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Pole beats Rybakina to win her first title in 11 months but is angry about disapproving voices from her own country It came as no surprise that almost a year of pent-up emotion exploded from Iga Swiatek the moment she slotted her final backhand winner to clinch the Canadian Open title by defeating Elena Rybakina in two clean sets on Thursday night. As she screamed towards her team members on her corner of the court, pointed to her head and furiously pumped her fist, though, it was the tenor of Swiatek’s emotion that made her reaction noteworthy: she was angry. Her anger, she explained later, stemmed from the doubtful, disapproving voices she has heard throughout these difficult periods, most of it coming from viewers and the media alike in Poland. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/d4hT7B3

Actor who played Shirley Johnson in the sitcom Citizen Smith, and whose dozens of other roles included EastEnders, Doctor Who and The Bill Cheryl Hall, who has died aged 76, was an actor best known for her roles in 1970s sitcoms. As Shirley Johnson in Citizen Smith, she was the girlfriend of Wolfie, the would-be revolutionary leading the Tooting Popular Front with the battle cry “power to the people”. Wolfie Smith, played by Hall’s then husband, the actor Robert Lindsay, and his small “army” of self-styled urban guerrillas, are simply inept, concocting plans such as stealing a Scorpion tank in order to mount an attack on the House of Commons, only to discover that parliament is in recess. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/DbmVUI4

Summerhall, Edinburgh Fadi Murad’s unconventional drama is a collage structured with the free-form imagination of a poet Last year, a group of Scottish producers staged a four-day mini festival called Welcome to the Fringe, Palestine . One of the excerpts was a scratch performance by Fadi Murad, which now returns as a full-length show. It is not a conventional drama. Rather, Come Back Home is structured with the free-ranging imagination of a poet, an impressionistic collage that resists straightforward interpretation. Murad’s theme is one of loss and the pull of home, focusing in particular on the death of his mother in a car accident when he was nine. He speaks touchingly from a child’s perspective of what it meant to lose the nurturer in his life, the one he turned to in just such a moment of distress. And he shares video footage of his younger self singing Mad World by Tears for Fears at her memorial. It is as cute as it is sad. At Summerhall, Edinburgh , until 31 August All our Ed...

Move by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is latest government rollback of climate science activity The Trump administration has pulled its support for an annual report on the environmental changes across the Arctic, a region that is already heating up four times faster than the global average due to the climate crisis. On Tuesday, Kim Doster, the communications director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), said the federal agency was withdrawing its support for the Arctic Report Card, which has provided environmental updates on the region to scientists and the public since 2006. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/EFgzKAo

The former Al-Ahli head coach, chosen by the club’s Saudi owners to replace Eddie Howe, admits ‘vacuum’ after sale of three key players Matthias Jaissle has been described as “fire” and a “rock star”, but his formal “unveiling” as Newcastle’s manager revealed a rather more considered and conservative character than advertised. At the precise moment the clock struck 3pm on Tuesday the 38-year-old German walked into a packed media suite at St James’ Park. Before taking his seat on the stage Jaissle, wearing a smartly understated open necked suit complete with a silk pocket square, took a deep breath and jumped down into audience, making a point of shaking everyone’s hand. It was a courteous and classy gesture. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/42EuH7B

Underbelly, Bristo Square, Edinburgh Audience members are invited to examine what they will do with their lives in this earnest shared thought experiment If you could hold the years of your life in your hands like coins, would you choose to spend them differently? This is the thoughtful, earnest tone of Ten Ways to Die Happy, an existential but somewhat formulaic Italian production (performed here in English) created by Emanuele Aldrovandi and Jacopo Giacomoni. In this gentle gameshow, we are asked not just to consider how we would use the finite time we have, but to put this thought experiment into practice. Eight people are plucked at random from the audience. My number is called, so I don a white robe, choose a new name for my new life, and take a seat on stage. Perla Ambrosini is our ethereal host, standing in fabric armour in a shallow pool of water. Each of us has a tray of flowers that we throw into the pool, every plastic bud representing the “energy” available to invest in wor...

Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh With the air of a hungover postmortem, Richardson gives a head-spinning account of an encounter with an older comedian If you’re partial to a bit of gossip and scandal, Harriet Richardson is your girl. In this gloriously juicy debut hour, she dishes the dirt on the DMs she received from an older comedian and the intense, utterly absorbing events that followed. Yes, she found his eBay account. And yes, she spent six months tracking him down on a dating app only to play his profile song hundreds of times. But what else is a girl driven by obsession supposed to do? We meet Richardson, who until now has worked primarily as a performance artist, all smiles and ready to share. She takes us back to the creation of her 2024 viral piece 100 Dates , in which she spent Valentine’s Day online speed-dating in an attempt to analyse her relationship with infatuation and connection. The comedian in question used the project as the opening line of his first message to her...

Astronomers say viewing conditions promising for this year’s shower, and 50 to 100 meteors an hour may be visible The Perseid summer light show is back, and viewing conditions are especially promising across the northern hemisphere. The meteor shower’s is expected to peak on Wednesday night into Thursday morning, and coincides with a total solar eclipse across Spain, Iceland and Greenland and a six-planet parade – though the best time to view the fireballs will come after totality. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/UwZoAQY

Warning of increased activity as patrols spent 21 days in July shadowing Moscow’s ships in Dover Strait and North Sea The Royal Navy has warned of increasing Russian activity around the UK’s waters after it spent 21 days in July monitoring Moscow’s ships. Naval operations to monitor Russian vessels increased by 25% last month compared with the previous year, with warships making repeated voyages through the Dover Strait and North Sea. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/qsGcmEg

While able to play deeper, the onus will also be on Arsenal’s £75m signing to provide creativity in an attack that has struggled to break down the low block Data shows deal could be another set-piece masterstroke If there was one of his many assets Newcastle supporters grew to love above all about Bruno Guimarães then it was best summed up by the man himself after being unveiled as Arsenal’s new £75m signing . “That’s a tough one,” said the Brazil midfielder when asked what fans in north London can expect from him. “I would say I can pass the ball, run a lot and play like a warrior. I’ll never give up.” After more than four years on Tyneside and having seen Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali precede Eddie Howe’s departure, Guimarães – who was devastated after missing a penalty for the Seleção in their defeat against Norway in the last 16 of the World Cup – was determined to seize his opportunity. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4AzVD0J

Police arrested Herbert Wayne Smith, 65, in connection with the Gann fire, which has burned more than 15 sq miles in Calaveras county At least one person has died in a wildfire burning in the foothills of California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range that officials believed was sparked by a man using a chainsaw. Police arrested Herbert Wayne Smith, 65, in connection with the Gann fire, which has destroyed seven buildings, scorched more than 15 sq miles in Calaveras county and killed a well-known dog breeder in the town of Angels Camp. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/U3bxVtO

