logo
Exhibition of prehistoric Giants to make UK debut

Exhibition of prehistoric Giants to make UK debut

Glasgow Times05-06-2025

Giants, developed by the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and toured by Nomad Exhibitions, will open at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery on August 2.
It will then move to the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh in January 2026.
The exhibition focuses on creatures such as the woolly mammoth, which roamed the Earth after the extinction of the dinosaurs.
Giants spans a period of 66 million years to the present day, and highlights the need to protect existing giant species such as elephants and whales.
It features life-sized 3D models and nearly complete skeletons, including giant shark Otodus megalodon; the Mammuthus primigenius or woolly mammoth, which weighed between six and eight tonnes; and Gigantopithecus blacki, an Asian primate the size of three orangutans.
Visitors of all ages are encouraged to step into the shoes of palaeontologists and biologists, using interactive resources and engaging with the scientific processes behind fossil discovery and reconstruction.
A life-sized 3D model of a megalodon features in the exhibition (National Museums Scotland/PA)
Immersive projections recreate the natural habitats of previous giant species, providing context to their existence and extinction.
The exhibition also warns of the threat of extinction posed to elephants, rhinoceroses and whales and the 'urgent need' to protect endangered species.
The announcement coincides with World Environment Day on Thursday, which this year is focused on ending plastic pollution.
Zak Mensah and Sara Wajid, co-chief executives of Birmingham Museums Trust, said: 'We are delighted to welcome the Giants exhibition to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.
'This inspiring installation not only captures the imagination with its monumental scale but also delivers a vital message about sustainability and our shared responsibility to protect the planet.
'Birmingham Museums is committed to using storytelling to engage communities with the challenges of our time and Giants does exactly that in a powerful and accessible way.'
Dr Nick Fraser, keeper of Natural Sciences at National Museums Scotland, said: 'We're really looking forward to bringing Giants to Scotland next year.
'Popular attention on prehistoric life tends to focus either on dinosaurs or on our own earliest human ancestors, which leaves a relatively neglected gap of around 60 million years of natural history.
'Giants is a striking invitation to us all to think about that period, to see how nature adapts over time, and also to reflect on the ways in which current human activity is denying that time to today's endangered giants.'

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Going live was 'baptism of fire' for STV news legend Shereen Nanjiani
Going live was 'baptism of fire' for STV news legend Shereen Nanjiani

