President Joe Biden attended church services solo on Saturday amid son Hunter’s fresh legal woes. 

The president walked into St. Joseph on the Brandywine near his Wilmington, Delaware home shortly after 5 p.m., putting on his navy blue jacket as he strolled toward the door. 

Biden has yet to comment publicly on Hunter Biden facing three federal charges, with up to 25 years in prison, related to his purchase of a gun – allegedly lying on the form to purchase the weapon while he was addicted to drugs. 

The president didn’t take questions when he left the White House Friday for a weekend at home. 

When Biden attends church, the pool of reporters who follow him each day is kept outside the building and across the graveyard from the president. 

The president didn’t even look toward the journalists when a reporter shouted, ‘Mr. President, will you pardon your son?’ as he left church after services. 

At Friday afternoon’s briefing, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre insisted the president would not pardon Hunter, after Biden ignored a question on the matter, walking out of the room and shutting the door behind him. 

‘I’ve answered this question before and I was very clear. I said no,’ she said in her daily press briefing, echoing a reply she gave in July on the matter. 

The president, after making remarks at the White House on the United Auto Workers strike, kept walking out of the Roosevelt Room and out the door as reporters asked him if he would use his presidential powers to help his son.

‘That’s all I’m going to say,’ the president said as he finished his remarks on the strike.

 He ignored a shouted question on ‘will Hunter get a pardon,’ walking straight out of the room. 

Jean-Pierre on Friday wouldn’t answer a question on if the president has talked to his son since the charges were announced.

‘I’m not going to get into the conversation that the president has with his family,’ she said. 

Hunter Biden, meanwhile, is preparing to go to trial. 

His lawyer on Friday argued that the case against Hunter won’t make it to trial – but refused to say whether or not Hunter was on drugs when he purchased the gun that led to federal charges.

Attorney Abbe Lowell told ABC’s Good Morning America that the Justice Department bended to ‘political pressure’ from Republicans in Congress when it charged Hunter Biden on three felony charges for lying about his crack cocaine addiction when buying a gun in 2018.

The president’s son is now facing a maximum of 25 years in prison, but his attorney has insisted the case will be ‘dismissed’ before Hunter has to stand trial.

‘The U.S. Attorneys office has known about this for years. No charges,’ Lowell said. ‘What changed? Not the facts, not the law, but all the politics that have now come into play.’

‘The only thing that’s changed has been the political pressure put on by the Republicans in Congress and the media that supports them,’ he argued.

In the charges, two counts accuse Hunter Biden of having completed a form indicating he was not using illegal drugs when he bought a Colt Cobra revolver in October 2018. The third count alleges he possessed a firearm while using a narcotic. 

Lowell said Hunter was not on drugs at the time he purchased the revolver. 

‘If you’re going to be specific, then be specific. If the form asks if you are a drug user on the day you buy a gun that is an issue. If it says have you ever used drugs that’s an issue. That will be played out in court,’ he said. 

ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked him if the defense is going to argue Hunter ‘was not a drug user on the day he signed the form?’

‘No, our defense has multiple parts to it,’ Lowell responded. He also argued ‘I think the case will be dismissed before trial.’

Hunter Biden, in his memoir, detailed his drug use, including smoking crack cocaine. The first son talked about how he relapsed into his addiction after his brother Beau died of brain cancer in 2015. 

Video discovered on Hunter’s laptop computer shows him naked and brandishing a handgun in a hotel room in 2018, allegedly five days after buying the gun. 

But when asked if Hunter Biden was on drugs the day he purchased the gun, Lowell said: ‘I think that’s something that, if it ever gets that far, you and everybody else will see the evidence.’

He declined to be more specific. 

But he went on to rage against the Justice Department for the backing out an earlier plea bargin agreement, accusing the feds of caving to political pressure from Republicans in Congress, who have been investigating Hunter Biden’s foreign business deals and the Biden family finances.

U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who was appointed by Donald Trump, is overseeing the prosecution and has been given special counsel status. 

Weiss and Hunter’s lawyers reached a plea deal in July that called for the president’s son to plead guilty in Delaware federal court to two misdemeanor counts of failing to pay his taxes in return for prosecutors’ recommending probation.

A separate felony gun charge of illegally owning the Colt Cobra .38 special handgun would have been dropped in two years if Biden honored the terms of what is known as a diversion agreement. 

Lowell on Friday argued ‘there’s a deal in place that should have prevented’ the federal charges. He also argued that courts are now finding the statute used in the charges as unconstitutional.

‘The law changed,’ Lowell said. ‘But the law didn’t change in favor of the prosecution. The law changed against it because a couple of federal courts have found this gun charge to be unconstitutional.’

The plea deal, which Republicans blasted as a ‘sweetheart deal’ fell apart in a Delaware courtroom when the presiding judge started to question some of its details, including one that including would theoretically protect Hunter Biden from other tax-related crimes in the same period. 

Prosecutors said it would not. Hunter’s lawyers said it would. The agreement fell apart. The three federal charges were announced on Thursday.

Two of the counts carry maximum prison sentences of 10 years, while the third has a maximum of five years. Each count also carries a maximum fine of $250,000. 

Republicans are insisting that Biden’s son is guilty of even more felonies and that Weiss’ indictment on gun charges should just be the tip of the spear. 

On July 27, after the plea deal fell apart, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ruled out President Biden issuing a pardon for Hunter. But it remains to be seen if the White House’s posture has changed now that Hunter faces the three new felony charges. 

Shortly before leaving office, President Bill Clinton pardoned his brother Roger for a 1985 cocaine and drug trafficking conviction for which he had already served time.

In the last weeks of his own administration, Trump pardoned a skein of friends and associates, including daughter Ivanka’s father-in-law Charles Kushner. Both Ivanka and Jared Kushner were White House advisors at the time.

The White House is not commenting on the new felony charges for the president’s son, and Biden joked he would get in ‘trouble’ if he answered press questions at the end of an economics speech later Thursday.

Still it’s a crushing blow to the president, who is running for re-election next year. Hunter’s legal issues were thought to be resolved with the plea deal and it was shocking when the agreement fell apart. 

The charges came the same week that Republicans in the House opened a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden for his alleged connections to Hunter’s business dealings and is likely to have a long-term impact on his political career. 

