Top Stories

By The Guardian

I’m a perpetual outsider
The Guardian - Yann Demange
Filmmaker was born to French-Algerian parents and made his home, and his name, in multicultural London. But he never felt a sense of belonging. Then Hollywood called … Where are you from? It’s a question
Music (UK)
R Kelly due in court in Chicago on 10 sexual abuse charges
The Guardian - Associated Press in Chicago
The R&B star R Kelly is due in court in Chicago on Saturday after being charged with aggravated sexual abuse involving four victims, including at least three between the ages of 13 and 17. In a brief before
Jeremy Hunt
‘Soviet vassal state’: Jeremy Hunt makes gaffe in Slovenia
The Guardian - Mattha Busby
The UK foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has incorrectly claimed Slovenia was a Soviet vassal state during his visit to Ljubljana to discuss the Brexit negotiations with his counterpart Miro Cerar. Slovenia
Philip Hammond
UK aid budget ‘goes to the wrong projects’, leaked letter warns
The Guardian - Michael Savage Policy editor
Charities have sounded the alarm over the way ministers are spending the multibillion-pound aid budget, saying some is being diverted from the poorest countries to promote commercial and political interests.
World News
Tainted alcohol kills 85 people in India
The Guardian - Amrit Dhillon in Delhi
Eighty-five people have died on tea estates in Assam, north-east India, after drinking poisonous hooch. Assam’s health minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, confirmed on WhatsApp that 85 people had died but final
Film (UK)
Trump picks up two Razzies as Holmes & Watson dominates worst of Hollywood
The Guardian - Reuters
President Donald Trump and a comedy movie take on Sherlock Holmes on Saturday topped the annual Razzie awards for the worst performances and films of 2018. Holmes & Watson, starring Will Ferrell and John
Lifestyle (UK)
The deadly truth about a world built for men – from stab vests to car crashes
The Guardian - Caroline Criado Perez
A female police officer had to have breast-reduction surgery because of the health effects of wearing her body armour One woman found her car's voice-command system only listened to her husband, even he
South East London
Man and woman in 70s die in crash with van being chased by police
The Guardian - Press Association
A man and a woman in their 70s have died after the car they were in collided with a Ford Transit van that was being pursued by police. Scotland Yard said police officers spotted a van being “driven erratically
News
Nigeria election goes ahead amid violence and tech failures
The Guardian - Ruth Maclean, Eromo Egbejule in Lagos, and Ismail Alfa in Maiduguri
Nigeria’s long-awaited presidential election has arrived, amid heavy gunfire, voting technology failures and reports of vote buying in some areas. Some voters arrived at polling stations at 3am to ensure
World News
The battle to save Lapland: 'First, they took the religion. Now they want to build a railroad'
The Guardian - Tom Wall
There are thought to be about 1,000 Sami words devoted to reindeer appearance, behaviour and habits Finland was last year ranked as the best place to invest by mining companies. 'It is California 1848.
