It has been a week of will they, won't they.
Will England get through to the semi-finals (you will know this by now, but at the time of writing there was still everything to play for)? Will anyone stand against Andy Burnham? Will Nigel Farage have anyone serious standing against him in Clacton? And will Prince Harry bring Meghan and the children over to meet their grandfather?
With the soaring temperatures, the sight of Count Binface standing against Reform leader Farage in Clacton-on-Sea often felt like a fever dream, but there are some serious issues at play. According to a recent government report, the most deprived neighbourhood in England is to the east of the Jaywick & St Osyth area of Clacton-on-Sea, and more than 60 per cent of Clacton's neighbourhoods fell into the 20 per cent most deprived nationally for both health and education. And who is the man coming to save them? Read Katie Rosseinsky's story here about the strange and surprisingly moving story of the man behind the mask who is promising Bindependence Day.
The fact that their former MP, Nigel Farage, has turned their constituency into a national joke isn't lost on many who live there. And while staunch Reformers might say they are perfectly relaxed with the fact Farage was gifted five million quid to splurge on Ferraris if he wants to, history tells us his boo-hoo, poor me theatrics are not going to end well. Why? This analysis by Dr Georgios Samaras, a King's College expert on the rise of populism in Europe, tells you everything you need to know.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry's story isn't panning out exactly as he had hoped either. Without a place to call home, and with his charity and court case both in tatters, there could be a lot worse to come, writes Tessa Dunlop. Wherever you stand on the Megxit divide, nobody is bigger than the show, and history also tells us there is a good reason for that too.
As Britain melts, we're a bit too busy trying to balance fans on windowsills to spend too much time worrying about which palace a royal prince gets to stay in – or not – quite frankly. Even more worrying, writes Helen Coffey, is the 'cold blob' that is appearing in the North Atlantic that is alarming scientists, who warn the collapse of an ocean current system would be catastrophic.
Closer to home, the country is experiencing mass sleep deprivation, according to some, and Lydia Spencer-Elliott looks at what this is doing to your body and how you can help it cope better. Meanwhile, our senior fitness expert digs into why so many of us seem to get funny tummies in the heat. Talking to experts, he discovers how it changes our microbiome, and what we need to do differently for good gut health when temperatures rise.
And food and drink editor Hannah Twiggs looks at how the heatwave is affecting what we cook in very real terms. There's a reason hot countries have flatbread, she says, and hotter summers are already changing the very nature of what we're baking and how we're baking in the UK too.
One summer event we can always count on is Wimbledon, and it has been nice to have had two weeks without rain stopping play. With wild card Arthur Fery putting on such a display this week, it's not surprising that this year's tournament has had us gripped. The comings and goings in the Royal Box have kept us entertained too, but only once has a member of the Royal Family ever played in the tournament. Future king George V played with Louis Greig,, the grandfather of Geordie Greig, editor of The Independent, exactly 100 years ago. Read all about it here.
Have a lovely Sunday!
Victoria Harper
Executive Editor
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