From world record breakers to the most iconic image of all time, these are Guardian Australia’s top three photos for April. Photographer and picture editor, Carly Earl, hand-picks three photographs as her favourites every month and explains the craft and composition that makes them special. April’s edition includes a quiet, intimate moment of record-breaking athlete, Gout Gout, a picture perfect court shot of Kyle Sandilands and an awe-inspiring image of Planet Earth that puts everything in ...

Several European countries, including Sweden, covered Auction outcome will be welcomed by clubs and leagues Disney+ has secured live rights for men’s Champions League matches for the first time, with Uefa attracting a new buyer in the auction of broadcast packages for its flagship club competition. Disney has been named as the preferred bidder in several European countries, one of which is understood to be Sweden, in the auction of 19 TV markets for the 2027-31 cycle that concluded this wee...

The earnings from the tournament in the US, Mexico and Canada will make it the most lucrative competition in the history of sport, even if some of the 48 competing countries say they are struggling to make ends meet A World Cup that Fifa’s president, Gianni Infantino, billed at the draw last December as “the greatest event that humanity has ever seen” will certainly be the most lucrative competition in sporting history. Fifa has spent the last few years upgrading its revenue projections, with...

Before Nottingham Forest face Aston Villa in the Europa League, we look at seven other all-English semi-final clashes in Europe There can be few more enjoyable feelings for an away player than to silence Anfield. Billy Bremner did so in the first leg of this tie when he headed home unmarked to score what turned out to be the only goal across 180 minutes of action. John Toshack tried to respond but his shot was blocked on the line as Leeds’ fearsome defence defied Liverpool. “If you miss chanc...

This portrait of everyday life in an Istanbul neighbourhood buffeted by change has far wider relevance Thankfully, the attack left only black eyes and bloodied faces. It was in Karagümrük, a tough neighbourhood in Istanbul’s old city, once known for mafia types and Turks on the hard right. But, as Suzy Hansen explains, it had been transformed by an influx of Syrian refugees – until the locals apparently decided they’d had enough, and came for them with sticks, baseball bats and knives for car...

A writer’s retreat to the remote Irish hotel in which his parents spent their honeymoon brings him face-to-face with all manner of creepy goings-on in a gruesome and eccentric black-comic shocker Adam Scott has an unexpectedly dark, unsympathetic character to play in this black-comic supernatural horror which thumps you with some pretty efficient jump scares. He plays Ohm, a successful American writer brooding over the brutally nihilistic ending to his latest novel; he is also lonely, sliding...

Small top-tier Android is great to use, being fast, AI-loaded and with reasonable battery life, but falls short of rivals on camera Samsung’s compact flagship phone hasn’t changed much in a year, but the S26 is still one of the best smaller handsets available as rivals grow larger and larger. The S26 is the cheapest and smallest of this year’s top Samsungs, dwarfed by the top-of-the-line S26 Ultra in size and price. But like everything with a memory chip at the moment, the S26 has increased i...

Consumer insight tracker shows 85% are worried about food prices and a majority think the economy will deteriorate Three million UK households are being forced to skip meals as consumers resort to drastic measures to deal with rising costs, according to a Which? report published on Thursday. The conflict in the Middle East and subsequent surge in oil and raw material prices has led to businesses preparing to raise prices, putting more pressure on household finances and hitting consumer confid...

It showcased the biggest stars of the day, including Stan Laurel, Harry Houdini, Morecambe and Wise and Shirley Bassey, before becoming a bingo hall, a church and a squat. It was almost turned into flats. What next for Manchester’s forgotten music hall? It doesn’t look like much from the outside. An inelegant, industrial redbrick block; if you didn’t know, you might guess it’s a biscuit factory. Make that a former biscuit factory, because this is clearly somewhere that was rather than is: ent...

Test yourself on topical news trivia, pop culture and general knowledge on the the fifth anniversary of our quiz. How will you fare? It is time for the Thursday news quiz – and this week marks our fifth birthday. Like the elephant in our illustration by Anaïs Mims, we have a long memory, and we are quietly delighted to still be here asking you questions after all this time. We are also grateful for all the comments and emails over the years – not least because this was pitched as an eight-wee...

Elusive nightingale ‘doing well’ at Northward Hill, Kent, but experts cite concerns around loss of habitat The dawn chorus at RSPB Northward Hill in Kent is a riot of sound: the melodic robin, the two-tone cuckoo, the whitethroat’s scratchy warble. Even the garbling geese and mooing cows from the neighbouring Thames marshes add to the symphony. But in late April one energetic singer hogs the limelight. For a few weeks after arriving from West Africa, the nightingale spends the night – and ear...

