This Morning’s Vanessa Feltz shares sad admission after split from her partner

Vanessa Feltz, who was occasionally seen on This Morning on ITV, wed musician Ben Ofoedu in 2006, but despite making plans to do so in the years since, they never got married.

Vanessa Feltz has admitted she feels “demoralised and unattractive” when potential relationships don’t work out.

The broadcaster has been introduced to men following her split with musician Ben Ofoedu, 53, earlier this year, but despite the rendezvous, nothing significant has stuck, it is thought. Vanessa, 63, became tearful when she confirmed she and Ben ended things in 2023, having been together for nearly 20 years.

The unlucky-in-love presenter stated this week that she prefers friends to introduce her to potential partners and doesn’t use dating websites. She continued, “It’s difficult. I’m too well-known to appear on websites. Although a friend might like to introduce me, it’s difficult to resist feeling demoralized and unattractive when it doesn’t work.

Up until their divorce in 2000, Vanessa, who is originally from north London, was married to surgeon Michael Kurer for 15 years. With Michael, she has four children and two grandchildren. Vanessa recalled her split from Michael in a previous interview saying she was “too open” to her daughters regarding “information and my emotions.”

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However, as her children grew older and forged a lasting friendship with the singer, Vanessa started dating him. They got engaged in 2006, but they never got married or split up in 2023 despite planning to tie the knot in the years that followed. Vanessa previously stated that it was obvious that the relationship was broken, and that Vanessa believes that anyone who loses trust in it cannot truly recover.

“And so I just wanted to let you know that I’m obviously very depressed, shocked, and all of those horrible things, but also very determined. I won’t let this derail me.

Her followers on Instagram showed huge support for the star, who was on Celebrity Big Brother in 2001, around one year after her divorce.

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The latest heartbreaking admission, said to a Daily Mail reporter at an event this week, comes as Vanessa continues to present her self-titled TV show on Channel 5. Devised as a chat show to rival Loose Women in the lunchtime slot, the programme sees Vanessa discuss topical issues and debates with a panel of guests, often including model Nicola McLean, presenter Sarah Cawood and journalist Afua Hagan.

India: How is the ethnic conflict in Manipur affecting ordinary citizens?

The route 101 East takes you northeast of India, where hundreds of people have been killed and thousands of people have been displaced.

Violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo, two ethnic groups, has been roiling India’s northeastern state of Manipur for more than two years.

The Indian government has taken control of the state in an effort to restore order, with nearly 260 people killed and about 60, 000 people displaced.

Both sides accuse the other of committing atrocities in what has been described as a civil war.

New Delhi has pledged to end the conflict and bring stability to the area.

Gardening legend Monty Don says there’s only one plant he ‘doesn’t like’

The well-known BBC Gardeners’ World host, Monty Don, revealed in a podcast episode that there is one plant he doesn’t like as he described how his ideal garden would look.

Monty Don has revealed one popular plant that he “doesn’t like very much”. In a revelation that may come as a surprise to enthusiasts, the BBC Gardeners’ World presenter disclosed that he’s not a particular fan of a much-loved plant that adorns gardens up and down Britain.

Speaking in an episode of the Talking Gardens podcast, Monty was asked to name something he wouldn’t allow in his “dream garden”, prompting him to reveal that he’s actually “quite tolerant”.

Monty, whose stunning Longmeadow garden appears on the show, explained that due to his long tenure on the BBC programme, they have to feature “all kinds of things” to cater for “all kinds of tastes”.

He added that if it weren’t being filmed, there wouldn’t be such a “complicated and complex” garden. Then, following that, Monty revealed three things he doesn’t like a lot, including a plant.

So, in some ways, I would just get rid of half of what we, you know, is too much of everything, Monty said. I’ve never willingly had a hanging basket, but if other people want one, I don’t mind if they do, because that’s what they want. They are not my enemies.

I simply don’t want them because they don’t offend me. I suppose bedding. I don’t often like to bedded, and it’s not something that really interests me. I have a hard time with chrysanthemum (chrysanthemum).

“I’m trying to whittle out what I already have, not to keep out what I don’t have,” I say. Therefore, I believe that’s the problem: I’m attempting to get rid of things I really enjoy rather than toss things I don’t want.

