BRITISH taxes are being squandered on shrimp farms in Bangladesh, poetry workshops in Colombian jails and gender lectures in Kenya.

UK workers also fund diversity training in the Jordanian army and cyber security for India — while pressure mounts to raise our military budget and millions wait for an NHS appointment.

Britain spends around £15billion per year on overseas aid, £9billion of which is by the Foreign Office.

A recent US crackdown on its scandalous state waste has sparked demands for a UK version.

President Donald Trump hired ­billionaire Elon Musk to head up a Department of Government Efficiency and it has wasted no time shuttering aid, green and diversity, equity and inclusion projects at the stroke of a pen.

A number of online campaigns have sprung up to highlight shocking abuses around the world on the public dime.

Among the worst cases, the past three years have seen the UK hand more than £133,000 to Bangladesh Agricultural University to study shrimp health.

The most recent £59,000 payment from taxpayer-bankrolled quango the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture was made in September.

Taxpayers are also funding woke ideology around the war-torn Third World.

In January 2024 the Science Department paid £233,000 to “identifying barriers to mental healthcare for civilians affected by armed ­conflict in Colombia”.

Last December the Foreign Office paid a contractor £9.5million to support “accountability and inclusion” in war-ravaged Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The department also funded a £110,000 conference on “preventing gender-based disinformation” in Kenya, and £473,070 for a Criminal Justice Adviser in Somalia.

AP

As Vladimir Putin’s forces gain ground in Ukraine the UK is under pressure to boost defence spending by an extra £5billion a year[/caption]

A £30million budget has been set aside for “enhancing gender outcomes” in Nepal in a contract running until 2030.

The UK is under pressure to boost defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP — an extra £5billion a year — as Vladimir Putin’s forces gain ground in Ukraine and President Trump calls for Nato to increase spending to five per cent of GDP.

While Labour dithers on the UK increase, £500,000 was handed to a Directorate of Military Women’s Affairs in Jordan to support the “gender mainstreaming ­strategy” in its army.

The Foreign Office has also offered up £500,000 of taxpayer money to buy 15 electric vans being donated to Albanian prisons, secured through a local Porsche dealer.

The contract boasted the cars would help the Balkan state move “towards Net Zero and is part of a wider greening initiative”.

Officials have also earmarked £1.9million to create jobs in Albania to stop its citizens from leaving the country.

Former ­government adviser Jason Brown, who has launched The Waste Files campaign, blasted: “With taxes at ­eye-watering levels and hard-working families struggling to make ends meet, Brits up and down the country will be ­astonished that their ­hard-earned money is being spent on sending electric cars to prisons in Albania.”

Brits are also paying through the nose for climate initiatives in ­foreign countries, including £114million for “inclusive green enterprises in India.

AFP

More investment is needed to defend against the threat of Russian missiles[/caption]

The project has also exposed £25million for “Green Urban Growth” in Somalia, and £38million for “Green Growth” in Nepal.

Since 2023, the Environment Department has spent £4.1million on “championing inclusivity in plastic pollution” from a £310million budget.

Some £5million has gone to ­“transforming feminist funding in Iraq”, £264,000 to ­“better understand disinformation in Ethiopia” and £44,000 went to studying Thailand’s alcohol policy.

Charities receiving government funding have also been accused of milking taxpayers for woke enterprises.

They include the British Council, which this year is getting £162.5million from the Foreign Office — 15 per cent of its total income — under the guise of “Overseas Development Aid”.

Woke enterprises

The organisation recently trumpeted its funding for a “performance poet” who “uses poetry to explore what it means to be human . . . from workshops in Colombian prisons to performances in a Bangkok mall”.

Online sleuths have spent months studying ­contracts published on the Government website to expose waste.

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to raise the military budget to 2.5 per cent of GDP but is yet to set out a timeline, amid fears it may not be hit before the election.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is reportedly not prepared to go beyond 2.3 per cent in her spending review this year.

Downing Street sources last night dismissed speculation of ­tensions between the pair but no uplift is expected to be announced before summer.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said yesterday: “The whole Cabinet, the whole Government, I think most people in this country recognise the pressures the world is under, and that more will have to be spent on defence.

