Chinmayanand

Chinmayanand (born Krishna Pal Singh) [1] is a former union minister from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. He was minister of state for internal affairs in Third Vajpayee Ministry. He was elected to 13th Lok Sabha from Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh as a Bharatiya Janata Party candidate in 1999. He was member of 10th Lok Sabha from Badaun in 1991 and from Machhlishahr in 1998.

Controversy
In August 2019, a female student at a college run by him posted a video alleging sexual exploitation by Swami Chinmayanand.[2] He was arrested after the girl allegedly went missing.[3] He has been taken into custody for 15 days.

The Family Man

The Family Man is a 2000 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Brett Ratner, written by David Diamond and David Weissman, and starring Nicolas Cage and Téa Leoni. Cage's production company, Saturn Films, helped produce the film. The film centers on a man who experiences what his life might have been if he had made a different decision earlier in his life.
Plot
Jack and Kate, who have been together since college, are at JFK Airport, where Jack is about to leave to take up a twelve-month internship with Barclays in London. Kate fears the separation will be detrimental to their relationship and asks him not to go, but he reassures her, saying their love is strong enough to last, and he flies out.

Thirteen years later, Jack is now a bachelor living a carefree life as a Wall Street executive in New York City. At work, he is putting together a multi-billion dollar merger and has ordered an emergency meeting on Christmas Day. In his office, on Christmas Eve, he gets a message to contact Kate, but, even though he remembers her, he dismisses it, apparently uninterested.

On his way home, he is in a convenience store when a young man, Cash, enters claiming to have a winning lottery ticket worth $238, but the store clerk refuses him, saying the ticket is a forgery. Cash pulls out a gun and threatens him, so Jack offers to buy the ticket and Cash eventually agrees. Outside, Jack tries to help Cash, to which he responds by asking Jack if anything is missing from his life. Jack says he has everything he needs, whereupon Cash enigmatically remarks that Jack has brought upon himself what is now going to happen, and walks away. A puzzled Jack returns to his penthouse and sleeps.

On Christmas Day, Jack wakes up in a suburban New Jersey bedroom with Kate and two children. He rushes out to his condo and office in New York, but both doormen refuse him entrance and do not recognize him. Jack runs out into the street and encounters Cash driving Jack's Ferrari. Although Cash offers to explain what is happening, all he says is a vague reference to "The Organization" and that Jack is getting "a glimpse" which will help him to figure out for himself what it's about.

Jack slowly realizes that he is living the kind of life he might have had if he had stayed in the United States with Kate as she had asked. He has a modest family life, where he is a car tire salesman for Kate's father and Kate is a non-profit lawyer. Jack's young daughter, Annie, thinks he is an alien but a friendly one and assists him in fitting into his new life. With a few setbacks, Jack begins to succeed, bonding with his children, falling in love with his wife and working hard at his job.

Taking advantage of a chance meeting when his former boss, chairman Peter Lassiter, comes in to have a tire blowout fixed, he impresses him with his business savvy and Lassiter invites him to his office, where Jack worked in his 'other' life. There, after a short interview, Lassiter offers him a position. While he is excited by the potential salary and other perks, Kate argues that they are very happy and they should be thankful for the life they have.

Having decided that he now likes this 'other' life, Jack again sees Cash, now a store clerk. He demands to stay in this life, but Cash tells him there is no choice: "a glimpse", by definition, is an impermanent thing. That night, Jack tries to stay awake, but fails and wakes the "next day", Christmas Day, to find himself in his original life. He forgoes closing the acquisition deal to intercept Kate, finding her moving out of a luxury townhouse before flying to Paris. Like Jack, she has focused on her career, and has become a very wealthy corporate lawyer. She had only called him to return a box of his old possessions. He chases after her to the airport and, in an effort to stop her leaving, describes in detail their children and family life he had seen. Intrigued, she eventually agrees to go with him for a coffee. From a distance, they are seen talking inaudibly over their coffees.

Cast
Nicolas Cage as Jack Campbell
Téa Leoni as Kate Reynolds / Kate Campbell
Don Cheadle as Cash
Makenzie Vega as Annie Campbell
Jake and Ryan Milkovich as Josh Campbell
Jeremy Piven as Arnie
Lisa Thornhill as Evelyn Thompson
Saul Rubinek as Alan Mintz
Josef Sommer as Peter Lassiter
Harve Presnell as Ed Reynolds
Mary Beth Hurt as Adelle
Francine York as Lorraine Reynolds
Amber Valletta as Paula
Ken Leung as Sam Wong
Kate Walsh as Jeannie
Gianni Russo as Nick
Tom McGowan as Bill
Joel McKinnon Miller as Tommy
Robert Downey as Man in house
Paul Sorvino (deleted scenes) as Sydney Potter
Release
Box office
The Family Man opened at #3 at the North American box office making $15.1 million in its opening weekend, behind What Women Want and Cast Away, which opened at the top spot.[3] After 15 weeks in release, the film grossed $75,793,305 in the US and Canada and $48,951,778 elsewhere, bringing the film's worldwide total to $124,745,083.[2]

Critical reception
The film received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 53% based on 128 reviews, with an average rating of 5.49/10. The site's consensus states: "Despite good performances by Cage and especially by Leoni, The Family Man is too predictable and derivative to add anything new to the Christmas genre. Also, it sinks under its sentimentality".[4] Metacritic reports a 42 out of 100 rating based on 28 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[5]

Chris Gore from Film Threat said: "If you're looking for a heartfelt, feel-good holiday movie, just give in and enjoy". Matthew Turner from ViewLondon said: "Perfect feel-good Christmas-period family entertainment. Highly recommended."[6] Common Sense Media and Redbox both rate it 4 out of 5 stars.[citation needed] Movie guide.org rates it four of four stars, noting "The Family Man is a heart-rending movie. Very well written, it makes you laugh and cry. Better yet, it’s an intentionally moral movie. It wants to prove that everyone needs love..."[citation needed]

Emma Cochrane from Empire in 2015 wrote: "This is exactly the kind of adult fantasy you want to see at Christmas and, as such, it's highly enjoyable entertainment", and gave the film 3 stars out of 5.[7]

Extinction Rebellion

Extinction Rebellion (abbreviated as XR) is a socio-political movement with the stated aim of using civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance to compel government action on climate breakdown, biodiversity loss, and the risk of social and ecological collapse.[1][3][4]

Extinction Rebellion was established in the United Kingdom in May 2018 with about one hundred academics signing a call to action in support in October 2018,[5] and launched at the end of October by Roger Hallam and Gail Bradbrook, and other activists from the campaign group Rising Up!.[6] In November 2018, 5 bridges across the Thames River in London were blockaded.[7] In April 2019 Extinction Rebellion occupied 5 prominent sites in central London: Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Circus, Marble Arch, Waterloo Bridge and the area around Parliament Square.

Citing inspiration from grassroots movements such as Occupy, Satyagraha,[7] the suffragettes,[7] Gene Sharp,[8] and the civil rights movement,[7] Extinction Rebellion wants to rally support worldwide around a common sense of urgency to tackle climate breakdown.[9][7] A number of activists in the movement accept arrest and imprisonment,[10] similar to the mass arrest tactics of the Committee of 100 in 1961.

The movement uses a circled hourglass, known as the extinction symbol, to serve as a warning that time is rapidly running out for many species
Demands
Extinction Rebellion's website states the following aims:[13][14]

Government must tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency, working with other institutions to communicate the urgency for change.
Government must act now to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2025.
Government must create, and be led by the decisions of, a citizens' assembly on climate and ecological justice.
Stated principles
XR states the following on its website and explains the following in its declaration:[15][3]

"We have a shared vision of change—creating a world that is fit for generations to come.
We set our mission on what is necessary—mobilising 3.5% of the population to achieve system change by using ideas such as "momentum-driven organising" to achieve this.
We need a regenerative culture—creating a culture that is healthy, resilient, and adaptable.
We openly challenge ourselves and this toxic system, leaving our comfort zones to take action for change.
We value reflecting and learning, following a cycle of action, reflection, learning, and planning for more action (learning from other movements and contexts as well as our own experiences).
We welcome everyone and every part of everyone—working actively to create safer and more accessible spaces.
We actively mitigate for power—breaking down hierarchies of power for more equitable participation.
We avoid blaming and shaming—we live in a toxic system, but no one individual is to blame.
We are a non-violent network using non-violent strategy and tactics as the most effective way to bring about change.
We are based on autonomy and decentralisation—we collectively create the structures we need to challenge power. Anyone who follows these core principles and values can take action in the name of Extinction Rebellion."[16]
Beginnings
Extinction Rebellion was established in the United Kingdom in May 2018 with about one hundred academics signing a call to action in support in October 2018,[5] and launched at the end of October by Roger Hallam, Gail Bradbrook, Simon Bramwell, and other activists from the campaign group Rising Up![6]

Citing inspiration from grassroots movements such as Occupy, Gandhi's Satyagraha,[7] the suffragettes,[7] Gene Sharp,[8] Martin Luther King and others in the civil rights movement,[7] Extinction Rebellion wants to rally support worldwide around a common sense of urgency to tackle climate breakdown.[9] A number of activists in the movement accept arrest and imprisonment,[10] similar to the mass arrest tactics of the Committee of 100 in 1961.

