Chat 17 august 2017

How Sco earned his pizza treat!

I’VE GOT YOU BABE!

LIFE! DEATH! PRIZES!

17 AUG 2017 ISSUE 33

So cute

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94p

PLUS CRACKIN G

by Dad Uncle Charlie N I A G A & N I A STABBED AG

Y B A B LER? KIL Her little

girl’s body was found in a bin...

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ABUSAEND D CRIME

9 770269 989378 Ita €3.40 Spn €2.75 Grc €2.85 Can C$5.50 Aus $3.99

GRRREAoTb!y

ATTACKED at my 80th birthday We got wed in CYBERSPACE

I was a total surprise!

Reunited with my brother AFTER 69 YEARS!

INSIDE Cover stories 6 12 20 30 36 39 54

Abused by Dad Baby killer?

I’ve got you babe!

Attacked at my 80th Scooby’s pizza treat Wed in cyberspace Reunited after 69 years!

More true stories 10 Skull crushed on the dancefloor 24 Bonnie & Clyde 28 Bingo winners 34 Beauty genes 42 He beat death 7 times 48 When good meets evil

24 PRIZE PUZZLES

See page 56 for details

TREASURE AHOY!

Your favourites

LANDING!

For more cute animal pictures and videos (as well as lots of real-life reads and other entertaining stuff), go to www.lifedeathprizes.com and search ‘Animals’.

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D Here’s a clue to help: He used to live with best bandmate Duncan James, and caused quite a stir in Celebrity Big Brother 2014… Take a look at the picture on the right and see if you can work out who it is.

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Puzzle 1

£50

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Chat to us Fashion: Blues Your tips are genius!

Chat health Soap world Free bracelet Holiday: Gran Canaria We hear you!

Cute kids Unexplained Enter our comps here Your stars!

Weird World

Bit on the side 21 27 41 55

Fruit loaf Sweet treat Meal deal Wrap skirts

Cover photo: Getty Images. Photos: REX/Shutterstock/Getty Images

SPLASH T

hings can get a bit wet on the Arctic Peninsula, but this cheeky penguin is making the most of the conditions by having a bit of puddle-jumping fun!

Well, you would, wouldn’t you?!

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Welcome to my week...

What I loved A string of lazy weekend barbecues with perfectly cooked burgers, ice-cold wine, good mates and dodgy blues playing in the background. Total bliss! (Add in a charred peach and I’m officially in heaven…)

What hacked me off Premature talk in the office of Christmas. Yikes!

What made me laugh Flicking through a booklet about local evening classes, I found myself strangely drawn to ukulele for beginners… Stop me now!!

Hope you’re not too highly strung this week!

Challenge accepted?

Don’t my mum and dad look smart on their wedding day 72 years ago? They’re here with Dad’s brother Jim and Mum’s cousin Cissie.

Agnes Carmichael, Bellshill

Carol service?

‘So who else can touch their nose with their tongue?’ This is the question that my show-off dog Whisper, 3, is asking Chat readers!

Melissa Morgan, Woodside

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This is my mum Carol standing outside the Sineu Church in Mallorca.

Marina Xidakis, Warrington

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This week’s puzzle was compiled by Sheila Beeby, Ormskirk

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2 Puzzle Gilly Sinclair, Editor

5x

£25

4

ACROSS 1 Perform in street 2 Sparkling wine 3 Make airtight 4 Therefore DOWN 1 Foundation 2 Operator 3 Male deer 4 Metric weight

Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details.

Keen readers My daughter Daisy and son Thomas are highly engrossed looking at Mummy’s favourite magazine!

Amy Carr, St Helier

Selfie stars

For a laugh, with our frienwe had a competition could take th ds to see who you guess w e best selfie. Can David Benne ho didn’t win? tt, Stoke-on-T rent

Splash time Me and my boyfriend had an amazing time in Florida, and really enjoyed our villa’s wonderful swimming pool!

Charlotte Jones, Ruthin

I met dancer Natalie Lowe after seeing her fabulous show in York. She’s such a beautiful lady inside and out, and I’ll miss her on Strictly!

Patricia Milner, Pudsey

On our first holiday for a few years, my fiance Steve and son Koby had a go at an old country tradition!

Stacey Davis, Wellington

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SEXUA ABUSD AGAIN AN

First it was my own, trusted dad, then my church elder

By Angie Rodgers, 36, from Ayrshire

s Dad rang the doorbell, I stared at the ground.

Please don’t know me, I prayed silently.

It was 1991 and I was 10. My family were Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Each weekend, my dad Ian, then 30, would take me door-to-door, trying to recruit new members, convert them to ‘the truth’.

Mortified, I kept my head down, dreading a kid from school answering the door.

I was already being bullied.

‘Bible basher,’ kids called me.

I wasn’t allowed friends outside the religion, or to participate in school activities.

We didn’t celebrate birthdays or Christmas. It was a lonely, miserable childhood.

Evenings were packed with

Words: Lianne La Borde. Photos: Mirrorpix

A

book study, family worship or meetings at our local Kingdom Hall – Jehovah’s Witnesses’ houses of worship.

Then, one night, when I was 11, life got so much worse.

I woke up, and Dad was on top of me, touching me. His hands were up my nightie, groping my private places.

What’s happening?

I panicked.

In shock, I froze, too terrified to speak.

After, Dad left without a word.

My head swam with questions.

Was this normal?

It didn’t feel right.

But Dad was a devout man – and, as strict as he was, I trusted him.

So I didn’t say a word, even when it happened again.

Then, one day, I had gastric flu, was throwing up.

Dad looked after me while Mum went to the Kingdom

Hall. Scooping me up off the couch, Dad carried me upstairs.

I thought he’d tuck me into bed, but instead he took me to his bedroom and molested me as my fever raged.

I was sobbing, so frightened.

Please come home and save

My head swam with questions.

Was this normal?

I hope I can help others by telling my story

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My father Ian Cousins

Traumatic

ALLY SEDAIN

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HOCK FACTOR

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me, Mum, I prayed.

But she never did.

‘If you tell anyone, I’ll rip you apart,’ Dad snarled after.

I was terrified of him.

And it kept getting worse.

‘You’ll break up the family,’ he’d warn.

Or, ‘You’ll be taken away by Social Services.’

I was sheltered, naive, and felt trapped.

Then, aged 14, we went to a Jehovah’s Witness convention.

Inside one of the tents, Dad grabbed me, pinning me to the ground.

Wrestling my clothes off,

Harry Holt – ‘Uncle Charlie’

he pulled down his trousers.

He’s going to rape me! I realised.

I didn’t dare scream.

Frozen in fear, I closed my eyes as Dad was about to force himself on me.

Only, suddenly…

‘Ian?’ a voice called from outside the tent.

It was one of our elders, Harry Holt – known as ‘Uncle Charlie’ to the kids.

‘Just a minute,’ Dad called, hurriedly yanking up his trousers and rushing out.

I was saved. Just.

Horrified, I confided in a friend, who was also in the religion.

‘Dad touches me,’ I wept.

Shocked, she later told her father, an elder from another congregation.

Jehovah’s Witnesses like to keep everything within the church. So, instead of involving the police, a ‘judicial meeting’ was called.

I sat in

I believed elders were above the law

So vulnerable My smile belied my abusive and lonely childhood

a room being interrogated by three male elders, including Uncle Charlie.

They asked me such embarrassing, intimate questions.

Where was I touched? How? Dad just sat there, head down, listening to every word.

‘What were you wearing?’ one asked – like I was to blame.

Disgusting.

I was humiliated, completely traumatised.

But I’d been brought up believing the elders were above the law, and everyone not in the religion needed saving.

Dad was reprimanded, demoted from his position – yet, because he showed repentance, he was allowed to remain in the church.

‘If this gets out, I’ll go to prison,’ he hissed.

But at least he didn’t dare abuse me again.

Mum was in denial, and we didn’t go out much after. We’d

all been embarrassed, and all felt ashamed.

Then, seven months later, I went door-knocking with Uncle Charlie.

After, like usual, I went back to his place to have something to eat.

‘Let’s watch a film,’ he grinned, putting on Braveheart.

We were rarely allowed to watch anything on TV. ‘I’ll just wash before taking you home,’ he said as it played.

Only, he came out of the bathroom with just a towel wrapped round his waist.

Stunned, frightened, I leapt up from my seat and started putting my jacket on...

Uncle Charlie came out of the bathroom in just a towel

OVER THE PAGE:

I learned I wasn’t the only victim of my dad or Uncle Charlie…

7

Traumatic Moving on

< Continued from previous page

Justice at last ‘

re you tickly?’ Uncle Charlie leered, brushing his hand against my breast.

Then he tried to take off my coat.

‘Mum’ll be waiting,’ I insisted, scared.

Uncle Charlie dressed, and we got into the car.

Only, on the drive, his hand crept up my thigh towards my crotch.

When we pulled up at my house, I dashed straight to my room.

‘He touched me,’ I wept to my parents, after Uncle Charlie left.

Another judicial meeting was held.

Uncle Charlie was stripped of his elder privileges – but that was it.

I felt sick.

I’d been used, abused and abandoned by Dad and the church.

Four months on, I left home and went to live with a relative.

Then, in early 1999, aged 18, I left the religion,

A

and was disowned.

Homeless, for a while I sofa-surfed, struggled with drugs and alcohol.

Until, in January 2000, I met my partner, then 22.

Then, in February 2000, another girl reported Dad to the police for alleged abuse.

Pregnant by then, I realised I couldn’t let Dad get away with it, so I went to the police, too.

It was the second time I’d spoken out about him. This time, I just hoped he’d be suitably punished.

In January 2002, at The High Court Edinburgh, my dad Ian Cousins pleaded guilty to two counts of lewd, libidinous behaviour, and two of indecent behaviour towards a girl aged 12-16. He was jailed for five years.

No more cover-ups. Justice.

Looking to the future, my

It terrifies me to think there might be other victims

BELIEFS Witnesses believe they’re the JWordehovah’s only true Christians and the Bible is the of God. Local congregations are led by a body of male ‘elders’, and members attend their closest Kingdom Hall for meetings and Bible study. They maintain a degree of separation from non-believers, who they regard as ‘sinful’.

In recent years, the religion has come under fire over its child-protection policies.

8

With support, I’m learning to live with my past

partner and I went on to have three girls, now 16, 11 and 6, and one boy, 14. And, with Dad in jail, Mum left the church and we became close.

‘I’m so sorry,’ she wept.

But I didn’t blame her – she’d been as trapped as I had.

Putting the abuse behind us, I focused on my family.

Only, in autumn 2013, police knocked at the door.

‘We’re here about Harry Holt,’ one said.

Uncle Charlie.

Other victims had come forward, and they’d traced me based on the complaint I’d made to the church back when I was young.

Sickened to discover that I wasn’t his only victim, I made a statement.

In February last year, Harry Holt, 71, appeared at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court.

He was charged with sexually abusing young girls.

I gave evidence, but Holt denied everything, accusing all his victims of collusion and making up stories.

However, the jury didn’t believe his lies.

He was found guilty of

Get help... f you or anyone you Isexual know has suffered abuse, help and support is available from Victim Support on 0808 168 9111, or go to www. victimsupport.org.uk five counts of lewd, libidinous behaviour, two of indecent assault, and four of indecent behaviour towards a girl aged 12-16. He was jailed for three and a half years.

Now I’m having therapy for post traumatic stress disorder, and I suffer nightmares, flashbacks.

I’ll never get over what happened to me, but I’ve learned to live with it, and my partner has been my rock.

It terrifies me to think that there might be other victims like me out there, still suffering in silence.

So I’d urge them to go to the police, no matter how long ago the abuse was.

If I can help just one person by telling my story, then it’ll have been worth it.

£1,001 CASH! hat, apart from music, W links American superstars Lady Gaga

Phwoar – it’s a whopper! Enjoy your puzzling 2

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£500 WINNER Issue 50/51, 22 December 2016 I was surprised and very excited with my win. We’re getting a new puppy so this will go into our ‘puppy fund’ for everything he or she will need.