The Herald Scotland

time9 hours ago

  • The Herald Scotland

Going live was 'baptism of fire' for STV news legend Shereen Nanjiani

Ach well, she certainly deserves it. Worked hard but it paid off, as she came to be 'much loved', as every newspaper profile acknowledges, on account of everyone finding her warm, nice and trustworthy. One imagines that's what everyone thought on 4 October 1961 when she was born in Elderslie, in the sunshine state of Renfrewshire. She cut her broadcasting teeth on Hospital Radio Paisley in the late 1970s, reading local news cuttings gathered during the week. After graduating from Glesga Yoonie, where she studied philosophy – makes you think, doesn't it? – she became a trainee journalist with STV in 1983, at the age of 22. However, hardly had she got her Biro out of her pocket than she was asked to present the evening bulletin after the regular presenter, Sheena McDonald, called in sick. 'I was aghast and immediately said I couldn't possibly do it,' she told The Herald in 2017. 'This was the main news programme, the big one, with a million viewers.' However, her boss told her reassuringly: 'Don't worry, if you f*** it up you won't be doing it again.' She didn't flip it up. In fact, she was a natural. And she loved it. Live TV: what a buzz! 'It really was a baptism of fire,' she recalled. 'I still hadn't had any training when I started doing the job for real – but I surprised myself how much I enjoyed it.' (Image: Yui Mok) MAKING THE NEWS SOON, she was appointed joint anchor of the main evening programme, and that was her for the next 20 years, reading all the news fit to blurt, as happy families gathered sociably in front of the television. She was Scotland's first Asian-heritage newsreader and, at first, was not chuffed at the channel's press releases majoring on that. 'I remember thinking, 'Oh, is that what you're seeing?' I was quite upset about it. I … wondered whether that was why I got the job. I thought it reeked of tokenism. 'I actually believe I did get the job on my own merits, but I thought it was a bit cynical of them to present me in that way. I spent much of my career railing against it, not wanting that tag to follow me around. And, of course, I was only half-Asian.' However, her feelings on the issue changed when she realised she'd become a role model for a whole generation of Asian Scots. 'So many young Asian people were coming up to me and saying, 'You've no idea what a difference it made seeing your face on TV.'' Of course, she suffered from imposter syndrome. Every genuine professional does. Anyone who doesn't suffer from imposter syndrome is an imposter. Shereen went on to present many programmes for STV, including religious affairs series Eikon, documentary series Secret Scotland, and a number of live debates and election programmes. She also hosted many of The Herald's Scottish Politician of the Year awards. At STV, she covered Lockerbie, Dunblane and the new Scottish Parliament. She also reported from Romanian orphanages after the fall of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, from South Africa after the election of Nelson Mandela, and from Pakistan after the 9/11 terror attacks. However, after 20 years of presenting in the studio, she told The Herald, 'it was beginning to feel like Groundhog Day and I just wasn't enjoying it so much'. READ MORE: Robert McNeil: I detest yon Romans but I dig excavating their wee fortlets RAB MCNEIL'S SCOTTISH ICONS: John Knox – the fiery preacher whose pal got burnt at the stake Rab McNeil: All this talk about celebs and their neuroses is getting on my nerves GAGA FOR RADIO IN 2006, along with colleagues Jane Lewis and Sarah Heaney, she accepted voluntary redundancy from STV She was looking forward to other exciting projects away from live television, she said. This turned out to be live radio, and it was on the BBC, hitherto her rivals. Nanjiani helmed, as they say, Radio Scotland's Friday lunchtime programme, Scotland Live. She then went on to present Shereen, a live news and current affairs programme broadcast every Sunday morning with a 'lively panel' of commentators, a guest in the headlines, and reviews of the latest TV and streaming releases. Last weekend, having by now earned the double-edged adjective 'legendary' (it hints of both achievement and, er, maturity), she announced she was stepping away from the mic. For noo. She said she'd loved being part of BBC Radio Scotland, where she'd made so many good friends. 'They made me laugh and they made me think' – see, that old philosophy degree was not a total waste of time, after all – 'and it's always been a joy to come to work in the morning.' However, she felt now was the time to 'get my weekends back again, have a lie in, and explore new adventures'. BBC Radio Scotland commissioning editor Heather Kane Darling said it had been a pleasure to work with Shereen over the last 19 years, adding: 'I know our teams will miss working with her, and we thank her for her professionalism and dedication during her time with us.' Outwith her professional career, Shereen has undertaken several voluntary sector roles, including Ambassador for St Vincent's Hospice, Children's Hearing panel member, Tron Theatre board member and chair, and National Theatre of Scotland board member. COPPING LAUGHS SHE once appeared as herself in a memorable episode of BBC police spoof comedy Scot Squad, in which she tried – and failed – to present a harassed Officer Karen with a certificate declaring her one of Scotland's community heroes. The first comment under the relevant YouTube clip reads: 'SHEREEN!!!! LEGEND!!!' My understanding is that the number of exclamation marks indicates the strength of emphasis. In 2019, Shereen was invited to join the British Empire, receiving an MBE at Buckingham Palace from Charles, Prince and later King of England and the Other Bits. Asked by The Herald's Marianne Taylor if she'd ever been tempted to move to London, following in the footsteps of other Scots like Selina Scott, Kirsty Wark and Lorraine Kelly, she replied: 'I've always been very comfortable in Scotland. I suppose I was always comfortable with the Scottish people, too … I like my life here. Maybe I could and should have spread my wings, but I have no regrets.' That's the spirit. Truly a woman with her talking head screwed on.

