Friday evening news briefing: Covid R number falls below 1

R rate falls below one after three weeks of lockdown

As England prepares to jump out of the lockdown frying pan into the tougher tier fire, government scientists have revealed the reproduction rate of Covid-19 is thought to have shrunk below one. The so called R number is estimated to be between 0.9 and 1 meaning every 10 people infected will go on to infect between 9 and 10 people, down from last week's range of 1.0-1.1. The number of new infections is shrinking by between 0pc and 2pc every day, after it was estimated to be growing between 0pc and 2pc in last week's release from the UK Government Office for Science. Boris Johnson has defended the Government's new tier system as he said the nation needed "simplicity and clarity" in how it rolled out a plan. His comments come as Labour has refused to reveal whether it supports the new Covid tiers as a Tory rebellion builds. Telegraph readers have questioned the data behind the tiers map.

The Government could face some "tough choices" if the vaccine produced by AstraZeneca and Oxford University is found to be less effective than others, a former Department of Health director of immunisation has said. Professor David Salisbury said ministers would need to think "very carefully" about their handling of the vaccine if its efficacy was lower than for other jabs. As the nation bunkers down for a long winter of restrictions, this anonymous author describes the surprising shame and stigma of catching coronavirus.

Philip Green's retail empire on the brink of collapse

Sir Philip Green's Arcadia could formally appoint advisers as early as next week, putting 13,000 jobs at risk. An administration for the retail empire would bring down the curtain on the controversial high street career of one of Britain's most famous businessmen. The group, which owns a stable of brands such as Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge, is preparing to appoint administrators at Deloitte as soon as Monday, although the plan could yet be delayed. Read on for details. Laura Onita charts the rise and fall of Sir Philip's empire while Melissa Twigg reveals why she is not surprised Topshop is on the brink of collapse.

Fugging hell: Village's new name after years of ridicule

Residents of an Austrian village will ring in the new year under a new name - Fugging - after ridicule of their signposts, especially on social media, became too much to bear. They finally grew weary of F------, its current name which some experts say dates back to the 11th century. Increasing numbers of English-speaking tourists have made a point of stopping to snap pictures of themselves by the signpost at the entrance to the village, sometimes striking lascivious poses to post on social media. As this feature in The Telegraph from 2005 shows, the village of some 100 souls 215 miles east of Vienna has long-struggled with the joke.

At a glance: Latest coronavirus headlines

• Covid cost | France slams 'dangerous' Italian pleas to cancel debts

• Analysis | Germany contained first wave - so what's gone wrong now?

• Return journeys | Half of adults travel to work in second lockdown

• Travel latest | None of 10 new travel corridors open to British tourists

• Corridor list | The 23 countries you can (feasibly) visit after lockdown

Also in the news: Today's other headlines

Assassination in Iran | An Iranian scientist long suspected by the West of masterminding a secret nuclear bomb programme was killed in an ambush near Tehran today, likely to provoke confrontation between Iran and its foes in the last weeks of Donald Trump's presidency.

• Diego Maradona | Argentine hero laid to rest as tributes still pour in

• Katie Morley Investigates | 'I used food bank as NS&I lost my £85k'

• Duchess of Cambridge | Early years 'one of great social challenges'

• On the ground in Sudan | Ethiopians flee brutal offensive

• 'UFO' | Tim Peake saw lights in space that turned out to be urine

Around the world: What next for Ivanka Trump?

Donald Trump admitted it was a "very hard thing to concede" electoral defeat but committed to leaving the White House if the Electoral College votes for Joe Biden, the Democrat president-elect. Although it is the nearest he has come to a concession, Mr Trump appeared to suggest he still held hopes of retaining the presidency. As his administration nears its end, what next for his daughter Ivanka Trump? Rosa Prince analyses whether she is set for social ostracisation or a shot at the top job.

Friday interview

'My agent said: it will only be for 11 weeks'

As Coronation Street turns 60, Julia Llewellyn Smith talks to William Roache who has played Ken Barlow since day one

Read the full interview

Comment and analysis

• Patrick O'Flynn | Tory Tiers rebellion is dangerous moment for PM

• Jeremy Warner | If we don’t reform the state now, we never will

• Jemima Lewis | Jordan Peterson won't be last victim of 'progressives'

• Ed Power | This vitriol is typical of entitled, childish Star Wars fans

• Jamie Carragher | From Maradona to Kane, the best always push it

You Are Not Alone: Getting you through lockdown

1. Dirty money? | On the trail of the McMafia millionaires

2. Stay-at-home struggles | 'I adore my baby daughter, I've never felt lonelier'

3. Clive Barker interview | The perverse origins of Hellraiser and his battle with real life demons

Business and money briefing

Bitter pill | Shares in Indivior plunged after it revealed that Reckitt Benckiser had filed a £1bn claim against the drugmaker. Details here.

• £1.7bn investor |  Why money 'will flood into China'

• Pandemic pennies | Wealthy households twice as likely to have saved

• On top of markets | Live stocks and shares updates 24 hours a day

Sport briefing

Will Greenwood meets Jonny May | England's World Cup winner has no issue with Jonny May leapfrogging him into second place on the list of England's all-time top try-scorers. The wing wonder tells Greenwood about breaking records, why England are 'special' - and that Ireland try.

• Dylan Hartley | How England became rugby's hardest-working team

• Data analysis | Why rugby is in 'nursery school' compared to football

• Bahrain Grand Prix | Blow-by-blow account of practice

Tonight's TV

Walking Britain's Lost Railways, Channel 5, 8pm | Rob Bell's series is both an accessibly nerdy and gorgeously shot survey of the railways. Read on for more TV listings.

And finally... for this evening's downtime

The secrets of male weight loss | Men have a complicated relationship with weight. Around 67pc of UK men are overweight or obese, yet only 10-30pc of people attending weight-loss clubs are male. Now a leading UK expert in gender and health has studied the best ways for middle-aged men to lose weight. It is much easier than you think and - and it turns out dieting is not one of the secrets.