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Dame Esther Rantzen has compiled the life lessons she’s learnt since being diagnosed with stage-four lung cancer in a new book. Rantzen, 82, first announced her diagnosis in January, before revealing it had progressed to stage four in May this year. The veteran TV presenter told the Daily Mirror she’s on “new medications” but that “nobody knows if it’s working or not”. However, reflecting on her life, she added that the diagnosis “made me realise how very lucky I am”. In an excerpt from her new book Older & Bolder: My A - Z of Surviving Almost Anything, published by The Times, Rantzen shares the lessons she’s learned – about health, family, growing older, sex, nudity, grief, and naps – since being diagnosed with cancer. “Sex drives people mad. Probably that’s what it’s for, because if you think about it, if you were sane, would you do such an inelegant, unhygienic thing?” the former host of That’s Life! writes. “Here is the good news. When you’re too old for sex, sanity returns. Here is the bad news. Then, nobody listens to you.” Rantzen explains she’s in “favour of nudity” because if we all did it more often “everyone would accept body hair and lumps”. She notes there are “several antidotes to grumpiness” including sunshine and chocolate, but “money, sadly, doesn’t work”. Other important lessons she’s learned over the years include prioritising spending time with your loved ones, health is the only thing that truly matters, and that naps are one of the “happy discoveries of growing older”. She also offers advice on motherhood, grandchildren, and the temporariness of beauty. In the excerpt, Rantzen recalls the moment she first noticed a lump in my armpit, a few days after Christmas last year. “An evangelical non-smoker”, Rantzen was shocked to discover she had lung cancer and later learned it was an extremely rare kind that most commonly attacks young Asian women. When she slowly began telling her friends and family, asking them to share their most fun memories together, Rantzen writes she was “overwhelmed” by their responses. “Another lesson cancer has taught me: the one thing worth hoarding is friendship. Never let it go. Stay in touch,” she adds. Rantzen is best known for being the presenter of the BBC’s That’s Life, a topical entertainment show, from 1973 to 1994. She also founded the charities Childline and Silver Line in 1986 and 2012 respectively. In 2015, Rantzen was made a DBE for services to children and older people through her charitable organisations. Read More Emily Eavis appreciation and not-so-secret sets: 8 of the biggest Friday highlights at Glastonbury 2023 Princess of Wales wows Royal Ascot crowds in striking red dress Kourtney Kardashian shows off baby bump as fans speculate about due date A woman stopped tidying up after her husband accused her of doing ‘nothing’. Then she filmed the results Mother shares heartbreak after inviting whole school class to daughter’s birthday party

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You might want to start leaving your door open at night, if new advice from sleep experts is anything to go by. New guidance might just change people’s choices when it comes to sleeping habits as we approach the warmer summer weather. While purchasing a fan is recommended for keeping cool when it comes to hotter temperatures, opening doors can do a lot when it comes to air circulation at night. “Surprisingly, only 60 per cent of adults sleep with their door closed meaning that 40 per cent sleep with their door open,” says Rex Isap, CEO and sleep expert at Happy Beds. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Explaining the implications of leaving doors open, Isep added [via Ideal Home]: “Firstly, a study found that those who slept with the bedroom door open reported a better and longer night’s sleep than those who slept with the door close. The reasoning behind this is that leaving the door open helped regulate the temperature in the room by making the temperature slightly lower, averaging 19 degrees Celsius.” Isap added: “Given that between 18 and 20 degrees Celsius is the ideal bedroom temperature, this naturally makes it easier for a person to fall asleep. It also makes it the ideal thing for a person to do if they suffer from night sweats, are going through menopause, or are generally overheating from the hot weather.” It’s not just a case of improving air flow and better maintaining temperatures either, as Sammy Margo at Dreams claims that leaving doors open also connects sleepers with the rest of their house and improves natural light in the mornings. Margo said: “Sleeping with an open door can also create a sense of openness and connection to the rest of your living space. It can alleviate feelings of isolation or confinement and promote a more positive and harmonious atmosphere in your home. It also opens the bedroom up to natural light from other areas of the house which can help in the morning!” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Coffee shop Blank Street has partnered with Stanley, the viral TikTok cup, to hand out free flasks to caffeine-seekers across the city. For the blissfully unaware, the famed Stanley cup has been making waves online in recent months with a staggering 2.3 billion views under the hashtag alone. The platform has been flooded with reviews, unboxing videos and has almost become an emotional support accessory for avid TikTokers, influencers and celebrities across the globe. To secure the iconic cup, all you need to do is tell your Blank Street Charlotte Street barista: "Quench my thirst." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter You'll then be given your very own Stanley Quencher, perfect for keeping iced coffee temperature perfectly chilled for two whole days. You must be quick, as there are only 50 available across Thursday and Friday (10-11th August) between 11am and 2pm. On Thursday, Blank Street will have its first drop of 25 Stanley Quenchers, in the sell-out eucalyptus colour, available only at Blank Street’s Charlotte Street store. The next drop of 25 cups will be available at the same time, the same place on Friday – the rush for thirst-quenching is on. Coffee fans will have another opportunity to secure their Stanley at a later date. All they need to do is keep their eyes peeled on the Blank Street socials for further details. Caffeine addicts wondering what to fill in their newly-secured Stanley Quencher can find inspiration in Blank Street’s expertly crafted Cold Brew menu. With delights such as the traditional Cold Brew, clean-cut Cortado Cold Brew, and treacly, best-selling Shaken Brown Sugar Cold Brew - the curated menu of delicious iced creations is packed full of chocolate-y and caramel-y flavours from the coffee shop’s innovative Cold Brew Shot. The menu has been taking London by storm already, with Blank Street seeing a whopping 11X increase in the number of Cold Brews ordered from May to August this year. Ignacio Llado, UK MD at Blank Street said: "Keeping your iced coffee cold in the summer can be a bit of a mission, so we’ve partnered with the sell-out success that broke TikTok Stanley Cup to give away a limited number of free cups, and help fight the fight against melting iced beverages. "At Blank Street we want to keep Londoners cool, caffeinated and chic, and what’s more on-brand than a eucalyptus Stanley Quencher - but you’ve got to be quick!" Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Ordinary citizens are stepping in to do their bit for victims of the deadly earthquake in Morocco, after some complained that the...