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Mike Tyson, 58, sparks concern as he says he ‘wants to die in the ring’ ahead of Jake Paul fight in new Netflix video
MIKE TYSON sparked concern after declaring he “wants to die in the ring” ahead of November’s fight against Jake Paul.
Boxing legend Tyson will step into the ring against the social media star on November 15, with the fight being shown live on Netflix.
The two men were initially due to face each other in July.
But the date was postponed after Tyson suffered a health problem just weeks before.
The former heavyweight king claimed to have an “ulcer flare-up” after being taken ill on a flight.
And some feel the 58-year-old, who has not had a sanction fight in two decades, is risking his health against 28-year-old Paul.
Now, Tyson has sparked more concern after admitting he would rather “die in the ring” than a hospital bed.
The icon acknowledges the threat he faces in Paul, who has suffered just one defeat in 10 pro bouts.
And Tyson reckons he will be “immortal” if he ends up securing victory at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Speaking in a Netflix clip, Tyson said: “I don’t do anything if I don’t risk being embarrassed. Like now I want to fight this young motherf****r.
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“This is really big for me, if I win I will be immortal. If I do it bad, I don’t want to die in a hospital bed, I want to die in the ring.”
Tyson was also praised by adviser Gene Kilroy, who used to be the manager of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali.
Kilroy said to Tyson: “This is the strongest I’ve ever seen you and I’ve known you since you were 13. This impressed the s**t out of me, nothing impresses me.
“I’m proud of you Mike, you’ve done more workouts than what I saw you do when you fought Lennox Lewis.
“Different era brother, it’s a whole new ball game.”
What is Donald Trump’s weight and height?
PERSONAL details about former president Donald Trump’s weight and height were made publicly available.
The Republican presidential candidate’s details became public after he was booked at an Atlanta jail following his indictment on election interference charges.
What is Donald Trump’s weight?
According to Trump’s self-reported weight, registered at Fulton County Jail, he is 215 pounds.
His weight was listed on his booking sheet, which was posted to the Fulton County Jail website after his arrest in August 2023.
The Washington Post, however, reported that this number “may not be accurate.”
If correct, this weight is a lot less than Trump weighed at his last physical exam by a White House physician.
Back in 2020, Dr. Ronny Jackson listed the then-president’s weight as 244 pounds.
What is Donald Trump’s height?
At Fulton County Jail, Donald Trump listed his height as 6ft3, the height he has often publicly stated to be.
According to Politico, however, his New York driver’s license says he is 6ft2.
To add to the confusion, the former president’s April 2023 New York arrest record for allegedly falsifying business records said he was 6ft2 and 240lbs.
During his 2024 presidential election campaign, Trump said that “lifts” or “stands” could not be used for September’s ABC debate.
In a Truth Social post, the former president declared: “No boxes or artificial lifts will be allowed to stand on during my upcoming debate with Comrade Kamala Harris.
“We had this out previously with former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg when he was in a debate, and he was not allowed a ‘lift.’
“It would be a form of cheating, and the Democrats cheat enough. ‘You are who you are,’ it was determined!”
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris previously revealed that she’s “5’4 and a quarter – sometimes 5’4 and a half.
“And with heels – which I always wear – I’m 5’7″ and a half, thank you very much.”
What is Barron Trump’s height?
Donald’s only son with wife Melania is the talk of the town due to his towering height.
Barron Trump is believed to stand at a whopping 6-foot-9 – even taller than his father.
Donald recently bragged about Barron’s impressive height in an interview with YouTube and WWE star Logan Paul.
“I couldn’t get him to play basketball. He plays soccer. He’s a good athlete too. Good student, good athlete,” the former president said, calling his son a “good looking guy”.
“He’s a big boy,” Trump said, confirming his son’s height, “6’9”.
Barron is currently 18 years old and attends NYU Stern School of Business.
Security at the college’s campus has ramped up since Barron’s arrival.
He has been spotted on campus being flanked by a team of security guards.
Donald previously said that his son was also accepted at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Business, where he himself went.
