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Teaching assistants routinely cover lessons in England and Wales, survey finds
Exclusive: Research shows extent to which schools are struggling to provide qualified teachers for every class
Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England and Wales are being educated âon the cheapâ by low-paid teaching assistants (TAs) covering lessons for teachers who are off sick or have quit, according to new research.
A desperate teacher recruitment crisis, compounded by inadequate funding, means schools across the country are struggling to put a qualified teacher at the front of every class, unions say.
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King Charles to return to public duties while continuing cancer treatment
Monarch to resume public-facing engagements after palace says doctors âvery encouragedâ by his progress
King Charles, who is being treated for cancer, is to return to public duties, with doctors pleased and âvery encouragedâ by his progress and âpositiveâ about his continued recovery, Buckingham Palace has said.
Charles, who announced in early February he had been diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer, will continue treatment while resuming some public-facing engagements, though he will not undertake a full summer programme.
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Gazaâs 37m tonnes of bomb-filled debris could take 14 years to clear, says expert
Top UN demining official outlines scale of devastation as Egypt officials fly into Israel in attempt to revive ceasefire talks
Israelâs war in Gaza has created 37m tonnes of debris, much of it laced with unexploded bombs, which could take more than a decade to remove, a top UN demining official said.
Nearly seven months into the war, there is an average 300kg of rubble a square metre of land in Gaza, Pehr Lodhammar, the former United Nationals Mine Action Service chief for Iraq, told a news conference.
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Women should give up vaping if they want to get pregnant, study suggests
Research finds hormone that indicates fertility at lower levels in vapers and tobacco smokers
Women should give up vaping if they are hoping to get pregnant, according to a study that suggests it may affect fertility.
In the first research to demonstrate a link between fertility prospects and electronic cigarettes across a large population, analysis of blood samples from 8,340 women revealed that people who vape or smoke tobacco had lower levels of anti-MĂŒllerian hormone (AMH), which indicates how many eggs women have left in their ovaries.
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Emma Stone says she would like to be called by her real name: Emily
Oscar winner reveals she would enjoy fans using her given name despite using Emma professionally
Her films have racked up more than $1bn at the box office and she has won two Oscars under her stage name, but Emma Stone says she would now prefer to be called by her given name: Emily.
In a joint interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Nathan Fielder, her co-star in the surreal TV show The Curse, revealed that actors and crew members she worked with called her Emily.
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Hush-money trial: prosecutor questions David Pecker further over stopping stories detrimental to Trump â live
Joshua Steinglass questions Pecker following cross-examination as Trump watches in New York courtroom
Trump defense attorney Emil Bove has resumed his cross-examination of Pecker.
âWe were talking about Hope Hicks, right?â Bove asked, referring to the former campaign and White House aide to Trump. Pecker answered in the affirmative.
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Teachers hurt in Welsh school stabbing speak of incidentâs âenormous impactâ
Fiona Elias and Liz Hopkin thank emergency services and NHS staff and pay tribute to colleagues and âwonderful pupilsâ
Two teachers injured in a stabbing at a Welsh school have said they are struggling to comprehend what happened, and spoke of the âenormous impactâ the incident has had on their âwonderfulâ pupils and colleagues.
Fiona Elias and Liz Hopkin paid tribute to emergency services workers and NHS staff after the stabbings in the playground at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire. The pair and a student were taken to hospital but have been discharged.
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CAA cancels counter-protest against London pro-Palestinian march
Campaign Against Antisemitism, led by Gideon Falter, cites safety fears and promises more protests to come
Campaign Against Antisemitism has cancelled its planned counter-protest against a pro-Palestinian march through central London on Saturday.
The group, led by Gideon Falter, had said it wanted to use the âwalk togetherâ initiative to support its view that the area around the planned pro-Palestinian march was not safe for Jewish people.
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Crews battle fire threatening longest wooden pier on US west coast
Over 100 firefighters, 30 lifeguards and 32 police officers called to help as flames tore through restaurant at end of California pier
A historic southern California pier caught fire on Thursday, burning for several hours until firefighters battling the blaze from boats were able to extinguish the flames.
Flames tore through a restaurant at the end of the Oceanside Pier, the longest wooden pier on the US west coast, and heavily damaged the closed diner and a neighboring business.
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Orca calf successfully returned to open water after bold rescue in Canada
Two-year-old calf one step closer to reuniting with family group after tragic accident that left her stranded in remote lagoon
An orca calf, trapped for weeks in a remote lagoon in western Canada, has freed herself and is travelling towards open waters, hailed as âincredible newsâ by a growing body of human supporters.
The move puts her one step closer to reuniting with her family one month after a tragic accident left her stranded.
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âIt should have been safeâ â verdict of woman whose twin sister died after eight hours in A&E
Exclusive: Inese Briede says her sister, Inga Rublite, 39, may not have died âif someone was just checking up on herâ
In life, Inga Rublite was just another patient in a busy hospital waiting to see a doctor. In death, the 39-year-old has become a tragic symbol of how overstretched and overburdened the NHS has become.
Rublite died after being found unconscious under her coat in an A&E waiting room more than eight hours after arriving.
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âI felt immense shameâ: one manâs experience of a female stalker
Tom, whose experience echoes that portrayed in Baby Reindeer, talks about the impact on him and the police response
Not long after he embarked on an on/off dalliance with a former colleague, Tom began feeling uneasy about her behaviour. He ended things â but that only made matters worse.
Lies and gaslighting turned into his ex turning up randomly at places where he hung out and âappearing seemingly everywhere I wentâ, he said. âThat was incredibly hard to deal with. I felt hounded, and I had no idea what to do.â
In the UK, the National Stalking Helpline can be reached on 0808 802 0300.
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Rishi Sunak struggling to smother frenzy of election rumours
Speculation PM could call election to forestall possible leadership challenge has its own momentum despite No 10 dismissals
In a sign of how febrile the atmosphere in Westminster is just now, there were wild rumours flying around on Friday that Rishi Sunak was planning to finally call an election straight after the weekend.
The fact that this particular theory appears to have begun with Labour party speculation that the prime minister could announce a date to put an end to questions over his own leadership does not appear to have slowed down its spread.
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Can Zendaya make the leap from tween idol to Hollywood heavyweight?
The 27-year-old American actor has gone from the Disney channel to new classy arthouse threesome drama Challengers, via a massive blockbuster and a hot-button TV series. So can she convince as an Oscar contender?
Actor-model-producer Zendaya Coleman â universally known mononymously, without her last name â has never been short of attention, but it feels as if the 27-year-old has arrived at a breakthrough moment. With the tennis romance Challengers arriving in cinemas, in which she is the central focus, the sci-fi blockbuster Dune: Part Two still reeling in audiences, and acting as the simultaneous cover star of two separate editions of Vogue magazine â the British and the American â Zendaya appears to have achieved a new level.
Her career has so far specialised in an impressively high number of attention-grabbing moments, including appearing in a spectacularly bizarre metallic silver ârobot suitâ at the premiere of Dune: Part Two earlier this year, and the Challengers trailer release in June 2023, with its sexually suggestive premise of a threeway love affair.
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My brother bullied me, which has had a lifelong impact. Can I build bridges with him now?
He is the one who should be saying sorry. Thereâs no miracle cure, but do consider therapy, and keep good people around you
When I was a child I was bullied by my older brother. I am 41 now and I think this has really affected me throughout my whole life. He always picked on me, called me stupid, fat, ugly, worthless and told me that I was never good at anything. This went on every day until I moved abroad to live with my grandmother at the age of 17.
My parents never made me feel protected and never punished him or made him stop. I resent them for it and feel let down by them. Iâve spoken to my mum a few times in recent years, but itâs a bit too late now and I donât want to make her feel guilty when she canât turn back time.
