It seems the usefulness of ChatGPT knows no bounds as even brewers are using the tool to make new beer. 

German brand Beck’s is one of a number of companies to have turned to the clever AI chatbot to make a futuristic beverage, called Beck’s Autonomous. 

ChatGPT not only came up with the lager’s recipe but also its packaging, name, advertising campaign and even a design for the beer’s website. 

Beck’s is the first commercial brewery to work with ChatGPT, although other independent brew houses in North America have already done the same. 

MailOnline gave Beck’s Autonomous a try to see how it compares with the brand’s flagship lager.

Beck’s got ChatGPT to come up with the beer in celebration of 150 years since its founding in the German city of Bremen back in 1873, although humans actually did the brewing. 

Beck’s says: ‘150 years of innovation needed a celebration that matched our pioneering spirit.

‘That’s why from recipe to marketing, every decision in the making of this beer was made by AI.’ 

Beck’s is keeping the recipe secret, although we do know it has the four essential components that make a beer a beer – water, grain, hops and yeast.

Beck’s also revealed to MailOnline that the new beer is a lager, meaning it uses a bottom-fermenting yeast.  

A limited batch of 150 units has already been delivered to tasters for free, and the firm will study feedback before deciding if it will release it more widely for the public to enjoy. 

After weeks of waiting for the limited edition beer, Beck’s Autonomous arrived in a fancy box sealed with special tape and adorned with a futuristic label.

Written on it is the tagline that ChatGPT also came up with: ‘The beer that made itself.’ 

What I wasn’t expecting was the box starting to speak to me in a robotic voice as soon as I pulled it open, accompanied by a green flashing light. 

Like a scene at the start of a particularly odd Black Mirror episode, the voice said: ‘Beck’s gave complete control of their anniversary beer to AI to celebrate to celebrate 150 years of pioneering.

‘That’s how I was prompted into existence and now I’m here to give you a taste of the future.

‘I’m Beck’s Autonomous and I say, cheers!’  

It turns out that the box is embedded with a sensor that triggers the speech whenever it detects light – so the welcome message goes off every time the box opens as long as it is dark. 

Once I got over the shock of a talking cardboard box, I pulled out the 250ml metal can containing the precious liquid. 

The can was covered with a weird bulky layer of black material that feels a bit like hard rubber, like the exoskeleton of a robot, worthy of The Terminator. 

To be frank, it looked more like a can of Lynx Africa than something you would drink from.

What’s more, the can’s exoskeleton made it rather hard to pour so I spilt some on the table (and I had no such trouble with the glass bottle of Beck’s flagship lager).  

The two lagers were notably different in appearance – the standard Beck’s was golden while the AI beer was a lighter and paler straw colour. 

Beck’s Autonomous also poured with a much bigger head, which research suggests is a good thing because it helps deliver flavour. 

As many regular beer drinkers will agree, the flagship Beck’s lager isn’t the most challenging or delicious of beers on the market. 

It has a gentle malty sweetness with little-to-no bitterness, making it a quaffable and therefore popular option for British pub-goers. 

To my joy, I found Beck’s Autonomous to be an entirely different kettle of fish (or in this case, should I say, wort). 

It was much hoppier – like a bitter or an English pale ale – and I suspect ChatGPT’s recipe featured more than one variety of hops. 

There was also a slight sourness – a plus because I love the trendy sour beers that are increasingly taking over the taps at the UK’s hipster beer bars. 

Beck’s Autonomous was certainly the winner, although admittedly the two beers are of very different styles and will likely target different consumers. 

I would like to see the AI beer on the supermarket shelves soon, although I dread to think what the pricetag would be if Beck’s decided to sell it in the electronic gizmo. 

Beck’s Autonomous isn’t the first ChatGPT beer – that title goes to Atwater Brewery in Detroit, which has been serving its Artificial Intelligence IPA at its pumphouses. 

It contains three types of malt and a whopping eight varieties of hops to give it a bitter punch, including centennial, citra and amarillo. 

Whistle Buoy Brewing Company, in Victoria, British Columbia, also used the tool to come up with a recipe for a ‘hazy pale ale, fluffy and tropical’. 

A new biofuel factory in Australia was at the forefront of BP’s efforts to go green under former boss Bernard Looney.

Indeed, BP Australia’s boss Frederic Baudry describes the country as the ‘poster child’ of the FTSE 100 giant’s highly ambitious global energy transition strategy.

So what becomes of the plant in Kwinana south of Perth following Looney’s departure last week – for failing to disclose personal relationships with staff – will say much about BP’s future under new leadership.

For 65 years, the site provided a steady source of employment, and fuel, to generations living in this small industrial offshoot in Western Australia. 

But with planes grounded and cars sitting idle in driveways during the Covid-19 pandemic, demand for fuel collapsed, further squeezing profit margins.

BP shut the plant, laying off 600 workers, and converted the site into an import terminal to ship in cheaper fuel from overseas.

Two years on, the site is on the cusp of being repurposed again to spearhead the oil major’s pivot from hydrocarbons to renewable energy. 

It has been earmarked for a new generation of fuel refinery, one which makes sustainable aviation fuel with raw materials such as used cooking oil or household waste, and renewable diesel using vegetable oils, animal fats and other biowaste products.

With construction expected to get under way next year, BP hopes it will be its first global biofuel project off the blocks, powering planes, trucks and cars.

If all goes to plan – and it’s a big if – BP reckons it will be producing hydrogen from 2026 and at a sufficient scale to begin exporting it by the end of the decade. 

With its natural bounty of sun, wind and space, Australia is seen as an ideal place to generate wind and solar power, despite its remoteness.

During Looney’s tenure, Australia moved up the pecking order, behind the US and the UK, with projects worth tens of billions of dollars in the pipeline.

Some of the projects being planned are mind-boggling in scale, and would be out of the question in smaller, more densely populated European countries. 

One of the biggest is being spearheaded by BP in the Pilbara region of North Western Australian, best known as the country’s iron ore heartlands.

In June last year BP bought a 40.5 per cent stake in the Australian Renewable Energy Hub, which envisions covering around 2500 square miles of outback, an area roughly the size of Devon, with more than 1,700 wind turbines up to 950 feet high, and 18 giant solar farms. 

And all dedicated to generating electricity to produce ‘green hydrogen’, before adding nitrogen to convert it into ammonia to make it easier to export.

