Innehållsförteckning för 27-Jul-2017 från Chat

SNIFFY SQUIRREL Flowers might smell lovely, but surely this squirrel should be gathering nuts and hiding them for those long, winter months later in the year. Those blooms are obviously proving far too irresistible! • If you love squirrels as much as we do, check out these 14 photos that prove squirrels are the cutest! See www.lifedeathprizes.com/squirrels CELEBRITY SPIN We’ve put a famous face in a twist. But do you know who it is? Here’s a clue to help: This lady is a former model, writer, business entrepreneur and now a presenter on Loose Women. Take a look at the picture on the right and see if you can work out who it is. Your answer: Puzzle 1 £50 TO ENTER Turn to page 60 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win CASH for your…

I was his unlucky victim – in the wrong place at the wrong time Paramedics quickly arrived and everything was a blur as I was raced to Manchester Royal Infirmary by ambulance. There, my neck was numbed and the 7in blade gently removed. ‘You’re very lucky to be alive,’ a doctor told me. The wound was so deep, surgeons were unable to stitch it up. Instead, I was bandaged up and someone would come out every day to clean and redress it. The doctor went on to tell me he’s never seen a patient be skewered through the neck and survive before. I was discharged and I went back to Stacey. ‘What happened?’ he asked, worried when he saw the bandages around my neck. ‘I’ve got something I need 8…

CRAFTY CODE CRACKER Actress Brie Larson, who won an Oscar for her role in Room, has revealed that she still loves playing what computer games? Fill in the grid. Each letter of the alphabet has been replaced by a number from 1 to 26. When you’ve completed the grid, the shaded squares will spell out the two-word prize answer. We’ve given you five letters to start you off. Puzzle 6 £ 500 Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 60 for details. www.lifedeathprizes.com/win…

FROM £1.48 Branston Caramelised Onion Chutney, 290g, £1.48 This is soft in texture, with a strong flavour and a slightly sharp, herby aftertaste. Baxters Caramelised Onion Chutney, 290g, £1.47 Super-sweet with a mellow flavour, it’s the perfect relish to serve at a BBQ. Chat choice English Provender Caramelised Red Onion Chutney, 325g, £1.92 Apple is the stand-out flavour in this chunky chutney, which is great with a ploughman’s. NEW Ben & Jerry’s Topped, £5.49 for 500ml Ice cream duos with spoonable toppings – choose from Chocolate Caramel Cookie Dough, Strawberry Swirled and Salted Caramel Brownie.…

FROM ONLY £1.99 Lacura Spray On Moisturiser with Aloe Vera, £1.99, Aldi This lovely lotion will hydrate your entire body in a matter of minutes! Top tip: Creamy moisturisers are great for evening, but use something lighter in the day Dr. Organic Aloe Vera Lip Balm, £3.49, Holland & Barrett This uses pure aloe vera to restore dry lips, and has SPF 15 protection. Top tip: A balm with natural ingredients will stop your lips drying out. Solero Soothing After Sun Gel, £7, Lloyds Pharmacy Great for sunburnt skin, this cooling gel also helps to restore moisture lost to chlorine and sunshine. Top tip: Always wear a high-factor sun cream to protect your skin. Sukin Antioxidant Eye Serum, £14.95, Boots Smooth onto tired eyes morning or night to let the…

LETTER of the week! True Love I loved reading My Man Measures Up (23 March issue). Phil Lusted may only be 3ft tall, but he and Kathleen Brogan are so deeply in love, and may start a family. Just shows there’s somebody out there for everyone, which is lovely. I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing them both a happy and prosperous future. Suzanne Roswell, Ormesby Toilet humour We saw these funny plaques for sale on holiday. They’re certainly very self-explanatory. Margaret Rymer, Much Wenlock Lazy children..? My kids are in Year 7 and Year 11. They get tons of homework, but kids can be lazy. They must keep up with the world and if that means more schoolwork and less social media, I’m for it We can’t protect our…

