You could have your own homemade vanilla ice cream in a few hours (Pictures: Getty Images)
It’s World Ice Cream Day and with the weather heating up across some parts of the UK, it’s the perfect excuse for a taste of the sweet treat.
But if you don’t have any in the freezer, you can try making your own and it’ll be ready in a few hours.
Many recipes ask for an ice cream machine to churn and freeze at the same time, but don’t worry – you don’t actually need to go out and buy a machine.
You can make ice cream at home using just three ingredients, a whisk and a plastic tub.
This makes a pretty basic vanilla ice cream but you can add extras like bits of chocolate, cookies, marshmallows, coffee essence or fruit puree to make it a little more interesting. You’ll need to smash them or chop them up quite small as otherwise they’ll be rock hard.
To make no churn ice cream, you will need:
Ingredients
600ml whipping cream
200g condensed milk
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Equipment
A whisk
A plastic tub
Two bowls (it helps if you chill them in the fridge first)
Method
Mix the condensed milk and vanilla together in one bowl.
Whisk the cream in another bowl until it reaches soft peaks.
Add the condensed milk and vanilla to the cream and beat again to soft peaks. If you want to add extras to your ice cream, gently fold them in at this stage.
Pour the mixture into a container and pop some clingfilm over the top (under the lid if you have one), as it stops ice crystals.
Freeze until solid – it takes at least three to four hours but is best left overnight if you can wait that long.
Mum Pamela shared a list of things she’s learned as a white woman with a Black man in America (Picture: Pamela Chandler)
A mum in an interracial marriage has shared the lessons she’s learned while being married to a Black man in America.
Pamela Chandler, from Florida, was getting tired of people denying racism and complaining of being tired of the Black Lives Matter movement.
To show that racism is indeed a thing that affects people every day, Pamela listed all the things that are different for her and her husband.
Since becoming a mum to a mixed-race daughter, too, Pamela has also learned other valuable lessons about what life is like for those who are not white.
The open letter she wrote explained how Pamela has to handle all public interactions, drive if they’re going outside of the ‘safe’ neighbourhoods, and all the ways her husband Walter has to minimise himself.
The letter went viral on Facebook where it has been shared more than 120,000 times.
Pamela later lamented that it was her words – the experiences of a white woman – that went viral instead of the plethora of accounts by people of colour talking out against racism.
But she is still hopeful people took away something from her letter.
This post went viral (Picture: Pamela Chandler)
In the letter, she wrote: ‘So as a white woman married to a Black man and raising a biracial child I’ve had to unlearn a lot of things. I’ve also had to LEARN twice as much. I’ve had to become aware and start to notice things my mind never would have before.
‘I have to handle store clerks, returns, getting documents signed, anything with any federal building or administrative work, I get further with any type of “paperwork” thing that needs to be handled, people listen to me and are much more agreeable than with him.’
Pamela added that it’s not just her husband that life is a little harder for. The mum said her daughter is also impacted by her skin colour.
She wrote: ‘When doll shopping our daughter gets 25 white options and one or two Black or mixed-race doll options.
Pamela continued: ‘The same people who stop us daily to say how adorable our daughter is, are the same people who would cross the street if Walter was walking alone.’
Since the viral post, Pamela began a separate blogging page, The Chandler Crew, to detail her family life and also share resources about racial injustice in America.
It’s also a chance for other interracial families to join and connect.
Grab some Crunchy Nut peanut butter from today (Picture:Kelloggs/Getty)
If you’ve stuck between cereal or toast for breakfast, Kellogg’s is combining the flavour of Crunchy Nut with peanut butter so you can spread it over everything.
The brand has teamed up with peanut butter maker Duerr to create the new product.
Kellogg’s says that one in four homes across the UK has a box of Crunchy Nut in their cupboards so they wanted to give people a new way to enjoy the taste.
Their research also showed that peanut butter was one of the most popular spreads.
You’ll be able to get a jar of the stuff from today (19 July) and it costs £2.50. Initially, it will be available from Sainsbury’s stores across the UK.
Kate Stokes, senior brand manager at Kellogg’s UK commented: ‘Since launching in 1980, the popularity of Crunchy Nut has grown and grown and it is regularly hailed as the UK’s favourite cereal.
‘Knowing its popularity, we wanted to explore a new avenue and it’s been great to work with Duerr’s to bring the UK Crunchy Nut Peanut Butter. We hope that all of the Crunchy Nut fans out there are as excited as we are.’
It’s not the only good news for peanut butter fans.
The M&M version has tiny pieces of the colour sweets, while the Snickers version has caramel, chocolate pieces and Snickers nuts.
Sadly, we tried them both at Metro.co.uk and were disappointed by the Snickers version, while the M&Ms version was described as ‘a bit of an acquired taste’.
Of course, that’s just our opinion so get down to B&M if you want to try them yourself.
Skip the breaking in stage (Picture:Converse/Getty)
If you’ve ever owned a pair of Converse, you probably know they look better when they’ve been worn in a little.
But Converse is selling shoes that are made to look dirty – and they cost from £70.
The description for the Chuck Taylor All Star basic wash on the website explains: ‘Classic Chuck features get an aged makeover in the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Smoke Low Top sneaker.
‘Skip the break-in period. A dirty wash treatment gives these classic Chucks a vintage look, straight out of the box.’
The Chuck Taylor All Star basic wash (Picture:Converse)
Available in grey or navy, the shoes have a muddy wash over the rim and the canvas material, making them look like you’ve been wearing them for years, rather than taking them straight out of the box.
Even the laces are covered in grey marks for that authentic feel.
The dirty shoes cost £70 (Picture: Converse)
The dirty look costs £18 more than the classic All Star shoes in the same colours.
The shoes were released by the brand last month but spotted by journalist Micha Frazer-Carroll on Twitter.
She added: ‘The worst part is that they are actually about double the amount of dirty you’d ever want ur converse to be.’
You can also get a pair of high top classic shoes in grey or black with the same wash for £85 – £28 more than the classic non-wash version.
The wash can also be applied to the Chuck 70 shoes, and will cost a total of £85 for the low top shoes or £90 for the high top version, compared to £70 for the classic version of the Chuck 70 low top and £75 for the classic Chuck 70 High Top.
If you don’t have the patience to wear your shoes through the breaking in phase, this might be the solution for you but if you want the same look for less, just find a very muddy puddle somewhere.
