4 h. ago Fatboy Slim: ‘I was in the same class as Keir Starmer – he’s one up on me now’

The electronic producer and DJ Norman Cook talks about learning the violin with Keir Starmer, his love for his label maker and crossing swords with MobyGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailYou did violin lessons with Keir Starmer when you were a child. Who was better at violin?I can’t actually remember the violin lessons. But I was in the same class at school as Keir for five years, so I remember him well. He must have been better at the violin than me, because I did it for about one term. My parents could take no more noise, so I would say Keir was better. It is quite weird when one day you see someone on the telly and go, “Oh look, it is Keir Starmer from 4B.” I think he’s one up on me by becoming prime minister.Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago KSI’s staggering net worth, mystery girlfriend and feud with Tommy Fury

The new Britain’s Got Talent judge is a boxer, music artist and business powerhouse

Politics

5 h. ago We tried Manchester's unique film and food experience where you eat what you see

It's taking cinema to a whole new level

Politics

5 h. ago 11 of the best pictures as hundreds of musicians protest Cardiff University cuts

Cardiff University announced last month that it could axe 400 academic jobs as well as shutting the school of nursing, music and modern foreign languages as the university contends with a deficit of £31m

Events

6 h. ago The week in audio: Facing the Music; Tara and George: Last Rights; Why Is Amy in the Bath? and more – review

The lives of Beethoven, Haydn and co enthral; Audrey Gillan updates her award-winning rough sleepers series. Plus, a choir of cicadas and bathtime fun with Amy Adams Facing the Music Radio 3/BBC SoundsTara and George: Last Rights Radio 4/BBC Sounds)Why Is Amy in the Bath? Grab Bag Collab & Because It’s True ProductionsBetween the Ears: A Symphony of Cicadas Radio 3/BBC Sounds“It’s almost midnight,” purrs Dominic West, all honey and velvet, straight after we hear the famously doomy, four-note opening to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. The wild-eyed composer is in a cart, West tells us energetically, his latest piano sonata getting ruined by the rain, after throwing some coins at the driver and growling his preferred destination. West relishes every syllable of it: “Vi-ennnn-a!” Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago Waltz this way: rival venues in Vienna compete to celebrate Johann Strauss’s 200th birthday

As the Austrian capital honours the legacy of its dance king, the race is on to attract the most puntersThe music of Johann Strauss streams through Vienna like the stately Danube. Even the syllables of the composer’s name beat out the rhythm of a waltz, as all Austrian dance teachers know. In their lessons, the words “Jo-hann Strauss” are often swapped in to replace the conventional “one, two, three” step count.Viennese children learn to waltz just like they learn to ride a bike, so the muscle-memory never leaves them. Just as well, because the city is still famous as the home of a 19th-century dance craze that shaped its international image. In this 200th anniversary year of the birth of the “waltz king”, there are rival bids jostling to become the focus of the swirling celebrations. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago Price of Seasalt waterproof coat that 'keeps you dry on dog walks' cut by £70

As the weather is set to take a turn for the worst, a waterproof coat is a must for venturing out into the elements

Economics

6 h. ago Amanda Holden, 54, showcases her toned physique in a skimpy animal

The Britain's Got Talent judge, 54, stunned as she soaked up the sun abroad wearing the fashionable two-pieces.

Politics

6 h. ago Kendrick Lamar earns first UK number one with Drake diss track

The song was reportedly streamed more than six million times in the past seven days

Politics

7 h. ago Ludovico Einaudi: ‘The way you blend the elements you eat is similar to composing a piece of music’

The pianist and composer talks about his passion for chillies, teas and saucepans, and cooking for his dad’s remarkable literary dinner partiesI live in Torino [Turin], a town where I grew up, where I was born. There’s a famous dish from there called bagna cauda. It’s a meeting of the garlic from the area of Piedmont, the mountains, with the anchovies coming from the sea in Liguria. It’s a very simple dish, a bit like a broth, perfect in winter, and you eat it with raw vegetables of the season. But there’s so much garlic in it that, when you eat it, you need a couple of days away from other people.There is a connection between how you eat and how you make music: the way you blend the elements that you eat, the colours, it’s similar to composing a piece of music. If I take my solo piano repertoire, I would associate it with a very simple food, with few elements and few colours, not overelaborate. If I think of a piece of mine with more instruments, more orchestral, I would ...

