The Guardian

Taylor, who did for Ghanaian music what his friend Fela Kuti did for Nigeria, has been called the greatest rhythm guitarist in history Ghanaian musician Ebo Taylor, a definitive force behind the highlife genre, has died age 90. His son Kweku Taylor announced the news on Sunday: “The world has lost a giant. A colossus of African music. Ebo Taylor passed away yesterday; a day after the launch of Eb…

Gilston in Hertfordshire aims to be rebuke to cookie-cutter estates with network of 10,000 new homes within country parks and woodland After two decades of legal wrangling and planning bottlenecks, the first bricks will finally be laid on a project being hailed by developers as the blueprint for the future of community building in Britain. Gilston in east Hertfordshire will be transformed into a …

Sarwar said to be furious Starmer’s repeated mistakes have heavily damaged Scottish support before May elections UK politics live – latest updates Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, is to call on Keir Starmer to stand down as prime minister and Labour leader at a hastily arranged press conference in Glasgow. Sarwar is said to be furious that the prime minister’s repeated mistakes have heavi…

Yield on government debt up as investors weigh up prime minister’s survival chances Business live – latest updates UK politics live – latest updates UK borrowing costs rose on Monday as investors watched for signs of jitters in the markets over Keir Starmer’s future. The yield, or interest rate, on UK benchmark bonds increased as traders reacted to Sunday’s resignation of the prime minister’s chi…

Banking group beats Barclays to snare biggest acquisition since it was bailed out by taxpayers in 2008 Business live – latest updates NatWest has agreed a £2.7bn deal to buy Evelyn Partners, one of the UK’s biggest wealth managers, in the bank’s largest acquisition since it was bailed out by taxpayers in 2008. The move signals an attempt to bolster the wealth management business for the banking g…

Unnamed couple actually married during performance by Puerto Rican singer, who served as witness Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl half-time show review – a thrilling ode to Boricua joy Yes, the wedding depicted during Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl half-time show was real. About five minutes into the 13-minute extravaganza at Levi’s Stadium, the latter part of a wedding ceremony was shown, with a smiling officiant…

Firm accused of ‘abusing’ its dominant position for messaging in what appears to be breach of antitrust rules The EU has threatened to take action against the social media company Meta, arguing it has blocked rival chatbots from using its WhatsApp messaging platform. The European Commission said on Monday that WhatsApp Business – which is designed to be used by businesses to interact with custome…

Elon Musk’s SpaceX curbs illicit use of satellite internet network, which Ukraine says is already affecting operations Russia’s military is scrambling to find alternatives to Starlink satellite internet after access to the network was curtailed, disrupting a key communications system that its forces had been using illicitly on the battlefield. Ukraine said last week that Starlink terminals being …

Georgia Gould reassures parents that no child will be asked to leave school or have levels of assistance removed Children with special needs will not lose their places at special schools or current levels of assistance, an education minister has told parents anxious that the government would strip away their child’s support. Facing questions at an online forum, part of the Department for Educatio…

Depite an expanded release to some 2,000 screens, the gushing enthusiasm recorded on the vox pop Popcornometer is not powering a word-of-mouth hit Melania, Brett Ratner’s authorised documentary following the first lady in the 20 days preceding Donald Trump’s January 2025 inauguration, has dipped 67% in its second week of release in the US. The film outpaced expectations over its first weekend, ta…

Ian Michael Elliott of neofascist Patriot Front worked ‘crisis relief missions’ funded by Department of Agriculture A federal security contractor that has been awarded millions of dollars by the Department of Agriculture hired a prominent white nationalist leader to work on its patrols last year. Ian Michael Elliott, a longstanding senior figure in the neofascist group Patriot Front, was part of …

Faber-Castell says it was unaware its facility was being used to detain asylum seekers deported by the Trump administration The world’s largest pencil maker has accused the Costa Rican government of misusing an old factory that the German manufacturer donated for humanitarian purposes – by detaining asylum seekers there who were deported from the US by the Trump administration last year. Faber-Ca…

Case continues against those who protested Joswar Torres’ arrest, with prosecutors seeking six years’ imprisonment A Venezuelan migrant whose detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sparked a protest that involved nearly 2,000 people and led to 30 arrests is free after spending seven months in custody in Washington state , after a ruling from a federal judge who said his constituti…

Corteva will discontinue a mixture of Agent Orange and glyphosate, but another of its herbicides will still use Vietnam war-era defoliant The chemical giant Corteva will stop producing Enlist Duo, a herbicide considered to be among the most dangerous still used in the US by environmentalists because it contains a mix of Agent Orange and glyphosate, which have both been linked to cancer and widesp…

Communications minister Anika Wells points to media reports alleging children can access spaces meant for adults which include explicit sexual content Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Reports of child grooming and vile content on popular game service Roblox has “alarmed” the communications minister, Anika Wells, who has demanded the platform explain how it is addressin…