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OUR much-loved astrologer Meg sadly died last year but her column will be kept alive by her friend and protégée Maggie Innes.

Read on to see what’s written in the stars for you today. 

ARIES

March 21 to April 20

However hard you try, you can’t take the ambition out of Aries so harness the emotional intelligence of the moon and start making your case.

At home, you have to choose between two dreams.

At work, your input can streamline a sticky subject.

Love-wise, only your own opinion matters.

 TAURUS

April 21 to May 21

The part of you that you usually try to keep hidden comes to the surface in ways that challenge your connections and confidence.

But this is just one stage in a positive process, so go with it.

Passion can be more complete, and satisfying, by tonight.

If you’re single, The One has so many followers.

Get all the latest Taurus horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

GEMINI

May 22 to June 21

You are the kind of friend who tells the truth – not everyone finds this easy to cope with at first.

Give a new “W” bond some space, but don’t break contact – the two of you could share a fabulous future.

In love? Put what you’ve learned about passion into practice.

Single? A short class can lead to life-long love.

Get all the latest Gemini horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

CANCER

June 22 to July 22

Jupiter may be working in mysterious ways for you, deep in your secrets sector but you can definitely feel the effects.

Shrug off concerns that would have stopped you before, and find lighter ways to work, live and love.

This leaves space in your mind for a new set of dreams.

Treat cash as a tool, not as a weapon.

Get all the latest Cancer horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

LEO

July 23 to August 23

It may not feel the perfect time to take up a presentation role, but you have a unique personal energy in your chart that helps you shine.

So say yes, but make sure you set your own rules for any process. If you’re in love, a couple can be a team again.

Single? Your soulmate is a star in a specialised sector.

Get all the latest Leo horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

VIRGO

August 24 to September 22

Staying true to passion promises is not always easy – and there may be extra temptations today.

But Venus keeps a steady flame of commitment alive in your heart to help you resist.

If you’re single, this support is your foundation for finding a love that changes but never wavers. Luck circles “96”.

Get all the latest Virgo horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

Getty

Love links to five-sided shapes[/caption]

LIBRA

September 23 to October 23

A conversation that started in the summer is ready to be continued – and you have much to say.

The sun’s heat guides you, but also stops you over-stepping.

You have moon ability to read minds and know what others are about to ask – at work, this can be a passport to promotion.

Love links to five-sided shapes.

Get all the latest Libra horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

SCORPIO

October 24 to November 22

Bonds that span generations may have challenged you lately, but you have the answers you need – access them by switching off pride, and don’t stay stuck in the past.

There is a strong wellbeing strand in your chart, helping you to deal with stress but also use its energy to drive change.

Love revisits a “J” address.

Get all the latest Scorpio horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

SAGITTARIUS

November 23 to December 21

Body language can give your thoughts away, even when you are careful with your words so ask yourself why you feel the need to hide so much of your real self.

At home and at work, people who matter deserve to know more.

Look again at an artistic pursuit, perhaps linked to style or beauty.

Get all the latest Sagittarius horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

CAPRICORN

December 22 to January 20

Golden Jupiter’s generosity is at work in your career sector, giving away time, ideas and knowledge that can boost your future prospects.

So switch off that Capricorn need to squirrel facts and feelings away.

Property discussions can take a U-turn when a previously unavailable address reappears.

Get all the latest Capricorn horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

Supplied

In love terms, with personal Venus backing, you are a partner in a million[/caption]

AQUARIUS

January 21 to February 18

Making the first apology, even if something wasn’t your fault, is an act of star strength.

The way you work can grow more efficient and less draining when you let yourself be helped – even by someone you consider a rival.

In love terms, with personal Venus backing, you are a partner in a million.

Get all the latest Aquarius horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

PISCES

February 19 to March 20

Keeping money on the outskirts of your life is one approach but is it the best one?

Instead of assuming you can’t understand figures or facts, try a positive mindset.

You can learn as you go, but you also realise how much you already know.

Pluto stirs a secret need – a mysterious Scorpio is first to respond.

Get all the latest Pisces horoscope news including your weekly and monthly predictions

IT’S the most anticipated show of the year, but Gavin & Stacey fans know that the Christmas Day special will be bittersweet.

After a five-year absence, the return of the BBC One sitcom – set in both Barry, Wales and Billericay, Essex – will be its last.

BBC

Stars of Gavin & Stacey lift lid on writing and filming last EVER episode – and their main hope for Christmas special[/caption]

BBC

The lead stars will be watching Gavin & Stacey: The Finale with mixed emotions[/caption]

It is really hard to comprehend how momentous the final episode will be for its lead actors, James Corden, Ruth Jones, Mathew Horne and Joanna Page.

They will be watching Gavin & Stacey: The Finale with mixed emotions – as will the rest of the star-studded cast including Sheridan Smith, Rob Brydon, Alison Steadman and Larry Lamb.

