6 Jan 202403.24 GMTHere’s the match report, if you’re catching up.
David Warner hits half-century in farewell Test as Australia seal series sweep over PakistanRead more6 Jan 202403.23 GMTI think that’s enough from us, on a gorgeous Sydney afternoon. We’ll be back with the OBO when West Indies arrive in Adelaide for the next Test assignment. Cheers to Angus Fontaine and Jonathan Howcroft for taking the controls with me, and thanks to you for your messages and feedback.
Charles is the king of apathy, not our hearts he risks it all by asking for more | Gaby Hinsliff
2024-04-09
OpinionKing Charles coronation This article is more than 8 months oldCharles is the king of apathy, not our hearts – he risks it all by asking for moreThis article is more than 8 months oldGaby HinsliffMost of us don’t care about the coronation, and attempts to whip up our support have already backfired
It was the call to swear an oath of allegiance to the king that did it.
Until then it had been possible just to let all the coronation chatter about spinach quiches and gold sticks-in-waiting and who is wearing which tiara drift painlessly over your head if you weren’t entirely gripped, as polling suggests most of us aren’t.
How do the winners of a 'plate' competition - where everyone knocked out of the main tournament in t
2024-04-09
How do the winners of a 'plate' competition - where everyone knocked out of the main tournament in the first round competes for a secondary title - compare to those in the main competition. ie Is the winner of the plate statistically worse than all the runners up in the main tournament? How do the statistics break down? ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKafqbK0rc2dqK6dop6ytHvArKJoaFxhenKFlmtvbWRgZXupwMyl
How much is Taylor Swift making from the Australian concerts of her Eras tour? | Taylor Swift
2024-04-09
Taylor Swift performs in Atlanta, Georgia in the US April. The singer’s global concert tour could be the first to generate more than US$1bn, breaking the record held by Elton John. Photograph: Terence Rushin/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights ManagementTaylor Swift performs in Atlanta, Georgia in the US April. The singer’s global concert tour could be the first to generate more than US$1bn, breaking the record held by Elton John. Photograph: Terence Rushin/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights ManagementAustralian arts in focusTaylor Swift This article is more than 6 months oldHow much is Taylor Swift making from the Australian concerts of her Eras tour?
Israel and Hezbollah edge closer to war as drone hits key Israeli command base | Hezbollah
2024-04-09
HezbollahIsrael and Hezbollah edge closer to war as drone hits key Israeli command baseIDF says no damage or casualties caused after Lebanese militant group launches explosives at Safed base
Middle East crisis – live updates Israel and Hezbollah edged closer towards full scale war on Tuesday, as the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group launched explosive drones at a key Israeli command base, declaring the attack part of its response to recent high-level Israeli assassinations in Lebanon.
Ask PhilippaSexNo one has a right to sex just because they are in a marriage. It’s a good time to tell him you do not want to be used as a sexual object
The question Content warning: this article contains descriptions of sexual assault.
My husband and I have been married for nearly 35 years. I love him, but I no longer want to have sex with him. I cannot muster any enthusiasm at all.
Carol Rumens's poem of the weekPoetryPoem of the week: The Phoenix and the Turtle by William ShakespeareAn enigmatic allegory that seems steeped in Elizabethan court politics is full of music worth listening to for its own sakeThis week's poem, William Shakespeare's "The Phoenix and the Turtle", was first published in 1601, in an anthology entitled Love's Martyr. The collection begins with a long poem by Robert Chester, and includes work by various hands, including Ben Jonson and George Chapman, all of it having a "
Gripping depiction of the art world … Hannah Rothschild. Photograph: Karen Robinson/The ObserverView image in fullscreenGripping depiction of the art world … Hannah Rothschild. Photograph: Karen Robinson/The ObserverFictionReviewIt takes time to get going, but this story of a rediscovered old master leads us into a high-society world of Russian billionaires, collectors and sheikhs with whimsy and humourThe opening pages puzzled me. Reading the cavalcade of cliches in the prologue, I couldn’t perceive any quality that caused this novel to be elevated to the shortlist of the Baileys prize this month.
The Mermaid andMrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar review whirlpools of desire in Georgian Lond
2024-04-09
FictionReviewA mermaid is a perilous catch, and so is a courtesan, in this vibrant debut of fantasy and illusionRoll up, roll up, a true wonder is on display: a mermaid magicked out of words. The author of this debut set in Georgian London gulled me, by the zest of her writing and sustained authorial sleight of hand, into forgetting for a second that they do not exist. Witness the briny blast of ozone coming off the page in this letter from one Captain Tysoe Jones: “She had been caught up in the Nets of a fishing-boat, which mistook her at first for a school of Herring, so vast and glinting was she.