33 m. ago Stunned resignation and foreboding: a week in Trump’s shadow at IMF

Few policymakers mention US president by name, but his tariffs dominate IMF-World Bank meetingBusiness live – latest updatesKristalina Georgieva’s favourite film, the International Monetary Fund boss told the audience at a packed panel event in Washington on Thursday, is Tom Hanks’s cold war romp Bridge of Spies.In one of the stranger digressions in a frequently strange week, Georgieva recalled the moment when Hanks’s character, a US lawyer, tells the Soviet spy he has been appointed to defend that he will probably be executed. “You don’t seem alarmed,” Hanks says to him; to which the spy – played by Mark Rylance – replies, “Would it help?” Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago ‘It’s Fleabag’s home – the audience is unshockable’: Phoebe Waller

The central London institution champions new talent, amplifies LGBTQ+ voices and always takes risks. With a new outpost opening in Walthamstow, artists discuss how the West End venue is not just a place – it’s a philosophyA fixture on London’s Dean Street for 25 years, Soho theatre has hatched plays that won Oliviers, shows that earned the Edinburgh comedy award and ideas that became TV hits. On any night, across its upstairs studio theatre, its main house and basement cabaret bar, you’ll find plays from new writers, experimentations in clowning, drag performance, standup comedy, or a hybrid of them all.In those rooms, I’ve watched American clown Natalie Palamides giving such a spirited performance that she vomited on stage, dancer and comedian Adrienne Truscott challenging rape jokes, and performance artist Kim Noble pushing audiences beyond comfort. I’ve sung along to ballads with sketch group Daphne, and folk songs with Sh!t Theatre. Continue reading...

Events

3 h. ago May the force be with you! How to save every tired TV superfranchise, from Star Wars to Game of Thrones

Does anyone know what Marvel multiverse we’re in? And will anything ever happen in Westeros again? The world’s biggest fantasy franchises are in trouble but we have ways to make them must-see TV once moreIt’s amazing to think that, not so very long ago, people were actually excited at the prospect of a new Star Wars show. Or when it emerged that a fresh Lord of the Rings saga was, through some kind of Gandalfian wizardry, being squeezed on to the small screen, the reaction was one of giddy awe. Even the faintest whisper of another trip to Hogwarts would have set the whole internet ablaze. And now? Well, here’s a test: there’s a new Harry Potter series coming out soon. How does that make you feel? Exactly.There’s no doubt about it – a worrying number of what used to be the world’s most untouchable franchises are in trouble. But how did they arrive at this point of terminal audience ennui? And is there any route for them back into our hearts? Continue reading...

Events

4 h. ago Antiques Roadshow audience member 'faints' after massive valuation

A woman appeared to faint in the Antiques Roadshow audience after hearing how much a rare doll was worth

Events

21 h. ago Gwen Stefani shocks audience talking about having a 'third' person in Blake Shelton marriage to make it work

Stefani, a devout Catholic, revealed how a higher power played a role in her relationship as she chatted with Drew Barrymore on a November episode of her talk show.

Events

22 h. ago Bill Gates’ daughter Phoebe says she feels ‘internalized pressure’ to succeed amid nepo baby criticisms

The 22-year-old has entered the e-commerce world with the launch of her new fashion app

Events

24 h. ago Netflix chief Ted Sarandos says cinemagoing is ‘outmoded’ and the streamer is ‘saving Hollywood’

The executive told business summit that most people no longer want cinemas and ‘we deliver the programme to you in a way you want to watch it’Ted Sarandos, the co-CEO of Netflix, has defended his company’s reputation, saying the streamer is “saving Hollywood” by securing an audience for content which would otherwise disappear.Speaking at the TIME100 summit in New York on Wednesday, Sarandos said Netflix was providing a much-needed service to those people – for instance in rural areas – who are keen to see films, but without the means of going to a cinema. Continue reading...

Culture

25 h. ago Disney+ fans convinced they've '100%' worked out major plot twist in Joshua Jackson drama

Doctor Odyssey has been keeping audiences guessing since it premiered last September, and now fans are convinced that the latest episode has confirmed their biggest theory

Sport

33 h. ago Pink Floyd at Pompeii MCMLXXII review – mesmerically peculiar portrait of band on cusp of greatness

Gilmour, Waters, Wright and Mason are space rock whippets in the burning Italian sun in this outrageously indulgent yet vivid and beguiling music documentaryHere they are: Pink Floyd in 1971, amazingly young, amazingly thin, like four space-rock whippets standing mysteriously on their hind legs in the burning Italian sun. Dave Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason are performing “live at Pompeii” in this mesmerically peculiar and outrageously indulgent music documentary from film-maker Adrian Maben, now on rerelease over half a century later, available on freakily large Imax screens undreamt of in the 70s. The music and the atmosphere are an irresistible fan-madeleine for those who can remember referring to them solemnly as “the Floyd” (ahem).The band are shown performing live in Pompeii’s ancient Roman amphitheatre in the late afternoon, but not to an audience as you might assume, but weirdly and almost haughtily alone. The banks of amplifiers are pounding out the mu...

