CATEGORIES

Trans player Van Leuven is a winner even as she loses

As Noa-Lynn van Leuven approached the stage, red hair flowing and lipstick shimmering under the lights, it was hard to know what the reaction would be.

Liverpool's forgotten man will 'get minutes' in cup tie

It was seen as a no-brainer. Liverpool's £12m signing of Federico Chiesa - the Italian golden boy on his nation's triumphant European Championship title run three years ago was heralded from all angles as a coup for Arne Slot.

Fixture chaos is a blueprint for shocks and dark horses

In the immediate aftermath of the Manchester derby, Pep Guardiola was dumbfounded.

Mudryk in 'complete shock' over banned substance test

Mykhailo Mudryk insists he has “not done anything wrong” after submitting a drug test sample which contained a banned substance.

Weakened job market is a grim sign of things to come

Recruiter Reed threw the cat among the pigeons when it warned of a sharp fall in the number of jobs being advertised – and suggested that a recession may be just around the corner.

What's at stake if US goes ahead with TikTok ban?

After amassing more than 170 million users in the country in less than seven years, TikTok is now facing an outright ban in the US.

Teen kills teacher and pupil in shooting at US school

A US community has been left traumatised after a 15-year-old female student killed a teacher and another pupil in a shooting spree at a Christian school in Wisconsin on Monday.

French fly flag in Damascus as West holds talks in Syria.

France has raised its flag at its Damascus embassy for the first time in 12 years and European Union officials prepared to engage with the new Syrian leadership, a sign of the growing contacts after Bashar al-Assad was ousted as president on 8 December.

Gaza ceasefire in sight as expectations grow over deal

Hamas says an agreement will only be signed if Israel stops setting new conditions during 'serious and positive' talks

UK held migrants on island unlawfully, judge rules

A group of more than 60 asylum seekers were unlawfully detained by the UK on the remote island of Diego Garcia, a judge has ruled.

UK intelligence foiled plots.to assassinate Pope Francis

Two suicide bombers targeted Pope Francis as he delivered a message of peace during a visit to Iraq but were foiled by British intelligence services, he has revealed.

Sara Sharif's killers start life sentences to shouts of 'evil'

The pair were described as 'executioners' by Sara's mother

Why has Labour's Brexit reset with the EU faltered?

Not for the first time, this government finds itself stumbling into the gap between its pre-election rhetoric and post-election realities.

Farage meets Musk amid Reform donation rumours

Nigel Farage has met Elon Musk at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago mansion amid rumours the tech billionaire is preparing to donate $100m (£79m) to Reform UK.

Hodgkinson voted BBC Sports Personality of Year

Keely Hodgkinson was crowned BBC Sports Personality of the Year at an awards ceremony in Salford last night, at the end of a stunning year which saw her become the Olympic 800m champion in Paris.

Millions of Waspi women will not get compensation

Government ignores ombudsman over lost pension cash

General killed in Moscow blast 'was legitimate target'

Sources admit Ukrainian agents assassinated Igor Kirillov

Starmer reveals plans for new defence pact with EU

The UK must coordinate with its allies to support Ukraine, the PM tells political correspondent Millie Cooke in Tallinn

Track queen Hodgkinson races towards another prize

Lawrence Ostlere on why the 800m Olympic champion is favourite to win the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year

New year, new City? Pep's crisis demands an overhaul

It was neither the most extreme nor most expensive piece of scrambled thinking by anyone of a Manchester City persuasion.

Fans get 'Battle of Britain' in tough Euro 2025 draw

Holders England and debutants Wales are joined by France and the Netherlands in Group D

Late drama as Cherries and West Ham share the points

The media giant is behind films including the Paddington franchise, Back to Black and Love Actually through its studio business, StudioCanal. London’s stock market has seen several companies move their primary listings abroad, and a raft of listed firms taken private following acquisitions.

The 'Czech Sphinx' is just what the Royal Mail needs

Controversial as the deal may be, Daniel Kretinsky might be the only man with a realistic prospect of fixing the company, writes James Moore but he is still taking a significant risk

Assad wanted to stay and keep fighting, he claims

Ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad said that he wanted to stay in the country after rebels captured the capital, but the Russian military evacuated him from their base in western Syria after it came under attack.

'In the last week, there were no attempts to kill anyone'

Sitting in the police headquarters of Homs, in an office that, until last week, was run by the feared intelligence network of Bashar al-Assad, Alaa Omran is holding court.

Germany on course to hold snap election in February

German chancellor Olaf Scholz has lost a confidence vote, putting the European Union’s most populous member and biggest economy on course to hold an early election in late February.

The silent war taking place on Nato's eastern fringes

Narva, on Estonia’s border with Russia, has been targeted by the Kremlin since 2022. Millie Cooke talks to residents and discovers that anti-Russian feeling is by no means universal

New homeschooling laws after murder of Sara Sharif

The right to home education will no longer be automatic for parents of the most at-risk children, under proposed legislation being unveiled in parliament today.

Government accused of sewage discharge failure

The government and regulators breached the law by allowing water firms to discharge sewage, a watchdog has ruled.

Archbishop apologises for handling of sex abuse case

The church of England’s second-most-senior bishop, Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, has apologised for not acting sooner in the case of sexual abuse carried out by a Church of England priest.