Innholdsfortegnelse for V. 1175 i The Week

What happened Tearing up the Iran deal President Trump withdrew the US from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran on Tuesday, condemning it as “rotten” and vowing to impose “the highest level of economic sanctions” on Tehran. The decision fulfilled Trump’s campaign pledge to scrap what he called “the worst deal ever”, but it marked a humiliating defeat for his European allies, who had pleaded for the agreement to be preserved: Theresa May, France’s President Macron and Germany’s Chancellor Merkel issued a joint statement expressing their “regret and concern” at the decision. The multiparty Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was signed in 2015 by Iran and the US, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany. Iran agreed to curtail nuclear activities and allow in international inspectors; in return, crippling economic…

Puna, Hawaii Volcano erupts: After Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, erupted on Hawaii’s Big Island last Thursday, large fissures opened up in the ground, spewing lava 300ft into the air. The fissures are mostly in the streets of a residential area, Leilani Estates, where at least 26 homes have been destroyed. About 2,600 people have been evacuated. Hawaii’s Civil Defence Agency has warned of “extremely high levels of dangerous” sulphur dioxide gas and of more “active volcanic fountaining” – molten rock shooting into the air. The eruption last week was preceded by a magnitude 5.0 earthquake, and was followed by another of 6.9. Kilauea has been erupting on and off since 1983, each episode lasting months or even years. New York Attorney general accused: New York’s attorney…

There are far more gorillas living in the forests of West Africa than previously thought – but their future is far from secure, says The Guardian. Over a decade, an international team of scientists monitored western lowland gorillas, which live in western equatorial Africa and make up about 99% of all living gorillas. By combining nest counts with data on factors such as the proximity of human populations and the extent of intact forest, the researchers were able to produce a sophisticated statistical model that put the gorillas’ population at 361,900, roughly double that of previous estimates. “But that is not the big story,” warned Professor Fiona Maisels of the Wildlife Conservation Society. “Just because there are rather a lot of them does not mean they are not very, very…

How is the Archbishop of Canterbury preparing for next weekend’s Royal wedding? By listening to Stormzy, of course. The Most Revd Justin Welby – who will be officiating at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s marriage – has revealed that he is nervous about the event, but that the grime artist’s track Blinded By Your Grace Part 2 is helping him focus on what matters. “There’s a line in that – ‘I stay prayed up and get the job done’ – I think that sort of sums it up.” First Kanye West began tweeting in support of Donald Trump; now the multimillionaire rapper has caused outrage by suggesting that slavery was a “choice”. In an interview, he said that, “when you hear about slavery for 400 years... for 400 years? That…

Sajid Javid is a big fan of the libertarian novelist Ayn Rand, said Bagehot in The Economist. Twice a year he makes a point of reading the courtroom scene in The Fountainhead, in which the hero extols the role of courageous individuals in a changing world. The new Home Secretary will need plenty of that “Randian spirit” to succeed in his new job. He faces the formidable task of turning round a dysfunctional department and restoring public faith in the immigration system. But he enjoys a couple of advantages. One is his background. The son of a Pakistani bus driver who moved to the UK with £1 in his pocket, Javid is the first non-white politician to occupy any of the great offices of state. “His other advantage is his…

What an “absorbing” and “erratic” Premiership season this has been, said Chris Foy in the Daily Mail. Over the past eight months, the balance of power in English rugby’s top flight has “fluctuated endlessly”. At different points, Leicester, Bath, Gloucester and Sale all “blew molten hot” – before turning “ice cold”. And so, with the conclusion of the regular season on Saturday, four teams are through to the play-offs: Exeter, Saracens, Wasps and Newcastle. After winning the title last season, Exeter have been “the best team in the land”, finishing top of the table. Their tally of 85 points is the highest by anyone since 2013-14. In the semi-finals, they will face Newcastle, the league’s “rising force”. But if any team poses a threat to Exeter’s title hopes, it’s Saracens.…

