Douglas Brinkley on America at 250: History tells us hoping for unity is not futile

In these fiercely-polarized times, the presidential historian reminds us that Americans' freedom has been tested – and has survived – much worse.

Australia v India: Women’s T20 World Cup – live

• Updates from the teams’ final Group A game at Lord’s

• Start time in London is 2.30pm BST/11.30pm AEST

Changes for both sides.

Just the one for India as Kranti Gaud come back for Nandani Sharma.

England v New Zealand: Ben Stokes’ retirement announced during day four – live

England captain reveals departure – then takes wicket
Full story | Read the Spin | Mail Tanya with your thoughts

39th over: New Zealand 125-3 (Ravindra 62, Mitchell 29) Archer from the Stuart Broad End, he’s up to the mid to high eighties on the speed gun and gets a nasty ball to lift and smash Mitchell on the hand. The batter wrings it out and briefly resembles Ali G as he does so. Mitchell drops into the leg side and gets off strike. Ravindra clips off his hip to make it two singles off the over.

How’s everyone doing out there? England need wickets…

‘Financial pandemic’: £1 in every £11 spent on UK public contractors goes to private equity

Almost £24.4bn of government money went to private equity-run firms in year to April 2025, Guardian analysis shows

• ‘Treating children like cattle’: what happens when private equity takes over a UK care home?

• Nurseries, vets and shops: the sectors where private equity plays a big role

One pound in every £11 of UK government spending on contractors went to private equity-controlled companies last year, research shows, including key services such as transport, waste management and healthcare.

Politicians and economists have raised concerns over the “financial fragility and sharp cost cutting” created by private equity-backed firms, which often have high levels of debt, and the “conflicting interests” in running public services for maximum profit.

‘I eat pasta almost every day’: a day in the life of a world champion pizza athlete

Francis Tolu works at his family’s restaurant in Spain and also competes in pizza acrobatic contests internationally

Francis Tolu is a freestyle pizza champion. For those who don’t know what that is, he uses pizza dough to compete in acrobatic performances. He can make pizza blindfolded; he also throws pizzas in the air and sets them on fire. Among his achievements are the 2026 masters acrobatics title at the World Pizza Games, and four wins at the Pizza world championship.

Then he returns to work, serving customers at Pizzeria Venezia in Alginet, Spain, the restaurant his family has owned for 40 years.

French skydiving plane crashes near Nancy, killing all 11 onboard

Five students and five instructors dead along with pilot after plane fell suddenly near aerodrome, says prefect

A skydiving plane has crashed in north-eastern France, killing all 11 people onboard, according to the region’s prefect.

The parachuting-school plane crashed near Nancy at 11am, said Yves Séguy, the prefect of the Meurthe-et-Moselle region.

Trade tensions shake up Brazil's caipirinha spirit

U.S. tariff pressure is pushing Europe and Brazil closer—opening new global doors for everything from aircraft parts to Brazil's cachaça, the base of the caipirinha.

‘Street football on world stage’: Morocco and Netherlands face off in last-32 game with a backstory

Moroccans began moving to the Netherlands in the 1960s, lending match in Mexico a feeling akin to ‘a derby’

Thirty-two years to the day since their first official encounter, Morocco and the Netherlands face each in what has the makings of a blockbuster last-32 match. Many things have changed since the 1994 World Cup group game in Orlando, which Netherlands won 2-1, but Morocco’s history is never far from the plot.

Take the venue for Monday’s encounter – Monterrey, where the Atlas Lions played most of their 1986 World Cup campaign, in the process becoming the first African team to progress through the group stage. So many in Morocco spy a golden opportunity for revenge and glory. And they would be right to do so given how four years ago, in Qatar, Morocco stunned the world by reaching the semi-finals, beating Belgium, Spain and Portugal in the process. They now have another European heavyweight firmly in their sights.

This week on "Sunday Morning" (June 28)

Jane Pauley hosts a special program celebrating our nation's semiquincentennial, "These United States - America at 250."

Football Daily | England muddle on and Clarke checks out as World Cup moves up a gear

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After much hesitant wallchart-filling, Geopolitics World Cup fans are finally able to feast their eyes on a complete knockout stage and plot their team’s route to a painful penalty shootout exit. Unlike in previous tournaments, there is no rest day for the wicked this time, with the first last-32 tie – a blockbuster tie between Canada and South Africa – taking place 15 hours after the final group reached its dramatic conclusion. Despite what their supporters sing, the GWC party will now continue without Scotland … who will continue without Steve Clarke. The GWC mixed zone’s least popular man has asked himself whether he is best placed to lead the nation into the next major tournament and has accepted the answer (‘no’) with good grace. “Thanks for having me and good luck to my successor,” Clarke sniffed as he backed away from the lectern and headed for the door marked Do One.

Re: Mike Towers’ request for potential walking football terms (yesterday’s letters). If two neighbouring Scottish teams play each other, is it known as the ‘infirm derby’?” – Roger Mart.

If Mike Towers wanted to sample walking football, he needn’t even have left his house. He could have just watched Cristiano Ronaldo playing for Portugal” – Derek McGee.

As we enter the knockout stages of the GWC, I thought it time to put down a marker. On at least four occasions in the last couple of years, you have predicted penalty shootouts to finish 1-0. According to RSSSF, this has happened maybe twice ever in a normal shootout (including Silures’ 1-0 win on penalties against Hafia in the second round of the African Champions’ Cup 1979 are not known). So stop it – I’m on to you” – Neil Rose [never! – Football Daily Ed].

Kev the Poet’s suggestion that Odysseas Vlachodimos is a midfielder might explain why he was so bad whenever he played in goal” – Jim Hearson.

This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

Fresh hostilities in Gulf suggest US-Iran memorandum was too broadly worded

Document appears to have been subject to conflicting interpretations on key issues of Lebanon ceasefire and strait of Hormuz

• Middle East crisis live – latest updates

The sudden eruption of fresh hostilities in the Gulf – just 10 days after Iran and the US signed a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict – threatens to put the two countries back on the path to war.

