53 m. ago School bans children singing KPop Demon Hunters songs over ‘Christian ethos’ fears

‘For some Christians, references to demons can feel deeply uncomfortable’, acting headteacher says

Culture

58 m. ago Tuchel knows perfection is an illusion but England have reasons to dream | David Hytner

The team’s qualifying record is impressive but not as important as their burgeoning confidence and momentum“Right now, I could say that everything played out perfectly,” Thomas Tuchel says, as he reflects on having led England through qualifying to the World Cup finals: phase one of the mission complete. It does not feel incongruous for the head coach to talk about perfection – partly because he is constantly chasing it and also because, well, the results have been perfect.When Tuchel’s team beat Albania 2-0 in Tirana on Sunday, it meant they topped their group with eight wins out of eight and with eight clean sheets. Never before has a European nation gone through World Cup qualification, playing at least six ties, without conceding. Spain will emulate them if they beat Turkey at home and keep a clean sheet in their sixth and final qualifier on Tuesday night. The only thing is that Tuchel knows perfection is unattainable – particularly in international football. Continue reading...

Politics

65 m. ago Fat jab users warned not to overdo the booze this Christmas to avoid passing out

The weight-loss drugs slow the rate at which alcohol enters the bloodstream, meaning it can take longer to feel the effects of drinking

Events

82 m. ago Anxiety intensifies for three schools which face potential closure

A decision on a fourth school has been delayed, and council chiefs say they understand how people feel

Politics

1 hour ago Why 'lucky' John Swinney may yet become the SNP’s weakest link

John Swinney has been at the heart of SNP decision-making for years and cannot escape the blame for the party’s many mistakes

Politics

2 h. ago I’m starting my fitness goals before Christmas so I can enjoy all the wine and mince pies

I’m getting into better fitness routines now so that I can relax over Christmas and not feel guilty about overindulging.

Politics

3 h. ago Expert reveals 5 simple tips for creating a sustainable budget in 2026

Budgeting is a key part of financial health - but only half of Americans feel very confident about making one

Economics

3 h. ago What a dietician wants you to know about overeating during the holidays

Beyond digestion, the way you think and talk about food can be just as important as how you feel after eating

Events

3 h. ago More than a quarter of the world has NEVER used the internet: Shocking report reveals how 2.2 billion people remain offline

It might feel like everyone is constantly online, but the UN has revealed that more than a quarter of the world's population has never used the internet.

Events

3 h. ago ‘Better and cheaper’: the case for prostate cancer screening among black men

Decision over routine PSA testing is due at end of this month, though some feel the supporting data is unclearJunior Hemans was having a routine health check in 2014 when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, at the age of 51. He knew there was an increased risk of the disease in black men so asked to have a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test, which was not initially included.“And when I went, they said I had a raised PSA level for my age,” Hemans said. “[The diagnosis] was a shock because I had no symptoms.” Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Plumber's simple radiator trick will help you 'channel the warmth' in your home

A heating engineer has shared a simple trick to help you "channel the warmth" in your home – and it's all to do with your radiators.

Events

4 h. ago Major pop star says Manchester restaurant is 'definitely up there' in visit before Co

'I feel very lucky to have experienced it'

Politics

4 h. ago The flop that finally flew: why did it take 40 years for Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along to soar?

Its 1981 New York premiere was a disaster but this told-in-reverse musical became a Tony award-winning hit with Daniel Radcliffe. The film version is a tear-jerking joyI have made enough mistakes as a critic to feel mildly chuffed when a verdict is vindicated. In 1981 I wrote excitedly about a new Stephen Sondheim musical, Merrily We Roll Along, that I had seen in preview in New York; reviled by reviewers and shunned by the public, it then closed two weeks after opening. In 2023-24 the very same musical ran for a year on Broadway, won four Tony awards and was hailed by the critics. Fortunately a live performance of that Maria Friedman production was filmed and I would urge you to catch it when it’s released in cinemas next month.I say “the very same musical” but that is not strictly accurate. Based on a 1934 play by George S Kaufman and Moss Hart, it is still the same story, told in reverse chronological order, of dissolving relationships: a success-worshipping composer and movie pr...

Politics

4 h. ago Parents 'starved son, three, to death "after abusing him in the most gruesome way" after fortune teller convinced them he was a demon'

Elias, born in Tyrol, Austria, died weighing only seven kilograms as a result of months of malnutrition and dehydration, an autopsy found.

Events

4 h. ago I'm A Celeb Kelly Brook's 'Bond Girl showers exposed' hours before scenes air

EXCLUSIVE: I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here star Kelly Brook has hinted she'll be stripping for the iconic jungle shower scenes and lucky viewers "will likely be treated to one every episode..."

Culture

5 h. ago I keep trying to name storms. Why does the Met Office turn down my suggestions? | Zoe Williams

‘Wubbo’ has made it on to the list and so has ‘Dave’, but although I’ve tried a hundred times, including my kids’ names, I’ve had absolutely no luckThe UK’s most memorable storm occurred in 1987, almost 30 years before storms got names, and will therefore always be known as “the one that Michael Fish said definitely wouldn’t happen”. It was a devastating weather event if you cared about trees, or you held adult responsibility for a roof. If you were 14 and all the routes to school were blocked, yet the train to the cinema was unaccountably still running, and you went to see Hope and Glory – which, in a delicious twist of fate, was also about a kid who couldn’t go to school (although in his case because it had been destroyed in the blitz) – it was just about the best weather-related thing ever to happen. If I ever feel bad for Fish, who has a bunch of weather qualifications and yet saw his reputation defined by this one wrong call, it’s because I enjoyed that day so much that I feel ...

Politics

5 h. ago My kids start sentences in one language and end in another. I hope school doesn’t shrink their joyous, noisy worlds | Shadi Khan Saif

Maybe there’s room for something gentler: letting children know they don’t need to change any part of themselves to belongMost mornings in our house feel like a friendly little language carnival spinning through the kitchen. Before the kids even put on their shoes for school, they’ve already cycled through three languages – joking in Hindi, arguing in Pashto and sprinkling English on top like chocolate chips tossed over their cereal.We don’t plan it or rehearse it: it just happens. Pashto is the language of feelings and family business like complaints, alliances, who stole whose pencil, who touched the remote. Hindi came to us through the back door: Bollywood songs and movies playing in the background, cousins in Karachi and the kind of street-style banter the kids pick up from YouTube faster than I can keep track of. And English, of course, is the language that binds the whole day together with school notices, breakfast negotiations, reminders about homework. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago 'A man abused his partner during the time he was cheating on her with me – I didn’t know and feel physically sick'

This week, Lala offers advice to a reader who found out a man she was dating was in a relationship the whole time and has now been sentenced to prison for domestically abusing his partner. She didn't know and feels physically sick (TW: this column contains mention of abuse)

Events

6 h. ago Anthony Joshua has undermined his legacy and the sport that 'saved' him with Jake Paul circus

His rags-to-riches story made Joshua a marketer's dream, a social media phenomenon and a genuine role model for millions - a responsibility AJ acknowledged and embraced with open arms.

Sport

6 h. ago Dick Van Dyke says 'this is something I still want to do' as he shares 'secret' to longevity

Dick Van Dyke, who turns 100 on December 13, has shared a secret to his longevity as he admitted that if he doesn't keep up one aspect of his weekly routine, he "really can feel it"

Politics