The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
Bella Culley's family is being supported by the Foreign Office
A British teenager could spend up to nine months in a Georgian prison while she is investigated on suspicion of drug offences.
Bella Culley, 18, from Billingham on Teesside, appeared at a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday and, at the end of proceedings, told the court she was pregnant.
The prosecutor asked for 55 days to find evidence before the case is brought to trial and the BBC understands this could be extended by a further seven months.
Miss Culley's lawyer, Ia Todua, said police wanted to establish where the 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish had come from and whether she was "planning to hand it over to someone".
Miss Culley was arrested at Tbilisi, Georgia, and charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics.
Ms Todua, who has been appointed by the state to represent the teenager, said the prosecution estimated they would need two months to gather information.
"They said that they had to conduct a lot of investigative activities, so that they can collect evidence, establish where it was from [the narcotics] and was she planning to hand it over to someone," she said.
"That's what they said they want to establish, and they also confiscated her phone."
The lawyer added that, at the end of the hearing, Miss Culley "told the court that she was pregnant".
Rayhan Demytrie
Bella Culley has been sent to prison number 5 in Rustavi
The BBC understands other lawyers had been in touch to represent Miss Culley and the British consular service has planned a meeting.
The Foreign Office has confirmed that it is "supporting the family of a British woman who is detained in Georgia".
Georgian Police said officers had seized marijuana and the narcotic drug hashish in a travel bag at Tbilisi International Airport.
A spokesperson said the arrest was the result of a joint operation between multiple departments and, if found guilty, Miss Culley could face up to 20 years in jail or life imprisonment.
Cleveland Police has confirmed an 18-year-old woman from Billingham has been arrested in Georgia "on suspicion of drugs offences" and remains in custody.
Garfield, Puss in Boots, Aristocats' Toulouse – cultural icons maybe, ginger most certainly.
And now scientists across two continents have uncovered the DNA mystery that has given our furry friends, particularly males, their notable colour.
They discovered that ginger cats are missing a section of their genetic code, which means the cells responsible for their skin, eye and fur tone produce lighter colours.
The breakthrough has brought delight to the scientists but also the thousands of cat lovers that originally crowdfunded the research.
The scientists hope solving the puzzle could also help shed light on whether orange coloured cats are at increased risk of certain health conditions.
It has been known for decades that it is genetics that gives orange tabby cats their distinctive colouring, but exactly where in the genetic code has evaded scientists till now.
Two teams of scientists at Kyushu University in Japan and Stanford University in the US have now revealed the mystery in simultaneous papers published on Thursday.
What the teams found was that in the cells responsible for giving a cat its skin, hair follicles and eyes their colour - melanocytes - one gene, ARHGAP36, was much more active.
Genes are made up of pieces of DNA which give instructions to a cat's cells, like other living creatures, on how to function.
By comparing the DNA from dozens of cats with and without orange fur they found that those with ginger colouring had a section of DNA code missing within this ARHGAP36 gene.
Without this DNA the activity of the ARHGAP36 is not suppressed i.e. it is more active. The scientists believe that the gene instructs those melanocytes to produce lighter pigment.
Ginger cats mostly male
For decades scientists have observed that cats with completely ginger colouring are far more likely to be male. This tallies with the fact that the gene is carried on the X chromosome.
Chromosomes are larger sections of DNA, and male cats like other mammals have an X and a Y chromosome, which carry different amounts of genes.
As it a gene only on the X chromosome in this case controlling the pigment production then one missing piece of DNA is enough to turn a cat fully ginger.
In comparison female cats have two X chromosomes so the DNA needs to be missing in both chromosomes to increase lighter pigment production to the same extent - it means a mixed colouring is more likely.
"These ginger and black patches form because, early in development, one X chromosome in each cell is randomly switched off," explains Prof Hiroyuki Sasaki, geneticist at Kyushu University.
"As cells divide, this creates areas with different active coat colour genes, resulting in distinct patches."
Getty Images
Calico and tortoiseshell cats with mixed colourings are more likely to be female
Although couched in science, the study originally started off as a passion project for Professor Sasaki.
He had retired from his university post, but as a cat lover said he wanted to continue working to uncover the orange cat gene in the hope it could "contribute to the overcoming of cat diseases".
He and his team raised 10.6m yen (£55,109) via crowdfunding for the research from thousands of fellow cat lovers across Japan and the world.
One contributor wrote: "We are siblings in the first and third grades of elementary school. We donated with our pocket money. Use it for research on calico cats."
Hiroyuki Sasaki/Kyushu University
Professor Sasaki compared the genes of calico cats to those without, using local cats and an international genome database
The ARHGAP36 gene is also active in many other areas of the body including the brain and hormonal glands, and is considered important for development.
The researchers think it is possible that the DNA mutation in the gene could cause other changes in these parts of the body linked to health conditions or temperament.
The ARHGAP36 gene is found in humans and has been linked to skin cancer and hair loss.
"Many cat owners swear by the idea that different coat colours and patterns are linked with different personalities," said Prof Sasaki.
"There's no scientific evidence for this yet, but it's an intriguing idea and one I'd love to explore further."
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps special forces (file photo)
US and Israeli intelligence have accused Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards of planning attacks abroad
There has been a sharp rise in plots by the Iranian regime to kidnap or assassinate dissidents, journalists and political foes living abroad, according to reports by Western intelligence agencies.
And court documents from Turkey and the US - seen by BBC Eye Investigations and BBC Persian - contain evidence that Iran has been hiring criminal gangs to carry out killings on foreign soil, allegations the Iranian regime has previously denied. Iranian officials did not respond to a fresh request for a comment.
One name repeatedly surfaced in these documents: Naji Sharifi Zindashti, an Iranian criminal boss, known for international drug smuggling.
His name appeared in a Turkish indictment in connection with the 2017 killing in Istanbul of Saeed Karimian, the head of a Persian TV network that broadcast Western films and programmes to Iran.
Instagram
Naji Sharifi Zindashti fled to Iran after being controversially released from custody in Turkey
Iranian authorities considered Karimian a threat to Islamic values, and three months before his assassination an Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran sentenced him in absentia to six years in prison.
US and Turkish officials believed his death was related to a mafia feud.
But when in 2019, Massoud Molavi, a defector from Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), was gunned down in Istanbul, it shed light on Zindashti's alleged role in Karimian's assassination.
Molavi had been exposing corruption at the highest levels of Iran's leadership. The Turkish police discovered Zindashti's gardener had been present at the scene of Molavi's assassination, and that his driver had been at Karimian's murder.
The police suspected the gardener and the driver had been sent by Zindashti.
Zindashti was arrested in connection with Karimian's death but was controversially released after just six months, causing a legal scandal in Turkey. A Higher Court judge ordered his rearrest but by then he had left the country.
He then fled to Iran, raising suspicions that he might have been working for Iranian intelligence all along.
Cengiz Erdinc, a Turkish investigative journalist, claims that when those out of favour with the Iranian regime are killed, Zindashti's men are at the scene. "It is not the first time, but there has always been a connection between organised crime and the intelligence agencies," he says.
Turkish investigative journalist Cengiz Erdinc
Over three decades ago, he was convicted of drug smuggling in Iran and sentenced to death. But rumours suggested his escape from prison, which led him to Turkey, may have been orchestrated by Iranian intelligence.
"If someone sentenced to death in Iran escapes after killing a guard, they're unlikely to make it out alive - unless there's more to the story," says someone who knew Zindashti closely. The BBC is withholding their identity for their own safety.
"The only plausible way for him to return and live freely would be if he had been working for Iran's intelligence services, making his escape appear to be part of a planned cover story for intelligence work with Iran's security agencies and IRGC," they told BBC World Service.
In 2020, Zindashti's name appeared again in a Turkish indictment in connection with the kidnapping of Habib Chaab, an Iranian dissident who was lured to Istanbul, abducted, and later paraded on Iranian state TV.
Chaab was sentenced to death and executed. Zindashti's nephew was arrested in Turkey in connection with Chaab's disappearance. Zindashti has denied having any role.
Then, in 2021, Zindashti was implicated in a plot in the United States. According to Minnesota court documents, communications between Zindashti and a member of the Hells Angels, a Canadian biker gang, were logged in the indictment.
Zindashti allegedly offered $370,000 to have two Iranian defectors assassinated in Maryland. The FBI intervened and arrested two men before the attack could be carried out.
Our investigation into court documents also uncovered that the IRGC and its overseas operations arm, the Quds Force, have been working with criminal organisations like the Thieves-in-Law, a notorious international criminal gang from the former Soviet Union, to carry out kidnappings and assassinations.