This couple tied the knot in prison (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
Monique Stallworth, 33, first met her now-husband Arthur Alexander Mccall through a mutual friend last year and was not put off by the fact he was behind bars.
Monique – who is mum to Rodney, 13, and Malaysia, six, from a previous relationship – says she never expected to fall in love with Arthur.
But she couldn’t help developing feelings for him after he charmed her and showed his willingness to reform.
Arthur is serving a total of 60 years minimum at Kern Valley State Prison, California, after being convicted of first-degree murder.
The couple – who have been dating for 10 months – spent four months speaking on the phone before meeting in person for the first time during a prison visit in June 2019.
They officially became a couple and a month later, Arthur proposed after getting Monique to visit his grandmother’s house, where she was given a family heirloom ring.
They tied the knot in a ceremony in prison this year with Monique’s children, Arthur’s son, and the pair’s siblings in attendance in February 2020.
Monique donned a white wedding dress, with all attendees in smart shirts, although Arthur still had to wear his prison scrubs.
The couple started talking last year through the prison phone (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
Monique, a nail technician, from Sacramento said: ‘As soon as I heard his voice, I instantly melted and had butterflies.
‘I only started speaking to him as I thought he might be lonely and could do with someone friendly checking in to see how he is getting on and what he’s been up to.
‘I’m good friends with Arthur’s half-sister, Shaundra, and I was at her house one day when he called her for a chat.
‘He heard me talking in the background and asked her to put me on the line – it just spiralled from there.’
Soon they started talking regularly and Sharon says she realised how ‘gentle’ Arthur is.
‘He doesn’t scare me, Arthur is a gentle giant. He is a changed man and is a very caring soul. He wouldn’t harm a fly now.
‘We are perfect together. I’m so proud to call him my husband.’
Arthur may be put forward to the parole board in one to four years – so he could be released earlier meaning he and Monique can be together in real life.
Arthur wanted to chat to Monique after he heard her voice while she was in his sister’s house (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
At first, when Arthur and Monique started talking, his sister Shaundra wasn’t too happy.
Monique added: ‘I was there when Arthur called his sister again and he asked to speak to me – only this time he was asking if he could call and write and at first, I just wasn’t interested, I turned him down.
‘His sister explained to him how it was disrespectful for him to keep trying to flirt with me.
‘Arthur eventually apologised to me during our third phone call and bought me flowers to make it up to me.
‘He asked if he could put money on my phone so he could call and if he could write me a letter.
‘I accepted and told him he has to send a letter to his sister’s house first.’
After a few months of talking, the pair decided to become a couple (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
Arthur and Monique soon struck up a relationship – phoning each other several times a day as they bonded over their love of family and religion.
They wrote up to five letters a week to each other and Monique would top up Arthur’s prison phone allowance so the pair could talk as much as possible.
‘I couldn’t wait to talk to him and to receive letters. I wanted to do cartwheels every time I got a letter. I still do,’ she said.
Monique has introduced both of her children to Arthur, who have accepted him into the family, and they often come to visit him alongside their mum.
‘It had been months of getting to know one another emotionally, spiritually, mentally and sexually through letters and phone calls,’ Monique added.
‘Before he proposed, we started calling each other husband and wife, it just felt right.
‘In July 2019, he called me in a frantic state and told me to go to his grandmother’s house – who I hadn’t met.
‘I arranged to go over there and when I got there, to my surprise, he spoke with his grandma about wanting to marry me and how he feels bad that he couldn’t buy me a right ring at the moment.
‘His grandmother instructed him to have me come over and when I did, she presented me with a beautiful 14k gold ring that she had owned for some time but couldn’t fit it anymore.’
Arthur planned the proposal with the help of his grandma (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
Monique was brought to tears by the gesture, and instantly decided she wanted to marry Arthur in any form of ceremony that they could.
She even had his initials tattooed on her ring finger during the wait to set a wedding date.
After months of waiting, the pair were granted a wedding ceremony by the prison.
Monique said: ‘It just felt right, even though it couldn’t be in a church ceremony like I had always dreamed of. We had red heart balloons behind us, and looking into Arthur’s eyes, I couldn’t have been happier.
‘My children were there too, and we took plenty of photos.’
Monique in her wedding dress (Picture: Monique Stallworth / SWNS)
She continued: ‘With me coming into Arthur’s life, he expressed that I gave him hope, love, security, a family and purpose. Now, he has an improved outlook on life and its purpose.
‘He’s more focused on doing all the right things while incarcerated – getting his college degree, attending groups, writing a book, our marriage, starting a family, and living happily ever after.
‘The challenge we face is him being in prison altogether. But with each other’s love, comfort and support, we will make it through on top.’
One picture shows the happy couple emerging from the chapel while another shows them smiling at the camera next to the Queen and Prince Phillip.
The latter picture is particularly touching, in no small part because the Queen, 94, loaned Beatrice, 31, her own dress for the big day.
Who designed the dress, when did the Queen wear it and are the royals the same height?
We take a step back in time.
Who designed Princess Beatrice’s wedding dress and when did the Queen wear it?
Beatrice’s vintage Peau De Soie taffeta dress was designed by British fashion designer Norman Hartnell.
It is understood the dress was originally worn by the Queen in 1961, when she was attending a state dinner held in honour of the Italian President at the time, Giovanni Gronchi.
The event was held on 4 May 1961 at the British Embassy in Rome.
The Queen first wore the dress in 1961 (Picture:PA)
She wore it again at the world premier of Lawrence of Arabia at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square in December 1962 and then again for her House of Lords speech in 1966.
So it’s safe to say, the dress has had quite the innings.
How was the dress adapted for Princess Beatrice?
The white satin gown, which is coated in beaded embroidery all the way from the neck to the mid thigh has been modified slightly by Beatrice, who chose to add in sheer puff sleeves, encrusted with diamonds.
She also updated the dress by removing the underskirts and bubble hem.
The stunning gown sits just below Beatrice’s ankles, while the original frock skimmed the ground.
In a press release, Buckingham Palace revealed the dress was remodelled and fitted by the Queen’s senior dresser, Angela Kelly, together with designer Stewart Parvin.
Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip after their wedding day (Picture: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Despite being the heir apparent at the time, she had to buy her own wedding dress with ration coupons.
The government also donated 200 coupons to help her, while the public also tried to help out by sending their own coupons.