Karen Lloyd, Cheshire

ACROSS 1 Kitchen surface (7) 5 Abstaining from the booze (8) 9 Increases (4) 13 Male relative (5) 14 Get in touch with (7) 15 Grows larger (7) 16 American cafe (5) 17 Now or … (5) 18 Water tortoise (6) 20 Birds you feed by the pond (5) 21 Italian rice dish (7) 23 Second-hand (4) 26 Usual (4) 27 Use claws (7) 30 Emperor who built the wall across the north of England (7) 34 Foot-digit part (7) 36 Specimen (6) 37 Greek island (5) 39 Swamp region of Florida (10) 40 Wasted (10) 42 On the nail (5) 43 and 7 Down Sign on a house where a canine lives (6, 2, 3, 3) 44 Post-1945 unrest between the Soviet states and the West (4, 3) 46 Wild West lawman (7) 47 See 10 Down 48 Horse-breeding farm (4) 53 Sit or stand for a photographer (4) 54 and 3 Down Sign in a park, maybe (4, 3, 3, 5) 55 Shout for joy (5) 58 Album or a single (6) 60 Brag (5) 62 Trainee officer (5) 66 Nonprofessional (7) 67 Obvious (7) 68 Proclaimed order (5) 69 Place on a ship for the cargo (4) 70 Five-sided shape (8) 71 Wagered (7)

TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

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DOWN 1 Injured during a battle (7) 2 Automobile for speed contests (6, 3) 3 See 54 Across 4 Put clothes in a suitcase (4) 5 Very small, minute (4) 6 Delete (5) 7 See 43 Across 8 Summit (4) 10 And 47 Across Sign hung on a hotel door (2, 3, 7) 11 Dangles (8) 12 Pouring part of teapot (5) 19 Drinking tube (5) 22 Earnings (6) 24 Bird frightener (9) 25 Large reptile of the Nile (9) 26 Small-talked (8) 28 Wine store, perhaps (6) 29 Replied (8) 31 Female children (9) 32 Articulate, and persuasive (8) 33 Offered in payment (8) 35 Targets for the mascara brush (9) 38 Cup’s dish (6) 41 List of charges (6) 45 Frequently (5) 49 Gym running machine (9) 50 Come near (8) 51 Adversary (8) 52 Sweet, frozen food (3, 5) 56 Spun around (7) 57 Sheepish star sign (5) 59 Go on hands and knees (5) 61 Sharp pain (5) 63 Liberate from bondage (4) 64 Blood vessel (4) 65 Male deer (4)

Photos: REX/Shutterstock

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and Elvis Presley?

To find out, solve the crossword then read down the letters in the shaded squares to find the four-word prize answer.

9

S U R C L L U SK

E C N A D E H ON T A 15st gas canister fell on my face

Words: Lianne La Borde/Jamie Mountain

By Laurie Balfour, 25, from Doncaster tepping off the plane, a waft of heat hit me.

‘We’re here!’ my mate Claire grinned.

It was August last year, and I’d joined Claire and three mates on a girly holiday on the Greek island of Zante.

‘A week of sun, sea and cocktails,’ I smiled.

We were soon by the pool.

On our second day, we went to a boat party.

Afterwards, I remember getting off the coach, heading to a bar on the Laganas strip.

Then nothing. Until I woke

S

Carefree On holiday in Zante before the accident

10

up in a white room, alone.

Drowsy, head fuzzy.

Scared and confused, I didn’t know where I was or what’d happened to me.

It’s all a blur, but I must’ve drifted in and out for days.

At some point, I realised my mum Deana, 49, and dad Philip, 48, were there.

It was comforting to see them, but they looked so worried.

‘Do you know who we are?’ Mum asked.

Unable to speak, I nodded.

Pumped full of medication, I was aware of very little.

But, slowly, I became more alert.

I understood there’d been an accident. I was in hospital, on life support.

I had a tracheotomy in my throat to help me breathe, so I couldn’t talk.

When doctors and my parents asked questions, I silently mouthed the answers.

Finally, when I was strong enough, my parents explained what’d happened.

‘You’ve been in a coma,’ Mum said gently.

For four weeks!

She held my hand, explaining I’d been dancing

In a coma for four weeks in the bar. There’d been a huge 15st canister containing laughing gas by the bar – but it was unsecured.

I must’ve slipped, knocked it, or it dislodged somehow – nobody knew for sure.

But it came crashing down on my face, crushing my skull.

Horrifying.

My friends hadn’t seen it happen, but Claire and Amy had turned to see me in a pool of blood.

I’d then been airlifted to mainland Greece and admitted to Intensive Care

at a hospital in Athens.

My injuries were catastrophic. A dangerous baseline skull fracture, my brain swelling, internal bleeding. A broken nose, fractured cheeks.

Rushed into surgery, I had a shunt inserted in my head to drain fluid.

Surgeons performed a craniotomy – which involved removing part of my skull to relieve pressure on my brain.

My friends had called my parents.

Mum had jumped on the first

I’d had brain surgery, was hooked up to life support

Nightmare

SHED

FLOOR flight, Dad close behind with my best mate Becci, 26.

When they arrived, I’d already had brain surgery, was hooked up to life support.

‘Doctors warned us you were unlikely to make it,’ Mum wept.

They’d sat by my side, hoping.

Two weeks in, I’d had surgery to repair my carotid artery. Without it, I could’ve lost my sight or had a stroke.

It’d still been touch and go.

Doctors kept me sedated as my brain healed – but warned I may never wake up. And if I did, I could be severely brain-damaged.

Now here I was... It was a lot to take in.

I suffered from headaches and nausea as I had more surgery and scans.

Eventually, my tracheotomy was removed.

And, after seven weeks, I was flown to hospital in Doncaster, where I looked in a mirror for the first time.

‘I look a mess,’ I sobbed.

My hair had been shaved, my face was swollen.

I’d lost 2st, couldn’t walk.

My recovery was tough – coming to terms with how I looked and felt.

But, with help from family and friends, I soldiered on through physio and was discharged before Christmas.

Back home, the shock of what I’d been through hit me.

I’d nearly died.

My confidence disappeared,

I suffered from anxiety, depression.

The mental and physical fatigue – common after brain injuries – was debilitating.

I had hearing loss in my right ear, and suffered from vertigo.

Becci had set up a fundraising page while I recovered, and I was so touched by people’s support.

This May, surgeons at Royal Hallamshire Hospital fitted an acrylic plate to replace my missing bit of skull.

Hopefully that’s my last major surgery and I’ll be back to work soon.

My hair is growing back, my fractures are healing well.

I still have bad days and need counselling – but I’ll get there.

I’m just lucky to be alive.

With help from family and friends, I soldiered on

Now: On the road to recovery

‘Clinging on’ aurie’s mum Deana says, ‘Getting that L phone call was

horrendous. I jumped on the first flight and sobbed the whole way.

Doctors immediately warned Laurie had very little chance of surviving.

When I saw her, I fell apart. She didn’t look like my daughter.

Her face and head were so swollen. She had black eyes, fractured cheekbones and was barely clinging on.

With my Philip and mum Deana

Becci arrived, and we just sat there helplessly.

Doctors kept warning about brain damage – if Laurie woke up at all.

So, when they reduced the sedatives, I desperately asked her questions.

“How old are you?”

I asked one day.

“Fourteen,” she mouthed.

My heart sank – until a wicked smile spread across her face.

“She made a joke!”

I gasped at Philip.

I knew then our Laurie would fight her way back to us – and she has.

It was a long road, and I’m so proud of Laurie.’

11

Nicole Beecr times… But w

TnHApErilS20T07O,RteYenagSerONFicAoleR:

IthBee laecunrodrftyserocrometlyofgahever fabimrtilyh in

lebrating home. But instead of ce er, Nicole the arrival of her daught5 times. brutally stabbed her 13 out With questions raised abready whether the baby was al ed, dead when it was woundole was could the jury agree Nic guilty of murder?

Nicole had never been in trouble

The case…

Words: Hannah Abbott. Photos (not actual knife): Alamy/REX/Shutterstock

DEAD OR ALIVE?

icole Beecroft had always been an admirable teenager.

Despite being just 17, she had two jobs, attended high school and had never been in trouble with the law.

But Nicole was carrying a big secret.

She’d fallen pregnant – and she desperately didn’t want her mother, or anyone else, to find out.

Luckily, thanks to already being overweight and with the help of a few baggy jumpers, she was able to conceal the news of her impending arrival.

But, with the baby due any day, she knew she couldn’t

N

12

informed the local police.

Officers went to the shop where Nicole worked and confronted her.

She initially claimed the baby was stillborn, telling police she ‘went into panic mode’ when the baby was born not breathing. And that she lay with her for a while, waiting for her to cry.

She admitted throwing the remains in the bin, but failed to mention the stabbing.

‘What were you going to do if the baby was breathing?’ she was later asked in her police interview.

‘Bring her to the hospital,’ Nicole replied.

A ‘safe harbour’ law in Minnesota allows women to leave a baby at any hospital within 72 hours of birth, without legal consequences.

But Nicole’s story began to unravel after police acquired a search warrant.

In the family home, they found adult-sized nappies soaked with blood.

Nicole’s mother told the officers her daughter had been suffering with a particularly heavy period.

However, they later searched the bin...where they found the

dumped her in the rubbish keep it a secret forever – or bin outside. could she..?

The whole ordeal almost In the early hours of 9 April went completely undetected.

2007, Nicole suddenly went But the enormity of what she’d into labour at her family home done proved too much for in Oakdale, Minnesota.

Nicole, and she soon Her mum Kari Beecroft was spilled the beans to in the house but Nicole didn’t her best friend. once call for help.

Horrified, the Instead, she quietly gave friend in turn birth to a baby girl on the floor told her family of the laundry room. what had For most mums, seeing their happened, newborn baby for the first time and is a magical moment. they then Not for Nicole.

What the new mum did next is beyond comprehension.

Shortly after the birth, she went to the kitchen, grabbed some scissors and a steak knife.

Then, she stabbed her own daughter over and over again.

By the time she’d finished, the helpless baby’s tiny body was riddled with 135 separate stab wounds.

But the horror of No idea Nicole’s actions wasn’t Nicole’s mum over yet. The teen then Kari didn’t know A steak wrapped the bloody her daughter knife was remains of her newborn was pregnant used daughter in towels and

She then dumped the body in the bin

Unimaginable

oft stabbed her newborn daughter more than 100 was there enough evidence to convict her of murder? baby’s body, alongside towels and a knife.

When she realised the police had recovered her daughter’s remains, Nicole cracked and confessed to the sickening stabbing.

She told them she freaked out when she saw the baby’s finger move and it propelled her into the frenzied attack.

Nicole was charged with first-degree murder.

Shockingly, an initial autopsy showed the baby was born alive, but died after bleeding to death from stab wounds.

At trial, Nicole Beecroft was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder and sentenced to life without parole.

But that’s not where her story ends...

Seven years into Beecroft’s life sentence, Minnesota Supreme Court overturned her conviction, and granted her a second trial.

The court found her first trial

wasn’t fair because the prosecution prevented the defence from calling expert medical witnesses who would have cast doubt on the initial autopsy results that the baby was born alive.

In the second hearing, defence attorney Christine Funk went to great effort to stress the crucial issue in deciding Beecroft’s guilt was whether the baby was stillborn.

Funk said, ‘The state wants you to focus on why Nicole would stab the baby if she were already dead.

‘The issue is whether the state can prove beyond a reasonable doubt whether the defendant’s actions caused the death of that infant,’ she stated.

But state prosecutors fought back.

‘She grabbed a steak knife and two scissors. She stabbed that baby 135 times,’ prosecutor Siv Yurichuk argued. ‘Over and over and over, until the baby was so fraught with wounds she bled to death.’

‘Why would somebody stab a baby that’s already dead?’

That crucial question was left to play on the minds of the second jury as they Christine Funk headed argued the baby into their was already dead deliberations.

There was no

!

EDITOR’S WARNIN G

Her first trial was found to be unfair

LIFE! DEATH! PRIZES!

Beecroft Frenzied att:ack doubt that Nicole had committed the gruesome act of attacking her own baby.

But with doubt cast on whether she did it while the child was alive or dead, could the jury really convict her of murder?

Now turn over for the verdict…

● For more true crime, see www.lifedeathprizes.com and click ‘Crime’.

£100 CASH!

Continued from previous page

THE REAL

JUDGE’S

Puzzle 4

£100

place you go to buy things from the A stalls? Solve the puzzle by following the arrows and writing in your answers.

Then read down the letters in the shaded squares to find the prize answer.

VERDICT Beecroft: ‘horrible mistake’

GUILTY icole Beecroft was N found guilty of intentional second-degree murder, a lesser charge than that which she was convicted at her first trial.

Before sentencing, she expressed her remorse, and begged for mercy.

‘All I ask, your honour, is to keep in mind how much I’ve grown and how immature I was when I committed this horrible mistake,’ she said.

‘I take full responsibility for my actions, your honour, and ask for your mercy.’

Nicole received 14 years, and six months. However, she’d already served 2,699 days – more than seven years – which was deducted.

Once she’s released, she’ll serve another seven years on supervised release.

‘The case is a tragedy for all involved,’ District Judge John Hoffman said. ‘[The] defendant has been and will be deterred by a prison sentence that for all intents and purposes will take Ms Beecroft very nearly out of child-bearing range; it is highly unlikely to this court that [the] defendant will ever be in a position to harm a child again.’

