LOADING ERROR LOADINGFormer New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday that The Times, a British newspaper, ran an “entirely false and fabricated” interview with him criticizing Zohran Mamdani, and that he’s never communicated with the story’s author. In a statement to The New York Times, the newspaper said someone had been impersonating de Blasio. I want to be 100% clear:The story in the Times of London is entirely false and fabricated. https://t.co/I65e8UV6tm — Bill de Blasio (@BilldeBlasio) October 28, 2025AdvertisementThe story featured a shocking quote attributed to de Blasio about the cost of Mamdani’s policy proposals. The story led with The Times’ quotes, only including de Blasio’s denial several paragraphs in.

"This will bring the possibility of visible aurora for Scotland and similar geomagnetic latitudes, with a slight chance of glimpses as far south as northern England or Northern Ireland, although this is low confidence." What is the weather forecast for the UK as Northern Lights are predicted? However, clear periods between this rainy weather could make the Northern Lights visible tonight. Recommended Reading:What are the Northern Lights and how are they caused? The Northern Lights are caused by charged particles from the sun hitting gases in the Earth's atmosphere.

Across Britain, boozers have gone boutique, pairing pints of real ale with seriously stylish bedrooms. The food’s stepped up too, sometimes all the way to Michelin-starred heights (take a bow, the Star Inn at Harome). Other pubs go for personality: a microbrewery and farm shop at Wiltshire’s the Three Daggers, or a world-class art collection at the Fife Arms in Aberdeenshire. The Hand at Llanarmon, Ceiriog Valley, DenbighshireThe Hand at Llanarmon has an outdoor hot tubSoak up the scenery from the outdoor hot tub at this locals’ pub in the scenic Ceiriog Valley by the Berwyn Mountains. The former farmstead at the crossroads of two drovers’ roads has bags of atmosphere amid its wooden beams, oak settles and roaring fires.

Now it has taken down an ‘interview’ with Bill de Blasio in which the former New York mayor poured scorn on the frontrunner to take the role next month, Zohran Mamdani. The article was removed when it turned out the interviewee, er, wasn’t de Blasio at all. Is there something in the water at the Times? )”Now de Blasio has hit back, posting unambiguously: “I want to be 100% clear: the story in the Times of London is entirely false and fabricated. I never spoke to that reporter and never said those things.

The team that found the tiny orange-legged arachnid, Aulonia albimana, which was last recorded in the UK in 1985, have informally named the species the white-knuckled wolf spider. “We had just four hours at the site where this spider was last seen 40 years ago, before our boat came to pick us up. “I found the first one with just nine minutes to go, and the second one in the last minute. I’ve seen 559 species of spider in the British Isles and this one was by far the most exciting find.”The team located the spider in a remote overgrown area of the reserve accessible only by boat, about 2km away from the spider’s former colony. Dr Helen Smith, conservation officer for the British Arachnological Society, said: “The remarkable discovery of this dapper little spider on the Isle of Wight is one of Britain’s epic ‘lost species’ rediscoveries of the century.

The Ashfield MP told a press conference in central London on Wednesday that he worked at the advice organisation before entering politics. “Before I came into politics, I worked for the Citizens Advice Bureau,” the Ashfield MP told a press conference. Reform says it wants to stop people exploiting the system as part of its welfare cut proposals. Lee Anderson: "Our young people are being thrown on the scrapheap.” pic.twitter.com/flzSenAF0O — Reform UK (@reformparty_uk) October 29, 2025Mr Anderson also hit back at Baron Heseltine over the Tory grandee’s criticism of Nigel Farage’s party. Former Tory Mr Anderson said it was “deeply unpleasant” of Lord Heseltine “to say these things about Reform UK”.