However, it was not legal for her to use them, so she sent them back.
The gown had a high neckline, tailored bodice and a short trail – by the royal’s standards that is – at 13 feet long.
The Queen had to save up her ration coupons for her wedding dress (Picture: Paul Popper/Popperfoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Princess Beatrice also wore the the Queen Mary diamond fringe tiara which the monarch wore on her own wedding day.
The tiara was first made in 1919 from a necklace gifted from Queen Victoria to Queen Mary and has since been worn by Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Anne.
Taylor Vanmalsen, 29, lived as a male until 2018 but getting married and becoming a parent gave her the courage to transition.
Now living as a transgender woman, Taylor, from Michigan, US, says that having surgery and embracing who she is has strengthened the relationship with her wife Sarah, 27.
She is no longer depressed and able to give Sarah her ‘full affection’.
Taylor said: ‘I want to show other trans people that you can still be happily married.
‘Trans partners may look a little different on the outside but they are still the same person but happier.
‘I am now becoming the real Taylor. I decided to keep my birth name which I hated as a boy.
‘Ironically people used to always say “that sounds like a girl’s name”.’
Taylor used her life savings and a credit card to help with surgery during transitioning.
She had her brow reduced and Adam’s apple removed along with breast augmentation and lip filler – but decided not to have gender reassignment surgery yet.
She said: ‘My main priority was presenting as a female so I can be me.
‘However, I am still trying to find my confidence when it comes to shopping and going into public toilets – I often just hold it as I don’t want to get beat up by men or screamed at by women.’
Taylor, Sarah and Valerie (Picture: Caters)
Soon after they started dating, Taylor told Sarah about her feelings about being trans which helped the couple form a strong bond, but Taylor did not want to tell other people and continued to live as male.
She adds: ‘Sarah was the first person I ever told and she was thankful for my honesty.
‘It was weird at the beginning as she stayed with me even though she knew my secret.
‘I feel like I was cheating her out of a spouse before as I was always down and just a shell of myself.
‘But now I am able to be me, and give Sarah all my love and affection.’
After getting married, Taylor and Sarah were able to have a baby, while Taylor was still living as a man but becoming a parent made her realise she wanted to be honest with everyone and transition.
Taylor preserved her fertility prior to transitioning so they can expand their family in the future.
Sarah, who is a customer service trainer, went to a therapist for eight months to help her deal with anxiety and come to terms with being in a ‘lesbian’ relationship.
She then prompted Taylor to begin transitioning as she was worried about how unhappy she was living as a man.
Sarah said: ‘I lived a pretty sheltered life and didn’t know what trans was so when Taylor first told me I just said “ok thank you for letting me know” and we just got on with it.
‘But as the years passed, Taylor got more and more depressed and the ‘secret’ was really bothering her.
‘I began suffering with anxiety as I feared I may return from work one day and Taylor may have hurt herself as she was that low.
‘I knew the only way to put an end to the depression would be a transition but I wasn’t able to fully come to terms with it over night.
‘The therapist helped me overcome my anxiety and I also had to work on what it will be like.
‘I discovered it wouldn’t matter and all of my ‘what if’s’ were worked on – I thought I would be sad but I couldn’t be happier.
‘It is refreshing to see Taylor truly feel happy and slowly but surely gain some confidence in who she really is.
‘I don’t put a label on what we are but to make it simple then I guess I am in a lesbian relationship.’
Although it took her some to come to adjust, Sarah said that people shouldn’t praise her for ‘staying in the relationship’ because she knew from the beginning.
She said: ‘People think I am awesome for staying in the relationship but I didn’t have to say yes to marriage – I knew who Taylor was from the beginning.
‘It would have been a shock if she had told me ten years later!
‘I fell in love with Taylor, for Taylor and it is amazing to see how much happier she is.
‘We will be open and honest with Valerie reading kid-friendly books but to us, it doesn’t matter as she has two parents who love her – no matter what.’
There’s a scene in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange where the film’s protagonist Alex is ‘deprogrammed’ from violence through aversion therapy.
He’s shown distressing images of violent acts while his eyes are held open and electric shocks run through his body.
The scene is a disturbing one, as despite knowing how much Alex’s own savage behaviour has hurt others, you can’t help but feel sickened by the cruel therapy.
It may seem like something confined to dystopian films – or even to other countries – but conversion therapy is completely legal and happens here in the UK, as well as many parts of the world.
Meanwhile, Stonewall, as part of a YouGov survey, found that 10% of health and social care workers – who they surveyed to analyse how beliefs may impact patient care – said a colleague had vocalised belief in a ‘gay cure’. Essentially, this is not just a fringe issue.
The United Nations defines so-called conversion therapy as practices that seek ‘to change non-heteronormative sexual orientations and non-cisnormative gender identities.’
They continue that it is ‘an umbrella term to describe interventions of a wide-ranging nature, all of which are premised on the belief that a person’s sexual orientation and gender identity, including gender expression, can and should be changed or suppressed when they do not fall under what other actors in a given setting and time perceive as the desirable norm, in particular when the person is lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans or gender diverse.
‘Such practices are therefore consistently aimed at effecting a change from non-heterosexual to heterosexual and from trans or gender diverse to cisgender.
‘Depending on the context, the term is used for a multitude of practices and methods, some of which are clandestine and therefore poorly documented.’
Some of the ‘techniques’ they have seen in their extensive research on the topic include ‘corrective’ rape, threats, exorcisms, forced repentance, and isolation from family and friends.
The Government response to the petition promises to ‘to deepen our understanding and consider all options for ending the practice of conversion therapy’, noting that ‘conversion therapy is a very complex issue’.
Carolyn Mercer – who was assigned male at birth – had aversion therapy at the age of 17, with the aim to ‘cure’ her from feelings of gender dysphoria.
Now 73, Carolyn says that this form of punitive treatment has affected her ability to feel positive emotions – despite the decades that have passed.
Her experience with aversion therapy began after she visited the doctor to talk about feeling like she was born in the wrong body. These feelings had started around age three, but the doctor brushed them off, telling the confused teenager to ‘stop worrying your mum’.
She said: ‘I needed someone to listen to me and recognise my identity not to try to change me by denial and punishment.’
From there, a meeting with the local vicar (who’d come to visit Carolyn’s parents while they were at work and only Carolyn was home) led to a chat where she spoke about her dysphoria, and then led to her being referred to a mental hospital.