“The spending review will set out the roadmap to that target.”

Expose waste

Nato’s chief — Dutchman Mark Rutte — has called on alliance members to go even further at three per cent.

To raise the money, campaigners are demanding a waste-cutting drive alongside cuts to the ballooning benefits bill.

In Opposition, Labour pledged to rein in profligate spending and created an efficiency quango, the Office for Value for Money.

A Commons watchdog has since called it a waste of money itself, and the overseas contracts show no signs of ­abating.

Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride told The Sun: “Given the Chancellor’s disastrous Budget, it’s clear that we must urgently rein in these pointless and eye-watering spending projects to stop further tax rises on hard-working families.”

He added: “The time for ­reckless spending is over.

“We need a government that prioritises value for money, not waste — and under new leadership only the Conservatives will deliver that.”

The time for ­reckless spending is over

Mel Stride

Former Asda chairman Lord Rose was among those demanding more efficiency.

He told Times Radio: “We need to cut some spending in some ­places to afford ­spending in other ­places whilst these growth initiatives start coming through. And that means welfare, that means waste, and that means the NHS.

“I read a proposal, should we have a Department of Government efficiency in the UK? Well, yes, please.”

It has been almost ten years since The Sun first exposed the UK’s mind-blowing foreign aid spending while our military was being cut to the bone.

Under the headline “Funding Nemo”, we revealed how taxpayer cash was being used finding mates for tropical fish off Africa – demanding money went to “forces not farces”.

FOLKS, IT’S A WASTE

By CHARLOTTE GILL, Anti-waste campaigner

DID you know that YOU paid for following university research?

The Europe that Gay Porn Built, 1945-2000 (£841,830); Diversifying participation in English folk singing (£1,485,400) and Decolonising the Museum: Digital Repatriation of the Gaidinliu Collection from the UK to India (£805,769).

Does that sound like a good use of your wages?

Unfortunately this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to government waste, something I have been auditing since 2023 on my online blog “Woke Waste”.

Far from Britain being subjected to “austerity”, politicians have been quietly haemorrhaging our money on everything from diversity initiatives to left-wing think tanks, to a student “decolonising” museums in Bolivia.

So far I have single-handedly calculated tens of millions of pounds of waste – and expect, with my team, to uncover billions in total.

GARY NEVILLE reckons Manchester United’s squad is WORSE than Tottenham’s… despite spending nearly half a £1billion MORE over the last decade.

And he claims just ONE Red Devils player would get into the Spurs XI.

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Manchester United suffered yet another defeat, this time at Tottenham[/caption]

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Ruben Amorim is struggling to get a song out of his depleted squad[/caption]

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Gary Neville reckons a combined XI would feature ten Spurs stars[/caption]

Ruben Amorim’s struggling side were beaten 1-0 away in North London on Sunday.

James Maddison grabbed the only goal of the game with a rebound.

The playmaker then seemingly responded to criticism from Roy Keane with his modified darts celebration.

United were forced to name eight teenagers on the bench alongside Victor Lindelof as injuries ravaged the team.

But regardless of the current injury woes, Neville reckons the Red Devils’ squad is inferior to that of Spurs – despite the massive gulf in spending.

Speaking during the debrief on Sky Sports Super Sunday, the former right-back said: “If you take Tottenham’s best players – Porro, Udogie, Van de Ven, Romero, Bissouma, Sarr, Maddison, Kulusevski, Solanke, Son, Johnson, Tel – how many Manchester United players would get into that Tottenham team if everyone was fit?

“I think Bruno Fernandes you would want to have in there.

“Maybe Amad Diallo but if you’ve got Kulusevski or Amad, to be honest, I’ll probably go Kulusevski.

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“My point is, every single Tottenham player bar one if they were all available is better than every single Manchester United player.

“That’s not being emotional, it’s not ranting, we’ve gone past that now.

“It’s just really sad that that’s where Manchester United are currently at.”

Since 2016, Manchester United’s net spend on transfers is a whopping £1billion.

