BRILLIANT, legendary, genius, dominant, maestro — words which describe Willie Mullins perfectly.
Genial, and a right proper gent too.
And the fact Mullins is such a nice guy means there were no grumbles in Britain when the king of Closutton respectfully lifted his trilby at Sandown in April.
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Even the punters were rooting for him. Gracious Mullins is popular despite his dominance and that says so much about him.
Fred Winter, Vincent O’Brien, Tom Dreaper, Martin Pipe and Paul Nicholls were all top of the charts — but none of them got to the level Mullins has reached on both sides of the Irish Sea.
To have a winner at the Cheltenham Festival has always been the holy grail, but for the Closutton handler his week is simply a failure if he does not bag at least five winners at Prestbury Park.
The only way his rivals might lay a glove on him is if he turns his back on the sport.
Fat chance.
He said: “Winning is never boring. The horses we buy are available to everyone. Hopefully we’ll be at the top for another five years with all the youngsters coming through.”
And Mullins, 68, is driven by a fear of failure, having watched successful trainers fall by the wayside in the past.
He added: “I try to learn lessons from other trainers down the years. I’m always amazed, when you look at some fantastic trainers, why it reaches a pitch and then it goes down.
“You ask yourself: “What did they do wrong?
“I try to analyse everything. The system we have here has been working so far. That’s why we are the team on top at the moment but it could all change.”
I hate to be the one to break the news to Willie, but the changing of the guard is unlikely.
He is currently sitting on a record 103 Cheltenham Festival winners with Nicky Henderson second on 73.
Records are there to be broken, but Mullins is smashing them — he’s a tour de force!
Last season he won 285 races in Britain and Ireland and well over £10m in prize money.
Not only was he champion trainer in Ireland he was also champ in Britain, a feat which has not been achieved since the legendary Vincent O’Brien did it way back in 1954.
Mullins smiled: “It’s probably a once in a lifetime thing, but we’ve done it, 70 years after Vincent O’Brien.”
And there are no signs of Mullins’ battalion slowing down in Britain and Ireland — all you have to do is take one glance at the talent he has at his disposal.
Dual Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs heads the long list of stars but he might not have things all his own way in the staying division because stablemate Fact To File looks a serious threat to his crown.
Arkle hero Gaelic Warrior is an extraordinary horse and Mullins reckons he could be the perfect Christmas present in the King George at Kempton.
Lossiemouth is an exciting contender for the Champion Hurdle and it will be interesting to see if she runs in Britain or takes on her stablemate and reigning champion State Man in Ireland.
The Closutton legend is strong in all departments and he has the market leaders for every novice race.
It would take forever to list every contender he hs but there is no doubt Ballyburn is the star of the show.
He already looks the Irish banker for the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Mullins is never one to keep standing still and has been busy at the sales.
Here are a few purchases to keep an eye on: Leader des Bordes (€210,000), Arslan (€180,000), Boedic (€175,000) and Blue Velvet (€170,000).
Leader des Bordes is by Tunis and his half-brother has already started making waves.
After buying the former, bloodstock expert Harold Kirk said: “I always knew he was going to be very popular, as he’s a stunning horse with a huge pedigree. He’s for an existing owner in the yard.
“His half-brother [Kopek Des Bordes] won the Tattersalls Ireland George Mernagh Memorial Bumper last season and we’ll be hoping this one can win the Goffs Defender Bumper next year. That’ll be the first plan anyway.”
Arslan finished second on his sole point-to-point at Tralee last May.
Boedic was a top lot on day of the Tattersalls Ireland sales in June.
He is by No Risk At All and Kirk said: “He is a stunning individual, has fantastic movement and he just ticked every box.
“Every time I saw him, I loved him more and he is for an owner in Willie’s yard.”
Blue Velvet unseated in his only point-to-point when leading and sent off 2-1 fav, but was still picked up by Mullins and Kirk a few days later.
STABLE STAR
GALOPIN DES CHAMPS has won two Gold Cups and still has plenty left in the tank to complete the hat-trick in the Blue Riband at Cheltenham.
Willie says: “He’s a superstar. He gallops, he jumps, he stays. What more do you need?”
