20 h. ago First it was family, now it’s a feud. But even in meltdown, Brand Beckham is raking it in | Marina Hyde

Brooklyn and his wife Nicola have fallen out with the rest of the multimedia-lifestyle-industrial-complex. Luckily, it’s all being kept very private What is “Brand Beckham”? I don’t mean to question the very idea of a celebrity brand – far from it. In fact, part of the reason that celeb-watching phrases like “the brand” and “controlling the narrative” have gone completely mainstream is because of David and Victoria Beckham. So ubiquitous is the professionalisation of celebrity these days, and so media-literate is the public, that it’s hard to remember just how revolutionary the Beckhams were in British culture back in the day. Twenty-five years ago, nobody except some rarefied elite publicist wanged on about narratives. But now everyone knows how to read an influencer. Almost all celebrities are regarded primarily as people who are selling something. Furthermore, people act like mis-selling a lifestyle is worse than several major financial crimes.Anyway, back to the brand. What is t...

Politics

5 d. ago Is it true that natural beauty products are always gentler on skin?

Not everything that’s sold as ‘natural’ is entirely so, and even some naturally sourced ingredients can cause allergic reactions‘Natural’ has become a buzzword,” says Dr Rosalind Simpson, a consultant dermatologist and associate professor at the University of Nottingham. And when it’s on the label of beauty products, sellers often charge more. “There’s a trend where people assume that synthetically derived ingredients are harmful, and that if something’s labelled ‘natural’ it must be safer or better for your skin,” she says. But that’s often a misconception.For starters, not everything labelled “natural” is entirely sourced from nature. “I came across a crude study that looked at 100 skincare products on Amazon marketed as natural. Only 42% truly were,” Simpson adds. In fact, most “natural” skincare products contained at least two synthetic ingredients. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Thousands of Primark shoppers all saying same thing about £15 breakfast set

The pyjamas have become so popular that certain people are purchasing them in bulk and selling them for twice the original price.

Economics

7 d. ago India bans books and police raid bookstores in crackdown on ‘false narrative’ in Kashmir

Authorities threaten people with prison time for selling or owning works by authors like Booker winner Arundhati Roy and historians Victoria Schofield

Events

8 d. ago Balenciaga is selling crumpled up tote bag and people can't get over the price

Luxury fashion brand Balenciaga was founded in Spain more than 100 years ago and, today, is renowned for its high end and ready-to-wear line of accessories, shoes and handbags

Politics

9 d. ago Oasis death fall fan slipped on beer at Wembley in 'accident waiting to happen'

Lee Claydon, 45, plummeted from the upper tier during the sell-out gig in front of 100,000 people on Saturday and died at the scene, despite the best efforts of medics

Events

9 d. ago Tens of thousands of fake football shirts worth £5m seized ahead of new season

Seven people have been arrested in connection with selling counterfeit goods - including one person from Greater Manchester

Economics

9 d. ago Residents in 'dismay' about plans for 3am restaurant on Cardiff street

Residents and local councillors have raised concerns about restaurant plans which propose to sell 'late night refreshments' to people until 3am during the week

Politics

9 d. ago Oasis fan 'slipped on beer' before plunging to his death over balcony as family demand answers from Wembley over 'accident waiting to happen'

Lee Claydon, 45, from Bournemouth, plummeted from the upper tier during the ­sell-out gig in front of 100,000 people at Wembley Stadium in North London on Saturday.

Events

1 week ago MTG urges Donald Trump to commute George Santos’ prison sentence

Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison for wire fraud and identity theft after scandal-plagued tenure in Congress

Events

1 week ago Urgent warning issued to people selling their identities online

People are selling their own identities, typically on the promise of attractive financial opportunities

Events

1 week ago ‘Worrying trend’ of people selling their identities, says fraud prevention body

AI has ‘supercharged’ fraud threats, according to Cifas, whose members include banking, retail, insurance, and telecoms bodies.

Politics

1 week ago More than £11k worth of illegal cigarettes and vapes seized from just four Salford shops

"The people making money from these activities do not care who they sell to"

Economics

1 week ago Zambian conman who stole £3.5million in elaborate mortgage scam is finally being deported after losing 25

Conman Alick Kapikanya, 57, who has a string of convictions including identity fraud to steal people's homes has finally lost a 25-year legal fight against deportation to his native Zambia.

Economics

1 week ago Ninety laptops, millions of dollars: US woman jailed over North Korea remote

Christine Chapman apologizes for role in identity fraud that amassed millions to allegedly aid nuclear weapons programIn March 2020, about the time the Covid pandemic started, Christina Chapman, a woman who lived in Arizona and Minnesota, received a message on LinkedIn asking her to “be the US face” of a company and help overseas IT workers gain remote employment.As working from home became the norm for many people, Chapman was able to find jobs for the foreign workers at hundreds of US companies, including some in the Fortune 500, such as Nike; “a premier Silicon Valley technology company”; and one of the “most recognizable media and entertainment companies in the world”. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago How to make perfect fresh tomato pasta – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect

With such a simple dish, and so many ways to make it, can one really distil the ultimate version of pasta al pomodoro crudo? Our resident perfectionist finds out “How many versions of fresh tomato sauce can there be?” Catherine, the generous winner of a charity auction to help me with the research for this column, asks when I tell her what recipe we’ll be making. On the contrary, I tell her, I’ve had my work cut out to narrow the selection here down to a mere seven, not least because the simpler the dish, the more argument there is over how it should be prepared, especially in a place as passionate about its food as Italy.Happily, I’ll have a lot of assistance, because Catherine has raised yet more money for Hospitality Rides (a fundraising initiative for two very worthy industry charities, Only a Pavement Away and the Licensed Trade Charity), by selling tickets to get other people to do my job for me, effectively. In an attempt to sweeten the deal, I tell my assembled minions (all ...

Politics

4 w. ago Risk of 'voter fraud' over Labour plans to allow bank cards as identity at polling stations

Existing laws require people to show photographic ID such as a passport or driving licence at the polling station before they can vote.

Politics