Author: SKYNEWS

<a href='https://news.sky.com/story/giant-volcano-spanning-280-miles-discovered-on-mars-scientists-say-13094362' target='_blank'>Giant volcano spanning 280 miles discovered on Mars</a> Source link

Creative Scotland has announced it is withdrawing its support for an explicit arts project that boasted “non-simulated” sex performances and will seek to claw back public funding paid to the production.A total of £84,555 was awarded to director Leonie Rae Gasson for the development of Rein in the January round of the art body’s National Lottery Open Fund. The project has been billed as a 45-minute multi-screen moving image installation that “immerses audiences in a raucous communal exploration of dyke sexuality”.However, it has come under scrutiny as the show’s climax has been advertised as a “secret cave sex party”.Participants over…

The Post Office is to be removed from delivering compensation for victims of the faulty Horizon software, a minister has said. Speaking in the Commons on Wednesday afternoon, Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake accepted a recommendation that responsibility for redress should not lie with the organisation. Instead, the Department for Business and Trade and independent individuals will be tasked with the administration, he said.The faulty Horizon system led to hundreds being wrongfully convicted for fraud, theft and wrongful accounting.Money latest – First lender cuts mortgage rates Mr Hollinrake said: “I can announce today that it will be the Department for…

SpaceX’s Starship successfully entered its “coasting” phase during its third test launch.The rocket cleared its launch pad in Texas, separated from its “Super Heavy Booster” and began coasting at an altitude of 145 miles. It’s the most successful test flight of the spacecraft yet. Image: Starship re-enters the atmosphere after its third test flight. Pic: SpaceX Starship is the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket, at nearly 120 metres tall, and is intended to carry astronauts to the moon this decade.It’s big enough that SpaceX says it “will be able to carry up to 100 people on long-duration, interplanetary flights”.…

It launched in London’s Soho almost 40 years ago, and quickly became notorious for its celebrity clientele and “tales of naughtiness and excess”.Now the renowned Groucho Club, one of London’s most famous private members’ clubs, has announced plans to expand – to a village near Wakefield. Groucho Bretton is set to open in the Grade II listed Bretton Hall, in the grounds of Yorkshire Sculpture Park, and will be the first permanent venue outside the capital in the club’s history.The venue, which will also have 40 bedrooms and be open to non-members, is set to open in 2026.Ewan Venters, chief…

The government plans to ban foreign governments from owning British newspapers and magazines – effectively blocking an Abu Dhabi-led takeover of the Daily and Sunday Telegraph.The commitment was set out in the House of Lords this afternoon in an amendment to the third reading of the Digital Markets Act, which is currently making its way through Parliament. Culture minister Lord Parkinson said: “We will amend the media merger regime explicitly to rule out newspaper and periodical news magazine mergers involving ownership, influence or control by foreign states.”He added: “Under the new measures the secretary of state would be obliged to…

TikTok’s chief executive has appealed to US users directly to stop a bill that could see the social media app banned in America.Shou zi Chew appealed to the public via – what else – a video posted on the app. “Keep sharing your stories, share them with your friends, share them with your family, share them with your Senators,” he said.Users have been campaigning to stop the bill since it was announced but on Wednesday, members of the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in favour.It now goes to the Senate. President Joe Biden has already indicated he would support the…

David Beckham, Succession’s Brian Cox and a 13-year-old pianist are among the unlikely rivals who will go head-to-head in a fan-voted category at this year’s TV BAFTAs.The P&O Cruises memorable moment award celebrates all genres and formats, and this year’s nominees include talked-about scenes from documentaries, TV dramas and reality competitions. The six nominated moments include the infamous Rolls Royce scene from Netflix’s Beckham documentary, which saw footballer David tease his Spice Girl wife Victoria about her ‘working class’ upbringing.Doctor Who unveiling Ncuti Gatwa as the fifteenth timelord is also on the shortlist, as is Catherine Cawood and Tommy Lee…

The Belgian insurer pursuing a takeover of Direct Line Group, its London-listed rival, is facing opposition from one of its own leading shareholders to a potential deal.Sky News has learnt that a top-10 investor in Ageas is canvassing the views of fellow shareholders in an attempt to halt its efforts to buy Direct Line. City sources said that the investor, which declined to be named, believed the approach was “aggressive, unsolicited and opportunistic”.The emergence of its position comes just a day after Direct Line said it had rejected a “highly conditional” cash-and-stock proposal worth 237p-a-share, or about £3.2bn.It was the…

If you’re into skincare, you will have heard of squalene (or squalane).It’s in moisturisers, make-up and cleansers but is also used in vaccines and medicines. Now, scientists have linked squalene to around 390 species of sharks and rays being threatened with extinction, according to new research.The authors are calling for better regulation of the industry.”It’s very easy to forget what’s going on in the deep, and we hear a lot of stuff about mining in the deep ocean, but the reality is the biggest threat is overfishing,” Professor Nick Dulvy told the Vancouver Sun. Squalene is traditionally collected from the…