Cocoa Prices Hit Record High, Signaling Bad News For Chocolate Lovers
David Hogg is running for DNC vice chair: First on ABC
NYPD recovers massive drone found abandoned in Brooklyn
Sky Sports legend Chris Kamara announces shock commentary comeback to reunite with icon after three-year health battle
CHRIS KAMARA will make his return to commentary on Boxing Day after a health battle.
The former Swindon and Brentford midfielder, 66, left his role on Sky Sports in 2022 after being diagnosed with an underactive thyroid.
https://twitter.com/chris_kammy/status/1868715706231226827 Kamara will reunite with Sky colleague Jeff Stelling[/caption]He developed speech apraxia and the impact on his mental health was so great that he revealed he had even considered taking his own life.
Now Kammy has revealed he’ll return pitchside for Prime Video on December 26 alongside his old Sky colleague Jeff Stelling.
The beloved TV personality will be covering the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Tottenham at City Ground.
He shared on X: “Best phone call ever this afternoon inviting me to do the Forest v Spurs game on Boxing Day – reporting back to the Unbelievable @JeffStelling in the studio.
“I thought I was done, so it’s a big thank you Amazon – I’m back.”
Chris worked as a presenter and football analyst at Sky Sports from 1992 to 2022 before being forced to quit.
His voice is improving thanks to treatment in Mexico.
And while he is not yet back to full health, he is on the road to recovery.
Kamara said in an interview this summer: “I’ve been there twice now [Mexico]. I’m going back for a third time.
“I’ve got the fluency in my speech. The only thing I haven’t got is the speed of old, I know I talk 300 miles an hour before, but I’d like that back if I can.
“So I’m going back for more treatment.”
Supermarket giant slashes costs of Quality Street tubs to less than £4 & it’s the cheapest around
A SUPERMARKET has slashed the price of Quality Streets to less than £4 – and it’s the cheapest place to get them this Christmas.
Sainsbury’s has massively reduced the cost of the festive chocolate favourites, and you can grab your tub right now.
Sainsbury’s has taken down the price of Quality Streets to only £3.95 as a Nectar price[/caption]Sainsbury’s has taken that down to only £3.95 as a Nectar price in the best deal for UK shoppers at the moment.
Without the Nectar saving, shoppers would have to hand over £6 for the Christmas staple.
This pockets you a saving of £2.05 in the expensive run up to the holidays.
Shoppers are encouraged to get to their nearest Sainsbury’s as soon as they can in time for Christmas, as there is a limited-time offer on the tubs.
You have until 31 December until the offer ends, so if you want those chocolates for New Year, you’ll have to act fast.
Shoppers are reminded to compare other prices at different supermarkets, and that they will probably drop even more as the big day approaches.
Comparing prices is as easy as checking the different websites online to see what they are charging before you make your pick.
QUALITY STREET DEALS
Elsewhere, other supermarkets are offering similar savings this Christmas, as reported by The Sun.
Bargain supermarket Lidl has reduced that further to just £4 until December 11.
Shoppers can access the deal on the Lidl app right now – it’s free to download and sign up.
You’ll need to buy two though to get the low price. The offer is two for £8 on any of the tubs, bringing it down to the lower price.
Currently, supermarkets such as Tesco, Asda, and Sainsbury’s are charging £6 for the popular Christmas tub.
Aldi was also selling the product for £4.49 but this deal has now ended.
Money-Saving Tips from Gemma Bird: Save £2k Before Christmas
IF youre' looking to save cash, you've come to the right place, as here, Gemma Bird has shared her top tips that'll save you £2k before Christmas.
- Set a budget: Track your spending and create a realistic budget.
- Cut unnecessary costs: Cancel unused subscriptions and avoid impulse buys.
- Meal planning: Plan meals to reduce grocery bills and avoid takeaways.
- Sell unwanted items: Declutter and sell items online for extra cash.
- Cashback and discounts: Use cashback sites and hunt for discount codes.
- DIY gifts: Make personalised gifts to save money and add a personal touch.
- Pick up a seasonal shift: A really easy way to pick up a bit of extra cash in the winter is to find yourself some seasonal work.
Follow these practical tips from Gemma Bird to boost your savings before the festive season!
Asda is selling a brand new refill pack of the Nestle-made chocolates for just £5.
These bags contain 750g of Quality Street chocolate, 150g more than the typical 600g tub available this year and have become available for the first time at all major supermarkets.
However, the refill bag costs just £5 (66p per 100g) at Asda – £1 less than 600g tubs.