Politics

7 h. ago Sidemen's Vikkstar teases huge collab with 'exciting' Britain's Got Talent's KSI

Sidemen star Vikkstar has opened up about his new career as he ventures into electronic music and joining forces with Steve Aoki and Nicky Romero

Politics

7 h. ago Irvine man behind Freckfest to be presented with British Empire Medal next month

Craig Smart founded Freckfest in memory of Willie Freckleton back in 2013 to bring back music and entertainment to Irvine.

Politics

8 h. ago Zelensky 'refuses to sign' Donald Trump's 'problematic' minerals deal amid tensions between world leaders

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is reportedly not ready to sign a controversial minerals deal with Donald Trump that may see him give away billions in critical elements and revenues.

Politics

8 h. ago Most explosive celeb spats of all time: From vicious band fights and catty name calling to Simon Cowell almost punching 90s icon in the face

Music mogul Simon Cowell, 65, has revealed during one heated exchange he almost punched his protégés and 90s boyband icon in the face.

Events

9 h. ago Joy Crookes review – an enthralling, intimate set from this rising London soul star

Islington Assembly Hall, LondonThe twentysomething singer-songwriter brings classic Motown rhythms with a touch of hip-hop to a resounding set of anti-anxiety anthemsJoy Crookes is only 26, but the south Londoner’s music already feels omnipresent. One song in particular, at least: Feet Don’t Fail Me Now seems to be absolutely everywhere. I hear it in cafes and bars, trendy boutiques and grimy off-licences and, when I forget to turn it off, the autoplay function on my streaming app of choice. The song only came out in 2021, as a single from Crookes’s acclaimed debut album, Skin, and even if it doesn’t yet feel canonical, it has at least thoroughly saturated certain pockets of the city.Which makes it all the more remarkable that, when Crookes plays it at Islington Assembly Hall this evening – an “intimate”, or intimate for her, show at only 890 people – one of the Brits Week for War Child charity shows, it doesn’t even garner the biggest singalong of the evening. That honour might go ...

Politics

9 h. ago ‘The bot asked me four times a day how I was feeling’: is tracking everything actually good for us?

Gathering data used to be a fringe pursuit of Silicon Valley nerds. Now we’re all at it, recording everything from menstrual cycles and mobility to toothbrushing and time spent in daylight. Is this just narcissism redesigned for the big tech age?I first heard about my friend Adam’s curious new habit in a busy pub. He said he’d been doing it for over a year, but had never spoken to anyone about it before. He had a furtive look around, then took out his phone and showed me the product of his burning obsession: a spreadsheet.This was not a record of his annual tax return or numbers he was crunching for work (Adam is a data scientist). Instead, it was a spreadsheet recording the minutiae of his life, with dozens of columns tracking every element of his daily routine. It all started, he told me, because of a recurring argument with his boyfriend. His partner didn’t think they spent enough time together, but Adam thought that they did. There was only one way to settle this, he decided: co...

Politics

9 h. ago Rihanna 'tipped for Glastonbury 2025 as she plans major London residency'

The Umbrella singer, 37, has yet to perform at the famous music festival despite years of speculation

Politics

9 h. ago The late Gwen McCrae brought emotion to dance music like no one else

Spanning deep soul, disco and beyond, McCrae – who has died aged 81 – didn’t get the recognition she deserved for a discography charged with pain and wonderRockin’ Chair, 90% of Me Is You, All This Love That I’m Givin’, Keep the Fire Burning, Funky Sensation – Gwen McCrae, who has died after a long illness aged 81, sang all these soul-funk anthems and more. Songs that refreshed radio, songs that lit up discos and clubs, songs that saw her called “The Queen of Rare Groove”, songs that were covered and sampled and sound as fresh today as when she originally recorded them in Miami in the 1970s and early 80s.Gwen Mosley was born in Pensacola, Florida, and grew up singing in church before marrying a sailor she met the week before when he was on shore leave. Her new husband, once free from the navy, insisted they form the duo George & Gwen McCrae in 1963, with Gwen out front. Betty Wright, then a 14-year-old vocal prodigy, brought the couple to soul singer and label owner Steve Alaimo...

Culture

9 h. ago Phil Collins admits he’s ‘very sick’ following retirement announcement

‘I keep thinking I should go downstairs to the studio and see what happens but I'm not hungry for it anymore’

Politics

10 h. ago Olly Murs shares health update after cancelling live show just hours before going on stage

Singer said he was ‘gutted’ at having to cancel the concert

Society