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Sekkoya, Canterbury, Kent: âA prime example of why the term âpan-Asianâ fills me with such forebodingâ â restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants
This is the sort of food invented for British people that youâd have got at a Cantonese restaurant back in 1994
Off to Canterbury for a shufti around the cathedral, a meander through its pretty streets and a spot of lunch at Sekkoya, a vast, gorgeous-looking new pan-Asian restaurant on the Riverside next to an Everyman Cinema, a crazy golf venue and a branch of Heavenly Desserts. The restaurantâs sleek website offers all sorts of bold statements about this hot dining experience (regular readers will be aware that I delight in this kind of Vogon poetry), claiming that it will take us on a âgastronomic journey throughout Asia that transcends ordinary flavoursâ, and offering cocktails that will âawaken your sensesâ.
The website emotes grandly in this way for many more yards, so much so, in fact, that I suspect AI. Only a non-sentient being could describe Canterburyâs Riverside as a âvibrant new lifestyle districtâ, when itâs just an elevated patch of concrete. Maybe Sekkoya is entitled to be cocky, though, because itâs clearly the classiest venue for miles: the place is bedecked in sea-green velour, with shiny floors, pale tan leather seats and an impressive âmuralâ skylight that gives the impression that youâre dining in a rainforest. Fans of the opulent Chinese restaurant chain Tattu, which is especially big in Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds, will recognise dashes of the modern, high-octane glamour that delights Instagram feeds. Add beautiful bathrooms, Kool & The Gang and George Benson on the stereo, and lovely, chipper serving staff, and they clearly mean business here.
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A mugâs game: the politics of Rishi Sunakâs crockery choices
Patriotic teaware was on show from the prime minister this week â the latest round of his mug-based messaging
Rishi Sunak appeared on his Instagram feed on Tuesday morning holding a mug emblazoned with the St Georgeâs flag. âPerfect way to start the day,â was the caption: âHappy St Georgeâs Day!â
It is not the only time the prime minister has raised a symbolic piece of teaware. On the same day he appeared en route to Warsaw holding a white mug marked only with the number â10â, presumably a reference to his current home address. Last year one enveloped in a union jack print was his choice for a trip to a Nato summit in Lithuania. Personal branding clearly pays no mind to international airspace.
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20mph speed limit splits opinion in Welsh market town
Mixed feelings in Rhayader after Labour-led Welsh government announces possible return to 30mph across country
The market town of Rhayader stands at a historic crossroads at the heart of Wales. Lorries trundle through, delivery vans dart around, tourists merrily motor along. The town sits on the A470, the main route between north and south Wales, and last year had 20mph signs posted on its four main approaches.
Six months later and before the possible reversal of the nationwide default speed limit policy, people still have mixed feelings.
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âWhy has my uterus fallen into my vagina?â: Emily Osterâs new book demystifies common pregnancy complications
The Unexpected, the latest book by the economics professor, examines the uncomfortable and embarrassing parts of pregnancy that no one talks about
Emily Oster really hopes you donât need to buy her new book. The 44-year-old tenured Brown University economics professor and firebrand has published a handful of bestselling titles, all focused on childbearing and child-rearing. âI always say Iâm not going to write another book after I write a book because it feels like so much work,â she said. âThe first three books really track my own journey, from pregnancy to raising little kids to having older kids.â
But the fourth installment in her âParentDataâ â also the name of her blog, podcast and newsletter â quartet, The Unexpected, swerves into thornier territory than its predecessors: pregnancies with complications, and the risks inherent in any subsequent pregnancies. For the first time, she is not writing about her own experiences. âI was inspired by the questions that I got from other people rather than the questions that I had myself,â she said.
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Tesla among electric carmakers forced to cut prices as market stalls
EV sales have plateaued across the world but the newfound glut of vehicles may just be temporary
Elon Musk became the worldâs richest man by evangelising about electric cars â and delivering them by the million. Yet in recent months his company, Tesla, has struggled to maintain its momentum: sales have dropped this year, and so has its share price.
Those struggles have become emblematic of a broader reckoning facing the electric vehicle (EV) industry. After the soaring demand and valuations of the coronavirus pandemic years, the pace of sales growth has slowed. The industry has entered a new phase, with questions over whether the switch from petrol and diesel to cleaner electric is facing a troublesome stall or a temporary speed bump.
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Beetroot and beefless bourguignon as Paris Olympics embraces vegetarian cuisine
Top chefs say the Games will rebrand French gastronomy as a showcase for plant-based food
It will boast the worldâs biggest salad bar, offer fans vegetarian hotdogs and bring in up to half a million bananas by boat to meet athletesâ insatiable demand for the fruit while avoiding the carbon footprint of air travel.
As part of its efforts to cut carbon emissions, the Paris Olympics will make history by offering more vegetarian cuisine than in any Games.
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How much did #MeToo change for women? Letâs ask Harvey Weinstein today â or Donald Trump | Marina Hyde
Both were pilloried, but that was then. Today, one has beaten a rape conviction, the other may return as president
According to his representatives, former Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein is still digesting the overturning of his rape conviction by a New York court, but they did come out to say he was âcautiously excitedâ. Cautiously excited? Iâm not sure these are the words Iâd alight on to paint a word-picture of a rapist. You might as well say âtentatively arousedâ. Then again, as weâre about to discuss, quite a lot of guys donât particularly have to worry about what they say or do, or how they say or do it. Itâs only natural that Harvey should very much want to be one of them again.
Speaking of word-pictures, though, howâs this for a vignette of our times? When they heard the news that Weinsteinâs conviction had been overturned on Thursday, a whole host of reporters happened to be looking at the exact spot in the exact New York courtroom that heâd sat in when that original judgment had been handed down. This was because they were waiting for Donald Trump to sit in it for Thursdayâs proceedings in his hush money trial. Mr Trump, you might recall, is in such a lot of trouble that he is the presumptive Republican nominee and current bookiesâ favourite to win the US presidency again, though admittedly he lags behind Weinstein on the sexual assault and misconduct front, given that only 26 women have accused him of it. Ultimately, though, I guess the question is: if #MeToo âwent too farâ, what would âgoing just far enoughâ have looked like?
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The SNP ditching its Green allies has backfired on Humza Yousaf â and set back the cause of independence | Dani Garavelli
The first ministerâs latest misstep will worsen his partyâs split along culture war lines. Itâs a mess, but a boon for Scottish Labour
The Bute House agreement (BHA) was supposed to stabilise the SNP. Brokered by Nicola Sturgeon in August 2021, the coalition with the Greens at first appeared a masterstroke, allowing the party to burnish its environmental credentials and bolster its âprogressiveâ image, while presenting a united front and pro-independence majority in Holyrood that it believed would strengthen the case for a second referendum. But, in a shock move, Humza Yousaf ripped up the agreement on Thursday morning and fired the Green co-leaders as ministers from his government. The SNP leader now faces a no-confidence motion, which he could well lose. He has promised to fight on and contest the motion, but what was supposed to be a show of strength has ended up exposing his weakness.
Since the deal was first brokered, the culture war has moved on apace. Without Sturgeon at the helm, the party â always a fragile alliance of right and left, progressives and conservatives, fundamentalists and gradualists â has become bitterly divided over the ill-fated gender recognition reform bill and the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act. Many believe its leadersâ fixation with âidentity politicsâ has distracted from more urgent issues such as education, the NHS and child poverty, which they say used to be at the heart of the SNP governmentâs mission.
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Biden is the graduation speaker for Martin Luther Kingâs alma mater. Itâs a moral disaster | Jared Loggins
The US president continues to support Israel in its onslaught on Gaza. Morehouse Collegeâs most famous alumnus was anti-war
Morehouse College is a special place. The only all-male historically Black college in the world, it has alumni ranging from Dr Martin Luther King Jr, the most celebrated anti-war civil rights leader in history, to Theodore âTedâ Colbert III, the CEO of Boeingâs defense, space and security division, a key player in supplying the weapons technologies for Israelâs months-long campaign of military vengeance on Palestinians.