A woman on the bus asked when I was due. I wasn’t pregnant! The bus doors hissed shut, leaving me standing on the pavement as it roared away. ‘It’s OK, I’ll wait for the next one,’ I muttered. That’d be a lot better for everyone really. I hated getting on busy buses. They’d be so crowded, I’d look at the cramped space and know that I’d have to push my size-24 frame into the crowds of people, get stared at and tutted at. So instead, I’d often wait. It hadn’t always been this way, though. I’d put on weight since a break-up in 2014. What had once been an average-sized body had ballooned as I kept up with life as a nursery assistant and mum to my two sons –…

Meal Deal 1 Preheat oven to 200C/Gas 6 and cut 4 peppers in half lengthways, removing white seeds. Rub inside and out with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and bake for 15-20 min, or until soft but not collapsing. The peppers should be goldenbrown around the edges. 2 Mix 400g minced beef, 2tsp mustard powder, 1 crushed clove of garlic, 100g grated beetroot, 2tbsp oats and 2tbsp breadcrumbs in a mixing bowl and season with salt and pepper. 3 Mould mixture into four patties, then lightly oil surface of burgers on either side and cook for 3-4 min on each side in a large, nonstick frying pan over a medium/high heat. 4 Peel and slice 2 avocados, then top 4 pepper halves with avocado slices and some snipped…

6 reasons to visit... 1 All aboard! From Paignton, ride on a steam train along the coast to the quaint town of Dartmouth. For a full day out, upgrade to the Round Robin tour, with a river boat trip to Totnes and a bus to Torquay. 2 Cultural Cockington Less than a mile from Torquay’s seafront, with thatched roofs and horse-and-carriage rides, this village is pretty as a picture and the perfect place for a famous Devon cream tea. 3 Luxury lie-ins Orestone Manor is a country retreat in peaceful Maidencombe. The private terraces have their own hot tubs, offering stunning views across the Torbay coastline. 4 Eat fresh Visit Orestone Manor’s restaurant and spoil yourself with a cocktail, before tucking into a threecourse meal with locally sourced ingredients and fish…

ZOOMED IN! Puzzle 20 £100 We’ve got up close and personal with a familiar item you might find in the bathroom. If you can make out what it is, that’s your prize answer. Your answer: WHAT'S ON TELLY? Puzzle 21 4X £30 As you can see, our TV’s gone on the blink and we can’t make out what programme’s being screened… If the show looks familiar to you, that’s your prize answer! Your answer: WHAT'S WRONG? Puzzle 22 £100 Marion Cotillard and Brad Pitt star as World War 2 operatives in the romantic thriller Allied. But something about this still from the film isn’t as it should be. If you know which item doesn’t belong, that’s your prize answer. Your answer: HOW MANY? Can you tell how many wine gums we’ve put into…

How to enter TEXT Simply text CHATA followed by a space and your answer/s (spaces between answers please) full name, door number and postcode to 85010 Texts cost 50p plus standard network charge (maximum 160 characters per text). When you enter by text, you may in future get SMS marketing messages from Time Inc. (UK) Ltd and Chat. If you don’t want to receive these, please end your text with TINOINFO. Texting tips • Don’t put any spaces in an answer that has several words: eg: CHATISTHEBEST not CHAT IS THE BEST. • If the answer is a name, you need only give the surname: eg: CLOONEY not GEORGE CLOONEY. • You can use capitals or small letters, but don't use any commas, etc. • Leave out answers you don’t…

