10 h. ago Book of Lives by Margaret Atwood review – the great novelist reveals her hidden side

A sharp, funny and engaging autobiography from one of the towering literary figures of our ageMargaret Atwood didn’t want to write a literary memoir. She worried it would be boring – “I wrote a book, I wrote a second book, I wrote another book ” Alcoholic excess, debauched parties and sexual transgressions would have perked things up, but she hasn’t lived that way.In the end what she has written is less a memoir than an autobiography, not a slice of life but the whole works, 85 years. Where most such backward looks are cosily triumphalist or anxiously self-justifying, hers is sharp, funny and engaging, a book you can warm to even if you’re not fully au fait (and few people are) with her astonishing output, which in the “also by” contents list here fills two pages. Continue reading...

Culture

24 h. ago Margaret Atwood opens up about heart condition and medication that turns her ‘blue’

‘My heart would stop for up to 10 seconds,’ author writes in her new memoir

Politics

59 h. ago From (finally) being given the Booker prize to the day her partner died: an exclusive extract from Margaret Atwood’s new memoir

The novelist reflects on being struck by loss in the middle of a press tour• ‘World power is shifting It is the scariest of times.’ Read an interview with Margaret AtwoodSome years ago, I was asked to make a stunt appearance on a comedy show. The host, Rick Mercer, was doing a series in which people well known for one kind of accomplishment, such as writing, astonished viewers by doing something different and entirely unrelated, such as rolling a joint.“I want you to be a hockey goalie,” Rick said. Continue reading...

Events

59 h. ago ‘It is the scariest of times’: Margaret Atwood on defying Trump, banned books – and her score

At 86, she’s a literary seer and saint – and queen of the Canadian resistance. So what does the writer make of our dystopian world?• ‘From (finally) being given the Booker prize to the day her partner died’: an exclusive extract from Margaret Atwood’s memoirMargaret Atwood is doing her grocery shopping in her local supermarket in Toronto, and it is taking longer than usual. This is not because The Handmaid’s Tale author turns 86 this month, but because she is checking the provenance of every item before it goes in her trolley: California satsumas out; Canada spuds in. Atwood is a passionate environmentalist, but at the moment she is more worried about boycotting anything that comes from over the border in the US than air miles. “Elbows up!” she declares, taking a furious stance in the fruit and veg aisle.Back in her kitchen she shows me a YouTube skit of Canadian prime minister Mark Carney and comedian Mike Myers in the national hockey kit to explain the significance of “E...

Politics

3 d. ago Hundreds screened for possible heart conditions at Ayrshire event

A team of experienced medical and nursing staff provided free screening at Girvan Community Hospital.

Politics

8 d. ago Here's EXACTLY how to tell if your snoring is caused by potentially deadly sleep apnoea

Millions of Britons with an undiagnosed sleep condition which dramatically raises the risk of heart attacks and strokes could soon benefit from a revolutionary gadget.

Events

8 d. ago The tasty spice that could slash cholesterol and blood pressure

A spice that's commonly found in many dishes could help lower your risk of some heart condition

Events

8 d. ago Acid reflux increases risk of heart attack by nearly a third, new study reveals

Scientists in Philadelphia analysed the medical data of more than 1.3 million patients and found those with GERD had a 27 percent higher risk of heart attack than those without the condition.

Events

9 d. ago ‘My son’s heart was the size of a walnut when he was rushed into surgery at 10 days old – I was terrified’

Eddison Watts’s rare congenital heart defect affects approximately one in every 3,600 births in the UK

Events

1 week ago Ryan Reynolds shows true colours as Wrexham owner’s actions branded ‘insane’

Wrexham owner Ryan Reynolds has donated £10,000 to help save the life of a seriously ill baby born with an ultra-rare heart condition as his terrified mother plans to take him for life-saving treatment in America

Politics

2 w. ago I didn’t plan on a sausage dog but McKenzie nudged me back to hope | Debbie Elkind

First-time dog owner Debbie Elkind was worried how she’d fare with her new dachshund. Then she fell in love with her ‘ridiculous, beautiful’ animalI wasn’t looking for a long dog. I knew little about dachshunds, that odd-shaped breed with short legs and suspicious eyes. But during pandemic lockdowns I began scrolling PetRescue the way friends were swiping Tinder, and with just as little luck.So when I spotted her, I prepared for disappointment. I had recently been ghosted by an elderly chap with a heart condition. I had visions of giving him his golden senior years; he had better prospects. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Voices: Today is International Day of the Girl – have you stopped reading yet?

As high-profile authors from Judy Blume to Margaret Atwood become part of US book bans and the next generation of young women report feeling under attack more than ever before, Victoria Harper, chair of the charity Inspiring Girls UK, explains why it’s worth taking a minute to reflect on the world they are growing up in

Politics

3 w. ago Ronan Keating pays tribute to late Boyzone star Stephen Gately 16 years after death

Boyzone star Stephen Gately died at the age of 33 at his holiday home in Majorca due to an undiagnosed heart condition

Events

3 w. ago AD FEATURE: Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland celebrates 30 years of its Advice Line

Since its launch, it has handled over 100,000 calls from people with chest, heart and stroke conditions and Long Covid

Politics

3 w. ago I Swear review – biopic of pioneering Tourette syndrome activist is funny, fierce and full of heart

Kirk Jones’s moving film about of John Davidson, the man who taught Britain about Tourette, offers compassion and catharsis Feelgood true-life heart-warmers about courageous people overcoming medical conditions are common enough. But not when that condition zaps and jabs and stabs at the genre itself, piercing the carapace of sentimentality while surreally commenting on the form and on the demure niceties of polite society, in which we all keep our thoughts to ourselves.Kirk Jones’s terrifically warm, generous film is about real-life activist John Davidson, who is from Galashiels in the Scottish Borders and has Tourette syndrome, with its tics, compulsive behaviour patterns and random obscene shouts. He was awarded an MBE in 2019 for his work educating the nation about the condition since he first exhibited its symptoms as a teenager in 1989, as captured in the BBC’s sensational documentary John’s Not Mad. I Swear contains a great performance from Robert Aramayo, full of intelligenc...

Politics

3 w. ago My mother hugged me and knew instantly I had a heart condition. This is the tell

Neeta, a trained GP, drew her daughter in for a hug and instant noticed an anomaly that would end up saving her daughter's life.

Politics

last month Explorer Dwayne Fields replaced Bear Grylls in what role? The Saturday quiz

From a Margaret Atwood trilogy and Abba’s fourth UK hit to Benny Hill and Rishi Sunak, test your knowledge with the Saturday quiz1 What is the still-standing legacy of the 1889 Exposition Universelle?2 How are girl group Huntr/x described in the title of a Netflix film?3 What is the only party to get 14m votes in a UK general election?4 Adventurer Dwayne Fields replaced Bear Grylls in what role?5 Which two metals make up most of the Earth’s core?6 Relative to its size, which bird has the longest beak?7 Which Women’s Super League team is based in Bromley?8 £90,000 is the threshold for paying what tax?What links: 9 Margaret Atwood trilogy; Abba’s fourth UK hit; 2020 Christopher Nolan film?10 Major Stevens; bottle; carpet; rouf; hand; exes; neves; TH?11 Crabeater; Leopard; Ross; Southern Elephant; Weddell?12 Craig David; Charlie Dimmock; Benny Hill; John Everett Millais; Rishi Sunak?13 Brühl’s Terrace; Frauenkirche; Pillnitz Palace; Yenidze factory; Zwinger Palace?14 Physiological; saf...

Politics