USA Update

STEREOPHONICS fans are in store for an exciting summer next year.

The Welsh rock legends have announced their Stadium Anthems Summer ’25 Tour — here’s everything you need to know about getting tickets.

Michael Schofield - The Sun Glasgow

Stereophonics are hitting the road for their first tour since 2022[/caption]

Michael Schofield - The Sun Glasgow

They will be playing shows in Belfast, Dublin, Cork, Huddersfield, Glasgow London and Cardiff[/caption]

When do Stereophonics tickets go on sale?

The general sale for Stereophonics tickets will begin on Friday, October 11, 2024, at 9am BST.

However, there were a couple of presales offering earlier access to tickets:

• Album presale: Fans who had preordered the band’s upcoming studio album by 2pm on October 8, 2024, could gain access to a presale starting at 9am on October 9, 2024
• Venue-specific presales: Some venues are offering their own presales — for example, Principality Stadium account holders could access a presale at 9am on October 9, 2024

Maximising your chances

• Prepare in advance: Create accounts on ticket selling platforms including Ticketmaster and See Tickets before the sale date
• Use multiple devices: Have your computer, phone and tablet ready to join the queue simultaneously
• Join a ticket queue early: Queue systems often open before the official sale time, so it’s a good idea to join 10-15 minutes early
• Have your payment information ready: Save time by having your credit card details at hand
• Be flexible with dates: If you can’t get tickets for your preferred date, be open to attending on a different day
• Consider hospitality tickets: These are often easier to secure due to higher prices and lower demand
• Team up: Coordinate with friends or family to try for tickets on multiple devices simultaneously

Mistakes to avoid

• Relying on a single device or browser: This limits your chances in the queue
• Refreshing the page excessively: This can kick you out of the queue in some systems
• Opening multiple tabs: Accessing the sale from multiple tabs can also lead to you losing your place in the queue
• Being unprepared with payment information: Tickets often have a time limit in your basket
• Falling for scams: Only purchase from official sources like Ticketmaster, See Tickets, or the band’s official website
• Assuming your old account is active: If you already have an account, double check it is still working, billing info is accurate and saved, and that you can remember the password

Roddy Scott - The Sun Glasgow

The Welsh rockers are also headlining The Isle of Wight Festival[/caption]

Ticket prices

While exact prices may vary slightly depending on the venue, here’s what we know so far about ticket costs:

• Standard tickets are expected to start from around £74.50, excluding booking fees
• Tickets for the London Finsbury Park show will reportedly start from £71.50 — all of these are standing

In Cardiff, the ticket prices are:

• Standing tickets – £84.50
• Seated tickets – £57 / £79 / £101
• Premium seat experience – £220.90

Tour dates and venues

The Stereophonics’ Stadium Anthems Summer ’25 Tour includes the following UK & Ireland dates:

• June 5, 2025: Ormeau Park, Belfast
• June 6, 2025: St Anne’s Park, Dublin
• June 7, 2025: Virgin Media Park, Cork
• June 14, 2025: John Smith’s Stadium, Huddersfield
• June 28, 2025: Bellahouston Park, Glasgow
• July 4, 2025: Finsbury Park, London
• July 12, 2025: Principality Stadium, Cardiff

Additionally, the band will headline the Isle of Wight Festival on June 21, 2025.

RIZZLE Kicks star Jordan Stephens reveals he once had a drug overdose as he opens up about his past cocaine addiction.

The Skip to the Good Bit singer, 32, said he became hooked on drugs as a” coping mechanism” during the height of his career.

Instagram

Instagram

The singer also got candid about his past cocaine addiction[/caption]

Getty

Stephen (right) shot to fame in Rizzle Kicks with bandmate Harley Alexander-Sule (left)[/caption]

Jordan joined Busted star Matt Willis on his podcast On The Mend, as he spoke about using cocaine to help ease social anxiety.

The pop star also revealed the time he had overdosed himself “every day for 18 months” while taking non prescribed doses of modafinil – which are taken to boost cognitive performance.

Matt asked him: “Okay, so you’re getting a psych exam for a TV show, and they were like, well, you need to look at this. Yeah. You know. And what was that like to hear?”

Jordan shared: “Well, they asked me. I guess they did like a full.

“They have to run like a full checkup. Yeah. And then in the checkup, they’re like, do you have any previous diagnoses? And I was like, oh, well, when I was 15 they said I had ADHD and they were like, oh, what have you done about that? And I was like, well, nothing.

“But I do self-medicate.And they were like.

“And they were like with what? And I was like, oh, this thing I bought off the internet. They were like, let’s take you to a psychiatrist, maybe.”

Matt quizzed the star and asked: “And what was that thing you were self-medicating with?”

