- Israeli minister vows to quit war cabinet if PM fails to agree new Gaza plan
- French forces launch ‘major operation’ in New Caledonia, as unrest claims another life
- Georgian president vetoes ‘foreign influence’ law
- Oleksandr Usyk digs deep in thriller to down Tyson Fury and unite titles
- Rishi Sunak faces cabinet backlash over plans to curb foreign student visas
- Heart patients forced to wait over a year for treatment in England
- Indonesia’s Ibu volcano spectacularly erupts forcing nearby villages to evacuate
- Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv accuses Russia of targeting civilians in Kharkiv region
- Rudy Giuliani indicted for role in Arizona fake-elector scheme
- Fresh floods in Afghanistan kill at least 60 after heavy rain brings devastation
- Six-month-old shot repeatedly during standoff with child’s father
- Assad officials face landmark Paris trial over killing of student and father
- Lai Ching-te, the political brawler who went from a Taiwan mining village to the presidency
- The quiet Japanese island paradise on the frontline of growing Taiwan-China tensions
- My husband finds life easy, and ‘corrects’ me because I don’t
- ‘Modern death is clinical, antiseptic’: the festival that wants to revive the Irish wake
- Eurostar reverses wheelchair policy that left user stranded, after Observer campaign
- ‘Oh my god, I am beautiful’: the people who pay to have their portrait painted
- Netflix’s One Hundred Years of Solitude brings fame to Gabriel García Márquez’s Colombian hometown
- George Miller: ‘Where do I keep my Oscar? I swear, I don’t know’
- Sex, rape, cannibals: what Yorgos Lanthimos did after Poor Things
- The moment I knew: I said ‘marry me or never see me again’ – and he went straight down on one knee
- Nato’s failure to save Ukraine raises an existential question: what on earth is it for? | Simon Tisdall
- Chris Riddell on Russia’s advance on Kharkiv – cartoon
- Why is social media getting all churned up about cottage cheese? | Rachel Cooke
- You think Parisians grumble a lot? Don’t get them started on the Olympic Games | Robert McLiam Wilson
- What would Steve Jobs think of Apple’s culture-crushing advert? | John Naughton
- I have taken babies from their mothers. After my son was born I feared it was my turn to be punished | Ariane Beeston
- Bigger, yes, but better? Pep Guardiola tweaks template for latest City kick to line | Jonathan Wilson
- Morikawa and Schauffele end third day of US PGA at top as Lowry equals record
- Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool rescued the league from brand-busting monotony
- Iga Swiatek maintains hold over Aryna Sabalenka to win Italian Open
- Max Verstappen battles back to claim Emilia-Romagna F1 GP pole
- Chelsea eye up Kieran McKenna with Mauricio Pochettino’s future in balance
- European football: Bayer Leverkusen complete unbeaten Bundesliga season
- Roberto De Zerbi to leave role as Brighton head coach at end of season
- Eight climate activists arrested in Germany over airport protest
- Economic damage from climate change six times worse than thought – report
- Honduran city’s air pollution is almost 50 times higher than WHO guidelines
- Cop29 at a crossroads in Azerbaijan with focus on climate finance
- Police arrest six student protesters at University of Pennsylvania
- Navalny ally says he will ‘never give up’ in fight against Putin
- ‘I put his matchstick men in the bin’: Lowry’s lost sketches go on display for first time
- OpenAI putting ‘shiny products’ above safety, says departing researcher
- Slovakian PM remains in serious condition as suspect appears in court
- Zelenskiy says situation in Kharkiv under control but he fears second Russian attack
- Suspect in court as Putin’s friends capitalise on shooting of Slovakian PM Robert Fico
- Pro-Palestine protesters vow to rally as La Trobe joins universities enforcing encampment ban
- Master of litters: cat named Max given honorary degree by US university
- Virginia governor allows Confederate groups to keep tax exemptions
- Doctor Who: Boom – season one episode three recap
- Man arrested in connection with assault on actor Steve Buscemi
- Sam Taylor: ‘Translating is like X-raying a book. You get a deep tissue read’
- The Balconettes review – neighbours finding trouble in invitation to hot guy’s flat
- Emilia Perez review – Jacques Audiard’s gangster trans musical barrels along in style
- The Fall Guy to Megalopolis: is 2024 the year of the box-office megaflop?
- Ask Ottolenghi: easy sauces to perk up midweek meals
- Beyond Burgundy: more affordable pinot noirs
- We love: fashion fixes for the week ahead – in pictures
- Weaving magic: 14 of the best natural raffia bags – in pictures
- Trend watch: striped shirts
- This is how we do it: ‘We’ll put on our sex playlist and change the lights to purple. It ignites a fire inside us’
- Share your wedding disaster stories
- People in India: share your thoughts on the election
- Ukrainians: share your reaction to your country qualifying for Euro 2024
- Young Europeans: do you live with your parents?
- ‘Why the hell didn’t you leave earlier?’: the battle to evacuate residents as Russia advances in Kharkiv
- ‘We call it our farm’: meet the Australians swapping supermarket shopping for farm shares
- ‘We will fight until Kanaky is free’: how New Caledonia caught fire
- ‘We don’t have a democracy’: why some Oregonians want to join Idaho
- How China is using AI news anchors to deliver its propaganda
- Disappearing ink, fake polls and voter fraud: EU fears as Russian propaganda ads target Euro elections
- How a smear campaign against NPR led Elon Musk to feud with Signal
- ‘I’m the new Oppenheimer!’: my soul-destroying day at Palantir’s first-ever AI warfare conference
- How to give the humble cardigan a sexy French Girl vibe | Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion
- ‘I did a lot of yelling’: Tom Burke on socks, controversy and Mad Max
- Marina Hyde on Russell Brand’s baptism; plus ‘deepfake’ cheerleaders: the woman wrongly accused over a viral video – podcast
- ‘Super cute please like’: the unstoppable rise of Shein – podcast
- The children of the contaminated blood scandal – podcast
- The Premier League’s race for Europe and Celtic’s title – Football Weekly Extra podcast
- AI, algorithms and apps: can dating be boiled down to a science? – podcast
- What keeps the world’s top climate scientists up at night? – podcast
- Donald Trump comes face to face with former fixer Michael Cohen – podcast
- David Copperfield ‘was in my nightmares’: the women alleging sexual misconduct - video
- Four kids left: The Thai school swallowed by the sea – video
- British surgeon in Gaza speaks out as Israel offensive deepens in Rafah – video
- New Caledonia: curfew imposed as violence spreads before French debate – video
- Why genocide is so hard to prove – video
- ‘The Greens are our enemy’: What is fuelling the far right in Germany?
