63 m. ago Voices: Let’s end the performative hell of compulsory World Book Day costumes

I’m not saying social media is fetishising the act of reading as a nostalgic, middle class pursuit regardless of the child’s actual interests, but what I am saying is there are an awful lot of Pippi Longstocking outfits on Instagram, writes Emma Kernahan

Politics

2 h. ago New podcast highlights homelessness and recovery stories in Ayrshire

‘A Voice in the Dark’ shines a light on the people Blue Triangle supports and the staff making a difference on the front line.

Politics

2 h. ago Charles Barkley calls athletes who won’t visit Trump’s White House ‘stupid’. I disagree | Etan Thomas

Sports stars have stayed silent about the policies of the new administration. I spoke to someone who knows all about the power – and price – of protestSince Donald Trump took office for his second term, he has taken a blowtorch to America. He has pardoned January 6 rioters, started the gutting of the federal government, eliminated diversity, equity and inclusion programs, insulted who we thought were the country’s allies, and vilified immigrants.While there have been voices of dissent in the sports world – such as former NFL punter Chris Kluwe and soccer coach Jesse Marsch – athletes have largely stayed silent on Trump’s policies, a stark contrast to his first term in power. In recent months, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce spoke of their pride in playing in front of Trump at the Super Bowl, while the Philadelphia Eagles are reportedly keen to visit the White House to celebrate their NFL title, a decision supported by Charles Barkley, who believes boycotts make the nation more divi...

Politics

2 h. ago How Dungeons & Dragons helped my siblings and me grieve our father’s death

Fantasy realms offer a place to escape when our own world is too intense, too boring, too heartbrokenThe idea of being present with your grief might evoke virtuous images of letting ashes blow in the wind like dandelion seeds, days spent flipping through family photo albums, or crossing the finish line of a charity run in honor of your person. Grief at different times in your journey might look like all those things to you.Perhaps your life might call for you to find the off switch. Or if there’s not one to be found, to turn the volume up on something else in your life to drown out the noise that all this grappling with death can stir up. Fantasy football. National politics. FBoy Island. Continue reading...

Events

3 h. ago Plumbing trade body slams 'reckless' Scottish Tory proposals to allow pupils to leave school at 14

Idea described as an ‘unmanageable logistical and safeguarding nightmare’

Politics

5 h. ago Voices: I have no idea what a ‘situationship’ is, but I think I’m in one – and it’s dreadful

The Independent’s agony aunt Victoria Richards is here to help. Email dearvix@independent.co.uk for advice on love, work, family and relationships

Politics

5 h. ago Horror UK motorway fire rips through coach 'carrying 30 school kids' in 'dreaded call'

Horrific pictures show the devastation caused to a school coach after it burst into flames on a motorway slip road yesterday. The coach was carrying '30 plus children' and teachers at the time of the fire

Events

6 h. ago 'It's the sort of call we really dread!': Devastation after coach carrying 30 children bursts into flames on M60

"It's the sort of call we really dread"

Politics

7 h. ago Voices: Under Trump, the global order that America helped to build is crumbling

It is already clear the US president is hellbent on ushering in a new dawn in which traditional alliances are abandoned – and nations must fend for themselves, says Tobias Ellwood

Politics

8 h. ago ‘Trump Gaza’ AI video intended as political satire, says creator

Film-maker reacts after US president shares video on his Truth Social account last weekThe creator of the viral “Trump Gaza” AI-generated video depicting the Gaza Strip as a Dubai-style paradise has said it was intended as a political satire of Trump’s “megalomaniac idea”.The video – posted by Trump on his Truth Social account last week – depicts a family emerging from the wreckage of war-torn Gaza into a beachside resort town lined with skyscrapers. Trump is seen sipping cocktails with a topless Benjamin Netanyahu on sun loungers, while Elon Musk tears flatbread into dips. Continue reading...

Politics

14 h. ago Is Rachel Reeves about to fix Britain’s public finances on the backs of the poorest members of society?

Editorial: As the chancellor prepares to present her plans for social security reforms she must assess whether her cost-cutting measures are unnecessarily punitive, or indeed realistic

Politics

20 h. ago The untold stories of female climbers summiting the world’s tallest peaks

In 1970, Grace Hoeman led the first all- female team in an attempt to climb North America’s highest peak, DenaliIn 1970, Alaskan doctor and mountaineer Grace Hoeman led a team of six women in the first all-female attempt to summit Denali – which was the first all-women’s ascent of any of the world’s big peaks.At the time, people thought that women were incapable of climbing mountains without men’s help. We had sent men to the moon, and women still hadn’t stood on the highest points on Earth. Which made Hoeman’s bold idea all the more audacious. Continue reading...

Politics

20 h. ago Remote controls, tumble dryers, documentaries do we have to make everything so complicated? | Adrian Chiles

I’m not saying everything was better in the good old days – but a lot of things really don’t need the latest bells and whistlesI was once trying to get a television idea commissioned about a subject or issue that I thought was important. So important that I can no longer remember what it was. Whatever it was, the commissioner stayed alert for a minute or two but soon clouded over and demanded: “What is it you’re trying to say?”“Say? I’m just saying it’s really interesting.”Adrian Chiles is a broadcaster, writer and Guardian columnistDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

Politics

21 h. ago New Dries Van Noten designer blends the archive with a new voice in Paris

Julian Klausner has presented his first womenswear collection as creative director of Dries Van Noten at the Opéra Garnier in Paris, a setting that reflected the historical influences woven throughout his designs

Politics

21 h. ago Voices: I’m a former BBC newsreader – Gaza is the reason I resigned

The controversy over the pulling of the ‘How to Survive a Warzone’ documentary is a distraction from a much bigger problem my old employer has with impartiality, writes Karishma Patel

Politics

22 h. ago Gordon and Jim after coming out to Gordon’s mum: Sage Sohier’s best photograph

‘They had been together for 21 years. They’re telling Margot, Gordon’s mum, that they’re about to appear in a Valentine’s Day issue of the local newspaper’I took this shot in 1987, when I was living in Boston, Massachusetts. It was the middle of the Aids crisis, and there was an atmosphere of fear as more people fell victim to the virus. The year before I had decided to create At Home With Themselves, a series in which I captured the lives of same-sex couples in photographs and interviews. That’s how I met Gordon and Jim, the couple shown here next to Gordon’s mother Margot in their home in San Diego.By the mid-1980s, and with the advent of Aids, there was a backlash against the growing openness towards homosexuality. There were all sorts of misconceptions about how you could contract the disease: from toilet seats, or sharing an ice-cream cone. The press played into stereotypes, particularly the idea that gay men were very sexually promiscuous. But that period got me thinking about...

Culture

24 h. ago Voices: If Emma Raducanu isn’t safe at work, what hope do we have?

Ahead of her return to court at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Raducanu has opened up on her ordeal. But, writes Sharan Dhaliwal, until proper safety measures are established, some women will continue to live in fear – wherever they work

Politics

26 h. ago Martin Lewis falls to floor after struggling through live TV appearance

Lewis began to lose his voice during latest episode of his live financial advice show

Politics

28 h. ago Texas politician removed during Trump speech as Democrats stage protest

The veteran Texas politician was forcibly removed after voicing opposition to Trump

Politics

28 h. ago Voices: Poor Zelensky had to grovel to Trump – but sometimes, standing up to him can pay off

The Ukrainian president says he is now ready to swallow his pride and sign on Trump’s dotted line – but, as other world leaders have found, there are benefits to fighting your corner, says Simon Walters

Politics