A grieving couple whose daughter lived for just nine days say they are proud that her organs were able to help save the life of another baby.

Jessica and Sampson Shnurman, from Iowa, were heartbroken when an ultrasound at 13 weeks showed their unborn child had a large fluid filled cyst at the top of her spine.

Doctors told the couple their daughter, Lilah, was incompatible with life as the birth defect was preventing her brain stem from developing as it should.

Jessica, 30, a surgical nurse, and Sampson, 31, a contractor, continued the pregnancy to term but asked doctors if Lilah might be a suitable candidate for organ donation.

6lb 5oz Lilah was born on 29 August, and her parents say seeing her open her eyes and cry was a precious moment.

They hadn’t expected their baby to be born alive. They felt blessed that they were able to take her home, where she lived for nine days.

Lilah passed away in her mother’s arms on 7 September, but the valves of her heart were donated through the Iowa Donors Network to help another baby.

Lilah’s lungs were donated to medical research at the University of Iowa and her parents say they feel privileged that their daughter’s legacy will live on.

Jessica said: ‘My husband and I talked about our options and it just didn’t feel right to terminate.

‘We wanted to let God make the decision. As soon as Lilah arrived they put her into my arms and she opened her eyes and cried.

‘It was so special because we weren’t sure if she would be born alive.

‘We spent the whole first day with our family and friends and she was passed from person to person for cuddles.

‘My husband brought Abel in right away because we didn’t know how long we would have with her.

‘He immediately wanted to hold her and was kissing all over her.’

She continued: ‘In part of my planning I came across a group called Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep and I called them.

‘They sent us a wonderful lady who came and took our pictures together as a family.

‘We really weren’t prepared for Lilah to live for long after she was born, but when the next day came they said we could go home.

‘We weren’t at all prepared, we didn’t have a car seat or clothes but the ladies at the neonatal hospice were angels and really helped us out.

‘It was amazing. She opened her eyes and cried. She could hear our voices because she would turn her head, and she squeezed our fingers.

‘I was so grateful for those days. We had nine days at home with Lilah. She died on Sept 7 at 4.07am in my arms.’

Sampson says that the moment Lilah opened her eyes and cried was a moment he will ‘always remember’.

He said: ‘It was so nice to go home and get out of the hospital. We were able to feel what it would be like to be a family of four and that was very special.’

Soon after Lilah passed away at home, the couple called the Iowa Donor Network, who they had already been in contact with.

Sampson added: ‘Lilah was able to give something so precious to another family.’

Two days after Lilah’s donation, Jessica, Sampson and two-year-old Abel marked her life with a funeral.

Jessica said: ‘She’s buried in a small country cemetery near our home.

‘My husband made her casket himself and my grandma made the lining. A family member gave her a little quilt and it was the most beautiful day outside.

‘My little boy asks about Lilah every day.’

Sampson said that the couple would love to one day meet the recipient of Lilah’s valves, whose identity they do not know per protocol.

Sampson said: ‘Someday we would love to hear their story. That would mean so much to us.’

Jessica added: ‘We would love to connect with them. To know Lilah saved someone’s life has been such a comfort to us.’

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It turns out being hangry – being angry or irritable due to being hungry – is no myth.

The ‘you’re not you when you’re hungry’ saying from the Snickers campaign has been scientifically proven.

Psychologist Professor Francesco Leri of Guelph University, and his research team, used rats to study how being hungry can affect mood.

They found that becoming angry when you’re hungry is all down to low glucose levels – or hypoglycaemia.

This sudden drop in glucose has been shown to affect mood in lab rats, and the same applies to humans, the Canadian team said.

Professor Francesco Leri said: ‘We found evidence a change in glucose level can have a lasting effect on mood.

‘I was skeptical when people would tell me that they get grouchy if they don’t eat – but now I believe it.

‘Hypoglycemia is a strong physiological and psychological stressor.’

The study published in Psychopharmacology examined the impact of a sudden glucose drop on emotional behaviour by inducing the condition in lab rodents.

Study leader PhD student Thomas Horman said: ‘When people think about negative mood states and stress, they think about the psychological factors, not necessarily the metabolic factors.

‘But we found poor eating behaviour can have an impact.’

The rats were injected with a glucose metabolism blocker causing them to experience hypoglycemia before being placed in a specific chamber.

On a separate occasion, they were given an injection of water and placed in a different chamber.

When given the choice of which chamber to enter, they actively avoided the chamber where they experienced hypoglycemia.

Professor Francesco Leri explained: ‘This type of avoidance behaviour is an expression of stress and anxiety.

‘The animals are avoiding that chamber because they had a stressful experience there.

‘They don’t want to experience it again.’

The researchers tested blood levels of the rats after experiencing hypoglycemia and found more corticosterone, an indicator of physiological stress.

The rats also appeared more sluggish when given the glucose metabolism blocker.

Professor Francesco Leri says that some may argue that this is because rats need glucose to make their muscles work – but when he gave them a commonly used antidepressant medication, the sluggish behaviour was not observed – with the animals moving around normally again.

He said: ‘This is interesting because their muscles still weren’t getting the glucose, yet their behaviour changed.’

This finding supports the idea that the animals experienced stress and depressed mood when they were hypoglycaemic.

