All posts tagged: British

Reform within touching distance of Labour as poll suggests ‘new era’ for British politics | Politics News

Reform within touching distance of Labour as poll suggests ‘new era’ for British politics | Politics News

Published by Sam

Reform UK has grown in support to within one percentage point of Labour according to a new poll for Sky News by YouGov which suggests Britain has entered a new era of three-way party politics. Sir Keir Starmer looks set to spend the parliament locked in a fight with two right-wing parties after Labour support dropped sharply in the first YouGov poll since the general election. The poll shows the Tories have now been pushed into third place – two months after Kemi Badenoch was elected leader. The data collected over the weekend puts Labour on 26%, Reform UK on 25%, Conservatives on 22%, Liberal Democrats on 14% and Greens on 8%. This is a huge switch from the general election, when Labour was on 35%, Conservatives on 24%, Reform UK on 15%, Lib Dem on 13% and Greens on 7%. Politics latest: Chancellor will remain until next election, Downing Street says This is the first of YouGov’s weekly voting intention polls for Sky News, shared with The Times. It reflects a drop in satisfaction …

Elon Musk and His Megaphone, X, Rattle British Politics

Elon Musk and His Megaphone, X, Rattle British Politics

Published by skeptic

When Elon Musk asked his 211 million followers on X to vote on whether “America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government,” it seemed as if the post could only be tongue-in-cheek. But coming after a barrage of strident posts about Britain by Mr. Musk — assailing the Labour prime minister, Keir Starmer; demanding the release of a jailed far-right agitator; and breaking with a hard-right leader, Nigel Farage — it came off less as a joke than a flex by a powerful man relishing his ability to roil the politics of another country. Mr. Musk’s posts, which popped up on X throughout the holiday like unwelcome guests at a Christmas party, have thoroughly hijacked the political debate in Britain at the start of 2025. On Monday, Mr. Starmer used a news conference about fixing Britain’s National Health Service to deny Mr. Musk’s allegations that he had not acted when he was Britain’s chief prosecutor more than a decade ago against gangs that sexually abused girls. Mr. Farage, for his part, faced …

British tennis star Katie Boulter announces engagement with Australian star Alex de Minaur | UK News

British tennis star Katie Boulter announces engagement with Australian star Alex de Minaur | UK News

Published by skeptic

British tennis star Katie Boulter has announced her engagement to Australian ace Alex de Minaur. Boulter, 28, has been with 25-year-old De Minaur for more than four years and on Monday morning shared a picture of the couple together – with a ring showing on her finger. “We’ve been keeping a small secret,” she wrote in a caption, with a smiling face emoji. A list of well-wishers left comments below her post after the announcement. It’s not yet clear when the tennis pair plan to tie the knot, but they could face off in direct competition at the United Cup in Australia early next year. Great Britain and Australia have been drawn in the same group for the tournament. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Instagram cookies or to allow those cookies just once. You can change your settings at any time …

Stonehenge May Have Been Built to Unite Early British Farming Communes

Stonehenge May Have Been Built to Unite Early British Farming Communes

Published by skeptic

This has been a monumental year for further insight about Stonehenge‘s creation. Researchers are now positing that the iconic stone circle may have been erected in an effort to unite ancient farming communities, CNN reported. Earlier this year, experts discovered that Stonehenge’s central six-ton altar stone may have come from more than 450 miles away in Scotland. It was previously known that the sarsen stones came from 16 miles away from the site, in what is now the British town of Marlborough, and that the smaller bluestones were brought from 125 miles away, from the Preseli hills in what is now Wales. Related Articles Mike Parker Pearson, a professor of British later prehistory at University College London, has proposed that Stonehenge’s very creation may hinge on the stone’s geographical distance. Stonehenge, he claims, may have been the result of early efforts to unite farmers and their communities across the British Isles during a time of social change. The stones could have been a gift or signified a political alliance. “Stonehenge stands out in being a …

Americans are obsessed with a group of British TikTokers’ on their first trip to New York

Americans are obsessed with a group of British TikTokers’ on their first trip to New York

