
Yasmin Zaher: Palestinian writer wins Dylan Thomas prize
Ms Zaher, who was born in Jerusalem in 1991, received the prize at a ceremony in Swansea on Thursday evening."Whittling our exceptional longlist of twelve down to six brilliant books, and then again to just one, was not an easy exercise - yet the judging panel was unanimous in their decision to name debut novelist Yasmin Zaher as the winner," said Namita Gokhale, chair of 2025 judges."Zaher brings complexity and intensity to the page through her elegantly concise writing," she added.The full shortlist for the 2025 prize was:Rapture's Road by Seán Hewitt - poetry collection (UK/Ireland)Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon - novel (Ireland)The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden - novel (The Netherlands)I Will Crash by Rebecca Watson - novel (UK)Moderate to Poor, Occasionally Good by Eley Williams - short story collection (UK)
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The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Best of 2025 … so far: The savage suburbia of Helen Garner: ‘I wanted to dong Martin Amis with a bat'
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Times
12 hours ago
- Times
I slept in Charlotte Brontë's bedroom — and you can too
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As a Brontë devotee, it feels rather overwhelming to enter the front door and tread the same stone steps as these prodigies; even holding the banister that their little hands touched feels electric. Downstairs is Curate Patrick's study where he would have greeted his flock, both well heeled and destitute. Because all the family's original furniture was removed to the Brontë Parsonage Museum in Haworth ( the Brontë Birthplace committee has diligently sourced antique pieces in keeping with the period to furnish the room. At the back of the house is the kitchen, where to the committee's delight the local heritage builder DC Liptrot & Co discovered the original ceiling and flooring where the children would have played, possibly forming their very first stories. A secret door leads up a back staircase where the family's servant, Nancy Garrs, who ended up dying in the Bradford Workhouse, used to sleep with the youngest children. Upstairs are three en suite bedrooms that sleep six in total and can be booked together. They're named after the three sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Anne, and include furnishings to reflect each sister's personality. Emily's room is decorated with antique canine images in honour of her love of dogs, while Charlotte's is very opulent and romantic, with a huge four-poster bed and chaise longue. Anne's room, which is part of a Victorian extension, includes an original window where the children would stand on tippy toes looking out in excitement to watch their father ramble home from preaching at the Brontë Bell Chapel, now a ruin. There's a stunning painting by the local artist Mick Chapman of the church where the children were baptised and which is well worth a visit. • Read our full guide to Yorkshire Although guests staying at the house only have tea and coffee facilities and can't use the kitchen, there's a huge bustling community on the doorstep and the Brontë Birthplace, which was officially opened by the Queen in May, is likely to bring lots more regeneration to Thornton. Its South Square Centre, a beautifully restored Georgian square, is a hub with cafés for breakfast, art exhibitions and heritage displays. The Dickensian-style Watchmaker pub, a snug microbar, serves craft beers and natural wines, while New Manzil, a hugely popular Indian restaurant, produces delicious curries and gigantic naan breads ( Just minutes away is vibrant Bradford — 2025's City of Culture — and further afield is of course the Brontë Parsonage Museum in Haworth, surrounded by magical moorland. It was recently announced that the sweeping landscapes that inspired the Brontë sisters are being protected as one of England's biggest nature reserves — Bradford Pennine Gateway. At over 3,000 acres, this area will link eight nature sites within Bradford and the South Pennine region, protecting peat bogs, heathlands and wetlands. • 17 of the best hotels in Yorkshire for your next break It was over this stunning landscape on April 20, 1820, that six horse-drawn carts carried the Brontë family and their furniture from Thornton to Haworth, leaving a home where Patrick later said he'd spent his happiest days. The move was followed by huge tragedy, with his wife and two eldest daughters dying in quick succession, Maria of what was believed to be cancer and the sisters, aged 11 and 10, of tuberculosis, which later took most of the younger siblings. However, this journey into the wilder parts of the county also inspired the sisters to write their astonishingly bleak, graphically compelling and distinctly expressive classic novels. It may inspire you Byrne was a guest of the Brontë Birthplace, which has room-only doubles from £150 (


The Herald Scotland
15 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Censorship play company 'almost' pulled plug on Festival run
