Merz to respond as Germany’s far-right AfD wins key state election – Europe live

Group fail to secure majority in Saxony-Anhalt state parliament leaving uncertainty over next steps

• Far-right AfD wins key German state election but falls just short of majority

We are also getting first reactions from European ministers.

Donald Tusk, the prime minister of Poland, said:

“In Poland, only idiots or traitors can rejoice at the triumph of the AfD in Germany.”

“Buckle up. This is just the beginning!”

Warning over future of Olympic Games if Brisbane 2032 program is not modernised

• Kieren Perkins expresses concern over some traditional sports

• Door is open to likes of cricket and netball for Games in Australia

Former gold-medal winning swimmer and Australia’s most senior sport executive, Kieren Perkins, has called on the IOC to modernise the sporting program for Brisbane 2032, arguing that some current Olympic sports “have no modern relevance whatsoever”.

The IOC has indicated it wishes to curb a long-term trend of a rise in the number of sports at the Games. Sydney 2000 featured 28 sports, while Los Angeles 2028 is set to feature 36, including many with more than one discipline – for example road and track cycling – that require multiple venues.

Friendships meant everything to me as a child. I worry today’s young people are being robbed of that | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett

We sat in the park, laughing for hours, talking about nothing. Today’s childhoods are digital – and the result is an epidemic of loneliness

I saw an old friend recently – the kind you’ve known for so long that you clear a whole day for them, as you might a family member. We laughed and laughed like we were teenagers again, and drank martinis before lunch, and it felt almost like it always did when we were young, except we could afford better than cheap cider, and he owns a house and I’m someone’s mother.

Another old friend – one I’ve known even longer, since I was six – described me and the other girls who made up our little group as “fake siblings”. That is how lifelong friendships feel. There’s an easiness and acceptance that comes with longstanding intimacy. You know each other’s secrets, you’ve been inside each other’s parents’ houses, shared beds and cigarettes, witnessed heartbreak and foolishness, tears and whiteys, before the more serious stuff piles up: weddings, births, illnesses, life crises, deaths. You talk about the serious stuff, of course (there has always been some serious stuff, but teenage friendships often provide a refuge from it), but when you need it that old friendship is a portal, transporting many of us to a time of lightness and freedom that is otherwise hard to access.

Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a Guardian columnist

Is it true that … hard water damages hair?

Mineral deposits can accumulate, making hair drier, but removing them can cause different problems

From hair treatments to shower filters, a wave of products have been launched promising to protect hair from the “problems” caused by living in a hard-water area. But are they really necessary? “Hard water has a higher concentration of dissolved minerals, especially calcium and magnesium,” says Desmond Tobin, professor of dermatological science at University College Dublin. “These are naturally occurring in water, particularly water that is not rainwater.”

When water moves through soil and rocks, such as limestone, minerals dissolve into it and remain there when it comes out of your tap. These minerals are responsible for the limescale that builds up in your kettle.

Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action

Fulham need a win, Tottenham show some spirit and Jack Grealish offers Everton much-needed energy

With 25 minutes to go against Manchester United, the Everton supporters had something to roar about as Jack Grealish made his return after rejoining on loan. The attacking midfielder remains universally popular thanks to his desire to entertain, getting the hosts back on their feet by creating dangerous situations within seconds of his arrival. Everton were limited in the final third for long periods as Thierno Barry sat on the periphery. If David Moyes is to keep his side pushing for a top-half finish, he will need Grealish to be a creative focal point. Will Unwin

Going for gold: an early autumn road trip across Finland’s sparkling lake district

On a self-drive break in search of Lake Saimaa’s autumn colours, we encountered blue skies, cosy lakeside cabins and saunas, great food – and lots of stubbornly green trees

I wasn’t sure what to expect from an autumn trip to Finland, my first ever to the country, but spending an afternoon sprawled on a deck chair beneath blazing blue skies certainly wasn’t part of it. After a morning walking beneath the leafy canopy at the Mustila Arboretum – the oldest, most extensive botanical garden in the country – and a lunchtime wine-tasting (more of which later), my friend Sara and I pitched up at the Sahanlahti resort, deep in the Finnish Lakeland, only to find sun-drenched scenery that felt far more Mediterranean than Nordic.

Sahanlahti was the second stop on a mid-September road trip from Helsinki to the shores of Lake Saimaa; a journey in search of ruska, the spectacular autumn colours that blaze for a few short weeks before the long Finnish winter sets in. However, on our opening drive east from the airport to the Radalla resort, set on Lake Urajärvi, most of the thousands of trees we drove past were resolutely green, with just the very tips of the leaves tinged with auburn, like a foliage balayage.

Pixel 11 review: Google sets the bar for standard flagship phones

Longer battery life, faster chip, actually useful AI tools and better cameras keep quality Android ahead of competition

Google’s Pixel 11 continues to set the standard for what you should expect from the base model of a flagship phone with class-leading cameras, long software support and almost all the bells and whistles of its most expensive phones.

The regular Pixel 11 costs £879 (€999/$899/A$1,499) making it £80 or equivalent more expensive than last year’s model as the cost of RAMageddon continues to bite. It’s not cheap by any stretch of the imagination, but it comes with 256GB of storage and is £200 less than the Pixel 11 Pro, matching rival Samsung’s Galaxy S26.

Screen: 6.3in 120Hz FHD+ OLED (422ppi)

Processor: Google Tensor G6

RAM: 12GB

Storage: 256 or 512GB

Operating system: Android 17

Camera: 48MP+ 13MP UW + 10.8MP 5x tele; 10.5MP selfie

Connectivity: 5G, eSIM, wifi 6E, UWB, NFC, Bluetooth 6 and GNSS

Water resistance: IP68 (1.5m for 30 minutes)

Dimensions: 152.8 x 72.0 x 8.6mm

Weight: 197g

‘This is what I have to do to survive’: the Sudan refugees forced into sex work

They fled a brutal civil war to reach safety in Egypt, but now many Sudanese women and girls are falling prey to sexual exploitation

Sudanese women who fled to Egypt to escape the war in their country are facing increasing levels of sexual exploitation, with the Guardian told of single mothers forced to sell their bodies to survive and feed their children.

Many of the women have not previously worked in Sudan, where conservative social norms dictate that men are usually responsible for financial support. Without established trades or professions, and with their husbands and other family members dead or missing, many female refugees are struggling to pay for food, medical care and rent.

A new start after 60: I was always quiet – but at 82 I’m a famous, funny fashion influencer

Vivienne Truran was a civil servant and antiques dealer, who spent most of her life in the background. At 80, she realised how outgoing she was, and started a soaringly successful new career

‘It took me till I was 80 to realise that I’m quite an outgoing and loud person,” says Vivienne Truran. Now 82, she has 829,000 followers on Instagram, where she posts daily videos about her outfit choices, including which of her trademark glasses work best with her look, all in her lilting Cardiff accent.

