Author: BBC

Ten-year-old Pippa Bartholomew’s dream came true when she was chosen by Taylor Swift to be the lucky recipient of her hat.Pippa and her mum, who live in Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire, had only secured their tickets for the star’s Eras Tour at Murrayfield in Edinburgh on Sunday at 14:00 that day.When she was called over to the stage by Taylor, Pippa had asked her mum: “Is this a dream, is this real?” She also got a hug from the star and told her she loved her. Source link

The Port of Baltimore shipping channel has fully reopened, 11 weeks after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed when it was struck by a cargo ship.The US Army Corps of Engineers said the passageway where the Key Bridge buckled was now “safe for transit”.The 700ft (213m) wide and 50ft (15m) deep channel has been restored to its original operational dimensions.The Dali ship veered into the span on 26 March, cutting off the shipping artery and killing six construction workers.Crews have had to remove 50,000 tonnes of wreckage, the US Army Corps of Engineers said.Some 2,000 salvage responders, including hundreds of…

The unemployment rate has unexpectedly risen to its highest level for two and a half years, official figures show.The rate climbed to 4.4% in February to April this year, up from the previous figure of 4.3% and the highest since September 2021.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) also said there was another increase in the inactivity rate, with 22.3% of working age people deemed not to be actively looking for work.Wage growth remained strong, with regular pay rising at an annual pace of 6%.Earnings are continuing to increase faster than inflation, the rate at which prices rise.”This month’s figures continue…

1 hour agoBy Rosie Mercer, BBC NewsGettyPink resumes her Summer Carnival tour in Cardiff after a break since MarchAmerican superstar Pink will kick off the European leg of her Summer Carnival Tour on Tuesday as she’ll get the party started in front of a sell-out crowd in Wales.Tens of thousands of fans will arrive in Cardiff ahead of Tuesday’s gig, with authorities warning of travel disruption on the M4 motorway, while one railway line out of the city is shut.The singer will return to the UK for the first time in five years for the show at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, with a…

At least 25 people have been killed and others abducted by gunmen in Nigeria’s northwestern Katsina state, authorities say.Dozens of gunmen on motorbikes stormed Yargoje in Kankara late on Sunday, the state commissioner for security affairs, Nasiru Babangida Mu’azu, told BBC Hausa.Attacks by armed gangs – referred to locally as bandits – in north-west and central Nigeria have become almost routine, with authorities seemingly powerless to stop them, despite claims by the government and security forces that they are working to end the widespread insecurity.Residents told the BBC that dozens of gunmen on motorbikes rode into the community, shooting indiscriminately…

Fast-fashion brand PrettyLittleThing (PLT) is facing a customer backlash after becoming the latest retailer to scrap its free returns policy.UK customers must now pay £1.99 to return clothes, with the cost deducted from their refund.Shoppers have posted screenshots on social media showing their PLT apps being deleted from their phones, with many saying they would return fewer items if the brand’s sizing was more consistent.High Street giants such as Zara, Uniqlo and Next already charge for online returns.Analysts have said that retailers are facing cost pressures which mean they need to introduce these charges or put prices up.PLT declined to…

For Doctor Who head writer Russell T Davies, watching the series in the mid-1980s paralleled his feelings about his own sexuality. “Being gay was ‘the love that dare not speak its name’ and Doctor Who shared that feature as well by that time,” he says. “It was a cheap, old, mad science fiction show. You couldn’t say you fancied anyone, and who couldn’t say that you loved Doctor Who.”“Before that, when I was a child, everyone loved Doctor Who,” the gay writer and creator of shows including It’s a Sin and Queer as Folk tells the BBC in an interview…

At least 38 people from the Horn of Africa have died after their boat capsized off the coast of Yemen, local officials say.Survivors have told rescuers that the vessel, which was carrying around 250 people, sank due to strong winds. The search continues for nearly 100 people who are still missing.Local authorities in Rudum, east of Aden, said that those on board were migrants, mostly from Ethiopia, who use Yemen as a transit point to reach Gulf states.Hadi Al-Khurma, the director of Rudum district, told Reuters news agency the boat sank before it reached the shores.”Fishermen and residents managed to…

Barclays bank branches in England and Scotland have been covered in red paint and had windows smashed as part of protests by a pro-Palestine group.Up to 20 buildings have been targeted, according to the group Palestine Action.It said the protests were carried out to “demand the bank divests from Israel’s weapons trade and fossil fuels”.A spokesperson for Barclays said: “While we support the right to protest, we ask that campaigners do so in a way which respects our customers, colleagues and property.”In Bristol, the windows of a city centre branch of Barclays Bank were smashed and red graffiti sprayed over…

2 days agoBy Rosie Mercer, BBC NewsBBCLost Boys and Fairies follows Gabriel (left) and Andy (right) on their journey to adopt a childA same-sex couple who adopted a child five years ago have said the BBC’s new drama Lost Boys and Fairies had them both “in tears”.The three-part series, inspired by real experiences and filmed in Wales, follows the story of a gay couple who adopt a son.It has received widespread acclaim from TV critics and viewers on social media for its frank portrayal of the adoption process from an LGBT perspective.Mike, 45, said watching each episode had brought back “a lot…