Mr,SnaPeR

The Republic of Ireland’s economic growth is showing signs of moderating after a period of "spectacular expansion" the country’s largest business organisation has said. Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC) has also warned that lack of delivery on infrastructure projects and underinvestment in higher education, is "materially impacting" Ireland’s reputation as a place to do business. In its quarterly economic outlook IBEC is urging the finance minister to focus on those issues in October’s budget. It will be the last budget before the Irish general election which could take place later this year. Ireland’s economy recovered strongly from the pandemic and in 2023 the domestic grew by 5% according to official figures. The employment rate reached an all time high of 74.4% in the second quarter of this year. IBEC says it expects that positive momentum to continue in the short term but that "the forward view for the Irish economic model is more challenging". It cites the rise of global trade tensions and greater competition for foreign investment as a challenge to growth potential, exacerbated by a poor record on infrastructure delivery. 'Strategic priorities need addressing' Earlier this week, the former chief executive of the country’s inward investment agency, Martin Shanahan, repeated a warning that global companies are "frustrated with the slow response in addressing infrastructure shortfalls in areas like housing, energy, water and transport". IBEC's chief economist, Gerard Brady, said that "unlike in the past" there is the chance to tackle these issues, given the government is running a budget surplus. "Budget 2025 should prioritise global competitiveness by enhancing investment offerings, fostering innovation, and investing in critical skills and infrastructure to drive our economy forward. "This can only be achieved by addressing strategic priorities rather than diluting resources with widespread handouts," he added. Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9351q552zjo

A hunting group was issued a Community Protection Warning by police after two animals were killed, it has been revealed. Albrighton and Woodland Hunt was issued the warning by Staffordshire Police in March, for conduct including the killing of a muntjac deer and a fox in September and December 2023. CCTV showed the hounds were unsupervised and out of control after entering private land several times, police said. The force said the incident caused property damage and "harassment, alarm, and distress" to residents and land owners in the area. In the results of a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the police force, published this week, police said this was the second Community Protection Warning issued to the hunt. The previous one was given in February 2019. Staffordshire Police said the warning was issued after "persistent reports of anti-social behaviour and damage to property". The hunt did not wish to provide a comment to the BBC. Its website describes it as a "friendly traditional mounted hunt located in the beautiful West Midlands countryside" which hunts in parts of Staffordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire. It continues: "At all times the Albrighton & Woodland Hunt intends to hunt within the law, performing legal activities permitted by the Hunting Act." Under the terms of the warning, the hunt was ordered to adhere to 10 requirements, which included informing police of locations, dates, and routes for trails to be laid, as well as the names and contact numbers for the people in charge of each hunt. They must also avoid areas with badger setts and contact police "straight away" in the event of "any accidental kills of wild mammals", leaving the animal for evidence. Trails must be laid well away from main roads and also away from woods and hedges where wildlife would naturally go to rest. The warning will remain in place until January 2027. The FOI request also asked Staffordshire Police if Community Protection Warnings had been issued to The North Staffordshire Hunt Limited and The Staffordshire Moorlands Hunt Limited. The force said neither hunt group had been issued with this warning. Trail hunting While fox hunting was banned by the Hunting Act in 2004, groups have since practised "trail hunting", which involves laying an animal-based scent trail for their hounds to chase. However, animal charities such as the RSPCA still have concerns about trail hunting. The RSPCA says on its website: "Despite being legal, there have been concerns that trail hunting is being used as a smokescreen to get around the law and continue traditional, illegal fox hunting, which would be a major concern. "In recent years several major landowners have suspended or permanently banned trail hunting on their land." The RSPCA also expressed concerns that trail hunting could lead to foxes being disturbed, chased and killed, or that non-targeted animals could be harmed by the hounds. In 2018, the Albrighton and Woodland Hunt confirmed one of its dogs had fatally attacked a catin its owner's back garden. Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjdkydgmn4go