Culture

44 h. ago Meghan Markle reveals son Archie, five, has hit MAJOR milestone

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, took to the stage at the TIME100 Summit on Wednesday, where she candidly told the audience that her eldest underwent something pretty monumental.

Politics

47 h. ago Chris Hughes furiously slams Celebrity Big Brother fans in explosive rant after boos

Celebrity Big Brother star Chris Hughes tried to brush off the boos from the live audience on Tuesday night but took a quick moment before bed to rant about them

Events

50 h. ago Dazzling student creations brought to life at QMU Costume Showcase

A vibrant theatrical catwalk show celebrating the creativity, craftsmanship and collaboration of Queen Margaret University’s talented BA (Hons) Costume Design and Construction students, is set to dazzle audiences across two dates this May.

Politics

54 h. ago Roman Kemp admits Great British Bake Off judges were 'worried' about him

Roman Kemp has stunned audiences in recent days with his baking talents as he admits that he forgot what he was going to bake when he was asked by the show's producers

Events

69 h. ago 60 Minutes executive producer leaves program over journalistic independence

Bill Owens says in staff memo ‘it has become clear that I would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it’Bill Owens, the executive producer of 60 Minutes, says he is leaving the flagship news program because he lost his journalistic independence.In a staff memo obtained by the New York Times, Owens said that “over the past months, it has become clear that I would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it, to make independent decisions based on what was right for 60 Minutes, right for the audience”. Continue reading...

Politics

69 h. ago The pope’s last sacrifice in a lifetime of sacrifice: granting an audience to JD Vance | John Crace

Imagine spending your remaining hours on Earth with the US vice-president – or, as Queen Elizabeth did, with Liz TrussWhat do Liz Truss and JD Vance have against elderly people? Specifically, those who are kind, decent and compassionate.Take Radon Liz. In September 2022 she made a fleeting visit to Balmoral to be sworn in as prime minister by the queen. The last picture that was taken of Queen Elizabeth was of her standing in front of a fireplace next to Truss. You can’t escape the desperation in her eyes. Please, please, she seems to be pleading, get me away from her. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago Photographers launch exhibition that can only be seen from top deck of bus

Beside the Sea is by British photographers Martin Parr and JJ Waller.

Culture

3 d. ago Playwright Asif Khan: ‘When people think about theatre, they think white people and Shakespeare’

Sisters 360, Khan’s new play for children, tells the story of two hijab-wearing skateboarding sisters in Bradford. He hopes it will upend lazy ideas around Muslim girls – and bring new audiences to the theatreAsif Khan first heard about Lena, Maysa and Ameya – the three Muslim skateboarding sisters from Hull who became social media stars in 2022 with their skills – from his mother-in-law. “She does this a lot. She’ll send me an article and say: ‘You could write a play about this,’” laughs Khan. But there was something about this particular story that piqued his interest. “They all wore the hijab, lived with their mum and had an Instagram account where they did their own raps and filmed skateboarding tricks I immediately thought: Oh OK, this is a good premise for a play.”So, he set about adapting it for the stage. He contacted the girls’ parents and had a “good, long hour’s chat”. “They were excited that someone was interested in doing a play about them,” says Kha...

Events

3 d. ago ‘Be playful, try new things!’ The Southbank Centre’s Mark Ball on his new festival, Multitudes

The arts centre’s artistic director is on a mission to bring new audiences to the joys of classical music. He explains why mixing it with circus, grime, poetry, and film might be the way to do itCan you name the UK’s top five most visited attractions? A 2024 survey placed the British Museum and Natural History Museum in the top two spots, then Windsor Great Park and the Tate Modern. No surprises there. But the fifth is perhaps less expected: the Southbank Centre, with 3.7 million annual visitors.“If you come down in the summer, it’s like a 21st-century version of the Victorian pleasure garden,” says its artistic director, Mark Ball. “It’s like the whole world is here. Skateboarders mixed with poets mixed with the classical musicians, mixed with the dancers – it’s what gives this space its vibrancy and why I love it so much.” Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago WrestleMania fan run over by a golf cart carrying WWE star Dom Mysterio in shocking backstage moment

'Dirty Dom' claimed the WWE Intercontinental Championship Sunday night but the wrestler's celebrations were cut short when his golf cart shockingly hit a member of the audience.

Sport

3 d. ago New favourite to be next Pope in JD Vance 'curse' theory after 'exchange of opinions'

Cardinal Pietro Parolin is currently the frontrunner to be the next pope, after he also met the US Vice President during an audience at the Apostilic Palace just two days before the Pope’s death

Politics