The new properties should be on your travel radar this year

Reviews will have to be posted within two weeks of the visit in question and can be removed

A official opening date has not been released, but the record-breaking Toxicator is set to make its debut ride in the spring

Deals include Portsmouth to London for APS3.50, Norwich to Colchester for APS4 and Sheffield to Leicester for APS3.80

Kelly Mosser reaches out to brides in need after over 12,000 structures were destroyed in the deadly wildfires

Discover how online schooling works and why, for a growing number of families, itas the best learning solution

Tommy Fury poked fun at a video showing him almost knocking over an elderly woman while he took part in a charity 10k race.

Experts share the cheapest and most efficient ways to dry clothes

Consumers have been urged to rethink their buying habits to reduce plastic waste

Walmart last redesigned its logo in 2008

Nutritionist Delicia Baleas take on mac and cheese swaps processed sauces for a creamy butternut squash base, with wholegrain macaroni for added fibre a an easy, delicious way to reduce ultra-processed foods

Nutritionist Delicia Baleas maple cinnamon granola is packed with nuts, seeds, and oats a a healthier, more satisfying alternative to ultra-processed breakfast cereals

Everyone wants to believe that they show their partner a good time in bed, writes Olivia Petter, but there are a few ways most of us are probably going wrong

Forget takeaway a nutritionist Delicia Baleas wholemeal Greek yogurt pizza dough and simple homemade sauce make this satisfying dish a breeze

Food writer and nutritionist Delicia Bale wants us to ditch the packet pasta sauces and plastic-wrapped bread a but without the guilt. Her new cookbook promises easy, affordable swaps to help you eat better, one meal at a time

The new rules reverse the policy put in place in 2018 after two men were arrested

Two tiny cartons of French vanilla coffee creamer were added to the TikTokeras pedicure bath

The Consumer Prices Index figure fell to 2.5%, still above the Bank of Englandas 2% target

RAF bases near drinking water sources have caused concern

Covid fundraiseras loved ones faced fierce criticism over their handling of charity set up in his name

In a damning statement, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsmansaid the department was afailing to learn from its mistakesa

Police Scotland continues to appeal for help finding triplets Eliza and Henrietta Huszti as family issue desperate plea saying aall we want is for them to be founda

Shortages to lengthen UKas ahungry gapa between April and early June

The group boasts that it is athe worldas most prominent think tank supporting scepticism about man-made climate changea

MPs call on government to introduce entitlement to paid bereavement leave for miscarriage in new legislation

Victoria Derbyshire confronted Tory MP Joe Robertson over his criticism of Tulip Siddiq, asking whether it was apot, kettle, blacka given that shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel did not resign when she was found to have broken the ministerial code over bullying claims.

It has been an intense past year for the Princess of Wales as she underwent cancer treatment

Shadow attorney general Lord Wolfson KC says Labouras reasonings for planning to repeal the Legacy Act amake no sensea

On average, sellers had owned their home for just under nine years

The British comedian Russell Howard confirmed to Lorraine he had no plans to leave TV work behind just yet.

aThe Sixth Sensea director is being sued for $81m (APS66m)

Family-friendly event takes place on the sweeping Jurassic Coast in Dorset

De Niro has appeared on aThe Graham Norton Showa several times

The 2025 nominations will be unveiled at midday on 15 January

aThey couldnat shoot my face anymore,a said aOnce Upon in Time in Hollywooda actor

Publicity stunt saw actors Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Zach Cherry and Patricia Arquette perform from inside a glass tank situated in the middle of the New York City station

aKids donat understand how epic this photo isa wrote fans

Louis Chilton selects some of the most egregious pieces of casting in film history

Baldoni believes that a character in aDeadpool and Wolverinea was created to mock him

The unconventional film has performed slightly better in the UK, making $4.7 million to date

At first, the response toA Appleas dystopian sci-fi was tepid. But itas proved itself to be a deliciously compelling examination of what makes us human, writes Nick Hilton. Plato would have loved it

aI have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity,a wrote the aAmerican Godsa author

aBank of Dave 2: The Loan Rangera has proved immediately popular

Former host isnat happy with the fate of the modified vehicles he used on the show

aIt was such a harrowing experience for me,a actor said

Shields was only a newborn when she appeared in her first TV ad, setting off a chain reaction of events that would see her become a generational touchstone of beauty and youth. Her candid new book is a surprisingly optimistic take on aging full of lessons in self-love and self-advocacy, writes Annabel Nugent. But while definitely hopeful, these promises ring hollow in a society thatas yet to catch up with Shields

Adam Scott returns in second season of acclaimed Apple TV+ thriller

Youall be able to get your fix soon after the UK series finishes

Three-part documentary explores musician Brian Warneras relationship with fans, controversies, and allegations of abuse by former partners and ex-assistants

aItas just strange, in a world of slasher films and porn, that people got so upset about this,a he said

aThe Viewa hostas remarks came after the country singer was hit with immense backlash online

aThe entire writeras room looked at me as if I had just slept with their mom...a Schwimmer said

After week of turbulence in markets, ONS data shows prices rose at slower rate last month than in November

• Business live a latest updates
• Dip in inflation opens way for February interest rate cut

UK inflation unexpectedly fell in December, handing some breathing space to the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, after a week of turbulence in financial markets.

