32 m. ago Pink smoke, pigs and Pixar: a dozen movie Easter eggs to feast on

Hidden references and in-jokes in cinema can be an acquired taste, but here’s a festive selection of the best arch nods for aficionados to enjoyOne of Hollywood’s most durable Easter eggs debuted in Howard Hawks’s His Girl Friday (1940) when Cary Grant’s character says: “The last man who said that to me was Archie Leach just a week before he cut his throat!” And in Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) his character sits pensively in a cemetery where Archie Leach’s gravestone is to be seen. In Charles Crichton’s A Fish Called Wanda (1988), John Cleese’s character is called Archie Leach. Leach is, of course, the real name of Cary Grant – a very goofy and unglamorous sounding name compared with the sonorous “Cary Grant” – and a rare example of Hollywood alluding to the open secret of rebranding its stars and effacing the bland ordinariness of their origins. Peter Bradshaw Continue reading...

Events

37 m. ago Natalie Cassidy drops big hint about EastEnders future as fans beg for Sonia back

EastEnders icon Natalie Cassidy has hinted at a possible return to the BBC soap after bidding an emotional farewell to her character Sonia Fowler 11 years ago

Politics

47 m. ago 'Revenge porn' fury as record label releases CD by dead singer including naked photos of the performer taken by an ex

New Century Records were accused of an 'unforgiveable' act after announcing plans to distribute two intimate pictures of legendary singer Aki Yashiro, who died in 2023.

Events

77 m. ago Dramatic rise in fake political content on social media as Canada prepares to vote

Report finds over a quarter of Canadians exposed to ‘more sophisticated and more politically polarizing’ fake contentMore than a quarter of Canadians have been exposed to fake political content on social media that is “more sophisticated and more politically polarizing” as the country prepares to vote in a federal election, researchers have found, warning that platforms must increase protections amid a “dramatic acceleration” of online disinformation in the final weeks of the campaign.In a new report released on Friday, Canada’s Media Ecosystem Observatory found a growing number of Facebook ads impersonating legitimate news sources were instead promoting fraudulent investment schemes, often involving cryptocurrency. Continue reading...

Politics

96 m. ago Prince Harry brands his security in UK 'inadequate, inappropriate and ineffective'

Prince Harry requested specific police protection after a threat was made against him by the terror group Al Qaeda, new court documents released last night show.

Politics

1 hour ago The Handmaid's Tale star drops chilling hint Luke will die in final series

The Handmaid's Tale star O-T Fagbenle has hinted his character Luke Bankole's death is 'sealed' in the sixth and final series of the dystopian drama as he battles to save his daughter

Events

1 hour ago Clay, silty or sandy? Testing your soil type is an essential part of becoming a good gardener

Loamy soil is the holy grail, but all types can be improved by adding organic matterI often mention my veg patch’s clay soil in this column, and that’s because soil type affects what we grow and how. Getting to know your soil is an essential part of becoming a great grower of edible plants. Soil type is determined by the size of the soil’s particles which, in turn, determine its characteristics.Sandy soil has the largest particles, which means it is light, easy to work, lets water drain through it freely and warms up quickly in spring. This also means that sandy soil dries out easily, isn’t as water retentive as other types and tends to be low in nutrients as they wash through it. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago Tunde Adebimpe: Thee Black Boltz review – a sparkling solo debut

(Sub Pop)The TV on the Radio frontman’s sharp pop instincts kick in on a multifaceted synth-punk-funk set born out of deep personal lossYou would not know, on first listen, that this effervescent debut solo album by the sometime frontman of TV on the Radio was steeped in grief. Tunde Adebimpe’s sister died during the pandemic when these songs were taking hesitant shape in an LA studio that Adebimpe, now a successful actor, shares with multi-instrumentalist and co-producer Wilder Zoby.Those difficult feelings – and others, about living in “a time of tenderness and rage” – became snaggle-toothed synth-punk cuts and bouncy synth-pop sounds. On Drop, there’s beat-boxing; on The Most, a Sleng Teng reggae riddim ambush; while on Somebody New, you can hear a punk-funk echo of New Order. Only ILY, a finger-picked folk song addressed to his sister, breaks character, adding “balladeer” to Adebimpe’s varied CV (former stop-motion animator, illustrator). “How’d you get so low?” asks God Knows, ...

Politics

2 h. ago Diablo 4 Season 8 release date – when the new boss changes drop after a significant delay

Diablo 4 fans are ready for a new season, but it seems that Blizzard isn't yet, as it has pushed back Season 8 by quite a way.

Economics

2 h. ago George Russell reacts to prospect of Mercedes signing arch rival Max Verstappen

Verstappen’s tricky start to the season at Red Bull has again ignited speculation over his future

Politics

2 h. ago Emmerdale star shares filming secret from Caleb and Joe fight as he drops double death 'clue'

Emmerdale star Ned Porteous spoke on the Coronation Street and Emmerdale Off Script podcast about his character Joe Tate and the big fight scenes between the villain and Caleb Miligan

Events

2 h. ago Prince Harry requested police protection after threat from Al Qaeda

Prince Harry requested specific police protection after a threat was made against him by the terror group Al Qaeda, new court documents released last night show.

Events

2 h. ago Premier League could have SEVEN teams in Champions League after Man Utd heroics

Manchester United just about kept their hopes of a Champions League spot alive with their dramatic comeback against French side Lyon - and could join a host of their Premier League rivals at Europe’s top table

Politics

2 h. ago Images of two men released following serious assault on busy Edinburgh street

Police Scotland have released the pictures of two men, who they believe could hold information which might assist in relation a serious assault in Edinburgh.

Events

2 h. ago Swedish boy, 15, is arrested for 'trying to hire hitmen to kill rival gang members' after he was sent away to Australia to get away from his criminal friends

The 15-year-old - who cannot be identified because of his age - is said to have offered one assassin £15,600 to commit a murder in Denmark.

Events

3 h. ago Ryan Gosling to lead new Star Wars film set for 2027 release

The standalone film is described as ‘a new adventure’

Events

3 h. ago Various artists: Disk Musik – A DD Records Compilation review | Safi Bugel's experimental album of the month

(Phantom Limb)The 80s label released hundreds of oddball DIY recordings. Their final compilation, now repressed, jerks from folk to punk to ambient – with moments worthy of great kids’ TVIn 1980, a group of friends in Japan started DD Records, a platform for amateur musicians to share bizarre homespun recordings across their network. The label released an impressive 222 cassettes and a handful of vinyl records in five years, then disbanded and faded into relative obscurity. Their last known release, the compilation Disk Musik – a multi-genre compilation bringing together 13 Japanese artists – is so rare that even the prolific music catalogue database Discogs bears little trace of it.Four decades on, it’s been re-pressed – and it still sounds as mind-warping as it probably did to its small circle of listeners back in 1985. The opening track by trio Circadian Rhythm may as well be three songs in one, drifting haphazardly from stray humming vocals to wistful coda, by way of a tangle of...

Culture

3 h. ago Emma Corrin and Olivia Colman to star in Netflix's new Pride and Prejudice series

The Crown stars Emma Corrin and Olivia Colman will finally be reunited on-screen as they have just been cast in Netflix’s new Pride and Prejudice series written by Dolly Alderton

Politics

4 h. ago Victoria Beckham celebrated her birthday by releasing her own personal custom lip liners for a limited time

The former Spice Girl has released three exclusive lip liners in her private custom shades for her birthday, but they're only available for a limited time and are guaranteed to sell out

Politics

4 h. ago 911: US drama kills off first main character in eight seasons

‘I’ve heard many fans are upset by this loss and they have a right to be,’ departing star said

Events