The Guardian Australia

When my husband went away for a week, days of blissful alone-time beckoned. Instead, I started talking to household appliances and eating ‘crone dinner’My husband is away this week, something that used to happen regularly, but is a post-pandemic rarity. Like, I suspect, many people in long-term relationships, I look forward to a little alone-time (I’m sure he does, too – a few carefree days away from me and my dogmatic, dourly expressed opinions on everything from the correct cup for my morning

In some places, a half-birthday allows you to learn to drive or join the army. But for others, it’s a way to embrace the midpoint of each year of lifeSix months after Lorraine C Ladish turned 59, she began to get emails – from fashion stores, the supermarket, the opticians – offering her a discount. Her half-birthday was coming up, the emails said. She used one of the offers to buy a magenta leather jacket and posted her celebration on TikTok. Ladish is a digital content creator who says she mak

Zachary Alam spent four years in jail for his role in the Capitol attack before Trump pardoned him in 2025A convicted participant in the 6 January 2021 US Capitol attack who was pardoned at the start of Donald Trump’s second presidency has been ordered to serve seven years in prison after a jury found him guilty of committing a burglary in Virginia in May 2025.Zachary Alam, 34, had previously drawn one of the stiffest prison sentences – eight years – for his hand in the violence carried out at t

Tehran accuses Washington of ‘reckless military adventure’; Trump prepares for rare China visit amid turbulent backdrop – key US politics stories from 9 May 2026 at a glanceThe US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has said Washington is expecting a response from Iran to its proposals for an interim deal to end the conflict in the Middle East, as Iran accused the US of breaching the increasingly fragile ceasefire announced last month.In recent days there have been the biggest flare-ups in and arou

A disaffected constituency that delivered a historic victory to the minor party also dashed ambitions of independent Michelle MilthorpeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPauline Hanson was a long way from home when she finally achieved the victory she has waited nearly three decades for.In the sprawling rural electorate of Farrer, which covers vast swathes of land in south-western NSW, the Queensland firebrand’s One Na

Australia drawn with Iraq, Singapore and Tajikistan in Group DTournament to take place in Saudi Arabia in January 2027The Socceroos have been handed a challenging reunion with Graham Arnold after being drawn against their former coach’s World Cup-bound charges Iraq in the draw for the 2027 Asian Cup.Tony Popovic’s side will also face Tajikistan and Singapore in group D at the event in Saudi Arabia next January following Saturday’s draw at the At-Turaif World Heritage Site in Riyadh. Continue rea

Broderick was serving a life sentence in California over killings and last month transferred to a medical centerBetty Broderick, who became infamous for the 1989 killings of her former husband and his new wife in a case that shocked the country and inspired movies and books, has died at the age of 78 while still serving a life sentence.Representatives from the California department of corrections and rehabilitation confirmed to NBC News that Elizabeth A Broderick was moved from the California pr

World Health Organization – which the US left under Trump – has been leading the response to the cruise ship outbreakThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed it is sending a team to Spain’s Canary Islands, where the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius is expected to arrive on Sunday, and US passengers will be evacuated to an airbase in Nebraska. However, experts say the US is unprepared for such a disease threat.The CDCs limited role in responding to the hantavir

Electric upgrades can mean long-term savings. We look at ways the government can help reduce their upfront costFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastInterest in EVs – and electrification more generally – has risen along with fuel prices amid the global energy shock unleashed by the US-Israel war on Iran.Kristen McDonald, a director at Rewiring Australia, says the case is “even more compelling now” for electric upgrades to

Passengers evacuated safely after person jumped perimeter fence and walked on to runway, airport spokesperson saysA Frontier Airlines plane hit and killed a person on the runway of Denver’s international airport during takeoff, sparking an engine fire and forcing passengers to evacuate, authorities said.The plane, headed to Los Angeles, “reported striking a pedestrian during takeoff” at about 11.19pm on Friday, the Denver airport’s official X account wrote. Continue reading...

