial vessels for at least 60 days, with full restoration of traffic within 30 days. Senior officials said the Gulf states would never agree to any longer-term arrangement that charges for access.

The formal signing ceremony is set for Friday.

More commentary on the reasoning from senior officials on the oil relief:

“The President of the United States and the entire team agreed that it’s absurd to sanction Iranian oil in such a way that they are still allowed to sell that oil, we just give China a big fat discount, we stopped that process, and of course it’s part of the broader agreement.”

One immediate benefit for Iran: an oil sanctions waiver

More on sanctions: the MOU is structured so that Iran receives almost nothing upfront…with one exception. The US Treasury will issue waivers for Iranian crude oil exports, petroleum products, and associated banking services the moment the document is signed.

“Immediately upon the signing of the MOU… US Department of Treasury will issue waivers for the export of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and derivatives, and all associated services, including banking transactions and services, transportations, etc. …”

Officials defended the move, arguing that Iranian oil was already flowing to China regardless — and that existing sanctions were simply giving Beijing a steep discount.

Relieving the waiver, they said, removes that subsidy and gives the US better visibility into where Iranian oil is going.

Sanctions relief and nuclear action are linked

Much of the coverage of the deal has treated sanctions relief and the nuclear question as separate tracks. Officials on the call said the two paragraphs use identical language and are deliberately intertwined.

“The United States of America undertakes to terminate all types of sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran… in an agreed upon schedule as part of the final deal.”

“The sanctions relief in seven is tied to the nuclear settlement in eight,” a senior official said, referring to the paragraph numbers in the agreement. “To the extent that you perform on the nuclear questions, you will get the sanctions relief.”

So: Iran will not receive broad sanctions removal simply by signing the MOU.

Iran concedes its enriched stockpile must be destroyed

The MOU says that at minimum, Iran conceded, its enriched uranium stockpile “will be destroyed” through “down-blending”(or diluting the uranium) on Iranian soil, under IAEA supervision.

“The two parties also agreed to discuss the issue of enrichment and other mutually agreed matters related to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear needs, based on a satisfactory framework being agreed upon in the final deal.”

Officials were emphatic that down-blending is a starting point, not the endpoint. “That’s the floor,” one said, “and we will push for more than that.”

Donald Trump earlier cast some doubt on whether the signing would happen as planned. Asked how confident he was that the ceremony would take place, Trump remarked on the unpredictability of deals.

“You never know with deals, do you? But you’re going to find out pretty soon,” he said.

The deal commits both sides to an immediate, permanent halt to fighting — including in Lebanon

To start, both the US and Iran , along with their allies, agree to declare an end to military operations on all fronts the moment the document is signed.

Senior officials on the call read out the line: “The United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran and their allies in the current war by signing this MOU declare the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon .”

The inclusion of Lebanon is significant, and it effectively requires Iran to rein in Hezbollah . Israel, officials added, retains the right to strike back if Hezbollah attacks regardless.

The officials spoke on Wednesday on condition of anonymity to read the the draft, which Iran has not released, ahead of formal signing ceremony set for Friday.

Senior US officials read out MOU to reporters

While Trump was delivering his press conference, senior US officials read the memorandum of understanding on Iran to journalists on a press call. The Guardian was on the line, and will be breaking down some of the key moments and lines from the text.

Keyword – Media
Trefwoorden – Advertising, Digital media, Social media, Social media ban, UK news, Media, Social media bans, World news, YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, TV streaming, Television industry
Title – UK social media ban ‘likely to cause £1.3bn drop’ in digital advertising spend | Advertising | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/marksweney
Link – UK social media ban ‘likely to cause £1.3bn drop’ in digital advertising spend | Advertising | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T08:00:25.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jun/17/uk-social-media-ban-digital-advertising-snapchat-instagram-youtube

Brands are expected to cut more than £1bn of digital advertising spending due to the UK’s ban on social media for under-16s, with streaming services tipped to benefit as advertisers try to reach large audiences of teenagers.

The ban, due to come into force early next year, will leave UK advertisers scrambling to reassess marketing plans as millions of under-16s effectively disappear as a demographic that can be marketed to on platforms including Facebook, Instagram , Snapchat and YouTube.

Analysts at eMarketer cut their existing forecast for UK digital advertising spend for 2027 by £1.3bn to £17bn after assessing the ban’s likely impact.

Research conducted last month by Beano Brain, the kids and family research agency, found that among seven- to 14-year-olds a third said that YouTube ads and YouTubers were how they found out about new things that they wanted to buy. A quarter of those surveyed cited TikTok videos while 22% said TV ads influenced their buying decisions.

