2 h. ago How to survive Christmas party season without sacrificing your health and wellbeing

Preparation and moderation is key to preserving your heart and soul during the festive break

Society

5 h. ago How to navigate party season without sabotaging your wellbeing

Why aiming for moderation can benefit your body and soul over the festive break.

Politics

19 h. ago The Guardian view on animal testing: we can stop sacrificing millions of lives for our own health | Editorial

New technologies can reduce our reliance on animal experiments. This isn’t just morally right, it could have scientific and economic benefits tooScience is a slaughterhouse. We rarely acknowledge the degree to which animal life underwrites the research that provides us with medicines, or the regulation that keeps us safe. Live animals were used in 2.64m officially sanctioned scientific procedures in the UK in 2024, many of them distressing or painful and many of them fatal. But the government’s new strategy to phase out animal testing – published earlier this month – suggests that in the near future emerging technologies can largely replace the use of animals in our scientific endeavours.The UK previously banned cosmetics testing on animals, and has already taken steps to regulate and reduce their use in research. But some needlessly cruel experiments still take place: the forced swim test (FST) for example, in which a rodent is placed in a body of water it canno...

Society

26 h. ago The four trending hairstyles for the party season – and how to get them

From the return of the side part to Sixties updos

Society

32 h. ago Party season is coming – and I am the tense, sweaty, shrill hostess with the leastess | Polly Hudson

Whether it’s panicking about the mess, forgetting drinks orders or frantically asking if people are having fun, I’m no fun at parties. How do the bon vivants do it?Being a bad friend is presumably like being a narcissist – wondering whether you are one probably means that you’re not. However, a writer for the US magazine People questioned this topic just this week, with an article asking if she was letting down her mates by refusing to host Friendsgiving. (For the unfamilar, this is Thanksgiving you spend with friends rather than family, and is increasingly popular in the UK.) She has a good reason though. “I simply don’t want people in my house.”After mentioning “the foot traffic, the proximity to my stuff, the general vibes of it all”, she admitted, “there is a rhythm and reason to the way my fruit bowl is organised, how my coffee table books are placed and how my cushions lie on the sofa. I would hate to be half-cooking, half-monitoring my guests to make sure no one has their fee...

Politics

53 h. ago We've just found a John Lewis version of Meghan Markle's chic burgundy satin dress

Meghan Markle is serving nonstop inspiration for festive party dressing this season.

Politics

59 h. ago Brits' list of worst Christmas buffet faux pas includes 'really disgusting' habit

Brits are preparing for party season in the weeks before Christmas, but many have expressed their anger at the rudest things they've seen revellers do at the buffet table

Politics

3 d. ago Christmas party season sparks fresh warning as workplace hangovers cost UK £1.4 billion

With Christmas parties underway, employers are warned of rising alcohol- and drug-related risks, as new findings show one in three workers has witnessed substance use on the job

Economics

3 d. ago The £2.60 ‘hangover cure’ that celebrities are swearing by for Christmas party season, and it’s completely natural too

WITH Christmas party season about to kick off, millions of people around the world are likely to be waking up with hangovers the morning after. But there's a new 'cure' available that celebrities are raving about, as it means they don't feel the effects of a heavy evening quite as much. Ex Love Island star...

Economics

4 d. ago The Princess of Wales confirms chandelier earrings are this season's ultimate party piece

Pairing emerald-green velvet and diamonds, the Princess of Wales provides the perfect party inspiration

Politics

4 d. ago The best of H&M’s Black Friday sale, according to a fashion writer

Shop winter coats, party-season dresses and more in the sale

Politics

4 d. ago 11 going out tops that will see you through party season and beyond

Going out tops have a special kind of magic - they're the pieces you reach for when you want to feel instantly polished without overthinking the rest of your outfit.

Politics

4 d. ago Not Mariah again! New music playlists for the Christmas party season

Whether it’s vibe-setting dance and rap for house parties or soothing dream-pop for when you’re contemplating the clear-up, reach for these ready-made playlistsLet’s face it: when everyone’s two improvised cocktails deep, they’ll be hollering for Pink Pony Club, and after two more, they’ll be doing Fairytale of New York in a male-female karaoke face-off. But for the early part of the party, here’s some 2025 pop, dance and rap to keep the mood buoyant. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Grab a bottle of Baileys at the cheapest price it's been all year ahead of Christmas

One supermarket has slashed the price of the 1L bottle of Baileys to the lowest price it's been all year in the lead up to Christmas and party season

Politics

5 d. ago Will your marriage survive until Christmas? TRACEY COX warns that even solid couples risk being derailed by a 'potent mix' of issues in the run up to the festive season

TRACEY COX: One UK study found, in the run-up to December, 39 per cent of married people admit to worrying about their marriage. Eight per cent think Christmas might be 'make or break'.

Events

5 d. ago I’m a fashion writer and these are the best H&M Black Friday deals

Shop winter coats, party-season dresses and more in the sale

Economics

6 d. ago I'm a wine snob– here's what I thought about Aldi's restocked £23 Champagne that beat Moët

Our self-confessed Champagne snob puts Aldi's restocked Veuve Brut Champagne Premier Cru as it hits shelves for party season

Economics

6 d. ago Princess Kate's exact £25 high street accessory makes any hairstyle look expensive

Kate Middleton's hair accessory is back in stock for party season, and it's set to give you expensive looking tresses

Politics

7 d. ago I've found the perfect showstopping party dress from New Look for under £40

Turn heads this party season with the black velvet dress from New Look.

Economics

8 d. ago I'm a fashion editor and I've just tried on 30 pairs of Party Jeans. Here are the 7 most flattering styles

Party season is just around the corner and High Street stores are groaning under the weight of glittery cocktail dresses.

Society