
Powys florist hiding bouquets as quirky treat for public
A Powys flower grower has been leaving hidden bouquets in beauty spots around the county for people to pick up as part of British Flower Week.
Emma Maxwell of Welsh Flower Barrow has been celebrating British Flower Week by dropping off a series of bouquets in Powys towns, such as Machynlleth and Llanidloes, leaving clues on social media for people to find them.
She said: 'British Flower Week is designed to promote UK grown flowers, which there has been a bit of a resurgence in of recent years.
READ MORE
'I dabbled in the idea five years ago and trialled it with Welsh Horticultural, but then last year British Flower Week it coincided with the launch of Welsh Flower Barrow and seemed like a good opportunity to create a bit of publicity and do something fun and different in the summer.'
The bouquets, each made up of Welsh-grown flowers, are dropped off by Emma and colleagues in a Powys town at a quiet time of day. Afterwards she leaves clues on the Flower Barrow Facebook page to give people the chance to find the bouquet.
She added: 'We place them at each spot during different times of the day, ideally when it's not busy. We tend to pick spots based on errands we're already running or deliveries we're already making, then drop them off.
'It has to be a spot that's quiet so as not to be spotted but also enticing enough that people might go over and see what it's about. We have a rough idea of what town it will be but have to look for a specific area.'
Emma added that she enjoyed the idea of promoting both the flowers and a small spot of Mid Wales with each flower finding mission.
'It gets people talking a little bit,' she said. 'Commenting on the quality of bouquets and the beauty of British flowers as they discuss whatever abstract clue I've put with them.
'It also promotes the area as well and shines a little spotlight on it.
"I get so many messages commenting on how beautiful the area the bouquet is in is. It brightens a spot up and complements it really well.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Wales Online
43 minutes ago
- Wales Online
Welsh boxing's Lauren Price on why sport makes her 'selfish', her inspiration and wedding plans
Welsh boxing's Lauren Price on why sport makes her 'selfish', her inspiration and wedding plans In an interview with WalesOnline, the 30-year-old reflects on how she finds herself in the best place she's ever been Lauren Price says she is in a good place (Image: (Photo by) ) When Lauren Price kissed her then friend Carlie Jones during a night out six years ago she had no idea Carlie had such strong feelings for her. Carlie later admitted she'd always been in love with the former Wales footballer turned champion boxer, Lauren. The pair are in so many ways different. Lauren, from Ystrad Mynach, came out when she was 13, and Carlie much later. Lauren is a professional sports star while Carlie runs a home care company. Lauren has to spend her working week in Sheffield training every day, while Carlie stays at their home in Blackwood. The normal things couples do like eating out together aren't an option while Lauren trains for the next fight, but they are head over heels and newly-engaged. Next year they will marry at Sant Ffraed House near Abergavenny. "I've found my person," Lauren tells WalesOnline in an interview to mark her winning this year's Pinc List, our list of Wales' most influential LGBTQ+ people which you can read here. Wedging the interview in between a morning run and afternoon training at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, she spoke about her hopes for the remaining years in boxing, her inspiration, and the couple's love story. "We were friends for more than 10 years," Lauren says of Carlie, before six years ago they kissed on a night out. Remaining friends, Carlie had gone to Lauren's pro fights. Article continues below "We had been in different relationships but then we were single again and in each other's lives and it just happened. That was the first time Carlie had been with a woman in that way. She cared a lot about what people thought of her, whereas I couldn't have been with someone and hid it. I wasn't going to hide the fact I was with a woman. That's not me. 'We hadn't actually brought that kiss up at all over the years but not long ago I did remind her of it. She told me she'd always been in love with me. I told her I felt the same way and told her everything about how I couldn't have been with someone who hid it but she told me she was ready. She totally surprised me because she has changed, she doesn't care so much anymore about what people think. 'I think sometimes we are affected by others having a stereotypical view of the world, but I'm not bothered about that and Carlie isn't bothered anymore either. What is normal? My world is normal to me. I'm very proud to be an out gay woman and I really just see it as living my life. PDA (public display of affection) is normal to me now. I used to think about it more and worry about it more. 'Before I didn't hide it but I wouldn't have shown it. Now I feel different about that. I think it's important. My love for Carlie is more important to me than anything and if I want to hold her hand or kiss her in public then I will. Life is short. "Love is a mad thing. When you've got it it's amazing. I feel so lucky I've found my person and to celebrate that when you want to is important.' It was that sentiment that the Pinc List panel wanted to recognise - someone living their life, unapologetically out, and inspiring in their strength, physically in her case but also mentally as she battles keyboard warriors attacking her over her gender and sexuality. "I do get the odd comment like 'dy**' or whatever it may be, even down to the way I dress," she says. "I get: 'You shouldn't be a boxer, you should be in the kitchen' or comments about female boxing. Most of the time it's middle-aged men giving me this abuse behind their keyboards. I'm not sure they'd ever do it to my face. 