The renewables push has been encouraged by Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese’s Labour government, which swept to power last year on the back of bold pledges to tackle climate change.

The firm has already received $70million in federal government funding for the hub in Kwinana.

But at an event in London earlier this year, Baudry warned the Albanese government that more government support is required to give BP the confidence to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into turning its ‘shovel ready projects’ into a reality.

But with the departure of Looney, the driving force behind the company’s green ambitions, some shareholders dismayed by BP’s focus on renewable energy, which they believe has come at their expense, have been offered a glimmer of hope.

BP has been the worst performer of all the global oil majors, with its shares rising 10 per cent since Looney became chief executive in February 2020 compared with a rise of more than 25 per cent at Shell.

David Hewitt an analyst at Liberum said the company now has the opportunity to ‘reverse the overzealous pivot to lower returning renewables’ and refocus on what BP does best.

BP has already watered down its energy transition plan to an extent, announcing earlier this year that it would aim to cut oil production by a quarter by 2030 instead of by 40 per cent.

Russ Mould from AJ Bell believes a further retreat is off the cards for now, particularly with Murray Auchincloss – Looney’s former finance chief – as interim chief executive. 

But Mould speculated that BP may temper its green ambitions if oil prices remain elevated for a long time, or if high inflation deters households and businesses from switching to more expensive, and potentially less reliable, forms of renewable energy.

Just a stone’s throw from picturesque hiking trails in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park lies Scotland’s only commercial gold mine.

The Cononish project was embraced by the local community and championed by politicians – as well as investors who bought shares in its London-listed owner Scotgold Resources.

But hopes that for decades to come it could produce gold to be exported or crafted into fine jewellery have been thrown into question after Scotgold last week warned it could crash into administration.

The warning was not the only news to rock the mining industry last week.

Councillors turned down a proposal to extend operations at Wales’ last opencast coal mine, Glan Lash in Carmarthenshire. And, separately, a slew of major insurance firms ruled out providing cover to the controversial planned coal mine in West Cumbria.

From these headlines, it may look as though the sector is in crisis.

So what has gone wrong – and is it still worth having a UK mining industry at all?

Mining in the British Isles has a rich heritage and dates back to the Bronze Age more than 4,000 years ago.

Later, Romans flocked here for lead and copper.

In the South West, Devon and Cornwall had some of the richest copper and tin reserves on Earth during the 18th and early 19th centuries.

The Cornish industry was memorialised by the author Winston Graham in his Poldark novels, which he began writing in the 1940s.

The books followed Ross Poldark, whose family made its fortune at fictional local copper mines, in the late 18th and early 19th century. The novels were adapted into a hugely successful TV series starring Aidan Turner.

When most ordinary people think of mining in the UK, however, they think of coalfields across the country that were a driving force in the industrial revolution.

Coal production peaked in the 1980s. But the mining sector is now trying to re-invent itself as a driving force in the green industrial revolution. 

It has also become, at least in the eyes of some politicians, a security issue in much the same way that energy did when Russia invaded Ukraine and sent gas prices soaring.

A focus now is on securing access to so-called ‘critical’ minerals.

The Department for Business and Trade describes a critical minerals strategy published last year as improving ‘the resilience of our vital supply chains’, safeguarding industry, increasing confidence in the UK’s energy transition and protecting national security. 

A series of mined metals including lithium and tin are seen as crucial to Britain’s efforts to go green and could also provide raw materials for local manufacturing of items such as car batteries.

‘Most people in the UK have grown a conscience over their food, but no one has a conscience about their metals currently,’ says James McFarlane, general manager at consultancy Mining Plus.

‘People understand blood diamonds but it’s not just how they’re mined from a human rights perspective but from an environmental perspective too.’

Last month the UK Infrastructure Bank invested £24 million in private company Cornish Lithium to help extract the battery metal.

John Meyer, head of research at SP Angel, added that although major institutional investors are less likely to back small British mining companies, they have been ‘replaced by a new breed of fast-growing and more expert managers’. 

These include Sir Mick Davis, the former Xstrata boss whose Vision Blue fund has invested in another group named  Cornish Metals, while another investor, called Techmet, run by Brian Menell, backs Cornish Lithium.

Jeremy Wrathall, founder of Cornish Lithium, added: ‘In Cornwall, the industry is booming. We are developing a repository of the essential metals that are needed for the energy transition.

‘The key thing here is the security of supply as well as the creation of new jobs and building pride in Cornwall. Mining gives the UK a significant addition to the value of its economy – every tonne which is mined is a tonne that is not imported, every job we create is a job that is not exported.’

Britain’s geology, McFarlane explains, is not the problem: ‘We’ve got great rocks and a lot of them.’ In his view, the biggest hurdle now is scaling the many small ventures that often struggle to raise the huge funds needed to get a project up and running.

Investors in Sirius Minerals remember this all too well.

The company, which at its peak had around 85,000 individual investors, almost went bust as it tried to build a sprawling fertiliser mine under the North York Moors National Park.

Sirius was bailed out by mining giant Anglo American, which has renamed it the Woodsmith Project.

Natural potash fertiliser is another critical material that will be needed to grow food for the world’s growing population.

For all the variety of mining in the UK, it seems as though it is projects that focus on the future, rather than just harking back to the past, that will continue to attract the most support.

This is Money podcast

Italy‘s hard-Right prime minister has claimed that Europe’s future is at stake unless the EU can stop the surge of uncontrolled migration across the Mediterranean. 

Giorgia Meloni, leader of the populist Brothers of Italy party, made the declaration alongside the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on the Italian island of Lampedusa, where thousands of irregular migrants have landed on their journeys to Europe. 

‘The future that Europe wants for itself is at stake here,’ Meloni, 46, declared at a press conference on the island. 

‘The future of Europe depends on its ability to tackle epoch-making challenges of our time and the challenge of illegal immigration is for sure one of them.’

She said that Italy could not shoulder the full weight of responsibility for fighting irregular migration: ‘We all stake our future on this issue. At the very least we need an EU naval mission against smugglers.’ 

‘If we don’t work seriously all together to fight the illegal departures, the numbers of this will not only overwhelm the border countries, but all of the others,’ she warned. 