On 9 December 2018, a second open letter of support signed by another hundred academics was published.[17]

Actions
UK actions
An assembly of more than 1000 people took place at Parliament Square, London on 31 October 2018, to hear the "Declaration of Rebellion"[18] and occupy the road in front of the Houses of Parliament.[18] In November 2018, activists blockaded the UK's Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy;[19] unveiled a banner over Westminster Bridge;[20] glued themselves to the gates of Downing Street;[21] and closed an access road to Trafalgar Square.[22] On "Rebellion Day" about 6,000 people blocked the five main bridges over the River Thames in London for several hours[7]—The Guardian described it as "one of the biggest acts of peaceful civil disobedience in the UK in decades".[7][23] On "Rebellion Day 2", the roads around Parliament Square were blocked and a mock funeral march travelled to Downing Street and Buckingham Palace;[24] there were also actions in Manchester,[25] Sheffield,[26] Machynlleth[27] and Edinburgh.[28]

“ Organisers say they hope the campaign of 'respectful disruption' will change the debate around climate breakdown and signal to those in power that the present course of action will lead to disaster. ”
— Damien Gayle, The Guardian[7][23]
In January 2019, XR staged an occupation of the Scottish Parliament's debating chamber in Holyrood, Edinburgh.[29] In February council chambers were also occupied by XR groups in Norwich[30] and Gloucestershire.[31] A week later neighbouring Somerset County Council declared a climate emergency, citing school strikers and XR as having some input into the decision.[32] In late February, following an XR petition, Reading Borough Council also declared a climate emergency,[33] aiming to cut carbon emissions by 2030, a week after discussions with the XR Reading group[34] and a day after the warmest winter day on record in the UK.[35]

In February, 'Swarming' roadblocks were held outside London Fashion Week venues[36] and XR called on the British Fashion Council to declare a 'climate emergency', and for the industry to take a leading role in tackling climate change.[37] In March, around 400 protesters poured buckets of fake blood on the road outside Downing Street to represent the threatened lives of children.[38] On 1 April, protesters undressed and glued themselves to the glass in the House of Commons viewing gallery during a debate on Brexit.[39]


Extinction Rebellion, Oxford Circus, London, April 19, 2019
Starting Monday 15 April, Extinction Rebellion organised demonstrations in London, focusing on Oxford Circus, Marble Arch, Waterloo Bridge and the area around Parliament Square.[40][41] The intersection of Oxford Street and Regent Street (Oxford Circus) was blocked with a boat, to which activists glued themselves,[42] as well as gazebos, potted plants and trees, a mobile stage and a skate ramp. Sites at Marble Arch, Waterloo Bridge and the area around Parliament Square were also occupied[43] and Shell Oil Company's headquarters was targeted.[44] On 16 April on Waterloo Bridge, police stopped making arrests after running out of holding cells.[45] By the end of that day an estimated 500,000 people had been affected by the disruptions and 290 activists had been arrested in London.[46] In Scotland, more than 1,000 protesters occupied the North Bridge in Edinburgh for seven hours. On 17 April activists climbed onto the roof of a Docklands Light Railway train at Canary Wharf station whilst another glued himself to the side.[47] On 18 April, the fourth day of continuous occupations at the four locations, the arrest figure had risen to 428.[42] Also on 18 April activists held a series of swarming (short duration) roadblocks on Vauxhall Bridge.[48] On 19 April, around a dozen teenagers approached the access road to Heathrow Airport holding a banner.[49] Police partially cleared the Oxford Circus site, including removing the boat, whilst activists still occupied the road.[50] The police said 682 people had thus far been arrested in London.[49] On 25 April protesters glued themselves across the entrances to the London Stock Exchange,[51] whilst others climbed on to a Docklands Light Railway train at Canary Wharf holding banners.[51] Activists gathered at Hyde Park to end the 11-day demonstrations in London, during which 1,130 people had been arrested.[52]

In July in East London there was a series of seven-minute Dalston traffic blockades, a mass bike ride through the A10, Olympic park traffic blocks, and a people's assembly outside Hackney town hall.[53] Also in July, protests in Bristol, Leeds, Cardiff, Glasgow and London focused on different threats for each city, with a boat in each location.[54]

Extinction Rebellion targetted London Fashion Week (LFW) in September 2019 with three days of actions in order to raise awareness about the environmental impact of the fashion industry and fast fashion—"the United Nations has said it uses more energy than the aviation and shipping industry combined".[55]

New York City actions
On January 26, 2019, Extinction Rebellion NYC activists formed the extinction symbol with their bodies on the ice at the Rockefeller Center ice skating rink. An activist climbed and hung a banner on the large gold Prometheus statue.[56] On April 17, 2019, over 60 activists were arrested at a die-in in the streets around New York City Hall.[57] On June 22, 2019, 70 activists were arrested for blocking traffic outside of The New York Times headquarters in midtown Manhattan.[58] On August 10, 2019, over 100 people were arrested at a joint-protest shutting down the West Side Highway, in protest at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency's human rights abuses at the US-Mexico border and its role in mass deportations.[59] On September 5, 2019, traffic was blocked at multiple intersections in midtown Manhattan to bring attention to the fires in Amazonia.[60] On September 6, 2019, an XR activist climbed the Unisphere in Queens, New York.[61]

Actions elsewhere

"Declaration Day" at the Victorian State Government, 22 March 2019
Extinction Rebellion Australia held a "Declaration Day" on 22 March 2019 in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, and Brisbane.

In the week beginning 15 April 2019,[7] XR activists occupied the Parliament of Australia's House of Representatives[62] and part of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, forming human chains.[63] Similar actions took place in Berlin, Heidelberg, Brussels, Lausanne, Madrid,[64] Denver and Melbourne.[65] Also, a railway line in Brisbane, Australia was disrupted.[66]

Legal consequences
In June and July 2019 some of the Extinction Rebellion supporters arrested that April appeared in court in the UK. On 25 June a 68-year-old protester was convicted of breaching a section 14 order giving police the power to clear static protests from a specified area, and given a conditional discharge.[67] On 12 April over 30 protesters appeared in court, each charged with being a public assembly participant failing to comply with a condition imposed by a senior police officer at various locations on various dates. Some pleaded guilty, and were mostly given conditional discharges. The trials of those who pleaded not guilty are to take place in September and October.[68]

Support
During the 'International Rebellion' which started on 15 April 2019, actions and messages of support arrived from various sources, including a speech by actress Emma Thompson, a planned visit by school strike leader Greta Thunberg, and statements from former Nasa scientist James Hansen and linguist and activist Noam Chomsky.[42]

A study conducted during the first two days of the mid-April London occupation found that 46% of respondents supported the rebellion,[69] however a larger opinion poll later found that support had declined and that 52% of respondents now opposed actions aiming to "shut down London"[70] as the protests on 17 April blocked access to means of transport including buses, alienating travellers.[71][72]

In May 2019, Roger Hallam and eight others stood as candidates in the European Parliament elections in the London and the South West England constituencies as Climate Emergency Independents.[73][74] Between them, they won 7,416 out of the 3,917,854 total votes cast in the two constituencies.[75][76]

In June 2019, 1,000 healthcare professionals in the UK and elsewhere, including professors, public health figures, and former presidents of royal colleges, called for widespread non-violent civil disobedience in response to "woefully inadequate" government policies on the unfolding ecological emergency. They called on politicians and the news media to face the facts of the unfolding ecological emergency and take action. They supported the school strike movement and Extinction Rebellion.[77]

In July 2019 Trevor Neilson, Rory Kennedy and Aileen Getty launched the Climate Emergency Fund (CEF),[78][79] inspired by Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion protesters in the UK in April.[80] It donated almost half a million pounds to Extinction Rebellion groups in New York City and Los Angeles and school strike for climate groups in the US.[78][79][80] In September 2019 Getty pledged $600,000 (£487,000) to the Fund.[81]

Criticism
The movement has been criticised by some[by whom?] for making unrealistic demands.[82] The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, which supports its course of strong action and demands, said that the time frame being urged by XR was "an ambition that technically, economically and politically has absolutely no chance of being fulfilled." They calculated that to go net zero by 2025, flying would need to be scrapped and 38 million cars (both petrol and diesel) would need to be removed from the roads. In addition, 26 million gas boilers would need to be disconnected in six years.[83] Protests that block roads and cause traffic jams increase CO2 emissions for the day of the protests [84]. Using electric and hybrid cars would minimise the emissions caused by slow/stopped traffic. Fossil fuel cars would need stops of at least 10 seconds with the engine off[85] to reduce the impact.

Bibliography
This Is Not a Drill: An Extinction Rebellion Handbook. London: Penguin, 2019. ISBN 9780141991443.[86][87]
Our Fight. By Juliana Muniz Westcott. 2019. ISBN 978-1793258366.

Liam Gallagher

William John Paul Gallagher (born 21 September 1972) is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame as the lead singer of the rock band Oasis, and later served as the singer of Beady Eye, before performing as a solo artist after the dissolution of both bands.[1][2] His dress sense–with a penchant for Parka jackets–and abrasive manner have been the subject of commentary in the press; through these and his distinctive singing style he remains one of the most recognisable figures in British music. On his singing Spin magazine states he “twists vowels to the stretching point Johnny Rotten-style — “sun-shee-ine.”[3]

Although his older brother Noel wrote the majority of Oasis' songs, Liam penned the singles "Songbird" and "I'm Outta Time", along with a string of album tracks and B-sides. Noel departed Oasis in 2009 and formed Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, while Liam continued with the former members of Oasis, without Noel, forming Beady Eye and releasing two albums before they disbanded in 2014. His debut solo album As You Were, which was released 6 October 2017, proved to be a critical and commercial success, topping the UK Albums Chart and being certified Platinum.

