You could make a fair argument that Zach Cregger is a bit of a household name in horror right now, having delivered two of the most talked about horror films in recent memory, and in the space of only five years.

As households face another rise in energy prices, our consumer expert, Jane Hawkes, who runs the consumer advice website www.ladyjaney.co.uk, shares her ten checks everyone should be making to help keep their bills down. The changes coming into force on 1st October make now the right time to give your energy account a five-minute MOT.

Few violin concertos have been recorded as often as Max Bruch's Violin Concerto No 1 in G minor, Op 26. It is a perennial favourite and has more than once topped Classic FM's Hall of Fame, so any new recording has plenty of competition. The Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing's version on Sony Classical, with the Oslo Philharmonic under Gergely Madaras, earns its place.

And just like that, we are into autumn. This year has gone quickly, and while we have managed to get a lot done on the smallholding, I am not sure I am ready for winter just yet. Like most of the UK, I am enjoying the last of the late sunshine and dry days.

The Nashville singer-songwriter’s third studio album is a significant step forward from his first two records. Across 17 tracks, McNown expands the boundaries of his sound, moving beyond the more straightforward country foundations of his earlier work and into something considerably more fluid: part indie, part folk, part country, with flashes of pop that give the album a broader, more contemporary reach.

There is so much to enjoy here. Above all, Betts-Dean draws out the story in every song, just as folk music should. Picture a group of friends gathered round while one of them spins a tale, and you have the spirit of this disc. It is all achieved through a keen ear for tempo and a finely judged use of dynamics, never through over-egging.

Northern Gas Networks is encouraging university students kick-starting their new term and student life in rented homes to carry out two potentially lifesaving checks.

Most people don’t expect to encounter a bully once they’ve left the school playground behind. Yet workplace bullying remains an uncomfortable reality across many organisations. It rarely appears as outright aggression; more often, it shows up through dismissive remarks, exclusion, or a steady pattern of behaviour that leaves someone feeling undermined.

For any lover of English song this is a disc to cherish. At its heart lie the songs of Elizabeth Maconchy and Grace Williams, heard alongside the man who taught them both, Ralph Vaughan Williams. Mezzo-soprano Kitty Whately and pianist William Vann have performed together for several years, and they kept returning to Vaughan Williams's orbit. Above all, they were drawn to the women who wrote the music and verse he knew so well. What emerges is a picture of a teacher, his pupils and his friends, each with a voice entirely their own.

As Sober October approaches, Ruth Allonby, Chief Executive of Mount Carmel Rehab offers practical tips and advice on how to take a break from alcohol and how to spot if you have a problem with alcohol misuse. This month, many people consider taking a break from alcohol to reset habits, improve health, and gain clarity.

There is something nocturnal about the album. Even when the music opens into the wide horizons of Americana, there are clouds gathering at the edges. Country, folk and rock mingle with more elusive textures, but nothing feels neatly contained. The songs drift, shimmer and bruise, carrying the weight of things remembered and things that perhaps cannot be forgotten. Rothman draws from the language of Americana without becoming bound by it, turning its familiar roads and landscapes into something stranger and more inward.

From Cheshire For Anna Come home safe: I think of you driving Over the Runcorn Bridge in our senile car, Its toothless ratchets, arthritic pistons conniving To take me away from wherever you are. Its steering like that old prostitute working a living on Huskisson Street outside our door: Its raggedy brake shoes thin as the wind, giving Nothing but ice to your foot on the floor.

Food in a German restaurant was all Phil Hopkins needed to form his friendship with fellow thespian and theatre lover, Tony Cooper. Here he writes about his subsequent journey to Norwich where he renewed his friendship with ‘Mr Norfolk’, ending a 40-year hiatus since he was last in the county.

New research from ProVen Biotics, the most clinically researched brand of probiotics in the UK, has revealed striking regional differences in children’s fruit and vegetable eating habits from the UK’s most adventurous eaters to the regions where children aren’t getting their five-a-day.

There are albums you listen to, and there are albums that become attached to a particular version of yourself. For me, We Are Scientists' With Love & Squalor belongs firmly in the latter category.

Estate planning is often associated with people who have partners and families. But with around four in 10 of people aged 65 and over in the UK single, it’s an increasingly important topic for singletons. In fact, an increasing number of people are spending their twilight years living alone.

More than 160,000 butterflies and day-flying moths were spotted across the North of England in this year's Big Butterfly Count, but experts warn that the heat behind the bumper numbers could lead to a population crash in 2027. The results of Butterfly Conservation's 2026 Big Butterfly Count show it was a very good summer for butterflies across the North of England.

