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Creative director Anthony Vaccarello’s show projects a ‘sophisticated, liberated spirit’ A month to the day after Catherine Deneuve auctioned 130 of her one-of-a-kind Yves Saint Laurent pieces for €1m (£860,000) at Christie’s in Paris, it seems apt that his label’s autumn/winter 2019 show in the French capital should be inspired by the actor. Deneuve was joined by two more of the house’s forever muses, Betty Catroux and Bianca Jagger (specifically in the 1980s), and their “sophisticated and liberated spirit” as inspiration for the show, according to Saint Laurent’s current creative director, Anthony Vaccarello. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Ubi6QG

‘China’s Apple’ finally lands in the UK with cut-price top-spec phone with a slide-out selfie camera After several years of threatening Xiaomi has finally entered the UK with a series of good-value smartphones starting from £99 including the range-topping Mi Mix 3. But has “ China’s Apple ” delivered something new, or just another forgettable Chinese smartphone? At first glance the £499 Mi Mix 3 looks fairly boring. The front has a giant display, just like the rest. The back appears shiny glass, just like the rest. It’s got polished metal sides, just like most. But pick up the phone and you realise it’s hiding more than one secret. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2GSBajJ

From the easing of sanctions to denuclearisation and ending the Korean war, there’s a lot to play for in Hanoi Donald Trump has said that when he meets Kim Jong-un in Hanoi’s Metropole Hotel on Wednesday evening, the potential for a deal is “ awesome ”. Few would argue with that. A move to limit the North Korean arsenal and begin to re-integrate the country back into the international community, would be a significant step away from the brink of nuclear war. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2U9yKjB

Global radio is extending its geographical homogenisation by ending many local shows When the creators of Alan Partridge exiled the disgraced fictional BBC TV presenter to Radio Norwich, the decision saw the comedy in the idea that local radio was a home for hosts who had lost, or couldn’t win, a national slot. Later, Partridge was further humiliated by service on North Norfolk Digital, where the subjects discussed were even more parochially petty. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Xq8vaI

From reluctant People’s Voter Corbyn to pragmatic McDonnell and the referendum sceptics A longtime Eurosceptic, the Labour leader has long struggled to balance the tensions between his overwhelmingly pro-remain membership – including many of those young activists who joined to support him – and the party’s voters in leave-leaning constituencies. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2U9nBzl

The Guardian’s Dan Sabbagh and Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan explore whether the European Research Group is as influential as ever - or has it overplayed its hand on Brexit? Plus: Joanna Walters on the Sackler family and the US opioid crisis The European Research Group (ERG), led by Jacob Rees-Mogg, has been at the forefront of Conservative politics in recent months as it attempts to manoeuvre the party towards the hardest possible Brexit. But after winning concessions from the prime minister and flexing its muscles in parliament, the backlash has well and truly begun. Last week three MPs quit the Tory party, pointing to what they called the prime minister’s “dismal failure to stand up to the ERG … which operates openly as a party within a party”. Now Theresa May has said she’s willing to offer MPs a vote on extending the Brexit deadline and removing the option of no deal. So how much power does the group really have? The Guardian’s Dan Sabbagh tells Anushka Asthana that if Theres...

Brexit is a laborious process not a destination. At every stage the true believers will shout betrayal Nothing about Brexit means it can only happen on 29 March 2019. There is no rare alignment of the planets to make that a uniquely auspicious date for leaving the EU. Britain’s relationship with its nearest allies is not settled by astrology. The March deadline is simply a feature of the negotiating apparatus and, as the prime minister conceded in parliament yesterday, it can be moved. Leaving in April or June is still leaving. It is the psychology of letting a deadline slip that makes Theresa May’s concession so significant. If Eurosceptics were interested in divorce on civil terms they would endure a short technical postponement to get it right. They would not resent the vote on a deferral that May has offered to MPs in the event that her deal is rejected. Article 50 extension has looked inevitable for weeks, if the objective is smooth passage to whatever comes next. So it is instr...