To The Guardian Recent events have revealed the extent to which the Home Office has been driven by inappropriate business models in managing immigration, and has been not only incompetent but callous in dealing with human dignity and liberty. I am in favour of a “fair but firm” policy that takes account of those who already live here and their needs, but which should also reflect a commitment to natural justice rather than to arbitrary targets. The fundamental problem with the Home Office’s policies is that they have framed immigration criteria on the basis of wealth and property, rather than on grounds of justice and compassion. Thus visitors and students can only come here if they have sufficient wealth and property at home. British citizens, similarly, may only marry foreign…

Does an art gallery have the right to show animals eating each other? The Guggenheim in Bilbao believes that it does, says Hannah Strange in The Daily Telegraph. Last year, the Guggenheim in New York removed two controversial works from its exhibition Art and China after 1989, after vocal protests and threats of violence from animal rights activists. One, Theater of the World by Huang Yong Ping, consists of a cage in which insects, snakes and lizards fight for survival. Another, Xu Bing’s A Case Study of Transference (above), is a video of a boar and a sow, covered in Eastern and Western characters respectively, copulating in front of a crowd. The same show opens this week in Bilbao, and is due to feature both works, despite local protests. The…

Alice tells Adam he’s vindictive for voting Brian into retirement. She says the farm can work only as a partnership, and he’s broken that. She wants to know how’s he going to fix it. Lexi tells Ian she has a good feeling about her next transfer. Adam tries to break the ice with Brian, complimenting him on the clean-up, but Brian’s defensive. Adam says he still needs Brian’s help, but Brian tells Adam he can’t have it both ways; he’ll have to manage on his own. Alistair’s awkward at home and Shula reminds him he’s not a lodger. Ellis confronts Freddie over dealing drugs on his patch. Ellis tries to look in Freddie’s bag and they get into a scuffle. Johnny breaks them up. When Lily sees Freddie’s damaged nose,…

Fruit and vegetables have so much to give, says Rachel de Thample. According to the World Cancer Research Fund, a healthy plate is one that is at least two-thirds full of such plants: here are four vegetable side dishes that make them even more of a pleasure to eat Tomatoes with capers and mint Serves 4 500g fresh cherry or smaller plum tomatoes, halved (try a colourful mix of heirloom varieties) 1 tbsp of capers a handful of fresh mint, leaves stacked, rolled and thinly sliced olive oil sea salt and black pepper • Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over the tomatoes then drizzle over some olive oil. Scatter the capers on top and mix. Finish with a dusting of mint. Serve. Broad beans with lemon, basil and…

Autocar The Swift Sport has had a reputation as “a drivers’ gem”– a good value option for those after a “sharply responsive” and entertaining drive. But alas, some of the basic recipe has been changed, not to mention the price, which has “audaciously” been raised by almost £5,000. While a lot of kit has been added, we’re left with “a more rounded and capable, but ultimately less thrilling, machine”. Top Gear Following most of its hot hatch competitors, the Swift Sport has finally gone turbocharged, with a brilliant 1.4-litre Boosterjet engine replacing the old and slightly less powerful 1.6 litre. The car’s “comic-book styling” sits much better on its new, “swelled” proportions. And it now weighs less than 1,000kg; “attach a few helium balloons to the roof and it’d likely…

Hollings Hill Farm in Herefordshire has lodges with hot tubs from which to gaze at the cows going by (from £379 for two nights; www.featherdown.co.uk). Orchard Retreat is home to three yurts perched in 15 acres of idyllic Devon countryside. Their most recent addition: a hexagonal open-air “tub house” for bathing (from £94; www.theorchardretreat.co.uk). Atlantic Surf Pods in Cornwall have “a hint of Hobbiton” about them, but contain king-size beds and underfloor heating (from £69; www.atlanticsurfpods.co.uk). The Grove in Norfolk gives you “a yurt with the spec of a deluxe flat”; there are wood-burning stoves, a pool, and wine and cheese hampers (from £240 for two nights; www.thegrovecromer.co.uk/glamping). Humble Bee Farm in a peaceful valley in North Yorkshire has wigwams, bell tents and yurts, complete with fairy lights and stargazer…

