
Beachy Head cliffs warning after sightseers spotted near edge
In October a section of cliff collapsing at Birling Gap was captured on film.The Coastguard described cliffs as "inherently unstable", with weather and the sea constantly eroding them.If the base of a cliff becomes eroded, it said, someone standing on the edge above it is "practically standing on nothing".
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The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Fury as train fares could soar by inflation-busting 5.8% next year despite services getting WORSE
TRAIN passengers could face a 5.8 per cent fares rise next year, even though punctuality is the worst since 2020. It would see the price of a Liverpool-to-Manchester annual flexi ticket jump by £120.30 to £2,195.10. 2 Increases are usually calculated by adding one percentage point to the Retail Price Index figure for inflation — which yesterday hit 4.8 per cent for July. The RPI is calculated by looking at the prices of 700 products and services but also includes mortgage interest payments and council tax. Fare rises could see a Woking-to-London season ticket soar by £247 to £4,507. Meanwhile, punctuality is at its lowest in more than five years. The Office of Rail and Road found trains reached 66.7 per cent of station stops on time in the year to July 19 — the worst since the year to May 2020. Labour is nationalising operators as contracts expire, with South Western Railway and c2c now under public ownership. Ben Plowden of Campaign for Better Transport said: 'The fundamental question for the Government is how to use its role in setting fares policy to deliver a more affordable network and encourage customers.' Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden said: 'Labour's election promises ring hollow as passengers are hit with inflation-busting rises on top of cancelled trains, driver shortages and chaos on the network.' The Department for Transport said an update on fares will be released later this year. Peak rail fares scrapped by John Swinney 2


The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
The London hotel with a ‘secret garden in the sky' and indoor swimming pool
THE Leonardo Royal Hotel Tower London is in a prime spot with a rooftop bar overlooking the capital. But what is the food like and how comfy are the beds? Read on to find out. 4 4 Where is the hotel? This smart hotel has a great location – it's right by St. Paul's Cathedral and just a ten-minute walk from the River Thames and Southbank, with cultural draws including the Tate Modern and National Theatre. The nearest tube stations are Aldgate and Tower Hill, both under ten minutes walk away. What are the rooms like at the hotel? The 459 rooms have all the mod cons you'd expect too - spacious, with big, comfy beds and crisp white linen. The style is contemporary, with brightly coloured armchairs and modern art on the walls. Some rooms offer glimpses of St Paul's dome and all have flat-screen TVs, Nespresso machines and high-speed Wi-Fi. Self-catering studio apartments, 100 metres from the main building, are also available. After a night here I felt rejuvenated and like I'd had a proper mini-break. One night's B&B costs from £269, based on two people sharing. Click here to book. What is there to eat and drink there? The laid-back Leo's Restaurant serves everything from traditional full English breakfasts to Mediterranean dishes. On the seventh floor, Sabine's Rooftop Bar and Restaurant is a chic hangout. This secret garden up in the sky features a cool glass roof, a menu of funky cocktails and amazing vistas. It's open until 2am at weekends so you can settle in with a drink to watch the sunset, and then keep the party going. The bar snacks are delicious, particularly the mac and cheese bonbons. What is there to do at the hotel? Make sure take a quick dip in the hotel swimming pool inside. Otherwise you can take a guided tour of St Paul's, do some shopping and grab lunch by the river – all within a ten-minute stroll from your base. Is the hotel family friendly? Yes, the restaurant is family-friendly and you can book a room with two queen-sized beds. Is there access for guests with disabilities? Yes, there are accessible rooms and lifts for wheelchair users. 4 4


Telegraph
5 hours ago
- Telegraph
I took a vintage bus to a military training zone deep in the Wiltshire countryside
You wait ages for a bus to come along and then, all of a sudden, there are… 28. Not any old buses, mind; most of those heading my way are Routemasters, those legends of the London road looking resplendent in their bright red liveries and positively glowing in the late-afternoon sun. They are not in London, either, but rather lined up in formation alongside the long-lost village of Imber in the middle of Salisbury Plain, an area that is more commonly the scene of military training and strictly off limits to the public. The buses are preparing to return in convoy to Warminster, the Wiltshire town from which they departed several hours earlier at the start of what must be one of the most extraordinary days out in Britain. I am sitting on the front bus's open-air top deck, marvelling at the sight of so many magnificent vintage buses snaking their way through glorious – and rarely visited – countryside. Alongside me, fellow passengers smile contentedly, revelling in the moment and enjoying the entreaties of the tall man in Seventies-era bus conductor's uniform, complete with peaked cap, to 'mind your heads, please, low trees coming up'. Welcome to Imberbus, a unique event which, like so many seemingly impossible but excellent ideas, was conceived in the convivial setting of a public house. The year was 2009, and the participants were all senior figures in the transport industry who found themselves wondering what would be the most outrageous and unlikely place in the country to run a bus service. And that's when they hit upon Imber, the 'lost' village in the heart of Salisbury Plain from which all inhabitants were commanded to leave in 1943 – so that their land could be used for war training – never to return. 