It’s a new way of paying for the privilege of driving. It's also known as 'road pricing'. Currently (barring a handful of exemptions including contentious ones on electric vehicles), every car on the road is currently subject to vehicle excise duty (VED), more commonly known as ‘road tax’. Couple it with the tax we also pay on fuel and the Treasury has got itself a tidy sum for maintaining the roads and other such stuff. According to the Office of Budget Responsibility (aka the OBR), VED raised £7.3 billion in 2022-23. Since electric vehicles are going to start paying from 1 April 2025, the boffins at the OBR have forecast a billion-pound climb to £8.3 billion for the year 2024-25. Yes, it would. It equates to about £290 per household on average, but of course, not every household has a driver. What’s more, there’s fuel duty. That ridiculously disproportionate amount of tax on our pennies spent at the pump amounts to about 53p per litre (ouch) and averages out at an eye-watering £850 per UK household. But of course. Remember though, these are only averages. If you drive more or you have a more powerful car, you’ll naturally spend more on fuel and/or road tax. Naturally, there are concerns that as more drivers switch to electric and fewer drivers pay for fuel, there will be an increasingly larger hole in the nation's coffers as the revenue diminishes. Ok, how will a pay-per-mile model work as an alternative? Frankly, we don't yet know. There are rumours flying around that the Government will introduce a pay-per-mile model in the next Budget (30 October), but nothing’s been confirmed. Though there are no details on how such a model might be implemented, there are other countries in the world that have been running such road pricing schemes. https://www.topgear.com/car-news/top-gear-advice/what-a-pay-mile-model-and-how-might-maths-work-out

Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick as Manchester City showed Ipswich just how tough life in the Premier League can be with a comfortable victory at Etihad Stadium. The Tractor Boys are back in the top flight for the first time in 22 years and they had a dream start at the defending champions as Sammie Szmodics scored on his full debut, squeezing a shot through the legs of Ederson after seven minutes. But the joy was very short-lived as Manchester City hit back with three goals in four minutes. First, Haaland equalised with a well-taken penalty, given following a review by the video assistant referee after Sam Allison had initially deemed Savinho had dived. Kevin de Bruyne then capitalised on hesitation by Ipswich goalkeeper Arijanet Muric to drive home before Haaland made it 3-1 after just 16 minutes when he rounded Muric to fire in. Manchester City could have been even further ahead as they hit the woodwork twice, although Ipswich had a strong shout for a penalty denied when Leif Davis appeared to be brought down by Brazil winger Savinho inside the box. The second half saw arguably the biggest cheer of the game as Ilkay Gundogan - who completed his move from Barcelona back to City on a one-year deal on Friday - came on to mark his return to the club. Just as Ipswich looked to have limited Manchester City to three goals, Haaland struck with a low drive from distance late on to complete his hat-trick. Victory means Manchester City have a 100% record from their two games so far while Ipswich, who faced Liverpool in their Premier League opener, are waiting for their first points after the most difficult of starts. Haaland hungry as City look strong This was a typical Manchester City display against a newly promoted side as they had pretty much full control from the first minute until the last. Even after conceding from the visitors' first attempt on target, Pep Guardiola’s players remained calm and composed and responded with three quickfire goals to extinguish the enthusiasm that Szmodics' early strike had injected into the travelling Ipswich supporters. Manchester City showed off the Premier League trophy before kick-off, proudly proclaiming themselves as history-makers with a banner after winning their fourth title in a row - and their pursuit of a fifth has got off to the best possible start with routine wins over Chelsea and now Ipswich. Even more worrying for their title rivals is just how refreshed and hungry Haaland looks. The Norway striker, winner of the Golden Boot in the last two seasons, had a summer off while many of his colleagues played in international tournaments and was a constant menace to the Ipswich defence. His first hat-trick of the season means he has four goals already after just two games. Tough day for Ipswich, but one of learning Even the most optimistic of Ipswich fans would have accepted that their side were always unlikely to get anything at Etihad Stadium, where Manchester City were unbeaten in their previous 44 games in all competitions. Instead this was about learning from the experience and taking both the positives and negatives. Szmodics was the Championship's top scorer last season with 27 goals and provided a glimpse of how he could prove a key addition in Ipswich’s survival bid as he scored just seven minutes into his full debut. But Ipswich will know they need to be even more focused than they are perhaps used to, as they conceded three goals in four minutes to swiftly end any hopes of an upset. They were much improved defensively in the second half, but their season begins in earnest in their next game - as they host Fulham in a fixture they will be targeting their first three points of the season from. Link: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/live/cj62y51klz0t