‘I felt that I ought to be punished for feeling the way that I did,’ Carolyn told Metro.co.uk.
‘I didn’t know how to process it. Of course, in those days, there was no internet. There was no literature. There was no one I could talk to.’
When Carolyn did open up, she was sent to Whittingham Hospital near Preston, the town where she grew up.
She said: ‘I wanted to be cured. I didn’t want to be odd. I didn’t want to be different. I didn’t want to be nasty, dirty – which is how I saw it.
‘And so he referred me to the psychiatrist, who then recommended NHS treatment.’
Carolyn transitioned in her 50s, but says she wishes she’d received support as a teenager (Picture: Carolyn Mercer)
This ‘therapy’ (Carolyn doesn’t like the word, but stresses that she did enter into it voluntarily) saw her strapped to a wooden chair in a dark room, with electrodes fastened to her arms.
She said: ‘I can still smell it. They soaked the electrodes in salt water, in brine, and attached them to my arm.
‘And then from time to time while showing pictures [of women’s clothes or typically feminine things] on the wall, they’d pull the switch and send a pain through my body.
‘The idea was to make me associate the pain with what I wanted to do, and therefore that would stop me wanting to do it.
‘Effectively what it did was not make me hate that aspect of me. It made me hate me because it reinforced that I was wrong; I was evil, and so I deserved to be punished. And that was inflicted as part of NHS treatment.’
Carolyn went on to marry a woman and had children, moving up the ranks in teaching to become the youngest headteacher in Lancashire.
Her life was filled with enviable and admirable moments, but the spectre of the therapy and knowing she was trans was always there.
It was barbaric… and it clearly didn’t work
Carolyn likens what she went through to previous corrective and punitive measures used on left-handed people throughout history, which are not only proven not to work, but are designed to change a natural facet of someone, pathologising their sexuality or gender expression.
A UN study published in June 2020 found that 98% of the 940 persons who reported having undergone some form of conversion therapy testified to having suffered damage as a result.
However, due to the underreporting of conversion therapy and the myriad of effects from physical to psychological (potentially making it harder for a specific harm to be pinpointed by governments), these practices are still not banned.
Although such practices are frowned upon in the therapy industry (and have been disavowed by the NHS), a petition by the public to enshrine this into law recently highlighted the fact that the overarching practise is still allowed in the UK.
Josh Bradlow, Policy Manager, Stonewall told Metro.co.uk: ‘Conversion therapy can come in many different forms from a variety of sources and is often hidden.
‘It may be disguised as pastoral care or a form of support to help someone with difficult feelings. These so-called therapies are also sometimes based in psychotherapy or medical practices that try to “fix” a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.’
Many of the physically violent acts that fall under the conversion therapy banner are already illegal – rape, for example – so in theory, a ban would encompass the psychological methods being used.
We have to continue to shine a light on the horrifying after-effects of these methods, too, so that they don’t fall by the wayside in legislation.
Calls to make these practices illegal are currently underway (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
Despite Carolyn doing the ‘blokey’ things she felt she were supposed to do, the dysphoria didn’t go away until she transitioned in 2002 ( or, as Carolyn puts it, ‘align my gender expression with my gender identity, which most people call transition’).
We can’t change the past, but we can look at the main effect for Carolyn – over 40 years of self-hatred and low self-esteem – as a stark warning of what we need to do next.
She said: ‘I can smile about it now, because I force myself to.’
‘But it was barbaric, you wouldn’t subject somebody to that in a concentration camp.
‘It clearly didn’t work, but worked at making me hate myself for a lifetime.’
Carolyn believes her experience has made her devote her life to teaching in an effort to help others, in part because of her low opinion of herself caused by the therapy.
Mark Loewen tells a similar story, although the form of conversion therapy he experienced was different to Carolyn’s.
Mark grew up in Paraguay in a religious family. As a child – and without the internet until about the age of 13 – he didn’t know what the word gay even meant, but tells us: ‘Growing up, I knew that something was different.’
Small things such as playing with girls’ toys and the sense of shame that came with that led to Mark questioning his sexuality, and it was when he went through puberty that he realised he was sexually attracted to men.
Mark’s fear and shame were largely rooted in religion (Picture: Mark Loewen)
The way that homosexuality was treated by the pastors at his church was to read the passages of the Bible about sex between men, and to tell Mark ‘just don’t do it, and you’ll be fine’.
Mark worked in a pet shop where one of the customers was known to be gay. His colleagues warned Mark to be careful around the customer.
He said: ‘That’s the message; kind of like we’re dangerous, and that I could be dangerous.’
That man went on to kill himself, leaving Mark believing that this is what ‘destiny’ would have in store too if he came out.
When Mark reached his early twenties he found chatrooms where he was able to identify other gay men through coded language and have secret meet-ups for sex. But because of the negative messages he internalised, these were filled with shame for him and he began to use the internet in order to look for a ‘solution’.
‘I’m not looking for “how can I be happy as a gay man?”,’ said Mark.
‘My searches are “how do we get rid of this?” And so I get involved with a group I find called Exodus International.’
His church told Mark that homosexuality was caused by a distant father and an overbearing mother, and that he was being ‘respectful’ by not feeling a desire to sleep with the girls he was dating. When the time was right, they said, he would meet that right woman.
While working at a Christian book store at around the age of 22, Mark would regularly have business trips to the US, so he was able to go to his first ‘ex-gay’ conference in California without telling his family or friends.
The three-day conference including worship and music, which Mark says made the crowd feel like they were in a ‘trance’.
‘Their speakers would talk a lot about this seeking wholeness where we were missing something emotionally and to seek it. And so a lot of it was about finding approval for yourself in as a person as a man.’
We may have pride, but we need to ban conversion therapy to get closer to true equality (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
The seminars were framed in a way where gay wasn’t who you were, instead portraying it as a series of attractions and behaviours that could be managed.
At first, these sessions were cathartic for Mark, seeming to him the one place he could truly talk about his innermost secrets and still be ‘loved’.
Mark said: ‘It goes well for some time, and then you notice that you’re still attracted to guys, and all of that happens again and again until you kind of fall again and have sex with someone or whatever it is that you do. And then you feel like you’ve failed.’
Throughout later group therapy sessions it was drummed into Mark that his desire for emotional connection with another man was not love, but instead a form of codependence and selfishness – a way to gain a stronger sense of masculinity that he believed he lacked.