While there is much diversity among the ranks of this brotherhood, Morehouse â also my alma mater â places a primacy on moral leadership and service, and Dr King has been a critical avatar in these efforts. There is a prominent statue of him on campus, his likeness is depicted as a silhouette on official college brochures, the chapel on campus is named in his honor. His papers are held nearby at the Robert W Woodruff Library. Considering Kingâs anti-militarism, and the collegeâs embrace of him as a beacon on campus, the decision to invite Joe Biden to give Morehouseâs commencement speech to this yearâs graduating class is a moral disaster.
The US presidentâs staunch support of Israel in the face of its unrelenting assault on Palestinians in the Israel-Gaza war has sparked sustained protests throughout the country, most recently on multiple college campuses. And though some have tried to take Kingâs defense of Israelâs right to exist as evidence that he would affirm without qualification Israelâs present military campaign, his broader anti-militarism cannot be conveniently pushed aside, nor can his stated desire for a peaceful resolution in the region.
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Martin Rowson on the travails of Humza Yousaf â cartoon
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Most Jews and Palestinians want peace. Extremists, narcissists âand other âalliesâ only block the way | Jonathan Freedland
Both sides are beset by those who think their words and deeds bring peace closer. Instead they instil fear and make a better future harder to attain
Beware the friend who is only trying to help. Not, perhaps, as a rule for life but certainly when it comes to the Israel-Palestine conflict and the clashes that battle provokes around the world. So often those who think theyâre doing their bit serve only to make an already impossible situation even worse.
The week began with an instructive example, when Gideon Falter, head of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, released a video clip of himself being steered away from one of Londonâs weekly Gaza demonstrations by a police officer on the grounds: âYou are quite openly Jewish, this is a pro-Palestinian march.â Falter argued that he had flushed out proof that the Metropolitan police regard the marches as an unsafe environment for visibly Jewish people, even though the Met allows them to go ahead week after week.
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The cost of living crisis has made the UK a poorer, more anxious nation â and worse is yet to come | Andy Beckett
Instead of buy-one-get-one-free offers, everyday life now involves carefully comparing prices and feeling increasingly powerless
Under capitalism, prices are supposed to be the centre of everything. They are the key agreement between buyer and seller. They are the one clear and reliable piece of information, on which the whole often opaque and unstable system depends.
So it struck me as strange when some of my local London shops stopped displaying the prices of some goods a couple of years ago. It started with upmarket fishmongers, and I wondered whether this was because wealthy customers didnât need to count their pennies. But then the practice spread to corner shops and greengrocers, with a wider clientele, and to everyday purchases such as fruit and vegetables. There was a cost of living crisis going on, the worst in Britain for 40 years, but parts of Hackney seemed to be in denial.
Andy Beckett is a Guardian columnist
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American cows now have bird flu, too â but itâs time for planning, not panic | Devi Sridhar
This is not a repeat of the Covid pandemic. Yet global governments should follow the US and prepare a response
Avian flu, or H5N1, is making headlines in the United States. The past few years have seen concerning signs of it spreading across the world â whether in chickens in Britain, sea lions in Peru, or Caspian seals in Russia. This time, it is has been confirmed in American cows, and the World Health Organization has warned that the risk of it spreading to humans is of âenormous concernâ.
While it is early days, the hypothesis is that in late 2023, a single cow was infected by coming into contact with infected birdsâ faeces, or having infected dead birds in its feed. This began cow-to-cow transmission, and potentially even cow-to-bird transmission. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also confirmed one human case of H5N1 in a farm worker, which could either represent cow-to-human (not seen before) or bird-to-human transmission.
Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh
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The Toriesâ poisonous anti-culture politics has crushed the arts. Bring on election night | Polly Toynbee
Museums have closed and festivals lost funding â but Labour will restore Britainâs creative superpower status
A culture change is on the way when this moribund government of the living dead is gone. Clock-watching, we wait for that witching hour on election night when it is blown away by the power of the vote. If you remember that morning in 1997, a fresh air blew and with it came a new mood, language, attitudes, habits of mind. This time the contrast will be starker, this dead government darker by far than John Majorâs.
Culture itself was one mark of the scale of change when Labourâs Chris Smith sent attendances soaring as he abolished charges for museums and galleries. Creative UK this week put out its manifesto for the election, representing the vast industry covering all the arts, from the Royal Shakespeare Company to the thriving video-games industry, fashion, architecture, design, advertising, the phonographic industry and more. The arts are a vital British export, and key to the countryâs soft power. But that canât last if its funding keeps falling: the organisation warns politicians that they must shake off âcomplacency around the UKâs superpower creative statusâ. Arts infrastructure is eroding for future artists, designers and audiences.
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The Guardian view on indeterminate sentences: the legacy of a bad law lingers on
Imprisonment for public protection sentences were flawed and unjust. Labour should commit to finish them off
The harmful effects of imprisonment for public protection sentences (IPPs) are well documented. For Tommy Nicol and Francis Williams, whose sisters have both spoken to the Guardian about the impact of punishments with no end-date, the pressure was unbearable. Nicol, who was originally jailed for a violent robbery, took his own life during a mental health crisis at the Mount prison in 2015. Williams, also convicted of robbery, died of an overdose in Bognor Regis last year â hours after telling a probation officer that he was suicidal.
These tragedies are far from unique. At least 90 prisoners on IPPs have died by suicide in custody. Others, including Williams, died while on licence (Williams was on the verge of being recalled). One study found rates of self-harm to be 2.5 times higher among IPP prisoners. Evidence to the justice select committee from a forensic psychiatrist compared the clinical presentation of these inmates, almost all of whom are men, to âthose who have been wrongfully convictedâ. Such is the stress of being given this kind of sentence, which resembles a life sentence but was in many cases handed down for far less serious crimes.
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The Guardian view on patriotism and the Last Night of the Proms: time for a change
For years, Rule, Britannia! has had a divisive presence in the festival. It should make way for other anthems of national identity
Here we go again: Britannia will continue to rule at the Last Night of the Proms. Unveiling a wide-ranging programme for this yearâs festival, Sam Jackson, controller of BBC Radio 3 and also director of the Proms, assured audiences that the jingoistic 18th-century anthem would take its customary place at the climax, despite calls for it to be dropped.
A dignified and unhectoring case for standing the song down was made on Desert Island Discs by the cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, a soloist in last yearâs Last Night. Revealing that he had left the concert early to avoid it, he said: âI think maybe some people donât realise how uncomfortable a song like that can make a lot of people feel, even if it makes [the people singing it] feel good.â
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Gaza, Germany, justice and reconciliation | Letters
When it comes to reconciling bitter enemies, the notion of âjusticeâ has its limitations, writes former judge Sir Konrad Schiemann
Eva Ladipoâs article is impressive (My familyâs past, and Germanyâs, weighs heavily upon me. And itâs why I feel so strongly about Gaza, 19 April).
For millennia different people and different groupings have wanted the same thing, which is regarded as desirable by each. Obviously they cannot both have it â unless what they both want is peace. The challenge has been and continues to be, both in Europe and elsewhere in the world, to construct a political order which enables competing sides to live in continuing peace, notwithstanding that they cannot each have all that they wish. For each side to insist that the other is overcome does not lead to lasting peace â as France and Germany and many other places have shown over centuries.
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MDMA trials are showing it has promise as a psychiatric medicine | Letters
Readers respond to a letter which said that MDMA is not helpful in mental health care
Rachel McNulty (Letters, 19 April) is right to emphasise the need for proper funding of integrated mental health care and social support, but wrong to dismiss MDMA based on a single anecdotal case. I can provide a number of counter-anecdotes showing the value of MDMA to mental health, including a friend of mine who has said that it saved him from taking his life in his youth.
However, science-based healthcare is not about anecdotes, but systematically gathered evidence and controlled trials. Such trials are already under way and are showing strong promise for both MDMA and psychedelics as effective psychiatric medicines when used appropriately. They are absolutely necessary to provide a clear evidence base that cuts through both âwar on drugsâ scare stories and psychedelic hype.
