53 m. ago Review: Unfortunate at The Lowry is Ursula's filthy story that absolutely didn't make it to Disney

A musical parody based on Ursula the Sea Witch is a camp dream come true - just don't go signing any contracts

Politics

54 m. ago Hightailing along high streets and raiding ponds: otters’ revival in Britain

Still rare only 20 years ago, the charismatic animals are in almost every UK river and a conservation success storyOn a quiet Friday evening, an otter and a fox trot through Lincoln city centre. The pair scurry past charity shops and through deserted streets, the encounter lit by the security lamps of shuttered takeaways. Each animal inspects the nooks and crannies of the high street before disappearing into the night, ending the unlikely scene captured by CCTV last month.Unlike the fox, the otter has been a rare visitor in towns and cities across the UK. But after decades of intense conservation work, that is changing. In the past year alone, the aquatic mammal has been spotted on a river-boat dock in London’s Canary Wharf, dragging an enormous fish along a riverbank in Stratford-upon-Avon, and plundering garden ponds near York. One otter was even filmed causing chaos in a Shetland family’s kitchen in March. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago Experts say rise in PIP claims due to UK Government welfare cuts

More than 3.8 million people are currently claiming PIP, which is worth up to £749 per month.

Politics

1 hour ago FTSE 100 Live 12 December: GDP reverse fuels rate cut bets, Card Factory slides

The UK economy declined by 0.1% for a second successive month in October, figures today showed.

Politics

1 hour ago Into the Woods review, Bridge Theatre – Stephen Sondheim revival is a thing of lush and arresting beauty

A lavish production that plays to the musical’s strengths

Events

1 hour ago Crowborough residents are taking the government to court over plans to house 600 adult male migrants in army camp

Crowborough Shield, a community-led campaign group, has lodged an application for a full judicial review of the decision to place more than 500 asylum seekers at the camp.

Events

1 hour ago Act fast: The WHOOP membership sale ends soon — Here's how to get 10% off now

Only until December 19, you can save on a 12-month WHOOP membership

Politics

2 h. ago Terminator 2D No Fate review – a brilliant bit of fan service all

Bitmap Bureau's run-and-gun adaptation of the James Cameron hit should have been an ardent fan's dream, but most iconic moments are more fun to watch than play.

Politics

3 h. ago Payment warning to pensioners in Scotland due up to £305 heating help this month

Social Security Scotland’s winter heating payments start landing in bank accounts from this month.

Economics

3 h. ago FTSE 100 Live 12 December: UK economy contracts, Card Factory profit warning

The UK economy declined by 0.1% for a second successive month in October, figures today showed.

Events

3 h. ago World media blows 'horrible' Celtic to smithereens as Wilfried Nancy slapped with brutal tactics claim

The global reaction to Celtic's horrid display came to only one conclusion as the Frenchman lost again

Politics

3 h. ago The Red Shoes review, Sadler’s Wells – Matthew Bourne conjures the impassioned, hothouse world of ballet

This richly realised production packs a wealth of ballet history into deft parodies

Politics

3 h. ago Joyride by Susan Orlean review – an extraordinary, curious life

An exuberant, inspiring memoir from the New Yorker writer and author of The Orchid ThiefIn 2017, 10 years after Susan Orlean profiled Caltech-trained physicist turned professional origami artist Robert Lang for the New Yorker, she attended the OrigamiUSA convention to take Lang’s workshop on folding a “Taiwan goldfish”. I was with her, a radio producer trying to capture the sounds of paper creasing as Orlean attempted to keep pace with the “Da Vinci of origami”, wincing when her goldfish’s fins didn’t exactly flutter in hydrodynamic splendour.It was Orlean in her element: an adventurous student, inquisitive and exacting, fully alive to the mischief inherent to reporting – and primed to extract some higher truth. “When we first met you said something to me I’ve never forgotten,” Orlean told Lang. “That paper has a memory – that once you fold it, you can never entirely remove the fold.” Was that, she wondered, an insight about life, too? Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago As the UK looks to invest in nuclear, here’s what it could mean for Britain’s environment

In this week’s newsletter: The government’s bid to speed up nuclear construction could usher in sweeping deregulation, with experts warning of profound consequences for nature• Don’t get Down to Earth delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereWhen UK prime minister Keir Starmer announced last week that he was “implementing the Fingleton review”, you can forgive the pulse of most Britons for failing to quicken.But behind the uninspiring statement lies potentially the biggest deregulation for decades, posing peril for endangered species, if wildlife experts are to be believed, and a likely huge row with the EU.2025 ‘virtually certain’ to be second- or third-hottest year on record, EU data showsJust 0.001% hold three times the wealth of the poorest half of humanity, report finds‘Even the animals seem confused’: a retreating Kashmir glacier is creating an entire new world in its wake Continue reading...

Events

4 h. ago Review: Jason Manford in Robin Hood delivers panto magic at Manchester Opera House

You're guaranteed a belly-clutching night of laughs with Jason Manford and silly sidekick Ben Nickless back in panto action, reports Dianne Bourne.

Society

4 h. ago ‘Men explicitly loving men is so threatening to the status quo’: why are gay male pop stars being shut out of the music industry?

Not long ago, artists such as Lil Nas X and Olly Alexander were ruling pop. But success has stalled as acts face industry obstacles and rising homophobia. What now?At the turn of the decade, gay male and non-binary pop stars seemed poised to take pop music by storm. Lil Nas X broke out with Old Town Road – which blew up on TikTok, sold about 18.5m copies and remains tied with Shaboozey’s A Bar Song (Tipsy) and Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You as the longest-running No 1 single in US history – and artists such as Sam Smith, Troye Sivan and Olly Alexander from Years & Years were all singing about gay love and sex.But the initial promise has stalled. Lil Nas X’s attempts to build on his smash debut album have fizzled, and he is publicly dealing with mental health issues. In October, Khalid released his first album since being outed by his ex last year but only sold 10,000 copies in the first week in the US. A previous album, 2019’s Free Spirit, sold some 200,000 copie...

Events

4 h. ago Hask Argan Oil review: affordable haircare that feels premium

It turns out you don’t need expensive salon products to get glossy, healthy-looking hair — this affordable range might be all you need

Politics

6 h. ago Scots doctor accused of sexually harassing students to be hauled before watchdog

Dr Adam Chesters will stand before the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) later this month.

Society

7 h. ago New free schools announced by the Tories to be junked by ministers

The Department for Education said that proposals for 28 out of 44 new free schools were likely to be junked following a review.

Politics

8 h. ago Dozens killed in hospital strike in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state

Conflict monitors say the junta has increased airstrikes year-on-year since the start of Myanmar’s civil warDozens have been killed in a military strike on a hospital in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state, according to an aid worker, a rebel group, a witness and local media reports, as the junta wages a withering offensive ahead of elections beginning this month.“The situation is very terrible,” said on-site aid worker Wai Hun Aung. “As for now, we can confirm there are 31 deaths and we think there will be more deaths. Also there are 68 wounded and will be more and more.” Continue reading...

Events