In this Thursday’s Mirror Daily Digest, we’ve pulled together the biggest stories of the day from the sad news of how the mum of a slain schoolboy learnt about his death, to the reality of one of Europe’s top ‘party strips’
Welcome to the Mirror’s Daily Digest, where we pull together all the best stories of the day from our News, Showbiz, Sport teams and more. This Friday, we’re featuring everything from River Island’s planned closure of 33 high street stores, to the tragic story of how slain teen Harvey Willgoose’s mother found out about his death.
In other news, we’re also taking a look at how two cruise ship tourists died in bad weather, the depressing reality of the Magaluf ‘party strip’ in 2025, and the sad news of the death of Corrie icon Frank Grimes.
Harvey Willgoose: Mum learned schoolboy son had been killed through ‘RIP’ post
Earlier this afternoon, our UK News team shared the story of how Harvey Willgoose’s mum screamed in horror when she found out her son had been murdered at school. And she said she will forever be haunted with guilt because she urged the 15-year-old to return to the “lions’ den”.
Caroline Willgoose, 51 and her husband Mark, 52, spoke to The Mirror about only discovering their “amazing” son had died after seeing a social media post saying ‘RIP Harvey’. Despite their grief the couple have vowed to fight on until knife arches are installed in schools. “Children are going to school scared,” she told the Mirror. “This cannot be allowed to happen again.”
The defendant, a fellow pupil also aged 15 who cannot be named, had already admitted manslaughter but denied murder, saying he lost control and did not remember stabbing Harvey twice. But after more than 14 hours of deliberations the jury convicted him of murder with a majority verdict of 11-1. He is expected to be sentenced later this year.
Read the full story here .
River Island to shut 33 stores with hundreds to lose their jobs
Our Money team reported earlier today that major high street chain River Island has announced it will shut dozens of stores – leaving hundreds of people jobless. The move, part of a long-in-the-works “restructuring plan” worked up to prevent the chain from collapsing into administration, will see River Island shutter 33 shops and pay reduced rents on a further 71.
The clothing retailer is looking to secure further funding later this year to avoid falling into millions of pounds’ worth of debt. Landlords are being asked to cut rents for three years and potentially stop payments completely on some sites in a bid to stem losses. Matthew Weaver KC, for River Island, told a hearing on Friday that the company “simply has not been able to reverse” a trend of financial difficulty as the restructuring plan was approved by the High Court in the UK.
In written submissions, he cited a decline in footfall and sales due to “the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment as well as the prevailing trend away from high street retail stores to online shopping”. It comes after Royal Mail made a major delivery rule change from this week for millions of UK homes.
Read the full story here .
Frank Grimes dead: Coronation Street actor dies after short illness
Our Showbiz team shared the sad story this afternoon that Coronation Street actor Frank Grimes has died at the age of 78. The actor died following a short illness, with The Irish Cultural Centre paying tribute to the acting legend.
Frank starred as Barrington “Barry” Connor in the ITV soap at regular intervals between 2008 to 2015 and played the father of Paul Connor, Liam Connor and Michelle Connor. Barry even made a return in 2015 to attend Michelle’s wedding to Steve McDonald. In all, he appeared in more than 50 episodes over the years and was a key character in the Connor family.
In a statement, they said: “Frank was undoubtedly one of Ireland’s greatest actors, he was a dearly loved friend of the ICC’s and over the past three decades, he trod the ICC’s stage on so many occasions.”
Read the full story here .
Two cruise ship tourists killed as gales batter Greece
Our World News team reported that two cruise ship tourists have died at sea in Greece after strong winds battered a holiday hotspot – causing travel chaos for thousands of travellers.
A man and a woman, both from Vietnam, were found on the Sarakiniko beach on the popular holiday island of Milos. The coastguard confirmed the travellers died following a tragic incident on Friday.
A spokesperson for the local coastguard said: “The man and woman were found unconscious in the sea and were taken to the local health centre.”
Read the full story here .
Woman takes video of Magaluf party strip in 2025 and reality is devastating
Our Travel team reported this afternoon that Magaluf, once synonymous with sun-soaked fun, beach frolics, and raucous nightlife, has seen its allure wane lately. And a stark video exposes the sad state of this once-thriving Majorcan hotspot.
At the start of the season, the sight of vacant sun loungers was telling. What’s more, pub landlords confessed to adjusting opening hours in response to the changing tourist demographic. This downturn in visitor numbers is attributed to stringent measures against disorderly holidaymakers.
The notorious Punta Ballena strip came under fire when former Majorca official Jose Ramon Bauza denounced it as “500 metres of shame”. Bauza’s scathing critique followed an incident where a young woman was duped into performing indecent acts for what she believed was a complimentary holiday, only to be rewarded with a cocktail mockingly named ‘Holiday’.
Read the full story here .