Despite this mild aversion to hanging baskets, it hasn’t stopped the helpful host from dishing out some advice on how to keep them blooming over the summer months.

Writing in his column for the Daily Mail, Monty advised people to remember that baskets dry out “much faster” than pots, particularly when they’re exposed to the elements. He did say there are two things keen gardeners can do to address this.

He suggested a “high awkward places” lance, a device that aids in travel. You can also try planting the basket to maintain the desired amount of moisture.

Monty advised “plant the basket to keep as much moisture in it as possible without it becoming clogged.” As your work surface, first place, place it on an empty bucket.

“Sprinkle moss from your garden, preferably, along the bottom of the basket and up the sides.” The compost will remain moist and intact.

In the meantime, moss can act as soil’s insulating layer. He continued, adding that evergreen clippings, including the “soft growth” of conifers, can aid in its fusion.

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Trump administration furloughs nuclear weapons agency staff due to shutdown

Due to the US government’s ongoing government shutdown, the administration of US President Donald Trump has announced that it will start hiring about 1,400 employees at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) starting next week.

Nearly 400 employees will remain at the Department of Energy, which is in charge of managing the US nuclear weapons stockpile, according to a spokesman at the agency, which is a semi-autonomous branch.

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Chris Wright, the energy secretary for president Trump, made the announcement of the planned furlough for NNSA employees in a post on X on Friday.

Due to Chuck Schumer’s disastrous Shutdown, Wright wrote in his post, “We’re going to have to furlough thousands of workers who are critical to modernizing our nuclear arsenal,” referring to the head of the Democratic party in the US Senate.

Democrats in the Senate voted against continuing the government shutdown that has now lasted for 17 days on Thursday, opposing a Republican bill that would allow federal agencies to receive funding for a tenth time.

Democrats continue to stifle funding legislation that would force Republicans to negotiate regarding healthcare subsidies, which is blamed on them for the impasse.

Federal employees who are “essential” continue to be paid until their pay is paid off during government shutdowns.

There have been furloughs for 750, 000 federal employees, along with tens of thousands of federal contractors, for the US government’s more than 2 million federal employees.

The federal staff of the NNSA oversees about 60 000 contractors, who maintain and test nukes at US national laboratories and other locations.

The UN reports that the agency also works to secure dangerous nuclear materials in other countries, including Ukraine, where the risk of a nuclear disaster is rising as a result of Russia’s invasion.

Daryl Kimball, a nonpartisan organization that promotes arms control and is the executive director of the Arms Control Association, criticized the potential NNSA staffing cuts next week.

I’m sure they can find the funds to keep the workers on the job, Kimball said, if the Trump administration truly believes the NNSA’s functions are significant because many of them are crucial to nuclear facility safety and security.

They might also want to reconsider their position regarding the government shutdown, he continued.

Energy Secretary Wright warned that the shutdown will slow down the US’s nuclear weapons program when he spoke to the Bloomberg news organization on Friday.

It will not help that we’re just getting momentum there, he said, not to mention the fact that everyone is unpaid and not coming to work.

Wright will meet with Wright at the Nevada National Nuclear Security Site on Monday to discuss the shutdown’s effects, according to the Energy Department.

As part of Elon Musk’s short-lived efforts to reduce government spending through his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), hundreds of NNSA employees were among the hundreds of Energy Department employees who received termination letters earlier this year.

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,332

On Saturday, October 18, 2025, how things are going:

Fighting

  • Vladimir Saldo, the region’s elected governor, wrote in a post on Telegram that two adults and a 10-year-old child were killed by Ukrainian shelling in Kherson.
  • A 38-year-old man was killed and four others were hurt in the Sumy region of Ukraine, according to a post on Telegram from the regional administration.
  • According to local authorities, at least eight people were also hurt by Russian attacks in the Ukrainian regions of Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv.
  • An oil depot and a gas treatment plant were destroyed on Friday night in Russian-occupied Crimea, according to Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces.
  • According to Russia’s state-run TASS news agency, Sergey Aksyonov, the newly elected Russian-appointed governor of Crimea, said a Ukrainian drone attack had damaged several electrical substations in the Russian-occupied region.
  • According to Regional Governor Vyacheslav Chaus, Russian forces shelled the Chernihiv region of Ukraine 68 times in a 24-hour period, causing fires at a logging company and harming residential areas.
  • Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, a representative for UNICEF, to condemn the Thursday attack by Ukraine that seriously injured Russian correspondent for foreign affairs Ivan Zuyev and injured his colleague in the Zaporizhia region of southern Ukraine.