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QPR v Leeds United: Championship â live
âTaha, greeting from California.â Hello to you, Mary Waltz. âWhen it appeared that my beloved Everton was going down I began to try to learn a bit about the Championship. I have followed the chase for the last 10 weeks and started watching the Second Tier podcast. I found a distinctly different atmosphere from the PL and the fact that there wasnât VAR was a plus. I am looking forward to the playoffs and to get a jump on the teams Everton will be fighting for relegation next year.â
âIâd rather it not be like that,â Joe Rodon tells Sky, reflecting on Leedsâ thrilling 4-3 win over Middlesbrough. Um, Joe, have a think about the neutrals, please.
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âBest in the worldâ: Hayes mindful of Barcelona threat after away success
Chelsea take a lead into the Champions League semi-final second leg, with the manager plotting a tactical masterclass
âIt just feels like a longer half-time, thatâs all it is,â said Emma Hayes matter-of-factly about the week-long wait between Chelseaâs 1-0 Champions League defeat of Barcelona and the second leg at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.
âWeâre at the midway stage of a game thatâs a minimum of 180 minutes long. There may be adjustments for half-time and weâre ready for the second half, thatâs how I present it to the players.â
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Premier League team news: predicted lineups for the weekend action
Leaders Arsenal travel to bitter rivals Tottenham on Sunday before Manchester City go to relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest
Saturday 12.30pm TNT Sports 1 Venue London Stadium
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Arne Slot: the overachiever and âgood guyâ who can spark a revolution
Frontrunner to take charge at Liverpool did not make a big impression as a player but has resemblances to JĂŒrgen Klopp
Liverpoolâs move for the Feyenoord coach, Arne Slot, has been described by Ajax fans as âthe best news of the yearâ. Troubled Ajax have been blown away this season, losing 4-0 at home and 6-0 away against their arch-rivals.
So superior were Feyenoord in every area â tactics, intensity, power, unity, intelligence â that it could have been worse for Ajax. Only in their finishing might Feyenoord have done better.
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Gareth Southgate to Manchester United is actually a good idea. So whatâs the chance? | Barney Ronay
The England managerâs honesty and systems expertise are just what is needed at the haunted house Old Trafford has become
And so we entered the age of the noble, blameless bald men. This is a pretty good moment to be Ineos at Manchester United. Nothing really matters yet. Every problem is someone elseâs problem. Every solution is your own.
For now youâre just hope, blue sky. Youâre a silent reproach on a gantry. Youâre a tieless Tony Blair jamming with Shed Seven in the Downing Street garden. And even the bad things are kind of good, because youâre not the bad things.
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Jack Draper finds positives despite humbling by Hurkacz at Madrid Open
- 22-year-old loses 6-1, 7-5 against Polish eighth seed
- Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz wins in straight sets
For most of this season, when Jack Draper has faced off against elite opponents, those matches have played out as long, tight battles. Even when the 22-year-old has lost, he has usually offered a full demonstration of his talent.
Draperâs time at the Madrid Open this year, however, ended with unusual haste on Friday as his poor serving was punished by a spectacular Hubert Hurkacz, the eighth seed, who rolled through to reach the third round with a 6-1, 7-5 win.
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Bristolâs Harry Randall: âWeâre going after teams and having a real crackâ
Scrum-half guides playoff-chasing Bears around at a whirring tempo and he also has his eye on an England Test recall
Trying to catch lightning in a cider bottle would be only slightly harder right now than containing Bristolâs dazzling attacking game. The Bears have been averaging 50 points per match in winning five successive league fixtures and, going into Saturdayâs crucial visit to Leicester, are playing with a freedom and momentum few of their playoff-chasing rivals can match.
Setting the pace has been their pocket dynamo Harry Randall, who guides his team around the field at such a whirring tempo they are blowing opponents away. Last week they put 85 points on a hapless Newcastle and when Randall last played at Welford Road a couple of months ago he starred in England Aâs 91-5 win over Portugal, underlining his credentials as a classy catalyst who could add a further spark to the senior England team.
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Calendar âgetting to tipping pointâ with bigger Club World Cup, Masters warns
- Premier League CEO unhappy with lack of Fifa consultation
- Manchester Cityâs 115 charges to be resolved âin near futureâ
Richard Masters has criticised Fifa for failing to consult domestic leagues over its plans for an expanded Club World Cup, whose inaugural edition in the United States is set to occupy a month of the 2025 summer break.
As the chief executive of the Premier League reiterated that Manchester Cityâs 115 charges will be resolved in âthe near futureâ, with hearings set to take place in the autumn, league officials from across Europe came together to issue a warning over an ever-expanding club calendar, with Fifaâs new competition the main target.
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Barclays accused of greenwashing over financing for Italian oil company
Exclusive: Environmental groups say bank is misleading public over âsustainableâ financing for Eni as company vastly expands fossil fuel production
Barclays is being accused by environmental groups of greenwashing after helping to arrange âŹ4bn (ÂŁ3.4bn) in financing for the Italian oil company Eni in a way that allows them to qualify towards its $1tn sustainable financing goal.
Environmental groups have said the London-based bank is deliberately misleading the public by labelling the financial instruments as âsustainableâ at the same time that Eni is in the midst of a multibillion-pound fossil fuel expansion drive designed to increase production.
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Wave of exceptionally hot weather scorches south and south-east Asia
Warnings of dangerous temperatures across parts of Philippines, Thailand, Bangladesh and India as hottest months of the year are made worse by El Niño
Millions of people across South and Southeast Asia are facing sweltering temperatures, with unusually hot weather forcing schools to close and threatening public health.
Thousands of schools across the Philippines, including in the capital region Metro Manila, have suspended in-person classes. Half of the countryâs 82 provinces are experiencing drought, and nearly 31 others are facing dry spells or dry conditions, according to the UN, which has called for greater support to help the country prepare for similar weather events in the future. The countryâs upcoming harvest will probably be below average, the UN said.
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Weather tracker: heavy rainfall causes flooding and death in east Africa
Rain in Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi kills at least 90 people and damages farmland and infrastructure
Eastern Africa has experienced heavy rain in recent weeks, with flooding in Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi. About 100,000 people have been displaced or otherwise affected in each country, with 32 reported deaths in Kenya and 58 in Tanzania, alongside damage to farmland and infrastructure.
There are also fears that large areas of standing water could give rise to outbreaks of waterborne diseases.
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Global heating and urbanisation to blame for severity of UAE floods, study finds
World Weather Attribution group says intensified El Niño effects caused torrential rain, but rules out cloud seeding as cause
Fossil fuels and concrete combined to worsen the âdeath trapâ conditions during recent record flooding in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, a study has found.
Scientists from the World Weather Attribution team said downpours in El Niño years such as this one had become 10-40% heavier in the region as a result of human-cased climate disruption, while a lack of natural drainage quickly turned roads into rivers.
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Two UK men charged with spying for China appear in Westminster court
Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry bailed for trial on charges of breaching the Official Secrets Act
Two men charged with spying for China have appeared in court in central London.
Christopher Cash, 29, and Christopher Berry, 32, spoke only to confirm their names and addresses when they appeared at Westminster magistrates court on Friday.
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Humza Yousaf fights to stay on as second no confidence motion tabled
SNP leader says he will take party into general election, as Scottish Labour submits motion against his government
Humza Yousaf is fighting for his political life as he faces two no confidence motions submitted against him and his government in the space of 24 hours.
Yousaf insisted he would not resign as first minister and vowed to fight on, amid intense speculation about his leadership after he axed the SNPâs governing agreement with the Scottish Greens on Thursday morning, provoking a furious backlash that resulted in his former partners pledging to vote with the Tories against him.
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Briton charged with aiding Russia and planning arson against Ukraine-linked business in UK
Dylan Earl accused of organising arson attack in east London and four others charged in connection with investigation
A 20-year-old British man has been charged with planning an arson attack on a Ukraine-linked business and assisting Russian intelligence services.
