Netflix revises its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery, making it all cash
The streaming service is sweetening its offer amid Paramount Skydance's hostile takeover bid for the Hollywood studio.
20th January 2026 15:11
The Guardian
US supreme court set to release more rulings as Trump tariffs decision looms – live
Unclear if court will publish much-anticipated ruling on the legality of Trump’s tariffs as US president doubles down on Greenland threats
Two boxes have been brought out at the supreme court, which means there could be up to four decisions released today.
As we wait on today’s opinions from the supreme court, it’s worth remembering that justices on the bench appeared skeptical of the administration’s arguments justifying the use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to slap duties on dozens of countries, citing a national emergency. A reminder that the ability to institute taxes is a power normally only afforded to Congress.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:57Stocks slide after Trump threatens European allies with tariffs
U.S. stocks sank on Tuesday following President Trump's weekend threats to impose tariffs on some NATO trading partners.
20th January 2026 14:57
The Guardian
Macron warns against ‘new colonial approach’ after Trump says ‘no going back’ on Greenland – Europe live
French president says ‘we prefer respect over bullies’ after leak of his text exchange with Trump
And Davos looks like the place to be this week, with Trump now declaring that after his call with Nato’s Rutte he will have “a meeting of the various parties” on Greenland – whatever that means and whoever is going to be involved.
Separately, it’s not clear if Macron’s offer of setting up a G7 meeting on the sidelines was accepted (although looking at timings it would risk clashing with the emergency EU summit on Thursday night), but his separate invitation to a dinner at the Élysée Palace might be gone after Trump’s very pointed and personal criticism of the French president.
Attacked the UK, mockingly calling it a “brilliant” ally, for “shocking” plan to hand over sovereignity of the Chagos islands to Mauritius (despite previous US support), saying it’s among a “long line” of reasons why Greenland “has to be acquired”
Leaked private text messages from France’s Emmanuel Macron and Nato’s Mark Rutte discussing his latest policy moves
Threatened France with 200% tariffs on French wine and champagne over Macron’s refusal to join the Gaza “board of peace”, said of Macron that “nobody wants him because he’s going to be out of office very soon”
Reiterated his intention of taking over Greenland as “imperative for national and world security,” saying “there can be no going back”
Posted an AI generated visual of himself planting the US flag on Greenland, saying it’s “US territory, est. 2026,” days after the US delegation agreed with Danish foreign minister for talks to be conducted behind closed doors, and not through threatening messages on social media.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:57
The Guardian
Divorce rings: why women are celebrating their breakups
From repurposed engagement rings to parties, tattoos and the wild home renovations of #DivorcedMomCore, relationship splits have entered a surprising new era
Name: Divorce rings.
Age: Relatively new. British Vogue is reporting that they are a thing. And if it’s in Vogue the chances are it’s in vogue.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:47
The Guardian
Tell us: has a chatbot helped you out of a difficult time in your life?
We would like to hear from people who have used chatbots for companionship or mental health support
AI Chatbots are now a part of everyday life. ChatGPT surpassed 800 million weekly active users in late 2025.
Some people are forming relationships with these chatbots, using them for companionship, mental health support, and even as therapists.
Has a chatbot helped you get through a difficult period in life? If so, we’d like to hear about it.
If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:45
The Guardian
Tell us: what are you wearing right now and why does it matter?
Our clothes can be one of the most powerful non-verbal communicators – tell us yours reflect who you are and what you do?
From uniforms to suits to tracksuits to costumes, clothes keep us warm and covered – but they are also one of the most powerful non-verbal communicators, a second skin which reflects who you are and what you do.
We want to hear from people about why they wear what they wear. Do your clothes help you in the workplace? Are they making a statement? Maybe you’re a waiter and have worn the same work uniform for years, or maybe your job involves wearing very little. Please tell us about yourselves.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:44
The Guardian
‘Why was it me?’ Mon Rovîa on going from war-torn Liberia to US folk-pop stardom
Having just released his debut album, Bloodlines, the singer discusses his fractured identity, survivor’s guilt and how he took solace in Mumford & Sons
Long before he started packing out theatres and earning millions of listeners with his poetic folk-pop, Mon Rovîa began life in Liberia at a time when many of his country’s youngest were armed with assault rifles and forced to fight as child soldiers in a brutal civil war. After his mother died, his grandmother needed help raising his sister, brother and him, and placed him with a white missionary family from Florida. He was the only member of his family to escape the war. “That is something that weighed heavy on me as I grew,” he says. “Why was it me? Why couldn’t my siblings come, or why wasn’t it one of them?” It would be years until he knew what became of them.
Today, his stage name – he was born Janjay Lowe – is a stylised version of the Liberian capital Monrovia; his songwriting addresses his fractured identity, and the spectre of colonialism that surrounded him in Liberia and the US, applying emotional intimacy to global realities. His approach, he theorises, “starts with people trusting that you’re not afraid to be vulnerable in your own way. Then you start talking about the bigger picture.”
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:44Amazon CEO Jassy says Trump's tariffs have started to 'creep' into prices
Sellers tried to absorb the tariff shock by buying stock ahead of time, but much of that inventory has run out, forcing some businesses to raise prices.
20th January 2026 14:41
The Guardian
Might is right: US ‘foreign policy’ held hostage to mad king Trump’s whims
Increasingly unpopular at home, a president obsessed by his legacy has turned his scattergun on the world stage
One year into the second Trump administration, an actual US foreign policy remains just a nice idea. Instead, the world has been forced to adapt to the world according to Donald Trump: one increasingly shaped by his erratic shifts and unpredictable decisions, his fury at perceived slights and his growing desire to stamp his legacy in the model of an imperial leader from centuries past.
Think of it as the mad king’s court, where every day is a carnival.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:40Lawmakers release final measures to fund government ahead of shutdown deadline
Congress has until Jan. 30 to fund the remaining government agencies and programs following the longest government shutdown in history in November.
20th January 2026 14:25
The Guardian
‘My mum went so far as to call me evil’: nine things you need to know about the Beckham family feud
Brooklyn has finally broken his silence about his rift with his parents. He’s not mincing his words – from his ‘overwhelming anxiety’ about being raised in the spotlight to his mum’s ‘inappropriate dancing’ at his wedding
Rich, powerful and beautiful they may be, but the Beckhams are almost certainly having a worse day than you. After quite literally years of tabloid speculation and swipes between siblings on social media, the long-rumoured rift between Lord and Lady Becks and their eldest son, Brooklyn, has finally come to a head, with Brooklyn “breaking his silence” in a wordy, six-slide statement to Instagram late on Monday. If your response to his opus was “I ain’t reading all that”, here’s the lowdown on 26-year-old Brooklyn’s beef, and David and Victoria’s alleged transgressions, so that you can at least pretend you did.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:18
The Guardian
Prince Harry feels targeted for ‘standing up’ to Daily Mail publisher, court hears
Lawyer says duke, who is due to give evidence this week, feels he has endured ‘campaign of attacks’ by Associated
The Duke of Sussex believes he has faced a “sustained campaign” of attacks for having “the temerity to stand up” to the publisher of the Daily Mail, the high court has heard.
