53 m. ago Wife's plea as husband detained abroad and government intervenes

Welsh nurse Leigh Evans was detained by the Israeli authorities after a boat he was on attempting to deliver aid to Gaza was intercepted

Politics

76 m. ago Katy Perry delivers an absolutely bonkers ride through her best hits at Manchester's AO Arena

The American popstar brought The Lifetimes Tour to Manchester last night

Events

1 hour ago Steven Gerrard's Rangers chances played up as 'not great' Celtic and Hearts claim makes gamble worth taking

Ex-striker believes Rangers favourite could land success quickly

Politics

2 h. ago Dogs name toys while elephants name each other. Animal language is more complex than we imagine | Helen Pilcher

If we really want to grasp what animals are ‘saying’, we need to understand their communication on their terms, not oursAnother day, another cute story about how dogs can grasp elements of human language and use them to communicate with us.First, there was Mr Waffles, the Yorkshire terrier that“talks” to his owners by pressing electronic buttons that have been pre-programmed with words and phrases. In one of his videos, viewed more than half a million times, the pint-sized pooch stares defiantly at the camera and responds to an empty packet of treats by pressing the “I don’t give a damn” button. Followed by the “bitch” button. Bad dog, Mr Waffles.Helen Pilcher is a science writer and the author of Bring Back the King: The New Science of De-Extinction. To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Victoria Beckham review – meticulously constructed but extremely boring

This documentary was a golden opportunity to show VB at her drily entertaining best. Instead, we get three hours of platitudes. What a maddening waste of her personalityAn intimate portrait of Victoria Beckham is what we were promised by the lavish publicity surrounding the release of the three-part documentary – entitled Victoria Beckham – about the female half of the enduring power couple, and an intimate portrait of the singer turned mogul is what was not delivered. It is about as intimate as a Pret sandwich, and if anyone thought for a moment it was going to be otherwise, well, let me introduce you to With Love, Meghan, whose searing insights into life as a duchess in Montecito are going to blow your mind.Victoria Beckham the documentary is as immaculately groomed, polished and controlled as Victoria Beckham the person. It is a puff piece for her, for husband David, her beauty line and, above all, her fashion business. It charts her evolution from stagestruck child and teenager ...

Politics

3 h. ago Posh's unseen life in the Spice Girls: Victoria Beckham opens up about her struggles to perform whilst pregnant with Brooklyn and her loneliness when the group split

'The Spice Girls made me accept who I am and what I am and how I look" they did that for me too,' Victoria declares in the opening scenes of the three part series.

Politics

4 h. ago Four dead in Houston as man shoots woman, mechanic and innocent bystander who filmed his deadly rampage before turning gun on himself

Houston Police are investigating the motive for the shooting spree, but 'early indications' suggest that all four deaths are linked, according to Lt. Larry Crowson.

Events

4 h. ago Victoria Beckham opens up about her 'lonely' post Spice Girls years after landing her part in the band with 'eccentric' audition

'The Spice Girls made me accept who I am and what I am and how I look" they did that for me too,' Victoria declares in the opening scenes of the three part series.

Politics

4 h. ago ‘Somerset saved my sanity’: Don McCullin at 90 – in pictures

Don McCullin spent decades photographing war and carnage across the globe – then he retrained his lens on the Somerset countryside. As he turns 90, a new book celebrates his gorgeous still lifes and landscapes Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Council decision to sell land for mosque car park ‘called in’

The small patch of open space had been independently valued to be worth £40,000

Politics

5 h. ago Sean Ono Lennon: ‘People say I grew up in the shadow of my dad – but Yoko really did’

The musician, producer and son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono speaks to Louis Chilton about a landmark new boxset of his parents’ remastered live recordings, protecting the legacy of The Beatles, and why it took 50 years for his mother to be properly appreciated

Politics

6 h. ago The armed robber who went straight: John McAvoy was born into the criminal life. Here’s how he escaped it

His stepfather was a serious criminal. His uncle was one of the Brink’s-Mat heist gang. McAvoy followed them into crime – and into prison. Then one day in the gym he discovered the talent, drive, support and friendship that changed everything John McAvoy sat in a holding cell in Belmarsh prison, waiting to be processed, plotting his escape. It was 2007, he was 24, and he had been arrested for firearms offences and conspiracy to commit robbery. He knew he was facing a long stretch inside, having previously served three years for possession of a firearm. He also knew his only chance of running was through the hospital wing, so had spent the day lying to guards, pretending that he had sustained a concussion during his arrest. When the holding cell doors opened, he figured that’s where he was going. Instead, he was cuffed and led away to a high-security unit (HSU).When McAvoy laid eyes on the unit, the magnitude of his situation hit home. “I thought: ‘I’m not going to see daylight for a...

Events

8 h. ago Cristina Fernández de Kirchner: Argentinian court sentences man to 10 years for attempted assassination

Court in Buenos Aires sentences Fernando Sabag Montiel and accomplice over 2022 incident in which gun was pointed at former president but did not go offA court in Argentina has sentenced a man to 10 years in prison after finding him guilty of attempting to kill former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.The court in Buenos Aires also sentenced the man’s accomplice to eight years in prison, capping a dramatic case that has captivated the country since 2022, when the main defendant, Fernando Sabag Montiel, squeezed through a crowd outside the ex-president’s home, thrust a loaded gun at her face and pulled the trigger. Continue reading...

Events

8 h. ago Exact date Winter Fuel Payments will land in pensioners' bank accounts

The Government payments are designed to help lower-income pensioners with their energy bills during the colder months.

Economics

9 h. ago Governments are spending billions on their own ‘sovereign’ AI technologies – is it a big waste of money?

Many US-built AI systems fall short but competing against tech giants neither easy nor cheapIn Singapore, a government-funded artificial intelligence model can converse in 11 languages, from Bahasa Indonesia to Lao. In Malaysia, ILMUchat, built by a local construction conglomerate, boasts that it “knows which Georgetown you’re referring to” – that is, the capital of Penang and not the private university in the US. Meanwhile, Switzerland’s Apertus, unveiled in September, understands when to use the Swiss German “ss” and not the German-language character “ß”.Around the world, language models like these are part of an AI arms race worth hundreds of billions of dollars mostly driven by a few powerful companies in the US and China. As giants such as OpenAI, Meta and Alibaba plough vast sums into developing increasingly powerful models, middle powers and developing countries are watching the landscape carefully, and sometimes placing their own, expensive bets. Continue reading...

Economics

10 h. ago Trump announces Gaza peace deal as Israel and Hamas sign off on 'first phase' of landmark plan

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday night that both Israel and Hamas had signed off on his proposed peace deal - a substantial step in ending the war in Gaza.

Politics

12 h. ago Russia's threat to 'those who cause trouble' as Trump missile deal moves closer

A top Russian defence official said his country would 'find ways to hurt those who cause us trouble' as Donald Trump edged closer to a landmark Tomahawk missiles deal with Ukraine

Events

12 h. ago Prison guards charged after 'watching inmate burn to death inside cell'

Two prison guards in Texas have been arrested and charged with homicide after they allegedly did nothing to remove an inmate from a burning cell, leading to his death

Events

12 h. ago What was Stephen Fry was in prison for? Celebrity Traitors star recalls teen jail stint

Stephen Fry spoke about his time in prison as a teenager whilst opening up on the Celebrity Traitors this evening, admitting he was a 'troubled child'

Events

13 h. ago New Met Office ‘breakthrough’ weather model to deliver more accurate forecasts

The Met Office has new technology which can forecast how space weather will impact conditions in the ionosphere and thermosphere

Society