It appears the deliberately opaque wording in the memorandum has been unable to withstand the pressure of conflicting interpretations, and as a result supporters of the deal inside Tehran are on the back foot. Statements to the effect that Iran’s government should never have agreed to reopen the strait of Hormuz are proliferating – and not just among the country’s hardliners.

George Russell holds off Max Verstappen to win Austrian F1 Grand Prix for Mercedes

• Kimi Antonelli claims third behind Red Bull’s Verstappen

• Russell overtakes Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton in standings

George Russell won the Austrian Grand Prix after a tense and gripping battle with what was a resurgent Red Bull in the hands of Max Verstappen. Russell held his nerve to ground out the victory even as the Dutchman charged at him in the final laps at the Red Bull Ring to take a win the British driver sorely wanted.

His Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli was in third, having harried Verstappen to the flag with the top three separated by just two-seconds at the end. However, Ferrari’s expected challenge failed to materialise, their car’s struggling for grip and pace in Austria, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finishing fifth and eighth. Oscar Piastri was fourth for McLaren with his teammate Lando Norris in seventh, while Isack Hadjar took sixth for Red Bull.

Kindness of strangers: We were hopelessly lost in the Sudanese desert. Then villagers offered us a hut to stay in

We were exhausted and in need of rest. In the morning, the kind locals prepared a huge breakfast and refused to accept any payment

• Read more in the kindness of strangers series

Sudan in the 1980s was relatively quiet. In 1987 I was based there, working for aid agency Care in the final years before Omar al-Bashir seized power.

One day I was returning from the city of El Obeid to the capital, Khartoum. After two weeks of dust and extreme heat we were thankful to be travelling overland across the desert at night, when it would be cooler. There were no tarmac roads, just dusty tracks. Two colleagues, our driver and I left at sundown for what should have been a six or seven-hour drive.

AI claims to have the answers to life’s big questions. But sometimes not knowing brings us closer to the truth | Amy Galliford

ChatGPT relieves me of my discomfort, but in doing so it robs me of contemplation, of the holy ground between question and answer

• Making sense of it is a column about spirituality and how it can be used to navigate everyday life

As a person of faith raised in a religious household, I have a fairly clear picture of what prayer means to me. Prayer is the practice by which I draw closer to God, petition for my needs and desires, request guidance and ask forgiveness.

The deal has always been that in times of trouble I cast my anxieties and questions and emerge with either some answers or some sustaining sense of peace. Take it to the Lord in prayer, the song goes.

Three firefighters killed on Colorado-Utah border as wildfires intensify

The deaths occurred as crews battled multiple blazes across a parched region. Two other firefighters were also injured.

Nature: Bald eagles

We leave you this Sunday with an enduring symbol of our United States: the bald eagle, first seen on the Great Seal of the United States in 1782. Videographer: Carl Mrozek.

Douglas Brinkley on America at 250: History tells us hoping for unity is not futile

In these fiercely-polarized times, the presidential historian reminds us that Americans' freedom has been tested – and has survived – much worse.

American Panorama: From sea to shining sea

"Sunday Morning" presents views of America the Beautiful. Photographs by Jonathan Irish.

Photography and the secret of Frederick Douglass' power

Frederick Douglass, who was born into slavery and became an influential orator, writer and intellectual, was the most photographed person in America in the 19th century. Nancy Giles explores how Douglass used the early photographic medium to promote the cause of abolition.

Feeling bored and disconnected for your job? You may be facing workplace 'rust-out' | Gene Marks

The latest work buzzword describes feeling under-stimulated at your job – but you can break free from workplace monotony

There is a woman I know who works in the accounts payable department at one of my clients. She’s in her late 40s and she’s been doing the same job for at least 10 years. Entering payables, reconciling expense accounts, matching documents, calling suppliers.

Sound boring? Not to her. She’s happy, enjoys the routine and appreciates her employer. She’s not “rusting-out” – the latest workplace buzzword.

Celebrating Fourth of July fireworks

Fireworks were invented in China, and perfected in Italy. But it was immigrants that brought their pyrotechnical secrets to America, creating a Fourth of July tradition: ever-grander fireworks displays. Correspondent Faith Salie visits the New Castle, Pa., fireworks company Pyrotechnico, which will be creating a world-record-worthy Independence Day celebration in Washington, D.C. this July 4th.

The Equal Rights Amendment: A promise unfulfilled

An Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – guaranteeing rights to all Americans regardless of sex – was first proposed to Congress in 1923. More than a century later, the ERA still has not become a formal part of our nation's bedrock of laws.

Extended interview: Feminism then and now

In this web exclusive, correspondent Martha Teichner talked with three generations of women – Ms. Magazine co-founder Letty Cottin Pogrebin and her daughter, New York Times journalist Robin Pogrebin, and granddaughter Maya Klaris – about the Equal Rights Amendment and their views of gender equality from the 1960s to today.

The Equal Rights Amendment: A promise unfulfilled

An Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – guaranteeing rights to all Americans regardless of sex – was first proposed to Congress in 1923. More than a century later, it still has not become a formal part of our nation's bedrock of laws. Correspondent Martha Teichner looks at the long road of the ERA, and talks with three generations of women for whom equal rights under the Constitution remains an unfulfilled goal.

Escalating US-Iran strikes threaten interim peace agreement

Tehran attacks Bahrain and Kuwait amid efforts to open strait of Hormuz without Iran’s direct oversight

• Fresh hostilities in Gulf suggest US-Iran memorandum was too broadly worded

A new round of escalating strikes between Iran and the US has continued, further undermining the fragile interim peace agreement between the two countries, and prompting Donald Trump to threaten violence that would ensure Iran “will no longer exist”.

On Sunday, Tehran launched drone and missile attacks against Bahrain and Kuwait after new US strikes on sites in southern Iran and threatened a “complete halt” to negotiations to end the war. Trump said that a moment might come soon when he abandoned talks and the US would “militarily finish the job”.

How trains drove American history

The transcontinental railroad changed just about everything in America: transportation, communications, commerce, cities, politics, even our perception of time. Correspondent David Pogue visits Steamtown National Historic Site, in Scranton, Pa., home to Big Boy, the biggest functioning steam train in the world, to learn how trains helped define an expansive America.

