Table of contents for 21 April 2022 in Chat

Prepare for puppies galore thanks to German Shepherd Unity’s bumper brood. They’re bundles of fluff now, but these dogs have big jobs. We can’t wait to see how they get on (p24). Karen ditched her nurse’s scrubs for a skimpier new uniform – she looks fab! (p37) And one woman fought to flee a violent attack, only for her escape to end in tragedy… (p54) Plus more real-life and the prize puzzles you love. Have a great week!…

He was a happy-go-lucky person who loved to cook and dreamt of opening up his own restaurant. But, for now, Taurean Sanderlin, 29, was just enjoying his job at the Waffle House restaurant in Nashville, Tennessee. Taurean lived with his beloved dog Rocco, cousin William Bryson Murray and Murray’s nephew, 4. On 22 April 2018, just after 3am, he was at work. It was an early start. The night before, he’d been to a comedy show with William and they’d joked about him phoning in sick to work. But here he was, working hard and serving customers. It may have been the early hours of the morning, but the Waffle House was busy with diners grabbing snacks. Akilah Dasilva, 23, was there with his girlfriend Shantia Waggoner, 21, and his…

My itchy bum is out of control Q Why has my bum started to itch? I find myself scratching by day and can’t sleep at night! Leah, Carmarthen A The polite medical term for an itchy anus is pruritus ani. If you have children, check for threadworms – wriggly white worms about a centimetre long that can cause intense night-time itching. If there’s a rash, or itching also around your vagina, then thrush is a possibility. Allergy to creams, skin conditions such as eczema, or piles are other possible causes. Sometimes you’re simply not cleaning yourself properly after using the loo, leaving behind tiny traces of poo that irritate your skin. Try using wet wipes after a poo (but don’t flush them). Tablets from your chemist will treat threadworms and…

OVER TO YOU Can you set a puzzle in this format? Send it, with a photo of yourself, to the address on p3. There’s £20 for every one we use! This week’s puzzle was compiled by Lisa Best, Crewe, Cheshire ACROSS 1 Catch 2 Where you live 3 Fairies 4 Where birds live DOWN 1 Slim 2 Capital of Italy 3 Units of electric current 4 Irritation WIN 5x £25 Puzzle 6 Your answer: HALF & HALF Starring Nicola Walker and Bradley Walsh, which ITV drama series about an abducted daughter was written and filmed before, but aired after the Madeleine McCann disappearance in 2007? Cross out a letter in each square to get a grid filled with words. The uncrossed out letters in the shaded squares give the prize answer.…

ARROW WORD In terms of chemical composition, quartz is a dioxide of what element? Solve the puzzle by following the arrows and writing in your answers. Then read down the letters in the shaded squares to find the prize answer. WIN £1,000 Puzzle 10 Your answer: SUDOKU To solve the puzzle, each 3 × 3 box, each row and each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9. Solve the puzzle and the numbers in the highlighted squares will give you the prize puzzle answer. WIN £60 Puzzle 11 Your answer: WORDSEARCH Which tennis player shares a surname with the pianist who recorded the music played by Ryan Gosling’s character in La La Land? The answer is the one missing from the grid. AUSTIN BARTOLI BARTY EVERT GRAF HALEP HENIN HINGIS KERBER KING KVITOVA…

I can’t help wanting him back Q I still can’t get over an abusive relationship from seven years ago. I keep in contact with him, and he texts back but he never initiates the conversation. I know the relationship is not right for me but I seem to only focus on the romance and good times we had. I feel so weak and stupid – please help. Jacki, 24 A Sometimes we’re drawn to what feels familiar, even if it’s bad for us. Have you tried counselling? With a bit of help working on your self-esteem, I suspect you’ll realise you deserve so much more than an abusive partner. In the meantime, delete his number so you aren’t tempted to text. You’ve said yourself he’s not good for you, so…

Q Do I get extra protection if I buy using a credit card? T Rankin, Lincoln A ‘Most purchases made using a credit card are legally protected by Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, if the cost is between £100 and £30,000 and you pay for either some or all of it with the card, ’ says James Jones, head of consumer affairs at Experian. ‘Section 75 allows you to make a claim against the card company to get your money back if a retailer refuses to fulfil their side of the contract, such as if you order goods that don’t arrive or if the retailer goes bust.’ For more info, visit experian.co.uk/consumer/credit-cards/guides/section-75-protection.html…

