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Italy’s PM Seems To Ask Sunak The Only Diplomatic Question Possible Amid Brutal Election Campaign

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Giorgia Meloni appeared to ask Rishi Sunak the only diplomatic question she possibly could when the two leaders met today at the start of the G7 summit.

As they greeted each other with an embrace in front of the cameras, the Italian PM leaned towards her beleaguered British counterpart and appeared to say: “Are you OK?”

A seemingly innocent question, but accompanied with quite the worried expression.

It’s not clear how Sunak answered – Meloni just smiled in response and leant away from him as he continued to grip her hands tightly, while the conversation seemed to move onto casual niceities.

Watch their strange encounter here:

This exchange came hours after the prime minister faced a brutal grilling from both Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby and a live audience.

He was even booed by the crowd when he blamed industrial action for long NHS waiting lists – despite pledging to bring them down himself at the start of 2023.

Viewers also decided that Keir Starmer outperformed the PM last night, with almost two-thirds of the public thinking Sunak had not come across as well, according to YouGov.

But, the debate was just the latest catastrophe of the last three weeks of Sunak’s disastrous campaign.

From calling a snap election while standing in the pouring rain and facing awkward encounters with furious members of the public to leaving D-Day commemorations early only to be ridiculed for saying he had to go without Sky TV growing up, Sunak has lurched from PR crisis to PR crisis.

Meloni, on the other hand, has had an excellent week.

Her far-right party, the Brothers of Italy, experience a stomping victory in the European parliament elections, making her the only Western European leader to be strengthened by the controversial vote.

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‘We Want To Be A Party Of Power’: Keir Starmer Slaps Down Heckler At Labour Manifesto Launch

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Keir Starmer declared Labour is now “a party of power” as he unveiled his election manifesto.

The Labour leader had to slap down a heckler who accused him of following “Tory policies”.

“We gave up being a party of protest five years ago,” Starmer said. “We want to be a party of power. That’s not in the script but that is part of the change.”

As expected, the 133-page manifesto contained no new policies as the Labour tries to protect its huge poll lead over the Conservatives with just three weeks to go until polling day on July 4.

Instead, it contained pre-announced pledges including plans to put VAT on private school fees, extend the windfall tax on oil and gas companies, and reform planning rules to build 1.5 million more homes.

Other policies include lowering the voting age to 16, recruiting 6,500 more teachers, delivering 40,000 more NHS appointments to bring down waiting lists and setting up a Border Security Command to tackle the small boats crisis.

Rejecting accusations that he is too boring, Starmer said: “It’s not about rabbits out the hat, it’s not about pantomime. We’ve had that.

“I’m running as a candidate to be prime minister, not a candidate to run the circus.”

The Labour boss said the election was a chance for voters to “stop the chaos” of the last 14 years of Tory rule.

“I have changed the Labour Party, and I am ready to change Britain,” he said.

“Labour’s first steps for change are a downpayment on our long-term plan for the country – an immediate repair job on the damage that has been caused under 14 years of Conservative chaos and decline.

“We know we can’t wave a magic wand and pretend that everything will be fixed overnight.

“But with Labour, our first steps for change will deliver economic stability, cut NHS waiting times, launch a new Border Security Command, create Great British Energy, crack down on ant-isocial behaviour and recruit 6,500 new teachers. They are the first steps towards our long-term plan.

“But to get change, you have to vote for it. The choice at this election is another five years of chaos under the Conservatives, with people paying £4,800 more on their mortgages, or change with Labour. It’s time to stop the chaos, turn the page and start rebuilding Britain.”

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The Critics Have Spoken… So, How Does Inside Out 2 Measure Up To The Beloved Original Film?

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One of the most beloved Pixar films in the studio’s history is getting a sequel, with Inside Out 2 hitting cinemas this weekend.

The new movie takes us back into the mind of a now 13-year-old Riley and the mission control centre of emotions inside her head.

