The far-right leader will cheerlead for Putin and relaunch his culture war with the EU. But his incendiary narrative about it is also his weakness Despite winning the Dutch elections last year, the far-right leader Geert Wilders has reluctantly given up on the prospect of becoming prime minister after his prospective coalition partners blocked his…

The celebrity chef on learning the French national anthem, why he has a soft spot for Simply Red, and what gets his kitchen fired up in the morning The first song I remember hearingMy dad was a big fan of the Beatles. I remember sitting with great big earphones on listening to Here Comes the Sun. It’s…

Strong pro-Israel consensus among political leaders has led to conflict with Berlin’s diverse cultural sector and a fraught debate over antisemitism Two weeks after Hamas’s brutal attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, Berlin’s senate for culture commissioned a legal report to establish whether a cultural centre in the German capital’s Neukölln district had violated…

From Monet to Degas, the luminosity of Paris has inspired countless artists. As the city celebrates 150 years of impressionism it’s still shining bright Paris is called the City of Light, possibly because of its early adoption of gas street lighting. But that would not explain why, as I approach Gare du Nord on Eurostar…

The iconoclastic US author’s intellectually poised critique of minimalism boasts scintillating writing of breadth and power Becca Rothfeld is a dynamo. I had not come across her before picking up All Things Are Too Small and was unprepared for the book’s extraordinary clout and reach. She is an American journalist (a contributor to the New…

From shared ownership to rent to buy, we look at the schemes aimed at helping you own a home How to pick a mortgage and the best UK dealsDiary of a first-time buyer: ‘At last I’m a homeowner’How to get yourself mortgage ready There are a range of schemes geared towards helping first-time buyers. Here’s…

I can’t find a way to sort out an overdue tax demand, for a sum I don’t think I owe, with a mystery telephone number I have received a “simple assessment” invoice from HMRC. The letter demands overdue tax from 2018, but I have never received any prior communication about this, and my tax is…

Christine Igot lives with her family in a small seaside community. After retiring from her career as a French teacher, she uses her voice to make booming, informative and upbeat declarations In May 2022, Christine Igot donned a feathered hat, white ruff and multicoloured tabard in the middle of the market square in her home…

Portuguese director Susana Nobre explores the sadness of bereavement with deadpan obliqueness in this story about a woman’s reaction to her mother’s death There’s a studied impassivity to this elegant Portuguese movie about grief from Susana Nobre. It’s a film that maintains its near-affectless deadpan style from first to last, and declines to offer a…

London-based artist raises copyright infringement issues when artworks go viral online and are recreated without credit It began as a story about a mysterious plaque on a Bristol bench – but the strange tale of an engraved tribute to a deceased adulterer is now raising wider questions about copyright and who gets credit for creativity…

Bogdan Lobonț a făcut spectacol la emisiunea „Suflet de rapidist”, unde fostul mare portar și-a spus cele mai tari povești din carieră. „Pisica” și-a adus aminte și de localul preferat al rapidiștilor unde berea curgea după victorii. Bogdan Lobonț petrecea cu Pancu și Iencsi la Rapid la un restaurant de lângă stadionul Giulești: „La Gogoșaru’”…

Inteligența artificială (IA) s-a adăugat globalizării, încălzirii climatice și revoluției digitale pentru a defini secolul XXI la nivelul întregii umanități. Temele în discuție par să privească acțiunea umană ca principal motor al unei transformări postumane: suntem, ni se tot spune, cel mai mare dușman al propriei specii, pe o planetă pe care nu știm să…