Thomas added that it also has implications for the treatment of people suffering anxiety or depression.

Having established hypoglycaemia contributes to bad moods the researchers plan to determine whether chronic, long-term cases raise the risk of depression-like behaviours.

While missing one meal may make you ‘hangry’ your mood could be impacted if meal-skipping becomes a habit.

Thomas said: ‘Poor mood and poor eating can become a vicious cycle in that if a person isn’t eating properly, they can experience a drop in mood, and this drop in mood can make them not want to eat.

‘If someone is constantly missing meals and constantly experiencing this stressor, the response could affect their emotional state on a more constant level.’

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If your favourite time of the year is Halloween and absolutely nothing scares you – this challenge is for you.

Six Flags St. Louis, a theme park in Eureka, Missouri, is holding a contest where those who want to release their inner vampires have to stay in a real coffin for 30 hours straight.

So it’s pretty safe to say this isn’t for anyone who’s claustrophobic.

Those who manage to complete the challenge – staying in the coffin from 1pm on 13 October to 7pm on 14 October, will win $300 (£229), two 2019 gold season passes, and other prizes including a Fright Fest prize package.

Oh, and you’ll also win the actual coffin, too – which might be a nice addition to your bedroom.

Given the season passes are $56.99 (£43) each, completing the contest will see you win $413.98 (£315) of prizes – plus other little bits.

However, though it might sound amazing – it actually only works out at £10.50 an hour.

When you put it that way, staying in a coffin for 30 hours straight for a tenner an hour doesn’t seem that good of a deal.

But if it is your thing, you’ll be happy to know that alongside staying in the coffins, all of your meals, snacks and drinks will be provided – though you have to eat them in the coffin, of course.

You’ll be allowed one six minute bathroom break per hour, and you’ll have random visits by the park’s ‘Fright Fest Freaks’ and phone charging stations.

So, if you’ve got Netflix on your phone, you can spend the 30 hours watching vampire movies, if you fancy it.

A Six Flags representative will be present at all times and participants can also bring a friend during operating hours, but the friend cannot stay after-hours.

Of course – not just anyone can stay in the coffin. That wouldn’t be responsible.

You have to be 18 years or older, able to completely lie in the coffin and you mustn’t have any medical conditions that would make being in the coffin for that long a risk to your health or wellbeing.

Oh, and you’ll have to be able to travel over to America, too, obviously.

The Fright Fest 30-Hour Coffin Challenge will start on 13 October – but only six people will be chosen for it, on 4 October – so if you want to enter, head to the Six Flags website.

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A new flavour of M&Ms is being released in America and it sounds absolutely amazing.

We love chocolate spread, and we love M&Ms. And so obviously we love the fact that Mars has put them both together in a bag of new colourful balls of chocolate.

According to People, the M&Ms will still have the same classic sugary coating, but they’ll be filled with a chocolate hazelnut cream, as opposed to hard chocolate.

It’s meant to taste just like Nutella. Yum.

Allison Miazga-Bedrick, senior brand director, said: ‘The industry is changing and consumer tastes are evolving. We’re continuing to recognize and anticipate demand

‘We’re thrilled to deliver this new flavour with colour and fun, in a way that only M&M’s can.’

And we’re thrilled Mars is delivering the new flavour, too.

But you know what we’re not thrilled about? The fact it won’t be coming to the UK.

The new Hazelnut Spread M&Ms are going to be available in April 2019 in the US, but they won’t be available in the UK at all.

Why do we never get the good stuff?

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Halloween is fast approaching, and brands are already releasing outfits for anyone who wants to plan what they’re wearing early.

One online retailer is selling a ghosted dress – which means you can actually dress up as that time the person you really liked ignored you. It’s the stuff of nightmares.

Or, if you’re a guy, ASOS has released a top which lets you flaunt your nipples and belly button.

Personally, we don’t think showcasing your bod is scary enough for Halloween – there’s nothing wrong with celebrating every bit of your body.

But the rips are in a skull shape, so the top might be the perfect lazy guy costume.

The ASOS black cut out t-shirt comes with a skull cut into the front of it.

The eyes show off the nipples and the nose shows off the belly button.

The model wears it both with and without a t-shirt – though we’d probably suggest wearing a long sleeve top because the end of October is far too chilly to have your nipples out.

The top, which is selling for £14, has baffled people on social media – with some even wondering whether ASOS is trolling us.

While ASOS describes the shirt as being ‘so good, it’s scary’, £14 is a bit much for t-shirt that looks like it’s been hacked by a pair of kitchen scissors.

And if you do like it – you could probably recreate it yourself for a lot less.

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Plus size model Kaisa Henriikka, originally from Finland, was planning a birthday for herself to London for a night out.

Chatting with a club promoter on Instagram, she said she would be bringing some friends with her on the special occasion.

Kaisa was asked if she’d be bringing any of her plus-size friends with her as it was likely to affect their chances of getting into the establishments.

He added that if there were more than three ‘curvy’ friends, they’d be turned away.

Kaisa has posted evidence of the conversation on her Instagram where she has a 21,000-strong following.

Kaisa posted the reply from a Mayfair club promoter on her Instagram stories.