Police say a body, believed to be that of the missing five-year-old, was found by search and rescue teams on Thursday, 5km from where she was last seen alive • Warning: This article contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Police have found the body of a child believed to be that of a missing five-year-old girl. The Northern Territory police commissioner, Ma...

Madeleine Finlay sits down with co-host and Guardian science editor Ian Sample to talk through three eye-catching stories from the week, including the news that the number of years people in the UK are spending in good health has declined compared with a decade ago. Also on the agenda is the science, tech and nutrition behind two runners at this weekend’s London marathon breaking the two-hour threshold, and an answer to why some old houses feel particularly spooky People in UK spend fewer yea...

My country has been under occupation, dogged by corruption and war. Yet even I’ve been bewildered by the way the US seems to be fracturing A version of this piece appeared in the Dial under the headline No Common Ground In 2008, when I was a reporter for a leading Ukrainian TV station, I insisted on following Barack Obama’s campaign for US president. Few Ukrainian media outlets could afford to send a journalist to travel around the US to report on the election; even the newsrooms of those t...

Australian white supremacist who murdered 51 Muslims said poor mental health made him admit to crimes The Australian white supremacist who murdered 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019 has been prevented from appealing against his guilty pleas, after one of New Zealand’s highest courts said his bid was “utterly devoid of merit”. Brenton Tarrant, who is responsible for the worst mass shooting in New Zealand’s history, asked the court of appeal in February to allow him t...

The cookbook author and food stylist shares a trio of simmer winners – just in time for soup season Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email (Pictured above) Continue reading...

The painting by self-taught artist Sean Layh was chosen by the Art Gallery of NSW staff who hang the finalists, ahead of the main announcement on 8 May Archibald prize 2026 finalists: Virginia Trioli, Jan Fran, Ahmed al-Ahmed and more – in pictures A portrait of actor Jacob Collins by Sean Layh has won the favour of Art Gallery of NSW staff, who awarded it the Packing Room prize on Thursday, ahead of the Archibald prize’s main announcement on 8 May. Layh, a self-taught painter, said winning...

Or is it the gaslight on the hill? See more of Fiona Katauskas’s cartoons here Continue reading...

Fremantle midfielder reveals he has experienced suicidal thoughts Family and teammates offer love and support after social media post The family and teammates of Nathan O’Driscoll have expressed love and support for the Fremantle midfielder after he posted an unfiltered account on social media of his mental health challenges. The 23-year-old, who has played just twice this year for his home town club the Dockers, shared on Instagram that he has been close three times to committing suicide, ...

USS Gerald R Ford to sail home after 10-month spell including role in Maduro capture and Middle East war The world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, will be heading home following a record-setting deployment of more than 300 days that included participating in the war against Iran and capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, two US officials said Wednesday. The Ford will be leaving the Middle East in the coming days and returning to its home port in Virginia in mid-May, a...

The Metropolitan police have released bodycam footage showing the moment a man suspected of stabbing two men in Golders Green, north London, was arrested by two officers. He was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder after officers used a stun gun to subdue him. Police are treating the incident as an act of terrorism, stating that the suspect had appeared to be hunting anyone 'visibly Jewish'. The UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, condemned the attack as 'utterly appalling'. Th...

Syrian officials say a group of Australians are ‘awaiting a solution’ as Albanese government refuses to repatriate them The Trump administration says it is in “active communication” with countries, urging them to repatriate citizens stranded in Syria, while the Australian government maintains its hardline stance towards Australian women and children detained since the fall of Islamic State. A group of four women, their nine children and grandchildren left al-Roj camp, in Syria’s north-east, l...

There is no such thing as the Bond Dealers party, but there might as well be – the people who trade in UK debt exert a stranglehold over our politics The days of two-party politics are over. When voters go to the polls in England next week, they will have five main contenders to choose from. In Scotland and Wales, the nationalists make it a six-strong race. This fragmentation reflects the deep discontent with Labour and the Conservatives. One thing in common between the Greens and Reform UK i...

Tender by Dave Harris follows the male strippers at the failing Dancing Bears Club. Its playwright and stars discuss sex, power and their research trip to Magic Mike Live When the LA wildfires burned last year, playwright Dave Harris watched as everyone’s “crisis personalities” emerged. “Mine,” he recalls, “was that I was incredibly horny.” During that period, when the power was out and he could see flames in two directions, he busied himself with three activities: “Having a lot of sex with m...

