Author: BBC

Faarea MasudBBC Business reporterGetty ImagesStruggling budget chain Poundland has been sold for £1 and now faces a shake-up which could see up to 100 stores close, the BBC understands.Its owner Polish firm Pepco confirmed it had sold the brand for a “nominal” sum to US investment firm Gordon Brothers.Poundland has 825 UK stores and around 16,000 staff and was struggling to compete with other discount stores, with sales down this January and February.Following the sale a proposed restructure will be put to the High Court in England, Pepco said.It comes after Pepco warned that increased employer National Insurance contributions which…

Disney and Universal are suing artificial intelligence (AI) firm Midjourney over its image generator, which the Hollywood giants allege is a “bottomless pit of plagiarism”.The two studios claim Midjourney’s tool makes “innumerable” copies of characters including Darth Vader from Star Wars, Frozen’s Elsa, and the Minions from Despicable Me.It is part of the entertainment industry’s ongoing love-hate relationship with AI. Many studios want to make use of the technology but are concerned that their creations could be stolen.Midjourney’s image generator makes images from typed requests or prompts.In the lawsuit filed in federal district court in Los Angeles, the studios gave…

Philippa RoxbyHealth reporterMills/Laity family photograph/PA WireMartha Mills died from sepsis in a London hospital in 2021The failings of a doctor responsible for Martha Mills’ care, who died from sepsis, amounted to “gross negligence” and were “particularly grave”, a medical tribunal says.Her death gave rise to Martha’s Rule in hundreds of hospitals in England, making it easier for parents to ask doctors for an urgent second opinion.The tribunal found consultant Prof Richard Thompson failed to appreciate how seriously ill 13-year-old Martha had become in the summer of 2021, following a bike accident.On the crucial afternoon, he did not examine her in…

Evie LakeBBC News, North East and CumbriaBBC/Studio LambertThe final episode of the series airs on Wednesday 11 JuneTwo brothers who competed in the TV series Race Across the World said the experience and associated public recognition still does not feel real.Melvyn and Brian Mole, who are both in their 60s, formed one of five teams who raced more than 14,000km (8,700 miles) across China, Nepal and India to try to win £20,000.Ahead of Wednesday’s final episode, Melvyn, a driving instructor who lives in Middlesbrough, said appearing on the show was “a surreal journey” which did not end with filming.But the…

Lomond BanksFlamingo Land have been seeking to build a holiday resort since 2018The Scottish government has stalled plans for a controversial holiday park at Loch Lomond.Ministers had previously been set to give permission for the development, overturning the national park authority which said it did not comply with environmental and nature conservation policies.Theme park operator Flamingo Land believed it would be given the go-ahead to build a £40m resort called Lomond Banks, featuring a waterpark, monorail, hotel and restaurants.The Scottish government’s Minister for Public Finance, Ivan McKee, has now said he will recall the plans because “the development raises issues…

Imran Rahman-JonesTechnology reporterGetty ImagesThe online message board 4chan is being investigated by the UK communications regulator over failure to comply with recently introduced online safety rules.Ofcom says it has received complaints over potential illegal content on the website, which has not responded to its requests for information.Under the Online Safety Act, online services must assess the risk of UK users encountering illegal content and activity on their platforms, and take steps to protect them from it.Ofcom is also investigating porn provider First Time Videos over its age verification checks, and seven file sharing services over potential child sexual abuse material.4chan…

Women who tracked their menstrual cycle using smartphone apps have been warned about the privacy and safety risks of doing so.A report from the University of Cambridge’s Minderoo Centre said the apps were a “gold mine” for consumer profiling and collecting information.Academics cautioned that in the wrong hands, the data could result in health insurance “discrimination” and risks to job prospects.Professor Gina Neff, executive director at the Minderoo Centre, said: “Women deserve better than to have their menstrual tracking data treated as consumer data, but there is a different possible future.”The apps collect information on everything from exercise, diet and…

Emma SaundersCulture reporterGetty ImagesSinger-songwriter Ed Sheeran has said he identifies culturally as Irish despite being born and raised in England.Brought up in Suffolk, the Galway Girl singer’s dad hails from Belfast.”I class my culture as Irish. I think that’s what I grew up with,” he told The Louis Theroux Podcast.”My dad’s family is… he’s got seven brothers and sisters. We’d spend all of our holidays in Ireland. My first musical experiences were in Ireland, I grew up with trad music in the house. So I identify culturally as Irish, but I was obviously born and raised in Britain.””I don’t overthink…

Marks and Spencer is beginning to take online orders again after it halted purchases through its website in April following a hugely damaging cyber attack.The High Street chain said shoppers were now able to buy a selection of fashion items, such as clothing and footwear, for home delivery in England, Scotland and Wales.It said beauty and homeware products would be available in the coming days, with click and collect and delivery services to Northern Ireland resuming “in the coming weeks”.The return of online shopping marks a key milestone for the retailer, which has been struggling to get services back to…

Uber will trial robotaxis – autonomous cars with no human safety driver at the wheel – in London next spring.The ride-hailing app will work with the UK artificial intelligence (AI) firm Wayve, which has been testing out the technology on the city’s streets with human oversight, in line with current legislation.The announcement comes after the UK government changed its rules about the driverless cars once again.It was originally aiming for the tech to come to British roads in 2026, then the date was changed to the second half of 2027.But it now says it is introducing an accelerated framework for…