Ivanka, Tiffany, and Don Jr. all followed in their father’s footsteps and attended UPenn.
The life of Barron Trump
Barron Trump is the youngest son of former President Donald Trump and former First Lady Melania Trump.
The U.S. Sun takes a look back at Barron Trump’s life.
Barron was born on March 20, 2006, to parents Melania and Donald Trump.
Barron was seen with his dad, Trump, when the real estate tycoon was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007.
During his childhood, Barron was also pictured with his parents at the US Open Tennis championships.
Barron went viral when he sleepily struggled to keep his eyes open as Trump gave a victory speech following the 2016 presidential election.
Barron attended school in New York before continuing his studies in Maryland in May 2017.
He would often be pictured in and around the White House grounds during his father’s presidency.
In January 2021, Donald Trump departed Washington DC, after losing the 2020 presidential election. The family relocated to Florida.
Barron continued his studies at the Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Barron turned 18 on March 20, 2024.
He graduated from the Oxbridge Academy on May 17, 2024.
On September 4, 2024, Barron started college and was pictured entering the campus of New York University in the NoHo area of Manhattan.
BBC Saturday Kitchen star Russell Norman left HUGE sum to his wife after tragic death aged just 57
BBC star Russell Norman left his wife £1.4million after his tragic death.
The Saturday Kitchen cook bequeathed the huge sum to his family after he died at just 57 last November.
Russell, a successful restaurateur who mentored wannabe chefs on TV, left an eye-watering £1,437,000 including business and personal assets.
The will, signed in 2013, ordered the estate be passed to his estranged wife Jules Norman, whom he wed in 2004 but separated from before he died.
He also penned his wish to be cremated and for his partner to take over his shares in his businesses.
Norman – branded “the coolest man in food” for his innovative dishes – wrote four cookbooks after shooting to fame on beloved BBC staple Saturday Kitchen.
Born in Perivale, North West London, Russell found his love for cooking after a brief stint as a civil servant.
He took on a string of jobs at hotel restaurants before opening legendary Soho bar Polpo in 2009.
The eatery introduced novel small plates, loud music, and waiters with tattoos and bed hair.
Norman also refused all customer reservations, no matter how important his guests were.
He went on to found award-winning Italian restaurant Brutto and cocktail joint Spuntino.
An inquest in February heard the star died in the garden of his home in Ashford, Kent, after a drunken argument with his girlfriend.
It is unclear when he had separated from Jules, who was by his bedside when he died.
He was found on November 18 and rushed to hospital, where he never regained consciousness and died five days later.
The court heard millionaire Russell had gone into the garden of his home in Pluckley after arguing with girlfriend Dr Genevieve Verdigel.
Art historian Dr Verdigel told how she had later discovered her lover lying unconscious in the garden.
She said: “I ran back inside to call 999.
“I was trying to do CPR. I was screaming and the people next door came round.”
The Coroner said he had twice the amount of alcohol in his system than the legal drink-drive limit and had displayed “suicidal tendencies” in the weeks before he died.
You're Not Alone
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You’re Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let’s all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You’re Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
- Heads Together,www.headstogether.org.uk
- HUMEN www.wearehumen.org
- Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans,www.samaritans.org, 116 123
I won lottery prize but all I got was a meal deal thanks to bizarre rule… now I’ve had my benefits CUT & I’m on street
A LOTTERY winner who was refused his prize at a supermarket before finding himself homeless, claims he’s now had his benefits cut off completely.
Kevin Layne, 63, was told to vacate the room he’d been renting for three years by last Friday – weeks after Tesco refused to give him his £140 winnings.
He instead just bought a meal deal, and claims he was ultimately banned from the store.
Now Kevin, who suffers with severe asthma, is at risk of rough sleeping as winter approaches.
The Sun understands that the landlord says he is acting perfectly lawfully.
But to add to Kevin’s troubles, he claims his benefits were stopped this week too and he doesn’t know why.
