Crufts 2025: Whippet from Italy called Miuccia wins best in show
A whippet from Venice in Italy has been named best in show at the 2025 Crufts dog show in Birmingham.Four-year-old Miuccia beat more than 18,000 dogs from around the world to claim the top award on Sunday at the NEC."It's really a dream come true," said her handler Giovanni Liguori. "I am truly overwhelmed. Miuccia performed her best".It is the first time a dog from Italy has won best in show, which comes with a trophy and small cash prize of reportedly £200.
Miuccia, who is owned by Enrico De Gaspari, was the winner of the hound group earlier in the show, and beat the winners of six other groups to win the top prize."I absolutely adore her," said handler Mr Liguori. "She is the sweetest dog."She always wants to be super close to me and that's the most important thing."Mr Liguori said it was "incredible, it's amazing" to be the first dog from Italy to be crowned best in show."As Italians we are super proud and means that we are doing a fantastic job."
Helen Kerfoot, Crufts show manager, said it was "fantastic" to watch Miuccia and her handler's "strong relationship together in the ring, and they are truly deserving winners"."Well done to all of our other wonderful finalists too. "The dogs, their owners, and handlers should be incredibly proud to have taken part in such a momentous final - it's an incredible achievement, one we are sure they'll treasure for years to come."The runner-up was Viking, a Tibetan mastiff from Romania.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
13 hours ago
- The Guardian
Predator: Killer of Killers review – animated anthology of Arnie's old antagonists
It's hard to imagine, back in 1987 when the first Predator film came out showcasing big Arnie's rippling biceps, that anyone could have predicted it would spawn such a diverse array of sequel material. But here we are: 2025 brings us an animated anthology, with Predators tearing human kind a new one in Viking times, samurai-era Japan, and Florida during the second world war. This follows the excellent 2022 movie Prey and the mostly stupid Alien vs Predator from 2004, in which a lady makes friends with a Predator, which rather nullifies the scare factor. Killer of Killers opens with the Viking chapter, The Shield, set in AD841. One of the film's better ideas is the Vikings referring to the Predator as Grendel, a reference of course to the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, in which a humanoid monster walks in darkness and hunts the weak … sound familiar? Much Game of Thrones style Sturm und Drang follows, before the most powerful Viking is abducted by the Predators who are essentially doing casting for their version of a reality show. This essentially sets the pattern for the rest of the film. Medieval Japan follows in The Sword, with some handy lessons about teamwork, and then it's on to The Bullet, set in Florida in wartime, a section home to some of the better action sequences, with planes getting sliced into cubes in mid-air by Team Alien. The only problem with this stuff is that you can't help picturing how much more spectacular it would look in live action. The animation is all perfectly competent but it's lacking a little something – that spark of life and ingenuity that can make even flawed animation so fascinating. There's something quite slick about all this, almost to a fault. Was AI involved? We'll probably never know, but it's a problem that the suspicion has got inside the door. Things pick up when we get to the Predators' homeworld for the final showdown, with a Viking, samurai and US pilot set to fight to the death in an arena for the entertainment of the locals. There are some decent jokes and the basic issue of communication between the three is a nice note. It could have sparked a little more joy, perhaps, but it's nice to see a franchise nearly 40 years old committed to constantly defying expectations. Predator: Killer of Killers is on Disney+ from 6 June
Daily Mirror
20 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
BBC The One Show halted live on air as Alex Jones announces last minute change
The One Show's Alex Jones had to abruptly interrupt the programme as she announced a last-minute guest change. On the Wednesday (June 4) episode, Alex, alongside co-host Vernon Kay, was set to chat with a stellar line-up including Nick Frost and Mason Thames about the much-anticipated live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon. But just before diving into the interview, Alex stopped the show to share that Nick Frost had to step in for Gerard Butler, who was struck down by illness and couldn't attend. Alex said: "We're thrilled that you're here Nick because as we said last night Ger.. I can't even say his name so lucky he's not here, Gerard Butler was going to be here but he's ill so he couldn't make it but you've stepped in at the last minute so thank you very much." Nick Frost lightened the mood with a humorous apology: "Sorry everyone.", reports Wales Online. The audience chuckled as Alex added: "We're thrilled you're here, thank you Nick." Although Gerard Butler was absent, Mason Thames, who voices Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III in the movie, was full of praise for his co-star. Mason, when quizzed about working with Butler, enthused: "He is really great and in this industry he is somewhat of a father figure. He has a lot of good advice because he has been doing this for such a long time." He went on to say: "Listening to what he has got to say and the experiences he has been through is really helpful and it's cool to be on this journey with him as well. "Getting to do those scenes with him and the energy he brings to set, the scenes and rare emotional it's incredible to watch in person and to see on screen is incredible." The official blurb for the live-action How to Train Your Dragon reads: "On the rugged isle of Berk, where Vikings and dragons have been bitter enemies for generations, Hiccup stands apart. "The inventive yet overlooked son of Chief Stoick the Vast, Hiccup defies centuries of tradition when he befriends Toothless, a feared Night Fury dragon. Their unlikely bond reveals the true nature of dragons, challenging the very foundations of Viking society." It continues: "With the fierce and ambitious Astrid and the village's quirky blacksmith Gobber by his side, Hiccup confronts a world torn by fear and misunderstanding. "As an ancient threat emerges, endangering both Vikings and dragons, Hiccup's friendship with Toothless becomes the key to forging a new future. Together, they must navigate the delicate path toward peace, soaring beyond the boundaries of their worlds and redefining what it means to be a hero and a leader".
Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
Gerard Butler jokes he had to get out of his pyjamas for live-action dragon film
Gerard Butler jokes he had to get out of his pyjamas for live-action dragon film The film star, 55, voiced Chief Stoick the Vast in the animated film How To Train Your Dragon Gerard Butler in Angel Has Fallen (Image: Lionsgate ) Scottish actor Gerard Butler has joked it was fun to "get out of my pyjamas and actually put on a costume" to star in the live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon. The film star, 55, who voiced Chief Stoick the Vast in the animated films, has reprised his role as the Viking for the new version, which follows the same narrative as the 2010 film inspired by Cressida Cowell's book series. Speaking to the PA news agency at a photocall for the film, he said: "It felt really, really good going from the animation into the live action. "It was cool because up until that point I was just a voice wearing my pyjamas. "I had to get out my pyjamas and actually put on a costume ... so that was fun. "It felt great to be able to step into the (How To Train Your Dragon) world ... and have a chance to get my teeth into the character and actually deal with Vikings all around me." Article continues below Butler praised the performance of Hot Fuzz actor Nick Frost who made his debut as Stoick's friend Gobber, a role that was previously voiced by Craig Ferguson. Butler told PA: "I have to say, I came out the film the other day, I wrote him, because I hadn't seen him for a bit, I wrote him the longest text because he's so good in the movie." He added: "It was a great script to play with. You put on that costume, you step into that world, and it was really like, just going and playing in the sandbox. Article continues below "And I felt like there's a big version of Stoick that in the movie, a lot of time, it was pontificating in speeches, but here you can give a lot of different colours in that." In the film, Hiccup (Mason Thames), the overlooked son of Chief Stoick the Vast defies centuries of tradition when he befriends a dragon called Toothless – challenging the foundations of Viking society. The film will arrive in cinemas on Monday June 9.