That includes the £89m club-record purchase of Paul Pogba in 2016 plus Antony (£85.5m), Harry Maguire (£85m), Romelu Lukaku (£75m), Jadon Sancho (£73m) and Rasmus Hojlund (£72m) all arrived in massive deals.

Their biggest signing this season was Leny Yoro for up to £52m.

United’s record sale remains Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80m in 2009 so the highest fee received in the period since 2016 is the £73m they got from Inter Milan for Romelu Lukaku in 2019.

Ironically, the money banked for Mason Greenwood (£26.6m) and Scott McTominay (£25m) in the summer are among the biggest United sales of all time.

United have sold £371m worth of players since 2016 – the lowest in the ‘Big Six’ – to take their overall net spend to just about exactly £1bn. 

In comparison, Tottenham’s net spend is £580m over the same period.

That takes into consideration £995m spent on new signings and £415m in sales.

Their outlays this season total £145m on record arrival Dominic Solanke (£65m), £40m on Archie Gray, £25m on Wilson Odobert and £12.5m on goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky who came in during January. 

Other significant signings include Richarlison (£50m), Dejan Kulusevski (£25m), Maddison (£40m), Pedro Porro (£37.3m), Micky van de Ven (£35m) and Brennan Johnson (£47.5m). 

Harry Kane left for Bayern Munich at the beginning of last season for an initial £86m.

Kyle Walker’s move to Manchester City in 2017 was worth around £50m but the biggest sales this season were Oliver Skipp to Leicester (£20m), Emerson Royal to Milan (£12.8m) and Joe Rodon to Leeds (£10m). 

Add in the 2015-16 figures to take it all the way back a decade and the numbers are even more stark as Tottenham made a small £13m profit in that season while United were down around £45m.

And that means the overall difference in spending is a total of approximately £478m in the last ten years.

United have won five trophies – two FA Cups, two League Cups and a Europa League – compared to zero for Spurs in that time.

But now according to Neville, Tottenham seemingly have a better team and are in a stronger position on the field than his old side.

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Bruno Fernandes got the nod as the solo United representative in the combined XI[/caption]

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Neville admitted it is ‘sad’ and he has gone ‘beyond ranting’ about the state of the Red Devils[/caption]

LOVE Island All Stars’ final couples have been revealed after one couple fell at the final hurdle.

A shock result saw series 11 islanders Harriett Blackmore and Ronnie Vent dumped from the villa after a vote from their co-stars.

Eroteme

ITV

Many of the former Islanders chose to dump the couple[/caption]

As part of a shock final twist, the already dumped Islanders made a come back to the South African abode to vote off one of the three least popular couples as chosen by the public.

Harriett and Ronnie, Sammy and Elma and Catherine and Omar were all at risk of being axed with six of the 11 islanders choosing to axe Harriett and Ronnie.

Ronnie told the boys it was a “sore” way to go after he and his villa partner were left raging at many of the reasoning’s given by their fellow Islanders.

Most of the dumped contestants cited the fact Harriett and Ronnie split weeks after leaving the villa last summer as the main reason for giving them the boot – something that the couple rejected as a valid reason.

Before being dumped, Harriett found herself locked in a war of words with returning show star, Olivia Hawkins.

Olivia cast her vote for Harriett and Ronnie and explained: “I do think that if things don’t work out first time, going back to it is always a risk.”

But Harriett fired back: “The girl literally photoshopped her head onto mine and sent it to Ronnie and he still didn’t want you on the outside or in the Villa…”

Olivia responded: “I didn’t want to go on a date with Ronnie.”

It means that the All Stars final five couples have now been determined.

Luca Bish and Grace Jackson, Ekin-Su and Curtis Pritchard, Catherine Agbaje and Omar Nyame, Elma Pazar and Sammy Root as well as Gabby Allen and Casey O’Gorman are now vying for the public’s votes to be crowned champion.

One of them will be crowned champion in tomorrow night’s final.

A FORMER Dancing on Ice contestant has revealed that he was rushed to surgery following his time on the show after suffering a horror injury.

James appeared on the ITV skating contest in 2019 and found himself as winner of the show.