Lawyers for Prince Harry made the claim as they set out 14 articles about him they allege were secured using unlawful information-gathering by Associated Newspapers Ltd, which publishes the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:10Bessent says Trump's pick for the next Fed chair could happen next week
The president has whittled down the field to four candidates, Bessent told CNBC during an interview at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
20th January 2026 14:03"Mastermind" of Minnesota's biggest fraud scheme speaks out
In an exclusive interview from her jail cell, Aimee Bock defended her conduct in Minnesota's Feeding Our Future fraud case, but admitted regrets.
20th January 2026 14:01Why you might get a "peanut butter"-style pay raise in 2026
What's a "peanut butter" raise? Here's what it means, and why this is the type of pay hike you should expect this year.
20th January 2026 14:00
The Guardian
Gut check: are at-home microbiome tests a way to ‘hack your health’ or simply a waste? | Antiviral
Spruiked by online influencers as a way of gaining insight into our health, experts say at-home tests oversimplify complex factors and can cause unnecessary distress
Read more in the Antiviral series
For a few hundred dollars you can put your poo in an envelope and post it off to a laboratory. In return you’ll get a report (sometimes generated by AI) outlining your food sensitivities, metabolic fitness, and what pathogens or fungi you’re harbouring.
These at-home gut microbiome tests or “GI mapping” kits are frequently promoted by influencers as a way to “hack your health” and “take control” through analysing some of the trillions of organisms that live in your digestive tract.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:00
The Guardian
This fun thriller does the impossible: it makes you feel sorry for influencers (yes, really)
Influencer stars Cassandra Naud as CW, a Tom Ripley for the Instagram generation, who takes out influencers, posts as them and enjoys their lifestyles
“Film is a machine for empathy,” Roger Ebert famously once said – and given how empathetic this scrappy thriller made me feel towards influencers, of all people, Influencer is a very well-oiled machine indeed. Director Kurtis David Harder takes a good elevator pitch – hot girl kills influencers and takes over their social media accounts – and turns it into something far smarter and entertaining than you might expect, with a small budget and a lead actor who, mark my words, will be in everything before long.
The film opens on Madison (Emily Tennant), an influencer who is in Thailand on a sort of working holiday – taking smiley selfies, posing with skincare products and barely leaving her hotel while espousing the values of travel to her thousands of followers. “I love soaking it all in and really experiencing Asia as it is meant to be experienced – away from my comfort zone,” her voiceover coos, while we watch her eat a burger alone at her hotel and mope over her manager-boyfriend, Ryan (Rory J Saper), who didn’t come with her. After posting a bubbly video on an idyllic beach, she stares blankly out at the beautiful horizon as her phone pings incessantly; this is a lonely, empty life she has chosen, and she seems to know it.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:00
The Guardian
Four shark attacks in 48 hours leave Australian surfer Matt more afraid of local beaches than world’s biggest waves
Spate of incidents involving sharks across Sydney and New South Wales have rattled even the most seasoned surfers and beachgoers
In a city of more than 100 beaches, swimming and surfing are part of Sydney’s lifeblood. But four shark bites in New South Wales in 48 hours – three of which were in Sydney – have rattled even some of the city’s most seasoned ocean users.
On Sunday afternoon, a 12-year-old boy was left fighting for his life after being bitten on a harbour beach in Vaucluse in Sydney’s east. On Monday morning, an 11-year-old’s surfboard was bitten multiple times at Dee Why in the city’s north, while that afternoon, a 27-year-old man was bitten while surfing in Manly, less than 5km away.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 14:00
The Guardian
UK approves Chinese ‘mega embassy’ in London after reassurances from spy chiefs
Critics expected to mount legal challenge to plans for vast complex at Royal Mint Court amid security concerns
The UK communities secretary, Steve Reed, has given permission for China to build a vast new embassy near the Tower of London after spy chiefs told him that the risks to national security could be controlled and dealt with.
The decision paves the way for Keir Starmer to visit Beijing in the coming weeks – though local residents plan to legally challenge the decision, potentially delaying the development by months or years.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:57
The Guardian
UK study to examine effects of restricting social media for children
Trial involving 4,000 children will explore impact on mental health, sleep and time spent with friends and family
A pioneering investigation into the impact of restricting social media access for children in the UK has been announced as politicians around the world consider action on the issue.
In December, Australia became the first country to ban under-16s from social media, with governments in other countries – including the UK – under pressure to do the same.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:36
The Guardian
Netflix sweetens Warner Bros bid with all-cash offer to block Paramount
Streaming company says proposal speeds up completion and allows WBD investors to vote as soon as April
Netflix has sweetened its $82.7bn (£61.5bn) offer for the studios and streaming businesses of Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) by making it an all-cash deal, streamlining its potential completion in the face of a hostile bid from Paramount Skydance.
The streaming company had originally secured the unanimous backing of the WBD board last month with a cash-and-shares proposal that valued the business at $27.75 a share.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:35Breaking down Trump's first year of second term, from foreign policy to immigration
President Trump on Tuesday marks one year since he was sworn into office for a second time. A new CBS News poll finds just 41% of Americans approve of the job he's doing so far. Chief Washington analyst Robert Costa joins "CBS Mornings" to break down his second-term agenda.
20th January 2026 13:24
The Guardian
Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri poised for Marseille loan in blow to English suitors
Crystal Palace and West Ham also keen on midfielder
Oleksandr Zinchenko close to permanent Ajax move
Ethan Nwaneri is poised to join Marseille on loan until the end of the season, with Arsenal keen to allow the England Under-21 midfielder to depart given he has barely featured this season.
Nwaneri has played 165 minutes in the Premier League, having excelled in his breakthrough campaign, when he scored nine goals in all competitions. He has not appeared in the league since the end of November, when he came on in the north London derby.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:22
The Guardian
A hovering helicopter and a winter whiteout: photos of the day – Tuesday
The Guardian’s picture editors select some of the most powerful photos from around the world
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:21
The Guardian
Educational background key indicator of immigration views in UK, study finds
Research comparing UK and US finds people with fewer qualifications more likely to support rightwing movements
Rightwing movements are struggling to gain support among graduates as education emerges as the most important dividing line in British attitudes towards politics, diversity and immigration, research has found.
A study from the independent National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) found people with qualifications below A-level were more than twice as likely to support rightwing parties compared with those with qualifications above.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:10
The Guardian
King Harold coins from 1066 and Roman artefacts top UK’s 2024 treasure finds
British Museum hails record-breaking year for archaeological discoveries – thanks largely to metal detectorists
A hoard of pennies linked to Harold II and most likely buried on the eve of battle in 1066, a rare Roman vehicle fitting, and a group of early medieval objects are among the archaeological finds and treasure discovered in Britain in 2024.
It was a record-breaking year for archaeological and treasure finds in Britain, with the highest number recorded in a single year – thanks in large part to metal detectorists.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:09Trump says EU won't 'push back too much' as Denmark sends extra troops to Greenland
U.S. President Donald Trump dimissed the idea of the European Union firmly opposing his plans to annex Greenland.
