Nicola Adam

Comedian Peter Kay will perform a one-off 1pm matinee at Blackpool Opera House on September 27, 2026, with all profits donated to the All In for Fin campaign. The campaign is raising approximately £250,000 for 19-year-old Fin Cormack, whose failing heart repair requires urgent surgery at the Mayo Clinic in the United States. Kay said he was moved to help after seeing a report about Fin's condition, while Fin's mother Clare Cormack expressed the family's gratitude. Tickets go on sale on August 28.

Two Lancaster city-centre shops, Euro Shop and One Stop Mini Market, have been ordered to close until November after Lancashire Trading Standards and police found repeated sales of illegal tobacco and vaping products. Euro Shop failed five inspections and multiple test purchases, while One Stop failed seven of eight inspections and three test purchases, including sales to a child. Preston Magistrates’ Court issued the closure orders, with officials saying the action is intended to protect young people, disrupt criminal networks and deter other retailers.

Openreach is extending full-fibre broadband to rural communities across Lancashire, including Nelson, Carnforth, Clitheroe, Lancaster, Longridge and Whalley, through the UK Government’s Project Gigabit programme. The upgrades will provide gigabit-capable speeds to homes and businesses that might otherwise miss out, supporting online education, household connectivity and local commerce. Openreach says it will minimise disruption by using existing ducts and poles where possible, while the government says its wider £850 million of contracts with Openreach will benefit more than 350,000 UK premises.