Only in America: The rise of Viet-Cajun cuisine

Chef Trong Nguyen came from Vietnam as a teenager in the 1980s, and discovered that the clean bright flavors of Vietnamese food he grew up with paired perfectly with, of all things, the earthy, smoky spice of Cajun cuisine. Since then, Nguyen's Houston restaurant, Crawfish & Noodles, has been a leading proponent of Viet-Cajun fusion cuisine. Luke Burbank reports on how the American melting pot has become a cauldron of international flavors.

Governors Island: An oasis in New York Harbor

One of New York City's most unique public spaces is a 172-acre island off the tip of Manhattan. Jane Pauley offers a tour of Governors Island, celebrated for its parks, cultural events, and sweeping harbor views.

Iran needed help to save their ‘disaster’ World Cup. Instead they got more heartbreak

Team Melli’s agonizing exit after other results failed to break their way is a moment of anguish that rises to the top of a football history full of them

Mehdi Taremi lay on the ground at Seattle Stadium staring at the heavens, devastated. The Iran team he captains had just finished a 1-1 draw with Egypt in their final World Cup group game – one where a win would have put them through to the knockout round for the first time in seven tournament appearances. Taremi had missed a penalty in Friday’s contest, and a seeming late winner had sent the team into bedlam before being correctly ruled out for offside.

Taremi lay on the ground for several minutes. He did so as Alireza Jahanbakhsh, his longtime teammate on a veteran-laden Iran squad, offered comfort. Taremi remained after other teammates who had collapsed in exhaustion had arisen again, trudging to the locker room.

Historic Route 66: Americana on the go

Though long bypassed by interstates, the historic "Mother Road," stretching from Chicago to Los Angeles, remained a place for drivers to "get their kicks." Today, marking its first 100 years, Route 66 continues to attract travelers searching for an America of yesterday.

Historic Route 66: Americana on the go

Route 66, the "Mother Road" stretching from Chicago to Los Angeles, was also a place for drivers to "get their kicks." Though long bypassed by interstates, the historic highway, home of scenic vistas and roadside curiosities, continues to attract travelers searching for an America of yesterday. Correspondent Lee Cowan takes a drive along Route 66, which is now marking its centennial.

The Founding Fathers: Why their radical beliefs continue to shape America

The men who signed the Declaration of Independence were flawed, but what they did in the summer of 1776 changed the world forever – and their fight for equality continues today.

The radicalism of our Founding Fathers

The men who signed the Declaration of Independence were flawed, but what they did in the summer of 1776 changed the world forever. Correspondent Mo Rocca talks with experts about how 18th century colonists such as Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and John Adams defied a king and proposed a government of the people, and how their fight for equality continues today.

Poll: America at 250 and some of what Americans think is best about U.S.

Americans weighed in on what's best about the U.S., its greatest invention, most representative food and more in latest CBS News poll.

Trump again threatens Iran with annihilation as Kuwait and Bahrain report attacks

Iran says it targeted U.S. military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain following U.S. strikes on targets in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

Do you need electrolytes? Will tea cool you down? Is it safe to drink beer? How to stay hydrated in a heatwave

The hotter it gets, the faster our bodies lose water. Obviously, we need to replace it – but is anything better than plain H₂O? And does timing matter? Here’s what the science says

Hydration is important. In temperatures like those we’re increasingly seeing in much of the world, sweating can be the only way for our bodies to cool down, and our thirst isn’t always the best indicator of how much water we’ve lost or need. The consequences of not being sufficiently hydrated as temperatures creep towards the 40s can be severe, and can kick in much faster than most people realise. The good news is that remembering to drink plenty of water at regular intervals throughout the day will be enough for most people to avoid the worst. But if you’d like to understand why dehydration is so dangerous, whether you really need extra electrolytes, or if a cup of tea really can cool you down, read on.

To start with, it’s helpful to understand that our bodies are producing heat – and therefore losing water – all the time. “All the cells in our body are constantly using fuel for energy for various different processes, whether that’s movement or just staying alive,” says Dr Lewis James, a lecturer in sport, exercise and health sciences at Loughborough University. “About 75 to 80% of the energy that we use appears as heat.” If we didn’t have any way of dissipating this heat, then even lying on the couch would see your body temperature rise about 1.3C in a single hour (already enough to make you noticeably feverish) – but of course, we do. Normally, we lose a decent amount of heat through a combination of convection and radiation: the blood vessels in our skin dilate, allowing the blood to be cooled by the outside air. The problem is that when the external temperature goes up, this process becomes less effective and eventually stops working altogether. At this point, our main way of losing heat is through sweating: our bodies produce tiny droplets of warm water mixed with trace minerals, which (usually) evaporate on contact with the air, drawing heat away from the skin in the process. And as we rely more on sweating, it’s increasingly important to replace the fluids our bodies are losing.

Readers reply: Why does silence feel so horribly awkward?

The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts

This week’s question: Are there places on Earth where humans haven’t been?

Why does silence feel so horribly awkward? Ruth Thompson, by email

Send new questions to [email protected].

Someone you know well: silence is fine. Not listening to them is fine, too, but you might wish to tell them that you are switching off, just in case they have something of import to say.

Someone you don’t know and do not plan to know: silence is fine.

Someone you do not know, but will have to know (colleague, inherited family members): talk about the weather, scenery, seating, anything bland and immediate.

Someone you do not know or not well but looks scared or stressed (shivering, twisting hands, looking like they need the loo): smile blandly and make a small comment that does not require an answer.

6/28: Sunday Morning

Host Jane Pauley celebrates America at 250. Featured: The Founding Fathers; driving historic Route 66; the Essential American Songbook; a melting pot of cuisine; the ERA; the transcontinental railroad; fireworks; and Larry David's skewed take on American history.

A melon-eating contest and a naked bike ride: photos of the weekend

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

How to make the perfect chicken souvlaki – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect …

Interpretations of Greece’s most popular street food abound, but whose version of these smoky, juicy skewers is the best?