However, this time around, there’s a whole host of new feelings added into the mix, thanks to the help of a stellar expanded cast, including The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri as Envy, Stranger Things’ Maya Hawke as Anxiety and Passages’ Adèle Exarchopoulos as Ennui.

The first reviews for Inside Out 2 have been hugely positive, praising the sequel for living up to the magic of the first film. That being said, others have said that it’s missing a certain spark that made the original so popular.

Here’s a sample of what critics have had to say so far…

“Inside Out 2 glimmers with diamond-hard truths about the complex business of being a human being – especially a teenage human being – but it’s still a fast-paced and playful comedy adventure with even more jokes and more puns than Inside Out.”

“Through this decade so far, Pixar’s films have held great ideas that haven’t quite reached their full potential. This is probably its best film since Coco, and best sequel since Toy Story 3.”

“It’s a lovely sequel, without a trace of cynicism to it, that also by necessity lacks a little of the freshness and originality of 2022’s Turning Red or 2021’s Luca…What was once a lesson in the necessity of negative emotions, such as sadness, has now matured into its second stage: a bittersweet, tear-jerking reminder that we’re better, more rounded people when we embrace our flaws and insecurities.”

Inside Out 2 reintroduces us to Riley as a 13-year-old
Inside Out 2 reintroduces us to Riley as a 13-year-old

“Wanting Inside Out 2 to match the first movie was always set to be an unlikely challenge as it was such a unique concept. What the sequel does achieve is being a worthy follow-up that expands the world with brilliant tweaks to the concept, as well as delivering witty gags that simplify big ideas.”

“New feelings propel a Pixar sequel enchanting enough to second that emotion… Inside Out 2 marks a triumphant creative return for Pixar, bringing off the thing that this studio, at its best, has done better than anyone: finding the sweet spot that merges the gaze of children and adults.”

“Pixar has been good at tackling thorny emotional terrain in an accessible, translatable-for-all-ages way since Buzz first met Woody. When Inside Out went the extra step of giving us a literalized emotional terrain and rendering everything with such a heart-rending wallop, it lifted the bar that much higher. Inside Out 2 makes good on that film’s promise by making good on its next-step premise.”

“After a period of some ups and more downs, Pixar can at least boast of following up one of their later classics respectfully. [Inside Out 2] deserves the healthy audiences it will surely stir up.”

“Delightful sequel set in turbulent early adolescence…The message of Inside Out 2 is as universal and good-hearted as that of its predecessor: You might not know from one minute to the next what emotion is driving a teenage mind, but every messy part of the mechanism has both function and beauty.”

Inside Out 2 welcomes new emotions into the fold
Inside Out 2 welcomes new emotions into the fold

“There are some laughs, but it sees the teen transition in terms of a moral crisis, of abandoning and then reclaiming the niceness of childhood innocence; it’s a little bit convoluted and repetitive and, in its sanitised, Disneyfied way, this film can’t quite bring itself to mention the most important new teen emotion of all. Have the grown-ups in charge of this film really forgotten?”

IGN (7/10)

“While its chaotic new cast serves a clear purpose, Inside Out 2 is more metaphor than meaning. It explains plenty about the confusing emotions associated with puberty, often in intelligent ways, but it rarely lets them be felt or experienced, the way its predecessor did.”

“Pixar’s talky, uneventful sequel doesn’t have much fun in mind… Battle-weary parents of surly teens will have some fun here and there, especially when Ennui’s blasé influence opens up a ‘sar-chasm’ in Riley’s brain that makes everything sound, well, sarcastic. But, when all’s said and done, the stakes are so minor, it’s hard to imagine anyone will leave this desperate to see an Inside Out 3.”

“All brains and no heart, this disappointing sequel proves Pixar learned all the wrong lessons from its pandemic years… Pixar’s obsession with universal relatability results in another movie that feels more like a corporate spreadsheet than a glimpse into a real person’s brain.”

Inside Out 2 comes to UK cinemas on Friday 14 June.

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Putin Makes Rare Admission That Life Is ‘Not Easy’ For Russians Right Now

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Vladimir Putin has just acknowledged life in Russia is “not easy” right now – although he dodged any explanation as to why.