'You're always going to get it. I knew that when I got into it. To be honest I don't look at any of it anymore. It's sad the way the world is and people take their own lives over this stuff. I just focus on what those who are in my circle think of me and I keep them close.' Lauren, now 30 and in the prime of her boxing career off the back of her win over Natasha Jonas to add the WBC and IBF welterweight world titles to her WBA crown, told school friends she was lesbian when she was just 13. 'It sounds young but I was playing older age group football at the time and a lot of those girls around me were gay and out and proud and that was great for me to see. I was lucky with that. So coming out was okay for me. 'I also did have a bit of an attitude about me, I will admit. If anyone had said anything to me that was hurtful or negative I certainly could look after myself. I was always known as just one of the boys I suppose. 'I know not everyone has such positive experiences. I get sad when I hear of people who feel they have to hide it or people who have had to live a large part of their life not being themselves. 'I speak a lot about my inspiration Kelly Holmes. I spoke to her not too long ago for a documentary about all of this stuff and her experience in the army and feeling she had to keep her sexuality a secret to avoid being kicked out of the army. It was awful. Crazy stuff.' Lauren, who was brought up by her grandparents Derek and Linda, without whom she says she would have turned out a 'wrong'un', had worried what they would think. 'I wasn't scared as such when I came out, but what I was scared of was telling nan and grandad. Nan did tell me it was just a phase, but she soon came around. 'Grandad was great. I was really taken aback by it all to be honest. I was worried because my grandad was very old school. I was thinking: 'What's he going to say? What's he going to think?' But I couldn't have hoped for a better response." Derek died in November 2020 aged 80. He had been suffering with dementia. 'Everytime I go into the ring I know he is there looking down on me,' she says. 'That's what gets me through. I know he's with me in spirit. 'I've always said it'd be for them; for all the years they supported me and all the money they spent sending me around the world and getting me as good as I am. It'd be for them.' The scar which crosses her forehead above her left eye isn't from boxing. It's a football injury from her days playing for Wales' youth sides as a centre half. Her best decision was leaving her football career - which took her to the senior international stage - to focus all her efforts on boxing. 'I prefer the individuality of boxing, I prefer the control. I train on my own, I win on my own and I lose on my own. No excuses. I like that. You obviously don't get that in football. I don't want to have to rely on others.' No excuses means no stone is left unturned across each week of the year to ensure she is top of her game. 'It's hard. People don't really see that side of things. As well as being away from my loved ones it's actually quite a lonely life too. That's why I'm so grateful for Carlie because she gets it. I know being with me isn't easy with my lifestyle. 'Even when I am home at weekends, I can't go out for a steak and chips or to a restaurant or get a takeaway. She's seen me now through two major fights and she recognises it and understands it. I think it takes a lot of understanding and patience. 'I don't want to be selfish but I suppose I am - you have to be to achieve a certain standard of success. Boxing is my life and it's such a short career and I've got to take everything from it that I can before it's over. I see myself as still climbing the ladder and wanting to do great things.' And what about when it's all over? 'Maybe we'll have kids down the line when I'm back home and retired. We've discussed that, although we're not dead set on it. We're happy if it's just us, for sure, but we've spoken about freezing our eggs and seeing where life takes us. I want to make sure we're financially in a good place prior to that. 'I've been away from home on a weekly basis since my football days. I've been in Sheffield coming up to 10 years now, up and down the motorway. It'll be nice not to have to do that all the time. 'I do definitely still want to be involved in boxing though after I retire. I've been in sport all my life and I'd be lost without it. I'm thinking I might open up my own academy for the next generation. I'd like to do that.' She doesn't know who she will fight next but a meeting with WBO champion Mikaela Mayer could happen this year. After that she might let herself free up some time for wedding planning. 'It's been a lovely time. Our families have been amazing. We're so lucky we've got a really supportive bubble around us. We've booked the wedding and it's all sorted for next year. Article continues below 'When the engagement came out we did get some hate. I did warn Carlie about that. Sadly it's part of being in the public eye, but she got it straight away. I do find it hard for her because she's not used to it but she gets it. It just shows there's still a long way to go. But we've come so far. The support I've had and I've received throughout my life, all I can be is thankful - not just to my family and friends and people back home but the LGBTQ+ community.'


Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
Quantum of Solace cast: who is in Bond film? Full list
Quantum of Solace is on TV this weekend - but who is in the cast? 🕵️♀️ Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Quantum of Solace is set to be broadcast on TV this weekend. It was the second 007 film to feature Daniel Craig. But who else was in the cast of the classic movie? James Bond is one of the most iconic characters in the history of film and Daniel Craig made quite the impression when taking on the role. Across five movies and 15 years he put his own spin on the legendary spy. One of his first outings as 007 is set to be broadcast on terrestrial TV this weekend. Quantum of Solace has secured a prime Saturday night slot on ITV. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Rumours continue to swirl around who will take on the mantle of James Bond next, following Craig's final film in 2021. But while you wait, why not re-watch one of the more modern films in the franchise. Here's all you need to know: When is Quantum of Solace on TV? Daniel Craig in Quantum of Solace which began production during the 2008 Hollywood writers' strike. The 22nd Bond film - and second with Daniel Craig as 007 - will be broadcast tonight (June 21) on ITV. It is set to begin at 8pm and will run for around 2 hours, including adverts. Who is in the cast of Quantum of Solace? It has been 17 years since the film first came out in cinemas, so you might have forgotten who was in the movie - outside of Daniel Craig of course. The cast includes: Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Daniel Craig - James Bond Olga Kurylenko - Camille Montes Mathieu Amalric - Dominic Greene Giancarlo Giannini - René Mathis Gemma Arterton - Strawberry Fields Anatole Taubman - Elvis Jesper Christensen - Mr. White David Harbour - Gregg Beam Rory Kinnear - Bill Tanner Tim Pigott-Smith as the British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Joaquín Cosío - General Medrano Jeffrey Wright - Felix Leiter Judi Dench - M Fernando Guillén Cuervo - Carlos Paul Ritter - Guy Haines Neil Jackson - Edmund Slate Simon Kassianides - Yusef Kabira Stana Katic - Corrine Veneau Glenn Foster - Craig Mitchell Oona Chaplin - Perla de las Dunas's receptionist Lucrezia Lante della Rovere - Gemma Jesús Ochoa - Lieutenant Orso The film also featured appearances from fellow directors Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón - the latter played a helicopter pilot. Del Toro lent his voice to multiple roles. You might have spotted actors who you've become far more familiar with in the years since you last watched the movie. Not least of all David Harbour, who will return for the final season of Stranger Things later this year. What is Quantum of Solace about? The synopsis for the film, via Radio Times , reads: 'Following betrayal by his lover, secret agent James Bond embarks upon a globe-trotting mission to discover the truth. Soon, 007 comes into contact with the shadowy Quantum organisation, whose intentions are decidedly sinister…'


Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Soap stars who flopped in America from shop assistant to one-hit wonder
As Michelle Ryan rejoins EastEnders as gobby Zoe Slater after trying her luck stateside in the axed remake of Bionic Woman, we look at other soap actors from Enders, Corrie, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks who have tried to crack America Soap fans are celebrating the return of Michelle Ryan to EastEnders - back as gobby Zoe Slater after a 20-year gap. She left Walford in 2005 after landing the role of Jaime Sommers in the US remake of Bionic Woman. The show was set to make her a huge US TV star, but sadly the 2007 show was axed after just one series. Michelle, 41, is far from the only British star to be enjoying rebound soap success after following their acting dreams over the pond. Even one Oscar winner realised that home really is where the heart is... READ MORE: Emmerdale star loses 4 stone as lifestyle change reverses major health issue Patsy Palmer, EastEnders Michelle's Albert Square colleague, famous for those yells of "Rickaaay!" as Bianca Butcher, headed to California in 2014 with her husband Richard Merkell and her four children. But her career did not make as much headway out there, according to her IMDB entry, which cites a 2014 TV commercial for Best Buy and a UK short film in 2015, which starred her son Charley Palmer Rothwell, 33. Patsy does have a very glamorous claim to LA fame though. Her son Fenton