Tabla de contenidos para 1459 en The Week

What happened Fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East mounted this week as Israel stepped up its bombardment of Gaza ahead of an expected ground offensive. As well as carrying out more air strikes on the coastal strip, Israel launched a number of commando raids into the territory “to kill terrorist squads preparing for [the] next stage of war”. A few convoys of aid trucks were allowed to enter Gaza from Egypt to alleviate some of the needs of its besieged population. UN and EU officials called for a pause in fighting so that more aid could be delivered. But the US, while stressing the need for continued humanitarian assistance, said it wasn’t the right time for a full ceasefire. Two US hostages were released by Hamas on…

“The footage is grim and unambiguous,” said The Times. “What is the solution to liberate people in the concentration camp called Palestine?” asks a speaker from the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir. “Jihad, jihad, jihad,” comes the chant in return. This “chilling scene” unfolded not in a Middle Eastern capital, but among pro-Palestinian marchers in London last Saturday. Yet the Metropolitan Police did nothing: it later released a statement saying that the word jihad “has a number of meanings”. It’s true, said Richard Littlejohn in the Daily Mail: jihad can also mean a personal struggle to be a better Muslim. In this context, though, this was not the obvious interpretation, given that the protesters were also singing, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and carrying signs reading…

French restaurateurs, who have been ordered to tell customers when dishes are factory-made. It has been estimated that only 4% of French restaurants actually make all their meals from scratch. Interior designers, after scientists warned that the rising popularity of rattan furniture could put some species of the vine at risk of extinction. Harvested from climbing palms that grow in the wild in the forests of Southeast Asia, rattan is seen as sustainable because the plants are relatively fast-growing, but conservationists say they are now being overexploited. Sainsbury’s, which was criticised for removing the recycling points outside its supermarkets, despite recycling being one of its “pillars” for tackling climate change. Critics say these facilities may have helped the retailer get planning permission for its sites.…

Bruges, Belgium Kiosk kingpin: A people smuggler who led a double life as a kiosk vendor in east London was jailed for 11 years last week by a court in Belgium. Hewa Rahimpur, 30, who arrived in Britain in the back of a lorry in 2016, was found to have been a “high-ranking” member of a gang that had arranged for an estimated 10,000 people to cross the English Channel in small boats. Having claimed asylum in Britain, Rahimpur, an Iranian Kurd, lived a seemingly modest life in Ilford. Yet data from his phone revealed that he had helped to source boats and outboard motors from across Europe, and had used social media to advertise passage across the Channel, charging up to £6,000 per person, netting the gang up to…

“Britain’s prisons are overcrowded in part because Conservative politicians have demanded longer sentences. At the same time, the Government refused to build enough new prisons. And so it finds itself rationing prison places instead – letting criminals out early and sending fewer of them to jail. It is a tactic increasingly deployed by the Government. Politicians are not willing to increase taxes to cover the cost of the services voters demand. Nor are voters willing to pay for them. And neither side is willing to forego the dream of comprehensive services on the cheap. The results are shortages which can only be solved by queues, unpredictable rationing and ministerial diktat.” Bagehot in The Economist…

Face up to what it means to be a citizen David Frost The Daily Telegraph The clamour to strip British citizenship from people who advocate violence – be they Shamima Begum or pro-Hamas activists – has been getting louder in recent years, says David Frost. But though it is an understandable reaction, it needs to be resisted: it reflects a distinctively British failure to give due weight to the idea of citizenship. In most countries, you have to be a citizen to vote in elections: here, legally resident nationals of Commonwealth countries, and of Ireland, can do so. In Britain, citizenship is too often seen as just “a piece of paper, a legal nicety”: many Britons think nothing of exploiting some tenuous European connection or other to acquire a second…

The impact of natural disasters Living through a natural disaster can have long-term effects on the human body, a study of survivors of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami has indicated. Some 230,000 people in a dozen countries were killed by the tidal wave; but the Aceh province on the Indonesian island of Sumatra was hardest hit – and it is the subject of ongoing research into the impact of the disaster. As part of this, 600 people who were living there when the tsunami struck, had their cortisol levels measured 14 years later. In stressful situations, cortisol levels tend to surge as part of the body’s “fight or flight” response, then fall again when the threat has passed; but extended periods of stress can cause the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis that…