Aries 21 March-20 April As Venus enters Aries, an opportunity that may have seemed beyond your reach comes closer. By making adjustments to your career path, you could progress. • Call 0905 817 0690* for more Taurus 21 April-21 May With Pluto in retrograde, you may notice problems within a friend’s plans. Share your ideas with them. You might be asked to take part in a fundraising drive. • Call 0905 817 0691* for more Gemini 22 May-21 June You may be considering a psychic reading, taking up reiki or developing your spiritual side. Find the best offer, as you may be able to get a half-price reading. • Call 0905 817 0692* for more Cancer 22 June-23 July Invite your friends over to catch up. It is also a…

Q I need a new hairdryer, but I don’t want to spend a fortune! Maria, Leicester A A hairdryer can be a big outlay, but the good news is you don’t have to spend a fortune to achieve speedy drying and a swishy finish at home. You’ll want to consider the weight first – anything too bulky is just going to give you arm ache. Primark Hairdryer, £10, Primark, is on the lighter side, and dries hair nice and smooth. Something else to consider is the wattage. If you have thick hair, and lots of it, pick a dryer with a powerful motor, like Lily England Deluxe Hair Dryer Rose Gold Edition, £33.99, lilyengland.com. At 1800 watts, it packs a punch and will take hair from sopping wet to bone…

GUILTY Travis Reinking, then 33, was found guilty of four counts of murder in February 2022. The jury rejected his insanity defence in the shooting rampage. Outside court, James Shaw Jr, who’d disarmed Reinking during the attack and was injured in doing so, said the trial had been painful for everyone involved. ‘We’ve been waiting 1,394 days for this, ’ he said. ‘It’s like opening another wound and keeping it open.’ Travis Reinking was sentenced to life in prison without parole. During the sentencing hearing, the victims’ families described their unending grief. Patricia Perez, mother of Joey Perez Jr, said, ‘This man took away my future grandchildren.’ Taurean Sanderlin’s aunt Blanche Anderson spoke on behalf of his parents Wanda and Charles, who were too distressed to speak. ‘Wanda has had…

Megan Taylor, 27, Warrington, Cheshire Walking into the gym with my partner Andrew, then 30, I was happy and ready for a workout. ‘Fancy trying a spin class?’ Andrew asked, smiling. And suddenly, just like that, my mood tanked. ‘I just don’t want to!’ I cried storming off to the treadmills. Building a sweat, I mulled over what just happened. It wasn’t like me to be overly emotional. Yet I’d just snapped at Andrew over an innocent question. It got me thinking. Racing home via the shop, I rushed to the loo, clutching a pregnancy test. Two minutes later, I thundered down the stairs to show Andrew, who was cooking dinner. ‘It’s positive!’ I said, shoving the wand in front of his face. ‘Amazing. Here’s your bacon butty, ’ he…

Just like many teenagers, Wazir Khan, 17, dreams of being famous. But Wazir is different. Because he has a painful condition called osteogenesis imperfecta, which is also known as brittle bone disease. It’s a very rare and dangerous bone disorder. And his condition means his bones are incredibly fragile and break very easily. ‘I’ve had fractures from head to toe and studying bent my neck’ ‘I’ve had more than 300 fractures, ’ he explains. ‘I’ve had fractures from head to toe. My ribs have been fractured, and within a year when I was studying my neck got bent, and when the weather gets colder, my bones become painful. My leg is bent too, even though it wasn’t before, he adds. Wazir was born with the condition and has a sister…

In August 2011, I went to Zumba and afterwards, I chatted to a friend. ‘Come to my burlesque class, ’ she said. Burlesque?! Wasn’t that stripping? Imagining myself dancing around in nothing else but feathered knickers, towering heels and sequin nipple tassels, I almost snorted with laughter. I was pushing 50, a respectable wife and mum! Hardly my sort of thing. ‘It’s a giggle, ’ she insisted. Just then, a voice in my head piped up and my mind flashed back to my patients. Make the most of life while you can… ‘Oh, go on then!’ I heard myself say. A week later, when I arrived wearing my gym kit, I gulped. Women were lined up in the hall, dressed in their leggings and T-shirts, music from the film Moulin…

Naughty chocolate fudge cake Squidgy and delicious, this gorgeous festive cake will be a big, big hit. SERVES 12 PREP TIME 30 MINS PLUS COOLING COOK TIME 25 MINS • 150g unsalted butter, softened • 150g light muscovado sugar • 40g cocoa powder • 150g self-raising flour • 1tsp baking powder • ½tsp bicarbonate of soda • 2 medium eggs • 1tsp vanilla extract • 142ml soured cream • 2tbsp golden syrup FOR THE GANACHE: • 250ml double cream • 250g dark chocolate, broken into pieces • Chocolate Flake and mini eggs, to decorate 1 Heat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. G rease two 18cm sandwich cake tins and line the bases with baking paper. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until and creamy. In a…

