It’s perfect for those who have forgotten a special occasion

A vending machine selling bouquets of fresh flowers has cropped up in Glasgow. It marks the third location for the quirky venture that was launched by a Scottish florist.

Bloom Box has grown its network by opening in the busy Silverburn shopping centre. Located on level 0 of the multi-storey car park, it provides shoppers with access to fresh, handpicked bunches of flowers without the need to visit a shop.

The best part? It is available 24-hours a day throughout the week. Meaning anyone who needs to get in some last minute blooms for a celebration, for someone special, or just as a treat themselves, will be able to do so without a fuss.

The concept was created by Edinburgh’s Kayleigh McAllister, the award-winning businesswoman behind the Penelope Fleur by KDM. According to the brand’s website, the florist boutique has become renowned for “its beautiful floral designs, wedding floristry and corporate installation.”

First launched in 2021, the business has gone on to become one of the most sought-after floral boutiques in the capital city. This led to McAllister going on to create the innovative Bloom Box automated machines that are now cropping up across Scotland.

As Scotland’s first ever 24/7 flower vending machine, it quickly become a sensation when it initially launched in Edinburgh’s St James Quarter back in May. According to the brand’s Instagram page, it has needed regular restocks due to selling out.

It then went on to open another machine in Edinburgh that can be found in the Gyle Shopping Centre which, at the time, was its second location until the new Silverburn launch at the end of last week.

The brand announced that the concept was designed to “change the future of floristry”. With floral bouquets usually only be available during shop opening hours, the vending machine provides the unique opportunity of having access “to premium, florist-crafted bouquets 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”

Designed to make flowers more accessible, the brand has claimed that it is “on track to become the UK’s largest flower vending machine network”. In fact, it plans to expand even further, although it does not intend to replace florists.

The innovative Bloom Box concept is just the latest exciting addition to Silverburn recently. The shopping centre has welcomed a host of new brands, luxury and high street alike, earning it the coveted ‘Retail Destination of the Year’ title at the 2025 Sceptre Awards.

One of the most anticipated openings on the horizon will be the upcoming Sephora store, due to open its doors on August 13. It will mark the renowned global cosmetics brand’s second store in Scotland, following the opening of its branch in St James Quarter that sparked massive queues.

Another beauty firm that recently opened in Silverburn is Space NK, marking its second in Glasgow. It brings together a wide range of makeup, skincare, haircare and more from beloved brands all under one roof.

Meanwhile, anther Glasgow brand that has recently expanded is Sprigg. The trendy salad bar, which operates fourth branches across the city, recently ventured of the centre into the West End for the first time.

The new diner, located on Byres Road, can be found situated between Hillhead Subway Station and the Botanic Gardens in the former Hi Tea unit. It offers foodies with the brand’s popular build-you-own salad bowls, loaded potatoes and homemade soups.

Over in Aberdeen, a Michelin-awarded team is just about to open a brand new restaurant that is also part bar. Dubbed Mezzo, the new Mediterranean-style diner will take over the former Chopstix Noodle Bar on 155 Union Street.

The concept has been created by the award-winning Kevin Dalgleish of the acclaimed Amuse restaurant. Alongside providing good food and drinks, the new venue will also provide one of the best views in the city overlooking Union Terrace Gardens.

By CAMERON CHARTERS and MATT STRUDWICK, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and CHIARA BURRELL

Published: 14:46 BST, 28 July 2026 | Updated: 16:29 BST, 28 July 2026

Speedboat killer Jack Shepherd has today admitted to violently attacking his girlfriend with burning hot barbecue tongs.

The 38-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm as well as damaging property.

Shepherd was originally jailed for ten years for manslaughter in 2018 over the death of 24-year-old Charlotte Brown when his speedboat crashed during a first date. 

The trial heard ‘Captain Jack’ was showing off by drunkenly zooming up the Thames in the defective craft he had bought to ‘pull girls’. 

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Shepherd skipped his Old Bailey trial while on the run in Georgia, before he was eventually extradited to the UK to serve his sentence. 

He was set free on licence in January 2024 but was recalled to prison in September last year after he was accused of violence towards his new partner.

Appearing via video link at Isleworth Crown Court from HMP Swaleside in Kent today, Shepherd, wearing a blue shirt, admitted to pinning his girlfriend down during a row in February last year and ‘punching her several times’ on her arm and thigh. 

