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Inside Dolly Parton’s life from growing up poor to iconic star she turned down

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How did Dolly Parton transition from a poor upbringing to the famous star she turned down at The Mirror?

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We take a look back on Dolly Parton’s life and remarkable career as she celebrates her 80th birthday, from the wealthy parent she turned down to her legendary songwriting prowess.

This week, Dolly Parton will celebrate her 80th birthday (Image: Getty Images)

Everything you need to know about Dolly Parton’s life and career

  1. Dolly Parton is a songwriter, actress, philanthropist, businesswoman and country music legend. She was born on January 19, 1946, in Sevierville, Tennessee, in the Great Smoky Mountains and is celebrating her 80th birthday this year.
  2. Parton was one of 12 children raised in a very săld, close-knit family. Without running water or electricity, she grew up in a one-room cabin. Her mother sang ballads, her uncle fiddled, and her family lived on music. At age 5, Dolly began making music and TV appearances on her neighborhood’s radio and television when she was five.
  3. She immediately relocated to Nashville the day after graduating from high school to pursue music. She began writing songs for other musicians later. Her big break came in the late 1960s when she co-starred with Porter Wagoner on his television program. Although they were successful together, their professional breakup was painful (She later wrote about leaving that partnership in “I Will Always Love You” rather than “Romantic Breakup).
  4. Dolly Parton has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making her one of the most popular songwriters ever. She has more than 25 country hits and has written more than 3, 000 songs. Additionally, she has received more than 50 Grammy nominations.
  5. Jolene, Coat of Many Colors, I Will Always Love You, and Here You Come Again are all well-known Dolly Parton songs. She is well known for her emotional storytelling, as well as her ability to juggle country, pop, gospel, and bluegrass.
  6. Dolly Parton turned down Elvis Presley as part of her songwriting career. In the early 1970s, Dolly had just written “I Will Always Love You.” At the time, she was still rising to major stardom, and the song was already a hit in the country world. Elvis Presley wanted to record it at the time and despite Dolly saying she was honoured when Elvis’s team reached out, she refused in the end. This is because Elvis’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, had a standard requirement: Elvis would record the song only if he received half the publishing rights. For Dolly, this song was deeply personal. Despite knowing how life-changing an Elvis recording could be, Dolly said no as she had promised herself she would never give away her songwriting. Dolly’s decision turned out to be one of the most important of her career. Whitney Houston recorded “I Will Always Love You” in 1992 for The Bodyguard and it became one of the best-selling singles of all time. Dolly earned tens of millions of dollars from publishing.
  7. In the late 1970s and 1980s, Dolly was successful in entering Hollywood. Notable films include 9 to 5 (1980), Steel Magnolias (1989) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982). She received praise for her acting, particularly for bringing warmth, humor, and sincerity to her roles.
  8. The star is also a savvy businesswoman. She is the founder of Dollywood, a major theme park in Tennessee. Dollywood is one of the largest employers in the state and Dolly has repeatedly reinvested profits into her home region. Her brand extends to music, film, publishing, merchandise, and tourism.
  9. One of her legacy’s most admired aspects is her philanthropy. In 1995, she founded Imagination Library, which offers free books to children as they grow up. More than 200 million books have been distributed worldwide thanks to the organization, which was inspired by her father, who was unable to read. Additionally, Dolly supports education, disaster relief, and healthcare initiatives by giving $1 million (£750, 000) to COVID-19 vaccine research.
  10. Before he passed away on March 3, 2025, at the age of 82, Dolly was married to Carl Dean for almost 60 years. Although no definitive cause was initially identified, subsequent reports indicated that he had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for a number of years and had “suffered a great deal” before passing away. Dolly says she didn’t have children because she did, which gave her the freedom to concentrate on raising the children of millions of people. She frequently discusses faith, humility, and kindness and is incredibly religious.
  11. The actress is known for her glamorous makeup, sparkles, and big hair. She frequently makes fun of her appearance, saying, “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap.” While avoiding partisan politics, she speaks out about kindness, inclusion, and self-acceptance.

Read more Dolly Parton’s 80th birthday celebrations as fans left concerned about why she skipped party

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Red cards, VAR and offside laws facing Ifab review

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Images courtesy of Getty

Dale Johnson

Football news correspondent
  • 19 Comments

When a goalscoring opportunity is denied at a meeting on Tuesday, football’s lawmakers will consider expanding the scope of the red card’s scope.

However, Arsene Wenger’s “daylight” offside proposal will likely be replaced with a different, fairer option for defenses.

Goalkeeper tactical timeouts, time-wasting and video assistant referee (VAR) tweaks are among other items on the agenda.

The International Football Association Board’s (Ifab) annual business meeting in London will be the first step toward any changes to the rules that will apply to the domestic leagues and the Fifa World Cup in the upcoming season.