Zoe Kravitz's directorial debut is full of "smart ideas, contentious themes, cool images and striking sequences" – but does it work as a compelling thriller? Zoe Kravitz is known for acting in The Batman and Divergent – and for being the daughter of Lenny Kravitz. But her promising debut film as a director and co-writer suggests that she could become better known for her new career. Blink Twice is a mind-bending black comedy-thriller about a young woman, Frida (Naomi Ackie), who is invited to join a tech billionaire, Slater King (Channing Tatum, Kravitz's boyfriend), on his private island. She and her best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) can hardly believe their luck as they enjoy the fine wines, culinary delicacies and designer drugs that King and his courtiers provide, but, as the days and nights blur into one long indulgent haze, they realise that they are having mysterious bouts of memory loss. It might help if viewers had some memory loss, too. As distinctive as Blink Twice is in some respects, it's unfortunately reminiscent of several films from the past couple of years. The most obvious one is the Knives Out sequel, Glass Onion, which had another untrustworthy, new-age-babbling tech tycoon treating his friends to a luxurious stay on his own island, and we've had plenty of other dark satires with similar scenarios, including Triangle of Sadness, The Menu and Infinity Pool. Beyond those, the too-good-to-be-true setting has echoes of Don't Worry Darling, while the mordant fable of an outsider being allowed into a bubble of ridiculous privilege even recalls Saltburn. There are also some marked resemblances to Jordan Peele's Get Out, which was released in 2017, but all the other films mentioned above came out in 2022 and 2023, so Blink Twice has the faintly stale whiff of a project that is past its sell-by date. It would have had to be truly exceptional not to seem as if it had come late to the party – and it isn't truly exceptional. Mind you, it sometimes gets pretty close. Blink Twice gets off to an intriguing and wickedly funny start when Kravitz and her co-writer, ET Feigenbaum, establish King's back story in the most contemporary of ways: Frida reads news articles and watches interviews on her phone while she's sitting on the toilet. It turns out that his career was derailed when he committed some unspecified wrongdoing, but a few apologies and some ostentatious philanthropy have put all that in the past. "You really are a changed man," coos an obsequious interviewer. Link: https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20240821-blink-twice-review-stylish-and-savage-enough-to-gain-a-cult-following

An explosion outside a synagogue in southern France is being investigated by authorities as "attempted terrorist murder". Police said the explosion was caused by two cars being set alight outside the Beth Yaacov synagogue in the resort town of La Grande-Motte. One of the vehicles contained a hidden gas cannister. Police sources told French media a man caught on CCTV setting fire to the vehicles was carrying a Palestinian flag and possibly a handgun. Jewish community leader Yonathan Arfi said the incident was "an attempt to kill Jews," adding that the attack seemed to have been timed to target Saturday morning worshippers. One police officer was injured in the explosion, believed to have occurred between 08:00 and 08:30 local time (07:00-07:30 BST). His injuries are not said to be life-threatening. Five people, including the rabbi, were inside the synagogue at the time, authorities said. President Emmanuel Macron said the incident was "a terrorist act". One eyewitness who, who asked to remain anonymous, told the BBC: "Just as we were coming round the last corner, there was a huge explosion, a fireball into the air. "It was surreal, like a film. We didn’t go any further." French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin are expected to travel to the scene later on Saturday. They have both condemned the attack, with Mr Attal calling it "an antisemtic act," while Mr Darmanin said security around Jewish sites would be reinforced. "I want to assure our Jewish fellow citizens and the municipality of my full support," the interior minister added. Both leaders said security forces were tracking down the suspect. The French Jewish community already live under high security, with many synagogues and Jewish schools under police protection. A January 2024 report by the Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIF) said there had been a nearly threefold increase of antisemitic acts in France between 2022 and 2023. In May, police shot dead a man after a synagogue in the north-western city of Rouen was set on fire. In 2015, two days after the attacks on the Charlie Hebdo magazine, four people were murdered in a hostage attack on a kosher supermarket. The explosion comes amid heightened concerns for Europe's Jewish community, after the latest survey from the EU's Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) published last month found that Jewish people in the bloc continue to face high levels of antisemitism. More than 8,000 Jews in 13 EU countries, including Germany and France, were interviewed. 96% said they had encountered antisemitism in their daily life. There has been widespread condemnation of the attempted arson attack across France's political spectrum. Left-wing politician Jean-Luc Mélenchon called it an "intolerable crime", while the far-right National Rally's Jordan Bardella said it was "a criminal and antisemtic act". Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y3d4v43gjo

