⚽ Premier League updates from the 12.30pm BST kick-off ⚽ Live scores | Table | Follow us on Bluesky | And mail Tim Morning everyone and welcome to the first Premier League game of the day. For both these clubs, it’s all about the European places. Aston Villa, fourth in the table, are almost a shoo-in for the Champions League. They will go back up to third if they do better against Fulham today than Manchester United do against Brentford on Monday. And they have another route to the top table if they need it – winning the Europa League, something at which their manager, Unai Emery, is the world expert. Continue reading...
A crypto tycoon is giving record-breaking amounts to Farage’s party. But little is known about his motives Shortly before Christmas 2022, Chakrit Sakunkrit, owner of the Kamalaya Wellness Sanctuary on the Thai island of Koh Samui, invited 200 guests to spend a few days celebrating his 60th birthday. One sultry afternoon, Sakunkrit and a small group gathered around a table near the shore, surrounded by the burgundy foliage of Good Luck plants. To his right, dressed down in a polo shirt, sat Nigel Farage. Since Brexit marked the achievement of his life’s work three years earlier, Farage had fizzled. Even some of his supporters had pronounced him finished. Now, with the Conservatives in disarray after Liz Truss’s disastrous budget that September, Farage was hinting at a still more ambitious project: to make himself prime minister. Continue reading...
Dartmoor: We went for a family walk on the moor, and I ended up seeing something really rare and special It was a bright spring morning, and I had gone up to Dartmoor with my mum, my brother and my grandma for a walk in the fresh sunshine. My mum suggested that we go off the path to look at some bluebells and everyone agreed. It was beautiful. I could hear the birds singing and see the granite rocks sparkling. My grandma and my brother walked away from us, and I went in the opposite direction towards some brambles by a slab of concrete that was catching the sun. And then I saw it – a large, black snake rearing up at me. We looked at each other for a second – it had black scales and faint zigzag patterns on its body. Continue reading...
Italian newspapers claim singer and actor, who is tipped to be next James Bond, are planning ‘wedding of the year’ in the city Last July, Dua Lipa shared a series of photos on Instagram while on holiday in Palermo with Callum Turner, the British actor she had become engaged to weeks earlier. In these photos, the pair appeared radiantly in love with each other – and the Sicilian capital. There were pictures of the couple strolling through the city’s vibrant baroque alleys, admiring the ceiling frescoes in its striking cathedral and enjoying sunset boat trips. In another, a smiling Turner is holding a pair of ricotta-filled cannoli, the Sicilian dessert. One photo even captured the word ‘“amore” scrawled on a wall. Continue reading...
Gloucestershire: I have loved watching the busy nest near our house, now the chicks have fledged and keep coming in the house Spring is a relief after four months of darkness in my valley. We live on the north side, so the sun doesn’t rise above the tree line for the whole winter. A sign of spring returning is the birdsong, as they call the sun back to our valley. One of my favourites is the robin, which sings all through the year, but I have really noticed them this spring. They are bold and like to sneak into our kitchen for crumbs. Recently, a pair of our red-breasted friends built a nest in the eaves near our courtyard. Apparently, it was quite early in the year for them to nest. We watched them flying in and out, carrying small bits of twigs and moss in their beaks. Soon the busy birds stopped being so busy and I knew there must be eggs there. After a couple of weeks, we heard a high-pitched buzz coming from the nest – the birds had hatched and were crying for food. The chicks got bigger, their cries got louder and the parents worked harder. Continue reading...
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The clean geometry of the Iran Mall in Tehran, and the way light moves through it, caught the fine art photographer’s eye The Iran Mall in Tehran is the largest shopping mall in the world. Ali Zolghadri recalls it being fairly empty the day he took this image, four months before the US and Israel launched their war on Iran. “This particular spot is in the central atrium. It’s a huge, futuristic space with sweeping curved lines, layered architecture, metallic surfaces and massive skylights,” Tehran-born Zolghadri says. “The clean geometry and the way light moves through the structure really caught my eye. It’s a public space, but because of its scale, it often feels quiet and almost otherworldly.” The shot, a composite of three images, was shortlisted in the creative category of the 2026 Sony World Photography awards. “As a fine art photographer, editing is an essential part of my process,” Zolghadri says. “Every element in the final composition was photographed by me, but some unnecessary elements were removed, and the frames were carefully blended in Photoshop. I don’t use AI in my workflow; everything is captured and edited manually by me. The post-production process is a continuation of the creative act, not a shortcut.” Continue reading...
Overnight incident in Romania did not lead to hostilities as potential target stayed within Ukrainian airspace Two RAF Typhoons have been scrambled from a Romanian air base to engage Russian drones close to Nato air space although did not fire or shoot any down. British defence sources said the fighter jets did not enter Ukrainian airspace, contradicting reports that Russian drones had been shot down by the RAF there, an event which would have represented a major escalation in hostilities between the western alliance and Moscow. Continue reading...