When it comes to “corporate cautionary tales”, the unravelling of the US lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret is a modern classic, said Barbara Ellen in The Observer. In 2020, an investigation described an “entrenched culture of misogyny, bullying and harassment” at the firm, which had long been famed for its “über sexy” televised catwalk extravaganzas featuring top models (“Angels”) clad in stilettos and underpants. Rocked by these allegations, it embarked on a rapid “feminist” rebrand. Out went the “quasi soft porn”, in came a solemn vow to become the world’s leading “advocate for women” – and a commitment to “body positivity and diversity”, including the use of disabled, transgender and plus-sized models. But there was a problem. This “reputational scrubdown” was so late to the party, and so clearly self-serving, no…

When Erling Haaland was asked in September 2021 to rate the then 18-year-old Jude Bellingham, he replied: “It’s crazy. What can I say? He’s amazing”. The Norwegian – then a teammate of Bellingham’s at Borussia Dortmund – wasn’t exaggerating, said Craig Hope in the Daily Mail. Bellingham is no mere “generational talent”; he has the potential to become “the best of any generation”. Signed by Real Madrid in the summer, he has made an electric start there, scoring 11 goals in his first 12 appearances. There’s a “swagger” to how the 20-year-old plays that suggests he knows he’s “top dog in town”. So it’s a good thing that, as is increasingly clear, he “has the bite to justify the bark”. Bellingham combines “elegance, movement and power” in a way that…

by Toby Benjamin Titan 144pp £39.99 The Week bookshop £31.99 (incl. p&p) According to Toby Benjamin, the cult 1987 movie Withnail and I is “one of the few virtually perfect films ever made”, said Dorian Lynskey in The Spectator. The story of two out-of-work actors (played by Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann) leading a dissolute existence at the end of the 1960s, the film manages to be many things at once: “a break-up movie, a last dance, an elegy wrapped in a comedy”. Benjamin’s “handsome scrapbook” – consisting of “interviews with key personnel, memorabilia” and more substantial essays – will delight its many fans. Particularly valuable is the “fabulously insightful” introduction by director Bruce Robinson, who has always been “famously reluctant to discuss” the film. The film was rooted…

Predictable sci-fi film starring Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal Dir: Garth Davis 1hr 50mins (15) This “solemn” sci-fi film imagines the year 2065 on an Earth devastated by climate change, said Robbie Collin in The Daily Telegraph. Hen (Saoirse Ronan) and her husband Junior (Paul Mescal) are scraping by on a farm in America, when Hen is told that Junior has been selected to be sent to a space station that will house humans once this planet has become uninhabitable. Hen, meanwhile, will be given an AI-powered clone of her husband to keep her company. The film spins a “convincing” dystopia, but you do long “for a bit of incident to liven things up”. It doesn’t help that Hen and Junior have one of those marriages that “don’t exist outside…

Fountain, by Marcel Duchamp, is seen as a landmark of the 20th century avant garde, says Dalya Alberge in The Observer. Duchamp displayed an ordinary porcelain urinal, signed “R. Mutt”, at an exhibition in New York in 1917. As a result, many laud him as the father of conceptual art, and others damn him as “a charlatan responsible for the demise of traditional artistry”. But now, new research by Glyn Thompson, an art historian, suggests that Fountain could not have been Duchamp’s idea; and that he stole it from a German Dada artist, Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven. The theory has been aired before, but art historians rejected it on the grounds that Freytag-Loringhoven would have claimed authorship, given how famous Fountain became. However, Thompson claims to have confirmed it by proving…

Clarrie and Eddie speculate about who could have daubed the graffiti onto the church door. Ian is frustrated that Adil isn’t answering his calls, what with the Grey Gables kitchen still undone. Oliver points out that finger-pointing won’t help, and when he and Lynda go to Adil’s bedroom to see if he’s there, they find it completely empty. There is, however, a letter from Adil addressed to Lynda – in which he says he’s had a family emergency. What with all the delays, Oliver cancels the opening gala of Grey Gables, to Pip’s bitter disappointment. Helen finds a can of red paint in Henry’s PE kit and realises that he must have done the graffiti, so Alan gets him to tidy the churchyard as penance. Oliver tells Clarrie and Eddie…

Thieves are targeting “liquid gold” The soaring price of olive oil across Europe isn’t just hitting the pockets of consumers, says Helena Smith in The Observer. It has also triggered a wave of thefts from producers and suppliers. In Spain, the world’s biggest olive oil producer, 50,000 litres of what Homer referred to as “liquid gold” were stolen in August during a raid on a mill in Córdoba. More recently, police seized 74 tonnes of stolen olives in the province of Seville. Similar thefts are on the rise in Greece: at least 37 tonnes of oil recently disappeared from a cooperative in Halkidiki, and 100kg were taken during a raid in southern Messina. There have even been reports of oil being stolen from graveyards, where clerics traditionally stockpile oil for…