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James Jordan has opened up on being rushed to surgery after DOI[/caption]

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The star was left requiring an operation after his time on the show[/caption]

However, it was not all plain sailing for the star as he was left requiring treatment after injuring himself around the time of the final.

James was left needing shoulder surgery after suffering a tear whilst on the show.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror, James said: “I had to have shoulder surgery after the show, because when I fell, I tore my rotator cuff.

“I loved doing the show and loved being part of it, but I knew what potentially could happen to me, and unfortunately, it did happen to me.”

The former Strictly pro then added: “The day before the final I tore my rotator cuff, and I had to have surgery, but that’s the risk I was prepared to take.

“I signed up to the show and I knew what I was doing.

“People might say it’s too dangerous, but the celebrities have decided to go on the show.”

James had originally considered quitting the show before the final as a result of the injuries but decided to push on in order to achieve success.

The current series of Dancing on Ice has been plagued by injury with a total of FOUR stars having pulled out.

Dame Sarah Storey quit the show before the series began as a result of injury whilst comedian Josh Jones left after just one week after injuring himself in rehearsals.

Pro Vanessa Bauer was forced to bow out of her partnership with Chris Taylor after injury whilst Charlie Brooks‘ partner Eric Radford missed a week after being left unable to compete.

The show is no stranger to stars getting injured over the years with the 2021 series forced to drop an entire episode after too many stars were unable to compete.

EUROPE is in full “something-must-be-done” mode after Uncle Sam finally called time on us drinking on his tab.

Sir Keir Starmer sniffs an opportunity that could make or break his premiership — but he is going to need to put his money where his mouth is to pull it off.

AFP

Starmer says he will be ‘taking a message’ from Paris directly to the White House like a trans-atlantic Cupid tying together the two continents[/caption]

With the PM finally getting the call-up to Washington DC next week, he is due in Paris tonight for President Macron’s panicked summit in response to the White House saying it is time for Europe to pay up on defence.

After a polite shellacking from Vice President JD Vance on Friday and electroshock therapy from his boss Donald Trump, the howls from the Continent are at fever pitch.

Those close to Starmer say he will be “taking a message” from Paris directly to the White House like a trans-atlantic Cupid tying together the two continents — something tried by many British premiers before him.

Euro-whiner

It rarely works, and is an especially tall task amid the little man syndrome of Macron.

I was at a brutal EU summit in Malta in 2017 where Theresa May made a similar offer to be Europe’s “bridge” to the last Trump White House — only to see the ex-PM humiliated by Angela Merkel and Co in a series of stinging put-downs.

However, in the unlikely event the Europeans play ball, Starmer may yet find a role for himself in the world that, despite all those air miles, he has yet to articulate.

But truth be told, the UK is up to its neck in all this as much as any Euro-whiner.

Since the end of the Cold War, European countries — including Britain — have ploughed their taxpayers’ money away from defence and into the welfare state.

This so-called “peace dividend” may have led to ballooning benefits and healthcare, but in reality it meant a massive subsidy from the US taxpayer for the ability for us to sleep peacefully in our beds.

Pointing out this unfairness is nothing new, with countless US presidents — even those deemed socially acceptable by the British Left, like Obama — warning for years that the ­situation is untenable.

Well, now the music may have finally stopped as the White House confirmed the election rhetoric was not a bluff and America really will be once again retreating into a more isolationist stance.

And Europe and Nato are reeling, noisily making daft claims such as that the US is no longer an ally.

As growth splutters across the Continent, that defence black hole looks almost insurmountable to some countries.

Nato’s boss Mark Rutte talks the talk about Europe stepping up, but is left open to hypocrisy charges, given that the Netherlands — where he was previously prime minister — failed to hit Nato’s two per cent spending target when he led the country for 14 years.

Starmer knows he is going to have to pay to play, and a crunch is coming where he will have to hike British defence spending soon to have any shred of credibility.

That leaves Chancellor Rachel Reeves facing a massive headache at a time when ­government spending is already due to be massively cut to avoid further tax hikes.

Apart from during those two bloody Middle Eastern interventions, our defence spending has bumped along at around two per cent of GDP for decades.