Motorola Edge 40 5G was launched in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific region earlier this month. The phone launched with a single storage variant and is powered by an octa-core MediaTek Dimensity 8020 SoC. It debuted as the successor to the Motorola Edge 30. The handset features a 3D curved pOLED display panel. Now, a tipster suggests that the Motorola Edge 40 is expected to launch in India soon, and also hinted the key specifications of the Indian variant. Tipster Abhishek Yadav (@yabhishekhd) shared in a tweet that the Motorola Edge 40 is likely to launch in India in May, which is by the end of this month. He added that the Indian variant of the phone is expected to feature a 144Hz 3D curved pOLED display and come with an IP68 rating. It is also expected to be powered by the same MediaTek Dimensity 8020 SoC that powers the global variant. As per the tipster, the primary 50-megapixel sensor of the Motorola Edge 40 Indian variant will have an aperture of f/1.4 and offer optical image stabilisation (OIS). The Indian variant is also expected to support 68W wired fast charging and wireless charging, as well. The global variant of the Motorola Edge 40 is priced at EUR 599.99 (roughly Rs. 54,000) for the lone 8GB + 256GB storage variant. The phone is offered in Eclipse Black, Lunar Blue, and Nebula Green colour options. The price or availability details of the Indian variant have not yet been disclosed. Motorola Edge 40 specifications, features Featuring a 6.55-inch full-HD+ (2,400 x 1,080 pixels) 3D curved pOLED display panel, the Motorola Edge 40 comes with a refresh rate of 144Hz, a touch sampling rate of 360Hz, and a peak local brightness of 1,200 nits. The phone is powered by an octa-core MediaTek Dimensity 8020 SoC paired with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB UFS 3.1 of inbuilt storage. It boots Android 13 out-of-the-box. The dual rear camera unit of the Motorola Edge 40 includes a 50-megapixel primary sensor with OIS support and a 13-megapixel ultrawide sensor with a macro lens. The 32-megapixel front sensor is housed in a centre-aligned hole-punch slot at the top of the display. Motorola's Edge 40 is backed by a 4,500mAh battery with 68W TurboPower wired fast charging and 15W wireless charging support. Alongside dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS, and NFC connectivity options, the phone also features a USB Type-C port. Weighing 167 grams, the handset measures 158.43mm x 71.99mm x 7.49mm in size. https://www.gadgets360.com/mobiles/news/motorola-edge-40-5g-india-launch-timeline-expected-specifications-features-4028380#pfrom=desktop-lhs-trending

There will be times when you need to know what’s under the hood of your computer. Maybe you want to install an NVMe M.2 SSD or add RAM to your laptop. You might need to know your Windows version or other system details to make sure you can run a software program. Or, maybe you need to troubleshoot a problem. Whatever the reason, here’s our guide on how to find the full system specs of your Windows computer. Either by using utilities built into Windows 10 or using a third-party app. Now, if you need more details, hit the Windows key and type: system info and hit Enter or select the top “System Information” search result. That will bring up a whole host of info in a traditional old-school Windows menu. In fact, here, it gets quite technical and geeky. In addition to the basic info, here you’ll find component and system resource info, including IRQs and I/O ports. If you need to find a precise detail, you can use the search field at the bottom of the window. If you’re a command-line nut, you can get system specs using either the Command Prompt or PowerShell. Open the command prompt or PowerShell (Admin) and type: systeminfo and hit Enter. That will provide a long list of data like your BIOS version, Windows version, install data, CPU, computer model, and more. There may also be times when you need to get advanced display info of your monitor, and Windows 10 has a section for that, too. Head to Settings > System > Display > Advanced display settings. There you’ll discover several details, including your display’s manufacturer and model number, refresh rate, and a lot more. If you have your Windows 10 (version 1803 or above) computer set up with a Microsoft account, you can find basic system info via a web browser. The company has expanded its Microsoft Dashboard to include a “Devices” section where you can monitor the health of your PC and look up your system’s health and device info remotely. https://www.groovypost.com/howto/find-your-windows-10-computers-hardware-and-system-specs/