I’m aware that, fittingly, I’m dancing across hot coals by tackling souvlaki: in her book Taverna, Georgina Hayden devotes an entire page to the subtle differences between Greek and Cypriot barbecued meat kebabs (souvla, souvlaki, kalamaki, kontosouvli … the list goes on), yet, as Carolina Doriti observes in her beginner’s guide, “the beauty of souvlaki, Greece’s most popular street food, is its simplicity”. Though I’d steer you elsewhere for a more definitive explanation of what qualifies in different places, the name comes from the word souvla, or “skewer”; souvlaki is the diminutive, and it’s usually cooked on small skewers rather than on a big spit. That’s all you need to know, because – although what’s on there, how it’s seasoned and what accompanies it changes according to region and season – the ancient pleasure of smoky, juicy, grilled meat (as featured in the Iliad!) or indeed vegetables, remains the same wherever you go.

Seniors in Medicare are about to get landmark obesity drug coverage — but many may not know it yet

Many seniors may be unaware of the landmark coverage shift starting on July 1, with limited advertising seen from the government or Eli Lilly and Novo.

More European nations brace for 40C-plus conditions as heatwave moves east

More than 191m people in Europe face temperatures over 35C, with extreme heat warnings from Germany to Hungary

• ‘A sad inevitability’: after decades of climate warnings, why is Europe so unprepared for rising heat?

Poland, Czechia and Slovakia are braced for record temperatures of over 40C as a heatwave linked to hundreds of deaths in western Europe spreads east.

More than 191 million people in Europe faced temperatures of at least 35C on Sunday, with extreme heat warnings in Germany, Czechia, Poland and Hungary.

3 firefighters killed, 2 injured fighting wildfires near Colorado-Utah border

The U.S. Wildland Fire Service said the firefighters had been part of an interagency response to the Knowles and Gore fires near the Colorado-Utah border.

What if doing more isn’t always the answer?

It’s tempting to treat overwhelm with clever fixes – but that might be part of the problem

According to my Instagram feed, I am not doing enough. Not spending enough, not saying enough, not taking enough care. I feel more sure of this than anything. And it’s bringing out an irrationality I’m not proud of: one afternoon, in between screengrabs of masked men snatching civilians from their homes, videos of wellness influencers evangelising “anti-trauma” hip stretches, and carousels of political action items disguised as catchy memes, I am served a targeted ad for a “Don’t Talk to Me About AI or I’ll Kill Myself” crochet pattern; and even though I have never crocheted anything in my life, I find myself looking up the materials to get started … on Etsy to avoid supporting any big, Maga-oriented corporations.

It’s overwhelming, this general pressure, palpable not only on social media but throughout the larger culture: today’s most urgent issues, from technological end times to tight hips, can only be solved by squeezing as much into the day as humanly possible.

World Cup 2026 colour chart: fans of all 48 teams join the party – in pictures

We take a look at the creativity and emotion shown by fans of each nation during the group stage of the World Cup

The 2026 World Cup has set a new all-time attendance record for the men’s tournament, surpassing the previous record of 3,587,538 set during the 1994 World Cup – and the group stages have only just ended.

As ever, fans have brought colour and fun to the tournament – from Mexico’s duck mascot to Norway’s Viking rowers, with plenty more in between. Here are a selection of our favourite images of fans at the matches and at watch parties across the globe.

‘British food will disappear’: trade deal after Brexit is hitting UK farmers hard

Home-grown food may become a niche product for wealthy in our supermarkets as British farmers’ incomes plummet

For Liz Webster, who farms 647 hectares (1600 acres) in Wiltshire, south west England, the latest impact of Brexit has been particularly brutal. About £400 per animal has been wiped off the price she can get for her beef cattle, a hefty blow at a time when all the inputs – feed, energy, fertiliser – are going through the roof.

The fall in price, on livestock that typically fetch £2,000 to £3,000 per animal, is the result of a flood of cheaper meat arriving from Australia, the result of one of the new trade deals the government has signed since the UK left the European Union. Prices for beef in the supermarkets have remained broadly the same, but farmers have seen their income plummet.

Home is where the art is: the rise of the epic domestic novel

Writing about home life doesn’t have to be humdrum argues the author of Natural Disaster – just look at world-spanning, taboo-shattering works such as Ducks, Newburyport and All Fours

‘There’s no place like home,” Dorothy declares at the end of The Wizard of Oz, as she departs the dazzling Emerald City for Aunt Em’s Kansas farmhouse. It’s a powerful metaphor for the way the domestic sphere is often portrayed in art: action, adventure and drama happen “out there” in glorious Technicolor, with the home rendered by contrast in sober sepia tones. Home may be the place we ultimately yearn for, but only once we have left it behind.

While working on my second novel, Natural Disaster, I was periodically plagued by the potential pitfalls of putting domestic life front and centre. The story takes place over 24 hours, following a woman who plans to spend her final day of maternity leave having a nice time with her two small boys (spoiler: it doesn’t go to plan).

These church members disagree on politics. Together they're wiping out medical debt

Trinity Moravian Church, a politically diverse congregation in Winston-Salem, N. C., has been raising money to retire medical debt in the surrounding community.

250 essential American songs to mark nation's birthday

What are the essential American songs? Ahead of the nation's 250th birthday, we asked that question to Sunday Morning's familiar faces, from performers to artists and writers to community leaders.

Trump-endorsed Julia Letlow projected to win Louisiana GOP Senate runoff

Rep. Julia Letlow was endorsed by President Trump in the state's Republican Senate runoff to replace Sen. Bill Cassidy, who did not receive enough votes in the primary to advance.

‘Tech firms are losing the public’: social media age bans near tipping point

UK is latest country to set minimum age for social media access but big tech is fighting back globally against curbs

• Social media bans go global: big tech faces a reckoning after Australia’s crackdown

Arturo Béjar, a former employee turned whistleblower at Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, has talked to parents around the world. He says they share the same perspective: they dread the day their children are old enough to go online.

Governments appear to be listening too. This month the UK became the latest country to state that it would set a minimum age of 16 for accessing major social media platforms. Social media bans are becoming a legislative trend after the precedent set by Australia last year, when it imposed an age limit on platforms including Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, Google’s YouTube, Elon Musk’s X, TikTok and Snapchat.