diplomacy and politics

    On Friday, Donald Trump met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of the United States, and expressed optimism for the resolution of the conflict. Trump told reporters, “I believe we have a chance of ending the war quickly if flexibility is shown.”

  • Zelenskyy praised Trump for his “successful ceasefire” in the Middle East, saying that despite the fact that “Putin is not ready,” he is confident that with his “help, we can stop this war, and we really need it.”
  • Trump objected to Zelenskyy’s request for Tomahawk missiles, which are precise, long-range projectiles intended to strike directly into Russia, citing the possibility of a “big escalation” in the process.
  • Trump also stated to reporters that Zelenskyy would “be in touch” with Trump during upcoming meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hungary.
  • Despite the Russian leader being detained by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which Hungary is currently leaving, foreign minister Peter Szijjarto said his country would permit Putin to attend the scheduled summit with Trump in Budapest.
  • In a post on X, Putin’s investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, suggested constructing a “US-Russia link via the Bering Strait,” along with billionaire Elon Musk’s The Boring Company.
  • Trump responded on Friday, saying the tunnel proposal was “interesting,” while Zelenskyy responded, “I’m not happy with this idea.”
  • Following his White House meeting, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Zelenskyy “reiterated their unwavering commitment to Ukraine in the face of ongoing Russian aggression,” according to a summary of the call that Downing Street published.

Regional security

Trump commutes sentence of former Republican lawmaker George Santos

Former Republican representative George Santos’ sentence has been commuted by US President Donald Trump, who is currently serving time in prison for fraud and identity theft.

Trump acknowledged Santos had made mistakes in a social media post on Friday. However, he noted that Santos’ family and friends had expressed concern about the former lawmaker’s conditions in prison and noted that he had endorsed the Republican Party.

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In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that “George Santos was a little bit of a “rogue,” but there are still many “rogues” in our country who aren’t required to spend seven years in prison.

“At least Santos had the intelligence to always vote Republican”!

Santos has been “horribly mistreated,” according to Trump, citing his years of incarceration for “George has been solitary confinement for long stretches of time.”

After winning the Democratic-controlled Third Congressional District in 2022, Santos rose to prominence as a well-known political figure.

One of the first openly gay Republican seats in the House of Representatives was won, according to election observers.

However, it was soon apparent that Santos had fabricated significant details of his life story, and that investigation had already begun in December 2022.

The House of Representatives voted to remove Santos after a congressional committee discovered proof that he had broken federal law, including by tricking donors and stealing money from his own campaign. Less than a year into his term, Santos was in office.

Santos and the prosecution had reached a plea deal by 2024 to prevent the allegations from being brought before a jury. In April, he was found guilty of defrauding donors and tricking 11 people into giving money to his campaign, including members of his own family.

Santos, a vocal Trump supporter, quickly launched a demand that the president’s sentence be commuted, alleging that it was politically motivated.

Trump has also portrayed himself as a victim of unfair oppression by his political adversaries. He is known to support his supporters by using the presidential pardon, or bsp.

For instance, at the start of his current administration, Trump controversially pardoned nearly all those accused of being involved in the 2021 attack at the US Capitol. In an effort to violently overturn the results of Trump’s loss to the 2020 presidential election, that attack was carried out.

Santos and his allies have also gotten attention for his solitary confinement. Given their association with mental health issues and higher risk of suicide, critics claim cells in US prisons are “cruel and unusual punishment” and serve to maximize isolation.

On July 25, Santos entered the Fairton, New Jersey, Federal Correctional Facility. Since then, he has written several columns in which he has recited his appeal for mercy to Trump.

“I don’t want special treatment,” I said. In an opinion column, he wrote, “I want to be treated like a person with the respect that every person deserves when in distress.”