The MacBook Air is getting bigger. At its 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple announced a 15-inch model, which is the largest screen ever on one of the most po[CENSORED]r laptop lines. It will start at $1,299 for consumers, or $1,199 for education customers. It will be available next week. Apple is powering the new model with its M2 chip (8-core CPU, 10-core GPU), the same one found in the 13-inch MacBook Air released last year. But the new model's 15.3-inch screen, besides being larger than the 13.6-inch screen on the existing laptop, still uses LCD technology (it's rated at 500 nits). It has a lower resolution than the 14-inch MacBook Pro, at 2880 x 1864. Much of the design is similar to the 13-inch Air, including its two Thunderbolt 4 ports over USB Type-C, MagSafe 3 magnetic charging, and flat edges. If you want more ports, you'll have to consider the MacBook Pro. The 15-inch Air also gets the same 1080p webcam in a notch at the top of the display. It's 3.3 pounds, 11.5 mm thick and will come in midnight, starlight, silver and space gray, just like the 13-incher. It also has six speakers, and Apple is promising 18 hours of battery life from the 11.5mm-thick laptop. In my brief hands-on time with the new MacBook Air, it felt very similar to the 13-inch one. It was too loud to test the speakers, but indeed, the screen is bigger. The port placement is the same, the keyboard is the same, but the chassis is bigger. If you like a big screen but want something thinner. The screen appeared of similar quality to the 13-inch model, but we'll have to see in longer-term testing how that plays out. Apple claims the new Air twice as fast as Windows 15-inchers, though that's not a very specific comparison. The new 15-inch MacBook Air will ship with macOS Ventura, but it will be compatible with macOS Sonoma, coming this fall. At one point, Apple had a smaller MacBook Air, with an 11.6-inch version that was introduced in 2010 and sold through 2016. With the 15-inch Air, Apple now has MacBooks in 13, 14, 15, and 16-inch sizes (13 and 15-inch Airs, and 13, 14 and 16-inch Pros). The 13-inch MacBook Air is taking a price cut to $1,099, while the M1 option is staying at $999. https://www.tomshardware.com/news/apple-15-inch-macbook-air-price-specs-release-date

Massively multiplayer fashion-brawler Lost Ark began a Witcher crossover on its Korean servers in November, but only now has Amazon Games confirmed(opens in new tab) when Geralt and pals will be arriving on western servers: January, 2023. Geralt, Ciri, Yennefer, Triss, and Dandelion will all be coming to Lost Ark, with "voiceover work from the game's original actors" according to a press release from Amazon Games. It also explains their arrival will be part of an event that's only available for a limited time, which will also add an island called White Wolf's Haven. The island is apparently "a setting for merriment and festivals until a mysterious vortex suddenly appears, pausing the celebrations. As players investigate the source of the unexplained phenomenon, they encounter a visitor from a different time and place – Geralt of Rivia, the famed Witcher. This starts a chain of events in which the player will face the mystery of this interdimensional vortex, meeting even more visitors from another dimension along the way. In this collision between worlds, players of Lost Ark will team up with characters from The Witcher to solve a puzzle that spans time and space."As well as the quests that players will get to take part in alongside PC Gamer's favorite gravelly videogame father figure, the event will of course add some additional fashion options to Lost Ark. "New Witcher themed cosmetics will be available in the store, and new character customization scars, Cards, Stronghold structures, Emojis (and more) await adventurers who participate in the event", Amazon says. While the versions of the characters who will appear as NPCs in Lost Ark look pretty much like they do in The Witcher 3, the wearable Geralt and Ciri skins for PCs to buy are a little disconcerting. As you can see in one of the Korean trailers(opens in new tab), while there are slight differences between the versions for each class, all the Geralts look quite young, clean-shaven, and handsome in an anime prettyboy kind of way. Meanwhile, the Ciri skins for nonhuman classes have pointed elvish ears for the mage or are tiny and childlike for the artist (a class currently only available in the Korean version who uses a magic paintbrus m the story in a promotional event. Meanwhile, Lost Ark's also getting the summoner class and endgame Brelshaza legion raid(opens in new tab) as part of a December update along with the Caliligos guardian raid, T3 hardmode cube and boss rush, a new accessory type for bracelets, and new chaos dungeons. The Witcher has previously crossed over with over videogames, including Monster Hunter World, Soulcalibur 6, and mobile game AFK Arena. Geralt's also been spotted in a leaked trailer for Fortnite Chapter 4(opens in new tab). He sure does get around. h to work ink-based magic, and is basically a hobbit).I will probably end up buying some of the weapon skins and the Kaer Morhen background art(opens in new tab) for the character screen, but I don't expect too much fro Link: https://www.pcgamer.com/geralt-and-other-witcher-characters-will-arrive-in-lost-ark-next-year/