Social media video shows 60-year-old woman being led away in handcuffs, but she was released minutes later The Argentinian government posted a video on social media showing a 60-year-old woman being led away in handcuffs by two federal police officers during an immigration operation in Buenos Aires. The woman’s face is shown unblurred in the video, which has nearly 1m views and depicts one of hundreds of such operations carried out by the administration of the far-right president, Javier Milei, directly inspired by Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in the US. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/DTzlMvo

The creator documented her battle with rare bile duct cancer, inspiring more than a million followers online Sydney Towle, a TikTok creator who shared her battle with stage 4 cholangiocarcinoma, or bile duct cancer, with over a million online followers, has died at age 26, her family announced on Thursday. Towle gained fame for her posts about her life as a spirited young woman who encouraged her TikTok followers to rethink how a cancer patient might look and live. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/IJUNn41

Many online questioned how long the blogger’s broadcast remained up on the app and shared mental health resources Social media users have criticized TikTok after celebrity blogger Perez Hilton livestreamed himself self-harming on the platform, prompting many to question how long the broadcast remained live and others to share mental health resources and encourage those in need to seek help. On Tuesday night, Hilton, 48, livestreamed himself engaging in self-harm as viewers pleaded for him to stop. Shortly after, local authorities responded to his home in Miami, Florida, where he was transported to a nearby hospital for medical treatment. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/y54wY9Z

Obama-appointed judge seemed unmoved by Trump attorneys’ arguments in case also naming Murdoch A federal judge in Florida seemed skeptical of arguments from Donald Trump ’s legal team on Wednesday over whether the court should allow a $10bn defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal to move forward. Trump sued the Journal and the News Corp founder Rupert Murdoch over a July 2025 article about a “bawdy” letter reportedly from Trump that was included in a 2003 birthday book for disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein . Trump has denied authoring or signing the letter, and his attorneys have argued that the Journal published the story despite having been told it was false. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/o905FaS

Gill’s dramas of divided class loyalties such as The York Realist had a clear-eyed precision matched by his rigorous work as a director Peter Gill, playwright who turned ordinary lives into extraordinary drama, dies aged 86 Peter Gill, who has died aged 86, was one of the unsung heroes of British theatre. As both director and playwright his work was characterised by its uncompromising honesty and unflinching integrity. Much admired by his fellow artists, he at last achieved a degree of public fame in his annus mirabilis of 2002 when his terrific play The York Realist won a number of awards and the Sheffield Crucible staged a month-long retrospective of his work as well as a brand-new play, Original Sin . Few remember that Gill, born into a Welsh, working class Catholic family, began life as an actor: look closely and you can spot him in the film of Zulu. But it was at London’s Royal Court, where he began work as an associate director in 1964, that he learned his craft and acquired th...

Hundreds of structures damaged as firefighters battle to contain 15 major wildfires amid extreme heat and drought Firefighters in Washington state are battling wildfires that have forced 60,000 people to flee and destroyed hundreds of buildings as drought and extreme heat fuel an “extraordinary” fire season in the Pacific north-west. Fifteen major blazes are raging across the state, David Upthegrove, the head of Washington’s department of natural resources, told reporters over the weekend. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/nhgxq10

Health secretary, longtime vaccination skeptic, spent years boosting misinformation about vaccines including MMR Robert F Kennedy Jr , the US health secretary, on Sunday told American parents that they should get their children vaccinated against measles , as the surge in infections has reached numbers not seen in the past 35 years. Kennedy, a leading vaccination skeptic who has spent years amplifying misinformation about vaccines, including the shot that protects against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), made his call in the course of a contentious interview with CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday morning. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/wE0yKV2

The comedian and Drag Race Down Under judge on Harry Styles, not having the legs for short shorts, and why sleep is the most expensive beauty product You’re back on the judging panel of Drag Race Down Under vs The World. What do you think gives Australian queens the edge? I think our drag tends not to focus as much on female impersonation. It’s about building a character. People like Lazy Susan, who’s on the judging panel this year, is one of my favourites because there’s no illusion about this being a man in women’s clothing, but there’s creativity to it. I think Australian drag is about creating art, as opposed to creating a woman. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/iX5oZlu

Ryu’s bid for third consecutive major win in doubt England’s Lottie Woad and Charley Hull in contention Had this stumble taken place a day later, it would have counted as one of the most remarkable in recent major championship memory. Instead, Ryu Hae-ran has 18 holes to recover from events at Royal Lytham and St Annes in round three of this Women’s Open. Saturday proved it is never, ever over on terrain such as this. Adam Scott can verify that, such was his horrible capitulation here as Ernie Els claimed the Open of 2012. There must be something about Lytham. Ryu is looking to set an extraordinary record of three major wins in as many starts. Early in the third round, she looked firmly on course for that. The South Korean marched to a four-shot lead after four. Her advantage was the same on the 7th tee. By the time she walked from the 18th green, Ryu was three adrift of Yealimi Noh. Quite the turnaround. How damaging? That remains to be seen. Continue reading... from The Guardian h...

Wildfires in Europe, Russian missile strikes in Lviv, a tornado in Wisconsin and Spencer Tunick in Spain – the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/9jsotf6

CRS officers funded by UK tried to stop boarding of boat, on day four asylum seekers died trying to cross Channel French riot police funded by UK taxpayers used teargas on asylum seekers in a bid to stop them from boarding a boat in which three women were later found dead, a charity has claimed. Footage and photographs seen by the Guardian show CS gas canisters being fired towards groups of people on Plage du Braek near Dunkirk at 4am on Thursday. At 6am, three women were found dead in a boat near the same beach. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/AujXObf

‘Will not play again in foreseeable future’ Club concede Wednesday’s second-team cup fixture Saltburn Cricket Club have said they are treating allegations of cheating very seriously and have suspended the player at the centre of the controversy for the “foreseeable future”. A Saltburn fielder was accused of clicking his fingers to get a catch behind and footage of several incidents later went viral on social media. The first video, posted on Monday evening, was from Saltburn’s second XI victory over Norton in Division Two of North Yorkshire and South Durham Cricket League. It showed the fielder clicking his fingers as the ball passed the bat of the Norton batter, Noman Shabir, before being caught by the wicketkeeper, Josh Bowes, and the umpire gave him out. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/n0Tto9d

