Technology and TV writer Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to ManchesterWorld, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you. The final of The Great British Bake Off left fans’ jaws on the floor. A shock winner was crowned after pre-episode favourite Dylan struggled throughout. People took to social media to share their commiserations for the beloved figure - who had won hearts throughout the 2024 season. It closes the book on GBBO’s fifteenth season, but many might be wondering when to expect the next batch of episodes. Advertisement Advertisement Recap what happened in the Great British Bake Off final here. Also find out who stole the bauble dessert in the Waitrose Christmas advert - which was also revealed during the episode. Stay up-to-date with the latest UK news and culture with our free UK Today newsletter. Fans will be treated to two helpings of GBBO action over the festive season, as Channel 4 continues to spoil us. It includes a Christmas episode with soap stars and the Great New Year’s Bake Off on January 1 2025. The celebrities who are taking part in the Great British Bake Off Christmas episode include stars from EastEnders, Coronation Street, and Emmerdale. The lineup is as follows: Advertisement Advertisement Paul Hollywood is joined as always by Prue Leith and their festive helpers Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond. Meanwhile the judges and hosts will return for The Great New Year’s Bake Off and will be joined by former contestants: The Great British Bake Off will be back for a sixteenth season next year. But it likely will not air until the autumn, which has become the standard on Channel 4. Applications are open for the 2025 season, if you think you have what it takes. On its website, Channel 4 explains: “We’re looking for the next batch of bakers for the sixteenth series of The Great British Bake Off. “If you or someone you know is a Star Baker in the making, then apply now. To apply, head to applyforbakeoff.co.uk.” What did you think of The Great British Bake Off final? Share your thoughts by emailing me: [email protected] . National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.
NoneCollège régional Gabrielle-Roy is a small school with a big volleyball dream. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * Collège régional Gabrielle-Roy is a small school with a big volleyball dream. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? Collège régional Gabrielle-Roy is a small school with a big volleyball dream. They take the game so seriously there that the varsity boys program, winners of three consecutive provincial AA titles, is taking a run at the biggest prize in high school volleyball — a AAAA championship. “I wouldn’t consider us underdogs and I don’t think any of the guys on our team consider us underdogs,” said Alek Ouimet, whose sixth-seeded Les Roys will face the No. 2 St. Paul’s Crusaders in provincial AAAA semifinal action at Investors Group Athletic Centre Thursday night. “I feel like we play hard and we deserve to be playing in these kinds of tournaments. We do the work and it’s shown up right — for four years.” MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Gabrielle-Roy Les Roys boys volleyball team members, Martin de Moissac (left), Alek Ouimet (right) and with Coach Michel Lavergne have won three consecutive provincial AA titles and are now looking to capture the AAAA crown. Gabrielle-Roy, with a high school population of 275 students based in Île-des-Chênes, has tested itself consistently against big schools this season, winning two major tournaments while also beating the Crusaders once and splitting another game with St. Paul’s in head-to-head play. Les Roys setter Martin de Moissac said his teammates are well-equipped for the high intensity of the provincial final four. “Most of my team plays club volleyball, so we’re used to big stages and big challenges,” said de Moissac, a provincial champion in Grade 9, 10 and 11 at the school. “So as a team ourselves, I don’t think it’s that big of a jump but as a school itself, yes.” “They have tall players but honestly, it doesn’t matter when it comes to how determined you are to win and your skill and what you’re willing to put into practising and winning.” Head coach Michel Lavergne, in his 30th season at the school, is quietly confident in his crew. “I have the guys to do it — they tend to finish,” said Lavergne. “They have the grit to do so. And they come out when they need to, for the last few points, and are able to finish these games. So that’s why I think we’re here. “We’re smaller (in stature) but we changed our whole offence for that. We changed the entire dynamics of how we play to suit the team.” Lavergne’s players had until mid-season to decide on how they would finish their season. “That was the big question,” said Ouimet, whose club is 38-3-4 overall. “For the last three years that we’ve been in AA, (Gabrielle-Roy) has won every single time for my age and the question that he asked was, ‘Do you guys want to play AA, get the fourth one, or do you want to go take some chances at AAAA?’ And every single guy on our team, without skipping a beat, said AAAA. Including all the 12th graders who are giving up the potential four-peat.” St. Paul’s, a school with a rich tradition of winning in various sports, plans the give Gabrielle-Roy all they can handle. The Crusaders have overcome various injuries en route to a 32-13 record and the No. 2 seed. Starter Keon Elkie has returned to the lineup after missing time with a broken hand. “I think we have the talent and the size to have the advantage, obviously, so we just need to make sure that we’re working as hard as they work, because we know that they’re going to work really, really hard,” said Crusaders head coach Dustin Spiring, who guided his team to a provincial final appearance in 2022. “That’s that’s kind of how we combat it is trying to game plan, work hard and hopefully our talent and our size can help out.” In Thursday’s other varsity boys semifinal, the top-seeded River East Kodiaks take on the defending AAAA provincial champion Vincent Massey Trojans of Winnipeg. The Kodiaks are 43-0 while the fourth-seeded Trojans are 26-16. In Wednesday’s varsity girls semifinals, the third-seeded Collège Jeanne-Sauvé Olympiens take on the No. 2 Lord Selkirk Royals, who are led by 6-3 left side Brooklyn Grobb-Prins and 5-11 middles Victoria McPherson and Danika Jakabek. “Their front row is pretty big compared to our front row, but we tend to practise hitting around blocks, hitting over blocks and hitting off hands,” said Olympiens libero Taylor Labossiere. “And so it really helps when we can practise those things and then bring them out in the game.” Jeanne-Sauvé’s first-year head coach Donata Huebert believes her team is well-prepared. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. “I made a point of doing a lot of substitutions early in the season and almost until playoffs we had almost everyone play every game to a degree,” said Huebert. “So I think that helped our team be healthy and fresh now and have more role players.” In Wednesday’s other semifinal, the top-seeded Vincent Massey Vikings of Brandon match up with the No. 4 Steinbach Sabres, the defending AAAA champs. “Our goal was always to make it to the final four,” said Sabres head coach Amy Toews, who has three starters back from the 2023 squad. “I think our team’s worked pretty hard this season and we were just grateful to have that opportunity to be back playing at U of M against some of the best teams in the province. “I think when we go in with that mindset of just being grateful for the opportunity, it allows us to play a little bit more free and hopefully play some of our best volleyball.” mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca Mike Sawatzky is a sports reporter at the . He has been working at the newspaper since 2003. . Every piece of reporting Mike produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the ‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about , and . Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support. River East (1) vs. Vincent Massey-Winnipeg (4), 6 p.m. Collège régional Gabrielle-Roy (6) vs. St. Paul’s (2), 8 p.m. Semifinal winners, 8 p.m. Vincent Massey-Brandon (1) vs. Steinbach Regional (4), 6 p.m. Collège Jeanne-Sauvé (3) vs. Lord Selkirk (2), 8 p.m. Semifinal winners, 6 p.m. Mike Sawatzky is a sports reporter at the . He has been working at the newspaper since 2003. . Every piece of reporting Mike produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the ‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about , and . Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support. Advertisement Advertisement
Roman Marble Head repatriated from Münster to ThessalonikiLeBron James is going to have to make room for the NFL. Wednesday's doubleheader on Netflix set records as the most-streamed NFL games in U.S. history, with numbers nearly five times more than the NBA. The Baltimore Ravens' 31-2 victory over the Houston Texans averaged 24.3 million while Kansas City's 29-10 win at Pittsburgh averaged 24.1 according to early viewer figures released by Nielsen on Thursday. Nielsen also said there were 65 million U.S. viewers who tuned in for at least one minute of one of the two games. The NBA's five-game slate averaged about 5.25 million viewers per game across ABC, ESPN and its platforms, according to the league and Nielsen. “I love the NFL,” James said in his televised postgame interview Wednesday night. “But Christmas is our day.” While the NBA's Christmas lineup has its best viewer numbers in five years, the NFL has made Christmas one of its tentpole events during the regular season, joining Kickoff Weekend and Thanksgiving. “The numbers speak for themselves and LeBron can have his own view, and I’m sure more people will look at that because of this," said Hans Schroeder, the executive vice president of NFL Media. "But, you know, we’re focused on the NFL and we’re thrilled with the results this year with the Christmas on Netflix and we’re excited to continue to build that over the next couple of years.” Both NFL games surpassed the previous mark of 23 million for last season’s AFC wild-card game between the Miami Dolphins and Chiefs on Peacock. Viewership for Ravens-Texans peaked with the Beyoncé Bowl. The 20-minute halftime performance averaged over 27 million viewers. The viewer figures include the audience on Netflix, mobile viewership on NFL+ and those who tuned in on CBS stations in Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Baltimore and Houston. Global ratings and final U.S. numbers are expected to be available on Tuesday. The NFL's Christmas numbers decreased from last season, but not at the rate that usually happens when something goes from broadcast to streaming. Last year’s three games averaged 28.68 million viewers. The early afternoon contest between the Las Vegas Raiders and Chiefs led the way, averaging 29.48 million on CBS. Once global and Netflix's first-party data is released, both Christmas games should surpass 30 million. The NBA's lineup saw an 84% rise over 2023. One reason for the increase is that all five games were on ABC, compared to two last year. The Los Angeles Lakers’ 115-113 victory over the Golden State Warriors — a game pitting Olympic teammates LeBron James and Stephen Curry — averaged 7.76 million viewers and peaked with about 8.32 million viewers toward the end of the contest, the league said. Those numbers represent the most-watched NBA regular season game in five years. The NBA said all five Christmas games on its schedule — San Antonio at New York in Victor Wembanyama's holiday debut, Minnesota at Dallas, Philadelphia at Boston, Denver at Phoenix and Lakers-Warriors — saw year-over-year viewership increases. Wednesday's numbers pushed NBA viewership for the season across ESPN platforms to up 4% over last season. The league also saw more than 500 million video views on its social media platforms Wednesday, a new record. For the NBA, those are all good signs amid cries that NBA viewership is hurting. “Ratings are down a bit at beginning of the season. But cable television viewership is down double digits so far this year versus last year," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said earlier this month. “You know, we’re almost at the inflection point where people are watching more programing on streaming than they are on traditional television. And it’s a reason why for our new television deals, which we enter into next year, every game is going to be available on a streaming service.” Part of that new package of television deals that the NBA is entering into next season also increases the number of regular season games broadcast on television from 15 to 75. AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA
Middle East latest: ICC issues warrant for Israel's Netanyahu as Gaza death toll soars past 44,000
Cheap Ozempic? How millions of Americans with obesity may get access to costly weight-loss drugsPEOPLES FINANCIAL CORPORATION ANNOUNCES A REGULAR CASH DIVIDEND AND THE PAYMENT OF A SPECIAL DIVIDEND