2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on Abandoned F1 track lies overgrown and covered in rubbish 13 years after last race as £255m of debt is racked up
FORMULA ONE will have two Grand Prix events in Spain next year following the announcement of the 2026 calendar.
The last time the country did this was between 2008 and 2012.
Fernando Alonso was the last winner of a race at the Valencia Street CircuitGetty Images - GettyThe track hosted five Grand Prix between 2008 and 2012 but ate up huge running costsAction Images - ReutersIt has now laid abandoned for 13 years with rubbish seen across the trackWeeds are now seen growing through the kerbsRunning costs totalled up to a staggering £255m in debtsThe once picturesque harbour-view track still holds some scars of its pastOld sponsors and paint markings can be seen on the site
Located near the port of Valencia, the F1 track record at the 3.4-mile circuit was set by Timo Glock in 2009 with a time of 1:38.683, though Fernando Alonso was the last race winner at the circuit.
However, the track was far from popular with drivers for its mundane layout and eventually a lack of interest and funding saw F1 move away.
The deal to bring it to F1 had allegedly been part of an election promise between former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and Valmor Sport group, led by former motorcycle racer Jorge “Aspar” Martínez and Villarreal CF’s president Fernando Roig.
But when Valmor went bankrupt through taking care of all the costs involved in running the races, the tracks seven-year deal was cut down to five and dug a financial hole worth £255million in debt.
An estimated £87m is said to have been paid to Ecclestone, while there were also considerable costs for the construction of the circuit, television broadcasting and various invoices related to the organisation.
All told, the Generalitat Valenciana had to fork out a bill of more than £85m to cover the losses.
And the circuit itself has been left in a state of disrepair after being closed in 2013.
Some of it was converted back to walkways for the public.
But the majority of the track looks like something out of an urban jungle.
Weeds have overtaken the slip roads on the site, rust has taken root on old safety barriers, and access tunnels have been flooded.
Buildings on the site look every hour of their age, with a repurposed 19th-century warehouse showing signs of needing a major paint job.
The track itself has not fared much better, with heaps of rubbish seen lying across it while weeds and plants grow out from under the kerbs of the circuit.
Pit markings and tyre burns can also be seen over what was not cleared away, while there is even still some evidence of race sponsors from never-removed hoardings to painted pavement which has faded over time.
Thieves have also had their way with what was left at the site.
Anything valuable that might have been left over from the days of F1 has been gutted out.
There was hope for the site in 2022 when an investment group was in talks with the City Council to reclaim the space, turning it into housing and flats for residents.
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on Annie McCarrick breakthrough as gardai launch new search & arrest man as 7 key questions in missing mystery revealed
GARDAI investigating the mysterious disappearance of Annie McCarrick in 1993 have today arrested a man on suspicion of murder and launched a new search of a house and garden in Clondalkin.
The update marks a significant breakthrough in the case after the Garda cold case investigation uncovered a litany of errors in the original investigation.
Annie McCarrick was last seen in 1993handoutGardai are searching a house in Clondalkin in connection with the investigationPadraig O'ReillyThe current tenants of the house being searched are not connected to Annie or her disappearance in any wayColin Keegan /Collins Photos
The original probe led to a narrative surrounding Annie’s final movements, which has since been revised in parts following more recent garda inquiries, with confusion around the last confirmed sightings of the American woman hampering the probe for at least 30 years.
Gardai have disproved a number of sightings of Annie over the last three decades since the investigation into her disappearance was upgraded to a murder case in 2023.
A new investigation team was also appointed after this change of approach.
A man, in his 60s, was this morning arrested on suspicion of murdering Annie, who was last seen on March 26, 1993 in Sandymount, CoDublin.
He is currently being detained under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in Dublin.
The suspect can be quizzed by detectives for up to 24 hours, excluding rest periods.
Gardai have also sealed off a property in Clondalkin, west Dublin.
The DMR South Central divisional search team, supported by the Garda National Technical Bureau, will examine “elements of the house and garden” throughout the day.
A temporary restricted airspace has been put in place by the Irish Aviation Authority in respect of the search area.
The force stressed that the current residents of this home are not connected in any way with Annie or her disappearance.
WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT DAY ANNIE LEFT?
The last confirmed sighting of Annie McCarrick is on the morning of Friday, March 26.
Annie, who lived in St Cathryn’s Court in Sandymount with two other tenants at the time of her disappearance, spoke to both of her flatmates before they left separately to travel home for the weekend.