It all started 18 months ago. “I think I want to be an influencer,” she announced in one of her first reels. “Now, what can I influence people in?”

Rob Reiner wins posthumous Emmy for The Bear, as Widow’s Bay dominates early awards

Reiner broke record set by his father Carl Reiner at the ceremony formerly known as the Creative Arts Emmys, with The Pitt, Pluribus and DTF St Louis also winning big

Rob Reiner has won a posthumous Emmy for his performance in The Bear, nine months after his death – breaking the record set in the exact same category by his own father, Carl Reiner.

Reiner’s win for outstanding guest actor in a comedy was announced on Sunday night at the ceremony formerly known as the Creative Arts Emmys, a two-day awards event held a week before the main ceremony and telecast.

As assisted dying bill returns to Commons, families recall loved ones’ battle to ‘go out on own terms’

Elise Burns and Keith Williams appeared in campaign filmed by Rankin this year – both were denied their wishes, but their relatives are picking up the baton

The feeling, said Sarah Burns of her sister’s last days, is one of overwhelming guilt.

“You feel really guilty, and helpless,” she says. “Because we knew what she wanted. We really did know. But we couldn’t do anything.”

Bereaved parents to give evidence at independent review of Sussex maternity services

Review led by Donna Ockenden launches after campaign by families and media investigation into deaths

Susan Cacciacarro was almost 37 weeks pregnant with her daughter Chiara when she woke up one morning in 2021, unable to feel her baby kicking.

“My belly just didn’t feel right,” she said. “I didn’t feel any movements.”

Cheese pie, seed crackers and prawn rolls: Ravinder Bhogal’s recipes for cooking with filo

Making your own filo is notoriously faffy but, luckily, there are great ready-made versions out there that make these crunchy, golden savoury treats a doddle

I love this gossamer-thin pastry for its lightness and crunch, not least because it can be used for both sweets and savouries. Once, on a trip to Athens, I learned how to make filo from scratch: it needs to be rolled very, very thin, so, unless you are skilled with a rolling pin, it’s hard and time-consuming. Luckily there are good ready-made varieties out there (if you’re using the frozen variety, make sure it’s fully defrosted). And always keep the pastry you are not working with under a damp cloth, because it dries out very quickly and will probably crack.

Armed man arrested for allegedly charging at Democratic Ohio governor candidate

The suspect "aggressively shoved his way through the crowd" toward Amy Acton, Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene told CBS News.

‘It’s the Bayeux tapestry of TV!’ After six decades, the seminal series bows out with 70 Up

The ‘hugely important artefact’ that’s followed 14 children since they were seven is set to air its final instalment. The now-septuagenarians and director Asif Kapadia talk about breaking new ground for 63 years – and changing TV forever

Described as the Bayeux tapestry of television, the groundbreaking ITV documentary series Seven Up is coming to its final conclusion.

In 1964, a group of randomly chosen seven-year-olds from different backgrounds were brought together and filmed in an attempt to answer questions about the effect of fate, class and environment on people’s aspirations and outcomes.

‘Sharks are my film stars’: how the Jacques Cousteau of the North Sea finally unlocked its beauty

Epic plankton blooms make filming in the North Sea notoriously difficult. But a new documentary gives a rare glimpse of the kaleidoscopic life – seals, sharks, tuna, orcas and shorthorn sculpins – lurking beneath its waves

The North Sea, as even its greatest admirers will concede, often glowers an unappetising grey or brown. And we assume that its dull exterior is matched by sediment-filled waters where little life dwells. For years, the friends and family of Peter van Rodijnen wondered why the Dutch cinematographer and diving fanatic spent so much time exploring “this murky bowl of soup”. But, inspired by a childhood of watching Jacques Cousteau’s adventures in rather more enticingly temperate waters, Van Rodijnen’s dedication to North Sea diving gradually revealed its hidden wonders.

Over 20 years, as camera technology improved, Van Rodijnen obtained more and more amazing footage of marine life near his home on the Netherlands coast. Nearly a decade ago, he teamed up with director Mark Verkerk. “We started with the idea,” says Van Rodijnen, “that if somebody can make a movie about the North Sea, it’s got to be us.”

Reindeer and rare-earth minerals: Swedish politicians take aim at Indigenous Sami in mining dispute

Gabna community fear their traditional herding routes will be sacrificed as far-right rhetoric ramps up against them

For the Swedish-Sami politician Åsa Larsson Blind, it was something of a watershed moment in the national conversation around Indigenous rights.

In late April and May, as the country geared up for this month’s elections, the deputy prime minister and energy minister, Ebba Busch, gave a series of speeches and articles publicly attacking the Sami’s rights to graze reindeer herds on their ancestral lands. Reindeer husbandry, Busch said at one press conference, “is an industry that affects very large areas, but has limited economic significance”.

‘Work hard – nobody cares how good you used to be’: Paul Smith at 80 on love, fun and his fabulous life in fashion

With the release of his new biography, the British designer talks about leaving school at 15, the real reason he won’t retire and why no one wears velvet trousers any more

Go for a browse in the Paul Smith shop in Mayfair, London, on any given Saturday and you’ll likely find an older shop assistant, straight-backed in fine tailoring, approaching to help you with a new shirt, or a suit for a special occasion, perhaps a jaunty pair of socks. There aren’t many global fashion brands, Paul Smith points out, perhaps unnecessarily, “where the owner is a Saturday boy”. But working in his shop, one of more than 130 around the world, is probably Smith’s favourite part of the job. “It’s fantastic, you meet so many interesting people,” he says, smiling broadly. Smith’s whole career, he says, has always been about doing things in a different way. He’s the untrained fashion designer who created a global British brand, who put a bright lining or some stripes into classic tailoring, and who has turned down multiple substantial offers to buy his company, in order to remain in control.

Sir Paul Smith has just turned 80 – and he has the enviable energy of someone more than half his age, swimming each day before 6am. He’s about to publish his memoir, Threads: My Life in Style. It’s been a good opportunity to do a stocktake. His has undoubtedly been a lucky life – right place, right time, right people (not least his wife, Pauline, whom he met at the age of 21 and who has been integral to his success) – but it’s also a story of hard work, integrity and modesty. We’ll get to whether those values are still relevant in a harsher, more competitive world, and whether Paul Smith can survive.

Ross Fire still burning, with over 90,000 acres scorched

The wildfire, which has torn through Palo Pinto and Jack counties, forced evacuations, closed roads and disrupted schools.

At least 5 dead in Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami airport

An Amazon cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport and struck several vehicles, killing at least five and injuring five others, officials said.

Hundreds of far-right protesters descend on Portsmouth after small boat arrival

Influencer livestreams event calling for men to travel to port to block coaches carrying asylum seekers from leaving

Hundreds of far-right activists have descended on Portsmouth, where a small boat with 140 asylum seekers on board was intercepted heading towards the Portsmouth coast. The vessel’s arrival sparked a major response with a helicopter, an aeroplane and lifeboats sent to the scene.

