EU opens up funding to guarantee abortion rights across bloc 26. February 2026 (20:52) Women from countries with near-total bans on terminations will be given help to access services elsewhereEU states will be able to tap into a social fund to help citizens access safe abortions, in an announcement hailed as a “victory for women”.The roots of Thursday’s announcement go back to a long campaign for the European Commission to create a funding mechanism that would allow women from countries with near-total bans on abortion, such as Malta and Poland, to go where it is legal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Conservative theatre-making will kill the UK industry, says National’s director 26. February 2026 (20:47) Indhu Rubasingham calls in Jennie Lee lecture for renewed commitment to creative risk and new writingThe National Theatre’s artistic director, Indhu Rubasingham, has said conservative theatre-making will kill the industry, even if it helps venues balance the books for now.Delivering the second-ever Jennie Lee lecture in front of an audience of 200 representatives from the UK arts industry on Thursday, Rubasingham called for a renewed national commitment to backing creative risk and new writing. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Playwrights’ ‘thrilling’ debuts share the Susan Smith Blackburn prize 26. February 2026 (20:45) Hannah Doran’s The Meat Kings! (Inc) of Brooklyn Heights and Ro Reddick’s Cold War Choir Practice declared joint winners of award for female, transgender and non-binary writersThe Susan Smith Blackburn prize for female, transgender and non-binary playwrights has been awarded to joint winners, both for their debut plays.Hannah Doran’s The Meat Kings! (Inc) of Brooklyn Heights and Ro Reddick’s Cold War Choir Practice beat the other eight finalists to the 48th annual award. Doran and Reddick each receive a cash prize of $25,000 (£18,500) and a signed print by the artist Willem de Kooning. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Brady Tkachuk decries White House’s AI video of him insulting Canadians after US gold 26. February 2026 (20:39) Player is captain of NHL’s Ottawa SenatorsTkachuk expresses regret over Trump jokeUS ice hockey star Brady Tkachuk has said he does not appreciate an AI video released by the White House that shows him insulting Canadians.Tkachuk played in the Americans’ victory over Canada at the Winter Olympics on Sunday, which secured the US men their first gold medal since 1980. In the wake of that win, the White House’s TikTok account published video of Tkachuk saying: “They booed our national anthem, so I had to come out and teach those maple syrup eating fuckers a lesson.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Latest US-Iran nuclear talks conclude with claims of ‘significant progress’ 26. February 2026 (20:33) Mediators say more talks to be held next week but no clear evidence two sides any closer on uranium enrichmentHigh-stakes talks between the US and Iran over the future of Tehran’s nuclear programme ended on Thursday with the Omani mediators claiming that “significant progress” had been made and predicting the talks would reconvene at a technical level next week in Vienna.But there was no immediate evidence to support suggestions that the two sides had drawn closer together on the fundamental issues of Iran’s right to enrich uranium and the future of its highly enriched uranium stocks. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
TikTok and Snapchat posts urge London pupils to join ‘school wars’ fights 26. February 2026 (20:32) Met urges pupils not to get involved and asks platforms to ban accounts promoting ‘fights’ with images of weapons Pupils aged 11 to 16 are being encouraged to join in school fights in posts circulating on TikTok and Snapchat, prompting police to urge children not to get involved.The Metropolitan police have asked social media platforms to ban accounts promoting “school wars”, while headteachers have warned parents about the posts. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mamdani makes unannounced trip to meet Trump in Washington 26. February 2026 (20:25) New York mayor to meet president – who called Mamdani a ‘nice guy’ during State of the Union – for second timeNew York mayor Zohran Mamdani is meeting Donald Trump in Washington on Thursday, during an unannounced trip to the nation’s capital, an official in the mayor’s office confirmed to the Guardian.Neither the mayor nor the president’s public schedules listed the meeting. However, Trump does have a “private meeting” listed for 3pm ET. The White House has yet to reply to the Guardian’s request for comment. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Cuba vows to fight ‘terrorist aggression’ after attack from US-registered boat 26. February 2026 (20:15) Cuban president says country will ‘defend itself with determination’ after deadly coastal assault from exilesWhat we know so far about the deadly boat shooting off Cuba’s coastCuba has vowed to defend itself against any “terrorist and mercenary aggression”, a day after border guards said they had killed four exiles on a Florida-registered speedboat that opened fire on a patrol.Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, wrote on X that the Caribbean country will “defend itself with determination and firmness” after the incident in which six other people on the boat were injured. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ocado failing to deliver on its potential as one of UK’s great technology hopes 26. February 2026 (19:44) Firm’s automated warehouses are struggling to compete against swift deliveries from stores by bike ridersOcado to cut 1,000 jobs in £150m cost-saving driveOnly six years ago, the boss of Ocado Group was writing the obituary for supermarkets as he predicted that a surge in online grocery shopping during the pandemic had brought forward the hi-tech future.“Not every store will disappear, but there will be a dramatic shift,” Tim Steiner said at the height of the Covid pandemic, when shopping from the sofa became the only option for many. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Shia LaBeouf ordered to seek treatment as conditions of release from custody 26. February 2026 (18:05) The actor, long open about his struggle with sobriety, was also ordered to undergo drug testing and pay $100,000 bondShia LaBeouf on Thursday was ordered to enroll in substance abuse treatment, undergo a drug testing program and pay a $100,000 bond as conditions of his release from custody after the actor allegedly battered and hurled homophobic slurs at two men at a New Orleans bar.The requirements imposed on LaBeouf, 39, by New Orleans judge Simone Levine came after the Transformer film franchise star was initially allowed to leave jail without being required to pay a bond in the hours after his 17 February arrest on two counts of misdemeanor battery. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