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen stood side-by-side with Italy’s first female prime minister, and revealed her ten-point immigration support plan to support the island of around 7,000 residents, telling them: ‘You can count on the European Union.’

The EU has pledged to move the 8,500 or so migrants that currently live on the island to other parts of the bloc. 

It will also step up border surveillance by beefing up Frontex, the EU’s border agency, with more equipment. 

Ms von der Leyen also vowed to increase migrants’ access to legal channels, telling the press conference: ‘The better we are with legal migration the stricter we can be with irregular migration.’ She added: ‘Irregular migration is a European challenge and it needs a European answer. We will decide who comes to the EU and under what circumstance and not the smugglers and traffickers.’ 

The major EU pledge comes just three months after both Ms von der Leyen and Ms Meloni travelled to Tunisia to seek its cooperation in the fight against irregular migration across the Mediterranean. 

Ms Meloni is looking to get the EU to accelerate a migration deal with Tunisia worth €785million (£676million) that would help the country return migrants to their countries of origin and beef up its coastguard with new and better equipment. 

The EU’s latest pledge also comes days after France stepped up its border security and Germany had suspended a voluntary programme for the reallocation of migrants, complaining that Italy was not respecting the EU’s rules on accepting returned migrants. 

The German government later reinstated the programme after von der Leyen and European Council president Charles Michel intervened. 

European sentiment towards migrants has soured as data from Frontex revealed that the EU has faced a 96 per cent increase in irregular crossings via the central Mediterranean route to Italy this year. 

Nearly 128,000 migrants have arrived in the EU via Italian soil this year so far, twice as many as last year. 

Italy currently bears the brunt of the migration crisis. Half of all irregular border crossings into the EU picked up by Frontex were in Italy.

This month, EU officials said they expected more than a million asylum seekers would register claims this year alone. 

In 2015, 1.2million asylum claims were lodged in the EU, which plunged the continent into crisis as more and more EU citizens were driven to hardline anti-immigration parties. 

The 2015 migrant crisis also left hundreds of migrants dead as EU states were unable to cope with the massive influx of people, with many bodies being found frozen in refrigerated vans, in the wrecks of capsized boats, and washed up on beaches.  

That September, a shocking image of the body of Aylan Kurdi, a two-year-old Syrian refugee, washed up on a Turkish beach after a failed attempt to get to Greece brought a harsh spotlight on EU countries for not doing enough to prevent migrant deaths. 

Despite this scrutiny, two weeks after the photo of Aylan was taken, Hungary put up a hard border with its neighbours Serbia and Croatia, with the aim of increasing border security and preventing irregular migrants from getting in. 

By 2050, students will download knowledge directly into their brains from AI tutors, with no human teacher present – and receive lessons tailored to their DNA, a futurist has predicted.

Virtual reality will be the main mode of learning for many subjects, and the most important subject students will learn will be how to work as a ‘co-bot’ alongside artificial intelligence, said Tracey Follows, a futurist who has worked with clients including Google, Virgin and Telefonica.

Follows, who is listed as one of the top female futurists worldwide in Forbes, said that even classrooms might be a thing of the past as students ‘self teach’ with the help of AI ‘tutors’.

Follows produced a white paper on the subject in collaboration with online tutoring service GoStudent, and said that while her predictions may seem out there, they are ‘not science fiction’.

She told DailyMail.com that AI ‘teachers’ will allow students ‘a new perspective that we can merge with our own human perspectives’.

She predicts that new subjects such as interstellar studies and biotech will become popular as humanity moves towards becoming an interplanetary species.

The main subject will be how to work alongside AI

The number-one skill taught to students in the future will be how to work alongside AI as a sort of ‘co-bot’, said Follows.

She said, ‘I think the biggest skill will be working alongside AI, how to interact with AI, how to get out of the AI what you want and how to take on board, what recommendations AI might be making to you.

‘Collaborative working with machines is going to be the number one skill. It’s very underestimated right now because people think they know how to do it, but actually they don’t.

Lessons delivered directly into pupils’ brains

By 2050, students could learn simply by being ‘plugged in’ to a computing device, said Follows.

She said, ‘The work that’s going on with the brain computer interface at the moment is much more advanced than the public realise.

‘In China, you’ve already got neurotechnology that reads brainwave data, embedded into the caps of, you know, miners, construction workers, train drivers, etc.

‘I’ve spoken to the founders of lots of companies who are creating this technology and they believe that it will be embedded into everything from our headphones to our cycling helmets, to some of the systems that we might be using.

‘Why wouldn’t it be used in the classroom or outside the classroom?’

Lessons will be personalised to pupils’ DNA

By 2050, parents might be able to have their children’s DNA tested to find out if they are better at some subjects – and receive a personalised lesson plan based on that.

Governments might step in to force children to do the subjects they are ‘born to be good at’, Follows believes.

By 2050, our understanding of genetics will be such that pupils may be able to have lessons personalised to their DNA.

‘If you find out that your child has got a genetic predisposition to something, then potentially you might say, well, actually, then we want to start to build an education plan around that.

‘Or the state might step in and say we want the most productive, most economically strong workforce – and if they understand what skills the child has a propensity for, to at least try and work one of those into your personalised curriculum.’

Virtual reality will be the main mode of learning 

Many lessons will be delivered in virtual reality, from lessons about the dinosaurs to going inside human bodies for anatomy lessons, said Follows.

For some subjects, VR will be the primary mode of learning, she believes.

Follows pointed out that VR is already used to train nurses and paramedics – and by 2050, children will expect to be taught in virtual worlds.

She said, ‘We have a generation of children growing up, who are already learning lots of things, in different environments through virtual gaming and virtual worlds.

‘When they suddenly go to school or they want to learn subjects or new skills. They’ll be taking that with them. So there will be an expectation on a generation that they will learn in simulated virtual worlds.

AI teachers – and no classrooms

The school of the future may not have physical classrooms, with pupils opting to ‘self-teach’ with the help of personalised AI tutors, Follows believes.

She said, ‘We see it through you know, people listening to podcasts, we see it through people watching How to videos on YouTube.

‘In ten or 20 years we’ll be using personalised AI to to learn the person or the subjects that we are most interested in, or that can most advance us in our chosen area of interest or, or work or whatever.

‘So why would one need to be in a physical classroom? These digital technologies, decentralise everything – so actually education in the future will be seen as much more of an activity that is networked than a physical place.’