- Mythology, heritage, identity: student work at New York’s International Center of Photography
- Mesmerising microbes: bacteria as you’ve never seen it before – in pictures
- ‘I hope people wonder what the man is doing’: Carla Vermeend’s best phone picture
- The week around the world in 20 pictures
- Girls’ night: the teenage ritual of preparing to go out – in pictures
- The Cannes red carpet so far: from Naomi Campbell in 90s Chanel to Anya Taylor-Joy in Dior – in pictures
Israeli minister vows to quit war cabinet if PM fails to agree new Gaza plan
Benny Gantz’s threat to withdraw his opposition party from coalition calls into question future of governmentThe Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz has threatened to resign if Benjamin Netanyahu fails to adopt an agreed plan for Gaza, calling into question the future of the Israeli government.During a press conference on Saturday, Gantz announced that if a plan for postwar governance of the territory is not consolidated and approved by 8 June, his opposition National Unity party will withdraw from the coalition government. Continue reading...French forces launch ‘major operation’ in New Caledonia, as unrest claims another life
Operation will aim to retake road linking airport with Noumea, as the capital’s mayor says the situation is ‘not improving’French forces have launched a “major operation” to regain control of a road linking New Caledonia’s capital Noumea to the main international airport, as another person was killed in a sixth night of violent unrest.Officials said more than 600 heavily armed gendarmes were dispatched to secure Route Territoriale 1, the main road connecting the capital with the airport. Flights to and from New Caledonia’s main island have been cancelled since the unrest began, stranding travellers and cutting off trade routes. Continue reading...Georgian president vetoes ‘foreign influence’ law
Salome Zourabichvili says bill contradicts constitution but ruling party is expected to override her action in coming daysGeorgia’s president has vetoed a “foreign agents” bill that has split the country and appealed to the government not to overrule her over a law she said was “Russian in sprit and essence”.Salome Zourabichvil followed through on her stated intention to use her veto on Saturday although the governing Georgian Dream party has the votes to disregard her intervention. Continue reading...Oleksandr Usyk digs deep in thriller to down Tyson Fury and unite titles
Usyk wins split decision 115-112, 113-114, 114-113Fury knocked down in critical ninth round in RiyadhOleksandr Usyk is the first undisputed world heavyweight champion this century after he defeated Tyson Fury, in a compelling fight, on a split decision in the early hours of Sunday morning. Usyk added Fury’s WBC title to the IBF, WBA and WBO belts he already owned when he was deservedly given the verdict 115-112 by the first judge and 114-113 by the third official. The middle scorecard was called 114-113 in favour of Fury – but he had been almost knocked out in the ninth round when he staggered across the ring drunkenly. He was given a standing count of eight and saved by the bell.An absorbing and highly technical, if brutal, contest had shifted in momentum when Usyk had a dominant round in the eighth. A right hook and left cross nailed Fury. And then, suddenly surging with new conviction, Usyk landed a shuddering left which rocked Fury. Blood began to pour from Fury’s nose and he was marked up around the left eye. Continue reading...Rishi Sunak faces cabinet backlash over plans to curb foreign student visas
Education secretary Gillian Keegan, Jeremy Hunt and David Cameron oppose move, while university leaders warn of economic and cultural impactRishi Sunak is facing a cabinet revolt over plans to scrap a graduate visa scheme that allows overseas students to live and work in the UK for up to two years after graduation.Under pressure from some on the right of his party to demonstrate that the Tories are tougher on immigration than Labour, Downing Street is considering further restricting or even ending the graduate scheme, which some believe can be used as a backdoor entry route to the UK. Continue reading...Heart patients forced to wait over a year for treatment in England
Waiting lists are at a record high, almost double since 2020, with heart disease being the largest cause of premature death in deprived areasFifteen hospital trusts across England each have more than 200 patients waiting longer than a year for heart procedures, NHS figures reveal.The British Heart Foundation (BHF) warns that heart care waiting lists are now at a record high, reaching 414,596 at the end of March 2024 in England, almost double what it was in 2020. The number of people waiting longer than a year for heart tests and treatments has risen to 10,893. Four years ago, the figure was just 53. Continue reading...Indonesia’s Ibu volcano spectacularly erupts forcing nearby villages to evacuate
The volcano on the remote island of Halmahera spewed grey ash clouds into the sky as streaks of purple lightning flashed around its craterA volcano on the remote Indonesian island of Halmahera has spectacularly erupted, spewing a grey ash cloud into the sky and forcing people from seven nearby villages to evacuate, authorities have said.Mount Ibu erupted on Saturday evening, sending ash 4km into the sky, as streaks of purple lightning flashed around its crater, according to information and images shared by Indonesia’s volcanology agency. Continue reading...Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv accuses Russia of targeting civilians in Kharkiv region
Ukrainian prosecutors investigating possible war crimes in Kharkiv and Vovchansk as Zelenskiy says his troops are fighting back: What we know on day 816Ukraine says Russian shelling targeted civilians in two cities in the north-eastern region of Kharkiv on Saturday. Ukrainian prosecutors said they were investigating as a potential war crime a Russian airstrike on a residential area of the regional capital Kharkiv in which six civilians were wounded, including a 13-year-old girl, 16-year-old male and an eight-year-old. Moscow denies deliberately targeting civilians but thousands have been killed and injured since its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.In Vovchansk, a city just 5 km from the Russian border and about 70 km to the north-east of Kharkiv, Ukrainian prosecutors said Russian shelling killed a 60-year-old woman and injured three other civilians. Two civilians – aged 70 and 83 – were killed when trying to leave Vovchansk by car, the Kharkiv regional prosecutor said. “The battle in the area of Vovchansk is ongoing,” Ukraine’s armed defences said. Only 100 residents remain in the town at the centre of Moscow’s grinding push that’s now largely in ruins.Across the border in Russia’s Belgorod region, Moscow’s defence ministry said its forces shot down a Tochka-U missile fired by Ukraine. A similar missile caused a Belgorod apartment building to collapse last week, killing at least 15 people, Russia said. Late on Saturday, Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said a Ukrainian drone attack injured a woman and a man in the village of Petrovka. They were treated for shrapnel injuries in Belgorod, he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.President Volodymyr Zelenskiy reported successes by troops fighting a renewed Russian assault in the Kharkiv region. He said in his nightly video address that Ukrainian forces were on surer footing. “The occupier is losing its infantry and equipment, a tangible loss, even though, just as in 2022, it was counting on a quick advance on our land,” Zelenskiy said, referring to Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine in February of that year. His remarks come a day after he warned Kyiv has only a quarter of the air defences it needs to hold the frontline.A divisive mobilisation law in Ukraine came into force on Saturday, as Kyiv struggles to boost troop numbers. The legislation, which was watered down from its original draft, will make it easier to identify every conscript in the country. It also provides incentives to soldiers, such as cash bonuses or money toward buying a house or car. Zelenskiy also signed two other laws Friday, allowing prisoners to join the army and increasing fines for draft dodgers fivefold.Russia’s defence ministry said its forces captured the village of Starytsia in the Kharkiv region on Saturday, eight days after the new Russian push in the area began.Zelenskiy said his forces repelled an assault further south in the eastern Donetsk region around Chasiv Yar, a city seen as a key target in Russia’s campaign. “Our soldiers destroyed more than 20 units of the occupier’s armoured vehicles,” he said.In the village of Stanislav in the southern region of Kherson, governor Oleksandr Prokudin said a Russian drone strike killed a man about 40 years old and injured a woman. The battlefield accounts could not be immediately verified. Continue reading...Rudy Giuliani indicted for role in Arizona fake-elector scheme
Ex-New York mayor last of 17 defendants to be served in plot to overturn Donald Trump’s election loss to Joe Biden in 2020Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani is the last of 17 defendants to be served an indictment in Arizona’s fake-elector case for his role in an attempt to overturn former president Donald Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election, the Arizona attorney general said.Kris Mayes posted the news regarding the Trump-aligned lawyer on her X account late Friday. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/rudy-giuliani-indicted-arizona
Fresh floods in Afghanistan kill at least 60 after heavy rain brings devastation
Thousands of homes and farming land damaged in Ghor province, a week after over 300 people killed in flash floodsAt least 60 people have been killed in a fresh bout of heavy rain and flooding in central Afghanistan, according to an official.Dozens others remained missing, said Abdul Wahid Hamas, spokesperson for Ghor’s provincial governor, on Saturday. He said the province had suffered significant financial losses, with thousands of homes and properties damaged and hundreds of hectares of agricultural land destroyed in the floods on Friday, including in the province’s capital city, Feroz Koh. Continue reading...Six-month-old shot repeatedly during standoff with child’s father
Child is in hospital in a stable condition, as police say father was found dead of self-inflicted gunshot woundA man suspected of shooting his 6-month-old son multiple times after taking the boy and his mother hostage was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in the rubble of a suburban Phoenix home that caught fire during a swat standoff, police said.The baby was reported to be in a critical but stable condition at a local hospital Saturday, police said in a statement. They said earlier his injuries suffered the day before were not believed to be life-threatening.At about 3am on Friday, the father of the child allegedly broke into the home where the child and mother lived, according to police in Surprise, Arizona, about 30 miles north-west of Phoenix. The child’s father did not live in the house, police said, adding that the man held the mother and child hostage for several hours before the mother managed to escape. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/six-month-old-baby-shot-arizona-standoff
