With Mrs Brown’s Boys’ impromptu cancellation leaving two vacant spots in the BBC’s festive TV schedule this year, viewers reckon they’ve already come up with a solution.

“This decision has not been taken lightly and has been made on medical advice from my consultant,” he said in a statement, which also confirmed that several live performances would be unable to take place. “To say I am heartbroken is an absolute understatement.”

It then took fans of Diane Morgan’s comedy Ann Droid almost no time to suggest a Christmas special could be the ideal way to fill the gap…

Ann Droid features Sue Johnston and Diane Morgan as a grieving widow and the near-obsoletion robot that her son haphazardly buys to keep her company.

While at first, Sue’s character is resistant to her new companion, who she names Linda, the two eventually grow close, with critics having already praised both the humour and heart of the Philomena Cunk creator’s latest TV offering.

As well as critical acclaim, Ann Droid has also done well with viewers, with The Sun reporting earlier this month that more episodes are already in the works.

The tabloid claimed that Ann Droid “looks set to get a second series” after racking up around four million viewers in the space of a week, around half of whom were bingeing it on BBC iPlayer.

While the BBC is remaining tight-lipped for the time being, The Sun claimed that Diane’s production company is already developing a second run of episodes based around the unlikely duo.

All six episodes of Ann Droid are now streaming on BBC iPlayer.

• £20 million of community grants to 385 local organisations
• 19,500 people trained in local “Centres of Excellence”
• 1,740 apprentices trained – beating a target of 1,000
• £5.4 billion spent with 1,500 businesses across the South West
• New factory opened in North Wales to support the project
• Suffolk youngsters learn skills to take home to Sizewell C
• 65,000 trees planted and 92 bird species identified around the HPC site

The scale of Hinkley Point C’s positive impact on people and the economy has been detailed in the Hinkley Point C Socio-economic and Environmental Impact Report 2026, which can be read here.

New figures show that the project’s three local training centres, operated in partnership with the UCS College Group, have given 19,500 people the skills they need to be part of the nuclear power project. Almost 70% of the 1,740 apprentices trained at Hinkley Point C are from the South West. Others include youngsters from Suffolk learning skills they can take to Sizewell C, our twin nuclear project in the East of England.    

The report also maps grants provided by Hinkley Point C’s Community Fund of more than £20 million to 385 community projects. Stretching across Somerset, the benefits have been accessible to over 600,000 people. The grants are creating community benefit that will continue well beyond the construction of the new power station. The investment has also unlocked match funding of at least £8.4 million. Around 40% of grants support projects in rural areas of Somerset with the majority from areas of known social and economic deprivation.

£5.4 billion has now been spent with businesses across the South West with case studies highlighting the suppliers growing their capability and winning new work thanks to their experience at Hinkley Point C. Benefits are also felt across Britain, including a new factory in North Wales which has opened to support Hinkley Point C and future nuclear projects. This facility alone will employ 200 people.

The project continues to deliver environmental benefits. The report includes examples of the planting of seagrass in the Severn Estuary to benefit the marine environment and the £700 million of fish protection measures being delivered by the power station. Surveys show wildlife around the site is thriving with 92 bird species recorded in newly created landscape areas.

Hinkley Point C’s home-grown electricity will provide Britain energy security for decades to come, meeting around 10% of the country’s current electricity demand. 

Stuart Crooks, Hinkley Point C’s CEO, said: 

While most people living locally say that they feel the benefits of our project, we don’t take their support for granted. The Hinkley Point C Community Fund has supported many inspiring initiatives which show the vitality of communities and people around our site.As I prepare to move on from the project, I am proud to see what we have achieved, and I look forward to the completion of a power station that is helping to build a more secure, more prosperous and more sustainable Britain.

Minister for Nuclear, Lord Vallance said: 

We are delivering a new golden age of nuclear and Hinkley Point C will play a key part in this, boosting Britain’s energy security with clean, homegrown power. Hinkley Point C is driving investment in Somerset, while supporting a new generation of skilled nuclear workers to power Britain and deliver our clean energy mission.

Andy Berry, CEO of University College Somerset said: 

Our continued partnership with Hinkley Point C exemplifies the power of collaboration between industry and education, delivering lasting social and economic benefits to the region and the country as a whole. Our partnership not only supports the immediate development of skills and infrastructure but also lays the groundwork for a greener, more resilient economy in the future. Looking ahead, the South West stands out as a leader in nuclear and engineering excellence, perfectly poised to deliver future projects.

