Latest news with #BirminghamCityFC
The Sun
5 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Regional UK airport set to get new flights to US destination – the first time in nearly a decade
AN airport in the UK could get a new flight route to America in more than eight years. Birmingham Airport is currently undergoing a £300million renovation. 3 3 And a new flight route could connect the regional airport to a US destination. Delta's airline chief executive told the Sunday Times: "There's a great market out of Birmingham." Delta is currently the official airline partner of Birmingham City Football Club. Birmingham Airport had flights to New York with United Airlines last in 2017. While Delta hasn't suggested which destination it could fly to from Birmingham, it is likely to be New York again. This was backed by the airport CEO Nick Barton who said there was "a reasonable degree of optimism" for the route relaunch. The only other US flight route that Birmingham currently operates is to Orlando with TUI. And it's not the only long-haul flight the airport has suggested it could relaunch. Previously flying to Hong Kong until 1988 (which were suspended after the closure of Kai Tak Airport) this could be another flight route. Even flights to India such as Mumbai have been suggested as potential destinations. Jet2 launches six new flights from major UK airport This would be in addition to the current Birmingham-Delhi flights. Other current long-haul flights from Birmingham include Cancun, Barbados and Jamaica, as well as Dubai. And new recent flight routes include to Gibraltar with easyJet and Budapest with TUI Airways, And part of Birmingham Airport's multi-million pound upgrades including new CT scanners which will allow passengers to keep liquids in their hand luggage. While they still need to be under 100ml, there is now no limit on how many can be taken. The website also asked passengers to leave them outside of the standard plastic bag. It states: "There is no limit on the amount of under 100mls containers that can be carried. "Do not put your liquids, pastes and gels into plastic bags (please leave them loose in hand luggage)." Other upgrades to the airport also include two new security lanes. Here are the 15 busiest airports in the UK by passenger numbers in 2023 London Heathrow - 79.2 million London Gatwick - 40.9 million Manchester - 28.1 million London Stansted - 28.0 million London Luton - 16.4 million Edinburgh - 14.4 million Birmingham - 11.5 million Bristol - 9.9 million Glasgow - 7.4 million Belfast International - 6.0 million Newcastle - 4.8 million Liverpool - 4.2 million Leeds Bradford - 4.0 million East Midlands - 3.9 million London City - 3.4 million The airport currently serves 12million passengers a year to 144 destinations. The renovation s will be able to welcome capacity up to 18million, expected by 2033. 3
Scottish Sun
02-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Vital new £1billion transport rail line in major city to link centre and airport unveiled that will ‘change lives'
'LIFE TRANSFORMING' Vital new £1billion transport rail line in major city to link centre and airport unveiled that will 'change lives' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A VITAL new £1 billion tramline has been unveiled, set to transform lives by linking the city centre to the airport and unlocking thousands of jobs and investment. The ambitious project, hailed as a 'moment of great opportunity,' is set to reshape how people live, work, and travel. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 The plan focuses on East Birmingham and North Solihull 4 Local leaders stress that this is not just about transport but about connecting people to opportunity 4 The line would run from the new Curzon Street HS2 station, through Digbeth and Bordesley Green The plan focuses on East Birmingham and North Solihull, aiming to link the heart of the city to major hubs including the NEC, Birmingham Airport, and the HS2 interchange at Arden Cross. It's been described as a once-in-a-generation project that will breathe new life into areas struggling with high unemployment and child poverty. Years in the making, the proposal has gathered momentum thanks to the efforts of West Midlands mayor Richard Parker and Tom Wagner, the American investor behind Birmingham City FC's owners, Knighthead. The line would run from the new Curzon Street HS2 station, through Digbeth and Bordesley Green, home to the planned £2.9 billion Blues super-stadium, then on to Heartlands Hospital, the NEC, and the airport. Local leaders stress that this is not just about transport but about connecting people to opportunity. Mayor Parker said: 'We are creating a necklace of opportunity that will join communities together and bring in billions of pounds of investment. "This is a massive opportunity for the whole region.' The proposal carries the slogan 'Invest a Little, Unlock a Lot,' arguing that an initial £350–400 million of public funding could spark billions in private investment and create thousands of new jobs. Business leaders, local councils, and sports executives have joined forces to call on the government to back the project. Birmingham City FC's CEO Jeremy Dale has been clear: "There's no point building a stadium for 60 to 70 thousand people if they can't get out of the stadium.' Investor Tom Wagner added that improving connections will benefit not just sports crowds but the 375,000 residents who live along the planned route. The tramline would also support big