Concerns are focused on what has been described as a last minute Government decision to increase the impact of housing costs in an updated formula for measuring deprivation which would determine grants to local authorities. Former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner announced the distribution of council funding would be changed this year to ensure funding was directed to areas with the highest levels of deprivation. Councils in London have been lobbying the Government to include housing costs prominently in the formula. Citing sources involved in negotiations, The Times said London councils were “very pleased” with changes to their funding, with “significant progress” made in how it would be allocated. “This proposal would allow London councils to continue to set very low council tax, effectively subsidising low bills for London residents.

A recent survey by holidaycottages.co.uk asking staycationers when they’re happiest, discovered that nearly one in five responses included mention of a dog. The company asked UK dog owners about their happiest holiday memories and favourite destinations to visit with their dogs. The team at holidaycottages.co.uk have revealed the UK’s happiest dog-friendly staycation breaks. When it comes to the UK destinations that will keep our pups entertained, the North West Highlands took the crown, followed by Cumbria and Northumberland in second and third places respectively. Home to the Lake District National Park, Cumbria is a haven for man’s best friend thanks to its range of walking trails.

Earlier this month, fans watched as Harry Mitchell was taken hostage by Okie and Ravi. EastEnders fans fear popular show star has quit after vanishing actShortly before vanishing from the BBC show, Harry confessed to his mum, Nicola Mitchel, about his involvement in drug dealing. However, Nicola has since failed to acknowledge that her son is missing, prompting many EastEnders fans to theorise that she is missing. Has the actress left the soap?”Who is Laura Doddington and when did she join EastEnders as Nicola Mitchell? Laura Doddington joined EastEnders all the way back in 2024, taking on the role of matriarch Nicola Mitchell.

Writing in the Guardian, the Chancellor acknowledged that productivity forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) could make for tough reading. Ms Reeves will hope that better-than-expected inflation figures and a slight improvement in some growth forecasts will help ease the pressure. But the gap could be even bigger than feared, following media reports that the OBR is preparing to downgrade its productivity forecasts by 0.3 percentage points. In her Guardian article, Ms Reeves said she would not “pre-empt” the OBR productivity downgrade, but added she would be “candid” that Britain’s productivity performance under the Conservatives had been “too weak”. Without deeper spending cuts or increased borrowing, the Chancellor will be left with little choice but to raise taxes.

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Former Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York has been an enthusiastic supporter of Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee and front-runner in the mayor’s race. So it seemed odd on Tuesday when an article appeared in The Times of London in which he was quoted saying he had concerns about Mr. Mamdani’s policy proposals. Mr. de Blasio told The New York Times on Tuesday evening that the comments attributed to him were invented and that he had not spoken with the British newspaper. (The New York Times and The Times of London are not connected.) Mr. de Blasio reiterated his support for Mr. Mamdani’s plans to make buses free, to freeze the rent on rent-stabilized apartments and to institute free universal child care, comparing them to his own quest to create universal prekindergarten.

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy noticeLabour has fallen to its lowest rating in a YouGov poll, with Sir Keir Starmer’s party almost level with the Conservatives, Greens and Liberal Democrats. It comes as Sir Keir has been warned that he could struggle to turn the party’s fortunes around following last week’s defeat in a Welsh by-election. Labour faces threats from the left and the right, with concerns about voters being lost to Reform or the surging Greens. Ipsos pollster Keiran Pedley told The Independent that it is “hard to see how Labour will turn things around”.

Creatorville, the original video studio within SWNS Media Group, has named Jon Eastman as creative director. Eastman has more than twenty years’ experience in video and digital strategy, and combines “editorial rigour and digital-first creativity” according to Creatorville. He joins from The Times, where he served as director of video, overseeing content across YouTube, TikTok and The Times & Sunday Times’ digital platforms. Sam Barcroft, group CEO of SWNS Media Group and founder of Creatorville, said: “Jon is one of the most talented and forward-thinking video leaders in the industry. There’s a huge opportunity here to shape the next generation of digital formats, and I can’t wait to get started.”Creatorville partners with creators, publishers and brands to produce shareable original video content for audiences worldwide.