Helenor Gilmour, head of the DC Thomson-owned agency, said teenagers and younger children will continue to see some social media through “parallel me time” with their parents but streaming services could pick up business as a result of the ban.

“There is certainly going to be a period of readjustment,” said Gilmour. “Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ have ad tiers now, and kids are all over those platforms. We will see a big shift [in ad spend] moving in that direction, they will be big winners and soak up quite a bit of the YouTube revenue.

“Traditional TV will also benefit around big family-friendly event shows such as I’m A Celebrity and Britain’s Got Talent.”

In the four years since Amazon, Disney+ and Netflix introduced advertising, the number of UK viewers on subscriptions that include ads has hit 27 million , reaching a scale increasingly attractive for brands.

James Kirkham, a brand strategist who has worked with clients including JD Sports, Netflix and Chelsea Football Club, said the ban is an opportunity to channel marketing spend into creating “cultural cornerstones” – reaching young people through sport or via their schools.

“The notion that advertising money is going to evaporate is mad, the ban won’t mean shrinking budgets, it is going to go somewhere,” he said. “We are always saying to clients: ‘Does it survive the scroll?’ Most of the ads in feeds are gone from the consumers’ mind in 60 seconds.”

Advertisers targeting young people have long had to operate under tight regulations, dating back at least as far as the TV junk food ad ban around children’s shows and programmes of “particular appeal” to under-16s, introduced by the communications regulator Ofcom in 2006 .

Earlier this year, the UK advertising watchdog began cracking down on ads featuring junk food on TV before 9pm, and in paid online advertising at any time of the day , while billboards and posters within 100 metres of a school or sports centre have not been allowed to display junk food messaging for a decade.

“[Large] advertisers and the industry won’t be scared by the ban,” said Joseph Petyan, chief executive of WPP-owned agency VML. “We operate in a very regulated environment already, which is the right thing to do if you want to build a trusted brand.

“For those that are building a brand in a social media environment there will be a reassessment about what you do, but the large majority aren’t targeting kids in social media.”

Facebook-owner Meta, Snapchat and Google’s YouTube have all criticised the ban , which goes further than the one introduced in Australia earlier this year, arguing that it will send teenagers to unregulated alternative platforms.

The eMarketer market research company hasargued that digital advertising will quickly recover as brands get to grips with the new marketing landscape, and big tech companies double down on targeting older users of social media.

Bill Fisher, principal analyst at eMarketer, said: “The impact of a social ban would be concentrated in the first year after implementation, reflecting the immediate effect of lower teen usage, weaker targeting tied to minors and advertiser caution around the changing regulatory environment.

“Growth [will] actually rebound the following year. Social platforms will likely respond by shifting further toward adult monetisation, creator-led discovery, private messaging and commerce-oriented formats.”

Keyword – World news
Trefwoorden – Albania, Europe, World news
Title – People in Albania: share your thoughts on the recent ‘not for sale’ protests | Albania | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/guardian-community-team
Link – People in Albania: share your thoughts on the recent ‘not for sale’ protests | Albania | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-16T14:13:14.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jun/16/people-in-albania-share-your-thoughts-on-the-recent-not-for-sale-protests

For the last two weeks, Albanians have been protesting against a planned luxury resort backed by a company linked to Jared Kushner , the son-in-law of Donald Trump , near Vlora.

If it goes ahead, the development would occupy parts of an environmentally sensitive area which includes the uninhabited outcrop of Sazan and wetlands and coastal habitats in the surrounding marine national park – home to the Mediterranean monk seal and more than 200 bird species – including flamingos and Dalmatian pelicans, according to BirdLife International .

On Saturday, villagers from Rrjoll, located in an area of sandy beaches and pine forests in north-western Albania , protested against another development project , saying it was being built on their confiscated land.

We would like to hear from Albanians about what they think about the development project.

f you’re having trouble using the form click here . Read terms of service here and privacy policy here .

Keyword – Sport
Trefwoorden – Royal Ascot, Horse racing, Sport
Title – Ombudsman dishes out decisive beating to classy Royal Ascot field | Royal Ascot | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/gregwood
Link – Ombudsman dishes out decisive beating to classy Royal Ascot field | Royal Ascot | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T17:34:47.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/17/ombudsman-hands-out-decisive-beating-to-classy-royal-ascot-field-horse-racing-tips

There was no room for doubt after the Prince of Wales’s Stakes here on Wednesday, and no need either for any debate about team tactics or riding instructions. Ombudsman’s sweeping charge down the outside to beat Minnie Hauk and Daryz, the winners of the Oaks and Arc respectively last season, was as decisive a winning move as favourite backers could ever hope to see, and William Buick was using only hands-and-heels through the final furlong as the 11-10 chance opened up a four-length lead at the line.

