She is the Queen of Shops, soon to reign over Wolverhampton’s fortunes. ELIZABETH JOYCE looks at Mary Portas’ plan for the city

A nightclub has been banned from playing music after it was caught blaring out dance tracks without the correct licence. It was caught by a music industry inspector.

Wolverhampton today became one of 12 areas across the country to win £100,000 of investment and support from retail guru Mary Portas – but all other Black Country towns lost out.

Rival bidders today said they were bitterly disappointed at losing out in the Portas Pilot scheme, although regeneration bosses at Walsall and Dudley remained determined to plough ahead with plans.

Competitons and promotions are ever popular in the Express & Star. Cathy Spencer reports for Local Newspaper Week.

Dudley’s Ryan Aston today vowed to beat Paul Samuels to the punch when the two heavy hitters square up on the undercard of Carl Froch’s world title fight.

Councils in the region have failed to draw up plans to spend £500,000 to provide superfast broadband internet connections, prompting a warning from culture secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Amateur stars Ricky Summers and Andrew Robinson will make their professional debuts on the BoxNation bill at Wolverhampton Civic Hall on June 22.

Drain covers stolen by metal thieves will be replaced with plastic alternatives by Sandwell and Dudley councils at a cost of around £239,000.

An Olympic torchbearer returned to his Dudley school to inspire future generations of athletes.