Group members and those he knew would pray for him and he would be given what we’d know as a form of exorcism to change him.
It was only when he went to a college in the US and began studying psychotherapy himself that he realised these techniques were ineffective and morally wrong.
He left the sessions and has gone on to have a daughter and get married to a man he loves dearly. But he says that unpicking the idea that he was codependent and that who he is is shameful has taken a lot of work.
Now 40 years old, Mark writes inclusive children’s books, counsels adults and children alike, and runs a website for parents to raise empowered young girls.
Like Carolyn, he has channeled his energy into helping others.
If we look at the idea of the carrot or the stick, Carolyn’s aversion therapy was the stick and Mark’s conversion therapy was the carrot.
Where Carolyn experienced the more extreme-seeming Clockwork Orange type treatment, Mark’s therapy veered into the territory of the 1999 movie But I’m A Cheerleader, where ‘reparative therapy’ is used, with the idea being that same-sex attraction is a symptom of a psychological problem that can be fixed by talking through childhood issues.
The damage has been done
But both of these types of conversion therapy still go on throughout the world, and both have the end result of making people believe they are inherently wrong.
Stonewall’s Josh Bradlow said: ‘A person’s sexual orientation and gender identity is a natural, normal part of their identity and not something that can or should be changed.
‘By trying to shame a person into denying a core part of who they are, these ‘therapies’ can have a seriously damaging impact on their mental health and wellbeing. Major UK health organisations like the NHS, and the leading psychotherapy and counselling bodies have publicly condemned these practices.’
The ‘happy ending’ here is the fact that Carolyn transitioned and is a grandparent with a loving wife and children, and that Mark has found his calling and started a beautiful family.
But healing scars that run so deep are much harder than ensuring we don’t inflict them in the first place.
Carolyn likens the experience to stretching an elastic band to the point where it no longer has any give left.
‘I don’t feel positive emotions,’ she said.
‘And that’s what has been driven out of me by an understanding that I was wrong. I was evil.
‘[Without aversion therapy] I would have been freed from that. I would have been able to enjoy things more. It’s better now than it was, but the damage is done.’
As the stats above show, although these decades have passed in Carolyn and Mark’s stories, these therapies are still happening, and the damage is still being done to others.
Both the survivors of conversion therapy that Metro.co.uk spoke to say that the solution is more understanding and empathy alongside a ban on these practices.
It’s all very well to ban conversion therapy, but without the proper understanding about the shame and hiding that comes with gender dysphoria or questions about our sexuality, we’re no closer to equality.
Mr Bradlow said: ‘Banning sexual orientation and gender identity conversion therapy would send a powerful message to young LGBT people to let them know that they are not ill.
‘But we also need to work on raising awareness of these dangerous practices, and ensure practitioners are trained to recognise it too.
‘And fundamentally, we need to tackle messages young LGBT people may get from other places, whether that be school, the media or at home, that there’s something wrong with who they are.
‘Until that happens, our work continues to ensure every lesbian, gay, bi and trans person can grow up happy, healthy and supported to be themselves.’
When Elaine and Neil Tomlinson noticed their rescue cat Willow suddenly developed breathing problems, they were worried.
After an online video consultation with vets at Vets Now, she was rushed to the pet emergency service’s out-of-hours clinic in Sheffield.
The video clip they sent to vet Orla Marron showed that something Willow had eaten was stuck in her stomach or nose.
Orla was able to see and hear for herself how bad Willow’s cough was during the online consultation.
Even after x-rays were done, it was still not clear where or what was causing the problem until eagle-eyed Dave spotted a tiny speck of green almost invisible to the eye at the top of Willow’s throat.
Neil with Willow (Picture: Vets Now)
Carefully and delicately, and with Willow now sedated, he used a surgical instrument to prise the dot of green forward. To his surprise, Dave discovered it was a blade of grass measuring 20cm.
Luckily, once the blade was removed and Willow came round from the sedation, she was well enough to go home.
Neil, from Hillsborough, Sheffield said: ‘We adopted Willow, her brother Barney and her sister Mabel from Barnsley Animal Rescue.
At first they could only see a tiny green speck, but as the vet pulled, it became clear how long it was (Picture: Vets Now)
‘They’re all part of our daily life and it would have been awful if we couldn’t have got Willow treated. The cough she had was really upsetting to see and hear and you could tell straight away that something was quite badly wrong.
‘She was pretty much back to her normal self the day after she got home and we’re very grateful to Dave and the rest of the Vets Now team for all their help.’
It’s been a busy month for the couple as Willow’s sister Mabel disappeared a few months ago.
Neil added: ‘It turned out she’d got into our neighbour’s house and then got stuck in one of his cupboards. So we’re hoping for no more drama for quite a while!’
The huge blade of grass they removed (Picture: Vets Now)
Neil said that the video consultation, launched for pet owners during the coronavirus crisis, was particularly useful to get advice about whether Willow needed to be seen in person.
If a pet needs to be seen at one of Vets Now clinics or hospitals, pet owners such as Neil and Elaine are refunded the £24 consultation fee.
Dave said: ‘I’ve been very involved in getting the Video Vet service up and running and I’m delighted we were able to put it to such good use to help Willow.
‘Video Vet gives us a whole new way of looking after pets – it’s about applying all the technology we now have at our disposal and updating the traditional vet consultation.
‘The footage Willow’s owners sent in prior to the online consultation was particularly helpful in reaching a diagnosis. We were able to provide a seamless, coordinated response between the Video Vet service and our clinic team, which really demonstrates the value of the Video Vet service to worried pet owners.’
Dave added: ‘In Willow’s case, at this time of year, cats like to have a good chew of grass – and it tastes a lot lusher to them than it would in winter.
‘She literally bit off more than she could chew, and as she gagged we think the grass blade has got caught in the back of the throat and then ended up wedged behind the soft palate.
‘It was quite barbed and took a fair bit of teasing out — I felt like a magician pulling out a string of handkerchiefs! Willow’s breathing was severely affected and would have become worse if Elaine and Neil hadn’t sought help when they did.’
The 27-year-old mum is really proud of her stunning downstairs loo (Picture: Latest Deals)
It seems like everyone in lockdown has been getting creative at home, using the extra time to finally get around to those DIY projects.
