Divorce and retirement

Sarah Catherall is a Wellington-based journalist and writer. OPINION: Thirteen years ago this month, my husband left me. He was the one to end the marriage but, truth was, we were making each other miserable. I became my worst self when he was in the room - I nagged, I complained, I resented many things about him. He didn’t like the person he became around me either. We hadn’t started out like that, of course. A decade before, I had walked in a white satin dress among grapevines and married the man I was utterly in love with. Over the following years, our lives had become too busy - work, business, three kids, house renovations - and put us under too much pressure. We had tried counseling but nothing could heal or repair the way we felt about one another. But when he spoke those few words, “It’s over’’, I felt as though I had been in a car crash. READ MORE: The Divorce Diaries: 'It got so toxic, so fast, it was like my wife was a completely different person' … [Read more...] about Should I stay or should I go: The eventual upside of divorce

Premier League referees Jon Moss and Martin Atkinson are set to follow Mike Dean into retirement at the end of the season. Dean confirmed last month that this season would be his last as an official. And now, two more of the top-flight's best known whistlers will join him in calling it a day at the end of the current campaign. That is according to the Telegraph , who report that Moss and Atkinson's colleagues were told of the duo's impending retirement by PGMOL boss Mike Riley on Thursday. Their loss will be a blow to the Premier League, with authorities worried about the quality of officials coming through. Atkinson, 51, is one of the game's most experienced referees, having taken charge of his first Premier League game in 2004. He officiated the 2011 FA Cup, the 2014 EFL Cup final and has officiated a number of games in Europe, including at Euro 2016. Moss made his Premier League debut in 2011, presiding over Blackpool's 1-2 home defeat to Birmingham City. He has since … [Read more...] about Premier League referee duo set to follow Mike Dean into retirement at end of season

IT’s big week for Tom Cruise. After a PR blitz that has seen him dazzle Cannes, walk the red carpet with Wills and Kate and almost overshadow the Queen, it’s time for paying punters to give their verdict on his latest blockbuster. Sequel Top Gun: Maverick hits cinemas on Wednesday backed by almost universal critical praise. No wonder the 59-year-old’s trademark smile has beamed out for every TV, newspaper and website for what seems like months. It is a moment of triumph for the man whose bizarre behaviour once threatened to derail his career. As one source put it: “Tom is feeling on top of the world. It was a gamble to revisit a classic film like Top Gun but it looks like it’s paid off.” READ MORE ABOUT TOM CRUISE ICE TO SEE YOU Find out if Val Kimner is in Top Gun 2 BIT OF A MAVERICK Tom Cruise 's Top Gun 2 is FINALLY hitting cinemas So how has Cruise regained his crown as Hollywood’s golden boy? For … [Read more...] about How Tom Cruise reclaimed movie throne with Top Gun: Maverick after PR disasters, Scientology scandal and chat show spats

SugarHill Steward said he wasn't worried when Tyson Fury was dropped by Deontay Wilder in their trilogy fight. Fury and Wilder put on a heavyweight trilogy for the ages last October, as 'The Gypsy King' won by 11th round stoppage in a fight that had five knockdowns. Wilder put down Fury twice in the fourth round, but the Brit's head trainer Steward said the knockdowns didn't alarm him. "For me, I wasn't so worried because I was watching it," he told BT Sport . "I watched the way he went down, he didn't just get hit and then boom, he was hit and then you could see him get his feet together, try to grab and miss, so he was aware and alert that much to try and grab hold of Deontay Wilder. "Then the second knockdown was not such a great punch, kind of a push-punch behind the head. It was okay for me, I was happy with that one, I'd rather that than the first one that he got caught with, so when he went down from that one I was like 'ah, alright, he'll be alright'." Speaking … [Read more...] about Tyson Fury’s coach recalls watching heavyweight being dropped by Deontay Wilder

The House of Lords could shortly welcome its first trans peer and only female hereditary member. Matilda Simon was this week given permission to contest the next by-election for one of the upper chamber’s remaining 92 hereditary seats . If she wins, she will doubtless become the envy of peers’ daughters across the country, because the vast majority of titles may only be passed to a male heir. However, because of a legal loophole, the candidate, born Matthew Simon in 1955, has inherited and retains the Barony of Wythenshawe, despite being in all other legal respects a woman. The House of Lords confirmed that her claim to the peerage was approved by the Lord Chancellor last week. The Barony was created in 1947 for Ernest Simon, the industrialist and former Lord Mayor of Manchester mainly remembered for his slum clearances and housing projects in the city. His son Roger, the second Baron Simon, was a Left-wing journalist and one of the founders of the Campaign for Nuclear … [Read more...] about First trans peer a step closer as hereditary candidate claims seat