The Mega Agency

Within days of Trump taking office, more than 100 major diversity contracts were voided, and 10,000 civil servants doling out US taxpayers’ cash abroad at USAid shrunk to just 300[/caption]

That’s far short of the cash needed just to stand still in terms of our dwindling firepower.

An extra £5billion a year to hit 2.5 per cent of GDP may sound doable amid the near-£1trillion the Government already spends every year — but the Treasury is playing hardball.

The Chancellor is asking the Ministry of Defence the simple question: what would you slash instead to free up the cash?

But would it really be so hard to find some palatable savings?

As our front page reveals today, government spending is as bonkers as it has ever been — despite years of promises from the Tories to get a grip.

Nothing has really changed as we shell out for shrimp studies, poetry classes and gender projects in countries that can frankly afford their own woke nonsense.

We need drones, not prawns.

Grand ambitions

Only under Labour could a new Office for Value for Money — announced with much fanfare — immediately be ruled a waste of cash by a parliamentary watchdog.

The new body was set up eight months ago but last month was ruled to have “no clear plan” and branded a “red herring” by the Treasury Select Committee.

Meanwhile across the Pond, Elon Musk’s DOGE project has not yet been going a month and has already shuttered BILLIONS of dollars of spending from more than 30 government agencies.

Within days of Trump taking office, more than 100 major diversity contracts were voided, and 10,000 civil servants doling out US taxpayers’ cash abroad at USAid shrunk to just 300.

Two million more government workers were offered nine months’ pay to just walk away.

DOGE is working.

Food for thought for a PM with grand ambitions on the world stage, and in dire need of the chips to stay at the big boys’ table.

No action on Starmer Covid breach

AFTER wriggling free of a fine over Beergate, the mystery of Sir Keir Starmer’s voice coaching session at the height of lockdown fell outside of the three-year sunset clause on Covid laws.

No further action, said Inspector Knacker, after the PM’s glamorous actress friend travelled across tiers to be at his side on Christmas Eve 2020.

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Starmer’s voice coaching session at the height of lockdown fell outside of the three-year sunset clause on Covid laws[/caption]

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The PM’s glamorous actress friend travelled across tiers to be at his side on Christmas Eve 2020[/caption]

But the verdict is in from the court of public opinion, and it is damning.

Close to 65 per cent say Leonie Mellinger was not a key worker, with more than two-thirds branding Starmer a hypocrite after his lockdown bashing of Boris Johnson.

Those attacks came after Keir was meeting his voice coach indoors when everyone else was ordered to work from home.

And 68 per cent say it warrants an apology, according to polling by More In Common.

Don’t hold your breath for that to be forthcoming . . . 

ADRIAN Lewis has revealed he became “like a ghost” at darts events

Jackpot is making his return to the sport following a two-year hiatus from the oche.

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Adrian Lewis is set to return to darts after a two year hiatus[/caption]

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Two-time world champion Lewis has revealed he lost his passion for the sport[/caption]

And in a new interview, the two-time world champion revealed that he had lost his passion for the arrows.

Lewis, 40, will make his long-awaited return in May at the MODUS Super Series.

He told The Guardian: “I was leaving the house, not enjoying it. Even when I was winning I wasn’t enjoying it.

“I was basically just going through the motions. Like a ghost. Winning, losing, I wasn’t fussed.”

Lewis revealed that feeling had been going on for a long time, and it wasn’t just a snap decision.

“It had been building, probably, for 18 months. I’m sitting there at the Pro Tours thinking I don’t want to be there,” he continued.

“Before I’ve even thrown my first dart. Something’s got to change here.

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“I was missing something. My ability had never been in question. But my mindset, that was my big bugbear. I found it hard to get myself up for games, even if was against Michael van Gerwen or Phil Taylor.

“I dunno It’s weird. You just go into your shell. You don’t feel like your normal self.

“I can be more of a glass-half-empty guy, a bit frustrated at times.

“And then sometimes you go out there and you’re trying too hard. It’s weird.“

Lewis told supporters he was taking an indefinite break due to stress from darts while taking care of his ill wife Sarah.

