Sumayah Nakazibwe and Stella Ariokot feared they would be next as fires took hold of neighbouring houses

For four hours, two Ugandan care workers, Sumayah Nakazibwe and Stella Ariokot, were barricaded into their house near Crumlin Road, north Belfast, as smoke leaked in, and flames licked the walls of neighbouring properties.

“It all started like people were just marching, young boys between the age of nine and 20,” Nakazibwe said. “They were all putting on black, and masked.”

The lowest ever viewing figures, an identity crisis for the show and a confusing Billie Piper-based cliffhanger – whoever takes on the BBC fantasy drama has quite the job on their hands …

The announcement that the BBC has abandoned the planned Doctor Who Christmas special, and is ending its partnership with showrunner Russell T Davies and Bad Wolf production company, will not have come as much of a surprise to many fans. It has been rumoured for some time. Aside from the gossip, the fact that no filming appeared to have taken place for a programme that traditionally requires a lengthy post-production process had already suggested something was up.

The BBC has said the show remains an important part of its portfolio, stating it wants to ensure that “when the Tardis lands once more, it does so in all its glory”. While it isn’t inconceivable that Bad Wolf might bid to make the show under a new regime, Davies appears to have hung up his Tardis keys for good, posting on Instagram: “Now I’m as excited as anyone to see what comes next!”

Reform leader’s unwillingness to answer questions on £5m ‘donation’ leaves Dicky to serve up not-so-special guests

It’s been 50 days since the last Reform press conference. In Nigel Farage time, that’s at least five California marriages. He has been known to do two, sometimes three, pressers in a week.

Not because he has anything important to say, but because he is impossibly needy. Nige is a man who usually only knows he’s alive if there’s a camera recording his every movement and utterance. His narcissism demands constant attention.

From marvelling at teenage wonderkids to tracking the world’s largest coffee pot, our team of writers outline their expectations for the jamboree in North America

• Use our Bracketology to click your way through the group stage and the knockouts to crown a champion

  
  

Spain and Portugal in the final, with Spain winning. I’ve played our Bracketology game 20 times and gotten 20 different paths but Spain always end up winning. Alexander Abnos

‘The tabloids will always try to sensationalise. But it was 6.30pm. If Kate really had been falling out the door blind drunk, it’s not a picture I’d particularly want to take’

I have photographed Kate Moss a fair few times. The first time was probably around 1990, during the Johnny Depp days. I also shot her with Jefferson Hack and many of her other boyfriends, but it was only on official occasions, Topshop launches and things like that.

There was a period when whatever she did, 200 photographers would turn up. For her 33rd birthday, I was asked to cover her party at the Dorchester hotel. Then I got a call saying she was at the Donmar Warehouse theatre watching a matinee of a play with Rhys Ifans in it. “Could I go over there and get a picture of her leaving before arriving at the birthday party?” When I got there, there must have been 200-250 people outside. They had the front door surrounded – photographers, camera crews, fans, you name it. It was absolutely packed. I quickly realised that getting a decent picture was going to be very difficult.

People across the Black diaspora are increasingly turning to weight-loss drugs. How might this reshape our health, wellbeing and body image?

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These days, I barely make it through the week without seeing news about what weight-loss medications, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, can now supposedly achieve. Beyond the health benefits of shedding fat, “GLP-1” medications are also touted to treat addiction, and, as reported recently, even lowering the risk of breast cancer. But the extreme weight loss fuelled by these drugs is also reshaping beauty standards.

In this week’s edition, I’m digging into whether Black beauty ideals across the diaspora are under threat from the spread of weight-loss medication. It’s a delicate conversation that I’ve been eager to have for a while.

Force disperses crowd of 300 people who burned truck and reportedly planned to target hotel hosting migrants

Police have used water cannon against rioters in Northern Ireland during a second night of anti-immigration protests.

It dispersed a crowd of about 300 people who burned a truck and threw bricks and petrol bombs close to the Sandyknowes roundabout near Newtownabbey, eight miles north of Belfast.

US military says commercial ships are continuing to transit the strait of Hormuz, contradicting claims from Iran that the strait has been closed

• US strikes Iran for second day, as ceasefire appears close to collapse

If the US genuinely wants a deal it will have to engage with Iranian demands on sanctions relief, says Danny Citrinowicz, the former head of the Iran branch of Israeli military intelligence.

Today’s exchange of strikes shows how easily both Iran and the US can slide towards another round of escalation, says Citrinowicz, who is now a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council.

If Washington is unwilling to accept that reality, it should recognize the likely alternative: continued confrontations with Iran that could eventually spiral beyond anyone’s control and lead to military conflict under less favorable conditions.

Even a limited military campaign designed to weaken Iran would not fundamentally alter Tehran’s negotiating position. It has not happened in the past, and there is little reason to believe it would happen now. Iran emerges from the latest exchange of blows convinced that it can absorb pressure and respond to attacks.”

Legal and moral responsibility of all countries in the region (especially those located along the southern shores of the Persian Gulf) to prevent the US military and Israel from using their territory or facilities to plan, organise, execute, or support hostile actions against Iran.

Prime minister is ‘hellbent’ on fighting any contest, even if his future may be out of his hands, sources say

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Keir Starmer’s closest aides are “war-gaming” how to win a leadership contest ahead of Andy Burnham’s much-anticipated return to Westminster if he wins the Makerfield byelection, the Guardian understands.

Downing Street sources said the prime minister had taken the last fortnight to think seriously about his future but was now “hellbent” on fighting any contest. His team is working through various scenarios, including sacking ministers who publicly support Burnham.

The UCL study also found physically punished children were more likely to struggle in school

Children smacked by their parents struggle to get good exam results and are more likely to bully others, causing a negative impact on society, according to new research calling for smacking to be banned.

The study by University College London (UCL) found that children in England who were physically punished at the ages of three, five and seven were significantly less likely to pass GCSE exams compared with other children, even after factors such as family background were taken into account.