Two theatre lovers who have dedicated decades of their lives to amateur dramatics are celebrating 60 years of marriage.

Rehearsals are underway for a traditional part of the Commonwealth Games cultural programme, offering a warm welcome to those taking part.

Conservative co-chairman Oliver Dowden resigned from the Cabinet after the party suffered losses in Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton.

The publication of the draft Black Country Plan in June 2021 sparked protests to save the green belt across the four boroughs.

Police are urgently appealing for information to trace a "very distressed" girl who was last seen outside a pub in Dudley.

Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai said the Ukrainian troops have been given the order to leave Sievierodonetsk to avoid being surrounded.

Tamworth Borough Council’s Mayor has announced The Tamworth Wellbeing & Cancer Support Centre as her chosen charity for the 2022/2023 mayoral year.

There are concerns in Kyiv that Germany and France will push President Volodymyr Zelensky to accept a ceasefire.

The Prime Minister said the only circumstances in which people will be sent to East Africa would be if they come to the UK illegally.

The EU also granted candidate status to Moldova, which borders Ukraine.

Only 60% of trains are running, mainly because of a delay to the start of services.

Ten years ago, the Express & Star embarked on a Black Country Census.

The Liberal Democrats won Tiverton and Honiton, which had previously been held by the Tories with a 24,000 majority, while Labour won Wakefield.

Swathes of the Black Country’s green belt can be saved by building homes in shopping areas and on old industrial sites, a leaked report has claimed.

Stourbridge MP Suzanne Webb has welcomed the Government's announcement that it will outlaw flashing online images sent to trigger seizures in people with epilepsy, following a two-year campaign she was involved in.

Sir Lenny Henry has told how the late Eric Morecambe encouraged him to always be proud of who he is.

Responsibility for local parks in Kidderminster could be transferred to town councillors by Wyre Forest District Council.

A former carer of a now-closed care home has said she told a resident's family to remove their loved one due to the 'horrendous lack of treatment'.

An international bhangra star returned to his Wolverhampton primary school to inspire the next generation of dancers.

The award-winning actor was among nine recipients to receive the honour at a ceremony held at the university.

Members of the GMB and Unite unions based at Heathrow have backed industrial action.

Two men from Walsall and a 24-year-old from Burntwood were among 11 suspects arrested during a £160,000 drugs and cash swoop.

The leader of Dudley Council has been found to have been ‘disrespectful’ to the commander of the town’s police force, after an investigation into his behaviour upheld only one out of six points.

A ‘nuisance’ Wolverhampton pub has lost its licence for the second time in two years, following a catalogue of angry complaints from neighbours and repeated incidents where police were called.

A corner shop in Wolverhampton that was caught selling alcohol to a 16-year-old will have its licence reviewed by council bosses.

Dudley Building Society has reported improved profits for 2021-2022.

A Bus Travel Task Force for Worcestershire is being set up to review current bus provision and ensure bus travel is able to meet residents’ needs.

The Mayor of Sandwell, Cllr Richard Jones, has opened a diversity festival at a school which is one of only ten in the country to receive a prestigious award.

The jury is deliberating in the case of a 25-year-old accused of attempting to murder a man in Wednesbury.

A city teacher and leader for a Premier League programme has been rewarded with a superstar status.

Remorseless Nezam Salangy was told he must serve a minimum of 18 years for murdering and then burying his wife.

It marks the latest major Western brand to announce the permanent withdrawal from Russia over the Ukraine war.

People across the West Midlands looking for things to do this weekend have plenty of attractions, events and parties to look forward to.

A firm specialising in office telephone systems has changed hands.

Students at Sutton Coldfield’s Arthur Terry School stepped into the Dragon’s Den when they took part in a day-long challenge designed to build their teamwork skills.

A senior Conservative MP said that industrial action would amount to another ‘lockdown’ for children.

American superstar Barry Manilow shocked staff of a country pub on Tuesday by turning up with his entourage.

With inflation at its highest rate since the 1980’s and the cost of living soaring, many people are struggling.

Tesco is offering members of the Armed Forces a free hot breakfast at Tesco Cafés in Shropshire ahead of Armed Forces Day this Sunday.

A Dudley artist who cares for his partner who suffers from encephalitis is donating paintings to a fundraising exhibition on Twitter.

Former Grange Hill and EastEnders star Todd Carty will head the cast when Agatha Christie’s iconic thriller arrives in the Midlands.

More than 220 bags of litter were collected by volunteers in three separate litter picks during spring in litter hotspots across Walsall.

A 25-year-old accused of attempting to murder a man he overheard arguing with his "baby mother" told a jury he thought the woman was in danger.

Central England Co-op is rolling out body cameras for workers at a further 38 stores.

A Wyre Forest village school is joining a multi-academy trust, which already serves five primaries and two high schools across the district.

A woman has been handed a hefty fine after household waste belonging to her was found fly-tipped in Cannock.

A four-week murder trial shone a light on the murky world of drug dealing and "drill music", and how they combine to create a lethal cocktail of bravado, violence and gang disputes.

A pilot service has been launched to offer support to new refugees in Wolverhampton.

A secondary school in Oldbury has staged its first big musical production since the end of the pandemic – and threw open its doors to invite hundreds of local primary pupils to enjoy it.

Ethnic minority workers at Wolverhampton Council earn an average of 75 pence an hour less than their white counterparts, recent figures have revealed.