US and Israeli intelligence sources say Unit 840 of the IRGC's Quds Force's main responsibility is to plan and establish terror infrastructure abroad.
In March, a New York jury convicted two men associated with the Thieves-in-Law for plotting to assassinate Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American activist. Iranian agents allegedly offered $500,000 for her killing. Just two years earlier, a man with a loaded gun had been arrested near her home in Brooklyn.
Following the 2020 assassination by the US of top IRGC commander General Qasem Soleimani, Iran vowed revenge. Since then, the US says Iran has been plotting to kill former members of the Trump administration involved in Soleimani's death, including former national security adviser John Bolton, and Mike Pompeo, former head of the CIA and secretary of state.
During last year's US presidential election, prosecutors accused Iran of plotting to assassinate Donald Trump, which Iran strongly denied.
In response to these growing threats, the US and UK have imposed sanctions on individuals linked to Iran's intelligence operations, including Zindashti, Iranian diplomats, and members of the IRGC.
Zindashti denies ever working for the Iranian intelligence service.
In one case in West London, a Chechen man was arrested near Iran International, a Persian-language TV station in London. He was convicted of gathering information for Iranian agents.
Last year, Pouria Zerati, a London-based presenter for Iran International, was attacked with a knife. Soon after, two men were arrested in Romania at the request of UK counter-terrorism police.
Sources in the UK security services told the BBC these men were part of the Thieves-in-Law, allegedly hired by Iranian agents.
Sima Sabet, a presenter for Iran International, was one of the targets, but an attempt to blow up her car failed.
"When they realised they couldn't attach a bomb to my car, the agents told the man to finish the job quietly," says Sima, who has seen the police file, says. "He asked how quietly, and they replied, 'As quiet as a kitchen knife.'"
Sima Sabet, from Iran International, was the target of an assassination plot
After the assassination of four Iranian Kurdish leaders by masked gunmen in a restaurant in Berlin in 1992, German prosecutors blamed the entire Iranian leadership for the killings. The attack was carried out by Iranian agents and members of the Iran-backed Lebanese Shia Hezbollah movement.
An international arrest warrant was issued for Iran's intelligence minister, and a court declared that the assassination had been ordered with the knowledge of Iran's Supreme Leader and president.
Since then, it seems the Iranian regime has been hiring criminal organisations to carry out kidnappings and killings in an attempt to avoid linking the attacks back to the regime.
But Matt Jukes, the UK's Head of Counter Terrorism Policing, says it is relatively easy for police to infiltrate criminal groups because they are not ideologically aligned with the Iranian regime.
It is what he calls a "creeping penetration" by Iran, which the police are trying to disrupt.
Chris Brown rose to fame two decades ago and is known for hits such as Ayo, Beautiful People and No Air
US singer Chris Brown has been arrested in the UK in connection with a bottle attack at a London nightclub in 2023.
Brown was arrested at a hotel in Manchester in the early hours of Thursday, and held on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm to music producer Abe Diaw at the Tape nightclub in Mayfair.
The Sun said it became aware of Brown's presence in the UK on Wednesday, at which point it alerted the Met Police.
The Met said a 36-year-old man remains in custody. Representatives for Brown have been approached for comment.
A Met spokesman told BBC News: ''A 36-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Manchester shortly after 02:00hrs on Thursday, 15 May on suspicion of grievous bodily harm."
''He has been taken into custody where he remains.
"The arrest relates to an incident at a venue in Hanover Square on 19 February 2023.
"The investigation is being led by detectives from the Central West Area Basic Command Unit."
The Sun said Met Police officers travelled to Manchester after the newspaper learned the singer had flown to the UK via private jet, and asked officers whether Brown was under arrest.
Speaking to the Sun in 2023, Mr Diaw claimed Brown hit him over the head with a bottle before punching and kicking him as he lay on the floor.
He said his knee collapsed and he was taken to hospital, and needed crutches to walk when he was discharged.
R&B singer Brown rose to fame two decades ago and is known for hits such as Beautiful People, No Air, Under The Influence, Run It and Turn Up The Music.
He is currently on tour and scheduled to play several UK shows in June and July.
Yostin Mosquera (left) with Albert Alfonso (centre) and Paul Longworth on a boat in Colombia
The jury in the trial of a man accused of murdering two men in London before dumping some of their remains in suitcases in Bristol has been discharged.
Yostin Andres Mosquera, 35, denies murdering Albert Afonso, 62, and Paul Longworth, 71, on or before 11 July 2024 and was on trial at the Old Bailey in London.
Parts of their bodies were found in Shepherd's Bush, while some were discovered in a suitcase and trunk left near Clifton Suspension Bridge.
The prosecution opened its case on 30 April but trial judge Mr Justice Bennathan discharged the jury earlier.
Julia Quenzler
Yostin Andres Mosquera is due to face a retrial
Justice Bennathan said there had been problems identifying the accurate times of searches made by Mosquera on his laptop, which had been used as evidence in the trial.
He told jurors the trial "simply cannot continue".
"We simply have to resolve this before we have a fair trial," he added.
The judge thanked jurors for their service and said he was sorry for where the trial had "ended up".
Mosquera has admitted the manslaughter of Mr Alfonso by way of loss of self-control, but denies both charges of murder.
There is due to be a pre-trial review hearing for Mr Mosquera at the Old Bailey on 13 June and provisional retrial date has been set for 30 June at Woolwich Crown Court.
Air strikes reportedly hit homes and tents sheltering displaced families
At least 103 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip since dawn, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency.
Fifty-six people, including women and children, were killed when homes and tents sheltering displaced families were bombed overnight in the southern city of Khan Younis, the local Nasser hospital said. Local journalists said its corridors were crowded with casualties and that its mortuary was full.
A spokesman for the Civil Defence later reported deadly strikes in the northern town of Jabalia, including an attack on a health clinic and prayer hall in Jabalia refugee camp that he said killed 13 people.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
But it has been intensifying its bombing of what it has said are Hamas fighters and infrastructure ahead of a planned expansion of its ground offensive in Gaza.
It comes as US President Donald Trump visits the region and indirect negotiations on a new ceasefire and hostage release deal between Hamas and Israel continue.
The streets of Khan Younis were filled with funeral processions and grieving families on Thursday morning, following what residents said were the deadliest set of air strikes in the city since Israel resumed its offensive almost two months ago.
One video shared by a local activist showed medics laying dozens of bodies on the ground at a local cemetery. An imam stood nearby leading prayers for hundreds of mourners gathered behind him in orderly rows.
Other footage showed men carrying the bodies of two small children wrapped in blood-stained shrouds outside Nasser hospital, which published a list of the names of the 56 people who medics said were killed.
Safaa al-Bayouk, a 42-year-old mother of six, said the children were her sons Muath, who was only six weeks old, and Moataz, who was one year and four months.
"I gave them dinner and they went to sleep. It was a normal day... [then] the world turned upside down," she told Reuters news agency.
Reem al-Zanaty, 13, said her uncle's family, including her 12-year-old cousin Menna, were killed when their two homes were bombed.
"We didn't feel or hear anything until we woke up with rubble on us," she said. "The Civil Defence did not come. I will tell you honestly we pulled ourselves [out]. My father helped us."
Medics also said local journalist Hassan Samour, who worked for Hamas-run al-Aqsa Radio, was killed along with 11 members of his family when their home in the eastern Bani Suheila neighbourhood was struck.
Reuters
Reem al-Zanaty said she woke up covered in rubble after an overnight strike on her home and had to be rescued by her father
The Civil Defence agency also said on Thursday morning that its first responders had recovered the bodies of four people following Israeli strikes in the northern town of Beit Lahia and two others in the central town of Deir al-Balah.
Later, spokesman Mahmoud Bassal reported that an Israeli strike on a home in Jabalia town had killed all five members of the Shihab family.
Another 13 people were killed when the al-Tawbah health clinic and prayer hall in the al-Fakhouri area of Jabalia refugee camp was bombed, he said.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that 15 people were killed, including 11 children.
A graphic video posted online purportedly from the scene showed two bodies covered in debris on a street next to a badly damaged building.
Amir Selha, a 43-year-old resident of northern Gaza, told AFP news agency: "Tank shells are striking around the clock, and the area is packed with people and tents."
On Wednesday, Israeli strikes killed at least 80 people across the territory, including 59 in Jabalia town and refugee camp, according to hospitals and the Civil Defence.
The Israeli military said it struck Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in the north of the territory on Tuesday night. It had warned residents of Jabalia and neighbouring areas to evacuate on Tuesday after rockets were launched into Israel.
Israeli evacuation orders issued on Wednesday afternoon also caused panic among residents of a crowded area of Gaza City, in the north.