Short break near York Spend 2 nights at the Parsonage Hotel & Spa in the Yorkshire countryside, with a 3-course dinner on your first night, costs from £109pp b&b. 01904-717362, www.superbreak.com. Arrive 10 June. Lake Garda boutique hotel A 7-night stay at the Luna Hotel, in the historic centre of Sirmione, costs from £429pp b&b, inluding Glasgow flights. 0114-250 4098, www.voyagertraveldirect.co.uk. Depart 27 June. 7 nights in Portugal Located near Albufeira, next to Praia da Oura, a self-catering apartment at Golden Beach by 3HB costs from £681pp, including flights. 020-3897 1152, www.loveholidays.com.Depart 5 June. Five-star in Penang Stay 6 nights at the beachside Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa, Penang, from £834pp b&b, including London flights. 0800-408 6649, www.awayholidays.co.uk. Depart 4 July.…

Tesla: “boneheaded” response “American history is littered with mould-breakers and irascible billionaires,” said The Observer. Elon Musk, the founder of the electric carmaker Tesla, “qualifies in both categories”, but his “crash-bang approach to business” has “created a lot of self-inflicted harm”. Some $3bn was wiped off the value of the company after a quarterly earnings call last week when Musk dismissed a “valid” question from an analyst – how much cash is the company going to need in the short-term? – by replying: “Boring, bonehead questions are not cool. Next.” Given that Tesla’s new Model 3 car is “beset by production problems” and the firm is burning through $1bn a quarter, he can’t afford such cavalier behaviour. This is hardly Musk’s first transgression, said Robin Pagnamenta in The Times. Indeed,…

Mike Lynch These are worrying times for Autonomy founder Mike Lynch, says The Sunday Times. His former finance director, Sushovan Hussain, was last week found guilty of 16 charges of wire and securities fraud in California and now faces a possible 25-year jail term. The conviction dramatically raises the stakes for Lynch’s own showdown with Hewlett-Packard, which bought his Cambridge-based software house for $11.7bn in 2011 before alleging it was “built on fraudulent accounting”. HP has filed a $5bn fraud suit against Lynch, 52, in London’s High Court, set to start next year. Lynch denies wrongdoing and has launched a $150m countersuit. There’s a lot at stake. “In the balance are Lynch’s good name, his career and, potentially, his £469m fortune, most of which came from HP’s all-cash takeover.” Jean-Marc…

Controversy of the week The breast cancer scandal Hot on the heels of the Windrush scandal comes one more example of disastrous Whitehall bungling, said The Daily Telegraph. And this time, the costs may be counted not just in ruined lives but in hundreds of deaths. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt told Parliament last week that an NHS computer coding error had resulted in some 450,000 women, between the ages of 68 and 71, not being invited for their final set of three-yearly breast cancer scans. As a result, he said, as many as 270 may have had their lives cut short because their symptoms were not spotted in time. It seems the flaws in the system – introduced in 2009 – came to light during an upgrade in January this…

Running marathons at 75 Edwina Brocklesby is a phenomenon: she is 75 years old, yet she cycles 18 miles every morning. She’s completed seven London Marathons and seven triathlons, and, aged 66, became one of the oldest people to finish the gruelling Ironman challenge. Yet Brocklesby, a retired social worker, only took up running when she was 50, after being told it was good for bone strength. Two years later, her husband, Phil, died of cancer. She tried counselling, but found running with friends better therapy. “I could distance myself, tears flowing, or let someone else do the talking,” she told Bridget Harrison in The Times. After that, she pushed herself to take on ever-bigger challenges. The New York Triathlon was one of the most daunting: “My taxi driver said,…

Keep your eye on Brexit’s sunlit uplands David Goodhart The Daily Telegraph How dreary and limited is today’s Brexit debate, asks David Goodhart. One side bangs on about the promise of future global trade deals, the other about the inevitable economic costs. As one who voted Remain but now wants the best possible deal, I long for a wider conversation that explores some of Brexit’s other potential upsides. Take state aid. EU rules designed to ensure a “level playing field” prevent us boosting growth in the northeast by, say, waiving corporation tax for five years. After Brexit, we’ll be free to experiment with such ideas. We’ll also be free of the EU’s unnecessarily stringent rules on bidding for public contracts, which favour big conglomerates such as Carillion; and free, too,…