The First Son purchased a 0.38 Colt Cobra caliber pistol in Delaware, a state that makes any buyer answer a series of questions before they can lay their hands on a weapon. 

One from the 2018 application asks if the applicant uses or is addicted to drugs. The box is clearly checked ‘no.’

Hunter has admitted that he was addicted to crack cocaine at the time of the gun purchase. 

About two weeks later his lover and brother’s widow Hallie Biden found it ‘unlocked’ in his truck and threw it in a grocery store trash can. Its discovery sparked a police investigation. 

In addition, now-President Biden sounded close to tears in the voicemail left on Hunter’s abandoned laptop on October 15 – three days after Hunter bought the gun and lied about being a drug addict – begging him to get help.

‘It’s Dad. I called to tell you I love you. I love you more than the whole world pal,’ Joe said in the October 15 message. ‘You gotta get some help. I know you don’t know what to do, I don’t either.’

The King and Queen today attended a special service at Crathie Kirk to commemorate the life of the late Queen Elizabeth – and appeared moved by warm-wishes from crowds who also gathered to mark the anniversary of her death.

Charles and Camilla made the short journey by car from the nearby Balmoral Estate to the Scottish church, where successive monarchs have worshiped since Queen Victoria. 

The couple spoke to crowds outside afterwards who shared their condolences and handed them bouquets and cards. The King told them that the flowers were ‘wonderful’ and joked with children about getting back to school.

Other royals were also at the service, including the Queen’s great nephews Samuel and Arthur Chatto, sons of Lady Sarah and Daniel Chatto, who also went. And staff from Balmoral, the beloved Scottish home of the Queen where she died, also attended, walking to and from the service in the September sunshine. 

The King looked emotional as he left Crathie Kirk having paid a moving tribute to his adored mother as the nation marks the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s death today. Crowds gathered at Buckingham Palace and Army gun salutes honouring Her Majesty rang out across the United Kingdom. 

In an unprecedented break with tradition, signifying how touched he has been by the country’s grief at her passing but also pride in a remarkable life of public duty, His Majesty recalled his mother’s ‘long life, devoted service and all she meant to so many of us’. 

William and Kate have travelled to Wales to grieve Queen Elizabeth’s passing and shared their own favourite pictures of the late monarch and said: ‘Today we remember the extraordinary life and legacy of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth. We all miss you. W & C’. 

Initially Charles, 74, had planned only to mark his mother’s death – and his own grief-tinged accession – in ‘quiet contemplation’ at home in Scotland.

In doing so he would follow the same pattern that Queen Elizabeth chose to adopt for 70 years, marking her father King George VI‘s death, at Sandringham in Norfolk, away from public gaze.

But in recent weeks he began to have a change of heart, having been so deeply touched by the global outpouring of grief after his mother died on September 8 last year.

Indeed, the Mail can reveal that the King and Queen Camilla chose last night not to return to their own home at Birkhall on the Balmoral estate as planned, but to remain at the castle itself where Elizabeth died at the age of 96, surrounded by the glory of the Scottish Highlands she adored.

They will remain there today, comforted by some of those who were closest to Her late Majesty, spending tonight there as well, before moving back to their neighbouring estate. A source said: ‘I think it will be of comfort to be surrounded by so much that was familiar to her.’

Meanwhile, the Prince and Princess of Wales are to mark the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death with a small private service in Wales. William and Kate will attend St Davids Cathedral in St Davids, the smallest city in Britain, in Pembrokeshire on Friday. They will also meet members of the local community in the adjacent cloister, including local people who met Elizabeth II during her visits to St Davids.

St Davids has been a site of pilgrimage and worship for more than 1,400 years, since St David – the patron saint of Wales – settled there with his monastic community in the sixth century.

Since the Reformation, one of the quire stalls has been in the possession of the Crown and is known as the Sovereign’s Stall. This makes St Davids the only UK cathedral where the sovereign has a special stall in the quire among members of the chapter, the governing body of the cathedral.

His tribute was echoed by that of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who said: ‘On the solemn anniversary of the passing of Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, our thoughts are with His Majesty King Charles III and the whole Royal Family.

‘With the perspective of a year, the scale of Her late Majesty’s service only seems greater. Her devotion to the nations of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth only seems deeper. And our gratitude for such an extraordinary life of duty and dedication only continues to grow.

‘I treasure my memories of those occasions when I met Her late Majesty, in particular the private audience I had with her at Buckingham Palace before presenting my first Budget as Chancellor. I was struck by her wisdom, by her incredible warmth and grace, but also her sharp wit.’

And he spoke for many when he recalled the effect that she had on everyone she met.

‘People across the UK – whether they had the good fortune to meet Her late Majesty or not – will be reflecting today on what she meant to them and the example she set for us all. We will cherish those memories,’ he said.

‘The bond between country and monarch is sacred. It endures. So, while we continue to mourn Her late Majesty’s passing, we should be proud that this remarkable legacy of service – and this remarkable bond – continues to grow today under the reign of His Majesty the King.’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the long queues through the night to see the late Queen lying in state had shown that she ‘always enjoyed a special bond with her people’.

‘It was a relationship built from her understanding that service of this great nation is the thread that unites sovereign and subject,’ he said.

‘So, as we reflect on her legacy again today, let us embrace that spirit of public service as our guide towards a better future.’

Her last prime minister – albeit briefly – Liz Truss, with whom she was so memorably photographed for the final time, also opened up about their encounter.

She described how the frail but ‘upbeat’ and ‘mentally alert’ monarch had told her they would be ‘meeting again soon’. The Queen had welcomed Ms Truss to Balmoral on September 6 to appoint her as prime minister.

‘She was very, very keen to reassure me that we’d be meeting again soon. It was very important to her,’ Ms Truss told GB News.

Ms Truss added: ‘She was very determined to do her duty, right to the end.’

The Queen died two days later, with Ms Truss describing the scene as she waited in Downing Street when the confirmation came at around 4.30pm.

‘We were in the Downing Street flat with, officials, other people. So when the news came through, it was sort of confirming all the worst fears that we’d had,’ she said.

She recalled the King was ‘very, very resolute’ when she spoke to him to express her condolences on the phone the day his mother died and his reign began.