The woman, who is in her 50s, was left with bruises following the vicious attack. 

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In another assault Shepherd lashed out at her with tongs and burned her left breast after his pizza was overcooked at a barbecue. She was left with a permanent scar following the attack.

Shepherd began dating the woman in August 2024, after he was released from prison on licence that January. The pair met after Shepherd moved to Ealing, west London, where he rented a room in the same block of flats as her.

Four months into their relationship Shepherd began to call her an ‘old lady hag’ and a ‘rat’, prosecutors said.

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Speedboat killer Jack Shepherd appeared at Isleworth Crown Court via video link from HMP Swaleside today

Shepherd, pictured in 2019 at a court in Georgia, has admitted assaulting his new girlfriend

Charlotte Brown, 24, was thrown from Shepherd’s boat when it capsized on the River Thames during a first date in December 2015

Ms Brown was killed when Shepherd took her on a ride past the Houses of Parliament 

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Judge Martin Edmunds KC, the Recorder of Kensington and Chelsea, remanded Shepherd into custody until a sentencing hearing on September 4. 

He added that the ‘extraordinary’ feature of Shepherd’s case was the ‘notoriety’ he gained by being the killer of Ms Brown, which later featured on a Netflix documentary.

Katherine Lloyd prosecuting said: ‘The case has been fully reviewed by the Crown Prosecution Service together with myself and these pleas are acceptable.’

Shepherd pleaded guilty to three offences as prosecutors agreed to drop two other allegations, of controlling or coercive behaviour and intentional suffocation. 

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All of the offences relate to the period between late 2024 and August 2025.

Shepherd’s garnered national attention after the shocking details of Ms Brown’s death were revealed in court.

The pair had been on a first date at the Shard in December 2015 when they decided to take a speedboat down the Thames.

Shepherd’s trial was told that he was showing off by drunkenly zooming up the Thames in the defective craft he had bought to ‘pull girls’.

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When he flipped the 14ft craft after hitting a submerged log, Ms Brown was thrown into the icy waters in darkness and drowned.

Rather than explain his actions after being rescued, cowardly Shepherd went on the run to Georgia, and was eventually tried in his absence in July 2018 – when he was sentenced to six years in prison.

The Daily Mail launched an investigation to find him and successfully did so in January 2019. He was extradited back to Britain from Georgia in April that year.

Months later, Shepherd was sentenced to a further four years for a vicious ‘glassing’ attack on a barman at a Devon hotel.

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He was freed halfway through a ten-year sentence for the manslaughter of Ms Brown in January 2024 before being recalled to prison in September 2025 after breaching his licence conditions.

The Daily Mail reported at the time that he had been arrested following a complaint on August 4 about his ‘coercive and controlling behaviour and assault.’

“It’s with a very heavy heart that I’m letting you know our wonderful Bob is no longer with us,” Baker wrote. “It’s broken my heart but I feel hugely grateful to have had him in our lives and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for everything he’s taught me and brought to our family.

District Judge Steven Keown said: “This was a running battle in the middle of the day on the busy Lisburn Road involving four people.”

A Romanian national today pleaded guilty to his involvement in a running street battle in South Belfast last year involving four men.

Dumitru Genea, 32, of Queens Road in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, appeared at Belfast Crown Court for a brief arraignment hearing.

When the charge of making an affray on the Lisburn Road on May 7, 2025, was put to him by the court clerk, Genea replied through an interpreter: “Guilty.”

Defence barrister Conn O’Neill said a co-accused in the case, Ionut Lazar, 33, from the Lisburn Road, had previously pleaded guilty to affray and is due to be sentenced on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, by His Honour Judge Gordon Kerr KC.

Asking for a pre-sentence report to be compiled on Genea, Mr O’Neill requested that his client’s case be put into the same date “to see where we are in terms of his probation report”.

Judge Patrick Lynch KC told the defendant: “You have now pleaded guilty to the charge of affray and I have directed a pre-sentence report for a sentencing hearing on September 2 along with Mr Lazar.

“You will be interviewed by a probation officer who will prepare that report for the court. Please cooperate with the probation officer in the preparation of that report as it is in your own interest and keep in contact with your solicitor in case there is any change to that date,” added Judge Lynch.

