Author: BBC

Young performers in Luton have been filmed performing a spoken word piece to be shown on screens at Radio 1’s Big Weekend.Made in collaboration with BBC Three Counties Radio, We’re Proud of Luton features 15 young people from Next Generation Youth Theatre (NGYT) based in the town.Words were written by the group to represent what they thought of the town and they were then filmed performing them around Luton.The finished film will be played on large screens at the main stage and new music stage during the Stockwood Park festival.It will also be played on displays throughout Luton as part…

GettyFamilies of the victims of the Uvalde school shooting are suing the manufacturer of the gun used in the attack, the maker of a video game and Instagram parent company Meta. In two new lawsuits, they claim the companies helped promote dangerous weapons to a generation of “socially vulnerable” young men, including the 18-year old gunman.Nineteen children and two teachers were killed in the attack at Robb Elementary School. Friday marked the second anniversary of the Texas school shooting.The dual lawsuits – filed in Texas and California – are against Activision, the developer of the military video game series “Call…

An artist from Luton who is performing at Radio 1’s Big Weekend has said she is thankful for the places in the town that helped her develop as an artist.Lavz will be on the BBC Introducing stage at Stockwood Park on Saturday.The rapper, from the Marsh Farm area of Luton, praised nearby community centre Marsh House for giving her opportunities early in her career.”I’m grateful for spaces like these that have allowed me to find my feet and be in a supportive environment as well,” she said.BBC Music Introducing is a platform which supports new musicians and helps get their…

Papua New Guinea: Many feared dead in landslideEmergency services are racing to reach villages hit by a massive landslide in Papua New Guinea’s isolated Enga province, where hundreds of people are feared to be dead.A rapid response team made up of medics and military personnel has managed to reach the isolated landslide site, humanitarian agency Care Australia said.Difficult terrain and damage to main roads has complicated their journey to the area, it added in a statement.”The land continues to slide and move, and that makes it dangerous for people to operate,” UN official Serhan Aktoprak told AFP news agency.The landslide…

The day also saw a surprise from Rachel Chinouriri on the BBC Introducing Stage, who was only revealed as Friday’s stage headliner in the morning.She played songs from her recent debut album What A Devastating Turn Of Events.”Me and my friends, we’re quite good at keeping secrets. I’m a Scorpio so quite secretive,” Rachel told Newsbeat.For most of the day, though, she was “hiding in the traffic”, in a journey that ended up taking her four hours.The New Music Stage saw the likes of Diplo and Kenya Grace perform too.But one group who didn’t perform were Girls Don’t Sync, who…

2 hours agoCaitriona Perry,Brandon DrenonKenyan president ‘confident’ in police deploying to HaitiKenya’s President William Ruto says his peacekeeping police force is expected to arrive in Haiti to help quell growing gang violence in about three weeks.In an exclusive interview with the BBC, Mr Ruto confirmed a planning team was already in Haiti and had met local police to secure arrangements before the Kenyan troops are deployed.Mr Ruto’s comments came as he concluded a three-day trip to Washington DC, the first official state visit of any African leader to the US in over 15 years.During his trip, the White House called…

52 minutes agoEmma Saunders,Culture reporter at the Hay FestivalGetty ImagesJodi Picoult has seen several of her books adapted for the big screenBestselling American author Jodi Picoult has said “the loss of free speech is a very, very slippery slope” and that having two of her books banned in school districts in some US states is “not a badge of honour”.Speaking at the Hay Festival, Picoult said she was “very fortunate because I’m at a point in my career where people who are going to be buying my books are not in school libraries”.But the author, who has written 30 books…

10 minutes agoSteven McIntosh,Entertainment reporterEPATaylor Swift’s own life is reflected in the lyrics of her songsTaylor Swift heads to the UK in a fortnight, with cities braced for a jamboree of sparkly outfits, mass singalongs and boyfriends proposing during the final chorus of Love Story. Fans are likely to spend hundreds of pounds on tickets, travel, accommodation and merchandise as they attend her record-breaking Eras tour. But while the public can’t seem to get enough of seeing their favourite pop stars on stadium tours, their favourite actors aren’t drawing them to cinemas in the same way.While casting a big star…

A leading think tank has issued a stark warning about the financial challenges awaiting the next government.The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) says the state of public finances hangs over the election campaign “like a dark cloud”.It warns more tax rises or cuts to public services could lie ahead.It calls for an “open and robust” discussion about how all the parties will tackle these.Both Labour and the Conservatives have committed to get debt falling as a share of national income. All the major parties would likely have a similar form of self-imposed rules in order to keep the government’s cost…

Just nowAseem Chhabra, Cannes,Film writer BBCKapadia’s film follows two women navigating careers and love in MumbaiIndian filmmaker Payal Kapadia’s new film opens with street scenes of contemporary Mumbai. But All We Imagine as Light does not show us the rich, elite Mumbai of Bollywood stars and billionaire industrialists. Instead the filmmaker overlays the street images with voices of real immigrants of Mumbai who are the city’s heartbeat.This is Kapadia’s first narrative feature and it premiered on Thursday night in the main competition section of the Cannes Film Festival. The film received an eight-minute-long standing ovation.It’s a significant achievement for the…