It is thought to be the first time such a large boat containing asylum seekers has been brought to Portsmouth and the first time a large group of anti-migrant protesters have tried to block newly arrived asylum seekers from being processed.

Millions mark end of summer at "The Great Minnesota Get-Together"

Jonah Kaplan is at one of the biggest state fairs in the country to show us why so many are drawn to some old-fashioned fun in the digital age.

Volcano eruption in Indonesia leaves 170,000 travellers stranded as seven airports remain closed

Volcanic ash from eruption of Anak Krakatau delays more than 1,500 flights, including in the capital Jakarta, while airport closures extended

Seven Indonesian airports – including two serving Jakarta – remained closed on Monday ⁠morning because of volcanic ash from eruptions at Mount ⁠Anak Krakatau, the transport minister ⁠said.

Ash from ​Anak Krakatau, which sits halfway between Java and Sumatra islands, has blanketed Jakarta and several surrounding areas since it erupted ⁠late on Friday, leading to the closure of the airports for safety reasons.

Connecticut school honors Sept. 11 attacks victim through education

The Adam J. Lewis Academy in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is a living tribute to principal Patty Lewis' husband, who died in the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. "CBS Weekend News" producer Caroline Lewis reports on her dad's legacy 25 years after the terrorist attacks.

Labor Day weekend gas prices hit record high

Labor Day weekend gas prices have never been higher, and Californians are feeling the sticker shock more than most in the U.S., as prices regularly top $6 per gallon. Mark Strassmann is in Los Angeles with the latest.

Amazon cargo jet runs off Miami airport runway, crashes into multiple vehicles

Emergency crews rushed into action on Sunday after an Amazon cargo jet ran off the runway in Miami. At least five people were killed. Lindsey Reiser reports on what we know so far.

Susan Sarandon says she is losing movie roles because of her support for Palestine

Oscar-winning actor says she and other outspoken critics of Israel have found it ‘impossible’ to get hired by major studios

The Oscar-winning actor Susan Sarandon has said she is still losing work because of her outspoken support for Palestinians, despite what she ⁠described as a broader shift ⁠in public opinion against ​US support for Israel.

Speaking at the Venice film festival, where she is promoting her latest movie The Echo Chamber, Sarandon said some parts of the film industry continued to ⁠shun her over her activism.

Chancellor to argue UK economy can ‘turn corner’ despite bond market turmoil

John Healey speech on Monday will stress links between fiscal discipline and growth amid concerns his cautious approach jars with Burnham’s radical plans

John Healey will argue the government’s plans to boost growth across the whole country will enable the British economy to “turn a corner” despite anxiety over volatile bond markets derailing Labour’s crucial first budget.

The chancellor is expected to argue that fiscal discipline is “indivisible” from good growth, especially at a time of difficult global headwinds, amid concerns that his cautious approach jars with Andy Burnham’s more radical policy plans.

9/6/2026: Sharswood; Boom Chicago

First, man unknowingly buys former plantation house where his ancestors were enslaved. Then, a look at the Amsterdam improv club behind comedy legends.

9/6: CBS Weekend News

An Amazon cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport and struck several vehicles, killing at least five people. Gas prices rise for Labor Day weekend.

Reckless review – this breathless thriller about siblings in a hit-and-run is a masterpiece

The Australian retooling of Neil Forsyth’s excellent Guilt sees a brother and sister deal with the aftermath of accidentally killing a stranger. It’s a fast-paced, impressive ride

Just do what your elder sister tells you. That’s all there really is to leading an easy life. As a senior female sibling myself, this has always been my belief and now, as a viewer of Australian comedy-drama-caper-thriller Reckless, I can report it as absolute fact.

I mean – first things first. Ideally, do not hit a pedestrian out walking late at night in his pyjamas while you’re driving under the influence of a joint you smoked at a family wedding, as record shop owner Charlie (Hunter Page-Lochard) does. But if you do, and if the older sister you are taking home tells you to keep driving – well, at least give it some consideration? Especially before you get your fingerprints all over the corpse’s wallet and start dragging him out of the road in front of his neighbours’ houses, then putting him back into his home. And if you do do all that, at least start listening to her thereafter. Follow her lead, after she finds a letter in the dead man’s house about the terminal cancer he was suffering from, in thinking that you just saved him months of agony, then go about the rest of your life with your mouth shut.

At least five dead after Amazon cargo plane crashes at Miami airport

Three people in critical condition and two hospitalized as operations at one of busiest US airports brought to a halt

An Amazon cargo plane crashed at Miami international airport in Florida on Sunday afternoon after the flight, which was arriving from Puerto Rico, overshot the runway, striking several vehicles and resulting in at least five deaths.

The plane erupted in flames as dark smoke billowed into the sky, bringing operations at one of the busiest airports in the US to a halt. The pilot and copilot were trapped in the cockpit as a result of the crash, said the Miami-Dade rescue fire chief Ray Jadallah.

US overcome poor shooting and Italy’s eye-poke claims in edgy Fiba World Cup win

• USA edge into quarter’s with nervy 55-52 win

• Cecilia Zandalasini claims she was poked in eye

• Caitlin Clark shoots 0-6 from the field

Jackie Young had a big fourth quarter and Breanna Stewart made her only basket of the game to put ⁠the United States up for good, helping the Americans escape with a 55-52 win over Italy in the Fiba Women’s World ⁠Cup on Sunday.

The ​US (2-0), who clinched a quarter-final berth with the victory, led only 42-39 after three quarters and fell behind by two points on three occasions in the fourth. Stewart’s jumper, assisted by Young, gave the Americans a 51-50 lead with 3:20 to go, and Young hit a ⁠floater on their next possession. Chelsea Gray made a pull-up with 1:07 left for an ​important cushion, but Italy hit a quick ‌two-pointer in response to ‌cut it to 55-52. Gray missed a shot on the next US trip but Young ‌corralled the rebound to help her team bleed more clock.

European football: Lamine Yamal’s double powers Barcelona to rout of Valencia

• Gatti’s stoppage-time header rescues Juve against Milan

• Goalkeeper Koeman Jr scores two penalties in Eredivisie

Lamine Yamal struck twice for Barcelona as they demolished Valencia 5-0 on Sunday to maintain their 100% start in La Liga.

The reigning champions moved three points clear at the top of La Liga after Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid lost 1-0 at Real Betis on Friday. Fermín López, Raphinha and Pedri were also on target for Hansi Flick’s swaggering visitors on a hot afternoon on Spain’s east coast.

Lewis Hamilton rules out world title challenge after Italian Grand Prix setback

• Briton finishes sixth after clash with teammate Leclerc

• Hamilton questions Ferrari chief Fred Vasseur’s strategy

Lewis Hamilton has conceded the Formula One world ­championship this year is all but out of reach after a bruising Italian Grand Prix. ­Hamilton’s afternoon included a clash with his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc, which he thought was the result of the team’s failure to listen to his entreaties to manage their drivers and execute races better.