The bags include an assortment of individually wrapped milk and dark chocolates, toffees, the famous Green Triangle and The Purple One.
You can purchase them in-store and online at all Asda supermarkets.
The same refill bags cost £5.50 for those with a Nectar card at Sainsbury’s, or £6 for those without – the same price as the 600g tubs.
Large refill bags cost £6 for customers with a Clubcard at Tesco or £7 for those without. Their 600g tubs cost £6 for all customers.
Asda is selling a brand new refill pack of the Nestle-made chocolates for just £5[/caption] Quality Streets have long been a staple of the Christmas season[/caption]Emma Raducanu admits she ‘wasn’t prepared’ for luxury £9million sponsorship deals that impacted her tennis
EMMA RADUCANU says her tennis results were impacted by off-field commercial activities following the fairytale US Open win.
When she incredibly became Queen of New York aged 18 in September 2021, Raducanu became a multimillionaire overnight – and a marketing man’s dream.
Brands such as British Airways, Dior, HSBC, Porsche, Tiffany & Co and Vodafone chucked enormous amounts of cash in her direction.
But in return, they all wanted her time in front of the cameras, so they could place her image on billboards and TV ads.
Three years on, Raducanu – one of the top-10 highest-earning female athletes around – now realises how much it disrupted her ability to balance training and matches.
Raducanu, 22, said: “I’m obviously very grateful and fortunate to have had certain experiences and opportunities but I wasn’t prepared for it.
“You know, in my head it was like: ‘Okay, I wake up, I play tennis. I go to the gym. I go home and I don’t have anything else to do’.
“Especially straight after I did really well, for the next few years, it was very much like there was so much communication about things off the court. And I would always, always give my 100 per cent on the court.
“I was always working really hard but I just think that I wasn’t prepared as well for the other things that inevitably do take some energy out of you.
“I think now I’m a lot more structured. I’ll be like: ‘Okay, I have this time where one hour we will talk about business. And now I’m going to train for the rest of the week’. Also I think I’ve learned how to say no a bit more.
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“Initially I felt really bad for letting people down. I’d always want to do extra for whatever partner or magazine or whatever I’m shooting for.
“I’d always want to do extra if they wanted to do another half day. I would do it and I’d fit it in around my schedule. I would put my practices early and then do that in the afternoon.
“Look, if it’s a last-minute thing, I’m always going to try and do my best to give extra to the brands I’m working with.
“Especially since I had a year off pretty much with injuries. But also just putting myself first a little bit more.”
This Friday, Raducanu flies to New Zealand – with new fitness trainer Yutaka Nakamura – to begin her prep for the 2025 season, which she hopes is free from injuries and knocks.
Christmas Day will be spent on an Auckland beach rather than in the wintry cold of London but that is the life of a top-end tennis player.
Raducanu, ranked 57th in the world, said: “My best friend lives in Auckland.
“The last two years I’ve been with her and her family, and we go up north an hour.
Different Christmas
She has a little beach hut. It’s different. It’s like a hot Christmas with a barbecue on the beach.
“It’s just different for someone who grew up in London. December in London is my favourite time of year.
“But I guess I’m just gonna make peace for the next 10 or 15 years and then I’ll come back and have a cold Christmas.”
Raducanu has recently dealt with a few bumps as she had her beloved Porsche “taken back” by the luxury car manufacturers.
The Bromley star owned a £125,000 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet, with a top speed of 192mph, which was her pride and joy.
And Raducanu was warned she risks losing all of her £9m sponsorship deals unless she starts winning again.
Outnumbered kids look very different as cast reunite for first TV appearance in EIGHT years ahead of Christmas special
THE Outnumbered kids are all grown up as they reunited for their first TV appearance in EIGHT years.
The Brockman family will return to screens this Christmas for a festive one-off special as we catch up on the family’s latest shenanigans.
The cast of Outnumbered have reunited on screen for the first time in eight years[/caption] Now real-life couple as Claire Skinner and Hugh Dennis[/caption] Outnumbered first debuted 17 years ago[/caption]Ahead of the highly-anticipated episode, Hugh Dennis, Claire Skinner and their telly kids Tyger Drew-Honey, Daniel Roche and Ramona Marquez all appeared on The One Show.
Vastly different from their child-like early days, they teased big changes for the popular family.
Claire – who plays mum Sue, teased: “Well we find that they’ve downsized, they’re now living in a smaller house because the kids have moved out.
“However, they are grandparents so we find them at Christmas welcoming their family back and an extra member of the family.”
