Milton Keynes-born football star Ben Chilwell has received an FA Cup medal as Crystal Palace surprised Manchester City.
Chilwell was an unused substitute for the Eagles, but received a medal as part of the squad that went to Wembley for the contest.
Crystal Palace were victors in the FA Cup final after a 1-0 victory over Manchester City, with the South London club winning the competition for the first time in their history.
Eberechi Eze’s goal was the winner for Oliver Glasner’s side, with goalkeeper Dean Henderson also saving a penalty by Man City’s Omar Marmoush in the first half.
The result sees Chilwell pick up his second winners medal in a major competition, having previously won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021. That occasion also saw his winning team beat Manchester City in the final, with Kai Havertz scoring the only goal of the game in Porto to win Chelsea the game and trophy on that occassion.
Palace’s victory also sees the defender add an FA Cup winner’s medal to his previously achieved runners-up medal, having been part of the Chelsea team that lost the 2021 FA Cup to Leicester City.
On Instagram, Chilwell voiced his delight, saying “Finally got my hands on the FA Cup! What a group”
Chilwell is on loan with Crystal Palace, having joined the Eagles on loan from Chelsea on transfer deadline day at the end of the January transfer window. He has made 10 appearances for the club, including games in three of the rounds of Palace’s route to FA Cup success.
After being born in Milton Keynes, the 28-year-old played for the Woburn Lions junior team as a child, before joining first Rushden & Diamonds and later Leicester at academy level.
He made his first team debut for Leicester City in the 2015-16 season, and moved from Leicester to Chelsea in 2020 for an undisclosed fee. He has also won 14 caps for England’s national team.
MK Dons have confirmed the departures of Nathan Harness, Ellis Harrison and Jack Tucker as part of the publication of their retained list.
The publication of the list at the end of the 2024/25 window confirmed the exits of the trio, who have not been offered new contracts by MK Dons and will leave the club on June 30th when their contracts expire.
Also leaving the club will be Danilo Orsi, with MK Dons choosing not to make his loan from Burton Albion into a full transfer. Fellow loanees Nico Lawrence, Tommi O’Reilly, Travis Patterson and Joe White will also depart Stadium MK upon expiry of their deals.
Academy graduates Joel Anker, Ronnie Sandford, Charlie Stirland and Albert Wood are also all set to leave MK Dons, as are scholars Jesse Bedford, Joshua Clark-Anderson, Isaac Olaleye and Corvell Pickering.
As for players that are staying, MK Dons confirmed they have triggered contract extensions for Craig MacGillivray, Phoenix Scholtz and Seb Stacey, all of whom will stay contracted with the club for the 2025/26 season.
Jonathan Leko and Connal Trueman are in discussions over potential contract extensions to stay with MK Dons.
Daniel Crowley, Alex Gilbey, Callum Hendry, Scott Hogan, Liam Kelly, Connor Lemonheigh-Evans, Laurence Maguire, Aaron Nemane, Luke Offord, Jack Sanders, Sam Sherring, Nathan Thompson, Kane Thompson-Sommers, Joe Tomlinson, Callum Tripp, Jay Williams and Charlie Waller have full contracts to stay with MK Dons into the 2025-26 season.
Youngsters Michael Brammeld, Marcel Guzynski, Keon Lewis-Burgess, Chase Medwynter, Kobe Sinclair-Linton and Simone Troso have been added to the club’s development squad.
The Dons’ Sporting Director Liam Sweeting thanked the players who are leaving the club and confirmed work was underway to sign new players ahead of the upcoming campaign.
He said, “Firstly, I’d like to thank the players who are leaving us for their efforts while at Stadium MK. This includes the players we’ve had with us on loan this season, who have all contributed to the group. For our young players, this is never an easy time, and our excellent academy staff will ensure they are supported with the next step of their journey.
“We’re really pleased to welcome our new young pros into the development group, where they will be challenged and pushed to prepare for further opportunities, whether that will be making strides towards the First Team or going out on loan for further experience. We continue to support Phoenix Scholtz and Michael Brammeld with their return from long-term injuries, and the group will be an excellent landing spot to help them get back to full fitness.
“Finally, I’m pleased to see a core of players returning next season, and work has already begun to improve the squad further. As a club, we’ll be doing all we can to provide Paul Warne and his staff with the most competitive squad possible for 25/26.”
Cllr James Lancaster has become the youngest ever Mayor of Milton Keynes.