Assad officials face landmark Paris trial over killing of student and father
Prosecution of three high-ranking Syrian officials to be tried in absentia could pave way for president’s caseAt midnight on 3 November 2013, five Syrian officials dragged arts and humanities student Patrick Dabbagh from his home in the Mezzeh district of Damascus.The following day, at the same hour, the same men, including a representative of the Syrian air force’s intelligence unit, returned with a dozen soldiers to arrest the 20-year-old’s father Mazzen. Continue reading...Lai Ching-te, the political brawler who went from a Taiwan mining village to the presidency
Friends and analysts say Lai’s tough upbringing in a working-class family has prepared him well for his next opponent: ChinaThe house itself is a modest, two-storey dwelling on a larger parcel of picturesque land. Mist floats down from the jungled hills behind, settling in the narrow lane that winds towards the rundown remnants of a mine.The only people there on the day the Guardian visits are curious tourists. They are there for one thing: to see the family home of Lai Ching-te, Taiwan’s next president. Continue reading...The quiet Japanese island paradise on the frontline of growing Taiwan-China tensions
Yonaguni is a tourist hotspot – but its location just 100km from Taiwan means residents must wrestle with the creeping militarisation of their homeIn the minds of many Japanese people, Yonaguni is a sleepy paradise of crystal-clear sea and pristine beaches, where miniature horses graze on clifftops and empty roads dissect fields of sugar cane; where tourists dive with hammerhead sharks and marvel at the Ayamihabiru – the world’s largest Atlas moth.But this tiny island, located far closer to Taipei than Tokyo, now finds itself at the centre of regional tensions triggered by a new round of Chinese aggression towards Taiwan. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/17/yonaguni-island-japan-taiwan-china-relations
My husband finds life easy, and ‘corrects’ me because I don’t
Your brain is wired to need order to feel safe, he should respect thatThe question I am mid-40s and married. My husband is good at dealing with life. He never worries, is never insecure, always positive, has unlimited energy and always has a solution for everything. He deals with our kids seemingly without effort, doesn’t set many rules and never worries if they eat enough vegetables or go to bed too late. Everything is a breeze; rules are to be broken and life must be enjoyed.I am not like that. I like to abide by rules and routines, and I get irritated quickly and think of all the possible consequences of any particular action. The problem is that he always corrects me (and often in front of the kids), gives me unwanted advice repeatedly, telling me that things are “easy” and that my worries are “nonsense”. Continue reading...‘Modern death is clinical, antiseptic’: the festival that wants to revive the Irish wake
Artists, singers, writers and scholars gather in County Mayo as a ‘clarion call’ to protect the rite of passage they believe is under threatIt was a scene once common in homes across Ireland: a body in an open coffin surrounded by family, friends and acquaintances who shared stories, sang songs, ate sandwiches, and sipped tea or perhaps something stronger. Over three days they bade farewell to the dead in humanity’s oldest rite.The Irish wake is part of a tradition practised in some form by every culture dating back thousands of years, a ritual to comfort the bereaved and acknowledge loss. Continue reading...Eurostar reverses wheelchair policy that left user stranded, after Observer campaign
Passengers were left abandoned and humiliated after operator banned staff from providing assistanceEurostar has reversed a new accessibility policy that left a wheelchair user stranded and has retrained its London staff following pressure from the Observer.Travellers with disabilities claimed that they would be barred from Eurostar services after the company banned its London staff from pushing passenger wheelchairs. Those who require assistance were told they must travel with a companion or cancel their ticket if they were unable to access services unaided, according to passengers who contacted the Observer. Continue reading...‘Oh my god, I am beautiful’: the people who pay to have their portrait painted
It’s never been easier to take a flattering image of yourself. So why do people commission professional portraits of themselves or loved ones?Get our weekend culture and lifestyle emailThey’re the artwork the public rarely sees: the custom personal portraits hanging in homes, maybe above a mantelpiece, in a study or a bedroom; images of ourselves, family and other loved ones, sometimes even our pets.With selfies available to anyone with a smartphone and professional photography affordable and accessible, the desire for a painted portrait speaks to the pull of tradition and its unique process – the artist’s interpretation of the subject that often reveals more than just a likeness. Continue reading...Netflix’s One Hundred Years of Solitude brings fame to Gabriel García Márquez’s Colombian hometown
Locals hope TV adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude will bring new life to Aracataca, birthplace of author’s magical realismIn sweltering mid-afternoon heat, children splash in the clear water of the canal that threads through town as elderly neighbours look on from rocking chairs on the porches of their sun-washed houses. Butterflies spring from every bush, sometimes fluttering together in kaleidoscopes.At the foot of Colombia’s Sierra Nevada mountains, about 20 miles from the Caribbean coast, Gabriel García Márquez’s fictional world of Macondo lives on. Continue reading...George Miller: ‘Where do I keep my Oscar? I swear, I don’t know’
The Furiosa, Mad Max and Happy Feet director talks tap dancing, life as a twin and what he’d tell his younger selfGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailWhat is the best thing about being a twin?The shared experience. We spent the first 20 years of our lives together every day. We both have a similar curiosity about the world, and he practised as a doctor for 50 years. His take on human behaviour was really amusing, funny and very wise. It was always interesting to have conversations with him, so we would just compare notes. It’s why I love collaborating with people because it’s always about the discourse. Continue reading...Sex, rape, cannibals: what Yorgos Lanthimos did after Poor Things
The maverick director and his trusted cast on making Kinds of Kindness, the ‘bonkers’ film causing a stir on the CroisetteJoe Alwyn, the British star of one of the most disturbing films to compete at the Cannes festival this year, has given his verdict on making the “bonkers” Kinds of Kindness, which features scenes of group sex, cannibalism and violence and in which Alwyn has to perform a drug rape on the character played by Oscar-winner Emma Stone. “You have to try not to unpack it all too much, or you get it stuck in your head,” he said on Saturday.The 33-year-old, until now best known as a former partner of Taylor Swift, has been thrust into the glaring lights of Cannes this weekend, but has also had to survive entering the odd imagination of Poor Things director Yorgos Lanthimos. Alwyn said the best way to prepare himself for Lanthimos’s unsettling and explicit screen world had been to “trust him, trust him, trust him”. “It is bizarre and strange and bonkers and special,” Alwyn added, “but one of the reasons I love his films is because you feel it first, before you try to understand it all.” Continue reading...The moment I knew: I said ‘marry me or never see me again’ – and he went straight down on one knee
Chelsea Reed and David shared a workplace and a love for 60s pop. Then an expiring visa threatened to end everything before it had even begunIt was 2015, and my then-boyfriend and I were living in Canada on working holiday visas from Australia. In the dead of a Toronto winter, I got a job at a restaurant that hosted open mic nights every Sunday, and as a singer-songwriter myself, I was excited to perform.The open-mic host, David, a bespectacled guy with a neat haircut, bore a striking resemblance to Buddy Holly or Ferris Bueller. He played a few songs to warm up the crowd, and I was instantly impressed – and jealous of his talent. Continue reading...Nato’s failure to save Ukraine raises an existential question: what on earth is it for? | Simon Tisdall
The military alliance is turning 75. But there’s little to celebrate in Kyiv, as Putin’s forces continue their bloody advanceNato’s grand 75th birthday celebration in Washington in July will ring hollow in Kyiv. The alliance has miserably failed its biggest post-cold war test – the battle for Ukraine. Sadly, there’s no denying it: Vladimir Putin is on a roll.Advancing Russian forces in Kharkiv profit from the west’s culpably slow drip-feed of weaponry to Kyiv and its leaders’ chronic fear of escalation. Ukraine receives just enough support to survive, never to prevail. Now even bare survival is in doubt. Continue reading...Chris Riddell on Russia’s advance on Kharkiv – cartoon
It may be wounded but, with China’s backing, the bear is feeling bullish• You can order your own copy of this cartoon Continue reading...Why is social media getting all churned up about cottage cheese? | Rachel Cooke
After being promoted by US bloggers and Instagram, cottage cheese sales are now up 40% in the UK. Its blandness is befitting of the timesWhile I didn’t see the cottage-cheese craze coming – who could ever have predicted this pineapple-chunk-inflected bout of collective madness? – now it’s here, I find myself strangely fascinated by it. In one sense, of course, its ascendancy is utterly banal: another creation of social media (its new popularity may be traced originally to TikTok), it can’t be long before the buffet moves on, maybe in the direction of luncheon meat or tinned mandarins. But on the other hand, it’s still deeply weird, especially to those of us who last ate cottage cheese three decades ago, and then only in extremis (as a student, I sometimes kept an emergency pot cooling on the window ledge of my college room for those piercing moments of youthful crisis when I had no time to eat properly).Like a mushroom, this trend sprouted last year, seemingly overnight, in the US. “It’s time to stop pretending it’s not delicious,” said Emily Eggers, a New York chef and food blogger who was on a “mission” to make it the new burrata – a quote I thought so preposterous at the time, I quickly added it, last minute, to a book I was writing. But who’s laughing now? “In the 1970s, sales were focused on slimmers trying to lose weight before their holiday to Spain,” says Jimmy Dickinson, the owner of the brand we all remember, Longley Farm. “[But] now the interest is very much, ‘I’ve just swum 50 lengths, and I’ll eat cottage cheese as my protein fix at the end of it.’” According to Dickinson, demand in the UK has reportedly risen by as much as 40% in recent months, a growth that has been powered by the influencers of Instagram and their helpful recipes for dishes that try very hard indeed to make cottage cheese seem … oh dear. I had a look, and none of their ideas are even remotely alluring to my eyes. What, really, is the point of cottage-cheese cheesecake or cookie dough? Even if I was in search of a “protein hit” – at this point, I picture someone being beaten about the head with a leg of lamb – cottage-cheese lasagne is really not for me. Continue reading...You think Parisians grumble a lot? Don’t get them started on the Olympic Games | Robert McLiam Wilson
