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Original title: French Prime Minister Acknowledges Talks This Week May Fail to Save Him French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou struck a combative tone in his effort to gain support for a Sept. 8 confidence vote, while acknowledging that talks with political parties may fail to save his government from being ousted. “Compromise is a beautiful thing, but I’m not sure it’s possible,” Bayrou said in an interview with French news channels on Sunday evening. That followed comments by several opposition leaders over the weekend that appeared to sweep aside any chance of their support. ...

Original title: Starmer backs Rayner amid row over Hove flat Starmer backs Rayner amid row over Hove flat 58 minutes ago Share Save Becky Morton Political reporter Share Save Getty Images Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has backed his deputy Angela Rayner, as she continues to face Tory criticism over the purchase of a flat in Hove. The Daily Telegraph reported she saved £40,000 in stamp duty when buying the £800,000 flat in East Sussex, after allegedly telling tax authorities it was her main home. However, she told the local council it was her second home - and pays a higher level of council tax there as a result. There is no suggestion she has broken any laws, but the Tories have accused her of hypocrisy and called for an investigation by the PM’s standards adviser. Sir Keir told the BBC he was “proud” of his deputy and that “talking her down” was “a big mistake”. A spokesperson for Rayner previously said she paid “the relevant duty” owed on the Hove property “entirely properly”. Asked earlier if Sir Keir had confidence in his deputy, the PM’s ...

Original title: Dwayne Johnson Gets Choked Up Discussing ‘The Smashing Machine’ in Venice: “This Transformation Was Something I Was Really Hungry to Do” The moment is here: The Rock has arrived on the Lido. At a 2025 Venice Film Festival packed with cross-generational star power — from George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Jude Law to Jacob Elordi, Emma Stone and Ayo Edebiri — Dwayne Johnson‘s arrival Monday for the world premiere of The Smashing Machine nonetheless made for a showstopping moment. “This transformation was something I was really hungry to do,” Johnson said of his uncharacteristic starring turn in Bennie Safdie’s visceral drama. “I had been very fortunate to have the career that I’ve had over the years and to make the films that I’ve made, but there was just a voice inside of me, a little voice that said, ‘Well, what if I could do more — I want to do more and what does that look like?’” The Smashing Machine represents a daring leap from the top ropes for the actor, one of the biggest movie stars in the world, known for blockbusters and spectacle rather than stripped-down, emotionally driven prestige cinema. Anticipation for ...

Original title: Amanda Seyfried Borrows Julia Roberts’ Versace Look for Venice Film Festival: “Sharing Is Caring” Some actors pull from their own closets for their red carpet appearances — looking at you, Cate Blanchett — but Amanda Seyfried borrowed from Julia Roberts at the Venice Film Festival today. Last week, Roberts stepped out on the Lido to promote her new Luca Guadagnino film After the Hunt wearing Dario Vitale’s first pieces since taking the reins as creative director from Donatella Versace, who departed in March. Roberts first turned up for a press conference and photocall in a business casual look followed by a decidedly more glamorous turn for the film’s world premiere. For her first official outing at the festival, a press conference for her experimental Mona Fastvold vehicle, The Testament of Ann Lee, Seyfried wore the same business look Roberts donned. Per Versace, Seyfriend contacted Julia saying how much she would love to wear the look, and Roberts kindly obliged. Making matters that much easier, they both share the same A-list stylist, Elizabeth Stewart. “Thank you Julia Roberts ...

Original title: ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ Review: Amanda Seyfried Channels Agony and Ecstasy in Audacious Epic That’s Easier to Admire Than to Love You have to hand it to Mona Fastvold and her partner and longtime collaborator Brady Corbet — they never play it safe with conventional, easily digestible material. Fastvold’s ambitious third feature, The Testament of Ann Lee, is a speculative account of the life of the 18th century religious leader who founded the Shakers and was falsely accused of treason, witchcraft and whatever else the Congregationalist establishment of New England could throw at her. Amanda Seyfried holds nothing back as the title figure in a movie that, for better or worse, often seems fueled by the same hysterical intensity that characterizes the movement’s worship. Elevated by mesmerizing songs of thanks and praise adapted by composer Daniel Blumberg from traditional spirituals and animated by the whirling rapture and vigorous physical expression of Shaker prayer, in which believers surrender their bodies to the Holy Spirit, this is certainly not a movie in which I was ever bored. The Testament of Ann Lee The ...