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Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

MIDDLING MATEY!

! n o i h s Fa

S E U L B N O S NEW-SEA Denim shirt, £16, Matalan

Frill-sleeved blouse, £28, M&Co

Shortsleeved top, £12, George at Asda

Frayed top, £29.99, TK Maxx Skirt, £16, F&F at Tesco

Jeans, £15, Primark

Top Tip: Keep ripped jeans classy with simple accessories and smart ankle boots.

Frilled blouse, £33, Wallis

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Checked top, £19.99, New Look

WORK THAT LOOK! Scarf, £16, M&Co

Wallet, £28, Cath Kidston

Bathroom set: soap dispenser, £12; tumbler, £10, and soap dish, £10, www. jdwilliams.co.uk Cushion, £8, www.jdwilliams. co.uk

Throw, £4, Primark Mug, set of four, £19.50, Marks & Spencer

Lamp, £55, Dunelm

Splash out!

Blouse, £39; jeans, £35, and shoes, £30, www. jdwilliams.co.uk

Feature: Christine Parsons

Boots, £16, Primark Chair, £499, Marks & Spencer

17

Slippy snails

Cap it off To avoid injuries from the sharper parts of sawn-off branches, add tennis balls or garden ornaments to the ends of them.

Smear a layer of Vaseline around the rim of your flowerpot, as slugs and snails can’t climb over it. That way your plants are safe from being eaten!

Frances Mason, Birmingham

Soft touch

Grace Wright, Exeter

Picture this

Tack’s great!

Blu Tack stuck on your walls? Rub it with a larger piece and it’ll come off!

Paula Henstock, Huddersfield

Fancy a cuppa?

If you’re making jelly and you’ve run out of dishes to put it in, just pour it into a cup!

Anne Forrester, King’s Lynn

In the bag My kitchen was always cluttered with plastic bags. But then I found this laundry bag makes an ideal place to store them, and it looks good!

Carol Wood, Kendal

Rockin’ it I like to collect pebbles from beach trips and decorate them as a hobby.

They look nice around the home and make great gifts, too.

Joanne Pitt, Wymondham

Neat idea

Tips must be your own idea, and not appear in other mags.

If published, we pay £25 for tips with photos.

Send tips, photos, name and full address to: Tips page, Chat, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP, or e-mail us at chat_magazine@timeinc.com

19

* Remember, these are YOUR tips – we haven’t tried them ourselves

itizens of Monaco may not set foot in C what leisure location unless they work there? Unscramble each group of letters to discover six places you might go for leisure, then read down the yellow squares.

N 1 2 3 4 C 5 6

5 Puzzle

MIDDLING MATEY!

T

£100

R C S 1 BUN GLITCH 2 TREE HAT 3 STARE AT URN

4 A BALTIC ROCK (8, 3) 5 CAME IN 6 REPROCESS TNT (6, 6)

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I’ve got you babe

Newborn bundles!

Best buds from the beginning!

I know twins can be close, but you’ve got to hand it to mine

By Alex Gummer, 22, from Bristol

Words: Jenny Stallard/Lucy Laing. Photos: worldwidefeatures.com

‘

e’ll just have to do the best we can!’ I said to my partner Ethan. ‘It’ll be OK!’ We’d just left hospital with unexpected news.

Twins!

At six weeks pregnant, I was just getting used to the idea I was expecting one baby.

But two?!

Amazing. But scary...

There were twins on my side of the family, so I guess it was quite likely.

But we’d not been trying for a baby, so were still processing the fact I was pregnant.

Now we knew it was two, I’d need scans every two weeks.

So, off I went each fortnight, up the hill from my office where I worked in insurance, meeting Ethan, 27, at St Michael’s

W

Hospital in Bristol.

Then, at around 12 weeks, in June last year, just as we’d started telling people the news, came another shocker.

This time, not such fun.

‘One of the babies isn’t growing as well as the other,’ the sonographer said.

They couldn’t tell why, but one twin seemed to be getting all the goodness, and the other, struggling.

I had a test for diabetes in case that was the cause, but it came back negative.

‘So what’s next?’ I asked.

‘Well, it’s possible the weaker twin could be born with learning difficulties, or even disabled,’ they explained. ‘We can talk about a termination...’

How could this be happening? I’d gone from joyous shock to despair in just

Twin-credible! o you love a good story D about twins? Then you’ll want to hear about the amazing Danesha Couch, who had three sets before she turned 20!

You can read her story on the website, where you’ll find loads of other real-life reads, too. Go to www.lifedeathprizes.com/twins Busy mum Danesha

20

a few weeks.

But one thing I knew for sure...

‘I’m not getting rid of my babies,’ I vowed, Ethan agreeing. ‘We need to give them a chance.

We’ll love them whatever.’

So, at each scan, the twins were monitored.

I rubbed my belly, desperate for a sign. Desperate to know they’d be OK. Then, at 21 weeks, we went for another scan, and on the screen….

‘They’re holding hands!’ we all gasped.

It was so clear to see. The babies were connecting.

Big twin saying to little twin, ‘I’m here.’

We’d stepped onto a rollercoaster, hadn’t had a chance to even catch our breath through all this.

Now, in a moment of calm, there was proof our babies were bonding, and fighting to stay together.

It was utterly magical, and just the reassurance I needed.

Hang on babies. Hang on in there...

At 29 weeks, we had to make

more difficult choices…

‘We might have to induce you early,’ doctors advised.

The babies would barely be a pound each. Their chances of survival minimal.

At 33 weeks, doctors called.

‘You’ll need a Caesarean tomorrow!’ they said.

On 8 November last year, I was prepped for the op.

First to arrive was Ava, letting out a wail.

Thank God! She was 3lb 6oz.

Then Mia, at 4lb 7oz. But no sound…

The girls were rushed to NICU – Intensive Care for babies. The first photos of my newborns were taken on my phone by doctors before they were whisked away.

Heartbroken, all I could do was wait.

I felt so anxious when I went to see them.

But, instead of being chubby little bubs, the twins were skin and bone.

Turned out, the reason Mia was bigger was because Ava’s umbilical cord wasn’t attached

It was magical – just the reassurance I needed!

Adorable

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Twinning is winning

properly to the placenta.

Mia had been taking all the goodness – Ava couldn’t get to it!

But they still weren’t safe, and the anxiety and stress made me sick.

‘You’re panicking,’ the midwife said, kindly but firmly.

‘You must get up, walk around.’

So, the next day I went to see the twins.

‘I need to be strong for them,’ I said to myself.

So, I sat with them every day for four long weeks as little tubes in their noses helped with their breathing.

Would I get to take both my babies home?

I stayed in a special room arranged by Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Every day, I’d see the twins.

‘Hello, little ladies!’ I’d trill as I went in.

My girls. My fighters.

Ethan went back to work, but visited morning and night, as he wanted to save his paternity leave for when the babies were home.

Family visited when they could, too.

One night, I was desperate for Ethan to be with us.

‘Is there anything you can do?’ I begged a nurse.

The twins were out of NICU now. We wanted family time.

‘I’ve managed to get you a

family room,’ she said.

I wept with joy.

We didn’t know it, but that was our last night at the hospital.

The next day, 6 December, we were all allowed home.

Finally!

There, the twins have shown me just how amazing their bond is.

Ava and Mia are 8 months now, and so close.

They sleep in the same cot, side by side, often with their arms above their heads, and hands just touching.

When we went swimming, Ava reached out for Mia, not me.

Amazing!

If one has a rice cake, the other wants it.

They reach out for each other all the time. Just like they did in the womb.

I can only imagine how thick as thieves they’ll be as they get

older. But that’s fine by us.

Our girls proved to us before they were born how strong their bond is.

We vowed to do our best, but didn’t count on them helping out along the way!

Warburtons Fruit Loaf with Orange, £1.20 Not as sweet as the others, this white bread has sultanas and orange-flavoured pieces.

It’s something a bit different and, it has to be said, very tasty for breakfast.

9/10

Chat choice

Sainsbury’s Fruit Loaf, 95p Our favourite thanks to the light consistency and the lovely, sweet flavour. Just as tasty toasted or not, it also makes a great bread and butter pudding.

NEW

Me and Ethan adore our little ladies!

Ryvita Three Cheese Thins, £1.89 Topped with mature Cheddar, Emmental and Regato cheese, load these up with your favourite toppings, or use to dunk into dips.

Swap and see

Ask our Doc

Don’t be shy – Chat’s Dr Martin Edwards is a family GP who’s seen it all before…

Ear lump There’s a hard lump where the arm of my glasses rubs on the back of my ear. Could it be cancer?

Q

Sue, 56 More likely it’s a spectacle granuloma, a harmless skin swelling caused by rubbing from specs that don’t fit properly. Ask your optician to adjust them and it should gradually shrink. If it’s tender, steroid cream, injections or a small operation could help.

A

Lazy eye The sight in my left eye isn’t good, and my doctor says it’s a lazy eye. What’s that?

Words: Cher Heasmer. Photos (Kids’ bit/Surprising stats posed by model): Alamy/Getty Images

Q

Mary, 22

Some children have a squint, where their eyes point in slightly different directions. They can’t focus with both eyes, and unless this is treated by around age 6, the brain learns permanently to ignore the picture from one eye – a lazy eye.

A

MRI fear My GP wants me to have an MRI scan, but I’m claustrophobic so I’m terrified.

Q

Roxanne, 37 An MRI scan means being enclosed inside a tunnel, with loud clicks and buzzes.

You can talk to the operators through an intercom, and relaxation exercises might help. If you’re still anxious, ask whether there’s an open-type scanner.

A

Sore breasts After a week of swollen, painful breasts, my midwife’s diagnosed mastitis.

She says it’s OK to breastfeed, but will I harm my baby?

Q

Mastitis is an infection, usually the result of bacteria entering through a cracked nipple when breastfeeding. Antibiotics should help, and it’s safe to feed provided there’s no pus from your nipple.

A

Straight pubes

Swim query

My pubic hair is straight and my boyfriend says it looks weird! Can I make it curl?

Q

My daughter has a hole in her left eardrum since an infection last month.

How long before she can shower and swim?

Q

Emma, 23 Straight or curly pubes are the result of your genes, and straight pubic hair is common in Asian women, though it can occur in anyone. It’s normal, and short of minicurlers, nothing will change it – maybe it’s a change of boyfriend you need!

A

Sarah, 39 Right now! Contrary to what we used to think, water isn’t likely to pass through a hole in her eardrum into her middle ear. Unless your doctor

‘Erm , it’s a bit... personal’

Carrie, 32

Kids’ bit!

A

Dr Martin Edwards

says otherwise, swimming and bathing should be safe, though it might be best to avoid dirty water, diving or sea swimming.

CRISPS FOR KALE CHIPS A bag of crisps contains around 200 calories, but the same amount of kale chips contains just 80. Kale is also a great source of vitamins A and C, and delivers a generous helping of calcium and folate.

LOOK and Learn Cradle cap This is the greasy, yellow, scaly patches that can appear on the scalps of babies. It's harmless and doesn’t usually itch. It tends to appear in babies in the first two months, and usually clears up without treatment.

Surprising stats Nearly two-fifths of women who suffer with bladder weakness feel forced to change their holiday plans, with one in 10 cancelling a holiday, according to research conducted on behalf of INNOVO. It also found 36 per cent won't go swimming.

Write to Dr Martin Edwards at Chat, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. Or e-mail chathealth@timeinc.com Sorry, he can’t reply personally.

22

HEALTHY FACTS +++ Too much salt causes the body to retain fluid +++ Tobacco smoke contains

True life

PATIENT CASEBOOK

My life changed overnight Me now

Getting on with life

I woke up and couldn’t use my arms any more

By Caroline Midwood, 62, from Stourbridge aking up, I tried pulling myself out of bed. But it was like my arms were frozen.

As I tried lifting them, pain tore through me.

Gritting my teeth, I managed to get myself up.

But in the shower, I couldn’t lift my arms to wash my hair.

The pain was too intense.

‘I must’ve slept on my arms funny,’ I told my husband John, 67.

But each day that passed, my arms were still causing me grief. I couldn’t lift them to dress myself, brush my hair, pick things up…

‘The pain is unbearable,’ I told my GP. He prescribed painkillers, but they didn’t help.

Weeks passed and the pain just wasn’t letting up.

In fact, every joint in my body was aching.

I went back and forth to see my doctor, had various tests.

Blood tests revealed I was anaemic, but that didn’t explain the pain I was in.

Back home, I became dependent on John.

He had to wash my hair for me, help me get dressed.

I became housebound.

