SHIRLEY Ballas isn’t just the top judge on Strictly every weekend – but also has the biggest pay packet.

The TV star’s main firm now has over £1M in the bank and Shirley was earning £1,080-a-day last year. 

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Shirley Ballas has finally become a millionaire[/caption]

BBC

The Strictly star were raking in £1,080-a-day last year[/caption]

BBC

The head judge took the role from Strictly legend Len Goodman in 2017[/caption]

Shirley, 64-year-old joined the show in September 2017 and started the firm Dance With Passion Ltd just over a year later.  

Since then, the firm has seen “cash in the bank” rise to £1,017,649, according to its latest accounts. 

For the financial year up to 31 March 2024, it paid £98,614 corporation tax, which at a 25 per cent rate, suggests she earned just shy of £400k in profit last year. 

She took over as the head judge from Strictly legend Len Goodman who retired from the series. 

It’s thought she earns around £500k from the reality show, while her judging counterparts are on less than half that amount.

Craig Revel-Horwood is the next biggest earner on £200,000, along with Motsi Mabuse, while Anton Du Beke is the newest judge and rakes in £180k. 

Shirley is set to rake in more cash as one of her best selling novels is set to be a TV series. 

She’s sold the rights to Murder on the Dance Floor to a major TV production company, who are turning it into a six-part series.

Shirley said: “It has has been picked up for a series. It’s very exciting.

“I’m not sure on how long it’ll take for it to be made. This is a new project for me and I’ve not done this before, so I don’t know how long it’ll take. But I’m excited.”

In recent weeks, the judges have come under fire for their scoring.

Last weekend, fans accused Shirley of showing favouritism to male celebs.

The comments came after Towie star Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał took to the dance floor.

Addressing the pair afterwards, Shirley said: “A very masculine approach to the Rumba, I like that. With a very feminine lady on the end of your arm.

“I loved all the lifts. There probably shouldn’t have been lifts, should’ve been keeping your feet on the floor.

“But I’m going to let them slide. You picked up – they were excellent in what you did.”

She added: “You isolated the upper-half of your body and you rolled those hips in the figure eight… I was mesmerised.

“I just need a little bit more of that figure of eight everywhere and you would have delighted me.

“That isolation, I’ll be thinking about that for a week!”

Some viewers, however were left unimpressed by Shirley’s assessment.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, one wrote: “Still can’t believe how brutal the judges were on Sam.

“Yet afterwards Shirley says she’ll ignore Pete’s faults & illegal lifts cause she was turned on by ONE hip movement… HOW IS SHE EMPLOYED?!

BBC

Fans accused Shirley of showing favouritism to male celebs[/caption]

BILLY JOEL and STING are two of the biggest names in music and now ticket prices to their upcoming gig have been slashed to a tenner.

The musical heavyweights are set to appear in concert together in Texas US, at the end of the week and now fans can get their hands on a ticket for the bargain price of 14 dollars, the equivalent of £10.80.

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The back have reunited for a string of concert dates across the US[/caption]

Writing on social media, site X, one person commented on the price drop:

One person said: “Every so often it can go the other way where demand will outweigh supply and prices go up. However the majority of shows go down and getting to see 2 legends this cheap is amazing. Hell cheaper to fly here than see him in New York.”

Meanwhile another commented: “Not many things you can do in this economy for less than $14. But seeing 2 legends for that price is insane. You’d never see face value that cheap.”

The highly respected recording artists having been performing a series of concert dates in the US, performing the hits from their incredibly songbooks beloved by fans all over the world.

Meanwhile Billy Joel’s UK fans have been left disconcerted by the ticket prices for  his two UK concert dates next year.

The Uptown Girl hitmaker is returning to British soil for the first time in 50 years performing one show in Edinburgh on 7^th June at Scottish gas Murrayfield and later on 21^st June at the Anfield Stadium in Liverpool.

But with prices around the £150 mark, even for a restricted view and £250 for standing seats, many music fans seemed to be incensed by the prices.

A slew of people reacted to the cost of the tickets on social media soon after they went on sale earlier this month.

One person commented: “Just went to buy Bill Joel Anfield tickets for my boy and his mum. Look at those prices, ffs. £200 for anything decent. Ticket prices are completely out of control.”