Fadi Saqr is accused of mass killings of civilians in Tadamon, Damascus, where people say he must face justice A Syrian rights commission is preparing a case accusing Fadi Saqr, a militia leader within the Assad regime, of involvement in crimes against humanity and war crimes, a senior Syrian official has told the Guardian. Saqr is a former commander of the National Defence Forces (NDF) militia and is widely accused of involvement in the mass killing and forcible disappearance of civilians in...

The natural world is the headliner at these joyous gatherings, while the support acts include live music, immersive art and fire ceremonies Winner of the UK’s best micro-festival in 2025, Between the Trees returns to Candleston Woods in the spectacular Merthyr Mawr national nature reserve (between Cardiff and Swansea) this year. Designed to reconnect people to the natural world, the programme features science and nature activities, folk music and storytelling. Workshops in the Eco Hub include...

Taiwanese officials have accused firms in China of attempting to evade import restrictions by rerouting vegetables through neighbouring Vietnam Taipei has accused China of smuggling vegetables into Taiwan via Vietnam in a bid to evade import restrictions, with officials vowing to crack down on a practice they say amounts to “origin washing”. Taiwan, which bans the importation of more than 1,000 Chinese agricultural and fishery products, said firms in China were evading restrictions by rerou...

Jeff Pope, whose ITV drama Believe Me tells the story of survivors of the ‘black-cab rapist,’ says police must change how sexual assault cases are dealt with Violence against women is “at breaking point” and the justice system needs to change, according to the writer of new ITV drama Believe Me about the survivors of “black-cab rapist” John Worboys. Jeff Pope, who is also writing a BBC drama about the murder of Sarah Everard, said he wanted to tell these stories because “something needs to ha...

The Welsh seaside resort has already seen a fall in offending and drug use, now a £20m investment and a fresh approach to building job skills is bringing new opportunities for under-25s Killing time playing pool at the West Rhyl youth club, friends Sienna, 19, and Jake, 26, are unanimous when asked what a tour of the north Wales seaside town should look like. “The first place I’d show anyone is ‘Crackhead Circle’,” Sienna says. The small public garden behind the town hall and a paved area by ...

Learn Cornish launched few months after language given new level of protection Listeners tuning in to the BBC’s latest podcast offering on Friday may find themselves saying dydh da to a language that is enjoying something of a resurgence. The new programme called Learn Cornish will be fronted by the Radio 1 host Danni Diston and includes guests such as the Bafta-winning director Mark Jenkin. Diston, who is from north Cornwall, said that she initially did not know any Cornish “other than smal...

Victoria, WA and Tasmania had supported privatising Big Bash CA boss Todd Greenberg rules out increasing gambling revenue Cricket Australia’s plan to sell off stakes in the eight Big Bash League franchises has been placed on hold after Queensland joined New South Wales in rejecting the original privatisation proposal. Queensland Cricket, which controls BBL side Brisbane Heat, has backed Cricket NSW’s opposition to CA’s plan to sell up to 49% of each franchise to private owners, with valuat...

Everlee Wihongi, 37, holds a green card but was detained upon her return to Los Angeles due to an issue with a historic conviction for marijuana possession The family of a New Zealand woman detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is pleading with the New Zealand government to help secure her release, claiming she is confined to a room with 46 people for 22 hours a day. Everlee Wihongi, 37, moved to the US with her family aged six, and holds a green card, her mother, Betty Wih...

He painted sea battles, the labours of Hercules and breathtaking still lifes. But, as a major new exhibition makes clear, it was in his thrilling depictions of the spiritual that the Spanish master showed his true genius Against an impenetrable black ground, the crucified figure looms pale and shining. There’s almost no colour, beyond the trickle of blood on Christ’s feet from the nails driven through his flesh. His head slumps, and his carefully modelled face is at peace (no agony here). But...

Gothenburg promised to optimise school admissions with a piece of code. The resulting chaos showed how unaccountable systems are ruining lives We like to imagine that injustice announces itself loudly. That when something goes wrong in the public system, alarms go off and someone takes responsibility or is held accountable if they do not. But in 2020 in Gothenburg, injustice arrived quietly, disguised as efficiency. For the first time, the city used an algorithm to allocate places in its scho...

Oil markets spooked as Donald Trump appears willing to maintain the US Navy blockade and Iran keeps strait of Hormuz all but shut The price of Brent oil soared above $126 a barrel on Wednesday, its highest level since 2022, after Donald Trump warned the US blockade of Iranian ports could last months and peace talks remained stalled. Surging more than 13% in 24 hours, Brent crude hit a record price since the war began on 28 February. Not since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has Brent topped...