20th January 2026 13:07
The Guardian
Valentino obituary
Italian fashion designer who dressed some of the world’s most photographed women in glamorous, show-stopping gowns
After Valentino Garavani retired in 2008 from a fashion world in which the meaning of luxury had changed, his half-century of couture creation was marked with exhibitions.
The one at Somerset House in London in 2012, Valentino: Master of Couture, displayed more than a hundred of his outfits within close peering range, each with a card bearing the name of the woman – royal, diva, star, social leader – for whom it had been created.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:00
The Guardian
He never warms the jars, so why doesn’t my son’s marmalade go mouldy?
Our preserving pundits dive into the bittersweet dilemmas surrounding baking paper circles, wax seals and the judicious application of heat
When my son makes marmalade, he never warms the jars or uses circles of baking paper and cellophane – he just puts the lids on. It never goes mouldy, so am I wasting my time doing it the “proper” way?
Dagna, Berkhamsted, Herts
You can’t get much sweeter than marmalade, and this is most likely the reason for both Dagna and her son’s success, despite their differing strategies. “The chance of mould developing is low because there’s so much sugar to balance the bitterness of the orange peel,” says Camilla Wynne, preserver and author of All That Crumbs Allow. “Mould needs water to do its thing, and sugar binds to water.” She recalls a former student who, like Dagna’s son, simply ladled her marmalade into jars and closed the lids. All was fine until one day the student’s latest batch of marmalade was covered in mould: “She’d been reducing the sugar in her recipe over the years, so her method no longer worked because there was available water for mould to grow.”
But back to the particulars of the family dispute. “He’s more right than she is,” says Pam Corbin, author of Pam the Jam: The Book of Preserves. “Nowadays, we have fantastic food-grade lids, which have a wax seal inside and keep preserves safer than a wax disc and cellophane would.” Some people put a wax disc under the twist-on lid, too, but for Corbin that’s a hard no: “As the marmalade cools, condensation forms on top of the paper, so you’re more likely to get mould.”
Got a culinary dilemma? Email [email protected]
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 13:00
The Guardian
More than 100 vehicles involved in Michigan crash as snowstorm moves across US
Driver said he could barely see the cars in front of him and heard ‘bangs and booms’ behind him
More than 100 vehicles smashed into each other or slid off the interstate in Michigan on Monday as snow fueled by the Great Lakes blanketed the state.
The massive pileup prompted the Michigan state police to close both directions of Interstate 196 just south-west of Grand Rapids on Monday morning while officials worked to remove all the vehicles, including more than 30 semitrailer trucks. The state police said there were numerous injuries, but no deaths had been reported.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 12:52
NPR Topics: News
The divorce between the U.S. and WHO is final this week. Or is it?
The U.S. is the only country allowed to withdraw from the World Health Organization. And Jan. 22 is the day when Trump's pullout announcement should go into effect. But ... it's complicated.
20th January 2026 12:38
NPR Topics: News
Trump leaks world leaders' messages. And, Indiana wins its first national title
President Trump explains why he wants to acquire Greenland in private messages with world leaders. And, Indiana caps off a perfect football season with a national championship win over Miami.
20th January 2026 12:19
The Guardian
Colombian ex-paramilitary leader jailed for crimes against Indigenous groups
Salvatore Mancuso given 40-year sentence, which could be reduced after truth and reparation activities
A Colombian court has sentenced a former paramilitary leader to 40 years in prison for crimes committed against Indigenous communities in the province of La Guajira, including homicides, forced disappearances and the displacement of people from 2002 to 2006.
The special tribunal that hears cases from the country’s armed conflict said in its ruling that Salvatore Mancuso was responsible for 117 crimes committed by fighters under his command in La Guajira. However, it added that Mancuso’s time in prison could be reduced to eight years, if he collaborated with truth and reparation activities that benefited victims of his former paramilitary group.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 12:12
The Guardian
I am in Iran watching the protests and desperate for change. But I don’t believe the regime will fall | Anonymous
I wish I were wrong, but all I see is a paranoid state digging in
Iran is caught in yet another round of widespread civil unrest. These lines are written amid an internet blackout and I didn’t know if I’d be able to send them out. Ever since the 2009 post-election uprising, sporadic outbursts of public anger have become somewhat the order of the day, mostly silenced – brutally for a while – only to fester and uncork again on another occasion.
The street protest is not the sole medium through which opposition has tried to convey its dissent. Iranians have tried everything – be it the very narrow and funnelled channel of elections between the limited choices offered by the state, or on social media, in universities and at public events. The demand for meaningful change is repeated through different means, again and again, yet to no avail. Ever since the 2000s, the Iranian state heeds little in the way of democratic demands. And when there has been a narrow crack in the state bulwark, the likes of Donald Trump – by the reimposition of sanctions and violating the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – sabotaged and derailed civil attempts at reforming the Islamic republic.
The writer lives in Iran
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.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 12:09
The Guardian
Does it even need to be said? No, you don’t need to do a ‘parasite cleanse’
Pricey deworming remedies are being touted as cure-alls. Supermodel Heidi Klum gave it a go – experts roll their eyes
Last August, supermodel Heidi Klum revealed that she and her husband, Tom Kaulitz, were planning a worm and parasite cleanse.
“Everything on my Instagram feed at the moment is about worms and parasites,” she told the Wall Street Journal, ominously adding: “I don’t know what the heck is going to come out.”
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 12:00
The Guardian
How Trump has tried to undermine the powers of Congress: ‘Violation of norms’
Over his second term, Trump has taken aim at and circumvented the legislative branch – from mass firings to tariffs
Frigid January weather prompted Donald Trump’s second inauguration to be held in the rotunda of the US Capitol, an iconic room ringed by busts of former presidents that lies at the heart of Congress.
Almost immediately after departing the Capitol, Trump took aim at the legislative branch, moving to siphon from lawmakers the powers to control spending, agencies and declaring war, and take them for himself, experts say.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 12:00
The Guardian
Jannik Sinner powers into Australian Open second round while Monfils says goodbye
Reigning champion through after Hugo Gaston retires
Retiring Monfils, 39, thanks crowd for ‘amazing ride’
The defending champion Jannik Sinner advanced to the second round of the Australian Open on Tuesday, taking just over an hour after his French opponent Hugo Gaston retired upon losing the first two sets 6-2, 6-1.
In his first official match since beating Carlos Alcaraz for the ATP Finals crown in November, the Italian world No 2 was in ominous form on Rod Laver Arena.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:47
The Guardian
Kim Jong-un fires vice-premier and likens him to ‘a goat yoked to an ox cart’
North Korean leader reportedly blames Yang Sung-ho for ‘confusion’ at factory project as major congress looms
The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, has dismissed a vice-premier over troubles in a factory modernisation project, in an apparent move to tighten discipline among officials and push them to deliver greater results before a major political conference.
