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Covid advisers reveal ‘tidal 22 great

wave’ of threats and abuse
Exclusive
Ian Sample
Science editor
The “appalling” scale of abuse, intim-
idation and threatening behaviour
directed at the UK government’s
scientific and medical advisers has
been laid bare in a Guardian survey
of experts working on the pandemic.
Dozens of UK advisers described
incidents ranging from coordinated
online attacks to death threats and
acts of intimidation, such as photo-
graphs of their homes being shared
online and suspicious packages arriv-
ing in the post.
Further harassment has included
vitriolic tweets, emails and phone
calls, hate mail, threats of violence,
complaints to employers, referrals to
the General Medical Council, offen-
sive notes left on cars, and abuse
shouted through the letterbox. The
police have brought charges in a small
number of cases when people linked
to specific threats were identified.
‘I’ve not experienced
anything like this
before. I’m just trying
to do the best I can to
stop people dying’
A doctor on abuse from
members of the public
holiday
ideas
 Saturday
Advisers are not the only ones tar-
geted: the abuse has spilled over to
the advisers’ students, colleagues
and family members, including part-
ners and children.
One adviser who works as a GP said
the surgery’s receptionists had been
subjected to “vile tirades” as a result
of their advisory role.
In another case, a school pupil
was repeatedly targeted by a teacher
who blamed the child’s parent for the
government’s lockdown
6 
policy. The family did not

Prove you The

don’t sweat,
Andrew told hottest
Lawyers have asked new TV
the Duke of York for
documents explaining stars
why he doesn’t perspire
News Page 14 of 2022
 What’s On

Teenager
killings at
record high
London records worst
annual toll of teenage
homicides after two
boys were stabbed
•••

News Page 18 ▲ A display to herald the new year lights up the Millennium Bridge in London last night PHOTOGRAPH: TOBY MELVILLE/REUTERS
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

Inside 01/01/2022 News

▼ Vaccinations in Johannesburg.
EXCEL
AT YOUR
BAD
HABITS
ADMIT
YOU DON’T
In the week to 25 December, South
WANT TO

Africa saw a 29.7% fall in new cases

GO OUT
REJECT
THE
PURSUIT OF
CHANGE

PHOTOGRAPH: LUCA SOLA/AFP/GETTY

African Medical Research Council, in
I S S U E № 14 | 1 JA N UA RY 2 02 2

HOW TO EMBRACE
a post on a Twitter account.
YOUR MESSY,
COMPLICATED,
IMPERFECT LIFE
PA G E S 1 4 - 3 5
The country is at the lowest of
Features ‘In my head I look fancy’ its five-stage alert levels regard-
ing Covid-19. However, Gungubele
Anastacia talks tinted glasses, cancer and a warned: “We will monitor the situa-
photograph from two decades ago Page 8 tion on a hour-by-hour basis.” He said
Born a millennium apart that if necessary the curfew could
return, but added: “I hope it never
How a quirk of timing meant twin siblings comes back.”
were born in different centuries Page 13 Besides lifting the restrictions on
public movement, the government
Culture School’s out for ever also ruled that alcohol shops with
licences to operate beyond 11pm
Jamie-Lee O’Donnell bids an emotional could revert back to full-licence con-
farewell to hit sitcom Derry Girls Page 42 ditions, a welcome boon for traders
Notes of optimism and businesses hit hard by the pan-
demic and looking to recover during
James Smith gave post-punk one last roll
Fourth wave of Covid past
the festive season.
of the dice. Now Elton John’s a fan Page 46 However, public gatherings are
restricted to no more than 1,000
Lifestyle Feathers and friends
Why you don’t always have to head to the its peak, says South Africa people indoors, and no more than
2,000 outdoors. Wearing of masks
in public places also remains man-
countryside to enjoy birdwatching Page 68 datory, with breaches considered a
A chance to cut loose weekly decrease in new Covid cases criminal offence.
Staff and agencies detected in the week ending 25 The more optimistic note, after
Now is the time to throw off the shackles of December, the government said. Hos- two years of the global pandemic,
athleisure, says Jess Cartner-Morley Page 78 pital admissions had declined in eight was echoed by Tedros Adhanom
South Africa has lifted a night-time of South Africa’s nine provinces. Ghebreyesus, director general of the
curfew on people’s’ movements with Mondli Gungubele, a minister World Health Organization, who said
Plus immediate effect, believing the coun- in the office of the president, Cyril on LinkedIn that the world had the
try has passed the peak of its fourth Ramaphosa, told a new conference “tools to end this calamity”.
1-7 January 2022

NEW YEAR’ S DAY

The Tourist
9pm, BBC One
Jamie Dornan is lost in Oz

SUNDAY
Breaking through coronavirus wave, driven by the Omi- yesterday: “Based on the experts, He wrote: “After two years,
cron variant. the conditions do allow that we lift we now know this virus well. We
Anne
9pm, ITV

MONDAY

From Dalek duels to pogoing with the Sex

Four Lives
9pm, BBC One

TUE SDAY
Toast of Tinseltown
10pm, BBC Two

WEDNE SDAY

As the head of the World Health the curfew.”. know the proven measures to
Mandy
10pm, BBC Two

THURSDAY
Screw

Pistols, meet TV’s rising stars of 2022 Page 2

9pm, Channel 4

FRIDAY
A Discovery of Witches
9pm, Sky Max

Organization sounded an optimis- Calls by the hospitality sector for control transmission: mask use,
Sangria at the ready tic note about beating the pandemic the midnight-to-4am curfew to be avoiding crowds, maintaining phys-
in 2022, the government in Preto- lifted had been mounting ahead of ical distancing, practising hand and
This absurd dating show will get you through ria removed the midnight-to-4am the New Year’s Eve celebrations, with respiratory hygiene, opening win-
January, writes Joel Golby Page 3 Time to take stock
Ottolenghi’s noodle soup
Thomasina Miers
Hispi caesar salad

Borlotti bean
Swedish ‘meatballs’
Ravneet Gill
Banana pancakes
School Night Vegan Felicity Cloake
Tom yum soup
Fiona Beckett
curfew. The move was based on the restaurant and bar owners launch- dows for ventilation, testing and
trajectory of the pandemic, vaccina- ing an online petition to lobby contact tracing.
Meera Sodha How to drink better
Coconut milk curry
Tom Hunt
Ravinder Bhogal What to make with
Sticky carrot and leftover alcohol
hazelnut salad
Grace Dent
Rachel Roddy ‘By this stage, my
Lentils, grapes hopes for the rest of

tion levels and available capacity in Ramaphosa. “We know how to treat the disease
Issue No.206

Feast Flavours of Sri Lanka

Saturday 1 January 2022 Supported by and goat’s cheese lunch were not high’

the health sector, the government
Meera Sodha’s kiri hodi is perfect said on Thursday.
for time-poor cooks Page 11 “All indicators suggest the coun-
try may have passed the peak of the
Money Fantasy house hunt fourth wave at a national level,” said
a statement from a special cabinet
From a fort to a showcase in concrete: meeting held earlier the same day.
ultimate dream homes for sale Page 44 “While the Omicron variant is highly
transmissible, there has been lower
Journal Simon Jenkins rates of hospitalisation than in pre-
vious waves.”
Our churches should be part of the Data from South Africa’s health
country’s future, not left to rot Page 3 department had shown a 29.7%
South Africa, with close to 3.5m
infections and 91,000 deaths, has
been the worst-hit country in Africa
during the pandemic on both counts,
and was where the Omicron variant
of the coronavirus was first detected
last month.
“The speed with which the
Omicron-driven fourth wave rose,
peaked and then declined has been
staggering. Peak in four weeks and
precipitous decline in another two,”
said Fareed Abdullah, of the South
it causes and improve the chances of
survival for people suffering serious
illness. With all these learnings and
capacities, the opportunity to turn
this pandemic around for good is in
our grasp.”
However, the WHO chief warned
of trying times ahead, saying Omi-
cron could lead to a tsunami of cases.
He added: “This ... will continue to
put immense pressure on exhausted
health workers, and health systems
on the brink of collapse.”

Sport ‘The result didn’t matter’

Simon Kjær on Christian Eriksen, Denmark Crowns on pint David Frost, the Tory peer who was
overseeing Brexit.
products, simplifying complex
EU alcohol duty rates, and forging
and one extraordinary summer Page 2 Frost is leaving the government ahead to remove the ban on selling in
glasses among after frustrations over Brexit negoti- pounds and ounces as well as restor-
Cryptic crossword Journal Page 12 ations and broader concerns over the ing the crown stamp to the side of pint
Killer sudoku Journal Page 12 Brexit victories government’s Covid policies and tax
increases. His brief will be taken over
glasses as successes during the year.
“We’ve replaced free movement
Puzzles and quick crossword Pages 49-50
Weather Page 51
hailed by PM by Liz Truss, the foreign secretary.
In his anniversary message, John-
with a points-based immigration sys-
tem,” he said. “We’ve secured the
son said the UK had “used Brexit fastest vaccine rollout anywhere in
freedoms” to create a new immigra- Europe last year by avoiding sluggish
Contact Rowena Mason tion system and to strike new trade EU processes. And from Singapore to
Deputy political editor deals around the world with coun- Switzerland, we’ve negotiated ambi-
For missing sections call 0800 839 100. Guardian News & Media, Kings Place, 90 York tries such as Australia. Johnson also tious free trade deals to boost jobs
For individual departments, call the Way, London N1 9GU. 020-3353 2000. Fax
020-7837 2114. In Manchester: Centurion Boris Johnson has named returning claimed Brexit had helped secure the and investment here at home.
Guardian switchboard: 020 3353 2000.
House, 129 Deansgate, Manchester M3 3WR. the crown stamps to pint glasses and vaccine rollout, although some have “But that’s not all. From sim-
For the Readers’ editor (corrections
&  clarifications on specific editorial
Telephone Sales: 020-7611 9000. The scrapping a ban on selling goods in challenged that claim. plifying the EU’s mind-bogglingly
Guardian lists links to third-party websites,
content), call 020 3353 4736 between but does not endorse them or guarantee their pounds and ounces on his list of the On cutting red tape, the prime min- complex beer and wine duties to
10am and 1pm UK time Monday to Friday authenticity or accuracy. Back issues from “key successes” of Brexit this year. ister listed ending VAT on sanitary proudly restoring the crown stamp
excluding public holidays, or email Historic Newspapers: 0870-165 1470
guardian.backissuenewspapers.co.uk.
The prime minister set out his on to the side of pint glasses, we’re
guardian.readers@theguardian.com. views on the opportunities created by cutting back on EU red tape and
Published by Guardian News & Media, Kings
Letters for publication should be sent to Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU, and at Brexit in 2021, a year after the signing bureaucracy and restoring common
guardian.letters@theguardian.com or Centurion House, 129 Deansgate, Manchester
the address on the letters page. M3 3WR. Printed at Reach Watford Limited, of the UK-EU trade and cooperation sense to our rulebook.”
St Albans Road, Watford, Herts WD24 7RG; agreement. Johnson pledged the government
Reach Oldham Limited, Hollinwood Avenue, However, he made no mention would go “further and faster” to max-
Chadderton, Oldham OL9 8EP; Reach Saltire
Ltd, 110 Fifty Pitches Place, Glasgow of Northern Ireland in his new year imise the opportunities of Brexit. He
G51 4EA; and by Irish Times Print Facility, message about Brexit, where there highlighted reviews of the regulatory
4080 Kingswood Road, Citywest Business
Campus, Dublin 24. No. 54,543, Saturday 1
are still huge trade problems with regimes around artificial intelligence,
NEWSPAPERS the operation of the agreement and self-driving vehicles, data rights,
SUPPORT January 2022. Registered as a newspaper at
RECYCLING the Post Office ISSN 0261-3077. ongoing talks with the EU about how genetically modified food and med-
The recycled paper
content
  of UK newspapers
in 2017 was 64.6%
to proceed. The prime minister also ▲ Johnson says the government will ical devices as areas where the UK
omitted mention of the resignation of go even further on Brexit reforms could deviate from the EU.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Betty White 1922-2021
A ‘comedy black belt’ and TV
favourite for eight decades
Hadley Freeman
B
etty White, who died
yesterday aged 99,
had one of the longest
careers in TV history
playing ditzy, dumb
blondes. However, the
Golden Girls star was actually one
of the toughest and most wised-up
brunettes in showbiz.
Such was her skill in shaping her
public image – through talkshows,
gameshows, sitcoms and multiple
autobiographies – that from early
on in her career she was seen
as something beyond mere TV
personality but an actual type. In
her latter years, she was held up by
many as the ultimate example of
how to be an older person.
Amy Poehler, in her book of
essays Yes, Please, recalled the time
White appeared on Saturday Night
Live in 2010: “I asked her what she
was going to do after the show.
‘I’m going to fix myself a vodka on
the rocks and eat a cold hotdog,’
she said. It confirmed for me that
growing old was awesome.”
By then, White had already spent
•••
News
almost 70 years cannily making
herself into a recognisable genus.
In 1973, when the Mary Tyler Moore
Show was in the ascendant, an
episode was written featuring a
new character, Sue Ann Nivens,
whom the script described as “a
sickeningly sweet Betty White
type”, White recalled in one of her
memoirs, Here We Go Again. But,
White wrote, “they couldn’t find
anyone sickening enough”. And so
the casting director gave the part
of the seemingly dopey blonde
with a not-very-hidden vicious and
nymphomaniac streak to White
herself. White played it to such
perfection she became a regular in
the show and promptly won her
second and third Emmys.
White worked for so long that
looking back on her career is like
taking a Zelig-style tour through
the history of American TV, in
which she pops up in each of the
medium’s most seminal genres
through the decades. (Her beloved
third, last and late husband, the TV
gameshow host Allen Ludden, used
to introduce her at parties with:
“Meet my wife – one of the pioneers
in silent television.” “And it was
practically true,” White agreed.)
White, who was born in Illinois
but grew up in Los Angeles, got her
first job in TV in 1949 as the sidekick
to Al Jarvis on his live variety show,
Hollywood on Television, on which
she and Jarvis would chat amiably
between playing new records.
Viewers wrote in to complain that
they were more interested in the
chat, so the music was ditched.
Her appealing personality meant
she was there in the early days
of gameshows and talkshows,
then throughout the 50s and 60s,
working with everyone from Jack
Paar to Johnny Carson. Fans got
to see her deeply in love in her
many appearances on Ludden’s
▲ White in 1954. She had landed
her first job in TV five years earlier
▼ Betty White’s signature roles came
in the 1970s and 80s, with the Mary
Tyler Moore Show and the Golden
Girls, right, playing Rose Nylund
PHOTOGRAPH: AMANDA EDWARDS/WIRE IMAGE
gameshow, Password, which he
hosted from 1961 to 1967. When the
two appeared shortly after their
honeymoon, they could hardly stop
giggling and saying one another’s
name in lovestruck delight.
White was stepmother to
Ludden’s children, and she was
a noted lover of animals, writing
about her long work with zoos and
conservation in another memoir,
Betty and Friends: My Life at the
Zoo. She turned down a role in the
1997 film As Good as it Gets because
in one scene a character dropped
a puppy down a laundry chute. “I
said as long as that scene was in the
film, I wouldn’t do it,” she said.
White was one of the first women
to have creative control in front of
and behind the camera, with her
1950s sitcom Life With Elizabeth.
While not an obvious trailblazer
like Joan Rivers, White was a quiet
revolutionary in her way, whose
onscreen jibes came with a sugary
sweet smile instead of a sneer.
Her two signature roles played
on this contrast – the sweetness
overlaying the sting – to brilliant
effect. She became prominent in
sitcoms in the 70s and 80s, and on
the Mary Tyler Moore Show, she
satirised her own twinkly-eyed
appearance, shooting the most
cutting of jabs at Moore while she
wafted around holding a souffle.
A new generation knew her as
Rose Nylund, the Nordic blonde
from St Olaf, Minnesota, on the
80s sitcom the Golden Girls, about
a group of older women living in
Florida, co-starring Bea Arthur,
Rue McClanahan and Estelle
Getty. They were all, as one TV
critic said, “comedy black belts”.
Few shows demonstrated better
5
‘[White told me] “I’m
going to fix myself
a vodka on the
rocks and eat a cold
hotdog”. It confirmed
for me that growing
old was awesome’
Amy Poehler
On meeting White
White’s genius at comedy: turning
Rose from a potentially one-joke
pony into a three-dimensional
character, one especially loved by
children: “It tickled me whenever
some very small person, tugging at
mother’s sleeve, would point and
say, ‘There’s Wose!’ Too young to
pronounce it, they still knew the
character,” White recalled.
The sitcom was in the Top 10
most-watched shows in the US
every week for its first five years.
During those years, all four stars
were nominated for Emmys every
single year. It was astonishingly
bold about everything from
geriatric sex to death, and it was
beloved by all ages. White summed
up the show’s appeal by saying: “I
think we were just truly funny.”
White’s longevity in the
entertainment industry is
remarkable – when her last sitcom,
Hot in Cleveland, ended, she was 93
years old. But she represented more
than mere good genes. She was a
trouper in the old showbiz sense,
happy to go along with anything
for the joke, whether it was tap
dancing (brilliantly) in shorts
on the Golden Girls in her 60s or
joking about her “salty muffin” on
Saturday Night Live in her 90s.
She was, she often admitted, a
workaholic, which was partly why
her second marriage ended in 1949
after two years, and it was how she
got herself through the grief when
Ludden died in 1981.
But she was also an early adopter
of the concept of celebrity: she
understood before many others
the value of making her personality
her brand, and how close it was to
reality became moot. With talent
like hers, reality was by the by.
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

6 News
Coronavirus

Covid advisers describe

abuse than men, but some were
less willing to describe their experi-
ences. Numerous male counterparts
expressed dismay at the intensity
and nature of the abuse directed at

‘tidal wave’ of threats and women they knew. “There seems

to be a huge gender imbalance with
women being targeted so much more
than men,” one said.

intimidation from public

 Continued from page 1
make a formal complaint because the
child’s exam grade depended on the
teacher’s assessment.
The Guardian survey was sent to
more than 100 scientists, doctors and
other researchers who contribute to
the advice ministers receive through
bodies such as the Scientific Advisory
Group for Emergencies (Sage), the
modelling and behavioural science
subgroups that support Sage, and
other expert groups such as the
New and Emerging Respiratory Virus
Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag)
and the Joint Committee on Vacci-
nation and Immunisation (JCVI). The
responses have been anonymised.
Three-quarters of the 42 respond-
ents reported that they had received
significant abuse about government
policy, their views on the science,
or their research, often after being
quoted in the media or speaking
at open events such as parliamen-
tary inquiries or webinars hosted by
organisations such as royal societies.
In an article for the Guardian today,
Prof John Edmunds, an epidemiolo-
gist at the London School of Hygiene
& Tropical Medicine and a member
of Sage, said he and junior staff reg-
ularly got abusive emails.
“If you mention vaccination in
the media, particularly vaccination
of children, then there is likely to
be a reaction,” he writes. “However,
this only occurs if one’s comments
are picked up by the rightwing press
– particularly the Daily Mail.”
Beyond words
The scientist
abused for
▲ Chi Onwurah of Labour called
the attacks ‘wholly unacceptable’
One adviser received a death threat
on Twitter, which was reported to the
police, and experienced a “tidal wave
of abuse” whenever they appeared
in the media.
Much of the abuse comes from
people who feel more threatened
by the official response to the pan-
demic than the pandemic itself, even
though advisers are not involved in
policy decisions.
Many say it peaks when they speak
publicly about masks, vaccines,
Covid treatments, circuit-breakers
or lockdowns, meaning the abuse
is increasing with the spread of the
Omicron variant.
At the start of the pandemic last
year, a surge in threatening behav-
iour led government security experts
what you have done and could have
done if there weren’t some people
in the government with a brain.”
How would you like to get this
in your inbox? As a senior scientist
advising the government on Covid,
I get this sort of email on a fairly
regular basis. Indeed, [someone
calling himself] Mr Roberts (who
to brief the advisers on how best
to protect themselves, including
how to increase computer security
and improve their personal safety
by varying the time at which they
travelled to work and the route they
used, and checking under their car
before driving.
Some have had security reviews of
their homes and workplaces and had
alarms and CCTV installed, linked to
their local police station. A number of
universities have hired private secu-
rity firms to help the experts operate
safely and to ensure campaigners and
protesters do not disrupt their work.
Government cybersecurity experts
remove sensitive material posted
online where possible.
Many advisers reported a stream
of hate via Twitter and email, with
messages such as “I hope your family
die”, “I hope cunts like you are fuck-
ing held accountable”, “You will pay
for killing our children with vaccines”
and “Fuck off back to where you came
from”. The media sometimes fuelled
the activity by emphasising worst-
case scenarios, some respondents
said, or legitimised abuse from social
media trolls by launching their own
attacks on advisers.
The survey found no clear evi-
dence that women received more
42
The number of advisers who took
part in the survey. Three-quarters
reported significant abuse
Other things I have learned is
that if you mention vaccination in
the media, particularly vaccination
of children, then there is likely
to be a reaction. However, this
only occurs if one’s comments are
picked up by the rightwing press
– particularly the Daily Mail. The
letter-writers also seem to use the
A doctor said: “A lot of it is misog-
ynistic and a lot of it is deeply
unpleasant. I’ve never experienced
anything like this before. I’m just
trying to do the best I can to stop
people dying.”
Several advisers emphasised that
they also received praise, thanks and
support from members of the public,
which counterbalanced the vitriol.
“It has vaccinated me against much
of the hate,” one said.
George Freeman, the science min-
ister, called the abuse “appalling”. He
said: “All of us who value our freedom
and democracy need to call this out …
Scientists and doctors should not be
held responsible for decisions taken
in good faith by ministers accoun-
table to parliament.”
Chi Onwurah, the shadow science
minister, said the attacks were
“wholly unacceptable” and that the
government’s much-delayed online
safety bill was desperately needed to
counter misinformation.
While many advisers praised the
Cabinet Office and the Sage secretar-
iat for setting up “extensive support
mechanisms”, some felt they would
have benefited from a warning and
security advice before signing up.
The attention has led some scien-
tists to refuse interviews and consider
withdrawing from the public discus-
sion. But most said the abuse had not
put them off. “If anything, it moti-
vated me to engage further,” one
Key points
adviser said. “Clearly my voice was
being heard and having an impact.”
Another said: “If we stop speak- What we
ing up, and stop providing advice,
something else will fill the void and
it will be misinformation, false nar-
ratives and so on. Do we acquiesce
know about
and allow them to take over and risk
people’s lives?” variant so far
It isn’t all bad. Sometimes you
get someone who is genuinely
concerned and/or confused. I
Since the first cases of Omicron
were reported in the UK just over
a month ago it has spread rapidly
always reply to these letters. If I can across the country, fuelling a surge
help explain the science or the risks
so they come to a more informed
of infections. But scientists have
also been working at speed. Here
decision, then I feel I have done is an overview of the expanding
my job. Then there are the slightly
more outre examples: an artist who
scientific knowledge of Omicron.

sent this) is a regular offender. same tropes, like using the phrase occasionally sends me a picture Spread

doing his job What particularly upset me about

this email was that it wasn’t sent to
me, but to a junior member of my
team. Awful, isn’t it?
Although this is a typical email
John Edmunds from Roberts, it is not altogether
typical of the genre. Roberts’
“tick tock” (sometimes just that) or
the Nuremberg trials and, of course,
Bill Gates (who must get this stuff
by the bucketload). This rehashing
of the same motifs sometimes leads
me to believe there is a coordinated
campaign, or at least that these
of a misty landscape or a still life
and the musician who dubbed one
of my Radio 4 interviews over his
song. Bonkers, but it worked.
And perhaps that is the lesson.
There are some people out there
who might need help, some rude
Soon after Omicron was detected in
southern Africa it became apparent
the variant is highly transmissible.
According to the UK Health
Security Agency (UKHSA), Omicron
is displaying a growth advantage
over the Delta variant in the UK,

‘Y
ou scaremongering
ignorant fucking
cunt, you and your
retarded team made
predictions that
could have fucked
this country for billions of pounds,
fucked Christmas for a second time
and cost thousands thier [sic] jobs
only to have your most pessimistic
ballshit [sic] now found to be just
that. How fucks like you can sleep
at night is beyond me and I hope
you are fucking held to account for
spelling is generally good and the
grammar is usually sound. Most
letter-writers have at best a very
basic grasp of English language –
enough to get their point across.
The spelling really is shocking.
Sometimes it makes me wonder
about the mental state of the
sender; whether they are from the
UK at all; or whether they were
even written by a human. I find it
strangely comforting to think some
might have been generated by a
clever computer code rather than
an angry member of our society.
ideas are circulating and they cut
and paste them into their letters.
▲ Prof John Edmunds is regularly
sent abusive emails about his work
and threatening types who really
need to look at themselves, some
confused souls who need advice,
and some magical, whimsical sorts
who just need to carry on doing
what they do. Help those who need
it, block out the idiots (spam filters
are great) and concentrate on the
wonderful, the wacky and the
profound. Happy new year!
John Edmunds is a professor of
epidemiology at the London School
of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
and a member of Sage
but the agency notes that two
factors could be at play: an inherent
increased transmissibility, and the
better ability for Omicron to evade
immune responses.
According to the latest estimates
from the Office for National
Statistics, about one in 25 people
in England had Covid in the week
ending 23 December.
Vaccines
A number of studies have shown
that Omicron has a substantial
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
ability to evade immune responses.
According the latest UKHSA
data released yesterday, two doses
of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid
jabs offer little protection against
symptomatic infection, while 20
weeks after a second dose of the
Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna jabs,
protection against Omicron is only
around 10%.
However, booster vaccinations
have been found to increase this
protection to about 65% to 75%
two to four weeks after the jab,
falling to around 40% to 50%
protection from 10 or more weeks
after the booster.
But research from Imperial
College London has suggested
vaccine effectiveness against
hospitalisation 60 days after a
booster is between 80% and 86%
against Omicron, depending on
how fast booster protection wanes.
Such findings chime with the
latest UKHSA data suggesting
88% vaccine effectiveness against
hospitalisation two weeks after a
booster dose.
Immune response
Some experts have suggested that
high levels of protection against
severe disease may, in part, be
down to the action of different
components of the immune
system. While Omicron has a high
capacity to escape neutralising
antibodies, research has shown
it is less able to dodge the body’s
T-cells.
However Prof Danny Altmann,
at Imperial College London,
notes:“[We] still lack proof this
buys you any protection.”
•
Severe disease
Recent research in the UK has
backed up early suggestions that
Omicron may cause less severe
disease than Delta, even for those
who are unvaccinated and who
have not previously been infected.
According to the UKHSA, overall,
people with Omicron are estimated
to be about half as likely to go to
A&E or be admitted to hospital
compared with those with Delta,
while the risk of hospital admission
alone is approximately a third
Covid-19 variants in England
• Omicron • Delta • Alpha • Other
Omicron: 78%
1 Jan 1 Mar 1 May
Source: covid19.sanger.ac.uk
Who is - and isn't - vaccinated?
• No vaccine • First dose • Two doses • Three doses
12 16 18 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Source: data.gov.uk, correct as of 30 December
▼ Soldiers helping to provide
Covid booster vaccinations
in Chester Cathedral
PHOTOGRAPH: PETER BYRNE/PA
of that for Delta. The data also
reveals there is an 81% reduction
in the risk of hospitalisation after
three vaccine doses compared to
unvaccinated Omicron cases.
Healthcare
Even if only a small proportion of
a large number of infected people
end up in hospital, it’s still a large
number. Both hospital admissions
and the number of Covid patients
in hospital are rising.
Modelling released by
researchers at Warwick University
on Thursday, yet to be peer-
reviewed, suggests that even
100% if Omicron has 50% severity
compared with the Delta variant,
there could be peaks of 1.4m
75
daily infections, about 13,600
daily hospital admissions and
50 2,890 deaths a day in January
in England. That is assuming
25 England remains under “Plan B”
measures only, and an efficacy
0 against severe disease with
25 Dec Omicron of 85% after boosting
(based on 17 December data).
Prof Christina Pagel, director
of University College London’s
Clinical Operational Research
Unit, said even under the Warwick
100% team’s optimistic scenarios,
hospital admissions are likely to
75 be higher than last January under
current plan B measures.
50 “One of the most worrying
aspects of their modelling is that
25
time to prevent these hospital
pressures was last week or, latest,
Boxing Day. If true, this means
0
huge new pressures on the NHS
within weeks,” she told the
Guardian. Nicola Davis
NHS impact
Number of
staff off sick
or isolating
doubles in
two weeks
Denis Campbell
Steven Morris
The number of NHS staff in England
off work or isolating due to Covid has
doubled over the past two weeks after
the rapid spread of Omicron, figures
have revealed.
On Boxing Day, a total of 24,632
personnel in acute NHS trusts were
absent because they were sick or
quarantining as a direct result of
either the Delta or Omicron variant.
That was more than double the
12,240 who could not work for that
reason on 12 December and 31% up on
the 18,829 recorded on 19 December.
The number of confirmed Covid
cases in the UK continued to rise yes-
terday to a new record of 189,846.
Experts said the latest figures are
likely to include infections arising
from people socialising on Christ-
mas Day and Boxing Day. There were
Antiviral therapy
Pfizer pill approved
UK regulators have approved
Pfizer’s new “life-saving” antiviral
Paxlovid, a pill rated with a near
90% success in preventing severe
illness among vulnerable adults if
taken soon after a Covid infection.
The treatment has been
approved by the Medicines and
Healthcare products Regulatory
Agency (MHRA), which found
Paxlovid “to be safe and effective at
reducing the risk of hospitalisation
and death in people with mild
to moderate Covid-19 infection
who are at an increased risk of
developing severe disease”.
The agency said Paxlovid
was most effective when taken
during the early stages of a Covid
infection, and recommended it be
used within five days of the first
symptoms. The approval is for
patients aged 18 and over with at
least one risk factor for developing
severe illness, such as obesity or
diabetes, or being older than 60.
June Raine, the MHRA’s chief
executive, said: “We now have a
further antiviral medicine for the
treatment of Covid-19 that can
be taken by mouth rather than
administered intravenously. It can
be administered outside a hospital
setting, before Covid-19 has
progressed to a severe stage.
Before Christmas Pfizer said that
the UK government had agreed to
buy 2.5m extra courses of Paxlovid.
The MHRA noted that Paxlovid
was “not a substitute” for Covid-19
vaccinations. Richard Adams
7
also 203 deaths. NHS England also
revealed there were 2,370 hospital
admissions with Covid in England on
29 December, a 90% week-on-week
increase and the highest daily total
since 29 January.
The total number of NHS staff days
lost because of Covid-related absence
increased sharply in the runup to the
Christmas weekend – rising from
124,855 days in the week up until 19
December, to 176,914 in the seven
days that ended on Boxing Day, the
figures released yesterday show.
The Liberal Democrats said that
staff absence at a time when the NHS
is under such huge pressure was so
worrying that Boris Johnson should
convene a Cobra meeting to explore
possible solutions.
“Today’s figures confirm the worst:
hospital and ambulance services are
stretched to breaking point under the
weight of devastating Covid staff
absences, just as the government was
warned,” said Daisy Cooper, the par-
ty’s health spokesperson.
“It really is now or never for the
government to get a handle on a cri-
sis that is quickly spiralling beyond
their control. Boris Johnson must
call a Cobra [emergency] meeting
without delay to thrash out a com-
prehensive rescue plan.”
The surge in staff sickness led Mat-
thew Taylor, the chief executive of
the NHS Confederation, to warn that
“the NHS is facing a perfect storm of
Covid hospital admissions and illness
rising at a very alarming rate along-
side increasing numbers of frontline
workers being off sick”.
On Sunday in England, the Mid-
lands had the largest number of staff
absent as a result of Covid (4,812),
followed by London (4,580), the
north-east and Yorkshire (4,179) and
the north-west (3,966).
NHS England’s latest “winter
sitreps” data also showed that 68,082
staff were off work at acute trusts on
Boxing Day for sickness of any kind,
including colds, flu, mental health
problems and Covid. That was up 6%
on the week before and 20% on two
weeks earlier.
Chris Hopson, the chief exec-
utive of NHS Providers, said the
“worrying” rise in staff absence “is
the biggest immediate challenge for
trusts as they deal with the surge in
Omicron cases together with contin-
uing pressures on emergency care,
urgent planned care that cannot be
delayed any longer and the ongoing
vaccination programme”.
Almost one in eight frontline
ambulance staff in Wales are off sick
or isolating because of Covid, with
the numbers expected to continue to
grow over the next week or so.
Hopson told BBC Radio 4’s Today
programme: “The government needs
to be ready to introduce tighter
restrictions, at real speed, should
they be needed. That is somewhat
different from suggestions that NHS
leaders think there’s no need for more
curbs. They may be needed, at pace.”
His comments came as a leading
scientist predicted that the sharp
increase in Covid-19 infections in
recent days meant the NHS would
be overwhelmed “quite quickly”.
Prof Peter Openshaw, a member
of the New and Emerging Respira-
tory Virus Threats Advisory Group,
warned that exposure to only “a whiff
of infected breath” could lead to peo-
ple contracting the Omicron variant.

