In a lively display of camaraderie, Prince Harry warmly greeted TV personality Alison Hammond and engaged her in an exhilarating game of laser tag at an event in Birmingham. This occasion was initially anticipated to have the presence of Meghan Markle.

As part of his efforts to promote the Invictus Games, the Duke of Sussex also found himself in a friendly race with This Morning host Alison and his close friend JJ Chalmers. Meanwhile, reports suggest that his wife Meghan and their two children may complete the family reunion in the UK by the weekend.

Although Meghan, Archie, and Lilibet are not slated to partake in any public appearances, talks are underway about a potential meeting with King Charles.

Originally, the Duchess of Sussex intended to be by Harry’s side at the Birmingham Invictus Games event. However, due to security concerns, she decided against traveling to Britain with him earlier in the week.

On the same day when Arthur Fery took to the Wimbledon semi-finals, Harry showcased his athletic versatility by trying his hand at pickleball—a sport akin to tennis—at Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in the heart of the Second City.

Meghan is now widely expected to travel to Britain with Archie and Lilibet, with some claiming they are already here, fuelling speculation that the King could finally meet his California-based grandchildren for the first time in four years.

Helen Helliwell, chief executive of Invictus Games Birmingham 2027, opened the event by saying: ‘Invictus has always been more than a week of games.’

She added: ‘It transforms lives not only for competitors but for their families.’

Harry was joined by This Morning and Great British Bake Off host Alison Hammond, who is from Birmingham, and TV presenter Ade Adepitan, who won a bronze with the GB basketball team at the 2004 Paralympics.

The duke joined a partner on court to compete against another pair in pickleball, which will make an appearance when the games are staged in Birmingham next year.

Harry was clearly enjoying himself at the ‘One Year to Go’ event, with one particularly funny moment where he went to shake hands with an opponent and pulled away his hand, sparking roars of laughter.

Harry was later joined by former defence minister Al Cairns to compete in a game of wheelchair rugby where he was seen clattering into other competitors.

He then watched on as veterans, including Mr Cairns, took part in a hybrid athletics event, where the Duke chuckled at the MP’s efforts to jump repeatedly on to a box.

The royal, who arrived in London on Monday, has not been joined in the UK by Meghan or their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet due to a row over security.

However, it was last night reported that the Duchess of Sussex and the children could be coming to the UK this weekend, although the trio are not expected to be seen at any public engagements.

If, as expected, the Sussexes make their home at Althorp, the ancestral home of Harry’s maternal family, the Spencers, for the next couple of days, it may be that a meeting with King Charles doesn’t take place until this weekend – or possibly even Monday, before His Majesty embarks on another busy week of engagements.

Highgrove, Sandringham or Windsor could be a venue, as Harry has made clear he won’t bring his family to London because he is convinced it is ‘unsafe’.

The Duke of Sussex yesterday met seriously ill children and nurses at Birmingham Children’s Hospital as his five-day trip to Britain continued.

Harry toured the wards as he marked the 20th anniversary of the hospital’s WellChild Nurse programme, having been patron of the charity for 18 years.

Harry’s visit to the UK is part of the ‘One Year to Go’ celebrations for the next Invictus Games in the city in July 2027.

On Wednesday, he was also at the Royal Hospital Chelsea for meetings about the Invictus Games Foundation, including a summit for international team managers. 

They spoke about plans for the Invictus Spirit Awards in the capital this September.

While Harry was in Birmingham, other members of the Royal Family carried on with a busy series of summer engagements – with the duke’s estranged brother Prince William travelling to Hastings on Thursday to meet a fishing community as well as local youth-led and community-driven organisations.

In Birmingham yesterday, Harry was surrounded by nurses when he visited the hospital and spoke about the ‘financial difficulties’ facing the NHS.

Harry was highlighting WellChild’s specialist nursing programme, helping seriously ill children and their families transition from the hospital to their homes.

His appearance caused excitement in the hospital corridors, with one female medic receiving a hug.

Families asked for pictures and the duke posed for a group shot with around a dozen nurses, telling them: ‘Thank you for everything you do.’

Harry met two nurses funded by WellChild, which facilitates the early discharge of children by teaching their parents the skills needed to provide care at home, and met some of the young patients.

In a lighter moment the duke revealed his son’s love of toy building bricks when he shared stories with Alec Hill, 12, and his parents.

‘Do you know who’s obsessed with Lego? My son Archie – and he’s a master builder,’ said Harry.

Harry’s five-day visit to the UK, which moved to Birmingham yesterday, is part of the ‘One Year to Go’ celebrations for the next Invictus Games in the city in July 2027.

An Iranian official has issued a stern warning, stating that the Islamic Republic is prepared to deliver a “hard slap,” while another has openly threatened the United States with retaliation, cautioning, “if you strike, you’ll get hit.” These assertions were made in Persian-language posts by the officials on the social media platform X, as revealed through automatic translations.

