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Happy Valley star Sarah Lancashire to be honoured at Windsor Castle

Happy Valley star Sarah Lancashire to be honoured at Windsor Castle

Yahoo3 days ago
Bafta-winning actress Sarah Lancashire will be among those honoured at Windsor Castle on Tuesday as she is made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Lancashire, 60, is to attend an investiture ceremony at the royal residence after she was made a CBE for services to drama in the New Year Honours.
The actress has won plaudits for her performances in TV shows including Happy Valley and Last Tango In Halifax, following her breakthrough role as Raquel Watts in soap opera Coronation Street during the 1990s, appearing in more than 260 episodes.
After leaving the cobbles, Lancashire earned praise for her TV drama work including on the BBC's critically acclaimed Clocking Off from 2000 until 2003 – a series about factory workers.
She earned her first Bafta award in 2014 for her supporting role in the BBC comedy-drama series Last Tango In Halifax.
In 2017 she earned the best actress Bafta for her portrayal of no-nonsense Sergeant Catherine Cawood in the Yorkshire-set thriller Happy Valley, and became an OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to drama.
Also among the personalities to be honoured on Tuesday are cyclists Jenny Holl, Dannielle Khan, Emma Finucane and Katy Marchant.
All four are being made Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBEs) for services to cycling.
Holl, 25, and her tandem partner Sophie Unwin won two gold medals in the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, while Khan, 29, piloted Lizzi Jordan to gold in the women's tandem 1km time trial.
Marchant, 32, won Great Britain's first Olympic women's team sprint gold at the 2024 Paris Games, alongside teammates Finucane and Sophie Capewell.
Finucane, 22, became the first British woman in 60 years to win three medals at a single Olympics as she took bronze in the individual sprint in the 2024 Paris Games.
Trampoline gold medallist Bryony Page is also to be made an MBE for services to trampoline gymnastics.
Paralympic swimmer Alice Tai is to be made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to swimming.
Tai, 25, topped the 2024 Paralympic podium less than three years after opting to have her right leg amputated by winning gold in the women's 100m S8 backstroke.
Penny Briscoe, the director of sport at the British Paralympic Association who also served as chef de mission for the fifth time in Paris, is to be made a CBE during the same ceremony for services to Paralympic sport.
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The coach who develops Gloucester's future stars
The coach who develops Gloucester's future stars

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

The coach who develops Gloucester's future stars

When lock Arthur Clark made his international debut by starting for England on Saturday in their comprehensive win over the USA, it was a moment of personal pride. But it was also a huge success for his club Gloucester. The 23-year-old has come through the junior ranks at Hartpury College and the Cherry and Whites' academy to now having 40 games under his belt. Next season, he will be one of 14 former academy graduates in the 40-player Gloucester senior squad. Wayne Thompson is the man tasked with finding the next Clark, or Jonny May, or Lewis Ludlow, Louis Rees-Zammit or Freddie Thomas - players who have all come through the club's academy to establish themselves in the first team. A former prop, who played down the M5 motorway at Bristol for 13 years, Thompson was appointed in May 2024 when the club's academy was revamped and expanded. "The academy is one of the key strategies for the club as a whole," Thompson told BBC Radio Gloucestershire. "My remit has been to help bring players through, identify players and ensure the next generation of Gloucester talent, a streamline of players coming through." Gloucester have spent 'wisely' - Skivington The importance of Gloucester's academy has only grown in recent years as the club aims to cut its cloth and become more financially sustainable. Owner Martin St Quinton has said Gloucester's ambition is to financially break even and, as such, their reliance on developing young talent has only increased. Thompson's role as head of academy has, in many ways, never been more important. Even more so in light of wholesale changes made to its structure last summer. As part of the Professional Game Partnership agreed between the Rugby Football Union, Premiership Rugby and Rugby Players' Association announced in September, the geographical boundaries for the 10 Premiership clubs' academies were re-drawn. With Worcester and Wasps both no longer in the top flight, the boundaries of Gloucester's patch has spread and now includes Birmingham, Worcestershire, Warwickshire and as far as Shropshire and Oxford, as well as Gloucestershire. The setup for academies across the league has also altered and must encompass three phases - a foundation phase for age 15-16; a development phase for 17-18; and a confirmation phase, otherwise known as the senior academy, for those up to the age of 23. "The key thing for us as a club is having an affinity with the whole catchment now," Thompson said. "You've got a natural affinity with the local area in and around Gloucester but how do we create that cultural connection with those Midland areas, Oxford, Henley? "The more we engage with the community and the academy, through stakeholders - schools, clubs, parents, you'll start to see that grow." 'Starting to see the fruition of work' After hanging up his playing boots in 2013, Thompson spent 10 years working at Hartpury University as the junior academy manager, leading their under-18s programme Rees-Zammit, former scrum-half Stephen Varney and current Gloucester winger Josh Hathaway have all prospered under Thompson's watch during that time. "I'd always had an affiliation with Gloucester, stepping across probably has helped those links with players, and giving them playing opportunity through that Hartpury pathway," Thompson said. "We're starting to see the fruition of that with the players stepping across and up into this Gloucester senior squad and developing in the academy." Of the most recent crop of academy players, in the past year 12 have represented England at under-18, under-19 and under-20 age grades - most notably centre Will Knight, who featured in the recent World Rugby Under-20 Championship, while Caio James and Deian Gwynne represented Wales. This summer, 10 players have moved up from Gloucester's under-18s team to the senior academy - six of whom have come from the new catchment area. Yet Thompson says the real test will be how many players they have named in the England Under-20 Elite Player Pathway squad for 2025-26 when it is announced next month. "It'll be interesting to see how many of the lads that have played in that under-19s, under-18s age group this year get pulled through," Thompson said. "That for me is probably going to be the initial marker for us as an academy as to how far we've come in this last year and how much of an impact this bigger area and the work we've put in has shown through." Director of rugby George Skivington said in May that the talent coming through Gloucester this coming season is as good, if not better, than it ever has been. Thompson agreed he is "extremely excited" by the prospect of the players in the building although the challenge is to ensure they continue to progress forward. "The athletic potential of these lads, it's a different size, shape of your stereotypical Gloucester lads coming through," Thompson said. "How do we make sure that transition in the next two or three years isn't lost? And that we are seeing these lads forming the majority of the Gloucester team in four, five years."