projects like Washwood Heath, Bordesley Park, and Tyseley Energy Park, opening up new opportunities in green technology, advanced manufacturing, and energy innovation. This could help position the region as a leader in the UK's transition to a low-carbon economy. Leaders across the political divide — including Birmingham's Labour council and Solihull's Conservative leadership — have come together to support the plan. They issued a joint statement calling it a 'moment of real opportunity' to bring more jobs, better housing, and stronger communities to the region. Local MP Liam Byrne has urged ministers to back the formation of a Mayoral Development Corporation to oversee the project, which he says will help cut through bureaucracy and ensure swift delivery. He praised the proposal in Parliament, saying it could be a national example of how to unlock regional growth. While no official government funding has yet been announced, insiders believe that ministers are warming to the plan. Talks with Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander have been described as positive, with a formal announcement possible as part of June's spending review. If approved, phase one of the project could be complete by 2030, in time for the opening of the Blues' new stadium. The full network would follow within a decade, delivering a dramatic upgrade in transport connectivity across Birmingham and Solihull. This new line is seen as essential to making the most of the massive HS2 investment, ensuring local communities are connected to new national and international rail links. Without it, leaders warn, the full potential of HS2 and regional regeneration projects may be lost.
The Sun
02-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Vital new £1billion transport rail line in major city to link centre and airport unveiled that will ‘change lives'
A VITAL new £1 billion tramline has been unveiled, set to transform lives by linking the city centre to the airport and unlocking thousands of jobs and investment. The ambitious project, hailed as a 'moment of great opportunity,' is set to reshape how people live, work, and travel. 4 4 4 The plan focuses on East Birmingham and North Solihull, aiming to link the heart of the city to major hubs including the NEC, Birmingham Airport, and the HS2 interchange at Arden Cross. It's been described as a once-in-a-generation project that will breathe new life into areas struggling with high unemployment and child poverty. Years in the making, the proposal has gathered momentum thanks to the efforts of West Midlands mayor Richard Parker and Tom Wagner, the American investor behind Birmingham City FC's owners, Knighthead. The line would run from the new Curzon Street HS2 station, through Digbeth and Bordesley Green, home to the planned £2.9 billion Blues super-stadium, then on to Heartlands Hospital, the NEC, and the airport. Local leaders stress that this is not just about transport but about connecting people to opportunity. Mayor Parker said: 'We are creating a necklace of opportunity that will join communities together and bring in billions of pounds of investment. "This is a massive opportunity for the whole region.' The proposal carries the slogan 'Invest a Little, Unlock a Lot,' arguing that an initial £350–400 million of public funding could spark billions in private investment and create thousands of new jobs. Business leaders, local councils, and sports executives have joined forces to call on the government to back the project. Birmingham City FC's CEO Jeremy Dale has been clear: "There's no point building a stadium for 60 to 70 thousand people if they can't get out of the stadium.' Investor Tom Wagner added that improving connections will benefit not just sports crowds but the 375,000 residents who live along the planned route. The tramline would also support big projects like Washwood Heath, Bordesley Park, and Tyseley Energy Park, opening up new opportunities in green technology, advanced manufacturing, and energy innovation. This could help position the region as a leader in the UK's transition to a low-carbon economy. Leaders across the political divide — including Birmingham's Labour council and Solihull's Conservative leadership — have come together to support the plan. They issued a joint statement calling it a 'moment of real opportunity' to bring more jobs, better housing, and stronger communities to the region. Local MP Liam Byrne has urged ministers to back the formation of a Mayoral Development Corporation to oversee the project, which he says will help cut through bureaucracy and ensure swift delivery. He praised the proposal in Parliament, saying it could be a national example of how to unlock regional growth. While no official government funding has yet been announced, insiders believe that ministers are warming to the plan. Talks with Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander have been described as positive, with a formal announcement possible as part of June's spending review. If approved, phase one of the project could be complete by 2030, in time for the opening of the Blues' new stadium. The full network would follow within a decade, delivering a dramatic upgrade in transport connectivity across Birmingham and Solihull. This new line is seen as essential to making the most of the massive HS2 investment, ensuring local communities are connected to new national and international rail links. Without it, leaders warn, the full potential of HS2 and regional regeneration projects may be lost.