Leanna Papadopoulos, 32, Buxton, Derbyshire On a night out with mates in November 2014, I stifled a yawn and decided it was time to head home. Tired and a little unsteady on my feet, I made my way to the train station. But I soon noticed a group of lads nearby, grinning and winking at me. I groaned, rolling my eyes. Ready to call it a night, the last thing I needed was their cheesy chat-up lines. ‘I need your number, ’ one said, flashing me a cheeky grin. He was tall, handsome, with a head full of dreadlocks and a glint in his eye. Definitely my type. ‘I don’t normally do this, ’ he pleaded with me. ‘Yeah right, ’ I smiled. ‘Tell her, ’ he shouted to his…

L’Oréal Paris Color Riche Intense Volume Matte Lipstick, £9 Matte lipstick has a cool edge over satin and gloss but it can feel dry, and pill into annoying little flakes. Not this one, though, which is enriched with nourishing oils and hyaluronic acid so that lips feel plump and creamy. Nivea Cellular Expert Lift Pure Bakuchiol AntiAge Night Cream, £19.99 As we age, collagen levels dwindle so lines and wrinkles deepen. This dream cream is enriched with bakuchiol (a botanical alternative to retinol) to boost collagen production by 48% in four hours! Boots Ingredients Repair Mask, £4.50, Boots If you colour and heat-style your hair, use this mask every second or third wash. Ingredients like niacinamide care for worn-out hair, leaving it more resilient. The Body Shop Fresh Nude Foundation,…

Putting her key in the door of her new house Shannon Keithley, then 39, must have felt content. It was spring 2016, and she’d had a rough time over the years. Divorce, family separations and difficult relationship break-ups had all left their scars. But now it was finally time to settle down. And what better place to start building her new life than at her grandma’s old house in Kansas City? It was a place that held so many happy memories. The house had stood empty since her grandma Sally, now 92, had moved out, so having Shannon stay there was no problem. In fact, Sally was happy to have family living back there again. She’d designed the house herself when she came to America from England after World War…

LINDSAY WRIGHT, 46, WARRINGTON, CHESHIRE, SAYS: My mum Linda, 70, is my hero. She started raising money in 2014 for St Rocco’s, a hospice that cares for people with life-limiting illnesses. First by selling items at car boot sales, then through garage sales and also selling items on Facebook. After collecting donations from people around Warrington, she then sorts through all the items, often with the help of her two grandsons. Listing them online, she donates all the money raised from the sales to St Rocco’s. She’s already managed to donate a staggering £17,500! And she also raises £200 every Christmas for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool. I want to say a huge thank you to my amazing mum, as well as to all the kind people of Warrington…

That’s a wrap Once your baby is too big for their baby towels they make the perfect hair towels. Simply put the flap that goes over the baby’s head at the back of your own head and wrap your hair up. It stays put way better than a normal towel! Gaia Hudson, Shotley Bridge, County Durham Quick picnic trick Stop wasps being a nuisance at a sunny picnic by bringing a spare jam sandwich and placing it a few yards away from your picnic spot. The wasps will feast there and leave you alone! Roger Hedges, Much Wenlock, Shropshire In the doghouse I turned an old dog crate into a small greenhouse simply by covering it with plastic from my old broken greenhouse. Su Davey, Colchester, Essex Oh sugar! You…

What connects Italian actor Sophia Loren and British presenter Adrian Chiles? To find out, solve the crossword then read down the shaded squares to find the three-word prize answer. ACROSS 1 Sorcery (5) 4 Infant (4) 6 Computer accessory (8) 13 Running after (7) 14 Knitting tools (7) 15 Stop (5) 16 Egg-shaped (4) 17 Careful with money (6) 18 Erase (6) 20 Felines (4) 21 Roof slates (5) 22 Spring festival (6) 25 Agreeable, nice (8) 28 Spike of ice (6) 30 Customary (5) 32 Cold sweet food (3,5) 34 Strong and solid (6) 35 Legal rules (4) 38 Round shape (6) 39 Cook in the oven (5) 40 Tasks, responsibilities (6) 43 Symbol of Wales (4) 44 Pieces of cake (6) 45 Breaking sharply (8) 48 Wrote down…