As You Were sold over 103,000 units in its first week in the United Kingdom. It is the ninth fastest-selling debut of the decade in the UK.[4] In 2018, the album was certified Platinum, with UK sales of over 300,000 units. In the United States, it opened at number 30 on the Billboard 200 with 15,000 album-equivalent units, including 14,000 traditional sales.[5] His second solo album, Why Me? Why Not., is set to be released on 20 September 2019
Early life
William John Paul Gallagher was born in Longsight, Manchester, to Irish parents Thomas and Peggy Gallagher. He was physically abused by his father as a child, although not to the extent that his older brothers Noel and Paul were. He has said that the abuse affected him deeply and inspired him to become an artist.[6] When Liam was 10, Peggy took the boys and moved away from Thomas (she divorced him in 1986).[7] Although Liam maintained sporadic contact with his father throughout his teens, he has said that their issues remain unresolved. Paul and Noel often contend that even from a young age, Liam went out of his way to antagonise people, especially Noel, with whom he shared a bedroom. The Gallagher brothers were troubled, especially in their mid-teens; Liam often stole bicycles from local shops. He attended St. Bernard's RC Primary School until age 11, then The Barlow Roman Catholic High School in Didsbury; despite common reports that he was expelled at age 16 for fighting, Liam was actually suspended for three months. He then returned to school, where he completed his last term in Spring 1990.[8] He gained 4 GCSEs.[9]

Liam had no interest in music at a young age, preferring sports. He credits his change in attitude towards music to a blow to the head by a hammer he received from a student from a rival school. After this incident, he became infatuated with the idea of joining a band.

Noel has said that Liam showed little interest in music until his late teens, was better looking than him, a better singer, had better clothes and could wear a parka jacket with more style.[9] Gallagher became confident in his ability to sing and began listening to bands like the Beatles, the Stone Roses, the Who, the Kinks, the Jam, and T.Rex. In the process he forged an obsession with former Beatles singer/songwriter John Lennon; Liam would later sarcastically claim to be Lennon reincarnated, despite being born eight years prior to Lennon's death
When school friend Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan, invited Gallagher to join his band, The Rain, as a vocalist, he agreed. Liam was the band's co-songwriter, along with guitarist Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs. Noel Gallagher has since openly mocked this writing partnership, describing them as being "just awful". Liam said that, "We were shit".[9] The band only rehearsed once a week and did not get many gigs. It was after one of their rare shows in 1991 at the Manchester Boardwalk that Noel, having recently returned from touring internationally as a roadie with Inspiral Carpets, saw them perform.

In 1993, Oasis played a four-song setlist at Glasgow's famous King Tut's Wah Wah Hut, where Alan McGee of Creation Records discovered them and signed them on for a six-record deal. In late 1993 and '94, the band recorded the album Definitely Maybe, which released on August 28, 1994, and went on to become the fastest-selling British debut album ever. Liam was praised for his vocal contributions to the album, and his presence made Oasis a popular live act. Critics cited influences from The Beatles and Sex Pistols. Liam's attitude garnered attention from the British tabloid press, which often ran stories concerning his alleged drug use and behaviour.

In 1997, Definitely Maybe was named the 14th-greatest album of all time in a 'Music of the Millennium' poll conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM.[11] In Channel 4's '100 Greatest Albums' countdown in 2005, the album was placed at number 6.[12] In 2006, NME placed the album third in a list of the greatest British albums ever, behind The Stone Roses' self-titled debut album and The Smiths' The Queen Is Dead.[13] In a 2006 British poll run by NME and the book of British Hit Singles and Albums, Definitely Maybe was voted the best album of all time with The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band finishing second and Revolver third.[14] Q Magazine placed it at number five on their greatest albums of all-time list in 2006, and in that same year NME hailed it as the greatest album of all time.

(What's the Story) Morning Glory? was even more successful, becoming the third-best selling album in British history.[15] Around this time, Oasis became embroiled in a well documented media-fuelled feud with fellow Britpop band Blur. The differing styles of the bands now leading the Britpop movement – Oasis a working class, northern band and Blur a middle class, southern band – made the media perceive them as natural rivals. In August 1995, Blur and Oasis released new singles on the same day. Blur's "Country House" outsold Morning Glory's second single, "Roll with It", 274,000 copies to 216,000 during the week.[16] When the band mimed the single on Top of the Pops, Liam pretended to play Noel's guitar and Noel pretended to sing, taking a jibe at the show's format.

(What's the Story) Morning Glory? is considered to be a seminal record of the Britpop era and as one of the best albums of the nineties,[17] and it appears in several charts as one of the greatest albums of all time.[18] In 2010, Rolling Stone commented that "the album is a triumph, full of bluster, bravado and surprising tenderness. Morning Glory capped a true golden age for Britpop."[19] The magazine ranked the album at 378 on its 2012 list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".[20] The album's enduring popularity within the UK was reflected when it won the BRITs Album of 30 years at the 2010 BRIT Awards. The award was voted by the public to decide the greatest 'Best Album' winner in the history of the BRIT Awards.[21] The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[22]

After an incident of air rage in 1998 (apparently over a scone) on a flight to Australia, Gallagher was banned for life from Cathay Pacific airlines; Gallagher said he would "rather walk".[23] During the tour of Australia, Gallagher was arrested and charged with assault after allegedly head-butting a 19-year-old fan, who claimed he was only asking him for a photo. Criminal charges were later dropped, although a civil case was pursued that led to Gallagher reportedly settling out of court.[24]

Oasis's eagerly anticipated third album, Be Here Now, was released on 21 August 1997 and set a new record as the fastest-selling album in UK Chart history. The album was derided by Noel in later years,[25] but Liam has defended the album, describing it as "a top record".[25]

On the first day of release, Be Here Now sold over 424,000 copies, becoming the fastest-selling album in British chart history; initial reviews were overwhelmingly positive.[26] The album's producer Owen Morris said the recording sessions were marred by arguments and drug abuse, and that the band's only motivations were commercial.[27] As of 2008, the album had sold eight million copies worldwide. It was the best-selling album of 1997 in the UK, with 1.47 million units sold.[28] The album topped the UK Vinyl Albums Chart in 2016, 19 years after its original release.[29]

Creation Records shut down in 1999, following which the Gallagher brothers set up their own label, Big Brother Recordings for all future Oasis releases. Interestingly, future album and singles were marked with codes starting with 'RKID'.

Oasis returned in 2000 with Standing on the Shoulder of Giants. Founding members Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs and Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan left during the recording, leaving Liam Gallagher as the only member remaining from The Rain. The album featured their first song written by Liam rather than Noel, "Little

England rugby

The England national rugby union team competes in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on a total of 28 occasions (with the addition of 10 shared victories), 13 times winning the Grand Slam and 25 times winning the Triple Crown, making them the most successful outright winners in the tournament's history. They are ranked third in the world by the International Rugby Board as of 9 September 2019. England are to date the only team from the northern hemisphere to win the Rugby World Cup, when they won the tournament back in 2003. They were also runners-up in 1991 and 2007.

The history of the team extends back to 1871 when the English rugby team played their first official Test match, losing to Scotland by one try. England dominated the early Home Nations Championship (now the Six Nations) which started in 1883. Following the schism of rugby football in 1895 into union and league, England did not win the Championship again until 1910. England first played against New Zealand in 1905, South Africa in 1906, and Australia in 1909. England was one of the teams invited to take part in the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987 and went on to appear in the final in the second tournament in 1991, losing 12–6 to Australia. Following their 2003 Six Nations Championship Grand Slam, they went on to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup – defeating Australia 20–17 in extra time. They again contested the final in 2007, losing 15–6 to South Africa.

England players traditionally wear a white shirt with a rose embroidered on the chest, white shorts, and navy blue socks with a white trim.

Their home ground is Twickenham Stadium where they first played in 1910. The team is administered by the Rugby Football Union (RFU). Four former players have been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame; one of these is also a member of the IRB Hall of Fame. Seven other former players are members of the IRB Hall—four solely for their accomplishments as players, two solely for their achievements in other roles in the sport, and one for achievements both as a player and administrator.
Early years
The expansion of rugby in the first half of the 19th century was driven by ex-pupils from many of England's Public Schools, especially Rugby, who, upon finishing school, took the game with them to universities, to London, and to the counties.[1] England's first international match was against Scotland on Monday 27 March 1871.[2] Not only was this match England's first, but it also proved to be the first ever rugby union international.[2] Scotland won the match by a goal and a try to a try,[3][4] in front of a crowd of 4,000 people at Raeburn Place, Edinburgh.[5] A subsequent international took place at the Oval in London on 5 February 1872 which saw England defeat Scotland by a goal, a drop goal and two tries to one drop goal.[4][6][7] In those early days there was no points system, it was only after 1890 that a format allowing the introduction of a points system was provided.[4] Up until 1875 international rugby matches were decided by the number of goals scored (conversions and dropped goals), but from 1876 the number of tries scored could be used to decide a match if teams were level on goals.[8]

In 1875, England played their first game against the Irish at the Oval, winning by one goal, one drop goal and one try to nil;[4] the match was Ireland's first ever Test.[9][10] England defeated Scotland in 1880 to become the first winners of the Calcutta Cup.[11][12] Their first match against Wales was played on 19 February 1881 at Richardson's Field in Blackheath.[12][13] England recorded their largest victory, defeating the Welsh by seven goals, six tries, and one drop goal to nil[4] and scoring 13 tries in the process.[13] The subsequent meeting the following year at St Helens in Swansea was a closer contest; with England winning by two goals and four tries to nil[4][14] Two years later, the first Home Nations championship was held and England emerged as the inaugural winners.[15] In 1889, England played their first match against a non-home nations team when they defeated the New Zealand Natives by one goal and four tries to nil[4] at Rectory Field in Blackheath.[16][17] In 1890 England shared the Home Nations trophy with Scotland.[18]

England first played New Zealand (the All Blacks) in 1905. The All Blacks scored five tries, worth three points at this time, to win 15–0.[19] The following year, they played France for the first time, and later that year they first faced South Africa (known as the Springboks); James Peters was withdrawn from the England squad after the South Africans objected to playing against a black player. The match was drawn 3–3.[20] England first played France in 1905, and Australia (known as the Wallabies) in 1909 when they were defeated 9–3
The year 1909 saw the opening of Twickenham as the RFU's new home, which heralded a golden era for English rugby union. England's first international at Twickenham was in 1910 and brought them victory over Wales, and England went on to win the International Championship (then known as the Five Nations) for the first time since the great schism of 1895. Although England did not retain the title in 1911, they did share it in 1912. A Five Nations Grand Slam was then achieved in 1913 and 1914 as well as in 1921 following the First World War. England subsequently won the Grand Slam in 1924 and as well as in 1925.[22] This was despite having started 1925 with a loss to the All Black Invincibles in front of 60,000 fans at Twickenham.[23]

