General news

• The Guardian view on Nigel Farage’s byelection stunt: spectacle is not scrutiny | Editorial

  07-07-2026 20:11
  
  The Reform UK leader wants voters to overrule parliamentary accountability. Labour should expose the trick, then offer a politics that worksNigel Farage, Brexit’s snake-oil salesman, is at it again. The Reform UK leader is under investigation over whether he broke parliamentary rules by failing to disclose a £5m gift from a crypto billionaire shortly before announcing he would stand for parliament. He now faces questions over claims that George Cottrell, a Montenegro-based convi
  
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• The Guardian view on prisons: the public deserves better than this litany of failure | Editorial

  07-07-2026 20:10
  
  Drugs and violence continue at disturbing levels. But a minority of jails show that progress is possiblePrisons in England and Wales are in an appalling state. In his last annual report before stepping down, Charlie Taylor, the head of the prisons watchdog, highlights good practice where it exists. One example is a strengthened focus on reading in some jails. Another is the work done to improve staff-prisoner relationships at HMP Low Newton, County Durham. But the overwhelmin
  
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• Ella Baron on Nigel Farage stepping down as an MP – cartoon

  07-07-2026 19:31
  
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• I’m rich – defend me, be happy for me, says Farage to poor voters in Clacton. They are just his collateral damage | John Harris

  07-07-2026 18:51
  The Reform UK leader’s ruse to head off scrutiny by forcing a byelection may work, but it’s all about him: no one else gains anything from itMost people who closely follow British politics probably know the basics about Jaywick, an enclave of Clacton, on the Essex coast. A sprawling tangle of tracks, paths and old holiday shacks repurposed as permanent homes, it has been ranked as England’s poorest area several times since 2011, most recently in October last year.I first visite
  
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• Ian Kennedy Martin obituary

  07-07-2026 18:31
  TV writer who created the 1970s police drama The Sweeney and later worked on Juliet Bravo and The Chinese DetectiveThe writer Ian Kennedy Martin, who has died of pancreatic cancer aged 90, created one of British television’s most realistic, groundbreaking television police dramas. With action shot on the streets of London, the 1970s series The Sweeney featured screeching tyres, punch-ups, officers who could be as violent as the criminals, and lines such as: “Get yer trousers on &ndas
  
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• Whether you’re Team Charles or Team Harry, this latest twist in their relationship is desperately sad | Polly Hudson

  07-07-2026 17:52
  It had seemed as if the Duke of Sussex’s visit to London could be a breakthrough in relations with his father. But not any morePerhaps because it involves kings and princes, we can be forgiven for hoping that they were going to live happily ever after in the end, like in a fairytale. Unfortunately, this is real life.Bearing in mind that the royal family are strangers, that despite all the whispers and briefings and rumours, we really don’t have any idea of what is going on behind clo
  
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• How heatwaves became a culture war flashpoint | Letters

  07-07-2026 17:38
  Readers respond to an article by George Monbiot about rightwing denial and call for government actionI agree with George Monbiot that newspaper articles dismissing concern about today’s increasingly hot weather with fond memories of the 1976 heatwave are unhelpful (When the right denies the true danger of heatwaves, ask yourself this: whose children’s lives is it willing to risk?, 1 July). While many rightwing writers remember “just getting on with things and enjoying the sun&r
  
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• Cutting language courses will be a costly mistake | Letters

  07-07-2026 17:36
  Sara Robertson, Raisa McNab and John Worne fear that Britain risks becoming a monolingual island in a multilingual world. Plus letters from Dr Darren Paffey, Janet Fraser and Ilona Marchant News that the University of Exeter is planning to cut 150 jobs (Fury over Exeter University plan to scrap dozens of humanities posts, 1 July), with a disproportionate threat to the teaching of humanities, is only the latest in a series of blows to the teaching of modern languages in the UK.When universities c
  
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• Remember water power in the renewables mix | Brief letters

  07-07-2026 17:32
  Solar, wind and water | French connection | Gianni Infantino | ‘Good athlete’ Trump | USA 1 Belgium 4 Your article (Why can’t Britain turn its green revolution into cheap energy? A visual analysis, 4 July) was an informative overview, yet I saw no mention of water power. If we are serious about building a resilient, low-carbon energy system, wave power, tidal power and hydroelectricity deserve to be part of the conversation alongside wind and solar.
  Veronica-Mae
  
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• A treasured moment of male idiocy | Letters

  07-07-2026 17:32
  Richard Blows responds to an article by Tom Usher and recalls an evening that ended on a roof rackTom Usher and the British Medical Journal are surely correct that idiocy is a peculiarly male trait (Farewell to Jackass, the finest catalogue of male idiocy – it could only go on for so long, 4 July). Just reading the article made me laugh and reminded me that when my wife and I met, she could not understand how I could watch Jackass and cry with laughter at the madness of it. She remains bem
  
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• Pore substitute: can AI be trusted when it comes to skincare advice?