This is how we do it: ‘I expected to be a little old spinster, but kinky sex broadened my horizons’

Graham and Josephine were friends for years, but after their spouses died they discovered a mutual attraction – and a fondness for adventurous sex

• How do you do it? Share the story of your sex life, anonymously

Our sexual preferences cover everything from vanilla to being tied up and spanked

Tips for taking care of your pets when fireworks are booming

Communities around the U.S. are putting on epic fireworks shows for America's 250th birthday — but that spells trouble for dogs and cats. Here's a guide to help the animals in your life.

July 4th fireworks in Washington: What's different for America's 250th?

Dozens of technicians will fire off about 851,000 fireworks on July 4, aiming to break a world record in what organizers hope will be the "most memorable display this generation will have ever seen."

Venezuelan earthquakes test Trump’s new western hemisphere policy after gutting of USAID

Marco Rubio is scrambling to provide effective disaster response to country whose president US deposed in January

This week’s dual earthquakes in Venezuela are a test for the new era of American power in the western hemisphere, as the Trump administration scrambles to provide an effective disaster response mission to a country that it now calls an ally in Latin America, after a US special forces raid in January deposed the country’s strongman leader, Nicolás Maduro.

The US is marshalling what secretary of state Marco Rubio called a “big, fast, effective” and “whole-of-government” response as the state department sent three specialised urban search and rescue teams and pledged a $150m assistance fund that one former disaster relief expert called the largest he had seen within 24 hours of an incident.

Prince Harry and family’s UK visit ‘pulled from under their feet at 11th hour’

Duke reportedly fears his children will not get to meet king after government declines request for police protection

The Duke of Sussex fears his children will not meet King Charles in the coming days after their UK visit was “pulled out from under their feet at the 11th hour”.

Prince Harry and Meghan were planning their first trip to Britain as a family in four years for events related to the Invictus Games, due to be held in Birmingham in July.

I’m a psychiatrist who was terrified of horror films – until I learned about ‘cinematic neurosis’

Why do scary movies thrill some viewers and send others running for the hills? Our writer gets to the bottom of his fear of the genre – with the assistance of Freud, clinical researchers and his six-year-old self

I am six years old, and I am watching a man turn into a werewolf. The film is Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, a 1948 comedy. I am staring up at our black-and-white TV fixated on the werewolf transformation unfolding in slow motion and I begin to scream so inconsolably that my parents must carry me upstairs to calm me down.

That night was the beginning of my lifelong fear of horror films and of the supernatural, of darkness and of being alone in a house.

Stir-fry, soup, smoothies and even cake: 17 delicious ways with lettuce – that aren’t salad

Forget vinaigrette: if you really want to make the most of these leaves, apply some heat, herbs or double cream and bacon

When wild lettuce plants were first domesticated in the Caucasus 6,000 years ago, the crop was the seed, which could be pressed into oil. As cultivated plants migrated west through Egypt into Europe, the Greeks and Romans transformed them into salad leaves.

There are now hundreds of commercially grown varieties of lettuce, available all year round. But if you do grow them, you’ll probably be in the midst of your annual glut right now. And while lettuce is not difficult to give away – nobody hates it – in my experience it doesn’t make for a very exciting present.

Food defined social hierarchy in 1776. Here's what was on the table

Around the time the United States was founded, Americans' diets included Parmesan ice cream and terrapin. But what you ate depended on your social status.

Will the new student loan limits actually drive down tuition? Economists weigh in

The idea that there's a connection between federal student loans and what colleges charge dates back almost four decades. But it's unclear that link can lead to lower costs.

'If you are alive, make any noise': Venezuela searches rubble on day 4

Rescue teams are racing against time after twin earthquakes killed more than 1,400 people and left tens of thousands unaccounted for.

World Cup 2026 power rankings: France still kings but who has climbed 26 places?

From Algeria to Uzbekistan, we assess the standing of the 48 nations after the group stage of the tournament

It took a little over an hour for Kylian Mbappé to find his groove. Irked by a poor refereeing decision, he scored twice in France’s opener against Senegal. Ably supported by a stunning cast, Mbappé will already have his sights on winning the competition. Michael Olise has shown his class throughout, while Ousmane Dembélé dazzled with a hat-trick against Norway. We’ll see if anyone can stop Didier Deschamps’ team.

Paul Hogan has reportedly called Pauline Hanson a ‘pelican’. Please explain?

Crocodile Dundee was held up by the One Nation leader as an exemplar of ‘Australian monoculture’. Hoges had other ideas

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

In one swift rhetorical blow, Crocodile Dundee has disarmed Pauline Hanson’s latest attack on multiculturalism.

But his weapon of choice has left some scratching their heads.

The hill I will die on: Forget potholes – the true indicator of societal decline is the ropey shoelace | Coco Khan

They have one job, the clue’s right there in their name – but I’ve noticed that ‘optimised’ shoelaces on pricey trainers are anything but

If political coverage has you never wanting to hear the word “pothole” again, let me spice things up with an entirely new symbol of decline – one even more everyday, more easily fixed (and therefore even more damning). Potholes 2.0: ladies and gentlemen, I give you the shoelace, and how they do not stay tied any more.

If you’re wondering what my evidence is, I say: evidence schmevidence. Like most political grievances (PC gone mad! Migrants stealing our jobs!) it doesn’t need to be true, only to feel true. And a quick search online suggests I am not the only one who feels like shoelaces – which, let’s be clear, have one job! – are rubbish now. Reddit, Quora, Facebook: the shoelace‑curious are everywhere, with some even turning to the science of the knot itself. (Apparently common ways to tie shoelaces are versions of “the granny knot”, which physicists say is “destined to fail” – much like we are if we keep putting our physicists on jobs like this.)

Coco Khan is a freelance writer and co-host of the politics podcast Pod Save the UK

On to the knockout round: 4 takeaways from the FIFA World Cup so far

The anxieties before the World Cup were many. But with the knockout round set to begin Sunday, it's fair to say: The North American World Cup has been a thrill.