It showed a text conversation between her and the promoter where they said: ‘One last question – are all the guests plus-size models, we are not trying to be rude but we know for a fact some clubs can be funny and we do not want to send you there. If it’s two to three girls in your group that is fine, hope you understand.’

The promoter then told her it is a request made by the clubs and not them.

‘I am just telling you what they told us as a company we do not want to send you there and you not get in,’ he added.

To which Kaisa replied: ‘So you only want skinny people in your clubs?’

After she revealed the exchange between them, Kaisa showed further screenshots from the club promoters who’d left nice comments calling her beautiful on her account.

But Kaisa felt it was in an effort to curry favour with the vlogger.

Plus-size pages have since come to Kaisa’s aid, telling her to ignore the haters. Style and Curve Magazine reposted Kaisa’s conversation along with the caption: ‘This is why we need to address the fat-shaming issue. Thinking of how many plus size women don’t dare enjoy their lives because they are scared of getting fat-shamed.

Kaisa was overwhelmed with positive messages and said: ‘I am literally getting messages every five mins from all over the world, the support for me fighting for plus size women is insane!’

The Instagram account Guestlist_Vip_Birthday_Tables which Kaisa spoke to has been contacted for comment.

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Heinz has announced it won’t be renaming Salad Cream ‘Sandwich Cream’ after the public had its say.

The condiment was set to be renamed as part of a massive rebrand, with Heinz saying it no longer fairly represented how customers use it.

They started weighing up the decision to change the name after finding that only 14% of customers use Salad Cream for salad – with it being much more popular in tuna, ham or cheese sandwiches as an alternative to mayonnaise.

A spokesman for Heinz told The Grocer the name no longer ‘fairly represents the product’s ingredients or usage occasions’.

They also added that they thought ‘Sandwich Cream’ would represent an appeal to younger shoppers.

But they’ve now decided not to go ahead – with Heinz chiefs releasing a video to admit they were wrong, after a poll suggested 87% of consumers wanted it to remain as Heinz Salad Cream.

Jenny Lettuce (a fitting name), Heinz’s head of feedback, apologised, saying the brand ‘can’t ignore the will of the people after all’.

‘Salad Cream is here to stay’, she said – before biting into a sandwich.

She also demonstrated other reasons as to why it can’t be renamed Sandwich Cream – including rubbing the sauce into her face, saying it’s been an essential part of her skincare routine for years.

Jenny finished with: ‘You spoke. We listened. Thank you.’

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Can you hear it?

It’s the faint voice of Noddy Holder, warbling ‘It’s Christmasssss’… And it’s coming closer.

There’s no getting away from the festive season, but at least there will be plenty of food and drink.

Aldi is aiming to rival the likes of Fortnum & Mason this year, bringing their hamper range out once again and saving us a few pounds on gifts.

Aldi has five hampers in the collection, with the most expensive at £99.99 and the cheapest at £24.99.

The Exquisite Hamper is ideal for those who like the finer things in life, while the Specially Selected Treats is best for chocolate lovers.

Essentially, there’s something for everyone, and since they all come in packaging you can open then re-close without any evidence of faff, (the top four in wicker hampers and the last one in a black gift box) you can add more if you’re feeling especially generous.

They’re all online exclusives, so unfortunately you can’t pick one up when you do your big shop.

All the hampers are available now. Be quick as they sold out last year.

We wouldn’t want you going without stollen and champers now, would we?

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We’ve all heard the words ‘women are better at multitasking’, and while it might be anecdotally true for you, science says it’s not necessarily so.

Whether you can do the ironing, watch TV, scroll Instagram, and have an existential crisis, the idea that women are better at multitasking is just a myth, say researchers at the University of Bergen, Norway.

In a blog for the Harvard Business Review, researchers said there is no real difference between men and women when it comes to doing several things at once.

They used a single, validated task to assess whether there were gender differences in the general population. They found that men and women are actually equally bad at multitasking.

‘To address these concerns, we developed a computerized task — The Meeting Preparation Task (CMPT) — that was designed to resemble everyday life activities and, at the same time, that was grounded in the most comprehensive theoretical model of multitasking activities,’ they said.

One of the reasons why studies and research has found discrepancies in gender domination of multitasking is because of different definitions of the word being used.

Different researchers consider multitasking to mean different things which has an effect on the results discovered.

To clarify their study, they used University College London (UCL) professor Paul Burgess’ definition of concurrent multitasking.

This means doing two or more activities at the same time (talking on the phone while driving) and serial multitasking, in which you switch rapidly between tasks (preparing your next meeting and answering an email, being interrupted by a colleague, checking Twitter).

‘It’s this latter type of multitasking that most of us do most often, and this type of multitasking we wanted to test,’ said the authors.

There were  66 women and 82 men between the ages of 18 and 60 used in the study. They were tested in a virtual 3D space featuring three rooms; a kitchen, a storage room and the main room with tables and a screen projector.

Participants were asked to prepare an office meeting (by placing chairs, pencils, and drinks in the right location) while being exposed to different distracting stimuli – including a phone call with details to be remembered later.

Several factors were tested such as accuracy, total time taken, total distance covered, ticking all the tasks and whether they handled the call in a timely manner.

They concluded that there were ‘no differences between men and women in terms of serial multitasking abilities’.