DOG DAYS ARE OVER A police dog’s been sacked – but the reason will make you go, ‘Awwww!’ Gavel, a 1-year-old recruit in Queensland, Australia, prefers rolling over for a belly rub to chasing criminals! Don’t fret, he’s got a new role working as a Vice-Regal Dog for a Brisbane Governor, where his duties are mainly welcoming visitors. SWANNING INTO THE RECORD BOOKS Think your Lilo’s the best in the pool? Think again! This huge swan is the world’s largest. It was inflated in California and was up for three days at a special summer party for companies AT&T and iheartradio. It was 54ft tall, which means it’s now got the new world record. Oh, and it’s called Sally! FILTHY RICH! An American fashion chain got into trouble for selling…

THE BIGGIE When she was at school, American-British actress Gillian Anderson was voted by her class as what? To find out, solve the crossword, then read down the shaded squares to find the five-word answer. Phwoar – it’s a whopper! Enjoy your puzzling ACROSS 11 One who’s trying to dodge Customs and Excise (8) 12 The Marriage of Figaro, for example (5) 13 Ill-disposed towards (6) 14 Large jetty (4) 15 Sleeveless tunics (7) 16 Red insect with black spots (8) 17 More weighty (7) 18 America’s ‘windy city’ (7) 19 Garden of England (4) 21 Dentures (5) 23 A special messenger (7) 24 Envious (7) 28 Thoughtful and generous (4) 29 Dried grass (3) 30 Soft felt hat (6) 33 Army officer (7) 35 Snooze (3) 36 Red 27…

Top Tip: No wardrobe is complete witout a denim jacket. They work all year round. Top Tip: This is a great way to make a statement without saying a thing! Top Tip: A slogan tee is a must-have item. This one will give you a bit of French style! WORK THAT LOOK! Ready to go!…

Serves: 16 Prep: 30 min + chilling Sweet treat 100g dried figs 120g walnuts, plus 16 whole walnuts to garnish 150g oats Zest of 1 orange 50g flaxseed 100g medjool dates 40ml maple syrup 60ml melted coconut oil 60g dried cranberries 1 Grease a small, square, deep-sided baking tray and line with baking parchment. 2 Place figs in a small bowl, pour over enough hot water to cover them and leave to soak for 20 min, then drain. 3 Meanwhile, place 120g of walnuts and half oats in a food processor and blitz until texture of coarse sand. Add orange zest, flaxseed, dates, maple syrup, coconut oil and drained soaked figs and process until mixture comes together. 4 Tip into a mixing bowl, add remaining oats and cranberries, and knead…

Ask our Doc Don’t be shy – Chat’s Dr Martin Edwards is a family GP who’s seen it all before… Burning concern Q I always burn on holiday. What’s best for sunburn? Ellie, 32 A Sunburn means you’ve already done the damage! Prevent it by seeking shade and using sunscreen. Treat sunburn with lotions, hydrocortisone cream from a chemist and painkillers. Don’t you have diabetes forever? Q After my doctor told me I had diabetes, I lost 4st. Now she says I’m not diabetic any more! Is that possible? I thought it was for life. Maggie, 51 A Well done for losing 4st! Type-two diabetes, which affects adults, is often caused by obesity, so it might go if you shift excess pounds. However, the tendency is still there and diabetes…

From that night, it was like he had total control over me It wasn’t the most romantic place to meet someone. And Callum Wareing wasn’t exactly Prince Charming, either. But, all the same, there was something I liked about him. We’d bumped into each other at the taxi rank on my way home from a night out. Callum jumped into my cab and bagged himself a free lift home. ‘You’ve a cheek!’ I scolded, but I couldn’t help giggling. Callum was full of charm... I gave him my number. The next day, in January last year, he invited me out. I was only 16, studying at college and still living with my mum, Diane, now 47. Callum was a year older and working as a window cleaner. Soon, I was…

SPOILER ALERT! If you’re planning to watch From Hell, save this read for after… Did the skilled methods used point to a doctor..? Jack the Ripper, Leather Apron, The Whitechapel Murderer... All are nicknames for one of the most infamous, violent serial killers in British history. It all started in the early hours of 31 August 1888, at the end of one of the wettest summers in memory At 3.40am, two cart drivers heading to work in Whitechapel, east London, stumbled across the body of a woman lying in the doorway of a horse stable on Bucks Row. The victim was local prostitute Mary Ann Nichols – known to friends as Polly. A mother-of-five who was separated from her husband, she drifted from workhouse to workhouse, drinking and often sleeping…

