34 m. ago ‘There’s nothing else like it’: the Ritz is crowned best restaurant in the UK

Described by judges as ‘London’s most decadent dining room’, the 119-year-old venue topped the National Restaurant awards’ list this weekIt is lunchtime in central London and hungry patrons are filing into the newly crowned best restaurant in the country.This time, it is not a sparsely furnished warehouse conversion where you have to squint to see your natural wine. Nor is it a buzzy A-list hotspot, where the chefs will vet your social media before you have even arrived. Continue reading...

Politics

35 m. ago Two groups of people 'need to apply' for £300 DWP winter fuel payment

Certain groups of people may have to apply for the newly reinstated £300 winter fuel payment - which is set to be paid in November and December

Economics

2 h. ago Jarvis Cocker is Britpop’s ultimate comeback king in scintillating Pulp show

The band’s arena show at the O2 proves they are every bit as vital in 2025 as they were three decades ago

Politics

3 h. ago KGB defector turned to Britain only after US rejected him several times, book reveals

Vasili Mitrokhin defected in 1992 after spending years copying top-secret documents on Soviet spies and operationsOne of the most consequential Russian defectors in history was turned away several times by the US before he was eventually accepted by Britain and exfiltrated with his family from Russia, according to revelations in a new book.Vasili Mitrokhin, a KGB archivist who spent years copying top-secret documents on some of the most sensitive Soviet spies and operations, was brought out of Russia in 1992 by MI6. His archive of copied documents was exfiltrated separately. But London got hold of his trove only after Mitrokhin gave up trying to get the US to take him seriously. Continue reading...

Events

3 h. ago Tyson Fury has earned millions but net worth is still lower than Anthony Joshua's

The 'Gypsy King' - who announced his retirement from boxing in January - pocketed several life-changing paydays during his glittering career

Politics

3 h. ago Beautiful Scots island owned by the same family for 80 years goes up for sale

A rare chance to buy a scenic Scottish island has just come up after decades in the same family

Politics

4 h. ago Why female athletes are challenging the NCAA’s $2.8bn settlement

Eight women have appealed the NCAA’s antitrust deal, arguing it violates Title IX and unfairly favors men’s sports. Here’s what the settlement does and what’s nextCollege athletes spent decades fighting for the right to make money from their name, image and likeness (NIL). In 2021, they won. Now, a $2.8bn NCAA settlement is set to compensate hundreds of thousands of current and former athletes who missed out on those earnings. But not everyone thinks the deal is fair.Eight female athletes filed an appeal this week, arguing the agreement violates Title IX, the US law banning sex-based discrimination in education. They say the way the money is divided, largely favoring football and men’s basketball players, shortchanges women by more than $1bn. Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Two groups of Brits may need to 'apply' for reinstated £300 DWP payment says BBC expert

The DWP has announced that the winter fuel allowance will return this year and be paid in November and December to 9 million extra pensioners - but some may have to apply

Economics

4 h. ago From tradwife to radwife: abandoning perfection in favour of the ‘good enough’ life

No they don’t cook from scratch, sometimes forget the sunscreen and often miss work deadlines, but at least their kids are wearing secondhand clothes Meet the new gen of radically normal mumsMost mornings, I’m woken at 6am by my alarm (the baby crawling on to my head). I stretch, go downstairs, fill a bowl with iced water and, the theme of Transformers playing in the background, write my journal (a list of emails-I-forgot-to-reply-to). I drink hot water with cider vinegar to regulate my blood sugar levels, followed by tea using the baby’s leftover milk. Dragging a chilled jade gua sha spoon across my face in an attempt to reverse the ageing process, I then make my young sons’ porridge. While they eat, I plunge my face into the iced water until I can’t breathe, and begin my three-step routine (two La Roche-Posay serums followed by SPF). Some mornings, I run. Others, I cry into a coffee, albeit one made with organic milk, before taking a mushroom gummy to take the edge off the da...

