British actor Susan Hampshire, 87, has phone and purse stolen in tube mugging incident
The 87-year-old Forsyte Saga and Monarch Of The Glen actor recalled the incident at a Talking Pictures event earlier this week.
She said, via The Mail: 'I was mugged on the underground the other day. I wish I'd put my money in my bra because I lost my phone and my purse.'
The actor, who has won three Emmy Awards for her roles in Forsyte Saga (1970), The First Churchills (1971) and Vanity Fair (1973), did not give further details of the incident – but it comes as the capital's transport system faces a rise in crime.
According to the recent TFL report, crimes committed on the Tube went up 13 per cent last year, with 17 per cent of crimes committed on the Central Line and Northern Line. King's Cross was the most crime-ridden stop, followed by Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road, Stratford and Finsbury Park.
Theft is the most common crime across the city's transport network, making up for 60 per cent of recorded offences on trains and 40 per cent at stations.
The Independent revealed this month that mobile phone thefts reported to UK police have almost doubled over the past five years, with more than three quarters of offences happening in London.
Home secretary Yvette Cooper said the increase in thefts was being driven by organised crime as she pledged more powers for police to tackle the wave, while also calling on tech companies to improve device security.
She said: 'Over the last few years, mobile phone thefts have shot up – often driven by organised crime – leaving our streets feeling less safe. That has to change.'
The Met Police said earlier this month it had seized 1,000 stolen mobiles and arrested 230 people in one week, cracking down on the '£50m-a-year trade in stolen phones'. The City of London police force has also been deploying teams of plain-clothed officers to catch offenders.
Hampshire made her acting debut as a child in the 1947 drama The Woman of the Hall, directed by Jack Lee.
She rose to prominence in the Sixties and Seventies for her work across film and TV, including the BBC miniseries The Pallisers.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
30 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Gary Lineker attends niece Tia's lavish wedding as fallout with brother Wayne eases
The brothers have reunited on two occasions this summer FEUD OVER? Gary Lineker attends niece Tia's lavish wedding as fallout with brother Wayne eases Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) GARY Lineker has been seen attending his niece Tia's lavish wedding as the fallout with his brother Wayne seemingly eases. Back in June, Gary appeared to put his feud with brother Wayne to one side as they partied at a family wedding in Ibiza - and now they have taken yet another step towards putting their rift to bed. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Wayne Lineker walked his daughter Tia down the aisle at her wedding this week Credit: @tali__photography 4 Gary Lineker was seen among the guests at the ceremony Credit: @tali__photography 4 He was seen smiling as his younger brother walked Tia down the aisle Credit: @tali__photography The brothers have united once more, this time at Wayne's daughter Tia's wedding. Tia shared the first glimpse of her lavish Mallorca wedding on Instagram on Wednesday - with her uncle clearly in attendance. She tied the knot with husband Harry Agombar, and her uncle Gary was sitting among the guests despite the 17-year feud between the Lineker brothers. Her father Wayne walked her down the alter and linked onto her arm as he did so. Tia looked stunning in a white dress, complete with a veil and huge bouquet of flowers. Her father walked beside her in a dapper black suit. BROTHERS REUNITE Gary was seen sitting among the guests, signalling a truce between the brothers. This was their second reunion in recent weeks. Back in June the former Match of the Day host's son Harry got married. Harry, 31, tied the knot with partner Bella in a luxurious ceremony on the Spanish island of Ibiza. Gary Lineker reveals Match of the Day blunder he made in last-ever appearance for first time in 26 years Spirits were high as all the family celebrated together beneath the sunshine. GARY AND WAYNE'S FEUD The two brothers are believed to have fallen out while Gary was with his second wife Danielle Bux. They travelled to Ibiza to visit Wayne but the trip broke their close relationship, which saw an end to their weekly phone calls. He told The Sun in 2015: "In my opinion, Danielle cost me my relationship with my brother. "Sadly Gary is no longer a part of my life. "They came to Ibiza in August 2008 and it was really awkward. "I didn't spark with Danielle and our relationship was cold." Wayne was Gary's best man at his first wedding to Michelle Cockayne in 1986. But the club owner did not attend as the ex-BBC host tied to knot with Danielle because his invite did not extend to his girlfriend at the time Ana Tanaka. Opening up on the brother's relationship in a recent interview with The Mail, Wayne said: "It's not so good to be honest, we don't really speak very often. "I'll always be his number one fan."
