The Guardian |
- Biden considers Ukraine options as Pentagon puts US troops on ‘heightened’ alert – live
- ‘Corporate vultures’: how Americans fearing higher water bills are fighting takeovers
- Alabama electoral maps discriminate against Black voters, federal court rules
- Robert F Kennedy Jr apologizes for Anne Frank comparison in anti-vax speech
- Covid denialist and Bolsonaro ally Olavo de Carvalho died of virus, says daughter
- ‘Virginity repair’ surgery to be banned in Britain under new bill
- Peter Dinklage criticises Disney for ‘backwards’ remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Sarah Palin dined at New York City restaurant days before testing positive
- Met launches criminal investigation into Downing Street parties
- ‘It looked so real’: ghostly ‘iceberg’ was a wonder of nature – just not an iceberg
- Photo of stony-faced campaigner with PM divides Australia
- The backlash against rightwing evangelicals is reshaping American politics and faith | Ruth Braunstein
- Julian Lennon to auction NFT of Paul McCartney’s notes for Hey Jude
- Lessons from a tornado: what one American town can teach others about disaster recovery
- Why the tale of imprisoned Aafia Siddiqui still has such a strong hold over Pakistan | Mohammed Hanif
- Patient removed from heart transplant list for refusing Covid-19 vaccine
- Parents in the US: tell us your experiences of taking care of under-5s during the pandemic
- Long Covid: doctors find ‘antibody signature’ for patients most at risk
- Young women like Grace Tame weren’t socialised to shut up when authority figures speak – and it feels like progress | Katharine Murphy
- Boris Johnson has finally gone full Marie Antoinette – only he’s hogging all the cake | Marina Hyde
- Has the West fallen for Putin’s tricks in Ukraine? | Keir Giles
- Our people will be mourning on 26 January, but it can still become a day of healing | Lidia Thorpe and Dorinda Cox
- Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers ponder futures after rough playoff exits
- Nadal survives five-setter as Shapovalov claims officials ‘100%’ favour top players
- Ash Barty underlines favourite status by trouncing Pegula at Australian Open
- David Squires on … drones, ghost ships and a weird Premier League weekend
- McKinsey: fundamental transformation of global economy needed for net zero
- Brody Dalle testifies that Josh Homme head-butted her so hard she ‘saw stars’
- Jimmy Kimmel on Trump’s plan to seize voting machines: ‘A Sieg Hail Mary, if you will’
- Cardi B awarded almost £1m in damages in libel case against gossip blogger
- Ian McKellen keen to star in a stage musical: ‘I’m available but incompetent’
- Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian review – standup looks back in cynical Netflix special
- Bob Dylan sells entire recorded catalogue to Sony Music Entertainment
- One Shot review – mesmerically schlocky thriller rendered with impressive technique
- Black Medusa review – deadpan North African vengeance noir
- Taming the Garden review – fascinating study of a billionaire’s destructive folly
- Chanel channels Coco with casual twist to classic designs
- Which wines are best for cooking? | Kitchen aide
- Nigel Slater’s recipe for rainbow chard, egg and noodles
- Three firefighters killed battling blaze in vacant Baltimore home
- Shark attacks increased around the world in 2021 after years of decline
- Tucker Carlson viewers calling me to say US should back Russia, Democrat says
- US finalizing plans to divert gas to Europe if Russia cuts off supply
- ‘Alone and bedridden’: how four people celebrated their birthdays during lockdown
- Descendants of Italy’s last king attempt to reclaim crown jewels
- Former Irish soldier was prepared to die for Islamic State, court hears
- Australian Open reverses its ban on ‘Where is Peng Shuai?’ T-shirts
- Bollywood star cleared of obscenity over 2007 Richard Gere kiss
- Downing Street parties: Sue Gray report could come this week as police signal no objection – live updates
- At least four killed after tropical Storm Ana hits Malawi and Mozambique
- ‘I wanted to try cocaine, but Jimi was against it’: Janis Ian on her tough, starlit life in music
- The best recent thrillers – review roundup
- ‘You need glue, tampons and ice’: artist Every Ocean Hughes on how to help the dying
- Life in the Arctic: the reindeer herders struggling against the climate crisis – video
- Grace Tame appears stony faced next to Scott Morrison during Australian of the Year photo op – video
- Joe Biden appears to mock Fox News reporter in hot mic moment – video
- Ukraine: US puts 8,500 troops on alert to deploy to bolster Nato – video
- Julian Assange wins first stage of attempt to appeal against extradition – video
- Paris men’s fashion week AW22 : The key shows – in pictures
| Biden considers Ukraine options as Pentagon puts US troops on ‘heightened’ alert – live Posted: 25 Jan 2022 10:09 AM PST
Staff turnover in the Biden administration is nowhere near what it was under Donald Trump, when senior aides came and went as through a revolving door in a hurricane. Nonetheless, the press always likes a bit of speculation about who might be in and who might be out, and here comes the Washington Post with an exhaustive examination of how Ron Klain, Joe Biden's chief of staff, has not had the smoothest first year in the job. Continue reading... |
| ‘Corporate vultures’: how Americans fearing higher water bills are fighting takeovers Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:15 AM PST Corporations are trying to privatize dozens of public water utilities around the US, capitalizing on the financial troubles of cities The Octoraro reservoir is a lake in south-east Pennsylvania where locals fish, kayak and marvel at bald eagles and owls. It's a picturesque scene but in the neighbourhoods nearby there are placards that carry warnings. "No to Big Water", the signs say, and "Save CWA". Continue reading... |
| Alabama electoral maps discriminate against Black voters, federal court rules Posted: 25 Jan 2022 09:04 AM PST Republican legislature told by appeals judges to redraw new districts over probable violation of Voting Rights Act Alabama Republicans illegally discriminated against Black voters when they drew the state's seven new congressional districts last year and must quickly redraw the plan, a federal court has ruled. The ruling is hugely consequential, a blunt assessment of the way lawmakers use their power to draw district lines to dilute the influence of Black and other minority voters. Continue reading... |