However, he has now declared that he is back in the game and ready to rumble against darts’ top stars.

He said: “Hello, I’m Adrian Lewis, two-time back-to-back PDC and BDO darts champion.

“I am looking forward to playing in the Modus Super Series sometime in May, so stay tuned.”

KAZ Crossley left Elma Pazar stunned as she admitted “Sammy wasn’t right for her” as the ex-Islanders returned tonight.

The Sun exclusively revealed last week that axed Islanders were heading back to shake things up before Monday’s grand finale.

ITV

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Axed Islander Kaz left Sammy fuming with her comment[/caption]

The returning cast held all the power – deciding who stays and who goes from the three couples left vulnerable by the latest public vote.

After watching all the action from the outside, the ex-Islanders were are ready to deliver some brutal home truths.

Kaz didn’t hold back and told the group: “I care a lot about Elma…I don’t know if Sammy is the right guy.”

But a furious Sammy responded: “Do you not think I’ve proved that since I’ve been here…people grow up and change…”

Kaz explained: “If I’m being honest the way you lot handled the Ekin and Curtis situation, I didn’t agree with, that’s my opinion.”

She wasn’t the only ex Islander to deliver some cold hard truths.

Things quickly turned sour when Olivia Hawkins returned and voted to dump Ronnie and Harriett.

In the process she also took a swipe at her love rival.

Olivia revealed: “I feel like there’s one particular couple I probably would have swapped from things I’ve seen on the outside…”

Olivia then casted a vote for Harriett and Ronnie and explained: “I do think that if things don’t work out first time, going back to it is always a risk.”

Harriett fired back: “The girl literally photoshopped her head onto mine and sent it to Ronnie and he still didn’t want you on the outside or in the villa…”

Olivia responded: “I didn’t want to go on a date with Ronnie.”

Liv claimed earlier this series that Ronnie messaged her while he was seeing Harriett, 24, last year.

Harriett was in a relationship with Ronnie Vint last series and left the show with him, but the pair split just three months later.

Ronnie insisted he wasn’t in an exclusive relationship with Harriett, who he left the show with last summer.

Eroteme

ACTOR Warwick Davis broke down in tears as he paid tribute to his late wife during his BAFTAs acceptance speech.

The Harry Potter star, 55, was left overwhelmed as he took to the stage to thank a number of people – most importantly his late wife Samantha, who had been his number one supporter since they met in 1988.

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Warwick Davis broke down in tears as he paid an emotional tribute to his late wife[/caption]

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The actor was awarded the BAFTAs Fellowship[/caption]

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Warwick announced he had lost his “favourite human” last April[/caption]

In April 2024, Warwick announced the sad news that his “favourite human” had passed away at the age of 53.

During tonight’s star-studded ceremony, Warwick was awarded the BAFTAs Fellowship prize, known as Bafta’s highest honour.

Accepting the award on stage, he joked: “This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me and I’ve been in Star Wars.”

But the Star Wars actor struggled to fight back tears as he admitted that “life has been pretty tough” since Samantha passed away last year.

Warwick told the audience: “I’d like to thank my incredible team, my agent and everyone who has supported me throughout my career.

“This award isn’t just for me, it’s for all of you… hang on a minute, I’ve done all the work, it’s for me.”

He went on to praise his late wife for always supporting him throughout his career.

The star shared: “Above all I’d like to dedicate and thank my wonderful wife Sammy, who died almost a year ago.

“She was always so supportive of my career, encouraging me to grab every opportunity with both hands, however, I soon noticed her level of enthusiasm for me taking a particular role was often relative to how much she wanted that new designer handbag.

“Since then life has been pretty tough for me, but thanks to the support of our wonderful children Annabelle and Harrison, I’ve been able to continue working and engaging in life.”

The room filled with applauds for Warwick, who thanked the audience.

The star continued: “A special mention too should go to Sponge, you know who you are, thank you for showing me that life can still have meaning and helping me to laugh and to love again,” Warwick said as he broke down in tears on stage.

He added: “And one final thought, anyone out there dreaming of telling your story, go for it, the world needs your vision.”