Bloggers David and Ina Steiner were stalked by eBay executives over their critical coverage of the company Ebay and three former top executives have agreed to pay $55.7m to resolve a lawsuit by a Massachusetts couple who fell victim ⁠to a bizarre stalking and ⁠harassment campaign carried out ​by several of its employees in retaliation for their coverage of the e-commerce company in a newsletter they publish. David and Ina Steiner announced the settlement late on Monday, bringing an end to a ⁠case they filed in 2021 in Boston federal court after several former eBay employees were prosecuted for targeting them in a cyberstalking campaign that involved sending the couple cockroaches, fly larvae and a bloody Halloween pig mask. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/s62GTLh

English clubs have spent more on players this summer than the other four major European leagues combined The financial power of the Premier League is unmatched. The teams in England’s top division have collectively invested more than £1.4bn in new players already this summer (through disclosed fees alone), around £303m more than the 76 clubs from the Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A combined. These figures are the gross spend, so take no account of players sold to help balance the books. Factoring this in only increases the divide. The clubs of Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga are £203.4m and £72.2m in credit from their transfer dealings respectively. While La Liga (£163.1m) and Serie A (£124.1m) have spent more than they have earned, they are an ocean adrift of the Premier League’s net spend of £523.6m. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/NGzDbx5

Kentucky senator has been absent and not seen in public since mid-June after he was hospitalized due to a fall US politics live – latest updates US senator Mitch McConnell is still not cleared to return to work, his office confirmed on Monday, six weeks after he was hospitalized after a fall at his home. An update released alongside a new photograph of the Republican lawmaker – one of the highest-profile figures in Congress , as a former Senate majority leader – said he was undergoing “intense physical therapy” and is “working hard” to get back to his duties. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/t2DPk05

Israeli prime minister says ICC’s war crime charges are ‘bogus’ and plans to be in New York for UN gathering this fall Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Zohran Mamdani , the New York City mayor, is “fomenting hate” by calling the Israeli prime minister a war criminal who should be arrested over Israel ’s war in Gaza if he visits the city for the United Nations general assembly. Netanyahu said he intends to be in New York in September to address the annual UN gathering of world leaders, despite the mayor’s suggestion that he is not welcome. Mamdani said on Wednesday that while New York City does not have legal authority to execute an arrest warrant issued by the world’s top war crimes court, he encouraged the federal government to do so. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/KTPQedt

Cheetahs forced to cross roiling rivers, owls battered by storms … the tone of this look at how extreme weather affects animals is all a bit disaster movie. Subtle, it is not You have a thick neck and poorly defined calf muscles and you live in South Dakota with your feckless partner and your five expressionless children. You are an owl. Your days consist of lengthy stretches of nothing, punctuated by sudden bursts of unimaginable terror. Coyotes, badgers and snakes are all bent on reducing your beak to marmalade. But it’s the weather that poses the biggest threat. Specifically, shouts Force of Nature, it’s the “MONSTER STORMS” that rumble ominously across the prairies, each of which forces you and your family to scurry into your burrow, whereupon you will stand with your trembling backs to the wall, legs wide apart and fluffy britches a-flap, like anxious viscounts in the court of Charles II. Will you survive? Or will you be eviscerated by the “ cluster bombs of tornadoes ” that churn...

In the 1960s, 19-year-old Anne Ring was set up with Ian and felt an immediate attraction Find more stories from the moment I knew series It was June 1961, I was 19, and innocently dating in the ways of that time – I’d had several boyfriends, had my heart broken once and had broken two. A platonic friend decided I should meet Ian, as we both liked to talk. So he invited Ian – who was 20 – and me to dinner. It was at our friend’s family’s home with Beethoven’s violin concerto playing in the background, and he was right. From the outset Ian and I were totally immersed in our conversation, and I felt an immediate connection and attraction to him. Driving me home, he asked me out the following Saturday. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2MjN54G

Norway’s striker left his mark, as did Scotland’s fans in Boston, but Turkey’s dark horses fell at the first hurdle “I played with him on my PlayStation, and now I’ve scored against him,” Livano Comenencia said after converting Curaçao’s first World Cup goal past Manuel Neuer in their opening match against Germany. The smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup went on to lose 7-1 but that goal – their only one of the tournament – will go down in history. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/bG3vR7c

Italian does not shy away from the task of following a legend but his previous time at the club may help him Relaxed and tanned, Enzo Maresca offered a warm note with his first words to the media as the manager of Manchester City, who must somehow follow the generational Pep Guardiola. “Before we start, I would like to send a message and a big hug to Kevin Keegan’s family for this moment,” said the Italian in tribute to a football legend, following his death on Monday. Keegan, of course, was a former City manager who had at Newcastle famously locked horns with Sir Alex Ferguson when he led Manchester United, the fierce rivals of Maresca’s new team. When the 46-year-old, sat on the dais occupied for 10 mostly glittering years by Guardiola, offered an unsolicited reference to Ferguson – and Arsène Wenger – you could see he comprehended the mammoth task before him. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/EAMej7B

Residents in Ladera Ranch in Orange county voice concerns after six children diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Concerns are growing in southern California over a cluster of “exceptionally rare” cancer cases that has sickened multiple children in a suburban community. Families living in the Orange county neighborhood of Ladera Ranch, home to about 26,000 people, have reported that six children in the community were diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, Katrina Foley, the vice-chair of the county board of supervisors, said in a statement . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Rq4WGmp

Conservative leader is becoming more confident and forging a message for her party, but faces a new opponent “So, Andy Burnham seems like a nice guy.” Those were the slightly unexpected opening words of Kemi Badenoch’s first speech since the change in prime minister. But make no mistake: she was there to bury her opponent. Even Badenoch-sceptics inside the Conservative party and farther afield agree the Tory leader is becoming more confident, and has been able to forge an increasingly coherent message for her party, one based on a promise of economic competence. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4VJZPRG

Campaigners in Ukraine pledge to continue nationwide protests until Mykhailo Fedorov gets his job back Volodymyr Zelenskyy was under growing pressure to reinstate his sacked defence minister on Wednesday, after campaigners said they would continue indefinite nationwide protests until Mykhailo Fedorov got his job back. On Tuesday, Zelenskyy bowed to public demands by firing Ukraine’s commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi . He appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new head of the country’s armed forces , as part of a radical reshuffle of the top military command. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/1qK8icS

Storm warnings stretch from Florida to Louisiana as Bertha brings heavy rain, flooding risk and possible tornadoes Tropical Storm Bertha strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico and was moving slowly toward the Florida Panhandle and Alabama, causing a tropical storm warning and storm surge watches, forecasters said. The storm was about 125 miles (201km) south-east of Mobile, Alabama, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Tuesday afternoon. It was moving north-west at 5mph (8km/h) with maximum sustained winds of 60mph. Guardian staff contributed Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/h9S2kRB