County Championship news from around the grounds Sign up for The Spin email | Mail Tanya or post BTL The outfield is organised like a school circuits class – slip fielding to the right, stretches to the left, bowlers in the corner. Just chatted to Nick Howson from the Cricketer who was at Cardiff yesterday. He says Ian Holland was incredible, at one point bowling eight overs and only conceding one run. The crowd spread on to the Oval outfield at lunch like a lapping wave, enjoying the picture-book day and entertained by Gus Atkinson’s first proper run out since the Boxing Day Test. Continue reading...
The German has twice come close to the sack but has led team towards safety and first FA Cup semi since 1987 The crate was crammed with bottles but Daniel Farke made light work of hoisting it on to a table and inviting everyone to help themselves. It was a little after 10.30 one night in April last year, an already-promoted Leeds had just beaten Bristol City, and the manager was offering journalists an end-of-season beer. Such gestures are increasingly unusual in an ever-more corporate and sanitised sport, but Farke brings a human touch to proceedings. Indeed, his refreshingly down-to-earth approach is reminiscent of an illustrious title-winning predecessor. Behind a blunt exterior Howard Wilkinson was a caring manager who, spotting a journalist stranded outside Elland Road late one night, drove him home to Sheffield. It seems the sort of thing Farke might also do. Continue reading...
The White Lotus actor on an awful audition, an important lesson and her first kiss with Leo Woodall Born in Massachusetts, Meghann Fahy, 36, understudied for the musical Next to Normal in 2008 and went on to play a principal character on Broadway from 2010 to 2011. On television she was cast in the soap One Life to Live in 2010 and starred in the comedy drama The Bold Type from 2017 to 2021. She appears in The White Lotus season two, The Perfect Couple, Sirens and the forthcoming The Good Daughter. Her films include the thriller Drop, and Rebuilding with Josh O’Connor, in cinemas now. Her partner is the actor Leo Woodall and she lives in New York City. When were you happiest? When I realised that I could get myself through anything that came my way. Continue reading...
Study of 1,300 campaigners finds arrests, fines and jail terms increase determination of activists to take direct action The criminalisation of direct action climate protests in the UK is counterproductive and increases the determination of activists to undertake disruptive demonstrations, according to a study of 1,300 campaigners. New findings suggest arrests, fines and lengthy prison sentences given to nonviolent climate protesters who have blocked roads or damaged buildings may actually radicalise them. The repression of protest could even be one driver of recent covert actions such as the cutting of internet cables, they said. Continue reading...
A previously unknown species of bacteria found in patients with noma could be key to creating treatments for the neglected tropical disease The “astonishing” discovery of a new bacteria could open the door to better ways to prevent, detect and treat a fatal and disfiguring childhood disease, researchers hope. Noma, which is fatal in 90% of cases without treatment, begins as a sore on the gums but goes on to destroy the tissues of the mouth and face. Continue reading...
Digital communication in its most basic forms can push us into an ‘always on’ state – and generate feelings of exclusion or rejection When I first started teaching at Oxford in 2005, I would offer “office hours” a couple of times a week. They were literally that – time for students to come by my office and chat about anything on their mind. Emails were formal and for rare occasions, with the expectation that most issues would be discussed in person. Fast forward to 2026, and office hours have been replaced at many universities by constant email and Teams communication. These are incessant, with responses often expected within hours, if not minutes, blurring the line between evenings, weekends and normal working hours. I have to admit that every time a notification pops up on my phone or laptop, even before reading it, I can feel my stress levels rising. It’s made me reflect on how modern communication is pushing our minds to the limit. While most of the recent conversation on mental health and technology has focused on social media, we forget how even older forms of digital communication can push us into a stressful, “always on” way of being. Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh, and the author of How Not to Die (Too Soon) Continue reading...
West Midlands police confirm deaths in blaze on Friday evening Two young children have died in a house fire in Wolverhampton on Friday evening, West Midlands police have confirmed. More details soon … Continue reading...
She coined the term ‘intersectionality’ and helped to develop critical race theory, now her life’s work is under attack by Washington’s war on ‘woke’. As her memoir is published, the legal scholar explains why she’ll never stop speaking truth to power When Donald Trump returned to office in January last year, one of his first acts was to sign an executive order intended to cut federal funding for any school teaching what the administration defined as “critical race theory”. A raft of other orders mandated the termination of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) personnel, offices and training across the federal government. Federal agencies began flagging hundreds of words to avoid or eliminate, including “intersectional” and “intersectionality”. All of which has amounted to 40 years of Kimberlé Crenshaw’s work being literally and deliberately erased. For decades, the 66-year-old legal scholar has been naming things that powerful people would prefer remain unnamed. In 1989, she coined the term intersectionality to describe the way race and gender overlap to shape lived experience, often in ways the law fails to recognise. Around the same time, she was one of a group of African American scholars who created the framework that came to be known as “critical race theory”, which sought to examine how racism is embedded in legal systems rather than simply enacted through individual prejudice. Now, Crenshaw’s ideas are being contested like never before. Continue reading...
Boozy, tomato pasta dish is enjoying a resurgence – with Gigi Hadid posting her own take on it Despite most traditional Italians considering it sacrilegious, penne alla vodka is quickly becoming one of the most in-demand Italian dishes. Previously popular in suburban Italo-American restaurants during the 80s, the dish is now enjoying a widespread resurgence that is being driven by several factors including nostalgia and social media. Continue reading...