Jordan explained: “Oh, it’s a thing called modafinil. It’s a funny story, which I do include in the book.

“Basically, I went to this guy and he sat me down and we spoke for a bit, and he was like, okay, I mean, you have ADHD, but what do you do about it?

“And I went, well, my mate, my hacker friend told me about these drugs called modafinil.

“And he went, oh, modafinil is actually a recognised ADHD drug, medication for it. And he went, how much do you take?

“And I went sometimes two pills a day, but like it varies. And he went, okay, how strong are the pills? And I went 200mg each. And I remember he just went quiet. And he was like 400mg a day? And I went sometimes.

“And he went, okay, we’re going to get you on this thing.

“And then he writes the prescription. And I remember so vividly he gave me the prescription and I looked at and it said 16mg, and I was like 16mg?

“And then I remember reading the pamphlet and it said like, here’s how you know you’ve had an overdose.”

Jordan was then stunned to realise that he had been experiencing side effects, common with an overdose.

He went on: “And it was like dry tongue, profuse sweating.

“And it was just like all the things that I thought meant the mode of modafinil was kicking in, was working.

“So by those metrics, I’d basically been overdosing on every day for like 18 month”

Jordan also spoke candidly about his drug addition and

He said: “My cocaine use became a problem when I started doing it at home.

“You know, initially it was a coping mechanism for dealing with how intense the places I was being asked to go to were.

“Again, as you would know it was surreal.”

He admitted he didn’t feel that pressure when he took drugs and he stopped “overthinking” different scenarios when in social situations.

“I used to have this compulsive thought when I would be out at an event where, because it was so quick from me and Harley playing at our mates, like, you know, prom or whatever,” he continued.

“Suddenly we’re like, you know, all over Radio One, and then we’re getting invited to events with people that I’d literally just watched on telly with, like my… you know what I mean?

“You’ve got like Jimmy Carr’s knocking about or like, I’ll be playing FIFA and then like, Daniel Sturridge is just like stood in the event looking at me going like, oh, I love your new song. What is happening?

So I’m just like, I can’t cope with it. And it was exciting.

“But I had this compulsive thought where if I said bye to someone… I’m just remembering this now… I would obsess over like whether or not I said bye in the right way to myself.

So it’d be like if I shook their hand, I’d be like, was I supposed to shake their hand? Or like give, you know, the kind of like, more like chill version of, cupping the hand and then a slap on the back or a hug, or if I said, why did I say, see you soon? And I would go go go go go go.”

Rizzle Kicks stars Jordan Stephens and Harley Alexander-Sule shot to fame in the late noughties after their debut album Stereo Typical.

But in 2015 the pop stars went their ways after they released their last song, a cover of Summertime by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince.

Following this, both members pursued acting careers and solo music ventures.

Between 2011 and 2013, the band was a huge success with hits like Down With the Trumpets and Mama Do The Hump.

They had several chart-topping songs, including a collaboration with Olly Murs‘ Heart Skips a Beat, which reached number one.

PA

Jordan and Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall have been dating since 2020[/caption]

JUDD TRUMP has continued his fine form this season after beating rival John Higgins 5-2 to reach the last eight of the Wuhan Open.

Shaun Murphy overcame Essex rival Ali Carter in a 5-4 thriller, while Chinese stars Si Jiahui and Zhang Anda also making it through – Ding Junhui is OUT after losing to Chris Wakelin.

Tuesday’s action saw world champion Kyren Wilson crash out after a narrow 5-4 defeat to Guodong Xiao.

Fan favourite Ronnie O’Sullivan withdrew from the event last week due to medical reasons.

• Start times: 7am/12.30pm BST
• TV channel: Eurosport
• Live stream: discovery+
• Explainer: Full schedule and prize money

BEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKERS

Follow ALL the action from the Wuhan Open with our live blog below…

"He said he was going to teach me what was going to happen when I got older," she writes.

Ashlyn Harris and Sophia Bush keep close, Harrison Ford gets silly and more snaps...

The "Let's Get Loud" singer was previously married to Ojani Noa, Cris Judd and Marc Anthony. She married Affleck in Las Vegas in 2022.

AN increasing demand for gasoline in parts of Florida has drivers worrying about a potential shortage with Hurricane Milton looming.

Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall on Florida‘s Gulf Coast late Wednesday into early Thursday morning as millions of residents hit the road to avoid the storm’s destructive path.

AFP or licensors

EPA

EPA

As time slowly runs out to evacuate storm surge areas, a mass exodus has created an extraordinary demand for gasoline and diesel, leaving some gas stations dry.

Almost 1,500, or 19.7%, of gas stations in Florida were without fuel as of 6 pm on Tuesday, CNN reported, citing the gas price tracking service GasBuddy.

