1 hour ago ‘The love child of Mick Hucknall and Crazy Frog’: is Eurovision’s Lumo the worst mascot ever?

Meet the song contest’s first ever mascot – a sentient heart with a bizarrely sexy mouth that looks like the result of the ChatGPT prompt ‘please ruin my day’. Why oh why has this happened?The miracle of Eurovision is how much it has legitimised itself over the last decade and a half. For years, the song contest was the laughing stock of Europe, a toe-curling night on which all the continent’s fifth-rate novelty acts would gather and bing-bam-boom themselves to death while the rest of Europe looked on and jeered.But look at it now. By carefully repositioning itself, and by encouraging countries to submit relevant, modish entries, Eurovision has transformed into the party of the year. People love Eurovision – and not ironically, either. At a time of growing international strife – the sort of strife that it was designed to combat – Eurovision represents a moment of unity. It is, in short, in the shape of its life. It would take something spectacular to mess it up. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago ‘We used to think the ice was eternal’: Colombia looks to a future without glaciers

In Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, people have watched the ice fields turn to exposed rock and experts predict these vital water sources could be lost in 30 yearsWords and photographs by Euan Wallace in the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, ColombiaAt an altitude of 4,200 metres in the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, Colombia, Edilsa Ibañéz Ibañéz lowers a cupped hand into the water of a glacial stream. A local guide and mountaineer, she has grown up drinking water that runs down from the snowy peaks above. As she stands up, however, the landscape that greets her is markedly different from that of her childhood.“We used to think the ice would be eternal,” says Ibañéz, 45. “Now it is not so eternal. Our glaciers are dying.” Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Lesser known measles symptom that can appear in the mouth before rash develops

Noticing the sign could be a symptom of the disease before a diagnosis

Politics

3 h. ago Labour MPs hammer Defence Secretary John Healey on foreign aid cuts at bruising meeting as he vows withdrawal of cash will be slow

A group of a dozen Labour MPs - mostly with backgrounds in development - led a backlash against the plans in the meeting with Defence Secretary John Healy.

Economics

4 h. ago Plan for 10 new homes on former site of school in Neath Port Talbot approved

The long-term proposals were handed in to the authority by developers in 2022

Politics

4 h. ago St Tropez has launched a fake tan and bronzing drops hybrid – here’s my review

This formula gives an instant glow, but develops over four hours

Politics

4 h. ago His final photo was of the bomber that killed him: the last journalist to die before Assad fell

Anas Alkharboutli was fatally injured in a missile attack just four days before the president fled to Russia. His colleagues and friends explain why his life was more exceptional than his deathThe war was almost over when death came for Anas Alkharboutli. On 4 December last year, Bashar al-Assad’s forces, on the brink of collapse, killed the photojournalist in an airstrike near Hama. He was 32 years old.“We were excited to go to the frontline,” says Omar Haj Kadour, a photographer who was with Alkharboutli on the day he was killed. “Things were finally going well for the opposition.”Anas Alkharboutli (right) with his colleague Omar Haj Kadour. Photograph: Omar Haj Kadour Continue reading...

Events

5 h. ago From international development to entrepreneurship: Karen Robinson's inspiring career shift with Three Robins

Karen Robinson’s journey from a high-profile career in international development to becoming the founder of Three Robins is a remarkable story of reinvention, passion, and entrepreneurial spirit.

Politics

5 h. ago How the biggest winner from UK and US foreign aid cuts will be China

As countries lose vital foreign aid from the UK and US, some fear governments could turn to China to seek funding packages saddled with unsustainable debts

Politics

6 h. ago As measles cases mount in the US, what’s the situation worldwide?

The U.S. registered its first death from measles since 2015 this week, as a child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas

Politics

7 h. ago Jason Bateman reveals who Matt Damon wanted to play in Arrested Development film

Satirical sitcom ran for five seasons from 2003 to 2019

Events

7 h. ago Africa’s medical system risks ‘collapse in next few years’, warns health leader

Focusing foreign aid on infectious diseases has allowed a rise in cancer and diabetes that African governments don’t have resources to fight, says Dr Githinji GitahiHealth services in Africa are at risk of “collapse in the next few years” due to soaring chronic diseases, a senior public health leader has warned.Foreign aid to Africa has been focused on infectious diseases, leaving conditions such as cancer and diabetes to escalate, said Dr Githinji Gitahi, group CEO of Amref Health Africa. Continue reading...

Events

8 h. ago Ukraine’s economy could grow by 5% next year if hostilities end, EBRD says

European reconstruction bank will help rebuild country if peace is agreed but a lasting end to conflict is neededThe war-torn Ukrainian economy could expand by 5% next year if a ceasefire is agreed, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has predicted – but prospects for reconstruction depend on a lasting peace.The London-based lender has invested $6.2bn (£4.9bn) in projects in Ukraine over the course of the three-year conflict. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago USAID workers will be given 15 minutes to clear their workspaces as the agency gets dismantled

Thousands of U.S. Agency for International Development workers who have been fired or placed on leave as part of the Trump administration’s dismantling of the agency are being given a brief window Thursday and Friday to clear out their workspaces

Politics

10 h. ago Readers' letters: UK Government plumbs new depths with international aid betrayal

A reader suggests cutting international development aid to boost defence spending is a betrayao of the world’s most marginalised people

Politics

11 h. ago Big Tech MUST pay to use artists' work for AI, MPs tell ministers

The Government's proposal to give AI developers an exception to copyright law was dealt a blow yesterday after the Commons culture and tech select committees criticised the plan.

Politics

14 h. ago Britain 'has funded a Mexican organisation' which works in women's rights

The work of Women's rights campaigners Las Libres has had contributions from the Foreign Office's development budget for the last five years.

Economics

14 h. ago Sussex to launch UK’s first climate justice undergraduate degree

University announces new BA, after survey found most 14- to 18-year-olds want more rigorous climate change educationThe University of Sussex will introduce what it says is the UK’s first undergraduate degree focused on climate justice.The BA course, called “climate justice, sustainability and development”, will begin in 2026. The university says it will equip students with a blend of expertise in climate politics, activism and environmental human rights. Continue reading...

Society

15 h. ago Trump administration cutting 90% of USAID foreign aid contracts, documents show

The Trump administration says it is eliminating more than 90% of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall U.S. assistance around the world

Politics

15 h. ago 'Alien' fish with huge body, sharp teeth and gaping mouth caught by terrified fisherman

A deep sea fisherman has shown off his latest catch, a nightmarish creature with a huge, bulbous body, shrunken eyes and gaping mouth that makes it look like something from another planet

Events