FESTIVAL FANCY
BALLYBURN produced one of the best performances in the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and he looks a special talent.
Willie says: “Once Ballyburn learns to settle I think he’ll be a super horse.”
MONEY MAKER
QUAI DE BOURBON might not have the sexy profile of some of his stablemates, but he was just marking time over timber before he is unleashed over fences.
Willie says: “He’s a really strong stayer and could be a huge improver once he sees a fence over a trip.”
DARK HORSE
PORT JOULAIN was an impressive winner of a Gowran Park bumper in March.
The likes of Yorkhill, Bob Olinger and Journey With Me have all won that race before going on to better things.
He flopped at Punchestown but he still rates a top prospect for hurdling.
Willie says: “I was very pleased with him at Gowran Park. He’s a real galloper and could reach the top as a chaser or hurdler.”
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THOUSANDS of pensioners will get a £200 one-off payment for energy bills after the winter fuel allowance cut.
The government is rolling out the latest phase of its Household Support Fund, which offers vouchers to struggling Brits.
The funding is available across England, but the amount up for grabs depends on your local council.
More than 32,000 eligible households in Nottinghamshire will get the help to cover food and energy costs in the run-up to Christmas.
They include families with children eligible for Free School Meals and people receiving Pension Credit.
Social workers have identified other households which need financial support.
The council will contact eligible households next month, so residents do not need to take any action.
Those eligible can expect to get a one-off payment of around £100 per household.
The help comes via the latest round of the Household Support Fund which is worth £421million.
The fund is designed to help hard-up households cover the cost of living, mostly through cash grants, supermarket and energy vouchers.
Each council across England has been allocated a share of the £421million pot and decides who to distribute money to.
It comes after the Government changed the eligibility criteria for the winter fuel payment.
Only those on certain benefits, including pension credit, will receive the up to £300 payment.
Each council across England has been allocated a share from the £421million pot.
But each local authority gets to decide its own eligibility criteria.
That means what you are entitled to will vary depending on where you live.
Not all councils have decided what they will do with their share of the £421million yet either.
The best thing to do is contact your local authority to see if any help is currently on offer.
You can find what council area you fall under by the using the Government’s council locator tool via gov.uk.
The Sun recently shared a guide and interactive map to help those unsure figure out what they may be able to claim.
If you’re not eligible for the Household Support Fund, you might be able to get a grant from your energy firm to cover energy debt.
British Gas is handing out grants worth £1,700 to struggling households through its Individual and Families Fund.
The fund is available to British Gas and non-British Gas customers living in England, Scotland or Wales.
You won’t be eligible if you received a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust within the last two years.
And you must be seeking a grant to clear outstanding debt on a current or open gas, electricity or dual fuel energy account.
Crucially, you also need to have received help from a money advice agency within the last six months.
If you don’y qualify for help with British Gas, a number of other energy firms offer help to customers struggling with energy bill debt.
This includes OVO, Boost, E.On, E.On Next, EDF, Scottish Power, Octopus, Shell Energy, SSE and Utilita.
The Household Support Fund was first launched in October 2021 to help Brits pay their way through winter amid the cost of living crisis.
Councils up and down the country got a slice of the £421million funding available to dish out to Brits in need.
It was then extended in the 2022 Spring Budget and for a second time in October 2022 to help those on the lowest incomes with the rising cost of living.
The DWP then confirmed a third extension of the scheme through to March 31, 2024.
Former chancellor Jeremy Hunt extended the HSF for the fourth time while delivering his Spring Budget on March 6, 2024.
In September 2024, the Government announced a fifth extension.
SOCIAL media, to paraphrase Dickens – a verbose man who’d have hated memes – it is the best of times and the worst of times; the age of wisdom, the age of foolery.
Today, in the wake of the utterly tragic, senseless death of Liam Payne, One Direction fans have pooled together.
They are offering an online space to grieve and providing solace and shared stories of fandom and love for their hero.
Thanks to them, the hashtag #liamslaw is trending, a call for new legislation to be introduced, safeguarding artists’ mental health and providing further scrutiny on the entertainment industry.