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Students across Surrey have been receiving their GCSE results. The pass rate across England, Wales and Northern Ireland has fallen for a third year running as national figures show 67.6% of all grades were at 4/C and above, down from 67.8% in 2023. In Surrey, 78% of the county's results were passes compared to 77.8% the year before. James Baker, principal of Howard of Effingham School, said: "I think that this cohort has had to work incredibly hard to catch up on lots of that material that they missed out on in those Covid years." The overall pass rate across England, Wales and Northern Ireland has returned to levels last seen in 2019 - the last year exams were sat before Covid. Of Surrey's 127,495 GCSE results in 2024, 31.6% were 7/A or above - compared to 30.7% in 2023. Mr Baker said his school's grades had improved from 2023. "As a school we are doing better and better, year-on-year. "Whatever the results this morning, we are proud of every single one of our students." Luke, a student at Howard of Effingham School, received the results he wanted, although there were a few "disappointments". He now plans to study maths, further maths, physics and economics at A-level. Asked for his advice for future pupils, Luke said: "Don't think too much about it. "It's not the end of the world if you flunk your exams." Fellow student Florence, who is hoping to eventually get a law apprenticeship, has passed all her subjects. She said she was happy as she found out she passed maths for the first time. Mr Baker said for students who did not get the results they were hoping for, there was always a "plan B". Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgwlkpx0yko

A keeper at a safari park which has a gay penguin couple and a "throuple" of Lorikeets has said same sex animals developing relationships are more common than people might think. Vicky McFarlane, a keeper at West Midlands Safari Park, spoke about the park's gay wildlife residents after news broke of the death of a world-famous gay penguin in Australia. Ms McFarlane said the site, in Bewdley, had a couple of male Humboldt penguins, called Arnie and Frodo, who had been a couple since 2020. They also have a "throuple" of rainbow lorikeets, consisting of two males and a female. Ms McFarlane said the female lorikeet lays the eggs, which are then looked after by the two males. "They seem to work everything out in their own little way. They know what works for them," she said. When asked about gay animals, the keeper said: "It's surprisingly more common than you would think. "I believe they do form an emotional bond, especially for penguins and lorikeets. They're monogamous, they mate for life. "So there is a courtship, they will flirt, see who takes their fancy and once they're settled down with that couple, they're joined at the hip and they're very much what I'd consider in love." Ms McFarlane said the animals were left to their own devices to find a mate. "They do find these loves all on their own, we just sit back and keep an eye on them and check everyone's behaving." On the other end of the spectrum, while penguins and lorikeets appear to be monogamous at the safari park, sea lions are a very different story. "One male can have 35 girlfriends a year. They keep themselves quite busy, [it] sounds exhausting," Ms McFarlane said. Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y3581pq3lo

If you're not familiar with the Test Drive Unlimited series, which hasn't had a new entry in 13 years, you might be unaware that it essentially pioneered the open-world online racing genre now dominated by Forza Horizon and The Crew. The ingredients are right for the new game. Solar Crown, which is out now on Xbox, PlayStation and PC, is set in a roughly one-to-one scale Hong Kong, which turns out to be the perfect setting for an open-world racer. The combination of tight, detailed city streets, winding mountain passes and off-road trails offers plenty of variety, and every corner of the map feels hand-crafted. It's just a shame the graphics engine can't keep up; on consoles in particular this looks like a game from a decade ago. You have the option of a performance mode that features compromised visual fidelity or a quality mode that serves up an unacceptably choppy experience. Handling-wise it's a strange fish too. Braking for corners generates massive understeer, but lifting off for faster turns instead transforms it into pleasing, controllable oversteer. It's probably tuned to help casual players carve through traffic and, while you'll soon get your eye in, it's not as satisfying as Forza Horizon's driving model, which is as expertly balanced as a mountain goat. While we're making comparisons with Forza, prospective players of Solar Crown will have to steel themselves for more gradual progress through the game. While Horizon is happy to shower you with gift cars, Solar Crown's approach is to keep you in individual vehicles for longer and force a more meaningful feeling of ownership by, you've guessed it, making them all extremely expensive. In a way, we respect the attempt to generate a real sense of connection to each car in your garage, but on the other hand we want to drive a Ferrari F40, please. The main problem, though, is that everything in this game, from entering the open world to starting a race requires a solid connection to online servers that have been – during the early access period, with only a handful of players – flakier than the carpets at an eczema convention. The most infuriating thing is that this online requirement appears to be completely unnecessary: while the game will try and find you human opposition for your races, it can happily rustle up a grid of computer-controlled drivers and there's no real-money-to-pretend-money economy to keep locked down. The server issues will almost certainly be ironed out over time, and while there's been some initial scrambling to fix the problem, we're anticipating more difficulties around the game's full launch when a greater number of players are dumped into the mix. When the dust settles what's left will be a relatively unexceptional online racing game blessed with an exceptional world to play in. In time, we could see Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown becoming something of a cult classic, particularly if players embrace the Hong Kong map as a place to socialise online. For now, though, it's Test Drive Very Limited Indeed... https://www.topgear.com/car-news/gaming/test-drive-unlimited-solar-crown-review-promising-racer-plagued-tech-issues

