25 m. ago David Walliams denies inappropriate behaviour claims after being dropped by publisher

Ex-Britain’s Got Talent star was not informed about or party to an investigation by HarperCollins, his spokesperson says

Politics

42 m. ago David Walliams breaks silence on allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards women

Comedian and author David Walliams has hit back at claims of inappropriate behaviour towards young women as he is let go by book publisher HarperCollins

Events

71 m. ago What time is sunset on Winter Solstice 2025 – the shortest day of the year?

FOR the past six months, the days have been getting shorter and the nights longer, but that is about to reverse soon. Sunday, December 21, marks the shortest day of 2025 — also known as the Winter Solstice. What time is sunset on the shortest day of the year 2025 and how many daylight hours...

Politics

1 hour ago Mohamed Salah apologised to Liverpool squad for outburst, reveals Curtis Jones

Liverpool teammate discusses fallout from interview‘He apologised to us That’s the man that he is’Curtis Jones has revealed Mohamed Salah apologised to the Liverpool squad for the fallout from his interview criticising the club and Arne Slot.Salah was omitted from Liverpool’s Champions League win against Inter having accused the club of throwing him under a bus in response to a poor run of results. The striker also claimed his relationship with Slot had broken down and that he had earned his position in the team after eight phenomenal seasons. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Stuart Kelly on the year in books: 'It’s always telling which books I keep to re

Stuart Kelly runs through his favourite books of the year, and reflects on the outcomes of this year’s major literary awards

Politics

2 h. ago The Guardian view on the rise of romantic fiction: finally getting the respect it deserves

Jilly Cooper, Joanna Trollope and Sophie Kinsella all changed the genre. A new generation of novelists are doing the same and sales are soaringAt last, the perception of popular fiction by women as “silly novels by lady novelists”, as George Eliot sniffily put it back in 1856, is changing. Next year, the British Book Awards will recognise romantic fiction for the first time. The recognition is long overdue.This welcome news came in the same week as the deaths of two doyennes of the form, Joanna Trollope and, at just 55, Sophie Kinsella, only a couple of months after the loss of national treasure Dame Jilly Cooper. Between them these publishing power houses produced more than 100 books, sold millions of copies, and inspired hit films and TV series, most recently last year’s star-studded adaptation of Cooper’s 1985 Riders. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Epstein files: Democrats vow to fight Trump officials’ plan to hold back some documents, slamming ‘violation of federal law’ – live

Lawmakers accuse justice department of defying the Epstein Files Transparency ActUS legislators say justice department is violating law by not releasing all Epstein filesEpstein files to be released after months of delays from Trump officialsFBI director Kash Patel has said “no one is above the law” after a Wisconsin judge was found guilty on Thursday of helping a migrant evade a planned immigration arrest outside her courtroom.Patel is the latest member of President Donald Trump’s administration to celebrate what it sees as a victory in its effort to deter interference with its hardline immigration tactics. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago At the dark end of a brutal year, I’m grateful to these heroes for showing us the light | Jonathan Freedland

From Palestinians standing up to Hamas to the Bondi beach rescuers, great acts of courage offer hope even in the bleakest timesSome traditions are getting harder to maintain. Among them, my own custom of devoting the last column before Christmas to reasons to be hopeful. In recent years, amid war and bloodshed, that task has been especially challenging – and this week was no exception.It began with the news from Bondi beach, where 15 people were gunned down and dozens more injured, most of them Jews celebrating the festival of Hanukah. That came just two-and-a-half months after the deadly attack on Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester, on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur. To be a Jew at the end of 2025 is to fear that to gather together, whether at moments of joy or sorrow, is to take a mortal risk. That even to do relatively ordinary things together has become a matter of life and death.Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist and the author of The Traitors Circl...

Politics

2 h. ago ‘They like a good night out’: German darts fans find a (mostly) friendly rivalry at Alexandra Palace

Around a quarter of all tickets for the PDC world championship were sold to German fans. How did a country with no world-class player get hooked?They walk among us, sit among us, sing among us. They speak perfect English, hunt in packs, down industrial quantities of Amstel just like everyone else. And yet to the trained eye, to the seasoned Ally Pally veteran, there is just something different to them. A comportment and a vibe. Perhaps the fact they speak perfect English. You can even spot a subtle distinction in the choice of fancy dress; less jockeys and 118 118 runners, more woodland animals and flag suits, less postmodern ironic and more Euro-kitsch. They come, mostly, in love and peace. Even so, the divide is real. Enmity? Perhaps a bit strong. Either way: don’t tell them your name, Pike.Slowly and by degrees, the Germans are coming. At first in small scattered groups and landing parties, then larger expeditions, and then finally the full-scale mass incursion. A battery of tour...