Today, soldiers and horses which took part in the state funeral procession and proclamation salutes signifying the new reign are to return to perform Accession Day anniversary gun salutes in the King’s honour.

Captain Amy Cooper – who was the lead rider in the procession which carried the Queen’s coffin to lie in state in Westminster Hall – will give the order to fire a 41-gun salute at midday in London’s Hyde Park.

Captain Cooper is with the King’s Troop, almost all of whom played a role in the final farewell to the Queen a year ago.

There will also be a 62-gun salute at the Tower of London by The Honourable Artillery Company, while bells will be rung at Westminster Abbey at 1pm in commemoration of the King’s accession.

The Prince and Princess of Wales will be in Wales at St David’s Cathedral where they will commemorate the life of Queen Elizabeth and speak to members of the community she met during her visits to the city.

A source said it was important to William and Kate to be in Wales in honour of their new titles and to honour the bond the late monarch had with the Welsh nation.

A source said King Charles and Queen Camilla will ‘balance between reflecting properly on the public nature of moment but finding the space for privacy to reflect in private’.

As the oldest person ever sworn in to the White House, President Joe Biden has faced questions and concerns over his mental as well as physical acuity since taking one one of the most stressful jobs in the world.

But aside from his advanced age, Biden, 79, has worried even supporters with numerous gaffes over the year he’s been in office.

JANUARY 24, 2022 – BIDEN CALLS PETER DOOCY A ‘STUPID SON OF A B*****’ 

‘You displayed this type of mood change during a cabinet meeting on when you apparently did not know your microphone was on after finishing your opening remarks, and you called a White House reporter a “stupid son of a b****”in response to a question asked on inflation,’ Jackson claimed.

He was referring to a hot mic moment in late January during which Biden criticized Fox News reporter Peter Doocy, after which the president personally apologized to the journalist. 

Biden has also been known to have trouble with the names of his most senior officials, foreign leaders and even countries. 

MARCH 8, 2022 – SLIPPING AND FORGETTING LLOYD AUSTIN’S NAME 

The president slipped up during the March 8 speech while trying to remember Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s name.

‘I want to thank Sec-, the former general, I keep calling him “General.” My – the guy who runs that outfit over there,’ Biden said, before quickly adding, ‘I want to make sure we thank the secretary for all he’s done.’

A trip to Texas that same month to visit a Houston-area vaccination center saw Biden apparently lose his train of thought and become confused. He even asked, ‘What am I doing here?’ while trying to get himself back on track.

On multiple occasions Biden has also appeared to refer to Vice President Kamala Harris as the ‘president.’ During a commencement speech at South Carolina State University in late December, Biden remarked: ‘Of course, President Harris is a proud Howard alum.’

He made the mistake again more recently, declaring during a voting rights speech in Georgia on January 11 that ‘President Harris and I stood on the United States Capitol.’

Biden has been known to get dates confused as well — in May 2021 he recalled traveling via Amtrak to see his mother while he was vice president in 2013. But his mother had died in 2010.

The apparent issues began long before Biden took the White House. When he was on the campaign trail in September 2020, then-candidate Biden was widely mocked for saying ‘200 million people have died’ from COVID-19 under Donald Trump’s watch. The number was around 200,000 at the time.

And while president, Biden had to be corrected on a statistic regarding COVID-19 vaccinations. During a COVID-19 White House press conference, Biden attempted to say, ’57… excuse me… 570… I don’t want to read it, I’m not sure I got the right number…’ Chief Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci aided him to say the figure was ’57 million.’

JUNE 18, 2022 – BIDEN FALLS DURING BIKE RIDE

Biden fell off his bike during a ride near his Rehoboth Beach home on June 18.

He had come over to say hello to a crowd that had gathered near the Gordon’s Pond State Park bike trail, with people yelling ‘Happy Father’s Day’ to the president. 

Upon trying to dismount the bike, his shoes caught and he fell over sideways, causing a mad scramble of Secret Service and press trying to help him up.   

Gasps rang out after the fall, which saw Biden stay on the ground for roughly 10 seconds, before being helped up by several Secret Service Agents, who immediately swarmed the downed Democrat.

Moments later, Biden was glad-handing the crowd – even bringing one woman out to meet first dog Commander, who was being walked nearby. 

Despite the tumble, the president did not appear to suffer any abrasions or cuts from the spill and the White House said he didn’t need to see a doctor after the incident.

Biden himself told reporters: ‘I’m good’ after the tumble. 

JULY 8, 2022 – BIDEN HAS ANOTHER RON BURGUNDY MOMENT

Republican strategist Greg Price mocked Biden on Twitter after yet another gaffe in which the president appeared to read speaking directions off of his teleprompter.

‘It is noteworthy that the percentage of women who register to vote and cast a ballot is consistently higher than the percentage of the men who do so. End of quote. Repeat the line,’ the president said during a White House speech Friday.

‘Women are not without electoral…or political power.’

Posting the clip on social media, Price compared it to Will Farrell’s Ron Burgundy being unable to deviate from the script on his teleprompter despite grammatical mistakes and obvious errors. 

Burgundy’s embarrassing on-air verbal incidents are a recurring gag throughout the movie.

Price posted a clip of Burgundy’s frustrated news crew and suggested the White House staffers behind-the-scenes were feeling similarly. 

But White House Assistant Press Secretary Emilie Simons challenged Price’s claim that Biden made a mistake.

‘No,’ Simons wrote, adding that Biden said ‘Let me repeat that line.’

 

CONFUSING LIBYA AND SYRIA 

Biden repeatedly confused Syria with Libya while discussing ways of working with Russia during a press conference at the G7 on June 13, 2021.

The 78-year-old gaffe machine spoke of working with Russian President Vladimir Putin to provide economic assistance to the people of Libya, prompting some confused glances from the press pack at the G7 summit in Cornwall, England.

‘I’m hopeful that we can find an accommodation where we can save the lives of people in — for example, in — in Libya,’ the president said, mentioning the north African country for the third time instead of Syria, which is in the Middle East. The White House later brushed the confusion off, confirming that the president was indeed referring to Syria, the country where Russia and the US have been involved in a decade-long civil war.

TRIPPING WHILE CLIMBING THE AIR FORCE ONE STAIRS 

On March 19, video captured Biden tripping up the stairs as he boarded Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews.

