14 h. ago Graham Norton: ‘The Bell Jar changed how I felt about books’

The TV presenter and author on discovering the beauty of Charles Dickens and why John Fowles put him off writing for 30 yearsMy earliest reading memoryI started reading because I was wildly jealous of my sister Paula, who is four years older than me. I must have been six or seven when I managed to read The Mountain of Adventure by Enid Blyton. I know she is no longer in fashion but I still remember the thrill of the world she created and the excitement of the plot.My favourite book growing upI adored the Flambards series by KM Peyton, probably because it felt slightly adult and a little bit sexy, but my absolute favourites were Grimble and Grimble at Christmas by Clement Freud. They were anarchic and knowing, in a way I hadn’t encountered before but more than anything else they were very funny. It also introduced me to the inspired illustrations of Quentin Blake. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago British father had been booked on doomed Air India plane but changed flights

Businessman Owen Jackson was scheduled to jet back to UK on flight that crashed killing 241 on board but ended up extending business trip

Politics

4 d. ago British father was booked on doomed Air India plane but had to change flights

Businessman Owen Jackson was scheduled to jet back to UK on flight that crashed killing 241 on board but ended up extending business trip

Politics

4 d. ago The SECOND miracle of Seat 11A! British father was also due to fly on doomed Air India plane but had to change flights... and was booked on the same lucky seat as crash survivor

On Thursday, Flight AI171 crashed shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad Airport in Gujarat, leaving just one survivor from 242 on board, including 53 Britons.

Events

5 d. ago My unexpected Pride icon: indie breakup songs said all the things I couldn’t say to other boys

From John Lennon’s takedown of Paul McCartney to the Libertines’ Can’t Stand Me Now, songs by straight men about falling out with their friends were strangely romantic to meWhen I was a teenager, in the late 00s in central Scotland, being gay was something I experienced as painful made me feel overwrought. This didn’t match the depiction of gayness I encountered in mainstream culture at the time, which was mostly very cheerful. Almost all of the gay men on my radar were comedians – figures such as Graham Norton and Alan Carr, both of whom I found funny and still admire today, but who were too easy-going and unpretentious to satisfy my desire to see myself as a tortured poet.When I got to university, I found the representation I was looking for – solemn and beautiful – in writers such as Edmund White and James Baldwin, but earlier in my teenage years I had to make do with what was available: romanticising being gay through songs about straight men falling out with their platonic frie...

Events

1 week ago Tell us how popular culture has prompted you to make a dramatic life change

We’d like to hear from people who have been inspired by a song, TV show, film or book to make a major change in their lifeWhether it’s leaving a loveless relationship after watching Sex and the City or a punk band inspiring you to quit drinking, we’d like to hear about your moments of cultural awakening for a column in the Guardian’s Saturday magazine.If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago ‘No smartphones before 14; no social media until 16’: The Anxious Generation author on how to fight back against big tech

One year on, Jonathan Haidt talks about the way his book changed the global conversation around children and digital devices – and explains how he handles his own teenagersJonathan Haidt is a man with a mission. You’ll have to forgive the cliche, because it’s literally true. The author of The Anxious Generation, an urgent warning about the effect of digital tech on young minds, is based at New York University’s business school: “I’m around all these corporate types and we’re always talking about companies and their mission statements,” he tells me. So, he decided to make one for himself. “It was very simple: ‘My mission is to use my research in moral psychology and that of others to help people better understand each other, and to help important social institutions work well.’”This is characteristic of Haidt: there’s the risk that writing your own brand manifesto might seem a bit, well, pompous. What comes across instead is the nerd’s desire to be as effective as possible, combined ...

Culture

2 w. ago Pervert Mohammed Al Fayed 'spent DECADES spying on women shoppers undressing in Harrods changing rooms': New book warns customers

Sexual predator Mohamed Al Fayed spied on customers using the changing rooms at Harrods for decades, according to claims made by his former bodyguard.

Economics

2 w. ago Graham Norton take note: Netflix is producing the best chat show on TV

‘Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney’ has been an odd, inventive delight for the past 12 weeks, writes Louis Chilton. It’s a shame our own late-night talk shows aren’t a patch on it

Culture

3 w. ago DVSA plan major driving test booking change as motorists face huge backlog

Some 603,000 future practical driving tests were booked as of the end of April

Transport

3 w. ago Dannii Minogue recalls moment Sharon Osbourne and Graham Norton 'piled on' and 'tore her to pieces' with cruel jokes about her looks and talent in organised 'set up' on TV

The singer, 53, who was a judge on the X Factor with Sharon at the time, described it as a 'pile on' and blamed Graham and the show's production crew for 'setting it up'.

Politics

last month Gloria Steinem and Leymah Gbowee, activists and close friends, are working on a picture book

Two giants of the women’s rights movement, Gloria Steinem and Nobel laureate Leymah Gbowee, have teamed up for a picture book with the mission of inspiring young people to change the world

Politics