Author: BBC

Tate Modern has announced it has received a major gift from a couple of art collectors in the form of a painting by the US modern artist Joan Mitchell.It was unveiled on Thursday as one of a group of works being donated by the Miami-based philanthropists, Jorge M and Darlene Pérez.The six-metre-long triptych, entitled Iva 1973, can now be viewed for free at the London gallery next to Mark Rothko’s Seagram Murals. Tate director Maria Balshaw said the gift was “one of the most important” it has received, describing the donation as “transformational”.”To place such a significant and valuable work…

BBCBen Black publishes a fake news story every year for April Fools’ DayEvery year, journalist Ben Black publishes a playful fake story on his community news site Cwmbran Life for April Fools’ Day. Since 2018 the 48-year-old has spun yarns including a Hollywood-style sign on a mountain to a nudist cold-water swimming club at a lake.In 2020, Mr Black published a fake story claiming Cwmbran had been recognised by Guinness World Records for having the most roundabouts per square kilometre.Despite altering the wording of his article that afternoon, when he searched for it on 1 April he said he was…

Fergus WalshMedical editorCamilla HorroxGlobal health producerBBCThis is the last picture of Wayne with his wife Stella (right) and children Emily and Ashley (left), taken on the day of his deathIt’s 10am, and in a little over two hours, Wayne Hawkins will be dead.The sun is shining on the bungalow where the 80-year-old lives in San Diego, California with his wife of more than five decades, Stella.I knock on the door and meet his children – Emily, 48, and Ashley, 44 – who have spent the last two weeks at their father’s side.Wayne sits in a reclining chair where he spends…

Getty ImagesStock markets in London, Paris and Berlin fell as trading began on Thursday after US President Donald Trump’s sweeping announcements on tariffs.The UK’s FTSE 100 share index was down 1% while France’s Cac 40 fell 1.7%.Earlier Asian markets had slid, while the price of gold, which is seen as a safer assest in times of turbulance, climbed to a record high.Traders are concerned about the global economic impact of Trump’s tariffs, which they fear could stoke inflation and stall growth.Markets across Asia had fallen sharply after Trump’s announcement, with the Nikkei in Japan closing down nearly 3% and Hong…

Lorna PrichardBBC Wales Culture CorrespondentBBCMichael Sheen will star as Owain Glyndŵr in one of the first productions from his new theatre company, Welsh National TheatreActor Michael Sheen has said he will star as Owain Glyndŵr, the last Welsh-born Prince of Wales, in a new theatre production.Owain & Henry will tell the story of Glyndŵr’s rebellion against English rule in Wales during the 15th Century, in one of the first productions announced by Welsh National Theatre, Sheen’s own theatre company.Glyndŵr became a figurehead for Welsh nationalism and there are statues, monuments, pub and street names across Wales commemorating him.Sheen, who previously…

Liv McMahonTechnology reporterGetty ImagesPeople who spend more time looking at a screen in bed are more likely to report insomnia and sleep loss, a study has found.The research is based on a Norwegian survey of more than 45,000 students.It indicates that each additional hour of screen time was linked to a 63% increase in insomnia risk, and 24 minutes less sleep.However, the researchers said they had only established a correlation between screen use and lower sleep quality and had not demonstrated that the former caused the latter.Experts say putting down your phone before bed, doing something relaxing and establishing a…

Ewan GawneBBC News, ManchesterJessica MathersIn a petition, the British couple have called for a “compassionate” review of their caseA British couple who face being deported from Australia after one of them was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) have said it is not fair the life they built could be taken away “any minute”. Jessica Mathers was told the potential cost to health services of treating her condition meant her 2023 application for permanent residency alongside boyfriend Rob O’Leary was rejected.The 30-year-old, a project manager and DJ from Macclesfield who has lived in Sydney since 2017, said the couple had been…

At the moment, buyers of homes worth less than £250,000 don’t pay any stamp duty. This limit was temporarily doubled from £125,000 in the September 2022 mini-Budget. The threshold for those buying their first property is £425,000 (when buying a home of less than £625,000), which was raised from £300,000 (when buying a home of less than £500,000), as part of the same mini-Budget. The current stamp duty rates are:

Convicted sex offender Gary Glitter has been declared bankrupt after failing to pay more than £500,000 to a woman he abused when she was 12, her lawyers have said.The disgraced pop star, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was convicted in 2015 of abusing the woman between 1975 and 1980, as well as two other young people, and was last year ordered to pay the victim damages of £508,800.The sum included £381,000 in lost earnings and £7,800 for future therapy and treatment.Richard Scorer, head of abuse law at Slater and Gordon, which represents one of the victims, confirmed 80-year-old Gadd…

Elon Musk says that his AI venture xAI has acquired his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.In an X post Friday, Musk said the all-stock transaction values xAI at $80bn (£61.8bn) and X at $33bn.Musk paid $44bn for Twitter in 2022.”xAI and X’s futures are intertwined,” Musk wrote on X Friday. “Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution and talent.”The move may be aimed at protecting investors, who helped him buy purchase X, from losing money.Both X and xAI are privately held and share some major investors. They also share significant resources.”The…