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Sudanese woman is allowed to stay in UK with her refugee cousin because they are married… after couple had ‘customary Islamic’ wedding in their home country
A Sudanese woman who was initially refused asylum in the UK has won the right to stay after successfully arguing that deportation would breach her human right to a family life, because she is married to her cousin, a recognised refugee already living in Britain. The Home Office had rejected her case, believing the couple’s…
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Ecstasy, ketamine and laughing gas are found buried underneath Creamfields festival site as 80,000 ravers prepare for four-day music event
Cheshire Police uncovered ecstasy, ketamine and more than 200 canisters of nitrous oxide buried at the Creamfields festival site in Daresbury as part of “disruption work” ahead of the event’s opening. Up to 80,000 people attended the four-day festival, which featured more than 250 artists including Calvin Harris, Tiësto, Martin Garrix and Swedish House Mafia,…
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Goodbye Dandelion review – ode to a fabulous friendship with a 50-year age gap
This Guardian review covers Goodbye Dandelion, a storytelling show at Underbelly during the Edinburgh fringe, performed by sibling duo Maddie and Marcus Rice. The semi-fictional piece recounts Maddie’s friendship with 87-year-old artist and piano teacher Darcy O’Shea, nicknamed “Dandelion”, and touches on the theme of assisted dying that recurs across several shows at this year’s…
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Number of NHS dentists falls by 10 per cent in under a decade
The number of dental practices offering NHS treatment in England has fallen by around 10 per cent over the past decade, with at least 600 practices dropping their NHS contracts, according to research by the Nuffield Trust think tank. The decline has created so-called “dental deserts” in many areas, particularly the South West and East…
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BBCSSO/Canellakis review – electrifying trio of women unleash the horror in Strauss’s Elektra
Karina Canellakis conducted the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in a concert performance of Richard Strauss’s Elektra at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, drawing praise for the huge orchestra’s playing and, above all, for an outstanding cast of singers. Elektra’s vast instrumental forces, including heckelphones, basset horns and Wagner tubas, make staged productions impractical for all…
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‘A rock star on her own terms’: why we’re still so fascinated by Meg White
A recent, since-deleted Daily Mail article attempting to track down former White Stripes drummer Meg White ended up misidentifying and stalking the wrong person, reigniting discussion about why the public remains so fixated on the reclusive musician. Since the band’s 2011 split, Jack White has pursued a prominent solo career while Meg has deliberately withdrawn…
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Breakout indie band Westside Cowboy on rejecting tech and loving imperfection: ‘We’re not hermits!’
Manchester four-piece Westside Cowboy have enjoyed a rapid rise since forming just two years ago, winning Glastonbury’s emerging talent competition, touring with Geese and signing to a major label, all ahead of their debut album, It Goes On. Despite the fast trajectory and pressures of the music industry, the band deliberately resist a polished, career-defining…
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Moment Afghan teen begs Taliban official for divorce from violent husband – before he refuses and brands women ‘deficient in intellect’
An 18-year-old Afghan woman was filmed pleading with a Taliban provincial governor for a divorce from her allegedly violent husband, only to be refused and told that women are “deficient in intellect” and “mindless.” The footage, captured for a BBC documentary marking five years since the Taliban’s return to power, offers a rare, direct illustration…
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Melania marks second rare public appearance in a week alongside Trump at DC Indy Car Race
US First Lady Melania Trump made her second public appearance of the week alongside President Donald Trump on Sunday, joining him at the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, an IndyCar race in Washington, DC held to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence. The outing follows a Rose Garden event earlier in the week that was…