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Menthol cigarettes will be banned in a month - here's what you need to know

New laws are being introduced to deter young people from smoking




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Are you Britain's 'funniest' family? Beano wants to know

Your family could be made into a Beano comic if you win




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Expert advice about domestic violence during lockdown

From Louise Allard, director of Allard Bailey Family Law




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How does coronavirus affect newborns and what guidelines are in place for new parents?

As Carrie Symonds and Boris Johnson welcome a baby boy just one month after the Prime Minister was diagnosed with COVID-19, we examine what to do if you have a new baby in the time of coronavirus




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A millennial man's guide to managing lockdown anxiety

How to banish corona fear




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How to Marie Kondo your WFH workspace

Tidy desk equals tidy mind




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Your guide to lockdown dating

Live-streamed blind dates, Bumble's Insta-agony aunt and Tinder tourism — lockdown's changed dating forever. Katie Strick plays virtual matchmaker




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How does the NHS's new contact tracing app work? Here's what you need to know

Expert advice on the NHS contact tracing app




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Lockdown Letters: getting to know my brother all over again

In the latest in our series of reflection and tales of lockdown, Laura Hampson moves back in with her brother and discovers how much can change in a decade




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How to add the donation sticker on TikTok and Instagram to help raise money for charities

Going live on social media? Add a donation sticker while you're at it




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London after Lockdown: Swabs for passengers will be 'new normal' at airports

Passengers may have to collect sealed "grab and go" meal bags before they board planes to reduce their contact with cabin crew on flights under a range of options for the post lockdown era being considered by aviation bosses.




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Coronation Street face masks are now a thing - here's how to get yours

Soap fans rejoice - you can now purchase themed face masks that feature your favourite soap characters from Corrie, EastEnders and more




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What your vivid and wacky lockdown dreams mean

Dreaming of loo roll, a tsunami or that you're wading through mud? A dream analyst decodes your night visions




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How to make a face mask without using elastic at home

Covid protection, but make it fashion




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Best YouTube accounts to follow during Ramadan

For Iftar inspo and reassuring Ramadan diaries, the Muslim YouTubers to subscribe to




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How to stay motivated at work when lockdown is taking its toll

Novelty of WFH wearing off? Laura Hampson speaks to experts about staying motivated in a time of uncertainty




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Thermal detection cameras will be part of the tech 'toolkit' to return the UK to normal after lockdown

Vodafone's new thermal detection cameras will help businesses scan the temperature of people entering the building




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I'm dreaming about swimming - the sense of power and peace

"Before lockdown I took swimming for granted. I didn't understand how much I'd miss it"




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How to have 35 days off next year using just 15 days annual leave

We're already dreaming about our 2021 holidays




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Zoom-worthy bling: the 2020 jewellery trends to try now

With waist-up fashion high on the agenda, nailing the jewellery game is your one-way ticket to conference call chic




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Normal People ending: How the show's conclusion compares with the book

*Spoilers ahead* Don't go any further if you haven't finished Normal People yet...




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Why we need the Obamas now more than ever

Bedtime stories, a Netflix show and rallying messages of hope — Michelle and Barack are good in a crisis. Susannah Butter salutes the real first couple of America




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Suffering from a UTI? You can now diagnose it and receive treatment at home using your smartphone

Receive a test and treatment in the same day




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London after lockdown: Gyms to reduce class sizes and run open air sessions as part of 'new normal'

The number of high intensity "heavy breathing" work-out machines such as treadmills and cross trainers will be hugely reduced in gyms to help make them safe when the lockdown ends.




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Lockdown Letters: Football, family and a trip down memory lane

With time on his hands to indulge in nostalgia, Jochan Embley realises his love for the beautiful game runs much deeper than half-time beers and the rush of a goal




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Fake news in Covid-19: how misinformation is spreading online during the pandemic

During this pandemic, fake news has spread as fast as the virus itself. Amelia Heathman investigates why




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Marianne's style: How to dress like Daisy Edgar-Jones' character from Normal People

Hers is a style so good that it's far from normal




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Under-fire cruise Carnival pledges to follow official rules on cruises

Cruise company Carnival on Tuesday promised to follow social distancing measures on restarted cruises amid mounting questions over its handling of the coronavirus crisis.




