Shumen.UKBulgarian news from a British perspective.https://shumen.uk/2026-09-03T06:58:43ZAdrian Danehttps://shumen.uk/about.htmlCopyright 2026 Shumen.UK. All rights reserved.Shumen.UK Atom builderhttps://shumen.uk/favicon.svghttps://shumen.uk/images/logo.pngOn This Day in Bulgaria: Vasil Gendov, Two Surviving Frames (3 September)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-3-september-2026.html2026-09-03T04:00:06+00:002026-09-03T04:00:06+00:00Vasil Gendov died on this day in 1970. He made the first Bulgarian film in 1915, watched it burn in the bombing of Sofia, and spent his last decades building the archive that saved everyone else's.Radev Banks Brussels' Recovery Cash and Cuts the Appliance Eco-Fee Fourfoldhttps://shumen.uk/articles/radev-eu-recovery-payments-appliance-eco-fee-cut-motorways-september-2026.html2026-09-02T15:53:26+00:002026-09-02T15:53:26+00:00The prime minister says the European Commission has approved Bulgaria's latest recovery-plan payments in recognition of its anti-corruption push, days after the EU deadline passed. The same cabinet meeting cut the recycling levy on fridges and washing machines by about four times and named three motorways as priorities. Here is what is documented, where the outlets disagree, and what a Brit here will notice.On This Day in Bulgaria: Elitsa Todorova of Eurovision Fame (2 September)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-2-september-2026.html2026-09-02T04:00:05+00:002026-09-02T04:00:05+00:00Elitsa Todorova was born in Varna on this day in 1977. Her drums and folk voice took Bulgaria to fifth in Helsinki in 2007, still the country's best Eurovision result.On This Day in Bulgaria: Ljuba Welitsch, Found in Shumen (1 September)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-1-september-2026.html2026-09-01T04:00:06+00:002026-09-01T04:00:06+00:00Ljuba Welitsch died on this day in 1996. She ran away to school in Shumen, was coached in Salome by Richard Strauss himself, and made her name at Covent Garden in 1947.On This Day in Bulgaria: Lyuboslav Penev, the Missing Striker (31 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-31-august-2026.html2026-08-31T04:00:06+00:002026-08-31T04:00:06+00:00Lyuboslav Penev was born on this day in 1966. He won a Spanish double with Atletico Madrid, but cancer kept him out of the 1994 World Cup, the tournament that made his teammates immortal here.On This Day in Bulgaria: Svetoslav Todorov of Portsmouth (30 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-30-august-2026.html2026-08-30T04:00:05+00:002026-08-30T04:00:05+00:00Svetoslav Todorov was born on this day in 1978. He scored 26 goals to take Portsmouth into the Premier League, then wrecked his knee days before they got there.On This Day in Bulgaria: Danail Nikolaev, the Army's Patriarch (29 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-29-august-2026.html2026-08-29T04:00:05+00:002026-08-29T04:00:05+00:00Danail Nikolaev died on this day in 1942. He led the night that united Bulgaria in 1885, became its first general of the infantry, and once resigned over a seating plan.On This Day in Bulgaria: The Death of Tsar Boris III (28 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-28-august-2026.html2026-08-28T04:00:06+00:002026-08-28T04:00:06+00:00Tsar Boris III died in Sofia on this day in 1943, at forty-nine, shortly after a meeting with Hitler. The cause has never been settled, and neither has the argument about what he did in the war.On This Day in Bulgaria: Shumen's Olympic Champion Ivan Ivanov (27 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-27-august-2026.html2026-08-27T04:00:05+00:002026-08-27T04:00:05+00:00Ivan Ivanov was born in Shumen on this day in 1971, learned to lift at the sports school here, and set an Olympic record to win gold in Barcelona. Galabovo and Dalgopol are also celebrating.On This Day in Bulgaria: Todor Kolev of Shumen (26 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-26-august-2026.html2026-08-26T04:00:06+00:002026-08-26T04:00:06+00:00Shumen's own Todor Kolev, the funniest man in Bulgaria for half a century, was born on this day in 1939. It is also the name day of every Adrian and Natalia in the country, so there is quite a lot going on.On This Day in Bulgaria: Kiril Rakarov, Ten-Time Champion (25 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-25-august-2026.html2026-08-25T04:00:06+00:002026-08-25T04:00:06+00:00Ten league titles, an Olympic bronze and 58 caps, yet most Brits here have never heard the name. On this day in 2006 Bulgaria lost Kiril Rakarov, the CSKA right back whose career maps an entire era of the game.On This Day in Bulgaria: The Smolyan Teenager Who Won Two Olympic Medals (24 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-24-august-2026.html2026-08-24T04:00:05+00:002026-08-24T04:00:05+00:00Antoaneta Frenkeva turns 55 today. At seventeen, the swimmer from Smolyan came home from Seoul with two Olympic medals, a first for a Bulgarian woman in the pool. Here is why her name is worth knowing.Yotova Won't Convene the Security Council, and Calls the Row a Betrayalhttps://shumen.uk/articles/yotova-refuses-security-council-bezmer-betrayal-october-election.html2026-08-23T12:02:11+00:002026-08-23T12:02:11+00:00The president has refused to call the National Security Advisory Council over the US aircraft at Bezmer, saying the parties demanding it are playing politics before the 25 October election. Meanwhile the Navy is clearing drone parts off the beach between Albena and Kranevo.Bulgaria Publishes Its Politicians' Bank Balances, and Your Mayor Is In There Toohttps://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-politicians-asset-declarations-public-register-2026.html2026-08-23T10:38:17+00:002026-08-23T10:38:17+00:00The National Audit Office has put more than 16,000 asset declarations online, from a minister with 400,000 euros in cash to a party leader with a 8.9 million euro dividend. The same free register covers the mayors and officials British expats actually deal with.On This Day in Bulgaria: Dora Smedovska, the Lawyer Who Wrote Cartoons (23 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-23-august-2026.html2026-08-23T04:00:04+00:002026-08-23T04:00:04+00:00Born in Sofia on this day in 1934, Dora Smedovska took a law degree into a career writing animated films. Almost nobody remembers her name, which is exactly why she is worth five minutes of your Sunday. Plus: what to do if you know a Valko.On This Day in Bulgaria: Yordan Piperkata and the Fog Around 1903 (22 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-22-august-2026.html2026-08-22T04:00:05+00:002026-08-22T04:00:05+00:00Three reference works give three different dates for his death, and three different nationalities for the man himself. What they agree on is a burned village, an ambush in the ruins, and the summer that Macedonia rose.On This Day in Bulgaria: The Coach Who Knocked Liverpool Out of Europe (21 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-21-august-2026.html2026-08-21T04:00:04+00:002026-08-21T04:00:04+00:00Asparuh Nikodimov was born on this day in 1945. He scored against West Germany at the 1970 World Cup, then managed CSKA Sofia past the reigning European champions in two consecutive seasons: Nottingham Forest, then Liverpool.On This Day in Bulgaria: Samuil's Name Day and the Tsar Behind It (20 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-20-august-2026.html2026-08-20T04:00:04+00:002026-08-20T04:00:04+00:00Only one name celebrates today, but it carries the last great tsar of the First Bulgarian Empire, a father with ties to the court at Preslav, and a village out towards Razgrad that took his name in 1934.Bulgaria's Inflation Cools to 4.4%, but the Till Is Not Done Yethttps://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-inflation-july-2026-eases-4-4.html2026-08-19T16:04:33+00:002026-08-19T16:04:33+00:00Eurostat's final July figures put Bulgaria's annual inflation at 4.4%, down from 5.2% in June but still joint third-highest in the EU. For British expats, the useful question is what that national average says about an actual household budget.Bulgaria's Industrial Output Edges Up, But Recovery Can Waithttps://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-industrial-output-june-2026.html2026-08-19T14:02:18+00:002026-08-19T14:02:18+00:00Industrial production rose 0.4% in June, yet remained about 2.5% lower than a year earlier. The more useful story for British workers and businesses is the sharp divide between manufacturing and mining.On This Day in Bulgaria: The Secret Ottoman Alliance of 1914 (19 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-19-august-2026.html2026-08-19T04:00:04+00:002026-08-19T04:00:04+00:00Two officially neutral countries, one secret treaty, signed in Sofia on this day in 1914. The Ottoman-Bulgarian alliance was the quiet first step towards Bulgaria joining the First World War, and Kula celebrates its town day too.On This Day in Bulgaria: Elena Rusalieva, the Voice of ER, Turns 64 (18 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-18-august-2026.html2026-08-18T04:00:05+00:002026-08-18T04:00:05+00:00Born in Sofia on 18 August 1962, Elena Rusalieva went from puppet theatre to becoming the Bulgarian voice of ER, Lost and Desperate Housewives. She turns 64 today, and three Bulgarian towns are celebrating too.On This Day in Bulgaria: Sprint Great Nikolay Antonov Turns 58 (17 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-17-august-2026.html2026-08-17T04:00:05+00:002026-08-17T04:00:05+00:00Born in Razgrad on 17 August 1968, Nikolay Antonov ran the 200m in 20.20 seconds, a Bulgarian record that still stands, and once beat Carl Lewis indoors. He turns 58 today.On This Day in Bulgaria: Dora Gabe, the Poet Shumen Published First (16 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-16-august-2026.html2026-08-16T04:00:05+00:002026-08-16T04:00:05+00:00Born on 16 August 1885, Dora Gabe went from a Shumen school bench to co-founding the Bulgarian PEN Club, and even the encyclopaedias cannot agree on her birth year. The state once celebrated the wrong birthday.A birthing pool, a minister on the water, and 20.6% of the roadshttps://shumen.uk/articles/shumen-roundup-birthing-pool-minister-water-20-6-roads.html2026-08-15T21:08:39+00:002026-08-15T21:08:39+00:00The regional development minister arrives in Shumen on Tuesday to talk about water and roads, days after figures put barely a fifth of the municipality's republican network in good condition. Also: a birthing pool at the maternity ward, and a library teaching children to use a quill.A Gunpowder Plant Near Smyadovo Is Back on the Table, on Paper at Leasthttps://shumen.uk/articles/smyadovo-gunpowder-plant-strategic-status-decree-shumen.html2026-08-15T18:12:24+00:002026-08-15T18:12:24+00:00The Ministry of Economy has revived a procedure to give strategic status to the two companies behind a proposed gunpowder plant in Shumen province, two years after the same procedure collapsed. It grants no permission to build, and it lands while the state's own billion-euro gunpowder project has no joint venture behind it.Nikolova Takes World Silver by 0.050 of a Point, and Bulgaria Takes a Los Angeles Placehttps://shumen.uk/articles/nikolova-world-silver-frankfurt-bulgaria-la-2028-quota.html2026-08-15T14:39:48+00:002026-08-15T14:39:48+00:00Stiliana Nikolova finished second in the all-around at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Frankfurt, holding off Italy's Sofia Raffaeli by five hundredths of a point and securing Bulgaria a quota place for the 2028 Olympics.On This Day in Bulgaria: Golyama Bogoroditsa, Varna's Day and a Fallen Voivode (15 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-15-august-2026.html2026-08-15T09:44:03+00:002026-08-15T09:44:03+00:00The busiest date in the Bulgarian calendar: the country's biggest women's name day, seven town celebrations led by Varna, and the anniversary of a 25-year-old schoolteacher killed in the Ilinden Uprising.On This Day in Bulgaria: Boris Hristov, the Poet Who Refused a Medal (14 August)https://shumen.uk/articles/bulgaria-on-this-day-14-august-2026.html2026-08-14T04:00:05+00:002026-08-14T04:00:05+00:00Bulgaria has two famous Boris Hristovs. Today's birthday belongs to the one who did not sing: a Pernik village poet who edited films at Boyana, reached the school textbooks, and once wrote to the government to refuse a state honour.New children's ward, a death on the E-70, and two openings on the 17thhttps://shumen.uk/articles/shumen-roundup-new-childrens-ward-death-e-70-two-openings.html2026-08-13T18:44:07+00:002026-08-13T18:44:07+00:00A rebuilt children's ward at the regional hospital, a fatal crash that closed the E-70, the death of a former justice minister who began on the Shumen bench, and a painter's second show at the library.