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Istanbul city guideIstanbul holidays10 of the best lokantas in IstanbulIstanbul's lokantas, or 'tradesmen's restaurants', are where the locals go for fast, fresh home-style cooking and a lively atmosphere. The Istanbul Eats bloggers select 10 of the best As featured in our Istanbul city guide Çiya SofrasiThanks to glowing write-ups, this Asian-side eatery is no longer the secret it once was, but the restaurant – possibly the best in Istanbul – has remained true to what made it successful in the first place.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewThe Yorkshire high school drama now features characters who talk in utterly bizarre language. Add in soapy plotlines and an inferior cast and it’s far past its sell-by date Seasons one to three of Ackley Bridge (Channel 4) were an ideal lockdown box set for families with teens or tweens. Set in a Yorkshire academy school created by merging a predominantly white secondary with a predominantly Muslim one, the drama never lost sight of its core mission to examine multiculturalism as experienced by teens and educators.

NBAKenneth Faried’s talent earned him a slot on the Team USA roster and a $50m contract. But he found himself on the outside as NBA tactics changed Kenneth Faried is around 7,200 feet above sea level. At times, though, the former Team USA starter and Denver Nugget, he has felt much lower. His G League season with the Mexico City Capitanes concluded in late March, the team narrowly missing the playoffs.

Gig venue guideMusicThe gig venue guide: Koko, LondonThe former Camden Palace is a venue of beauty – but also one in which a large chunk of the crowd can’t see the stage Capacity: 1,410. Who plays there: Koko’s big on the rock and indie circuit – it’s the venue bands play when they’re too big for the clubs and not big enough for Brixton Academy. You get hip-hop here, too, plus occasional special shows from star acts – including Prince, Madonna and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

MoviesReviewDouble booking is the least of the worries awaiting the vacationers arriving at this desert home Whether or not you think it deserves it, the online property-hire business Airbnb is taking a pasting of late, and now even horror films are piling in to sully its name. In this snappily edited film, a house in the desert near Joshua Tree national park (judging by the local flora) appears to have been double-booked, leading to murderous results.

Pop and rockInterviewAnohni, the artist once known as Antony Hegarty, on life beyond the JohnsonsBen Beaumont-ThomasThe force behind Antony and the Johnsons has returned with a new name and a new album denouncing Obama and climate change. She explains how pop is her political vehicle A modernist palace of culture built from 130,000 cubic metres of concrete, London’s Barbican Centre is the kind of building you can imagine future civilisations stumbling across like Charlton Heston in Planet of the Apes.

TheatreReviewLyric Hammersmith, London This intimate story of four-way romantic damage gains an extra edge in Clare Lizzimore’s slick revival Patrick Marber’s hit play brimmed with daring when it premiered in 1997. A spiky romcom of sorts, it spoke with expletive urgency about the destructive capabilities of love, intimacy and carnal desire between two modern couples. Clare Lizzimore’s slick, intelligent revival, 25 years on, manages to bring its own sense of risk to the staging, yet exposes the limits of the play in the process.

Folk album of the monthMusicReview(Spinster) Elizabeth LaPrelle of Anna & Elizabeth anchors the four-piece behind this comforting, intimate album of a cappella harmonies and Appalachian ballads US four-piece Doran identify themselves as a freak folk collective exploring “tradition and innovation in song, myth and ceremony”. Anchoring them is singer/banjo player Elizabeth LaPrelle from brilliant duo Anna & Elizabeth, whose experimental approach to ancient songs has always augmented their raw power. She’s joined by ethnomusicologist Brian Dolphin, and Channing Showalter and Annie Schermer of the performance art group West of Roan.

31 Dec 202311.38 ESTMikel Arteta spoke to the BBC: “Today was our worst game of the season. The pace, the purpose we have in attack, defensively we were second best, we could not dominate and had issues because of that. “We were sloppy with the ball. It wasn’t good enough. We didn’t deserve to win. When you have opportunities to go top of league on 31 December and now end up with really bad feeling that is football.

Open micJerry SeinfeldJerry Seinfeld’s Clio acceptance speech is a standup routine for our timesSeinfeld’s rant about advertising is an astonishing feat of comedy and raises an important question – whither satire when its targets laugh so hard? Usually when I see a comedian fronting an ad campaign, this Bill Hicks routine comes to mind. (I may not always agree, but it comes to mind.) This week brings another happy marriage of comedy and selling stuff.

Cardiff chic: Kiti is big on Scandi and LA brands like Annine Bing, Ganni and Stine Goya and has the inside line on new discoveries.Cardiff chic: Kiti is big on Scandi and LA brands like Annine Bing, Ganni and Stine Goya and has the inside line on new discoveries.The ObserverFashionFrom upcycled floral dresses to cutting-edge style, these small independent businesses have something for everyone 1. Kiti, CardiffA proudly Welsh, colourful confection of fashion treasures for women of every age.

Film blogFilmThe (censored) story of Serge GainsbourgAnd so, it seems that the string of biopics suffering from "selective memory" is set to continue. As a slightly obsessive Serge Gainsbourg fan (but then, is there any other kind?) I was initially very excited when I found out about the forthcoming film of his life, Serge Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life, to be released next year. But after some research, I discovered that this may well be a film to file away with the disappointing recent stories of three other hero(in)es of mine: Dylan, Cash and Piaf.

Ask Molly RingwaldSmoking‘It’s a powerful urge we parents have, to save our own kids from suffering the same things we did’My parents are smokers. They smoked when I was a child, in the car, in the house and everywhere in between. I was used to having conversations with them through clouds of smoke, until I hit adulthood, at which point smoking, and its adverse health effects, began to disgust and worry me. Now I have children of my own and live in a different country.

Julie Manet and Her Greyhound Laerte, 1893, painted by her mother, Berthe Morisot. © The Bridgeman Art LibraryJulie Manet and Her Greyhound Laerte, 1893, painted by her mother, Berthe Morisot. © The Bridgeman Art LibraryThe ObserverPaintingReviewDulwich Picture Gallery, London Brushstrokes shiver, tremble and fly in this rare UK show of the French artist’s elusive, intimate work – albeit one shared with numerous men “What a shame they are not men,” Édouard Manet wrote of Berthe and Edma Morisot, upon meeting the gifted young artists in 1868.

Christina Crawford, aged 7, with her mother, Joan … ‘We don’t recognise the long-term psychological damage that is inflicted on people who are abused.’ Photograph: Bettmann/Bettmann ArchiveChristina Crawford, aged 7, with her mother, Joan … ‘We don’t recognise the long-term psychological damage that is inflicted on people who are abused.’ Photograph: Bettmann/Bettmann ArchiveChild protectionHer memoir of life with her abusive adoptive mother, the Hollywood superstar Joan Crawford, was perhaps the first ever to document child abuse from the point of view of the child.

Top 10sBooksFrom Douglas Adams to Oliver Sacks, the standup comedian reveals some of the writers that have helped him try to work out what makes us tick Most of my standup shows, whether about the behaviour of the bonobo ape or my addiction to celebrity narrowboat TV shows, are really me trying to work out what it is to be human and trying to see how wrong I am getting it.

OpinionSoccer This article is more than 12 years oldThe 'gay for Thierry Henry' outpouring heralds a new opennessThis article is more than 12 years oldPaul FlynnAfter Henry's skilful homecoming, fans said they would 'go gay' for him. Isn't it time football bodies stopped playing it straight?If Thierry Henry's return to the Arsenal playing field was evidence of the Beautiful Game fulfilling its mythological title, the fans' reaction was a surprisingly transparent testament to the Beautiful Man at the centre of it.

ExhibitionsA new exhibition explores how glasses have played a part in film narratives – and their journey from geek prop to urban must-have Once upon a time, not too long ago in cinematic history, there was an easy way to make a Hollywood star instantly less attractive: put them in glasses. Think Cary Grant as the palaeontologist in Bringing Up Baby; Donna Reed as the librarian in It’s a Wonderful Life; Bette Davis as a repressed spinster in Now, Voyager.

UK newsWhales' ancestor was a wolf in hippo's clothingIt ran like a wolf. It waded like a hippopotamus. It put its ear to the ground to hear distant rumbles. It had the ankles of a cow. But above all, it had the ear bones of a whale. In a find that matches the discovery of archaeopteryx - one of the great missing links of evolution - researchers in Pakistan have unearthed many of the bones of the 50m-year-old Pakicetus attocki, a land-dwelling, estuary-wading, meat-eating ancestor of the whale.

The autocomplete questionsCats This article is more than 5 years oldWhy are kittens so cute? You asked Google – here's the answerThis article is more than 5 years oldDean BurnettEvery day millions of people ask Google life’s most difficult questions. Our writers answer some of the commonest queries A few months ago, my family and I went to a nearby cat rescue shelter to get a kitten. There were five in the available litter to choose from, but as we were watching them play, one of the two tabbies boldly decided to scale a nearby sack of bedding, then promptly fell in head-first and couldn’t get out.

Big Brother This article is more than 14 years oldBig Brother contestant Sree Dasari slashes his wristsThis article is more than 14 years oldReality TV show facing questions about screening of housemates after student admitted to hospitalChannel 4 and Endemol, the producers of Big Brother, are facing renewed questions about contestants' mental health after a recently evicted participant was taken to hospital after apparently self-harming while watching the programme. Sree Dasari, 25, was admitted to hospital in the early hours of Friday after cutting his wrists in his room at the University of Hertfordshire, where he is an overseas student.

ArchitectureIf you want to lay a road, build a house, or construct a dam in Iceland, there’s one influential group you have to clear it with first – elves. Oliver Wainwright on the power of the ‘hidden people’ Rocky elf homes – in pictures Huddled together amid the jagged rocks of the Gálgahraun lava field, a group of nervous onlookers wait with bated breath. Suddenly, there’s a loud crack and a tumble of stones as a 50-tonne boulder is wrenched from the ground, then slowly raised into the air and eased down nearby, so delicately you’d think it was a priceless sculpture.

Mark TwainMark Twain(1835-1910 )1835-1910 "The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them" BirthplaceFlorida, US EducationTwain moved with his family to Hannibal, Missouri at the age of four, and received a public school education there. Other jobsHaving worked as a printer and riverboat pilot during his teenage years, Twain had a brief stint as a silver miner in Nevada before getting a job on the Daily Territorial Enterprise newspaper in Virginia.

TravelPaul Theroux, William Dalrymple, Kari Herbert, Colin Thubron and many more writers tell us about the travel book that most influenced their own life and workColin Thubron StarkIonia: a Quest, by Freya Stark Travel books, like others, change perspective as we grow older, and I can see now that Freya Stark's Ionia: a Quest is an enchanting but disturbingly moralistic account of a journey that this remarkable woman took in the early 1950s along the west coast of Turkey.

‘I do my best not to let this insidious disease control me,’ Suzanne Somers told Entertainment Tonight over the summer, of her cancer returning. Photograph: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images‘I do my best not to let this insidious disease control me,’ Suzanne Somers told Entertainment Tonight over the summer, of her cancer returning. Photograph: Jamie McCarthy/Getty ImagesTelevision This article is more than 3 months oldSuzanne Somers, star of Three’s Company sitcom, dies aged 76This article is more than 3 months oldActor, first diagnosed with breast cancer in her 50s after battling skin cancer in her 30s, was also known for role in American Graffiti

The ObserverBooksReviewPeter Guttridge is moved as James Lee Burke swaps cops and robbers for Yanks and Rebs in White Doves at MorningWhite Doves at Morning by James Lee Burlke Orion, £12.99, pp280 Spirit of place plays such an important part in James Lee Burke's fiction that Louisiana's bloody Civil War experiences have already cast a melancholy shadow over his work. White Doves at Morning, a moving work of historical fiction, is set between 1837 and 1868 and addresses some of these experiences directly.

WhalesA pod in the strait of Gibraltar has sunk three boats and damaged dozens of others, and their story has captivated the world. What explains this unprecedented behaviour? What’s going on with the #orcauprising? You’ve probably gathered the basics: orcas are “attacking” yachts. To be strictly factual, since 2020, a small pod of orcas in the strait of Gibraltar has been interacting with sailing boats in a new way: ramming vessels, pressing their bodies and heads into the hulls and biting, even snapping off, the rudders.

Vince Staples. Photograph: Suki Dhanda for the GuideVince Staples. Photograph: Suki Dhanda for the GuideMusicA member of the Crips in his teenage years, the reformed California rapper now spends his time stripping the glamour from gang culture. He wishes the media would do the same When you think of Californian hip-hop, you flick through cliches like a Grand Theft Auto programmer: bouncing cars, guns being held sideways, blunts the size of folded umbrellas.

GermanyBerlin arms factories bombed in three-hour raidFlying boats sunk off Norway | Attacks on oil tanks at Cherbourg and e-boats at BoulogneArmament factories in the Berlin area were bombed by the RAF in widespread raids during Sunday night. Ground defences on the outskirts of the capital were also attacked. The weather was unfavourable. An air-raid alarm was sounded in Berlin at 12:40 this morning. The "All clear" was given at 1:22.

GB News This article is more than 11 months oldGB News presenter quits after channel tries to make him pay Ofcom finesThis article is more than 11 months oldMark Steyn could face sanction by media regulator after he cast doubt on safety of Covid vaccines One of GB News’s leading presenters has quit after the channel tried to make him personally responsible for paying fines issued by the media regulator Ofcom.

Thailand This article is more than 1 year oldThis article is more than 1 year oldScientists observed fewer cases of avian bronchitis and superior meat after chickens given cannabis It all began when Ong-ard Panyachatiraksa, a farm owner in the north of Thailand who is licensed to grow medicinal cannabis, was wondering what to do with the many excess leaves he had amassed. He asked: could his brood of chickens benefit from the leftovers?

NCAA tournament 2015March Madness: 2015 men's NCAA bracketFollow along with us as the men’s teams face off for the 2015 March Madness tournament March Madness: 2015 Men's NCAA bracketncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKugpL%2B1e82gZKKmpJq%2Foq%2FToq2eZ2JlfnZ7zJqpaGlnZLqivsKhZKaZlKOytL%2BMa2dqbV2isq%2B%2FjKeampldl7%2Bir8qeqw%3D%3D

Occupy Wall Street This article is more than 12 years oldOccupy Wall St: Naomi Wolf condemns 'Stalinist' erosion of protest rightsThis article is more than 12 years oldAuthor was arrested alongside Occupy Wall Street protesters after she disputed police claims that they had to clear sidewalk Naomi Wolf: how I was arrested at Occupy Wall Street The feminist author Naomi Wolf has criticised the erosion of the right to public protest in the United States after she was arrested alongside Occupy Wall Street demonstrators in New York.

RED TAPE, WHITE LIESProstitution is often called 'the oldest profession'. Given that effective contraception is a relatively recent development, were prostitutes constantly pregnant in the past? Hugh, London Nope. 'Bad' girls have always known how to look after themselves. Barrier methods were always very popular. A halved, emptied lemon skin placed over the cervix worked well, for example, as did sponges soaked in natural spermicides such as vinegar. Women constantly pass on contraceptive knowledge to each other, a crucial practice in the past when it could be a matter of life and death.

The ObserverMumbai terror attacksInterviewTerror victim in Mumbai, now abandoned in BritainLinda GrantWill Pike escaped with his life from last year's Taj Mahal hotel massacre, but suffered spinal injuries that left him severely disabled. His nightmare had only just begun. Here he tells Linda Grant about the cruel neglect and official indifference to his plight that have plagued him since his return to the UKThe following correction was printed in the Observer's For the records column, Sunday 17 May 2009.

Crime This article is more than 3 years oldWesley Streete jailed for rape and murder of Keeley BunkerThis article is more than 3 years oldStreete dumped 20-year-old’s body in a stream and then lied about what had happened A serial rapist who raped and murdered a trusted friend before dumping her body face down in a brook has been jailed for life. Wesley Streete promised to take 20-year-old Keeley Bunker home safely after a night out, but raped and murdered her in a park before trying to conceal her body with branches on 19 September last year.

Wilco This article is more than 4 years old'A bullet lodged in the door': shots fired at Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy's homeThis article is more than 4 years oldThe son of the Chicago-based Grammy-winning musician says he does not believe the family were deliberately targeted Numerous gunshots have been fired at the Chicago home of Jeff Tweedy, frontman of the Grammy-winning indie rock band Wilco. His wife, Susan Miller Tweedy, detailed the incident in a Facebook post.

Music This article is more than 16 years oldAmy Winehouse's husband arrested over trial-fixing claimsThis article is more than 16 years oldBlake Fielder-Civil and an associate are accused of having offered barman £200,000 to withdraw GBH claimAmy Winehouse was left sobbing and clinging to her handcuffed husband last night as he was arrested in front of her over an alleged plot to pervert the course of justice. Reports in this morning's press claim the 24-year-old singer has now gone into hiding, after a series of events which also saw her house raided by police yesterday afternoon.

Hip-hopJeff Chang offers rhyme and reason on the rap beef between the two pop stars that sheds light on the genre’s complex relationship with race and identity The pop stars Iggy Azalea and Azealia Banks share more than just similar names. Both are emerging young women in an industry that has, especially since the turn of the millennium, all but relegated women to video-girl roles. Both are artists whose hype to date exceeds their output.

Gérard Depardieu This article is more than 1 month oldGérard Depardieu accused of rape by Spanish journalist and authorThis article is more than 1 month oldRuth Baza, 51, said previous allegations against Depardieu provoked ‘flashes’ of memory of alleged 30-year-old assault A Spanish journalist and author has filed a criminal complaint in Spain against Gérard Depardieu, claiming that the film star raped her nearly 30 years ago in Paris. Ruth Baza, 51, told AFP she filed the complaint with Spanish police on Thursday, saying the alleged rape happened when she interviewed the actor in Paris on 12 October 1995, for the magazine Cinemania.

FictionReviewA self-destructive young waitress unravels in a fierce and elegant first novel that takes working-class life seriously Merritt Tierce’s debut novel is a stylishly brutal account of the life of a waitress working in a series of Texas restaurants. The protagonist, Marie, suffers from a litany of misfortunes, whose sheer number may at first seem wearying: self-harm, compulsive promiscuity, drug abuse, squalid poverty, teen pregnancy. Furthermore, they are all introduced in the first 30 pages in a dizzying collage of vignettes.

The ObserverClubbing This article is more than 9 years oldMamading in Magaluf: this is not a tale of broken Britain. It's far, far sadderThis article is more than 9 years oldBarbara EllenThis was heartless manipulation of the hopelessly inebriated and had just about nothing to with sex It is difficult to know what was really going on in the now-notorious "mamading" video shot of the 18-year-old British woman "performing sex acts"

Sexual healingLife and styleIt felt like a way to connect but now she has withdrawn from me. I feel as if sex is always on her terms I have always given foot massages to my wife, and she has enjoyed them. But since I admitted to having a foot fetish, things have changed. She used to proffer them to me and I would massage them. It feels as if the moment I admitted I got pleasure from it, she saw it as a zero-sum game and withdrew.

Billy Corgan: ‘If you want to say there’s been 172 rock stars in the last 100 years, OK, well, then I’m one of them.’ Photograph: Ali Smith/The GuardianBilly Corgan: ‘If you want to say there’s been 172 rock stars in the last 100 years, OK, well, then I’m one of them.’ Photograph: Ali Smith/The GuardianSmashing PumpkinsInterviewSmashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan: ‘I don’t want my kids growing up with a has-been father’Jeremy GordonThe rock singer talks about getting his band back on track, becoming a parent – and how he learned to stop playing the troll in interviews

Charles Dickens at 200ChristmasA Christmas Carol: how well do you know the story of Scrooge? – quizDon't be a mean spirit! Test your knowledge of Christmases past with our cracking journey into Charles Dickens' festive fablencG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJqfpLi0e9CuoLNnYmV%2BcnvDnppoaWdksKm%2ByKyrppmjYrCivs6lZKyboqS8qLGMqqyisg%3D%3D

Fiction in translationReviewEconomic development and the loss of tradition are seen through the microcosm of life on a rubbish dump, in this impassioned novel from South Korea The narrative of east Asia’s economic success is far better known than the consequences of the region’s rapid development. In Familiar Things, translated by Sora Kim-Russell, one of South Korea’s most venerated novelists urgently examines the darker side of modernisation through the micro-society of a rubbish dump.

Israel-Gaza war This article is more than 3 months oldHundreds arrested as US Jews protest against Israel’s Gaza assaultThis article is more than 3 months oldProtesters in Washington demand ceasefire, marking rift in community as Anti-Defamation League condemns demonstration Israel and Hamas at war – live updates Leftwing Jewish activists campaigned against Israel’s bombardment and blockade of Gaza this week in Washington, culminating in protests that have seen hundreds arrested for civil disobedience outside the White House and Congress.

Ask Annalisa BarbieriFriendshipI’m wondering if this centres around your mother’s death. Maybe you felt she was the only one who listened to you? I used to have quite a lot of friends when I was younger, but for some reason I find friendships very difficult these days. I feel let down constantly. I feel I’m always there for other people and inquire about their lives, but never get anything in return.

Juneteenth celebrations over time – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Abolitionist Frederick Douglass asked in a famous speech in 1852: ‘What to the American slave is your Fourth of July?’ For formerly enslaved persons, Juneteenth, celebrated in the US today, was their freedom story. Today, it’s commemorated by their descendants and an entire nation.

Saudi Arabia This article is more than 5 years oldKing Salman launches Saudi Arabia's 'answer to Disneyland'This article is more than 5 years oldSaudi ruler inaugurates construction of 130-sq-mile entertainment park near Riyadh Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has launched the construction of an “entertainment city” near Riyadh, part of a series of multibillion dollar projects aimed at helping the oil-dependent kingdom diversify its economy. The project is part of a sweeping reform and investment programme known as Vision 2030, the brainchild of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who also attended the ceremony on Saturday evening.

Floral tributes and candles surround a photograph of Ashling Murphy left at the canal in Tullamore, County Offaly, where she was found dead in January 2022. Photograph: Niall Carson/PAFloral tributes and candles surround a photograph of Ashling Murphy left at the canal in Tullamore, County Offaly, where she was found dead in January 2022. Photograph: Niall Carson/PAIreland This article is more than 2 months oldMan jailed for life after murdering Irish teacher Ashling MurphyThis article is more than 2 months oldJozef Puska, 33, stabbed 23-year-old as she jogged along a canal last year in a case that shocked Ireland

The 100 best footballers in the worldFootballThe 100 best male footballers in the world 2023Erling Haaland has been voted the best player in the world for 2023 by our 218-strong panel, with Jude Bellingham finishing second 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 Meet the judges | Best female footballers to launch in January Football Next Generation 2017: 20 of the best talents at Premier League clubs The Guardian picks the best prospect from each club born between 1 September 2000 and 31 August 2001, an age band known as first-year scholars.

New Zealand This article is more than 2 years old‘A linchpin’: Tributes paid after New Zealand hip hop artist Louie Knuxx dies in MelbourneThis article is more than 2 years oldFriends of the musician, who also mentored young people, have described him as a ‘kind, generous person’ Tributes are pouring in for New Zealand hip-hop artist Louie Knuxx, whose real name is Todd Williams, after he died of a heart attack, in Melbourne on Friday morning.

The ObserverArctic MonkeysReview(Domino)When Arctic Monkeys burst into the spotlight in 2006, breaking sales records, prompting bandwagon-jumping prospective Labour party leaders to make themselves sound heroically foolish and being hailed for their quintessential Britishness, you could have got long odds on the key figure in the second phase of their career being Californian stoner-rock pioneer Josh Homme. And yet it was under the production aegis of the Queens of the Stone Age frontman that they performed a stylistic handbrake turn with 2009's Humbug, ditching the indie influences of their first two albums for a markedly heavier, darker sound.

Channel 5asdfsdsadfsdf ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKWVmbaie5FpZ2tnn5jBcH2PaJqhmZ6jsq2Bja2cpZ2mnsCqu80%3D

It was only 60 years ago that this would have been an unheard of sight in the south. Photograph: My Mundane Life / Flickr Photograph: My Mundane Life/FlickrIt was only 60 years ago that this would have been an unheard of sight in the south. Photograph: My Mundane Life / Flickr Photograph: My Mundane Life/FlickrOpinionRace This article is more than 9 years oldBlack people were denied vanilla ice cream in the Jim Crow south – except on Independence DayThis article is more than 9 years oldMichael W TwittyOne result of legalized racism in America was this strange limit, which helped teach kids the rules of a segregated society

ActivismObama alums who started as college kids on his campaign or his administration are running for office or helping others run in the aftermath of Trump’s election Ronnie Cho got the name nickname “Chobama” while knocking on doors in Iowa in 2007, and then followed the president to the White House as a youth affairs aide call-to-arms from his commander in chief is not something he can ignore. “Barack Obama, I never want to disappoint,” Cho said.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewApple TV+’s best show yet tells timely and totally absorbing tales of immigrants living ‘the American dream’. It shouldn’t feel like a political act, but here we are It shouldn’t feel like a political, let alone radical, act to release an anthology of true immigrant stories that presents each of its subjects as an ordinary human being worthy of attention, respect and compassion. But we are where we – miserably, sickeningly – are, and the advent of Little America feels like just that.

‘Don’t bother Helen Mirren. She’s in a terrible mood’ … Vanity Fair’s latest Hollywood issue cover. Photograph: Annie Leibovitz exclusively for Vanity Fair‘Don’t bother Helen Mirren. She’s in a terrible mood’ … Vanity Fair’s latest Hollywood issue cover. Photograph: Annie Leibovitz exclusively for Vanity FairMoviesTen for the bonfire: Vanity Fair's most awkward Hollywood issue coversAs the magazine’s latest showpiece edition is unveiled, we celebrate 22 years of Tinseltown’s finest trying desperately hard to look effortlessly cool

BooksAfter the second world war, the belief that differences between so-called ‘races’ are genetic became taboo. Now, with the far right resurgent, it’s back In 1985, historian Barry Mehler had a dream. His research was taking him deep into the murky territory of academia’s extreme right wing. As he worked, he found his waking life beginning to soak into his subconscious, colouring his sleep. In his dream, his son, then two years old, was trapped in a runaway car hurtling down a hill.

Tricolore Tony Soprano … Philippe Rickwaert, the populist politician who goes over to the dark side. Photograph: Jean-Claude LotherTricolore Tony Soprano … Philippe Rickwaert, the populist politician who goes over to the dark side. Photograph: Jean-Claude LotherTelevisionA revenge saga about backstabbing in French local politics may not sound like the best summer binge-watch. But Baron Noir is like a perfect blend of House of Cards … and The Sopranos

Book of the dayLiterary criticismReviewHow modern literary criticism came to be – with a little help from TS Eliot, FR Leavis, Raymond Williams and others In a famous experiment from the late 1920s, IA Richards set his Cambridge students the task of reading a series of short, anonymous literary extracts. They were asked to pay minute attention to rhythm, sound, tone, texture and syntax before attempting to date each text. Richards conceived this Practical Criticism, as the methodology came to be called, as a tough-minded challenge to what had hitherto passed as literary criticism.

Yotam Ottolenghi: ‘There’s more than one way to get a meal on the table.’ Photograph: Jay Brooks/The GuardianThese dishes from my latest book make cooking fun, relaxing and delicious by Yotam OttolenghiOne person’s idea of cooking simply is the next person’s culinary nightmare. For me, it’s about being able to stop at my greengrocer on the way home, pick up a couple of things that look good and make something within 20 or 30 minutes of getting in.

According to the 2011 census 56,075,912 people live in England and Wales. Drawing inspiration from Brandon Martin-Anderson's US census dotmap, we've represented each person in England and Wales with a dot in the map below. The result gives a beautiful picture of population density across the country. Explore some large cities: London, Liverpool, Birmingham and Cardiff. Or search by postcode or address. Zoom in to the highest level to see the individual dots ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKaVrMBwsMCtmJukn5x8qrrTnqmam6Sew6Z7kWlobGeRqrRwfJBonK%2Bdoq56sbHRrKanZZmjeqa6xqWYp5xdrK6tsdJmm6isXaKusQ%3D%3D

Invasive speciesExperts say now’s the time to get on top of the destructive impact of the invasive species on vulnerable ecosystems If there is one thing beef cattle farmer Ted Rowley has learned while trying to manage feral deer on his property, it is this: for every deer that you see, there are at least another 10 that you can’t see. “In the beginning you see a few deer and think that’s pretty cute,” he says.

NirvanaGrunge – test your knowledge: quizThis weekend marks the 20th anniversary of the release of In Utero, Nirvana's third and final album. To mark the occasion, test your knowledge of Seattle, Sub Pop, Soundgarden and other things related to grunge that don't start with an SncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKWlqLake9CuoLNnYmV%2BdHvSnqdoamBku6q%2B1ZqlmmWgmq6zuMmapA%3D%3D

The ObserverTheatreInterviewHarriet Walter: ‘Caring less what people think is a big thing for me’Kate KellawayHarriet Walter’s new play, Boa, is an intimate dissection of love, ego and creative differences that sees her cast opposite her real-life husband, Guy Paul – but don’t mistake it for a self-portrait The Guardian’s product and service reviews are independent and are in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative. We will earn a commission from the retailer if you buy something through an affiliate link.

Sydney film festival 2023ReviewDirected by Australian film-maker Amiel Courtin-Wilson, this compelling work follows Bob Rosenzweig’s decision to end his life through assisted dying Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email There are lots of literal grey areas in the Australian film-maker Amiel Courtin-Wilson’s very compelling and heart-rending documentary about the final week of Bob Rosenzweig, a 65-year-old Jewish man living in Washington who has Parkinson’s disease and decides to end his life through assisted dying.

US politics This article is more than 1 year oldSarah Huckabee Sanders ‘cancer-free’ after thyroid surgeryThis article is more than 1 year old‘By the grace of God, I am now cancer-free’, Sanders, 42, formerly Trump’s press secretary, says after successful operation Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the former Donald Trump White House press secretary turned Republican candidate for Arkansas governor, said on Friday she was “cancer-free” after undergoing surgery for thyroid cancer.

SEMANTIC ENIGMAS'Fascist!' and 'Faggot!', two insults from opposite ends of the political spectrum, both come from words meaning 'a bundle of sticks': are they in fact derived from the same word, way, way back? Kevin Hobbs, Glasgow What makes you say faggot and fascist come from opposite ends of the political spectrum? Given that I take it you mean faggot is slang for a homosexual, could there not easily be a faggot fascist?

Low-growing moss drew carbon from the air, created topsoil for the first vascular plants, and in 40 million years or so increased oxygen in the atmosphere to levels that endure today. Photograph: Gareth Phillips/Gareth Phillips for the GuardianLow-growing moss drew carbon from the air, created topsoil for the first vascular plants, and in 40 million years or so increased oxygen in the atmosphere to levels that endure today. Photograph: Gareth Phillips/Gareth Phillips for the GuardianEvolution This article is more than 7 years oldAll hail the humble moss, bringer of oxygen and life to EarthThis article is more than 7 years oldA reconstruction using geological evidence, fossils and ancient spores has revealed the crucial role of moss in creating the conditions for life as we know it

Costume designs for the 1910 Ballet Russes’ production of Rimsky‑Korsakov’s Scheherazade. Photograph: Heritage Image Partnership Ltd/AlamyCostume designs for the 1910 Ballet Russes’ production of Rimsky‑Korsakov’s Scheherazade. Photograph: Heritage Image Partnership Ltd/AlamyBook of the dayFictionReviewShaherazade is a rebel with an ever-evolving cause in this novelisation of the classic tales Every creative artist knows what it is to work under a deadline, and the harshest deadline of all is presented by one’s own mortality.

DatablogAbortionAnalysisHow much do abortions cost across Australia? – explainerAnna LivseyIn some areas women can pay as much as $800 for a first trimester termination. Guardian Australia looks at how prohibitive expenses interact with legal restrictions to limit access Campaigns for easier access to abortion in Australia have largely focused on changes to the law but in a speech last week the Labor deputy leader, Tanya Plibersek, highlighted another crucial factor: cost.

One of Angamuco’s ‘neighbourhoods’, revealed using light detection and ranging scanning. Photograph: C FisherOne of Angamuco’s ‘neighbourhoods’, revealed using light detection and ranging scanning. Photograph: C FisherArchaeology This article is more than 5 years oldLaser scanning reveals 'lost' ancient Mexican city 'had as many buildings as Manhattan'This article is more than 5 years oldGroundbreaking lidar scanning reveals the true scale of Angamuco, built by the Purépecha from about 900AD Archaeology might evoke thoughts of intrepid explorers and painstaking digging, but in fact researchers say it is a high-tech laser mapping technique that is rewriting the textbooks at an unprecedented rate.

Metropolitan police This article is more than 1 month oldMet police to give pro-Palestine protesters leaflets about potential offencesThis article is more than 1 month oldLeaflets warn against using racist abuse and promoting terrorism during rally in London against Israel-Hamas war Israel-Hamas war – live updates Metropolitan police officers are to hand out leaflets to demonstrators to provide “absolute clarity” on what will be deemed an offence, as more than 100,000 people are expected to join a pro-Palestine march on Saturday.

Rescue workers stand in front of the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building, following an explosion on 19 April 1995, in downtown Oklahoma City. Photograph: David Longstreath/APRescue workers stand in front of the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building, following an explosion on 19 April 1995, in downtown Oklahoma City. Photograph: David Longstreath/APOklahoma This article is more than 8 years oldThis article is more than 8 years oldTimothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols faced three trials and a vast FBI investigation – but many details of their attack remain unexplained

Drama filmsReviewThere's a hint of Ken Loach in this ski resort-set drama about an impoverished brother and sisterSister (originally entitled L'Enfant D'En Haut, or The Child From Above) is the new film from Ursula Meier, who made Home (2008), starring Isabelle Huppert as a woman who finds herself living next door to a new motorway. Sister is perhaps a more conventional sentimental-realist picture about poverty. Kacey Mottet Klein plays Simon, a kid who lives near a Swiss ski resort; every day, he sneaks up on to the slopes and steals ski equipment from the tourists who live up in this high, rarefied atmosphere of wealth.

Stevie WonderObituarySyreetaStevie Wonder's partner in music and (briefly) marriageIn 1968, the soul singer and songwriter Syreeta Wright, who has died of cancer aged 58, met Stevie Wonder. Two years later, the couple married. The marriage was not a success - they were divorced in 1972 - but the musical collaboration was. Syreeta wrote lyrics to many of Wonder's tunes during the next few years. These included the uptempo Signed, Sealed And Delivered I'm Yours, the melodic ballad Never Thought You'd Leave In Summer, If You Really Love Me and other songs for Wonder's 1971 and 1972 albums Where I'm Coming From, Music Of My Mind and Talking Book.

Biography books'I'm kinda different'Four decades after her first gig, Suzi Quatro still rocks. Or does she? Her new book tells of six-hour sex sessions and dressing-room brawls - but she lives in a moated manor house and worries about visitors dirtying her spotless carpets. Stuart Jeffries meets her'You'll have to take your shoes off," says Suzi Quatro at the doorway to her Elizabethan manor house near Chelmsford in Essex. "Beige carpets.

Def LeppardReviewBramall Lane, Sheffield On this co-headline tour, Mötley Crüe are crass and limp, and then shown up all the more by the triumphant power of Def Leppard’s homecoming “Do you wanna get rocked?” Joe Elliott asks, engaging 23,000 partisan fans with a mischievous glint in his eyes. It’s entirely rhetorical. Introducing Let’s Get Rocked, Def Leppard are so bone-shakingly loud that the football stadium’s hospitality staff are scrambling around to source more earplugs for their flummoxed VIP guests.

21.40 GMTFULL TIME: England 2-0 MaltaEngland get the job done in style. 17 Nov 202322.02 GMTDavid Hytner was at Wembley, and his report has landed. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night! Harry Kane strikes in England’s lacklustre win over MaltaRead more17 Nov 202322.01 GMTSouthgate on Trent Alexander-Arnold: “He used the ball really well … he’s got outstanding quality … him and Phil [Foden] in the first half were the two that really looked like opening them up … Marc Guehi looked very calm … the changes brought some quality as well … in the second half we could have scored more but they don’t really lose by fives and sixes … they get a lot of men back … we obviously didn’t create as many chances as I’d have liked to.

It could be who? … Iron Man, played by Robert Downey Jr in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. Photograph: Marvel Studios/AllstarIt could be who? … Iron Man, played by Robert Downey Jr in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. Photograph: Marvel Studios/AllstarWeek in geekFilmRobert Downey Jr won’t be back, but the MCU stands on the shoulders of masked heroes, not the people playing them. Plus, a new man in the iron suit could revive failing box-office fortunes

Jeremy Clarkson This article is more than 12 years oldJeremy Clarkson in row over Top Gear India specialThis article is more than 12 years oldJeremy Clarkson accused of offensive behaviour after making jokes about India's people and culture in Top Gear Christmas specialJeremy Clarkson has landed the BBC in hot water again after viewers of the Top Gear Christmas special complained that his jokes about India's people and culture were offensive.

Make your own designer clothes and accessoriesVivienne WestwoodDifficulty level: Easy1. Fabric Find a rectangular piece of fabric with stretchable qualities, such as jersey. You will also need four or five squares of the same fabric, about 15cm by 15cm. You need the rectangle to be around 70cm by 90cm (make this final measurement longer if you'd like it to be below the knee, or if you are particularly tall, the short side should fit round your chest).

FashionThe rock musician and activist has performed a U-turn by becoming the new face of the cult skatewear label Supreme Neil Young rocking the Supreme look.In this week’s grey pound news, cult skate-wear label Supreme has announced the new face of its campaign: Neil Young. Cool old people in adverts have become quite the trend for SS15, what with Joan Didion and Joni Mitchell causing an online fracas after appearing in the Céline and Saint Laurent campaigns respectively, so it might not seem that groundbreaking for a label such as Supreme, known for its guerrilla campaigns and alternative faces (think Kermit the Frog and Kate Moss), to feature the Canadian musician.

Readers recommendMusicThe time has come round again for this week's RR playlistAnother week, another Readers Recommend theme, regular as clockwork. Last week's call for songs about circles solicited some profoundly heady adventures into the subconscious and expressions of the natural patterns of our very existence. Andalucian composer Manuel de Falla's beautiful El Círculo Mágico (The Magic Circle) forms part of his 1915 ballet El Amor Brujo, when Gypsies dance in a circle round a campfire to banish ghosts.

New YorkWith six bookstores for less than 500 residents, the Catskills town of Hobart hopes to turn itself into the US analog of Hay-on-Wye in Wales Recently the writer and literary critic Ruth Franklin, author of the forthcoming biography of the writer Shirley Jackson, wanted to take her nine-year-old daughter out of the city for a while. She chose the unassuming Catskills town of Hobart, New York, as her destination.

Albert Einstein This article is more than 9 years oldAlbert Einstein archive reveals the genius, doubts and loves of scientistThis article is more than 9 years oldEarly note shows delight at birth of his daughter while later letters show fame was beginning to be a trialThe letter from the 22-year-old Albert Einstein revealed his delight at fathering a daughter, Lieserl, with his sweetheart, former classmate and future wife, Mileva Marić. How the new mother took the missive is less than clear.

David Williams's wines of the weekWineReviewThe difference between white and red is little more than skin deep - as these three delicious bottles proveTrivento Reserve White Malbec, Mendoza, Argentina 2020, £8.25, The Co-op Malbec is absurdly popular at the moment. According to the Co-op, sales were up by almost a third in the past year, meaning it’s even more fashionable in the UK than sauvignon blanc. Indeed the only thing standing between this all-conquering grape variety and total world domination, it seems, is habitual white-wine drinkers, who can’t get past the fact that malbec isn’t a white-wine grape.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewOne corpse, multiple suspects and countless chic accessories: this gloriously gloomy whodunnit tries one last – surely the last? – variation on odd-couple detectives Without wishing to get too Taggart about this, there’s been a murder. The body of energy company executive Clellan Coburn has been found in the woods outside Aberdeen, and he had just announced a business merger that would have meant his oil company switching to green energy.

A community farm next to an Amazon last-mile facility in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Photograph: Amir Hamja/The GuardianResidents hope traffic, emissions and noise data they are analyzing with the Guardian will help rein in the spread of e-commerce facilities by Kaveh Waddell from Consumer Reports, Aliya Uteuova and Andrew WitherspoonOn a drizzly Friday night, Rosana Zapata was mapping out a changing neighborhood. Using Sharpie and pencil, the 18-year-old sketched her world on printer paper: a street intersection, a small parking lot, a lit-up sign for fried chicken.

Airline industryTerminal 5 chief to quitMike Roberts, BAA's technical director responsible for development of Heathrow's terminal 5, is to leave the industry for personal reasons, the company said yesterday. He will retire early at the end of the year. His place will be taken by Tony Douglas, but in a shake-up of responsibility, Mike Hodgkinson, BAA's chief executive, will take direct control of the project, which will receive government approval this month.

World newsUS guard tells how Nazi girlfriend duped him into helping Goering evade hangmanAn enduring mystery of the 1946 Nuremberg trials was apparently solved yesterday when an American former prison guard claimed it was he who, as an unwitting accomplice, passed to Hermann Goering the cyanide capsule with which the Nazi number two cheated the noose. Herbert Lee Stivers told the Los Angeles Times that a German girl called Mona had fooled him into smuggling a vial of liquid to Goering's cell hidden in a fountain pen, telling him it was medicine.

Other livesTelevision & radioObituaryWillie Payne obituaryMy friend Willie Payne, who has died aged 94, was a Nigerian actor and dancer from the generation of West Africans who arrived in the UK as seamen during the second world war. He was born William Ishola Payne in Lagos, the son of Ishmael, a civil servant of Ijebu descent, and his wife, Angelina (nee Johnson). His paternal great-grandfather, John Augustus Ontonba Payne, served in the British administration of Nigeria in the 1860s and published diaries and almanacs that are a key source for modern historians.

TV reviewTelevision & radioReviewWhat happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas – it entertains Sam WollastonMore people visit the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas, according to World's Busiest Hotel (Channel 5), than visit Venice itself. Whoa! That's extraordinary, isn't it? (After speaking to various tourist boards, I'm still not sure if it's true – it seems to depend on whether you count the cruise ships in Venice.) And more than a bit depressing.

Holiday guidesSpain holidaysIn south-west Spain, Kevin Gould celebrates laid-back beach life, plus meat and fish delicacies, in the foodie hangout of Zahara de los Atunes She is Sahara of the Tuna, and you come for her deserted beaches and crowded fish restaurants, and for her beach shack chiringuitos in which to boogie the hot night away. Here in Cadiz province, Zahara de los Atunes lies between Cape Trafalgar and Spain’s southernmost nipple at Tarifa, 40 minutes to the south.

Wimbledon 2023 This article is more than 6 months oldBritish No 1 Katie Boulter solves Daria Saville puzzle after jigsaw dramaThis article is more than 6 months oldBoulter into second round at Wimbledon after climate protestHeather Watson beaten by Barbora KrejcikovaBeing a British player here brings its fair share of stress and off-court demands, the attention that much greater than they experience at any other event all year. And that’s before someone invades the court and throws bits of jigsaw all over it.

Dogs This article is more than 1 month oldFrench bulldogs’ head shape makes sleeping difficult, study findsThis article is more than 1 month oldFlat-faced breeds have longer Rem sleep phases, suggesting their sleep remains puppy-like, researchers say A recent study out of Hungary reveals that flat-faced dogs – such as French bulldogs, the most popular breed in the US – have difficulty sleeping because of an unusual attribute: their head shape.

France This article is more than 4 years oldGilets jaunes boxer who punched police given one-year jail sentenceThis article is more than 4 years oldChristophe Dettinger was caught on camera attacking an officer at a protest in Paris A former French light-heavyweight champion who punched and kicked a police officer during a gilets jaunes (yellow vests) protest in Paris has been given a one-year prison term. Christophe Dettinger was caught on camera on 5 January throwing a flurry of punches at an officer during clashes on a footbridge over the River Seine.

The idea that you can ‘manifest’ your soulmate by ‘raising your vibration’, once the domain of New Age spirituality, is common among gen Z social media users. Juliana Piskorz wonders whether to give it a go Published: 3 Sep 2023 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRooa6kmZa7onnPoqqkp6Kv

The ObserverTheatreReviewMenier Chocolate Factory, London Best shines as a flirtatious widow in Trevor Nunn’s update of a Terence Rattigan rewrite Love in Idleness is second division Rattigan, a 1944 rewriting of Less Than Kind. Trevor Nunn offers a hybrid of the scripts (to preserve the political grist of the first) and directs with verve. Rattigan was such a master craftsman that, even with an uneven play (its creakiest timbers are in the third act), there are many plotted pleasures and the first act is a triumph of squirm-making comedy.

Brexit This article is more than 5 years oldMail journalist ejected from Irish embassy over shouts of 'Brexit'This article is more than 5 years oldJoanna Bell kicked out of reception in London after heckling Irish ambassador A Daily Mail journalist was ejected from an Irish embassy reception in London after heckling the ambassador with shouts of “boring” and “Brexit”. Joanna Bell, who also writes for the London Evening Standard, was escorted from the premises after interrupting a speech by the Irish ambassador to the UK, Adrian O’Neill, on Monday, it has emerged.

PhotographyMark Hogancamp nearly died after being jumped by five men in 2000. After waking from a coma with no memories, he developed an extraordinary coping device: he built a miniature town in his garden where he reimagines the horrors of war Mark Hogancamp woke up one day in terrible pain in an unfamiliar room. His memory was gone. He looked up at the ceiling and tried to piece together what had happened.

‘The conspiracy has migrated out of the dark shadows of the internet and on to Facebook, where it is now spreading among an audience of frightened and credulous parents.’ Photograph: Matt Rourke/AP‘The conspiracy has migrated out of the dark shadows of the internet and on to Facebook, where it is now spreading among an audience of frightened and credulous parents.’ Photograph: Matt Rourke/APOpinionQAnon This article is more than 3 years oldQAnon conspiracists believe in a vast pedophile ring.

Mobile phonesThe lowdown on handsets, networks and parental controls, if your child is ready for a first mobile or an upgrade is required If you have decided it is time for your child to have their first mobile phone, or they are due an upgrade, the choice can be bewildering. There are various things to consider, from the handset and the mobile service to go with it, to parental controls and how well the phone fits in with the devices you already use.

It is the nation’s supreme tragedy that such a young, hopeful, promising people are offered this glut of shoddy candidates, writes Fatima Bhutto, the granddaughter of Pakistan’s first democratically elected head of state, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Published: 24 Jul 2018 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRonZqsmaKuo7TUrauo

BIRDS AND THE BEESI learnt as a child that Yak's milk was pink. A friend of mine has just returned from Bhutan and has informed me that its just white. However there are many sources on the internet saying both. Who is correct? Ben Williams, London, UK Add your answer ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKafqbK0rc2dqK6dop6ytHvQrpyrsV9leW15l21ub29cZX1vtNOmow%3D%3D

MusicThe singer died at 33 of cancer before the world got to hear her sing. Those who knew and worked with her look back on an unusual talent On a late May day in 1996, the singer Eva Cassidy and her bandmate Chris Biondo drove to a remote factory in rural Virginia to collect copies of the recording that turned out to be the last she would ever make. “We picked up a total of about 1,100 cassettes and CDs,” Biondo recalled.

GolfThe 1988 Masters champion, now 65, will be the sole representative from the home of golf at this year’s tournament In the coming days there will be a flurry of tributes paid to Sandy Lyle. The 65-year-old’s confirmation that he will no longer play on the Champions Tour suggests at the very least that the Masters this week will be the last sight of Lyle in a competitive domain. Lyle is tired of the road and no wonder.

BooksSpeak up, I can't hear youCan it really be true that men and women understand language in different ways? Nonsense, says Deborah Cameron in this second extract from her new book - the supposed miscommunication is a myth To read the first extract, click here John Gray's Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus contains a chapter entitled Speaking Different Languages. In it, Gray says that the "original" Martians and Venusians communicated without difficulty, because they knew their languages were mutually incomprehensible.

FictionReviewThere is hope to be taken from an author's cri de coeurSuicide is packaged as directly as pornography. Its title leaves no room for ambiguity. Its marketing holds out the promise of voyeurism. The text on the back cover dictates how the novel will be consumed: "Edouard Levé delivered the manuscript for his final book . . . just a few days before he took his own life. Suicide is not, then, simply another novel – it is, in a sense, the author's own oblique, public suicide note .

