Author: BBC

ITVMr Bates vs the Post Office aired in January this year The shortlist for the National Television Awards has been revealed, with Baby Reindeer and Mr Bates vs the Post Office up for best new drama.ITV’s Mr Bates vs the Post Office showed the human toll on hundreds of sub-postmasters who were wrongly prosecuted for false accounting and theft due to faulty software.Actor Toby Jones has also received a nod in the drama performance category for his role as Sir Alan Bates, one of more than 550 claimants who have brought legal action against the Post Office.Baby Reindeer, which was…

Getty Images”I didn’t care how expensive it was, I didn’t care if I had any money left – I just wanted to buy it.”Rather than doing school work or spending time with friends, all 14-year-old Ben, whose name we have changed, could think about was trying to get hold of the drug Spice.”I became dependent on it and I felt like a drug addict, I realised I was doing it to feel normal and regulated,” he tells the BBC.He says he first tried a Spice vape while at a friend’s house, believing it contained THC – the main psychoactive ingredient…

AFPWith just three months to go before the 2024 election, thousands are set to gather in Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention.It’s a tradition dating back to the 1830s, when a group of Democratic delegates supporting President Andrew Jackson gathered in Baltimore to nominate him for a second term.This year will look slightly different from others, as the Democratic Party has already officially nominated Vice-President Kamala Harris in a virtual roll call after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.But many of the other DNC traditions – including appearances from celebrities and memorable speeches from party leaders…

A witty pun about a sailing trip has been named the funniest joke at this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe.Comedian Mark Simmons was voted the winner with his gag.The U&Dave’s Funniest Joke of the Fringe is chosen by members of the public from a shortlist drawn up by judges.For more on this year’s funniest joke click here, and to read about Edinburgh Fringe jokes from years gone by go here.

Laws stipulating what proportion of union members have to vote for strike action in order for it to be legal are set to be scrapped.It is understood that the government intends to go ahead with its pledge to repeal the Trade Union Act as part of its wider shake-up of workers’ rights.There are reports the bill will be tabled by mid-October.Senior Tories have been critical of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer over recent pay offers to train drivers and junior doctors, accusing him of being beholden to the unions.Shadow Home Secretary James Cleverly recently accused the government of being “played…

X, formerly known as Twitter, has closed its office in Brazil over a censorship row. The social media platform said a Brazilian Supreme Court judge, Alexandre de Moraes, threatened its legal representative in Brazil with arrest if it did not comply with his “censorship orders”. Brazil’s Supreme Court has not commented. People in Brazil are still able to use X, billionaire Elon Musk’s platform said on Saturday. Mr Moraes had ordered X accounts he has accused of spreading disinformation – many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsanaro – must be blocked while they are under investigation.After X owner…

ContributedRonnie, 11, pictured in January this year before he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive brain tumourA boy is not eligible for specialist drug treatment on the NHS because his rare and incurable tumour is a millimetre too small, his heartbroken parents have said.Ronnie Hood, 11, from Sudbury, Suffolk, was diagnosed with a diffuse midline glioma in March after doctors were unable to remove the entirety of a tumour growing on his spine and brain.After being given just nine months to live, the youngster went through chemotherapy and radiotherapy sessions which helped shrink the tumour, but only very slightly.The…

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to arrive in Israel shortly in his latest effort to push for a ceasefire and hostage-release deal in Gaza. His ninth trip to the region since the war began in October comes days after the US presented a modified proposal aimed at bridging long-standing gaps between the two sides. The US and Israel have expressed optimism about a deal since talks resumed in Doha last week, but Hamas says suggestions of progress are an “illusion”. Differences are said to include whether Israeli troops will be required to withdraw fully from the Gaza…

Getty ImagesAlain Delon was one of French cinema’s biggest stars of the 1960sFrench film legend Alain Delon has died at the age of 88.The actor was a star of the golden era of French cinema, known for his tough-guy persona on screen in hits including The Samurai and Borsalino.”He passed away peacefully in his home in Douchy, surrounded by his three children and his family,” a statement released to AFP news agency said.Delon has been in poor health in recent years and become a virtual recluse. More recently, the breakdown of his family had been making headlines in France. Once…

BBC Sarah Cook was threatened with huge fines and jail over a train ticketIt should have been a quick, simple rail journey.Nearly two years ago, Sarah Cook hopped on a train at Wombwell Station, just outside her pet shop in South Yorkshire, to travel one stop to Barnsley. A mere six minutes. “I tried to buy a ticket on the platform and the machine wouldn’t accept my bank card,” she told the BBC. “I thought: ‘It doesn’t matter, the train is here, I’ll buy one on the train.'”Unfortunately, there was no guard on the train and when Ms Cook reached…