Bradford youngster kicks off new TV show with Lionesses
Daya Singh Athwal, 12, is in CBeebies series Football Fantastics, which starts tomorrow.
The live-action scripted series is described as "a high-energy, feel-good comedy that celebrates friendship, fun, and the beautiful game".
Set in Yorkshire, it follows six children who come together every weekend at their local football group, where friendships are forged and epic adventures unfold both on and off the pitch.
The series, produced by Strike, the team behind CBBC hit series Jamie Johnson FC, features cameos from Lionesses including Alessia Russo, Chloe Kelly, Fran Kirby and BBC Sports Personality of the Year Beth Mead, as well as cameos from England's Olly Watkins and former Millwall and Leyton Orient player Charlotte Lynch in her acting debut - plus special regular guest star, former England goalkeeper Jill Scott.
Daya, who attends drama classes at Baildon-based drama school and acting agency, Articulate Agency, has had roles in the Secret Lives of 5 Year Olds, two TV commercials and short films Raj's Story and The Boat Story.
"Being part of the Football Fantastics was amazing," said Daya. "I got to do two of my favourite things at once - play football and act! I had so much fun and learned a lot too. My weekly drama classes with Articulate and LAMDA lessons really helped me to feel confident on set and bring my character to life."
Football Fantastics comes to CBeebies and BBC iPlayer in line with BBC's Summer of Sport and the Women's Euros.
Says Jill Scott: "It was a pleasure to be involved in such an exciting, funny and important show.
"The kids are so talented and inspiring for anyone involved in the game at any level, especially with a female coach!'
Creator of Football Fantastics Sam Talbot said: 'With Football Fantastics, we wanted to capture the sheer joy of the game - the laughter, the friendships, the unforgettable moments that happen both on and off the pitch in kids' football clubs, for both them and their parents.
"It's a love letter to grassroots football and the amazing kids who turn up each week just for the fun of it. We're thrilled to have legends like Jill Scott and the Lionesses bring their magic to the show. It's all about inspiring the next generation while having a blast along the way."
Articulate Agency works with top UK and US casting directors, producers and show runners to secure high-profile, roles. Youngsters at Articulate have been in TV dramas including Gentleman Jack, Last Tango in Halifax and All Creatures Great and Small.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
I live in London and these are the 11 best things I discovered you can do for free
Announcing an upcoming trip to London is now met with the same shriek as a city break in Switzerland – 'it's soo expensive'. True, with its costly combination of TfL travel, high-end shopfronts and anything-but-budget booze, the capital has a habit of lightening purses. However, away from Michelin meals and the halls of Harrods, there are leafy green spaces, free museums and open-door comedy shows to be found in London if you know where to look. Think galleries, markets, gardens and city farms that are kind to your credit card. From the Victoria and Albert Museum to picnics in Greenwich Park, here's our pick of low-cost activities for thrifty travellers to lean into London. Read more: The best things to do in London with the kids this summer Some of London's top tourist draws open their doors to the public for free. With no entry fee for the Victoria and Albert, British Museum, Natural History Museum and Science Museum, there's a wealth of world-renowned collections, history and art to discover without paying high admission prices. Read more: The museums you should visit in the UK Pubs including the Camden Head in Angel and Battersea's The Candlemaker host free stand-up shows with both big and small names testing new material on patrons. Feeling like splashing £1? Covent Garden's The Top Secret Comedy Club has guaranteed giggles from tried and tested comedians most nights of the week for just a quid. Read more: Best swimming pools in London, from lidos to hotel rooftops Aside from London's signature pigeons, foxes and squirrels, countryside staples such as sheep, cows and pigs also reside in unusual urban corners – better still, it's free to visit furry friends at most of the city's farms. Mudchute Park and Farm, Hackney, Spitalfields and Vauxhall City farms, to name a few, are open for animal fans, with donations welcome. Read more: The best farm stays for holidays in the UK Green spaces are scattered in every borough of London, from the sub-tropical gardens of Battersea Park to the picnic-primed hills of Greenwich and Holland Park's Kyoto garden. Their colours may change with the seasons, but walking routes, sandwich spots