Drivers in West Midlands say buses ‘unbearable’ during heatwaves, raising employee and passenger safety fears Bus drivers in the West Midlands have spoken out about the “horrendous” working conditions they have experienced during heatwaves, which led to 40C temperatures in their cabs. The UK was hit by high temperatures and dry weather in three successive heatwaves, with temperatures topping 37C last month when the country recorded its hottest ever June day . Last week, the Met Office warned climate extremes were becoming the “new ‘normal’ for the UK”. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2QZnkeM

Investigators arrest 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with death of Rapp who was 26 US boxer Hannah Rapp, who in June fought for the World Boxing Council (WBC) women’s featherweight championship, was killed on Saturday while she bicycled in Texas after a motorist struck her with his car, according to authorities. Rapp was 26, and investigators arrested a 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with her death, the sheriff’s office of Brazos county, Texas, said in a statement. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/O5yKdaQ

Poor air quality from wildfires continues to plague New York City as several neighborhoods hit by thunderstorms Saturday is delivering a double dose of dangerous weather across the north-eastern US, with smoky skies from Canadian wildfires giving way to severe thunderstorms that have already triggered a flash flood warning as torrential rain pounds parts of the region. After a brief break on Friday, smoke from the wildfires moved back into New York City and surrounding communities on Saturday, sending air quality back into unhealthy levels . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/UBteRSZ

Live rugby union updates from 8.10pm BST/4.10pm ART Robert Kitson’s view of England 1-2 Argentina Email Lee | Sign up for the Breakdown 3 mins. Fin Smith pops a neat inside pass to Feyi-Waboso off his wing who breaks into open pasture. He feeds it right to Marcus Smith who can’t hold onto it, but it was on an advantage from earlier so the visitors will get to go again. 2 mins. Argentina were this close to reclaiming that kick-off, but it wobbled forward off the hands. An early scrum for England is super solid, allowing van Poortvliet to move the ball away and the phases to start around halfway. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Wq0EPQh

️ Herbert misses putt for 61 but still tops leaderboard ️ Official leaderboard | Mail David with your thoughts An opening birdie for the 2011 champion Darren Clarke. He’s +2. Apropos of nothing, and just because I happen to have the stat to hand, so may as well share it, Clarke is joint holder of the record for most appearances by an Open champion before his first victory. That’s 19, after his 2011 win, and he shares the number with Phil Mickelson (2013). Nick Price (1994) is next on the list. Birdie for Jackson Suber at 2, and the leader stretches his advantage at the top! He tugged his drive into the rough down the left, but got a decent lie, and was able to wedge over the flag from 90 yards to 12 feet. One fairly straight roll later, and he moves to -6. Meanwhile Laurie Canter nearly aces the 4th. His tee shot lands just past the bunker guarding the front left and serenely glides to kick-in distance, though it was never threatening to drop, always on a route below the hole. The ...

The boy in the baby bath has unbelievably become the successor to Messi at Barcelona and now, maybe, on the world stage too “Maybe Lionel Messi has picked up lots of babies, maybe it’s chance, but for those of us who have faith, who believe in something beyond, ‘chance’ is God’s pseudonym when he doesn’t want to sign his name,” Luis de la Fuente says. “In life, everything happens for a reason. Sometimes it’s true that the circle isn’t closed, but in my view there’s something else, something … I don’t know, mystical, spiritual.” Contemplate the scene, gaze upon the image of this World Cup, and you may be inclined to agree with Spain’s coach, to reach out and touch faith. How else to comprehend this? You will have seen the picture and will certainly see it again, and still it won’t make sense. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4fU8Eoy

Agreement, without admission of liability, ends 19-month high court dispute that small-business owners said left them with large debts Vodafone has settled a long-running legal claim filed by 62 of its former franchisees who alleged the mobile phone group “unjustly enriched” itself at their expense by up to £85m. The small-business owners – some of whom said they had suffered suicidal thoughts because of the pressure exerted by the telecoms group – launched the high court claim in 2024 after running up large personal debts they said had been caused by their deals with the company. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/zcTHDX2

France’s captain has played with a sense of unfinished business but he will be 31 when the next World Cup begins It was only last month that Kylian Mbappé suggested all roads may lead to Florida. He was in sufficiently mischievous mood to reveal David Beckham had been chewing his ear off about a move to Major League Soccer, dangling the prospect of a reunion with Lionel Messi at Inter Miami. “We will see, I don’t know,” he said. “The American culture is different. There are no limits to ambitions, I like it.” Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2kQsrVO

State department says plan will provide funding to ‘address national sovereignty, migration, censorship and lawfare’ Friedrich Merz has warned Donald Trump’s administration against interfering in German elections after the US state department announced a scheme to fund Maga-aligned causes in Europe. The German chancellor was responding to a new US initiative offering grants of up to $3m (£2.2m) for European charities, thinktanks and individuals. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/7tmzYUM

Group of major publishers accuses the tech giant of ‘one of the most prolific infringements of copyrighted materials in history’ A group of major publishers have filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing the company of illegally using millions of copyrighted books to help build its Gemini artificial intelligence models, in “one of the most prolific infringements of copyrighted materials in history”. The case, filed in federal court in New York, has been brought by three publishers – Hachette Book Group, Cengage Learning, and Elsevier – and bestselling American author Scott Turow. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/5o9fvY8

Cyclosporiasis outbreak comes a year after Trump officials cut funding for state and local health departments What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea? State health officials in Michigan and Ohio are reporting thousands of cases of cyclosporiasis, a – a parasitic infection that causes “watery diarrhea”, loss of appetite and weight loss. The outbreak of more than 2,800 cases comes a year after the Trump administration cut funding to state and local health departments and reduced the remit of a program dedicated to coordinating information on food borne illness, including of cyclospora. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/5aObuN0

Youngsters confirmed safe but men pronounced dead after being brought out of water at Seaton Carew, Hartlepool Two men have died after going into the water at a beach in County Durham to try to help two children who had gotten into difficulty, police said. Officers were called at about 3.45pm on Sunday after concerns were raised about two youngsters in the water at Seaton Carew beach in Hartlepool. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Qt1fiCa

Lillard, of Oklahoma, contracted polio when she was five and slept inside cylindrical metal device to help her breathe The last known US person living with polio and relying on an iron lung has died aged 78. Martha Lillard, who contracted polio at age five and spent most of her life dependent on an iron lung machine that helped her breathe, died on 26 June in Oklahoma, according to an online obituary . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/o9wZOcj

