England & Wales bid to survive 'toughest group of all'
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England and Wales are in Group D along with France and the Netherlands
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England and Wales are flying the flag for the home nations at Euro 2025 this summer.
But the two teams have found themselves paired together in the trickiest group, alongside the Netherlands and France.
That means three of the four teams in the group are in the top 11 of Fifa's world rankings.
Wales take on the Dutch (17:00 BST on Saturday) in a game you can watch and listen to across the BBC, before England face France (20:00), with radio commentary on 5 Live and BBC Sounds, with live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app.
But what makes Group D so difficult and who is most likely to make it through?
'The most lopsided draw I have ever seen'
Group D, according to Netherlands boss Andries Jonker, is the "toughest group of all" at Euro 2025.
And Opta have backed up his claim, with the stat experts' supercomputer predicting there's a 37% chance a Group D team will win the tournament.
That's 7% higher than the second-favourite group.
"It's the most lopsided draw I have ever seen," football journalist Tom Garry told the Football Daily podcast.
"The doomsday scenario for England and Wales is that they could both be out before they play each other in the third game."
Two former champions
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Image caption,
Sarina Wiegman led the Netherlands to Euros success in 2017 before guiding the Lionesses to the trophy in 2022
England arrive in Switzerland as the defending champions while the Netherlands won the previous tournament in 2017 - both were managed by Sarina Wiegman.
Both teams won all three of their group-stage games when they won the title.
The defending champions have never failed to progress past the group stage at a European Championship.
"Straight from the beginning, we need to be really sharp and strong but that's also the case for the other teams," England head coach Wiegman said when the draw was made.
The Lionesses have won their past 14 group-stage matches at major tournaments while the Netherlands are unbeaten in their past 13.
Jonker said: "This is the toughest group of all with three top countries. We have to accept this and go for the challenge and believe in ourselves.
"We are not coming to participate, we think we can beat every country."
France on fine form
France have never won a major trophy but they have an impressive group-stage record, progressing in each of their past eight major tournament appearances.
And Laurent Bonadei's team have form on their side. They are on an eight-game winning run and have only conceded two goals since February while they last tasted defeat in December - to world champions Spain.
England full-back Lucy Bronze says Saturday's opening match between the sides is not to be missed.
"Both teams are full of exciting attacking talent and I think it's the game everyone is going to be watching because it's surely the most exciting group game coming into a Euros," right-back Bronze said.
Les Bleues left-back Selma Bacha also said she is "very happy" to play England first, adding: "That's going to put us straight into the thick of things for the Euros."
However, this will be the first time since 2005 that France have been at a Euros or World Cup without both Wendie Renard and all-time leading scorer Eugenie le Sommer, who were controversially left out of Bonadei's side.
"The experience and the amount of caps that Renard and Le Sommer have is absolutely huge," said former England forward Ellen White.
"To have that completely wiped from your squad is a really interesting dynamic to go into this tournament."
Former Scotland defender Jen Beattie said: "They've obviously seen something and made a big decision, and they were also quoted saying 'insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results'."
Wales will 'embrace' underdog status
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Wales beat the Republic of Ireland in December's play-offs to qualify for Euro 2025
Competing in their first major tournament and as the lowest ranked team in the compteition, Wales are not only the underdogs for Group D but for the whole of Euro 2025.
"People can call us underdogs and write us off as much as they want but our belief in ourselves will be the most important thing," said Wales forward Jess Fishlock.
"I think we will embrace it and we will use it as an advantage."
Despite their lower ranking, Wales have shown they can compete with top teams under coach Rhian Wilkinson, claiming two impressive draws against Sweden earlier this year.
"It absolutely terrifies me playing Wales in the last game and trying to get points because it will be such a hard game," White said.
"It will be a European final for Wales. They've got enthusiasm, you don't know what to expect, they're competitive, the fans are going to be amazing. That's going to be a really hard test for England."
However, history isn't on Wales' side. Only one of the past six teams making their debut in the Euros have made it out of the group.
Casks of beer were blessed at an Oktoberfest event in 2022 at Bangor Cathedral
Priests and choristers at a cathedral mired in controversy did a "seven last shots of Christ" drinking game at a pub on Good Friday after services at the Archbishop of Wales' cathedral.
People who sang with the choir at Bangor Cathedral have told the BBC there "seemed to be any excuse to bring out the wine" and "go to the pub" because of a "binge drinking culture".
Mr John will also retire as Bishop of Bangor on 31 August but the church has called for a series of reviews and investigations of his diocese and cathedral.
This comes after reports highlighted "a culture in which sexual boundaries seemed blurred", excessive alcohol consumption and governance and safeguarding weaknesses.
While there is no suggestion the then archbishop, the leader of the Church in Wales, behaved inappropriately, the church's representative body said there must be a "change in leadership, procedures and governance in the diocese of Bangor".
Andrew John retired as Archbishop of Wales last month and will retire as Bishop of Bangor on 31 August
Jessica, not her real name, said she was assaulted by someone who was trying to become a priest who had been drinking at a Bangor Cathedral Oktoberfest event in 2022.
"He had had considerably too much to drink," she told the BBC.
"I'd already warned people that night he's drinking a lot more than everyone else. So these warning signs were ignored and that led to that assault."
Jessica, now in her early 20s, said another person was also sexually assaulted by the man at the event in the 6th Century Gwynedd cathedral.
She reported it and he apologised, but she said the drinking culture did not change.
"Several bottles of prosecco would be gone through on a Sunday morning," Jessica added.
"Any sort of external event or big internal event there was prosecco or wine."
The Church in Wales confirmed that Jessica was one of two people who complained about the man's behaviour and his priest training was not taken forward.
