Author: Buzzo

WH Smith has revealed a drop in High Street sales amid talks of selling 500 of its UK shops.Its High Street sales fell 6% in the 21 weeks to January 25, covering the key Christmas period, down 3% on the previous year.The company already has plans to close 17 UK stores in 2025, having closed 14 during the past financial year.But despite struggles on the High Street, WH Smith saw a boost from its travel arm, saying its travel business “delivered another excellent performance”, with plans to expand in the US.Carl Cowling, group chief executive said: “The group is in…

It’s been over a year since Enshrouded entered early access on PC, and Keen Games is showing no signs of slowing down. The latest update, Pact of the Flame, is available now (head here for more details), but more importantly, the roadmap for 2025 has been revealed. On top of ongoing improvements for combat, performance, the skill tree, building, lighting, and the world, the developer has tons of new content and features on the way. These include new weather events, Hollow Halls in the mountain and water biomes, new weapon types, improved night mechanics, auto collect, and much more. Many…

Morning opening: The German firewall is crumblingJakub KrupaFriedrich Merz, favourite to become the next German chancellor, will bring proposals to radically change asylum and immigration laws before parliament today, even if they end up being passed with the support of Alternative für Deutschland.As our Berlin correspondent, Kate Connolly, explains, Merz has been accused of shifting his position on the country’s “firewall” against the far-right party with the proposed law change, which would aim to dramatically increase the number of deportations.The proposals include effectively closing German land borders to irregular migration and allowing the federal police to request arrest warrants for…

Millions of people across Asia and the world are welcoming the Lunar New Year which coincides with the first new moon of the lunar calendar.Widely considered to be the most important event in the year for many in Asia and some Asian communities worldwide, the Lunar New Year represents a fresh start for those who celebrate.Fireworks, music, fairs, lanterns, dragon and lion dancing filled streets across Asia as celebrations that typically last about 15 days began.Andres Martinex Casares/EPA-EFEIn Beijing, China, performers took to the stage to celebrate the start of the Year of the Snake.Florence Lo/ReutersStilt walkers joined a parade…

Heart disease remains the top killer of Americans as risk factors continue to grow.The latest statistics were revealed in the American Heart Association’s annual report, 2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics.The report, which was published on Jan. 27 in the AHA’s journal Circulation, revealed that cardiovascular disease kills more people than all types of cancer and accidental deaths combined.7 BLOOD PRESSURE MISTAKES THAT COULD BE THROWING OFF YOUR READINGSIn 2022 — the most recent year for which mortality data is available — a total of 941,652 people died of heart disease-related conditions, according to the report. This was a little…

Anytime you ask Mark Scheifele about a goal he scored, he always begins his answer with a caveat. That he’s a pass-first player.  While that may be true — he is indeed one of the best passers in the sport — it sells his goal-scoring ability short.  After scoring the game-winning goal Tuesday — where the Winnipeg Jets defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 — Scheifele sits tied for the second most goals in the league (29). Joining him in a three-way tie for second is Sam Reinhart and his running mate, Kyle Connor. When asked after the game if there’s a bit of…

A pair of high-ranked New York City Police chiefs violated department policy when they made “demeaning” and “unprofessional” social media posts to attack civil servants and journalists, according to a report released Tuesday by an independent monitor.The Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD faulted the department’s Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry and its current top uniformed member John Chell for posts shared last year on the social media platform X that served to “diminish senior law enforcement officers in the eyes of the public.”The posts coincided with the department’s effort to “control the narrative” by creating their own media…

The BMW iX launched in 2021 as BMW’s first purpose-built EV SUV. Nearly every year since has seen small tweaks and changes to improve on it. Now, BMW has opted for a true refresh, bringing new exterior design elements, options, and – perhaps most notably – drastically improved performance. So how does it stack up against the old model, exactly? We place ‘em side to side to see for ourselves.Exterior DesignThe new BMW iX gets tweaks that, overall, should make the SUV look a little bit more like the rest of the current BMW lineup. Narrowed headlights with new lighting…

What Celebrities Were Like Before They Became Famous

UK ‘can’t afford’ not to build runways, says Jonathan Reynolds, ahead of Rachel Reeves’ growth speechGood morning. Rachel Reeves is today delivering a speech on growth that has been subject to almost as much advance pitch-rolling and pre-briefing as you get for a budget. And no wonder, because she is hoping that it will do almost as much work, politically at least, as a budget. Although she has not had to unravel the mega, £25bn tax raising package she announced in October, it suppressed business confidence more than she expected and there now seems to be a Westminster consensus that…