And the tributes pouring out from family, friends, fans and the great and good of music show just how wonderful this young man was.
And what a huge loss he will be.
This, perhaps, is the best of social media, in which it restores an iota of humanity and faith, and offers hope and community to those in need.
But, and there’s a very big but, some of these same 1Ders — the ones so angrily lashing out at those they seek to blame for Liam’s death — are the very ones once upon a time rushing to his Instagram and Snapchat to issue their disdain, their judgment, their mockery.
Those watching the breakdown of a fragile but brilliant, brave and kind man in real time and commentating on it ghoulishly.
Where was that sympathy and kindness and need to bolster Liam’s mental health then?
Where was the outpouring of love and support and #bekind?
According to a report over the weekend, his record label Universal dropped the star, in part, because of “all the memes and jokes people made about him online”.
Universal released their own Instagram tribute to this talented musician, wisely deciding to disable the comments beneath it.
Because you can be sure many of them wouldn’t have been kind.
In an age where we are forever looking for someone to blame, right now music industry execs are providing an easy target.
But in situations like these, everyone needs to take a long, hard look at themselves.
Liam, being human, would have read much of this commentary on him.
These people doing the finger pointing, making the memes, didn’t know him.
If they’d met him, at all, it was for a two-second selfie — something the endlessly generous 31-year-old never, ever turned down.
(A man who had also secretly been donating to GoFundMe pages for people in need.)
Right to the end, Liam was plastering on a smile and meeting and greeting his fans.
Watching it back today, knowing what we know, is hard.
As his beloved sister, Nicola, posted on Instagram yesterday: “Unfortunately this cruel world is always quick to judge someone for a few five-second clips, they then think it entitles them to be able to speak like they know you.
“We knew you and we loved you.”
Now, the people who truly knew him are the only people who matter.
Rest well, Liam.
PAMELA ANDERSON is having a renaissance – and I’m here for it.
The 57-year-old has come a long, long way since her pneumatic Baywatch, sex tape days and brilliantly reinvented herself as a make-up-free feminist icon, with a vegan twist.
Her new cookbook, I Love You: Recipes From The Heart, is suitably kooky.
“Sourdough has my heart; I like to think of baking bread as like giving birth,” she writes.
“I love every olive”, she declares later on, sweetly praising their sweet, little “wrinkled skins” before going on to wax lyrical on the “beauty and intelligence” of mushrooms.
She reveals giving her pet mastiffs fruit balls laced with CBD oil, handily including the recipe in the tome for anyone wishing to give their pet the munchies.
As kooky and free-spirited as Pammy Mk II may be, alas she still has lawyers.
“Check with your vet and read the bottle carefully,” she states, with the publisher’s legal eagles evidently convulsing at the prospect of 78 stoned Dobermans claiming compo.
In another chapter, the star details a recipe for a dish she once dreamt up: “A single rose served simply as a salad, dressed with olive oil and sumac.”
Which sounds nothing short of a nightmare.
CERTAIN photographs sometimes go on to haunt politicians for ever.
Case in point: Ed Miliband eating a bacon sandwich, Theresa May dancing, Boris Johnson on a zip wire, Jeremy Corbyn high-fiving Emily Thornberry’s boob.
Now that photo of Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria in their box at the Taylor Swift concert looks set to follow the PM around forever – long after freebie-gate finally settles down.
CIVIL servants have been advised against using phrases like “millennials” and “Gen Z”, or “it’s raining cats and dogs”, so as not to offend, well, millennials and Gen Z, or confuse the neurodiverse.
The recommendations were given as part of an inclusive language guide which stresses the need to avoid words that can “offend, exclude or harm people”.
If members of the civil service genuinely think that pigs are flying, or there’s a dead horse being flogged outside the office, I suggest they probably shouldn’t be in the civil service.
Although, frankly, the chance of seeing the blob in an office seems less likely than a soaring boar.
WES STREETING is a genuine innovator – a man with ideas and the willingness to implement them (if the unions allow him).
And his idea for a public consultation about the NHS – fielding the views of staff and patients about the future of the health service – aren’t without merit.
