Author: BBC

Paddington is one of London’s most famous bears. His creator Michael Bond lived not far from Paddington station which was the inspiration for the name of his character. The books have sold more than 35 million copies worldwide, and the third film in the franchise Paddington in Peru, will be out later this year. Fans do not need to wait that long for a furry bear fix, there is a new attraction in County Hall in central London: The Paddington Bear Experience. Karen Jankel, the daughter of the author, showed BBC London around.Video journalist Claudia Redmond Source link

36 minutes agoBy David Gritten, BBC NewsEPAThere has been fierce fighting between Palestinian armed groups and Israeli forces in Gaza City’s Shejaiya districtIsrael’s military says Palestinian armed groups in Gaza have launched about 20 rockets towards Israeli border communities – the heaviest such attack in months.A number of the projectiles were intercepted and others landed inside southern Israel, but no injuries were reported. The military said it responded with artillery fire.Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) said it launched the barrage in response to Israeli “crimes”.It comes as Israel issued a fresh evacuation order for parts of the Khan Younis area in southern Gaza.…

8 hours agoBy Yasmin Rufo, Culture reporter Getty ImagesUsher also won the award for best R&B and hip-hop artistUsher delivered an emotional speech as he accepted a lifetime achievement prize at the BET Awards on Sunday.The singer-songwriter told the audience as he accepted the award that “getting here has definitely not been easy, but it has been worth it”.The 45-year-old is best known for hits including Yeah! and You Make Me Wanna.Usher also picked up the award for best R&B and hip-hop artist at the ceremony.He opened his 15-minute-long acceptance speech by saying: “This life achievement award, I don’t know, man, is…

26 minutes agoBy Anthony Zurcher, @awzurcher, North America correspondentReutersThe former president’s comments on 6 January 2021, before the Capitol riot, are likely to be deemed official actionsShortly after the Supreme Court issued its decision on his claim of presidential immunity, Donald Trump took to social media to celebrate.“Big win for our constitution and democracy,” he posted on Truth Social. “Proud to be an American!”While Trump did not get the sweeping protections that he and his lawyers had sought, he got more than enough to achieve his immediate objective of delaying another trial until after November’s election.The ruling from the six conservative justices dealt…

1 hour agoBy Shivani Chaudhari & PA Media, BBC News, EssexPA ImagesHolly Willoughby will not be giving live evidence at the trialA security guard accused of a plot to kidnap, rape and murder TV personality Holly Willoughby went to “great lengths to suggest to other people it was not a fantasy”, a trial heard.Alison Morgan KC said in her prosecution closing speech that defendant Gavin Plumb also swore and said “it’s really happening” when an undercover police officer sent him an image of a flight booking.”These, members of the jury, were the defendant’s words when he realised that another person, who he…

27 minutes agoBy Hugo Bachega, BBC Middle East correspondentReutersFighting between Hezbollah and Israel has intensified in recent weeksTwo weeks ago, Hassan Nasrallah, the influential and long-time Hezbollah secretary-general, gave a televised speech from an undisclosed location in Lebanon to commemorate Taleb Abdallah, the group’s most senior official to have been killed in an Israeli strike in the current violence.Mr Nasrallah, who spoke for about an hour, repeated that the Iranian-backed Lebanese militia and political party was not seeking an all-out war with Israel but, if there was one, they would fight “without constraints or rules”.He also said Hezbollah had deployed “only a…

Sir Ian McKellen will not appear on the UK tour of his latest theatre production, after he was injured while performing in London. The veteran actor fell off stage last month during a performance of Player Kings at the Noël Coward theatre in London.In a statement, Sir Ian said he had accepted “with the greatest reluctance” not to take part in the UK tour on medical advice.The actor’s understudy David Semark will take his place as Sir John Falstaff on the national tour, which runs from 3-27 July. “Two weeks after my accident on stage, my injuries improve day by…

One of Kazakhstan’s richest men has denied wrongdoing after organising a party on a superyacht that is suspected of igniting a forest fire with a fireworks display.Daniyar Abulgazin is one of eight Kazakh nationals who were on board the luxury vessel last month, and who are being prosecuted for complicity to arson by the Greek authorities.The businessman rented the yacht Persephoni and was in the area when the blaze burnt through 300 acres on the island of Hydra, south of Athens.Greece is grappling with its first heatwave of 2024, and firefighters have been battling several wildfires every day.Initially, authorities alleged…

Pearl Jam have cancelled more European tour dates due to continuing illness within the band. The rock band had already cancelled a show they had been scheduled to play at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium over the weekend.They have now also cancelled two dates at Waldbühne in Berlin on 2 and 3 July.“Despite everyone’s best efforts, the band has yet to make a full recovery,” the band said in a statement shared on social media. Their next live show is currently scheduled for 6 July in Barcelona. In their statement, the band expressed their disappointment and emphasised the difficulty of the…

Kenya’s President William Ruto says the country will have to borrow more to keep the government running following the rejection of a hugely unpopular finance bill that was going to raise more money in taxes.The president said he would withdraw the bill containing controversial tax hikes last Wednesday after deadly protests which saw parliament set on fire.But on Sunday he said dropping the bill had set the country back two years, as he explained the difficulty of being unable to raise extra taxes while facing a huge debt burden.He said this meant Kenya would have to borrow one trillion shillings…