Australian retailer tells ceramic artist Hannah Turner it won’t restock the product amid debate over copyright Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast UK artist Hannah Turner was shocked by the image of a ceramic flamingo-shaped egg cup that showed up on her screen. She took in its green eyes, the pattern of the feathers, its thin pink legs and its overall shape. She felt recognition. Continue reading...

Scientists say bears in southern Greenland differ genetically to those in the north, suggesting they could adjust Changes in polar bear DNA that could help the animals adapt to warmer climates have been detected by researchers, in a study thought to be the first time a statistically significant link has been found between rising temperatures and changing DNA in a wild mammal species. Climate breakdown is threatening the survival of polar bears. Two-thirds of them are expected to have disappeared by 2050 as their icy habitat melts and the weather becomes hotter. Continue reading...

Papua New Guinea has one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics in the Asia-Pacific region, with many unaware they have the virus After battling illness for years, Nancy Karipa tested positive for HIV in 1999. She had just given birth to her first child. “It was a crossroads moment for me, with the fear of denial, but I chose action,” Karipa, who is now in her 50s, said at an Aids awareness event in Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby in December. She and the baby received treatment, and her child remains healthy. Karipa, from East Sepik in northern PNG, is unusual in sharing her story. The stigma around the disease is high in the Pacific nation, but speaking out has never been more important. This year PNG declared HIV a “national crisis”. Continue reading...

Taken star lends his voice to a film that questions the legitimacy of vaccines and includes interview with RFK Jr Liam Neeson has lent his voice to a new documentary that questions the legitimacy of vaccines and praises Donald Trump’s health and human services secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr. The film, called Plague of Corruption, is narrated by the Taken actor and based on a bestselling book co-authored by Judy Mikovits, a disgraced former scientist who gained notoriety during the Covid pandemic. She claimed Covid was caused by a bad strain of the flu vaccine and urged people not to get vaccinated. Continue reading...

Displaced people in Thailand voice doubts that Donald Trump can stop the fighting as violence flares on the border Half a million flee as deadly Cambodia-Thailand border clashes escalate Rangsan Angda and many of his neighbours in border areas of Thailand had already packed their bags, fearing that a ceasefire with neighbouring Cambodia would soon collapse. The ceasefire deal – brokered by Donald Trump, who proclaimed himself “President of PEACE” after he helped end five days of deadly clashes in July – had seemed precarious from the start. “Both sides are confronting one another all the time,” said Angda, 50. Continue reading...

Bridge theatre, London Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s fairytale adventure follows its archetypal characters into real-world emotion, brilliantly drawn and sung Can Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s eternally imaginative Grimm brothers mashup ever disappoint, when its book is so clever and it is driven by the most gorgeous (if tricky) music? Jordan Fein’s production shimmers and shines with all the humour and pathos of these errant fairytale characters who misadventure into the woods, winding their rearranged stories around each other. The show begins with swift efficiency, racing through some of the early songs, but it gathers feeling and there is picaresque fun. A witch’s curse inflicted on the Baker (Jamie Parker) and his wife (Katie Brayben) for the sins of his father can only be broken if they bring her Cinderella’s shoe, Rapunzel’s golden hair, Red Ridinghood’s coat and the milky white cow so dear to Jack (of the beanstalk). Continue reading...

Treasury committee will examine agency’s forecasting record and discover where it ‘needs to do better’ MPs have launched an inquiry into the role and performance of the Office for Budget Responsibility. The all-party Commons Treasury committee will spend until the end of next month investigating the independent agency’s forecasting performance and impartiality. The panel will consider whether reforms are needed 15 years after the OBR was set up by George Osborne when he was Tory chancellor. Continue reading...

Gabriel Jesus is looking to impress, Daniel Muñoz is tough to replace and is this it for Mohamed Salah at Liverpool? Premier League top scorers: the Golden Boot race This season Chelsea have held Arsenal after going down to 10 men and have beaten Barcelona, Liverpool and Tottenham. They have also dropped points against Atalanta, Brentford, Bournemouth, Brighton, Leeds, Qarabag and Sunderland. It is clear that winning against smaller sides remains a problem for Enzo Maresca. Chelsea rise to the big occasion but inconsistency flares when they are expected to win. They do not like playing against deep defences – Maresca has often reacted with dismay when opponents switch to a back five to counter his carefully formulated plans – and can be forgiven if they are edgy about hosting Everton on Saturday. David Moyes’s side have just recorded clean sheets at Bournemouth and Manchester United. They will back themselves to neutralise Chelsea’s attacking talents. Jacob Steinberg Chelsea v Everton, Saturday 3pm (all times GMT) Liverpool v Brighton, Saturday 3pm Burnley v Fulham, Saturday 5.30pm Arsenal v Wolves, Saturday 8pm Continue reading...

