Author: SKYNEWS

Told she could have weeks to live, and with a 21cm tumour in her chest, Abi Flynn got in a studio and recorded her album.After being diagnosed with cancer at 26, the singer turned to music at every stage of her treatment. A video from the last day of chemo shows her singing of courage while wearing a hospital bracelet and Stand Up To Cancer t-shirt, head bare from rounds of chemo.In the same period, she recorded what’s called a vocal pack – 40 catchy dance hooks, known as toplines, bashed out in just two hours.That pack was distributed by…

Cash-strapped train travellers are being priced off the railways, campaigners have warned as fares in England and Wales are hiked by nearly 5% despite high levels of cancellations.Critics argue passengers are being “punished” and will be angry at Sunday’s rises given the “shocking state” of the network, against a backdrop of disruption caused by rail strikes. Sky News has previously revealed that even before the latest increases came into effect, the UK has the most expensive train tickets in Europe.The issue is likely to be a battleground at the next general election, with Labour vowing to bring the railways back…

Raye has smashed the record for the most Brit awards won in any one year – taking home six prizes including best song, best artist and best album.The star was visibly emotional as she collected the statuette for best album for her debut, My 21st Century Blues, saying: “You just don’t understand what this means to me.” She was joined by her grandma, Agatha, on stage, and apologised as she broke down in tears, joking: “I’m ugly crying on national television.”The star told the crowd that her middle name is also Agatha, and added: “My grandma is awake ’til 3am…

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has tempered expectations of tax cuts in Wednesday’s budget as he announced an £800m package of technology reforms designed to free up time for frontline public sector workers.As part of Treasury reforms, police will use drones to assess incidents such as traffic collisions and artificial intelligence will be deployed to cut MRI scan times by a third. The department said the changes have the potential to deliver £1.8bn worth of benefits to public sector productivity by 2029.Follow latest: PM rails against ‘extremist forces’In a statement, the chancellor said: “We shouldn’t fall into the trap of thinking more…

When you break a record jointly held by three of the biggest British music acts of the last 30 years, you know you’re doing something right.Before tonight’s Brit Awards, only three artist had ever won four prizes in one ceremony – Harry Styles last year, Adele in 2016, and Blur in 1995. Raye, who just a few years ago was contemplating a very different future after leaving her record label, went not one but two better last night – picking up a history-making six trophies in total, including the big awards for best artist, best song and best album. Please…

The Post Office should be “handed over” to postmasters, its former chairman has said, accusing the government of using it as a “fig leaf” for stalling and evasion.In a letter seen exclusively by Sky News, Henry Staunton told the business and trade committee the government has “consistently hidden behind the Post Office’s skirts, spinning their way away from trouble”. He also accused the Department for Business and Trade of not owning up to their “failings” or doing “the decent thing” by sub-postmasters.Hundreds of sub-postmasters were wrongly convicted of theft and false accounting based on evidence from faulty Horizon IT software…

Raye has broken the record for the most Brit Awards won in any one year – taking home six prizes including best song, best artist and best album.The star was emotional as she collected the statuette for best album, saying: “You just don’t understand what this means to me.” She was joined by her grandma on stage, and apologised as she broke down in tears. “I’m ugly crying on national television.”Raye also won the awards for best R&B act, best new artist, and songwriter of the year – a gong that was announced ahead of the ceremony – and performed…

Lockdowns imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic saw changes in newborn babies that may have protected them against allergies, according to a study.Infants raised when coronavirus social distancing restrictions were in place were found by Irish researchers to have more of the beneficial microbes acquired after birth from their mother, which could act as a defence against disease. The scientists believe this led “pandemic babies” to have lower than expected rates of allergic conditions, such as to food, compared to pre-COVID babies.The findings, published in the journal Allergy, highlighted the gut health benefits for the youngsters as a result of the…

A film director has described the moment he was shot by actor Alec Baldwin on the set of Rust – and revealed what the movie’s armourer said to him immediately afterwards.Baldwin, lead actor and co-producer of the film, was holding the gun when it fired and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on set near Santa Fe on 21 October 2021. Rust director Joel Souza was hit by the same bullet that killed Ms Hutchins but did not pursue any legal action.Weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is on trial charged with involuntary manslaughter.Baldwin, 65, faces a separate trial on the same charges in…

The long-standing owner of the Moto GP global motor-racing series is in advanced talks to sell the business for more than £3bn.Sky News has learnt that Bridgepoint, which is the biggest shareholder in Moto GP’s parent company, Dorna Sports, is seeking a valuation of up to €4bn (£3.4bn) in its negotiations with prospective buyers. Liberty Media, the owner of Formula One, is understood to be the frontrunner to buy Dorna, although it is reportedly facing competition from a number of rival bidders.One source said this weekend that Bridgepoint was trying to seal an agreement to sell Dorna within a matter…