Author: INDEPENDENT

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsHas it started? The lights are still on, but there’s a woman wielding a Henry Hoover on a big rug, trying to avoid a prostrate man. Now there are actors popping out from the audience – have they been there the whole time? – bantering, drinking lager, vaping. This isn’t what you’d expect from The Cherry Orchard. But it is the sort of thing you’d expect from director Benedict Andrews, who has a long history…

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inboxGet our free Inside Washington emailFormer vice president Al Gore, ex-New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh will be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a White House ceremony on Friday.It is America’s highest civilian honour and is awarded solely at the discretion of the President of the United States.The White House says that the medal is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or…

Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for freeSign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino was unable to provide any guarantees over the future of Conor Gallagher after Thursday’s 2-0 win over Tottenham.Gallagher again wore the captain’s armband and starred with his free-kick able to set up Trevor Chalobah’s 24th-minute opener.Before kick-off at Stamford Bridge, home fans unveiled a banner in support of academy graduate Gallagher, which carried the words ‘Chelsea since birth’ alongside an image of the midfielder.Even though Gallagher has established himself as a key figure…

Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxingSign up to our free sport email for all the latest newsUkraine has directed its athletes to keep their distance from Russian and Belarusian competitors at this summer’s Paris Olympics.Despite protests from Kyiv, Russian and Belarusian athletes are set to take part in the games, which take place in July and August, after the International Olympic Committee allowed them to participate as neutrals without their national flags, emblems or anthems. It also said athletes who actively supported the war in Ukraine would not…

Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for freeSign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter Unai Emery has not given up hope of Aston Villa still reaching a first European final since 1982 despite losing 4-2 in the first leg of their Europa Conference League semi-final against Olympiacos.Villa, playing their biggest occasion in Europe since winning the European Cup 42 years ago, suffered a Greek tragedy as they crumbled on home soil.Ayoub El Kaabi scored a hat-trick and Santiago Hezze’s deflected effort made it a memorable night for Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos…

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emails Ukraine, trade and investment are expected to dominate Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s first trip to Europe in five years, as the Asian giant rebuilds its foreign relations after a prolonged absence during the Covid-19 pandemic. Xi will start the tour in Paris on Monday, meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been stressing the idea of European strategic autonomy from the U.S. On a visit to Beijing last year, Macron courted controversy by…

Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for freeSign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter The problem with assuming a Europa League winner with Sevilla is bound to conquer the continent is that there is more than one of them. Unai Emery can seem the king of Europe, but a defending champion has one foot in the Europa Conference League final. Rather than Emery’s fifth European trophy, it could be Jose Luis Mendilibar’s second in as many years after, courtesy of Ayoub El Kaabi’s hat-trick, Olympiacos stormed Villa Park.Aston Villa may retain…

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USDisplaced Palestinians are hanging touching signs thanking student protesters across the US advocating against Israel’s continued attacks on Gaza.Photographs from Deir al Balah, a town in southern Gaza, show Palestinians crafting signs expressing gratitude to students at several universities in the US for staging protests and encampments. Their signs, which have been hanging in Gaza for over a week, come as tensions boil over between universities and protesters on their campuses.A sign in Gaza that reads,…

Spurs: Postecoglou slams VAR after 3-2 derby loss: ‘I don’t celebrate goals any more’Mauricio Pochettino hosts his former club, Tottenham at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League, with the aim of closing the gap on Newcastle United and Manchester United in the European spots. Chelsea’s task has been made drastically more difficult as Axel Disasi and the departing Thiago Silva are the newest casualties, adding to the now 14-man injury list.Tottenham are aiming for redemption after a derby day defeat to Arsenal, and a 4-0 battering against Newcastle, has left Ange Postecoglou’s side opening an unwanted gap between themselves and…

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailShell has reported better-than-forecast profits of £6.1bn but sparked a fresh row over its commitment to climate change targets and investing in renewable energy.The oil and gas giant’s underlying earnings for the first three months of 2024 were £6.1 billion, down a year earlier from 7.7 billion, however the result was better than forecast and 6 per cent higher than earnings in the previous quarter.The FTSE 100 firm also lavished its shareholders with a £2.8 billion in share buybacks, on…