‘It is fair to conclude that the evidence for the stereotype that women are better multitaskers is, so far, fairly weak,’ they said.

Don’t start rubbing it in your partner’s face just yet, the study is relatively small. And anyone can always learn to become better multitaskers.

But the idea that women are naturally gifted in the art of multitasking? Yeah, that’s not a thing.

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A wedding is meant to be all about the bride and groom. When someone steals your thunder – by wearing white, getting hammered and causing a scene, or popping the question while you’re cutting the cake – you’ll be justifiably annoyed.

But we reckon this particular thunder thief will get away with it… mostly because he’s 10.

A photographer and videographer were on hand to capture the first kiss of newly married couple Alfred Lu and Jamaica. But just as the couple went in for their smooch, the page boy, Mayco Pestano, grabbed everyone’s attention.

The moment he knows everyone’s focusing on the bride and groom, Mayco snatches his chance, lunging forward to give flower girl Sheyn Buencamino a kiss.

Sure, you could assume that Mayco was confused by the photographer’s instruction to ‘kiss!’ (wait, you didn’t mean everyone?). But we reckon he knew full well what he was doing.

Going in for a kiss and taking all the attention from the just-married couple is the ultimate power move.

Wedding photographer John Clegg said: ‘It was an epic wedding moment. Really, kids today are totally different.

‘It was a very cute moment and everybody found it very, very funny. It was all very innocent, and perfect timing from the boy to steal the show.’

Good work, Mayco. We think you’ve got away with it.

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To cheat or not to cheat?

That is the question (that many married people face).

For centuries, the institution of marriage – or at least the Western ideal – has included the vow ‘to forsake all others…till death do you part’. Many people still idealise being sexually faithful to one person for life, despite statistical evidence that over one third of divorces involve some form of infidelity.

So when the urge to kiss, touch or roll around with someone other than your spouse arises, it leaves you in a pretty awkward position.

Do you pluck up the courage to discuss your desires with your significant other or cross your legs, bite your lip and try to ignore the protests from your newly-awakened nether regions?

It’s a tough one, isn’t it?

Life-long monogamy has always seemed like a strange and bleak option to me – but as a committed married woman, I wouldn’t want to do anything to hurt or upset my partner.

Thankfully, early conversations with my husband Thomas signalled that we were on the same page when it came to relationships.

We both longed for the stability and security of a long-term partnership, but also the freedom to get intimately close with other people.

And so, in pursuit of having our cake (and eating it), we decided to open our marriage.

Not knowing how or where to start, we found ourselves in the only place that seemed remotely capable of giving us what we desired: a sex party.

Our first party was a very interesting experience.

Thomas is a beautiful creature and tends to catch the attention of admirers whenever we go out. Normally those admirers will look away if I notice them staring, but not here.

At a sex party, onlookers are more than happy to hold your gaze and will normally back this up with a smile, before they sidle over for a chat and a closer look.

It’s interesting how a consensual, safe space affects the dynamic between people and partners.

There’s ease and a certain playfulness to conversation when the threat of jealousy is removed. I was made to feel very included by everyone we spoke to, and I loved it.

The night was incredible; a blur of bodies, whispers and entranced faces. We surfaced six hours later, feeling exhausted but alive.

Sharing an experience like this brought us closer and unexpectedly, deepened our connection.

We attended more parties but enjoyed them less as time went on. The people we met were always short term ‘acquaintances’ and without any real opportunity to get to know them, it started to leave us feeling cold.

What Thomas and I really desired was to have more meaningful, long-term relationships.

In the early stages this was a real rollercoaster ride – unpredictable, exciting, sometimes brutal, but definitely more emotionally rewarding than the parties had been.

We met and had a relationship with two other people and identified as a poly-quad for about a year.

Falling in love with others – while still in love with my husband – was an intense experience.

The first time it happened, I didn’t know if (or how) I should set boundaries.

Without any experience to rely on, I made my mistakes and learned the hard way that making sure all parties want the same thing is a must if you hope for an easy life.

Unfortunately that wasn’t the case on this occasion and the relationship broke down. It took Thomas and me a long time to recover from the heartbreak, which was a very strange and sad experience to share as a couple.

After a year, we plucked up the courage to date other people again and this time, armed with our new awareness, we were much more careful about the people we courted.

It was around then that I met Nicole.

Originally from Australia, she had moved to London to study bespoke shoe design and was supporting my events work at the boutique teasing club, 23 Paul Street, in her spare time.

She was such a positive person to be around, plus super sex positive and accepting of others. Nicole had also previously been in short-term relationships with other couples, and was vaguely aware of my relationship status.

One evening, we were attending an event together and Thomas came along too. As soon as he and Nicole started talking, the sparks began to fly.

The relationship progressed effortlessly into the three-way setup we have today.

People always assume that I must struggle with some kind of jealousy in a relationship like ours, but the truth is that everything is easier with Nicole around.

She’s kind, considerate, loving and supportive, and also fiercely independent and aware of her own needs and desires, which I really admire.

Although sex is part of our life together, it’s our friendship that I value most. Organising our time is never an issue either, because we are all very laid-back about the situation.

The most difficult part of of our relationship is actually having to tell other people about it.

When I first discussed my struggle with monogamy and my relationship choice with friends, they asked whether I was afraid of commitment.