Giants pitcher Sean Hjelle accused of 'abuse,' 'affairs' and 'abandoning' his kids in bombshell claims by wife
Giants pitcher Sean Hjelle accused of 'abuse,' 'affairs' and 'abandoning' his kids in bombshell claims by wife

Daily Mail​

time21 hours ago

  • Daily Mail​

Giants pitcher Sean Hjelle accused of 'abuse,' 'affairs' and 'abandoning' his kids in bombshell claims by wife

The wife of San Francisco Giants pitcher Sean Hjelle has accused him of abuse, affairs and abandoning their two young sons. Caroline Hjelle posted a short clip of herself with the two boys on TikTok, where she also included bombshell allegations against the 28-year-old. 'When my MLB husband abandons us on Mothers (sic) Day a week after this [video was taken] once I finally found out about his affairs and stopped putting up with his abuse so I've been raising two boys alone,' she wrote online. Daily Mail has reached out for comment to Sean, through Giants spokespeople, and to Caroline, via email. Her TikTok post shows Caroline's two sons both wearing t-shirts emblazoned with a drawing off their family. A tall baseball player (Sean is 6-foot-11) is pictured holding hands with a blonde woman and two blond boys. His No. 64 is also visible on the t-shirts. The couple was married in November of 2021 at a private ceremony in Richmond, Virginia, where their eldest son served as a ringbearer, according to Caroline's TikTok account has served as a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a Major League Baseball family, with many of her previous posts focusing on her husband's career and his extraordinary height. 'And we are Giants,' she captioned one clip in a reference to her towering husband and his employer. In other clips, Caroline jokes about her growing sons, referring to them as '7 foot toddlers.' Fans offered an outpouring of sympathy on TikTok in addition to a few critiques about Sean's performance in Friday's loss to the visiting Boston Red Sox. 'He just gave up a home run like 30 seconds ago!' wrote one Giants fan on TikTok, referring to a sixth-inning bomb from Boston's Ceddanne Rafaela. Other responses were more relevant to the allegations of infidelity and abuse. 'Let's normalize calling cheaters out regardless of who they are — I'm so sorry,' one person wrote. 'You and your babies are so cute.' One woman offered a pathway to a divorce. 'Be the first to file girlfriend,' she wrote. 'I just got to our final judgement after a year and a half battle - sole custody and can finally move on with our lives. It was hard but worth it.' A native of Fridley, Minnesota, Sean was the Southeastern Conference's Pitcher of the Year at the University of Kentucky in 2017. He would go on to be drafted by the Giants in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft, but struggled to reach the majors after spending several years in the minors. This season, Hjelle pitched well enough at Triple-A Sacramento to get a call up to San Francisco, where he's posted a mediocre 4.66 earned-run average while walking as many batters as he's struck out.

Tom Brady rips an Eli Manning jersey apart in ultimate act of disrespect towards his former nemesis
Tom Brady rips an Eli Manning jersey apart in ultimate act of disrespect towards his former nemesis

Daily Mail​

time2 days ago

  • Daily Mail​

Tom Brady rips an Eli Manning jersey apart in ultimate act of disrespect towards his former nemesis

Tom Brady brutally trolled his former rival Eli Manning on Friday by ripping his New York Giants jersey in half. The seven-time Super Bowl champion made an appearance at Fanatics Fest in New York City, much to the delight of the thousands of fans in attendance. Brady spoke to some of the crowd at Manhattan's Javits Center before then taking part in a WWE-style performance later on. The Fox commentator came out to the theme song of pro wrestler Cody Rhodes wearing sunglasses and carrying a WWE-style championship belt. But, as he made his way down to the walkway, Brady was presented with a Giants jersey that had 'Manning 10' on the back. The former New England Patriots quarterback then ripped the jersey in half in a playful dig at Manning. Brady's actions prompted Manning, who was watching on, to storm the stage and climb on his rival's back. Their rivalry dates back to their stellar NFL careers, when Manning and the Giants were able to briefly halt the Patriots' dominant run to beat them in two Super Bowls. The Giants stunned Bill Belichick's team to win 17-14 in Arizona in 2008, despite being heavy underdogs after Brady led his men to a perfect 16-0 regular season. Then, four years after, the Patriots were stunned by the Giants again when they were beaten 21-17 in Indianapolis. Manning was named Super Bowl MVP that year. Brady and Manning quickly regained their composure and were later pictured competing against each other in a baseball pitching contest.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store