World No 1 beaten 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in third round in RomeJannik Sinner eases through; Cameron Norrie outAryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, suffered her earliest defeat in more than a year as she was toppled in the third round of the Italian Open by the soaring Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea, who brilliantly held her nerve to close out a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 win.The defeat marks a second successive surprise loss for Sabalenka, who started the clay-court season in some of the best form of her career after co

After a biblical downpour, the skies cleared, and Manchester City executed the gameplan: secure victory and three points to keep their breath on Arsenal’s neck.The clincher arrived via Erling Haaland’s 26th Premier League goal of the season – as with his side’s performance this was hardly pretty but no one in blue cared. Antoine Semenyo marauded down the right, his cross hit at least one Brentford body, the ball came to Haaland who, with a second stab at it, bundled home, the No 9 facing away fr

Showdown between Musk and Altman has rendered the world’s most wealthy comical under egalitarian eye of courtFor the past couple of weeks, on the fourth floor of a courthouse on a quiet street in downtown Oakland, the world’s richest man and one of the world’s most valuable startups have been at war over the future of artificial intelligence.Being one of the reporters in the room has felt like watching an updated, opposite-coast version of Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities – ambition, ego,

Silva is first Uruguayan to win a Grand Tour stageNearly 20 riders involved in crash 198km into routeGuillermo Thomas Silva won stage two of the Giro d’Italia to become the first Uruguayan to win a Grand Tour stage after a dramatic sprint after a crash involving nearly 20 riders disrupted the hilly, rain-soaked 221 km ride from Burgas to Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria.The race was temporarily neutralised after the crash around the 198km mark which left several riders injured, and forced the Australi

An exhibit of psyops leaflets released in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya finally shows American people the messages that were made in their nameBy Moustafa BayoumiFor over a century, the United States military has been dropping propaganda leaflets in deliberate psychological operations, or psyops, to achieve success in war. But the key question behind the effort remains unanswered: does it even work?In 1918, the US released more than 3m leaflets behind enemy lines by plane and hydrogen balloon. To

New York’s Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez brushed off question about run for presidencyThe New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez answered a question about potentially running for higher office in 2028 by declaring: “My ambition is to change the country.”The Democrat delivered that remark at a political forum in Chicago on Friday amid widespread belief that she is positioning herself to run for the White House in 2028 or challenge her party’s leader in the US Senate,

Star matches Kareem, Hakeem and Shaq with stat lineSan Antonio take 2-1 lead over MinnesotaSixers on brink of sweep after Knicks dominateVictor Wembanyama plays with an agility and a gracefulness beneath his daunting wingspan that can make his dominance for the San Antonio Spurs on both ends of the floor appear almost effortless.Fresh cuts and bruises on those long arms after fighting for paint position and jockeying for rebounds all night with the Minnesota Timberwolves made clear Wembanyama ha

Florida agreement grants US president control of licensing and merchandising at renamed airport, analysts sayIt was a week in which one prominent name in aviation, Spirit Airlines, disappeared, killed in the company’s own admission by high fuel prices resulting from Donald Trump’s war in Iran.Within days, however, another moniker was already flying high in industry circles: the president’s own. Continue reading...

The politics of anxiety and grievance harnessed by One Nation are a formidable force. Angus Taylor needs to, in his own words, ‘change or die’Pauline Hanson jubilant as One Nation wins Farrer byelectionGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSometimes in Australian politics, there’s a tendency to over interpret byelection results - projecting local wins and losses far and wide across the country.But Saturday’s thumping victory for One Nation in the NSW seat of Farrer can hardl

NRL coach undecided on plan for next season in light of medical conditionRugby league veteran turns spotlight on return to form in Wests Tigers clashCraig Bellamy is staying private about his illness, the veteran Melbourne coach wanting the spotlight to remain on the Storm rather than his health.Bellamy fronted the media at AAMI Park ahead of the Storm’s Sunday afternoon clash with Wests Tigers, with the side looking to stop a record-extending seven-match losing streak. Continue reading...