Author: SKYNEWS

In a morning timeslot when most respectable Glastonbury-goers would usually be in bed, Irish-language rappers Kneecap drew what stage organisers described as a headline-worthy crowd to the area.The trio have built a name for themselves with a balance of socially conscious lyrics and satire but have really come to the fore in recent months after taking legal action over a UK government decision to block funding they had been granted by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Often described as controversial, there is no doubt they are unafraid to say what they think – but argue they are simply speaking up…

Glastonbury is no stranger to mixing music with politics, and with the general election just days away and protests against the Israel-Hamas war ongoing, this year has been no exception.Artists from Damon Albarn to Charlotte Church have been vocal about their thoughts on the war on stage – and reflected back at them, a notable number of Palestinian flags are being held aloft by those in the crowds. Closer to home, while the looming election means planned visits by Labour’s Angela Rayner and the Greens’ Caroline Lucas were shelved, Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham did give a speech, and installations…

The chief executive of Boots, Britain’s biggest high street pharmacy chain, is quitting after its owner’s plans for a £5bn sale or stock market listing stalled.Sky News has learnt that Sebastian James, who has run Boots since 2018, will leave the company in November. City sources said this weekend that he had accepted a new role in the healthcare industry.Money blog: How to split housework fairlyHis exit comes soon after it emerged that New York-listed Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA), the British retailer’s owner, had decided for the second time in two years against pursuing a sale or stock market flotation…

Britain’s fourth-biggest household energy supplier is lining up bankers to explore options including bringing in a new investor or a sale, 15 years after it launched in a bid to challenge the industry’s oligopoly.Sky News has learnt that OVO Group, which was founded by Stephen Fitzpatrick, is close to hiring Rothschild to assist with a strategic review of the business. City sources said this weekend that a range of possibilities would be considered during the process, which is expected to take several months.Money blog: How to split housework fairlyThese are likely to include a refinancing – with talks already underway…

Martin Mull, who starred in hit television shows including Roseanne, Sabrina The Teenage Witch and Arrested Development, has died aged 80.Mull’s daughter, TV writer and comic artist Maggie Mull, said he died at home on Thursday following a “valiant fight against a long illness”. The US actor, who was first known for his role in 1970s satirical soap Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and its spinoff Fernwood Tonight, was “never not funny”, Ms Mull said. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use…

Dua Lipa has set the bar high for this year’s Glastonbury headliners, performing a slick set of hits to an enormous crowd at the festival’s famous Pyramid Stage.The 28-year-old star told fans she had manifested the moment, but watching her command the stage – hit after hit played, voice soaring, dance moves effortless – it seems her talent was always going to bring her here. Starting with Training Season, from her latest album Radical Optimism, Lipa kept the energy levels high throughout for tracks including Be The One, Levitating, Hallucinate, One Kiss, Physical, New Rules and Don’t Start Now.As is…

Professor Brian Cox has joined his former D:Ream bandmates on stage at Glastonbury to perform the track that became a defining political anthem of the 1990s – and seemingly again this year after its re-emergence ahead of the general election.The TV physicist received rapturous applause from the crowd at the festival’s Glade Stage as he was brought on by frontman Peter Cunnah, providing his musical expertise on keyboards once again for sleeper hit Things Can Only Get Better. Following its release in 1993, the song topped the charts after a remix the following year. But it was in 1997 that…

Damon Albarn has made a surprise appearance at Glastonbury – addressing politics and the Israel-Hamas war as he turned up on stage to perform with Bombay Bicycle Club.The band performed on the Other Stage this afternoon, ahead of artists including Anne-Marie, D-Block Europe and Idles. Blur and Gorillaz star Albarn features on Bombay Bicycle Club’s 2023 song Heaven, and speculation he would join them had been rife ahead of their Glastonbury set.They had teased a special guest, without revealing a name, and the @secretglasto Twitter account hinted beforehand that the mystery artist “could make Bombay Bicycle Club’s set go by…

The owners of Cineworld are leaning towards putting its British operations through a formal restructuring process after holding initial talks about a sale with prospective buyers.Sky News has learnt that the cinema chain and its advisers at AlixPartners have begun formally exploring a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) – a mechanism widely used by retailers and restaurant chains during the COVID pandemic to close stores and slash rents. The details of a potential Cineworld CVA are still to be determined, with no visibility yet about any site closures or rent negotiations with landlords.However, one insider said that an insolvency mechanism such…

James Golding was once one half of a unicycling camel at Glastonbury. He also appeared on the Pyramid Stage with The Levellers in 1992, and has a story about how he and his former partner one year convinced everyone, press included, that she was Debbie Harry.Having been to every festival for the last 40 years, this is the go-to man for a Glastonbury anecdote.As a New Age traveller who hitchhiked from North Wales to Somerset and first jumped the fence in 1985, he is now very much part of the furniture – a chainsaw sculptor by day, he even makes…