The ObserverAntisemitism This article is more than 3 years oldUK left activists attended events with far right antisemitesThis article is more than 3 years oldEx-Labour members secretly recorded at meetings with Holocaust deniers Former Labour party members have regularly met elements of the far right to discuss and propagate antisemitic conspiracy theories, an undercover investigation has found. Infiltration of the conspiracy theorist group Keep Talking found that Jeremy Corbyn supporters and confidantes of former Labour MPs have attended meetings addressed by Holocaust deniers.

More than a decade on, fact and fiction remain entangled in the tale of former teammates turned enemies. The human core of the entire episode, though, is not a footballer Published: 3 May 2020 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6fpMGjrculZrCZqaOybq7RopugnVuirq%2Bvx56qrZ2imLa1xQ%3D%3D

OpinionHealth This article is more than 1 year oldWe need to talk about maternal-assisted caesareans, an experience some mothers craveThis article is more than 1 year oldSophie WalkerBeing more actively involved in your child’s birth is empowering, but education and access is limited If the concept of a maternal-assisted caesarean – when the birthing mother reaches her gloved hands down to lift her baby out of her abdomen and on to her chest – is news to you, and perhaps slightly shocking, it shouldn’t be.

ETHICAL CONUNDRUMSAre some subjects unsuitable for humour? Douggie, Edinburgh UK All subjects are suitable for humour - while some individuals may not appreciate jokes about death, rape, or jewish mothers (I believe that the one which ends "Just call me Sitting Shiva" should go in the Top 100 Jokes of All Time), we have the right to object to or not laugh at that which we don't find funny.

ShortcutsAriana GrandeFrom David Beckham’s ‘Vihctoria’ to Britney Spears’ bungled ‘God’, famous people seem fated to adorn their bodies with misspellings and misunderstandings Ariana Grande’s song 7 Rings was released less than two weeks ago. In that time, it has already reached No 1 in 18 countries and broken Spotify’s record for most streams in a 24-hour period. So, obviously, Grande celebrated this achievement in the traditional manner; getting the Japanese for “small charcoal grill” tattooed on her hand.

7 Nov 202315.06 ESTNo word from Eddie Howe, with TNT Sports flipping immediately to the Atletico Madrid v Celtic game. (You can follow that with John Brewin here.) But never mind! Jonathan Liew was in Dortmund and his report is in. Here it is. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night! Julian Brandt seals win as Dortmund deal harsh lesson to NewcastleRead more7 Nov 202314.43 ESTDortmund go top of Group F, at least for a couple of hours.

The ObserverFilmInterview‘If you want the girl next door, go next door’: Lori Petty on Station Eleven and surviving HollywoodTom LamontThe star of 90s classics Point Break and Tank Girl on her maverick career, delving into her troubled upbringing, and her latest role in the era-defining TV drama Lori Petty lives with her cat in a gloriously cluttered apartment in Venice Beach, a neighbourhood in southern California that she moved to three decades ago while filming the surfer movie Point Break.

Hedge funds This article is more than 1 month oldInvestment firm co-founded by Jacob Rees-Mogg to close after losing top clientThis article is more than 1 month oldSomerset Capital will be wound down after UK’s largest wealth manager shifts £2bn mandate to another fund Somerset Capital Management, the investment firm co-founded by Jacob Rees-Mogg, has said it will be wound down, days after it emerged it had lost two-thirds of its assets and its largest client.

Illinois This article is more than 3 months oldLandlord accused of killing six-year-old Muslim boy and stabbing motherThis article is more than 3 months oldJoseph Czuba, 71, charged with hate crime after attack allegedly driven by Israel-Hamas war A 71-year-old man in Plainfield, Illinois, has been charged with murder and a hate crime after allegedly stabbing a child and his mother because they were Muslims. “Detectives were able to determine that both victims in this brutal attack were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis,” the Will county sheriff’s office said.

Reading Reading match abandoned after fans storm pitch in protest against owner – video Reading's League One match against Port Vale was abandoned after home fans stormed the pitch in protest against the club's owner, Dai Yongge. The game was called off in the 16th minute when fans refused to leave the pitch. 'We appreciate supporters' frustrations,' Reading said in a club statement during the protest. 'The club can face serious sanctions if the pitch is not cleared.

Club cultureTelevisionIt was the club where Weimar decadence exploded, a frantic hotspot where Berliners drank and danced amid Moorish arches and Orient Express decor. Now, in Germany’s most expensive TV series ever, Moki Efti has been resurrected The nightclub at the heart of Babylon Berlin, the Weimar Republic-era TV drama that premiered on Sky UK this month, may share period features with the Kit Kat Klub where Liza Minnelli once cocked her bowler hat in Cabaret.

The ObserverLibya'After Gaddafi's compound fell, we went back to where we were staying in a school building and we all cried, about 200 guys'I have a pair of Muammar Gaddafi's sunglasses. Cartier. My brigade was one of the first to break into his compound at Bab al-Aziziya. I was driving a vehicle with a 106mm gun on it. I'm the fifth man to drive this car: the last four died in battle.

Work & careersHow to... tell someone off without losing your coolThere's no need for a public slanging match - keep it privateThere are only two ways to make telling someone off an easy experience. Either pick someone who is at least 20 years younger and a foot shorter than yourself, or delegate the responsibility for the telling off to someone else. Having to tick off a team member is one of the most difficult aspects of being a young manager Yet it is a situation that crops up all too often.

Kevin Schatz evacuates with his daughter along Balboa Boulevard in Granada Hills, Los Angeles, after a massive earthquake on 17 January 1994. Photograph: Bob Riha, Jr./Getty ImagesKevin Schatz evacuates with his daughter along Balboa Boulevard in Granada Hills, Los Angeles, after a massive earthquake on 17 January 1994. Photograph: Bob Riha, Jr./Getty ImagesEarthquakesThe 1994 Northridge earthquake devastated the Los Angeles area and launched a new era of earthquake safety. Thirty years later, are we ready for the big one?

On my radarStacey DooleyThe documentary maker and Strictly champion on her love of Dolly Parton, the Pose playlist and Rupi Kaur’s poetry Documentary-maker and presenter Stacey Dooley was born in Luton in 1987. After appearing in 2008’s documentary series Blood, Sweat and T-shirts, she has presented Stacey Dooley Investigates on BBC Three on topics ranging from child labour to whale hunting to female suicide bombers. In 2018, she won Strictly Come Dancing with dance partner Kevin Clifton and she presents Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star and This Is My House.

The age of extinctionAlaskaPolar bear dies from bird flu as H5N1 spreads across globeCurrent outbreak, which started in 2021, is estimated to have killed millions of wild birds and thousands of mammals globally A polar bear has been killed by bird flu as the highly contagious H5N1 virus spreads into the most remote parts of the planet. The death was confirmed in December by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. “This is the first polar bear case reported, for anywhere,” Dr Bob Gerlach, Alaska’s state veterinarian, told the Alaska Beacon.

RaceQuotes from Louis FarrakhanLouis Farrakhan has a talent for provocation that has won him many enemies and vast publicity. Here are some of his pronouncements"White people are potential humans - they haven't evolved yet." Philadelphia Inquirer, March 2000 "They [the Jews] are the greatest controllers of black minds, black intelligence. They write the scripts - the foolish scripts on television that our people portray. They are the movie moguls that feature us in these silly, degrading, degenerate roles.

Snapchat This article is more than 7 years oldSnapchat heads for IPO that could value 'mega unicorn' at $25bnThis article is more than 7 years oldThe flotation of the five-year-old app, now used by more than 40% of young Americans, will be the largest social media IPO since Twitter in 2013 Snapchat is preparing for a “mega unicorn” flotation on the stock market that could value the five-year-old mobile app known for its disappearing photos at as much as $25bn.

Environment Spotted black snake found in Queensland public toilet – video Police call wildlife carer and snake catcher Tennille Bankes to a public toilet cubicle in Goondiwindi, Queensland, after a local is surprised by a spotted black snake in the toilet bowl. As Bankes lures the serpent out, she explains that they have a 'natural instinct to go into holes' and that toilets offer a place to cool down and the chance of a snack, due to the frogs that also take refuge there to escape the heat

Jack Teixeira, a member of the US air national guard, in an undated photograph. Photograph: via ReutersJack Teixeira, a member of the US air national guard, in an undated photograph. Photograph: via ReutersPentagon leaks 2023 This article is more than 1 month oldUS air force removes commander of Pentagon leak suspect’s unitThis article is more than 1 month oldCol Sean Riley’s removal announced along with report on investigation into leak that led to charges against Jack Teixeira

Poverty matters blogGlobal developmentGuatemala's Chixoy dam: where development and terror intersectA 1982 massacre paved the way for a hydroelectric dam built with development bank funds. What lessons have been learned?Thirty years ago a massacre took place in the Guatemalan highlands that left 400 people dead. Countless more were displaced, tortured, raped or left starving. And all to make way for a hydroelectric dam. Sadly, there was nothing especially unusual about this event in a country where, by 1982, horrific events had virtually become the norm under a series of military governments intent on terrorising the population.

The ObserverDocumentary filmsLong-lost footage of journey across America by the author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and his Merry Pranksters to spread the word about acid has been turned into a documentaryFlush with funds from the success of his debut novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey, then 29, drew up plans in 1963 to drive a bus across the US to the World's Fair in New York.

Into the void: Farewell to Black Sabbath – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email The founding fathers of metal have confirmed that they have reached the end of the road. Here’s nearly 50 years of one of rock’s greatest bands, in photographs Black Sabbath: ‘We used to have cocaine flown in by private plane’

RankedMy Bloody ValentineTen years since the release of their last album, mbv, we celebrate the greatest tracks by a band best known for its sonically extreme offerings 20. (Please) Lose Yourself in Me (1987)You Made Me Realise was a striking, game-changing single by a band who had been largely ignored. You could understand why people thought it came out of nowhere, but it hadn’t. On (Please) Lose Yourself in Me, from 1987’s mini-album Ecstasy, you can hear My Bloody Valentine inching towards the noisily blurred-but-beautiful sound in Kevin Shields’ head.

ChinaObituaryRoderick MacFarquhar obituaryScholar with a crucial role in helping the west understand China’s opaque politicsRoderick MacFarquhar, who has died aged 88, was one of the most significant sinologists of the last 100 years, a figure who through a variety of academic posts and a series of books from the 1960s onwards opened up to the outside world the opaque machinations of elite politics in the People’s Republic of China. The three volumes of his best-known book, Origins of the Cultural Revolution, published between 1974 and 1997, remain a monument of scholarship, a meticulous account of the years from the 50s onwards as Mao Zedong seemed to be growing increasingly marginalised in Beijing before his spectacular, and in many ways disastrous, comeback in 1966 at the start of the Cultural Revolution.

Donald Trump This article is more than 2 years oldSteve Bannon believed Trump had early stage dementia, TV producer claimsThis article is more than 2 years old Ira Rosen says Bannon had ‘great frustrations with Trump’ Bannon ‘spoke of removing president with 25th amendment’ US politics – live coverage Former White House strategist Steve Bannon thought Donald Trump was suffering from early-stage dementia and campaigned covertly to remove him from office via the 25th amendment, according to a veteran TV producer.

ShortcutsParis HiltonAfter fake family reunions, pretending to murder your child and kidnappings, is an Egyptian trick on the celebrity heiress the meanest stunt yet? Congratulations should surely go to Egyptian television programme Ramez in Control, for it has finally achieved the impossible. Until now, everything that Paris Hilton touched has been hilarious. Her singing career? Hilarious. That perfume she created called Fairy Dust? Hilarious. Her speaking voice, sense of entitlement and time spent in prison?

SpecieswatchWildlifeFor those with vivid imaginations the white markings on the black back of a noble false widow spider (Steatoda nobilis) can look like a skull and crossbones, or in other cases just a skull. Perhaps it is a warning that the spider has a nasty bite. The poison will not be fatal, however, rather on a par with being stung by a wasp and or a bee. The species is one of six similar spider varieties found in Britain, but is not native, having arrived in 1879 in a bunch of bananas from Madeira.

Graham Norton: ‘something to say about the vagaries of contemporary life’. Photograph: Sophia SpringGraham Norton: ‘something to say about the vagaries of contemporary life’. Photograph: Sophia SpringThe ObserverFictionReviewThe fourth novel by the chatshow host is a darkly comic Irish domestic drama that has emotional depth but is undemanding When Graham Norton surprised the literary world with his adept fiction debut, Holding, adroitly adapted into a Kathy Burke-directed television series earlier this year, the amiable narrative spun around a body uncovered in a sleepy Irish hamlet and the secrets the community held close to their hearts.

Children's booksChildren's booksHow much do you know about RL Stine's Goosebumps? – quizThe Master of Fright brought us tales of terror with his Goosebumps series, just made into a film starring Jack Black. But what do you know about the books? Test yourself – if you dare… Ghostbusters quizncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJuYnrmlvsSnqmaan6S4tHnSoqueZ2JlfnZ7zpyraGpmZL%2BtedKtoKedXZy8sL%2FEm6ymqKNivra12Q%3D%3D

A judge ordered Mark Finchem to pay for his opponent’s legal fees. Photograph: Étienne Laurent/EPAA judge ordered Mark Finchem to pay for his opponent’s legal fees. Photograph: Étienne Laurent/EPARepublicans This article is more than 10 months oldJudge orders far-right Republican to pay legal costs in Arizona election lawsuitThis article is more than 10 months oldMark Finchem, who ran for secretary of state, was rebuked by the court for his ‘groundless’ claims of fraud in loss to Adrian Fontes

‘Off-the-cuff, everyman cosmic-ness’: Kurt Vile on stage at Koko, Camden. Photograph: Sophia Evans/The Observer‘Off-the-cuff, everyman cosmic-ness’: Kurt Vile on stage at Koko, Camden. Photograph: Sophia Evans/The ObserverKitty Empire's artist of the weekKurt VileReviewKoko, London Philadelphia’s psych-rock stalwart delivers warm tributes to friends, family and mentors during a many-layered evening of soothing conversational gems If you were to draw the Philadelphian musician Kurt Vile in silhouette, he would be immediately recognisable. Standing in front of a magnificent fabric mural, themed around his 2022 album (watch my moves), the guitarist’s long, wavy hair hangs in curtains around his face as his eyes cast intently downwards at a succession of instruments.

This much I knowMobyInterviewMoby: 'I was disappointed to be heterosexual'Candice PiresThe musician and activist, 51, on veganism, loneliness, the allure of fame and being boringly not gay It fills me with regret and shame that for a time in the early 2000s I cared more about fame than the music I was making. I’d assumed I’d spend my life making music in obscurity, but in the 1990s it started becoming a career.

Whodunnit? ... Juliet Stevenson, Joanna Vanderham, Julie Graham, Georgina Campbell and Joe Dempsie in One of Us. Photograph: Mark Mainz/BBCWhodunnit? ... Juliet Stevenson, Joanna Vanderham, Julie Graham, Georgina Campbell and Joe Dempsie in One of Us. Photograph: Mark Mainz/BBCTV reviewTelevisionReviewThere was plenty of hyperventilating and tearful screaming in this new BBC thriller, but a heavier fog wouldn’t have gone amiss. Plus: new bobbies brick it as they take to the streets in Rookies

Autobiography and memoirReviewThis unflinching memoir explores consent, coercion and the lasting impact of a teacher-pupil affair In this unflinching memoir, Joe Gibson recounts the affair he had as a schoolboy with his 35-year-old teacher, whom he calls Miss P. The year is 1991 and 17-year-old Gibson, who has chosen to protect his identity by using a pseudonym, has been awarded a bursary to an elite private school to study for his A-levels.

Book of the weekFictionReviewThis tangled epic about diverse lives is rooted in environmental principles In The Road to Wigan Pier, George Orwell complains that “artists of any consequence can never be persuaded into the Socialist fold … Nearly everything describable as Socialist literature is dull, tasteless, and bad.” He calls this fact “disastrous”. He goes on to say that “the high-water mark, so to speak, of Socialist Literature, is WH Auden, a sort of gutless Kipling, and the even feebler poets who are associated with him” – trying to kill two perfectly good birds with one slightly childish stone.

Cif beliefChristianity This article is more than 11 years oldWas Jesus gay? ProbablyThis article is more than 11 years oldPaul OestreicherI preached on Good Friday that Jesus's intimacy with John suggested he was gay as I felt deeply it had to be addressed Theo Hobson: Can liberal Christians shut up about gayness? Preaching on Good Friday on the last words of Jesus as he was being executed makes great spiritual demands on the preacher.

The ObserverMoviesInterviewActor Noémie Merlant: ‘Women have been taught to see ourselves through other people’s desire’Jonathan RomneyThe Portrait of a Lady on Fire star talks about her role in Jacques Audiard’s new dating drama, making a documentary about her own family, and the Hollywood actor who inspires her The French actor Noémie Merlant is in demand these days – especially since 2019, when Céline Sciamma’s acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire massively boosted her international profile.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez This article is more than 3 months oldAOC decries ‘bigotry and callousness’ of pro-Palestinian rally in New YorkThis article is more than 3 months oldUS congresswoman says ‘it should not be hard to shut down hatred and antisemitism where we see it’ and calls for urgent ceasefire Criticising a pro-Palestinian rally held in Times Square in New York City in the aftermath of Hamas attacks on Israel which left hundreds dead, the progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said: “It should not be hard to shut down hatred and antisemitism where we see it.

TelevisionInterviewBetty White: TV's golden girl on 63 years in showbusinessMichael CraggThe former Mary Tyler Moore show star is still turning down work at 90. 'They don't know how to get rid of me,' she tells us"Why do people say 'grow some balls'? Balls are weak and sensitive. If you wanna be tough, grow a vagina. Those things can take a pounding." If you happen to look this quote up, you'll see it attributed to notoriously sweet 90-year-old TV great Betty White.

"Christian children all must be mild, obedient, good as he." The prescriptive lyrics from which Victorian carol?     Once in Royal David's City   Good King Wenceslas   Away in a Manger   The First Noel   "Its bitter perfume breathes a life of gathering gloom." Which of the three kings' gifts had these properties?

OpinionDrew Barrymore This article is more than 4 months oldDrew Barrymore was America’s sweetheart – but her baffling video was a terrible misstepThis article is more than 4 months oldArwa MahdawiHer decision to continue her talkshow amid the writers’ strike received such a backlash that she reversed it. But the holes in her ‘apology’ had already been laid bare Gal Gadot must be giddy with relief. For the past few years, the Wonder Woman actor has held the No 1 spot in the category of most cringeworthy and ill-advised celebrity home video ever made.

South Dakota This article is more than 8 years oldMan found guilty of murdering two-year-old son of NFL star Adrian PetersonThis article is more than 8 years oldJoseph Patterson was looking after Tyrese Ruffin when the toddler died in 2013, a court in South Dakota heard A jury has found a man guilty of killing the two-year-old son of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson in 2013. Joseph Patterson, 29, faces a mandatory life sentence for the conviction on second-degree murder in the death of Tyrese Ruffin, who was the son of his then girlfriend and Peterson, prosecutors said.

MountaineeringInterviewRocky life of a mountain manJohn CraceAt the age of 80, Walter Bonatti is revered as one of the world's greatest climbers. But half a century ago a bitter row on K2 almost toppled him from his peak. He talks to John CraceTo reach Walter Bonatti by car is a nightmare. You head north-east out of Milan towards the lakes until you reach the town of Dubino. There are no signposts and you have to negotiate a series of ever narrower lanes that zig-zag their way up the steep hillside on the sunny side of town until you realise you've come to a dead end.

TaiwanTaiwan election: global leaders draw Beijing’s ire for congratulating new presidentChina urges US, UK and Japan not to interfere in ‘China’s internal affairs’ after they congratulate Lai Ching-te for election win Global leaders have congratulated Lai Ching-te for winning Taiwan’s presidential election, praising the high turnout and democratic process – and drawing ire from Beijing, which had hoped to see Taiwan’s ruling party ousted. Lai won an unprecedented third term in power for the pro-sovereignty Democratic Progressive party (DPP) in Saturday’s election, with more than 40% of the vote.

Rail industry This article is more than 4 months oldTrain drivers to strike on 1 September and not work overtime a day later, says AslefThis article is more than 4 months oldPassengers face disruption as second date coincides with action by RMT members Business live – latest updates Train drivers are to stage a fresh strike in their long-running dispute over pay, threatening more travel chaos for passengers. The action by members of the Aslef union will take place on 1 September.

Medical research This article is more than 12 years oldA cooler way to deal with traumaThis article is more than 12 years oldMichael MosleyIt's still controversial, but evidence is mounting that keeping trauma patients cold can save lives, says Michael MosleyIt was 3am on a bitterly cold January morning and we were staying in a cottage in Dorset when there was a loud banging on the front door. We stumbled downstairs and there was one of the neighbours holding our 11-year-old son, Alex, with his head covered in blood.

A great little place I knowVienna holidaysWaiters wear string vests, elderly men mutter in corners and fridges buzz insistently. Cafe Am Heumarkt certainly isn’t cool and edgy – but that’s what this novelist loves about it Cafe Am Heumarkt is a traditional yet eccentric Viennese coffee house that I find fascinating. It serves straightforward Viennese cuisine with no tourist extras – schnitzel, pancakes, coffee and beer. Open 9am-11pm Monday to Friday, it’s rarely busy, word of mouth being its only advertisement.

PieFrom a hot-water crust chicken pie to a sweet and creamy apricot and pistachio tart, these pies cut the mustard any way you slice them Bacon and egg pie (pictured above)Bacon and egg pie is an absolute New Zealand staple. It featured heavily in my youth because my mother is from New Zealand, and this always came on picnics with us, wrapped in newspaper, to keep it hot until lunchtime. Ready-made puff pastry is fine.

How to age wellFashionWorrying about what to put on as you get on? Relax, we’ve got you covered In the rulebooks of how to age gracefully the don’ts make a lot more noise than the dos. No leather trousers! No cleavage! No man buns! No skateboards! The list of items allegedly verboten for the over-50s is endless. Your life has been boobytrapped, one false move and the world will fall about laughing.

Mental healthThe industry touting the drug as an antidepressant has grown too quickly, experts say, leaving patients at risk America is in a ketamine boom. The drug, which has rapid-acting antidepressant properties and somewhat psychedelic effects, is still taken recreationally by club kids and students. But in the past decade, many thousands of patients have undergone legal therapy under its influence and hundreds of ketamine clinics have sprung up across major cities.

Higher educationObituaryLord Bullock of LeafieldA prolific and public-spirited historian, he founded an Oxford college and defined the nature of tyranny and evil in the 20th centuryThe historian Alan Bullock, who has died aged 89, was one of the most versatile and engaging public figures produced by Britain in the second half of the 20th century. "Bullock by name, and Bullock by nature," he liked to say of himself. He was a powerfully built man, and some people found him domineering.

Mexico This article is more than 10 years oldMexico clown convention condemns fancy-dress drug cartel killingThis article is more than 10 years oldLatin American clowns gathered in Mexico City say killer dressed in wig and rubber nose had nothing to do with themDelegates to a three-day Latin American clown convention in Mexico City have distanced themselves from the murder last week of a drug lord by a hitman in fancy dress, insisting no genuine member of their profession would have committed the crime.

OpinionDrag This article is more than 10 months oldThe drag show bans sweeping the US are a chilling attack on free speechThis article is more than 10 months oldSuzanne NosselThe breadth of these bills is staggering, and many go beyond their purported goals of protecting children from obscenity When Bill Lee donned a cheerleader uniform, fake pearls and a wig as part of high school senior year antics, he probably didn’t think the goofy costume would come back to bite him.

Organ GrinderThe WireThe Wire re-up: Episode Eight, Season Two - what do you do with the hump?SPOILER ALERT: This weekly blog is for those who have already seen The Wire in its entirety. This week, the show's unheralded incompetents The Wire Re-up - the book is out now. Click here to buy it Continuing the series of guest bloggers, this week Rob Willis (aka RedThreat) takes us on a tour of The Wire's less virtuous characters - the 'humps'.

10 of the bestNick Drake10 of the best: Nick DrakeNick Drake only recorded three albums during his short lifetime, yet choosing 10 songs that best capture his delicate magic is still a challenge Nick Drake: In search of his mother Molly 1. Hazey Jane IIAllow me to begin this playlist with a personal story. I was 15 when I first picked up a copy of Nick Drake's second album, Bryter Layter, from my local record shop and sat down to play it on my parents' stereo.

OpinionWater bills This article is more than 1 year oldBaths are pricier than ever – but they’re a luxury I can’t live withoutThis article is more than 1 year oldLaura BartonBritons are turning to showers as the cost of living crisis bites. But can you put a price on the soul-restoring magic of a soak? I lay this morning, clavicle-deep in Epsom salts and London water, shrivelling softly in steam and soap.

Paperback writerBooksIn an excerpt from its posthumous reissue, the one-time ‘Angry Young Man’ explains how this book freed him of that sensationalist tag, and tuned him into some strange phenomena The publication of this book changed my life. Fifteen years earlier, in 1956, I had had the curious – but not necessarily pleasant – experience of achieving overnight fame when my first book, The Outsider, was published to excellent reviews from the most respected critics.

Edinburgh festival 2023ReviewUnderbelly Bristo Square, Edinburgh Nominated for best newcomer at last year’s fringe, Sonubi is a warm performer but this leisurely new show lacks shape ‘I never asked to be so goddam gifted,” sings Emmanuel Sonubi, in self-congratulatory mode after his best newcomer nomination at last year’s fringe. Should we all be joining the chorus of approval? There is no denying the Londoner’s charisma, nor the novelty of the backstory he brings to the standup stage.

Other livesThe FallObituaryKay Bateman obituaryMy friend Kay Bateman, otherwise known as Kay Carroll, who has died of lung cancer aged 71, was the first manager of Mark E Smith’s band, the Fall. Although few women held such roles in the 1970s, she fearlessly took on musicians, rowdy audiences and industry moguls. A recording of a telephone conversation – posted on YouTube – captures her caustically scolding the Factory Records boss, Tony Wilson: “You’re pirating my bloody stuff, Tony!

Science This article is more than 8 years oldMost dinosaurs had scales, not feathers, fossil analysis concludesThis article is more than 8 years oldDespite recent theories suggesting a common feathered ancestor or proto-feathers on all dinosaurs, new survey confirms that scales were the norm Researchers have called time on a growing suspicion that many dinosaurs were not the dry, scaly animals of popular conception, but fluffy, feathered beasts instead. Remains unearthed in recent years have revealed feathers or proto-feathers on a range of dinosaurs, leading some paleontologists to wonder if all of the animals evolved from a feathered ancestor and sported some kind of plumage themselves.

Kristin Bride with a photo of her 16-year-old son Carson Bride on the day she appeared before a Senate judiciary committee hearing to examine protecting our children online. Photograph: Eric Kayne/AP Images for ParentsTogether ActionKristin Bride with a photo of her 16-year-old son Carson Bride on the day she appeared before a Senate judiciary committee hearing to examine protecting our children online. Photograph: Eric Kayne/AP Images for ParentsTogether ActionReclaim your brainSocial mediaSocial media firms have faced scrutiny from Congress over their impact on young users, but parents who have lost kids to online harm are now leading the charge

BooksReviewABC News’s chief Washington correspondent is a sure guide to the former president’s rise and the enduring threat he poses In his new book, Jonathan Karl captures Donald Trump gloating. “She said she could never get crowds like that,” the former US president turned de facto Republican presidential nominee is quoted as saying, after a conversation with Angela Merkel, then chancellor of Germany. ‘An end of American democracy’: Heather Cox Richardson on Trump’s historic threatRead more“In fact, she told me that there was only one other political leader who ever got crowds as big as mine.

The ObserverAlbert Camus This article is more than 10 years oldAlbert Camus will always be the outsider – and I'm proud of that, says the writer's daughterThis article is more than 10 years oldThere is no national French celebration of the Nobel winner's centenary. But he wouldn't want one, says Catherine CamusIt is a century since French Nobel prize-winning author Albert Camus was born – and more than 50 years since he died in an accident on an icy road – yet the polemics over his legacy and "

FinlandAnyone for crickets? Finnish bakery sells bread made from insectFazer in Helsinki claims to be first store in world to offer insect bread, which contains about 70 crickets ground up into flour A Finnish bakery has launched what it claims to be the world’s first insect-based bread to be offered to consumers in stores. The bread, made using flour ground from dried crickets as well as wheat flour and seeds, has more protein than normal wheat bread.

Play timeStageReviewTower Bridge Quay, London A teacher and his unruly student host a family tour of the capital’s river with scatological gags and gory stories aplenty They’ve conquered cinema, telly and stages up and down the land. Now the Horrible Histories crew have commandeered a vessel for a lively show that’s part theatre, part sightseeing tour and fired by the same formula of shock and gore as the books.

A book that changed meAlan Warner This article is more than 3 years oldHow a badly behaved heroine transformed my grey little lifeThis article is more than 3 years oldSophie MackintoshAlan Warner’s Morvern Callar taught me about rooting for the wicked, giving up control and the beauty in ambiguity I first read Morvern Callar when I was about the same age as the eponymous heroine, living in Glasgow, depressed and increasingly isolated.

FrasierObituaryJohn Mahoney obituaryActor who starred as Martin Crane, the cantankerous father in the hit US sitcom FrasierKelsey Grammer had star billing in the TV series Frasier, which took a character from another hit American sitcom, Cheers, the pretentious psychiatrist Frasier Crane, home to Seattle. There the actor John Mahoney, as Frasier’s cantankerous but charming father, Martin Crane, injected a crucial contrasting dimension into a programme lauded for its witty dialogue.

ComedyReviewAmbassadors theatre, London Liz Kingsman’s slick, self-conscious ‘troubled woman’ show nests its complex jokes within jokes to tremendous effect ‘We need women’s story,” says Liz Kingsman in One Woman Show, her slick parody of Fleabag and the countless creations that have since been compared to it. It’s a show within a show – Kingsman is staging her own production, Wildfowl, filming it in front of a live audience in the desperate hope that a TV commissioner (who couldn’t make it tonight) will pick it up.

20 Aug 202314.06 EDTWhich means we’re done here. Thanks all for your company and comments, sorry I couldn’t use them all; enjoy the rest of the weekend. Ta-ra! 20 Aug 202314.06 EDTAnd here’s Jacob Steinberg’s match report. Michail Antonio downs Chelsea to give 10-man West Ham victoryRead more20 Aug 202314.05 EDTAntonio says West Ham didn’t start well last season and wanted to change that this. They won “the European Cup, he says, but were still disappointed with how the league went.

The fight for democracyGeorgiaWin for Republicans as US judge upholds Georgia congressional mapCritics call decision by Steve Jones a ‘disgrace’ and say recently redrawn maps dilute voting power of minority residents A federal judge in Georgia on Thursday upheld a Republican-drawn congressional map, a ruling branded “a disgrace” by voting rights advocates who claim that the latest district lines illegally dilute the voting power of minority residents. The decision from Steve Jones set the stage for next year’s elections, with Republicans now likely to maintain their 9-5 advantage among the swing state’s 14 seats in the US House of Representatives.

Music'Only five people know I make tunes'Is Burial the most elusive man in music? The dubstep star gives a rare interview to Dan Hancox'I'm a bit like a rubbish super-hero ..." says Burial, shyly. The underground dubstep producer - whose debut LP was one of last year's critical smashes, and whose second is one of this year's most anticipated - makes the comparison because he leads two lives. The young south-Londoner slips anonymously through normal life, with few knowing that he has a separate musical existence as Burial.

Poetry This article is more than 5 years oldDonald Hall, US poet laureate and prize-winning man of letters, dies at 89This article is more than 5 years oldDaughter confirms death at home in New HampshireHall was known for work on love, loss, baseball and the pastDonald Hall, a prolific and award-winning poet and man of letters who was widely admired for his sharp humor and painful candor about nature, mortality, baseball and the distant past, has died.

Japan This article is more than 8 years oldFake sleep researcher thought to have drugged and raped scores of womenThis article is more than 8 years oldPolice in Japan say suspect who pretended to be running clinical trial posted footage of attacks on the internetJapanese police have arrested a man for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting more than 100 women who believed they were taking part in a medical study.

Rebel Wilson This article is more than 2 years old‘Funny fat girl’: Rebel Wilson says her team was against her losing weightThis article is more than 2 years oldActor says she received ‘pushback’ from her management due to fears of the impact it could have on her career Rebel Wilson, one of Hollywood’s top comedy actors, has said her own team was opposed to her losing weight because she was “earning millions of dollars being the funny fat girl”.

Hear me outPlanet of the ApesThe latest in our series of writers standing up for loathed films is an impassioned defence of the 2001 take on the 60s classic Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes is a remake that has the forward momentum and expansive qualities of a sequel; a love letter assuming a familiarity with the 1968 sci-fi classic, counting on our expectations so that it could playfully thwart them.

BIRDS AND THE BEESI've heard a theory that a polar bear, when hunting, will place one of their front paws in front of their nose while stalking their prey, so that they are completely camouflaged. Is this true, and is the reality as funny as the mental image? Maria Lamle, London UK Its a great theory, but sadly untrue. Seals, which make up the bulk of polar bear diet, are very short-sighted on land, their eyes being better adapted to seeing underwater.

Matt Damon This article is more than 11 years oldMatt Damon to make bald cameo in Terry Gilliam filmThis article is more than 11 years oldThe former Python will take advantage of Damon's recently shaved head for a cameo in his new fantasy, The Zero TheoremMatt Damon is set to make a follically challenged appearance in Terry Gilliam's forthcoming dystopian fantasy The Zero Theorem, the actor has revealed. Speaking to the Vulture blog, Damon said he was looking forward to working with Gilliam for the first time in a decade.

Mafia This article is more than 2 months oldMore than 200 people convicted in Italian mafia ‘maxi trial’This article is more than 2 months oldSpecially built courtroom in Calabria heard evidence of ruthless tactics of ’Ndrangheta crime syndicate An Italian court has convicted and sentenced more than 200 people of crimes including criminal association, extortion and bribery in what has been described as Italy’s largest mafia trial in three decades.

Society booksReviewThis inspiring book is based on a social activist’s series of experiments giving people the control to improve their own lives “Every blade of grass has its angel that bends over it and whispers, ‘Grow, grow’.” This beautiful line from the Talmud is the epigraph to social activist Hilary Cottam’s book, which argues for a reinvention of the welfare state so that all feel supported and can “live to our true and shared potential”.

DenverThe airport has long been the subject of wild theories. Now it’s getting in on the act with jokes about its new project If you pass through the great hall of Denver airport in Colorado this weekend, you won’t fail to notice the huge amount of building work going on there. Or at least … it looks like building work. Large posters, placed on hoardings around the terminal, cast doubt on what’s really going on.

Books This article is more than 1 year old‘A little bit addictive and the right amount hard’: new video game is based on poems of Emily Dickinson This article is more than 1 year oldThe 80s-style shooter EmilyBlaster is a real-life version of a game featured in Gabrielle Zevin’s forthcoming novel Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Ever wanted to play a computer game based on the poems of Emily Dickinson? Well, now you can, with the release of EmilyBlaster, a 1980s-style game in which players must shoot words out of the sky to correctly recreate Dickinson’s verse.

Wellness or hellness?GadgetsThis small mat’s 8,820 plastic points are said to be able to address the negative symptoms of being alive in 2019. So I put on a thin T-shirt and braced myself I love a bed of anything. Bed of lettuce? Here for it. Raised beds for boosted drainage? Take me there. You made your bed, so lie in it? Thank you, I will. Today, though, I’m wondering if I’ve found my limit.

Buenos Aires holidays This article is more than 8 years oldControversial religious Barbie doll exhibition opens in Buenos AiresThis article is more than 8 years oldBarbies dressed as saints, Ken on the cross and Johnny Depp at the Last Supper … artists face down protest and unveil Barbie: The Plastic Revolution exhibition After almost a year’s delay following opposition and outcry from churchgoers and rightwing activists, Emiliano Pool Paolini and Marianela Perelli, two artists from Rosario in Argentina, have finally unveiled Barbie: The Plastic Revolution, part of the Saints and Sinners exhibition at a small gallery in Buenos Aires’ La Boca district.

Israel-Gaza war This article is more than 2 months oldFamily of Shani Louk, woman Hamas took to Gaza, confirm she was killedThis article is more than 2 months oldYoung Israeli-German woman was initially believed to have been kidnapped alive in attack on Supernova music festival Israel and Hamas at war – live updates A young Israeli-German woman whose fate became indelibly associated around the globe with the Hamas massacre and mass kidnapping rampage of 7 October was killed during the attack, her family has said.

SyriaIsraeli airstrike in Damascus kills high-ranking Iranian general, says IranOfficials vow revenge after Sayyed Razi Mousavi, top member of Revolutionary Guards, reportedly killed An Israeli airstrike in a Damascus neighbourhood on Monday killed a high-ranking Iranian general, Iranian state media has said. Iranian officials and allied militant groups in the region vowed revenge for the killing but did not immediately launch any retaliatory strike. The killing of Sayyed Razi Mousavi, a longtime adviser of the Iranian paramilitary Revolutionary Guards in Syria, comes amid ongoing fears of the Israel-Hamas war sparking a regional spillover.

Taiwan This article is more than 1 month oldTaiwan president says China has too many problems to invadeThis article is more than 1 month oldTsai Ing-wen says economic, financial and political challenges overwhelm Xi Jinping’s government, with international pressure also a deterrent Taiwan’s president has said China is unlikely to attempt an invasion any time soon because it is “overwhelmed” by domestic problems. Tsai Ing-wen made the remarks in an interview at the New York Times Dealbook Summit.

BoeingUS aviation agency launches formal inquiry into Boeing’s 737 Max 9Move comes after cabin panel blew off mid-flight and two airlines found loose parts on multiple aircraft of the same model Boeing is facing a formal investigation into whether it made sure 737 Max 9 planes were “in a condition for safe operation” after a cabin panel blew off during an Alaska Airlines flight. “This incident should have never happened, and it cannot happen again,” the Federal Aviation Administration said, announcing an investigation into whether the planemaker “failed to ensure” the jets complied with safety regulations.

Self-portrait with Bandaged Ear by Vincent van Gogh. The artist sent his ear to a young woman named Gabrielle Berlatier, says a new book. Photograph: Peter Barritt/Getty Images/SuperStock RMSelf-portrait with Bandaged Ear by Vincent van Gogh. The artist sent his ear to a young woman named Gabrielle Berlatier, says a new book. Photograph: Peter Barritt/Getty Images/SuperStock RMVincent van Gogh This article is more than 7 years oldWoman who received Van Gogh's ear named 130 years after artist cut it offThis article is more than 7 years oldGabrielle Berlatier, a farmer’s daughter, was given Vincent Van Gogh’s ear when she was working as a maid at a brothel

Media'I am not a Maxwell'It has been 14 years since the death of Robert Maxwell. His daughter-in-law Pandora talks to Rebecca Smithers about bankruptcy, motherhood and the perils of infamyThe following correction was printed in the Guardian's Corrections and clarifications column, Friday June 24 2005 In the interview below with Pandora Maxwell, we described her as "the former Miss Warnock-Davies". Her name before marriage was Warnford-Davis. 'Don't answer it! It's probably the bailiffs!

Reality TVThe dating show, where people are judged on their naked bodies, has become a much-discussed hit after landing on streaming, with detractors in its wake I vaguely remember the first time I heard about Naked Attraction, the British reality series in which singletons judge prospective partners in the nude, which premiered on Channel 4 in 2016. The show prompted a series of incredulous headlines about the premise, casting and general shock of full-frontal nudity on TV, to which I reacted with something along the lines of “how can this be real?

BooksThree decades after his debut novel made him the unwilling voice of a generation, the author wonders whether – after Y, Z and now C, for Covid – individuality will become obsolete On the Road to Bridget Jones: five books that define each generation I’m 59 and a half years old – and these days I no longer feel that I identify as a human being. I’ve turned into an app.

ETHICAL CONUNDRUMSDuring the month of Ramadan, Muslims are forbidden to eat or drink between sunrise and sunset. How would this apply at the north and south poles, where the sun rises and sets once a year? A similar question was asked by a Jewish astronaut - how should he celebrate the Sabbath (which starts at nightfall on Friday and ends at nightfall on Saturday) when in space.He was given three possible answers: 1) He should count it every 7th day, whereby a day is a "

Harry Kane This article is more than 5 months oldFarewell then Harry Kane, our one-season wonder who just didn’t stop scoringThis article is more than 5 months oldJohn CraceIt’s a goodbye that has been coming – the truth is he had outgrown Spurs some seasons ago Not long after the end of last Sunday’s home friendly against Shakhtar Donetsk, Harry Kane emerged from the tunnel alone and walked to all four corners of the ground to applaud the crowd.

Stranger than fiction: Jon Ronson tries to get to the truth about conspiracy theorists. Illustration: Michelle ThompsonStranger than fiction: Jon Ronson tries to get to the truth about conspiracy theorists. Illustration: Michelle ThompsonThe ObserverSocietyIt is 20 years since Jon Ronson wrote Them, his eye-popping investigation into conspiracy theorists. Now, in a world awash with tales of paedophile elites and puppet masters, is he any closer to understanding it all?

Fashion This article is more than 2 months oldModel says her face was edited with AI to look white: ‘It’s very dehumanizing’This article is more than 2 months oldShereen Wu says leading designer uploaded altered picture, amid fears AI could ‘turn back the clock’ on progress in the industry A Taiwanese American model says a well-known fashion designer uploaded a digitally altered runway photo that made her appear white. In a TikTok about the incident that has been viewed 1.

Music This article is more than 13 years oldMoe Tucker: 'Anyone who thinks I'm crazy about Sarah Palin has made a presumption'This article is more than 13 years oldThe former Velvet Underground drummer gives her first interview since footage of her at a Tea Party rally went viral. And she doesn't have a nice message for her liberal critics ...When footage surfaced earlier this month showing former Velvet Underground drummer Moe Tucker expressing her fury over the Obama administration at a Tea Party rally, it's fair to say she broke a few liberal hearts.

‘Patterns of checks and parallel lines indicate that routine work is approached diligently,’ says Rostron. Photograph: nikitakou‘Patterns of checks and parallel lines indicate that routine work is approached diligently,’ says Rostron. Photograph: nikitakouCareer inspirationGuardian CareersWhat your work doodles really say about youWhether you scribble stars or sketch skulls, find out what your choice of doodle says about your personality, work habits and career ambitions Looking for a job? Explore the range of vacancies on Guardian Jobs and find the perfect role for you We asked you to share what you have been scrawling on your notepad while supposedly hard at work – whether it’s wavy lines, spirals or an artistic masterpiece.

FictionReviewIn her latest book, novelist Barbara Trapido addresses her upbringing in South Africa for the first time. But, she tells Libby Brooks, she still feels a need to estrange herself from the storyBarbara Trapido's friends have lately remarked on the strengthening of her accent. Four decades after leaving South Africa for England, the squat vowels of her homeland are leavening her conversation once again. And the author doesn't require a psychoanalyst to interpret why this might be.

Book of the dayHistory booksReviewA brilliant storyteller attempts to get at the roots of the American obsession with firearms – but leaves readers feeling as hopeless as when they started When reporting on gun deaths in the United States I always asked bereaved parents an open‑ended question about what they thought had made the tragedy possible. Generally they mentioned bad parenting, teenage pregnancies, absent fathers and a range of other cable TV talking points.

BooksObituaryGerald Rose obituaryChildren’s illustrator whose picture books with his wife, Elizabeth, and authors such as Ted Hughes, are enjoyed worldwideThe illustrator Gerald Rose, who has died aged 87, was the youngest winner of the Kate Greenaway medal for children’s book illustration, in 1960. Then still in his mid-20s and barely out of art school, he would go on, often in partnership with his wife, Elizabeth, a writer, to become an influential artist in the field of children’s picture books.

Wimbledon 2023 This article is more than 6 months oldGolf, shooting, the Weeknd: Casper Ruud triumphs after unusual prepThis article is more than 6 months oldNorwegian took three weeks off before arriving at WimbledonLaurent Lokoli beaten in four sets: 6-1, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3There is the traditional way of preparing for Wimbledon, and there is the Casper Ruud approach. One involves living the life, the other living the dream. And while the Norwegian’s contemporaries have been working hard to adapt to grass’s more frenetic rhythms, the world No 4 has spent more time on Instagram.

The ObserverJulian BarnesReviewThe novelist shines fresh light on the likes of Manet and Freud in this collection of vivid essaysPoetry and painting used to be called “the sister arts”, though that cosy phrase ignores the sibling rivalry between them. The verbal and the visual operate in different dimensions: language unfurls in time, but painted imagery is static and occupies space, which is why Cézanne indignantly asked a sitter who wasn’t content to be a still life: “Does an apple move?

Courtney Wilson and Taylor Guerrero were visiting Hawaii from Los Angeles last year. Photograph: Jennifer Sinco Kelleher/APCourtney Wilson and Taylor Guerrero were visiting Hawaii from Los Angeles last year. Photograph: Jennifer Sinco Kelleher/APHawaii This article is more than 7 years oldLesbian couple gets $80,000 settlement after arrest in Hawaii for kissingThis article is more than 7 years oldCourtney Wilson and Taylor Guerrero say they were harassed and arrested because a police officer didn’t like their public displays of affection in a store Honolulu has agreed to pay $80,000 to settle a lawsuit from two gay women who allege a police officer wrongfully arrested them after seeing them kissing in a grocery store.

Graphic novel of the monthComics and graphic novelsReviewCartoonist Adrian Tomine's 'prenuptial memoir' lays bare the fiasco of the modern wedding with acid witDo you have a friend who is in the process of turning into Bridezilla (or even Groomzilla, since women certainly don't have a monopoly on wedding madness)? Then I have the perfect gift for her – though on second thoughts, perhaps this is a treat best left until after her nuptials when, one hopes, your friend will miraculously recover her mislaid sense of humour.

The ObserverWorld newsThe day Israel realised that this was a real warWhen a bloody ambush in a Lebanese village ripped apart a squad of Israeli troops last week, the full reality of the fighting reached homes in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem for the first time. But calls for a major offensive have reawakened painful memories of old defeats, and old losses, across the troubled borderIt was five in the morning and the lead Golani Brigade squad was moving carefully through the outskirts of Bint Jbeil when a burst of automatic fire rang out.

Top 10sFictionFrom Saul Bellow to Philip Roth, novelist Andrew Rosenheim salutes the writers who have captured the beauty, and the ugliness, of his hometownBrowse the archive of Writers' top 10s Whatever Thomas Wolfe once wrote, you can go home again, even if it's only in your head. I came to England as a student 35 years ago, and stayed, but the books I've written are almost uniformly set in the United States, and two of them in my native Chicago.

Fashion This article is more than 1 year oldAdidas loses four stripes court battle with designer Thom BrowneThis article is more than 1 year oldSportswear company claimed fashion label’s motif was too similar to its trademark three-stripe logo Adidas has lost a court case against the designer Thom Browne, after the sportswear company said the use of four stripes in his designs was too close to its trademark three-stripe logo.

Arcade Fire This article is more than 9 years oldAgainst Me's Laura Jane Grace slams Arcade Fire for transgender videoThis article is more than 9 years old'Maybe when making a video for a song called We Exist you should get an actual 'trans' actor instead of Spider-Man,' writes the singer Laura Jane Grace: 'So I'm a transsexual and this is what's happening' Against Me's Laura Jane Grace has reproached Arcade Fire for casting Andrew Garfield as a trans woman in their new music video.

Queen Elizabeth II This article is more than 1 year oldThis article is more than 1 year oldScottish actor who played the monarch in recent film Spencer on what she learned about the Queen from the experience Stella Gonet played the Queen on the big screen in Pablo Larraín’s Spencer, a drama set over Christmas in Sandringham in 1991, starring Kristen Stewart as Diana. Gonet reveals how she channelled the monarch for the role – and what other people’s reactions taught her about the real woman.

Minnesota This article is more than 8 years oldFormer nurse helped instruct man on how to commit suicide, court rulesThis article is more than 8 years oldWilliam Melchert-Dinkel’s conviction in death of British man, Mark Drybrough, was affirmed after Minnesota state supreme court reversed ruling last year An appeals court on Monday affirmed the conviction of a Minnesota man in the assisted dying of a British man, but reversed his conviction for attempting to assist a Canadian woman’s suicide.

