54 m. ago 'I would gamble my wages away as soon as I got them': How I lost £50,000

Adverts that target women and too-good-to-be-true offers have sparked a rise in female gambling. One victim tells Steve Boggan how she became an online gaming addict

Economics

55 m. ago ‘Now it's about personal happiness’: popular Granny Wang dating show belies China’s plummeting marriage rate

Zhou Mei’s matchmaking show draws crowds in person and online, but young Chinese increasingly choose singledomThe crowd is sweltering under a red and gold awning, but Granny Wang has them rapt. Packed into the space in front of the 62-year-old’s small stage, and spilling out on to the wooden bleachers above, hundreds of people have gathered to hear Granny Wang – real name Zhao Mei – play matchmaker to young men and women at a daily show in a theme park in Kaifeng, an ancient city in central China’s Henan province.One man who volunteers to be set up comes on stage and tells Zhao that a previous relationship broke down due to a lack of time. “Well, now that you’ve met your ideal partner here, you’ll have the time,” she assures him, and the crowd cheers. Continue reading...

Culture

2 h. ago ‘I have a daily battle with myself not to go on Ozempic’: Jade Thirlwall on anorexia, protest in pop and life after Little Mix

As part of the hugely successful girlband, she had to contend with an eating disorder, racism and a hostile tabloid press. Now JADE the solo artist is conquering the charts with her unorthodox pop bangers and unfiltered attitudeIt’s customary for former girlband members to shun their manufactured roots the second they go solo. But now that Jade Thirlwall is no longer a member of Little Mix, she’s become their biggest fan. “I look back and I’m gagged at us!” she tells me, eyes wide with delight. “I still watch our music videos or performances and wonder how we weren’t even bigger, because we were fucking amazing.“Before I released my first solo song, I listened to Little Mix’s entire discography and cried. I was this young lass from South Shields who just wanted to make it as a singer, and I went on to be in the best, coolest girlband ever.” And now? “Now I get to have a bonus round, doing my own songs,” she beams. Continue reading...

Events

2 h. ago Monastic music that survived Henry VIII’s dissolution brought back to life

Buckland Abbey recreates music telling of medieval life in extraordinary discoveryAlmost five centuries ago a community of monks in the West Country of England gathered to sing, imploring their God to help them endure the challenges of medieval life.Thanks to an extraordinary discovery of music that survived Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries in the early 16th century, the songs created by the Buckland Abbey monks were ringing out again across the hills and woods of the Tavy valley in Devon this weekend.The University of Exeter Chapel Choir will perform the music live in Buckland Abbey’s medieval Great Barn on 16 and 17 August. Continue reading...

Events

5 h. ago Trump tells Fox News that Zelensky has ‘got to make a deal’ with Putin after Alaska summit

Speaking on Fox News’ ‘Hannity’, Trump vowed to attend a meeting with leaders of Ukraine and Russia: ‘They both want me there, and I'll be there’

Politics

5 h. ago Trump says no Ukraine agreement after Putin talks as he advises Zelenskyy to ‘make a deal’ – live

US president tells Fox’s Sean Hannity meeting with Russian leader in Alaska was ‘10’ out of 10 and puts onus on Ukrainian presidentNo deal after brief Trump-Putin talks on Ukraine in AlaskaThe president has yet to deplane, but is currently greeting Alaska governor Muke Dunleavy and senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, all Republicans, aboard Air Force One, per the White House.White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also says that for the expanded bilateral meeting and lunch, Trump, Rubio, and Witkoff will be joined by treasury secretary Scott Bessent, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, defense secretary Pete Hegseth, and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago Sad truth about ageing men... every woman whispers about it. So many women put up with these ludicrous husbands: AMANDA PLATELL

Reflecting on making his half century, Leonardo DiCaprio tells Esquire magazine he doesn't feel 50 but 32.

