Table of contents for 08-Dec-2016 in Chat

The fact such a monster’s freedom is even being considered turns our stomachs We held Lorraine’s heartbreaking funeral – but, going through the motions, we felt numb inside. Just before his trial, John Dunne, 19, wrote a confession to Lorraine’s murder, and, when he appeared at the Old Bailey in October 1989, he pleaded guilty. Mick, myself and the girls sat in court, listening to the sickening details of Lorraine’s final moments. Before the attack, Dunne had drunk a ‘hell-raiser’ concoction of lager, whisky, rum, cider and drugs. Then he’d grabbed Lorraine as she walked up the road – 40 yards from the house she was going to – dragging her into the alley. Witnesses saw him carrying her up the road, but assumed she’d had too much to drink.…

GUILTY! On 14 August 2008, Carlos Martinez was found guilty of two counts of murder during the commission of a burglary, two counts of elder abuse and one count of first-degree residential burglary. Before he was sentenced, one of his victims’ granddaughters read out a statement to the court... ‘If I’d known that Christmas, four days earlier, was the last time I’d see Grandma and Grandpa, I would not have let go when I hugged them goodbye.’ Carlos Martinez, 32, was sentenced to death.…

For days afterwards, we expected it to be a bad dream... Racing around, me and boyfriend Brian Martin, 37, were doing our Christmas shopping. It was all a bit of a last-minute dash! ‘My boy wants Lego,’ Brian suddenly remembered. It was December 2013, and Brian and I had only been together a year. Incredibly, we’d been mates for 21 years, until a quick drink led to a whirlwind romance. Within three months, Brian and his 8-year-old lad from a previous relationship, and me and my Henry, 5, were living together. We were so happy. Couldn’t wait for our first family Christmas together. On the day, after opening presents, my mum, Brenda, 62, cooked us a big turkey dinner. ‘Best Christmas ever!’ Brian smiled afterwards. ‘Mine, too!’ I beamed. Both…

‘Erm,it’s a bit... personal’ Booze-free? Q I've just started a course of antibiotics. Does this mean a teetotal Christmas? Liz, 41 A It's a myth! Some people think this story started in the days when penicillin was so precious, it had to be extracted from patients' urine and re-used, but alcohol interfered with the process. Most antibiotics are safe with alcohol, but check the leaflet. Wheezy winter Q Every year, my asthma plays up and I spend the day wheezing and miserable. How does my chest know it's Christmas? Ashley, 37 A Weather, colds, excitement, exhaustion, mould spores on trees, dust on decorations and fumes from candles, fires or fireworks can form a perfect storm of asthma triggers during the festive season. Avoid them where possible, increase your preventer inhaler…

Welsh rarebit on toast 1 Preheat grill and toast a slice of bread on one side. 2 In a bowl, whisk together 100g extra-mature grated Cheddar, 1 egg, 1tsp English mustard, 2tsp Worcestershire sauce and 2 sliced mild pickled silverskin onions. 3 Turn the bread over and spread cheese mixture in a layer across untoasted side. Sprinkle with pepper. 4 Grill for 5-8 min, until cheese mixture has set and turned golden-brown. Serves: 1 Cost per head: £1.25 Top tip: Any hard cheese works well with this recipe. A great way of using up any leftover cheese from the fridge!…

Even with family visiting, it wasn’t the same... Sinking into the chair at the doctor’s office, my legs shook as the GP explained my diagnosis. ‘It’s type 1 diabetes, Alice. That’s very serious,’ he said. I was just 15, and, apart from losing a bit of weight and getting up for the loo in the night, I’d had no symptoms. I felt like a normal, healthy teenager. Hearing I had a serious illness knocked me for six. I’d have to monitor my blood-sugar levels closely, watch my diet, and have insulin injections every day… If I wasn’t careful, I could fall into a coma, even die. I went home with my mum Linda, worrying what my future would look like. But I was determined to stay positive. ‘I’m going…