'Seven last shots of Christ'
After a cathedral concert on Good Friday in 2023, members of the choir went for drinks.
"A few of the priests came out with the choir," recalled Jessica. "It was deemed appropriate to do the seven last shots of Christ."
The Seven Last Words of Christ refers to seven last sentences that Jesus spoke from the Cross on Good Friday as quoted in the Bible.
"Because Christ has seven last words, therefore we sang seven pieces of the seven last words in the concert - and that somehow translated into seven shots of Christ," she recalled.
"I think I left after the first shot because I was like 'I don't think this is appropriate'. There's too many people taking shots in dog collars for me to be comfortable."
Jessica said she went on a tour to Rome with the choir in June 2023.
"Every night we'd go to a bar first and then a restaurant," she recalled.
"At the time I was teetotal. I would be like I don't want wine, I don't want to drink in this situation. I don't want alcohol.
"That would not be an okay answer, that would be questioned beyond belief. Like, this alcohol is free. Why are you not taking it? You should have it."
Esme Byrd
Esme Byrd said she left her position as a lay clerk at Bangor Cathedral because no-one listened to her concerns about the culture at the diocese
Esme Byrd was a lay clerk at Bangor Cathedral for six months and regularly sang with the choir until leaving in January 2023.
The 29-year-old said the culture and attitude to alcohol was "deeply unhealthy" with some people getting "really catastrophically drunk".
"There was a culture of binge drinking," said Esme.
"Not necessarily all the time, but certainly there was a lot of alcohol around almost all the services or various events. It seemed to be any excuse to bring out the wine, any excuse to go to the pub."
Esme, who sometimes worked directly with the children in the choir, said she became concerned about the wellbeing of younger members of the choir, especially the language used around them.
"It was the level of 18-rated sexual jokes, crude sexual humour done in front of children as young as six or seven," said Esme.
"In terms of safeguarding training, there was absolutely nothing. There was no training, so in terms of certainly me starting and me doing my job, there was no training of anything whatsoever."
Esme Byrd
Esme Byrd sometimes worked directly with the children in the choir at Bangor Cathedral
Esme said she was only asked to do a DBS check a couple of weeks after starting, despite being appointed months in advance.
"I looked around and I just thought, this is not safe," Esme told BBC Wales Investigates. "This is not a safe and nurturing and good environment for children to be in."
She added: "It felt a lot more like a badly run after school club rather than a professional organisation."
Esme said she raised her concerns but eventually left because she became frustrated with the lack of action.
"It's not a sense of malevolence, but a huge sense of negligence and neglect and not following good practice," added Esme.
"Creating the space where a malevolent actor could have done almost whatever they wanted."
The Church in Wales said "concerns about a drinking culture" prompted them to investigate and said alcohol was "not now generally available" after services.
A spokesperson said they did not believe that Bangor Cathedral was unsafe for children, but said improvements to policy and practice were required.
The spokesperson said: "Previous concerns about a drinking culture at the Cathedral contributed to the decision to undertake a Bishop's visitation.
"The Implementation Group who are addressing the recommendations from the visitation are developing a policy concerning alcohol use. Alcohol is not now generally available after services.
"The inappropriate use of alcohol within and during cathedral-related activities included encouragement by some towards others to consume alcohol.
"This inappropriate behaviour is addressed in the actions which are required following the visitation process.
"DBS checks are required and safeguarding training delivered in line with UK legislation, and the Church in Wales policies."
Regarding the blessing of beer, the spokesperson said this was occasionally practised in churches but that "the abuse of alcohol is always inappropriate".
"We rode this wave together and I loved him," said co-star Dylan Walsh in his tribute
Australian actor Julian McMahon, famed for roles in popular series like Nip/Tuck and Charmed, has died aged 56.
His wife said the actor passed away in Clearwater, Florida, on Wednesday. He had been diagnosed with cancer.
"Julian loved life. He loved his family. He loved his friends. He loved his work, and he loved his fans. His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible," Kelly Paniagua said in a statement carried by Deadline.
McMahon's career took off with the hit supernatural television series Charmed before he gained wider recognition with Nip/Tuck, the medical drama in which he played the role of plastic surgeon Dr Christian Troy.
Running for six seasons from 2003 to 2010, the show earned him a Golden Globe nomination.
Co-star Dylan Walsh told Dealine he was "stunned".
"We rode this wave together and I loved him.
"Jules! I know you'd want me to say something to make you smile — all the inside jokes. All those years you had my back, and my god, we laughed. My heart is with you. Rest in peace."
McMahon also played Doctor Doom in two Fantastic Four films in 2005 and 2007 and later appeared in three seasons of FBI: Most Wanted.
Dick Wolf, the producer of FBI: Most Wanted, said McMahon's death was "shocking news".
McMahon was the son of a former Australian prime minister and went on to play an Australian prime minister's role in Netflix's The Residence - one of his recent appearances.
McMahon married three times - the first to Australian singer-actress Dannii Minogue, sister of Kylie Minogue.
Serena Hanor Aldrich said her daughters were trapped by floodwaters for a couple of hours at Camp Mystic, where as many as 25 girls are missing. She criticized camp officials.
Several people have died and others are missing after flash flooding hit parts of central Texas on Friday morning.
Disaster declarations have been issued for the Hill Country and Concho Valley regions.
Rescues and evacuations have been underway since the early morning, but there are warnings of more potential flash flooding to come.
"Even if the rain is light, more flooding can occur in those areas," Acting Governor Dan Patrick said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the state was providing "all necessary resources to Kerrville, Ingram, Hunt and the entire Texas Hill Country dealing with these devastating floods".