  07-07-2026 17:00
  There are more than 3,000 conditions in dermatology, experts warn – and chatbots’ recommendations can be flaky Read more in the Antiviral seriesWho among us has not, in a moment of panic or curiosity, consulted the internet in search of solutions to a medical ailment?Increasingly, people are turning to AI for health advice, and skincare is no exception. Purpose-built apps promise to identify that rash, while people are sending selfies to AI chatbots seeking “full skincare analy
  
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• Record wildfires in Europe show failure to adapt carries a mounting cost

  07-07-2026 16:57
  Scientists call for better land management alongside reduction in greenhouse gases causing the crisisWhen storm after storm battered the Mediterranean at the start of the year, drowning fields and sending water spurting from plug sockets, few people were fretting about fires.But just four months later, the murky brown floods that swamped towns and fouled homes across western Europe have given way to angry red blazes and choking black smoke. Rampant wildfires burned 28,000 hectares (69,160 acres)
  
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• How to sleep in a heatwave: 13 clever tips and cooling essentials

  07-07-2026 16:00
  Too hot to sleep? From temperature-regulating mattress toppers to a fan quiet enough for the bedroom, here are our best buys for sweaty nights – and what to avoid• The best fans, testedIf there’s anything more uncomfortable than enduring a heatwave in Britain, it’s sleeping through one.But hot nights are only going to get more common if the climate crisis continues its long march. While Britons are already accustomed to poor sleep – with the average adult getting jus
  
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• Curry, bagels … and AI? Londoners fight plan for huge datacentre in Brick Lane

  07-07-2026 16:00
  Residents and council say creating affordable housing is more urgent than ‘high-frequency trading’ in nearby CityCampaigners in east London are opposing plans for a datacentre in Brick Lane that they say will worsen the area’s housing crisis and drive long-term residents away.The road, famed for its curry houses and 24-hour bagel shops, is the latest flashpoint in the rapid rollout of datacentres across the UK that aims to meet demand created by artificial intelligence. Continu
  
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• Chanel brings beanstalk to catwalk in fairytale Paris couture show

  07-07-2026 15:48
  
  Storytelling collection opens with mousseline skirt suit and ends with simple black dress in spirit of label’s founderThe first model on the Chanel catwalk was wearing a sheer mousseline skirt suit and carrying a tiny century-old leatherbound book of fairytales that once belonged to Coco Chanel herself. With the Lord of the Rings soundtrack booming through a stage set of giant parasol-scale poppies and lupins as tall as giraffes, the clothes narrated the stories in the pages. A row of butt
  
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• Ushida Findlay review: the mighty culture clash that gave us the dazzling Soft and Hairy House

  07-07-2026 15:09
  V&A Dundee
  When Kathryn Findlay and Eisaku Ushida joined forces, a sensual kind of architecture was born – resulting in a hairy blue pod in Tokyo and a starfish beach palace in Qatar
  ‘The future of architecture,” pronounced Salvador Dalí on meeting Le Corbusier in 1922, “will be soft and hairy.” Fast forward over 70 years to Tokyo, and his surrealist prophecy was the stimulus for the Soft and Hairy House, one of a series of startlingly expressive dwelling
  
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• The Invite welcomes heterosexual polyamory into cinemas. It’s about time

  07-07-2026 14:37
  As a non-monogamist, it’s refreshing to see a film that reflects modern attitudes to non-conventional relationships, instead of using them as a punchline or cautionary taleWhat is the chief obstacle that must be overcome in most modern-day big-screen romcoms? Lack of attraction? Misaligning schedules? Or, perhaps, heteromonogamy? If that wasn’t the dominating norm of human relationships, many movie plots would be much swifter to resolve. What if Elizabeth Olsen didn’t have to c
  
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• The secret to great cafetiere coffee | Kitchen aide

  07-07-2026 14:00
  Electronic scales are a non-negotiable, say connoisseurs. Add a pinch of patience, some trial and error, and you, too, can master the French pressWhat’s the best way to make coffee using a French press? Mine always ends up too watery or too strong.
  Yoanna, St Andrews, Scotland
  “Coffee is one of those rabbit holes where it really depends how much money and time you want to spend,” says Ben Kovar, head of coffee at Campbell & Syme Coffee Roasters in north London and Hertfords
  