The gloves are coming off in the White House “It’s easy to grow immune to – or sceptical of – the constant news breaks that all seem like big, defining Trump moments unfolding before our eyes,” said Mike Allen on Axios.com. But even the president’s most fervent loyalists have been unsettled by recent events. It’s bad enough that the new member of Donald Trump’s legal team, Rudy Giuliani, dropped the president in it last week over porn actress Stormy Daniels. He told an interviewer that Trump had reimbursed his attorney Michael Cohen for the $130,000 in hush money he paid her, contradicting Trump’s repeated claims to have known nothing about the deal. But to make matters worse, the probe into Russian election meddling by special counsel Robert Mueller also seems…

The death rate from asthma in Britain has soared by more than 20% in four years, making it one of the highest in Europe, reports The Daily Telegraph. An analysis by the charity Asthma UK found 1,434 people in Britain died from the condition in 2015, up from 1,151 in 2011. Britain’s average asthma death rate was 1.98 per 100,000 people; the EU average was 1.32. Only Serbia, Turkey, Estonia, Spain and Cyprus had worse rates. The best-performing country, Greece, had a rate of just 0.15. Asthma UK described the findings as “shocking” and urged the NHS to invest in front-line asthma services. Surveys suggest that 65% of patients with the chronic lung condition are not receiving the recommended care, such as annual reviews to ensure they are using inhalers…

“In normal times”, a cabinet minister who publicly criticised the government of the day’s policy in “such colourful terms” would be out on their ear, said Laura Kuenssberg on BBC News online. This week, Boris Johnson denounced Theresa May’s preferred option for Britain’s future customs relationship with the EU as “crazy” – and No. 10 hardly batted an eyelid. Johnson roundly condemned the “customs partnership” model, which would involve the UK collecting import tariffs on behalf of the EU, saying that it would restrict Britain’s ability to strike trade deals and would create a “whole new web of bureaucracy”. Johnson is absolutely right, said Quentin Letts in the Daily Mail. May “must be mad” to try to shackle us to the EU with what is effectively a “back-door proposal for…

“I took a speed-reading course and read War and Peace in 20 minutes. It involves Russia.” Woody Allen, quoted in The Times “Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth.” Albert Camus, quoted in The Observer “Why can’t hedgehogs just share the hedge?” Comedian Dan Antopolski, quoted in The Times “You can resist an invading army; you cannot resist an idea whose time has come.” Victor Hugo, quoted in The Guardian “Never believe anything in politics until it has been officially denied.” Otto von Bismarck, quoted in Forbes “If you want to understand what an expanded consciousness looks like, all you have to do is have tea with a four-year-old.” Psychologist Alison Gopnik, quoted in The Times “Nothing important comes with instructions.” James Richardson, quoted on The Browser…

Snooker Mark Williams beat John Higgins 18-16 to win his third World Championship. At 43, he is the oldest champion in 40 years. Football Chelsea Ladies beat Arsenal Women 3-1 to win the Women’s FA Cup. In Arsène Wenger’s final home game as manager, Arsenal beat Burnley 5-0. Stoke were relegated from the Premier League after their 2-1 loss to Crystal Palace. Cricket Nottinghamshire beat Hampshire by 203 runs to claim their third County Championship victory in four games, despite Hashim Amla’s 112 for Hampshire.…

“Jeremy Clarkson is, shall we say, a divisive figure,” said Paul Jones in Radio Times. So there was always going to be a flap of Twitter outrage over ITV choosing the former Top Gear presenter to front Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. This week, the legendary quiz show, hosted by Chris Tarrant from 1998 to 2014, celebrated its 20th anniversary with a run of seven episodes. It came in a slightly rebooted format and had Clarkson at the helm. As it turned out, the “professionally opinionated petrolhead” was rather good at it, said Michael Hogan in The Daily Telegraph. He kept up a stream of “near-the-knuckle gags” and despaired at the ineptitude of some of the players. One contestant, said Clarkson, looked “more nervous than Donald Trump on a…