But after 14 years waiting in the wings, now is the time for action, not chat.
CHRIS HOY’S bravery and honesty in discussing his terminal prostate cancer battle is a lesson to us all.
Cancer is an evil which discriminates against no one – prince, pauper or, in this case, Olympic god.
But one of the most startling and heartbreaking revelations is that both his dad and grandfather had prostate cancer but Chris, 48, never had a PSA test for it because the NHS doesn’t test asymptomatic men before the age of 50.
Perhaps, then, a simple test and earlier screening could have saved his life.
Chris is an incredible man.
Now, hopefully lessons will be learned by the NHS, and current testing procedures get overhauled.
NOT saying “hello” to a colleague could break employment laws, according to a judge.
It comes after a tribunal found a recruitment manager could successfully claim unfair dismissal when her new boss deliberately ignored her.
What piffle!
As someone who regularly dons giant over-the-ear black headphones in the office and pretends I’m transcribing an interview so as not to engage in utterly needless chitter-chatter when I simply CBA, I’m all for a bit of silence.
DO footballers ever re-watch themselves on Match Of The Day and think, “God, I’m pathetic”?
The embarrassing handbags-at-dawn scuffle between West Ham and Spurs which saw the Hammers’ Mohammed Kudus sent off is one such example.
One Tottenham player – Micky van de Ven – took a grazing blow to the face and went down as if he’d been shot in the face by an Uzi.
Man up, chaps.
WITH the average syringe of lip filler costing over £220, it’s no wonder Brits are turning to cheaper alternatives.
And safely plumping your pout without going under the needle is even cheaper now thanks to make-up brand Too Faced.
The Californian beauty giant’s flagship product is its Lip Injection Plumping Lipgloss.
The innovative (but also gentle formula) has advanced volumising technology that enlarges lips with a combination of reaction-sparking ingredients.
It also includes avocado oil and Vitamin E to smooth and soften pouts.
And while a tube typically costs £24 a pop, you can now pick two new shades up for £13 per tube as part of a new Christmas buy.
Too Faced has released the Lip Injection Maximum Plump Lip Gloss Duo – which contains two glosses in limited edition shades – for a cool £26.
To buy them separately would set you back £52.
“Plump the look of lips intensely, immediately, while adding a kiss of colour,” Too Faced bosses said.
“This essential plumping set includes full sizes of Lip Injection Maximum Plump in two exclusive shades that are here for a good time, but not for a long time.
“The advanced volumising formula dramatically hydrates and nourishes lips so they’re party-ready all season.”
The shades are Amethyst Crystal, a purple with pink shimmer, and Diamond Fire, a clear gloss with shifting shimmer.
The duo makes the perfect Christmas gift, too.
The packaging is already a lift box that you just need to add the “To” and “From” to the label.
Shopper reviews have described the product as “lip filler in a bottle”, with some vowing to “never get injected again”.
“It works like magic, like actual lip injections,” one beamed.
“If ‘beauty is pain’ was a lip gloss, it would be this,” a second said.
“It works wonders though.”
Too Faced’s Lip Injection range works as lip plumpers by using ingredients that create a temporary swelling effect.
As a result, your lips appear fuller and more voluminous in an instant.
Upon application, you may feel a tingling or slight burning sensation as the active ingredients work to stimulate blood flow and plump your pout.
Too Faced even claims that regular use of its innovative formula will create long-term plumping effects.
CARRYING shopping while walking up stairs and chopping wood – the former I do all the time but the latter is very rare.
Yet both are among nine movements that we should all be able to do at age 50 in order to stay fit until 90.
That is according to Will Harlow, physiotherapist, over-fifties health specialist and author of new book, Thriving Beyond Fifty.
Given my 50th is in January, I decided to see how I fared.
After all, there is a higher chance than ever that I could live to 90, according to the Office for National Statistics.
A recent report finds there are 551,758 people aged over 90 in England and Wales — a 0.2 per cent increase from 2022, compared with a 2.1 per cent rise in the previous year.
I’m very conscious of my health and do everything I can to stay as fit and healthy as possible.