The tradesman, from Kidderminster, Worcestershire, returned to the UK four years ago due to Covid after living in Thailand and China for nearly two decades.
He told The Sun: “I find out today my claim’s stopped – homeless around the corner, no home, no claim, no phone, no f*** all.
“I should have waited in Thailand to go back to China.”
He claims, as he is “not computer literate” that “the dole just stopped my claim” and told him to lodge an appeal for reasons he doesn’t understand.
Since returning to the UK, Kevin, originally from Blackpool, Lancashire, has been doing temporary jobs – though has often found it difficult to make ends meet.
“I came back from Asia because of Covid, but all agencies are a nightmare,” he explained.
“If I was offered a job in China I would set off walking now.”
Referring to his benefits claim, he said the job centre has asked him for bank statements to reverse the decision, but he is with a virtual bank – and he was confused about accessing them online.
“It turns out the statements are in the phone, I now know,” he said.
“I’ve told them before, I am not computer literate, I will come in and they can take them out because I can’t print them off, I don’t know how.
“I turned up an hour early from work to co-operate, however… [they] had other ideas.
“It was disgraceful. On it goes, apparently I have 14 days to appeal, however being treated like a child, chastised and basically called a liar.”
Kevin received his last benefits payment last week and says he will try for more work “before I pursue my claim”.
Previously, we reported how he had been given a formal notice to vacate his property or a court order would be sought.
The deadline for leaving was last Friday (October 25) and Kevin said he remains in his room for the time being.
He said: “People here don’t realise, when I returned I had no bank, no credit score, no job, no references.
“To come in this country as a foreigner is far easier than it was for me, I now have debit cards but it’s taken me three years to get them.”
Kevin has approached Wyre Forest Council but says they have not provided him emergency accommodation.
“I did go and see them when it all started and they’re useless, I’ve never heard from them since,” he claims.
I have no references or a permanent job, so finding alternative accommodation is virtually impossible. In case you’re wondering, homeless means homeless to me – I returned with a British passport and tried to support myself from day one.
Kevin Layne
Now I face homelessness with asthma, inevitably. No paid hotel for me, just a shop doorway.
He previously told the Sun: “I have no references or a permanent job, so finding alternative accommodation is virtually impossible.
“In case you’re wondering, homeless means homeless to me – I returned with a British passport and tried to support myself from day one.
“Now I face homelessness with asthma, inevitably. No paid hotel for me, just a shop doorway.”
LOTTERY
It comes after Kevin went into his local Tesco in Comberton Hill on August 13 and tried to claim his winnings from the previous Saturday’s Lotto draw, while also picking up a meal deal.
“I paid for my food and then she (the cashier) looked at the lottery ticket and said I can’t pay that, it’s too much,” he previously told The Sun.
“I said it’s £140. I said I put it on here regularly and sometimes I put it on for a month, which is £80. I also put my phone credit on which makes it £90 – sometimes I’ve gone in that shop and paid £100.
“She said you can’t bring that in here,” said Kevin, adding that he was then barred from the shop following a row.
A spokesperson for Allwyn, the National Lottery operator, said: “National Lottery retailers are required to pay out up to £100 in prize money, and up to £500 at their own discretion.”
They added: “It really depends on what Tesco’s own policy is with regards to paying out prizes over £100.”
We understand Tesco tries to pay out on prizes up to £500 where cash is available but it is dependent on how much cash is in tills.
The Sun has contacted the Department for Work and Pensions and Wyre Forest Council for comment.
Tragic teen’s mum was told daughter was dead on live TV after 42 day search…before shocking twist blew the family apart
THE agony of searching for her missing daughter was etched on the face of grief-stricken Concetta Serrano as she appealed for help on TV.
But moments later, in an astonishing twist, she heard the words she had been dreading since 15-year-old Sarah disappeared – as cameras continued to roll.
The cameras continued to roll as Concetta struggled to make sense of the news that her own brother in law had confessed to the grisly killing.
Now Disney+ are retelling the bizarre but true story of the murder case and the dark secrets and unspoken family grudges that surrounded her mysterious disappearance.
