Opal Chuangsri makes history as Thailand's first Miss World
Here's the plan: The festivities begin at 1.30pm when the newly crowned Miss World touches down at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Gate 10. From there, she'll head to the Bangkok Planetarium, where the parade begins at 4.40pm. The procession will then roll on to the EM District, so if you're nearby, this is your chance to see her up close. Finally, the big welcome party takes place at UOB Live at EmSphere starting from 6pm.
It's not every day that a Thai woman shines at the very top of the world stage. Sure, beauty pageants happen all the time, but Miss World is different. Established in 1951 in the UK, it's the oldest international pageant and no Thai woman had ever stood in that winner's spotlight – until now.
Unlike many other competitions, Miss World focuses on more than just looks. There's no swimsuit round and contestants are judged on their intelligence, talent and commitment to making a difference. In a way, winning Miss World is like winning the Olympics of beauty pageants.
When Opal Suchata became the first Thai woman to win Miss World, it wasn't just a personal triumph – it was a moment of pride for the entire nation. As she returns home, it's time to celebrate not only her achievement but also the joy and inspiration she brings to Thailand.
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The Guardian
12 hours ago
- The Guardian
Can crocodiles and canoeists coexist at Australia's 2032 Olympic Games?
Andrew Miller is only minutes into a crash course on using a V8 ocean ski when he first drops the C-bomb. The former red beret paratrooper and current president of a Rockhampton canoe club is explaining to a first-time paddler why he won't begin on a K1 – the kind of craft the world's best canoe sprinters will paddle when and if they come here to central Queensland to compete at the 2032 Olympic Games. 'It's like sitting on a pencil,' Miller says. 'If a crocodile so much as tapped your hull, you'd be straight into the drink!' The club secretary, John Mackenzie, admonishes: 'You had to use the C-word.' To be fair to Miller, the proximity of the world's largest living reptile is not much of a secret. On the wall of the humble green shed belonging to the Fitzroy Canoe Club is a mascot of sorts: a toy croc called Fitzy. Pinned to the noticeboard are tips on being 'Croc Wise'. The club's paddling area is a known crocodile habitat, the note reads. Enter boats 'briskly'. Don't drag arms and legs in the water. If you capsize, get out as soon as possible. In March, the Queensland government announced that the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton, about 500km north of Brisbane, would host rowing and canoeing events at the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Scattered along the banks of the Fitzroy are signs warning of injury or death from saltwater crocodiles. A four-metre croc can be right beside you in the water, invisible, one reads. Visitors to the 'beef capital of Australia' are extremely unlikely to see a live saltie. But they won't miss representations of the prehistoric ambush predator throughout the grand sandstone and wrought iron buildings of the river port. In the lane behind the newly refurbished Rockhampton Museum of Art is a crocodile mural, 18 metres long and five metres high. But now the C-bomb has been dropped, the jokes are carpeted. We hop out to our boats atop the backs of crocodiles, Miller reckons. But don't worry, the crocs aren't hungry – 'we feed them all the time'. After the gags, Miller gets serious. You won't encounter a croc, he promises. Just enjoy the river, there isn't a better one between here and the mighty Murray. And with that, as the pinks and purples of dawn filter through the leaves of paperbarks that line the Fitzroy's banks, the canoeists paddle off into the mist that rises from the chalky brown water. Corellas screech from towering gums. Pelicans break the still surface of the river. An osprey peers down from the branches of a dead tree. The kayak quivers as its rudder hits a clump of duckweed. The canoeists paddle upstream, away from the city and the barrage that divides the Fitzroy between its salt and freshwater reaches. This piece of infrastructure is one reason Miller contends the river is 'pristine'. Unlike those to the south, the freshwater Fitzroy is not swept by tides, lined by mud and mangrove or racked by wind and wave. That concrete barrier, built as a water storage system to help meet the region's water supply needs, also marks a boundary on the government's Queensland crocodile management plan between targeted management and general management zones. Upstream of the barrage for 20km, park rangers are tasked with removing 'all large crocodiles' and any croc 'displaying dangerous behaviour' from the water. After a couple of kilometres, a pair of canoeists pass through a