It wasn’t all bad

The British may be known for their reserve, but they are unusually friendly to hitchhikers. Juan Villarino, who has thumbed lifts in 90 countries, covering 100,000 miles, has recorded his average wait, and says that in Britain it is just 18 minutes, the third shortest in Europe after Romania and the Netherlands. Known as the “King of the Ride”, the 40-yearold Argentinian began hitching in Belfast in 2005, and has been leading a vagabond life ever since, living on about $5 a day.

Thanks to a massive, volunteer-led clear-up effort, hatchlings from a vulnerable turtle species have been born on Mumbai’s Versova beach for the first time in 20 years. Afroz Shah, a lawyer, launched a programme in 2015 to remove 5,000 tonnes of litter that was lying in piles up to five feet deep from the two-mile stretch of coast. The UN called it “the world’s largest beach clean-up project”, and now olive ridley turtles have returned to nest on the beach. At least 80 hatchlings have so far successfully made their way to the Arabian Sea, in what Shah called a “historic moment” for Mumbai.

A magnificent Grade I listed church in Manchester that was condemned as unsafe last July was able to reopen its doors to worshippers on Easter Sunday, after a story in The Sunday Times prompted a flood of donations and offers of skilled help. St Augustine’s in Pendlebury is known as the “Miners’ Cathedral”, and was drawn and painted by L.S. Lowry. “I’ve been praying for help and it has worked,” said Father Michael Fish, whose congregation has had to worship in his dining room since the church closed.