Author: damazah@gmail.com

Sorry Elon, but they’re not your kind of tweets. Social media users are flocking to TikTok to join a burgeoning trend for birding videos as the hobby attracts a younger demographic.With the internet ever more cluttered with polarising, shouty and AI content, evidence is emerging of Britons preferring a gentler, more melodic window on the world in the shape of footage of the nation’s feathered friends.TikTok says UK posts of #birdwatching and #birdtok videos have risen by a third over the past three months as users flock to feathered friend content. The number of #birding posts has risen by 40%…

No 10: Full Confidence is not the only game based around Westminster’s wheeling and dealing.Fantasy Parliament, external is a browser-based game designed by another UK-based developer, Evan Roberts, which lets players draft their own fantasy league of real-world MPs, scoring points based on their real-life media coverage.With the strategy game’s Policy Tester, players can even type in proposals to a ChatGPT-style AI model, which then replies in the style of how it believes different groups of voters – such as Coastal Keith or Graduate Gemma – would react.Meanwhile, UK Politics Simulator, “built on real UK data down to ward level”,…

On Wednesday evening, millions of people in Europe watched a rare solar eclipse. We asked some of them to share their photographs and experiences of this celestial treat. Here are some of their responses.‘A few minutes of glory’Deniz (in orange) with friends and two families. Photograph: Tom Harrup/Guardian communityA few minutes of glory with my husband’s welding visors in cloudy Loch Lubnaig. Deniz, 45, artist, Glasgow ‘It was bizarre: dozens of people with cereal boxes and colanders on their heads’David’s picture of the eclipse on Hampstead Heath, London. Photograph: David/Guardian communityBizarre being on Hampstead Heath with dozens of people with…

White praised Garry as talented and classy, but said the latter has no place during a fight

The 92-year-old singer took to social media to clarify his status after his brother said Frankie “will now retire” Frankie Valli made headlines earlier this week after his brother Bobby sounded an alarm that Frankie was retiring. Turns out, the “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” singer might need to keep an eye on what his brother is saying because Frankie said he plans to keep on working. The confusion over Valli’s career status began after Bobby took to social media earlier this week to announce that his brother Valli “will now retire. We will always have special memories of…

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the incumbent governor of Osun State and Accord Party candidate, Ademola Adeleke, winner of the state’s governorship election. Adeleke secured 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who polled 444,815 votes. The returning officer Prof Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole announced the result on Sunday after collation was completed across the state’s 30 local government areas. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished third with 17,180 votes.

The crisis had calmed since breaking out in late July, but it has sparked tensions between EU nations that share open borders as well as criticism of the Spanish government.Italy suspended the 29-member Schengen arrangement of free movement with Spain and introduced border checks on arrivals from Spain. Italy was backed by Finland and Denmark, while the Czech Republic called for Spain’s membership to be temporarily suspended.Spain reacted angrily, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez noting Ceuta was not part of the Schengen area – and the migrants, therefore, had not arrived on the Spanish mainland and could not travel to…

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., arrives to the U.S. Capitol for the last votes of the week on Friday, May 15, 2026. Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty ImagesWhen Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently announced on social media that she was freezing her eggs, she called attention to the cost of the procedure. The decision had taken time, the Democratic representative for New York’s 14th congressional district said in an Instagram story, “to consider, weigh and save up for.” So-called elective egg freezing has become more common as women delay motherhood to focus on their education and careers, studies show.…

Analysts, sociologists and pollsters all seem to agree that the forthcoming Israeli general elections, due to be held on October 27, are critical.In the past, a typical fault line between Israel’s right and liberal wings during the election season was future dealings with the Palestinians. Today, there is near-universal animosity towards the Palestinians and the prospect of a two-state solution.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listIsrael’s Jewish voters in this legislative election will likely be confronted with fundamental questions about the nature of Israeli democracy, the legitimacy of governing coalitions and very different visions of what the state represents.Palestinian…

Each year the Guardian runs a competition to find the invertebrate of the year. To find out more about the 2026 nominees, science editor Ian Sample hears from climate reporter Petra Stock, environment reporter Oliver Milman and Science Weekly co-host Madeleine Finlay. They each nominate an incredible invertebrate that you might never have heard of, and argue why their choice should come top. Vote for your favourite now and the winner will be unveiled on 17 August