Business

Survivors of alleged sexual abuse by former owner of Harrods want enablers to face justice
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

Justice for Fayed and Harrods Survivors group claim there are ‘dozens of individuals who must be held to account’

A group of 50 survivors of alleged sexual abuse by Harrods’ former owner Mohamed Al Fayed are calling for “meaningful consequences” for those who they claim facilitated and ignored the abuse.

“If they think the money is the important factor they are so far off the mark,” said Jen Mills, a member of the Justice for Fayed and Harrods Survivors group. They claim there are “dozens of individuals who must be held to account”, from a range of eras.

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Traders placed over $1bn in perfectly timed bets on the Iran war. What is going on?
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

Suspicious wagers on the US-Israel war in Iran are creating huge windfalls and raising concerns among lawmakers

Sixteen bets made $100,000 each accurately predicting the timing of the US airstrikes against Iran on 27 February. Later, a single user would make over $550,000 after betting that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would topple, just moments before his assassination by Israeli forces. On 7 April, right before Donald Trump announced a temporary ceasefire with Iran, traders bet $950m that oil prices would come down. They did.

These bets and other well-timed wagers accurately predicted the precise timing of major developments in the US-Israel war with Iran, creating huge windfalls and raising concerns among lawmakers and experts over potential insider trading.

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As Franco Manca scales back, is the air going out of the sourdough pizza craze?
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

The restaurant is to cut more than a fifth of its outlets amid an onslaught from supermarkets and rival chains

When Franco Manca first opened in south London’s Brixton Market in 2008, its competitively priced sourdough pizzas served in a sophisticated setting quickly drew a buzz.

“It was all the rage,” says food blogger Gerry del Guercio of BiteTwice, who visited in the early days and recalls the novelty of seeing queues forming for pizza in London. “It was just desperately cool, and everyone wanted to try.”

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How a fiery attack on Sam Altman’s home unfolded
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

Molotov cocktail attack on OpenAI CEO’s home comes amid growing discontent against artificial intelligence

In the early hours of 10 April, a man approached the gate of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s house in San Francisco and hurled a molotov cocktail at the building before fleeing. The suspect, 20-year-old Daniel Moreno-Gama, was arrested less than two hours later while allegedly attempting to break into the headquarters of OpenAI with a jug of kerosene, a lighter and an anti-AI manifesto.

Federal and California state authorities have charged Moreno-Gama with a range of crimes including attempted arson and attempted murder. His parents issued a statement this week saying that their son had recently suffered a mental health crisis. Moreno-Gama, who has not yet entered a plea, faces up to life in prison if convicted.

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Opinion











Madeline Horwath on life admin – cartoon
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026



Technology

Finance leaders warn over Mythos as UK banks prepare to use powerful Anthropic AI tool
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Release of new Claude model, so far limited to US firms, will expand to British institutions in coming days

British banks will be given access in the next week to a powerful AI tool that was deemed too dangerous to be released to the public, as a series of senior finance figures warned over its impact.

Anthropic, which has so far limited the release of the new model to a small clutch of primarily US businesses, including Amazon, Apple and Microsoft, said it would expand that to UK financial institutions.

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Liz Kendall urges UK public to embrace AI as government makes first £500m fund investment
Posted on Friday April 17, 2026

Technology secretary plays down fears over jobs and cyber security as stake taken in British startup

The UK technology secretary has urged the country to “make AI work for Britain”, brushing off fears about its impact on jobs and cybersecurity as the government announced its first investment under a £500m sovereign AI fund.

Liz Kendall said the UK had to “seize” the opportunity offered by AI despite concerns underlined this month when US startup Anthropic revealed it had developed an AI model that posed a potentially significant cyber threat.

Asked how the government makes the case for embracing a technology that could disrupt jobs and now cybersecurity, Kendall said: “We have to seize this to make it work, for Britain, for our jobs, for solving the biggest challenges we face as a world.”

Speaking on Thursday as the government unveiled its first investment in a UK company as part of a £500m sovereign AI fund, Kendall acknowledged “people are worried about the risks and what it means for their jobs”, but AI entrepreneurs also believed they can “make it work … they can create jobs”.

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Sport

Manchester United hold on after Cunha’s cool finish to hand Chelsea latest loss
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

A makeshift Manchester United defence did not even have to resort to hair pulls to keep out a goalshy Chelsea. The unfamiliar pairing of Ayden Heaven and Noussair Mazraoui grew into a tepid game after a shaky start, making the full-time boos inevitable. Stamford Bridge was an unhappy place again, the unrest in the stands growing as a fourth consecutive defeat in the Premier League approached, and the only time the home fans stopped pining for the old Chelsea was when Mason Mount came on to help United protect their 1-0 lead.

Think back to Porto in May 2021. Back then, long before anyone in west London had heard of BlueCo, it was Mount who created the winner when Chelsea became kings of Europe for the second time. Five years on, though, this is a club that cannot even be sure that they will be in the Champions League next season.

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Spurs’ survival hopes hit after Rutter rescues dramatic late point for Brighton
Posted on Saturday April 18, 2026

Roberto De Zerbi could only watch in stunned silence. The Italian had been a crucible of emotions as Tottenham tried to hold out against his former club after Xavi Simons scored the goal that looked like ending their long wait for a victory. But football is capable of providing the cruellest twists and Georginio Rutter’s late dramatic equaliser must have felt like a dagger to the heart for De Zerbi and the Tottenham fans.

The draw leaves Spurs marooned in the relegation zone having failed to win in the league in 2026 and it is 15 games since they last achieved that feat. Fail to beat the bottom side Wolves next week and they will have matched the worst winless run in their history. De Zerbi was right to point to the positives afterwards even if the preposterous prospect of this magnificent stadium hosting Championship football next season is growing by the day. Victory for West Ham against Crystal Palace on Monday night would leave them four points from safety and almost needing a miracle.

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