A Paediatric Doctor from Sale has written a children’s book after being diagnosed with a severe form of brain tumour and it’s inspired by his own son.
Dad-of-one Aria Nikjooy was diagnosed with a Grade 4 Cerebellar Medulloblastoma in November 2018.
He started suffering from crippling headaches – which he initially put down to tiredness and stress – and went through brain surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
The tumour was kept at bay until March 2020, but it sadly came back and he underwent a second craniotomy, and then devastatingly, another recurrence came again in July 2020, which resulted in another operation and more cancer treatment.
Aria spent two-and-half months in Salford Royal Hospital recovering from his first brain surgery.
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The operation left him with debilitating after effects – including profuse nausea and vomiting lasting several weeks, which doctors struggled to manage with medication – and he also struggled to speak and had to learn to walk again.
During his hospital stay, he was transferred to The Christie.
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There, he went through six gruelling weeks of radiotherapy as an in-patient, and was finally discharged in January 2019 to begin an intense course of chemotherapy.
Speaking to ITV Granada Reports on his journey, Aria said: “I’d had three out of six cycles of chemo when I started to think enough was enough. Although I seemed to be getting better overall, there are some nasty long-term effects from chemo that I was eager to avoid, like infertility or an increased risk of future cancer.
“My cancer is a rare beast that usually affects children, not adults, therefore, there isn’t much research into what treatments work, and which don’t for me.
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“I eventually decided to stop after four cycles.”
A year after his diagnosis, Aria was able to return to work on the paediatric rheumatology ward at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital on a part-time basis, but only a few months later – in March 2020, just before the UK entered into the first national lockdown – his cancer came back.
Aria was then instructed to self-isolate as he was deemed ‘high-risk’, and underwent a second brain surgery.
He recovered well – returning home after just three nights in hospital – and began another course of radiotherapy, followed by a different type of chemotherapy to try to prevent any tumour regrowth, but the treatment sadly didn’t work and came back once again in July 2020.
Showing true Mancunian fighting spirit though, Aria has once again recovered well from his second ‘lockdown’ brain surgery.
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Now, Aria – who has always had an interest in writing – has written his very own fiction book as part of his recovery and personal therapy to read with his three-year-old son, which covers the difficult topics of illness and cancer in a toddler-friendly way.
The book – which is illustrated by JMZ – is titled Eddie and the Magic Healing Stone.
Aria said: “It tells the story of Eddie the dinosaur, who finds himself in trouble when he goes out for a walk. It’s up to Larry the Lion to find the Magic Healing Stone and save his dad before it’s too late.
“This book is about Eddie and Larry’s special relationship, and gently introduces the concept of sickness [so] I hope little ones will enjoy it,
“Regardless of whether they are dealing with an ill parent or not.
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“It is also just an entertaining story for young children, full of magic and silly characters.”
Eddie and the Magic Healing Stone is available at a number of leading book retailers, and you can also get your hands on it via Amazon here.
Legendary Greater Mancunians James are currently back out on the road and delighting fans as per, especially with their ever-energetic lead singer, Tim Booth, doing his thingboth up on stage and out in the audience too.
But did you know that Bradford-born Booth claims to be the only person who is actually insured to crowd surf in the entire UK?
Well, neither did we until this week.
Playing another pair of massive shows at Halifax’s unbelievable amphitheatre, The Piece Hall, following their two sell-out shows at the amphitheatre back in 2023, the Yorkshireman spoke to Chris Hawkins about how the whole thing came about – and how he earned himself this unique title.
You heard it here 👀
@wearejames 's Tim Booth is the only person in Britain insured to crowd surf 🏄♂️⚡
Joined by bandmate and founding member Jim Glennie for a lengthy interview, Booth was asked just how “high-risk” his infamous crowdsurfing is these days, explaining that although he does “choose [his] moments, there’s little more thinking that goes into it than making sure they don’t have their phones up.
Not because of filming concerns or anything like that, mind you, simply because catching him one-handed wouldn’t be safe enough.
The BBC Radio 6 DJ and presenter then asked if being “insured to crowd surf” is a possibility, at which point he singer-songwriter and actor revealed, “I’m the only person in Britain insured to crowd surf.”
While we’re sure some international acts take out some kind of policy to protect themselves when interacting with the crowd, the liability usually falls on the venue – unless you’re Tim Booth, apparently.