From price rises to a ridiculous mascot, the French have had it up to here with the eventWe tend to view Paris as a fairytale princess, all romance and half-seen glitter. But for all its glamour, Paris has actually been depressed and irritable for a couple of hundred years now.Far from being subdued by it, the citizens of Paris wear this perma-gloom like a disconsolate badge of honour. More tightly packed than in any housing estate high-rise, Parisians lead their stressed, underpaid lives defiantly. They mock and complain. They rail and grumble. Unlike anywhere I’ve ever known, in this city, if you say something nice about the place, the citizens disdainfully correct you. Paris doesn’t believe it is the best place. It just knows everywhere else is worse. Continue reading...What would Steve Jobs think of Apple’s culture-crushing advert? | John Naughton
Its latest iPad ad, portraying the destruction of artistic tools, is confirmation that company is just another unfeeling, arrogant tech giantThis is a tale of two advertisements. And about the company that made them – Apple Inc. The first ad ran during the Super Bowl in 1984. It was made by Ridley Scott, the celebrated movie director. The vibe is distinctly Orwellian: set in a vast, darkened auditorium dominated by a giant screen entirely filled by a sinister-looking talking head, who is clearly Big Brother (BB).The opening shot shows lines of drably uniformed, shaven-headed zombies marching in lock-step into the building. “Today,” intones the talking head, “we celebrate the first glorious anniversary of the information purification directives.” Continue reading...I have taken babies from their mothers. After my son was born I feared it was my turn to be punished | Ariane Beeston
Four days after my child was born, I began experiencing postpartum psychosis. What I learned changed my lifeThe first time I start hallucinating I am home, alone, with my baby. Drunk from lack of sleep I watch as his features morph in and out of shape. I take photo after photo, trying to capture what I see.A few days later, while I am pushing the pram outside, it happens again. I pull the hood down to hide my baby from prying eyes. I no longer know who I can trust.I am dead, I am dead. And because I am dead it won’t matter if I take my own life. No one can miss what was never real. Continue reading...Bigger, yes, but better? Pep Guardiola tweaks template for latest City kick to line | Jonathan Wilson
Champions have become less guardiolista to allow Haaland to flourish and it is telling the best player of late has been GvardiolFamiliarity inevitably breeds, if not contempt, then at least discernment. When Leicester won the Premier League what mattered was not how they had done it but merely that it had been done.You could talk about the performances of N’Golo Kanté, Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, pontificate about how Claudio Ranieri had developed Nigel Pearson’s side or dwell on the significance of the discovery of Richard III’s body under a car park, but fundamentally all that mattered was that they had defied the laws of football finance and logic and that they had done it. But as Manchester City edge towards a sixth title in seven years, the manner of the win feels important. Continue reading...Morikawa and Schauffele end third day of US PGA at top as Lowry equals record
Californian Schauffele looking for his first majorShane Lowry races up leaderboard with a 62It was only going to take something special to switch discussion around this US PGA Championship away from Scottie Scheffler and his brush with Louisville law enforcement. The world No 1 unravelled on day three here, which was entirely understandable given the strain associated with four charges, including one for assaulting a police officer.Shane Lowry took it upon himself to create a fresh and uplifting storyline. The Irishman stood on Valhalla’s 18th green over a putt of 11ft 6in which could have created history. If he found the bottom of the cup with his birdie attempt, he would have posted the first 61 in major history. Continue reading...Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool rescued the league from brand-busting monotony
No manager has combined heart and soul with details and hard maths like the German, no wonder he has run out of energy“I am, how can I say it, running out of energy.” It is, in its own way, the saddest of managerial farewells. Not to mention the most decisive. This is Jürgen Klopp’s thing. He’s an energy source. He’s joules, watts, volts, catalytic reactions. His energy is his energy, both in the tactical pattern of his teams and as a sustained feat of personality.Throughout the Klopp elegies of the past few weeks, the deep-dives and unpeelings, the endless daily Klopp-trap, it is striking how little that decision has been questioned. The idea of an energy-free-Klopp is just so final, like José Mourinho telling you he’s run out of toxic bile, or Pep Guardiola confessing that, actually, he’s starting to find detailed positional strategy a little samey and humdrum these days. Jürgen is tired. And when that happens, it really is time to go. Continue reading...Iga Swiatek maintains hold over Aryna Sabalenka to win Italian Open
Swiatek beats Belarusian 6-2, 6-3 in RomePole is third woman to win in Madrid and Italy in same yearWorld No 1 Iga Swiatek brushed aside the No 2 Aryna Sabalenka to win the Italian Open in Rome.The 22-year-old Pole needed just one hour and 29 minutes to ease to a 6-2, 6-3 victory over her Belarusian opponent on the clay to claim the crown for the third time in four years. Continue reading...Max Verstappen battles back to claim Emilia-Romagna F1 GP pole
World champion equals Senna record of eight straight polesOscar Piastri demoted to fifth so Lando Norris second on gridMax Verstappen pulled off a comeback he believed was his best for more than five years to claim pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, delivering a superb lap under immense pressure that raised him to stand alongside Ayrton Senna with a record eighth consecutive pole.In the year of the 30th anniversary of Senna’s death at Imola, Verstappen had to dig deep after a torrid weekend during which he and Red Bull have struggled with the car’s grip and balance. He had been out of sorts and down on pace but made it count when it mattered against a huge charge from the McLarens of Oscar Piastri in second and Lando Norris in third, although Piastri was later given a three-place grid penalty for impeding Kevin Magnussen. Continue reading...Chelsea eye up Kieran McKenna with Mauricio Pochettino’s future in balance
Owners undecided on whether to keep PochettinoBrighton want McKenna as replacement for De ZerbiChelsea have identified Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna as one of the leading candidates to take over from Mauricio Pochettino, whose future is up in the air before his end-of-season review with the club’s hierarchy.While some key figures at Stamford Bridge are in favour of Pochettino staying, the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership is yet to reach a consensus on whether a change is required. Continue reading...European football: Bayer Leverkusen complete unbeaten Bundesliga season
Leverkusen beat Augsburg 2-1 on final dayAtalanta secure Champions League spot by beating LecceBayer Leverkusen edged past Augsburg 2-1 to become the first team in the history of the Bundesliga to complete a full season without a loss.Xabi Alonso’s treble-chasing side also stretched their European record unbeaten run across all competitions this season to 51 matches in a perfect dress rehearsal for Wednesday’s Europa League final against Atalanta. Continue reading...Roberto De Zerbi to leave role as Brighton head coach at end of season
Club owner Tony Bloom says move ‘suits both parties’De Zerbi linked with Bayern and Manchester UnitedRoberto De Zerbi is to leave Brighton after Sunday’s final match of the season against Manchester United.The 44-year-old Italian, who has been linked with a number of high-profile jobs including United and Bayern Munich, joined Albion in September 2022 after Graham Potter left for Chelsea and enjoyed immediate success, taking the club to their highest-ever finish of sixth. Continue reading...Eight climate activists arrested in Germany over airport protest
About 60 flights cancelled after members of Letzte Generation glue themselves to ground at MunichEight climate activists have been arrested after causing Munich airport to close, leading to about 60 flight cancellations.Six activists broke through a security fence and glued themselves to access routes leading to runways, officials and local media reported. Continue reading...Economic damage from climate change six times worse than thought – report
A 1C increase in global temperature leads to a 12% decline in world gross domestic product, researchers have foundThe economic damage wrought by climate change is six times worse than previously thought, with global heating set to shrink wealth at a rate consistent with the level of financial losses of a continuing permanent war, research has found.A 1C increase in global temperature leads to a 12% decline in world gross domestic product (GDP), the researchers found, a far higher estimate than that of previous analyses. The world has already warmed by more than 1C (1.8F) since pre-industrial times and many climate scientists predict a 3C (5.4F) rise will occur by the end of this century due to the ongoing burning of fossil fuels, a scenario that the new working paper, yet to be peer-reviewed, states will come with an enormous economic cost. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/17/economic-damage-climate-change-report
Honduran city’s air pollution is almost 50 times higher than WHO guidelines
San Pedro Sula is rated ‘dangerous’ as effects of forest fires, El Niño and the climate crisis cause a spike in respiratory illnessesThe air quality in San Pedro Sula, the second-largest city in Honduras, as been classified as the most polluted on the American continent due to forest fires and weather conditions aggravated by El Niño and the climate crisis.IQAir, a Swiss air-quality organisation that draws data from more than 30,000 monitoring stations around the world, said on Thursday that air quality in the city of about 1 million people has reached “dangerous” levels. Continue reading...Cop29 at a crossroads in Azerbaijan with focus on climate finance