The annual general meeting in Cardiff on February 28th is the last step in the process for approval.

The Ifab board is comprised of world govering body Fifa and the football associations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The FAs each have one vote at the meeting in February, and Fifa casts a block of four. A law needs to be modified by six votes.

Changes come into effect from 1 July. They can be applied earlier by leagues that begin new calendar-year seasons before this date, such as the World Cup.

What is up for discussion is listed below.

Red cards reviewed

A defender can currently only be sent off (Dogso) if the victim is through on goal and has an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

The Ifab suggests expanding this to include the attacker’s teammates.

The wording “location and number of attackers” could be added to the considerations for Dogso.

This rule should also apply to fast counter-attacking teams, for instance.

If the player who was fouled had a chance to score, Dogso might have won next season if they could have passed to their team-mate.

There is also a proposal to remove a yellow card shown to a player who commits a Dogso offence when advantage is played and a goal is scored.

For instance, Mohamed Salah was struck down by Leon Bailey at Aston Villa last season when the Liverpool international was passing the ball. Darwin Nunez, the scorer, received the ball.

Wenger’s offside trial is expected to be postponed.

Arsene Wenger speaks during a panel discussion at the John F. Kennedy Center Images courtesy of Getty

There has been a lot of talk about Wenger’s “daylight” offside law.

The former Arsenal manager’s suggestion is that you are not offside if “any part of your body is on the same line as the defender.”

Given the goalkeeper’s customary positioning, there must be a complete gap between the attacker and the opposing player, who is also known as the last defender.

Yet the discussion on Tuesday is going to be about “torso” offside.

The upper body would be used to determine offside rather than the head and feet.

Wenger’s concept appears to have been slammed because it gives the attacker too much leverage.

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Goalkeepers posing as though they have been injured during a tactical timeout

Leeds boss Daniel Farke with Manchester City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma Images courtesy of Getty

It is regarded as the modern game’s scourge. A goalkeeper goes to ground off the ball and play is stopped. The technical area is where the ten outfielders make their way for a team discussion.

The goalkeeper steps up as soon as the coach has received his new instructions. There is nothing a referee can do about it.

A coach frequently uses it when their team is struggling, or when a player has been dismissed and needs to reorganize.

Gianluigi Donnarumma, the keeper for Manchester City, was accused by Leeds United manager Daniel Farke in November of pretending to be injured to “bend the rules.”

An outfield player who has treatment must leave the field for 30 seconds.

The Ifab may have to force a coach to fire an outfield player in place because the same logic cannot be applied to goalkeepers.

Some people object to it because it assumes a goalkeeper is lying when they might actually be hurt.

The Ifab accepts something has to be done so it is likely to be trialled at lower levels next season and the results evaluated.

However, it might get longer if you believe 30 seconds is too much.

Fifa trialed players at the Arab Cup last month who received medical attention and were required to play for two minutes before being tested.

It is not a new idea, though, and has existed in Major League Soccer in the United States for the last two years.

With a few exceptions, players who go down for more than 15 seconds, remain on the floor, and receive treatment must remain awake for two minutes.

VAR getting involved in corners and second yellow cards

Fifa head of referees Pierluigi Collina speaks during a news conference Images courtesy of Getty

The idea of reviewing corners was rejected at the Ifab’s football advisory panels’ meeting in October. There’s a concern that it will take too long. It is a view shared across the game, apart from at Fifa.

Fifa believes that it has the resources to evaluate every corner before it is taken, not just those that lead to goals.

Fifa predicts that a corner check will be carried out before teams start training, saving valuable time from the correct decision being made.

So the game’s world governing body is petitioning for special dispensation to review corners at this summer’s World Cup. The approval is likely to be obtained.

However, this causes a conflict between Fifa and the rest of the Ifab board, which is ultimately unfavorable.

Fifa took full control of VAR from the Ifab in 2020 but it still needs the approval of the Ifab board to make changes.

If Fifa manages to pass this, it might consider other factors. Pierluigi Collina, the head of the referees, backs the idea that mistakes should be fixed as soon as possible. And that includes an incorrect yellow card generally.

Second yellow cards received greater support. There are some rumors that players who have been sent off will receive VAR reviews.

Throw-ins and goal-kicks countdown.

Michael Oliver indicates the eight second countdown to a goalkeeper during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and BurnleyImages courtesy of Getty

The advisory panels placed “a particular focus on further measures to improve the flow of play and minimise interruptions and time lost”.

One thing, the time taken on throw-ins and goal-kicks, was another aspect, just like goalkeepers going down for stoppages.

If a countdown is over, the proposal would turn possession over to the opposition.

It follows the success of adding an eight-second limit for goalkeepers holding the ball.

A referee could use the goalkeeper’s law as a genuine deterrent, much like the goalkeeper’s law.