As well as the pain, I felt nauseous most of the time. I was also extremely fatigued. I’d

Photos (woman holding shoulder posed by model): Alamy

W

sleep for hours during the day and still feel exhausted.

I had no appetite either.

The weight began to drop off me.

Six months on, in July 2014, I spoke to my GP. ‘I can’t bear this It causes any more,’ I cried. stiffness ‘I just want to know what’s wrong with me.’

I felt like I’d lost my life, I wasn’t myself any more .

I decided to pay to see a specialist.

‘If it gets to the bottom of this, it’s worth every penny,’ John said.

When I spoke to the specialist, I explained it all.

‘It sounds like polymyalgia rheumatica,’ he told me.

He said it’s an inflammatory condition which causes pain, stiffness and inflammation in the muscles around the shoulders, neck and hips.

Tests revealed the levels of inflammation in my body were through the roof.

And the specialist confirmed I did have the condition.

I was told the exact cause of it is unknown, although stress is thought to be a trigger.

However, I’d not long retired

Weeks passed and the pain just wasn’t letting up

WE PAY

CASH

Relieved to have answers and had been taking it easy when my symptoms started.

‘It’s more common in women over 60,’ the doctor explained.

And it’s thought to affect one in every 1,200 people.

‘Not as rare as you’d think,’ the doctor added.

I was immediately prescribed steroid tablets. And within a week, the pain let up.

My energy levels improved and I got my appetite back.

‘I feel like me again!’

I beamed to John, relieved.

I carried on taking the steroids for the next two years.

Slowly, I had to decrease the dosage. Until, last year, I

wasn’t taking any at all.

I thought I was cured.

But early this year, the pain in my arms returned.

Now, I’m taking steroids again, and I’ve been warned I may have to take them for the rest of my life.

Sometimes people experience side-effects but fortunately I’ve been fine.

I’m just relieved to finally have answers.

And that’s why I’m sharing my story.

If it helps others to get diagnosed and eases their suffering, it’ll be worth it.

We’ll pay cash, or mention a charity of your choice, if we print your health story. Write to Your Health, Chat, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP or phone 020 3148 6150. You can send your story or e-mail the Doc at chathealth@timeinc.com Always consult your pharmacist or GP before taking any over-the-counter or prescription remedies, and read the packet carefully.

more than 70 cancer-causing chemicals +++ The thyroid is a gland at the front of your neck +++

23

E I N N O B & CLYDE We examine the shocking real-life crimes given the Hollywood treatment n 5 January 1930, in West Dallas, Texas, Bonnie Parker, 19, met Clyde Barrow, 21.

Bonnie was a bored waitress, estranged from her jailed husband, while Clyde was a petty criminal.

They fell head over heels in love.

Soon after, when Clyde was jailed for burglary, Bonnie smuggled in a gun to help him escape.

He was recaptured, sent back to jail.

But when he was released in February 1932, Clyde rejoined Bonnie and they stole a car, committed a string of robberies.

That April,

Words: Lianne La Borde. Photos: Alamy

O

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Bonnie was caught and jailed for two months.

And when she was released, she and Clyde embarked on their infamous crime spree, rampaging through Depressionera America with an everchanging team of accomplices.

They robbed banks and convenience stores, murdering anyone who got in their way.

In the summer of 1932, the couple travelled with Clyde’s boyhood friend Raymond Hamilton, although he was later jailed.

That August, while Bonnie was visiting her mother, Clyde and Raymond were drinking at a country In love and bent on a life of crime

dance. Sheriff Maxwell and his deputy Eugene Moore approached them in the car park.

Clyde opened fire, killing the deputy.

As their crime spree continued, they became known as the Barrow Gang.

In March 1933, Clyde’s brother, Buck Barrow, was released from prison. He and his wife Blanche joined Bonnie, Clyde and their gang.

The Barrow Gang committed a string of daring robberies and made headlines across the country, particularly Bonnie – an unlikely criminal.

Bonnie and Clyde even posed for playful photos, brandishing guns.

However, the notorious lovers were almost caught in April 1933, when police raided their hideout.

Bonnie provided cover with a hail of bullets from her automatic rifle as the gang shot their way out.

Two police officers were shot dead as the gang escaped.

But the criminal couple had to leave behind most of their possessions in the hideout – including a roll of undeveloped film, containing

SPOILER ALE RT! If y ou’re p watch Bolnanning to Clyde savneie and read for af this ter…

photos subsequently released to the media.

They included the nowinfamous snap of Bonnie beside a car, cigar clenched between her teeth, and pistol in her hand.

Photos of the outlaws were front-page news.

In June 1933, Bonnie suffered terrible burns to her right leg during a highspeed car crash.

Clyde had missed a detour sign, flipping the car into a ravine, and acid from the crushed battery melted Bonnie’s flesh to the bone.

Her burns were so severe that, from then on, she limped, hopped or was carried by Clyde.

The following month, they were almost caught during a second raid on a hideout in Missouri.

Buck was killed during the

The gang committed a string of daring robberies

On-screen

THE MOVIE TAKE…

T

Killer couple The pair pose for photos

shootout, Blanche arrested and later jailed.

But Bonnie and Clyde continued their life of crime.

In January 1934, they attacked Eastham Prison Farm in Texas, freeing five prisoners,

including Raymond Hamilton.

Several guards were shot, one killed by the escaping prisoners – using automatic pistols Clyde had hidden in a ditch.

As the prisoners ran, Clyde covered their retreat with bursts of machine-gun fire.

After this, Texan prison officials hired special investigator Captain Frank Hamer to track down the couple.

Hamer soon traced the duo, set up an ambush. Before dawn, on 23 May 1934, Hamer and four police officers hid in bushes They died in a hail of over 160 bullets

A stone marks the site of the ambush

along a country road near Sailes, Louisiana.

When Bonnie and Clyde appeared and attempted to drive away in their stolen car, the officers opened fire – killing Bonnie and Clyde instantly.

Clyde Barrow, Bonnie Parker and the Barrow Gang were responsible for at least 13 murders, including those of nine police officers.

And while their violent story has been romanticised – their bullet-riddled car is still on display at a hotel and casino in Primm, Nevada – they take their place as one of history’s most dangerous criminal couples.

he 1967 doubleOscar-winning film Bonnie and Clyde starred Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway. Some criticise it as romanticised, glorifying the couple’s cold-blooded crimes.

In the film, they meet when Bonnie thwarts Clyde’s attempt to steal her mother’s car. But Bonnie’s mum said they met over a mug of hot chocolate at a friend’s.

Clyde was portrayed as impotent, but was actively heterosexual.

Beatty invented this to give his film character more depth. However, Clyde really did chop off two toes in prison!

In the film, the gang are ‘Robin Hood’ types, stealing from rich banks, soft on ‘regular folk’. Yet, in truth, the gang’s main targets were small-town stores and savings banks.

And, unlike real life – with the pair imprisoned for stints – the film takes place over one long, murderous spree.

But, like all retellings of this infamous duo – their story ends the same. The couple die in a hail of bullets.

Dunaway and Beatty star

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£500 CASH! Williams? To find out, solve the puzzle... Fill in the grid. Each letter of the alphabet has been replaced by a number from 1 to 26. When you’ve completed the grid, the shaded squares will spell out the two-word prize answer. We’ve given you four letters to start you off.

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briefly. Sieve so you’re left with just liquid.

Lightly beat egg yolks in a bowl and add a little warm cream mixture, continuously stirring.

Add lemon zest, then add remaining cream mixture a little at a time.

Add sweet potato puree and mix thoroughly.

Fill ramekins with mixture, then pour boiling water carefully into dish to come about halfway up sides of ramekins. Bake for 50 min, until mixture is solid. Leave to cool, then place in fridge to set.

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250ml double cream 70g cane sugar, plus extra for topping 1⁄4 red pepper, deseeded 1 vanilla pod, seeds only 6 egg yolks Zest of 1 lemon 100g sweet potato puree (1 sweet potato, baked, peeled and pureed)

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t was November 2014, and I was enjoying a game on Chat Mag Bingo. I was playing my fave, the 90-ball bingo in Emerald, when suddenly…

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‘Amazing, Mum!’ my son Marek, 60, grinned.

I’d moved to the UK from Poland years earlier, but I still had lots of friends and family there. So I took myself on a six-month holiday to visit!

Back in the UK, I’d enjoy playing bingo of an evening

I

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know what you’re thinking, Good for her, but it’ll never happen to me!

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I used to go with friends to our local hall, but we all had such

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It was great being able to play at home whenever I liked.

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Then, in June 2011, I was enjoying playing on Tiki when

a message flashed up on my screen – Winner!

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I booked us a two-week luxury holiday to Bulgaria.

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N E T A BATEMY 80TH BIR I was attacked by a drunken thug in a dressing gown

By May King, 81, from Hebburn, South Tyneside s the pub doors swung open, the cry was deafening.

‘Surprise!’

It was my 80th birthday and I’d thought my sons were taking me for a quiet meal.

Instead, we’d gone to our local, The Kelly.

And waiting for me was virtually everyone I knew.

A surprise party!

I could not have been more delighted.

I thanked my five

Words: Danielle Whitfield. Photos: North News & Pictures Ltd

A

Feeling safe Now I’ve installed CCTV so I’m secure at home

sons, Patrick, 60, Michael, 57, Tony, 51, Ian, 49, and Alan, 49, before chatting with my friends and extended family.

There was a lovely buffet and everyone was in high spirits.

‘I feel so special,’ I told my boys.

We were having so much fun that we lost track of time, and at 12.30am the bar was closing.

Some people headed home.

Others who lived nearby decided to walk me to my doorstep on their way.

There were around 12 of us, including my sons, granddaughter Mel and some of my friends – old folk like me.

We didn’t want the fun to end.

‘Why don’t you all pop in for a bit?’ I suggested.

The majority of us stayed in the living room, but some of my friends talked quietly over a cigarette in the garden.

‘I’ve had a fantastic time, May, but I’m

politely asking him to leave.

‘Why are you making so much noise?’ Raine exploded, effing and blinding.

I was stunned.

There was no music playing, no shouting. Just some ladies chatting quietly outside while everyone else was in the house.

At the party, It was an 80th with my sons in birthday, hardly row the back an all-night rave!

I went to the front door, as something had to be done. dozing off – I’m getting myself I could see Anne being home,’ said my friend Anne, 71, helped into the taxi, and she as a taxi pulled up outside the was limping terribly. front gates.

Others were outside now, ‘Thanks for a great night,’ and I joined them, putting I said, waving her off. my hands in the air.

Suddenly, Towering above I heard a thud me, Raine was outside, followed still ranting by the sound of a and raving. man’s raised voice.

‘I’m going to I glanced out of have to ask you the window and to go home,’ could see Anne I told him. lying on the floor.

Next thing, She was clutching agony surged her ankle, in pain. through my face.

Mel, my He’d punched granddaughter, and her me, with force, in the eye! friend Mary were standing My head was spinning. My on the front path. And in front face went completely numb. of them was Michael Raine Chaos broke loose.

– a neighbour whose garden Mel’s boyfriend held Raine backs onto ours. to prevent him from attacking He was wearing a white anyone else, and someone dressing gown, looked furious. called the police.

I could hear Mel and Mary They arrived and arrested

There was no music. It was hardly an all-night rave!

Despicable

NRTUHDPAY Raine, while my family and friends took me to hospital for a checkup.

I spent three hours in South Tyneside Hospital A&E, while medics ran tests and X-rays on me. I was badly bruised all over my face and arms – but, luckily nothing was broken.

I was so glad when I was eventually discharged, even though the pain was unbearable.

When I got home, I was told that Anne’s ankle was in a really bad way – and that it was so swollen she couldn’t

even put her shoes on.

I got straight into bed, but I found it almost impossible to sleep.

Had all that really gone on at my 80th party?

I’d never been hit in my life until that thug thought it OK to wallop an old lady.

Waiting for Raine to appear in court, I was scared to leave my house.

I became a recluse, stopped going out to see friends.

In June, at Newcastle Crown Court, Michael Raine, 29, pleaded guilty to affray.

We learned he had previous convictions

Battered I still can’t believe he didn’t go to jail for this

We learned he had previous convictions for assault

‘Red mist’

Rage: Raine

was lucky not to be going straight to prison, as he had an appalling record for violence and public order offences. He said, ‘Somebody got your goat up and the red mist descended and you lashed out.’

Punched at h special celebratieor Violent attacker frn to walk the streetsee Scared to leave he r own home life, I was forced to become a prisoner in my own home because Raine left me so terrified of going out.

Thankfully, he’s now moved away from my street.

But I still spent hundreds on a CCTV system that covers my house, in a bid to feel safer.