stretch of river they claim is the territory of a croc about the length at which it is officially considered 'large' – that is, longer than two metres. A few kilometres farther upstream is the spot that one canoe club member sighted a 4.5 metre saltie two years ago. After several weeks, it was captured and removed. This is winter, too – the same time of year that sunny Queensland will host the summer Olympics – and the period in which crocs are most easy to spot, basking their cold blood on riverbanks. Yet, statistically, Miller is almost certain to be right. The Boyne River, more than 100km to the south, is officially considered the southern boundary of typical crocodile habitat. Here in the lower reaches of croc country, the number and density of these apex predators is far lower than in the faraway tropics to the north. A government monitoring program estimates the number of crocodiles in rivers of the Cape York Peninsula – more than 1,500km to the north – at three crocodiles per kilometre. That ratio declines southward, down to 0.2 crocs per km on the Fitzroy. The canoe club has been paddling here since the late 1970s without incident. They are on the water almost every day, often starting in the dark. So, too, their rowing counterparts, who are also looking forward to hosting the Olympics. Mackenzie says he has been paddling in the river for the past seven years and has seen a croc upstream of the barrage only once. It was during the colder months and the saltie had its snout out of the water. During the central Queensland winter, he says, crocodiles aren't breeding, aren't territorial and aren't hungry. He wasn't worried at all. 'It was doing its thing, and I was doing mine,' Mackenzie says. 'It was quite a majestic encounter'. Other local water users aren't so enamoured of sharing the water with these toothy reptiles. Steve Diehm grew up five minutes from the boat ramp above the barrage on the banks of the Fitzroy and has spent his whole life in Rockhampton. An avid waterskier, Diehm had a boat before he had a car. The Fifo oil and gas worker met his wife and raised his three children waterskiing. But, over recent years, Diehm began being gnawed by a sense of unease familiar to many north of the tropic of capricorn. Since they were protected in the 1970s after being hunted to near annihilation, saltwater crocodiles – which despite their name also inhabit freshwater environments – have been steadily returning to their former range, reclaiming waterways that people swam for decades. Diehm had always been aware he was in croc habitat but began to feel less and less safe. Then, when he saw a picture of that 4.5 metre saltie captured in 2023, a 'horrible feeling' wrenched his stomach. He had skied that 'exact bank' for 15 years. Diehm thought about his children. The 46-year-old was devastated when he made the decision that it was no longer safe for his family to be on the Fitzroy. Looking out across the river gives Diehm a pang of remorse. It is perfectly smooth, basking in sunshine, a 'skier's dream' – and there is not a soul on the water. 'This should be like the Murray Darling,' he says. 'There should be houseboats workin' on here. There should be, you know, park a houseboat, swim off it, ski off it. 'All this, all the way up here, there's this ability for tourism, for so much good, old-fashioned, outdoor fun.' Diehm believes the Olympics would be great for Rockhampton but, without a change to crocodile management, he reckons athletes will be 'running the gauntlet'. The University of Queensland's crocodile expert, Prof Craig Franklin, runs the world's largest and longest active crocodile tracking program. The Fitzroy Olympics plan 'worries' him 'on a number of levels'. 'No. I don't believe it's safe,' he says. 'I think it's foolish.' Franklin fears the Olympic event sends the message that it is 'OK to go swimming' in places like the Fitzroy. But crocodiles travel vast distances over short periods, crossing barriers and moving overland for several kilometres. 'Rowing in a place where it's the natural habitat of the world's largest species of crocodilian and, arguably, the most dangerous?' he says. 'Why would you do that?' For Mackenzie, though, there is no other river like it. Still flush from his early morning canoe as he sips a coffee at his regular cafe near the river, the retired financial planner reflects that many people worry about all the wrong things. In the year to early August, 178 people died on Queensland roads. That morning, Mackenzie watched the Fitzroy's surface ripple with the movements of big catfish, barramundi and bum-breathing turtles. So, yes, he knows there are risks when he gets on to the water, but they are ones Mackenzie gladly accepts. One of the beauties of this river, he says, is that it's alive.
The Guardian
15 hours ago
- The Guardian
Can crocodiles and canoeists coexist at Australia's 2032 Olympic Games?