Dylan Earl, from Elmesthorpe in Leicestershire, has been charged under the National Security Act 2023, the first case to involve alleged offences under the new legislation.
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âItâs an expression of emotionâ: Pro-Palestine mural under review by London council
Council tells resident of Redbridge that artwork had been subject of complaints from pro-Israel lawyers
Council authorities have moved to remove pro-Palestine murals in east London, while another is being reviewed after complaints were made by pro-Israel lawyers.
The latter, which depicts four journalists standing against a backdrop of ruins and under the words âHeroes of Palestineâ went up last month in Redbridge, east London, as local authorities came under pressure over similar murals.
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More gigs postponed amid opening week chaos at Manchester Co-op Live arena
General manager resigns after test event problems at 23,500-capacity venue, with shows rescheduled
The beleaguered Co-op Live arena has postponed gigs by the comedian Peter Kay for the second time, on the day its general manager resigned over delays to opening the venue.
A number of gigs have been rescheduled at the 23,500-capacity Manchester venue, which had been due to open three days ago but will now not open until May.
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Liz Truss book enters bestseller list in 70th place with 2,228 copies sold
Former PMâs first-week sales compare with 21,000 for David Cameronâs memoir and 92,000 for Tony Blair book
Liz Trussâs book about her 49-day stint as prime minister sold 2,228 copies in the UK during its first week on sale, after a wall-to-wall promotional media blitz.
Ten Years to Save the West: Lessons from the Only Conservative in the Room, combines an account of Trussâs time in office with a call to arms for the political right.
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Paul Marshall expected to bid for Telegraph after quitting GB News board
Investorâs move comes amid reports RedBird IMI is to formally withdraw its attempt to buy the newspaper
The GB News investor Sir Paul Marshall is stepping down from the board of the broadcaster after three years, it was announced on Friday.
Marshall is expected to be a frontrunner in the race to buy the Telegraph when the auction process reopens, after the government in effect scuppered its planned sale of the newspaper to a United Arab Emirates-backed consortium, RedBird IMI.
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Sadiq Khan urges young Londoners to vote or risk ârepeat of Brexit and Trump victoryâ
Labour mayorâs lead over Tory rival has narrowed in week before mayoral election in the capital
Sadiq Khan has urged young Londoners to vote in the mayoral election, saying a shock victory for the Conservativesâ Susan Hall would be like waking up to Donald Trump in power or Brexit in 2016.
With his lead in the polls appearing to narrow, the Labour mayor said there were concerns that low turnout among younger voters would allow a Tory mayor to âsneak inâ to City Hall.
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Home Office considered antisemitism campaigner for counter-extremism unit
Gideon Falter was in running to be adviser but governmentâs antisemitism tsar warned against appointment
The Home Office considered appointing campaigner against antisemitism Gideon Falter as an adviser to its counter extremism unit but was warned against the appointment by the governmentâs antisemitism tsar.
The Guardian understands there were strong objections to Falter being offered the part-time civil service role advising the Commission for Countering Extremism (CCE) in 2022 and that John Mann told the then home secretary Suella Braverman he would quit if Falter was offered the post.
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Post Office tried to âhush upâ case of worker who killed himself, inquiry hears
Inquiry hears firm âdrip fedâ compensation to Martin Griffithsâ widow as incentive for her to âmaintain confidentialtyâ
The Post Office sought to âhush upâ the case of Martin Griffiths, a post office operator who took his own life, by âdrip feedingâ compensation payments to his widow and lining up a media lawyer to protect its reputation, a public inquiry has heard.
Angela van den Bogerd, a former business improvement director at the state-owned body, was being questioned at the Horizon IT public inquiry on Friday about the case of Griffiths, who died in 2013 after financial shortfalls were found at his Post Office branch in Cheshire.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
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âPolitical arrestâ of Palestinian academic in Israel marks new civil liberties threat
University and colleagues condemn detention of law professor, the first time an academic has been held over speech related to work
The arrest and interrogation of a leading Palestinian legal scholar based at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem marks a new threat to civil liberties in Israel, her legal team and employer have said.
Prof Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian was detained by police on the afternoon of 18 April over comments made on a podcast more than a month earlier and held overnight in conditions her lawyers described as âterribleâ and designed to humiliate.
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US has seen evidence of attempts by China to influence election, says Blinken
Secretary of state met Xi Jinping in Beijing and warned of sanctions over Chinaâs support for Russian arms industry
Washington has seen evidence of attempts by Beijing to âinfluence and arguably interfereâ in this yearâs US elections, the secretary of state has said during a trip to China, also warning that Chinese companies face new sanctions if they do not stop supplying material and equipment to the Russian arms industry.
Antony Blinken told CNN that he had reiterated Joe Bidenâs message to Xi Jinping not to interfere in Novemberâs vote â a warning that reportedly received assurances from the Chinese president that he would not do so. Asked whether China was keeping to its promise, Blinken said: âWe have seen, generally speaking, evidence of attempts to influence, and arguably interfere, and we want to make sure that thatâs cut off as quickly as possible.
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Andrew Tateâs human trafficking trial can proceed, Romanian court rules
âMisogynist influencerâ was indicted in June along with his brother and two Romanian female suspects
Andrew Tateâs trial on human trafficking charges can proceed, a Romanian court has ruled, 10 months after he was first indicted.
The self-professed âmisogynist influencerâ was indicted in June along with his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian female suspects for human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, allegations they have all denied.
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#MeToo founder says campaign will continue after Weinstein verdict overturned
Tarana Burke called Harvey Weinsteinâs accusers âheroesâ and said movement would continue to bring progress to society
The founder of the #MeToo movement, Tarana Burke, has called the women who spoke out against Harvey Weinstein âheroesâ and said such campaigns for justice and equality will continue to bring about progress in society.
Burke, who nearly two decades ago coined the phrase âMe tooâ from her work with sexual assault survivors, found herself again declaring â after New Yorkâs highest court in a shock decision on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinsteinâs 2020 rape conviction in the city â the #MeToo reckoning was greater than any court case.
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Ukraine agriculture minister detained in multimillion-dollar corruption inquiry
Mykola Solskyi accused of illegally seizing land worth more than $7m when he was head of major farming firm and an MP
Ukraineâs agriculture minister, Mykola Solskyi, has been detained after being named as a formal suspect in a multimillion-dollar corruption inquiry.
Blighted by corruption scandals since the fall of the Soviet Union, Kyiv has pledged to bolster its anti-graft efforts as part of its bid for EU membership.
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UN-led panel aims to tackle abuses linked to mining for âcritical mineralsâ
Panel of nearly 100 countries to draw up guidelines for industries that mine raw materials used in low-carbon technology
A UN-led panel of nearly 100 countries is to draw up new guidelines to prevent some of the environmental damage and human rights abuses associated with mining for âcritical mineralsâ.
Mining for some of the key raw materials used in low-carbon technology, such as solar panels and electric vehicles, has been associated with human rights abuses, child labour and violence, as well as grave environmental damage.
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Aya Nakamura thanks fans for support over Olympics racism as she wins awards
French singer dedicates top prizes at Les Flammes âto all black womenâ after backlash over rumoured Paris show
The French pop star Aya Nakamura, who found herself at the centre of a racist row after rumours she was going to sing at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony, has thanked fans for their support after winning three big prizes at Franceâs Les Flammes awards for rap, R&B and pop.
âIâm very honoured because being a black artist and coming from the banlieue is very difficult,â Nakamura told the audience at the ceremony, which she opened with a medley of her songs. She dedicated her awards â female artist of the year, pop album of the year, and international star of the year â âto all black womenâ.
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Google parent Alphabet hits $2tn valuation as it announces first dividend
Tech companyâs shares rise as it plans to reward investors after strong quarterly results
Googleâs parent company has hit a stock market value of $2tn (ÂŁ1.6tn) as investors reacted to a declaration of its first ever dividend alongside strong results on Thursday.
