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Retail industryRetail sales in Great Britain plummet as Christmas shoppers cut back December figures show biggest monthly fall since shops were forced to close during pandemic in 2021 Analysis: Retail slump raises spectre of UK recession Retailers in Great Britain suffered a dire Christmas as cash-strapped consumers cut back on shopping in December, fuelling the biggest fall in monthly sales since shops were forced to close during the coronavirus pandemic in 2021. [Read More]

Film blogWoody AllenThe 10 best Woody Allen filmsWe asked readers to vote for their favourite of the director's films. Here are the results, with contributors making the case for the Woody Allen film that means the most to them10. Sleeper"Allen was a compulsive gag writer; in Sleeper he paid homage to Keaton and co with slapstick and visual gags galore. A giant banana skin, a growing cake mix, a steamroller squashing the President's nose. [Read More]

FictionReviewAlan Warner has realised his potential triumphantlyOf all the writers associated with Rebel Inc, the countercultural Scottish magazine which appeared in the early 1990s and launched the career of Irvine Welsh, Alan Warner has always struck me as the one with by far the most potential. He has the kind of unflinching hyper-realism that shades into the surreal, and has ambitiously avoided becoming typecast: readers of his "chemical generation" debut, Morvern Callar, could hardly have predicted the gothic extravagances of its sort-of sequel, These Demented Lands, nor that after that he would write an acutely observed evocation of schoolgirlhood in non-metropolitan Scotland, The Sopranos. [Read More]

Referees This article is more than 2 months oldWebb dismisses Arteta’s complaints over Newcastle’s winner against ArsenalThis article is more than 2 months oldReferee chief stands by VAR decision leading to Arsenal defeatWebb admits VAR got penalty decision wrong against WolvesHoward Webb has dismissed Mikel Arteta’s complaints over Newcastle’s winner against Arsenal this month and insisted VAR got all three reviews in Anthony Gordon’s goal correct. Webb, the chief refereeing officer of Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL), addressed the controversy in the latest edition of the series Match Officials: Mic’d Up on Tuesday when audio between the referee and VAR at St James’ Park was broadcast. [Read More]

Hannah Booth: ‘The release of talking, of being listened to, is an emotional experience.’ Photograph: Pål Hansen/The GuardianTherapy was like finding a key for a door that had been locked my whole life. Here are the nine things it’s taught me Listen to an audio version of this article by Hannah BoothI am standing outside an ordinary house in a tree-lined street on a midsummer afternoon, about to change my life. [Read More]

Self and wellbeingHealth, mind and body booksTrust your gut, boost your memory, de-bias your decision making… can we train our brains to perform better? The world out there can often seem as though it is hurtling to hell in a handcart: people are refusing safe vaccines for a dangerous disease, extreme weather events caused by global heating are on TV nightly, billionaires are shooting themselves into the stratosphere in penis-shaped spacecraft while record numbers of the precariously employed rely on food banks. [Read More]

Science Weekly Science CBD: what’s the science behind the wellness trend? – podcast More ways to listen Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Spotify RSS Feed Download Presented by Ian Sample, produced by Madeleine Finlay, Joshan Chana and Tom Glasser, sound design by Mau Loseto, the executive producer is Ellie Bury Tue 14 Nov 2023 05. [Read More]

Film blogSacha Baron CohenIt's the paying public that Bruno's really mockingSacha Baron Cohen's humour depends on exploiting the hypocrisy, cruelty and dim-wittedness of his audiencesThe Sacha Baron Cohen phenomenon has struck again. This time round, we were warned that gays, Austrians and fashionistas would be up the wall. There were indeed a few anxious peeps from some of these, generating helpful advance buzz for Bruno. Nonetheless, serious protest never really took off. [Read More]

Las Vegas Grand Prix: F1 hits Sin City – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email As Max Verstappen wins on the Strip, we take a look at the best images from a spectacular race in Las Vegas • Verstappen fights back to win as F1’s gamble pays off Guardian sport Main image: Red Bull celebrate a big win in Vegas. [Read More]

Octavia Spencer This article is more than 9 years oldOctavia Spencer wins lawsuit against weight-loss companyThis article is more than 9 years oldThe Help actor granted almost $1m in settlement for soured endorsement deal, while Michael Keaton wins breach-of-contract lawsuit over directing debut, The Merry Gentleman Octavia Spencer has won a court ruling for wrongful termination after a weight-loss firm shut down a sponsorship deal with the Oscar-winning actor. Spencer sued Sensa Products in August after the company cancelled its contract with the star and refused to pay the remaining $700,000 (£450,000) owed under its terms. [Read More]