Each 80-minute episode of the drama This Is Not Hollywood tells the story from the point of view of one of the main protagonists — Sarah, her cousin Sabrina, uncle Michele and aunt Cosima, played by Federica Pala, Giulia Perulli, Paolo De Vita and Vanessa Scalera.
On 26 August 2010, teenager Sarah left her home in Avetrana, a small town in Puglia, Italy, to walk the short distance to her uncle’s house, where she had arranged to meet her cousin Sabrina, a 22-year-old beautician for an afternoon at the beach.
Sarah never arrived.
Her baffling disappearance plunged the whole town into turmoil and the close knit community bonded together to help police scour the area.
But while they combed the town for clues, Sarah’s body lay buried at the bottom of a well – where it was eventually discovered 42 days after she was last seen alive.
She had been strangled.
But the watching world was stunned further still when Sarah’s heartbroken mother was told on live TV that her daughter had been murdered – and that her brother-in-law Michele Misseri had confessed to the killing.
Concetta Serrano was filming and appeal for more help in the hunt for Sarah, on Italian TV, when she was given the devastating news that her child’s body had been found.
Visibly shocked, she murmured, “My brother-in-law is innocent” and “I can’t believe it.”
Concetta was being filmed in the dining room of the alleged killer when reporter told her about his confession.
Prosecutor Franco Sebastio told a news conference that police had dragged Sarah’s waterlogged and decomposing corpse from a water tank after her uncle had led them to a spot covered by stones and leaves.
Michele claimed that he had discovered Sarah’s burnt mobile phone while working in the fields.
He went on to confess that he had strangled his niece after she refused his sexual advances.
But even after the TV reporter had informed Concetta of her daughter’s death on air, the programme-makers continued to film her – despite her clearly being in shock.
It was only after several minutes that they asked her if she would like filming to stop, to which she replied quietly, “It is better.”
The decision to inform Miss Serrano about her daughter’s death during a broadcast was strongly criticised by many horrified viewers.
When a clip was shared on YouTube there was a torrent of furious protests, with viewers saying they were disgusted.
One wrote: “If you’re a human being with the least heart, you can’t do something like this.”
But Paolo Ruffini, the channel controller, defended the manner in which the news was broken to 3.5 million viewers.
“The programme tried to manage a very tragic affair in the most delicate possible way and I have to say the presenter achieved it,” he insisted.
Rape confession
During the search for Sarah, her uncle Michele had been filmed crying as he revealed he had ‘found’ her mobile phone under a pile of olive leaves,
It then emerged that shortly before her death, Sarah had complained to her cousin that she was being molested by Michele.
He was charged with her murder and, following a 15 hour police interrogation, he confessed to strangling Sarah – adding that he then raped her before throwing her body into a well in the countryside outside Avetrana.
Sabrina led the hunt for her cousin, and had given tearful TV interviews imploring people to come forward with any information about her whereabouts.
And after her father was arrested, Sabrina announced: “He must pay for what he’s done.”
But in a bizarre twist, just a few days later, Michele retracted the confession – and pointed the finger at Sabrina, accusing his own daughter of the crime.
If you’re a human being with the least heart, you can’t do something like this
Disgusted viewer
Michele claimed that Sabrina had been the one who lured Sarah down to the family’s garage – where he strangled her while his daughter pinned her arms down.
Sabrina denied any involvement in the killing.
Sabrina’s younger sister Valentina and her mother Cosima also insisted she was innocent of any crime.
But forensic examination of Sabrina’s mobile phone revealed ‘discrepancies’ in her version of events on the day that Sarah disappeared, and that of her father and other witnesses.
Cosima was later arrested for her involvement in the murder too.
Cosima and Sabrina were convicted of murder in April 2013, while Michele was sentenced to eight years in prison for hiding Sarah’s body.
During the trial it emerged that Sabrina was jealous of Sarah’s romance with a local boy called Ivano Russo.
They had both been dating him at the same time – but he dumped Sabrina just a few days before Sarah was killed.