Gordon Mackie, who has died aged 85, was the last family chairman of James Mackie & Sons, the textile machinery manufacturer which was a pillar of Northern Ireland’s Protestant industrial heritage; as a salesman for the firm, he once singed the moustaches of the Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara. The eponymous James Mackie was a native of Dumfries in Scotland who moved to Ireland and established, in 1858, a factory in West Belfast making spinning frames for the fast-growing linen thread industry, and later machines for processing jute and sisal; employing more than 6,000 workers (traditionally from the city’s Protestant community) at its peak, Mackie’s was a major exporter to the Empire and beyond. During both world wars, it converted to manufacturing munitions, including anti-aircraft shells. It was in the early 1960s that Gordon Mackie was sent to Cuba to pitch for equipping a new sisal mill – Fidel Castro’s regime having already invested in Mackie machinery for a first plant … [Read more...] about Gordon Mackie, chairman of the once giant family firm in Belfast that made machines for processing jute and sisal – obituary

A backlog blamed on civil servants working from home has left hundreds of thousands of elderly and vulnerable people unable to hand over critical financial powers to their loved ones. A third of a million applications for lasting power of attorney (LPA) are still pending at the government agency responsible for registering them, while the waiting time has risen from 40 days to 140 days during the pandemic. Lawyers have warned the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) is no longer “fit for purpose” over the backlog. The OPG admits on its recorded message that applicants should “wait at least 20 weeks” before trying to contact officials. The message warns that because of Covid, “many of our staff are working from home” and that “this is impacting response times in our contact centre and processing lasting powers of attorney applications”. An OPG spokesman insisted the message was in error and needed to be changed and that front-line staff who needed to be in the office to … [Read more...] about Thousands wait months for powers of attorney to care for loved ones as civil servants work from home

Donald Trump has so far maintained a fairly impressive endorsement record in Republican primaries ahead of the 2022 midterms. But as data compiled by Newsweek has shown, many of the candidates backed by the former president have been incumbents who rarely loses primaries. And there have been some notable losses by Trump-backed candidates—including North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn , who was ousted in a recent primary following a string of scandals despite Trump imploring voters to "give Madison a second chance!" Trump's clout will once again be tested in hotly contested upcoming primary contests. Here's who the former president has endorsed in Republican primary elections being held on May 24: Alabama GOP Rep. Mo Brooks won, then lost Trump's endorsement for the Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Sen. Richard Shelby. Candidates Katie Boyd Britt and Mike Durant have courted Trump's endorsement, but he has yet to back another candidate in the Alabama … [Read more...] about Every Trump-endorsed candidate in next week’s primaries

Bosch: Legacy trailer stars Titus Welliver Sign up for the big storylines FIRST , star interviews and exclusive access SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info Bosch Legacy sees the story of former police detective Harry Bosch (played by Titus Welliver) continue after deciding to leave the force. The Amazon Prime Vide o series saw not only the return of Bosch himself but his daughter Maddie (Madison Lintz) as well who is now pursuing a career as a police officer. As Maddie must learn all of the necessary skills needed for the profession, so did Lintz and her co-star Denise Sanchez. Related articles Sally Dexter partner: Is Emmerdale's Faith Dingle star married? Emmerdale theory: Murder rocks the village as … [Read more...] about Bosch Legacy actress shares Madison Lintz’ reaction to LAPD training on set ‘hysterical’

Coronation Street: Tim has open heart surgery Sign up for the big storylines FIRST , star interviews and exclusive access SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info Coronation Street 's Kevin (played by Michael Le Vell) has been struggling to help his wife, Abi Webster (Sally Carmen), win custody of her baby Alfie after she had an affair with Imran Habeeb (Charlie De Melo). Despite Abi cheating on Kevin, he has stayed by her side and done everything he could for her. But now, a new theory suggests Kevin may reunite with his ex-wife Sally (Sally Dynevor) after their pair struggle with the issues in their relationships. Related articles Coronation Street theory: Max Turner's boyfriend unmasked Lorraine warns … [Read more...] about Coronation Street theory: Sally Metcalfe and Kevin Webster reunite in steamy affair