Current Lord’s Test will be her final appearance “I’m privileged to have gone on this journey’ Heather Knight will retire from international cricket at the end of this week’s Test match against India at Lord’s. Knight, who has made a record 320 appearances for England, has joined teammate Tammy Beaumont in calling time on her career at the end of what is the first women’s Test match at the home of cricket, and one in which England appear headed for defeat after a gruelling second day’s play on Saturday. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/uU7VQk3

Only Test, Day two: India 285 & 154-1; England 170 Gaud takes 5-37 to write name on Lord’s honours board India are in firm control of their one-off Test after bowling England out for 170 and reaching 154 for one at the close, building a substantial lead of 269. The 22-year-old seamer Kranti Gaud showed true mastery of red-ball bowling to finish with five for 37: her teasing line and length, combined with wobble seam, had England reeling at 47 for four. This is Gaud’s second Test, after making her debut at the Waca against Australia in March, and she enters the record books as the first woman to have her name carved on the Test honours board at Lord’s. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/WFvwxRn

Governor Mike Kehoe urges people to follow guidelines with more heavy rain expected through the weekend Missouri has declared a state of emergency in response to severe storms and flash flooding affecting the state’s central, south-central, and south-eastern regions. In a news release , Governor Mike Kehoe said that under the order, the Missouri state emergency operations plan has been activated, allowing state agencies to coordinate directly with local jurisdictions to expedite emergency assistance. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/jZi5PNF

Only Test, day one: India 285; England 21-1 Ecclestone becomes England’s leading women’s wicket-taker The opening day of the first women’s Test match at Lord’s started with a nod to the historical injustice of the long, slow journey to reach this moment – a group of former women players, denied the chance themselves to play a Test at the home of cricket, given the chance to ring a ceremonial bell on the outfield marking five minutes before the start of play. There were more than a few tears shed in the Long Room before play even started. The day ended with India bowled out for 285, England 21 for one, and this match poised for an intriguing second day. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/YFusTUh

Reporting suggests FBI involved in seizure of Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada García from Mexican territory in 2024 Mexico has launched an investigation into whether the US lied about its involvement in the capture and secretive transfer of a top Sinaloa cartel member in 2024, in what would be a potential violation of the country’s sovereignty. The US has long denied it played any role in the operation to detain the drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García, a founder of the Sinaloa cartel, inside Mexico. Recent reporting by the local media outlet Pie de Nota , however, suggested that the FBI was involved in his capture. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/w1Ofsgm

Statement says decisions ‘raised serious concerns’ Association rues ‘controversial and influential incidents’ The Egyptian Football Association has questioned the “fairness” of the national team’s 3-2 loss to Argentina in Tuesday’s World Cup last-16 encounter. Having gone 1-0 up through Yasser Ibrahim early on, Egypt thought they had doubled their lead in the second half when Mostafa Ziko scored at the end of an excellent move. The goal was disallowed after a VAR review, however, with the referee, François Letexier, adjudging Marwan Attia to have committed a foul in the buildup. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/urEtZF7

Drugs and violence continue at disturbing levels. But a minority of jails show that progress is possible Prisons in England and Wales are in an appalling state . In his last annual report before stepping down, Charlie Taylor, the head of the prisons watchdog, highlights good practice where it exists. One example is a strengthened focus on reading in some jails. Another is the work done to improve staff-prisoner relationships at HMP Low Newton, County Durham. But the overwhelming impression made by the document , published on Tuesday, is of profound and shocking failure. The criteria on which inspectors judge prisons are safety, respect, preparation for release and purposeful activity. This serves as a useful reminder of what they are for. Unfortunately, they are failing on all fronts and especially the last. Only two men’s prisons out of 35 were judged as offering “good” work and education. In most places budgets and classes have been cut and attendance is poor. Even...

Bees respond to tasty treats or plain water based on context, study that may provide support for establishing insect sentience shows Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast When bumblebees taste something good, they reach out their glossa – or insect tongue – for a while afterwards, almost as if they are licking their lips. And when they don’t like something, the insects will shake their heads and wipe their mouths. Scientists who captured the miniature facial expressions on slow-motion video say the behaviour is consistent with “liking” and “disliking” responses observed in mammals. Their results have been published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/kmE5biw

More than 20 states reported temperatures above 100F as heat dome sits over eastern US during holiday weekend At least about two dozen people have died amid the perilous climate crisis-driven heatwave that has scorched swaths of the US with record temperatures. As a huge heat dome sits over the county’s eastern half, extreme heat gripped millions of people in the days leading up to the US’s semiquincentennial on Saturday – and beyond it. More than 20 states experienced have reported stifling temperatures more than 100F (38C), marring celebrations. And more than 140 million people remained under active heat alerts across the US on Sunday. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/dyvxp0N

⚽️ Kick-off time: 5pm local/7am AEST/10pm BST ⚽️ Player guide | Canada 0-3 Morocco | Mail Beau What’s the biggest upset you can remember from a World Cup knockout round? Not the group stage. The record books are full of teams that lost their first games to an unheralded underdog but went on to reach the final. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/T5n4FJv

No 1 seed looks strong in 6-4, 6-4 victory against Latvian ‘The plan is to get better every day,’ says Sabalenka As Aryna Sabalenka marched towards a convincing victory over the ever-dangerous Jelena Ostapenko, she opted for a slight change of pace. Leading 6-4, 2-1 and 30-0, Sabalenka followed up a massive serve by immediately flitting to the net. She surely had visions of her serve and volley attempt ending in triumphant Tim Henman-esque fashion, but that is not quite how things played out. She instead misjudged the path of Ostapenko’s slow, lofty return, and her shanked smash landed harmlessly on the service line. Ostapenko calmly ended the point with a forehand passing shot winner. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/KGEIjcw

Game originally set to kick off at 6pm local time Could be rescheduled due to risk of thunderstorms England’s World Cup game against Mexico on Sunday could be moved to noon local time (7pm BST), according to local media reports. The round of 16 game at the ‌Estadio Azteca was scheduled to start at 6pm local time (1am BST) but that could now change because of a risk of thunderstorms. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/mUdrbSc

National Weather Service warns heat index could reach 115F as heat grips midwest, Ohio valley and east coast Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email A “prolonged, dangerous heatwave” was sweeping across parts of the central and eastern United States on Thursday, with forecasters warning that extreme record-breaking temperatures are expected to continue into the holiday weekend for millions of Americans. The National Weather Service (NWS) warned on Thursday that temperatures between 95F (35C) and 105F (40.5C), combined with high humidity, will push heat index values across parts of the region to between 100F and 115F. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/q5Jl8rs

