Entertainment

Finnish racing driver Juha Miettinen was killed and six others injured in a seven-car crash during the early stages of the Nurburgring qualifiers in Germany on Saturday.“Despite the immediate arrival of emergency services, the emergency medics were unable to save the driver involved, Juha Miettinen, after he had been extracted from the vehicle,” the event organizers said in a statement on X. The 66-year-old Finn “died at the Medical Centre after all attempts at resuscitation proved unsuccessful.”Six other drivers were injured and taken for treatment and are in non-life-threatening condition, they added.The crash may have been caused by a spill on the track, according to Russian-born Dutch driver Mikhail Charoudin, who took part in the qualifiers.“Whether it’s gasoline, oil, coolant, you na...

A Chinese humanoid robot outpaced thousands of human runners to win the Beijing E-Town half-marathon on Sunday, smashing the current world record. The event featured around 12,000 participants and more than 100 robots.The bright‑red bipedal android named Lightning, developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, dominated the race, crossing the finish line ahead of all the human competitors. It covered the 21.1 km distance in just 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the world record for a half‑marathon, set by Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo just last month, by nearly 7 minutes.Robots also took second and third place, while the fastest human to finish the marathon was 29-year-old Zhao Haijie, who ran the race in 1 hour, 7 minutes and 47 seconds. In a similar race last year, machines had failed to...

More than 1,100 musicians and cultural workers have signed an open letter urging fans, performers, broadcasters, and crew to boycott the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, accusing the event of “whitewashing” and normalizing Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza and Lebanon.Eurovision is an annual televised song contest run by the European Broadcasting Union. The event has long marketed itself as a non-political spectacle, but it has repeatedly become a flashpoint over war, identity, and woke cultural messaging.“This May, millions of people are expected to tune in to the 70th Eurovision Song Contest. For the third consecutive year, they’ll find Israel celebrated onstage despite its ongoing genocide in Gaza,” reads the letter published by the No Music For Genocide campaign. “As musicians and cultural work...

The West’s Overton window on Russia is slowly beginning to reopen. A revealing example emerged this week in Italy. At the Venice Art Biennale, organizers decided to reopen the Russian pavilion for the first time in four years. More importantly, it wasn’t handed over to representatives of the émigré opposition or anti-Kremlin proxies, but to actual Russian delegates who travelled from Moscow.Predictably, the decision provoked outrage. The European Commission reportedly sent angry letters to the Biennale organisers and the Italian government. Ukraine imposed sanctions on those involved in running the pavilion. Activists quickly descended on Venice, including members of Pussy Riot, the punk group banned in Russia as extremist, who staged demonstrations against the event.What’s striking is tha...

Public broadcasters in Spain, Ireland and Slovenia have said they would not air the 70th anniversary Eurovision Song Contest, which begins on Tuesday in Austria and will culminate in Saturday’s grand finale, citing opposition to Israel’s participation.The three countries, along with the Netherlands and Iceland, withdrew on Monday from this year’s event in Vienna, leaving the contest facing the biggest boycott in its 70-year history.Vienna police have said they expect disruptive protests and possible attempts to block the event, particularly on the last day. Authorities said a pro-Palestinian demonstration involving around 3,000 people has been registered for May 16.The lead-up ...

Bulgarian singer Dara has defied bookmakers’ expectations and won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, which was otherwise noteworthy for pro-Palestinian protests and an unprecedented boycott over Israel’s participation.Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia shunned the international event this year due to West Jerusalem’s military campaigns in Gaza and in Lebanon – the biggest boycott in Eurovision’s 70-year history.Last month, more than 1,100 musicians and cultural workers, including Brian Eno, Massive Attack, Kneecap, and Primal Scream among others, likewise signed an open letter calling for a boycott and accusing event organizers of helping Israel to whitewash and normalize its “genocide” in Gaza and Lebanon.Nevertheless, Israel’s Noam Bettan came in second af...

The final episode of Stephen Colbert’s ‘Late Show’ represents not just the end of Colbert’s career, but the final nail in the coffin of the ‘Orange Man Bad’ activist comedy of the early Trump years.  After an 11-year run, the final episode of ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ airs on Thursday night. Riding a wave of liberal anguish over the election of President Donald Trump in 2017, Colbert’s highly partisan brand of comedy garnered massive ratings, but as seasons went by and Colbert ditched laughs for nak...

Nearly 90 drones fell into Sydney’s Darling Harbour on Monday evening after a technical malfunction disrupted a coordinated aerial display, according to several media outlets.The incident occurred during Vivid Sydney, an annual three-week festival known for large-scale light installations and public art events.Spectators were watching a synchronized formation of hundreds of illuminated drones when part of the formation suddenly broke away and plunged into the water.The evening performance was immediately cancelled, and all upcoming drone shows scheduled for the following days suspended pending a full technical review.SkyMagic, the company responsible for the display, said the failure was caused by an “unforeseen technical difficulties” shortly after takeoff. The disruption reportedly affec...

British rock legend Ozzy Osbourne, the charismatic Black Sabbath frontman who helped define heavy metal for generations of fans, is set to make an AI-powered digital comeback, as his family has unveiled plans to create an interactive hologram of the late singer.The self-styled ‘Prince of Darkness’ died in July of 2025 at the age of 76 after a years-long battle with Parkinson’s disease and other health problems. His death came just weeks after a farewell reunion concert in his hometown of Birmingham that raised millions for charity.The project was announced by Osbourne’s wife Sharon and son Jack during a panel at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas. The endeavor will move forward in partnership with tech companies Hyperreal and Proto Hologram, which specialize in AI-generated digital replicas and i...

Newly obtained audio tapes allegedly captured the main suspect in the decades-old murder of rapper Tupac Shakur bragging about his role in the killing, the New York Post reported on Thursday.On September 7, 1996, Tupac was shot four times while stopped at a red light on the Las Vegas Strip and later succumbed to his wounds in hospital. Prosecutors have charged Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis with orchestrating the drive-by shooting. Investigators and legal authorities identify his nephew, Orlando ‘Baby Lane’ Anderson, who was himself shot dead in 1998, as the man who fired the fatal shots.The Las Vegas District Attorney’s Office believes Davis admitted to his involvement in the murder during a recorded prison phone conversation, the NYP wrote, citing a legal source. He had also discussed his role in...