Fossil-fuel dependent country hopes to provide bridge between wealthy global north and poor south at November gatheringOil is inescapable in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The smell of it greets the visitor on arrival and from the shores of the Caspian Sea on which the city is built the tankers are eternally visible. Flares from refineries near the centre light up the night sky, and you do not have to travel far to see fields of “nodding donkeys”, small piston pump oil wells about 6 metres (20ft) tall, that look almost festive in their bright red and green livery.It will be an interesting setting for the gathering of the 29th UN climate conference of the parties, which will take place at the Olympic Stadium in November. Continue reading...Police arrest six student protesters at University of Pennsylvania
Pro-Palestinian students were attempting to take over a university hall to protest school’s refusal to negotiate in ‘good faith’More than a dozen pro-Palestinian activists, including six students at the University of Pennsylvania, were arrested after attempting to occupy a hall on the university campus late Friday.The protesters were arrested around 9pm after trying to take over Fisher-Bennett Hall but had been met with a response from university and Philadelphia police, according to reports. The Daily Pennsylvanian reported that protesters caused the evacuation of an alumni event at the Penn Museum. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/university-pennsylvania-student-arrests
Navalny ally says he will ‘never give up’ in fight against Putin
Leonid Volkov, who was brutally attacked in March, says he shares his late friend’s belief in ‘beautiful Russia of the future’Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, has vowed to “never give up” fighting against Vladimir Putin despite recently being attacked outside his home.Navalny died in an Arctic prison in February, which Volkov blamed directly on the Russian president. Continue reading...‘I put his matchstick men in the bin’: Lowry’s lost sketches go on display for first time
When on holiday in Berwick the artist often gave his work away. Now a new exhibition reveals the value of drawings that survived in a shoebox A 1958 drawing of a family with their dogs by LS Lowry from one of his many holidays in Berwick-upon-Tweed is to go on public display for the first time. But the sketch is lucky to have survived: it was kept in a shoe box for 43 years, emerging somewhat creased because its recipient had little idea of Lowry’s significance.The signed and dated drawing on headed notepaper from the Castle Hotel, where the artist stayed for most summers from the 1930s until the 1970s, was given to hotel receptionist, Anne Mather. “I didn’t think much about it, and only after he died did I remember it,” Mather told the Berwick Advertiser in 2001 when she put the sketch up for auction. “He was quiet and reclusive, but I can still visualise him in the lounge. He would sit and doodle, with his glasses at the end of his nose.” Continue reading...OpenAI putting ‘shiny products’ above safety, says departing researcher
Jan Leike, a key safety researcher at firm behind ChatGPT, quit days after launch of its latest AI model, GPT-4oA former senior employee at OpenAI has said the company behind ChatGPT is prioritising “shiny products” over safety, revealing that he quit after a disagreement over key aims reached “breaking point”.Jan Leike was a key safety researcher at OpenAI as its co-head of superalignment, ensuring that powerful artificial intelligence systems adhered to human values and aims. His intervention comes before a global artificial intelligence summit in Seoul next week, where politicians, experts and tech executives will discuss oversight of the technology. Continue reading...Slovakian PM remains in serious condition as suspect appears in court
Second operation to remove dead tissue has ‘contributed to a positive prognosis’ for Robert Fico, health minister saysSlovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico, remained in a stable but serious condition as the man accused of trying to assassinate him made his first court appearance.The Slovakian health minister, Zuzana Dolinková, said on Saturday that a two-hour surgery to remove dead tissue from multiple gunshot wounds had “contributed to a positive prognosis” for Fico. Continue reading...Zelenskiy says situation in Kharkiv under control but he fears second Russian attack
Ukraine’s president says air defences must quadruple to halt Russian advance as morale falls among troopsThe Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has said he expects Russia to step up its offensive in the north-east and warned Kyiv has only a quarter of the air defences it needs to hold the front line.Russian forces, which had made only moderate advances in recent months, launched a surprise assault in Kharkiv region on 10 May that has resulted in their biggest territorial gains in a year-and-a-half. Continue reading...Suspect in court as Putin’s friends capitalise on shooting of Slovakian PM Robert Fico
Media is barred from hearing as 71-year-old man appears in closed session over attempted assassination of prime ministerThe suspect in the shooting of Slovakian prime minister Robert Fico appeared in a closed court hearing on Saturday outside Bratislava amid growing fears about the future of the deeply divided nation.The media was barred from the hearing, and reporters were kept behind a gate by armed police officers wearing balaclavas. Continue reading...Pro-Palestine protesters vow to rally as La Trobe joins universities enforcing encampment ban
La Trobe on Friday followed Deakin in issuing a formal directive for protesters to end their encampmentGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastPro-Palestine students and staff at La Trobe University have called the university’s directive to end their sit-in an “attack on free speech”, and vowed to rally against the encampment crackdown until management meets their demands.La Trobe University on Friday followed Deakin University in issuing a formal directive for protesters to end their encampment on the Bundoora campus, amid a wave of student pro-Palestine sit-ins across the nation.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...Master of litters: cat named Max given honorary degree by US university
Vermont State University confers doctorate in ‘litter-ature’ upon tabby for being keen hunter of mice and beloved figure on campusMen named Max have won the Nobel prize (Planck), the Oscar for best actor (Schell), and multiple Formula One world championships (Verstappen).A cat in the US named Max now joins those lofty ranks, having earned a doctorate in “litter-ature” when Vermont State University bestowed an honorary degree on the campus-dwelling tabby in recognition of his friendliness, a gesture which quickly achieved virality in corners of the internet dedicated to spotlighting light-hearted news. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/cat-named-max-given-honorary-degree
Virginia governor allows Confederate groups to keep tax exemptions
Republican Glenn Youngkin also vetoed bills related to maintaining access to contraception, saying they were ‘not ready’Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin has vetoed two bills that would have stripped tax exemptions for the United Daughters of the Confederacy, an organization that has opposed the removal of statues of southern state generals during the US civil war and other markers of the southern states’ attempt to secede from the Union in defense of slavery.The Republican governor vetoed several measures, including those related to maintaining access to contraception, saying in a statement they were “not ready to become law”. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/virginia-glenn-youngkin-confederacy-taxes
Doctor Who: Boom – season one episode three recap
Steven Moffat’s return to Doctor Who has alien planets, murderous AI – and Ncuti Gatwa trapped in an incredibly tense race against timeAfter two episodes, where Doctor Who seemed determined to greet any potential new Disney viewers with everything that could be fun, camp and ridiculous about the show, this was a darker turn from the pen of former showrunner Steven Moffat.The conceit that the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) could not move for nearly the whole episode, and instead had to rely on Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) to get him out of a fix, dialled up the tension and gave both actors a chance to deepen their characterisations. Ruby is clearly prepared to take risks, and this Doctor is more vulnerable and emotional than some previous incarnations. You could imagine Peter Capaldi trying to sarcasm his way out of being stuck on a landmine, rather than being forced to sing a haunting soldier’s lament to calm the nerves. Continue reading...Man arrested in connection with assault on actor Steve Buscemi
New York actor was taken to hospital after a stranger punched him in the face while he was walking in Manhattan on 8 MayA man wanted in connection with the random attack on actor Steve Buscemi on a New York City street earlier this month was arrested on an assault charge on Friday, police said.The 66-year-old star of Boardwalk Empire and Fargo was walking in midtown Manhattan on 8 May when a stranger punched him in the face, city police said. He was taken to a hospital with bruising, swelling and bleeding to his left eye, but was otherwise OK, his publicist said at the time. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/may/18/steve-buscemi-assault-arrest
Sam Taylor: ‘Translating is like X-raying a book. You get a deep tissue read’
The US-based writer and translator on his new novel set in 1930s Vienna, his deep connection with the authors he has worked with and why he always returns to Donna Tartt’s The Secret HistorySam Taylor, 53, was living in rural France with four well-received novels to his name when he realised that he wasn’t going to be able to support his family through writing alone. After being turned down for bar work in nearby Lourdes, he decided to try literary translating, starting with Laurent Binet’s Goncourt-winning novel HHhH. So began an award-winning second career that has seen him work with high-profile authors including Leila Slimani and David Diop. Now based in Texas, he has returned to novel-writing with The Two Loves of Sophie Strom. Centring on a provocative idea, it opens in 1930s Vienna as antisemitic neighbours torch 13-year-old Max Spiegelman’s home. In a parallel universe, the fire leaves Max an orphan, and he’s adopted by an Aryan family who rename him Hans and encourage him to join the Hitler-Jugend. At night, Max and Hans, on opposing sides of history, dream of each other’s lives.Where did the idea come from?Weirdly enough, the spark came from a line in my first novel [The Republic of Trees, 2005], about the night self and the day self, the waking self and the sleeping self. It’s sliding doors, except the twist is Max and Hans are dreaming about each other, so they’re aware of each other’s lives.The Two Loves of Sophie Strom by Sam Taylor is published by Faber (£18.99). To support the Guardian and Observer order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply Continue reading...The Balconettes review – neighbours finding trouble in invitation to hot guy’s flat