I even got a cardboard cutout of him, and put real hair on it! Exhausted, I woke to my little girl Amelia crying. ‘Poor baby, what’s wrong?’ I said, on the verge of tears myself. It was summer 2014, and Amelia, then 1, was seriously ill, crying for 18 hours a day. She was having tests, but with Felix, 17, Ellanor, 11, and Izzy, 7, to look after, too, I was shattered. I was trying to write my first book as well. So, for a bit of fun, I went on Twitter to ask Richard Branson for a loan to pay for childcare. Just until I finish my novel, I wrote. Sadly, I got a rejection tweet from a PA. Determined, I started tweeting him daily – always fun, lighthearted…

Festive Fun Later on we’ll count spiders, as we drink by the fire... Winter W onderland Sleep in heavenly peas. Silent Night Where treetops glisten and children listen to hear slave elves in the snow . White Christmas Deck the halls with bras of holly! Deck the Halls He’s making a list, of chicken and rice... Santa Claus is Coming to Town Round John Virgin, mother and child... Silent Night Peace on earth and mercy mild, goddamn sinners reconciled... Hark the Herald Angels Sing All I want for Christmas is foooooood! All I Want For Christmas Get dressed, ye married gentlemen... God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen With a corncob pipe and a bloody nose... Frosty the Snowman Joy to the world! The Lord has gum. Joy to the…

I only had to look at a sausage roll and it’d go to my thighs Opening up a tin of Quality Street, I tore at a few wrappers. ‘Mmmm, toffee,’ I smiled, devouring two in one gulp. It was December 2014, and I was making the most of the festive delights. Mince pies, Christmas cake… ‘Tis the season to be jolly. I deserve a treat,’ I joked to my partner Lee, 30. The thing was, I seemed to treat myself all year long! I’d snack constantly, every day. I’d devour four packets of crisps in one go, several chocolate bars, washed down with fizzy pop. And I loved takeaways, too. ‘Let’s get fish and chips for tea,’ I’d suggest, too lazy to cook. Lee could eat what he liked and…

What I loved Finding that the festive spirit has suddenly hit me straight between the eyes! Thought it wasn't going to happen this year, then POW! Lovin' it… What hacked me off Finding that I'm spending as much on posh gift wrap and tags as I am on Christmas pressies! Madness! What made me laugh An early start on the cracker jokes: What do you call someone who's scared of Santa? Claustrophobic! Ho ho ho… Hope you're fearless with your preparations. Remember to put the sprouts on!…

Apparently I had more chance of winning the Lottery! As I cuddled them close to my chest, my heart burst with joy Shaking, I stared at the positive test in disbelief. ‘It must be wrong,’ I told my boyfriend Mahmoud, 33. It was December last year. Ten years before, I’d had tests that showed I had polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and wasn’t ovulating, so thought I’d never conceive. At the time, it was utterly devastating. But, as the years went by, I’d come to accept the idea I wouldn’t have a family. In March 2011, I’d moved to Egypt, and I’d met Mahmoud there two years after that. Now I’d taken a pregnancy test because my period was late – but that was a typical symptom of PCOS, so…

WhenI broke the news, Millie was so strong Watching as my girls Millie, then 16, and Daisy, 11, burst into fits of giggles, I felt a surge of pride. They both had Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), a condition affecting connective tissue. It causes joint hypermobility, dislocations, fatigue, digestive problems, dizziness… Yet, despite their day-to-day struggles, my girls never stopped smiling. ‘Two peas in a pod,’ my husband Brian, 57, always said. But in November 2014, Millie was struggling. Her EDS started making her sick, and she was in a lot of pain with her joints. She was in pain when she ate, too, and for six days she didn’t eat a single thing. And this continued... At Eastbourne District General Hospital, doctors tried feeding her through tubes into her stomach. It…