Another person added: “Billy Joel has been my staple in my playlists and seeing him is on my bucket list. But I am sorry I am not going broke to see him play live.”

Meanwhile another fumed: “£287 a ticket, you have to be kidding. When will artists turn off platinum pricing.”

This follows the fiasco over Oasis tour tickets rocketed to as high as £355 due to ticketmasters dynamic pricing system, which increases prices as demand increases.

Oasis fans have since expressed their frustration on social media sites, saying they feel exploited by the system and have been priced out of the game.

The latest fiasco comes after Ticketmaster’s ‘dynamic pricing system’ sparked outrage, with prices for Oasis’ tour tickets soaring as high as £355.

But having booked Billy Joel to play the Murrayfield Gas Stadium in Edinburgh with a capacity of 67,000, sponders and promoters are clearly confident that the music legend can put bums on seats.

Considered to one of the greatest musicians of all time, Billy Joel has sold 160 million records worldwide, many of his songs becoming cultural and personal touchstones for people.

As well as being an accomplished pianist, Joel has also written all this own songs, including his signature tune, Piano Man, Uptown Girl, Just the way you are and The Longest time and many more.

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The pair of legends are great friends and enjoy performing together[/caption]

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Each performing from their impressive songbooks, the music compliments each other[/caption]

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Billy Joel is coming to the UK next summer for two exclusive concert dates but fans are concerned over ticket prices[/caption]

THE University of Texas was embarrassed in multiple ways against Georgia this weekend.

No. 1 Texas was taken down by No. 5 Georgia this weekend, and some fans couldn’t handle watching their team lose.

Reuters

The University of Texas lost to Georgia on Saturday[/caption]

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Texas fans threw trash on the field after a penalty call in the third quarter[/caption]

After a call was made against Texas late in the third quarter, longhorn fans started throwing trash onto the field in the direction of players.

Eventually, during the commotion, the referees reversed the call on the field, which Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said set a “precedent.”

“I won’t comment because I want to respect the wishes of the SEC office,” Smart said.

“But I will say now we have a precedent that if you throw a bunch of stuff on the field and endanger athletes, that you’ve got a chance to get your call reversed.”

The SEC confirmed in a statement that it was the correct call to pick up the flag, but condemned Texas fans for their reaction.

“While the original evaluation and assessment of the penalty was not properly executed, it is unacceptable to have debris thrown on the field at any time,” the league said.

Texas is being fined $250,000 because of the incident and must use its resources to track down students who threw trash on the field to suspend them.

The school is also at risk of having alcohol sales suspended at their stadium.

After the fallout from the incident, Texas president Jay Hartzell sent a scathing letter to students at the University..

“I am reaching out to all UT students to deliver a message that will be unwelcome to some, but necessary,” the letter read.

“Throwing debris onto the field for any reason, including expressing displeasure with an officiating call, poses a safety risk to everyone on the field and is entirely unacceptable behavior.

“Late in the third quarter, a sizable number of our students endangered others and embarrassed Longhorn Nation by throwing bottles and trash onto the field.

“This was only our third conference game as a new member of the SEC, so our fellow SEC institutions are just getting to know us.

“These actions made a bad early impression on Georgia and our new conference colleagues, and harmed your University’s reputation before a national audience.”

Even famous Texas fan Matthew McConaughey released a statement to Longhorn fans about their behavior.

“First off, you were electric Saturday night when we hosted Georgia. Bravo. Let’s continue to bring it. Even though our Horns didn’t get the W, you created a measurable home-field advantage,” he wrote.

“But let’s get real about the bottle bombing the field glitch we had. Not cool.

“Bogey move. Yeah, that call was BS, but we’re better than that.

“Longhorn Nation knows how to show up, show out like no other, and still keep our class.

“So, going forward, let’s clean that kind of BS up and leave that behind us for good. We have to shake hands on that.”

Texas faces off in another SEC matchup against Vanderbilt on Saturday.

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Texas was hit with massive fines and other reprimands for the incident[/caption]

PHIL TAYLOR has hinted that he will sign up to a major ITV show.

Taylor confirmed his retirement from darts at the age of 64 earlier today.