When asked if the kids are still testing their parents, Daniel Roche said: “I don’t know, I think it’s quite hard to keep parents on their toes as much as eight-year-old Ben was, it was that level of meance… I don’t know if I could even replicate that.”
But you’re a little bit older and we’re starting to gravitate to that point where the kids are actually trying to start help out and support the parents.”
Actor Hugh, 62, then jokingly interjected: “What, you’re saying we’re slightly infirm?!”
Tyger Drew-Honey, whose character Jake is now a dad, hinted he’ll grow closer to his own dad in the Christmas special.
He explained: “I think there’s certainly an aspect of Jake having become a dad and suddenly relating to his parents a bit more and like ‘oh my gosh this is what you guys had to go through, I feel for you and I’m sorry’ sort of thing.
“I think that allows Jake to see his parents as more so real people and not just these invincible figures in his life that are there to give him care but actually he’s about to go through the same chaotic few years as them.”
Outnumbered first aired in 2007 and ran until 2014 with five series produced.
A one-off Christmas special was broadcast on 26th December in 2016 so fans have been eagerly awaiting this reunion.
The BBC dropped the first-look trailer for the new episode sharing a glimpse of what’s to come.
Initially the show garnered critical acclaim for being partly improvised by stars Hugh and Claire, who also worked from scripts, where the children were given last minute instructions.
The series was praised for its realistic portrayal of children and family life and has won several awards including The Royal Television Society, the British Comedy Awards and the Broadcasting press guild awards.
Since we last saw Hugh and Claire on screen together, the pair have become a real-life couple.
Latest TV Show Axings
All of the shows we've said goodbye to this year:
- The Masked Dancer, ITV
- Scarlett Moffatt’s Driving School, BBC
- The Lazarus Project, Sky
- Better, BBC
- Dance Monsters, Netflix
- Laura Whitmore & Oti Mabuse’s weekend shows, ITV
- Ross Kemp’s 72 Hours In…, Channel 5
- Rise and Fall, Channel 4
- Dead Boy Detectives, Netflix
- Celeb Cooking School, E4
- The Grand Tour, Prime Video
- James May’s Our Man In, Prime Video
- Ninja Warrior UK, ITV
- The Gathering, Channel 4
- Kaos, Netflix
Madame Blanc star ‘traumatised’ as cast forced to wear heavy Christmas costumes in 40 degree heat for festive special
A Madame Blanc has joked that she was left traumatised after the cast was forced to wear heavy Christmas costumes in 40-degree heat while filming the festive special.
Coronation Street legend Sally Lindsay returns to Sainte Victoire as Jean White – an antique dealer and sleuth who is now all loved up with her partner Dom Hayes, played by Benidorm’s Steve Edge.
Madame Blanc star Sally Lindsay and its all-star cast[/caption] The cast are back in the Christmas special and the new series[/caption]The pair found romance at the end of the last series, set in France.
Now, as the special airs on Christmas Eve, viewers will see them exchanging thoughtful presents.
They are interrupted by a phone call from the Chief of Police André Caron, played by Death In Paradise‘s Alex Gaumond, who reveals there has been a murder at the Christmas market.
Wearing woollen festive jumpers at the peak of summer, Sally revealed they sweltered as they filmed the scenes.
She said: “We filmed it at 40° in August—it was one of the hottest days on record.”
“There were a lot of people in the cast wearing jumpers, bless them.
“It’s bizarre but I’m used to filming Christmas in the summer and then you put it away and you forget about it – like the real thing.
“Christmas comes around but twice a year for me.”
Co-writer Sue Vincent added: “It’s really surreal.
“Christmas in the sunshine is a bit of a funny thing, but I think we’ve got used to it, seeing the tree up in the square.
“As for the heat, nothing will ever top the Christmas cracker costume. That left me with trauma,
“I sweated in places I never thought possible.
“I thought I was being clever because I chose a sleeveless costume, but I didn’t realise it was made of foil. It’s the nearest I will
ever get to running a marathon.
“I learnt my lesson and, this year, Gloria’s just got some lit-up Deely boppers that don’t cause excess sweating.”
In the opening scenes, the murder takes place in a market, where father-and-son puppeteers Frederick and Christian are spotted laughing and drinking mulled wine.
“Last year we went for a Cluedo murder-mystery theme so, this time, we’ve gone all-out festive.
“It’s Dom and Jean’s first Christmas, so that’s all very sweet but, of course, there’s a ghastly murder as well. It involves a puppeteer at the Christmas market.