I don’t drink or smoke, I try to exercise every day, whether it be a walk, yoga, swimming or weights, and I eat healthily.
I’ve lost more than two stone this year, after realising the weight was piling on and that this can have health implications.
Both of my parents died at age 55, — Mum from cancer and Dad from MND, ten years apart.
As I now approach that milestone of turning 50, I’ve become more aware of my own mortality.
Will says: “There is still so much living to do after the 50-year mark. I like to think of 50 as the halfway point in life. Living to 100 years old may seem far-fetched but getting there is becoming more realistic with each passing decade.
“The problem is that many people may live to a wonderful age in numerical terms, yet their later years are plagued by pain and suffering.
“This can turn those final decades of your life from being potentially the most rewarding to instead the most cruel.”
But it doesn’t have to be that way. With a bit of investment, your older years can be pain-free and healthy.
Will explains: “The Nine at 90 is a collection of movements that can be used to effectively screen your whole body for movement problems.
“Many people are surprised to discover they are unable to do some of these movements, and I would not expect every older person to be able to do them.
“But they simply reveal where your problem areas might be, and that realisation can give you a clear objective to work towards.”
Here, we explain nine tasks you should be able to do at 50 to keep yourself fit.
Give them a go . . .
THE consequences of falls cost the NHS over £2billion per year.
The perils of suffering a fall are enormous.
They are the most common cause of injury-related deaths for over-75s, according to Age UK.
Will says: “Luckily, for many people falls don’t damage anything more than their confidence.
“But having fallen, there is another problem you must face.
“That problem is how to get up from the floor, especially when no one else is around.”
This isn’t the way that I would usually attempt to get up from the floor, but I imagine it is a good one to practise as you get older.
TO DO:
APPARENTLY, being able to put your cabin suitcase into the overhead luggage compartment on a plane requires considerable upper-body strength, and stability.
Will says: “The shoulders, arms and ‘core’ muscles are all highly active when we lift and shift above our heads, and excellent shoulder mobility is also required when it comes to reaching for your case.”
This task wasn’t too bad but I can see how it would be a challenge if somebody has particularly tight shoulders.
TO DO:
PICKING up a light object like a sock, phone or cable is something most of us can do in a swift movement.
But Will says: “When we come across a heavy load on the floor that needs shifting, it’s important we have the ability to do this without risk of injury.
“For this movement, ankle and hip mobility are vital, as well as strength and coordination of the lower-limb muscles.”
I can be guilty of not getting down properly to pick things up, so will remind myself this is the best way to do it.
It wasn’t too hard – but ask me when I try to shift some-thing particularly heavy.
TO DO:
I FEEL like I spend my life taking stuff up and down the stairs – washing, plates and bags.
Will says: “It’s important to be able to climb the stairs without the use of the handrail when one isn’t available, and to be able to transport a heavy load in each hand up and down the staircase when required.
“Climbing the stairs with a bag of shopping in each hand is a great test for your leg strength and overall stability.
“If you can do this task, it should bring you confidence across the board.”
I’m well-practised at this but always make sure I walk slowly, as I am conscious of tripping.
TO DO:
THIS was pretty easy and it’s something I try to do frequently.
But the added weight did make it harder.
Will says: “Being able to sit down and stand up with good control throughout this motion, without using your hands, shows excellent control of your thigh muscles – one of the key muscle groups for many of the tasks we perform every day.
“I use this movement as my number one quick screening tool when I have a client with a lower-limb problem, to check how well they’re moving before we get to work.”
TO DO:
CHANCES are this isn’t something you need to do regularly, but digging is a great form of exercise.
Will says: “Digging with a heavy spade is an activity that involves a range of muscle groups, meaning the benefits of this activity are widespread.
“Not only will each thrust of the spade require a maximal effort from your muscles, but the effort will require your heart and lungs to be working well, too.
“Because of this, being able to dig a hole represents the ability to perform a truly practical, physical activity that transfers across many other DIY or garden tasks.”
This was a challenge for me, from a cardiovascular point of view. I was pretty hot after a few minutes – it’s a really good workout.