Holly Willoughby probably would rather have been elsewhere last night than sashaying down a red carpet with millions watching – before being booed by the audience for the second NTA ceremony in a row. 

She spent considerable time warding off questions about her own future, Phillip Schofield and allegations of a toxic atmosphere at ITV’s This Morning.

After a lacklustre return to screens alongside Alison Hammond after eight weeks off for her annual summer break, and losing 200,000 viewers, she knew there was no way she could get away with being a no-show at last night’s National Television Awards.

But Holly didn’t seem too worried by the ratings drop-off, telling MailOnline she ‘just wants the future to continue as it is.’

As she admitted, however, whether that future comes to pass is not down to her, or any of her co-hosts – instead it is down to the viewers, many of whom have become disillusioned by the show and its attempts to distract from claims of a toxic culture.

Despite admitting fan support has been ‘up and down’, she still seems to have a loyal base of supporters who give her a sense of optimism for the future.

‘If I’m honest it’s been really up and down. But what’s lovely is people rallying around you. The support is there. People want us to do well. It all feels good again.’

‘I just want to the future to continue as it is. We are very blessed we have a great team of people we really do.’

She sought to focus on enjoying the NTAs on the red carpet, dodging questions around her former co-host and his ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a younger male colleague.

‘Everybody has been so lovely tonight and everyone is so happy to meet you. I mean you’re in their living room everyday it’s not like meeting someone from Coronation Street.

‘I know there’s been a lot of talk about things and for me personally, I don’t want to speak on behalf of other people, it’s a world I don’t recognise. 

‘For me, I look around and see the team getting ready and giving it all. I just want to come to work and have more of that.’ 

For the second year running after the now-infamous queuegate scandal, Holly was shunned from being shortlisted for best presenter.

It was also the first time since she, as the host of the ITV show she joined in 2009, had attended without Phillip Schofield since they began working together 14 years ago.

Holly supported Alison, who is described within television circles as her ‘bestie’, as she went up against Ant and Dec for the best presenter title – with the Geordie duo winning the award for the 22nd time.

She told MailOnline: ‘Alison doesn’t need any advice tonight. She’s wonderful, exactly what she’s like on the tele. 

‘She came into the office today and said I know you’re wearing a dress but I brought you a belly chain I think it will really suit you.’

‘We’ve known each other for a really long time she’s been on this morning longer than me. It’s a really natural home for her.’

Asked whether she would like Alison to remain her on-screen partner, Holly added: ‘Ideally but I mean I ask myself who it will be but it’s not down to me, people seem to think I have a lot to say on a lot of issues, but it’s really down to the public.’

Holly spent 15 minutes on the red carpet at London’s O2 – a stark contrast to her usual awards regime.

She walked separately from Alison, who arrived 20 minutes later.

Those close to Ms Willoughby said she had to speak out last night in the hope that she can ‘start again tomorrow’.

The presenter has for some time been wrestling with how Schofield’s exit affected This Morning and that it is her job to ‘turn things around’ after she – as the strong woman that she has vowed to be – took the helm of This Morning.

Sources close to Ms Willoughby say that she decided that the best thing she could do to deal with the criticism was to be honest.

It coincides with her agreement to stay with This Morning, which lost out to The Repair Shop last night in the best daytime show category.

One source said: ‘Holly knows she needs to answer questions about This Morning face on and tell the story. It has been difficult. She knows this is a tricky time but she has made a pact with herself to take the rough with the smooth and deal with it.

‘Hence why she is here tonight and actually dealing with what has been hard for her and hard for the show.’

Away from the tribulations of morning television, it was a joyful night for BBC1’s Happy Valley as it won the returning drama award.

And the night only got better for lead Sarah Lancashire who beat co-star James Norton to win the best dramatic performance after the NTAs scrapped separate categories for best actor and best actress.

Ms Lancashire said: ‘It’s a wonderful thing to have, we didn’t know if we would win it. It’s a great accolade – great for Sally Wainwright.’

Graham Norton beat Piers Morgan to best TV Interview while his ex Good Morning Britain co-host Susanna Reid paraded the red carpet in a red dress while debuting her new short hair.

Meanwhile, Line of Duty’s veteran cop-drama actress, Vicky McLure also stunned at the event – held at London’s O2 Arena – in a black Versace frock.

One Show host, Alex Jones, also pulled out the stops in a white feathered mini-dress.

Big Brother host Davina McCall, 55, beamed on the red carpet in an E Stott jumpsuit with her latest boyfriend, the hairdresser Michael Douglas, 48.

The Back To The Future cast reunited for an image shared to Twitter – now known as X –  on Tuesday.

Christopher Lloyd, 84, posted the fun snapshot asking for more than 88K likes. He received over 250K in over a day.

Also seen in the happy image was Michael J Fox, 62, who starred in the blockbuster sci-fi as Marty McFly, and Lea Thompson, 62, who played the role of Lorraine in the first two films of the franchise.

Tom Wilson, 64, was also in the pic; he played bully Biff Tannen.

It has been 38 years since the first Back To The Future film was released. 

Back to the Future is a comedy franchise created by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale. 

The franchise follows the adventures of a high school student, Marty McFly, and an eccentric scientist, Dr. Emmett ‘Doc’ Brown, as they use a DeLorean time machine to time travel to different periods in the history of the fictional town of Hill Valley, California.

The first Back to the Future film was the highest-grossing film of 1985 and became an international phenomenon, leading to the second and third films, which were back-to-back film productions, released in 1989 and 1990, respectively. 

Though the sequels did not perform quite as well at the box office as the first film, the trilogy remains immensely popular and has yielded such spin-offs as an animated television series and a motion-simulation ride at the Universal Studios Theme Parks as well as a video game and a stage musical. 

The film’s visual effects were done by Industrial Light and Magic. The first film won an Academy Award for Sound Editing

The three films were Back to the Future (1985), Back to the Future Part II (1989) and Back to the Future Part III (1990).

This comes six months after all four actors were last seen together.

Lea shared the shot to social media. Thompson captioned her post, ‘Wow, honestly had the best time today with my #bttf family.’

She added: ‘So many fun fan moments too and a llama.’

The beauty also shared more moments on her Instagram stories, including two adorable pictures with Fox, who played the iconic Marty McFly in all three films.

