A series of false rumours started spreading on social media over the weekend about a number of fabricated incidents that were supposed to have happened at different Asda stores across the UK.

There have been rumours of fires, roof collapses, bombs and even deaths at our stores – and all of them are completely untrue.

If you pick up any of the rumours on Twitter and Facebook please ignore them or point the people sharing them to this article – and help prevent them spreading further. Many thanks!

Examples of the kind of messages that have been circulating include:

“Newcastle Westerhope Asda has apparently been bombed”

“Apparently Asda Blyth & Boldon was on fire, the Metro Centre Asda’s floor has caved in & there’s been an Asda bombing in Westerhope.”

“Asda Peterlee is on fire.”

“Can anyone tell me what’s going on at Colchester Asda – there’s rumours of Bombs, Hostages, Robberies and Stabbing?”

“Apparently the roof’s collapsed in asda and 7 people have died”

“Apparently someone had a heart attack and died in Asda.”

“Can’t believe i’ve just read a 5 year old little boy has died of a heart attack in bootle’s asda.”

Asda today confirmed it had agreed terms with two franchise partners to explore opportunities for its fashion label George, overseas.

Azadea Group, headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon will be responsible for the George franchise stores Asda said it would open in the Middle East. Asda has also come to an agreement with SandpiperCI, based in the Channel Islands, who will be responsible for opening George franchises in both Jersey and Guernsey.

Last year, Asda announced its intention to establish a small number of pilot George stores. Today’s announcement puts it on track to open these in 2012. George currently accounts for around half of Asda’s general merchandise sales and is already a growing global brand through Walmart stores in seven countries worldwide.

Said G. Daher, Chief Executive Officer of Azadea Group Holding SAL commented: "We are excited about our partnership with George and we are looking forward to its launch and development in the Middle East.

“We are certain that the new George stores will bring our customers a wide range of affordable and fashionable product offerings.”

Tony O’Neill, CEO SandpiperCI goes on to say: "We are obviously delighted that SandpiperCI is part of Asda’s first global George franchise announcement. George delivers award-winning designs at customer-winning prices and is not surprisingly one of the UK’s largest volume-clothing retailers.

“George leads the way in value and quality and will fit perfectly into our current franchise estate. I’m looking forward to opening the stores in Jersey and Guernsey this year.”

A team has been established at the George base in Lutterworth to establish, build and manage the franchise stores and develop these franchise partnerships. The team will ensure it has commitments from all franchise partners to ensure the brand is sold and merchandised based around its core values of style, quality and value.

Andrew Moore, George Executive Managing Director comments: “We are working with two of the world’s most respected franchise businesses to establish the new George stores. Our International team will benefit from the vast franchise experience both companies have from the successful partnerships they operate with many other apparel brands.

“Customers globally, not just in the UK, are looking for the highest quality at the most affordable prices and that’s exactly what we will be offering customer across the Middle East and Channel Islands later this year.”