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Updated 2026-04-19 10:00
Charles & Eddie's Eddie Chacon: 'It took me 10 years to recover from being a one-hit wonder'
The soulful singer had a worldwide hit with 1992’s Would I Lie to You, but he was dropped and his musical partner died. Now, he has poured his pain into a cathartic comeback albumEddie Chacon still remembers hitting rock bottom. “It was 15 years ago,” he says. “And it sounds like something from like a bad movie.” Since childhood, he would get up at 8am and work on music. “That morning, my wife walked into my studio and I was just sitting there. She asked, ‘What’s wrong?’ I just said, ‘Nobody’s listening.’ I turned everything off, walked out, and I never went back for 10 years.”It’s a warm summer’s morning in Los Feliz, Los Angeles and Chacon is sitting in the bright, white study of his 1930s Spanish-style casita and talking about his new album, Pleasure, Joy and Happiness. If you know Chacon’s name it’s most likely as one half of early 90s US duo Charles & Eddie, who were No 1 for two weeks in 1992 with the sweet neo-soul pleader Would I Lie to You. Eddie was the androgynously handsome Latino one with the hoop earrings and the mane of thick, dark black hair halfway down his back. He sang the Marvin-meets-Jacko falsetto parts and those little cries of “Oh yeah!” Continue reading...
Police sent to arrest Kumanjayi Walker before his death told he posed a danger, court hears
Response team officers were given details of an earlier incident when the 19-year-old came at police with an axeAn immediate response team tasked to arrest Kumanjayi Walker before his death had been briefed that he posed a significant danger to police and had a capacity for extreme violence, a Northern Territory court has been told.Walker, 19, was shot at his home in Yuendumu in November 2019. The response team was given details of an incident three days earlier when Walker came at other officers with an axe, Alice Spring local court heard on Tuesday. Continue reading...
Yoshihide Suga emerging as favourite to become Japan's prime minister
Chief cabinet secretary to confirm rumours he will join race to succeed Shinzo AbeA poker-faced loyalist who has been the public face of Shinzo Abe’s government for almost eight years is emerging as the favourite to replace him as Japan’s prime minister, after Abe’s surprising decision to resign over health concerns.As chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga has faithfully communicated Abe’s message, on everything from economic policy to North Korean missile tests and the country’s faltering response to the coronavirus pandemic. Continue reading...
New employment law effectively ends Qatar’s exploitative kafala system
Workers will be able switch jobs without employers’ permission, but rights groups say measure does not go far enoughWorkers in Qatar may now change jobs without needing to obtain their employers’ permission, ending one of the most criticised elements of the country’s labour system.The government has also announced an increase in the minimum wage, but rights groups have said the measure does not go far enough, leaving low wage workers earning as little as £1 an hour. Continue reading...
'It tortures me to imagine her dying without us' – the life and lonely death of Doreen Chappell
In April, Doreen, who lived in an assisted living facility, contracted Covid-19. Her family are devastated by her death, and believe she would still be alive today had she not been disabled
Victoria's roadmap out of Covid lockdown – what we know so far
Premier Daniel Andrews says he will lay out a reopening timeline on Sunday. It will take months, not weeks, he stresses
Scottish Tory leader accused of misquoting farmers' union on food standards
NFU Scotland ‘fuming’ at alleged misrepresentation by Douglas Ross in chlorinated chicken rowThe Scottish Tory leader, Douglas Ross, has been accused of twisting quotes from the National Farmers Union in the debate over US exports of chlorinated chicken and hormone-injected beef.Jonnie Hall, policy director for National Farmers Union Scotland, said he was left “fuming” after Ross quoted him agreeing that MPs had never voted in favour of cutting the UK’s food quality standards. Continue reading...
Boris Johnson ally Simon Case poised to be named head of civil service
Relative outsider expected to be named as cabinet secretary, replacing Sir Mark SedwillThe government is to unveil its new top civil servant on Tuesday to replace Sir Mark Sedwill, who stepped down following hostile briefings linked to No 10, with a 41-year-old outsider closely allied to Boris Johnson expected to be named.Simon Case, a former private secretary to Prince William who was seconded to No 10 in May at the prime minister’s request, is to be formally announced as the new cabinet secretary, the Financial Times said, citing three unnamed sources. Continue reading...
Aged care minister won't resign despite Labor's continued attacks on government's Covid response
Richard Colbeck says his recent missteps are not indicative of the work he’s doing ‘more broadly in the portfolio’
Covid-19 world map: which countries have the most coronavirus cases and deaths?
