82 m. ago Rachel Reeves told she 'would have been sacked in any other industry' by Tory leader

The Chancellor has been publicly criticised by the opposition leader.

Politics

3 h. ago Sir Elton John slams X Factor as 'worst thing that can happen' in brutal swipe

Music legend Sir Elton John ripped into The X Factor for its mistreatment of artists, and offered some stern but fair advice to artists hoping to break into the industry

Politics

3 h. ago UK retail sales slump in March amid weak confidence, CBI says – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsEuropean stock markets are higher this morning, as investors cling to hopes that Donald Trump’s plan to impose reciprocal tariffs on trading partners could be more targetted than feared.The pan-European Stoxx 600 index has gained 0.57% this morning, with gains on the German DAX (+0.5%), French CAC (+0.9%) and Italian FTSE MIB (+0.7%).US markets are beginning to show some belief that President Trump’s strong arm negotiating tactics on tariffs might not be quite as punitive for the US economy as feared.There are growing hopes that if they are more targeted, as rumoured, they might helpshore up domestic industry, while securing better terms for the US on the global trading stage.Tesla currently faces a number of challenges in Europe, ahead of the launch of its new Model Y mid-size SUV this month. The EV maker has a smaller, ageing lineup while traditional automaker rivals and new Chinese entrants alike continue to launch new, of...

Economics

6 h. ago 'Disease X' warning as experts list viruses that could spark next pandemic

One leading scientist has warned that one virus poses a “threat far worse than Covid impossible to control by even the strictest lockdown”.

Events

10 h. ago USPS head Louis DeJoy resigns amid reported clash over DOGE access to mail system

The Republican donor was appointed by Trump himself in the thick of the Covid-19 pandemic, but reportedly fell out of favor by clashing with DOGE

Politics

10 h. ago The sudden, surprising rise of beard transplants: ‘This industry is a wild west’

Demand for facial hair surgery is soaring – despite the dangers that lurk in an unregulated industry. Are the risks worth it for the chance of a thicker, fuller beard?Of all the teenage anxieties that can take root, beard growth – or the lack of it – was the one that really got to Vikram Arora. His facial hair was patchier than a drought-hit lawn and by the time he went to college he was very self-conscious. “You’d have older guys coming in with a bit of stubble and it was almost this guilty secret where I’d be thinking: ‘I wish I could have that,’” he says.It was the 90s and George Michael’s sculpted goatee was everywhere. Arora, who is 47 and lives in Essex, remembers being racked with envy as he admired Tom Ford’s designer stubble in a photo in a clothes shop. At one point, he took to stealing his sister’s mascara wand in an attempt to fill in the gaps. Continue reading...

Politics

10 h. ago Slashed fuel bills for poorest demanded by Scot Gov taskforce in 'social tariff' call

EXCLUSIVE: Working group with industry set up last year by Holyrood ministers proposes 'deliverable scheme' for discounted bills to UK Government.

Economics

10 h. ago International students weigh new risks of pursuing higher education in the US under Trump

As colleges and universities respond to Trump administration directives to change how they operate, educators worry that fewer international students will want to study in the U.S.

Politics

12 h. ago Living with long Covid when the world has moved on – podcast

What is life like with – and after – long Covid? Helen Pidd reports“I think he actually got it while he was climbing on a climbing trip. And it was bad, but it wasn’t awful.”James first caught Covid-19 in April 2022 and as his partner Emma explains to Helen Pidd, it was not until months later that the severity of his infection became apparent. He became unable to get up and walk and was hypersensitive to noise and light. Continue reading...

Politics

15 h. ago Half of UK oil and gas demand can be produced at home, says industry body

North Sea could produce an extra 2bn to 3bn barrels with ‘right’ levers, forecasts Offshore Energies UK

Society

15 h. ago Four dangerous viruses which could spark another pandemic revealed by UK scientists

UKHSA has revealed the most dangerous pathogens for Britain as one scientist warns a measles-like virus would ‘pose a threat far worse than Covid’ and be ‘impossible to control’

Events

15 h. ago North Sea could produce half of all UK oil and gas in run up to 2050 – report

Industry body Offshore Energies UK made the claim in a new report.

Politics

17 h. ago Postmaster General Louis DeJoy resigns after 5 years in the position

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has resigned after nearly five years in the position

Politics

17 h. ago Love and Loss: The Pandemic Five Years On is an emotionally shattering re

For those of us lucky enough not to have lost anyone dear, the 12 months between March 2020 and March 2021 now have the quality of a peculiar dream. If we think of the period at all, it’s often in the context of alternating boredom and strangeness; breadmaking and homeschooling; bingeing Tiger King and wondering if 4pm is too early for a glass of wine. Can it possibly have been five years already since Boris Johnson stood at his podium, told us he’d been shaking hands with Covid patients, and, shortly afterwards, announced the first lockdown?

Events

20 h. ago Terrifying ways Covid lockdown changed our brains forever and trauma signs you won't spot

This month marks the fifth anniversary of the UK being placed into lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Five years on, The Mirror looks at how the traumatic ordeal changed our brains forever - and the hidden signs you're still struggling with it

Events

21 h. ago Man splashed £50k on ketamine after first taking it at Creamfields festival

Tom Kirk first took the powerful drug at Creamfields festival in 2018 but only developed a heavy dependence during the Covid-19 pandemic and eventually could barely even walk

Economics

24 h. ago 'Watching people gasp for air in intensive care during Covid will stay with me forever'

Liam Thorp was given exclusive access to the ICU at the Royal Liverpool Hospital in 2020 - when the virus had already taken hold in Liverpool, with soaring case numbers leading to rising fatalities in hospital

Society

24 h. ago $921 for Othello: why have Broadway tickets gotten so expensive?

A blockbuster production of the Shakespeare tragedy might boast Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal but it’s sparked a debate over excessive pricingHow much would you pay to be in the same room as Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal, watching them work? Is that price in the mid-hundreds of dollars? And would you double it to nearly a thousand for a slightly better seat?The 15-week limited Broadway run of William Shakespeare’s Othello, featuring one of our greatest living actors in the title role (and another, pretty damn good actor as Iago), is betting that at least some people would. Orchestra-level advance tickets to the show run between $216 and $921, depending on where you sit (those $216 tickets, more in line with what a less starry straight play might charge, are at the far side of the row, which at least means you’re getting a slightly lesser chance of catching Covid or the flu alongside your mild discount). It’s the latest innovation in live-theater pricing, where you no...

Politics

24 h. ago $921 to see Denzel Washington’s Othello? How Broadway tickets got so expensive

A blockbuster production of the Shakespeare tragedy might boast Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal but it’s sparked a debate over excessive pricingHow much would you pay to be in the same room as Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal, watching them work? Is that price in the mid-hundreds of dollars? And would you double it to nearly a thousand for a slightly better seat?The 15-week limited Broadway run of William Shakespeare’s Othello, featuring one of our greatest living actors in the title role (and another, pretty damn good actor as Iago), is betting that at least some people would. Orchestra-level advance tickets to the show run between $216 and $921, depending on where you sit (those $216 tickets, more in line with what a less starry straight play might charge, are at the far side of the row, which at least means you’re getting a slightly lesser chance of catching Covid or the flu alongside your mild discount). It’s the latest innovation in live-theater pricing, where you no...

Politics

25 h. ago Is London living falling out of fashion? Stark map shows how eye

Official figures released today showed that in parts of east, south east and south London, median house prices fell or flatlined last year while local wages surged.

Culture