Therefore, if a keeper takes too long a goal-kick, the opposition will get the ball and kick off would be a corner.

This will need trials in lower levels of football first so don’t expect to see it at the World Cup or in domestic football next season.

The Ifab will also consider enforcing a new substitutes MLS regulation.

It might be taped up jewelry or accessories.

Estelle Cascarino, a substitute for Chelsea in the Women’s Super League earlier this month, was denied entry because of her earring.

It had been covered by tape but could not be taken out.

No allowances are made in FA regulations, which state that “every piece of jewelry is forbidden and must be removed.”

The football and technical advisory panels deliberated the situation in October, thankfully for Cascarino.

It covers a player who has accessories or jewellery that cannot be removed, for instance permanently attached to the body.

Up for discussion are any additional modifications.

The Ifab will approve some recent temporary changes to be added to the laws permanently.

The “only the captain” rules for when talking to the referee, as well as the clarification for “double touch” penalties.

That means that a player’s penalty is retaken rather than a free-kick to the opponent if they accidentally touch the ball twice.

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Clashes in Colombia between rival rebel groups kill 27 people

By in News, World News

According to military sources, at least 27 rebel members from a leftist group have been killed in clashes with a rival faction in central Colombia, which comes at a time when there is more conflict there due to US military action in Venezuela and threats against Colombia.

According to a military source, the clashes, which have been the most violent in recent months, took place on Sunday in the rural municipality of El Retorno in the Guaviare region of the Amazon, which is located 300 kilometers (186 miles) southeast of Bogota.

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The fight centered primarily on controlling territory because the area is crucial for cocaine production and trafficking, according to the army’s statement on Saturday on X.

A second military source identified a faction of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), led by Nestor Gregorio Vera, known as the nation’s most wanted man, known as Ivan Mordisco, and led by Alexander Diaz Mendoza, alias Calarca Cordoba, a second military source.

Due to internal disagreements, the two organizations were dissolved in April 2024 and were once a part of the so-called Central General Staff. The two military sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, allege that Vera’s group was responsible for the casualties. A Diaz’s group leader also confirmed the deaths of 27 people to Reuters.

According to Army sources, there were only preliminary fatalities.

After the government suspended a bilateral ceasefire, Vera’s group continues to attack civilians and security forces while Diaz’s group is currently in talks with left-wing President Gustavo Petro about ending it. A 2016 peace agreement that allowed roughly 13, 000 FARC members to renounce their armed conflict and reenter society after disarming had been rejected by these now-rival factions.

Petro has put pressure on rebel groups as elections are in four months and the opposition accuses him of being soft.

19 Mordisco followers were killed in an attack carried out by government forces in November.

Petro compared the elusive Mordisco to the late Pablo Escobar, a cocaine thief.

As tensions between the two long-standing allies escalated, the president and the United States have recently been at odds with one another.

After President Donald Trump threatened to follow up the US’s abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro with an attack to topple or kill Petro, Petro and the latter exchanged harsh words.

However, the two leaders agreed to work together to combat drug trafficking last week and eased tensions.

In response to Trump’s threats of intervention, Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN), a left-wing rebel organization and the country’s largest remaining rebel force, has been gearing up for battle.

Senegal stun hosts Morocco to win AFCON title

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Senegal won the Africa Cup of Nations after scoring a goal in the extra-time winner that sank hosts Morocco 1-0, ending a tense finale for the eventual champions.

Brahim Diaz had a chance to win the trophy for Morocco on Sunday when he scored a controversial penalty in the 24th minute of added time at the end of regular time.

Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, who was unmoved by the lengthy delay that followed the spot-kick award, comfortably saved the weak attempt by the Real Madrid winger.

The match at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium ended in extra time, and Gueye’s brilliant 94th-minute strike won Senegal.

Following a VAR review of a challenge on Diaz by El Hadji Malick Diouf, the contentious penalty had been delivered by Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala at the very end of the allotted eight minutes of stoppage time.

The Moroccan players vehemently requested that the referee review the replays, but Senegal and its supporters reacted with fury when the penalty was awarded.

Senegal was already upset by the referee’s earlier decision to forbid Ismaila Sarr’s goal for a foul in the second minute of added time.

In the fourth minute of extra time, Senegal was clearly struck by Diaz’s penalty, which was missed.

After winning the trophy for the first time against Egypt on penalties in Yaounde in 2022, Senegal won the tournament’s second consecutive AFCON title.

After declaring this to be his final game at the tournament, they can now turn their attention to the World Cup and will hope to persuade star man Mane to play in another AFCON.

Billionaires have more money and political power than ever, Oxfam says

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The global financial community’s annual report, Oxfam, expresses concern that billionaires are securing more control over politics, media, and social media than ever, while also expressing concern about rising inequality.