After winning another Grand Slam in 1928, England played the Springboks in front of 70,000 spectators at Twickenham in 1931. Following the ejection of France due to professionalism in 1930, which thus reverted The Five Nations back to the Home Nations tournament,[24] England went on to win the 1934 and 1937 Home Nations with a Triple Crown,[25] and in 1935 achieved their first victory over the All Blacks.[26][27]

When the Five Nations resumed with the re-admission of France in 1947 after the Second World War, England shared the championship with Wales. The early Five Nations competitions of the 1950s were unsuccessful for England, winning one match in the 1950 and 1951 championships.[22] England won the 1953 Five Nations, and followed this up with a Grand Slam in 1957, and win in 1958. England broke France's four-championship streak by winning the 1963 Championship.[22] After this victory, England played three Tests in the Southern Hemisphere and lost all three: 21–11 and 9–6 against the All Blacks, and 18–9 against Australia.[28] England did not win a single match in 1966, and managed only a draw with Ireland. They did not win another Championship that decade; a fact that prompted amateur historian F. W. P. Syms to declare this period 'the sorriest in English Rugby Union History'.[29]

Don White was appointed as England's first-ever coach in 1969. According to former Northampton player Bob Taylor, "Don was chosen because he was the most forward-thinking coach in England".[30] His first match in charge was an 11–8 victory over South Africa at Twickenham in 1969. Of the eleven games England played with White in charge they won three, and drew one and lost seven. He resigned as England coach in 1971.

England had wins against Southern Hemisphere teams in the 1970s; with victories over South Africa in 1972, New Zealand in 1973 and Australia in 1973 and 1976. The 1972 Five Nations Championship was not completed due to the Troubles in Northern Ireland when Scotland and Wales refused to play their Five Nations away fixtures in Ireland. England played in Dublin in 1973 and were given a standing ovation lasting five minutes. After losing 18–9 at Lansdowne Road, the England captain, John Pullin famously stated, "We might not be very good but at least we turned up."[31]

England started the following decade with a Grand Slam victory in the 1980 Five Nations – their first for 23 years.[32] However in the 1983 Five Nations Championship, England failed to win a game and picked up the wooden spoon.[33] In the first Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and Australia, England were grouped in pool A alongside Australia, Japan and the United States. England lost their first game 19–6 against Australia. They went on to defeat Japan and the United States, and met Wales in their quarter-final, losing the match 16–3.[34]

In 1989, England won matches against Romania and Fiji, followed by victories in their first three Five Nations games of 1990. They lost to Scotland in their last game however, giving Scotland a Grand Slam. England recovered in the following year by winning their first Grand Slam since 1980. England hosted the 1991 World Cup and were in pool A, along with the All Blacks, Italy and the United States. Although they lost to the All Blacks in pool play, they qualified for a quarter-final going on to defeat France 19–10. England then defeated Scotland 9–6 to secure a place in the final against Australia which they lost 12–6.[35]

The next year, England completed another Grand Slam and did not lose that year, including a victory over the Springboks. In the lead up to the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, England completed another Grand Slam – their third in five years. In the World Cup, England defeated Argentina, Italy and Samoa in pool play and then defeated Australia 25–22 in their quarter-final. England's semi-final was dominated by the All Blacks and featured four tries, now worth five points each, by Jonah Lomu; England lost 45–29.[36] They then lost the third/fourth place play-off match against France.[37]

Professional era
In 1997, Clive Woodward became England's coach. That year, England drew with New Zealand at Twickenham after being heavily defeated in Manchester the week before. England toured Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in 1998. Many of the England team made themselves unavailable for the tour nicknamed the "tour from hell" where England were beaten 76–0 by the Wallabies.[38] In 1999 during the last ever Five Nations match, Scott Gibbs sliced through six English tackles to score in the last minute, and with the ensuing conversion by Neil Jenkins, handed the last ever Five Nations title to Scotland.
England commenced the new decade by winning the inaugural Six Nations title, although they lost their last match to Scotland.[39] In 2001, Ireland defeated England 20–14 in a postponed match at Lansdowne Road to deny them a Grand Slam.[40] Although the 2002 Six Nations Championship title was won by France, England had the consolation of winning the triple crown.[41] In 2002, England defeated Argentina in Buenos Aires, New Zealand,[42] Australia, and South Africa at Twickenham.[43][44][45][46] In 2003, England won the Grand Slam for the first time since 1995, followed by wins over Australia and the All Blacks on their Summer tour in June.

Going into the 2003 World Cup, England were one of the tournament favourites.[47] They reached the final on 22 November 2003 against host Australia and became world champions after a match-winning drop goal by star flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson deep into extra time that made the final score 20–17. Not only was it their first Rugby World Cup victory, but it was the country's first World Cup since winning the 1966 FIFA (football) World Cup as hosts. On 8 December, the English team greeted 750,000 supporters on their victory parade through London before meeting Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace
In the 2004 Six Nations Championship, England lost to both France and Ireland and finished third.[49] Sir Clive Woodward resigned on 2 September and Andy Robinson was appointed England head coach.[50] Robinson's first Six Nations campaign in 2005 resulted in fourth place for England,[51] and although they then defeated Australia 26–16,[52] the year was completed with a 23–19 loss to the All Blacks.[53]

Following their loss to South Africa in the 2006 end of year Tests,[54] England had lost eight of their last nine Tests – their worst ever losing streak. Coach Andy Robinson resigned after this run, and attack coach Brian Ashton was appointed head coach in December 2006.[55] England started the 2007 Six Nations Championship with a Calcutta Cup victory over Scotland.[56] The championship also included a historic match at Croke Park against Ireland which England lost 43–13, their heaviest ever defeat to Ireland.[57]

In the 2007 World Cup England played in Pool A with Samoa, Tonga, South Africa and the United States. They qualified for the quarter finals after losing embarrassingly to South Africa 36–0 where they defeated Australia 12–10, and then faced hosts France in their semi-final. England won 14–9 to qualify for the final against South Africa, which they lost 15–6. England followed up the World Cup with two consecutive 2nd place finishes in the Six Nations, behind Wales and Ireland respectively. The 2009 Six Nations also saw former England Captain Martin Johnson take up the job of head coach. However, Johnson could not replicate his on-field success to management, and resigned in November 2011 following a miserable 2011 Rugby World Cup which ended in quarter-final defeat by France and featured a series of on and off-field controversies.

On 29 March 2012, Stuart Lancaster, the former Elite Rugby Director at Leeds Carnegie was appointed England head coach by the Rugby Football Union.[58] Previously Lancaster was appointed as the head coach on a short term basis assisted by existing forwards coach Graham Rowntree and Andy Farrell.

Lancaster was considered a success in his first campaign as England coach - during the 2012 Six Nations Championship, defending Champions England finished in second place after losing 19–12 to Wales at Twickenham Stadium, but successfully defended the Calcutta Cup beating Scotland 13–6 at Murrayfield. England finished the year on a high, after outplaying World Cup holders New Zealand in November, in which England dominated to win 38–21. The All Blacks had been unbeaten in 20 matches but were completely outplayed by England.[59]

During the 2013 Six Nations Championship again England finished in second place behind Wales after losing the opportunity of being Grand Slam winners for the first time since 2003, by losing to Wales in Cardiff 30–3. It was also the first time every team managed to win at least 3 competition points (the equivalent of a win and a draw or three draws) since 1974. However, England did again defeat Scotland for the Calcutta Cup 38–18 at Twickenham.

During the 2013 summer tour to South America in which Lancaster took an experimental side, England beat a South American select XV before a 2–0 series victory over Argentina, a first away series win against The Pumas for 32 years.[60] England hosted the 2015 Rugby World Cup but were eliminated in the Pool stage,[61] the first hosts in a Rugby World Cup to have failed to qualify for the knockout stages.

However, despite the 2015 World Cup setback following the appointment of new head coach Eddie Jones, England won the Grand Slam in the 2016 Six Nations Championship, went the whole of 2016 unbeaten, including winning a series whitewash over Australia in Sydney, and equalled the world record of 18 consecutive test wins with an impressive 61–21 victory over Scotland securing the six nations championship of the 2017 edition.

2018 began well for England, seeing off a spirited challenge from Italy 46-15, and winning a tight contest against Wales 12-6 in the first two rounds of the Six Nations. However, it wasn't be until June before England recorded another win, as the team lost their remaining games against Scotland (13-25), France (16-22) and eventual Grand Slam winners Ireland (15-24) at home in Twickenham. A non-test loss against the Barbarians (45-63) followed.

On their Summer tour of South Africa, England lost the first two matches 39-42 and 12-23, after leading both early in the first half, before winning the third test 25-10 against a mostly second-string Springbok side. That autumn, after adding former All Blacks and USA Eagles coach John Mitchell to the coaching setup, England won the return match against South Africa by a single point at 12-11, and lost an equally close contest with New Zealand by 15-16, both in controversial circumstances[62] [63]. England would round out the year with wins over Japan (35-15) and Australia (37-18). The win over Australia continued an unbroken run of victories over the Wallabies under former Australia coach Eddie Jones.