Gun crime This article is more than 9 years oldFort Hood: Guns Galore reportedly sold guns to both shootersThis article is more than 9 years oldGuns Galore has been besieged by angry callers and emails but store insists it can only control what happens inside its walls Guns are wall-to-wall at the Guns Galore shop near Fort Hood, and so are posters: No Idiots Allowed. This Isn't a Place for Children to Play.

Beyoncé This article is more than 5 years oldGermaine Greer criticises Beyoncé: 'Why has she always got to be naked?'This article is more than 5 years oldControversial feminist says nudity is ‘usually a sign of submission, inequality’ Germaine Greer has criticised Beyoncé for the “sexual display” in her stage outfits. Speaking in a BBC documentary that will be aired on Saturday, called Germaine Bloody Greer, and reported in the Sun and the Mirror, she says: “Someone like Beyoncé – who I think is a fantastic musician, a beautiful voice as true as a bell – why has she always got to be fucking naked and have her tits hanging out?

Ask Annalisa BarbieriLife and styleI’m guessing it’s with a partner who suits him, rather than you, says Annalisa Barbieri. Remember what you want matters, too I’ve been married for 11 years and we have two happy boys; it has been amazing. But my husband has now told me he wants a threesome. I am really trying to understand what it is that he is seeking; after a week of long conversations, I believe what he actually wants is more experiences.

The Last of Us: episode by episodeTelevisionJoel and Ellie try to survive the bleak midwinter – then encounter David and his strange meat-eating club. What unbelievably horrifying viewing This article contains spoilers for The Last of Us. Please do not read unless you have seen episodes one to eight … After threatening it for a week or two, winter is now fully upon The Last of Us. We opened with deep snow and a pastor, David (Scott Shepherd), addressing his haunted-looking congregation.

QueenslandTwo die in light plane crash near BrisbaneQueensland paramedics treated the two people from the plane but they died at the scene Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast Two men have died in a light plane crash south-west of Brisbane. Authorities responded to reports of an aviation incident around midday at Bruckner Hill Road, near Boonah, in the Scenic Rim. The two occupants of the aircraft, men aged 69 and 82, were treated by Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics but died at the scene.

A bit Indiana Jones, a bit Swallows and Amazons, a bit Dan Brown, this adaptation of the 1942 book is a gently subversive take on a classic. Don’t expect lashings of ginger beer Published: 31 Dec 2023 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKymYq6vsIyrmJ2hn2SwqbXLnamepqNiwbc%3D

Music This article is more than 3 years oldDetail arrested: Grammy-winning producer faces 15 counts of sexual assaultThis article is more than 3 years oldDetail, who produced Beyoncé and Jay-Z hit Drunk in Love, being held on nearly $6.3m bail for alleged crimes between 2010 and 2018 The Grammy award-winning music producer Detail was arrested Wednesday on more than a dozen charges of sexual assault, authorities said. The 41-year-old producer, known for producing hits for R&B and hip-hop acts, was held on nearly $6.

Animals This article is more than 9 years oldFur flies over 16th century 'rocket cats' warfare manualThis article is more than 9 years oldResearcher baffled by document written by artillery master Franz Helm featuring pictures of jetpacks strapped to cats and dovesYou're a 16th century German prince plotting to crush a peasant rebellion, or perhaps you're leading an army against the Ottoman Empire or settling a score with a rival nobleman.

John Wight is a writer and political commentator. His Edinburgh Trilogy of novels is available from Amazon. He has also written a memoir of his experience of Hollywood and participation in the US antiwar movement in the runup to the war in Iraq. It is titled Dreams That Die, and is published by Zero Books. ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRooaignmLEqrPHrQ%3D%3D

Pharmaceuticals industry This article is more than 3 years oldJonathan Sackler, joint owner of opioid maker Purdue Pharma, dies aged 65This article is more than 3 years oldFormer pharmaceutical executive died of cancer on 30 JuneSackler was named as defendant in key opioid lawsuitsJonathan Sackler, one of the owners of Purdue Pharma, the maker of the controversial opioid prescription painkiller OxyContin has died, the company confirmed on Monday. Sackler died on 30 June, according to a court filing.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewThis parenting sitcom’s gift for gleefully inappropriate humour runs amok in its festive special – which features an event that flips the regular Christmas Day tribulations on their head Sometimes after a hard day’s parenting – or a hard year’s parenting – it’s difficult to know whether a parenting sitcom is really what you want to watch. From Outnumbered to Breeders and, back now for a Christmas special, Motherland (BBC One), they do tend towards bleakness.

Keeping up with the Kardashians star Kylie Jenner on Snapchat, and in real life. Composite: Kylie Jenner/Snapchat, Jason LaVeris/FilmMagicKeeping up with the Kardashians star Kylie Jenner on Snapchat, and in real life. Composite: Kylie Jenner/Snapchat, Jason LaVeris/FilmMagicSnapchat This article is more than 7 years oldSnapchat, and Kylie Jenner, in hot water over 'blackface' filterThis article is more than 7 years oldNew Bob Marley filter on Snapchat has been criticised for being the digital equivalent of blackface

UK news This article is more than 5 months oldTributes paid to British surgeon killed during protests in Cape TownThis article is more than 5 months oldKar Hao Teoh, 40, described as a ‘loving family man’ and a ‘dedicated and talented’ medic Tributes have been paid to an award-winning British surgeon and “loving family man” who was shot dead during violent protests in South Africa. Kar Hao Teoh, a trauma and orthopaedics consultant who worked at the Princess Alexandra hospital in Harlow, Essex, was on holiday in Cape Town when he was killed on 3 August.

MusicFrom K-pop stars to Beyoncé, the issue of colourism remains rife in the music industry It seems every conversation about colourism in pop music must come back to Beyoncé. So it was when Mathew Knowles, record exec, former Destiny’s Child manager and Beyoncé’s father, appeared on SiriusXM radio to discuss research by Texas Southern University, where he is a visiting professor. Their study found that over a 15-year period it was lighter-skinned black women – the likes of Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Mariah Carey and, of course, Beyoncé – who dominated Top 40 airplay.

Ask Leo & LucyEnvironmentCan I stop a farmer spraying pesticides close to my home?Many farmers routinely spray their crops with pesticides, but can neighbours demand their concerns be considered?My garden backs on to a field which normally gets sprayed with pesticides from this time of year right up to harvest time. If the wind is blowing towards me, I can sometimes feel the mist land on my face which I find deeply unpleasant.

Italy This article is more than 4 years oldItalian police officers jailed for 12 years over 2009 custody deathThis article is more than 4 years oldCarabinieri Alessio di Bernardo and Raffaele d’Alessandro found guilty of involuntary manslaughter of Stefano Cucchi Two Italian police officers have been sentenced to 12 years in jail over the fatal beating of a 31-year-old man in custody in 2009, in a case that has gripped the country.

JapanExplainerExperts have been examining how all passenger and crew on board the Japan Airlines flight to Haneda managed to escape alive After all 379 passengers and crew on a Japan Airlines jet that crashed into another plane at a Tokyo airport escaped the burning aircraft, experts have examined how they managed to get out mostly unharmed, and said that low fuel levels likely prevented an explosion. At about 5:45pm on Tuesday evening, JAL flight 516 – an Airbus A350-900 that departed the northern city of Sapporo about an hour and a half earlier – collided with a coast guard plane when landing at Haneda airport, killing five of the six onboard the smaller Dash 8 aircraft.

Ozzy Osbourne This article is more than 10 years oldOzzy Osbourne says Bill Ward too 'overweight' for Black Sabbath gigsThis article is more than 10 years old'He's already had two heart attacks. I don't want to be responsible for his life,' says OsbourneAllow Spotify content?This article includes content provided by Spotify. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'.

Shane MacGowan – a life in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Shane MacGowan, musician and songwriter with the Pogues and the Popes has died aged 65. Here are snapshots from his brilliant and at times broken life, both on and off stage Main image: Shane MacGowan performs at the Greenwich Summer Sessions in London in 2011 Photograph: Matt Kent/Redferns Thu 30 Nov 2023 07.

US midterm elections 2022 This article is more than 1 year oldSurvivor winner Nick Wilson secures seat in Kentucky legislatureThis article is more than 1 year oldRepublican, who ran unopposed, will represent home town in state house of representatives Not every Republican television personality who ran for political office during Tuesday’s US elections lost. The winner of the TV competition Survivor: David v Goliath in 2018, Nick Wilson, secured a seat as a Republican in Kentucky’s state house of representatives.

RankedCoen brothersWith the 20th anniversary re-release of The Big Lebowski, we rank the duo’s films (directing only), from their 1984 debut Blood Simple to this year’s The Ballad of Buster Spruggs 18. The Ladykillers (2004)What on earth was this about? A remake of the Ealing crime-caper classic (with Tom Hanks in Alec Guinness’s crackpot mastermind role) at least proves, if proof were needed, that the Coens have excellent cinephile taste. But this was pointless and baffling.

OpinionCulture This article is more than 5 months oldWant to quickly spot idiots? Here are five foolproof red flagsThis article is more than 5 months oldArwa MahdawiThe governor of Illinois went viral with a speech about seeing idiots in one’s midst. I have a few pointers of my own to offer “If you want to be successful in this world, you have to develop your own idiot detection system,” the governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, recently told the Northwestern University Class of 2023.

NOOKS AND CRANNIESWhat does BMW stand for? Cao Tien Quan, Vietnam BMW stands for: ‘Bye, My Wife’ ‘Bring More Women’ 'Born Moderately Wealthy’ 'BMke My Wallet' 'Beautiful Mechanical Wonder' 'Best Motorcycle Worldwide' 'Bring Money With you' 'Beautiful Masterpieces on Wheels' 'Business Money and Women' ‘Be My Wife’ ‘Big Morning Woody’ ‘Black Magic Woman’ ‘Bang Many Women / Banging Man Whore’ ‘Big Money Works’ ‘Bastard Money Weilders’ ‘Beastly Monstrous Wonder’ ‘Beyond My Wages’ ‘Blow Money Willingly’ ‘Big Monthly Wage’ ‘Beautiful Models Wanted’ ‘Buy More Women’ ‘Big Mexican Wiener’ ‘Big Mexican Wang’ ‘Black Man's Willy / Big Man's Willy’ ‘Buff My Wood’ ‘Buy Me Wanker’ ‘Big Mexican Woman’ ‘Below Minimum Wage’ ‘Bus Metro & Walk’ ‘Big Meaty Women’ ‘Bitchin',Moanin', Whinin'/’Boring Me Wholeheartedly’ ‘Big Muscular Wiener’ ‘B-blow, M-My, W-Weenis’ and ‘Big Military Wife’.

Retail industry This article is more than 1 year oldAldi’s 29p mince pie a close second to Waitrose’s winner in blind taste testThis article is more than 1 year oldWaitrose’s No 1 Brown Butter pies wowed with their ‘buttery aroma’, while Aldi’s, at half the price, scored just one point less Tucking into a mince pie is usually the first sign Christmas is on the way and with budgets under pressure this year getting your fix doesn’t have to break the bank, with a 29p pie from Aldi coming a close second to Waitrose’s brown butter pastry in a taste test.

Room without a view … Charlie Murphy in Arlington. Photograph: Patrick RedmondRoom without a view … Charlie Murphy in Arlington. Photograph: Patrick RedmondEnda WalshReviewLeisureland, Salthill, Galway The playwright embraces a new form of category-defying theatre in a story of love and oppression that echoes Orwell’s 1984 No Galway international arts festival seems complete without a new play by Enda Walsh. His latest, set in a suburban seaside leisure centre, deals with Walsh’s familiar themes of entrapment, isolation and imagined worlds.

TheatreObituaryPeter Wilson obituaryLeading West End producer who took over the Theatre Royal in Norwich in 1992 and completely transformed its fortunesPeter Wilson, starting out in university revue with Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, ended up as one of the leading theatre producers in the West End. He transformed Susan Hill’s macabre thriller The Woman in Black (1987) – adapted by Stephen Mallatratt for Alan Ayckbourn’s theatre in Scarborough – into the second longest running play of all time, after The Mousetrap; and Stephen Daldry’s sensational 1992 National Theatre revival of JB Priestley’s An Inspector Calls into a repeat visitor (six years at the Garrick theatre) and a touring phenomenon, both in the UK and abroad, over the last 30 years.

Movies This article is more than 11 years oldSacha Baron Cohen and Kurt Russell leave Django UnchainedThis article is more than 11 years oldActors will no longer appear in Quentin Tarantino's 19th-century Deep South follow-up to Inglourious BasterdsSacha Baron Cohen and Kurt Russell are no longer appearing in Quentin Tarantino's latest film, Django Unchained, according to US reports. Baron Cohen had been due to make his debut for the Pulp Fiction director in his much-hyped 19th-century Deep South-set follow up to Inglourious Basterds, cameoing in the role of Scotty Harmony, a gambler who buys the title character's enslaved wife as a companion.

Self Portrait (1990). Photograph: © Viviane Sassen/MEPSelf Portrait (1990). Photograph: © Viviane Sassen/MEPThe big picturePhotographyThe Dutch photographer’s self-portrait in a bathroom mirror reflects her fascination with the strangeness and eroticism of the body The Dutch photographer and artist Viviane Sassen has spoken about her work dramatising her shyness, her anxieties about connecting with the world. In that context, this self-portrait, which prefaces Phosphor, a new book and a large retrospective exhibition of her work, might seem out of character.

‘I wonder if the prostitute was for you or for him?’ Illustration: Lo Cole for the Guardian‘I wonder if the prostitute was for you or for him?’ Illustration: Lo Cole for the GuardianAsk Annalisa BarbieriSexIf you were hoping to add to his repertoire or experience, you will have failed, says Annalisa Barbieri My husband and I have been together for six years. I married him when he was 18 and I was 24.

What lurks beneath: demons and dead brides ride New York’s subway – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email For 20 years, Seymour Licht has spent Halloween venturing below ground to capture outlandish costumes against the gritty backdrop of train carriages and stations Mee-Lai Stone @mlestone Main image: Hare raising … an image from Halloween Underground: New York Subway Portraits by Seymour Licht.

The ObserverAutobiography and memoirInterviewAnne Sinclair: ‘It was a sort of violence… but I’ve rebuilt my life’Elizabeth DayAnne Sinclair is best known in the UK as the ex-wife of disgraced former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn. But far more interesting is her own life story – as a popular French TV journalist, as granddaughter to a famous art dealer, and as the little girl who refused to be painted by PicassoAnne Sinclair calls it “the incident”.

Ryder CupKim played a big part in the 2008 US win at Valhalla and broke into the world’s top 10 before vanishing from the PGA Tour August 2011. A second round of 71 is not sufficient for Anthony Kim to make the cut at the US PGA Championship, but falling short by one appears far from disastrous. Kim, 26, had tied fifth at the Open Championship a few weeks earlier demonstrating the versatility that had earned him third place in the 2010 Masters.

The ObserverPaintingInterviewArtist Hurvin Anderson: ‘I’m always nervous about the word identity. I try not to use it’Kadish MorrisLast week, the British painter was named a Royal Academician. On the eve of his solo show at the Hepworth Wakefield he talks about Black British art, the difficulties facing working-class artists today – and the appeal of the Caribbean barbershop Hurvin Anderson lives and works in the middle of nowhere. His wife, Alice (also his studio manager), has to pick me up from the station because taxis can never find the place.

US newsObituaryBubba Smith obituaryUS football star and actor known for his Police Academy roleSome fans of the popular Police Academy films might be surprised to discover that the actor playing the gentle florist turned recruit Moses Hightower was someone who inspired an entire college campus to wear T-shirts stating "Kill Bubba Kill", echoing the words chanted by thousands of supporters in Michigan State University's Spartan Stadium. Bubba Smith, who has been found dead aged 66, was one of American college football's most legendary defenders, a figure who inspired awe on the gridiron.

Morgan FreemanHollywood actor Morgan Freeman seriously hurt in crashThe Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman said to be in a serious condition after the car he was driving flipped over several times late on Sunday. Freeman was driving near his home in Charleston, Mississippi, at the time of the accident. The actor and a female companion were cut free by emergency workers before being airlifted to a hospital 90 miles away in Memphis, Tennessee.

Tunisia This article is more than 9 years oldMysterious lake in Tunisian desert turns from turquoise to green sludgeThis article is more than 9 years oldThe stretch of water, dubbed the Lac de Gafsa, may be the result of a rupture in the rock above the local water tableThe lake appeared in the Tunisian desert like a mirage; one minute there was nothing but scorching sand, the next a large expanse of turquoise water.

Helene Mayer of Germany, right, won silver in women’s fencing at the 1936 Olympics. Photograph: Bettmann/Bettmann ArchiveHelene Mayer of Germany, right, won silver in women’s fencing at the 1936 Olympics. Photograph: Bettmann/Bettmann ArchiveOlympic GamesAlmost 80 years after her silver medal in women’s fencing at the Berlin Games, Helene Mayer remains one of the Olympics’ enduring mysteries The photograph is at once both beautiful and revolting. Snapped in the fading sun of an August afternoon during the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, this picture is of a German woman standing regal on the medal stand, dressed in white, her posture perfect, her face locked in the stoic gaze of determination.

Movies This article is more than 13 years oldRow over Vince Vaughn's 'gay insult' in Ron Howard filmThis article is more than 13 years oldOffending scene cut from online versions of trailer for The Dilemma after gay pressure group protestsThe US release of Oscar-winning director Ron Howard's new comedy, The Dilemma, has been overshadowed by a row over a scene in which star Vince Vaughn uses the word "gay" as an insult.

A scientist holds a juvenile cod with a pair of tweezers. Studies show they do not spawn in waters warmer than 9.6C but reproduction is affected before that point. All photographs: Regin Winther PoulsenHistorically, it was overfishing that hurt the much-prized fish – but now rising ocean temperatures are inhibiting the fish’s ability to produce codlings at all by Regin Winther Poulsen in the Faroe IslandsGuðrún Bjarnadóttir Bech sings to herself while she sorts through baby fish with a pair of tweezers.

Crossword blogCrosswordsThe latest in our suggested reading for fans of crosswords and puzzling: a playful Serbian outing Before we get to the book, a heads up that the Guardian’s beautiful puzzle supplement on Saturday contained, alongside proper puzzles from Carpathian and Picaroon (of whom more below), my own “The most Guardian crossword ever”. The Serbian writer Milorad Pavić was not fond of a beginning, a middle and an end. One of his plays takes the form of a restaurant menu.

StageObituaryFrances Sternhagen obituaryAward-winning stage, film and TV actor who had memorable roles as meddling mothers in Cheers and Sex and the CityWith her shrewd blue eyes and twitching dormouse nose, the actor Frances Sternhagen, who has died aged 93, could turn on a dime between consoling warmth and implacable frostiness. She was a multiple Emmy nominee for her guest appearances as two comically meddling mothers. In Sex and the City, between 2000 and 2002, she played Bunny, who can manipulate her pampered son, Trey (Kyle MacLachlan), into doing her bidding simply by squeezing his wrist.

Sexual healingRelationshipsI haven’t managed to find a space where I, too, can have my sexual needs met. I’m not sure that being submissive is what I really want I am having a little trouble with my marriage, sexually. While I am quite kinky and highly sexual, my wife is not as comfortable with her sexuality, or communicating about it. I accept that, and have been encouraging her to open up, feel pleasure and tell me what she wants in the bedroom more.

Lana Del Rey This article is more than 5 years oldLana Del Rey pulls out of Israeli festival after backlashThis article is more than 5 years oldSinger had been pressured to cancel show most Palestinians would not be allowed to watch Lana Del Rey has pulled out of a music festival in Israel next week in the wake of a backlash over her decision to perform. The American singer was to have been one of the headline performers at the Meteor festival from 6 to 8 September.

Selena Gomez and Linda Ronstadt. Composite: Getty, RexSelena Gomez and Linda Ronstadt. Composite: Getty, RexMusicSelena Gomez to star in Linda Ronstadt biopicFilm from Walk the Line producer will tell story of singer who became a rare successful woman in male-dominated 1970s rock scene Pop singer and actor Selena Gomez is to portray the massively successful US singer Linda Ronstadt in a new biopic. Currently in pre-production, the film is being produced by James Keach, who has worked on a number of music-related film projects including producing Oscar-winning Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line and documentaries on Ronstadt, David Crosby and Glen Campbell.

World newsShot in the darkThe assassination of Galina Starovoitova marks a turning point in Russia's struggle against corruption and political extremism. James Meek investigates the most sinister political murder post-Soviet Russia has seen.A little over four years ago, a woman stood in the biting wind of a dank October day in Moscow, in front of the Palace of Youth, listening to a journalist speak to a crowd of mourners grieving over the death of one of his colleagues, 27-year-old reporter Dmitri Kholodov, whose legs had been blown off by a suitcase bomb in his office.

Sylvia Plath: her life in art and photographs – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email A visual history of the writer Sylvia Plath is to go on show at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. It includes photographs of her throughout her life, rarely seen artwork including self-portraits and letters, and personal objects, including her childhood ponytail, preserved by her mother.

Top 10sBooksNovelist DB John chooses fiction, reportage and memoir that reveal some shocking truths about life in this secretive tyranny North Korea is many things. It is a violent tyranny led by a single family. It is a cold war relic that should have vanished decades ago. Yet it not only endures, it could yet become capable, along with Russia and China, of launching a long-range nuclear strike against the US.

BanksySteve Lazarides was the art renegade’s strategist, photographer and minder. As his shots are published, he recalls the politics, parties and soaring price tags of ‘Matey Boy’ One Christmas, Steve Lazarides and Banksy decided to kill Santa. “Reject false icons,” read the slogan hastily spray painted across their shopfront, behind a highly festive effigy they had created of Father Christmas dangling from a noose. Dotted around were signs intended to lure passersby into their shop, in the hope that they would join in the party and buy some artworks.

Australian televisionSeason two opens on pregnant Debbie, whose litter is sent to five graziers tasked with training the puppies over a year Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast You could say the internet has been built off the back of cute puppy videos – so a reality TV show following the journey of five working dogs on farms across Australia is a recipe for success.

The balanceWork-life balanceThe music director of the Baltimore and São Paulo symphony orchestras on evening work and getting by on short sleeps SleepI don’t have too many issues with sleeping. My main commute is between Baltimore and São Paulo, as I am the music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, and the time zones almost line up. It’s about letting my body do what it needs to do; if I’m up at 2am I just do some work.

The age of extinctionGlobal development This article is more than 10 months oldParasitic fungus that infects and kills spiders discovered in Brazil This article is more than 10 months oldExclusive: rare purple organism preys on trapdoor spider in behaviour reminiscent of its ‘zombie’ relatives that feature in apocalyptic TV show The Last of Us Scientists believe they have discovered a new parasitic fungus which preys on trapdoor spiders in Brazil’s Atlantic rainforest.

Ask Annalisa BarbieriLife and styleAfter my father left and remarried, my mother looked to me for supportMy father left mum and us five children when I was 16 (I'm 34 now) and eventually married one of the women he was having an affair with, and to whom he is still happily married. I bear no animosity towards him or his new wife. But I have realised that, while I love my mother, I don't actually like her.

EconomicsWhen the World Bank set its mission to a ‘world free of poverty’, it was ‘Martin’s definition and Martin’s measure’ Martin Ravallion, an Australian economist who devoted his career to fighting poverty, occasionally found his reputation preceded him to remote parts of the world. In 2016 the Dutch publication De Correspondent described a 2005 field trip Ravillion took to the southern Chinese province of Guizhou – one of the country’s poorest – where he asked the county statistician what approach he used to calculate how many people in the region were poor.

SportSouth Africa hit by Rhodes hand injuryPool B: Kenya 140 South Africa 142-0, South Africa won by 10 wicketsSouth Africa's 10-wicket mauling of Kenya seemed almost inconsequential yesterday after Jonty Rhodes broke a hand and may have to face up to his international career ending. "It was one of those situations where he moved one way, and had to change direction," said South Africa's captain Shaun Pollock. "In stopping the ball, he must have broken the bone.

Tom Hanks This article is more than 3 months oldTom Hanks says AI version of him used in dental plan ad without his consent This article is more than 3 months oldActor, who has previously expressed concerns about use of AI in film, tells fans ‘I have nothing to do’ with hoax video Tom Hanks has warned fans that an ad for a dental plan that appears to use his image is in fact fake and was created using artificial intelligence.

OpinionParks and green spaces This article is more than 7 months oldA tale of extraordinary barbecues – and the council that shut them downThis article is more than 7 months oldJonathan NunnA row over Burgess Park in my area of south London is typical of local authorities that misunderstand the point of community spaces Burgess Park is not the most beautiful park in the UK. To be honest, it’s not even the most beautiful park in its own corner of south-east London.

Clint Hill flung himself on to the back of the president’s limousine in a desperate attempt to block any further bullets on that fateful day in Dallas 60 years ago by David Smith in WashingtonIt has become a cliche that everyone of a certain age could tell you where they were when they heard President John F Kennedy was dead. Clint Hill spent decades trying to forget. The Secret Service agent was in the Dallas motorcade as a member of the first lady’s detail when Kennedy was assassinated on 22 November 1963.

Country diaryInsectsSandy, Bedfordshire: The small china-marks never so much as touch terra firma A restless white moth, the size of a shirt button, is summer’s phoenix from the water. Half a dozen Cataclysta lemnata may be on the wing at any one time, bubbling up from out of the pond. Though they skirt the rim, fast-flapping light shapes repeatedly courting the ground with tiny swoops, they never land, never so much as touch terra firma.

Restaurants This article is more than 8 years oldMichelin-starred chef at Bristol restaurant Casamia dies of cancerThis article is more than 8 years oldJonray Sánchez-Iglesias, 32, and his brother Peter turned their parents’ trattoria into one of the UK’s most highly rated eateries A top chef has died of skin cancer at the age of 32, just days before his Michelin-starred restaurant in Bristol was rated as one of the best in the UK.

SlipknotObituaryPaul Gray obituaryFounder member and bass guitarist of cult US metal band SlipknotPaul Gray, who has been found dead at the age of 38, was the bass guitarist and a founder member of the US nu-metal band Slipknot. However, fans knew him simply as No 2 or The Pig. The latter was due to the Iowa outfit's penchant for wearing horror masks on stage, with Gray initially sporting a latex disguise that resembled a grotesque hog.

07.00 ESTAt least 25 killed in shelling at a market in Donetsk, say officialsThe number of people killed by shelling at a market on the outskirts of the city of Donetsk in Russian-occupied Ukraine on Sunday has been revised again. Local officials are now saying at least 25 were killed in the strike, reports AP. A further 20 people were injured in the strike on the suburb of Tekstilshchik, including two children, said Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed authorities in Donetsk.

Stormy Daniels This article is more than 5 years oldStormy Daniels' tell-all book on Trump: salacious detail and claims of cheatingThis article is more than 5 years oldExclusive: pornographic actor says Trump ‘didn’t want to be president’ in her book Full Disclosure Trump’s insecurity and ‘bullshit’ hush money: key takeaways In a tell-all memoir, the pornographic actor Stormy Daniels details salacious descriptions of her time with Donald Trump, wonders if he is fit to be president and claims that he offered to cheat for her in his reality TV show.

Fancy a flutter? Elizabeth Hargrave’s birdwatching board game Wingspan. Photograph: Lexey Swall/New York Times/Redux/eyevineFancy a flutter? Elizabeth Hargrave’s birdwatching board game Wingspan. Photograph: Lexey Swall/New York Times/Redux/eyevineThe ObserverScienceScience-themed board games are an increasingly popular way to learn about everything from atom building to colonising space When Elizabeth Hargrave created a board game inspired by her love of birdwatching, she had no expectation it would become a tabletop phenomenon. Yet Wingspan sold out within a week of its release in January, earned glowing reviews and was the subject of a New York Times article.

BooksA new book about Emily Weiss’s billion-dollar beauty company depicts ‘a really brilliant visionary’ who was also ‘oblivious and out for herself’ In the spring of 2019, I sometimes found myself transfixed by the corner of Canal and Lafayette streets in Soho, either marveling at a line of people or in it. This was the New York headquarters of Glossier, the makeup brand of the millennial pink zeitgeist. Founded by Emily Weiss in 2014 with just four products, Glossier was – and, to an extent, still is – the purveyor of minimalist makeup in the 2010s: crisp sans serif advertising, direct-to-consumer delivery (in distinctive pink bubble packaging), a model of goddess-like, preternatural dewiness.

The ObserverThe OpenThis second extract from a new book, Tom Morris of St Andrews, The Colossus of Golf, recalls the rapid descent of a golfing hero after the terrible loss of his wife and childThere was no Open Championship in 1871, because of the death of one of its biggest supporters and lack of an organiser, and when it was staged again in 1872 Tommy won it for a fourth successive time, a feat never since matched.

US unions This article is more than 2 months oldAmazon’s first delivery workers to unionize were later fired – now they’re striking at warehousesThis article is more than 2 months oldThe online retail giant has terminated its contract with a California delivery contractor and denies it is the drivers’ joint employer Drivers from an Amazon delivery station in California have been on strike since 24 June, and have taken their strike to picket lines at over 20 Amazon warehouses around the US, including Amazon facilities in New York, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut.

World newsPastor who dissolved corpses of slain wives and children gets lifeAn elderly Hungarian émigré dubbed "the diabolical pastor" by the Belgian media was sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday after being found guilty of murdering his first two wives and four of his eight children. In an unusually brutal case which has transfixed Belgium and shocked investigators, a Brussels court found Andras Pandy, 74, guilty of six counts of premeditated murder and concluded that he had also raped three of his daughters.

The best albums of 2016: the full list Best music of 2016 The best albums of 2016: the full list Our countdown of Guardian music’s favourite albums of the year is complete, topped by a jaw-dropping work of passion and originality • More best culture of 2016 • What was your album of the year for 2016? Wed 30 Nov 2016 07.30 GMT Last modified on Mon 3 Dec 2018 15.

Observer TV reviewsTelevisionReviewA trio of crime dramas from France, the UK and Canada, with a warm and wise sitcom for dessert Philharmonia (Channel 4) | All 4 Alex Rider (Amazon Prime) Cardinal (BBC Two) | iPlayer The Other One (BBC One) | iPlayer Three highly singular murders kicked off new drama series of wildly varying mood this first week of joyous June lockdown. You may raise an eyebrow at the necessity of a corpse to hook you into a few hours’ telly – but, well, folk surely fretted mildly in the 1930s at another “‘samey” opening chapter to one of Agatha’s, until they rapidly got over themselves.

Top 10sHistory booksTheresa Breslin's top 10 books about the Spanish inquisitionOne of the darkest periods in Spain's history provides rich pickings for writers, says the children's author, inspiring novelists from Jean Plaidy to Philippa GregoryScottish author and librarian Theresa Breslin has written over 30 books for children. Ranging from historical fiction to tales of modern life and from fantasy and science fiction to school stories, Breslin's books for young adults include the Carnegie medal-winning Whispers in the Graveyard, starring a dyslexic main character, and Divided City.

ChurchSpace founders Day Edwards and Emmanuel Brown. Photograph: ChurchSpaceChurchSpace founders Day Edwards and Emmanuel Brown. Photograph: ChurchSpaceThe New Face of Small BusinessEntrepreneursDay Edwards and Emmanuel Brown match chefs and locals with underused commercial kitchens and event spaces As children, Day Edwards and Emmanuel Brown understood the difficulties involved in serving one’s faith. Edwards saw her pastor mother’s struggles as she built her congregation in Austin, Texas, moving from one location to the next, laboring to cover the overhead and pay rent.

Big BrotherAs the original reality TV show makes a comeback, we explore its bleak new palace that is packed full of pigeons. Just don’t try to go in the smoking room In all its various guises, Big Brother has now been around for more than two decades. And on Sunday night, after stints on both Channel 4 and Channel 5, the original and apparently unkillable reality format will make its long-awaited debut on ITV.

SEMANTIC ENIGMASWhy are ships always female? David Woodward, Dover, UK Ships are frequently or even usually female, but not always. In particular, in the Second World War the German battleship Bismarck, and another ship built to the same specifications, were regarded as being so magnificent that they were described using male terms. Jeremy Reynolds, London This sexist practice may be dying out especially among people who actually use ships.

A century of Balenciaga: the 10 defining moments – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email The V&A’s latest fashion exhibition, Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion, captures the fashion house’s influential style. Here are the stand-out moments from each of its 10 decades Jo Jones Main image: Balenciaga night gowns collection, 1957. Photograph: Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images Thu 25 May 2017 15.

Independent production companiesBad Girls: HBO locks in deal for US version of ITV prison dramaUS cable channel HBO, the home of The Sopranos and Sex and the City, is developing an American version of ITV prison drama Bad Girls with creative input from Six Feet Under writer Alan Ball. HBO has bought the rights to the show about the inmates of a female prison from fellow US cable channel FX, home of Nip/Tuck and The Shield.

If onlyFashion This article is more than 16 years oldConnery's hairpieceThis article is more than 16 years oldJohn PattersonIf only... Goldfinger had made life less hairy for 007. John Patterson thinks a bolder Bond could've done wonders for male-pattern baldnessI think we can all agree that among the Sean Connery Bond movies, Goldfinger represents some kind of pinnacle. After the slightly unsteady and uncertain first steps that were Dr No and From Russia With Love, by the third film in what was definitely now a franchise all the soon-to-be-familiar elements were firmly in place.

Faroe Islands 0 - 3 Czech Republic Faroe Islands Home team scorers Czech Republic Away team scorers Ladislav Krejci II 15 Vaclav Cerny 44 Vaclav Cerny 75 Match stats Possession CZE FRO 61 39 Goal attempts 0 Faroe Islands Off target 14 Czech Republic 0 Faroe Islands On target 5 Czech Republic Corners 0 8 Fouls 10 9 Lineups Faroe Islands 12 Gestsson 14 Sorensen 15 Faero 4 Vatnsdal 16 Vatnhamar 3 Davidsen 7 Bjartalid 20 Joensen 22 Andreasen 10 Vatnhamar 19 Knudsen Substitutes 2 Egilsson 13 Baldvinsson (s 83') 17 Radosavljevic (s 84') 11 Olsen 23 Reynatrod 18 Askham 9 Edmundsson (s 58') 21 Agnarsson (s 83') 5 Nattestad 8 Sorensen (s 58') 6 Johansen 1 Lamhauge Czech Republic 23 Pavlenka 5 Coufal 3 Holes 7 Krejci II 15 Jurasek 22 Soucek 21 Kral 17 Cerny 9 Hlozek 19 Jurecka 11 Kuchta Substitutes 8 Sadilek (s 81') 12 Zmrhal 10 Chytil (s 69') 16 Koubek 6 Zeleny 2 Zima 1 Vaclik 18 Sadilek (s 89') 14 Provod (s 69') 13 Doudera 20 Matousek (s 81') 4 Brabec ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6fpMGjrculZqaZpJi1br7EnaCrnZOpfHV%2FlHJqbHA%3D

Children's booksChildren's booksIt's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini - review'Mental illness is not something to dismiss, it's life threatening, and this book showcases this in such an amazing way which needs to be shown more widely in every day life'It's kind of a funny storyThis book was fantastic. Anyone dealing with any kind of mental illness needs to read this. Heck, anyone who knows anyone or knew someone who had a mental illness or saw someone with one on TV or in a movie or even just walked past someone who looked glum, needs to read this.

A life in ...BooksInterviewLarissa MacFarquhar interview: ‘People think I’m a total freak for not using the first person’ David WolfThe New Yorker profile writer talks about the joys of non-fiction, mimicking her subjects’ styles and the strange case of ‘moral saints’Very, very virtuous people are easy to dislike. These aren’t the kind of people who are simply nice to their friends and family, and generous to strangers, and donate to charity, and maybe do some volunteering at the weekend.

OpinionTrump administration This article is more than 5 years oldManners or morals? The choice is easy when the stakes are this highThis article is more than 5 years oldFrancine ProsePeople like the owner of the Red Hen restaurant have a right to express opinions about how government is being conducted On 22 June, Stephanie Wilkinson, owner of The Red Hen, a restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, asked one of her customers – Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary – to leave.

Stone Fruit: ‘our trio turn into furry beasts, all snouts and teeth’. Illustration: Lee LaiStone Fruit: ‘our trio turn into furry beasts, all snouts and teeth’. Illustration: Lee LaiGraphic novel of the monthComics and graphic novelsReviewLai’s debut graphic novel is a downbeat but moving exploration of the aftermath of a relationship Lee Lai’s graphic novel, Stone Fruit, named after a nectarine on which one of its characters chips a tooth, is not much of a book for spring.

Where to start withBooksWhere to start with: James JoyceAlways wanted to tackle the great Irish writer but not sure Ulysses is for you? This handy primer may just help you find a way in The books of James Joyce, along with Middlemarch and War and Peace, were among the titles that many vowed to read when the UK was plunged into its first coronavirus lockdown. Almost two years later, we now know that most of us filled all that time indoors with Netflix and Zoom quizzes rather than catching up on lengthy classics (apart from the author David Mitchell, who did read Ulysses in 2020).

Observer New Review Q&ATheatreInterviewActor Lucas Hedges: ‘I love nostalgia, so walking around England is another level’Michael HoganThe American star of Manchester By the Sea on making his West End debut in the world premiere of Brokeback Mountain, escaping tragic film roles, and nepo babies Brooklyn-born Lucas Hedges, 26, began his acting career in his teens with a supporting role in Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom. His breakthrough was Manchester By the Sea, which earned him an Oscar nomination.

‘I did everything first. But people forget, because people forget everything’: Carine Roitfeld wears jacket and skirt by Tom Ford; Clash T-shirt her own; necklace by Dior. Makeup by Hugo Villard at Saint Germain Agency using Chanel; hair by Olivier Schawalder at Bryant Artists using Oribe. Photograph: Patrick Swirc/The Observer‘I did everything first. But people forget, because people forget everything’: Carine Roitfeld wears jacket and skirt by Tom Ford; Clash T-shirt her own; necklace by Dior.

Science and nature booksIn an extract from her new book about how the female body drove human evolution, the writer ponders ovaries, pregnancy and why sperm and eggs behave so differently How women drove evolution: Cat Bohannon on her radical new history of humanity Here’s a modern love story for you: a friend of mine recently asked if I would be willing to donate my eggs. He and his wife, both professors at Harvard, wanted to have a child.

Golden Globes 2024Will Barbenheimer dominate the evening or can the most-ever diverse and international set of nominees really take over? It seemed for a moment that the industry was willing to turn its back on the Golden Globes and the long-cursed Hollywood Foreign Press Association that decides upon them. The group had been a joke for years but it took some damaging exposés in 2021 to turn the fun-poking into some finger-pointing, accusations of “ethical lapses” and some serious diversity issues leading the awards into disarray.

Liz Smith on the set of The Royle Family. Photograph: ITV/REX/Shutterstock GuardianTelevision & radioObituaryLiz Smith obituaryBafta award-winning actor, best known for playing Nana in The Royle Family, got her breakthrough later in life Liz Smith, who has died aged 95, was unknown until middle-age, but became a well-known and much-loved character actor. Her breakthrough came in a Mike Leigh film, Bleak Moments, when she was 49. She reached a wider audience when she starred in the memorable 1970s television comedy I Didn’t Know You Cared, written by Peter Tinniswood.

‘Jewel Black Raspberry behaves more like a blackberry.’ Photograph: Alamy Stock PhotoView image in fullscreen‘Jewel Black Raspberry behaves more like a blackberry.’ Photograph: Alamy Stock PhotoAlys Fowler's gardening columnGardening adviceAlys Fowler on how to tame the fruit that likes to move around your garden – and which varieties to choose The Guardian’s product and service reviews are independent and are in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative.

MoviesStranger By The Lake, Only Lovers Left Alive, Nymphomaniac: this week's new filmsStranger By The Lake | Only Lovers Left Alive | Nymphomaniac | A New York Winter's Tale | A World Not Ours | Stalingrad | The Godfather: Part II | HighwayStranger By The Lake (18) (Alain Guiraudie, 2013, Fra) Pierre Deladonchamps, Christophe Paou, Patrick D'Assumçao, Jérôme Chapatte. 100 minsSex and death take a synchronised swim in this bold thriller, shot at a single lakeside location.

Kyle MacLachlan in Twin Peaks’s alarming final scene. Photograph: SuppliedKyle MacLachlan in Twin Peaks’s alarming final scene. Photograph: SuppliedTwin PeaksTwin Peaks' final scene: 25 years on, it's as disturbing as everIt’s the anniversary of the weirdest conclusion to a major TV show ever screened – and one whose mystery may be solved by its return next year It had been a long season, filled with humour and flailing and complete misdirection, by the time Kyle McLachlan’s Agent Cooper returned to the Red Room, a kind of purgatory in the thick woods outside Twin Peaks.

Drama films This article is more than 9 years oldZero Dark Thirty team plan film about freed prisoner of war Bowe BergdahlThis article is more than 9 years oldOscar winners Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal are among the film-makers lining up to tell his story of disillusioned US soldier Bowe Bergdahl and his captivity by the TalibanThe Oscar-winning team behind The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty, Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal, are to bring the story of freed US prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl to the big screen.

September 11 2001eBay blocks sale of debrisDebris from the wreckage of the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon was offered for sale on eBay, the internet auction website, immediately after the terror attacks, it emerged today. The first pieces of rubble went on sale within an hour of the first plane crash, USA Today reported. Most of the debris came from New York's twin towers but some came from the Pentagon.

US elections 2024Analysis‘He wins big’: Trump takes the Republican reins in his quest for re-electionDavid Smith in Des Moines, IowaFor some Americans, it’s a nightmare from which they cannot wake, but for others it’s a new chapter in the Maga saga There is a familiar scene in many a film where the protagonist jolts awake from a terrible nightmare, only to realise that he or she didn’t wake up at all: the nightmare continues.

TV reviewDramaReviewKathy Burke directs a take on the murder-mystery for ITV that has wit, warmth and compassion – even if it’s not particularly innovative When the chatshow host Graham Norton published his debut novel, Holding, in 2016, the critical consensus was, in essence: “Ooh – this is rather good!” So, too, is its TV adaptation (ITV) of the same name, a compact four-parter by Dominic Treadwell-Collins and Karen Cogan, directed by Kathy Burke (yes, that Kathy Burke, in her first TV outing, after 20 years of successfully directing theatre productions in between entertaining us on screen).

TelevisionDisability-specific romance series are on the rise, including new Netflix series Down for Love. But are they more harmful than helpful? Insiders talk backlashes, ableism and why ‘we all deserve that special someone’ For their second date, Carlos invites Aelinor to a cooking class where they learn how to make an authentic Italian pasta dish, before eating it together. He brings her a beautiful bunch of flowers in her favourite colour, and recites self-penned poems about the ways her presence and beauty makes him feel.

Jocky WilsonWhen the darts star's face popped up behind Dexys Midnight Runners on Top of the Pops in 1982, it looked like a cock-up. Not so …As news spread of the death of two-time Darts World Champion Jocky Wilson last weekend, Twitter was trending and Facebook was aflame with tributes to the great man. Many included YouTube clips. But curiously, few of those featured footage of his finest moments on the oche, such as the 1989 World Final thriller in which he overcame Eric "

MIA This article is more than 14 years oldMIA gives birth to a baby boyThis article is more than 14 years oldJust days after performing while heavily pregnant at the Grammy awards, the British rapper now has her very own mini MIA. And they're already 'making mixtapes'MIA gave birth to a baby boy this week, having gone into labour just hours after appearing at the Grammy awards. "SUNDAY NITE I CAME HOME FROM THE GRAMMYS STILL IN THE MOOD TO PARTY,"

Michael Douglas This article is more than 10 years oldMichael Douglas: oral sex caused my cancerThis article is more than 10 years oldActor reveals to the Guardian that HPV, transmitted through oral sex, was responsible for his throat cancerXan Brooks' full interview: Michael Douglas on Liberace, Cannes, cancer and cunnilingus Michael Douglas – the star of Basic Instinct and Fatal Attraction – has revealed that his throat cancer was apparently caused by performing oral sex.

PoetryObituaryNina Cassian obituaryRomanian poet exiled to New York who wrote about childhood, ageing, freedom and, above all, loveThe poet Nina Cassian, who has died aged 89 in New York, her home since she gave up Romania for her safety's sake in the mid-1980s, produced more than 30 volumes of witty, vigorous verse, first in Romanian and, in her later years, in English. She was an entertaining reader of her own work, delighting audiences with her humour and vitality.

Late-night TV roundupLate-night hosts discuss Zelenskiy’s visit to Congress, Tucker Carlson’s new streaming service and Trump’s new trading cards Stephen ColbertLate-night hosts had a bevy of Donald Trump legal developments to process, starting with his federal trial for inciting the January 6 insurrection, in which he faces 91 felony charges. Trump’s lawyers have tried to avoid a trial by claiming that he has complete immunity from criminal prosecution for any alleged crimes committed in office.

Saturday interviewReality TVInterview'I've an overactive brain'Simon HattenstoneShe famously starred in coffee adverts, but now Cherie Lunghi has snatched the female lead in TV's Strictly Come Dancing. And she feels like she's running for prime ministerI've got a bone to pick with Cherie Lunghi. It's nothing to do with the dancing - few people who've seen her rumba would have complaints on that score. She gives a lovely twirl, her lifts are beyond graceful, and she's in a class of her own when it comes to smouldering sensuality.

‘Everyone has a story. It becomes almost like this perverse rite of passage for black men in America.’ Illustration: Joanna Gniady‘Everyone has a story. It becomes almost like this perverse rite of passage for black men in America.’ Illustration: Joanna GniadyRaceAmerican black men have historically been depicted as violent, and the racist fear that has resulted means they’re actually constantly at risk and deeply fragile In the fall of 2013, very shortly after moving to Detroit, I covered the aftermath of the fatal shooting of Renisha McBride.

Pop and rockReviewFirst Direct Arena, Leeds Young fans and emo veterans alike are kept happy in this set that mixes old favourites, rarities and a few nifty tricks Champions of earnest riffs and long song titles, Fall Out Boy broke into the mainstream in the 00s MySpace era which yielded so many other big American pop-punk successes: Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco. Over the past 20 years there have been flickers of R&B, electronica and glam rock in the Chicago band’s evolving catalogue, but their new album So Much (for) Stardust smoothly splits the difference, the perfect opportunity to service current appetites for “elder emo” nostalgia.

ObituaryFreddie Mercury obituaryQueen were never a run of the mill pop group. The guitarist Brian May studied to be an infra red astronomer, and was once asked to work at Jodrell Bank by Sir Bernar Lovell. The bassist John Deacon swotted for his BSc, while the drummer Roger Taylor studied biology. But the group's towering international success could never have been achieved without Freddie Mercury, whose death was reported yesterday.

Soccer This article is more than 20 years oldHow total football inventor was lost to HungaryThis article is more than 20 years oldIt is 50 years since the Magic Magyars shattered England's invincibility. Norman Fox remembers the Lancastrian who inspired the rout but was treated as a traitorFifty years ago next Tuesday, English football's castle crumbled. On a dank afternoon at Wembley, Hungary finally ended England's unbeaten home record against continental opposition.

PFAS This article is more than 6 months oldNew report finds most US kale samples contain ‘disturbing’ levels of ‘forever chemicals’This article is more than 6 months oldPFAS was found in seven of eight samples bought at US stores, with organic kale containing higher levels of the toxic compounds Seven out of eight US kale samples recently tested for toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” contained high levels of the compounds. The testing looked at conventional and organic kale bought at grocery stores across the country, and comes after Food and Drug Administration analyses conducted between 2019 and 2021 found no PFAS contamination.

Newcastle United This article is more than 2 months oldNewcastle’s Sven Botman may face long injury lay-off, says HoweThis article is more than 2 months oldDefender has not featured since knee injury last monthGordon or Joelinton could start up front in Carabao CupNewcastle will be without Sven Botman in Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup tie at Manchester United and the £35m Netherlands defender could be absent for some time. Botman has not played since sustaining a knee injury in September’s 8-0 win at Sheffield United and Eddie Howe did not reject suggestions that the centre-half may be sidelined long-term.

Texas This article is more than 3 months oldRecord-setting US cave diver dies during underwater excursionThis article is more than 3 months oldWhen Brett Hemphill, 56, did not return from a dive in Texas’s Phantom Springs, his colleagues dove to recover his body Brett Hemphill dived more than 40 stories deep in Texas’s Phantom Springs underwater cave system in 2013 to set a national record, breaking a mark he had set just five years earlier.

