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Where people have to choose between food or home insurance
Getty Images By Natalie Sherman & Brandon Drenon BBC News As extreme weather events multiply, home insurance providers in the US are rapidly raising rates – or quitting the business altogether – forcing many into severe financial distress. Gretchen Bradford decided this year not to pay for home insurance. The 59-year-old has lived her whole…
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Russian convicts released to fight with Wagner accused of new crimes
Joint Press Service of Krasnodar Regional Courts By Arsenii Sokolov, Tim Whewell & Nina Nazarova BBC World Service A prisoner believed to have been released early to fight with Wagner mercenaries in Ukraine has been accused of committing a double murder in Russia after returning home from the war. Demyan Kevorkyan, who was given an…
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Is AI a threat to the world of fabric design?
By Stephanie Power Technology reporter Last year my partner and I thought it would be funny to send Christmas cards designed by artificial intelligence (AI). So we went to one of the AI-powered websites that create pictures from a text description. We asked it to draw a springer spaniel going down a hill on a…
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Football referees: Why should I be abused for 90 minutes?
IFA By Ali Gordon BBC News NI From being pushed, to threatening behaviour and sexist abuse, two female football referees have spoken out against the violence they endure. Maria Creaney, 37, and 16-year-old Halle O’Brien are being supported by the Irish Football Association’s (IFA) Catch Yourself On campaign. Last year Maria had to abandon a…
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Last-minute summer holiday bookings rise as Brits flee rain
By Ez Roberts Business reporter, BBC News School holidays are in full swing but it can be hard to believe this is peak summer for anyone who finds themselves on a UK beach. Record rain has struck the UK, leading to a rise in last-minute holiday booking, travel agencies report. One of these last-minute bookers…
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Robbie Robertson, leader of The Band, dies aged 80
Getty Images By Christy Cooney BBC News Robbie Robertson, guitarist and songwriter for Canadian-American group The Band, has died aged 80. A statement from his manager said he died on Wednesday surrounded by his family after a long illness. The Band were an influential act in the late 1960s and also the subjects of The…
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Canada accuses China of targeted lawmaker in misinformation campaign
Reuters By Nadine Yousif BBC News, Toronto Canada said it has detected a misinformation campaign targeting a member of its parliament on the Chinese instant-messaging app WeChat. Conservative politician Michael Chong was allegedly the target of posts sharing “misleading narratives” about his background, his family’s heritage and his political views. Global Affairs Canada (GAC) said…
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Disney to expand ads on streaming as business flags
Disney Pixar Disney is raising prices and expanding adverts in its streaming service, as it struggles to revive its business. The entertainment giant plans to raise prices for its ad-free streaming service in the US this fall and will launch Disney+ with advertisements in Canada, the UK and Europe in November. The move comes as…
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Sir Anthony Hopkins to play Nicholas Winton in One Life
Warner Bros By Nathan Bevan BBC News For the millions watching at home it was an unforgettable moment in British TV history. In February 1988 on BBC’s That’s Life! a man called Nicholas Winton came face-to-face with some of the 669 Jewish children he had saved from the Nazis prior to World War Two. A…
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Watch: Floodwaters send mobile home crashing into bridge
Floodwaters in Norway have sent mobile homes crashing into a bridge on the Hemsilar river. Footage shared on social media showed people gathering to watch as caravans were swept away and destroyed in the town of Hemsedal. Storm Hans has brought heavy rain to the country, with flooding causing travel disruption and resulting in thousands…