Shares in Alphabet rose 10% in early Wall Street trading on Friday to give the tech group a stock market capitalisation â a measure of a corporationâs value â of more than $2tn. Alphabet last hit that level in intraday trading in 2021, but has yet to close above that benchmark after a dayâs trading.
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âMassive and exciting impactâ: show celebrates Spainâs first abstract art museum
Exhibition explores how a Spanish-Filipino artist in 1966 opened a trailblazing cultural outpost in Cuencaâs âhanging housesâ
In July 1966, as the Beatles were preparing to release Revolver and Spain was approaching the 30th anniversary of the coup that birthed the Franco dictatorship, a Spanish-Filipino artist called Fernando ZĂłbel threw open the doors of an improbable but visionary cultural outpost.
Based in a clutch of 15th-century houses overhanging a precipitous gorge in the small city of Cuenca, the Museo de Arte Abstracto Español, or Museum of Spanish Abstract Art, had a simple if daunting mission. As Manuel FontĂĄn del Junco, the director of museums and exhibitions at the Juan March Foundation in Madrid and one of the curators of a new exhibition about the institution, puts it, âit was a museum for artists in a country of artists without museumsâ.
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âReal hopeâ for cancer cure as personal mRNA vaccine for melanoma trialled
Excitement among patients and researchers as custom-built jabs enter phase 3 trial
Doctors have begun trialling in hundreds of patients the worldâs first personalised mRNA cancer vaccine for melanoma, as experts hailed its âgamechangingâ potential to permanently cure cancer.
Melanoma affects about 132,000 people a year globally and is the biggest skin cancer killer. Currently, surgery is the main treatment although radiotherapy, medicines and chemotherapy are also sometimes used.
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Ellen DeGeneres: I was âkicked out of show businessâ for being âmeanâ
Former talkshow host discussed her controversial exit from daytime TV after reports of a toxic workplace in new standup set
Ellen DeGeneres has addressed the controversial end of her eponymous daytime talkshow after allegations that it was a toxic workplace.
While performing the opening night of her new Ellenâs Last Stand ⊠Up Tour at the Largo in Los Angeles on Thursday evening, the former daytime host joked about getting âkicked out of show businessâ for being âmeanâ.
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Taylor Swift equals Madonnaâs record of 12 UK No 1 albums
Swift now has joint highest number of chart-toppers for a female artist, as The Tortured Poets Department earns biggest opening week in seven years
Taylor Swift has tied with Madonna to become the female artist with the most UK No 1 albums, earning her twelfth chart-topper with the global phenomenon that is The Tortured Poets Department.
Swift also dominates this weekâs singles chart, with three songs in the Top Five including a No 1 for Fortnight, featuring Post Malone. Itâs her fourth No 1 single, and her third chart double.
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Aaron Sorkin to write film about January 6 and Facebook disinformation
The Social Network screenwriter is returning to digital chaos for a new film about how âdivisive materialâ led to the 2021 insurrection
Aaron Sorkin is set to write a film about the January 6 insurrection and the involvement of Facebook disinformation.
The Social Network screenwriter is returning to familiar territory for an as-yet-untitled look at how social media helped radicalise Donald Trump supporters who went onto storm the US Capitol in 2021.
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âShaving my head became so poignantâ: Jonah Hauer-King on The Tattooist of Auschwitz
He melted hearts as Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid, but his latest role couldnât be more different â playing an Auschwitz tattooist in an epic Holocaust drama. The actor opens up about how his own familyâs plight inspired him
Itâs not every day that I meet a real-life Disney prince. Itâs even more discombobulating when he tells me he spent the weekend cheering on Clapton CFC womenâs team in windy east London. âBefore The Little Mermaid, a lot of people told me, âThis is going to happen! That is going to happen!ââ says Jonah Hauer-King, who starred as Prince Eric in last yearâs remake. âItâs just really not the case. I wouldnât say my life has changed much. Honestly.â Itâs probably about to, though. Massively.
The 28-year-old lifelong Londoner is sharply suited and booted in the capitalâs Corinthia hotel, ready to take on a full day of press with the poise and charm that clearly helped him bag that wide-eyed royal part (he even convincingly claims that these interviews are worth missing his beloved Arsenalâs Champions League game in the evening for). His next project, however, is a world away from Disney dreams.
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Martha Mills young writersâ prize open for entries
Philip Pullman will help choose this yearâs winners of award set up in memory of the keen young writer who died aged 13 in 2021
The Martha Mills young writersâ prize has opened for entries on the theme of âA Secretâ.
The competition, run by the London Review Bookshop, invites 11- to 14-year-olds living in the UK to submit up to 500 words of any type of prose â such as a fictional story, a piece of schoolwork, or a diary entry â based on this yearâs theme.
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âPeople think I hate popâ: super-producer AG Cook on working with BeyoncĂ© and honouring his friend Sophie
As the boss of PC Music, the godfather of hyperpop confounded critics but won over BeyoncĂ© and Charli XCX. Now, with a supersized new solo album, heâs continuing his mission to make pop more unpredictable
Everything about AG Cook is exhausting. As a producer of elasticated outre pop his output is as varied as it is frenetic, taking in everything from bass-rattling electronic workouts for cultural behemoths such as BeyoncĂ© to celestial dreamscapes for underground newcomers, via collaborations with Caroline Polachek and longterm partner in crime, Charli XCX. Having initially steered clear of solo albums to focus on running his divisive yet hugely influential label PC Music, Cookâs debut, 2020âs 7G, featured 49 tracks and more than two hours of music ranging from face-melting dance experiments to a lo-fi Sia cover. Apple, a more streamlined, but no less polarising followup arrived a month later.
His hard drive somehow still not yet full, Cook is now back with his third album Britpop, a three-part, 24-song opus split into Past, Present and Future sections. As part of its promotion heâs been busy creating TikToks and launching his own parody website Witchfork, billed as âthe least trusted voice in musicâ. âItâs obviously embracing some troll behaviour, which has always been a bit of a thread for me personally,â he laughs.
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Thousand island blessing: the wonders of Croatiaâs sun-soaked shores
With stunning sunsets, one of the most beautiful beaches in the Mediterranean and must-see medieval cities, Croatiaâs coast and islands are nothing short of spectacular
Once seen, never forgotten. Croatiaâs fabulously beautiful coast and islands (1,246 to be precise) â with their rocky coves, iconic beaches, historic towns and gorgeous sunsets, all surrounded by some of the most breathtakingly blue waters imaginable â are places that stay in the mind, and they have a habit of luring you back.
Rovinj in Istria is one of the most instantly recognisable towns on the Croatian coast, its narrow streets and colourful facades climbing upwards to a soaring bell tower, modelled on that of St Markâs Basilica in Venice. Travel north just a little and youâll reach PoreÄ, home to Unesco-listed Byzantine mosaics to rival those in Ravenna or Istanbul â or south to Pula, with its magnificently preserved Roman amphitheatre. For a peaceful oasis set among some of the countryâs finest vineyards, head just five miles inland from the sea walls of Novigrad to Brtonigla.
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Cultural marveller or foodie explorer â whatâs your travel personality type? Take our quiz to find out
Do you enjoy exploring the cobbled streets of historic towns, or is spending long days stretched out on the beach more your thing? Answer these questions to find out your Croatian holiday persona
Find out more by visiting croatia.hr
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Festivals, folklore, art and food: Croatiaâs unmissable cultural highlights
From baroque music events to medieval architecture and delicious Adriatic cuisine, Croatia has something for everyone
Croatiaâs fabulous mishmash of cultures â from ancient Greeks to Romans, Venetians, Austrians, Hungarians and Italians â has left a rich legacy all around the country. Youâll see it in the Venetian architecture of Rovinj, KorÄula, Dubrovnik and Hvar, the Habsburg townhouses of Zagreb and Opatija, and the ancient Roman ruins of Istria and Dalmatia. Youâll taste it in the delicious cuisine where the Adriatic and central Europe meet and mingle.