The Long Island native had been making plans for her mother Nancy’s visit the following week and arranged a dinner party with friends for Saturday.
Annie, now alone in the shared apartment, never showed up to work on Saturday, was not home when pals called to her flat for the planned dinner that evening, and was not at work again on Sunday.
She did not even show up to her workplace, Café Java, to collect her wages.
A pal called to Annie’s apartment on the evening of the March 28 and spoke with her two flatmates, who had returned after a weekend in the countryside.
Groceries that had been purchased by Annie on the morning of March 26, in Quinnsworth on Sandymount Road, had been left unpacked in shopping bags in her apartment.
Among the shopping were perishable items such as butter and milk, but Annie did not put the shopping away.
The concerned friend reported her missing at Irishtown Garda Station on Sunday evening, March 28.
WHY WAS THE PROBE HINDERED?
The last known sighting of Annie has caused some confusion in recent years.
The focus of the investigation has switched from Enniskerry, Wicklow, and Glencullen in south Dublin, back to Sandymount.
CCTV footage of Annie queuing at the AIB bank on Sandymount Road shortly before 11am on the Saturday had been long regarded by both the investigation team and the public as the last confirmed sighting of the missing woman.
However, it has since emerged that gardai believe the date provided for the footage was incorrect, and Annie had visited the bank 11 days earlier.
Footage of Annie in the bank is now known to not be from the date she went missingAn Garda Siochana/PA WireA receipt from March 26th marks the last confirmed activity of Annie
Officers originally believed Annie may have travelled to Wicklow on the day of her disappearance, but struggled to find witnesses to confirm this.
A post office worker said she believed she may have sold stamps to a girl matching Annie’s description but, without CCTV footage, this was never confirmed.
During an RTE documentary on Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle a woman named Una Wogan said her mother Margret had been working in Poppies Cafe on Enniskerry’s Square on that Friday.
Una claimed her mother had said she was sure the last people she served at around 4pm that day were Annie and a man.
However, gardai never took a statement from Margret at the time.
This may have been due to the fact that if Annie had boarded the bus at 3.30pm – as they were investigating at the time – it would have taken over an hour for her to reach Wicklow.
Gardai have since confirmed they do not believe the 26-year-old made a trip to Wicklow on the day of her disappearance.
A doorman of Johnnie Fox’s pub in Glencullen reported seeing Annie leave the boozer that evening with a man.
But this sighting is now believed to be false.
The pub would have been around 6km from Annie’s apartment, with no public transport available between the two locations, meaning Annie would have had to walk on a dark and wet night.
WHERE DID SHE GO?
Investigating officers now believe Annie may not have ever left Sandymount.
Annie spoke with a soft Irish-American accent and gardai believe she was in the possession of a large brown leather bag when she disappeared.
Gardai upgraded the case to a murder investigation in 2023 after new evidence emerge.
Detective Superintendent Eddie Carroll said at the time that gardai are “satisfied that it is more likely now that Annie came to a foul demise”.
Simon Harris, who was Minister for Justice at the time of the reclassification of the case, said gardai are absolutely clear that there are people with information on Annie’s murder who have yet to speak to cops.
He said: “She was somebody from the States who had come to Ireland, who had fallen in love with Ireland, who had studied in Ireland and had returned to live here permanently.
“And her dad died without ever knowing what happened to his beloved daughter and her mother, Nancy, has every right to know what happened to her daughter.
“The gardai have been working extremely hard on this to carry out so many interviews and indeed visited Nancy in New York.”
WAS ANNIE ASSAULTED?
In 2023, it was claimed that Annie’s friends had alerted gardai in 1993 that she had been assaulted weeks before she disappeared.
The man friends claimed had “struck” Annie was known to her.
This information had never been in the public domain.
Speaking in theRTEdocumentary Annie’s aunt Maureen Covell said: “I was told something in confidence that someone that Annie had known had struck her when they were in a drunken state.”
Annie’s childhood best friend Linda Ringhouse revealed she and other pals and relatives sent faxes to gardai from the US just over a week after the student went missing to highlight their fears.
But investigating gardai said they never received the faxes sent from New York.
FAMILY'S HEARTACHE
ANNIE McCarrick's heartbroken family have continued to appeal for any information that could help them locate the body of the missing woman.
Originally from New York, Annie visited Ireland on a school trip as a teenager and her parents said she fell in love with the country.
She moved to Ireland permanently in January 1993.
She was the only child of her father John, who passed away in 2009, and mother Nancy.