Did a father use his 6-year-old son as an alibi for murder?

Reginald Reed Sr. said he was playing video games with his son, Reginald "Reggie" Reed Jr., when his wife, Selonia Reed, was killed. But detectives doubt his story.

‘Hearty fare, red gingham tablecloths and chalkboard menus’: my search for the perfect bouchon in Lyon

These traditional restaurants are the culinary backbone of this gastronomic capital, but finding the real deal means tackling offal – and red wine – for breakfast

I first went to a bouchon as a 20-year-old Erasmus student. I’d accidentally ended up spending a semester of my year abroad in the Auvergne countryside, which meant every weekend I’d thumb a ride to the nearest big city – Lyon. I didn’t know much about Lyon, except that it was famous for its food – in particular the hearty fare served up at these traditional restaurants with their red gingham tablecloths and chalkboard menus. So when I found myself eating stringy, overpriced beef muscle that cost more than my night at a hostel, I wondered what the hype was about.

But after nearly five years living in the city, I’ve now learned how to avoid the tourist traps (which largely line Vieux Lyon between souvenir shops selling fridge magnets and sweet shops). Historically, most bouchons weren’t in Lyon’s old town anyway, writes Yves Rouèche in Histoire(s) De La Gastronomie Lyonnaise, but in the neighbourhoods of Vaise, Croix-Rousse and La Guillotière, the gateways to the city in the Renaissance period where merchants and travellers stopped for the night.

Venezuela earthquakes: death toll rises again to more than 1,400

Search for survivors continues with nearly 70,000 people reported unaccounted for by their family members

The ⁠death toll ⁠in ⁠the twin ​earthquakes that struck ⁠Venezuela earlier ⁠this ​week ‌has ‌risen to ‌1,430, according to one of the country’s top politicians, Jorge Rodríguez.

Another 3,200 ​people were injured ⁠and 3,100 ​left homeless ​by the ​disaster, ​the National Assembly president added, speaking ​on ​state television.

I wish my son wanted to spend more time with me | Ask Annalisa Barbieri

You say you don’t put him under pressure, but he seems to feel it. Could you be overcompensating for your initial reluctance to have children?

My husband and I have one son, in his late 20s. We’ve always been devoted to him, keep in touch on a weekly basis and see him about once a month (he has a busy job and has recently started a new relationship, which seems to be making him very happy).

I never really wanted children, possibly due to my traumatic childhood: an absent, mentally ill father; and a single, emotionally imbalanced mother who made me the centre of her life. When my husband talked about having children, I gave it careful consideration and decided in the end to give it a go. Once our son was born, I embraced motherhood fully. We both adore him.

Reform UK makes dramatic first impression in Senedd opposition role

With more than a third of Welsh parliament seats, Reform MSs have caused tears and walkouts – and voted against their own party

Tears, walkouts, own-goal votes: the Welsh parliament has only been sitting for a few weeks, but Reform UK has already made a dramatic first impression in its new role as the official Senedd opposition.

Plaid Cymru won May’s historic Welsh elections, ending 100 years of Labour dominance and blocking the momentum of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which came second.

Will the Mamdani effect make 2028 the year of the leftwing president?

The mayor hopes to ‘write a new chapter in the party’s history’ – and recent democratic socialist wins prove he might be able to do it

In the back yard of a Brooklyn bar, beneath strung-up lightbulbs and swaths of fabric that swooped like great sails, an ecstatic crowd greeted Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayor, and his victorious ally, Brad Lander. These Democrats also had a withering verdict on their own party establishment.

“To me, centrists can go fuck themselves,” said Léa Zimmerman, 34. “They’re fucking useless, they don’t stand for anything, and if they do stand on something, it’s pathetic. I’m done with pathetic, performative people.”

Still blazing after all these years: Mel Brooks at 100

The director of The Producers hits his century as a uniquely beloved entertainer who embodies his conviction that ‘comedy is the opposite of death’

Mel Brooks’ story is that of the US and Jews and American Jewish comedy. He was born on the kitchen table of a tenement in Brooklyn a century ago in the same month Marilyn Monroe made her own entrance on the opposite coast. The son of European immigrants, Brooks was brought up by his mother after his father died when Melvin was just two years old. He was a small, sickly child and the youngest of four brothers, perhaps an explanation for an almost pathological desire for attention. In the words of his colleague Larry Gelbart: “Mel thought when he got slapped in the ass by the doctor who delivered him that was applause, and he has not stopped performing since.”

In his youth, Brooks’ preferred method of making a noise was playing the drums and he was actually taught the instrument by Buddy Rich. Neither could possibly have known at the time that they would both go on to have seismic effects on the two great American artforms: comedy and jazz. That youth, like so many others, was interrupted by Adolf Hitler. The teenage Brooks joined the army and participated in the Battle of the Bulge. If one is looking to understand the artist’s fearlessness or his utter commitment to mocking Nazis for the remainder of his days, those war years provide ample explanation. It may also explain his assertion that “comedy is the opposite of death”.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup schedule and how to watch

With 104 World Cup games being played in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, it's like "a Super Bowl every single day for five weeks," U.S. team captain Tim Ream told CBS News.

I was a whinger, a cynic, a misanthrope. Then I saw Harry Styles live – and I will never be the same again

I knew my 11-year-old son would love an evening at Wembley with his favourite star. But nothing prepared me for what it would mean to me

The answers to some little questions are hugely revealing. We pass it off as small talk, but asking about somebody’s first anything often reveals all you need to know about who they are today and why. If only I’d understood the implications of buying Wig Wam Bam by Black Lace as my debut music purchase – had known it would shape so many future interactions and realised how ridiculous you feel simply saying those words, even to those too young or cool to be familiar with the full sonic horror.

So, to halt generational trauma, when the opportunity came to supply my son with the dream reply to “What was your first concert?” I took him to Harry Styles at Wembley during a thermometer-shattering heatwave.

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Detective believes 6-year-old's mother was killed in next room while he slept

For most of his life, Reggie Reed has wondered who murdered his mother Selonia Reed decades ago in Hammond, Louisiana. A fresh look at the evidence ultimately implicated the man he called his "rock" — Reginald Reed Sr., the man who lovingly raised him.