For a brief moment at the top of the straight, it seemed that the pacemakers might be a source of post-race discussion for the second day running. Mississippi River and Devil’s Advocate, one frontrunner apiece for Aidan O’Brien’s Minnie Hauk and the John and Thady Gosden-trained Ombudsman, tore into a long lead by halfway, and while Mississippi River was a spent force turning in, Devil’s Advocate still had a healthy lead at the two-furlong pole.

A furlong later, the race was effectively over, with Ombudsman in front and going clear on the way to a repeat of his win in this race 12 months ago, as Minnie Hauk and Daryz tried and failed to match his finishing speed.

“Devil’s Advocate, a furlong and a half to go I thought they have to get to him,” John Gosden said. “But this horse has got a phenomenal turn of foot, great acceleration for a mile-and-a-quarter horse and he just showed that class.

“It’s quite something to come away from the field like that. The filly [Minnie Hauk] ran great, the Arc winner [Daryz] ran great. Probably [Almaqam] might not have run his race but, overall, it was one of the great performances of his career.”

The Eclipse Stakes at Sandown in early July is the next 10-furlong Group One in the calendar, but Ombudsman may wait instead for the International Stakes at York in mid-August.

“We’ll watch him for the next week or 10 days and the horse will tell you,” Gosden said. “You just watch, you know their habits, when they’re 100% and when they’re a little quiet. The Juddmonte International would be the major target of course. He likes York.”

O’Brien was pleased to see Minnie Hauk bounce back from a lacklustre showing at the Curragh in May, and she seems sure to return to a mile and a half for her next outing.

“We thought what happened the last day was that she’s really a mile-and-a-half filly,” O’Brien said, “and over a mile and a quarter [on Wednesday] she wanted an end-to-end gallop. Obviously, that was going to suit the winner as well.

“Ryan [Moore] said she kept travelling from the three to the two, while the winner had a little bit more speed than her over a mile and a quarter. The lads [in the Coolmore Stud syndicate] will decide what they want to do, but I’d say something like the King George [at Ascot in late July], one more run and then the Arc [at Longchamp in early October].”

Daryz, meanwhile, has now been beaten on both of his starts outside France. “They had these two pacemakers that went forward quite clear and my horse was not covered,” Francis-Henri Graffard, Daryz’s trainer, said. “He never really relaxed and had a chance to take a breath. I don’t think he relaxed through the race; he was out of his rhythm all the time, and that’s why he shortened up his action at the end. We didn’t see the Daryz of Longchamp, when he was nice and relaxed and quickened really strongly.”

Gosden’s afternoon had started with a trundle down the course in the royal procession. O’Brien, meanwhile, opened the card with his 99th winner at the Royal meeting, as Victorious powered to an easy success in the five-furlong Queen Mary Stakes.

It was the trainer’s second successive Queen Mary winner, 12 months after True Love – this season’s 1,000 Guineas winner – finally broke O’Brien’s duck, and Victorious was initially cut to 16-1 (from 33-1) for next year’s Newmarket Classic by Paddy Power, and then cut again to 12-1 a few minutes later.

Victorious’s success was also a significant tip towards the chance of the trainer’s Sun Goddess in the Albany Stakes here on Friday, as the winner’s first two starts had been at six furlong before her drop back to five on Wednesday yesterday.

“Victorious is very classy,” O’Brien said. “She only has sight in one eye, so we were a little worried about where she was drawn [on the far side], but Ryan [Moore] was brilliant on her. He reassured her and let her find her way through. He got a little group to follow and then took her to the outside.

“We had her and the filly that’s in the Albany and we tried to split them. Everyone thought this filly might be OK over five furlongs, but she is ideally suited by six and even further.”

Point Of Law, the second runner of the week in the king and queen’s colours, fared better than Reaching High, who was last across the line in the Ascot Stakes on Tuesday, but could finish no better than fourth behind Limestone in the Queen’s ase.

The next outing for the scarlet and purple silks will be aboard Golden Orbit, one of the outsiders for the Group Two Ribblesdale Stakes on Thursday.

Carmers can strike gold at big odds

Trawlerman, last year’s Gold Cup winner, will defend his crown against a strong squad of progressive four-year-old stayers at Royal Ascot on Thursday, and Carmers (4.15) , a winner at the meeting last year, is an interesting each-way contender to spring an upset at odds of around 20-1.