| Robert F Kennedy Jr apologizes for Anne Frank comparison in anti-vax speech Posted: 25 Jan 2022 09:48 AM PST
The anti-vaccine activist Robert F Kennedy Jr apologized on Tuesday for suggesting things are worse for people living under Covid restrictions and mandates than they were for Anne Frank, the teenager who died in a Nazi concentration camp after hiding with her family in a secret annex in an Amsterdam house for two years. His wife, the actor Cheryl Hines, who appears in the HBO hit Curb Your Enthusiasm, distanced herself from her husband in her own tweet on the subject. She called the reference to Frank "reprehensible and insensitive". Continue reading... |
| Covid denialist and Bolsonaro ally Olavo de Carvalho died of virus, says daughter Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:25 AM PST Rightwing radical was a towering figure in Brazil who was adored and abhorred in equal measure by millions of followers and foes Olavo de Carvalho, the coronavirus-denying mentor of Jair Bolsonaro and Brazil's radical right, has died in the United States, with one of his children citing Covid-19 as the cause. "The family … asks for prayers for the professor's soul," relatives said on Twitter after announcing the death of the 74-year-old polemicist – a towering figure in contemporary Brazilian politics who was adored and abhorred in equal measure by millions of followers and foes. Continue reading... |
| ‘Virginity repair’ surgery to be banned in Britain under new bill Posted: 25 Jan 2022 06:23 AM PST Move to outlaw procedures to reconstruct the hymen welcomed by campaigners and survivors of 'honour'-based abuse "Virginity repair" surgery known as hymenoplasty has no place in the medical world, British healthcare professionals were warned today, as legislation to criminalise the practice was introduced by the government. An amendment added to the health and care bill on Monday will make it illegal to perform any procedure that aims to reconstruct the hymen, with or without consent. Continue reading... |
| Peter Dinklage criticises Disney for ‘backwards’ remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Posted: 25 Jan 2022 04:52 AM PST Actor who has a form of dwarfism says the studio's pride in casting a Latina Snow White is undercut by stereotypes retained elsewhere Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage has taken aim at Disney for what he called its "fucking backwards" forthcoming live action adaptation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Dinklage, who stars in Joe Wright's new film, Cyrano, accused the studio of double standards by attending to racial diversity in its cast but falling back on other damaging stereotypes. Continue reading... |
| Sarah Palin dined at New York City restaurant days before testing positive Posted: 25 Jan 2022 04:38 AM PST Elio's restaurant manager says unvaccinated former governor dined there despite New York law due to 'unfortunate oversight' The manager of an exclusive New York City restaurant insisted it was focused on the safety of its guests, after the former Alaska governor and Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin dined there despite not being vaccinated against Covid-19. New York City laws require proof of vaccination for indoor dining. Continue reading... |
| Met launches criminal investigation into Downing Street parties Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:30 AM PST U-turn from police commissioner Cressida Dick means Sue Gray's inquiry report will be delayed Scotland Yard has placed the heart of government under investigation after receiving evidence from Sue Gray's inquiry on alleged parties at Downing Street and Whitehall in a move that will delay her report's publication. As a result, Boris Johnson will face a wait before Gray's inquiry is released, with the Metropolitan police commissioner, Cressida Dick, performing a U-turn and signing off on a formal investigation. Continue reading... |
| ‘It looked so real’: ghostly ‘iceberg’ was a wonder of nature – just not an iceberg Posted: 25 Jan 2022 02:30 AM PST Canadian photographer Simone Engels was stunned to spot a huge white structure apparently floating far from any ice sheet Clear winter skies and the promise of a recent evening's beautiful sunset led photographer Simone Engels to a nearby park on Vancouver Island. But as she trained her lens on the pinkish hue of the landscape of the Pacific coast, she was shocked to see a large, iceberg-like shape on the horizon. "It was this huge, shiny, three-dimensional tubular structure," she said. "It looked so real." Continue reading... |
| Photo of stony-faced campaigner with PM divides Australia Posted: 25 Jan 2022 02:24 AM PST Grace Tame, assault survivor who helped change law, called 'childish' and told she should return Australian of the year award A sexual assault survivor who sparked a national conversation about the treatment of women and sexual assault in Australia has found herself at the centre of another fiery debate over expectations on women to smile in public. Grace Tame won last year's Australian of the year prize after her advocacy was instrumental in overturning a Tasmanian law preventing survivors from speaking publicly about their assault. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:13 AM PST Some sociologists believe that the rising number of non-religious Americans is a reaction against rightwing evangelicals. But that's just part of the story What if I were to tell you that the following trends in American religion were all connected: rising numbers of people who are religiously unaffiliated ("nones") or identify as "spiritual but not religious"; a spike in positive attention to the "religious left"; the depoliticization of liberal religion; and the purification and radicalization of the religious right? As a sociologist who has studied American religion and politics for many years, I have often struggled to make sense of these dramatic but seemingly disconnected changes. I now believe they all can all be explained, at least in part, as products of a backlash to the religious right. Since the religious right rose to national prominence in the 1980s, the movement's insertion of religion in public debate and uncompromising style of public discourse has alienated many non-adherents and members of the larger public. As its critics often note, the movement promotes policies – such as bans on same-sex marriage and abortion – that are viewed by growing numbers of Americans as intolerant and radical. Continue reading... |