A baby sister? It felt like Santa had come early... Coming out of the loo, I waved two negative tests at my mum. ‘See?’ I told her. ‘Not pregnant.’ Days earlier, Mum Sabine, 46, had been looking at snaps of my brother Ben’s 18th on her phone. Spotting one of me, she stopped. ‘Your tummy looks a bit rounded here,’ she’d said to me. Charming! Then... ‘You’re not pregnant, are you?’ I peered at the photo. Mum was right, but it must’ve been a funny angle. Me and my partner Josh, 26, already had Savannah, 17 months, and weren’t trying for another. But I’d done the tests to put Mum’s mind at rest. Then, I forgot all about it. But, three months on, I started to feel nauseous and…

Alan was adorable, such a hard worker As the donkey looked up at me with sad eyes, my heart broke. ‘It’s OK, boy,’ I said, stroking his back. It was January 2009 and he’d been found abandoned in a retail car park in Birmingham, tied to lamppost with a dirty bit of rope. Painfully thin, nervous and shaking, he was in a right state. That’s why I’d been called to rescue him. I run the Radcliffe Donkey Sanctuary in Lincolnshire. I’d set it up in 1992 after rescuing a mule called Muffin. My husband Steve, 58, and I are huge animal lovers. And we couldn’t bear seeing an innocent creature suffering. So, when a woman had phoned us about this little donkey she’d found, we’d wasted no time getting to…

Which athlete is cosiest in winter? The long jumper! What do zombies put on their turkey at Christmas? Grave-y! Why did the turkey join the band? Because it had the drumsticks! Why did Santa have a hot toddy? He was coming down with the flue! What carol is heard in the desert? O camel ye faithful! Which song do you hear being sung at a snowman's birthday party? Freeze a jolly good fellow! What goes ‘Oh, Oh, Oh'? Father Christmas walking backwards! Why did Santa's helper see a shrink? Because he had a low elf-esteem! What does the Queen call her Christmas broadcast? The One Show! Why was the snowman looking through the carrots? He was picking his nose! What do you get if you cross a snowman with a…

People were coming from far and wide to see our lights As soon as I met Jenna, I knew. She was funny, kind, intelligent, absolutely gorgeous… It was 2014. We’d started chatting on Facebook a few weeks earlier. Then we’d gone for a date at the local cinema, and just clicked. But, before things got too serious, we needed to have a chat. ‘Don’t worry,’ I said when I sat her down. ‘It’s not that I have 13 toes or anything…it’s just that I like Christmas lights. And when I say like, I mean really like.’ ‘Me, too!’ Jenna smiled. ‘I love hanging up fairy lights.’ ‘Erm,’ I took a deep breath. ‘It’s a bit more complicated…’ Me, my dad John and my mum Susan decorate the entire front of…

You didn’t get more close-knit than me and my best pal Rozella. We’d played together as young girls from age 4. And, growing up, both keen knitters, we were always swapping patterns. By the time I left school, aged 15, I was pretty nifty with my needles, and even got a job as a dressmaker. Marrying my hubby Jack in 1958, we went on to have five children – Mark, 57, Wayne, 55, Helen, 53, Sally, 48, and John, 45. In time, I became a grandmother to 10 children and great-grandmother to four. They all loved the jumpers I knocked up, but none of them shared my passion for knitting. But then I had Rozella for that. Over the years, we often met up for a knit and a natter.…

1 Enjoy a cream tea The Boston Tea Party was held in order to protest against the tax slapped on the popular hot drink. These days, there's a whole host of places you can enjoy a cream tea to celebrate the humble brew. 2 Celeb-spot in Martha's Vineyard A ferry and bus ride from Boston is Martha's Vineyard, an island just south of Cape Cod. Barack Obama has holidayed there, as well as Lady Gaga, Jake Gyllenhaal and Jim Carrey, to name-drop but a few! 3 Sail to Nantucket A short hop from Martha's Vineyard, it's home to the Lightship - essentially a floating lighthouse. Sailors would stay aboard for weeks on end, and to combat boredom created beautiful baskets, now the emblems of Nantucket. The small museum dedicated to…