TO DO:
MANY older people could only dream of getting this close to the floor but you may be used to the gardening crouch if you’re green-fingered.
Will says: “It requires excellent mobility of your ankles, knees and hip.
“The common substitute people make for this movement is to ‘fold’ at the waist and use the movement of their lower back to reach for the floor.
“Constant repetitive use of this action can lead to back pain and isn’t good for your long-term back health.”
I squat most days to lift things from the floor so don’t find this difficult.
TO DO:
WILL says: “Swinging the axe requires you to generate force with your lower limbs, then transfer it up through your trunk to your arms before contracting your shoulders and trunk to bring the axe down.
“Almost every muscle group in the body is used.”
It was hard work and my heart was racing after just a few chops.
My core needs to be stronger to protect my back.
TO DO:
I TRY to walk at least 8,000 steps a day, which is about three to four miles, but will push myself to add more moving forward.
Will reckons walking five miles is a “good audit of your general mobility”.
He says: “Little niggles and problems with your walking technique are likely to show, highlighting areas of your body that need extra work.
“What’s more, having the ability to walk five miles gives you confidence in certain situations that, luckily, we don’t have to contend with very often but are always a possibility – such as being stranded some-where after your car has broken down, with no signal to call the breakdown services.”
TO DO:
WILL says: “If you can’t complete the tasks in the Nine at Ninety, don’t worry: it’s likely that you’re just out of practice.
“When we don’t use these parts of our body regularly, we lose the ability to call on them when we need to.
“But, in many cases, this process is reversible.
“There are many goals that are closer to being within reach than you think.
“First, you need to work out if the reason you can’t perform these movements is because of lack of practice, or because an injury is preventing you from doing so.
“Get the injury problem solved first before trying to push on with these tasks.
“Seek out some professional advice about your individual circumstances.
“If you think that most of these are within your capabilities at this current time, that’s fantastic and should be applauded.
“Your task is simply to maintain your ability to perform these movements as each year passes, watching out for early signs of stiffness or weakness that may prohibit your movement.
“Key ‘sticky’ areas to watch for are loss of movement in your shoulder joints, tightness in your calves and stiffness in the hips and knees.
“Keep an eye on these areas and seek guidance if you feel stiffness or tightness setting in any time soon.”
IT is 40 years since Dame Claire Bertschinger was a nurse on the front line of the devastating famine in Ethiopia, deciding which starving children to save.
But the torment of not being able to feed them all will never truly leave her.
Haunting footage in a 1984 BBC News report by Michael Buerk — which showed Claire caring for babies with only the scantest of supplies — shocked the world.
The harrowing film, which aired four decades ago tomorrow, would go on to inspire charity Band Aid single Do They Know It’s Christmas? — followed by the Live Aid concert the next year — and raise around £120million for the African country.
Among the hordes of hungry youngsters to feature in the appeal was three-year-old Birhan Woldu.
Her frail image was beamed from the screen at Live Aid, her life appearing to slowly ebb away.
But today, we can reveal that Birhan, now 43, survived the famine and became a nurse herself — and that she and Claire still keep in touch.
In fact, Claire, 71, has been back to Ethiopia to visit Birhan and her daughter, born in 2011 and named Claire after the Brit aid worker.
In an exclusive interview, she said: “It is an honour that Birhan named her daughter after me.
“People will know her from being the tiny girl in footage at Live Aid being carried by her father to the tune Drive by The Cars.
“And now she is a beautiful woman, she is a mother, she got a degree and is a nurse.
“We’re still in touch. She’s a wonderful woman. She doesn’t really speak English, but we can zap an email to each other.
“I have been to see her and little Claire. It is very special.”
Of the famous news broadcast that first highlighted the desperate situation in Ethiopia, Claire added: “I had no idea it had had the impact that it did.
“I was experiencing starving people all day, every day, and trying my best and doing my job.
“What the BBC filmed was just a snapshot of what was going on.
“But the report had an amazing effect. Before that, people had no idea of the suffering in Ethiopia. It just shows you how important it is reporting these things.
“After that report, and the subsequent Band Aid fundraising, we had several Hercules planes every day full of supplies to help people there, not just once a month. It was amazing, wonderful.”
