Latest news with #hope
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Father of woman shot outside pub spreads message of hope with documentary
THE father of a woman who was shot outside a pub on Christmas Eve is hoping to spread a message of hope, with a documentary following his cross-country walk in the aftermath of her death. Tim Edwards, 53, joined actor John May in Worcester on his walk from Land's End to John O'Groats as part of a campaign to end gun and knife crime. Days after Elle Edwards was killed in a shooting outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, Mr Edwards got in touch with Mr May, initially aiming just to "get out of town," but ultimately accompanying him to the top of Scotland. Two years on, the documentary The Two Of Us will be screened at the Raindance Film Festival. "You'll see that when times get really tough, as long you keep going and you keep having that little bit of hope and a bit of strength behind you, and the willingness to carry on and never give up, then you will come out alright the other side," said Mr Edwards. "I've been through the worst hell you can imagine, there's not a lot else that could really turn me. "I can cope with the day-to-day now through those experiences of walking with John and walking through the country and being alone and having therapy and talking about your feelings." He completed the walk before the trial of Connor Chapman, who was targeting rival gang members when he opened fire outside the pub, and was sentenced to a minimum of 48 years after being found guilty. READ MORE: READ MORE: READ MORE: Throughout the walk, Mr Edwards said there were signs from his daughter - including a white dove which followed him as he walked around Ripon Cathedral one morning. "You grab on to different signs that you hope is Elle watching over you," he explained. "It was things like, there were always doves would randomly turn up or I'd be feeling a bit low and I'd be like 'give us a sign Elle will you, give me something to pick me up' and there'd always something random would appear." The film was nominated for best documentary feature and best UK cinematography awards at the Raindance festival. It is accompanied by music from composer Patrick Bennett, 20, who has created Elle's Theme, which plays throughout. Mr Edwards said the documentary is part of his aim to create a positive legacy for his daughter. "It was always about keeping Elle's name alive," he said. "So whenever Elle's name was mentioned, it would be mentioned in a positive way and not about what happened to her. That was the goal and still is, it will always be the goal."
Fox News
3 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
'Grey's Anatomy' alum Eric Dane prepared to go to extreme measures to fight ALS
Eric Dane is prepared to go to extreme measures to fight ALS. "I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help," the 52-year-old "Grey's Anatomy" alum told Diane Sawyer during a sit-down interview on "Good Morning America." "I'll assume the risk." During the interview, which aired Tuesday, Dane opened up about the debilitating disease and explained how he's found hope in the physician who has been leading his care. "I'm very hopeful... I don't think this is the end of my story," he said. "And whether it is or it isn't, I'm gonna carry that idea with me. "That's what I got from [Dr. Merit Cudkowicz] when I met her... there was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with," Dane said of his doctor, a neurologist and leading ALS researcher. Dane said that he had spoken previously with an organization that told him his doctors would be "there to... monitor my decline — and that's not very helpful." Dr. Cudkowicz said the risk factors behind the disease can include anything from environmental concerns like plastics and bacteria in lakes to sports injuries. "We worry about head trauma because we do see ALS more common in people in certain sports like football or soccer. We worry about pesticides as well. Being in the military is a risk factor," she said. "Those are the ones we know about, but there's many more we don't know about. "There's people all over the world working on this," she said, referring to ALS research. "Between artificial intelligence and other imaging technology, that's what gets me excited, and that's all coming in the next, I think, one to two years, if not faster." Dane, who revealed his diagnosis in April, said in another segment of the interview that aired Monday that he first started experiencing weakness in his right hand before seeking medical attention. "I didn't really think anything of it at the time," he told Sawyer. "I thought maybe I'd been texting too much and my hand was fatigued. A few weeks later, I noticed it'd gotten a little worse. I went and saw a hand specialist, who sent