Cannes film festivalNoémie Merlant’s first film as a director is relentlessly silly, self-indulgent and unsuited to its themes of misogyny and sexual violenceHere to prove that “actor project” movies are always the ones with the dodgiest acting is the otherwise estimable French star Noémie Merlant who presents her writing-directing debut in Cannes, with herself in a leading role and Céline Sciamma on board as producer and credited as script collaborator. It’s got some funny moments and there’s a great scene in a gynaecologist’s treatment room whose calm, straightforward candour completely annihilates all those other coyly shot gynaecologist scenes you’ve ever seen in any movie or TV drama. And the opening sequence is very dramatic, centring on a woman whose story is sadly neglected for the rest of the film in favour of the younger, prettier people.But I have to say that the film is relentlessly silly, self-indulgent and self-admiring with a certain tiring kind of performer narcissism, always tending towards a jangling tone of celebratory affirmation which can’t absorb or do justice to the themes of misogyny and sexual violence that this film winds up being about. The cod-thriller scenes of corpse disposal do not convince on a realist level (though given that these corpses keep coming back as unfunny ghosts, a realist level is not needed) and do not work as comedy either. Continue reading...Emilia Perez review – Jacques Audiard’s gangster trans musical barrels along in style
Cannes film festivalA thoroughly implausible yarn about a Mexican cartel leader who hires a lawyer to arrange his transition is carried along by its cheesy Broadway energyAnglo-progressives and US liberals might worry about whether or not certain stories are “theirs to tell”. But that’s not a scruple that worries French auteur Jacques Audiard who, with amazing boldness and sweep, launches into this slightly bizarre yet watchable musical melodrama of crime and gender, set in Mexico. It plays like a thriller by Amat Escalante with music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, and a touch of Almodovar.Argentinian trans actor Karla Sofia Gascon plays Juan “Manitas” Del Monte, a terrifyingly powerful and ruthless cartel leader in Mexico, married to Jessi (Selena Gomez), with two young children. Manitas is intrigued by a high-profile murder trial in which an obviously guilty defendant gets off due to his smart and industrious lawyer Rita (Zoe Saldana); she is nearing 40 and secretly wretched from devoting her life to protecting unrepentant slimeballs, who go on to get ever richer while she labours for pitiful fees. Manitas kidnaps Rita and makes her an offer she can’t refuse: a one-off job for an unimaginably vast amount of money on which she can retire. Continue reading...The Fall Guy to Megalopolis: is 2024 the year of the box-office megaflop?
Last year’s Barbenheimer was hailed as saving cinema. Now takings are down and even franchises are falling flat. Can Hollywood manoeuvre itself out of this disaster zone?In Hollywood, the first weekend of May is traditionally seen as the official kick-off of the summer movie season: an auspicious blockbuster date that has, of late, become rather a boring one.Since 2007, when Spider-Man 3 (three full cycles ago in that deathless franchise) topped the box office – and barring two years where the global pandemic threw the mainstream release schedule into disarray – that weekend has been the exclusive domain of Marvel superhero adaptations, through to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 claiming the No 1 spot last May. That stranglehold was set to continue this year, with the legacy-milking superhero mash-up comedy Deadpool & Wolverine scheduled for a 3 May release. It doubtless would have creamed the competition, too, had last year’s Hollywood strikes not delayed it to July. Continue reading...Ask Ottolenghi: easy sauces to perk up midweek meals
Make up a big batch of tahini sauce with herbs, quick preserved lemons, experiment with all sorts of pestos, or try zhoug and shatta, two punchy Levantine chilli condimentsI love the green tahini sauce with the roast cauliflower in your book Simple – it livens up even the most joyless of midweek meals. What other easy sauces should I have in my repertoire to give plain dishes a bit of zhoosh? Joe, LiverpoolI’m so pleased you’ve asked this question, Joe, because sauces and pastes are one of the secrets to exciting home cooking. They’re little flavour bombs, sitting ready in the fridge, to drizzle over or stir into all sorts.Tahini sauce, green or otherwise, is one of my favourites. If I don’t have herbs at home, or if I just fancy a change, I’ll often mix in some miso or soy for a deep, savoury hit. Or, if I want some chilli heat, I’ll add chilli flakes, harissa or similar chilli pastes such as doubanjiang and gochujang; just remember to add plenty of lemon or lime juice to balance things out. Continue reading...Beyond Burgundy: more affordable pinot noirs
Pining for pinot but put off by the price? Here’s how to find value in the most magical of red winesLingua Franca Wines The Plow, Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon, USA 2019 (£45, Lay & Wheeler) A frustrated wine lover (me) asks: why does good pinot noir have to be so bloody expensive? Burgundy, the grape variety’s original, and still its spiritual, home, is the main culprit: so many of the region’s magical red wines that I might once have occasionally bought, albeit as a treat, are now completely out of reach unless I come up trumps on the postcode lottery or land a late-career job in finance. But it’s not just Burgundy. Almost all my favourite New World pinot regions (the Yarra Valley in Australia; Central Otago in New Zealand, California’s Santa Rita Hills) command a premium that consistently takes the best wines close to three figures and beyond. It’s strictly in that unreal economic context that I found myself recently describing Lingua Franca’s irresistibly gorgeous, sinuous, shimmering The Plow, one of the highlights of a tasting of a three dozen (mostly) seriously fine pinots from Oregon, as good value.The Society’s French Pinot Noir, Vin de France, France 2023 (£8.95, The Wine Society) Part of the price issue with pinot noir comes down to the fact that it’s quite a fussy grape variety when it comes to growing conditions. It doesn’t like it hot, but it will make wines that are unpleasantly tart and mean if it doesn’t have any sun. Its thin skins make it prone to all manner of vine diseases and pests, so it needs constant, careful attention and the right soils and climate to thrive. And it requires a very sensitive, light touch in the winery. There’s a kind of all or nothing quality to it, too. Pinot has a tendency to be either transcendently amazing – luxuriously silky in texture, ethereally byzantine in its aromatics – or borderline undrinkable. When it comes to making consistent, affordable, good quality wines from vintage to vintage it’s nowhere near as reliable as malbec, cabernet sauvignon or shiraz. All of which makes a good, unpretentious bottle such as The Society’s Pinot Noir – a sappy, red-fruited thirst-quencher for under a tenner – a deliciously rare achievement. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/food/article/2024/may/19/beyond-burgundy-more-affordable-pinot-noirs
We love: fashion fixes for the week ahead – in pictures
Fluid silhouettes and soft summer tailoring, Gap’s collaboration with California clothing label DÔEN, and Blenheim Palace’s latest exhibition Continue reading...Weaving magic: 14 of the best natural raffia bags – in pictures
Nothing says summer like a straw bag slung over your arm Continue reading...Trend watch: striped shirts
A versatile striped shirt is the key to your capsule holiday wardrobeA blue and white striped shirt could be your most useful summer piece. It’s smart enough for cocktails, half tucked into tailored Bermuda shorts with flat sandals or a slingback heel, thrown over swimwear on the beach or worn with jeans and layered necklaces for a cool but casual look. Size up for a loose fit or look for a style cut with oversized proportions.Cult swimwear brand Hunza G (central model shot above) have launched a matching cotton shirt and shorts collection designed for beach and lounge wear. See also British brand Wyse’s Thomas shirt (on the left). Shirt specialists With Nothing Underneath’s patch pocket contrast striped Chessie shirt is a fresh take on an old favourite (7) and look out for their Weekend seersucker striped style (£95) – perfect for hot climates. Seersucker is a winner for travel and avoids the creasing issues that come with linen. The high street is awash with versions at all price points. Look for subtle differences, from painted stripes at Mango (1) and collarless with voluminous balloon sleeves at Aligne (£89) to embellished details at Essentiel Antwerp (9) and cropped versions at Zara (2). Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/article/2024/may/18/trend-watch-striped-shirts
This is how we do it: ‘We’ll put on our sex playlist and change the lights to purple. It ignites a fire inside us’
After sexless marriages, Jasper and Ellen discovered what they’d been missing out onHow do you do it? Share the story of your sex life, anonymouslyI’ve been through an awakeningI think sex makes me a happier person, especially to feel so desired and to desire someone so much Continue reading...Share your wedding disaster stories
If things went wrong on your big day, we want to hear about itAs wedding season approaches, we would like to hear about your stories of how things went wrong on your big day.Perhaps your beach wedding was ruined by a hailstorm, or one of you got the flu? Did your best man get stuck in traffic? Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2024/mar/20/callout-wedding-horror-stories
People in India: share your thoughts on the election
The Guardian would like to hear from people in India on their thoughts on the 2024 general election, in particular young people who are voting for the first timeThe world’s largest election has begun, with nearly a billion people eligible to vote in India’s marathon poll taking place over the next few weeks.The elections have been described by analysts as the most predictable polls India has held in decades, with prime minister Narendra Modi and his BJP widely expected to win a third term in power. Amid a crackdown on the opposition, analysts and opponents have warned this could be the most one-sided election in India’s history Continue reading...Ukrainians: share your reaction to your country qualifying for Euro 2024
We would like to hear your thoughts on what Ukraine reaching the Euros means to youUkraine has qualified for its first major tournament since the beginning of their war with Russia. On Tuesday, Mykhailo Mudryk’s late winner against Iceland secured a place for Ukraine at Euro 2024.Before the match, midfielder Volodymyr Brazhko said: “Making the Euros will help the world to not forget about Ukraine.” This year, the tournament will be hosted by Germany in June, and Ukraine will be in Group E along with Belgium, Romania and Slovakia. Continue reading...Young Europeans: do you live with your parents?
