Peaky Blinders returns with touching tribute to late Helen McCrory

Feb 28 2022

The final season of Peaky Blinders is here at last, and it was known that it was going to be sad and bizarre watching the show without the performances of Helen McCrory as matriarch Polly Gray.

The actor tragically passed away last year at the age of just 52, following a private battle with cancer. However, her presence lived on in the first episode of season six.

The show picked up where the last season left off. Tommy Shelby, played by fan-favourite Cillian Murphy, is told over the phone that his aunt Polly has been killed and her body delivered to his home.

The ensuing act has reportedly made fans bawl their eyes out as in a beautifully shot funeral scene, Polly is laid to rest alongside her portrait. As the camera pans between the grief-stricken faces of family members, the fire blazes and we follow the smoke up in the air as her eyes can be seen looking down from the sky.

Social media was subsequently filled with references to the wonderful but somber scene, with many saying that the way the cast and crew worked around the untimely passing was absolutely touching and genius.

It seems as though the death of her character will guide the story arc for the final series, as her son Michael holds Tommy accountable for her death. Indeed, the cast has confirmed that McCrory will remain very present in the show.

Most of the cast have also claimed that making the show without her was very difficult, but her memory will live on through all of them. Were it not for the pandemic, the star could have finished the final season with her colleagues. RIP Helen.

#MaltaDaily

Karin Grech Hospital told to refuse new admissions over staff shortage

Feb 28 2022

The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) warned that it will tell staff at Karin Grech Hospital to refuse new admissions if the health authorities do not deploy new nurses.

In a statement issued on Monday, the MUMN said that it would introduce the directives for its members on Tuesday unless more staff are sent to the rehabilitation hospital.

The union said that ‘Karin Grech Hospital caters for highly dependent patients who require exhaustive nursing care. Having such a hospital with 45 nursing vaccines, the high burnout and huge stress on the few nursing staff in KGH to cope with the demands of the patients under their care is not acceptable in any Rehabilitation Hospital.’

Stating that such low numbers caused high levels of burnout and stress, the MUMN said the Health Division failed to replace foreign nurses who left.

#MaltaDaily

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively pledge to match up to $1 million donations for Ukrainians

Feb 28 2022

Hollywood stars Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds have pledged to match every donation up to $1 million for refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. Posting to Twitter on Saturday, Reynolds, known mostly for his role as Deadpool, said that;

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ryan Reynolds (@vancityreynolds)

‘In 48 hours, countless Ukrainians were forced to flee their homes to neighbouring countries. They need protection. When you donate, we’ll match it up to $1,000,000, creating double the support.’ With Reynolds promoting donations to the United Nations refugee agency, Gossip Girl star Lively posted a UNHCR photo on instagram showing a child and saying the agency is providing life saving aid.

The couple are known for making several donations, with many of them reaching millions. Earlier this month, the couple donated another $1 million to Feeding America and Good Banks Canada amid the pandemic.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Blake Lively (@blakelively)

Ukrainians crowded onto trains and waited in long lines for hours to leave the country after Russia invaded Ukraine. With around 368,000 refugees managing to leave, the EU commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said that the EU needs to prepare for millions to arrive. The UN agency said that because of years of violence, more than 2 million people had left Ukraine even before Russian troops invaded last week. Around 3 million people in Ukraine will need humanitarian aid just this year.

#MaltaDaily

Ex-Miss Ukraine fighting back Russian invasion alongside other civilians

Feb 28 2022

A former Miss Ukraine is one of the hundreds of civilians and locals taking up weapons against the invading Russian forces in Kyiv. As satellite images released today show Vladimir’s army encircling the capital city, Anastasiia Lenna, 31, was pictured wielding a massive rifle with a pink scope. The caption? ‘Everyone who crosses the Ukrainian border with the intent to invade will be killed!’

The now viral photo came amid reports of long queues by citizens waiting to be issued weapons in the capital as they expect another Russian assault. Ms Lenna, whose normal job is a public relations manager in Turkey, posted the image alongside two hashtags, #StandWithUkraine and #HandsOffUkraine. This is not the first time she was pictured with a fun as previous posts show here training in wooded areas with the rifles.

The model is not the only one standing up against the Russians, as snapshots show a man with a prosthetic leg as well as a young couple who rushed their wedding ahead to tie the knot and join the civil defence. Ordinary citizens all across the country have been receiving basic combat training in everything from gun handling, tossing grenades and even making Molotov cocktails. Some Ukrainians living abroad flew back home to join the ‘Territorial Defence Units.’

Newly trained forces have been seen standing guard behind stacks of tires at checkpoints in the capital, patrolling its empty streets and wearing yellow arm bands to identify them as volunteer soldiers. Satellite imagery showed a large deployment of Russian ground troops moving in the direction of the Ukrainian capital. Despite yet to be independently verified, a huge build up has been noted.

The mayor confirmed that nine civilians in Kyiv have been killed so far, including one child. As others take shelter in the subway system turned bomb shelters, others are trying to keep the border of the city safe whilst also finding Russian saboteurs.

#MaltaDaily