Second opinion with dr oz

SIR – My wife and I have a friend who is a widow in her 80s. Recently we found her in a distressed state. She said that her gas bill, normally about £30 per month, had gone up to £170. She does not bank online and her bank has recently closed its branch in the nearest town four miles away. She tried phoning her supplier, British Gas, only to be told by an automated voice on each attempt that the wait time was “more than an hour”. So distressed has she become that she has had to visit her GP, who suggested that she was suffering from anxiety brought on by the situation with her gas supply. She is now taking anti-anxiety medicine and has managed to get her bill altered. I can only say that this is a disgraceful way to deal with any customer. David J Hartshorn SIR – Gillian Courage (Letters, May 5) writes of her energy supplier’s grab for more money. The same applies to our long-term supplier, Ovo Energy. On Wednesday we received two emails, one complaining about a lack of … [Read more...] about Letters: An automated voice is no comfort to a widow faced with soaring gas bills

As we adjust to life outside the EU, the government is busy positioning the UK as an outward-looking nation, creating international products and selling them around the world. Britain's music industry is already a genuine global leader – the world’s second biggest exporter of music, a major plank in our cultural identity and economy. The pandemic has devastated many musicians' livelihoods, particularly those heavily reliant on live performance. But for the industry’s sake the UK’s resilient recorded music sector must continue growing and punching above its weight on the world stage. Supplying one in 10 songs streamed worldwide, British artists are already overrepresented in music streaming, with a market share four times greater than the UK's overall share of global GDP. Stars like Ed Sheeran, Lewis Capaldi, Adele, Harry Styles, Dua Lipa and Stormzy contributed to the 155 million albums (or their equivalent) streamed or bought in 2020 in the UK. The 139 billion individual audio … [Read more...] about We need British music to thrive after the pandemic – now is not the time to regulate success

Every true-crime fan more or less has an opinion on the case of Kathleen and Michael Peterson. The Staircase , a 13-episode documentary by Oscar-winning director Jean-Xavier de Lestrade and HBO Max's latest true-crime drama of the same name have helped make the case known across the world. In 2003, Michael Peterson was convicted of killing his wife Kathleen Peterson after she was found dead in a pool of blood at the bottom of the staircase in their home on December 9, 2001. He was released in 2011 pending a retrial but in 2017 he submitted an Alford plea to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter meaning he accepted there was enough evidence to be convicted but he was able to maintain his innocence. He was sentenced to time already served and was released from prison. At Peterson's 2003 trial, the defense argued Kathleen died after falling down the stairs and there was no motive for Michael Peterson to kill his wife. The defense stated Kathleen and Michael had a happy … [Read more...] about Michael Peterson’s lawyer David Rudolf says Owl Theory is “believable”

Nicola Sturgeon should be enjoying a landmark week in her political career as she becomes Scotland's longest-serving First Minister. Instead, she's been suffering from a bout of COVID that really "knocked her for six" since coming back from a working visit to the US. With seven years and 187 days in office under her belt, Sturgeon has now outlasted her predecessors, Scotland's early Labour Party First Ministers Donald Dewar, Henry McLeish, Jack McConnell - and the man who led Scotland into the 2014 independence referendum, her former friend and one-time mentor Alex Salmond. Sturgeon is still planning to hold a fresh referendum in 2023, recently repeating the mantra that her government has a "very firm mandate" to do so. And it's true: the Scottish National Party won an extra seat in the Scottish Parliament elections last year, missing out on an overall majority by just one seat; and in May's local council elections the SNP also increased its number of … [Read more...] about Nicola Sturgeon is Scotland’s longest-serving leader. Will she deliver an independence vote?

Amber Heard made an emotional return to the stand as Johnny Depp's libel trial against her entered its final stretch, reminding jurors she is "a human being" and saying: "I just want Johnny to leave me alone." In her second round of direct evidence in the high-profile case on Thursday, the actress was tearful as she also told the court she has not lied about anything she has claimed about Depp . After six weeks of numerous testimonies from friends, colleagues, medical experts and industry workers, Heard was the final witness of the trial. Following her testimony, jurors were sent home early, ready to hear the closing arguments and begin their deliberations on Friday. 'People want to kill me': Amber Heard's emotional testimony as it happened During her time on the stand, the Aquaman star said she had received "thousands" of death threats since proceedings began and the process had been "agonising, painful and humiliating". Advertisement … [Read more...] about Amber Heard makes emotional return to the stand as final witness in Johnny Depp libel trial