Politics

8 h. ago Sacred Mysteries: London life when opera stars sang at church

Sacred Mysteries: London life when opera stars sang at church  The Telegraph

Politics

10 h. ago Donald Trump 'sickens' onlookers with telling greeting he gave to Vladimir Putin

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have met in Alaska to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine, with the US President warning he "won't be happy" if an agreement isn't reached

Politics

10 h. ago Insurance company sues owners of New London church that collapsed in 2024

Insurance company sues owners of New London church that collapsed in 2024  WFSB

Politics

14 h. ago Lamborghini's £3m Fenomeno revealed: CEO tells us how it selects 29 esteemed customers deemed worthy of owning one

Boasting a staggering 1,065 horsepower, it is officially the most potent model with numberplates that Lamborghini has ever sold to the public

Economics

15 h. ago As civil rights books are pulled from school shelves, one Alabama town is refusing to forget its story

The Scottsboro Boys Museum tells the story of nine African American men who were falsely accused of the rape of two white women in 1931

Culture

15 h. ago Fergie's mum was Prince Philip's lover: This cuckolding scandal claim is the talk of the Palace after Prince Andrew bombshells. Now one of the Duke's friends tells RICHARD KAY the inside story

Of all the jaw-dropping claims in Andrew Lownie's book about Prince Andrew, it is one of the most provocative.

Politics

16 h. ago Danilo responds to Rangers transfer rumour about £6m rated teammate as he tells Russell Martin 'I'm ready to step up'

Danilo says he's ready to rock as he wants to cement his spot as the main No.9 at Ibrox

Economics

16 h. ago Why I withdrew my book from an LGBTQ+ literary prize | Jason Okundaye

The Polari first book prize claims to promote trans rights and trans voices. But when I saw the longlist, I had to actLast week, I withdrew my nomination from the longlist for the Polari first book prize. The awards had become mired in controversy due to the nomination of the Irish author John Boyne, best known for The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, for the main prize for his novel Earth. Four days before the longlist announcement, Boyne had written in the Irish Independent, celebrating JK Rowling “as a fellow terf” and saying of women who had “pilloried” her for her gender activism: “For every Commander Waterford, there’s a Serena Joy standing behind him, ready to pin a handmaiden down as her husband rapes her.”I think such a viewpoint is abhorrent, but Boyne is free to hold whatever views he wants. What was unacceptable was a statement from the Polari prize addressing the backlash, emphasising its commitment to “support trans rights and amplify trans voices”, but defending Boyne’s in...

Politics

16 h. ago Surprising habit warned to make you 'feel even hotter in a heatwave'

As the UK is hit by another heatwave, many Brits will be struggling to get a good night's sleep - but experts have warned that ditching your pyjamas might not help

Events

17 h. ago Britain’s biggest bailiff firm forced into refunds programme after overcharging

Exclusive: Marston Holdings apologises to consumers for ‘enforcement fees’ errorBritain’s biggest bailiff company overcharged people it was pursuing for unpaid debts and has been forced to launch a refunds programme, the Guardian can reveal.Marston Holdings, which is used by companies and state-funded bodies including Transport for London to recover debts and fines, has apologised to consumers after overcharging “enforcement fees” related to unpaid road traffic penalties it was chasing. Continue reading...

Economics

18 h. ago Munich 1938 tells us Trump must not give anything away at Putin summit

Ukraine – and Europe – will be hoping that Trump can hold his nerve when he meets Putin in Alaska on Friday

Politics

18 h. ago NHS tells parents to look out for five symptoms in kids this week

Young children are more susceptible, and could become seriously ill

Politics

19 h. ago Donald Trump says Vladimir Putin is ‘a smart guy’ as he heads to Alaska for meeting over Ukraine – Europe live

US president tells reporters ‘something is going to come up’ as he travels to Anchorage, Alaska, for meeting US hopes will be pivotal momentAsked if his conversation with Trump will cover territorial issues, Trump says:“They’ll be discussed, but I’ve got to let Ukraine make that decision, and I think they’ll make a proper decision, but I’m not here to negotiate for Ukraine. I’m here to get them at a table. “I noticed he’s bringing a lot of business people from Russia, and that’s good.I like that because they want to do business, but they’re not doing business until we get the war stopped.” Continue reading...

Politics