The Israeli military said a hospital, a university and several schools sheltering displaced people in the Rimal neighbourhood had become "terrorist strongholds" and that it would soon attack them with "intense force".
Separately, a US-backed organisation said it would start work in Gaza within two weeks as part of a new heavily criticised US-Israeli aid distribution plan.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it had asked Israel to let the UN and others resume deliveries until it was set up.
Israel has not allowed any aid or other supplies into Gaza for 10 weeks, and aid agencies have warned of mass starvation among the 2.1 million population.
Israel imposed the blockade on 2 March and resumed its offensive against Hamas two weeks later, ending a two-month ceasefire. It said it wanted to put pressure on Hamas to release its remaining 58 hostages, up to 23 of whom are believed to be alive.
Israel launched a military campaign to destroy Hamas in response to the group's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 53,010 people have been killed in Gaza since then, including 2,876 since the Israeli offensive resumed, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
Co-op narrowly averted being locked out of its computer systems during the cyber attack that saw customer data stolen and store shelves left bare, the hackers who claim responsibility have told the BBC.
The revelation could help explain why Co-op has started to recover more quickly than fellow retailer M&S, which had its systems more comprehensively compromised, and is still unable to carry out online orders.
Hackers who have claimed responsibility for both attacks told the BBC they tried to infect Co-op with malicious software known as ransomware - but failed when the firm discovered the attack in action.
Both Co-op and M&S declined to comment.
The gang, using the cyber crime service DragonForce, sent the BBC a long, offensive rant about their attack.
"Co-op's network never ever suffered ransomware. They yanked their own plug - tanking sales, burning logistics, and torching shareholder value," the criminals said.
But cyber experts like Jen Ellis from the Ransomware Task Force said the response from Co-op was sensible.
"Co-op seems to have opted for self-imposed immediate-term disruption as a means of avoiding criminal-imposed, longer-term disruption. It seems to have been a good call for them in this instance," she said.
Ms Ellis said these kinds of crisis decisions are often taken quickly when hackers have breached a network and can be extremely difficult.
Speaking exclusively to the BBC, the criminals claimed to have breached Co-op's computer systems long before they were discovered.
"We spent a while seated in their network," they boasted.
They stole a large amount of private customer data and were planning to infect the company with ransomware, but were detected.
Ransomware is a kind of attack where hackers scramble computer systems and demand payment from victims in exchange for handing back control.
It would also have made the restoration of Co-op's systems more complex, time-consuming and expensive - exactly the problems M&S appears to be wrestling with.
The criminals claim they were also behind the attack on M&S which struck over Easter.
Although M&S has yet to confirm it is dealing with ransomware, cyber experts have long said that is the situation and M&S has not issued any advice or corrections to the contrary.
Nearly three weeks on, the retailer is still struggling to get back to normal, as online orders are still suspended and some shops have had continued issues with contactless payments and empty shelves this week.
An analysis from Bank of America estimates the fallout from the hack is costing M&S £43m per week.
On Tuesday, M&S admitted personal customer data was stolen in the hack, which could include telephone numbers, home addresses and dates of birth.
It added the data theft did not include useable payment or card details, or any account passwords - but nonetheless urged customers to reset their account details and be wary of potential scammers using the information to make contact.
Co-op seems to be recovering more quickly, saying its shelves will start to return to normal from this weekend.
Nonetheless it is expected to feel the effects of the cyber attack for some time.
"Co-op have acted quickly and their work on the recovery helps to soften things slightly, but rebuilding trust is a bit harder," Prof Oli Buckley, a cyber security expert at Loughborough University, told the BBC.
"It will be a process of showing that lessons have been learned and there are stronger defences in place," he added.
The same cyber-crime group has also claimed responsibility for an attempted hack of the London department store Harrods.
The hackers who contacted the BBC say they are from DragonForce which operates an affiliate cyber crime service so anyone can use their malicious software and website to carry out attacks and extortions.
It's not known who is ultimately using the service to attack the retailers, but some security experts say the tactics seen are similar to that of a loosely coordinated group of hackers who have been called Scattered Spider or Octo Tempest.
The gang operates on Telegram and Discord channels and is English-speaking and young – in some cases only teenagers.
Conversations with Co-op hackers were carried out in text form - but it is clear the hacker, who called himself a spokesperson, was a fluent English speaker.
They say two of the hackers want to be known as "Raymond Reddington" and "Dembe Zuma" after characters from US crime thriller Blacklist which involves a wanted criminal helping police take down other criminals on a 'blacklist'.
The hackers say "we're putting UK retailers on the Blacklist".
Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the Rolls-Royce factory in Derby after growth figures were announced
It's not a boom, but it is something to be roundly welcomed.
Today's economic figures may reflect erratic trade war factors, and bounceback from stagnation at the end of last year.
The growth may prove short lived if the gravitational pull of US tariffs and tax rises do hit hard.
The valid caveats, should not, however, get in the way of the main story here.
The UK economy did far better than doom-laden predictions for the first three months of this year.
It was nowhere near a recession.
A growth rate of 0.7% beat expectations.
It is a return to normal, healthy levels of growth, at least in that quarter.
On successive governments' favourite metric - the growth of the rest of the G7 advanced economies - the UK will now be the fastest growing. This is subject to confirmation of Japan and Canada's numbers in the coming days, but they will be lower.
While almost everybody expects growth to slow in the current quarter, after months of tariff uncertainty and April's tax rises, this figure should alter the frame of thinking about the British economy.
Are millions of families still suffering from the cost of living squeeze? Yes.
Are small businesses especially in retail and hospitality under suffocating pressure from rises in employer National Insurance and the National Living Wage? Also yes.
But away from those important sectors, there is definitely resilience, and it seems even more than that.
The impact of interest rate cuts, and relative political and economic stability, may have been more much more important.
Real incomes are up, and for many businesses outside retail and hospitality, the rise in National Insurance contributions has been accommodated by a squeeze to profit margins and wage rises.
The flipside of the National Living Wage rise, is, of course, a more robust consumer amid a demographic that does spend in the shops.
The UK is a world away from the predictions of early January when widespread doom-mongering equated a rise in government borrowing rates - mainly driven by global factors - with the risk of a UK-specific mini Budget style crisis.
There are obvious challenges.
The shadow chancellor is right to say there should no champagne corks, but no bubbles were in evidence when Rachel Reeves spoke at the Rolls-Royce factory after the numbers were published.
But this number provides an opportunity for the chancellor after a growth stutter, partly self-inflicted, under this government.
A robustly growing economy, stable economic policy, falling interest rates, and a graspable positioning in the current global trade tumult as an oasis of tariff stability, are decent selling points in an uncertain world.
It is why Reeves resisted my suggestion that her welfare cuts might be negotiable after an apparent backbench revolt: "We will take forward those reforms," she said.
The chancellor may have more work, however, in convincing businesses that growth is this government's number one priority, given the prime minister's focus on an immigration crackdown.
Some interesting conversations will soon occur with businesses, for example the construction companies meant to deliver 1.5m homes, and the new infrastructure which has been planned, or merely even to staff care homes.
For now it is a relief that the British economy appears resilient and robust.
It may be temporary, but we should not assume that. These figures provide an opportune moment for some optimism and a hard sell of the UK to the rest of the world.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the Rolls-Royce factory in Derby after growth figures were announced
It's not a boom, but it is something to be roundly welcomed.
Today's economic figures may reflect erratic trade war factors, and bounceback from stagnation at the end of last year.
The growth may prove short lived if the gravitational pull of US tariffs and tax rises do hit hard.
The valid caveats, should not, however, get in the way of the main story here.
The UK economy did far better than doom-laden predictions for the first three months of this year.
It was nowhere near a recession.
A growth rate of 0.7% beat expectations.
It is a return to normal, healthy levels of growth, at least in that quarter.
On successive governments' favourite metric - the growth of the rest of the G7 advanced economies - the UK will now be the fastest growing. This is subject to confirmation of Japan and Canada's numbers in the coming days, but they will be lower.
While almost everybody expects growth to slow in the current quarter, after months of tariff uncertainty and April's tax rises, this figure should alter the frame of thinking about the British economy.
Are millions of families still suffering from the cost of living squeeze? Yes.
Are small businesses especially in retail and hospitality under suffocating pressure from rises in employer National Insurance and the National Living Wage? Also yes.
But away from those important sectors, there is definitely resilience, and it seems even more than that.
The impact of interest rate cuts, and relative political and economic stability, may have been more much more important.
Real incomes are up, and for many businesses outside retail and hospitality, the rise in National Insurance contributions has been accommodated by a squeeze to profit margins and wage rises.
The flipside of the National Living Wage rise, is, of course, a more robust consumer amid a demographic that does spend in the shops.