Published by skeptic

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more If your TikTok feed has been filled with nothing but videos from a group of friends from the United Kingdom documenting their first trip to New York City, then you’re not alone. This week, people on TikTok have developed a new obsession with Welsh content creators Charly Anne and Ieuan Jones. The TikTokers — along with their friends Emily, Cory, and Lea — have gone viral for their NYC videos, in which they visit the Big Apple’s main tourist attractions and share their reviews of popular fast food chains. It all began when Charly and her pals touched down on the East Coast over the weekend. Of course, one of their first stops on their visit had to be at an American staple, Target. …

how one British musician is shaping the future of music

how one British musician is shaping the future of music

Published by skeptic

Imogen Heap is not your average musician. Her innovative approach to music-making has persistently embraced technology. From her Grammy award-winning production work to her use of vocoders and Mi.Mu electronic gloves, Heap continues to push the boundaries of how music is created and experienced. Now, with her AI-powered digital twin “Mogen”, Heap is taking her exploration to a whole new level, offering a fascinating case study into the evolving relationship between music, technology and human creativity. Heap’s endeavour seeks to enhance her music and connect with fans in a way that challenges common fears about AI replacing human artistry. In a landscape where AI often sparks unease – portrayed as a disruptor that could replace jobs, dehumanise creativity and undermine authenticity – Imogen Heap’s perspective offers a refreshing alternative. For many, AI conjures visions of machines taking over roles traditionally held by humans, particularly in creative fields where personal expression and emotion are paramount. Heap, however, sees AI not as a competitor but as a collaborator – a tool to amplify, rather than replace, the …

Who Are the Young British Artists? An Overview of the Movement

Who Are the Young British Artists? An Overview of the Movement

Published by skeptic

  In 1988, a group of art students from London’s Goldsmiths College united to exhibit their art together. Their techniques, mediums, and ideas were different, but they all shared a deeply polarizing attitude toward art with an entrepreneurial approach. The versatile and multifaceted YBAs are often regarded as controversial, with their unconventional materials and sometimes repulsive topics unacceptable to some. Read on to learn more about the Young British Artists and their art.   Young British Artists: Origins and Characteristics Freeze exhibition in London, 1988. Source: Phaidon   The Young British Artists, also known as YBAs, were a loose group of art students sharing one exhibition space. The history of the group started in 1988, when a second-year student of Goldsmiths College Damien Hirst organized a show titled Freeze. This exhibit brought together recent alumni and current students. They shared neither techniques nor ideologies but rather a sense of current time and place, originating from a single cultural strata. Despite major art galleries initially ignoring Hirst’s initiative, he managed to find private sponsors and soon …

King Charles’s Million Coronation Has Enraged the British Public

King Charles’s $91 Million Coronation Has Enraged the British Public

Published by Sam

When Britain celebrated the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in May 2023, the ancient ceremony came along with a ceremonial parade and days of celebration around the nation. On Thursday, the UK government announced that the festivities cost 72 million British pounds, or about 91 million dollars, a sum that has raised eyebrows amid the country’s ongoing economic doldrums. In their annual report for the fiscal year that ran from March 2023 to March 2024, the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport broke down their annual budget of 7.9 billion British pounds (about 9.9 billion dollars), and shared that approximately 50 million British pounds went towards the coronation weekend. The Home Office spent a further 22 million British pounds (about 28 million dollars) on policing for the events. The department’s costs included the Westminster Abbey ceremony and associated programming across the weekend, including the Windsor Castle concert featuring Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and a 300 person choir comprised of regular Britons, a day of Big Coronation Lunches across the nation, and …

British Museum Receives .2 B. Worth of Chinese Ceramics

British Museum Receives $1.2 B. Worth of Chinese Ceramics

Published by skeptic

The British Museum has been gifted one of the world’s most prodigious collections of Chinese ceramics, worth £1 billion ($1.27 billion), in what is likely the highest-value donation of art ever received by a UK museum. The 1,700-piece collection—including a wine cup painted with chickens from the Ming Dynasty—was donated by the trustees of the Sir Percival David Foundation and has been on long-term loan to the London museum in a dedicated gallery since 2009. Such a high-value donation of art is uncommon in the UK; the last headline-making gift received by the British Museum was a bequest from a late trustee worth £123 million, or $156 million. Related Articles Nicholas Cullinan, director of the British Museum, called the Percival ceramics an “incomparable private collection.” He added: “These celebrated objects add a special dimension to our own collection and together offer scholars, researchers and visitors around the world the incredible opportunity to study and enjoy the very best examples of Chinese craftsmanship anywhere in existence.” Percival David was born in 1892 in Bombay (present-day Mumbai) …