In the clip, Biden stumbles as he walks up the airstairs. He grabs the hand railing to catch his balance, but then loses his footing two additional times.

During the third stumble, he falls to his knees. However, after brushing off his leg, he reaches the top of the plane and gives a salute before disappearing inside.

White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre later told reporters that Biden was ‘100 percent fine’ and preparing for his trip in Atlanta.

‘It’s pretty windy outside. It’s very windy. I almost fell coming up the steps myself,’ she said.

Just one day earlier, Biden accidentally referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as ‘President Harris.’

The gaffe occurred during a press conference on March 18, during which he lauded his administration for being close to meeting their goal of 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses in his first 100 days in office.

‘Now when President Harris and I took a virtual tour of a vaccination center in Arizona not long ago, one of the nurses on that, on that tour injecting people, giving vaccinations, said that each shot was like administering a dose of hope,’ Biden said.

Harris was standing behind Biden as the president carried on with his speech, but did not correct himself.

Later that day, when the White House released the transcript of his speech, Harris’s proper title was inserted with brackets.

In a speech on March 9, Biden seemed to fumble with his words and forget the name of his Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

‘I want to thank Sec – the former general – I keep calling him “General,”‘ Biden said.

‘My – the guy who runs that outfit over there. I want to make sure we thank the Secretary for all he’s done to try to implement what we’ve just talked about, and for recommending these two women for promotion.’ The slip-occurred despite the fact that just a few minutes earlier, he had mentioned Austin’s name in the speech without an issue.

During an Election Day speech in Philadelphia, Biden stumbled over his words and confused his granddaughter with his late son, Beau Biden.

Biden told the crowd: ‘I want to introduce you to two of my granddaughters…this is my son, Beau Biden who a lot of you helped elect to the Senate in Delaware.’

The commander-in-chief had meant to introduce the crowed to Natalie, Beau’s daughter, but hadn’t just mixed up the name but the person – he also put his arm around Finnegan Biden, Hunter’s daughter.

He finally corrected himself as he draped his arm around Natalie’s shoulder and said: ‘This is Natalie, this is Beau’s daughter.’

Beau Biden passed away in 2015 after a months-long battle with glioblastoma, one of the deadliest types of brain cancer.

TOLD STATE SENATOR IN WHEELCHAIR TO STAND UP

In 2008, Biden told then-Missouri state senator Chuck Graham to stand up for the crowd at a rally, before realizing he was in a wheelchair

Not all of Biden’s gaffes occurred in the 2020s or even the 2010s. In fact, some happened in the early aughts.

In September 2008, after Biden had been named former President Barack Obama’s running mate, he attended a campaign rally in Missouri.

It was there that he called on then-Missouri state senator Chuck Graham, who passed away last year. to stand up for the crowd.

‘I’m told Chuck Graham, state senator, is here. Stand up Chuck, let ’em see you,’ Biden said.

It was at that moment he realized Graham was in a wheelchair due to muscular dystrophy.

‘Oh, God love you. What am I talking about. I’ll tell you what, you’re making everybody else stand up, though, pal.’

According to the Columbia Tribune, Graham said he was never offended by the mistake.

Scotland’s Gleneagles hotel has the art of hospitality down to a fine art – and that’s official.

The luxury hotel, spa and golf resort has been named the hotel with the best service in the world in the prestigious The World’s 50 Best Hotels awards 2023.

The hotel, which lies beneath the Ochil Hills in the heart of Perthshire, has been bestowed the ‘Art of Hospitality’ award based on a vote by 580 hoteliers, travel writers, consultants and seasoned luxury travellers who were asked to name the property where they have received the single-best hospitality experience during a two-year period.

The judges took into account the ‘ambience created in the hotel, the delivery of unique experiential elements and the overall warmth of the hospitality and environment’.

This coveted award ‘celebrates a hotel’s outstanding service and attention to detail’ and is designed ‘to reward a property and its entire staff for the professional standards they uphold and the way they interact with guests, from the reception desk to housekeeping and its food and beverage teams’.

Tripadvisor reviewers agree with the judges’ verdict. User ‘CLP’ recently branded the service ‘delightful’ while ‘Mimi A’ said it was ‘outstanding’. Reviewer ‘Christopher W’, meanwhile, wrote: ‘This hotel is truly magical! The level of service is second to none.’ 

Gleneagles first opened in 1924 with a grand opening ball and, because of the beauty of its location, was soon nicknamed the ‘Riviera in the Highlands’ and the ‘eighth wonder of the world’. 

It has been a ‘must-go destination for discerning travellers for nearly a century’, a statement from the awards notes, adding: ‘A playground of country pursuits and activities, the 850-acre estate epitomises the natural beauty for which Scotland is famed.’

In 2015, Ennismore, a London-based owner and developer of hospitality properties and experiences, purchased the hotel and launched a four-year renovation programme, the biggest investment in the hotel’s history.

Post transformation, now the hotel boasts 11 different restaurants and bars including an afternoon tea lounge and the only two-Michelin-star restaurant in Scotland, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie.

On top of that, there are children’s adventure spaces; a beauty lodge; spa and wellness facilities and 232 ‘beautiful’ bedrooms and suites.

‘Its three golf courses are considered some of the best in the world, with one hosting the Ryder Cup in 2014,’ a statement notes.

Guests can also enjoy a programme of ‘country pursuits’ that includes everything from falconry and clay pigeon shooting, to fly fishing and horse riding.

Naturally, rooms at the five-star hotel don’t come cheap, with rates starting from £495 a night. 

Gleneagles’ win is the first of two special awards to be announced in the weeks leading up to The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2023 awards ceremony, which is taking place on September 19 at London’s historic Guildhall municipal building.

At the ceremony, the inaugural ‘World’s 50 Best Hotels’ list will be unveiled.  

Commenting on Gleneagles’ win, Tim Brooke-Webb, Managing Director for The World’s 50 Best Hotels, says: ‘Gleneagles has been a mainstay on the hotel scene since its original iteration in 1924 and continues to prove itself as an example of what it means to be truly hospitable.