Becky Sack, a mum-of-one and self-employed nail technician from Kettering, decided to use the time to transform one of the bathrooms in her family home – and she managed it on an incredibly small budget.
As well as creating a unique capsule staircase with her partner Craig, and six-year-old daughter Charlotte, Becky also decided to renovate her downstairs loo.
Using budget materials from ebay and B&M meant Becky managed to entirely transform the look of the room for just £250.
‘We wanted to change the look of the cloakroom to suit the rest of the house,’ says Becky. ‘We have gone for a theme throughout, using black, grey, white and natural woods with dark and light stains.
‘We came up with the idea from looking at photos online, using materials we already had and sourcing help from friends and family around us to get materials like plaster when there were shortages.
Becky decided to keep things sleek and simple with a monochrome design (Picture: Latest Deals)
‘To that, we are forever grateful to them for sourcing, otherwise we wouldn’t have been able to get on with lockdown projects around the house.’
Firstly, Becky removed the old suite and took the wooden edges off, plastered it and painted it pure white.
‘I wanted the room to look bold as it is quite small, so added a “blackjack” feature wall and asked a friend to draw some sketches of my favourite animals and flowers to frame and offset.
‘We then went from there and added old features to give the room the final look we so wanted.
‘We used Frenchic paint, and they generally cost £17.95 per tin and it goes really, really far. We managed to paint our entire kitchen with just one tin.
Becky’s top tip is to take your time.
Becky asked a friend to draw some original images to frame on the walls (Picture: Latest Deals)
‘Don’t rush and look for inspiration – I do wherever I go,’ she explains. ‘I screenshot ideas I like and I get creative. We made the decorative shelf ourselves.
‘The downstairs toilet cost around £250 in total, including the toilet and basin set from B&Q for £150, £10 for a 10-foot scaffold board, £40 for a pack of skirting board and £20 on decorative items including forest animals on ebay or The Range.
‘We also got a handmade shelf with faux hanging plant and real tree plant from our local garden centre, Bosworths.’
The 27-year-old also added her own black fountain tap, which she bought from ebay and a soap dispenser from her local B&M.
‘If anything can be done on a budget and look this good, I’m interested,’ she says.
Becky loved the challenge of transforming her home during the lockdown, and found the project to be a great distraction for her family.
‘Showing people my downstairs toilet wasn’t ever something I was proud of, but now I just want everyone to see it,’ she adds.
‘It has been a delightful journey seeing it change and bringing it into the year 2020.
‘We were glad to have moved into a home that needed work because it gave us something positive to do during lockdown.
‘We can see how far we’ve come and we absolutely love the fact we’ve done it ourselves.’
Do you have a DIY story to share? We want to hear from you.
We’re getting to the point of desperation with our getaway longing now.
Lockdown has made 2020 feel impossibly long, and we are all in dire need of some sun, sand and sea. But with foreign travel still proving tricky, most of us will end up looking for a summer escape here in the UK.
Luckily, this island is home to some incredible beauty spots, hidden gems and stunning beaches – worthy of any #WishYouWereHere Instagram post.
ShowerstoYou.co.uk analysed the data to discover the UK’s hidden gems by finding the least tagged beaches on Instagram – meaning they are less likely to be jam-packed.
By collecting the number of hashtags, the study identified the UK’s most beautiful secret escapes for your post-lockdown beach getaway.
The stunning Coves Haven beach topped the list with only four hashtags. The high sand dunes and steep cliffs provide a beautiful view of Holy Island’s coast. If you’re lucky enough to visit this secluded paradise, at low tide you will be greeted by glistening rock pools.
The 27 hashtags make the award-winning Strathy Bay in the Scottish Highlands even more unique.
The beach has the River Strathy on one side and the north coast’s spectacular cliffs on the other side, making it unsurprising when it was nominated as one of Scotland’s best beaches in 2019.
Make room for another award-winning gem: Rumbling Kern with 244 hashtags.
We received everything from bleach to cleaning items, sanity products, toothbrushes and soap, and set this up in our little shop in the school (Picture: Getty)
As part of our brand new charity campaign Metro.co.uk Lifeline we’re organising a sponsored trek, taking on the London10 Peak challenge, to help raise vital funds in support of The Hygiene Bank.
Here, one of their charity partners, Beth Deakin, explains the difference The Hygiene Bank has made to the people she supports:
‘The past few months have been difficult, but I’ve seen some beautiful moments too; like the little boy who told his mum that he loves the Adidas shower gel she picked up for him, because it smells like his granddad.
His mother had got the product from our school community hub; a shop that we have set up in Denaby Main Primary Academy, where I work as the assistant principal.
Unlike many other schools, we have remained open throughout lockdown, constantly checking in with our students and their families to see how they are getting on. Many of the conversations we had weren’t about education, but rather wellbeing and finances, and the struggles they were facing.
Ordinarily, we offer a free meal every morning from Magical Breakfasts, a charity that provides ingredients such as bagels (the kids love bagels), cereals and porridge to vulnerable families – but we wanted to do more.
That’s how we came across The Hygiene Bank, a grassroots initiative fighting against hygiene poverty in the UK. We spoke to Sirena, who runs the organisation, and she jumped on the chance to support us.
We received everything from bleach to cleaning items, sanity products, toothbrushes and soap, and set this up in our little shop in the school, where parents can come and collect whatever they need, for free.
How to join Metro.co.uk Lifeline's 2020 Challenge
Register your interest by completing the details in the form provided
A member of Metro.co.uk's team will be in touch with you regarding your application
If you are accepted on the trek, you will be asked to pay a £35 deposit
Once accepted, all we ask is for you to pledge to raise £250 minimum for The Hygiene Bank. Good luck!
We also spoke to food banks around Doncaster, and contacted another charity which received surplus foods from supermarkets that would otherwise go to landfill.
It’s been incredible to see people come in and get the products they might not be able to afford. But what we have noticed is that it’s not just families on benefits or those who were already struggling taking advantage of our new scheme, but more and more of them are working families who were furloughed and then made redundant.
Beth Deakin and a colleague (Picture: Beth Deakin)
Many of these people are almost too proud to access our support, so we work very hard to give them the confidence to say that they need help – without shame.
The shop is open every Wednesday. We will send out a message through our parent app system and invite people along, but we also do time slots. This allows them a sense of dignity; they can come whenever they want for the breakfast, and then we just encourage them to take a look at the other things we have.