Speaking on the national holiday of Russia Day, the president tried to convey a message of unity amid these times of difficulty.

According to state news agency TASS, Putin said: “At the time that is not easy for our country, we are again united by patriotism and responsibility for the fate of the Motherland.

“They serve as a reliable bedrock for the participants in the special military operation.”

This is the phrase the Kremlin has repeatedly used to refer to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Putin has only used the word “war” in public on a handful of occasions since he ordered his troops into Ukraine more than two years ago.

As he continued to speak in these indirect phrases, Putin said: “It is possible to solve the major tasks our country is facing only together, only in a concerted way.”

This call for unity comes as small groups of protesters are starting to push back against the war.

Women are calling on Putin to return their loved ones from the frontline after they were forced to serve in the 2022 partial mobilisation.

Putin also claimed that, on Russia Day, the public should show “reverence” to the country’s “centuries-long history”.

He added: “I therefore consider necessary, historically proper to celebrate the Russia Day as the symbol of continuity of the millennia-old way of our Fatherland.”

Russia Day, first celebrated more than three decades ago after the fall of the Soviet Union, was meant to signal a new chapter for the country – and to stop the public looking back at its past.

But Putin often refers to Russia’s history to justify his land grabs.

And, earlier this week, the president bizarrely revealed that he had deliberately chosen not to take the controversial flag of the Russian Empire of a building down.

He said: “Everything happens for a reason. This is it. No need to look for any underlying connotations, for any sort of imperial ambitions in this regard. There are none.”

Meanwhile, Russia’s former president and Putin’s close ally Dmitry Medvedev posted a provocative video on social media to mark the national occasion.

It showed the Russian flag unfurling over the whole of the country – and Ukraine, suggesting they were completely one.

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Matt Bomer Says He Lost Out On A Massive Superhero Role After He Was Outed As Gay

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Matt Bomer has claimed he lost out on the role of a lifetime after being outed as gay.

The US actor – who is known for films like Magic Mike and The Normal Heart, as well as the TV show Fellow Travelers – has said he was in the running for the lead role in DC’s scrapped film Superman: Flyby in the early 2000s.

“It looked like I was the director’s choice for the role,” Matt claimed in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, revealing he went as far as signing “a three-picture deal at Warner Bros.” to play the iconic superhero.

However, the film ultimately became one of the several axed Superman films in the hiatus between 1987’s Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and 2006’s Superman Returns.

While Matt came out as gay publicly in 2012, he himself is unsure of the exact circumstances around how he was outed earlier in his career, though believes it contributed to him missing out on the role.

Asked whether he believes his sexual orientation affected that outcome, Matt shared: “Yeah, that’s my understanding.”

He continued: “That was a time in the industry when something like that could still really be weaponised against you. How, and why, and who, I don’t know.”

Matt even left his role playing Ben Reade on the CBS soap Guiding Light, which he starred in between 2002 and 2003, for the Superman audition process.

“I went in on a cattle call for Superman, [which] turned into a one-month audition experience where I was auditioning again and again and again,” he said.

Superman: Flyby was eventually scrapped, with Brandon Routh playing the Man Of Steel in 2006's Superman Returns
Superman: Flyby was eventually scrapped, with Brandon Routh playing the Man Of Steel in 2006’s Superman Returns

Warner Bros/Dc Comics/Kobal/Shutterstock

The Superman film in question was an early version of a new instalment in the franchise penned by The Force Awakens co-writer and director J.J. Abrams.

Paul Walker, Josh Hartnett and Brendan Fraser were just some of the stars reportedly considered for the new Superman role, before the movie was ultimately shelved.

Matt did eventually lend his voice to Superman in the 2013 animated direct-to-video film Superman: Unbound, along with another recent role voicing The Flash in Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One.

Most recently, the American Horror Story star appeared opposite Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey in the 2023 miniseries Fellow Travelers, which follows two men who fall for each other during a volatile period in America’s history.