The UK is a world away from the predictions of early January when widespread doom-mongering equated a rise in government borrowing rates - mainly driven by global factors - with the risk of a UK-specific mini Budget style crisis.
There are obvious challenges.
The shadow chancellor is right to say there should no champagne corks, but no bubbles were in evidence when Rachel Reeves spoke at the Rolls-Royce factory after the numbers were published.
But this number provides an opportunity for the chancellor after a growth stutter, partly self-inflicted, under this government.
A robustly growing economy, stable economic policy, falling interest rates, and a graspable positioning in the current global trade tumult as an oasis of tariff stability, are decent selling points in an uncertain world.
It is why Reeves resisted my suggestion that her welfare cuts might be negotiable after an apparent backbench revolt: "We will take forward those reforms," she said.
The chancellor may have more work, however, in convincing businesses that growth is this government's number one priority, given the prime minister's focus on an immigration crackdown.
Some interesting conversations will soon occur with businesses, for example the construction companies meant to deliver 1.5m homes, and the new infrastructure which has been planned, or merely even to staff care homes.
For now it is a relief that the British economy appears resilient and robust.
It may be temporary, but we should not assume that. These figures provide an opportune moment for some optimism and a hard sell of the UK to the rest of the world.
Sir Keir Starmer has said that he is "determined that we will retake control of the borders," as he begins a visit to Albania.
In his first official visit to the country, the prime minister is expected to announce further measures to crack down on organised crime and illegal immigration.
The UK is to step up intelligence sharing with Albanian law enforcement and provide funding for forensics, as part of the plans announced.
The number of people crossing the Channel has passed 12,000 since January, putting 2025 on course to be a record year.
Speaking in Albania, Sir Keir said: "The last government lost control of the borders. I am determined that we will retake control of the borders.
"That means that we have got to have a concerted effort to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade."
He said greater co-operation with Albania had "driven down those numbers" and that he wanted to "see more of that".
Immigration has been a strong focus of the government this week - on Monday it set out plans to reduce the level of legal migration in a White Paper.
The government said there has been a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, and that the number of Albanians returned has doubled in the past two years.
The prime minister is expected to announce the expansion of the Joint Migration Task Force - which shares intelligence and carries out operations against people smugglers in the Western Balkans - to include North Macedonia.
The enhanced co-operation with Albania set to be announced will include measures to tackle a "revolving door effect", of migrants returning home, evading law enforcement and leaving the country again, the government said.
The plans will also include:
A new programme to help young Albanians reintegrate into society and find employment
Funding a new forensic evidence programme to share and track DNA of criminals in Albania to solve crimes in the UK
A further £1m investment to upgrade Albania's forensics, biometrics and digital capability
Greater intelligence sharing to allow local law, using UK-funded drones, to "snare gangsters" transporting migrants through the Western Balkans corridor
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Sir Keir's visit as "pure theatre".
He said: "The returns deal with Albania was decisive action taken by the previous Conservative government."
"So why is Starmer now flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit? If the scheme is already working, what exactly is this trip for?" he added.
Bella Culley's family is being supported by the Foreign Office
A British teenager could spend up to nine months in a Georgian prison while she is investigated on suspicion of drug offences.
Bella Culley, 18, from Billingham on Teesside, appeared at a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday and, at the end of proceedings, told the court she was pregnant.
The prosecutor asked for 55 days to find evidence before the case is brought to trial and the BBC understands this could be extended by a further seven months.
Miss Culley's lawyer, Ia Todua, said police wanted to establish where the 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish had come from and whether she was "planning to hand it over to someone".
Miss Culley was arrested at Tbilisi, Georgia, and charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics.
Ms Todua, who has been appointed by the state to represent the teenager, said the prosecution estimated they would need two months to gather information.
"They said that they had to conduct a lot of investigative activities, so that they can collect evidence, establish where it was from [the narcotics] and was she planning to hand it over to someone," she said.
"That's what they said they want to establish, and they also confiscated her phone."
The lawyer added that, at the end of the hearing, Miss Culley "told the court that she was pregnant".
Rayhan Demytrie
Bella Culley has been sent to prison number 5 in Rustavi
The BBC understands other lawyers had been in touch to represent Miss Culley and the British consular service has planned a meeting.
The Foreign Office has confirmed that it is "supporting the family of a British woman who is detained in Georgia".
Georgian Police said officers had seized marijuana and the narcotic drug hashish in a travel bag at Tbilisi International Airport.
A spokesperson said the arrest was the result of a joint operation between multiple departments and, if found guilty, Miss Culley could face up to 20 years in jail or life imprisonment.
Cleveland Police has confirmed an 18-year-old woman from Billingham has been arrested in Georgia "on suspicion of drugs offences" and remains in custody.
Watch: Rupert Lowe tells BBC Newsnight that Nigel Farage is "running a cult"
Former Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe has accused Nigel Farage's party of being "the cult of Nigel" and says he was the victim of a "political assassination attempt".
Speaking to Victoria Derbyshire on BBC Newsnight, Lowe suggested his relationship with Reform UK changed when "Elon Musk came out and was complimentary about me and less complimentary about Nigel"
The Great Yarmouth MP made the comments in his first broadcast interview since the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to press charges over threats he was alleged to have made.
Reform UK declined to comment on Lowe's latest attack on Farage, who has previously dismissed the row as irrelevant to the continued advance of the party.
Sarah Pochin, who earlier this month won the Runcorn and Helsby by-election for Reform, described herself as Lowe's "replacement" on the party's benches in Parliament and also played down the Lowe spat.
"I really think it is white noise around what is a huge, energetic movement now, Reform, coming across the country and coming for the other two parties," she told the BBC.
Lowe was elected as a Reform MP in last year's general election but was suspended by the party in March, amid claims of threats towards its chairman Zia Yusuf.
In his Newsnight interview, Lowe said of Farage's "brutal" leadership style "If people become, if you like, too tall a poppy, he tends to lop off the head of the poppy".
On Reform UK's leadership, Lowe said Farage has "a team of what I call, very long-term lightweight sort of servants, which is what you tend to find in a cult."
The independent MP added that he didn't think Farage is "fit to be leader".
"I think he's ultimately a very good, what I would call, ballroom entertainer. And he stands up and he entertains, and he's extremely good at that."
On Wednesday, Malcolm McHaffie, head of the CPS, said it made the decision not to press charges on Mr Lowe "following a thorough and detailed review of the evidence".
Although the CPS statement does not name Lowe, the case relates to an incident at the Palace of Westminster in December 2024.
Lowe maintains that the claims made against him are untrue. "Why did they do it? I think it was a political assassination attempt."
"I think Nigel is running a cult. That's what I concluded, and I think it's the cult of Nigel. And anyone who basically has a different opinion, is effectively expunged from, being a threat to, to the cult."
Lowe also revealed that his firearms were confiscated from his home by police, following his row with Reform.
"We had an unannounced visitation from four armed police officers in three cars", he said.
"They came and they took all my guns away."
Lowe declined to say if he would launch a new political party, suggesting instead that "the most powerful instrument for change probably would be reformed Tory party".
"I could join the Tories tomorrow if I wanted to. I don't have an issue with the Tories," he added.
However, Lowe also suggested he would "make sure there's an alternative" to the existing political offerings, adding "if people think I'm going to pack up my tent to leave the field, they're very wrong."
When asked about what support this "alternative" might gain, Lowe suggested Elon Musk "broadly, would consider supporting us" in a future political venture.
"I can't speak for him, but would I be grateful and would I feel good about his verbal support? Yes. Financial support? Yes. If he chose to do that, it would be fantastic."
Watch Rupert Lowe's interview on Newsnight on BBC Two at 22:30 BST.
Reddit founder Ohanian buys stake in Chelsea women
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Alexis Ohanian and Serena Williams married in 2017
Published
Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian has bought a stake in Women's Super League champions Chelsea, the club have confirmed.
Ohanian, who is married to tennis great Serena Williams, will have a seat on Chelsea Women's board after purchasing a 8-10% share, believed to be worth around £20m.
"This is a landmark day in the history of Chelsea Women and for women's football in Europe and beyond," said Aki Mandhar, chief executive Chelsea Women.
"This investment is validation of the club's past success but more importantly it is yet another proof point in the market of the persistent growth and potential of women's football.
"There is no greater champion of investing in the future of girls and women's sports than Alexis, and we are incredibly proud to welcome him to the club."
Ohanian, 42, has invested in women's football previously, as the largest shareholder in American club side Angel City FC until it was sold in 2024 for £192.3m - the highest price for a women's sports team until this deal.
