She may not have fired the gun but Mahabubar Rahman knows who killed Shoikot, his beloved only son. “Sheikh Hasina is the criminal responsible for his death,” he said. “She is the one who has shattered us.” Bangladesh’s former prime minister fled the country last month, bringing her 15-year regime, dominated by allegations of tyranny, … Read more
Two new shows by London-based artists tell stories, or imply backstories, through the art of painting. Both feature the same group of characters. And as so often in today’s contemporary art, these characters are all women. The Irish Australian artist Donna Huddleston is best known for her pale and etiolated drawings of posing figures, occasionally … Read more
I hope he enjoyed it while it lasted. From being promisingly positive when he moved into Number 10, Sir Keir Starmer’s personal ratings have soured into the unpleasantly negative. Disapproval of the government as a whole is also sharply up. The surprise is that anyone’s surprised that the Labour honeymoon has been so short. It was … Read more
Thousands rally across Israel in new wave of protest Huge numbers of Israelis again poured into the streets to protest against the government’s failure to secure the return of remaining hostages in Gaza, the Associated Press reports. The new protest came a week after one of the largest demonstrations of the war after the discovery … Read more
If you’re about to head off to university for your first year, you might be forgiven for taking everything you’ve ever owned – along with the kitchen sink. But that would be a mistake, according to students who’ve been at university a year or two. The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission … Read more
As an avid reader of newspaper columns, the ones I’ve always looked forward to are the ones where something has gone wrong. You read fascinated, horrified, about families crumbling, a little night illness, a dog’s slow death. We’ve been poring over old issues of the Observer Magazine as we celebrate its 60th anniversary and, over … Read more
Elle Macpherson’s gratitude journal must have written itself last week. Most days, any leader in the wellness industry is right to feel gratitude for the gigantic profits to be made seemingly out of human gullibility: the welcome for her latest venture suggests that the market for experimental self-care may have been wildly underestimated. Since the … Read more
‘Britain’s long and proud history has been trashed by the self-hating left.” “British history is not being taught and people are hugely ignorant of our past.” “We have lost that sense of what was at stake, with a consequent decline of pride in the sacrifices endured.” “Generations are growing up hearing nothing but bad things … Read more
David Cameron has provoked a wave of indignation from Grenfell fire survivors and housing campaigners after claiming that the inquiry agreed with him that fire regulations had not been part of his government’s “red tape drive” to cut regulations. But campaigners said the former prime minister’s words were “bollocks” and “total bullshit”, since the inquiry … Read more
Giovanni’s, 10 Goodwin’s Court, London WC2N 4LL (giovannislondon.co.uk). Starters £13-£22.50; pasta £19–£27; mains £24–£36; dessert £8.50–£11.50; wine from £38 a bottle Restaurants rarely make old bones. It’s too precarious a business for that, too hand-to-kitchen-to-diner’s-mouth. The issue is usually generational. Survival for 40 years may be manageable because it’s within the lifespan of the founders. … Read more