Some suggested that I couldn’t truly be ‘in love’ with Thomas because, to them, it is impossible to love more than one person at the same time.

One friend, who was cheating on their partner at the time, was particularly appalled. When I pointed out the irony, I was told that ‘at least I have the decency to keep it quiet’.

It felt strange that cheating was considered more socially acceptable – as if admitting that you can’t get all of your needs met by one person is some sort of failure.

Family members were equally unsure about our situation when we first told them.

We were met with confused faces, followed by a long spell of radio silence. For a while, our brave intentions left us feeling lonely and unsupported.

Fundamentally, it’s not that I don’t believe in monogamy; I know it can and does work for some.

But, I believe it’s important that people feel free to structure their relationships in a way that suits them best, without the fear of judgement from others.

Essentially, it’s kindness and respect that matter most – regardless of how many people you share yours with.

Cathy Keen is the Community & Events Manager for Feeld. Their next event is on Wed 3rd October with Janet Hardy, co-author of ‘The Ethical Slut’.

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Meet Mitzi, a very special lady looking for a loving home.

Eight-year-old Mitzi arrived at Woodside Animal Welfare Trust in Devon at 1st 3lbs, making her one of the fattest cats in Britain.

She was first found on the streets, then she found a home in 2017, then returned to the shelter in August 2018 after her owner passed away.

It’s thought that she put on so much weight as a stray because nearby students kept feeding her.

In the last two months she’s embarked on a journey of wellbeing and self-discovery. She’s lost five and a half pounds, making her 12.7lbs. That’s still overweight for a cat, but significantly slimmer than she was before.

Now, at her happiest and healthiest, she’s looking for a new home.

The perfect home will shower Mitzi with the love she deserves, but make sure she sticks to her new healthier lifestyle.

Lisa Darcy, Woodside’s assistant manager, said: ‘She’s a quirky girl. She knows the deal. She’s around two kilograms over the ideal weight for a cat.

‘It is hard as she won’t get up and do it [exercise] unless she’s pushed. We’ve been getting her to run in the corridors.

‘Her weight is slowly dripping off – she’s on a low calorie diet but she’s eight-and-a-half now so her metabolism has slowed down. She’s got a middle aged spread.

‘She can be stubborn – we have so many toys for her and we get the staff at opposite ends of the corridor so she can run to them. It all depends on her mood.

‘She’s happy when she’s snoozing especially if it’s a sunny spot. We need to find her a home without other pets so there’s no sharing of other food.

‘Families with children over 10 should be suitable. She just wants to lounge around – she has human slaves.

‘We have a weekly weigh for her – Mitzi just climbs on the scales, she knows the drill.’

If you think you could give Mitzi the home she deserves, get in touch with Woodside sanctuary.

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A study of 2,000 people from Pure Romance has found what the most common things to do after sex are.

Are your post-getting-freaky habits normal, or actually freaky?

Going on social media

We’ve all been there. You roll apart from each other, take a nice deep breath and then reach for your phone. Romantic? Probably not. Time efficient? Absolutely. Those emails aren’t going to answer themselves.

Ordering food

If you’ve got a sexual partner whose first thought after an orgasm is to order you both a pizza, you need to put a ring on it. That is soulmate potential right there.

Cooking food

In fact the order a pizza romantic partner is only slightly topped by the ‘can I make you something to eat?’ partner. Do not let this one go.

A long, meaningful conversation.

You know the one – where you stroke the other person’s stomach and ask where they got the scar on their arm and pretend you’re in a Hollywood film. Spoiler alert: this stops happening after you’ve been together a few years. ‘Tell me about your childhood’ gets replaced by ‘Does this mole look weird?’

Doing nothing

Ah, lovely nothing. Lying still. Not moving. Such a noble persuit.

Spooning

As everyone knows, spooning is the best cuddle position. It’s the only one that has potential for both of you to escape without a dead limb.

Getting dressed

I mean, prosaic but necessary. Though, it’s probably polite to do a bit of number 5 or 6 before leaping to your feet.

Drinking water

Okay athlete, apparently you’ve expended so much energy on the sex marathon you’ve just taken part in that you’re dehydrated. Good for you. Show off.

Watching TV

Presumably this is for the kind of fancy people who have a wall mounted TV because you have not known true frustration until you’ve attempted to get a laptop screen at an angle that two people can see properly.

Cuddling

74% of the survey’s respondents said that the best post sex activity was a cuddle. Naww. You big romantic bunch.

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You all know about the Churrasco Burger debacle, right?

First Nando’s sneakily removed the fan favourite burger from the menu by slipping in its demise to an announcement about the launch of the Sunset Burger. People were furious, they mourned, they launched petitions, it was all very sad.

Then, in January of this year, Nando’s heard our desperate cries and brought the Churrasco Burger back… but only for a few weeks. The scoundrels.

Now, they’re doing it again.

To remind us that joy is fleeting and nothing good lasts forever, Nando’s is returning the Churrasco Burger to the menu yet again, for a limited time only.

Throughout October the Churrasco Burger will be back on offer, with 25p of each sale going towards Nando’s Fighting Malaria campaign, which works to fund spraying projects in Mozambique.