The race at Monza was won by Kimi Antonelli after a remarkable comeback by the Mercedes driver from 19th on the grid. Hamilton could manage only sixth. Having been 59 points back he now trails Antonelli by 76 with 10 meetings remaining and he felt that Ferrari not ­prioritising his title chances, coupled with operational failures, had finally cost him a shot at the drivers’ championship.

Carlos Alcaraz takes it up a level as he reaches US Open quarter-final

• Reigning champion beats Tommy Paul in straight sets

• Sabalenka and Noskova to clash in last eight

The straightforward scoreline at the end of Carlos Alcaraz’s third-round win over Wu Yibing did not quite reflect the Spaniard’s slight irritation with one aspect of his game. Alcaraz felt he had missed a few too many forehands, and almost immediately after departing Arthur Ashe Stadium, he reappeared on the practice court pounding forehands in the afternoon heat.

Two days later, the extra care Alcaraz put into his game was reflected in a statement performance driven by his peerless forehand as he rose to the occasion in the biggest challenge of his comeback so far, dismantling the 20th seed Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 to continue his title defence by returning to the quarter-finals of the US Open.

Woman Unknown review – postwar paranoia with some deliciously dastardly Du Maurier touches

Venice film festival
A nanny becomes the new lady of a prosperous Copenhagen house as accused Nazi sympathisers are violently shamed in May el-Toukhy’s shrewd, painful portrait of survival

Here is an elegantly appointed drama-thriller from May el-Toukhy, about sexual shame and political paranoia in postwar Denmark, with something of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca, which it consciously recalls. As director and co-writer, El-Toukhy has created a shrewd and painful movie about the terrible things you need to do to survive, and what it takes to forget those things afterwards.

The scene is a prosperous, upper-middle-class apartment in Copenhagen just after the second world war, when the Danish resistance was permitted the powers of a secret-police militia to detain and interrogate those suspected of having given assistance to the Nazis. Christian (Carsten Bjørnlund) is a ageing factory owner and widower who has evidently fallen in love with his infant daughter’s nanny: this is Marie (fiercely and convincingly played by Mathilde Arcel). Or at any rate, he sees that the child needs a new mother, finds Marie attractive and appreciates her submissive attitude. They are now engaged.

The US now has access to more than half Australia’s military bases – could it drag the country unwillingly into war?

Exclusive: US-controlled weapons corporations and forces have control or access to more than 100 facilities across the continent, which some analysts describe as a ‘colonisation’ of Australia’s military. Find a map of them here

• US military presence in Australia, mapped – video

• Why can the US access so many Australian military bases? – podcast

US military interests control or have access to more than 100 defence facilities on Australian soil, in what some analysts describe as a “saturation” – even a “colonisation” – of the Australian continent.

New data compiled by the Nautilus Institute and published by Guardian Australia maps the extent of US militarisation. The US military controls 17 facilities on mainland Australia and has access to 75 more Australian-run military installations. US defence corporations have access to an additional 18.

Gathering intelligence, accessing satellite data for targeting information and communications intercepts.

Training, including for 2,500 marines on dry-season rotation in the Northern Territory.

Pre-positioning warfighting assets such as Osprey aircraft.

Logistics hubs holding weapons, munitions and fuel, stored in case of a war in the Pacific.

Five dead after Amazon cargo plane crashes at Miami airport

Video showed thick smoke rising from the plane crash of the Boeing 767 that the Federal Aviation Administration says overran the airport runway in Miami.

Hawaii declares state of emergency as Hurricane Lowell approaches islands

Storm, which may make impact as soon as Monday, is third system in weeks to threaten state during hurricane season

Hawaii has declared a state of emergency as powerful Hurricane Lowell makes its way toward the islands, with the first impacts expected as soon as Monday.

The storm is the third system in just over three weeks to threaten Hawaii during an active hurricane season in the central Pacific. Lowell remained a category 3 hurricane early on Sunday morning, packing winds of 125 miles per hour while moving north-west at six miles per hour.

GOP conference chair says Miller is "our nominee right now" despite allegations

House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain said she is supporting Rep. Max Miller's reelection bid for a third term because "I will support anyone with an R behind their name."

Woman laid to rest in coffin made from mushrooms in Australian first

The casket, grown from mycelium and hemp fibres, takes just 45 days to break down, enriching the soil in the process

• Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates

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A woman has been buried in a coffin made from mushrooms in New South Wales in an eco-friendly first for Australia.

Carolyn, whose surname was withheld for privacy reasons, was laid to rest on Friday by friends and family at Springwood Cemetery in the Blue Mountains. She was aged in her 70s.

Full transcript of "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Sept. 6, 2026

On this "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" broadcast, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Rep. Jason Crow join Margaret Brennan.

SEC sues ISS as Trump administration ramps up scrutiny of proxy advisers

The SEC sued Institutional Shareholder Services to enforce a subpoena as the Trump administration increases scrutiny of influential proxy advisers.

Energy secretary says US might not reach nuclear agreement with Iran

Chris Wright tells ABC there ‘may not’ be an agreement that would prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons

US energy secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday morning that the US may not be able to reach a nuclear agreement with Iran that would prevent the country from having nuclear weapons.

Asked on ABC on Sunday morning about any sign of such a deal, as negotiations appear stalled and the US-Israel war on Iran continues, Wright said: “There may not be a nuclear agreement.”

‘What are we doing?’: Brennan’s anger at racing in 44C heat as Van Aert wins shortened stage

• ‘It wouldn’t surprise me if some got heatstroke’

• Spain’s Enric Mas retains leader’s red jersey

Britain’s Matthew Brennan expressed his disbelief at the extreme heat riders had to endure on Sunday during stage 15 of the Vuelta a España. His Visma Lease a Bike teammate Wout van Aert took a sprint win in Córdoba after the stage was shortened because of high temperatures.

“It’s 41 degrees average,” Brennan said. “When I was on the climb at the start it was 44, and at that point you start thinking: ‘What are we doing?’ A normal office person has to have the temperature set at 20 degrees or whatever, and I’m sure that the UCI [cycling’s governing body] office will have their 20 as well.”

Ella Baron on Reform UK and the donations row – cartoon

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Jamaican delegates arrive in UK to hand slavery reparations petition to King Charles

Slavery’s legacy continues ‘to deprive our country and our people’, says minister, as group prepares to appeal to Jamaica’s head of state

A landmark petition is to be handed to King Charles by Jamaica over slavery reparations, aiming to confront historical crimes that still disadvantage former British colonies, the Caribbean nation’s culture minister has said.

The petition will be lodged with Charles, Jamaica’s head of state, on Monday.