"As Founding Control Owner of Angel City FC, I've seen the opportunity to create and grow a worldwide brand within women's football, and I'm confident Chelsea FC Women is the next global women's sports brand," said Ohanian.
Ohanian had announced news of his investment on Wednesday and posted images of Chelsea kits with the names of his children, Olympia and Adira, on the backs.
His investment of roughly £20m puts the value of Chelsea Women at more than £200m, which was the worth placed on the club when Chelsea FC Holdings sold the team to a sister company earlier this year to help the club adhere to profit and sustainability rules.
The Blues have put a post-investment valuation on the club at £245m.
It marks the latest boardroom change for Chelsea, who recently appointed Mandhar as their first dedicated chief executive officer for the women's team.
Earlier this month, Chelsea won their sixth consecutive WSL title. They became the first side to finish a 22-game campaign unbeaten and set a new league record of 60 points.
They also won the Women's League Cup in March and are going for a domestic treble when they meet Manchester United in the Women's FA Cup final at Wembley on Sunday - a game Ohanian and Williams are expected to attend.
The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
Liz says she was "astonished" to learn of her criminal record
A woman who unknowingly had a criminal record for 56 years for being a lesbian in the military is encouraging more women to apply to a government pardons scheme.
Liz Stead, 78, was thrown out of the RAF in 1969 when bosses discovered a love letter from her then-girlfriend.
More than 50 years later Liz discovered she was also given a criminal conviction for "perceived same-sex sexual activity" and had unknowingly lived with a criminal record for most of her adult life.
She is one of 40 people in England and Wales who have had convictions of this nature overturned since 2023, when the government's Disregards and Pardons Scheme was expanded to include women for the first time.
Liz, from Chichester, West Sussex, first learned of her criminal record in December last year, when applying for a different scheme, which awards financial redress to veterans who were sacked during a ban on homosexuality in the armed forces which was lifted in the year 2000.
In emails seen by the BBC, her application for the payment was initially denied because of the conviction, and she was advised to apply for it to be pardoned by the Home Office.
She applied to have the application fast-tracked due to ill health - and says she was "astonished" to learn of the charges.
She now wonders what unknown impact it has had on her life.
"I can think of one job where it might have been the reason I didn't get it. I've worked in local government most of my life and I have to wonder, had they known about this, would I have still had that job?," she said.
In 2012, the government's Disregards and Pardons scheme was launched to allow people historically convicted for consensual same-sex activities to have those convictions deleted from official records.
Since the expansion, there have been 40 people given pardons, with the majority granted to former military personnel.
Liz is now encouraging other women who may have been in contact with police, or those who were thrown out of the military for their sexuality to apply for pardons in order to find out if they have an unknown conviction.
She said: "I can't think how it is on my records and I've never known about it, but I can't be the only one, they can't have just pinpointed me.
"I didn't know anything about it, so I had no idea what the pardon would even be for but I was told it was related to same-sex activity."
Liz Stead
Liz (middle) attended a "restorative action ceremony" earlier this year alongside her wife Stevie (left) to welcome her back into the military family.
Liz served for three and a half years in the RAF and had an exemplary record, but was thrown out when bosses investigated her then-girlfriend and found love letters between the two.
She was interrogated by the Special Investigation Branch - the detective arm of the military police which at the time often focussed investigations on same-sex sexual activity - and dismissed.
The partial decriminalisation of homosexuality began in the UK in 1967 with the passing of the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalised homosexual acts between men over the age of 21 in England and Wales.
In Scotland, the law was changed in 1980 and in Northern Ireland, 1982.
However, homosexuality remained illegal in Britain's armed forces until the year 2000, when the European Court of Human Rights ruled the ban illegal.
As part of reparations made to LGBT Veterans, Liz was invited to a ceremony to return her medals and re-welcome her into the military family.
Although the day was once a fond memory for her, she said it was now "tainted" because of the criminal record and she might have considered not attending had she known about that at the time.
Peter Gibson, CEO of LGBT+ military charity Fighting With Pride, which helped Liz apply for the pardon, said: "Liz's experience shows how important it is that justice is properly done to all LGBT+ veterans who suffered under the cruel ban. Lives and careers were ruined under that 'gay ban'.
"It's shocking that some people who served for their country and were kicked out for simply being their true selves might also have had a criminal record without even knowing."
Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said that criminal records for same-sex relationships "should never have existed in the first place."
She added: "Each pardon represents real changes to real lives. Some could now have their military medals returned while others can finally walk taller knowing a painful injustice has been finally righted.
"I urge anyone with convictions under these cruel and prejudiced laws to apply to our scheme. You deserve justice and we remain committed to righting these historical wrongs."
Sir Keir Starmer has said that he is "determined that we will retake control of the borders," as he begins a visit to Albania.
In his first official visit to the country, the prime minister is expected to announce further measures to crack down on organised crime and illegal immigration.
The UK is to step up intelligence sharing with Albanian law enforcement and provide funding for forensics, as part of the plans announced.
The number of people crossing the Channel has passed 12,000 since January, putting 2025 on course to be a record year.
Speaking in Albania, Sir Keir said: "The last government lost control of the borders. I am determined that we will retake control of the borders.
"That means that we have got to have a concerted effort to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade."
He said greater co-operation with Albania had "driven down those numbers" and that he wanted to "see more of that".
Immigration has been a strong focus of the government this week - on Monday it set out plans to reduce the level of legal migration in a White Paper.
The government said there has been a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, and that the number of Albanians returned has doubled in the past two years.
The prime minister is expected to announce the expansion of the Joint Migration Task Force - which shares intelligence and carries out operations against people smugglers in the Western Balkans - to include North Macedonia.
The enhanced co-operation with Albania set to be announced will include measures to tackle a "revolving door effect", of migrants returning home, evading law enforcement and leaving the country again, the government said.
The plans will also include:
A new programme to help young Albanians reintegrate into society and find employment
Funding a new forensic evidence programme to share and track DNA of criminals in Albania to solve crimes in the UK
A further £1m investment to upgrade Albania's forensics, biometrics and digital capability
Greater intelligence sharing to allow local law, using UK-funded drones, to "snare gangsters" transporting migrants through the Western Balkans corridor
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Sir Keir's visit as "pure theatre".
He said: "The returns deal with Albania was decisive action taken by the previous Conservative government."
"So why is Starmer now flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit? If the scheme is already working, what exactly is this trip for?" he added.
Yostin Mosquera (left) with Albert Alfonso (centre) and Paul Longworth on a boat in Colombia
The jury in the trial of a man accused of murdering two men in London before dumping some of their remains in suitcases in Bristol has been discharged.
Yostin Andres Mosquera, 35, denies murdering Albert Afonso, 62, and Paul Longworth, 71, on or before 11 July 2024 and was on trial at the Old Bailey in London.
Parts of their bodies were found in Shepherd's Bush, while some were discovered in a suitcase and trunk left near Clifton Suspension Bridge.
The prosecution opened its case on 30 April but trial judge Mr Justice Bennathan discharged the jury earlier.
Julia Quenzler
Yostin Andres Mosquera is due to face a retrial
Justice Bennathan said there had been problems identifying the accurate times of searches made by Mosquera on his laptop, which had been used as evidence in the trial.
He told jurors the trial "simply cannot continue".
"We simply have to resolve this before we have a fair trial," he added.
The judge thanked jurors for their service and said he was sorry for where the trial had "ended up".
Mosquera has admitted the manslaughter of Mr Alfonso by way of loss of self-control, but denies both charges of murder.
There is due to be a pre-trial review hearing for Mr Mosquera at the Old Bailey on 13 June and provisional retrial date has been set for 30 June at Woolwich Crown Court.
The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
Co-op narrowly averted being locked out of its computer systems during the cyber attack that saw customer data stolen and store shelves left bare, the hackers who claim responsibility have told the BBC.
The revelation could help explain why Co-op has started to recover more quickly than fellow retailer M&S, which had its systems more comprehensively compromised, and is still unable to carry out online orders.
Hackers who have claimed responsibility for both attacks told the BBC they tried to infect Co-op with malicious software known as ransomware - but failed when the firm discovered the attack in action.
Both Co-op and M&S declined to comment.
The gang, using the cyber crime service DragonForce, sent the BBC a long, offensive rant about their attack.
"Co-op's network never ever suffered ransomware. They yanked their own plug - tanking sales, burning logistics, and torching shareholder value," the criminals said.
But cyber experts like Jen Ellis from the Ransomware Task Force said the response from Co-op was sensible.
"Co-op seems to have opted for self-imposed immediate-term disruption as a means of avoiding criminal-imposed, longer-term disruption. It seems to have been a good call for them in this instance," she said.
Ms Ellis said these kinds of crisis decisions are often taken quickly when hackers have breached a network and can be extremely difficult.