No details were given in court today about the circumstances surrounding the affray charge.

But when the case first appeared in Belfast Magistrates’ Court in May 2025, a judge was told that four Romanian men were involved in a running battle with knives on the busy Lisburn Road.

One of the men sustained serious stab injuries during an initial encounter inside an apartment, said police at the time. CCTV footage then showed two men being pursued by Genea and Lazar towards a nearby bar on the Lisburn Road.

A defence solicitor for the two victims claimed they were chased by Genea and Lazar and took shelter in the foyer of the pub. He alleged his clients threw chairs and hoardings in a bid to keep Genea and Lazar out.

The solicitor alleged: “They are the victims in this case. They were attacked, ran away and then were attacked again.”

However, a defence solicitor for Genea and Lazar made counter allegations that they had been threatened and only acted in self-defence.

District Judge Steven Keown said: “This was a running battle in the middle of the day on the busy Lisburn Road involving four people.”

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Stephen Graham has given us fabulous performances recently, as ever, in the likes of Adolescence and A Thousand Blows – but one role getting fans’ attention takes him to new, darker depths.

The acclaimed actor can now be seen in the creepy-yet-compelling thriller The Good Boy, opposite Anson Boon and Andrea Riseborough, which has now dropped on Amazon Prime Video – and is already rising up the charts.

The Good Boy delves into the mind games that ensue when a seemingly respectable married couple (Emmy and Golden Globe winner Graham and Oscar nominee Riseborough) chain up an obnoxious tearaway youth, Tommy (Boon, MobLand), in their basement to teach him family values. As you do.

But as he undergoes training for his new role as a good boy, is he learning lessons or manipulating his captors? 

The film’s official synopsis promises that it ‘needs to be seen to be believed’ after it first screened at TIFF and then the London Film Festival in October 2025.

Now fans can judge for themselves if The Good Boy – formally known as Good Boy, which confused fans of the recent canine-starring horror – lives up to the twisted hype.

Signature Entertainment released this indie gem in UK and Irish cinemas earlier this year on March 20, ahead of its Prime debut.

It was later released in the US but under a different title – Heel.

The Jan Komasa-directed flick, written by Bartek Bartosik and Naqqash Khalid, is currently sitting on an impressive 87% score from 71 critics on review aggregator platform Rotten Tomatoes.

Its performances have been praised as ‘doggone exceptional’ while the film itself has been compared to ‘an early Yorgos Lanthimos’, the master of the unusual and weird in his collaborations with Emma Stone.

‘It’s a sick premise that only gets sicker, but sometimes sickness in the cure. Good Boy is tonally unique,’ praised The Standard’s review, while Flickering Myth admired it as ‘relentlessly bleak ‘fun’ and twisty-turny throughout’.

The Good Boy has also been described as a ‘wickedly strange, psychologically rich fairy tale’ and simply ‘messed up’.

Peter Bradshaw for The Guardian called the movie a ‘Kubrickian absurdist nightmare’ in a four-star review, while Digital Spy’s five-star rave described a ‘compelling genre blend of dark thriller, absurdist comedy and thought-provoking drama that you won’t be able to look away from’.

The Good Boy: Key details

Director

Jan Komasa

Writer

Bartek Bartosik and Naqqash Khalid

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Cast

Stephen Graham, Andrea Riseborough, Anson Boon, Kit Rakusen

Runtime

1 hour and 50 minutes

Age rating

15

Rotten Tomatoes scores

Critics score: 87% – Audience score: 78%

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Where to watch

Amazon Prime Video

While it’s a deeply uncomfortable premise, The Good Boy’s pitch-dark humour also keeps viewers on side, mining that bonkers scenario for its rich vein of insane comedy – be that from Boon’s swagger as Tommy or Graham’s quiet and polite menace as his ‘trainer’, Chris.

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And let’s not forget about Chris and Kathryn’s young son Jonathan (Kit Rakusen) and his relaxed approach to it all, contrasting with the family’s new housekeeper Rina (Monika Frajczyk), desperate for a job at nearly any cost.

Does The Good Boy sound like one for your watchlist?

• Nope – too scary for me!

If the thought of a prim and proper Graham insisting ‘we’re not psychopaths!’ as he beats seven shades out of Boon’s xenophobic hooligan – who has been shown fornicating, weeing and vomiting in public on a night out – appeals, then The Good Boy is one for you.

