'We're having a moment' - fear and denial in Silicon Valley over social media addiction trial
The landmark decision in an LA court may go beyond immediate impacts on defendants Meta and YouTube.
Agent begged Epstein to have sex with model, emails show
Ramsey Elkholy introduced the financier to women as young as 18 in correspondence over almost a decade.
Asda boss rejects profiteering claims as petrol price tops 150p
Motorists are facing higher fuel prices ahead of Easter break due to the conflict in the Middle East, the RAC says.
The week around the world in 20 pictures
Crisis in the Middle East, a Russian drone attack in Lviv, cherry blossom in Tokyo and the return of BTS – the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists Continue reading...
PS5 price hiked by £90 due to global 'pressures'
The changes will see the recommended retail price of the PS5 rise from £479.99 to £569.99 in the UK.
'Ripple of fear' over Iran war hits consumer confidence
A key survey indicates growing doubt among shoppers over prospects for the UK economy in the next year.
Just Eat and Autotrader among firms investigated in fake reviews probe
The UK's competition watchdog says it is looking at five firms in its investigation into misleading online reviews.
Lloyds bank reveals IT glitch affected almost half a million customers
In a letter to the Treasury Select Committee, Lloyds apologised and said some compensation had been paid.
Stop the world, I want to get off and run a video rental store in the 1990s | Dominik Diamond
Retail sims aren’t my thing, but the tactile, nostalgic pleasures of hit indie title Retro Rewind have me yearning for the era of physical media, smoking indoors and uncomplicated geopolitics It’s early doors, but 2026 may be the biggest bin fire of a year in my lifetime. Wars starting, then ending, then starting again in the course of a week. People running their cars on hopes and dreams because a tank of petrol costs more than the vehicle. Manospheric morons making millions. Several depressing celebrity deaths before I’ve so much as eaten my first Creme Egg of the year.I had no idea that the antidote to my anxiety and rage would be a cheap little title, made by two French blokes, in what I usually regard as the most turgid gaming genre. Retro Rewind is the moment’s indie darling, selling more than 100,000 copies on Steam in a week. In it, you run a video rental shop in the 90s. You need to buy videos. Display them well. Drop flyers. Serve your customers. Buy more stuff. It’s no different from any other retail sim out there, and I normally shun them because I play video games to escape the boring world of work and into an exciting one of dragons, aliens, and being brilliant at sports. Continue reading...
Weather tracker: Cold weather sweeps Europe and cyclone hits Australia
Low pressure brings unsettled conditions to southern Europe, and rain and snow to western and central areasSouthern Europe has been under a variety of severe weather warnings this week owing to widely unsettled conditions driven by an area of low pressure in the region. This area of low pressure – previously part of the system that brought colder conditions to swathes of the UK earlier this week – moved southwards across Europe through the middle of the week.In doing so, it brought a cold front across western and central parts of Europe, with spells of rain and hill snow across the Alps on Wednesday, followed by snow showers on a brisk north-westerly wind. By Friday morning, accumulations of 20-40cm were expected above 600 metres, and 60-100cm above 1,000 metres in the Swiss Alps. Continue reading...
How Russia's threat has seen Germany become Europe's most important army
Germany once terrorised Europe, but now Europe is welcoming a resurgent German military.
Judge rejects Pentagon's attempt to 'cripple' Anthropic
A federal judge told the government it could not immediately enforce a ban on Anthropic’s tools.
'Affordability is the biggest thing' - Conservatives mixed on economy under Trump
Conservatives gathered at the annual CPAC conference in Texas were mixed when asked about their feelings on the current economy.
The spiky cactus fruit giving Indian farmers a cash boost
Indian farmers are turning to dragon fruit as a profitable alternative to mangoes and coffee.
Who knew Lord Sugar is a table tennis fan?
The Apprentice candidates try to sell a table tennis set live on TV.
UK politics: Trump says UK’s aircraft carriers are just ‘toys’ – as it happened
The comments were part of a broader address in which he condemned Nato alliesYesterday the Conservative party said that it wanted to ban political parties from distributing campaign literature in a foreign language. Announcing a plan to propose an amendement to the representation of the people bill to make this law, the shadow communities minister Paul Holmes said:Campaigning in a foreign language as the Greens did in Gorton and Denton only fosters greater division. A coherent national culture relies on shared values, and an inclusive electoral process relies on a common tongue.I think it’s for political parties to choose how they campaign and communicate with British voters. If they’re using British money that is funding their campaigns and they’re speaking to people who have the right to vote, then why would you not show those voters the respect of communication?What fuels division is Nick Timothy standing up and singling out Muslim forms of worship for a ban when he’s not applying that to forms of worship that other religions are talking about.It just doesn’t compute, does it? I worked in Number 10. Briefly, I had a Number 10 phone. There was a paranoia about devices like that falling into other people’s hands.And so whether it was the Met Police, whether it was Morgan McSweeney, and what sounds like pretty evasive set of reporting, even when you look at that transcript, or whether it was the Number 10 security team following up something that at the time they could not have been sure had not been taken by a state actor, a phone with all sorts of government secrets potentially in it, that’s precisely why people in government have two separate phones.I don’t believe McSwindle had his iPhone stolenHonest believe, Matt. It’s smacks of the liar Johnson defence of ‘lost all my WhatsApp messages’. We mustn’t take the public for fools. And I am afraid this smacks of too convenient by far. I won’t do it. I will say what I actually think. And I don’t believe it. End of!I believe the report was made. McSwindle didn’t mention that he was the chief of staff to the PM. A significant omission of he’d wanted the police to prioritise the offence. Continue reading...
Nepal’s PM-to-be uses rap to call for unity in first post-election message
Balendra Shah, 35, is a symbol of change in country whose government was toppled last year in youth-led uprisingNepal’s rapper turned politician Balendra Shah, who is about to be sworn in as prime minister, has issued his first post-election message in the form of a rap urging unity.Hours before the release he swore an oath as a newly elected lawmaker, and he is due to become the Himalayan republic’s new prime minister on Friday. Continue reading...
Elon Musk's X advertising boycott lawsuit dismissed by US judge
US District Judge Jane Boyle said the company had failed to show it had suffered any harm under federal competition laws.
The Briefing Room
What are the reasons for the large number of young people without a job in the UK?
How to make the most of your Lifetime Isa
Martin Lewis explains that you can use your Lifetime Isa to buy with someone who has already bought.
'A game-changing moment for social media' - what next for big tech after landmark addiction verdict?
The ruling could be the beginning of the end of social media as we know it, writes the BBC's technology editor Zoe Kleinman.
What to look out for in European World Cup play-offs
The World Cup play-offs start on Thursday with four European spaces up for grabs for this summer's tournament.
Prepare for turbulence - how a prolonged Middle East conflict could reshape how we fly
The Gulf's hub airports made long-distance travel cheaper - but now their future looks unclear.