Klopp admitted to officers he and his wife had been arguing THE CRIME Dustin Lee Klopp gave his family a Christmas they would never forget - by slaughtering his wife to death with an axe. Then he played the doting dad with their two kids on Christmas Day, while his wife's dead body was hidden in the garden shed. What turned a family man into a crazed killer? THE STORY Devoted mum and wife Stephanie Kilhefner, 34, lived for her family. She and her husband Dustin Lee Klopp, 36, had two children together aged 2 and 5. And she doted on them. Caring by nature, Stephanie was known to rescue animals, too. She gave loving homes to all sorts – including abandoned goats, horses and ponies. And she was a…

We watched, sobbing, as they fought to save our baby’s life It was Christmas Eve 2014 and our third wedding anniversary. But even more importantly, it was the day we’d find out if we were going to have a baby! I already had a daughter Faith, then 9, from a previous relationship, but my wife Alison, then 22, and I longed for children together. So after having fertility treatment using donor sperm, the moment of truth had arrived… At 5.30am, Ally came out of the bathroom clutching the pregnancy test. ‘There’s a faint line!’ I gulped. ‘I don’t believe it,’ Ally gasped. We couldn’t wait to tell Faith – she was thrilled, desperate to have a brother or sister. Later that day, we announced the news to Ally’s mum in…

We felt we’d nothing to celebrate, took down the tree For a brief moment every morning, I’d forget... Our phone rang loudly at 1.20am, wrenching us from sleep. Jumping out of bed, my husband Mick, then 50, picked it up. ‘Is she not with you?’ he cried. I stared at Mick, alarmed, his hand tightening around the receiver. It was the early hours of 20 December 1988, and our youngest, Lorraine, 22, had gone to her work Christmas party in Clapham, planning to go to her friend’s mum’s house after. Her friend had been due to pick up Lorraine from Raynes Park train station in south London at midnight – but he’d not been there when she expected, so she’d called his mum. Turning down the mum’s offer of…

My blood ran cold as I saw Mum had transferred cash to her As I let myself in through my mum’s door, I called out, ‘Only me!’ Mum Jean, 74, lived in sheltered housing round the corner from my home with my hubby Phil, 50. She wasn’t in good health. Had been diagnosed with a benign brain tumour and had an illness similar to Parkinson’s. There wasn’t much doctors could do, so me and the family made sure she got lots of TLC. And not just us, either... Walking into the living room, I saw that Mum had a visitor. ‘Hi, Stephanie,’ I smiled. Stephanie Carter, 54, volunteered at the complex. She’d call in for a chat with Mum and even brought cakes and organised Sunday lunches. Phil joked that…

Chocolate peanut butter brownies Serves: 12 Prep: 15 min Cook: 22 min 150g salted butter 100g dark chocolate 100g milk chocolate 200g caster sugar 3 eggs 200g self-raising flour Topping 100g milk chocolate 65g salted butter at room temperature 125g smooth peanut butter 1 handful honey roasted peanuts 1 Preheat oven to 180C/Gas 4. Grease a 25cm square tin. 2 Melt butter and chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, and then, off heat, stir in sugar and beat in eggs one at a time. 3 Mix in flour, then pour into tin and bake for 15-18 min for a gooey brownie or 20-22 min for a more cakey brownie. Leave to cool in tin. 4 To make topping, melt chocolate in a bowl over simmering water.…

She loved it so much, it was the time of year when I’d see Emily smile the most Like most people, we had a Christmas routine… On 1 December, the tree would go up and, each year, I’d take my children Emily and Elliot to the local Christmas markets. Then we’d buy our new festive jumpers before working our way through Christmas movie classics like Elf, Home Alone and Nativity. Always my favourite time of year, my enthusiasm for Christmas had rubbed off on Emily. ‘How many days to go?’ she’d ask constantly. She wore Christmas jumpers all year round, and it was the time of year when I’d see her smile the most… When she was born in 2001, Emily had cried a lot and, growing up, had frequent…