This has been incredibly overwhelming experience, because it had restored the faith that was lost in the community. If we can save a family £20, that is money they can use for other things, whether that be bills or something else.
For us, as staff, it’s also been a great way to stay in touch with parents and their children, but also to have discussions around the importance of hygiene, especially right now.
It’s so great to know that we are giving a little bit of relief to people throughout this pandemic (Picture: Beth Deakin)
Teaching is not just about teaching anymore; over the past 10 years, the role of educators has expanded – it’s part of our safe-guarding procedure to ensure that children are clean and cared for, and that extends to their families. We are a system that is there to help, but we are forced to do this with a limited budget.
Generally speaking, however, our community is great in that the people in our area care about hygiene – it’s a point of pride for their children to come to school clean. But we do get instances where we have some people who struggle and hygiene poverty needs to be highlighted more.
It’s so great to know that we are giving a little bit of relief to people throughout this pandemic. But also, that they get these small, but important, treats too.
Like the nine-year-old girl who misses shopping and was thrilled at taking some toiletries and a bag of popcorn. Or the mum whose eyes lit up when I said she could take a bottle of shampoo.
It may seem small, but for anyone who is struggling in lockdown, something like this can make all the difference.’
This year sees the launch of our exciting new charity campaign: Metro.co.uk Lifeline. Our aim is simple - to raise as much money as possible for charity with YOUR help.
This year we have chosen to support The Hygiene Bank, a vital charity that helps distribute hygiene products for those most in need.
For more information about this year's hike, which is organised by Charity Challenge and taking place on Saturday 19 September, 2020, click here.
Please note all applications need to be in by July 20, 2020.
Many found it hard to emotionally support their partner (Picture: Getty/Metro.co.uk)
There’s no denying that the past few months have been incredibly tough – but it seems the pandemic has had a significant emotional impact on couples.
New research, conducted by the relationships charity Relate, shows couples have experienced relationship difficulties during the pandemic.
Out of the 2,058 UK adults surveyed, more than a third of those aged 16-34 said they struggled to support their partner emotionally during lockdown.
More than one in four (28%) of the same age group said they were worried about how their relationship would change once lockdown was lifted – compared to 17% across older age groups.
But it seems young couples have other concerns about lockdown lifting, too.
More than a fifth (23%) of couples aged 16-34 said they were worried jealousy would become an issue in their relationship when lockdown ends and nearly a third stated they were concerned they would feel lonely when their partner stops working from home.
The study did, however, shine a light on some positives as well.
One in 10 respondents across all ages said that lockdown has helped them to realise they want to propose to their partner.
What’s more, 41% of male respondents and 35% of women reported they felt more comfortable having honest and open conversations with loved ones about difficult topics.
It seems family bonds appear to be strengthened, too, with 45% saying they felt emotionally closer to their parents and 41% saying they’ve realised how much their folks mean to them.
“‘We’re delighted to be able to bring back another much-loved menu item as we continue to ease out of lockdown with our phased re-opening plan,’ said Katie Evans, marketing director at Burger King UK.
‘What better way to celebrate the gradual return to normality than sharing a box of chicken fries with friends!’
Then again… you could just keep the box for yourself, if you’re feeling greedy.
For some, it’s been a difficult time of being apart from partners, while for others lockdown been an exploration into new ways of meeting people, with virtual dating, social distancing walks and no touching.
We have also seen relationships wither with people getting dumped over Zoom, while others have reached out to exes or old flings to give things another go.
One artist is determined to catalogue this unusual time of dating, as well as give people an outlet for their happiness or pain.
Philippa Found has launched a website called Lockdown Love Stories, where anyone can send in a poem, blog or just random rants about how the pandemic has affected their love and sex lives.
As for what kind of content she has received so far, it’s a wide mix – from a piece written by a married man who ‘got a taste of the divorced dad life’ to a short but steamy blog titled ’00:45 – Can I come over?’.
‘This is a space to share without shame,’ the website reads.
‘This is a participatory art project. An ever-growing archive of real life. real time anonymous love stories open for a long as lockdown lasts – and beyond, as love and the landscape of dating continues to adjust to a post-pandemic world.’
To promote the project, the artist took to the streets, where she has been drawing the URL in chalk across her neighbourhood – so far, she has received 130 submissions.
‘Lockdown triggered an intensification of emotions,’ said artist Phillippa Found.
‘Without the usual distractions there was more time to think. People were forced to sit with their thoughts, which can be uncomfortable.
‘At first there were lots of stories of getting back in touch with, or hearing from, exes.
‘People were feeling a sense of loss and loneliness, replaying old relationships and reaching out to people from their past. There was also a profound sense of mourning in early relationships that had suddenly been stalled.
‘However, as lockdown continued things, started to shift. Appreciation and gratitude came to the fore.
‘There are many stories of falling in love after only ever meeting online and others of deciding to lockdown early on in relationships. What surprised me was that every story I received of an early commitment plunge was positive.
‘Although people had hesitated beforehand, no one regretted the decision. I wonder if lockdown has proved we don’t need to be so afraid of commitment.’
Fancy telling the world about your romantic or sexual adventures over the past few months?
You can easily submit your words on the website, and remain anonymous or add a name to it – the choice is yours.
Or have a read of what others have been getting up to.
The skincare launch will add to Rihanna’s makeup and underwear lines (Picture: Getty/Metro.co.uk)
Rihanna is about to drop something huge – and it isn’t a long-awaited new album.
The singer and entrepreneur is turning her hand to skincare with the launch of Fenty Skin, and we couldn’t be more excited for the launch.
The newly verified official Instagram page for Fenty Skin announced that the expansion of Rihanna’s beauty range will launch on the 31 July – and fans are, understandably, losing the plot.
‘Fenty Skin is launching July 31st exclusively at fentyskin.com!!’ reads the Instagram caption. ‘What do ya think @badgalriri is bringin??’
Details on the products themselves are scant, but in an exclusive advert for the new range, models and celebrities, including Lil Nas X and A$AP Rocky, are looking dewy, glowing and radiant.
And on a video posted on the Instagram page, Rihanna is seen going through a skincare routine, which includes a foaming cleanser, a toner, and a moisturiser.
‘Rihanna is the only one making 2020 better,’ commented one excited fan.
‘U have NO idea how much I’ve been waiting for this!!!’ added another.