I book my press car loans months in advance, with little idea of where I will be going that week. With petrol prices rising on a daily basis, I was pleased to recently take delivery of a fully electric Mazda6e. With many miles to cover, and with access to a home charger, I would surely be quids in.

Twenty-five years on from Stuart Adamson’s death, Big Country returns in a new guise: Big Country Redux. The name is an appropriately reflective one for Eastworld, a ten-track collection that reaches back into the band’s archives to resurrect songs Adamson wrote or co-wrote with Bruce Watson and former bassist Tony Butler. Some will be familiar to long-standing fans through live performances, demos and lesser-known releases; others have spent decades waiting for the treatment they receive here.

What must it feel like to be hanged, only to wake up four hours later, in your own coffin, and to climb out and walk into your own wake? Ask Maggie Dickson, because in Chapter One of The Mourning Necklace that is precisely what happens to her. The year is 1724 and the place, Edinburgh. Will the honest men of law decide to give her a reprieve or will they choose to hang her again?

Few composers carry as many contradictions as Dmitri Shostakovich. He could write music of crushing weight and bleak introspection, then turn out a ballet number or a popular song arrangement with a wink and a flourish. Any collection that aims to present him whole has to do justice to both sides. Chandos's eight-CD reissue of Neeme Järvi's recordings with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra does exactly that, and it makes an excellent introduction to the composer for newcomers as well as a rewarding return for those who already know him.

For a debut, that is an exciting prospect. Put A Smile On For Me is compelling and refreshing, establishing Keo as a band with huge potential while already delivering enough evidence of that potential in the present. The Nirvana comparisons may have raised expectations before the record even arrived, but Keo have answered them in the best possible way: by sounding like themselves.

The Humber is part of a significant national collaboration launched on World Maritime Day, and celebrated this week. It is one of 11 founding clusters uniting to establish the UK Maritime Regions Network (UKMRN) - a new forum designed to amplify regional maritime intelligence and strengthen a joined-up approach across vital coastal communities.

This Baby Safety Month, nursery furniture expert at Silver Cross guides expectant parents on how to design a nursery which feels stylish whilst also keeping your little ones safe.

New research is yet more evidence that A&E overcrowding kills, but governments remain too slow to act, says the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM).

Almost all charities surveyed say current funding levels are not keeping pace with costs. Half are considering redundancies, while three-quarters report falling income over the past year.

Millions of older homeowners are sitting on a retirement lifeline worth hundreds of thousands of pounds — but as Andrew Palmer reports the research shows those in the North are far less likely than southerners to ever consider using it It sounds like a story about poverty.

Next month’s Budget should outline plans to put businesses at the heart of the next stage of devolution, to deliver growth, investment and higher living standards, according to a new report by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

The UK stands to lose a multi-billion-pound economic opportunity and risks letting investment, jobs and energy security slip away, say the authors of the 2026 Economic Report from Offshore Energies UK Energy security is national security in an increasingly volatile world where conflict in the Middle East is constricting global oil and gas supply.

With the biggest ever Great North Run just days away organisers of the world’s greatest half marathon announce that the BALLOT FOR THE 2027 event is now OPEN. The Ballot runs from Monday, 7th September at 8am until midnight on Sunday 20th September, at which point ballot applications close. The draw takes place on Monday 21st September with applicants notified of their results soon after.

Consumer confidence increased by 0.9 points movement in August 2026, according to the latest data from YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr). The Consumer Confidence index rose from 105.5 to 106.4. Any score greater than 100 indicates positive sentiment, while a score of less than 100 indicates negative sentiment.

The UK’s third tallest structure, Caldbeck transmitter station, is celebrating 65 years of keeping communities across Cumbria and South West Scotland connected through television and radio services. The transmitting station, which first went on air on 1 September 1961, serves around 280,000 homes and has become one of the UK's most important broadcasting locations.

Car tech computer confusion has become one of the UK’s top five causes of breakdowns, the AA reveals. Whilst people might be used to ‘computer says no’ at home or work, many are being flummoxed by the technical complexity of their vehicles.

Britain’s tax system has become more economically damaging since the financial crisis, says new IEA briefing. The worst may be yet to come. Taxes on investment have risen sharply on two occasions in recent years – immediately after the financial crisis, and once more after the pandemic. This time, there is little prospect that they will fall again.