and play areas promise to show a different side of the city year-round. Read more: London's best hotels, reviewed With a London summer comes al fresco cinema screenings, from rooftops to the canal side. On the King's Cross 'Riviera', Everyman on the Canal will be screening blockbusters, cult classics and the madness of Wimbledon matches for free on the steps of the canal from 30 June to 17 August. Elsewhere, London Bridge's riverside festival Summer By The River is showing free flicks and Vauxhall's Summer Screen is set for some big-screen blockbusters. Read more: I thought I knew London – then I walked the Capital Ring As the likes of Borough and Camden charge steep prices for their most popular street food stalls, to make the most of a market on a budget, head for some window shopping. Colombia Road's colourful Sunday flower market is well worth a weekend stroll, or peruse Portobello on a Saturday for a bric-a-brac bargain. Read more: Meet the women behind some of Borough Market's most-loved stalls To tower over the capital without splashing out on a slow ride around the London Eye, tickets to London's highest public garden – the Sky Garden – are free. The viewing gallery on the 43rd floor of the 'Walkie Talkie' building offers panoramic views from Fenchurch Street with bars and restaurants onsite. Read more: How to spend £100,000 on a weekend in London For a walking tour of the city's biggest landmarks, follow a stretch of the Thames path from the South Bank east to the Tower of London. This four-mile route passes the Houses of Parliament, Millennium Bridge and plenty of pubs for a pint refuel along the way. Read more: Europe's best walking trails to hike There are free gigs, art and exhibitions to be found at the Southbank Centre for those looking for culture that doesn't charge their credit card. Among events this summer, Freudian Typo invites visitors to consider how the English language 'underpins the globally precarious state of land', Dance Your Way Home showcases a series of artworks, and Iris Colomb performs live poetry. Read more: How Silverstone became a year-round destination for F1 fans You actually can go to a gallery in London without paying a £15 admission fee and spending £5 on a flat white. For your fill of sketches, oil paintings and interactive exhibits, some of the city's most notable showrooms – including the Tate Modern, the National Portrait Gallery, and the Wallace Collection – display their visual masterpieces admission-free. Read more: The coolest running events around the world London institution Ronnie Scott's may be the king of the city's jazz clubs, but for a boogie on a budget, there are plenty of live music venues letting in jazz fans for less. The Old Blue Last in Shoreditch hosts free Sunday jazz sessions in its main bar, as does Dalston's The Haggerston and The Royal Albert pub in New Cross. Read more: The best loud and proud UK Pride events for 2025
CNN
25 minutes ago
- CNN
‘It's weird but also insanely cool': McLaren's Lando Norris on the dream and dilemma fueling his F1 title ambitions
It's a unique position to be in. How do you work alongside a colleague for the greater good of your team and simultaneously vie with them to win the ultimate prize in motorsport? That unenviable dilemma is one that McLaren's Lando Norris is trying to navigate as one of the most tantalizing Formula One title races in recent memory plays out against teammate Oscar Piastri. With both drivers seeking their maiden world titles and just 15 points separating the two ahead of the midpoint of the 2025 season at this weekend's British Grand Prix, Norris' conscience is clear. His eyes are very much set on fulfilling his childhood dream of becoming a world champion. 'I've always been very (accommodating) of having a teammate and also always realizing I want to beat everyone,' the 25-year-old tells CNN Sport's Amanda Davies. 'It doesn't matter what color car they're in. It doesn't matter if they're my teammate or not. In racing you want to be at the top. We've always made it very clear that we want to beat each other, but understand how we work together as a team and how we can help the team move forward. 'We know we're competitors, we know we're rivals … I think we both understand what it takes.' Although in recent seasons the drivers' championship has been a largely foregone conclusion thanks to the dominant brilliance of Max Verstappen, the 2025 season has been anything but that. The lead has ebbed and flowed on several occasions, largely passed between the two McLaren drivers in an engaging game of cat and mouse. Norris, who finished runner-up last year, may have started out the season as the favorite to end Verstappen's run of four consecutive titles, but he's so far been eclipsed by his younger teammate, Piastri, who's won five races to Norris' three. But just as the Australian was looking to pull away from his title rival, the Brit's commanding win at last weekend's Austrian Grand Prix has once again seen him reel in his teammate. It now looks increasingly like a two-horse race with Red Bull's Verstappen trailing Norris and Piastri by 46 and 61 points respectively. While McLaren boss Zak Brown has dismissed that suggestion, insisting that up to five drivers – the McLaren duo, Verstappen, Ferrari's Charles LeClerc and Mercedes' George Russell – are in the fight, Norris believes that just being in this position is far beyond his wildest expectations. 