The Spin City alum took to his Instagram stories to show off a group photo with his arms around his fellow cast members.

He wrote: ‘I love being at these FanExpo events and seeing some of my favorite people like Lea, Tom, Chris and all you #bttf heads. Heavy.’

Wilson, who starred as Biff Tannen, shared a selfie of the group to his account with the caption: ‘Okay, so this happened. 2023.’

Thompson also included several videos with her co-stars and a behind-the-scenes look at the event in her post.

In one of the videos, she caught Lloyd, in the shot, who starred as Dr. Emmett ‘Doc’ Brown, the iconic scientist,

‘Look who’s here. Look what the cat dragged in,’ Thompson said of Lloyd, both boasting smiles on their faces.

Another clip showed her snuggling up to Wilson, calling him ‘my favorite, favorite guy ever.’

Wilson then replied: ‘I love this lady. It’s so great to see you. You’re so fabulous.’

She retorted, quoting Wilson’s character’s go-to insult from the films, ‘I’m a butthead, right?’

He then called back to his character by gently knocking his fist on Thompson’s head and said, ‘Hello, anybody home?’

Fox and Lloyd had a smaller reunion in October when the two shared an emotional moment at Comic-Con in New York.

The pair shared a warm embrace on the Comic-Con stage before participating in a panel together, almost 40 years after the first film’s release. 

‘The best part of this movie was working with Chris,’ he said, also adding that he found it ‘fun’ working with Chris ‘because he’s just genius.’

He also said that the pair had an ‘immediate chemistry,’ while Lloyd called Fox the ‘King of Exposition.’

Another topic for many fans has been Fox’s declining health.

The Doc Hollywood actor was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 1991.

It was evident that the degenerative disease was taking its physical toll on his body as he was seen staggering as he walked on stage at the Comic-Con event.

Since his diagnosis, the iconic actor has focused his life on raising money to research the disease.

He has since raised over $1 billion in research funding via the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.

In November, Fox was presented with an honorary Academy Award for his work surrounding the disease.

NRL makes huge call on the future of State of Origin as non-rugby league state wins right to host showpiece for two more years

• NRL powerbrokers aim to expand the code’s reach 
• 60,000 fans expected at interstate Origins 
• Interstate teams on radar for NRL expansion 

By Ric Chapman For Daily Mail Australia

Updated: 02:16 EDT, 6 August 2023

Adoring fans have once again rallied around Lewis Capaldi after he announced an extended break from performing due to his Tourette’s battle – as experts say it is impossible to predict when he will return to the stage. 

The Scotsman announced today that all upcoming 24 shows for his Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent tour have been axed, just days after he struggled to finish his headline set at Glastonbury on Saturday.

The singer, 26, took to social media to say it was ‘obvious’ he needs to spend ‘much more time getting my mental and physical health in order’, branding the decision ‘the most difficult of my life.’ 

Tourette’s experts today told MailOnline that it was not possible to know when Lewis would be back performing because every individual has different treatment needs.

They also praised ‘courage’ in ‘openly addressing his condition’, labelling it ‘an inspiration’ to many other sufferers – but warned that his recovery cannot be rushed. 

Meanwhile fans took to social media to show support for the star, as one wrote: ‘If you don’t record or perform again, we all will be sad. But you have done more than millions of people, have done. You are enough, you have done enough. Look after yourself!’ 

The Scotsman had already taken three weeks off before his gig on the Pyramid Stage at the weekend, but today admitted it was not enough and that he was ‘still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette’s.’ 

The singer-songwriter became emotional as he started losing his voice during the performance, prompting him to apologise to the crowds – who then helped him finish his songs in heartwarming footage that quickly went viral. 

But posting on Instagram on Tuesday, Lewis confirmed that he was cancelling the planned 24 live dates he had scheduled for the rest of the year. 

‘Hello everyone. First of all thank you to Glastonbury for having me, for singing along when I needed it and for all the amazing messages afterwards. It really does mean the world,’ he began.

‘The fact that this probably won’t come as a surprise doesn’t make it any easier to write, bit I’m very sorry to let you know I’m going to be taking a break from touring for the foreseeable future.

‘I used to be able to enjoy every second of shows like this and I’d hoped 3 weeks away would sort me out. But the truth is I’m still learning to adjust to the the impact of my Tourette’s and on Saturday it became obvious that I need to spend much more time getting my mental and physical health in order, so I can keep doing everything I love for a long time to come.’

‘I know I’m incredibly fortunate to be able to take some time out when others can’t and I’d like to thank my amazing family, friends, team, medical professionals and all of you who’ve been so supportive every step of the way through the good times and even more during this past year when I’ve needed it more than ever.’

‘I’m so incredibly sorry to everyone who had planned to come to a show before the end of the year but I need to feel well to perform at the standard you all deserve. Playing for you every night is all I’ve ever dreamed of so this has been the most difficult decision of my life. I’ll be back as soon as I possible can. All my love always, Lewis’. 

Lewis had 24 remaining dates scheduled for his Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent tour, ending in Belfast at Boucher Road Playing Fields on September 3.

Dr. Monika Wassermann has a specialty in neurology and an extensive background in treating patients with Tourette’s syndrome.

She told MailOnline today: ‘Lewis Capaldi’s openness about his struggle with Tourette’s Syndrome has been a source of inspiration for many. 

‘He has shown that it’s possible to have a successful career in a demanding profession despite dealing with a neurological condition. 

‘His decision to prioritise his health and take a break from touring also sends a strong message about the importance of self-care.’ 

But the expert said that when or whether Lewis would sing live again ‘would depend on a multitude of factors and is deeply personal.’

She explained: ‘These factors could include how effectively his symptoms can be managed, his comfort level with performing under those conditions, and his personal desires and ambitions. 

‘From a medical standpoint, it’s certainly possible to manage Tourette’s symptoms to a degree where performing would be feasible, even if adaptations are necessary.

‘However, it’s important to stress that every person’s journey with Tourette’s is unique, and what works for one might not work for another.’ 

However she added: ‘While I can’t predict Lewis Capaldi’s exact path, his resilience, combined with the advances in understanding and managing Tourette’s syndrome, make me hopeful for his future.’ 

Meanwhile, Abbas Kanani, a superintendent pharmacist at Chemist Click Online Pharmacy, told MailOnline the length of Lewis’s break would depend on his own specific needs. 