With the government under pressure on the economy, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed the consumer prices index eased to 2.5%, below a reading of 2.6% in November, meaning prices rose at a slower rate.

Deal reported to involve release of 33 Israeli hostages alongside a partial Israeli troop withdrawal

In Oslo today, Norway is hosting a meeting of the global alliance for the implementation of the two-state solution.

Norwayas foreign ministry Espen Barth Eide is quoted by the Anadolu news agency making opening remarks in which he said that a ceasefire in Gaza would only be the beginning of the necessary process.

The time has come to take practical measures that advance the two-state solution, address the root causes of this conflict and directly confront the legality of the Israeli occupation and its ongoing violation of international law.

While we are waiting for a ceasefire, it is important to stress that it will not be acceptable for any entity to govern Gaza but the legitimate Palestinian leadership and the government of the State of Palestine.

World Economic Forum says responses from experts in business, politics and academia also highlight climate crisis

Global leaders have said that escalating armed conflict is the most urgent threat in 2025 but the climate emergency is expected to cause the greatest concern over the next decade, according to the World Economic Forum.

Ahead of its yearly gathering in the Swiss ski resort of Davos next week, the WEF asked more than 900 leaders from business, politics and academia about the risks that most concern them.

Exclusive: Sampling results show aextremely concerninga concentrations of PFOS and PFOA at sites across UK

• Where are the UKas aforever chemicala hotspots?

RAF bases are hotspots of toxic aforever chemicala pollution in water, analysis of Ministry of Defence documents has revealed.

Moreover, some of the highest concentrations of these chemicals in British drinking water sources are near RAF bases, official sampling results obtained by the Guardian and Watershed Investigations show.

Darren Jones avery happya to work with Siddiq in future despite criticism over her links to Bangladesh

• UK politics live a latest updates

The chief secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones, has said he would be avery happya if Tulip Siddiq returned as a minister despite criticisms of her by the governmentas adviser on ministerial standards over her family ties to the ousted regime in Bangladesh.

On Tuesday, Siddiq resigned as minister for the City and anti-corruption after accepting that allegations of corruption linked to her aunt Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh, had become a distraction.

Impeached president questioned over martial law declaration a month after first arrest attempt ended in stalemate

• Explainer: After the arrest of Yoon Suk Yeol, what happens next?

South Koreaas impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, has been arrested and is being questioned over his ill-fated declaration of martial law last month, anti-corruption investigators said on Wednesday, bringing to an end an early-morning standoff outside his official residence in Seoul.

His detention makes him the first sitting president in the nationas history to be arrested.

British arm of Heartland, which has taken oil and Republican funding, to be led by ex-Ukip head Lois Perry

Climate science deniers are lining up a political offensive in Britain after a US lobby group opened a UK branch which is already working with Nigel Farage.

The Reform UK leader was the guest of honour at the launch of Heartland UK/Europe, which is to be headed by a former leader of Ukip and climate denier.

Company reveals plans to cut about 5% of its global workforce days after saying it would get rid of factcheckers

• Business live a latest updates

Meta, the owner of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, is to cut about 5% of its global workforce, with its poorest-performing employees most likely to leave.

In a memo to staff, the chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, said he had decided to amove out low-performers fastera, ahead of what he said would be an aintense yeara, and would be accelerating the companyas usual performance management system.

One expert says womenas bodies and attire have long been a source for public debate in a way that doesnat happen with men

A council in Greater Sydney has announced it is banning G-string bikinis at its public pools without providing further details about how the rule will be policed, sparking debate about gender standards.

Earlier this month, Blue Mountains Leisure Centres (BMLC) posted on Facebook that it had noticed some aconfusiona about aappropriate swimweara when visiting one of their pools.

Police came better prepared than for their first attempt two weeks ago while supporters on both sides of the political divide came out to protest

By 4.30am, the streets around Yoon Suk Yeolas hilltop residence felt like rush hour, packed with police and protesters despite the early hour.

Roads were completely sealed off and thousands of officers were in position on the freezing winter morning, while hundreds of pro-Yoon supporters chanted aggressively while clutching red light sticks and American flags.

In an instant, Sam Pordale went from a world of privilege to becoming a refugee in imminent danger. He talks about how he lost everything and began to rebuild his life

On 15 August 2021, 21-year-old Sam Pordale and his father found themselves part of a huge, panicked crowd of people all trying to get to Kabul airport and away from the Taliban militants who, just hours earlier, had taken control of Afghanistanas capital city.

Between the crowd and the entrance to the airport, Pordale could see a Taliban checkpoint, where heavily armed men were holding lists in their hands and checking peopleas documents. Pordale, whose father had until that morning held a high-ranking position in the democratic government, knew that their chances of getting to the airport and on to an evacuation flight were blown.

Ebike rentals are thought to have reduced car use a but caused consternation among some pedestrians and other road users. How can everyone get along?

I love Lime bikes because I live next to a secondary school, and I see those tearaways in every mood. Coming in, grumpy; going home, cranky; yelling at each other, kicking bins for no reason. Ah, the sweet hell of teenagehood. But when they get on the Limes, you can see in them both the playful, primary school kids of the past, and the adults, with agency and a place to be, of the future. Letas not trouble ourselves over whether or not theyave hacked them and thatas what the funny clacking noise is.

