Matthew Fearn

Would probably help these clubs out with much needed revenue too..... Just saying.

@premrugby Look how tight 2nd to 7th places are in the @Champrugby table. Imagine if we had open and honest 2 up / 2 down promotion and relegation. Fewer dead rubbers and more interest = more tickets sold = GROWTH. Why can you not see this?

We have. The Dutch police communicated its official position in the Sunday Times some weeks ago. Its repudiation of West Mids “intelligence” is specifically what prompted the parliamentary scrutiny that led to yesterday’s hearing. Anyone following even cursorily would know this.

One of the many reasons why Kevin Keegan is special is that he makes other people feel special, and that's a great gift. Keegan is a footballing great who wears his greatness lightly. He’s King Kev and a man of the people. He's never forgotten his Doncaster roots, indeed is very proud of them, and the work ethic inherited from his father and grandfather, both miners. A work ethic that propelled Keegan to the top. The great smell of Brut - and sweat. That was Keegan the player. He maximised every last ounce of his talent. That's one of the many reasons he's always been so respected. Another of the many reasons why there is such an outpouring of love for Keegan, and so many messages of support as he undergoes treatment for cancer, is that as a footballer he reached for the stars with his feet firmly on the ground. Keegan is one of the greatest footballers in English and European history, a European champion with Liverpool, a two-time Ballon d’Or winner at Hamburg, a much-loved Newcastle United player and manager, and whole-hearted in his work with England as player and manager. Diego Maradona asked for his shirt after an Argentina-England game in 1980. Keegan played against Pele, George Best and Johan Cruyff. And yet he’s as down to earth as they come. In fact, he often sends himself up. He cares for people. I went to interview him once at Maiden Castle, Durham, where Newcastle were training at the time and Keegan was the manager of the Entertainers. He sent a message to say he’d come to the pavilion for a chat when training was finished. Great. I might get an early train home. A member of Newcastle’s staff mentioned that Kevin might take a while because this was a day when fans were allowed in to watch. He stepped off the pitch, and spent around an hour signing autographs, chatting away, never rushing people, just making them feel special. He dropped to his haunches so he could talk to one kid in a wheelchair, making eye contact, and having a proper chat. It meant the world to this kid that Keegan cared. He reached the pavilion, changed, and gave me 20 minutes of his time. He’s incredibly generous with his time. And there have always been so many demands on it. He tells the story that his determination to sign every autograph and meet every picture request dates back to a moment when, as a kid, he was snubbed by a Doncaster Rovers player. Keegan had waited after a Rovers game, politely approached his favourite player, and got knocked back. He’s never forgotten the hurt he felt. So he makes sure he fulfils every autograph request – no matter how long the queue. I hosted a talk with Keegan at the Cheltenham Literary Festival in 2018. He was promoting his autobiography so was obviously going to be accommodating. But, typically, he went above and beyond. Smartly suited, Keegan arrived so early that only the security guy was there. Keegan patiently chatted away with the security guy, asking him about his job, where he lived, just being friendly because that is Kevin Keegan for you. Interested in people. Good to them. Later, when the talk to the audience finished, Keegan headed into the Waterstones’ tent to sign books. The queue was huge. The Festival was closing for the night but Keegan stayed two hours to make sure everyone had their copy signed or their shirt. One lady had her Liverpool jacket signed (below). Keegan not only signed but had a joke and a laugh and a picture with them all. On Boxing Day, Keegan was at Scunthorpe United, his first club, promoting non-League football. He joined in the carols and got behind the bar, pulling pints, helping out, spreading laughter. Because that’s what Kevin Keegan does – spreads joy. And that’s one of the many, many reasons people are rooting for Kevin Keegan at this challenging time.

The math on this image is insane. New Horizons transmitted at 2,000 bits per second from 3 billion miles away. Slower than a 1990s dial-up modem. It took 16 months to download all the flyby data. The spacecraft had to hit a target box 100km wide, arriving within 150 seconds of schedule, after 9 years of flight. Miss it and the preloaded observation commands point at empty space. Ten days before arrival, the spacecraft crashed and went into safe mode. Engineers had 72 hours to restore everything. The probe is now 5 billion miles out, still whispering data back to Earth. We got 50 gigabits of Pluto photos using technology slower than your phone’s bluetooth.

A patient buying cigarettes from his hospital bed, 1950s

Inside the race to finish Sagrada Família thetimes.com/article/c2a06e…

Best of Unseen 2025 by @BradleyOrmesher for @TimesSport thetimes.com/sport/article/…

EXCLUSIVE pictures of Coldplay kisscam HR boss Kristin Cabot as she speaks to @josiensor about the 16 seconds that ruined her life 📸: Lucy Lu for The Times thetimes.com/us/news-today/…

EXCLUSIVE pictures of Coldplay kisscam HR boss Kristin Cabot as she is interviewed by @Josiensor on the 16 seconds that ruined her life. 📸: Lucy Lu for The Times thetimes.com/us/news-today/…

@CoventryRugby Great comeback and team spirit by Cov after going behind 👊🏻

A strong first half 🙌 #ComeOnCov #TogetherWeAreCov #OneClubOneVision 🔵⚪️

@CoventryRugby Great work today - Cov really came alive in the second half. Excellent ball handling during numerous phases leading to tries on at least two occasions. Tidy hat-trick from Peter Sullivan too. Onward!

Job done at Richmond Athletic Ground ✅ #ComeOnCov #TogetherWeAreCov #OneClubOneVision 🔵⚪️

📷 Some incredibly evocative photojournalism here - Bowie, Diana and Thatcher: Work of the late Times photographer Brian Harris ⁦@TheBPPA⁩ thetimes.com/article/55a591…

Shared with you by a Times subscriber. Enjoy this article for free. thetimes.com/uk/photography…

Interesting dig into a London restaurant's numbers - Wilsons, in Lewisham, brings in £700k, but close to a quarter is tax: VAT - £120k NICs - £6k Alcohol duty - ~£5k Rates (est.) - ~£25k = £156k + wages of £300k. No wonder it's so expensive to eat out thetimes.com/life-style/foo…

As experts decry modern childhood’s reliance on screens, swing back to the 1970s with pictures from @thetimes @NewsUKArchives curated by @MjjJennings thetimes.com/uk/history/art…

Times change. @TheTimes remains.

Sensational stuff from @CoventryRugby. Fingers crossed for more of the same when #TheChamp relaunches in October. 🔵⚪️🏉

@RhqbMoon @CoventryRugby I agree with that wholeheartedly @RhqbMoon - we never gave up and flying tackles were still going in just before FT. @ealingtfrugby are a class act and I would love to see them play a two-legged match against @FalconsRugby to see just how closely matched they are.

@CoventryRugby overpowered in 2nd half. No disgrace in losing to the best team in the League by far. Scoring 6 tries vs the league champions and endeavour right to the end. Thanks to Rob Andrew - great to have you by my side on comms today.

@thetimes @glossophoto @MarcAspland

@thetimes and The Sunday Times scooped a total of thirteen awards and six commendations at last nights Press Awards. Congratulations to all concerned, especially to Photographer of the Year @glossophoto and Sports Photographer of the Year @MarcAspland thetimes.com/uk/media/artic…