Best known as the Royal Family’s summer retreat, Balmoral Castle ranks among Britain’s most celebrated royal residences. Yet far fewer people are aware that King Charles III is also closely connected to another extraordinary estate in the south of Scotland. Several hours south of Balmoral, close to the former mining town of Cumnock in a largely overlooked part of East Ayrshire, Dumfries House stands quietly within 2,000 acres of rolling countryside. Despite its imposing Palladian mansion,

I can’t recall a single summer that didn’t include at least one evening spent following hand-painted signs toward a local sagra. It isn’t exactly a food market, nor quite a village fair; it feels more like an entire community carrying its kitchen outdoors for a few warm nights. When I think about those childhood evenings, the first image that appears is a woman’s hand clenched above a pan of shimmering oil. With her thumb and forefinger forming a tight circle, she would press soft batter

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Text messages presented in court Friday between singer D4vd and Celeste Rivas Hernandez revealed that she became pregnant at 13 and underwent an abortion more than a year before her death. In an exchange from early January 2024, D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, apologized for “putting her through this.” “It’s okay,” she replied in a message. “Neither of us can take care of a baby. It’s for the best, right?” He later apologized again and asked whether the pregnancy was

A Romanian fighter jet has downed a drone believed to be of Russian origin after it entered the country’s airspace. The episode on Friday was the first time Romania has intercepted an unauthorized aircraft since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, President Nicusor Dan said. The development has heightened concerns that the war in neighboring Ukraine could further spill into NATO territory. Romania is among several alliance members that have faced repeated drone intrusions in

As a comedy about aging out of your prime while still trying to impress a younger crowd, Kevin Hart’s “72 Hours” carries a certain built-in irony. Hart stars as Joe, a high-powered New York advertising executive whose once-reliable instincts have started to feel stale. His supervisors doubt his ability to resonate with Gen Z audiences. In an effort to immerse himself in youth culture, Joe impulsively joins a bachelor party in Miami — despite barely knowing the groom. His invitation comes

More than 20,000 local residents and vacationers have been evacuated from southwest France as fast-moving wildfires continue to spread across the region. Roughly 800 firefighters were working to contain the blaze about 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Bordeaux on Thursday. They were supported by hundreds of gendarmes and members of the armed forces assisting with emergency operations. Recommended Stories • list 1 of 3Spain and France confront intense wildfires amid heightened risk • list 2 of

To move toward an agreement that would end the war in Ukraine, it is necessary to introduce “new ideas” into the discussion. This was stated by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio following his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. According to Rubio, the proposals that have been presented so far “were not acceptable to Ukraine at the time, and I do not believe they would be acceptable now; in fact, they are likely to be even less acceptable today.” “If peace is to be achieved,

Ukrainian strikes on vast Russian warehouse complexes have generated dramatic scenes, with towering columns of black smoke rising above blazing storage centers belonging to Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer and a company often compared to Amazon. Kyiv’s drones initially targeted the facilities over the weekend in Elektrostal, east of Moscow, and in the Tambov region, leaving eight people dead and dozens injured. Early Wednesday, two additional Wildberries warehouses in the southern

Benjamin Wong has discovered calm — 8,530 feet above sea level. A high school teacher in Singapore, he enjoys long summer holidays. Still, he finds it difficult to choose destinations that aren’t just as sweltering as his hometown. This year, he is spending his break at a high-end mountain retreat in Yunnan, in southwestern China — a province increasingly favored by travelers hoping to beat the heat. Popular cities such as Dali and Lijiang can see nighttime summer temperatures drop to around 59

Tensions in the Middle East intensified after two oil tankers transporting Saudi crude to Asia reversed course in the Red Sea on Tuesday. The move followed an announcement by Yemen’s Houthi group declaring a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia. The shutdown of the Bab al-Mandeb strait, a vital passage linking the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean, has added new strain to global shipping lanes. This comes as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains unstable amid the continuing US-Israel conflict

Argentina's legendary first lady died in July 1952. Six decades later, the BBC revisited the extraordinary story of what happened to her body – and the strange 16-year journey it undertook across continents. Within hours of Eva Perón’s death on 26 July 1952, Dr Pedro Ara began his delicate task. The distinguished Spanish anatomist was commissioned to embalm the Argentine first lady using advanced preservation methods similar to those employed on Lenin and Stalin in the Soviet Union. Evita,

Voters in São Tomé and Príncipe head to the polls on Sunday for a presidential election, as one of Africa’s smallest nations aims to reinforce its record as a stable democracy. The National Election Commission reports that roughly 142,000 citizens are registered to cast ballots in the island state, with about 15% of eligible voters residing abroad. Since achieving independence from Portugal in 1975, the country, located off the western coast of Africa, has earned recognition for holding calm

The daughter of well-known Ukrainian singer Pavlo Zibrov, Diana, has ended her relationship with her fiancé. According to recent reports, the артист recently shared details about changes in his daughter’s personal life. Diana had been in a relationship with businessman Andrii Ishchenko, and the couple got engaged in 2021. However, despite the engagement, they never made it to the wedding ceremony. "Diana is now single, young, and beautiful. She has lost 25 kilograms, and perhaps her

Wildfire smoke — increasingly common across the Northern Hemisphere as the planet heats up — affects nearly every organ in the human body and is responsible for tens of thousands of deaths each year, according to a growing body of medical research. Its impact can be swift. Within hours, asthma attacks rise and ambulance calls increase. Within a day or two, emergency departments fill with patients suffering from heart attacks, breathing difficulties, cardiovascular complications and even mental

In the autumn of 2024, Alabama Shakes appeared content to let their indefinite hiatus continue – and few expected otherwise. Seven years had passed since the blues-soul-rock group from Athens, Alabama, had last taken the stage together. Their 2012 debut Boys & Girls had broken them internationally; 2015’s Sound & Color topped the US charts, sold more than a million copies and earned four Grammy awards. Admirers ranged from Bruce Springsteen and Robert Plant to Barack Obama. Yet by 2017

NEW YORK (AP) — No matter which nation you’re backing in the World Cup final, one universal truth remains: nothing sets the mood quite like a perfectly curated playlist. To help fuel the excitement ahead of Sunday’s showdown, the Associated Press has assembled a soundtrack worthy of the occasion. Whether you’re rooting for Argentina to secure back-to-back titles for the first time since Brazil’s golden run in 1958 and 1962, or hoping Spain’s young sensation Lamine Yamal finds the net, these 10

Wessex Water granted its chief executive a pay rise well above inflation despite being prohibited from issuing bonuses due to sewage discharge incidents, newly released accounts show. Ruth Jefferson’s base salary rose by 14% in October, increasing from £590,000 to £670,000, before additional benefits were included. This uplift significantly exceeded the 3.5% awarded to staff and placed her earnings at 18 times the company’s median salary. Executive compensation in the water sector has faced

Starting July 18, 2026, three zodiac signs will be able to take advantage of an important opportunity that appears precisely when they are truly ready for it. On this day, the influence of the stars will help them recognize prospects that may have previously gone unnoticed. The retrograde lunar node is associated with destiny, life direction, and pivotal turning points. Its energy can encourage decisions that may seem risky at first, yet ultimately lead to meaningful and lasting change. Taurus

The co-founder and chief executive of Ocado has said he has “no intention of being a puppet master” overseeing staff decisions, amid signs of tension in the boardroom over succession plans at the grocery technology group. Tim Steiner, who is due to step down as chief executive in 2028, indicated that any incoming leader would be comfortable continuing to work alongside him. Shares in the company fell by almost 15% on Thursday, reaching their lowest level in more than ten years, after Ocado