| Julian Lennon to auction NFT of Paul McCartney’s notes for Hey Jude Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:48 AM PST Other Beatles memorabilia including outfits and guitars to be sold as non-fungible tokens by John Lennon's son Paul McCartney's original notes for Hey Jude are being sold, digitally at least, by one of John Lennon's sons. Julian Lennon has announced details of a Beatles memorabilia sale in which outfits, guitars and the song notes will be sold as non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. Continue reading... |
| Lessons from a tornado: what one American town can teach others about disaster recovery Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:00 AM PST Joplin, Missouri, took the opportunity to think about what the town needed to be 'better than before' The tornado struck Joplin, Missouri, in May 2011 with such fury that afterward, even those who had lived here their entire lives struggled to recognize it. The nearly mile-wide storm wiped away entire neighborhoods and killed 161 people in less than an hour. It felled trees, leveled buildings and flung power lines and vehicles all over the roads with winds of more than 200mph. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 25 Jan 2022 06:00 AM PST A British hostage-taker in a Texas synagogue demanded the release of a US-held woman whose true story remains a mystery There is a photograph that is often pasted on to telegraph poles and hung in city squares during protests across Pakistan. It is of a woman, her hair dishevelled, her lips severely parched, her head at a strange angle. It is also a picture of a very tired woman. In Pakistan, you'll find hundreds of women who, after a very hard life, giving birth and raising children, and then losing them to state violence, begin to look like that. In Pakistan, we trot her out when we need to remind ourselves of our failure as a nation. We bemoan the fact that a monster called the United States of America came stomping in, took away our daughter and locked her up for life. Occasionally, noises are made that she should be released in exchange for this prisoner or that hostage, then we forget her again. Mohammed Hanif is a Karachi-based author. His latest novel is Red Birds Continue reading... |
| Patient removed from heart transplant list for refusing Covid-19 vaccine Posted: 25 Jan 2022 09:51 AM PST DJ Ferguson, 31, had previously been prioritized for a transplant by Brigham and Women's hospital in Boston A Boston-area hospital said it will not perform a heart transplant on a patient who refuses to get a Covid-19 vaccination. DJ Ferguson, 31, was previously prioritized for a heart transplant at Brigham and Women's hospital, but is no longer eligible as he refuses to get vaccinated, said Ferguson's family, according to a report by CBS Boston. Continue reading... |
| Parents in the US: tell us your experiences of taking care of under-5s during the pandemic Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:52 AM PST We would like to hear from parents of under-5s in the US about the long wait for the vaccine for children in this demographic We would like to hear from parents of under-5s in the US about the long wait for the Covid-19 vaccine for children in this age group. What has your experience been of taking care of under-5s during the pandemic, especially during day care or pre-school closures due to outbreaks? Has anything changed between now and the start of the pandemic? Continue reading... |
| Long Covid: doctors find ‘antibody signature’ for patients most at risk Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:00 AM PST Low levels of certain antibodies found to be more common in those who go on to develop long Covid Doctors have discovered an "antibody signature" that can help identify patients most at risk of developing long Covid, a condition where debilitating symptoms of the disease can persist for many months. Researchers at University hospital Zurich analysed blood from Covid patients and found that low levels of certain antibodies were more common in those who developed long Covid than in patients who swiftly recovered. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 25 Jan 2022 01:17 AM PST Australians like to think of ourselves as rebels but culturally we love rules, and aren't always kind to rule-breakers I can't imagine you aren't across it, but in case you missed what the outgoing Australian of the Year Grace Tame did on Tuesday, let me run you through it. Tame went to the Lodge as part of the annual pre-Australia Day festivities. Naturally, her arrival was captured by waiting cameras. The prime minister extended his hand and congratulated the sexual assault survivor on her recent engagement to partner Max. Tame shook Scott Morrison's hand without meeting his gaze. Continue reading... |
| Boris Johnson has finally gone full Marie Antoinette – only he’s hogging all the cake | Marina Hyde Posted: 25 Jan 2022 06:38 AM PST Quite how long Conservative MPs and the British public will continue to indulge the prime minister is unclear Yesterday's announcement of an inquiry into alleged anti-Muslim racism in the government meant I was going to begin with one of the more eye-watering quotes from Boris Johnson's terrible novel Seventy-Two Virgins. (Seventy-Two Virgins is the title, not who bought it.) But further partygate revelations – and finally a police investigation – instead force me to tong open another work in the Johnson canon: The Churchill Factor. This minimum opus is riddled with sensational factual errors but is meant to advance Johnson's big theory that we shouldn't write off great men as "meretricious bubbles on the vast tides of social history". On the contrary, great men turn history, and he's one of them. (Johnson, obviously – not Churchill. Britain's greatest wartime leader is chiefly deployed as a useful proxy for the narcissist author.) It is, then, entirely fitting of Boris Johnson's historical stature that as Russia stands on the brink of an invasion of Ukraine, the talk is all of the PM's singalong birthday party during the first lockdown. Has ever a meretricious bubble been more in need of a pin? A vast tide of something is flowing out of Downing Street, but it doesn't smell like history. Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist Continue reading... |