8 National
Two years on
Covid’s impact –
from first inkling
to latest variant
Ashley Kirk and Pamela Duncan
T
wo years ago today,
as New Year’s Eve
fireworks lit up skies
across the world, news
reached the World
Health Organization
(WHO) about an outbreak of
“pneumonia” in Wuhan, China,
the cause of which was unknown.
There had been several cases in
December and possibly as far back
as November in the region. But the
subsequent WHO announcement
was the first time the world at large
was made aware of its existence.
At first the announcement
garnered little public attention: like
the fireworks that had preceded
the announcement, fears of
potential diseases usually just
flared then faded. But as it turned
out the disease that came to be
known as Covid-19 was something
entirely different. In the two years
since more than 5 million people
worldwide have lost their lives to
the virus, “lockdown” has become
part of the world’s common
vocabulary and governments and
their citizens are still waiting for a
“new normal” to emerge.
The virus has also exposed
inequalities within countries in
terms of the impact on lower-paid,
public-facing employees, as well as
exacerbating global inequities as
vaccine deployments take place at
vastly different rates.
This global retrospective shows,
in graphics, the varying impact of
Covid worldwide.
Europe and the Americas have
had the highest caseloads
More than one in 10 people in
Europe and the Americas have
tested positive for Covid at this
stage in the pandemic, according
to figures from Our World in Data
that run to 20 December. And even
this is probably an underestimate,
given that case figures do not
capture cases that have gone
▲ An outbreak of ‘pneumonia’ in
Wuhan, China, had no known cause
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
News
Coronavirus
xSubjectxxxx
Cases across the world
Europe and the Americas have recorded the most cases throughout the pandemic
Cases surged in the US in the last
months of Trump’s presidency, with
North America's case rate peaking at
470 per million people on 11 January
South America
Case rate
North America South America
per million
people North America
under the testing radar. Recorded
cases rely on the number of Covid Globally-connected countries Europe Asia
tests carried out in a country. in Europe and North America
Still, we can get a sense of how recorded the most cases at
the pandemic has spread – and the start of the pandemic
how case rates have expanded
and retracted – over the last two European cases surged in January The rise of the Delta variant
years by looking at case rates on 2021 after the Alpha variant was in India increased case
continents. found in the UK rates across Asia
The highly infectious Omicron
variant caused cases to surge in
Europe in December, meaning the Apr 2020 Jul Oct Jan 2021 Apr
continent currently counts for 60%
of all new cases being recorded Source: Our World in Data. Different countries' methodologies for counting Covid-19 may
differ from each other. Testing rates differ across the world and influence case rates
worldwide.
This wasn’t always the case. As
the west reaped vaccine dividends
to coincide with the northern High-income countries have recorded the most deaths
summer, South America’s case
rates soared for several months, High-income countries have recorded the most deaths throughout the pandemic -
starting in April 2021. This was but vaccines have changed the picture
partly driven by consistently high
case rates in Brazil, which have High-income countries like Italy High-income countries’ death
had an effect on the continent’s and the UK suffered high death rate peaked at 6.8 per million
numbers throughout the tolls in the first wave people on 26 January
pandemic. North America had the
highest case rates at the end of
2020. The US recently reported it
had passed 800,000 deaths, the
highest absolute figure reported Death rate High-income
anywhere worldwide. per million
While Africa’s recorded cases people
seem low, the continent has still
been hit hard, most recently with
Upper-middle
the Omicron variant, first reported
in South Africa. Case rates are
influenced by how much testing
a country does, which in turn is
influenced by the funding a country
has available to combat Covid.
Introduction of the vaccine gave Deaths in upper-middle countries like
many countries cause for optimism Brazil remained high through the
As 2020 drew to a close the world’s northern hemisphere’s 2020 summer
hopes were pinned on vaccine
delivery. As of 20 December, close
to 8.8bn coronavirus vaccine Apr 2020 Jul Oct Jan 2021 Apr
doses had been administered
to 4.5 billion people, of whom Source: Our World in Data. As countries have different methodologies for counting
3.7 billion were fully vaccinated. and reporting a Covid-19 death, these numbers need to be interpreted with care
It provided proof that vaccines
reduce the risk of a Covid infection
leading to hospitalisation or death. Fully vaccinated people per 100, While three in four people in rich countries are
Israel was the first major country selected countries vaccinated, just over one in 20 is in poor countries
to achieve strong vaccination Upper-middle
80 Spain 80%
coverage. The US and Britain also Italy income
enjoyed early success, unlike the France High-income
EU, which took longer to pass Germany
60 UK 60
regulations and suffered supply US
delays. Many countries have since
Lower-middle
outpaced the early leaders, among 40 40 income
them Portugal, Chile, Cuba, Spain,
China, Canada, Ireland, Australia
and New Zealand. The United Arab 20 20
Emirates, has fully vaccinated more
than 90% of its population. Low-income
The latest figures from Our 0 0
World in Data show that dozens of Jan Apr Jul Oct 30 Dec Jan Apr Jul Oct 30 Dec
countries have vaccinated at least
two-thirds of their population. Source: Official data collated by Our World in Data Our World in Data, 20 Dec
 Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •
Vaccine distribution has been
inequitable
While the deployment of more than
8bn vaccine doses worldwide is a
success, the availability of these
High cases in Brazil meant that
vaccines is unequal. The latest
figures, to 20 December, show that
South American case rates have
been high throughout the pandemic
more than three-quarters of people
in high-income countries have
received two doses of a vaccine,
compared with 8% of those living
in low-income countries.
Oceania
Oceania
Data from October revealed that
more people had received a Covid
booster vaccination in Britain per
head of population, than were
reported to have had their first shot
in Africa. Deployment remains
stubbornly low in some countries,
with dozens – the vast majority
in Africa – reporting double
vaccination rates of less than 10%.
This doesn’t only affect those
countries in which vaccination
Africa
rates are low: as Omicron has
shown, uneven vaccination affords
Persisting Delta and surging the virus opportunities to adapt
Omicron have left winter and spread through new variants.
cases high in Europe
Vaccine inequity moved the death
burden from richer nations – but
Jul Oct winter 2021 shows they are not
out of the woods
As vaccination campaigns started
to cover the most vulnerable in
wealthy nations, the impact was
quick to see. Data from late April
revealed a record shift in the
burden of global Covid deaths to
poor and lower-middle income
countries. However, in the months
that followed, a combination of
After high death rates during the first two relaxation of restrictions, the
waves, high-income countries managed emergence of the Delta variant,
to curb deaths through vaccination the northern hemisphere winter
and vaccine hesitancy in some
wealthier nations (most notably
the US) has meant high-income
nations are again recording high
levels of deaths.
As 2021 came to an end, close to
half (47%) of all global deaths were
being recorded in high-income
countries. This is lower than the
57% recorded last winter, but far
Lower-middle higher than the 8% recorded in July
2021, when some in richer nations
thought that they had vaccinated
Low-income
themselves out of the pandemic.
These figures on deaths, from
Our World in Data, are as reported
Lower-middle and low-income
countries shouldered an increased
by each country. As countries
have different methodologies for
share of global deaths in summer 2021 counting and reporting a Covid
death these numbers need to be
interpreted with care. While large
Jul Oct
countries such as the US, Brazil and
India have recorded the highest
overall number of Covid deaths,
Peru, Bulgaria and Bosnia and
Herzegovina have the highest death
tolls when population is taken into
The 10 highest recorded death rates per account. Peru has recorded 6,062
million people deaths per million people over the
0 2,000 4,000 6,000
course of the pandemic.
Figures on excess deaths can
Peru provide further clarity when doing
Bulgaria international comparisons: this
Bosnia & Herz is the difference in the number of
people who have died in a given
Hungary
time period compared with the
Montenegro average number of deaths that
N Macedonia occurred in the same period in the
Georgia previous years.
Czech Rep Our analysis was conducted
using the country-level reported
Romania
deaths from Our World in Data, as
Gibraltar it provides the most frequent and
up-to-date picture of what is being
Our World in Data, 20 Dec. Counting methodologies may differ reported by each country.
Infections rise
One in 25 in
England had
virus last
week, official
figures show
Nicola Davis
Science correspondent
One in 25 people in England had Covid
last week, rising to one in 15 in Lon-
don, official figures have revealed.
According to figures from the
Office for National Statistics (ONS),
based on swabs collected from ran-
domly selected households, an
estimated 4% of people in the com-
munity in England had Covid in the
week ending 23 December – about
2,024,700 people. The week before,
about one in 35 people in England
were estimated to have had Covid.
The study revealed infections have
increased across all regions of the UK
as the Omicron variant continues to
fuel record numbers.
“The highest rates of infections
were seen in London, where one in
15 would have tested positive, and
the lowest in the north-east of Eng-
land, where one in 45 would have
tested positive for Covid-19,” the
report notes.
Infection levels also rose in Scot-
land, Wales and Northern Ireland in
the most recent week, with the lat-
est estimates suggesting that for all
three countries about one in 40 peo-
ple had Covid in the week ending 23
December.
The study also reveals that Omi-
cron is now the dominant variant in
England and Scotland.
“Infection levels have contin-
ued to increase across the UK, with
Vaccination Health leaders say
many appointments missed
Sarah Marsh
A huge number of people in England
are not turning up for their Covid vac-
cine appointments, health leaders
have said, noting that as many as 40%
of bookings had been missed.
The news came as the government
claimed to have met its coronavirus
booster jabs target, and said every
adult in England had been offered a
top-up shot.
The NHS Confederation said it was
“encouraging” to see people getting
their Covid-19 jabs but that it was
receiving reports that some vacci-
nation sites were only a third full.
People have been urged to get the
booster jab to tackle the growing
number of cases of the Omicron var-
iant of the virus.
Confirmed daily Covid cases in
Britain hit yet another high on Thurs-
day, with 189,213 reported within 24
▲ A festive market in London.
The capital is experiencing the UK’s
highest rates of Covid-19 infection
PHOTOGRAPH: CARL COURT/GETTY IMAGES
England’s increase driven largely by
London, which has the highest rate
of infection seen in this survey,” said
Sarah Crofts, the head of analytical
outputs for the Covid-19 Infection
Survey.
“Omicron is now the dominant
variant in both England and Scot-
land, and has been growing rapidly
in Northern Ireland and Wales,” she
added. “We’ve also seen infections
rise in all age groups, with school-
aged children and young adults
seeing the highest rates.”
New UK coronavirus cases per day
Thousands
189,846
Seven-day
Daily rolling average
Apr Jul Oct Jan Apr Jul
Source: data.gov.uk, updated 31 December
hours, while the number of people in
hospital and deaths also rose.
Evidence has shown that two sepa-
rate doses of the Covid-19 vaccine do
not provide strong protection against
Omicron but a third dose gives about
70% protection against symptomatic
infection.
Matthew Taylor, chief executive
of the NHS Confederation, said the
organisation had been informed by
some primary care leaders about the
scheduled but missed bookings.
He said: “It is encouraging to see
people still coming forward for their
first and second doses, as well as
the massive achievement on boost-
ers. However, cases of Omicron are
rising rapidly … Health leaders are
40%
Proportion of appointments for
vaccination reported as being
missed in some parts of the country
The latest figures came as the UK
Health Security Agency released an
updated analysis on the risks posed
by Omicron and vaccine effective-
ness against the variant.
The findings suggest people with
Omicron are about half as likely to
go to A&E or be admitted to hospi-
tal compared with those with Delta,
while the risk of hospital admis-
sion alone is approximately a third
of that for Delta. These figures take
into account factors including age,
sex, ethnicity and vaccination status.
The report adds further insight
into the protection offered by vac-
cines, revealing that from 20 weeks
after the second jab, two doses of the
Oxford/AstraZeneca jab offers almost
no protection against symptomatic
infection with Omicron, with the
Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna jabs
200 offering 10% protection at this point.
However, a booster dose improved
the situation regardless of the ini-
150 tial type of jab, increasing vaccine
effectiveness against symptomatic
100
infection with Omicron to about
65% to 75% two to four weeks later –
although this was found to wane to
50 about 40% to 50% from 10 or more
weeks after the booster.
The UKHSA also reports that
0
Oct
vaccine effectiveness against hospi-
talisation with Omicron at 88% two
weeks after a booster dose.
worried about the level of illness and
demand which their staff across the
NHS [might need] to respond to in
January. So it is vital that everyone
who is eligible take up the offer of a
jab or booster shot.
“Some primary care leaders are
telling us their vaccination clinics are
only a third full and that people are
not turning up to as many as 40% of
their booked appointments.
“While walk-ins continue to be
on offer, [care leaders] are calling
on people to stick to their scheduled
vaccine appointments, and if they
can’t, for whatever reason, that they
cancel with notice as this will help
manage pressures, particularly given
the staffing crisis we are facing.”
Yesterday, the health secretary,
Sajid Javid, welcomed the news that
the booster had been offered to all
adults in England. He said this meant
“tens of millions of people” were able
to see loved ones this Christmas.
He said he was “incredibly proud”
of the work the NHS had done to
accelerate the programme, and
thanked the frontline staff, volun-
teers, armed forces and British public
“who have made it possible for us to
meet this commitment”.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

National 11

World lights up for end of 2021

From Australia to Russia, new year
festivities have taken place around the globe,
despite varying levels of Covid restrictions.
In many countries revellers were more
cautious than usual and far fewer people
PHOTOGRAPH:
DIEGO FEDELE/GETTY attended firework displays and parties.

▲ Melbourne ▲ Staff at a
gets the party Covid hospital
going with in Bangalore,
fireworks; right, India, wave
celebrations in in 2022; left,
Yakutsk, Russia revellers by
– at -46C the Bund in
PHOTOGRAPH: Shanghai, China
VADIM SKRYABIN/ PHOTOGRAPHS:
TASS/GETTY IMAGES JAGADEESH NV/EPA;
ALY SONG/REUTERS

Welsh fun-seekers Trying to avoid a

“We’ve all been vaccinated and had compared with figures for those given
boosters so we’re not worried.” a placebo. The larger the percentage,
The Welsh government has been the greater the symptoms.
criticised by many in the hospitality hangover? Best Of these seven, the largest and

hop across border to industry for bringing in strict rules

escape stricter curbs
Steven Morris
They arrived at Bristol Temple Meads
railway station clutching cans of
booze, a change of clothes and this
year’s most essential New Year’s Eve
accessory – a negative lateral flow test.
The closure of nightclubs and
restrictions in bars and pubs in Wales
was not going to stop a determined
band of Welsh fun seekers hopping
across the border for a big night out
on the English side of the Severn.
“Mark Drakeford [the Welsh first
minister] doesn’t want us to have a
good time in Cardiff but he can’t stop
us coming over here” said Luke Spear,
22, a bar worker. “Covid has affected
young people a lot. I spent my 21st
birthday in lockdown. We’re going
to have a good time now.”
Gabe Mason, 23, a student from
Swansea, said he believed the Welsh
government had been too cautious. “I
think they have panicked, to be hon-
est with you.”
Mason and his friends had booked
rooms at a budget hotel. “Usually we
would go out in Swansea,” he said.
▲ New year revellers arriving at
Bristol Temple Meads station
that are not in force in England. Drak-
eford told those considering making a
trip to England to “think consciously
and carefully”, but stopped short of
asking people to stay put.
Chanel, a 26-year-old nursing
assistant from Cardiff, was planning
to dance the night away at Bristol’s
Motion club. “I don’t think Omicron is
any worse than the flu. We’ll be care-
ful, we’ve all got our negative tests,
but we don’t want to miss out any
more. We’re here to rave.”
It was not just a Cardiff exodus.
Pubs and clubs all along the English
side of the border were reporting large
numbers of Welsh people arriving.
And though the Scottish govern-
ment asked people not to cross the
border for Hogmanay and argued that
to do so broke the spirit of its hospi-
tality restrictions, inevitably, some
defied the request.
Grahame Vallance, who runs the
Coach and Horses pub in Carlisle,
eight miles from the border, said:
“I’ve noticed a lot more Scottish
people coming in – a lot of Rang-
ers scarves, Celtic scarves. They are
still showing caution. It’s not like:
‘Wahoo, let’s get on with it!’”
‘cures’ aren’t as
good as sticking
to soft drinks
Nicola Davis
Science correspondent
A thumping headache, a tongue
that feels like a carpet and a strong
sense of queasiness and regret – it
is a condition many will be familiar
with on New Year’s Day. But while it
may be tempting to reach for a hang-
over “cure”, researchers have chosen
today to tell us most supposed reme-
dies will offer cold comfort.
Scientists evaluated studies exam-
ining 23 substances meant to help
prevent or treat a hangover, but found
little evidence of success.
The study revealed that only seven
of the substances showed some
potential benefits for overall hang-
over symptoms, with participants
giving a lower hangover symptom
score, recorded as a percentage,
strongest effects came from clove
extract, the anti-inflammatory drug
tolfenamic acid, and pyritinol, a sub-
stance that has two attached vitamin
B6 molecules. Participants taking a
clove extract pill while drinking had,
on average, a hangover symptom
score of 19% compared with 43% for
those who took a placebo pill.
Researchers said there would be
limited harm in such substances, but
more research is needed to see if they
actually help. The clove extract study
involved just 16 participants.
Writing in the journal Addiction,
co-author Emmert Roberts, who is
based at the National Addiction Cen-
tre at King’s College London, reported
on how they looked at 21 studies, all
assessing different “cures”, with a
total of 386 participants.
Roberts suggested that when it
came to hangovers, prevention was
better than cure. “The most sensible
thing to do is either to abstain from
alcohol or drink in moderation.”
For those drinking more, Roberts
said staying hydrated was likely to
help although, that was not a “sure-
fire way to avoid a hangover”.
Roberts himself had stocked up on
clove extract.

12
Tory supporters
Knighthood for donor
A billionaire hedge fund
founder who has given almost
£1.5m to the Conservatives
has been knighted in the new
year honours list, prompting
accusations that Boris Johnson
has “the wrong priorities”.
David Winton Harding, the
founder and chief executive of
Winton Capital hedge fund, who
has been funding the Tories
since 2006, was given the award
for services to philanthropy.
Harding is well known for
supporting research and science
projects, having given the
largest single donation to the
Science Museum, as well as
multimillion-pound donations
to the University of Cambridge.
The physics graduate from
Cambridge pledged that some
of the funds would be used to
promote access for students
from disadvantaged and
minority ethnic backgrounds.
A financial backer of the
remain campaign to stay in the
EU, Harding most recently gave
£100,000 to the Tories in April
and handed £300,000 to the
party in the autumn before the
2019 election.
Angela Rayner, Labour’s
deputy leader, said: “In the
pandemic the public has come
together to celebrate the real
heroes, all those keeping our
NHS going, vaccine volunteers,
key workers, all who … kept
our communities thriving. This
shows once again the [Tories]
have the wrong priorities.”
Two longstanding Tory
MPs, Bill Wiggin and Robert
Goodwill, were also knighted
for political service. Wiggin
has been an MP since 2001,
largely as a backbencher, and
previously served as a whip. He
is now a member of the liaison
committee that scrutinises the
work of the prime minister.
Goodwill has served as a
minister in four departments.
In previous years the Tories
have given many more honours
to donors, aides and politicians,
prompting cronyism rows.
Harding and No 10 were
approached for comment.
Harding had previously
suggested he would back state
funding of political parties.
“I’ve given a bit of money to
politics. I rather wish I didn’t
have to,” he said in 2015. “I’m
sympathetic to the Tories and
their approach to raising money
but also sympathetic to people
who don’t like that in the UK.”
Rowena Mason
▲ David Harding, a hedge fund
chief and philanthropist
•••
National
New year honours
rs
Daniel Craig now shares
James Bond’s honour
Pandemic efforts hailed Whitty
knighted alongside Olympians
Alexandra Topping
L
eading figures of
science and medicine
during the coronavirus
pandemic have been
feted in the Queen’s
new year honours
list, including the chief medical
officer (CMO) for England, Prof
Chris Whitty, who has received a
knighthood for his part in battling
Covid-19.
The CMOs for Scotland and
Wales, Dr Gregor Smith and
Dr Frank Atherton, have also
been given knighthoods, as has
the deputy medical officers for
England, Prof Jonathan Van-Tam
and Dr Jenny Harries, who becomes
a dame. The UK chief scientific
adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, is
elevated to the Order of the Bath.
The teenage tennis star Emma
Raducanu – praised for her
“remarkable achievement at
such a young age” by the Queen
after her US Open win – has been
awarded an MBE, after also
being crowned the BBC’s Sports
Personality of the Year.
After a successful Tokyo
Olympic Games – in which Team
GB equalled its London 2012 medal
Katie Pipe
Piper:
p
OBE foor se
for services
to char
rity
charity
Trevor Phillips: knighted
for services to equality
haul to come fourth in the table
and excelled in new Olympic sports
including BMX, skateboarding, and
weightlifting – 78 Olympians and
Paralympians are celebrated for
services to sport this year.
Among them are the married
Olympians Laura and Jason Kenny
who have received a damehood
and knighthood for services to
cycling – believed to be the first
time that a married couple has
been recognised on the same list
at the same time. Jason Kenny
became Britain’s most decorated
Olympian after winning gold in
the men’s keirin at Tokyo 2020,
while Laura Kenny became the
first British woman to win gold at
three Olympics.
The wheelchair sprinter Hannah
Cockroft, who took her Paralympic
gold medal tally to six this
summer after a decade at the top
of her sport, receives an OBE. The
swimmer Adam Peaty and the diver
Tom Daley receive OBEs not only
for coming home with gold medals
but also for raising awareness of
mental health and LGBT issues,
while the sailor Hannah Mills gets
an OBE for her prowess on the
water and continued campaigning
on marine pollution.
Other Olympians and
Paralympians recognised include
Laura
ra Kennyy is
me and Jason
a dame
ny a knight
Kenny
Emma Raducanu crowns
tennis glory with an MBE
the cyclist Jody Cundy, who gets a
CBE, and the sprinter and cyclist
Kadeena Cox, who receives an
OBE. There are MBEs for the
diver Matty Lee, the BMX racer
Bethany Shriever and the boxer
Lauren Price, who said she was
“gobsmacked” to receive the
award. Price, a champion footballer
turned kickboxer turned boxer,
dedicated the honour to her
grandparents, with whom she has
lived since she was a baby. “My
gran and grandad have always
The newsreader
Moira Stuart is made CBE
The Guardian Saturday 1 JJanuary
anu
an
anu
nuar
ary
arry
y 2022
2 22
20
supported me and if it wasn’t for
them then I wouldn’t have achieved
what I have today,” she said.
The actors Joanna Lumley
and Vanessa Redgrave become
dames for their services to drama,
entertainment and charity, while
John Boorman, the director
of Hollywood films including
Excalibur, Point Blank and
Deliverance, is also knighted.
In a move that may raise
eyebrows in Whitehall circles, the
actor Daniel Craig receives the
O
Order of Saint Michael and Saint
G
George (CMG) for outstanding
ccontribution to film. It is the
ssame award given to the fictional
ccharacter he is best-known for
p
playing, and one normally reserved
fo
for professional diplomats and
in
intelligence officers.
The soap stars June Brown and
W
William Roache receive OBEs,
a
and the actor Cherylee Houston
r
receives an MBE for services
tto drama and to people with
d
disabilities. The Loose Women
sstar and activist Katie Piper, who
s
sustained life-changing burns in an
a
acid attack in March 2008, receives
a
an OBE for her services to charity
a
and victims of burns and other
d
disfigurement injuries.
Elsewhere in the cultural
ssphere, Alistair Spalding, the
 y 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Saturday G •

13

Joanna Lumley
is made a dame

The actor Vanessa Mel B

Redgrave is made MBE
a dame

MBE: Olympic gold

medallist Tom Daley

Patrick V
Vallance, left,
and Chris
Chri Whitty

47.9%
artistic director of Sadler’s Wells, is laboratories stayed open and
Young people awarded a knighthood for services carried out viral work through the
to dance. John Gilhooly, the pandemic – also becomes a dame.
Fundraisers, tutors and community volunteers lauded artistic director of Wigmore Hall, is Proportion of honours given to After a summer in which the
honoured with a CBE for services to women. The female share dropped to men’s England football team
Young people who have become pandemic. The 19-year-old, who music, while the songwriter Bernie 35.9% of recipients of CBE and above reached a Euros final for the first
tutors, community leaders and is applying for medical school, Taupin, the long-term collaborator time, before key players were
fundraisers are among those taught every day through the of Sir Elton John, is awarded a CBE. and General and Ian Livingstone, subjected to racist abuse, the list
honoured in the Queen’s new BCPD Trust, and still regularly Melanie Brown of the Spice Girls co-founder of Games Workshop. honours the work of Gary Bennett,
year honours list. teaches young people, out of has been made an MBE for her work Broadcaster Moira Stuart, who a former Sunderland footballer and
The youngest person ever to school hours, whose education with the domestic violence charity was the first African-Caribbean one of the first three patrons of the
receive an honour is 11-year-old was disrupted by Covid. “In Women’s Aid. woman to read the news on charity Show Racism the Red Card.
Tobias Garbutt Weller. Inspired by life you should give back, and In the art world, Peter Murray, British television, is recognised “I’ve been overwhelmed
the late Captain Sir Tom Moore, everyone can find their own way who founded Yorkshire Sculpture for her services to media. She said and thankful for it, proud and
he has walked two marathons and of doing that,” he said. Park in 1977, is knighted while the “it hasn’t been easy” but she is honoured,” he said of his OBE.
completed an Ironman challenge Alice Jackson, 21, from large-scale installation artist Es “moved and lifted” to be made a But he added that 30 years after
despite being unable to walk Andover said her BEM – awarded Devlin, the first woman to design CBE in the new year honours. he experienced racist abuse as the
unaided. Beginning when he was after she became a leading the UK Pavilion for Expo since its The continued fight against the first black captain of Sunderland, it
nine in March 2020, Weller, who member of a group of local inception in 1851, is awarded a CBE. coronavirus once again featured was time social media companies
has autism and cerebral palsy, has volunteers helping their rural The prime minister, Boris heavily in this year’s honours list, faced sanctions for allowing similar
raised more than £150,000. community in lockdown – was Johnson, paid tribute to the with vaccine chief Emily Lawson racist abuse on their platforms.
Max Woosey, 12, has inspired part of a bigger group effort. 1,122 individuals celebrated – 361 made a dame for her work on the “Social media [companies] need
and captured the imagination of “[The award] is a reflection on at BEM, 508 at MBE and 253 at vaccine programme, while June to be accountable and some form
outdoors-loving young people the whole community coming OBE – thanking them for their Raine – who the committee said of punishment needs to be put out
and camped out for more than together and looking out for contribution to the nation. as head of the Medicines and there,” he said.
21 consecutive months to raise others” she said. “At the time, it “These recipients have inspired Healthcare products Regulatory In the 2022 new year honours
nearly £600,000 for the North just had to be done – I thought it and entertained us and given so Agency (MHRA) had ensured list women represent 47.9% of the
Devon Hospice, which cared for was an issue that needed solving much to their communities in the total honours (dropping to 35.9% of
his 74-year-old neighbour Rick and I had the time to do it.” UK or in many cases around the recipients at CBE level and above);
Abbott who died of cancer in The Cabinet Office said: world,” he said. “The honours are 25.5% are from a lower socio-
March 2020. Woosey, who lives in “Young people have done some an opportunity for us to thank economic background; 15.1% come
Braunton, said: “Getting an award extraordinary things during the them, as a country.” from a BAME background; 13.3%
like this for not being famous pandemic and it’s important The former prime minister have a disability; and 3.5% identify
but for doing good things I think that the country recognises that Tony Blair is appointed a Knight as being LGBT .
shows that we do have a good service.”Alexandra Topping Companion of the Most Noble Of those honoured 799 (63%)
future, that young people can be Order of the Garter, the oldest and have worked in their communities,
role models.” most senior order of chivalry. including the youngest people
As well as feats of endurance, Trevor Phillips, the former chair ever to be included in the list,
young people are also recognised of the Equality and Human Rights 11-year-old Tobias Weller and
for helping their communities, Commission has been knighted 12-year-old Max Woosey for their
such as 16-year-old Sahil Usman for services to equality and human fundraising efforts during the
who delivered essential items to rights while Frank Field, the MP for pandemic. The oldest person
vulnerable people in Blackburn, Birkenhead from 1979 to 2019 who on the list is 102-year-old Henry
despite undergoing treatment for now sits in the House of Lords is Lewis, honorary vice president
leukaemia. made a companion of honour. of magician’s society The Magic
In Luton, Muhammad Kamil Max has slept outside In the business world Circle, who is given an MBE
Ali became a tutor during the for nearly two years knighthoods also go to Nigel ▲ The deputy chief medical officer for services to fundraising and
Wilson, the chief executive of Legal Dr Jenny Harries is made a dame charitable causes.

14
Lawyers request evidence
that duke does not sweat
Sarah Marsh
Lawyers representing a woman who
has accused Prince Andrew of sexual
abuse are demanding that he hand
over documents explaining why he
does not sweat.
Virginia Giuffre’s legal team has
requested a wealth of information
from Andrew’s lawyers in response
to his BBC Newsnight interview
when he said he was visiting a Pizza
Express on the day of the claimed sex-
ual encounter.
Giuffre is suing the Queen’s son
for allegedly sexually assaulting her
when she was a teenager and claims
she was trafficked by disgraced finan-
cier Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with
the duke, and was pictured with the
royal and his friend Ghislaine Max-
well during the period the alleged
intercourse took place. Andrew has
denied all the allegations.
In the Newsnight interview in
2019, the Duke of York claimed that
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
National
he never got sweaty on the dance-
floor with Virginia Giuffre in 2001,
an argument used as evidence that
he had never met her after she claims
she was forced to have sex with him.
Giuffre’s lawyers said in court doc-
uments they want Prince Andrew
to give them information about his
“alleged medical inability to sweat”.
“If Prince Andrew truly has no
documents concerning his commu-
nications with Maxwell or Epstein,
his travel to Florida, New York, or var-
ious locations in London, his alleged
medical inability to sweat, or any-
thing that would support the alibis he
gave during his BBC interview, then
continuing with discovery will not be
burdensome to him at all.”
Andrew claimed that he didn’t
sweat because he had an “overdose
of adrenaline in the Falklands War,
when I was shot at … it was almost
impossible for me to sweat.”
In the court documents, Giuffre’s
lawyers are also asking for informa-
tion from the British royal including
any documents around “allegations
of sexual abuse” or “extramarital sex”
made against the duke.
The request is part of a lawsuit filed
in August for infliction of emotional
distress and battery. Giuffre claims
she was forced to have sex with the
duke three times in 2001 at Jeffrey
Epstein’s command. The allegations
have been denied by Prince Andrew.
The documents have come to light
after British former socialite Ghis-
laine Maxwell was convicted in her
sex-trafficking trial. Maxwell, who
is expected to appeal her conviction,
was found guilty on five of six charges
▲ Prince Andrew denies Virginia
Giuffre’s allegation of sexual assault
for her involvement in Epstein’s
sexual abuse of teenage girls. Pros-
ecutors said Maxwell “preyed on
vulnerable young girls, manipulated
them and served them up to be sex-
ually abused”. She is expected to
receive a significant prison term.
The documents filed by Giuf-
fre’s lawyers, David Boies and Sigrid
McCawley, include a list of what they
want from Andrew during the process
of discovery, a pre-trial procedure
which each side, through the law of
civil procedure, can obtain evidence
from the other party.
One request is for: “All documents
concerning your alleged medical con-
dition of anhidrosis, hypohidrosis, or
your inability to sweat”.
Andrew’s lawyer, Andrew Brettler,
rejected this, saying it is “harassing ‘Maxwell did
and seeks confidential and private
information and documents that not act alone’
are irrelevant, immaterial and not
reasonably calculated to lead to the
discovery of admissible evidence”.
Attention turns
Giuffre’s lawyers also want infor-
mation on Andrew’s schedules in
to others who
2001, when the alleged abuse took
place. Another request made is for:
associated
“All documents concerning Defend-
ant’s travel to or from, or presence
with Epstein
in or on: a. Epstein’s planes; b. Flor-
ida; c. New York; d. New Mexico; e.
the United States Virgin Islands; f. a
Pizza Express located in Woking, Eng-
land; or g. the Club Tramp nightclub,
located in London, England”.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Edward Helmore
The conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell
on sex-trafficking charges this week
has increased the scrutiny of oth-
ers who worked for, or socialised
with, the disgraced financier Jeffrey
Epstein for years, and of their knowl-
edge of the pair’s activities.
Attention has largely focused on
prominent male associates of Epstein,
including Prince Andrew, who faces a
civil suit brought by Virginia Roberts
Giuffre. Giuffre alleges the Queen’s
son had sex with her on three occa-
sions two decades ago when, aged 17,
she had been sexually trafficked by
•
Epstein, allegations Andrew denies.
Giuffre has said she hopes Maxwell’s
conviction is “another step in justice
being served”. She added: “Maxwell
did not act alone. Others must be held
accountable.”
Four Epstein employees and ass-
istants were described in a 2007
non-prosecution deal as “poten-
tial co-conspirators” when Epstein
pleaded guilty to solicitation in Flor-
ida in return for a lenient sentence.
After Epstein’s arrest and suicide
in 2019, the US attorney’s office said
that it was not bound by the Flor-
ida agreement that named the four
women – Sarah Kellen, Lesley Groff,
Adriana Ross, and Nada Marcinkova
– and said that they could be subject
to criminal charges. All have denied
involvement or knowledge of the
Epstein-Maxwell abuses.
Maxwell, 60, argued she was
covered by the non-prosecution
agreement. But that was rejected by
the presiding judge, Alison Nathan.
Kellen, 41, is the most prominent
of the four women. She claimed
she was a victim of Epstein. She
was accused by lawyers in legal fil-
ings years ago of “bringing girls to
Epstein’s mansion to be abused”.
Her name came up in witness testi-
mony when the government’s main
witness, known as Carolyn, alleged
Kellen scheduled her sexualised mas-
sages with Epstein and paid her $500
($370) to pose for a naked photograph
15
when she was 14 or 15 years old. Max-
well’s defence team contended that
Kellen was among several potential
witnesses whom “the government
could have charged, criminally, based
on testimony heard”.
Groff was Epstein’s New York-
based assistant for 20 years. This
December a civil case against her
was dropped. According to Groff ’s
lawyers, Michael Bachner and Jon
Whitcomb, federal prosecutors have
no plans to bring charges against her
at present. The lawyers said their cli-
ent had “never witnessed anything
improper or illegal”.
Ross, a former model from Poland,
also known as Adriana Mucinska,
moved to Florida in 2002 and was
 From left, ▲ Nadia hired to work at the financier’s man-
Epstein in 2005 Marcinkova is sion. She often flew on his private
with Ross who alleged to have jet, according to flight records. Asked
often flew on been bought, during civil litigation about how the
his private jet aged 15, from Epstein conspiracy operated – and if
and was hired her parents in Andrew had ever been involved with
to work at eastern Europe under-age women – Ross repeatedly
his mansion; by Epstein and invoked her fifth amendment rights
Groff, seen in taken to the US against self-incrimination.
2020, who was Marcinkova is now a pilot. Accord-
based in New ing to police records, reported by the
York; Maxwell Guardian in 2015, an alleged victim
with Epstein’s claimed she was told that Marcin-
personal kova had been bought, aged 15,
assistant Kellen, from her parents in eastern Europe,
who later said by Epstein. One alleged victim said
she was a victim that she was made to have sex with
of Epstein Marcinkova and to watch her have
sex with Epstein.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Melting rinks
and ice-cream
alfresco: UK
has warmest
NYE on record
Kevin Rawlinson
The UK has experienced the hottest
New Year’s Eve on record, with tem-
peratures reaching more than 15C
(59F) and customers being turned
away from ice rinks that had melted.
The record was broken twice in
one day, with the Met Office record-
ing 14.9C at 11am yesterday in Ryehill,
in East Riding of Yorkshire, and 15.3C
about an hour later in Coningsby in
Lincolnshire. The previous 31 Decem-
ber high was 14.8C, observed in
Colwyn Bay in north Wales in 2011.
At Somerset House, one of Lon-
don’s most popular event venues,
the unseasonably warm temperature
forced the closure of the ice rink on
Thursday and yesterday, with simi-
lar scenes at the ice rink in Hampton
AN EASY RESOLUTION.
PERFECT AL DENTE PASTA,
EVERY TIME.
•
National
▲ The Hampton Court Palace ice
rink was closed amid warm weather
across the UK yesterday
PHOTOGRAPH: PETER MACDIARMID/LNP
Court in Surrey. In Berkshire, some
people enjoyed New Year’s Eve ice-
creams as visitors to Windsor enjoyed
the alfresco cafes.
The warm weather came after
what was likely to have been Brit-
ain’s dullest December since 1956.
The Met Office said there had been
just 26.6 hours of sunshine over 30
days – 38% less than the national
average for this time of year. The
figure placed this month in the run-
ning to become one of the 10 dreariest
TRY OUR AWARD WINNING RECIPE KITS.
Available in Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Morrisons & Asda.
Decembers on record, forecasters
said. Britain’s dullest December was
in 1956, when 19.5 hours of sunlight
was the national average.
Met office forecaster Craig Snell
said the dull weather was linked to
milder temperatures across winter
generally, which are likely to be due
to the climate crisis.
“One of the reasons we’re getting
the dull weather is the fact that it’s
been so mild. We’re drawing in south-
westerly wind from the Atlantic and
it’s also drawing in a lot of moisture.
It keeps us warm but it also produces
a lot of cloud,” he said. “The globe is
warming up, so we would expect our
winters to be milder than they were.”
Only a quarter of the officials
behind HS2 cuts live in north
Helen Pidd
North of England editor
Only a quarter of the government offi-
cials responsible for cancelling HS2
to Yorkshire and downgrading plans
for Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR)
live in the north of England and rely
on the region’s below par trains, the
Guardian has learned.
Of the 24 officials in the Depart-
ment for Transport (DfT) responsible
for writing the integrated rail plan
(IRP), six live in the north, the DfT
said in response to a freedom of infor-
mation (FoI) request.
The government was accused of
“betraying” the north in November,
when the long-awaited IRP ignored
recommendations from Transport
for the North, a statutory body set
up to advise the government on
the region’s transport needs. That
organisation, which brings together
political and business leaders from
the north, had asked for HS2 to reach
Leeds and for NPR to run across the
country, including a stop in Bradford.
Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liv-
erpool city region, said: “With so few
17
northern voices involved in the deci-
sion-making process, it’s no surprise
that the government chose to ignore
millions of people across the north
in foisting their cheap and nasty rail
plan on us. It’s the same old ‘White-
hall knows best’ thinking that we
have seen time and time again from
a government who are doing more to
hold us back than level us up.”
Andy Burnham, the mayor of
Greater Manchester, said the admis-
sions were proof the “cut-price”
IRP was plotted from Whitehall and
imposed on the rest of the country.
“You don’t have to spend long trav-
elling on the north’s fragmented,
unreliable, overpriced public trans-
port system to realise that it has been
built by people who don’t live here
and don’t use it,” he said.
“We will only get the public trans-
port that people in the north deserve
when we are able to make our own
decisions about it.”
The DfT said one of the two minis-
ters in the “core” IRP team lived in the
north. It did not name the minister,
but it is likely to have been Andrew
Stephenson, the minister for HS2 and
MP for Pendle in Lancashire.

