German shepherd wounded in Ukraine gets new start as Hungarian police dog
A German shepherd wounded during a rocket attack in northeastern Ukraine is now training with the police department in Hungary's capital
2023-06-12 10:50
'Horrific bus tragedy' in Australian wine region leaves multiple dead, police say
At least 10 people are feared dead after a late-night bus crash in the Australian state of New South Wales on Sunday, local police say.
2023-06-12 09:20
Waitrose Cuts Price of 200 Products Even as Inflation Persists
Waitrose announced a round of price cuts for the second time this year as it tries to help
2023-06-12 07:59
Beyoncé handles minor wardrobe malfunction with ease during Renaissance show
Beyoncé handles minor wardrobe malfunction with ease during Renaissance show
2023-06-12 07:30
'Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty' expansion set for September release
CD Projekt Red has officially announced the release date for the much-awaited Cyberpunk 2077 expansion,
2023-06-12 02:53
'Transformers' edge out ‘Spider-Verse’ to claim first place at box office
It was Miles Morales and the Spider-Verse versus the “Transformers” at the box office this weekend and the bots came out on top
2023-06-11 23:51
‘Spiral hotdog’ cooking technique goes viral amid UK heatwave
An unusual method for cooking hotdogs has gone viral on TikTok after food influencer Carolina Gelen shared a tutorial video for “spiral hotdogs”. Gelen, who shares recipes with more than 560k followers on TikTok, posted her latest tutorial last week and has garnered more than 1.8m views in under three days. Her method of cutting hot dogs into a spiral before cooking them gives the sausages more surface area for caramelisation and toppings, she said. The home cook demonstrates inserting a skewer lengthwise into a hotdog and using a knife to cut around it at a 45-degree angle. This creates a spiral hot dog that lengthens but does not break apart. Gelen then cooks them in a cast iron pan over a fire and explained that the new shape makes the meat “open up in the pan”. “They caramelise beautifully and they can hold so many more toppings due to their shape,” she told viewers. “All those flavours and sauces will fall between those nooks and crannies and stay in between the buns.” Gelen recommends making her roasted red pepper salsa and pickle mayonnaise for toppings, but people who try her method can use whatever hot dog toppings they enjoy. She finished the video by assembling her hot dog, which was loaded up with her salsa, mayonnaise and mustard. @carolinagelen spiral hot dogs #hotdog #cooking #grilling #food ♬ Sunday - HNNY Viewers have been enjoying trying Gelen’s method of cooking hot dogs, with one person writing: “You just changed my life.” Another said: “This is genius. I only like grilled hot dogs and this will definitely maximise caramelisation.” A third added: “My hot dog life will never be the same thank you.” The video was also shared on Twitter and has gained a similar reception, with many users declaring they will try it out. “One of those tips that immediately strike you as game-changing and legit,” one person wrote. “Maillard reaction = flavour. And those new nooks and crannies can hold on to toppings better. “I’ll be 100 per cent doing with my hot dogs and bratwursts from now on.” Another said: “I did the spiral hot dogs thing tonight and I can confirm it’s got me a Michelin star.” Some people pointed out that this method is common in some cuisines, such as Filipino food, and confirmed it is a delicious way to prepare hot dogs. The viral tip comes as the UK is experiencing the highest temperatures of 2023 so far, with the mercury hitting 30C in most of the country on Saturday (10 June). Many will undoubtedly be having barbecues as the temperatures soar again today (Sunday 11 June) and can try Gelen’s method of cooking hot dogs. However, the Met Office has issued yellow warnings for thunderstorms across parts of England and Wales and some areas could be hit by torrential rain this weekend. Read More More thunderstorms and 30C temperatures forecast after hottest day of the year 7 things fitness experts want you to know about exercise during a heatwave Weather – latest: Health warning escalated as ‘extreme’ heatwave set to make UK hotter than Spain Schoolboy almost dies from swallowing magnets for TikTok challenge Woman shares honest review of New York City apartment TikTok mom slammed after making 5-year-old son run in 104 degree heat
2023-06-11 23:17
Is TikTok's 'clean girl aesthetic' officially dead?