The region is to the north-west of the Texas city of San Antonio.
Pictures show the deep flood waters swamping bridges and fast moving water swirling down roads.
Exactly how many people have died or are missing has not yet been confirmed by authorities.
"Folks, please don't take chances. Stay alert, follow local emergency warnings, and do not drive through flooded roads," Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said.
Kerr County Sheriff's Office said the area had suffered a "catastrophic flooding event" and confirmed that fatalities had been reported.
It told residents near creeks, streams and the Guadalupe River to move to higher ground.
A Palestinian man looks at buildings destroyed by Israeli strikes in al-Shati refugee camp, northern Gaza
Hamas says it is consulting other Palestinian groups before giving a formal response to the latest proposal for a new Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal put forward by the US.
President Donald Trump said on Friday morning that expected to know within 24 hours whether Hamas has agreed to the plan.
On Tuesday, Trump said Israel had accepted the conditions necessary for a 60-day ceasefire, during which the parties would work to end the 20-month war.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military is continuing to bomb targets across the Gaza Strip.
Local journalists reported hearing explosions and gunfire as Israeli helicopter gunships and artillery struck the southern Khan Younis area on Friday morning.
Overnight, at least 15 Palestinians were killed in strikes on two tents housing displaced people in Khan Younis, the local Nasser hospital said.
The Israeli military has not yet commented on the strikes, but it did say its forces were "operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities".
In a statement issued early on Friday, Hamas said it was discussing with the leaders of other Palestinian factions the ceasefire proposal that it had received from regional mediators Qatar and Egypt.
Hamas said it would deliver a "final decision" to the mediators once the consultations had ended and then announce it officially.
The proposal is believed to include the staggered release of 10 living Israeli hostages and the bodies of 18 other hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Fifty hostages are still being held in Gaza, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
One of Hamas's key demands is the resumption of unrestricted food and medical aid into Gaza, and the proposal reportedly says sufficient quantities would enter the territory immediately with the involvement of the United Nations and Red Cross.
It is said the plan would also include a phased Israeli military withdrawal from parts of Gaza.
Above all, Hamas wants a guarantee that Israeli air and ground operations will not resume after the end of the 60-day ceasefire.
The proposal is believed to say that negotiations on an end to the war and the release of the remaining hostages would begin on day one.
Donald Trump told reporters early on Friday that he expected to know "over the next 24 hours" whether the proposals would be accepted by Hamas.
The hope then would be the resumption of formal, indirect, talks ahead of a planned visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington next week.
"We sure hope it's a done deal, but I think it's all going to be what Hamas is willing to accept," US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Israel's Channel 12 TV on Thursday.
"One thing is clear: The president wants it to be over. The prime minister wants it to be over. The American people, the Israeli people, want it to be over."
Netanyahu meanwhile promised to secure the release of all the remaining hostages during a visit to Kibbutz Nir Oz, a community near the Israel-Gaza border where a total of 76 residents were abducted during the Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023 that triggered the war.
"I feel a deep commitment, first of all, to ensure the return of all of our hostages, all of them," he said. "We will bring them all back."
He did not, however, commit to ending the war. He has insisted that will not happen until the hostages are freed and Hamas's military and governing capabilities are destroyed.
The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the 7 October 2023 attack, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 57,130 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
In late 2023, sisters Lisa and Nicole were told they had inherited a substantial sum from their late Aunt Christine. But while they were absorbing this life-changing news, the windfall was just as quickly snatched away.
A man unknown to Christine's family, friends or neighbours, appeared - apparently from nowhere - and produced a will, naming him sole heir to her entire estate.
Doubts about the man's claim grew as troubling details emerged. However, the police and probate service said they would not investigate.
Lisa and Nicole's is one of several similar cases investigated by BBC News in the south of England.
We found mounting evidence that a criminal gang has been carrying out systematic will fraud by exploiting weaknesses in the probate system, stealing millions of pounds from the estates of dead people, and committing serious tax fraud.
'My dear friend'
Lisa and Nicole were upset to hear about the death of their aunt, Christine Harverson, whom they had not seen since their early childhood. They were also shocked to be told that they stood to inherit her entire estate, including a house in Wimbledon, south London, which could be worth nearly £1m. She had not left a will, and they were her closest living relatives.
The sisters were alerted to their inheritance by an "heir-finder" company, Anglia Research Services. Heir-finders use an official government register that lists estates where no will has been made. They research the dead person's family in order to identify, locate and contact the rightful heirs.
In return for a portion of the inheritance, these companies act on the heirs' behalf and apply for what's known as a grant of probate. This gives them the legal right to deal with a deceased person's estate – in other words, their property, money and possessions.
However, on this occasion, the application for probate on behalf of Lisa and Nicole was stopped in its tracks.
A Hungarian man by the name of Tamas Szvercsok contacted the probate service, and produced a will describing him as Christine's "dear friend".
It named him the beneficiary of her entire estate, as well as sole executor - the person legally responsible for carrying out the instructions in the will.
The possibility that Mr Szvercsok was genuine, initially was not dismissed out of hand.
"It happens - sometimes cases slip through the net and a will is unearthed," says Matt Boardman, a former police officer who works for Anglia Research.
However, there were clear signs something was amiss:
Christine's neighbour and friend, Sue, said she had never mentioned a Hungarian friend at any point in the years they had known each other
The will was dated 2016 - Christine was housebound and disabled by this time, and receiving practically no visitors
The terms of the will meant that Christine would have disinherited her husband and carer Dennis, who in 2016 was still alive (he died in 2020)
Moreover, because Dennis was the joint owner of their house, Christine could not have legally bequeathed the house without his consent
After Dennis's death, Christine entered a care home, but there was no record of Mr Szvercsok ever visiting her
Joe Dixey/BBC
Sue (pictured in front of Christine Harverson's house) cast doubt on the authenticity of her late neighbour's will
Other even more troubling details stood out.