Lawyers said jealousy drove her to murder.
In January 2012 Ivano told the court that he had been in relationships with both Sarah and Sabrina at the same time – and the jury was shown a selfie that Sarah had sent to him shortly before her death.
He said: “Sarah saw me as a father figure. Every now and then we hugged.”
Ivano went on to describe his relationship with her cousin, adding: “At a certain point, however, I saw ambiguous attitudes on her part, compliments that went too far.
“A few days before Sarah died, I decided to end the relationship because she didn’t convince me.”
In 2015, Italian courts upheld the life sentences for Cosima and Sabrina.
The appeals court in Taranto also upheld an eight-year term for Cosima’s husband Michele for hiding Sarah’s body.
“Even though Sarah has been buried, this is a story that has no end,” said her father Giacomo when the family relocated out of the area.
The Disney+ drama has been mired in controversy.
TV bosses were forced to change the name of the show following a legal wrangle.
Just as Avetrana – This Is Not Hollywood was about to air, the town’s mayor, Antonio Lazzi, argued that the series would ruin the reputation of the are, and demanded that the title be changed.
Eventually the court ruled in his favour, the name of the town was dropped from the the title, and the drama was eventually released today.
Drama behind the series coming to air
THE vicious murder of Sarah Scazzi shocked Italians across the country – and now more than a decade on, a new drama based on the case has courted controversy too.
The show, which focuses on the 15-year-old’s killing in 2010, was planned to have the title Avetrana – Qui non è Hollywood (This Is Not Hollywood) when it aired on Disney+ this month.
But now, after complaints including from the municipal government of Avetrana, which is where the crime occurred, the town name’s has been stripped from the series’s name.
It followed Judge Antonio Attanasio ruling in their favour and suspending the release of the show until a hearing – much to the delight of campaigners, including the town’s mayor Antonio Iazz.
He said: “We believe we have so far preserved the image of the community we represent… Avetrana cannot and must not be identified with the terrible [murder].”
Major Iazz added they would “continue to act, where necessary, to safeguard the rights” of residents in the area and ensure “name of Avetrana is removed from any form of publicity”.
To prevent the show’s release from being delayed director Pippo Mezzapesa and producer Matteo Rovere agreed it would air as ‘Qui non è Hollywood’ or This Is Not Hollywood.
Universal Credit and benefit changes revealed in the Budget
THE Chancellor has announced several changes in her Autumn Statement that will affect people on benefits and Universal Credit.
Rachel Reeves unveiled the government’s financial plan for spending and tax today in the commons.
As part of her speech Ms Reeves unveiled a raft of changes including a state pension boost, tobacco tax hikes and a 1p cut to the price of a pint.
The Chancellor also revealed several boosts for those on benefits including a payments increase and the extension of the Help to Save scheme.
She also confirmed she would lower the cap on the maximum level of deductions that can be taken from a person’s benefit payments.
In a bid to get more people signed up for pension credit, the Chancellor also announced it would be combining the administration of two key benefits.
Below we reveal the biggest Universal Credit and benefits changes that will affect you and your finances.
Payments increase
From next April, benefits claimants will see payments rise by 1.7%, making it a significantly lower boost than in previous years.
Ms Reeves said: “This commitment means that while working-age benefits will be uprated in line with CPI, at 1.7% the basic and new State Pension will be uprated by 4.1% in 2025-26.”
That is because the rise is based on September’s inflation figure in a process known as “uprating”.
The following benefits are also legally required to increase each April in line with the previous September’s rate of inflation:
- Personal independence payment (PIP)
- Disability living allowance
- Attendance allowance
- Incapacity benefit
- Severe disablement allowance
- Industrial injuries benefit
- Carer’s allowance
- Additional state pension
- Guardian’s allowance
We have rounded up all the benefits increasing and how much by here.
Carer’s allowance
An extra 60,000 carers will be able to claim government cash after changes announced in today’s Budget.
Ms Reeves said she will raise the limit people can earn before being ineligible for the carers allowance from £151 a week to £181.
