The late actor was a charming and funny father figure, and sometime singer, in the cult TV show, one of his many roles that showed just how much he could do Anthony Head, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Ted Lasso actor, dies aged 72 For years, fans eagerly anticipated the oft-floated idea of a spinoff from the cultishly beloved 1997-2003 TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. As described by creator Joss Whedon, this miniseries would not follow beloved supporting characters like nerdy witch Willow, sardonic vampire Spike or laconic were-teen Oz. It would be called Ripper, and it would focus on the younger days of Rupert Giles, the school librarian and “watcher” character played by Anthony Head. Giles served as the tweedy mentor and father figure to Buffy, the woman chosen to keep vampires at bay, throughout the show’s seven seasons. Sadly, the show never came to pass – and now, with Head’s death at the age of 72, it probably never will, at least not with its signature star. (And probably not its creator, who has since faced multiple accusations of on-set misconduct.) But both creative and fan interest was consistently high; just think about that for a moment. This 90s-originated teen drama tantalized viewers with the promise of spinning off a token grownup character into his own adventures. To picture Buffy’s contemporaries following suit is downright laughable; consider the equivalent spinoff from Dawson’s Creek, for example. Would it star Jen’s Gram? The female teacher who committed statutory rape with Pacey? Even given the expanded possibilities of a more fantastical world, Sabrina the Teenage Witch’s aunts were never exactly in talks with the BBC, either. Continue reading...

President said he’d like to see intelligence agencies shrink as Senate blocks Fisa extension amid disquiet over nomination of Bill Pulte US politics live – latest updates Donald Trump has urged a controversial loyalist he installed as the country’s top intelligence official to fire “a lot of people” overseeing intelligence for the US federal government. The US president said Bill Pulte, who has no previous experience in the intelligence sphere, is “less shackled” because he has only been appointed director of national intelligence temporarily. Continue reading...

Driver died four years after founding McLaren but his legacy lives through his inspirational tenacity and team’s roll call of champions As the streets of Monaco echo to the roar of engines, history too will resonate long and loud in Monte Carlo this weekend. Allegiance be damned, it would take a heart of stone not to recognise McLaren’s achievement and contribution to the sport when the team that made their debut here in 1966 contest their 1000th grand prix. Bruce McLaren, the team’s founder, had brought his first F1 car, the M2B, to Monaco in 1966. On Thursday it was on the track once again, driven by their double world champion Mika Häkkinen to mark the team’s milestone race, having taken 203 victories, 13 drivers’ titles and 10 constructors’ championships. Continue reading...

Modern Art, London The mathematically named new works of Along the River are disorienting, illusive and seem to offer a flash of the secret sequences that underpin the physical world Why do we find things beautiful? More precisely, why do some paintings of coloured dots in rippling patterns inspire in me something like revelation? The idea that beauty is the feeling you get when encountering truth is unfashionable in the arts, but lingers in the sciences. The physicist Paul Dirac once proposed that it is more important that a formula is beautiful than that it can be proven: when a perfectly beautiful theory produces results that cannot be real, he argued, then we should not discard the theory but reconsider what is real. Since the 1970s, Terry Winters has been rebuilding that bridge between art and science. Taking inspiration from disciplines including botany – his early paintings, particularly, evoke sprouting pods and tangled roots – engineering, computer modelling and cybernetics, his paintings might be understood as diagrammatic approximations of the patterns that govern everything from the division of cells to the constellation of stars. If every era has to renew its standards of beauty to reflect new understandings of how the world is constructed, then Winters comes as close to providing that model as any living painter. Continue reading...

Attacks on police in Southampton, Russian strikes in Kyiv, the Ebola outbreak and PSG win the Champions League – the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists Warning: this gallery contains images some readers may find distressing Continue reading...