me to another hand specialist. I went and saw a neurologist, and the neurologist sent me to another neurologist and said, 'This is way above my pay grade.' "I have one functioning arm," he said. "My left side is functioning. My right side has completely stopped working. [My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months, and I won't have my left hand either. It's sobering." He said that for now, he is able to walk, but added, "I'm worried about my legs." Dane admitted that he will "never forget" the moment he was diagnosed. "I will never forget those three letters, [ALS]. It's on me the second I wake up," he said. "It's not a dream." The actor, who shares two daughters, Billie, 15, and Georgia, 13, with wife Rebecca Gayheart, said he began noticing more of the effects of his disease a few months ago during a boating trip with his daughter. After jumping into the water, Dane — a former competitive swimmer — quickly realized he was not able to swim. "[Georgia] dragged me back to the boat," said Dane, who recalled immediately breaking down in tears once on the boat. "I was just, I was, like, heartbroken." Dane also told Sawyer that he is "angry" about the diagnosis, explaining, "I'm angry because my father was taken from me when I was young, and now there's a very good chance that I'm going to be taken from my girls while they're very young." "I mean, I really, at the end of the day, just, all I want to do is spend time with my family and work a little bit if I can," he added. Fox News Digital's Janelle Ash contributed to this post.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Syrian refugees say they are homeless after resettlement flights to Ireland from Lebanon cancelled
Syrian refugees due to fly to Ireland from Lebanon this week under a resettlement scheme say they have been left homeless and terrified after their flights were cancelled due to the Israel-Iran attacks. 'This flight was like a lottery ticket for us in order to start a new life,' said Delivan Hassan Mohammed (37), who was due to leave on Thursday with her husband and 14-year-old daughter. She said they were given the travel information one month ago under a resettlement scheme that has already been beset by lengthy delays. 'We were looking forward to leaving but we were disappointed. I already left my house, left my job, sold everything,' she said. READ MORE 'All we want to know is a date so we can plan our life and put things in motion so we can survive until we can be taken outside this country.' Another man, who did not want to be named, said everyone started crying when they were informed about the cancellation. He was due to travel with his children and wife. 'Everything we owned, we sold it. We bought clothes for travelling and now we're left without money, without jobs, without a home ... We gave up everything because of the journey,' he said. His wife said her daughters were terrified by bombings during the Israeli bombardment of Lebanon last year. 'They don't want to be in Lebanon or Syria; they feel unsafe in all of them. They had the hope of leaving this area. They wanted to escape and today was their last glimpse of hope,' she said. Like others, she is terrified that the war between Israel and Iran will spread. Missiles have been visible in the night sky from Lebanon since last Friday, when the Israeli attacks on Iran began and Iran started retaliating. 'We want to leave as soon as possible. We feel like nobody is helping us,' the woman said. The Department of Justice, which is responsible for the refugee resettlement programme, did not respond to a request for comment. Neither did the International Organisation for Migration, which organises the travel. The Irish Times understands that 26 Syrians were due to travel on Thursday. About 375 Syrian refugees were chosen for resettlement following an Irish delegation's visit to Lebanon in November 2022, including 185 who were under the age of 18 at the time. They were given a document saying they could expect to travel by the end of 2023, but many are now waiting more than 2½ years. 'It is a very difficult situation,' said Rudy Haider Sharaf, who still has no idea when he will travel with his wife and three children. 'I am afraid of war. My children are very afraid.' The family were displaced by bombing in Lebanon last year. Despite a ceasefire last November, Israel continues to carry out regular air strikes in south Lebanon where they live. Another Syrian woman, who is also waiting to travel with her family, said they were 'living in fear and disappointment with the ongoing delays and postponements as we wait for our flight to Ireland to be scheduled. 'Life has come to a complete standstill for us,' she said. One three-year-old girl, who was among those waiting, died last year. Her father – who lived for a long time in a tent in northern Lebanon with his wife and children – said he believes she might have survived if she had access to proper medical care. 'I made every effort to treat her or travel with her to your country, but death was faster,' said Zuhair Al-Ashqar, who has since reached Ireland with his wife and young son.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Eric Dane issues major ALS battle update as he promises fans 'I'm fighting as much as I can'