| Has the West fallen for Putin’s tricks in Ukraine? | Keir Giles Posted: 25 Jan 2022 07:47 AM PST Russia wants to see Nato rolled back – and Ukraine is far from its only pawn in the game
The west has been fixated for more than two months on Russian preparations to mount a new land invasion of Ukraine. Except, it hasn't happened – and it's not likely to happen, at least in the form that's most commonly imagined. Russia has used the bright, shiny object of an obvious troop concentration to panic the west into considering seriously its demands for rolling back Nato. But by focusing on the wrong problem, and joining in negotiations on Russia's terms, the US and Nato have fallen for a massive strategic deception operation. By all accounts Russia's preparations for conflict are genuine. But then, they have to be. When it conducted a dry run for the current deployments last year, Russia saw how foreign analysts swiftly discounted the likelihood of a major assault because they saw forces had not arrived with essential materiel, such as medical supplies or ammunition, or the support elements necessary to mount and sustain combat operations. This time Russia has made sure they are there, and visible. And Russia is continuing to move troops westwards in order to keep up the pressure on western decision-makers. Keir Giles works with the Russia and Eurasia programme of Chatham House. He is the author of Moscow Rules: What Drives Russia to Confront the West Continue reading... |
| Posted: 24 Jan 2022 04:32 PM PST First Nations people deserve peace and respect. For that we must work together, whether we've been here five years or 5,000 generations For our people, 26 January is not a day of celebration, it is a day of mourning. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and equal respect, but we still have a racist system that unfairly targets people based on their identity and blocks them from self-determination and from implementing solutions that we know work in setting their own course. We have aggressive policing of First Nations children, controls on what our people can spend their income support on, and discrimination when applying for jobs. Continue reading... |
| Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers ponder futures after rough playoff exits Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:08 AM PST
Tom Brady says his family will play a crucial factor in deciding whether he returns to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next season. The 44-year-old has an impending decision whether he will retire or return for a 23rd overall and third season with Tampa Bay, whose bid to repeat as Super Bowl champs ended with a 30-27 loss to Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs on Sunday. Brady has one year remaining on his contract and has said in the past he'd like to play until he's at least 45. Continue reading... |
| Nadal survives five-setter as Shapovalov claims officials ‘100%’ favour top players Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:46 AM PST
As Rafael Nadal initiated another run at the Australian Open, he was as curious as anyone else about how well his game and body would serve him. He had endured a six-month layoff due to a chronic foot injury and a tough bout of Covid, and arrived in Melbourne having barely spent time on court in the preceding weeks. The hope, he said, was that he would keep himself in the tournament long enough to continue improving. He maintained his presence on Tuesday but it took all he had. He led Denis Shapovalov by two sets, only for the Canadian to pull Nadal all the way back into a desperate fifth set. After four hours, Nadal rose to win 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 and reach his seventh semi-final here. Continue reading... |
| Ash Barty underlines favourite status by trouncing Pegula at Australian Open Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:51 AM PST
Ash Barty's rapid march through the Australian Open draw continued on Tuesday as she faced her highest ranked opponent so far, the in-form 21st seed Jessica Pegula, and treated her with the same disdain as all others who have crossed her path in Melbourne this year. This time, Barty allowed Pegula just two paltry games as she reached her second Australian Open semi-final with a 6-2, 6-0 win. "I'm just having fun, to be honest," said Barty afterwards. "I'm having fun trying to problem solve out on the court, and each and every opponent has been different, each and every opponent has presented me with a different challenge and forced me to use another tool in my toolbox." Continue reading... |
| David Squires on … drones, ghost ships and a weird Premier League weekend Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:33 AM PST Our resident cartoonist recalls some strange goings-on in the English top flight's latest round of fixtures
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| McKinsey: fundamental transformation of global economy needed for net zero Posted: 24 Jan 2022 09:01 PM PST $9tn of annual investment required to avoid most catastrophic climate impacts, consultancy says Reaching net zero climate emissions by 2050 will require a "fundamental transformation of the global economy", according to a report by McKinsey, one of the world's most influential consulting firms. It estimates that $9.2tn will need to be invested every year for decades to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5C and end the climate emergency. The sum is a 60% increase on current investment levels and equivalent to half of global corporate profits. Continue reading... |
| Brody Dalle testifies that Josh Homme head-butted her so hard she ‘saw stars’ Posted: 25 Jan 2022 04:43 AM PST Dalle gave her testimony against the Queens of the Stone Age frontman on the first day of a trial over their competing domestic violence restraining orders Brody Dalle has testified that her ex-husband Josh Homme head-butted her so hard she "saw stars", and told her that he had fantasised about murdering her, on the first day of a trial dealing with conflicting domestic violence restraining orders that each party filed against the other, Rolling Stone reports. Dalle told a Los Angeles courtroom that the Queens of the Stone Age frontman attacked her in October 2019 during a discussion about their respective musical output. Continue reading... |