‘We are leading with the Art of Hospitality as our first special award announced ahead of the inaugural awards ceremony, as we believe that it is the staff who bring one-of-a-kind experiences and hotels to life. In a world that is fascinated by the new, we are especially pleased to be celebrating the people behind this historic hotel – led emphatically by Conor O’Leary.’

And Conor O’Leary, Managing Director of Gleneagles, says: ‘It’s an incredible honour to be the first recipient of the Art of Hospitality Award, part of the inaugural The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2023. It’s all down to the incredible people that make up the team at Gleneagles, without them this wouldn’t be possible, and this award is a celebration of their hard work and commitment to making each and every guest’s stay a truly unique and memorable experience.

‘Gleneagles is unlike anywhere else in the world and we strive to offer service which is also second to none, so to receive this recognition is very special.’

Families of the service men and women killed in Kabul two years ago gave the most damning verdict yet of President Joe Biden‘s response to the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

During a congressional hearing into what went wrong, they were asked whether the Biden administration had taken ownership of the botched exit.

They shook their heads in unison.

‘Neither do the American people,’ said Rep. Eli Crane, a former Navy S.E.A.L, who asked the question.

It is almost two years since a suicide bomber detonated his deadly payload amid the chaos of Kabul’s international airport.

He killed 13 Americans and at least 170 Afghans.

It brought a bloody conclusion to Biden’s decision to bring home the troops remaining in the country after 20 years of conflict. 

It followed weeks of turmoil as Taliban gunmen advanced on the capital Kabul while Afghanistan’s armed forces, built with billions of dollars in foreign aid, melted away.

The result was that thousands of desperate Afghans besieged Hamid Karzai International Airport as they sought safe passage from the country’s extremist overlords.

It marked Biden’s first major test as president and his administration is accused of failing to properly plan the withdrawal or predict a Taliban takeover, despite the fact the insurgents had been gaining territory for months.

With the House now in Republican hands, lawmakers are intent on probing what went wrong.

Thursday’s session of the House subcommittee on oversight and accountability began with Rep. Brian Mast, the chairman, recognizing the mother of Sgt. Nicole Gee, the mother of Cpl. Hunter Lopez, and the parents of Cpl. Humberto Sanchez, who all died in the blast at the airport’s Abbey Gate in August 2021.

‘Thank you for raising patriots and I’m sorry for your loss,’ he said.

In his opening remarks he said Biden was the ultimate decision maker in the process to withdraw.

‘The president’s withdraw was a complete and utter catastrophe,’ he said. 

‘The images of people hanging off of planes and desperate parents handing their babies over the airport walls to soldiers are seared into our country’s collective conscience.’

Colonel (Ret.) Seth Krummrich, former chief of staff at Special Operations Command Central, and Command Sergeant Major Jacob Smith, of the 10th Mountain Division, were the session’s witnesses.

But the most telling moment came when Rep. Mast addressed the families in the gallery.

‘To the families sitting behind you, that are still clearly morning, by nodding your head, yes or no,’ he asked: ‘Do you feel like this administration has taken ownership and accountability?’

They shook their heads.

‘I didn’t think so,’ he said.

Rep. Mike McCaul, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said true leaders own their mistakes.

‘Rather than prioritizing U.S. national security and the safety of thousands of Americans, they forced this rapid withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan on an artificial timeline,’ he said. 

‘And the number is going to be September the 11th. What an insult to the victims of 9/11.’

Robots could free up a million NHS days by completing pesky admin tasks, Health Service suggests

• ‘Robotic process automation’ could handle admin ten times faster than humans

By Claire Ellicott

Updated: 20:06 EDT, 1 July 2023

Growing numbers of NHS and social care workers have revealed they are abandoning their healthcare roles in favour of selling home-made porn and saucy pictures.

Swapping exhausting and poorly paid jobs for OnlyFans, some are making in excess of £1,000 a day thanks to their mountain of subscribers who pay in the region of £10-a-month. 

Charities said they are receiving ‘regular calls from NHS workers – especially nurses’ – about the website. Most are mothers, they claimed. 

But the English Collective of Prostitutes (ECP), a campaign group supporting women in adult work, also warned it was concerned by the increasing levels of ‘stalking and harassment’ these women face. 

OnlyFans is a social media platform, used primarily by adult content creators.

Swathes sell personalised pictures and videos – often while naked – to followers who pay a monthly subscription. Famous users include former glamour model Katie Price, who currently charges subscribers around £7 per month.

Other celebrities, musicians and comedians also use the site for non-sexual content. 

A spokesperson for the ECP told MailOnline: ‘We get regular calls from NHS workers, especially nurses, who are starting sex work including by joining OnlyFans. 

‘Women describe how their NHS wages have been cut severely over the last 10 years and they can no longer cover essentials like rent, food and heating. 

‘Most are mothers supporting families.’ 

They added: ‘Women speak about the money they can earn on OnlyFans as life-saving but it isn’t all a rosy picture. 

‘Women we speak to working in the NHS have to be particularly careful not to show their face and be identified, and that means they have to work harder for less income. 

‘Plus, we have seen an increase in complaints from women about stalking and harassment.’ 

No figures exist on how many have left for OnlyFans.

It comes amid a widespread staffing crisis engulfing the health service.

As well as OnlyFans, carers and NHS staff have been leaving roles paying just £10 an hour for higher salaries at supermarkets, restaurants and online retailers. 

Other medics and nurses have gone abroad, swapping the UK for locations including Australia for better pay, working conditions and work-life balance. 

Hospitals are already short of more than 70,000 staff across England, according to the latest workforce data, with another 40,000 across the wider NHS. 

The problem in social care is even worse, with an estimated 165,000 vacancies.

Since December, ambulance workers, nurses, junior doctors, physiotherapists have taken to the picket lines in disputes over pay and working conditions. 

Some have said they have been unable to pay their rent, with others forced to rely on food banks. 

While three days of junior doctor strikes came to a close on Friday, hundreds of thousands of RCN members began voting last month on whether to continue holding strike action, after the existing six-month mandate ran out at the start of May.   

NHS unions under ‘Agenda for Change’ contracts collectively opted to accept the Government’s offer of a five per cent pay rise plus a one-off payment worth up to £1,600 in England earlier this month.

But nurses in the RCN rejected the deal by a slender majority, leading the general secretary to admit she had ‘underestimated’ members. 