Take 10: Fancy cats Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email 'People notice she's naked, but she's just a normal cat.' Meet 10 champion fancy cats Fri 24 Apr 2009 19.01 EDT First published on Fri 24 Apr 2009 19.01 EDT Supreme Grand Champion Chichi Fleurtacious (Fleur), sphynx Photograph: Barry Lewis Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Grand Champion And Grand Premier Icemoor Torandot (Indy), cream tabby and white exotic shorthair Photograph: Barry Lewis

Barcelona This article is more than 9 years oldCarles Puyol will leave Barcelona at end of the seasonThis article is more than 9 years old Camp Nou captain rescinds final two years of his deal 35-year-old one-club man made Barça debut in 1999The Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has announced he will be leaving the Spanish champions at the end of the season following a persistent battle with a knee injury.

Lidl has partnered with peer-to-peer fashion rental firm By Rotation for the project. Photograph: Lidl/PALidl has partnered with peer-to-peer fashion rental firm By Rotation for the project. Photograph: Lidl/PAChristmas This article is more than 1 month oldLidl tempts green shoppers with Christmas jumper loan schemeThis article is more than 1 month oldNSPCC to receive profits from £2-a-day service that aims to avoid environmental cost of fast fashion If you don’t have a relative who can knit you a traditional Christmas jumper – and you’re not quite ready to invest in your own – Santa has come early: Lidl has launched a Christmas jumper rental service.

Pandora papersVolodymyr Zelenskiy This article is more than 2 years oldRevealed: ‘anti-oligarch’ Ukrainian president’s offshore connectionsThis article is more than 2 years oldVolodymyr Zelenskiy has railed against politicians hiding wealth offshore but failed to disclose links to BVI firm It was a storyline that in earlier times would have seemed impossible. For four years, the actor and comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy entertained TV audiences in Ukraine with his starring role in the sitcom Servant of the People.

The bodies of six giraffes lie on the outskirts of Eyrib village in Sabuli wildlife conservancy. Photograph: Ed Ram/Getty ImagesThe bodies of six giraffes lie on the outskirts of Eyrib village in Sabuli wildlife conservancy. Photograph: Ed Ram/Getty ImagesKenya This article is more than 2 years oldThis article is more than 2 years oldAerial shot shows devastating effect of drought that has left people and animals without water Six dead giraffes lie in a spiral on the dry earth, their bodies emaciated and interwoven.

The invisible people - Modern Slavery – in pictures Modern-day slavery in focus is supported by About this content Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Modern slavery is a crime where the most vulnerable men, women and children are abused for criminal profit, with many victims forced to live and work in squalid conditions for little or no money.

Children's booksChildren's booksThe Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness - review‘Ness seems to be one of the few contemporary YA authors who really ‘gets’ being a 21st century Western teenager, and crucially accepts it without judgement’ Devastatingly sad, laugh-out- loud funny and effortlessly clever – but this is a Patrick Ness novel, so you know that, right? What’s new, then? It will certainly be harder to read any blockbuster YA novel (especially if it’s soon to be “a major film”) in the same way again after completing The Rest of Us Just Live Here.

Turks and Caicos Islands This article is more than 3 months oldTurks and Caicos corruption trial reaches mixed verdicts for four menThis article is more than 3 months oldFormer deputy premier found guilty of bribery but acquitted of other charges in long-running case that saw islands taken under UK rule in 2009 A nearly decade-long corruption case involving top government officials and attorneys in the Turks and Caicos Islands has ended with a mixed verdict for those accused of bribery, money laundering and other charges.

A young woman vanishes. The police can't help. Her desperate family won't give up Not invisible A young woman vanishes. The police can't help. Her desperate family won't give up Ashley Heavyrunner Loring disappeared from the Blackfeet reservation in Montana – a one and a half million acres expanse of land. To find her, family and allies are deploying everything they can think of – including drones by Kate Hodal, video by Tom Silverstone

Surveillance This article is more than 10 years oldEx-FBI lawyer linked to surveillance abuses poised for federal judge postThis article is more than 10 years oldValerie Caproni, up for judgeship in important terrorism court, likely to come under fresh scepticism in wake of NSA revelationsA former senior FBI official implicated in surveillance abuses is poised to become a federal judge in one of the US's most important courts for terrorism cases.

Seafood sinigang. Food styling: Henrietta Clancy. Photograph: Romas Foord/The ObserverSeafood sinigang. Food styling: Henrietta Clancy. Photograph: Romas Foord/The ObserverThe ObserverFoodChicken in coconut vinegar, vegetables with fermented shrimp, and cassava cheesecake – the Sarap chef’s homage to his mother’s cooking I was born in Mindanao, in the south of the Philippines, but I grew up in Sydney. We used to return quite often when I was younger, but there was a lot of instability during the late 1990s and early 00s, so we stopped and I never really went back.

FictionReviewBuried secrets are uncovered and the dead rise in Kidd’s fantastical literary thriller set on the west coast of IrelandDiabolical deeds, ferociously kept secrets, black humour and magical realism abound in Jess Kidd’s richly textured, thronging debut. At its dark heart is the tale of a long-ago murder in a remote coastal village in the west of Ireland, and the young man who, nearly 30 years later, seeks to avenge it.

NFL This article is more than 2 years oldPeyton Manning enters Pro Football Hall of Fame alongside Johnson and FloresThis article is more than 2 years oldColts and Broncos quarterback is NFL’s only five-time MVPNew members from 2020 enter after Covid-19 delayPeyton Manning, the only five-time NFL MVP and a two-time Super Bowl winner who left the game five years ago with a slew of passing records, was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Sunday night with other members of the class of 2021.

BooksObituaryRosalind HicksThe daughter of Agatha Christie, who fiercely guarded her mother's estate, works and reputationFrom her mother, Agatha Christie, Rosalind Hicks, who has died aged 85, inherited fortitude, stamina and a desire for privacy. Notice in the newspapers was something to be endured. Her mother's further legacy was a literary estate - the many detective novels, published in dozens of languages, plays, films, two volumes of autobiography - that provided her daughter with a comfortable living and the role, often burdensome, of hawk-eyed protector of the integrity of every manifestation of the published work.

FictionReviewA young woman’s journey to bring her brother back from the States takes on mythological proportions in this rich, strange novelFrom its opening pages, when gaping asphalt swallows a man, a car, a dog and “even the screams of passersby”, this marvellously rich, slim novel is working on many levels. The lethal sinkhole is located in a generic silver-mining town in Mexico, “riddled with bullet holes and tunnels bored from five centuries of voracious silver lust”.

Metal This article is more than 1 year oldSteve Grimmett, frontman of metal band Grim Reaper, dies aged 62This article is more than 1 year oldPart of the new wave of British heavy metal, Grim Reaper formed in 1979, with Grimmett joining in 1982 Steve Grimmett, the frontman of British heavy metal band Grim Reaper known for his piercing head voice, has died aged 62. The news was confirmed by his son Russ Grimmett on Facebook: “We can’t begin to put into words the current feelings.

The Greek prime minister and Syriza have betrayed their people and their principles. They have to go, says former president of the Hellenic parliament Zoe Konstantopoulou Published: 9 Jul 2018 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRosaidXaC8r7%2FTmqWtp6Ckwq271A%3D%3D

US elections 2016Nevada was meant to be a brick in Hillary Clinton’s ‘firewall’, but Sanders’ radical reforms appeal to Latino workers and students heading to Saturday’s caucuses Hillary Clinton posters are in their apartment window and Bernie Sanders stickers are on their car. The Macias family are similar to many Latinos who find themselves unusually torn ahead of Nevada’s Democratic caucuses. 'The fire is spreading': Bernie Sanders is the Katniss in Nevada's Hunger GamesRead moreBut this family has more at stake than most.

Philadelphia EaglesEagles’ Jalen Hurts downgraded to questionable as illness worsensHurts questionable for Monday at Seahawks because of illnessPatricia to call defensive plays while Desai remains coordinatorPhiladelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is questionable for Monday night’s game at Seattle because of an illness, a person familiar with his status told the Associated Press on Sunday. NFL roundup: Bengals edge Vikings to boost playoff hopes; Colts and Lions rollRead moreThe person, speaking on condition of anonymity because the injury report hasn’t been released yet, said Hurts will travel separately from the team.

EM ForsterFor several decades EM Forster was involved in a love triangle with a policeman and his wife – an unconventional arrangement in which the novelist found happinessFor 40 years, EM Forster and the policeman Bob Buckingham were in a loving relationship. Buckingham was 28, Forster 51, when the two met. They shared holidays, friends, interests, and – on many weekends – a domestic and sexual life in Forster's Brunswick Square flat.

MusicIn an illuminating new book, the incredible highs and devastating lows of the influential musician are remembered Over a decade before he died, Leon Russell began writing a never-completed memoir that highlighted a story of deep humiliation. Upon noticing, at age four, that his genitals looked different from those of his female cousin, the two began to examine each other in a secluded playhouse. That is, until a stern aunt discovered them and, instead of recognizing their play as innocent exploration, proceeded to parade Russell in front of his entire family while accusing him of any number of high crimes and heinous acts.

Palestinian territoriesNew wave of violence sweeps West Bank as Israel launches series of raidsPalestinian officials say at least 12 people killed since Wednesday and Tulkarem refugee camp under ‘siege’ Middle East crisis: live updates A new wave of violence has swept the occupied West Bank, with a series of major raids launched by the Israeli military across much of the territory, amid further intense fighting and bombardment in Gaza.

Carol Rumens's poem of the weekPoetryAs the elegiac poem develops across its three verses, the powerful imagery becomes a metaphor for the insurmountable grief caused by the death by fire of the poet’s beloved wife Snow-Flakes Out of the bosom of the Air, Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken, Over the woodlands brown and bare, Over the harvest-fields forsaken Silent, and soft, and slow Descends the snow. Even as our cloudy fancies take

Film blogAction and adventure filmsQuiz: Die Hard – test your film knowledgeDie Hard was released 25 years ago this week. To mark the occasion, here's a quiz to test how well you know the film and its sequelsncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6ZobpwssilpJukn5x8ssHIs2ZraGFofKvBy2hob2ehqra7ecOinGagkaexbsDErKtmsZ%2Bqv263zaiupZ2UnLI%3D

Western Australia This article is more than 1 year oldThree people face Perth court charged with the murder of Indigenous teenager Cassius TurveyThis article is more than 1 year oldBrodie Lee Palmer, Mitchell Colin Forth and Aleesha Louise Gilmore were charged with murder on Wednesday Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast Three more people have faced court over the alleged bashing death of Indigenous teenager Cassius Turvey as he walked home from school in Perth.

FictionReviewAlan Warner salutes a great writer who should have won the PulitzerHurrah. Some have started to say that Denis Johnson might be one of America's greatest fiction writers. This should have been obvious in 1986, with his third novel, The Stars at Noon – and it was certainly confirmed by the linked short story collection, Jesus' Son, in 1992. There is something discomfiting about Johnson's work, for middlebrow lit shits. Perhaps it's a puritanical reaction to the author's own biography: his promising youth, lost in fearsome psychic turmoil; his reluctance to play the contemporary games of interview and Twitter, where author comes before work.

Women's rights and gender equality This article is more than 3 years old'She can't say no': the Ugandan men demanding to be breastfedThis article is more than 3 years oldA study is looking into the coercive practice in Uganda, amid calls for the government to address the issue Jane’s* husband likes breast milk. “He says he likes the taste of it, and that it helps him in terms of his health.

Tired and emotional … a detail from Albert Hurter’s concept drawings for Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Photograph: BonhamsTired and emotional … a detail from Albert Hurter’s concept drawings for Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Photograph: BonhamsWalt Disney Company This article is more than 7 years oldBurpy, baldy, deafy … auctioned artwork reveals rejected Snow White dwarvesThis article is more than 7 years oldBonhams sketches flesh out 16 potentially offensive characters that didn’t make the cut for the final seven in classic Disney animation

Fox NewsNetwork and former star remain at loggerheads in wake of surprise dismissal – is there a resolution in sight? How did it come to this? Fox News and its longtime prime-time star at loggerheads as Tucker Carlson broadcasts on Twitter from a barn in Maine while the network that fired him demands he cease and desist. “We’re at the two-month mark since Carlson’s last show, which he didn’t know was his last show.

I discovered …EnvironmentI realised other ancient trees could have survived, right under our noses. In France, they discovered one tree that had started growing before the Romans left I’ll be 75 in March, and we old people often reflect on why certain things happened in our lives. This is very personal, but I was tall and skinny as a kid – I was always the one who was beaten up at school.

The ObserverWorld newsMartial arts star kicks his way into the political limelightThe presidential primaries have thrown up almost constant shocks and surprises. But there is one thing that stunned everyone in politics: the unexpected impact of Chuck Norris. Of course, as many TV villains can testify, no one ever sees Chuck Norris coming. Or at least not until it's too late. Then he kicks you in the face. Yet to the amazement of pundits everywhere, Norris has transformed the Republican race.

Painting This article is more than 4 months oldNicolas de Staël exhibition aims to put art back at centre of tragic artist’s storyThis article is more than 4 months oldWorks by painter, whose turbulent life often overshadowed his short career, go on display in Paris The life of the Russian-born French artist Nicolas de Staël was short, turbulent and ultimately tragic. Forced into exile by the 1917 revolution, orphaned, a loner who was hopelessly romantic but unlucky in love, De Staël died at the age of 41 after he threw himself out of the window of his Côte d’Azur atelier after the woman with whom he was obsessed rejected him.

Regrettable celebrity tattoos Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email 6 August 2009: Celebrities, they're just like us! They make permanent mistakes in tattoo ink, too Thu 6 Aug 2009 14.50 EDT First published on Thu 6 Aug 2009 14.50 EDT Beckham can bend it, but he can't read Sanskrit. Posh's proper name is spelled - or, rather, misspelled - 'Vihctoria' on his left forearm Photograph: Kevork Djansezian/Getty

Bloom of the boot ... Photograph: dardespot/Getty ImagesBloom of the boot ... Photograph: dardespot/Getty ImagesPass notesGardensThe pandemic planting craze continues apace, with cacti grown on dashboards. Not to mention the gardens springing up in fire stations and along railway sidings Name: Cardening. Age: New, according to social media users who have been sharing pictures of it during the pandemic, but in-depth research by the Pass notes team has found a reference dating to 2007, when a man in Minneapolis recommended cardening as a way to combat road rage.

Notes and queriesAnimalsThe long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific concepts Why do mice have such long tails? Several wood mice live in the dry stone wall a couple of metres from my back door. Most of them have tails that are longer than their bodies. Occasionally one has a tail only about half as long, which I suspect has been shortened accidentally.

TV and radio blogRadioA formula for the perfect voice?A study claims to have found an equation for the most pleasing male and female voice. Listen to the results here and let us know what you thinkResearchers claim to have worked out a formula to find the perfect human voice. The study, which asked people to rate 50 voices then analysed the results, found a combination of Mariella Frostrup, Dame Judi Dench and Honor Blackman makes up the perfect female voice, while the most appealing male voice is a mixture of Alan Rickman, Jeremy Irons and Michael Gambon.

OpinionAnn Widdecombe This article is more than 13 years oldAnn Widdecombe just got sexyThis article is more than 13 years oldVictoria CorenAnn Widdecombe may be a virgin, but by putting dance ahead of the pope the ex-MP has shown an admirable lust for lifeAnn Widdecombe has never seemed more human. Or, some might say, human. Just kidding; that always looked like flesh and blood to me. Suspicions of robotism are a standard joke about any right-wing MP, given extra currency because Miss Widdecombe is a virgin.

The state drawing room with its Jacobean ceiling in Boston Manor House. Photograph: Chris Redgrave/Historic England ArchiveThe state drawing room with its Jacobean ceiling in Boston Manor House. Photograph: Chris Redgrave/Historic England ArchiveHeritage This article is more than 6 months oldJacobean manor house in west London readies for public openingThis article is more than 6 months oldBoston Manor House in Brentford, which dates back 400 years, has received a six-year restoration costing £6m

ScienceMeet the real Dr StrangeloveHad Edward Teller, the father of the H-bomb, trusted the Russians the cold war might have ended sooner, writes Peter GoodchildI first met Edward Teller, the Hungarian-born physicist and father of the H-bomb, while researching a television series about Robert Oppenheimer. Teller was seen as the embodiment of Dr Strangelove, the eponymous scientist in Stanley Kubrick's classic black comedy, and though he hated the association, it seemed appropriate enough.

BooksObituaryNigel NicolsonDistinguished publisher and biographer dogged by the shadow of his famous parentsThe publisher, editor, biographer and sometime politician Nigel Nicolson, who has died aged 87, laboured in the shadow of his famous and turbulent parents, the diplomat Sir Harold Nicolson and the writer and gardener Vita Sackville-West. Although, like his elder brother, the art historian Ben Nicolson, he managed to carve a distinguished career for himself, this background was something of an ordeal, both professionally and emotionally, and, for a man of such obvious talents, Nigel Nicolson remained all his life considerably underrated.

Book of the dayFictionReviewThe Nazis control Paris in 1950 and the art world’s surrealist visions have come to life in this dreamlike vision of an alternative history Imagine if surrealist artworks were coming to monstrous life and roaming the streets of occupied Paris during an alternative-history 1950 in which the second world war was still going and the Nazis were desperately trying to raise demons from hell. Actually you don’t need to, because China Miéville has.

SocietyObituaryThe Rev Ken Leech obituaryRadical priest and theologian who founded the homelessness charity CentrepointKen Leech, who has died aged 76 of cancer, stood firmly in the proud tradition of radical prophetic priests in the English Catholic, rather than Roman Catholic, tradition – one that comes closest to Latin America’s liberation theology. His commitment to allying prayer with political action led him to create the Centrepoint charity for young homeless people in central London, to work tirelessly on promoting good race relations, and to become an influential writer exploring the relationship between intimacy with God and compassionate political commitment to a more just and peaceful world.

TheatreReviewDavid Eldridge's play begins with an IRA bomb exploding at Canary Wharf in 1996, but in his flat nearby teacher Nick (Chris O'Dowd) is about to drop his own bombshell on his besotted colleague, Helen (Lisa Dillon). He intends to shortly leave the Leytonstone comprehensive where they both teach, and Helen, with whom he dallies without making any serious commitment, to take up a post in a minor Essex public school.

WomenWomen are embracing drag and camp glamour to playfully subvert gender and femininity. Miss Malice, Holestar and Victoria Sin explain why they are revamping queer culture The inspiration for Miss Malice’s drag act, she says, is “lesbian pulp novel covers, 60s B-movie heroines and mid-century working-class femmes”. One of her most popular performances is her take on Drew Barrymore’s character in the 90s teen horror movie Scream. “She dies in the first 10 minutes of the film, but I created a revision that imagines her living and revenging herself against her harasser,” she explains.

Australian Open 2020'God, that was tough': Federer frazzled after surviving thriller with MillmanFederer beats Aussie world No 47 4–6, 7–6, 6–4, 4–6, 7–6 (8)Third seed Tsitsipas crashes out to Raonic in straight setsBy the time Roger Federer stood to face the crowd after his frenzied four-hour 4-6, 7-6, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (8) victory over John Millman, he looked frazzled. His face was flushed, his hair was a mess and as he was beckoned to speak to the adoring crowd about his brush with defeat, he stumbled over his words.

CatholicismConsider revising celibacy rule for Catholic priests, Vatican official saysChurch has ‘lost many great priests because they chose marriage’, says Charles Scicluna of Malta A senior Vatican official has said that the Roman Catholic church should revise the requirement for priests to be celibate, while acknowledging that some will view the idea as “heretical”. Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, who is based in the Vatican’s doctrinal office and is an adviser to Pope Francis, said: “If it were up to me, I would revise the requirement that priests have to be celibate.

Maryland This article is more than 8 years oldMaryland mother found pushing dead son on swing charged with abuseThis article is more than 8 years oldRomechia Simms, 24, indicted on charges of manslaughter, first-degree child abuse and child neglect A Maryland woman who was found pushing her dead son in a playground swing earlier this year has been indicted and charged with manslaughter and child abuse, authorities announced Monday. The Charles County state’s attorney’s office announced that Romechia Simms, 24, was arrested Saturday and faced an arraignment Monday.

My life in sexSexAway from spanking, I’m a light-hearted, mild-mannered chap This morning, I visited my next-door neighbour and spanked her. Afterwards, I drove down the motorway and spanked another woman, whom I visit twice a week. Tonight, I’m having a first meeting – just drinks and a chat – with a woman who wants to be spanked. Then, tomorrow, I’m driving to Plymouth to see another woman whom I discipline regularly.

My life in sexSexMy fantasies now flip between being caught at the bottom of a naked rugby scrum and wondering what it would be like to pleasure a woman I’ve identified as a gay man since my early teens. I’ve always been happy in my identity and – give or take bullying at school, the nasty experience of coming out to my parents (long since healed), and being diagnosed HIV positive 20 years ago – life has been happy and fulfilling.

The Pogues This article is more than 3 years oldShould the BBC have censored Fairytale of New York?This article is more than 3 years oldPatrick Strudwick, Luke Turner and Alex HoodThe BBC has laid out differing rules when playing the Pogues song, which features homophobic and misogynist slurs. Listeners to Radio 1, Radio 2 and 6 Music consider the decision Radio 1 to air censored version of Pogues’ Fairytale of New York The Radio 1 listener: Alex HoodA culture war around the Pogues’ song Fairytale of New York feels like a new Christmas tradition, like a Lindt chocolate Santa, but homophobic.

Kitty Empire's artist of the weekSt VincentReviewCambridge Corn Exchange Annie Clark has crafted an unsettlingly sexy live show fit for the heavy themes and neon 80s pulse of MasseductionThere are those who primarily know of Annie Clark – the performer billed as St Vincent – as the ex-partner of the British model Cara Delevingne, a partnership lived in the full glare of paparazzi flashbulbs. That all ended a while ago, but the period was captured in painful, prurient detail on Masseduction, St Vincent’s landmark 2017 album.

Other livesGlobal developmentObituaryStephen Turner obituaryMy brother, Stephen Turner, who has died aged 69 of bowel cancer, was a development consultant who spent much of his career in Africa, notably in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. A gentle soul, Stephen had a knack for forging consensus and achieving results. He was committed to bettering the lives of the poorest people in Africa. From 1987 until 1990 he was head of the environmental division of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project, calculating compensation for villagers whose lands were flooded by dams built to provide water to South Africa, and power and income to Lesotho.

Sykes (Martin Scorsese) ... with money that he borrows from his boss. Sykes is a puffer fish, who never misses an opportunity to make a few extra clams. But Oscar had better stay on the right side of Sykes because if he doesn't ... Who's who in Shark Tale ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6ZobpwvMicq66qlah8qrnAoJxoaFxtgnWBi2ZoaW5gan10hJJramVoYGO1tbnL

David Cassidy – a life in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email After finding fame as Keith Partridge on the musical TV show The Partridge Family, David Cassidy became a teen heart-throb and hugely popular singer in the 1970s, and also acted and performed in musical theatre David Cassidy, star of 70s TV hit The Partridge Family, dies at 67 Matt Fidler

The ObserverSeptember 11 2001Distant voices, still lives, 09:38-10:0009:38 - South Tower, 97th floor, Fiduciary Trust; Aon Corp, 93rd floor. 21 mins to collapse. 'Ed, be careful!' shouted Alayne Gentul, director of human resources at Fiduciary Trust, as Edgar Emery slipped off the desk he had been standing on within the increasingly hot and smoky 97th floor of the South Tower. Emery had been using his blazer to seal a ventilation duct that was belching smoke.

Israel-Gaza war This article is more than 1 month oldFootage shows IDF parading scores of Palestinian men around in underwearThis article is more than 1 month oldIsraeli media claimed images show Hamas fighters but several civilians have been identified including a journalist Israel-Gaza war – live updates The International Committee of the Red Cross has said it is concerned by images of semi-naked Palestinian men being paraded by the Israeli military in Gaza, adding that all of those detained must be treated in keeping with international humanitarian law.

From the Guardian archiveCapital punishmentFrom the archive, 16 October 1976: Texas prison to switch 'Old Sparky' back onBehind the infamous electric chair there are rooms that hold the generators, the rheostat, the telephone for last-minute messages, and two thick iron levers Huntsville, Texas, October 15 The staff at the Texas State Prison at Huntsville have just tested their 52-year-old electric chair, Old Sparky, and, to their obvious delight, have found it works perfectly.

MoviesReviewThis film about Misha Defonseca, author of a ‘memoir’ about escaping the Nazis and sheltering with wolves as a child, is propulsively watchable “Sometimes a story is so astonishing it’s unbelievable.” So said a Massachusetts radio presenter in the 90s, introducing Misha Defonseca, a local Jewish woman originally from Belgium. As a child in the war, Defonseca walked hundreds of miles across Nazi-occupied Germany to find her parents. She was one of Belgium’s “hidden children”, taken in by a Catholic family, her identity erased.

Higher educationResearchers find the real face of Father ChristmasChildren expecting the ruddy cheeked, blue-eyed, elderly Father Christmas to pop down their chimneys on December 25 are being misled. According to new research, Saint Nicholas did once exist, but he was short, olive-skinned and had a broken nose. Using forensic technology more often used to reconstruct a facial image from rotting remains, scientists have pieced together an image of Saint Nicholas that owes more to his 4th century Turkish roots and bruiser lifestyle than the 20th century Coca-Cola advert, which introduced the red suit.

The ObserverPsychologyThe idea of summoning the spirits took thrilling hold of the Victorian imagination – and has its adherents now. But the psychology behind spiritualism is more intriguingAs the evenings get darker and the first hint of winter hangs in the air, the western world enters the season of the dead. It begins with Halloween, continues with All Saints' and All Souls' days, runs through Bonfire Night – the evening where the English burn effigies of historical terrorists – and ends with Remembrance Day.

MusicSurprise fame has found bands decades after they recorded music, including a group who originally made an album when they were just 11 years old In December 2021, a band called Panchiko played a gig. Hundreds of fans were there, at Metronome in Nottingham, England, singing along to their songs. All of this might seem like a standard routine for bands, but for the three members of Panchiko, it was a marvel.

SPECULATIVE SCIENCEWhy are all the planets spherical but asteroids are not? Krishan Bhatnagar, Lindsborg KS USA Asteroids start out round but soon after they start taking performance-enhancing drugs. This causes them to bulge out unevenly hence their asymetrical shape. Sally, Toronto Ontario Add your answer ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKafqbK0rc2dqK6dop6ytHvQrpyrsV9leXaDlGxjZmxobYN3eI9pZaGsnaE%3D

Oliver the cat and NSW senator David Leyonhjelm. Photograph: Helen Dale/SuppliedOliver the cat and NSW senator David Leyonhjelm. Photograph: Helen Dale/SuppliedOpinionCats This article is more than 8 years oldCats are natural libertarians: nothing less than equality is acceptable to themThis article is more than 8 years oldDavid LeyonhjelmMy four wonderful cats are all individuals, refuse to identify with groups, and I spend a lot of time meeting their needs. Sounds like libertarianism to me

H&MCourting controversy: from H&M’s ‘coolest monkey’ to Gucci’s blackface jumperLast year, the Swedish brand’s “casual racism” led to the appointment of a diversity division. But can brands really learn from their mistakes? It’s been just over a year since H&M apologised for an advertising image featuring a black boy modelling a hoodie with the slogan “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle”. The Swedish brand issued the following statement at the time: “We have got this wrong and we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists.

The Dropbox data breach has highlighted the problem of password reuse. Photograph: AlamyThe Dropbox data breach has highlighted the problem of password reuse. Photograph: AlamyDropbox This article is more than 7 years oldDropbox hack leads to leaking of 68m user passwords on the internetThis article is more than 7 years oldData stolen in 2012 breach, containing encrypted passwords and details of around two-thirds of cloud firm’s customers, has been leaked

"Welcome to El Bonaerense - God help you!" This is the unpromising greeting extended to Zapa, a very scared new recruit to the closed world of the Buenos Aires city cops: macho, violent and dishonest. The smell of locker-room sweat and fear rises in waves from this tough new Argentinian movie from Pablo Trapero: a superbly persuasive thriller about the dark side of the police. It's more deadpan and downbeat than other pictures from the New Latin Cinema like Amores Perros, City of God or Y Tu Mama Tambien.

Sexual healingRelationshipsI do not enjoy sex at all – and can only masturbate this way. Can I learn to move on? I am a 22-year-old woman and have been bothered by a sexual issue for a few years. I do not enjoy sex at all (not just penetrative sex ). Even oral sex or stimulating the clitoris does nothing for me. I have been masturbating by squeezing my thighs together since I was very young and, even today, itis the only way I can feel any pleasure sexually.

Michael Gambon on stage, from King Lear to Krapp – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email More than 50 years after his stage debut, Michael Gambon has announced that he is retiring from the theatre. Here’s a reminder of some of his celebrated performances in plays by Beckett, Shakespeare and Pinter, with co-stars including Jenny Agutter, Daniel Craig and Lee Evans

Ask Annalisa BarbieriFamilyYou are not responsible for your mother. You have your own losses – and young children – to deal with I am a woman in my late 30s, married with two small children with a rewarding and demanding career. I live some hours’ drive away from where I grew up and where my mum lives. I really love my life but I need some advice regarding my relationship with my mum.

Surprisingly likable and relateable: Tom Hardy as ordinary guy Bob in The Drop. Photograph: Chernin/Fox Serchlight/Kobal/Rex/ ShutterstockThe actor’s latest movie, Capone, further builds upon his beefy and menacing screen presence, but there is another side that shines through in some of Hardy’s great roles by Peter Bradshaw20. Rocknrolla (2008)There aren’t as many mockney-geezery roles in Tom Hardy’s career as you might think, although he has a turn in this and also in Matthew Vaughn’s Layer Cake, in which he plays one of the lackadaisical members of a crew run by Daniel Craig’s icily professional cocaine dealer.

Alfie and one of her owlets. Photograph: Carl SafinaGuiding a young bird back into nature showed that, if we want to prevent the world’s destruction, we must value lives that aren’t human by Carl Safina“What kind of bird is this?” The text from my wildlife rehabilitator friend had asked. I had to squint at the photo. Was this a dirty rag? No, a nestling. In very bad shape. A screech owl.

Coronavirus This article is more than 1 year oldBBC criticised for letting cardiologist ‘hijack’ interview with false Covid jab claimThis article is more than 1 year oldAseem Malhotra’s ‘misguided’ views linking some Covid vaccines to excess heart disease deaths should not have aired, say experts The BBC has come under fire from scientists for interviewing a cardiologist who claimed certain Covid vaccines could be behind excess deaths from coronary artery disease.

Lost in showbizLife and styleDavid Beckham's new nickname is preternaturally coolDavid Beckham: a hero warrior whose ability to be accepted and make a difference has always been under threat from his surname's poignant incapacity to bear the classic, footballer-nickname suffix -y (see Wisey, Scholesey, all-the-frickin'-resty). Inspirational news for humanity, then, as it is reported that David's wife Victoria has come up with a totally awesome nickname for the man she once christened Goldenballs.

Indigenous Australians This article is more than 2 years oldIndigenous entrepreneurs urged to verify their business to weed out 'black-cladding'This article is more than 2 years oldA small number of businesses are seeking to take advantage of government procurement targets, researchers say Indigenous entrepreneurs are being encouraged to verify their business as majority owned and controlled by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in order to weed out businesses engaging in “black-cladding” to secure contracts under government procurement policies.

Voluntary Sector NetworkMicrovolunteering: what is it and why should you do it?Smartphone apps are helping volunteers donate their time in short, efficient bursts. Here’s how charities can tap in to the trend Solving the mystery of the Loch Ness Monster would constitute a good deed, right? Well on that basis a webcam has been set up overlooking the Scottish loch for anyone to tune in and try to catch a glimpse of the elusive creature.

Green streetsEnvironmentExplainerLow-traffic neighbourhoods have existed for decades but plans often spark fierce debate. We look at some of the biggest concerns Tell us about your experiences of reducing traffic and creating green neighbourhoods Read more in our Green streets series Low-traffic schemes benefit everyone, not just the better-off, finds study Not all low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) are perfect, or do exactly what is intended. But often the objections are based on assumptions that vary from the misplaced to the downright incorrect.

Book of the dayHistory booksReviewThe academic’s discursive, wonderfully enjoyable account of South Asia’s journey from a British colony to three independent nations is a classic The sudden rise of India over the past few years has taken many western observers by surprise. The Indian economy has quadrupled in size in a generation. Its ancient reputation as a centre for mathematics and scientific skills remains intact, and Indian software engineers increasingly dominate Silicon Valley.

TV tonightTelevision & radioThe hugely popular true-crime series tackles a very tricky case. Plus: Suranne Jones picks up the pace in thriller Vigil. Here’s what to watch this evening 24 Hours in Police Custody9pm, Channel 4A harrowing and complex feature-length episode of this true-crime documentary series deals with the alleged rape of a man after a Grindr date. It’s an incredibly tricky situation to unpick – one man says the sex was consensual while the other feels he was assaulted.

Megan Carpentier columnUS politics This article is more than 9 years oldWhy Hillary Clinton should keep her mouth shutThis article is more than 9 years oldMegan CarpentierShe might not be the change liberals are looking for, but her no-comment policy – on Ferguson and beyond – will keep her the frontrunner Hillary Clinton is not going to save you. She’s not your mother, your best friend or your confessor; a time machine to the 90s, the solution to the nation’s increasing divisiveness, or the correct variable in a complicated equation that equals 538; a reflection of what you want to hear, or the embodiment of what you want a “leader” to believe.

Extreme sportsWhen pro climber and Base jumper Steph Davis lost her husband in a wingsuit crash, she considered giving up on everything. In the last chapter of her new memoir, Davis describes overcoming loss and returning to flying Despite two decades as a professional climber, putting up free solo and first ascents of notable peaks around the world, Steph Davis isn’t what you picture when you think of an extreme athlete.

Daphne Caruana Galizia This article is more than 3 years old'She left a strong legacy': children's book tells story of Daphne Caruana GaliziaThis article is more than 3 years oldFriend of Maltese journalist recounts her battles against corruption for young readers Her death brought thousands of people on to the streets of Malta and led to the resignation of a prime minister. Now the life of the investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has inspired a book for children.

Arizona This article is more than 2 months oldArizona woman dies after attack by elk she was suspected of feedingThis article is more than 2 months oldIn response to the attack, local officials have been putting up warning signs about not feeding elk in local communities An Arizona woman has died after being attacked by an elk she is suspected of feeding, becoming the first person to be killed by the species in the state’s history, local wildlife officials have said.

Obama administration This article is more than 8 years oldArne Duncan to step down as education secretary after seven-year tenureThis article is more than 8 years oldDuncan tells staff he is returning to Chicago after seven yearsObama tapping John King Jr to be acting secretary for rest of termArne Duncan, who followed president Barack Obama to Washington to serve as his education secretary, announced on Friday he will step down following a seven-year tenure marked by a willingness to plunge head-on into the heated debate about the government’s role in education.

TV reviewTV crime dramaReviewSeries four of the Caribbean-set comedy drama bowed out with the usual bumbling Englishness, things being knocked over and comedy lizardsIt’s rare there isn’t something new starting off, or something interesting and original happening, on television. But last night was one of those barren nights. So here’s something not very interesting or original coming to an end, the final episode of the current (fourth) series of Death in Paradise (BBC1).

‘That panic that comes at you, it kills you before your real death comes’ … Harrison Okene. Photograph: HandoutHarrison Okene had no choice but to listen in the dark as the shouts of his colleagues fell silent. His throat throbbed and his tongue peeled. Ten years on, he explains why he loves the sea more than ever – and decided to become a diver by Paula CocozzaHarrison Okene was sitting on the toilet – surely the worst place to be as disaster strikes – when a freak wave hit the tugboat he was working on, and turned it upside down.

The ObserverIsrael-Gaza warAttacks in the Red Sea. An airstrike in Baghdad. As the conflict with Hamas bleeds across borders, is wider violence inevitable? Mohammad Atout, a Palestinian resident of the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp in Beirut, was eating with his children on Tuesday evening when the news broke across the Lebanese capital that Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’s political bureau, had been assassinated. “Someone told me there had been an attack [in Beirut].

Birds This article is more than 1 year oldSwedish firm deploys crows to pick up cigarette buttsThis article is more than 1 year oldClever corvids become newest weapon in Södertälje’s war against street litter Crows are being recruited to pick up discarded cigarette butts from the streets and squares of a Swedish city as part of a cost-cutting drive. The wild birds carry out the task as they receive a little food for every butt that they deposit in a bespoke machine designed by a startup in Södertälje, near Stockholm.

OpinionA-levels This article is more than 5 months oldThe Guardian view on England’s class of ’23: failed by the governmentThis article is more than 5 months oldEditorialThe Whitehall decision to return to pre-pandemic grading was premature, and unfair on a cohort whose education was defined by Covid The students who this week collected their A-level results overcame a formidable set of challenges. The class of 2023 were plunged into their first formal examinations only this summer, having been awarded their GCSEs by teacher assessment due to the pandemic.

California This article is more than 4 months oldCalifornia orders bottled water firm to stop drawing from natural springsThis article is more than 4 months oldBlueTriton, the company that owns Arrowhead brand, has been taking water from San Bernardino springs for more than 100 years California has ordered the company that owns Arrowhead bottled water to stop using some of the natural springs it has utilized for more than a century, following a years-long campaign by environmentalists to stop the operation.

Denmark Denmark royal family: Queen Margrethe II formally signs her abdication – video Queen Margrethe II has formally signed her abdication, ending her 52-year reign as Denmark’s longest-serving monarch. Denmark’s prime minister then proclaimed Frederik X as king on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen Denmark’s King Frederik X takes throne after Margrethe abdicates Source: DKHOST via AP Sun 14 Jan 2024 16.21 GMT Last modified on Tue 16 Jan 2024 23.

True crime author and former LAPD detective Steve Hodel at his home in Sherman Oaks, California. Photograph: Emily Berl/The GuardianTrue crime author and former LAPD detective Steve Hodel at his home in Sherman Oaks, California. Photograph: Emily Berl/The GuardianUS crimeFormer Los Angeles police department detective Steve Hodel has spent the last 15 years cataloguing evidence that his dad killed Elizabeth Short – and others Shortly after receiving the news of his father’s death, Steve Hodel found himself sorting through his belongings.

Wildlife Kangaroos use tail as 'third leg' - video Research conducted by scientists in Australia, the US and Canada shows that kangaroos plant their tails on the ground in sequence prior to their hind legs, pushing them forwards. This gives the tail the role of a 'third leg', doing a similar job to a human leg – a far different role than proposed by the previous theory that the tail merely provides support and balance Source: Guardian

CoachellaReviewAs a replacement for Beyoncé, her newer tracks didn’t always land but she delivered the faultless crowd-pleaser expected of her Filling a slot that was once set to be occupied by Beyoncé is at best difficult and at worst utterly terrifying, her position at the very top of the industry uncontested. So when she had to drop out of headlining Coachella because of her pregnancy, organisers were stuck with the unenviable process of finding another performer to satisfy a disappointed crowd.

Adolf Hitler Look Who's Back trailer: film asks what happens if Hitler appears in 2015 – video Starring Oliver Masucci as Adolf Hitler, He Is Back asks what would happen if Hitler appeared in 2015. This satirical film follows the reawakened Hitler as he tries to start a career in television and his encounters with people, and animals, across the new Germany in the 21st century Constantin Film, Source: Constantin Film

World newsMadonna of Guadalupe 'fake'The Vatican was thrown on to the defensive yesterday after the Virgin of Guadalupe, one of the Roman Catholic church's most powerful icons, was accused of being a con. The attack came not from secular scholars, but the very clerics who for decades watched over the Guadalupe shrine, which draws millions of pilgrims each year. In a letter leaked to the press, the former abbot of the basilica in Mexico City, Guillermo Schulenburg, warned Pope John Paul II not to canonise Juan Diego, a native American whose vision of the Virgin 500 years ago was decisive in converting Latin America to Christianity.

OpinionPregnancy This article is more than 6 years oldNothing prepared me for pregnancy – apart from the never-ending hangover of my 20sThis article is more than 6 years oldJessica KnappettI am queasy, irritable and dehydrated. My heavy-drinking days have trained me well for having a baby I am pregnant. I think I’m supposed to say we’re pregnant but it feels more like I’m the pregnant one. He is just reading about being pregnant.

Slick oil: Richard Wilson's 20:50 at the Saatchi Gallery Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email 12 January 2010: You may have seen artist Richard Wilson's oleaginous installation before. Created over 20 years ago, this spectacular waist-high reservoir of recycled sump oil, one of Britart's most iconic installations, was bought by collector Charles Saatchi and has been exhibited at his various galleries in London – first at Boundary Road in St John's Wood, then at County Hall beside the Thames.

TelevisionObituaryDiane HollandImposing figure on stage and Hi-De-Hi!In the 1980s, Diane Holland, who has died aged 78, was a Sunday night fixture as one of the ensemble cast of the holiday camp television sitcom Hi-De-Hi! The series was written by Jimmy Perry - who was Holland's brother-in-law - and David Croft. While it never challenged their earlier BBC success, Dad's Army, for critical standing or subsequent longevity, it was consistently successful in the ratings and lasted for nine series, from 1980 to 1988.

Other livesPalaeontologyObituaryIan McMillan obituaryMy brother, Ian McMillan, who has died aged 72, was a micropalaeontologist who specialised in the study of foraminifera – microfossils that provide evidence of the age of rock layers, and which are therefore useful in providing data for the oil and diamond industries. His expertise led him to work mainly in South Africa, but he also took part in projects in Sierra Leone, Angola, Namibia, Cameroon, Argentina and Tanzania.

The ObserverHealth, mind and body booksReviewAfter coming close to death in her own hospital, a doctor perhaps protests too much at the language used by her lifesaversIn two thousand and something (we’re never given an idea of dates in the book, meaning we’re always slightly disoriented in time, as if we’re drifting in and out of a coma in intensive care), Dr Rana Awdish was admitted to the Detroit hospital she worked in and came pretty much as close as is possible to death.

TV reviewTelevision & radioReviewThis documentary follows the feathered, bejewelled British women who staff the Parisian institution. Be warned: the reality is all a bit cheap and shoddy There are certain shows that make you think of the joy that must have lit up the producer’s face when news reached them of its premise. With Moulin Rouge: Yes We Can-Can!, I imagine an eager young thing bursting into the shiny office around which their boss is prowling discontentedly while chomping on a cigar, and crying breathlessly: “The Moulin Rouge … the dance troupe … they’re all Brits!

Nicole KidmanShe’s been a blond vamp, an American princess and a thorn in Lars Von Trier’s side. But 2017 looks set to be Nicole Kidman’s greatest Cannes yet The official social media hashtags for this year’s Cannes film festival are #Cannes2017 and #Cannes70. But maybe it should be #Nicolefest and #Nicolepalooza. Because Nicole Kidman is set to dominate, with no fewer than four entries in the official selection. In all her sculpted blond tallness, looming over most of the grinning menfolk on the red carpet, she is going to be a Cannes fixture.

SchizophreniaOur schizophrenic son is out of control. We're at our wits' end. Help!Our 30-year-old son was diagnosed with schizophrenia more than 11 years ago and has lived at home with us since. His illness can be controlled with medication, but he often doesn't take his prescribed medicines and events can soon spiral out of control because of his resultant abusive and sometimes violent behaviour. We are told by the professionals that our son has human rights and that he doesn't have to take his medication if he doesn't want to.

Joe Biden Protesters shout 'free Palestine' as Joe Biden walks through Nantucket, Massachusetts – video Protesters shouted 'free Palestine' as Joe Biden took a stroll through Nantucket in Massachusetts with first lady Jill Biden on Friday. The protest happened shortly after the president made a statement welcoming the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza Israel-Hamas war – live updates Israel and Hamas have strong reasons not to extend Gaza ceasefire

‘The book indulges a clique-membership mentality in which irony and quirk equals highest regard.’ Photograph: Amazon‘The book indulges a clique-membership mentality in which irony and quirk equals highest regard.’ Photograph: AmazonRebecca Carroll columnBooksReviewWhat could have been a thoughtful exploration of self-design is simply an exercise in narcissism, without any true individuality “Women in Clothes is a book unlike any other,” so begins the inside flap summary of the new paperback book by Sheila Heti (How Should a Person Be), Heidi Julavits (founding editor of The Believer), Leanne Shapton (Swimming Studies) “and 639 others.

Best culture of 2023 so farTelevisionFrom The Big Door Prize to Colin from Accounts, Guardian readers think it’s been a year of spectacular TV. Here are their selection of the finest Guilt, series three (BBC Two)My favourite of 2023 so far is Guilt. Neil Forsyth brought the trilogy to an end in a superb way. There are great performances by Mark Bonnar, Jamie Sives and Emun Elliot as the main characters Max, Jake and Kenny.

This land is your landNational parks This article is more than 4 years oldGrand Canyon tourists possibly exposed to radiation at museum, whistleblower saysThis article is more than 4 years oldPark safety director alleges buckets of uranium sat near exhibit for almost 20 years, but interior department says there’s no risk For almost 20 years, workers and visiting schoolchildren at a Grand Canyon museum may have been unknowingly exposed to radiation from three buckets of uranium sitting next to a taxidermy exhibit, according to allegations from a National Park Service safety director.

Athletics This article is more than 4 months oldHead of Athletics Integrity Unit takes aim at doping policies of other sportsThis article is more than 4 months old‘Many will go through careers without being tested’David Howman especially critical of football and FifaDavid Howman, the chair of the Athletics Integrity Unit, has raised concerns about the anti-doping policies of other major sports such as football, rugby and golf. “Not many of the big sports have a robust anti-doping programme,” Howman said.

Handbags This article is more than 6 months oldMicroscopic ‘Louis Vuitton’ bag sells for more than $60,000This article is more than 6 months oldMSCHF says bag was created for musician Pharrell Williams because he loves big hats – ‘we made him an incredibly small bag’ If you’ve even a mild interest in luxury handbags, you’ve likely heard of the Chanel classic flap bag or the Hermes Birkin. But you’ve perhaps not heard of the Microscopic Handbag by MSCHF.

Readers recommendMusicReaders recommend: songs about promises and choices – resultsRR regular bluepeter is the returning officer from last week’s post-election topic, journeying from hope to disappointment via Show of Hands and the Jam Children are trusting, eager to believe that they can rely on what they are told. Their parents might argue and fight, but will also tell them not to worry because everything will be Wonderful. Seen from the eyes of a child, Everclear tell us that “promises mean everything when you are little”.

PhotographyShare the cutest photo you’ve ever takenAhead of a new exhibition on cuteness in contemporary culture, we would like to see readers’ photos on the theme Cute, a new exhibition exploring the cuteness in contemporary culture, will be opening in London later this month. We would like you to submit your photos of the cutest thing you’ve ever seen. Please tell us what it is, why you think it’s so cute, and when you took the photo.

Other livesContaminated blood scandalObituarySu Gorman obituaryMy friend Su Gorman, who has died aged 68 of heart failure, was a campaigner for haemophiliac victims of Britain’s contaminated blood scandal. Her work with her husband, Steve Dymond, as part of the pressure group Tainted Blood, did much to bring about the infected blood inquiry, established in 2018 to explore why people in the UK were given infected blood and blood products. In the 1970s and 80s, 4,689 British people with haemophilia and other bleeding disorders became infected with hepatitis C (as Steve did) and/or HIV after being treated with contaminated blood products.

MoviesReviewA young couple drive around in circles in the desert while being pursued by a demonic driver in this tedious wannabe shocker This lumpy, tedious horror thriller teases a big mystery as to what’s really going on for a couple who keep finding themselves back on the same stretch of highway no matter which direction they drive off in. Unfortunately, the reveal at the end is the second most hackneyed plot twist in film history.

Life and styleThere was a Rabbi, a Vicar and a PriestTime and again they are the butt of other people's humour. But now we give a blonde, a mother-in-law, and others who are regularly mocked, a chance to tell us a joke of their own.The Englishman (Jody Winterbottom) So this rabbit walks into a butcher's shop and says to the butcher, 'Got any carrots?' The butcher says, 'No, we have only meat here.

Publishing This article is more than 9 years old'Interactive novel' invites readers to Choose-Your-Own sex adventureThis article is more than 9 years oldFollow Your Fantasy promises fresh spin on the genre pioneered in rather less risqué stories in the 1980sA threesome, sex with a stranger or work on a porn film: the choice will be yours, as HarperCollins prepares to launch an erotic version of the Choose Your Own Adventure books which were wildly popular in the 1980s.