Speaking exclusively to the BBC, the criminals claimed to have breached Co-op's computer systems long before they were discovered.
"We spent a while seated in their network," they boasted.
They stole a large amount of private customer data and were planning to infect the company with ransomware, but were detected.
Ransomware is a kind of attack where hackers scramble computer systems and demand payment from victims in exchange for handing back control.
It would also have made the restoration of Co-op's systems more complex, time-consuming and expensive - exactly the problems M&S appears to be wrestling with.
The criminals claim they were also behind the attack on M&S which struck over Easter.
Although M&S has yet to confirm it is dealing with ransomware, cyber experts have long said that is the situation and M&S has not issued any advice or corrections to the contrary.
Nearly three weeks on, the retailer is still struggling to get back to normal, as online orders are still suspended and some shops have had continued issues with contactless payments and empty shelves this week.
An analysis from Bank of America estimates the fallout from the hack is costing M&S £43m per week.
On Tuesday, M&S admitted personal customer data was stolen in the hack, which could include telephone numbers, home addresses and dates of birth.
It added the data theft did not include useable payment or card details, or any account passwords - but nonetheless urged customers to reset their account details and be wary of potential scammers using the information to make contact.
Co-op seems to be recovering more quickly, saying its shelves will start to return to normal from this weekend.
Nonetheless it is expected to feel the effects of the cyber attack for some time.
"Co-op have acted quickly and their work on the recovery helps to soften things slightly, but rebuilding trust is a bit harder," Prof Oli Buckley, a cyber security expert at Loughborough University, told the BBC.
"It will be a process of showing that lessons have been learned and there are stronger defences in place," he added.
The same cyber-crime group has also claimed responsibility for an attempted hack of the London department store Harrods.
The hackers who contacted the BBC say they are from DragonForce which operates an affiliate cyber crime service so anyone can use their malicious software and website to carry out attacks and extortions.
It's not known who is ultimately using the service to attack the retailers, but some security experts say the tactics seen are similar to that of a loosely coordinated group of hackers who have been called Scattered Spider or Octo Tempest.
The gang operates on Telegram and Discord channels and is English-speaking and young – in some cases only teenagers.
Conversations with Co-op hackers were carried out in text form - but it is clear the hacker, who called himself a spokesperson, was a fluent English speaker.
They say two of the hackers want to be known as "Raymond Reddington" and "Dembe Zuma" after characters from US crime thriller Blacklist which involves a wanted criminal helping police take down other criminals on a 'blacklist'.
The hackers say "we're putting UK retailers on the Blacklist".
US President Donald Trump says that Iran has "sort of" agreed to the terms of a nuclear deal with the United States.
Trump described the latest talks between the two countries, which ended on Sunday, as "very serious negotiations" for "long-term peace".
Earlier, an adviser to Iran's supreme leader told NBC News that Tehran was willing to make concessions on its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of sanctions.
The US has insisted that Iran must scrap its uranium enrichment to prevent the country developing nuclear weapons - though Iran insists its nuclear activities are entirely peaceful.
Speaking on Thursday in Qatar, on the second stop of his multi-day Gulf tour, Trump said that a deal was close on Iran's nuclear programme and suggested a military strike on Tehran's sites could be avoided.
"We're not going to be making any nuclear dust in Iran," Trump said after a meeting in Doha with business leaders.
"I think we're getting close to maybe doing a deal without having to do this.
"You probably read today the story about Iran. It's sort of agreed to the terms."
The president did not specify which remarks he was referring to, but an adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ali Shamkhani, said in a US media interview that Tehran was willing to accept far-reaching curbs on its nuclear programme.
Shamkhani told ABC News that Iran would give up stockpiles of highly enriched uranium as part of a deal in which the US lifts sanctions.
The latest talks over Tehran's nuclear programme finished on Sunday, with both sides agreeing to meet again.
US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff said they were encouraging, while Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described them as "difficult but useful".
Trump pulled out of a previous nuclear agreement between Iran and five other world powers in 2018.
He previously warned of possible military action against Iran's nuclear facilities if the fresh set of talks, which began in April, did not succeed.
A senior US official said the latest discussions lasted more than three hours, adding: "Agreement was reached to move forward with the talks to continue working through technical elements.
"We are encouraged by today's outcome and look forward to our next meeting, which will happen in the near future."
Sir Keir Starmer has said that he is "determined that we will retake control of the borders," as he begins a visit to Albania.
In his first official visit to the country, the prime minister is expected to announce further measures to crack down on organised crime and illegal immigration.
The UK is to step up intelligence sharing with Albanian law enforcement and provide funding for forensics, as part of the plans announced.
The number of people crossing the Channel has passed 12,000 since January, putting 2025 on course to be a record year.
Speaking in Albania, Sir Keir said: "The last government lost control of the borders. I am determined that we will retake control of the borders.
"That means that we have got to have a concerted effort to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade."
He said greater co-operation with Albania had "driven down those numbers" and that he wanted to "see more of that".
Immigration has been a strong focus of the government this week - on Monday it set out plans to reduce the level of legal migration in a White Paper.
The government said there has been a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, and that the number of Albanians returned has doubled in the past two years.
The prime minister is expected to announce the expansion of the Joint Migration Task Force - which shares intelligence and carries out operations against people smugglers in the Western Balkans - to include North Macedonia.
The enhanced co-operation with Albania set to be announced will include measures to tackle a "revolving door effect", of migrants returning home, evading law enforcement and leaving the country again, the government said.
The plans will also include:
A new programme to help young Albanians reintegrate into society and find employment
Funding a new forensic evidence programme to share and track DNA of criminals in Albania to solve crimes in the UK
A further £1m investment to upgrade Albania's forensics, biometrics and digital capability
Greater intelligence sharing to allow local law, using UK-funded drones, to "snare gangsters" transporting migrants through the Western Balkans corridor
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Sir Keir's visit as "pure theatre".
He said: "The returns deal with Albania was decisive action taken by the previous Conservative government."
"So why is Starmer now flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit? If the scheme is already working, what exactly is this trip for?" he added.
To the blast of a trumpet and the beating of drums, Fatima Hazzouri has come home.
Thirteen years after civil war forced her to leave, she's back in her native city, Homs in Syria, blinking in the sunshine as she steps off a bus crammed with returning women and children, part of a long convoy of coaches and trucks.
In a central square, they're greeted ecstatically by musicians and dancers in embroidered silk shirts.
More than 100 displaced families spent more than eight hours on the road to return to Homs from the north
Buses bringing familes back to Homs were greeted by musicians and dancers
Fatima is one of the seven million Syrians who were displaced within their country by the conflict between the government of former President Bashar al-Assad and rebel forces. It began in 2011 and finally ended with a rebel victory in December 2024. A further six million people fled abroad in those years. In total, more than half the population was forced to move.
Fatima Hazzouri has returned to Homs after 13 years
"I'm overjoyed to be back," Fatima says. She shrieks in delight. The 124 families returning in the convoy have come from the north of Syria, where millions of displaced people live in tents and makeshift shelters. They've been on the road for eight exhausting hours - but it won't be an easy homecoming.
Homs, Syria's third largest city, saw some of the fiercest fighting of the war. Whole districts are still in ruins. In 2012, two rockets fired by government forces slammed into Fatima's house, largely destroying it.
Fatima jostles to get free food and clothing provided by the private Dubai-based charity Waqf al-Farah, which organised the convoy. Then she heads for the flat her family is renting until they can repair their old home. Like the other men in the convoy, her son-in-law Abdulrazaq has gone ahead, riding on top of the family's possessions piled high on a truck.
When Fatima arrives, mattresses, carpets, pots and pans are already being hauled through an upstairs window.
At Fatima's family's house only two rooms are habitable. She says building a new roof and tiling the floors will cost thousands of dollars
In the north, Fatima got occasional work picking grapes or olives. Abdulrazaq was a teacher. But he doesn't know whether he'll get work in Homs to help pay the rent for the flat.
"I don't know what our future will be," he says. "We'll wait for the new government to decide."
"The biggest problem we have is lack of jobs," says Khalifa al-Hakmi, who helped organise the convoy. "People have nothing to do when they come back."
Providing work is just part of the huge task faced by Syria's new rulers, the former Islamist rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), as they try to rebuild the country.
Three million homes were destroyed. Essential services are lacking in many places. Homs, like most parts of Syria, gets only a few hours of electricity a day.
So far neither the government nor international agencies have put forward any comprehensive plan for resettling refugees. But the end of the crippling sanctions originally imposed on Syria by the US under the Assad regime means the country can again become part of the international banking system – and the economy can start to revive.