Minecraft cosplay and Oasis in Venice: photos of the weekend

The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world

EU faces 300,000 factory job cuts as China ‘colonises’ supply chains, industry warns

Protest using 10 coffins to symbolise struggling manufacturing industry to take place in Brussels

Job losses in EU manufacturing will rapidly increase unless Brussels stops the “colonisation” of industry by Chinese component manufacturers, a leading industry trade body has warned.

Eurometal predicts 300,000 job losses in manufacturing in the rest of 2026 because of expanding competition from China, which is now enjoying a record €1bn-a-day trade surplus with the bloc.

German exit polls suggest far-right party has big lead in regional election

Exit polls show Germany's AfD taking a commanding lead in a regional election, but it remains unclear whether the far-right party can form the country's first state government since World War II.

The Guardian view on extreme heat: its scale should be a wake-up call to us all | Editorial

With thousands dead across Europe this summer, it’s time to recognise heatwaves as the major natural disasters they are

The numbers are now trickling in: nearly 2,900 dead in the UK, at least 35,000 dead across Europe. That’s how many people are believed to have lost their lives in this year’s early-summer heatwaves – the death tolls for the August heatwaves have yet to be counted. In a sense, these people died in a series of natural disasters, similar to the hundreds who died last month after flooding in Nepal, or during the 2024 floods in Valencia, Spain. And yet we do not process these events the same way. Increasingly deadly heatwaves are the most direct and damaging effect of the climate crisis felt in Europe, but they are rarely framed as such.

There are some obvious reasons for this. Heatwaves by definition unfold over longer periods than other disasters, they are less dramatic, the majority of those who die are elderly or otherwise vulnerable, and their deaths often take weeks or months to be catalogued and reported, all of which make heatwaves seem less immediate and visible. But while heatwaves will probably never provoke the same visceral shock as earthquakes or tornadoes, it should still be possible to shift the way the public thinks about them, which could save lives and lessen their damage.

The Guardian view on Burnham’s devolution plans: power must be accompanied by scrutiny | Editorial

Vital accountability mechanisms have withered as English devolution has evolved. The government should take note

Andy Burnham has criticised Britain’s “unaccountable state” that is at once too powerful and too distant from everyday life. He has made English devolution the central idea of his premiership, but his plan to give England’s mayors unprecedented power and money will have to confront a number of tricky realities, not least a landscape in which scrutiny of local government is vastly diminished.

As England’s devolution map has evolved, vital accountability mechanisms have withered. The abolition of the Audit Commission in 2015 deprived Whitehall of information about local government spending. The decision, taken by the then Tory prime minister David Cameron during his “bonfire of the quangos”, coincided with a period when cash-strapped councils were selling off assets and making risky investments. A succession of bankruptcies and scandals have since exemplified the dangers of governing in darkness, including the questions raised at Teesworks, the development led by Ben Houchen, a Tory mayor, where a “culture of excessive confidentiality” has prevailed, according to a damning 2024 government report.

Do 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.

This week on "Sunday Morning" (Sept. 6)

A look at the features for this week's broadcast of the Emmy-winning program, hosted by Jane Pauley.

Biopsies, aerial drills and a personal pizza: a day in the life of a shark scientist

Jasmin Graham, a shark scientist and science communicator, also makes time in her day to practice her hobbies and play music bingo with friends

“Sharks are not monsters, they just need better PR,” writes Jasmin Graham. And she should know: Graham is a shark scientist and science communicator.

Here’s what a day in Graham’s life in Sarasota, Florida looks like.

Pupils with Send plans in England likely to double to one in 10 in rush for support

Schools and councils express financial concerns as EHCP applications surge before potential change in provision

• ‘Powerful example’: minister looks to Essex school for blueprint to transform Send provision

Schools and councils across England are expecting the proportion of children with special needs plans to double to one in 10, with families rushing to secure support before ministers bring in changes.

Headteachers have reported an “unreal” surge in applications for education, health and care plans (EHCPs) mandating support for needs or disabilities such as speech and learning difficulties, autism or ADHD. In 2025, just one in 20 school-age children had EHCPs.

Long-term proteges and verifiable reality must be jettisoned for Saving Private Nige | John Crace

Has Farage’s brain been hacked? Has he started talking in his sleep? There’s no shortage of explanations for this scandal

We’ve all been there. It’s a lovely summer’s day and you just want a bit of me time. A quiet lunch of champagne and oysters. As you do. Anything to get away from having to pretend you are interested in the people of Clacton. Hell, it’s bad enough being expected to actually visit Clacton – who in their right mind would want to do that? – let alone having to talk to the little people who live there.

So, you’re just minding your own business when who should turn up but two of your closest mates in politics – or contractors who you’ve barely heard of, as you prefer to call them – saying they have been having meetings with an American donor and his son who have already given you more than £30,000 for an opinion poll you have commissioned and now want to bung you another £500,000. And these guys would like to meet you.

China prepares £40bn stimulus for financial sector amid fears over sluggish growth

Beijing wants banks and insurers to bolster investment in stock market as it helps to replenish cash reserves

China will inject $54bn (£40bn) into its financial sector as Beijing attempts to shore up banks and insurers in the face of faltering economic growth.

A host of financial institutions said they were due to receive billions of yuan in capital from state institutions including the ministry of finance and even the company that runs the country’s tobacco monopoly.

Kindness of strangers: A hall-of-fame athlete helped my 94-year-old mum buy a vacuum cleaner

A woman in the queue said she was happy to drive an hour, pick up the vacuum, then bring it to Mum’s house. I was worried – but how wrong I was!

• Read more in the kindness of strangers series

For a 94-year-old woman, my mother is still very busy and active. So when a vacuum cleaner she liked the look of went on sale at a national electronics chain, Mum drove herself to the nearest store to buy it.

Unfortunately, the shop in her area had sold out by the time she got there. The sales assistant told her it was still available in another Melbourne store – but that store was an hour’s drive away. As active as she is, Mum pointed out that at her age she really could not manage a drive of that length. She asked the sales assistant if they could transfer the vacuum to this store and was flatly told no.

Let your mind wander, don’t retire and stop worrying: surprising ways to help save your brain from the cognitive cliff

In his new book The Brain Cliff, Dr Norman Swan outlines the science of brain ageing and strategies for staving off cognitive decline

You write that instead of fearing cognitive decline, “changing the way you think about the brain cliff can literally change the way you think and remember”. How?

Dr Norman Swan: There are three things you need to know which are not widely known.

Shutting down the office bore is one thing – but can you use the same tactics in everyday life? | Polly Hudson

We’ve all had meetings that could have been emails. Often, this also applies to casual chats with your friends

The last thing you need in a meeting that could have been an email is attachments. Sadly, it’s sod’s law that there’s one oblivious person in every work gathering who raises extra, unnecessary queries using as many words as possible, and holds everybody up. Now, Forbes magazine has helpfully supplied three phrases business leaders can use to stop rambling questions from hijacking or lengthening proceedings, without embarrassing the hijacking lengthener.