The president made $2.2bn last year, with plenty of help from his own political decisions. This is called corruption, folks People in the US: share your views on Trump’s earnings in his second term In financial disclosures released on Tuesday, Trump reported earning more than $1bn last year from his several cryptocurrency ventures. All told – including other parts of his vast holdings, such as his real estate assets – Trump made at least $2.2bn last year, as opposed to the roughly $622m his businesses raked in in 2024, before he returned to the presidency. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/LtSXzvb

Proposed development of protected shorelines and wildlife zones violates EU environmental policy, says MEP MEPs have warned Albania that EU accession talks are at risk if the government does not “change course” over plans for a luxury resort backed by Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Tineke Strik, the Dutch MEP heading a European parliament fact-finding mission to the Balkan nation, said Albania’s leadership was “playing with fire” by pursuing the €1.4bn (£1.2bn) real-estate venture that would, she said, wreak havoc on virgin coastline. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/pUiEHo2

England midfielder’s experience with Arsenal last season taught him the need to be patient against teams unwilling to attack Declan Rice is reflecting on the pivotal moment of his season so far, the one when plenty of people thought it was about to go wrong for him and Arsenal. It was a narrow and painful defeat for them at Manchester City in mid‑April, which meant the clubs were stride for stride with each other at the top of the Premier League. The momentum was with City. Were Arsenal about to blow it? The TV cameras picked out Rice on the Etihad Stadium pitch and, as he shook his head, he was easy to lipread. “It’s not done,” the England midfielder said. It was not. Arsenal won all of their remaining league games, finding a way through unbearable levels of tension. City did not and Arsenal were champions for the first time since 2004. “It could have gone either way,” Rice says with a smile. “That would have lived with me for ever.” Continue reading... from The Guardian https://...

Report says once-in-a-generation changes needed to tackle why such children are lowest-performing large demographic High-performing primary and secondary schools in England should be encouraged to admit more disadvantaged pupils from white working-class backgrounds to help reverse a continuing crisis in underachievement, an independent inquiry has said. The independent inquiry into white working-class educational outcomes concluded the current education system was “not set up to serve white working-class children and families”. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/LCdmA0h

Polka theatre, London Marietta Kirkbride’s enchanting take on the Arthur myth brings silliness and songs when young Grace travels back in time with Merlin the wizard Here is a sparkling new take on the King Arthur legend for the ages – and all ages – from Bucket Club theatre company. Our tale begins with young Grace waiting in A&E, Lego stuck up her nose and her brother hurt following a squabble. When Merlin appears in hospital, weaving a tale of mysterious adventure, Grace is pulled into an epic quest packed with enchanted forests and sparkling underwater realms. In the closing scenes, when Arthur finally pulls that famous sword from the stone, loud gasps ripple through an enchanted young audience. Magic. Writer Marietta Kirkbride’s contemporary take has lots of smart jokes for the parents to enjoy and a helping of Gawain the Green Knight thrown in for good measure. There are witty nods to today’s political climate, with a sixth-century England languishing without a king and stru...

Two eye-catching last-32 ties offer hope of a winner from outside the traditional powers – Brazil and the Netherlands could be gone The World Cup exists in a state of perpetual flux. It goes to new territories. It gets bigger. It experiments with second group phases and replaces playoffs for sides level on points with goal difference then head-to-head. And still one of the same eight countries from western Europe or South America wins it. Since Argentina in 1978, there have been two new winners, and those were France and Spain, from the heart of Uefa, their success based on maximising the advantages of being European and wealthy; no countries have been so successful at industrialising youth production, so much so that they now provide the models for every country seeking to invest in academy programmes. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/ZJbMDef

The Trevor Project non-profit that helped pioneer LGBTQ+ ‘press 3’ option for 988 hotline is being shut out as it restarts The Trump administration is moving to restart the specialized LGBTQ+ option for youth who contact the 988 crisis intervention hotline – but the group that helped pioneer the idea is being shut out. The Trevor Project, the New York-based leading non-profit for suicide prevention in LGBTQ+ young people in the US, may not be allowed to offer the service it had helped develop for the 988 Lifeline just a few years ago. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/6lvAkuX

Queen Elizabeth Hall, London This recreation of the final concert that the composer attended – only weeks before his death aged 63 – featured his fourth symphony, Dvorak’s Cello Concerto and Haydn’s symphony no 73. Every period-instrument outfit has its shtick – its own version of what “historically informed performance ” might mean. The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment plays music from an increasingly generous historical tranche ( Stravinsky beckons next season ) but always on instruments dating from the same period as the works being performed. Except when they don’t. This performance marking the OAE’s 40th anniversary was not about imagining what certain compositions might have sounded like to their first audiences. Instead, it reproduced the exact programme of a concert held in Vienna on 7 March 1897. The 19th-century concert was the latest instalment in a series run by the eminent conductor Hans Richter , which turned out to be the final concert ever attended by Johannes Brah...

President was due to sign deal aimed at making life more affordable for Americans but shelved event to pressure Congress to pass restrictive voting bill Trump abruptly cancels signing of bill aimed at lowering housing cost Sign up for the Breaking News US email A man or a movement? That was the question being asked when Zohran Mamdani gambled his political capital on Tuesday’s elections in New York . The answer from voters was emphatic: they prefer Mamdani and his brand of democratic socialism to the Democratic party establishment and its lukewarm version of capitalism. America’s biggest city has swung even further to the left. This is a battle between the establishment and this insurgency. And the roof is collapsing on the Democratic party establishment tonight … This is no longer a movement; this is a movement and a machine at the same time. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/n1oqiSc

Excerpts of footage of response to incident earlier described as ‘shocking’ but review finds use of force justified A review of video footage that appeared to show South Yorkshire police officers shoving and drawing batons and stun guns on teenage girls has found the “the use of force was proportionate, necessary, and justified to keep all involved safe”. South Yorkshire police initially described the footage as appearing “nothing short of shocking” but a review by its professional standards department found that while there “is an opportunity for learning around de-escalation” the actions were appropriate. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2i7Mcvd

Pet in a replica shirt is unofficial mascot of the World Cup Merlin’s owner, Karla Gómez, says it was ‘an honour’ Merlin, the pet duck in a mini Mexico shirt who has ⁠become a viral sensation and an unofficial mascot of the World Cup, met Mexico’s president on Monday. The duck waddled on ⁠to the stage ⁠at the ​start of Claudia Sheinbaum’s regular morning press conference, took a seat where ministers and officials are usually seen, and unfazed ⁠by the occasion, let out a few quacks. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/3wlAYVm