Andrew Miller is only minutes into a crash course on using a V8 ocean ski when he first drops the C-bomb. The former red beret paratrooper and current president of a Rockhampton canoe club is explaining to a first-time paddler why he won't begin on a K1 – the kind of craft the world's best canoe sprinters will paddle when and if they come here to central Queensland to compete at the 2032 Olympic Games. 'It's like sitting on a pencil,' Miller says. 'If a crocodile so much as tapped your hull, you'd be straight into the drink!' The club secretary, John Mackenzie, admonishes: 'You had to use the C-word.' To be fair to Miller, the proximity of the world's largest living reptile is not much of a secret. On the wall of the humble green shed belonging to the Fitzroy Canoe Club is a mascot of sorts: a toy croc called Fitzy. Pinned to the noticeboard are tips on being 'Croc Wise'. The club's paddling area is a known crocodile habitat, the note reads. Enter boats 'briskly'. Don't drag arms and legs in the water. If you capsize, get out as soon as possible. In March, the Queensland government announced that the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton, about 500km north of Brisbane, would host rowing and canoeing events at the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Scattered along the banks of the Fitzroy are signs warning of injury or death from saltwater crocodiles. A four-metre croc can be right beside you in the water, invisible, one reads. Visitors to the 'beef capital of Australia' are extremely unlikely to see a live saltie. But they won't miss representations of the prehistoric ambush predator throughout the grand sandstone and wrought iron buildings of the river port. In the lane behind the newly refurbished Rockhampton Museum of Art is a crocodile mural, 18 metres long and five metres high. But now the C-bomb has been dropped, the jokes are carpeted. We hop out to our boats atop the backs of crocodiles, Miller reckons. But don't worry, the crocs aren't hungry – 'we feed them all the time'. After the gags, Miller gets serious. You won't encounter a croc, he promises. Just enjoy the river, there isn't a better one between here and the mighty Murray. And with that, as the pinks and purples of dawn filter through the leaves of paperbarks that line the Fitzroy's banks, the canoeists paddle off into the mist that rises from the chalky brown water. Corellas screech from towering gums. Pelicans break the still surface of the river. An osprey peers down from the branches of a dead tree. The kayak quivers as its rudder hits a clump of duckweed. The canoeists paddle upstream, away from the city and the barrage that divides the Fitzroy between its salt and freshwater reaches. This piece of infrastructure is one reason Miller contends the river is 'pristine'. Unlike those to the south, the freshwater Fitzroy is not swept by tides, lined by mud and mangrove or racked by wind and wave. That concrete barrier, built as a water storage system to help meet the region's water supply needs, also marks a boundary on the government's Queensland crocodile management plan between targeted management and general management zones. Upstream of the barrage for 20km, park rangers are tasked with removing 'all large crocodiles' and any croc 'displaying dangerous behaviour' from the water. After a couple of kilometres, a pair of canoeists pass through a stretch of river they claim is the territory of a croc about the length at which it is officially considered 'large' – that is, longer than two metres. A few kilometres farther upstream is the spot that one canoe club member sighted a 4.5 metre saltie two years ago. After several weeks, it was captured and removed. This is winter, too – the same time of year that sunny Queensland will host the summer Olympics – and the period in which crocs are most easy to spot, basking their cold blood on riverbanks. Yet, statistically, Miller is almost certain to be right. The Boyne River, more than 100km to the south, is officially considered the southern boundary of typical crocodile habitat. Here in the lower reaches of croc country, the number and density of these apex predators is far lower than in the faraway tropics to the north. A government monitoring program estimates the number of crocodiles in rivers of the Cape York Peninsula – more than 1,500km to the north – at three crocodiles per kilometre. That ratio declines southward, down to 0.2 crocs per km on the Fitzroy. The canoe club has been paddling here since the late 1970s without incident. They are on the water almost every day, often starting in the dark. So, too, their rowing counterparts, who are also looking forward to hosting the Olympics. Mackenzie says he has been paddling in the river for the past seven years and has seen a croc upstream of the barrage only once. It was during the colder months and the saltie had its snout out of the water. During the central Queensland winter, he says, crocodiles aren't breeding, aren't territorial and aren't hungry. He wasn't worried at all. 'It was doing its thing, and I was doing mine,' Mackenzie says. 