TikTok is a breeding ground for the next big thing. What was once predominantly a Gen Z dance app has since evolved into a catalogue of lifestyle habits repackaged under quirky names. Single? You’re ‘dating yourself.’ Attend the gym? You’re a ‘health girlie.’ Organised and minimal? You’re living the ‘Clean Girl Aesthetic’. With over a billion views under the hashtag, the Clean Girl Aesthetic has dominated the app for some time now – and it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon. It has since adopted other areas of life such as health and mindfulness. So, what is it? For the blissfully unaware, the Clean Girl is a TikTok trend in which everything about someone’s life appears minimal and effortlessly chic. It is portrayed as being low maintenance. A ‘Day in the Life’ generally starts with an early alarm, followed by a smoothie and minimal makeup for a dewy 'no make-up' glow. The Clean Girl Aesthetic has since welcomed Pilates under its wing, often finished with a dash of bedtime journaling for good measure. @mirellagir 🤍🧘🏻♀️ #morningvlog #morningroutine #selfcare #thatgirlaesthetic #pilates #cleangirlaesthetic #aestheticroutine Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter While the lifestyle trend is proving popular across social media, some have argued that it isn’t as effortless as what meets the eye. Critics claim it actually takes more time, effort and money with five minute glazed ‘makeup-less’ looks being tied to £500 treatments. The trend isn’t shy of controversy either, being credited to mostly white influencers. Some have highlighted that aspects of the aesthetic (specifically the ‘beauty’ tutorials) have roots in other cultures. That said, it’s always important to understand the origin of trends across TikTok and give credit where due. The trend has since had a face-off with ‘Dirty Girl Aesthetic’, with Julia Fox declaring on EmRata’s High Low podcast: "Clean Girl Aesthetic is out." The model added: "It’s about, Dirty Girl." She went on to elaborate in a candid clip uploaded to her page, raising concerns about the said ‘rules’ of TikTok trends. "Just so you guys know, ageing is fully in. Like, fully. Dirty girl. Ugly. Not wearing clothes that fit your body type. Just fully wearing everything you want," she told her followers. @juliafox Ooooo I know this is gonna make the broke boys mad #OLDISIN Now, if we strip it back to basics, remove the label and the aesthetically pleasing TikToks, the ‘beauty ideals’ and bouji products, we’re left with a handful of seemingly unproblematic healthy habits. But, are they really effective as TikTok hypes them up to be – or are they merely a part of yet another internet fad? I spent the last month finding out. Now, I pride myself on being a morning person so 5am starts can't be that challenging, right? Wrong. The 5am club is a simple concept to understand – but much more difficult to carry out. You essentially rise at the ungodly hour in the name of productivity. During your time of solitude, you complete house chores, read, grab some breakfast and journal before starting the working day. Days 1-3 felt like a novelty and were filled with optimism and drive: journalling away, whipping up smoothies and taking long, hot showers. Then came along days 3-5 and my body was crying out for those additional two extra hours in bed. The 'snooze alarm' was being abused – and by day 7, I officially called it a day. I have full respect for the 5am rise and shiners, and admire that it's some people's bag – but it's a solid no from me. I ended up bored and restless. Not to mention, the constant reminder I could do all of these things at the end of the day with the same level of energy. Sadly, the first week of journalling my feelings, thoughts and emotions were dedicated to bitching about how tired I was from the dreaded iPhone alarm. But, once the two hours sleep were added back into my routine, we were onto a winner. It soon transformed into a mini mental health journey, allowing me to really gauge certain triggers and delve into feelings a lot deeper. One of the most surprising and unexpected finds for me was connecting the dots between sleeping and eating habits, prompting me to experiment with foods that perhaps weren't giving me the best time. It also allowed me to set my intentions for the day and helped me to stay on track with different areas of life, including fitness. Being the forgetful – and sometimes erratic – person I am, it really helped me slow down, unwind and actually remind me to follow through my my 'to do' lists. This brings me to Pilates: The latest fitness trend taking social media by storm – thanks to the likes of Hailey Bieber, Lori Harvey and Kourtney Kardashian. Even Harry Styles has been spotted giving the Reformer machine a go. You'll soon be humbled by what appears slow, effortless movements – as I learnt at The Health Lab. "Celebrity fitness secrets used to be kept under lock and key but now the more you share the bigger your community," Faye Bennett, Health Lab's studio manager and instructor told Indy100. "Pilates does come with a certain aesthetic as it is commonly very clean movements which appeal to the eye (disclaimer: it’s not always like that!)