The upcoming ruling Workers’ party congress, the first of its kind in five years, is one of North Korea’s biggest propaganda spectacles and is intended to review past projects, establish new political and economic priorities and reshuffle officials.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:46
The Guardian
Luke Donald to hold talks with Ryder Cup executives as he eyes third tilt at captaincy
Donald in Dubai and to discuss Adare Manor in 2027
Potential captain Justin Rose expected still to play
Luke Donald will hold talks with senior officials at the European Tour Group this week in Dubai, as the Englishman edges closer to a third stint as Europe’s Ryder Cup captain. While no announcement is imminent, there is a rising sense Donald will seek to make history by leading Europe to three Ryder Cup successes in a row.
Donald, who is in the field for this weekend’s Dubai Desert Classic, has taken time to consider his position since Europe retained the trophy at Bethpage in September. The former world No 1 had already been the captain when Europe prevailed in Rome two years earlier. “I think it’s Luke’s if he wants it,” said Shane Lowry, a key member of the European team. The next Ryder Cup takes place at Adare Manor next year.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:27
The Guardian
Trinity Rodman and the HIP rule: USWNT stars going abroad may not be the worst thing
The benefit of national team players honing skills abroad is balanced by concerns over a weakened NWSL
The dust has yet to settle on Trinity Rodman’s club status, but the star USA forward’s near future has ignited an emphatic revival of an old debate on this side of the Atlantic.
How does the National Women’s Soccer League stack up against its top competitor leagues? At what point should the league be worried, if top USWNT talent trickles across the Atlantic? And what, if anything, can be done to stop the flow?
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:14
The Guardian
Looking for Miracle: why have so many dugongs gone missing from Thailand’s shores?
The Andaman coast was one of very few places in the world with a viable population but then dead dugongs began washing up. Now half have gone
A solitary figure stands on the shore of Thailand’s Tang Khen Bay. The tide is slowly rising over the expanse of sandy beach, but the man does not seem to notice. His eyes are not fixed on the sea, but on the small screen clutched between his hands.
About 600 metres offshore, past the shadowy fringe of coral reef, his drone hovers over the murky sea, focused on a whirling grey shape: Miracle, the local dugong, is back.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:03
NPR Topics: News
Trump's Board of Peace has several invited leaders trying to figure out how it'll work
It's unclear how many leaders have been asked to join the board, and the large number of invitations being sent out, including to countries that don't get along, has raised questions about the board's mandate and decision-making processes.
20th January 2026 11:01
The Guardian
What are the Chagos Islands – and why is the UK returning them to Mauritius?
Donald Trump has called the plan to transfer sovereignty ‘stupid’ and linked it to his own push to acquire Greenland
In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump has described the UK’s plans to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as “an act of great stupidity”. He claimed that it had made it all the more important for him to take Greenland from Denmark. Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage, while critical of Trump over his threats of tariffs on European countries who oppose his territorial land grab, have been quick to lend Conservative and Reform support to the US president in his criticism of the UK-Mauritius treaty, which is now making its way through parliament.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:00Pardoned Jan. 6 rioter to face criminal trial for child molestation
Andrew Johnson is the latest in a series of pardoned Jan. 6 riot defendants to face new criminal charges.
20th January 2026 11:00
The Guardian
The pub that changed me: ‘I saw an Isle of Man that had been largely unknown to me’
‘The Woody’ was crammed and chaotic, and nobody could be rushed. There was always time for another pint and conversation
I felt eyes on me the second I stepped into the pub. It was as though we were interlopers in a sacred space – everyone turned to look. Self-consciously, I walked to a door labelled “BAR” and pushed it open, and was met by further stares at me and my female companion. Only once we had got our pints and sat down did we notice the “GENTS ONLY” sign on the wall.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:00
The Guardian
Cosmic Princess Kaguya! review – trippy anime adapted from Japanese folk dives into virtual reality popworld
Emojis explode all over the screen in this hyperactive adaptation of a Japanese folk tale about a princess who has run away from the moon
Never has a film been more deserving of an exclamation mark at the end of the title than this animation from Japan. Cosmic Princess Kaguya! is an adaptation of a Japanese folk tale, the story of a princess from the moon discovered inside a bamboo stalk in a poor rural village. A decade ago, Studio Ghibli adapted the tale into a gorgeously animated movie with a traditional, lovingly hand-painted feel. This film could not be more different, a trippy, high-energy, techno anime set in the near future, half of it in a virtual reality world – and TikTok-ifed with emojis and stickers exploding all over the screen.
It begins when a 17-year-old high school student called Iroha finds a baby girl inside a glowing lamppost (rather than the bamboo stalk of the original). Iroha (voiced by Dawn M Bennett in the English dub) is a sensible kid, a talented musician and grade-A student who has already moved out of the family home and is living alone, working all hours to pay the rent of her tiny studio flat. In any free time she does have, Iroha follows her idol, AI musical megastar Yachiyo, in a crazy, chaotic virtual reality world called Tsukuyomi.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 11:009 major themes that defined the first year of Trump's second term
President Trump has reshaped America's approach to foreign policy, pressured political enemies, downsized the federal workforce and prioritized deportations his first year in office.
20th January 2026 11:00
The Guardian
The influencer racing to save Thailand’s most endangered sea mammal
Amateur conservationist and social media influencer Theerasak 'Pop' Saksritawee has a rare bond with Thailand’s critically endangered dugongs. With dugong fatalities increasing, Pop works alongside scientists at Phuket Marine Biological Centre to track the mammals with his drone and restore their disappearing seagrass habitat. Translating complex science for thousands online, Pop raises an urgent alarm about climate change, pollution and habitat loss — before Thailand’s dugongs vanish forever
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:58
The Guardian
David Squires on … Frank and the Spurs supertanker getting in a tight spot again
Our cartoonist on the latest manager in north London to take the good ship Tottenham in the wrong direction
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:48
The Guardian
Dominik Szoboszlai reveals ‘no decision’ reached over new Liverpool contract
Midfielder in talks to extend deal beyond summer 2028
He denies error against Barnsley was show of disrepesct
Dominik Szoboszlai has confirmed talks are progressing over a new contract at Liverpool but “no decision” has been reached over his future.
The Hungary captain has been Liverpool’s standout performer this season and is under contract at the club until the summer of 2028. The Premier League champions are keen to reward the midfielder’s progress since he arrived in a £60m deal from RB Leipzig in July 2023 and consider him a potential future captain. The 25-year-old insists he would be happy to stay at Anfield with the caveat that there is always uncertainty in football.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:36
The Guardian
It’s a Brooklyn v Beckham Inc disaster: what happens when the elephant in the room goes rogue | Marina Hyde
Sir David and Victoria cornered the market in selling their family’s privacy for money – but there was a price to pay, and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham has just sent them the bill
The way 2026 has started, none of us wants to see the word “nuclear” in a headline, so on some level you have to feel glad that last night’s news alerts announcing in real time that someone “goes nuclear” and “launches nuclear attack” related to Brooklyn Peltz Beckham. At time of writing, the story about his Instagram broadside against his parents, David and Victoria Beckham, accusing them of treating him as a commercial prop all his life was by far, far and away the best read on the Guardian site, as well as the most deeply read. Again, I’m glad this blow-up wasn’t used as geopolitical cover, because if there was a time for Trump to invade Greenland largely unnoticed, maybe this was it.
