69 m. ago My boiler has broken and I’m finding solace in a slice (or several) of toast | Rachel Cooke

There are whole chapters in cookbooks dedicated to it and now an endless variety of new things to spread on top, including butters with a waiting listMy subject today is toast, which is much on my mind right now, a buttery ticker tape that calls me constantly to the kitchen. Our boiler has packed up, the new one won’t be installed for a week, and though it’s only the central heating that’s down (the cooker’s fine), the freezing cold has turned me into a toast monster. It’s all I want, a feeling I haven’t had since I was a student and living in a house that was so badly insulated, we sometimes had to break the ice on the water in the loo. How many loaves can a person get through in a week? Come back to me in a few days for an answer. I’ll give you a tour of my chilblains at the same time.What is amazing about toast is the way it has lately become so pimped. This started a few years ago: I first noticed it in Moro Easy by Sam and Sam Clark, a cookbook that came out in 2022 and whose o...

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69 m. ago Inmates locked up in UK prison given dancing lessons and invited to 'film nights'

Female inmates at HMP New Hall in West Yorkshire have been offered line dancing lessons and can attend film nights featuring popcorn and fizzy pop as part of the prison's incentive scheme

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94 m. ago This man robbed someone's phone 20 years ago, he's still in prison

Despite psychologists who have worked with Douglas determining he is safe for release, the Parole Board has never decided to release him and he has now served over eight times his original sentence.

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2 h. ago ‘Exploited’ migrant farm workers in UK paid for picks, not hours

Call for investigation into unfair payment for labourers on seasonal visa scheme When 26-year-old Ben* boarded a flight in Uzbekistan in June, he was looking forward to more than just a summer job picking fruit and vegetables on a British farm.“I wanted to see new places, cities I’ve never seen before,” he said. “I wanted to make friends, exchange ideas and make new memories.” Continue reading...

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2 h. ago Nearly 30,000 season ticket holders quit Premier League club and don't come back

West Ham have suffered a huge drop-off in season ticket sales since moving to the London Stadium, with more than half of the initial 50,000 season ticket holders not renewing

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2 h. ago Premier League releases VAR statement on Everton’s overturned penalty against Manchester United

Manchester United salvaged a draw at Goodison Park but Everton thought they had been awarded a late penalty

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2 h. ago Hamas freed five Israeli hostages under phase one of ceasefire

Hamas has released five Israeli hostages, including Avera Mengistu, who had been held captive in Gaza for over ten years.

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2 h. ago Josh Campbell scores double as spirited Hibs record rare win over Celtic

Hibernian did what Bayern Munich could not as Josh Campbell’s first-half double earned David Gray’s in-form side a stirring 2-1 home win over Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic.Celtic were widely lauded for their display in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw in the Allianz Arena as they exited the Champions League after conceding in stoppage time to the German giants. But Brendan Rodgers’ team were brought back to earth as they suffered only a second domestic defeat of the season at the hands of a Hibs side now unbeaten in 13 matches and tightening their grip on a top-six spot after a dire start to the season. Continue reading...

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3 h. ago All episodes of 'dark and absorbing' gritty British crime drama now streaming on BBC

The critically acclaimed crime drama features a talented detective taking on some of London's most horrific murder cases

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3 h. ago Premier League release statement as VAR controversy rescues Man Utd vs Everton

Everton were awarded a last minute penalty against Manchester United after Ashley Young was brought down in the box with the game tied at 2-2, but then VAR took it away

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3 h. ago Premier League release Man United statement after late Everton penalty drama

Everton were denied a late penalty against Manchester United after Andy Madley overturned his own decision after consulting the pitchside VAR monitor

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4 h. ago Premier League forced to release Manchester United statement after lengthy Everton VAR check

The opening goal during Man United's Premier League clash against Everton was subject to a lengthy check.

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4 h. ago Middle East crisis live: Hamas releases six hostages as Israel prepares to free hundreds of Palestinians

Hisham al-Sayed, Tal Shoham, Avera Mengistu, Eliya Cohen, Omer Shem Tov and Omer Wenkert have now been releasedA masked militant has sat down at a table on the stage with a Red Cross representative and they appear to be signing documents.Live images from Rafah are showing masked Hamas fighters taking to the makeshift stage, with one speaking into a microphone. Continue reading...

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5 h. ago What is Apple's data protection tool? The controversial encryption feature being axed

Advanced Data Protection (ADP) protects data stored in iCloud with end-to-end encryption, which means the data can only be seen by the user who owns it, and only on their trusted devices

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5 h. ago What have three years of Putin’s war done to both nations’ economies?

As the invasion enters its fourth year, analysts are examining the health of Ukraine and Russia, and who will be the better prospect for investors once the conflict ends. The answers are not as predictable as one might thinkAs Ukrainians prepare to enter their fourth year dealing with the harsh daily realities of life during conflict with Russia, few will be musing on the comparative economic health of the warring nations. However, inflation figures released either side of the border showed the continued toll the conflict has had on citizens of both countries – with price rises running at 9.5% in Russia and 12% in Ukraine.Three years on since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, economists are examining the relative health of each country. Continue reading...

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5 h. ago Strictly Come Dancing tour chaos almost forced Sarah Hadland to quit

Another Strictly Come Dancing star has admitted to almost quitting the BBC show's live tour after their partner was forced to pull out of the running following an injury

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6 h. ago Hamas frees five hostages as first phase of ceasefire nears end

Militant group due to release one more hostage on Saturday as part of exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners

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6 h. ago Russell Watson looks back: ‘My success felt like a wave that kept rolling. Until it didn’t’

The classical singer on scrimping and saving for his first guitar, being diagnosed with two brain tumours and getting back to musicBorn in Salford in 1966, Russell Watson is the UK’s bestselling classical crossover artist. The tenor started on the north-west’s working men’s club circuit, before getting a record deal and releasing The Voice, an album that held the No 1 spot for 52 weeks. He has had seven Top 10 albums, more than 7m album sales, and has performed for Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles and the late Pope John Paul II. He is celebrating 25 years of The Voice with a UK tour.I was 15 when this photo was taken. My childhood bedroom was the size of a postage stamp, but I still filled it with posters – Marilyn Monroe, Madonna and Paul Weller. I was obsessed with music, but even more with football. I wasn’t particularly interested in girls; my life revolved around hanging out with my pals. Continue reading...

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6 h. ago London Weekend Travel Disruptions: What new updates for you?

London Weekend Travel Disruptions: What new updates for you?  Travel And Tour World

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6 h. ago Bong Joon Ho: ‘I wish I had Ken Loach’s energy, but I’m just thinking about nap time’

How do you follow up an Oscar winner like Parasite? If you’re the South Korean auteur, you make a sci-fi satire where Robert Pattinson dies over and over again. The director discusses the inspirational Loach and Mike Leigh and why it’s hard being a ‘middle-aged film-maker’We are in the run-up to the release of Bong Joon Ho’s latest, Mickey 17, and Warner Bros has got the Oscar-winning Korean director stashed away in what appears to be some kind of basement storage room, with grey-painted brickwork and exposed wiring. In fact, this room could pass for one of the “gritty and kind of nasty” cargo-container-packed cabins of his film’s spaceship setting.Not that anyone is complaining. Bong, who speaks good English but prefers to conduct interviews via his longtime interpreter Sharon Choi, appears cheerful throughout our conversation, taking occasional sips from a takeaway coffee cup, while dressed in his usual arthouse auteur uniform of a slate-grey blazer over a black T-shirt. He i...

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