." "It is a sustainable style of fitness that you can ultimately do every day with no harm to joints. It’s low impact and the results are truly visible," Faye continues. "The short answer is, it works." Truth is, Pilates is far from a new concept and has been practiced since the 1920s. German-born Joseph Pilates worked as a circus performer, boxer and self-defence instructor in England in his early years, before serving as an orderly in an Isle of Man hospital where he helped patients unable to walk. He did so by attaching bed springs to hospital beds, later birthing the famous apparatus seen in most Pilates studios today. "I invented all these machines... it resists your movements in just the right way so those inner muscles really have to work against it. That way you can concentrate on movement. You must always do it slowly and smoothly. Then your whole body is in it," he famously once explained. Complete with 10 Reformer machines in an aesthetically-pleasing studio in the heart of Manchester, the Health Lab may look like an Instagrammer's playground – but it's much more than pretty pictures. You will put in work, through low-intensity movements that will leave you aching in places you didn't even think possible. Hand-in-hand with incredible instructors, experts and a passion for Pilates, I soon learnt there was much more to the phenomenon that meets the eye. Being a loyal high-intensity exerciser over the years, I initially couldn't wrap my head around how subtle slow-paced movements could make a difference to my body. I couldn't have been any more wrong. After a month of training 3-4 times a week, I noticed improvements in my posture, strength and flexibility. It also had a surprising effect on my mental health– especially when it comes to anxiety – as it really taught me to prioritise and focus on breathing techniques. "There’s an age old saying that 'you’re only as old as your spine,'" Faye says. "Pilates is both restorative and strengthening. It improves your posture and alignment so that when you do work out you can access those deep layers of muscle in charge of building strength from the inside out." Faye explains that the leaner muscles become, the faster the metabolism and protected joints become. "This means you will be less prone to injuries and generally feel more ease as you move. This comes from increased flexibility and mobility. We focus an awful lot on the core in pilates which gives you the ability to hold yourself taller, which takes pressure away from your spine and releases tension enabling a strong healthy spine. A healthy spine makes you feel younger, more agile and stronger." While Reformer Pilates can initially look and feel daunting, sessions are guided by well-informed instructors who are on hand to offer help and modifications suited to everyone's individual needs. It's pretty easy to grasp after just one session. "Just know, if you are finding that pilates burn or feeling a little bit wobbly, the rest of the class is too so you are never alone no matter what your experience level is," Faye adds. While my Clean Girl month failed in some areas (a girl loves her sleep), Pilates and journalling are two new positive additions I'll be taking forward with me. They've provided both mental and physical benefits, by adding routine, clarity and a clearer, more settled mindset overall. Maybe TikTok is onto something, after all. To find out more information about The Health Lab classes, click here. 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.
2023-06-11 22:29
Rosamund Pike warns people are ‘being conned by the wellness industry’
Rosamund Pike has said that the wellness industry is a “con” that is “so seductive” because it claims to fulfil people’s desires such as youth, beauty and fitness. The Gone Girl star, 44, was asked about “satirical mentions” of Gwyneth Paltrow’s wellness platform Goop in her new project, a BBC audio drama titled People Who Knew Me. She said: “I think we’re all being conned by the wellness industry. This idea that it’s no longer enough to be healthy and we have to be ‘well’ is something that needs to be interrogated. “Yet it’s so seductive because it’s in pursuit of things that people are ashamed to want, like youth, beauty and fitness.” Pike reflected on how the MeToo movement “gave women an opportunity to escape some of the demands put on them”, but nearly six years since the movement began, people are now “voluntarily flocking back to being controlled but in a different guise”. “It’s politicised our food, politicised our exercise, and I think it’s really dangerous,” she told the Guardian in an interview published today (Sunday 11 June). Pike’s forthcoming audio drama, which also features Hugh Laurie, follows her character Emily Morris, who uses the 9/11 tragedy to fake her own death and run away to California to assume a new identity as Connie Prynne. According to the BBC, Pike’s character is diagnosed with breast cancer 14 years later and must decide how to explain her secrets to her 13-year-old daughter Claire. In 2021, Pike launched a meditation app called Lumenate, which she claimed could help guide users “into an altered state of consciousness”. As the creative director of the app, she explained on Instagram: “Based on two years of research into the effects of stroboscopic light on brain function, the mobile app uses stroboscopic light sequences from your phone’s flashlight to neurologically guide you into an altered state of consciousness. “All you need in 10 minutes to yourself in a darkened room and the camera light on your phone… I promise. “Since I started using the app during its initial testing phase, I have experienced deep inner awareness through the totally incredible kaleidoscope of colours created by my subconscious.” Read More Sharon Horgan opens up about ‘aftershock’ following daughter’s meningitis scare: ‘There’s definitely PTSD’ Megan Fox hits back at US politician’s claim she ‘forced’ her sons to wear ‘girls clothes’ Oscar de la Renta and deli flowers: Inside Naomi Watts and Billy Crudup’s New York wedding Sharon Horgan opens up about ‘aftershock’ after daughter’s meningitis Jamie Foxx’s rep addresses conspiracy Covid vaccine left actor ‘paralyzed and blind’ Gamer finds indent in head from prolonged headset use after shaving his hair
