First Thing: Former FBI director James Comey indicted over Instagram seashells post

Ruling is blow to Office for Students after it issued fine for handling of protests over professor’s trans rights viewsSussex University has overturned a £585,000 fine by England’s higher education watchdog after the high court rejected claims the university had breached free speech regulations involving its former professor Kathleen Stock.The ruling is a damaging blow to the credibility and management of the Office for Students, after the court rejected the regulator’s lengthy investigation into Sussex’s handling of the protests aimed at Stock over her views on transgender rights and her subsequent resignation in 2021. Continue reading...

Wicked star’s one-woman West End show was stopped in response to an increasingly common problem for theatresA performance of Dracula in the West End on Monday night was halted after its star, Cynthia Erivo, spotted that an audience member appeared to be filming the show.A representative for the production, in which Erivo plays all 23 roles, confirmed that there had been a short stop caused by the incident. A commenter on the forum Theatreboard, who said they had been at the show, wrote that Erivo – roughly an hour into the performance – “looked out into the audience and said: ‘Are you filming? Is someone filming?’ and stopped the show”. Another commenter said that they had attended Dracula – which is at the Noël Coward theatre – the following night and that there were extra reminders to the audience about taking photos and filming. Continue reading...

Annual event at Red Square will feature no armoured vehicles or missile systems for first time in two decades Europe live – latest updatesRussia will hold a scaled-back Victory Day parade in Moscow on 9 May, without military hardware for the first time in almost two decades due to fears of a long-range attack by Ukrainian drones.The defence ministry said no armoured vehicles or missile systems would roll across Red Square during the parade, which marks the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, citing “the current operational situation”. Continue reading...

Campaigners saying public spaces protection orders also being used to criminalise wide range of everyday activitiesOne in five local councils have banned swearing under new “busybody” orders, up from one in 20 councils in 2022.A new report by the Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life has found that public spaces protection orders (PSPOs) – originally intended to tackle serious anti-social behaviour – are being used by councils in England and Wales to criminalise a wide range of everyday activities, including standing in groups, shouting and picking up stones. Continue reading...

What began as a tiny space above the founder’s stables became the beating heart of the city’s performing arts. Its leader Jimmy Fay reflects on recent hits and reveals what audiences can expect from the theatre’s anniversary year‘The Lyric gives voice to everyone in Northern Ireland,” says the theatre’s boss, Jimmy Fay. “It’s a beacon.” Fay views the 2026 programme, celebrating 75 years of the Lyric, as an opportunity to showcase current creative talent, as well as honouring the theatre’s past.One of the plays from the repertoire that Fay was keen to revive is Christina Reid’s Tea in a China Cup, from 1983. With a cast including Marie Jones, the new production – which runs in May – is directed by Dan Gordon, who performed in the original. Reid’s play traces the daily lives of Protestant working-class women in Belfast across three decades, from the second world war to the Troubles, with humour and poignancy. Continue reading...

Reform leader changed his mind about standing as MP after gift from Thai-based crypto tycoon Christopher HarborneNigel Farage was given £5m by the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne shortly before announcing he would stand in the 2024 British general election, the Guardian can reveal.Farage had already stated he did not intend to stand as a prospective MP but U-turned within weeks of receiving the personal gift from the Thai-based businessman. Continue reading...

Tracey Emin among creators on display at Making Her Mark, a project by Penzance, Worcester and Kirkcaldy galleriesLike many regional galleries, the collection at Penlee House in Cornwall tends to be dominated by male artists, a legacy of the inequality faced by female creators over centuries.But from Thursday, thanks to a collaboration between galleries, visitors to the site in Penzance will be able to view work by some of the Britain’s great female artists. Continue reading...

US president said UK monarch agreed Tehran should not be allowed nuclear weaponsA flick of Oscar Wilde here, a nod to Henry Kissinger there, a sprinkling of Charles Dickens here, a dollop of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt there. Job done!The British monarch mobilised an elite squad of dead white men, leavened with humour and subliminal politicking, on Tuesday in a charm offensive aimed over Donald Trump’s head and squarely at the US Congress. Judging by the cheers and minute-long applause he received at the end, the soft power flex worked a treat and the special relationship lives to fight another day.We’re doing a little Middle East work right now … and we’re doing very well. We have militarily defeated that particular opponent, and we’re never going to let that opponent ever, Charles agrees with me even more than I do, we’re never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon.They know that, and they’ve known it right now, very powerfully.The king is naturally mindful of his government’s longstanding and well-known position on the prevention of nuclear proliferation.Todd Blanche, the former defense lawyer for Donald Trump now serving as acting US attorney general, announced two charges against James Comey, the former FBI director and deputy attorney general for allegedly “knowing and willfully making a threat to kill” the president of the United States in a social media post.Patrick Fitzgerald, a former US attorney for the northern district of Illinois who now represents James Comey, said that his client, “vigorously denies the charges” filed against him.US defense secretary Pete Hegseth will face tough questions from lawmakers about the Iran war on Wednesday during his first testimony to Congress since the start of the conflict.President Trump will welcomes the Artemis II astronauts to the White House later today. The capsule returned to Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, almost a month after blasting off on humanity’s first lunar trip in more than a half century.The supreme court will hear arguments Wednesday over the Trump administration’s push to end legal protections for migrants fleeing war and natural disaster, one in a series of immigration cases the high court is considering against the backdrop of the president’s far-reaching immigration crackdown.The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday after a key policy meeting, likely the last chaired by central bank chief Jerome Powell. Policymakers will weigh the risks of surging energy prices and snarled supply chains due to the US-Israel war on Iran, with analysts widely expecting a third pause in a row. Continue reading...

About 500 officers deployed as part of operation at headquarters of Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light Police have raided the headquarters of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light following an investigation into allegations of serious sexual offences, modern slavery and forced marriage.About 500 officers drawn from across the north-west region were on the ground on Wednesday morning. The officers had warrants to enter the group’s headquarters, which is based out of a former orphanage as well as other properties in Crewe, Cheshire. Continue reading...

US suspect held in south-east Asia after genealogical DNA identified him in Tampa-area case involving 7-year-old girlA man accused of kidnapping and sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl in Florida in 1989 was recently arrested in the Philippines, according to authorities.Preserved DNA and genealogical research allowed investigators to identify Young Tom Talmadge, 69, as the suspect in the Tampa-area case, the Philippines’ government said in a statement. Continue reading...

Utility bills are up as much as 40% in some regions, and companies shut off power to customers 13m times in 2025The US’s top utilities’ CEOs enjoyed a 16% pay raise last year – to an average of $12.3m – even as consumers shoulder the pain from high bills spurred by continuing inflation, the Iran war and datacenter growth, a new review of industry financial documents shows.Utility bills are up as much as 40% in some regions since 2021, and, nationwide, utilities shut off power to customers 13m times last year, federal data shows. Continue reading...