They’re a Chinese cultural phenomenon which keeps millions of viewers glued to their phones, but the runaway success of “vertical dramas” is providing an unlikely source of employment for film and TV crews here in the UK. The bite-size melodramas have breathless titles such as A Flash Marriage with the Billionaire and My Firefighter ex-Husband Burns in Regret, and are chopped into one minute episodes for avid consumption on viewers’ vertically held smartphones. The UK is an increasingly popular location for these typically low-budget productions, reflecting the popularity of British…
Tag: UK news
Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou facing second trial as more women come forward
Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou is facing a second trial with police and prosecutors preparing to charge the Chinese student with a second round of offences. Zou, 28, is already serving a minimum 24 years for attacking 10 young women in London and China. Sources say there have been discussions between detectives and lawyers for the Crown Prosecution Service about at least one more trial for the Chinese student. Zou was sentenced on Thursday to life imprisonment, even offering to be chemically castrated in hopes of getting a lighter sentence. Since…
US weighs in with concerns over China’s proposed ‘super-embassy’ in London
A US intervention over China’s proposed new embassy in London has thrown a potential resolution “up in the air”, campaigners have said, amid concerns over the site’s proximity to a sensitive hub of critical communication cables. The furore over a new “super-embassy” on the edge of London’s financial district was reignited last week when the White House said it was “deeply concerned” over potential Chinese access to “the sensitive communications of one of our closest allies”. The Dutch parliament has also raised concerns about Beijing’s ideal location of Royal Mint…
Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou jailed for minimum of 24 years
A serial rapist feared to be one of the worst sexual offenders in British history has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 24 years for drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China. Zhenhao Zou, a 28-year-old PhD student, drugged and filmed himself raping women between 2019 and 2024 after luring them to his flat with invitations to study or have drinks. Police fear more than 50 other women could be victims. Since his conviction, more than 20 women have come forward to police, and…
UK firm not racist for rejecting Chinese applicant over security concerns, tribunal rules
Refusing to give a job to Chinese and Russian people in companies that deal with issues of national security and require security clearance is not racist, an employment tribunal has ruled. It is not discriminatory to stop people from “hostile” states taking up certain jobs in the defence sector because of the risk to British security, the judgment says. The ruling relates to the case of a Chinese scientist who accused a British AI company with ties to the UK and US defence departments of racism after she was not…
UK ‘woefully’ unprepared for Chinese and Russian undersea cable sabotage, says report
China and Russia are stepping up sabotage operations targeting undersea cables and the UK is unprepared to meet the mounting threat, according to new analysis. A report by the China Strategic Risks Institute (CSRI) analysed 12 incidents where national authorities had investigated alleged undersea cable sabotage between January 2021 and April 2025. Of the 10 cases in which a suspect vessel was identified, eight were directly linked to China or Russia through flag-state registration or company ownership. The involvement of “shadow fleet” commercial vessels in these incidents is consistent with…
China considers lifting sanctions on UK parliamentarians as relations warm
China is considering lifting the sanctions it imposed on UK parliamentarians in 2021, in the latest sign of warming relations between London and Beijing. The Chinese government is reviewing the sanctions, which it introduced four years ago in response to what it called “lies and disinformation” about human rights abuses in Xinjiang, according to two UK government sources familiar with the conversations. Asked to comment, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in London said: “China has always attached importance to developing relations with the UK. Currently, UK-China relations are showing…
BYD launches cheapest UK model in bid to overtake Tesla as biggest electric carmaker
The Chinese manufacturer BYD has launched its cheapest model in the UK, in the latest stage of its efforts to overtake Tesla as the world’s biggest electric carmaker. The Dolphin Surf will start at £18,650, a price that puts it among the cheapest new vehicles on sale in Britain. BYD is vying with American rival Tesla, run by Elon Musk, for the crown of world’s biggest battery carmaker, although BYD already beats Tesla when including figures for hybrid cars, which combine a battery with a petrol engine. The Chinese carmaker…
Trump announces US-China trade talks in London next week
Senior US administration officials will meet with a Chinese delegation on Monday in London for the next round of trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing, Donald Trump said on Friday. The meeting comes after a phone call between Trump and the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, on Thursday, which the US president described as a “very positive” conversation as the two countries attempt to break an impasse over tariffs and global supplies of rare earth minerals. The treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, and US trade representative, Jamieson Greer,…
British businessman accused of plotting to smuggle US military technology to China
A British businessman has been indicted in the US with attempting to traffic sensitive American military technology to China and silence a critic of the Chinese president. John Miller, 63, was named by US authorities at the weekend after his arrest in Serbia, where he is facing extradition in connection with an FBI investigation. The Mail on Sunday reported that he was from Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Both he and a Chinese man, Cui Guanghai, are wanted in the US on charges relating to conspiracy to commit interstate stalking and conspiracy,…