Exclusive: Labour’s Makerfield byelection candidate advocates public ownership of water companies as he prepares for potential leadership bid Thames Water should be nationalised, Andy Burnham has said, revealing public ownership of water companies would “absolutely be an option” under his potential leadership of the Labour party. Burnham, Labour’s candidate in the Makerfield byelection, has previously called for “greater public control” over the companies. In an interview with the Guardian, he has confirmed this could mean nationalisation. Continue reading...

For football fans in Canada, the initial prospect of the World Cup coming to town was thrilling – but hundreds of tickets remain unsold As far back as he can remember, football has long been a part of Lawrence Yee’s life. Growing up in a Canadian town where hockey was the dominant sport, he found community and passion in the game. The sport – and the full, at times devastating, spectrum of emotion that comes with fandom – has remained braided into adulthood. Nearly four years ago, when Fifa announced Toronto and Vancouver would join 14 other cities in hosting the World Cup, Yee was ecstatic. “Hearing the biggest stage, the highest competition, the biggest tournament in the world was coming into Toronto? I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime for someone like me. Being able to live in the city and cycle to the venue? I knew I’d be the first in line for tickets.” Continue reading...

Trump administration has asked DC circuit court of appeals to reverse lower court decision which blocked construction of $400m ballroom No court has the authority to halt construction of Donald Trump’s White House ballroom and a secure underground facility, a Department of Justice lawyer has argued, suggesting only US Congress had the power to stop the project. The Trump administration has asked the Washington DC circuit court of appeals to reverse a lower court decision which blocked construction of a $400m ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing. Construction of a secure bunker for staff underground at the site was allowed to proceed while the dispute between Washington DC preservationists and the White House continues. Continue reading...

Pouria Zeraati of Iran International TV was stabbed three times outside his London home in attempt to ‘silence’ him Two men have been found guilty of involvement in a targeted knife attack on an Iranian journalist in London said to have been carried out on behalf of the regime in Tehran. Pouria Zeraati, a British journalist of Iranian origin, was working for Iran International, a Farsi-language dissident broadcaster, when he was stabbed in the leg outside his west London home in 2024. Continue reading...

First Test, D2: England 140 & 226; New Zealand 113 & 36-3 Tourists toiling in pursuit of 254 victory target Sixteen wickets on the first day were followed by 17 more on the second, though like the bounce on this mischievous wicket nothing about it felt at all predictable. The day ended in glorious evening sunshine, shadows stretching as England’s lead was slowly, awkwardly reduced. But still the wickets fell, even if in a trickle rather than the torrent that started New Zealand’s first innings, and at 36 for three their target of 254 still feels very distant. The run chase started terribly, with Tom Latham edging the third ball high to Harry Brook at second slip. Thereafter Kane Williamson and Devon Conway were resolute – and, in the latter’s case, on the right side of an umpire’s call – as they clung on until the final minutes of the day, when Williamson was trapped lbw by Josh Tongue and Will O’Rourke, the nightwatcher, was bowled by Gus Atkinson. In the end the only thing that effectively stemmed the stream of dismissals was stumps. Continue reading...

Lucy Powell calls for tougher laws to tackle misinformation and says Reform UK has benefited from bots and troll farms Reform UK is destabilising British democracy by spreading divisive material that is being amplified by bots and troll farms, Labour’s deputy leader has said. Lucy Powell called for tighter laws on social media giants to tackle misinformation, arguing the online space was “open to wealthy individuals, and bad state actors”. Continue reading...

⚽️ Crucial qualifier kicks off at 8pm BST in Mallorca ⚽️ Tom Garry’s preview | Sign up for Moving the Goalposts Spain (4-3-3): Coll; Batlle, Paredes, León, Corrales; Caldentey, Guijarro, Putellas; López, Imade, Paralluelo. Subs: Rodríguez, Nanclares, Méndez, Carmona, Codina, Serrajordi, Bonmatí, Benítez, González, Del Castillo, Navarro, Pina. England (4-3-3): Hampton; Bronze, Wubben-Moy, Morgan, Greenwood; Toone, Walsh, Stanway; Hemp, Russo, James. Subs: Moorhouse, Baggaley, Le Tissier, Carter, Charles, Fisk, Kendall, Mead, Park, Godfrey, Blindkilde, Kelly. Continue reading...