Rex

Phil Taylor announced his retirement from darts[/caption]

Alamy

He revealed he is open to appearing on a major ITV show[/caption]

Speaking on talkSPORT, the Power said: “I’m retired now, properly retired. I’m just going to do some personal appearances.

“How do I know? My eyes started going a few years ago then my hip went and then the travelling.

“You’re away from home four-five days a week and it’s good for money but it’s not good for your family.

“My mind is still in my teens but my body is 90.”

However, he also addressed rumours that he would be entering hit ITV show I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here this year.

Taylor shut down the rumours regarding his participation this year, but did not rule out the possibility.

He said: “I’d be interested but not this year, it’s too late.

“Someone mentioned I was the favourite in the bookies but I said ‘I have no idea how’.”

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Taylor was hoping to step away from the oche for good after November’s World Seniors Darts Masters.

However, a hip problem following surgery in the summer forced him to pull withdraw.

Taylor also revealed he had been given the chance to tutor teen sensation Luke Litter.

He added: “With young Luke, they have asked me if I would sit down with him. I said: ‘Of course, I will.’

“But I would have to go and live with him for a few days, see what he is all about.

“I know young Luke, we have the same sponsor. If I spent time with him, I would see how he practises, see how he eats and exercises, how he does anything.

“If he’s playing on those PlayStation’s, I would give him a set time, an hour a night or something, and then get ready for the next day.

“Make sure you aren’t staying up late and wake up in the morning and you are shattered.

“I have seen that many, many times – players who will have a drink afterwards, they get into the drinking and then they aren’t getting to bed until 1am or 2am.”

Taylor is the most successful darts player of all time, with 214 tournament wins across his career including 14 World Championships, 11 World Grand Prix and 16 World Matchplay titles.

Rex

Taylor has said he is willing to join I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here![/caption]

LUKE LITTLER has had to issue a warning to his followers after a rise in fake accounts scamming his fans out of cash.

The 17-year-old darts sensation took to social media to tell his fans to be wary of the scammers online.

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Luke Littler has had to warn his fans over scammers online[/caption]

Littler has seen his profile within darts explode since bursting onto the scene at the World Championships back in January.

And after riding his wave of sensational form, Littler’s fanbase has continued to grow at an exponential rate.

However, with that has come a small group of scammers who are trying to take advantage of his loyal fans by ripping them off online.

Littler highlighted to his followers on X that accounts have been claiming to sell signed merchandise by the teenager, only to take the money from his fans and never send them anything in return.

In a warning on the social media platform, Littler wrote: “Wanted to share this with you guys as I have been seeing a lot of fake profiles being created of me and my management online.

“These fake accounts, like the two screenshots, have been scamming people and taking their money in return for merch that they then don’t get sent.”

One of the examples shared by The Nuke was a signed and framed shirt that was being sold for £50 under the guise of a an email address that was pretending to be Littler’s management.

A seperate post from Littler pleaded with his fans to report any more posts they spot that appear to be selling fake merchandise.

X @LukeTheNuke180

Littler shared screenshots of some of the fake accounts[/caption]

X @LukeTheNuke180

One scammer was charging £50 for a framed shirt[/caption]

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Littler has just come off the back of some of his best ever darts this week, despite leaving the Czech Darts Open empty handed.

The youngster put up aveages in excess of 110 for THREE consecutive matches as he made the semi-final of the competition.

But ultimately crashed out to familiar foe Luke Humphries who went on to win the competition in Prague.

Away from the Oche things are certainly looking good for Littler too as he confirmed he will be taking part in a special episode of iconic TV show Bullseye.

A WINN-Dixie shopper managed to turn a $30 purchase into a $1 million prize – before thousands of dollars vanished.

Edwin Scroggin came up trumps after buying a scratch-off ticket from a supermarket in Lake City, Florida – around 105 miles from the state capital Tallahassee.

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A player scooped a $1 million prize but lost thousands before walking away with the cash[/caption]

Florida Lottery

The player won the second highest prize on the 300X The Cash game[/caption]

He landed the second-highest prize on the 300X The Cash game, defying odds of one in around 1.95 million and winning $1 million in the process.

But Scroggin faced a choice on how he would like to receive his winnings, per the Florida Lottery.