Waterloo Road

Waterloo Road was a British television drama series set in a comprehensive school of the same name, broadcast on BBC One and later also on BBC Three. The school was set in Rochdale, England from series one until the end of series seven, and from the beginning of series eight until the end of the show in series ten, the school was set in Greenock, Scotland. In 2014, it was confirmed that the 10th series of Waterloo Road would be the last. The first episode was broadcast on BBC One on 9 March 2006 and the final episode on BBC Three on 9 March 2015. Waterloo Road ran for 10 series, 200 episodes and exactly 9 years. Reruns previously aired on CBS Drama in the UK.
Overview
The first series contained eight episodes and ended on 27 April 2006. The show was subsequently commissioned for a second series consisting of twelve episodes.[2] The second series began on 18 January 2007 and ended on 26 April 2007. A third series was commissioned, consisting of twenty episodes, premiering on 11 October 2007 and ending on 13 March 2008. The show's fourth series contained twenty episodes and aired from 7 January 2009 to 20 May 2009.[citation needed]

Production was scheduled to move locations in 2009, with storylines in the fourth and fifth series designed to coincide with the planned move.[3] However, these plans did not go ahead and the show remained in its original location for three more years. Series 5 and 6 filmed back to back from 2009 to 2010.[4] The fifth series started on 28 October 2009 and aired its finale on 15 July 2010. The sixth series ran from 1 September 2010 to 6 April 2011. A seventh series was commissioned in April 2010 and was later expanded to thirty episodes, which began airing on 4 May 2011 and ended on 25 April 2012.[5]

Following the seventh series, the show was commissioned for a further fifty episodes to air over two series and relocated to Greenock Academy in Scotland as part of a BBC initiative to produce more programming outside of England.[6] At its new location, Waterloo Road became an independent school as opposed to a comprehensive school in the past seven series.[7][8][9] The eighth series ran for thirty episodes between 23 August 2012 and 4 July 2013. The ninth series ran for twenty episodes between 5 September 2013 and 12 March 2014.

On 19 September 2013, a tenth series was commissioned.[10] It was announced on 2 April 2014 that series 10 will be the final series of the show.[11][12] The final scenes were filmed on 22 August 2014.[13] On 11 December 2014, it was announced that the final 10 episodes would be aired on BBC Three in 2015,[14] however a repeat is aired on BBC One later in the evening. The final episode of Waterloo Road, was the 200th episode, and aired on 9 March 2015 on BBC Three and BBC One. In the story the school remains open after a lengthy battle against a school merger.

Cast
Main article: List of Waterloo Road characters
The show is an ensemble drama, with a large cast of up to forty main characters, including students, staff and parents. Due to their appearance on the opening credits, teachers receive top billing for the main cast. From term to term the cast changes; the overall longest running cast members were Philip Martin Brown, who played Grantly Budgen, and Jason Done, who played Tom Clarkson who appeared from Series 1 until their exits in Series 9 and 8, featuring in 166 and 160 episodes respectively.

The original teaching cast consisted of headteacher Jack Rimmer (Jason Merrells); deputy head Andrew Treneman (Jamie Glover); Art teacher and Head of Pastoral Care Kim Campbell (Angela Griffin); Head of English Grantly Budgen (Phillip Martin Brown); English teachers Lorna Dickey (Camilla Power) and Tom Clarkson (Jason Done); French teacher Steph Haydock (Denise Welch); and Drama teacher Izzie Redpath (Jill Halfpenny). The cast of students included Donte Charles (Adam Thomas), Chlo Grainger (Katie Griffiths), Janeece Bryant (Chelsee Healey), Yasmin Deardon (Rhea Bailey), Mika Grainger (Lauren Drummond) and Lewis Seddon (Craig Fitzpatrick).

The final, Series 10 cast consisted of Head Teacher Vaughan Fitzgerald (Neil Pearson), Deputy Head Lorna Hutchinson (Laura Aikman), Head of English Christine Mulgrew (Laurie Brett), Head of Modern Languages George Windsor (Angus Deayton), Home Economics Teacher and Housemistress Maggie Budgen (Melanie Hill); History Teacher Audrey McFall (Georgie Glen), GPD Teacher Guy Braxton (Regé-Jean Page), Science Teacher Marco D'Olivera (Stefano Braschi), Geography Teacher Olga Fitzgerald (Pooky Quesnel) and School Secretary Sonya Donnegan (Victoria Bush). An extensive set of pupils were prominent in the final series, including Rhiannon Salt (Rebecca Craven), Lenny Brown (Joe Slater), Lisa Brown (Caitlin Gillespie), Darren Hughes (Mark Beswick), Shaznay Montrose (Je'Taime Morgan Hanleyand), Justin Fitzgerald (Max Bowden), Leo Fitzgerald (Zebb Dempster), Kenzie Calhoun (Charlotte Beaumont), Scott Fairchild (Andrew Still), Carrie Norton (Tahirah Sharif), Bonnie Kincaid (Holly Jack), Dale Jackson (Finlay MacMillan) and Abdul Bukhari (Armin Karima).
The first episode of Waterloo Road was broadcast on 9 March 2006, having been filmed the previous autumn in 2005. Characters included head Teacher Jack Rimmer (played by Jason Merrells), deputy head Andrew Treneman (played by Jamie Glover) and pastoral care teacher Kim Campbell (played by Angela Griffin).

A common theme throughout Series One was the threat of the school's closure by the governors owing to falling pupil numbers, bad pupil behaviour, and the bad publicity it had been receiving prior to Jack's appointment as headmaster. Rimmer, formerly deputy head, became headmaster when the previous head Brian Vasey had a nervous breakdown after 30 years at the school.

Other storylines included the death of pupil Adam Deardon in a car crash. Donte Charles, who had been driving the car involved, blamed himself for Deardon's death and was remanded into custody for three months. Donte's girlfriend Chlo Grainger also blamed herself for the death of Adam and putting her best friend Holly Tattersall in a deep coma, from which she later regained consciousness. Donte later receives a suspended sentence and Chlo is not charged with any crime, although her behaviour had contributed to Donte crashing the car.

The series also focused upon the behaviour of troubled pupil Lewis Seddon, culminating in him sexually harassing Kim Campbell. After being expelled from Waterloo Road, Lewis later attacked Jack in his office after school and tried to set him on fire, only for French teacher Steph Haydock (Denise Welch) to foil him with a fire extinguisher.

Another pupil, Zak Walker, is constantly late for school, falling asleep in class and falling behind with classwork and homework. The staff suspect that he has been taking drugs, particularly when caffeine tablets are found in his possession, but after he absconds from the school Kim visits his house and finds that he has in fact been caring for his sick mother.

Another important theme of the series was the break-up of Tom and Lorna Clarkson's short-lived marriage, due to Tom's love for another member of staff, Lorna's best friend, Izzie Redpath, who was already having family problems with her former partner and two teenage daughters, Chlo and Mika Grainger. Finally, the LEA's decide to keep Waterloo Road open for the foreseeable future.

The final moments of the series see Lorna taking a step towards the edge of a canal.

Series 2 (2007)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 2)
Series 2 of Waterloo Road featured 12 episodes. The first episode of the second series featured a number of new main characters: pupil Brett Aspinall (played by Tom Payne), sponsor governor Roger Aspinall (played by Nick Sidi) and school secretary Davina Shackleton (played by Christine Tremarco).

Series 2 began airing on BBC One Scotland on 14 January 2007 and in the rest of the UK on 18 January 2007.[15]

The audience learns that Lorna has survived the suicide attempt she was last seen preparing for at the end of series 1, when she jumped into a canal following the collapse of her marriage. As the series progresses, however, it becomes obvious that her troubles are far from over. Meanwhile, Tom and Izzie are expecting their first child together. Following a fall down the stairs and several other accidents, Lorna is diagnosed with Multiple sclerosis and her life becomes even more stressful.

She re-unites Izzie and Tom, who had separated after Izzie suffered a miscarriage, before committing suicide rather than living with MS, leaving Tom and Izzie absolutely distraught and heartbroken.

Other notable storylines in series 2 included the arrival and departure of prospective sponsor governors Jerry Preston and Roger Aspinall, drug-dealing by Gemma Seddon and Jed Seddon, the alcoholism of trainee teacher Russell Millen, the online hate campaign against Mika Grainger by sixth-former Leigh-Ann Galloway, the return of former pupil Maxine Barlow after she conquers her drug addiction, a series of sex attacks on teenage girls for which Maxine's step-father Kevin Hurst is revealed to have committed, and the arrival of a popular new sixth former named Brett Aspinall (son of governor Roger), who starts an affair with the new school secretary and breaks a lot of the teenage girls' hearts during the series. His true love, however, is Mika Grainger.

A portion of the soundtrack in series two was provided by Cornish band, Thirteen Senses.

In final moments of this series, Jack is attacked by local drug dealer Jed Seddon, whose drugs have hospitalised a teenage girl at the school, and an ensuing fight leads to the fatal stabbing of Izzie.

Series 3 (2007–2008)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 3)
A third, 20-part series began in October 2007 with the introduction of several new characters, including new Deputy Head Eddie Lawson (Neil Morrissey) and, in the seventh episode, new Head Teacher Rachel Mason (Eva Pope). Other staff arrivals include NQT English Teacher Jasmine Koreshi (Shabana Bakhsh) and Head of Music and Drama Matt Wilding (Chris Geere). Pupils introduced in the third series include Aleesha Dillon (Lauren Thomas), Danielle Harker (Lucy Dixon), Karla Bentham (Jessica Baglow), Paul Langley (Thomas Milner), and Bolton Smilie (Tachia Newall).

The series begins with Jack recording a radio interview after witnessing the stabbing of Izzie Redpath (Jill Halfpenny) in the final episode of the previous season alongside Eddie Lawson, the new Deputy Head following Andrew Treneman's acceptance of a teaching post in Rwanda. With Kim Campbell travelling to Rwanda with Andrew, she was replaced by Steph Haydock as Head of Pastoral Care.

