Will cigarette smoking holidays in other countries become a thing?

Bill banning people born after 2008 from buying tobacco clears UK parliament Ministers hope tobacco and vapes bill, which will become law next week, will create a ‘smoke-free generation’

Laudable. But I can’t get my head around how this will work at the supermarket. Eventually having to distinguish between someone in their 40s (legal) and someone in their 30s (illegal) will require ID cards for all.

www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Freddie Woodman ready to swim after being ‘chucked into deep end’ at Liverpool Third-choice keeper’s first top-flight Liverpool appearance came on weekend his dad took Bromley up – and now he may start against his boyhood club

Pleased that Freddie Woodman’s Premier League debut for Liverpool was “gaff-free”

#lfc #pnefc

www.theguardian.com/football/202...

Aldi store item: Portable Solar Charger £29.99 Photo of a man outdoors wearing a tabard that consists of 4 solar panels

If oil prices go up higher this fashion item will be a ‘must buy’

#aldi

The Terry-Thomas “Oh, I say…”

Entirely agree PeTER SMITH the offside flag goes up…

‘We wasted a lot of lives’: CIA spymaster’s caution over past Iran intervention resurfaces from beyond the grave A documentary about Peter Sichel – the ‘Jewish James Bond’, whose wine portfolio boasted Blue Nun – includes striking mea culpas about the cost and efficacy of US involvement in the Middle East

“People in high places have an idea of what the picture should be, and if the intelligence doesn’t fit, they don’t believe the intelligence.”

www.theguardian.com/film/2026/ap...

‘I feel like I’m losing her’: the families torn apart by older relatives going far right It starts with a ‘back in my day’ nostalgic meme – then suddenly your elders are sharing AI-generated ‘boomerslop’ and repeating conspiracy theories …

‘I feel like I’m losing her’: the families torn apart by older relatives going far right

It starts with a ‘back in my day’ nostalgic meme – then suddenly your elders are sharing AI-generated ‘boomerslop’ and repeating conspiracy theories …

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Reeves looking to break link between gas cost and electricity prices Chancellor wants to reduce impact of gas on market prices, as it almost always sets price of electricity in UK

About time!

www.theguardian.com/business/202...

That horseshoe exists. Intolerance and crackpot theories at both ends.

Goldfinch perched in a birch tree.

Male Redpoll in a birch tree

Our attempt at creating a garden for wildlife is starting to pay off. Goldfinches, Redpolls, Siskins, Greenfinches, Chaffinches, even Bullfinches are visiting. Here are two half-decent photos of a Goldfinch and a Redpoll

Alfred’s not really mad, he’s just “different”.
What, me worry?

Cartoon in Private Eye #1673 by Modern Toss Desperate Business Board meeting with six people around an oval table. A flip chart shows a plummeting graph line First speaker “I’m afraid it is what it is” Second speaker replies ”Is this the same as when you said ‘we are where we are’?”

Thank you, Modern Toss

As my Prestonian uncle would have said, “‘ell fye-rrrr”

The cover of children’s picture book “Not Now, Bernard” by David McKee. Small boy Bernard is talking to the monster, which he keeps trying to tell his parents about.

Strange to have that 4th option “Not now”

I thought it looked like Epstein too. Maybe Dementia Donny really misses those good times he had with his best buddy.

Is AI the greatest art heist in history? New technologies of reproduction are plundering the art world – and getting away with it

⬅️ This artist says “Yes”

www.theguardian.com/books/2026/a...

In the UK, Keir Starmer has few fans. I learned that in China it’s a very different story | Martin Rowson The prime minister’s meal in a Yunnan restaurant in Beijing has spawned a national menu. The man has, bizarrely, become a phenomenon, says cartoonist and author Martin Rowson

In the UK, Keir Starmer has few fans. I learned that in China it’s a very different story | Martin Rowson

“He was kind, just like us.”

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Gentleman’s Relish is toast after its maker axes the pungent anchovy spread Falling sales end production of condiment created in 1828 – but London restaurant Simpson’s keeps it on the menu

Gentleman’s Relish is toast after its maker axes the pungent anchovy spread

Falling sales end production of condiment created in 1828 – but London restaurant Simpson’s keeps it on the menu

#PatumPeperium

www.theguardian.com/food/2026/ap...

RIP TGV driver 😢

Our next door neighbour has one. It’s very funny to watch it get stuck in a corner or a dip in the lawn.

German mayors call for night-time ban on robot lawnmowers to protect hedgehogs Leaders say automated mowers’ blades threaten nocturnal animals as studies highlight risks to wildlife

German mayors call for night-time ban on robot lawnmowers to protect hedgehogs

Leaders say automated mowers’ blades threaten nocturnal animals as studies highlight risks to wildlife

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Lower IQ supports Brexit: discuss

Brilliant

Not serious but distressing, all the same. Can you link any common activities that bring this on?

Beckett translated it into English after the play became a success in France. It’s not a literal translation as he changed and adapted parts of the script to better suit English-speaking countries of the world. Fascinating. 2/2

On a whim, I asked my local library to get me Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett. I collected it today & was surprised to find 2 versions of the play. The left hand pages have the French “En Attendant Godot”, right hand pages “Waiting for Godot”. I hadn’t known he wrote in first in French. 1/2

Get well soon

Artist files war crime case in Paris over Israeli strike that killed parents in Lebanon Lebanese-French man Ali Cherri demands investigation into Beirut bombing as possible war crime against civilians

Artist files war crime case in Paris over Israeli strike that killed parents in Lebanon

Lebanese-French man Ali Cherri demands investigation into Beirut bombing as possible war crime against civilians

www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

Guardian power rankings: France lead the way with Senegal and Japan in top 10 From Algeria to Uzbekistan, our writers and contributors from around the world assess the state of the 48 nations to qualify for the World Cup

World Cup ‘26 ?

48 ( ! ) teams this time.

If only the US weren’t hosts

www.theguardian.com/football/202...