Afternoon briefing Friday 18th September

0:00This episode of the Times Radio News Briefing is sponsored by PwCWC. Staying competitive means getting ahead, not just keeping up. So how do business leaders cut through the noise and focus on what really matters? PwC takes you further with tech, from optimising the systems that put your data to work, to scaling AI from proof of concept to competitive edge. PwC helps you meet tomorrow's tech demands so you can compete at a speed that rewrites the rules. Discover more at pwc.co.uk. This is the Times Radio afternoon briefing for Friday the 18th of September. A journalist who's worked with Princess Diana's brother says he's never come across as anything other than a truth teller.

0:47It says the latest extract from Earl Spencer's book claims the then Prince Charles sounded elated after Diana's death. He also claims Charles told him she'd soon be forgotten. Andy Webb says Earl Spencer has every right to tell his story. He's now, what, in his early 60s, the end is nearer than the beginning. And I suspect the historian in him, sitting there at Althor, surrounded by the portraits of his distinguished ancestors and the statues and whatever, has said, look, I'm going to put a historical document out there for people to look at in generations to come. That's why he's doing it now, I suspect, not to try and turn a quick penny.

1:30Earlier this week, Buckingham Palace responded to previous extracts saying grief can cloud reason and colour memory. Jenny Bond is a royal correspondent and has written several books on the royal family. It's just fantastically rude and bristling with hostility, this extract from his book. He calls Charles a bellowing buffoon, shouting down the phone on the night that Diana died. I mean, this is not the character that I knew as Prince and others who have known him over the years have said this is just simply out of character. It's emerged 20 women at one NHS trust have had mastectomies that have turned out to be unnecessary.

2:10The County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust is carrying out a review after concerns were raised. It's found 77 of the 514 patients looked at so far came to significant harm. A British mother kidnapped in Malawi six days ago has returned home following a daring rescue mission in which a senior police officer was shot. Nusrat Osman, a 47-year-old mother of two from Leicester, was rescued after being kidnapped by four men whilst doing the school run. The police officer, Noel Kaira, is understood to be recovering in hospital. MPs will scrutinise why the UK has chosen such bad Eurovision entries in recent years.

2:48It's finished bottom or second bottom in four of the last seven contests. The chair of the Commons Digital Culture, Media and Sport Committee says she wants to get to the bottom of what she's called the country's dismal record. And Real Madrid's Trent Alexander-Arnold has been recalled to the latest England squad after controversially being left out of the World Cup in the summer. In an interview on the England app, head coach Thomas Tuchel says it's a good opportunity for Trent. He had a good start to the season, I would say. He started some matches for Real Madrid. They have good results and it's a chance for him to claim what he feels is yours, his place on the right side.

3:27So here we go. It's a long camp for matches. Tuchel's also recalled Cole Palmer, Alex Scott, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall. Manchester City's Phil Foden misses out again. 18-year-old Liverpool winger Rio Ngemoa receives his first call-up. And you can hear plenty more of these stories throughout the afternoon on Times Radio.

4:14foundations unlock AI's potential. That's why PwC takes you further with tech, strengthening the data quality, processes, and workflows that shape how well AI performs. PwC turns innovation into implementation, so you can accelerate from experiment to scale. Discover more at pwc.co.uk.

4:44where a team of trusted journalists does the research so you don't have to sort through 12 conflicting opinions online. On the show, you get research-backed insights and clear pros and cons, whether you're planning a big purchase or you just want to grow your wealth. They explain the why behind everything from investing and home buying to smaller habits like sinking funds, the strategy to make surprise expenses stop feeling like surprises. Make your next financial move with confidence. Follow NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast on your favorite podcast app.