Bloomberg
04-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
US Hedge Fund Chief Rebuilds Birmingham City Football Club
Tom Wagner co-founded a hedge fund company that aims to 'unlock value where others see risk.' Before that, he spent years running the distressed and high-yield credit trading desks at Goldman Sachs Inc. His latest venture has also proven to have no shortage of risk and distress. The 55-year-old American financier bought Birmingham City FC in 2023 and is aiming to transform the English football club into a prime brand from a troubled asset, replete with new arena and a team that can ultimately compete in the Premier League.
Telegraph
16-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Peaky Blinders' Steven Knight: ‘Lawlessness always catches one's eye as a writer'
Steven Knight is the creative genius responsible for making the hit television shows Peaky Blinders, SAS: Rogue Heroes and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (among many others). So it comes as something of a surprise when the writer/director/producer admits that he seldom sits in front of the small screen himself. 'I don't really watch stuff,' he says. 'I find it quite hard work to watch: not because it's bad, but because I'm constantly thinking about how they're doing this, how the writer is doing that, or why they're doing something else. And sometimes I think, 'Why can't I do that?'' Knight mainly tunes into live sport, especially the games of his beloved Birmingham City FC. 'And that's it, really.' For someone who doesn't watch much telly, he sure knows what the viewing public wants. Millionaire became so popular globally that it made Knight (and his co-creators David Briggs and Mike Whitehill) life-changingly rich, while the second series of Rogue Heroes has been one of the best shows so far this year. And, of course, there's Peaky. Since the series debuted in September 2013, the exploits of Birmingham's foremost crime family have become one of the most popular and recognisable hits of this century, and it has made superstars of its cast (including Cillian Murphy and the late Helen McCrory). While he was researching the real-life Peaky Blinders – who terrorised the Second City during the Victorian and Edwardian periods – Knight came across the Forty Elephants, an all-female crime gang operating in London around the same time. 'It was women-only, and their profession was confidence tricks, and mass invasions of Harrods and Selfridges to steal stuff. They were the most lawless, uncontrolled force in London,' he says. 'And I just thought, this is such a remarkable story. If one were to invent the Forty Elephants, people would say that's just ridiculous.' While Peaky had the main hold on Knight's attention, the story of the Forty Elephants lodged in a corner of his mind, and he has now, finally, dramatised it in A Thousand Blows. The Disney+ series follows the female gang, led by Mary Carr (The Crown's Erin Doherty), who clash with the bigwigs of the murky world of illegal bare-knuckle boxing in 1880s London. 'The thing that I'm drawn to is forgotten or secret history,' says Knight. 'And this absolutely is that.' The obvious question arises: what is it with Knight and gangsters? 'It's not so much me and gangsters,' he laughs. 'I think it's me and people who take exception to the rules, to authority in various forms... There's always some element of lawlessness that catches one's eye as a writer, and it gives you more scope for what naturally turns into drama.' Knight's fascination with that grey area between the legal and illegal can be traced back to his childhood. One of seven children growing up in inner-city Small Heath, he would play truant with his blacksmith father, George, and catch a glimpse of the real Peaky world. 'He'd say, 'Do you want to go to school or do you want to come with me?' We'd go to a warehouse full of stuff. I'd ask, 'Is this stolen?' and he'd say, 'No, Charlie finds it just before it gets lost.' The people I met were such a laugh.' That 'Charlie' line found its way into Peaky. The first in his family to go on to higher education, Knight took an English degree at University College London and knew he wanted to be a writer. He returned to Birmingham and worked in radio advertising; his break into television came with fellow Brummie Jasper Carrott on the sketch show Canned Carrott, and The Detectives, a police-procedural spoof. Then came Millionaire, and a move into film with Dirty Pretty Things (for which he earned Best Original Screenplay Oscar and Bafta nominations). We meet in a suite at London's Corinthia hotel, the room's lavish furniture removed save for a pair of chairs. Knight, dressed in three shades of green, is characteristically relaxed; he unthinkingly fidgets with a tag that remains on what is obviously a new pair of socks. While A Thousand Blows is based on real people, episodes carry the disclaimer: 'The following is inspired by real characters who lived and fought together in London's East End.' Why did he want to point out that it isn't a true story? 