But the relationship overall, between the pedal cyclist, the ebiker and the pedestrian a well, itas mixed. Some are happy to welcome rented ebikers as allies against the greater enemy (the car). Others say they have been actively put off cycling because of them. Pedestrians have other complaints still, and drivers a well, I left drivers out of this. Some other time for their nonsense (our nonsense a I also drive).

When a neighbour let me see inside his hive, it set me on a path to an extraordinary life second act

I was first introduced to bees when I was invited to visit a neighbouras apiary one April afternoon, 20 years ago. Like most people, I was terrified of stinging insects, but I was fond of the honey they produced, which I would drizzle into my tea to soothe a scratchy throat.

An invitation to meet honeybees was unusual. At the time, I was a freelance designer and illustrator, and spent my days working from my tiny red cottage in rural Connecticut. Occasionally, I took day trips into New York City to meet with clients and a few times each year travelled to China to oversee manufacturing of giftware for a small import company

Experts believe H5N1 bird flu belongs in a growing category of infectious diseases that can cause pandemics across many species. But there are ways to reduce the risks

Bird flu poses a threat that is aunique and new in our lifetimea because it has become a aapanzootica that can kill huge numbers across multiple species, experts warn. For months, highly pathogenic bird flu, or H5N1, has been circulating in dairy farms, with dozens of human infections reported among farm workers. It has now jumped into more than 48 species of mammals, from bears to dairy cows, causing mass die-offs in sea lions and elephant seal pups. Last week, the first person in the US died of the infection.

This ability to infect, spread between, and kill such a wide range of creatures has prompted some scientists to call H5N1 a apanzootica: an epidemic that leaps species barriers and can devastate diverse animal populations, posing a threat to humans too. As shrinking habitats, biodiversity loss and intensified farming create perfect incubators for infectious diseases to jump from one species to another, some scientists say panzootics could become one of the eraas defining threats to human health and security.

After their daughter died aged 19, Yannick and Ben Jakober began amassing 165 paintings of children at their Mallorca museum - many with similarly tragic family stories attached

When Yannick and Ben Jakoberas daughter died aged 19, they poured their grief into art. The couple transformed their small set of portraits of children into the Nins, a one-of-its-kind collection. Numbering 165 paintings of children from the 16th to the 19th centuries, it includes works by old masters such as Ottavio Leoni, Frans Pourbus the Younger and FranASSois Quesnel, commissioned to capture the offspring of European royalty and the aristocracy in their most vulnerable years. Many did not live to adulthood.

When I meet the Jakobers, itas towards the end of Mallorcaas holiday season. The taxi taking me to the north-east of the island passes a large black and white billboard advertising their museum (aLife is short. Art is longa), before turning on to a single-track road heading into the hills.

Troubling new HBO docuseries An Update on Our Family looks at YouTube families and Myka Stauffer, the mom who arehomeda her adopted son

In May 2020, the vlogger parents Myka and James Stauffer tearfully revealed to their nearly 1 million followers that the son they adopted from China just three years before had been arehomeda. The child, Huxley, who was only five at the time and lived with autism, had been the star in so many YouTube videos sharing the Stauffer familyas joys, struggles and brand partnerships. But in the month leading up to that May 2020 upload, titled aan update on our familya, followers noticed that he had been phased out, old videos featuring Huxley had been removed and comments from followers inquiring as to his whereabouts promptly deleted while Myka continued posting homemaking videos.

After the Stauffers came clean, the backlash was (predictably) swift and unforgiving, calling out the family, which includes four other biological children, for exploiting Huxley to gain clicks and views, packaging his trauma as an adoptee into content, before deciding they were ultimately ill-equipped to meet his needs (aI apologize for being so naive,a a statement from Myka read). However, the internetas response, much of it furiously leaning into not just critical commentary but also wild conspiracy theory geared for even more clicks and views, became knock-on content perhaps as craven and predatory as the inciting behaviour.

Set in the same spot a from prehistory onwards a Zemeckisas sentimental drama is an odd combination of cosmic ambition and domestic intimacy

Robert Zemeckisas sentimental family heartwarmer, adapted by him and co-screenwriter Eric Roth from the graphic novel of the same name by Richard McGuire, is the movie equivalent of a book club choice; the star is a family home, the aherea of the title. Or rather: itas the living room in a Philadelphia house where so much generational drama plays out. Here is an odd combination of cosmic ambition and hyper-local domestic intimacy, clearly influenced at some level by NoA<, about scenes in the life of a London family in the same house. The dreamy quirkiness keeps you watching and the folksy warmth of performances from Tom Hanks and Robin Wright encourage you to cut it some slack.

The film switches back and forth between eras, with scene-transitions managed with split-screens and inset-panels (a nod to its graphic-novel origins), using the same fixed camera position until the very end. It is sited in the specific aherea in prehistoric times, the American revolution, and when it is occupied by Native Americans (scenes imagined with weirdly childlike placidity). By the turn of the 20th century, it becomes a house, opposite the colonial mansion of William Franklin, pro-Brit son of Benjamin Franklin.