2008 in reviewLife and styleFrom the election of Barack Obama to economic meltdown, from the Beijing Olympics to the Baby P trial, Decca Aitkenhead recalls the year's best and worst times'It has been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America." When Ohio had swung to the Democrats hours earlier that November 4th night, Barack Hussein Obama had quietly turned to his campaign manager.

Fashion blogFashionA brief history of OlaySixty years ago Graham Wulff invented a thick pink liquid which he named 'beauty fluid'. Now someone buys the brand's moisturiser every two minutesWhat's the story?Sixty years old this year, Olay started life in a South African lab by an ex-Unilever employee called Graham Wulff. Oil of Olay was originally a thick pink liquid which was marketed as an anti-ageing 'beauty fluid'. In the 1970s the range expanded to include all manner of skincare products, and the company was bought by Procter & Gamble in the mid-80s.

The Piers (sunbathing platform with Tava mural) Photograph: Courtesy of The Alvin Baltrop TrustThe Piers (sunbathing platform with Tava mural) Photograph: Courtesy of The Alvin Baltrop TrustPhotographyThe Bronx-born photographer captured gay culture on the outskirts in 70s Manhattan and his work is finally receiving the attention it deserves Bronx-born photographer Alvin Baltrop spent days on end documenting gay life at the piers lining Manhattan’s west side. At times, he did so while living in a van.

Australian musicIt wouldn’t be an Aussie Xmas without sun, prawns and native birds. Perhaps too many native birds. Patrick Lenton investigates Coming back to Australia after doing most of my primary school years overseas involved a couple of moments of cultural discord – chief among them the bizarre, almost organic stage-musical moment of watching everyone suddenly break into The Nutbush, unrehearsed. But nothing has ever made me feel truly like I’m living in a strange make-believe country than when I first heard an Australian Christmas carol.

ObituaryCliff AdamsHis Singers are still on the air every Sunday, 42 years after their debutIn the late 1950s, Cliff Adams, who has died aged 78, became a household name on British radio - first through his work with the vocal group the Stargazers, before founding the Cliff Adams Singers. As rock and roll began to dominate the airwaves of America, Adams's work, with its smooth, melodic and unruffled sound, fitted a still nostalgic British post-war musical atmosphere.

Other livesPhotographyObituaryMike Russell obituaryMy friend Mike Russell, who has died from cancer aged 57, was one of the pioneers of digital photography in the UK. His love affair with photography was prompted by seeing the 1966 film Blow-Up, which featured David Hemmings rolling around with fashion models and a Nikon camera. This struck him at the time as a career path worth further investigation. Mike grew up in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, and, having graduated in photography from the Central London Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster) in 1976, he soon established himself as one of London's leading fashion and still-life photographers.

Book of the dayScience and nature booksReviewDavid George Haskell’s often wonderful book explores some of the lost frequencies of nature – heard clearly again during Covid’s initial human hush Lockdown was, among other things, a sudden collective experiment in volume control. Sound waves from the regular rush-hour thrum of cities usually penetrate more than a kilometre below the Earth’s surface. When Covid-19 forced humans inside, seismologists noticed the muzak of their subterranean instruments was quieted.

Newspapers & magazinesZeta Jones wedding photos 'sold to porn magazine'Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas sold their wedding pictures to a pornographer who sold them on to a raunchy Scandinavian magazine, it was alleged at the high court today. At the start of Day 18 of the Hollywood stars' lawsuit against Hello! magazine for publishing sneak pictures of their wedding, OK!'s publisher, Northern & Shell, came under fire. James Price QC, representing Hello!

OpinionChristmas This article is more than 10 years oldChristmas is ruined by childrenThis article is more than 10 years oldTrevor MitchellOur over-indulgent society has turned children into greedy little emperors. Thank Santa I can look forward to a Christmas with adultsChristmas is conflated with a lot of things these days, but perhaps the most fallacious of all the Christmas myths we blindly buy into is the one that proclaims that it's all about the children.

The ObserverFashionAhead of London fashion week, the gender-fluid designer talks about glue guns, pop stars and courting controversy in Vogue Before anyone had heard of the designer Harris Reed, they had seen his suit in Vogue. Or was it a dress? A tailored suit with peak shoulders attached to a hoop-skirt draped in tulle and hot pink satin garlands, it was worn in the magazine’s December issue not by a Hollywood starlet, but by a popstar: Harry Styles.

Rise and shine … eating more calories earlier in the day could boost your metabolism. Photograph: Alexander Spatari/Getty ImagesRise and shine … eating more calories earlier in the day could boost your metabolism. Photograph: Alexander Spatari/Getty ImagesFitnessShould we really be aiming to walk 10,000 steps a day, or drink two litres of water? Time to sift fact from fiction It’s easy to think that science is constantly changing its mind on all things dietary and health-based – if you have never suffered headline whiplash from trying to keep up with whether or not wine is good for you, you probably aren’t paying attention.

‘A big part of feeling attracted to someone is feeling they see you. Correspondingly, it’s very hard to feel attracted to someone if you feel they’re looking past you.’ (Painting: The Love Missive by Carl Herpfer.) Photograph: Artepics/Alamy‘A big part of feeling attracted to someone is feeling they see you. Correspondingly, it’s very hard to feel attracted to someone if you feel they’re looking past you.’ (Painting: The Love Missive by Carl Herpfer.

Line of Duty: episode-by-episodeJed MercurioAC-12's intrepid trio are busy investigating a fatal ambush and what's Keeley Hawes' fascinating DI Denton up to? Welcome back, Mr Mercurio ...Welcome back everyone … and breathe. The second season of Jed Mercurio's police corruption drama kicked off with a violent ambush and ended with an unexpected defenestration. Alas poor Georgia, we barely knew you, and I was quite enjoying your hard-drinking, pool-playing, posh-girl ways.

Police This article is more than 8 months oldPolice apologise after detaining royal fan at coronation for 13 hours This article is more than 8 months oldAlice Chambers was handcuffed by officers when she was standing on the Mall near Just Stop Oil protesters Police have been forced to apologise to a royal fan after arresting and detaining her for 13 hours for standing near a group of Just Stop Oil protesters at King Charles’s coronation.

Cif beliefReligion This article is more than 14 years oldSouls are overratedThis article is more than 14 years oldBarbara O'BrienAccording to Buddha, there is no 'soul' or 'self' in the traditional sense. So animals, just like us, don't have themThe question: Do animals have souls?In Buddhism, animals do not have souls, but then neither do people. We biological creatures are all soulless alike. According to the historical Buddha, there is no "

FashionActor, who plays Chandler Bing, announces range of T-shirts, hoodies, and items for babies and pets ahead of the HBO Max reunion Matthew Perry has unveiled a Chandler Bing inspired merchandise collection ahead of the Friends reunion show on HBO Max. The eight-piece collection – which includes T-shirts, sweatshirts and items for infants and pets – will be available for just three weeks. The dog bandana from the Matthew Perry store.

Bloom will say the benefits of religion were highlighted when Britain went into lockdown. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesBloom will say the benefits of religion were highlighted when Britain went into lockdown. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesReligion This article is more than 9 months oldExplainerThis article is more than 9 months oldFormer head of Conservative Christian Fellowship will look at religion’s positive impact as well as how faith groups cause harm Ministers urged to be more aggressive in tackling issues within religious groups

Sudan This article is more than 11 years oldGeorge Clooney arrested in planned protest at Sudanese embassyThis article is more than 11 years oldActor intended to be arrested in Washington, DC demonstration to plea for action against human rights abuses in SudanWatch our video of Clooney's arrest Reuters / ITNThe Hollywood actor and sometime political activist, George Clooney, was cuffed with zip-ties and taken away in a police van after being arrested during a protest outside the Sudanese embassy in Washington DC.

Hunter Biden attends a House oversight committee hearing on 10 January 2024. Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Getty ImagesHunter Biden attends a House oversight committee hearing on 10 January 2024. Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Getty ImagesHunter BidenHunter Biden makes appearance at his own contempt of Congress hearingUS president’s son sat in front row as House oversight committee debated his refusal to comply with subpoena for testimony Hunter Biden made a surprise appearance at a congressional hearing on Wednesday, as Republicans on the US House oversight committee convened to consider a resolution to hold the president’s son in contempt of Congress over his refusal to comply with a subpoena for testimony.

Book of the dayHistory booksReviewJames Barr has written an illuminating account of the United States’ efforts to supplant the British empire in the Middle EastIn February 1942, a remarkable event took place in the centre of Cairo. Tanks and troops surrounded the Abdeen Palace while Britain’s ambassador to Egypt, Sir Miles Lampson, ordered King Farouk to come up with a compliant candidate to replace his recently resigned prime minister or abdicate.

Barack Obama This article is more than 5 months oldObama reportedly warns Biden over strength of Trump 2024 challengeThis article is more than 5 months oldReport says ex-president made comments at private White House lunch in June but pledged ‘to do all he could’ for re-election bid Barack Obama has reportedly warned Joe Biden about how strong a challenge Donald Trump will be in their second election battle in 2024, should Trump win the Republican nomination next year as expected.

Book of the weekPolitics booksReviewA fearless, fascinating account of the emergence of the Putin regime also shines a light on the current threats posed by Russian money and influence Russia stepped decisively off a path of western-led global integration on the morning of 25 October 2003. Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the country’s richest man and the chief shareholder in its largest energy company, Yukos, had touched down to refuel his private jet in Novosibirsk when Russian Federal Security Service commandos forced their way on to the aircraft and arrested him on trumped up charges of fraud and tax evasion.

The 100 best novelsBooksAfter two years of careful consideration, Robert McCrum has reached a verdict on his selection of the 100 greatest novels written in English. Take a look at his list Robert McCrum reflects on his choices One in five doesn’t represent over 300 years of women in literature: a response What is missing: readers’ alternative list The world’s 100 greatest novels of all time (2003) 1. The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan (1678)

Psychology This article is more than 14 years oldThe waking nightmare of sleep paralysisThis article is more than 14 years oldChris FrenchImagine awaking to a strong sense of a 'presence', pressure on your chest, intense fear and hallucinations, but being incapable of moving a muscleProfessor French discusses sleep paralysis on The One Show tonight on BBC1 at 7pm "The light had been switched off, and a comfortable feeling of warmth and heaviness marked the onset of sleep.

Top 10sBooksFrom The Godfather to LA Confidential, these are some of the most compulsive tales of men who live and die in the mob It’s not hard to understand the enduring appeal of gangsters in fiction. From the romantic notion of the outlaw antihero to the caricature of the psychotic mob boss, they have been portrayed in many different lights; but the unifying theme is that they live by a set of rules alien to the law-abiding public, and that makes them fascinating.

AdvertisingA commercial pointing to longstanding sexism in beer ads has sparked outrage – and led to a campaign of harassment As you’ve probably noticed, the word “woke” has been entirely wrung of any meaning in recent years. BlackRock and Silicon Valley Bank are “woke”, according to the right. Walt Disney is woke. Pope Francis is woke. Even the US military industrial complex is woke. The newest target? Miller Lite. Conservatives are hopping mad after discovering a two-month-old Miller Lite commercial that was released during Women’s History Month.

From the Guardian archiveFashion4 January 1968 ready-to-wear Jean Muir coat-dresses and bespoke couture The contemporary look The coat-dress proved to be an excellent town outfit in the transition time from summer into autumn. And all the signs and portents suggest that it is likely to supplant the suit for smart street-wear in early spring. It has a much more contemporary look than a suit, a much younger look, a more total, less cut-up look.

The Beatles This article is more than 4 months oldBeatles memorabilia worth an estimated £6m goes for auctionThis article is more than 4 months oldItems include an archive from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s 1969 peace protest and a curious birthday card sent by George Harrison An archive of material from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s 1969 peace protest is among the items to be sold this month at one of the most expensive Beatles auctions ever held.

TV comedyInterviewComedian Eric Andre: 'We don't tell guests a thing – they waltz into a house of horrors'Lanre BakareAndre’s surreal take on the US chatshow has won him a cult following. Is the mainstream ready for his radical comedy? There has only been one sketch that Eric Andre couldn’t get past the executives at Adult Swim. The suits didn’t bat an eyelid at Andre interviewing the reality TV star Lauren Conrad with a lipstick swastika on his forehead.

The ObserverRape and sexual assaultAs on-campus sexual misconduct cases escalate, there are increasing calls to talk openly with young people about sex, pleasure and consent ‘It’s a power game’: students accused in university rape hearings call in lawyers Among the stalls encouraging students to sign up for rock climbing, parkour, the law society, and inevitably the pub crawl group, university freshers’ fairs have for many years now given out free rape alarms to young women.

Australian pundit Nick Adams discusses immigration and asylum seekers with Bill O’Reilly.OpinionAustralian politics This article is more than 8 years oldHow a would-be pigeon-killer became a Fox News punditThis article is more than 8 years oldJason WilsonAt a conservative convention in Colorado, I heard a familiar Australian voice. Meet Nick Adams, whose career trajectory is depressingly typical on the right At the end of last month, for my sins, I attended the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, Colorado.

Cif beliefPakistan This article is more than 11 years oldIn Pakistan, saying goodbye can be a religious statementThis article is more than 11 years oldSyed Hamad AliTo some, the growth of 'Allah hafiz' over 'Khuda hafiz', using a Qur'anic rather than Urdu name for God, is a symbol of changeDoes it matter what name people use for God? This is the question thrown up as a result of a strange development in Pakistani etiquette.

‘There should be a petition to sack the Queen and get Adele in’ … Katy B. Photograph: "PR‘There should be a petition to sack the Queen and get Adele in’ … Katy B. Photograph: "PRThe reader interviewKaty BInterviewThe return of Katy B: ‘Being looked at all the time is not very natural’As told to Christine OchefuBack after a five-year hiatus, the dance-pop star answers your questions, from the death of dubstep to London’s greatest pie and mash

Sexual health This article is more than 2 years oldViral TikTok video of IUD removal at home prompts warning from health authoritiesThis article is more than 2 years oldSexual health experts urge women not to copy DIY procedure, saying ‘you wouldn’t take out your appendix’ Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing A TikTok user who went viral with a video of herself removing her implanted birth control device has prompted calls among sexual health experts for better monitoring of social media platforms.

Weather trackerSaudi ArabiaAnalysisWeather tracker: Saudi Arabia hit by floods as temperature records broken in CanadaAlice Fowle and James Parrish (Metdesk)Heavy rain and hailstorms affect large parts of Gulf state while temperatures in some parts of Canada could be 20C above normal Serious flooding has hit parts of Saudi Arabia after a red rainfall warning was issued at the end of last week by the National Centre for Meteorology. The areas most seriously affected were in the north, specifically the provinces of Hail and al-Qassim and the far north of Ash Sharqiyah.

World news'Scars show Iraqi captors raped Jessica Lynch'Jessica Lynch, the American soldier held for eight days during the Iraq war, was raped by her captors, according to an authorised biography due for publication next week. The book, I Am a Soldier, Too, says that scars on her body and her medical records show that she was sodomised during her ordeal. It says she has no memory of the rape but that she is unable to account for the first three hours after being captured.

ShortcutsHomesTo get around planning regulations, the wealthy in areas such as Kensington and Chelsea dig huge basements that cause building chaos and even subsidenceAge: As old as the world's first wine cellar. Appearance: Just like any other mansion. What are iceberg homes? Homes like icebergs. Freezing cold? No. Prone to sinking cruise liners? Not quite. Melting? Not really. It's called an iceberg home because, as with an iceberg, quite a lot more of it is lurking beneath the surface.

MediaObituaryPhil DrabbleA devoted countryman and militant naturalist, he presented BBC's One Man and His DogJust after Phil Drabble started his 90-acre nature reserve, hunting hounds invaded it and began scattering the deer. When Drabble asked the huntsman to remove them, he was told that the hounds had followed their fox into the reserve, as they were legally entitled to do. After some discussion Drabble went back to his house to fetch his rifle.

Carol Rumens's poem of the weekPoetryPoem of the week: The Opposite of Confidential by Claudine ToutoungiA chorus of birds takes on the leading role in a poem exploring creativity and freedom of expression The Opposite of Confidential Nobody questions the birds. Their trills are never subject to inspection or forced to satisfy requirements. Light-boned libertarians (the opposite of confidential), they cannot keep it in. You will not see them lining up in rows,

Rwanda This article is more than 11 years oldRwandan minister is leader of Congo rebels, UN saysThis article is more than 11 years oldLeaked report names General James Kabarebe as de facto commander of militia accused of rape and other atrocitiesPressure on Britain to halt aid to Rwanda is increasing after one of the closest allies of the president, Paul Kagame, was named as the de facto leader of a violent uprising in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

CultureTank boyFrom Limp Bizkit to Madonna, everyone wants to work with the Aphex Twin. But those high-paying jobs aren't important, he tells Paul Lester . He'd only spend the money on military hardwareMore arts news and features Richard James, aka Aphex Twin, is the most inventive and influential figure in contemporary electronic music. He is also the most unpredictable. Which probably explains why he is so late for the interview. With a new 30-track album called Drukqs about to hit the shops, James, hardly your typical self-promoting pop star, turns up at the cafe inside London's ugly Elephant & Castle shopping precinct 21 hours after the interview was scheduled to start.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewStarring Ciaran Hinds and Jared Harris, this horror-filled reimagining of John Franklin’s ill-fated Arctic expedition is unlikely to terrify you – although it certainly feels timely The Terror (BBC Two) was originally broadcast by AMC/BT in the Before Times – the halcyon days, did we but know it, of 2018. It’s an adaptation of Dan Simmons’ 2007 bestseller about the imagined fate of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, which went missing along with 129 crew in 1845 as Sir John Franklin led them in a search for the fabled North-West Passage through the Arctic.

Life and styleThree families – including mine – opted for a different kind of American dream. Now we see the world differently I was six months pregnant, sitting on a beach in Huanchaco, Peru, with my husband, Tree, both of us struggling to make a decision that would change the course of our lives. “So, what do you think?” Tree asked, as the last orange rind of the sun dipped below the horizon line.

RelationshipsAccording to a new book, there are 237 reasons why women have sex. And most of them have little to do with romance or pleasureDo you want to know why women have sex with men with tiny little feet? I am stroking a book called Why Women Have Sex. It is by Cindy Meston, a clinical psychologist, and David Buss, an evolutionary psychologist. It is a very thick, bulging book. I've never really wondered Why Women Have Sex.

MediaObituaryAlfred ShaughnessyBringing a touch of Downstairs to an Upstairs lifeAlfred Shaughnessy, who has died aged 89, achieved his greatest success in 1970, when he became script editor and chief writer of the television series Upstairs, Downstairs. What he contributed was, literally, a class act. His stepfather, the Hon Sir Piers "Joey" Legh, was equerry to the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) and master of the household to George VI; Shaughnessy could boast that when staying at Windsor castle, he had entertained the king and queen and the young princesses, Margaret and Elizabeth, with an impromptu cabaret.

Television & radioFrom The Idol to Russian Doll, a wave of series is filling screens with characters that just love chainsmoking. But how has a habit whose days seemed numbered returned to television? If you were around to absorb 2000s pop culture, you will remember that smoking was considered cool, for a while. Kate Moss smoked. Alexa Chung smoked. The Olsen twins, famously, smoked. Smoking was something you did in big sunglasses while having a bitching session on the street or outside a club.

Rumour MillTransfer windowToday’s rumours have made an impressive start It wouldn’t be a transfer window without Chelsea trying to buy a Brighton player and here’s January 2024’s version. Yes, Evan Ferguson, still a teenager, is this year’s model and would cost a Boehly-busting £100m. It seems unlikely, doesn’t it? But in the search for a striker that continues eternally at Chelsea, something of a centre-forward’s graveyard then perhaps the Irishman is the latest candidate.

Fir-coated … a peaceful piste in MegèveFir-coated … a peaceful piste in MegèveGreat little ski resortsSki resortsFor those who want to avoid the crowds on and off the slopes, this small town offers peaceful pistes, great dining options and a top-notch jazz festival to boot Er, where? Megève is in the south-east of France, near the Italian and Swiss borders, and emerged as a popular ski destination for the rich and famous in the 1920s.

Geraldine Largay: ‘When you find my body, please call my husband George … and my daughter Kerry.’ Photograph: Maine Warden ServiceGeraldine Largay: ‘When you find my body, please call my husband George … and my daughter Kerry.’ Photograph: Maine Warden ServiceMaine This article is more than 7 years oldHiker who went missing on Appalachian trail survived 26 days before dyingThis article is more than 7 years oldA journal found with the remains of 66-year-old Geraldine Largay show that she tried in vain to send SOS messages but finally accepted she would die A hiker survived for 26 days after disappearing off the Appalachian trail and wrote desperate journal entries and text messages that have only recently reached her family, according to documents newly released by the Maine warden service.

The ObserverPsychedeliaHoney Ltd were signed to Lee Hazlewood's label in the late 1960s, but stardom eluded them. Now their 'lost' cult debut album is finally getting the chance it deservesIn the summer of 1968, four 19-year-old friends left their home city of Detroit for Los Angeles, hoping to swap Motown for California Dreamin'. Marsha Jo Temmer (now known as Temmer Darigan), Laura Polkinghorne (now Laura Creamer) and sisters Joan and Alex Sliwin were students at Wayne State University who had found each other and formed a girl group, working out harmonies and dance routines in their lunch break.

MusicReviewM&S Bank Arena, Liverpool In addition to his epic songcraft, the Irish singer makes the most of his platform with an impassioned monologue calling for women’s rights and a ceasefire in Gaza It’s almost a decade since Andrew Hozier-Byrne’s Take Me to Church – an impassioned anthem supporting gay marriage in Ireland, that was partly recorded in his attic – went five times platinum in the US and topped the charts in a dozen countries.

The seven best shows to stream this weekTV streamingJharrel Jerome is a 13ft-tall teenager in Boots Riley’s gloriously eccentric new show, and Samuel L Jackson is back in the MCU! Plus: watch Glastonbury from your sofa Pick of the weekI’m a VirgoBoots Riley’s oddball 2018 film Sorry to Bother You used surrealism and absurdity to satirise capitalism. This gloriously eccentric series is equally singular and charming. Jharrel Jerome is 13ft-tall teenager Cootie, kept in seclusion by his parents for his own good but desperate to live a normal life.

LGBTQ+ rightsObituaryMonica FurlongA dedicated writer, feminist and Christian, she threw her considerable moral authority behind the campaign for women priestsMonica Furlong, who has died of cancer aged 72, would have achieved distinction through her writings alone. But she was always on the lookout for good causes to espouse, and once she had thrown in her lot with the Movement for the Ordination of Women, and with the aims of secular feminism in general, she became to many women - and to many men as well, especially homosexuals - not just a beacon of light, more a flaming torch.

Fiba Basketball World Cup 2023While Germany won their first World Cup, Canada stunned the USA in the bronze-medal playoff to change a one-sided rivalry The 2023 Fiba World Cup was a tournament of firsts. The first time Germany won a global basketball competition. The first time five African teams won a game in the group stage. And the first time Team Canada won a medal: they defeated Team USA after Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Dillon Brooks combined to score 70 points in the bronze medal game on Sunday, winning an overtime thriller, 127-118.

Casey Jenkins has settled her legal claim against the Australia Council for cancelling funding for a performance exhibition in 2020. Photograph: Nadir Kinani/The GuardianCasey Jenkins has settled her legal claim against the Australia Council for cancelling funding for a performance exhibition in 2020. Photograph: Nadir Kinani/The GuardianAustralia news This article is more than 1 month oldThis article is more than 1 month oldPeak arts body Creative Australia agrees to extraordinary acknowledgment and six-figure payment in settlement with Casey Jenkins

Belarus This article is more than 14 years oldBelarus squirms as son follows in dictator's stepsThis article is more than 14 years oldHe has greeted presidents wearing a tie and natty waistcoat, inspected troops in full military regalia and cast a vote in Belarus parliamentary elections. In most respects, Lukashenko jr is a model statesman in waiting. There is only one problem: he's four years old. Nikolai - or Kolya as he is known for short - is the blond-haired son of Alexander Lukashenko, the autocratic president of Belarus, who is provoking increasing consternation by bringing his son to meetings with high ranking officials, generals and heads of state.

Roma This article is more than 9 years oldFrancesco Totti admits Manchester City’s tweet inspired him to scoreThis article is more than 9 years old Totti levelled Sergio Agüero’s opener to seal a 1-1 draw City had tweeted that Totti had never scored in England Match report: Manchester City 1-1 Roma Pellegrini criticises Manchester City after Roma drawThe Roma captain, Francesco Totti, has thanked Manchester City for giving him extra motivation to score on Tuesday.

StageObituaryJonathan Cecil obituaryVersatile actor and writer often called upon to play toffs and bumbling clericsThe actor Jonathan Cecil, who has died of pneumonia aged 72 after suffering from emphysema, spent much of his career playing upper-class characters. That is hardly surprising since his father was Lord David Cecil, Goldsmiths' professor of English literature at Oxford University, and Jonathan's grandfather was the 4th Marquess of Salisbury. Although often typecast as a comic blueblood, there was infinitely more to Jonathan than that.

Tupac ShakurMan charged in Tupac Shakur killing asks to move from jail to house arrestAttorneys of Duane Keith ‘Keffe D’ Davis, whose trial is set for 2024, says the 60-year-old is not getting proper medical attention A former Los Angeles-area gang leader charged with murder in the killing of the hip-hop music icon Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas is deriding the case against him as the product of speculation and second-hand testimony as he asks a judge to put him on house arrest ahead of his trial.

Nikola Tesla This article is more than 9 years oldNikola Tesla's ashes spark row between Serbian scientists and Orthodox churchThis article is more than 9 years oldOfficials face backlash after decision to move inventor's remains from Tesla museum in Belgrade and rebury them in churchA furious dispute has erupted between Serbian scientists and the Orthodox church after it was announced that the remains of the inventor Nikola Tesla will be reburied in a church.

TelevisionAhead of the season two premiere, the Australian screenwriter explains his fresh, bawdy and wilfully anachronistic take on Catherine the Great Bright, bawdy and occasionally blood-splattered, the first season of Hulu/Stan’s The Great crashed on to screens last year with a defiant “huzzah!” as viewers met the young future Catherine the Great (Elle Fanning) fresh off the carriage from Germany. The sweetly idealistic noblewoman can’t wait to meet her new husband, Russian Emperor Peter III (Nicolas Hoult, having the time of his career), but soon finds her Prince Charming is a hedonistic man-child, and his court a colourful free-for-all of smashed champagne glasses, open marriages and regicidal intrigue.

Hawaii has long evoked images of a Pacific paradise but Kamilo Beach, located on the Big Island, presents a starkly different reality by Liz Barney on Kamilo Beach and Michelle Broder Van Dyke in HonoluluAn array of plastic crunched underfoot as Mattie Mae Larson walked down Kamilo Beach. Toothbrushes, a plastic broom, a leaking bottle, the back of a TV. Larson used to come to this remote stretch of Hawaiian sand as a child to climb 10ft-high mountains of debris, searching for treasures.

ArtObituaryAdrian Berg obituaryLandscape artist inspired by Monet whose work recorded the passing seasonsSoon after setting out on his career as a painter, Adrian Berg moved into a flat in Gloucester Gate in his native north London, overlooking Regent's Park. It was the perfect location, a landscape created by man that could be reshaped by the eye of an artist. Gloucester Gate remained his eyrie until 1985. From here, Berg, who has died aged 82, recorded the passing seasons.

ChinaChinese chess champion stripped of title after defecating in hotel bathtubYan Chenglong crowned ‘Xiangqi King’ but overdid celebrations, as governing body also investigates whether he cheated using anal beads The world of Chinese chess is in uproar over rumours of cheating and a bad behaviour scandal that saw the national champion stripped of his title on Monday after a victory celebration ended with him defecating in a hotel bathtub. Xiangqi, or Chinese chess, has been hugely popular for hundreds of years across Asia – and 48-year-old Yan Chenglong beat dozens of contenders last week to win the title of “Xiangqi King” at a national tournament hosted by the Chinese Xiangqi Association.

Emma StoneCritics have been falling over themselves trying to describe Stone’s latest performance, which is heavily tipped to land her a fourth Oscar nomination It’s not going out on a limb to say you have never seen a performance quite like Emma Stone’s in Poor Things. In this adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s novel, from New Greek Weird director, Yorgos Lanthimos, she plays Bella Baxter, an adult woman with the mind of an infant who embarks on a journey of self-discovery through fantastical Victorian-era steampunk cityscapes.

The ObserverEducationAt 41, I’ve returned to university, an experience which, first time round, totally changed my life. Now I’m one of the oldest students in my year and already in debt, but I’ve discovered a newfound joy for education and the importance of learningLast time I had a first week at university, I successfully shaved a balloon covered in shaving foam without popping it, for which I won shots at the local nightclub, possibly jelly.

Israel-Gaza warGaza activist tells of beating and abuse in Israeli detentionHuman rights worker Ayman Lubbad is among the Palestinian prisoners claiming abuse in Israeli custody, where six have died The Gaza-based human rights activist Ayman Lubbad has not seen his wife and three children for more than a month, since he was ordered to strip to his underwear in the street outside his home, then driven away with other Palestinian men for a week of abuse and detention.

Word of Mouth blogFoodIt seems the Swiss reputation for secrecy extends to recipes: with little by way of guidance on röstis, Felicity Cloake was compelled to experimentFor a simple peasant dish with just two ingredients – and humble ones at that – rösti is surprisingly difficult to pin down. In fact, it's almost as if the Swiss want to keep the recipe secret, tucked away in a subterranean vault, as establishing anything concrete about this Alpine favourite, from the type of potatoes used to the cooking method, is a feat akin to scaling the north face of the Eiger.

A child looks at a wildfire in Chasia on the outskirts of Athens, Greece, on 22 August 2023. Photograph: Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP via Getty ImagesA child looks at a wildfire in Chasia on the outskirts of Athens, Greece, on 22 August 2023. Photograph: Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP via Getty ImagesClimate crisis‘Off the charts’: 2023 was hottest year ever recorded globally, US scientists confirmNew analysis confirms ‘unprecedented’ record reported by European Union and United Nations scientists

The ObserverMusic This article is more than 2 years oldRaves from the grave: lost 90s subculture is back in the spotlightThis article is more than 2 years oldDriven by a ‘groundswell’ of young devotees and fortysomething nostalgia, a series of events is celebrating the youth movement It is perhaps one of the most ignored subcultures in modern British history, but rave music and the free party movement of the early 90s is coming back into focus.

Republicans This article is more than 1 year oldRepublican Lauren Boebert compares Ukraine to Canadian truckers’ convoyThis article is more than 1 year oldCongresswoman says ‘our neighbors to the north need to be liberated’, prompting widespread condemnation The Republican congresswoman Lauren Boebert was condemned for comparing the Russian invasion of Ukraine to the clearing of a truckers’ protest in Ottawa, saying: “We also have neighbors to the north who need freedom and who need to be liberated.

CitiesThe sharing economy meets the mania for decluttering, as people realise they can let others use their spare rooms, sheds and attics for cash You may not look around a city like London and notice acres of unused space lying empty. But it is there. There might be some inside your own house. Kamal El-Haj and his wife Michelle live in Chingford, and were expecting their second child last summer, so they had just begun to look for new sources of income when they noticed their garage.

The ObserverFootballAfter the Inter Milan gang leader Vittorio Boiocchi was gunned down in the streets, Tobias Jones examines the changing face of a powerful sporting subculture On 29 October, at 19.48, a 69-year-old man was outside his house in Via Zanzottera, in the north-west of Milan. It was just an hour before kick-off in the match between Internazionale and Sampdoria and Vittorio Boiocchi, nicknamed “lo Zio” (“the Uncle”), was going home to watch the game on TV.

Pop and rock This article is more than 1 year old​Girl bands made British pop great – so where have all the good ones gone?​This article is more than 1 year oldAlim KherajFrom SVN’s moisturiser-ad feminism to the desperately named CuteBad, the groups filling the void left by Little Mix are lacklustre. They should look to the Spice Girls’ example The girl band is in crisis. As Little Mix go on their hiatus and tie up their Confetti tour, touted as their last shows “for now”, the UK finds itself without a major girl band for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Hoop DreamsTwenty years after the landmark documentary was cruelly snubbed at the Oscars, we take a look at where the principals are today In 1986, filmmakers Steve James, Frederick Marx and Peter Gilbert set out to film a 30-minute PBS documentary on playground basketball as a window into Chicago’s street culture. Some 300 hours of footage and three years of editing later, Hoop Dreams emerged overnight as a landmark documentary. Roger Ebert labeled it the best film of the 1990s (ahead of Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas and Fargo), and its exclusion from the Best Documentary category at the 1995 Academy Awards led to a restructuring of how the category was evaluated.

FictionReviewPatrick Neate on a literary freestyler with brio to burnNot so long ago, hip-hop was the first musical genre since jazz whose nomenclature could plausibly be followed by the word "culture". People talked about hip-hop cinema and fashion, politics and argot; even hip-hop literature. In so far as the last of these existed, a key book was Paul Beatty's 1996 debut, The White Boy Shuffle; a dazzling satire of the African-American urban experience, its diversity and lack thereof.

Guardian sustainable business This article is more than 6 years oldJust 100 companies responsible for 71% of global emissions, study saysThis article is more than 6 years oldA relatively small number of fossil fuel producers and their investors could hold the key to tackling climate change Just 100 companies have been the source of more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since 1988, according to a new report.

Indonesia This article is more than 10 years oldLion found hanged in Indonesian zooThis article is more than 10 years oldSurabaya 'zoo of death' under investigation after several animals die of neglect, starvation and mistreatmentIndonesian officials are investigating the mysterious death of an African lion found hanged in his own cage in Indonesia's "zoo of death", where a number of animals have perished due to neglect, starvation and mistreatment in the past few years.

Mexico This article is more than 2 years oldUS lifts sanctions against Mexican drug kingpin who testified against El ChapoThis article is more than 2 years oldZambada was Sinaloa cartel’s chief accountant for 15 yearsSpeculation that ‘El Rey’ may be in witness protectionThe United States has lifted financial sanctions on a top lieutenant of Mexico’s Sinaloa drug cartel, saying Jesús “El Rey” Zambada – who gave testimony against kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán – had shown behavioral change.

Categories Nooks and crannies Yesteryear Semantic enigmas The body beautiful Red tape, white lies Speculative science This sceptred isle Root of all evil Ethical conundrums This sporting life Stage and screen Birds and the bees SEMANTIC ENIGMASWhere does the expression ''the whole nine yards'' come from?

TheatreTheir first project saw the actor tormented by a giant crow and pounded at ping-pong. Now the pair have joined forces again for a film exploring guilt and masculinity in an age of mounting dread When Max Porter and Cillian Murphy first worked together, Murphy got so wired from performing that he couldn’t sleep. The project was a theatrical adaptation of Porter’s novel Grief is the Thing with Feathers, in which a grieving husband and father of two sons is repeatedly visited by a giant crow.

Artificial intelligence (AI)BetterBlends promised to invest in the city’s beleaguered downtown but closed its doors in under two months In September, a “bespoke AI nutrition” store opened in beleaguered downtown San Francisco to much fanfare, promising smoothie concoctions generated by AI and a much-needed boost to the area. Less than two months later, it has seemingly closed without explanation. BetterBlends advertised “Your Smoothie, powered by AI” and received positive press upon its opening, ginning up excitement for a new business and a novel use of artificial intelligence.

ObituaryAnita Hoffman obituaryWith Pegasus the pig and other rascals With Pegasus the pig and other rascals On New Year's Eve 1967, a group of friends were partying with Abbie Hoffman at his Greenwich Village apartment in New York. 'There we were,' as Hoffman remembered later, 'all stoned and rolling around the floor, when someone said "Oink" for pig.' 'And so', he added with characteristic inconsequence, 'YIPPIE was born, the Youth International Party.

LGBTQ+ rightsTemple in Taipei is believed to be the only Taoist site set up to revere rabbit god Tu’er Shen, a significant symbol for LGBTQI people in Taiwan and China During a quiet mid-week afternoon on the eighth floor of an office building, A-wei is meditatively separating flower petals to make an offering to Tu’er Shen the rabbit god, a spiritual guardian of LGBTQI people. The small Taoist temple where 24-year-old A-wei sits is a humble room with views across New Taipei city, made cosy by the smell of incense and the mews of two noisy cats.

FilmBertil Guve was 10 years old when Ingmar Bergman recruited him to star in Fanny and Alexander. Bergman had spotted Guve in a bit part in a Lasse Hallstrom TV movie and had dispatched scouts to his school to look him over. "When they asked me to audition, I wasn't really interested," Guve recalls today. The Hallstrom movie hadn't been much fun. "People were in a bad mood and shouting at each other.

The G2 interviewRobin WilliamsInterviewRobin Williams: 'I was shameful, did stuff that caused disgust – that's hard to recover from'Decca AitkenheadHis new film, World's Greatest Dad, is a glorious return to form. But a mournful Robin Williams would rather talk about his battle with drugs and alcohol – and recovering from heart surgeryIn the normal order of things, an interview with a Hollywood actor observes the form of a transaction. The actor wants to promote their film, and ideally talk about little else – least of all anything of a personal nature.

‘My characters arrived with nothing but their most extreme qualities’: Tess Gunty in Los Angeles, July 2022. Photograph: Dan Tuffs/The Observer‘My characters arrived with nothing but their most extreme qualities’: Tess Gunty in Los Angeles, July 2022. Photograph: Dan Tuffs/The ObserverBooks interviewFictionInterviewTess Gunty: ‘I was an almost freakishly devout child’Hephzibah AndersonThe Indiana-born author on the midwest setting of her acclaimed debut novel, her fascination with rabbits, and the ‘dazzling’ poetry of Tayi Tibble

Mexico This article is more than 3 years oldTop Mexican drug kingpin El Mencho reportedly builds own private hospitalThis article is more than 3 years oldSecretive leader of Jalisco New Generation cartel, who seeks treatment for kidney disease, currently seen as ‘public enemy No 1’ One of Mexico’s most wanted drug lords, El Mencho, is reported to have built his own private hospital in the western state of Jalisco. 'The only two powerful cartels left': rivals clash in Mexico's murder capitalRead moreThe cartel boss – whose real name is Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes – has become the region’s pre-eminent villain in recent months and grabbed headlines in June after his assassins allegedly launched a brazen pre-dawn attempt to murder Mexico City’s police chief.

EnvironmentInterviewA greener Marx? Kohei Saito on connecting communism with the climate crisisMaya GoodfellowAuthor of surprise hit Capital in the Anthropocene has developed his arguments in a new study of Karl Marx’s ecological thinking When academic Kohei Saito submitted his manuscript on Karl Marx, the ecological crisis and arguments for degrowth economics, he hoped it might introduce at least some people in Japan to a new perspective on the climate crisis.

Football This article is more than 2 months oldEritrea withdrew from 2026 World Cup qualifying ‘over fears players will flee’This article is more than 2 months oldSources say it is to avoid players seeking political asylum abroadNo official explanation as to why federation cancelled gamesEritrea’s football federation withdrew its men’s team from 2026 World Cup qualifying owing to fears that players would attempt to seek political asylum during trips abroad, according to sources close to the squad.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewPart potted history of the American family, part analysis of their impact, this docuseries is a neutral look at their lives. It’s also far less exhausting than following the rest of their TV output House of Kardashian is put together in such a way that it may well act as a Rorschach test. You might come away from this three-hour documentary series thinking that the Kardashian-Jenner family is a pioneering model of female-led entrepreneurship and empowerment – or that they are a late-stage capitalist nightmare, changing society for the worse, atop their gilded mountains of cash.

The ObserverMexicoViolence in Fresnillo between Sinaloa and Jalisco groups mirrors national trend – and critics say Amlo has failed to act María Zapata Escamilla woke to the sound of shattering glass. Armed men in military fatigues had burst into her home: they dragged her disabled husband outside, along with her 14-year-old son, still in his pyjamas. Then they drove away into the night. Two weeks later, her husband’s brutalized body turned up, along with nine others.

New East networkKyrgyzstanVisa-free travel and fossil-packed rock prove irresistible to mountaineers looking to explore unchartered terrain Despite its vast mountain ranges, fossil-packed rock faces and rugged beauty, Kyrgyzstan has struggled to secure a reputation as a first-class climbing destination. With its remote location and peaks named after Lenin, Putin and Communism, it has not been the obvious choice for western mountaineers. But as more established routes in Nepal and the Alps become over-commercialised and expensive, experts say climbers are increasingly heading to the small central Asian country that is so little known it was recently mislabelled Kyrzbekistan by the New York Times.

Six Flags theme park under water as flooding hammers Atlanta Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email 22 September 2009: Torrential rainfall in the south-east US has claimed at least eight lives Tue 22 Sep 2009 14.24 EDT First published on Tue 22 Sep 2009 14.24 EDT A rollercoaster at Six Flags theme park is flooded in Austell, Georgia. Record amounts of rainfall resulted in flooding across the south-east US Photograph: John Bazemore/AP

10 of the bestBooksAeneid by Virgil Aeneas travels to the Underworld, guided by the Sybil. The hellish bit is Tartarus. "From hence are heard the groans of ghosts, the pains / Of sounding lashes and of dragging chains." The unrepenting are made to confess their crimes, and sent down into a pit, guarded by the Hydra, where the Titans wallow in impotent violence. Piers Plowman by William Langland The medieval dreamer finds himself before the gates of Hell, where personifications of Peace, Mercy and Truth are gathering, and where he meets a thoroughly anxious, defeatist Satan.

CyberbullyingI’m often deluged with hate online – and I’m used to being told not to feed the trolls. But after one of them stole my dead dad’s identity to abuse me, I decided to ask him why For the past three years or so, at least one stranger has sought me out pretty much every day to call me a fat bitch (or some pithy variation thereof). I’m a writer and a woman and a feminist, and I write about big, fat, bitchy things that make people uncomfortable.

The author with his mother. Photograph: Justin QuarryThe author with his mother. Photograph: Justin QuarryClass issuesI’ve left the closet twice – as a gay man, and as an academic from a working-class background. The second was at least as hard Recently a colleague asked me what it was like growing up gay in Arkansas. Even I was surprised to find I didn’t have an answer. After all, I should be an expert on that subject – and, indeed, a couple of horror stories she no doubt expected to hear are true.

A portrait of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith. ‘We need to keep talking, teaching, painting, writing and staying engaged. We can never retire.’ Photograph: Thomas KingA portrait of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith. ‘We need to keep talking, teaching, painting, writing and staying engaged. We can never retire.’ Photograph: Thomas KingArtThe 80-year-old has become the first ever Native American artist to see her painting purchased by the National Gallery of Art in Washington Earlier this month, the National Gallery of Art in Washington announced it had made history – it bought a painting by a Native American artist for the very first time.

A flood-damaged bridge on the Ahr river in the village of Rech in the Ahr valley. Photograph: Michael Probst/APThe scars are still visible a year on in valley, which suffered more than half the deaths from the flooding disaster that hit Europe on 14 and 15 July 2021 by Agence France Presse and Associated PressThe dramatic floods of 14 and 15 July 2021 killed more than 220 people in Europe, leaving a trail of destruction in Germany and Belgium, and damage in the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland.

Jail sentence … an inmate reading at Wandsworth prison. Photograph: Andrew Aitchison/In Pictures/CorbisJail sentence … an inmate reading at Wandsworth prison. Photograph: Andrew Aitchison/In Pictures/CorbisBooks blogBooksBooks behind bars: five of the best stories about prison lifeFrom Alan Sillitoe’s inspiring story of a long-distance runner to memoirs about what life is really like on the inside, author and former inmate Erwin James shares his favourite books about crime and prison ‘Mr Nice’ Howard Marks dies aged 70 Books about crime and prison are often among the favourite reading choices for people in jail.

Other livesTacita DeanObituaryJoseph Dean obituaryMy father, Joseph Dean, who has died aged 88, was the youngest son of Basil Dean, the theatre director and producer who went on to found Ealing Studios and the forces' entertainment organisation Ensa, and his wife Esther. Basil was disdainful of family life and took no interest in his children. He was absent at my father's birth but still insisted he be given the middle name Jolyon, after the character in his friend John Galsworthy's newly published Forsyte Saga – a name Galsworthy had made up.

Afghanistan This article is more than 11 years oldKandahar's 'poo pond' gets a stay of executionThis article is more than 11 years oldMilitary mission to drain Afghan airfield's lake of sewage has had to be postponed until mid-2013The so-called "poo pond" at Kandahar airfield is one of the few parts of the US and Nato mission in Afghanistan that everyone agreed should go as soon as possible. A lake of sewage sitting on the indisputably grim-looking intersection of All-American Boulevard and Louisiana Road, it holds the waste produced by 30,000 people using hundreds of portable toilets.

Climate crisis This article is more than 5 months old‘Like a blowtorch’: Mediterranean on fire as blazes spread across nine countriesThis article is more than 5 months old‘There is no magical defence mechanism,’ says Greek prime minister as fires burn in northern Africa and southern Europe Wildfires were burning in at least nine countries across the Mediterranean on Tuesday as blazes spread in Croatia, Italy and Portugal, with thousands of firefighters in Europe and north Africa working to contain flames stoked by high temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds.

Week in geekFilmTwo years away from release, the film is already mired in controversy and confusion, with one US channel even making its own anti-woke rival movie. Is this revamp really needed? Disney’s live action take on the classic 1937 animation Snow White won’t be hitting multiplexes until at least 2025 thanks to the recent writers’ strike, so you might wonder why the studio has chosen this week to publish a first still of the famous princess surrounded by her seven faithful homunculi.

TheatreIt took months of training to get the actors in shape for Beautiful Burnout. It was a big Edinburgh hit, but will it work in a real boxing venue? By Laura BarnettOf the thousands of shows that hit the Edinburgh fringe every year, only a handful end up making a real stir beyond the festival. This August, one such stand-out was Beautiful Burnout, a new play by Bryony Lavery about five teenage Glaswegians who are desperate to become professional boxers.

OpinionRace This article is more than 2 years oldBeing Black and British means something else now I’m at an Ivy League universityThis article is more than 2 years oldAmandla Thomas-JohnsonThe responses to my London accent show how UK Black culture is changing perceptions in the US – but only for some I hadn’t even reached Ithaca, the tiny university town in upstate New York – my home for the next six years, as I studied for a PhD – when the confusion over my Blackness and British accent began.

Fiction in translationReviewA serial killer’s amnesia; an assassin’s success; a boy’s bond with his kidnapper … dark and funny tales reflect a changing political climateGiven that loss of memory has become a familiar device in fiction, and the psychopath such a popular character archetype, we shouldn’t be too surprised by the notion of a serial killer hero with Alzheimer’s. The title story of South Korean author Kim Young-ha’s collection is a first-person narrative with a journal structure that nods to Gogol’s Diary of a Madman, and like its Russian progenitor charts the descent into dementia of an alienated protagonist.

ExperienceLife and styleOne morning, I was alone with him in the house. He looked up at me and said, ‘Sarah, will you help me?’ In 2009 my father was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a lung cancer caused by asbestos. He had probably been exposed to it as a junior doctor; the pipes lining the staff corridors were lagged with asbestos fibre. Dad knew the prognosis of his illness: a few more months, his lungs filling with small tumours and, in the end, death by suffocation.

CultureReviewNew Roscoe, Leeds Rating: *** More reviewsGrand Drive's lovingly crafted music is rooted in downtown bars, rocky mountains and the country-rock of Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris. The Emmylou Harris voice belongs to singer Danny Wilson, who has the body of an extra from London's Burning, but whose feminine vocals could belong to a raven-haired Texan lady struggling through drink and divorce. Even more unlikely, the creative core of this hugely American-sounding music consists of Danny and his brother Julian, who hail from London and grew up in Australia.

Oprah WinfreySucceeding Donald Trump as US president would be an incredible climax to a true rags to riches life story that fostered her trademark compassion Oprah Winfrey was four-and-a-half years old, maybe five, when she decided she wasn’t going to have the life expected of her. She was raised on a small Mississippi farm by her grandmother, whose highest hope for her granddaughter was that when she became someone’s domestic worker, she would be treated kindly by her employers.

SportblogArgentinaWell done Bolivia – but what on earth went wrong for Argentina?Diego Maradona faces hard questions after his Argentina team were humiliated 6–1 in his second competitive matchAs someone who instinctively identifies with the underdog, Diego Maradona was among the first to support Bolivia's bid to overturn Fifa's ban on official matches at high altitude. Maradona played in La Paz, 3,600 metres above sea level, to show the world his support for the Bolivian football enterprise.