The last Christmas special in 2019 was the most-watched scripted TV show of the 2010s, with 17.1 million viewers in its first week.

Here, TV Editor Rod McPhee chats to the stars about the nation’s love for Gavin & Stacey – and looks back to its launch in 2007 when its ratings were in the thousands.

‘You can’t fake friendships’, says James Corden AKA Smithy

“WHEN I think back to when we started the show, almost 20 years to the day, I couldn’t feel more like a different person.

“Being part of the show, as soon as it started to become successful, was incredibly intoxicating.

BBC

James Corden says his friendship with Ruth is the thing means to him the most from Gavin & Stacey[/caption]

“It was discombobulating because it seemed to go from zero to ten very very quickly, but I’ve only fond memories of that time.

“I don’t think anybody, when you start writing a TV show, thinks you will be still writing these characters 20 years on. It’s nuts really.

“It’s such a privilege to be able to end a show on your own terms. It’s not lost on us how fortunate we are to be able to do that.

“Gavin & Stacey is a huge part of my life — it changed my life in every way. The thing it means to me most, is my friendship with Ruth.

“To have an idea with a friend in a hotel in Leeds 20 years ago and then be sat here today with what it’s become . . . if you think about it too much you really could just start crying. I love her so much and I’m so proud of what we have done.

“I think fundamentally the show is about love and about people who like each other.

“It’s about family and friendship.

“There’s just so much warmth and love within them as a group.
“None of that is faked, that’s all there in our relationships as a cast.

“I think there’s something very pure about watching people who get on and love each other without conflict.

“I hope people feel that on Christmas Day.”

‘It’s joyous and hopeful’, says Mathew Horne AKA Gavin

“THERE was a big difference between the airing of the first series and the airing of the second series.

“The show was largely ignored in the Press, but you could feel the buzz and the audience grew from word of mouth (and that continues to this day).

BBC

The broadcast of the finale on Christmas Day will, I’m sure, be a significant moment or milestone in that journey, says Mathew Horne[/caption]

“It was a sense of joy and love for the show across peers within the industry and audiences across the country.

“I’m still discovering what it means to me, because it’s really significant what it means to everyone else who tells me what it means to them. If that makes sense!

“For me it’s pretty clear it has defined my career and therefore my whole life.

“But new levels of meaning reveal themselves as time passes.

“I’m not sure I can predict what it will ultimately mean to me as that’s for the future, but the broadcast of the finale on Christmas Day will, I’m sure, be a significant moment or milestone in that journey.

“I think the show is relatable and idealistic. I think there are elements — primarily the themes of love, family and friendship — that everybody aspires to.

“For those fortunate enough to have a life of love and family, it is also a mirror to their world.

“I think you’d be hard pushed to find a better televisual representation of the aforementioned themes.

“It is inclusive, joyous and full of hope for humanity.”

‘We all gelled and had fun’, says Joanna Page AKA Stacey

BBC

Joanna Page says Gavin & Stacey was the job that got her known as an actress at 29[/caption]

“WHEN the Gavin & Stacey script came in, it was just like another job in that I didn’t know what it was going to be like, but it was so well-written and it really made me laugh.

“I loved working with all of these people I admired. I couldn’t believe that Alison Steadman was my mother-in-law, and it was just a joy watching her act.

“Working with the comedy genius that is Rob Brydon and him playing my uncle was amazing. And trying to act with him and not laugh, because he is so funny. We just had fun, we all gelled and had chemistry. We basically just went to Wales and had a laugh.

“It launched on BBC Three and I thought it was quite strange when people started to review it. Then, when people were quoting our lines back to us, it was really strange, because I’d never been involved in anything like that.

“Gavin & Stacey means so much to me, because it was the job that got me known as an actress. So it has done a lot for my career, which is amazing, but aside from that I made lifelong friends. I got to act in a show that is so well-loved and that I’ve enjoyed acting in.

“It’s taken me all the way through my life. I was 29 when it started and I’m 47 now and have four kids. All of the stuff that I’ve gone through, Gavin & Stacey has always been there.

“I also thought it was lovely, because it really put Wales on the map. I’ve never seen a show like it that was Welsh, with Welsh characters.

“It makes us feel warm and safe. It just captures real life and relationships so well that I think that’s why everybody loves watching it.”

‘It’s been such a special time’, says Ruth Jones AKA Nessa

“WRITING Gavin & Stacey for the last time was a mixture of excitement, nostalgia and sadness. Sad of course because this is the last time these characters will ever be on screen, but so exciting to bring them to life again.

“And nostalgic because we’d be on set with the cast and we’d go down memory lane, remembering the early episodes.

BBC

It’s been a very special time in my life and it’s spanned 17 years, says Ruth Jones[/caption]

“In the first series we just didn’t know what the series was or how it was going to look or anything, so it was all a bit of a gamble, diving into the unknown.

