Author: SKYNEWS

Actor Toby Jones has hailed former sub-postmaster Alan Bates a “hero” after playing him in a drama which has been credited with raising awareness of the Post Office scandal.Bates tenaciously led the campaign for justice for the hundreds of sub-postmasters who were wrongly convicted of theft and false accounting because of a faulty IT system called Horizon. Many more lost their homes, livelihoods and good reputations to repay non-existent shortfalls. Image: Former sub-postmaster and lead campaigner Alan Bates. Pic: PA The four-part ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office brought the story – which has been called the largest…

The pop band behind New Labour’s 1997 anthem Things Can Only Get Better has banned Sir Keir Starmer from using the song in the election.D:Ream’s founding members Alan Mackenzie and Peter Cunnah said they were dismayed to hear their number one hit play through a loudspeaker as Rishi Sunak announced he was calling a general election on 4 July. The pair told LBC their first thought was: “Not again.”Election latest: Starmer takes pop at Johnson hiding in fridge Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 7:48 Things Can Only Get Better started blaring around two minutes into…

Robert De Niro has been denied a prestigious award after making a speech calling Donald Trump a “clown” and a “dictator “outside the former president’s trial.The actor, 80, joined a Democrat-organised event on Tuesday outside the New York court where Trump was on trial for falsifying business records to cover up an affair before the 2016 presidential election. Standing by Manhattan Criminal Court, De Niro tore into the Republican – calling him a “monster” – and argued with Trump supporters who he called “gangsters”. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 2:00 ‘Trump is a monster,’ De…

Footage of Adele confronting a homophobic heckler has been shared widely on social media.During the Saturday night show of her Weekends With Adele residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, the award-winning artist took aim at an audience member who yelled: “Pride sucks.” The Hello singer replied: “Did you come to my f***ing show and say that Pride sucks?”Are you fucking stupid? Don’t be so f***ing ridiculous.”The Tottenham-born star added: “If you’ve got nothing nice to say, shut up, alright?” Image: File pic: AP June is Pride month – dedicated to celebrating LGBTQ communities around the world.The…

China has landed a spacecraft on the far side of the moon to collect soil and rock samples and bring them back to Earth for the first time.The Chang’e-6 craft touched down in a huge crater known as the South Pole-Aitken Basin at 6.23am Beijing time on Sunday (11.23pm on Saturday in the UK), the China National Space Administration said. The Chang’e landing module – named after a Chinese moon goddess – will use a mechanical arm and drill to gather up to 2kg (4.4lb) of surface and underground material for about two days.An ascender on top of the lander…

Singer Olly Murs has admitted he was “desperate to be around people” after becoming estranged from his twin more than a decade ago.”When you’ve been in the womb with someone, you struggle with loneliness,” he told The Times in an interview on Saturday. The Heart Skips A Beat singer, 40, shot to fame when he competed in The X Factor season 6 in 2009. He later admitted missing his twin brother’s wedding to film the show.”We haven’t spoken in ten years,” he told the other judges on an episode of The Voice in 2020, adding he didn’t know where his…

Shein, the online fashion behemoth, is on the verge of taking a huge stride towards a London flotation that would value it at about £50bn and rank among the most significant – and contentious – deals in the UK’s capital markets for years.Sky News can exclusively reveal that Shein, which was founded in China but is headquartered in Singapore, is preparing to file a prospectus with the Financial Conduct Authority for approval ahead of its potential float. City sources said on Sunday evening that the confidential filing could take place as soon as the coming week, although it could yet…

A stingray whose “virgin” pregnancy made global headlines has a rare reproductive disease, the aquarium housing her has said.In an update on the health of Charlotte the stingray, the Aquarium and Shark Lab in North Carolina said she had “developed a rare reproductive disease that has negatively impacted her reproductive system”. Charlotte captured international attention in February when the aquarium said she was carrying “between three and four pups” despite not encountering a male stingray for eight years.”It’s a really strange and unique phenomenon,” Brenda Ramer, its executive director, said at the time while livestreaming Charlotte’s ultrasound.In the update posted…

Taylor Momsen has been nicknamed “bat girl” after a bat bit her during a show.Momsen’s rock band The Pretty Reckless were supporting AC/DC in the Spanish city of Seville on Wednesday night when the bat flew on to her leg during the song Witches Burn. As fans pointed and shouted, Momsen, who is best known for playing Jenny Humphrey in Gossip Girl, asked them what they were pointing at before realising.”There’s a f***ing flying bat on my leg right now, can someone help me please?” she said calmly into the microphone. Image: Taylor Momsen during the AC/DC Power Up Tour.…

Can a lender end your fixed-rate deal early? This was the crux of a question asked by Money blog reader Michelle from Kent…”I bought my first flat in April 2023 with a two-year fixed-rate mortgage. I got the deal with the help of a broker, who has now contacted me saying my deal is due to end in November – significantly earlier than I had expected. I’ve spoken to my lender – they said the deal I was on no longer exists. Is there anything I can do to keep my current rate?” We asked David Hollingworth, associate director at…