Eric Dane has given a huge update on his battle with incurable degenerative neurological disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). 'I'm fighting as much as I can,' the 52-year-old Grey's Anatomy alum told Good Morning America 's Diane Sawyer on Tuesday. 'There's so much about it that's out of my control.' Eric is currently taking medication to slow the symptoms and he's also participating in a research study. 'I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help,' Dane stressed. 'I'll assume the risk.' The SAG Award winner was joined by his neurologist Dr. Merit Cudkowicz, who admitted: 'It's a hard diagnosis to hear, but I want [patients] to hear that there's hope. I never want anyone to hear that there's nothing to do because there's a lot to do.' 'That's what I got from Merit when I met her. There was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with,' Eric noted, adding prior doctors were just 'there to monitor my decline and that's not very helpful.' There are currently 5K people diagnosed with ALS annually, according to the CDC. 'But those numbers are going up moderately fast,' the Chief of Neurology at Mass General warned. 'It's really predicted by, like, 2040 [that] the numbers of people with ALS in the world will be increased by about 40%.' Dr. Cudkowicz listed off some of the ALS risk factors including plastics, bacteria in lakes, head trauma in sports, pesticides, military service, and 'there's many more we don't know about.' 'There's people all over the world working on this,' the Harvard Medical School professor encouraged. 'Between artificial intelligence and other imaging technology - to really be able to to subtype people - that's what gets me excited. That's all coming in the next, I think, one to two years, if not faster.' Back in 2014, the viral ice-bucket challenge raised $200M for ALS research 'in the US alone and it was spent quickly.' 'I'm very hopeful, yeah, I don't think this is the end of my story. I'm pretty resilient,' Eric beamed. 'I just don't feel, like in my heart, [that] this is the end of me.' Dane first experienced weakness in his right hand one year ago, but he 'thought maybe I'd been texting too much or my hand was fatigued' until a hand specialist eventually referred him to a neurologist. 'I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help,' Dane stressed. 'I'll assume the risk' 'That's what I got from Merit when I met her. There was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with,' Eric noted, adding prior doctors were just 'there to monitor my decline and that's not very helpful' There are currently 5K people diagnosed with ALS annually, 'but those numbers are going up moderately fast,' the Chief of Neurology at Mass General warned 'I have one functioning arm. My left side is functioning. My right side, [which is my dominant side], has completely stopped working,' the San Francisco-born silver fox revealed Monday. '[My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months and I won't have my left hand either. Sobering. I'm worried about my legs.' Luckily, Eric has the love and support of his wife Rebecca Gayheart, who dismissed her divorce petition in March following seven years of estrangement, as well as their 15-year-old daughter Billie and 13-year-old daughter Georgia. 'I talk to her every day,' Dane emotionally said of the 53-year-old Jawbreaker alum. 'We have managed to become better friends and better parents. And she is probably my biggest champion and my most stalwart supporter. And I lean on her.' On average, ALS patients live two to five years following their first symptoms, but FDA-approved medications and physical/speech therapies might slow down the progression of the disorder. Audiences can next catch the Bad Boys: Ride or Die action star as Special Agent Nathan Blythe in Derek Haas' new 13-episode crime drama Countdown, which premieres June 25 on Amazon Prime Video. On April 14, Eric began reprising his role as the closeted real estate agent Cal Jacobs in the third season of HBO hit show Euphoria produced by and starring Zendaya as Ruby 'Rue' Bennett. Sam Levinson's drug-fueled drama will welcome newcomers Sharon Stone, Rosalía, Marshawn Lynch, and Kadeem Hardison in season three. But Dane got his big break portraying plastic surgeon Mark 'McSteamy' Sloan from 2006–2012 on the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Father of woman shot outside pub ‘spreads message of hope' with documentary