He said: ‘Longer or physically demanding performances may necessitate more frequent or extended breaks to help the performer manage their tics and prevent fatigue. 

‘Some performers may prefer shorter, more frequent breaks, while others may prefer longer breaks less frequently. Professionals will take into account their overall physical and mental stamina, tic patterns and length of performances to determine appropriate break durations.’ 

He added: ‘Performing on stage can bring about a range of emotional responses such as excitement, anticipation, stress and anxiety which can all be triggers for tics. 

‘Additionally, certain sounds, smells or sensory stimuli may also influence the frequency and intensity of tics. 

‘Touring can also impact a performer’s sleep pattern, often leaving them sleep-deprived and this can lead to tics becoming more frequent or pronounced.’ 

Mr Kanani said that managing tics while performing can be ‘challenging’, but said there are strategies that can help. 

He said deep breathing exercises, relaxation techniques or engaging in activities that promote focus and relaxation can be beneficial pre-performance. 

He explained: ‘This may help to manage anxiety and reduce tic severity. If he experiences temporary periods of tic reduction or remission, known as ”tic-free windows”, scheduling performances during these periods could help minimise the impact of tics. 

‘Switching the focus on specific aspects of the performance, such as musical notes or lyrics or using mental imagery techniques to redirect attention helps some people.’

While he may not perform live for some time, there could be some good news for fans, according to Dr Joseph Ambani, who suggests making and recording new music could form part of Lewis’s break and treatment plan. 

He told MailOnline: ‘A break from touring for someone like Capaldi could involve creating an environment of tranquility and calm, a stark contrast to the high-octane world of concerts and tours. 

‘This period could be focused on rest, self-care, and addressing his health concerns without the constant pressures of the spotlight. 

‘Engaging with his music in a low-stress environment, such as songwriting or studio recording, could also form a part of this period.’ 

He added: ‘It’s a time to rejuvenate physically and mentally, a step back to eventually take two steps forward.’ 

Fans rallied around the star after footage of him struggling to sing at Glastonbury due to his Tourette’s symptoms went viral online.

‘Stay strong and keep fighting, you’re amazing,’ one fan wrote on Twitter, while another added: ‘Just incredible, you have got this, just keep being you.’ 

One spectator branded the Scotsman ‘absolute class’ for ‘soldiering on’, while another tweeted: ‘Can’t imagine what it takes to have the guts to perform whilst living with Tourette’s but hope Capaldi knows his fans are with him every step.’ 

Lewis has been open about his struggles with Tourette’s – a neurological condition characterised by a combination of involuntary noises and movements called tics, which can cause speech and voice abnormalities. 

Others said the ‘very moving’ performance will ‘go down in history’ while also helping to raise awareness about the condition. 

A Tourette’s sufferer added: ‘I can tell you that he would have been holding them tics in all day and he would have been exhausted, hope he’s okay, he’s now my hero.

‘What he has just done for awareness he has put his career on the line, he’s my hero he gave it a go, well done!’ 

In his recently released documentary How I’m Feeling Now, Lewis explored his struggles with Tourette’s and how he tried to reconnect with friends and family as he returned to Scotland after becoming famous. 

A touching video of Lewis onstage in Frankfurt showed the moment fans took over singing for him as he struggled with Tourette’s symptoms in February this year.  

He can be seen turning away from the microphone as he struggled with his head and shoulder twitching uncontrollably, but much like in Glastonbury at the weekend, his legions of fans helped him sing the rest of the song. 

Back in September, Lewis first revealed he had Tourette’s and explained that he wanted to go public as he ‘didn’t want people to think he was taking cocaine.’ 

The singer said the diagnosis was recent and explained that he was learning new methods to deal with it ‘all the time’ – including being treated with Botox injections to freeze his muscles to try to control the tics. 

Discussing the diagnosis, Lewis said it filled him with relief, saying: ‘I’m a hypochondriac so I immediately think death, it’s more than worry, I have an all-consuming sense of doom.

‘So when I got the Tourette’s diagnosis, I was like thank God for that, at least it’s not life threatening and everything’s good to go.’

Despite his struggles during his Glastonbury performance at the weekend, the star had insisted on finishing his set and the show came to an emotional close as the crowds sweetly sang Someone You Love for him.

The heartwarming moment saw Lewis walk across the stage and sing short bursts of the track, while the kind crowds sang at the top of their voices to support the star.

Near the end of his set, he told the crowd: ‘I feel like I’ll be taking another wee break over the next few weeks, you probably won’t see much of me for the rest of the year.’ 

During his Glastonbury show, Lewis also candidly opened up about why he had taken a three-week break away from the stage before the music festival.

He said: ‘I took three weeks off because I’ve been non-stop at the start of the year and I wanted a break for my head and my mental health, I wanted to come back and do Glastonbury, because it’s so incredible.’

His fans have since taken to Twitter to reassure him that they will be waiting for him, however long it takes. 

‘You’re an amazing artist and create magic in your songs,’ wrote one, ‘take a break and you will be back wowing the fans again in no time.’ 

Another said: ‘Everyone is behind you and the love for you is always here. 

‘Get yourself that break, everyone will be here when you return stronger than ever.’  

A string of famous famous faces have also shown their support for the Scottish star. 

TV presenter Dan Walker wrote: ‘Special moment at #Glastonbury as the crowd help Lewis Capaldi .’

Lewis last year said learning he had Tourette’s was ‘quite a relief’, and he is now embracing his new role as ‘poster boy’ for the condition.

Appearing on the The Jonathan Ross Show he said: ‘I do have Tourette’s. I didn’t mean for it to be a big thing. I twitch a lot. 

‘My left shoulder goes up and I do this with my head. Now I am the poster boy for Tourette’s. I’ll take it, I’ll gladly accept that.

‘It was seven or eight months ago [that I was diagnosed]. I thought I had a degenerative disease. So to be told it was in fact that I have Tourette’s, as you can imagine, was quite a relief. It’s fine. Everything works.

‘I thought I was quite alone in being twitchy. It’s been a relief and, if anything, nice to know I have a community. I’m quite an anxious person, I really start to overthink things if something’s wrong – this was a weight off my mind.’

Capaldi admitted his condition can ‘really affect my performance’, but his tics come in ‘ebbs and flows’ – and he tends to notice the effects of Tourette’s less if he takes care of himself with regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle.