I feel completely cheated in knowing that Raine is free to walk the streets.

One thing’s for sure, I’ll never forget my 80th birthday.

It started out as one of the best nights of my life, but it ended up as the worst.

May is donating her fee for this story to Help the Heroes

Jtoldudge Stephen Earl Raine he

for assault and that he’d ● downed 10 cans of lager that night before coming out to ● see us because we’d apparently woken his ● girlfriend’s child.

Raine’s defence said that he’d also been injured in the fight, and that he’d not known that me and Anne were elderly when he’d lashed out, barging into her and hitting me.

As if that was some kind of excuse!

I don’t think we were that loud. But all he had to do was ask politely for us to be quiet, not come out with fists flying.

Raine was handed a 12-month suspended sentence, and a two-year restraining order against me.

The sentence has left me heartbroken. I feel as if he’s got away with everything he put me through.

For the first time in my

31

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863 27891 3 digits 7 digits 867 932

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32914 41174 56317 68165 72992 87557 88437 92591

2537038 6897863 8815605 9205931

8 digits 23123490

6 digits

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19663 26136

AYE TIS ARRRD!

he Russian term for what translates T literally as ‘American mountains’?

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1 Part of a song (6) 2 Faster than the speed of sound (10) 3 Where you buy a cappuccino (6, 4) 4 Document required if going abroad (8) 5 Items that turn red, amber, green (7, 6) 6 Radar to catch fast drivers (5, 4) 7 From where to board a train (8) 8 Dot-dash messaging system (5, 4) 9 Put out a fire (12) 10 Tyre maker (6) 11 Bent wire to fasten documents (5, 4) 12 Office machine for making replicas of documents (11)

H O R U S

32

9

5 digits

Your answer:

AYE TIS ARRRD!

1

Your answer:

sar Alexander II sold Alaska to the USA for fear of it T falling to the hands of which country? To find out solve the puzzle... Make three nine-letter words using all of these three-letter sections and enter them in the grid.

We’ve given you three letters to start you off. Unscramble the shaded letters to find the prize answer.

D C O 9 Puzzle

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TON CAF ICA

Your answer:

TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

BAD ETE MIN

HAR RIA MON PIECES OF CAKE!

Coronation Street Seen snogging!

Luke and Alya get caught kissing by flatmate Kate, who’s angry that they hooked up behind her back!

Plus, Jenny’s furious when Eva says she wants to marry Aidan ASAP and suggests the two couples have a double wedding!

10 Puzzle

Telly £50 trivia To enter, see page 56

Words: Mike Hollingsworth. Photos: BBC/ITV plc/YTV/Channel 4

Emmerdale

Who was Pete’s first wife in Emmerdale?

Bride & doom?

Priya helps Leyla, but does she really want her and Pete to be happy..? ith her wedding this week, Leyla’s worried the big day will be a washout, as nothing in her life is going to plan.

Priya then steps in to help and Pete’s really relieved that Priya seems to be genuine in wanting him and Leyla to be happy…

But, as the couple celebrate their stag and hen dos, both have

W

Will the wedding go ahead?

EastEnders Holiday romance?

Max agrees to go on holiday with Carmel but is surprised when she blurts out that she loves him!

Plus, Phil causes ructions when he reveals that he’s giving the Arches to Ben and the car-lot land to Jay.

Hollyoaks

pre-wedding jitters and all isn’t calm as they prepare to marry.

Pete thinks he should confess to his fling with Priya, while Leyla fears she’s rushing into marriage…

Will they actually tie the knot?

Meanwhile, Emma’s lies are catching up with her when Finn finds a mysterious note and wants to know when she found out about James’ relationship with Moira.

How will Finn react when his mum admits that she was on the bridge the day James died, and how far will she go with the truth about what happened..?

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Poor Warren’s struggling to cope with the stress of Sienna’s surgery on top of texts from the blackmailer.

Later, he spots the blackmailer and gives chase...and is in for a massive shock when he finds out who it is.

Don’t miss this Celebrity Masterchef, BBC1

Emma snatches the note from Finn…

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Angellica Bell, Henri Leconte, Stephen Hendry and Jim (Vic Reeves) Moir are first into the kitchen…

33

dialect A of which language is spoken in the community surrounding the Patagonian towns of Gaiman, Trelew and Trevelin?

To find out, solve the puzzle… Make your way from Start to Finish, making words by joining two boxes together as you go, eg: BIS + TRO, TRO +… you decide!

When you reach Finish, two unused boxes will join together to give you the prize answer.

BEAU GENE

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Start

BIS

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EN

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SIGN

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AL

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TAN

SH

LE

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ARCH h

Finis

11 Puzzle

£100

Your answer:

I’m following in Nan’s glamorous footsteps

By Laurel Adams, 28, from Barnsley

S

hich actor, W whose name begins with W, has solved a Rubik’s Cube on live TV in 55 seconds?

To find out, solve the puzzle...

Hidden in this grid, forwards, backwards, up, down or diagonally, are 10 words beginning with M, one for each clue given. Find them all and the remaining letters will spell out the two-word prize answer.

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£100

A A W A W M T W

T T L I M E T Y

E A N L L O D O

Paper-money holder Cereal used for bread Small type of kangaroo Polish capital 1815 battle Female

R E I L A R W M

L H A L A B H I

O W A R S A W G

US state, capital Cheyenne Fermented grape juice Full width of plane Hospital room

Your answer: 34

O W L W S I Y N

TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details.

Words: Katie Saatchi/Candice Fernandez. Photos: Caters News Agency

PIECES OF CAKE!

W I N G S P A N

liding one last hairpin into my blonde locks, I turned from the mirror.

‘Still not perfect,’ Nan said, adjusting my hair with her manicured pink nails.

It was March 2015, and I was preparing for my first beauty pageant. I doubt many of the other girls were taking beauty tips from their grandmas, but mine was the most glamorous woman I knew.

Nan, now, 73, wore false eyelashes every day. She was retired, but never slept in. Instead, she got up early to do her hair and make-up.

‘You never know who’ll knock on the door!’ she’d say.

When I was little, I loved dressing up in Nan’s heels and her blue, satin pageant sash.

Miss Barnsley 1965, it read.

She’d won it in the very first year of the competition.

Now she was helping me with the final touches to my evening outfit for the same competition – 50 years on!

‘There,’ she smiled, pinning back the final curl.

I was so excited – I’d never done anything like this before.

Having recently split from my boyfriend, my confidence had really hit rock-bottom, and

I was in need of a boost.

When the director of the Miss South Yorkshire pageant messaged me on Facebook suggesting I enter the competition, I was stunned.

As well as interviews, there was a charity element, too, with its own prize.

So I organised a fundraising Halloween party, and invited everyone I knew. Friends at my office job helped by holding a charity cake sale. I even did 92-mile bike ride to raise more money.

Overall, I raised over £1,000! And, to my complete amazement, I came second in the pageant.

Nan was there, cheering me on. And, when they announced I’d won ‘Miss Charity’ and gave me a sash, I was over the moon.

Then I was selected as a ‘wild card’ in Miss Great Britain – and came 10th.

‘I’m so proud,’ Nan said.

Now I had the pageant bug, and wanted to go in for more.

‘You should enter Miss Barnsley,’ Nan said with a wink.

I knew it’d give me another boost, so I applied.

There was no audience this

When they gave me a sash, I was over the moon!

Stunning

UTY ES time round, but winning would gain me entry into the Miss North pageant…

My nan was I sent in my Barnsley’s first photos, was beauty queen interviewed winner! about my charity work and passions.

Waiting nervously, one afternoon, the phone rang…

‘You’ve been chosen as Miss Barnsley,’ announced the organiser.

I was gobsmacked.

I’d seen an old black-and-white photo of Nan as Miss Barnsley.

Now I had the same title!

‘History repeating itself,’ Nan gasped.

She helped me choose my ballgown for the next round – sparkly, baby-pink with a fishtail train. Gorgeous!

Weeks later, I competed in Miss North. It was too far for Nan to travel, but she was with

me in spirit.

‘The winner is…

Laurel Adams!’ the judges announced.

‘It’s all thanks to you,’ I told Nan. In June, I came fourth in the Miss British Isles pageant, and I’m competing in Miss Galaxy UK next year.

Now I’m more confident than ever.

Real beauty comes from within, but I’m so proud to have followed in Nan’s footsteps.

‘Yoga every morning!’ aurel’s nan Marilyn Walker-Morley says, ‘It’s been thrilling, L watching Laurel doing pageants. It’s much harder now compared to when I was young. I only had to parade around looking pretty!

‘I was so delighted and surprised when she won Miss Barnsley.

I know I have a beautiful granddaughter, but all grandmas probably think that! Maybe she’ll have a daughter of her own who can become Miss Barnsley one day.

‘I suppose I am a glamorous nan. I love make-up and clothes.

I do 30 minutes of yoga each morning, and still have a 24in waist.

It’s important to look after yourself, no matter what your age.’

Nan may be 73, but she’s still got it!

35

I’m still here – and it’s all thanks to my mighty mutt…

By Shelagh Shaw, 52, from Chesterfield t was May this year, and a very warm evening for the time of year – in fact, it was a bit too warm for me...

I said goodnight to our Leonbergers Scooby, 6, and Jake, 7, who were lolling about downstairs, before I went upstairs to hit the hay.

But could I sleep? No! I kept tossing and turning, just couldn’t seem to get comfortable in the heat.

Neither, it seemed, could my hubby Ian, 56.

‘It’s much too hot with the two of us in here,’ he grumbled.

I knew what he meant.

So he decided to go and sleep in our spare room for the night, leaving me gently drifting off in our bed.

But then, the next time I opened my eyes, I had the most enormous shock.

I wasn’t in my bedroom any more. I was on a hospital ward!

And poor Ian was exhausted

Words: James Hanman/Jamie Mountain. Photos: SWNS

I

Y B O O C S

to the rescu and sitting beside me, his face full of concern.

‘Oh, thank goodness you’re awake!’ he said, jumping up from his chair.

‘I’ve been really worried about you!’

‘Why, what’s happened?’

I asked him, still in a real daze.

I was absolutely amazed that I couldn’t remember anything from the night before.

Then Ian began to explain

the extraordinary events...

In the early hours of the morning, Scooby had come bursting into the spare room, desperately trying to wake up Ian. Panting loudly and pawing at him, Ian just thought Scooby was being playful and tried to shoo him away.

‘But he wouldn’t give in,’ Ian told me.

‘What’s the matter?’ he’d groaned as Scooby kept nudging him with his nose.

And then as Ian began to

Scooby panted and pawed at Ian, trying to wake him…

wake up a little bit, he realised that Scooby seemed to be very agitated.

Thinking that our pup needed to go outside, Ian had started getting up.

But when he’d heard some strange gurgling sounds coming from down the hall, he’d immediately leapt out of bed.

It seemed that Scooby wanted Ian to follow him, so Ian began to trail after the dog, who then led him into our bedroom…

Once he’d got in there, Ian had found me lying upside down on the bed, with one leg on the cabinet and the other on the floor.

Those strange gurgling noises Ian had heard had been coming from me!

Suddenly, Ian realised that this was what Scooby was trying to tell him.

I was choking!

Luckily, Ian had been a carer for 19 years, and so he knew what to do.

He immediately dialled 999, and then he pulled me from the bed onto the floor, and put me in the recovery

‘Scary…’ an says, ‘It was an extremely Imore frightening night. But even scary is the fact that

Massive fans

I’m with Scooby and Ian holds Jake

36

I was in such a deep sleep, I probably wouldn’t have heard Shelagh if it hadn’t been for Scooby. He’s definitely our hero hound!’

Heroic

Y

Pharaoh TheTutankhamun was entombed

ue!

with 145 items of what for use in the afterlife?

Add a letter anywhere in each of the boxed-off words to fit the clue, eg, Dwelling = HOSE + U = HOUSE. Write the added letter in the space provided. Then read down the added letters to spell out the prize answer.

13 Puzzle

£50

...

Proud of him BIG time! position in case he needed to perform CPR. By now, my breathing had become really erratic and my body was convulsing.

I had saliva gathering at the sides of my mouth.

I imagine it must’ve been absolutely terrifying for poor Ian! Desperately trying to remain calm while he was waiting for the ambulance to arrive, Ian had gone into the bathroom to grab a cold flannel, which he’d then placed on my head.

To Ian’s relief, once I began to cool down a little, my eyes had started to flicker.

Then the paramedics arrived, and they quickly checked my blood before running an ECG. I was then rushed to Chesterfield Royal Hospital.

Once there, the doctors ran some more tests on me,

including X-rays, blood tests and CT scans.

However, they couldn’t find anything obviously wrong with me – although they kept me on the ward for observation.

