Chester Zoo has announced it is celebrating the surprise birth of a critically-endangered Bornean orangutan this week.
The new baby took keepers by surprise as mum Leia – who was born in 1996 – had been given a pregnancy test just months before, which came back negative.
Orangutans are typically pregnant for 259 days (eight and a half months).
Keepers say the new arrival – which arrived on 18th June and has been “tucked away with Mum ever since” – is “bright and alert” and is suckling well from mum, who is incredibly protective of her new baby.
Bornean orangutans are listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as critically endangered in the wild.
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Threatened by illegal hunting, habitat destruction and the conversion of their forest to palm oil plantations, the species has been pushed to the very brink of existence. Recent estimates suggest as few as 55,000 Bornean orangutans may remain on the island of Borneo in Indonesia and the only place they can be found in the wild.
With this huge decline in the population, the group of orangutans at Chester Zoo are part of a vital international breeding programme, which is working to conserve the species.
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📢🦧 BABY BORNEAN ORANGUTAN! 🦧📢
Seeing new mum Leia cradle her PRECIOUS new baby is exactly what we need right now… 😍😍😍 pic.twitter.com/2Kd0BmgoaS
Chris Yarwood – a primate keeper at the zoo – said: “The pregnancy tests we had carried out on Leia in the months prior to the birth had actually returned negative results [so] it was therefore a wonderful surprise to arrive one morning to see her protectively cradling a beautiful new arrival.
“Leia enjoys spending lots of time alone with her baby and has so far been quite shy about showing it off. She always keeps it really close to her and so we’ve not yet been able to clearly determine what the gender of the infant is. What we are sure of though is that the baby is bright, alert and suckling well from mum and has developed well over the last couple of months.
“This is Leia’s second baby – she’s a great mum and is doing a fab job once again.
“Chester is one of the few zoos in Europe that cares for both Bornean and Sumatran orangutans. These are critically endangered animals and, importantly, we’ve seen babies from both sub-species born in recent times [so] it just goes to show that, despite all of the uncertainty in the world right now, life is carrying on as normal for the orangutans, which is really uplifting to see.”
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Chester Zoo
Chester Zoo is working with conservation partners HUTAN in a bid to protect wild orangutans in Borneo.
Conservationists have been carrying out research in the Kinabatangan – home to one of the largest populations of orangutans in the Sabah region of the island – to gain a better understanding of how orangutans are adapting to an increase in oil palm plantations and the new landscapes which they have created.
A team of zoo experts has also helped to create special ‘orangutan bridges’, which are designed to connect pockets of fragmented forest and enable orangutans to safely travel between different areas.
Elsewhere, the zoo is working on environmental education programmes, which teach communities surrounding the forests about how they can help save the species and has also supported local NGO – the Borneo Nature Foundation – in tackling forest fires to help protect the Bornean orangutans’ habitat.
Dr Nick Davis – the zoo’s Deputy Curator of Mammals – said: “Bornean orangutans are the largest arboreal mammals in the world and how fast their numbers are plummeting is frightening.
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“They are victims of illegal hunting and habitat loss and are highly threatened by the unsustainable oil palm industry, which is having a devastating effect on the forests where they live. These magnificent animals are being pushed to the very edge of existence and it really could be the case that we soon lose them forever.
“It’s absolutely vital therefore that there’s a sustainable population of Bornean orangutans in the world’s progressive zoos [and] every addition to the European endangered species breeding programme is so, so important.”
Chester Zoo
He continued: “There’s still a huge need to tackle the excessive deforestation in Borneo and show people everywhere that they can make a difference to the long-term survival of orangutans.
“We really hope that Leia’s new baby helps to further highlight how simple everyday choices, like choosing products which contain only sustainably sourced palm oil, can have a massive impact on the future of these remarkable animals.”
Chester Zoo is campaigning here in the UK against the use of unsustainable palm oil in everyday household and food items and is working with national governmental organisations and industries using palm oil to adopt Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) practices.
