Chijmes' Dough cafe will be bidding its customers farewell after its last day on Aug. 16, 2026.

The cafe, which first opened in 2021, announced the closure via a Jul. 31 Instagram post.

Known for its specialty coffee and brunch menu items, Dough said "it is with heavy hearts to share that our journey at Chijmes will soon come to an end" after five years at its current space.

It stated that its last day of operations would be from 8:30am to 6:30pm on Aug. 16.

'Won't be gone too long'

The post noted, however, that the cafe would not be "gone too long" and asked customers to stay tuned as it shares future plans soon.

"To everyone who has come through our doors, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting us," the post read.

It added: "We're grateful to have been part of your daily routines, a respite away from the hustle, or celebrations with your loved ones. These shared memories and conversations will always remain with us for years to come."

Competition awards

Prior to this, the cafe announced via a Jul. 22 Instagram post that its team had competed in the Singapore National Barista and Brewers' Cup Championships.

Among them, Gabriel Lim emerged as the champion of the Singapore National Barista Championship 2026.

Pua Yi Sin was the first runner-up of the Singapore National Brewers' Cup Championship 2026.

Responding to the cafe's closure notice, netizens expressed their disappointment and said they were anticipating its return.

Two Japanese store workers were killed in an explosion at a mall in Kumamoto, Japan, after being ordered to return to the building post-earthquake.

One of them had been instructed by the company's director to put their sales proceeds into the company's safe, Japanese media reported.

A probe is being conducted into the incident.

Incident

According to media reports, the two female employees from Habita, a general merchandise store on the second floor of Aeon Mall, Kumamoto Prefecture, had initially escaped the building.

They were among the 3,000 customers and 1,500 employees who evacuated the building after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the prefecture on Jul. 28, reported Chosun Daily.

However, one of the women, 22-year-old Otake Kurumi, received instructions from the company to re-enter the building to put the day's sales proceeds into the safe.

She related this to her aunt and cousin, who were also at the scene.

Five minutes after Otake and her co-worker reentered the building, the explosion occurred, killing them both.

Eight others also died and five people sustained minor injuries.

Company apologised

Habita executives attended Otake's wake, where they delivered a document summarising the sequence of events to Otake's family. 

They also bowed in apology.

Otake's mother was seen in tears, saying, "My daughter is not coming back".

A sales manager reflected on the incident, saying, "Looking back, the sales proceeds were not worth a human life".

The company's director was also quoted saying: "This is a matter of profound sorrow, and I offer my deepest apologies to the bereaved family."

A 40-year-old Chinese national was sentenced to two weeks' jail after she fought with her colleague at a Geylang Road massage place.

Charge sheets seen by Mothership stated that Wang Yuanhui threatened the other woman with a knife, which cut the victim when the conflict escalated.

Wang, who also bit the victim's arm, faced one count of violating the Protection from Harassment Act and one count of voluntarily causing hurt.

Argued over washing machine

At about 10:20pm on Feb. 1, Wang went to the back of the store to check the washing machine, Shin Min Daily News reported.

Noting that there were about 17 minutes left in the washing cycle, Wang reportedly put a used towel in the washing machine and left.

Soon after, her 30-year-old colleague Sun (transliterated) went to check the machine and found that it had apparently stopped working.

When Sun angrily questioned who had turned it off, Wang reportedly said she thought the washing cycle had ended.

However, Sun refused to accept her explanation as she believed Wang had interrupted the washing cycle without her permission.

Grabbed fruit knife, bit victim

Shin Min reported that a heated argument took place, during which Wang grabbed a 20cm-long fruit knife and pointed it at Sun.

The conflict escalated as Sun tried to grab the knife.

During the fight, the knife cut a 5cm long wound in Sun's right palm, which reportedly bled profusely.

Charge sheets stated that Wang also bit Sun's right arm, causing her to suffer 5cm bite marks over her right triceps region with skin bruising.

Hospital, arrested

Shin Min reported that other colleagues at the scene then separated the pair and called an ambulance.

Sun was sent to Changi General Hospital for treatment and Wang was arrested later that evening before being charged two days later.

A woman is suing Singapore Airlines (SIA) after she allegedly swallowed a wooden satay stick while consuming her in-flight meal.

Briohny Smyth, 44, was flying business class from Singapore to Los Angeles on Jul. 28, 2024, when the incident happened.

Lodged in throat

According to a legal complaint filed by her lawyer, she was served chicken satay on a wooden skewer, The Independent reported.

A wooden fragment from the skewer was lodged in her throat, it was reported.

This resulted in "immediate pain, choking sensations, coughing, respiratory distress, and physical injury".

3.8cm stick

She managed to cough up the wooden splinter that measured 1.5 inches (3.8cm), her complaint stated.