Whoever wrote Brooklyn’s intercontinental ballistic Instagram – and it wasn’t the childlike authorial voice behind regular “I always choose you baby … me and you forever baby” posts to his wife – the sentiments will be his. Here’s a sample: “My family values public promotion and endorsements above all else. Brand Beckham comes first. Family ‘love’ is decided by how much you post on social media, or how quickly you drop everything to show up and pose for a family photo opp …”
Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist
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Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:35
The Guardian
Hilary Duff review – first gig in 18 years for former teen icon is euphoric, escapist fun
Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London
Despite never being a huge pop force after her years as Disney star Lizzie McGuire, fans come from Brazil and Saudi Arabia for Duff’s charming, self-deprecating return
It’s fair to say that US actor-singer-writer-entrepreneur Hilary Duff has never been a force to be reckoned with in pop music. Her songs and albums have neither been particularly critically acclaimed nor commercially dominant; many people would know her only as Lizzie McGuire, hero of the Disney Channel sitcom from the early 00s. But for the 38-year-old Duff’s first live performance in 18 years, she’s met with a sold-out crowd screaming back every word of her music like they are all universally adored hits. Duff seems overwhelmed by the rapturous reception. Fans have come from Brazil, Saudi Arabia and all over Europe, and they are often so loud you can’t hear the woman on stage.
But after the shock wears off, Duff shows no signs of rust and her fierce sincerity combined with girl next door charm infuses the night with euphoria and escapism. When she jumps up and down on the stage’s sofa singing Why Not, you get the sense that this is how everyone in the crowd once sang the song in their adolescence. She’s also not afraid to poke fun at herself and her past: she brings three fans on stage to recreate the low-energy dance choreography of her 2007 single With Love that went viral on TikTok in 2021.
The 17-song set expertly sprinkles five new numbers from forthcoming album Luck … Or Something in between fan favourites such as 2015’s criminally underrated Sparks and 2003’s So Yesterday to keep the mood elevated. Time has made Duff’s voice more textured and refined, adding new depth to songs like Fly and Come Clean, though the twee Someone’s Watching Over Me, a ballad about self-acceptance, is cloying.
The biggest noise of the night comes with the one-two encore of her new single Mature and the Lizzie McGuire classic What Dreams Are Made Of. A wild singalong ensues complete with pink butterfly confetti as a giddy Duff jumps for joy on stage. It’s an emotional conclusion that takes this devoted crowd to new levels of noisy rapture and proves that Duff could easily put music at the centre of her portfolio career.
NPR Topics: News
Researchers find Antarctic penguin breeding is heating up sooner
Warming temperatures are forcing Antarctic penguins to breed earlier and that's a big problem for two of the cute tuxedoed species that face extinction by the end of the century, a study said.
20th January 2026 10:19
NPR Topics: News
As Trump dismantles the existing world order, his version is still taking shape
In his second term, the president is embracing a foreign policy that breaks sharply from U.S. tradition. Both supporters and critics say he's upending a global system in place for 80 years.
20th January 2026 10:02
The Guardian
Men charged with contract killing of Indigenous leader to go on trial in Peru
Prosecution over death of Quinto Inuma Alvarado seen as test of ability to curb attacks on environmental defenders
Five men are due to go on trial on Tuesday over the killing of an Amazonian Indigenous leader, in a legal case that could test whether Peru can hold perpetrators accountable for violence linked to illegal logging and drug trafficking in one of the world’s most dangerous regions for environmental defenders.
The Kichwa tribal leader Quinto Inuma Alvarado was killed on 29 November 2023, after repeatedly denouncing illegal activity within his community’s territory.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:00
The Guardian
‘Meat tax’ could have significant impact on environmental footprint, study finds
Full VAT on meat products could cost EU households as little as €26 a year but cut impact by 3-6%, says paper
The environmental impacts of meat consumption could be rapidly and cheaply reduced if governments applied full VAT on products such as beef, pork, lamb and chicken, a study has shown.
Depending on how the additional tax revenues were redistributed, such a change could cost households as little as €26 (£23) a year, while cutting ecological destruction by between 3% and 6%, the paper found.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:00
The Guardian
Afraid of dying alone? How a Chinese app exposed single people’s deepest, darkest fears
In China, marriage and birth rates have hit record lows and many people are living in isolation. Is the Are You Dead? app just a practical response to this – or something more troubling?
A few days before Christmas, after a short battle with illness, a woman in Shanghai called Jiang Ting died. For years, the 46-year-old had lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Hongkou, a residential neighbourhood that sits along the Huangpu River. Neighbours described her as quiet. “She rarely chats with people. We only see her when she goes to and from work, and occasionally when she comes out to pick up takeout,” said a local resident interviewed by a Chinese reporter. Her parents long deceased, Jiang had no partner or children to inherit her estate. Her lonely death sparked a debate in Chinese media about how society should handle the increasing number of people dying with no next of kin.
For Xiong Sisi, also a professional in her 40s living alone in Shanghai, the news triggered uncomfortable feelings. “I truly worry that, after I die, no one will collect my body. I don’t care how I’m buried, but if I rot there, it’s bad for the house,” she says.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 10:00
NPR Topics: News
Trump promised to cut energy bills in half. One year later, has he delivered?
Cheap gasoline, yes. Drill, baby, drill? Not so much. And electricity bills are going up, not down.
20th January 2026 10:00
NPR Topics: News
Less personnel drama but still sky-high turnover one year into Trump's new term
A large share of the departures so far this term were on the National Security Council staff.
20th January 2026 10:00
The Guardian
Cameo by Rob Doyle review – a fantasy of literary celebrity in the culture war era
In this larky autofiction, the ups and downs of creative life are cartoonishly dramatised as the writer becomes an action hero
Rob Doyle’s previous novel, Threshold, took the form of a blackly comic travelogue narrated by an Irish writer named Rob. In one episode before Rob becomes an author, we see him as a sexually pent-up teacher abroad, masturbating over an essay he’s marking. That the scene is an echo of one in Michel Houellebecq’s Atomised (once named by Doyle as the best book from the past 40 years) hardly lessens our discomfort, and it’s hard not to feel that our unease is precisely the point. “Frankly, a lot of my life has been disastrous,” he once told an interviewer – which might not be quite as self-deprecating as it sounds, given that Doyle has also argued that “great literature” is born of “abjection” not “glory”.
The autofictional game-playing continues in his new novel, Cameo, but instead of self-abasing display, we get a perky book-world send-up for the culture war era, cartoonishly dramatising the ups and downs of creative life. It takes the form of a vertiginous hall of mirrors centred on gazillion-selling Dublin novelist Ren Duka, renowned for a long novel cycle drawn on his own life, the summaries of which comprise the bulk of the book we’re reading. Duka’s work isn’t autofiction à la Knausgård: hardly deskbound, still less under the yoke of domesticity, he leads a jet-set life of peril, mixing with drug dealers, terrorists, spies, and eventually serving time for tax evasion before he develops a crack habit, a penchant for threesomes in Paris and – perhaps least likely of all – returns to his long-forsaken Catholicism.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 09:00
The Guardian
A Poem for Little People review – Ukraine’s war with Russia seen through eyes of emergency evacuation team
Ivan Sautkin films efforts to help residents abandon their frontline homes, as well as a pensioner acting as a spy for the Ukrainian army from the Russian border
There is a scene in this Ukrainian documentary in which a woman gruffly shrugs off the offer of evacuation from her property on the frontline. Her son has put in the request to the volunteer humanitarian team ferrying civilians to safety in the east of the country. But she is caring for her brother, who is paralysed, the woman protests – and what about her German shepherd? As explosions boom terrifyingly close, a volunteer patiently explains that his team will carry her brother to the minivan – and don’t worry, bring the dog. Eventually, the woman agrees to leave, brusquely wiping away a tear.