Best books… Marian Keyes The Irish writer Marian Keyes picks her favourite books. Her latest novel, The Break, has been shortlisted for the Fiction Book of the Year prize at The British Book Awards. The winner will be announced on 14 May Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, 1932 (Penguin £7.99). A classic that never fails to make me laugh. Posh city girl goes to stay with her country cousins in Sussex and decides to sort out all their problems. The tone is whimsical, subversive and hysterically funny. An absolute riot. No one can be glum after reading it. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, 1998 (Faber £8.99). Oh, what a wonderful book. It’s about an American missionary and his family who go to the Congo in 1959, just as…

Programmes Atlanta Acclaimed US comedy series starring Donald Glover as a Princeton dropout who returns home to discover his cousin has become Atlanta’s hot new rap act. Sun 13 May, BBC2 22:00 (50mins). Catching a Killer: a Knock at the Door The killing of 64-year-old Hang Yin Leung at her Milton Keynes home was one of the “most difficult homicides” Thames Valley Police have faced. This film interweaves access to the cross-border police manhunt with a portrait of a British-Chinese family coming to terms with murder. Mon 14 May, C4 21:00 (80mins). Myanmar’s Killing Fields For five years, Rohingya activists have been filming acts of violence and murder committed by the Myanmar authorities. With access to the footage, Dispatches investigates a campaign that the UN says bears the “hallmarks of…

Belzan 371 Smithdown Road, Liverpool (0151-733 8595) This alluring addition to Liverpool’s food scene achieves a rare feat, says Grace Dent in The Guardian: it manages to be “relaxed as hell, but also a little challenging”. Styling itself as a “neo-bistro”, Belzan serves shakshuka and matcha lattes in the morning, croque-madames and cocktails at lunchtime, and “a dinner menu of seasonal, often local produce that’s just brimming with Scouse swagger and European as well as Japanese splashes”. Plates of butter beans in beef dashi sit alongside barbecued savoy cabbage with chilli, ginger and soy, and mushrooms with ponzu custard. Not everything I ate at Belzan was “perfect, or daintily plated or life-changing”, but I certainly left “fed and happy”. I especially enjoyed buttermilk-drenched rabbit piled prettily with apple and…

Packshi Shirt Case The Packshi is a light and practical wrinkle-free carrier for your shirts. It has a hard case with rounded edges and a pressed form that perfectly protects collar shape (£30; www.amazon.co.uk). Solar Power Bank 15000 This eco-friendly solar-powered battery pack is compatible with all smart-phones and tablets. It’s shock- and splash-proof, so you can take it on a hike or to the beach (£25; www.powerbee.co.uk). Vetelli Hanging Toiletry Bag This cleverly designed, vintage-look bag can be compactly stowed away, then unfurled and hung up, to reveal its four interior pockets, at your destination. It is made from easy-to-clean materials and is backed by a lifetime guarantee. (£45; www.amazon.co.uk). CGear Sand-Free Mat The worst thing about the beach is sand – everywhere. This mat’s dual-layer weave technology solves that…

Creator of a cop show that changed television Steven Bochco 1943-2018 When Steven Bochco was commissioned to write a new TV cop show in the early 1980s, he baulked. He had just written one that had flopped, and so suggested a range of other ideas. But NBC insisted. Finally, he agreed, provided he and his writing partner had complete control. The result was Hill Street Blues – “a show about people who happen to be cops, as opposed to cops who, in some small corner of their lives, happen to be people”. With its ensemble cast, multi-layered, open-ended plots, and use of handheld cameras, Hill Street Blues was a “game changer” in TV, said The Times. It directly inspired St. Elsewhere (Hill Street Blues in a hospital) and, as one…

Oil prices jumped to their highest level since 2014, topping $75 a barrel, after President Trump announced he was pulling out of the nuclear deal with Iran and reimposing sanctions. The risk of secondary sanctions may mean that the country returns to being a no-go zone for non-US commodity traders, companies and banks that have financed trades. Despite an initial wobble, US markets largely shrugged off the move, as did the FTSE 100, which continued its upward ascent, buoyed by renewed M&A action. In Britain, the pound slid ahead of Thursday’s interest rate decision, with markets factoring in only a 10% chance of a rise. The eurozone registered its weakest growth in 18 months, falling to 0.4% in the first quarter, stoking fears over the strength of its post-crisis recovery.…