Utah declares emergency, limits fireworks as crews battle largest U.S. wildfire

Utah is restricting fireworks as the largest wildfire in the nation grows, fueled by dry conditions and gusting winds.

New Caledonia polls open in first local vote in the French territory since 2019

Election will determine balance of power in New Caledonia before fresh negotiations with France on the territory’s status

Polls opened in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia on Sunday for the archipelago’s first provincial elections since 2019, after the vote was delayed as talks stalled over its political future.

The election, initially planned for 2024, will determine the balance of power in New Caledonia ahead of fresh negotiations with France on the territory’s status, with independence remaining the defining political issue.

Historian retraces Underground Railroad to mark America's 250-year journey

Anthony Cohen has spent his life bringing attention to the Underground Railroad, secret routes once used by enslaved people seeking freedom.

Four people have died from flash floods in Kentucky, governor says

Floods caused by thunderstorms that have dumped inches of rain on Kentucky and Indiana, with more possible

Andy Beshear, the Kentucky governor, says four people have died as a result of flash floods from thunderstorms that have brought as much as 7in (18cm) of rain to the state.

Beshear confirmed the four deaths in a social media post, noting three people were from Madison county and one was from Jackson county. “Please join Britainy and me as we pray for their families during this difficult time,” Beshear said.

Fatboy Slim says he felt paralysed at prospect of DJing sober after rehab

Speaking on Desert Island Discs, the Grammy-nominated musician referred to his alcoholism as a parasite

Fatboy Slim has said he felt paralysed and “rigid with fear” at the prospect of DJing sober after spending time in rehab to deal with his alcohol addiction.

The artist, whose real name is Norman Cook, referred to his alcoholism as a parasite and said getting sober was “probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done” during an appearance on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs with Lauren Laverne.

U.S. military attacks Iranian targets after commercial tanker hit in the Strait of Hormuz

The attacks come as the United States and Iran are supposed to be engaging in a 60-day ceasefire as they attempt to work toward a resolution.

Trump nominates former Oklahoma state trooper to head ICE

President Trump nominated Lance Schroyer, a former Oklahoma state trooper, to direct Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agency hasn't had a Senate-confirmed director since the Obama administration.

Trump says he will nominate Lance Schroyer as next ICE director

Schroyer, whom Trump calls ‘a patriot’, led deportation campaign in Oklahoma under ICE-partnered program

Donald ​Trump said on ⁠Saturday ⁠that ​he ‌will ‌nominate ‌Lance Schroyer as ‌the next director of US ​Immigration ⁠and ​Customs ​Enforcement (ICE), succeeding David Venturella, who had been performing the duties of the director.

Trump said in a Truth Social post that Schroyer “has over 29 YEARS of Law Enforcement experience in Oklahoma — A State where I WON all 77 Counties in 2016, 2020, and 2024! Lance is a former Oklahoma State Trooper, and United States Marine”.

Chelsea interested in Granit Xhaka to reunite midfielder with Xabi Alonso

• Sunderland want to keep former Leverkusen player

• Como have eye on Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah

Chelsea are interested in signing Sunderland’s Granit Xhaka, who was a key player for Xabi Alonso at Bayer Leverkusen.

Xhaka, who has two years on his deal, joined Sunderland last summer and played a major role in them qualifying for the Europa League after their promotion to the Premier League.

The moment I knew: After witnessing trauma at a refugee detention centre, we held each other and cried

First Liza Shaw and Rohan were housemates, then they had a casual relationship. But a protest at Woomera would deepen their emotional connection

• Find more stories from the moment I knew series

I met Rohan in 1998 in Lismore, New South Wales, where we were both going to university. Before that, I’d noticed him around town in his sarong and peacock feather earrings. He was distinctive and slightly dandyish, sometimes wearing dresses on campus. I had another partner at the time but our mutual friend introduced us, and Rohan and I became housemates.

We bonded living together and hosting dinner parties, where we’d talk about life and politics well into the night. I was intrigued by his friends. One time Rohan invited a member of the Black Panthers to come and stay at our house.

‘Really good flatmate’: what happens when the love is gone but it costs too much to move out?

The cost of living is putting pressure on relationships – and preventing some couples from properly splitting up

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The separate sleeping arrangement started seven years before the marriage finished. When Mary-Ann’s* hot flushes turned the bed into a furnace, her husband, Bill, moved into another bedroom. For the next two years there was some travel between the bedrooms for the purposes of intimacy. Then that stopped too.

The distance grew after each argument; they took separate holidays and, when Bill inherited money, he separated it from their pooled finances. Mary-Ann says it was clear Bill’s mind was no longer in the marriage – he was what is termed “quiet quitting”. But she acknowledges she was drifting away too, focused on a demanding new job.

Utah’s Cottonwood fire spreads overnight to cover 92,000 acres

Firefighters are battling the blaze in Fishlake national park that was stoked by strong winds and low humidity

Hundreds of firefighters in Utah have struggled to suppress a wildfire that scorched an additional 20,000 acres (8,000 hectares) as of Saturday, as low humidity and strong winds accelerated the fire spread, according to state officials.

The Cottonwood fire erupted on Monday in the Fishlake national forest, located in central Utah. The blaze intensified overnight, growing from about 70,000 acres (28,000 hectares) to more than 92,000 acres (37,000 hectares) on Saturday morning, according to the US Forest Service. The fire is at a 0% containment level and is the largest blaze currently burning in the US, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

UK minister working up plans for state-owned housing developer

Exclusive: Steve Reed is looking at government run scheme that could borrow at lower rates than private developers

The housing secretary has been working up plans for a state-owned housing developer, according to details leaked to the Guardian, as the government looks for ways to stimulate stubbornly low rates of housebuilding.

Steve Reed has been looking at proposals to set up a new state-owned developer which could borrow at lower rates than private developers and housing associations, according to plans leaked to the Guardian.