SOURCE: THE DAILY TELEGRAPH…

Costa Rica in 15 days Discover the sea turtles of Tortuguero and Monteverde’s lush rainforests on a dream tour for nature lovers. From £1,899pp b&b (incl. flights & activities). 020-3411 3477, exoticca.com. Depart 18 May. Charming riverside stay A picture-perfect getaway in Fowey, Cornwall, with 2 nights at The Old Quay House Hotel. From £144pp b&b (incl. a two-course dinner). 020-3608 0135, secretescapes.com. Arrive 4 December. Half-board Mauritius escape Stay 9 nights at the Constance Belle Mare Plage hotel, nestled in 37 acres of lush, palm-strewn gardens. From £1,729pp (incl. flights). 020-3883 2859, holidaybuzz.co.uk. Depart 6 May. Eight-day Ireland rail tour Traverse the Wild Atlantic Way and discover the spectacular Cliffs of Moher. From £2,173pp b&b (incl. activities & guide; exl. flight). 020-8004 8886, theadventurepeople.com. Depart 2 June.…

Gina Rinehart The rise of Australia’s richest tycoon has been “littered with ruthless dealmaking, family feuds and litigation”, said the FT. Now, “iron lady” Gina Rinehart has set her sights on lithium. In a typically “gritty takeover battle” for control of local producer Liontown, she has “scuppered” the company’s agreed US$4.3bn deal with American giant Albemarle – and grabbed the prize for herself. Rinehart has transformed the fortunes of her father’s debt-ridden iron ore business, Hancock Prospecting, since inheriting it in 1992 – moving into mining, cattle ranching and energy, and “courting climate controversy along the way”. Now worth some $26bn, her shift to tap a crucial metal in the booming market for electric-car batteries is typically pragmatic. Rinehart, 69, moves in Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago crowd and is credited with…

What happened Labour secured by-election victories in two formerly safe Conservative seats last week, raising hopes in the party that Keir Starmer is on course for No. 10. In Nadine Dorries’s former seat of Mid Bedfordshire, Labour’s Alistair Strathern won by 1,192 votes, overturning a Tory majority of almost 25,000. In Tamworth, Sarah Edwards won by 1,316 votes, quashing the majority of nearly 20,000 held by the former Tory MP Chris Pincher, who had been forced out over sexual misconduct allegations. Starmer warned that Labour still has work to do if it is to win a general election, but said the results showed that his party “can now win anywhere”. That analysis was rejected by the Tory Party chair, Greg Hands: he said he didn’t “see any enthusiasm for Labour”…

Officials in a village in northern Spain are taking measures to prevent tourists from touching the trees in its protected redwood forest, because “tree-huggers” are damaging them. “The trees are weakening because of the people who come to hug them,” said the mayor of Cabezón de la Sal, Óscar López. “The bark is degraded – some even take pieces as souvenirs.” The vanity of British men is coming to the rescue of the country’s beleaguered high streets, The Times reports. According to analysis by the Local Data Company, the number of barber shops has increased by 815 over the past year, taking the total number of independent barber shops to 19,404 – just one fewer than the number of independent hairdressers.…

Seven people are confirmed to have died as a result of Storm Babet, which brought extreme rainfall, flooding and power cuts to swathes of Scotland, Wales and England last week. The first storm since 2020 to come with a red weather (rain) warning from the Met Office, it lasted several days, and forced hundreds from their homes. Among its victims was Maureen Gilbert, an 83-year-old who was found dead in her flooded home in Chesterfield, Derbyshire; and John Gillan, a 56-year-old who died when a tree fell on his van near Forfar in Angus. The storm also caused severe travel disruption. Numerous trains were cancelled or delayed; and at Leeds Bradford Airport, passengers had to be evacuated from a plane after it came off the runway while landing. Environment Secretary…

The real Keith Richards Keith Richards’ reputation as a wildman of rock’n’roll is well established, says Neil McCormick in The Daily Telegraph, but it was always exaggerated. His fellow Rolling Stone, Mick Jagger, recently described him as “a shy person”, and Richards himself has said that his image is “a ball and chain”, pointing out that no one could have survived the lifestyle attributed to him. He still likes a drink, but he forswore hard drugs years ago and quit smoking in 2019. Married to Patti Hansen for the past 40 years, he spends most of his time at their home in rural Connecticut, where he has built a library for his thousands of books. He is fascinated by history and is currently reading about Stradivarius. “I’ve always got a…

