By Ailbhe Macmahon For Mailonline

Updated: 11:00 EDT, 23 August 2023

A grandfather with a love of trains has spent the last 30 years lovingly building a working miniature railway track in his own back garden. 

Derek Burwell has been creating the impressive 272 yard line track at his home in Pelsall, Walsall, West Midlands, since 1993, which comes complete with eight mini engines he built by hand. 

The line now runs around the edge of the 83-year-olds 40ft wide garden, which also houses the workshop where he has spent hours a day adding to his track. 

The track, which Mr Burwell has spent thousands creating, is made from timber and aluminium, which carries a mixture of electric, battery-powered, and petrol-driven hydraulic engines. 

His unique garden also features a host of railway memorabilia, including a 100-year-old signal which he reclaimed from a level crossing. It now sits proudly in the middle of his lawn. 

The backyard train track was born from Mr Burwell’s love of locomotives, which began when he was a child when his father took him to work at Birmingham Coach and Carriage Company. 

He then spent his working life repairing and restoring engines, rolling stock and carriages before he retired. 

He revealed the track was something he ‘always wanted to do’. 

‘It gave the neighbours a bit of a surprise when they saw I had my own railway track but it’s something I’ve always wanted to do’, the grandfather-of-two said. 

‘I used to enjoy riding the train in the arboretum but that closed down due to health and safety issues in the late 80s. The council did not bother to to fix the problem and just closed it down, which was sad.

‘So I thought I’d build one myself. Now I can now ride my train whenever I like because it’s in my back garden.

‘I have always been into locomotives. My dad would take me to work and I would get to sit in all these amazing engines. One was built for the late Queen.

‘As I got older, I thought it would be a nice hobby and keep me busy. It’s better I’m doing this than being stuck in front of the TV all day.

‘It keeps me really active and I enjoy it. Not many people can say they have a fully working railway in their back garden.

‘There are some fabulous miniature railways across the country but you have to know where to find them. People like to keep them a secret.’

Mr Burwell lives alone after his wife, Margaret, died aged 73 two years ago. He regularly sees his daughter and two grandchildren and grandson Thomas has even taken to help him out with odd jobs on the track.  

‘My grandson helps me out with my jobs, he can weld, and I have passed my love of trains on to him’, Mr Burwell said. ‘We used to have birthday parties when the grandkids were children and give everyone a ride on the railway, we used to have great fun.

‘My wife just put up with it really, she didn’t have much of a choice. She knew how much I enjoyed building this track.’

His impressive skillset is still called upon by other miniature railway lovers and collectors who want to restore their own vehicles. 

‘I’m supposed to be retired’, Mr Burwell added. ‘But there is always someone wanting something or another doing, but I enjoy restoring things

‘I’m currently working on a little bus which is from a fairground in Belgium for a friend of mine. It’s taking up a big chunk of the garden. I think this will be my last major job. I need to slow down eventually and focus on working on my own garden.’

A few years ago my wife Clare was startled when a patient came into her GP surgery and said lightly, ‘My husband is beating me.’

Fortunately, this was not a case of domestic violence: what the patient was really complaining about was that she and her husband had gone on the 5:2 diet at the same time and he was losing more weight than her.

Clare pointed out that although men do typically lose more weight when they go on a diet, women experience similar health benefits, certainly when it comes to key measures such as blood sugar control, even when they don’t lose as much weight.

But surprisingly, new research shows that women seem to do better than men when given new weight-loss drugs, such as semaglutide (brand names Wegovy or Ozempic). 

This is important given that earlier this week Rishi Sunak announced a £40 million pilot scheme to allow GPs to prescribe them.

So why do men lose more weight when they go on a diet? It’s probably because we tend to be musclier and have a higher metabolic rate, which means we are burning more calories when sitting down and even when asleep.

Having higher levels of testosterone also helps: studies have shown that if you give men with low testosterone levels a hormonal boost, this leads to significant weight loss.

But curiously, recent research has shown that with the new weight-loss drugs, the situation is reversed, with women losing a higher percentage of body weight than men.

Drugs such as semaglutide work by mimicking the action of the GLP-1 hormone, which is released in your gut in response to eating. It prompts your body to produce more insulin, which reduces blood sugar levels. This is why it was originally developed for people with type 2 diabetes.

But these drugs also act on your brain, suppressing appetite. People who’ve tried them say one of the biggest changes is the drugs stop cravings. The result is impressive weight loss, though once you stop taking the drug there is often significant weight regain.

One of the first big studies that looked at semaglutide found that the men and women given the drug had, over 66 weeks, lost an impressive 2st 6lb (15.3 kg).

But less positive was a follow up study, published this April in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, which found they had regained two-thirds of that weight within a year of stopping the drug — whether this means people should be on the drugs for ever is clearly going to be an issue.