But obviously it’s not only the office where we encounter those seemingly hellbent on derailing interactions, so can we steal Forbes’ gameplan for boring chat in real life?

Remembering 9/11: Where tragedy left its marks

"Sunday Morning" talks with people forever touched by the 2001 terror attacks, from a man who helped a woman escape the North Tower, to a Marine major who rushed into the Pentagon, to a young woman who lost her dad when Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania.

9/11 changed the U.S.; can we change back?

Twenty-five years after the September 11 terrorist attacks, former Carter White House speechwriter James Fallows offers thoughts on the legacy of 9/11 and how American daily life and civic culture changed after the attack.

Possible Love review – a tale of two couples is finely judged study of exploitation and friendship

Acclaimed Korean director Lee Chang-dong returns with an inspired account of an unhappy married couple befriended by a documentary maker and her wealthy husband

Korean auteur Lee Chang-dong brings to Venice his first feature for eight years. It is a finely judged, beautifully acted and rather novelistic work, in which a character at one point actually compares her surroundings to something from a novel. It is expansive and diffuse in terms of storytelling scope and dramatic focus, rich in intelligence while paying its audience the compliment of treating them as intelligent also. There are moments of pure inspiration in the superb flashback scenes of two characters’ early lives, and I rather regretted that these flashbacks were phased out relatively early on and that more was not made of their relationship with the present. Possible Love is perhaps a little contrived and self-aware and unsure how much emphasis to lay on its moments of irony and comedy, but it is made with such fluency and verve.

It is a tale of two couples. Jeon Do-yeon (from Lee’s Secret Sunshine) and Sul Kyung-gu play Mi-ok and Ho-seok, a deeply unhappy married couple from a blue-collar background with a young son. Ho-seok is angry, depressed and struggling with a drinking problem after a catastrophic end to a strike at the factory where he worked. While at the funeral of a colleague of Ho-seok’s, who has taken his own life, he and Mi-ok meet a fashionable and wealthy couple who are making a documentary about the injustice of the way the factory workers were treated. (This couple have a dog instead of a child.)

9/11 changed the U.S.; can we change back?

Twenty-five years after the September 11 terrorist attacks, former Carter White House speechwriter James Fallows offers thoughts on the legacy of 9/11 and how American daily life and civic culture changed after the attack.

Robert De Niro on helping revive Lower Manhattan after 9/11

As the dust settled on New York City following the 9/11 attacks, Robert De Niro and his longtime business partner, producer Jane Rosenthal, looked for ways to pull Lower Manhattan out of the ashes. The Tribeca Film Festival, which debuted in 2002, has not only successfully launched a new generation of filmmakers; it has also helped revitalize the city in what De Niro called "an act of defiance." Tracy Smith talks with De Niro and Rosenthal about their festival's mission: to use art as an antidote to what they see as traumatic times facing America.

Extended interview: Gloria Steinem

Gloria Steinem, a trailblazing figure in the women's liberation movement, died on Sept. 2, 2026 at age 92. In this extended interview recorded in 2023 and posted for the first time, Steinem talked with correspondent Rita Braver about the challenges facing female journalists in the 1960s; the founding of Ms. Magazine, and the response from advertisers and the public; the use of Wonder Woman as the cover of its first freestanding issue; and why, despite setbacks in the fight for gender equality in the decades since, she considered herself a "hope-aholic."

Look back: Gloria Steinem on the founding of Ms. Magazine

Gloria Steinem, a trailblazing figure in the women's liberation movement who died on Sept. 2, 2026 at age 92, was a 30-something columnist for New York magazine when she helped found a publication aimed at pushing feminism into the mainstream. In this "Sunday Morning" report that originally aired Sept. 17, 2023, Steinem talked with Rita Braver about the origin of Ms. Magazine. Braver also talked with Ms. executive editor Katherine Spillar, who compiled the anthology, "50 Years of Ms.: The Best of the Pathfinding Magazine That Ignited a Revolution."

Remembering 9/11: Andrew Card on the moment everything changed

On the morning of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush was visiting an elementary school classroom in Sarasota, Fla., when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, informed him that America was under attack. Card revisits the Emma E. Booker Elementary School with correspondent Major Garrett, and talks about a singular moment, captured in an iconic photograph.

Remembering 9/11: Andrew Card on the moment everything changed

On the morning of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush was visiting an elementary school in Sarasota, Fla., when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, informed him that America was under attack – a singular moment, captured in an iconic photograph.

What is postpartum psychosis?

Postpartum psychosis (not to be confused with postpartum depression) is a psychiatric emergency with symptoms that can be extreme and dangerous, as testified in the trial of Lindsay Clancy. Correspondent Faith Salie talks with experts about the symptoms, diagnosis and stigma surrounding postpartum psychosis; and with a mother whose experience of hallucinations and distorted reality soon after giving birth threatened her and her family.

9/6: Face The Nation

This week on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," with midterm elections less than two months away, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson joins as well as Reps. Jason Crow and Lisa McClain. Plus, Sunoco chairman and Republican midterm convention chair Ray Washburne joins.

Remembering 9/11: Where tragedy left its marks

Twenty-five years after September 11, correspondent Lee Cowan talks with people forever touched by the terror attacks, including Harry Handler, who helped a woman escape the North Tower of the World Trade Center; Marine Major Dan Pantaleo, who rushed to rescue survivors, and remove remains, from the Pentagon; and Laurel Homer, who was 10 months old when her father, First Officer LeRoy Homer Jr., was killed when Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pa.

The sleeping x eating secret: 15 ways to better rest, a healthier diet – and a happier life

We all know tiredness can lead to hunger, and vice versa. But there are so many other ways our habits in these areas are linked. Here are some easy tweaks to help us feel properly refreshed

A study published in the journal Nature Health last month found that food choices and meal timings have “immediate and measurable effects” on sleep. It was just the latest in a growing body of research into the link between diet and rest. Here is the latest science on what to eat for better sleep – and how sleep deprivation can affect your dinner the next day.

9/6: Sunday Morning

Hosted by Lee Cowan. Featured: Looking back at 9/11; Robert De Niro on revitalizing Lower Manhattan; how Gander, Newfoundland responded to 9/11; postpartum psychosis; Gloria Steinem and the founding of Ms. Magazine; and the quest for the best burger.

‘Model fatigue’ sets in as AI labs race to roll out new versions at frenetic pace

Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta and Google all released model updates this week, while Nvidia said it's acquiring open-source AI platform Hugging Face.

How to make the perfect Sri Lankan chicken curry – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect …

There are as many variations are there are cooks, but every interpretation of kukul mas bears the country’s classic bold aromatics and adrenaline-pumping flavours

“Every family in our sunny little island craves this creamy chicken,” says Sri Lankan journalist Zinara Rathnayake, “devouring each morsel with carbs of choice: string hoppers, thin rice noodle mats; hoppers, bowl-shaped pancakes; and kiribath, slender rice cooked with coconut milk. All our family recipes may slightly vary, but this glorious dish pins down the labour and love that goes into every Sri Lankan curry.”