| Jimmy Kimmel on Trump’s plan to seize voting machines: ‘A Sieg Hail Mary, if you will’ Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:33 AM PST Late-night hosts discuss the draft executive order authorizing the military to intervene after Trump's election defeat Jimmy Kimmel kicked off the week with troubling evidence from the Trump White House in the days after the 2020 election. Over the weekend, Politico obtained and published a draft executive order from 16 December 2020 which ordered the defense secretary to seize voting machines in battleground states. Continue reading... |
| Cardi B awarded almost £1m in damages in libel case against gossip blogger Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:56 AM PST The New York rapper said that false allegations made by YouTube channel host Tasha K damaged her reputation and her mental health Cardi B has been awarded $1.25m (£929,000) in damages as well as medical expenses of $250,000 in a libel lawsuit against a celebrity gossip blogger who claimed that the rapper was a prostitute who used cocaine and had contracted sexually transmitted infections. Cardi B, born Belcalis Almánzar, sued the blogger known as Tasha K in 2019 for posting several videos that spread "malicious rumours". Continue reading... |
| Ian McKellen keen to star in a stage musical: ‘I’m available but incompetent’ Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:09 AM PST The actor, who is taking on a one-off role as a detective, is ready for an all-singing, all-dancing production next He has played a wizard, a supervillain and the great Shakespearean leads – twice starring as Hamlet, 50 years apart – but Sir Ian McKellen has declared himself ready for another challenge in his ninth decade: a stage musical. Talking to Mishal Husain on Radio 4's Today programme on Tuesday, the actor said he had never had a list of parts he wanted to play but he was still working his way through different types of theatre production. "There are a few left – one would be the musical," he explained. But can he sing, asked Husain. "In the bath, in the shower, in private," he replied. "I have sung occasionally – I did a pantomime at the Old Vic a few years back." In that 2004 production of Aladdin he played Widow Twankey and sang "in a fashion" he added. A full-blown musical would be something else. "I can hold a tune but I'm not a proper singer," he reflected. "I'm available but incompetent." Continue reading... |
| Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian review – standup looks back in cynical Netflix special Posted: 25 Jan 2022 10:01 AM PST Netflix Aziz Ansari's career has been dramatically carved in two since the sexual misconduct allegations made against him four years ago, which he denied. Before: a slick and optimistic comic with the world at his feet. After: an ever more downbeat and cynical act appraising how "shitty" we all are – especially as regards our hunger for celebrity gossip. Ansari's new special Nightclub Comedian is the third of his shows that I've seen since the accusations, and the third that encodes in one routine after another (and even in a joke we hear performed by the preceding act) his unresolved feelings about the episode. Perhaps that's understandable. There's an argument that Ansari's trial-by-public-opinion even enriched his comedy with colours that just weren't there before. Nightclub Comedian's 29 minutes have more considered social commentary than many acts manage in twice the duration. In a section on misinformation, which both mocks and deplores the mocking of vaccine sceptics, there's a wicked routine envisaging the rapper Ice Cube having a colonoscopy. A strong closer – responding to anti-vaxxers' fears of coming under microchip control – notes how robotically enslaved we already are to our smartphones. Continue reading... |
| Bob Dylan sells entire recorded catalogue to Sony Music Entertainment Posted: 25 Jan 2022 02:53 AM PST The deal covers all Dylan recordings dating from 1962 to future originals and reissues, and will explore 'new ways' to reach future generations Bob Dylan has sold his entire back catalogue of recorded music to Sony Music Entertainment, as well as the rights to multiple future releases, in a deal rumoured to be worth between $150m and $200m (£111m–£148m), Variety reports. The deal covers all Dylan recordings dating from 1962, including his self-titled debut album, which celebrates its 60th anniversary in March, and future releases and reissues in Dylan's celebrated Bootleg Series. Continue reading... |
| One Shot review – mesmerically schlocky thriller rendered with impressive technique Posted: 25 Jan 2022 06:00 AM PST Filmed in one continuous take, a hokey story of heading off a terror plot is badly written and acted but offers well designed choreography This is an action thriller set in a secret Guantánamo-style black-ops facility where "terrorists" are tortured in the name of America's homeland security and an extraction goes very wrong. It has risibly cliched dialogue and wooden, poorly directed acting from a B-to-G list cast, but it appears to be shot in one continuous take and strictly as an example of choreography and technical skill it's pretty nifty. I would bet a box of popcorn there are a few sneaky invisible edits in there: for example when a suicide bomb goes off and the smoke clears to reveal devastation surely carefully arranged by set dressers, strewn with actors made up to look fatally wounded by shrapnel and debris. Nevertheless, with One Shot director James Nunn has crafted something as weirdly mesmeric as it is schlocky. The action starts in a military helicopter flying to a remote island belonging to some unnamed Nato country. (It was apparently shot in Suffolk, which would explain the presence of comically quaint pebble-dash on the walls.) A gaggle of Navy Seals, led by Scott Adkins' head honcho Jake Harris (these protagonist hero guys are always named Jake or Jack), are escorting a CIA analyst Zoe Anderson (Ashley Greene). Anderson has arrived at the site to take a man named Amin Mansur (British actor Waleed Elgadi, giving the best performance in the film) back to Washington DC with her. Supposedly, former businessman Mansur knows the location of a dirty bomb with radioactive material that's going to go off very soon, although he furiously protests his innocence and the guys running the site, led by Ryan Phillippe's embittered senior officer, aren't keen to comply unless the paperwork gets cleared. But suddenly, a truck breaks through the amusingly flimsy chainlink fence with what must surely be over a hundred trained mercenaries crammed inside (judging by the body count by the end of the film). Continue reading... |