Speaking to RTE News in 2023 from her home in Bayport, Long Island, New York, Nancy McCarrick said she didn’t think it was “remotely possible” that Annie could still be alive.
She said: “I did for a very, very, very long time but not after 30 years.”
The mum said Annie “loved it in Ireland” and that it is her “wish” to be able to bring her daughter home again.
Annie’s family has been “full appraised” of today’s developments in the case, an arrest and a new search in Dublin.
A garda spokesperson said: “An Garda Siochana has and will continue to keep the family of Annie McCarrick fully updated in relation to this investigation.”
It’s understood the faxes were found by new investigators assigned to the investigation alongside correspondence relating to the case at a later time.
Former Garda Detective Tom Rock, who led the Annie McCarrick missing person’s incident room, said the faxes would have taken the investigation in a different direction.
He said: “These faxes never came into the possession of the investigation team. I was never aware of these faxes.
“They definitely would have taken the investigation in a different direction.”
Annie’s heartbroken mother Nancy said they were “totally unaware” that Annie had been assaulted by a man known to her.
She said: “She hadn’t let us know about it. I guess she thought she could handle it herself and things would be all right.”
IRA KILLING THEORY
There have been multiple claims made and theories probed around who may have killed Annie in 1993.
A claim that a member of the Provisional IRA may have killed the American student was made in a book published in 2014.
Retired detective sergeant Alan Bailey, who was national co-ordinator of Operation Trace, said one line of inquiry which should be pursued was whether Annie met the IRA man at Johnnie Fox’s pub in Glencullen in the Dublin mountains.
However, gardai now believe Annie had not even been at the pub on the night of her disappearance.
Bailey, who authored ‘Missing, Presumed’ told RTE’s Today with Sean O’Rourke the information from a “very reliable source”, was a story that “needs to be checked out”.
The murderer was wanted over the November 1992 kidnap, rape, torture and murders of three teenage girls near Valencia.
Angles was identified as a stowaway on a British-captained container ship who fled Portugal for Dublin after escaping a massive police manhunt in Spain.
He would have reached Dublin just before Annie McCarrick disappeared without trace.
In 2023, retired Garda Detective Sergeant Alan Bailey, who was centrally involved in the investigation told a Spanish TV programme about the fugitive’s escape from police and the mystery of his current whereabouts.
He said: “I would say Antonio Angles will remain a person of interest until he can be definitively ruled out and we know what happened with Annie McCarrick.
“Antonio Angles needs to be traced, investigated and ruled out of the inquiry if he wasn’t involved. The fact he has never been located means he will be a suspect always.”
DOES SOMEONE HAVE INFORMATION?
Over the past three decades, detectives have discovered and collated over of 5,000 documents and reports, taken in excess of 300 statements of evidence and retained a number of exhibits.
Gardai believe someone who has not come forward about the investigation may have information.
They urged anyone with information, “no matter how small or insignificant” they may think it is, to make contact with the investigating team.
A garda spokesperson said: “Gardai also appeal to anyone that may have previously come forward but who felt that they could not provide gardai with all of the relevant information they had in relation to this matter, to please make contact with An Garda Siochana again.
“With the passage of time they may now be in a position to speak further with the investigation team.
“Any information will be welcomed by the investigation team, and will be treated in the strictest confidence.
“The investigation team can be contacted at Irishtown Garda Station on 01 666 9600 or anyone who wishes to provide information confidentially should contact the Garda Confidential Line: 1800 666 111.”
Colin Keegan /Collins PhotosGardai pictured outside the house in Clondalkin being searched this morning[/caption]
Annie was reported missing by a concerned friend on March 28, 1993Annie’s disappearance was upgraded to a murder case in 2023
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on Why Ananda Lewis Didn’t Have a Double Mastectomy After Cancer Diagnosis
Months before Ananda Lewis lost her battle with breast cancer, the former MTV VJ offered insight into why she opted not to have a double mastectomy. Ananda’s sister, Lakshmi Lewis, announced the news of her death via Facebook on Wednesday, June 11, writing, “She’s free, and in His Heavenly arms.” Ananda, who was 52, had […]
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on ‘This is not feminism, this is not empowering’: Sabrina Carpenter faces ire of fans as ‘degrading’ album cover fails to win
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on Multi-platinum selling DJ redefines the boundaries of pop music as he launches one of his most personal releases yet
FROM remixing the world’s biggest pop stars to taking to the main stages at top festivals, R3HAB has spent the last decade redefining the boundaries of dance music.
