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The Sun
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Inside UK's 1st Reform pub with £2 pints, boozers drinking ‘Remainer tears' & even Corbyn's allowed in, on one condition
IN the classic 1989 film Field Of Dreams, Kevin Costner is inspired to create a baseball pitch after hearing a voice say: 'If you build it, he will come.' And that philosophy is at the heart of the decision by landlords Peter Flynn and Nick Lowe to turn a cheap boozer into the nation's first Reform UK pub. 5 5 5 'Well, we built it and they are coming,' Peter, 53, proudly tells me, with a pint in hand inside the hub he believes will lead to Nigel Farage becoming Prime Minister by 2029. Two weeks ago, The Talbot in Blackpool shed its near-100-year-old Conservative Club ties and turned from blue to turquoise, courtesy of a paint job to its exterior. According to the owners, customers are ecstatic — not just for pints as cheap as £2.60 and beef stew costing £2, but to have a safe space to discuss real issues plaguing the British public. They claim takings are up threefold since the rebrand and that their 'common sense' punters have travelled from as far as Belfast, Glasgow and London. Not a 'den for racists' It comes after Reform gave the Tories and Labour a bloody nose at elections earlier this month, taking control of ten councils and two mayoralities as well as adding a fifth MP at a by-election. Now Mark Butcher, the party's chairman for Blackpool and Fleetwood, warns they are not just satisfied with establishing a 'good foothold within Lancashire', but have plans to take over pubs and clubs across the country. Mark says: 'We're the people's army — we're rising up and the colour is turquoise. There will be no red wall, no blue wall by the time we're finished. 'Real politics is on the ground, where people discuss issues on a daily basis, so we've hit the jackpot at The Talbot.' It is a sentiment shared by ex-warehouse manager Keith Pickering, 60, who considers the pub a political Mecca where you can 'speak your mind' without judgment and engage in debate. There was a steady 20-plus throng of regulars during The Sun's early afternoon visit, and it is regularly joked that you can buy a pint of 'Remainer's tears'. I'll never give up booze, vows Nigel Farage as Reform tipped to make HUGE gains in local elections The pub proudly flies a Union Jack flag in the lobby alongside Vote Reform flyers above the bar, beside a quadruple-sized billiards hall, which costs 50p a game. Bartender Skye Reid, 18, tells us she can't wait to cast her first vote for Reform. She is thrilled by the news that Farage, whose party endorsed the pub, has promised the owners he will visit. We'll be in every day if Nigel is coming down. I love him. I want him to be Prime Minister, 100 per cent Skye Reid Skye tells us: 'We'll be in every day if Nigel is coming down. 'I love him. I want him to be Prime Minister, 100 per cent. 'I'm not a racist, it's just so wrong that they house illegal immigrants before our homeless. They put them in hotels and give them everything on a plate. It's frustrating.' She is referring to the 220 hotels across the UK, including Blackpool's Britannia Metropole on the promenade, which is just an eight-minute walk away. 5 5 Holidaymaker James Rooney, who is staying at the hotel with his family while visiting from Manchester, says he couldn't wait to raise a glass in the UK's first Reform pub, especially after 'the disaster of the last election'. The former staunch Conservative voter says: 'My family always voted Labour because they used to be for the working man, but now it is the reverse. Both parties can fire off — we'll go for Farage from now on.' Jeremy Corbyn — unless he has a photo taken under our Reform pub sign, we wouldn't serve him — and we'd charge him double Peter Many of the pubgoers are fuming over Keir Starmer's recent U-turn over Brexit, which will see more Europeans travel for work and study, a crackdown on our agricultural industry and what has been described as a 'humiliating surrender' of our fishing rights. Plumber Dave Crowder, 64, says: 'Labour has sold us down the river. All of their other policies are on the backburner — how can they do that? 'They claim it takes years to pass them but when it's something they want, it's sorted right away.' Long road ahead The pub regulars' tonic for the current crisis is Farage, and landlords Nick and Peter are well-versed, having consoled Blackpool residents over their struggles. Peter claims they are 'preventing anger turning into violence' by offering infuriated residents a chance for their voices to be heard. The duo, who took over the pub in 2009, insist all 'races, creeds, religions' are welcome in The Talbot, and they are not a 'den for racists' — nor will they tolerate it. They indeed appear to have somewhat of an open-door policy, with The Sun even encountering an unflinching Labour supporter propping up the bar. But there's one figure who may not be so welcome. 'Jeremy Corbyn — unless he has a photo taken under our Reform pub sign, we wouldn't serve him — and we'd charge him double,' Peter says with a laugh. With up to four years to go before another general election, there is a long road ahead for Reform UK. And no doubt they will be hoping the ambitions of their Talbot faithful prove more than a field of dreams.