There, apparently, I’d been drifting in and out of consciousness, not really with it.

Until now, when I’d woke to hear the amazing story that Ian was telling me!

‘I’m sure I’d never have woken up if it wasn’t for Scooby,’ Ian told me.

Obviously, our clever boy knew that something wasn’t right, and actually did something about it…

He saved my life!

Although I still felt quite fragile, I was released from the hospital after 24 hours.

I couldn’t wait to get home and throw my arms around my furry hero!

As soon as I walked through

Our boy obviously knew that something was wrong

the front door, Scooby came bounding towards me to welcome me home.

‘Thank you, Scooby!’ I cried, giving him a big, grateful hug.

That night, as a special treat for rescuing me, we ordered Scooby a pepperoni pizza which he shared with Jake.

‘I think they’re enjoying it!’ laughed Ian as our ravenous pooches scoffed down the well-deserved meal.

Since then, MRI scans have revealed two brain tumours, and I’m now waiting on the results of a biopsy.

It’s really frightening, of course. But if it hadn’t been for Scooby, the tumours may never have been discovered and I might not be here today to tell this tale.

I’m still recovering from the ordeal at home, but our loyal Scooby is always there to keep an eye on me, sitting on my feet to keep me company.

I’m so proud of him, and I’m eternally in his debt.

Our clever Scooby really is one heroic hound!

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Futuristic Martin has a VR studio at home

Getting wed for real!

Married in !

E C A P S R E B CY Well, we didn’t want a traditional do…

By Elisa Shervington, 46, from Newport ost brides have a tick-list of special things to wear on their wedding day, but not me.

As I stood with my fiance Martin, 44, I’m sure it was a world first as I donned my virtual-reality headset!

Well, at least it was white…

Virtual reality (VR for short) is where you use a special headset to immerse yourself in computer-generated worlds – real or imaginary – and interact with features within them as if you’re actually there.

For me, though, it was going to be the basis of my wedding!

I met Martin in June last year through a mutual friend.

‘You’ll get on so well!’ she said, convincing us both to come to a dinner party at hers.

She was absolutely right.

Martin worked in California from time to time, and knew people who worked in VR, while I ran a go-karting centre.

By the end of November,

Words: Jenny Stallard/Michelle Davies. Photos: Media Wales

M

Martin and I were inseparable.

One night before Christmas, in a Caribbean restaurant, the power went out…

And that’s when Martin popped the question, handing me a traditional Welsh love spoon to show his commitment.

We decided to keep it secret

Having a trial run

from everyone until January.

‘I really don’t want anything huge,’ I insisted.

Married before, I was a mum to daughters Sophia, 13, and Isabelle, 11.

‘Can we be bridesmaids?’ they asked excitedly.

‘Of course!’

I said, but I still didn’t want the full-on do.

Then Martin had a surprising idea…

‘Fancy getting married in VR?’ he said.

Eh?!

‘A friend suggested it,’ he said.

We could choose a real-world

venue, then wear special headsets. The wedding would take place in a cyber nightclub, and there’d be a celebrant in California ‘hosting’ it.

We’d just need a separate registeroffice do to make things official.

Why not?

After all, it was a great alternative to a traditional day.

So, on 25 May this year, I donned a simple gown, and met Martin at local venue Sunflower&I. A flower studio, cafe bar and concert room, it was already full of flowers.

We chose pink and blue avatars – digital robot figures – to represent ourselves.

Family wore headsets, too, so they could ‘be’ there.

The nightclub setting was futuristic, even had a lava floor! And we still had special songs that meant a lot to us.

It was great fun, and definitely memorable!

But, as for a first kiss... well, we had to have that at the register office, as the headsets got in the way.

Anyway, some things you just have to do in real life!

We chose pink and blue avatars to represent ourselves

My girls got involved!

39

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BIT ON THE SIDE!

17 Puzzle

B I L L Y T H E K I D

Photos: REX/Shutterstock/Getty Images

he answers T to all these general-knowledge questions – except one – are in the grid in various directions. To be this week’s Chat Big Quiz champion, work out which answer is missing.

This is your prize answer. Answers are in alphabetical order in each section.

H E D N E A T H O L D

O Y C M U I G L E B A

O E Y N M A I Y E K N

P L E B A T H N I F I

E O L E L D E D T Y E

H N L I N O N H R O L

T W O L F E W U B L R

E L W L Y N B R S E A

I R S N A R A S N G D

THE SILVER SCREEN – CHILD

W A E S E S D N H U F

C Y W U I R E T N B F

B U G S Y M A L O N E

Mac’n’cheese toastie 1 2

Put a lidded frying pan on the hob to heat up.

Stir a handful of leftover, cooked macaroni with 4tbsp Primula cheese and 1-2tsp (to taste) mustard powder.

Meal Butter Deal two slices of bread. Place one piece, butterside-down, in frying pan over a low-medium heat.

Pile on mac’n’cheese mixture. Top with other slice of bread, butterside-up. Cover with lid.

Fry sandwich gently until underside is a golden colour, and butter on top slice has melted.

Flip over and repeat on the other side, then serve.

Makes: 1 toastie Cost: 86p

£1

KID

10

4. Pulteney Bridge – but where is it?

WHERE IN THE WORLD? OFF...SPRING

4

What’s the name of the spa city in Somerset called Aquae Sulis by the Romans, which has well-preserved Roman baths still fed by hot springs? (4) The original town of Spa is in which European country? (7) What’s the name of the large National Park in Wyoming where the Old Faithful geyser is found? (11)

5 6

LAMB

7

Lambeth Palace in London is the traditional home of the Archbishop of which cathedral town in Kent? (10) Which ‘prog rock’ band, including at the time Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins, released the album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway? (7)

8

AYE TIS ARRRD!

I S N I O I E O I D I

What animal completes the phrase ‘a … in sheep’s clothing’, meaning someone menacing who’s pretending to be benign? (4)

2

3

N G O T F L M N S N L

9

1

What’s the title of the 1976 child-acted comedy gangster movie which has Scott Baio in the title role, and which features pedal cars and ‘splurge’ guns? (5, 6) Which actor landed the title role, aged 11, in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 2000? (6, 9) In which 1990 film about a young boy defending his parents’ house from bungling burglars did 10-year-old Macaulay Culkin (left) play Kevin McCallister?

(4, 5)

N U T A E E F T E E C

What ‘Kid’ was the nickname of the Wild West outlaw also known as William H Bonney, who was killed by Pat Garrett? (5, 3, 3) What ‘kid’ is the type of bean usually used when making chilli con carne? (6) What word completes The … Kid, the name of the Wild West outlaw associated with Butch Cassidy, played by Robert Redford on the big screen? (8)

3

11 12

4

PIGLET

13

What name – a West African country – precedes ‘pig’ to make the name of a rodent commonly kept as a pet? (6) What’s the surname of the actor Nicholas …, who played Rodney in Only Fools and Horses and starred in the spoof MI5 series The Piglet Files? (9) Which bear is the best friend of Piglet in A A Milnes’ stories of the Hundred Acre Wood? (6-3-4)

Top tip

14

15

Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

Photo and recipe: www.primula.co.uk

£500

This is a brilliant way to use up leftover, cooked pasta. You can use any type you have, although smaller pieces tend to work the best.

Try using different flavours of soft cheese or adding extras, like chopped ham, canned tuna, roasted peppers, caramelised onion or chilli jam.

41

Holiday

He beat

7 TIM

6 reasoitn..s. to vis

Gran Canaria It’s always warm With an average microclimate of 24C, blissful sunny days never become unbearable thanks to the refreshing breezes.

World-class wellness Take the chance to spoil yourself, as treatments like chemical peels and teeth whitening are much cheaper than in the UK. Or book into a spa… think thalassotherapy and even caviar facials at the stunning Gloria Palace Amadores Thalasso & Hotel, or the Sheraton Gran Canaria Salobre Golf Resort.

Get up into the mountains Go on a tour, hire a car or, if you’re feeling fit, cycle – but do go and see the Parque Natural de Pilancones in San

1

Compiled by Christine Parsons. Photos: Alamy

2

3

Celebrate a sighting with a drop

42

Bartolome de Tirajana, with its glorious peaks covered in pine forests. Or visit the Bandama Caldera peak that has stunning panoramic views. Don’t forget a cardi, as it gets chilly up there!

It’s a golfer’s paradise The island has eight meticulously groomed courses, where you can unwind and gaze over the gorgeous fairways, and get some putting practice in, too.

Tuck in… You’ll find the freshest fish, seafood, rabbit and goat dishes. And don’t leave without trying the delicious local ‘Flower Cheese’, then finish your meal with a shot of Ron Miel, the local honey rum.

Spot the dolphins There are a large number of whales and dolphins in the warm waters around the island, so your chances of seeing one or two are quite high. Take a peaceful boat trip and keep ’em peeled!

By Sam McCabe, 29, from Sleaford, Lincs

Useful stuff

O For general information on the island, visit www. gran-canariainfo.com O For tailor-made holidays, go to www.grancanaria wellness.com

Grantham and District Hospital myself and got us an appointment for the next week.

There, one of the consultants watched Gideon play and asked him to do simple tasks like walk in a straight line and put a lid back on a pen – and Gideon couldn’t do it.

‘I believe he has an obstruction in his head – we’ll need to do an MRI,’ the consultant told me.

I bet he’s pushed Lego up his nose, I thought.

Naively, I never thought it could be

Within days, Gideon was completely paralysed

5 6

Js on and teeth brushed, my boys Gideon and Emerson were ready for bed.

But as we chose a bedtime story, Gideon, 3, started to sob.

‘My head feels squishy and my eyes are fuzzy,’ he cried.

I thought he was trying to avoid going to sleep, so I gave him some Calpol and tucked him in.

Next morning, Gideon was running around like normal, so I thought no more of it.

But then, that night, the exact same thing happened.

In fact, it happened every night that week.

The following week, Gideon started nursery.

I’d drop him off daily – but, by 10am, I’d get a call to say he’d been sick.

He only managed five days before he stopped going, as he was sick every day.

Me and my hubby John, 33, knew it was time to see the GP. But we were back and forth for 11 weeks without a diagnosis or any improvement.

Eventually, he made us a paediatrician appointment for two months’ time.

Rather than wait, I called the children’s department at

P

4

Words: Michelle Rawlins/Hannah Abbott. Photos: Alamy/Michelle Rawlins

With beaches, mountains, sports and shopping, this Canary island also boasts yearround sunshine!

I’ve got my boy back, against all the odds

Heartfelt

t death

Gideon with his ‘beads of courage’

MES more serious than that.

But then we got the results...

‘Your son has a malignant brain tumour called medulloblastoma,’ the consultant explained.

Cancer?

I burst into tears, stunned.

The doctors warned us that Gideon might not live to see his fourth birthday and he needed brain surgery urgently.

Two weeks later, he was under the knife to have the large tumour cut away from the back of his brain.

Thankfully, the nine-hour op went well.

After coming round, Gideon was able to talk and eat, which were really positive signs.

But, three days later, he started having seizures.

It turned out he’d developed

It’s so good to see my boys happy again

What a fighter!

Brotherly bond Loving cuddles from Emerson

posterior fossa syndrome – a condition that causes problems with movement and speech, and can occur after brain surgery.

Within days, Gideon was completely paralysed.

‘It’s not permanent,’ the doctor assured us.

Luckily, Gideon’s paralysis stopped after six months.

Then he started courses of radiotherapy and chemo to try to get rid of the sliver of tumour that remained.

He reacted so badly to the

chemo, doctors had to try four different types.

It made him vomit constantly.

‘I can’t bear watching him go through this,’ I sobbed.

‘We’ve no choice,’ John said.

Of course, he was right.

But it wasn’t just chemo we had to worry about.

A few months into his treatment, Gideon was allowed home for the weekend.

Just hours after we got back, he collapsed.

He’d developed sepsis and his life hung in the balance while doctors fought to save him.

Over the next few months, he also developed colitis, caught pneumonia and had a fungal disease that saw him end up on life support.

In fact, complications from

It’s rare, but can be deadly

his treatment meant Gideon came moments from death a total of seven times.

But he always bounced back.

So determined.

He’s also been helped along by his amazing big brother.

Emerson always kept him – and us – going.

In July last year, Gideon was discharged from hospital for good and scans have shown that he’s now in the clear.

During all the sleepless nights, I didn’t think life could ever be happy again.

But Gideon is now like any normal, slightly crazy kid, and completely medication-free.

While we were told he might not see his fourth birthday, we’ve just celebrated his fifth!

Thanks to my boy’s fighting spirit and some incredible doctors, there will be many more birthdays to come.