Brendon McCullum relied too much on youth in the second Test, while persistence paid dividends for New Zealand In December 2020 Henry Nicholls was a fixture in the New Zealand team, batting at No 5, but he was under pressure. In nine Tests since the end of their series against Bangladesh in early 2019 he averaged only 20.33. But they stuck with him and in his next game, against West Indies in Wellington, he scored 174 and was named player of the match. “In another time he may not have been offered that opportunity,” said one of the commentators covering the match on domestic television. “There’s many cases where guys haven’t had a sustained period to be able to find form, but a mark of this New Zealand side is their selection consistency, and they’re being rewarded.” Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/0WEkBOl

⚽️ Kick-off: 6pm local time/11pm BST/8am (Mon) AEST ⚽️ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Email Beau Beau will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s what to know about Uruguay and Cape Verde before they meet in a few hours in Miami. Uruguay Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/wVObgfB

Luis de la Fuente said he wanted a new jumper for his birthday but this was even better. On the day that the Spain coach turned 65, his players gave him the perfect afternoon in Atlanta, all the doubts from their opener blown away. Unable to find a way through in 97 minutes here against Cape Verde , this time they put three past Saudi Arabia before anyone had even stopped for the first drink. Life is there to be enjoyed, Lamine Yamal had said and they did. Lamine scored ten minutes into his first start since suffering a hamstring injury in April and Mikel Oyarzabal added two more in the first quarter. By the end it was four and it could hardly have worked out more nicely, Spain’s victory secured so early that the coach could use the occasion to offer opportunities to those that needed them, Mikel Merino and Nico Williams invited to join the party too. De la Fuente said that Spain wanted to be Spain again, and here they were. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/9UxHl...

John Denver’s classic has been belted out during US matches at this tournament. Its appeal lies in the story it tells about a united America Lumen Field was designed for a moment like Friday’s. Under a blue sky dotted with clouds, the US men’s national team celebrated their victory over Australia with a lap around the stadium to thank their fans for creating a worthy atmosphere. I’ve reported from four matches so far at this World Cup and the set list remains largely the same, no matter the venue. You’ll hear Dai Dai and Seven Nation Army. The growing boos that accompany the onset of a hydration break will be drowned out by Livin’ On A Prayer. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/01ZPxJ8

France XV 35-19 England XV South Africa-born back came on in 52nd minute Benhard Janse van Rensburg’s hopes of a try-scoring England debut were dashed by fumbling hands as France emerged conclusive 35-19 winners in their non-cap international in Vannes. South Africa-born Janse van Rensburg was brought on in the 52nd minute and shortly after he was presented with a routine run-in, only for the ball to slip from his hands. The opportunity was England’s last chance to start reeling in a 28-12 deficit and otherwise the Bristol centre’s involvement was limited. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/D3CTVPN

Riverside Studios, London Ted Walliker’s one-man play about a night gone spectacularly wrong is boldly ambitious but we need to know more about the man at the mic Watching a comedian crumble onstage is hellish. In Ted Walliker’s new play, the performer’s breakdown is deliberate but the show’s wider ambitions miss their mark. Pitched as a standup set that swivels into an absurd faux-confessional, this first foray into co-production for Riverside Studios is a one-man tangent. The trouble starts with how quickly the framing device of a standup show is shoved aside. When bumbling posh-boy comedian Tony (Walliker) fails to get the laughs he wants, he tries on a tougher persona and launches into a violent story of misadventure with Mike, his best friend, long-time crush and all-round scoundrel. A delirious pep enters Tony’s step as he outlines a gratuitously gruesome night of pulled-off faces and munched-up bones. Spiralling from a mistake in McDonald’s where we meet the titular character, w...

Number of people infected now tops 1,000 though health officials say the global risk remains low Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will tap $107m in emergency funding for Ebola outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ( DRC ) and Uganda , officials said on Thursday. The continued Ebola outbreak in the DRC comes as Canada, Mexico and the US jointly host the Fifa World Cup , attracting visitors from around the world. The officials said the outbreak, now the third largest on record, required “strong immediate support”, but that the global risk remained low. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/hKWxIji

The originating member of the band with hits like If You Leave Me Now and Hard to Say I’m Sorry died after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease Walter Parazaider, a co-founding member of the rock band Chicago, has died at the age of 81 following a battle with Alzheimer’s disease. His daughter confirmed the news in a Facebook post on Wednesday morning. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/vbcQ7aI

Exclusive: Royal College of Nursing says 1.5m vulnerable people not getting the right care, as specialism is ‘consistently undermined’ The specialist learning-disability nurse workforce is in “absolute crisis” with the number of specialist nurses falling by a third across the UK since 2009, leaving many vulnerable adults with inadequate care, according to a report by the largest nursing union. The Royal College of Nursing review revealed that the number of learning-disability nurses employed by the NHS has fallen from 7,083 in 2009 to 4,768 in 2026. As a result of these falling numbers, 1.5 million people with learning disabilities were not being provided with their legal right to equitable access to health and care services. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/aEjf1LA

Mark Carney says Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise office hasn’t been ‘effective’ since its 2019 setup Canada is eliminating a watchdog that investigates alleged human rights violations committed by Canadian companies operating abroad, after Mark Carney said the office hadn’t been “effective” since it was set up in 2019. The move comes as Canada faces criticism from Donald Trump’s administration over its “unacceptable” efforts to combat forced labour. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/JNZVThA

The net rippled and Curaçao’s bench exploded in every conceivable ­direction, their giddiness underpinned by a lucid awareness of the goal’s place in history. Livano Comenencia had just equalised against Germany and an island of 158,000 inhabitants, represented here by an accomplished group born almost entirely in the Netherlands, could revel disbelievingly in a moment it had dreamed of. Reality eventually bit, Julian Nagelsmann’s side declaring on seven and easily avoiding an embarrassment that would have outdone their group-stage exits in the previous two World Cups. They will surely reach the knockouts this time and could have made absolutely certain by adding several more. Nagelsmann will be pleased that threats emanated from across the pitch, half a dozen different scorers bearing testament to that, but it should go without saying that more accurate tests of strength await. Kai Havertz, rounding things off neatly late on with his second goal, will hope to be similarly efficient la...