A 50-year-old man suspected of scamming 20 restaurants in Spain by faking heart attacks to avoid paying his bill has finally been arrested. The “dine and dasher” would get to the end of his meal – often consisting of rich and expensive dishes such as lobster and steak – and then dramatically clutch his chest and fall to the floor. But when he tried the trick at a tapas restaurant in Alicante, staff were not convinced and called the police. A suspected thief posed as a mannequin in order to steal from a department store in Poland. Police said that the 22-year-old, who hasn’t been named, stood motionless in the shop window next to a number of real mannequins until the shop closed, and he “felt it was safe”. He…

SWEDEN The myths swirling round a ferry disaster Dagens Nyheter (Sweden) It’s almost 30 years since the ferry Estonia sank between Stockholm and Tallinn, with the loss of 852 lives, says Bosse Lindquist – it was one of the worst civilian maritime accidents of the 20th century. Investigators quickly established why it happened: the bow visor, which is retracted to let cars on and off, had sheared off – the welded joints being too weak to withstand big waves – and the car deck had filled with water. Loath to take the blame, the German shipyard Meyer Werft claimed the disaster was due to neglect by the owners. Since then, “fantastic” theories have abounded: the Estonia was sunk by a Russian submarine, or a Swedish one; there was a collision.…

Simon Farnaby has revealed that there was a slight misunderstanding on set, when he and the late Queen (right), appeared in the much-loved skit in which she had tea at the Palace with Paddington Bear. Farnaby recalls that it required several takes because the director felt that the Queen’s tone was a bit on the harsh side. “[He] would come in and say: ‘Ma’am, could you just be a bit gentler?’ And she’d be so sweet and she’d go: ‘I’m so sorry, yes of course.’” Eventually, he urged her to imagine she was speaking to her grandchildren; and after the filming, Farnaby congratulated her on her “fantastic” performance. “You’re a very good actress,” he said. “Well of course,” she replied. “I do it all the time.” Farnaby assumed that she…

“Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers.”Gustave Flaubert, quoted on The Knowledge “Each one hopes that if he feeds the crocodile enough, the crocodile will eat him last.”Winston Churchill, quoted in The Bulwark “Sometimes I feel guilty because I feel like I travel through people. That’s true of a lot of ambitious people. You take what you can and then move on.”Madonna, quoted in The Daily Telegraph “The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.”Stephen Hawking, quoted in Forbes “The insomniac is not so much in dialogue with sleep as with the apocalypse.”Marie Darrieussecq, quoted in The Atlantic “War does not determine who is right, only who is left.”Attrib. Bertrand Russell, quoted in The Nation “Life’s too short to stuff…

With just one win in their opening three World Cup matches, England’s cricketers badly needed a victory over South Africa on Saturday, said Mike Atherton in The Times. What they got, instead, was a 229-run “shellacking” – their heaviest-ever defeat in ODI cricket. The day began with Jos Buttler making the illogical decision to put South Africa in to bat on a belting pitch. On a “brutal” afternoon in Mumbai, it ensured England “spent the best of four hours cooking in the Sun”, as South Africa racked up 399 – the highest-ever score against England in this format. By the time they came to bat, England’s batsmen were “frazzled and weary”. No wonder they offered scant resistance, and were bowled out for 170. England’s already stuttering World Cup campaign is…

To the Financial Times The Hamas incursion illustrates a long understood maxim – build a military, and eventually it will insist on being used. One doubts that the civilian authorities in Gaza approved of the incursion, or even knew it was going to occur. But clearly, Hamas’s military capabilities had been substantially enhanced by third parties, perhaps Iran, and they knew that they could succeed in inflicting real harm on Israelis. And leave it to others to clean up. Examples of this include Russia’s wars in Afghanistan and Ukraine, multiple US misadventures (Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq), and Israel’s own incursion into Lebanon. What does Israel do now? Hopefully, think intelligently, and act with humanity and forbearance. Vic Miller, United States To The Daily Telegraph The BBC and other outlets continually discuss…

by J.M. Coetzee Harvill Secker 272pp £20 The Week bookshop £15.99 “All writers go off”, the late Martin Amis once said. Happily, there are no signs that 83-year-old J.M. Coetzee is “running out of steam”, said James Purdon in Literary Review. The Nobel Prize-winner’s latest work – consisting of a new novella, The Pole, and five stories written over the past 20 years, four featuring his alter-ego Elizabeth Costello – reveals an author who has “slipped comfortably into a late style”. The novella, which charts a brief affair between Witold, a 72-year-old concert pianist, and Beatriz, a fortysomething banker’s wife, is Coetzee at his very best, said John Self in The Observer. It’s “lighter in tone” than his early novels, and the melding of story and ideas is “exquisite”. When…

