SNCF apologises to up to 200,000 passengers likely to be affected by wildcat strikes by conductorsUp to 200,000 passengers whose trains have been cancelled because of wildcat strike action by conductors over the Christmas weekend will be reimbursed double the price they paid for their tickets, the French national railway company SNCF has said.“Not being able to travel during a period like Christmas is frankly unacceptable,” Christophe Fanichet, boss of the company’s passenger transportation division, said on Wednesday. “I would like to offer the company’s apologies.” Continue reading...
A third of train services are cancelled on key northern routes, with the rail operator blaming IT issuesOne of the UK’s worst-performing railway operators issued a “do not travel” alert on Wednesday, blaming an internal computer failure which resulted in a third of all of its trains being cancelled yet again.Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, urged the government to “step in – now” after TransPennine Express (TPE) urged against all travel on Wednesday. Continue reading...
Many objected to I’m a Celebrity appearance but regulator found neither reality TV show breached broadcasting codeLove Island and Matt Hancock provided the most complained about commercial television moments of the year, as Britons once again attempted to get the media regulator to intervene in reality programmes.Ofcom, which oversees the regulation of British broadcasting, said it received the most complaints about alleged misogynistic and bullying behaviour by some contestants in the Love Island villa. This was closely followed by the former health secretary’s appearance on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here – although in that case the complaints were split between people who did not think he should have been on the show and those who felt he was being treated unfairly by other contestants.Love Island, ITV2, 17 July – complaints related to alleged misogynistic and bullying behaviour by some contestants in the villa.I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, ITV, 6-27 November – viewers objected to the inclusion of Matt Hancock in the series.Friday Night Live, Channel 4, 21 October – complaints related to a performance by trans performer Jordan Gray.Love Island, ITV2, 19 July – complaints related to alleged misogynistic and bullying behaviour by some contestants in the villa.Good Morning Britain, ITV, 15 February – complaints related to comments made by Richard Madeley about death threats made to Keir Starmer.Jeremy Vine, Channel 5, 24 January – viewers complained about a health consultant’s inaccurate statement about numbers of unvaccinated people in hospital with Covid-19.Love Island, ITV2, 18 July – complaints related to alleged misogynistic and bullying behaviour by some contestants in the villa.I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, ITV, 13 November – viewers objected to bullying behaviour against Matt Hancock.Fifa World Cup final 2022: Argentina v France, ITV, 18 December – complaints related to comments by Gary Neville about striking British workers.Sky News, 10 September – a Justice for Chris Kaba walk was reported as people on their way to pay tribute to the late Queen. Continue reading...
Martin McDonagh’s film receives nine nominations, one ahead of widely acclaimed father-daughter drama AftersunMartin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin consolidated its place as frontrunner in the year-end awards race after the London Critics’ Circle announced the nominations for its film awards. The Banshees of Inisherin leads the field with nine, just ahead of indie debut Aftersun which picked up eight.The Banshees of Inisherin, which reunites McDonagh with his In Bruges stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson and is McDonagh’s first film since 2017’s Oscar-winning crime drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, is nominated for film of the year and British/Irish film of the year; Farrell and Gleeson are nominated for actor and supporting actor of the year respectively, with co-stars Barry Keoghan and Kerry Condon also nominated for supporting actor and actress. Farrell is also up for British/Irish actor of the year, while McDonagh is nominated for director and screenwriter of the year. Continue reading...
Supermarket chain ‘stabbed us in the back’ after delisting products, says Proctor & AssociatesLidl is being sued for £2.6m by a fruit and vegetable supplier that claims it was wrongly cut out of deals by the discount chain in a series of moves it alleges “destroyed our business”.Proctor & Associates, which once supplied Lidl with up to 57 different kinds of fruit and vegetable, has filed a claim at the high court in which it says it had to stop trading after the German-owned discounter delisted a number of its products, including asparagus, squash, chillies, apples, plums and broccoli, without notice and poached Proctor’s suppliers. Continue reading...
by Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent on (#672D8)
Damien Bendall pleads guilty to murder of Terri Harris, her children, John and Lacey, and Lacey’s friend Connie GentDamien Bendall has pleaded guilty to the murder of a woman and three children in a series of “brutal, vicious and cruel attacks” in Killamarsh last year, which included the rape of one of the children.At Derby crown court on Wednesday, Bendall, 32, admitted murdering his pregnant partner Terri Harris, 35, and her two children from a previous relationship, John Paul Bennett, 13, and Lacey Bennett, 11, as well as Lacey’s friend Connie Gent, 11. He also admitted raping Lacey. Continue reading...