With reworks for the likes of Rihanna, Drake, Taylor Swift, and Calvin Harris under his belt, the multi-platinum selling Dutch Moroccan DJ and producer has become synonymous with transforming chart toppers into dancefloor weapons, always with his signature balance of emotion and euphoria.
CYB3RPVNKR3HAB has redefined the boundaries of dance music[/caption]
R3HAB turns the page this summer with one of his most personal releases yet, All My Life.
Out now on Polydor/Universal, the tune trades the peak time punch for something more introspective and cinematic.
Written during a songwriting camp in Thailand, the track is a deep house journey laced with soft piano, shimmering synths and a soaring vocal.
“All My Life means a lot to me,” R3HAB tells us. “The lyric ‘Parachute when I free fall’ came from a moment of complete surrender… that feeling when you let go, drift into the unknown and somehow feel safe in it.”
It’s a reminder of the power of dance music to lift us out of ourselves and that’s exactly what R3HAB’s exclusive playlist for The Night Bazaar delivers.
Handpicked by the man himself, these ten tracks map out the energy and emotion that have fuelled his global journey and inspired his music, from the iconic remixes that made his name to his forward-thinking sound of today.
With tracks from The Prodigy, Bodyrox, Avicii, Underworld and more, whether you’re on the dancefloor or chasing your own version of escape, R3HAB’s selection is the perfect soundtrack to let go, live fully and, as he puts it, “forget about everything else for a while.”
CYB3RPVNKHe has now released one of his most personal tracks yet[/caption]
This one hit deep. I remember seeing the music video as a little kid – black and white, raw, chaotic, magical. The breakdancing, the attitude, the sheer energy of the track. It didn’t sound like anything else. It was fast, aggressive and rebellious but so danceable. It gave me chills back then – and honestly, it still does. “You’re no good for me”… the way that vocal cuts through? Timeless.
“Take your brain to another dimension…” This wasn’t just a song – it was a full-blown trip. The vocals, the dubby textures, the dynamic shifts, it was unlike anything I’d ever heard. It felt like getting abducted into another world where every sound hit a different nerve. There’s something truly spiritual about how it all comes together. As a kid, it was one of the first records that made me realise music could be cinematic, psychedelic, and explosive all at once.
I first heard this in a nightclub and thought, what the hell is that sound? It was sleek, sexy, futuristic – like techno and electro had a child and raised it in a neon-lit bunker. The production was so ahead of its time. Those stabbing synths, the groove, the attitude – you could feel it in your spine. It was one of those records that made me stop dancing just to listen closer and figure out how the hell someone even made that.
Pure genius. The sidechain compression, the gritty robotic vocals, the hypnotic repetition – it was the blueprint for an entire era of electro-house. It’s one of those rare tracks that sounds just as fresh today as it did back then. Play it in any club and watch the floor erupt. I always expected how clean and punchy the mix was. Even now, it’s hard to match the raw power this track delivers.
What a story this record tells. The tension, the poetic vocals, the way it just slowly builds like you’re climbing some emotional mountain. It’s more than a track – it’s a cinematic journey. When that iconic drop finally hits, you feel like your soul lifts out of your body. “I can’t get no sleep…” became a global mantra. This is dance music with narrative, drama, and real feeling.
The Dirty Dutch sound. I remember this one hitting the clubs for the first time – it was like a punch in the face in the best way possible. Those screeching leads, the pounding rhythm, the sheer boldness of the sound. Chuckie was at the forefront of something new. The original and the remixes both hit – I even had the honor of remixing it myself, which was a huge proud moment. That groove was just undeniable.
You can’t talk about dance music history without this one. “Drive boy, dog boy, dirty numb angel boy…” – that vocal delivery still echoes in my mind. It’s haunting, euphoric, manic. The way it builds and evolves is masterful. Watching Trainspotting and hearing this track felt like discovering a portal into another emotional universe. A record that proves dance music can be just as emotive as it is physical.
A modern masterpiece. The melody, the vocal sample, the euphoric progression – it defined Progressive House for a generation. It was so catchy yet full of emotion. Avicii managed to take something vintage and flip it into a stadium anthem. You could feel the optimism and hope in it. “Oh, sometimes I get a good feeling…” That’s not just a lyric. It’s a state of mind this record puts you in.
This one just slaps. Absolute banger. One of my favorite peak-time records ever. Showtek brought that gritty, festival-ready energy that got people jumping out of their skin. The transitions, the drops, the build-ups – everything was explosive. These guys have always been legendary producers, and “Booyah” cemented that. A track made for massive crowds and big sound systems.
