Author: Olivia Carter

When did you last experience total silence? In Hark, the author Alice Vincent goes to extreme lengths to eradicate noise as she spends time in an anechoic chamber, a heavily soundproofed space designed to swallow up sound waves. There she becomes aware of the noises of her own body, from involuntary swallowing to the soft, high-pitched ringing in her ears. But rather than feel unease, she is “confronted with a comfort I couldn’t have imagined – and a familiarity with quietude I didn’t realise I was living in”.Hark is a book about listening, being heard and the author’s shifting relationship with sound in…

A new hotel discovery platform verifies luxury properties for both accessibility and inclusivity.The platform, called Inclusive Luxury Hotels, ensures all of its listings are committed to providing “conscious inclusivity” for travelers with mobility, sensory, and neurodivergent exceptionalities.Included in the listings are luxury properties in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America. Luxury travel just got a bit more inclusive, thanks to a new platform designed for discerning travelers with disabilities. Accessible travel company Inclu has just launched a new hotel discovery platform for travelers with disabilities called Inclusive Luxury Hotels. The platform features hotels that have been vetted (or are in…

A 1960s photo in Ferrari’s Maranello workshop—where Enzo Ferrari founded the famous automotive company in 1947—shows a glamorous lady wearing fur and cat-eye sunglasses observing Ferrari craftsmen at work. During an in-studio preview, creative director Rocco Iannone explained that the image is one of the main focuses of the resort 2026 collection. It’s important because it exemplifies the brand’s cultural status, a carmaker so well known that “the word Ferrari itself is commonly used as an absolute comparative,” as Iannone put it. With this in mind, he designed a collection that keeps the workshop at its heart.The opening looks are…

The leader of the Blue Labour group has said he will vote against the assisted dying bill – one of the most high-profile switchers – as both sides make their final pleas to MPs before Friday’s crunch vote.It comes as campaigners and bereaved relatives joined the Labour MP Kim Leadbeater ahead of the third reading of the bill, to urge parliament to back the reforms, saying it would be at least a decade before another chance to change the law.The bill would legalise assisted dying for mentally competent adults in their final months of life.Dan Carden, who previously abstained, said…

Gennaro Gattuso said all the things he was expected to say at his first appearance as Italy manager. He talked about the need to restore enthusiasm to an Azzurri side whose morale has been dented by recent setbacks, as well as that sense of shared purpose that bonded him to teammates in the World Cup-winning side of 2006.The word he kept coming back to was “family”, insisting: “That’s the most important thing, more than tactics or formations.” His is not a vision of paternalistic authority but of a group close enough to speak hard truths to each other’s faces.“In moments…

SpaceX said the Starship rocket experienced a “major anomaly” during preparations for its 10th flight test at Starbase, Texas.

Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 72 people on Thursday, including 21 who had gathered near aid distribution sites as famine looms after more than 20 months of war. Speaking on FRANCE 24, Super-Novae NGO president Alexandre Chatillon says that ‘aid is being deliberately engineered’ to drive a population to a small area and allow Israel to keep control of northern Gaza.

AI company Midjourney has released its first video model. This initial take on AI-generated video will allow users to animate their images, either ones made in Midjourney or uploaded from a different source. The initial results will be five-second clips that a user can opt to extend by four seconds up to four times. Videos can be generated on web only for now and require at least a $10 a month subscription to access.Introducing our V1 Video Model. It’s fun, easy, and beautiful. Available at 10$/month, it’s the first video model for *everyone* and it’s available now. pic.twitter.com/iBm0KAN8uy— Midjourney (@midjourney)…

Emma SaundersCulture reporterGetty ImagesTaylor Swift has been described in legal documents as one of Blake Lively’s “dragons”Messages between Blake Lively and Taylor Swift can be handed over to Justin Baldoni as part of his ongoing high-profile legal battle with the actress, a judge has decided.Communications between Lively and her friend Swift about the environment on the It Ends With Us film set are relevant to the case, US District Judge Lewis Liman ruled on Wednesday, according to Variety.Lively’s team had applied to prevent Baldoni obtaining the messages, arguing they were irrelevant.She sued Baldoni and his studio in December, alleging she…

Esme StallardClimate and science reporterVisual Journalism TeamBBC NewsGetty ImagesWhen temperatures soar, here are six simple things you can do to keep your home and yourself cool. 1. Let in cool air and encourage air flowOpen windows on opposite sides of the house to encourage air flow – releasing trapped warm air and allowing in cooler air.Do this when the air temperature outside is cooler than inside, which tends to be overnight or in the early part of the day.In flats which have windows on one side only, open doors and use a fan to encourage airflow.Hot air rises within houses,…