We want to hear from people aged 18 to 35 – what is housing like in your area and do you live in your parental home?We would like to learn more about the housing situation for young people (aged 18-35) in mainland Europe.What is your situation and who is in your household? Do you live with your family, your partner, housemates, or alone? How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with this arrangement? How does this affect you in your daily life? Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/feb/22/young-europeans-tell-us-about-your-housing-situation
‘Why the hell didn’t you leave earlier?’: the battle to evacuate residents as Russia advances in Kharkiv
Rescue operations become ever more dangerous in the town at the centre of Russia’s recent offensive in the Kharkiv regionEvacuating the last remaining residents of Vovchansk, the town at the centre of Russia’s recent offensive in Kharkiv region, becomes more dangerous with every passing day.As fierce street battles between Russian and Ukrainian forces continue in the northern part of the town, a band of local police and volunteers have been journeying in daily to evacuate the last, terrified residents out of a place which was once home to 18,000 people. Continue reading...‘We call it our farm’: meet the Australians swapping supermarket shopping for farm shares
Eighty families pay the bills of a family farm in south-east Queensland in exchange for fresh produce as part of a community-supported agriculture modelSign up for the Rural Network email newsletterJoin the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the communityIn a paddock by an old shed, a crowd of “passionate eaters” and the odd farmer surround Randal Breen. This is Breen’s farm, and crowds are part of the business model.“Before we do anything here, we ask ourselves: is it good for the animal, the land, the farmer and for the people that we feed?” Breen says. Continue reading...‘We will fight until Kanaky is free’: how New Caledonia caught fire
The frustration that erupted into deadly violence in the French territory last week has been building for yearsIn the middle of the main road in Rivière-Salée, north of Nouméa, sits a burnt-out car. After days of rioting, young men with masked faces wave a Kanak flag as vehicles pass. All around is desolation. Shops with gutted fronts, burnt buildings, debris on the pavements and roads. Gangs of young people roam the area.The violence that erupted last week is the worst in New Caledonia since unrest involving independence activists gripped the French Pacific territory in the 1980s. Continue reading...‘We don’t have a democracy’: why some Oregonians want to join Idaho
Proponents of the Greater Idaho movement have argued Democrats in Portland don’t understand their way of lifeUnder a large tent at the Crook county fairgrounds in Prineville, Oregon, six people stand in a neat line, each clutching the gun in their holster. “Shooters, set,” a man to the side yells. They wait. A light turns on in the centre of the target. They fire. A clock above records how long it took them to draw, shoot and, if they managed to, hit the target. They’re playing in pairs. Best two out of three wins.Welcome to Oregon’s Cowboy Fast Draw State Championship, a sport organisers say is “dedicated to the romance and legend of the Old West”. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/18/oregon-idaho-border-vote
How China is using AI news anchors to deliver its propaganda
News avatars are proliferating on social media and experts say they will spread as the technology becomes more accessibleThe news presenter has a deeply uncanny air as he delivers a partisan and pejorative message in Mandarin: Taiwan’s outgoing president, Tsai Ing-wen, is as effective as limp spinach, her period in office beset by economic under performance, social problems and protests.“Water spinach looks at water spinach. Turns out that water spinach isn’t just a name,” says the presenter, in an extended metaphor about Tsai being “Hollow Tsai” – a pun related to the Mandarin word for water spinach. Continue reading...Disappearing ink, fake polls and voter fraud: EU fears as Russian propaganda ads target Euro elections
Researcher uncovers vast Facebook campaign and accuses Meta of ‘lack of willingness’ to counter itThe stories are doom-laden, laced with vitriolic sneers about Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Ursula von der Leyen. Ukrainians are “ready to depose” their leader, Macron is breaking French “rules” with aid to Ukraine, an “uncontrolled influx” from the east is “seriously harming the Germans”.According to new research, these are just a few examples of a vast pro-Russian propaganda campaign washing over Facebook accounts of French and German citizens, before the European parliament elections next month. Continue reading...How a smear campaign against NPR led Elon Musk to feud with Signal
Rightwing media personalities on X transmuted a screed against NPR’s CEO into a fight over encryption via the Transitive Property of Bad PeopleFor nearly two weeks, an esoteric debate has raged on X, formerly Twitter: could users concerned about privacy and security trust the messaging app Signal, or was the Telegram platform a better alternative? X’s chatbot, Grok AI, described the trending moment as “Telegram v Signal: a crypto clash”.Signal is an app for sending end-to-end-encrypted messages to individuals and small groups. Telegram offers broadcast channels and messaging but is not end-to-end encrypted by default. Debates over their relative merits have popped up over the years, though largely within the confines of online spaces inhabited by cybersecurity, cryptography, privacy and policy geeks. This time, the conversation came to broader attention – Elon Musk’s following of 183 million – due to X’s most notorious capability: mutating isolated facts into viral conspiracy theories for the entertainment of rage-riddled crowds. As a bit player, I got a ringside seat to the manufactured controversy. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/18/npr-elon-musk-signal
‘I’m the new Oppenheimer!’: my soul-destroying day at Palantir’s first-ever AI warfare conference
America’s military-industrial complex took center stage at AI Expo for National Competitiveness, where a fire-breathing panel set the toneOn 7 and 8 May in Washington DC, the city’s biggest convention hall welcomed America’s military-industrial complex, its top technology companies and its most outspoken justifiers of war crimes. Of course, that’s not how they would describe it.It was the inaugural “AI Expo for National Competitiveness”, hosted by the Special Competitive Studies Project – better known as the “techno-economic” thinktank created by the former Google CEO and current billionaire Eric Schmidt. The conference’s lead sponsor was Palantir, a software company co-founded by Peter Thiel that’s best known for inspiring 2019 protests against its work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) at the height of Trump’s family separation policy. Currently, Palantir is supplying some of its AI products to the Israel Defense Forces. Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/17/ai-weapons-palantir-war-technology
How to give the humble cardigan a sexy French Girl vibe | Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion
The actual cardi needn’t be fancy. The magic is in how you wear it and the attitude you bringTo dress “like a French girl” means to look not just chic, but charming too. Allow me to try to translate (I dress French better than I speak it these days). The “girl” bit matters, because it softens the Gallic hauteur. Our French girl is not a Parisian madame, ribs rattling against her Chanel suit like ice in a glass. The FG’s hair is a little messy (though her fringe is somehow always perfect) and her clothes are not box-fresh (neither are they scruffy). Her outfit never does too much (Emily in Paris is not an FG) but its details – jewellery, a scallop-edge scarf, a vintage bag – make her intriguing. You will find the FG doing something perfectly prosaic – reading her book on the metro, buying bread – in a way that is irresistibly alluring.The latest prosaic thing the French girl makes bafflingly charming? Wearing a cardigan. When an English woman wears a cardigan, it’s a vibe, but not a hot one. On the internet, it is called “frazzled English woman”. Her cardy is one of a hodgepodge of layers assembled for practicality and warmth. She grabs a cardy from the back of a chair and yanks it over her shoulders with all the grace of a woman slinging a tea towel on the peg. Continue reading...‘I did a lot of yelling’: Tom Burke on socks, controversy and Mad Max