Covid-19 has spread around the planet, sending billions of people into lockdown as health services struggle to cope. Find out where the virus has spread, and where it has been most deadly
Robodebt class action lawsuit is not ready and contains 'obvious errors', federal judge says
Justice Bernard Murphy has asked for more evidence of Gordon Legal’s claim the government knew Centrelink’s program was unlawfulThe class action lawsuit brought on behalf of Australia’s robodebt victims “does not look ready” and contains some “obvious errors”, a federal court judge has said.In a rebuke three weeks before the trial, Justice Bernard Murphy on Monday criticised an application from Gordon Legal to add exemplary damages to its claims for unjust enrichment and damages. Continue reading...
MTV VMAs 2020: Lady Gaga dominates during unusual pandemic broadcast
Singer reigns supreme in awards show filled with calls for social justice and recognition of Covid tragedyLady Gaga dominated an unusual year for the MTV Video Music awards, winning five awards in a strange and disconcerting evening.The singer, who led the evening with nine nominations and wore a variety of masks through the night, accepted awards for artist of the year, song of the year, best cinematography and best collaboration for Rain on Me and the inaugural Tricon award, which recognizes an artist who is highly accomplished across three or more disciplines. Continue reading...
Coronavirus Australia map: tracking new cases, Covid-19 stats and live data by state
Guardian Australia brings together all the latest on active and daily new Covid-19 cases, as well as maps, stats, live data and state by state graphs from NSW, Victoria, Queensland, SA, WA, Tasmania, ACT and NT to get a broad picture of the Australian outbreak and track the impact of government response
Man charged with assault after far-right targets Coventry asylum seekers
James White, 30, from Warwickshire, is to appear at magistrates’ court on 22 OctoberA man has been charged with common assault after a far-right group targeted Coventry hotels used by the government to shelter asylum seekers during the pandemic.West Midlands police officers were called to reports of a disorder at the Coventry Hill hotel at 12.50pm on Saturday. “A man who works at the hotel was assaulted by two men as he encountered a group of people who were not staying there,” a spokesperson said. Continue reading...
Migrant boat bursts into flames off southern Italian coast
Vessel suddenly caught fire as Italian naval ship was in the process of taking people onboard
George Floyd-style killing 'could happen in the UK', says Michael Fuller
Exclusive: Britain’s only ever black police chief says communities feel ‘humiliated’Britain’s only ever black chief constable has warned that a George Floyd-style killing could happen here, with police embroiled in a crisis over racial justice they were failing to address.Michael Fuller told the Guardian that stop and search was leaving black people feeling “humiliated”, “alienated” and that their human rights and dignity were not being respected. Continue reading...
'Fake' Rembrandt came from artist's workshop and is possibly genuine
Head of a Bearded Man revealed to be from same wood panel used for Rembrandt’s AndromedaA tiny painting of a weary, melancholic old man long rejected as a fake and consigned to a museum basement has been revealed as one from Rembrandt’s workshop, and possibly by the man himself.The Ashmolean museum in Oxford will this week put on display Head of a Bearded Man (c 1630) which was bequeathed to it in 1951 as a Rembrandt panel. In 1981, it was rejected by the Rembrandt Research Project, the world’s leading authority on the artist that effectively has a final say on attributions. Continue reading...
Revealed: 'shocking' lack of regulation at Leicester garment factories
Fewer than 60 health and safety visits since October 2017 despite significant concernsLeicester’s garment district, which is home to more 1,000 factories, has received fewer than 60 health and safety inspections and only 28 fire inspections since October 2017 despite long-held concerns about working conditions.The city’s small clothing manufacturers, which employ as many as 10,000 people, were also the subject of just 36 HMRC investigations into payment of the national minimum wage between 2017 and March 2020, according to a freedom of information request filed by the Guardian. Continue reading...
France: senior military officer suspected of spying for Russia
Defence minister confirms security breach that may have supplied sensitive documents to KremlinThe French government is investigating a senior military officer over a “security breach”, the defence minister has said, following a report the person was suspected of spying for Russia.“What I can confirm is that a senior officer is facing legal proceedings for a security breach,” Florence Parly said. She gave no further details. Continue reading...
Scottish Tory leader would vote against UK import of chlorinated chicken from US
Exclusive: Douglas Ross says ‘more work needed’ for UK-wide trade dealThe Scottish Conservative leader, Douglas Ross, has said he would vote against allowing UK imports of chlorinated chicken and hormone-injected beef from the US in a post-Brexit trade deal.Ross said the UK government was listening to complaints from the National Farmers Union (NFU), which has a strong presence in his rural constituency of Moray and fears a US trade deal would threaten food standards. Continue reading...
Palestine: 1947 escape from British prison exposed as inside job
Exclusive: architect leaked plans to Jewish militants leading to raid seen as signifying London’s declining controlThe family of a decorated British civil servant who built a notorious jail for the empire in Palestine has revealed he leaked the building plans to Jewish militants, helping them to launch a legendary prison break in 1947.The storming of Acre prison has been credited as a critical event that led to the British decision to end what was increasingly viewed as an onerous mandate in Palestine. Until now, details of how the highly sophisticated operation was so successful had remained elusive. Continue reading...
Brazil's island idyll reopens to tourists – as long as they have had Covid-19
Visitors will have to show test results to enter Fernando de Noronha, which has so far suffered no coronavirus deathsOne of Brazil’s most celebrated tourist destinations, the paradisiacal archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, has announced it is reopening to outsiders – as long as they have had Covid-19.Tourists have been banned from the Unesco World Heritage site, which Charles Darwin visited in 1832, since late March when the pandemic forced many parts of Brazil into partial shutdown. Continue reading...
'He was such a kind soul': daughter's fight for US man killed at Pakistan blasphemy trial
Mashal Naseem has got used to the death threats since she began campaigning for justice for her father, Tahir Ahmad Naseem, who was shot in a Pakistan courtroom last monthIt has only been a few weeks, but Mashal Naseem has already got used to shrugging off the online death threats that started pouring in when she began a campaign for justice for her father.Tahir Ahmad Naseem – who his daughter remembers as the kindest and most gentle of parents – was on trial in Pakistan for blasphemy when he was shot dead last month in a high-security courtroom. Continue reading...
'Women are future of the Catholic church': Anne Soupa leads renewed fight for equality
French academic’s bid to become archbishop of Lyon reflects growing calls for women in leadership rolesA French female academic has put herself forward to be the next Catholic archbishop of Lyon in a move that is gathering support around the world even though she stands no chance of succeeding.Anne Soupa, 73, a theologian and biblical scholar, says there is “an awakening of women within the Catholic church”. Seven other Catholic women in France have followed her move in applying for ministries that are open only to men. Continue reading...
Police seek man who stabbed woman walking with child in Manchester
Police issue plea for help after ‘vicious attack’ in Withington on Saturday afternoonPolice are seeking a man after a “vicious and unprovoked attack” on a young woman out walking with her five-year-old child in Manchester.Greater Manchester Police (GMP) were called at 1.30pm on Saturday following reports of a stabbing on Rudheath Avenue in Withington, south Manchester. Continue reading...
Troubled times see crowds embrace stark beauty of Yorkshire farm idyll
As a reboot of All Creatures Great and Small begins, locals are bracing for an influx of tourists to God’s Own CountryRural Yorkshire has aways been dear to the hearts of its proud inhabitants, but it now seems to be the focus of rather a lot of admiring outside attention, not least on Channel 5.The channel’s documentary series Our Yorkshire Farm has just topped the TV ratings in the 9pm primetime slot. And the same channel this week airs a new dramatisation of James Herriot’s Yorkshire-set All Creatures Great and Small, marking the 50th anniversary of the book. Meanwhile, the seventh series of The Yorkshire Vet, based at Herriot’s old veterinary practice in Thirsk, continues on – of course – Channel 5. Continue reading...
Truly, madly, deeply: meet the people turning their basements into secret fantasy worlds
It’s one thing turning your basement into a wine cellar, but some people are building replica streets, theme parks and even trains beneath their homesWhen Jason Shron and his wife, Sidura, were house hunting in 2007, the Canadian model-train-seller would always head to the basement before viewing any other room. In fact, Shron had only viewed the basement of his current family home when he told his estate agent he’d purchase the property: provided Sidura liked the upstairs, he was ready to go. Shron needed the perfect basement because, for nearly 30 years, he had dreamed of building a life-size replica of a 1970s Canadian VIA Rail railway carriage inside his house, the exact train that took him from Toronto to Montreal to visit his grandmother when he was a little boy.Step inside Shron’s basement today and you will be greeted by a 200lb blue-and-yellow train door. As you pass through it, an MP3 player will hiss the sounds of air circulation accompanied by the squeaking of gangway connections. Inside the carriage there are rows of vintage reclinable red-and-orange-striped seats, luggage racks, a real VIA garbage can removed from a scrapped train and a metal sign instructing passengers that smoking is indeed permitted. What Shron couldn’t find on the scrap heap, he made. He printed out orange litter bags, custom-printed napkins and engraved wine glasses. Continue reading...