Carpenter Yasir al-Nagdali has replaced the windows and ceiling in the house he shares with his mother and pet bird
For now, though, returnees still have to fend for themselves. Yasir al-Nagdali and his mother Siham returned to Homs three years ago. Their house was a shell. But now they've replaced the windows and the ceiling and Yasir - a trained carpenter - has made their flat homely again.
There's even a canary in a cage. Keeping birds is Yasir's hobby. He can't forget how they escaped at the height of the battle for Homs. They crawled on their hands and knees as regime soldiers raked their street with machine-gun fire.
But Siham also remembers happier times in the house – such as when she got married at the age of 14. In those days, she says, there were belly-dancers at weddings – and she wore 12 different dresses, singing a song each time she changed.
For others in Homs, there's no happy return. Artist Samira Madwar sees no prospect of repairing the flat she grew up in. It was shelled, then burned, and looted by government forces.
Samira now lives on the outskirts of the city. She bursts into tears when she sees the state of her beloved old home. Amid the rubble and broken plaster littering the floor, she finds old family photographs – and the remains of a book she wrote, that falls apart when she picks up.
"In my brain, there is a hole," she says. "My paintings, my books – everything - they took it, and left us without a memory about our life."
Despite everything, Samira stayed in Syria throughout the war. But many of her friends left the country. One was Ammar Azzouz. He trained as an architect in Homs and now researches at the University of Oxford in the UK. He's overwhelmed with emotions after coming back to his city for the first time since 2011.
"I was aching for this day when I can walk the streets, touch the stones, meet the people, look at their faces, struggling to understand the scale of loss and grief," he says.
But like many other Syrians who've successfully started new lives abroad, he's thinking of dividing his time between his native and adopted countries, rather than returning permanently.
"Many people are describing it as the honeymoon period," Ammar says, talking about the first months after the fall of Assad.
"There's a new energy and excitement and hope and optimism. At the same time, the reality is harsh. But I think building bridges between those who are outside and inside would be fascinating, because they bring in new skills, opportunities, networks and knowledge that we need so much."
For some returning to Homs there is no prospect of repairing their homes
Rebuilding Syria will require all those things - and huge financial input. The United Nations estimates that 90 percent of Syrians now live below the poverty line – that's less than $2.15 USD a day.
After the family's belongings have been unloaded at their new, temporary home, Fatima goes back to visit her old house. Only two rooms are habitable, and two of her children are already living there. Just building a roof and tiling the floor would cost about $6-7,000 USD, she says. She can't imagine where such money would come from.
But today, after 13 years away, she just wants to celebrate.
Diane Sindall, 21, had been due to get married when she was ambushed by an unknown killer
The real identity of the man who brutally murdered Diane Sindall was known by people on the estates in Birkenhead, a charity set up in her memory has claimed.
Peter Sullivan, now 68, was acquitted of her murder at the Court of Appeal on Tuesday thanks to new DNA evidence after spending almost 40 years in prison.
RASA Merseyside was set up to help victims of sexual violence after the 21-year-old was beaten to death in August 1986 as she walked home from a shift behind the bar at a Bebington pub.
Josephine Wood from the charity told the BBC they had been approached by several local people who told them police had the wrong man, but they would not reveal the identity to detectives.
These people did not share the name of the man they suspected was the real killer, and were unwilling to come forward as sources to help the investigation.
"I know that we were approached on occasions by people who felt they could come to us and talk to us because we'd been set up almost in memory to Diane and as a tribute to her," Ms Wood said.
"We were told on several occasions that the police had the wrong man.
"But we didn't have evidence, we didn't have anything to offer, we just knew what we'd been told and the people are adamant that you've got the wrong person.
"But without any evidence, without names, without people willing to come forward which is a really big deal, seriously what could be done?"
Josephine Wood said RASA Merseyside had been told on a number of occasions that Peter Sullivan was the wrong man
Ms Wood said some deprived areas around Birkenhead at the time had "tribal" and "tight-knit" communities that made it difficult for people to come forward.
"If something had happened in that estate it would be really hard for someone to actually come forward and say 'we know who this is', for fear of repercussions, for fear of what might happen," she said.
"I would like to think that maybe 40 years down the line we can actually now go back to those people and say 'come on tell us what you know'.
"Tell us what happened, you must feel safer now, you must feel a way that you can come forward, because if this guy hasn't done it somebody else has and we need to find out who that was."
After Mr Sullivan's acquittal, Merseyside Police issued an urgent appeal for anyone who had any suspicions about someone they believed could have committed the crime in 1986 to get in touch.
Det Ch Supt Karen Jaundrill said the force was desperate for information
Det Ch Supt Karen Jaundrill, head of investigations at the force, told the BBC she wanted the communities of Birkenhead to "try and reflect on any individuals that you weren't happy with at the time".
"It may be that somebody has passed away and you weren't happy with their behaviour at the time and you think they were linked," she said.
"My ask would be please contact us, regardless of how insignificant you think the information is, and let us judge where that fits into our investigation."
'Cannot admit'
Det Ch Supt Jaundrill said the force had been notified in 2023 that a new DNA profile had been extracted from semen samples preserved from the crime scene.
More than 260 men identified as part of the original investigation had been tested and eliminated as potential suspects.
Mr Sullivan's solicitor, Sarah Myatt, previously told the BBC that Mr Sullivan had "never lost hope" that he would be acquitted.
She said he continued to maintain his innocence despite the fact he would have had a much stronger case to be freed on licence if he had told the parole board he accepted what he had done.
Ms Myatt added: "He said 'I cannot admit to something I haven't done', even though that meant that the parole board would consider things in that way."
Fresh flowers have been left at a memorial to Diane Sindall
Both the Crown Prosecution Service and Merseyside Police said they appreciated the impact of the miscarriage of justice on Mr Sullivan, but said the technology to get a DNA profile from samples like the ones recovered did not exist until very recently.
The government runs a compensation scheme for victims of miscarriages of justice, which is capped at a maximum of £1m for those who spent more than 10 years in prison.
The Miscarriage of Justice Compensation Scheme is separate to any civil legal action that could be brought against any public authority.
Ms Myatt, from law firm Switalskis, said she and her colleagues would support any compensation claim Mr Sullivan wished to bring.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We acknowledge the grave impact miscarriages of justice have and are committed to supporting individuals in rebuilding their lives.
"We are actively considering options to ensure any compensation properly supports people and will set out next steps in due course."
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The average cost of a place at a private school has increased by 22.6% in the last year – more than government estimates – after the introduction of VAT on fees, the body representing most UK independent schools says.
The Independent Schools Council (ISC) says it expects a reduction in pupils applying for private school as a result but that it is too soon to know the full effects of the policy, which was introduced mid-year.
The average termly fee for a day school in January was £7,382, which includes 20% VAT, according to the ISC. In January last year the average was £6,021.
But an HM Treasury spokesperson says the increase in fees are not only down to VAT and the data "misrepresents reality".
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the money raised would help "provide the highest quality of support and teaching" in the state sector.
At the time, the government predicted fees would increase by about 10% as a result of the changes, saying some schools would be able to absorb part of the cost.
The ISC says that many schools were able to reduce their fees, excluding VAT, in January to "cushion the impact" on parents.
But the ISC chief executive Julie Robinson says the sector has been hit a "triple whammy" of national insurance changes, an end to charitable business rates relief and "the blow of 20% VAT on fees".
"It seems clear to us that the government has underestimated the effect," she said.
"We know parents have already left the sector because of the threat of VAT coming in so we do expect the reality of this to lead to further decreases but the full effects will only become apparent over the next few years," Ms Robinson added.
The 22.6% increase in average fees compares with an 8.4% rise in 2024 and a 6.4% rise in 2023.
The figures were provided to the BBC by the ISC, which represents about 1,400 private schools across the UK. Its annual census, which looks at fees and pupil numbers, is conducted in January and is due to be released next week.
Kath decided to remove her 12-year-old son from his private school in October after she was made aware the fees would be increasing in January.
"We worked it out and it was unaffordable. Within two terms the cost was going up by 26% to almost £8,000 a term, " she says.
Her son has special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and she originally choose the private sector due to the small class sizes and support offered.
"We are a typical middle class family, we are not rolling in it, we have one second hand car and few holidays, we watch our money. At the very least I believe they should have brought it in at the start of the academic year."
"Moving him mid-year was a traumatic experience but we only had 15 days to take a place once we were offered one", she explains.
Kath has now started the process of applying for an education, health and care plan to help her son get the support he needs in his new school.
"The state system is stretched and underfunded. He is a happy and resilient boy and now we have to fight for his needs to be met."