“It’s a testament to how fast the storm is moving and how intense it is,” Partick De Hann, an energy analyst at GasBuddy, told the outlet.

“It’s a game changer.”

However, as drivers fear being left stranded on the road without fuel, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ensured the state’s gasoline supply is well stocked.

“The state of Florida has incredible fuel reserves ahead of Milton, and it utilized as needed following the storm,” DeSantis told reporters on Wednesday.

“We’ve already dispatched a lot of fuel in the lead-up to this, but we still have on hand 1.6 million gallons of diesel and 1.1 million gallons of gasoline.

“Right now, there is no fuel shortage. However, demand has been extraordinarily high, and some gas stations have run out.”

DeSantis said to combat the shortage at certain gas stations, the Florida Highway Patrol has been escorting 106 fuel tankers, carrying nearly a million gallons of gasoline, across the affected areas.

The governor acknowledged on Tuesday that the shortage could be a result of drivers panic buying at certain gas stations.

“Fuel continues to arrive to the state of Florida. But lines at gas stations have been long, and gas stations are running out quicker than they otherwise would,” he said at the time.

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It comes as…

• Hurricane Milton, with 155 mph winds and potential 15-foot storm surge waves, is expected to hit Florida’s Gulf Coast directly.
• Heartstopping moment fearless boffins are battered by Milton as they fly into the eye of the storm.
• ‘Price-gouging’ hotels slammed for charging Hurricane Milton evacuees $600 per night
• Publix was forced to alter store hours at 500 locations and close some shops entirely.
• Watch the moment sick passengers are airlifted off a stranded cruise ship.

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‘WHISKER SKY’ OF CATEGORY 5

Meanwhile, DeSantis again urged people who were in storm surge areas to evacuate with little time remaining until Milton arrived.

“The roads and interstates, they are flowing. But the best option would probably be just to evacuate within your own county to one of the shelters,” he said.

DeSantis said there are 149 emergency shelters open throughout the state.

The safe havens are currently housing about 31,000 people and have a capacity for nearly 200,000.

The governor described Milton’s strength as “just a whisker shy” of Category 5.

“While there is the hope that it will weaken more before landfall, there is a high confidence that this hurricane is going to pack a major, major punch and do an awful lot of damage,” he added.

Millions are still reeling from the catastrophic devastation left behind by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago.

More than 220 people died after Helene barreled through the United States southeast region.

AFP or licensors

Reuters

THE obsessed teen who stalked and murdered schoolgirl Holly Newton has been unmasked for the first time as her ex-boyfriend.

Logan MacPhail, 17, stabbed the 15-year-old 36 times in a darkened alley just days after she dumped him.

PA

He was consumed by jealousy when she ended their 18-month relationship and followed her for 45 minutes before attacking her with a kitchen knife.

MacPhail was convicted of murder in August but could not be identified due to his age.

A judge has now ruled he can be named and photographed meaning that details of their “toxic” relationship can finally be revealed.

The twisted teen will be sentenced later this month when he will be given a life term for killing Holly on January 27 last year.

The pair met three years earlier when they both attended Army Cadets in Consett, Co Durham.

They grew closer and after around 18 months began dating.

But MacPhail was a troubled youth who had autism and educational needs and attended a special school in Gateshead.

Friends said the couple would argue often and had broken up on a number of occasions.

They always got back together but on Saturday, January 21 – six days before Holly died – she ended it for the final time.

The jury at MacPhail’s trial heard that he struggled to accept it was finally over.

Prosecutor David Brooke KC told Newcastle crown court: “Logan MacPhail was struggling to come to terms with the break-up.

“It is clear he was very unhappy about it.”

On the Thursday of that week the then 16-year-old left his house telling his mum he was going to the shops.

Instead he travelled to Holly’s home in Haltwhistle, Northumberland, saying he wanted to get his possessions including a PlayStation back, but her mum would not let him in.

Meanwhile, his mother had alerted police when he failed to return from his shopping trip. Officers found him in Haltwhistle in the early hours of Friday and took him home.

Later that day he was sent home from school after telling teachers he was tired.

But instead of going back to his house in Gateshead he caught two buses to Hexham, Northumberland, where Holly attended school.

He had pestered her friends to try and “trick” Holly into meeting him, leaving her “extremely nervous”, the court heard.

She messaged pals: “He’s basically stalking me at this point. He’s gonna follow me until I talk to him.”

Holly’s worried mum contacted the police who spoke to staff at Queen Elizabeth High School.

It was arranged that she would not leave school at the end of the day if he was hanging around.

But the coast appeared clear so she walked into Hexham town centre with two friends at 3.20pm.

