Birmingham Live

Some of the Birmingham Live headlines today include:

• Queues at Primark as shops, hairdressers and bars reopen for April 12 rule change, external
• Killer babysitter posed as Good Samaritan raising money for hospital where tiny victim died, external
• Seven Birmingham men in court over murder of dad in street, external

Carl Moorhouse, 34, was fatally stabbed during a disturbance in Leamington Spa last May.

People are being warned about the dangers of barbecues after an outbuilding caught fire in Herefordshire.

Image source, Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service

Three fire engines were called to the blaze just outside Leominster on Sunday evening.

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said, external the fire was caused by cooking and heating during outside entertaining.

Oak Inn owner Darren Lee says 300 to 400 people were turned away to keep within rules.

Drinkers at the Figure of Eight pub in Birmingham, were not put off by chilly temperatures, queuing outside ahead of the pub's opening.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

The owner of Birmingham Bullring has confirmed it is in talks over a deal to sell its group of UK retail parks.

Image source, Reuters

Hammerson, which also owns a retail park in Rugby, Warwickshire, said it is in "discussions" with Canadian private equity firm Brookfield.

In a statement to the London Stock Exchange it said there is "no certainty that a transaction will take place."

"The company will provide a further update in due course, if appropriate," it added."

Shoppers queue outside a Primark store in Birmingham as lockdown eases across England.

Shoppers have rushed back to the high street on Monday as non-essential retailers reopened after more than three months.

Queues formed outside branches of Primark across the West Midlands.

This was the scene in Stoke-on-Trent earlier.

Image source, Getty Images

About 50 people could be seen queuing outside the Hereford store, with busy scenes also spotted in Coventry and Birmingham.

Like others, it is extending its open hours from 07:00 to 22:00 to help prevent crowding in stores.

Primark boss Paul Marchant said: "We have been working really hard to get our stores ready to open safely; we are fully stocked with everything our customers have been waiting for."

A post-mortem examination revealed Kevin Lomas was fatally stabbed in Hall Green, Birmingham.

Actor and former wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has sent a message of support to the family of Azaylia Cain.

Eight-month-old Azaylia Diamond Cain was to undergo specialist treatment in Singapore after £1.5m was donated towards her care.

But her family have since been told her leukaemia was too rare and aggressive.

In a message to the family on Instagram, Johnson said he was "so sorry" to hear about Azaylia's illness and urged the family to "stay strong".

Four men are handed life terms after the gang killing, arranged in revenge for a stabbing.

Hundreds queue outside the world's largest Primark as lockdown restrictions are eased.

A hairdresser in Warwickshire was among the first to open after the lifting of some coronavirus restrictions.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Kelly Boad, owner of the Hair & Beauty Gallery in Warwick, opened her salon at midnight for a symbolic "first cut" of 2021, adding she is fully booked for the first few weeks.

Image source, Reuters

"I thought it would be nice to do a cut as soon as we possibly could and it wasn't hard to find someone who wanted their hair doing after so long.

"It felt great to have a pair of scissors back in my hands and I can't wait to see all our great customers again," she said.

Warwick residents have been "very supportive" during the months of lockdown, says the town's chamber of trade.

Image source, Getty

Sue Butcher, chair of the group, said many small independent shops had found "innovative ways" to continue to trade and the weekly market had continued.

But she said they were "excited" as many venues reopened today.

"Our highly regarded hospitality sector has had a very difficult time and we look forward to when they can fully open. In the meantime those that can have created great outdoor areas," she said.

Ms Butcher added they were grateful for the government's financial support and the district council had ensured funds were "distributed very quickly".

Hundreds of people queued to get into a pub in Coventry when it opened shortly after midnight.

Image source, True Coventrian

Darren Lee, manager of The Oak Inn said the pub had been "absolutely mobbed."

"The customers supported us - they stood out there in the cold and they didn't complain," he said. "It was brilliant."

The pub has outdoor seating for 64 tables seating 260 people, he explained.

"We had about three and a half hundred through the whole night, but there was probably about another three or four hundred we had to disappoint because we couldn't get them in.

"The police very kindly sat all night and supervised the whole area and the police were more than happy with what was going on," he added.

These hardy customers arrived early for a pint at a pub near Crewe earlier.

The Coach and Horses pub at Bradfield Green opened to customers at 07:00.

Landlady Angie Uren said although she was happy to be opening again it was difficult to gauge whether there would be enough customers to make it worthwhile.

"We've got regular customers that we're expecting," she said, "and we hope that people passing will then see people in there.

"But it's getting the confidence back - people are still scared to come out for a drink," she added.

Non-essential shops have welcomed customers back to their sites under today's rule changes in England.

Queues formed outside a shoe store and Primark in Birmingham city centre earlier.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, PA Media

A mass Covid-19 testing pilot is to begin in Tamworth today.

Around 6,000 households in the Glascote and Stonydelph areas are being targeted to help stop the spread of infection and learn more about how the virus is being transmitted.

Kits will be delivered to households from today, and people are being urged to register and return them to special collection points in the coming days.

Image source, Getty Images

Dr Richard Harling, Staffordshire County Council’s Director of Health and Care, said: “With lockdown restrictions lifting further today, we need to do everything we can to make sure we can keep life moving again.

“It only takes a matter of minutes to get tested and will help us learn more about how the virus is spreading locally and may just save the life of someone they care for.”

A hair salon will be "absolutely full to the rafters" with customers all this week as lockdown restrictions eased on Monday, a co-owner said.

Image source, PA Media

Strand and Lock studio, in Birmingham, is among thousands of salons in England reopening their doors.

Co-owner Danny Law said it felt like it was the third launch for the business which was set up in November 2019 but they were glad to be open.

"It is a mixture [of feelings], there is a little anxiety from the general change of seeing no-one to seeing people again," he said.

"But with work we're just really, really pumped, we're really excited to start."

Image source, PA Media

Amy Smith - who had not been to a stylist since before the first lockdown last year - said she was "thrilled" to be back at a salon.

"It's great to be here, I've been going with this weird little top knot for a few months now," she said. "I'm going to a go to a beer garden experience later, so it's going to be good."

Dozens of people queued up before 07:00 for the reopening of Birmingham's Primark as lockdown restrictions eased on Monday.

Image source, PA Media

The store in the city centre opened at 07:00 BST to let people inside.

In February, the fast fashion giant said it hoped to offload millions of pounds worth of last year's clothing stock when its shops reopened this month.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media