New Forest
'It's a bit selfish': neighbours angry as Jim Ratcliffe quits UK
The Guardian - Rupert Neate Wealth correspondent
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the UK’s richest person with a £21bn fortune, fought a six-year battle with his neighbours, planning authorities and conservationists for permission to build his dream £6m beach house
Community Health
Boy stabbed to death in Birmingham named as Abdullah Muhammad
The Guardian - Press Association
A teenager who became the second boy to be stabbed to death in Birmingham in a week has been named by police. Abdullah Muhammad was discovered fatally wounded near a park in the Small Heath area of the
David Gauke
Brexit: Rudd, Clark and Gauke should resign, says Andrew Bridgen
The Guardian - Sarah Marsh
Three cabinet ministers who signalled they could vote to delay Britain’s withdrawal from the EU should resign, a Tory Brexiter MP has said. Amber Rudd, Greg Clark and David Gauke should step down, said
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, threatens to sue Mail on Sunday
The Guardian - Jim Waterson Media editor
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, has threatened the Mail on Sunday with legal action under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act for publishing a private letter she sent to her father, in which she said
Alan Partridge
From ‘Aha!’ to zombies: the encyclopedia of Alan Partridge
The Guardian - Michael Hogan
A is for Aha! Alan’s catchphrase on 90s chatshow Knowing Me, Knowing You. He greeted everyone with it, even the policemen who led him away after he accidentally shot and killed a guest. Later voted 84th
Rugby League
Hull FC’s Sika Manu: ‘I remember seeing roofs torn off buildings’
The Guardian - Aaron Bower
The Super League season is barely a month old and there is already talk of a crisis at Hull FC. The Black and Whites have lost their opening two games to extend a winless run dating back to last July:
Opinion (UK)
People rush to excuse rock stars behaving badly – even the mediocre ones
The Guardian - Hadley Freeman
“But if we get rid of all the paedophiles, we won’t have any estate agents/plumbers/accountants left!” wailed literally no one ever. And yet, this plaint is regularly repeated when it comes to artists
Books
How to see beyond Brexit
The Guardian - James Meek
This is the liberal bourgeois dilemma: an irreconcilable desire for both universality and particularity The idea that remain voters were winners who only cared about themselves and leave voters were losers
Boxing Day
Agency tried to charge care homes £2,700 a shift for workers
The Guardian - Simon Murphy
Newcross Healthcare, which fined workers for calling in ill, accused of ‘fleecing’ taxpayers One of the country’s biggest providers of agency health workers has been accused of “profiteering” after trying
World News
Nigeria election: blasts heard hours before presidential polls open
The Guardian - Ruth Maclean and Reuters
Suspected Islamist militants have attacked a north-eastern Nigerian town, forcing people to flee hours before presidential election polls were due to open, residents have said. “We have fled, along with
Personal Finance (UK)
'Gambling was all I thought about all day'
The Guardian - Abby Young-Powell
Name Andy Margett Age 39 Income £21,000 Occupation Warehouse operative I was 12 the first time I placed a bet, of about 50p on the Grand National, and I gambled a bit as a teenager. After I married
International Olympic Committee
'A huge step forward': British breakers hail Olympic proposal
The Guardian - Aamna Mohdin
It was the early 1970s and dancers couldn’t get enough of the instrumental “breaks” on a record. DJ Kool Herc, now widely hailed the father of hip-hop, was just a teen DJing at his sister’s parties in
Rugby Union
Wales will not afford England a free ride to potential grand slam
The Guardian - Robert Kitson
The toll booths were removed from the Severn Bridge two months ago but granting a free ride to English rugby teams in Cardiff will never catch on. It explains why the Six Nations retains its passion and
Brexit: what happens the next day if there is no deal?
The Guardian - Patrick Collinson and Miles Brignall
Taking your car abroad In a sentence You’ll have to request a green card from your insurer if driving to Europe after 29 March Currently, a driver of a UK-registered car is allowed to drive anywhere in
Technology
Is Silicon Valley's quest for immortality a fate worse than death?
The Guardian - Adam Gabbatt
China’s first emperor ordered his subjects to search for the elixir of life in a quest for immortality. In 16th century France, nobles would drink gold in a bid to extend their lifespans. Gilgamesh, the
North London
Teenager dies after shotgun and knife attack in north London
The Guardian - Press Association
A teenager has died after suffering shotgun and stab injuries in an incident in north London. Scotland Yard said it was called to reports of a group of people fighting on Vincent Road, Wood Green, just
Lifestyle (UK)
My mum stopped texting me. Is this a cunning ploy?
The Guardian - Romesh Ranganathan
My mother recently found a tactic to get me to make contact with her, and I am ashamed to admit that it has worked. She stopped texting me. This is a 180-degree twist on her usual habit of sending me of
Lifestyle (UK)
'I'd get 400 toilet rolls at a time': how it feels to win a lifetime supply
The Guardian - Deborah Linton
After about three years, when the deliveries abruptly stopped, I was shocked. My lifetime supply had been sent up front I have milk every day on my breakfast cereal and sometimes I take a small bottle
Lifestyle (UK)
A letter to… my daughter’s abductor
The Guardian - Anonymous
Let me tell you about my little girl. She was 19 then. She’d just left college and found a job, and she loved it. She was lively, fun-loving, compassionate and full of life. I was so proud of the woman