Head wash

WITH a machete at his throat and a gun at his head, Mike Farmer noticed the kid holding the firearm was shaking – they were scared, and that made the situation even more dangerous. "I was just thinking: 'I'm glad my wife stayed at the hotel today – this sucks, I'm actually going to die here'," Mike tells The Sun. It was 2011 in Kenya and he'd been beaten, abducted and driven into the jungle by thieves who knew he had cash – lots of it. That's because Mike, 48, is a meteorite hunter from Tucson, Arizona. He sells his extraterrestrial minerals to amateur astronomers and billionaire businessmen alike, all of whom want to get their hands on a tangible emissary from outer space. A fireball over the skies of Britain last Sunday alone could have scattered thousands of rocks in the fields below. And while the financial and scientific rewards in finding meteorites are great, so are the risks – but Mike lives for the thrill of the chase. "I see myself as like Indiana … [Read more...] about I’m a meteorite dealer who makes millions selling space rocks – I’ve been kidnapped and robbed in the brutal trade

BRITS aged between 56 and 59 have been invited to receive their coronavirus vaccine as the rollout goes from strength to strength. It comes as Gavin Williamson admitted this morning that ministers are "looking at" a longer school day and shorter holidays to make up for lost education due to the pandemic . Hundreds of thousands of letters for the over 56 age group began landing on doorsteps today, Public Health England have said. Meanwhile, Professor Sharon Peacock, head of the Covid-19 Genomics UK scientific body, told The Times she was "very optimistic" that the immunisation programme would continue to be effective. It comes as a minister predicted that all adults could receive the jab by June should the vaccine rollout continue at its current pace. Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary, told The Times it was “possible” that all adults could be offered vaccines by June. Follow our coronavirus live blog below for the very latest news and updates on the … [Read more...] about Coronavirus news UK – Over-56s invited for vaccine and ministers ‘looking at’ longer school day & shorter holidays

O ne month after arriving in England and declaring he would build a Chelsea team that nobody wants to play against, Thomas Tuchel is sticking to his word. It has not been particularly pretty, and this goalless draw with Manchester United certainly was not, but Tuchel remains unbeaten as Chelsea head coach and his safety-first approach may yet be enough to secure a top-four spot. After switching to a back three, Chelsea have conceded just two goals in nine games under Tuchel and nine goals scored during that period have been enough to claim six victories in all competitions. But this will go down as a missed chance to really push themselves back into the top-four picture in the Premier League, with United missing Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes some way from his best. The visitors argued, perhaps correctly, that they should have been awarded a first-half penalty against Callum Hudson-Odoi, but, like the hosts, they lacked invention and quality when it really mattered. Such is … [Read more...] about Var penalty decision takes centre stage in Chelsea vs Manchester United draw

T he thing about this Manchester City team at the moment is that every few weeks another player seems to be spurred on to new heights. For a good while, it was Ilkay Gundogan and, before him, Kevin De Bruyne. Then Phil Foden took over. Thereafter, Raheem Sterling hit the goal trail again and Bernardo Silva’s renaissance gathered pace. Joao Cancelo ? How could we forget about him? And that’s just offensively. On Tuesday night, it was the turn of Riyad Mahrez and Gabriel Jesus to step it up another notch. Wolverhampton Wanderers, somehow, were actually threatening to steal a point here for all of 18 minutes in the second half but, for the majority of this game, the threats to Nuno Espirito Santo’s side were constant and widespread; so many good players, full of confidence, playing so well within a system that, on occasions such as these, looks almost impossible to stymie. By the end of an exhilarating night at the Etihad Stadium that really did warrant a full house, the scoreline … [Read more...] about Manchester City march on with Gabriel Jesus scoring two to dispatch dogged Wolves

I s this really what anybody signed up for? This should have been a story of gutsy Fulham’s fightback and an encouraging step towards Premier League safety, and yet it became another ridiculous Var controversy. Other than the Tottenham Hotspur supporters who will hope their team might be back in a fight for Champions League qualification, nobody in their right mind would have denied Josh Maja an equaliser. And yet a Var review decided that Mario Lemina had somehow handled the ball that was smashed at close range into his left arm by Davinson Sanchez before Maja reacted quickest to turn a shot past Hugo Lloris. No wonder the Fulham players surrounded referee David Coote at the final whistle and manager Scott Parker did remarkably well not to lose his cool while making his frustration clear. “I understand why the goal was disallowed, but I don’t agree with it,” said Parker. “We are trying to make the game so pure and sterile, and trying to control every moment. “What we want is … [Read more...] about Fulham denied deserved point against Spurs as Var rules out equaliser for Mario Lemina handball