Only 90 children a year... edulloblastoma is a cancerous tumour, M usually affecting kids and forming in the lower back part of the brain. Symptoms include vomiting and nausea, lethargy, headaches and clumsiness. Less than 90 kids a year develop medulloblastoma in the UK. 43

. . .

O G N I B

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! u o y r a e h We ver you We’re listening to whate ww

want to share

Should we bespotted worried..? this sign on the

LETTEeR Killed by carer

Istudio. door of a tattoo artist’s Remind me not to

of th ! week

get any ink done here!

Mary Cook, Gainsborough

I

t was heartbreaking how multiple sclerosis sufferer Paul (1 June issue) was abused by his paid carer, neighbour Christopher McAllister. The injuries inflicted upon frail Paul meant he died in a painful and neglected state.

I wish Paul’s sister Julie every success in her sterling efforts campaigning for stricter checks for carers. It’s vital that people who have the massive responsibility of caring for vulnerable people like Paul are professionally monitored.

Photo of the week

Cute Kids Send us and we’lyour snaps l tot intotaurn your star!

Cuddle buddies How cute do my kids look, snuggling up to each other while they watch their favourite cartoon? You’d think butter wouldn’t melt!

Kelly Christie, Stalybridge

Jill Cohen, Leeds

Clean-up crew itter is a real issue for L most of us but, luckily, where I stay in Eyemouth,

WE PAY

Odd couple CASH here’s an old

T saying that a fool and his money are soon parted.

a group of Scouts and Brownies do a wonderful job of cleaning up our town.

But what I’d really like to know is how they get together in the first place!

Maureen Luke, Eyemouth

Margaret Williams, Prescot

Why not get in touch!

See page 4 for details on how

1

he Lobola app allows future husbands to calculate how many what he should offer to his prospective in-laws as a dowry for his wife? Solve the crossword, then read down the yellow squares.

ACROSS 1 Bedtime drink (5) 5 Possess (3) 6 Woollen cloth (5) 8 Book of PIECES maps (5)

OF CAKE!

Jess Searle

What a whopper!

Summer’s in full swing, and my daughter Lola can’t quite believe the size of her ice cream!

Shaun Waters, Swansea

All contributions to Chat must be original, not copies or duplicated to other editors. Subject to these conditions, £25 will be paid for all rights in each letter or photo of the week printed. The Editor reserves the right to shorten or modify any letter or material submitted. Time Inc. (UK) Ltd reserves the right to reuse any submission sent to Letters, Tips, Kids, and Chat to us! columns of Chat magazine, in any format or medium.

We regret we cannot answer letters. We cannot take responsibility for manuscripts or photos sent in, so keep a copy of anything precious. Please include your full name and address when you write.

18 Puzzle

£50 T

F

erret love…

Aww, aren’t these cosy critters the sweetest thing you’ve ever seen?

2

3

4

5 6

7

DOWN 1 Feline (3) 2 Glen..., Scots ski centre (3) 8 3 Obligation to pay (3) 4 South American mountain range (5) 7 Saturated with liquid (3) Your answer:

TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

Hatty days My little Lexie, 5, makes sure she’s appropriately dressed for the lovely summer weather!

Stacey Greenwood Bullock, Wakefield

e h t f o S E L TA D

E N I A L P UNEX Words: Alex Noone. Photos (not actual bread): Alamy/Getty Images/REX/Shutterstock

THE CURSED

BREAD

Soon after breakfast, things started getting strange in a French town...

ornings in the sleepy town of Pont-Saint-Esprit were always the same. In every kitchen, coffee would be made, croissants and bread would be put out on tables.

But one morning that quiet life changed forever.

Soon after breakfast, a man tried to drown himself in

M

Miller Maillet was found to be innocent

46

the Rhone river. He thought snakes were eating his stomach.

A 60-year-old grandmother hurled herself against a wall, smashing three ribs.

Postman Leon Armunier couldn’t work.

‘I was shrinking,’ he said later.

‘Serpents coiling around my arms.’

A girl cried to her teachers she’d been eaten by tigers.

A man jumped out of his window crying, ‘I am an aeroplane’.

And labourer Gabriel Validire told housemates: ‘I’m dead. My head is made of copper.’

It was 15 August 1951.

Pont-Saint-Esprit is a town

Could the bread have contained LSD?

in the south of France. No more than 10,000 lived there.

But that morning, over 300 of them started hallucinating.

Soon, many of them started getting sick, too.

They had stomach cramps and diarrhoea.

Over the next two days, seven died.

And while most others gradually recovered, some were driven permanently insane by their hallucinations.

One survivor was postman Leon.

While he’d been hallucinating, he was put in a straitjacket and taken to a hospital in nearby Avignon.

There, the patients were chained to their beds for their own safety.

‘Some people were trying to get out of the window,’ Leon would later remember. ‘They were thrashing wildly, screaming. The noise was terrible.’

No-one knew what caused the outbreak.

But it didn’t take the authorities long to work out the one thing all 300 Pont-Saint-Esprit people had in common. was never the same They all bought their

A man thought snakes were eating his stomach

bread in the same place.

A baker at a local boulangerie and Maurice Maillet, a miller from outside the town, were blamed at first. It was suspected the flour used was actually rye, bleached white, which was much cheaper than white flour.

But rye flour doesn’t cause any hallucinations.

Unless it’s been infected with the fungus ergot...

So many believed that ergot had somehow got into the flour and caused the outbreak.

But it seemed so implausible.

There hadn’t been an outbreak of it since the 17th century.

With no concrete explanation, the town’s people did what they could to rebuild their lives.

But over the years, doctors and scientists studied the

CASH! A

B

C

D

A

B

C

D

1

2

Disturbing . hallucinations.. scientist who’d been employed by the CIA in the early 1950s to research the drug LSD. Had the American CIA experimented on that French town by putting vast amounts of drugs into their daily bread?

If so, what was it hoping to achieve or find out?

But there’s another possibility. That it was something else altogether.

Because according to Professor Steven Kaplan of New York’s Cornell University, the fungus and the drug would both have been killed dead in the heat of the baker’s oven.

But if a fungus or drug didn’t cause those hallucinations, those deaths, what did?

Perhaps the bread was cursed after all.

It’s likely the people of Pont-Saint-Esprit will never know.

The effects of LSD

T

he experience of taking LSD, also commonly known as acid, is called ‘a trip’. Normally, a trip will last for about 12 hours, during which time the user will experience many surreal hallucinations.

Occasionally, they can become very frightening – a ‘bad trip’.

4

1

2

3 Photo: Getty Images

mystery, known as Le Pain Maudit, ‘The Cursed Bread’.

The symptoms were the same as those drug users get after taking LSD. Yet, that seemed ridiculous.

Why would a baker put LSD into his bread? And how would he have got the huge amount he’d need to affect 300 people?

An official enquiry rumbled on until 1978, when it was closed.

No answers had been found.

The cause remained a mystery.

And then, in 2009, American journalist Hank Albarelli uncovered a secret file in the archives of the CIA. It was labelled: Re: PontSaint-Esprit and F. Olson Files.

SO Span/France Operation file, inclusive Olson. Intel files…

See to it that these are buried.

Albarelli found the Olson mentioned in the document was Frank Olson, a leading

3

4

Puzzle

5x

19

Look closely at these two pics – there’s a difference in almost every square. Only one has no changes, the grid reference (eg, 1A) is your prize answer.

£30 Your answer:

PIECES OF CAKE!

TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details.

47

S T E E M ‘Angel’ Monica The nanny was on her usual walk when she was attacked THE CRIME THE STORY eruvian nanny

Words: Katie Saatchi. Photos: Alamy

P Monica RiveraValdizan vanished in Palm Beach County, Florida, one night. Sadly, three days later, her beaten body was found under bushes at the side of a road.

She’d been violently raped and strangled...

48

caring, young Christian woman with a fiance at home in Lima, Peru, Monica RiveraValdizan had come to Florida to improve her English.

On a temporary work visa, she took a job as a live-in nanny in Palm Beach County with a couple who had three children, including a newborn baby.

Monica, 26, was described by her father as ‘an angel of this world’ who always wanted to help others.

She wasn’t the type to disappear for a few hours, much less overnight...

So her employer Esther Berglas had ‘an awful feeling’ when, three months into her job, in January 2004, Monica’s

A

EVIL bed was empty one Saturday morning. It hadn’t been slept in.

An orthodox Jew, Esther was observing the Sabbath day and her faith prevented her from using technology like a phone or car to search for Monica.

Instead, Esther ran around locally, asking friends to ring hospitals, police.

Back home in Lima, Monica’s fiance Juan Trelles, a chef, repeatedly called Monica’s mobile phone, wondering fearfully why he couldn’t reach her.

Most evenings, Monica would walk to a local grocery shop near the Boca Del Mar community where she worked. The search for Monica continued, but the staff in the shop couldn’t account for her whereabouts that Friday night.

Then, two days after her disappearance, a resident

found Monica’s bruise-covered body dumped under bushes by a main road.

She’d been the victim of a brutal murder.

An autopsy determined she’d been raped and severely beaten before being strangled to death.

Police searched in vain for her attacker, as the neighbourhood lived in fear.

Later in court, Assistant State Attorney Cheryl Caracuzzo said that people ‘were afraid to even go outside their homes due to the brutality of this case’.

Then, a whole year after Monica’s murder, dad-of-two Jerry Wiggins was arrested in connection with a rape case in Charlotte, North Carolina.

His DNA matched that found under Monica’s fingernails, a result of clawing at her attacker

Monica had ‘fought like a wolverine’ as Wiggins dragged her away

TS

L in self-defence. It also linked him to a violent home invasion in 2003, in which a couple had been held at knifepoint.

Monica’s parents and fiance hoped they would finally get justice, but Wiggins’ attorney managed to delay proceedings by pleading mental incompetence.

Incredibly, it was nearly 10 years before Wiggins went on trial. By this time, Monica’s Christian parents had been able to forgive their daughter’s attacker.

In October 2014, Dr Juan and Rosa Rivera travelled from Peru and spent two weeks in court as Wiggins, 38, faced charges of first-degree murder, kidnapping, sexual battery and attempted sexual battery.

Prosecutors said Monica had been snatched on her regular evening walk and ‘fought like a wolverine’ as Wiggins dragged her away before

raping and killing her.

The key witness was Jermaine Wiggins, a nephew of the defendant, who testified Jerry Wiggins admitted the crimes to him.

The jury heard Jermaine repeat what he said his

uncle had told him…

‘I saw her, I followed her, I grabbed her and she fought back, and then it all happened.’

But Wiggins’ lawyer continued to plead the attacker was mentally ill.

Already serving time for the rape of a 14-year-old girl in 2003, jail records indicated

Wiggins was receiving antipsychotic drugs and sedatives because it appeared he was bipolar or schizophrenic.

In the middle of the trial, Wiggins was examined by a psychologist, who found him ‘marginally competent’, with an IQ of 64.

However, Judge John Kastrenakes said he believed Wiggins was faking insanity to derail his trial, and he was sure Wiggins understood the legal proceedings.

The jury deliberated for six hours before finding Wiggins guilty of all charges. He received three consecutive life sentences plus five years.

The judge condemned the unspeakable acts on Monica.

‘It’s as brutal a murder as I’ve seen in 33 years of being in the criminal justice system,’ he stated.

A statement from Monica’s family read: She had no wings or halo – and, like any person, she had her shortcomings. But she had virtues worth emulating.

Her appearance was radiant, graceful and of a contagious happiness and vivacity. She was always willing to serve, or help towards improving the welfare of others.

But the trial was not to be the end of the story...

In December last year, only two years after the trial, Wiggins reportedly smoked a cigarette before jumping from the second floor walkway of his prison cell block.

CCTV footage showed another inmate trying to grab him, but Wiggins fell head-first onto the cement floor.

He died in hospital as a result of head trauma.

A month later, it’s believed he was buried by his family in a New Jersey cemetery.

‘He hurt so many...’

W Monica was just one victim

hile Monica’s parents chose not to release a statement after Wiggins’ death, the woman he had held at knifepoint in her own home said, ‘I believe in karma. He hurt so many people.’

49

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53

Reunited my brothe

AFTER 69 Y Happy family As a baby, I was adopted by Isabel and Fred

He never even knew that I existed...

Words: Bess Browning/Sharon Keeble. Photo in radio studio: BBC Radio Manchester

By Brenda Moorhouse, 69, from Stockport um and I were curled up on the sofa watching telly.

I was 15, and we were glued to a programme on adoption.

Then I felt Mum turn to me...

‘I’ve been waiting 15 years to tell you this. Your dad and I couldn’t have children, so we adopted you,’ she told me softly.

What?!

Shock, surprise, confusion – I felt all the emotions.