James Cowe left his full time healthcare assistant role at a dementia care home, after making his entire monthly salary in just the first 24 hours on OnlyFans.

Earning under £1,100 per month, he quit in 2021 after the government offered staff a one per cent pay rise. He called it a ‘kick in the teeth’ and warned other social care and NHS staff members were quitting to move into different careers where they felt more appreciated. 

The 25-year-old, from Bournemouth, told MailOnline he had ‘reached breaking point at the peak of Covid’. 

He now spends between 12 to 16 hours a day creating custom content for his 900+ followers, charging subscribers as little as £9 ($11.99) per month. 

‘I left my job with the knowledge that if my employers found out I would have been sacked,’ he said. 

Last month, former ambulance workers Kayley Winterson, 26, and Emily Rose, 28, from Norfolk, revealed they both turned to OnlyFans after the exhausting demands of the frontline role, which saw them endure 15-hour shifts, ‘destroyed’ their mental health.

The couple, who currently charge subscribers around £10 ($12.50) per month, took their joint account full time earlier this year in February after seeing ‘other people change their lives on the platform’ and are now ‘a million times happier’.  

They told MailOnline: ‘There are 100 per cent faceless content creators out there on the platform to subside their wages from the NHS.

‘Working standards in the NHS are poor and turnover is high. I expect to see a lot of people leave over the next few years and find avenues of earning money that are not so detrimental to their wellbeing.’ 

Meanwhile, 32-year-old Michaela Ogilvie, from Ramsgate, left her role as an NHS mental health social worker earlier this year after becoming ‘depressed’ by her role.

Since making the switch, the content creator has amassed nearly 20,000 followers on Instagram and 30,000 on TikTok.

But her income comes from OnlyFans, where she claims she is also in the top two percent of creators on the site and earns up to £1,000 a week. 

She said: ‘I enjoy it so much more than social work – it’s so freeing. For me it’s about taking back control.’

Forum users are also sharing their experiences of their ‘cushy side job’ on OnlyFans in online chatrooms, dubbing it ‘a graft’ and ‘a lot of hustle, blood sweat and tears’. 

Increasing numbers of Reddit threads are also filled with questions from healthcare professionals looking for advice on how to set up accounts and ‘make more money’. 

One user on the forum said ‘I live a double life as a medical professional’, detailed how they balanced their role with creating content on the adult website. 

In another, ‘OnlyFans as a junior doctor’, one said ‘I’ve been desperate to try and hustle few quid here and there from OnlyFans for years’. 

Another questioned, ‘if I don’t disclose that I am a doctor, would the GMC (General Medical Council) have an issue with either? Could it impact my career in any way?’ 

Users equally questioned how medical regulators would react if they were identified via their OnlyFans profile. 

Under guidance for doctors published by the General Medical Council, ‘if a concern means a doctor could pose a risk to patients or to it should be raised with us’, the regulator warns. 

‘If you identify yourself as a doctor in publicly accessible social media, you should also identify yourself by name,’ it adds.

‘Any material written by authors who represent themselves as doctors is likely to be taken on trust and may reasonably be taken to represent the views of the profession more widely.’ 

Anonymous content ‘can in many cases be traced back to its point of origin’, the regulator also cautions.  

Equally, ‘using social media also creates risks, particularly where social and professional boundaries become unclear’. 

And in March, Australian nurses and midwives were warned against posting on  OnlyFans by the industry’s professional complaints body. 

Medical workers risked being ‘a distraction for patients’, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of New South Wales said in an email to the state’s nurses and midwives.

Headlined ‘OnlyFans – Are you breaching the professional standards by subscribing to online content services?’, workers were also urged to discuss scenarios with their colleagues in which they might be recognised by a patient due to their presence on the platform. 

‘If a practitioner is the content creator, then being recognised or publishing photographs in uniform, they could be reported for their conduct – deemed by the complainant as unprofessional, or as one said, a distraction for patients,’ the email read.

‘The social media guidance is clear on the obligation of nurses and midwives to maintain professional boundaries, and where relevant the Nursing and Midwifery Board may consider social media use in your private life – even when there is no identifiable link to you as a registered health practitioner – if it raises concerns about your fitness to hold registration.’

In the US, Allie Rae, 38, was also forced to ditch her 15-year-long nursing career in 2021 after her employer discovered her OnlyFans account and gave her an ultimatum. 

The senior neonatal nurse from Boston, who worked in intensive care throughout the first two years of the pandemic, was told she would be fired if she did not delete her raunchy account.

But the mum-of-three instead turned to sex work full-time and now creates content exclusively with her husband, earning up to £270,000 per month.

Meet the Brits who’ve traded in NHS and social care jobs to earn thousands online on OnlyFans

James Cowe 

The 25-year-old spent six years working as an assistant in dementia care before quitting in March 2021 to embark on his OnlyFans venture. 

He told MailOnline: ‘I initially started working in healthcare part time whilst I was studying at college. 

‘I was attracted to the role because I have a great relationship with my grandparents and loved the idea of being able to look after and care for elderly people. 

‘We have a family-run care home in which I worked at for six months before moving onto various other homes. Then when I finished college I became a full-time healthcare assistant. 

‘All of my roles provided care for vulnerable adults and some with challenging behaviour.’

But after a ‘tough day at work’, one evening that March he ‘opened a bottle of wine, signed up but made the link private’, he said. 

It meant followers had to request his OnlyFans link directly from him.    

‘This gave me a chance to see if there was any interest before fully taking the risk of my family or colleagues finding out,’ he added.

‘Within the first 24 hours I had made over a month’s salary.’

Just three days later he made his OnlyFans link public, handed his notice in with immediate effect and in his first month creating content online, ‘made well over my annual salary’.

He told MailOnline: ‘I reached breaking point at the peak of Covid. With the new guidelines forcing us to wear masks, aprons and gloves for the full 12 hour shifts, it made our jobs extremely uncomfortable in the heat.

‘The demands of the role had changed and became increasingly wearing. At this point I was working full time and earning under £1,100 a month. 

‘With the pressure of never having any money and being in a substantial amounts of debt I felt the one per cent pay rise offered by the government was an insult.’ 

He added: ‘I was looking around on social media to see what other creators were doing to make money and the concept of OnlyFans made me feel uncomfortable. 