Looking for a new reading recommendation? Here are some brilliant new paperbacks, from an examination of the British Empire to gripping crime novels

In December, we published the 120th fiendishly tricky general knowledge paper from the Isle of Man school. Did you give it a try? Here are the answers

Click here to see the questions

1. Edward Norton (British Mount Everest Expedition)

The cash to match the prime ministeras ambition will have to come from other budgets long before any benefits are seen

Keir Starmer made two predictions at the start of his week. He said that artificial intelligence will transform Britainas economy in the coming years and that Rachel Reeves will continue to run the Treasury. Those were safe bets, but not guarantees. One is a forecast the prime minister makes eagerly, the other was bullied out of him. He would have preferred to talk about AI improving productivity, generating jobs and improving services, without being asked if he plans to sack the chancellor.

He doesnat, and wouldnat say even if he did. The question isnat serious. It is a contrivance, a lobby ritual for turning speculation into news. Demand official comment on an improbable scenario, then interrogate the answer until it surrenders a headline. Starmer isnat poised to jettison Reeves, but economic pressure on the pair is real. There is no growth. The pound is depreciating and debt costs are rising, gobbling resources that canat then be used to upgrade the public realm.

Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist

New polling says much of the world will welcome Trump. Europe will need to be more transactional abroad a but less so at home

• European jitters about Trump 2.0 not shared by much of world, poll finds

When returning US president Donald Trump eyes up Greenland, Panama and Canada, as Vladimir Putin once eyed Crimea and Xi Jinping eyes Taiwan, he is both symptom and cause of a new world disorder. Trumpism is just one variant of transactionalism, which is the leitmotif of this new disorder. Liberal democracies, especially those in Europe, need to wake up and smell the gunpowder.

Russia and China are now revisionist great powers, which aim to change or overthrow the existing order, while middle powers like Turkey, Brazil and South Africa are happy to play with all sides. This is also a world of wars a in Ukraine, the Middle East and Sudan. Most Europeans carry on pretty much as if we still lived in late 20th-century peacetime, but the world around us increasingly resembles the late 19th-century Europe of fiercely competing great powers and empires writ large. For the geopolitical stage is now planetary, and most of the players are non-western states. Trumpas United States is likely to behave more like those other transactional great powers than like, say, Germany or Sweden.

Timothy Garton Ash is a Guardian columnist. He co-authored the report on the ECFR global poll with Ivan Krastev and Mark Leonard

A backlash is growing a some women are turning to apps or other methods, but a disturbing number seem to be giving up on birth control altogether

For many women I know, contraception is a kind of decades-long quest. The goal: to not get pregnant unless we want to. The tools: limited, imperfect and, sometimes, rejected by our uncooperative bodies.

I have gone on the pill, come off the pill, tried to get the coil (and failed, thanks to my heart rate dropping during the procedure), and had an implant that looked like a short piece of spaghetti poked into my arm, only to have it taken out again after spending months in a fug of sadness. It took the nurse 20 minutes to find it.

As with US bond yields, the UK economy risks catching cold whenever anywhere else sneezes a but Britain can insulate itself better

The British government was right to describe the recent bout of market volatility in the UK as having been fuelled principally by aglobal factorsa a in particular, a sharp rise in US bond yields. It was also right in touting how well UK markets have coped with the turmoil. But no one should downplay the additional challenges the UK economy will confront in the months ahead, the structural weaknesses that are compounding its vulnerability, or the policy action that is urgently needed.

The recent surge in US yields has three main causes: a string of data releases indicating that actual and potential economic growth are outpacing consensus estimates, higher-than-projected inflation (with a meaningful rise in consumersa inflation expectations), and increased market sensitivity to the bond issuance that comes with large deficits and debt. Given that advanced economies compete for funding from global investors, it should be no surprise that higher US yields caused borrowing costs in most other countries to rise as well.

The proposed new law will hand over artistsa copyright so their competitors can be trained for free. The government must reconsider

On Monday morning, a couple of hours after the UK governmentas AI opportunities action plan was published, I started getting messages from artists. aWe are not going to continue drawing so that the founders of [AI companies] can get rich. I am quitting this job now,a said one. Another told me: aI have given up at this point.a Iave heard similar messages from people for months a they are abandoning their creative jobs because AI companies are taking their work without asking, and using it to train models that compete with them.

There is actually a lot I agree with in the action plan, which seeks to make the UK a global leader in artificial intelligence. Written by the venture capital investor Matt Clifford, it proposes making it easier for British AI companies to access acomputea (essentially the servers needed to train AI models), updating visa regulations to bring more AI experts to our shores, and much more besides. These are sensible ideas that could boost our economy.

Ed Newton-Rex is the founder of Fairly Trained, a non-profit that certifies generative AI companies that respect creatorsa rights, and a visiting scholar at Stanford University

• Updates from around the courts at Melbourne Park
• Any thoughts? Get in touch with an email

Aryna Sabalenka breaks Jessica Bouzas Maneiro to 30 at the first attempt but the Spaniard bounces back immediately. Bouzas Maneiro pulls away to a 0-30 lead following a pair of unforced errors from Sabalenka, then takes the game to deuce and four break-back points a the third from a huge confidence booster with a sublime cross-court forehand winner. The world No 54 brings out a backhand winner to finally finish off the game and put the first set back on serve.