Walt Disney CompanyThe company has been addressing its historical racism and sexism, adding disclaimers to films and altering theme park rides. But these moves have stirred contempt as well as approval Very little ammunition is required for a culture war these days, so long as your troops are primed to mobilise at the drop of a blog. Julie Tremaine and Katie Dowd, two writers for the online newspaper SFGate, discovered this last month.

Book of the dayFictionReviewThe stories of four travellers, including Goethe and Carl Linnaeus, are intertwined in an expansive novel set across continents and centuries Isn’t that why we embark on journeys?” a character remarks in Janice Pariat’s ambitious and capacious novel. “Not only to see new things but to see things in new ways.” An epic story of travellers and discoverers set across continents and centuries, Everything the Light Touches focuses on four people whose routes do not crisscross, but whose stories are tangled together like roots, through the ways in which they encounter the natural world around them.

Nick Menza: ‘A great and unique drummer, a trustworthy friend, a hilarious bandmate and a very loving dad.’ Photograph: GettyNick Menza: ‘A great and unique drummer, a trustworthy friend, a hilarious bandmate and a very loving dad.’ Photograph: GettyMegadethFormer Megadeth drummer Nick Menza dies after collapsing on stageMusician who played on band’s most successful albums thought to have suffered heart attack during session with his band OHM at jazz club in Los Angeles The former drummer with the US thrash metal band Megadeth, Nick Menza, has died after collapsing on stage at a gig in California.

UK newsIf you think 'breast is best' for your child's intelligence then think again, say scientists· Study finds mother's milk has little or no effect on IQ · Baby's brainpower 'more a matter of inheritance'Breastfeeding your baby has little or no effect on its intelligence, the largest study ever conducted on the issue reveals today. For almost 80 years research has found that children who are breastfed have higher IQs than those fed formula or cow's milk, leading to the belief that breast milk confers intelligence.

Wieambilla shooting This article is more than 1 year old‘Our hearts bleed blue’: Queensland police officers Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold honoured at memorialThis article is more than 1 year oldThousands gather in Brisbane to farewell the two constables killed in Wieambilla shooting Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast Queensland Police constables Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow have been awarded valour medals at an emotional memorial for the pair who were gunned down in the line of duty.

France This article is more than 8 years oldPhotographer jailed for multi-billion euro Bettencourt exploitationThis article is more than 8 years oldFrançois-Marie Banier has been sentenced to three years in jail and ordered to pay back €15m to L’Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt and her family A French celebrity photographer has been found guilty and sentenced to two and a half years in prison for exploiting the mental frailty of Liliane Bettencourt, the ageing L’Oréal shampoo heiress, who showered him with gifts including Picasso paintings, life insurance funds and millions of euros in cash.

Letters: Dr Alice Donald and Prof Philip Leach on cases where ‘pyjama injunctions’ have ensured British prisoners of war were not executed. Plus letters from Michael Meadowcroft, Jol Miskin and John Weightman Published: 12:03 PM ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaK%2Bfp7mle9SkqZqhnpp4uLvRpZs%3D

The case for language learningLanguagesToki Pona is an invented language that borrows from Dutch, English and Chinese. It has only 120 words but is two days enough time to become fluent? “Mi jo e soweli lili tu. soweli mi li moku e kala.”* Only around 100 people in the world understand this language. This is Toki Pona, created in 2001 by Sonja Lang, a Toronto-based linguist, and I’m one of a group of 17 who recently took on a challenge to learn it in 48 hours.

Fashion blogFashionThis Christmas, Y-fronts are 80 years old – and it shows. Today, they symbolise discomfort and awkwardness, while boxer shorts are a celebration of freedom and sex appeal The Guardian’s product and service reviews are independent and are in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative. We will earn a commission from the retailer if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. It was a cold day on 19 January 1935 – actually, it was a blizzard – when Chicago department store Marshall Field & Co displayed the first-ever pair of Y-fronts in its window.

Tennis This article is more than 10 months oldAndy Murray seals Qatar semi-final spot after win over Alexandre MüllerThis article is more than 10 months oldFormer British No 1 recovers after losing opening setMurray to face Lehecka after Czech’s win over RublevAndy Murray will face Jiri Lehecka in the Qatar Open semi-finals after beating the French qualifier Alexandre Müller in three sets. Murray hit back strongly after losing the opening set to win 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 in two hours and three minutes against Müller, who defied his world ranking of 170 early in the match.

PaintingHis cabbages are sinister and his barmaids are transvestites. Edward Burra's watercolours of rural England and Marseilles and Harlem street life are wonderfully distortingNo one has ever been sure what to do with Edward Burra, the British painter whose most celebrated work was produced in the 1920s and 30s. Looked at one way, he's a satirist along the lines of Otto Dix or George Grosz, a social realist with a sharp distorting eye for the human figure writhing and bridling its way through various vanity fairs.

Spain This article is more than 4 years oldHe's the daddy, judge rules on two-year Julio Iglesias paternity caseThis article is more than 4 years oldFormer ballerina said her son, now 42, was conceived in week-long affair with the pop star A Spanish court has ruled that the pop star Julio Iglesias is the biological father of a 42-year-old man whose mother said she had a brief affair with the singer in the 1970s.

The ObserverSex workA ‘vicious’ multibillion-yen system is pushing vulnerable young women who rack up extortionate bills into prostitution Yuko’s 24-year-old daughter thought she had found the ideal partner when she matched with a man on a dating app three years ago. They were around the same age and both at university, where he was studying medicine. The “match”, though, was the beginning of a nightmare that saw the young woman rack up debts of millions of yen at host clubs – money that she is paying back by dropping out of university and working in Japan’s commercial sex industry.

DocumentaryIn a new docuseries, film-maker Joshua Rofé delved into a myth of a monster that led him to a horrifying murder Audiences who hit play on Joshua Rofé’s new documentary miniseries Sasquatch in the expectation that someone’s finally gotten some straight answers about that elusive hirsute bastard will be sorely disappointed. “I wasn’t hung up on whether I believe in Bigfoot or whether I buy the details of this story. All of that became secondary and fell by the wayside,” Rofé tells the Guardian via Zoom.

People run to safety from the scene of a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday night. Photograph: Nichoel Wyman Arel/ReutersPeople run to safety from the scene of a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday night. Photograph: Nichoel Wyman Arel/ReutersMaine This article is more than 2 months oldMaine mass shooting: what we know so farThis article is more than 2 months oldAt least 16 reported killed, dozens wounded in Lewiston shooting; police warn residents to stay inside as they search for gunman

Peter PorterObituaryPeter Porter obituaryAustralian-born poet whose moving, elegiac work was seen as among Britain's finestPeter Porter, who has died of cancer, aged 81, was, though Australian by birth, one of Britain's best-loved and most prolific poets. His life and work exhibited a voracious and passionate care for European and humanist culture, especially music, which he valued – though not without a certain regret – even above poetry. Porter was born in Brisbane, Queensland, and was educated initially at the Church of England grammar school there.

THIS SCEPTRED ISLEWhy are ice-cream cones with flakes stuck in them called 99s? Nick Allen , Saltaire, UK I seem to remember the flakes that were put in the ice-creams were originally called 99s. Sandy, Paussac, France So that Wikipedia could run a business. CHECK THE WEB FIRST! 99 Hail Marys. John Rymell, Stepney, UK Because in roman numerals 99 is IC - Ice Cream Maybe not true but I like it.

Alexis Petridis's album of the weekWilcoReview(dBpm Records) Jeff Tweedy and co’s 13th album bears a close family resemblance to Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, but with Cate Le Bon in the producer’s chair, it has an appealing wash of left-field weirdness and its lyrics express an older man’s anxieties You could read a lot into the fact that the opening track of Wilco’s 13th album, Infinite Surprise, also provided the album’s working title.

RefugeesObituaryBarbara Harrell-Bond obituaryPassionate campaigner for refugees who founded the Refugee Studies Centre at Oxford UniversityBarbara Harrell-Bond, who has died aged 85, was a powerful and passionate advocate for the rights and dignity of refugees. For almost 40 years, her name was synonymous with their cause. Through her scholarship, her influential but often scathing critiques of the “humanitarian industry”, as she termed it, but above all for her insistence that the voices of refugees must be heard, their agency recognised and their rights protected, she transformed humanitarian practice from its paternalistic and self-justifying modes of action.

Other livesHealthObituaryDr Vera Wülfing-Leckie obituaryVera Wülfing-Leckie, my former wife, who has died aged 66, was a lover of Africa, a homeopath and a translator. Vera’s father had been a Russian prisoner-of-war. Her mother had fled before the advancing Russians from what became East Germany. The cold war seems distant now, but to Vera’s parents the threat was very real. It explained their settling in Lörrach, Germany, close to the border, from where they could get quickly into Switzerland.

Soap operaObituaryGavin Blyth obituaryProducer who led a revamp of EmmerdaleGavin Blyth, who has died of cancer aged 41, rose through the television soap ranks to become producer of Emmerdale, the serial set in rural Yorkshire that long ago dropped the "farm" from its title, and lit up the eponymous village with illicit affairs, explosions and back-stabbing. After taking the reins in January 2009, Blyth introduced new characters, including Lizzie Lakely – the first regular role in a British soap to be taken by a blind actor (Kitty McGeever) – and the Barton family, who took over the Sugdens' farm.

Global developmentThe story of girl’s refusal to be shamed by her gang-rape and a father’s fight for justice, defying a village’s hostility and the dead weight of patriarchy, is told in Nisha Pahuja’s film To Kill a Tiger When his 13-year-old daughter stumbled home six years ago and told her father that she had been gang-raped, Ranjit embarked on a mission to get justice in a manner that is almost unheard of in rural India.

Einar Njiokiktjien does a backflip off his houseboat into the De Vecht river in Maarssen, the Netherlands. Photograph: Ilvy Njiokiktjien/c/o VIIThe global median life expectancy is 72 years old. As part of a photographic project looking at the global community of over 60s we take a look at the lives of a diverse group of people in later life by Ed Kashi, Ilvy Njiokiktjien, and Sara TerryThe world’s population is about to become older than it has ever been: by the year 2030, one in six people will be over the age of 60.

Australian arts in focusSplendour in the Grass 2022 This article is more than 1 year oldSplendour in the Grass 2022 fiasco was foreseeable and ‘just plain dangerous’, local councillors sayThis article is more than 1 year oldOrganisers apologise to tens of thousands of music festivalgoers who were left bogged, stranded and out of pocket Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email The problems that besieged Splendour in the Grass were foreseeable, avoidable and dangerous to the environment, according to local government representatives.

‘A new kind of scaled-up anarchy’: the Now Building, part of Outernet London, adjacent to the new Crossrail Tottenham Court Road/Charing Cross Road southern exit and billed as ‘an atrium of content’. Photograph: Orlando Britain/Alamy‘A new kind of scaled-up anarchy’: the Now Building, part of Outernet London, adjacent to the new Crossrail Tottenham Court Road/Charing Cross Road southern exit and billed as ‘an atrium of content’. Photograph: Orlando Britain/AlamyThe ObserverArchitectureReviewThe pleasingly ramshackle area of central London where punk was born and you went to buy a banjo now includes a multi-billion ‘super-flexible brand engagement platform’.

MusicInterviewTony Visconti: ‘I’ve been a better record producer than I’ve been a husband’Jim FarberThe super-producer, who worked with David Bowie and Marc Bolan among others, reflects on a career filled with highs and lows In the storied London rock scene of 1969, Tony Visconti was living a dream, even if he didn’t know the full extent of it at the time. “I used to have these soirees at my apartment in Earl’s Court and, on any given night, I would have Marc Bolan and David Bowie there, and the three of us would be jamming,” he said.

Vivienne Westwood’s best looks – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email We take a look back at some of the most memorable looks from the iconic British fashion designer and rebel Dame Vivienne Westwood obituary Matt Fidler and Chloe Mac Donnell Main image: Jerry Hall for Westwood’s autumn/winter 1996-97 presentation in Paris Photograph: Daniel Simon/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images Fri 30 Dec 2022 17.

Barclays This article is more than 3 months old‘Call me’: FCA releases messages between former Barclays boss and Jeffrey EpsteinThis article is more than 3 months oldFinancial watchdog provisionally concludes Jes Staley misled it over his friendship with billionaire sex offender Ex-Barclays boss Jes Staley banned from City over Jeffrey Epstein scandal The UK’s financial watchdog has released a series of messages between former Barclays boss Jes Staley and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “referring to the strength of their friendship”.

‘We think outside the box’ ... Jason Newsted, Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett in 1991. Photograph: Ross HalfinNow 30 years old, the Black Album has sold more than 30m copies. The band discuss its legacy, fighting in the studio – and making an all-star cover version by Matt MillsBy the end of the 80s, it seemed certain that Metallica would be the biggest metal band in the world. Their 1988 album, … And Justice for All, had been in the US chart for a year and a half.

OpinionPortugal This article is more than 1 year oldPortugal’s Socialists have won a big victory – but the resurgent far right is a threatThis article is more than 1 year oldJoana RamiroA sweeping election win by the centre-left party offers lessons for Keir Starmer and Labour, among others Beleaguered leftwing politicians across Europe will doubtlessly be looking at last weekend’s general elections in Portugal and taking notes. In a surprise outcome, the centre-left Socialist party (PS) won a historic absolute majority, taking 117 of the 230 seats in parliament.

The Phi has been detained in Canary Wharf since March 2022. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty ImagesThe Phi has been detained in Canary Wharf since March 2022. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty ImagesUK news This article is more than 8 months oldRussian tycoon suing UK government for return of £38m superyachtThis article is more than 8 months oldSergei Georgievich Naumenko, who is not on sanctions list, is also seeking damages in high court claim

Germany This article is more than 2 years oldStory of heroin addiction in 1970s West Berlin gets modern remake This article is more than 2 years oldAmazon Prime’s version of bestselling book and cult film based on Christiane F’s adolescence will launch on Friday The story of a girl’s descent into drug addiction and prostitution in 1970s West Berlin, which became a bestselling book and cult film across Europe, is returning to screens in a modern remake.

Australian Open 2024Teenager Mirra Andreeva stuns idol Ons Jabeur in Australian Open second roundRussian 16-year-old demolishes sixth seed 6-0, 6-2Mari Timofeeva defeats Caroline Wozniacki 1-6, 6-4, 6-1As Mirra Andreeva emerged at the top level of her sport at the French Open last May, winning her first match in a grand slam, the 16-year-old had one humble goal beyond continuing her meteoric rise: she wanted a practice session with Ons Jabeur, her idol.

Konya Boys, September 2018. Photograph: © Olgaç BozalpKonya Boys, September 2018. Photograph: © Olgaç BozalpThe big picturePhotographyTurkish photographer Olgaç Bozalp’s playful images examine how migration alters our view of the world Olgaç Bozalp grew up in Konya, a city in central Turkey. Twice a year in his teens he would make the journey to Istanbul, 12 hours on the bus, just to experience a sense of freedom. “My personality didn’t necessarily fit into a small-town mentality,” he says of those years.

Drama filmsReviewThis fictional cycling and doping drama focuses on a support rider – an unsung hero who sacrifices his own dreams of winning the yellow jersey In 1998, a doping scandal rocked the Tour de France when a team masseur was caught with a pharmacy of banned substances in the boot of his car before the first stage in Ireland. The incident is the inspiration for this solid, workmanlike Irish drama with a strong performance by Louis Talpe as Dom Chabol, a fictional Belgian cyclist looking down the barrel of retirement at 38; he just can’t imagine life beyond cycling.

Michael Jackson This article is more than 4 years oldDiana Ross calls for end to criticism of Michael JacksonThis article is more than 4 years oldRoss describes Jackson as ‘a magnificent incredible force’, following extensive allegations of child sexual abuse against him Diana Ross has voiced support for Michael Jackson in the wake of the explosive Leaving Neverland documentary, which features extensive allegations of child sexual abuse by Jackson. Ross, who duetted live with Jackson and knew him for many years, wrote on Twitter: “This is what’s on my heart this morning.

Florida This article is more than 8 months oldFlorida teacher defends showing Disney movie: ‘I’m just being accepting’This article is more than 8 months oldJenna Barbee, who is under investigation, insists film is related to curriculum and warns investigators are traumatizing her students A Florida teacher under investigation because she showed her class the Disney animated movie Strange World which features a gay character has defended herself on social media, insisting the film related to the curriculum and warning that state investigators were traumatizing her 10- and 11-year-old students.

BooksInterviewLaura Lippman: ‘A lot of novelists choose to comfort the comfortable. I don’t do that’Lauren Mechling in New YorkThe acclaimed crime author delivers her most political novel to date about a teen with an unwanted pregnancy Laura Lippman is so free of affectation that it can be hard to remember the crime writer is one of our living greats. (Superfan Stephen King called her “the closest writer America has to Ruth Rendell”.

Marina O'Loughlin on restaurantsRestaurantsReview‘The second outing from the team behind the Clove Club is a departure: this time, they’ve come over all Italian. Well, ish. They call it “Britalian”’ I promised myself I would not use the words “difficult second album”. Fail. But burden of expectation is a terrible thing, the reason so many people go to restaurants cursed with the full gamut of Michelin stars, or those lurking at the top of “world’s best” lists, only to come out thinking, “Is that it?

FictionReviewRush's quirky 1991 novel highlights the disjunction between ideals and realities at a women-only utopia in the KalahariNelson Denoon, intellectual ideologue and founder of Tsau, an experimental women-only utopia in the Kalahari, has all the hallmarks of the thinking woman's crumpet. He is a man whose very dreams are "noetic", and, as such, is the infinitely worthy study of the novel's narrator, an American anthropologist in her 30s who gradually insinuates herself into his bed.

World newsNicole Richie jailed - for all of 82 minutesThe impression that some people are more equal than others in the eyes of the Californian prison authorities - particularly when those people happen to be rich, young, blonde and famous - was reinforced yesterday when two Hollywood starlets confronted some of the briefest jail sentences that can ever have been endured. Nicole Richie, the 25-year-old daughter of the singer Lionel, entered a women's jail at 3.

‘I had a voice like something you’d hear moaning in the woods late of a night’: Ralph Stanley performing in South Carolina, 2008. Photograph: Sipa Press/Rex/Shutterstock‘I had a voice like something you’d hear moaning in the woods late of a night’: Ralph Stanley performing in South Carolina, 2008. Photograph: Sipa Press/Rex/ShutterstockCountryObituaryRalph Stanley obituaryBluegrass musician with an ‘old-time mountain voice’ who found new audiences when his work featured in the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Readers recommendMusicIt's time to throw three coins in the song fountain and wheel out the tricycle in the bicycle shop of nominationsAnd so here comes number three. And on that theme of thrice, your nominations again burst forth in a trice. More than 500 in the first 12 hours and past the big three zeros with a flurry of puns once again. Impressive, insightful, inspiring. Movement 1In a tricolour of sections, I begin with a surprise.

Burning Man revellers dance at sunrise. The 10-day desert festival is turning 30 this year, but a lot has changed since is started on a beach in San Francisco. Photograph: Jim Urquhart/ReutersBurning Man revellers dance at sunrise. The 10-day desert festival is turning 30 this year, but a lot has changed since is started on a beach in San Francisco. Photograph: Jim Urquhart/ReutersBurning Man festival This article is more than 7 years oldThis article is more than 7 years oldBurning Man was never meant to be about money, but an influx of wealthy festivalgoers has led its founder to liken some parts of it to a ‘gated community’

101 strangest records on SpotifyMusic101 strangest records on Spotify: Barry McGuire - Cosmic CowboyMeet Barry McGuire - former washed-up drug casualty turned Hollywood Jesus Rocker - and maker of easy-strolling FM rock and noodle-doodle jazz-funk with lashings of gospel-themed lyrics Born in Oklahoma, Barry McGuire was a former member of the New Christy Minstrels edging 30 when, in September 1965, he scored his one and only No 1 single with the folk-rock protest classic Eve of Destruction.

Books advent calendarReference and languages books9. The Chinese power of nineOur festive countdown, extracted from Rogerson's Book of Numbers, considers why the number nine has powerful resonance in ChinaNine has always been respected by the Chinese, for it has tonal resonance with "long-lasting" and was also associated with the emperor, who had nine dragons embroidered on his robes and ruled over a court divided between nine ranks of courtiers who could gain nine sorts of reward.

Manchester United This article is more than 1 month oldDefiant Ten Hag has ‘no concern’ about being sacked by Manchester UnitedThis article is more than 1 month oldDutchman ‘focusing on process to make team play better’United travel to Liverpool on Sunday after European exitErik ten Hag is not concerned about being sacked due to the club’s executive having offered assurances his position is safe. Manchester United’s manager is under renewed pressure after Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich at Old Trafford that eliminated the club from all European competition this season and cost them a minimum of £20m in future revenue.

Music blogMusicHear the new Rolling Stones single – Doom and GloomThe Stones debuted a new track on Radio 2 this morning. Here's your chance for a repeat listenReading on mobile? Listen here. The Stones are back – and they're rocking surprisingly hard. Doom and Gloom, one of two new songs on their forthcoming greatest hits compilation, Grrr!, due on November 12. Producer Don Was has emphasised the heavy side of the band, while sprucing up the rhythm section behind the guitars of Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood.

YemenHouthi missile targeting US warship intercepted, says US, amid Red Sea tensions US Central Command says missile from Houthi-controlled area of Yemen was launched towards USS Laboon before being shot down by fighter jets Middle East crisis – live updates US fighter aircraft shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen at one of its warships in the Red Sea, the US military said on Sunday night.

Mary GaitskillInterviewMary Gaitskill: ‘I don’t like the word ‘harassment’ any more. That doesn’t always seem to be the right word’Leslie JamisonEver since her explosive debut Bad Behaviour, Gaitskill has dealt with pain and intimacy, sex and power. She explains why it was time to address #MeToo Mary Gaitskill’s fiction is often called cold, or even brutal, but I have always loved it for nearly opposite reasons: its tender attention to the complexities of human emotion, and the compassion it coaxes from clear-eyed perception.

Chinese researchers have called the skull, found in Harbin in the north, Homo longi, or ‘Dragon man’, but other experts are more cautious about naming a new species. Photograph: Wei GaoChinese researchers have called the skull, found in Harbin in the north, Homo longi, or ‘Dragon man’, but other experts are more cautious about naming a new species. Photograph: Wei GaoAnthropology This article is more than 2 years oldMassive human head in Chinese well forces scientists to rethink evolutionThis article is more than 2 years old‘Dragon man’ skull reveals new branch of family tree more closely related to modern humans than Neanderthals

Indiana Jones runs from a boulder (designed by Norman Reynolds) in a scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1981. Photograph: Atlaspix/AlamyIndiana Jones runs from a boulder (designed by Norman Reynolds) in a scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1981. Photograph: Atlaspix/AlamyStar WarsObituaryNorman Reynolds obituaryProduction designer who helped create the look of the Star Wars films and of the Indiana Jones adventure Raiders of the Lost ArkThe production designer and art director Norman Reynolds, who has died aged 89, concealed a career in Hollywood blockbusters by telling people he made biscuits for a living.

US news This article is more than 11 months oldRevealed: how US transition to electric cars threatens environmental havocThis article is more than 11 months oldBy 2050 electric vehicles could require huge amounts of lithium for their batteries, causing damaging expansions of mining The US’s transition to electric vehicles could require three times as much lithium as is currently produced for the entire global market, causing needless water shortages, Indigenous land grabs, and ecosystem destruction inside and outside its borders, new research finds.

TV reviewReality TVReviewThe first ever UK gay dating show – hosted by Dannii Minogue – is fun, relatable and follows the tried-and-tested Love Island formula. What a thrill it is to watch There have been many legitimate complaints aimed at ITV’s brash yet brilliant blockbuster Love Island – too much lighting, too few people of colour – but one that has always seemed a bit, well, muggy is the idea that the UK’s most excessive example of straight culture should become a little … gayer.

Giorgia Meloni Italian PM greeted with anti-fascist song Bella Ciao at convention – video Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister and leader of a party with neo-fascist origins, was greeted during a speech in Rimini with some delegates singing the protest song at her arrival. Meloni was speaking during a convention of the three main Italian unions, CGIL, CISL, and UIL when some unionists sang the song and left the hall with their fists raised.

Health & wellbeingThe genetic condition is one of the most common in the UK and may be a leading cause of infertility in men. Why does it so often go untreated?Three years ago, Paul (not his real name), now 31, went to the doctor with stomach pains. His blood test came back with low testosterone levels. “We went to see a urologist and he said bluntly that we wouldn’t have any options to have kids with my sperm – we would have to use a donor or adopt,” he says.

Medical researchMan dies after inhaling fungal spores from garden compost· Common mould can harm lungs, scientists warn · An 'occupational hazard' for gardeners, but risk lowGardeners should take extra care when handling old bags of compost after a man died from kidney failure after inhaling poisonous fungal spores, doctors have warned. The 47-year-old welder from Buckinghamshire, who has not been named, died in intensive care a week after being engulfed by "

Science This article is more than 14 years oldMockingbirds bear a grudge against particular peopleThis article is more than 14 years oldIn the first published account of wild animals recognising individuals of another species, the songbirds attacked people who had threatened them in the pastMockingbirds can remember people who have threatened them and even start dive-bombing them if they see the person again, a study has found. An urban population of the songbirds ignored most passers-by, but took to the air when they recognised people who had approached their nest days before.

ShortcutsCannabisThe Metropolitan police commissioner says she can’t smell dope, and never has been able to. We ask an expert if that’s possibleThe clue is in the name. The vast majority of cannabis sold in the UK these days is superstrong skunk, so called not just because it’s very potent in what it does to your brain, but because it’s also very smelly. I smell it pretty much every day, on the street on the way home from work.

Science fiction booksReviewOnly the young survive in this fascinating thought experiment by the author of The Three-Body ProblemThe jacket for Cixin Liu’s new novel carries a blurb from none other than Barack Obama: “Wildly imaginative, really interesting … The scope of it was immense.” What the publishers rather disingenuously neglect to specify is that this and the other glowing review snippets are not for the present book at all, but for the multi-award-winning, global phenomenon that was his Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy, beginning with The Three-Body Problem (first published in English in 2014).

Torture This article is more than 14 years oldTortured with pliers: fingernail evidence and the British linkThis article is more than 14 years oldUK officials who questioned him in Pakistan saw injuries, says man jailed for terrorismLike many other young men detained by Pakistan's notorious ISI agency during a British counter-terrorism investigation, Rangzieb Ahmed had a harrowing story to tell about how he was questioned by a pair of intelligence officers from the UK after suffering appalling torture at the hands of the Pakistanis.

BoxingObituaryBobo OlsonChampion boxer who saw off the finest fighters of his timeAfter seeing Carl "Bobo" Olson crash to the canvas during his third, ill-fated encounter with the great Sugar Ray Robinson in December 1955, an unimpressed Joe DiMaggio was heard to comment: "This guy just doesn't get up, does he?" The remark was unkind on the Hawaiian-born Olson, who has died aged 73 of Alzheimer's disease. Despite being knocked out by Robinson on three occasions, he still managed to hold the world middleweight title for a two-year period, during which he saw off some of the best fighters of the time, including Britain's Randolph Turpin.

BPAnalysisBP chief Tony Hayward's statement in fullBP boss's full statement to congressional committee on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the causes, clean-up operation, and BP's actions and responsibilitiesBP chief executive Tony Hayward will appear before the US house energy and commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations at 10am EST (3pm BST) to answer questions on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This is his prepared testimony, released before the hearing: Chairman Stupak, ranking member Burgess, members of the subcommittee.

GoodfellasWhile the acclaimed 1990 gangster drama has been viewed by some as a bro fantasy, a closer look shows an elegant and brutal dissection of male ego A few weeks ago, as if inadvertently anticipating its 30th anniversary this month, Goodfellas found itself the unlikely subject of a Twitter flame war, kicked off by one non-admiring podcaster’s viral tweet. “Really sucks that every time you start dating a new guy you’re basically signing up to take a ‘film theory 101’ class of his making,” vented Dana Donnelly.

China This article is more than 1 year oldHanbok at Beijing Winter Olympics opening sparks South Korean angerThis article is more than 1 year oldAppearance of traditional dress denounced as further attempt by China to appropriate Korean culture China and South Korea have become embroiled in a cultural appropriation row after a woman appeared at the opening ceremony of the Beijing winter Olympics wearing traditional Korean dress. The Chinese embassy in Seoul defended the decision to include a participant wearing hanbok, describing her as a representative of the country’s dozens of ethnic groups.

Mad Men: notes from the break roomMad MenPete is still waiting for his comeuppance, Don's hurtling towards rock bottom – and what's under your furniture?Spoiler alert: This blog is for those who are watching season seven of Mad Men. Don't read on if you haven't seen episode four. Catch-up with Zoe Williams' episode three blog I wish you would stop introducing me that way. Why? It's good for business.Pete is still with his beautiful girlfriend, and still introducing her as his real estate agent, and still doesn't have the first ounce of wisdom, so that every drop of human news bites him on the arse like a beaver in an arcade game.

Mohammed Emwazi Mohammed Emwazi – video profile Mohammed Emwazi, one of the most high profile figures of Islamic State, is believed to have been killed in Syria by an unmanned US drone. How did a child who arrived in Britain aged six and loved football and S Club 7 go on to become the brutal Isis militant known as Jihadi John? Phil Maynard and Adam Sich, theguardian.com

Work & careersMy storyMy name Liv Spencer Age 36 Occupation Actor Location South Woodford, London Employer Self-employed Income around £11,000 (including secretarial temping) My interests General Theatre, art galleries, opera, contemporary ballet. Music I like a lot of classical music and world music, including Brazilian street music. Films I absolutely love everything that Mike Leigh does, because his films tell the stories of everyday people and don't have a "

Utah This article is more than 1 month oldUtah mother who advised parents on YouTube pleads guilty to child abuseThis article is more than 1 month oldRuby Franke, who ran the YouTube channel 8 Passengers, was charged with abusing and starving two of her six children A Utah mother of six who gave parenting advice on a once popular YouTube channel called 8 Passengers has pleaded guilty to charges that she abused and starved two of her children, her attorney said.

Amy WinehouseVoice coach Anne-Marie Speed outlines extraordinary demands made of actor Marisa Abela to play role of singer Singing, dancing, playing piano: six actors who had to train for their roles Intense gym sessions, consulting nutritionists and multiple coaches tweaking every aspect of your performance might sound like the life of a professional endurance athlete but increasingly the same demands are being made of actors – especially those trying to transform into well-known singers.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewActor Sally Phillips sets out to explore the pros and cons of the new NHS test but, as the mother of a child who has the condition, she is impassioned rather than impartial ‘This is Olly, my son,” says actor and writer Sally Phillips, over footage of her grinning 11-year-old cracking jokes to his siblings at the dinner table. Aside from being an amateur standup, paint-flinger and epic hugger, Olly has Down’s syndrome, a condition he was diagnosed with at 10 days old.

OECD This article is more than 1 month oldCentral banks ‘risk tipping UK and other developed countries into recession’This article is more than 1 month oldStance on inflation poses threat to ‘soft landing’ forecast for global economy, says OECD Business live – latest updates Continued tough action by central banks to tackle stubborn inflation risks tipping Britain and other developed countries into recession next year, the west’s leading economic thinktank has warned.

TelevisionE4’s latest flagship drama, a sexy whodunnit set in the rural home counties, is tipped to ‘do a Skins’ for its young cast A farm near the Berkshire village of Lambourn is about to play host to a second gruesome killing. The first happened some weeks earlier, when a boy was discovered under the wheels of a tractor. But there’s no mystery about today’s murder. Jordan Stephens, one half of hip-pop duo Rizzle Kicks, is standing in a scrapyard preparing to slaughter Mambo No 5.

WomenPerhaps you've never even considered the question, but armpits are the latest part of the female anatomy to be targeted by the beauty industry. Where will it end?On any given day, before I leave my flat, I do three things: first, I check my teeth for stray poppy seeds. Then I have a quick look at my hair, making sure my afro is even on all sides. And last, but by no means least, I check my underarms.

Sexual healingLife and styleI have an active and enjoyable sex life with my husband, but I can’t reach orgasm without a great deal of drama. Should I try to be more restrained? I am a married woman in my 50s who enjoys an active and enjoyable sex life. Unfortunately, I can’t climax any more without a great deal of drama, including moaning, heavy breathing, even crying or shouting. We have teenage children and I worry about the embarrassment that I might cause them.

Mexico This article is more than 8 years oldThis article is more than 8 years oldIn the mountains of Guerrero small villages with few economic alternatives mark the first link in the chain of Mexico’s multibillion-dollar opium trade Red and purple blossoms with fat, opium-filled bulbs blanket the remote creek sides and gorges of the Filo Mayor mountains in the southern state of Guerrero. The multibillion-dollar Mexican opium trade starts here, with poppy farmers so poor they live in wood-plank, tin-roofed shacks with no indoor plumbing.

Pret a Manger This article is more than 8 months oldPret’s five-coffees-a-day subscription rises to £30 a monthThis article is more than 8 months oldChain raises price amid' ‘inflationary challenges’ but adds in 10% off food, as part of Club Pret rebrand Pret a Manger is upping the cost of its subscription service by a fifth – but adding a 10% discount on food and snacks alongside free drinks to the offer from Wednesday – as the sandwich chain warns that the “inflationary challenge” remains.

The ObserverNeuroscience This article is more than 10 years oldSexiest parts of the body revealed by neuroscientistsThis article is more than 10 years oldSurvey asks men and women to rank parts of the body by pleasure – and some of the results prove surprisingThe mind, said Raquel Welch, is an erogenous zone. And it is the brain, and how it organises our erogenous zones, that has intrigued scientists for decades. Why is a nuzzled neck sexy when few would be turned on by a nuzzled nose?

How to believePhilosophy This article is more than 10 years oldThe Frankfurt school, part 2: Negative dialecticsThis article is more than 10 years oldPeter ThompsonUnlike Hegel, Theodor Adorno rejected the idea the outcome of the dialectic will always be positive, and preordainedAlready in the comments about the first instalment of this series, a problem of traditions has emerged. For a predominantly Anglo-Saxon audience, raised in the empirical and positivist tradition, understanding a group of thinkers schooled in speculative Hegelianism and Marxist dialectics is always going to require a leap of faith.

Science fiction booksReviewThis sophisticated novel addresses who we areSome authors fill a novel with futuristic scenery and jargon and then strenuously, even stertorously, deny that it's science fiction. No, no, they don't write that nasty stuff, never touch it. They write literature. Though curiously familiar with the tropes and conventions of the despised genre, they so blithely ignore the meaning of terms, they reinvent the wheel with such cries of self-admiration, that their endeavours seem a doomed effort to prove that one can write a novel without learning how.

Elijah McClainEx-police officer sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing Elijah McClain in 2019Randy Roedema, found guilty of criminally negligent homicide, is the first official to be sentenced in the 23-year-old’s killing A former Colorado police officer convicted in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain was sentenced to 14 months in county jail on Friday. Randy Roedema, an ex-Aurora police department (APD) officer, was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault in October.

World newsGreece tackles its image as a state of racistsPoll underlines urgency of anti-discrimination billGreeks found guilty of discriminating against religious or ethnic groups will face up to a year in prison under legislation presented by the Athens government in attempts to quash a rise in racist incidents. The measure, included in a new anti-discrimination law, follows a rash of confrontations with the growing immigrant population. One attack prompted a protest by Pakistani migrants in Athens.

Montana This article is more than 4 months oldGrizzly bear that mauled woman in July killed after breaking into Montana homeThis article is more than 4 months oldBear was involved in fatal attack on Amie Adamson, 48, about eight miles from West Yellowstone A grizzly bear that fatally mauled a woman on a forest trail west of Yellowstone national park in July and also attacked a person in Idaho three years ago was killed after it broke into a house near West Yellowstone over the weekend, Montana wildlife officials said.

Sexual healingLife and styleI have experienced an unpleasant pulsing sensation – but that seems a far cry from how an orgasm is usually described I have a question that you might find slightly weird so, from the outset, I would like to stress that, despite how ridiculous it sounds, I am a 25-year-old woman and I have never learned how to masturbate. I have touched myself occasionally, but always given up long before reaching anything like orgasm.

First look reviewSnowpiercerReviewDespite the drawn-out production process, the Boon Jong-ho-directed sci-fi fable about a giant train turns out a wonderfully realised delight Snowpiercer chugs into Edinburgh carrying quite a bit of baggage: a contentious re-edit by Harvey Weinstein à la Grace of Monaco, the burden of previous English language flops by other Korean directors (Stoker, The Last Stand); and a daft-sounding premise involving a giant allegorical train that goes over tired ground covered by Elysium and District 9.

MoviesReviewThe actor plays a man who uses his disorder to balance books for criminals in a film that struggles to balance derivative action and underwritten romance “Sooner or later, difference scares people.” The Accountant puts that sentiment in the mouth of a military man (Robert C Treveiler) explaining the tough ways of the world to his autistic, bullied son. But it could as easily be said by the director Gavin O’Connor, who has put together a drama so familiar and formulaic that even the most timid viewer will be comforted.

BaseballIn an extract from her new book on cheating in American society, JM Fenster explains how bending the rules has always been a part of baseball Throughout most millennia, people were too busy avoiding sudden death themselves to worry about which sports teams made the playoffs. In those long years, a good season meant food. “Track” meant food and “field” meant food. Rooting, of course, meant a carrot. Prehistoric peoples didn’t waste words on sports, let alone billions of their hard-earned dollars.

Buy now, pay laterThe fashion brand is not paying buyers back – but big finance firms say they will return cash Buy now, pay later (BNPL) firms have pledged to refund shoppers affected by the collapse of the fast-fashion retailer Missguided. The online clothing brand entered administration on 30 May owing suppliers millions of pounds and leaving customers in the dark about orders and refunds. Administrators from Teneo are in charge until Frasers Group, the retail empire owned by the Sports Direct founder, Mike Ashley, takes over in August after a £20m deal.

Rumour MillSoccerToday’s fluff is causing a kerfuffle across Europe When the big clubs see something they like, they don’t hang about. Raphaël Varane was just a sparkle in the eye of Lens fans when Real Madrid signed the then 18-year-old for €10m back in 2011, right under the noses of Manchester United. “I hurtled down on the train from Euston to Lille to sign the young French defender Varane,” Sir Alex Ferguson wrote in his 2015 book Leading.

Misty Upham as seen by artist Vin Ganapathy. ‘My name is Misty Upham, and someday you will know that name as the best living Native American actress.’ Illustration: Vin Ganapathy/The GuardianThe Native American actor played alongside Hollywood’s best. Last October, her body was found in a ravine after she went missing for 11 days, and her family still searches for answers and justice by Kristen Millares Young in SeattleWhen Misty Upham was 12, she announced herself to a Seattle classroom of aspiring performers.

Classic cookbookFoodChef Margot Henderson, in her introduction to this selection, says Elizabeth David’s words are wise and clear – and this book, a collection of recipes and robust opinions, is an essential read I started reading Elizabeth David in the early 90s. I’d just got my first head chef job, at First Floor in Notting Hill, and I had to get my act together pretty fast so I was reading non-stop.

US CongressRepublican and Democrat leaders reach spending deal to fund US governmentLawmakers must negotiate how much agencies can spend to avert the start of a government shutdown The top Democrat and Republican in the US Congress on Sunday agreed on a $1.59tn spending deal, setting up a race for bitterly divided lawmakers to pass the bills that would appropriate the money before the government begins to shut down this month.

Dry dinner mixes with meat 98%market shareowned by 4 firms Single serve yogurt/yogurt drinks 97%market shareowned by 4 firms Single serve prepared pasta dishes 94%market shareowned by 4 firms Single serve prepared sloppy sauce 94%market shareowned by 4 firms Carbonated soft drinks 93%market shareowned by 3 firms Dip 91%market shareowned by 4 firms Dry mac & cheese mixes 87%market shareowned by 4 firms Popcorn, microwave 87%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned tuna 85%market shareowned by 4 firms Baby formula (liquid concentrate) 85%market shareowned by 3 firms Our unequal earth Revealed: the true extent of America’s food monopolies, and who pays the price Mayonnaise 83%market shareowned by 3 firms Baby food 82%market shareowned by 3 firms Refrigerated soy milk 81%market shareowned by 4 firms Refrigerated almond milk 81%market shareowned by 4 firms Chocolate confectionary 80%market shareowned by 3 firms Beer 79%market shareowned by 4 firms Pasta (dry plain) 79%market shareowned by 3 firms Bagels/bialys 77%market shareowned by 4 firms Frozen meat substitute 76%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned pineapple 75%market shareowned by 4 firms Yogurt 75%market shareowned by 4 firms Breakfast cereals 73%market shareowned by 3 firms Hard/soft tortillas/taco kit 72%market shareowned by 4 firms Processed/imitation cheese slices 71%market shareowned by 4 firms Prepared soup 70%market shareowned by 4 firms Wine makers 69%market shareowned by 4 firms Coffee 68%market shareowned by 4 firms Single serve prepared salads 68%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned salmon 67%market shareowned by 4 firms Snack bars 66%market shareowned by 4 firms Frozen pizza 66%market shareowned by 3 firms Sour cream 64%market shareowned by 4 firms Doughnuts 62%market shareowned by 4 firms Biscuits (cookies & crackers) 61%market shareowned by 4 firms Fresh bread 61%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned green peas 60%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned potato/sweet potato 59%market shareowned by 2 firms Turkey producers (pounds processed) 58%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned tomato 58%market shareowned by 4 firms Tea - bags/loose 58%market shareowned by 4 firms Bottled canned green beans 56%market shareowned by 4 firms Canned corn 55%market shareowned by 4 firms Fresh cut salad 54%market shareowned by 4 firms Table sauces 53%market shareowned by 4 firms Ready to drink coconut milk 52%market shareowned by 4 firms Rice 52%market shareowned by 4 firms Bacon 52%market shareowned by 4 firms Bottled/canned beans (no green beans) 51%market shareowned by 4 firms Bottled water 50%market shareowned by 4 firms Meat, beef & poultry processing 49%market shareowned by 4 firms Juice 47%market shareowned by 4 firms Egg producers (share of top 30) 41%market shareowned by 4 firms Processed meats 39%market shareowned by 4 firms Cheese 36%market shareowned by 4 firms Craft beer 33%market shareowned by 4 firms Sweet bakery 32%market shareowned by 4 firms Sugar processors 29%market shareowned by 4 firms Egg brands 23%market shareowned by 4 firms Refrigerated whole milk 23%market shareowned by 4 firms Frozen fruit 22%market shareowned by 4 firms Supported by About this content Nina Lakhani, Aliya Uteuova and Alvin Chang Wed 14 Jul 2021 06.

Sport This article is more than 1 year oldUnder-investigation sprint coach apprehended and cautioned in EugeneThis article is more than 1 year oldRana Reider is under investigation for sexual misconductLaura Muir ‘chilled’ as she prepares for 1500m finalA renowned US sprint coach who is under investigation for sexual misconduct has been cautioned by police in Eugene after gaining unauthorised access to the athlete warm-up area before the world 100m final on Saturday night.

FictionReviewThe Booker-shortlisted The Sisters Brothers was a hard act to follow, but DeWitt’s riff on the folk tale transports the reader to a gothic Europe drawn with relish and bravado One of the great joys of comic fiction is that it can do anything it wants. It can explore the sexual possibilities of a giant salami, provoke empathy with a merciless killer, or throw the English language into a blender and make it taste like high gastronomy despite the weird colour and the lumps – or perhaps because of them.

US elections 2024Vivek Ramaswamy urges supporters not to believe polls in final Iowa pitchRepublican presidential candidate makes final appearance in Iowa hours ahead of caucuses Iowa caucuses 2024: live Republican results in full Iowa caucuses: live news updates Vivek Ramaswamy, the biotech entrepreneur who has gone all in on Iowa to jumpstart his presidential bid, urged supporters not to believe the polls during a final appearance at a Cedar Rapids brewery hours ahead of Monday night’s caucuses.

Outkast This article is more than 9 years oldAndré 3000 on the Outkast reunion tour: 'I felt like a sell-out'This article is more than 9 years oldThe rapper says he committed to the tour because he had to ‘support certain things’, and only customised jumpsuits made it interesting Outkast’s 20th anniversary reunion tour this summer left many fans dissatisfied – the Guardian’s review of the first show, at Coachella, noted that “it felt like two solo shows awkwardly attempting to become one” – and now André “3000” Benjamin has admitted he felt like a “sell-out” and that Coachella was “a horrible show”.

World newsCase of cult-fighter who changed sides awakens Israelis to millennium dangerThe Concerned Christians group, whose members were arrested in Israel yesterday on suspicion of planning a bloody showdown with police in Jerusalem, was founded in Colorado originally to combat the spread of cults. Its founder and leader, Monte Kim Miller, a former pharmaceutical marketing executive whose whereabouts are still unknown, initially worked side by side with the police and established churches in the 1980s to preach against the dangers of mind control by extreme religious groups.

Marcus Stewart returns to Bristol Rovers’ Memorial Stadium on Saturday for a charity game. Photograph: Sam Frost/The GuardianMarcus Stewart returns to Bristol Rovers’ Memorial Stadium on Saturday for a charity game. Photograph: Sam Frost/The GuardianSoccerInterviewMarcus Stewart on living with MND: ‘You ask yourself, why me? But I have to make the most of it’Ben FisherFormer Ipswich and Sunderland striker on dealing with the disease and his emotions as he prepares for fund-raising match Marcus Stewart hops off his electric scooter and a couple of minutes later, in the corner of a restaurant a few miles outside Bristol, he is talking about how his workout routine has changed.

Mariah CareyReviewClaims of crazy diva demands, her unhappy first marriage and that spat with Eminem - in a frank interview, the singer tells allMariah Carey makes a low-key entrance – as low-key as someone in four-inch heels, bouffant hair and lashes as lacquered as hockey sticks can do. It's 11pm and the restaurant in downtown Manhattan is almost empty. She has been filming an advert all day and has walked – walked! (an assistant points to this fact as to Jesus on water) – from her apartment around the corner.

Colombia This article is more than 9 years oldPablo Escobar's top hitman released early from prisonThis article is more than 9 years oldJohn Jairo Velásquez, alias Popeye, who participated in more than 3,000 murders, granted parole after serving 22 yearsPablo Escobar's top hitman, who confessed to participating in more than 3,000 murders, is free on parole after serving 22 years in a maximum-security prison. John Jairo Velásquez, better known as Popeye, was surreptitiously whisked out through a back entrance of the prison late on Tuesday as throngs of reporters followed a decoy caravan that left through the main gate, according to El Tiempo.

Activists and campaigners on an animal rights march in central London. But where do they stand on palm oil? Photograph: Wiktor Szymanowicz/BarcroftActivists and campaigners on an animal rights march in central London. But where do they stand on palm oil? Photograph: Wiktor Szymanowicz/BarcroftThe palm oil debateGuardian sustainable businessThe ubiquitous vegetable oil is plant-based so fits with a vegan diet, but its production can harm rainforests and biodiversity As marketing slogans go, NotFrom.

PizzaA widely shared image of a kiwifruit pizza has caused mass consternation online – but it tastes much better than it looks “I wouldn’t even serve this to my worst enemy,” our waiter says with a smile as he plonks the pizza down on the table. “This” is a kiwifruit pizza, an innovation that horrified the internet this week after an image of one was shared widely on Reddit and then picked up by the press.

RED TAPE, WHITE LIESWhat is the most embarrassing incident to have occurred in diplomatic or political circles? Saul Cohen, London UK Spoilt for choice, really. If we're talking about embarrassment in the sense of "cringingly face-reddening", rather than "shaming"; if we're talking about comic rather than tragic, there was a spell when Gerald Ford seemed unable to exit a plane without falling down the stairs. (qv LBJ's remark: "

THIS SCEPTRED ISLEWhy are Capons illegal in the UK? Nicola, London, UK Capons are not illegal in the UK !! (as in the selling, buying or eating of.....) Caponisation - the physical(or chemical) castration of cockerels is illegal. Hugh, London Add your answer ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKafqbK0rc2dqK6dop6ytHvQrpyrsV9leXaDlGxjZmxpZ4F1eI9pZaGsnaE%3D

MusicModel turned author Jenny Boyd’s new book details a life living with Mick Fleetwood, inspiring a Donovan song and working with the Beatles Jenny Boyd has two words for anyone who ever fantasized about marrying a rich and famous rock star. “Watch out,” she said, with a laugh. “It’s not what you think.” She should know. In the 70s, Boyd married Mick Fleetwood twice, first in a stretch between 1970 and 1976, and then, for a fraught year between 1977 and 78, each resulting in feelings of loneliness, jealousy, rage and, ultimately, a total loss of identity.