There is no doubting Trawlerman’s talent or commitment, at Ascot above all as he is a dual Group One winner at the track, but the mighty Yeats is the only eight-year-old winner in the last 125 years and he also missed his intended prep at Sandown last month.

The market sees Scandinavia, last year’s St Leger winner, as his sternest opponent, but Rahiebb, who was a neck away in second, and Carmers, three lengths behind in fifth, are also in Thursday’s field.

Carmers beat both Rahiebb and Scandinavia in the Queen’s Vase last June, was a comfortable winner on his first start at two miles last month and has as much, if not more, scope for improvement than either of those rivals at the Gold Cup’s marathon trip.

Royal Ascot 2.30 Sea Venture was a decisive winner on debut at Haydock last month despite meeting all manner of traffic problems and has a pedigree that all but guarantees improvement for this step up in trip.

Royal Ascot 3.05 Owen Burrows’s Heyzoom may have been seriously underestimated by the handicapper on an opening mark of 85, as his strongly-run maiden at Newbury has already produced four next-time winners.

Royal Ascot 3.40 Thirteen days is a very short turnaround for Legacy Link after her second-place finish in the Oaks and Earth Shot, runner-up to the subsequent third in the French Oaks at Goodwood last time, is an attractive alternative at around 5-1.

Royal Ascot 4.50 A typical Britannia Handicap in that scarcely a runner can be ruled out with confidence, but David Marnane’s Jamestown, from stall 25, is perhaps the pick of the prices to follow up a dominant success last time out.

Royal Ascot 5.35 Generic was making only his third start when seven lengths adrift of the subsequent French Derby winner, Constitution River, in the Dee Stakes at Chester and the form is backed up by a strong timefigure.

Royal Ascot 6.10 Another impossibly tight handicap on the straight course, but Blue Brother is an intriguing contender at around 10-1. Hamad al Jehani’s gelding was fancied for last year’s Hunt Cup but had no luck at all in running, and while he has not seen a track since, his trainer is more than capable of getting one ready first time up.

Keyword – UK news
Trefwoorden – Catherine, Princess of Wales, Information commissioner, Privacy, Monarchy, London, UK news
Title – Ex-health worker cautioned after Kate’s medical notes offered for financial gain | Catherine, Princess of Wales | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/carolinedavies
Link – Ex-health worker cautioned after Kate’s medical notes offered for financial gain | Catherine, Princess of Wales | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-17T14:05:18.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/jun/17/ex-health-worker-cautioned-princess-of-wales-medical-records-offered-financial-gain

A former healthcare worker at a private hospital in London has been formally cautioned by the UK privacy and data watchdog over the deliberate misuse of the Princess of Wales’s private medical records and offering to disclose them for financial gain.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) launched a criminal investigation into the unlawful obtaining and disclosure of medical information to a third party without the consent of the data controller after the London Clinic reported a breach in March 2024.

At the time it was reported that at least one member of staff tried to access Catherine’s notes while she was a patient at the private hospital.

The London Clinic has treated the princess and King Charles in recent years. She spent almost two weeks at the private hospital after undergoing planned abdominal surgery for an undisclosed condition in January 2024. The following month she revealed that cancer was discovered in postoperative tests.

Reporting its findings, the privacy and data watchdog said: “Following a full assessment under the code for crown prosecutors and the ICO’s prosecution policy, the ICO issued a now former healthcare professional from London with a formal caution in relation to an offence under section 170(5) of the Data Protection Act 2018.

“The conduct involved the deliberate misuse of highly sensitive personal information and an offer to disclose it for financial gain, representing a clear breach of trust.”

The ICO said a caution was “the appropriate and proportionate enforcement response”, adding: “We also considered whether there were any wider organisational issues arising from the healthcare provision in this matter. Based on the evidence available, we did not identify any failings that would meet the threshold for regulatory enforcement.”

Ian Hulme, the executive director for regulatory supervision at the ICO, said: “People should be able to trust that the personal information they’re giving to healthcare settings is safe and protected from exploitation. When this trust is broken, it’s right that the law allows us to take action.

“We will not hesitate to pursue criminal prosecution where it is necessary and proportionate to do so.”

A London Clinic spokesperson said: “We all take considerable pride in delivering the very highest standards of care and discretion for every patient at the London Clinic. We are pleased our work with the ICO has brought this sad and isolated incident to a conclusion. There were no regulatory breaches by the hospital.”