Brecon 800kg bull named Bruce rescued after getting stuck in the mud
Bruce's owner, Marilyn Jones, thanked the rescuers, which included help from Honddu Vets. "Bruce is now happy eating in his field, having been for a long walk since being rescued," she said.
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The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
UK's first female archbishop tells of how she hid her sexuality for decades
The new archbishop of Wales, the Most Rev Cherry Vann, has told of how she kept her sexuality secret for decades as part of her struggle to be accepted as a female minister in the Anglican communion. Speaking to the Guardian on Thursday, the day after her appointment, Vann, 66, said that without the strong belief that God had called her to the priesthood she 'would not have survived' her journey through the ranks of the church. Vann became one of the first female priests to be ordained in England in 1994. Now, as the UK's first female and first openly gay archbishop, and the first openly lesbian and partnered bishop to serve as a primate within the Anglican communion, she has well and truly broken the stained glass ceiling. 'It happens that I've lived in a time that's meant that I'm a trailblazer, but I'm not a campaigner,' the Leicestershire-born archbishop said during an interview at the Church in Wales's offices in central Cardiff. 'I'm not somebody to be out there all the time but I do seek to be true to what I think God's asking of me.' Working in the Church in Wales since 2020 has been very different from the many years Vann spent at the Church of England, she said, as clergy are permitted to be in same-sex civil partnerships. In the Anglican church in England, same-sex relationships are technically allowed, but gay clergy are expected to remain celibate. Upon becoming bishop of Monmouth five years ago, Vann publicly disclosed her civil partnership with Wendy Diamond, her partner of 30 years, for the first time. 'Other people in England were braver than I was and made their sexuality clear. A lot of them suffered the consequences of that, certainly when going forward for ordination,' Vann said. 'For years we kept our relationship secret because I worried about waking up and finding myself outed on the front page of a newspaper. Now, Wendy joins me everywhere, and when I take services, it's just normal. But in England she had to stay upstairs if I had a meeting in the house.' Being a woman in the church had been difficult enough, she added. 'You can hide your sexuality, up to a point, but you can't hide being a woman. There was a lot of nastiness; the men were angry, they felt they had been betrayed.' Vann said in the 1990s, she and a handful of other female priests began meeting for prayer and conversation with male colleagues opposed to their ordination. 'It was awful, it was really difficult for all of us, but we stuck at it,' she said. Over time, the hostility dissipated. 'This is what I'm hoping around the sexuality issue too – modelling that we can vehemently disagree about something, but we can still love one another in Christ and recognise one another as children of God.' Vann will be enthroned in red and gold at her home cathedral in Newport this autumn in what many in the church hope will mark a definitive end to a tumultuous period. Andy John, the former archbishop, announced in June he was standing down with immediate effect after an alcohol-fuelled financial, bullying and sexual misconduct scandal at Bangor Cathedral. John was not accused of wrongdoing, but calls for his resignation gathered pace after summaries of two reports were published and six 'serious incident reports' were sent to the Charity Commission earlier this year. Two members of the cathedral's college of priests have called for an independent inquiry into the events at Bangor, but Vann downplayed the demands, telling the Guardian that she believed the Wales-wide 'cultural audit' announced by the church's representative body in the wake of John's resignation would be sufficient to 'hold people accountable'. The new archbishop's top priority is 'healing and reconciliation', she said. 'There's a lot of work already going on in the background, we haven't been standing still … We must work to build trust with those who have been hurt and angered by what has gone on.' 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 According to Tim Wyatt, a journalist focusing on the Anglican church, Vann's arrival in Wales in 2020 as bishop of Monmouth was also part of a clean-up job after factional fighting over the conduct of her predecessor, Richard Pain. Vann is also somewhat of an outsider to Wales, symbolising a clean break with the John era and the Bangor scandal. The archbishop grew up in a religious family in Whetstone in Leicestershire, following in her church organist father's footsteps by studying at the Royal College of Music and then the Royal Schools of Music, where she trained as a teacher. She entered an Anglican theological college in 1986 to prepare for ordination and then worked in the Manchester diocese, becoming a priest in 1994 and archdeacon of Rochdale in 2008. Gender and sexuality are still highly divisive issues in the Anglican communion. Even in her new role as the first female and first openly gay archbishop in the UK, Vann was cautious on the topic of gay marriage. 'I don't personally feel the need to get married in church; Wendy and I have been together for 30 years, we've made our vows, and we are committed to each other. 'Gay marriage in church is inevitable, I think: the question is when. There are people who are very opposed, and as leader, I have to honour their position, which is theologically grounded. It isn't my job to push something through that would alienate a good proportion of clergy.' Vann's appointment has caused outrage in some circles, with one prominent conservative group calling it 'tragic'. In response, the Church in Wales has highlighted the warm welcome her appointment has received from dozens of other denominations and churches. For her part, Vann said she was not worried about whether her election would be perceived as tokenistic. 'It's a two-thirds majority vote in the electoral college, the bar is high,' she said. 'I don't think any of those people voted for me primarily because I'm a woman or I'm a gay person. They voted for me because they recognise I've got the skills to lead the Church in Wales at this particular time.'
