Month: December 2025
Exclusive: Group’s open letter says Reform UK leader must take responsibility for behaviour as a schoolboy
A group of Holocaust survivors have demanded Nigel Farage tell the truth and apologise for the antisemitic comments that fellow pupils of Dulwich College allege he made toward Jewish pupils.
The Reform UK leader has said he never racially abused anyone with intent but may have engaged in “banter in a playground”.
From ‘all at sea’ to ‘by and large’, windy weather has had quite an impact on the English language
Some everyday expressions have an obvious nautical origin such as “all at sea” and “an even keel”. But plenty of others have slipped into the language unnoticed, including a number derived from how sailors talked about the wind.
Surprisingly, “overbearing” was originally a nautical term, meaning having an advantage over another ship by carrying more canvas safely and so being able to sail faster. The expression came to be used metaphorically to describe an approaching storm or anything else that could not be outrun. Similarly to “bear down” on something was to approach forcefully with the wind behind.
‘Soilsmology’ aims to map world’s soils and help avert famine, says not-for-profit co-founded by George Monbiot
A groundbreaking soil-health measuring technique could help avert famine and drought, scientists have said.
At the moment, scientists have to dig lots of holes to study the soil, which is time-consuming and damages its structure, making the sampling less accurate.