Ambitious period drama about the murder of Native Americans Dir: Martin Scorsese 3hrs 26mins (15) At the age of 80, Martin Scorsese has produced one of his most significant films to date, said Matthew Bond in The Mail on Sunday, and it is an extraordinary achievement, featuring “compelling performances from Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, with the lesser-known Lily Gladstone quietly proving every bit their equal”. There is a “modest downside” for English audiences, which is that it’s about a relatively small chapter in early 20th century US history that will be unfamiliar to most viewers here; and the film is “three-and-a-half buttock-numbing hours long”. But don’t let that put you off: this is a “spectacular-looking picture” about the “depths that human nature can descend to when vast wealth…

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell, 1854 (Penguin £5.99). This novel was a revelation, my father being from the North and my mother from the South. I played John Thornton for the BBC adaptation and it was a totally immersive role for me, and a breakthrough in my career. Gaskell’s observations of gender politics and social commentary on a rapidly industrialised society are razor sharp. Life on Air by David Attenborough, 2002 (Ebury £9.99). There will never be anyone like David Attenborough; his voice alone conjures up our natural environment and the necessity to protect and nurture it. This autobiography is a beautiful account of his humble beginnings and path into TV. Humorous and heartfelt. Daylight by Rumi (Shambhala £13.99). No matter one’s faith, Rumi’s poetry transcends time and place.…

Programmes Britain’s Human Zoos The novelist Nadifa Mohamed explores the history of “human zoos” – the public displays of people, often from African countries, that were popular across Europe at the turn of the century. Sat 28 Oct, C4 21:25 (60mins). Prime Suspect: Who Took Madeleine McCann? Richard Bilton, who has followed the case since its earliest days, investigates Christian Brueckner, the man now suspected of abducting and killing McCann. Mon 30 Oct, BBC1 20:00 (60mins). Rhod Gilbert: A Pain in the Neck for SU2C Intimate documentary that follows the comedian through the months following his diagnosis with head and neck cancer. Mon 30 Oct, C4 21:00 (60mins). Films Gravity (2013) Alfonso Cuarón’s sci-fi thriller about two astronauts (Sandra Bullock and George Clooney) who are stranded in space. Sat 28…

This is less a recipe than a rough template for a dish, to be adapted as you see fit, says Joe Woodhouse. You can use whatever peas or beans you like, but my favourite are Bold Bean Co’s Queen Carlin Peas (see below). Feel free also to play around with the spices. It’s a perfect dish for a Bonfire Night gathering, served with rice or other grains, or eaten as it is with some yoghurt and herbs on top. Serves 4, or 8 if served with rice or grains 700g jarred Bold Bean Co Queen Carlin Peas 3 tbsp olive oil 2 onions, diced 2 carrots, tops removed, diced 2 peppers, stalks and most of the seeds removed, diced 2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes 1 tsp ground coriander 1…

• Total sleep time declines with age by as much as ten minutes per decade; we also spend more time in lighter sleep. We’re all different, but if you get between seven and nine hours of sleep in all, then don’t worry. • Avoid sleep trackers – they just provide data, and there’s little you can do to make yourself sleep more deeply. • A very small nightcap can help you feel calm and sleepy before bed, but if you drink much more, you’re likely to wake up a few hours later. Avoid drinking much of anything within a few hours of bed, as you’ll be more likely to wake up needing the toilet. • Try going to bed later if you are waking up in the night, but always…

Sir Bobby Charlton 1937-2023 Sir Bobby Charlton, who has died aged 86, was one of the finest footballers England has ever produced, said The Guardian – and undoubtedly the most successful. A member of the team that won England the World Cup in 1966, he also won, with his beloved Manchester United, the FA Cup, the Football League and the European Cup. Known for his grace and balance, “raking passes and explosive long-range shots, with either foot”, he scored 49 goals for England in 106 appearances, and 249 in 758 games for United – a record only surpassed by Wayne Rooney in 2017. He embodied a golden age of English football, but was also involved in one of the game’s “darkest moments”, the 1958 Munich air disaster. Charlton became one…