Last April, Warwick shared an emotional statement, as the Harry Potter star star said his “favourite human” passed away on March 24.

The couple met on the set of movie Willow in 1988 and married three years later.

Devastated Warwick, 54, said: “Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family. I miss her hugs.”

He told the BBC: “She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life.

“She had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes.

“Without Sammy, there would have been no Tenable quiz show, no Willow series. No Idiot Abroad Series 3.”

Warwick said Samantha was his “most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career”.

The couple’s children, Harrison and Annabelle, added: “Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers.

“Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives.”

Samantha was best known for her roles in Through the Dragon’s Eye, ShortFellas and Honky Sausages.

Her dad Peter, an extra in Willow, later became Warwick’s business partner.

Samantha had achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes disproportionate dwarfism.

Warwick previously opened up about his wife’s health after she was rushed to hospital with sepsis in 2018.

The actor told The Sun that her health dramatically declined ahead of a family caravan holiday.

Speaking of the horror a few years later, he said: “The next few hours were the longest of my life as I waited on the ward with our children in the empty space left by Sam’s hospital bed.

“I hoped it would not symbolise a future for us without her.”

Sam had numerous operations due to her condition.

It is thought she contracted sepsis after decompression surgery on her spine.

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actor struggled to fight back tears as he admitted that ‘life has been pretty tough’[/caption]

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The couple met on the set of movie Willow in 1988 and married three years later[/caption]

Muhsin Hendricks – considered to be the world’s first openly gay imam – has been shot dead during an ambush on his car in South Africa.

The Islamic scholar and LGBTQ+ activist who ran a mosque in Cape Town intended as a safe haven for gay and other marginalised Muslims.

The 57-year-old was killed on Saturday morning after the car in which he was travelling in was attacked near the southern city of Gqeberha.

‘Two unknown suspects with covered faces got out of the car and started firing multiple shots at the vehicle,’ the Eastern Cape force said.

‘Thereafter they fled the scene, and the driver noticed that Hendricks, who was seated at the back of the vehicle was shot and killed.’

Footage circulating on social media shows the assassination of the imam in broad daylight.

An assailant is seen jumping out of a car, running to the ambushed vehicle and shooting several time through the back passenger window.

‘The motive for the murder is unknown,’ police said, urging anybody with information to come forward.

The imam was shot after he had reportedly officiated at a lesbian wedding, though this has not been officially confirmed.

Hendricks’ death has sent shockwaves through the LGBTQ+ community in South Africa and beyond.

Tributes from across the globe have been paid to the pioneering figure as the community in Cape Town is reeling from his killling.

The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association denounced the attack.

‘The ILGA World family is in deep shock at the news of the murder of Muhsin Hendricks, and calls on authorities to thoroughly investigate what we fear may be a hate crime,’ executive director Julia Ehrt said in a statement.

Openly queer pastor Revd Jide Macaulay described Hendricks’ death as a ‘profound loss, one that leaves a void in our hearts and in the movement for liberation and inclusion’.

He wrote about their first meeting in 2009 when the imam led a retreat and study days in Cape Town: ‘From that moment we forged a deep connection – one built on shared purpose, mutual inspiration, and an unshakable commitment to justice.

‘As an openly queer Pastor and you as a queer imam, we found joy and strength in our work, challenging the rigid boundaries of faith and sexuality.

‘Together, we contributed to a growing theological discourse that gave voice to LGBTQ+ people of faith.

‘You played an instrumental role in many of the events we envisioned, created, and hosted – both across Africa and around the world.

‘Your leadership, courage, and unwavering dedication to inclusive faith communities have left an indelible mark.’

Hendricks, involved in various LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, came out as gay in 1996.

He ran the Al-Ghurbaah mosque at Wynberg near his birthplace Cape Town.

According to its website, the mosque provides ‘a safe space in which queer Muslims and marginalised women can practise Islam.’.

Hendricks, the subject of a 2022 documentary called ‘The Radical’, had previously alluded to threats against him.

But he insisted that ‘the need to be authentic’ was ‘greater than the fear to die’.

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