Cathay Pacific has apologised after an episode of Family Guy depicting Tiananmen Square was included in inflight entertainment.

The episode of the adult animated series – known for pushing boundaries – includes a scene referencing the 1989 protest crackdown, in which China’s military violently suppressed massive pro-democracy protests.

Cathay Pacific is Hong Kong’s flagship airline.

“Cathay Pacific is aware of the incident and sincerely apologises to the affected customers,” the company said in a statement.

“We emphasise that the content of the programme does not represent Cathay Pacific’s standpoint, and have immediately arranged to have the programme removed as soon as possible.”

The airline said the content of its inflight entertainment system is managed by a third-party provider.

“We have consistently provided them with clear instructions to ensure that the recommended content meets our company standards.

“We have promptly informed the service provider of the seriousness of the incident, and have instructed them to thoroughly investigate the cause and strengthen oversight to ensure that similar incidents do not occur in the future.”

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For three decades, an annual vigil in Hong Kong honoured those who died in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on 4 June 1989.

However, the group that organised the vigil has disbanded amid a crackdown on political activism in the semi-autonomous city.

Singer Fuse ODG has released an “alternative” charity song to Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas? after criticising the original for having potentially damaging effects on Africa.

The single titled We Know It’s Christmas (Band Aid Reply) was released by the British-Ghanaian singer on Tuesday, in what he described as “not just a song” but a “statement”.

Writing about his new song in The Guardian, the singer said he is “offering an Afrobeats alternative to Band Aid” as a “celebration of progress and a step toward reclaiming our narratives”.

He said the Afrobeats genre has in the past helped to unite Africans globally and “foster pride in our heritage”.

“We’re no longer waiting for charity; we’re building our own futures. This is about empowerment, pride, and showing the world that Africa’s story is far more than poverty and aid,” he wrote on YouTube.

The rapper said all the funds from the single will go to the New Africa Growth and Relief Fund, which he has launched to help build a “financial safety net” for the continent.

It comes after pop star Ed Sheeran said he was not asked permission for his vocals to be used in Band Aid 40, and would have “respectfully declined” if he had been asked, referencing a post by Fuse ODG, for updating his view on the matter.

Fuse ODG said a decade earlier he had refused to take part in the 2014 revamp of the 1984 project as he feels that while it helps get “sympathy and donations, they perpetuate damaging stereotypes that stifle Africa’s economic growth, tourism, and investment”.

He said his “mission” is now to “reclaim the narrative, empowering Africans to tell their own stories, redefine their identity, and position Africa as a thriving hub for investment and tourism”.

The singer acknowledged that while the public’s generosity in reaction to the original single – which was launched by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to help charities working with starving children in Ethiopia – was “genuine” and addressed “a specific humanitarian crisis”, the way it depicted Africa “did more long-term harm than good”.

He claims the song “inadvertently contributed to a broader identity crisis for Africans, portraying the entire continent as one monolithic, war-torn, starving place”.

Band Aid 40 was released last month to mark the song’s 40th anniversary. It is a remix which blends the voices of artists who have featured on previous editions including Harry Styles, George Michael and Bono.

Reacting to recent criticism of the hit, Geldof said earlier this week that none of the arguments put forward by critics like Fuse ODG and Sheeran would “get any oxygen if Band Aid didn’t come out”.

“Sentiment changes, opinions change, theory changes over 40 years, and that’s correct. You can’t stay stuck,” he said while appearing on ITV show Lorraine.

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“You’ve got to find different ways of combating these issues and different ways of talking about them and what we’re celebrating here, and none of these arguments will get any oxygen if Band Aid didn’t come out. That’s part of all this.

“So Ed says, ‘This is the way I feel now’. And I’ve put in the call – he’s a really lovely man, he’s an intelligent guy, he’s a major artist and we’ll have a chat and we’ll either agree or disagree but we’ll talk about it.

“But the debate must be made, and it means that we can argue our point of view even more strongly. So that’s where I’m at with this.”