Justin Sargent, CEO of Somerset Community Foundation, said: 

We know that hosting the construction of Hinkley Point C is a source of great pride for many people in the area and has created many opportunities for local residents and businesses, but a project of this size inevitably also brings many changes in peoples’ everyday lives. The Community Fund has provided an incredible boost to hundreds of organisations in local towns, villages and hamlets, building stronger and more resilient communities which, in many cases, will have lasting impact far into the future.

The event also marked the relaunch of EDF and Dalkia Forces Support Network, which supports veterans, reservists and their families across the organisation. The programme included welcome remarks, a networking lunch and the formal Covenant signing, alongside activities designed to encourage connection, understanding and shared experiences between industry and the Armed Forces community.

Dr Sarah Jackson, Chief Medical Officer at EDF UK and Executive Sponsor of the Forces Support Network, said: “People who have served bring exceptional leadership, resilience and teamwork into civilian careers. At EDF, we’re committed to creating an environment where those skills are recognised and where veterans, reservists and military families feel welcomed, valued and able to succeed.”

The Forces Support Network plays a key role in helping colleagues transition from military to civilian careers, offering guidance, peer support and a strong sense of community across both EDF and Dalkia.

Stan Webster, Hinkley Point C Site Security Manager and Chair of EDF’s Forces Support Network, who served 22 years in the British Army, added: “Moving from military life into a civilian career can be a big change. Having a community around you that understands that journey is incredibly important.”

The event also highlighted the importance of collaboration in supporting the Armed Forces community across organisations.

 Stu Brown, Dalkia Forces Support Network Chair and Business Unit Director at Parliament, commented: “By working closely together across EDF and Dalkia, we can create more opportunities for people to transition successfully and feel part of a workplace that truly values their experience. It also increases diversity of thinking, brings fresh ideas and helps build an instant rapport and understanding when we work with the Defence sector. It’s part of our competitive edge, as well as the right thing to do.”

 Veterans, reservists and members of the Armed Forces community interested in building their careers with EDF and Dalkia UK can find out more about current opportunities at https://careers.edfenergy.com/ and https://dalkia.co.uk/working-for-us/opportunities/.

Since its commissioning in 1995 the station has produced more than 270 Terrawatt hours (TWh) of low carbon electricity – that’s enough to meet the needs of every household in Suffolk and Norfolk for more than 100 years – but it had been due to stop generating in 2035. Now Heads of Terms have been signed on a CfD to extend the lifetime out to 2055, with EDF funding a major refurbishment of the nuclear power station during planned outages over the next fifteen years, costing around £800 million.

The proposal covers the period from 2035 to 2055 and includes a strike price of £70.50/MWh (2025 prices). Sizewell B produces baseload power, available 24/7 in all weather conditions. Extending the operational life of the station is a cost-effective way to increase the UK’s sovereign clean energy generation. UK Government and EDF are expected to finalise this CfD later this year. 

EDF UK CEO Simone Rossi said: “Global events demonstrate time and again how vital it is for the UK to secure long term, low-carbon, homegrown electricity which protects British households and businesses from market volatility. Extending the life of the plants we already have alongside building new ones is central to EDF’s strategy.”

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “Nuclear power is vital for our energy security, and this extension will help produce the clean power our country needs.”

Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear Lord Vallance said: “This deal protects billpayers and boosts the country’s energy security by continuing to provide clean, secure power for millions of households. By backing Sizewell B, we are delivering a golden age of nuclear and maintaining 900 skilled jobs in Suffolk.”

• Heysham 1 and Hartlepool nuclear power stations are to generate to March 2030 following a review of lifetimes
• The decision, taken by EDF, is set to boost nuclear output by 28TWh over the two-year extension, supporting the UK’s energy security during a period of major system change
• More than 1000 jobs in the north-east and north-west of England will be supported for longer.

Two nuclear power stations are each set to generate for two years longer in a boost to the UK’s energy security and to local employment.

Heysham 1 in Lancashire and Hartlepool in Teesside are now expected to produce low carbon electricity until March 2030 after a decision by operator, EDF.

As well as supporting more than 1000 jobs across the two sites for longer, extending the generating lives of these plants could boost nuclear output by 28TWh over the two-year period, enough to power 8.4 million homes.

EDF’s Managing Director of Nuclear Operations, John Munro, said: “We have been clear it is our ambition to generate from these stations for as long as it is safe and commercially viable to do so it is great to be able to confirm a further two-year extension for Heysham 1 and Hartlepool.

