2 hours ago ‘She should have a bit of me’: the Dutch mothers fighting for their children to carry their surname

Women are challenging the law that prevents them giving their kids both family names without father’s consentWhen 43-year-old Rebecca Lee took her birth mother’s Korean surname, it was a revelation. “I was adopted and got a Dutch name but I never felt completely Dutch,” she says. “When, a few years ago, I first went to Korea, things fell into place. You don’t just go ‘one, two, three’ and change your name, but now I feel more whole.”The entrepreneur from Groningen split from her husband and wants to give her five-year-old daughter “Lee” as part of a double-barrelled surname – but she cannot, under a Dutch law that some women, a leftwing MP and legal experts believe is unfair. Continue reading...

Politics

2 hours ago The Christmas that went wrong: The day was saved by the new friend I’d made on a drunken night out

I was alone in New York during the pandemic, in the aftermath of a breakup and unable to go home. A Korean family taught me to believe in the kindness of strangersLike many Jewish families, the Wolfsons take Christmas extremely seriously. Latkes and smoked salmon are served before homemade cranberry sauce and brussels sprouts. My dad’s hand-painted menorah, which he made during the ceramics cafe boom of the early 2000s, sits proudly underneath the Christmas tree.As such, I had never missed a Christmas with the family – although there had been some near misses. In 2019, we spent Christmas by my dad’s hospital bed after his stroke – us sipping on hospital canteen gingerbread lattes, him having Christmas dinner in the guise of vanilla-scented protein, fed through a tube. In 2020, I saw my family only from six feet away, double-masked and on the doorstep. I delivered presents, but they were not opened for a few days, to let any stray virus dissipate. Continue reading...

Politics

8 hours ago Liam Payne's heartbreaking final plan to declare love for Naomi Campbell before his death

Liam Payne had been planning to confess his love for original supermodel Naomi Campbell in a track which he believed would be his next hit song

Events

9 hours ago Raymond Van Barneveld crashes out of World Darts Championship as Nick Kenny in tears

Five-time world champion Raymond Van Barneveld suffered one of his worst Ally Pally losses as he was shocked by the world No.76 Nick Kenny

Events

10 hours ago OpenAI whistleblower who died was being considered as witness against company

Suchir Balaji, listed in court filing as having ‘relevant documents’ about copyright violation, died on 26 NovemberSuchir Balaji, a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who helped train the artificial intelligence systems behind ChatGPT and later said he believed those practices violated copyright law, has died, according to his parents and San Francisco officials. He was 26.Balaji worked at OpenAI for nearly four years before quitting in August. He had been well-regarded by colleagues at the San Francisco company, where a co-founder this week called him one of OpenAI’s strongest contributors who was essential to developing some of its products. Continue reading...

Events

14 hours ago ‘We still believe in him’: Haaland backs Guardiola to solve Manchester City crisis

City have lost six of last eight Premier League matchesGuardiola ‘will find the solutions,’ says HaalandErling Haaland said he is confident Pep Guardiola will solve Manchester City’s crisis after they fell to a ninth defeat in 12 matches, an alarming run in which they have won once. The Norway striker conceded he has been out of form but the City manager insisted his team would be worse off without Haaland.City, who have won only one of their past seven Premier League matches, were beaten 2-1 at Aston Villa to leave them seriously off the pace in the title race, denting their hopes of becoming champions for a fifth successive season. City trail the leaders, Liverpool, who have two games in hand on them, by nine points. “He won the Premier League six times in seven years, so we will never forget that,” Haaland said of his manager. “He will find the solutions. He has been doing that every single year. We still believe in him, we have to work harder than ever right now.” Continue readi...

Events

15 hours ago Lockerbie Bombing: What happened on the day Pan Am Flight 103 exploded?

The lives of 270 people were claimed after a bomb exploded on board Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland in 1988

Events

15 hours ago Police CCTV appeal after credit card stolen in burglary then used in nearby shop

Police believe this man may b able to help their investigation into the incident

Events

15 hours ago 'My son vanished without trace – it's a total mystery but I know he's still out there'

The distraught family of Anthony Stammers, who was just 27 years old when he went missing on the day before his granddad’s funeral 13 years ago, say they believe he is alive

Politics

17 hours ago Starmer’s plan to use the King to charm Trump – and bypass Nigel Farage

Exclusive: As the furore erupts over Lord Peter Mandelson heading to Washington DC as UK ambassador, a plan is believed to be in place for senior royals to be ‘front and centre’ in a charm offensive with Donald Trump

Politics