Latest reports from rural Ontario add to tales going back decades about bipedal creature also known as Bigfoot

On a recent evening, residents in a corner of rural Ontario reported a series of strange encounters.

“The birds stopped, the wind seemed to die down, and it got oddly quiet. That’s when I noticed movement ahead of me,” one witness wrote. A “strong, earthy smell” hung in the air. Then, “a massive figure slowly stepped out from behind the trees, and my heart instantly started racing”. Moments later, it vanished back into the forest and “everything slowly went back to normal”.

O2 Apollo Manchester
The Messy hitmaker is back after taking time away from live performance, and this charming, relatable set shows why she is such a gen Z icon

The rollercoaster ride towards international pop stardom seldom runs smooth, but few rising stars have been flung through its loops and freefalls as publicly as south London singer-songwriter Lola Young. In 2024, gen Z anthem Messy became her breakthrough moment, but social media scrutiny surrounding her open struggles with addiction and a stage collapse in New York last year brought live performances to a halt.

When the 25-year-old musician strolls on stage in a baggy black hoodie, she seems relieved to be here. Casual though the look may be, she is worshipped as a Y2K style guru, as evidenced by the young crowd: a blur of bleached mullets and denim jorts cry every word of her single Sad Sob Story!.

The defence secretary’s departure was the wrong resignation at the worst possible time for the prime minister

• UK politics live – latest updates

During Wednesday’s prime minister’s questions, the defence secretary was standing at the other end of the Commons, away from other cabinet members on the government frontbench. His expression gave nothing away as Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch blamed one another for spending too much on welfare and not enough on defence. In hindsight, he was possibly thinking “to hell with both of them”. Most defence secretaries go native sooner or later, imagining themselves to be embedded officers serving on the frontline. Tory Ben Wallace appeared to hate most of his cabinet colleagues by the time he resigned in 2023.

Less than 24 hours after PMQs, Healey had also resigned, his departure being all the more powerful for being so unexpected. This exit seemed to come out of a clear blue sky. There had been no briefings to the media in the preceding days. No threats to stand down if his demands were not met. All the arguments had taken place behind closed doors. A determination to do the right thing throughout.

Thomas Tuchel wants to ‘put a second star on the shirt’ after making big selection calls, but what will be Jude Bellingham’s role?

This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June.

From the activist who knew him as ‘Uncle Nelson’ to the campaigner who would go on to become a cabinet member, we talk to those involved in the struggle – and who feature in an eye-opening new documentary

We tend to look back at the campaign to end apartheid in South Africa, says Peter Hain – the activist who would go on to become a senior Labour minister – “as one of the great success stories of protests and Nelson Mandela as a global icon, and rightly so. But Mandela was considered the devil incarnate. He was denounced as a terrorist by Margaret Thatcher only a few years before his release. We were vilified.” It was nothing compared to what Black people in South Africa faced, he stresses, but still he was targeted – a letter bomb was sent to him, and he was framed for a bank theft. It was, he says, “a hard struggle, a bitter struggle.”

A new documentary series, Free Nelson Mandela, covers the three decades of campaigning until Mandela’s release in 1990 and his election as South Africa’s president four years later. What emerges is an inspiring reminder of the power of resistance and resilience – and the sacrifices so many had to make.

Our writer grilled halloumi, veggies and spatchcock chicken to find the best barbecues, from crowd-pleasing all-rounders to models that can smoke, roast and more

• The best (and worst) chef’s knives – tested

Salmon don’t know that they swim upstream. Some ancient instinct impels them; they don’t think about it any more than trees think about growing. You are a British person of a certain age and bearing. You are buying a barbecue.

But this half-century-old compulsion often ends before it starts. Few products are marketed with as much machismo as BBQs, and the jargon makes them surprisingly tricky to buy. While we all enjoy the unintended high camp of a snap-jet ignition, it’s unclear if such features are essentials or optional extras. Add in the tedious difference between planchas and kamados, and you can easily spend hundreds of pounds on what is essentially a hot metal box.

Best BBQ overall:
Weber Bar-B-Kettle charcoal barbecue

Best budget BBQ:
Argos Home drum charcoal BBQ with cover and utensils

Former defence secretary accuses PM of putting UK’s security at risk at a time of growing international threats

• UK politics live – latest updates

Keir Starmer’s premiership has been pushed to the brink of collapse after the shock resignation of John Healey as defence secretary undermined his security credentials and risked shredding his remaining political authority.

In a blistering resignation letter, Healey accused Starmer and his chancellor, Rachel Reeves, of putting the country’s security at risk, saying the long-awaited defence investment plan (Dip) fell well short of what was required.

US president claims signing will probably happen in Europe at the weekend; Iranian foreign ministry says it will not compromise on ‘red lines’ in negotiations

• Full report: Trump says US and Iran on verge of signing peace agreement

Three Indian seafarers were killed in a US attack on an oil tanker earlier this week, India’s shipping minister, ‌Sarbananda Sonowal, said.

“It is deeply unfortunate to learn of the tragic incident aboard the Palau-flagged MT Settebello. Sadly, three Indian seafarers initially reported missing are now confirmed dead after bodies have been located and identified,” he wrote in a post on X.

The Middle East is being pulled deeper into crisis & the consequences reach far beyond the region.”

Data shows sharp rise in number of children getting extra support and highlights pressure on schools, families and councils

More than one in five pupils in England now have special educational needs, as the latest official figures show a sharp increase in the numbers of children receiving extra support in school.

The annual data from the Department for Education (DfE) confirms predictions of an increase in families seeking education, health and care plans (EHCPs) – the individual agreements detailing extra support – before the government’s efforts to overhaul funding and provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send).

Exclusive: Monitoring group warned PSNI for eight months after far-right networks began circulating so-called hitlist of addresses

A monitoring group repeatedly warned the Police Service of Northern Ireland over the past eight months that anti-immigration activists were circulating the addresses of properties that were targeted in this week’s Belfast riots.

The Accountability Project Northern Ireland, a volunteer group formed last summer to monitor anti-immigration activity online, sent dozens of reports to the PSNI between November 2025 and June 2026.