“The AGR stations have been the backbone of secure, zero carbon generation in the UK for five decades. The nuclear fleet also has a key role in maintaining grid stability, which is so important as the overall system becomes led by renewables. Today’s decision retains stable baseload, domestic generation, reducing reliance on imports during tighter periods.” 

Together with today’s announcement, the UK Government’s commitment to delivering the recommendations from the Fingleton Review sends a positive signal about supporting a secure low carbon electricity system for the country. 

When EDF acquired the fleet in 2009 all seven Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR) stations were scheduled to be offline by 2023, but a series of life extensions mean four of those stations are still generating with three now in various stages of defueling or decommissioning.

John continued: “When nuclear goes offline it is often replaced with gas generation. If we are serious about reducing the UK’s reliance on gas and retaining system stability, it makes sense to keep these stations online to support energy security and our carbon targets.”

Keeping these stations online will retain around 12% of the UK’s nuclear generation in the mix in 2028 and the volume of gas they could avoid in each year of the extension is equal to 25 Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) cargoes or 20% of the LNG imports in 2025.

The decision comes following a detailed review covering technical aspects like the condition of the boilers and the graphite cores as well as supply chain resilience and workforce planning. 

EDF will continue to keep AGR lifetimes under review to establish whether further life extensions can be achieved. 

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England has battled wildfires in recent months after the hottest summer on record (Alamy)

4 min read8 min

The MP for Scarborough and Whitby, Alison Hume, created the APPG after her northeastern constituency experienced the largest wildfire it had ever recorded last summer.

She told PoliticsHome that the lack of government action in response to that incident had been “frustrating”, adding that the location of the fire – far from Westminster and the centre of the national media – played a part in the lack of attention.

“To be brutally honest with you, it’s because there’s been lots of wildfires in the South. It took two weeks to get any national coverage of the Fylingsdale Moor wildfire, and it was a massive fire that burnt for 40 days,” the Labour MP said.

“Since then we’ve had many more wildfires. It’s going to be on a lot more MPs’ radars, and I won’t be the only person standing up in the House of Commons talking about them, sadly.”

Extreme temperatures have resulted in wildfires across the country in recent weeks, including in southern areas such as Suffolk and the New Forest. The fires have damaged homes, businesses and environments in the constituencies of many MPs, leading Prime Minister Andy Burnham to describe the country as “tinderbox Britain”.

The scenes have led to a recent increase in public concern about climate change, according to Ipsos polling shared with PoliticsHome earlier this month.

“Wildfires are going to be part of our future going forward, as flooding is, and therefore we need to be much more resilient,” Hume added.

“We need to be planning, looking at land management ahead of these things, and then afterwards, what we do to help people recover.”

The Labour MP for Stourbridge, Cat Eccles, said wildfires in her Midlands constituency had left it feeling “almost like a war zone”. Wildfires in Stourbridge lasted days and destroyed 19 houses. Eccles told PoliticsHome that police officers were forced to break down doors and drag members of the public to safety. 

Visiting Stourbridge on Friday, Burnham announced a temporary ban on the sale of disposable barbecues. Later that evening, a nationwide emergency alert warned people in England and Wales that there was a high risk of wildfires across the country and that the public “should not undertake any activity that could start a fire”.

Last week, the PM also announced funding for farmers to build on-farm reservoirs to help with future droughts and better access to water.

Speaking about the aftermath of the Fylingdales Moor/Langdale Forest fire last August, Hume said there had been a “massive gap” in the financial aid given to the community, after farmers lost equipment because they were on the front line fighting the fires. “Without them, there would have been not only loss of property, probably loss of life,” she said.

This year, the government has been “moving more decisively”, Hume added.

The APPG Chair wants the government to look at how the UK can learn from how other countries deal with wildfires, like how France and Spain fight fires from the sky: “We’ve got to improve our aerial capacity, there’s no doubt about that.”

She praised the government’s efforts to provide clearer leadership on wildfires, pointing to her recent calls with security minister Dan Jarvis and other Whitehall departments.

Speaking to PoliticsHome in his capacity as a constituency MP, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant said there have been several wildfires in his Rhondda and Ogmore constituency in recent years, but that the last fortnight has “felt different”.

Fellow Welsh Labour MP Ruth Jones, whose constituency of Newport West and Islwyn has suffered wildfires this summer, told PoliticsHome that she would like to see more education around the dangers of accidentally starting fires in hot and dry conditions.