Russian president describes letter from his Ukrainian counterpart as rude and says he can no point in face-to-face talks Vladimir Putin has rejected an offer from Volodymyr Zelenskyy to hold a face-to-face meeting, insisting instead that Russia will achieve its war goals in Ukraine, including seizing all of the eastern Donbas region. Speaking at the Saint Petersburg economic forum, the Russian president described the open letter from his Ukrainian counterpart containing the offer as rude. He refused to use Zelenskyy’s name, referring to him only as its author. Asked if they could meet to discuss an end to the conflict, Putin replied: “So far I see no point.” Continue reading...

Chagos Refugees delegation says issue ‘hijacked within the halls’ of politics on visit to UK A Chagossian delegation visiting the UK has urged parliamentarians to complete stalled legislation to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which they say has been “hijacked within the halls” of UK politics. The six-person contingent from the Chagos Refugees group expressed their full support for the UK to conclude an agreement after the government was forced to shelve legislation when the US dropped support for the agreement. Continue reading...

Second seed wins semi-final 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 Cobolli through after Arnaldi withdraws due to virus Alexander Zverev moved to within one match of a long-awaited first grand slam title as he defeated Jakub Mensik, the Czech 26th seed, 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the French Open final for the second time. Zverev, the second seed and world No 3, will contest his fourth grand slam final on Sunday.The German lost his first grand slam final at the 2020 US Open in a fifth set tie-break against Dominic Thiem having led by two sets and served for the match in the fifth. He was then defeated by Carlos Alcaraz here in 2024 and Jannik Sinner in the 2025 Australian Open final. He will face the 10th seed Flavio Cobolli in the Italian’s first grand slam final after Matteo Arnaldi was forced to withdraw from their match due to a virus, a development that was announced just 25 minutes before the semi-final was due to begin. Continue reading...

MPs urged to push for ‘radical reform’ after NAO finds former prince made income from Royal Lodge properties Campaigners have called for radical reform and a public inquiry into “all royal finances” after revelations that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor received an undisclosed private income from subletting three cottages on his Royal Lodge estate while paying a “peppercorn rent”. A report from the public spending watchdog, the National Audit Office (NAO), found the rental income went to the former Duke of York, but said: “We do not know what rent was charged.” Continue reading...

Anger and distress at the treatment of the stabbed teenager is widely shared. But the online amplification of myths and grievances must be tackled To learn of the last minutes of Henry Nowak’s life would be shocking and distressing under any circumstances. The stabbed teenager begged officers for help, as they handcuffed him before realising their mistake. To watch those final moments, on the police body-cam footage released this week, is all the more immediate, and unbearable. The outrage is widely shared. But the way it has been weaponised is alarming. His family’s wish is for his legacy to be a renewed effort to reduce knife crime, not increased antagonism along racial and religious lines. Instead, the unscrupulous are using the power of the footage and the speed of social media to spread myths about “two-tier policing” and turn trauma into political mobilisation. Rightly, Hampshire’s chief constable has apologised. Three of the officers involved are being investigated, while a fourth has left the force. Policies are being reviewed. Vickrum Digwa will serve at least 20 years for murder before being eligible for parole. Sir Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch have met with the victim’s family. Continue reading...