Ebrahim Rezaei, whose online profile identifies him as a member of Iran’s Parliament and spokesperson for the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, communicated through X, “The martyred Khamenei taught us not to fear America and demonstrated that ‘falsehood will perish.’ Prepare for the hard slap from the Iranians.”

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s Parliament, also voiced a warning, stating, “America has yet to learn that bullying and breaking promises come at a cost. To be clear: if you strike, you’ll be hit back. Don’t waste your energy floundering, or you’ll end up worse off: the Strait of Hormuz will only be navigated under ‘Iranian arrangements,’ not through American threats.”

Their warnings were posted on Wednesday following the announcement by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) of additional strikes against Iran.

“At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway,” CENTCOM had noted in a post on X.

The U.S. military later provided more information about the attacks.

“U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces completed an additional round of strikes against Iran, July 8, to further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM noted on Wednesday night.

“U.S. forces struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline. The latest strikes follow successful execution of offensive strikes in Iran the night before,” the announcement noted. “CENTCOM forces hit approximately 80 Iranian military targets July 7, including more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats, to impose heavy costs for Iran violating the ceasefire by attacking three commercial vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz.”

President Donald Trump indicated on Wednesday that, as far as he was concerned, the U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding ceasefire was “over.”

Kuwait and Bahrain have both reported coming under attack.

The Kuwait Army noted in a Thursday post on X, which was written in Arabic, “The Official Spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, Major General Saud Abdulaziz Al-Otaibi, stated that the armed forces detected, at dawn today, (3) ballistic missiles, (1) cruise missile, and (10) hostile drones within Kuwaiti airspace, which were successfully intercepted and dealt with.”

The Bahrain Defense Force noted in a post that was in Arabic, “The General Command clarifies that, with firm resolve and high combat readiness, the Bahrain Defense Force’s air defense systems confronted, intercepted, and destroyed several treacherous Iranian aerial attacks this morning, Thursday, July 9, 2026 CE.”

Recent research suggests that making a straightforward change to one’s lifestyle might help decelerate biological aging. This intriguing finding opens new pathways for enhancing life quality as we age.

The intriguing study was featured in the journal Aging, where scientists explored how adjusting dietary habits and incorporating a simple exercise routine could impact men aged between 50 and 74, monitored over a substantial three-month period.

To better understand this potential, researchers organized a clinical trial in Japan, focusing on 48 overweight men as participants. These individuals were closely observed to gather accurate insights into how lifestyle tweaks could affect aging processes.

During the 12-week trial, the participants were divided into two groups. Half of them rigorously adhered to a prescribed wellness regimen, while the remainder carried on with their everyday routines, serving as a control to measure the efficacy of introduced changes.

For those in the intervention group, a key component of their daily routine was the consumption of 100 grams of plain yogurt every day. This simple dietary adjustment was a central focus of the study’s examination.

This group also received individualized dietary counseling that advised them to curb overeating, avoid excessive snacking and cut out sugary drinks.

They were also instructed to walk or use a stepper machine for roughly 30 minutes a day, at least three days each week.

To measure the impact of these changes, the scientists collected blood samples from all participants before and after the study, and also analyzed DNA for chemical changes that act as indicators of cellular age.

Specifically, they used a measurement tool called DunedinPACE. Rather than assessing a person’s chronological age in years, this tool calculates the precise rate at which an individual’s body is currently aging.

The men who consumed the probiotic yogurt, adjusted their diets and exercised showed a statistically significant reduction in their pace of aging compared to the control group, the researchers said.

On average, the speed of their biological aging slowed by approximately 2.2%.

This reduction is roughly comparable to the slowing of biological aging observed in a previous two-year US study, in which participants reduced their daily calorie intake by 25%.

This reduction in aging speed happened independently of weight loss , meaning it did not directly correlate with changes in the participants’ body mass index or the exact number of exercise sessions they logged.

The researchers also recorded a noticeable improvement in a specific DNA marker that is linked to kidney function.

Because this study combined three distinct factors — probiotics, diet and exercise — the authors concluded that the anti-aging benefits cannot be attributed to any single component.

Instead, the slowed aging rate appears to be the result of a combined effect.

The researchers also acknowledged clear limitations of the study, including its small sample size and short duration. Also, the participant pool was restricted to overweight men of a single nationality.

More research is needed to determine whether these short-term biological shifts can translate into permanent, long-term health benefits, the study stated.

A significant development has emerged in the investigation into the murder of Charlie Kirk, with revelations concerning bullet fragments from the crime scene captivating public attention on Thursday.

In a court session, a federal firearms specialist testified that she could not conclusively determine whether the bullets in question had been fired from the rifle allegedly used by Tyler Robinson, according to prosecutors.