'I still find it weird to think I'm fighting for the world championship,' he says. 'I'm fighting for what I once dreamed of, what I once saw on TV, which is weird but also insanely cool at the same time.' This campaign has so far been a season of firsts for Norris, with maiden wins at the season-opening Australian Prix and, most recently, the famous circuit at Monaco. For the Brit, though, there's no denying that a grand prix victory on home turf at the historic Silverstone track is the one item he's desperate to tick off the bucket list having twice before finished on the podium – third last season and runner-up in 2023. Can he go one step further this year? 'I said if I could swap any race wins to win one, it would be Silverstone,' Norris says. 'Your home race is the one you just feel most proud of. It's the one that always brings the biggest smile to you because it's your fans, your family, your friends are there. 'I watched the race (on TV) … and you think: 'Oh, what's it like?' Then you stand there and you have the team there and you get that sense of pride and you're there performing for your team. 'I don't know what it's going to be like (to win). Hopefully I'll find out sooner rather than later … because it's the one that I get most excited for.' Success this weekend would not only accomplish a lifetime ambition, but also further elevate Norris' burgeoning fandom at home. It's something he's not taking for granted. 'I don't think it's normal for a human to get so much support and so many cheers. … I don't think you get used to it. It's what I struggle to get used to the most,' he says. 'In some ways, you can get a little bit used to the winning. … That's the easy bit of the job for me and it always will be. I think Silverstone will always be the weekend I look forward to the most every single year.'
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Wyke steps up recovery as Blues pre-season training continues
Charlie Wyke continues to step up his recovery from long-term injury as pre-season training continues at Carlisle United. The striker did some running and light ball work at this morning's session, which was open for the media to view. Advertisement Wyke, out since last October with a serious ankle injury, was joined by physio Sophie Birnie as he ran around the training pitch whilst his team-mates took part in the main training session. The experienced frontman will be targeting a return to full fitness soon in order to play a big part in Carlisle's National League campaign. The Brunton Park training pitch this morning saw the majority of Mark Hughes' squad put through their paces, with new first-team coach Frankie McAvoy leading the session. Summer signings Regan Linney, Junior Luamba and Sam Murray were all involved, but fellow new boys David Ajiboye and Morgan Feeney were not on the training pitch. Advertisement Also not involved from the first-team ranks was striker Georgie Kelly and goalkeeper Jude Smith. Josh Williams, left ,and new boy Junior Luamba, right, were among the first-team players involved in the session (Image: News & Star) Those taking part in the full session included Linney, Luamba, Murray, Ethan Robson, Aaron Hayden, Luke Armstrong, Jack Ellis, Archie Davies, Elliot Embleton, Jordan Jones, Cameron Harper, Terell Thomas, Cedwyn Scott and Josh Williams as well as new pros Dan Hopper, Sam Hetherington and Jake Allan, along with third-year scholar Freddie O'Donoghue. In the cases of Williams, Jones and Davies they are making their own comebacks after the injuries they suffered in 2024/25's closing weeks. Advertisement Goalkeepers Gabe Breeze, Harry Lewis and Thomas Randall were also in training, with Hughes joined by new coach McAvoy and the returning Gavin Skelton. The session came at the end of the first full week of pre-season (Image: News & Star) Jack Cudworth and Adam Kwiecien were among the other coaches present at the session along with Birnie and fellow physio James Counsell. Head of football operations Marc Tierney also spent time watching the players being put through their paces. It's understood, meanwhile, that Carlisle are casting their eye over at least one trialist, but no details have been given at this stage.