Jessica Pegula is up against Elise Mertens on Margaret Court Arena with the first few games quickly going to serve. Mertens leads the No 7 seed 2-1.

With Tottenham next up at home, Gunners manager must restore the positivity of the 2022-23 season

Mikel Arteta was sitting in the Emirates Stadium away dugout when he realised the scale of the task that awaited him. It was December 2019, and although he was still nominally the assistant manager of Manchester City, cruising to a 3-0 victory against Arsenal, thoughts were naturally beginning to turn towards the project he had secretly decided to take on. And a to put it mildly a he was alarmed.

This wasnat simply a case of how bad Arsenal were on the pitch. Performance is a fickle thing. There are known variables, measurable objectives. Performance you can fix. But the energy in the stadium, the disgruntlement, the disconnect between the players on the pitch and the fans in the stands: as Arteta contemplated his first job in management, this was the challenge that worried him the most.

The captaincy is due reward for a fine player a but for Steve Borthwick, it comes with one or two risks attached

England no longer announce their new captains with a grand theatrical flourish. Back in 1996 Bathas Phil�de�Glanville had to lie down in the back of the taxi taking him to Twickenham so no one could identify the skipper poised to replace Will Carling before he was unveiled dramatically from behind a large curtain like a nervous contestant in Stars in Their Eyes.

Fast forward to 2025 and Maro Itoje, the 136th man chosen to lead his country, was not even present for his inauguration. People like to talk about spreading the rugby gospel and here was another example of how not to do it. A good news story (if not for poor old Jamie George) and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Itoje to strike a smiling pose for the snappers and propel English rugby back on to the front pages? Nah, weall just stick out a bog-standard press release.

• Briton showed grit in Australian Open first-round victory
• Anisimova aincredibly dangerousa rival in next round

Emma Raducanu says she has become more comfortable in her skin and learned how to enjoy her career journey rather than fixating on results as she prepares to face her friend Amanda Anisimova for a place in the third round of the Australian Open.

aI think Iam a lot more comfortable with myself, which helps,a said Raducanu. aI feel like Iam not necessarily trying to prove anything. Iam just doing it for myself. I feel like now Iave come to the realisation that I just enjoy the process of what Iam doing.

The quarterback may be a rookie but he doesnat play like one. And his skillset could well help the Commanders spring a surprise in Detroit on Saturday

Thereas a legitimate argument to be made that if youare a rookie NFL quarterback, and your team makes the playoffs, you are no longer a rookie. By your first postseason game, your opponent has a full season of your game tape and tendencies, youare playing with more on the line, and the experience is completely different in both importance and intensity.

In the case of the Washington Commandersa Jayden Daniels, we may have to forward that point a bit. Because Daniels, the second overall pick in the 2024 draft, rarely looked like a rookie when he was. In the regular season, he completed 69.0% of his passes for 3,568 yards, 25 touchdowns, nine interceptions, and a passer rating of 100.1, which ranked 10th among regular starting quarterbacks. Add in Danielsa 148 rushing attempts for 891 yards (6.0 yards per carry) and six touchdowns, and itas abundantly clear that heas well past whatever limitations we can reasonably expect from a first-year quarterback of any stripe.

• Northern Irish player set to move to Saudi-backed circuit
• aIf I were in his position I wouldnat make that decisiona

Rory McIlroy has expressed disappointment over the imminent move to LIV Golf of Tom McKibbin, his fellow Northern Irishman and player he has mentored. aI donat think itas worth the sacrifice,a said McIlroy of the 22-year-oldas upcoming switch.

McIlroy has been close to McKibbin since the latter burst onto the scene as an exciting child talent. Last November, McKibbinas rise continued with the securing of a PGA Tour card for 2025. However, it appears McKibbin will not take up that membership; having been targeted by Jon Rahmas LIV team, he is set to move to the Saudi Arabian-backed circuit for a reported $5m plus further annual guarantees. The figures are dwarfed by those given to some others to swap traditional tours for LIV.

Plus: dramatic downturns in form, non-football athletes wearing crests on their kit (2) and more

• Mail us any of your questions and answers

aIn this monthas Old Firm game, Ianis Hagi scored a goal past Kasper Schmeichel,a notes Steve Murray. aI donat think Gheorghe scored past Peter, but are there any examples of father/son combos that have scored against another father/son combo?a

Letas start with the Schmeichels, who have had their nets busted, or at least tickled, by at least two father-son combinations. Dan Almond is first with some Scandinavian action. Alf Inge Haaland scored past Peter Schmeichel for Nottingham Forest in a 4-1 defeat at Old Trafford in September 1996; Erling beat Kasper during Norwayas 3-1 defeat to Denmark last June.

Latest SunLife study shows average total funeral cost at APS9,797 with many selling off possessions to help pay

The acost of dyinga has hit a record high, prompting growing numbers of grieving UK families to turn to crowdfunding or sell possessions to help pay for a funeral, according to a report.

The average cost of a basic funeral has increased by 3.5% in a year to hit an aall-time higha of APS4,285, according to the insurer SunLife, which has been monitoring UK funeral costs for two decades.

Many local authorities facing bankruptcy as government criticised for lack of urgency

The crisis in special educational needs and disabilities (Send) in England risks creating a alost generationa of children, while putting aalmost halfa of all councils with an education remit in danger of bankruptcy within 15 months, parliamentas spending watchdog has warned.

