59 h. ago 7 enduring icons of British culture – and why we still love them

From Jelly Babies to the jingle of prancing Morris dancers, some things have always captured the charming oddities at the heart of British life. But how exactly have these seven icons managed to stand firm through decades of change?

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1 week ago My cultural awakening: an ancient statue made me fall in love with my fat body

I spent decades being ashamed of the way I look. Then a visit to the Natural History Museum changed everythingI still remember the moment my body image issues began as if it were yesterday. The shaming came before the bingeing: I was 18 and my mum told me I needed to start being careful with my eating, because I was “getting fat”.She would say: “You’d be so pretty if you’d just lose weight!” I wasn’t overweight at the time, and I felt so angry. But young women aren’t allowed to be angry – so, with nowhere to put those feelings, I channelled them into food, spiralling into binge-eating as an act of revenge. Then came remorse and shame: a cycle of bingeing and restriction. Continue reading...

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2 w. ago 'I love autumn, right after the Fringe ends' – comedian Laura Davis on Edinburgh’s other 11 months of the year

For Edinburgh-based Australian comedian Laura Davis, Auld Reekie isn’t just for Fringe time, it’s for life

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3 w. ago Sashi Perera: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet)

The lawyer turned comedian and author shares her favourite online lols, from Michael Bolton as Erin Brockovich to David Attenborough narrating tortoise sex Get our weekend culture and lifestyle emailI love the internet. People from the time before the internet always talk about how great that time was. They’re lying. Some things were exactly the same: there was love and war, and people pushed doors clearly marked “pull”, especially if someone was watching. But we had to bear these experiences without a tool to ferret out as much information as possible about anything or anyone at any time. So it was definitely a worse time.When a dial-up connection came into my life at 12, I threw myself at the internet with the intensity usually reserved for Backstreet Boys dances. I’ve aggressively communicated on every virtual platform since its inception, and the best bit is the link to all the funnies.Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend...

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3 w. ago Love Is Blind UK: which of the season one couples are still together?

Let’s just say love probably isn’t blind

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3 w. ago Love Is Blind: UK Season 2 on Netflix review: let the emotional manipulation begin

Can we find love, ‘sight unseen’? Um, no. But we already knew that

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3 w. ago Love Is Blind UK Season 2 review: let the emotional manipulation begin

Can we find love, ‘sight unseen’? Um, no. But we already knew that

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3 w. ago My Festival: Nicola Meighan – ‘I love asking questions, but I’m absolutely lost for answers’

The BBC broadcaster on bringing a live version of her podcast A Kick Up The Arts to the Fringe, together with special guests from across the world of Scottish music, TV, film and more

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3 w. ago Love Is Blind: UK Season 2 on Netflix review: vapid, empty, boring

Can we find love, ‘sight unseen’? Um, no. But we already knew that

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3 w. ago ‘I was like a tornado going through men’s lives’: meet the people who can’t stop getting married

From the divorce lawyer on wedding eight to the 85-year-old in love with bride five – the hopeless romantics who keep saying ‘I do’Forty-two per cent of the married couples you know are destined to divorce, according to the latest UK statistics, but we still buy into the idea that a wedding is a happy ending. The story we like to tell, culturally, about romantic love is straightforward: that there is just one person out there for everyone, and that, once you have found that person, you will be happy every day until one of you is dead. So what about people who rack up multiple marriages? The famous stories tend to have a whiff of madness and glamour about them. There is Elizabeth Taylor, who was married eight times (twice to Richard Burton). The other, bloodier, example that springs to mind is Henry VIII.To be married and divorced multiple times requires a strange mixture of romanticism and practicality about love. Saying “until death do u...

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