Exclusive: Reading in talks over Welcome to Wrexham style docuseries August 26, 2025 Reading could be the latest EFL club to make a “Welcome to Wrexham”-style documentary series. Owner Rob Couhig is understood to have been approached by several production companies since completing his takeover of the League One club in May. The discussions have yet to involve broadcasters or streaming services, but Couhig has been told that [...]
UK businesses set to face tougher compliance over fraud August 26, 2025 British businesses need to prepare for a “sea change” as the new powers to tackle fraud come into effect next Monday. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) director Nick Ephgrave told City AM last year that time was running short for businesses “to get their house in order” ahead of its new powers. From 1 September, [...]
US-style tipping hits UK pubs amid mass closures August 26, 2025 The UK pub industry is facing a new challenge as a controversial trend of implementing US-style tipping gains traction, coinciding with a period of widespread pub closures. A nationwide debate has been sparked by the Well and Boot pub in Waterloo, London, which has introduced an optional four per cent service charge on every drink. [...]
Women’s Rugby World Cup opener peaks at 2.4m viewers August 26, 2025 England’s opening Women’s Rugby World Cup match against the USA peaked at nearly 2.5m as records tumbled during the competition’s opening weekend. The 69-7 victory over the States was watched by an average 1.5m viewers on BBC 1 while the 42,723 in attendance at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light surpassed the crowd for the previous final, [...]
Warm dry summer expected to produce top vintage for UK wines August 26, 2025 English wine producers are expecting a top quality 2025 vintage after “optimal” weather conditions for many winemakers this summer. Comparisons have already been drawn to the record-breaking harvest of 2018, which provided outstanding grape ripeness and yields. Cherie Spriggs, head winemaker at Nyetimber said she was “quietly optimistic” about this year’s harvest. “2025 is definitely [...]
Reeves warned against gambling tax as EU black market hits £70bn August 26, 2025 Rachel Reeves has been warned to halt plans for tax hikes on bookies after research revealed illegal sites took over 70 per cent of Europe’s betting and casino sales in 2024. Data published by Yield Sec suggests that black market bookies and casino operators raked in £69.7bn across the 27 European Union countries in 2024. [...]
Lloyds to hand shareholders over £17bn by 2027, analysts say August 26, 2025 Lloyds Banking Group shareholders are set for a bumper payout with analysts projecting the lender will return over £17bn to investors by 2027. The FTSE 100 giant was listed as Jefferies analysts “preferred” banking stock following a strong year-to-date performance. Shares in Lloyds have jumped over 50 per cent since January. The bank received a [...]
Is the UK’s digital services tax at risk from a US tariff threat? August 26, 2025 The Digital Services Tax (DST), a two per cent levy on the revenues of major tech firms, has become a key point of friction in the UK’s transatlantic relationship with the US. The tax, which came into force in 2020, was designed to address an imbalance where global tech giants generate significant revenue from British [...]
A movie producer’s guide to the 82nd Venice Film Festival August 26, 2025 Even by its own towering standards, this year’s 82nd Venice Film Festival will be its most star-studded yet, as some of the world’s best filmmakers compete for the prestigious Golden Lion. VENETIAN LOVE AFFAIR Venice had a starring role in the wedding of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez. Their Venetian love affair will continue as [...]
Wall Street ‘mocks’ idea of London listing, fintech boss says August 26, 2025 The founder of one of Britain’s fasest-growing fintech firms has said Wall Street “mocks” the idea of a London Stock Exchange listing. Barney Hussey-Yeo, chief executive of Cleo, said the head of investment banking at a global bank had “laughed” at the notion of his company listing in London. He added they had “assumed” Cleo, [...]