Yes, there were more flame-throwers, but working on Furiosa was pretty similar to starring in Joanna Hogg’s The Souvenir, says the actor. So how does he duck the crossfire that comes with playing JK Rowling’s Strike?When Tom Burke was cast in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the prequel to the crash-bang spectacular Mad Max: Fury Road, he sat his 77-year-old mother down in front of the television and showed her the previous film in that post-apocalyptic series, just to give her some idea of what he was letting himself in for. Afterwards, she looked concerned. “Will you be mainly inside or outside?” she asked.Any parent would worry. As Praetorian Jack, he helps the young Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) take revenge against the pharaoh-like warlord (Chris Hemsworth) who killed her mother. Jack’s job is to sit at the wheel of the War Rig, one of those whopping great tankers without which any Mad Max movie would be underdressed, and shoot high-speed pursuers off their motorbikes. The character is kitted out in battered black leather, not unlike Mel Gibson in the original trilogy, with a smudge of grease across the top third of his face like the mask on a cartoon burglar. In addition to the actor’s own scar from childhood surgery on a cleft lip, which has left a jaunty crimp on the upper right side of his mouth, he sports as Jack a crooked duelling scar under one eye. Continue reading...Marina Hyde on Russell Brand’s baptism; plus ‘deepfake’ cheerleaders: the woman wrongly accused over a viral video – podcast
Marina Hyde: ‘So Russell Brand was baptised in the Thames, and all his sins were washed away. Cheaper than a lawyer, I suppose’; plus Jenny Kleeman meets Raffaella Spone, the woman accused of creating and circulating a damaging ‘deepfake’ video of teenage cheerleaders. The problem? Nothing was fake after all. Continue reading...‘Super cute please like’: the unstoppable rise of Shein – podcast
It is taking fast fashion to ever faster and ever cheaper extremes, and making billions from it. Why is the whole world shopping at Shein? By Nicole Lipman Continue reading...The children of the contaminated blood scandal – podcast
It is the NHS’s worst treatment disaster – with 30,000 patients infected. Two survivors, Ade Goodyear and Andy Evans, explain why it took so long for it to be brought to lightAde Goodyear was 15 when he was told he had contracted HIV. Like about 30,000 other NHS patients – including more than 300 children – who were given blood transfusions or commercial blood products before 2019, he was infected by contaminated blood. Some patients got HIV and hepatitis C from blood transfusions after childbirth or other medical procedures. Ade was infected with HIV at the medical centre of his school.Pupils at his Treloar’s college, which had a specialist haemophilia unit, were among those given injections of a blood plasma product called factor VIII concentrate. Concerns had been raised a decade before by the World Health Organization because it was a commercial product that mixed plasma from tens of thousands of often high-risk donors. If one had an infection such as HIV, it could contaminate the whole batch. Continue reading...The Premier League’s race for Europe and Celtic’s title – Football Weekly Extra podcast
Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Nedum Onuoha and John Brewin as Manchester United and Chelsea get important wins in their hunt for European football next seasonRate, review, share on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.On the podcast today: the race for fifth/sixth and Europa League football next season is still alive – Chelsea could still catch Spurs and only Manchester United winning the FA Cup would earn Newcastle a spot. Continue reading...AI, algorithms and apps: can dating be boiled down to a science? – podcast
Last week the founder of the dating app Bumble forecasted a near future dating landscape where AI ‘dating concierges’ filter out prospective partners for us. But does AI, or even science, really understand what makes two people compatible? Madeleine Finlay speaks to Amie Gordon, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, to find out what we know about why two people go the distance, and why she and her colleague associate professor of sociology Elizabeth Bruch, are designing their own dating app to learn more.Clips: BloombergRead more about Amie’s app here Continue reading...What keeps the world’s top climate scientists up at night? – podcast
Hundreds of climate experts expect global temperatures to rise to at least 2.5C (4.5F) above preindustrial levels by 2100. Damian Carrington reportsWhen the Guardian’s environment editor, Damian Carrington, decided to survey the world’s top climate scientists, he had no idea how many of them would want to participate.“I was astonished by the flood of responses that came back,” he tells Hannah Moore. Continue reading...Donald Trump comes face to face with former fixer Michael Cohen – podcast
This week, it was Donald Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen’s turn to take the stand in the hush-money trial in New York. Cohen walked the jury through the steps he says he took to make any potential story that would damage Trump’s image go away, in advance of the 2016 election.The defence is trying to chip away at Cohen’s credibility, to sow seeds of doubt among the jury listening to his testimony. So how did he do? Jonathan Freedland asks former federal prosecutor Ankush Khardori what he makes of the prosecution’s star witness so farArchive: Fox News 5, CBS News, CNN, Sky Australia Continue reading...David Copperfield ‘was in my nightmares’: the women alleging sexual misconduct - video
A Guardian US investigation is reporting allegations of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour by illusionist David Copperfield. Testimonies from two women, both of whom are portrayed by actors, describe their alleged experiences and the impact it had on their lives. Copperfield denies all of the allegations and has never been charged with criminal wrongdoing Continue reading...Four kids left: The Thai school swallowed by the sea – video
Ban Khun Samut Chin, a coastal village in Samut Prakan province, Thailand, has been slowly swallowed by the sea over the past few decades. This has led to the relocation of the school and many homes, resulting in a dwindling population. Currently, there are only four students attending the school, often leaving just one in each classroom. The village has experienced severe coastal erosion, causing 1.1-2km (0.5-1.2 miles) of shoreline to disappear since the mid-1950s Continue reading...British surgeon in Gaza speaks out as Israel offensive deepens in Rafah – video
British surgeon Dr Omar El-Taji has been in Gaza for more than a week with medical nonprofit Fajr Scientific, working in one of Gaza’s largest remaining hospitals as Israel’s invasion of Rafah deepens. The European hospital, which was founded by Unrwa with a grant from the EU, has limited resources and fewer local staff to deal with high numbers of patients being admitted with devastating injuries. ‘These people have gone through this for six to seven months now, they cannot go through this any more,’ says El-Taji, who is currently living at the hospital after the medical team’s safe house was evacuated. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has so far rejected US pressure to hold off on a full-scale attack, claiming Rafah is the last stronghold of Hamas and that Israel can only achieve its war aims by killing militants and leaders in the cityIsraeli tanks reach residential areas as IDF pushes further into Rafah Continue reading...New Caledonia: curfew imposed as violence spreads before French debate – video
New Caledonia has imposed a curfew and banned public gatherings in the capital, Nouméa, after a day of protests against plans to expand the territory's voter roll to include more French citizens. The protests, which have been simmering for weeks, were organised by the pro-independence field action coordination committee (CCAT) in response to plans by France to expand voter eligibility in local elections to include French nationals who have lived on the island for more than 10 years. The move, which is due to come up for debate in the French parliament on Tuesday, is strongly opposed by leaders of the Indigenous Kanak population, who see it as an attempt to further minimise their influenceNew Caledonia imposes curfew after day of violent protests against constitutional change Continue reading...Why genocide is so hard to prove – video
South Africa's case against Israel over allegations of genocide before the international court of justice has raised a central question of international law: what is genocide and how do you prove it? It is one of three genocide cases being considered by the UN's world court, but since the genocide convention was approved in 1948, only three instances have been legally recognised as genocide. Josh Toussaint-Strauss looks back on these historical cases to find out why the crime is so much harder to prove than other atrocities, and what bearing this has on South Africa's case against Israel and future casesWhat is the genocide convention and how might it apply to the UK and Israel?‘Famine is setting in’: UN court orders Israel to unblock Gaza food aid Continue reading...https://www.theguardian.com/law/video/2024/may/09/why-genocide-is-so-hard-to-prove-video