Metro

‘I blur my Zoom background and keep an eye on the weather back home – if it’s cold in the UK, I put on a jumper and don’t sit where it’s obviously really sunny.’ Anna* is a secret digital nomad – someone who’s moved abroad and works remotely… while her boss believes she’s still in the UK. A breakup prompted her move to Barcelona, with a quick trip turning into a long-term stay when Anna realised she didn’t want to go back home. ‘I had to move out of the flat we shared and I was a bit of a los

Opening up your home to a child in care can be a beautiful experience, marking the start of a real family for some LGBTQ+ couples. Phil Ashton and Chris Smith, both 41, initially wanted to adopt a toddler so that they can experience a lot of firsts – like their first words and first steps. The couple, who live in Merseyside, also put down on their preference list to their local adoption agency that they wanted a child with no significant disabilities. They did not want to worry about medical

As soon as I got my lipoedema diagnosis last year, tears rolled down my cheeks. For years, doctors told me that I was ‘just fat’. But finally a medical professional had confirmed my disproportionately large legs were a medical condition – an extremely painful chronic disease that causes fibrotic fat to accumulate in the lower part of the body, over which the patient has very little to zero control. It was the validation I’d waited nearly 30 years to receive. When I was 12 years old, I began

In the 60s an underground organisation in Chicago helped women access abortions – will the Roe v Wade ruling spark its return? The world is reeling from the Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade ruling that legalised abortion in America.

Two young women who were sexually assaulted by the same massage therapist in London have shared their stories – hoping to give the strength to potential victims to contact the Metropolitan Police. Katy and Mollie, both in their 20s, were described as ‘the bravest women ever’ for coming forward against Mongkon Thopwan, who was sentenced today to 11 years in jail. He was convicted in March of five counts of assault by penetration and one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity wit

From Pride parades to popular culture, there is a good chance children have been exposed to LGBTQ+ culture and have a million questions about it. This is why it is surprising a third of UK parents have never spoken to youngsters about what the terms lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender mean. According to a new survey by Just Like Us, the LGBTQ+ young people’s charity, only 19% have had a conversation about what the acronym means only after their child asked them. When asked whether more lit

There is a distinctive smell of sweat – typical to well-oiled gyms – at K.O. Combat Academy in east London where mixed martial arts star Pasha Rafiei trains seven days a week. This is where the ‘Persian powerhouse’ – as he is referred to by fans – has rebuilt his life over the last two years after fleeing Iran in fear for his life. Watching him deliver powerful kicks while wearing an altitude mask, it is hard to imagine that in 2019 he lived in a refugee camp in Greece where he used old car ty

This July will mark 50 years since the UK’s first official Gay Pride rally, held in London in 1972. Fifty years ago, the landscape for LGBTQ+ people was rapidly changing. The dawn of the decade, after the Sexual Offences Act of 1967 partially decriminalised male homosexuality, saw the LGBTQ+ community begin to gain visibility and the security to campaign for better rights and medical access.

Applying her cool ivory No7 foundation with a brush in the bathroom mirror after our shopping spree, my mum had a glint in her eye. It was one of happiness, excitement and a renewed sense of confidence. At that moment, I realised the power of makeup was more than just a superficial thing. For my mother with cancer, it was transformative and, in turn, my love for it was reinvigorated. My mum has always been the strongest person I know and I’m not just saying that because of how she’s handled h

Five people have been jailed after a ‘courageous’ woman helped the Metropolitan Police bring down one of the largest modern slavery rings in England. When Bella arrived in the UK at the age of 18, her dream was to find a better life for herself after a traumatic childhood bouncing between orphanages in Poland – not be sexually exploited and trafficked to clients at the West End. Her name may have been changed to protect her anonymity but her story of how she helped save 134 women trapped in fi

A married man who has lived in England for 20 years is one of ‘up to 50 people’ facing deportation to Iraq next week. If the Home Office’s charter flight to Erbil International Airport takes place on May 31, it would be the first one from the UK in at least a decade, according to the Bail for Immigration Detainees (BiD) charity. Metro.co.uk has seen the removal orders of three people in Colnbrook centre, next to Heathrow Airport, who were all alerted last week, leaving them with just days to o

A British volunteer on the Polish border claims the Homes for Ukraine visa scheme is putting the lives of refugees at risk over ‘excessive bureaucracy’. Nick Hills, 47, has spent the last two months delivering food and medical supplies – like tourniquets and blood fridges – to hard-hit areas and helping civilians flee the country. Seeing first-hand how slow the visa process is, the dad-of-two is appealing to the government to act on the ‘shambles’ he has witnessed. Describing the scheme as an

A new study has pinpointed an enzyme potentially behind Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS. Researchers from Sydney have found that that low levels of an enzyme called butyrylcholinesterase — responsible for brain arousal — could be what causes babies to die in their sleep for no apparent reason. Around 200 babies die every year of SIDS in the UK. It is also known as ‘cot death’ and usually happens between the ages of one to four months, up to six months old. This phenomenon was suspected

Mark Zuckerberg gave us the first tantalising glimpse of Meta’s secretive VR headset yesterday – but still managed to keep it mostly hidden. The Facebook founder posted a short demo video showcasing some of the capabilities of his company’s high-end virtual reality headset — codenamed Project Cambria. Facebook’s owner Meta is planning to release the headset later this year. The demo gave a sneak peek into what mixed reality could look like, with Zuckerberg gesturing toward the cartoon charact

Humans may one day be able to grow plants for food and oxygen on the moon during space missions. Scientists have finally succeeded in growing plants in soil collected from the moon for the first time. In the new study, researchers from the University of Florida showed the arabidopsis plant — thale cress — can successfully sprout and grow in soil that was collected from the Apollo 11, 12 and 17 missions. The study also investigated how plants respond biologically to the moon’s soil, also known

A Tesla driver lost control of his vehicle and rammed into the side of a building at nearly 70mph. The Tesla taxi crashed into the Greater Columbus Convention Center in the US last week. The incident was caught on CCTV. It shows the driver — 63-year-old Frantz Jules — nearly bumping the rear end of another a car before launching into the air and through a glass wall. The driver was reportedly traveling at nearly 70mph when he lost control of the brakes. After crashing into the building, the

A complete skeleton of a dinosaur has sold at Christie’s auction house for more than £10million. Measuring at 4ft tall and 10ft long, the skeleton named Hector is a Deinonychus antirrhopus — a much bigger and deadlier relative to the velociraptor, popularly depicted in the 1993 movie Jurassic Park. The creature’s true name can be a mouthful, so the author Michael Crichton, on whose book the movie is based, chose to call it a velociraptor which was in fact much smaller. Auctioneers Christie’s