Logging on to Chat Mag Bingo, I bought some tickets for a 90-ball game. Then I popped into the chatroom. All my bingo mates said hello, asked me about my day. That was one of the best things about Chat Mag Bingo – I loved how friendly everybody was. After a day babysitting for my many grandkids, visiting Mum or doing the housework, I’d relax with a few games of bingo. I liked the slots, too, especially Double Bubble. So I’d settle in for the evening, buy a few bingo tickets or play a few spins. That day, I bought tickets in Emerald for 2p, went to make a cuppa. Coming back to check my screen, I did a double-take. My name had popped up… While I’d been in the…

I know what you’re thinking. Five Great Danes? She must be barking Truth is, I wouldn’t be without them. Me and my husband John, 83, are animal lovers. And with our five humongous hounds and four other dogs, our house is furry packed! That’s just the way I like it, though. John and I have always had Great Danes as well as other breeds. They’re such kindnatured dogs, their size didn’t put us off. ‘They’re big softies really,’ I’d tell friends and family. Over the years, I learnt that Great Danes like company. It didn’t seem fair to have just one or two. ‘We’ve plenty of room for more,’ I said to John. We owned a big farmhouse with loads of land. It was perfect for big dogs to stretch…

Every child needs a mum. Someone to kiss their grazed knees, give them lots of cuddles and love… That’s how I felt when I saw an appeal on TV for foster parents. Some were orphans, others had been given away by their parents who couldn’t cope... It broke my heart, and I felt I needed to do something. ‘I want to foster,’ I told my husband at the time. We already had three kids of our own, who I loved to bits, but I had a lot more love to give. So, I contacted the fostering charity and applied. Eventually, I was accepted, and Janet, then 7, was the first child to be placed with me. ‘It’s just until we find her an adoptive family,’ a social worker explained. To…

20-26 July 2017 Aries 21 March - 20 April In love, take chances when you can! This week puts you two together in an unexpected location. It’s not ideal, but it’ll do, and it may be the best opportunity until October. Can you afford to wait that long? • Call 0905 817 0690* for more Taurus 21 April - 21 May The salary’s less than you’d hoped for and the job has few promotion prospects, but it’s simple and pays regularly. As a temporary fix to your financial problems, it’s fine. Just don’t sign any long-term contracts. • Call 0905 817 0691* for more Gemini 22 May - 21 June There’s something you want to do and you feel that if you don’t do it now, you never will. The…

9.9 SHOCK FACTOR Schizophrenia: the facts While there is a link between untreated schizophrenia and violence, research shows that the vast majority of people who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia will never be violent and are more likely to be a victim of violence than a perpetrator. Desperate for money, I’d reached my lowest ebb. What choice did I have? He threw me into the wall. Then I saw a knife glisten... He was the missing piece to our jigsaw. When my son Jamie was placed in my arms, I knew he was special. Too special for this world... Just a few hours after he was born in June 2013, he developed pneumonia. And, sadly, his little body couldn’t fight it. At just 18 hours old, he slipped away –…

Staring down the aisle towards my fiance Samuel, 25, I felt a surge of love. Then… ‘I think I’m going to faint!’ I gasped to my dad Colin, 55. ‘I’ve got you,’ he replied, steadying me. But this wasn’t a case of wedding jitters... I was about to walk for the first time in 10 years! My illness had begun at school almost a decade earlier. After a bad virus, I’d become increasingly tired, weak, unable to get through the day. Often bed-bound, I couldn’t even watch telly, as the visuals were too strong for my eyes. I’d spent the best part of four years in hospital I was diagnosed with myalgic encephalopathy (ME) – and, for me, it meant admission to hospital. I was unable to get up, and…