What was also striking was that the women in the trial lost a higher percentage of their initial weight than the men, around 18 per cent versus 13 per cent, according to a re-analysis of the data by Dr Alyssa Susanto, a researcher in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney.

Dr Susanto, who presented her findings at the recent International Congress on Obesity, in Melbourne, didn’t speculate why this might be. However, I suspect it might be because these new drugs work so powerfully on the brain, reducing cravings — and research suggests women are more susceptible to cravings than men.

For example, a study from 2005, called Eating and Dieting Differences in Men and Women (published in the Journal of Men’s Health & Gender), concluded that men tend to overeat because they are ‘pleasure orientated’ (whereas craving something is more intense and dominates your thoughts).

Men also tend to go on diets for health reasons, often prompted by a doctor or partner. Women, meanwhile, are more likely to struggle with cravings for calorie-rich tempting treats.

Dr Susanto suggested studying male-female differences to weight loss could lead to better, more personalised treatments.

Although these gender differences are interesting, what this research really points to is the importance of first identifying and dealing with the reasons why you overeat.

This is what researchers from the Mayo clinic in the U.S. have been looking at: they’ve identified four different types of over-eater, based on different tests including how many calories people ate at a buffet meal and how long it took for their guts to empty.

The four types are:

• Hungry brains: these people need to eat more than average to feel full, because the hunger centre in their brain remains ‘switched on’ for longer than average.
• Hungry guts: this describes those who are hungry soon after eating and feel the need for frequent snacks. This seems to be because food goes through their stomachs faster than average.
• Emotional eaters: as the name implies, they eat when stressed.
• Slow burners: they have a slower metabolic rate than average.

In a recent clinical trial with 165 overweight volunteers, the Mayo researchers matched the different over-eater type with a particular weight-loss approach.

Those with ‘hungry brains’ were put on a time-restricted diet, full of fibre to fill them up. The thinking was that encouraging people to eat their food within a constrained time period would ‘switch off’ their brain hunger centre. 

Those with ‘hungry guts’ were given protein supplements to take with their meals, to keep them fuller for longer. Here, the thinking was that consuming more protein would delay their stomachs emptying and lead to earlier release of gut hormones that tell you when you are full.

The emotional eaters were given emotional support and asked to practise mindfulness, while the slow burners took protein supplements, like the hungry guts group, but also did a HIIT (high intensity interval training) programme, as this has been shown to be helpful at speeding up metabolism.

The results were interesting. Compared with a control group, put on a standard low-calorie programme, those who followed a tailor-made diet lost more than twice as much weight over 12 weeks.

They also lost more inches around the waist, experienced a greater improvement in mood and a greater drop in blood fat levels.

Larger and longer-lasting studies are needed, but what this research shows is that when it comes to weight loss, one size does not fit all.

Hidden risk in water

At this time of year I like nothing better than an evening swim in the nearby Thames. So far I haven’t done that, mainly because of stories about raw sewage being pumped into our rivers. 

But there’s another, more insidious threat, so-called ‘forever chemicals’ or PFAS (per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances), which have been used for decades to make food containers and non-stick cookware. 

Unfortunately, once they get into the environment they hang around for a very long time, which is bad news as some PFAS, even at low levels, can lead to problems such as infertility and cancer.

In the UK, the official limit for PFAS in tap water is 100 nanograms (ng) per litre, but in the U.S. it’s just 25ng for some PFAS. Meanwhile the European Union is planning to ban almost all PFAS within ten years.

In the meantime, filter your water and avoid microwaving food in the plastic containers from your take-away. I’ll also probably swim only in the sea.

Don’t be fooled by ‘junior doctor’ title   

My son Jack is returning to the UK next week after a couple of years working as a junior doctor in Melbourne, where he went to broaden his medical horizons and recharge his batteries after a long stint on a Covid ward.

Despite the name, most ‘junior doctors’ are highly trained professionals. It can take ten years or more to become an NHS consultant, which means you go on being classified as a junior doctor after medical school until well into your 30s, or even 40s.

So I wasn’t surprised to learn that ‘one of the most discussed motions’ at the recent Junior Doctors Conference was the term ‘junior doctor’, says the BMJ — it’s ‘misleading for the public … and undersells the incredibly valuable work that doctors of all grades do’.

While they’re looking for a more appropriate name, their strike action continues.

I have huge sympathy for patients whose lives are disrupted by these strikes, but my heart is also with the junior doctors who have over the past decade seen a big pay cut in real terms.

If this isn’t resolved, the risk is we see a flight of junior doctors to places such as Australia, where they have better pay and working conditions.

We desperately need to train more doctors, but also to cherish those we have.

I only hope the lure of friends and family is enough to keep Jack, and others, from booking a flight to work where they’re more appreciated.