Hence why he can do stuff like without almost any hesitation:
As you can see, the frenetic frontman is still jumping up and down as he always has; even at 65 years old, he’s not afraid to get amongst it and bring their party vibes to their gigs.
He goes on to add that despite a company threatening to remove that particular clause around five years ago, he said that after seeing some of his performance in person, they joked that it was more like the crowd was merely ‘passing him around.’
When we spoke to bassist Jim ourselves earlier this year, he said of his long-time friend: “He’s not as young as he used to be, none of us are, but it’s what he does and he loves it – we’re still amazed by his energy to this day.”
You only have to look at his antics over the years for it to click that interacting with the crowd in this way is something he’s always done, and given his special and seemingly unprecedented protection, we imagine he won’t stop until his body physically won’t let him.
Tim Booth crowd surfing at Athen’s Ejekt Festival back in 2016.…and at Franklin Music Hall in Philadelphia just last year.Christos Gaifyllias/Jim Powers (screenshots via YouTube)
In terms of all-out performers who leave everything up there on the stage, Booth may just be up there with one of the most underrated this country has ever produced.
And we’re not just saying that because he’s a Northerner and Manc adoptee, though the group’s much-loved local status does grant them bonus points.
We certainly enjoyed seeing them at Neighbourhood Weekender this year and, much like Tim himself, we have no intention of sitting down to see a James gig.
In the latest astronomical phenomenon to hit Britain and beyond in recent times, a rare ‘Strawberry Moon’ is set to appear once again in UK skies tonight, and you don’t want to miss it.
Put it this way: if you didn’t catch it last night, you won’t get another chance for nearly two decades.
The event only happens approximately every 18.6 years and will be the lowest it’s appeared above our part of the world that its been since 2006.
But for those who’ve never even heard of this, you might be wondering what exactly a Strawberry Moon is. We’re no experts, but this should just about fill you in.
Strawberry Moon 2025 – explained
Look up tonight for something sweet!
The full Strawberry Moon, named by the Algonquin tribes for the time of year that berries ripen, will take to the night skies on June 10-11. pic.twitter.com/GKr41bGUUV
Put in simplest terms, a Strawberry Moon occurs when the Moon reaches the extremes of its northernmost and southernmost rising and setting points on the horizon, creating a striking standstill impression to the human eye.
The name itself derives from native American culture and, in the case of June’s full Moon, it is dubbed as such not only because of its reddish hue but because it aligns with the start of summer and the beginning of strawberry harvest season.
Colliding with the summer solstice – with said standstill sometimes referred to as a ‘lunicstice’ – the moon will give more of an orange glow rather than pink or red like actual strawberries, but it’s nevertheless a stunning sight. It was already clocked across various parts of the globe since Monday:
— Veronica in the Fens 🧚🏼♀️ My Heart in Nature (@VeronicaJoPo) June 10, 2025
Why so low, moon-face?
As for why it’s going to loom so low over our skies this evening, UK archaeologist and historian Jennifer Wexler explained to BBC’s Sky At Night Magazine: “Over several years, the limits of moonrise and moonset themselves gradually change, until they reach the point where the northernmost and southernmost moonrise and moonset positions are at their maximum distance apart on the horizon…
“Once a major standstill is reached, the distance between northernmost and southernmost moonrise and moonset can be exceptionally far apart, and it stays that way for around two years.”
With all that in mind, this particular full Moon (10-11 June, 2025) will be the lowest full Moon in the sky for nearly two whole decades and won’t occur again until 2043, hence why so many have taken an interest in trying to catch it.
Speaking of…
When and where is best to see the Strawberry Moon in the UK?
Now, we won’t lie to you, Greater Manchester isn’t necessarily the best-placed area to see the upcoming Strawberry Moon in its full glory this Wednesday; the weather forecast has it that the skies are clearest right up at the top of England, as well as south-west Scotland.
However, provided there isn’t too much cloud coverage, it should still be visible across most regions, including the North West.
The moon is expected to rise around 9:30pm tonight, with the best window to see it appearing within the next hour or so following this period. It may not be as bright and bold as it appeared in some parts of the country on Tuesday, but it’ll still be something to behold.
In terms of what else meteorologists have said about the rest of this week, the weather is looking a bit all over the place, we’re afraid.