The process of expelling the foreign object was described as a "very difficult moment" on the flight.

The complaint further alleged that she experienced "persistent throat discomfort, vocal fatigue, raspiness, tightness, and pain with prolonged speaking and singing".

She eventually consulted an otolaryngologist who found scarring and trauma to her vocal cords, the complaint stated.

The complaint also stated that she is seeking damages for past and future medical bills, past and future loss of earnings and earning capacity, emotional distress and more.

Yoga teacher, former child star

Smyth was described as a "professional singer, performer, wellness educator, and public speaker whose livelihood substantially depends upon the integrity and performance of her voice" in her complaint.

Her Instagram account says that she is a yoga teacher and communicates with people as part of her work as an instructor.

She teaches yoga in Los Angeles now, The Independent also reported.

According to Thai media, Smyth was a former child pop star who is recognised in Thailand after she had a platinum album at the age of 13.

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Singaporean YouTuber and content creator JianHao Tan and his wife are among the contestants on South Korean television network ENA's new variety competition, "X The League (XTL)".

What is XTL?

The series premiered on ENA and Netflix Korea on Aug. 2, and is billed as the world's first global live commerce championship.

It sees influencers from nine countries competing in live-selling challenges for a grand prize of US$500,000 (around S$640,657).

Each team's performance on the reality show will be judged based on audience engagement and sales results.

A total of eight teams are taking part in the competition, representing Singapore-Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, China, and the United States.

Tan captains the Singapore-Malaysia team, which also comprises his wife, content creator Debbie Soon, and Malaysian creators Elle Onni and Sonia Chang.

According to an earlier report by The Straits Times, the Singapore-Malaysia team is backed by global creator management and licensing company Gushcloud International, which oversees its live-selling strategy, cross-border creator collaborations and overall competitive execution throughout the tournament.

XTL is hosted by Thai rapper-singer BamBam, who is also a member of the K-Pop boy band Got7, alongside Korean-American singer and actress Tiffany Young from the K-Pop girl group Girls' Generation.

"Most intense things I've ever been through": Tan

Following the show's release, both Tan and Soon took to Instagram to share their experiences.

"When we were first invited to join X The League, the world’s first live sellers competition, I was honestly so nervous and didn’t want to go. But with [Tan's} encouragement (and a little push ), I did it... and I have no regrets," Soon wrote.

She also gave a shout-out to her Malaysian teammates, calling them "the best" and saying they made the journey "so much more meaningful".

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Tan, on the other hand, described the competition as "without a doubt, one of the most intense things [he's] ever been through".

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A total of 4,500 youths, aged 12 to 18, from low-income families will receive a coupon to redeem a bottle of Milo Chocolate Malt at 44 selected Cheers outlets from Jul. 31 to Aug. 31.

Each bottle costs S$2.

Eligible youths are identified by self-help groups, Chinese Development Assistance Council, Eurasian Association, Singapore Indian Development Association, and Yayasan Mendaki.

Cheers is a wholly-owned subsidiary and the convenience store arm of FairPrice, which operates under the FairPrice Group in Singapore.

Helping vulnerable groups

In a press release on Jul. 30, FairPrice Group said the move builds on FairPrice Foundation’s (FPF) commitment to bridge the nutrition gap for vulnerable groups in Singapore.

This initiative addresses the nutritional needs of youths and provides a convenient way to give them extra protein.

It forms part of FairPrice Foundation's ongoing commitment to uplift communities through nutrition and access to daily essentials, the release added.

Jean Khong, general manager of FairPrice Foundation, said: "Through this protein drink distribution, we hope to give youths a healthy energy boost to take on the day.”

Pakkirisamy Inbasri, a secondary one student, said having a healthy breakfast and “a quick protein drink before class” helps her stay “energised and focused during lessons”.

“I’m very grateful for this support to help me keep up with my new routine.” Pakkirisamy added.

Chua Jing Yi, another secondary one student, said CCA training would get “pretty intense”.

“Having Cheers near my place where I can just grab a free protein drink right after is super convenient,” Chua added.

Cheers Breakfast Club returning

Youths can also look forward to the return of the Cheers Breakfast Club, which distributed more than 12,000 breakfast bundles to Primary 6 students ahead of their Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE) in 2024 and 2025.

It will return for its third year in September 2026 to provide breakfast bundles to primary six students ahead of their PSLE.

A 31-year-old Singaporean woman was sentenced to five months’ jail after physically abusing a three-year-old boy.

She pleaded guilty to one charge under the Children and Young Persons Act and was sentenced on Jul. 27, CNA reported.

The incident locations were not disclosed as a gag order was imposed to protect the victim.