As well as using the Churraso Burger for a good cause, Nando’s will also donate 10p from every purchase of a 2M beer towards the campaign, and any time a customer buys a Churrasco and a 2M, that contribution jumps to 50p. Sweet.

If you’re a Nando’s fan but aren’t big on chicken thighs, you can support the campaign by picking up one of the brand’s bracelets for a suggested donation of £3.50.

But for Churrasco Burger fans, the important thing to know is this: It’s back, it’s as glorious as ever, but you can only get your paws on it from 1 October to 31 October.

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Resent research has found that following a Mediterranean diet could help to combat depression, as well as a whole host of health issues including heart problems.

If you’ve ever been on a Mediterranean holiday you probably think that sounds absolutely amazing. Eat a tonne of Feta and feel better?

Sadly there’s a little bit more to the Mediterranean diet than just chowing down on olive oil and garlic.

What can you eat?

Vegetables (especially tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and onions) fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, potatoes, whole grains, breads, herbs, spices, fish, seafood and extra virgin olive oil.

You’re also encouraged to eat some (though not excessive) poultry, cheese, yogurt and eggs.

So a great Mediterranean diet meal would be some fresh fish, cooked simply with olive oil and lemon juice, served with some new potatoes and a salad.

Other great examples would be a Greek salad or fish with roasted tomatoes and olives.

What can’t you eat?

The same stuff that you can’t eat on most diets to be totally honest.

Red meat is to be eaten in limited moderation and refined oils, sugary drinks, processed carbohydrates and highly sugary treats are (unsurprisingly) not encouraged.

What are the benefits?

People who live in the actual Med have some of the best life expectancy in the world, so it’s no surprise we want to emulate their diets.

Research has shown that following the diet can reduce your risk of developing conditions like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high  cholesterol, which are linked to developing heart disease.

Researchers have also found that people who closely follow a Mediterranean diet are less likely to put on weight.

You can find lots of Med style recipes on the BBC Good Food guide. 

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The vegan movement is going strong and brands are just starting to catch up.

Domino’s is trialing a vegan pizza, vegan Magnums have reached the UK, and Asda plans to sell a vegan cheeseboard this Christmas.

While a lot of brands are working hard to cater for vegans, there are times when they’ll get it a bit wrong.

Pizza Express is often praised for its vegan offering, being one of the few mainstream brands serving up decent vegan options with a full vegan menu.

On one occasion, though, things went awry.

Mary Nesbitt-Larking, 26, went to a Pizza Express in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, last month and ordered a vegan pizza.

She was told that the kitchen had run out of vegan cheese, but as she was hungry and didn’t fancy changing dishes, she asked for the pizza with no cheese but with pine nuts and onions.

The pizza that arrived to the table an hour later looked a tad sad.

Yes, the lack of cheese – which Mary had agreed to – had quite the impact, but the kitchen also managed to forget the pine nuts and top the pizza with raw red onions. Oh dear.

Mary shared a photo of the ‘monstrosity’ on Facebook, writing that she’d paid £9 for the pizza as she’d been hungry after an hour’s wait.

She doesn’t hold the mishap against Pizza Express though.

‘Vegan food options are amazing, and Pizza Express are incredible usually, it was just that one time they failed so epically,’ she told Femail.

‘It was so awkward because I’d waited over an hour and at that point I would have eaten anything as long as it was vegan.’

”It tasted like undercooked flat bread with a whole tin of tomatoes over it that were really sour, and had raw, red onions on top.’

Pizza Express has apologised, commenting: ‘We take great pride in crafting delicious pizzas that our customers love – on this occasion we let Mary down and apologise for her disappointing experience.

‘We are following up to find out what went wrong and, by way of an apology, have invited Mary back to Pizza Express with a friend, to try our new Autumn dishes and dedicated Vegan menu, which includes the new Vegan Puttanesca.’

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Sure, not every family would have the stamina to pull it off.

Despite the fact it all started with decade-old passing comment, it’s ended with trips to over 1,000 Wetherspoon pubs over the UK and Ireland.

The Latchford family’s odyssey began when mum Sheila, 61, made a promise to son Christy, then 17, which his autism had him take at face value.

‘Our daughter Amy works at the Penny and Black Wetherspoon in Kidderminster and when she started Christy was not yet 18,’ said Kidderminster local Sheila.

‘We wanted to take him in to show her working behind the bar but in those days they had a really strict rule which meant anyone under 18 had to have a meal.

‘We had just eaten so left. I said rather foolishly, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, “don’t worry, when you are 18 we will go to all of them”.

‘When you say something like that to someone with autism it is taken seriously. The minute he turned 18 he was back in the Penny and Black in Kidderminster.

‘We were never intending to do them all, but had promised him and he wouldn’t let us forget it.

The family have visited pubs in Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Weston-Super-Mare and many others across the nation, plus three separate trips to Northern and Southern Ireland.

So far, the only ones remaining on the to-do list are the post-security pubs in Heathrow Terminal 5 – though Christy is adamant that they’ll be checked off when they next go on holiday.

If pressed to offer an opinion on the best one they’ve been to, it’s The Caley Picture House, in Edinburgh that gets the unanimous family seal of approval.

‘But there are so many really good ones,’ says Christy.