Youâll hear it when top-flight performers bring their magic to the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, the Split Summer Festival and the baroque music festivals of KorÄula and VaraĆŸdin. Sultry Dalmatian summer nights echo to the sound of polyphonic klapa singers whose a cappella music makes the skin tingle. The klapa festival in the beautiful Dalmatian coastal town of OmiĆĄ every July is one of the summerâs unmissable events.
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From stunning hikes to secluded wild swimming coves: seven reasons why Croatia is a must for adventure lovers
Whether youâre a climbing fanatic or a novice sailor, thereâs plenty of outdoor experiences to be found in this amazing Adriatic country
With spectacularly diverse landscapes and beautifully unspoilt nature, Croatia offers a wealth of experiences in the great outdoors â from hiking and kayaking, to cycling, climbing and more. So come and take a walk on Croatiaâs wild side â or peddle, paddle, swim â and discover just how much outdoor adventure this beautiful Adriatic country has to offer.
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âItâs what I always dreamed ofâ: Mango deal takes Victoria Beckhamâs designs to high street
Collections by ex-Spice Girl had been too dear for most but deal with affordable chain forecast to help tip VB business into profit
When Victoria Beckham debuted her first collection of just 10 dresses in a luxury hotel suite at the Waldorf Astoria in New York in 2008, she told the sceptical assembly of the worldâs most powerful fashion editors that she had âspent a lifetime wanting to do thisâ.
âItâs what I always dreamed of since I customised my school uniform when I was 7 years old,â she said. âThen along came the Spice Girls which opened a lot of doors for me. And, letâs be honest, closed a lot. But those days are over. I was never going to be the worldâs best singer, but I hope I can be a good designer.â
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Ravneet Gillâs recipe for brown butter and honey custard pots | The sweet spot
Rich, crisp, complex, decadent â and no pastry in sight!
Thereâs a pub in east London that serves one of my favourite ever desserts. The Marksmanâs brown butter and honey tart is rich, crisp and full of depth â everything you could ever want from a sweet tart. Here, Iâve tried to recreate its flavour in the form of custard pots to serve at the end of dinner with an elegant grating of good-quality dark chocolate.
Discover this recipe and over 1,000 more from your favourite cooks on the new Guardian Feast app, with smart features to make everyday cooking easier and more fun
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Coral bracelets and kitsch keyrings spell beginning of fashion backlash
Quiet luxury to be overtaken by souvenir-style accessories that âevoke joyâ, say fashion experts
The summer holidays may be some time away, but for those who canât wait the souvenirs are already on sale. Coral bracelets, kitsch keyrings and shell necklaces are some of this seasonâs most covetable accessories.
Anya Hindmarch has brought the holiday mood to west London with a pop-up shop that she describes as âa love letter to the classic souvenir shops you find tucked away in favourite holiday destinationsâ.
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âWe chose not to blow up our lifeâ: readers on surviving infidelity
The sexual wanderings of a partner donât always spell the end. Readers share their experiences of how their relationship came out the other side
What counts as infidelity varies from couple to couple and how they choose to handle it is also unique. A drunken kiss on the dancefloor might be innocuous to some; for others, a relationship-ending catastrophe.
How readers chose to approach their straying partners varied dramatically depending on the length and nature of their relationship and what shape the outside encounter took. If families and mutual assets were involved â and other relationship factors were stable â readers tended to double down on commitments, opting to frame such transgressions as an opportunity for growth and refreshment. And the further down the road couples had travelled together, the more likely they would stay together post-infidelity.
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Cocktail of the week: Luluâs rhubarb hanky panky â recipe | The good mixer
A vodka martini with a defining rhubarb kick and a dash of bitters to top it off
This came about when we were trying to come up with a Valentineâs Day cocktail (a spin on the hanky panky seemed appropriate somehow!) that would also help us use up a glut of rhubarb we had in the kitchen art the time. And itâs still on our drinks list today. We replaced the usual gin with vodka, so as not to overwhelm the predominant rhubarb flavour, and used dry vermouth and homemade rhubarb syrup instead of sweet red vermouth.
Will Weir, general manager, Luluâs, London SE24
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Is there any wine that goes with asparagus? | Fiona Beckett on drink
Contrary to popular belief, there are some wines â and even one or two reds â that you can pair with this superstar spring vegetable
Four weeks or so into the asparagus season, and are you getting bored yet? Not me: at this time of year, I could happily eat the stuff every day, and frequently do, but not always cooked the same way. And how you cook or serve your asparagus will affect which wine you drink with it.
Whatâs that, you say â you thought wine was supposed to be a no-no with asparagus? Like most of these so-called rules, the difficulties are massively overstated. Do you think the Germans or Austrians, mad asparagus fiends that they are, donât drink wine with their spargel? Of course they do. In Alsace, too.
For more by Fiona Beckett, go to fionabeckett.substack.com
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Tell us: have you been affected by whooping cough?
Weâre interested to hear about peopleâs experiences of whooping cough and how their doctorâs surgery handled it
Cases of whooping cough have been rising across England, Wales and Scotland. Weâre interested to hear from people who have recently been affected.
What were your (or your childâs) symptoms? How did your doctorsâ surgery handle it and and how are you feeling now? Had you had it before? Are you aware of other cases within your community?
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Ukrainian men abroad: share your views on Poland and Lithuaniaâs statements on conscription
After Poland and Lithuania said they are prepared to help Ukrainian authorities return men subject to military conscription, we want to hear how you feel about it
Poland and Lithuania have pledged to help Ukrainian authorities repatriate men subject to the military draft after Kyiv announced it is ending consular services for such men who are abroad.
We would like to speak with Ukrainian men living abroad about their views on this development. Whether you left Ukraine following Russiaâs full-scale invasion or years before that, we want to hear how you feel about the statements and Kyivâs suspension of consular services for Ă©migrĂ©s.
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Share your experience of accessing private medical care in the UK
We would like to hear from those who have undergone an operation, or other medical treatment, privately in the UK
We want to learn more about the experiences of people in the UK who have accessed private health treatment for the first time recently.
Did you undergo an operation or medical treatment privately? How much did it cost? Why did you decide to do it privately? How was the experience?
You can see an article that included respondents to this callout here.
You can contribute to open Community callouts here or Share a story here.
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Tell us: whatâs your favourite everyday gadget?
We would like to hear about your favourite, most useful everyday utensil
Whatâs your favourite, most useful everyday gadget? It could be a much-used kitchen gizmo, a tool for your daily beauty routine that you canât live without, or a piece of kit that makes your day-to-day life easier: anything small, genuinely useful, and inexpensive to buy (nothing over ÂŁ20).
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Questions in rocket-hit Sderot over whether IDF can ever destroy Hamas
People in city bordering Gaza say Israel will never be safe while Hamas exists â but worry it cannot achieve its objective
The two men, faces blurred and voices disguised, are screened by a dense scrub of fig and trailing vine and thorns in northern Gaza as they film themselves loading a rocket launcher.
It is daylight and the fighters, wearing civilian clothes, work quickly and calmly, the sound of fighting audible around them as they prepare the weapon in less than a minute. Metal scrapes on metal as four missiles are slotted into tubes and wires connected to a red timer for launch against the nearby Israeli border city of Sderot and neighbouring communities.
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Four students on why theyâre protesting against war in Gaza: âInjustice should not be acceptedâ
Students demonstrating and hunger-striking face arrests and hospitalization â but they think they can make a difference
The arrests of more than a hundred Columbia University students, who were protesting against Israelâs actions in Gaza, shed more light on arguably the most energetic pro-Palestinian movement in the US: the one taking places on college campuses around the country.
Since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October, in response to terrorist attacks by Hamas, students have launched protests, sit-ins and, most recently, encampments, in a wave they hope will encourage universities to divest from companies which have ties to Israelâs military.