MPs on the public accounts committee (PAC) expressed frustration with the governmentas lack of progress in resolving the crisis, and complained their inquiry had found ano sense of urgencya among officials.

UK firm in vanguard of companies arguing SMRs are quicker and cheaper option than large Hinkley-sized nuclear plants

The Hinkley Point C power plant in Somerset is gargantuan. The 176-hectare (435-acre) plant will provide 3.2 gigawatts of power, enough for 6m homes. It is not just the project that is huge: the cost is as well. With a price tag that has ballooned to a reported APS48bn, and delayed by at least five years, it has become a symbol of the pitfalls of nuclear power.

But a clutch of companies argue they have a quicker, cheaper option than large Hinkley-sized plants in the form of small modular reactors (SMRs), which can be built in a factory and then slotted together on site.

Margaret Thatcheras 1980s policy turbocharged the sale of council homes, contributing to aworst housing crisis in living memorya

Margaret Thatcheras right-to-buy scheme has left Britain with the legacy of a social housing shortfall that would cost the government APS50bn to return the number of affordable homes back to 2010 levels.

In a report issued as Labour pushes to reform the Conservative policy introduced in the 1980s, the Resolution Foundation said Keir Starmeras government faced a huge task to replenish the UKas affordable housing stock.

Public service cuts and astark impact of povertya are causing worse outcomes for children, according to survey

Poor parental mental health has overtaken domestic violence as the most commonly reported factor in social worker assessments into whether a child is at risk of serious harm or neglect, according to new research.

Growing rates of mental illness a in both parents and children a were an increasingly important driver of child safeguarding interventions in England, the latest comprehensive survey of childrenas social care pressures found.

In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org

Government urged to introduce universal right of bereavement leave as atime to grievea early pregnancy loss

Women who suffer a miscarriage should get two weeks of paid leave from work so they can mourn the loss of their baby, an influential group of MPs has said today.

The government is under mounting pressure to introduce a new right of bereavement leave for women across the UK who lose their baby before 24 weeksa gestation. That happens 250,000 times every year.

Region faces aextreme fire riska warnings and asignificant risk of rapid fire spreada as official death toll expected to rise

As forecasters warn of another aparticularly dangerous weather situationa across northern Los Angeles, residents braced for new wildfire evacuation orders, even as the official death toll from last weekas fires in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades was expected to rise.

Los Angeles, and parts of Ventura county to the north, faced aextreme fire riska warnings through Wednesday, with officials warning of asignificant risk of rapid fire spreada due to the Santa Ana winds a which have gusts of up to 75mph a . The aparticularly dangerous weather situationa designation is used very rarely, and was designed by meteorologists to signal athe extreme of the extremesa. The winds were predicted to reach near hurricane-force in some areas.

Author publishes statement after New York Magazine investigation, saying: aI have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. Evera

Neil Gaiman has denied all allegations against him after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct in a New York Magazine article, writing in a lengthy statement: aI have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. Ever.a

In July, a podcast investigation by Tortoise media reported allegations by two women of sexual assault against Gaiman. One of the women alleged that Gaiman had performed sexual acts on her without her consent when she was 22 and working as a nanny for the authoras family in New Zealand. Gaiman strongly denied any wrongdoing at the time, saying all of his sexual relationships were consensual.

Australia summons Russian ambassador over PoWas reported death; Lavrov says open for discussions with Trump. What we know on day 1,057

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Financial regulator alleges Musk later acquired shares of company at aartificially low pricesa, stiffing shareholders

A US financial regulator has sued Elon Musk for allegedly failing to disclose his ownership of Twitter stock and later acquiring shares in the company at aartificially low pricesa, stiffing other shareholders.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed suit against Musk late on Tuesday in federal court in Washington DC for alleged securities violations. According to the suit, Musk did not disclose that he had acquired a 5% stake in the company in a timely manner, which allowed him ato underpay by at least $150m for shares he purchased after his financial beneficial ownership report was duea.

Law to stop armed groups profiting from trade in gold, tin, tungsten and tantalum is being breached, rights groups say

The European Union has been urged to clamp down on illegal imports of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) after evidence was found that current regulations had been breached.

The advocacy group Global Witness (GW) said there remained a ahigh riska of the EUas mineral imports being used to fund militias and state repression in several countries.

The historian offers a look at the making of modern Britain. Plus, Ella Maisy Purvis is an autistic criminal-evidence cataloguer in Patience. Hereas what to watch this evening

9pm, BBC Two
Movies that bite back against convention. Paintings that turn the tables. Music that crosses tribal boundaries. aItas the arts that have heralded dramatic changes in our lives,a says Simon Schama in this perceptive, personal series. He continues from 1953, examining the realities of what the queenas coronation, the Commonwealth and mass immigration meant for Britain a using Ian Flemingas James Bond, Hanif Kureishias radical writing, and 2 Tone band the Specials. He also speaks to Clive Myrie about the Windrush generation and the scandal that followed. Hollie Richardson

This episodic, multi-layered debut crosses decades and continents to shine a light on the universality and uniqueness of womenas experience

Catherine Aireyas debut novel opens in New York on 9/11. Sixteen-year-old Cora, who is playing truant, watches the news from�her apartment, and knows that�her father is dead. Michael was an�accountant who worked on the 104th floor of the North Tower. Coraas mother MA!ire died seven years earlier, so she is now an orphan.