'Because it isn't, and I don't think fiction ever can be, to be honest. Equally, I don't think history books ever can be, because if you read a history book, you'll believe that whatever actually happened was inevitable,' he says. 'My view is that any historical period is pretty chaotic, anything could happen, and there could be any outcome.' More important for him was to capture the essence of his unfashionable characters, because 'usually, working-class life is not written down anywhere'. One of the threads running through A Thousand Blows is how hostile Britain can be to immigrants fresh off the boat: in this case, the Jamaican Hezekiah Moscow, who comes to London with dreams of becoming a lion-tamer, but instead ends up forced to become a bare-knuckle fighter. It echoes the small-boats crisis on the south coast today. 'Certain things are eternally true, and certain tensions are always there,' Knight says. 'And the incarnation of Hezekiah arriving in London from Jamaica, and experiencing what he experiences, the same thing's happening. It's a different dynamic, a different reason, but the experience is the same.' Knight was seen to have pulled off a coup when he convinced Cillian Murphy to reprise his role as gang leader Tommy Shelby for the upcoming Peaky film in the wake of his winning the Best Actor Oscar for Oppenheimer. The Irishman is now one of Hollywood's hottest properties. 'He's still the same bloke,' says Knight. 'When he was getting all his awards, he would text, usually the next morning, and say, 'I can't wait to be on Peaky.' He's not having his head turned.' But Knight is humble enough not to try to take credit for Murphy's vertiginous rise. 'He would have found his way to that place by another route.' So what makes the actor so special? 'Some people have got it, some people haven't. It's a combination of things, but I think the way he looks works on screen. It's just the way he controls the attention of people watching. I'm not sure you can learn that.' A Thousand Blows sees Knight reunite with another former collaborator, Stephen Graham, whom he cast towards the end of the Peaky TV series and also in the new film. Graham, one of the finest performers of his generation, underwent a remarkable five-month physical transformation to play the brutal boxer Sugar Goodson. He needed no direction to get in shape, but he has packed on pounds and pounds of muscle that is, frankly, outrageous for a 51-year-old. 'He does that himself. If he knows he's playing a bare-knuckle boxer, he's going to guarantee, by the time we start shooting, he'll be a bare-knuckle boxer,' says Knight. 'So he did put himself through an incredible regime. It's his body, but also the look on his face. You just think, 'Oh my God, I'm terrified of this bloke.' Once Stephen's unleashed, he's properly unleashed.' Graham, Murphy and Tom Hardy – another Peaky alumnus – are the best actors working today, he says. Meanwhile, when we met, Knight was also working on a new Star Wars film, but it has since emerged that he is no longer involved in the project. 'There's a system, and when you engage with it, you know what it is. You do your bit, you turn in your draft or drafts, as I did, and then the system moves on,' he tells me later. 'I fully expect that substantial amounts of what I did will be in the movie – who knows? But that's the expectation.' Relations with Disney, which owns Star Wars, are clearly unaffected, as A Thousand Blows has already been renewed for a second series. Though he is a few months away from being of pensionable age, Knight, 65, is as busy as ever. January saw the release of Maria (starring Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas), which Knight wrote, while shooting of the Peaky film has wrapped, and he is developing a Succession-style series about the Guinness brewing dynasty for Netflix. And he is the mastermind behind Digbeth Loc, a new studio in Birmingham. Why does he keep going? 'I can't not do it, is the honest answer,' he sighs. 'People say you must have discipline, but you don't. It's discipline to stop sometimes.'