Fran Mungovin, 76, Brecon, Powys True-life PATIENT CASEBOOK Shuffling down the road towards the town centre, I paused to catch my breath. Leaning on my crutches, my back was on fire and a walk that used to take me 10 minutes now took almost an hour. Each step sent agonising pain down my spine. Years before, in 1963 and aged 17, I’d just enrolled at the Royal Manchester College of Music. Exploring my new college, I slipped down a set of stairs, landing on my back. ‘You need to take a term off to recover,’ my doctor warned, prescribing strong painkillers for me. And, though I eventually headed back to college, years of piano playing – and later, hoisting patients up in my job as a nurse – took its toll.…

Emma Legal, 31, Gravesham, Kent Taking a sip from my cuppa, I put my feet up and flicked through a mag. The benefits of being a mum-to-be. It was December 2020, and I was five months gone and I loved catching up on the latest celeb goss. But I nearly spat out my tea as I read about what Kim Kardashian was up to. She’d only eaten her own placenta after her baby had been born. I soon discovered she wasn’t alone. Placenta eating seemed to be the in thing! People claimed it had health benefits, boosting mood and energy. Mums were finding all sorts of creative ways to make use of theirs. Blending them into smoothies, making face masks. Even drying them out and making jewellery. No thanks, I…

Time for Celebrations Life’s been hard these last few years and, while the Covid crisis seems to be easing (fingers crossed), sadly it doesn’t look to be getting any easier with new emergencies at home and abroad. So take 10 minutes to cheer yourself up by celebrating the good things in life, no matter how small. We all deserve a treat – and choc is the best treat, we reckon. Give yourself a Boost Filled with antioxidants, chocolate is actually good for you, helping to reduce the risk of heart disease and certain types of cancers, as well as even having anti-ageing properties. Yes, it has to be dark choc and we don’t think docs recommend wolfing down a family-size bar. But we reckon a little of what you fancy…

The people of which ancient city were more commonly known as Lacedaemonians to their contemporaries? Solve the puzzle by following the arrows and writing in your answers. Then read down the letters in the shaded squares to find the prize answer. WIN £100 Puzzle 14 Your answer: FILL ME IN CIRCLE TIME A statue of suffragette Emily Davison was unveiled in which town in June 2021? Fit the words into the grid, then read down the letters in the shaded circles. 3 letters EAR EBB EEL EGG ELF ELM EMU END ERA EWE 4 letters ASKS EVER HOAX NOON TEAR THAT TUBA 5 letters ERASE PASTA UNFIT 6 letters AFFORD EMERGE EXTRAS FOSSIL SERENE UMPIRE 8 letters ABSOLUTE WIN £100 Puzzle 15 Your answer: TO ENTER Turn to page 56 for details or visit…

3 ways to… Ask for a pay rise If you want to ask your boss for a raise but don’t know how to go about it, here are some top tips from Victoria McLean, CEO of career consultancy City CV. 1 State your case Since pay rises are linked with achievements and accomplishments, prepare a list of concrete examples of things you have done as a basis for why you should get a raise, ’ explains Victoria. ‘Have you exceeded your sales targets? Have you stepped up to manage a team? This will help you negotiate from a position of strength. ‘And if you want to be paid more, bear in mind you may need to offer something extra such as offering to take on more responsibilities, ’ she adds. 2…

Baylis & Harding Goodness Sleep Bath Soak, £5, Tesco If you need to de-stress, skip the pricey spa and make your own in the bath. This mind-soothing soak is an affordable way to relax the mind and prepare the body for bedtime. A warm bath is a great way to wind down in the evening, and the lavender and bergamot scent has been carefully formulated to help you chill and encourage those zzs. 17. Colour Glow Cream Blush, £4, Boots The cult make-up brand is back but don’t let its youthful name put you off – the new 170 item-strong line is aimed at every skin type, at any age with prices starting at just £2. This cream blush is particularly lovely, with a silkysmooth texture that blends effortlessly, and…

CLOSING DATE FOR ALL ENTRIES IS 3 MAY 2022 (Three days later for postal entries) HOW TO ENTER TEXT Simply text CHATA followed by a space and your answer/s (spaces between answers please) full name, door number and postcode to 63333 Texts cost 50p plus standard network charge (maximum 160 characters per text). When you enter by text, you may in future get SMS marketing messages from Future plc and Chat. If you want to receive these, please end your text with OPTIN. Texting tips • Don’t put any spaces in an answer that has several words: eg: CHATISTHEBEST not CHAT IS THE BEST. • If the answer is a name, you need only give the surname: eg: CLOONEY not GEORGE CLOONEY. • You can use capitals or small letters,…