Queen: Royal portraits created using varieties of cake Sign up for royal alerts including a daily special Jubilee edition 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 But surprisingly, cheesecake topped the poll with 37 percent of the vote – beating some UK classics including coffee and walnut cake, and fruitcake. Related articles Doctor on foods to eat and avoid to lose menopause weight Nutritionist recommends one drink that’s ‘essential for burning fat’ Chocolate cake took second spot, ahead of the classic Victoria Sponge. Other varieties of bake to make the list were Christmas cake and Battenburg, as well as fondant fancies, madeira loaf, spotted dick, apple cake, and flapjack. The research was … [Read more...] about Britain’s favourite cakes revealed – with cheesecake topping the list

Photo: Teddy Wolff “In a way, as a gay boy, I was born a performer,” the celebrated young French writer Édouard Louis tells me late last week when I meet up with him after a performance of his one-man show Who Killed My Father at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Dumbo. It’s a stage adaptation of his 2018 autofictional novel of the same name, in which Louis, lithe and pale in a Pokémon T-shirt and dark-blue jeans, melancholically recites passages, mostly in French, detailing his troubled relationship with his homophobic working-class father, capitalism, dead-end masculinity, and the neoliberal French elite. To keep it lively and emphasize his own gay intellectual path out of the working class, he occasionally breaks out into lip-synced song-and-dance to numbers he would perform as a kid — much to the horror of his father— including “Barbie Girl” and “My Heart Will Go On.” It’s poetic, heady stuff, but Louis is not a natural stage performer: As this magazine’s theater critic, … [Read more...] about Édouard Louis Wants You to Go Protest After Seeing His One-Man Show

High cholesterol: Nutritionist reveals top prevention tips Sign up for FREE health tips to live a long and happy life 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 Cholesterol deposits along the artery walls, thereby narrowing the passageway for oxygenated and nutritious blood to circulate around the body. If blood can't reach the brain, a stroke occurs. A clogged artery, caused by excessive cholesterol , could also prevent blood from reaching the heart, thereby leading to a heart attack. Dietary choices can have a great influence over cholesterol levels, with experts at Harvard Medical School pointing out the best fruits to eat. Related articles Dementia symptoms: Craving three types of food is a warning sign … [Read more...] about High cholesterol: The best fruits to lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol

The tragic death of a teenage girl who was suffering from a rare form of leukaemia could have been prevented and was the result of medical neglect, a coroner has said. Katie Wilkins, who was just 14, from Warrington died on July 31, 2020, after suffering an intracranial haemorrhage as a result of her acute promyelocytic leukaemia (APML). She had no significant medical history and had fallen ill only a month previously. Her inquest, which began on Monday (May 23) at the Gerard Majella Courthouse in Bootle, saw coroner Kate Ainge conclude today (May 26) that her death was avoidable, the Liverpool Echo reported. Ms Ainge said a proper clinical review and blood test could have led to an earlier diagnosis and the correct treatment. The teenager’s symptoms began with unbearable pains when visiting her sister in London in June 2020. On June 30, she was taken to A&E in Warrington, where they found an unusual abscess and a course of antibiotics were prescribed. The … [Read more...] about Tragic death of teenage girl with rare leukaemia ‘could have been prevented’

Ellen DeGeneres will sign off on her long-running talk show for the final time on Thursday, marking the end of an era after 19 seasons on the air. Following its 2003 debut, The Ellen DeGeneres Show quickly shot to popularity with viewers and earned a reputation as an outlet for many of Hollywood's most famous celebrities to let their hair down on their often punishing promotional tours. With DeGeneres, 64, also regularly shining a spotlight on everyday people on the syndicated show, the comedian appeared to provide her guests and staffers with the ideal, fun-filled workplace where the laughs constantly flowed. However, much of that showbiz stardust was blown away in July 2020, when Buzzfeed News published an article in which numerous allegations were made about the program being a toxic work environment behind the scenes. In a segment at the start of season 18 of the show in September 2020, DeGeneres said of the reports: "I learned that things happen here that never … [Read more...] about Seven celebrities who won’t be sad to see Ellen go