After all, Sri Lanka is a country that’s “rich in spices”, chef Peter Kuruvita explains. “Most Sri Lankan cooking,” he writes in Lands of the Curry Leaf, “features unapologetically punch-you-in-the-face, get-the-adrenaline-pumping flavours. But [in part thanks to tropical crops such as coconut, lemongrass and pandan leaf] the heat is more an intensity of spice than actual physical ‘chilli heat’.” Boldly aromatic rather than delicately fragrant, rich and light at the same time, kukul mas, which SH Fernando Jr’s book Rice & Curry calls “a mainstay of Sri Lankan cuisine”, is surprisingly quick to make once you’ve prepared, or bought, the spice blend, yet it tastes as if it’s been simmering for hours.

‘I’m trying to figure out where I’m supposed to be’: singer Momo Boyd on making space for herself

The Infinity Song artist is embracing uncertainty as she launches her solo career, while challenging the assumptions placed on Black women in music

“I’m trying to figure out where I’m supposed to be, but at the same time enjoying the fact that there’s nowhere I’m supposed to be.” This admission might seem like the beginning of an existential crisis, but it’s a welcome, liminal space for the rising singer and songwriter Momo Boyd. Between her recently released debut EP, a second EP in the works, and two tours, the 27-year-old is being pulled in many directions. But she’s also enjoying the emotionally ambiguous position she’s currently in – it’s what characterizes much of her work.

Boyd, who’s a part of Infinity Song, a pop rock sibling quintet that debuted in 2015, confesses that she’s nervous about striking out on her own as a solo artist. The demands are high: Her debut Miss Michigan tour just finished its US leg this past August and she will continue on throughout Europe in the fall, with a stop in London in November. She said that in comparison to Infinity Song’s sound, which can be characterized by guitar-driven melodies full of romanticism. “I’m doing my own thing and it’s a bit folksy, emotional and personal.” One might expect that Boyd being both a solo artist and an ensemble group member means that she runs the risk of producing indistinguishable bodies of work. But her moodier sound could not be more different from the family band’s more optimistic tunes. Nevertheless, the young singer is quick to say that the balance between the two lanes has been “pretty easy”.

Prediction markets have become America’s new national pastime | Dave Schilling

My parents’ generation may have been on to something when they railed against gambling. If only George Santos had listened

If only George Santos and Bill Simmons had my parents, they wouldn’t be facing down a hailstorm of condemnation for circumventing the basic rules and regulations of dubious “prediction markets” and online gambling. Kalshi just banned the former congressman George Santos from its service and he was forced to pay back his winnings after he was accused of the dumb person’s version of insider trading. He bet on himself to not attend the State of the Union address, then conveniently didn’t go. For his trouble, he won (and will be forced to relinquish) more than $17,000; he’ll also have to pay more than $80,000 in total fines from Kalshi and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Bill Simmons, the sports commentator, podcast host, and founder of The Ringer, had a different story.

Game on: November elections kick into high gear with control of Congress in the balance

Trump is unpopular and inflation is still high – and Democrats are looking to use that to their advantage

When voters went to the polls in the 2022 midterm elections, all the ingredients were there for Joe Biden’s allies to suffer a wipeout. The president was unpopular, inflation was high and historical trends predicted voters would take out their frustrations by ending the Democratic party’s control of Congress.

But when the ballots were tallied, the gains Republicans expected to make did not quite materialize. They had won the House of Representatives, but only by a slim margin, while Democrats had expanded their majority in the Senate and built up their strength in state legislatures.

American Muslims are giving Texas barbecue a halal makeover

Even as anti-Muslim rhetoric rises in Texas, Muslim pitmasters are winning over diners and reshaping one of the state's most iconic culinary traditions.

Witkoff and Kushner call Kyiv talks 'substantive' after Moscow Putin meeting

U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held meetings in Kyiv with Ukraine's President Zelenskyy on Sunday, a day after lengthy conversations with Russian President Putin in Moscow.

QUIZ: Ugh, I'll do it later. How much do you know about procrastination?

Learn a few surprising facts about procrastination — and helpful tools to overcome it — with this quiz. It's based on social scientist Itamar Shatz's new book, Solving Procrastination.

‘It leaves holes inside of you’: graphic novel aims to remember the history and horror of genocide

Dana Mashoian Walrath’s The Book of Genocides is an audacious and personal new look at genocides from Germany to Palestine

The artist Dana Mashoian Walrath’s new book honours the Jewish victims of the Nazi Holocaust. But she also expects it to get her banned from Israel.

That is because The Book of Genocides also contains a chapter that portrays Palestinians forced to live as second-class citizens and watch their homes bulldozed or bombed. “What does it mean to be starved?” the narrative asks. “To know that perpetrators have themselves experienced genocide and now commit genocide against you?”

‘On the other side of pain there can be renewal’: Ezra Collective’s Femi Koleoso on reasons to hold on to hope

The bandleader, drummer, DJ and broadcaster is guest-editing this week’s Saturday magazine Culture features. In his editor’s letter, he shares why he’s optimistic for the future. Plus: his bandmates offer their cultural picks

• ‘Things work out for the good people’: Ezra Collective’s Femi Koleoso meets his inspirations
• ‘Like painting with light’: photographer Temi Adegbayibi on capturing the energy of music
• My cultural awakening, featuring Ezra Collective

My first thought when contacted about guest editing the culture section in today’s Saturday magazine was: this will elevate me into an intellectual bracket far beyond my wildest dreams. The first person I told was my dad. The second was my secondary school English teacher, Mr Pickering. I guess it was a subtle way of letting them know that the student is now in charge.

It’s a truly wonderful feeling. Even if this entire takeover is trash, I’m still proud to have been given this wonderful opportunity. That said, I did get an A in my GCSE English and English Lit!

Whatever happened to kindness? Spoiler alert: Our readers prove it's alive and well

We asked readers to share stories about a moment of kindness involving a stranger. Here are some of their heartwarming anecdotes.

Detective says cruelty of woman's murder will "stay with me forever"

Lt. Dakota Black of the Pottawatomie County Sheriff's Office in Shawnee, Oklahoma, says the case of Makayla Meave, a missing teacher's aide, was one of the most heart-wrenching cases of her career.

Broken feet, ripped-out hair and now a death sentence: the fate of twin sisters jailed over Iran protests

Taraneh Rahimi was told prison guards would rape her sister, Romina, if she did not sign a confession

The twins were 19 and still in high school when they were taken from their beds in the dead of night by masked men later identified as being sent by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.