A new national institution, the brainchild of revered artist Sir Quentin Blake, shows this overlooked artform is finally getting the recognition it deserves “What is the use of a book … without pictures or conversation?” the heroine of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland complains. When you think of Alice, you probably imagine John Tenniel’s 19th-century engravings. Roald Dahl’s BFG is now synonymous with Sir Quentin Blake’s big-eared giant, and the much-loved Gruffalo owes as much to Axel Scheffler’s drawings as Julia Donaldson’s rhymes. And yet illustration nearly always plays second fiddle to words. Caught between fine art and publishing, it is often overlooked as a highly skilled craft in its own right. Hopefully, this is about to change with the opening of the first permanent home for illustration in the UK, and the largest of its kind in the world. The centre is the brainchild of 93-year-old Sir Quentin Blake, who gives it his name and huge archive of 40,000 drawings. Many wonderful creations – crocodiles, birds, babies who transform into dragons – have sprung from Blake’s imagination. This museum, in a cleverly repurposed 17th-century former waterworks in London’s Clerkenwell, will celebrate the history and future of illustration in all its guises. Continue reading...

PM rebuffs US state department’s criticism, adding police response to murder of Henry Nowak is under review Keir Starmer has rejected the claim that the UK is subject to “two-tier policing” after the Trump administration suggested it was evident in the response to the murder of teenager Henry Nowak. The prime minister said the UK must not shy away from asking difficult questions of the police after officers handcuffed Nowak as he lay dying from stab wounds after his killer, Vickrum Digwa, had falsely accused him of racist abuse. Digwa was ultimately convicted of murder and jailed for life with a minimum of 21 years. Continue reading...

Technology secretary promises to support people whose jobs are swept away by automation Liz Kendall has insisted Labour will make artificial intelligence “work for workers”, and not abandon people whose jobs are swept away by its rapid advance. With public fears mounting about the impact of AI on employment, particularly for young people, the technology secretary claimed that the government could shape the way it is adopted. Continue reading...

Long-serving presenter has been diagnosed with commonest form of dementia, says Alzheimer’s Society The former Channel 4 News anchor Jon Snow has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, the Alzheimer’s Society has said. More details soon … Continue reading...

National Portrait Gallery, London The actor’s life in pictures, from mousey-haired teen to American icon to her shocking death at 36, beams with the charm that defined a century. But why aren’t we shown more of what lay behind the smile? I wanted to hate the National Portrait Gallery’s new blockbuster show, Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait. It represents two things that really should be binned: anniversary exhibitions (it marks Monroe’s 100th birthday) and exhibitions of celebrity portraits. Anniversaries rarely signify anything other than the passing of time, which is an inevitable and uninteresting fact of life. As for exhibitions of celebrity photographs – they’re like anniversary shows, only with faces. And yet … I didn’t quite hate this show, and the reason is Monroe herself. We first see her as Norma Jeane Baker, a regular-looking teenager with mousey brown hair, in a self-portrait taken in a photo booth in 1940. She then becomes the radiant, uncontainable, insanely glamorous film star, cheesecake pin-up and actor seen here in photographs, paintings, and excerpts from her films. Continue reading...

O’Neill agrees one-year deal after successful return Keane had a managerial spell with Maccabi Tel Aviv Celtic are expected to confirm the appointment of Martin O’Neill as the club’s permanent manager after the 74-year-old agreed a one-year contract to remain in Glasgow. O’Neill led Celtic to the domestic double during the second of two interim spells he undertook this season. Robbie Keane had been prominent in the thoughts of the Celtic hierarchy and held talks with Dermot Desmond, the club’s principal shareholder, earlier this week. Butthe potential appointment of Keane was met with a furious backlash by an element of the Celtic support, who objected to his managerial spell in Israel. Keane was in charge of Maccabi Tel Aviv before switching to Hungary and Ferencvaros, from whom he resigned at the end of May. Continue reading...

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Reform UK leader looks spooked by far-right Restore and risks undermining efforts to appeal to moderate voters Nigel Farage’s self-confidence is famously iron-clad. But just before 12.30pm on Wednesday as a visibly angry Keir Starmer tore into his “unforgivable” response to the murder of Henry Nowak, Farage’s attempts to laugh off the criticism looked unconvincing. He was rattled. This has been a curious week for the Reform UK leader. The headlines have been dominated by a story seemingly tailor-made for his culture war instincts. But some believe that this time Farage might have overplayed his hand. Continue reading...