The woman's identity will also not be revealed.

Pre-nursery

The boy was a pre-nursery student in the preschool.

He was placed under the care of the woman, who was a teacher.

On Sep. 12, 2025, at about 10:30am, the boy was reportedly sitting on the floor outside his classroom crying.

Another teacher informed the woman of the incident, and she walked out of the classroom.

In charge sheets seen by Mothership, at about 10:36am, the woman proceeded to fling the boy to the ground.

The crying boy then slapped her thigh.

The woman slapped his hand in response.

This commotion reportedly drew the attention of other teachers, and the woman closed the classroom door.

She scolded the boy and also slapped his face twice, causing him to hit his head onto a cupboard beside him.

Intervention

When the school principal approached the classroom, she witnessed the slaps and intervened, and carried the boy out.

The school principal then informed the boy’s mother of the incident.

When the boy’s mother questioned him, he initially denied the woman’s actions.

However, he later said the woman had told him not to tell his parents about it.

The boy's mother proceeded to lodge a police report.

Denial

When interviewed by police, the woman denied the allegations even after being shown surveillance footage of her slapping the boy.

She claimed it was merely a nudge to the side of his head.

The prosecution sought a minimum of eight months’ jail for the woman.

They argued that she violated the trust placed in teachers to care for children.

They further argued that the boy did not move away from the woman even after being physically abused multiple times, and he could only scream and cry.

The prosecution also noted that the woman had compensated the boy's family S$15,000.

For ill-treating a child, the woman could have faced a jail term of up to eight years, a fine of up to S$8,000, or both.

The girlfriend of former "Singapore Idol" contestant and online personality Steven Lim, who goes by the online pseudonym of Lihui, has taken to TikTok to announce their breakup.

She added that "there's no way we will patch back anymore".

In a reel that was about seven-and-a-half minutes long on her personal account, Lihui listed multiple alleged "red flags" in Lim's behaviour to explain why she broke up with him.

She also noted that Lim had put up a reel on their official couple TikTok account, @sarahstevenlove, that supposedly portrayed her as attempting to break up with him over a Chanel bag and called for viewers to hear her side of the story before dismissing her as a "gold digger".

In the video, Lihui made several negative claims about Lim's behaviour, alleging that he was "insecure", "calculative" and "oversharing" about their relationship in a public livestream.

"That is another reason I really cannot stand him," she said.

She also claimed that Lim had criticised her as being "materialistic" for buying a Dior bag, although she had supposedly bought him many gifts herself.

Comments that were made in response to Lihui's reel were largely supportive.

Lim's response

In response to Mothership's queries, Lim shared the links to his reel on their official account, in which he alleged that Lihui had wanted him to pay for "everything", not just bags.

He also shared screenshots of a response from ChatGPT, which said asking for an expensive bag is a red flag and recommended that he not buy it, call out her behaviour and let her walk away from the relationship if necessary.

He also replied that she made him feel insecure for supposedly "teaching" other women how to "flirt" and said he did not want to buy expensive Chanel-brand bags for her.

A man was spotted at Pek Kio market livening up the atmosphere while belting out some jazzy tunes from his saxophone at lunch time on Aug. 2.

According to a Mothership reader who shared videos of the saxophonist, he was seen playing at the market during lunch time, from 12:45pm to 1:45pm.

"He was busking throughout the entire time I was there," the reader added.

Tunes that could be heard being played included a smooth, velvety version of "Golden" from KPop Demon Hunters, much to his amazement.

The reader added that his friend, who lives in the vicinity, said he had seen the saxophone player busking at Pek Kio market for about a year or so.

So if you are looking for a good way to jazz up your lunch on a Sunday, perhaps a visit to Pek Kio market is what you need.

A man was caught on camera swearing at another commuter on the MRT, supposedly for sitting in the priority seat.

Facebook user Kelvin Ngui shared a 27-second clip on Facebook of an older man hurling vulgarities in English and Hokkien, supposedly after another commuter did not give up their priority seat.

According to Ngui, the incident took place on Jul. 28 at around 11:20am.

The man boarded the MRT at Eunos station and allegedly demanded the priority seat in a rude manner, he added.

When the commuter apparently did not give up the seat, the old man swore at the commuter, saying "f*ck you" and appearing to point at the priority seat sticker.

The man then went on to use several vernacular insults, like "n*b*i", "ch**by*" and "k*n n* n* b*" before walking away

Priority seats on Singapore public transport are designated spaces reserved for passengers with special needs, like the older generation, women who are pregnant or people with disabilities.

Commuters are not obligated to give up the seat if they are sitting in the priority seats, but they are encouraged to give up their seat for someone else.

This was pointed out by numerous commenters who criticised the man's behaviour.

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