Equally, you can strap in tight for a thrill ride with an unexpected ending that deviates from everything you might think you know of this movie.

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The Good Boy is available to stream for Amazon Prime Video subscribers now

MORE: ‘Unhinged’ Robin Wright thriller that’s uncomfortably erotic soars up Amazon Prime chart

MORE: Amazon Prime’s documentary about the ‘dark side of Love Island’ gave us nothing

MORE: ‘Gripping’ Ruth Wilson BBC thriller about corpse hidden in house soars up Netflix top 10

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Emergency services were called to St Paul’s Road on Friday afternoon (July 24) after a 57-year-old man was left with serious head injuries in an incident outside an address.

The man was taken to the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, where he remains in a critical condition today (July 28).

Cleveland Police said a 37-year-old man arrested in connection with the investigation has since been interviewed and bailed with conditions while enquiries continue.

The force said detectives are continuing to pursue several investigative opportunities as they work to establish the full circumstances. 

The man’s family is being supported by specialist officers.  

Detective Chief Inspector John Bonner said: “This is a serious incident which has left a man with life-threatening injuries. Our thoughts remain with his family, who are being supported by specially-trained officers.

“While a man has been arrested and bailed with conditions, our investigation remains very much ongoing, and we are continuing to gather evidence to understand exactly what happened.

“I would ask anyone who was in the St Paul’s Road area during the afternoon of Friday (July 24) and who may have witnessed the incident, or noticed anything out of the ordinary, to come forward and speak with us.

“I am particularly keen to hear from motorists who may have been driving in the area and have dash-cam footage, as well as anyone who may have captured mobile phone video or images which could assist our enquiries.

“I would also ask anyone who knows either the injured man or the man who was arrested, and who may have information about their movements, interactions, behaviour or activities during the hours leading up to this incident, to contact us.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting reference SE26146385. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online.

Olivia Attwood has launched a blistering attack at her ex-husband Bradley Dack‘s new love interest Emily Moloney – branding her his ‘bit on the side’. 

Last week, he was spotted with the influencer, despite her claims they were not dating, saying: ‘This is absolutely out of hand now. So, I will say this clearly for you. I am categorically not in a relationship with Brad, nor have I ever been.’

Bradley and Emily are said to have quietly reunited following his shock split from Olivia, 35, in January, amid her secret romance with former The Only Way Is Essex and Strictly Come Dancing star, Pete Wicks.

After her ‘hard launch’ of her romance with Pete, on Tuesday morning Olivia returned to social media to state she had ‘poor judgement over the past decade’, but appeared to take a swipe at Emily by branding her ‘a professional seat warmer’. 

Olivia wrote: ‘Took 7 months of people trying to make me think I was crazy and they are all coming out the wood work now’ and called Emily ‘a bit on the side’ in an apparent swipe at the reunited couple in the wake of her marital breakdown.

Olivia branded Emily a ‘bit on the side’ and ‘a seat warmer’ 

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Another message showed she was being depicted to be ‘crazy’

In the wake of the images of Bradley and Emily out and about, Olivia wrote: ‘I HAVE DEFINITELY BEAT UP MYSELF OVER MY POOR JUDGMENT OVER THE LAST DECADE. BUT I GUESS I COULD OF SPENT 10 YEARS AS THE BIT ON THE SIDE PROFESSIONAL BENCH WARMER …SO silver linings I guess… 

A screenshot of a Whatsapp message read: ‘Love how you didn’t say a word and then they pulled the covers down themselves…..wooops no one likes a side.’

She wrote over the top: ‘THESE PEOPLE GET THEMSELVES TANGLED IN THEIR OWN WEB OF LIES. All you have to do is sit back and wait, Took 7 months of people trying to make me think I was crazy and they are all coming out the wood work now.’

Olivia added a rat emoji at the end of the message. 

In images obtained by the Daily Mail, Brad and Emily were pictured out together, in what Olivia appears to have taken as confirmation of their romance.   

Speaking to the Daily Mail’s Katie Hind, a source said: ‘Olivia clearly had a hunch that Bradley was back with Emily back in March…

‘Of course – in keeping with her carefully orchestrated publicity campaign to get her off the hook for growing close to Pete while still with Bradley – her friends told a newspaper about them…

‘Emily really hit back. She went hard. Maybe they weren’t together at the time, but they really seem to be now. Bradley has been a regular visitor at Emily’s and they certainly had a Sunday funday.’

