5 h. ago ‘You have to be taken inside Poirot’s brain’: Ken Ludwig on the secret to adapting Agatha Christie

The US playwright and anglophile behind much-revived comedies has a flair for crime and is following a crowd-pleasing Murder on the Orient Express with Death on the NileIf you ever face a quiz question about the most performed theatre writers in the world, likely to have a play on somewhere every day, William Shakespeare, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Agatha Christie are all reliable answers but a fourth may surprise you: Ken Ludwig. He also has intriguing connections with the other three.The popularity that made the American wealthy enough to have donated £1m to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust is partly due – apart from his own much-revived comedies, Lend Me a Tenor (1986) and Moon Over Buffalo (1995) – to Christie. Ludwig’s 2017 adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express has had hundreds of productions and is currently touring the UK. We meet when he is in London for a workshop on a second Hercule Poirot adaptation, Death on the Nile, which premieres in September. Continue reading...

Politics

7 h. ago Expert swears BRAT diet could leave you sleeping like a baby

What you eat throughout the day can hugely impact the quality of sleep you get once you hop into bed. Now, experts have advised that the so-called 'BRAT diet' could well offer the recipe for a night of pleasant dreams

Events

52 h. ago ‘I didn’t eat or sleep’: a Meta moderator on his breakdown after seeing beheadings and child abuse

Solomon says the scale and depravity of what he was exposed to was far darker than he had ever imaginedMeta faces Ghana lawsuits over impact of extreme content on moderatorsWhen Solomon* strode into the gleaming Octagon tower in Accra, Ghana, for his first day as a Meta content moderator, he was bracing himself for difficult but fulfilling work, purging social media of harmful content.But after just two weeks of training, the scale and depravity of what he was exposed to was far darker than he ever imagined. Continue reading...

Events

8 d. ago Delusions of Paradise by Maiwand Banayee review – a compelling rejection of fundamentalism

An Afghan exile’s account of life in war-torn Kabul and a Taliban-dominated refugee camp is an unflinching study of how radicalisation takes root, and his own renunciation of itBorn in Kabul, Maiwand Banayee aspired to become a Talib when he was 16. In 1994, living in a Pakistan refugee camp, there was little to do except sleep, eat, pray and dream of the afterlife: “Islam dominated every aspect of life in Shamshatoo. Even during the volleyball and cricket games the spectators were prevented from clapping because it was seen as un-Islamic.” Banayee joined the camp’s madrasa when he was 14 in an attempt “to fit in”. The only educational opportunity open to Afghans at that time, the religious school offered structure and purpose, although “instead of teaching us to live, they were teaching us to die”.In this illuminating book, Banayee, now resident in England, describes the circumstances that led to his indoctrination, and what eventually saved him. Brutalised by conflict, his Pashtun...

Politics

2 w. ago Video. London Eurovision Party gives fans a taste of what to expect in Basel

Video. London Eurovision Party gives fans a taste of what to expect in Basel  Euronews.com

Politics

2 w. ago Revealed: The best places to eat, stay and love in Boca Raton

Boca Raton, Florida

Politics

3 w. ago Glasgow mum traumatised after being followed by rat in own home

Jemma says that the battle with the rats has left her unable to sleep or eat as she is forced to hoover up rat droppings - something that has left her feeling she has 'failed as a mum'.

Events

3 w. ago ‘Eat, sleep and party’: a taste of La Dolce Vita aboard Italy’s Orient Express

Replica of world-famous train aimed at reviving glamour of the classic version makes debut journey from Rome A replica of the world-famous Orient Express made its debut journey from Rome on Friday, transporting well-heeled passengers into the heart of Tuscany’s wine region.La Dolce Vita Orient Express, the first Italian-made luxury train, is aimed at reviving the glamour of the classic version as well as the romanticised notion of Italy’s dolce vita, or “sweet life”, all the while promoting slow tourism. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Iconic Orient Express gave me incurable cancer: Vintage carriage restorer in line for almost £500,000 in damages over exposure to deadly asbestos while working on luxury sleeper train

A vintage railway engineer who restored carriages for the Orient Express has successfully sued his employer over claims he contracted incurable cancer after being exposed to asbestos.

Economics