The current earnings cap of £151 a week after income, national insurance and expenses has been criticised as far too low.
It has seen many selfless carers unknowingly bust the limit and later told to repay large sums of their benefits.
The Sun first revealed the changes were expected at the Budget last week – and it was welcomed by campaigners.
Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said: “We found 4 in 10 unpaid carers were pushed out of work because of problems with the earnings limit, plunging many into poverty.
“This new measure will help many more unpaid carers up and down the country to stay in paid work, putting much-needed finances into families’ pockets.”
Help to Save
The government also confirmed in its Budget documents, released today, that it will extend its Help to Save scheme by two years until April 2027.
The little-known savings account gives people on benefits, including Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit, a bonus of 50p for every pound they save, up to a maximum bonus of £1,200.
All savings are secure as the scheme is backed by the government.
The government is also extending the scheme so all Universal Credit claimants who work are eligible.
Previously, you, or you and your partner, must have earned £722.45 or more from paid work in your last monthly assessment period to qualify.
It has launched a consultation today into how it will deliver the “reformed and improved” version of the scheme.
In the Statement documents, it said: “The government will extend the current Help to Save scheme until 5 April 2027.
“With effect from 6 April 2025, eligibility will be extended to all Universal Credit claimants who are in work.
“A delivery consultation, including details of a reformed and improved scheme, has been published alongside the Budget.”
Housing benefit and pension credit
Through digging through the documents, The Sun also found that in a bid to increase pension credit take up – the government will be actively writing to housing benefit claimants encouraging them to apply for pension credit to.
The government has been working to maximise pension credit take up, particularly since it became one of the key benefits that can get the Winter Fuel Payment.
In the Budget documents, it said: “There has been a significant increase in Pension Credit claims following the announcement to target Winter Fuel Payments.
“The government is optimising the use of Housing Benefit data and individuals applying for Housing Benefit from Spring 2025 will be proactively encouraged to apply for Pension Credit.”
The government is contacting 120,000 pensioners currently in receipt of housing benefit inviting them to claim pension credit too.
It will also be bringing together the administration of the two benefits for new claimants from 2026.
This is two years earlier than previously announced and aims to support more people to receive the benefits that they are entitled to.
New Fair Repayment Rate
Ms Reeves has confirmed she will lower the cap on the maximum level of deductions that can be taken from a person’s benefit payments.
Addressing Parliament, Reeves said: “I can today announce that we are introducing a new Fair Repayment Rate to reduce the level of debt repayments that can be taken from a household’s Universal Credit payment each month from 25% to 15% of their standard allowance.
“This means that 1.2 million of the poorest households will keep more of their award each month lifting children out of poverty and those who benefit will gain an average of £420 a year.”
The Department for Work and Pensions can deduct money from a Universal Credit claimant’s allowance to help them pay back debt.
These can cover a range of debts, such as benefit advances, overpayments of child tax credits, rent and council tax areas, as well as outstanding water and utility bills.
Under previous rules, the DWP and third parties could deduct up to 25% of a claimant’s standard allowance to help manage their debt repayments.
But this has now been capped at 15% in efforts to help some of the worse-off homes across the UK pay off what they owe over a longer period.
The measure known as the Fair Repayment Rate will come into effect next April.
Surplus earnings threshold extended
Universal Credit claimants will continue to get the higher surplus earnings threshold of £2,500 until March 2026.
Surplus earnings are taken into account in your next monthly assessment period for Universal Credit.
For example, if your monthly earnings are more than £2,500 over where your payment stopped – the current threshold – this becomes “surplus earnings”.
These surplus earnings are then carried forward to the following month, where they count towards your earnings.
If your regular income and surplus earnings are then still over the amount where your payment stops, your Universal Credit payment will be affected.
Move to Universal Credit
The government also confirmed in the Budget documents, that it is speeding up the move for those on Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) claimants onto UC.
It said it brought the start date forward from 2028 to September 2024.
