Milton Keynes City Council will host a free event in the city centre with more than a dozen local organisations in support of residents who have dementia and their families and carers.

‘Talking Dementia’ will be held at The Church of Christ the Cornerstone in Central Milton Keynes on Wednesday 26 June, which will work as drop in between 10:00am and 12:00pm.

The event will provide opportunities for local people to speak with professionals. The FREE event will be open to all MK residents plus their friends and family who want to learn more.

Representatives from a wide range of companies, charities and organisations including Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH), Alzheimer’s Society, Age UK, Specialist Memory Service and Carers MK be on hand to answer questions and provide information.

Teams from the City Council will also be in attendance such as the Community Alarm service who provide year-round support for vulnerable adults at risk of a fall or other home emergency.

There is parking close to The Church of Christ the Cornerstone and light refreshments will be available throughout the event for all guests.

In England, it is estimated that around 676,000 people have dementia. To find out more about local support for people living with dementia and their families, including specialist dementia nurses called Admiral Nurses and the Dementia Information and Support Service (DISS), please visit the city council’s dedicated webpage.

MK Dons will take on Bradford City at Stadium MK in the first game of the upcoming 2024/25 League Two season.

The fixture release announcement earlier today (26/06) revealed that Mike Williamson’s side will start the campaign by playing the Bantams at home on Saturday August 10th 2024.

The Dons are seeking to build on last season, when they finished fourth in the League Two table, only to suffer a heavy defeat to Crawley Town in the play-offs.

Opening day opponents Bradford finished 9th in last season’s League Two but their owner has announced he wants to see the team challenge for promotion and a return to League One for the first time since the 2018/19 season.

Bradford are managed by Graham Alexander, making the game the Scot’s first return to Stadium MK since being sacked by MK Dons in October 2023 after less than five months in charge.

The game will also be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, with the new season seeing a new TV broadcast deal signed by the EFL and the broadcaster coming into effect. Every game of the opening weekend of the season in the Championship, League One and League Two will be broadcast by Sky in the UK. But the Dons v Bradford has been confirmed as a feature game to be shown live on the Sky Sports Football channel.

In August, the Dons’ first away game will be at Colchester United on 17th August, before the opening month will see them also face games against a home match against Carlisle and a trip to face Salford City.

At Christmas time, the Dons will take on Notts County at home on Boxing Day, with their last game before Christmas being against Newport County in Wales on 21st December. After the Boxing Day game, there will then be a match against Crewe on 29th December, before the Dons take on National League champions Chesterfield on New Year’s Day in their first game of 2025.

The Easter double header will see MK Dons play Newport at Stadium MK on Good Friday, which is 18th April 2025, before playing Crewe on Easter Monday on 21st April.

The final match of the season will see the Dons play Swindon Town away on 3rd May 2025, with the final home game being against Grimsby Town the week before.

One of the more anticipated games of the season for MK Dons will be resumption of their rivalry with AFC Wimbledon, who are also in League Two next season. The teams will first meet on 14th September 2024 in London, with a return fixture to be played in Milton Keynes on 25th January 2025.

Under terms of a new TV deal agreed between the EFL and Sky Sports to continue broadcasting games, all teams will see at least 20 games a season chosen for live broadcast, with a new Sky Sports+ channel streaming extra games.

Confirmation of what games will be selected and consequently moved for broadcast will be expected in due course.

Midfielder Ethan Robson will join Carlisle United after the expiry of his contract with MK Dons.

The 27-year-old has signed a two-year deal with the Cumbrians, and will join Carlisle from 1st July after leaving MK Dons.

Robson had first joined MK Dons on loan from Blackpool during the 2021/22 season before making a permanent move to Stadium MK after being released by Blackpool in 2022.

In his first stint, Robson formed a partnership with Matt O’Riley before he left for Lancashire, making 23 appearances in all competitions.

In the just-concluded 2023/24 season, Robson made 34 appearances in all competitions, though a large quantity of his appearances after the Dons changed manager in October 2023 were made as a substitute.

His new manager Paul Simpson told Carlisle United’s official website that he was delighted to bring Robson to Brunton Park.

He said, “Ethan is a really good footballer. He’s left-footed so he gives us a little bit more balance in that area.