‘We also all really like the Cabot Court hotel in Weston-super-Mare which is right on the seafront.’

Yet as the number of pubs to visit has shrunk, the harder the task has become, something the family attributes to having to now wait for new ones to open.

Sheila, husband Keith, 63, and Christy took six years to do the first 900 but in the last four years have been tougher going, with Tim Martin’s chain not expanding fast enough to satisfy their appetite.

Sheila, a part-time civil servant, added: ‘It was a lot easier when there were loads to do, we could just fly up to Glasgow and walk around and come straight back.

‘We would often book the night away, next week we are going to the new one in St Pancras when it opens.

‘We only target openings now and keep a close eye on the website and are part of the Wetherspoon appreciation society group on Facebook.’

The big 1,000th Wetherspoon trip was a touch anti-climatic.

‘The latest one in Midsomer Norton was our 1,000th,’ Sheila said. ‘They don’t serve Champagne anymore but we had a nice bottle of sparkling wine instead.

‘It was a real landmark but unfortunately we were only there for a limited time but had a good look around.’

A typical pit stop might include coffees, pints or a hot meal depending on the time of the day, or length of the trip. It doesn’t matter if it’s one they’ve been to before – they’ll still make a beeline for an old favorite.

‘The prices are very reasonable but we also love the surroundings,’ says Christy. ‘They refurbish a lot of old buildings and there are lots of converted churches, banks, theaters etc.

It’s a point Christy’s father Keith concurs with.

‘here are some beautiful conversions of old premises and some of the newer pubs in particular are fantastic.

‘It is a great hobby for us together and Christy loves it.’

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What would you consider a lot of money for a pair of shoes?

A hundred quid? Two hundred? Maybe five hundred if you were going all out on a pair of Louboutins. But a pair of shoes, currently in Dubai, make Jimmy Choos look like Primark with a price tag of $17 million – that’s £13 million.

You could get 26,000 pairs of Loubs for that.

The price of the shoe is mostly explained by the fact that they are embellished with real, flawless, diamonds.

They’re made by Jada Dubai and each feature a 15 carat diamond on the toe.

This pair are a size three and a half (which is very teeny – the average UK shoe size is a six) but if you want your own pair they’ll be happy to make them in your size. As long as you’ve got thirteen million quid, of course.

If you’re stuck for ideas about where you would wear these shoes, we’d suggest breaking them in in the world’s most expensive house, before popping out for the world’s most expensive Cornish pasty or maybe just a quiet night in wearing the shoes and ordering the world’s most expensive takeaway. 

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A week ago, while walking home after work, I passed a bus station opposite my house and someone called me over.

It was a person I hadn’t seen in 15 years – I was surprised that she even recognised me – and we got chitchatting. She has two kids now and a husband. I mentioned that I got married the year before, and so she asked about my wife.

Thing is, my wife is actually a husband.

I tried not to sound too put out by this confusion – it happens a lot and I’m used to it. When I corrected, her she looked startled. Not horrified, not disgusted, but definitely surprised.

‘Oh wow, I would never have…’

She gathered her thoughts then looked at me sideways, as if reading me.

Then, as if she was complimenting me on the success of a new gym regime or a job promotion, she said matter of factly, ‘Well, you don’t seem gay to me!’

My response was not very well thought out, I think I stuttered something like, ‘Well, yes I am actually quite gay!’

Things got quiet. We did the little awkward shuffle and the checking-your-watch dance that you do when you both want to leave a conversation. Then we went our separate ways.

That interaction may seem harmless, a bit clumsy, but not actually hurtful.

But it was.

I thought about it all the way home; I thought about it all that evening and then I was sat mulling over it the whole of the next morning.

It wasn’t just hurtful, the whole conversation made me feel bad. Bad in a deep down way that transformed me into an anxious 14-year-old all over again.

The main reason was that when this random person said ‘you don’t seem gay’, I felt a funny kind of pride. There was a moment where I knew I was being given a compliment so I had an automatic glow of satisfaction. It was subconscious and hardwired.

Then another voice spoke up and said, ‘wait, why are you proud of that?’

I have spent the majority of my life as an out gay man, and the idea that, even momentarily, I felt flattered that someone could confuse me for heterosexual filled me with self-revulsion.

It was painful to discover that somewhere inside myself was a buried sense of shame.

While I appreciate the pain caused is not intentional, we still live in a society that thinks we are abnormal. Hearing this sort of comment from friends, family or a stranger just goes to prove this.

After guilt there came a third emotion: anger. A burst of it, aimed at myself and society. Why does this still hurt, and why am I still looking to be validated as a ‘real man’ by someone I hardly know?

I left with a lot more emotions than I bargained for when I stopped to chat at the bus stop.

So I did what every self-righteous, millennial keyboard warrior does and took to Twitter. I put my feelings into a chain of messages which began:

‘One of the most hateful things you can do to a gay man is try to flatter him by implying that he doesn’t seem gay. Saying that he could “pass” for straight or that he’s not “camp” or “girly” are equally cruel.’

Over the following few days, my phone kind of blew up. Gay men and queer identifying people seemed to really identify with what I was sharing. They shared their own similar experiences, how well-meaning friends, family and colleagues had said the same kind of thing.

Around the world, gay men felt the same as I did and wanted the world to know that this isn’t an OK thing to say.

