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Elsa Pataky has been training hard, and her husband, Chris Hemsworth, was super impressed by her strength during a joint gym workout session.

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  • Damian Lewis explains wife Helen McCrory's last request to him

    The actress sadly passed away last week.

  • Promising change, Germany's Greens make first bid for chancellery

    The co-leader of Germany's Greens, Annalena Baerbock, said on Monday she would run to become chancellor in September's elections, the first time the left-leaning party has sought the top job in its 40-year history. Analysts said the chance of an outright win for the ecologist party was still a long shot - though the Greens have become a formidable force that has profited from voters' fatigue with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives. Baerbock's group still trails the conservatives by around five points in the polls, despite signs of divisions in the conservative camp that has ruled Germany for 16 years.

  • Price of Covid PCR tests for travel could be slashed to under £50

    Treasury is considering exempting tests from VAT

  • Queen’s birthday to pass without gun salute for second time

    There will be no gun salute to mark the Queen’s 95th birthday on Wednesday as she continues to mourn the loss of her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. For the second consecutive year, the traditional 41-gun and 21-gun salutes in Hyde Park and the Tower of London on April 21 have been cancelled, the Ministry of Defence said. Her Majesty will continue to observe a period of mourning until Friday and as such, is understood to be reluctant to mark this year’s anniversary. She is expected to enjoy a quiet lunch with close family members at Windsor Castle, the details of which will remain private. Plans to mark her birthday with a new portrait have also been abandoned, the Daily Mail reports. The Royal family’s social media channels will likely be the only commemoration of the Queen turning 95. Royal sources suggested that even before the Duke’s death on April 9, the Queen had not wanted her forthcoming birthday to be marked in any meaningful way. She was keen for the focus to be on his 100th birthday celebrations, which would have taken place on June 10, one said. Last year, the salute was cancelled in line with the Queen’s wishes that no "special measures" were taken while the pandemic continued. The monarch will no doubt spend time on Wednesday in quiet reflection, remembering last year’s birthday, spent with her husband at Windsor during the first lockdown, as they isolated together. The Queen’s birthday parade, Trooping the Colour, which was due to have taken place on June 12, was cancelled in March for the second consecutive year due to the pandemic. Before the Duke’s death, Buckingham Palace had been considering a smaller event within the quadrangle at Windsor Castle, in line with last year's ceremony. Last summer, an event described as a "mini Trooping" was held at Windsor, led by the Welsh Guards and massed Bands of the Household Division, to the clear delight of Her Majesty. The annual Garter service, also usually held in June, has also been cancelled. While the Queen is determined to continue carrying out some solo engagements, she is thought unlikely to undertake anything in public in the coming weeks. However, Buckingham Palace has confirmed that she will attend the state opening of parliament at the Palace of Westminster on May 11, one of the key events in her diary, when she is due to be accompanied by the Prince of Wales.

  • ‘I don’t need lectures from you’, Keir Starmer tells anti-lockdown landlord sharing misinformation

    Confrontation took place at The Raven pub on Queen Street in Bath

  • Police launch murder probe after elderly woman dies jumping out of window during house fire

    The 83-year-old victim plummeted 20ft from the top-floor window at her home in Birmingham on Sunday morning.

  • Matthew McConaughey is a viable candidate for Texas governor, poll reveals

    Hollywood actor has support of 45 per cent of Texans against incumbent governor’s 33 per cent

  • Nicola Sturgeon gives Boris Johnson conversion therapy ultimatum: Ban it, or I will

    Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has pledged that if Boris Johnson doesn’t “take serious action” on banning LGBT+ conversion therapy, the SNP will outlaw the “discriminatory and harmful practice” itself.

  • Prince Harry ‘wants to stay in Britain for Queen’s 95th birthday and has not booked flight’

    Prince Harry has not booked his return flight to the United States but will return as soon as his pregnant wife Meghan needs him, a source close to the couple said today. The Duke of Sussex is believed to want to remain in Britain to mark the Queen’s 95th birthday this week if possible. Prince Philip’s funeral was the first time Prince Harry had met his relatives since the couple’s explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey, which was broadcast last month.

  • European Super League: What managers of 'Big Six' clubs have said about proposed breakaway competition

    Plans for a European Super League involving some of football's richest clubs have been met by widespread dismay from fans and former players. English football's so-called "Big Six" are among 12 clubs who have agreed to form a breakaway competition to rival the Champions League, with the project backed by US banking giant JP Morgan. Here, Sky News looks at what the managers of the English clubs involved - Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea - have said about the plans, which have been mooted for several years before Sunday's bombshell announcement.

  • Factbox-Who are the Skripal poisoning suspects allegedly behind deadly Czech blast?

    The Czech Republic has identified the same alleged Russian military intelligence officers wanted by Britain for the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal as suspects in a deadly 2014 blast at an ammunition depot. The men, known under the aliases Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov, are reportedly part of the elite Unit 29155 of Russia's GRU military intelligence service. The unit, according to a 2019 report by The New York Times, is focused on subversion, sabotage and assassination outside Russia.