The documents read: “This move will bring more people into a modern benefit regime, continuing to ensure they are supported to look for and move into work.
“Around half of ESA claimants will receive more financial support on UC, while others will receive transitional protection to ensure nobody is worse off at the point at which they move over to UC.”
Everything you need to know about Universal Credit
- What is Universal Credit? Everything you need to know including how to apply
- Universal Credit calculator: How much can I claim and how do I apply?
- Universal Credit login: How do I sign in to my online account?
- How much can I earn before Universal Credit is reduced and do I get a work allowance?
- What is a Universal Credit advance payment? How to apply and pay it back
- Are Universal Credit payments going up and how much more will I get?
- How to claim Universal Credit if you’re self-employed
- How many hours can I work on Universal Credit and will my payment be reduced?
- What is a Universal Credit budgeting advance and how much could I get?
- What is the Universal Credit housing element and how much of your rent does it pay?
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Family who refused to sell property to developers as city grew around them FINALLY cash in after 60yrs…& make a fortune
A DEFIANT family who held out against the onslaught of development by refusing to sell have finally cashed in after 60 years and made a fortune.
The Miliado family in Adelaide, Australia had been sitting on a three acre, multi-million pound plot while developers have built around them – until now.
The property has been in the hands of the family for decades who have dealt with numerous property developers knocking on the their door in a bid to take it off their hands.
The ginormous plot is home to just one three-bedroom house that was built back in 1955 along with with an accompanying shed – and the property looks frozen in time with its interior decoration.
It is completely surrounded by new builds as the family’s neighbours upped and left, handing their keys over to developers.
Now the Miliado’s, despite holding on for 60 years, have finally decided to sell – and managed to secure just over an unbelievable £3 million for it ($6 million AUD).
This final figure was £1.2 million ($2.4 million AUD) above the guide price as 20 developers went into a bidding war to secure the site.
Harris Real Estate agent Clinton Nguyen told The Advertiser that they were initially unsure of what could be put on the land in terms of council approval.
But “once most developers did their due diligence”, the estate agency knew the property would “perform quite well at auction”.
The agent’s colleague said it was a “very sad sale” for the Miliado family as they were only selling after their parents passed away.
Tom Hector added: “The owners lived in that house up until the end, which was quite recently.
“I’ve been told they’ve had developers knocking on their door for the last 30 years.
“But [the family] didn’t sell because their mum and dad were still alive.
“It was their wish to never let that property go.”
He also said that it was costing the family too much to hold onto it, leading to its sale.
The property is situated near a gold course and shops in Salisbury, Adelaide.
Tom also told 7News that the site has great potential, calling it “an unmatched residential building opportunity”.
He said: “The developers have to let their imagination go wild, subject to what they can do with an urban planner.”
In a similar tale, a family in Sydney are holding out against the onslaught of development in their neighbourhood by refusing to sell their beloved five acre home.
The Zammit family are sitting on a £25million goldmine in Sydney but unlike their neighbours who let go long ago, they have told developers to keep on “dreaming”.
Their large five bedroom property with a sprawling 200 metre-long drive is located in The Ponds area in west Sydney, where hundreds of new homes have popped up in recent years.
The desirable area is only a 40-minute drive from the centre of the city and has beautiful views across the Blue Mountains.
The home looks bizarrely out-of-place wedged between identical chock-a-block newbuilds, where its 1.99 hectare garden could fit over 50 of the matching new homes inside.
However, when their neighbours upped and left – choosing to sell to the developers – the Zammits made a last hold out.
They refused to sell, despite being offered millions, and prevented the developers snatching up the last plot of land.
“The fact that most people sold out years and years ago, these guys have held on. All credit to them,” local agent Taylor Bredin told 7News.
“Depending on how far you push the development plan, you’d be able to push anywhere from 40 to 50 properties on something like this, and when subdivided, a 300 square metre block would get a million dollars.”
In short, the land could be worth over £25million, especially after ten years of their private rebellion.