The father of a woman who was shot outside a pub on Christmas Eve is aiming to spread a message of hope with a documentary following his walk across the country in the aftermath of her death. Just days after Elle Edwards, 26, was killed in the shooting outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, on December 24 2022, her grieving father Tim got in touch with Liverpool actor John May, who was preparing to walk from Lands End to John O'Groats as part of a campaign to end gun and knife crime. Mr Edwards, 53, joined him for the walk at Worcester, initially just to 'get out of town', but ended up accompanying him all the way to the top of Scotland, later travelling down south to complete the first leg of the walk. Two years on from their challenge, documentary The Two Of Us is to be screened at the Raindance Film Festival, which starts in London on Wednesday, and the friends say it will tell a story of 'brotherhood', grief and strength. Mr Edwards said: 'You'll see that when times get really tough, as long you keep going and you keep having that little bit of hope and a bit of strength behind you, and the willingness to carry on and never give up, then you will come out alright the other side.' He took on the walk before the trial of gunman Connor Chapman, who was targeting rivals in a gang feud when he opened fire outside the pub, and was sentenced to a minimum of 48 years after being found guilty of Ms Edwards' murder. Mr Edwards said walking with Mr May helped him to build a foundation for his future. 'I've been through the worst hell you can imagine, there's not a lot else that could really turn me,' he said. 'I can cope with the day-to-day now through those experiences of walking with John and walking through the country and being alone and having therapy and talking about your feelings.' Mr May, 43, who produced the feature-length documentary, said he hoped people would be inspired. The actor, soon to star as Wayne Rooney in a production at Liverpool's Royal Court, said: 'The documentary is not really about the walk, it's more about friendship and about men's mental health and grief and how we leaned on each other and perked each other up throughout the walk. 'It's about brotherhood more than anything I'd say.' The film, put together from vlogs filmed by the pair at the time and interviews once they had returned, shows the highs and lows of the journey – which at one point saw them separating for 10 days after a falling out. Mr Edwards said: 'I thought it would be wrong for us to not finish this together so we sorted it out and overcame that, our own personal battles against each other. 'I think you need to have that clash, that explosion has to happen so you can then work it out and come back together again. That's the testimony of a true friendship I think. ' Throughout the walk, Mr Edwards said he felt there were signs from his daughter – including a white dove which followed him as he walked around Ripon Cathedral one morning. Mr Edwards said: 'You grab on to different signs that you hope is Elle watching over you. 'It was things like, there were always doves would randomly turn up or I'd be feeling a bit low and I'd be like 'give us a sign Elle will you, give me something to pick me up' and there'd always something random would appear. ' Mr May added: 'Elle's presence is definitely felt. There's things that happened along the way when he was at a low point and you can see it spurred him on.' Mr Edwards said his daughter, a beautician, would be 'laughing her head off' to see what he had been doing. He said: 'She'd be thinking 'my dad is absolutely mental, what are you doing?' 'She'd be proud I think, she'd love the friendship me and John have got and I think she'll be looking down on us going 'well done Dad I'm proud of you'.' The film, nominated for best documentary feature and best UK cinematography awards at the Raindance festival, is accompanied by music from composer Patrick Bennett, 20, who has created Elle's Theme, which plays throughout. Director Owen Ward said: 'If you're coming in for a true crime documentary, go see something else because that's not what it is. It's about how victims of these horrible crimes carry on in the aftermath. 'It's giving that sense of hope, of inspiration. If Tim can get through this horrible circumstance, you can get through anything. That's ultimately what it is, it's a film about hope.' For Mr Edwards, the documentary is part of his aim to create a positive legacy for his daughter. He said: 'It was always about keeping Elle's name alive. So whenever Elle's name was mentioned, it would be mentioned in a positive way and not about what happened to her. That was the goal and still is, it will always be the goal.'
