Stoke & Staffordshire

Local elections 2026
Local elections 2026

Reform gains control of Newcastle-under-Lyme in historic night for party

The party's Richard Tice says voters have turned out to "repaint the red wall, the turquoise wall".
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  1. A sleek yellow JCB vehicle is displayed on a stage indoors, with large screens and lighting overhead.

  2. Zetterstrom & Johansson in Sweden's World Cup squad

    Split graphic showing goalkeepers Jacob Widell Zetterstrom from Derby County on the left and Stoke City's Viktor Johansson on the rightShutterstock/Getty Images

    Derby County goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom and Stoke City's keeper Viktor Johansson have been named in the Sweden squad for the World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

    The pair have been included along with current number one Kristoffer Nordfeldt in Graham Potter's squad for the tournament which gets under way in 11 June.

    Zetterstrom, who has won two caps, played 32 times for the Rams as the club finished eighth, narrowly missing out on a place in the Championship play-offs this season.

    Twelve-cap Johansson, who signed a new four-year contract on 1 May, has spent most of 2026 recovering from shoulder surgery but made his return in Stoke's final game of the season against Bristol City.

    Sweden secured their World Cup place by beating Ukraine and Poland in the play-offs and will open their campaign against Mexico in Monterrey on Monday, 15 June.

    Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres and Liverpool forward Alexander Isak are also included, as are Leeds' Gabriel Gudmundsson, Aston Villa defender Victor Lindelof, Brighton's Yasin Ayari, Tottenham Hotspur's Lucas Bergvall and Newcastle United winger Anthony Elanga.

  3. A stack of black ballot boxes marked “Tamworth Borough Council” and “Ballot Box” inside a large indoor hall with a green floor.

  4. A woman with wavy brown hair which is tied up. She is wearing glasses and a fluffy beige jacket. She appears to be standing in a pub

  5. A teenage boy with short blonde hair is wearing a spiderman costume and standing next to a giant yellow cartoon flower

  6. Mia is standing next Atwal holding a certificate and smiling. She has long, black hair and has a brown cardigan on over a black top. Atwal is wearing a blue hoodie and is smiling at the camera. They stand in front of a maroon curtain.

  7. Stock photo of family washing hands in the kitchen sink

  8. A women with short brown hair, glasses and a yellow and white patterned shirt. She is looking at the camera smiling.

  9. A WMR Class 730 train can be seen on tracks. It has several carriages with orange and maroon livery and black front end.

  10. A man is cutting a blue ribbon with a line of people around him. Behind him is the wall of a building and a white sign which can be partly read and says "Stoke on Trent NHS Community Diagnostic".

  11. A custody image of Ivan Jennings, a man with short brown hair in a dark coloured outfit with a purple collar visible

  12. General view of Hillcrest Street in Hanley. An empty street with an empty car park on the right and a dilapidated blue building with graffiti on. On the left parked on the side of the road there is a silver taxi

  13. The image shows the exterior of a modern Marks & Spencer (M&S) store. A large illuminated “M&S” sign is prominently mounted on the building facade, with the ampersand in green and the letters in white. The building features glass panels, and above the sign there are large poster-style images of models displayed inside, visible through the windows. Below the sign, reflective metallic cladding runs along the front of the store entrance.

  14. The image shows the aftermath of a road incident on a dual carriageway. In the mid-ground, a large blue lorry is lying on its side across the edge of the road, partially resting against a metal crash barrier. Several recovery vehicles, including a red heavy-duty tow truck and another lorry marked “J.P.W Commercials Ltd,” are positioned nearby, with workers in high-visibility clothing gathered around the overturned vehicle.

  15. A woman with light blonde hair and a white and black striped top smiles as she sits on a yellow chair in a football stand.

  16. A bronze bust of a man's head with short hair in front of a brick wall

  17. A couple hold up a cheque for £333,333 with their fists in the air. Nancy is wearing a light blue cardigan with white flowers across it. Colin is wearing a cream coloured cardigan with a maroon pattern on the upper section.

  18. A woman wearing a black and white patterned top and a light blue suit jacket is sitting on a red sofa. She is looking to the left of the shot.

  19. The stork has a long, red beak and a curvy neck and white body in this close-up image.

  20. A multi-coloured hot air balloon is seen in a blue sky over some tree tops

  21. A wooden structure has been turned completely black after a fire. There us debris out in front of the structure, which appear to be charred panelling. The structure now has now roof with just three or four thin beams drooping across the empty void in the middle.

  22. Four wrestlers inside a ring. One with his back to us is lifting another in the air around the throat and is about to slam him down. Another man is on the right with both hands raised in the air. A fourth man is slumped over the ropes on the far side.

  23. A small bungalow scorched black by fire. It's roof has collapsed and there is debris around the property.

  24. A man wearing a light blue and white rosette is looking at a man with his back to the camera. Another man on the right is smiling.