Cases of winter flu are “rising rapidly” – with England’s health boss urging those eligible to get vaccinated.

Cases are highest among those aged five to 14, with 16.9% of tests positive for flu – up from 11.5% last week.

Sharing the data on X, England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said: “Influenza is now rising rapidly. Antiviral flu medicines can now be used in primary care.”

“If you are eligible please get vaccinated.”

The number of cases is in line with the 2022 to 2023 season, which peaked on 20 December, with 33% of tests positive for flu.

Last year, the peak was much smaller – with 16.7% of tests positive – and came more than a month later, on 27 January.

Data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) indicates while influenza rates are increasing, they remain at “low activity levels”.

Figures show the positive return rate for flu tests was 7.9% on 27 November, the most recent date for which data is available.

Flu is one of the illnesses circulating in the UK that have been dubbed the “quad-demic”.

COVID-19, flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and norovirus are all expected to peak at different times during the season.

Dr Alexander Allen, consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: “Flu is the cause of the rise in winter illnesses that we’ve seen in the past week, with emergency department attendances also increasing.

“Anyone still eligible for the flu, COVID-19 or RSV vaccines should get booked in ahead of the busy winter period, when we expect flu, and other respiratory viruses to spread between people more easily.

“Vaccination offers the best defence against these diseases, and now is the time to get protected before Christmas.”

THERE ARE HINTS THIS SEASON COULD BE A BAD ONE

Tom Clarke

Science and technology editor

@t0mclark3

Flu season is upon us once again. The big question, not just for anyone looking forward to a healthy Christmas break but for a creaking NHS which can be crippled by a severe flu season, is: how bad will it be?

The Chief Medical Officer Sir Chris Whitty took to social media to remind all those who are eligible to come forward for a flu jab. This is a sensible reminder in any given year – but there were some hints in the data he shared that this season might be a hard one.

Compared to last year flu cases have been rising faster earlier. In the last couple of weeks, the number of flu tests coming back positive has increased sharply. The speed of the rise is in line with the increase seen in the 2022-23 flu season.

No flu season is the same – the severity can vary due to the strains of flu circulating, the level of vaccination in the community, and the weather – but the 2022-23 season was, according to recent analysis, the worst in the UK in five years.

There are some other concerning signs – flu cases appear to be highest among school aged children– despite the fact vaccine uptake in this group is the highest it’s been.

For the time being at least, infection and hospitalisation rates in the most vulnerable groups – the very young and the elderly — remain low, although they are increasing.

The advice, as it is every season is for anyone who is eligible for a flu jab – children from 2 to 11, pregnant women, everyone over 65, vulnerable groups and health and social care workers – should get a flu jab if they haven’t already had one.

Australia has worst flu season on record

Australia has experienced its worst flu season on record.

Figures from Australia’s National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System showed 358,256 laboratory-confirmed cases of flu.

This beat 2019’s previous high of 313,615 cases and comes amid a declining rate in flu vaccinations.

How can you protect yourself?

You can catch the flu all year round, but it is especially common in winter.

The NHS says symptoms include: a sudden high temperature, an aching body, feeling exhausted, a dry cough, a sore throat, headache and difficulty sleeping.

“Vaccines work against the quad-demic,” Dr David Lloyd, a GP, previously told Sky News.

In fact, by getting vaccinated you halve your risk of catching any of the four illnesses, he said.

The NHS provides vaccinations against three of the four illnesses; flu, COVID-19 and, as of September this year, RSV.

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The flu vaccine is offered on the NHS every year in autumn and early winter. You can get it for free if you are over 65, have a long-term health condition, are pregnant, live in a care home, are a carer for someone, or live with someone with a weakened immune system.

Front line health and social care workers can also get a flu vaccine through their employer.

Analysis of the latest NHS vaccination data showed 335 vaccinations were given per minute for COVID, flu and RSV on average from 30 September to 17 November.

This works out to around 3.4 million vaccinations a week.