Watch nerve-racking moment terrified Spanish woman and her beloved dog are airlifted from deadly floodwater
THIS is the dramatic moment a woman and her pet dog are airlifted from the deadly floodwater in Spain.
Nerve-racking footage shows crews rescuing the pair from the neck-high floods sweeping several southern and eastern Spanish towns.
The floodwaters have turned the country’s cities and countryside unrecognisable, with fast-flowing rivers destroying cars and other objects in their paths.
The woman from Utiel, near Valencia, was seen holding her pooch and a backpack under her flooded home’s roof on Tuesday.
A rescuer meanwhile prepared her for the rescue operation by tying safety equipment around her.
They venture out into the heavy rainfall, with the woman struggling to swim as her terrified dog clung onto her shoulders.
But the lady and her pet are then safely airlifted into a helicopter by emergency workers, as the ruthless floodwater flows below them.
Carlos Mazon, the regional leader of Valencia, one of Spain‘s most significant agricultural districts, said that some people remained trapped in inaccessible areas.
He said: “If [emergency services] have not arrived, it’s not due to a lack of means or predisposition, but a problem of access.”
Mr Mazon added that reaching certain areas was “absolutely impossible”.
He previously said in a chilling statement: “There are bodies and bodies continuing to appear in places we hadn’t been able to access before.”
It comes as the horrifying moment another woman was swept away in the deadly flash floods was captured on camera.
The surging water swept her off her feet as she desperately tried to hold on to anything in her path.
The woman, who has not been identified, could be seen screaming and trying to swim as helpless onlookers made desperate attempts to grab her hand from nearby balconies.
At one moment she successfully held onto a lamppost but the torrent quickly ripped her away sending her further down the street.
It is not known if she has survived.
Heartbreaking footage also showed a flooded retirement home in Valencia, with senior residents scrambling for balance in the muddy water.
Some 115 people were rescued from the care home in Paiporta, a town in Valencia that was hit particularly hard by the floods.
Tragically five were killed and one reported missing from the ruined building on Wednesday.
Mayor of the town, Maribel Albalat, said: “The currents were so quick – and we called the emergency services who started rescuing some people who had water up to their neck.”
Describing it as “a total catastrophe”, she added that the death toll is expected to rise: “The victims are going to be in their dozens.
“There were a lot of people in their homes which in Paiporta are single-storey and water has entered them and they haven’t been able to get out.”
She described “a lot of people who went to move their cars and never came back”.
Rescuers are desperately trying to find survivors and bodies in the mud after torrential downpours turned roads into rapids and trapped people inside their homes and cars.
Heavy floods have swept across Spain after severe storms struck the region on Tuesday.
Authorities confirmed on Wednesday morning that at least 72 people have been killed and more storms are expected on Thursday.
Over 1,000 soldiers have been deployed to the affected areas with pictures showing them helping to rescue stranded residents.
The flooding began at lunchtime on Tuesday, wreaking havoc from the provinces of Malaga in the south to Valencia in the east.
It is the worst flood-related natural disaster to hit Spain in almost 30 years – after flooding in 1996 killed 87.
A severe weather warning has been issued in Catalonia, northern Spain, marking a move away from the hard-hit southern and eastern regions.
Meteocat, the Catalan weather service, has warned of hail that could be as big as two centimetres and possible tornadoes or waterspouts.
Their warning sits at a level six – the highest possible.
A new map released by Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET appeared to show which regions suffered the heaviest blows in last night’s storms.
Why was Spain hit by flooding?
Spain was hit by flash floods after the east of the country was hit by a meteorological phenomenon known as a ‘DANA’.
A DANA, or a ‘cold drop’ is technically a system where there is an isolated depression in the atmosphere at high levels.
In layman’s terms, more warm and moist Mediterranean air than usual was sucked high into the atmosphere after a cold system hit the country from the south.
The easterly wind then pushed all those clouds and rain into eastern Spain.
Three to four months of rain fell in some places over the space of 24 hours.
The DANA system hit southern Spain as it arrived from Morocco yesterday and is now expected to head west over southern Portugal.