Cora tells us all this herself. Absconding from her convent school, she has the jaded, unworldly voice of�the affluent Manhattan teen (in fiction,�at least a The Catcher in the Rye, which is referenced, or Gossip Girl). This is her recollection of her motheras death:�aThe morgue had comfy armchairs in the lobby, and I�can remember being annoyed that it�didnat take longer for my father to�identify the body. I was reading Little�Women and would have quite happily sat there all day. I was nine.a

A classy cast plays it straight in this enjoyably daft action epic about the crossbow sharpshooter forced to shoot an apple from his sonas head

Nick Hamm lets rip with some gonzo Game of Thrones craziness in his retelling of the William Tell myth with a blue-chip cast. Limbs get chopped off in a style I havenat seen since the days of Monty Pythonas Black Knight. Itas the story of the 14th-century Swiss folk hero and crossbow artist, a peaceful farmer and huntsman who has endured continual tyranny and humiliation at the hands of his Austrian Habsburg masters, and finally rises up against them on a coward-of-the-county basis; the flashpoint being made to shoot an apple from his sonas head for the sneering amusement of the Habsburg nobleman Gessler.

Itas adapted by Hamm from the 1804 play by Schiller (not many action movies can boast that), but gives Tell a Muslim wife and adopted son that Schiller didnat imagine; a flashback reveals this to be the result of Tellas experiences in the Crusades, a time of bigoted cruelty. Hamm inserts into his movie some outrageous and enjoyable cod-Shakespearean dialogue.

Think prejudice is overblown? A social psychologist provides the receipts in this densely informative but highly readable account

It was over schnitzel and mash that my friendas Bavarian grandparents decided to call me a ablack devila, chuckling all the while. Breaded chicken has since been my madeleine, taking me back to racially charged moments Iave not known quite how to interpret. Is it really racist if they didnat mean to be rude? What if they have dementia? And if racism = prejudice + power, was being called a black devil while I choked down some potatoes even that big a deal, given that I felt in no way disempowered in the company of my tiny, elderly hosts?

In his succinct and bingeable book The Science of Racism, professor of social psychology Keon West begins by�acknowledging that society doesnat agree on even the most basic aspects of racism, let alone its finer points. Indeed, roughly half of Britons donat�believe minorities face more discrimination than white people in various areas of life. Yet far from being�a set of hazy, unanswerable philosophical questions, many of the�unknowns about racism are empirically testable, especially if researchers design clever studies.

Airbnb and Booking.com are the market leaders, but a new wave of smaller accommodation platforms are offering an alternative a and trying to give something back to local communities

Accounts of tenants illegally subletting rental properties by listing them on Airbnb and Booking.com, without the permission of their landlords, have hit the headlines in recent months. While thereas no denying that the convenience of these accommodation booking platforms has transformed holidays a making independent travel more accessible and affordable a that convenience often comes at a cost. In tourism hotspots like Barcelona, which banned short-term rentals in 2021 (and will ban all apartment rentals to tourists by late 2028), platforms such as Airbnb are being blamed for driving up rents and house prices for residents.

However, there are alternatives to these search engine and booking monoliths, with an increasing number of smaller websites offering hand-picked owner-run, independent B&Bs, home swaps, or rental properties that are primary homes (rather than fuelling a second home market). With a focus on passionate, local hosts who know their patch inside out, using these platforms can also take some of the pain out of researching a destination. Better for locals and better for your holiday; itas often a win-win.

Lentils are cheap, nutritious and good for the planet. Here are three delicious ways to get more into your meals

My pantry is stocked with an abundance of lentils: tiny red ones that take moments to cook, which I throw into soups; buttery yellow ones for khichdi; French green ones to add heft to salads; glossy black beluga; and pebbly puy. Theyare cheap, nutritional powerhouses that have a low carbon footprint, require little water to grow and improve the health of depleted soil, making them good for our planet, too. Whatas not to love? Dal might be the obvious choice when cooking lentils, but there is so much more you can do with them.

Whether itas lurid, hip-hop-style tribute tees or monogrammed socks, making a personal mark on the things we wear can be a marvellous model for self-expression

It was Roger Federeras white jacket in 2006 for me. Golden initials embroidered on the breast pocket, as he lifted the Wimbledon trophy. The elegant monogram suggested an aristocratic elan that I craved. Was it possible to grab some of his pedigree, without the achievements or money, but with some simple stitching? I wondered if I would feel like a fraud.

Twenty years later, such personalisation is attainable, and everywhere. Monograms and other distinctive touches, formerly the preserve of the rich, can be anyoneas. Zara, H&M and Uniqlo offer embroidery options in-store. You can buy personalised phone cases, keyrings and socks through Etsy, Glenfiddich whisky bottles labelled with your name, and Converse Chuck Taylors with your face on them. Buying a shoe tree the other day, I was asked if I wanted my initials etched on the heel knob. Oxford Streetas newest pop-up, Hus of Frakta, offers a monogrammed Ikea bag. We personalise football shirts on stag dos and birthdays, and print ironic T-shirts with the faces of loved ones. Whatas with all the self-regard a and is identity so easily bought?

