4 h. ago Boy George calls JK Rowling 'bored rich bully' as social media feud erupts over trans rights

Rowling, 59, has faced backlash from Harry Potter stars and actor Pedro Pascal for her views on trans rights

Politics

7 h. ago Boy George embroiled in social media dispute with ‘bored rich bully’ JK Rowling over trans rights

Singer criticised author’s relentless campaign to preserve women-only spaces

Politics

9 h. ago JK Rowling goes to war with Boy George over trans rights: Author highlights singer's conviction for beating escort with a chain after he called her a 'rich bored bully'

A heated exchange ignited on X after the 63-year-old popstar dubbed the Harry Potter author a 'rich bored bully'.

Events

14 h. ago Europe should be standing up to Trump and Putin – instead it is mirroring them | Alberto Alemanno

Public opinion is clamouring for closer EU cooperation. The last thing we need is Ursula von der Leyen pandering to the far rightDonald Trump’s “America First” policies are undermining decades of transatlantic cooperation just as Putin’s Russia destabilises Europe with direct military aggression. But these twin shocks have unintentionally accomplished something the EU institutions never could. They have made European integration feel not just important, but existential – a matter of democratic survival – for ordinary citizens.From Helsinki to Lisbon, people are suddenly experiencing the same existential unease. Trade wars, defence threats and military aggression don’t respect borders. More and more Europeans now recognise that their small, individual nations cannot withstand simultaneous pressure from both Washington and Moscow. They find themselves caught between economic coercion and military intimidation.Alberto Alemanno is the Jean Monnet professor of EU law at HEC Paris and the...

Politics

59 h. ago Boy George: Bowie's gig in Lewisham 'big turning point for me'

Boy George: Bowie's gig in Lewisham 'big turning point for me'  BBC

Politics

3 d. ago Simone Biles apologizes to Riley Gaines over trans athlete row amid right

Biles apologizes for personal attack on GainesFox News airs 17 segments on Biles-Gaines rowHost calls Biles ‘mentally weak’ after apologySimone Biles has apologized for making personal remarks about Riley Gaines in a heated online exchange over transgender athlete participation in sports, even as conservative media figures continued to attack the gymnast.The most decorated gymnast in history, Biles had called Gaines “truly sick” and a “sore loser” in a viral social media post after Gaines misgendered a Minnesota high school softball player who is transgender. Biles later said her frustration was directed at the system that puts athletes in difficult positions and that singling out an underage player crossed a line. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago McDonald's fan gobsmacked as they try 'game changer' menu item in Philippines

A McDonald's lover was left amazed by the items found on the menu at the chain's outlet in the Philippines, including one they called a 'game changer'

Sport

4 d. ago Boy George and Culture Club documentary premieres at Tribeca film festival in New York

Guitarist Roy Hay tells Standard ‘we've had horrendous experiences with documentaries but this one gets it right’

Culture

5 d. ago UK equalities watchdog: Transgender people may be asked about gender status in workplace

Trans people who feel they’ve lost rights should ‘distinguish between rights in law and preference for things to be a certain way’, EHCR chair saidTransgender people may be asked about their gender status in the workplace, the equalities watchdog has said, with its chair arguing people should “distinguish between rights in law, and a preference for things to be a certain way”.Giving evidence to the women and equalities select committee, the chair and chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said trans people should not be fearful of the repercussions of April’s supreme court ruling, which found the word “woman” in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago Winfrey's new book club pick marks the return of an old favorite, Wally Lamb

For her next book club pick, Oprah Winfrey is highlighting an author she has praised even before she had a book club

Politics

6 d. ago Rangers 'target' right back rival for James Tavernier as 'nine clubs' in transfer chase for ex Leeds United man

Russell Martin sees no reason to change captain Tavernier but could be in the market for a right back

Events

8 d. ago Munroe Bergdorf: ‘If somebody isn’t willing to use my correct pronouns, there’s not any conversation to be had’

A prominent voice in the fight for trans rights, the author, model and activist reflects on the cost of speaking out in a new documentary and calls for deeper allyship in her latest book. In recent years, while working on these projects, she has faced significant personal challenges, which she shares with Olivia Petter

Politics

8 d. ago Finding Margaret by Andrew Pierce review: A moving tale of abandonment

Andrew Pierce’s moving memoir is dedicated “to Betty and George, my real mum and dad”. That puts the story that follows in perspective. It’s about his search for his birth mother. But we know at the start that it has a happy ending, because Betty and George were there for the little boy, who grew up to be a distinguished journalist.

Politics

8 d. ago Voices: As a former judge, I used to defend Britain’s rights – mine are now at risk

Since the Supreme Court’s decision in April, trans women like me have had their rights systematically taken away, writes Victoria McCloud – who appears on The Independent’s Pride List 2025

Events

9 d. ago Huge fashion chain with 230 stores River Island at risk as it calls in help

The company has called in advisers to draw up a plan to save the business

Events

9 d. ago Viktor Gyokeres' private Man United transfer feelings emerge as Garnacho sent brutal message

Manchester United will be fully focused on getting things right in the summer transfer window with Viktor Gyokeres among the players being linked

Politics

9 d. ago Trans lobby groups 'lied for years' that anyone self identifying as a different gender could access women's' toilets, equality chief says

Transgender people were misled about their rights to female only spaces by lobby groups, according to a senior member of an equality watchdog, Akua Reindorf, has said. 

Politics

9 d. ago Trans people have been lied to on legal rights, says equalities chief

Akua Reindorf, who is drafting guidance on how to treat trans people following April's ruling on the definition of a woman, added that the blame lay with their lobbyists.

Politics

9 d. ago 'Completely TRANSFORMED my skin!': The sea cucumber collagen skincare so popular it sold out in DAYS

SHOPPING: Skincare buffs are calling this skincare brand a 'must try' for smoothing wrinkles and perfecting sensitive skin - and you can score 25 per cent off in the birthday sale.

Politics

1 week ago EHRC commissioner calls for trans people to accept reduced rights

Akua Reindorf said law never permitted self-ID, but trans campaigners call remarks ‘profoundly unhelpful’Transgender people must accept a perceived reduction in their rights after the supreme court decision on gender because they “have been lied to over many years” about what their rights actually were, one of the commissioners drawing up the official post-ruling guidance has said.Speaking at a debate about the repercussions of April’s ruling that “woman” in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman, Akua Reindorf said trans people had been misled about their rights and there “has to be a period of correction”. Continue reading...

Events