Motorway shut for mass biker charity ride-out
The convoy set off on a 26-mile route from Meole Brace, in Shrewsbury, at 10:30 BST on Sunday as part of the Bike4Life Ride Out and Festival.
About 3,500 riders drove in convoy along stretches of motorway that had been closed for the event, to reach the festival site at Weston Park on the Shropshire-Staffordshire border, organisers said.
Former World Superbike champion Carl Fogarty is attending the festival, which aims to raise money for the Midlands Air Ambulance charity.
The ride-out followed the A5, M54 and A41 to the event's home at Weston Park, with the A5 and M54 shut to other drivers for a time.
Highways agencies had previously advised motorists to avoid travelling at the same time and allow extra time around related traffic restrictions.
The road closures have since been lifted.
Visitors to Weston Park have been promised celebrity guest appearances, live music, food and stunt shows.
Among celebrities expected to attend are Bez from the Happy Mondays and former professional motorcycle racer James Whitham.
Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Drivers warned of charity motorbike convoy
Related internet links
BikefLife Ride Out
Midlands Air Ambulance
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
TV presenter Jay Blades charged with two counts of rape
TV presenter Jay Blades has been charged with two counts of rape, police have confirmed. West Mercia Police said the 55-year-old is due to appear in court next week. The force said: "Jason Blades, 55, of Claverley in Shropshire, has been charged with two counts of rape. "He is due to appear at Telford Magistrates' Court on 13 August 2025." Blades found fame on the furniture restoration programme The Repair Shop after he started presenting in 2017. A furniture restorer, he was the face of the popular BBC show that featured people having their treasured objects repaired and rejuvenated. Read more: Blades was also the presenter of the BBC's Money For Nothing until 2020 and took part in Celebrity Masterchef, Celebrity Bake Off, and Comic Relief.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Ozzy Osbourne's Official Cause of Death Revealed After Rock Star's Death at 76: Reports
The former Black Sabbath frontman and reality TV personality died at 76 on Tuesday, July 22NEED TO KNOW Ozzy Osbourne's cause of death has reportedly been determined The former Black Sabbath frontman and reality TV personality died at 76 on Tuesday, July 22 The late rocker was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2003Ozzy Osbourne's cause of death has been determined. According to a death certificate obtained by The New York Times and The Sun, the legendary rock star died of "out of hospital cardiac arrest" and "acute myocardial infarction," with coronary artery disease and Parkinson's disease with autonomic dysfunction listed as "joint causes." Per the Times, Osbourne's daughter Aimee submitted the death certificate at a registry in London. The Black Sabbath frontman and reality TV personality died on Tuesday, July 22. He was 76. 'It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning," Osbourne's family told PEOPLE in a statement at the time. "He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. After the rock god's death, a Thames Valley Air Ambulance spokesperson confirmed to PEOPLE in a statement that its helicopter "was dispatched to provide advanced critical care at an incident near Chalfont St Giles on Tuesday 22nd July." The Daily Mail first reported that the air ambulance was called to the Black Sabbath frontman's family home and spent two hours providing care before the rock legend died. Osbourne's family — including wife Sharon and his kids Louis, Aimee, Kelly and Jack — said their final goodbyes to the rocker during an emotional funeral procession on July 30 in Birmingham, England. Weeks before his death, Osbourne performed from a throne at the Black Sabbath farewell concert on July 5 in Birmingham, England — a live show that would be his final concert and his first in 20 years with the band that made him a star. The musician faced several health issues in the years before his final performance. In January 2020, Osbourne revealed that he'd been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, a nervous system disorder that affects movement in 2003. At the time, he said, "It's not a death sentence." Prior to that, in 2019, Osbourne had suffered a fall in his Los Angeles home that required neck surgery. The musician, however, did return to the stage in August 2022 for a performance in front of 30,000 at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The following month, he spoke to PEOPLE about wanting to continue playing live despite his health issues. "That's the only thing that reminds me I'm getting older: things going wrong and not working anymore," Osbourne said at the time. "But I still feel young at heart." In March 2023, his health forced him to cancel a string of then-upcoming U.K. and European tour dates. Writing on Instagram, the singer said, "My singing voice is fine. However, after three operations, stem cell treatments, endless physical therapy sessions, and most recently, groundbreaking Cybernics (HAL) Treatment, my body is still physically weak." That July, Osbourne canceled a performance at Power Trip festival in Indio, Calif. that was set for October 2023. "My original plan was to return to the stage in the summer of 2024, and when the offer to do this show came in, I optimistically moved forward," he wrote on Instagram at the time. The rock star also did not perform at his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction that same year. By the time he returned to the stage for the final time in July, Osbourne appeared in front of a live audience perched atop of a bat-bedecked throne with a skull design on each arm rest. At that point, Osbourne's mobility had been limited by Parkinson's disease. Reflecting on his storied career in a 2007 interview withThe Guardian, the musician described his life as an 'incredible adventure,' noting that 'this has all been such an amazing journey for me.' Osbourne added, 'I can vividly remember sitting on the step of my house in Aston, just tripping about what it would be like to be a Beatle. It's like I've been in the music industry for 30, 40 years, and it's just been incredible really.' In his final interview with PEOPLE in 2022, Osbourne said: "Survival is my legacy." Read the original article on People
