Author: SKYNEWS

Game Of Thrones author George RR Martin has been ‘iced’ out of officially appearing at a sci-fi convention in Scotland after failing to fill in the application form.The renowned American writer – who is behind fantasy series A Song Of Ice And Fire – will be attending Worldcon in Glasgow next month. He had hoped to join in the festivities, which includes talks, workshops, readings, panel discussions and entertainment, but has not made the official line-up of events.In a blog post last week, Mr Martin said: “I will be in Glasgow, attending the con, but whether you’ll see me, I…

The Bank of England has revealed disruption to some major financial transactions due to a “global payments issue”, later confirmed to have been fixed..In a statement this afternoon, the Bank revealed that its high value CHAPS service – which handles payments worth hundreds of billions of pounds each day – was affected by an outage from late morning. This resulted in delays to transactions between major commercial banks and some house purchases over a period of around four hours.Money latest:One of UK’s top plastic surgery firms collapsesIt said in the latest statement: “We are pleased to confirm that the third…

The iconic hat Harrison Ford wore in Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom is one of nearly 2,000 rare Hollywood props up for sale at auction.The famous fedora is expected to fetch up to $550,000 (£423,000) during a four-day sale in Los Angeles next month. It’s one of 1,900 rare and valuable items from Hollywood blockbusters up for grabs, along with a batwing model miniature used by Michael Keaton in the 1989 Batman film, which is expected to sell for between $250,000 (£192,000) and $500,000 (£385,000). Image: Pic: Propstore/PA In the same high-value price range is a biker scout…

The former minister who resigned over the handling of COVID loan fraud has stepped down from the media group bankrolled by Sir Paul Marshall, casting fresh doubt on its interest in The Daily Telegraph.Sky News has learnt that Lord Agnew, who quit at the despatch box in 2022, has ceased to be the chair of Old Queen Street Ventures – formerly UnHerd Ventures. His resignation, recorded in a filing at Companies House, came less than nine months after he was appointed as UnHerd Ventures’ chairman.At the time of his appointment, people close to the situation said Lord Agnew would play…

Former London’s Burning actor John Alford faces trial over charges of sex offences involving a girl aged under 16.The 52-year-old, who rose to fame in Grange Hill, is charged under his real name John Shannon. Alford, of Holloway, north London, is accused of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two relating to a second female of sexual assault and assault by penetration.The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said he denied all charges at a plea hearing in September last year.There will be a pre-trial review hearing on 18 November at St Albans Crown Court, before the trial begins…

Accelerated action and intensive work is needed to avoid a “disorderly and unjust transition” when Scotland’s only oil refinery “likely” closes, a report has warned.With the Grangemouth refinery expected to shut in 2025, potentially impacting hundreds of jobs, the Just Transition Commission (JTC) warned of a “lack of effective just transition planning to date”. Bosses at Petroineos previously announced plans to close the oil refinery and switch the complex to become an import station for finished fuels.The Scottish and UK governments are already funding work, dubbed Project Willow, exploring how the site can continue to play a role amid the…

Michael Mosley is among a number of TV doctors victim to “deepfakes” of themselves circulating on social media to sell scam products, an investigation has revealed.The likenesses of trusted names including Hilary Jones, Michael Mosley and Rangan Chatterjee are being used to promote products claiming to fix high blood pressure and diabetes, and to sell hemp gummies, according to the British Medical Journal. Deepfakes are created by using AI to map a digital likeness of a real person on to a video of a body that isn’t theirs.It’s hard to say exactly how convincing these fabricated videos are – but…

One of the founding members of the English football league is working with bankers to explore options for its future ownership.Sky News has learnt that Preston North End, the Lancashire side which finished tenth in last season’s Championship table, is being advised by Rothschild on a strategic review. Football industry sources said the process was not certain to lead to a sale, but indicated that the club’s owners could be interested in discussions with prospective buyers who could demonstrate a long-term commitment to its future.One of the sources added that it was conceivable that the review would lead to no…

A nearly complete fossil of a stegosaurus has sold for a record $44.6m (£34.2m), becoming the most valuable fossil ever sold at auction.An anonymous US buyer outbid six others for the set of bones, dubbed Apex, at Sotheby’s in New York on Wednesday. They paid an apex price, beating the previous auction record of $31.8m (£24.4m) spent on a Tyrannosaurus rex nicknamed Stan in 2020 and smashed the pre-sale estimate of $4m-6m (£3m-£4.6m). Image: Pic: AP Image: Pic: AP Apex stands 3.3 metres (11 feet) tall and 8.2 metres (27 feet) in length, putting it among the most complete fossils…

Historical drama Shogun leads the way in this year’s Emmy nominations, while The Crown and Baby Reindeer top the British entries.Shogun, a story of a power struggle in feudal Japan, racked up 25 nominations to lead the contenders, followed by restaurant tale The Bear with 23 – a record for a comedy. Netflix topped all networks with 107 nominations, including 18 for The Crown and 11 for Baby Reindeer.The royal drama’s final season aired in November and December last year in two parts, depicting the events surrounding Diana, Princess of Wales’ death.The show starred Dame Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth…