Christoph Koncz has used gut-stringed baroque instrument to record Mozart’s violin concertos

Forget the party conference glitches, the government’s skills test says I should become a boxerIf you’re going to have a virtual party conference then it’s as well to either have a functioning online platform or to keep the whole thing as low key as possible. The Tories somehow managed to do neither, even though none of their keynote speakers seemed to have anything of interest to say. The website itself was a total disaster. Friends who had logged in over the weekend reported major glitches with the site and they were still in evidence when I checked in today. First off it took me an age to actually find any sign of life. After several failed attempts to get in to a “fireside’ chat” with Gavin Williamson, I ended up in a fringe event with Steve Barclay that was buffering so badly it was impossible to tell if he was talking sense or not – my guess is not – and the only way to leave the meeting was to switch off and reboot my laptop. After I had logged back in, the only way I managed to catch Rishi Sunak’s short and sweet 10-minute lightness of being keynote speech was by catching up on Facebook later on as the icon for the main auditorium had gone missing from the front page of the website. It was the advertisers I felt most sorry for though, as most had paid thousands of pounds for the pleasure of not being able to be found by visitors. The online exhibition hall turned out to be pitch black with just a few icons that only worked intermittently. It took several attempts to find some jewellery I didn’t want, along with some face masks, greeting cards and Boris Johnson T-shirts that I didn’t want. The weirdest stand was something called “Rose Garden”, which I had imagined might be an online garden centre. Instead all I got was a 30-second video of Boris Johnson in a hi-vis jacket making various promises that he had no idea if he could keep that was playing on a loop. Somehow it felt like a metaphor for the entire conference. Continue reading...

A surfboard was recovered from the water at Wylie Bay but the male surfer has not been located, a police spokesman saysA surfer is missing after receiving “a serious shark bite” in front of fellow surfers at a beach near Esperance in Western Australia.Police on Friday evening said several witnesses had seen the man being attacked at Kelp Beds beach in Wylie Bay before 11am local time. A surfboard with “obvious signs of shark attack” was recovered a short time later. Continue reading...

Organisation wins prestigious award for efforts to combat hunger in war-hit areasThe World Food Programme (WFP) has won the 2020 Nobel peace prize for its efforts to combat hunger and to improve conditions for peace in conflict areas.The chairwoman of the Norwegian Nobel committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, revealed the 2020 laureate at the Nobel Institute in Oslo, where coronavirus restrictions drastically reduced the usual throng of reporters in attendance. Continue reading...

Nicola Sturgeon’s 16-day ban called ‘dysfunctional’ after contradictory statements

Borsa Italiana deal clears way for LSE purchase of financial data provider RefinitivThe London Stock Exchange Group has agreed to sell the Milan stock exchange to the rival group Euronext for €4.3bn (£3.9bn) in cash, clearing the way for the LSE’s purchase of the financial data provider Refinitiv.The LSE and Euronext, which owns several European stock exchanges including the Paris bourse, began exclusive talks over the Borsa Italiana deal in September. Continue reading...

Phone records of former police chief considered crucial in investigation to determine who made the decision to use private security guardsVictoria police never formally requested Telstra provide ex-police chief Graham Ashton’s phone records to help the hotel quarantine inquiry uncover who made the decision to use private security guards in the botched program, Guardian Australia can reveal.On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Victoria police told Guardian Australia that police “did contact Telstra and request incoming call data for the former chief commissioner’s phone”. Continue reading...

One Nation leader declares she received flights and accommodation for two to film A Current Affair special in which she scaled sacred site before banPauline Hanson has declared that Channel Nine paid for her to fly to Uluru to film a controversial A Current Affair special in which she scaled Uluru before the activity was banned.Climbing Uluru was banned from October 2019 by the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park out of respect to traditional owners, the Anangu Aboriginal people, who consider it a sacred site. Continue reading...

The number of locally transmitted cases in Sydney is growing, dashing hopes of the Queensland border reopening next month. Follow live

Wildfires, mostly caused by land clearing for cattle grazing and soya production, have set four nations ablaze

Fighting leaves seven dead as rival factions fight for control of drugs trade and terrorise vulnerable refugeesFighting between rival gangs in the Rohingya refugee settlements in Bangladesh has forced hundreds of people to leave their shelters in a week where at least seven have died.“When it is night, it becomes hell. When you try to sleep you hear a lot of firing, you hear a lot of bullets, people are screaming, people are fleeing from home,” said a Rohingya refugee who lives close to where the fighting has taken place. Continue reading...

The beachfront of Varosha has been opened to the public on Thursday for the first time in 46 years in a move by the Turkish-backed government of Northern Cyprus. Hundreds of people descended on the beach in the former resort town that was abandoned when Varosha’s Greek Cypriot inhabitants fled as Turkish troops advanced in 1974. The area was placed under the control of the Turkish military before it was cordoned off and left to the elements for nearly five decades. The move to reopen the area has been criticised by Cyprus's president amid concerns of rising tensions between Turkey and EU members, Greece and Cyprus

Unions warn of further action over non-payment of rise agreed in 2018, as hundreds of Assam tea estates close

Remarks follow request for supreme court to investigate Podemos leader’s actions in spying caseSpain’s deputy prime minister, the Podemos leader, Pablo Iglesias, has dismissed speculation that he may be investigated by the country’s supreme court, describing it as part of a long-running campaign to discredit him and his party, and to topple the leftwing coalition government and thwart its reforms.A judge at Spain’s highest criminal court, the audiencia nacional, sent a written request to the supreme court this week asking it to look into Iglesias’ actions in relation to a tangled and long-running spying case. Continue reading...

Having broken through off Broadway with Sean Penn and Val Kilmer, it’s no surprise that the actor has spent 35 years striving to put being a teen idol behind him. ‘I’m drawn to dark things,’ he saysAlarm bells would ring for most couples if one partner suggested marriage as the perfect subject for a horror movie. Kevin Bacon does not seem perturbed, though, that his latest film, You Should Have Left, was inspired by just such an idea that his wife, the actor Kyra Sedgwick, came up with.“I’m drawn to dark things,” he says down the phone from their farm in Connecticut. “On some level, it’s therapeutic. I have a marriage that works and I didn’t have a tremendous amount of trauma as a child and yet I feel all human beings have darkness in their souls. Fear and anger and doubt live within us. Part of what I like about my job is tapping into those demons. I became an actor because I wanted to explore all sides of the human condition. Being heroic or handsome or winning the big game – I couldn’t care less about those things! But to go into the darker corners of a man’s psyche is an interesting thing to do.” Continue reading...

Beijing joins initiative against ‘vaccine nationalism’ in contrast to US, which is not part of alliance

Satellite images suggest show of strength will feature thousands of troops and missile hardware paraded before Kim Jong-unSpeculation is building that North Korea will unveil its latest weaponry at a huge parade this weekend to mark the 75th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ party.The event, which will be keenly watched for signs of improvements in the regime’s nuclear and missile capabilities, is expected to be the biggest of its kind in the country’s history. Continue reading...

Supporting legalisation of marijuana, they argue its use should be seen as a health issue ahead of referendumSome of New Zealand’s most experienced public health experts have thrown their support behind legalising marijuana, a week out from the country’s general election.In an editorial in the New Zealand Medical Journal, specialists from the fields of addiction treatment, public health, health promotion and epidemiology have urged New Zealanders to tick yes in the referendum, days after a poll showed the vote on a knife-edge. Continue reading...

Elliott Broidy allegedly asked the US president to play golf with now disgraced Malaysian PM Najib Razak as part of effort to end investigationA former leading fundraiser for president Donald Trump has been indicted on a charge that he illegally lobbied the US government to drop its probe into the Malaysia 1MDB corruption scandal and to deport an exiled Chinese billionaire.Elliott Broidy was charged in Washington federal court with one count of conspiracy to act as an unregistered foreign agent after allegedly agreeing to take millions of dollars to lobby the Trump administration. Continue reading...

A large fire has spread throughout a 33-storey apartment block in the South Korean city of Ulsan. The fire began on the 12th floor before spreading across the building that houses 136 apartments. Seventy-seven people had been treated for smoke inhalation, the fire department said, and the blaze has now been extinguished. The blaze, which broke out at about 11pm on Thursday, was fanned by strong winds. Continue reading...

FBI said plot involved contacting members of a militia who ‘talked about murdering tyrants or taking a sitting governor’Six people have been charged with a plot to kidnap the Michigan governor, Gretchen Whitmer, that involves links to a rightwing militia group, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced.Another seven people were charged with plotting to target law enforcement and attack the state capitol building. The state attorney general, Dana Nessel, announced additional charges under Michigan’s anti-terrorism law. Seven men, all in custody, are linked to the militia group Wolverine Watchmen. Continue reading...

Dr Saman Mir Sacharvi and Vian Mangrio, 14, were found dead inside a house in BurnleyA 51-year-old man has been charged with the murder of Dr Saman Mir Sacharvi, 49, and her daughter, Vian Mangrio, 14, who were found dead inside a fire and smoke-damaged house in Burnley last week.Lancashire police have charged Shabaz Khan, of Ribble Avenue, Burnley, with two counts of murder and one count of arson being reckless as to whether life is endangered. Continue reading...

Authorities confirm release of Sophie Pétronin along with two Italian captives and Malian politicianAuthorities in Mali have confirmed the release of an elderly French aid worker, two Italian captives and a top Malian politician, all believed to have been held by jihadists.A tweet on Thursday said that French woman Sophie Pétronin, 75, and Soumaïla Cissé, 70, were on their way to the capital Bamako. Continue reading...

Arrivals from Lesbos, Santorini, Serifos, Tinos and Zakynthos will not have to self-isolate

Chinese Community Party accused of ‘increasing its oppressions and control of Uighurs at an alarming rate’Representatives of the Uighur community in Australia are set to tell a parliamentary inquiry of the “intimidation and harassment” they face to prevent them from speaking out against the Chinese government, including fears their relatives will be harmed.The inquiry is also expected to hear calls from other groups on Friday for the Australian government to introduce Magnitsky-style laws to impose targeted sanctions against human rights abusers. Continue reading...

The judge had been missing since leaving his north Brisbane home early on SundayThe body of the missing federal circuit court judge Guy Andrew has been found by police in Brisbane’s Mount Coot-tha forest.Late on Thursday, Queensland police said the body was yet to be formally identified as that of the 55-year-old. Continue reading...

Narges Mohammadi suffers from neurological condition and was initially sentenced to 10 years in prisonThe most prominent human rights activist imprisoned in Iran, Narges Mohammadi, has been released from jail after her sentence was reduced amid renewed fears for her health.Iran has been hit by a third wave of coronavirus that has seen the daily numbers of new infection break records, with a new high of 4,392 on Thursday. Continue reading...

Businessman was ‘misled’ by Sir Philip Green when he purchased chain in 2015, jury hearsThe businessman Dominic Chappell evaded tax on the £2.2m income he received from buying the failed BHS high street chain from retail tycoon Sir Philip Green, a court has heard.He ended up in this position because “he was simply too busy” to sort out his business dealings properly and he was “let down by others”, a jury at London’s Southwark crown court was told. Mark Bryant-Heron QC, prosecuting, said Chappell claims he was “misled” by Green. Continue reading...

Concern in Germany and maximum alert in France, as other countries report record infection rates

Some want a last night out; others are steering clear of the city owing to its high infection rate

British king granted 50 Flemish fishermen ‘eternal rights’ to English fishing waters in 1666

Poet Fiona Sampson explains why she admires the 2020 Nobel laureate and picks her favourite poems from a long career

Anaesthetist Helga Wauters is accused of manslaughter of Xynthia Hawke, 28An alcoholic anaesthetist who botched an emergency caesarean operation that left a young British woman brain dead, had started drinking after waking up that morning, a French court heard on Thursday.Helga Wauters, 51, is accused of pushing a breathing tube into 28-year-old Xynthia Hawke’s oesophagus instead of her windpipe and failing to react even when the young woman turned blue, vomited, cried out in pain and went into cardiac arrest. Continue reading...

Latest updates: UK records 17,540 new cases, 77 deaths and 609 new hospital admissions; Chris Whitty presents data on pubs and restaurants

Tony Radakin says Chinese navy could reach waters north of UK using once icebound routeChina represents a strategic threat to Britain as its navy could reach the North Atlantic via the Arctic by a route opened up by global heating, the head of the Royal Navy has said.Adm Tony Radakin, the first sea lord, said an “increasingly assertive” China had the capability to reach waters north of the UK by using the emerging Northern Sea Route. Continue reading...

Former Guardian political correspondent appointed to be PM’s representativeFormer ITV journalist Allegra Stratton is expected to be announced as the face of Downing Street’s new daily televised press briefings.Stratton, who is currently an adviser to the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, will host daily briefings for political journalists. The role will make her a high-profile spokeswoman for Boris Johnson. Continue reading...