18
London sees worst
ever annual death
toll of teenagers
from homicides
Kevin Rawlinson
London has recorded its worst ever
annual death toll from teenage hom-
icides after two boys were killed
within an hour of each other in stab-
bing incidents, bringing the total to
30 for 2021.
A 15-year-old was stabbed and
killed in south London and a 16-year-
old in west London on Thursday,
bringing the total beyond the 29
deaths recorded in 2008.
Campaigners said efforts to tackle
knife crime had been inadequate
and it was now so prevalent, it was
becoming normalised, while a senior
Labour politician called on the gov-
ernment to take more action to deal
with the “epidemic”.
“Knife crime is accepted by this
generation as part-and-parcel of
growing up and that’s completely
unacceptable,” said Patrick Green,
the chief executive of the anti-knife
crime charity the Ben Kinsella Trust,
which was set up in 2008 following
the fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Ben
in north London.
“It shows that not enough has been
done and, if I’m being really critical,
then I’d say the approach to tackling
it has been scattergun ... It is a societal
problem which will continue unless
it is addressed properly.”
Yvette Cooper MP, the shadow
home secretary, said the news was
“devastating”. She added: “It is truly
awful that more young lives have
been lost to the epidemic of knife
crime across the country. No family
should have to go through losing a
child in this way. Important further
action is needed from government to
tackle the knife crime.”
They spoke after a 16-year-old boy
was pronounced dead at 8.25pm on
Thursday, having been stabbed at
Philpot’s Farm, in Yiewsley, west
London. About an hour earlier, a
15-year-old boy died after being
stabbed in Ashburton Park, in Croy-
don, in south London. Another
15-year-old boy was arrested on sus-
picion of murder in relation to the
In 2021 there were 30 teenage
homicides in London, exceeding
the 2008 peak
2005 2010 2015
Source: Metropolitan Police and Guardian research
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
National
Crime
▲ Anas Mezenner, 17, Haringey, ▲ Romario Opia, 15, Islington, ▲ Hani Solomon, 18, Fulham, west
north London, 19 January north London, 25 January London, 11 February
Anas was found with stab wounds Romario was found stabbed in Solomon was killed during a fight
in West Green Road just after 9pm. Islington, north London, at around between two groups of men. A
The ‘quietly talented’ student had 5.30pm. More than 100 people friend, Noah, described him as
made an anti-knife crime video for attended a vigil in his honour at “one of the nicest boys, always
a media studies course. the site of his death. positive, always smiling”.
Croydon stabbing. Neither victim
has been named.
Separate murder investigations
were launched and police appealed
for witnesses to come forward. The
30 killings of teenagers in the capi-
tal in the calendar year is the worst
death toll on record.
The latest stabbings will prompt
renewed discussion about the pos-
sible causes of youth violence, with
experts suggesting these include a ▲ Tai Jordan O’Donnell, 19, ▲ Mazaza Owusu-Mensah, 18, ▲ Hussain Chaudhry, 18, east
rise in the number of children who Croydon, south London, 3 March south-east London, 6 March London, 17 March
are vulnerable, increased pressure on O’Donnell was stabbed in the legs Owusu-Mensah was stabbed in the Chaudhry was knifed in the neck in
services such as policing, and social at a house in Alpha Road just chest during a fight in Abbey Wood Walthamstow as he and his family
media fuelling conflict. after 12.10pm. His mother, Stacey at around 5.30pm. One tribute fought off a robber outside their
The seriousness of the situation O’Donnell, said: “He was a loving, online read: “RIP Maz. [We were] home. The first year law student
was further underlined by Pastor kind, beautiful human being.” brothers. I’m gonna miss you.” died in his mother’s arms.
Beryl St James, from Shiloh Worship
church and charity, which is based
in Thornton Heath – near the scene
of the first killing. She said she had
received a call from a parent who had
Lives and
found a knife in their child’s room on
Friday morning.
Speaking from the scene, she
deaths of
added: “I know we have to work and
we all have duties to fulfil, but as a
30 young
victims of
parent you cannot think that it’s OK
to leave the state to continually look ▲ Abubakkar “Junior” Jah, 18, ▲ Daniel Laskos, 16, Harold Wood,
after your child.” Newham, east London, 26 April east London, 7 May
Anthony King, the chair of the
MyEnds programme, which aims to
tackle knife crime in London, told
violence Jah was found in the street after
being shot and stabbed. His
brother Ahmed died a few streets
Daniel, from a Czech family, was
stabbed in the neck after being
confronted by a gang outside a
reporters at the scene in Croydon: away in 2017. His father had fled shop. His uncle John said: “We
“Sadly, it’s because we’re having By Nicola Slawson war in Sierra Leone in the 90s. have no idea why this happened.”
a lot of breakdowns in schools, in
education, young people are being
excluded too quickly, some for minor
incidents, there’s breakdown in the
homes.
“Parents, if you see a bread knife
or bun knife missing from the home,
please speak to somebody, please
contact an agency or an organisation
and let the teachers know.”
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan,
said he was “devastated” by the two ▲ Jalan Woods-Bell, 15, Hayes, Tashawn Watt, 19, Sydenham, ▲ Camron Smith, 16, Shrublands,
deaths. He said: “I refuse to accept west London, 11 June south-east London, 25 June Croydon, south London, 1 July
that the loss of young lives is inevita- Jalan was stabbed in a fight on Watt was stabbed in Miall Walk Camron was stabbed inside his
ble and will continue to be relentless his way to school. His uncle told just after 9.30pm. He was just own home in Croydon in the early
in taking the bold action needed to MyLondon: “He was quite cheeky yards from his house when he was hours of 1 July. Police believe
put an end to violence in our city.” in a funny way and mischievous attacked. His mother and brother he was chased by a group after
And Commander Alex Murray, with that smile.” cradled him as he died. answering the door.
Scotland Yard’s lead for violence
in London, said: “I am deeply sad-
dened by every single homicide
this year, and greatly concerned by
those that have been teenage killings.
Each one is a tragedy leaving behind
heartbroken families and distressed
30
communities.
“My thoughts are with the victims
and all those impacted. They are not
20 statistics, not just numbers, they all
have families, and they all should ▲ Damarie Omare Roye, 16, south ▲ Hazrat Wali, 18, Twickenham, 12 ▲ Kamran Khalid, 18, Ilford, east
have had their lives ahead of them. London, 9 July October London, 28 October
10 They and their families have been The 16-year-old was stabbed in The Afghan refugee was stabbed in Khalid was stabbed 24 times in
robbed of something precious and we Thornton Heath and died two a playing field in front of children. Harrow Road in the early hours of
should all be doing everything we can days later. Police believe he was He had moved to the UK two 28 October. He was reportedly on
0 to stop this. These devastating losses attacked following a fight with two years earlier, and was studying his way home from the gym when
2021
continue to motivate every officer at men on a moped. construction and building. the attack took place.
the Met to catch those responsible.”
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

19

▲ Drekwon Patterson, 16,
Wembley, 18 February
Drekwon was stabbed near
Preston Road tube station just
after 11.30pm. The parents of the
Harrow college pupil had recently
moved for safety after an attack.
▲ Ahmed Beker, 19, Paddington
Green, west London, 26 February
Beker was attacked just after
9.10pm. He was treated by an air
ambulance team but died at the
scene. His cousin Josiph Beker was
killed in Edgware in 2019.
Six others were killed, pictures
of whom were not available:
• Ezra Okobia, 14, Lewisham,
south-east London, 6 March
Okobia, his brother, Joseph, five,
and mother, Victoria Amaning,
34, died after inhaling fumes.
Amaning ‘used petrol to start a
fire’ in her home, an inquest heard.
• Nikolay Vandev, 19, Tottenham,
north London, 8 March
Vandev was stabbed along with a
second victim, aged 18.
• Stelios Averkiou, 16, Tottenham,
north London, 1 August
Averkiou was stabbed at a skate
park in Lordship recreation
ground at about 2.15pm. He was
reportedly sitting on a bench with
friends when he was set upon. He
died nine days later.
• Alex Ajanaku, 18, Leyton, east
London, 1 September
Ajanaku was found with shotgun
wounds at around 1.30am while
attending an illegal rave.
• Unnamed boy, 15, Croydon,
30 December
The Met was called to Ashburton
Park shortly after 7pm. Officers
found a boy with stab wounds who
died at the scene a short time later.
• Unnamed boy, 16, Hillingdon,
west London, 30 December
The Met was called to Philpot’s
Farm open space in Yiewsley,
and found a 16-year-old boy
with a puncture wound. He was
pronounced dead at 8.25pm.

▲ Levi Ernest-Morrison, 17, south- ▲ Fares Maatou, 15, Newham, east

east London, 10 April
Levi, who was autistic, was killed
in a machete and knife attack in
Sydenham. His mother said that
he was a “beautiful boy with a
beautiful heart”.
London, 23 April
Maatou was stabbed in what his
family said was an unprovoked
attack. He was pronounced dead
just over half an hour later, still
wearing his school uniform.

▲ Taylor Cox, 19, Islington, north ▲ Denardo Samuels-Brooks, 17,

London, 8 June
Cox died in hospital after being
shot in the head in Hornsey Rise
Gardens at about 4.25pm. His
father, David Campbell, said that
he had survived a stabbing in 2019.
Streatham, south London, 10 June
Denardo was stabbed after being
chased along a busy high street in
the mid-afternoon. He was taken
to hospital but pronounced dead
less than an hour later.

▲ Tamim Ian Habimana, 15, south- ▲ Keane Flynn-Harling, 16,

east London, 5 July
Footage of the fatal stabbing of
Tamim in Woolwich was shared
widely on social media. Hawa
Haragakiza, his mother, said:
“My son was all about peace.”
Lambeth, south London, 5 July
Keane, named after the ex-Spurs
striker Robbie Keane, was stabbed
at about 11.45pm. “We love you so
much, rest in perfect peace,” read
a tribute at the scene...

▲ Jermaine Cools, 14, Croydon, ▲ Rishmeet Singh, 16, Southall,

18 November
The youngest of the victims,
Jermaine was badly injured in a
fight. He took himself to a nearby
hospital but died soon after from
multiple stab wounds.
west London, 24 November
Police were called to Raleigh Road
after reports of a stabbing during
a fight. Rishmeet died at the scene.
Friends said he had never been
involved in crime or violence.

20 National
How to donate
Go to theguardian.com and
follow the link to give to the
Guardian charity appeal 2021.
You can use a credit card,
debit card or PayPal to make
your donation. Scanning the
QR code on this page will
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
also take you straight to the
donations page. Alternatively,
you can call 0151-284 1126 to
donate over the phone.
We will unfortunately be
unable to accept cheques this
year owing to Covid.
Charity appeal
Banking seeds helps
to bring Madagascar’s
forests back to health
Patrick Greenfield
S
ince 2001, Madagascar
has lost nearly a quarter
of its forest cover. Slash
and burn agriculture,
illegal logging and
charcoal production
have resulted in the large-scale
clearing of ecosystems formed in
the 88 million years since the island
separated from India.
Nearly all lemur species are
threatened with extinction, as is
much of Madagascar’s biodiversity.
Forest conservation and developing
sustainable sources of timber and
charcoal while reforesting large
areas are key challenges, especially
for the millions of Malagasies
whose livelihoods depend on
them. As the planet heats, the seed
banking of threatened plant species
has become an urgent task.
“Communities which live nearby
depend on the forest for their
survival. They find food, medicine,
construction wood and water.
The forest provides vital services
like water catchment, pollution
control, erosion protection and
climate regulation,” says Vonona
Randrianasolo, a researcher at
Kew’s Madagascar Conservation
Centre, who collects seeds from
threatened plants. “Saving seeds is
the best way to save many species
from extinction. My actions are for
future generations. I feel proud.”
Samples collected by
Randrianasolo, vital for reforesting
the country with native species
that will be more resilient in a
changing climate, are conserved in
Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank and
at the Silo National des Graines
Forestières (SNGF) in Madagascar.
Rainforest stretches down the
island’s east coast while dry
tropical forest is found on the west,
with scattered patches of montane
humid forest in the central
highlands. All areas contain unique
biodiversity, much of it little
studied or unknown to science.
“All the work thus far in seed
biology, tree planting and forestry
▲ Endangered ring-tailed lemurs in
Isalo national park, Madagascar
has been about commercial
species, so we’re really having
to play catch-up,” says Tim
Pearce, who oversees the African
programme of the Millennium Seed
Bank, an underground collection of
more than 2.4bn seeds overseen by
Kew. “When Vonona goes out and
makes a collection of seeds from
a tree we have never seen, we first
have to understand how to look
after it. That has all been done for
a very narrow range of commercial
species. For pretty well all wild
species, we are well behind the
curve.”
Many reforestation schemes
use fast-growing monocultures
instead of native species, and
Madagascar is no exception. In a
country famous for its towering
baobabs, eucalyptus and pine
trees are becoming increasingly
common. The fast-growing species
are important sources of fuel and
timber but can damage native
biodiversity, threatening national
parks like Andasibe-Mantadia,
home to the world’s biggest lemur,
the indri. Led by Madagascar’s own
seed bank, the country is trying to
reforest with native species.
“Pines are a big problem in
Madagascar because they are very
invasive,” says Hélène Ralimanana,
team manager at the Kew
Madagascar Conservation Centre.
“Eucalyptus plantations change the
soil condition. The areas around
the trees become dry because they
suck up the water.”
For Ralimanana, seed banking
is about more than conservation.
Many of the eucalyptus and pine
plantations were planted by French
colonisers, a practice continued
by the Malagasy government until
recently. Documenting biodiversity
and ensuring nurseries can grow
native trees for reforestation will
help undo some of the damage.
RBG Kew is one of four charities
supported by the Guardian and
Observer 2021 Climate Justice
charity appeal, which is aimed at
helping communities at the sharp
end of the climate crisis. The others
are Global Greengrants Fund UK,
Environmental Justice Foundation,
and Practical Action.
Through RBG Kew’s work in
Madagascar, a team of mainly
Malagasy botanists, researchers
and conservationists is
documenting and preserving the
country’s biodiversity, which will
be crucial to improving resilience
in a changing climate. Money from
Guardian and Observer readers
could help expand community
plant nurseries while also
supporting projects to revegetate
land and make it productive.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Wimbledon plans parkland takeover
– but has tennis club met its match?
Rupert Neate
Wealth correspondent
A mighty tennis clash is under
way in south-west London. Local
people, along with environmental
and heritage groups, are preparing
to launch a public relations and legal
salvo against Wimbledon’s plans to
develop historic parkland into 39 new
courts for the Championships.
The campaigners say the All
England Lawn Tennis Club’s designs
for an 8,000-seat show court and 38
other grass courts on a golf course
next to the world-famous club
breaches a covenant that prevents
building on the Grade-II* listed park.
When it bought the freehold of
the golf course from Merton borough
council for £5.2m in 1993, the All Eng-
land club agreed to a legal covenant
“preventing the use of the land other-
wise than for leisure or recreation
purposes or as an open space”.
Despite the covenant, the club
has submitted plans to Merton and
Wandsworth councils for a 95-metre-
long, 28-metre-high, 8,000-seat
“parkland show court” on the land
designed by Capability Brown for the
first Earl Spencer in 1768.
The club says it needs to build the
new court on the protected parkland
because there is not enough space
on its current site, and it urgently
requires higher capacity courts to
compete with the other grand slam
tournament venues.
The All England has promised
the campaigners, who number in
their thousands and include several
•
National
prominent London lawyers, that the
show court will be “a world-class
building matching the beauty of its
surroundings and paying tribute to
the site’s rich history”.
The plans, which the club said
would enhance its “tennis in an
English garden” image, also include
38 ground courts, several ancillary
buildings and nearly 6 miles of roads
and paths. More than 1,200 people
have submitted objections via the
councils’ websites.
With a planning decision expected
in the spring, several residents’ asso-
ciations, heritage and environmental
groups, and local politicians are form-
ing a “non-political umbrella group”
to fight the plan.
▲ The plans include the building of an 8,000-seat tennis show court and 38
other grass courts near the lake in Wimbledon park PHOTOGRAPH: LOOP/ALAMY
▼ The All England club says it needs
new facilities to help it compete with
other grand slam venues
PHOTOGRAPH: STEVEN PASTON/PA
Chris Baker, the director of the
Capability Brown Society, said the
plans would “destroy for ever” land
laid out by Brown 240 years ago. He
described the proposal as an “act of
desecration” and “savage act of van-
dalism by the All England – who claim
‘heritage is in our DNA’”.
Baker said the coalition of inter-
est groups aimed to “first fight the All
England in the court of public opin-
ion”, but has also asked lawyers to
prepare for a legal battle over the
status of the covenant if planning
permission is granted.
“The All England were good neigh-
bours, but local opinion is fast turning
against them,” Baker said. “The great
majority of locals are scared to death
▲ The club’s
final proposals
for the project,
which includes
the show court
and 38 ground
courts
Serena Williams
at Wimbledon
that they are going to wreck the park.
They are interested in only one thing,
and that is revenue and the extra
income their new developments on
the golf course will generate.”
Thelma Fry, 96, who has lived in
a block of flats overlooking the park
for 30 years, said she was “devastated
and heartbroken” by the proposals.
“I am just one person against the
endless wealth and influence of All
England tennis,” Fry said.
“As I grow older, my pleasure in life
is ever more dependent on the view
from my window. The trees, grass and
lake of Capability Brown’s landscape.
I am devastated and heartbroken that
it will be ruined by the All England
plans. They have assured me it will
take years to build, which means that
for the remainder of my life, instead
of my present glorious view I will
overlook a building site.”
Iain Simpson, the chairman of
Wimbledon Park Residents Associ-
ation, which represents more than
10,000 local households, accused the
All England club of deceiving local
‘The great majority
of locals are scared
to death that they
are going to wreck
the park’
Chris Baker
Capability Brown Society
21
residents by submitting plans that
breached the covenant.
Simpson dug out the minutes from
when Merton council agreed to sell
the land on the condition that the All
England signed a covenant promis-
ing: “Not to use it except for leisure
or recreational purposes or as an open
space and not to build on it.”
At the time, the then chairman of
the All England, John Currie, said:
“We completely understand and
support everyone’s determination
to keep the land open and we have
purchased the land on that basis.”
Tony Colman, then the leader of
Merton borough council, said at the
time: “This council is resolute that
the land will be retained as open
space. All England has bought the
land knowing this is our policy and is
aware that we would not allow devel-
opment of the site.”
When Simpson recently wrote to
Ian Hewitt, the current All England
chairman, reminding him of the cov-
enant and his predecessor’s promise,
Hewitt replied: “I am sure you can
appreciate that the requirements of
the club and the community have
developed in the resulting 28 years
and that the AELTC has needed to
work to ensure that the Champion-
ships remain a pre-eminent tennis
tournament.”
In a statement, Hewitt said: “Pri-
vate land covenants do not form part
of the public planning process but are
to be dealt with outside that process.
The AELTC’s view is that it would
be appropriate for any discussion /
consideration in relation to the cove-
nants to take place once the planning
application has been determined.”
Hewitt said the proposed new
courts were “vital to the future of
Wimbledon – to the Championships,
to the people of Wimbledon, and to
tennis in the UK and globally”.
A spokesman for Merton coun-
cil said: “A legal covenant is not a
material planning consideration in
a planning application assessment.
“The All England Lawn Tennis
Club’s application is currently
under assessment and it will likely
be decided by the planning commit-
tee: as yet we don’t have a committee
date in mind as the application is still
under assessment by officers.”
The All England rented the land to
Wimbledon Park Golf Club on a lease
due to expire in 2041. However, eager
to expand the championships and
accommodate preliminary matches
on site, the tennis club offered the
golf club £65m to buy out the lease
and expand its footprint.
The golf club members, who
included Piers Morgan, Ant McPartlin
and Dec Donnelly, and the former
cabinet secretary Gus O’Donnell,
voted in favour of the deal in 2018 and
each collected an £85,000 windfall.

22
Crochet
and manga
Hadrian’s
Wall marks
its 1,900th
birthday
Mark Brown
North of England correspondent
‘I
said: wouldn’t it be a good
idea to get people from all
round the world to crochet
or knit some Roman-
themed bunting,” said
Lynne Barber, recalling
her pitch to organisers of a year-
long festival celebrating Hadrian’s
Wall. “They said: ‘That’s fantastic!
Will you organise it?’”
Barber, an undertaker, smiled
as she talked about the rather
daunting challenge ahead. The
bunting may not end up stretching
all the 73 miles of the wall, but she
is hopeful of getting a flag for every
year that it has existed.
Hers is one of a blizzard of newly
announced projects planned for
the Hadrian’s Wall 1900 festival, a
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
National
year-long jamboree marking the
anniversary of the Roman empire’s
north-west frontier, built from
what is now Wallsend in Tyne and
Wear to Bowness-on-Solway in
Cumbria.
With so many aspects to the
wall – history, archaeology, nature,
walking – the planned exhibitions,
arts events, concerts and more are
strikingly diverse.
Bill Griffiths, the head of
programmes and collections at
Tyne and Wear Museums and chair
The wall was attributed to of the 1900 festival, said an early
Hadrian 200 years ago decision was made: “Let’s not make
Mother tells of anger over PC’s
selfie at scene of son’s killing
Kevin Rawlinson
The mother of a teenager who was
killed in 2018 has demanded an apol-
ogy from police after learning that an
officer kept pictures he took of him-
self lying down at the scene of the
killing in Liverpool.
Mandy Jamieson, whose son
Daniel Gee-Jamieson was stabbed
to death aged 16, accused PC Ryan
Connolly of sullying the memory of
her child.
Her comments came after the
Guardian revealed the officer had
been caught with that picture and
another of a man suffering a mental
health crisis, and had also sent racist,
homophobic and offensive images
via WhatsApp.
Jamieson said: “What he did was
disgusting and heartless especially
as a police officer who is supposed
to protect people. He has trampled
on the memory of my son as far as I
am concerned.
“I want an apology from the police
– I think I deserve one. They did not
even tell me and I only found out
about it from the press.
“I had to speak to the mayor about
it and she got a CID detective to ring
▼ Hikers walk along Hadrian’s Wall,
which stretches for 73 miles from
Wallsend to Bowness-on-Solway
PHOTOGRAPH: RICH LEGG/GETTY
it about museums. Let’s make it
about people and the communities
on Hadrian’s Wall. It is their wall, it
is not the preserve of curators.”
There was a romance and magic
to the wall, he said, and while it
was 1,900 years old, there was still
much to learn: “There are new
discoveries all of the time … We
only realised it was Hadrian’s Wall
just under 200 years ago.” Before
that, it was thought that Septimius
Severus, the African emperor of
Rome, had built the wall.
Another, as yet unresolved,
debate is whether the wall had
me. I am so angry about it but not sur-
prised. It is shocking the way victims
and their families are treated in this
country.”
The case echoes that of two Metro-
politan police officers who used their
mobile phones to take pictures at the
scene where sisters Nicole Smallman
and Bibaa Henry were murdered. The
officers were jailed after admitting
misconduct in public office.
Connolly had already resigned
from Merseyside police by the time
a gross misconduct hearing was held
in November. The tribunal found
Connolly guilty after deciding he
had committed a litany of discipli-
nary offences over a six-year period
while a serving officer. He was sacked
after the hearing.
The force has been criticised this
▲ Daniel Gee-Jamieson died after
being stabbed in a Liverpool park
a walkway on top. “There is no
proof,” said Griffiths. “I’m a believer
in it having a wall walk, but I have
to say ‘believer.’”
Then there is Hadrian himself,
widely acknowledged as gay and
seen as a consolidating emperor,
with one of his first acts being to
withdraw troops from Iraq.
The festival team put out an
open call for ideas from people
and organisations – so far 170
proposals have been received. The
festival can help with fundraising,
marketing and sustainability,
“but you’re responsible for your
events”, said Griffiths. The events
announced include a Hadrian’s
Wall manga novel, an exhibition
at Segedunum Roman fort and
museum exploring who built the
wall and how, and a new play in
village halls by On the Move theatre
set in AD121.
And then there is the bunting
challenge conceived by Barber,
who lives in South Shields, home
to the Arbeia Roman fort, which
guarded the entrance to the Tyne.
She took up crochet 18 years ago
after stopping smoking and has
never looked back. “Hadrian’s
Wall is famous around the world
so I’m hoping people from lots of
countries will send flags in,” she
said. She has made simple, free
Roman numeral and Roman shield
patterns that people will be able to
download, and is being helped by
the Vindolanda Charitable Trust.
It’s early days, but the confirmed
crochet fan Tom Daley is on the list
of dream contributors.
The festival begins on Hadrian’s
birthday, 24 January, and will run
until the end of the Roman festival
of Saturnalia on 23 December 2022.
week for its handling of the case.
Vinny Tomlinson, the former chair
of Merseyside’s Black Police Asso-
ciation who attended the tribunal
hearing, said: “In all of my time work-
ing at Merseyside police, Connolly’s
conduct is the worst example of one
person’s misconduct of this type I can
recall. He transgressed on an almost
industrial scale, over a number of
years, most of which was carried out
whilst he was on duty.
“Why has Connolly not faced
criminal charges for misconduct in
a public office and data protection
breaches? Have all of the individuals
abused by Connolly been contacted
by Merseyside police and aware?
Have the family … been informed of
Connolly’s behaviour at the scene of
their son’s [killing]?
“Why has Merseyside police still
not published the outcome of Con-
nolly’s hearing within 28 days as it is
required to do?”
On Wednesday, Merseyside
police’s deputy chief constable, Ian
Critchley, said: “I am appalled by
Connolly’s actions, they are beyond
comprehension and are not in keep-
ing with the high standards and
values that we expect here.”
Describing Connolly’s behaviour
as deplorable, he added: “Our offic-
ers carry out exceptionally brave
selfless acts every single day, pro-
tecting the most vulnerable people
in our communities, yet here we see
the despicable acts of a very selfish
individual who has no place in our
police service.”
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
John Crace
Predictions for 2022
A booster for Britain
as Boris is ousted for
HRH Empress Truss
January
Boris Johnson comes out of
hiding to reveal that the “sensible
and cautious approach”’ of
letting people do exactly what
they liked on New Year’s Eve
has paid off as Covid cases have
declined to zero. The newly
knighted Sir Chris Whitty admits
this may be due to there being
no LFTs or PCR tests available.
Jonathan Van-Tam refuses to
take part in any Downing Street
press conferences until he too is
knighted. Lord Geidt says the No
10 refurb was far too complicated
to investigate properly so he will
exonerate everyone. Johnson
immediately invites him to take
over the inquiry into Downing
Street parties.
February
The coldest spell since the last
coldest spell grips the country.
Johnson comes out of hiding to
say no one could possibly have
predicted extreme bad weather
in February and urges everyone
to wrap up warm. Mainly because
no one can afford to keep their
heating on as fuel bills have
quadrupled in six months.
Johnson insists no one could
have predicted gas prices would
rise so rapidly, despite everyone
having done just that. The worst
floods since the last worst floods
devastate towns and villages
as mild weather returns. Boris
Johnson comes out of hiding to
put a sandbag in the wrong place.
A month in
Ambridge
Time for a
mysterious
dip into very
strange radio
•
National
March
Coronavirus cases hit a record
high. Johnson comes out of hiding
to claim the government is a
victim of its own success. With
LFTs and PCRs available, people
have been testing too frequently.
People will now only be allowed
one test every three weeks. Patrick
Vallance, now Lord Vallance
after his hissy fit over Whitty’s
knighthood, suggests everyone
needs a fourth jab. Johnson comes
out of hiding to say he would never
dream of implementing another
booster programme.
PHOTOGRAPHS: GEOFF
At least the PUGH/WPA/GETTY
Test result IMAGES; ROBERT
CIANFLONE/GETTY
came back
quickly
The Archers
BBC Radio 4
Charlotte Higgins
I
s Stella gay? My hopes are
high. Mia, Borsetshire’s Greta
Thunberg, has decided that
the new manager of Home
Farm would make a lovely
wife for her stepfather, Will
Grundy, who never sounds sexy
but maybe is, owing to his role as
the village gamekeeper. Mia opined
that Stella seemed to be straight –
which, knowing Mia’s powers of
perception, means she’s the most
obvious lesbian who ever walked
this earth. What would you call
your dog, if you had one, Mia asked
her, brightly? The answer: Weaver.
After Sigourney Weaver in Alien. I
mean: come on.
It’s just a
little prick
April
With tax rises biting and inflation
close to 6%, Johnson comes out of
hiding to say he knows the country
is hurting as he is struggling to pay
for seven or eight children. Carrie
Johnson announces she and Boris
are expecting twins. Johnson opens
a new door at St George’s hospital
and declares the government has
delivered on its promise of 40 new
hospitals. He announces another
booster programme.
May
Sir Graham Brady, chair of the 1922
Committee, discovers he has been
sitting on the necessary 54 letters
to trigger a Tory leadership election
for at least two months. Johnson
comes out of hiding to declare he
I would rest my case right there,
but then came a touching scene
between Stella and Ruth Archer,
during which Stella found Ruth’s
lost invoices, and coquettishly
suggested a drink. I admit this does
not necessarily suggest Lauren
Bacall-Humphrey Bogart levels
of sexual charge. Nevertheless,
my partner, no great Archers
listener himself, walked into
the room at this moment, and,
unprompted, declared: “This is
so gay!” Seriously: I can see it. Say
David Archer is killed by – well,
there are so many possibilities on
a farm – drowning in the slurry pit,
shall we say? Then Ruth becomes
a later-blooming lesbian and has
a rapturous affair with Stella,
thoroughly complicating the Home
Farm/Brookfield inheritance nexus.
The Archers is deeply invested
in the village rituals that mark
the passage of the year: flower
and produce show, fete, harvest
That’s no
way to talk
about the
prime
minister
will prorogue parliament and that
the leadership challenge is a plot
by the EU to discredit the UK. Keir
Starmer points out Johnson has
done that on his own.
June
Matt Hancock nominates himself a
second time for Tory leader, saying
it is time for a proper “Sex God”
to be running the country. “It’s
time to turn the country back on,”
is his catchy slogan. Sunak insists
it was an entirely different Dishi
Rishi who hiked the tax take to its
highest levels since the 1940s.
July
The Tory leadership election is a
two-horse race between Sunak and
Truss after Michael Gove yet again
fails to get any support from his
fellow MPs. Proving that they do
have a sense of humour, the Tories
choose Truss to be prime minister.
Her first speech outside Downing
Street, in which she promises to
level up the driveways of any peers
and Tory donors, is delayed after
Johnson refuses to leave No 10
because he has nowhere to go.
August
Twitter crashes as news leaks that
the fourth series of Succession will
be filmed in real, real time. Not
pretend real time like 24. Brian
Cox’s lines have been reduced to a
minimalist: “Fuck the lot of you,
you fucking fucks.” Cricket writers
herald a golden dawn for English
Test cricket after Joe Root and
supper. Winter means some over-
elaborate amateur theatricals
mounted by Lynda Snell: this year,
it was medieval mystery plays
peripatetically adapted to locations
scattered through Ambridge – the
annunciation in the kitchen at
Brookfield, that kind of thing.
One of the most peculiar things
on British radio – no, in British
culture altogether – must be the
full Radio 4 broadcast of this
production, in which the listener
hears professional actors playing
characters who are amateurishly
playing another set of characters.
One can only pity the
casual turner of
the radio dial
23
Jos Buttler put together a 50-run
partnership, England’s highest
stand for more than three years.
September
Johnson comes out of hiding to
announce he has been deselected
by his constituency and is broke.
“I have been morally bankrupt for
years,” he sobs, “but now I am also
financially bankrupt.” None of the
usual agencies have been able to
get him after-dinner speaking gigs
as everyone has heard all the gags
and they are bored of the lies.
October
At the Tory party conference, Truss
insists she be called “Gloriana,
empress of the United Kingdom
and all her colonies”. Sunak
announces that enough is enough.
The tax take is too high, so he is
going back to Goldman Sachs.
Truss says she will take over his
job. As she never got round to
replacing herself at the Foreign
Office or Priti Patel, whom she
sacked as home secretary, this is
the first time the four great offices
of state have been held by the same
person. Opinion polls show Truss
to be less popular than Johnson.
She responds by banning anyone
from using the word Brexit.
November
Truss says nothing is going to stop
Britain having the best Christmas
ever. A day later the World Health
Organization reports the existence
of the Pi coronavirus variant, which
is four times as transmissible as
Omicron. Truss insists that British
DNA is now resistant to Covid and
England will still be going to Qatar
to play in the World Cup.
December
With the Pi variant out of control,
Truss waits until three days before
Christmas to impose a lockdown.
No one is too bothered as they
have already cancelled their
arrangements. England win the
World Cup as no other country
turns up. Whitty wins Strictly
Come Dancing – his salsa is a
sensation – and is elevated to a
peerage. Geidt says he is nearly,
nearly ready to publish his report
on parties at No 10.
So far, so The Mousetrap. But it’s
much odder than that: into this
cocktail are added voiceovers from
Archers characters qua Archers
characters (rather than mysteries
characters) informing the listener
whereabouts in Ambridge we
are. But then there’s the sound
design, which, far from bringing us
Borsetshire in December, offers us
the hum of cicadas to summon up
some warm night in Bethlehem.
And there’s also a soundtrack
of vaguely medieval-sounding
music presumably meant to recall
the period in which the mystery
plays were originally conceived.
In short, it’s a splendidly odd
layering of temporal, geographical
and imaginative spaces that the
word “meta” completely fails to
do justice to. One can only pity the
casual turner of the radio dial. It
must be utterly impenetrable.
A thought with which to end
2021: what is Hazel Woolley up to?
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

24

Mild winter brings

early blooms but
threatens bats
and hedgehogs
Helena Horton
Butterflies, hedgehogs and bats are
at risk as the unseasonably mild
weather has disrupted hibernation
– and is causing spring flowers to
bloom in January.
Climate change is disrupting our
seasons, and this year the winter has
been especially mild, with trees not
dropping their autumn leaves and
others bursting into fresh leaf and
bloom months early. This New Year’s
Eve is expected to be the mildest on
record, with temperatures predicted
to hit 15C in some parts of the country,
double the expected average temper-
ature for this time of year.
This could have devastating effects
for those creatures that depend on the
rhythm of the seasons for survival.
Grahame Madge, a Met Office climate
spokesman, said: “The unseasonal
warmth that will be a feature of the
able to replace them, possibly with
disastrous consequences.”
The unseasonable weather has
been confusing hibernating mam-
mals, which have been emerging
from their slumber early. This could
be fatal for creatures such as hedge-
hogs waking without sufficient food
to sustain them until spring.
Kathryn Brown, director for cli-
mate action for The Wildlife Trusts,
said: “Our climate is changing, which
is having an impact on whole ecosys-
tems as well as individual species. The
warming climate is affecting breed-
ing cycles, the availability of food,
and behaviours including hiberna-
tion. Mild temperatures mean some
species can temporarily emerge more
often in winter, which is problematic
if there is insufficient food to make up
for the extra energy used. We know
hedgehogs are at increased risk and
need more research to understand
the effects on other species such as
bats and dormice.”