| Black Medusa review – deadpan North African vengeance noir Posted: 25 Jan 2022 02:00 AM PST This chilly Tunisian debut follows young a female killer who traps her victims by pretending to need a voice app to speak Here is a stylised and self-aware serial killer drama in black-and-white, broken down into nine "nights". A young woman called Nada (Nour Hajri) picks up men in bars, playing on their protective gallantry or predatory instinct for weakness, by pretending to be vocally impaired and needing a voice app on her phone to speak. She goes home with them after a few drinks and horror ensues. But Nada finds herself vulnerable in falling for a young woman at her workplace, Noura (Rym Hayouni), who herself begins to realise what is happening in Nada's after-hours existence. Black Medusa comes from first-time Tunisian film-makers Youssef Chebbi and Ismaël, who may conceivably be fans of Ana Lily Amirpour's cult monochrome vampire film A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. There is a scene when Nada is walking one of her victims back to his apartment and a couple of cats wander into view that reminded me of Amirpour's very cat-friendly movie. And Nada's deadpan and implacable avenger might put you in mind of Carey Mulligan's assailant in Promising Young Woman. Continue reading... |
| Taming the Garden review – fascinating study of a billionaire’s destructive folly Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:00 AM PST Salomé Jashi's film follows the journey of hundreds of mature trees as they are uprooted across Georgia to populate a rich man's garden Like a sad, greedy king in some fairytale or parable, the Georgian billionaire and former prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili set out, six years ago, to buy and uproot hundreds of magnificent mature trees and transport them at colossal expense and difficulty across Georgia to be transplanted in his own huge private garden. It sometimes involves taking a tree by water, along the Black Sea coast – a truly surreal image. Salomé Jashi's fascinating and deadpan film shows, in a series of tableau-type shots, the effect that these purchases are having up and down the land. Local workers squabble among themselves at the dangerous, strenuous, but nonetheless lucrative job of digging them up. The landowners and communities brood on the sizeable sums of money they are getting paid and Ivanishvili's promises that roads will also be built. But at the moment of truth, they are desolate when the Faustian bargain must be settled and the huge, ugly haulage trucks come to take their trees away in giant "pots" of earth, as if part of their natural soul is being confiscated. (Surely at least some of these trees will have died en route, although this is not revealed.) Continue reading... |
| Chanel channels Coco with casual twist to classic designs Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:11 AM PST Haute couture show in Paris starts with Charlotte Casiraghi on horseback in honour of maison's founder The best outfit in which to weather a pandemic? Try a bouclé suit, two-tone kitten heels and a chain-strap handbag with a double C logo. In defiance of all business forecasts, Chanel is emerging from two challenging years for retail virtually unscathed. Revenues at the luxury brand grew by double digits in the first six months of 2021, the most recent period for which earnings have been published, and the house expects soon to return to 2019 levels of profitability. Strong demand has led to eye-watering price hikes, with some classic handbag styles now priced at 40% more than in the first months of 2020. In anxious times, it seems a Chanel handbag is the gold bullion of fashion. Continue reading... |
| Which wines are best for cooking? | Kitchen aide Posted: 25 Jan 2022 06:00 AM PST Is it worth using a good bottle of wine in your cooking, or will a cheaper one boost the flavours just as well? • Got a culinary dilemma? Email feast@theguardian.com I'm not drinking, but have lots of good bottles of wine. What recipes are worth using them in? "My strongest advice would be to hold on to them, take a picture, hug it, but don't waste them on cooking," says Luca Dusi, co-founder of London wine bar and shop Passione Vino. But I won't call it a day just yet. "Cooking is all based on detail," Dusi adds. "The recipe is the main body for the success of a dish, but the quality of the ingredients and their origin play a major part." Wine in the context of cooking, of course, becomes an ingredient and the Guardian's Fiona Beckett's mantra is: "If you wouldn't drink it, don't cook with it." (Hello, corked and "cooking" wine.) Continue reading... |
| Nigel Slater’s recipe for rainbow chard, egg and noodles Posted: 25 Jan 2022 04:00 AM PST A nourishing veggie treat rich with gorgeous eastern flavours Thinly slice a couple of medium sized, hot chillies. I do this diagonally, but all that matters is that the slices are very thin. Remove the leaves from a 25g bunch of coriander and set them aside, then cut the stems into short pieces about the length of a matchstick. Peel and thinly slice 2 cloves of garlic, then peel a 30g lump of ginger and cut into matchsticks. Remove the leaves from 100g of rainbow chard and set aside, then slice the stems into small pieces about 1cm in length, so they will cook quite quickly. Continue reading... |
| Three firefighters killed battling blaze in vacant Baltimore home Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:17 AM PST City's fire chief says a fourth firefighter was also injured, when part of a vacant home collapsed amid fire Three Baltimore firefighters were killed and a fourth injured when part of a vacant home collapsed while they were battling a blaze early on Monday, the city's fire chief said. The Baltimore city fire department said in a tweet firefighters were responding to a blaze at the three-story rowhome when the four were trapped inside. Crews removed piles of debris to locate the firefighters, the department said. Continue reading... |