Wead like to hear from young people starting out in the creative sector about their experiences of internships

Wead like to find out more about internships in the UK creative sector.

A 2018 report by the Sutton Trust revealed that 86% of interns in the UKas creative industry were unpaid and wead like to hear about the opportunities for people trying to enter the sector now.

Women with little formal education trained to become solar technicians, transforming villages and tackling patriarchal norms

In a dimly lit corridor of a mud-walled house nestled among coconut trees, Sharifa Hussein stripped red and black cables, a screwdriver voltage tester balanced between her lips and rolls of cable lying by her feet.

Then, with the help of three other women, she attached the two wires to an electronic device nailed on the wall.

The current wave of marches and activism around the world is the largest in documented history, giving scientists the chance to study what makes for a successful campaign

On 27 September last year, three climate activists were arrested for throwing soup over Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh at the National Gallery. The Just Stop Oil protest landed on the national front pages. But will the action help further the activistsa cause to end fossil fuels?

Scientists are beginning to find answers to this question. The number of protests more than tripled between 2006 and 2020 and researchers are working out which tactics are most likely to change public opinion, influence voting behaviour, change policy or even overthrow political regimes.

aThere is magic in that van,a former owner Preston Martin tells AP. aIt should have been toasted, but here we area

Preston Martin figured the retro blue Volkswagen van he slept in for a year during college was a goner, given that he had parked it in a Malibu neighborhood just before the Palisades fire ripped through, reducing homes and cars to rubble and charred metal.

So the surfboard maker was stunned to find that the vehicle had survived. Not only that, a photo of the vibrant bus taken by an Associated Press photographer was circulating widely on television and online, giving viewers a measure of joy.

We are raiding the Guardian Long Read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors.

This week, from 2022: Despite the rise of headline-grabbing megafires, fewer fires are burning worldwide now than at any time since antiquity. But this isnat good news a in banishing fire from sight, we have made its dangers stranger and less predictable. By Daniel Immerwahr

Gabrielle Canon reports from Los Angeles on the wildfires destroying homes and communities

As the Los Angeles wildfire spread closer to his home, George Elmaraghi was anxiously waiting for an evacuation order.

aWhen I saw the fire, from our backyard, almost parallel to our house, I was like, OK, we gotta go.a

Georgeas home in Altadena was destroyed in what is now the cityas most destructive wildfire. That fire is still burning and George and his family, along with 150,000 other displaced people, are now grappling with trauma, homelessness, insurance claims a and the ultimate decision of whether to rebuild or walk away.

For Gabrielle Canon, the Guardianas extreme weather correspondent, this unprecedented fire must be understood as a compound climate disaster: the disastrous end result of a chain of events exacerbated by the climate crisis.

Gabrielle explains to Michael Safi why popular anger is growing around the Los Angeles mayor, Karen Bass, and unpacks the potential climate crisis implications of incoming US president Donald Trumpas record on misinformation, fossil fuel extraction and federal disaster response.

The future is in this post and it looks like dropping cleaning tablets into water to clean your belongings without having to actually scrub anything.

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"I would avoid buying a two-story home..."

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aWhen I go to see him, I love to see him. When itas time to leave, aBye-bye. See you soon.aa

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It is truly magical what a chic $10 ring and a some subtle ~glotion~ will do for your whole vibe.

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Surprise your favorite person with something cute, quirky, and fun, like Lego roses, a Demogorgon planter, or a retro edition of Uno.

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"I did a cartwheel straight into the TV in my living room and broke my ankle."

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Because couch-rotting is gonna feel even better in a clean space.

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Life just hits different when you"re wearing this stunning $5 alternative to Dior Lip Oil and sitting under a fairy tale-worthy bed canopy.

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Here"s everything you need to know to unlock new pleasure.

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Kelly Mosser reaches out to brides in need after over 12,000 structures were destroyed in the deadly wildfires

Discover how online schooling works and why, for a growing number of families, itas the best learning solution

Tommy Fury poked fun at a video showing him almost knocking over an elderly woman while he took part in a charity 10k race.

Experts share the cheapest and most efficient ways to dry clothes

Consumers have been urged to rethink their buying habits to reduce plastic waste

Walmart last redesigned its logo in 2008

Nutritionist Delicia Baleas take on mac and cheese swaps processed sauces for a creamy butternut squash base, with wholegrain macaroni for added fibre a an easy, delicious way to reduce ultra-processed foods

Nutritionist Delicia Baleas maple cinnamon granola is packed with nuts, seeds, and oats a a healthier, more satisfying alternative to ultra-processed breakfast cereals

Everyone wants to believe that they show their partner a good time in bed, writes Olivia Petter, but there are a few ways most of us are probably going wrong

Forget takeaway a nutritionist Delicia Baleas wholemeal Greek yogurt pizza dough and simple homemade sauce make this satisfying dish a breeze

Food writer and nutritionist Delicia Bale wants us to ditch the packet pasta sauces and plastic-wrapped bread a but without the guilt. Her new cookbook promises easy, affordable swaps to help you eat better, one meal at a time

The new rules reverse the policy put in place in 2018 after two men were arrested

Two tiny cartons of French vanilla coffee creamer were added to the TikTokeras pedicure bath