Claudio Neves Valente, who killed himself after deadly attack, began planning for violence in 2022, authorities say The gunman behind a deadly shooting at Brown University in December appeared to have been aggrieved by personal failures and sought retribution against those he deemed responsible, federal authorities said on Wednesday. More than four months after Claudio Manuel Neves Valente opened fire on the Ivy League campus, killing two students and injuring nine others, officials with the ...

Court’s 6-3 decision is a major upheaval in US civil rights law and gives lawmakers permission to draw districting plans that weaken the influence of Black and other minority voters– key US politics stories from Wednesday 29 April at a glance The US supreme court has ruled that Louisiana will have to redraw its congressional map, in a landmark decision that effectively guts a major section of the Voting Rights Act, the landmark 1965 civil rights law that prevents racial discrimination in voti...

Interim report contains 14 recommendations, after inquiry examined agencies’ actions before the attack in which 15 people were killed The federal government’s counter-terrorism coordinator should be a full-time position, and the prime minister and national security ministers need training in responding to terrorist incidents, an interim royal commission report has found. The interim report of the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion has handed down 14 recommendations – five of...

Indictment accuses high-level officials in Sinaloa of offences such as drug trafficking, weapons offences and kidnapping The US justice department has charged the governor of Sinaloa and nine other current and former officials for alleged ties to the Sinaloa cartel, accusing them of aiding in the massive importation of illicit narcotics into the United States . Some officials were members of Mexico’s progressive ruling party, Morena, posing a political conundrum for Mexican president Claudi...

Vote comes on same day the US supreme court rolls back a key provision of the Voting Rights Act The Florida legislature approved a new congressional map intended to maximize Republicans’ advantage in the state as part of the national redistricting battle that Donald Trump launched before this year’s midterms. The vote came just two days after the governor, Ron DeSantis, unveiled his proposal and the same day the US supreme court rolled back a key provision of the Voting Rights Act. The decisi...

The government has announced £25m to increase security for Jewish communities Morning. The home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, said she understands the fears faced by the Jewish community in the UK as the government announced extra funding to boost police patrols and protections around synagogues, schools and community centres. Speaking on BBC Breakfast, she was pressed on comments made by the chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, that people in the UK who are visibly Jewish are no longer safe, after two...

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is formidable in Netflix’s take on the thriller novel Denzel Washington turned into a noughties action movie. But it’s a great lesson in why shows don’t normally have a glum high-octane hero Who doesn’t love a thriller in which a lone wolf takes down an all-powerful criminal network? Jack Reacher, Ethan Hunt, whatsisname from The Night Agent – however adverse the circumstances, these capable chaps will prevail. Hand-to-hand combat against a highly trained ninja henchman?...

John Terry’s journey into the internet pipeline is by no means an isolated case – what makes footballers so susceptible? And so we ask ourselves: how did it come to this? Did we miss the signs? Were there red flags that went unheeded, cries for help that fell on closed ears, forks in the road not taken? Or ultimately, for all our best efforts, was it always going to end like this? Is it, in fact, possible that John Terry was a far-right sympathiser all along? Yes, it’s been a chastening week ...

Carol thinks Scandinavian-style sandwiches are unwieldy and messy, while Lucas wants to get the most from his fillings. You decide who’s the bread winner • Find out how to get a disagreement settled or become a juror Food should not fall out while you eat a sandwich, and your hands shouldn’t be sticky with sauce Two slices of bread feels a bit excessive. It’s too much bread compared with the filling Continue reading...

From golf tournaments to shooting parties, these images of photographer Will Vogt’s social circle offer us an intimate glimpse of a world that feels out of reach Continue reading...

WPP accused of breaching its climate policy after report reveals firm linked to twice as much oil advertising as US rivals A British advertising conglomerate has helped the oil companies ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell and BP spend an estimated $1.5bn (£1.1bn) on adverts in the US since the 2015 Paris agreement to tackle the climate crisis, a report shows. London-based WPP was the leading advertising group serving the US’s oil industry over the past decade, according to analysis by the climate inv...

Some travellers spent hours in lines at airport, with kiosks not working, little seating and few staff on hand to help Some travellers passing through the new EU entry-exit system (EES) have faced huge delays at border checks, with some waiting for up to three hours, airports say. The new rules have gradually been introduced in Europe since October 2025, and came into effect on Friday in the Schengen countries – 25 of the EU’s 27 states plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. Co...

In the 1980s, Labour-controlled London built 52,000 council homes. During the Tony Blair decade, just 280. It’s brought this local-election catastrophe on itself Over the week to come, journalists will repeat three things until they, and you, are sick: that local elections fall next Thursday; that the results will decide the fate of Keir Starmer; and that he is set to do badly. But just how badly, and where? Last week, Starmer’s own party dropped a big clue. The most popular politician in Bri...