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Here’s What ‘Kettle Crisps’ Really Stands For, And I Feel Stupid For Not Realising This Sooner

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We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about why Hobnobs are called what they are.

We’ve even covered the complicated origins of the name Smarties ― and yep, one US brand did call their sweets that because they believed the candy would make their consumers smarter.

But what about kettle chips, the shattering sensation I feel took over Britain’s “nice little nibbles” industrial complex in about 2010?

Why are the crunchier, thicker, and respectfully, posher-feeling offerings “kettle,” while the regular sort must remain untitled?

It’s to do with how they’re cooked

Despite my misconception ― that “kettle” just meant “pricier” ― it turns out that the name refers to how thicker, crunchier crisps are cooked.

“The term kettle cooked refers to the vessel in which the chips [crisps] are fried,” food site Sporked revealed. They shared that throughout crisp history (crisptory?), people would finely slice spuds, fry ’em in oil, take them out when they were done, and begin another batch.

The container which holds the oil they’re cooked in is called a “kettle.”

That means crisps always used to take longer to cook than industrially-produced ones do, as the temperature of the oil drops every time you take an old batch of potatoes out.

The longer they’re left in the oil, the slower they cook, and the starches have longer to break down and become crunchier.

In order to keep crisp factories running at a fast pace, some companies don’t cook regular crisps in batches ― instead, they use what’s called “continuous processing,” which involves dipping or showering the slices in consistently-hot oil for a couple of minutes rather than cooking them in a “kettle.”

A Science Direct article shows a diagram of a machine with a hot oil river at its base and windmill-like paddles which lift the product into and out of the fat.

Huh!

Right! So despite my thinking kettle chips only became “a thing” after the naughties, they’re actually the old-school way to do things.

There is, of course, also a company called Kettle which makes chips the old-school way, and they account for 40% of the fancy crisp market in the UK.

But were I to take it back to my teenaged hungover habit of finely slicing some spuds, chucking them in the deep fat fryer, and dusting them with the contents of noodle packets (don’t knock it ’til you try it) ― yup, those are pretty close to being kettle crisps, too.

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Jessica Gunning Recalls Hilarious Encounter That Left 1 Baby Reindeer Fan ‘Terrified’

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Jessica Gunning has revealed she recently gave one Baby Reindeer viewer an inadvertent scare.

The British actor received widespread praise for her performance as a stalker in the Netflix show, which became a word-of-mouth global hit after it began streaming earlier in the year.

She and her co-stars Richard Gadd and Nava Mau recently sat down with Netflix to reflect on the show’s success, which its creator and leading actor revealed has surpassed his expectations.

“I really believed in it, I thought it was good, I thought it was different, I thought it would provoke conversation, but I thought it would probably be like a critical cult success,” he admitted. “[I thought] it would sort of sit on the platform as a bit of a sort of artistic gem.

“It’s just crazy that it has resonated with so many people.”

Jessica in character as Martha in Baby Reindeer
Jessica in character as Martha in Baby Reindeer

Ed Miller/Netflix

Proving Richard’s point, Jessica disclosed that she recently had an encounter with one Baby Reindeer fan that wound up giving them quite the fright.

“The other day I actually got out of my car, and I hadn’t had any makeup on and my hair was probably a little bit Martha-esque,” she explained. “And a lady just screamed when she saw me.

“I was like, ‘I’m so sorry’, and she went, ‘no I’m sorry – I just finished episode seven’.”

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For those who’ve already forgotten, episode seven served as the Baby Reindeer finale, and sees Martha tracking down Donny’s family before finally being convicted with stalking.

After that, Donny then becomes obsessed with listening back to voicemail messages that she left him, and re-reading her old emails.

Jessica added: “She’d finished episode seven, turned the TV off, walked outside and then I was like, ‘hello!’ Imagine! No wonder she was terrified!”

During the same interview, Richard also spoke about some of the show’s celebrity fans – including one he’s still struggling to get his head around for personal reasons.

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