This testimony follows weeks of intense speculation, spurred by court documents indicating that the ballistics evidence might weaken the prosecution’s case against the 23-year-old defendant.

Robinson stands accused of killing Kirk while he was speaking to attendees at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.

On Thursday, the ballistics expert emphasized that her analysis did not exclude the rifle as the weapon used; however, the findings were not definitive either.

‘My conclusion is inconclusive… I am unable to say one way or another,’ Samantha Karner, from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), testified under questioning from Robinson’s attorneys.

Karner appeared during a preliminary hearing that will determine whether Robinson will stand trial on an aggravated murder charge. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

The defense has repeatedly pointed to the ATF’s ballistics findings in an effort to challenge the strength of the state’s case.

Earlier this year, Robinson’s attorneys cited an ATF report that stated investigators were unable to identify a bullet jacket fragment recovered during Kirk’s autopsy as having been fired by the rifle recovered by authorities.

That filing prompted widespread claims online the bullet ‘did not match’ the suspected murder weapon.

Karner’s testimony, however, emphasized that the examination simply could not reach a definitive conclusion.

Defense attorney Michael Burt pressed the firearms examiner over whether investigators could exclude the recovered rifle as the weapon that fired the fatal shot.

‘Saying anything but inconclusive was inappropriate,’ Karner replied.

Firearms experts have previously said an inconclusive finding is not unusual, particularly when only damaged bullet fragments are available for examination.

According to experts interviewed by PolitiFact, microscopic markings left on bullets can be too distorted after impact to allow examiners to definitively identify, or eliminate, a particular firearm.

Christopher Ballard, a spokesperson for the Utah County Attorney’s Office and a member of the prosecution team, previously said an inconclusive finding ‘does not mean that the rifle did not fire the bullet.’

‘There just aren’t enough marks on the fragment to make a conclusion one way or the other as to whether the bullet fragment was fired by the particular rifle,’ Ballard said.

Stephanie Walcott, an assistant professor in the Department of Forensic Science at Virginia Commonwealth University, also said it would be ‘extremely misleading’ to interpret an inconclusive finding as proof the rifle was not involved.

The ballistics evidence represents only one part of the state’s case against Robinson.

Prosecutors allege Robinson stole his grandfather’s rifle and engraved taunting slogans onto ammunition before the shooting, traveled to Utah Valley University and fired the fatal shot from a rooftop overlooking Kirk’s event.

Authorities contend Robinson wrapped the rifle in a towel before hiding it in a wooded area near campus, later attempting to retrieve it.

Investigators say Robinson’s DNA was recovered from the rifle’s trigger, other parts of the firearm, the fired cartridge casing, two unfired rounds and the towel used to conceal the weapon.

Earlier on Thursday, jurors-in-waiting heard additional evidence that prosecutors say further ties Robinson to the killing.

Video of Robinson’s roommate and former romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, was played in court after a lengthy legal fight over whether portions should remain sealed.

Twiggs, who received limited immunity for his statements, told investigators Robinson broke down in tears inside their southern Utah apartment the day after the shooting.

According to Twiggs, Robinson said he ‘wishes he hadn’t done it.’

Investigators also revealed that roughly an hour before surrendering to authorities, Robinson allegedly posted a message in a Discord chat room reading: ‘it was me at UVU yesterday.’

Prosecutors further allege Robinson left a handwritten note for Twiggs stating: ‘I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it.’

The note continued: ‘I wish we could have lived in a world where this did not feel necessary.’

Additional text messages shown in court allegedly captured Robinson worrying about fingerprints being left on his grandfather’s rifle and discussing ammunition engraved with messages including ‘Hey Fascist! CATCH!’ and ‘If you Read This, You Are GAY.’

Twiggs also testified that weeks before the shooting Robinson had asked to borrow a Dremel tool to engrave shell casings.

At the time, Twiggs believed Robinson intended to decorate ammunition for an upcoming hunting trip.

Kirk’s widow, Erika, had urged the court to release Twiggs’ interview in full, arguing that withholding portions would only fuel conspiracy theories surrounding her husband’s death.

‘[Redacting the video] suggests to the public that something else is in there, that something else lurks in there that isn’t,’ her attorney, Jeffrey Neiman, argued.

Judge Tony Graf ultimately permitted a partially redacted version of the interview to be played publicly.

Graf is expected to decide after further arguments on September 1 whether prosecutors have presented sufficient evidence to send Robinson to trial.

Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump and founder of Turning Point USA, was 31 when he was shot once in the neck while taking questions from thousands gathered at Utah Valley University.

Robinson has not entered a plea, and his attorneys have not publicly commented on his guilt or innocence. 

They have, however, challenged key pieces of the prosecution’s forensic evidence and unsuccessfully sought to remove the death penalty from the case.