‘It’s waste colonialism’

new year period is caused by a low-
pressure system drawing up warm
air from further south in the Atlantic.
“Although this would have always
created relatively much warmer con-
ditions compared with average, with
around 1C of background warming, it
is possible that climate change will
bring the event to a point that chal-
lenges previously-held records.”
This, he said, could cause butter-
flies to be killed off as they emerge
from hibernation too early before suf-
ficient food is available, especially
as a later deadly cold snap could hit.
Horticulturalists have noticed that
roses have been in bloom all winter,
as in more Mediterranean climes, and
spring flowers are already bursting
into bloom across British gardens.
Matthew Pottage, curator of the
Royal Horticultural Society’s Wis-
Saga of 141 containers lays bare the
ley garden, said: “There are pros
and cons related to the current mild
weather for plants and gardens. Out
of season plants such as roses will,
ugly underbelly of plastics recycling
for example, continue to flower and
spring plants like magnolia will begin the presence of micro-organisms. initial journey lost its import
to bloom earlier than normal, which Ruth Michaelson It smelled really bad and it was licence and disappeared. “The
will bring a welcome bit of colour into covered in rats and mice,” said consignee delayed us saying there

Madge warned: “Abnormal warm
spells during winter can encourage
species out of hibernation. Butter-
flies, such as red admirals and small
tortoiseshells, and other insects can
be particularly challenged as they can
emerge largely without access to life-
saving food sources like nectar. If the
warm spell is followed by a return to
colder conditions, the hibernating
individuals will have used up valu-
able energy reserves without being
A red admiral. Butterflies
may find there is no food
gardens from early next year if the
mild weather continues.”
Gardeners and farmers have
greatly missed the frosts that kill off
pests. Certain fungi and insects now
thrive all year round.
Pottage said: “The lack of a cold
snap will enable exotic plant varie-
ties to continue to flourish, but the
downside is gardeners will continue
to experience some garden pests until
significant frosts arrive”.
The Botanical Society of Britain
and Ireland is asking gardeners to
chronicle unusually early blooms in
their garden. Louise Marsh from BSBI
said: “It isn’t, however, a straight-
forward story of everything coming
into bloom early. We usually find that
about half the species in bloom are
‘autumn stragglers’ that have man-
aged to keep on flowering because
they haven’t been knocked back by
hard frosts.”
T
he year-long voyage
of 141 containers of
rotting plastic waste
scattered between
Turkey, Greece, and
Vietnam – far from
their origins in Germany – sheds
light on the hidden global trade in
such waste.
The containers, which arrived in
Turkey in late 2020 shortly before a
ban on mixed plastic waste imports
came into force, became the
centre of a battle between traders,
a shipping line, governments
and environmental campaigners
demanding their return.
Turkish authorities refused
entry, leaving them in limbo, and
the contents began to rot. “After
a couple of months, all the dirty
waste inside was disrupted, and
some had fermented owing to
Sedat Gündoğdu, a plastics
pollution researcher based in the
southern city of Adana.
The saga of the 141 containers is a
small slice of the ugly underbelly of
recycling in the global north. Plastic
waste, especially mixed plastic
from households, is frequently
sent overseas to countries with lax
environmental regulations where it
is either melted into plastic pellets,
dumped, or simply burned.
Mixed plastics are the dirtiest
and least desirable waste in the
trade as they typically contain
household rubbish such as bottles
or packaging. As many countries
move to ban mixed plastic imports,
observers say some traders are
hiding bales of banned mixed
plastics behind those that meet
regulations to get past inspectors.
The containers remained stuck
after a company involved in their
were some things to sort out with
customs,” said Ömer Bulduk of
Monax, a Turkish freight company
assigned to receive the containers.
“Then we found out their import
licence was cancelled, and they
were blacklisted by Turkey. Lab
tests showed some loads in the
containers are hazardous city
waste. It’s simply garbage.”
Some of the countries listed
among the world’s top recyclers
‘We’re putting out
more plastic waste
every day and there’s
no destination for it’
Jim Puckett
Campaigner
 022 The Guardian
Saturday 1 January 2022
Rewilding
Eight speciess on
ck
their way back
Page 29
▲ Scavenging in Adana, Turkey,
where plastic packaging from British
supermarkets is illegally dumped
PHOTOGRAPH: YASIN AKGÜL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
are also the biggest plastic waste
exporters: Germany was named
the world’s top recycler by the
World Economic Forum in 2017, but
exports an average of 1m tonnes of
plastic waste a year, more than any
other EU nation. The UK is little
better, exporting 61% of its plastic
waste according to recent data from
the British Plastics Foundation.
“When you continue to consume
more plastic, there are only two
ways to tackle the waste. One
is incineration, the second is
dumping,” said Gündoğdu. “If
you don’t have dumping in your
country, you should incinerate.
But this has a carbon footprint, and
many countries trying to cut carbon
emissions don’t want to incinerate
their waste.
“Some of Europe’s top waste
producers, such as the UK, France
and Germany, have to find ways
to deal with this issue. And the
way they’ve found is exporting to
poorer countries without effective
waste management systems
or environmental legislation
and regulations. This is waste
colonialism.”
In May, the Turkish foreign
ministry contacted its counterparts
in Germany to demand the
•
containers’ return. According to
Bulduk, the German side “claimed
that too much time had passed and
they cannot accept them”. Angela
Griesbach, a spokesperson for the
waste management authority in
the state of Baden-Württemberg,
now in charge of overseeing the
containers, said this was “probably
a misunderstanding”, adding that
the containers contained waste that
was legal when it arrived in Turkey.
When some of the containers
were suddenly re-exported to
Vietnam, campaigners sprang into
action. Activists believe that the
16 containers sent last July to the
port of Haiphong were a test, to
see if others could later follow the
same route in order to dispose of
the rotting containers entirely. But
who authorised their onward travel
remains a mystery, especially as
sending waste directly from an EU
country to those outside the OECD
is banned, and new controls on
mixed plastic exports introduced
last January require express
Vietnamese consent for imports.
Vietnam’s own ban on plastic
waste imports is due to take effect
in 2025, but it remains a popular
destination for the global plastic
recycling trade. There, workers
are paid less than £5 a day to sort
plastic into recyclable and non-
recyclable elements. The former
are melted down, exposing those
nearby to toxic fumes.
Jim Puckett of the Basel Action
Network, which campaigns against
plastic-related pollution, tracked 37
of the German containers heading
towards Piraeus port near Athens
in November, and grew suspicious
they were also headed to Vietnam.
“I dropped what I was doing
and sent a strong message to the
Greek authorities, saying that they
couldn’t allow that waste to get
on a ship and go to Vietnam. It’s
illegal and it should be returned
to Germany,” he said. The Greek
authorities took note, and
cordoned off the containers on the
dock in Piraeus, where they remain.
“There’s also almost 100
containers sitting in Turkey, and
we’re very worried they will be
bound for countries like Vietnam,”
he added. In an open letter to
Germany’s environment ministry, a
coalition of green groups including
BAN demanded they “take moral
and political leadership” and
reclaim the 141 containers. When
contacted by the Guardian, the
25
Most of the plastic waste is stuck in Turkey and Greece
Quiz by Patrick Greenfield
Environment
Route 1
from At least 141 shipping containers full of plastic
waste left Hamburg on 26 November 2020
Test your
Germany
2
They arrived at three Turkish ports in
Gebze
Gemlik
December 2020 but Turkey banned
mixed plastic imports in January 2021,
leaving the containers stuck for almost a year
knowledge
Mersin
4 3 
On 4 November 2021, 37 containers In July, 16 travelled to
1 Tesco plans to be the
arrived in Piraeus, Greece, but Haiphong in Vietnam, first supermarket to use
environmentalists prevented which plans to impose
an attempt to re-export them a plastic import ban fully-electric HGVs. What
to Vietnam from 2025
proportion of UK transport
Route
emissions are HGVs
from Turkey
Source: Basel Action Network
responsible for?
A 33%
environment ministry referred ago,” said Puckett. “We’re putting B 16%
questions to Griesbach. “The out more plastic waste into the C 45%
campaigners are right in saying world, every day more than the day
that there are many legal questions before, and there’s no destination 2 Two Norfolk farms
and legal grey areas,” she said. She for it. It’s now become a game of are to start excavating
stressed that “a voluntary return who will take it because there are
shipment by a German company mountains of plastic waste and it’s ‘ghost pingos’ to help local
involved is intended but has not not stopped.” wildlife. What are pingos?
yet been possible,” and said the The result is a frantic hunt for A Lost ponds formed during the
German authorities were unaware new destinations for an estimated last ice age
that some containers had been 111m metric tonnes of plastic waste B Dormant seed banks buried
re-exported to Vietnam. displaced by the ban between now by forest
I
and 2030. While China has banned C Dried marshland
f certain conditions are met, imports, it continues to profit from
she added, the containers in the global trade in plastics through 3 What will no longer be
Turkey can be returned. “If its domination of the shipping
the problem is not an internal trade. Cosco Shipping, which
available to buy at garden
Turkish enforcement transported all 141 containers, is a centres in 2024?
problem, the German Chinese state-owned firm. Cosco A Leaf blowers
authorities, as well as the German did not respond when contacted for B Diesel ride-on mowers
company voluntarily, are willing to comment on the issue. C Peat compost
take back this waste in accordance Matthew Gordon, an
with the law. However, this requires environmental researcher at Yale 4 A Salford forklift truck
the corresponding cooperation and University who is part of a team
information from the Turkish side.” compiling an “atlas of plastic
driver found a deadly
The Turkish environment ministry waste” to show new dumping saw-scaled viper in a
did not respond when contacted for sites, said he was surprised by the shipment of bricks. What
comment on the issue. number of countries represented warning sound does it
Vietnam and Turkey remain part in their initial findings, including
of a growing number of countries Bosnia, Thailand, Romania, make before it strikes?
that have seen a sudden increase in Malaysia and Turkey. A A high frequency hiss with its
plastic waste, after China’s decision “South-east Asia clearly seems tongue that is inaudible to humans
to ban waste imports in 2018 to be a hotspot, especially in the B A hissing sound made by rubbing
quickly proved to be a watershed aftermath of the China import ban,” its scales together
for the global trade. The decision he said. One reason seems to be C A loud clicking sound made using
“reverberated around the world”, that when container ships travel the roof of its mouth
according to the UN, which added from places such as China to the US
that nations in the global north carrying manufactured goods, they 5 How many peaceful
“will, at last, have to face up to the offer extremely low freight charges environmental protesters
true cost of their plastic addiction on the return trip – otherwise they
instead of shipping the problem to would be going back empty. “So were jailed in Britain in
China, which has taken nearly half exporters in the US often find it 2021?
the world’s waste since 1992”. cheaper to send plastics abroad A None
“We’ve been sold a notion of than to deal with them at home.” B4
‘don’t worry, we’ll recycle it’ – and Turkey has increasingly found C 18
no one looked at what recycling itself on the frontline of the
was like in China until three years struggle between local plastic
importers’ desire to stay in the
 Plastic waste global recycling trade and rising
in Port Klang, environmental concerns. After
Malaysia. an investigation by Greenpeace
South-east Asia found plastic products from British
is a hotspot for and German supermarket chains
such waste, say intended for recycling dumped by
researchers the roadside, Turkey briefly banned
PHOTOGRAPH: ALAMY all plastic imports last May before
rescinding the law soon afterwards. Bricking it:
Gündoğdu said new dumping a saw-scaled viper
grounds for plastic waste are now
springing up again after a brief lull.
1: B. 2: A. 3: C. 4: B. 5: C.
Additional reporting Solutions
Gökçe Saraçoğlu
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

26
Eyewitnessed
Pictures of the week
 Patrick Lam,
the acting news
editor of Stand
News, one of
Hong Kong’s
last remaining
pro-democracy
media
organisations,
is led away after
its offices were
raided and shut
down by police
TYRONE SIU/REUTERS

▲ Runners and
riders clear the
second fence in
the Matheson
Hurdle at
Leopardstown,
Dublin.
Sharjah, ridden
by Patrick
Mullins (rear of
picture), went
on to record a
historic fourth
successive
victory in the
Grade One race
PAT HEALY/
RACINGFOTOS.COM

 Peruvian
shamans
display photos
of Vladimir
Putin and Joe
Biden as they
give predictions
for 2022 at a
ritual in Lima
PILAR OLIVARES/
REUTERS
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

27
 Intrepid
bathers take the
icy North Sea in
their stride for
the traditional
Boxing Day dip
at Redcar beach,
North Yorkshire
PHOTOGRAPH:
IAN FORSYTH/
GETTY IMAGES

▲ A mother
from Iraqi
Kurdistan
separated from
three of her
children during
an attempt to
cross the border
from Belarus
into Poland
ALESSIO MAMO/
THE GUARDIAN

 Bowler Scott
Boland is
congratulated
by teammates
after taking
another
England wicket
as Australia
romped to
victory on the
third day of the
third Test in
Melbourne to
retain the Ashes
HAMISH BLAIR/AFP/
GETTY IMAGES

▲ A kingfisher
perches on a
holly branch
in the rain in
Catrine in
East Ayrshire
IAN TODD/ANIMAL
NEWS AGENCY
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Rewilding
Eight
species
that are
making a
comeback
in Britain
Phoebe Weston
R
ewilding has been
one of the big
environmental
stories of 2021, with
successful species
reintroductions and
the return of wildlife previously
thought extinct or critically
endangered thanks to efforts to
restore ecosystems around the
world.
Just as plans to reintroduce
sea otters to Argentina’s Iberá
wetlands were advancing, a giant
river otter popped up nearby. A red
wolf reintroduction programme
returned to prominence in North
Carolina in the US, and white rhinos
arrived in Rwanda for the first time,
while in the UK support for the
return of the lynx grew. Scientists
even announced plans to bring
back the woolly mammoth.
Here are eight new species to
look out for across the UK in 2022:
Bison
Four bison will arrive in north
Kent in the spring as part of a
210-hectare (519-acre) rewilding
project to create more wildlife-rich
woodlands. Bison, Europe’s largest
land mammal, were driven out of
the UK 6,000 years ago by hunting
and habitat loss.
Before their arrival rangers are
putting up a 1.4-metre electric
fence around the site in the Blean
Woods nature reserve, which is
managed by Kent Wildlife Trust
and the Wildwood Trust. These
large mammals create dynamic
habitats in woodlands by knocking
down trees, stripping off bark,
nibbling vegetation and making
dust baths. The bison ranger
Donovan Wright described them as
“gentle giants” that are like “jet fuel
for biodiversity”.
Females can produce one calf
a year and up to 10 animals are
licensed to be on the site. Bison
used to be vulnerable to extinction
but populations are rising across
Europe thanks to a number of
successful reintroduction projects.
•
Environment
Frogs
The northern pool frog is finally
croaking again on Thompson
Common in Norfolk – its last
stronghold before it became
extinct in England about 20 years
ago. A batch of 300 tadpoles was
released in July, bringing the total
to more than 1,000 during the
six-year project.
The critically endangered
northern pool frog is England’s
rarest amphibian and was driven
to extinction by the destruction
of wetland habitats in East Anglia.
Conservationists are confident the
frogs have formed a self-sustaining
population, breeding successfully
on multiple ponds. Keeping back
vegetation growth and making
▼ Bison, Europe’s largest land
mammal, will be reintroduced at a
nature reserve in Kent in the spring
PHOTOGRAPH: TOM CAWDRON/PA WIRE
 A beaver kit sure ponds are relatively open will
and mother on give the northern pool frog the best
the Holnicote chance of survival. It also benefits
Estate in other reptiles and amphibians,
Somerset including the common toad, the
PHOTOGRAPH: great crested newt, the smooth
NATIONAL TRUST/PA newt and grass snakes.
▼ Ospreys are Beavers
back at Rutland Beavers are often called
Water reserve “ecosystem engineers” for their
PHOTOGRAPH: ability to benefit other species,
ANDY ROUSE/ help reduce flooding, increase
THE WILDLIFE TRUSTS/
PA WIRE water retention and reduce silting.
This year was a record for beavers,
with 17 released into enclosures
in England and Wales: two in
west Dorset in February by Dorset
Wildlife Trust; three in March at
Cors Dyfi nature reserve in Wales;
and in September four adults
were released in Derbyshire at
Willington Wetlands.
In November eight beavers,
including four kits, were released
in an enclosure in Idle Valley nature
reserve near Retford. The first
beaver born in Exmoor for 400
years was named Rashford, after
the footballer Marcus Rashford.
Grasshoppers
Large marsh grasshoppers have
been reintroduced to wetlands
across Norfolk thanks to work led
by Citizen Zoo, in partnership with
the Wildlife Trusts and Natural
England. About 1,000 of these
elusive green insects were released
at two secret sites last summer.
Before the translocation,
Britain’s largest grasshopper only
existed in a few sites in Dorset
and Somerset, with concerns the
species would become extinct in a
few decades if nothing were done.
After this success wildlife charities
and private landowners have been
in touch with Citizen Zoo about
returning the grasshoppers to sites
elsewhere in the UK.
Dwarf pansy
The dwarf pansy has returned to an
▲ Large marsh grasshoppers have uninhabited island in the Isles of
been reintroduced across Norfolk Scilly, thanks to habitat restoration
29
work, after an absence of 16 years.
Smaller than the tip of a pencil, this
little flower is found nowhere else
in Britain apart from Scilly.
After the second world war the
abandonment of grazing, as well
as the disappearance of rabbits
from the island, made life difficult
for the pansy, which thrives on
well-grazed, regularly disturbed
grassland. Seeds had lain dormant
in the soil since 2004 until rangers
created a suitable habitat for them
to germinate by removing bracken,
coarse grasses and scrub. Two
flowering plants were discovered
last spring, but rangers are hoping
there will be more.
Oysters
Native oysters are being restored
on the west coast of Scotland
after being almost wiped
out after several decades of
overexploitation. The Scottish
charity Seawilding is reintroducing
molluscs, along with seagrass, to
Loch Craignish in Argyll and Bute
to stimulate ecological recovery.
Native oysters create nursery
habitats for fish, improve water
quality, remove nitrogen from the
water and sequester carbon.
Seawilding, which is part of
the rewilding network, says it
has released more than 300,000
oysters into Loch Craignish by
transporting juveniles from
Morecambe Bay hatchery and
raising them in a nursery.
Ospreys
The 200th osprey chick
fledged this year after a 25-year
successful reintroduction
project at Rutland Water nature
reserve, which was started
by translocating birds from
Scotland. Conservationists hope
the fish-eating raptor – which
became extinct in England more
than 150 years ago – will soon
become a common sight in the
countryside again.
At the Rutland site there are
believed to be up to 10 breeding
pairs. In September the birds of
prey make a 3,000-mile migration
to the west coast of Africa, where
the young usually spend a couple of
years before returning to breed.
Sphagnum moss
Sphagnum mosses are being
reintroduced at sites across
Manchester to help capture
carbon and support other bog-
loving species such as sundews,
invertebrates and fungi. These
important peatland species create
the conditions in which other
plants can thrive. Two species of
sphagnum moss – papillose bog
moss and red bog moss – were
reintroduced on to Astley Moss
in October.
Lesser bladderwort was
reintroduced in 2018 after it had
become extinct on the peatlands
of Greater Manchester more than a
century ago. From just a few initial
strands there are now 2.4m plants,
which catch aquatic insects using
little “bladders” on their tendrils.
Next year conservationists want
to bring back a small population
of juvenile bog bush crickets to
Astley Moss and Risley Moss as part
of the Greater Manchester wetland
species reintroduction project.

30
‘A miracle if no one dies’: 30,000
flee savage Colorado wildfires
Maya Yang and agencies
Tens of thousands of residents
have been forced to flee in northern
Colorado after fast-moving wildfires
destroyed hundreds of homes.
More than 30,000 residents of
three communities outside Denver
had to evacuate their homes after
wind-fuelled grass fires rapidly
burned through buildings including
a hotel and shopping complex, along
with 580 homes.
The fires erupted on Thursday, fol-
lowing an extremely dry autumn and
a winter that has so far been almost
devoid of snow.
“We might have our very own new
year miracle on our hands if it holds
up that there was no loss of life,” the
state governor, Jared Polis, said at
a news conference yesterday, a day
after declaring a state of emergency.
“We know many people had just
minutes to evacuate and if that was
successfully pulled off that’s really
quite a testimony to preparedness
and emergency response.”
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
At least one first responder and
six other people were injured in the
fires. According to the Boulder county
sheriff, Joe Pelle, there could be more
injuries – and deaths – because of
the intensity of the fires, propelled
by winds that gusted up to 105 mph.
“This is the kind of fire we can’t
fight head-on,” Pelle said. “We
actually had deputy sheriffs and fire-
fighters in areas that had to pull out
because they just got overrun.”
The National Weather Service for
Denver and Boulder called the sit-
uation life-threatening. The towns
‘This is the kind of
fire we can’t fight
head-on. We had
firefighters in areas
that had to pull out …
they just got overrun’
Joe Pelle
Boulder County sheriff
 Fire engulfs ▲ Firefighters
a home in the try to douse
Centennial fires in the town
Heights of Louisville
neighbourhood near Denver,
of Louisville, from where
Colorado the population
PHOTOGRAPH: MARC were ordered to
PISCOTTY/GETTY evacuate
▲ Firefighters found they were
overrun by wildfires in some areas
of Louisville and Superior, situated
about 20 miles north-west of Den-
ver and home to a combined 34,000
people, were ordered to be evacuated
ahead of the fires, which cast a smoky,
orange haze over the landscape.
Mike Guanella and his family were
relaxing at their home in Superior
and looking forward to celebrating a
belated Christmas when reports of a
nearby grass fire quickly gave way to
 Dr Bonnie ▼ The area an order to leave immediately.
Abbott embraces of Colorado Instead of opening presents,
her husband, affected by the Guanella and his wife, their three
George, as they wildfires has children and three dogs were staying
watch fires experienced a at a friend’s house in Denver, hoping
engulf homes very dry autumn their house was still standing. “Those
in Superior, and winter presents are still under the tree right
one of the PHOTOGRAPH: now – we hope,” he told the Associ-
towns ordered CHRISTIAN ated Press.
MURDOCK/AP
to evacuate Leah Angstman and her husband
were returning to their Louisville
home from Denver international air-
port after being away for the holidays.
They recounted entering clouds of
brown and yellow smoke. “The wind
rocked the bus so hard that I thought
the bus would tip,” she said.
The visibility was so poor that the
bus had to pull over. They waited
half an hour until a transit authority
van escorted the bus to a turnaround
on the highway. “The sky was dark,
dark brown, and the dirt was blow-
ing in swirls across the sidewalk like
snakes,” she said.
Vignesh Kasinath, a professor of
biochemistry at the University of
Colorado, evacuated from a neigh-
bourhood in Superior with his wife
and her parents. “It’s only because I
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
No go yoga
Classes stopped over
Covid vaccine rules
Page 35
am active on Twitter I came to know
about this,” said Kasinath, who said
he did not receive an evacuation
notice from authorities.
By first light yesterday, the tow-
ering flames that had lit up the night
sky were gone, leaving smouldering
homes and charred trees and fields.
The winds had died down, and light
snow soon began falling, raising
hopes it could snuff out hot spots.
Sophia Verucchi and her part-
ner, Tony Victor, returned to their
apartment in Broomfield, outside
Superior, to find it was spared serious
damage. They had fled the previous
afternoon with just Victor’s guitar,
bedding and their cat.
“We left thinking it was a joke. We
just felt like we were going to come
back. At five o’clock, we thought,
maybe we’re not coming back,”
Verucchi said. They got an email yes-
terday morning saying it was safe to
return. “Seeing the news and seeing
all the houses burnt, we just feel very
lucky,” Verucchi said.
Polis had warned onlookers to stay
away from the fires, saying: “Don’t
head towards the fires looking to
see them. We are getting reports of
clogged roads from onlookers. Also,
it’s very dangerous. Stay clear of the
areas with fires and let our firefighters
and first responders do their work.”
According to the National Weather
Service, strong winds downed power
lines and overturned trucks in the
area. Over 24,000 people lost power
during the windstorm. Some of
the several blazes in the area were
sparked by downed power lines,
authorities said. Others erupted in
grass verges and rubbish bins after
sparks were blown on the wind.
About 90% of Boulder County is
in severe or extreme drought, and
it hasn’t seen substantial rainfall
since mid-summer. “With any snow
on the ground, this absolutely would
not have happened in the way that it
did,” said a snow hydrologist, Keith
Musselman.
Yesterday morning, local author-
ities lifted mandatory evacuation
orders that were issued on Thurs-
day afternoon for residents outside
of Boulder County, including those
in Broomfield and Westminster,
as cooler temperatures and lighter
winds slowed down the wildfire.
Snow was expected in Denver yes-
terday, along with a 70% chance of
precipitation later in the day. Mete-
orologists forecast that 2022 would
begin with temperatures falling into
the single digits in the area.
Frank Cooper, a National Weather
Service meteorologist, told the Den-
ver Post that light winds could trap
the smoke from the fire. “There’s just
a lot of smoke and haze around this
morning and that’s not going to go
away,” he said.
Guanella said he heard from a fire-
fighter friend that his home was still
standing on Thursday night. But he
could only wait and see.
“You’re just waiting to hear if your
favourite restaurant is still standing,
if the schools that your kids go to are
still standing,” he said. “You’re just
waiting to get some clarity.”
•
Farewell to Tutu
Country prepares
funeral for a hero
Page 36
▲ A balmy Rome yesterday. Temperatures in many parts of Europe have been
more in line with April than December PHOTOGRAPH: AMER GHAZZAL/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK
‘Not normal’:
temperatures
hit records all
over Europe
Ashifa Kassam
Angela Giuffrida
Spain registered record-breaking
temperatures this week, while
temperatures in areas of the Italian
Alps are forecast to reach up to 15
degrees above the seasonal average in
the coming days, as much of Europe
faces an anomalously warm start to
the new year.
In Bilbao, northern Spain, tem-
peratures hit 24.7C (76.5F), a high
for December not seen since record-
keeping began in 1947. Segovia, near
Madrid, recorded 22.7C, the highest
since 1920. And in nearby Avila, 20.2C
was the highest figure since 1983.
“These high temperatures are not
normal,” said Rubén del Campo, the
spokesperson for the Spanish mete-
orological agency, AEMET. “These
are temperatures that you would nor-
mally see in April.”
He attributed the year-end heat to
a mass of hot air over Spain combined
with high pressure. “It’s a normal
phenomenon that we do see, but
what’s strange this time is the high
temperatures we’re seeing.”
The high-pressure anticyclone is
also affecting France and Italy, where
the country’s Alpine rescue service
24.7C
The temperature in Bilbao, northern
Spain, the highest December figure
since record-keeping began in 1947
15C
The temperature in some areas of the
Italian Alps over 1,600m. Ski resorts
at lower altitudes are bereft of snow
has warned of a risk of avalanches
brought on by the warm weather.
“At the moment it is about 15C
in areas of the Alps at an altitude
of 1,600 metres [5,250ft] and is not
hitting zero beneath 4,000 metres,”
said Luca Mercalli, a meteorologist.
“It hasn’t even been freezing at
night – the temperature has not
dropped below 10C, and this is very
unusual.”
The temperature in some of Italy’s
best-known ski resorts, including
Cortina d’Ampezzo and Courmayeur,
is forecast to be up to 15 degrees above
the seasonal norm today, with the
balmy weather expected to linger
until Monday. Ski resorts below an
altitude of 2,000 metres are bereft
of snow.
“And they can’t produce artifi-
cial snow as the temperature is too
warm,” added Mercalli.
Italy’s Alpine rescue service has
advised skiers to regularly check
weather bulletins owing to the risk
of avalanches. Mercalli said: “The ele-
vated temperature combined with
strong winds create the conditions
for avalanches.”
The rest of Italy is also experienc-
ing abnormally warm conditions,
with the temperature expected to
hit 18C in Rome today and 22C in the
Sicilian city of Catania by the middle
of next week.
In Spain, the unusual rise in tem-
peratures capped off a year that began
last January with a deadly snowstorm
that blanketed large parts of the coun-
try and brought Madrid to a standstill
as the city experienced its heaviest
snowfall in 50 years.
“It’s been a year of extremes,” said
Del Campo. The snowstorm left some
municipalities grappling with tem-
peratures as low as -25C, while days
later the coastal city of Alicante saw
temperatures rocket to nearly 30C.
“We’ve never seen -25C and nearly
30C in the same month,” said Del
Campo. “That’s not something we’ve
ever seen in Spain.”
Italy also experienced extreme
weather events in 2021, with Siracusa,
a town in Sicily, believed to have
broken the European record for the
highest temperature ever recorded –
48.8C – in August amid a protracted
heatwave.
‘My children are scared’
Wife of man arrested in
Iran says he was tortured
Patrick Wintour
Diplomatic editor
S
ix years ago on New
Year’s Day, an Iranian-
Austrian IT businessman
said goodbye to his wife
and three children and
boarded a flight from
Vienna to Tehran via Istanbul.
Kamran Ghaderi was due to
return five to six days later, but
instead, on 2 January 2016, he was
arrested and has now spent six
years in Evin prison in Tehran.
In October 2016, he was
sentenced to 10 years for spying for
a foreign country at a trial in which
neither he nor his lawyer were
able to say more than two words.
His sentencing was based on a
confession he gave under what his
wife, Harika, says was torture.
“The effect on our three children
– that is the most painful aspect of
this story,” says Harika. “I cannot
comfort them. My daughters were
nine and 12. Now they are 15 and
18. Our boy was two years old
and now he is eight. He does not
remember his father. The older
children were scared they might be
arrested too.”
On this harrowing anniversary,
Harika recalls every aspect of
her husband’s disappearance. In
advance of his visit, there had been
no reason to be wary. Ghaderi –
who had left Iran in 1983 to study
electrical engineering in Vienna –
was not a political activist.
He had been on many business
trips across the Middle East as an
IT consultant, and in 2015, after
the Iran nuclear deal, he went
on an official Austrian business
delegation to Tehran led by the
then Austrian president, Heinz
Fischer. Relations were on the up.
Usually on his trips to Tehran,
he stayed with his elderly mother.
Harika says: “On the first day, I do
not usually call him because he has
a lot of meetings so I normally wait
31
a day. This time when I spoke with
his mother, she said, ‘No, he is not
here’, so that was a big shock.
“I first thought he might have
had a heart attack on the plane.
The airport said they had no such
information. Next I thought a taxi
driver had attacked him for his
money – all kinds of things were in
my mind, but I never ever had the
thought that he had been arrested
by the government. The next day,
his brother went to Tehran airport
and he was told he had been
arrested and taken from there.
“We did not know who had
arrested him, or for what reason.
One and a half months after his
arrest, the IRGC [the Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps,
a branch of the Iranian armed
forces] allowed him to call me,
and he was allowed to say, ‘I am
alive. Take care of yourself and the
children.’ I asked him what had
happened and – he was crying – he
said he was not allowed to tell me.
“Three months later, his
mother received a call and was
told she could visit him. He had
lost 16 kilos and he told her under
pressure he had signed two
confessions.”
Ghaderi finds it painful that her
husband is still in jail, innocent,
and cut off from his family, save
a daily phone call, while the
Austrian foreign ministry has
hosted since April an Iranian
delegation to discuss the future of
the country’s nuclear deal.
It is perhaps not a coincidence
that French, German, British and
US dual nationals are held by Iran,
their countries being among the
signatories to the stalled nuclear
deal, but the detention of Ghaderi
is a puzzle. Ghaderi explains: “I
have come to realise this was a
business for Iran, so my question
to the Austrian ministry was
‘why him, what do they want in
return for Kamran?’ It may not be
something directly from Austria
but from the EU.”
 Kamran
Ghaderi with
his wife,
Harika, before
his arrest in
Iran in 2016.
Their three
children have
been affected
most, she says
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

32 World

New sanctions would

negotiations. Russia would not allow
the talks to be dragged out by west-
ern nations, he said. “If there is no
France bans
constructive response within a rea- ‘aberration’ of
be big mistake, top sonable time and the west continues
its aggressive line, then Russia will
be forced to take all necessary meas- plastic wrap on
Putin aide tells west many fruit and
ures to ensure strategic balance and
eliminate unacceptable threats to our
security,” Lavrov added.
▲ Joe Biden’s phone call with Putin An analysis by the Conflict Intel-
ligence Team, bloggers and analysts
vegetables
sanctions on Moscow if Russian security council, Oleksiy Danilov, who collect open source intelligence
Andrew Roth forces attacked Ukrainian forces. said this week that Kyiv was con- on Russian military movements,
Moscow Yuri Ushakov, a Kremlin aide, said cerned about Russian troops on the shows Russian military equipment
that Putin said that new sanctions border but there was no panic. “As has continued going to the area to the Angelique Chrisafis
Russia’s top diplomat has told the could lead to a “complete breakdown for the troop build-up near our bor- north-east of Ukraine and Crimea in Paris
west that its “aggressive” approach to in ties between our countries”, telling ders reported by foreign media – we the last month. The group concluded
Ukraine and threat of sanctions could the media late on Thursday evening: do not see that. There is a certain that “by the new year the concen- A new law banning plastic packag-
force Moscow to “eliminate unaccep- “Our president also mentioned that it increase of [Russian] military and tration of vehicles near Ukraine’s ing for many fruits and vegetables
table threats” to its security, after a would be a mistake, that our descend- we closely monitor what’s happen- borders and in Crimea has reached comes into force in France today, to
high-stakes conversation between ants would see as a huge error.” ing at our borders.” an unprecedented scale, most likely end what the government has called
Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden failed The US and other western coun- Ukrainian military intelligence surpassing the April figures”. the “aberration” of over-wrapped
to de-escalate the crisis. tries have said that Russia is massing had previously warned of a massive Russia created a massive buildup carrots, apples and bananas.
The remarks by the Russian for- military equipment on Ukraine’s buildup of Russian military equip- of troops earlier last year, leading to President Emmanuel Macron has
eign minister, Sergei Lavrov, were borders for what could be a poten- ment on the border and the potential a summit between Putin and Biden called the ban on plastic packaging of
published shortly after the presi- tial invasion force. Thousands of of a large-scale offensive by mid Jan- in Geneva in June. fresh produce “a real revolution” and
dents of Russia and the US held a Ukrainian civilians have taken part in uary. Russian delegations are set to But Russia is not yet ready to says France is taking the lead globally
50-minute phone call in which they combat training in case of a potential meet US, Nato, and OSCE officials this launch the operation, the Conflict with its law to phase out all single-use
traded threats regarding tensions Russian assault, although the situa- month for talks on European security. Intelligence Team noted, adding that plastics by 2040.
over Ukraine. tion in the country was largely normal Lavrov told RIA Novosti that a limited strike on the Ukrainian mili- Spain will introduce a ban on plas-
During the call Biden told Putin ahead of the new year holiday. Russia insisted on US and Nato mil- tary was more likely than a large-scale tic packaging of fruit and vegetables
that the US would impose serious The head of Ukraine’s national itary officials taking part in those operation to seize and hold territory. from 2023. For years, campaigners
have warned that unnecessary plastic
packaging is causing environmental
damage and pollution at sea.
From today, France will ban super-
markets and other shops from selling
Teatime for cucumbers wrapped in plastic, as
well as peppers, courgettes, auber-
the Taliban gines and leeks in plastic packaging.
Taliban A total of 30 types of fruit and vegeta-
fighters chat bles will be banned from any plastic
over cups wrapping, including bananas, pears,
lemons, oranges and kiwis.
of tea at a Packs of over 1.5kg will be exempt,
restaurant in as will chopped or processed fruit.
Kabul. The Some varieties, including cherry
tomatoes or soft fruits such as rasp-
city fell to berries and blueberries, will be given
the military longer for producers to find alterna-
regime on tives, but plastic packaging will be
phased out for all whole fruits and
15 August, vegetables by 2026.
marking With an estimated 37% of fruit and
the end of vegetables sold wrapped in plastic
in France in 2021, the government
Ashraf Ghani’s believes the ban will avoid more than
government in 1bn items of single-use plastic pack-
Afghanistan. aging per year.
The practice exasperates con-
sumers not only in France but its
neighbours too. Nearly 75% of British
people have experienced “anxiety,
frustration or hopelessness” at the
amount of plastic that comes with
their shopping and only 59% said
they thought retailers were doing
enough to offer refillable, reusable
PHOTOGRAPH:
MOHD RASFAN/AFP or packaging-free products, accord-
ing to a poll commissioned by Friends
of the Earth and City to Sea in June.