  • What are the next steps out of lockdown? Key dates for easing

    Boris Johnson unveils key dates for easing of England’s coronavirus restrictions

  • Opposition parties push for inquiry into Boris Johnson’s ‘failure to be honest’

    Six parties write to Speaker and call for vote on holding probe into PM’s conduct

  • Reunited in grief: How Prince Harry spent a golden hour talking with his family

    They gamely presented a united front in the aftermath of the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, strolling side by side and chatting amiably as they emerged from St George’s Chapel into the sunshine. But the Duke of Sussex, 36, was afforded a rare opportunity to have a proper heart to heart with his brother, the Duke of Cambridge, his father and his grandmother on Saturday, as they returned to the confines of Windsor Castle. There, a couple of hours after the ceremony, when most other guests had melted away, senior members of the Royal family spent around an hour together, face to face for the first time in more than a year. There, reunited in grief and in their support for the Queen, Prince Harry is understood to have spent valuable time with Her Majesty, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It was the first time they had been together under one roof since the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey last March, when the frostiness and the tension was palpable. The group remained locked in conversation, no doubt comforting the Queen in her darkest moment. But it would have been odd had they not also addressed the elephant in the room, the Duke’s televised interview with Oprah Winfrey and the hugely damaging allegations made by both him and the Duchess. Aside from suggesting members of the family were racist and had ignored the Duchess’s pleas for help with she felt suicidal, the Duke accused his brother of being “trapped” within the monarchy and said he felt “really let down” by his father. In response, the Queen said the "serious allegations" would be addressed privately, but added that "recollections may vary". The Duke of Cambridge was understood to have been furious by the turn of events, while Prince Charles, 72, was said to feel “let down” by his son and daughter-in-law, whom he had supported “more than he would care to say.” But on Saturday, they were there to support the Queen and it was she, more than anyone, who has been desperate for her family to get together and resolve their differences. If anyone is the driving force behind a reconciliation, it will be the sovereign, sources insist. But while conversations may have begun, they were brief. The group are thought to have had around an hour together. Most of the 30 mourners are thought to have left Windsor Castle shortly after the service. Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall have newborn babies, while the Earl and Countess of Wessex were there with their two children. The Duke of York left shortly before 5pm, while Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall and the Cambridges, all left at around 6pm.

  • Britons with first dose of Covid vaccine ‘have become infected with variants’

    Dr Susan Hopkins has urged people to ‘take caution’ as India variant emerges in the UK

  • Cutting the cost of Covid tests for travellers

    Cutting the cost of Covid tests for travellersMike Whittaker has a suggestion to reduce test costs for those wishing to travel abroad, while Catherine Dunn says that if the government invested in public health infrastructure, we would have a more effective testing system ‘In principle, the samples from all persons in a travel group could be combined into one single sample tube, which is then tested with a single test.’ Photograph: Kirsty O’Connor/PA

  • Vaccines in numbers: 42,780,069 jabs given in the UK

    Government data up to April 17 shows that of the 42,780,069 jabs given in the UK so far, 32,849,223 were first doses – a rise of 139,445 on the previous day. Some 9,930,846 were second doses, an increase of 499,635.

  • Russian ballet dancer blames 'cancel culture' for the death of British choreographer Liam Scarlett

    A Russian ballet dancer has blamed cancel culture for the death of British choreographer, Liam Scarlett, who was facing new allegations of “inappropriate behaviour”. Scarlett died at the age of 35 on Saturday. His position with The Royal Ballet ended last year, when the Royal Opera House, which is home to the Royal Ballet Company, said that an independent investigation into Scarlett had concluded. There "were no matters to pursue in relation to alleged contact with students of The Royal Ballet School", it said. But further performances of Scarlett's production of Frankenstein were axed by the Royal Danish Theatre on Saturday over alleged misconduct towards several members of staff during rehearsals in 2018 and 2019, The Times reported. Now Russian ballet star Alexei Ratmansky, American Ballet Theatre's artist in residence, has claimed directors feared reprisals for running Scarlett's shows.

  • India reports more daily COVID cases than whole of Europe combined as Boris Johnson cancels visit

    More than 220,000 new daily cases were reported in India on Sunday.

  • Australia opens quarantine-free travel bubble with New Zealand

    Emotions ran high Monday as excited passengers set off on the first flights to take advantage of a quarantine-free travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand, allowing families split by the pandemic to finally reunite. "(I'll) yell, scream, cry, hug, kiss, (feel) happy -- all of these emotions at once," Denise O'Donoghue, 63, told AFP at Sydney airport as she prepared to board her flight.The arrangement means that for the first time in almost 400 days passengers can fly across the Tasman Sea without undergoing mandatory Covid-19 quarantine when they arrive."It's a very big day and exciting for families and friends," said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who hailed the success of both countries in containing the virus as a key factor in allowing the travel corridor.Australia was New Zealand's largest source of international tourists before the pandemic, accounting for about 1.5 million arrivals or 40 percent of total visitors in 2019.The bubble's opening received saturation coverage from media in both countries, with live television reporting from airports providing regular updates on the progress of flights.On a grass embankment at the foot of Wellington Airport's runway, the words 'WELCOME WHANAU' (family) were spelled out in giant letters.Lorraine Wratt, a New Zealander stranded by the pandemic while visiting family in Australia, told AFP it was "wonderful" to be able to travel again."We're very excited to be heading back home but we're gonna miss our family (in Australia) big time," she said."We came to Australia on December 11 to spend Christmas with our children... planning to go back in February, it's been a bit of a nightmare."'Day one of our revival'Australia is home to hundreds of thousands of expatriate New Zealanders and before coronavirus many regularly shuttled back and forth across the Tasman on three-hour flights.O'Donoghue said the travel bubble's opening made her feel the world was returning to some sort of normality."I'll be going back, they'll be coming over, we'll just be back to normal," she said."What normal's going to be from now on I don't know, but I'm just really, really excited today."Air New Zealand executive Craig Suckling said the atmosphere at Sydney airport before departure was electric."It was quite the emotional rollercoaster here in Sydney," he said."The check-in area was a hive of activity and at the boarding gate, customers were eager to get on."The airline's chief executive Greg Foran said it was also a "monumental" day for those involved in the hard-hit tourism industry."(It's) a real turning point for the airline. It's day one of our revival," he said.(AFP)