Latest news with #HannahKing
Business News Wales
2 days ago
- Business
- Business News Wales
Wales Set for £100m Business Investment as Part of BGF UK-Wide £3b Pledge
BGF, the UK's most active growth capital investor, has pledged £100 million to Welsh businesses as part of its £3 billion commitment to back high-potential companies across the UK over the next five years. This commitment builds on BGF's previous investment of £47 million in Wales since 2011. The firm's regional-first strategy is designed to help scale businesses in every part of the UK. As part of the £3 billion pledge, BGF has committed £300 million to female-powered businesses across the UK, one of the largest initiatives of its kind. This follows an initial £25 million pledge to the Invest in Women Taskforce (IWT), which contributed to raising over £250 million in 2023. Since 2011, BGF portfolio companies across the UK have generated £7.1 billion in revenue growth, £1 billion in export growth, and created more than 27,000 jobs. With 74% of BGF's capital deployed outside London and the South East, BGF's mission is centred on inclusive and regional economic growth and backing entrepreneurs. Hannah King, BGF investor, BGF, said: 'We're proud of our track record in Wales and excited to increase our investment through this £100 million commitment. Welsh businesses have enormous potential, and we're here to provide the capital and support to help them grow and scale sustainably.' This commitment is part of BGF's broader strategy to increase investment from the £2.3 billion deployed between 2020 and 2024, accelerating business scaleup across the UK.
South Wales Argus
3 days ago
- Business
- South Wales Argus
BGF pledges £100 million investment in Welsh businesses
BGF's commitment is part of its £3 billion plan to support high-potential companies across the UK over the next five years. This new pledge builds on BGF's previous investment of £47 million in Wales since 2011. The firm aims to scale businesses in every part of the UK with its regional-first strategy. As part of the £3 billion pledge, BGF has committed £300 million to female-powered businesses across the UK. This is one of the largest initiatives of its kind. Since 2011, BGF portfolio companies across the UK have generated £7.1 billion in revenue growth, £1 billion in export growth, and created more than 27,000 jobs. Hannah King, BGF investor, said: "We're proud of our track record in Wales and excited to increase our investment through this £100 million commitment. "Welsh businesses have enormous potential, and we're here to provide the capital and support to help them grow and scale sustainably." This commitment is part of BGF's broader strategy to increase investment from the £2.3 billion deployed between 2020 and 2024, accelerating business scaleup across the UK. BGF provides patient minority capital and strategic support to early-stage and growth-stage companies. Its regional teams, including in Cardiff, work closely with founders to deliver tailored support.
BBC News
05-04-2025
- Science
- BBC News
'Exploding' Tunnock's teacakes cleared by tests to fly again
BBC The story goes that 60 years ago, Tunnock's teacakes were banned from RAF flights after a cockpit marshmallow explosion. The chocolate-covered treats were apparently all the rage, eaten by nuclear bomber crewmen on training sorties at the height of the Cold War. But in the summer of 1965, a captain and student pilot forgot they had placed unwrapped teacakes above their instrument panels. When the captain pulled an emergency depressurising switch the iconic Scottish treat erupted - leaving a sticky mess over the airmen, the instruments and cockpit canopy. Now the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine has now given them the all-clear to fly again, after tests in an altitude chamber found the teacakes did not explode. The experiments were covered by the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) at the centre based at RAF Henlow in Bedfordshire. BFBS First the teacakes were put into an altitude chamber - normally used in the training of new fast jet pilots - and were lifted to 8,000ft, climbing at 4,000ft per minute, They were then rapidly decompressed to 25,000ft in three seconds to see if they would blow up. As air pressure in the chamber decreased, the air inside the teacakes expanded until the chocolate cracked and the mallow filling puffed out. BFBS reporter Hannah King, who witnessed the tests, said while the mallow escaped from the chocolate casing, they "did not appear to explode and cause a risk to in-flight safety". It was also discovered that when they were frozen before being placed in the chamber, their hardened shells were more resilient to cracking at altitude. Pilots have been offered some advice by Dr Oliver Bird, an instructor at the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine, who carried out the tests. "The best advice is that the snacks are kept frozen and in their foil wrappings until pilots are ready to consume them," he said. Fergus Loudon, sales director at Tunnock's, which is based in Uddingston, near Glasgow, said: "If we really are talking about the people who fly our supersonic jet fighter bombers, then I'm inclined to think that Tunnock's Tea Cakes wouldn't be the highest thing on their list of worries, but I'm glad to hear that they can now enjoy them, like everybody else, with official approval." An RAF spokesman said he was not aware of any "banned confectionery list", adding that the tests were not carried out in an official capacity.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'Exploding' Tunnock's teacakes cleared by tests to fly again
