Just for fun

Gaming, gardening & golf – this week's MSE Forum highlights

Forum Executive

19 June 2026

Whether you're deciding where to live, taking up a new hobby or planning a getaway, the MSE Forum has plenty of wisdom for making the most of your cash. Let's take a look at some of the week's biggest talking points.

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A few of this week's top threads

These are some of the Forum discussions that caught our eye this week:

Money Moral Dilemma

Every week, the Money Tips email features a real-life Money Moral Dilemma (MMD for short). They're intended to encourage debate and, as such, they're usually among the most discussed threads each week.

My ex owes me £4,000 I paid in mortgage fees - how do I get it back?

My partner and I recently split. We had a five-year fixed-rate mortgage, and he wanted to transfer it to his new house. I agreed so we wouldn't have to pay an £8,000 early repayment charge. But he hadn't completed on his new place when we sold our house, so we each paid £4,000 towards the charge. I've since discovered that when his new house sale goes through, the £8,000 will be refunded directly to him. I'll get nothing, as my name's not on his new mortgage. What should I do?

See what our MSE Forumites had to say and add your own thoughts on the Money Moral Dilemma discussion thread. Do please stick to the MSE Forum rules: keep it kind and keep it clean. Remember, there's a real person behind every dilemma.

Photo of the week

A year ago Sapindus posted on our Gardening board with pictures of their new garden, and promised to keep the community updated on progress. This week they came back with a new set of photos of their "little piece of tamed wilderness".

As they explain: "The pond is the heart of the garden. I've realised that logs and branches look more natural and create little shady pathways into the pond if you put them jutting out instead of round the edge.

"The water is full of different sorts of beetles, water boatmen and pond skaters, and I've seen red damselfly, blue damselfly, broad bodied chaser and a 'big' dragonfly. It's better than television, I just come out here several times a day and sit on the bridge and watch what's going on."

Please note: We love seeing your photos in the MSE Forum, but if you're uploading one, make sure it doesn't include any personally-identifiable information such as your face or address.

Latest comping wins

We've seen some great competition successes over the past couple of weeks. AC55 won tickets to the Download Festival and shared this report of their experience: "We had a great time! Rock & Metal isn't usually my genre of music however I knew a fair few of the bands performing, I left with a number of different new tunes to add to my playlist and an appreciation of the musical talent in Rock and Metal. It was pretty cool seeing the headliners too, Limp Bizkit, Guns n Roses and Linkin Park (with their new female lead vocalist - who was awesome)."

Meanwhile debwh142 is off to Gran Canaria thanks to a competition they discovered via the MSE Forum. ¡Buen viaje!

Take a look at the Competitions Time board to see what prizes are up for grabs this week.

Your two cents

One of our volunteer Forum Ambassadors – Haribobo19 – has started a new thread on the Gaming MoneySaving board to keep track of free-to-keep PC games. Here's what it's all about: "This thread will be updated whenever we spot new freebies drop on platforms like Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, Legacy Games and more. If you spot a free game before I do, please do post it here!"

If you're not a member yet, it's easy to register for the MSE Forum.