Before I am labelled an oversensitive snowflake, let me try and share the summary of a number of the experiences of the gay men who responded online.

For most people who have been told they ‘seem straight,’ this ‘compliment’ was hurtful and brought up a lot of conflicting emotions.

When you spend your whole life fighting just to be you, it is incredibly painful to be told that you could happily pass as ‘normal’. It’s almost as if being gay is a terminal illness but, lucky for you, the symptoms aren’t showing yet.

While I appreciate the pain caused is not intentional, we still live in a society that thinks we are abnormal. Hearing this sort of comment from friends, family or a stranger just goes to prove this.

This experience is hard to explain, but the closest example is that it is like being reminded that you could be part of ‘the club’, but to enter the clubhouse you would have to sacrifice your own identity.

All in all, it’s a reminder to me that while I am lucky to be a gay man in a country that condones my marriage and sees me legally as an equal citizen, there are still barriers and walls to inclusion.

Those who bemoan marginalised people, thinking we are attention seeking or self-pitying, don’t see that there is so much more to equality than law.

We still live in a society that sees white, straight, pretty and young (among many other traits) as the things to aspire to. This means many well-meaning folk think it is OK to try and flatter me by telling me ‘I seem straight’.

Well, let me answer the way I wish I had at the bus stop:

I know you think this is a kind thing to say, but it hurts. It reminds me of the battle I am fighting inside with myself and with society – a battle I am so used to fighting sometimes I don’t even notice it raging.

That is until someone sweet, kind and well-meaning tells me how that part of myself, which I have fought hard for, is actually worth less than pretending to be ‘normal’.

When you say that I don’t seem gay, my reply is that I am gay. Very, very gay.

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Meet Sherry Lever, a 67-year-old grandmother, a dominatrix, and an absolute icon.

Six years ago retired chef Sherry divorced her husband. Rather than feeling down in the dumps, she channeled her post-breakup feelings into a total transformation, undergoing a makeover and taking up work as a dominatrix.

She now charges men £120 an hour for the honour of coming over to clean her house while wearing a French maid’s outfit.

‘I’ve been enjoying life through my alter ego,’ says Sherry, who goes by the name Mistress Sophia when she’s working.

‘Just because I’m in my sixties doesn’t mean I can’t make a living off dominating men while I wear PVC outfits.

‘Most ladies my age have retired, but my life has only just started!’

Sherry’s career change came after she watched a documentary about phone sex. She tried working as a phone sex operator and found she enjoyed screaming at men and belittling them.

One day she scribbled down a client’s number and texted him to come over. When he arrived at her front door she ordered him to change into a pink and white maid outfit and patent stiletto heels.

‘As soon as I saw him, I was so excited,’ says Sherry. ‘I locked him in the spare room and released him two hours later.

‘Then I whipped him on the bottom and demanded he clean my kitchen.

‘Watching him mop, I never felt so alive. Afterwards, he paid me £250. It was so much money – I couldn’t believe it.

‘And I loved being dominating, so I decided to do it fulltime.’

The next day Sherry invested in all the tools she needed to become a full-on dominatrix, picking up leather whips, gimp masks, handcuffs, and blindfolds.

She’s turned her conservatory into a fetish playroom where her male clients can stay.

Inside there’s a bed with a metal cage underneath, whips hanging from the ceiling, and a range of chains and floggers decorating the walls.

Sherry’s become pretty popular.

‘I get men aged from 19 to 84 visiting me,’ she says. ‘I’ve punished everyone from barristers to surgeons.

‘Men visit me because they need de-stress, they just want to let off steam. For some it is their sexual fantasy, but for others they find pain relaxing.

‘I provide a professional service and men love what I do for them.

‘Some of my submissives are even married but I never feel guilty, because we aren’t having sex.

‘I also hate people believing that I take money off men for nothing, I’d never do that. And I’m not a prostitute, these men never touch me.

‘Although sometimes they pay for foot worship which is when they play with my feet.’

For certain clients, Sherry will make her services extra special.

One client asked to be walked to the park with a lead on his neck.

‘It was my most outrageous session,’ says Sherry. ‘I threw a ball for him to fetch, but a dog chased it at the same time.

‘People were giving us funny looks, it was during school hours as I’m cautious of who sees, but the embarrassment turned him on.

‘No one dared say anything to us, they must have been afraid.

‘Afterwards I tied him to the swing and made him eat dog food out of a dog bowl. It was incredibly fun.’

Sherry is lucky to not only have a career that’s thriving, but a family that supports what she does. She’s open with her sons about her work and loves that they’re on board.

Sherry hopes that her journey will inspire other women to try punishing men.

She says: ‘My son even brought his friends over to show them my fetish playroom.

‘I am over the moon that my family are so supportive, if they weren’t I wouldn’t do it.

‘I try my best to keep my submissives in the conservatory, but my kids don’t seem to mind the sissy maids that clean around the house.

‘I have helped numerous women in their 60’s whose husbands have left them see the light again, and have inspired them to embark on dominatrix work.

‘I can’t imagine my life without my submissives now, I love being able to punish men.

‘Even if I won the lottery, I’d still do it. There’s no greater feeling than getting my whip out and making a man wince.’

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