He opted to walk away with a hefty sum of $695,500.

But the choice that he made meant that more than $300,000 vanished from the amount.

Lotto chiefs revealed that seven prizes worth $1 million are still unclaimed.

Players should check their scratch-off tickets as two prizes worth $15 million each are yet to be claimed.

The game’s prizes range from $30 to $15 million, and the odds of winning are around one in 2.93.

Gamblers who scoop more than $5,000 must pay around 24% in tax to the Internal Revenue Service.

However, Florida is one of the handful of states that do not tax lottery winnings at the state level.

California and Texas are also among the states on that list.

Jackpot winners can choose to receive their prize in a lump sum or in installments, known as an annuity.

The annuity is paid out over three decades, and each payment tends to increase by around 5%.

Financial advisers have warned how gamblers who take the lump sum could be hurled into the highest tax bracket, as revealed by Money Fit.

Those who win billions of dollars could face an income tax bill of up to 37%.

Then, they may have to pay a portion of their winnings through state taxation.

Gamblers in New York must pay more than 10% on their fortune.

Wealth advisers have shared the benefits of taking both the lump sum and annuity, but the question has sparked debate.

Financial expert Robert Pagliarini told The U.S. Sun that winners who opt to take the lump sum have to be extra wary of making mistakes.

“The real advantage of [taking] the annuity is that every year you get a new check,” he said.

Last year, Jared James, who created the lotto algorithm Lotto Edge, revealed taking the annuity is among the top five moves winners should make.

He explained it can be easier for players to refuse requests for money simply because they don’t have it in their accounts.

James also revealed having a smaller amount in accounts can make it easier to plan ahead and is less overwhelming.

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NORMA Novelli recorded her conversations with Lyle Menendez before leaking them ahead of his second trial. 

The leak caused chaos in the Menendez brothers’ court battle, which was dramatized in Ryan Murphy’s Monsters. Here’s everything you need to know about Norma. 

Amazon

AP: Associated Press

In-depth conversations with Lyle

Although not much is known about Norma’s life before the trial, we do know that Lyle Menendez believed that she would collaborate with him on a book about his life. 

According to the blurb of that book, Norma published a newsletter called Mind’s Eye and lived in Toluca, California. 

She recorded several tapes with Lyle for the book and he trusted her enough to open up about his innermost thoughts and feelings.

However, the tapes leaked before the trial, causing chaos in the legal proceedings. 

In Ryan Murphy’s Monsters, this prevents Lyle from testifying in the second trial and forces his lawyer, Jill Lansing, to quit. 

Norma is played by Natalie Taylor Gray in the Netflix series. 

However, real-life events differed from the version shown in Monsters as the leak didn’t actually prevent Lyle from testifying. 

In reality, Lyle chose not to testify after Norma sold the tapes. 

After Jill stepped back from the case, death penalty litigation expert Charles Gessler stepped up to save the brothers from execution. 

Ultimately, he was successful, though they were both sentenced to life in prison without parole. 

The tapes were eventually used to write a book called The Private Diary of Lyle Menendez in His Own Voice.

The book was a collaborative effort between Norma and Mike Walker.

The blurb claims to give readers an “intimate, sensational peek” into Lyle’s mind as he confides in a “middle-aged single mother”. 

It even suggests that Norma was “ensnared by Lyle”, who it claims said “everybody who meets me, loves me”.

AP: Associated press

The Menendez brothers’ crime

On August 20, 1989, the Menendez brothers murdered their parents Kitty and José in their family home. 

The brothers phoned the police and pretended that they had just come home to find their parents dead, before going on to live a lavish lifestyle with their inheritance. 

They were later arrested for their crime after Erik confessed to Dr Jerome Oziel, his therapist, whose mistress, Judalon Smyth, informed the police of what had happened.

Their first trial quickly became a media circus, while also being broadcast on Court TV to homes across America. 

The brothers alleged during the trial that they had been victims of sexual abuse at the hands of their father.

A hung jury forced the case to go to a retrial, with the tapes recorded by Norma adding to the chaos. 

Despite the efforts of the brothers’ lawyer Leslie Abramson, they were jailed for their crime.