The PDC world darts championship is back, but could the new £1m winners’ cheque make this show too big? A team of assistant referees walks into the Twelve Pins in Finsbury Park carrying linesmen’s flags and whistles. It’s 3pm on a Thursday, you think, they’ve probably just been reffing a local game. Then, you think, there isn’t a football pitch around here. And why haven’t they changed and showered? Then more referees walk in, more linesmen, one of them in a comedy wig. And eventually the penny drops. Yes, “the Darts” is back: an indispensable festive trimming that – much like Christmas itself – always seems to roll around a little sooner every year. Fire up all the old cliches: “the beauty of set play”, “bent the wire”, “pressure the shot”. Wheel John Part out of the attic. Fingers poised on the 180 zoom. You know it’s serious, because it’s two hours before his match and Luke Littler is already on the practice board. Continue reading...

Case filed Friday morning in Australia, two days after world-leading ban came into effect Reddit has filed a challenge against Australia’s under-16s social media ban in the high court, lodging its case two days after implementing age restrictions on its website. The company said in a post on Friday that while Reddit agreed with protecting people under 16, “this law has the unfortunate effect of forcing intrusive and potentially insecure verification processes on adults as well as minors, isolating teens from the ability to engage in age-appropriate community experiences (including political discussions), and creating an illogical patchwork of which platforms are included and which aren’t”. Reddit added: “As the Australian Human Rights Commission put it, ‘There are less restrictive alternatives available that could achieve the aim of protecting children and young people from online harms, but without having such a significant negative impact on other human rights.’ Continue reading...

President Nayib Bukele entrusting chatbot known for calling itself ‘MechaHitler’ to create ‘AI-powered’ curricula Elon Musk is partnering with the government of El Salvador to bring his artificial intelligence company’s chatbot, Grok, to more than 1 million students across the country, according to a Thursday announcement by xAI. Over the next two years, the plan is to “deploy” the chatbot to more than 5,000 public schools in an “AI-powered education program”. xAI’s Grok is more known for referring to itself as “MechaHitler” and espousing far-right conspiracy theories than it is for public education. Over the past year, the chatbot has spewed various antisemitic content, decried “white genocide” and claimed Donald Trump won the 2020 election. Continue reading...

Roundhouse apologises after animation projected behind band appears to show Star of David entwined with swastika A music venue in London has apologised after antisemitic imagery was allegedly displayed on stage during a Primal Scream gig. A video appearing to show the Star of David entwined with a swastika appeared to be screened during the Scottish band’s show at the Roundhouse in Camden on Monday. Continue reading...

Bridget Phillipson says £3bn scheme focussed on local state schools will ‘transform lives’, after rise in parent appeals The government is to invest £3bn in creating bespoke places within local state schools for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send), a crucial part of its efforts to grapple with England’s rising numbers of children facing social and mental health problems. The plan announced by Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, to create up to 60,000 places within mainstream schools, will be partly funded by the suspension of a group of planned free schools, saving an estimated £600m in the coming years. The remaining £2.4bn will come from departmental spending outlined in November’s budget. Continue reading...

Roger Federer, an ardent Basel supporter, was up in the stands, in the posh seats to be precise, but even from there he could surely appreciate the grace with which Youri Tielemans clinched victory for Aston Villa. Unai Emery turned to Tielemans at half-time to lift his side and the midfielder delivered within eight minutes, his classy first-time finish regaining Villa the lead, after Evann Guessand’s early strike was cancelled out. This represented a 14th victory in their past 16 matches and it felt a significant one, too, given the pileup at the top of the league table amid the fight to advance automatically to the round of 16 in March. Continue reading...

This might be Crystal Palace’s first-ever European campaign but they are learning very quickly. Having arrived in Dublin missing some of their big-hitters including the star striker Jean-Philippe Mateta and the marauding wing-back Daniel Muñoz, they left with a comfortable victory that means they are virtually assured of a place in the Conference League playoffs. Another three points against the Finnish side KuPS as part of their ­marathon December in which Oliver Glasners’s side play eight matches in three separate competitions should be enough to secure entry directly into the knockout stages after ­slipping up against Strasbourg on their last outing. Continue reading...