Politics

5 h. ago Idyllic cottage and land for sale near Reading gives you rare chance to have your own version of 'Clarkson's Farm'...but the price might make you think twice

Featuring a picturesque property, several barns and nearly 80 acres of land, the farm in Beech Hill, Reading, looks similar to Clarkson's Diddly Squat Farm but comes with an eyewatering price tag.

Economics

5 h. ago MTV's The Valleys was an iconic reality show and it's time for it to return to our screens

It has been over a decade since controversial Welsh reality TV show The Valleys hit out TV screens

Culture

5 h. ago Raids and fear cast a large shadow over Club World Cup’s big launch

Governing body cannot avoid the dark political backdrop to its tournament opening as Trump’s authorities flex their muscles“When Donald Trump came in the laws just changed and it’s hard for immigrants now you’ve got a lot of people being deported, people who have been in the United States for two decades. It’s not nice, it’s not right when someone who hasn’t committed a crime has to go back somewhere.“I just don’t respect somebody like [Trump] that deports so many people and hurts so many families this country was built on immigrants. Nobody’s from here.” Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Why this iconic Welsh reality TV series needs to be resurrected

It has been over a decade since controversial Welsh reality TV show The Valleys hit out TV screens and here's why it should come back

Culture

5 h. ago Major roads shut or with lane closures in Wales on Saturday, June 14, as drivers face disruption

Several roads in Wales are shut or partially blocked on Saturday, June 14 - here is a full list of closures you need to know about

Transport

5 h. ago Parklife: Faces from the very first festival in Heaton Park over a decade ago

Having started in 2007 as the Mad Ferret Festival the event grew, changed its name to Parklife, and moved to Heaton Park in 2013

Politics

6 h. ago Inside Iran's nuclear sites that were targeted in Israeli airstrikes as WW3 fears spike

Israel has attacked several Iranian nuclear sites in a bid to prevent Tehran from building nuclear bombs. Here is a closer look at some of Iran's major nuclear sites and their importance in the country's program.

Events

6 h. ago ‘On a peak under a blue sky’: the joy of summer in Europe’s mountains

Our writer recalls his favourite mountain experiences, from hard-won views to splendid isolation and the comforts of simple refugesAfter a tough scramble to the summit of Rhinog Fach, we look down into the deep valley holding the chilly waters of Llyn Hywel, then west across several miles of heather, bilberry and bare rock to the Welsh coast. Turning my gaze north, there is the entire Llyn peninsula leading east to the peak of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), no doubt weighed down by thousands of visitors. Up here there are just two of us in an utterly peaceful landscape. No clouds on the horizon. No surprises.I lie down for a few minutes and feel myself drift off. There are no human voices to be heard, only birds. Summer has come early to these mountains and I wouldn’t be anywhere else, drinking in that particular kind of tranquillity to be found on a peak under a blue sky. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago M&S hooded parka that gets ‘so many compliments everytime I wear it’ is perfect for rain and sun

The UK summertime weather can be pretty unpredictable, but we've found a lightweight wind and water-repellent parka jacket from Marks & Spencer that is perfect for rain and sun

Politics

7 h. ago Air India plane crash latest: British investigators reach India as second black box found in decade’s worst aviation disaster

Air India's Boeing 787 fleet could be grounded temporarily

Events

7 h. ago ‘The risk was worth it’: All Fours author Miranda July on sex, power and giving women permission to blow up their lives

The artist and author’s hit book had so much in common with her own life that even her friends forgot it wasn’t real. How did this revolutionary portrayal of midlife desire come to inspire a generation of women?When Miranda July’s All Fours was published in May last year, it triggered what felt like both a spontaneous resistance movement and the sort of mania last experienced when the final Twilight book dropped, except this time for women in midlife rather than teenage girls. Two friends separately brought it to my house, like contraband dropped out of a biplane. Book groups hastily convened, strategically timed for when the men were out of the picture.The story opens with a 45-year-old woman about to take a road trip, a break from her husband and child and general domestic noise. She’s intending to drive from LA to New York, but is derailed in the first half hour by a young guy, Davey, in a car hire place, to whom she is passionately attracted. The next several weeks pas...

Events