UFC 321 Main Event: Tom Aspinall Vs. Ciryl Gane Opening Betting Odds
UFC 321 Main Event: Tom Aspinall Vs. Ciryl Gane Opening Betting Odds

Forbes

time10 hours ago

  • Forbes

UFC 321 Main Event: Tom Aspinall Vs. Ciryl Gane Opening Betting Odds

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Ciryl Gane MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JULY 27: Tom Aspinall of England reacts after his knockout victory against ... More Curtis Blaydes in the interim UFC heavyweight championship bout during the UFC 304 event at Co-op Live on July 27, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) Tom Aspinall (15-3) had a 7-2 professional MMA record when the UFC inked him to a deal in 2020. Aspinall made his promotional debut in July 2020 with a 45-second knockout win over Jake Collier. The win earned the then 27-year-old his first 'Performance of the Night' bonus. A knockout win over Alan Baudot followed in October of that year. Aspinall made it three stoppages in a row in February 2021 when he tapped Andrei Arlovski in the second round of their matchup, a card that was headlined by Curtis Blaydes losing to Derrick Lewis by second-round KO. Aspinall's win over Arlovski broke him into the rankings at No. 13. First-round stoppage wins over Serghei Spivac (TKO) and Alexander Volkov (submission) followed the Arlovski triumph. The Blaydes matchup was next on Aspinall's schedule. The injury he suffered in that contest kept him out of action until July 2023 when he stepped into the Octagon to face Marcin Tybura. Aspinall showed no hesitation or ill effects from his knee injury, as he dispatched Tybura in 73 seconds, winning the fight by TKO. Then, with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones injured and out of his scheduled UFC 295 matchup against Stipe Miocic, the UFC tapped Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich to face off for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 295. Aspinall won the bout, and the title, with a 69-second knockout. Aspinall defended the interim crown once, defeating Curtis Blaydes via knockout at the 1:00 mark of Round 1 of their UFC 304 matchup. Now 32, Aspinall has seven first-round stoppage wins and one second-round stoppage victory under the UFC banner. He has never gone past 1:09 of the second round in UFC action. Aspinall has earned seven 'Performance of the Night' bonuses during his UFC run. The only win he has where he failed to pick up a post-fight bonus was his win over Baudot in 2020. LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Ciryl Gane of France looks on before a heavyweight bout against ... More Alexander Volkov of Russia during the UFC 310 event at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC) Ciryl Gane (13-2) is the No. 1 fighter in the official UFC heavyweight rankings. The 35-year-old French competitor has only lost in UFC title fights, falling to Francis Ngannou by decision in 2022 for the undisputed title, and losing to Jon Jones via submission in 2023 for the vacant belt. Gane did capture the interim heavyweight belt in 2021 with a knockout of Derrick Lewis. Gane debuted with the UFC in 2019 following a Muay Thai career. He was 3-0 in MMA when he first fought inside the Octagon. Gane went 7-0 to begin his UFC career. His first loss came in a title unification bout against Ngannou. Gane enters UFC 321 on a two-fight winning streak. He defeated Serghei Spivac by TKO in September 2023. In his most recent trip to the Octagon, Gane bested Alexander Volkov via decision at UFC 310. Tom Aspinall Named UFC Heavyweight Champ LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 08: UFC CEO Dana White holds a press conference after the UFC 313 event at ... More T-Mobile Arena on March 08, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) In June, then-UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones retired. The UFC named Aspinall the undisputed champion at that time. "Jon Jones called us last night and retired. Jon Jones is officially retired. Tom Aspinall is the heavyweight champion of the UFC," White said during the post-fight press conference following the UFC Baku fight card. "I obviously feel bad for Tom that he lost all that time and money, but we'll make it up to him," White added. 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Aspinall took that fight on short notice when the original main event for that card, Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic for Jones's heavyweight title was scrapped following an injury to Jones. Despite Aspinall winning the interim crown, UFC CEO Dana White remained steadfast in saying that Jones vs. Miocic was the fight to make. That fight did not take place until November 2024. Jones held on to his belt that night, beating Miocic by TKO in the third round. By that time, Aspinall had already defended his interim crown, scoring a first-round knockout win over Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 in July 2024. Aspinall, who has not fought since he defeated Blaydes, had been waiting for the title unification bout with Jones since Jones's win over Miocic in November. In late April, Aspinall became the longest-serving UFC interim champion, topping the 535-day reign of Renan Barao, who defended his interim title twice before being named undisputed champion. UFC 321 Official Fights Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane: For Aspinall's UFC heavyweight title Alexander Volkov vs. Jailton Almeida: Heavyweight Aleksander Rakic vs. Azamat Murzakanov: Light Heavyweight Hamdy Abdelwahab vs. Chris Barnett: Heavyweight Ikram Aliskerov vs. Junyong Park: Middleweight Azat Maksum vs. Mitch Raposo We will have more on UFC 321, including opening betting odds for the co-main event when that fight is made official.