Spanish town
Chacón, who was due to be in prison 65 miles from the prison. At the end An Ifop poll for the World Wild-
Ashifa Kassam until 2025 after murdering a 24-year- of the summer, the municipality’s life Fund France in 2019 found 85%
Madrid old in 1996, was already notorious for 7,900 residents began trading stories of people were in favour of ban-

on alert for Residents in the north-western

Spanish region of Galicia have
‘Galician banded together to track down a
convicted murderer – nicknamed
slipping out of prison twice.
His first escape was in 1999, when
he reportedly used sheets to shimmy
down the walls of the Pontevedra
prison. For more than two years he
of items that had mysteriously gone
missing from their kitchens, such as
ning single-use plastic products and
packaging.
biscuits, beers and cold meats.
Others had closer calls; one man
recounted how he had stumbled

Rambo’ after the Galician Rambo for his jailbreaks

and extensive knowledge of survival
techniques – who is believed to be
prison escape living in a wooded area.
Alfredo Sánchez Chacón has been
on the run since March when he
failed to return to prison after being
allowed out on a day pass. News that
the 63-year-old was missing proba-
bly surprised few people; Sánchez
lived on the run, using his training
as a former member of the Spanish
Legion to hide in the countryside.
In 2001, he managed to break out
of prison again, but his taste of free-
dom lasted just 25 minutes before he
was caught, according to local media
This time around months went by
before alarm bells began to sound
in the small town of Pontedeume,
across a man in his kitchen, peering
into an open fridge in the middle of
the night.
Suspicions that it could be Sánchez
Chacón intensified last week after a
hunter stumbled upon a man who
matched the fugitive’s description
– an elderly man who walked with a
noticeable limp – living in a makeshift ▲ Plastic packaging at a grocery stall
camp in dense woodland. in Paris. A ban comes into force today
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
‘She knew how
to show power’
The death of
mafia leader
Lady Camorra
Clare Longrigg
N
o crowds attended
the cortege for the
woman known as
“Lady Camorra”,
Pupetta Maresca,
who died this week
in Castellammare di Stabia, aged
86. The mafia boss had been the
centre of such frenzied media
attention in life that Naples
authorities declared she would not
have a public send-off in death.
“We are seeing on social media a
glorification of this woman … The
mythologising of bosses is to be
avoided at all costs,” the regional
councillor for the Europa Verde
party, Francesco Emilio Borrelli,
said in a letter to the Naples police.
Maresca, a tiny woman with
great charisma, made headlines
at 18 when she murdered her
husband’s killer in broad daylight
– an act of revenge made more
dramatic by her youth and beauty,
and the fact she was six months
pregnant. “I would do it again in a
heartbeat!” she declared at her trial.
She was the subject of a number
of films and TV shows that depicted
her as a glamorous avenger; in
one fictional treatment she played
herself. “Pupetta understood the
rules of the game,” said Barbie
Latza Nadeau, who interviewed
her recently for a forthcoming
book. “She kept a scrapbook of
newspaper cuttings about herself.
She enjoyed the publicity. She
Trucker’s prison sentence for
fatal crash cut by 100 years
Dani Anguiano
Los Angeles
Colorado’s governor has intervened
to reduce the 110-year sentence
handed down to a trucker for his role
in a fatal 2019 collision after wide-
spread outcry and calls for leniency.
Jared Polis said he would commute
the sentence for Rogel Aguilera-
Mederos, reducing his sentence from
110 years to 10 years. Under the new
sentence, the 26-year-old would be
eligible for parole in five years.
“I am writing to inform you that
I am granting your application for a
•
World
 Assunta
‘Pupetta’
Maresca
astonished the
media when she
denounced a
mafia rival in a
press conference
PHOTOGRAPH: NAPOLI/
ROPI/ZUMA PRESS/
EYEVINE
understood her power and when to
play the woman card.”
Maresca used publicity to protect
herself and draw attention away
from her gangster brothers. After
the serial killer Raffaele Cutolo
launched a new organisation to
take on the traditional Camorra
families, in 1982 she called a
press conference to denounce the
“power-crazed madman” – an act
so astonishing the press went mad
for it. “Pupetta Maresca … was
ahead of her time,” said Gabriella
commutation,” Polis wrote. “I believe
you deserve clemency for several rea-
sons. You were sentenced to 110 years
in prison, effectively more than a life
sentence, for a tragic but uninten-
tional act.”
Polis said the sentence was “simply
not commensurate” with Aguilera-
Mederos’ “actions, nor with penalties
handed down to others for similar
crimes”.
In October, a jury convicted Agu-
ilera-Mederos of vehicular homicide
and other charges related to a deadly
collision that occurred while he was
hauling lumber in the Rocky Moun-
tain foothills. He has said that the
‘Pupetta understood
the rules of the
game. She enjoyed
the publicity and
understood when to
play the woman card’
Barbie Latza Nadeau
Writer
brakes on his truck failed as he was
descending a steep section of the
highway, leading to four deaths and
a multi-vehicle pileup.
The lengthy sentence, which the
judge said he was obliged to give Agu-
ilera-Mederos because of minimum
sentencing laws in the state, was
widely condemned and fuelled crit-
icism of the US justice system.
More than 5 million people signed
a petition calling for Polis to grant
clemency to Aguilera-Mederos or
commute his sentence, an effort for
which truckers, civil rights groups
and celebrities such as Kim Kar-
dashian voiced support.
“It is a stark miscarriage of justice,”
said Domingo Garcia, the president
of the League of United Latin Amer-
ican Citizens (Lulac), of the sentence.
Lulac sent a letter to Polis on behalf
of Aguilera-Mederos, a Cuban
Gribaudi of the University of
Naples. “Women have a much more
prominent role in the Camorra than
in the other mafias.”
Women such as Anna Moccia,
the “Black Widow”, and Maria
Licciardi, the “Little One”, are
figures of considerable power in the
Camorra. Moccia had four sons, and
when her husband was killed, she
sent her 13-year-old into a Naples
courthouse with a gun to shoot his
father’s killer. Licciardi took the
reins of the clan after her brothers
immigrant, requesting a pardon or a
reduction of his sentence, and Gar-
cia travelled to meet the governor.
Kardashian, a criminal justice
reform advocate, was among those
who praised the governor’s decision.
“This case was a clear example of
why mandatory minimums don’t
work and need to be abolished. I’m
grateful to Governor Polis for his
▲ Rogel Aguilera-Mederos says
that the brakes failed on his truck
33
▲ ‘Celeste’ Giuliano was famous for
her friendship with Diego Maradona
went to prison. Her nephew, known
as the “Little Prince”, carried out
a series of hits on her command.
“Both women wiped out their
enemies over time,” says Gribaudi.
“And they ran the clan’s business
affairs very successfully.”
These business affairs have kept
Naples and its satellite towns in a
state of critical underinvestment,
unemployment and cyclical
poverty for 150 years. The Camorra
has infiltrated local authorities
and run public works contracts for
roads, schools and hospitals like a
cartel. Its brand of loan sharking,
traditionally controlled by women,
typically involves an enforced
“partnership” in which the original
owner loses control of the business.
The Contini Bosti group
consolidated its power when three
sisters, Anna, Maria and Rita Aieta,
married three bosses and brought
the families together. After their
husbands were arrested, the sisters
took over and ran the extortion
racket. “When they went to make
collections they would take female
muscle,” said Gribaudi. They also
have a keen eye for branding,
driving identical yellow cars so
people know they’re coming.
The Giuliano family from
Forcella cultivated a rock-star
image, protected by a cult-like
following. Erminia Giuliano, known
as Celeste for her bright blue eyes,
took over the family business when
her brothers became collaborators
(pentiti), which she refused to do.
Glamorous and famous for her
friendship with Diego Maradona,
when police arrested her in 2001,
she insisted on having her hair and
makeup done before walking into
court. She had learned from the
master, Pupetta Maresca. “Pupetta
knew how to show her power,” said
Felia Allum of the University of
Bath, “which is traditionally a male
trait. She never hid.”
empathy and leadership on this case,”
Kardashian wrote on Twitter.
The decision was among several
end-of-the-year commutations and
pardons issued by Polis. A judge had
scheduled a hearing next month
to reconsider the sentence at the
request of the district attorney, who
had planned to ask that it be reduced
to 20 to 30 years.
The ACLU of Colorado has
expressed hope the case will prompt
reform of mandatory minimum sen-
tencing laws in the state.
“The extraordinary nature of this
particular case has prompted com-
ments from some lawmakers that
they may be interested in doing
that,” said Mark Silverstein, the legal
director of the ACLU of Colorado.
“Sometimes it takes an extraordinary
case like this that put something to
the top of the legislative agenda.”
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

34 News
Coronavirus

German virologist
sounds note of
optimism over
spread of variant
Philip Oltermann
Berlin
Germany’s leading coronavirus
expert has expressed optimism that
his country could expect a “relatively
normal” winter in 2022 as Europe
rang in the new year in muted
fashion, with many countries limit-
ing celebrations.
As the Omicron variant fuels a
record-breaking surge in infections
across the continent, many gov-
ernments curtailed mass public
gatherings and either closed or
imposed curfews on nightclubs.
But Christian Drosten, who heads
the institute of virology at Berlin’s
Charité hospital, said yesterday that
data from other countries suggest-
ing Omicron infections were milder
could take the pandemic into an
“endemic situation” more compa-
rable to a common cold or flu virus.
“Of course, it is a good situation if
you have a virus that no longer makes
you ill but transmits easily so that it
can seek out and find all of the immu-
nity gaps among the population and
still trigger regular updates in immu-
nity,” Drosten said.
Nonetheless, the coronavirus
expert said he expected indoor mask-
wearing mandates and an updated
top-up dose of a vaccine to be nec-
essary to protect vulnerable people
over the course of the coming year.
Germany was at a disadvantage
because it had a higher percentage
than other EU countries of people,
especially over 60, who had been
neither vaccinated nor infected with
the virus, he said, adding: “Those are,
of course, seriously at risk.”
In his first new year’s address, the
German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, will
urge unvaccinated citizens to have
the jab. As of yesterday, 71.2% of Ger-
mans are considered fully vaccinated,
the lowest rate in western Europe
other than the UK and Switzerland.
“It’s clear to all of us: the pandemic
is not over,” Scholz said. “I appeal to
all of you: let yourself be vaccinated.”
After days of sinking infection
rates, Germany’s disease control
agency reported an increased seven-
day incidence of 214.9 for every
100,000 people, with 41,270 new
infections and 323 deaths reported
in the last 24 hours.
Although deaths have not risen as
fast as Omicron infections, leaving
hope that the new variant is milder,
many countries in Europe and around
the world imposed New Year’s Eve
restrictions.
Firework displays were called off
at sites ranging from the Acropo-
lis in Athens to the Champs Élysées

Isolation EU countries act

in Paris. Social gatherings across of the virus and keeping national
Cruz mocked over mix-up Germany have been limited to 10 economies up and running.
people since 28 December, with an “It is a trade-off between the sci-

The Texas senator Ted Cruz has

been ridiculed for posting a tweet
in which he confused the US state
of Washington with Western
Australia. The Republican –
who tried to win the party’s
presidential nomination in 2016
– retweeted a post by the state of
Western Australia, whose handle
is WA Government, appearing
to advise a woman that dancing
would not permitted at a New
Year’s Eve party at her home.
Cruz, who has campaigned
against pandemic restrictions,
took it as a cue to accuse the
Democratic party-led state of
Washington, whose widely used
abbreviation is WA, of being
“power-drunk authoritarian kill-
joys”. This was despite the fact
that the original tweet did not
mention Washington.
Cruz soon deleted the tweet
– but not before it was picked
up by opponents, who mocked
him gleefully for his error.
Even his fellow Republican
Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois
congressman, told Cruz to “do
your research before posting
misinformation”. Martin Farrer
exception for New Year’s Eve. Entry
to non-essential shops, restaurants
and bars is restricted to fully vacci-
nated people.
In France, the prime minister, Jean
Castex, called on citizens to limit
the number of guests at parties, test
before attending them and respect
social distancing, but stopped short
of imposing a curfew. Greece banned
music in commercial venues for the
night, while in Italy mass outdoor
events were banned.
The Netherlands’ national lock-
down, in force since 19 December,
remained in place, with non-essential
shops and bars and restaurants closed
until 14 January, although people
were allowed four visitors on New
Year’s Eve rather than the usual two.
With countries around the world
urgently seeking to increase the
number of people to have received a
booster vaccine, Israel began giving
fourth jabs yesterday to people with
weakened immunity.
The health ministry approved a
fourth shot for immunocompromised
people on Thursday and heart trans-
plant patients were among the first
to receive the additional shots, to
be followed by retirement home
residents and geriatric patients.
to minimise disruption
in Omicron balancing act
Jon Henley
Ireland has become the latest EU
country to cut the isolation period
for many people who contract Covid-
19, as record infection numbers spark
fears of crippling staff shortages in
essential public services, as well as
retail and hospitality venues.
Spain, Portugal and Greece
reduced isolation times this week
while others, such as Germany and
France, are considering doing so.
Italy scrapped its quarantine for
fully vaccinated people who come
into contact with someone who has
tested positive.
The moves follow a similar deci-
sion by the US and reflect early
research suggesting that the highly
transmissible Omicron variant gener-
ally causes milder illness than earlier
variants. However, the sheer num-
ber of people becoming infected or
a contact of someone who tests pos-
itive threatens to cause chaos in
hospitals and on public transport.
“Many Omicron cases are going to
be asymptomatic,” Rochelle Walen-
sky, director of the US Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention,
said on Monday after halving the
recommended isolation time for
asymptomatic people to five from 10
days. “We want to make sure there is
a mechanism by which we can safely
continue to keep society functioning,
while following the science.”
The UK’s Health Security Agency
on Wednesday cut the 10-day self-
isolation period for vaccinated and
unvaccinated people in England who
have tested positive for coronavirus
from 10 days to seven if they get the
all-clear from lateral flow tests.
The World Health Organization
(WHO) has described the decisions
to cut isolation and quarantine peri-
ods as part of a delicate balancing act
between controlling the transmission
ence and being absolutely perfect in
what you try to do, but then having
the minimal disruption you can pos-
sibly have,” said Michael Ryan, WHO
emergencies director. “Governments
are struggling to find that balance.”
The Irish government yesterday
cut the isolation period to seven days
from 10 for people who have tested
positive but received a booster jab
or had Covid in the previous three
months. With the Omicron variant
accounting for 92% of all infections
in Ireland, now running at more than
double their previous record, the
chief medical officer also urged peo-
ple to keep social contacts as low as
possible before New Year’s Eve.
Spain, where infection numbers
have increased five-fold in a month,
cut its isolation period for people
‘It is a trade-off …
Governments are
struggling to find
that balance’
Michael Ryan
WHO
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
▼ A pub in Temple Bar, Dublin. The
Omicron variant now accounts for
92% of all infections in Ireland
PHOTOGRAPH: CHARLES MCQUILLAN/GETTY
who have tested positive to seven
days from 10 on Wednesday after a
meeting between the health min-
ister, Carolina Darias, and regional
health chiefs.
The quarantine period for close
contacts of people who have tested
positive was also reduced to seven
days. The prime minister, Pedro
Sánchez, said Spain needed to strike
“a balance” between public health,
mental health and economic growth.
Portugal followed suit on Thurs-
day, cutting its mandatory isolation
period for people who test positive
but are asymptomatic from 10 days to
seven, after health experts urged the
government to rethink amid concerns
the country could become paralysed.
Greece reduced its isolation period
for coronavirus patients further, to
five days from 10, after the country
set a fourth consecutive daily record
of new infections. “The evidence we
have from Omicron is encouraging,”
said Greece’s health minister, Thanos
Plevris. Members of the public who
come into contact with a confirmed
Covid case will have to quarantine
for five days then get a test, but quar-
antine will not be required for those
who have already received a booster.
Italy chose a different course, leav-
ing its isolation period untouched but
scrapping quarantine for those com-
ing into contact with someone who
•
has tested positive providing they
have had a booster shot, recently
recovered or been vaccinated.
They will have to wear a more pro-
tective FFP2 (equivalent to KN95 or
N95 in other regions) mask for 10 days
and take a test within five days of the
contact with the positive person – but
only if they are showing symptoms.
Italy’s deputy health secretary,
Andrea Costa, said: “I think it is rea-
sonable to apply different rules to
those citizens who have followed
the government’s indications, tak-
ing two doses and then the booster.”
Germany’s Der Spiegel reported
this week that the health minister,
Karl Lauterbach, favoured shorten-
ing quarantine periods amid fears the
country would soon grind to a halt
given how many people are having
to self-isolate protectively.
The Robert Koch Institute for
infectious diseases currently recom-
mends that infected people and their
contacts in Germany, where case
numbers have recently started to rise,
quarantine for 14 days, even if they
are fully vaccinated or recovered.
France currently operates a seven-
day isolation period, and up to 17-day
quarantine for people living in the
same household as someone who
tests positive. The health minister,
Olivier Véran, is due to announce any
change tomorrow.
In-flight test
Air passenger
stays in jet’s
toilet after
positive result
Samantha Lock
A woman has told how she confined
herself to a plane’s toilet cubicle
after testing positive for Covid half-
way through a flight from Chicago
to Iceland.
Marisa Fotieo, a teacher from
Michigan, in the US, said her throat
began to hurt halfway through the
trip so she went to the bathroom to
perform a Covid test which confirmed
she was infected.
“I just took my rapid test and I
brought it into the bathroom, and
within what felt like two seconds
there were two lines [indicating a
positive test],” Fotieo told NBC News.
“There are 150 people on the flight,
and my biggest fear was giving it to
them,” she said.
Sharing the news over TikTok,
Fotieo posted a short video from
inside the cramped quarters, writ-
ing: “POV you test positive for Covid
while over the Atlantic Ocean.
“Shout out to Icelandair for my VIP
quarantine quarters,” she added.
Fotieo said she stayed in the bath-
room for the remainder of the flight,
relying on flight attendant Ragnhil-
dur “Rocky” Eiríksdóttir to provide
food and drinks.
Fotieo’s TikTok video has been
viewed more than 4m times since it
was first uploaded on 21 December,
with viewers curious to know how
she had been allowed to board the
flight.
Fotieo addressed the concerns in
the platform’s comments section,
explaining that she received two neg-
ative PCR tests before boarding. “I
never made it to my destination,” she
updated fans over TikTok. “Quaran-
tined in Iceland now.”
In an apparent attempt to keep
entertained during the mandatory
10-day isolation, Fotieo has since
posted a series of videos from inside
her quarantine hotel which is in
Reykjavík.
In an interview with CNN, Fotieo
said she was fully vaccinated with a
booster shot and had been en route
to her final destination of Switzerland
with her brother and father when she
tested positive mid-flight.
“I opted to stay in the bathroom
because I did not want to be around
others on the flight,” the early child-
hood teacher said.
▲ Marisa Fotieo in the plane loo. She
is now in quarantine in Reykjavík
▲ Outdoor yoga near the South Island town of Wanaka. Some in the wellness
sector are sceptical of Covid vaccinations PHOTOGRAPH: MARIDAV/ALAMY STOCK
Yoga position Studios shut
as jab sceptics stay away
Leni Ma’ia’i
Auckland
T
hree weeks ago in
Wanaka, a tourist
town at the foot
of New Zealand’s
Southern Alps, three
of the four local yoga
studios simultaneously closed their
doors, deciding they were unable
– or unwilling – to operate under
Aotearoa’s “traffic light” system
which requires teachers and clients
alike to be double vaccinated.
“The last time I went there
there was nothing at the class to
suggest things were changing,
then I went online to book my next
class and found I couldn’t do that,”
said Judith Cullen, who had been
enjoying yoga as an important part
of her routine.
One studio owner said: “Our
studio is all about inclusion and
if we can’t include everyone we’ll
include no one.”
If local vaccination rates are
anything to go by any vaccine
scepticism in the town is relatively
confined. According to the most
recent data from the Queenstown
Lakes District more than 99% of
people in the region are double
vaccinated, putting the small
minority of those remaining
unvaccinated in stark relief.
New Zealand’s overall
vaccination rate stands at 91% of
the eligible population and about
40% of the workforce is covered by
vaccine mandates.
Issues with vaccine hesitancy
are evident elsewhere in the
country. In the Auckland region
the indications are that some yoga
studios have lost as many as 40%
of their instructors because of the
vaccination mandates.
Laura Indrine, a pilates teacher
who taught at one of the Wanaka
studios before its closure, took on
clients privately. “The vaccination
rate in Wanaka and Queenstown
lakes is very high and a lot of people
who want to practise and keep fit
may be feeling really let down.”
Wellness culture has grown into
35
a big industry in recent years in
New Zealand. Globally, the sector
is thought to be valued at $1.5tn.
A focus is on optimising people’s
physical and mental states, often
by sidelining modern medicine in
favour of “natural” alternatives.
For many steeped in the
industry, the Covid-19 vaccine,
designed by big pharma and
disseminated by mandate via big
government, runs contrary to their
belief system.
Indrine, a “reactive pro-vaxxer”,
worries that the idea of wellness
is being distorted. “I’m sad about
it because I’m working in this
wellness industry and I feel people
who work in wellness should
promote health, but it’s gone wrong
somewhere.”
Where things went wrong may
not be clear, but few can dispute
the powerful role social media has
had in the rise of anti-vax thought
in the global wellness community.
David Farrier, a journalist
who has investigated the rise
of conspiracy theories online,
said: “If you’re looking at yoga or
wellness, you already have some
pretty thriving accounts that are
popular, as it is. And what you
find is that often it’s a subtle pivot,
and sometimes a less subtle pivot,
where these wellness accounts will
be posting similar photos, but the
captions underneath will start to
include some incredibly strong anti
vax rhetoric.”
The rise of this social media
disinformation was almost too
much for Ursula Griffen, owner of
a mindfulness company. Despite
having had vaccines her entire life
and never thinking twice about
it, the disinformation around the
Covid vaccine led her to spend
weeks considering whether or not
to get the jab.
Eventually science, and helpful
words from her brother overseas,
brought her over the line and she
got her vaccine at a drive-through
clinic in South Auckland. “I took
my beads – cedar berries – for
protective energy and said to
myself ‘I’m divinely protected’. I
got the Pfizer [jab] too.”

36
South
Africa
pauses
to pay
tribute
to Tutu
Jason Burke
Cape Town
Hundreds of mourners queued out-
side Saint George’s Cathedral in Cape
Town yesterday, waiting to pay their
respects before the plain wooden
casket bearing the remains of Arch-
bishop Desmond Tutu, who died six
days ago aged 90.
Clerics, family members, close
friends and dignitaries will attend
a requiem mass for Tutu, a figure-
head of the fight for freedom in South
Africa, this morning. Their numbers
will be restricted by Covid regula-
tions. The country’s president, Cyril
Ramaphosa, is expected to read a
eulogy.
Though the former archbishop
of Cape Town had largely retreated
from public life in recent years, he
continued his lifelong fight for causes
he believed in, forcefully support-
ing LGBT rights, equal access to
education and the assisted dying
movement.
Tributes from world leaders
poured in after Tutu’s death was
announced on Sunday and in South
Africa many have been deeply moved
by the passing of the last great hero
of the struggle against the repressive,
racist apartheid regime.
In a national address, Ramaphosa
called Tutu a man of “extraordinary
intellect, integrity and invincibility
against the forces of apartheid”.
Church bells have been rung at
noon across South Africa every day
and flags flown at half mast for the
man often described as the “moral
compass” of his country. There have
been dozens of memorial services,
Anger at death of woman, 21,
in Sierra Leone after FGM
Emmanuel Akinwotu
West Africa correspondent
The death of a young woman in Sierra
Leone almost immediately after
undergoing female genital mutila-
tion has sparked outrage and revived
calls to end the practice.
The body of Maseray Sei was found
on 20 December at Nyandeni village
in Bonthe district, southern Sierra
Leone, a day after the FGM took
place. Sei’s family said that following
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
World
the procedure the 21-year-old mother
of two had complained of a migraine
and was in pain, with complications
from FGM thought to be the cause,
according to activists working on
the case. The family are pressing for
a postmortem.
Sei’s body was found in a “Bondo
bush”, the enclosure of a house
belonging to the centuries-old secret
Bondo society, common across Sierra
Leone, where FGM often takes place.
Sierra Leone has one of the high-
est rates of FGM in the world, with
 The simple
coffin is carried
up the steps
of St George’s
Cathedral
PHOTOGRAPH:
NIC BOTHMA/EPA
▼ Long queues
of people arrive
to pay their
respects as Tutu
lies in state
PHOTOGRAPH:
JEROME DELAY/AP
nine out of 10 women and girls aged
between 15 and 49 affected, accord-
ing to Unicef.
Despite restrictions on secret soci-
eties since the deadly Ebola outbreak
in 2014, and particularly on their
initiation rites, of which FGM is often
a part, the practice remains legal in
the west African country, with pol-
iticians accused of funding Bondo
houses.
The societies are important cul-
tural institutions, rooted in ancient
rituals believed to protect communi-
ties against evil and guide adolescent
girls to womanhood.
After Sei’s death, police arrested
a number of soweis – senior society
members who do the cutting in FGM –
as well as a village chief in the Bonthe
South Africa’s cricket team wore
black armbands on day one of the first
Test against India in South Africa, and
Cape Town’s Table Mountain was lit
up in purple in his honour.
Tutu, who requested a funeral
without lavish expense or ostenta-
tion, will be cremated and his ashes
interred beneath the floor of St
George’s behind the cathedral pul-
pit, church officials said.
Since Thursday morning, mourn-
ers have filed through the cathedral
to light candles. Many sat in the pews
to pray and reflect.
The cathedral, the Anglican
church’s oldest in southern Africa,
dating back to 1847, was converted by
Tutu into a centre of anti-apartheid
activity during the 1980s. When the
regime banned political gatherings,
Tutu held meetings in the cathe-
dral where participants bowed their
heads ostensibly in prayer and heard
political speeches. Nelson Mandela,
a close friend of the cleric, called it
the “People’s Cathedral”.
Among the mourners, young activ-
ists said they had been inspired by
“The Arch”, as Tutu was known.
“We believe the Arch stood for the
same values that we want to aspire
to in society,” Irfaan Mangera, a pro-
Palestinian South African activist,
told Reuters as he waited in the long
queue, draped in the Palestinian
district, who is responsible for regu-
lating the secret societies.
Rugiatu Turay, an activist and a
former deputy minister for gender
in Sierra Leone, said the case was
another shocking example of the
toll of FGM.
“It’s a tragic case and, in a way,
shows how many more people
like her have died or are suffering,
‘It shows how many
people like her have
died or are suffering’
Rugiatu Turay
FGM activist
 Members of
▲ A young
Desmond Tutu’s trumpeter joins
family arrive the Anglican
at St George’s Church band’s
Cathedral in musical
Cape Town commemoration
PHOTOGRAPH: CHARLIE for the former
SHOEMAKER/GETTY archbishop
keffiyeh. “[Tutu] was one of the fig-
ures who continuously united us …
and we want to continue in that path
as young South African activists who
emulate the values of non-racialism
and non-sexism.”
Others remembered his modesty.
“He was a very humble man but to
sit in the same room with him, you
could feel the strength of his pres-
ence, of his convictions,” said Rev
Maria Claassen, an Anglican priest
in Cape Town. “He inspired us and
now we celebrate his life.”
Amanda Mbikwana, 29, who was
born just before the end of apart-
heid, said she had come to remember
Tutu for “all he has done for us as
Africans”.
Tutu’s career in the church began
in 1958 after he resigned from a
sought-after teaching post in protest
against South Africa’s discriminatory
laws. By the late 1970s, he was one of
the leaders of the freedom struggle
and the figure who was probably best
known overseas. He played a lead-
ing role in forcing western leaders to
confront their tacit support for white-
minority rule in South Africa.
In recent years, Tutu did not shy
away from criticism of the African
National Congress party, which has
been in power in South Africa for 27
years. He attacked the party’s failures
and alleged corruption.
Today’s service will be an Anglican
requiem mass led by Michael Nuttall,
the retired bishop of Natal, who was
known as “number two to Tutu”, said
church officials.
because the majority of cases are
unreported,” she said.
Turay chairs a coalition of 21
national groups fighting FGM, which
is putting pressure on the authorities
to carry out the postmortem. “It’s the
next important step for us to get clar-
ity in this case,” she said.
Senesie Amara, an activist work-
ing with Sei’s family, said relatives
reported she had been in good health
the day before the FGM.
“She went to fetch wood and water
for her aunt, she was physically fine
on 18 December. That night she slept
at the Bondo house, and that was
when things got bad,” Amara said.
“For the family, it’s very shocking.”
Sei was the mother of sons aged
four and six months.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
FTSE 100 All share
-18.47 - 9.68
7384.54 4208.02
New Brexit checks to cause
‘lasting damage to EU trade’
Phillip Inman
Britain’s small businesses should
expect trade with the EU to be “per-
manently damaged” from 1 January,
the refrigerated supply chain trade
body has warned, after new customs
checks take effect that will make
imports from the bloc “more expen-
sive, less flexible and much slower”.
Amid growing public dismay at the
negative impact of Brexit, the Cold
Chain Federation (CCF) said speci-
ality food imports could suffer the
same 70% decline that hit exports of
food by small businesses this year
after Britain quit the EU single mar-
ket and customs union.
Energy
Rising prices
the ‘breaking
point’ for
small firms
Jillian Ambrose
Energy correspondent
‘T
he future is far from
certain,” says Julian
Pariera, the owner
of Beauchamp
Laundry Services in
Birmingham. “I’m
extremely concerned at how things
are panning out.”
Pariera is one of thousands of
small business owners who will
bear the brunt of the national
energy crisis that risks driving the
UK to a cost of living crisis within
the next year. Before next winter,
he will need to renegotiate an
energy deal to run the washers and
clothes dryers that his customers
rely on after a record surge in
energy market prices.
“We fix our energy tariffs for up
to five years, and every time we
renew a deal it seems to double.
This time I won’t be surprised if
our energy costs quadruple. It’s
madness,” he says. “These costs
can’t be reflected in our charges
because if we put up our prices by
this much our customers wouldn’t
be able to afford it.”
For now, it is still more affordable
•
Dow Indl Nikkei 225
+7.30 0 .0000
36405.38 28791.71
Extra costs that amount to £300
to £400 per consignment will mean
sales of food to EU countries in small
batches could become uneconomic,
said the CCF, which lobbies on behalf
of firms that transport frozen and
chilled goods.
“The big casualty of these trade
barriers is the business that needs to
import small and frequent quantities
across borders,” said Shane Brennan,
the federation’s chief executive. “A
pallet load of speciality cheeses or
boxes of onion powder. This is the
sort of trade that is going to suffer.”
Business groups have called on the
government to soften its stance in
negotiations with the EU to prevent a
collapse in trade with the bloc. While
ministers have agreed to extend the
for many of his customers to bring
in damp clothes and linen to be
tumble-dried during the winter
than run their own dryers at home,
Pariera says. But at some point in
the next year he may need to adjust
his dryers to offer fewer minutes for
each pound spent.
These concerns are shared
by small businesses across the
country, which employ almost
13 million staff and make £1.6tn
in turnover every year. The
Federation of Small Businesses has
warned energy costs are the top
concern of its members and could
prove to be “an existential threat”.
Ibrahim Dogus, the owner of
three restaurants near the London
Eye, says a “vicious circle” of rising
costs and falling revenue means
£/€ £/$
1.1910 1.3544
0.0000 +0.0048
deadline for veterinary checks on
food crossing the border, there has
been little progress to cut red tape.
Mike Cherry, the chair of the Fed-
eration of Small Businesses, said a
survey in the autumn showed only a
quarter of firms were prepared for the
introduction of full import checks.
“We don’t have any indication
that the level of preparedness has
improved, especially as the festive
trading season has been so disrupted
yet again,” he said, adding that one
in five small firms that do business
internationally have given up selling
to clients in the EU since the transi-
tion period on exports ended.
Rising food prices have played a
part in the increase in inflation over
the past six months. Economists
even longstanding eateries in prime
locations are struggling to secure
affordable energy deals. Many
suppliers refuse to offer contracts
to restaurants without a hefty
security deposit, or charge eye-
watering rates to guard against the
risk they might go under, he says.
“Before the recent price hike I’d
pay between £2,500 and £3,000 a
month for energy at one restaurant.
But my latest bill for November was
£5,600. At the same time, turnover
has fallen to between 10% and 15%
of what it used to be ... but our
costs are still climbing. We’re quite
worried.”
Dogus has already cut his staff
from 60 to 25, made use of the
government’s support schemes,
and negotiated payment plans to
fear higher import charges will raise
prices further, forcing the Bank of
England to increase interest rates at
a faster pace than anticipated.
The consumer prices index hit
5.2% in November and is expected to
soar above 6% in the spring as higher
food import costs and a surge in gas
prices push up the cost of living.
UK food and drink exports to the
EU fell by 24% in the first nine months
of 2021, according to figures from the
Food and Drink Federation, which
said the slump helped knock the
sector’s exports by £2.7bn between
January and September compared
with pre-pandemic levels.
Brennan said exports that occupy
only a fraction of a container have
suffered the most from extra cus-
toms checks on exports, and that is
likely to be repeated when checks
apply to imports. He said importers
will need to satisfy safety rules, pro-
vide customer declarations, and have
the necessary paperwork to ensure
goods move through ports.
Cherry said: “Unless the govern-
ment steps in with more support, the
situation is set to worsen.”
▲ Ibrahim Dogus, the owner of three
London eateries, says energy prices
could be his venues’ breaking point
PHOTOGRAPH: MARTIN GODWIN/THE GUARDIAN
manage the debt he owes to his
landlords and to pay business rates.
But energy companies are the
exception, he says.
“Energy companies are not
interested in helping at all. If you
don’t pay in full for a couple of
months, someone comes to turn off
your lights. Never mind that you
can’t pay them if you can’t serve
customers. It would be over.
“It’s a very difficult moment
for small businesses. There’s been
Brexit, there’s been Covid. But on
top of everything else, energy costs
could be the breaking point.”
37
FTSE rises
from Covid
shock to see
best year
since 2016
Graeme Wearden
The FTSE 100 recorded its best year
since 2016, as UK stocks recovered
from the pandemic shock of 2020.
London’s leading index of blue-
chip shares rallied by 14.3% during
2021, a year after falling 14.3% in its
worst drop since the 2008 financial
crisis. It closed at 7,384 points yester-
day, having started the year at 6,460.
Stocks were lifted during the year
by economic optimism as Covid-19
vaccines allowed economies to reo-
pen, with stimulus packages from
governments and central banks
boosting growth. Investors largely
shrugged off worries about inflation,
ongoing supply chain disruption, and
variants such as Omicron.
The more domestically focused
FTSE 250 index gained 14.6% over
2021 to end the year at 23,480 points,
having hit a record high of 24,353 in
September. Many other stock mar-
kets also rose strongly through the
year, with the MSCI World index of
global equities gaining 17%.
Ashtead Group, the industrial
equipment rental company, was the
best-performing FTSE 100 stock.
It rallied by 73%, after its revenues
were boosted by the global eco-
nomic rebound as major building
sites reopened.
Aerospace group Meggitt surged
58%, after a takeover approach
from US rival Parker-Hannifin,
which is being scrutinized by com-
petition authorities. Mining giant
Glencore (+62%) was lifted by rally-
ing commodity prices, while Royal
Mail jumped 56% thanks to strong
demand for parcel deliveries.
Speciality chemicals producer
Croda gained 53% after a record
performance, including producing
ingredients used in Covid vaccines.
Banks and oil companies also had
strong years, but some of last year’s
“pandemic winners” suffered, with
Ocado falling 26%. IAG, British Air-
ways’ parent company, fell 10%
during 2021, on concerns that the
travel recovery will be delayed by
the Omicron variant.
London lagged behind some Euro-
pean indices, with France’s CAC up
20% and Italy’s FTSE MIB rising 23%.
14.3%
Percentage FTSE 100 rose in 2021. It
also fell by the same figure in 2020,
its worse year since 2008