AP: Associated Press

Netflix and the Menendez brothers

Interest in the Menendez brothers surged when Ryan Murphy’s Netflix drama Monsters landed on the platform. 

A documentary named The Menendez Brothers followed, which featured interviews with the brothers themselves. 

Since then, there have been calls for the brothers’ release which are even being echoed by celebrities including Kim Kardashian. 

A LITTLE-KNOWN trainer from Newcastle is eyeing up a life-changing £2.5million winner in one of the world’s most famous races after his superstar horse demolished his sorry Aussie rivals.

The aptly named Onesmoothoperator made mincemeat of the oppo in the £200,000 Group 3 Geelong Cup down under, booking his place in the Melbourne Cup.

PA:Press Association

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Onesmoothoperator already won the Pitman’s Derby at Newcastle earlier this year[/caption] https://x.com/Racing/status/1848957194730905975

The six-year-old has already given his Geordie trainer the season of dreams when winning the local Pitman’s Derby (Northumberland Plate) at Newcastle earlier this season on Ellison’s birthday.

And he has been now been smashed into 12-1 from 33-1 to land the race that stops a nation on November 5.

Speaking to Racing.com, Ellison said: “I’ve been here a few times and had a few bits of bad luck, but this horse has been brilliant.

“He came over, he put weight on during the trip over, and Matt Brown, who rides him every day, has been great.

“He’s not your normal stayer, he’s got loads of speed and he’s always had a good turn of foot.

“I kept saying to the owner [Patrick Boyle] that we had to go to Australia. The owner loves his racing and I said you have to go to Australia at this time of year, it’s fantastic.

“I said this horse has a good chance if we get into the Cup.”

Following his absolute demolishment of his Australian rivals in the Geelong Cup, X, formerly known as Twitter, began to get steamy.

One punter said: “Very good performance Lee, made hacks of them in the Geelong race…but what does it say about the Aussie staying ranks. And how would he go versus Vauban, Jan Breughel et al!”

Another added: “Lovely horse, great trainer, but Aussie racing…”

And an Ellison fan said: “Wow! What a performance by Onesmoothoperator!

“Thrilled for Brian Ellison and the team.”

Unlike many people in racing Ellison, born on Pitman’s Derby day in 1952, had no background in racing.

One of eight children, his father worked as a Tyneside ship builder and his mother a cleaner in the local Newcastle hospital.

Always obsessed by sport Ellison stared out life desperate to make it as a professional footballer, but at 4ft 9″ he was deemed too small and so turned his attentions to becoming a jockey.

At 14, he sat on his first horse and a year later he abandoned school to pursue a career in racing, taking out his license at 17.

After 20 years in the saddle riding National Hunt horses, Ellison took out his trainer’s license and has, since 1988, racked up over a thousand winners.

With over a hundred horses – both flat and jumps – the Yorkshire-based trainer is as experienced as they come, and is no stranger to travelling his horses to Australia either.

Carte Diamond ran impressively well in the Caulfield Cup in 2005 but was subsequently ruled out of the Melbourne Cup due to injury.

He also trained the iconic chaser Definitely Red, who won 14 races and ran in both the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand national.

And now he could add an absolute whopper to his trophy cabinet, but he must first surpass Aidan O’Brien’s Jan Breughel and Willie Mullins’ Vauban.

Melbourne Cup odds

Jan Brueghel 9/2
Buckaroo 5/1
Vauban 8/1
Onesmoothoperator 11/1
Duke De Sessa 12/1
Land Legend 14/1
Zardozi 25/1

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Remember to gamble responsibly

A responsible gambler is someone who:

• Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
• Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
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Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.

DONOVAN Goodreau was a friend of Lyle Menendez before he testified in court about his former pal’s murder charge. 

The trial was watched across America and interest in Erik and Lyle’s case has surged after it was dramatized by Ryan Murphy in his Netflix series Monsters. Here’s everything you need to know about Donovan.

AP: Associated Press

Court TV

Lyle’s college friend

Very little is known about Donovan before he testified at the Menendez brothers’ trial, except for the fact that he met Lyle at Princeton University. 

In court, he opened up about his own experiences with child sexual abuse and claimed to have discussed this with Lyle. 

