I Am A Swede

I wonder if Serena will ever get a better chance to win that elusive #24. With so many dangerous opponents absent (Barty, Halep, Andreescu, Svitolina, Bertens etc) this could be her big opportunity to tie Margaret Court's record.

Any thoughts on what's happening in Belarus? https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53796436 Watching Lukashenko being booed when trying to make a speech takes me back to 1989 and the tumultuous events in eastern Europe. I'm sure those images flashes before Lukashenko's eyes as well..... I wonder if he will be able to hang on to his power? I guess it depends on how Russia reacts. I doubt that Putin is happy with all of this. It endangers his own position.

Simona Halep is the latest star to withdraw from the US Open https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/53806509

Fame - Irene Cara

Come on Donald, let's spell it together: h y p o c r i t e !

Defending champion Bianca Andreescu will not try to defend the US Open title this year. She has withdrawn from the tournament. https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/53770601

^^ I knew that realistically this is pretty much what could be expected, but..... there was this part of me that still held out hope for something better. I mean, we're talking about saying farewell to Annie Sugden here. The very heart and soul of Emmerdale. That is what she is, and will always be, at least to me.

^^ I wish I could say that I'm surprised, but I'm not. The Sugden family have been treated like an afterthought for years. It breaks my heart though to think about the kind of send-off Annie will get compared to the one she deserves..... I wonder if Ryan Hawley (or maybe Karl Davies) will appear as Robert at least? But naturally Elizabeth Estensen won't be able to appear, or Christopher Chittell. And even if they wanted to neither Frederick Pyne nor Jean Rogers will be able to either. (Not that I think that anyone in charge at Emmerdale nowadays would even entertain the idea to include Matt and/or Dolly. It's doubtful they even know how important they were in Annie's life) I will honour Annie in my own way, by watching old episodes on Youtube.

I know! I guess they saw something good in the show, I can't really understand what though.....

The Madrid Open may be cancelled after the resurgence of Covid-19 cases in Spain.... https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/53617598

Emmerdale won the BAFTA TV award in the category "soap and continuing drama" last night. The other contenders were: Casualty, Coronation Street and Holby City. List of all the winners and nominees: https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-52917661

Now he (Trump) wants to postpone the election..... https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53597975

Ashleigh Barty won't play the US Open, or the tournaments leading up to it, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic https://edition.cnn.com/2020/07/29/tennis/ashleigh-barty-wont-play-in-us-open-spt-intl/index.html

I don't think Kate Oates would have been stupid enough to even entertain the idea of having Betty murdered. But then again, if Paula felt it necessary to specifically ask her not to....

He is completely delusional, isn't he? Whenever I see him, which admittedly isn't that often because the mere sight of him usually makes me switch channels or something, I'm amazed at the fact that he actually was elected president. After almost 4 years I can still hardly believe that it's actually true.

Mentioning it would be ok, although I do think that Laurel would be more appropriate for Betty. They were almost like mother and daughter. It's funny, once upon a time I had a dream that when Annie passed away it would be a perfect time to re-introduce some characters from the past and give the show a new lease on life. Now I just want all my favourites from the past to stay as far away from Emmerdale as possible.