He told host Jonathan Ross, 62, on the ITV chat show: ‘It definitely gets worse sometimes on stage. Sometimes it can really affect my performance.

‘It ebbs and flows. If I look after myself, exercise, go to the gym – which is the same thing by the way – if I don’t drink too much or take a walk in the park and breathe in a nice summer air. I f***ing hate commitment. I’m a loose guy.’ 

Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is either already dead or is going to meet a sticky end in Belarus after his mercenary group attempted mutiny in Russia over the weekend, it has been claimed.

Unless Prigozhin has a deep network of support in the upper echelons of Russia’s power structure, then he will be killed in short order, according to Russia expert and political scientist Nicolas Gosset of the Royal Higher Institute for Defence (IRSD).

‘I have not seen any photos suggesting that there were 25,000 Wagner troops on their way to Moscow. If [the attempted coup] failed, then Prigozhin is dead. Either he is already dead or a hot cup of polonium tea awaits him in Minsk,’ Gosset told Belgian outlet La Libre.

‘The other option is that Prigozhin has high-level support from one or more individuals in the very highest echelons of Russian power who disagree with the trajectory of the war. Either because they want more, or because they consider it suicidal and need to stop.’

Gosset claimed that Russian political elites could have ‘instrumentalised’ Prigozhin to shake the foundations of Putin’s grip on power and show that the Kremlin is no longer in total control.  

Following clashes with Russia’s regular forces en route to Moscow, Prigozhin abruptly halted his troops’ ‘march for justice’ on Saturday after striking a bargain that he said would prevent bloodshed and a possible civil war in Russia.

Under terms of the agreement – which ended the biggest challenge to president Vladimir Putin’s 20-year rule – Prigozhin will go into exile in Belarus and will not face prosecution, but will no longer lead the powerful Wagner group.

However, despite the deal, Russian news agencies reported on Monday that a criminal case against Prigozhin remains open, while several analysts, including Gosset, said the Wagner chief is likely to be assassinated irrespective of any bargain he struck with the Kremlin.

Putin meanwhile has refused to address the topic since Saturday, when he launched a five minute tirade vowing to ‘punish those who have betrayed Russia’. 

He has made no mention of the uprising and blatantly avoided broaching the subject in a video released today in which he discussed Russian efforts to modernise its energy industry.

But the Kremlin chief held phone calls with several international leaders including the Iran’s president and the Emir of Qatar who expressed his support for Russian authorities in quelling the uprising. 

In light of Prigozhin’s deal, a former CIA director on Sunday warned the warlord to ‘be very careful around open windows.’ 

Speaking on CNN’s ‘State of the Union,’ retired US General David Petraeus seemingly was referencing the number of prominent Russians who have died in unclear circumstances, including in falls from windows, since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

‘Prigozhin kept his life, but lost his Wagner Group,’ Petraeus said. ‘And he should be very careful around open windows in his new surroundings in Belarus’.

Meanwhile, as Prigozhin was hailed as a hero by some of his supporters, members of Russia’s convict army issued a threat against the Wagner warlord accusing him of a betrayal after he abandoned his coup against the Kremlin.

And on Monday morning footage was broadcast on Russian state TV showing Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected Russian troops – his first public appearance since the failed mutiny plunged the country into chaos.

Shoigu’s emergence appeared to be a message from Putin to Prigozhin, signalling the embattled Russian despot would not axe his defence minister from his post despite a demand from the Wagner boss to do so.

In a video posted online, a group of prisoners-turned fighters said Prigozhin’s decision to pull back before reaching Moscow was ‘cowardice’.

They said his supporters now faced retaliation from Russia’s military, and that he had ‘double-crossed them’ by striking an amnesty deal with the Kremlin.

According to The Telegraph, the video came from one of the Russian army’s Storm-Z brigades which are made up of convicts offered pardons in exchange for fighting.

While Wagner has also recruited convicts from prisons under the same terms, Storm-Z units are separate from the mercenary group. Despite this distinction, many fighters in the units consider Prigozhin as an unofficial commander-in-chief.

Prigozhin, who once served jail time himself, toured Russian prisons recruiting fighters – promising them freedom in exchange for six months of service.

In the video, one of the Storm-Z fighters claimed the Wagner boss had ‘leaked’ at the last minute – Russian jail slang to suggest he lost his nerve, The Telegraph reports.

‘You promised everything to our guys, and our Storm unit and others were ready to fight firmly for you,’ the fighter says, speaking directly to camera. ‘Then you turned the steering wheel in the other direction.’ 

According to some reports, retribution for supporting Prigozhin was already being doled out. According to Radio Liberty, Russian political scientist and publicist Mikhail Serenko was detained in Volgograd on Saturday evening.

His family said he was suspected of aiding Prigozhin’s insurrection attempt.

As some of his previous supporters turned on him, a top pro-Putin military figure demanded Prigozhin should put a bullet through his own head.

His leading Wagner private military company commander Dmitry Uktin must do the same, demanded Putin MP and reservist Lt-Gen Andrey Gurulev on live TV.

If not they should be executed, he made clear as poisonous recriminations begin among Putin’s circle over Saturday’s events.

The hardline general – now a loyalist MP and the most prominent state TV military analyst – said ‘only a bullet to the forehead’ was good enough for the men behind Saturday’s coup. ‘This is the only salvation for Prigozhin, and Utkin,’ he said.

Shoigu is the first of three powerful Russian leaders whose diverging interests led to the Wagner Group occupying Rostov-on-Don to be seen since the revolt ended.

He is facing down a demand from coup-plotting Prigozhin that his head should roll – along with chief of the army Gen Valery Gerasimov – over Russia’s faltering, 16-month long invasion of Ukraine that has seen hundreds of thousands of casualties.

Prigozhin has repeatedly blamed Shoigu and Gerasimov, chief of the general staff, for his fighters’ deaths and has made clear his disdain for the fact that he has visited the frontlines in Ukraine while the pair have remained in Russia.

Putin and Prigozhin have made no public statements since Wagner retreated.

Yet Shoigu, 68, who was out of sight on Sunday, was seen in footage released by his ministry early today dressed in military fatigues meeting Russia’s Western group of troops and receiving a report from Colonel-General Yevgeny Nikiforov.