Renowned singer surprised fans in 2009 by backing protest movement after contested voteMohammad Reza Shajarian, whose distinctive voice quavered to traditional Persian music on state radio for years and supported protesters after Iran’s contested 2009 election, has died aged 80 from cancer, state TV has reported.Shajarian enlivened Iran’s traditional music with his singing style, which soared, swooped and trilled over long-known poetry set to song. Continue reading...

Estimated 100,000 exhibits may be repatriated to remedy historical ‘injustices’Thousands of pieces of art deemed looted by Dutch colonialists could be returned to their country of origin after the Netherlands’ most famous museums backed a report proposing a wholesale “recognition and rectification of these injustices”.The directors of the Rijksmuseum and Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam said they would support the proposal made on Tuesday for a legal structure for the return of an estimated 100,000 pieces where a claim for restitution could be made, with the emphasis on return where “involuntary loss” is identified. Continue reading...

Man ended up in water and was found dead 12 hours later after bicycle pursuit in Tottenham

Sites being acquired as part of efforts to avoid long lorry queues at ports such as Dover

Shaped by the fight against Isis and a fateful US drone strike, the factions now pose a danger to Baghdad’s weak governmentThe dust had barely settled on the fall of Iraq’s second city when the call came. It was June 2014 and Islamic State had just captured Mosul, the prize in a fight for control of a country already scarred by more than a decade of war.Just four days after the city’s capture, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most revered Shia cleric in Iraq, issued a fatwa urging Iraqis to volunteer in the fight against the militants. Tens of thousands of mostly young men from the poor Shia south and Baghdad suburbs flocked to recruiting centres, military camps and militia headquarters. Continue reading...

Cuts include 514 compulsory redundancies as charity tries to save £100m in annual costs

Backing for law demanding 60% reduction from 1990 levels puts capitals under pressure

Warwick University academic ‘broke German court ruling that protected dead woman’s reputation’The daughter of a Holocaust survivor has begun a legal battle to protect her deceased mother’s reputation from allegations that she had a lesbian relationship with an SS guard.Earlier this year, a German court ruled that Dr Anna Hájková, associate professor of modern continental European history at Warwick University, had violated the woman’s postmortem personality rights by publicly claiming that she had a sexual relationship with the Nazi guard while imprisoned in concentration camps. Continue reading...

Reforming the EU’s inhumane refugee policy also means confronting Orbán’s view of Europe as a superior, white Christian clubFortress Europe is being redesigned – but it is no easy task. European Union home affairs ministers on Thursday began the process of repairing the bloc’s broken migration policy, just weeks after the tragic devastation of the Moria refugee camp on Lesbos. Expect no quick changes, however. The 27 countries are deeply divided over proposals for a new “pact” on asylum and migration.The European commission’s plan calls for faster pre-entry screening and quick returns of those who fail to quality for asylum. The focus is on ending sometimes deliberately slow, inhumane and inefficient border management procedures, which lead to squalid, overcrowded camps such as Moria, where people can be left in limbo for years. The return of those denied asylum could be managed with a newly appointed “EU returns coordinator”. EU data shows that on average approximately 370,000 applications are rejected each year, but only a third of people are expelled. Continue reading...

Bar and restaurant owners say they are ‘getting picked on’ and measures will hit young staff

The US poet has won ‘for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal’12.21pm BST“Don’t forget to read our marvellous laureate,” Olsson says cheerfully, before wrapping up the conference. Well that’s that!12.17pm BSTThe Guardian’s resident poetry expert, Carol Rumens, cast an eye over a poem from Glück’s most recent collection Faithful and Virtuous Night, back in 2014. You can read it below.Related: Poem of the week: A Work of Fiction by Louise Glück Continue reading...

Human rights groups calling for a probe into president Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-narcotics crackdown say abuses continueThe UN human rights council has been accused of a “collective failure” over its decision not to call for an investigation into the tens of thousands of killings alleged to have occurred under Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs”.Human rights groups and UN experts had repeatedly called for an inquiry into the anti-narcotics crackdown, launched by the president after he won the 2016 election on a promise to rid the country of drugs. Continue reading...

The Nationals leader reportedly has a string of driving infringements including speeding in a ministerial carThe New South Wales deputy premier, John Barilaro, will reportedly lose his driving licence after a string of driving infringements in the lead up to his decision to take mental health leave last month.The Daily Telegraph reported on Thursday that Barilaro, who took four weeks of leave from mid-September after his threat to blow up the Coalition government over plans to protect koala habitat backfired, is on the verge of losing his licence after being caught speeding while behind the wheel of a ministerial car. Continue reading...