Passengers cram into crowded train carriages heading north as they flee London ahead of Christmas lockdown

direct to your inboxThe country is now in another national lockdown in a bid to control an alarming rise in coronavirus cases.Boris Johnson announced the new measures during a televised address to the country on Monday evening.During his announcement, the Prime Minister told the nation to stay at home other than for limited exceptions.

After going through a terrible time in 2020 and experiencing her first Christmas without husband Derek Draper, Kate Garraway has returned back to work after the festive period.The mum-of-two, who previously opened up about her friendship with Ben Shephard, was spotted arriving at Global Radio to host her show.The 53 year old wore a long camel coat, with a burgandy dress underneath and some matching heeled boots.

There was a random The Crown reunion in London last week!

President Trump headed to Palm Beach, Fla., Wednesday to celebrate Christmas with coronavirus relief and government spending in limbo due to his dissatisfaction with the package.  Trump will spend the holiday at his golf club resort Mar-a-Lago.  The president sent shockwaves throughout Washington Tuesday night when he pushed out a Twitter video of himself blasting the omnibus package.

direct to your inboxMajor supermarkets like Asda, Aldi, Tesco, Lidl, Morrisons and Sainsbury's have announced their opening hours for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.Most stores will be operating on reduced hours over the Christmas period, with some not opening on Boxing Day, so check ahead before visiting. Here are all the opening times for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day according to the ECHO.

Jason Leitch said further research was required on the latest mutation of the virus but added experts were so far confident it would not be able to resist the jabs currently being rolled out to health workers and care home residents. It comes as UK health secretary Matt Hancock warned today the country faced an “enormous challenge” controlling the new strain after scientists found it was able to spread more rapidly.

direct to your inboxMatt Hancock has blasted the thousands of people who fled London before Tier 4 restrictions came into force at midnight.Train stations across the capital were packed with those trying to make a last minute escape to other parts of the country before Christmas.Photographs and videos show packed platforms and waiting areas, with many services sold out.The Health Secretary described the scenes as "totally irresponsible behaviour".Mr Hancock, told Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday:

Jeane Freeman said nothing on sale in shops could be worth the "risk" of mingling in large crowds. But the SNP minister - standing in for Nicola Sturgeon at today's media briefing - remained tight-lipped when quizzed on the likelihood of tougher lockdown restrictions being introduced in late December or early January.

Get the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.Rail travellers on services from Helensburgh will have more space to social distance after an increased number of carriages were secured for the route.Many Scotrail services travelling between Helensburgh and Glasgow, via Dumbarton East, Dumbarton Central and Dalreoch, had been cut from six carriages to three - with MSP Jackie Baillie expressing concerns over a lack of space for social distancing, especially

Scroll down for the latest updates.Nicola Sturgeon has backed the Christmas lockdown easing plan while at the same time strongly recommending people stay in their own homes.The First Minister said if people make use of the five day loosening of the rules, her advice is to limit the duration of the stay and the numbers of people.She also recommended that people from “high prevalence” covid areas do not travel to low prevalence parts the UK.Read the full story.A Scots mum has spoken of her

direct to your inboxAs a relaxation of Christmas lockdown rules gets the green light, we can reveal that almost two-thirds of people surveyed believe that the restrictions shouldn't be softened at all.And 55 per cent say they won't be forming a bubble with anyone else despite the Government allowing up to three households to mix during the five-day period from Wednesday, December 23 to Sunday, December 27.The Manchester Evening News survey saw 4,822 people post responses in less than 24 hours.

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