In a world where conflicts and protests are pervasive, the report released on Sunday also highlighted the growing divide between the haves and have-nots.

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According to Oxfam’s analysis, billionaires’ combined wealth increased by $2.5 trillion in 2025, almost equal to the total wealth held by 4.1 billion people, or $2.5 trillion overall.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, had more than $ 30 trillion dollars for the first time in 2012, and there were more than 3 000 billionaires in the world for the first time last year.

The World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which brings together close to 1, 000 of the world’s richest people with political leaders, along with a few invited activists each year, was the occasion of the release of the charity’s annual report on rising inequality.

A Spirit of Dialogue is the theme of the meeting this year. However, Oxfam claimed in its annual report that the superrich are increasingly in charge of all forms of media, including the more recent and traditional.

It gave examples of far-right billionaire Vincent Bollore owning France’s CNews, Amazon’s billionaire Jeff Bezos, buying The Washington Post, Musk acquiring Twitter/X, and Patrick Soon-Shiong acquiring the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International, said the “extraordinary influence” the superrich have had on our politicians, economies, and media has “deepened inequality” and “manually trampled our efforts to combat poverty.”

Behar remarked that “governments should be listening to the needs of the people regarding things like quality healthcare, action on climate change, and tax fairness.”

According to a World Values Survey of 66 countries, almost half of respondents said the rich frequently buy elections in their country, while billionaires are 4, 000 times more likely than ordinary citizens.

The growing inequality between the rich and the poor is, according to Behar, creating a political deficit that is both dangerous and unsustainable.

On September 30, 2025, demonstrators confront riot police in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

“Lives are becoming incomprehensible and intolerable.”

In addition, according to Oxfam, 142 significant antigovernment protests occurred in 68 countries last year, which they claimed were typically met with violence.

Behar argued that “governments are making wrong decisions in their efforts to pander to the elite and protect wealth while suppressing people’s rights and anger over how many of their lives are becoming unaffordable and intolerable.”

The WEF estimates that “nearly 850 of the world’s top CEOs and chairpersons” will be present at this year’s Davos meeting along with political figures like US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, and Vice Premier He Lifeng, China’s vice president.

Oxfam is an aid organization that provides humanitarian assistance to nations all over the world in addition to its political advocacy.

Carrick gave fans ‘taste’ of Ferguson era – Rooney

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Images courtesy of Getty
Charlotte Coates

journalist for BBC Sport
Wayne Rooney hopes that the 2-0 victory over Manchester City will give young Manchester United fans a taste of what it was like under Michael Carrick.

Ruben Amorim was fired, but Carrick, 44, was appointed as United’s interim head coach on Tuesday until the end of the season.

At Old Trafford, Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu scored the winning goal on Saturday, earning them a deserved victory.

Rooney, who won five Premier League titles while playing for United alongside Carrick, believes that under the leadership of his former team-mate, a significant change occurred in the home crowd.

Did you notice the difference between the BBC studios and the stadium when I wasn’t there? On the most recent episode of the BBC podcast The Wayne Rooney Show, Rooney remarked, “Even when he]Michael Carrick] walked out before the game and he’s trying to pump the crowd up.”

“I believe the fans felt something yesterday,” he said. Under Sir Alex Ferguson, they experienced what it was like. Some of the younger fans have endured terrible experiences since Fergie left, in actuality over the past ten and thirteen years.

They haven’t witnessed a team’s outstanding performance. I’ve also played for some of those teams. Some of them I’ve participated in.

They haven’t seen a team that play that well, with that enthusiasm and conviction for both fighting and being brave with the ball as well as being resilient and difficult to play against.

“Best Man Utd performance in a long time”

Mbeumo, a Cameroon international who had just returned from Africa Cup of Nations duty, scored the winner in the first half, with Dorgu doubled the lead 11 minutes later.

Rooney described it as “the best performance” he had come across from United in a long time.

“I don’t believe what Michael has done for the team was rocket science.” The former England striker described it as a straightforward change to his formation strategy.

“I believe everyone has been talking a lot about Ruben Amorim’s back three formation and how it worked for Man United.”

He changed that, so he changed it, but remember when I discussed United’s needs in the previous podcast, it’s really simple: run and work hard. The players did that, which was so encouraging.

I thought Amad and Dorgu on the wings were excellent, the full-backs were helped out, and they formed a compact shape, which I mentioned, and they hit Man City on the break.

Rooney claimed that United’s win over City was “night and day from what we’ve been seeing”under the Portuguese and that Amorim was dismissed on January 5th.

Rooney continued, “You can feel it from the fans as well, the difference in team energy, the confidence, the belief, the composure on the ball at the right times.”

“From what we’ve been seeing, it was a great day because it was both night and day.” When we discuss Man United’s DNA, it made me think that…

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