Christine's home address was misspelled on the will, and even though it was dated 2016, the address given for Mr Szvercsok was a block of flats that had not been built until 2021.
Matt Boardman contacted Mr Szvercsok, who replied by email: "I never heard of any family. I'm the sole executor of her will."
Despite presenting what they thought was a strong case to police and the probate service, Lisa and Nicole were told they would have to bring a civil action if they wanted to prove that the will was a fake. That would cost tens of thousands of pounds which they do not have.
Lisa now says she sometimes wishes she had never been told about the will in the first place: "All it's done is bring misery really, and heartache. It's just a whole nightmare."
'Vacant goods'
Stealing a dead person's property and financial assets appears to be extremely easy under UK law, if no will can be located.
The official government register of unclaimed estates in England and Wales is called Bona Vacantia (Latin for "vacant goods"), and is freely accessible online. It currently contains about 6,000 names and is updated daily.
Legitimate heir-hunting companies use Bona Vacantia to research potential clients, but it also appears to have become a valuable resource for criminals.
To claim an estate where there is no known heir, a fraudster simply has to find a promising name on Bona Vacantia, produce a will quickly enough, and be awarded grant of probate.
Since 2017 it's been possible to apply for grant of probate online, but critics of the system say it is failing to detect suspicious applicants, and it also appears to increase the opportunity for tax fraud.
When someone dies, their estate has to be assessed for inheritance tax. This is not payable on estates worth £325,000 or less, but any amount over that threshold – with some exceptions - is taxed at 40%.
It's the responsibility of the person awarded grant of probate to make sure inheritance tax has been paid.
Applicants for grant of probate must complete a form to say this has been done, but under the current arrangements, they need do no more than declare on the online form that no tax is due.
It is a system that relies largely on trust, but gives ample opportunity for that trust to be roundly abused.
During our investigations we have come across cases where estates have been valued at just under the inheritance tax threshold, even though they include property worth far more.
One of these was the estate of Charles Haxton.
Whose house?
At the time of his death in 2021, Charles Haxton was living alone in a terraced house in Tooting, south London.
He was reclusive and only occasionally spoke to neighbours, although one of them, Roye Chapman, was there for him near the end when he suffered a bad fall outside.
"I rang the police and then got him up and got him into the ambulance," he says. "His head was all cut open, and then two weeks later, he died."
No will was initially found for Mr Haxton, and his name and address appeared on Bona Vacantia. This prompted Anglia Research to look for possible heirs, and they told several of his cousins that they could be in line to inherit Mr Haxton's estate.
Joe Dixey/BBC
Roye Chapman stands in front of the house of his late neighbour, Charles Haxton
Then, as with Lisa and Nicole, the cousins were told that a will had appeared after all, leaving everything to one man - also Hungarian - called Roland Silye.
The family initially accepted his claim, to have been an old friend of Mr Haxton, but one relation, Barry, obtained a copy of the will and was struck by how odd it looked.
It left Mr Silye two properties - not only Mr Haxton's home in London, but also a house in Hertfordshire.
Together, the two properties would have been worth about £2m. However, Mr Silye listed the value of the estate as £320,500 – just £4,500 short of the amount at which inheritance tax kicked in.
What was even stranger was that Mr Haxton had never owned, and had no connection to, any house in Hertfordshire.
We visited this property. It was large and dilapidated, and neighbours told us it had been unoccupied for a long time.
The puzzle of the extra house also caught the attention of Neil Fraser, a partner in another heir-hunting company. He thinks that Mr Silye may have bundled the Hertfordshire property into a will in an attempt to fake ownership.
"He must have gone past that house and thought, 'I'll just take that derelict house. How can I get that house? Well, I can put it inside a will!"
Crucially, the will was accepted by the probate service, who did not check or raise any questions about the Hertfordshire house.
We were unable to trace Roland Silye in our investigation, and his motivation remains a mystery.
The will would not give him possession of the Hertfordshire house - the property registry and the electoral roll name the owner as a woman who would be in her 70s.
However, Mr Fraser speculates that the will could be used in future as leverage to take ownership when the real owner dies.
Despite reporting his suspicions to the police and the probate service, he says action was not taken.
Mr Silye cleared probate not only for Mr Haxton's estate, but also that of George Woon, an elderly man from Southall, west London.
Mr Woon also died in 2021, and shortly afterwards, his name appeared on Bona Vacantia. Mr Silye came forward with a will which named him as sole heir. Mr Woon's house was later sold at auction for £360,000.
A complex web
We asked an expert in financial fraud, Graham Barrow, to check whether there could be any connection between Roland Silye and Tamas Szvercsok.
Both have names of Hungarian origin, and, according to Companies House, both appear to be directors in a complex and interlinked web of companies.
Mr Barrow established that the address Mr Szvercsok gave in Mrs Harverson's will was also used by Mr Silye for some of his companies.
What these companies do is unclear, although some have been struck off for fraudulent addresses, and others have been warned for failing to provide accounts.
The pattern - multiple businesses, related addresses, similar names - is one which often indicates a criminal network, says Mr Barrow.
He adds that owning multiple companies can allow criminals to disperse funds across different accounts and locations, and makes life more difficult for law enforcement.
Another Hungarian name featuring in this web of companies is Bela Kovacs, who, according to a will dated 2021, was heir to the entire estate of Michael Judd, from Pinner, west London.