Martyn Poynor
Headmaster at King's School in Gloucester, David Morton, says the increase in fees has been very hard on some parents.
David Morton, headmaster of The King's School in Gloucester, which charges pupils between £3,725 and £9,050 a term, says the policy is "misjudged".
"The government is trying to tax the more affluent areas of society in order to support the least affluent, but the wealthiest people have been affected the least."
"It's low to middle income families and those children on bursaries where the impact of VAT is being felt most," Mr Morton adds.
Given overall student numbers are set to fall by 700,000 in England by 2030, the government is confident that schools in the state sector will be able to accommodate any additional pupils moving from private schools.
Research by the think tank, the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS), says it would be possible for the state sector to easily accommodate extra pupils as the number leaving is bigger than the total number of children attending private schools.
The government says average fees in private schools have risen over the past 25 years and pupil numbers have remained steady.
Average fees have risen by 55% in real terms since 2003, even without VAT, according to the IFS.
"Ending tax breaks for private schools will raise £1.8 billion a year by 2029-30 to help deliver 6,500 new teachers and raise school standards, supporting the 94% of children in state schools to achieve and thrive", an HM Treasury spokesperson said.
US President Donald Trump and Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at a signing ceremony in Doha on Wednesday
In his eagerness to accept a plane from Qatar, Donald Trump has achieved a remarkable feat, uniting many partisans across America's bitter political divide.
The problem for the White House is that unity is happening in opposition to it.
Predictably, Trump's opponents in the Democratic Party slammed the president after he indicated he would accept a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family.
More noteworthy – and potentially more troubling for the president – is that some of his strongest supporters also have serious reservations about the deal, even as it's not yet finalised.
Maga influencers have described the move as a "bribe", grift, or an example of the high-level corruption that Trump himself has consistently promised root out.
The Qatari royal family plans to give the luxury Boeing 747-8, estimated to be worth $400m (£300m), to the US Department of Defence to be used as part of a fleet of planes dubbed Air Force One – the president's official mode of air travel.
The White House says that the new plane – which could require years and millions of dollars to refit and upgrade – will be transferred to Trump's presidential library at the end of his term.
Reuters
The Democratic National Committee flew its own aircraft over Trump's Florida resort on Wednesday, towing a mocking banner reading "Qatar-a-Lago"
"I think the technical term is 'skeezy'," deadpanned conservative Daily Wire commentator Ben Shapiro on his podcast.
"Qatar is not allegedly giving President Trump a $400m jet out of the goodness of their sweet little hearts," he said. "They try to stuff money into pockets in totally bipartisan fashion."
He and others pointed to allegations that Qatar has funnelled money into terrorist groups – allegations the country has denied – and called Qataris "the world's largest proponents of terrorism on an international scale."
Although she said she still supports the president, she called the plane deal "a stain" and posted a cartoon of the Trojan Horse, redrawn as a plane and filled with armed Islamist militants.
Watch: Qatar's luxury jet is "a nice gesture", says Donald Trump
Trump found little support for the plan in more mainstream outlets as well.
The New York Post, which usually can be counted on to back much of the populist Maga agenda, ran a blunt editorial: "Qatar's 'Palace in the Sky' jet is NOT a 'free gift' - and Trump shouldn't accept it as one."
And Mark Levin, a consistent cheerleader of the president on Fox News and his radio talk show, posted on X accusing Qatar of being a "terror state" and wrote: "Their jet and all the other things they are buying in our country does not provide them with the cover they seek".
When contacted by the BBC, the Qatari embassy in Washington pointed to an interview Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani gave CNN about the plane.
"It is a government-to-government transaction. It has nothing to do with personal relationships - neither on the US side, nor the Qatari side. It's between the two defence ministries," he said.
"Why would we buy influence in the United States?" he added, arguing Qatar has "always been a reliable and trusted partner. This is not a one-way relationship."
In response to criticism of the deal, the White House has doubled down. Trump's press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that the administration was "committed to full transparency".
"Any gift given by a foreign government is always accepted in full compliance with all applicable laws," she said.
Getty Images
One of the ageing planes in the Air Force One fleet, pictured here taking off outside of Washington in 2024
Although there has been nothing offered in exchange for the plane, many commentators said it would be naïve to expect that that Qatari royal family would hand out such a large item with no strings attached.
"They very obviously see that if you reward Donald Trump with gifts, that may pay off down the road," Doug Heye, a political strategist and former communications director for the Republican National Committee, told the BBC. "Flattery gets you somewhere with Donald Trump, and we've seen that time and time again."
The US Constitution includes a clause preventing officials from accepting "any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State."
But the White House has pointed out that, at least to begin with, the plane is being gifted to the US government.
Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly investigated the legality of the deal and determined that because there are no explicit conditions attached, it would not amount to a bribe.
Conservatives and others were quick to point out that Bondi was registered as a lobbyist for Qatar prior to joining Trump's cabinet, at some points earning up to $115,0000 (£87,000) a month from her work for the Qatari government.
The Trump Organisation also continues to maintain links to Qatar and last month announced a deal to build a luxury golf resort in the country.
Getty Images
Attorney General Pam Bondi is a former lobbyist
During a news conference at the White House on Tuesday the president berated a reporter who raised questions about the ethics of the transaction.
"What do you say to people who view that luxury jet as a personal gift to you?" asked ABC reporter Rachel Scott.
"You should be embarrassed asking that question," Trump replied, after using his standard "fake news" jibe.
"They're giving us a free jet," the president said. "I could say 'No, no, no, don't give us, I want to pay you a billion or 400 million'… or I could say 'thank you very much'."
On Truth Social, the president later reposted several messages pointing out that the Statue of Liberty was a gift from France, and wrote late Tuesday: "The Boeing 747 is being given to the United States Air Force/Department of Defense, NOT TO ME!"
"Only a FOOL would not accept this gift on behalf of our Country," he wrote.
However even some within Trump's Republican Party were expressing concern.
"I think it's not worth the appearance of impropriety, whether it's improper or not," Rand Paul, Republican senator from Kentucky, told Fox News.
"I wonder if our ability to judge [Qatar's] human rights record will be clouded by the fact of this large gift," Paul said.
Another Republican senator, Ted Cruz of Texas, said accepting the gift would pose "significant espionage and surveillance problems".
Trump did find some support within his party. "Free is good. You know, we don't have a lot of money right now to buy things like that," Sen Tommy Tuberville told CNN.
Doug Heye, the Republican strategist, suggested that the deal might not hurt Trump's popularity with his base in the long term.
"Trump has been able for years now to turn scandals that would otherwise be debilitating for other politicians into things that we forget," he said. "He's very skilled at that."
A family unearthed more than a thousand vintage bottles in their back garden
Scratching the surface of a planned vegetable plot in a back garden has been a journey of discovery for one family.
Underneath a mound of earth and nestled away for decades on a property in Pontypool, Torfaen, were more than 1,000 vintage bottles.
Some beer bottles and medicinal glass jars have been brought to the surface - but their existence in just one spot is "puzzling", said mum-of-two Zoe Brown.
"We started digging and found there's loads of rubbish - we went a metre down and found a whole bottle and thought this is really cool - maybe there's more stuff.
Zoe said after they moved the family decided to "do the house up a bit at first" but there was a nice outdoor space to decided to work on that, and "maybe grow some veg".
Upon finding the bottles she said she emailed a lady who told her that before the war people had to get rid of their own rubbish, and said "if you go any deeper you will find out more".
Zoe Brown
Zoe Brown found out there used to be a rubbish tip in the area
"There's quite a lot all over the place, we found an old wall there as well. Glasses were popping up we were picking them out, there's over 1,000 bottles altogether - we picked loads out but some of them are still in the garden."
After using a mechanical digger and finding more than they anticipated - Zoe decided to call it a day.
"I washed hundreds of them out and my boy Reg and my little girl Tilly chose the ones they liked."
Zoe Brown
The Brown family found more than 1,000 vintage bottles after they started digging up their garden
As well brewery bottles from Abersychan, Rhymney, Newport and Cardiff there were also vintage bottles featuring Abergavenny's Morgans and Evans.
"There's loads of brewery ones - and little jars like the ones from Boots the Chemist with little tablespoon marks on the side, and one find was like a bottle of hair gel with a comb marking on it - where you dip the comb in and wash your hair.
"I emailed some auction places but there's too much to go through. We wheeled them up to the back of the garden - some of them had liquids in them so we had to be careful."
Zoe added: "We've got loads of flowers there now- rather than grow veg because of the liquids we found. We knew the area had glass in it because when it rains glass keeps on popping up.
"Part of you wants to keep going but where do you cut off? It got to the point where it's level and that's enough.
"There's easy 1000 little jars and bottles which have come out."
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