Storylines in the first half of the season include the marriage and subsequent separation of Chlo Grainger and Donte Charles, the introduction of a pupil with Asperger Syndrome, the breakdown of Brett and Mika's relationship and Jack's illegal use of educational funds to bribe parents into sending their children to Waterloo Road. Jack is forced to resign as Head in episode 6 and is replaced by Rachel Mason (Eva Pope). The first half also saw the departure of ex-bully Lewis Seddon, who had served as a canteen assistant in the first half of the season.

The second half of the third series began in January 2008 and is dominated by Rachel being blackmailed by contractor Stuart Hordley (Silas Carson) over her past life as a prostitute. Other storylines in the second half of the series include Jasmine being accused by new pupil Michaela White (Zaraah Abrahams) of assault, the inappropriate sexual behaviour of supply teacher Wilson Bingham, the environmental protests of Mika Grainger and Brett Aspinall, the deportation of pupil Sameen Azizi, and a plagiarism scandal that catches the attention of the local exam board.

In the final episode of the series, a fire spreads through the school leaving some staff member's lives hanging in the balance. Davina is rushed to hospital with smoke inhalation, while Rachel and Stuart, whose careless disposal of a cigarette had started the blaze, were trapped under falling rubble inside the school. The final episode attracted 6 million viewers.[16]

The London-based band Athlete had various tracks from their 2008-released album Beyond the Neighbourhood featured in Series 3.

Series 4 (2009)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 4)
The 20-part fourth series was commissioned in December 2007. The series began on BBC One on Wednesday 7 January 2009, with the show's first 90-minute opening episode.

Rachel Mason (played by Eva Pope) and Davina Shackleton (played by Christine Tremarco) return following the fire that nearly destroyed the school and left them both in hospital. Examples of characters from the previous series who have left the school include: Mika Grainger, Brett Aspinall (both of whom left for University having graduated) and Celine Dixon. The fate of Stuart Hordley is left unanswered.

The fourth series introduces several new characters who become focal points of the subsequent episodes. For example, the Kelly family seems to be the epitome of the "Family from Hell" and consists of an alcoholic mother Rose Kelly and her five children: eldest son Marley, borderline psychopath Earl, daughter Sambuca, 11-year-old Denzil, and baby Prince. New Head of PE Rob Cleaver begins a relationship with English teacher Jasmine Koreshi and becomes the boxing mentor of pupil Bolton Smilie. He is later sacked by Rachel and Eddie Lawson when it transpires he is giving Bolton pills to help him win an important match, ultimately ending his and Jasmine's relationship. Rachel Mason's sister Melissa Ryan and nephew Phillip are also introduced.

Maxine Barlow is tragically killed when her relationship with psychopathic Earl Kelly comes to an explosive end, and she is fatally shot. Realising she had made a huge mistake in ever trusting him, she dies in the arms of those who loved her most, Steph and Janeece.[17] Moments after Maxines' death, Earl is arrested.

Former teacher Kim Campbell (played by Angela Griffin) returns from Rwanda in episode 11 and brings with her a baby girl, Grace, who she claims is her daughter. However, after immigration officers investigate, it transpires that Kim has in fact smuggled Grace into the UK illegally. Former Deputy Head Andrew Treneman (played by Jamie Glover) makes a brief return in episodes 19 and 20 during a Rwandan fundraising day being held at the school, and is reunited with Kim.[18]

Chlo Grainger gives birth to a baby girl, Izzy, near the end of the series, having got back with Donte following their split in the previous series. In the final episode Ralph Mellor went mad and knocked the front of the school down with a digger.

The series also marked the exit of long-term characters Davina Shackleton (who eventually qualifies as a teacher but later leaves Rochdale following Tom's new-found relationship with Rose), Donte Charles, Chlo Grainger and Janeece Bryant. Marley Kelly, Eddie Lawson (Neil Morrissey), Matt Wilding (Chris Geere), Flick Mellor (Sadie Pickering), Jasmine Koreshi (Shabana Bakhsh) and Andrew Treneman (Jamie Glover) also made their final appearances in episode 20. The final episode aired on 20 May 2009 and attracted 4.5 million viewers.[19]

Series 5 (2009–2010)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 5)
In March 2009 Shed Media confirmed that a 20-part fifth series had been commissioned by the BBC. The new commission will bring the total number of episodes to 80.[citation needed] Filming began on 11 May 2009 and the series began airing on Wednesday 28 October (Sunday 25 October on BBC One Scotland). For the first time, the series was also filmed in HD.[20]

Series 5 follows the merger of Waterloo Road with the local private school – John Fosters. The current Head Teacher, Rachel Mason, and newly appointed executive Head Teacher, Max Tyler (played by Tom Chambers), almost immediately face a clash of personalities, especially when Max takes the liberty of using Rachel's office. The lack of unity between the two schools extends to all levels of the school environment, the rivalry in the playground as well as the staff room is documented throughout the series. Six new teachers from John Fosters transferred to Waterloo Road to support the merger, much to the disapproval of the former John Fosters and new Waterloo Road Food Technology teacher Ruby Fry (Elizabeth Berrington), and to the immediate shock of the unskilled newly qualified teacher, Helen Hopewell (Vinette Robinson), whom the pupils, and some staff, soon label 'Hopeless Hopewell.', in mockery of her lack of control and insufficient experience as a teacher. Other John Fosters staff transfers include New Deputy Head and Science teacher Christopher Mead (William Ash) and Head of Modern Languages Jo Lipsett (Sarah-Jane Potts). The aforementioned mix of new pupils also soon make their mark with their obvious disapproval of Waterloo Road and its existing pupils and staff, causing fights amongst both. The events brought forth by the forced merger lead to many conflicts within the two newly combined schools.

Episode 8 marks the departure of hopeless English teacher Helen Hopewell, who takes it upon herself to leave after realising that her bribery of the students to ensure their good behaviour during her teaching inspection will result in her sacking. Before she took her undignified leave from Waterloo Road, Helen left Rachel a computer disc, proving that Max had taken her on not just "for being a good student", but also because they had had a sexual relationship. Max Tyler's increasingly desperate attempts to control the school eventually result in the end of his teaching career. After he assaults Rachel's nephew, Phillip Ryan, against a filing cabinet (in episode 9), resulting in an extremely large bruise on the back Mason's Nephew, Phillip struggles to keep quiet. Shocked by Phillip's bruise, Ruby Fry mentions it to Kim Campbell (who incidentally is having an affair with Max). Eventually, Phillip admits how he received his injury. Max is fired and led away from the school by the police, much to the delight of the staff and pupils. Rachel and Chris also kiss in Episode 10, though this never led to anything further between them.

When Waterloo Road came back on air 3 months later, in Episode 11 Kim Campbell announces that she is pregnant with Max's baby. New students are introduced, in one-off appearances, in Episode 11 (Bianka), 12 (Craig) and 13 (Aidan). Adam Fleet arrives, an old friend of Rachel and he later proposes to her, whilst Steph starts dating Chris's father, Oliver. The main storyline throughout the second half of Series 5 is Finn Sharkey, an unruly pupil who causes havoc. He graffitis the staffroom, does drugs and forces Amy to deface a valuable painting in Episode 18. In Episode 16, after Finn has done drugs with Amy and Josh, Josh spikes Tom's dinner and when he later drives Kim to the hospital, he hallucinates and crashes, although they both survive, including Kim's baby. In Episode 17, Jo Lipsett is suspended for acting inappropriately when student Ros McCain reveals she loves her, whilst Ruby Fry is on medication for the majority for the series. In episode 15 Bolton Smilie and Sam Kelly kiss but Bolton ignores Sam afterwards.

Long serving characters Steph Haydock (Denise Welch), Kim Campbell (Angela Griffin), Rachel Mason (Eva Pope), Paul Langley (Thomas Milner), Karla Bentham (Jessica Baglow), Danielle Harker (Lucy Dixon), Aleesha Dillon (Lauren Thomas), Bolton Smilie (Tachia Newall) and Michaela White (Zaraah Abrahams), as well as Phillip Ryan (Dean Smith), Siobhan Mailey (Phoebe Dynevor) and Jo Lipsett (Sarah-Jane Potts) left at the end of Series 5.

The last episode aired on 15 July 2010 with an audience of 4.5m viewers.[21]

Series 6 (2010–2011)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 6)
Production and filming for the 20-part sixth series started on 9 November 2009 and finished in May 2010. The series started airing on BBC One from 1 September, with the second episode following the next day with a strong audience of 5.1m.[22] Former Silent Witness actress Amanda Burton joined the cast as new headteacher, Karen Fisher.[23] Linzey Cocker played alongside Burton as on-screen daughter, Jess Fisher and Ceallach Spellman played her on-screen son, Harry Fisher, Coronation Street actor Lucien Laviscount was cast as rebellious teenager Jonah Kirby[24] and Chelsee Healey (Janeece Bryant) also reprised her role, not as a pupil, but as the new school secretary.[25] On 21 December 2009, it was announced that former Coronation Street actress Tina O'Brien had been cast as Bex Fisher, and that Britain's Got Talent winner George Sampson would be joining the cast as a new Year 11 student, Kyle Stack – his scenes aired from episode 11.[26] Also from episode 11, Scott Haining played Nate Gurney, a love interest for the newly homosexual Josh Stevenson,[27] Spandau Ballet member and former EastEnders actor Martin Kemp guest starred as Mr Burley, new character Ronan Burley Ben-Ryan Davies's[citation needed] father,[28] and Karen David portrayed new Head of Spanish, Francesca Montoya.[citation needed] Wil Johnson portrayed new Geography teacher, Marcus Kirby, Jonah's father, and the family was further expanded by the addition of Anna Jobarteh, who played his daughter and new pupil, Ruth. Elaine Symons also reprised her role as Rose Kelly in episode six.