Michael Judd's estate included his bungalow in Pinner, west London
According to his neighbours, Mr Judd was a multi-talented individual with a distinguished record in the security services. However, in his final years he had become something of a hoarder, seldom leaving his house.
One neighbour, Chris, told us he thought the will had sounded strange and not only because Mr Judd had never mentioned Bela Kovacs.
A few months before his death in 2024, Mr Judd told Chris he had made a will long ago, but the people named on it were all now dead. In any case, he added, he did not know where it was.
"I suppose I better try and dig it out some time," Chris remembers him saying.
He feels it's inconceivable that Mr Judd would have troubled himself with these decisions if he had made a will three years previously.
We tracked Mr Kovacs down to a luxury estate in the Watford area but he refused to talk to us.
Joined-up writing
Other factors seem to connect these cases.
The wills made out for Charles Haxton, George Woon and the others we have seen, appear to have been written by the same person, according to handwriting expert Christina Strang.
"The numbers two, four and seven are all written in the same way on several addresses," she says.
She also sees other similarities, such as the spacing of the letters in different signatures, and the positioning of the signatures on the line.
"It seems to be one person actually signing, forging all of these."
Handwriting expert Christina Strang says it seems one person signed all the wills
Ms Strang also thinks this same person may have also forged signatures for the witnesses named on the wills, none of whom, we found, were apparently known to the deceased, and some of whom might have been completely fictitious.
There are disturbing similarities in the way that properties were treated during and after the probate process:
Shortly after Mr Szvercsok made his initial claim on Mrs Harverson's estate, her nieces discovered her Wimbledon house had been ransacked
A workman employed to empty Mr Judd's house told us he had been instructed to empty it quickly, even though this meant having to destroy what appeared to be valuable heirlooms
After Mr Haxton's house was cleared, the windows and doors were blacked out, and the locks strengthened; a year later, it emerged that it was being used as a cannabis farm (a fact that only emerged when a rival gang tried to force entry and neighbours alerted the police)
Joe Dixey/BBC
Charles Haxton's neighbours, Delorie, Roye and Sharon (L-R), alerted police to strange goings-on at their late neighbour's house
A system in trouble
As a result of our investigation, bank accounts for dozens of companies connected to the suspected fraudsters, have been suspended.
In addition, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has told us it now wants to question Roland Silye about inheritance tax which he might owe on the estate of Charles Haxton.
Bela Kovacs was granted probate over the estate of Michael Judd, which was valued at £310,000 - just below the inheritance tax threshold. However, HMRC's interest was also piqued by this case, and it has now suspended a planned sale of Mr Judd's bungalow in Pinner.
Meanwhile, the dispute over Christine Harverson's estate means the probate process has been frozen, and it looks unlikely to be resolved soon. Tamas Szvercsok cannot take possession of her Wimbledon house, but Lisa and Nicole lack the funds to go to the civil court and prove his will is fake.
Probate for Christine Harverson's estate has been frozen because of the dispute between her nieces and Tamas Szvercsok
We wrote to Mr Szvercsok and Mr Silye at the addresses supplied with their probate applications, offering them a right of reply, but we did not hear back.
When we shared our findings with the Ministry of Justice, which is ultimately responsible for the probate system, it told us that it was "working with law enforcement to ensure criminals feel the full force of the law".
However, a different picture emerges from others who know the system.
"Because probate isn't high profile – it's not sort of, for want of a better word, politically sexy, it doesn't stay in the headlines," says former MP Sir Bob Neill, who until the 2024 general election was the chair of the House of Commons Justice Select Committee.
In 2023, the select committee launched an inquiry into the probate system, but it was cut short by the election.
Sir Bob believes an over-eagerness to cut costs by digitising the probate system, has produced weaknesses which fraudsters are now exploiting.
"When you had regional offices you had human awareness, contact and scrutiny that was better suited to pick up cases where things have gone wrong," he says. "A purely sort of automated system isn't really good at doing that."
Sir Bob Neill
He says the system introduced in 2017 was a cheap and quick fix. It lacks the sophistication, he says, of programs used by insurance companies to deal with fraud, which can detect patterns of suspicious behaviour.
His concerns are echoed by Anglia Research's investigator, Matt Boardman, who says that previously, executors of wills would have had to attend their local probate registry to swear an oath, which "would allow the registrar to evaluate every single case on its own merit".
He says the system's move online "completely eliminated" the chance to question the executor's demeanour or behaviour.
"Goodness knows just how many of these have already gone through and been processed by the probate registry," he says, "and how rich we're making these people."
In an interview with the Guardian, Chancellor Rachel Reeves says it is impossible for her to rule out tax rises in the autumn budget and insisted she never thought of quitting despite a turbulent week for her. It comes after she was spotted crying in the Commons. She tells the paper "there are costs" to watering down the welfare bill and acknowledged it has been a "damaging" week for Downing Street.
"Reeves hints at more tax rise pain", says the Daily Express as it reports the chancellor "may target millions of middle earners with punishing income tax hikes". It also suggests Reeves could put up VAT and National Insurance in a bid to plug a £40bn black hole. "It's a centre court delight for Mary" says the headline on the paper's main image as it shows Dame Mary Berry watching tennis at Wimbledon.
The Times writes tax rises in autumn are likely to be smaller than last year's but Reeves is expected to have to raise tens of billions of pounds more. The paper notes there are also suggestions she could raid pension savings. The paper also highlights the UK's "25 prettiest villages" on its front page.
The Daily Mail leads with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accusing Sir Keir Starmer of a "year of lies and U-turns". She says the prime minister has "taken a wrecking ball to the economy and presided over a record surge in Channel crossings. Ex-GMTV presenter Fiona Phillips is also pictured as she gives an update on her life with Alzheimer's.