“I’ve always been obsessed with puppets and magic shows, they were synonymous with Christmas when I was a kid and I wanted to hark back to that.
“There’s also a surprise ending involving Jeremy, Judith and Uncle Patrick – you really won’t see that coming.”
The two brothers are laughing and joking as the scene opens.
Christian mingles in the crowd with a puppet in each hand, and then Frederick misses his cue. Suddenly, a street vendor lets out a shriek as Frederick is found lying on the ground holding a blood-soaked puppet.
After hearing about the murder from her colleague, Jean cuts short her Christmas and arrives at the crime scene only to find something sinister about the puppet and the drama then begins to unfold.
Shameless‘ Sue Vincent as mechanic Gloria Beausha, while Benidorm’s Robin Asquith and Only Fools and Horses Sue Holderness play an eccentric married couple Jeremy and Judith Lloyd James.
Meanwhile, Black Adder’s Tony Robinson and Paul Chuckle play Dom’s Uncle Patrick, a petty thief turned pub landlord and Trevor, Gloria’s dad.
As more cases emerge and an old friend reappears, will Jean and Dom be able to keep up their romance?
The Christmas special will air on Tuesday, December 24th, at 9 p.m.
Keep your Christmas postal costs under control with our five money saving delivery tips
THE last day to send parcels via Royal Mail Second Class to arrive in time for Christmas is tomorrow, Wednesday December 18.
If you’re taking a trip to the post office this week, here’s how to cut the cost of sending your pressies.
If you’re posting parcels this week, here are five ways how to cut the cost of sending your pressies[/caption]DOUBLE UP: Save on packaging by wrapping small gifts inside larger ones. For example, you could tuck a small item, like a mug, inside a scarf or pair of socks.
This reduces the need for extra gift wrap and, especially if you have more fragile items, it will keep them protected.
REUSE & REPURPOSE: Instead of buying new envelopes or packing boxes, reuse the packaging from any online deliveries sent to you this week.
Trim boxes to size if needed and cut off any unnecessary cardboard.
If you haven’t saved any packaging over the year, ask a neighbour or post a request on street or community WhatsApp groups or forums.
It’s also worth checking out any communal recycling bins for items you can repurpose.
BETTER TOGETHER: Rather than sending multiple smaller parcels, combine gifts into one larger box. This simplifies shipping and usually costs less, especially if the items are lightweight.
One big parcel is often far cheaper than several small ones.
SNUG SAVING: Oversized parcels often cost more to send.
Remove bulky outer packaging where possible and tightly pack items using just enough padding to protect them — you could try scrunching up this newspaper after you’ve read it, and packing it around the edges to prevent items from moving around inside the packaging.
COMPARE & CONTRAST: Use a comparison site such as Parcel2go.com to make sure you’re getting the cheapest delivery deal for your gifts.
Some companies offer a flat-rate fee instead of a weight-based fee for a certain size of delivery box which could work out cheaper if sending heavy gifts.
- All prices on page correct at time of going to press. Deals and offers subject to availability
Deal of day
Save £28.99 on this Sekonda watch at HM Samuel[/caption]CHECK out the 50 per cent off sale at HSamuel.co.uk – this Sekonda Maverick Men’s Chronograph watch was £59.99, now £28.99.
SAVE: £31
Cheap treat
Save £2.50 on Options White Hot Chocolate with your Tesco Clubcard[/caption]WARM up with an Options White Hot Chocolate – a tub was £5, now £2.50 when you use your Tesco Clubcard.
SAVE: £2.50
WHAT’S NEW
GET three months of Amazon Music Unlimited, with ad-free listening and thousands of songs, absolutely free for a limited time.
The subscription reverts back to £10.99 after the trial period.
Top swap
This Baby Grinch sleepsuit is £9 at Primark[/caption] The George at Asda version, above, is £8[/caption]HAVE a merry Grinchmas!
This cute baby Grinch sleepsuit is £9 at Primark, top, or get the George at Asda version, above, £8.
SAVE: £1
Shop and save
Bali Body Self-Tanning water RRP £24.95 is now £5 at Poundland[/caption]PICK up premium beauty items at Poundland.co.uk – the Bali Body Self-Tanning water RRP £24.95 is £5 now. Online only.
SAVE: £19.95
LITTLE HELPER
SHOP for Christmas gifts at Claires.com, and when you buy three presents, you get three free on selected ranges including new Wicked merchandise.
Hot right now
PICK up a last-minute party dress at JDwilliams.co.uk and use the code BELLS to get 20 per cent off.
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