As an Arctic blast crosses the country, states scramble to shelter new surge of migrantsRecently arrived migrants in the US are expected to be hit hard by below-freezing temperatures forecast for much of the country, especially those making dangerous crossings or who lack reliable shelter.Almost 33 million people are under winter storm watches as an Arctic blast and major storm system hit several parts of the country, Axios reports. An estimated 27 million Americans are also under wind-chill alerts. Continue reading...
British nationals and EU spouses say they were told by Home Office that children born abroad are not eligible for British citizenshipChildren born outside the UK to a British parent in a same-sex relationship are being left stateless by the Home Office, the Guardian has learned.British nationals and their EU spouses say they have been told by the department that children born abroad to a British parent who was also born outside the UK are not eligible for British citizenship. If the UK is unwilling to issue documentation, this has the added effect of leaving some children stateless in cases of EU countries that don’t recognise two mothers. Continue reading...
ACT chief minister and attorney general have announced inquiry following claims police pressured director of public prosecutions Shane Drumgold SC not to pursue the Lehrmann case
New Zealand PM features in the follow up to Netflix’s Harry and Meghan documentary that was released this monthNew Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern says she learned she would feature in Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s new documentary series the day the trailer was released.Ardern featured prominently in the first trailer for 'Live to Lead, a new documentary project, which will feature “leaders committed to making a difference in the world share[ing] their inspiring life stories”. The series is a follow-up to Harry & Meghan, Netflix’s documentary series by and about the pair, released this month. Continue reading...
by Denis Campbell, Steven Morris and Dan Sabbagh on (#671SE)
Bodies representing NHS care in England also call for Rishi Sunak intervention but PM refuses to budge on payNHS leaders have urged the public to avoid risky activity on Wednesday for fear they may be left helpless and unable to reach A&E during the ambulance strike.The industrial action by staff across England and Wales comes as the ongoing pay dispute between ministers and NHS workers looks poised to descend into an increasingly bitter and disruptive war of attrition that could go on for months. Continue reading...
British director was known for his often bleak and brutal gangster films, most famously his 1971 film Get Carter starring Michael CaineMike Hodges, the British director known for films including Get Carter, Croupier, The Terminal Man and Flash Gordon, has died at the age of 90.Mike Kaplan, a longtime friend and producer on Hodges’ final feature film I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead, confirmed his death to the Guardian. Hodges died at his home in Dorset on Saturday. A cause of death was not given. Continue reading...
The split comes seven months after federal investigators issued a subpoena to the firm for its prescriptions of controlled substancesSuperstar US gymnast Simone Biles and tele-health provider Cerebral have ended an endorsement partnership, the company announced Tuesday, bringing to a close a deal in which the 25-year-old Olympic champion used her own mental health experience to promote the controversial mental health start-up.Biles became Cerebral’s “chief impact officer” three months after her dramatic withdrawal from individual competition at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 saying she was “not in the right head space” to compete. Continue reading...
London council says it is the first in England and Wales to use public space protection order against catcalling and harassmentA fine for sexual harassment has been issued by a London council in the first use in England and Wales of controversial powers designed to clamp down on antisocial behaviour.The £100 fine was issued on Friday evening to a man for sexual harassment in Ilford, east London, by officials from Redbridge council, with the support of the Metropolitan police Continue reading...
David Hunter not able to admit lesser charge of manslaughter over death of his terminally ill wife, JaniceAn elderly Briton accused of murdering his terminally ill wife in Cyprus has been denied the chance to plead guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter, almost a year to the day after Janice Hunter died.The state prosecutor Andreas Hadjikyrou said he could not accept a deal that would have allowed David Hunter, aged 76, to make the guilty plea, which had raised hopes of the retiree being released by Christmas. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#671K2)
Settlement means airline has reached a pay deal with unions across Europe, excluding BelgiumRyanair has reached a deal with its pilots in Ireland that will restore the 20% pay cuts the airline made during the Covid pandemic.The four-year pay deal will also see low single-digit percentage rises for the carrier’s home nation pilots in the next three financial years until March 2027. Continue reading...
