Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic unveils new Spaceship III

Virgin Galactic has unveiled its latest spaceplane model, the SpaceShip III, the first of which will be named VSS Imagine.

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  • Risk of suffering serious blood clot after AstraZeneca jab doubles in fortnight

    The risk of suffering a serious blood clot after the AstraZeneca jab has doubled in a fortnight, new figures show, but the British regulator said the benefits still outweighed the risks for the vast majority of people. New data from the Medical Healthcare products and Regulatory Agency (MHRA) show cases have risen from 79 to 168 since April 8, and deaths from 19 to 32. The risk of getting a blood clot has also gone up from one in 250,000 to around one in 126,600 – or a rise of four in a million to 7.9 in a million. Earlier this month the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advised that under-30s should be offered an alternative to the Oxford jab, because the risk no longer outweighed the benefits for younger people. A source close to JCVI said the committee would be reviewing the new data carefully this week, to assess whether the risk was also still worth the benefit for older groups now that the chance of getting a blood clot had risen.

  • ‘You’re old, impotent and an embarrassment’: Lincoln Project targets Trump with Mar-a-Lago advert

    The ad will air starting on Thursday in Palm Beach, Florida – where Mar-a-Lago is based

  • Pregnant women who catch Covid over 50 per cent more likely to suffer complications

    Pregnant women who catch Covid are over 50 per cent more likely to suffer complications such as premature birth, according to a major new study. Scientists have called on expectant mothers to get vaccinated after the findings indicated the risks from the virus are worse than originally assumed. Based on the medical records of 2,100 pregnant women across 18 countries, the study also found that newborns of infected women were nearly three times more at risk of severe medical complications that could require admission to a neonatal intensive care unit. Women who caught the virus but didn’t experience symptoms appeared to be at no added risk. Around eight per cent of births in the UK are preterm, affecting approximately 60,000 babies a year, higher than many countries in Europe. There is no evidence that being vaccinated against Covid poses a risk to pregnancy, and many scientists have said there is no plausible way that a jab could cause harm. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advises women who are pregnant to get either the Pfizer or Moderna jabs. However, officials believe that unfounded fears among pregnant women or those planning to become so are bolstering vaccine hesitancy.

  • William and Kate release new picture of Prince Louis to mark his third birthday

    A new photograph of Prince Louis has been released by his parents to mark his third birthday on Friday. The Duchess of Cambridge took the picture of her youngest child in the grounds of Kensington Palace on Wednesday shortly before he left for his first day of nursery school. Louis was probably welcomed by the sight of his favourite toy or a picture from home when he arrived at Willcocks.

  • Italian police arrest man suspected of links to 2016 Nice truck attack

    Italian police have arrested a man suspected of supplying a weapon to the attacker who rammed a truck into a Bastille Day crowd in the southern French city of Nice in 2016, killing 86 people. The man, identified as Endri E, is a 28-year-old Albanian suspected of having supplied a gun to Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, the Tunisian who carried out the attack on 14 July 2016, France's Bastille Day national holiday.Police arrested the suspect at Sparanise, near the southern city of Naples, acting on a European arrest warrant issued by France.The arrest comes after the Paris appeal court in March ordered eight people to stand trial for their alleged role in the 2016 attack.That trial is scheduled to open in 2022.Perpetrator shot dead at the wheel of attack vehicleBouhlel himself was shot dead by police at the wheel of the vehicle he had used to kill people as they celebrated the holiday on Nice's waterfront. More than 400 people were injured.The Nice attack came less than a year after the Bataclan assault in November 2015 in which 130 people lost their lives in bombings and shootings across the French capital.The Islamic State terrorist organisation claimed responsibility for the Nice attack. Investigators have found no evidence that Bouhlel had sworn allegiance to the jihadist group.

