National News

Sir Elton John and It’s A Sin creator Russell T Davies have paid tribute to Paul O’Grady – remembering him as “ferocious in the fight against Aids” – after his death aged 67. The TV and radio presenter died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening, a statement shared with the PA news agency via a representative said. Queer As Folk creator Davies said on Instagram: “The saddest news. What a star. What

TV presenter and comedian Paul O’Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio has said. The TV star, also known for his drag queen persona Lily Savage, died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening, a statement shared with the PA news agency via a representative said. Mr Portasio said in his statement: “It is with great sadness that I inform you that Paul has passed away

Four in 10 (40%) households with children have skipped meals at some point in recent months, according to research for a charity. Around a third (32%) of people surveyed generally had skipped meals during the six months to February this year, Christians Against Poverty (CAP) found. Nearly a fifth (19%) said they were skipping meals at least weekly. The charity said it is aware from its own clients that adults

Junior doctors are being urged to back strike action in their battle with Holyrood for higher pay. BMA members who are junior doctors in Scotland will receive a ballot on Wednesday asking them if they support walkouts as part of their campaign for a pay rise. Dr Chris Smith, chairman of the BMA’s Scottish Junior Doctors Committee, said junior doctors had seen their pay drop 23.5% in real terms since

Children are increasingly turning to social media if they want to find out something new and “generally believe” what they discover online is true, according to a new study by the communications regulator. The Ofcom research also revealed some youngsters are still being fed content about anxiety and depression when they do not want to be and are being sent sexual messages by strangers. Some 96% of children aged three

The world’s first hub for child blast injury research has been opened in London – with an immediate focus on providing support to victims in Ukraine. The Centre For Paediatric Blast Injury Studies, a partnership between Imperial College London and Save The Children, will particularly focus on reducing pain in children with limb loss and developing new prosthetics. Almost 1,000 recorded civilian casualties among children in Ukraine have been caused

Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall is confident Lotte Wubben-Moy will be able to brush off her exclusion from Sarina Wiegman’s latest England squad and focus on the Gunners’ Champions League quarter-final. Eidevall’s side will host Bayern in Wednesday’s second leg hoping to bounce back from a 1-0 loss in the opening fixture, with 19,600 tickets already sold for the encounter at the Emirates Stadium – a whopping increase on the 5,018

Roy Hodgson has demanded a “lack of fear” from Crystal Palace’s players ahead of his first match since being reappointed by the Premier League strugglers. The 75-year-old former England manager, who was in charge of the Eagles between 2017 and 2021, last week returned to Selhurst Park on a contract until the end of the season following the sacking of Patrick Vieira. Palace are on an alarming 12-match winless run

MI5 has increased the terror threat level in Northern Ireland from “substantial” to “severe”, meaning an attack is highly likely. Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris cited a “small number” of individuals who remain determined to use “politically motivated violence”. Announcing the change on Tuesday, he urged the public to “remain vigilant” but “not be alarmed”. The move comes after a series of incidents targeting security forces in Northern Ireland, including