Director Ivan Sautkin is a film-maker by trade and served as a volunteer on the evacuation team. A Poem for Little People is his one-man film; Sautkin is behind the camera, recording everything. These are no interviews, explainers or voiceovers (which admittedly makes it hard to follow at times). The leader of the volunteers is Anton, a cool head under the heaviest fire. The trauma is raw, the situations desperate – in one, volunteers drive an elderly woman out of harm’s way, but as they bump along cracked, potholed roads, they question if they are doing the right thing putting her through the agonising journey.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 09:00
The Guardian
I do not want to reconcile with my family, says Brooklyn Peltz Beckham
Son of David and Victoria Beckham takes to Instagram to open up about feud with parents
A very public spat on social media captured global attention and filled the front pages on Tuesday with its grave consequences for a once close relationship.
No, not the US president Donald Trump slamming the UK for its “extreme stupidity” but this was Brooklyn Peltz Beckham, son of David and Victoria Beckham, apparently permanently cutting ties with his family.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 08:46
The Guardian
Release the beast! How Iron Maiden and a naked Ralph Fiennes created the ultimate big-screen needle drop
The Number of the Beast lights up an unforgettable scene in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple thanks to director Nia DaCosta expertly blending ‘craziness and romance’
There were laughs of surprise around me in screen three of the Everyman in Muswell Hill, north London, as 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple drew to its conclusion. Without giving too much away for those who haven’t seen it, Ralph Fiennes dancing semi-naked among piles of human bones to Iron Maiden’s The Number of the Beast is not how you expect one of our greatest thespians to deport himself on screen.
“Alex Garland chose that song,” says the film’s director, Nia DaCosta. “He wrote it into the script. And you can’t get better than that in a film about satanists.”
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 08:301/19: CBS Evening News
Lake effect snow sweeps Eastern U.S.; Trump ties Greenland threat to perceived Nobel Peace Prize snub.
20th January 2026 08:09
The Guardian
Brahim Díaz’s nightmare miss shows dangers of trying to emulate Panenka
While the famous penalty technique is the ultimate act of showmanship, the cost of failure is too high to justify
Being too smart for your own good is usually drummed out of children before they leave school but sometimes people cannot help themselves. The Panenka penalty, successfully executed, offers the limited benefit of making a goalkeeper look silly and the taker a genius but Brahim Díaz is the latest to learn the cost of what happens when it goes wrong.
Díaz was given 15 minutes to consider what to do with his spot-kick after the ludicrous levels of drama in the Africa Cup of Nations final. Maybe this was his undoing: being able to ponder every option, from the rudimentary to the artistic, until deciding to replicate Antonin Panenka’s creation with what could, and should, have been the last kick of the tournament.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 08:00
The Guardian
Ice hockey and then some: Heated Rivalry is a worldwide hit – and no one is happier about it than us Canadians | Sue Carter
In a country plagued by underdog status and a sport fraught with a history of racism, misogyny and homophobia, this adaptation has reimagined what’s possible
I grew up in a hockey town where there was no escaping Canada’s beloved sport. Our suburban streets doubled as rinks; the choppy slap of tennis balls reverberating against hockey sticks a constant sound. As pre-teens, my friends and I would put on lip gloss and tight jeans to hang out at the Friday night junior hockey games. I still find comfort in the sound of skate blades slicing across ice and that sweaty, chemical odour of public arenas.
My experiences are not unique in a country with a 95-year-old broadcast institution called Hockey Night in Canada. Rachel Reid, the Nova Scotian author of the queer hockey romance Heated Rivalry, grew up a hockey fanatic, more interested in playing the game than ogling boys. Jacob Tierney, who wrote and directed the TV adaptation of Reid’s 2019 bestseller, was raised in Montreal, where the Canadiens (or the Habs, as the team is affectionately known) are considered sacred.
Sue Carter is a Toronto-based freelance writer and arts worker
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.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 08:00
The Guardian
After four shark attacks in 48 hours, NSW authorities urge beachgoers ‘just go to a pool’
Surfer taken to hospital with minor injuries after latest shark attack at Point Plomer beach on mid-north coast
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A surfer has been taken to hospital after being bitten by a shark off the coast of New South Wales’ Limeburners Creek national park, the state’s fourth incident in 48 hours.
The local health district said the man, 39, was in hospital in a stable condition with minor injuries. The attack took place near the Point Plomer campground, less than 20km north of Port Macquarie, on Tuesday morning.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 07:42
The Guardian
World is short of nearly a million midwives, report warns
Shortage raises rates of maternity intervention, while improving access to care could potentially save 4.3m lives a year, say experts
A global shortage of nearly a million midwives is leaving pregnant women without the basic care needed to prevent harm, including the deaths of mothers and babies, according to new research.
Almost half the shortage was in Africa, where nine in 10 women lived in a country without enough midwives, the researchers said.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 07:00
The Guardian
Aryan Papers review – Holocaust-themed thriller means well but turns out to be a shockingly poor effort
We are in 1942 Stuttgart – though the sight of modern wheelie bins says otherwise – as a woman at a facility dedicated to breeding Aryan babies tries to smuggle two Jewish children to safety
This second world war-set drama should not be confused with a famous unrealised film project of similar name. That one is the Holocaust-themed feature based on the novel Wartime Lies by Louis Begley that Stanley Kubrick tinkered with for years before finally abandoning; Suspiria director Luca Guadagnino is now rumoured to be trying to get it off the ground. Like the Kubrick/Guadagnino, this Aryan Papers, written and directed by ultra-low-budget film-maker Danny Patrick (The Film Festival, The Irish Connection), takes its name from the Nazi-issued certificate, also known as the Ariernachweis, which people were compelled to carry during those dark times to prove they weren’t Jews, Roma or from another persecuted minority.
Apparently, Kubrick abandoned his Aryan Papers in part because he feared it wouldn’t do as well at the box office if it came out after Schindler’s List – just as Full Metal Jacket appeared to have been eclipsed by Platoon. Fortunately for Guadagnino, no matter if and when his Aryan Papers comes out, he will have little to worry about with regards to Patrick’s film, a work that with any luck will be forgotten by next week. Like the embarrassingly bad comedy The Film Festival (AKA The Worst Film Festival Ever), this is a shockingly poor effort on just about every level, from the inept, back-of-a-beer-mat script, the lazy use of obviously not-German, non-period-proofed locations (a modern plastic wheelie bin is visible in several shots), to the frankly insultingly bad acting throughout.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 07:00
The Guardian
Rob Hirst, Midnight Oil drummer and founding member, dies aged 70
Musician who drove much of the band’s ferocious sound and co-wrote many of its biggest hits was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2023
Rob Hirst, the drummer and founding member of Australian rock band Midnight Oil, has died aged 70.