One of the great promises dangled by exchange traded funds (ETFs), which passively track a given index or asset price, is low fees. That’s one reason for their surge in popularity among investors. “Some categories are pretty esoteric,” said Robin Wigglesworth on FT Alphaville. So much so that, in 2016, senior industry figures began warning of the potentially dire consequences of an investment approach likened by Ben Johnson of research firm Morningstar “to blasting a spaghetti cannon at a wall and seeing what sticks”. Seven years later, the industry and investors are still blowing raspberries at those warnings. Following a splurge of new ETFs last month, there are now more than 10,000 ETFs on the global market, offering a smorgasbord of themes and niche portfolios. “We hate to be Luddites…

The week’s best shares Builders FirstSource The Daily Telegraph This US builders’ merchant makes roof and floor trusses, windows and house frames to speed construction and lower labour costs. Improved automation has boosted margins. A favourite with top fund managers. Buy. $109.28. Diploma The Daily Telegraph The specialist technical products supplier – gaskets, wiring, seals – is snapping up cheap assets to strengthen its competitive advantage and growth potential, while boosting revenues. Dividends should rise. Buy. £29.42. Frasers Group The Sunday Times The sports retailer is sprucing up stores, diversifying into luxury and investing in digital. The acquisition of Germany’s SportScheck, with 34 prime city stores, should be popular with big brands such as Adidas and Nike. Buy. 789p. Pebble Group The Mail on Sunday Pebble supplies responsibly sourced promotional…

THE WEEK CROSSWORD 1386 Two Connell Guides and three Week-branded items will be given to the sender of the first correct solution to the crossword and the clue of the week opened on Monday 6 November. Send it to The Week Crossword 1386, 121-141 Westbourne Terrace, London W2 6JR, or email the completed grid/listed solutions to crossword@theweek.co.uk. Tim Moorey (timmoorey.com) This week’s winner will receive Week merchandise – notebook, coffee mug and tote bag – as well as two Connell Guides (connellguides.com). ACROSS 1 Two containers in a hopeless state (6,4) 6 Broadcast with cracking aria not finished (4) 10 Cheers someone doomed (5) 11 Quiet, slow walking? (9) 12 Calming influence finally found in second case (8) 13 It’s never left in Kirkcudbrightshire (5) 15 One’s not pro American…

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Marks & Spencer has become the first major high-street retailer to launch a plastic-free, fully recyclable takeaway coffee cup. The cup, which is made of paper fibre, is already available at 20 sites, and will be rolled out to every M&S Food café over the next few months. It has a lining that replicates the barrier effect of the plastic that makes normal takeaway cups unrecyclable, and which is said to perform just as well as plastic. If the cup does end up in landfill, it will gradually break down. A duck that was born with a twisted leg that left it unable to walk has been given a new lease of life thanks to a 3D-printed limb. Hope, a runner duck, was born in Germany to a flock kept…

Dame Maggie Smith, who was named as the new face of the Spanish fashion house Loewe, at the age of 88. Loewe is the latest in a string of luxury brands to recruit a well-loved star of an older vintage to promote its wares: Dame Mary Berry, also 88, recently modelled a scarf for Burberry; while Vanessa Redgrave, 86, sat front row at Roksanda at London Fashion Week last month. Landlords, with news that the Government is delaying its plan to end “no-fault” Section 21 evictions in England, until reforms to the judicial system have been completed. The Government has promised to ban the evictions to give tenants more security, but some Tory MPs argue that this will drive landlords out of the market, causing rents to rise even higher.…

The Government has announced that it is ending its contracts with 50 of the roughly 400 hotels that are currently being used to accommodate asylum seekers. According to data from June, more than 50,000 refugees are housed in hotels at a cost of £8m a day. Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick described this as “unsustainable”. The Home Office is now making 4,000 asylum decisions a month, double the number this time last year. However, the FT reports that the proportion of applications deemed “withdrawn” has also more than doubled – to 43% of decided cases – raising suspicion that the figures are being massaged.…

1 Les Fleurs by Charles Stepney and Richard Rudolph, performed by Minnie Riperton 2 My Heart’s in the Highlands by Robert Burns (arranged by Arvo Pärt), performed by Else Torp and Christopher Bowers-Broadbent 3 Do Ya Wanna Funk, written and performed by Patrick Cowley and Sylvester 4 Big Time Sensuality (The Fluke Magimix) by Björk and Nellee Hooper, performed by Björk 5 Harry Patch (In Memory Of) by Colin Greenwood, Jonny Greenwood, Ed O’Brien, Philip Selway and Thom Yorke, performed by Radiohead 6* Kill Dem, written and performed by Jamie xx 7 Get Better by Gus Unger-Hamilton, Joe Newman and Thom Sonny Green, performed by Alt-J 8 I Saw by Alloysious Massaquoi, Graham “G” Hastings and Kayus Bankole, performed by Young Fathers Book: Green Woodwork by Mike Abbott Luxury: set of woodworking tools * Choice if allowed only one…