After a long day, I love to put my feet up and play some bingo I’ll be sure to send my kids some extraChristmas pressies! Surfing the Internet, I spotted an ad for Chat Mag Bingo. The winners’ stories caught my eye, so I signed up. That looks like fun! I thought. I’d never played online bingo before, so I was really surprised how much fun it was. I loved trying out all the bingo rooms, the excitement of watching the numbers come up, edging you closer to a line or full house. That was a couple of years ago now, and I’ve had some little wins since then. Now, during the day, I help out my hubby Robert, 53, in his garage. But after a long day, there’s nothing…

Angela fussed over me while checking on the dinner! Jack Brown was my high-school sweetheart. After three years together, still young and immature, we split up at 15. Leaving school at 16, we lost touch. I went on to meet another man, and had my son Kamil, in January 2013. But we split shortly after. I was a single mum. Then, one day in 2014, I was out shopping in Alnwick, pushing Kamil in his pram. ‘Hello, stranger!’ a familiar voice said. Jack! ‘Good to see you,’ I smiled. We swapped numbers, and enjoyed reminiscing over old times. One day, Jack, 22, visited me at home and, as we chatted, I felt butterflies. Romance rekindled, we got back together. Jack was great with Kamil, and, in January last year, we…

He was hopeful, and so was I – but surgery was a huge risk... As I watched my baby sleep, I felt consumed with worry. Jason, 4 months, was struggling to feed, and his hands and feet were freezing. Motherly instinct told me something was wrong. ‘We’ll see the doctor tomorrow,’ I said to my husband John, 51. So, the next day, I wrapped up Jason and got the bus to the clinic. When the doctor examined him, she looked concerned. ‘I’m making an urgent referral,’ she said. ‘It could be his heart.’ At that point, it was a relief to know I wasn’t being a paranoid new mum. It wasn’t until we got the test results later that day that I realised how serious things were. ‘Jason has complex…

We were never short of kindness. Everyone rallied Waking up at 1am on my 35th birthday last year, I remember hearing sirens. I hope they don’t wake the littl’un, I thought. But then... ‘We don’t live near water,’ my husband Stephen 36, said, peering out of the window. ‘Why are the coastguard outside?’ Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. With my eight-months pregnant tummy, I heaved myself out of bed to go downstairs with Stephen to find out what was happening. Opening the front door, we were stunned to see a policeman. ‘The flood’s coming,’ he announced gravely. We’d heard talk of the flood warning the day before, 5 December, as we were leaving a pantomime at our local community centre. But our house had had an extra…

Aries 21 March - 20 April Just as you were thinking you were leaving it all behind, someone comes up with the offer of a lifetime in the hope you’ll stay. It’s tempting - but is the offer genuine or just a desperate attempt to buy some time? Call 0905 817 0690* for more Taurus 21 April - 21 May Little arguments have a habit of getting bigger. You do have the law on your side on this one but, if you want to take it to that level, be prepared for a lot of expense. Talking the problem through may be all you need to do. Call 0905 817 0691* for more Gemini 22 May - 21 June You’ve got a new idea in your head, and you know…

KENTUCKY FRIED CHRISTMAS On Christmas Day, you'd expect to struggle being served up a carvery roast dinner last minute. Meanwhile, in Japan, you can't wing it and expect to get a table at KFC. Fried chicken's become Japan's traditional Christmas feast. Why? Cluck knows! CHRISTMAS FEAR…  n Iceland, children are told the story of Gryla, an ogress living in the Icelandic mountains, mum to I ule Lads. Every year , they 13 come sons down known from as the the mountains Y to eat, kidnap or , at the very least, play nasty tricks on naughty children. SLEIGH TRAINING Eximately 20,000 ‘rent-a-Santas’ very year in the US, appro eep a jolly attitude undergo seasonal training on how to k under pressure from the public. They're also advised to avoid accepting…