Hirst was diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer in 2023. The band confirmed his death on Tuesday afternoon.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 06:31
The Guardian
Kenji Morimoto’s recipe for miso leek custard tart with fennel slaw
Jammy leeks, savoury sweet chawanmushi and toasted sesame seeds make this flaky pastry dish feel decadent and special
This savoury custard tart celebrates some of my favourite flavours (and dishes): jammy miso leeks, savoury-sweet chawanmushi (a Japanese steamed custard flavoured with dashi) and toasty sesame seeds, all enveloped in flaky pastry. It feels decadent, so it’s best served with a simple fennel salad, zingy with apple cider vinegar and mustard. It’s excellent eaten while still warm from the oven (be patient!), but even better as leftovers, because I have a soft spot for cold eggy tarts.
Ferment: Simple Ferments and Pickles, and How to Eat Them, by Kenji Morimoto, is published by Pan Macmillan at £22. To order a copy for £19.80, visit the guardianbookshop.com
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 06:00
The Guardian
‘I’d give anything just to see her again’: owners’ grief for their beloved pets
As a study says a pet death can hurt as much as that of a relative, three people describe their emotions
Grief over the death of a pet could be as chronic as that for a human family member, according to research. The study, published in the academic journal PLOS One, suggests grieving pet owners can suffer from prolonged grief disorder (PGD).
PGD is a mental health condition that can last months or even years, and often involves intense longing and despair, and problems socialising and going about daily tasks. Currently, only those grieving the loss of a person can be diagnosed.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 06:00
The Guardian
As Trump menaces Greenland, this much is clear: the free world needs a new plan – and inspired leadership | Gordon Brown
The idea that the liberal rules-based order can survive his presidency now seems complacent. This is a historic moment – and a time to act
A European-wide chorus of resistance, led this morning by Keir Starmer, has greeted Donald Trump’s plan to take over Greenland, by force if necessary, and to start a tariff war if any country stands in his way. Have no doubt, this is a moment: if pursued as a non-negotiable demand, Trump’s plan ends any lingering hope that the liberal rules-based order can stumble on through his remaining time in office. The real question now is whether the 2020s will be defined by the complete collapse of the order’s already crumbling pillars and the atrocities accompanying it, or whether an international coalition of the willing can come together to build a new global framework in its place.
For, in quick succession, the US has abandoned its longstanding championing of the rule of law, human rights, democracy and the territorial integrity of nation states. Gone is its erstwhile support for humanitarian aid and environmental stewardship. Gone, too, is the founding principle of the postwar settlement: that countries choose diplomacy and multilateral cooperation over aggression and unilateral action. We cannot doubt any longer that the president meant it when he said he doesn’t “need international law”, and that the only constraint on his exercise of power would be “my own morality, my own mind”.
Gordon Brown is the UN’s special envoy for global education and was UK prime minister from 2007 to 2010
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 06:00
The Guardian
Antarctic penguins have radically shifted their breeding season – seemingly in response to climate change
Changing temperatures may be behind change in behaviour, which experts fear threatens three species’ survival
Penguins in Antarctica have radically shifted their breeding season, apparently as a response to climate change, research has found.
Dramatic shifts in behaviour were revealed by a decade-long study led by Penguin Watch at the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University, with some penguins’ breeding period moving forward by more than three weeks.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 05:011/12: Face the Nation
This week on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," after the devastating Pacific Palisades fire, Jonathan Vigliotti reports from the area, while FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell and Rep. Judy Chu of California discuss the response. Plus, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich joins.
20th January 2026 05:00
The Guardian
Out of the ruins: will Aleppo ever be rebuilt?
Years of civil war have turned whole areas of the city into rows of empty husks. But after the fall of Assad, Syrians have returned to their old homes determined to rebuild
The kebab stall stood in the shadow of a building whose three upper floors had been sheared in half, leaving behind concrete slabs that seemed to hang in mid-air. Under a tarpaulin, its edges weighted with cinder blocks, stood a thin man with a thick white beard. Smiling, he stoked the fire in a narrow grill. Walking back and forth to a table set atop a wheelbarrow, he tenderly inspected a dish laid out with tomatoes, greens and a few skewers of meat. A torn mat covered the floor, while a plastic ice box and a few more cinder blocks provided seating for the customers who were yet to appear.
The streets were largely deserted here in Amiriya, a dilapidated suburb of Aleppo that once formed the frontline between the rebel-held enclave and government-controlled areas. But there were a few signs of life: children hopping on and off a rusty motorcycle, a woman selling cigarettes and water from a shack, a young man digging through the rubble with his hands, pulling out pieces of limestone and stacking them in a neat pile to use later in rebuilding his own house. “They are much better than the new ones,” he told me.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 05:00
The Guardian
The pub that changed me: ‘It had some nefarious characters – but with lovely shoes’
The Glory was a haven for outlandish self-expression and the early stomping ground for many of the UK’s most infamous drag queens. It made me ready for life
In a packed pub, revellers chat, sip lager and look at their phones. Suddenly a side door crashes open, and in walks drag sensation John Sizzle, dressed as a hair-raisingly accurate Diana, Princess of Wales. She saunters demurely to a halo, fashioned from tinsel and coat hangers and stuck to the wall, stands under it, and starts lip-syncing to Beyoncé’s Halo. The crowd erupts.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 05:00
The Guardian
The truth about health patches: can they really treat stress, spots and lost libido?
For three weeks, I wore stickers on my skin supposed to address all sorts of conditions. Are they a panacea, problem or performance?
This morning, I woke up feeling a little groggy. My go-to remedy is usually a coffee and cold-water face plunge, followed by a compulsive phone scroll. But today called for something more, so I unpeeled a small, yellow “energy” patch the size of a walnut, popped it on to my upper arm and hoped for the best.
The patch (£12 for 30) contains – so the packaging says – vitamins B5, B3 and a “microdose” of caffeine. It is made by Kind Patches, which is one brand in an increasingly crowded market of wellness stickers that claim to treat everything from lack of sleep to period pains to pimples. They are coin-sized, and often come in TikTok-friendly shades of sunflower yellow and peachy orange: you may have seen a teenager sporting a star-shaped one on their face to treat spots, or influencers patting blue magnesium ones on their wrists before bed.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 05:00
The Guardian
Chinese tourists shun Japan in wake of Taiwan invasion row
Number of high-spending Chinese tourists visiting Japan halved last month after PM said an invasion of Taiwan could spark Japanese military involvement
Chinese tourism to Japan almost halved in December amid a bitter diplomatic row between Beijing and Tokyo over the security of Taiwan.