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• BTS review – pure joy and astonishing versatility at K-pop titans’ first UK show in seven years

  07-07-2026 12:41
  
  Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
  Fans and cynics are putty in the boyband’s hands as the lads lark their way through a catalogue of tracks that ricochet from hard rap to buttery popThe 2001 film Josie and the Pussycats is about America’s conflation of art and consumerism at the turn of the millennium. But it could just as easily be about the K-pop industrial complex, grinding out act after act to see what sticks (sometimes with a lack of care for the art or the artists). The film cu
  
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• ‘You never truly quit’: how RuneScape survived to 25 – and beyond

  07-07-2026 11:30
  
  The massively multiplayer online role-playing game has grown into a virtual social space and part of daily life for thousands of playersIn a small stone chapel, on the edgelands of a medieval wilderness, two women are getting married. The attenders are draped in rainbow capes, glowing armour and top hats. A scantily clad, muscular man with angel wings officiates the ceremony. Over the heads of the two brides hover the words “I do” in bright yellow text. This is RuneScape, a massively
  
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• Houseplant hacks: can butterworts control fungus gnats?

  07-07-2026 11:00
  This pretty little plant is carnivorous, so when placed next to plants affected by the insect pest it can be an effective living flypaperThe problemThe fungus gnat is the pest that just keeps coming. You dry out the soil, set up sticky traps, maybe even reach for the hydrogen peroxide, and just when you think you’ve have won, they’re back. The adults are harmless but maddening, drifting around your face and laying the next generation in any damp compost they can find. And most contro
  
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• Sun stoppers: seven ways to keep your home cool this summer

  07-07-2026 08:00
  You can keep temperatures down without the cost – or environmental price – of air conditioning. Here’s some tips and tricksThe best fans to keep you cool in 2026 – tried and testedIn the UK we are used to worrying about our homes being warm enough, but after struggling to cope with high temperatures in May and June the race is on to cool them down before the next heatwave hits.And while it might be tempting to swap your desktop fan for a portable air conditioner, there ar
  
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• Not just for weekenders: the new Wiltshire country hotel that’s a hit with the locals

  07-07-2026 08:00
  The owners of Teffont House are aiming for modern rural hospitality that puts guests at the heart of village lifeWalking into the Orangery at Teffont House during the golden hour, the restaurant is glowing. Sunlight falls across cocktails the colour of spun sugar, spills on to a terrace trailing constellations of fleabane, and bounces off spoons sinking into raspberry trifles. What really gives the room its sparkle is none of these things, however, but the fact it’s packed with local peopl
  
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• Country People by Daniel Mason review – a joyful follow-up to North Woods

  07-07-2026 08:00
  This fantastical journey through family, folktales and a world beneath our feet is witty, uplifting and gorgeously writtenDaniel Mason’s latest novel sees him return to the verdant New England landscape that so captivated readers of 2023’s acclaimed North Woods. This time, though, he hops the border from Massachusetts into Vermont – and effects a deeper shift in the process. Where North Woods was a foray into history, telling the tale of a house and its inhabitants over three c
  
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• Tomato tart and a strawberry and elderflower trifle: Sally Abé’s summer recipes

  07-07-2026 07:00
  
  Sweet, herby tomatoes on crisp puff pastry, followed by a dessert that’s both fruity and floral – this is seasonal eating at its most delectableSummer has to be the favourite season of any chef. I am so spoiled for choice right now with the bounty of beautiful British produce over the warmer months that I change the menu almost daily, so I don’t miss out on the chance to use all of it. If only the weather would keep up. Continue reading...
  
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• Together in prosaic dreams: anthology reveals Europeans’ anticlimactic subconscious

  07-07-2026 06:00
  
  Collector of dream stories from across continent finds ‘surprising consistency’ in the way they are structuredA young woman discovers in a dream that she is responsible for the Holocaust and tries to come up with schemes to make amends – and then gets distracted by a business meeting. Another woman dreams she is being chased by murderers – and ends up chilling in front of the TV with them. A man gets to advise Emmanuel Macron on social policy – and talks to him abou
  
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• ‘I felt my spine and body split’: the woman who was hit by a child on a Lime bike – and denied compensation

  07-07-2026 06:00
  
  The collision was catastrophic. Jane Ouartsi suffered a fractured collarbone, two spinal fractures, a broken femur that took three operations to fix, and she had to learn to walk again like a baby. Why has no one taken responsibility for her life-changing injuries?As Jane Ouartsi walked across a pedestrianised square in central London, on a Friday evening in early August three years ago, she linked arms with her partner, Dave Mathias, and told him how much she had enjoyed the afternoon they had
  
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