Deep breath. Are you OK? The Duke of Sussex was back in court on his second and final day of giving evidence. He entered the witness box just before 10.30am, did a little neck roll, took a sip of water and prepared for the ordeal ahead.

The prince was still in his smart suit and had swapped Tuesday’s purple tie for a snazzy silver one – but something else was different, too. Something more elusive. Did I detect a new spritz of lemon in his cocktail of complaint, a rousing grind of pepper on his ongoing beef?

It was almost as if he’d been instructed overnight to answer questions with a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and stick to the script, for God’s sake. For example, he had a better response to the important question of when he had read the newspaper articles in question.

On Tuesday he repeatedly told the court he couldn’t remember, end of. Yesterday it was: ‘I can’t remember but that is to suggest that the stress has been reduced and it hasn’t been.’

Soon we were roving over evidence about his wild and crazy younger life, including an injured knee that delayed his entry to Sandhurst, his trips to lap dancing clubs, his ‘boozy playboy lifestyle’ and his relationship with Chelsy Davy.

Prince Harry – so very vague about so very much that happened back then – had a sudden illuminating jolt of memory. He argued that he did not go to a London nightclub called Amika once a month (‘I don’t believe I was there that often’) and doubted the newspaper’s version of events (‘I don’t see any quotes from the Lithuanian lapdancer who sat on my lap’).

However, we all know Harry by now. Give our guy a public platform and it won’t be long before he is complaining about his privacy. Although to be scrupulously fair, this IS a phone hacking trial and not an exercise in vengeance. Or is it?

During his cross-examination by Andrew Green KC, acting for Mirror Group Newspapers, Prince Harry revealed that he decided to bring the case after meeting lawyer David Sherborne in the south of France, sometimes known as a sunny place for shady people, but of course that is not relevant here.

Harry also revealed that part of his impetus for the lawsuit was a desire to do something about the ‘abuse and hate that was coming towards me and my wife’ in recent years. So an exercise in revenge and punishment rather than one in justice and ethics?

In his witness statement, Prince Harry grandly described himself as someone who wants to ‘save journalism as a profession’ and ‘a soldier upholding important values’. It would be simply crushing to discover that this warrior of morality was motivated, even a little bit, by less noble sentiments.

Despite his new focus, it wasn’t long before the prince was drifting far from shore again, answering the questions in his head rather than the ones he had just been asked and taking any opportunity to expound on his general grievances to the judge. ‘Doesn’t mean it is true, my lord,’ he would say. ‘I highly doubt that, my lord,’ he would add. Mr Green got a little exasperated at one point. ‘Could I just repeat what I said yesterday – this is about me asking you questions, not you asking me questions,’ he said.

‘So be it,’ sighed the KC, after another dead-end exchange with the prince. There was a discussion, yet again, about what was and what was not in the public interest. Prince Harry was asked to define the former, and gave the matter some thought. ‘A life-threatening injury?’ he suggested. ‘I’m sure there are others.’

I’m sure there are. Again and again we got a glimpse of the unique struggles of the young prince’s cloistered life, a miserable-sounding existence constrained by suspicion and privilege. He was chary of everyone and inside this corral of distrust he was ministered by people he variously described as ‘my security’, ‘my point person’ and even ‘my police’.

Sometimes you have to wonder, who on earth was looking after this lost, motherless boy? At other times, his lack of acuity is gasping.

Towards the end of the day the focus switched onto a news story about his break-up with Chelsy Davy, printed with the headline, ‘Hooray Harry’s Dumped’. ‘My Lord, this was hurtful to say the least,’ said the prince, adding that he found it ‘a little bit mean’ that such a private moment was ‘turned into a bit of a laugh.’

‘You are not suggesting that they [the newspaper] were celebrating you had been dumped,’ said Green, incredulous. ‘Yes, I am. For me,’ said Harry, touching his heart with fluttering fingers, ‘as the subject or victim of this, to see that word used in this term is hurtful.’

If only a newspaper sub-editor – or anyone with a rudimentary grasp of grammar – had been on hand to explain the difference between Hooray Harry’s Dumped and Hooray, Harry’s Dumped.

How can a man come through an expensive education without knowing the basic rules of punctuation? Or expect to single-handedly ‘save journalism’ if he doesn’t even know how a comma works?

When he had finished giving his evidence, Prince Harry took a seat in the courtroom for the rest of the day. How had it all gone? That morning, Mr Green had asked him if it was true he was brought back early from his tour of duty in Afghanistan. ‘I was evacuated, yes,’ said Prince Harry.

You could say much the same about his hours in the witness box.

Channing Tatum wears a jumpsuit as he works on an art project with kids in Brooklyn while promoting his book The One And Only Sparkella And The Big Lie

By Amy Lamare For Dailymail.Com

Published: 14:16 EDT, 1 June 2023 | Updated: 14:27 EDT, 1 June 2023