Politics

2 h. ago Premier League news: Guardiola dismisses exit talk and Slot has ‘moved on’ from Salah fallout

Word from the top-tier press conferences, including updates on Viktor Gyökeres, Tyler Adams and Leeds reinforcements Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Kylie Minogue gets her – and Amazon’s – first Christmas No 1, with Xmas

Exclusive song for online retailer prevents a hat trick of Christmas No 1s for Wham!, as Kylie becomes first woman to secure UK No 1 singles in four different decadesKylie Minogue has scored her first UK Christmas No 1, and eighth No 1 single overall, with the song Xmas.She beat competition from Wham!’s mega-streaming Last Christmas, which has been Christmas No 1 for the past two years: it was last week’s chart-topper but drops to No 2. Also in the race was Lullaby from the charity campaign Together for Palestine, which reached No 5. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Kylie steals festive No 1 with XMAS but here are some Christmas number one hit wonders!

It’s official - XMAS by Kylie - has been crowned the Christmas Number One 2025, narrowly beating Wham’s! Last Christmas to the top of the charts

Events

2 h. ago Gaza no longer in famine but hunger levels remain critical, UN says

Monitor says almost one in eight people face food shortages as flooding and cold exacerbate humanitarian emergencyThe famine in Gaza has ended as a result of increased humanitarian aid deliveries into the territory, the UN said on Friday, though it warned that levels of hunger and the humanitarian situation remained critical.Almost one in eight people in Gaza still faced food shortages, the UN said, adding that persistent hunger had been made worse by winter flooding and the colder weather. Most people in Gaza live in tents or other substandard accommodation as Israel destroyed much of the housing and civilian infrastructure during its two-year war. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago The best fantasy books of 2025: from Katabasis to The Raven Scholar

Here’s what stood out this year

Politics

3 h. ago US legislators say justice department is violating law by not releasing all Epstein files

Todd Blanche, deputy attorney general, says release of files won’t include full set, prompting outrage from lawmakersUS politics live – latest updatesTodd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, said that the Department of Justice will not release all its files related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on Friday, despite the deadline stated in the law. Blanche’s comments drew sharp rebuke from Capitol Hill, where top legislators threatened legal action “in the face of this violation of federal law”.Speaking in an interview on Fox News on Friday morning, Blanche said: “I expect we’re going to release several hundred thousand documents today, and those documents will come in all different forms, photographs and other materials associated with all of the investigations into Mr Epstein”. Continue reading...

Society

3 h. ago Best deals to expect in Currys Boxing Day sale 2025, picked by experts

From hair straighteners and air fryers to cordless vacuums, here’s what could be on offer in this year’s sale

Economics

3 h. ago Why is Truth Social owner Trump Media merging with a fusion energy firm?

What we know about the deal with TAE Technologies so far – from why it is happening to what fusion energy isTrump Media & Technology Group, owner of Donald Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, announced a merger on Wednesday with a company developing fusion energy technology.TAE Technologies, an energy company founded in 1998, will join with Trump Media via a $6bn merger that it promises will propel it to build “the world’s first utility-scale fusion power plant” next year. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Will there be an M&S boxing day sale 2025? Everything we know, from dates to deals

Previous years have seen up to 50 per cent off fashion, beauty and more

Economics

3 h. ago Top Democrat slams justice department plan to hold back some Epstein files despite today’s deadline – live

Chuck Schumer comment comes after deputy attorney says ‘several hundred thousand’ files would be released but some may be held back temporarilyEpstein files to be released after months of delays from Trump officialsFBI director Kash Patel has said “no one is above the law” after a Wisconsin judge was found guilty on Thursday of helping a migrant evade a planned immigration arrest outside her courtroom.Patel is the latest member of President Donald Trump’s administration to celebrate what it sees as a victory in its effort to deter interference with its hardline immigration tactics. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Santas and elves rob Montreal grocery store to ‘give food to the needy’

Group called Robins des Ruelles later said in statement stunt was intended to highlight cost of living crisis Dressed in red suits and backed by masked elves, a group of Santas marched into a Montreal supermarket, loaded their bags with thousands of dollars worth of groceries and disappeared into the night.The bandit Santas later released a statement saying the food would be distributed to the needy, and saying the Robin Hood-style stunt was intended to highlight the spiralling cost of living crisis that has pushed basic necessities increasingly out of reach for ordinary Canadians. Continue reading...

Politics