| Shark attacks increased around the world in 2021 after years of decline Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:49 AM PST 'Shark bites dropped drastically in 2020 due to the pandemic – this past year was much more typical,' says researcher Shark attacks increased around the world in 2021 following three years of decline, though beach closures in 2020 caused by the coronavirus pandemic could make the numbers seem more dramatic, officials in the US said on Monday. Researchers with the International Shark Attack File recorded 73 unprovoked incidents last year compared to 52 in 2020, according to a new report administered by the Florida Museum of Natural History and the American Elasmobranch Society. Continue reading... |
| Tucker Carlson viewers calling me to say US should back Russia, Democrat says Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:49 AM PST New Jersey congressman says viewers are calling to express distress that Biden is 'not siding with Russia' in Ukraine crisis A congressman from New Jersey has disclosed that he is receiving calls from viewers of Tucker Carlson's primetime Fox News show, expressing distress at the Biden administration's backing of Ukraine in the tense military stand-off with Russia. Democratic representative Tom Malinowski said in a tweet his office was fielding calls from Carlson viewers "upset that we're not siding with Russia in its threats to invade Ukraine". Continue reading... |
| US finalizing plans to divert gas to Europe if Russia cuts off supply Posted: 25 Jan 2022 07:25 AM PST
The US has helped prepare for the diversion of natural gas supplies from around the world to Europe in the event that the flow from Russia is cut, in an effort to blunt Vladimir Putin's most powerful economic weapon. As fears of an invasion of Ukraine have grown, US officials said on Tuesday that they had been negotiating with global suppliers, and they were now confident that Europe would not suffer from a sudden loss of energy for heating in the middle of winter. Continue reading... |
| ‘Alone and bedridden’: how four people celebrated their birthdays during lockdown Posted: 25 Jan 2022 09:59 AM PST Boris Johnson marked birthday with up to 30 staff present while the nation stuck to tight lockdown rules A birthday party was held for prime minister Boris Johnson with cake and singing in the cabinet room on 19 June 2020, it emerged on Monday, with up to 30 staff present for Johnson's 56th birthday under lockdown restrictions. At the time, indoor gatherings were banned and pubs, restaurants and hairdressers remained shuttered. Meet-ups outdoors were capped at six people. Continue reading... |
| Descendants of Italy’s last king attempt to reclaim crown jewels Posted: 25 Jan 2022 07:50 AM PST Items have been in storage since 1946, when Umberto II was banished as Italians voted to abolish monarchy Descendants of the last king of Italy have made their first formal request to reclaim the crown jewels, which for almost 76 years have been stashed in a treasure chest in a safety deposit box at the Bank of Italy amid a long-running mystery over their ownership. The bank took delivery of the jewels, comprising more than 6,000 diamonds and 2,000 pearls mounted on brooches and necklaces worn by various queens and princesses, on 5 June 1946, three days after Italians voted to abolish the monarchy and nine days before King Umberto II, who ruled for just 34 days, was banished into exile along with his male heirs. Continue reading... |
| Former Irish soldier was prepared to die for Islamic State, court hears Posted: 25 Jan 2022 07:47 AM PST Lisa Smith 'enveloped' herself in the 'black flag of IS' in Syria, prosecutor says A former Irish soldier accused of joining Islamic State was prepared to die a martyr, a court in Dublin has heard. Lisa Smith, 39, from Dundalk, County Louth, has pleaded not guilty to being a member of the terrorist organisation between October 2015 and December 2019. Continue reading... |
| Australian Open reverses its ban on ‘Where is Peng Shuai?’ T-shirts Posted: 24 Jan 2022 06:43 PM PST
The Australian Open has reversed its ban on "Where is Peng Shuai?" T-shirts following widespread backlash to the tournament's claim they constituted "commercial or political" material, but banners will still be prohibited. Late last week spectators at Melbourne Park were asked to remove their shirts referencing the Chinese player, whose wellbeing has been the subject of international concern since she accused a senior Chinese official of sexual assault in early November. Continue reading... |
| Bollywood star cleared of obscenity over 2007 Richard Gere kiss Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:31 AM PST Case against Shilpa Shetty over incident at Aids awareness event had languished in legal system The Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty has been formally cleared of obscenity charges dating from when the Hollywood actor Richard Gere publicly kissed her at an Aids awareness event 15 years ago. The incident triggered a controversy at the time, with radical Hindu groups burning effigies of both celebrities to protest against the perceived insult to Indian values. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 25 Jan 2022 10:08 AM PST Latest updates: prime minister welcomes Met police investigation into allegations of lockdown rule-breaking
Here is the statement from Dame Cressida Dick, the Metropolitan police commissioner, announcing that No 10 is now being investigated for breach of lockdown rules. We have a long-established and effective working relationship with the Cabinet Office, who have an investigative capability. As you well know they have been carrying out an investigation over the last few weeks. Continue reading... |
| At least four killed after tropical Storm Ana hits Malawi and Mozambique Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:23 AM PST Search and rescue operations under way as dozens reported missing in region battered by extreme weather in recent years At least four people have died and dozens are missing after strong winds and heavy downpours wreaked havoc in Malawi and Mozambique as Tropical Storm Ana made landfall on Monday. Almost 16,000 people in the south of Malawi have been affected, according to the Red Cross, as search and rescue operations continue after the first cyclone of the region's season. At least two people were killed and 66 injured in Mozambique on Monday and a further two people died on Tuesday in Malawi. Continue reading... |