Bradley and Olivia are pictured together in May last year

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Olivia and Pete ‘hard launched’ their relationship earlier this month  

Emily later appeared to goad Olivia, as she took to Instagram to share a snap with the caption: ‘Back when I thought a bad passport picture would be the worst thing I saw of myself that week,’ alongside a laughing emoji.

She then appeared to reference the fact she had been at Marks & Spencer with Bradley as she wrote: ‘god forbid a girl needs a rotisserie chicken.’ 

Shortly before Olivia’s post, Pete revealed he feared he would ’embarrass’ his Olivia when he hard-launched their romance, after he confirmed their relationship with a loved-up social media post.

He finally confirmed he was dating his longtime pal earlier this month, with a gallery of snaps on Instagram, after they enjoyed a ‘wonderful’ trip to Ibiza.

Pete told his longtime pal Sam Thompson that he’d ‘spoken’ to Olivia about going public with their relationship, but it was a telling clip from her podcast that pushed him to share the post.

Olivia has joked that she and Pete were the ‘worst kept secret’ after they were caught kissing and cuddling on several occasions, following her split from her ‘husband’ Bradley Dack at the start of the year.

Emily later appeared to goad Olivia, as she took to Instagram to share a snap with the caption: ‘Back when I thought a bad passport picture would be the worst thing I saw of myself that week’ alongside a laughing emoji

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Shortly before sharing the post, she shared a sizzling bikini clad snap 

Just hours later, Pete posted loved-up pictures of them all over each other on their holiday, marking the first time he has ever publicly shared a relationship online.

Speaking on the newest episode of their Staying Relevant podcast, Pete said: ‘The thought process was – what would Liv like? I’d seen the clip on her podcast, we’d spoken about it and I thought “ah f**k it” you know let’s go and do it.

‘In terms of the photos, I think it encapsulates what a wonderful trip it was. Obviously the first photo had to be of me and Liv, and all I really cared about was that I didn’t embarrass her. Just there we go, now it’s out it’s fine, we’re good.’

Sam shared his delight that his best pal was in a relationship, sharing that he and many of their fans were ‘very happy’ for him.

Gardaí also requested another condition, that she not have any contact with anyone in Saoradh or the New IRA.

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A law student charged in relation to a bomb intercepted in a car near the Irish border has been granted bail after a judge accepted she had met the conditions required for her to be released from custody.

Isobella Perrie Sullivan, 25, of Abbeylands Park, Clane, Co Kildare, was charged with possession of explosives at a special sitting of Trim District Court in Co Meath on Friday.

At that hearing, her defence solicitor said she had been asked to take a bag to the north and had not been aware what was in it, adding that she had been “manipulated”.

The car was stopped on the N2 at Aclint, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, last Wednesday.

During a search of the vehicle, a bag was discovered in the rear seat that contained an amount of Semtex military grade explosive and a detonator.

In court on Friday, Ms Perrie Sullivan was granted bail with a host of conditions, which included a 15,000-euro independent surety, that she surrendered her passport, stays at an address approved by gardaí with a curfew of 9pm to 7am, has a mobile phone available 24 hours a day and signs in each day to Naas garda station.

Gardaí also requested another condition, that she not have any contact with anyone in Saoradh or the New IRA.

She was remanded in custody pending confirmation that she had met the conditions required for her to be bailed.

She was further remanded on Monday at a hearing at Monaghan District Court after Judge Raymond Finnegan said that he had not yet received an application to approve the surety.

In Cavan District Court on Tuesday, Judge Finnegan granted the bail application after it was confirmed the surety had been provided by an individual with an address in the Claremorris area of Co Mayo.

Barrister Sara Brennan represented Ms Perrie Sullivan, who was not present in court.

The accused will next appear before Monaghan District Court on August 7.

Also charged in relation to the bomb interception is Simon O’Donovan, an employee at a Dublin museum.

The 44-year-old appeared before the Special Criminal Court at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin at the weekend, charged with possession of an explosive substance at St Laurence’s Road in Chapelizod in the city on Wednesday July 22.

He was denied bail and remanded in custody until October 5.

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