Lydia Ko ended an eight-year major drought by claiming the AIG Women's Open after a tense finish in blustery conditions at St Andrews. The New Zealander, who won the Olympic gold medal earlier this month, birdied the last as she closed with a three-under-par 69 to win her third major on seven under. Last year's champion Lilia Vu failed to hole a 15-foot birdie putt on the last to force a play-off and then missed from 12 inches to gift Ko a two-shot victory. "It's surreal," said the 27-year-old. "Winning the gold medal in Paris a few weeks ago was almost too good to be true. "Heading into the weekend I thought 'how is it possible for me to win The Open?'. It is the most Cinderella-like story, these past two weeks." England's Lottie Woad won the Smyth Salver as low amateur, birdieing the last to finish on one under. Ko was the youngest woman to win a major when she won the Evian Championship at the age of 18 in 2015. She followed that with victory in what is now the Chevron Championship in 2016 but, despite having 11 top-10 finishes in the majors since then, she had been unable to add to her tally. \ And her hopes of doing so on Sunday were in the balance during an intriguing finale with rain and wind battering the Old Course, as it has done all weekend. World number one Nelly Korda looked to have wrestled control with a run of three birdies in four holes around the turn, and she led by two on the 14th tee. But a couple of poor wedge shots around the green led to her taking seven shots on the par-five hole and she then bogeyed the 17th as she faded to finish alongside Vu, Ruoning Yin and Jiyai Shin in joint second on five under. Meanwhile, Ko, who was playing in a group ahead, made a terrific up and down for par from the back of 16 and then played a delightful second to the 17th, which set up a straightforward par to stay at six under. Her birdie on the last set the target at seven under and she watched from the practice putting green as Vu failed to match her three. When asked where she would rank this victory, she replied: "That's like asking me who I like best, my mum or dad." Link: https://www.bbc.com/sport/golf/articles/cje2kj2g3g8o

A man will be cycling more than 1,000 miles through eight countries to help support injured speedway riders. John Curtis, from Ipswich, has been involved in the sport since the mid-1990s. Through meeting Lawrence Hare, a rider who was left paralysed following a crash, Mr Curtis came to learn of the Speedway Riders Benevolent Fund (SRBF). He will cycle from Wales to Poland to help raise funds for the cause. Mr Curtis will leave on Monday, the day after the British Speedway Grand Prix at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. He aims to cycle 1,050 miles to the Polish Grand Prix that takes place in Wroclaw in two weeks' time. In 2022, he undertook a fundraising walk from Foxhall Stadium – the home of the Ipswich Witches – to Cardiff, but he said he wanted to push himself further this time. "I did that with the walk and I got so much out of it, and I learnt so much," he said. "I thought it would be pointless to learn those lessons and not take them into something else." Mr Curtis learnt of the SRBF through his friend Mr Hare. In 2002, Mr Hare was riding for Exeter Falcons at Newport during a speedway event that had seen a lot of rain in the build-up. "They almost called it off... It went on and I crashed," he said. "I landed wrongly and broke my neck. I was in Newport Hospital for two-and-a-half months and then I went on to Stoke Mandeville Hospital for rehab for about four months." Mr Hare was left paralysed and in a wheelchair. The SRBF helped Mr Hare through his recovery. "I think primarily it's great that in this country that speedway has got that charity behind it to support riders," Mr Curtis said. "It's a dangerous sport. No-one starts riding a speedway bike hoping to get injured, but if that does happen and they get seriously injured there is that support there for them. "It's just my chance to try to give something back." Joining Mr Curtis on his ride will be former speedway riders Chris Morton and Derek Richardson. Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c04953ped2eo