Merkell, 25, dated supermodel Cindy Crawford's daughter Kaia Gerber, after they met as models. But the allure of Bianca's Puffa jacket has proven too strong. Patsy, 53, has yo-yoed in and out of the BBC soap for years. She returned last year, staying until earlier this year, when she went on Celebrity Big Brother. Rob Kazinsky, EastEnders He played Sean Slater from 2006 until 2009, before landing his big break in vampire series True Blood in 2013, as Macklyn Warlow. Rob, 41, then made the jump to the big screen in Pacific Rim (2013), Warcraft (2016) and Captain Marvel (2019). However it appears after time in the Marvel universe he was yearning for something more down to earth - as he headed back to EastEnders for a brief stint in 2019, and then made two more appearances in 2021 and 2022 Nikki Sanderson, Coronation Street As mouthy hairdresser Candice, she was a favourite on the ITV soap from 1995 to 2005. She tried her hand across the pond, with mixed results. Nikki, 41, did land a role in 2008 horror film Boogeyman 3, PRAISE but it went straight to DVD. Fast forward to 2012 and she joined the cast of Hollyoaks as Maxine Minniver, to great success. She was praised for playing a domestic violence victim in one of the Channel 4 soap's most harrowing storylines. Nikki won the Inside Soap Award for Outstanding Achievement in 2023, before quitting the soap this year. Rachel Shenton, Hollyoaks She starred as Mitzeee Minniver for three years before leaving in 2013. She went on to appear in US series Switched at Birth from 2014 to 2017. The following year she won an Oscar for her short film The Silent Child, based on her own experiences as the child of a parent who became deaf. Rachel, 37, now stars in the family friendly drama All Creatures Great and Small on 5, as James Herriot's love interest. Adele Silva, Emmerdale Aside from a five-year break from 2000, the actress was part of the furniture at the ITV soap - first appearing as Kelly Windsor in 1993 aged 13. She tried to leave Kelly behind in 2007 and moved to the US, but struggled to find acting jobs, and in 2010 she was pictured working in a Ted Baker store in LA. Adele came back to Emmerdale briefly before starring in 2012 comedy horror film Strippers vs Werewolves with Freddy Kruger actor Robert Englund. Bagging more UK acting jobs rather than LA ones, Adele, 44, then headed to Hollyoaks for seven episodes in 2015, playing Leela Lomax's cousin, Angela Brown Joshua Richards, Emmerdale Joshua's career path is pretty unique as, unlike others soap rebounders, he was a Hollywood heavyweight who turned his back on Tinseltown to appear in soapland. More than two decades ago, Josh was starring with Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom and Peter O'Toole in 2004 blockbuster Troy. Josh, 65, also starred in 2017 film King Arthur: Excalibur Rising, before landing the role of Bear Wolf on Emmerdale. It was a dream job, because he was desperate to work in Yorkshire, where he has lived for 30 years "and be home in time for my tea". But he also has some early soap pedigree, after appearing in an episode of Heartbeat back in 1999. And here are some of the homegrown acting talents who became global stars after heading stateside... Idris Elba, Family Affairs His first big break came in the Channel 5 soap in 1997, as Tim Webster, followed by London's Burning in 2001, before trying his luck in the US . Idris, 52, hit the big-time playing Stringer Bell in the iconic cop series The Wire from 2002 to 2004. On the big screen, he has been in American Gangster (2007), Prometheus (2012) and Avengers: Infinity War (2018). Himesh Patel, EastEnders Himesh is one of biggest soap exports, and is now successful film actor since leaving his role as Tamwar Masood in EastEnders from 2007 to 2016. He has appeared in the Beatles inspired 2019 movie Yesterday, Christopher Nolan film Tenet (2020), Don't Look Up (2021), and 2022. film Enola Holmes 2. Himesh, 34, is now filming Enola Holmes 3, as Dr John Watson. Nathalie Emmanuel, Hollyoaks Three years after leaving the Channel 4 soap, as Sasha Valentine, in 2010, she played the major role of Missandei in Game of Thrones until 2019. She then appeared in 2022 horror film The Invitation, Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis last year, and Natalie, 36, also turned up in Fast & Furious seven, eight and nine. Ben Hardy, EastEnders Shortly after leaving his role of Peter Beale, he was cast in 2016 film X-Men: Apocalypse, followed by Bohemian Rhapsody (2018), and Love at First Sight (2023).