‘But after a few months of more gruelling poorly paid shifts it was a concept that I was finding increasingly harder to ignore and more attractive.’

Now boasting over 900 subscribers, this count has fluctuated over the last two and a half years and ‘all depends on the amount of hours I put in’, he noted. 

In February he revealed he had earned £160,000 since turning to OnlyFans full-time. 

On some days he can spend up to 12 to 16 hours ‘creating content’ and ‘engaging’ with his followers. 

‘I feel my healthcare shifts prepared me for such long hours,’ he told MailOnline. 

‘OnlyFans is a full time job, you get out what you put in. But it provides autonomy and freedom in how you work – which is something I didn’t have or had experienced in any of my previous jobs.’

He said: ‘I told my parents a week before I made the jump to OnlyFans and they were really upset about it in the beginning, to be honest. 

‘Both my mum and dad were worried about all the risks involved in essentially being an OnlyFans creator. 

‘But when they saw the success they came around and now my mum films a lot of my content for me and helps me come up with new ideas for Instagram reels.’

He added: ‘My advice to any healthcare worker with an an OnlyFans account would be don’t get caught. 

‘I left my job with the knowledge that if my employers found out I would’ve been sacked.’

Kayley Winterson and Emily Rose 

A couple who worked as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) for the ambulance service ditched their roles to take OnlyFans full-time in February. 

Kayley Winterson, 26, and Emily Rose, 28, from Norfolk, claim they are now a ‘million times happier’ and rake in four times more than what they earned in the NHS, which was around £11-an-hour.

Speaking about their health service roles, they told MailOnline: ‘We both really enjoyed the challenges the pre-hospital environment would send our way. 

‘No day was ever the same and we were able to make a meaningful difference to peoples lives especially during the lockdown.’

Ms Winterson set up an account initially in March 2022, and after leaving the 999 service, worked at a Covid testing centre.

It wasn’t until January 2023, that Ms Rose followed suit after a particularly traumatic call on the job and months of ‘anxiety breakdowns’ and in February, they launched a joint account.  

‘We saw other people change their lives on the platform,’ they said. 

‘Everyone’s goal is to be secure and working for the ambulance service our wages were poor and the work to life balance was zero to none.

‘As a couple, by February 2023 we realised if we were going to do it now was the time. 

‘We missed the opportunity so many people took on this platform during lockdown because we were still working for the ambulance service.’

They currently boast an average of 1,000 subscribers, ‘but this goes up and down as all OnlyFans creators will say,’ they added. 

‘We don’t really focus on the numbers, we focus on making great content and having that connection with our subscribers.

‘Our work life balance is outstanding, we recently bought a campervan and spend a lot of our time resting on different beaches around the UK. 

‘OnlyFans is great because you can schedule content ahead so you can really focus on your wellbeing and rest days. 

‘We dedicate two days a week to content creation and editing and that would then be scheduled so we can enjoy our weekends – every weekend.’ 

There have however been learning curves since taking the role full time, they warned. 

‘We had to learn how to separate OnlyFans from our personal relationship and remember to spend time as just us again. 

‘We give people all access to our relationship but recognise we need some things that are just for us.’

They told MailOnline: ‘Anyone that’s spoken to our face has been rather positive. We can’t and don’t imagine what people are saying behind our backs because we don’t care.

‘This is our life and we are doing what makes us happy. If people chose not to support us because of our job I think it’s a reflection of their emotional intelligence and not ours.’

But they warned not to expect to early ‘instant big money’ when creating an OnlyFans account. 

‘It has no internal traffic so if you’re not bringing your audience across you will not achieve anything. Start by building your social media platforms and really do your research before taking the jump.’ 

They added: ‘There are 100 per cent faceless content creators out there on the platform to subside their wages from the NHS.’ 

‘Working standards in the NHS are poor and turnover is high. I expect to see a lot of people leave over the next few years and find avenues of earning money that are not so detrimental to their wellbeing.’

Michaela Ogilvie 

Michaela Ogilvie was an NHS social worker but now earns up to £1,000 a week on OnlyFans. 

The 32-year-old from Ramsgate, who also has a masters degree in adult social work, claimed her role became ‘depressing’, and following a series of events in February 2023, she started looking for a new income.

She told KentOnline in April: ‘I wasn’t happy – I was really depressed going to work.

‘You have a lot of responsibility as a social worker so it’s not a job you can do half-heartedly.

A series of events involving a ‘rude’ manager and an accident involving an ambulance triggered the decision, she said.  

‘On the way home an ambulance hit the side of my car as it came out of a junction – completely writing it off.

‘That meant I couldn’t get to my job any more anyway.

‘Also, one of my clients passed away. She died in a care home but wanted to be at home, and I realised you can’t do what you want to do to help people in the job.’

The content creator had already built a large TikTok following of almost 20,000, with a further 25,900 on Instagram. 

But her income comes from OnlyFans, where she claims she is also in the top two percent of creators on the site.

She said: ‘I enjoy it so much more than social work – it’s so freeing. For me it’s about taking back control.’

‘Sometimes you get in your head and feel a bit cheap. Sometimes I worry what people think of me.

‘Men ask me to do things with them in person, and people think I’m a s*** – but I’m actually celibate.’

@kkutiepie

Other NHS workers who set up accounts while still working in the health service, have remained anonymous.

A middle-aged single mother from East Yorkshire, known only as @kkutiepie, sends pictures and videos to men on the service alongside her day job as a health worker. 

The woman, who prefers to stay anonymous, also offers sex advice to couples whose sex lives have turned stale.

She told HullLive last year: ‘People might think it’s crazy, but this is about empowering myself as a woman and finally doing something for me, that I want to do.

‘This is a real liberation for me, it’s about taking control of my life and my independence and not being reliant on anyone else financially or emotionally.

‘With this secret job I can keep a roof over our heads and not be forced to ask anyone else for help or money.’

A meagre NHS pay rise left her with no other option but to turn to OnlyFans she said, as her salary was nowhere near enough to pay for her house and bills and didn’t want to have to ask anyone for money.

Starting the account was ‘liberating’, she added, allowing her to be more adventurous after coming out of a long-term relationship.

She said she wants to help women using the site to give them sex advice and act as a ‘therapist’.