| ‘I wanted to try cocaine, but Jimi was against it’: Janis Ian on her tough, starlit life in music Posted: 25 Jan 2022 07:04 AM PST Hendrix and Janis Joplin warned her off drugs, she sang for James Brown and Salvador Dalí offered to paint her. Janis Ian's confessional folk-pop is still sensational – so why is she retiring from recording? 'I learned the truth at 17 / That love was meant for beauty queens / And high school girls with clear-skinned smiles / Who married young and then retired." Janis Ian's At Seventeen is an indelible portrait of life from the perspective of a socially awkward unattractive teen, inspired by a newspaper article that the singer-songwriter read about a young woman who thought her life would be perfect. "I learned the truth at 18," the girl told the journalist. Ian changed her age and spent three months working on the intimate and confessional lyrics. "You couldn't write a song like that without having gone through it," Ian says, video-calling from her home in New Jersey. Now 70, her hair is short and white, no longer the dark curls she sported on her album covers during the 60s and 70s. "The first time I sang At Seventeen in public I did it with my eyes closed. I felt like I was naked and I was sure the audience was going to be laughing." Continue reading... |
| The best recent thrillers – review roundup Posted: 25 Jan 2022 01:00 AM PST A police officer takes pity on a child murderer, a poor mother has real money troubles and Sophie Hannah's detectives fail to get away from it all Jacqueline Roy |
| ‘You need glue, tampons and ice’: artist Every Ocean Hughes on how to help the dying Posted: 25 Jan 2022 08:11 AM PST Caring for her late grandmother inspired US artist Every Ocean Hughes to take end-of-life doula training. She talks corpse kits, Covid and queer death One Big Bag is a portrait of a young death doula: a holistic carer who tends to the wishes of a dying individual and assists their family after they die. In the film, made by US artist Every Ocean Hughes, a young woman details the contents of her "corpse kit", while the items hang by strings from the ceiling at the respective heights of their use on the body. The list is prosaic but revelatory, comforting and unsettling: glue to seal wounds and tampons to plug orifices; snacks for the living who forget to eat; ice to chill, but – careful – not to freeze. The doula considers the items closely, but adds mysterious choreography, rhythmically pounding her fists on her body, slamming her thighs against the ground and marching around the space with spiritual fervour. Shown alongside an installation of the suspended items, One Big Bag marks a shift into direct, material work from an artist previously known for abstraction. Hughes appears over Zoom from her home in Stockholm, a kind and effusive presence with a cropped bob and fantastic hexagonal brown glasses. Continue reading... |
| Life in the Arctic: the reindeer herders struggling against the climate crisis – video Posted: 25 Jan 2022 03:30 AM PST As the arctic warms four times faster than the global average, Europe's only indigenous population is under threat. For centuries, the Sámi people have herded reindeer throughout northern Europe. Now, warmer winters are turning the snow the reindeer dig through to find food into ice, blocking their only source of sustenance. In the last two years, 10,000 reindeer died. If this winter is bad, herders fear up to half the herd could be lost
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| Grace Tame appears stony faced next to Scott Morrison during Australian of the Year photo op – video Posted: 24 Jan 2022 06:25 PM PST 2021 Australian of the Year Grace Tame has appeared stony faced beside prime minister Scott Morrison during the 2022 Australian of the Year morning tea at The Lodge. Tame has not shied away from criticising the PM during her year in the spotlight. The sexual assault survivor and 2021 Australian of the Year has regularly commented on the government's controversial handling of a number of alleged sexual assault and harassment scandals. ► Subscribe to Guardian Australia on YouTube
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| Joe Biden appears to mock Fox News reporter in hot mic moment – video Posted: 24 Jan 2022 05:19 PM PST Joe Biden has been caught on a hot mic apparently referring to a Fox News reporter as a 'stupid son of a bitch'. As journalists left a meeting, the Fox News White House reporter Peter Doocy asked whether Biden thought inflation was a political liability ahead of the midterms. 'No, it's a great asset – more inflation,' Biden appeared to respond sarcastically over a din of reporters shouting questions, apparently not realizing his microphone was still on. 'What a stupid son of a bitch,' he added Continue reading... |
| Ukraine: US puts 8,500 troops on alert to deploy to bolster Nato – video Posted: 24 Jan 2022 03:35 PM PST The US military has put up to 8,500 troops on alert to be ready to deploy to Europe, potentially at very short notice, should the Nato alliance activate a rapid response force. It's the latest sign of US resolve in the face of a Russian military buildup near Ukraine. The Pentagon spokesman John Kirby stressed that no decision had been made on whether to deploy the troops, and that any such deployment would separate from intra-European movements of US troops to Nato's eastern flank, to reassure nervous allies. The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, told US citizens in Ukraine that 'now is the time to leave' Continue reading... |
| Julian Assange wins first stage of attempt to appeal against extradition – video Posted: 24 Jan 2022 07:39 AM PST The WikiLeaks founder has won the first stage of an attempt to avoid extradition to the US to face espionage charges. Assange's partner, Stella Morris, spoke to supporters and the media outside the Royal Courts of Justice after the decision was made and explained they will now have to wait for the supreme court to decide if it will hear the appeal Continue reading... |
| Paris men’s fashion week AW22 : The key shows – in pictures Posted: 25 Jan 2022 05:50 AM PST Much of Paris fashion week took place digitally but the headliners, including Dior and Louis Vuitton, returned to the catwalk with impressive productions Continue reading... |
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