He also claimed that Lyle did not discuss his own abuse that he had allegedly suffered by his father.

In Ryan Murphy’s Monsters, he is played by Anthony Turpel and confirms that Lyle opened up to him about the abuse. 

In reality, an account of Donovan saying that he did hear about José’s abuse of Lyle later surfaced, which weakened his credibility. 

The Menendez brothers

On August 20, 1989, the Menendez brothers murdered their parents Kitty and José in their family home. 

The brothers then claimed that they had just come home to find their parents dead, while the police speculated that they might have been the victims of a mob killing. 

Erik and Lyle lived a lavish lifestyle using their parents inheritance, with Erik hiring a private tennis coach and Lyle buying a buffalo wing shop.

The brothers also baffled friends and relatives when they played Milli Vanilli’s Girl I’m Gonna Miss You at their parents’ funeral.

They were later arrested for their crime after Erik confessed to Dr Jerome Oziel, his therapist, who told his mistress Judalon Smyth.

Judalon then went to the police.

Their first trial was broadcast to homes across America by Court TV and gripped the nation. 

The brothers alleged in court that they had been victims of sexual abuse at the hands of their father and said that fear for their own safety motivated their killing.

A hung jury forced the case to go to a retrial.

Despite the efforts of the brothers’ lawyer Leslie Abramson, they were handed life sentences without the possibility of parole.

AP: Associated Press

Netflix and the Menendez brothers

Interest in the Menendez brothers surged after Ryan Murphy’s Netflix drama Monsters landed on the streaming platform. 

The series, starring Cooper Koch as Erik and Nicholas Alexander Chavez as Lyle, dramatized the events of the two brothers’ lives.

A documentary called The Menendez Brothers followed, which featured interviews with the brothers themselves. 

This led to a wave of support for the brothers, with celebrities including Kim Kardashian calling for their release.

EXPERTS have warned of a surge of deadly cancers fuelled by smoking, drinking and oral sex in England.

Scientists from the University of Sheffield analysed data from 2013 to 2020 and found a significant increase in the cancers – with one type in particular seeing a 47 per cent rise in diagnoses.

Macmillan Cancer Support

Head and neck cancer can affect the mouth, lips, voicebox, throat, nose, sinuses and salivary glands[/caption]

Head and neck cancer is a general term used to describe cancers that start in the tissues in these areas.

There are more than 30 parts the head and neck where cancer can develop.

These include the mouth, lips, voicebox, throat, nose, sinuses and salivary glands.

Signs of the cancers can range from persistent ulcers to a sore tongue or a hoarse voice that doesn’t go away.

According to the NHS, there are about 12,400 new cases of head and neck cancer diagnosed every year.

A new report penned by University of Sheffield scientists in collaboration with the Department of Health and Social Care warned of a significant increase in cancers in England over the last few years.

It found that 10,735 cases of head and neck cancer were reported in England in 2019, just before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Data suggested that the upwards trend continued into 2021, with over 11,000 new cases recorded

The report suggested that deaths from head and neck cancer were also rising.

Some 3,469 people died of head and neck cancers in 2020, an increase from 3,313 deaths reported in 2019.

And while mortality rates for most other cancers fell during the pandemic, those for head and neck cancer continued to increase in 2020.

Scientists said the surge these diseases was largely driven by an uptick in oropharyngeal cancer, which starts in the part of the throat just behind the mouth and includes tonsil cancer and cancer in the back of the tongue.

Figures show there were 3,834 new cases of oropharyngeal cancer in 2019, a 47 per cent increase from 2013.

According to the report, men were twice as likely to have head and neck cancer compared to women.

People living in the poorest areas of England were also almost twice as likely to be diagnosed, compared to those in wealthier areas.

More than half (53 per cent) of cases were diagnosed at late stage.

Head and neck cancers are now the sixth most common cancer group in the UK, report authors said.

What’s causing the surge?

Rates of these cancers have increased for multiple reasons, according to researchers, including smoking and alcohol consumption.

“Tobacco and alcohol consumption, both separately and in combination, are established risk factors for head and neck cancer,” the report stated.

They referred to research conducted by the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology consortium, which found that tobacco smokers who never drank alcohol were more than two times more likely to get head and neck cancer than those who didn’t smoke or drink.