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The EIF has come under growing pressure in recent weeks from pro-Palestine campaigners to sever its links with the Edinburgh-based investment company. The Art Workers for Palestine group has previously asked EIF performers, arts industry workers and audience members to back an open letter calling for the 78-year-old to drop Baillie Gifford, which has been targeted over its investments in firms which have been linked with Israel. Cutting the Tightrope, which is being performed in Scotland for the first time, was launched by the London-based theatre company Arcola last year. The show was partly inspired by controversial new guidance issued by Arts Council England warning that political statements made by companies and artists which cause 'reputational risk' could breach funding agreements. The show, which was also said to have been created in response to 'silence around Palestine on UK stages,' consists of a series of short plays exploring 'the power of the arts in today's world events, political resistance and displays of artistic freedom.' Writing on the EIF website, festival director Nicola Benedetti describes Cutting the Tightrope as an 'urgent artistic response to that moment and audaciously explores the power of the arts in today's world events, political resistance and dialogue around artistic freedom." Cutting the Tightrope's video, which is partly bleeped out, has emerged in the wake of claims that the EIF has tried to gag artists and performers appearing in this year's event. The Art Workers for Palestine group has published an exchange of emails which suggests visiting companies have been warned against doing anything which may affect the reputation of the festival or any of its sponsors. However the EIF has insisted that clauses in the contracts of artists are "standard provisions" used across the UK arts sector. At the start of Cutting the Tightrope's video, one of the company says: "Today we want to talk about truth. We are currently in rehearsals for our run at the Edinburgh International Festival. We're really excited to bring this to you. 'It's a really fantastic show, and you know what? We almost didn't do it, but we ultimately decided that it's more important to tell these stories on that stage, especially at this current point in time, and we thought we could raise some awareness while we're doing it.' Another performer says: 'We just had to check our contracts, because this year, there are quite a lot of clauses in the contract about what we can and can't say, particularly in relation to the festival and their sponsors. 'You see, Baillie Gifford is one of the EIF biggest institutional funders. It's a Scottish investment firm, which in turn holds millions in arms and fossil fuel companies.' A third member of the company said: 'We decided to take up this space and tell these stories that need to be told in a sector that is, when you really look at it, quite disgustingly awash with dirty money.' The video ends with the message: 'Come watch our show, Cutting the Tightrope, where we tackle issues of censorship in the arts scene, as part of the Edinburgh International Festival, whose theme this year is The Truth We Seek." A spokesperson for the EIF said: 'We're proud to be the only international festival to present Cutting the Tightrope this year. 'Having sought out this collection of plays at the Arcola Theatre, we issued an invitation to the festival because we believed in its artistic potential and its daring, important themes. 'The plays sit alongside a number of powerful productions we have selected this year to tackle urgent global issues head-on, from a range of perspectives, reflecting our theme. 'It is often our role to boldly programme work that others would not. We give voice to artists, and create a platform for important questions to be addressed artistically with nuance and empathy. 'As Cutting The Tightrope do-director Kirsty Housley said in the audio introduction to this work: 'The platform that Edinburgh International Festival are giving us feels really important. It's the first time we've ever received proper organisational support. It means that we have access to a different audience, a wider audience, an international audience, as well as the local Edinburgh audience, but also, just have infrastructure around us.' 'We are also proud of the longstanding support we have received from Baillie Gifford over the past two decades. We believe that Baillie Gifford's investment principles and portfolio are being mis-characterised and we encourage anyone commenting on this to ensure their own factual accuracy. 'We have always been transparent and forthright with artists about the essential mix of public and private funding that the festival requires. We recognise that people have different personal views on this subject and support the right for these to be expressed. "The festival doesn't prevent anyone from expressing their political views and we support we are giving artists a significant international platform for their work. We look forward to introducing these powerful plays to new audiences, and now more than ever, these important stories deserve to be heard.' The Herald has teamed up with to make the purchase of tickets for the festival so much easier. To buy tickets, please click here.