The number of tourists from mainland China dropped by about 45% from the same month a year earlier to about 330,000, Japan’s transport ministry said on Tuesday.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 04:58Indiana secures first ever football title with 27-21 win over Miami
A program that had played in a grand total of 13 bowl games in the 130-some years before coach Curt Cignetti arrived in 2024 went on a historic run en route to a 16-0 season and a national title.
20th January 2026 04:53
The Guardian
Mendoza’s plunge helps seal first national football title for Indiana after perfect season
Miami Hurricanes 21–27 Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana go 16-0 for season to complete turnaround
Heisman Trophy winner scores decisive touchdown
Fernando Mendoza bulldozed his way into the end zone and Indiana bullied their way into the history books on Monday night, toppling Miami 27-21 to put the finishing touch on a rags-to-riches story, an undefeated season and the national title.
The Heisman Trophy winner finished with 186 yards passing, but it was his tackle-breaking, sprawled-out 12-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-four with 9:18 left that defined this game – and the Hoosiers’ season.
Continue reading... 20th January 2026 04:36Justice Dept. calls claims in MN lawsuit seeking stop to ICE surge "legally frivolous"
The U.S. Department of Justice says claims made in a lawsuit seeking an immediate stop to the surge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minnesota are "legally frivolous."
20th January 2026 04:34Fierce winter storm causes 100-car pileup, brings snow as far south as Florida
The pileup in Michigan is the latest impact of the major winter storm moving across the U.S. More than 200 million people are in the path of the arctic blasts.
20th January 2026 01:01Miami, Indiana face off in college football title game
The College Football Playoff championship game is being held in Miami on Monday night. The Miami Hurricanes will take on the Indiana Hoosiers, who are making their first appearance in the title game. Tony Dokoupil has more.
20th January 2026 00:58U.S. Steel CEO says Trump's "golden share" won't stop company from "doing what we want to do"
Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel came with an unusual provision, a so-called "golden share" that gives President Trump the power to approve some major corporate decisions. U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt talked to "CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil about that golden share and the future of the company.
20th January 2026 00:55Fashion designer Valentino Garavani dies at 93
Acclaimed fashion designer Valentino Garavani, known simply as Valentino, has died at age 93. Seth Doane looks back at his life and legacy.
20th January 2026 00:48ICE operations, protests continue in Twin Cities as Trump threatens Insurrection Act
Some 3,000 federal agents are still in the Twin Cities area as President Trump is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act over continued protests against immigration operations there. Ian Lee reports.
20th January 2026 00:44Judge, wife shot inside their home in Indiana
A state judge and his wife were shot inside their home in Indiana on Sunday. Both survived, and a manhunt is on for the shooter, who apparently fired a shotgun through the door of their Lafayette home. Matt Gutman has the latest.
20th January 2026 00:39U.S. Steel CEO says it's "absolutely" still an American company after acquisition
"We have a fiduciary duty to Nippon," U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt said, but noted, "We're still mined, melted and made in the good ol' USA."
20th January 2026 00:38Trump ties Greenland threat to perceived Nobel Peace Prize snub
President Trump continued his push for the U.S. to take over Greenland, telling the prime minister of Norway his perceived snub for the Nobel Peace Prize meant he no longer feels obligated to "think only of peace." The prize is awarded by the private Nobel Institute, not the Norwegian government. Ed O'Keefe has more, and then Holly Williams joins with analysis.
20th January 2026 00:35Lake effect snow sweeps Eastern U.S.
The Eastern U.S. was dealing with lake effect snow over the weekend as Arctic air is expected to bring frigid temperatures to much of the country this week. Rob Marciano reports.
20th January 2026 00:26Extended interview: U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt
U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt talks to "CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil about how his company will be investing $14 billion over the next few years, why President Trump's tariffs are a "game changer" and more.
19th January 2026 23:55
The Guardian
Water firms could be let off pollution fines as part of government overhaul
Exclusive: Campaigners claim changes will let companies ‘off the hook’, as government prepares to unveil new white paper for water industry
Water companies could be let off fines for polluting the environment under changes announced in the government’s new white paper.
The environment secretary, Emma Reynolds, hailed the changes as “once-in-a-generation reforms” featuring “tough oversight, real accountability and no more excuses”.
Continue reading... 19th January 2026 22:30
The Guardian
Kostoulas’s brilliant bicycle kick rescues point for Brighton against Bournemouth
Just when it seemed that another match would be dominated by the dreariness of a debatable video assistant referee decision, a moment of majesty from Charalampos Kostoulas provided a pertinent reminder of the beauty that football can provide.
With his side staring at what would have been a controversial defeat, the 18-year-old Kostoulas found himself facing away from the Bournemouth goal near the penalty spot when the ball bounced towards him in the first minute of injury time. A touch on his chest bought time to set himself, before a wonderful bicycle kick sent the Amex Stadium wild.
Continue reading... 19th January 2026 22:10
The Guardian
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms review – this is the Game of Thrones we all need now
The real world is way worse than Westeros – so why not let this heartwarming underdog tale of a simple soul and his ethereal squire be your safe space
‘Bless their little cotton socks!” is not a response one expects to have to any of the inhabitants of Westeros, the land of the bloody, violent, incestuous and often depraved series of Game of Thrones. But the endearing protagonists of the latest spin-off of the franchise, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, invite it.
Their names, as in the George RR Martin novellas on which the series is based, are Dunk – short for Ser Duncan the Tall – and Egg. Dunk (Peter Claffey, a suitably tall former Irish rugby union player, last seen in Bad Sisters) was squire to a hedge – non-noble – knight, Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb), who took the boy under his wing but never quite got round to knighting the man before dying. We first meet Dunk burying his mentor under an old elm tree and taking up his arms against the sea of troubles that are about to engulf him. Dunk is a simple soul (very simple, some might say – he may look like a medieval Jack Reacher, but inside he is more of an eager but baffled labrador) and sets out to find a lord he can himself serve as a hedge knight.
Continue reading... 19th January 2026 21:50Fed chief Powell to attend Supreme Court arguments on Trump bid to fire Lisa Cook
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's planned attendance comes as he faces a federal criminal probe about the central bank's costly renovation project.
19th January 2026 19:57DOJ appeals temporary restraining order on federal agents' response to protests
The Department of Justice on Monday appealed a recent ruling that limits tactics federal law enforcement is permitted to use in the midst of anti-ICE enforcement protests in Minneapolis.
19th January 2026 19:52
The Guardian
Spain to hold three days of mourning after train crash that killed at least 40
Officials say death toll likely to rise as rescuers continue to comb through wreckage in remote area of Andalucía
Spain will begin three days of mourning on Tuesday as rescuers continue to comb through the wreckage of twisted train cars and scattered debris to locate victims after a train collision that killed at least 40 people and injured dozens.
On Monday, more than 18 hours after a high-speed train carrying about 300 Madrid-bound passengers derailed and collided with an oncoming train, people across the country were still scrambling to make contact with missing loved ones caught up in Spain’s worst rail disaster in more than a decade.
Continue reading... 19th January 2026 19:24Europe weighs using trade 'bazooka' against the U.S. as Greenland crisis deepens
European countries are reportedly considering retaliatory tariffs and wider economic counter-measures against the U.S.
19th January 2026 19:19