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Sector shaken as FCA opens consultation into £18bn scheme
The UK motor finance industry is facing fresh disruption after the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed plans to launch a consultation into a redress scheme that could cost lenders and brokers as much as £18 billion. The announcement — following a Supreme Court ruling last Friday — reintroduces significant financial and operational uncertainty for motor finance providers. While the FCA said most drivers would receive no more than £950 each, the total cost to the industry is now estimated at between £9 billion and £18 billion. Paul Hollick, Chair of the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP), said: 'We've gone from a situation on Friday where the Supreme Court verdicts suggested the worst risks for the motor finance sector had been removed, to one on Monday morning where the FCA's intervention has reintroduced the possibility of quite widespread reparations.' The FCA's move relates to discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs), which allowed dealers to set interest rates on car finance agreements and pocket the difference as commission — often without the customer's knowledge. These practices were banned in 2021, but many were in place across millions of loans issued between 2007 and 2021. FCA Chief Executive Nikhil Rathi said: 'It is clear that some firms have broken the law and our rules. It's fair for their customers to be compensated.' He added that the FCA aims to build a scheme that is 'fair and easy to participate in,' with no need for consumers to use a lawyer or claims management company (CMC). 'If you do, it will cost you a significant chunk of any money you get,' he warned. Industry pushback However, several industry figures questioned the FCA's legal and practical basis for retrospective compensation — particularly when many firms operated within then-accepted frameworks. Paul Bennett, a consultant with Madox Square Advisory, was cited on LinkedIn as saying: 'This statement leaves me somewhat perplexed because, until discretionary charges were banned in 2021, financiers in concert with their introducers operated within the law. As such, how can firms be penalised in 2025 for what was accepted business practice until 2021?' Stephen Haddrill, Director General of the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA), expressed concern over the FCA's intention to look as far back as 2007. 'We have concerns about whether it is possible to have a fair redress scheme that goes back to 2007 when firms have not been required to hold such dated information, and the evidence base will be patchy at best.' Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he added: 'I just think that is completely impractical. It is not just firms that don't have the details about contracts back then, customers don't either.' Dealers urged to review historical agreements Jonathan Butler, legal counsel at the Vehicle Remarketing Association (VRA) and partner at Geldards, said: 'We shouldn't lose sight of the fact that this is good news for dealers and lenders' given that the exposure is far less than the £44 billion feared. However, he warned of extensive preparatory work ahead. 'Dealers and lenders are now in a position where they can start to calculate their exposure. They should be tracking down all relevant paperwork dating back to the 2007 cut-off point,' Butler said. He also flagged potential legal minefields in legacy dealer agreements: 'Dealers need to read their old contracts with motor finance providers to check there is no form of indemnity in place that protects the lender in the event of claims of the type now envisaged. These did sometimes exist and, if enforced, may cause issues.' Butler added that the redress scheme could be hampered by evidentiary complexity: 'The Johnson-type threshold is actually a value judgment... These are highly fact sensitive matters and not questions that... could be easily answered using anything other than an arbitrary and automated process. It needs qualified people to make assessments... that is potentially an enormous task.' CMC industry faces collapse The FCA's announcement is also likely to have a profound effect on the claims management sector, which had anticipated a much wider liability ruling from the Supreme Court. John Perez, Partner and Head of Finance Litigation at DWF, said: 'The CMC industry that has emerged in pursuing these claims on mass will likely now collapse.' He explained that under the ruling, 'any continuing claims will all be fact dependant on the nature of the individual transactions,' meaning the days of high-volume, generic CMC-driven claims are effectively over. Perez noted the court's ruling in Canada Square v Johnson clarified that 'no disclosure of commission or partial disclosure of commission will not in itself render the relationship unfair.' Instead, courts must evaluate multiple factors — including the size of the commission relative to the total credit cost (as in the Johnson case, where it was 55%) and whether the dealer made misleading representations. He suggested the FCA may borrow from the approach taken in the PPI and Plevin redress schemes, potentially setting a commission threshold — such as 50% of the total charge for credit — above which redress would be automatic. Retail perspective: fairness and stability needed Sue Robinson, Chief Executive of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), welcomed the Supreme Court's judgment and its recognition of the sector's submissions. 'As the consumer facing part of the sector, NFDA want to see the regulator act fairly to ensure that UK consumers receive a satisfactory result. This has been achieved today,' she said. Robinson emphasised the importance of a stable retail environment, noting that 'automotive retail accounts for approximately 78% of the broader automotive workforce.' "Sector shaken as FCA opens consultation into £18bn scheme" was originally created and published by Motor Finance Online, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
