1 hour ago Catholic Church cash crisis: Vatican launches task force to try and boost donations from faithful after sex scandal payouts and bungled property deals caused huge financial deficit

Catholic dioceses, eparchies and men's religious communities have spent more than $5bn on allegations of sexual abuse of minors over two decades

Economics

1 hour ago Jurgen Klopp makes sad admission about his time at Liverpool after 'running out of energy'

Jurgen Klopp was unable to stop Liverpool's dramatic slump in form towards the end of his final season in charge, and the German has now opened up on the reasons why

Events

2 h. ago White Stuff sale includes jumpsuit that's 'slimming in all of the right places'

The classic jumpsuit boasts a stunning cotton-linen blend to keep you cool, stylish and cinched in all the right places

Events

2 h. ago James by Percival Everett audiobook review – reimagining Huckleberry Finn

Dominic Hoffman narrates this satirical, Booker-nominated reworking of the children’s classic, written from the perspective of the enslaved JimThis satirical, Booker-shortlisted tale flips the script on Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the children’s novel published in 1884 and set in Mississippi that went on to become a toxic cornerstone of the American canon. Where Twain had teenage Huck as his narrator, in James, Percival Everett reimagines the story from the perspective of his friend and fellow runaway Jim, an enslaved Black man who opens the book with the line: “Those little bastards were hiding out there in the tall grass.”The little bastards in question are Huck and his pal Tom Sawyer, who want to play a trick on Jim while he sleeps. He is alert to the boys’ games but plays along because, as he has learned from experience: “It always pays to give white folks what they want.” When our protagonist learns he is to be sold downriver and separated from h...

Politics

2 h. ago Andrey Kurkov: ‘At 17, I got my hands on an illegal copy of The Gulag Archipelago’

The Ukrainian author on the joys of Jack London, cracking Hermann Hesse, and the soldier’s tale he can no longer rereadMy earliest reading memory My grandmother’s medical encyclopedias. She was a military surgeon during the second world war and then a doctor for children with tuberculosis. I spent five years of my childhood in her house. I really only looked at the pictures of tumours and wounds, but my curiosity forced me to decode the annotations, which were, as you can imagine, not designed for an emergent reader.My favourite book growing upMartin Eden by Jack London. The main character’s dream of becoming a writer – his tremendously strong will – was probably what captivated me most. Continue reading...

Events

3 h. ago Forget SpongeBob: Meet Bernd das Brot, a depressed loaf of bread that’s spent 25 years on TV

One of his catchphrases is ‘I would like to leave this show’

Politics

3 h. ago Donald Trump invited to meet King Charles at Dumfries House estate ahead of second UK state visit

King Charles has suggested a possible meeting at his Dumfries House estate, which is located less than an hour from Trump's Turnberry resort.

Politics

3 h. ago Tom Hanks, Michelle Pfeiffer and Barbra Streisand mourn Gene Hackman

Hackman won two Oscars and starred in classic films such as The French Connection.

Politics

3 h. ago Japanese woman wanted by police over kissing BTS member without consent

Incident took place at a fan meet and greet event in Seoul last year

Events

4 h. ago 10 momentous Barry Ferguson Rangers moments at Ibrox from 2 debuts to Champions League epic and emotional farewell

The 47-year-old spent a decade with his boyhood heroes over two spells as a player and will walk as manager for the first time on Saturday against Motherwell

Sport

4 h. ago EV switching blueprint? The European country where 90% of new cars are already electric

This country has for years been leading Europe's transition to electric cars and is extremely well positioned to meet its own target of only adding EVs to its roads from 2025.

Politics

4 h. ago Woman spent 32 hours in hospital waiting for bed on ward with nowhere close to buy food or drink

A councillor has praised the 'brilliant care' his wife received but said staff were clearly 'working under tremendous pressure' and there were not enough facilities close by for refreshments

Economics

5 h. ago Japanese woman booked over kissing BTS member Jin without consent at fan event

Incident took place at a fan meet and greet event in Seoul last year

Politics

5 h. ago Mirroring the far right on immigration backfired for Germany’s political centre | Johannes Hillje

Even the Greens hardened their rhetoric and lost votes as a result. The message is clear: the new government must offer hope, not hatredGermany’s next government will be a coalition of the political centre led by the conservative Friedrich Merz. That may sound like stability. Traditionally, a government made up of the two big centrist parties, the Social Democrats (SPD) and Merz’s Christian Democrats (CDU), has been called the grand coalition. But it is no longer grand and offers only an illusion of stability.The SPD achieved its worst result in a national election since the second world war, with 16.4% of the vote. The CDU scored its second-worst result, with 28.5%. If you include the Greens and the Liberals, the parties that occupy the political ground from centre-left to centre-right won just over 60% of the votes cast.Johannes Hillje is a Berlin-based political consultant and a fellow at Das Progressive Zentrum, an independent thinktank Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Premier League cult icon Jimmy Bullard told he has future as golf pro by ex

Lee Westwood is captaining Jimmy Bullard at this week's Icon Series, and believes he has what it takes to become a professional golfer and play against some of Europe's best

Politics

5 h. ago Meet Bernd das Brot, a depressed German loaf of bread that's spent 25 years as a TV cult classic

A depressed German loaf of bread named Bernd das Brot is celebrating his 25th anniversary as the reluctant star of a children’s television program

Politics

6 h. ago 'I spent 24 hours in Tenerife and it only cost me £150 for the best views'

One TikToker is making a case for "extreme day trips" to help aspiring travellers explore the Canary Islands on a budget. Her latest video may even have you reconsidering your next staycation.

Economics

7 h. ago Gracie Abrams, the year’s biggest pop star: ‘Trump has only been in office a month, and everybody is more at risk’

After dodging toxic fans, ‘nepo baby’ jibes and her own projectile vomit, the 25-year-old has just spent eight weeks at UK No 1. She explains why she’s now writing about our dark, uncertain futureOn a video call from a hotel room in Hamburg, Gracie Abrams is expounding on the virtues of decoupling yourself from social media and living a life offline. “You can literally do so much when you’re not scrolling!” she enthuses. “You can retain more information; everything gets lighter. You have a greater capacity to be more present, to be there for the people in your life, to read a book that’s going to inspire your next album, or go on a hike and breathe air instead of sitting in a dark room on fucking Instagram. I’m doing lots of, like, tactile stuff, staying off social media,” she adds. “Needlepoint and shit like that. I’m just trying to make things to have some tangible evidence of having lived this year.”Of course, this is nothing the world hasn’t heard before: we’re well used to bein...

Politics

7 h. ago Senior German MP warns of ‘successful’ foreign manipulation of vote

Head of Bundestag intelligence committee calls on government to be clear about impact of malign actors

Events

12 h. ago Gene Hackman was 'beloved' regular customer at Santa Fe roadhouse where his visit was featured on Food Network

Despite his superstar status, Hackman enjoyed frequenting local hotspots, including his favorite restaurant, Harry's Roadhouse, known for serving classic southwestern dishes.

Economics