38
Women to watch in 2022
Leaders take on challenges of
global economy in a new era
Rachel Reeves
Luck plays a big part in politics
and the shadow chancellor
took full advantage of her good
fortune when Keir Starmer tested
positive for Covid just before the
October budget. According to
parliamentary tradition, the leader
of the opposition responds to the
chancellor’s budget speech, but
Starmer’s absence meant Reeves
stepped in and delivered a polished
reply to Rishi Sunak.
No single speech, no matter
how widely praised, will be
enough to revive Labour’s
fortunes after four successive
election defeats and 2022 will be
a crucial year for both the party
and Reeves. The former Bank
of England economist’s task is
to come up with an approach to
running the economy that is radical
enough to be eye-catching, yet
also reassuring. She will need to
do more than attack the Tories for
higher taxes and rising inflation:
she will need to start fleshing out
Labour’s alternative. Larry Elliott
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Financial
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
The task facing the World Trade
Organization’s director general
over the next 12 months is simple:
to save it from irrelevance or –
even worse – from falling apart
completely. When Okonjo-Iweala
was appointed last year, much
was made of her being the first
woman and first African in the
role, but it was her reputation as a
political operator that decided the
contest in her favour. She will need
skills honed as finance minister in
Nigeria and during 25 years at the
World Bank.
The immediate task is to find
agreement to waive patent rights on
Covid vaccines so that developing
countries can produce their own
treatments for the pandemic.
Success there would enhance
Okonjo-Iweala’s reputation as a
political fixer and give her a better
chance of resolving two longer-
running issues.
When it was created in 1995, the
WTO had two core functions: to
deliver multilateral trade deals and
▲ Clockwise:
Labour’s Rachel
Reeves; Sharon
White of John
Lewis; C4 boss
Alex Mahon;
WTO head Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala
MAIN PHOTOGRAPHS:
CHRIS THOMOND/
GUARDIAN; SOPHIA
SPRING/SUNDAY TIMES
to settle trade disputes between
member states. For the past few
years it has struggled to do either
under a succession of technocratic
leaders. The next year will show
whether Okonjo-Iweala can do
better. LE
Kristalina Georgieva
When she was selected to succeed
Christine Lagarde as the managing
director of the International
Monetary Fund, Georgieva was
seen as a safe pair of hands, but it
hasn’t quite turned out that way.
She has become the latest
occupant of her office to be afflicted
by the curse of Washington’s
19th Street, the home of the IMF.
Like Lagarde and her predecessor,
Dominique Strauss-Kahn,
Georgieva has been touched by
scandal and only just clung on
to her job last year. The row over
whether Georgieva tampered with
a report to give a more favourable
impression of China during her
previous job at the World Bank was
a distraction the IMF could have
done without as it sought to deal
with the economic fallout from
the pandemic.
A slowing global recovery,
upward pressure on inflation
caused by supply bottlenecks, the
threat of financial crisis in two of
the bigger middle-income countries
– Turkey and Argentina – and the
buildup of worrying levels of debt
in many low-income nations are
all pressing issues. Georgieva will
have her hands full this year and
must show she has put her personal
troubles behind her. LE
Emma Walmsley
The chief executive of GSK was
masterminding a bold revamp of
Britain’s second-biggest drugmaker
when the New York activist
hedge fund Elliott Management
emerged on the shareholder
register in April. Since then, Elliott
has kept Walmsley – a former
L’Oréal executive who took the
helm at GSK in spring 2017 – on
her toes. GSK has firmly resisted
the hedge fund’s public demands
that she reapply for her job before
the pharmaceutical company’s
demerger of its consumer
healthcare division planned for the
middle of this year.
Walmsley has stuck to her plans,
and has received a boost lately from
a spate of good news. GSK’s long-
acting HIV treatment Vocabria,
which replaces daily tablets with
an injection every two months,
was last month recommended
by the UK’s National Institute for
Health and Care Excellence, which
decides which drugs are available
on the NHS. The company has also
agreed a $1bn (£740m) contract
with the US government to provide
its Covid-19 treatment Sotrovimab,
which has been shown to reduce
hospitalisation and deaths by 79%.
Yet Walmsley may need more
successes in the drugs pipeline to
keep Elliott at bay, and to prove
to other investors that GSK’s
turnaround is under way. It will be
a tense six months until the split of
the business is complete.
Julia Kollewe
Sharon White
The chairman of the John Lewis
Partnership has been in her post
for less than two years, but has
already caused quite a stir. The
former Ofcom boss has already
closed 16 loss-making John Lewis
branches, including the major
Birmingham and Sheffield outlets,
cut thousands of jobs and shelved
the annual staff bonus for 2020. The
staff-owned enterprise’s “partners”
are now waiting to see if that bonus
can be restored through stronger
online sales and new avenues
of business including financial
services, building homes for rent
above some stores, and widening
distribution with outlets on local
high streets.
White is betting that retail alone
will not deliver the kind of profit
margins capable of keeping staff
well remunerated, but there is a
fear that her team’s new ideas are
riskier bets than shops and could be
a distraction.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
 Clockwise:
GSK’s Emma
Walmsley;
Chanel boss
Leena Nair;
TSB CEO Debbie
Crosbie; IMF
boss Kristalina
Georgieva
MAIN PHOTOGRAPH:
GLAXOSMITHKLINE
Waitrose is also facing tricky
times. Having cut ties with the
online specialist Ocado, giving new
life to its rival Marks & Spencer,
the supermarket faces a battalion
of cheaper rivals during a period
of high inflation. Finding cash to
expand its newly independent
online business could be a
challenge. Sarah Butler
Alex Mahon
The chief executive of Channel 4
faces the biggest challenge of
her tenure this year, when the
government’s push to privatise the
broadcaster comes to a head.
Nadine Dorries, the culture
secretary, will soon publish her
final decision on whether to sell
off Channel 4, dampening its 40th
anniversary since it was set up as
a publicly owned, commercially
funded alternative to the BBC and
ITV. Mahon has her work cut out to
fend off what looks like a political
fait accompli, despite widespread
criticism that any new owner
Mahon has her work
cut out to fend off a
Channel 4 sale that
looks like a political
fait accompli despite
widespread criticism
•
would have to make large cuts
to its programming budget, and
scrap commercially unattractive
content to boost profits. And yet,
Mahon may yet win the day, with
Channel 4 having survived about
half a dozen attempts to push the
privatisation agenda over the years.
Mark Sweney
Debbie Crosbie
Crosbie has become a dominant
figure in the mid-tier banking
sector, becoming the first woman to
lead for two major UK institutions:
TSB and, in 2021, the UK’s largest
mutual lender, Nationwide.
She joined TSB in 2019 from the
Clydesdale Bank owner CYBG –
which has since rebranded as Virgin
Money – where she had worked for
more than 20 years, becoming its
chief operating officer in 2015.
Crosbie has since led a
turnaround at TSB, following an
IT meltdown in 2018 that left 1.9
million customers locked out of
their accounts, tarnished the bank’s
reputation and led to the ousting of
her predecessor, Paul Pester.
During her tenure at TSB, Crosbie
has cut nearly 1,000 jobs and shut
nearly half of its branches as part
of a gruelling turnaround and
restructuring programme. But after
three years at the helm, Crosbie
leaves TSB in good stead, having
led the bank as it swung back to a
profit in the half year to June.
Crosbie is due to replace Joe
Garner as the chief executive of
Nationwide Building Society in
the first half of this year. She joins
a small cadre of female bosses in
the City, which is still grappling
with a sector where men make up
about 70% of senior management
positions, according to the Women
in Finance Charter’s latest annual
review. Kalyeena Makortoff
Leena Nair
The appointment of the Indian-
born executive as CEO of the luxury
brand in December was greeted as
a sign of much needed diversity
coming to fashion. The hope is that
Nair’s appointment will provide
an example for other brands in the
industry. Nair moves to Chanel
from Unilever, where she was used
to firsts: she was the company’s
first Asian, first female and
youngest ever chief HR officer.
She will have challenges at
Chanel, a private company that has
been owned by the same family
since the 1920s. Nair will take
over from Alain Wertheimer, the
grandson of Pierre who originally
invested in Chanel. Alain will
remain involved as global chair.
Nair will face problems familiar
across fashion – the pandemic
saw sales at Chanel drop by 18% in
2020. While it rallied, with revenue
growing in the first half of this year,
she will want to keep that trajectory
up this year. Some of her focus
will undoubtedly be on Chanel’s
workforce. Speaking to Time last
year, she said “human capital is as
important as financial capital”. In
2020, Unilever achieved a gender
balance at management level
globally. Lauren Cochrane
China’s property crisis
‘Everyone made the same
bet that prices would rise’
Martin Farrer
T
he crisis engulfing
the Chinese property
sector appears certain
to intensify in 2022 as
companies face debt
repayments that are
double those of the final months
of 2021, risking what one China
expert calls a systemic crisis for the
world’s second-biggest economy.
Although concerns about the
stricken giant China Evergrande
have receded behind a massive
state-led restructuring operation, it
missed a bond repayment of $255m
(£189m) on Thursday and the debt
problems that have pushed the
second-biggest developer in the
country into default are blighting
many other firms.
China’s developers will owe
$19.8bn in offshore debt in the first
three months of 2022, analysts at
Nomura said. That is almost twice
as much as the $10.2bn they were
faced with in the final quarter of
2021 – a burden that caused default
at Evergrande and the threat of
default at others such as Kaisa.
There is no respite in the second
quarter of 2022, when developers
must find another $18.5bn.
The huge bond repayment
burden threatens to worsen the
crisis for developers, who have
ridden a 30-year boom in the
Chinese housing market on a
business model based on cheap
credit and demand from a huge,
upwardly mobile population.
However, Xi Jinping’s anger
at the sector’s excesses and his
pursuit of “common prosperity”
led to a crackdown that removed
access to unlimited funding, and
now key metrics are spelling the
end of the good times. Prices fell
0.3% in November, the biggest fall
since 2015, while the value of home
sales plunged by 16.3% and new
construction starts as measured
by floor area fell 21%. Crucially,
China’s population is shrinking,
with the number of marriages –
and therefore demand for new
properties from young couples –
down 41% in the six years to 2019.
Michael Pettis, a professor of
finance at Peking University, said
39
the situation could morph into a
systemic crisis that undermines the
whole debt-ridden economy.
“Everyone made the same bet on
inexorably rising property prices,
especially the developers, who
levered to the hilt, overpaid for
land at auctions, and scooped up as
much real estate risk as they could
take on,” he said. “The problem,
of course, is that if property prices
ever stop rising everyone’s balance
sheet starts unravelling at the same
time, and it immediately becomes a
systemic problem. That is what has
happened in China.”
Debt to foreign investors is not
the only problem. Developers
owe billions of yuan to Chinese
bondholders but, in addition,
Nomura said, they must find 1.1tn
yuan (£129bn) in backdated pay
owed to construction workers
before the lunar new year at the
start of February. There were also
reports that workers at subsidiaries
of Evergrande in regions such as
Guangxi and Shanxi have gone on
strike over unpaid wages.
“Failing to pay deferred wages
could be severely punished by both
the central government and related
local governments,” Nomura said.
“There is tremendous reputational
risk.” The prospect of civil unrest
over unpaid wages, unfinished
houses, and uncertain return from
wealth management products set
up by developers is key in Beijing’s
battle to contain the fallout.
Evergrande’s woes had become
apparent in September when it
admitted it could not meet the
most pressing of its mammoth
$300bn debts or even complete the
1.6m homes it had already taken
payment for. Although its chair
and founder, Xu Jiayin, pledged
this week that it was going “full
steam ahead” to finish homes that
customers had paid for, Shasha
Dai of analysts Reorg in New York
said the Chinese government was
“deeply involved” in Evergrande’s
restructuring and the top priority
was to maintain “social stability”.
The government was “putting
a mould around Evergrande” to
ensure its troubles didn’t spill over
to other developers, she said, but
the spiralling nature of the problem
may make it impossible even for
Beijing to contain.
 A housing
development
in Hong Kong.
Developers have
ridden a 30-year
boom in the
Chinese housing
market on a
business model
based on cheap
credit and huge
demand
PHOTOGRAPH: PETER
PARKS/AFP/GETTY

40
New year’s resolutions
‘I’m planning to scale back
on my spending in 2022’
Suzanne Bearne talks to
people intent on changing
their financial habits, be it
boosting their income or
using it more ethically
M
oney plays a key
role in many
people’s new
year’s resolutions
to change their
lifestyle, so we
asked five people to tell us about
their financial goals for 2022 and
how they plan to achieve them.
The rising cost of living and
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
the continuing uncertainty over
the pandemic are just two of the
challenges that people are having to
deal with, so what are some of the
things that individuals are planning
to do differently this year?
‘I’m hoping to support my activism
through Patreon’
Natalie Evans’s goal relates to 2020,
when her life changed after she
filmed a racist incident on a train.
The video went viral and Natalie,
32, and her sister Naomi set up
the Instagram account Everyday
Racism to educate people about the
issue, teach them how to become
anti-racist and offer resources.
After accruing 190,000 followers,
it has become so huge that last
month Natalie quit her job at a
charity, while Naomi went down
to three days a week in her role as a
teacher to focus on the account.
Natalie’s goal for 2022 is to attract
people to their Patreon account,
which can receive donations to
support their work on Instagram.
Patreon is a platform used by
musicians, artists and others where
people can back creative work via
monthly membership.
“People kept telling us to set one
up. I wasn’t sure, but it takes time
to write up resources and do the
things we want to do, and we need
support,” Natalie says. “It’s a great
way of having a safety net.”
The Patreon platform will enable
the sisters to create more exclusive
content. “It would be great if there
was enough of an income from it for
me, and then potentially for Naomi
for the two days she’s working for
Everyday Racism,” she says.
Their Patreon membership
has various tiers of access. Those
signing up for £3 a month receive a
monthly newsletter plus resources,
while £10 gives access to a monthly
Zoom meeting on different topics.
There are guest speakers and the
chance to ask questions about anti-
racism work, and to discuss current
affairs with the sisters.
Natalie says that another goal is
to rein in her spending this year.
“I’ve gone from a full-time wage
to being freelance, so I need to cut
down as much as I can in terms of
personal spending. I’ll be cutting
down on things like buying new
clothes, meeting people for coffee,
eating out and other subscription
services,” she says.
‘I’m going to give away 10% of
my income’
Martin Hall, 25, has made a big
‘I’ll be cutting down
on things like buying
clothes, meeting for
coffee, eating out and
other subscription
services’
Natalie Evans
Anti-racism campaigner
commitment for 2022 – and beyond.
The data engineer from Manchester
has signed up to give away 10%
of his income to charities for the
rest of his working life. Hall has
signed up to Giving What We Can,
an organisation that encourages
members to give 10% or more
of their income to charities that
have been found to have the most
impact. It offers information to
help members choose causes
and organisations to donate to,
and provides a list of charities it
says are effective. A calculator
on the site shows you how much
impact your 10% donation
could have. Everyone who has
made the pledge is listed on the
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Money hacks
How to get into the
savings habit
Page 42
site, to encourage other people to
add their name.
“I’ve understood the arguments
to do this for a while, but now I
feel like I’m at the point where I
can commit,” says Hall, who will
organise the payments directly
from his bank account.
“It feels like the right thing to
do. I am fairly comfortable and
my needs are met, so 10% doesn’t
make much difference – a nicer car
or more takeaways doesn’t make
much difference to me, whereas the
money could have a huge impact on
someone else’s life. I’ll stick to the
pledge through continued belief
in the value of what I’m doing,
budgeting, and having a wider
community around me that have
taken the same pledge.”
Hall has picked six organisations
including the Global Health
and Development Fund and
GiveDirectly, a non-profit body
that allows donors to send money
directly to people in poverty.
“It’s a nice balance of global
health and development but
also long-term solutions to
reduce global catastrophes such
as reducing the risk of human
extinction,” he says.
What did friends and family
think of his pledge? “My parents
said it was a good idea. But for me,
it’s primarily a thing you do for
yourself and decide on your own.”
Giving What We Can is part of
the Centre for Effective Altruism,
a charity.
‘I’m going to manage my finances
better and scale back my spending’
After recently switching from being
a sole trader to setting up a limited
company and hiring her first
employee, Leila Hrycyszyn, 32, says
that this year she plans to be more
rigorous with her finances and set
aside money for her tax bill.
“I’m usually frantically saving
for my tax bill at the end of the
year,” says the owner of a PR
agency. “I often find I’ve spent
•
Fantasy house hunt
Find your ultimate
dream home
Pages 44
most of the tax bill rather than
putting money aside throughout
the year. I need to manage my
finances a lot better, so at the start
of 2022 I’m planning to pay myself
a salary and then put the rest in
savings accounts for the tax bill.
I know I need to deposit money
into different accounts as, at the
moment, everything goes out of the
current account.”
Hrycyszyn, who lives in Alton,
Hampshire, says she has been
focused on spending rather than
saving in the past few months. “I
plan to cut back and put some real
plans in place, like monthly goals to
stop my spending,” she says.
To help her cut back, she plans to
track her spending on a finance and
spending calendar. “This will make
me more mindful about what I’m
buying and make me think twice
about purchasing things in one
click online.”
She adds: “I’ll be thinking about
whether it’s really an essential
purchase or not, and if not,
won’t buy it. I spend quite a lot
on platforms like Asos’s Premier
Delivery and Amazon Prime. I need
‘Giving away 10%
of my income will
not make much
difference. I’m fairly
comfortable’
Martin Hall
Data engineer
‘Bristol Pay
is interesting.
I’ve put out
feelers about
creating
something
similar in
Plymouth’
Tristan Verran
Performer
to stop thinking I need six different
things today. I’m going to cut back
as much as I can. I’ll be looking at
subscriptions and whether I need
them. I don’t think I’ll stop using
Amazon – I find it incredibly useful,
but what I have done is removed
the app from my homepage.”
Looking ahead, she is feeling
positive. “Marketing budgets
have kicked off again and I’m the
busiest  I’ve ever been,” she says.
“Even if there’s another lockdown,
I don’t feel like budgets would go
again like they did last time. I’m
hoping the business will continue
to thrive.”
‘I’m looking to focus more on
using cash’
Tristan Verran, 49, a performer
and educator living in Plymouth,
wants to spend 2022 exploring
alternative ways of transacting. For
him, this means going against the
cashless culture. “I like cash,” he
says. “There’s no privacy issues.
It’s not really traceable, there’s
more anonymity with it, and it’s
not micromanaged by some unseen
AI somewhere.”
“Spending cash might be tough
as more places are turning card-
only, especially after the pandemic.
I’m an academic and I deal with
books, but this is a social project I’d
like to do. I know little in the way
of finance, but all I know is that
it’s become clear that the global
finance system is incapable of
meeting the material needs of the
majority and is instead committed
to systemically transferring
wealth upwards.”
Verran is keen to explore
negotiation and exchanging
services, and see who is willing to
participate. “I’m definitely going to
step up and be more vigilant, and
look at where things come from,
and shop local more,” he says,
adding: “I’ve started bartering. I
taught someone’s kids in exchange
for them sorting out the plumbing.”
He says he would also like to
look into creating a local version
of the Bristol pound, the city
currency that is in the process of
transforming into a new scheme
called Bristol Pay. “That model
has been interesting. I’ve already
started putting feelers out about
creating something similar in
Plymouth. I want to invest in
communities, not extracting
wealth and giving it to some unseen
billionaire to build spaceships. I’d
like to push for that kind of model
in Cornwall and possibly Devon.
I just think what is happening
right now isn’t working – we need
different ways of doing stuff and
exchanging services. We need more
community engagement.”
Verran hopes to knock £10,000
from his £27,000 student loan debt
in the first six months of the year.
“This is optimistic to
manageable as I am seriously
curtailing my weekly expenses on
food and travel,” he says. “I will
be baking more, and all bills are
included in my studio, so I know
exactly how much my monthly
spend will be. However, [any]
lockdowns are going to mean
that I rely more heavily on online
teaching. I will still be required to
complete teaching courses online,
so that money is guaranteed, but
it’s becoming increasingly difficult
to find new teaching work, or
even venues to perform live. I’ll be
performing outside with rural sites
for free, regardless of lockdowns,
and hoping to get some donations
from patrons.” Verran expects to
pay off about £1,500 to £2,000 a
month from his student loans.
‘I’m setting up a green and
ethical pension’
A committed environmentalist,
Alexis Bushnell, 33, is on a mission
to make her finances green. After
moving from northern France to
St Athan, south of Cardiff, last year,
Bushnell was forced to open a bank
account but, rather than choose
one of the traditional high street
banks, she opened one with Monzo.
“The big banks are known for not
being green, so I opened a business
account with Monzo, but in 2022 I
plan to open a savings account with
Triodos Bank and spread my money
between the two,” she says. “I like
41
‘A spending calendar
will make me
think twice about
buying stuff in one
click online’
Leila Hrycyszyn
PR agency owner
the fact that Triodos’s website is
very upfront about the fact they
care about people and the planet,
and they’re clear about who they
invest with.”
Bushnell’s goal is to invest in
a pension for the first time. “It’s
incredibly difficult to live off a state
pension, so it would be nice to have
something to top it up with, so I
know I’m not going to be working
until I die,” she says. “I don’t want
to reach my late 50s and realise
I don’t have any way to support
myself outside the state pension.”
Adhering to her strong
principles, Bushnell is going
to scout out an ethical pension
provider to help her save for
retirement. She says she will be
seeking advice via Facebook groups
for ethical business owners, and
asking on Twitter and LinkedIn
for recommendations from people
who already have ethical pensions.
“I’m looking for a pension
provider that doesn’t invest in
fossil fuels or things I’m morally
opposed to, and isn’t helping to
destroy the planet,” says Bushnell,
whose company offers social media
services. “I’m vegan, I buy from
zero-waste shops, I don’t drive
... I try to do everything from a
personal level, which has a limited
impact, but where I invest my
money makes a bigger impact.
Money talks.”
‘I’m looking
for a pension
provider
that doesn’t
invest in
fossil fuels’
Alexis
Bushnell
Social media
coach
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

42 Money

Money hacks Rupert Jones

Pay off costly debts first

How to get into There is no point trying to save if

you are burdened by costly debts.
The average “easy-access”
savings account offers less than

the savings habit 0.2% interest, while on some

borrowing you could be paying
in excess of 20%. Aim to pay off
expensive credit card, store card

this year
or overdraft debts before you think
about putting money aside.

Start a rainy-day fund

Everyone should aim to have some
cash in an easily accessible savings
account to provide a financial
safety net if the worst happens.
“We all need robust savings to
cope with the nasty surprises life
tends to throw at us,” says Sarah
Coles, a personal finance analyst
at the investment firm Hargreaves
Lansdown. “We should be working
towards three to six months’ worth

ILLUSTRATION BY JAMIE WIGNALL

of essential expenses in an easy-
access account.”
“Essential expenses” should
include items such as housing
costs, money for food and
important bills. Do not be put off by
how much this comes to – anything
you can put away towards it will
help if things do go wrong.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Have a goal
Beyond rainy-day savings, you may
want to put aside other cash – and
having a purpose will motivate
you. “Setting a goal and giving it a
name can help keep you on track,”
says Annabelle Williams, a personal
finance specialist at the investment
firm Nutmeg. “By attaching
meaning to your savings goals, such
as a new home, a specific trip, or
big purchase, you’re more likely to
stick to your savings habit.”
Make it a regular habit
Regular savings accounts are a good
option for those new to saving.
You put aside money each month
– usually via a standing order from
your current account.
These accounts offer some of
the best interest rates out there,
although the maximum you can
tuck away often isn’t that high.
If you have a NatWest current
account, you can take advantage of
its Digital Regular Saver account,
which pays a market-leading 3%
interest and is, it says, designed
to help customers with little or no
savings develop a savings habit and
build financial capability.
However, you can only pay in up
to £50 each month. TSB’s Monthly
Saver pays 2% and lets you save
between £25 and £125 a month –
again, you need to have a current
•
Money
‘We all need robust
savings to cope with
the nasty surprises
that life tends to
throw at us’
Sarah Coles
Hargreaves Lansdown
account with the bank to open one.
Most regular savings accounts
run for a year, and the interest is
paid at the end of the period. You
will then need to shop around for a
new account for your lump sum.
Get some help
For those on a low income, the
government’s Help to Save account
is definitely worth considering. It
lets certain people on working tax
credit, or receiving universal credit,
get a bonus of 50p for every £1 they
save over four years. You can put
in between £1 and £50 each month,
and the most you can earn in four
years is £1,200 in bonus money.
But paying into this account could
affect some people’s eligibility for
benefits and how much they get,
so read the details carefully before
you commit.
Then there’s the lifetime Isa,
which lets people save for a
property or retirement. You can put
away up to £4,000 each year until
you are 50, and the government will
add a 25% bonus to your savings, up
to a maximum of £1,000 a year. To
open one you must be aged 18 to 39.
Round up your spending …
Several banks are making saving
easier by getting you to do it
whenever you pay for something.
Lloyds Bank has Save the
Change. When you buy something
with your debit card, if your
account is in credit it will round up
the amount spent to the nearest
pound, and transfer the difference
into a nominated Lloyds savings
account. “If a purchase is £2.20, the
bank will transfer 80p, which could
see someone save £5.60 in a week if
this is spent every day,” says Rachel
Springall at the financial data
provider Moneyfacts.
The digital bank Chase does the
same and deposits the small change
into a separate account where it will
earn interest at 5% for 12 months.
… or round it down
Another technique is to log in to
your current account, look at the
balance and mentally “round it
down”, Williams says. “If you
have £221.60 until payday, round it
down to £210 and move £11.60 into
savings. It all adds up over time.”
Use an app
Chip and Plum are just two of
the apps that offer “auto-save”
features. Every few days the tech
does the maths and automatically
transfers some of your money into
another account, which little by
little adds up.
Plum’s free option includes
auto-saving, while Chip is changing
its pricing in mid-January so that
standard membership will be free.
A budgeting app could also
help. Springall suggests Money
Dashboard, which automatically
categorises spending into
“buckets”, such as household bills
and groceries – this lets you see
what you can afford to save once
the essentials are covered.
Another budgeting app to check
out is Emma, which analyses
transactions across accounts and
classifies them into spending
5%
Interest for 12 months at the digital
bank Chase on deposits of small
change into a separate account
£100+
Free cash for switching your current
account to a different provider –
enough to start a new nest egg
43
categories. “Great budgeting starts
ILLUSTRATION BY JAMIE WIGNALL
with careful planning and reliable
insights,” its website says.
Fix for a better return
Some of the best interest rates
are offered by fixed-rate savings
accounts, where you typically tie
up your money for a year or more.
Of course, that won’t suit
everyone. At the time of writing,
you could get about 1.3% on a one-
year fixed-rate bond, about 1.6% on
a two-year bond, and about 2.1% on
a five-year bond.
For the latest rates, keep a close
eye on Moneyfacts’ tables.
Switch current account
If your current account isn’t cutting
the mustard, you can get some free
cash – enough, perhaps, to kick off
a nest egg – by moving it to a new
provider. Many banks pay £100-
plus if you move to them.
Nationwide will give you up to
£125 if you are a member and switch
to its FlexDirect current account. If
you are not yet a member, it is £100.
Meanwhile, HSBC is offering
£150 if you move to its Advance
or Premier accounts. Typically,
the money is paid into the current
account you have switched to. You
can then use this cash to start a
new savings account or boost an
existing one.
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

44 Money

Fantasy house hunt

Ultimate dream homes
for sale
Compiled by Anna White

 Horsmonden, Kent
£2.5m
The tips of four roundels of this
Grade II-listed converted oast
house are just visible above the
tree line of the Kentish countryside
between Horsmonden and
Brenchley. It dates back to the
16th century but has been newly
refurbished. The open-plan
reception area has vaulted ceilings
with honey-coloured oak beams
while glazed balustrades and
toughened glass floors on the first
and second floor allow natural light
to flood the house. There are five
bedrooms, a cinema room, a study
and a gym, and green technologies
such as an electric car charging
point and a biomass boiler.
Hamptons, 01892 640 316

 Upper Froyle, Hampshire  Bath, Somerset

£620,000 £375,000
This black and white thatched The Empire building is a
cottage epitomises the village idyll. window on life in the roaring
Dating back to the 17th century, it 20s. Built in the early 1900s
has exposed beams and a galleried
kitchen. All three bedrooms are as a luxury hotel, it has a
vaulted. The period features have grand vaulted entrance hall
modern twists with lights hanging and sweeping mahogany
from the beams and a chequered
tiled floor in the inglenook staircase to what are now
fireplace. The village is three miles apartments. Residents have
from Bentley, which has a direct access to a rooftop garden, a
train service to London Waterloo.
Knight Frank, 01256 630 971
cinema room, a snooker room,
a gym, a sauna, a craft room,
 Shrewley, Warwickshire a laundry room, a lounge, a
£650,000 dining room and a concierge
Bluebell Cottage is as pretty as it service. This second-floor
sounds with its red brick gables apartment has one bedroom
and grey wooden door and and a private balcony running
window frames. On the inside it is
contemporary and open plan from the length of the property and
the entrance to the bifold doors at overlooking Pulteney Bridge
the back, with a log burner in the on the River Avon. Down the
centre of the room separating the
kitchen and living area. At the end corridor are a couple of guest
of the lawned garden is a little blue suites that can be booked
gate that leads to an orchard, then for visitors. Fine & Country,
on to open countryside. Mr and Mrs
Clarke, 07971 955 997
01225 320 032
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •
Money
 The Solent, Hampshire
£3.6m
If living down a remote
country lane is not solitary
enough, try the middle of the
sea. Spitbank Fort was one of
a chain of marine forts built in
the Solent in the late 1800s to
protect Portsmouth dockyard
from seaborne attacks.
Now a floating mansion,
it has nine bedrooms and
bathrooms, a cinema room,
a games room and a wine
cellar. On the upper deck are
sun terraces, a hot tub and
fire pits, with panoramic
views of the seascape. The
crow’s nest is a self-contained
annex. The Isle of Wight
village of Seaview is about
three miles by boat to the
south-east. Knight Frank,
020 7861 1080
45
 Stoke Newington,
London
£575,000
On the edge of Stoke Newington
Common is the XO building, a block
of eight apartments with balconies.
It showcases raw concrete,
textured brickwork, oak flooring
and high ceilings. The heating and
hot water are powered by an air
source heat pump, meaning the
development is fully electric. An
89 sq metre (958 sq ft) flat is on sale
with help-to-buy available. The
Modern House, 020 3795 5920
 Frognal, London
£3.5m
It’s hard to imagine how this grand
Arts and Crafts house could be
improved upon, but it has planning
permission to do so. The four-
bedroom property is over three
levels with the facade dominated
by two large oriel windows and
two entrances. The dining room
overlooks a courtyard garden. It
is on a leafy road in Hampstead
conservation area, just a few
minutes’ walk from the high street.
Inigo, 020 3687 3071
 Tannach, Caithness
£525,000
If you want to channel your
inner Jeremy Clarkson – in
purely a farming sense – look no
further than Kinlochy Cottage.
Overlooking Loch Hempriggs, the
site covers 93 hectares (230 acres).
It is suitable for farming, deer
stalking, trout fishing and rough
shooting. This stone cottage is in
need of modernisation but ideal for
anyone who wants to retreat into
the wilderness and work the land.
Strutt & Parker, 01463 723 593
 Balmedie, Aberdeenshire
£550,000
Set in a wild landscape, this mid-
century modern house is less
than a 10-minute drive from the
sandy bays of Balmedie beach. The
single-storey home is defined by
its floor-to-ceiling glazed panels,
framing the south-facing gardens
and surrounding countryside.
Aberdeen city centre and the
airport are about 20 minutes by car.
The Modern House, 020 3795 5920
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

49

Puzzles
Solutions Kakuro Codeword

Fill the grid so that each block adds up to the total in the box above or to Crack the code to fill in the crossword grid. Each letter of the alphabet makes
the left of it. You can only use the digits 1-9 and you must not use the same at least one appearance in the grid and is represented by the same number
number twice in a block. wherever it appears. A number of letters have been decoded to help with the
identification of other letters and words in the grid.