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How to get started on TikTok — an adult's guide to the viral social app

In lockdown, the grown-ups are taking over the social media playground




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How to ace a virtual job interview, according to a career coach

Networking and expanding job opportunities during lockdown is easier than you think. Laura Hampson speaks to career coach and consultant, Hannah Salton to see how it's done




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The 10 vintage Chanel pieces to buy now in the FarFetch sale

*Rushes to find purse*




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Duck or rabbit? How Archie's birthday book is based on an age-old optical illusion

The book appeared in an adorable new video of the Duchess of Sussex reading to baby Archie on his first birthday




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Ann Patchett: 'I've been liberated by lockdown'

Ann Patchett, author of The Dutch House, tells Katie Law how Kim K, Trump and some nuns inspired her latest novel




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The tie-dye pieces too good not to buy now

Positively tie-dye for pieces




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Your ultimate guide to parenting in lockdown by the Scummy Mummies

Ellie Gibson and Helen Thorn from Scummy Mummies podcast give us their sage - and realistic - advice...




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Ruby Wax on mindfulness, mantras and virtually connecting in lockdown

'Practising mindfulness is like going to a gym, you have to exercise the muscle and it works with anxiety'




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4 flat shoe styles to WFH in now

Ditch the slippers, your feet deserve better




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The rainbow jewellery under £100 guaranteed to brighten your mood

These snazzy steals are guaranteed smile-inducers




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No breakfast buffet and smartphones as keys: what London hotels will be like after lockdown

Breakfast buffet's out as hotels prepare to make you open doors using phone




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It's time to make do and mend: why now is the time to start sewing

Don't buy new — stitch it. Vicky Frost has a guide to becoming a sewing machine




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How to make your own VE Day bunting at home

Transform your home with these festive decorations




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What's the 100k in May challenge and how do I sign up?

It's not too late to join




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Let's Make-Up: the beauty products to know about this week

The first in a new series where each week we bring you an edit of the new-in skincare, make-up and hair products we're loving




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Intermittent fasting: everything you need to know

Think time-restricted eating is just another diet trend? Think again...




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Michelle Obama explains how her fashion has changed since leaving the White House in Netflix's Becoming film

The former First Lady has always been a believer that being highly educated and having an interest in high fashion don't have to be mutually exclusive




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How to make Anna Barnett's Tempura Tacos

In my opinion, there is nothing that will ever beat a homemade taco filled with anything lightly battered.




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10 cookbooks the ES team has been using religiously during lockdown

From Ayurvedic cooking to traybake heroes, these are the cookbooks we've turned to over the last seven weeks




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Photographers team up to capture lockdown London on doorsteps to raise for NHS heroes

"All of my work has been cancelled [because of the crisis] and I was just missing shooting people and thought it would be a nice way for the community to come together and have a memory of this time.




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Motsi Mabuse: ‘People didn't expect black people in ballgowns’

Strictly’s newest judge learned to stick up for herself in apartheid-era South Africa. She talks racism, the ‘rift’ with her sister Oti – and learning to dance amid knife fights

Motsi Mabuse is remembering the rough dance halls of apartheid-era South Africa and the shocking sights she would see as she took her first tentative steps across their floors. “When we had competitions,” she says, “we didn’t have security and people would be drunk and starting fights. We were just kids and we’d watch people with knives running through while we were in the middle of a routine. Compared to that, Strictly isn’t so difficult.”

Mabuse, the newest judge on Strictly Come Dancing, first fell for the glitterball world at the age of nine after watching couples waltz, swing and cha-cha-cha while on holiday in Durban. “What I love about my parents is that they didn’t say: ‘Oh, you can’t do that.’ They found a way. But we had a lot of backlash, being the only black kids. People would laugh at us and call us names. We were bullied, but we just kept on coming back – and then we beat them.”

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Having a laugh: is this the end for clowning?

The massive popularity of horror films like Joker and It have been a real downer for happy, family clowns. Mark Wilding hears how the entertainers are fighting back

In the corner of Matthew Indge’s kitchen is a photograph of the entertainer Kerby Drill. For many years, Drill was both a clown and a comic voice of authority. He toured the nation’s schools and appeared on television shows, often promoting road safety, until he passed away last year, aged 97. Indge describes him as his “clown hero”, but he recognises that Drill represents a very different era of clowning. “The truth is,” Indge says, “these days, I don’t know if kids are going to listen to a clown saying be careful on the road.”

Indge has been clowning for 32 years, since he was eight years old. In a way that wasn’t necessary for Drill, Indge must now take steps to prove to his audiences that he doesn’t represent a dark and sinister threat. When we meet, he’s preparing for a performance as Zaz the Clown at a five-year-old’s birthday party, and “just to save me any problems,” he says, “I’ll make up in front of the kids” – an attempt to provide reassurance that there’s a benign performer behind the mask.

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