While we might not know exactly what to expect on the launch date,
Although there is not an official launch date for Fenty Skin, we do have an idea of the first products that will drop as the brand trademarked names for five skin preparations in September last year and earlier this month:
The skincare launch will be the latest feather in the pop star’s cap, adding to her wildly successful range of Fenty makeup, and her SAVAGE X FENTY underwear line.
Looks like the stans will have to keep waiting if they’re after new music. Riri has other priorities right now.
Do you have a story to share? We want to hear from you.
Felicity took her first triumphant steps (Picture: PA)
A three-year-old girl who was told she wouldn’t be able to walk has taken her first steps in lockdown.
Felicity Edgar was starved of oxygen at birth and had to be resuscitated, which left her with cerebral palsy – a condition which affects movement and coordination.
Her parents Amber and Adam were told that baby Felicity may not survive and, if she did, it was highly unlikely she would ever be able to walk.
Amber, a trainee chef from Crayford, said: ‘The doctors said she probably wouldn’t make it through the night, so we had her christened that day.
‘But she’s a fighter and she survived.’
Felicity was starved of oxygen at birth (Picture: PA)
The three-year-old (Picture: PA)
Three years on and Felicity defied the odds again by taking her first ever steps in lockdown – with the help of a walker.
The triumphant event took place before a trip to the sweet shop, where Felicity astonished her mum by walking on her own.
Felicity on her walker (Picture: PA)
Amber said: ‘It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen and one of the best moments for me ever.
‘She has done this against the odds and it makes me so proud.
‘Now we can’t stop her and she is always getting her shoes to tell us she wants to go for a walk – it has cost us a lot in sweets.
‘When Felicity was born we so nearly lost her and after that the doctors said she would never walk or talk.
‘But she has proved everybody wrong and she is our own lockdown miracle.’
Making progress (Picture: PA)
London firm Osbornes Law – which represents the Edgar family – said Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust admitted that care provided for Felicity ‘fell below the appropriate standard during her mother’s labour.’
Birth complications occurred after delays in giving Amber a caesarean section.
Jodi Newton, a solicitor at Osbornes, commented: ‘Felicity’s determination against all the odds is a truly incredible and inspirational story.
‘We had real concerns about Felicity’s future, but she managed to take her first steps during lockdown and there’s no stopping her now.
‘The trust have made a swift and early interim payment of compensation to assist the family to move into accommodation which is more suitable for Felicity’s needs and to pay for a rehabilitation programme of extensive therapy.’
Do you have a story to share? We want to hear from you.
The aim of the event is to teach children about the importance of plants and pollination, and how these affect the environment.
It will run from Monday 27 July until Sunday 9 August, featuring a range of activities that will be both educational and fun – and all of which are completely free.
Hosted through the museum’s website, kids will be encouraged to part in a live YouTube quiz on natural history, as well as listen to nature sounds as part of a family activity to ‘connect with local wildlife’.
They can join the ‘plant club’, which offers a range of downloadable resources about how to look after plants, and why this is important.
Children can ‘log’ the various plants and flowers that they spot across their local area, too.
The Natural History Museum has also once again partnered with the natural tea company Pukka Herbs, which is hosting a ‘how to’ series on three pollinator-friendly herbs (mint, lavender and chamomile).
As part of the series, families can watch videos with instructions on how to use these herbs in cooking and baking.
The festival is open to children and adults of all ages, who can share photos of their activities on social media – some of which the museum will later collate in a gallery.
‘We’re thrilled once again to be working alongside Pukka Herbs for this year’s summer Family Festival: Tune into Nature,’ said Alex Burch, head of public programmes at the Natural History Museum.
‘Together we’ve put together a fantastic line up of digital content and educational activities for all of the family to enjoy from their homes.
‘As 2020 is the Museum’s Year of Biodiversity, we want to inspire people to think about the natural world and their role in protecting it.
‘Through our digital activities we want to engage families with the nature around them and work towards a future where both people and planet thrive.’
The vegan bakery counter will be available in all Veggie Pret stores (Picture: Jamie O’Connor)
Vegans – get excited. Pret has announced that it is launching an all vegan bakery, so you can have plant-based croissants every morning.
Pret A Manger is launching the vegan bakery in all Veggie Pret shops, making it first high street food-to-go retailer to feature an entirely vegan bakery counter.
The launch of ‘Veggie Pret’s Vegan Bakery’ will see the launch of brand new vegan items, and the removal of all non-vegan bakery products from sale.
The menu overhaul brings eight new vegan sweet treats to the Veggie Pret menu and will be available for takeaway and delivery from 21 July.
Three new vegan croissants, two vegan brownies, and three vegan muffins will join two existing vegan bakery items, The Very Berry Croissant and the Dark Chocolate and the Almond Butter Cookie, making up a counter of ten delicious treats.
Following the launch of The Very Berry Croissant earlier this year, Pret’s chefs have now developed three more vegan croissants, which use margarine and sunflower oil, which they say mimics the buttery, light texture of traditional croissants.
The vegan options look just as enticing (Picture: Jamie O’Connor)
The new range includes a take on a classic ‘butter’ croissant, called The Vegan Plain Croissant and, also The Vegan Almond Croissant and The Vegan Chocolate Croissant for those looking for something a little bit sweeter.
If a croissant isn’t your breakfast of choice, the Vegan Banana and Walnut Muffin combines banana muffin with pieces of date and walnut.
Then there’s the Vegan Raspberry and Coconut Muffin and the Vegan Choca Mocha Muffin.
Pret’s chefs have also developed two brownie recipes. The Ultimate Vegan Brownie, and The Vegan Hazelnut and Caramel Brownie, which combines chocolate brownie with roasted hazelnuts and vegan caramel.
‘We’re really proud to be the first high street food-to-go retailer to launch a unique concept like this,’ says Clare Clough, UK MD of Pret.
Everyone loves a brownie (Picture: Jamie O’Connor)
‘Expanding Veggie Pret’s offering for our vegan customers has been a huge focus of our food development over the last year and moving to an entire vegan bakery is very much the result of that.
‘In the first few weeks of the Very Berry Croissant being on sale, it sold more than double the amount per day of the non-vegan jam croissant it replaced – so we can’t wait to hear what our customers think of these new treats.’
Veggie Pret’s Vegan Bakery’ is available in shops and for delivery, via Pret Delivers, Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats.
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