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It is also raising awareness of the devastating effects unsustainable palm oil has on wildlife.
Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury announce unique name of new baby boy
Emily Sergeant
Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury have welcomed their second child, the couple has announced.
The former Love Island stars already share daughter Bambi, who turned three earlier this year.
Molly-Mae, who met boxer Tommy on the hit ITV reality show in 2019, announced that she was pregnant again in February.
In a sweet post confirming the birth of their second child shared to social media earlier this week, Molly wrote: “And then there were 4” – but at that time, the couple chose to share no further details on the new arrival’s gender or a name, leaving their millions of fans who have been anticipating the birth on the edge of their seats.
Now, deciding to share the news during the Misfits Boxing match last night, where Tommy defeated Eddie Hall, it has been confirmed that their second child is a little boy, who they have chosen to name Midas.
Fans were expecting the name to be a little more unusual than your typical ‘top 10’ baby name, given the fact that their first daughter is called Bambi – a name which, very much, divided public opinion when it was announced at the time – but Molly had already conceded in her earlier YouTube vlogs that the second child’s name wasn’t as ‘crazy’ as the name Bambi.
She also expressed worries that people would spell and pronounce the name incorrectly, but believed that those who already knew of the name wouldn’t have any trouble with it.
The name Midas is comes from Greek mythology, and is best recognised through the story of King Midas – whose touch turned everything to gold.
Manchester City Council green-light new venue at Medlock Square, with Mamma Mia! The Party to open the immersive space
Danny Jones
The smash-hit ‘Mamma Mia: The Party’ is set to land in Manchester next year as the maiden event of another brand-new space set to open as part of the upcoming Medlock Square development.
Etihad Campus has seen a lot of moving pieces over the past few years, be it the building of Co-op Live, the ongoing expansion of Man City’s home ground, the soon-to-launch hotel attached to the stadium and now Medlock.
But those in control of the land are content with stopping there; this looks to be just the start of a whole new evolution for the East Manchester area, with an as yet untitled new immersive arts, experience and events venue also set to join the new slate of projects.
You see another glimpse of the purpose-built mini arena, of sorts, down below.
With plans having now been approved by the City Council, the ‘immersive’ space will be situated between the Etihad, Co-op Live and Medlock Square itself, holding up to 600 guests per performance.
Currently set to open in late 2027, following the rest of the square’s launch window being fully rolled out, we still don’t know the name of this next addition, but the structure itself will dovetail with the surrounding buildings and areas as part of seasonal activations, live shows and sports screenings, as well as pop-ups, brand collaborations and more.
Looping back, the interactive, multimedia extravaganza that is ‘Mamma Mia! The Party’ will finally be making its Manc debut as part of the 10th anniversary of the all-singing, all-dancing and even all-dining in-demand production.
As per an official press release from the Medlock Square media team, the show will combine “live music, theatre, food and storytelling” and “offer visitors an unforgettable night out.”
The original UK production at The O2 in London has now surpassed more than 1,500 performances, with a total of 700k guests attending these shows in 110 countries across the globe. Safe to say it’s rather popular.
As for Medlock Square and the surrounding Etihad Campus, Manchester City supporters have also been given another look at the soon-to-open, immersive hotel tie-in experience.
With a skywalk, rooftop bar, a new MCFC shop and various other bits set to spill out onto Medlock Square, it all feels like a period of wholesale changes over in the blue half of the city – especially with the football club bidding farewell to their manager Pep Guardiola after more than a decade.
Following the new and improved North Stand being named after him in the first of many tributes, the City Football Group (CFG) are also set to commission a statue in his honour over the coming months.
Meanwhile, Medlock Square is also due to open later this year, although an official completion date has not been confirmed.
You can stay up to date with all the latest on Mamma Mia! The Part’s Manchester shows right HERE.
Not forgetting a brand-new women’s football facility, too, there is so much stuff going on over at the Etihad that it can be hard to keep track, but here’s the latest look at some of the rooms set to feature in the hotel of the same name.
Emily Sergeant -
6th October 2020 