Original title: Oasis Just Glitched the Algorithm In September 1996, early in a misbegotten youth — though not nearly as misbegotten, I should say for the record, as Liam Gallagher‘s — my friend Gary and I attended an Oasis concert at Jones Beach, on Long Island. We didn’t know it at the time, but the now-iconic “What’s The Story (Morning Glory)?” tour, which had just arrived in the U.S. after record-breaking crowds in the U.K., was about to come to a crashing halt when Liam would leave the band a few days later in a(nother) fit of petulance. That night we just blissfully rocked out to live renditions of the record that had been playing everywhere the previous year — everywhere we went, anyway. Years before Google — and decades before TikTok — we basked in the discovery of this strange, snarling British rock that wasn’t much on the radio but lived in every scratch of our CDs, and minds. Gary passed away in a paddleboarding accident exactly two decades later, some 10 miles west of Jones Beach, and, while I’m hardly a woo woo reincarnat ...

Original title: Goldman-Backed Boyd Weighs Sale of Thermal Business Boyd Corp. is exploring a sale of its thermal management solutions business, people familiar with the matter said, amid rising demand for air-cooling systems for data centers. The US-based engineering company, which is backed by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., is working with advisers as it seeks to gauge buyer interest in the asset, according to the people. The TMS business could be worth $5 billion or more and is likely to appeal to industrial peers, they said. ...

Original title: CEO who snatched boy’s hat at US Open says he made ‘huge mistake’ CEO who snatched boy’s hat at US Open says he made ‘huge mistake’ The man said he was “convinced” tennis star Kamil Majchrzak, pictured above, was passing the hat in his direction The video, taken during Majchrzak’s match on Thursday, showed the tennis player offering his cap to a child, before Mr Szczerek appears to take it. “I know I did something that seemed like consciously collecting a memento from a child,” he wrote in a statement. “This wasn’t my intention, but it doesn’t change the fact that I hurt the boy and disappointed the fans.” Piotr Szczerek, a Polish chief executive of a paving firm, said he was “convinced” tennis star Kamil Majchrzak had been “passing his hat in my direction”. The man who was caught on camera snatching a hat off a young boy at the US Open has said he made a “huge mistake” after footage of the incident went viral. Versions of the clip were shared widely on social media and prompted criticism of Mr Szczerek’s actions. The 50-year-old wrote on social medi ...

Original title: House price growth slows as calls for property tax reform mount House price growth slows amid property tax calls 6 hours ago Share Save Mitchell Labiak and Kevin Peachey Business reporter and cost of living correspondent, BBC News Share Save Getty Images Annual house price growth slowed in August as calls grow for a reform of property taxes in the Autumn budget. The annual rate of growth in UK property prices dropped to the joint lowest this year, according to data from lender Nationwide, while the more volatile month-on-month change showed prices dipped by 0.1% compared with the previous month. The sluggish picture comes amid reports that the government is considering an overhaul of stamp duty and other property taxes in a bid to raise more money and boost the housing market. Robert Gardner, chief economist at Nationwide Building Society, told the BBC the UK needs a tax system that “allows people to move more effectively”. “It’s definitely worth looking at UK property taxes,” he added. The introduction of a National Insurance levy for landlords, r ...

Original title: India’s First-Quarter Current Account Gap Narrows on Services India’s current account gap narrowed in the fiscal first quarter, helped by an increase in service sector exports and larger than anticipated remittances. The deficit was at $2.4 billion Bloomberg Terminal in the April to June quarter as against $8.6 billion in the year ago period, the Reserve Bank of India said in a statement. The current account had a surplus of $13.5 billion in the previous quarter. ...