White House unveils new images of US ‘patriot passports’ for America’s 250th

Democrats called plans for commemorative passport and gold coin with Trump portrait ‘more befitting a monarchy’

Donald Trump’s efforts to brand the US government with his name and image advanced on Friday when the White House unveiled new images of a passport watermarked with his portrait to mark America’s 250th anniversary.

The White House called it simply the “patriot passport”, while on Truth Social the president introduced it as “The U.S.A.’s New Passport, which says, ‘Welcome, but be good!’”

‘Inspirational and epic’: Djokovic inspired by Serena Williams as he targets Wimbledon history

• ‘I always admired her career, her journey, her story’

• Fellow seven-time singles champion making return

As a seven-time champion, Novak Djokovic is never going to be lacking in motivation when it comes to Wimbledon. But as he continued his preparations for this year’s event, the 39-year-old said the return of 44-year-old Serena Williams has put an extra spring in his step.

“What she’s doing is inspirational and it’s epic,” said Djokovic, who will join Roger Federer on eight titles if he wins this year. “That’s what I told her. I always admired her career, her journey, her story. Of course, Venus, as well.

U.S. strikes Iran after Trump accuses Tehran of ceasefire violation in Strait of Hormuz

The attack comes as the United States and Iran are supposed to be engaging in a 60-period of no hostilities as they hold talks to end their war.

Appeals court rejects Trump EPA bid to abandon rule restricting deadly soot pollution

Decision leaves in place Biden-era standard on pollution from coal-fired plants, factories and other industrial sources

A federal appeals court on Friday rejected the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempt to abandon a Biden-era rule that sets tough standards for deadly soot pollution.

The unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel is a setback for the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda and its repeated efforts to boost coal, a reliable but polluting energy source.

‘Like a dead body’: after warehouse fire, LA residents say air thick with smell of rotting food

Cleanup under way after week-long fire at a Boyle Heights facility spoiled tens of millions of pounds of frozen food

Something is rotten in the neighborhood of Boyle Heights.

For a week, thick black smoke filled the air while a massive warehouse burned near downtown Los Angeles, prompting a state of emergency and evacuation orders in the immediate area as air quality worsened. Firefighters finally extinguished the flames on Wednesday, but not before half the warehouse’s 85m lbs of frozen food were lost in the fire – leaving roughly 40m lbs of food to rot.

Red Lobster's Ultimate Endless Shrimp promotion is described as a 'car crash' for the company, lawsuit says

"Thai Union doubled down on a campaign to squeeze out every drop of value that it could," creditors said

The memory shortage shaking Apple and Microsoft is 'existential crisis' for smaller players

While Apple and Microsoft raise prices on key devices to help cover the soaring costs of memory, smaller consumer electronics companies are in dire straits.

The UFC match plot: how a far-right group tried to assassinate Trump at his own event

Court files show how men connected through TikTok and encrypted apps planned attack on White House UFC fight

When Tycen Proper, 19, finished high school, his family gave him at least $3,000 of “graduation money”, according to court documents. Despite the generosity, he seemed content to just live at his parents’ home, in a tiny Ohio town near Amish country, and spend more and more time on the internet.

But Proper did have ambition of a kind, an affidavit says. He quit his job to focus on a special project that he was planning with friends from the internet. His mother saw him studying maps of Washington DC. He also put his graduation money into investments that made his father uneasy: a rifle, a shotgun, body armor, ammunition.

‘I’m missing out’: the cash-strapped UK university students forced to live at home

Experts say students from poorer backgrounds increasingly having to limit their options because of money worries

Most days, Mariam spends hours simply waiting.

The 19-year-old University College London student often finishes her lectures by mid-morning but has careers events or society meetings in the evening. The three-hour round trip to her family home means travelling back and forth makes little sense, so she waits on campus instead. More often than not, by the time the event starts, she is too exhausted to stay long.

Police arrived to arrest her father for sexual abuse. But he was making it all up

Mark described abusing his daughter in a chatroom. Then it turned out nothing he had posted was true – and he walked free. With ‘fantasy abuse’ on the rise, can Emily and her mother win their fight to make it illegal?

For the first 20 years of her life, Emily had what she thought was a “completely normal” relationship with her dad, Mark. “He was an ordinary man,” she says. “A good dad. We were really close.” Then one morning, police officers arrived at her family home to arrest him for sexually abusing her. Emily wasn’t there. “I had just moved out to live with friends and start my first proper job,” she explains, “but the police didn’t know that. They were trying to protect me.” Emily is telling this story two years on, with her mum, Fiona, by her side. They are close, supporting each other during this difficult conversation, finishing each other’s sentences.

When Fiona heard the door go at 7am, she had just got up. “I wasn’t even fully dressed,” she says. “It sounds stupid but I had just got on an exercise bike so I was in a T-shirt and pants. I looked out of the bedroom window and saw eight people on the doorstep. They weren’t in uniform but they looked official. They had lanyards on and a dog with them.

David Hencke, Guardian journalist who exposed cash-for-questions scandal, dies aged 79

Former Westminster correspondent earned a reputation for uncovering political wrongdoing in the 1990s

The acclaimed journalist David Hencke, whose career at the Guardian spanned more than three decades, has died of liver cancer aged 79.

As Westminster correspondent, Hencke was instrumental in exposing the cash-for-questions scandal that forced the resignations of two Conservative ministers, and the scoop that led to Peter Mandelson’s first resignation from government.

Best thing I ever ate? Dim sum in Happy Gathering, a small Chinese corner of Wales

Heaven is a round table in a favourite Cardiff restaurant, and dainty dim sum tucked inside bamboo baskets

Whenever someone asks what my death row meal would be, I say dim sum without fail. It’s cheating, I know; a loophole where you don’t have to choose. I’ve spent more time thinking about it than I’d like to admit, but what I love most about dim sum is that you never have the same experience twice – a bit like snowflakes, no two are ever the same.

Dim sum covers all bases – there’s no settling on one thing: it’s a chance to sample everything as you work your way through the menu. It doesn’t fit neatly into starters, mains and desserts, but exists as its own genre, borderless and all-encompassing. It’s overwhelming, loud and chaotic for first-timers; an assault on all the senses, but in the best way.