Bar Iberico, NottinghamBar Iberico, NottinghamNottingham holidaysInspired by Master Chef winners, a sprinkling of Michelin gongs, plus supper clubs and pop-ups evolving into new restaurants, the city’s independent food scene has never felt more energised Kushi-yaThis Japanese hideaway down an alley in Nottingham city centre made it into the Michelin Guide this October and was described by Jay Rayner as his “restaurant of the year” in the same month, so it’s fair to say chefs and co-owners Simon Carlin and Tom Clay are creating something special.

Other livesArts Council EnglandObituaryDavid Cargill obituaryMy uncle David Cargill, who has died aged 88, believed in the value of investment in arts as a catalyst for positive social change, both for his beloved East Anglia and nationally - a belief that he put into action as a national board member for the Arts Council for England between 1988 and 1992. David was born in Gimingham, Norfolk, to Jessie (nee Henderson) and her husband David Cargill, a farmer who was the doyen of one of Norfolk’s Scottish landowning families.

Alex Bellos's Monday puzzleMathematicsDid you solve it? The logic question almost everyone gets wrongThe results are in and yes, most of you got this one wrong. Here’s why. Earlier today I set you this puzzle: Jack is looking at Anne, but Anne is looking at George. Jack is married, but George is not. Is a married person looking at an unmarried person? A: Yes B: No C: Cannot be determined

Armani This article is more than 3 years oldGiorgio Armani criticised for comparing fashion trends to rapeThis article is more than 3 years oldItalian designer accused of diminishing sexual violence against women with comments The fashion designer Giorgio Armani has been accused of diminishing sexual violence against women after he claimed the fashion industry was “raping” women with short-lived trends and sex-driven marketing. Armani’s choice of language was denounced on Friday by critics who felt it amounted to taking the effect of sexual abuse too lightly.

Holly is a historical archaeologist focusing on political violence and a public servant working in the compliance process. She’s a bit of a policy geek, and wants to bring to light some of the laws that help protect our most precious non-renewable resources. ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRon6iknK56r7vRraan

Charleston shooting This article is more than 8 years oldHundreds honour Charleston church shooting victim Myra ThompsonThis article is more than 8 years oldThompson qualified as a preacher the day of the attackGovernor Nikki Haley: ‘This is a woman who I want to strive to be’Charleston shooting: Emanuel AME church reopens for first serviceRead moreThe day she was killed along with eight others during Bible study at a South Carolina church, Myra Thompson achieved her goal of becoming a minister.

Washington DC This article is more than 2 months oldProtesters urging Gaza ceasefire accuse Washington police of violenceThis article is more than 2 months oldCeasefire Now Coalition says 90 activists injured by police using violent tactics to break up protest outside DNC headquarters Israel-Hamas war – live updates Protesters against Israel’s military offensive in Gaza were locked in a battle of words with Washington police on Thursday after accusing officers of violently breaking up a demonstration on Capitol Hill that organisers insist was peaceful.

France This article is more than 5 months oldRow over restaurant ‘wealth screening’ boils over in French resort of St-TropezThis article is more than 5 months oldMayor threatens sanctions over reported practices of large minimum spends and selecting diners by size of previous bills The mayor of St-Tropez has threatened “racketeering” restaurateurs in the Med’s most famous – and overpriced – former fishing village with sanctions after reports that some are selecting diners by the size of previous bills and are setting minimum spends.

Southend This article is more than 3 months oldAustralian IT millionaire buying struggling English football club says it makes ‘perfect sense’This article is more than 3 months oldJustin Rees forms consortium to invest in 117-year-old Southend United while travelling around Europe on gap year An Australian businessman who made his fortune in corporate IT decided to invest in struggling English football club Southend United while holidaying in Europe on a gap year.

Germany This article is more than 1 month oldFear and anger rise in Germany over handling of budget crisisThis article is more than 1 month oldDer Spiegel accuses Scholz of ‘leading country into chaos’ as MPs scramble to plug €60bn shortfall The German government is struggling to find a way out of a billion euro budget crisis that risks stifling its vision for environmental and industrial transformation and plunging the country into years of economic stagnation.

Paris attacks This article is more than 8 years oldHasna Aït Boulahcen: 'party girl' killed in Paris terror siegeThis article is more than 8 years oldFriends and relatives describe how 26-year-old was into drinking and dancing, but suddenly adopted strict Islamic dress six months ago A female terror suspect who died during a police siege in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis did not blow herself up, French investigators have revealed, but was killed when somebody standing next her detonated a suicide vest.

THE BODY BEAUTIFULI have read somewhere that sipping alcoholic drinks through a straw makes the alcohol 'work' more quickly and intensively. Is this true? If so, how? Alan Mazonowicz, Brussels, Belgium Some of the alchohol evaporates from the drink and ends up in your lungs as you breathe. From there, it has a direct route into the bloodstream (much as the nicotine does in cigarette smoke) rather than the tortuous route through your digestive system.

Kyle Rittenhouse This article is more than 1 year oldKyle Rittenhouse launches initiative to fight media ‘lies’ – and Whoopi GoldbergThis article is more than 1 year oldTeen who shot dead two men and injured another during anti-racism protests in Wisconsin has become a rightwing celebrity Kyle Rittenhouse, the teen who shot dead two men and injured another during anti-racism protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in 2020, has announced the formation of a group to fund lawsuits against reporters – and also Whoopi Goldberg.

The ObserverDramaInterviewNafessa Williams: ‘As a young black girl I didn’t have a superhero like me to look up to’Rob WalkerNafessa Williams, who plays Thunder in Black Lightning, hopes her character will be an inspiration It’s a genre dominated by white, straight males, so American actress Nafessa Williams admits she was moved to tears when she pulled on her costume for the first time to play a black, lesbian superhero. “It was a moment,” she says.

CultureObituaryRay ConniffHugely successful bandleader and arranger who defied rock 'n' roll with his easy listening soundRay Conniff, who has died aged 85, was a highly successful popular musician who defied rock 'n' roll and lived to talk about it. Equally well known as a bandleader and an arranger, he blended together sweet choruses and soothing strings, creating an easy listening sound that encouraged his audiences to sit back with eyes closed, and allow the orchestra to do the work.

Espionage This article is more than 12 years oldSpanish superspy Francisco Paesa, 75, gets out of yet another scrapeThis article is more than 12 years oldSierra Leone escapade follows a lifetime of intrigue including years on Interpol's 'most wanted' listFrancisco Paesa bamboozled terrorists, laundered money, entrapped crooked police chiefs, became mixed up in a dirty war fought on French soil, fooled Interpol and placed a death notice in a Spanish newspaper asking monks to pray for his soul.

South Australian police are preparing a report for the coroner after a shark attack on the Yorke Peninsula. Photograph: The GuardianSouth Australian police are preparing a report for the coroner after a shark attack on the Yorke Peninsula. Photograph: The GuardianSouth AustraliaTeenage boy killed in fatal shark attack near Ethel Beach in South AustraliaBody recovered from ocean off Dhilba Guuranda-Innes national park on the Yorke Peninsula Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates A teenage boy has died after a shark attack near Ethel Beach in South Australia, police say.

QueenslandDeadly brown snake bites Queensland woman in her bed while another serpent seen in fridge ice dispenserPatient in her 20s in a serious but stable condition after being airlifted to Toowoomba hospital A Queensland woman has been bitten in her bed by the world’s second most venomous snake, the state’s ambulance service says. The eastern brown snake bit the woman, who is in her 20s, on her hand in the early hours of Friday on a rural property in the Western Downs, two and a half hours west of Brisbane.

The skeleton of a tyrannosaurus bataar dinosaur was smuggled out of Mongolia by Eric Prokopi, of Florida. Photograph: ReutersThe skeleton of a tyrannosaurus bataar dinosaur was smuggled out of Mongolia by Eric Prokopi, of Florida. Photograph: ReutersThe ObserverDinosaurs This article is more than 4 years oldDinosaur fossil collectors ‘price museums out of the market’This article is more than 4 years oldScientists demand controls on private sales as celebrities help push cost of relics into the millionsLeading US palaeontologists are calling for a worldwide halt to the sale of vertebrate dinosaur fossils.

Face your fears: extreme creepy-crawly close-ups – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Wildlife photographer Yudy Sauw has captured close-ups of insects revealing their colourful and alien-like faces. In these images the insects have bulging eyes and sharp pincers and appear more grotesque than usual. Yudy photographed the bugs at his home studio in Banten, Indonesia, from 2-10cm away

Israel-Gaza warNitzan Mintz and Dede Bandaid shared flyers online that have been plastered and torn down globally amid the war in Gaza The visual poet and the graffiti artist never expected to set off a global phenomenon and then a furious backlash. Walkouts, rallies, clashes: Israel-Gaza ‘war of words’ roils Columbia UniversityRead moreNitzan Mintz and her partner, Dede Bandaid, launched the now ubiquitous red and white posters of Israelis abducted by Hamas – each one with a photograph and the age of the disappeared under the banner “KIDNAPPED” – a couple of days after the 7 October attack in an attempt to ensure that the 200-plus hostages were not forgotten in the looming war in Gaza.

‘Mine has been a good life measured out in dogs,’ wrote Libby Hall. Photograph: Kuba Nowak‘Mine has been a good life measured out in dogs,’ wrote Libby Hall. Photograph: Kuba NowakOther livesPhotographyObituaryLibby Hall obituaryMy friend Libby Hall, who has died aged 81, was a talented street and press photographer, writer and collector. Her collection of thousands ofvintage dog photographs was published as four books by Bloomsbury between 2000 and 2007, then acquired by the Bishopsgate Institute, which called it “possibly the largest number of canine pictures ever gathered by any single person”.

Women in TV specialTV comedyInterviewMindy Kaling: 'I wasn't considered attractive or funny enough to play myself'Rebecca NicholsonAs a woman of colour who writes, directs and stars in her own sitcom, Mindy Kaling is unique. She's also hilarious. Rebecca Nicholson talks to The Mindy Project's creator about role models, romance and a TV revolutionMindy Kaling rushes into the restaurant loaded with so many bags it looks as if she's playing the part of a frantic shopper.

Music booksReviewA brilliant, festive study of JS Bach uses literature and painting to illuminate his 'dance-impregnated' musicBach might be John Eliot Gardiner's godfather, a few centuries removed. Gardiner actually grew up under the eye of the bewigged Lutheran cantor: a portrait of him had been entrusted to Gardiner's parents – who raised their brood with sung graces at mealtimes and traditional country dances afterwards – for safekeeping during the war. On his way upstairs to bed, the young Gardiner always flinched from the zealot's "

RaceThe image of a white woman calling police on Black people put the lie to the myth of racial innocence There was no direct connection between the “Central Park Karen” incident in New York City and the police killing of 46-year-old George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, beyond the coincidence of timing. Time in the pandemic has been elastic and confusing, and reports of the separate incidents did not emerge immediately, but the two events occurred on Monday 25 May, Memorial Day.

Stumped?: Gardening Q&AsGardening adviceOr will it provide nutrients?I collect water from my roof and store it in open dustbins for later use in my veg patch. Over time, it grows green algae. Does this make the water better for the veg (ie, the algae rot to give nutrients to the plants) or worse because some algae are poisonous? It will have a nutritional value, but it's probably not very high. I wouldn't use this water on seedlings as you may get "

Andrew Clark on AmericaBernard MadoffFeds seek luxury cars and Florida property from Bernard Madoff's former assistantA limited edition Bernie "Made Off With My Money" Madoff action figure by ModelWorks. Photograph: Timothy A Clary/AFP/GettyFor a one-time secretary from the New York borough of Queens, the woman did good. Annette Bongiorno, a close aide to Bernard Madoff, is facing a forfeiture order by US prosecutors for $5.1m of assets including two Mercedes, a Bentley and a holiday home in Florida.

Children's booksChildren's booksFrankenstein by Mary Shelley - review‘this novel will reside with you long after you have turned the last page’ Mary Shelley’s hauntingly thrilling novel Frankenstein is a much loved classic horror - and is perceived to be the first sci-fi novel in history! Whether reading for your studies or reading for pleasure this novel will reside with you long after you have turned the last page; Shelley’s writing style and subtle inclusion of some biographical themes convey a realism to the reader which adds to this novel’s harrowing ambiance.

Carabao CupFulham edge Everton on penalties to earn historic Carabao Cup semi placeFulham reached the semi-finals of the League Cup for the first time in their history as Marco Silva, and penalty shootouts, returned to torment Everton yet again. The former Everton manager has won all three visits to Goodison Park since being sacked in 2019 and the latest, courtesy of the finest of margins, condemned his old club to a fourth exit on penalties in six seasons.

GuatemalaObituaryGeneral Romeo Lucas GarcíaBloodthirsty military dictator of Guatemala responsible for more than 300 massacresIn the long league table of Guatemalan military villains, General Romeo Lucas García, who has died of respiratory failure aged 81, was outdone in infamy only by Efraín Ríos Montt, the retired general who replaced him as the country's dictator after a coup in March 1982. "Elected" president in 1978, in a typically fraudulent poll, Lucas was allegedly responsible for an average of 200 murders and "

TV reviewTelevisionReviewIn the new series of Dominic Savage’s searingly truthful dramas, Suranne Jones plays a mother trying to do it all … and hurtling towards a meltdown Two years ago, Channel 4 gave us the novel – not unprecedented, but still novel – series I Am … It comprised three dramas created, written and directed by Dominic Savage, who devised the stories with three female actors. I Am Nicola starred Vicky McClure as a woman realising she is in a coercively controlling relationship and trying to find a way out.

The ObserverNile RodgersReviewThe Chic co-founder and legendary producer's life story is a fascinating romp through the great days of disco, New York, and American counter-culture"There are no second acts in American lives," said F Scott Fitzgerald. Clearly, Nile Rodgers did not get the memo. As co-founder of Chic, he soundtracked the glamorous, decadent days of disco with hits including "Good Times", "Everybody Dance" and "Le Freak". After disco burned out, he went on to produce a staggering list of pop's biggest stars, including Michael Jackson, Madonna, David Bowie, Diana Ross, Prince and Mick Jagger.

Taylor SwiftIn 2015, the singer’s career looked shaky as the media and public turned on her. But after the battle for her masters, her intimate lockdown records and the all-conquering Eras tour, she’s reclaimed her crown – and is now immune to hate Last month, Taylor Swift wrapped up the first leg of the Eras tour – a career-spanning, three-hours-plus stadium spectacular that’s proved to be the year’s single most significant pop culture phenomenon, Barbenheimer be damned.

Technology blogTechnologyWorld's most expensive phone numer: 666 6666"The world's most expensive phone number was auctioned for charity yesterday in Qatar. The number, 666 6666, sold for 10m Qatari riyals or £1.5m," says The Register. "The previous record holder was Chinese number 8888 8888, which sold for £270,000. The Cantonese word for eight sounds very similar to the word for rich. It was bought by Sichuan Airlines." ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKyVmLWvu8uonrJnkqG8qHuRaWdvZ52WxnB%2Bk2iuqKqcmcCuu9KtnLGo

Pass notesCourtney LoveLove responded to the call to search on Tomnod.com for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, and, when she reckoned she had located it, posted a picture on her Facebook page. Then again, as she admits … she's 'no expert'Name: Courtney Love. Age: 49. Appearance: Trainee Joan Rivers. Occupation: Rock'n'roll survivor. Is that a job then? Definitely. For Love, it's pretty much full-time. She became well known in the 1990s with her band Hole, after working as a stripper, living on the street and doing time in prison for shoplifting.

Courtney Love and daughter Frances Bean Cobain rocking the Hello Kitty Strat. Photograph: Mark Sullivan/Getty ImagesCourtney Love and daughter Frances Bean Cobain rocking the Hello Kitty Strat. Photograph: Mark Sullivan/Getty ImagesThe ObserverPop and rock This article is more than 1 year oldHow a Hello Kitty guitar became the hottest StratocasterThis article is more than 1 year oldNovelty guitars emblazoned with the face of the cartoon cat are now changing hands for $1,000 thanks to ‘post-punk irony’

With Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista in 1990. Photograph: Roxanne Lowit/Taschen Photograph: Roxanne Lowit/TaschenWith Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista in 1990. Photograph: Roxanne Lowit/Taschen Photograph: Roxanne Lowit/TaschenNaomi CampbellFrom teenage goth to ground-breaking Vogue cover model (with a hotline to world leaders), the supermodel tells her story in her own words I had a really great childhood, but I always felt like a grownup in a child’s body. At the age of five, I was enrolled at the Barbara Speake Stage School in Acton, west London, which meant taking a bus and two trains each morning from my home in Stockwell, south London.

Nigeria Nigerian man rescued from sunken boat after three days trapped at bottom of Atlantic – video Harrison Odjegba Okene, a Nigerian cook, is found by divers after surviving for three days in an air pocket on a sunken tugboat at the bottom of the Atlantic. Divers from the Dutch company DCN Diving are looking for dead bodies when Okene grabs one of the divers' hands. The diver uses hot water to warm him up, attaches an oxygen mask to him and safely returns him to the surfaceWARNING: Contains strong language Source: DCN

American citizen in North Korea denounces US. Source: Reuters GuardianNorth Korea This article is more than 9 years oldNorth Korea shows media American who says he illegally entered countryThis article is more than 9 years oldArturo Pierre Martinez, from Texas, says he has not been put into custody and is seeking asylum in Venezuela North Korea on Sunday presented to the media an American who says he illegally crossed into the country but has not been put into custody and is seeking asylum in Venezuela.

US policing This article is more than 4 years oldPolice fired 55 times at Willie McCoy. An investigation called it 'reasonable'This article is more than 4 years oldThe 20-year-old aspiring rapper had been sleeping in his car at a Taco Bell when Vallejo police shot him The California police officers who killed Willie McCoy, a 20-year-old who had been sleeping in his car, fired 55 bullets at him in 3.5 seconds – which was “reasonable”, according to the city of Vallejo’s hired consultant.

Norway This article is more than 5 months oldStorm Hans causes havoc in Norway with heaviest rain in 25 years forecastThis article is more than 5 months oldLandslides, a stranded town and two deaths so far reported as extreme weather sweeps across south of the country A powerful storm has brought destruction to Norway, causing landslides and leaving an entire town stranded, as meteorologists warned of the strongest rainfall in a quarter of a century.

Aria awards This article is more than 2 months oldTroye Sivan cleans up at the Arias as artists get political with calls for ceasefireThis article is more than 2 months oldPop sensation wins best song and best solo star, while best album winner Genesis Owusu chants ‘ceasefire now’ in acceptance speech Arias red carpet fashion: Australia’s music industry goes all in on Barbiecore – in pictures Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email Troye Sivan has dominated this year’s Arias by winning four awards, including song of the year and best solo artist for his single Rush.

Men's fashionIt’s time to relax the dress code, say fashion experts And so the big brown-shoe debate rages on. Speaking at a conference, an unnamed lawyer has told trainees never to wear brown shoes with a blue suit. A study by the government’s Social Mobility Commission in 2016 found that investment banks are less likely to hire men who wear brown shoes to an interview. The former editor of the Daily Mail Paul Dacre hated them (although, to be fair, Dacre hated a lot of things and probably still does).

10 most influential mobile phones Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email From Motorola’s oh so 80s DynaTAC brick to the Nokia 3310 with its changeable covers and Samsung’s explosive Galaxy Note 7 – these are the phones that matter the most Samuel Gibbs Main image: Snake, long SMS messages and changeable covers …the Nokia 3310. Photograph: Science & Society Picture Librar/SSPL via Getty Images Fri 10 Feb 2017 08.

The relaunched Istanbul-Sofia overnight service ready to depart from Halkalı station. Photograph: Angel Petrov/ShutterstockThe relaunched Istanbul-Sofia overnight service ready to depart from Halkalı station. Photograph: Angel Petrov/ShutterstockIstanbul holidaysThe overnight service from Turkey to Bulgaria started running again this year and was voted one of the world’s best journeys for 2023 by Lonely Planet Last week Lonely Planet’s annual Best in Travel list included the Istanbul-Sofia Express as an essential journey for 2023.

TV reviewTelevisionReviewFonteyn’s story of Panamanian revolution puts Bussell in the shade. Plus, Inside the Christmas Factory, with shouty Gregg Wallace and Cherry Healey Towards the end of Darcey Bussell: Looking for Margot (BBC1), the Strictly judge and retired ballerina, finds herself in a remote cattle farm in Panama wearing one – a Panama hat. This is where fellow ballerina Margot Fonteyn lived towards the end of her life. “Margot wrote that this was the happiest time in her life,” says Darcy, looking around at the cows in a way that suggests she doesn’t spend a lot of time on farms.

The Week in PatriarchyWomen This article is more than 8 months oldDo people actually regret not having children? Possibly notThis article is more than 8 months oldArwa MahdawiNew research suggests people who are childfree by choice are pretty happy with their decisions, while some parents are not You’ll regret it if you don’tYou’ll be lonely. Nobody will look after you when you get old. You’ll miss out on life’s greatest joy.

Folk album of the monthFolk musicReview(Smithsonian Folkways) Subtitled Field Recordings from the Collection of Mack McCormick 1958-1971, this 66-song set is full of gripping storytelling and arresting instrumentals from the American south This invigorating 66-song set of broadside ballads, blues, spirituals and other field recordings from the mid-20th century American south comes with a telling title. It reveals the power dynamics at play when songs performed by African Americans were taped by white male folk collectors.

4d ago11.45 ESTSummaryWe are now closing the live blog. Here is a summary of events so far: Volodymyr Zelenskiy has spoken of putting together “new bilateral agreements” that will “reanimate” the system of international law. He added that new military packages will be delivered “ in the coming weeks and months”. The UK’s Ministry of Defence has reported that Ukraine maintains a presence on the left bank of the Dnipro River and has continued to repel Russian attacks despite “logistical concerns”.

Decorative sea silk, woven from the spun byssus threads produced by the large bivalve mollusc, the Noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis). Photograph: Nature Picture Library/AlamyDecorative sea silk, woven from the spun byssus threads produced by the large bivalve mollusc, the Noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis). Photograph: Nature Picture Library/AlamyFashionThe ultra-rare material made from fibers – byssus – harvested from giant mollusks was once the height of fashion, for items such as the hat going under the hammer in New York

Improbable researchResearchCounterclockwise scalp hair-whorls appear more frequently in gay men than in the general population, apparentlyAmidst the swirls of controversy that buffet other sexuality researchers, one man focuses, quietly, on swirls. In a monograph called Excess of Counterclockwise Scalp Hair-Whorl Rotation in Homosexual Men, Dr Amar J S Klar announces a subtle discovery. "This is the first study," he writes, "that shows a highly significant association of biologically specified counterclockwise hair-whorl rotation and homosexuality in a considerable proportion of men in samples enriched in gays.

OpinionKaty Perry This article is more than 10 years oldWhy all the fuss over Katy Perry's geisha performance at the AMAs?This article is more than 10 years oldPatricia ParkPerry's Asian routine could have been a lot worse. There were no fake accents or eyelid jokes. This wasn't blatant 'yellowface'Strapped for a last-minute costume one Halloween, I rifled through the racks at Forever 21 before stumbling on inspiration: a red flower-print dress made of cheap cloth trying to pass itself off as shantung silk.

Saira: ‘Here I am: topless in the heart of my city. It’s a very freeing feeling’. Photograph: Caterina ClericiSaira: ‘Here I am: topless in the heart of my city. It’s a very freeing feeling’. Photograph: Caterina ClericiNew York holidaysOver the summer, ‘desnudas’ have turned Times Square into an unlikely battlefield for gender equality, but for women who do it it’s a way to reclaim both their bodies and their city

Movies This article is more than 10 years oldBret Easton Ellis's tweets provoke 'ban' from gay media awardsThis article is more than 10 years oldNovelist and screenwriter misses ceremony in wake of string of contentious comments on social mediaBret Easton Ellis was barred from attending the annual Glaad media awards at the weekend, the perennially controversial novelist and screenwriter has revealed. Ellis was due to attend the LA event, which honours organisations and individuals for their positive representation of those in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual communities, as the guest of an invitee.

TheatreReviewNational Theatre, London Michaela Coel's firecracker of a monologue is an exploration of friendship, sex, race and faltering self-belief In a famous scene from Lena Dunham's TV show Girls, a female gynaecologist declares: "You could not pay me enough to be 24 again." Michaela Coel's firecracker of a monologue makes me feel like that about adolescence. Tracey Gordon is 14, thrumming with hormones and swollen with the thoughtlessness of youth.

The ObserverFictionReviewA female architect’s life is destroyed by a supernatural entity in a seductive and disturbing novel first published in 2003 Harpies, doppelgangers, possessive spirits: once confined to horror writing, these supernatural entities prowl the pages of literary fiction with increasing confidence. In the past couple of years, novelists such as Daisy Johnson, Megan Hunter and Helen Phillips have harnessed them to probe female passions and frustrations, but Sara Gran beat them to it in 2003.

Bolivia holidaysAfter landing at El Alto, canny travellers don’t go straight to La Paz but soak up the exuberant architecture, culture and women’s projects of Bolivia’s second city Most travellers never give El Alto a second thought. Bolivia’s second city, home to the highest international airport in South America (and fifth-highest in the world) at 4,061 metres, it is a place visitors fly into before being whisked to La Paz, the de facto capital, 15km away and 421 metres lower.

MusicAt the start of the 2010s, the Londoner released two tracks that would change the sound of the next decade. Then he vanished. This weekend, he rewards faithful fans with his first ever show The Coachella lineup sparks discourse every year without fail: it can tell you who might have an album dropping soon or who’s less famous than they may have initially seemed, the sounds that will dominate pop over the coming year and the legacy acts set to re-form.

History booksReviewThis epic account of Ottoman decline and the birth of modern Turkey is a tour de force of accessible scholarship By the end of 1918, after four increasingly grim years of warfare, revolution was in the air across Europe. Thrones wobbled; rulers abdicated. In the space of months, the great, centuries-old dynasties of the Romanovs, Habsburgs and Hohenzollerns were all toppled from power. At the eastern edge of the continent lay the vast, ancient empire that the Ottoman sultans had built up since the 14th century.

Native Americans This article is more than 7 years oldUrban Outfitters settles with Navajo Nation after illegally using tribe's nameThis article is more than 7 years oldTribe and fashion company reached an undisclosed settlement after the store used the Navajo name for a line that included underwear, jewelry and flasks Urban Outfitters reached a settlement with the Navajo Nation after illegally using the tribe’s name for a collection that included “Navajo hipster panties” and a “Navajo print flask”.

Israel-Gaza war This article is more than 2 months oldWinter rains bring further suffering to besieged people in GazaThis article is more than 2 months oldRain and cold will lead to further increase in waterborne diseases, bacterial infections and diarrhoea in children, says WHO The winter rains have finally arrived in Gaza, bringing new challenges for the besieged exclave’s 2.3 million people who have already suffered through six weeks of war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

US televisionObituaryActor James Avery, Fresh Prince's Uncle Philip, dies in CaliforniaTV and film performer dies at 68 of complications from open-heart surgery, publicist says James Avery, the bulky character actor who laid down the law as Uncle Phil in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, has died. Avery's publicist, Cynthia Snyder, told the Associated Press that Avery died Tuesday in Glendale, California, following complications from open heart surgery. He was 68.

Samuel BeckettReviewJermyn Street theatre, London'It is a text written to come out of the dark," said Samuel Beckett of this radio play first broadcast by the BBC in 1957. But, although not conceived for the stage, it adapts perfectly to it in Trevor Nunn's production, which retains Beckett's orchestrated sound effects while giving the actors motion and visibility. And, in the case of Eileen Atkins as Beckett's heroine, it allows us not merely to hear but also to see a great piece of acting.

Beyoncé This article is more than 15 years oldBeyoncé Knowles: L'Oreal accused of 'whitening' singer in cosmetics adThis article is more than 15 years oldCosmetics company L'Oreal has been accused of "whitening" singer Beyoncé Knowles' skin colour in a series of press ads in women's magazines in the US. The ads, for L'Oreal Paris' Feria hair colour product, feature in the September editions of Elle, Allure and Essence magazines in the US.

Proms 2023He was mentored by Ligeti, too shy to meet Beckett, and half of one of the greatest ever musical and romantic partnerships. As his opera arrives at the Proms, the avant garde master gives a rare interview György Kurtág is not speaking metaphorically when he says he is quite content to spend the time he has left “living on Ligeti street”. He is with a small crowd gathered outside the Budapest Music Centre – in which he also resides – for the renaming ceremony of the road on which it stands.

SPECULATIVE SCIENCEJust what is a "spark?" Welders spray sparks, as do fireworks: is it a part of the material that burns and then is vaporised? John Martin, Hong Kong, China Actually, when a spark is thrown from a welder or a grindstone, it does not, as the questioner suggests, vaporize. Rather, a spark from these items is a red-hot speck of metal, which rapidly cools due to its lack of mass.

TheatreReviewThe Depot, Liverpool Staged in a hangar-like venue strewn with the charred remnants of battle, Simon Godwin’s intelligent production puts violent conflict to the fore At first, it looks like Macbeth retooled as a history play about the corrupting effects of war. The drama of murderous ambition, power and guilt is all there in Simon Godwin’s intelligent production but with violent conflict at the fore. Shakespeare’s 11th-century battleground is turned into a modern-day war zone and Ralph Fiennes’ Macbeth emerges in army fatigues.

This land is your landGrand Canyon holidaysThe canyon, which turns 100 this year, sees 6 million annual visitors. An Arizona travel writer reveals how to get off the beaten track The Grand Canyon is already a pretty famous hole in the ground in Arizona. Now, with Grand Canyon national park celebrating its centennial in 2019, it’s receiving an additional jolt of publicity. Six million people visit each year, and if you happen to be there on a holiday weekend, it feels like you’re stuck behind all of them.

The ObserverUK newsThe toxic Tree of Heaven threatens England's green and pleasant landBritain faces a fate worthy of the Book of Revelation. According to botanists, the Tree of Heaven is set to make life hell on Earth for our gardeners. Ailanthus altissima, which gets its heavenly nickname from its ability to grow rapidly to heights of 80 feet or more, has begun spreading alarmingly across the landscape and poses an imminent threat to plant health and biodiversity in Britain.

Rural Australia This article is more than 5 years oldBig watermelon pips big peanut to become Australia’s next big thingThis article is more than 5 years oldQueensland town of Chinchilla wins four-tonne melon structure as neighbouring Kingaroy vows to build giant nut anyway A campaign to build a Big Peanut in Queensland has humbly accepted its loss to a Big Melon in a competition to find Australia’s next Big Thing.

Alex Fields holds a portrait of his brother Don Fields Sr.Donald Fields Jr faced a life sentence after he was charged with his father’s murder. Instead, his case became a pioneering instance of restorative justice by Oliver Laughland in Durham, North CarolinaAlex Fields had not spoken to his nephew in four years. Not since the killing. He had been preparing himself for months. Speaking with his counselors and siblings, seeking guidance from his church as he ran through what their first conversation would be like.

Charlotte Higgins on cultureCultureFive historical clangers in Kevin Macdonald's The EagleKevin Macdonald's The Eagle is an enjoyable sword-and-sandals yomp – just don't go assuming it's historically accurateEnjoyable an adventure as it is, Kevin Macdonald's The Eagle – a free adaptation of Rosemary Sutcliff's classic children's story The Eagle of the Ninth, in which Roman centurion Marcus and his British slave, Esca, go in search of the lost legionary standard of the Ninth Legion – plays fast and loose with Romano-British history.

Guardian Africa networkUgandaAnalysisFrom headlines to hip-hop: the Ugandan TV show rapping the newsAmy Fallon for Agence France-PresseHitting back at press censorship, NewzBeat uses music to cover controversial topics and engage younger audiences Ugandan broadcasters calling themselves “rap-orters” are changing the way news is delivered, after a team of hip-hop artists teamed up to deliver a weekly TV bulletin. “Uganda’s anti-gay law is making news/Some countries have found it befitting to accuse/Uganda of treating gays as German Jews/Nothing to gain from this and more to lose,” they rapped in a recent episode of NewzBeat, broadcast on NTV, one of the country’s most-watched channels.

Unexpectedly charming … Axl Rose and Slash of Guns N' Roses performing their epic set on Saturday night. Photograph: Anthony Harvey/ShutterstockUnexpectedly charming … Axl Rose and Slash of Guns N' Roses performing their epic set on Saturday night. Photograph: Anthony Harvey/ShutterstockGlastonbury 2023ReviewArctic Monkeys, Fred Again, Raye, Lana Del Rey and Guns N’ Roses all astounded. And if everyone knew Foo Fighters would turn up, just who might share the stage with Elton John was the stuff of rumours

TelevisionObituaryJames Grout obituaryStage and screen actor best known for his role as Chief Superintendent Strange in Inspector MorseJames Grout, who has died aged 84, was a supporting actor of authority and distinction best known on television for playing Inspector Morse's boss, Chief Superintendent Strange, as well as a gallery of prominent characters in other much-loved series. He was the flustered party whip in Yes Minister; a blunt-speaking judge, Ollie Oliphant, in John Mortimer's Rumpole of the Bailey; and an affluent, slightly dodgy businessman, Mr McAllister, in Alan Plater's The Beiderbecke Affair.

Nike This article is more than 1 year oldNike lawsuit records allege culture of sexism, bullying and fear of retaliationThis article is more than 1 year old5,000 pages of records detail how female employees were concerned management were unlikely to address concerns A long-running sexual harassment and gender discrimination lawsuit against Nike has produced more than 5,000 pages of records, including surveys of female employees that allege sexist attitudes and behavior at the sportwear giant alongside corporate bullying and fears of retaliation.

Louis VuittonPharrell Williams showcases American western for Louis Vuitton collectionAutumn/winter show at Paris men’s fashion week pays tribute to Native Americans and black cowboys While most luxury brands have strict embargoes surrounding new product launches, this week Louis Vuitton’s creative director, Pharrell Williams, took a more laissez-faire approach. On Tuesday night, during Paris men’s fashion week, Williams officially unveiled his autumn/winter 2024 collection in front of a star-studded audience that included the actors Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan, the rapper Lil Yachty and the K-pop band Riize.

MetalReviewWembley Arena, London After vocalist Vessel loses his voice mid-set, the UK band call upon the vast audience they’ve built to carry them through Sleep Token are metal’s most promising breakout band but they end their best year yet in near disaster. Released back in May, sprawling third album Take Me Back to Eden elevated the mysterious group from beloved cult act to something far bigger. Tonight’s gig sold out in a matter of minutes, with the same happening across North America and Europe.

OpinionSexuality This article is more than 8 years old'Bisexual' is just a label and Cate Blanchett is just a woman who's had relationshipsThis article is more than 8 years oldJessica MartinWe love to categorise, and sexuality is no different. Is Cate Blanchett now ‘bisexual’ just because she’s had relationships with women? It’s not every day I find myself talking about bisexuality over a takeaway coffee in an abandoned cemetery, but so it was last weekend.

A guide to contemporary classical musicClassical musicA guide to Toru Takemitsu's musicTakemitsu's understated and crystalline compositions combine elements of his own Japanese traditions with the western modernism he loved so muchI can remember the first time I listened to Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu. It was his piece Archipelago S, written for a large ensemble, and it was back in 1993 in Vienna. He was one of the featured composers in that year's Wien Modern new music festival.

Zoology This article is more than 8 years oldEye shape reveals whether an animal is predator or prey, new study showsThis article is more than 8 years oldA close look at the eyes of 214 types of animal has revealed a relationship between the shape of the pupil and the animal’s ecological niche The eyes say it all. They answer questions about a creature’s social scale, and its place in the pecking order.

Family living with werewolf syndrome – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Reuters photographer Navesh Chitrakar documents a family in Nepal who suffer from congenital hypertrichosis lanuginosa, a very rare disease that causes excessive body hair growth, sometimes referred to as werewolf syndrome. They are undergoing laser hair removal to lessen their symptoms Wed 6 Nov 2013 10.

Leading questionsFamilyYou’re not just being mean, writes advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith. You’ve just noticed the relationship isn’t strong enough to bear the weight that’s put on it I find my mother-in-law completely infuriating. She really isn’t a bad person, nor has she done anything particularly terrible. In fact I think a lot of people would love to have her in their lives. She is thoughtful and sweet-natured. However, she has a way of turning any situation into a negative story about her.

John F Kennedy This article is more than 4 months oldJFK assassination witness questions whether shooter acted aloneThis article is more than 4 months oldPaul Landis’s recollection of Kennedy’s slaying is bound to fuel those who believe multiple shooters killed the late president An ex-Secret Service agent who was feet away from John F Kennedy when the former president was shot dead has broken his decades-old silence to cast doubt on the single-bullet theory held by the commission which investigated the assassination.

Libya celebrates the death of Gaddafi – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Across Libya, citizens and fighters react to the death of the ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi Fri 21 Oct 2011 07.44 EDT First published on Fri 21 Oct 2011 07.44 EDT An anti-Gaddafi fighter holds a picture of Libya's ousted leader Photograph: Chine Nouvelle/Rex Features

Life and styleMy addiction had almost destroyed me – and now I was on the brink of a relapse. Then I remembered how the star had turned his own life around The date was 12 March 2023. My body was shaking all over. My life flashed before my eyes: the incessant binge-drinking sessions, countless blackouts, urinating all over myself, gorging on cheesy chips and Domino’s Pizza in the early hours of the morning, jobs given up after just a few weeks.

New York This article is more than 6 years oldBrother of man who dismembered boy found dead in closet in BrooklynThis article is more than 6 years oldDetectives found body of Tzvi Aron, the brother of a man who kidnapped and killed eight-year-old, in the same home where the boy’s remains were found The brother of a man who kidnapped, killed and dismembered a lost eight-year-old boy has been found dead, his body bound, wrapped in a blanket and stuffed in a basement closet in the same Brooklyn home where detectives uncovered the remains of the boy nearly five years ago.

Brazil This article is more than 5 months oldMurder of Black community activist, 72, in Brazil prompts calls for actionThis article is more than 5 months oldMaria Bernadete Pacífico, whose son was shot dead in 2017, killed by gunmen at her home in Bahia Human rights organisations in Brazil are clamouring for justice following the murder of a Black community activist who had been receiving threats. Maria Bernadete Pacífico, a community and religious leader in the Pitanga dos Palmares quilombo – an Afro-Brazilian settlement of descendants of escaped slaves in the north-east state of Bahia – was killed on Thursday evening.

World newsNine months in jail is bad trip for 'bong' seller Tommy ChongOne of America's best-known counter-cultural comedians, Tommy Chong, is facing the prospect of a nine-month jail sentence after being convicted of selling glass pipes on the internet which can be used for smoking cannabis. Lawyers for Chong, 65, one half of the famous Cheech and Chong comedy duo and more recently a television actor, claim the US attorney general, John Ashcroft, chose to prosecute him for the publicity value.

PhotographySome of Ruff's blurred Nudes, gleaned from pornographic websites, impart a lyricism to the images. Others lay bare the nastiness of the industryIn the mid-1960s when Philip Larkin saw a couple of kids and guessed "he's fucking her and she's / Taking pills or wearing a diaphragm", he knew this was the "paradise / Everyone old has dreamed of all their lives". It was a paradise that turned out – isn't that the way with any paradise?

Games blogSonySony ad provokes race accusationsA new billboard advert for Sony's white PSP has caused consternation across the US videogaming community. The ad shows a white woman threateningly grasping the face of a black model. Next to them are the words, "PlayStation Portable White is coming". The photo can also be seen on the Dutch official PSP site, along with other images from the same shoot, showing the two women fighting.

Animals This article is more than 11 years oldTatler's dog, Alan, dies in bizarre revolving door accidentThis article is more than 11 years oldCelebrity dachshund Alan TBH Plumptre dies in freak accident, leaving behind more than 2,500 Twitter followersTo the thousands who followed his Twitter updates, he offered an insight into the glamorous high society world of Tatler magazine, not to mention a reliable stream of pictures and words of wisdom.

A stock image of an F-35B Lightning II fighter jet. One of the aircraft has gone missing somewhere over South Carolina after the pilot ejected. Photograph: Darren England/AAPA stock image of an F-35B Lightning II fighter jet. One of the aircraft has gone missing somewhere over South Carolina after the pilot ejected. Photograph: Darren England/AAPUS military This article is more than 4 months oldUS military asks for help to find missing F-35 fighter jet after ‘mishap’ sees pilot ejectThis article is more than 4 months oldSearch for F-35B Lightning II fighter jet focused on two lakes after Marine Corps pilot ejected over North Charleston for unknown reason

The trial of one-man entertainment empire Sean 'Puffy' Combs has finally begun. But race, rap, fame and the New York Police Department are also in the dock. Gary Younge on the case that will bitterly divide America - whatever the verdict Take one African-American star with crossover appeal, add mixed-race relationship and heat until steaming. When simmering, place in a city with a recent, well-publicised history of racist policing. Bring to the boil.

Yasser Arafat This article is more than 10 years oldYasser Arafat's widow says her marriage was 'a big mistake'This article is more than 10 years oldSuha Arafat says she tried to leave hundreds of times and would not have married if she had known what was in storeYasser Arafat's widow has said she tried to leave her husband hundreds of times and that had she known what marriage to the Palestinian leader would be like, she would never have gone through with it.

Jah Izakaya and Sake Bar in Copenhagen. Photograph: Chris TonnesenJah Izakaya and Sake Bar in Copenhagen. Photograph: Chris TonnesenRestaurantsFrom Ireland to Italy, our local writers reveal their favourite places to eat across the continent Felicity Cloake: ‘Discovering a great restaurant can make a trip’ DenmarkJah Izakaya and Sake Bar, Copenhagen Japanese and Korean restaurants are taking over Copenhagen at the moment, fusing New Nordic philosophies with the food of east Asia.

CrimeGirl jailed for filming 'happy-slap' killingA teenage girl who used a mobile phone to film a man killed in a "happy-slapping" attack was today jailed in what is thought to be an unprecedented ruling. The 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, sobbed as she was sentenced to two years' detention and put on a training order by Leeds crown court for her part in the death of Gavin Waterhouse last September.

Memphis This article is more than 4 months old‘He was dripping with sweat’: Kroger worker dies in hot work conditions in MemphisThis article is more than 4 months oldThe union representing workers at the grocery chain had asked the company to allow more breaks and cooler working conditions A Kroger distribution center employee has died on the job in Memphis amid hot working conditions, adding to a national debate in the US over the risk to workers during heatwaves.

Rights and freedomPakistan This article is more than 1 year oldPakistan court acquits man who killed sister after parents’ pardonThis article is more than 1 year oldWaseem Azeem acquitted of murdering Qandeel Baloch after his parents pardoned him under Islamic law, lawyer says A Pakistani man sentenced to life in prison in 2019 for strangling his sister, a model on social media, has been acquitted of murder after his parents pardoned him under Islamic law.

Tennis This article is more than 2 months oldRuud rails at Paris Masters schedule as Sinner pulls out after late-night winThis article is more than 2 months oldItalian withdraws citing fatigue after finishing at 2.37amFellow player criticises ‘joke’ scheduling of tournamentOrganisers of the Paris Masters are facing heavy criticism over their scheduling after Jannik Sinner withdrew following a late-night finish. The Italian fourth seed, one of the most in-form players in the world, did not conclude his second-round victory over Mackenzie McDonald until 2.

Book of the daySigmund FreudReviewA gripping account of how colleagues and admirers spirited the psychoanalyst from Nazi-controlled Vienna to London By the spring of 1938 everyone in Sigmund Freud’s circle, apart from the great man, could see that the game was up. In March, the Nazis had annexed Austria, putting the founder of psychoanalysis – known to them as “a Jewish pseudoscience” – at enormous risk. By now Freud was 82, terminally ill and determined not to panic.

Taylor Swift … Realising she’s forgotten to copyright This Sick Beat for athlete’s foot treatments, too. Photograph: Mario Anzuon/ReutersTaylor Swift … Realising she’s forgotten to copyright This Sick Beat for athlete’s foot treatments, too. Photograph: Mario Anzuon/ReutersTaylor Swift This article is more than 8 years oldTaylor Swift applies to trademark 'This Sick Beat'This article is more than 8 years oldStar protects a number of phrases from her 1989 album – so don’t think about using them on non-medicated scalp preparations or wind chimes

Norway This article is more than 12 years oldThe Bookseller of Kabul author cleared of invading Afghan family's privacyThis article is more than 12 years oldNorwegian journalist Åsne Seierstad, who spent months with bookseller Shah Muhammad Rais, tells of relief over rulingIt provided a compelling picture of the life of an Afghan family living under the tyranny of the Taliban and became the bestselling nonfiction book in Norwegian history, before being denounced as inaccurate and invasive by its main characters.

Top 10sFictionThe top 10 hotel novelsFrom Robert Bloch's Psycho to Chekhov's Lady With the Dog, Mark Watson explores the magnetism of hotels for novelists Read more writers' top 10s The hotel is a seductive setting for a writer. It houses a wide spectrum of people who do not know each other, yet who spend nights under the same roof and are affected by one another's behaviour in ways they may not be conscious of: they hear each other's bathwater draining away, they catch snippets of conversations in the lifts.

A guide to contemporary classical musicClassical musicA guide to Luigi Nono's musicFew composers have understood as keenly as Nono did that every musical decision also has social and political ramifications, but there is more to his work than the overtly politicalLuigi Nono's music was never going to change the world. There's a cliche that the Italian composer's trenchant political convictions, and the stream of pieces he wrote with avowedly protesting or politically radical titles and messages – the music theatre pieces Intolleranza (which caused a partisan riot at its premiere in 1961 at La Fenice in Venice) and Al gran sole carico d'amore, his anti-fascist orchestral and choral masterpiece from the mid-50s Il canto sospeso, his experimental anti-capitalist cantata for soprano and tape La fabbrica illuminata, or the violent expressionism of the partly improvised A floresta è jovem e cheja de vida – are narrow-minded pieces of agitprop that beat their audiences over the head with superficial sloganising and alternately despairing or utopian imagery.

OpinionWeddings This article is more than 12 years oldCounting the cost of a hobo weddingThis article is more than 12 years oldKirsten HansenA US couple's 'Depression-era' nuptials cost $15,000. But that's less than the wedding industrial complex would likeOver the past week, bridal online communities have been all-aflutter over what's been dubbed Sarah Hunt and Brian Brown's "hobo wedding", which first appeared on the Etsy Handmade Weddings blog. The American couple chose a "

‘I love this music’ … Leif Ove Andsnes Photograph: Helge Hansen/Sony Music Entertainment‘I love this music’ … Leif Ove Andsnes Photograph: Helge Hansen/Sony Music EntertainmentClassical musicReviewLeif Ove Andsnes (Sony) Dvořák’s collection of miniatures is surprisingly little known. This enchanting new recording reveals a composer fascinated by the small complexities of the world around him ‘I love this music and no-one seems to play it.” It’s only a slight exaggeration on Leif Ove Andsnes’s part to say that about Dvořák’s Poetic Tone Pictures; this beautifully recorded release is one of only a handful available, and he is the highest profile of today’s pianists to have recorded this baker’s dozen of miniatures.

Picture books This article is more than 3 years oldGuess How Much I Love You author Sam McBratney dies aged 77This article is more than 3 years oldThe Northern Irish author was best known for his story of Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare, which sold more than 50m copies Sam McBratney, the author of the bestselling picture book Guess How Much I Love You, has died at the age of 77.

Notes & TheoriesDinosaursI'm tired of seeing naked dinosaursIt's about time books, documentaries and movies caught up with the latest fossil discoveries and depicted more feathered, bristly dinosaurs, says Brian SwitekWhile walking through a natural history museum gift shop a few years back, I spotted a plush Velociraptor among the piles of dinosauriana. Frankly, it looked pretty stupid. Covered in a soft, fuzzy coat of faux-feathers, it lacked the reptilian menace of the predatory dinosaurs I remembered from my youth.