After four months of desperately seeking news from hospitals and state institutions, their mother, Marzieh Nourmohammadi, finally learned their fate. Taraneh and Romina Rahimi had been seized over their decision to join millions on the streets of Iranian cities during the January protests against the regime. The twins were unrecognisable by the time of their mother’s prison visit in May.

‘Fabulous museums and no queues’: five of the best under-the-radar city breaks in Europe

From the Renaissance treasures of Parma to offbeat creativity in Nantes, these cities offer world-class art, great food and a laid-back alternative to Europe’s hotspots

As dilemmas go, it’s an unusual one: saddle up a giant squid or board a submersible for a voyage to the bottom of the ocean. In the end, I find myself drawn to a fierce-looking merhorse and tentatively take the reins. High above, my daughter glides by on a flying fish, metallic fins flapping, while her Dad is battling stormy seas at the helm of a huge conch shell. A ride on the Carrousel des Mondes Marins (marine worlds carousel) – a three-storey steampunk merry-go-round inspired by Jules Verne’s novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea – is one of the highlights of a visit to Nantes. A surreal fairground ride, a work of art and a homage to the city’s most famous son. It’s also a lot of fun.

A young mom was near death from lead poisoning. Who was trying to kill her?

Hannah Pettey, 22, a married mother of two from Alabama, suffered debilitating pain and lost more than 45 pounds as her health rapidly declined. Doctors suspected either her mother or her husband were trying to poison her.

The world is being driven to the brink by thugs and dictators, but there is a route to a brighter future | Simon Tisdall

It’s no surprise some analysts say we are already in the midst of the third world war, but ordinary people have more power than we think

Don’t look up! The world is a mess. The sky could fall in any day. Unending wars, expanding humanitarian crises, rising authoritarianism, dysfunctional democracies, rampant racial and religious extremism, and unchecked lawlessness cast a dark cloud as the west’s new political year begins. Set all that against a backdrop of staggering global economic inequality, corporate and individual greed, irresponsible government indebtedness, dangerous AI gambles, climate breakdown and proliferating nuclear weapons, and a truly apocalyptic global outlook begins to take shape. It’s enough to make anyone shut their eyes, cover their ears and utter a Munch-like scream. And it’s only getting worse.

Democratic leaders who promise a better, safer, more optimistic future – what Britain’s freshly arrived prime minister, Andy Burnham, calls a “new era of possibility” – cannot escape this wider international context. Last week’s global bond market upheaval, sparked by external factors, left Burnham’s cash-strapped government struggling with sharply increased borrowing costs before he barely got started. The fact he chose Ukraine for his first overseas trip, while symbolically important, highlighted another grim reality. As a lead opponent of Vladimir Putin’s invasion, Britain now finds itself in a de facto state of war with Russia – and facing attack. Argentina, too, is eyeing UK defence vulnerabilities. These are not the sort of possibilities Burnham envisaged.

‘The first half of my 20s was hell’: Maisie Williams on her tough childhood and why she’s been having more fun since Game of Thrones

After her role in the fantasy series, the actor felt lost. Now she’s getting relationship advice from Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman, and following a Sex and the City star’s mantra: never be anywhere you aren’t enjoying yourself

Maisie Williams has dabbled in witchcraft exactly once. The actor was getting ready to audition for a part in a film. “I wanted it so badly that I went on to Etsy, and I paid a witch to manifest me the role,” she says, poker-faced.

“It didn’t work, and that was where my days of witchcraft ended,” she adds, breaking into an infectious cackle.

Tupac trial spotlights decades of US police failures in solving the case

Police received information nearly immediately after the killing. It took Las Vegas police 27 years to make an arrest

For years, US law enforcement officials blamed their failure to solve hip-hop star Tupac Shakur’s murder on the lack of cooperation from key witnesses, and on gang members’ “snitches get stitches” culture.

But testimony in a much-delayed murder trial, which concluded this week, almost 30 years after Shakur’s death, highlighted just how much law enforcement officials knew about the shooting, and how early.

‘It was a sweet, tender voice’: the pilot who fell for his air traffic controller – before ever seeing her

Alfredo Bravo had a job he loved and was determined never to be grounded by marriage and kids. Then a voice from the control tower changed everything

Alfredo Bravo had landed aeroplanes in a lot of sticky situations – as a bush pilot in Chilean Patagonia and as a commercial pilot in rural China – but it was a singular voice floating over the radio waves from air traffic control in Santiago, Chile, that set his heart aflutter, upended his concentration and reshuffled his life.

It was the 1990s and, although he was still young, Bravo had held pretty much every low-level flying gig possible. He had dumped plumes of orange chemicals on to forest fires and flown surveillance missions to detect illegal fireplaces polluting the already smoggy Santiago airspace. He had completed hundreds of flights with photo crews operating a big Hasselblad camera as they mapped tree farms, calculating the heights of trees in a forest owned by a timber company involved in a low-level guerrilla war with the Indigenous Mapuche. As a pilot for the company, Bravo was a conspicuous outsider who slept in the fields amid the Indigenous communities, and worked alone in the hangar. But Bravo had a pair of aces up his sleeve.

El Niño-fuelled wildfires destroy precious Indonesian forests – in pictures

Indonesian authorities intensify operations as fires continue to burn across Sumatra and Kalimantan, with haze spreading to Malaysia, Singapore and Philippines

California community mesmerized by rare bird sighting

A rare, exotic bird typically found in the Caribbean and parts of South America has been spotted in Irvine, California. Carter Evans reports.

Robin Morgan, feminist writer and close friend of Gloria Steinem, dies at 85

Robin Morgan, a wholesome child star of the 1940s and '50s who grew up to become an all-American radical as a poet, essayist, editor and second-wave feminist, has died at age 85.

Jazz legend John Coltrane's Philadelphia house to become a cultural heritage site

On the centennial of father's birth, Ravi Coltrane talks about turning the home where the jazz legend spent a crucial period in the 1950s into a cultural heritage and community space.

Kennedy Center foyer ceiling partially falls amid Trump's push for renovations

No one was injured when a piece of the ceiling inside the Kennedy Center's grand foyer partially collapsed Friday evening, said Roma Daravi, the center's vice president for public relations.

The moment I knew: I’d lost his number and was about to switch off my old phone for good – then a text pinged

When Karen Bleakley locked eyes with Matt on the dancefloor, it was a sign of a new beginning. But when she lost his number, she thought she’d never see him again

• Find more stories from the moment I knew series

In 2002 I was in the midst of a messy breakup, so my friend Clare did what friends do – she took me out, fed me shots and showed me a good time.

We were at Route 66, a cheesy nightclub in Portsmouth on the southern coast of the UK, that was blasting 80s tunes. Then on the dancefloor I saw him: a young, hunky Ryan Phillippe lookalike, if Ryan Phillippe had spent the summer windsurfing. Matt, a Portsmouth local, was all blond curls, tanned skin and bright blue eyes that caught mine as I stared at him.