The Sun
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Freddie Flintoff snubbed by BAFTA after inspiring television comeback – as he loses out on factual series award
FREDDIE Flintoff has missed out on taking home a Bafta Award after his triumphant return to TV. The cricket player-turned-TV host was up for Best Factual series at this year's ceremony, being held at London's Royal Festival Hall today. 6 6 6 He was nominated for his BBC One series Freddie Flintoff's Field of Dreams on Tour, taking a team of unlikely lads from Lancashire to India. The adventure was dubbed "the most unlikely cricket tour that almost didn't happen". However, he faced stiff competition from Netflix's American Nightmare, Channel 4's The Push: Murder on The Cliff, and To Catch a Copper, which also aired on Channel 4. To Catch a Copper - which investigates officer misconduct within the Avon and Somerset Police, shedding light on misogyny, abuse of power and racial profiling in the process - ultimately took home the prize at the ceremony. Field of Dreams has proven a massive hit for the BBC, with a third series already being greenlit. Freddie will work the same magic on another gaggle of teenagers from his home city on the new show - but The Sun exclusively revealed they will all be girls this time round. A TV insider said: 'Freddie didn't see why the young women in Preston shouldn't get the same chances as the boys, particularly as more and more female teams are popping up across the country. 'After all, the whole point of the show is to provide equal opportunities and use the sport to help people regardless of their background. So why should gender be a barrier?' The snub for the series comes after the star was widely praised for another documentary, Flintoff, which followed the star's mental and physical recovery from a near-death car crash on the set of Top Gear. Released on Disney+, Flintoff gave cameras access to his life, doctors' appointments and home as he dealt with life-changing injuries to his face. His family also share the impact it had on them, with Freddie's three-year-old being too scared to go near him in the wake of the accident. In a brutally honest chat, he admits he got so low that he wished the crash would have killed him, and refused to leave the house for eight months. The release comes amid a very busy year for Flintoff, who has also already committed to a series of Bullseye for ITV. 6 6 6
CBC
09-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
C.B.S. Baseball building accessible ‘Field of Dreams' with help from the Blue Jays
Young baseball players in Conception Bay South are hoping they'll soon have some new teammates and more fans in the stands, thanks to the Toronto Blue Jays. C.B.S. is one of 15 winners of a Jays Care Foundation 'Field of Dreams' grant, which helps make local baseball fields more accessible and inclusive. See the work that's already begun.
CTV News
04-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Jays Care invests $1.5M in community baseball diamonds, including West Nipissing's Goulard Park
To a community a baseball field is more than just a place to play. Jays Care's Field Of Dreams program is investing $1.5 million to build or refrubish diamonds.
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Andrew Flintoff says he is trying to find out what he should do after crash
Cricket star Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff has said he is 'trying to find out what I am now' after suffering serious injuries in a car crash while filming motoring show Top Gear. In a trailer for his upcoming documentary, which touches on the aftermath of the accident, Flintoff describes his 'vivid' memories of the crash and says he can remember 'everything about it'. The sportsman was left with facial and rib injuries after the high-speed crash at the Top Gear test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome, Surrey, in 2022, and was largely out of the public eye during his recovery. In a teaser for the 90-minute film, titled Flintoff, he said: 'I've lived under the radar for seven months. One of the real frustrations was the speculation; that's why I'm doing this now, (about) what actually happened.' He describes his experience of the crash as 'almost like I've had a reset, and I'm trying to find out what I am now'. The programme will also explore his career before the accident, during which he won two Ashes series, and his subsequent return to cricket. He touches on press attention, saying: 'Everyone wants more, you're just a commodity.' Flintoff's family, Gavin And Stacey creator James Corden, and comedian Jack Whitehall also appear in the trailer. Footage of the crash is shown, including of the filming crew and staff attending the incident. Flintoff is making a steady return to the public eye, being named England Lions head coach in September 2024 and appearing in a Christmas special of darts-themed ITV quiz show Bullseye. His second series of Freddie Flintoff's Field Of Dreams, in which he took a group of young people from his home town on a cricketing tour of India, is up for a Bafta factual series gong at next month's ceremony. The BBC 'rested' Top Gear for the foreseeable future in 2023, after reaching a financial settlement with Flintoff, reportedly worth £9 million. The documentary, directed by John Dower, will air on April 25 on Disney+.