Two matches is not an adequate window in which to judge a manager. Nonetheless, these are worrying times for Wilfried Nancy and Celtic. Seriously worrying, in truth. Back-to-back losses since the Frenchman’s arrival would be bad enough without the rampant manner in which Roma ensured six points from six in visits to Glasgow during this season’s Europa League. What a canter this proved from minute one. Continue reading...

Yana Leonova faces multiple charges including fraud and conspiracy for smuggling US aviation parts to Russia An ongoing FBI investigation into a Belarusian woman accused of smuggling US aviation parts and electronics to Russia is teetering on the brink of collapse after being caught in what one judge called a “Kafkaesque” case brought on by the Trump administration’s attempts to deport her before she faces trial. Federal prosecutors had worked for over a year to secure the extradition of Yana Leonova, who faces multiple charges including fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. But their efforts unraveled when immigration officials abruptly issued an order to detain and deport her soon after she was flown into the US last month, a move that plunged the case into legal chaos. Continue reading...

Trump hands 760 acres of California public land to the navy for a new defense zone, deepening border militarization The US’s southern border is poised to become more militarized following an announcement by Trump administration officials that armed forces would now oversee 760 acres of public land for a three-year period. The US Department of Interior said in a statement that jurisdiction over this acreage – located in California’s San Diego and Imperial counties – would be transferred to the US navy “to establish a National Defense Area to support ongoing border security operations”. Continue reading...

Kalimuendo and Jesus goals give Forest 2-1 away win Robbie Keane’s Ferencvaros defeat Rangers 2-1 Igor Jesus’ late goal sealed Nottingham Forest a 2-1 win in Utrecht and boosted their hopes of a top-eight finish in the Europa League group phase. Arnaud Kalimuendo’s second-half opener for Forest was cancelled out by Utrecht substitute Mike van der Hoorn before Jesus stepped off the bench to fire home the visitors’ late winner. Continue reading...

Private investigator Jonathan Rees denies telling Doreen Lawrence he was involved in bugging her A key whistleblower supporting a legal claim headed by Prince Harry and Doreen Lawrence against the publisher of the Daily Mail appears to have dealt a last-minute blow to the case against the media group. Just weeks ahead of a high court trial, Jonathan Rees, a private investigator who has supported claims of unlawful news gathering at Associated Newspapers, has contradicted a central allegation in the claimants’ case. Continue reading...

Utah judge weighs media access in prosecution of Tyler Robinson, 22, who is charged with aggravated murder The 22-year-old Utah man charged with killing Charlie Kirk made his first in-person court appearance on Thursday as his attorneys push to further limit media access in the high-profile criminal case. A Utah judge is weighing the public’s right to know details in the prosecution of Tyler Robinson against his attorneys’ concerns that the swarm of media attention could interfere with his right to a fair trial. Continue reading...

Health secretary announces investigation into Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys trust that has seen young patients take their own lives A public inquiry will be held into the failures of a north-east NHS foundation after the deaths of several patients, Wes Streeting has confirmed. The health secretary made the announcement in Darlington, speaking to the families of patients who died while receiving treatment from hospitals run by Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS foundation trust, which is headquartered in the County Durham town. Continue reading...

David McCann, 43, was arrested after police searched his flat in Edinburgh The editor of the Times and Sunday Times in Scotland has been suspended and charged over “indecent online communications”. News UK, which owns the newspapers, announced that David McCann had been suspended after he was “made the subject of a criminal investigation unrelated to his work”. Continue reading...

Board warns anything less than maximum 5% council tax rise will put financial viability of council at risk Reform UK has been accused of making “rash promises” after a local authority led by the party has been told it will have to increase council tax by the maximum amount, despite its election promises to cut costs. Warwickshire county council has been warned by its executives that anything less than a 5% maximum council tax increase will put its financial viability at risk. Continue reading...

Hospitals treating record numbers of flu patients but worst is yet to come as medical bosses urge people to get vaccinated The NHS is bracing for its worst ever winter crisis in the next fortnight because of a worsening “flu-nami” that has left hospitals, GP surgeries and ambulances services under intense strain. Hospitals are already treating record numbers of people seriously ill because of flu for the time of year. But things will get worse in the days ahead, NHS leaders said, as medical bosses urged people to get vaccinated against the virus so they can enjoy Christmas gatherings more safely. Continue reading...