The Daily Telegraph picks up a Boris Johnson interview with a Swiss magazine in which the former prime minister is quoted as saying the best strategy to counter Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is to ignore him. He said: "My strategy with the individuals that you mention is don't talk about them... Talk about what you are going to offer the people." Emma Raducanu is also pictured following her exit from Wimbledon in the third round against Aryna Sabalenka.
"Oasis back together at last" writes the Daily Mirror. "Oasis exploded back into life last night" in front of 70,000 fans, according to the paper . Liam Gallagher told the crowd: "Yes beautiful people, too long."
The Gallagher brothers stand on stage with arms outstretched during their concert on the front of the Daily Star. "The crowd were mad for 'em," writes the Daily Star.
The Sun called the comeback gig "historic" with the feuding brothers performing together after 16 years.
The Times reports that Chancellor Rachel Reeves has told the Cabinet that the decision to abandon welfare reforms means that taxes will have to rise to cover the cost. The paper says her comments "went significantly further than her public statements". To underline that point, "I can't rule out tax rises" is how the chancellor's interview with the Guardian is headlined.
The Daily Express suggests Reeves may target millions of middle earners with income tax rises as she is forced to clear up what the paper calls "Labour's welfare mess". Experts reportedly believe she may have to plug a black hole of £40 billion.
"Just ignore Farage", is the advice from Boris Johnson in the Daily Telegraph to Conservatives concerned about the rise of Reform UK. The paper quotes an interview the former prime minister has given to a Swiss magazine, in which he says the Tories should focus on what they are going to offer people. A Reform source says Mr Johnson did "unprecedented damage" to the country.
"A decidedly mixed record", is how the Times describes Sir Keir Starmer's first year as prime minister. The Daily Mail leads on comments from the leader of the Conservatives, Kemi Badenoch, in which she accuses the PM of presiding over a "year of lies and U-turns". According FT Weekend, many Labour MPs believe there have been "too many mistakes". But in its school report for the PM, the Daily Mirror says he "coped well" with Trump and Putin and "excelled" on defence and NHS spending.
"One for the bucket hat list", is the Guardian's take on the Oasis reunion gig in Cardiff. Liam and Noel Gallagher walked on stage hand-in-hand, but according to the Daily Star they had "lost none of their sneering cool and arrogant indifference". The Daily Mirror says the brothers "found their stride" with "Morning Glory and Some Might Say". "The best reunion ever?" asks the Daily Mail. The answer: "Definitely (not maybe!)".
On Saturday more than one million people are expected to attend Pride in London, the UK's largest LGBTQ+ event.
But despite huge visitor numbers, organisers say the event - and others like it around the country - face an uncertain future due to a drop in funding and falling volunteer numbers.
More than 85 Pride organisations say they've seen a reduction in corporate sponsorships or partnerships, according to a questionnaire by the UK Pride Organisers Network (UKPON), which said it represents the majority of UK Pride events.
Some celebrations have already been cancelled or postponed, while others are scaling back plans or charging for tickets to what have previously been free-to-attend events.
The UK's Pride movement began in 1972 when a group called the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) decided that, as well as protesting, it was also important to celebrate the community.
At the time, same-sex couples showing affection in public could have seen them arrested.
Now, Pride events take part across the world, often combining protest, in the form of marches and rallies, with parties and live entertainment.
BBC News has spoken to a number of Pride organisers about their worries for the future of Pride events, and what they believe is behind the drop in funding.
'If America sneezes, the UK catches a cold'
Dee Llewellyn
Dee Llewellyn believes what is happening in America can affect Pride events in the UK
Dee Llewellyn is volunteer chair of UKPON, and also works full-time as Pride in London's head of partnerships.
She said: "There's an old saying, if America sneezes, then the UK catches a cold, and I think we're really feeling that right now.
"Global corporations, with head offices based in America, have had their DEI funding cut, which has meant that some corporations, even ones that have been really long-standing supporters of Pride in the UK, have no longer got a budget to do so."
Despite the difficulties it faces, London continues to be the UK's largest Pride event and over the past few years attendance has grown to 1.5 million people, making it one of the city's largest public events.
Asked why a Pride event - which is seen by many as a form of protest first and foremost - costs this much to run, Dee told the BBC: "It's about making safe spaces, not just emotionally safe but physically safe for everybody there as well - it means paying for security staff, barriers, road closures.
"As Pride grows, and the numbers grow, the cost and the level of health and safety and other infrastructure grows as well. No Pride would be able to go ahead without meeting those health and safety regulations."
Although the focus this weekend will be very much on the capital, UKPON told the BBC that Pride events up and down the country are facing similar issues.
In April UKPON asked its 201 members whether they were facing any financial or operational pressures.
Of the 112 organisations that responded:
More than 85 reported lost revenue from corporate sponsorships and partnerships this year
More than 40 said that the drop was between 26% - 50% compared to last year
21 said they'd experienced their revenue fall by more than half in that same period
More than 60 said they'd seen reductions in grants from corporations or charities
In recent weeks, several Pride organisations have taken the decision to cancel events.
Liverpool City Region Pride announced in June that rising costs and difficulty securing funding "made it impossible to bring Pride to Liverpool this year".
Alex MacDonald (left) hopes Plymouth Pride will come back stronger next year
Plymouth Pride, which organisers say usually has an estimated 6,000-7,000 attendees, will this year also not go ahead in its official capacity.
Organisers told the BBC they were £12,000 short of the estimated £35,000 it costs to put on their annual event, which includes a march through the city and a number of stages showing entertainment.
Alex MacDonald, chair of Plymouth Pride, told the BBC that rising costs for things like security, first aid and toilet facilities, combined with a drop in grant funding, had left the organisation with no choice but to cancel the official event.
