Worcestershirecounty

Shawaz Ditta, a former Worcester councillor, has been jailed for nine years at Worcester Crown Court for rape and two assaults involving weapons. The offences occurred in 2022. Ditta attacked the victim with tongs in August 2022, causing a head injury, and later raped her in November when she was heavily intoxicated and had refused his advances. He subsequently heated a knife blade on a stove and placed it on her leg.

More than 2.85 million people have signed 498 petitions calling for tighter fireworks regulations in the UK. The most common demands include ending sales to the general public and switching to quieter alternatives. The petitions were prompted partly by an incident in which an 11-year-old boy from East London was seriously injured by a firework.

Nine flights departing from UK and Ireland airports experienced bomb threats between Monday 2 November and Thursday 5 November. Aircraft were diverted to alternative airports, searched by emergency services, and in some cases escorted by fighter jets from Hungary, Italy and France. No explosives were found on any of the aircraft.

Birmingham Airport and Heathrow received bomb threats early Thursday that were assessed as not credible. The threats were part of a wider wave affecting at least eight flights from cities including Copenhagen, Helsinki, Madrid, Milan and Warsaw. Most affected flights were diverted to other airports, though airport operations continued as normal. According to the Associated Press, some threats were linked to a group describing itself as anti-feminist, though it remains unclear if all messages originated from the same source. UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the threats were malicious hoaxes and that the UK has robust aviation security systems to handle such incidents.

Russell Brand has been found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of one rape and three counts of sexual assault. The 51-year-old was convicted of raping a 21-year-old fan after meeting her at a 2009 stand-up show at Hammersmith Apollo, sexually assaulting a Capital Radio worker in 2005, groping an MTV worker at a Soho bar in 2004, and sexually assaulting a Channel 4 worker during a forced massage in 2009. He was acquitted of three other charges. The judge ruled that Brand must be remanded into custody until sentencing on Monday, when he will receive a lengthy prison sentence.

The Red Lion pub in Brightwell-cum-Sotwell, Oxfordshire, where former Prime Minister Boris Johnson lives, has been taken over by chef Zak and his family. Zak, who has worked as chef at the pub for several years, and his daughter Amber, who also worked there, have taken the lease from the previous operators Corinne and Mouse after their almost seven-year run. The new owners say they love the village community and want to keep the pub at the heart of village life, promising little change to day-to-day operations.

Candy Harris, owner of Bilberry Park Café, sought compensation from Malvern Town Council after Victoria Park closed for 11 weeks over the summer. The council was divided on the issue, with mayor Iain Dawson casting the deciding vote to reject the claim. Ms Harris said the closure had been difficult for the business, which relies solely on visitors to the park, and that she had not been given the option to close during the disruption.

Coughton Court near Alcester is hosting a rare candlelight tour on Saturday, November 7, exploring the house's connections to the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. The grade I Tudor property, owned by the National Trust but managed by the Throckmorton family, has strong links to the plot: Robert Catesby, who masterminded it, was related to the Throckmortons, and Thomas Throckmorton, who owned the house at the time, remained Catholic and faced imprisonment and fines for refusing to conform to the established Church. The evening costs £25 per ticket.

Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market opens today on its opening day, but visitors are being warned to check their journeys as a signalling fault has caused widespread train disruption. All services on the Cross City Line between Four Oaks and Redditch have been cancelled in both directions, with no estimated time for resolution as of 7.30am. West Midlands Railway and CrossCountry services are both affected.

Drivers are being urged to check supermarket car park signs, as some venues impose £100 charges for parking outside opening hours. Select Car Leasing highlighted the issue, noting that supermarket car parks are often managed by private operators which issue Parking Charge Notices when conditions are broken. Graham Conway, the company's managing director, said the practice was causing confusion, with some drivers charged after leaving vehicles for just minutes.

A fault with the signalling system on the Birmingham Cross City Line has suspended all services between Four Oaks and Redditch until further notice. Birmingham to Hereford services are being diverted via Camp Hill, while rail replacement transport is operating between Longbridge and Redditch.

Thirty-four Worcestershire parents or guardians were prosecuted for failing to secure their child's school attendance in 2025/26, all ending up in court. This marks a rise from thirteen prosecutions in 2024/25. More than 15,000 pupils in the county are persistently absent, with over 2,300 severely absent. Worcester MP Tom Collins expressed concern about the numbers, linking school difficulties to a crisis in special educational needs and disabilities provision.

Planning permission has been sought to convert Station House in Ripple, a former railway station on the disused Tewkesbury to Malvern line, into a mixed-use property combining residential use with a limited events business. The proposal would use the original platforms and two waiting rooms for wedding ceremonies and vow renewals, with capacity for up to 30 people indoors. The applicant stated: 'We would like to be able to offer small events to be held in this magical place.' Events would run between 10am and 8pm, with no changes to the listed building's external appearance.