'It was quite a majestic encounter'. Other local water users aren't so enamoured of sharing the water with these toothy reptiles. Steve Diehm grew up five minutes from the boat ramp above the barrage on the banks of the Fitzroy and has spent his whole life in Rockhampton. An avid waterskier, Diehm had a boat before he had a car. The Fifo oil and gas worker met his wife and raised his three children waterskiing. But, over recent years, Diehm began being gnawed by a sense of unease familiar to many north of the tropic of capricorn. Since they were protected in the 1970s after being hunted to near annihilation, saltwater crocodiles – which despite their name also inhabit freshwater environments – have been steadily returning to their former range, reclaiming waterways that people swam for decades. Diehm had always been aware he was in croc habitat but began to feel less and less safe. Then, when he saw a picture of that 4.5 metre saltie captured in 2023, a 'horrible feeling' wrenched his stomach. He had skied that 'exact bank' for 15 years. Diehm thought about his children. The 46-year-old was devastated when he made the decision that it was no longer safe for his family to be on the Fitzroy. Looking out across the river gives Diehm a pang of remorse. It is perfectly smooth, basking in sunshine, a 'skier's dream' – and there is not a soul on the water. 'This should be like the Murray Darling,' he says. 'There should be houseboats workin' on here. There should be, you know, park a houseboat, swim off it, ski off it. 'All this, all the way up here, there's this ability for tourism, for so much good, old-fashioned, outdoor fun.' Diehm believes the Olympics would be great for Rockhampton but, without a change to crocodile management, he reckons athletes will be 'running the gauntlet'. The University of Queensland's crocodile expert, Prof Craig Franklin, runs the world's largest and longest active crocodile tracking program. The Fitzroy Olympics plan 'worries' him 'on a number of levels'. 'No. I don't believe it's safe,' he says. 'I think it's foolish.' Franklin fears the Olympic event sends the message that it is 'OK to go swimming' in places like the Fitzroy. But crocodiles travel vast distances over short periods, crossing barriers and moving overland for several kilometres. 'Rowing in a place where it's the natural habitat of the world's largest species of crocodilian and, arguably, the most dangerous?' he says. 'Why would you do that?' For Mackenzie, though, there is no other river like it. Still flush from his early morning canoe as he sips a coffee at his regular cafe near the river, the retired financial planner reflects that many people worry about all the wrong things. In the year to early August, 178 people died on Queensland roads. That morning, Mackenzie watched the Fitzroy's surface ripple with the movements of big catfish, barramundi and bum-breathing turtles. So, yes, he knows there are risks when he gets on to the water, but they are ones Mackenzie gladly accepts. One of the beauties of this river, he says, is that it's alive.
Metro
a day ago
- Metro
These are the worst films on Netflix that you should absolutely watch
Netflix has some corking hidden gems that, despite being slighted by the critics, are definitely worth a watch this weekend. Some films are immersive, great watches that become a complete cultural phenomenon, and yet receive nothing but backlash from the critics. Netflix is home to many fabulous films, but also as such a huge platform it is also home to some that are considered…not so good. With so many excellent, new, and award-winning shows joining the platform and highlighted to viewers, it can be tricky to unearth some hidden gems. Here are some of the best of the worst films on Netflix, that have received pretty poor reviews from critics, but are no doubt worth a watch! Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro's TV Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your show in the link we'll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you. With a 36% on Rotten Tomatoes, the 2014 film Before I Go To Sleep has a shockingly poor score considering its star power. Starring none other than Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth, this thriller focuses on a woman (Kidman) who grows increasingly confused as she wakes up every morning next to her husband Ben (Firth) with absolutely no memory. The amnesiac learns that she was in a car accident and now her memory resets every night, but her reality begins to unravel as she learns she has a secret camcorder that she hides from her husband, a suspicious neuropsychologist, an returning memories that make no sense. The movie might not be a work of art that critics anticipated, but it certainly gripping, well acted, and a fun thriller for a Sunday afternoon. With an absolutely abysmal 11% ranking on Rotten Tomatoes, the romantic-comedy The Choice has been described as 'painfully formulaic'. And to be fair, the critics are not wrong, this film does have a bit of a twist a the end, but is pretty much your bog-standard Nicholas Sparks adaptation. But you know what? What's wrong with that! Sometimes its nice to turn the brain off and watch something easy like pretty people falling in love. The film is a classic love triangle with the lead character Gabby Shaw (Theresa Parker) falling in love with her irritating neighbour Travis (Benjamin Walker), but battling with her feelings towards her former flame, a hunky Dr Ryan played by Smallville hottie Tom Welling. Filmed in North Carolina, the film has beautiful filming locations and an atmosphere so cosy, you'll enjoy