As inquest concludes seven years after incident, coroner says pilot should have abandoned a manoeuvre he was undertakingEleven men who died after a Hawker Hunter aircraft crashed on to a motorway during an aerial display at the 2015 Shoreham airshow in West Sussex were unlawfully killed, a coroner has ruled.At the conclusion of an inquest seven years after the incident, in which 13 other people were injured, senior coroner Penelope Schofield said that 11 lives had been “cruelly lost” and that it was clear that the aircraft’s pilot should have abandoned a manoeuvre he was undertaking. Continue reading...
by Nadia Khomami Arts and culture correspondent on (#671GM)
Musician reveals how he likes to relax in rare interviewHow does it feel, Bob Dylan asked in his 1965 single Like a Rolling Stone, to be on your own with no direction home?Now, 57 years later, he has finally the given us the answer – it makes you feel like curling up and binge-watching Coronation Street. Continue reading...
Artefacts looted in 19th century by UK soldiers and sold on, with many more still held by the British MuseumTwenty-one precious artefacts that were looted by British soldiers from the former west African kingdom of Benin 125 years ago have been physically handed over by Germany to Nigeria amid laughter, tears, and some audible frustration with the ongoing silence of the country that first stole them.The objects from the haul of treasures known as the Benin bronzes, including a brass head of an oba (king), a ceremonial ada and a throne depicting a coiled-up python, were taken from the sacked city during a British punitive expedition in 1897 and later sold to German museums in Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Cologne. Continue reading...
Specially adapted supercar driven from Padua to Rome to ‘deliver the most beautiful Christmas present – life’Italian police have used a specially adapted Lamborghini supercar to deliver two kidneys to donor patients hundreds of kilometres apart.“Travelling on the motorway to deliver the most beautiful Christmas present – life,” they said in a statement posted on social media, alongside a picture of a medical cool box in a purpose-built compartment at the front of the Huracán. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#6713J)
FCA penalises bank after millions of customers were locked out of their accounts for weeksCity regulators have fined TSB £48m for “widespread and serious” failings related to the IT meltdown in 2018 that left millions of banking customers locked out of their accounts for weeks.The long-awaited fine is expected to draw a line under the scandal, which tarnished the challenger bank’s reputation and forced its chief executive to step down within months of the botched move to a new IT platform. Continue reading...
Airline blames technical issue for disruption at airports including Denver, New York and MiamiBritish Airways has apologised after a technical issue triggered a wave of flight delays across the US and the Caribbean.The airline said problems with its third-party flight planning supplier were behind the delays, as customers reported disruption in departing cities including Denver, New York and Miami. Continue reading...
Ghanaian photographer’s crowdfunded project won support of Humans of New York author and boasts more than 30,000 booksThe largest photography library in Africa has opened in Ghana’s capital, Accra, showcasing the work of the continent and diaspora’s forgotten, established and emerging talent.Founded by Ghanaian photographer and film-maker Paul Ninson, the Dikan Center houses more than 30,000 books he has collected. The first of its kind in Ghana, a photo studio and classrooms provide space for workshops while a fellowship programme is aimed at African documentarians and visual artists. An exhibition space will host regular shows, the first of which is Ahennie, a series by the late Ghanaian documentary photographer Emmanuel Bobbie (also known as Bob Pixel), who died in 2021. Continue reading...
Revival of pact could mean lifting sanctions on a country that is viciously suppressing protests and arming RussiaWary western powers face an unlikely potential dilemma after a sudden push by Tehran to suggest that progress is being made to remove the last outstanding obstacles to a revived agreement to oversee Iran’s nuclear programme.The unlikely prospect of Joe Biden reviving the dormant 2015 nuclear deal, potentially lifting sanctions and opening the way for Iran to make billions of dollars in oil exports, would be seen as a gross betrayal by supporters of three-month-long street protests, as well as a controversial signal to send to Ukraine about Washington’s priorities. Continue reading...