Janeece returned to the school pregnant, much to the dismay of Karen. At first, she appeared pleased with the fact that she was pregnant. In episode 3, she revealed to Tom that she did not want her baby. In episode 4, the storyline reveals that John and Ruby have been trying desperately for a baby, but have difficulty doing so because of Ruby's age. Learning of their problems, Janeece approached them with the proposition of adopting her child when she was born. However, when she sees John and Ruby with the baby, she realises that she does love her child, whom Ruby has named Poppy, and she is faced with the dilemma of retrieving her. She eventually succeeds, and names her Cheryl.

Other notable storylines include Tom's son, Josh Stevenson, revealing his homosexuality. Josh attempted to kiss his best friend Finn Sharkey who was disgusted with and angry at Josh's behaviour. Josh embarks on a relationship with Lauren Andrews, but realises he is unhappy and unwittingly embarrasses her in front of the whole school. Grantly was having trouble with his wife Fleur who was showing signs of developing Alzheimer's disease, and Steph Haydock returned in episode 9 for a guest appearance, assisting him with his troubles. A small sub-plot in the series was Jess Fisher's relationship with previously clueless science teacher and deputy head Chris Mead, who was appalled when he found out that he had been in a relationship with his boss's daughter. Jess later embarked on a relationship with Jonah Kirby, who was also disgusted when he learned of Jess's antics and was distraught when he caught her flirting with him. Episode 10 featured Grantly placing Fleur in a nursing home after realising that he cannot continue to provide for his wife's high level of need. The episode also revealed that due to Grantly's issues with Fleur, he had been teaching his A-level English class the wrong syllabus, leading to angry parents phoning up the school and Karen having to bear the brunt of all the anger. Jess also found her missing sister Bex, who appeared in their home to collect some belongings. Just as Jess persuaded Bex to stay, Bex walked into her room to find it empty as if she has died. Bex therefore left but following a change of heart, she returned to Karen's office. The episode and this first part of the series is then left on a cliff hanger.

The series took a mid-term break from 27 October 2010 and resumed with episodes 11–20 beginning on 2 February 2011[29]

Waterloo Road returned with Karen introducing a separate sex classes policy, which was very unpopular with the new Head of Pastoral Care, Adanna Lawal (Sharlene Whyte).[30] Episode 12 saw Janeece become involved with a pupil Billie Taylor, who claimed her mother was trying to steal her baby, which introduces the second mental health storyline in series 6. The main story during the spring term was the relationship which developed between Cesca and Jonah. This was revealed in episode 19 and Cesca was arrested. In episode 20 she was released on bail, so she and Jonah drove to Gretna Green to get married; she was arrested after the ceremony. Adanna meanwhile tried to unite the sexes with the school production "Cinderfeller" which didn't go according to plan. Kyle and Denzil escape having destroyed the production, and in attempt to impress Kyle, Denzil climbs a railway bridge only to become stuck, hanging off of the bridge in serious danger. Finn became critically injured having falling off the bridge, however he managed to save Denzil in the process.

Series 6 saw the last appearances of Francesca Montoya (Karen David), Ruby Fry (Elizabeth Berrington), Jonah Kirby (Lucien Laviscount), Ruth Kirby (Anna Jobarteh), Marcus Kirby (Wil Johnson), Adanna Lawal (Sharlene Whyte) and Nate Gurney (Scott Haining). It ended on 6 April 2011.

Waterloo Road Reunited
See also: Waterloo Road Reunited
On 19 November 2010, the BBC announced it had commissioned an online spin-off to the main show, Waterloo Road Reunited. The 6-part series, released in tandem with the latter half of series 6, follows the lives of former pupils and features a mixture of online episodes and social media outputs.[31]

The online series joins Michaela, Bolton, Danielle, Janeece, Phillip, Aleesha and Paul after completing their secondary education, making decisions and taking actions that could cause success or trouble. The series picks up on storylines during the castmember's time as students in Waterloo Road, as the viewer sees them again during a school reunion. The web series picks up on the storylines introduced on the main program, and adds new stories and situations for the character depicted. It is also the final appearance of the cast members, with the exception of Janeece Bryant who became Waterloo Road's secretary from series six until series eight, and Bolton Smilie who made a guest reappearance in series eight.

Series 7 (2011–2012)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 7)
A seventh series of 30 episodes was announced on 7 April 2010, airing from May 2011 to July 2012.[32]

The seventh series added several new cast members, including new Head Teacher Michael Byrne (Alec Newman), school site manager Rob Scotcher (played by Robson Green), maths teacher Daniel Chalk (Mark Benton), new Head of English Linda Radleigh (Sarah Hadland), school benefactor Lorraine Donnagan (Daniela Denby-Ashe) and pupil Jodie Allen, A.K.A "Scout" (Katie McGlynn).

The seventh series surrounded the school being under inspection, following a student being allowed entry to the school after their release from a Youth Detention Centre. The Director of Education recommends Head Teacher Karen Fisher's dismissal. Karen Fisher does ultimately depart, with the role given to Michael Byrne later in the series. Byrne is revealed to suffer physical and mental issues of his own stemming from him being attacked by one of his pupils at a previous school. He begins an affair with teacher Sian upon his arrival. Later in the series, we see the departure of Linda following an attempt on Michael's life by way of a hit and run. To replace Linda, Nikki Boston (Heather Peace) joins the team after a comparison between her and another candidate, led by Tom. Matt Wilding also returns to the school as he battles himself over what to do with his friend who wants a sperm donation. With Michael's demons haunting him throughout series seven, some of these demons being fellow staff members, the threat of closure does not go away. When the LEA decides to close the school, Michael is contacted by one of his old students – now a successful businesswoman – Lorraine Donnagan. Lorraine proposes the school relocate to Scotland, with her as the school's benefactor, running it from the ground up. Byrne accepts after much deliberation, as do some of the staff members and pupils, but the series ends on a cliffhanger as a truck hurtles toward the group, and a proposing Grantly, on their way to Scotland.

Other storylines included fan-favourite Sambuca Kelly dying of cancer, the arrival of two threatening local gangs named the Dale Sken Crew and the Murray Set Boyz in the final third of the series with Tariq Siddiqui, Kyle Stack and Finn Sharkey joining them, respectively. English teacher Tom Clarkson discovering his son Josh has been diagnosed schizophrenia, school receptionist Janeece being conned out of her life savings and being left at the altar by her lover and the one time pupil Martin being MtF.

Guest stars in the seventh series included: Gemma Atkinson, Dominique Jackson, Alicya Eyo, Margi Clarke, Jodie Prenger, Lisa Riley, Tupele Dorgu, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Kai Owen and Jane Asher.

Series 8 (2012–2013)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 8)
Series 8 shows the start of Greenock's Waterloo Road. Laurie Brett and Georgie Glen join the main cast as English teacher Christine Mulgrew and History teacher Audrey McFall respectively. The Rochdale staff and students mourn the death of Denzil Kelly in the tragic crash, while Tariq is wheelchair bound. A memorial is staged to remember Denzil in the first episode. Grantly and Maggie run the schoolhouse together and later marry, becoming 'Mr and Mrs Budgen'. A bullying campaign between ex-Rochdale student Rhiannon Salt (previously unseen, played by Rebecca Craven) and Scout spirals to dangerous levels, but the two girls eventually make their peace and become friends. Christine struggles with an alcohol problem which also disadvantages her troubled son Connor (Shane O'Meara); he becomes an arsonist, burning several items in the school and eventually causing an explosion in an Art classroom which leaves his girlfriend Imogen Stewart, played by Kirstie Steele, badly injured. Christine covers for him, and gets help for her alcoholism, slowly overcoming it over the following terms with Audrey's help.

In the second term of the series, Jaye Jacobs left her role as deputy headteacher Sian Diamond; returning English teacher Nikki Boston, who previously appeared in Series 7, replaced her in the third term. The Barry family, consisting of troubled criminal Barry (Carl Au), the feminine yet fierce Dynasty (Abby Mavers), and tom-boy (later revealed to be a transgender man) Kacey (eventually Robbie), played by Brogan Ellis, joined the cast in the second half of Series 8. Barry caused trouble with a bullying storyline and getting involved with Dynasty's violent ex. Chalky's son Kevin (Tommy Knight) formed a romantic relationship with Dynasty, while Mark Benton departed as Chalky after 50 episodes after Chalky was hired as a game developer.

The relationship between Michael and Lorriane becomes fraught and Lorraine's business fails, leaving the school with no investment. Michael convinces Head of Glasgow Education Robert Bain (Shaun Prendergast) to take on Waterloo Road as a local authority school. Lorraine is infuriated by this, but ultimately forgives Michael before her exit in Episode 28. Michael also exited in the episode, realising that his relationship with Christine was not what he wanted. He left Christine as acting headmistress until a new head could be appointed. Angus Deayton joined the cast as Christine's old friend and Modern Languages teacher George Windsor, while Bryne appoints (Richard Mylan) as new deputy head with Christine not knowing of the appointment.

The series is important for long-standing characters Grantly and Tom. Grantly is diagnosed with chronic kidney failure, but slips into a coma as a donor is unavailable; Maggie pressures Tom into donating one of his kidneys in the hope of saving Grantly. Although Grantly wakes up, before Tom can donate he is killed when he falls from the roof of the school trying to help troubled ex-student Kyle Stack. This marks the end of the series.

