Vicky Pattison says she finds Strictly Come Dancing intimidating and overwhelming but is keen to push herself beyond her comfort zone. The former Geordie Shore star is paired with Kai Widdrington for the BBC show and describes the early training as tough. In an interview with Women's Health UK, she said: "All the pros are carved like angels, and I’m there sweating away in my gym gear." She added that […]

The King will host the first incoming state visit by a German president in 27 years, with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier due to stay at Windsor Castle from 3 to 5 December. The visit will come less than three months after the King welcomed United States President Donald Trump to Windsor in September, and it marks the monarch’s third incoming state visit this year after a visit by French President Emmanuel […]

England defender Millie Bright has announced her retirement from international football. The 32-year-old has earned 88 England caps, helped the Lionesses win Euro 2022 on home soil, and captained the side to the 2023 World Cup final. Bright announced the decision on her podcast, Daly Brightness, which she co-hosts with former England team-mate Rachel Daly. She said the past decade wearing the Three Lions has exceeded her wildest dreams. She […]

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he shares the relief felt by families of Israeli hostages released by Hamas. He is in Sharm el-Sheikh to meet the US president and regional negotiators from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey as they sign off the Gaza peace plan. All 20 remaining live Israeli hostages were freed by Hamas on Monday morning as part of the first phase of the agreement, with Israel to release […]

A survey conducted by Opinium for TopCashback found that people who start their Christmas shopping early believe they can save about £120 by buying before mid-December. The research, carried out with 2,000 UK adults in September, shows 59% of those who celebrate Christmas had not started shopping by mid-September, at the 100 days before Christmas mark. When there is one month to go, 78% had already begun making purchases, while […]

Britain's Institute for Fiscal Studies says Chancellor Rachel Reeves could raise tens of billions of pounds in extra revenue through targeted tax reforms without breaching Labour's pledge not to raise the big three taxes. In a chapter of its 2025 budget assessment, the think tank outlines options, including ending capital gains tax relief on death, which would raise £2.3 billion in 2029-30 (€2.6 billion). It also notes that doubling council […]

A study by the Institute of Cancer Research suggests that offering a combination of DNA profiling and RNA gene expression tests to people with multiple myeloma could help predict relapse within 18 months of treatment. The researchers say the approach detects hidden risks that standard tests may miss and could benefit thousands in the UK. There are about 33,000 people living with myeloma in the UK, with roughly 6,300 new […]

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has signalled that the Government could scrap the two-child benefit cap, saying she is confident ministers will do the right thing for children living in poverty. The cap, introduced by the Conservative government in 2017, restricts universal credit and child tax credit to the first two children in most households. Phillipson, who is seeking Labour's deputy leadership, said there is an urgency to change the policy […]

John Swinney has said he would not resign if he wins next year’s Holyrood election but fails to secure an SNP majority. Delegates at the SNP conference backed the plan to base a renewed push for independence on winning an SNP majority at the next election. Soon after the proposals were approved, SNP deputy leader Keith Brown said the First Minister was “staking his premiership on independence” and would quit […]