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A prison workshop instructor has pleaded guilty to engaging in an “inappropriate relationship” with Zara Aleena’s murderer.

Hayley Jones, 33, appeared at Woolwich Crown Court, where she admitted misconduct in a public office between 6 March and 7 April 2023 while she was working at Belmarsh prison.

The charge states her “inappropriate relationship” with Jordan McSweeney, 31, “amounted to an abuse of the public’s trust”.

McSweeney is serving a life sentence for the murder of 35-year-old law graduate Ms Aleena, who was killed as she walked home from a night out in Ilford, east London.

He was jailed for a minimum term of 38 years in December 2022 after admitting to the sexual assault and murder of Ms Aleena in the early hours of 26 June 2022, nine days after he was released from prison for a previous offence.

But he won a Court of Appeal bid in November 2023 to reduce the minimum term of his life sentence to 33 years.

McSweeney is charged with encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable offence over the relationship and faces trial in April 2026.

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He is yet to enter a plea to the charge and did not appear by video link from Long Lartin prison, in Worcestershire, as officers said he is having difficulty walking.

Judge David Miller adjourned Jones’ sentencing for pre-sentence reports.

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Actor Timothy West has died, aged 90

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Actor Timothy West has died, aged 90

Actor Timothy West has died peacefully in his sleep aged 90, “with his friends and family at the end”.

He was known for many roles in television and the theatre, including popular soaps Coronation Street and EastEnders.

Husband to Prunella Scales – who played Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers – the pair travelled together on UK and overseas canals in the Channel 4 series Great Canal Journeys.

His children Juliet, Samuel and Joseph West said in a statement issued by his agent: “After a long and extraordinary life on and off the stage, our darling father Timothy West died peacefully in his sleep yesterday evening. He was 90 years old.

“Tim was with friends and family at the end. He leaves his wife Prunella Scales, to whom he was married for 61 years, a sister, a daughter, two sons, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. All of us will miss him terribly.

“We would like to thank the incredible NHS staff at St George’s Hospital, Tooting and at Avery Wandsworth for their loving care during his last days.”

The couple married in 1963 and had two sons, actor Samuel and Joseph.

West was previously married to actor Jacqueline Boyer from 1956 to 1961, with whom he had a daughter, Juliet.

Timothy West and Prunella Scales.
Pic: Geoff Pugh/Shutterstock
Image:
West with his wife, Prunella Scales. Pic: Geoff Pugh/Shutterstock

Prunela Scales andTimothy West 
Pic: PA
Image:
West with his wife at a charity dinner in 1998. Pic: PA

In 1984, West was appointed CBE for his services to drama in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

He was the winner of an RTS television award for his lead role in Churchill And The Generals, released in 1979, according to imdb.com.

In his career, he played Winston Churchill three times, including in The Last Bastion (1984) and in Hiroshima (1995).

Timothy West and his son Sam West at The Talkies at The Landmark Hotel  in 1999
Pic: PA
Image:
West with his son Samuel in 1999. Pic: PA

West was also nominated for best actor in the 1976 BAFTAs for his part as Edward VII in the historical drama.

Four years later, he was nominated in the same category for a number of roles, including as best actor in Crime And Punishment.

Timothy West (right), in BBC One's  drama, Last Tango In Halifax.
Pic: PA
Image:
West (right) in BBC drama, Last Tango In Halifax. Pic: PA

After a small part as Eric Babbage in Coronation Street in 2013, West appeared in 2014 for the first time as Stan Carter in EastEnders.

He also held other popular TV roles, such as in BBC comedy-drama Last Tango In Halifax.

In the long-running BBC comedy, Not Going Out, he played Geoffrey, the father of Lucy Adams, played by Sally Bretton.

He was the ruthless self-made businessman Bradley Hardacre in comedy-drama Brass, playing the role from 1982 to 1984 before returning for a third series in 1990.

Timothy West as King Lear during a photocall for the 2003 English Touring Theatre production of William Shakespeare's King Lear.
Pic: PA
Image:
West as King Lear during a 2003 English Touring Theatre production of William Shakespeare’s tragedy. Pic: PA

In 2019, the Bradford-born actor played Private Godfrey in Dad’s Army: The Lost Episodes, a recreation of three missing episodes of the BBC comedy.

His film roles included Commissioner Berthier in The Day Of The Jackal (1973), King Francis in From Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998), and Nazi physician and war criminal Karl Gebhardt in Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973).

He was also a regular performer of Shakespeare, playing Lear in 2002 and 2016.

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The actor performed at the Piccadilly Theatre, with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and the West End, portraying many classic roles, including Shylock, Falstaff, and Macbeth.

Prior to acting, West attended the John Lyon School and Bristol Grammar School.

He worked as an office furniture salesman and a recording technician before becoming an assistant stage manager at Wimbledon Theatre in 1956.

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Several injured after crash involving bus carrying schoolchildren on A46 in Leicestershire

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Several injured after crash involving bus carrying schoolchildren on A46 in Leicestershire

Several people have been injured after a bus carrying schoolchildren collided with a lorry in Leicestershire.

At least 16 people sustained “minor” injuries in the crash on the A46 near Syston, Leicestershire Police said.

Ten of those were taken to hospital as a precaution, the force added.

The road was closed travelling northbound between A607 near Cossington and the B676 following the crash.

It has since reopened, according to National Highways.

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A Leicestershire Police spokesperson said: “Police received a report at 9.30am today (Wednesday 13 November) of a collision involving a bus, containing a number of schoolchildren, and an HGV on the A46 northbound carriageway near to Syston.

“16 passengers sustained minor injuries and 10 of those were taken to hospital as a precaution.”

The spokesperson added: “Emergency services responded at the time and local road closures were put in place. The road has since been reopened.”

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Man jailed for more than three years for loading illegal streaming services on to Amazon Fire Sticks

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Man jailed for more than three years for loading illegal streaming services on to Amazon Fire Sticks

A 29-year-old man has been jailed for more than three years for loading illicit TV streaming services onto Amazon Fire Sticks.

Jonathan Edge, from Liverpool, pleaded guilty to three offences under the Fraud Act.

He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, which included a separate concurrent sentence of two years and three months for accessing and viewing the content he was supplying.

Edge ran a service uploading illegal services to Fire Stick devices in return for cash-in-hand payments at his home, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

He used Facebook advertising and word-of-mouth recommendations to run his operation.

He ignored multiple warnings about the illegal activity, which were referenced by the judge and treated as an aggravating factor in sentencing.

The prosecution was undertaken by the Premier League and supported by several other organisations, including FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) and Merseyside Police.

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Kevin Plumb, Premier League general counsel, said: “The significant sentence handed down to the individual involved once again serves to highlight the severity of his actions.

“We will continue to pursue legal action against those supplying unauthorised access to Premier League football, regardless of the scale or mode of operation. Ignoring warnings to stop only served to make the consequences worse for the individual.”

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Detective Sergeant Steve Frame from Merseyside Police said: “Merseyside Police is committed to working in collaboration to investigate intellectual property theft and we welcome today’s sentence handed to Edge.

“Many people see no harm in illegally streaming TV services but they are wrong, and this outcome should serve as a further warning how seriously such copyright theft continues to be taken.”

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