Now, this one? Revolutionary. The rhythmic innovation, the use of vocal chops as instruments, the percussive madness – it felt like the future. Afrojack’s punch and Major Lazer’s swagger – together, they created something completely genre-defying. The beats were tribal, electronic, and raw all at once. It broke the rules and set trends. Every producer after tried to recreate that magic.
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on Gogglebox star set to be a millionaire as he splashes out on TWO houses
GOGGLEBOX favourite Pete Sandiford’s making the most of his amazing telly success, which has seen his bank balance boosted considerably.
Appearing alongside his sister Sophie, 29, The Sun can reveal how Pete, 30, is on course to becoming a millionaire.
InstagramPete Sandiford and his sister Sophie are hugely popular on Gogglebox[/caption]
Channel 4The siblings joined the show in 2017[/caption]
InstagramPete is now on course to becoming a millionaire[/caption]
The much-loved siblings joined Gogglebox in 2017, and have been a huge hit ever since.
Reaping the rewards of his popularity, the Blackpool native has made sure that any money he’s made from the show hasn’t gone to waste.
He’s proved to be a shrewd businessman – especially when it comes to property.
The Sun can reveal how the TV star has recently opened up his own investment firm Corgi Real Estate.
He has also invested in a house in Fleetwood and an apartment in nearby Thornton-Cleveleys, each worth £80,000.
Pete has also capitalises on any earnings he makes from his TV career by setting up Corgi Media Ltd.
Nevertheless, the star’s daytime job isn’t just appearing on Gogglebox – which he’s only contracted to do 15 hours a week – but as a roofer and builder.
He’s got a business alongside a pal called TJ Joinery & Construction (NW) Ltd.
The firm is going along very nicely and in its first set of accounts filed a £88,475 profit.
The mum-of-two presents her show every weekday morning from 7am-10am and it’s the first time she’s had a some-what ‘normal’ routine.
When asked what her biggest insecurity is, Kathryn told the Irish Independent: “Worrying about my job. I have worked as a freelancer all my life.
“This is the first time I have had a Monday-to-Friday job in 46 years. I think people just assume that when you’re on the TV, you’re loaded.
“I want to be able to provide for my family the way my parents did for me.
“The media landscape is changing at a rate of knots, and you have to be able to back yourself. I’m at an age where I have faith in my abilities.”
And while life in the showbiz world isn’t all glitz and glamour – Kathryn has said she’d “loving” her new radio job.
She said: “The first few weeks was a baptism of fire. I had never driven a desk before.
“In any of the previous radio I had done, everybody was pressing buttons and doing all the other stuff for [me]. Commercial radio is very different to anything I would have done previously; it’s very fast paced.”
The 46-year-old also shared that her “most treasured possession” is her home.
She added: “I know we are very privileged and lucky to have it. We still have a big mortgage, but we have our four walls and have somewhere warm. I never take it for granted.”
Kathryn lives in Dublin with her husband Padraig McLoughlin, who tied the knot in 2019 at Kilkea Castle, Kilkenny, and their two daughters; Ellie, seven, and Grace, three.
Ellie is going into second class this September and her youngest will be completing her last year of preschool.
Kathryn recently said she’s glad to be “on the other side” of the potty training and that her kids are “just great”.
BABY BLUES
And when asked if she’s getting notions about having another child, Kathryn told The Irish Sun: “No… the shop is closed!”
However, she admitted that she briefly thought about it around two years ago.
She explained: “My sister had a baby, Lily, she’s two now. But I remember going in to see her in the Coombe.
“Grace was one. I had said to my gynaecologist, ‘No, done, shop is closed’, and my doctor said, ‘I’ve heard of women like you before’.
“Anyway, I went in to see my sister in the Coombe, held the baby, gave her back, ran outside, rang my husband, was like, ‘Do you want another baby?’, and he was like, ‘Not on your f***ing life’.”
Kathryn laughing added: “So that was the end of that conversation. And very quickly I kind of was like… the hormone release died down, I was fine.”
2 days agoNews TopicsComments Off on ‘To Be Hero X’ Fools You With Shonen-Like “Flashiness of the visuals”
One of the biggest anime series in 2025 is To Be Hero X, for its unique animation style and compelling storyline. It’s an anthology rather than a straightforward timeline, where the audience has to think about the events unraveling on screen. The most interesting part about To Be Hero X, however, is the different characters […]
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
President Bola Tinubu has refu