The 31-year-old was officially appointed at the city council’s annual meeting on 14 May and will serve as First Citizen for 2025-26. He succeeds Marie Bradburn, who had been the city’s Mayor in 2024-25.
Mayor Lancaster moved to Milton Keynes at 22, seeking a fresh start in a city that has given him and many others the chance to thrive. His family ties to the city run deep, with relatives living in Bletchley for more than 45 years.
Elected to represent Tattenhoe as a councillor in 2019, Mayor Lancaster has served as Vice-Chair of the Licensing Committee and also served on the Planning Committee as well on Shenley Brook End and Tattenhoe Parish Council.
Mayor Lancaster is a Labour party councillor, having defected from the Conservatives.
A passionate advocate for sport, leisure and cultural services, Mayor Lancaster is focusing his term on encouraging everyone in the city to get involved in physical activity. These issues are close to his heart and the themes reflect the memory of his late father, a leisure and cultural services manager.
Mayor Lancaster said, “It’s a great honour to serve as Mayor of Milton Keynes, something I know that would have made my dad incredibly proud. As a keen sportsman, my term will focus on encouraging collaboration between communities and leisure services to ensure everyone has the same opportunities. I’m really excited to get started and meet all the wonderful communities across this great city.”
Police are releasing an image of an individual officers believe may have vital information about an attempted robbery at a cash machine outside a shop in Milton Keynes.
The incident around 7.45pm on Saturday (10/5) at the Tesco Express on Dulverton Drive, Furzton.
The victim was attempting to withdraw cash from an ATM at the Tesco store but when the money was coming out of the machine, the offender barged the victim to the shoulder and attempted to grab the victim’s money from the machine.
The offender was unsuccessful and left in the direction of the overbridge connecting Furzton to Emerson Valley.
As part of their appeal into the incident, Thames Valley Police released an image of an offender they wish to discuss the incident with.
Investigating officer Detective Constable Grace Boland, of the Priority Crime Team, based at Milton Keynes police station, said, “I am interested in speaking to the individual pictured as they may hold key information in relation to this attempted robbery.
“If you are the person pictured, or have any information on who he is, please call 101 or make a report on our website, quoting reference number 43250229476.
“Also, if you have any CCTV footage in the area or any dash-cam footage if you were driving in the area around the time, I’d also ask that you check any recordings in case it has captured something that could assist our investigation.
“Alternatively, you can provide information anonymously to the independent charity, Crimestoppers, by calling 0800 555 111 or via its website.”
A new version of The Girl on the Train starring TV presenter Laura Whitmore will be held at Milton Keynes Theatre next month.
Based on Paula Hawkins’ acclaimed psychological thriller, the play will be held at the theatre from Tue 10 – Sat 14 Jun, with tickets available now.
Irish presenter, writer, broadcaster and former Love Island host Laura Whitmore will be in the lead role as Rachel Watson.
Talking about taking up the role, she said, “I read the book when it first came out and I was obsessed by it. I love it when you find a book and all you can think about is that story. You wake up a little bit earlier to read the book and stay up too late to finish it. I am excited to show people my portrayal of Rachel this summer.”
Whitmore has previously worked as a TV presenter for MTV, ITV and BBC, as well as hosted a podcast with her husband and comedian Iain Stirling and written her debut book. Alongside this, she has taken steps as an actor. Her credits include touring in the role of Cleo in Peter James’ Not Dead Enough in 2017, while film/TV acting credits include Queenie, Hulu’s Four Weddings and a Funeral, 4.3.2.1 and Storage 24.
Her first lead in a feature film, ‘A Mother For An Hour’, is out later this year, as well as interactive sci-fi thriller ‘Hello Stranger’ starring Sir Derek Jacobi. In 2022, she made her West End debut as Jenny in 2.22: A Ghost Story and returned home to play Lauren in its limited Dublin run in 2024.
The Girl on the Train is an acclaimed 2015 novel written by British author Hawkins. The story centres on Rachel, a troubled woman who finds herself as a witness and even a suspect in a mystery regarding what happened to the disappearance of a woman whose house overlooks railway tracks that the train she takes to work each day passes.
The novel was previously adapted for a 2016 American movie starring Emily Blunt, Rebecca Ferguson and Justin Theroux. The book was also adapted for a 2021 Indian movie for Netflix that was filmed and set in the UK starring Parineeti Chopra and Avinash Tiwary. The Girl on the Train was also previously adapted as an acclaimed UK tour as a stage show in 2019, with further stage versions having followed outside the UK.
Tickets are now available from the Milton Keynes Theatre website.