The Espadrille Sneakers Fashion Insiders Are Wearing This Summer
The Espadrille Sneakers Fashion Insiders Are Wearing This Summer

Elle

time11 hours ago

  • Elle

The Espadrille Sneakers Fashion Insiders Are Wearing This Summer

With summer in full swing, it's likely your closet needs a few new pieces, including shoes. In which case, let me introduce you to espadrille sneakers. Yes, there are espadrille flats and wedges, which are always a classic summer staple. That said, they're not always the best choice for the moment—whether that be a relaxing walk or a fun getaway. Lucky for you, there's an easy alternative. No doubt, we need a little bit of everything to expand our wardrobes, from day-to-day pieces to options for playful occasions. I found the best espadrille sneakers using my expertise in the market, as well as factors including comfort, design, and, of course, style. Espadrille sneakers are a fun, summery shoe that'll give your wardrobe a nice seasonal update. Below, find 15 of our favorite takes on the espadrille sneaker. If you're fatigued by your old stash of Adidas sneakers, it's time to shop this fun collab that mixes jute with beaded details. I adore platform sneakers, and this affordable pair from Keds is so chic. The multicolored jute rope will blend in seamlessly with all of your summer ensembles. Speaking of mixing materials, denim shoes are having quite a moment. Grab Chloé's jute-trimmed version to go with all of your summer dresses. Here you'll find texture on top of texture in this unique take on the espadrille sneaker trend. A little logo love never hurts, especially when it comes courtesy of Celine's iconic triomphe symbol. Lean into the joys of the season with nautical stripes paired next to a jute-trimmed sole. Classic lovers, count on Tretorn's timeless silhouettes to go perfectly with your favorite jeans or breezy linen pants. Step into your coastal girl era with this monochromatic take on the craft-inspired sneaker. For added height, step into this stacked heel option by England-based brand Penelope Chilvers. With a mix of creamy neutrals and jumbo laces, this is the sweet sneaker to add to your collection of playful kicks. With perfectly distressed details Maison Margiela makes the espadrille sneaker look cooler than ever. JW Anderson brings the moody vibes with a deep taupe option that easily mixes and matches with any hue in your closet. If you love the look of sleek sneakers that gently hug your feet, Rag & Bone's low-profile design is what you need. With thick laces and a summery jute trim, this is the sneaker that deserves a spot in your luggage this summer. Amazon always has a wonderful selection of footwear—often at a reasonable price. This pair of platformed pink Superga sneakers are fantastic for all your spring outings. Every product featured on is independently researched, tested, or editor-approved. We only recommend products that we stand behind, and the merchandise featured on our site is always driven by editorial and product testing standards, not by affiliate deals or advertising relationships. Any content created in partnership with advertisers is marked as such.

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