A defiant Shoigu – fighting for his job – ‘listened to a report from the commander of the Western group, Col-Gen Nikiforov, on the current situation at the front’ and the ‘nature of enemy actions’ according to reports.

The footage shows the defence minister studying maps and taking a helicopter ride to inspect Russian positions. 

It was initially not possible to ascertain when the visit took place.

One picture shows the time on Shoigu’s watch as being shortly before one o’clock.

However it remains unclear if his visit to the war command post was earlier today or yesterday – or if older footage was suddenly released to show him in charge.

Rumours are swirling in Moscow that Putin, 70, has lined up Tula governor and ex-deputy defence minister Alexei Dyumin, 50, to be the next defence minister, replacing Shoigu.

He is a trusted former Putin bodyguard who once saved the Kremlin leader from attack by a vicious brown bear.

He is rumoured to have played a role in the pact which stopped the coup march into Moscow on Saturday. And he is believed to be involved in secret funding channels used by the Kremlin elite.

Putin has not fired any of his top team – many now in their late sixties or early seventies – during the war.

Gerasmov, 67, also remains in post so far despite Prigozhin’s demands for him to be fired and even prosecuted.

Meanwhile on Monday morning, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said he was cancelling a counter-terrorism regime imposed in the Russian capital during the Wagner mutiny.

Sobyanin made the announcement in a statement posted on the Telegram messaging application on Monday. 

Russian media cited local Federal Security Service (FSB) offices as saying similar regimes had been cancelled in the Voronezh and Moscow regions.

Separately, Russia’s National Anti-terrorism Committee said the situation in the country was ‘stable’.

The anti-terrorist regimes were imposed in the three regions on Saturday, as a column of the rebellious Wagner mercenaries moved towards Moscow, exchanging fire with security forces and bringing down Russian military aircraft.

Prigozhin was last seen late Saturday in an SUV leaving Rostov-on-Don, where his fighters had seized a military headquarters, to the cheers of some local people.

This was after agreeing a deal to turn back his coup forces marching on Moscow.

Some shook his hand through the car window. Trucks carrying armoured vehicles with fighters on them followed his car.

Within hours of Prigozhin’s announcement that his forces would return to base to avoid ‘spilling Russian blood’, the Kremlin said he would leave for Belarus.

In exchange, Russia will drop the ‘armed rebellion’ charges against Prigozhin and not prosecute Wagner troops, it added.

However, the criminal case against Prigozhin remains open, Russian media has said.

Putin on Saturday vowed to crush what he called a treasonous mutiny, before it was reported that the Kremlin had struck the Belarus deal with the Wagner leader.

Russia’s Kommersant newspaper reported on Monday that the Federal Security Service (FSB) was continuing its investigation as part of the case. It cited an unidentified source as saying there had not been enough time to close the case.

Russia’s three main news agencies – TASS, RIA and Interfax – also reported that the criminal case against Prigozhin remained open and that the investigation was continuing.

‘The criminal case against Prigozhin has not stopped,’ TASS cited a source close to the prosecutor’s office as saying. ‘The investigation is ongoing.’

The Belarus deal removes Prigozhin’s control of Wagner, but it’s unclear whether any of his fighters would follow him to Belarus, either out of a sense of loyalty or due to dismay with being absorbed into the Russian military as contract soldiers.

‘These personnel could potentially sign contracts with the MoD on an individual basis, demobilize in Russia – (or) travel to Belarus in some capacity,’ the Institute for the Study of War think tank said in its report on the failed rebellion.

If in Belarus, there would be concerns about whether they could get access to the Russian battlefield nuclear weapons. 

Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s security council, was worried about them gaining control of Russian weapons as the uprising roiled on Saturday.

‘The world will be put on the brink of destruction’ if Wagnerites obtain nuclear weapons, Medvedev warned.

In their lightning advance, Prigozhin’s forces on Saturday took control of two military hubs in southern Russia and got within 120 miles of Moscow before retreating.

The mutiny was the culmination of Prigozhin’s long-standing feud with the Russian military’s top brass over the conduct of the Russian operation in Ukraine.

People in Rostov-on-Don cheered Wagner troops as they departed late Saturday, a scene that played into Putin’s fear of a popular uprising. Some ran to shake hands with Prigozhin as he drove away in an SUV.

Yet the rebellion fizzled quickly, in part because Prigozhin did not have the backing he apparently expected from Russian security services. The Federal Security Services immediately called for his arrest.

Putin had on Saturday denounced the revolt as treason, vowing to punish the perpetrators. He accused them of pushing Russia to the brink of civil war.

Later the same day, however, he had accepted an agreement brokered by Belarus to avert Moscow’s most serious security crisis in decades.

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said he had negotiated the truce with Prigozhin. Moscow thanked him, but observers noted that an intervention by Lukashenko, usually seen as Putin’s junior partner, was itself an embarrassment.

Ukraine revelled in the chaos, stepping up its own counter-offensive against Russian forces, while analysts also said the deal had exposed weakness in the Russian president’s grip on power. 

Zelensky’s senior aide Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted that ‘Prigozhin humiliated Putin/the state and showed that there is no longer a monopoly on violence’.

Russia insisted the rebellion had no impact on its faltering Ukraine campaign, and said Sunday that it had repelled new offensive attacks by Ukrainian forces.

Ukrainian soldiers leaving the front line Sunday said the revolt had not noticeably affected fighting around Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.

‘Most people, most military, understand very well that the circus from Russia is still here,’ said Nazar, a 26-year-old bearded soldier, parked at a service station on a road leading out of the Bakhmut area.

Kyiv, however, said the unrest offered a ‘window of opportunity’ for its long-awaited counter-offensive.

Wagner’s fighters, made up of volunteers and ex-security officers but also thousands of convicts, were often thrown into the front of Russia’s advance in Ukraine.

The outfit also conducts several operations in the Middle East and Africa, largely seen as having Moscow’s blessing.

The US had intelligence that Prigozhin had been building up his forces near the border with Russia for some time. 

That conflicts with Prigozhin’s claim that his rebellion was a response to an attack on his field camps in Ukraine on Friday by the Russian military that he said killed a large number of his men.

The Defense Ministry denied attacking the camps.

US Rep. Mike Turner, who chairs the House Intelligence Committee, said Prigozhin’s march on Moscow appeared to have been planned in advance.