Argie-bargie “If you thought your mortgage repayments were a bit on the high side,” be grateful that “you aren’t Argentinian”, said Matthew Lynn in The Daily Telegraph. Interest rates there have just hit 40%, thanks to “shock and awe” measures taken “to support the peso and prevent capital from fleeing the country”. And Argentina is far from the only territory in trouble. The Turkish lira has also fallen to a record low and “the Russian rouble is wobbling again”. Investors, it seems, are “heading for the exit”: global funds pulled $1.3bn from emerging market debt last week and equity indices have fallen. This could be just a blip: developing nations are always volatile, and “one or two running into trouble might not make much difference” to the overall outlook. But…

Paris Air France strike: The future of Air France – France’s flag carrier – was hanging in the balance this week as pilots and ground staff embarked on their latest round of industrial action. On Monday, shares in Air France-KLM fell by 14% after unions rejected a new pay offer and the airline’s chief executive, Jean-Marc Janaillac, resigned (see page 52). France’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, warned that the government – which part-owns the airline – would not bail it out and urged all parties (including staff asking for “unjustified pay rises”) to work together to stop the airline “disappearing”. Airline staff are demanding a 5% pay rise, but experts say that the company – which lost £238m in the first three months of the year – needs major…

1 Chelsea Morning, written and performed by Joni Mitchell 2 Sorry by Wynter Gordon, MeLo-X and Beyoncé Knowles, performed by Beyoncé 3 The Ballad of Barry and Freda (Let’s Do It), written and performed by Victoria Wood, based on Let’s Do It by Cole Porter 4 Sì, mi chiamano Mimì from La bohème by Giacomo Puccini, performed by Kent Nagano with Kiri Te Kanawa, Richard Leech and the London Symphony Orchestra 5 Being Alive by Stephen Sondheim, performed by Adrian Lester and the 1996 London cast of Company 6 Aria from Goldberg Variations by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by Glenn Gould 7* Hoppípolla by Jón Þór Birgisson, Orri Páll Dýrason, Georg Hólm and Kjartan Sveinsson, performed by Sigur Rós 8 Somewhere Over…

A man in Vietnam has had an entire chopstick removed from his penis. The 42-year-old, known only as N.V.D., claims that a friend inserted it “for fun” while they were “blind drunk”. The offending object, which was 10cm long, was removed at Saigon-Dong Nai ITO hospital, without the need for surgery, using a pair of surgical pliers. A Paris museum has become the first to welcome nudist visitors. The Palais de Tokyo contemporary art museum opened to naturists for a special one-off event last Saturday; about 160 turned up. “The naturists’ way of life is to be naked,” said Julien Claudé-Pénégry of the Paris Naturists Association. “[We] are pushing past barriers, taboos or mentalities that were obstructive.” The Los Angeles fashion brand Carmar has launched an exciting new product: Extreme…

What the scientists are saying… The genes behind depression Scientists have identified dozens of gene variants that make people more likely to suffer from depression, a development that could lead to better treatments for the condition. While studies of twins have long indicated that depression is partly heritable, the actual genes involved have proved elusive. For the new study, an international team compared the DNA of 135,000 people with a history of depression and 345,000 without, and found 44 gene variants that were more common in those with depression, 30 of which had not previously been associated with the condition. “There is certainly no single gene for depression,” said Professor Cathryn Lewis of King’s College London, one of the senior authors. However, when subjects were ranked according to their genetic…

John Bercow: is the Speaker out of order? “As any MP could tell you, John Bercow is a man who could go into an empty room and start an argument,” said former MP Rob Wilson in The Daily Telegraph. “The Speaker of the House of Commons is (how do I put this?) a complex man” – capable of generosity and charm, but also thin-skinned and prone to childish tantrums. Now, he stands accused of bullying his staff, a very serious charge for the holder of such a high office. First, one of his former private secretaries said that she’d been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after working for him for less than a year. Last week, her predecessor told the BBC that Bercow had bullied him too. Angus Sinclair claims…

Corbyn: has he reached his peak? Cast your minds back to last summer, when the crowds at Glastonbury serenaded him with cries of “Oh, Jeremy Corbyn”, and thousands of young people rushed to join Momentum. Now consider the run-up to last week’s local elections, said The Economist. A Tory government, divided over Brexit and struggling to implement it, had lurched straight from one crisis (the Windrush scandal) to another (the NHS screening scandal). For Labour, council seats up and down the country should have been ripe for the taking. But in the event, it didn’t quite work out that way. Sure, Labour did well enough in the big cities, where there are plenty of young people and ethnic minorities, but it seems that Corbyn is simply too left wing to…

Football: the Premier League’s new arrivals No league in world football is more competitive than the Championship, said John Perry in The Daily Telegraph. England’s second tier may not be able to match the delights of the Premier League or La Liga. But for sheer surprise, it is unsurpassed. That was clear once again on Sunday, when bottom-placed Sunderland finished the season by thrashing the champions, Wolves, 3-0. Yet even that could not detract from Wolves’ remarkable season. They finished with 99 points – the highest Championship total in four years. And, more impressively still, they played “some of the best football ever seen” in this division. Wolves’ Portuguese manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, “must take credit” for the success, said Ben Fisher in The Guardian. When he took over last…

The history of Windrush To The Daily Telegraph HMT Empire Windrush was originally a German passenger liner, the MV Monte Rosa, which served as a German troopship in the Second World War. In 1945, she was taken as a war prize and became a troopship under the British Ministry of Transport. In 1948, she travelled for the first time to Jamaica to repatriate West Indian servicemen. On the return journey, she brought the first 500 Jamaicans to come to Britain under the government’s postwar sponsorship schemes. The ship’s last journey was a return from Japan, carrying troops and their families. Our family boarded in Hong Kong. In the early morning of 28 March 1954, some 30 miles off Algiers, an explosion in the engine room caused a fire that…

Theatre Nine Night Playwright: Natasha Gordon Director: Roy Alexander Weise Dorfman, National Theatre, South Bank, London SE1 (020-7452 3000). Until 26 May Running time: 1hr 45mins (no interval) ★★★ As an adieu to the Windrush generation and a reflection on their legacy, Nine Night couldn’t be more timely, said Dominic Cavendish in The Daily Telegraph. Set in the London home of Gloria, a matriarch who came to Britain on the Windrush, this “assured” play takes place in the immediate aftermath of her death. Her family have gathered for the traditional Jamaican “nine night” wake, where they read poems and tell stories, while struggling to keep tensions at bay. In Roy Alexander Weise’s “accomplished” production, the play offers plenty of “warmhearted” moments alongside “tough, familial truth”. It’s a quite remarkable debut…

Exhibition of the week Shape of Light Tate Modern, London SE1 (020-7887 8888, www.tate.org.uk ). Until 14 October The subject of this exhibition is “how photography transformed itself from around 1910” onwards, said Michael Glover in The Independent. Around that time, the show argues, photography “began to be much more experimental than it had ever managed to be in the past; to lean towards abstraction, to embrace blur and distortion and swimminess in order to make the world look as odd and unlike itself as possible”. The surrealist photographer Brassaï, for instance, took “shadowy close-ups of unidentifiable forms (a rolled-up bus ticket, a soap flake, a blob of toothpaste)”, said Gaby Wood in The Daily Telegraph; Man Ray made strange, stark images of objects, which he called…

The levels of alcohol in wine have been creeping up in recent years, says Fiona Beckett in The Guardian. But lower-alcohol wines tend towards sharp fruit flavours – think redcurrant or raspberry, rather than black cherry or plum – that can pair brilliantly with food. Sainsbury’s pure, minerally Taste the Difference Pouilly Fumé 2016 (12.5%, £13), for example, shows just how much flavour that level of alcohol can deliver. Cave Orschwiller Les Faîtières Riesling Alsace 2016 (12%, £12; Borough Wines) is dry with zippy, green apple acidity; it goes well with oysters. And Jeroboams New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 2017 (12%, £10.95) is unusually low ABV for a Kiwi sauvignon, but has its trademark flavours in spades. Low-alcohol reds are more elusive, but The Wine Society is a good source. Its…

