44 h. ago Barbara Rae on her Antarctic art: 'I feel the presence of Shackleton and the whalers'

Dame Barbara Rae tells Mike Wade what she’ll be looking out for next month when she sets out once again for the Antarctic

Politics

3 d. ago Thursday news quiz: Golden Globes, Grateful Dead and global threats

Test yourself on topical news trivia, pop culture and general knowledge every Thursday. How will you fare?It feels as if this really is the start of a new era for the Thursday news quiz. Not only was there last week’s announcement that Willow had retired from her role as the official dog of the Guardian Thursday news quiz, but this week we have a new visual tone, courtesy of a set of lovely, whimsical illustrations by Anaïs Mims. Rest assured, not much else has changed. It is still 15 questions on topical news, pop culture and general knowledge, and it is still packed every week with the same hackneyed old in-jokes. There are no prizes, but tell us how you got on in the comments. Allons-y!The Thursday news quiz, No 230 Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago My local pool feels like a cultural refuge – a small, steamy world where accents mingle and minds reset | Shadi Khan Saif

There’s a quiet magic in shared spaces where stories drift across cultures and generations – and no one checks their phoneIt was my first week in the freezing German city of Bonn, on my first-ever international trip – shivering from the cold and bewildered by culture shock. At my hostel reception, a woman tried her best to help me settle in. “Die Sauna is free after 6pm,” she said cheerfully in a mix of German and English, adding that all I needed was a towel.From that day on, sweating in the steaming sauna became my nightly ritual. I couldn’t quite join the occasional conversations that bubbled up around me – my German was very basic and my confidence level was hitting rock bottom. So mostly I sat quietly, listening, nodding, absorbing the rhythm of strangers unwinding at the end of their day. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Tired formats, tight budgets and lazy celeb collabs : is Christmas TV rubbish this year?

The Wheel, The Masked Singer, Mrs Brown’s Boys... these days, Christmas Day can feel a bit of a cultural wasteland

Politics

3 w. ago Pierce Brosnan says Netflix’s ‘unsettling’ Warner Bros deal ‘doesn’t feel culturally right’

‘Thursday Murder Club’ actor said he has witnessed cinemas ‘evaporating from the landscape’ where he lives in both California and London

Events

3 w. ago Tired formats, tight budgets and lazy celeb collabs : Why has Christmas TV gotten so rubbish?

The Wheel, The Masked Singer, Mrs Brown’s Boys... these days, Christmas Day can feel a bit of a cultural wasteland

Politics