Similar odds were observed in heavy boozers who had three or more drinks per day but never smoked tobacco.

Smoking and drinking together can make someone five times more likely to develop head and neck cancer, compared with those who only drink alcohol and don’t smoke, authors added.

“Tobacco smoking risks appear to be greatest for laryngeal cancers,
whereas increased alcohol consumption may have a higher magnitude of risk for oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers,” they said.

HPV – which stands for human papillomavirus – is another risk factor for head and neck cancer.

This is a group of viruses affecting the skin that don’t cause problems for most people but can develop genital warts or cancer – their link to cervical cancer is well documented.

But certain high risk strains of HPV can also cause anal, penile, vulval and vaginal cancer, as well as some types of head and neck cancer.

“There has been an increase in the number of HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancers in the last two decades, particularly in males,” the report authors noted.

HPV is passed on through close skin-to-skin contact during sex, as well as vaginal, anal and oral sex, the NHS says.

Aside from practising safe sex, one of the best ways to get protection from the group of viruses is through the HPV vaccine.

Previously offered only to girls, the HPV shot is now available to all 12- and 13-year-olds, regardless of gender, providing a vital defence against cancer.

Anyone who may have missed their chance to be vaccinated in their early teens can also participate in a free catch-up programme available to girls under 25 and boys born after September 1, 2006.

Ali Khurram, a professor and honorary consultant pathologist at the University of Sheffield, said: “There is poor awareness of the disease and the causative factors. We are seeing these cancers in much younger patients now.

“A significant proportion of the increase can be attributed to HPV infection (tonsil cancer), but the majority remain linked to smoking or tobacco chewing and alcohol, which are being increasingly used.

“Poor oral health and socioeconomic factors also contribute to the increased incidence.

“We also have an increasingly ageing population, who are at a much higher risk of getting these cancers.”

Signs of head and neck cancer

The term ‘head and neck cancer’ covers a wide variety of disease types, so symptoms will vary according to where the cancer starts.

If cancerous cells spread to nearby areas, such as lymph nodes in the neck, this can also cause different symptoms.

Macmillan Cancer Support advises you speak to your dentist or GP if you have any of the following symptoms:

1. An ulcer anywhere in the mouth area, including your tongue, lasting for more than three weeks
2. A red patch (erythroplakia) or red and white patch (erythroleukoplakia) anywhere inside the mouth
3. A white patch on its own (leukoplakia) anywhere inside the mouth
4. A lump in the neck that does not go away after two to three weeks
5. A lump on the lip or anywhere inside the mouth that doesn’t go away
6. A sore tongue that is not getting better
7. Throat pain, persistent hoarseness and difficulty swallowing that’s not improving

Any of the symptoms can be caused by conditions other than cancer.

But it’s important to have them checked by your GP or dentist – especially if they don’t go away or are getting worse.

Other signs of the cancers can include pain, discomfort or bleeding in the mouth and nosebleeds; swelling around the neck, ears, jawbone, cheeks or eyes; a blocked nose on one side that doesn’t clear; bad breath that doesn’t improve; difficulty or pain with chewing, swallowing or speaking; and losing weight for no obvious reason.

‘Support early detection’

Prof Khurram said: “Head and neck cancer can have a devastating effect on the lives of people with the disease and their families.

“Although head and neck cancer is one of the most common cancers in England with a significantly worse survival compared to other cancers, its awareness among the public, health professionals and funding organisations is poor.

“This report, which is the first of its kind, provides the opportunity to galvanise action to reverse these worrying trends.”

Zoe Marshman, a professor of dental public health at the University of Sheffield and lead author of the report, added: “This report shows head and neck cancer is on the increase with stark inequalities across the country and an apparent north/south divide.

“People living in deprived areas are much more likely to be diagnosed with oral, oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancers and to be diagnosed at a late stage which makes treatment more difficult and survival less likely.

“To address these will require national and local government, NHS organisations and charities to work together to reduce the risk factors for head and neck cancer – such as tobacco use, alcohol consumption and HPV vaccine uptake – which are all things that individuals can struggle to change without help.

“Improved access to health services including local NHS dentistry is one key way to support early detection.”