The arrival of Asian hornets mirrors a global trend: the spread of invasive species by human activity. According to the UN-backed Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, at least 37,000 alien species, from rabbits to jellyfish to kudzu vines, have been introduced to different regions and biomes around the world by human trade and travel. Invasive species are linked to around 60% of global plant and animal extinctions; they pose a threat to nature, food security and human health, and carry an estimated cost of over $400bn a year. Although Britain is an island nation, it’s not immune to the threat. There are now more than 3,000 invasive species in Britain, including well-established animals such as grey squirrels and muntjac deer, to more recent arrivals such as American…

Dams be damned: let the rivers free Richard Parker Los Angeles Times For more than 100 years, America’s rivers have been held back by countless huge dams, says Richard Parker. These structures – the most famous of which is the Hoover Dam, completed in 1936 – were the “engineering marvels” of their time. Today, however, they’re increasingly seen as a liability, owing to their negative effects on migratory fish species, Native American cultures and the land itself. As dams have clogged up with silt over the decades, their capacity to generate hydroelectric power and provide predictable sources of water has fallen, while other forms of renewable energy have become cheaper, and the risk of disastrous breaches in poorly maintained structures has risen. This has led to a growing trend across…

A “smart” cap that reads electrical activity in the brain can help ambulance crews identify which stroke patients are in need of emergency surgery, saving valuable time, a study has found. Around 100,000 people in the UK have a stroke each year; most are caused when a clot stops blood from reaching part of the brain, and prompt treatment is vital to minimise damage. Clots in small vessels can be treated with blood thinners at any hospital, but larger ones require surgery at a specialist hospital. Used in the ambulance, the EEG cap (which can be placed on the head with no need for shaving) would enable medics to quickly determine which patients have larger clots, so that they’re taken straight to the right hospital. In a real-world trial in…

If there was one saving grace for the Tories from last week’s twin by-election defeats, said Henry Hill on CapX, it was that the results removed any “lingering delusions” about how much trouble the party is in. After the last round of by-election disasters in July, Conservatives were able to draw comfort from their surprise victory in Uxbridge. This time, there was no such consolation. It was an unmitigated rout. It’s now clear that if there is any path to victory for the Tories in the next general election, “it does not, can not, lie in 12 more months of steady as she goes”. They will have to plot a different course. “The problem is, what alternative is there? The party seems genuinely out of ideas.” The Tories are running…

In view of their uninspiring recent form, few people gave England much of a hope in their World Cup semi-final against South Africa, said Gavin Mairs in The Daily Telegraph. Yet on a rainswept night in Paris, Steve Borthwick’s side came agonisingly close to pulling off “one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history”. For most of the contest, they dominated the defending champions, and led 15-6 with 11 minutes to play – before a determined Springbok recovery shattered their dreams in the “cruellest of circumstances”. First, an R.G. Snyman try “from a driving line-out maul” took South Africa to within two points of their opponents. Then, with two minutes left on the clock, after England had conceded a penalty on the halfway line, substitute fly-half Handre Pollard produced…

F1 Lewis Hamilton was disqualified from the US Grand Prix after his car failed a plank-wear inspection. The race was won by Max Verstappen – the Dutchman’s 15th victory of the season. Football Tottenham moved into top place in the Premier League with a 2-0 victory over Fulham. Manchester City beat Brighton 2-1, and Arsenal and Chelsea drew 2-2. In the Women’s Super League, Man United beat Everton 5-0. Cricket India’s former captain Bishan Bedi has died at the age of 77. The left-arm spinner played in 67 Tests, taking 266 wickets.…

Bristol Old Vic (0117-987 7877). Until 11 November Running time: 2hrs 30mins The Bristol Old Vic – the “oldest continuously working theatre in the English-speaking world”, built in 1766 – is under new leadership, said Dominic Cavendish in The Daily Telegraph. Nancy Medina hails from New York, but she did her MA at the Old Vic’s theatre school, and is now back as artistic director, replacing Tom Morris. Her watchwords are community, “music, joy and resilience”, and the focus of her first season is on raising spirits. She has planned a festive staging of Arabian Nights, and a musical based on David Nicholls’s Starter for Ten, transposed to Bristol. But first up, as a “statement of invigorating intent”, Medina has directed this lithe and ebullient revival of Choir Boy, by…