Liberal party branch-stacking: fears push for virtual state council could kill off audit
Insiders say campaign for digital Victorian council could scuttle forensic audit of new membersFederal electorate conference chairs in 14 Victorian seats are campaigning for a virtual state council of the Liberal party – a sortie which party insiders fear is an effort to scuttle a forensic audit to deal with fresh branch stacking allegations.Labor has ratcheted up pressure on Scott Morrison to take action after fresh allegations were aired by the Nine network last weekend about Liberal party branch-stacking orchestrated by a conservative party powerbroker with links to the Victorian frontbencher Michael Sukkar and veteran MP Kevin Andrews. Continue reading...
Under-25s bearing brunt of Covid mental-health toll – survey
Findings reveal anxiety, inability to concentrate and fears over employment at high levels among young people
Fresh controversy over Tony Abbott’s Brexit trade role
Proposed UK envoy at odds with Boris Johnson’s assurances on environment and workers’ rightsTony Abbott, the former Australian prime minister, boasted that he signed deals with China because he was not “sidetracked by peripheral issues such as labour and environmental standards”, raising further questions over the UK government’s reported intention to use him as a trade envoy.Abbott will reportedly be appointed to the Board of Trade, which advises Boris Johnson and trade secretary, Liz Truss, on future trade deals and will be a vital component of the UK’s future post-Brexit trade strategy. Continue reading...
How Angela Merkel’s great migrant gamble paid off
Five years ago, as more and more refugees crossed into Europe, Germany’s chancellor proclaimed, ‘We’ll manage this.’ Critics said it was her great mistake – but she has been proved rightMohammad Hallak found the key to unlock the mysteries of his new homeland when he realised you could switch the subtitles on your Netflix account to German. The 21-year-old Syrian from Aleppo jotted down words he didn’t know, increased his vocabulary and quickly became fluent. Last year, he passed his end of high school exams with a grade of 1.5, the top mark in his year group.Five years to the month after arriving in Germany as an unaccompanied minor, Hallak is now in his third term studying computer science at the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences and harbours an aspiration to become an IT entrepreneur. “Germany was always my goal”, he says, in the mumbled sing-song of the Ruhr valley dialect. “I’ve always had a funny feeling that I belong here.” Continue reading...
'Brazen': man with links to Comanchero bikie gang killed outside Sydney home​ with family inside
Man was shot multiple times in what NSW police say was a deliberate and calculated attack
Austria offers citizenship to the descendants of Jews who fled the Nazis
New law hailed as justice for families of refugees – and could benefit thousands of BritonsTens of thousands of British citizens are among the many descendants of Jewish refugees who can apply for Austrian citizenship from Tuesday under a new law that campaigners say finally delivers a measure of historic justice for their ancestors’ expulsions under Nazi rule.About 120,000 Jewish refugees fled persecution after the Nazis took power in Austria in March 1938. The second most common destination after the US was the UK, with up to 20,000 refugees registered in 1945. Continue reading...
Rule, Britannia! row is ‘a laughable irrelevance’ says former Proms director
Sir Nicholas Kenyon, who directed the series for more then a decade, dismisses controversy as ‘kneejerk’ BBC bashingPoliticians “meddling in concert programming” over the Last Night of the Proms are a “laughable irrelevance”, according to a former director of the BBC concert series.Sir Nicholas Kenyon, writing in the Observer, described the “synthetic row” that has erupted over how Land of Hope and Glory and Rule, Britannia! will be performed without an audience. Continue reading...
Fewer shots, more sanitiser: Manchester prepares for freshers week in the time of Covid
In Fallowfield, local shops depend on trade from students, but worry that their behaviour may get out of handEnter 256, the popular student bar in Fallowfield, Manchester, and it’s usually the heat that hits you first. In ordinary times, and particularly during freshers’ week, the dimly-lit repurposed church building is packed with hundreds of sweaty youngsters dancing and enjoying booze-fuelled nights out.Covid-19 has rendered such gatherings unimaginable, and this year will be much quieter. Capacity has been slashed by more than half. The dancefloor has been replaced by tables and chairs. There will be no crowd surfing or drunken flirtations at the bar. You sit down at a table, or you’re out. Continue reading...
Marseille’s maverick Covid scientist: why the city took doctor to its heart
Didier Raoult has touted many dubious treatments but is a hero in France’s second city, which has long railed against ParisThe people of Provence in the south of France have a word for a particularly comic or bizarrely dramatic situation: pagnolesque.It is a tribute to one of the region’s most famous sons, the author Marcel Pagnol, who declared in his play Les Marchands de Gloire (The Glory Merchants): “In politics everything is a comedy.” Continue reading...
Port of Darwin ‘critical’ in new commonwealth power to veto deals with foreign governments, Albanese says
New legislation aims to ensure agreements by states and territories align with Australian foreign policy
New Zealand coronavirus: two new cases as Auckland lockdown due to lift
Masks will be compulsory on public transport and strongly encouraged elsewhere, says prime minister, as restrictions wind back on MondayNew Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has thanked Aucklanders who come out of lockdown after Sunday night for their commitment to suppressing the latest coronavirus flare-up.Two new cases of Covid-19 have been reported on Sunday, both in the community and linked to the latest Auckland cluster. Ardern thanked the residents of New Zealand’s largest city for their adherence to the stringent lockdown requirements. Continue reading...
Victoria lockdown is working but must continue or 'numbers would explode', Daniel Andrews says
State records 114 new cases and 11 deaths as NSW announces seven new cases and closes a school in Sydney’s west
Wild weather and winds of up to 100km/h forecast for Victoria
Residents in suburbs without power or drinking water from the storm on Thursday are exempt from coronavirus travel restrictionsThe Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting more damaging winds to sweep Victoria, while some Melbourne residents are still dealing with the impacts of Thursday’s storm.The Bom has forecast that strong north to northwesterly winds will develop early Sunday ahead of a front that will move across the state during the day. Continue reading...
Indigenous tribe in Ecuador appeals for help to deal with coronavirus
Achuar people blame illegal logging for spread and are asking international community for aid
'Anti-corona' extremists try to storm German parliament
Police prevent hundreds from entering Reichstag and disband march protesting against Covid protection measures
How a trust breakdown left Melbourne's minority communities hardest hit by Covid second wave
Melbourne’s top five areas for coronavirus cases in the latest outbreak are among the city’s most culturally and linguistically diverse
UN refugee agency calls on EU nations to let in migrants rescued in Mediterranean
UNHCR and IOM say 200 rescued people urgently need to get off Banksy-funded shipThe UN refugee agency urged European nations on Saturday to let in hundreds of migrants rescued from the Mediterranean by humanitarian boats, including one financed by the British street artist Banksy.The UNHCR and the International Organization of Migration (IOM) said more than 200 rescued refugees and migrants needed immediately to get off the nonprofit search-and-rescue ship Louise Michel, saying it was far beyond its safe capacity. Continue reading...
Murray-Darling mismanagement: floods, water theft, and Burke and Wills’s camels
The basin has faced challenges throughout history but the system designed to protect it does not factor in a changing climate
'We are in dire straits': Pacific stands on Covid brink amid surging infections
Rising cases in Papua New Guinea, French Polynesia, and Guam raise fears of uncontrolled coronavirus outbreaks across PacificSurging Covid-19 cases in Guam are threatening to overwhelm the island’s healthcare system, while rapidly spreading infections across Papua New Guinea and new clusters in French Polynesia following the resumption of tourism have sparked fears of uncontrolled outbreaks in the Pacific.The Pacific region is still the least-infected in the world – several countries remain Covid-19 free – but there are troubling surges across countries with fragile health systems ill-equipped for large numbers of infections. Continue reading...
Man arrested on suspicion of murder after body found in London park
Arrest follows discovery of stabbing victim in Walthamstow on MondayA man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a stabbing in a north-east London park. Yassar Mustakim Moussa suffered a wound to his neck and was unresponsive when he was discovered in a brook at St James’s Park in Walthamstow on Monday.Police were called at about 1.40pm, but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene. Continue reading...
Ethiopia falls into violence a year after leader’s Nobel peace prize win
Abiy Ahmed came to power promising radical reform, but 180 people have died amid ethnic unrest in Oromia stateEthiopia faces a dangerous cycle of intensifying internal political dissent, ethnic unrest and security crackdowns, observers have warned, after a series of protests in recent weeks highlighted growing discontent with the government of Abiy Ahmed, a Nobel peace prize winner.Many western powers welcomed the new approach of Abiy, who took power in 2018 and promised a programme of radical reform after decades of repressive one-party rule, hoping for swift changes in an emerging economic power that plays a key strategic role in a region increasingly contested by Middle Eastern powers and China. He won the peace prize in 2019 for ending a conflict with neighbouring Eritrea. Continue reading...
Boris Johnson faces Tory wrath as party slumps in shock poll
Party in despair, senior MP says, as Labour draws level in wake of exam chaos and Covid U-turns
Horses slashed and ears cut off in macabre attacks across France
About 30 incidents have been reported in stables and equine clubs in suspected ritual mutilationsAttackers are targeting horses and ponies in pastures across France armed with knives in what may be ritual mutilations.Police are baffled by the macabre attacks, which include slashings. Most often, an ear – usually the right one – has been cut off, recalling the matador’s trophy in a bullring. Continue reading...
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