Russian forces took control of the villages of Loskutivka and Rai-Oleksandrivka, and are trying to capture Syrotyne outside Sievierodonetsk.

As the railways grind to a halt, those in charge of our main roads are on a higher state of alert.

One of the UK’s leading independent events for engaging young people in engineering is returning for the first time since Covid-19 struck.

Lawyers have issued a civil writ against an alleged conspirator in the Birmingham pub bombings and West Midlands Police.

Opportunities for improving international trade will be discussed in Birmingham when it stages the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

More than 1,000 knitted keepsake hearts have been sent to Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital to help support families and their loved ones through bereavement.

A woman from Wolverhampton wants an airline to reimburse her after claiming sentimental items went missing from her luggage during a birthday holiday.

Birmingham’s famous King Kong sculpture is coming home this summer to celebrate the city being the host of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The leader of a Black Country council says his authority's hands are tied when it comes to providing extra homes on green belt land.

The controversial Black Country Plan has been expanded to include more than 800 extra homes on green belt land.

EE customers across the Black Country and Shropshire have been reporting problems getting online and making phone calls.

Mobile phone and internet giant EE says its services are now back to normal after customers struggled for hours to make calls or get online.

A community fun day has been saved thanks to the generosity of a Halesowen businessman.

Only one Black Country council has bid for cash from the Levelling Up Fund since its launch last year.

Black Country councils have been warned they risk missing out on millions of pounds in regeneration cash after failing to submit bids for Government funding.

Racially and religiously aggravated offences recorded by police hit a fresh high in 2021, sparked by reaction to England’s defeat in the Euros.

A police officer whose investigation led to a West Bromwich Albion fan being jailed for racially abusing his own team’s player, says it is crucial people stand up and report racism.

Union members were today due to stand together once again as the second day of the nationwide rail strike got under way.

West End star Aimée Fisher is going to be fulfilling a dream by performing in hit musical comedy Waitress the Musical at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre - where she first performed as a child.

A Black Country man has released a cover of a song for charity and raised almost £3,000 as part of a promise to his late mother.

The Ladder for the Black Country apprenticeships programme is attending the Inspiring the Black Country Career and Skills Event.

The rise in hate crime is alarming. The West Midlands has shown the biggest rise in cases, with Staffordshire and West Mercia not far behind. The fact it is being linked to a football match is shocking.

“Knowing how to safely get out of your home in the case of a fire can be the difference between life and death” is the stark message from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Phil Mulligan.

Don't put Shaun the Sheep in the wrong bin is the light-hearted messages from charity volunteers as part of a campaign to reduce household waste.

The UK Health Security Agency is investigating the extent of community transmission.

Plans to open an upmarket cocktail bar in Walsall have been scuppered amid fears it would add to the booze-fuelled violence in the town centre.

Stourbridge MP Suzanne Webb visited Halesowen's Yemeni Community Centre and praised the community work being done there.

Plumes of smoke could be seen rising into the sky after a blaze at an industrial estate in Cradley Heath where gas cannisters exploded.

A medical emergency on a tram has caused West Midlands Metro to withdraw a unit from its service.

The average price is of diesel is reaching the unwanted milestone of £2 a litre.

Climate change "is back on the agenda" in Dudley borough after a protest outside the council house was backed by councillors.

A drug-dealing Tipton rapper has been found guilty of murdering a teenager who was shot in a taxi in Tividale.

Stand-up superstar Jon Richardson has described a Stourbridge comedy club as “a special place” after performing two intimate sold-out shows there over the weekend.

More than 200 people braved torrential rain to watch a Tipton civil engineering company create a pedestrian crossing in an afternoon.

The new policy will initially apply to more than a thousand unaccompanied minors who have already applied under the scheme.

BBC sports presenters have spoken of their excitement ahead of the Commonwealth Games as the corporation prepares to take over the host city.

A 50-year-old West Bromwich man has been jailed for two-and-a-half years for indecently touching a girl aged under 13.

Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said it would also take ‘five to 10 years’ before the UK could deploy the division it wanted to.

A magical last-minute change in the weather turned the St Giles Hospice Enchanted Solstice Walk into a special night to remember for hundreds of fairies, elves and wizards.

Updated designs for the HS2 high speed rail project at Streethay, near Lichfield, will result in 80 per cent less concrete, cutting carbon emissions on the project, it has been announced.

Services started later than normal today as trains were delayed leaving depots due to the industrial action.

A Wolverhampton student has won a prestigious national competition for her report on surrogate births inspired by her aunt's journey.

The British Horse Society is urging drivers to humanise horse riders after it released new statistics revealing that a total of 201 incidents and one horse fatality in the West Midlands were reported to the charity last year.

The National Education Union (NEU) said it will consult its members in the autumn.

Property values were 12.4% higher in April than a year earlier, although experts have pointed to a more recent softening in the market.

The hastily organised exercise in Estonia, a Nato ally, was executed as an act of “strategic solidarity” amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.

A former West Mercia Police officer has pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting two women while on duty.

The boss of Resorts World Arena says he would be honoured to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest – and has cleared the schedule to make sure it is ready.

A new Taco Bell restaurant will open in Stafford later this month with free tacos for the first 100 customers.

Thunderstorms and torrential downpours are forecast to hit the West Midlands on Thursday after the Met Office issued a 14-hour weather warning.