● Don’t fill up. Fuel is heavy, so your car will run more efficiently if you fill the tank to half or three-quarters full. ● Stopping and starting uses a lot of fuel, so slow down early for traffic lights and roll forwards. ● For the same reason, try to drive gently and smoothly, keeping a good distance from the car in front and reading the road ahead to avoid any unnecessary braking. ● To understand your driving patterns, get insurance with a telematics “black box” that collects driving data, or download an app on your phone that can do the same. ● Minimise wind resistance; keep windows closed at high speeds and only keep a roof cargo box on your car when you need it. ● Manufacturers’ miles-per-gallon figures…

Tannery, Dungarvan, County Waterford, Ireland One of Ireland’s best chefs, Paul Flynn opened the Tannery restaurant in a 19th century leather factory in 1997, adding “neat and simply decorated” guest rooms in 2005, and later a cookery school. His food still justifies the trip from the UK, says Tom Chesshyre in The Times. The dining room is “elegant”, with exposed metal beams and a “friendly, unpretentious atmosphere”, and breakfasts are “first-rate”. In the evenings, the seven-course tasting menu (s65) included dishes such as beetroot-cured cod, and tender beef ribs with cauliflower cheese, grapes and salted almonds. Doubles from s115 per night. Cookery classes from s55. 00 353 58 45420, tannery.ie.…

Artificial intelligence has completely changed the way we live, and there is no limit to what it can achieve. In its simplest form, algorithms track our purchases, anticipate our needs and monitor our moods, so that everything from the books we download on Kindle to the films we watch on Netflix are curated to suit our personalities and individual preferences. Spotify builds entire playlists based on our music consumption. Taxi apps know our regular routes around town. Dating websites suggest potential partners. And even Deliveroo remembers which noodles we ate last Friday. But at its most complex, AI has subverted our deepest-held beliefs. Scientists at the University of Kansas have recently used machine learning to determine what makes sea levels rise and, last year, NASA used AI to discover a…

“There can be no certainty either that an offer will be made nor as to the terms of any offer... Accordingly, shareholders are advised to take no action in relation to this proposal,” ran a coy Virgin Money note on news of an approach by its rival “challenger” bank, CYBG, this week. Phooey to that, was the reaction of exuberant investors contemplating the latest episode of M&A fervour on the London stock market, said Citywire. Shares in the Richard Branson-backed bank jumped 8% after CYBG’s preliminary £1.6bn all-share proposal. Other banking minnows also leapt on hopes of further consolidation in the sector. The enthusiasm is understandable, said Iain Dey in The Sunday Times. The chief problem dogging all Britain’s challenger banks is that they are too small “to take on…

Trump’s crude intervention in Iran George Hay Reuters Breakingviews By threatening to reimpose tough sanctions against Iran, President Donald Trump has “just unloaded multiple bullets targeted at America’s foot”, says George Hay. It is almost certain to cause a spike in the oil price, which is just “the opposite” of what Trump seems to want. When the US lifted “secondary sanctions” (which had effectively banned third parties from transacting with Tehran) in 2015, Iranian oil exports more than doubled from about one million barrels per day: as a result, Iran’s GDP rose 4% in 2017. But if they’re to be reinstated, production could drop by a third – with worrying implications for the oil price, already at $75 a barrel owing to reduced spare capacity. This will not only poleaxe…

Capita The outsourcer has suffered knocks from asset write-downs to a rights issue and dividend suspension. Senior staff are buying shares to instil confidence; CEO Jonathan Lewis bought £248,123’s worth. Form guide Shares tipped 12 weeks ago Best tip Smurfit Kappa Group The Times up 26.02% to £30.80 Worst tip Lloyds Banking Group The Times down 0.97% to 66.35p Market view “Despite the market jitters, the cracks in the global growth story do not look fatal.” Karen Ward of JPMorgan Asset Management. Quoted in the FT…