Series 9 (2013–2014)
See also: Waterloo Road (series 9)
In the first term, Christine attempts to establish herself as acting headmistress but she immediately comes into conflict with her new deputy, Simon Lowsley, Simon offered to do the assembly about Tom Clarksons death but she turns down Simon's offer, especially when she discovers he is the future son-in-law of the Head of East Greenock Council Education, Robert Bain due to his partner Sue Spark being his daughter. As revenge, she appoints her old friend, Modern Languages teacher George Windsor, as deputy head alongside Simon, George is unsympathetic with students and staff and is generally incompetent, starting up a Mandarin scheme despite not knowing the language well enough to teach it so he hires his wife, Princess, a Chinese teaching assistant briefly but due to the stress of George making her teach most of his lessons and work, They argue and she decides to leaves him in episode 4 to try and get fluent in the language, Christine then makes George attend Mandarin Classes at Glasgow College however he didn't attend and has pupil Archie Wong to teach him the language however he is caught therefore ruining the scheme however it wasn't found out until episode 8 until where Simon and Sue try to expose it to Robert but its dropped following the headteacher interviews, Then Simon and Sue attempted to get Christine dismissed so that Simon could become the head but Simon Christine continues to struggle with her alcoholism through the series but continues to rebel against it at the same time

Vanessa Hehir joins the cast as Simon's fiancé, newly qualified Science teacher Sue Spark. Sue cannot handle the rowdy behaviour and control her classes and he heavily relies on her husband and father, Bain, to advance her career and give her support at work. Their relationship is often very troubled but they eventually get married at the end of the first term, escaping the pressures of Sue's family and their friends by eloping. Simon also lets go of his pedantic behaviour and puts forward Christine as the better permanent fixture as head. Sue and Simon tried to keep their relationship a secret from the rest of the school however when Sue is locked in the cupboard and the fire alarms go off in episode 2, Barry takes her phone and Simon phones her unawere she was locked in the cupboard therefore the whole school found about their relationship.

Other stories include Audrey's dealings with troubled new students Lenny and Lisa Brown (Joe Slater and Caitlin Gillespie), Kacey/Robbie Barry's journey to become a professional boxer with the help of spurned ex-deputy head Nikki, and Grantly's brief return to the school before his sudden death hours before he was due a kidney transplant; this marked the departure of the show's longest running character. In the 1st episode, Audrey catches eyes on Lenny and Lisa who she taught at Havlock High and its a shock to the system for her to see the state they were in from the once bright children she taught, To make matters worse, Audrey then goes round to Larry(Lisa and Lennys older brother and legal guardian) house where she notices that he was growing Cannabis in the house, Then out of the blue Larry arrives at home and Audrey knocks herself out, After waking up she talks to Larry but he refuses to accept that the twins would be better off in care, However they both back to the school and Larry attempts to pick up the twins however as they were at the football(In memory of Tom) Sonya takes him to the match however Audrey then phones the Police and as Larry attempts to take Lenny and Lisa home, The Police arrive and Larry is arrested leading to Lisa and Lenny having to move into the school house and leading to feud with Audrey, The twins and Christine, Audrey is then strongly criticised by Christine for getting Larry arrested and for handling the situation the wrong way, In episode 5, Audrey then gets the twins Grandfather involved however this proves to be a bad idea at first as Lenny and Lisa hadn't seen him for quite a few years however the meeting doesn't go to plan where the meeting gets heated where Lisa storms out and accuses Audrey getting too involved in their lives however Lisa then steals there grandads medals however they are returned and Lisa apologises to both her grandad and Audrey, Kacey also starts to become a professional boxer with Nicola Adams also visiting to do a match with her in episode 9, In the same episode, A supply teacher under the name Frankie McGreggor arrives at the school to cover for one of the other science teachers who had taken Maternity leave however thing's don't go plan when he tries to discipline Darren for emptying Lenny's bag however his approach is witnessed by Simon who sees it more as intimidation, Christine remains unconvinced at this point and think's he's good news so she puts Frankie into Sue's class to get a feel of the school, However once in class, Sue asks Frankie if he could take the class while finishes marking up for her and Simon's wedding however as Frankie teachers, He doesn't known the exactly what the pupils are learning which leads some pupils to question is his teaching skills but he starts to warm to Lenny and gives him a new jotter, At lunch time, Frankie shows Lenny how to tie flies and asks Christine if he can take Lenny fishing to the pier however she says no and Lenny gets annoyed, However after a while Christine lets them go fishing however Simon raises concerns after Sue tells him about the way he taught in his class so he goes to Sonya to ask if he's a real teacher, After phoning the council, It turns out that the man who said he was Frankie McGreggor wasn't who he said he was, Now with Lenny in danger, Christine, Simon and George then figure out that he's taken Lenny to the Loch south of Greenock, Christine and Simon find Lenny only for the fake teacher to push him into the water while Simon rushes in to save him from drowning, Once out of the water, The man is arrested and charged with Child Abduction and for Impersonating a Teacher, It is also turned out that his real name was Jim Ronsley who was Frankie McGreggor's brother in law. In episode 10, Kacey's money for her boxing camp in America is stolen putting the whole trip in jeopardy, It then turns out that Barry had stolen the money and Carol kicks him out and disowns him, Kacey then jets off to America and Christine is given the head teachers job permanently.

The second term of the series is started with the arrival of troublemaking student Gabriella Wark (Naomi Battrick), a privileged girl who has been expelled from her previous schools. She sets her sights on new PE teacher Hector Reid, played by Leon Ockenden, who in turn attempts to seduce Nikki, despite her current lesbian relationship with Sue's sister Vix (Kristin Atherton). Jealous, Gabriella sabotages Nikki and Vix's relationship, but they reconcile and depart together at the end of the series.

In the second term, Christine starts the term confidently as full headmistress and now has Simon's support. However, when son Connor leaves for a job as a chef in London, she starts to feel increasingly isolated, It gets worse especially when George starts a relationship with Kacey Barry's mother Carol (Zöe Lucker). Kevin Chalk suffers a stroke prior to going to Edinburgh University, leading to a one-episode return for his adopted father and ex-teacher Chalky, played by Mark Benton. Kevin struggled to come to terms with his condition, despite the support of Dynasty Barry, who in turn followed her aspiration to become a police officer, despite being discriminated against due to her family ties with criminal brother Barry. He returned for several episodes, in which he set up an illegal smuggling ring. To prove herself, Dynasty exposed his actions and he was arrested and was sentenced to prison. By the end of the services, It begins to take its toll on Christine. She begins drinking again and after drinking all weekend wakes up with a horrific hangover. Out of misjudgement she gets in her car and drives to school despite being over the limit, She crashes her car into another car and abandons it, she then proceeds to school but being late for a meeting with social services leads things going from bad to worse, She starts drinking in school and when her and Simon have a meeting with the council, She resigns as head and is starts to be investigated by Police Scotland however she throws vodka into a policeman's face leading to her arrest and Connor's brief return. She is suspended from work but the board, to the surprise of Robert Bain, chooses to let her stay at Waterloo Road, on the condition she does not hold a position in senior management. Simon steps into the role of Headteacher, but is surprised to learn this position was only temporary.

Other storylines include Gabriella sabotaging Kacey's boxing career by causing her to fall and injure herself on a climbing wall; George losing the position of deputy head when he runs the school for the day with disastrous consequences; and Hector kissing Sue following Nikki and Vix's departure, hinting that there could be a romantic future for the pair despite Sue's marriage to a preoccupied Simon.

Series 10 (2014–2015)
Main article: Waterloo Road (series 10)
The tenth and final series[11] began in October 2014, with Neil Pearson's Vaughan Fitzgerald taking over as the new headmaster of Waterloo Road. An extensive set of new characters joined him, including his new partner, Art teacher Allie Westbrook (Nicola Stephenson), his two children and her two children. Pooky Quesnel joined the cast recurringly in the first half of the season as Vaughan's ex-wife.[33]

The second half of the series was moved to BBC Three, with Laura Aikman joining the cast as new deputy headteacher Lorna Hutchinson, as well as Broadchurch star Charlotte Beaumont appearing as new student Kenzie Calhoun.[34] Quesnel became part of the main cast in the second half of the series. This half of the series focused on the fight to stop a merger between Waterloo Road and rival school Havelock High. In the final episode, impassioned students opened up about what Waterloo Road meant to them, and Angus Deayton's George Windsor blackmailed his councillor girlfriend into stopping the merger. The final shot saw Waterloo Road celebrated with voice clips from the years narrating sights of empty schoolrooms and corridors; amongst these, the voices of characters past and present including Chlo Grainger, Kim Campbell, Jack Rimmer, Finn Sharkey, Max Tyler, Grantly Budgen and Carol Barry. The final episode aired on 9 March 2015, nine years after the first episode aired on 9 March 2006

Laver Cup

The Laver Cup is an international indoor hard court men's tennis tournament between two teams: Team Europe and Team World, the latter of which is composed of players from non-European countries. Held annually,[1] the tournament is intended to be the Ryder Cup of the tennis world.[2] It takes place two weeks after the US Open, with the location rotating. In addition to the guaranteed participation fees which are based upon the players' ATP rankings, each member of the winning team gets $250,000 in prize money, but the tournament itself does not count towards the players' point totals in the ATP world tour for that year.[3][4] In May 2019, the Laver Cup became an officially sanctioned ATP Tour event
The tournament is named after Australian tennis legend Rod Laver, a tennis player widely regarded as one of the greatest in the history of the sport. Roger Federer's management company, TEAM8, Brazilian businessman and former Davis Cup player Jorge Paulo Lemann, and Tennis Australia partnered to create the Laver Cup.[7]. Roger Federer was inspired to create a tennis team tournament based on the biennial Ryder Cup golf tournament, which features the best golfers from the United States playing against the best golfers from Europe. [8]

The competition pits six top European players against six of their counterparts from the rest of the world. There are 12 matches played over three days (nine singles and three doubles). Each victory gives the victorious team a number of points equal to the day the match was played on. The first team to claim 13 points win the tournament.[9] Each player takes the court once or twice for singles, with at least four of the six taking part in doubles. All matches are played as best-of-three, with a 10-point tiebreaker if play goes to a third set.

Former rivals Björn Borg of Sweden (Europe) and John McEnroe of the United States (World team) will serve as captains for the first three editions.