“It started off as this quiet little show on BBC Three with 500,000 viewers, we had no idea how big it would grow.

“I remember a couple of people texting me after the first episode went out saying ‘Oh I like that new thing you’re in’, and it just felt great to have a little bit of positive feedback.

“I feel terribly proud of how long it has lasted and how people who weren’t even born when it came out are now fans. That means such a lot. I love Nessa. I wish I could be more like her in real life.

“One of my favourite scenes is in the caravan, in series three, when Dave is jealous about Nessa and Smithy sleeping together.

“She tries to reassure him that it wasn’t the same as when they are together, saying: ‘I didn’t have my bag, my tools, my cloak!’

“I loved the wedding fair scene in series one when she tries on all this S&M gear and says: ‘Oh love, I’ll take all this. But I don’t need another whip’.

“Lastly, I guess the proposal at the end of the 2019 special will always be a Nessa favourite. It’s one of the very few times we see Nessa vulnerable.

“It’s been a very special time in my life and it’s spanned 17 years.

“The lovely friends I’ve made from it and the happy times we’ve had filming are such a joy.

“I feel very lucky to have been part of it.

“It’s so relatable — people recognise themselves or people they love in it.

“And it’s not a cynical show, everyone in it loves each other.”

PARENTS have been issued a warning ahead of Christmas over a number of toys that could potentially choke, cut or strangle their kids.

An investigation by consumer champion Which? has found a number toys sold on online marketplaces pose a serious safety risk to little ones.

Getty

Which? has issued a safety warning over 21 online marketplace toys[/caption]

Which? bought 23 toys off online marketplaces including AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, TikTok and Wish, with prices starting from just £1.07.

Shockingly, it found more than half of the items (12) posed serious safety risks to children, including the risk of choking, sharp points that could cut them, as well as strangulation.

Many of the toys also had missing or incorrect markings used to show whether a product is safe or meets certain quality standards.

In total, Which? found 21 out of 23 products it tested were either marked wrongly or posed safety concerns.

All 21 products that failed tests have been removed from sale by the online marketplaces.

One of the issues flagged by Which? was that some small parts on products posing a choking risk to kids.

This was spotted on a magnetic fishing set bought from an eBay seller, where the magnets detached.

Which? said this could cause a serious safety hazard because, if they were swallowed, the magnets could attract in a child’s stomach and tear through the lining of their gut.

Two baby toys, a sensory fidget toy and musical car keys, from TikTok Shop, also broke apart during testing.

Which? also found a large number of customers complaining about the poor quality and loose parts on the product, with one even stating that their baby “choked”.

Meanwhile, Which? found two products from AliExpress failed rigorous testing.

The keys and dial on a wooden busy board broke into small pieces during a tension test while small bits broke away on a toy phone.

The tests also revealed a ring teether with bells and ribbons from Fruugo that posed a strangulation risk as the ribbons were longer than the legal limit.

Two crib toys from eBay failed testing as they did not come with the legally required safety warnings.

A “busy cube” from AliExpress was deemed by Which? to have sharp points on it that could cause punctures to a small child’s skin.

Which? also found the product had exposed edges of brackets and screws.

Meanwhile, a musical elephant-shaped hanging crib toy from online seller Wish was found to have button batteries that were not safely secured in the battery compartment and posed a choking and swallowing risk for small children.

One of the 23 items, a set of animal fridge magnets, and the only product Which? bought from Amazon – did not pose a serious safety risk to children and could be legally sold in the UK.

Neither of the two products bought on Temu posed a serious safety risk, but one of them could not be legally sold in the UK because Which?’s assessments found that the electrical labelling did not comply with UK regulations.

Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said of the findings: “It was frighteningly easy for Which? to find dangerous toys for sale on some of the world’s most popular online marketplaces – and this is particularly worrying when we know many people are shopping for affordable gifts ahead of Christmas.

“We would recommend that shoppers be careful about buying unbranded toys on online marketplaces, as it is hard to have confidence that they will meet UK safety standards set in law to protect consumers.

“The UK government must act fast and use its Product Regulation and Metrology Bill to put much greater legal responsibility on online marketplaces for keeping unsafe items off their platforms.

“This must include allowing tough enforcement action, such as heavy fines, if they breach the rules.”

In response to the findings, a spokesperson for AliExpress said it took product safety “very seriously” and had strict rules and policies in place to ensure a “safe online shopping environment”.

An eBay spokesperson said consumer safety was a “top priority”, adding that it had removed the listings reported to it by Which?.

A spokesperson for Fruugo said it took safety issues “extremely seriously”, citing its product recall and withdrawal service.

A spokesperson for Temu said it prioritised consumer safety and requires sellers to comply with product standards.

A spokesperson for TikTok said the safety of its customers was of its “utmost priority”.

Wish did not respond to Which?’s request for comment.

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