  • AstraZeneca blood clots linked to 32 deaths after over 21million jabs

    The MHRAs maintain that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine continue to outweigh the risks

  • More than 5,500 people get NSW police record after strip searches which found nothing illegal

    More than 5,500 people get NSW police record after strip searches which found nothing illegalExclusive: watchdog warns recording details in central intelligence database could lead to further targeting with no cause Data shows thousands of people in NSW have been left with a police record despite a strip search finding nothing illegal. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

  • Best garden furniture 2021

    Transform your outdoor area into a chic retreat with these super-stylish garden furniture picks

  • Quiz: Can you complete the titles from these film trilogies?

    We all have our favourite movie trilogies, but can you remember the individual titles of the films?

  • Covid vaccine passports ‘ready for summer’, travel industry told

    Certificates for international travel could be used from next month as ministers step up plans to allow Brits to holiday abroad this summer

  • Devastated mum found dead just weeks after daughter, 19, took her own life

    Jeanette Whittle, 44, and Rhianne Halton, 19, from Torquay, died within weeks of one another and were laid to rest at a joint funeral.

  • ‘World’s worst outbreak’: what India’s papers say as coronavirus crisis toll mounts

    ‘World’s worst outbreak’: what India’s papers say as coronavirus crisis toll mounts. Newspapers warn that the situation shows no sign of improving, and calls on warring politicians to cooperate to beat the virus

  • Go vegan to help UK hit greenhouse gas targets, says Cabinet minister Kwasi Kwarteng

    Going vegan can help to save the planet, a Cabinet minister said today. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said the rising number of people giving up meat and dairy was helping to “drive the progress” towards the UK’s target of slashing emissions by 78 per cent. Mr Kwarteng is the most senior political figure yet to endorse veganism as a potential major contributor to the battle against climate change.

  • Joseph Parker will retire Dereck Chisora, heavyweight’s manager claims

    Chisora (32-10, 23 KOs) meets Parker (28-2, 21 KOs) in the Manchester Arena on 1 May

  • Daughter of Trevor Phillips dies after 22-year anorexia struggle

    Daughter of Trevor Phillips dies after 22-year anorexia struggleSister writes that Sushila, 36, a freelance journalist, was ‘a best friend and an inspiration’ Broadcaster and anti-racism campaigner Trevor Phillips with his daughter Sushila in 1999. Photograph: Nigel Howard/Evening Standard/Rex/Shutterstock

  • UK student unions call for Covid refund process to be simplified

    UK student unions call for Covid refund process to be simplified. Students paying ‘astronomical’ fees while powerless to claim compensation, watchdog told

  • Extinction Rebellion Protesters Smash Windows at HSBC's London HQ

    Extinction Rebellion protesters used hammers and chisels to shatter windows at HSBC’s headquarters in London’s Canary Wharf on April 22.According to the group, nine women took part in the protest, which was scheduled for 7 am.Extinction Rebellion said they were protesting the bank’s climate plan. The plan “still allows the bank to finance coal power, and provides no basis to turn away clients or cancel contracts based on links to the fossil fuel industry,” the group said.A spokesperson for HSBC was quoted by the BBC as saying: “We welcome meaningful dialogue on our climate strategy; however, we cannot condone vandalism or actions that put people and property at risk.”The bank says it is aiming to bring financed emissions to net-zero by 2050. Credit: William Watson/Extinction Rebellion UK via Storyful

  • A region on edge: Syrian missile blast near Israel nuclear site underscores military fragility of region

    The blast was a second incident in days and emphasised tinderbox nature of the region

  • Exclusive: Hollyoaks' Callum Kerr on George's departure from the show

    Callum Kerr speaks out after his final scenes.

  • Prince Louis’s third birthday marked with picture of young royal on his bike

    The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have marked Prince Louis’s third birthday by releasing a photograph of their son pictured on his first day of nursery school. Louis is growing up fast and is shown sat on his bike in the grounds of Kensington Palace, smiling for mother Kate – who took the picture on Wednesday.