this sweet little film despite its cliches. With a 54% ranking on Rotten Tomatoes, this war film is criminally underrated and stars Jack O'Connell and Domhnall Gleeson. From director Angelina Jolie, this 2014 film tells the true story of Olympic athlete and army officer Louis Zamperini (O'Connell). The story focuses on Louis's journey from starring in the Olympics to joining the army and facing unimaginable horrors, like surviving in a raft in the ocean for 47 days and surviving a prisoner of war camp in Japan. The film grossed $163 million ($120.2m) worldwide against a $65m (£48m) budget, with a lot of praise aimed at O'Connell's performance, but critiquing the film for being detached and not quite 'penetrating the surface of emotions'. Bee Movie is an eternally quotable film starring Jerry Seinfeld, which was quite the cultural phenomenon when it was released in 2007 and the years afterwards. The children's comedy film received a 49% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and was met with entirely mixed results. While some found the movie hilarious and original, others found it generic and lacking originality. The film is silly and easy, and the perfect thing to watch with kids if you're looking for some jokes that'll go right over their heads and entertain you too. It's a light non-thinker and will definitely elicit some hearty chuckles. The film focuses on Barry Benson (Seinfeld), a bee who flies out of the hive for the first time, falls in love with a human, and forms an uprising against humans exploiting bees for honey. The film made a worldwide total of $293.5m (£216.5m) against a budget of $150m (£111m). Yes Man is an underrated comedy from Jim Carrey that was released in 2008 and co-stars Zooey Deschanel. With a 45% ranking on Rotten Tomatoes, the film isn't his most well-reviewed, but is a sweet movie with an original concept with a good message. Carrey stars as Carl Allen, a negative Nancy who has become withdrawn from life and friends (including Bradley Cooper) since divorcing his then attends a convention that persuades him to say 'yes' instead of 'no' and seize life – leading to mayhem. Critics pointed to the film's similarity with Carrey's Liar Liar, with some suggesting it was a bit generic and predictable. However, the film has real heart, a very sweet love story that unfolds, and a genuinely good message about life. Yes, it didn't win any Oscars, and might not be remembered as his best, but it's certainly rewatchable, romantic and a bit of fun! The 2004 film White Chicks has earned a 15% ranking on Rotten Tomatoes and stars Marlon Wayans and Shawn Wayans as two undercover cops. In order to protect two rich socialites named Brittany and Tiffany, the two policemen must pose as the duo while at a weekend-long fashion event in the Hamptons. Posing as the 'white chicks' leads to hilarity and many, many quotable moments and catchphrases, including Terry Crew's memorable rendition of A Thousand Miles from Vanessa Carlton. The critics' consensus on Rotten Tomatoes agrees that the film includes 'scattershot comedy that's silly and obvious,' and while that may be true, it doesn't mean that it isn't still a rib-tickler! The Other Boleyn Girl is a historical drama starring Eric Bana as King Henry VIII, Natalie Portman as Anne Boleyn, and Scarlett Johansson as Mary Boleyn. The period film is a reimagining of historical events with Mary positioned as the King's mistress before he finds himself attracted to her sister Anne, who becomes his ill-fated second wife. The 2008 film received a 43% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the film receiving a lot of flak for casting three non-Brits in the leading roles. The Guardian called the film 'absurd' and highlighted that it was a 'flashy, silly, undeniably entertaining Tudor romp.' The mixed reviews agree that the film is more 'soap opera' than 'drama', but it's still a very entertaining watch. The performances are strong, and the critical response seems to be because reviewers were expecting something less fictitious and less fun! With just a 19% ranking, Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston's movie Just Go With It is not the most critically appreciated film of all time. Released in 2011, the romantic-comedy is trite and cliché and has a healthy sprinkling of slapstick comedy in Sandler's classic style. More Trending Underneath the silly veneer, the film actually has some very sweet moments between the leads, and a stellar performance from Nicole Kidman, who guest stars in what is possibly her most unhinged role yet. The comedy focuses on a rich plastic surgeon who convinces his assistant her kids to pretend to be his ex-wife and children on holiday after a misunderstanding with his new girlfriend, Palmer (Brooklyn Decker). The fake family agree to 'just go with it' and improvise their way through a holiday in Hawaii and convince Palmer that Danny is a wonderful man. The film is silly and funny, and the perfect thing to watch on a hangover when you just need something entertaining to keep you from sinking into hanxiety. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Original stars of iconic 00s horror spoof franchise return for reboot after 25 years MORE: WWE banned 'wild' request from top stars over major safety concerns MORE: TV fans brand thought-provoking drama 'the most underrated show on Netflix'