Hollie Munroe

For some carers, switching to OnlyFans hasn’t just allowed for a better life in Britain.

Hollie Munroe, now 26, from Hertfordshire, quit her job caring for the elderly to jet off to Marbella in Spain, where she lives off her cash earned on the site.

After five years of being a carer — in which she would work up to 60 hours in a week — she decided to give it up for the adult website.

She told the Daily Star last year: ‘I was going to loads and loads of houses for really s*** money.

‘Of course, there are bits to it that I miss. I enjoyed my job, I liked all of it because it was rewarding.

‘But it was the money for me – I only got paid £8 an hour.’

Charging subscribers around £7.80 ($9.99) per month, she is ranked in the top eight per cent of all OnlyFans accounts. 

Her monthly income varies depending on how much she chooses to post on the site.

But she said she had no plans to move back to the UK because she is enjoying Marbella too much.

‘I get paid for doing basically nothing. I just sit on my phone for a few hours and that’s about it really,’ she said.

‘Every day I get up, go to the beach, go shopping and come home. I just got sick of England and thought I could rent in Spain while doing a lot less. I don’t miss England at all.’

Revealed: Ten VERY odd room service orders made in hotels around the world, from the USA to Japan via the UK

By Laura Sharman

Updated: 13:55 EDT, 6 June 2023

Brooklyn mother-of-two, 37, is found stabbed to death on her bed by twin daughters a day before Mother’s Day – after ‘domestic dispute’

• Theresa Gregg, 37, a mom of two 12-year-old twin daughters was found brutally murdered in her Williamsburg, Brooklyn apartment on Saturday morning
• Gregg had been stabbed in her neck and body leaving a bloodstained mattress and a pool of blood on the bedroom floor
• Authorities believe the fatal attack occurred during a violent argument involving her partner, although police have yet to disclose the identity of the suspect

By James Gordon For Dailymail.com

Published: 18:36 EDT, 14 May 2023 | Updated: 19:39 EDT, 14 May 2023

Philippe Starck is one of the most prolific designers in the world, creating everything from staplers to wind turbines and from furniture to superyachts, such as Steve Jobs’ Venus and the jaw-dropping Motor Yacht A.

Luckily for visitors to the French capital, the talented Frenchman also found time to squeeze in a few hotel restorations, including a two-year transformation of ‘palace-rated’ hotel Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris, producing a veritable work of art.

It’s not just eye-opening to behold, I discover. This property, which has a most elegant facade, pampers and soothes with a stunning spa and opulent bedrooms – and offers top-level taste-bud tickling thanks to stellar restaurants.

Throw in faultless service – no Parisian haughtiness here – and a winning location on Avenue Hoche near the Arc de Triomphe, and you have a hotel that can practically do no wrong.

There’s a fascinating history behind the property, too.

After it opened in 1928 it became a rendezvous spot of choice for artists and intellectuals, with guests that included singer and actor Maurice Chevalier and American novelist Ernest Hemingway.

After the Second World War, Ho Chi Minh spent seven weeks at the property during the Fontainebleau Conference, which was to determine the future of Franco-Vietnamese relations. Then, in May 1948, David Ben Gourion and Golda Meir signed the birth certificate of the State of Israel on its premises.

Prestigious guests came, returned and met up: Novelist Joseph Kessel, Walt Disney, the Maharajahs of Indore and Kashmir, King Farouk of Egypt, the Aga Khan. In their footsteps would later come Madonna, Robert de Niro, Lou Reed and Sofia Coppola.

One lure for Hollywood types is the hotel’s swanky 99-seat cinema, described as ‘the best private movie theatre in Europe’ by Gilles Jacob, former chairman of the Cannes film festival.

Following in the footsteps of the rich and famous in April 2023 is me, my partner and our excitable five-year-old daughter.

We’re housed in a £2,300-per-night, 64-square-metre (689-sq-ft) junior suite, which I find mildly mind-blowing. It positively oozes luxurious glamour.

At this point, it would be traditional to point out the room’s ‘piece de resistance’. But the stand-out features are spinning around in my mind like items on a gameshow wheel – two giant 42-inch TVs hidden in mirrors… spin, spin… a magnificent king-sized bed with goose-down bedding and a wrap-around headboard studded with handy power sockets… spin, spin… the eclectic furniture including a modish chaise-longue and beautiful Art Deco lamp… the spins slow… and coming to a rest at the top is the like-no-other bathroom, accessed through huge sliding wooden doors in the living room area.

It’s a dazzling jewel-like space with two mirrored walls on which hang huge mirrors with reflective frames. The free-standing shelving units are entirely reflective, too. (The floor, fortunately, remains opaque.)

A beautiful white standalone tub and twin rectangular white sinks dissipate the energy, while a rainfall shower at the end is pure joy. We love the Clarins toiletries, too.

Honestly, I could live out the rest of my days in this suite. Or perhaps make that ‘this hotel’.

The ethereal dreamscape of a subterranean spa spellbinds in equal measure. Billed as a ‘white paradise’ (white is the unmistakable theme), the piece de resistance is easier to pinpoint here – the otherworldly 23-metre pool, bathed in natural light thanks to multiple skylights, bookended at either end by white curtains, and featuring a huge mirror wall (on the remote off-chance that you missed your reflection in the bedroom bathroom).

There’s also a 35C Turkish bath to loll in and luxurious (white) sofas to recline on landside.

The hotel dazzles on the ground floor too.

Here there’s a very chic bar, the Michelin-starred Il Carpaccio Italian restaurant (closed during our visit), and Matsuhisa Paris, by world-renowned chef Nobu Matsuhisa, where we enjoy a seven-course sushi-themed extravaganza in a stunning setting – a pillared room with vast metallic lampshades hanging over the tables on the sides.

Breakfast is served in the same room, and is highly impressive, with a buffet stuffed with exquisite croissants and pain au chocolat, and buoyant, on-point waiting staff delivering morning newspapers to the table, a choice of salted and unsalted butter, perfect eggs with soldiers and great coffee served in mirrored coffee cups by Philippe Starck and porcelain-maker Raynaud that are decorated with bright red lips.

A pleasingly whimsical touch in a hotel that never fails to please. Time to find out what Philippe Starck has done to the humble stapler…