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Chaotic and thrilling: Columbiaâs radio station is live from the student protests
As pro-Palestinian demonstrations roil campus, the stationâs undergraduate reporters â working 18 hour days â have become an essential news source
âThe turning point was certainly immediate, very sudden ⊠We received a tip at 4am that there would be a demonstration on Columbiaâs campus, and pretty soon after that, we went live on air.â
The presenter, Georgia Dillane, is describing the moment on 17 April that student radio station WKCR was thrust into the spotlight with its quick news updates from inside the university grounds.
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What is the real story behind Vietnamese Channel boat crossings?
Speaking to experts and people on the ground in Pas-de-Calais reveals a different narrative to that told by Rishi Sunak
The people from Vietnam trying to get to England on small boats across the Channel stand out from the rest of those drawn to the Pas-de-Calais coastline.
They are notably young, many just teenagers. They tend to stick together and eschew the attention of the aid workers offering food and water down at the beach or in the forests where they sleep at night.
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âWe are with themâ: support for Hamas grows among Palestinians in Lebanon
Aspirations for statehood revived among younger generations in refugee camps where war has consumed daily life
The red inverted triangle is everywhere â stencilled on walls, sprayed on store shutters, a constant theme guiding visitors through the narrow alleyways that dissect the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp in Beirut.
Appearing initially in combat videos released by Hamas in which its fighters target Israeli tanks in Gaza, the newfound ubiquity of the logo in the camp 170 miles (270km) away signals a shift in opinion in favour of armed struggle.
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Married at 10, abused and forced to flee without her children: an Afghan woman on life under the Taliban
Now living in comparative freedom in Iran, 26-year-old Mahtab Eftekhar describes facing motherhood at 12 and explains why seeking justice for other women means she no longer fears death
At the age of 10, while still in the third grade, I received news from my mother and stepfather that we would travel to Helmand province for my brotherâs wedding. Little did I know, it was to be my own wedding, as my family had arranged my marriage to my cousin and sold me for 40,000 Afghanis [ÂŁ500], without my knowledge or consent.
That night, after the wedding, I went to sleep beside my mother and little brother, only to wake up next to my cousin. Trembling from confusion and fear, I fled the room in tears and screams. But my mother and her sister coerced me back into that room. It was then that I was told I had been married to my cousin.
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The evolution of man: how Ryan Gosling changed stardom, cinema and society
The actorâs feminist credentials, a wholehearted embrace of comedy and being one of the most memed actors on social media has seen Goslingâs auto-satirising alpha male become white-hot box office in 2024
In Hollywood, there are no accidents. Ryan Goslingâs role in stuntman pic The Fall Guy, hard on the heels of his show-stopping Oscars rendition of Iâm Just Ken, is perfectly timed to confirm his ascension to the very top tier of stardom. Not only is it a four-quadrant entertainment turbo boost â covering all audience bases with action, romance, a legacy franchise for the oldies, John Wick-slick for the kids â it is shrink-wrapped to his public persona. His role as stunt veteran Colt Seavers, saving the skin of the idiot megastar he doubles for, caps off the stance Gosling has upheld on talkshows and memes over the last decade: stardom and celebrity as a delectable facade, an in-joke between star and audience to be played with the lightest of ironic touches.
But of course Gosling is a bona fide star, one of Hollywoodâs most important. His confused, toxic himbo Ken stole the Barbie limelight from Margot Robbie. Tunnelling into classic archetypes of masculinity with modern self-awareness is the on-screen niche he has made his own â giving us a new, uniquely supple male star for the post-#MeToo era. His mainstream roles â getaway drivers, daredevil motorcyclists, venal bankers â have often been ultra-macho, but the actor himself comes with rounded metrosexual edges. Men want to be him, with his debonair cool and inexhaustible supply of swanky jackets (the leather Miami Vice stunt-team number in The Fall Guy being the latest). As far back as 2017, Morwenna Ferrier noted that Gosling clones, sporting a certain âturbo cleanlinessâ, were now on the loose in cities everywhere.
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What was the SNP and Greensâ deal and what happens now it has ended?
Coalition agreement has frustrated many in the SNP who fear the party is losing support by prioritising the wrong issues
In August 2021, Nicola Sturgeon, then the dominant figure of Scottish politics, announced a âgroundbreakingâ alliance with the Scottish Greens at Bute House, the elegant Edinburgh residence of Scotlandâs first ministers.
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We know how to deter British children from alcohol, say experts, after concerns over WHO report
Study found Great Britain had worst rate of child alcohol consumption in world, but youth drinking is said still to have âdeclined sharplyâ
In 2000, about 19% of children under 16 in England smoked, according to Action on Smoking and Health. By 2018, this had declined to 5%.
But, according to a major report by the World Health Organization released on Thursday, a third of 11-year-olds and over half of 13-year-olds had drunk alcohol, the highest rate of any country worldwide. Girls were found to be more likely than boys to have drunk at the age of 15.
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Hailed as a hero and then sacked: the carerâs allowance whistleblower
Enrico La Rocca helped expose profound failures but less than a year later was dismissed by the DWP â and then later rehired
Almost exactly five years ago, Enrico La Rocca was hailed by MPs as a hero, a whistleblower whose tenacity had helped expose profound failures at the heart of the governmentâs vast benefits agency, resulting in tens of thousands of vulnerable unpaid carers being unfairly fined and prosecuted.
Without La Rocca â who was not named at the time â serious problems with carerâs allowance overpayments may never have come to light, the Commons work and pensions select committee concluded: without him the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) would never have been persuaded of the âurgent need to actâ.
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Police clash with US students protesting against war in Gaza â video
Police made arrests after clashing with demonstrators participating in student-led protests against Israel's war in Gaza. The arrests came amid a wave of demonstrations at campuses across the US, which began last week after students at New Yorkâs Columbia University set up encampments calling for the university to divest from weapons manufacturers with ties to Israel. The House speaker, Mike Johnson, jumped into the fray on Wednesday with a visit to Columbiaâs campus, where he faced jeers from the pro-Palestinian protesters
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Reports of mass graves at Gaza hospitals 'horrify' UN rights experts â video
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has said it is 'horrified' by reports of mass graves containing hundreds of bodies at two of Gazaâs largest hospitals.
Palestinian civil defence teams began exhuming bodies outside the Nasser hospital complex in Khan Younis last week after Israeli troops withdrew. A total of 310 bodies have been found in the past week, Palestinian officials have said.
Palestinian rescue teams and several UN observation missions also reported the discovery this month of multiple mass grave sites at al-Shifa hospital compound in Gaza City after an Israeli withdrawal.
Officials in Gaza said the bodies at Nasser were people who had died during the siege. Israelâs military on Tuesday rejected allegations of mass burials at the hospital, saying it had exhumed corpses in the hope of finding hostages taken by Hamas in October
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What's behind the fight between Elon Musk's X and Australia's eSafety commissioner? â video
Elon Musk is at war with Australia â in particular Australia's online safety regulator â due to videos that were circulating on his platform after an alleged stabbing at a church in Sydney last week. After the eSafety commissioner requested all social media platforms to remove video of the stabbing from their platforms, X made the videos unavailable to view within Australia, but they're still available to watch both outside of Australia. Now, X and the eSafety commissioner are fighting it out in court, while X's owner Elon Musk continues to fight it out online. Guardian Australia's Josh Taylor explains what's going on behind the tweets
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Our lives in the UK asylum system: 'the power of fear' â video
The Guardian has been working with a group of community reporters in Rochdale and Oldham who wanted to highlight the realities for women in the asylum system across Greater Manchester. Supported by the Elephants Trail, the group met women stuck in the asylum backlog, women traumatised by detention and women struggling to find housing. They were all volunteering in their communities, while reckoning with a hostile climate towards refugees and asylum seekers. This film is part of a collaborative video series called Made in Britain
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