Crash reportedly occurred shortly after departure from Butler Memorial airport at 11.30am on Sunday Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Twelve people were killed in a plane crash near Butler, Missouri , on Sunday. According to Bates county emergency management, a private plane that had departed Butler Memorial airport shortly before 11.30am turned back before crashing near Business 49 Highway, Fox 4 reported. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/9xNqWv1

⚽️ World Cup kick-off 6pm EST, 11pm BST, 8am Sun AEST ⚽️ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Email Jeff While it was always a reach to project this tournament would feel like 104 Super Bowls, some matchups inevitably fit the blockbuster billing. Brazil and Morocco’s opener in Group C is this tournament’s first glamour fixture, pitting the five-time champions against the dark horse darlings of 2022, who arrive in great form. Few know exactly what to expect from Carlo Ancelotti’s first World Cup on the touchline. A gilded figure on the club side, Ancelotti picked a squad teeming with stout center-backs and dynamic dribblers, but with some uncertainty in midfield, at full-back, and up top. Endrick finally taking a long-awaited leap would do wonders to assuage those latter concerns, and will most likely be necessary if Brazil are to snap their 24-year drought. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Yrb4VK2

The championships, which take place in Maidstone, Kent, were dreamed up as a way of raising funds for Coxheath village hall about 50 years ago Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/NXH7ogk

The Gossip Girl star can recover legal fees and costs arising from It Ends With Us co-actor’s countersuit Blake Lively can recover some legal costs from fellow actor and director Justin Baldoni but not punitive damages and other relief she sought after settling her legal claims over their 2024 film It Ends With Us, a judge ruled on Friday. Judge Lewis J Liman said in a written ruling that Lively can recover legal fees and costs related to her defense against a countersuit Baldoni brought against her after she sued him in December 2024. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4I6WFrY

Constable Marc Pinizzotto, 43, was killed while executing search warrants related to a shooting at US consulate Authorities in Canada are investigating whether the killing of a Toronto police officer while he was executing search warrants related to a shooting at the city’s US consulate is linked a broader series of global terror attacks. Constable Marc Pinizzotto, 43, a member of the emergency taskforce, was killed on Thursday during a dawn search of an apartment building in the west of the city. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/3evXWmb

New Farm Bill places caps on non-US foods; nutritionists say it restricts availability of healthy meals for kids School nutrition workers and advocates have “lots of concerns about bananas”, said Erin Ogden, policy associate for federal child nutrition programs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Bananas are nutrient-dense foods that many children like. That makes them popular offerings in school cafeterias, since any healthy food that a kid will eat prevents waste and ensures that child isn’t eating either nothing or something less wholesome instead. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/rLZN1Ot

Awards for prose, children’s writing and poetry, for writers of colour in UK and Ireland, come with £1,000 Diana Evans has won this year’s Jhalak prose prize for I Want to Talk to You, a nonfiction collection on subjects ranging from Jean Rhys and Toni Morrison to lockdowns and the British monarchy. The book, described as a “pleasure and an invigoration” by the Guardian’s reviewer Alex Clark, was announced as the 10th winner at a reception on Wednesday evening. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/yUQrmlo

Everyman theatre, Liverpool Julia Cranney’s play illustrates complex processes as it explores one woman’s plans to start a family but it hops too quickly through her life Adoption and the care system are at the emotional centre of Julia Cranney’s new monologue. There are hoops to jump through, questions that require you to crack your soul open and hope bubbling beneath it all. Mat (Paislie Reid) and her partner, James, are drawn into early permanence, a pathway in which babies and toddlers are placed with prospective adopters who initially foster them. There is, however, always the possibility that the child could return to their birth family. The script valuably sheds light on that process but Cranney’s play hops through Mat’s life too quickly to have a potent impact. When we meet her she is isolated, not keen on kids and working in a pharmacy. Then, she falls head over heels for James. Soon their relationship is flourishing, she has bonded with his daughter and they are making plans ...

Eng 157-6; Aus 158-5. Aus win by five wkts England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt fails on return Ellyse Perry’s half-century guided Australia to a comfortable five-wicket win against England in their T20 World Cup warm-up match in Cardiff. Perry was superbly caught by Dani Gibson at deep midwicket off Lauren Bell for a match-winning 64 with two runs needed as Australia cruised to their target of 158 with 10 balls to spare at Sophia Gardens. After losing the toss and being put into bat, England were restricted to 157 for six, having recovered from 19 for three, and were then punished in the field for three dropped catches of varying difficulty. Opener Beth Mooney’s 26-ball 43, which included two sixes, ensured Australia stayed ahead of the run-rate, while Perry struck nine fours and faced 44 deliveries. Mooney was dropped by Danni Wyatt-Hodge and Gibson and Perry was given a let off when Bell spilled her one-handed attempt. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/qIpwB4N

Firings are part of a broader personnel purge under the leadership of director Kash Patel, a Trump loyalist Several FBI analysts tied to the creation of a 2023 memo warning of a potential threat from Catholic “violent extremists” were fired on Friday, according to their lawyer, the latest wave of terminations under the leadership of its director Kash Patel. The fired employees included four intelligence analysts and a supervisory analyst. The FBI declined to comment. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/ICDh3RE

The history of gynaecology fuses innovation, authority and violation – and radical surgery is not the unavoidable answer to suffering Until just a few weeks ago, Polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome was reduced to ovarian cysts, much to the frustration and confusion of many patients with this systemic endocrine condition. The struggles of people with endometriosis to access patient-centred and appropriate care continue in many countries. These are examples of the despair many patients report when they try to access hormonal and reproductive healthcare, as described by the Australia Institute . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/rXbOhFm

After living in the Argentina idol’s shadow, the 39-year-old star of 2022 is still capable of a final glorious chapter Lionel Messi in Qatar felt like the perfect story. It was the great finale. He is doomed always to be compared with Diego Maradona and, placed alongside a life of operatic ups and downs, of injury and addiction, drugs bans and organised crime, the highest highs and the lowest lows, his narrative always seemed a little flat: a kid was good at football, and then was consistently good at it for two decades, winning title after title. Yes, there were tears and frustrations, moments of doubt, but he wasn’t nearly drowning in a cesspit, shooting at journalists with an airgun or using a fake penis to evade the drugs testers. Qatar offered at least a degree of dramatic intrigue. Club success evidently wasn’t enough. Messi was driven. He had overcome his natural reserve to become the true leader of the team while winning the Copa América in Brazil the previous year. He gave tea...

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... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/GiaApmy

Republicans vote against amendment to kill fund after acting attorney general Todd Blanche told lawmakers earlier this week that DOJ was ‘not moving forward with the fund’ Sign up for the Breaking News US email Donald Trump ’s former national security adviser-turned-foe John Bolton is expected to plead guilty over mishandling classified documents, multiple outlets are reporting. According to CNN, which first reported the news citing three sources, Bolton intends to plead guilty to one count of illegal retention of sensitive national security documents, and has also agreed to pay a more than $2m fine. The New York Times hears the same, adding that he could face anywhere from no prison time to up to five years behind bars when he is sentenced. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/J8j7NMq