He said: "Ultimately it was [grant] funding that was the make or break for us and this year it didn't work.
"I'm just absolutely gutted because I think it's more important this year to have Pride than any other year."
A smaller group, Plymouth Community Pride, has now raised funds to host an alternative event in the city.
"We've been very lucky this year, the community rallied together and a separate organisation is putting on lots of little events. We'll hopefully come back bigger and stronger next year," Alex added.
Charging for tickets is 'one of the most difficult decisions'
OhMyMedia / Olly Rigby
Reece Holmes said some events, like The Pink Picnic, would not be able to go ahead without charging for tickets
In June, more than 6,000 people attended The Pink Picnic, an event organised by a team of volunteers from Salford Pride in the city's Peel Park.
Started in 2011, it's marketed by organisers as a small, community-focused Pride event and is seen as a quieter alternative to Manchester Pride, a ticketed multi-day event with celebrity headliners which takes place a few miles down the road.
In 2025, Salford Pride took the decision to charge for tickets for the first time in order to plug what they say was a £40,000 shortfall in sponsorships from corporate partners.
The team, made up entirely of volunteers, decided to charge £5 per ticket, but estimate that the event costs around £18 per head.
Reece Holmes, event lead for Salford Pride, said it was "one of the most difficult decisions" his team of volunteers have had to make and that it led to some "being subjected to quite a lot of abuse online."
Despite The Pink Picnic being a relatively small event, costs such as security and stewards - which Reece said are essential to run a public event - mean it costs around £100,000 a year to run.
He told the BBC: "We've had a 28% increase in costs from 2024, but we've also lost three corporate sponsors since then.
"It's a mixture of economic issues and I think the political climate at the minute, I think [companies] are a little bit scared to support Prides."
Reece said that without charging for tickets to cover some of the costs, the event would not have been able to go ahead.
"We're being forced to make these kinds of decisions due to a lack of funding, due to economic issues and due to the political climate."
Although many Prides have told the BBC they are struggling financially, and may have to scale back or charge more for events in the future, Dee Llewellyn said there is "no chance" Pride as a movement will stop.
She added: "We need to remember that we as a community are incredibly resilient.
"We have always been resilient and we always will be, so while we might go through this ebb and flow, and we've fallen off a cliff this year with corporate partnerships, we will find ways around that.
"We are going to club together, stand together and be stronger and more united and we will come back stronger."
Dust and groundwater contaminated with heavy metals and radioactive chemicals pose a health threat that the authorities have been trying to address for years.
Dust and groundwater contaminated with heavy metals and radioactive chemicals pose a health threat that the authorities have been trying to address for years.
The artificial lake of sludge is contaminated with lead, cadmium and other heavy metals, including traces of radioactive thorium, according to technical papers by Chinese scholars.
A federal judge has briefly halted the deportations of eight immigrants to war-torn South Sudan, the latest twist in a case that came hours after the supreme court cleared the way for the Trump administration to deport the men to a country where almost none of them have ties.
On Thursday, the nation’s highest court affirmed that US immigration officials can quickly deport people to countries to which they have no connection. Then on Friday afternoon, in an extraordinary Fourth of July hearing, the district judge Randolph Moss sent the case north from Washington to another judge in Boston. Moss concluded that the judge best equipped to deal with the issues was Brian Murphy, whose rulings led to the initial halt of the Trump administration’s effort to begin deportations to the eastern African country.
Moss extended his order halting the deportation until 4.30pm Eastern time, but it was unclear whether Murphy would act on the federal holiday to further limit the removal. Moss said new claims by the immigrants’ lawyers deserved a hearing.
The eight men awaiting deportation are from countries including Vietnam, South Korea, Mexico, Laos, Cuba and Myanmar. Just one is from South Sudan. All have been convicted of serious crimes, which the Trump administration has emphasized in justifying their banishment. Many had either finished or were close to finishing serving sentences, and had “orders of removal” directing them to leave the US.
A lawyer for the men have said they could “face perilous conditions” upon arriving in the country. South Sudan is enmeshed in civil war, and the US government advises no one should travel there before making their own funeral arrangements.
The administration has been trying to deport the immigrants for weeks. The government flew them to the US naval base in Djibouti but couldn’t move them further because Murphy had ruled no immigrant could be sent to a new country without a chance to have a court hearing.
The supreme court vacated that decision last month, and then Thursday night issued a new order clarifying that that meant the immigrants could be moved to South Sudan. Lawyers for the immigrants filed an emergency request to halt their removal later that night.
The case was assigned to Moss, who briefly barred the administration from moving the immigrants from Djibouti to South Sudan until his afternoon hearing concluded. He slightly extended that bar after he sent the case to Murphy. The administration has said it expected to fly the immigrants to South Sudan sometime on Friday.
Zohran Mamdani’s responses on a 2009 college application were criticized by his mayoral rivals. The blowback was dismissed by his supporters as a politically motivated attack.
Liam and Noel Gallagher raised their hands together as they took to the stage in Cardiff's Principality Stadium
Oasis blew off the cobwebs and swept away the doubters as they kicked off their reunion tour in Cardiff.
Taking to the stage after a 16-year break, the band sounded refreshed and rejuvenated, tearing into classics like Cigarettes and Alcohol, Live Forever and Slide Away - as 70,000 fans clasped each other and spilled beer all over themselves.
They opened with Hello, with its chorus of "it's good to be back", following up with Acquiesce - one of the few songs that features vocals from both Noel and Liam Gallagher.
The lyric "we need each other" felt like a reconciliation - or a sigh of relief - as the brothers buried the hatchet of a decades-long feud and reconnected with their fans.