Train tracks

FINANCIER
Word wheel

Suguru

Suguru Train tracks Time Word wheel

Codeword

on your
Fill the grid so that each square in Lay tracks to enable the train to travel from village A to hands? Find as many words as possible
an outlined block contains a digit. village B. The numbers indicate how many sections of Stay using the letters in the wheel. Each
A block of two squares contains rail go in each row and column. There are only straight must use the central letter and at
the digits 1 and 2, a block of three rails and curved rails. The track cannot cross itself. connected least two others. Letters may be
squares contains the digits 1, 2 and and keep used only once. You may not use
3, and so on. No same digit appears in touch plurals, foreign words or proper
in neighbouring squares, not even nouns. There is at least one nine-
diagonally. with your letter word to be found. TARGET:
friends with Excellent 26. Good 22. Average 16.
our new
Puzzles
mobile app
Kakuro
You can
access more
than 15,000
crosswords and
sudoku and
solve puzzles
online together.
Download
The Guardian
Puzzles app and
try it for free
now.
theguardian.
com/
puzzlesapp
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

50

Puzzles

Quick crossword no 16,116 Yesterday’s

Quick crossword
Across Down 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Solution no 16,115
1 Association such as at Liverpool or 2 Exist longer than (7) P I G S T Y M U M B A I
Everton? (8,4) 3 Norse god (4) 8 A A R U N U N
9 Imitative of the past (5) 4 Female warrior from Scythia? (6) R U F F I A N M U Z A K
10 Aerial (7) 5 Covered in soap suds (8) 9 10
A F U S A Z J
11 Something that scurries sideways 6 Slang — jargon (5)
D R E A M P A N C A K E
(4) 7 You’ll need this to get on! (8,4)
E P E R T
12 Magnetic coil of wire — no oldies 8 Test, say (7,5)
(anag) (8) 13 Kind of Italian restaurant (8) 11 12 H I G H W A Y C O D E
14 Involve (6) 16 Paris-based jewellery and S R K A F
15 Fire on a hill that can be seen from wristwatch manufacturer (7) 13 P I A N O L A L O V E R
a distance (6) 17 Fresh (6) I N M B Z I I
18 Colour supplement? (8) 19 Benefactor (5) 14 15 16 D E I C E L O O R O L L
20 One should avoid falling into 21 Party — hit — try (all informal) (4) E A G E N L L
one of these (4) 17
R U N W A Y L E G A C Y
22 Watering holes (7)
23 It’s as good as a mile! (1,4) 18 19 20
24 Scattered about (4,3,5)
21

22 23
Stuck? For help call 0906 200 83 83. Calls cost £1.10
per minute, plus your phone company’s access charge.
Service supplied by ATS. Call 0330 333 6946 for
customer service (charged at standard rate).
24 Want more? Get access to more than 4,000 puzzles at
theguardian.com/crossword. To buy puzzle books, visit
www.guardianbookshop.com or call 0330 333 6846.

Sandwich sudoku Chris Maslanka

Solutions
Medium 1 The full text from the newspaper
(no names, no pack drill) was:
Place the digits “‘It looks like something from
from 1-9 in each Oliver Twist’: Grammar school
row, column and apologises for serving ‘pathetic’
3x3 block. £3.50 Christmas dinner with a
The clues outside tiny slither of turkey and a single
the grid show pig in blanket in a bap to pupils.”
the sum of the Firstly, “serving” is a long way
numbers placed from “to pupils”, which makes
between the 1 and the intervening words – unlike
9 in that row or the allegedly paltry (no pun
column. intended) piece of turkey – a
disproportionately thick filling
for the sandwich. Secondly, the
main fault is the confusion of
slither (what snakes do) and sliver
(meaning a thin slice). Pronouncing
th as v is bound to lead to such
confusions. Don’t get me started
on how some now pronounce
“their theses”. With thanks to
Fiona Henley, who remarks darkly
that she would like to stuff the
author of those lines with more
than a sliver of turkey.
2 You need to break (n–1) of
the resolutions, so break the
penultimate one. (Of course these
resolutions are not really about
anything external— they form a
self-referential set, so this puzzle
doesn’t actually mean anything
since it doesn’t refer to any real
activity!)
3 1.20pm. [Their average speed
overall is 3mph.]
4 If the poison square is on the
main diagonal go second. Whatever
move De’Athe does with rows, echo
with columns to keep the poison
square on the diagonal of the piece
that remains. If it is not on a main
diagonal, let him go first. Whatever
he does you can always break off a
piece so that the poisoned piece is
on a main diagonal or at the centre
square of what remains. [Point to
Ponder: Can you prove this? What
is the fewest number of goes in a
game? The maximum number?]
5 Try shifting the letters a set
number of places through the
alphabet. The message is broken up
into equal chunks. [DZSXN TQGDZ
QSNTS FBGPB NCDQR!]
Wordplay: Wordpool b), a), d);
EPU SCREENSHOT; Dropouts
ESPIONAGE; Same Difference
RESOLUTION, REVOLUTION;
Cryptic OSIRIS, BITTERN (BIT +
TERN); Missing Links a) sup/port/
wine, b) snow/fall/guy, c) work/
top/soil, d) plant/pot/ash, e) beef/
mince/pie, f) fair/play/time.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

51

Weather
Saturday 1 January 2022
UK and Ireland Noon today Forecast Around the UK

London
Sunny Mist Fog
Low 9 High 11 Lows and highs Precipitation Air pollution
988 992
996 Tomorrow
10 11 14 55% Low
Sunny intervals Hazy 1000
Manchester

Mostly cloudy
23 Inverness Shetland 9 14 95% Low
Overcast/dull Edinburgh
11 12
28
1008 7 13 95% Low
Sunny showers Moderate
Belfast
Edinburgh
22 Low 7 High 9
Sunny and heavy showers Glasgow 7 13 95% Low
Monday
Birmingham
Light showers Newcastle
ca
12

1004 10 14 95% Low

Rain Sleet Light Belfast Moderate
Brighton
snow 12
York

Snow showers 11 13 55% Low

Dublin Liverpool
rpoo
ol 14
13
Bristol
Heavy snow Ice
35C
Nottingham
Nott m
Norwich
Carbon
14 9 14 95% Low
30
Birmingham
m
ming count
Thundery rain Cardiff
25 Daily atmospheric CO2
readings from Mauna Loa,
20 13 14
1 Hawaii (ppm):
Thundery showers 15
Cardiff
Ca L
London 10 13 95% Low
Latest
X
10 15 27 Dec 2021 417.24 Newcastle
5
Dover Weekly average
Temperature, 0 19 Dec 2021 417.49
ºC
-5
13 8 14 60% Low
Plymouth 31 Dec 2020 414.86
-10 1012 13
31 Dec 2011 392.54 Penzance
Moderate 22
-15 1016 Pre-industrial base 280
Wind speed, Windy
mph -20 1020 Safe level 350
11 13 95% Low
The Channel Islands
Source: NOAA-ESRL

Atlantic front L 1008 1024 Weatherwatch Around the world

1008 1016 L 1024
992
L One result of the climate crisis is Algiers 22 Lisbon 19
1000 1008 that winters in northern Europe Ams’dam 13 Madrid 16
L
1016 are warmer. The coldest January Athens 16 Malaga 19
L
L 976
H
since 1659, when records began in Auckland 23 Melb’rne 34
984
992 England, was in 1795. Temperatures B Aires 32 Mexico C 23

H
1000 barely rose above freezing all Bangkok 31 Miami 27
1016
1008 month and rivers including the Barcelona 18 Milan 8
Cold front H Thames and Severn froze over. Basra 17 Mombasa 32
L Country parsons, who fed poor Beijing 7 Moscow 1

Warm front people at Christmas, gave them Berlin 11 Mumbai 31

1024 a shilling each to buy food for Bermuda 21 N Orleans 27
H
January. Grain supplies were low Brussels 13 Nairobi 26
Occluded front 1016
1016 after a dry summer and hunger Budapest 12 New Delhi 19
became so widespread there were C’hagen 6 New York 13

Trough bread riots the following spring. Cairo 17 Oslo -5

In his diaries, James Woodforde, Cape Town 20 Paris 13
a parson in Weston Longville, Chicago 0 Perth 27

Sun & Lighting Norfolk, who was troubled by gout Corfu 17 Prague 10
High tides
Source: © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. Times are local UK times

on cold nights, said even the fire in Dakar 29 Reykjavik 1

Moon up the parlour made no difference. He Dhaka 26 Rio de J 27
worried poor people were suffering Dublin 13 Rome 16
Aberdeen -- -- 1156 4.2m London Bridge -- -- 1212 6.9m Belfast 1610 to 0847 badly because their vegetables had Florence 15 Shanghai 12
Avonmouth 0534 12.3m 1800 12.6m Lossiemouth 1016 4.0m 2244 4.1m Birm’ham 1604 to 0817 been ruined by frost. Gibraltar 17 Singapore 27
Barrow 0950 8.9m 2217 9.1m Milford Haven 0431 6.6m 1658 6.7m Brighton 1606 to 0803 On 25 January, there was a H Kong 20 Stockh’m -2
Belfast 0930 3.4m 2156 3.6m Newquay 0325 6.7m 1551 6.8m Bristol 1613 to 0816 terrible storm that took the thatch Harare 26 Strasb’g 12
Cobh 0338 4.0m 1607 4.0m North Shields 0130 4.9m 1402 4.9m Carlisle 1554 to 0835 off the barn and stripped tiles from Helsinki -6 Sydney 27
Cromer 0440 4.8m 1714 4.8m Oban 0416 3.8m 1636 3.9m Cork 1634 to 0841 his roof. He managed to dine “on Istanbul 10 Tel Aviv 19
Dover 0922 6.5m 2154 6.4m Penzance 0256 5.2m 1522 5.3m Dublin 1617 to 0841 a couple of boiled rabbits, beef Jo’burg 27 Tenerife 28
Sun rises 0805
Dublin 1000 4.0m 2228 4.1m Plymouth 0403 5.2m 1630 5.2m Sun sets 1602 Glasgow 1555 to 0848 steaks etc but the wind was so K Lumpur 28 Tokyo 6
Galway 0325 5.1m 1553 5.1m Portsmouth 0944 4.7m 2212 4.6m Moon rises 0654 Harlech 1611 to 0829 tempestuous we made a very poor K’mandu 17 Toronto 3
Greenock 1104 3.4m 2315 3.5m Southport 0853 8.7m 2119 8.8m Moon sets 1423 Inverness 1542 to 0858 dinner”. Three days later there was Kabul 10 Vancouv’r 2
New Moon 2 Jan Kingston 30 Vienna 12
Harwich 0959 3.8m 2233 3.9m Stornoway 0523 4.7m 1744 4.8m London 1602 to 0805 still a “very severe frost indeed. It
Kolkata 23 Warsaw 8
Holyhead 0847 5.5m 2111 5.6m Weymouth 0523 1.2m 1751 1.1m M’chester 1601 to 0824 freezes sharply within doors.” He
L Angeles 14 Wash’ton 18
Hull 0426 7.2m 1656 7.3m Whitby 0205 5.3m 1436 5.3m Newcastle 1549 to 0832 also notes: “Two women froze to
Forecasts and Lagos 31 Well’ton 22
Leith 0041 5.3m 1308 5.4m Wick 0947 3.4m 2215 3.5m
graphics provided by
Norwich 1551 to 0806 death Saturday last going home
Lima 22 Zurich 10
Liverpool 0931 9.0m 2157 9.1m Workington 0954 8.0m 2219 8.1m AccuWeather ©2022 Penzance 1630 to 0821 from Norwich market.” Paul Brown
We’ll help
put your money
where your
mind is.
For the financial future
you’re dreaming of, we’re
here to help you get there.
Capital at risk.
nutmeg.com

Invest. Your way.

a*
 •
As the new year dawns, turn to a wintry tale to lift the spirits Editorials, page 2
Can white South Africa live up to Tutu’s Bantu ideals? Panashe Chigumadzi, page 4
Productivity is a myth. In 2022, we should let go of it Otegha Uwagba, page 5
The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Opinion
and ideas
Maxwell’s case
T
he Ghislaine Maxwell case raises so
many questions, and yet scarcely
discussed is the one that perhaps
matters most. Naturally, there’s
raises a question
huge interest in whether Maxwell,
convicted this week of recruiting
and grooming teenage girls for
sex with her one-time boyfriend
some may say
Jeffrey Epstein, will seek to reduce her sentence by
naming names – opening up the pair’s notorious
little black book and telling prosecutors who else
among the rich and powerful abused the vulnerable
is naive: why?
minors Maxwell trafficked for sex.
In Britain, much of that interest focuses on
Epstein’s longtime pal, Prince Andrew, who was so
close to the couple he invited them on separate visits
Jonathan to Balmoral, Sandringham and Windsor: it’s lucky
the prince doesn’t sweat, because if he did, he might
Freedland be drenched now. So far he has refused to answer
US investigators’ questions – not for his own sake,
you understand, but according to multiple reports,
to save the Queen from embarrassment. Because
a 61-year-old man hiding behind his 95-year-old
mother would not be in the least bit mortifying.
All this matters, and yet there’s one question that
preys on my mind the most. It’s the question that Epstein and
arises in all such cases of human cruelty yet which one Maxwell in an
hesitates to ask, lest the inquiry seem naive: why? undated picture
The coverage of Maxwell has probed that a bit, taken at the
suggesting, for example, that Ghislaine Maxwell Queen’s estate
was conditioned, as the daughter of the publishing in Balmoral,
magnate Robert Maxwell, to cater to the whims Scotland
of a monstrous man, and simply transferred her PHOTOGRAPH:
SDNY/ZUMA/REX/
allegiance, and her service, from one monster to
SHUTTERSTOCK
another. Growing up surrounded by wealth and
power, where the deference of officialdom was taken
for granted, would have had its effect too. Ghislaine
Maxwell may well have assumed that people like her
and Epstein were granted a special kind of impunity,
that they could break the laws that restrained the
appetites of lesser mortals, because for most of her
life that had indeed been the case.
And yet, both those answers are unsatisfying as
explanations. There are plenty of abusers who did
not grow up with either a Maxwell-style father or
Maxwell-level wealth and, conversely, there are
people whose upbringings were comparable to
Ghislaine Maxwell’s but who did not go on
to commit terrible crimes.
So the why question lingers, just as 
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
2
Maxwell’s case raises a question
some may say is naive: why?
Jonathan Freedland
 Continued from front
it did in sharper and more horrific form
 at least twice in the last month alone.
December 2021 began with convictions
for the father and stepmother of Arthur Labinjo-
Hughes in a case so appalling, I confess I could barely
read accounts of it. The six-year-old was subjected
to a regime of torture which was, incredibly, filmed
by those who inflicted it. The little boy was made to
stand in isolation for up to 14 hours at a time, without
anything to eat or drink. He was beaten. Perhaps most
unbearable of all, the jury was shown footage of a
weak and frail Arthur shortly before his death saying:
“No one loves me. No one is going to feed me.”
When the man and woman guilty of destroying
Arthur’s brief life were found guilty, there was
revulsion, of course, and yesterday their sentences
were referred to the court of appeal for being too
lenient,but the public conversation moved without
pause for breath to the policy implications. There was
intense debate about the state of children’s services,
about austerity, about target-driven culture, about the
recruitment and retention of social workers and so on.
But what was missing was a much less sophisticated
question. Why would two people do such terrible
things to a defenceless child? How could a father
T
cause such pain to his own flesh and blood?
here was a similar reflex 11 days
later, to the verdicts in the equally
soul-draining case of Star Hobson, a
child, a baby really, who died at just
16 months, having been punched to
death by her mother’s partner as her
mother did nothing to save her. Once
again, the pair filmed their cruelty
against the little girl, apparently finding the videos
amusing enough to send to friends. And yet the talk
was not of how they could do such a thing, but of a
local “child safeguarding practice review” and whether
control of children’s services should belong with the
local council or the Department for Education.
I understand the impulse to concentrate on these
institutional, bureaucratic issues. The assumption is
that there will always be people capable of horrendous
brutality, and so the sensible focus of our attention
should be on prevention. And yet the sheer speed
with which we move to technocratic answers, barely
even asking the harder human questions, begins to
look like displacement activity. It’s as if we can’t bring
ourselves to contemplate the puzzle of what humans
are capable of, because we have no idea what we’d say.
Earlier, God-fearing generations did not find
this so difficult. Nor do those who still have
traditional faith. They have recourse to a vocabulary
that includes the notion of evil and wickedness and
that allows them to talk about it. But those words
don’t trip so easily off the secular tongue.
Instead, we look for explanations in psychology or
economics, assuming, to adapt Stephen Sondheim’s
lyric, that if people are depraved it’s because they’re
deprived, whether of love or money. That view persists.
There was an echo of it in the closing argument from
Maxwell’s defence lawyer, when she asked “why
an Oxford-educated, proper English woman would
suddenly agree to facilitate sex abuse of minors”.
Only the poor or poorly educated behave badly.
We can see the flaw in such reasoning, even
before you get to the insult it delivers to all those
who endured great privation, emotional or material,
without becoming abusers. And yet, the absence
of easy answers does not give us a licence to stop
asking hard questions. We need to be able to stare
wicked acts and evil deeds in the face, rather
than to comfort ourselves that they exist solely as
functions of failed systems, errors that could be
eliminated given the right policy tweak.
This need not be a bleak endeavour. I think of
Julie K Brown, the Miami Herald reporter without
whose fearless pursuit of Epstein’s crimes this week’s
reckoning might never have come. I think of the
courage of the victims, who kept up the fight for
justice at great cost. Unfathomable evil is part of the
human story, but so too is unimaginable good.
Founded 1821 Independently owned by the Scott Trust № 54,543
‘Comment is free… but facts are sacred’ CP Scott
Politics
More mayors and greater
devolution will not level
up a divided country
Two years after Boris Johnson made “levelling up”
the lodestar of his new administration, the public still
struggles to understand what the prime minister means
by it. A new YouGov poll has found that half of those
questioned either had no idea what the phrase signifies,
or were not completely sure. The government’s flagship
domestic policy resembles a ghost vessel drifting in a
mist of Whitehall obfuscation and procrastination.
After a torrid period, Mr Johnson badly needs
this to change in the new year. However fuzzy the
follow-through, the political logic of his original
pledge to level up England remains crystal clear: as
it seeks to hold together the new electoral coalition
forged in the 2019 “Brexit election”, improving the
situation and prospects of voters in the north and
Midlands is fundamental to the government’s hopes of
re-election. The pots of money distributed piecemeal
via the various levelling-up funds – described as a
“drop in the ocean” by the Centre for Cities thinktank
– will not cut it. Having promised to restore pride,
regenerate places and deliver economic growth in the
“red wall”, a convincing plan is urgently required to
demonstrate how this will be done. The indications
are that this will not be forthcoming, partly for fear of
antagonising voters in the more prosperous south.
The twice-delayed levelling-up white paper is now
expected by the end of January, and briefings suggest
its emphasis will be on devolution and the reform of
local government throughout the country. The mayoral
model is likely to be promoted beyond the city regions,
and Cameron-era local enterprise partnerships may be
Literature
As 2022 dawns, turn to a
wintry tale to lift the spirits
and fire the imagination
And so here we are: among the dark, blustery, not
so cold days of between-Christmas-and-new-year.
A time to say goodbye to 2021, the year everyone
hoped would be better than 2020, and that wasn’t,
really. The year many hoped would mean the end
of the pandemic, though the one certainty of early
2022 is the Omicron variant.
This moment of the calendar – curiously inert for
those whose work pauses at this time of the year –
offers for many a precious kind of deep inactivity.
This year, the British are not entering a prolonged
and complete lockdown as we did when 2020 slipped
into 2021, but still, in Wales, Northern Ireland and
Scotland, there are many restrictions on the extent to
which people may gather together, and in England,
those alert to the dangers are broadly following suit
voluntarily. The time, in short, is one of retreat;
for some, loneliness.
The temptation is to switch on the TV and to revel
in the teeming joys of all that the bafflingly myriad
streaming services have to offer. Christmas movies
– all the way through the spectrum from Die Hard to
Love Actually, according to taste – are available at
the click of the remote. For some, it’s a time to finally
binge-watch Succession; or to sit down in front of a
classy adaptation of a family classic, like the BBC’s
entertaining Around the World in 80 Days.
But solace comes in other ways too, ones that are
easy to forget amid the seasonally guiltless possibilities
targeted for replacement by more democratically
accountable bodies. Given that the secretary of
state for levelling up, Michael Gove, has been told
by the Treasury that no more money is on offer,
proposing to redistribute power instead carries an
obvious attraction: it allows high-minded talk about
community spirit and “trusting the people”, but
comes without an expensive price tag.
Sadly for Mr Gove and the prime minister,
real empowerment cannot be delivered on the
cheap. Levelling up regions and places that have
been neglected for decades – and which bore the
brunt of post-crash austerity – requires significant
long-term investment in public services, improved
infrastructure and a costly revolution in vocational
education and adult retraining. Greater devolution
is a praiseworthy goal in an overcentralised country
where all roads (and high-speed rail lines) lead
to London; but without the necessary resources,
and significantly expanded local revenue-raising
powers, it will amount to an abdication of strategic
responsibility by the state. One recent study
observed that the slashing of government grants to
local authorities since 2010 hit “urban areas with
a legacy of industrial job loss especially hard”.
A proliferation of elected mayors across the country
looks more like a distraction than a solution to the
problems of postindustrial England.
In a speech last summer, Mr Johnson took
inspiration from the example of Germany’s efforts
to narrow its east-west economic divide after
reunification. But successive German governments
spent €2tn reducing the gap, whereas Rishi Sunak
has effectively capped the government’s main
levelling-up fund at £4.8bn for this parliament. If the
government will not draw the appropriate lessons
from the German experience, the Labour party
should spell them out: this amorphous agenda may
have become an object of mockery, but what it does
and does not deliver from now on will be crucial in
deciding the outcome of the next election.
of TV immersion. Company and comfort can
come through reading, and, in particular, the
reading of wintry, frosty books.
There are many stories that readers turn to again
and again at this time of year, some of them at least
supposedly for children. Philip Pullman’s modern
classic Northern Lights has its culmination in the icy
far north where the aurora borealis dances, ruled over
by polar bears and witches. Susan Cooper’s 1973 story
for young readers, The Dark Is Rising, is for some
grown-ups an annual ritual, to be begun on the eve of
the solstice, 20 December, when the story begins, and
continued in real time until its end on Twelfth Night.
The tale is set in the unmagical semi-rural locale of
Windsor and Slough. But for young Will, who turns 11
on the shortest day, his life is about to become one of
enchantment and danger. The world around him is to
be submerged in the deepest, longed-for, but perilous
snow. The forces of dark will do battle with the forces
of light, and Will is to play his part.
Cooper, who as an undergraduate attended
lectures by JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis, drew on
Arthurian tales, and British and English folklore, to
invest her chosen landscape with a rich stratigraphy
of story. Her book also has a fond relationship
with the 1935 children’s novel The Box of Delights
by John Masefield – poet laureate and, briefly,
a Guardian leader writer. It is another child’s
story, drawing on British mythology, that takes
place in deep snow – and in which those benign-
seeming theological students out carolling might
not be all that they seem.
The Box of Delights itself is a thrilling, magical
mechanism that can take you anywhere you desire.
It is a metaphor for the act of reading itself – the
power of story to transport a person anywhere,
out of isolation, into thrilling new worlds far away
from the anxieties that attended the limping,
wintry end of 2021 in Britain.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •
Opinion
F
Our churches
or the first time possibly in a
millennium, fewer than half of all
Britons call themselves Christian.
The updating of the 2011 census
should be part
suggests the latest figure is down from
60% to 51%, with predictions that next
year it will be in the 40s. No one yet
knows what the pandemic has done to
of our future,
religious faith, but the trend across the western world
is the same. At least in wealthier countries, religion of
any sort is becoming a minority practice.
The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is an
not left to rot
ardent evangelical. His Anglican church has spent a
phenomenal £240m since 2017 on a mission to “plant”
new churches, apparently to no avail. Vicars are some
of the most dedicated and public service-minded
Simon people I know. They are underpaid and overworked.
They will be further demoralised by predictions of
Jenkins another 20% of worshippers poised to desert their
congregations after Covid. Yet the public will regard all
this as Christianity’s problem, not theirs. As the retreat
continues, some will shed a tear but few will worry.
They should, for one reason. This ebbing tide will
leave on the foreshore an astonishing litter of church
buildings. Of 16,000 English parish churches, 12,500
are listed for preservation, with 3,000 in Grade I status.
Indeed, 45% of all England’s Grade I structures are
places of worship. No other country has a legacy as
precious. These buildings are undemolishable.
Though standing mostly empty and underused,
churches have an eerie hold on local people, Christians
and atheists alike. The church is their history, their
museum, their place of ceremony, their source of
comfort in distress. Clergy and volunteers supply a
supporting social service, gamely put by the National
Churches Trust as worth £55bn a year to the national
wellbeing. Many are beautiful, many others are aloof,
dishevelled and grim. But they are not going to vanish.
All they can do is fall down, as Britain’s medieval
castles did centuries ago. A derelict ruin at the centre
of every town and village is not a fun prospect.
This has to be the greatest challenge ever to face
cultural conservation in Britain. Over the period of
the next five years, it is estimated that about 350
churches face closure or demolition.
3
Pubs are
closing down
too now. Perhaps
they should merge
with churches. Beer
was sold in naves in
the middle ages
Most people I know fiercely want to keep their
local church, even the 2,000 churches that see fewer
than 10 worshippers a week – with an average age of
61. Yet wanting to save a building that stands empty
virtually all week is not the same as knowing how.
The Anglican faith is in a perpetual state of
“consultation” over what to do. A recent report to
its synod put forward the usual suggestions: easier
closures and amalgamations, fewer clergy, more
online services, more lay-led “mission hubs”. This
has provoked a ferocious backlash from Save the
Parish, which has been raging for the past three
months. But it is getting like a fistfight on the Titanic.
At the heart of the argument is precisely the debate
that consumed the church in the 17th century. Do
parish churches belong to their congregations –
their communities – or to a national corporation of
grandees with 42 diocesan bishops and bureaucrats
in tow? In Britain, it is currently the latter. There is an
“established” church answerable to the crown. The
Westminster parliament is the only one in the world
with priests as ex-officio members – other than Iran.
A properly “congregational” church would look
ILLLUSTRATION: to its community in this bind. If unable to survive, a
R FRESSON local church would transfer itself to a charitable trust
or local authority to put it to new uses. In 1976, the C
of E stripped its parishes of control of their assets and
imposed a tax, a “church share”, on parishioners to
support its bishops and overheads. This inevitably
crippled local initiative. Across Europe the problem
has been cracked. No fewer than 10 countries,
including Italy, Germany and most of those in
Scandinavia, enable the state to order the upkeep of
churches and levy a local tax to do so. In six, including
Spain and Portugal, the tax is optional, but most people
I
still pay it, even in strongly non-clerical Sweden.
n Britain there is no such tax. But demolition is
unlawful and converting historic churches to
houses would be a tragedy. New uses are now
slowly being found by the more enterprising
parishes (and denominations). Churches are
hosting orchestras, theatres, coffee bars, post
offices, village shops, libraries, art galleries,
yoga classes, playgroups, campsites, farmers’
markets and even breweries. As austerity shuts down
urban youth clubs, we should open churches to young
people. There is a plan to turn ailing post offices into
joint banking hubs. Why not use churches?
These are precisely the services being evicted from
high streets under government planning reforms.
Thousands of village shops must be closing. Pubs are
now frequently shutting down. Perhaps they should
merge. Beer was sold in naves in the middle ages.
Usually any changes face fierce ecclesiastical
opposition and indecision. The answer must be in
some way to copy Europe. It must move underused
church buildings into local trusts with a requirement
to put them to local use as charities or social
enterprises. The best agency to oversee such a move
should be the lowest tier of government, the civil
parish or town council, its discretion crucially liberated
by the power to levy a possibly optional church rate.
The C of E is unlikely to oversee such a radical act
of denationalisation. It must be the government’s
job. I sense many in the church would heave a sigh of
relief if it came to pass. But then it always claims to
be about faith, not buildings.
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
4 Opinion
Can white
South Africa
live up to Tutu’s
Bantu ideals?
Panashe
Chigumadzi
U
nder a 1986 newsletter headline,
“Ubuntu, Abantu, Abelungu”,
Black Sash, the anti-apartheid
organisation founded as the
vanguard of white liberal
women’s opposition in South
Africa, reported surprising
findings from a white fieldworker
in their programme against forced land removals –
Black people of the land do not consider white people
to be people. That is, we do not consider them to be
Abantu. Instead, they are abelungu.
“Ubuntu, Abantu, Abelungu” appeared a few years
before the late archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu thrust
Ubuntu – the philosophy best understood through
the proverb found in Bantu languages across Africa,
“umuntu ngumuntu ngabanye bantu” (a person is
a person through other people) – into the global
imagination as he presided over the post-apartheid
Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).
“Ubuntu is very difficult to render into a western
language,” Tutu wrote in his book, No Future Without
Tributes to the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu at St George’s cathedral, Cape Town, on 28 December PHOTOGRAPH: NIC BOTHMA/EPA
Forgiveness. In African Religions and Philosophy,
Kenyan theologian John Mbiti famously rendered
Ubuntu’s philosophy of mutual personhood as
an African humanist analogue to Enlightenment
humanism’s “I think, therefore I am” by translating
“Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” as “I am because we are”.
Mbiti’s classic humanist translation of Ubuntu
obscures the fact that, in contrast to the western
conception of the human, the African conception of
the person is a social being who is always becoming.
Ubuntu holds that to be a person, umuntu, among
people, Abantu, one must continually uphold the
personhood of others. It is for this reason that when I
misbehaved, my mum reprimanded me in our mother
tongue, Shona: “Ita munhu!” “Be a person!”
“[The] white man has become umlungu because of
us,” dispossessed farmworker Aron Mlangeni stated
in “Ubuntu, Abantu, Abelungu”. Mlangeni articulated
what philosopher Ndumiso Dladla describes as
“Ubuntu as an African critical philosophy of race”
rooted not in biology but in ethical historical and social
relations. After centuries of conquest, the settler state
formalised land dispossession through the 1913 Native
Land Act, which seized 87% of land for the white settler
minority, leaving 13% to the Black majority, who were
pressganged into cheap mining and farming labour.
Given white South Africa’s unjust land conquest and
continuing relations of dispossession, it is unsurprising
that Black people of the land do not consider white
people to be Abantu. Instead, they are abelungu.
On the eve of Black majority rule, global whiteness
held its breath in anticipation of a “night of long
knives”. Instead, South Africa gave a world at the
end of history a “miracle” – the teleological release,
a moral arc bending towards justice, a rainbow.
After the negotiated settlement secured Black
political rights with the protection of white property
rights, the Promotion of National Unity and
Reconciliation Act mandated the creation of the TRC.
Dutch conquest of the Cape in 1652 is the genesis of
genocide, slavery, indenture and land dispossession,
yet the TRC had the limited mandate to hear allegations
of human rights abuses between 1 March 1960, the
month of the Sharpeville massacre, to 10 May 1994, the
date of Nelson Mandela’s inauguration.
Without the mandate to right the historic conquest
of land and people, Tutu’s impossible task was to
Today, we
Black people,
79% of South Africa’s
population, own just
4% of agricultural
land. White South
Africans own 72%
wield Ubuntu to reconcile the conflicting worlds of
Abantu and abelungu into a nation of what he called
the “Rainbow People of God”.
If white South Africa did not repent (the apartheid-
era president PW Botha declared “I only apologise for
my sins before God”) or make itself humble, it was
surprised by and grateful for Black South Africa’s lack
of “bitterness” and “vengeance”. “In some incredible
way God has sown the seeds of a gracious attitude, of
the spirit of Ubuntu, in the hearts and minds of the
whole African community,” proclaimed Beyers Naudé,
the Dutch Reformed Church minister who was one of
the few Afrikaner leaders to publicly oppose apartheid.
Naudé’s awe at the seeming miraculousness of
the transition revealed how even the more sincere,
committed part of white South Africa had failed to
A
truly reckon with the ethical demands of Ubuntu.
s Black people we ask “Uxolisa
ngani?” (“What are you
atoning with?”), because it’s
understood that ukuhlawula,
paying reparations for injuries
caused to others, is indivisible
from ukubuyisa, the restoration
of injured relations. Ubuntu
 demands costly forgiveness – you cannot receive
Panashe forgiveness without giving something up as an act
Chigumadzi of your contrition. The TRC recommended reparations
is the author to victims and families who testified. Later, Tutu
of These Bones called for a wealth tax on all white South Africans.
Will Rise Again The government ignored both recommendations.
Today, we Black people, 79% of South Africa’s
population, own 4% of agricultural land, while white
South Africans, 9% of the population, own 72% of
agricultural land. In 2014, Oxfam reported, two
white men – Johann Rupert and Nicky Oppenheimer
– owned as much wealth as the bottom half of the
population. The 74% youth unemployment rate –
concentrated among Black “born frees” – is the world’s
highest. It is unsurprising then, that in their statement
to the South African Human Rights Commission’s
2015 hearings, Abahlali baseMjondolo, a Durban shack
dwellers’ movement whose members have faced
arrest, assault and assassination in their struggle for
post-apartheid liberation, cried out that poor Black
people “are not counted as human beings”.
In other words, despite the flourishing of Ubuntu in
post-apartheid discourse, lending its name to software,
businesses, books and philanthropic organisations,
South Africa is a country in which we have, as Dladla
argues, Ubuntu without Abantu. Just as Black people
have been dispossessed of their land, Ubuntu has been
dispossessed of its deeply radical demands for ethical
historical and social relations among people.
For white South Africans to no longer be abelungu,
settlers in Africa, and to become Abantu, people of
Africa, they would have to restore that which made
them settlers in the first place – the land. Restoration
of the land would begin the national process of
ukubuyisa ngokuhlawula, restoring relations through
reparations, among Abantu and abelungu into a
common world of people bound by Ubuntu.
Until there is a true reckoning with the reparations
Ubuntu demands, Black and white South Africa will
continue to live worlds apart as Abantu and abelungu.
White South Africa, nixolisa ngani? What are you
atoning with?
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •
Productivity is
making to-do lists and outlining my goals – but the
energy to do those things has yet to materialise. In fact,
I have written barely anything in months.
It’s not burnout – I don’t think. I’ve experienced
a myth. It’s time
burnout before, but this feels different. It is more of a
general (and wholly involuntary) slowing down, one
that’s forced me to drastically rethink my goal of being
100% productive, 100% of the time, and the idea that
to let go of it
that’s even humanly possible. It’s been a tough pill to
swallow. I find myself ricocheting between frustration
and shame about my lack of productivity, and feel
intense guilt about doing only the bare minimum,
which is all I can muster the energy for. I feel I am
Otegha letting myself down, that I am wasting my time.
Uwagba And yet I know that I have more to offer the world
than just my labour. I don’t believe my personal worth
is defined by productivity, but I am keenly aware that
my material reality is. Especially being self-employed,
my professional success and finances are tied to how
W
productive I am, and so the stress of not working is
acute: if I am not working, I am not earning money, or
hat did you achieve last even laying the groundwork to do so at a future date.
year? Perhaps that question Where does the idea come from that we can achieve
causes your chest to swell endless productivity? Arguably we’ve been barrelling
with pride – or perhaps towards this conclusion for as long as capitalism has
you are now looking back existed, but technological advances have further
at the vista of a somewhat eroded the barriers around work that stop it seeping
disappointing year, good into every aspect of our lives. There is a cultural
intentions fallen by the fetishisation of productivity, with overwork framed as a
wayside, vowing to do better in 2022. My year was virtue by employers desperate to find ways to motivate
a tale of two halves. I spent the first six months in a a workforce for whom the traditional rewards – a decent
frenzy of activity – finishing and promoting a book, salary, pension, job security – may no longer apply.
ticking off solid, bankable achievements, and then … There has been some pushback against this in
well, not very much after that. recent years, specifically with the rise of the anti-work
That wasn’t the plan: I had imagined that after a movement – the notion that we might begin to claw
long holiday after my book was published, I’d return back our time from the crushing grind of overwork.
to full productivity in the autumn, pre-emptively But even as I vow to reframe my views on productivity,
I have to confess that only half of me really wants to
– the other half just wants to work.
The process of coming to terms with my reduced
productivity has borne an uncanny resemblance to
the five stages of grief: denial (pushing through); anger
(at myself); bargaining (allowing myself a holiday in
exchange for the increased productivity I assumed
would subsequently follow); depression (I think that
one’s pretty self-explanatory); and now I find myself
tentatively, begrudgingly, edging towards acceptance.
Still, I’m prone to occasional pangs of envy. How
does she do it? I whisper to one friend about another,
who seems to juggle an unfathomable number of
commitments without pause. I am half hoping to
hear that said friend injects herself with a cocktail of
miracle vitamins each morning, something I could
emulate. It is not her achievements I covet, but rather
her energy levels, and what I, too, could achieve were
I able to apply them to my own life. Even though
I know at an intellectual level that one cannot
constantly operate at full force, I am still working
on applying that logic to myself.
So that was my big realisation of 2021. That
my brain’s natural limits are not something to be
outmanoeuvred or somehow “hacked”. That work
needs to be counterbalanced with periods of rest –
probably more than we generally think necessary,
given a working culture that typically only allows for
25 days of annual leave (if you’re lucky). That the need
 for rest is especially pressing when one is operating
Otegha Uwagba in a state of constant high alert – during, for example,
is the author of a global pandemic – when the conditions of everyday
We Need to Talk life can change from moment to moment, and where
About Money the mere act of existing feels suspiciously like work.
and Whites: On So I’m allowing myself a little grace. If your year
Race and Other was less fruitful than you’d planned, I hope you’ll
Falsehoods allow yourself some, too.
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

