Is it time to end cats right to roam?

 Posted on May 5, 2024  |  10 minutes  |  1959 words  |  Aldo Pusey

The ObserverWildlifePet cats kill songbirds by the million, as well as rodents and other wildlife. But how much of a threat do they really pose, and should they be kept indoors? Expert opinion is divided There is an elaborate bird rescue mission under way in the town of Walldorf. As one of the last homes of the ground-nesting crested lark in Germany, the local district is eager to protect their three remaining breeding pairs. [Read More]

Is this a photo of Bill Murray or Tom Hanks? The internet can't decide | Movies

 Posted on May 5, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  494 words  |  Jenniffer Sheldon

Movies This article is more than 7 years oldIs this a photo of Bill Murray or Tom Hanks? The internet can't decideThis article is more than 7 years oldA photo posted to a Facebook group triggered debate just as furious as that surrounding The Dress – is it Murray impersonating a crying baby, or is it Hanks? Bill Murray’s mood swings were so tempestuous during the making of Ghostbusters that Dan Aykroyd nicknamed him The Murricane. [Read More]

LaRose by Louise Erdrich review reverberations of an accidental killing

 Posted on May 5, 2024  |  2 minutes  |  393 words  |  Aldo Pusey

The ObserverLouise ErdrichReviewLouise Erdrich paints a rich, wide-canvas portrait of a Native American community under stressLouise Erdrich writes novels of great richness. Her new novel, LaRose, her 15th, is the third part of a loose trilogy, along with The Plague of Doves and The Round House, all set around a Native American reservation in North Dakota and featuring some of the same characters. It starts with the zing of a bullet as Landreaux, an Ojibwe man out stalking a deer, accidentally kills his neighbour’s young son. [Read More]

Mike Hodges obituary | Movies

 Posted on May 5, 2024  |  6 minutes  |  1233 words  |  Aldo Pusey

Michael Caine and Ian Hendry in Get Carter, 1971. For Mike Hodges, it was a hard act to follow. Photograph: Metro/AllstarMichael Caine and Ian Hendry in Get Carter, 1971. For Mike Hodges, it was a hard act to follow. Photograph: Metro/AllstarMoviesObituaryMike Hodges obituaryCelebrated director who created a film classic with his debut feature, the powerful crime movie Get Carter Of the celebrated British directors indebted to television for their early success, Mike Hodges, who has died aged 90, probably had the most erratic career. [Read More]

The Man Who Couldn't Stop review David Adam's compelling study of OCD

 Posted on May 5, 2024  |  4 minutes  |  790 words  |  Jenniffer Sheldon

The ObserverHealth, mind and body booksReviewCase studies including Churchill, Nikola Tesla and Hans Christian Andersen offer fascinating insights into OCD"Only a fool or liar will tell you how the brain works," says the author, midway through this fascinating study of the living nightmare that is obsessive compulsive disorder. And rest assured, Dr David Adam is neither. Indeed, he has written one of the best and most readable studies of a mental illness to have emerged in recent years. [Read More]

Banksy's Spy Booth is feared destroyed as house goes under cover | Banksy

 Posted on May 4, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  614 words  |  Chauncey Koziol

The Banksy in Cheltenham – painted on the gable wall of a house a few miles from GCHQ – appeared in 2014. Photograph: Ben Birchall/PAThe Banksy in Cheltenham – painted on the gable wall of a house a few miles from GCHQ – appeared in 2014. Photograph: Ben Birchall/PABanksy This article is more than 7 years oldBanksy's Spy Booth is feared destroyed as house goes under coverThis article is more than 7 years oldPhotos show tarpaulins and rubble at Cheltenham site of street artist’s work A Banksy artwork satirising government surveillance has been removed, with fears that it has been destroyed. [Read More]

Don Everly obituary | Pop and rock

 Posted on May 4, 2024  |  8 minutes  |  1591 words  |  Chauncey Koziol

Pop and rockObituaryDon Everly obituaryHalf of the Everly Brothers, the famous US pop duo known for hits such as Bye Bye Love, Wake Up Little Susie and Cathy’s ClownDon Everly’s death at the age of 84 brings down the curtain on the Everly Brothers, the vocal duo that defined the rock’n’roll duet and the sound of adolescent angst. Their unmistakable harmonies drew on 700 years of Scottish Borders misery, taken via the Appalachians to express late 1950s teenage confusion. [Read More]

French composer Claude Debussy dies archive, 1918 | Claude Debussy

 Posted on May 4, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  437 words  |  Chauncey Koziol

From the Guardian archiveClaude DebussyObituaryFrench composer Claude Debussy dies – archive, 191827 March 1918: Of all composers in our day Debussy has the finest aesthetic. He has left us a world of beautiful music The famous French composer Claude Achille Debussy, who had been suffering from cancer, has died in Paris at the age of 55. Debussy is not only the most original but the most refined and, since Berlioz, the first truly modern composer of the French school. [Read More]

Little Eyolf review exhilarating Ibsen from Norway's National Theatre

 Posted on May 4, 2024  |  2 minutes  |  391 words  |  Kary Bruening

TheatreReviewPrint Room at the Coronet, London This shattering revival draws out the playwright’s sexual candour and grim humour – and deserves a far longer run It is the fashion these days to strip Ibsen to the bone. This exhilarating production from Norway’s National Theatre – played in Norwegian with surtitles – is very much in the modern mode. It runs, like Richard Eyre’s 2015 Almeida version, for a brisk 85 minutes, and is played in modern dress with mostly bare feet and minimal furniture. [Read More]

Pineapple loses its crown: Sainsburys sells leafless version to cut waste | Food waste

 Posted on May 4, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  527 words  |  Aldo Pusey

Food waste This article is more than 2 months oldPineapple loses its crown: Sainsbury’s sells leafless version to cut wasteThis article is more than 2 months oldRemoving leaves will mean they can be replanted or shredded for animal feed and could reduce emissions The pineapple has been dethroned: Sainsbury’s has announced it will start selling a crownless version of the tropical fruit from Wednesday. The spiky, green leaves that grow from the top of the plant are a unique feature of the exotic fruit. [Read More]