Liam, in particular, attacked the gig with wild-eyed passion - stalking the stage and biting into the lyrics like a lion tearing apart its prey.
The audience responded in kind. A communal fervour greeted songs like Wonderwall and Don't Look Back In Anger, both pulled from Oasis's 1995 masterpiece, (What's The Story Morning Glory) - one of the biggest selling British albums of all time.
All night, it was one singalong after another: Some Might Say, Supersonic, Whatever, Half The World Away, Rock 'n' Roll Star.
During Live Forever - which they dedicated to Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota - the audience even sang Noel's guitar solo.
"You sound like a load of Charlotte Churches," said Liam, impressed, after Stand By Me.
The frontman sounded fresh and powerful himself, putting to rest the vocal issues that had plagued him on previous tours - a result of Hashimoto's disease, an auto-immune condition that can affect the voice.
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Liam was in fine form throughout the night
As fans will know, Oasis were never the most dynamic act on stage. Noel, in particular, wears the studious look of a man trying to remember his National Insurance number - but somehow, it's impossible to take your eyes off them.
Although they came out hand in hand, there were few other signs of chemistry between the brothers, who never addressed one another during the two-and-a-quarter hour show.
But just hearing them harmonise again, after all the animosity, and the turbulent waters under the bridge, was hugely emotional.
"Nice one for putting up with us over the years," said Liam, introducing the night's last song, Champagne Supernova. "We are hard work, I get it."
As they left the stage, the Gallaghers shared a brief hug.
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Fans paid hundreds of pounds to see the band kick off their reunion tour
But the band's volatility was always part of the appeal.
Half the fun was working out which act of the Shakespearean drama was being enacted in front of you.
Still, Liam’s antics often frustrated his brother.
"Noel is the guy who's chained to the Tasmanian devil," Danny Eccleston, consultant editor of Mojo, once said. "A lifetime of that would wear you down."
It all came to a head at a gig in Paris in 2009. Oasis split up after a backstage altercation that began with Liam throwing a plum at his older brother's head.
In the intervening years, they engaged in a long war of words in the press, on stage and social media.
Liam repeatedly called Noel a "massive potato" on Twitter and, more seriously, accused him of skipping the One Love concert for victims of the Manchester Arena bombing.
Noel responded by saying Liam was a "village idiot" who "needs to see a psychiatrist".
But relations thawed last year, with Liam dedicating Half The World Away to his brother at the Reading Festival last August.
Two days later, the reunion was announced, with the band declaring: "The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised."
A scramble for tickets ensued, with more than 10 million people applying to see the 19 UK dates alone.
Those who succeeded were shocked by the high prices - especially when standing tickets advertised at £155 were re-labelled "in demand" and changed on Ticketmaster to £355 plus fees.
On stage, Liam made light of the scandal, asking the audience: "Is it worth the £4,000 you paid for a ticket?"
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The band stuck to their 1990s output for the majority of the setlist
For many, the answer was yes. Cardiff was awash with Oasis fanatics from all over the world - including Peru, Japan, Argentina, Spain and South Korea.
An Italian couple had "live forever" inscribed in their wedding rings. A British woman, expecting her first child, had scrawled "our kid" - Noel's nickname for Liam - across her baby bump.
The city was awash in bucket hats and branded tracksuit tops. Outside the stadium, an enterprising busker drew a massive crowd by playing a set of Oasis songs. Everyone joined in.
Inside, the band stuck to the classics, with a setlist that only strayed out of the 1990s once, for 2002's Little By Little.
The songs held up remarkably well.
The youthful hunger of tracks like Live Forever and Supersonic crackled with energy. And Cigarettes and Alcohol, written by Noel in 1991, about the discontent of Manchester's working classes after 15 years of Conservative rule, sounded as relevant in 2025 as it did then.
"Is it worth the aggravation to find yourself a job when there's nothing worth working for?" snarled Liam. Fans, young and old, roared along in recognition and approval.
I have seen Oasis many, many times and this was the best they've been since 1995, when I caught them supporting REM at Ireland's Slane Castle, as they limbered up for the release of (What's The Story) Morning Glory.
The Manchester band blew the headliners away - instantly making them seem dated and irrelevant - in a show that threatened to devolve into chaos after Liam threatened a fan who'd thrown a projectile on stage.
They might not have that sense of danger in 2025, but there was a hunger and a passion that was missing from their last shows in 2009.
Fans, and some parts of the British press, are already speculating over whether Liam and Noel's rapprochement will hold – but from the evidence on stage in Cardiff, the Gallaghers are finally, belatedly mad fer it once more.
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Noel Gallagher performed several songs solo during the set
British number one Emma Raducanu is out of Wimbledon after falling agonisingly short of top seed Aryna Sabalenka in a gripping third-round match on Centre Court.
Raducanu, 22, put the three-time Grand Slam champion - and clear title favourite - under extreme pressure before succumbing to a 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 defeat.
"Emma played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard to get this win," said 27-year-old Belarusian Sabalenka.
"I had to fight for every point to get this win."
Raducanu, ranked 40th in the world, played with clarity and confidence throughout most of a captivating contest on Centre Court.
Had the 2021 US Open champion served out the opening set at 6-5, or converted a set point in the tie-break, the momentum of the lead might have carried her to a notable victory.
However, the deficit proved too much to overturn - even though Raducanu broke to lead 4-1 in the second set.
The long rallies she needed to break down Sabalenka eventually took their toll and Raducanu began to look fatigued as the favourite fought back.
Sabalenka, who is aiming for a first SW19 title, goes on to face Belgian 24th seed Elise Mertens in the fourth round on Sunday.