A neighbour of British actor Stephen Tompkinson has told a jury she witnessed him slapping and punching a drunk man in the head during an incident outside his home. Caroline Davidson gave evidence on the second day of the 57-year-old’s trial at Newcastle Crown Court, where he is accused of inflicting grievous bodily harm on
Month: May 2023
The declaration that COVID is no longer a global health emergency is an historic moment. It can be seen as an official declaration of the end of a pandemic that in three years killed nearly seven million people globally and made billions sick. In itself, it is a bureaucratic step. When the WHO declares a
Finland’s largest daily newspaper is fighting back against Russia’s media restrictions by hiding news about the war in Ukraine in a secret room within a video game. Helsingin Sanomat’s editor-in-chief Antero Mukka said the paper had to get creative in trying to breach the restrictions and decided to conceal articles in the shooter game Counter-Strike,
Ed Sheeran has won his copyright trial over similarities between his hit single Thinking Out Loud and the Marvin Gaye 1973 classic Let’s Get It On. Sheeran was accused of ripping off part of the famed soul track Gaye created with fellow songwriter Ed Townsend in a lawsuit originally filed by heirs of Townsend in
Shell has revealed it is handing a further $6bn (£4.7bn) to shareholders after its latest quarterly profits beat its own forecasts. The oil and gas major reported net profits of $9.6bn (£7.6bn) for the first three months of the year. The figure was slightly down on the sum achieved in the final quarter of 2022
Ukraine has said it has shot down more than a dozen Russian-launched drones in the early hours of Thursday morning. The 18 drones were among 24 launched in pre-dawn attacks across Ukraine, with a number aimed at Kyiv – all of which were destroyed alongside an unspecified number of missiles, city officials said. Administration officials
A review of the artificial intelligence (AI) market has been launched by the UK competition watchdog. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) chief executive Sarah Cardell told the Financial Times its “fact-finding” mission would inform on the “real opportunities” but also the protections that could be needed. The probe would include the models behind popular chatbots
“God Save the King” – four words unlikely to be on the lips of many Jamaicans at the weekend during the Coronation of King Charles. “Happy and glorious” – also a long stretch. In a world exclusive, a senior Jamaican government minister has told Sky News that the Coronation of the King has accelerated the
A second drug has shown the ability to slow the progression of the leading form of dementia. Results of a study, released in a preliminary form by drug maker Eli Lilly, show their drug donanemab reduced the rate of cognitive decline of Alzheimer’s patients in a trial by between 27 and 35%. Those on the
Sir Keir Starmer was wooing Sue Gray to become his chief of staff for at least four months before announcing her appointment, Sky News has discovered. The Labour leader has repeatedly refused to disclose when the first contact between the pair took place. But Sky News understands his first discussion with the top civil servant
The leader of Plaid Cymru, Adam Price, is to step down after a damning report into the party’s culture. Mr Price and the party’s chair Marc Jones were forced to apologise after the report – commissioned by the party’s ruling committee – found that the party had “failed to implement a zero-tolerance approach to sexual
Air travel could be disrupted during the summer holiday peak, according to airlines, after the US refused to budge on a deadline for adding new sensors to planes. The sensors are to ensure 5G wireless technology does not interfere with aeroplane altimeters, which are instruments used for measuring altitude – particularly crucial for bad-weather landings.
Threats to voting at the Eurovision song contest in Liverpool from Russian agents or cyber attacks will be dealt with by the UK’s security experts, MPs have been assured. MPs in the Commons flagged concerns to the government that Russia could seek to disrupt the voting during the contest, which is viewed globally by more
Astronomers have seen the first evidence of a dying sun-like star engulfing an exoplanet in what could be a preview of Earth’s ultimate fate. The cataclysmic event, some 13,000 light years away, was observed using the Gemini South telescope in Chile. Such spectacles occur when stars similar to our sun near the end of their
A man has admitted keeping a pensioner’s body in a freezer for nearly two years. Damion Johnson pleaded guilty at Derby Crown Court on Tuesday to keeping John Wainwright’s body in the freezer of a property in Birmingham. The 71-year-old died in September 2018 and was discovered in August 2020. The offence is believed to
Russia has claimed it stopped two drone attacks on Vladimir Putin’s presidential home overnight. The Kremlin blamed Ukraine for what it called a “terrorist act”. It said Russian military and security forces disabled the drones before they could strike. No victims or damage were reported and Mr Putin was not injured, it added. “On Wednesday