BBC News
7 hours ago
- BBC News
Purr-fect ending for kitten rescued from car engine in Nottingham
They do say an engine imagine the surprise of firefighters when they lifted a car bonnet - and it was an eight-week-old kitten who was doing all the crew had been called out by members of the public to help the cat in Mansfield Road, Nottingham, on 28 his rescue, he was named "Bruce Leigh" after the two firemen who saved him. The call-out was attended by Watch Manager Leigh Curtis and firefighter Bruce Mason from Arnold Fire Station, who were both Curtis said it was "a bit of a strange place" for a cat to become stuck."My worry was that he'd got into the engine, maybe at the home address, and that way he could then be trapped by the mechanisms and travelled some distance."But then one of the ladies said he hadn't, so as soon as I knew it wasn't physically trapped, I was able to get both my hands around it, and it was clinging on for dear life." After discovering "Bruce Leigh" was unchipped, he was allowed to go home with a member of the public who was able to find him a new permanent has now moved in with his new owners in the village of Tutbury, Ms Curtis said it was "a lovely feeling" to see the cat have a happy ending."One of the things about rescuing any animal or human from an incident is that we don't often get to know what's happened afterwards."I'm glad we got it out and got it to safety because I think otherwise it running across a busy road could've potentially caused an accident."
The Independent
19 hours ago
- The Independent
Public urged to look out for exotic Jersey Tiger moths in parks and gardens
The public is being encouraged to look out for the exotic-looking species of Jersey Tiger moths that have been surging in numbers. Wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation said the day-flying moths appear to be doing well as people record butterflies they see for its annual butterfly count. The initiative, which takes place over three weeks in summer and is currently under way until August 10, gets members of the public to spend 15 minutes recording those they see in their garden, parks or countryside. This year, the charity is urging people to take part in what it describes it as a 'nationwide rescue mission' for the UK's ailing butterfly species. As the count reached its mid-way point, Butterfly Conservation said people have recorded seeing 5,300 Jersey Tiger moths, compared with a total of 3,496 for the whole of last summer's count. This marks a 78% rise from 2024 when measured as an average per county, with the increase attributed to the warm, dry conditions, which likely helped the species spread their wings in abundance and settle in parts of the UK they usually would not. The moths are recognisable by their black and white tiger stripe forewings and vibrant red-orange or yellow hindwings adorned with bold black spots. Butterfly Conservation said the Jersey Tiger was largely restricted to the Channel Islands, the south coast of England, London and south-east Wales just a decade ago. But now they are frequently spotted across southern England and are continuing to spread through East Anglia and into the Midlands, with the charity saying they have been photographed this year in Cardiff, Birmingham, Cambridgeshire and Essex. It comes in the wake of last year's record low numbers which were partly down to the wet spring and cool summer but conservationists warned they come on top of long-term declines in the UK. More than 80% of butterfly species have declined since the 1970s, with experts warning they have been hit by damage to their habitats, climate change and the use of pesticides. Butterfly Conservation said that while the looks of Jersey Tiger moths have caught the public's attention this year, sightings in unexpected places also tell an important story about climate change. Dr Richard Fox, the charity's head of science, said: 'Butterfly and moth numbers fluctuate naturally each year depending on the weather, and this summer's warm, sunny conditions have created a much more favourable environment than last year's cool, wet season, which saw numbers recorded during Big Butterfly Count plunge to record lows. 'It's certainly uplifting to see more butterflies and moths this summer, but one good year can't undo the long-term decline many species are facing.' Dr Fox said populations peaks during good years have grown smaller over the past five years, while bad years have seen low numbers dip further. He added that the increase in Jersey Tiger moth sightings is an example of how climate change 'is reshaping the distribution of wildlife'. 'While it's a delight to spot such a vibrant moth in gardens, parks and green spaces, it's also a reminder of how rising temperatures are altering our natural environment,' he said. 'This is why the Big Butterfly Count matters. The more people who take part, the more we can learn about how species are adapting, or struggling, in the face of climate change and extreme weather.' Data collected by members of the public during the Big Butterfly Count directly informs national conservation strategies, helping protect not just butterflies and moths, but the wider ecosystems they support.