Claire, of Somerset, who was made a Dame in the late Queen’s 2010 Honours, told how she found herself unable to talk about her experiences in Ethiopia for 20 years.
And she revealed she was initially sceptical about 1984 song Do They Know It’s Christmas? — featuring huge stars including Bob Geldof, Bono, Midge Ure and George Michael — as she thought: “We’re going to need a lot more than a band aid here.”
Claire, who had previously been posted in Beirut, was working as a nurse for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) when she received a call asking her to go to Ethiopia in June 1984.
She said: “I was told, ‘We need somebody in Ethiopia. Would you like to go?’. I’d never been to Africa so I thought, ‘Yes, I’d love to’.
“I had no real gauge of just how serious the situation was.
“There was already a nurse for the ICRC over there who had set up a feeding station, which I would go to.” Thousands of people had already died and seven million were threatened with starvation in the war-torn country.
I was told, ‘We need somebody in Ethiopia. Would you like to go?’. I’d never been to Africa so I thought, ‘Yes, I’d love to’
Dame Claire Bertschinger
Claire, who was 27 at the time, added: “I can remember seeing masses of starving men, women, children in just tattered rags.
“There was a drought and people had been displaced. But at that time it started to rain very heavily. The ground turned into a quagmire.
“It was horrendous. The situation was so desperate that people were just skin and bones. They had no fat, they had just skin dropping off their bones.”
There were so few resources available that Claire had to choose who would be fed and saved.
She recalled once going outside to select the 60 or 70 starving children they could provide for that day — only to find there were more than a thousand waiting for food.
Claire explained: “I would take the ones who had sort of a spark of life in their eyes, and just mark them.
“I marked them with a bit of coal on their head, on their arm, and I knew the rest would not survive the next ten days, because there was no food.
“The thing was, we didn’t have sufficient general rations for everybody at that time. I had to focus on what we could do.
“There were often 500 kids, some vomiting, some wanting to eat, some not wanting to eat, some screaming their heads off.
“I didn’t have time to think of the bigger global picture.”
But in October that year, a BBC crew including Michael Buerk arrived.
Claire said: “They had got on a small, light aircraft and flown in and come to my feeding centre. It was very unexpected. And they wanted to come and film.
It was horrendous. The situation was so desperate that people were just skin and bones. They had no fat, they had just skin dropping off their bones
Dame Claire Bertschinger
“I was trying to feed the kids, and also do a little medical clinic. And I remember them asking me to stand among the children who were really bad and starving.
“I just remember him asking me this one particular question about having to select the children who were fed, saying, ‘How does that make you feel?’.
“I thought, ‘What a stupid question!’. I just told him, ‘It breaks my heart’.
“I remember trying to get rid of them as quickly as possible. I didn’t want them there because of them getting in the way. What they got was a snapshot of the desolation. They were there for a blink in the eye of the day. I lived it every day.”
In the days that followed, Buerk’s report was aired on the BBC news, including his questioning of Claire and his famous description of the feeding centre as “the closest thing to hell on Earth”.
The report sent shockwaves around the world and sparked a huge fundraising drive — but Claire had no idea.
She said: “There was no phone, there was no internet. I would get a letter from my mother saying they saw me on the TV, but I didn’t even give it another thought I was so immersed in my job.”
One person the report touched was Boomtown Rats frontman Bob Geldof, who decided to bring in some of the biggest music stars to make a charity record for Ethiopia.
Claire said: “I had a shortwave radio — sometimes you could hear what they were saying, and sometimes you couldn’t.
“I remember them talking about this song by Band Aid called Do They Know It’s Christmas?.
“I thought, ‘It’s going to need more than a band aid to fix the issues here’, and I remember thinking, ‘Of course they don’t know it’s Christmas, they have a completely different calendar in Ethiopia’.
“I was sceptical. But then the planes arrived that were funded by the charity donations from around the world.”
I thought, ‘It’s going to need more than a band aid to fix the issues here’, and I remember thinking, ‘Of course they don’t know it’s Christmas, they have a completely different calendar in Ethiopia’
Dame Claire Bertschinger
In fact, a Hercules aircraft packed with food rations touched down days after Claire first heard the hit single.
