Author: SKYNEWS

The Princess of Wales’s uncle is reportedly set to appear as a contestant on the new series of Celebrity Big Brother.Gary Goldsmith is reportedly set to take part in the celebrity reality show, which returns to UK television for the first time in six years tonight. The 58-year-old businessman, the younger brother of Kate’s mother, Carole, attended the wedding of his niece and Prince William at Westminster Abbey in 2011.According to The Sun newspaper, Mr Goldsmith arrived at ITV’s studios yesterday and has been put up in a London hotel ahead of the launch of the new series tonight.It comes…

The independent directors appointed to oversee the sale of The Daily Telegraph have been warned that the removal of the newspaper’s two most senior executives breached a government order – and that any subsequent transgression could result in a multimillion pound fine.Sky News has learnt that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) last week wrote to Goodwin Procter, the law firm acting for the independent board members, to say that Lucy Frazer, the culture secretary, had concluded that recent management changes at the broadsheet publisher had contravened a requirement that she must consent to the removal and appointment…

Four astronauts have blasted off to the International Space Station for a six-month stint in orbit.SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched from the Kennedy Space Centre at Cape Canaveral in Florida on Sunday, carrying NASA’s Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Russia’s Alexander Grebenkin. Footage showed the rocket’s nine Merlin engines roaring into life as it ascended from the launch tower. Image: Russian cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin and NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps (L-R). Pic: Reuters The astronauts should dock with the orbiting lab some 250 miles (420km) above Earth on Tuesday after a 16-hour flight.The crew…

Any tax cuts made during this budget will “one way or another be undone after the election”, according to one economist. Speaking to Sky News, Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, explained that – if it were not an election year – it is unlikely that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt would be looking to trim the tax burden. Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Mr Hunt said his budget would be “prudent and responsible” – but added that he wanted to “make some progress” on the “journey” started by the two pence cut to National Insurance…

British Land, Microsoft and Vodafone are among the backers of a new business coalition that will launch this week with the aim of tackling the UK’s perennially weak productivity.Sky News understands that the trio, along with Churchill Retirement Living, NHBC and Pension Insurance Corporation, are among the founding members of the Building Back Britain Commission (BBBC). The group will be formally launched on Monday evening at an event attended by Labour’s shadow business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds.It will be advised by Claire Ainsley, Sir Keir Starmer’s former policy chief.People close to the group said it would seek to draw up a…

Comedian Michael McIntyre has cancelled a gig on his world tour due to undergoing a medical procedure.The 48-year-old’s social media account announced on Sunday the comedian was “unable to perform” his show at Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre on Monday. “Unfortunately, Michael has had an operation to remove kidney stones,” read the post on X.The show is due to be rescheduled, with those unable to make the new date entitled to a refund, it said.”We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused,” it added. X This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you…

Jeremy Hunt is considering a last minute further cut to public spending to boost the tax giveaway in Wednesday’s budget.The Politics At Jack And Sam’s podcast, out now, sets out how Number 10 and 11 have spent recent days finding as many different ways of raising future revenue as possible to increase the size of Wednesday’s tax cuts. National insurance could be cut by 2p again in the budget if the chancellor succeeds in finding the right mix of revenue-raising measures and spending cuts.👉 Listen above and tap here to follow Politics At Jack And Sam’s wherever you get your…

Kim Kardashian turned heads at a Paris Fashion Week event on Sunday with a possible fashion faux-pas – or did she mean it?The reality TV star and businesswoman wore a black dress to a Balenciaga show in the French capital with the tag still hanging from the back. The word Balenciaga was clearly visible as she walked by and posed for photographers, with the tag appearing to swing slightly and hit her back.She shared an Instagram story showing the tag still attached to the back of the lace turtleneck outfit, which had long sleeves that covered beyond her hand.Kardashian captioned…

US actor Mark Dodson, who provided voices for creatures in the Star Wars and Gremlins movies, has died aged 64.His daughter Ciara said he had suffered a “massive heart attack” while sleeping, reported TMZ, which said it had spoken to her. Dodson was the voice of Salacious Crumb, a scruffy monkey-lizard character who was a cackling court jester and pet of gangster Jabba the Hutt in the 1983 film Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi.A year later, he did the voice for mogwai in another Hollywood movie, Gremlins. X This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies…

Red Bull boss Christian Horner has said he “absolutely” expects to remain in charge for next week’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.The team principal told Sky Sports F1 that Red Bull is a “very strong team” after reigning world champion Max Verstappen and his teammate Sergio Perez came first and second in Saturday’s Bahrain Grand Prix – the first race of the season. He said: “We have got tremendous support, tremendous partners and great shareholders behind us as well.”You don’t achieve this kind of result by not being united.”Horner was asked if he expects to still be in charge in Jeddah…