The Guardian
30 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Yvette Cooper solves one headache for justice system but may have caused another
By getting her way and allowing police to consider disclosing the ethnicity and nationality of suspects charged in high-profile cases, Yvette Cooper has solved one enormous headache for the criminal justice system. But she may have caused another, which could have consequences for race relations. The home secretary has encouraged senior police officers to free themselves of longstanding protocols so they can combat the prolific use of social media by far-right bloggers and organisations that have escalated disinformation around high-profile incidents. Last summer's national riots were fomented from an early stage by misinformation about the Southport killer – he was claimed, in posts recycled tens of thousands of times, to be a Muslim, foreign-born and an asylum seeker. All three statements turned out to be wrong. Until today, there was nothing in the College of Policing's guidance that actually prevented police giving information about the nationality, asylum status or even ethnicity of someone who has been charged. The police are restricted as to what they can say about suspects. But the guidance on media relations – and what would be released to the public – said that if someone was arrested, police should only give the suspect's gender and age. Once a suspect was charged, the guidance said police could give out the suspect's name, date of birth and address. Before 2012, police forces made decisions on what information to give to the media on a purely case-by-case basis, decisions often made depending on the force's relationship with individual journalists and media outlets. But it was Lord Leveson's damning 2012 report into press ethics that prompted police forces to become more cautious because of concerns that releasing the ethnicity of suspects could be used to feed false narratives. Leveson examined testimony from the National Union of Journalists claiming that some national newsrooms openly encouraged racist reporting. One reporter was told by the news editor to 'write a story about Britain being flooded by asylum-seeking bummers', another was told to 'make stories as rightwing as you can' and another was told to go out and find Muslim women to photograph, with the instruction: 'Just fucking do it. Wrap yourself around a group of women in burkas for a photo,' the testimony said. He examined numerous reports including a Daily Star article under the headline 'Asylum seekers eat our donkeys,' which claimed that donkey meat was a speciality in Somalia and eastern Europe and blamed asylum seekers, without any evidence. Leveson concluded that 'when assessed as a whole, the evidence of discriminatory, sensational or unbalanced reporting in relation to ethnic minorities, immigrants and/or asylum seekers, is concerning.' Fast-forward 12 years to Southport, and Merseyside police were left making decisions on whether to release information on the ethnicity and nationality of the killer of three young girls in order to dispel public anger that had spilled on to the streets. Senior officers had to deal with major criminal incidents and took days to dispel social media untruths. Such disinformation was at least partly responsible for last summer's riots. At the time, Merseyside police said they were not giving out more information because of the contempt of court rules. It is hoped that the new guidance will mean police will no longer be left flat-footed when responding to viral social media posts by extremists. Decisions on releasing such information will remain with police forces, with wider legal and ethical considerations also taken into account, the National Police Chiefs' Council said, but verifying a suspect's immigration status is up to the Home Office. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion There is concern among some former police and race campaigners that Cooper's change will undo the restrictions imposed after Leveson and fuel racist sentiments. The former Met chief superintendent Dal Babu has warned of the 'unintended consequences' of the new guidance, which he said could lead to more online speculation in cases where these details are not released. 'The danger is there will be an expectation for police to release information on every single occasion,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. The Home Office insists that it will not be encouraging the release of ethnicity and immigration status in all cases, and there are notable occasions when it has not. But a former race adviser to No 10 told the Guardian: 'Yvette has unwittingly opened a Pandora's box. After every charge, everyone with a union jack on their X bio will demand from the police the ethnicity of the suspect. 'The Home Office is going to to get even more demands for the asylum status of every black or brown suspect. It is going to be chaos, and has handed Nigel Farage another stick to beat Labour with.' There could well be a knock-on effect on mainstream reporting and community relations, campaigners believe. Enny Choudhury, from the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, said: 'Releasing the ethnicity of everyone suspected of serious crimes will do nothing to help victims or secure justice – it will simply fuel mistrust, deepen divisions, and make Black and brown communities more vulnerable to prejudice and harm.'
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Groundbreaking 90s TV show is available to stream in the UK in full for free
The 90s mega-hit won dozens of awards during its original run, and the comedy-drama was known for its unique storytelling style The '90s smash hit Ally McBeal is poised for a British comeback, with Channel 4 offering the full five seasons to stream for free on their platform. The news comes as Netflix fans rejoice as Love Is Blind UK returns to screens after dramatic first season. The legal comedy-drama, which originally ran from 1997 to 2002 and launched stars like Lucy Liu and Jane Krakowski into the spotlight, is available as a full collection for both devoted fans and fresh audiences to enjoy . Calista Flockhart, who portrayed the eccentric solicitor Ally at the Boston practice Cage and Fish, fronted the programme that gained recognition for its mixture of romance, personal turmoil, and fantastical comedy, including Ally's amusing habit of tumbling when meeting a potential love match. In 2022, there were rumours that ABC was in early development of a revival of Ally McBeal, potentially following a young lawyer who joins the firm, with Calista reprising her role as Ally. Industry figures were excited about the potential comeback with a source revealing: "There has been talk of reviving Ally McBeal for years, as the central premise is so desirable to modern audiences. It's the perfect female-driven character drama, really." They continued: "Frankly, it was always ahead of its time, so execs see a reboot as a total no-brainer. They are desperate for Calista to jump on board but hope the scripts will convince her to sign up." While the programme explored legal cases, it was the characters' romantic entanglements and personal adventures, peppered with quirky and frequently surreal humour, that truly captivated viewers. 'Hilarious' 2020s comedy is an 'instant classic' and streaming for free Channel 4 viewers make same complaint about new thriller In Flight minutes after debut Since its premiere in 1997, the series received critical acclaim in its early seasons, scooping up Golden Globes and Emmy Awards. However, Fox decided to axe the show after five seasons.