'We wanted it to be a place it is usually impossible to get to and where nobody lives,' says Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill, a former Commissioner of Transport for London, current Minister of State for Rail, the owner of two Routemasters and the driving force behind the Imberbus project. The idea was to create for one day only a fully-fledged registered bus route – complete with bus signs and printed timetables – between Warminster and Imber, manned entirely by enthusiastic volunteers, with all monies raised going to charity. Getting permission to run a route across a highly sensitive militarised zone – complete with rusting tanks used as targets – required negotiations at a very senior level. And then there were the logistical issues. Routemasters were designed for the streets of London, not the rolling pastures of Britain's most prized piece of grassland. Withdrawn from active service in 2005, they were getting on. Would they be able to make the long journey to Wiltshire and, once there, to wheeze up those hills? Would anybody want to come? The answer was a resounding yes, and from modest beginnings – the first Imberbus day in 2009 involved just five vehicles – the event today involves the deployment of a fleet of more than 40 buses and attracts upwards of 4,000 people. Those coming comprise the novelty seekers (how often do you get to journey across land littered with signs stating 'Out of bounds' and 'Danger unexploded military debris'?) and the curious, keen to see a village from which all human life abruptly departed more than 80 years ago. It of course also draws bus enthusiasts, some of whom can recite names and numbers of particular models and engines, but more, like myself, who can still recall the thrill of travelling on buses with open platforms at the back, the deep resonance of that slow rev and the conductor staples – 'Any more fares?' and 'Hold tight, please'. Not that you have to be of a certain vintage to enjoy travelling on a Routemaster bus – all of which bear the number 23A for this day. On my various journeys on Saturday – through the Plain but also to surrounding villages such as Chitterne, Tilshead and West Lavington (reached via Brazen Bottom Farm) – there are plenty of younger passengers for whom travel in this form represents a very special kind of magic. 'A double-decker red bus; my daughter so wanted to travel in one of these,' says one mother on board. While most of the buses are red Routemasters, other colours and models do make an appearance: a fine selection in beautiful blues and creams and greens that have travelled in from places such as Swindon and Stamford, Bristol and Bath. In Imber itself, the star attraction is St Giles's Church, a splendid medieval construction that is the only building from the old village that has been maintained (part of the money raised from the Imberbus day goes towards its upkeep). A long line forms for entry to the church in which a well curated exhibition details the history of the village, complete with grainy black and white photographs of some of its last inhabitants. The church is also one of the several places where cream cakes and reviving cups of tea can be had – especially needed by the bus drivers, many of whom, like Lord Hendy, are people with long histories in the transport industry. In the field close to the church, there are displays hosted by the London Museum of Transport, firing demonstrations of artillery guns used in the Second World War, and – more relaxingly – sets by a band of Morris dancers and the pleasing sounds of the Bratton Silver Band. The mood is good-humoured and upbeat, the queuing – as you'd expect with such a crowd – well-tempered. 'This is a celebration of English eccentricity at its very best,' says Anthony Robbins, 61, from London, who I bump into at the Gore Cross bus interchange. 'It's like something out of a Martin Parr photo or an Ealing comedy.' His sister Liz, 56, agrees: 'I've been sitting in a field beside a beautiful church listening to a brass band – on a military range. It's unbelievable; a day of many parts.' As indeed is the grand finale, the convoy back to Warminster and a last lingering look at that very special landscape and the extraordinary fleet of vintage buses that has brought it all together. The tall man in the conductor's uniform on the top deck of the vehicle I ride back in turns out to be Roger Wright, the owner of the bus and the Epping Ongar Railway to boot. Egged on by one of my co-passengers, he treats us to a very good impersonation of Blakey from the 1970s television sitcom On the Buses. 'Get that bus out!' … 'I 'ate you Butler!' Days out really don't get much better than this. Essentials The Imberbus day occurs once a year, usually in August. For details of next year's event, keep an eye on the charge for a one-day bus pass for Imberbus 2025, held on August 16, was £10 (adult); £2 (child). All funds raised go to charitable causes. There are good train services to Warminster from Cardiff, Newport, Bristol, Bath Spa, Salisbury and the south coast; there are links from London via Bath Spa, Salisbury and Westbury. See or National Express runs a direct coach service – 23X – on the day.