Crab pasta done (mostly) the River Cafe way, with an ‘electric sauce’ of olive oil, red chilli, parsley, garlic and lemon My copy of the River Cafe Cookbook is silver, having lost its original blue sleeve some years ago. Naked, the hardback cover is completely plain, so it is my handwriting of “River Cafe blue” along the metallic spine, even though there is little chance of mixing it up with the yellow softback River Cafe Cookbook Two or the emerald cover of River Cafe Cookbook Green. Blue wa...

Musician and his wife, a creative consultant, hope the Hodge Podge can expand ideas of creativity and community A new exhibition curated by Jarvis Cocker and his wife, the creative consultant Kim Sion, will open at Hepworth Wakefield next year, aiming to encourage people to discover their own creativity. Opening in May 2027, the Hodge Podge will bring together a personal selection of works challenging conventional ideas of what art can be. Continue reading...

Police say a body, believed to be that of the missing five-year-old, was found by search and rescue teams on Thursday, 5km from where she was last seen alive •Warning: This article contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Police have found the body of a child believed to be that of a missing five-year-old girl . Northern Territory police commissioner Martin Dole told reporters the tragic discovery was made just before midday on Thursday. Continue reading...

In 1980, two US airmen reported an extraordinary encounter near a military base in the east of England. What really happened? In 1996, Nick Pope wrote his first book. Open Skies, Closed Minds was a semi-autobiographical examination of well-known UFO cases mixed with his own research. Pope worked at the UK Ministry of Defence for more than two decades, from 1985 to 2006. For three of those years – 1991 to 1994 – he worked on what was known colloquially in the department as “the UFO desk”. The ...

Once the Madrid museum’s biggest draw, The Year of the Famine in Madrid fell out of favour for political and aesthetic reasons No trip to the Prado these days is complete without a visit to room 12 of the Madrid museum, where Diego Velázquez, a five-year-old princess and a sleepy mastiff stare down from the enormous canvas of Las Meninas. Two hundred years ago, however, the must-see exhibit at the newly established museum was not Las Meninas, but a gigantic allegorical work that sought to rem...

Pair apologise in court after being accused of defrauding buyers including some of New York’s most prominent fine art auction houses A father and daughter in New Jersey have pleaded guilty to running a years-long counterfeiting scheme to trick art galleries and auction houses into buying forged paintings of works by prominent artists such as Andy Warhol, Banksy and Pablo Picasso. Federal prosecutors said Erwin Bankowski, 50, and Karolina Bankowska, 26, commissioned an artist in Poland to crea...

The Pitch Perfect star is being sued for defamation by Charlotte MacInnes, the lead actor of Wilson’s directorial debut, The Deb Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Hollywood star Rebel Wilson has spoken about the upcoming birth of her second child as she entered the courthouse to give evidence for a third day in her blockbuster defamation battle. The Pitch Perfect star is being sued for defamation by Charlotte ...

Treasurer tells Commonwealth Bank podcast that he aims to ‘recognise the decisions that people have taken in the past’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Existing property investors look set to avoid paying more tax under Labor’s mooted changes to CGT in next month’s budget, after Jim Chalmers said he wanted to “make sure that we recognise the decisions that people have taken in the past” and flagged any reform...

US senator holds panel with leading Chinese scientists and warns of risks to society unless new technology is regulated The US senator Bernie Sanders espoused the importance of international cooperation in regulating AI at a Wednesday panel on Capitol Hill alongside two leading Chinese scientists. As startups and tech giants, most prominently in Silicon Valley and Beijing, race to advance and scale their artificial intelligence, Sanders has been among the AI skeptics advocating for safeguard...

Surplus 50% means co-operation ‘already under way’ with other countries and standing offer to US; SBU hits oil station 1,500km inside Russia. What we know on day 1,527 Continue reading...

Human rights commissioner says alleged jailing highlights the ‘growing risks of transnational repression’ in Australia Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Australia’s human rights commissioner has said the Chinese student who was allegedly jailed for six years by Chinese authorities for joining protests in Sydney underscores the “very real and growing risks of transnational repression affecting people in Australia – including international students”. Commissioner Lor...

US president’s threat comes after Germany’s Friedrich Merz suggests Trump team is being outplayed in its negotiations with Iran The US may reduce its number of troops deployed in Germany, Donald Trump has announced, days after the country’s chancellor said America was being “humiliated” by Iran. In a post on his Truth Social platform, the US president said his administration was “studying and reviewing the possible reduction of troops in Germany, with a determination to be made over the next ...