I discovered a tree kangaroo that had only been seen once by the man who shot it in 1928

Michael Smith has rediscovered ‘a couple of dozen’ species thought extinct. Photograph: Urszula Sołtys/The GuardianMichael Smith has rediscovered ‘a couple of dozen’ species thought extinct. Photograph: Urszula Sołtys/The GuardianI discovered …EnvironmentI want people to be excited about the animals I find and get them involved in conservation I am a British tourist, and I spend my holidays searching for species that are believed to be extinct. On my last trip to Papua New Guinea in 2022, I found a Louisiade pitta bird, which had been the focus of failed professional expeditions for years. [Read More]

Long John Baldry | | The Guardian

ObituaryLong John BaldryGuitarist and singer who was a key figure in the British rhythm and blues movementThe guitarist and singer Long John Baldry, who has died, aged 64, following a severe chest infection, played a key role in the growth of the British rhythm and blues movement, notably as vocalist with Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated. He led bands in the mid-1960s that featured the youthful Rod Stewart and Elton John before recording his big hit, Let The Heartaches Begin, in 1967. [Read More]

The Incurable Romantic by Frank Tallis review stuck in the crazy stage of love

Health, mind and body booksReviewA psychologist tells numerous and eye-opening stories of love sickness, rampant sex and obsessions with inappropriate partnersLove, according to the veteran clinical psychologist Frank Tallis, is not lovely at all. Mostly it seems to involve loitering in public places, worried that your ex has reported you to the police. Alternatively it means getting rid of your partner so that you can masturbate at leisure because, let’s face it, you’re so much more fanciable than he is. [Read More]

Tulisa: The Female Boss review

The ObserverTulisa ContostavlosReview(All Around the World/Island)The debut solo album from N-Dubz singer and X Factor judge Tulisa doesn't start promisingly. The spoken-word Intro espouses female empowerment but sounds like Pat Butcher flatly intoning rejected taglines for Margaret Thatcher biopic The Iron Lady, before the numbing, generic trance stylings of recent No 1 single Young kick in. Live Your Life and the atrocious Kill Me Tonight are cut from the same cloth, while Damn is a ponderous power ballad. [Read More]

Did skydiver who fell 13,000 feet to his death cut the straps on his own parachute? | UK news

UK newsDid skydiver who fell 13,000 feet to his death cut the straps on his own parachute?Police drop murder inquiry after 10 months as forensic and DNA evidence provide chilling new theoryStephen Hilder grinned broadly at his two friends' shaky camcorder and flashed a thumbs-up as their SMG Turbo Finist light aircraft circled up to 13,000ft where they leaped out over Lincolnshire. For Stephen that was the start of a horrifying plunge reaching 120mph as his sabotaged parachute tore from four deliberately severed straps. [Read More]

Mitchell Pearce dog video: NRL player stood down by Sydney Roosters | Sydney Roosters

Sydney Roosters This article is more than 7 years oldMitchell Pearce dog video: NRL player stood down by Sydney RoostersThis article is more than 7 years oldRoosters skipper stood down from all training commitments until the club concludes investigation, and reportedly faces a fine and loss of captaincy The Sydney Roosters have stood down skipper Mitchell Pearce after he was filmed simulating a lewd act with a dog during drunken Australia Day celebrations. [Read More]

Muna on Harry Styles, imposter syndrome and Trump-baiting | Pop and rock

Pop and rockInterviewMuna on Harry Styles, imposter syndrome and Trump-baitingMichael CraggThe trio talk about difficult second albums and why their new single is the ‘head of the baby’ What’s a band to do when, after an arduous two years of studio-based creative excavation, they finally complete their anticipated second album? All-night drug binge? Alcohol-fuelled rampage? A nice holiday somewhere with a pool? Well, if you’re emo-pop trio Muna, AKA Katie Gavin, Josette Maskin and Naomi McPherson, you go for something a little more holistic. [Read More]

Private funeral for reclusive Dirk Bogarde | UK news

UK newsPrivate funeral for reclusive Dirk BogardeSir Dirk Bogarde, the 1950s matinée idol who transformed himself into one of Britain's most respected actors and writers, will have no memorial service following his death at the age of 78. Instead, he will have a private family funeral in accordance with his wish 'just to forget me', his nephew, Brock Van den Bogaerde, said yesterday. The reclusive actor also asked for his ashes to be scattered in France, a country he made his adoptive home for 20 years. [Read More]

Sacred mystery: the photographers obsessed with the crumbling sphinx

Sean O'Hagan on photographyArt and designFrom eerie Victorian prints to Freudian school-outing snaps, the ancient Egyptian colossus has captivated photographers since the dawn of the medium For 50 centuries, the great sphinx of Giza has been a silent witness to history, as nomads, travellers, armies and tourists passed underneath its massive limestone form, stopped to climb on it or simply to marvel at its monolithic presence. “The pharaohs, Ethiopians, Persians, Lagids, Romans, lower empire Christians, Arabs, Fatimids, Mamluks, Turks, French and English have slept in its shadow,” observed the pioneering French photographer and writer Maxime Du Camp. [Read More]

Section 28 protesters 30 years on: We were arrested and put in acell up by Big Ben

LGBTQ+ rightsIn May 1988, the reviled law that forbade ‘promoting’ homosexuality came into force. Here, some of those who made headlines fighting back – from invading the BBC News studio to abseiling into the House of Lords – explain why they had to act Lesbians stormed the BBC to protest about it. Twenty thousand Mancunians took to the city streets to march against it. Ian McKellen came out as gay to fight it. [Read More]