Each week, Ben Hopkinson looks back at a serious, crazy, and happy news story from the past week.
Serious News
According to retail analysis, festive shoppers throughout the capital fell less than the rest of the UK during the period between Wednesday 18th December and New Year's Eve when compared to 2023.
The footfall dropped by 8.4%, within London, while the rest of the UK saw a drop on average of 11.2%.
Black Friday saw an increase of people heading to the shops, while Boxing Day saw a decrease in people at the shops.is “on schedule” to launch next year in 2025, following their early pilot back in 2022.
Andrew Simons, who founded the company, says: “I’m not trying to be a competitor with the ferries – I can’t take a lorry. I want to focus on foot passengers and cyclists, the cultural connection between the hearts of the ports, the sailing experience, the real closeness to the ocean, and [for passengers] to be able to go back home and say [they’ve] learned something”.
Each journey can take up to 12 passengers, with tickets costing £85 for a journey that ranges between three and four-and-a-half hours.
Crazy News
The world chess number one quit a major tournament after he was told he was unable to compete whilst wearing jeans.
Magnus Carlsen was defending his titles at the Fide World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in New York when he refused to change his clothing and was fined £159.
Admitting it was a mistake, he went straight to the match from a meeting over lunch and had to change quickly overlooking the jeans: “I put on a shirt, jacket and honestly like I didn't even think about jeans, even changed my shoes. I got a warning that I would not be paired if I didn't go change my clothes. They said that I could do it after the third round today. I said 'I'll change tomorrow if that's OK, I didn't even realise it today', but they said, 'Well you have to change now'. At that point it became a bit of a matter of principle for me”.
Carlsen wasn’t even worried about appealing, adding: “Honestly, I am too old at this point to care too much”.
Happy News
A woman who has been made a grandma at only 42-years-old wants to help teenage mums in her town in Shrewsbury.
Jodi King has turned to TikTok and handing out flyers in Greggs to run the support group Teens with Tots, following her experience of becoming a mother aged 18.
Running the support group in her own time alongside her job as a youth worker, it is there to help mums “offload” with others in a similar situation. Toys are laid out for the babies, while hot drinks are on offer to the mums. Alongside local charity partners, goody bags of food and nappies are also available.
Speaking of the inspiration, Ms King admitted that even with her support network of friends and family, she found it “very isolating” at times. She adds: “I think there's just so much stigma attached to being a young mum and a teenage mum. I wish I'd had a group like this when I had my little one”.
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