Haris Doukas warns that with 700,000 residents and 8 million tourists, people are being pushed out of their neighbourhoods In the heart of ancient Athens, on narrow streets and around archaeological sites, visitor groups appear to be everywhere, snaking their way behind tour guides. Previously, officials would have welcomed such scenes. But for Haris Doukas, the socialist mayor who is determined to reclaim the capital’s congested city centre for its citizens, the start of tourist season leaves the city at risk of “over-saturation.” Entire neighbourhoods, he believes, are in danger of losing their authenticity because of uncontrolled tourist development. Continue reading...
⚽ News, discussion and buildup before the day’s action ⚽ Sunderland 0-5 Nottm Forest | Fixtures | Mail us here Hello, good morning and welcome to another Matchday live! We have plenty to look forward to this afternoon, from Premier League fixtures to Championship and EFL match-ups. We also have a WSL game to preview as well as a Women’s Champions League semi-final and an FA Cup semi-final. In the Prem, Fulham host Aston Villa at lunchtime. Everton then travel to face West Ham at the London Stadium, already-relegated Wolves take on Tottenham and Liverpool face Crystal Palace. And in the late fixture, Arsenal will be looking to return to the top of the table with a win over Newcastle. But before we look ahead to those fixtures, let’s recap what happened at the Stadium of Light last night… Continue reading...
Canada forward broke the £1m transfer barrier and now eyes Sunday’s semi-final first leg against Lyon Olivia Smith is tentatively laying down roots but remains alert to the changes that can be produced by football. The 21-year-old Arsenal forward, who has nine goals and three assists in her first season in north London, has lived a nomadic football life, driven by a desire to continuously improve and move up the ladder, rung by rung, without a pause. As the season reaches its climax, a Champions League semi-final against Lyon on Sunday is testament to how far up the ladder Smith has climbed. Now, she is heading towards unknown territory: a second season at the same club for the first time in her senior career. “I do feel quite calm now, knowing that I have set down some roots here, but at the end of the day, football is football and you never know what’s next,” she says. “So I’m always on my toes but, right now, I’m kind of laid-back, just enjoying the time here in the present with Arsenal and looking forward to winning more silverware and growing as a player and a person.” Continue reading...
Progress has always been made by people who think differently. Neurodiversity helps us think outside the box – and when we do, the sky’s the limit One of my favourite pieces of scientific equipment is something called a retrospectroscope. I admit that it only exists in my imagination, but it has turned out to be a very useful bit of kit. It allows me to look back through the years of my life and analyse the journey so far. And what a journey it has been. When I started looking back in earnest as I wrote my memoir, there were many discoveries. Some made me laugh. Some made me wince. Some made me want to give my younger self a hug and a cup of hot, sweet tea. But one of the biggest standouts has been the path my dyslexia has taken me on. Continue reading...
A new UK civil resistance group has called for ‘mass shoplifting’ to focus attention on inequality, but recent stunts have led to arrests Eve Middleton was sitting on a picnic blanket in a park, sharing out vegan biscuits with six fellow activists, when she saw a squad of police bearing down on them. About 30 officers, she said, surrounded the seven young people, and one officer told them: “Don’t run or you’ll be cuffed.” Another officer focused on gathering evidence. “Whose Oreos are these?” they asked, seizing the biscuits. Continue reading...
Donald Trump attending the White House correspondents’ dinner could be awkward – and lead to blowback Last year, after the Trump White House cut off access for the Associated Press because the news organization refused to use the name Gulf of America instead of Gulf of Mexico, debate raged about whether his staffers should be welcomed at the annual White House correspondents’ dinner, the US media’s starry annual celebration of press freedom. This year, Donald Trump will attend the dinner for the first time as president. Matters have only gotten worse. Over the last 12 months, Trump has referred to a female Bloomberg News reporter as “piggy” and to news coverage of the war in Iran as “almost treasonous”. He has pressed Congress to rescind previously approved funding for public broadcasters NPR and PBS; called for television networks he dislikes to lose their license to broadcast; threatened to jail a reporter (or reporters) if they don’t reveal confidential sources for reporting on the war in Iran; had his lawyer send letters to CNN and the New York Times threatening to sue over their reporting on the US’s June 2025 bombing campaign in Iran; and filed lawsuits against the Wall Street Journal, the Times and the BBC. Continue reading...
Will the president’s reverence for royalty ease transatlantic tensions or will his protocol-smashing predilection prevail? Some expect a masterclass in soft power. Others warn of a brutal humiliation. Few in the US will envy King Charles, a royal whose entire life has been governed by protocol, next week when he faces a man who glories in smashing it. The British king will travel to Washington for a private tea and state dinner with Donald Trump at a moment when the “special relationship” has been plunged to its lowest point in 70 years by the US president’s war in Iran and belittlement of the prime minister, Keir Starmer. Continue reading...
In the end it doesn’t matter if you prefer the IPL or red-ball cricket, or which is better. The war is over April is the cruellest month, Breeding likes on the feed (nets with Virat). Continue reading...