Business

Zopa, one of Britain’s biggest digital financial services providers, is in talks with investors about a £100m capital injection that will put it on course to become the country’s latest fintech ‘unicorn’. Sky News has learnt that Zopa has hired JP Morgan, the Wall Street investment bank, to advise on what is expected to be

Jobs and earnings for SAG-AFTRA members have “rebounded and reached a new high in the first months of 2021, with streaming and commercials showing significant growth,” the union said Saturday night following an all-day meeting of its national board of directors. “We’re very pleased that the Covid safety protocols that we worked so hard with

Taxpayers will spend decades exposed to financial risks from the government’s coronavirus spending, according to a committee of MPs. Parliament’s public accounts committee (PAC) has produced two reports related to the crisis, the first of which warns that Britain will be exposed to “significant financial risks for decades to come”. The cost of government measures

Three of Fran Drescher’s former co-stars on The Nanny have come out in support of her political rival, Matthew Modine, in the race to be the next president of SAG-AFTRA. Charles Shaughnessy, Renee Taylor and Madeline Zima also are backing the Membership First slate of candidates headed by Modine and his running mate Joely Fisher. None

The newly listed owner of Burger King’s UK operations has begun drawing up plans for a sale of the business next year in a bet on an accelerated recovery of Britain’s pandemic-hit restaurant industry. Sky News has learnt that Bridgepoint Group is holding preliminary talks with investment banks about an auction of one of the

Meredith Stiehm will be the next president of the WGA West. Stiehm, running unopposed, will succeed David A. Goodman, who has termed out, on Sept. 21. Stiehm, who executive produced Homeland and Cold Case, will be only the third woman to hold the union’s highest elected position. The WGA West and its forerunner, the Screen

Boris Johnson is facing growing pressure to allow fully vaccinated people who have been identified as close contacts of coronavirus cases to be exempt from isolation. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has joined business leaders in calling for more workers to be allowed to skip quarantine if they are alerted by the NHS COVID-19 app to

Raymond Cavaleri, a former child actor who became a talent agent and founded Cavaleri & Associates in 1981, died July 19 in West Hills, California. He was 74. His son Damian Cavaleri announced his death to Deadline, noting that he died peacefully surrounded by family. Born in Syracuse, New York, Cavaleri was six months old

The UK’s economic bounce-back has slowed sharply partly thanks to the impact of the “pingdemic” causing workers to isolate, according to a key business survey. A “flash” estimate of private sector activity for July showed the weakest expansion since March as Britain’s firms battle to recover from the coronavirus crisis. The reading of 57.7 –

If you thought it was a challenge for broadcasters to sweeten NFL or NBA broadcasts during fan-free pandemic telecasts in 2020, get ready for the most sprawling sports event on the calendar. The Covid-addled Tokyo Summer Olympic Games start Friday on NBCUniversal platforms without any spectators in attendance, due to health and safety measures. Japan

Around 10,000 workers in the food supply chain industry are to become exempt from coronavirus self-isolation rules – but this will not include supermarket staff, the government has said. Environment Secretary George Eustice said the government has identified “up to 500” distribution centres and food supply chain hubs where workers could be part of the

“The Delta variant is a game-changer,” said Los Angeles County Public Health Director said on Thursday. Ferrer announced that, as the Delta variant has become more prevalent in Los Angeles County, the percentage of infections happening among fully-vaccinated residents is rising. In March, vaccinated people accounted for only 2% of all infections. In April that

Supermarkets Sainsbury’s, Iceland and Co-op have revealed they are suffering stock shortages as concerns grow about the impact of the so-called “pingdemic”. Sainsbury’s, Britain’s second biggest supermarket, said it “might not always have” products customers want while Iceland revealed it was also being hit and urged customers not to stockpile. Co-op said it was “running

UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report has been awarded funding from the 2021-2022 California state budget for the first time. The total of $250,000 will support the industry’s only longitudinal analysis that connects the relationship between the diversity of key jobs in Hollywood productions with the spending power and appetites of increasingly diverse U.S. audiences. “Films directed

Retailers say they are under “increasing pressure” to keep shelves fully stocked amid staff shortages caused by the “pingdemic”. Industry bosses have warned that supply chains are “starting to fail” due to the number of workers, including lorry drivers and meat-processing staff, getting pinged by the NHS COVID app. Live COVID updates from the UK

President Joe Biden nominated longtime Comcast executive David L. Cohen as his next ambassador to Canada. Cohen’s selection was long expected. The senior adviser to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts backed Biden early in the presidential race, as he co-hosted the presidential candidate at his home for the campaign’s kickoff fundraiser in April, 2019. Also tapped

Boris Johnson has apologised to businesses impacted by a rising number of staff members having to self-isolate due to coming into close contact with a positive coronavirus case. Speaking at the last PMQs before the summer recess, the prime minister – himself isolating at Chequers after coming into contact with COVID-positive Health Secretary Sajid Javid

Mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations on film and TV productions will now be allowed, on a restricted basis, under a new agreement reached tonight between Hollywood’s unions and the major companies. The new protocols, they said in a joint statement, will give producers “the option to implement mandatory vaccination policies for casts and crew in Zone A

MPs have promised a new amendment to help flat owners “trapped” in buildings affected by the cladding crisis. Leaseholders who bought flats in blocks that were later found to be unsafe have seen the value of their homes wiped out while they wait to be told of the scale and cost of repairs. On Wednesday,

Netflix bosses said Tuesday that consolidation in the media sector hasn’t impacted its growth and that the streamer doesn’t see any ‘must have’ deals to jump on in the midst of an industry M&A frenzy, although it looks at everything. In a letter to shareholders at the release of its mixed second-quarter earnings report, founder-CEO