Around 4pm, MacPhail spotted the group and followed them, making sure he was not seen.

Haunting CCTV footage played to court showed him staring at her outside a pizza takeaway.

Moments later, at 4.45pm, he approached Holly.

Mr Brooke said: “Holly was not at all happy about seeing him. Eventually she agreed to speak to him in an alley. What Holly didn’t know was that he had brought a knife with him.”

Passers-by then heard screams as MacPhail repeatedly stabbed Holly in the alley.

A boy she was with and two brave locals leapt to her aid, but she died in hospital from her injuries.

The boy also suffered a number of stab wounds but survived.

MacPhail admitted stabbing Holly but denied her murder, claiming his mind went blank moments before the attack.

The jury dismissed his explanation and convicted him of murder at the end of August. They also convicted him of wounding the boy with intent.

At the end of the case Holly’s mum Micala Trussler said: “Holly was a beautiful child. She grew into a funny and happy teen.

“There was nothing Holly couldn’t do. She loved all types of sport and she would give anything a go at least once.

“From being a young child she fell in love with dancing. It gave her an opportunity to express herself and helped her self-confidence.”

NNP

PLAYSTATION has announced that it will soon delist the latest game in one of its most popular exclusive series.

Fans have until the end of October to purchase it and any DLC they may want, before it is gone for good.

Sumo Digital

LittleBigPlanet 3 was on sale for 10 years[/caption]

If you purchase it before it is removed from the store, then you will still be able to play it after the deadline.

LittleBigPlanet 3 is the last game in the popular 2D platforming series, where players play as the adorable Sackboy.

It’s known for its high level of customisation, not just for player characters, but also with the built-in level designer.

However, the servers have since shut down for LittleBigPlanet 3, meaning people can no longer post their creations online or download others.

However, people are still playing the game, whether that’s the included levels, or user-made levels they downloaded.

If you want to try out LittleBigPlanet 3 for yourself, you have until the end of October to purchase it.

A statement about the game reads: “Last chance to purchase LittleBigPlanet 3 and DLC from the PlayStation Store.

“After 10 years of playing, creating and sharing content in LittleBigPlanet 3, the game and our entire range of LittleBigPlanet DLC will be removed from the PlayStation Store on October 31, 2024.

“Anyone that currently owns or purchases LittleBigPlanet 3 or any LittleBigPlanet DLC before it is delisted for sale, will still be able to access their purchased games and content after its removal.

“This is a friendly heads-up that if anyone in the community or any newcomers still wish to own a digital copy of LittleBigPlanet 3 or any LittleBigPlanet DLC currently available for purchase – this is your last chance to do so!

“Thank you for your continued support and understanding.”

While the LittleBigPlanet series is no longer in development, it has been replaced by the new Sackboy series.

Featuring the same loveable protagonist, Sackboy: A Big Adventure is the latest mainline game in the series.

It moves from the 2D platforming of the LittleBigPlanet series to 3D though it is still a similar style of game.

However, the series has dropped the content creation features that make the original series so iconic.

If you want to read more about PlayStation, check out why PC players hate PlayStation exclusives.

THERE’S an Amazon deal right now that is perfect for the cooks in the kitchen looking to make meal preparation a bit easier.

The Prime Day deal is offering an Instant Pot for $59, a 46% savings off the original price.

Getty Images

Amazon Prime Day deals are offering discounts for kitchen cooks[/caption]

Amazon

The Instant Pot Duo Plus is a 9-in-1 device that functions as a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker and more.

There are 15 customizable programs so that you can cook a variety of food from ribs, soups, beans, and desserts.

It’s made of stainless-steel with a tri-ply bottom for even cooking.

The description on Amazon’s site claims you can pressure cook one-pot meals “up to 70% faster than traditional cooking methods.”

It includes 10 safety features, plus overheat protection and a safe-locking lid.

The pot can cook for up to six people.

COOKING CONVERSATIONS

The Instant Pot is an Amazon “Best Seller.”

Shoppers who purchased this kitchen accessory said it works well and described the ability to sear before cooking.

They have suggested reading the directions first.

Another customer described this purchase as a, “game changer.”

“It is also quiet and we barely hear it until the steam starts to release, which still isn’t very loud,” added a reviewer.

People have admitted they got it on sale but “it is worth the investment.”

PRIME DEAL

In order to score Amazon’s Prime Day deals, you must be an Amazon Prime member.

An annual Prime membership will cost you $139. It allows users 30-days free and then auto-renews yearly.

There’s an option to go month-to-month for $14.99 but you won’t get the added savings when you pay in full for a year.

Prime benefits not only include access to Prime Day but you’re also able to get free and faster delivery and access to