They're YOUR tips!! Let rip… My partner and I took some copies of Chat on holiday for poolside reading. After I’d read it, I tore off the top right corner. Then after my husband had read it, he tore off the bottom right. Once both corners had gone, we knew we’d finished the mag. Debra Stapley, Dover DIY vase Just cut the top off a large water bottle and stick some different-coloured tape around it to create your own homemade vase! Annie Sharrocks, Farnworth Shower-cap solution I was fed up of the soil coming through my flower basket onto the shelf beneath, so I put a shower cap under the bottom to stop it. B O’Keeffe, Walsall On a roll… Put your ball of wool on a kitchen-roll holder to…

I didn’t dare go out... But had to do the school run My right eye started off a bit puffy. Then my vision got blurry. Probably just an infection, I thought, looking at it in the mirror. But, a few weeks on, it still hadn’t improved. It was last May, and I booked an optician’s appointment. ‘I don’t wear glasses or contacts,’ I explained as the optician studied my eye. ‘I’ve been an optician for 30 years and I’ve never seen anything like this,’ she said eventually, calling in someone else to look. Suddenly, I felt worried. Apparently, there were lines on the back of my right eye. Was that unusual..? The optician referred me for an MRI scan. While I waited for my appointment, I went to my GP,…

Once my heart was breaking… Now it’s had a reboot! Reaching to pick up my handbag, I stopped. The pain in my left arm was so intense, I couldn’t move it. It was December 2009, and the pain had come on suddenly. I also had pains in my chest. When it didn’t let up after a few days, I spoke to my GP. ‘Could be your heart,’ he said. After an ECG, I was referred to a cardiologist at Royal Bolton Hospital for more tests. I was a single mum and full-time carer for my son Alex, then 20, so I had plenty to keep me busy. Alex had been left brain damaged after a terrible car accident when he was 16. He depended on me. I don’t have time…

We wanted to have equal input in the creation of a child Standing at the bar in the club, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see a giggling woman. ‘My friend fancies you,’ she blurted out. She gestured over to a crowd of girls and I saw the friend she was talking about, blushing. ‘Tell her I fancy her, too,’ I said. It was true. There was something about her that instantly intrigued me. I waved her over. Moments later, she was at my side. ‘Hi, I’m Michaela,’ she said. ‘I’m Sam, lovely to meet you,’ I smiled back. We bought some drinks and got chatting. It became clear that we’d loads in common. Namely, a love of animals – but not just cats and…

Planning a wedding, expecting a baby. Life was pretty perfect My man Ryan wasn’t the big romantic hearts and flowers type. Much more about the quiet gestures. Like when he made a pizza for me from scratch. Stuffed crust and everything! That was for Valentine’s Day last year. We’d met online four months earlier. I was a single mum to Luke, now 8, Tammy- Jane, 5, and Leyla, 3. Did I need to bring a man into their lives? Well, I was lonely sometimes. Why not try and find a companion, go on a nice date or two? So we went for an Italian meal. It was love at first sight. Still, we took it slowly. Got to know each other properly. And a few weeks on… ‘Would you make…

He returned minutes later, armed with an assault rifle In the great hall of the palace stood two Bengal tigers. Stuffed. Behind them hung huge portraits. All the kings of Nepal, since the founding of the kingdom in 1768. And it was in this hall of the Narayanhity Palace in Kathmandu that guests arrived for King Birendra’s dinner party on 1 June 2001. A family tradition, every Friday, he’d dine with his whole family. For the Nepalese, the king was the living embodiment of the ancient God Vishnu… the Supreme Protector. But that night at the palace, an argument was coming to a head. The king’s wife Queen Aishwarya had chosen a bride for their eldest son Dipendra, 29. Supriya, the daughter of the brigadier general of the Royal Army…