2023-06-11 21:17
Sharon Horgan opens up about ‘aftershock’ following daughter’s meningitis scare: ‘There’s definitely PTSD’
Sharon Horgan has opened up about having post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after her eldest daughter was diagnosed with meningitis as a baby. The Irish actor, who will star in the forthcoming BBC One drama Best Interests with Michael Sheen, said she drew on the experience in order to play her character in the new series. Horgan’s daughter survived the life-threatening illness, but it left an “aftershock” on her mother. “We were so unbelievably lucky and we know that,” the Bad Sisters star told The Times in a new interview, published today (Sunday 11 June). “But the aftershock – there’s definitely PTSD and I dealt with any of my second daughter’s illnesses with blind panic because you always think, ‘If it can happen, why couldn’t it happen again?’” Both of Horgan’s daughters, Sadhbh and Amer, are now teenagers. She shares them with her ex-husband, Jeremy Rainbird. Best Interests tells the story of Nicci (Horgan), a mother who sues the NHS after doctors decide her Marnie (Niamh Moriarty) should be taken off life support after her condition, muscular dystrophy, deteriorates. Horgan stars opposite Sheen, who plays Nicci’s husband Andrew. In the show, Andrew is torn between his love for Marnie and his unwillingness to support his wife’s case. The friction between Nicci and Andrew shows that they “had a real relationship that has difficulties”, Horgan said. “When things get really, really bad, the accusations are there, a certain amount of finger-pointing, which happens anyway, just even in normal parenting,” she explained. After her divorce from Rainbird in 2019, Horgan said the adjustment to co-parenting made her doubt if she was a good mother. During an appearance on Desert Island Discs in 2020, she told host Lauren Laverne: “I was fun mum for years. I entirely thought that was my role but that changes when you co-parent. “Everything changes and you take on a lot more roles and I am much more practical than I was, and I think that is a positive thing.” She continued: “It had some dips in the middle where I thought, ‘Oh, that thing I thought I was, which was a good mother, I am not entirely sure about’. “When you bring anything like that into your kid’s life it’s tricky, when you turn the roles upside down, but it balances out and everything eased back.” Read More Michael Sheen says he finds it ‘hard to accept’ non-Welsh actors playing Welsh roles Megan Fox hits back at US politician’s claim she ‘forced’ her sons to wear ‘girls clothes’ Duchess of York moved to tears by Princess Eugenie’s baby name tribute Jamie Foxx’s rep addresses conspiracy Covid vaccine left actor ‘paralyzed and blind’ Gamer finds indent in head from prolonged headset use after shaving his hair Wes Anderson reflects on being an ‘old father’
2023-06-11 19:50
Jennifer Lopez rocks vibrant maxi dress as singer goes for lunch with twins Max and Emme in LA
In the spring of 2021, the dancer rekindled her romance with Ben Affleck and tied the knot in Las Vegas in July 2022
2023-06-11 18:58
Today’s Google Doodle reignites age-old British debate about scones
Google is celebrating British scones today (Saturday 10 June) with an adorable Google Doodle that nods to the age-old debate around jam and cream. The illustration features two anthropomorphic scones eyeing each other suspiciously. On top of the scone on the left is a layer of cream, then jam; while the scone on the right has jam first, then cream. The Doodle is a playful reference to one of Britons’ favourite things to debate over – in which order should one put jam and cream on their scones? Cream tea has been a part of the UK’s culinary traditions since the 11th century, but there is a big difference in opinion between people living in Devon and those living in Cornwall. In Devon, clotted cream is typically spread first followed by jam whilst the Cornish tradition is to spread jam first, and then the cream. On Twitter, many keen-eyed Britons have noticed the Google Doodle reference, much to their delight. “They’ve been very diplomatic in depicting it the proper way and misguided way,” one person wrote, adding a winking emoji. Another said: “Looks like today’s Google Doodle is trying to stir up trouble big time.” A third added: “Today’s Google Doodle is not going to go down well in Devon and Cornwall.” Others highlighted yet another scone-related conundrum unique to the UK, which is how to pronounce the word “scone”. Some parts of the UK pronounce it rhyming with “gone”, while others say it should rhyme with “cone”. One person said it should be pronounced “sc-on” because “once you’ve had it… it’s gone”. Another said they use both pronunciations but added: “If I want to sound posh I go for ‘s-cone’.” In 2018, it emerged that the late Queen Elizabeth II enjoyed her cream tea by having jam spread on her scones first, followed by cream. Former royal chef Darren McGrady tweeted: “Jam first at Buckingham Palace garden parties! “The Queen always had homemade Balmoral jam first, with clotted cream on top at Buckingham Palace garden parties in the royal tea tent and all royal tea parties.” Read More Who is Willi Ninja? Google Doodle celebrates iconic Black LGBT+ dancer and choreographer Perfect picnic fare: Parmesan and pine nut scones Best luxury UK hotels 2023: Where to stay for great food, family adventures and spa retreats Google Doodle reignites age-old British debate about scones Sixth grader’s drawing dedicated to her sisters appears as today’s Google Doodle Forest Side, review: Cumbrian produce elevated to Michelin-starred proportions
2023-06-11 16:28