I’d been born in Manchester but had an incredible childhood in Rhode Island, America. We’d followed my dad’s sister out there as there was no rationing there, finally moving back in December 1959 because Mum missed her Manchester family.

I’d had no idea I was adopted.

But, when my mum Isabel, then 41, delivered the news, I wasn’t sad or upset.

She and my dad Fred,

M

54

also 41, would always be my parents, whether or not we were related by blood.

Mum explained she and Dad married in 1941 and were told a couple of years later they couldn’t have kids.

My biological mother Joan had turned up at their door one day after hearing they couldn’t conceive.

She was pregnant – but, for some unknown reason, didn’t want her baby.

That baby was me!

I was born two weeks early in October 1947, on my adoptive parents’ sixth wedding anniversary.

‘It was a sign it was meant to be,’ Dad told me many years later, shortly before he died in 1989.

Mum told me my birth mother had also had a son – my older brother Barry.

Born 18 months before me,

his grandmother had taken him to Maryland, America, where he’d been adopted by his uncle.

Happy and settled myself, I felt no yearning to reach out to him.

As the years passed, I met and married David, and had four amazing children – Michael, now 49, Julie, 47, Lorraine, 45, and Claire, 43. We’d eight lovely grandchildren, too.

In 1997, I got remarried – to another David. But, sadly, the next year, Mum, 75, died.

After, I found myself thinking about Barry more and more...

Did he know about me? Was he curious, too?

Suddenly, I’d an

overwhelming longing to track him down.

‘I need to find my brother,’ I told David last year. ‘It’s time.’

‘I’ll support you, whatever,’ he said.

So, early last year, I contacted the ITV show Long Lost Family.

But, with 4,000 other hopeful applicants waiting, I needed to begin the search myself.

Only, I hadn’t a clue where to start.

Having tried everything from Facebook to genealogy websites, I suddenly realised…

‘There’ll have been a formal record of me going to America as a baby, so there must be details of Barry’s emigration

I tried it all – from Facebook to genealogy websites...

Telling our story on the radio

Heartwarming

with er...

Wrap skirts £12.5 0 Floral, £12.50, George at Asda

‘Blindsided’ arry, 71, says, ‘I was blindsided but there B was never a question whether I would reach out.

It was startling as it was exciting! But now Brenda and I speak all the time, even if just on FaceTime.’

FRO M

Bold print

YEARS! too,’ I said to David.

We only had the minimal information Mum had given me to go on, but we got lucky and managed to find Barry.

My mind whirred.

What now?

I didn’t want to send a letter. Barry was 70, and I knew nothing about him.

What if he had a bad heart?

Receiving a note from across the pond saying, Hi, I’m your sister might be a bit of a shock!

So, last August, I contacted a Rotary Club in the area, on the off chance they’d help.

Thankfully, then president Cliff Berg was totally on board.

He offered to visit Barry and tell him about me…

Apparently, Barry was dumbfounded. And it took a while for the news to sink in for him.

But then I heard a story on Becky Want’s BBC Radio Manchester programme about two sisters finding their brother, so I contacted the station, and was invited on to

BIT ON THE SIDE!

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What do you think?

Do we look alike..? the show myself. The BBC put me in touch with the charity After Adoption, who encouraged me to try writing to Barry again. So I sent him a letter with a memory stick of photos.

Cliff had left my details with Barry. And, two months on, I got a surprise e-mail from Barry’s wife Karen, saying he now felt ready to reach out.

Karen and I chatted over FaceTime. And, during our next conversation, Barry appeared on the screen!

We looked at each other in stunned silence, then smiled.

Magical!

‘We do have the same facial features,’ I laughed.

After, we chatted every day, catching up on the 69 years we’d spent apart!

Then, on 6 March this year, Barry flew to England.

Meeting him at Manchester Airport, I was overcome with emotion. We hugged and cried, danced and shrieked with joy!

Barry stayed with us for two wonderful weeks, during which we both went on Becky Want’s show to tell our story.

Things felt so natural.

‘You’re even bickering like

a proper brother and sister,’ David smiled, watching us.

It made me sad thinking of what we’d missed out on growing up apart.

‘I visited our birth mum in 1978,’ Barry told me. ‘She told me I was an only child.’

I couldn’t believe she’d denied that I existed.

I don’t blame her, though.

I’ve no idea what she’d been through, and how hard it must’ve been to give us up.

A lump caught in my throat as Barry showed me a photograph of the two of them together.

‘Joan and I look alike,’ I marvelled.

We had exactly the same nose and eyes.

Meeting Barry, it feels like the jigsaw of my life has finally been completed.

We speak every couple of days, and I plan to go out to America to meet his family in September.

I can’t turn back the clock, but I’m so glad to be united with Barry.

Now, I’m determined to make up for all those lost years that I was without my big brother.

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We hugged and cried, danced and shrieked with joy!

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Softly flouncy 55

PUZZLES 33 CLOSING DATE FOR ALL ENTRIES IS 29 AUGUST 2017 (Three days later for postal entries)

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Solutions to Chat issue 30 (27 July 2017) Puzzle 1 Katie Price Puzzle 2 abet Puzzle 3 most likely to be arrested Puzzle 4 doomed Puzzle 5 forest Puzzle 6 Super Mario Puzzle 7 Camembert Puzzle 9 holy water Puzzle 10 Lego Puzzle 11 Mafia Puzzle 12 shadows

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Chat winners issue 20 Anyone (18 May 2017) r from you e th £1,001 CASH in n w to M Oliver, Hereford. list this £1,000 CASH week..?

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PUZZLE 16 SWEDEN * F * F * C * V *

F L E E * O V E N

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Unless stated otherwise the winner(s) will be drawn at random from all correct entries received by the closing date stated within the promotional material. Reasonable efforts will be made to contact the winner(s). If the winner(s) cannot be contacted, or are unable to comply with these terms and conditions, the Promoter reserves the right to offer the prize to the next eligible entrant drawn at random, or in the event that the promotion is being judged the Promoter reserves the right to offer the prize to the runner(s)-up selected by the same judges. Confirmation of the prize will be made in writing to the winner(s).

Failure to respond and/or provide an address for delivery, or failure to meet the eligibility requirements may result in forfeiture of the prize.

Where applicable, the decision of the judges is final based on the criteria set out in the promotion and no correspondence will be entered into over this decision. Competitions may be modified or withdrawn at any time. The provider of the prize is specified within the promotional material. The Promoter is Time Inc. (UK) Ltd, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. In the event of a discrepancy between these standard terms and conditions and the details in the promotional material, the details of the promotional material shall prevail. A list of winners will be available by writing into the publisher of the magazine or website at the Promoter’s address no earlier than six weeks, unless otherwise stated, after the close of the competition. Only the surname and county of the winners will be disclosed. Where a coupon or token is necessary for entry, residents of Northern Ireland only may send a stamped self addressed envelope to Promotions Team, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP, for a free copy of such token or coupon.

MY POOR TWIN…

STAMPED TO DEATH

WAS SHE DOING

SATAN’S WORK? S

PLU

Photos: Press Gang News/REX/Shutterstock

What’s the answer?

WOULD WE DIG

ZIGGY OUT IN TIME? ON SALE 17 AUG

10-16 August 2017

! s r a t s r You

eek ahead

Chat

reads your w er lt a w tz Fi rd a n er B astrologer Aries

Cancer

Libra

21 March - 20 April

22 June - 23 July

24 Sep - 23 Oct

Capricorn 22 Dec - 20 Jan

If you don’t do up your laces tightly enough, they come loose. Over-tighten them and it’s hard to get them undone.

That applies to other things in life. Try to find the middle point – not too much, not too little. ● Call 0905 817 0690* for more

You’re fond of someone. In fact, you’re quite smitten. Do you fancy them? Oh, yes. So is this love, then? You’re not sure.

Love is a big word, a word you daren’t use as it reveals too much. Stick with fond for now. ● Call 0905 817 0693* for more

If you’re not sure what you’re doing, you just look busy and that’ll do, right? No, as nobody else knows what they’re doing either, so someone has to take charge and lead the way. And that person would be you. ● Call 0905 817 0696* for more

Looking ahead, you see what’s coming and don’t like it. But you can only see the outline.

As you get closer and see the details, you’ll like it more, and you may even start looking forward to it! So have no fears. ● Call 0905 817 0699* for more

Taurus

Leo

Scorpio

Aquarius

21 April - 21 May

24 July - 23 Aug

24 Oct - 22 Nov

21 Jan - 19 Feb

A careless comment could open up a whole new argument, taking you into territory that you really don’t want to explore. What you said, you said lightly, so say you’re sorry and just leave it at that. ● Call 0905 817 0691* for more

Each sign has its own talent, but also its blind spot. Yours is that you do things your own way, and never look for help.

Why struggle with a problem at work when you don’t need to? All you have to do is ask. ● Call 0905 817 0694* for more

Tread carefully. In theory, you have the power and authority to do whatever you wish. Yet, as you’ll see, you can only act in certain ways and at certain times. Terms and conditions apply, as the small print says! ● Call 0905 817 0697* for more

It’s time to take a decision on something that used to be fun but is now just a habit. Think of what it gives you, versus what it costs. If you let it go, you might not miss it. And think of the money you’d save! ● Call 0905 817 0700* for more

Gemini

Virgo

Sagittarius

Pisces

22 May - 21 June

24 Aug - 23 Sep

23 Nov - 21 Dec

20 Feb - 20 March

You’re stuck. It’s quite a new experience. Normally you can wiggle out of tight spots, move the goalposts, or come up with a cunning plan. But this time, you have to accept it. It’s only for a few days, so you’ll be fine. ● Call 0905 817 0692* for more

You’re having doubts about a choice you made a little while ago. You’ll probably have to go over everything again, and in the end you might decide to carry on with it anyway, but at least you’ll feel reassured. ● Call 0905 817 0695* for more

Your life is so busy that you’ve no spare time. But the planets this week provide you with a couple of days just for you. You could do absolutely nothing, but wouldn’t it be more fun to do something adventurous?! ● Call 0905 817 0698* for more

‘You don’t have to decide right away, but it’s there if you want it.’ That was months ago. It’s still there, waiting, but after this week, it won’t be. You’ve had enough time now, so if it’s still looking good, go for it! ● Call 0905 817 0701* for more

*Starlines updated every Thursday. Calls cost 80p per min plus your telephone company’s network access charge and last around 4 mins. For entertainment purposes only. Users must be over 18. You must have the bill payer’s permission. SP: Spoke 0333 202 3390.

esearch by a financial planning company R found that the most-watched film of Brits over 50 years of age is what? Fit the words PIECES into the grid, then read down the letters in the shaded circles for the prize answer.

3 letters SHED STUNT TIE TEST TRIED UTAH 4 letters 6 letters CELL EUROPE 5 letters DISH POLLEN GATES HELP GENRE 7 letters MOVIE RATED EXHAUST 4 SCI-FI 2 e zl

OF CAKE! 8 letters DIALOGUE PREVIEWS SCENARIO THRILLER

Puz

£100

Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win

ANCIENT ROOTS

ext time you spot a grey hair, remember this... The oldest-living N thing on earth is a tree in California that’s 5,067 years old! The Bristlecone Pine is found in a protected forest in the White Mountains. This tree is older than the Roman Empire!

Photos: Alamy/Getty Images/PA Photos/REX/Shutterstock

BOWING OUT..?

SEX AND THE SCHNITTY!

he must-have toy for children T in China? A tiny crossbow that can be loaded with toothpicks.

Powerful enough to spear an apple, and available for as little as the equivalent of 80p, they’re causing havoc in the classroom.

Thankfully, the crossbows aren’t currently available in the UK...

n Instagram user comb A her love for Sex and theines City and breadcru

mbed chicken Carrie’s style, the posts. In ‘Am I a chips and salad ask, a mash and veg kinda , or girl?’

Sarah Jessica Parker ha ‘liked’ the posts. No schs nit!

HAIRY-FYING SWIMWEAR ant to turn heads W on the beach? Well, this eye-catching Sexy

Chest cossie from US company Beloved Shirts, which comes in various skin tones, will make sure you do just that! Do you dare to bare a hairy chest, you hirsute hottie, you?

WAT-ER WALLY

fter seeing himself A on Crimewatch, Jason Waterman, who

was wanted for drug smuggling, swam all the way from Spain... to the British police station in Gibraltar! He turned up dripping wet, all to avoid border police.

NOW YOU SEE IT

he glass octopus is on e of the T world’s ‘invisible’ creatu res.

Living 300-1

,000m deep in tropical waters, they can predators as, apart fro avoid eyes and digestive sysm their animals are transpare tem, the nt. That’s one way to play hide an d seek…

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