She said: “I was told this Hercules plane was going to arrive, and I should go and meet it at the airport.
“And the doors opened, it was full of supplies. And I thought, ‘Wow, this is amazing. We’re saved’.
“By Christmas time, we had several feeding centres. It prevented a lot of deaths.
“It made me realise how wonderful Michael Buerk’s report had been and the fundraising Band Aid had done afterwards.
“That stupid question of the song title was probably the best thing that could have happened.”
However, witnessing the plight of Ethiopian families has had a lasting effect on Claire.
She said: “Going home was hard. People didn’t understand the extent of what I had seen. They kept saying what I had done was marvellous, but I didn’t think what I’d done was marvellous at all. It affected me.”
Do They Know It’s Christmas? went straight to No1 in December 1984.
And the following year, Live Aid, hosted simultaneously at Wembley stadium and the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, was beamed around the world, featuring performances from huge acts, including Queen and Elton John.
The two projects raised around £120million for relief in Ethiopia.
For the 20th anniversary in 2004, Claire went back to Ethiopia with Michael Buerk.
Going home was hard. People didn’t understand the extent of what I had seen. They kept saying what I had done was marvellous, but I didn’t think what I’d done was marvellous at all. It affected me
Dame Claire Bertschinger
She said: “I met people who remembered me. It was very touching. But it was like opening a wound. It felt very painful, and it was painful for months later.
“It doesn’t give you closure, because the experience is always there, but you move on.”
However, Claire was heartened to see a stronger country when she visited again years later.
She said: “I went back over in 2015, this time with Bob Geldof.
“It was wonderful to see the new roads, hospitals, educational buildings, all through fundraising efforts.”
Sadly, in Ethiopia, conflict has been raging again and Claire said: “Fighters have destroyed the hospitals, moved everything from inside the hospitals, destroyed schools, looted everything and are killing. It is extremely worrying.”
Practising Buddhist Claire, who retired from her role as a lecturer at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in January, believes there needs to be more understanding in the world.
On Friday, she and Michael Buerk, along with others, will hold a talk at the London School of Economics about the Ethiopian famine and fundraising efforts.
She said: “I feel that there’s sufficient food in the world for everybody, and that we have to find an alternative to fighting war.
“We have to do it through seeing each person as human and not seeing them as the other side.
“I am proud of my work and, 40 years on, am very glad of the impact that the BBC report from Ethiopia made.
“Stories like Birhan’s are a reminder we have made a difference. We are making a difference, and shouldn’t stop.”
INTER MIAMI’S addition to the Club World Cup has left Major League Soccer rivals furious with Fifa.
Gianni Infantino, the Fifa president, announced this week that David Beckham’s MLS franchise will take the America host nation spot for next summer’s controversial tournament.
Infantino pointed to Inter Miami winning the Supporters Shield, awarded to the club who perform the best over the regular season, as the reason for their qualification.
The actual MLS champion is decided through the play-offs.
But with the reason for Miami’s inclusion not given before they lifted the trophy, their rivals have accused Fifa of having no clear qualification criteria.
And they claim they have jumped the gun simply to ensure that Lionel Messi is involved in the revamped 32-team tournament.
Seattle Sounders are the other team from the US involved and they booked their spot having won the Concacaf Champions Cup in 2022.
Fifa had been in discussions with MLS over criteria this season, before deciding on the Supporters Shield winner at their Council meeting on October 3 – the day after Miami sealed the title.
MLS insist all decision-making around the final slot was dealt with by the world governing body.
Not only have Beckham’s boys been given the host nation spot, but they will also play in the curtain raiser in Miami on June 15.
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Other clubs have always felt that Miami have had special treatment from the league due to their high profile stars – something which has always been denied.
Four ex-Barcelona legends are in the squad – Messi, Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets.
Their success on the pitch this season, setting a points record for the regular season, gives officials a simple answer when questions are asked.
Elite European sides like Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, PSG, Inter Milan, Juventus, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are all in the Club World Cup.