“We’ve got quite a few players who you’d say were a number six type midfielder who can control the midfield, whereas Ethan is a little bit more forward-thinking. He’s got good legs about him to go and get forward and get in the box.

“He’s got a wand of a left foot for finding that pass. In the past couple of seasons he hasn’t been the one getting the assists for goals, but he’s the one finding the pass that leads to the assist.

“I want him to add more goals to his game, when you’ve got a sweet left foot like he has, I want him to go and test goalkeepers. We’re trying to get competition in all areas, I want it to be a really competitive group, and Ethan will add to that.

“He’s also a really good character and he’s got good experience. I think all of the players we’ve brought in so far have been the same.”

Formula One drivers Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen have pushed back on claims made by a senior figure at Silverstone that Red Bull’s dominance has hurt British Grand Prix ticket sales.

Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle made a claim in an interview with Autosport that Red Bull’s dominance of Formula One since the 2022 regulation change was one of the factors behind slower tickets to the British Grand Prix, which is due to take place at Silverstone next week.

Hamilton and Verstappen duly responded to this theory in interviews over last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, with both suggesting that higher ticket prices at the track are a likely factor.

Although a bumper crowd is still expected to Silverstone, with Autosport estimating an accumulated crowd of over 450,000 people is expected over the 3 days, several areas of the track are still not sold out, as compared to last year’s event, which sold out months in advance.

Pringle’s remarks in his interview with Autosport also said that there was an element of demand for live events cooling after an initial post-covid rebound, he also suggested a 2023 season where Red Bull won 21 out of 22 grand prix and Verstappen won 19 races was a factor in slow sales.

He said, “Historically we’ve always had to promote up until the end, but definitely there was a discernible bounce post-Covid. That wasn’t unique to motorsport or Formula 1. Indeed, it was seen in other sports and entertainment events.

“But if there is a strong likelihood of the same winner, and the jeopardy is taken out of sport, it does take the edge off it. Last year was very repetitive in terms of one team dominated and they set off this season in the same vein.

“Things may be changing now, and I do recognise that we had several years of a British driver dominating the championship, and we didn’t mind that so much as a British promoter! But it’s certainly been a lot harder with Red Bull dominating.

“Also, as a promoter, you have to get your ticket pricing strategy correct. You could make these things go quicker if you reduce price. But we have got expensive bills to pay, not less the promoter fee, so it’s about hitting a strategy and making sure it works, which we’re pretty comfortable with.”

The remarks were duly put to reigning world champion Verstappen in a press conference ahead of last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, and the Dutchman denied that his form should be blamed as a factor.

In remarks reported by Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, Verstappen said, “I don’t think it’s my fault.

“This current Formula 1 season is actually very exciting, lately several teams have been competing for victories.

“If then a promoter cannot fill all the seats and blames someone else, it is better that they first look at themselves what they are doing wrong because in other places, I think they manage to fill the stands quite easily.”

His remarks were echoed by 8-time British Grand Prix winner Hamilton, who is preparing for his final British Grand Prix with Mercedes before joining Ferrari for 2025.

Hamilton praised the British Grand Prix as an event but said that the organisers needed to work on ways to make it more affordable for fans.

Some reports have found that ticket prices to the British Grand Prix have increased significantly in the last few years, with 3 day general admission standing tickets priced from £350 as of today (24/06), and 4 day tickets including an additional concert on the Thursday night crossing the £400 mark. For scale, a 3 day general admission ticket to the 2019 British Grand Prix was priced at £180.

Hamilton said, “I mean, it’s an incredible event. If you take it from a bird’s-eye view, the whole event is… all the space is used up. So many fans come and have a great weekend.

“The only thing I would ever say is that we have to watch ticket prices. I think they’re continuing to rise, and the cost of living nowadays, I think it’s too high. I’m just thinking from the perspective of a fan that would come with a family. It’s hugely expensive, so I think it’s looking into ways where you can make better accessibility for people.”

Last year’s British Grand Prix saw a record attendance for Silverstone, with an accumulated attendance of 480,000 over the three days and race-day crowd of over 150,000 reported by the venue.

The 2024 British Grand Prix is scheduled to take place on Sunday July 7th.