The story goes that 60 years ago, Tunnock's teacakes were banned from RAF flights after a cockpit marshmallow explosion. The chocolate-covered treats were apparently all the rage, eaten by nuclear bomber crewmen on training sorties at the height of the Cold War. But in the summer of 1965, a captain and student pilot forgot they had placed unwrapped teacakes above their instrument panels. When the captain pulled an emergency depressurising switch the iconic Scottish treat erupted - leaving a sticky mess over the airmen, the instruments and cockpit canopy. Now the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine has now given them the all-clear to fly again, after tests in an altitude chamber found the teacakes did not explode. The experiments were covered by the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) at the centre based at RAF Henlow in Bedfordshire. First the teacakes were put into an altitude chamber - normally used in the training of new fast jet pilots - and were lifted to 8,000ft, climbing at 4,000ft per minute, They were then rapidly decompressed to 25,000ft in three seconds to see if they would blow up. As air pressure in the chamber decreased, the air inside the teacakes expanded until the chocolate cracked and the mallow filling puffed out. BFBS reporter Hannah King, who witnessed the tests, said while the mallow escaped from the chocolate casing, they "did not appear to explode and cause a risk to in-flight safety". It was also discovered that when they were frozen before being placed in the chamber, their hardened shells were more resilient to cracking at altitude. Pilots have been offered some advice by Dr Oliver Bird, an instructor at the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine, who carried out the tests. "The best advice is that the snacks are kept frozen and in their foil wrappings until pilots are ready to consume them," he said. Fergus Loudon, sales director at Tunnock's, which is based in Uddingston, near Glasgow, said: "If we really are talking about the people who fly our supersonic jet fighter bombers, then I'm inclined to think that Tunnock's Tea Cakes wouldn't be the highest thing on their list of worries, but I'm glad to hear that they can now enjoy them, like everybody else, with official approval." An RAF spokesman said he was not aware of any "banned confectionary list", adding that the tests were not carried out in an official capacity. Tunnock's reaches sweet sales milestone 'Offensive' Tunnock's Tea Cake ad banned Scottish teacake makes 'space voyage'
Telegraph
03-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Tunnock's Tea Cakes pass RAF fit-to-fly test after being banned 60 years ago
The RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine in Henlow, Bedfordshire, has now conducted tests to determine if the tea cakes really do explode at altitude. The chocolate-covered biscuits with a marshmallow filling were lifted to 8,000ft, climbing at 4,000ft per minute, inside an altitude chamber normally used for training new jet pilots. The tea cakes were rapidly decompressed to 25,000ft in three seconds to see if they would explode. In the test, while the marshmallow in the tea cakes did escape from the chocolate casing, they did not appear to explode and cause a risk to in-flight safety. Furthermore, when the tea cakes were frozen before being placed in the chamber, their hardened shells were more resilient to cracking at altitude. The experiment was filmed for the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS), which provides news and entertainment for military personnel and their families. 'Best advice is that the snacks are kept frozen' Dr Oliver Bird, a medical officer instructor at the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine, oversaw the tea cake tests and said he saw no reason why they couldn't be taken on flights. He recommended freezing the tea cakes as it will make their chocolate shells more robust and cause them to merely crack during decompression. He said: 'I think the best advice is that the snacks are kept frozen and in their foil wrappings until pilots are ready to consume them.' Hannah King, a producer and director who filmed the tests for BFBS News, said: 'This was a critical piece of scientific testing. I'm just glad the RAF medics at the Centre of Aerospace Medicine stepped up and answered the question that everyone's been wondering for so many years. 'It may be that the original tea cakes really did explode in a much more dangerous fashion. Perhaps the recipe has changed – who knows. 'But people ought to spread the word – it's safe to fly with tea cakes.' Tunnock's founded the business in 1890 as a bakery shop in Uddingston, Lanarkshire, and it now employs more than 600 people in the town and exports to more than 30 countries including Saudi Arabia and Australia. The family firm is led by Sir Boyd Tunnock, 92, who created the Tunnock's Tea Cake in 1956 using marshmallow on a biscuit base coated in chocolate. The sweet treats have become so popular that giant dancing tea cakes featured in the opening ceremony of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and scientists launched a tea cake into space in 2017, attached to a weather balloon which reached an altitude of 121,414ft.
