5 hours ago GoFundMe, Mandy Moore and the unfairness of disaster relief: ‘If you were poor before, you should stay poor’

Aid was historically seen as a way to ‘restore the status quo’. Now the actor’s bid for help amid the LA fires raises a question: who deserves to crowdfund?It was a perfectly ordinary celebrity Instagram post for the first week of 2025, which is to say, it was nightmarish, but in a way that we’ve grown accustomed to.The actor and musician Mandy Moore was one of many entertainers to lose her home to wildfire in Altadena, California, last week. In her post upon returning to the neighborhood, photos bearing the jaundiced cast of wildfire smoke reveal rubble, charred trees, and an exterior staircase on the verge of collapse. Moore’s captions cataloged further losses: her husband’s studio and instruments, her children’s school, and the home of her brother-in-law and his wife, who are expecting their first child within weeks. Continue reading...

Events

33 hours ago Africa has no shortage of celebrated writers – so why is it so hard for African readers to get hold of their books?

Across the continent books can be expensive and libraries scarce. But growing numbers of tech innovators and independent publishers are working to make African literature available and affordableTsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions, a novel about growing up in colonial Zimbabwe, is one of the most important works of 20th-century African literature and features on university curricula across the UK. British students can order a used copy for less than £3.But there is one place readers struggle to find it: Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe and Dangeremba’s home town, even though it is published in paperback across the border in South Africa. “It’s very, very difficult to find my books anywhere in Zimbabwe,” says Dangarembga. Continue reading...

Culture

26 hours ago All the free stuff you can get on your birthday, from a Greggs donut to a huge H&M discount and a full

Unless you're one of the unfortunate few to have a birthday in the first fortnight of the year, you'll still have your 2025 celebrations to look forward to.

Politics

6 hours ago Bannockburn couple enjoy perfect start to 2025 as they celebrate new arrival

Cole's mum Amy hailed staff at the hospital for making the birth "special" after his arrival shortly after 8pm on January 1.

Events

30 hours ago The Traitors fans all say the same as Fozia has 'perfect' reaction to huge Charlotte reveal

Faithful Fozia was not impressed with Charlott'e fake Welsh accent on The Traitors and the TV-watching population cheered

Politics

30 hours ago The greatest celebrity anecdote of all time! How David Schwimmer triggered Rod Stewart’s divorce

According to a recent chatshow appearance, the Friends actor’s pre-fame job landed him a run-in with a rock megastar – and he’s glad he’s not met him sincePut yourself in David Schwimmer’s shoes for a moment. You have a new show to promote. It’s a new run of Goosebumps, the kid-friendly horror series, and you’re faced with a choice. Do you promote Goosebumps by trying to engage with the material, or do you promote it by telling the single greatest celebrity anecdote of all time?Reader, David Schwimmer did the latter. On Colbert this week, Schwimmer revealed that he served Rod Stewart with divorce papers as a teen. Continue reading...

Events