Cautious portrait of the late John le Carré Dir: Errol Morris 1hr 32mins (Apple TV+) Errol Morris’s documentaries “have got to the heart of figures ranging from Stephen Hawking to Donald Rumsfeld, but in John le Carré he has found a subject as unknowable as he is eloquent”, said Jake Kerridge in The Daily Telegraph. The spy novelist, who died in 2020, explains that he cannot help the people who “want to unmask me”, because to do that, “I [would] need to know what is behind the mask”. The film intersperses interviews with le Carré (real name David Cornwell) with archival material, clips from screen adaptations of his work, and dramatised scenes from his life, said Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian. And though Morris’s interview technique is “deferential and unthreatening”,…

Benjamin Senior at Carl Freedman Gallery British artist Benjamin Senior (b.1982) describes himself as that most unfashionable of things: “a social realist”. The reality, however, is much more interesting. He walks the streets of his London neighbourhood searching for scenes – teenage girls watching videos on their phones at a bus stop, customers outside a hair salon – and transforms them into mannered visions in egg tempera, giving everyday subjects the dignity of religious figures in early Italian Renaissance painting. In Senior’s hands, crates displaying fruit and veg outside a Peckham cornershop become treasure chests displaying precious jewels; smoke from a cigarette shared between colleagues on a fag break seems like an aspect of a mystic ritual. The omnipresent street graffiti, meanwhile, seems near-runic. Not everything in this exhibition, entitled…

Northern Lights, Newcastle, is a new milelong trail featuring music and illuminations in Leazes Park, with refreshments and vintage fairground rides (23 Nov-1 Jan, from £13.50; northernlightsnewcastle.com). Sheffield Cathedral’s Illuminated: Starlight will have kaleidoscopic multisensory projections highlighting the cathedral’s architectural features (5-9 Dec, free outside, inside from £5; sheffieldcathedral.org). Chester Zoo has added festive soundscapes to its Lanterns and Light trail, which has an ultraviolet walkway, a life-size mammoth and colour-shifting rainforests (17 Nov-31 Dec, from £12; chesterzoo.org). Cambridge Botanic Lights will showcase sculptural trees, fountains and greenhouses in the Botanic Garden, with food and hot drinks available (Thur-Sun 1-22 Dec, from £13.20; botanic.cam.ac.uk). SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN…

Trampling grapes in Georgia People have been making wine in Georgia for 8,000 years – longer than anywhere else on Earth – and the industry is booming today. In the “vineyard-laden” Kakheti region, anyone is welcome to join in the Rtveli, or autumn harvest, says Camilla Bell-Davies in the FT. To get involved, contact family-run wineries that have guesthouses (such as the Kviria, in Telavi), or go with a tour operator such as Wild Frontiers. You won’t get paid, and the work will leave your back aching and your fingers “stained purple”. But you will get to trample the grapes (“pure pleasure, like squelching mud between the toes”) and to join in the owners’ celebratory feasts, at which the tables groan with barbecued meat, khachapuri (cheesy bread) and bottles of…

Apple/Foxconn/WPP: ripples under the surface On his visit to China last week, Apple boss Tim Cook had a meeting with the Chinese commerce minister, Wang Wentao, and expressed his desire for “win-win” collaborations with partners in China, where 95% of Apple products are made. Beneath the surface, however, all is not calm, said Bloomberg. Not only is the latest iPhone 15 being trounced in a key market by Huawei’s 5G-capable Mate 60 phones, but Beijing has reportedly banned some staff at government agencies and state-owned firms from using iPhones “for security reasons”. That exercise in tit-for-tat diplomacy “wiped billions off Apple’s stock market value”, said DealBook in The New York Times. Investors won’t be cheered by news that the company’s manufacturing partner, Foxconn, which runs “the world’s biggest iPhone factory”,…

Markets have their own view of history Ruchir Sharma Financial Times Stock markets drifted downwards this week, but on the whole, says Ruchir Sharma, traders have remained “relatively calm in the geopolitical storm” – even in the face of mounting warnings from “serious voices” that this is “the most dangerous time in living memory”. There has been no “rush to safety in bond markets” and “little drama in oil prices either”. It’s as if markets have decided that the Israel/Gaza conflict will fall short of the dire predictions, as is actually often the case. A study of 25 of the most significant geopolitical crises since 1945 shows that, after “an initial impulsive sell-off”, losses are usually quickly recovered. It seems that, as a group, investors respond to emergencies differently to…