Cartesien, owned by Geri Horner and her husband, former racing driver Christian Horner, will compete in the Edgcote Gold Cup Mixed Open at the Bicester with Whaddon Chase Hunt Point-to-Point on April 12.

The race takes place at Edgcote Racecourse, near Banbury.

Maxine Filby, who trains Cartesien from the Horners’ stables at Marston St Lawrence, said: “We decided to run him at Edgcote as it is so local. They did a really good job with the ground last year.

“We still don’t know what we have got. He could have been flattered at Guilsborough.

“I would be thrilled if he runs a good race and comes back in one piece.”

The six-year-old gelding made a winning start in the UK last month at Guilsborough, ridden by Gina Andrews.

He will line up in the Edgcote Gold Cup Mixed Open, sponsored by Spratt Endicott.

Sixty-two entries have been received for the six-race card, with Clerk of the Course Graham Tawell confirming that watering will be undertaken as needed to ensure good ground.

Other races of interest include the Tattersalls Cheltenham, GB Pointing Bonus, Young Horse Maiden Series Four & Five Year Old Race over 2m 5f, which features a promising line-up of young horses.

Francesca Poste is set to debut Rum N Reggae, with husband Charlie Poste optimistic about the horse’s chances.

Mr Poste said: “His schooling and work has been good.

“He is by an exciting young sire in Crystal Ocean, so it’s fingers crossed.”

Last year’s meeting saw emotional scenes after Glancing Hill’s maiden win, just days after the passing of owner Bridget Gatehouse.

Charlie Poste said: “We lost Bridget, the vet who owned him, a year ago today (Tuesday).

“She hunted him all year with the Bicester, so it would be quite poignant if he runs there and wins that race.”

The event offers a full day of family entertainment, including a hound parade, dog show, falconry, children’s activities, a bouncy castle, and live music after racing from country singer Paul Adams.

Gates open at 11am. Admission is £15 per person in advance via the Edgcote Races website or £20 on the gate, which includes a racecard. Under-15s go free.

Premium parking in the front two rows is available for £50.

Edgcote Racecourse is located approximately six miles northeast of Banbury, near the A361.

Visitors are advised to exit the M40 at junction 11 and follow the A361 to Wardington before turning right at the Hare & Hounds pub for the most direct route.

Percy Pig Fruit Gums are one of M&S’s most iconic sweets.

Over the years, the popular Percy Pig sweet has expanded, with a wide range of variations introduced from Squidgy Snouts to Phizzy Pigtails.

The Percy Pig range now even includes ice creams, cookies, and juices.

M&S confirms axing of Percy Pig product

But M&S has confirmed it is discontinuing its Percy Pig Phizzy Fruit Juice Drinks.

The Percy Pig drink is made with apple and grape juice mixed with fizzy spring water.

One shopper took to X (formerly Twitter) recently, asking why they could no longer find the juice drinks in-store.

They posted: “Hi @marksandspencer is there a reason why I can’t find the fizzy Percy pig juice anywhere! I’m in turmoil over this.”

To which an M&S spokesperson replied: “Hey Jordi! I’ve checked and it’s not showing in stock anywhere. Seems we might be phasing it out, sorry about this.”

Hey Jordi! I’ve checked and it’s not showing in stock anywhere 😭 Seems we might be phasing it out, sorry about this…. 😔 – Charley

— M&S (@marksandspencer) April 7, 2026

Following the reply, the shopper said they had been able to find limited stock in their local M&S store, but was “heartbroken” at the news Percy Pig Phizzy Fruit Juice Drinks were being discontinued.

They wrote: “Not to worry! I’ve found some in my local store and have cleared the shelves as they were reduced to clear.

“I’m heartbroken but have enough to last a few months now. Thank you!”

Following the exchange on social media, M&S confirmed the axing of the popular drink, but assured shoppers there was still a wide range of Percy Pig products available.

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An M&S spokesperson, speaking to The Sun, said: “At M&S Food, we are constantly innovating and refreshing our range of products, reacting to trends, and customer feedback.

“We have a great selection of over 30 Percy Pig products in our Foodhalls, including the very popular Percy Pig Grape, Apple and Raspberry Juice Drink, and a number of sweet bags, including customer favourite, the original Percy Pig fruit gums.

“Although our Percy Pig Phizzy Fruit Juice is currently not available, we always listen to customer feedback when reviewing future ranges.”

Were you a fan of Percy Pig Phizzy Fruit Juice Drinks? Let us know in the comments below.

The party leader said the only people receiving such calls were “paid-up members of the party”, and that any claim otherwise was “absolute rot”.

It comes after The Guardian reported that Reform had been ringing members of the public who had signed up for the party’s email updates to ask them to stand as “paper candidates”.

Those who had reportedly been asked to stand included members of other parties and a Guardian journalist.

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Reform UK’s leader Nigel Farage. (Image: Yui Mok / PA)

Mr Farage told the Press Association: “Could you think of anything more ludicrous than going through the phone book and saying, ‘Please would you be a candidate?’ It’s absolute rot.”

He said: “If one of their (The Guardian) reporters is a paid-up member of the party, masquerading as a supporter, when in fact they’re not, that’s why they would have got a phone call.”

Thursday afternoon marks the deadline to submit nominations to stand in the local elections.

Paper candidates are those who stand for election, but are unlikely to win and may not do any active campaigning.

Asked whether paper candidates were fair to voters, Mr Farage told PA: “Do you think the Conservative Party standing in Sunderland expect their candidates to win? Of course, they don’t.

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Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and Siobhan Whyte. (Image: Jacob King / PA)

“Or Labour candidates standing in rural Oxfordshire? Of course not.

“All parties have candidates that are target seats and candidates that are not target seats.

“The real challenge is finding 5,000 candidates, and nominations will close tomorrow afternoon, and we’ll see where all the parties are.

“I would suggest that, actually, you’ll see a lot of the big parties struggling to field full lists.”

Responding to YouGov polling from April 6-7 that found 4% of Britons would vote for Restore Britain in a general election, Mr Farage said that YouGov was “utterly discredited”.

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Reform UK’s leader Nigel Farage. (Image: Adam Davy / PA)

“YouGov was the gold standard of polling; it has now completely lost its way,” he said.

On Restore Britain, he said the party was “not standing in these elections”, arguing that they were fielding only a handful of candidates.

He added: “Politics isn’t just about ideas – and by the way, their party’s ideas, officially, are exactly the same as ours – politics is about money, structure, organisation, discipline and all of those things.

“It is much harder to form a brand new political party and have success.

“And you know what, I’m going to say to you, I can’t do it modestly, but I’m pretty much the only person in modern times that has set up new political parties from scratch that have achieved success. It is a very, very difficult thing to do.”