PlantwatchPlantsWith blooms less than 1cm across, orchids growing in cloud forests are as delicate as they are minuscule The smallest orchid flower in the world is a hotly contested title. In the cool cloudy rainforests on mountain peaks in Guatemala, the orchid flowers of Lepanthes oscarrodrigoi are just 0.5mm across. The plant grows on the twigs of bushes and is so minute it is extremely difficult to see, even when it’s flowering.

UK newsTeenagers who killed friend with scythes get lifeThree teenagers were jailed for life yesterday for butchering a friend with two large farming scythes after a quarrel on a summer camping trip. The trio, including a girl aged 15 at the time, stole the murder weapons from a country churchyard and left one embedded in the 17-year-old boy's neck. Their victim, Terry Lee Hurst, who had learning difficulties, suffered more than 80 wounds in the frenzied attack at an isolated campsite by Broomhead reservoir, on the edge of the moors north of Sheffield last July.

The 10 best contemporary still lifes Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Art historian Michael Petry chooses works from Marc Quinn and Sharon Core among his favourite contemporary still lifesNature Morte: Contemporary Artists Reinvigorate the Still-Life Tradition by Michael Petry is published by Thames & Hudson (£35) Michael Petry Sat 19 Oct 2013 17.30 BST First published on Sat 19 Oct 2013 17.

US policing This article is more than 1 month oldUS family of 11-year-old shot by police vows to seek justice after officer gets no chargesThis article is more than 1 month oldAderrien Murry, who is Black, was wounded by police after calling 911, and authorities declined to charge the officer involved The family of an 11-year-old boy who was shot by police after he called 911 and asked for their help have vowed to continue to fight for justice after authorities declined to charge the officer involved.

MoviesReviewIqbal is torn between his supernatural powers and the desire to be a normal teenager in Dain Said’s lacklustre horror Littered with monstrous apparitions and gruesome deaths, this latest horror film from seasoned Malaysian filmmaker Dain Said is also haunted by growing pains. Blessed – and cursed – with the same supernatural abilities possessed by his mother, young Iqbal (Idan Aedan) is torn between his power of exorcism and his desire to lead a normal teenage existence.

The G2 interviewLife and styleInterviewLaverne Cox: ‘Now I have the money to feminise my face I don’t want to. I’m happy that this is the face God gave me’Rebecca NicholsonThe ‘transgender black chick from Alabama’ talks about her tough childhood, balancing activism with acting and why she loves her Orange is the New Black character Sophia ‘Until recently, I was the transgender person that people were most aware of,” says Laverne Cox, who describes herself as “an actress first and activist second”.

New Orleans This article is more than 1 year oldNew Orleans lawyer fined for alerting school to priest’s past sexual misconductThis article is more than 1 year oldRichard Trahant was fined $400,000 for violating confidentiality rules around a bankruptcy filing by the local archdiocese A New Orleans attorney who represents victims of clerical sexual abuse faces a $400,000 fine after alerting a local Catholic high school that a priest who worked there once admitted to fondling and kissing a teen girl he met at another church institution.

A Ukrainian infantryman keeps watch in the trenches in harsh winter conditions near Bakhmut, where clashes between Russia and Ukraine continue in Donetsk Oblast. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty ImagesA Ukrainian infantryman keeps watch in the trenches in harsh winter conditions near Bakhmut, where clashes between Russia and Ukraine continue in Donetsk Oblast. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty ImagesRussia-Ukraine war at a glanceWorld newsExplainerVolodymyr Zelenskiy worries Donald Trump could make could make unilateral concessions to Russia if elected president; North Korea claims Putin keen to visit Pyongyang soon

Tom PettyThe process of creating the defining album that the singer deemed his finest is explored in a dense new documentary The album Tom Petty considered to be the best work of his career chronicled the most tumultuous period of his life. Between the summer of 1992 and the spring of 94, the stretch in which he recorded his classic album Wildflowers, Petty’s 22-year marriage to the mother of his two children fell apart, he fired the drummer with whom he had worked since his Heartbreakers band began nearly three decades before, and he left both the record company for which he recorded all of his hits and the producer who shaped some of his biggest ones.

NFLAfter winning their first division title since 1993, the Lions will now try to accomplish something they have done only once in the past 66 years: winning a postseason game It wasn’t a winner-takes-all game on Sunday, but the Detroit Lions had to approach it as if it was. Yes, they would have remained in the driver’s seat to win the NFC North even with a Christmas Eve loss to the Minnesota Vikings, but these Lions knew that there was no upside in letting Minnesota stay alive in the division race for another week.

This is how we do itSexConception struggles and a baby put pressure on Michaela and Adam’s love life. But making time for sex has made it exciting again How do you do it? Share the story of your sex life, anonymously Michaela, 44 Life is hard, and if you don’t have good sex you could be married to anybody really Adam and I have always had sex quite frequently – a few times a week, though that’s changed since the baby.

OpinionLanguage This article is more than 6 years oldTomayto or tomahto? That is the question I wrestle withThis article is more than 6 years oldEmma BrockesWorking on UK and US versions of my book made me realise how much living in New York has affected my pronunciationI have lived in the US for 10 years, and although I take the elevator down to the lobby from my apartment, when I go outside I walk on the pavement.

Health and wellbeingThe Kogi people are warning society of destruction we face if we fail to embrace natureDeep in Colombia's Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains, surrounded by jungle (and guerrillas, tomb raiders and drug traffickers), live 20,000 indigenous Kogi people. A culturally intact pre-Colombian society, they've lived in seclusion since the Spanish conquest 500 years ago. Highly attuned to nature, the Kogi believe they exist to care for the world – a world they fear we are destroying.

24 hours in pictures: July 11 2007 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Wed 11 Jul 2007 10.57 EDT First published on Wed 11 Jul 2007 10.57 EDT Srinagar, India: Workers from Kashmir's social welfare department run for cover as police spray coloured water during a protest Photograph: Farooq Khan/EPA Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Port-au-Prince, Haiti: A men pulls a wheelbarrow loaded with charcoal.

Venice This article is more than 3 months oldAt least 21 dead after coach veers off overpass near VeniceThis article is more than 3 months oldTourist coach catches fire after coming off the road and falling near railway lines in Mestre, northern Italy At least 21 people have died and 15 were injured after a tourist coach crashed off an overpass near Venice in northern Italy. The coach was carrying a group of tourists who were returning to a campsite in Marghera after spending the day in Venice, according to reports in the Italian media.

Reality TVPresenter Johnny Vaughan, producers and participants remember the Channel 4 series that pretended to send participants into orbit from a Russian bootcamp, but mainly took place on an airbase in Suffolk In December 2005, a group of outgoing twentysomethings were gathered in front of cameras on a remote airstrip. They had signed up for a reality TV series called Thrill Seekers and, after five months of auditions, they were about to find out the exact premise of the show.

Sacha Baron Cohan appears as Ali G at Oscars – video GuardianOscars 2016 This article is more than 7 years oldSacha Baron Cohen: Oscars appearance as Ali G was against Academy's ordersThis article is more than 7 years oldComedian had been asked to present best picture nominee as himself but changed into costume in disabled toilets with help from wife Isla Fisher Oscars 2016: 10 things we learnedRead moreSacha Baron Cohen has revealed his appearance as Ali G at Sunday’s Oscars ceremony was in defiance of the Academy’s request for him not to appear in character.

Cif beliefJudaism This article is more than 13 years oldThe Book of Job, part 5: Job's wife – did she bless or curse?This article is more than 13 years oldAlexander GoldbergA little-known legend adds to the story of Job a story about his first wife, her sufferings and her dealings with SatanIn the Book of Job, his wife says "Baruch Elokhim, ve mos" which in most Masoretic texts is translated "

Book of the daySociety booksReviewThis insightful account of a four-star establishment taking in rough sleepers amid the pandemic finds grounds for real if slender hope The Prince Rupert hotel in Shrewsbury is the kind of establishment where you’re offered a glass of sherry as you check in. A timber-framed oasis of fluffy towels and four-poster beds, its guests have included Margaret Thatcher, Monica Lewinsky and the Liverpool football team. Yet at the start of the pandemic, owner Mike Matthews, who had formerly managed Barbados’s Sandy Lane resort, made the decision to welcome a rather different clientele: the city’s rough sleepers.

The 12th-century Ta Prohm temple in Cambodia. Photograph: Mark Croucher/Alamy Stock PhotoThey may be vine-smothered ruins today, but the lost cities of the ancient tropics still have a lot to teach us about how to live alongside nature by Patrick RobertsVisions of “lost cities” in the jungle have consumed western imaginations since Europeans first visited the tropics of Asia, Africa and the Americas. From the Lost City of Z to El Dorado, a thirst for finding ancient civilisations and their treasures in perilous tropical forest settings has driven innumerable ill-fated expeditions.

Life and styleThe lack of autonomy I felt as a mother reiterated everything society taught me to believe about myself since I was a girl When my daughter learned to walk, she began following me around our apartment – into the bathroom while I showered, studying my naked body; into the bedroom when I dressed, regarding my baggy underwear with curiosity. It was the fall of the 2016 election, and as she watched my utterly changed body, though her eyes were kind and questioning, I could not help but recall the faces of men who had, at various points in my life, scrutinized my body with approval or reproach.

The KnowledgeSoccerPlus: natural born No2s; why A always comes before B; and freak fixture rarities. Send your questions and answers to knowledge@guardian.co.uk and follow us on Twitter"Following on from your old football-inspired albums question, Iron Maiden's Somewhere in Time has reference to West Ham beating Arsenal 7-3 on the album cover," begins Paul Baker. "Barring the SFA using the iconic Robin Friday at Cardiff image, the Wedding Present's George Best at Manchester United one and Mogwai's Zidane soundtrack (Real Madrid), have any other football teams been referenced on CD album covers?

World newsBlood ties: Yakuza daughter lifts lid on hidden hell of gangsters' familiesUnexpected bestseller reveals Tokyo underworld of drugs, abuse and tattoosIn pictures: the yakuza It is only when Shoko Tendo removes her tracksuit top that you appreciate why, even on a hot day, she prefers to remain covered up in public. Outwardly she is much like any thirty-something you would be likely to encounter on a Tokyo street. Her hair is of the dark-brown hue favoured by many Japanese women her age, her greeting is accompanied by a well-executed bow, and her voice seems to be pitched a little on the high side, a common affectation in the company of strangers.

TV and radio blogTelevisionBox Set Club: The LakesTwentysomething sex, drink and drugs collides with harsh reality in Jimmy McGovern's Cumbria-set morality taleCurrent Spooks scheduling aside, we all know what Sunday evening television on the BBC is supposed to be: rolling hills, gentle plotlines, the occasional priest ambling politely into view. It's Hamish Macbeth, Ballykissangel, Monarch of the Glen. But for four weeks in 1997, Sunday evening on BBC1 was Jimmy McGovern's The Lakes – and while the priest and rolling hills were still in place, the plotlines were a long way from gentle.

China This article is more than 7 months oldGlum Chinese graduates go viral with pictures of misery amid jobs anxietyThis article is more than 7 months oldPhotos shared on social media show students draping themselves over park benches or stairs in poses of dejection As millions of young people in China graduate from university this month, the traditional pictures of joyful students throwing their hats and gowns into the air have been replaced by photos of them lying on the ground or throwing their degree certificates into the bin.

OpinionRelationships This article is more than 1 year oldIn 2022, I walked away from the greatest love of my life so far. This is why I did itThis article is more than 1 year oldMoya Lothian-McLeanI was far from alone in going through a major breakup. Perhaps others, too, found romantic love was not enough to fulfil them Rumours swirled last week that alternative pin-up couple Phoebe Bridgers and Paul Mescal had parted ways.

Autobiography and memoirReviewLong known as ‘Emily Doe’, the survivor in the Brock Turner sexual assault case tells her powerful story, and offers hope It could have been an entirely different story, one so ordinary in its violent diminishment of a woman. The script is well-worn. An assault at a student party; a disorienting walk through hospital clinics and police stations; panic attacks; a forensic examination of your character. How much did you drink?

US prisons This article is more than 2 years oldMan who spent 22 years in solitary urges Illinois to curb ‘psychological torture’ This article is more than 2 years oldAnthony Gay, who calls solitary confinement ‘wrong, despicable and horrible’, hopes bill passed by lower house will become law An inmate who spent 22 years in solitary confinement in an Illinois prison after being arrested for stealing a hat and a dollar bill is campaigning for legislation to end a practice that he says drove him to self-mutilation and a suicide attempt.

Ask Annalisa BarbieriFamilyYou wanted him to move out and become independent, but now he is choosing a lifestyle you don’t like. Take care not to push him away A few years ago I got married and became step-parent to a teenager (now in his early 20s) who was raised by his alcoholic and chaotic mother (who subsequently abandoned him). He lived with us for over a year, and we had plenty of challenges getting him into a regular schedule and into work.

Gold Coast This article is more than 10 months oldSea World helicopter crash: report suggests pilot did not hear radio call from other aircraftThis article is more than 10 months oldPreliminary findings of investigation have been released after the January crash that killed four people Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast A pilot “did not recall” his fellow pilot making a standard taxiing call to say he was taking off before their helicopters collided and crashed, killing four people and injuring nine others on the Gold Coast.

Feral girls … another one of those labels to make women feel they’re doing ‘being a person’ wrong. Photograph: John Lamb/Getty Images/Posed by modelsFeral girls … another one of those labels to make women feel they’re doing ‘being a person’ wrong. Photograph: John Lamb/Getty Images/Posed by modelsOpinionWomen This article is more than 1 year oldWant to get the ‘feral girl summer’ look? Some of us have been doing it for yearsThis article is more than 1 year oldEmma BeddingtonI thought this was a trend I could get behind - until I realised it was all about hard-partying and wearing yesterday’s makeup, rather than wearing a discounted fleece and refusing to wash.

Literary tripsThese novels – and one classical epic – evoke the cities, landscapes and cultures of Turkey ‘you’re unlikely to find on a beach holiday’ More in this series: Germany | Russia | Ireland | Latin America While Turkey can be proud of its literary traditions – especially poetry heavily influenced by Persian verse forms – it is nevertheless a nation without its own Tolstoy, Flaubert or Austen. Only in the 20th century, when the fall of the Ottomans signalled a decisive tilt west, did the country begin to turn out great novelists.

SuccessionFrom HBO’s hit series to Shakespeare, the stage to Spooks, the actor’s global star status has been sealed As Succession fans still reel from the relentless assault of quickfire one-liners, plot twists, betrayals and pathos that was its final episode, one thing is indisputable: this was Matthew Macfadyen at his stellar best. Succession finale review – a perfect, terrible goodbyeRead moreSo compulsive was he as the venal, unctuous, morally moribund Tom Wambsgans in the hit HBO series, it is hard to reconcile with his past role as period drama leading man Mr Darcy in Joe Wright’s Pride & Prejudice.

A life in ...EssaysInterviewAdam Gopnik: ‘You’re waltzing along and suddenly you’re portrayed as a monster of privilege’Hadley FreemanThe New Yorker essayist on his latest memoir, At the Strangers’ Gate, and the problem of writing about happinessAdam Gopnik has, by many accounts, including his own, a lovely life. A longtime staff writer for the New Yorker and bestselling author, Gopnik lives in Manhattan with his wife, Martha, a film-maker, and their two children, and he moves in the kind of circles that allow him to drop casual lines into conversation such as: “As John Updike once said to me …”, although he has the nervy Jewish self-consciousness to follow that with “… if you’ll forgive the namedrop.

Children's booksChildren's booksDivergent by Veronica Roth - review'Tris becomes drawn to a boy who seemed dangerous but safe'Veronica Roth, Divergent (Divergent Trilogy, Book 1)Divergent is about a girl called Tris. She lives in a world which has a divided society. Tris doesn't fit in to any of the societies, she is different. She is forced to live a life she doesn't want. She wants to find where she belongs, so she leaves her family behind and ventures out alone.

How we madeHappy MondaysInterviewHappy Mondays: how we made Kinky AfroInterviews by Dave SimpsonPaul Ryder, Happy Mondays co-songwriter: 'We thought we were doing cannabis. Then Shaun said: "You've been smoking opium for two weeks"'Paul Ryder, bass/co-songwriterKinky Afro was our biggest hit in the US, but people still go crazy wherever we play it. It started off with us just jamming. We’d moved into this massive rehearsal space, and our kid [singer Shaun Ryder] turned up with a big fridge full of beer.

Moritz Hochschild circa 1944. Photograph: Dpa Picture Alliance/AlamyHe has been described as ‘the worst kind of businessman’, but we now know that industrialist Moritz Hochschild also rescued as many as 20,000 Jews from the Nazis by Dan CollynsMoritz Hochschild was constantly on the move. In the early 1930s, he could be found in the grand hotels of London, New York or Paris, or on the back of a mule, following rough mountain trails in search of mineral seams in the Bolivian Andes.

Is it worth it?Fitness‘I’d assumed that these machines were simply an updated version of those dangerous-looking 1970s fat-belt machines. I was proved wrong’What is it? A vibrating platform that nobody ever uses at your gym. How much does it cost? As usual, there’s probably one at your gym. If you want to visit a specialist Power Plate centre, like Powervibe in west London, it’s about £25 a pop. What does it promise?

SpiritualizedAfter 22 years of 'taking drugs to make music to take drugs to' the Spiritualized frontman decided it was time for a medical checkup. The news wasn't goodListen to a stream of Sweet Heart Sweet Light Jason Pierce – AKA J Spaceman – has a reputation as one of rock's primary cosmonauts. His first band, Spacemen 3, had a motto: "Taking drugs to make music to take drugs to." Spiritualized – whose various lineups he has fronted for the past 22 years – have made seven albums awash with druggy imagery, including the 1997 landmark Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, which came packaged as a giant pill.

First personLife and styleRoxy Freeman never went to school. But at the age of 22, she decided to get a formal education, forcing her to face up to the prejudices that blight her Gypsy community – and to shackle her wandering spiritThe receptionist looked at me with disdain when I walked into Suffolk College asking to enrol. Their access course for mature students didn't have any entry requirements as such, but the receptionist warned me it was an advanced, intensive course, and there seemed to be a blank space under "

Culture This article is more than 5 years old'True meaning' of Watership Down revealed ahead of TV revivalThis article is more than 5 years oldReaders thought story was cryptic allegory, but its creator was firm: ‘It’s just a story about rabbits’ It has been endlessly picked apart and analysed and described as an allegory for both communism and Christianity but the daughters of Richard Adams have revealed the true meaning of Watership Down.

Undoubtedly forbidding ... Ralph Erskine’s Byker Wall estate in Newcastle. Photograph: Alamy/IslandstockUndoubtedly forbidding ... Ralph Erskine’s Byker Wall estate in Newcastle. Photograph: Alamy/IslandstockA history of cities in 50 buildingsCitiesByker Wall: Newcastle's noble failure of an estate – a history of cities in 50 buildings, day 41Ralph Erskine’s Grade II-listed council estate, built to replace the old Byker neighbourhood, is an examplar of design and public participation – and proof that it is rarely in the interests of people to demolish their original homes

Classics cornerJack KerouacJack Kerouac's follow-up to On the Road epitomises the visionary exuberance of the Beat GenerationIn Lowell, Massachusetts, on the banks of the Merrimac river, Jack Duluoz recalls the fevered daydreams and wild imaginings of his youth. A fictional cipher for Jack Kerouac's younger self, Duluoz's childhood and adolescence are dominated by the baseball pitch overlooked by the looming Textile Institute, and games of marbles played with fanatical zeal. But Lowell's shady streets are also densely populated by ghosts: Duluoz's father and dead brother; local suicides; schoolfellows who died young.

The ObserverFictionReviewPaul Harding's second novel charts the decline of a grief-stricken father with bleakness and beautyThe ticking of the clock – and those moments when the clock stops ticking – echoed through Paul Harding's Pulitzer prize-winning debut novel Tinkers, in which the elderly George Crosby, a clock repairer, lies dying. Time is a recurring obsession in this haunting second novel too, narrated by George's grandson Charlie in the aftermath of his 13-year-old daughter Kate's untimely death: one afternoon in September, in Enon, New England, while riding her bicycle from the beach, Kate is struck and killed by a car, after which Charlie is left "

Animal welfareEvery year, hundreds of thousands of pets are snatched in Thailand, then smuggled into Vietnam, destined for Hanoi's top restaurants and street stalls. Demand for dogmeat is so high that supply has become a highly lucrative – and brutal – black marketNguyen Tien Tung is just the sort of man you'd expect to run a Hanoi slaughterhouse: wiry, frenetic and filthy, his white T-shirt collaged with bloodstains, his jean shorts loose around taut, scratched-up legs, his feet squelching in plastic sandals.

TheatreInterview‘I do like a shock’: Martin McDonagh on why casting Lily Allen in The Pillowman makes it even more electrifyingClaire ArmitsteadHis 2003 play about child torture and freedom of speech became a global phenomenon. But will it offend today’s audiences? The writer-director explains why he won’t be changing a thing Iraq had just been invaded and MySpace had just launched, ushering in a new era of hyperlinked horror. That was the world in 2003, when Martin McDonagh’s play The Pillowman premiered at the National Theatre in London.

TheatreReviewHampstead theatre, London The American playwright edges away from his usual bilious comic antagonism with this drama about romantic crises Neil LaBute’s new play uses the same set of characters as Reasons to Be Pretty, seen at the Almeida in 2011. That offered a scathing indictment of the American obsession with physical perfection, while this piece is more concerned with the minor crises of romantic entanglement. While it’s perfectly pleasant, it lacks the thematic cohesion of its predecessor.

Boss cat … Viv Groskop's pet, Julian.Boss cat … Viv Groskop's pet, Julian.The pet I'll never forgetLife and styleWe can only speculate about what our ginger and white moggy gets up to away from home. But crime and violence are clearly involved I grew up around different kinds of domestic cat. My grandparents had a cat. My parents had three. My sister has had seven cats over the years. So I thought I was pretty familiar with their behaviour parameters.

Vivienne Westwood drives a tank to David Cameron’s home in an anti-fracking protest GuardianFracking This article is more than 8 years oldVivienne Westwood drives tank to Cameron's home in fracking protestThis article is more than 8 years oldDesigner drives military vehicle through Witney to Chadlington, Oxfordshire, to carry out fake ‘chemical attack’ Used to sticking two fingers up at the establishment, Vivienne Westwood has driven a tank to David Cameron’s constituency home in a protest against fracking.

Australian software engineer and triathlete Chris Davis was fatally bitten by a shark while swimming in New Caledonia. Photograph: DFATAustralian software engineer and triathlete Chris Davis was fatally bitten by a shark while swimming in New Caledonia. Photograph: DFATAustralia news This article is more than 10 months oldFamily of Sydney man killed in New Caledonia shark attack remember ‘beloved’ husband and fatherThis article is more than 10 months oldChris Davis died after being bitten multiple times by a shark while swimming at Chateau Royal beach south of Nouméa

US militaryThe US military doesn’t provide plant-based meals, often leaving vegan service members to rely on snacks – but some are seeing a rise in like-minded comrades John, a specialist in the US army, went vegan in 2018 while deployed in the Middle East after he started practicing Buddhism. 'We won't be war profiteers': Microsoft workers protest $480m army contractRead more“I’m living in a world of violence by being in the military but trying to live the most peaceful lifestyle that I can,” John says.

The ObserverWorld Cup 2022 This article is more than 1 year old‘I feel gay, disabled … like a woman too!’: Infantino makes bizarre attack on criticsThis article is more than 1 year old‘Don’t criticise Qatar,’ Infantino tells press conference in DohaFifa president accuses western critics of hypocrisy and racismThe Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, has accused critics of Qatar’s human rights record of staggering hypocrisy and racism in a bizarre and incendiary attack on the eve of the 2022 World Cup finals.

Ask PhilippaFamilyNow is the time to say ‘No!’ It will feel frightening, but you must do it anyway and, with time, you will feel more confident The question I am 80 years old. My single 50-year-old daughter has relied on me for a long time to help her with her autistic son, my grandson, now 16. Her stepfather, my husband of 40 years, has been a wonderful grandfather to him. She has lost contact with her son’s dad.

Health & wellbeingIt is hard enough to exercise when you are overweight, so why do people feel the need to add their judgment to the workload?“Well, what is an athlete? It’s somebody that gets up, and does what they need to do. Just because they don’t look or act like an athlete doesn’t mean they should get singled out.” Elizabeth Ayres has been fielding lots of questions since her Facebook post about her experience at the London Marathon went viral.

History booksReviewAt the heart of Scotland’s success has been an outstanding education system, argues this kaleidoscopic study In 1995 the Samoan rugby team knocked on Murray Pittock’s door in Howard Place, Edinburgh, the birthplace of Robert Louis Stevenson, and asked to be photographed there. The author of Treasure Island was their hero, having made his home in the Pacific kingdom in 1890, dressing his servants in tartan livery while championing Samoan culture.

TV reviewTelevision & radioReviewThis talking head-filled two-part tale of fame for fame’s sake profiles the reality TV family – leaving plenty of space for cynicism when it comes to their more questionable moments Who is Kim Kardashian? It can’t be a wholly ridiculous question, since it’s difficult to give a simple answer about what she does for a living, and in any case plenty of people really do not know. Kardashian is one of the world’s biggest celebrities, but she emerged at a time when social media and multichannel TV fractured and compartmentalised pop culture, making it possible to be super-famous without having an effect on those who don’t actively engage.

The case for language learningLanguagesTop 10 podcasts to help you learn a languageFrom videos in Japanese to news in German, language blogger Lindsay Dow recommends her favourite podcasts to keep you motivated and inspired while improving your skills I became a language addict way back in the early noughties thanks to Shakira. Since then I’ve gone on to pursue a degree in French and Spanish with the Open University, and I’ve also studied Mandarin, Italian, German and various other languages along the way.

Using satellite imagery, users' pictures, video and first-hand testimony, Guardian reporters across the world chart the new walls being built to divide people from their neighbours • Jon Henley: an illusion of security from Berlin to the West BankncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaK%2Bfp7mle82gZKKmpJq%2Foq%2FToq2eZ2JlfnR7zaitaK%2BRobm0

Dagonet (Ray Stevenson) Race: Sarmatian Handy with: Axe Likes: Protecting the weak Dislikes: People who hurt the little children Known weaknesses: Is a big softie On the other hand: He really is no slouch with that axe. Ooh, Mamma King Arthur ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6ZobpwvMicq66qlah8qrnAoJxoaFxtgnWBi2ZoaXFgaYZ4hZBwaGVoYGO1tbnL

Grizzly Flats: the California town leveled by the Caldor fire – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Houses were reduced to piles of ash and cars to twisted metal as the blaze rushed through the El Dorado county town Main image: The frames of chairs and the chimney are the only things left at the Grizzly Flats community church.

Homes in towers for sale – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Scale the heights with these high-living properties, from Suffolk to Northumberland Jill Papworth Main image: Fantasy : Tower : Oddington, Gloucestershire Photograph: Simon Foster/Knight Frank Fri 7 Feb 2020 07.00 GMT Last modified on Fri 7 Feb 2020 14.07 GMT Culford, SuffolkDating from 1890, this water tower was designed by architect William Young and the cast iron tank by H Young & Co (which also produced the sphinxes at Cleopatra’s Needle).

InequalityThe prehistoric shift towards cultivation began our preoccupation with hierarchy and growth – and even changed how we perceive the passage of time Most people regard hierarchy in human societies as inevitable, a natural part of who we are. Yet this belief contradicts much of the 200,000-year history of Homo sapiens. In fact, our ancestors have for the most part been “fiercely egalitarian”, intolerant of any form of inequality. While hunter-gatherers accepted that people had different skills, abilities and attributes, they aggressively rejected efforts to institutionalise them into any form of hierarchy.

JK Rowling This article is more than 1 year oldJK Rowling launches support centre for female victims of sexual violenceThis article is more than 1 year oldBeira’s Place will add to Edinburgh’s existing rape crisis centre, which is run by a trans woman JK Rowling is funding a new support and counselling service for survivors of sexual violence in Edinburgh. The author, who has written about her own experience as a survivor of sexual assault, is setting up the new centre, called Beira’s Place, because she believes there is an “unmet need for women” in the Lothians area.

There can't be many films around as culpably awful as this. At least I very much hope not. A brother and sister, Joseph (Vincent Rottiers) and Chloé (Adele Haenel), are on the run from a string of foster homes and detention centres. Joseph is angry, suspicious and fiercely protective of the elder Chloé, who is disturbed and almost feral. In this latter role, Haenel gives an embarrassingly bad performance - like something from a youth drama group.

Rock climbing This article is more than 2 months oldMan arrested over alleged mass shooting plot at Oregon climbing event This article is more than 2 months oldSamson Zebturiah Garner being held on $10m bailPolice say they found guns and evidence of plot in carA man has been arrested in Oregon over an alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a rock climbing event. Samson Zebturiah Garner, 39, was taken into custody in Deschutes county after local police were informed by detectives in Portland, Oregon, that the suspect was “planning a violent attack during an event” in the area.

GrrlScientistZoologyMystery bird: Asian verditer flycatcher, Eumyias thalassinaThese Asian birds get their bright blue colour from the structure of their feathers rather than from pigmentsAsian verditer flycatcher, Eumyias thalassina, Swainson, 1838 (synonyms, Eumyias thalassinus, Muscicapa melanops and Stoparola melanops; protonym, Muscicapa thalassina), also known as the Indian verditer flycatcher, as the verditer flycatcher, the verditer-blue flycatcher, or as the copper-blue flycatcher, photographed at Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.

The Big IdeasPhilosophy This article is more than 11 years oldRousseau shows us that there is a way to break the chains – from withinThis article is more than 11 years oldAnne Deneys-TunneyThrough the concept of the 'general will', Rousseau believed that the alienation of man could transform itself into freedom"Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains." The opening sentence of Rousseau's The Social Contract not only summarises his entire philosophical system, it also proves how important he still is today.

New Zealand This article is more than 2 months oldNew Zealand gangs may be forced to cover facial tattoos with makeup, incoming government saysThis article is more than 2 months oldBan on offensive facial markings could come as part of wider crackdown on gangs, National party says New Zealand’s gangs may have to cover up offensive tattoos with makeup if the incoming government’s crackdown on gang activity goes ahead. On Thursday, the National party’s police spokesperson, Mark Mitchell, told the national broadcaster RNZ that if its proposed ban on gang patches – large insignia sewn on to jackets, for example – does not work, then it would consider making gang members apply foundation over their facial tattoos, or face arrest.

Buffalo shooting This article is more than 1 year old‘She got mad’: 911 dispatcher allegedly hung up during Buffalo shooting callThis article is more than 1 year oldDispatcher could lose her job after Tops employee says dispatcher took on a nasty tone and asked her why she was whispering A 911 dispatcher has been placed on administrative leave and will probably be fired after allegedly hanging up on a Tops supermarket employee during Saturday’s shooting rampage in Buffalo, New York, where a white supremacist allegedly killed 10 people.

The H wordScience and scepticismSkeptics and scepticismShould we be concerned that some Skeptics do not seem to understand the meaning of scepticism?I was somewhat disconcerted to see something completely erroneous appear in Guardian Science's own Notes & Theories blog. It was this: A word about the distinction between sceptics and skeptics. A generic "sceptic" questions accepted beliefs. In this way, we have "man didn't go to the moon" sceptics. (Some people won't believe anything.

OpinionIsrael-Gaza war This article is more than 3 months oldStanding up for Palestine is also standing up to save the west from the worst of itselfThis article is more than 3 months oldMoustafa BayoumiOne can be opposed to Hamas, as I am, and to the indiscriminate bombing and ethnic cleansing of Gaza, as I am What are you doing to stop the imminent ethnic cleansing of Gaza? This is a serious question.

SuccessionChoice of baby blue child’s top for Kieran Culkin’s character Roman Roy unlikely to have been accidental Warning: contains spoilersAfter all the £2,400 baseball caps and £5,250 leather jackets, who was expecting the fashion item to cause the biggest furore in the Succession finale to be an £11 T-shirt from the mass US retail chain Walmart? And yet, here we are. The baby blue T-shirt with three stripes on its sleeves is worn by Roman Roy, played by Kieran Culkin, when he hides out at his mother’s beach house in Barbados.

FranceSupermodel found dead in ParisFrench police have confirmed that a supermodel has been found dead near the Garigliano bridge in the River Seine. Police said the body of Katoucha Niane, 47, who was from Guinea and based in France, was found yesterday. She disappeared in January. Dectetives are investigating the possibility she fell into the river when she returned home to her houseboat, moored on the Seine near the Alexandre III bridge, after a party.

Top 10sFictionThe long, nuclear-armed standoff that followed the second world war was a terrifying parody of peace – which inspired some brilliant literature What do you think of when you think of the cold war? The answer may depend on how old you are. For the young, it is history; for the elderly it is one of the times they endured in a whole century of extraordinary violence and upheaval; for the generations in between it’s a bit of both.

Margaret DrabbleReviewVirginia Woolf called the National Velvet author Enid Bagnold 'a scallywag who married a very rich man'. In fact, she was a daring pioneer who created strong roles for women, argues Margaret Drabble, as her most successful play returns to the stageEnid Bagnold began life as a rebel, and ended it as the lady of the manor. She moved from Chelsea and Bohemia to the butler and the garden trug.

BBSP is an arbiter of what’s in and out, with little of the snark found in other fashion publications. Photograph: Courtesy Blackbird SpyplaneBBSP is an arbiter of what’s in and out, with little of the snark found in other fashion publications. Photograph: Courtesy Blackbird SpyplaneFashionJonah Weiner and Erin Wylie’s blend of insight and humor has drawn tens of thousands of subscribers to Blackbird Skyplane Subscribers to the Blackbird Spyplane newsletter never quite know what’s going to arrive in their inbox.

Olivier awards This article is more than 3 years oldDear Evan Hansen wins three awards as virtual Oliviers honour theatreThis article is more than 3 years oldNewcomers joined stalwarts such as Matthew Bourne, who won his ninth award Newcomers and established theatre figures shared the honours at the Olivier awards this year in a ceremony which was re-imagined for the Covid age. A number of shows were honoured, but still there was one apparent constant: Sharon D Clarke, who scooped best actress for her performance in the Young Vic’s Death Of A Salesman and has become a fixture on the Olivier recognition lists.

The ObserverLegoThe revival of Lego has been hailed as the greatest turnaround in corporate history, ousting Ferrari as the world’s most powerful brand. Johnny Davis reports From its founding in 1932 until 1998, Lego had never posted a loss. By 2003 it was in big trouble. Sales were down 30% year-on-year and it was $800m in debt. An internal report revealed it hadn’t added anything of value to its portfolio for a decade.

CultureThe death of the artist and activist leaves behind an important legacy of someone who worked hard to make a difference On the morning of 9 April 1968, some 1,300 mourners crammed into Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist church for the funeral of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. At the end of the pew, two rows behind the King’s grieving wife and survivors sat a man in a trim black suit and sunglasses gazing longingly at the casket before the pulpit, like a boat set adrift.

Australian arts in focusBooks This article is more than 8 months oldMem Fox book Guess What? removed in Florida county under Ron DeSantis bill This article is more than 8 months oldDuval County says book by bestselling Australian children’s author has since been approved by specialist panel Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast Bestselling Australian author Mem Fox has become the latest victim of ultra-conservative Florida governor Ron DeSantis, with the writer’s 1988 children’s book Guess What?

One dictator’s portraits are replaced by another’s in The Arab of the Future. Photograph: PROne dictator’s portraits are replaced by another’s in The Arab of the Future. Photograph: PRComics and graphic novelsReviewIn this first volume, Sattouf vividly captures his experiences of growing up in Libya and Syria from 1978 to 1984 and hints at the revolutionaries to come The graphic novel has proved itself again and again. It already has its canon: Art Spiegelman on the Holocaust, Marjane Satrapi on girlhood in Islamist Iran, and, perhaps most accomplished of all, Joe Sacco’s Footnotes in Gaza, a work of detailed and self-reflexive history.

Film This article is more than 1 year oldThis article is more than 1 year oldHarry Potter star has produced Canyon Del Muerto, which tells how Ann Axtell Morris worked with Navajo people in 1920s America He is one of the most recognisable actors in the world, known for his role as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter franchise. But now Tom Felton wants to use his platform to spotlight someone whose historical achievements have been obscured for decades.

YESTERYEARWho exactly was St Vitus and was he any good at dancing? ST. VITUS was boiled alive in oil. The shock of such an ordeal made his body move as if he was dancing. The cathedral of St. Vitus is in Prague. Peter Hayes, London, W3. Add your answer ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKafqbK0rc2dqK6dop6ytHvQrpyrsV9leW15kHBtaWRgZXupwMyl

US news This article is more than 5 months oldThis article is more than 5 months oldMeyer’s sudden death has ignited an outcry from news media advocates who condemned the police raid as something straight out of the authoritarian playbook Police in the Kansas town where Joan Meyer had lived for almost a century had just raided her home and her newspaper – seizing electronics and reporting materials – during what she understood to be a leak investigation when another media outlet called her for comment.

California This article is more than 2 months old841+1: beloved mischievous otter who swiped surfboards gives birth to pupThis article is more than 2 months oldCalifornia otter known for harassing Santa Cruz surfers and eluding capture seen floating with her baby lying on her belly A sea otter who captured hearts and surfboards this past summer has become a mother, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Catch her if you can: viral surfboard-swiping otter is on the loose, and fans love itRead moreThe sea otter, known as 841, rose to national prominence this past summer after reports and photos of an aquatic mammal harassing surfers and swimmers became national news.

The Or family, from left: Noam, 15; her brother, 17, who was in the army when the attack took place; Dror, 50; Yonat, 50; and Alma, 13.The Or family, from left: Noam, 15; her brother, 17, who was in the army when the attack took place; Dror, 50; Yonat, 50; and Alma, 13.Israel-Gaza war This article is more than 2 months oldBritish lawyer holds out hope for rest of family after sister murdered on kibbutz This article is more than 2 months oldAhal Besorai says he has had no word of sister’s husband and two children taken hostage by Hamas

Pass notesCatsOver the last few years, the internet has thrilled to pictures of chubby pets. But now experts are calling for a new era of cat shaming and determined dieting Name: Fat cats. Age: Probably no older than 10, given their propensity to die young. Appearance: Fat. Surely you mean delightfully cuddly. Oh, who’s a pretty boy then? Roll over and let me tickle your tummy. Don’t be so ridiculous. That’s just the sort of attitude that is KILLING CATS.

Movies This article is more than 18 years oldGibson is Hollywood's most powerful celebrityThis article is more than 18 years oldMel Gibson has been dethroned from his perch as Forbes magazine's most powerful celebrity in the world, slipping two places to third in the latest list behind Oprah Winfrey and Tiger Woods. The Australian actor and film-maker remains the most influential star in Hollywood and one of the richest, following last year's hugely successful The Passion of the Christ.

The ObserverAction and adventure filmsGodzilla quiz: how much do you know?The overgrown lizard is back in cinemas. But how much do you know about the mighty monster? Find out with our quiz… Mark Kermode reviews Gareth Williams's Godzilla reboot ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJ6ZobpwvdSisWhqYGaBcLnAsmZqcF%2BcvKXGyKWjmmWYpMRuudScn2ajnqTEbr3UorE%3D

Joaquin Phoenix This article is more than 13 years oldJoaquin Phoenix tells Letterman: I hope spoof didn't offend youThis article is more than 13 years oldActor apologises to Late Show host for awkward interview that features in new film I'm Still HereEighteen months ago it was a distracted, straggly-bearded figure who sat on David Letterman's TV sofa to mumble through an excruciatingly awkward interview. Last night a more familiar Joaquin Phoenix was back – to apologise.

José Luis Montenegro is a Mexican journalist and author who has written for Newsweek en Español, the Associated Press and the MVS Radio station. His first book, Narcojuniors. Los herederos del poder criminal, was published in 2015. He can be followed on Twitter at @jl_montenegroj ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRooairlWK5trXSZqSopqSau6az0ag%3D

TheatreObituaryKeith Michell obituaryActor and theatre director best known for his many portrayals of Henry VIIIRegally tall and strong-featured, the Australian-born actor Keith Michell, who has died aged 88, made his reputation in the 1960s and 70s in classical roles, and probably played the part of King Henry VIII more than any other performer. But he also made a significant contribution to British theatre when he followed Laurence Olivier and John Clements to become artistic director of Chichester Festival Theatre.

WomenIndependent female directors are making pornographic films aimed at women. Catalina May finds out what makes them so differentAnna Arrowsmith (aka Anna Span) has been a porn director for 12 years. This made her recent campaign as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Gravesham rather controversial. "Not my cup of tea", said Nick Clegg about her occupation. But what she has been doing is not mainstream pornography, but independent porn made for women.

A moment that changed meJournalism booksHis decision to end our relationship arrived out of the blue, not long after I had quit my job as a journalist. The next day, I was interviewing for a role that would transform my life Exactly one year after he proposed to me, my fiance and I were due to sign our papers at the register office in Cairo, the city where we had been living together for four years.

Spencer Tunick This article is more than 1 year oldBondi becomes nude beach as thousands take part in Spencer Tunick’s Sydney installation This article is more than 1 year oldLegislation had to be changed to permit public nudity on the beach Beach bums: Bondi bares all for Spencer Tunick’s art installation – in pictures Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast For the first time in its history, Bondi has been declared a nude beach.

Art This article is more than 7 years oldFlowers or vaginas? Georgia O’Keeffe Tate show to challenge sexual clichesThis article is more than 7 years oldUK’s largest ever exhibition of US artist will be Tate Modern’s first show since £26m revamp and aims to counter ‘conservative male’ readings of her work There are few artists in history whose work is consistently reduced to the single question: flowers or vaginas? But a new Tate Modern retrospective of Georgia O’Keeffe, a giant of American 20th-century modernism, is to challenge the “conservative male” – and widely accepted – assumptions that her famous flowers paintings are depictions of female genitalia.

IranIran seizes oil tanker with links to US in Gulf of OmanTaking of vessel relates to dispute over sanctioned oil but will worsen tensions over marine navigation in Middle East The Iranian navy has seized a US-linked oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman as part of a long-running dispute with the US over an American court order a year ago that seized Iranian oil on the tanker and unloaded the cargo in Texas.

Television & radioFrom classics like Home Alone and Singin’ in the Rain to brand new blockbusters Saltburn and Across the Spider-Verse, here is your handpicked selection of the very finest films on TV this season Recent hitsHouse of Gucci Astonishing and preposterous in equal measure, this is Ridley Scott’s sweeping retelling of the rise and fall of the Gucci family. During its best moments (of which there are many) this plays like wonderful high camp; bringing the best actors of their generation together simply to make them do impressions of the Dolmio puppet family.

UK newsPrince Harry's passing out paradeMarching on parade is hard work at the best of times, but when your entire family has turned up, half of them in uniform, and your granny's taking the salute, it must be a terminally uncool experience. There was little wonder that Prince Harry, 21, appeared to be blushing deep to the roots of his red hair as he took part in the passing out parade at the end of his training at Sandhurst Royal Military Academy yesterday.

Pulp Fiction This article is more than 14 years oldPulp Fiction writer jailed for fatal crashThis article is more than 14 years oldRoger Avary pleaded guilty to manslaughter and drunk-driving over the January 2008 crash that killed a honeymooning friendRoger Avary, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Pulp Fiction, was yesterday sentenced to a year behind bars and five years on probation for his role in a fatal crash in January last year.

Children's booksGlobalFantasy teen fiction - quizWith the huge rise of teen fantasy books (and associated films) from Twilight to The Hunger Games, everyone's an expert on magical teen tales. But how much you really know about your favourite heroes and their stories?ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJuYnrmlvsSnqmaan6S4tHnSoqueZ6Gqtrt7kWlobWealrtwfY9onZqmpJbAunnTnpynZZaesLW1zqdkqq2Zrw%3D%3D

ObituaryGeorge CarmanThe most celebrated barrister of his generation, he enjoyed matchless success across all branches of the lawWhen George Carman, who has died aged 71, announced last August that he was retiring from the bar because of ill health, his home in Wimbledon was immediately besieged by the press. Carman, visibly sick and walking with difficulty, granted all an audience. He claimed to dislike the limelight, but he knew he was a star, and he enjoyed the fame that a string of sensational cases in the last 20 years of his career gave him.

First world war This article is more than 7 years oldHonour for factory where female workers died in first world warThis article is more than 7 years oldSite of Barnbow National Filling Factory where scores of women were killed in explosion becomes scheduled monument A century after an explosion in a Leeds munitions factory killed scores of female workers, whose deaths were kept secret for years after the first world war, the site is to be given official protection by the government as a historic monument.

Dr Ian Davis is an independent human security and arms control consultant and activist. He has a rich background in government, academia, and the non-governmental organisation sector. He received both his Ph.D. and BA in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, in the United Kingdom. He was formerly executive director of the British American Security Information Council (BASIC) (2001-2007) and before that programme manager at another UK-based thinktank, Saferworld (1998-2001).

PlantwatchPlantsWhen it comes to attracting pollinators, buttercup petals hold all the aces. They even provide their guests with heating Do you like butter? Hold a buttercup under your chin and folklore says if there is a yellow reflection on your skin it means you do. But the real reason the flowers seem to shine with an intense glittering yellow is nothing to do with butter but about advertising the plants to insect pollinators from a great distance.

New Zealand This article is more than 10 years oldShark attack kills award-winning film-maker in New ZealandThis article is more than 10 years oldAdam Strange, 46, victim of first such incident since 1976Beaches in New Zealand have been closed after a swimmer was dragged out to sea and killed by a shark off one of the most popular beaches near the city of Auckland. Eyewitnesses described the sea as being covered in blood, and several sharks may have joined in the attack.

TheatreReviewAlmeida theatre, London Rupert Goold’s production of the alt-rock musical has a talented young cast and some striking moments but the songs are often banal It is audacious of Rupert Goold to stage a flamboyantly morose alt-rock musical about teenage repression and rebellion for a Christmas show. Based on Frank Wedekind’s 1891 play – banned or censored across the ages – it does not have many fuzzy edges and its staging now feels more refreshing for it.

LGBTQ+ rights This article is more than 5 years oldTanzania: men arrested for 'gay marriage' face anal examinationsThis article is more than 5 years oldTen detained on island of Zanzibar to undergo test campaigners call torture Ten men arrested for allegedly conducting a same-sex marriage ceremony on the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar are to face a forced anal examination on Friday, activists have told the Guardian. The procedure is supposed to discover evidence of homosexual activity, though many say the primary aim is to humiliate and hurt.

The Last Kingdom: episode by episodeThe Last KingdomOur hero Uhtred attempts to save his marriage, while the rapidly advancing Odda the Younger is enjoyably loathsome in this fantastically well-paced episode Spoiler alert: this blog is for those who have watched the fourth episode of The Last Kingdom, showing on BBC2, Thursday nights in the UK; please refrain from posting any spoilers if you’ve seen more of the series. Read Sarah’s recap of episode four here.

Life and styleAt home with HitlerIn 1945, Lee Miller photographed the Nazi leader's abandoned Munich apartment for Vogue. On the eve of a major new exhibition of her work, we revisit her images and diary entries from that assignmentNo 16 Prinzregentenplatz was Hitler's private apartment in Munich. Lee Miller reached it, with fellow photographer David Scherman, in 1945 at the denouement of the war, and was there when Hitler's death in Berlin was announced.

Nevada Caldor fire turns sky red in California and Nevada – video The sky over parts of Nevada and California turned red and orange as the Caldor fire, which erupted over the weekend, exploded in size on Tuesday and ran through the town of Grizzly Flats, destroying many buildings and forcing residents to leave. Two were injured. Officials estimated that the blaze had blown through 12,000 hectares (30,000 acres)

Around 66 million Americans believe that aliens landed at Roswell, New Mexico Photograph: The Ronald Grant ArchiveAround 66 million Americans believe that aliens landed at Roswell, New Mexico Photograph: The Ronald Grant ArchiveAn apple a dayHealth & wellbeingPsychologists are trying to determine why otherwise rational individuals can make the leap from “prudent paranoia” to illogical conspiracy theories According to a Public Policy Polling survey, around 12 million people in the US believe that interstellar lizards in people suits rule our country.

Observer book of the weekAutobiography and memoirReviewAn account of a decade at the president’s side offers gossipy insights into Russian influence, Trump’s dangerous allure and the ‘pee tape’ In summer 2012, Michael Cohen took his family to a golf resort owned by Donald Trump in New Jersey. By this point, he had been working as Trump’s lawyer-cum-attack dog for six years. Trump noticed a teenage girl walking off the tennis court, her hair scrunched in a ponytail.