6 Letters

Look beyond a boundary

to fix English cricket’s ills
Martin Kettle is right to search for
answers to England’s failure in
Australia beyond the flaws in
Burns’s backlift, but I don’t think
it is blinkered complacency, either
(English cricket is in disarray.
It’s a metaphor for the country,
30 December). For most of the
20th century, two rivers of talent
park on a summer’s day and one will Beside the
witness not only cricket matches
of all generations but impromptu still waters
games of aspiring youngsters, ‘First light in
reminiscent of past scenes in
English parks.
To bring cricket back to anything
Sidney Park,
Cleethorpes.
Misty morning,
approaching its former status not a breath of
• In his analysis of the state of would require vision, funding wind. I usually
English cricket, Martin Kettle and a monumental effort which, take a shortcut
cites multiple causes, both social sadly, one feels to be far beyond through the park
and structural, referring to “the the capability or ambition of the when on my
pathways to cricket’s renewal game’s current administration. way to do a shift
and growth” having been “cut off, Martin Allen at the Grimsby
closed and neglected”. He also Shoreham, West Sussex food bank’
alludes to the significant stratum PETER FIRTH/
of white upper-middle-class • Martin Kettle’s contextual analysis GUARDIAN COMMUNITY

flowed into the county game: one
from the club grounds such as
Farsley in Yorkshire, which was
always home to Ray Illingworth’s
heart, the other from the playing
fields of independent schools.
In the last 40 or 50 years,
the latter stream has, perhaps
unexpectedly, continued to flow
and to deliver, while the former
has slowed to a trickle. There are
reasons: cricket clubs are no longer
central to their communities as
they once were; cricket in primary
schools is frail and fragmented –
despite the best efforts of Chance
to Shine – and that means it barely
exists in secondary schools.
This is particularly true in
inner-city, disadvantaged – and
ethnically diverse – areas so
that there is rarely a straight or
clear road that leads a boy or girl
from a child’s enthusiasm to an
adult career. How – or whether
– any of this can be changed is a
question that can’t be answered
on your letters page.
John Claughton
Oxford University CC 1976-79;
Warwickshire CCC, 1979-80; master
in charge of cricket, Eton College,
1985-96; chief master, King Edward’s
school, Birmingham 2006-16
support for the English game.
The contrasting place of cricket
in youth culture in England and
Australia seems relevant here. Until
the 1960s, cricket equalled soccer
in terms of its heroic figures. As
any parent, particularly of boys,
of subsequent generations will
acknowledge, cricket has been
progressively edged to the fringes
of youth culture not only by the
success of soccer, but because
the playing the game is seen to be
detrimental to “street cred”.
In Australia, cricket not only
sits comfortably at the heart of
youth culture, it is seen to be
positively “rock’n’roll”, the cricket
club disco being as good a place to
play with one’s rock band as any
other venue. Visit any Australian
In Australia, cricket not
only sits comfortably
at the heart of youth
culture, it is seen to be
positively ‘rock’n’roll’
Martin Allen
is a welcome shift from the extensive Share your
coverage of the flaws of individual photographs
players and the internal organisation for use on
of the game. Building on the work of these pages at
Rowland Bowen and CLR James in theguardian.
looking “beyond a boundary”, two com/letters-pics
additional points come to mind.
First, I think they would have
referred to the international
context, specifically the role of
the International Cricket Council,
whose inequitable allocation of
funding results in Australia, India
and England receiving the greatest We do not
share and the largest say over publish letters
the allocation of fixtures – thus where only an
reinforcing divisions between the email address is
wealthier and poorer nations. supplied; please
Second, in light of the racism include a full
highlighted in the Azeem Rafiq postal address,
case, they would have regarded it as a reference to
essential that the England and Wales the article and a
Cricket Board, in its distribution daytime phone
of funding to counties, leagues number. We
and junior cricket, has transparent may edit letters.
social inclusion criteria and a way Submission
of ensuring their implementation. and publication
Perhaps the quote from CLR James, of all letters
‘‘What do they know of cricket who is subject to
only cricket know?’’, should be our terms and
prominently displayed in players’ conditions: see
dressing rooms and boardooms. theguardian.
Mike Stein com/
Pudsey, West Yorkshire letters-terms

The call of the sea, or even a city,
can often be too great to ignore
It’s easy, says Laura Barton, for
new arrivals to cluster together
(While others fled big cities,
I moved back, 29 December).
For most of my life I have lived
in rural areas and commuted
to London. When I get home I
shake off the city and get back
to real life. This means chatting
over the fence to my neighbour,
with whom I have nothing in
common, but he’s my neighbour.
He doesn’t have regimented tulips
(though he does mow his lawn
three times a week), but if he did
then I would admire the damned
things. Then when I go for a coffee
with the neighbours who are our
friends, I indulge in some gentle
mocking of the lawn-mowing.
Our hamlet has suddenly
become popular, and we welcome
our new neighbours if we ever
see them on our walks – if they
come out from behind the electric
gates they put up. They may be
just our sort of people, but we’ll
never know. Our community will
carry on around them, talking to
each other, in real life and on social
media groups, because that’s how
communities work. We don’t pick
and choose – we rub along together
regardless.
Dee Ward
Old Romney, Kent
• You need a discerning eye and
a contemplative soul to enjoy
coastal life. Since the first lockdown
I have paced almost every morning
along the beach, the pier and the
hills close by. Each day brings new
variety to my photo collection of
my walks. The sea has a wonderful
translucence in still weather, and
an invigorating turbulence during
gales. The tide sets a different scene
every day. The sky has infinite
patterns according to mist, fog
descending, fog clearing and, of
course, clouds that linger or scud.
Stand on the glassy-wet beach
when the tide is out, and you can
see sunrises under your feet as
well as stretching above your head.
Yvonne Williams
Ryde, Isle of Wight
• What a perfect description of
the joys of life in London by Laura
Barton. My husband and I chose
to move here seven years ago
when our changing work patterns
meant that we could suddenly live
wherever we chose. We got as close
to the centre as we could, swapping
a large house and garden in a coastal
city for a small Victorian terrace;
we sold both cars and now rely on
the highs (and occasional lows)
of Transport for London. Some
friends thought we were mad but
we love it – especially now that we
are retired and can make the most of
what this amazing city has to offer.
Rita Sammons
London
Marmite, love it or
hate it, has its uses
It amuses me to think of Tim
Dowling having respect for Marmite
eaters, now that he’s plucked up
strength to try it after 30 years
(Can I consider myself a foodie if I
won’t eat Marmite?, 30 December).
He probably doesn’t realise that
it was recommended food for
babies and small children in Britain
in the late 1940s, regarded as a
good source of vitamin B. This
remained the case even after I had
my own children in the 1970s, until
some experts expressed concern
over the high salt content. So,
Tim, many of us did not bravely
choose Marmite, but were weaned
on to it before we could speak.
Susan Treagus
Manchester
• Well now, Tim, you might feel
more inclined to eat a smidgen of
Marmite regularly if you knew that
the vitamin B in it helps to repel
mosquitoes. I have always loved
the thinnest spread of Marmite on
a finger of toast or cream cracker,
and since having a little daily
have not been bitten as much.
Catherine Roome
Staplehurst, Kent
• Despite Tim Dowling’s anxiety,
we are indebted to Marmite. When,
in March 2020, my husband and
I suddenly felt unspeakably tired
and wretched, all we ate for a
whole week was toast and Marmite.
It was the only food that these two
early sufferers from Covid could
manage. A brilliant pick-me-up.
Janet Mansfield
Aspatria, Cumbria
• Baked beans are best served
on a slice of buttered toast spread
with Marmite. The sweetness of
the former is then cut through with
the saltiness of the latter. A final
touch for Guardian readers would
be to sprinkle a few fennel seeds
into the pan of baked beans.
Barbara Wynch
West Hallam, Derbyshire
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
What to expect of a
modern monarchy
As your leader argues (28 December),
the platinum jubilee will not only
celebrate the Queen’s long reign
but also start to raise questions
about the next one.
After accession, the new
sovereign has to make three
statutory oaths: to be a true and
faithful Protestant; to uphold
the Church of Scotland; and to
uphold the rights and privileges
of the Church of England. In our
more secular and pluralist society,
these oaths need to be revised and
updated. But revision would require
fresh legislation, which needs to be
passed during the present reign to
be in time for the next accession.
Parliament could consider this,
as your leader suggests, along with
other royal matters, perhaps in a
joint committee of both houses.
We suggested possible revisions
of the oaths in 2018. And our 2020
book about the other European
•
 guardian.letters@theguardian.com
 @guardianletters
monarchies – The Role of Monarchy
in Modern Democracy – offers
comparative lessons on what to
expect of a modern monarchy.
Prof Robert Hazell and Dr Bob Morris
The Constitution Unit,
University College London
• Your leader put forward a useful
proposal regarding reform of the
monarchy. But we know that under
the present government (or indeed
under a future Labour government)
there is zero chance of such
reforms. The best hope for reform
of the feudal monarchy, under
which we are all subjects, rather
than citizens, is for Charles III
to be as disastrous a king as his
namesake ancestor 400 years ago.
Then, perhaps, parliament will
take control. One lives in hope.
Mark Flinn
Chester
• The only way to modernise
the monarchy is to turn the
country into a republic.
Peggy Thomas
Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire
Want an adventure?
Give fostering a go
Having read the “How I returned
from rock bottom” stories in G2
(29 December) and your report on
children’s social care (29 December),
can I encourage anyone looking for
an adventure or challenge in 2022
to consider fostering or mentoring
teenagers for a while? As a foster
carer to teenagers for several years,
I met some amazing youngsters. All
of them were far braver than I was
at their age about moving in with a
stranger, sometimes at short notice.
Some I am still in touch with, others
I remember and worry about, but
being a foster carer was never dull,
often fun and always interesting.
A slogan on an advert for foster
carers a few years back said “the life
you change will be your own”. This
is true, and some life experience, a
sense of the ridiculous and, perhaps,
a cat or dog are really all you need.
Eileen Flinter
London
Corrections and
clarifications
• A property in Rossington was
described as being “a few streets
south” of Doncaster Museum and
Art Gallery and a 15-minute walk
from the train station (Fantasy house
hunt, 18 December, p61); Rossington
is a 15-minute drive from Doncaster.
• The bunny ears cactus, or
Opuntia microdasys, can survive
at 7C, but not -7C (Houseplant of
the week, 11 December, Saturday
magazine, page 97).
• We used “English champagne”
when English sparkling wine was
meant (Holy water, 18 December,
Saturday magazine, p75).
Editorial complaints and corrections can be sent to
guardian.readers@theguardian.com or The readers’
editor, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU.
You can also leave a voicemail on 020 3353 4736
Vaccine incentives
could pay dividends
The current average daily price
of a level 3 intensive care bed
in an NHS hospital is £1,932. In
the hospital where I work, as in
all others, the overwhelming
majority of people in intensive
care with Covid are unvaccinated.
Boris Johnson could afford to treble
or quadruple the $100 being offered
to New Yorkers who get vaccinated
and save the NHS a fortune, to say
nothing of the beneficial impact
on the wider economy.
Jullien Gaer
London
• The Rev Geoffrey Lang claims
that the real breakthrough will
come when a father brings his
baby into the Commons (Letters,
30 December). The breakthrough
occurred in 2014, when the Lib Dem
MP Duncan Hames did just that.
Simon Fisher
Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire
• At my grammar school in Bristol
in the mid-1950s, I was taught to
scrub a wooden kitchen table – a
skill that I have not put to use in all
my 80 years (Letters, 29 December).
Vivien Berry
Spalding, Lincolnshire
• A year after Brexit took full effect,
perhaps now is the right time for
an article detailing all the positive
aspects of the deal for the UK.
Alternatively, you could just have
the headline “Brexit benefits”, and
leave the rest of the page blank.
Sarah Pegg
Edinburgh
• I’m determined to get a letter
published on 1 January so that,
just for one day, I can say I’ve had a
letter published every day in 2022.
Toby Wood
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
7
Established 2021
Young country diary
Branscombe, Devon
Ham sandwiches for lunch,
ammonites for afters
The sun has risen from its
slumber, its light reflecting on the
still water. I go outside, attacked
by the icy winds blowing hard.
December days are the coldest
of all. I pass the hours skimming
stones and making fires.
Lunch now. I sit outside,
watching the waves, eating my ham
sandwich and drinking a juice box.
After, I go for a walk, climbing over
big rocks and exploring caves. I look
at the cliffs, searching for treasure.
But what’s this? I see small shells
embedded into the rocks.
I pick at the shells, prying
seven from the cliff. Ammonites,
I tell myself, recognising the
twisted shape. Fossils as old as the
dinosaurs. I turn towards the sea.
I think of the shells floating in the
water, not rocks, but alive. I put an
image in my head of them drifting
in the ever-blue, tiny tentacles
limp and lifeless, like in the books.
I put them in my pocket and
set off for home. The sun sets
as I reach my house, the stars
shimmering above my head like
little lights in the dark sky.
James, 12
Cropton, Yorkshire
Now I know loads about bullfinches
The weekend before Christmas
we were in a holiday cabin in
the forest. We saw lots of birds.
My brother and I fed them so we
could get a good look. When we
were getting ready to go home,
my dad shouted: “Come upstairs,
now!” We ran up to the bedroom.
We looked out of the window, and
in the fog stood a little bird!
My brother found the bird
book and flicked through it. “It’s
a bullfinch!” he cried, and he was
right. It was amazing! There were a
lot of facts I learned. It’s only 15cm
long – that’s half a ruler! These
birds’ chests can be orange or pink.
Sometimes they look like a robin or
a chaffinch. The males have bright
colours but the females have
dull brown feathers. They feed
voraciously on seeds, buds and
insects. Their tune is a soft whistle
noise. They are endangered so
they need help. They breed in May
to July and lay up to four or five
eggs. They make their nest on the
ground. It was amazing that on a
cold winter day one was hopping
about in front of my eyes. Seeing
the bullfinch made my holiday.
Orla, 8
Young country diary, written by
children aged between eight and
14, appears in this column on the
first Saturday of each month

8 Obituaries
Sabine Weiss
Photographer whose
subjects ranged from
avant-garde creatives
to everyday street life
he photographer
T
Sabine Weiss,
who has died aged
97, established
her considerable
reputation within
the French
“humanist”
school of black-and-white
photography, which aimed to
capture the universal human
experience through images of
everyday street life. Images
such as that of a horse kicking
up its heels, tethered on snowy
wasteland by the Paris flea
market at the Porte de Vanves,
or of a child illuminated only by
a sparkler, are seen on a par with
those created by her friends and
near-contemporaries Willy Ronis,
Brassaï, Izis Bidermanas and
Robert Doisneau, the last of whom
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
introduced her to his photo agency,
Rapho, in 1952. Yet throughout
her long career, Weiss worked
across the medium, including in
advertising, travel and journalism.
She opened her studio on the
Boulevard Murat in Paris in 1950,
across from a fellow Swiss artist
who had relocated to the city,
Alberto Giacometti. Weiss always
insisted that she was an artisan
rather than an artist. Primarily,
this was because, she said: “From
the start I had to make a living
from photography. It was never
just about the art.” However, she
demonstrated artistry even in
advertising. Her images of products
such as cognac and perfume
explored themes of evanescence
and flight: scent vaporises from a
well; a centaur flees the flames of
ignited brandy.
Weiss also documented avant-
garde creatives, many of whom
became her friends. In music
they included Benjamin Britten,
Stan Getz and Igor Stravinsky; in
fine art, Jean Dubuffet, Fernand
Léger, Robert Rauschenberg and
Giacometti; the writers F Scott
Fitzgerald, André Breton and
Françoise Sagan; and actors such
as Brigitte Bardot (whom she
photographed in exceptional
colour) and Jeanne Moreau.
The Rapho agency became
the perfect outlet for her
photojournalism and personal
work; she started as one of only
two women working for them.
Weiss had
a special
rapport
with
children.
Their
capacity
for play
fascinated
her
Her stories were published in
Vogue, Life, Paris Match and the
New York Times magazine, and
she was included in the Postwar
European Photography exhibition
(1953) at the Museum of Modern
Art in New York. She participated in
Edward Steichen’s groundbreaking
exhibition The Family of Man,
which began at MoMA in 1955
and toured for eight years to 38
different countries.
Above all, Weiss loved
photographing children, with
whom she had a special rapport,
as shown in the books Poussettes,
Charrettes et Roulettes (2000),
Intimes Convictions (1989) and
Des Enfants (2000). Their capacity
for play fascinated her, a favourite
image being Enfants sur Arbre
(Children in a Tree). Shot in 1951,
it depicts three boys struggling to
balance atop a thin wintry tree;
a younger boy attempts to prop a
bedstead against the trunk.
Born Sabine Weber in
St-Gingolph, Switzerland, she fell
in love with photography early,
buying her first Bakelite camera
with her pocket money at the age of
eight, and “printing” her images by
exposing contact sheets to sunlight
on her windowsill. Her first mentor
was her father, a chemical engineer,
who gave her, she told me in an
interview for the Independent in
1987, “a very practical liking for the
subject”, which was “something
of a salvation as I was always more
visual than intellectual”.
Weiss described The Weber family moved to
her 1952 image
Cheval, taken
near the Paris
Geneva and, aged 15, Sabine
took the first opportunity to
exchange formal schooling for a
flea market, as
‘a portrait of
solitude’. Below,
photography apprenticeship with
the 80-year-old François-Frédéric
Boissonnas. Boissonnas taught
Weiss in 2020
SABINE WEISS;
JOEL SAGET/AFP/GETTY
her composition, and encouraged
stylistic experimentation.
In Geneva, Sabine came to
know members of a French-Jewish
community in exile from nazism.
When survivors returned to Paris
in 1946, she made her home
there too. A contact introduced
her to the fashion photographer
Willy Maywald, whose studio
assistant she became: “I worked
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
in conditions unimaginable today
– no water or telephone – but with
him I understood the importance
of natural light. Natural light as a
source of emotion.”
She remained with him for four
years, using his studio to devise
commercial jobs and his darkroom
to start developing her own work.
Fashion gave her access to “le tout
Paris”, including Christian Dior’s
1947 launch of his New Look.
In 1949 she met the American
painter Hugh Weiss, who
encouraged her in the use of colour.
Then, too, her fascination with
line and form emerged, both in
visually framing her images and in
the rearrangements that could be
achieved in the darkroom.
They married in 1950, and
adopted a daughter, Marion. Weiss
recalled it as a happy period,
personally and creatively, when
“a kind of national optimism”
overcame the humiliation caused
by the German occupation. That
year she also began working with
the Armenian-Egyptian-French
photographer Alban, travelling
between studios in Brussels and
Cairo, where the light inspired her
to properly begin working in colour.
During this time she published
reportage and travel features from
around the world in Vogue, Life,
Holiday, Time and Picture Post.
Across a further 60-plus years
of photographic work, Weiss’s
international reputation steadily
grew. More than 40 books and
exhibition catalogues document
her diverse interests, from
grassroots theatre companies
to artists’ monographs; Paris
street markets and fairs to rural
musicians; country profiles from
Bulgaria to Burkina Faso.
In 2017, she donated her entire
archive to the Musée de l’Élysée
in Lausanne. In 2020, she won
Kering’s Women in Motion
photography award.
When I interviewed her, I met
a warm, conversational woman,
happily at home in the same studio
that she had moved into when it
was a hovel without electricity or
an indoor toilet. Recalling how she
was so poor that she traded her
portraits for vegetables on the local
market, Weiss still looked back
with gratitude and affection. She
said it was the people she came to
know through her photography
that pleased her most, “whether on
street markets, in famous galleries,
or working at Printemps”.
Yet when I asked why she
thought her most-reproduced non-
commercial image was of the horse
bucking itself free of its tether, she
said it was “a portrait of solitude.
My world, as a photographer, has to
be about loneliness. And so it is I’ve
learned to love solitude as well as
all the rest.”
Hugh died in 2007. Weiss is
survived by Marion.
Amanda Hopkinson
Sabine Weiss, photographer, born 23
June 1924; died 28 December 2021
•
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 @guardianobits
Bernard Holley
Stage and screen actor
known for roles in police
dramas including Z Cars
and A Touch of Frost
he actor Bernard
T
Holley, who has
died aged 81, was
a well-known face
on British screens
for 50 years,
notably a four-year
stint in the popular
BBC police drama Z Cars, highly
regarded since the 1960s for its
groundbreaking social realism.
Originally cast as an unnamed
PC, he was quickly taken on as a
regular. Over 250 episodes between
1967 and 1971 he became familiar to
the viewing public. PC Newcombe
was a dependable, genial copper,
and Holley’s unshowy, authentic
performance was a central asset
to the series, which was hugely
popular at the time. “It came as a
wake-up call to television,” he said
about the show. “Gritty, northern,
tough – people just loved it.”
And BBC staff crammed into the
galleries just to see this new way of
making television, he said.
A subtle actor with a natural
twinkle and a warm, reassuring
presence, he rose through the TV
cop ranks, later playing a detective
inspector – and the love interest
of the series star Jill Gascoine – in
another mould-breaking police
series, The Gentle Touch (1982-
84). He made chief constable in A
Touch of Frost (1999, 2003) – the
lead actor, David Jason, personally
requesting him for the role.
He was born in Eastcote,
Middlesex (now in the London
borough of Hillingdon), the middle
son of Doris (nee Martin) and Fred,
a heating engineer. Fred died when
Bernard was two years old, and
Doris later married Henry Wilton.
They had a further six children,
which resulted in a happy, close-
knit family. Bernard was educated
at Kilburn grammar school but left
aged 16 to work as an office boy. The
class clown, he always felt that he
was performing to an imaginary
camera and hankered to act – and
so he enrolled at Rose Bruford
drama college, Sidcup, in 1961.
Upon graduation he made his
professional debut in Arnold
Wesker’s Chips With Everything
(Lincoln, 1963) followed by
repertory theatre in Manchester,
Derby and Hornchurch before his
London debut at Regent’s Park
open air theatre in 1966. That
year he made his first television
appearance in a BBC schools
programme, Men in History, and
after episodes of The Newcomers
soap (1966) and Softly, Softly
(1967), he joined Z Cars.
When he decided to leave the
show he first defied typecasting
with a strong turn as the double
agent Gilbert Gifford opposite
Glenda Jackson in the acclaimed
Elizabeth R (1971) and then in
Doctor Who as the titular nemesis
in The Claws of Axos (1971) with Jon
Pertwee. This involved a spandex
costume, ping-pong balls for eyes
and the application of gold spray
paint to his face and hair. He had
already played a friendly scientist
opposite Patrick Troughton in
1967’s The Tomb of the Cybermen,
and in 2011 and 2015 revived both
parts – with Doctors Tom and Colin
Baker – for the audio company Big
Finish, for which he also played
memorable villains in Dorian Gray
(2014) and Survivors (2015).
Other TV roles – of many; he
was rarely out of work – included
Mr Hurst in Please Sir! (1972); Peter
Elston, the lead in both series of
John Esmonde and Bob Larbey’s
superior nostalgic comedy Now
and Then (1983-84); Richard,
Lesley Joseph’s love interest, in
Birds of a Feather (1998); the Rev
Green in Hollyoaks (2000-01); and
Holley as Mike Turnbull alongside Jill Gascoine as DI Maggie Forbes in the
mould-breaking ITV police series The Gentle Touch in 1982 ITV/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK
four different parts in the daytime
soap Doctors (2001-14).
A successful working
relationship with the producer
Clive Doig also made him a regular
face on children’s television,
displaying his versatility as part of
the resident ensemble in both The
Deceivers (1981) and Eureka (1982-
86). He was a familiar storyteller on
Jackanory (1974-91), his renditions
of Joan Eadington’s Jonny Briggs
stories being especially well loved.
With his modulated tones and
clear diction – sturdy, reassuring,
or cushion-soft, as needed –
Holley was always in demand for
documentary narrations, video
games and advertisements. He
even spoofed his voiceover-man
persona in the 2013 short film A
Voice to Die For.
On stage he took leading roles
in Sleuth (Bromley, 1977), The
Norman Conquests (a favourite,
playing the title role at Leatherhead
in 1978), Bedroom Farce
(Leatherhead, 1979), Wife Begins
at Forty (national tour, 1982),
and Noises Off (Savoy, 1983), and
joined a number of productions at
the Orange Tree, Richmond, most
recently Mary Broome in 2011. In
1972 he appeared in the West End in
My Fat Friend (Globe, Shaftesbury
Avenue – now the Gielgud) with
Kenneth Williams. Holley, a great
listener and kindly man, was one
of the few to escape a wrathful
comment in Williams’s famously
waspish diaries.
He met Jean Brockie, a model,
in the 60s when he gatecrashed
her farewell party – she was due to
emigrate to Canada the following
week but after meeting him she
decided to stay. They married in
1964. She survives him, as do their
son, Michael, grandchildren, Marly
and Isla, and seven of his siblings.
Toby Hadoke
Bernard John Holley, actor, born 9
August 1940; died 22 November 2021
9
Birthdays
Today’s birthdays: Prof Dame
Mary Beard, professor of classics,
Cambridge University, 67; Prof
Sir Martin Evans, Nobel prize-
winning biochemist, former
chancellor, Cardiff University, 81;
Morgan Fisher, keyboard player
and composer, 72; John Fuller,
poet and writer, 85; Trevor Grove,
journalist, 77; Abdul Hamid,
president of Bangladesh, 78;
Christine Lagarde, president,
European Central Bank, 66;
Frank Langella, actor, 84; David
Nalbandian, tennis player, 40;
Jonah Peretti, CEO, BuzzFeed
and co-founder, Huffington Post,
48; Fiona Phillips, journalist and
television presenter, 61; Philip
Prowse, theatre designer, 85;
Joseph Saddler (Grandmaster
Flash), hip-hop artist, 64; Sharon
Small, actor, 55; Spencer Tunick,
photographer, 55; Georgina
von Etzdorf, textile designer,
67; Danny Wilson, football
manager, 62.
Tomorrow’s birthdays: David
Bailey, photographer, 84; Kate
Bosworth, actor, 39; Mike Clarke,
former chief executive, RSPB,
62; Lynne Cox, long-distance
open-water swimmer, 65; Cuba
Gooding Jr, actor, 54; David
Graveney, cricket manager, 69;
Todd Haynes, film director, 61;
Hilary Heilbron, QC, 73; Chris
Matheson, Labour MP, shadow
media minister, 54; David McKee,
writer and illustrator, 87; Fiona
Millar, journalist, 64; Lady (Lucy)
Neville-Rolfe, former commercial
secretary to the Treasury, 69; Egil
Østenstad, football manager, 50;
Terence Pepper, photography
curator, 73; Francois Pienaar,
rugby player, 55; Sir Keith Thomas,
historian, 89; Christy Turlington,
model, 53; Lord (Tony) Woodley,
former joint general secretary,
Unite, 74.
Announcements
ATKINSON, Anthony Barnes (Tony), known as
’Godfather of Research into Inequality and Poverty’
died peacefully in the Churchill Hospital, Oxford
early on New Year’s Day 2017. Sorely missed by
Judith (Mandeville), Richard and Meriel, Sarah and
Ken, Charles and Lorna, and by adored
grandchildren Estelle, Gerrard, Leila, Evelyn, Connie,
Charlotte, Frank and Kezia.
RODDICK, Nick.
Died 01/01/2019.
Forever, my love. Jo.
LEIGHTON, Alison, 1/1/1942. Physiotherapist,
maritime historian, mycologist, and correspondent.
Happy birthday.
For Announcements, Acknowledgments, Adoptions,
Anniversaries, Birthdays, Births, Deaths,
Engagements, Memorial Services and In Memoriam,
email us at announcements@theguardian.com
including your name, address and telephone
number or phone 0203 353 2114.

10
Other
lives
Barbara Baker
Portrait and landscape painter who
had a 20-year spell of solo shows in
London and the north-west
My mother, Barbara Baker, who
has died aged 89, drew and
painted throughout her life, in
watercolours, pastel, charcoal
and pencil. In her portraits she
demonstrated a rare sensibility
for colour, shown by her use of
coloured papers, idiosyncratic
composition, and a focus on
the patterns and textures of the
garments worn by her subjects.
Barbara was born in Kersal,
north Salford, Greater Manchester,
to Josephine (nee Kalis) and Alec
Baker, a furniture manufacturer.
She was the identical twin of
the British social documentary
photographer Shirley Baker.
The family moved to Manchester
when the girls were two. Later
they boarded at Penrhos girls’
Jim Boardman
Career soldier involved in the
wartime Normandy landings who
later had a brush with the Beatles
My father, Jim Boardman, who has
died aged 97, was a career soldier
who saw action from Normandy to
Hamburg in the second world war.
His regiment arrived on Juno beach
in July 1944 and fought through
to Germany and the war’s end the
following year.
One of five children, Jim was born
in Withyham, East Sussex, where
his parents, Gladys (nee Shed) and
Harry, ran a pub. Jim left school in
Groombridge at 14, joining the army
on his 15th birthday in March 1939.
Despite suffering a broken nose and
ankle when his scout car hit a mine
towards the end of the Normandy
campaign, he returned to the front
in Holland during the winter of 1944.
He served in Germany after the war,
on active service in Korea (1951-52)
and in Egypt (1953-54).
He met Joan Richardson in
Northumberland while based
there in 1943. They married in
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Obituaries
school in Colwyn Bay, north Wales,
from which they were evacuated
during the second world war to
Chatsworth in Derbyshire.
She went on to study fashion
design and fine art at Manchester
School of Art (now Manchester
Metropolitan University) and
graduated in 1953. Three years
later she married David Winter,
owner of Winter’s the Jewellers
in Stockport.
In 1964 I was born, and after
the marriage ended in divorce,
she married Dennis Btesh, in
1971, with whom she had another
daughter, Alexandra.
During the next 14 years
Barbara lived in Cheshire, while
also spending much of her time
in second homes in north Wales
and the south of France. When
her children were growing up,
she painted in her studio, on her
travels, and at life-drawing classes
in Manchester, creating abstract
landscapes of England, Scotland,
Wales and France and still-life
works on paper, portraits and
life drawings.
A 20-year period of exhibitions
began with her first solo exhibition
at Tib Lane gallery, Manchester,
in 1986. Other solo shows followed
in 1987 at the R&A gallery, Alderley
Edge, the Hurlingham gallery,
London, then at the Riverside
gallery, London, in 1989 and back
Rital, pastel on paper, by Barbara
Baker, who held her last exhibition
of paintings in her 70s
1946. They had five children and
lived in 27 different army houses.
Jim rose through the ranks and
was commissioned in 1963. His
last years of active service were
with the Army Air Corps, where
he served in Cyprus in 1964. While
adjutant at the Air Corps base in
Netheravon, Wiltshire, in 1965,
he was the officer in command of
the army unit deployed to surround
the Beatles for the sequence on
Salisbury Plain in their film Help!
After retiring from active service
with the rank of captain in 1970,
he worked in a bank before being
appointed the secretary of his
regiment, the 5th Royal Inniskilling
Dragoon Guards, a position he held
for 17 years. Regimental visits he
planned to the communities they
had liberated in Normandy and
the Netherlands continue to this
day. In retirement he wrote two
books: Tracks in Europe (1990),
a soldier’s account of his regiment
at war, and Tracks in Korea (2013),
his history of the regiment during
the Korean war. He and Joan lived
in Cotebrook, Cheshire, until 2002,
then moved to Louth, Lincolnshire.
Jim enjoyed gardening and fishing.
Joan survives him, as do four
children, Janet, Bernard, Richard
and me, 10 grandchildren, nine
great-grandchildren and two great-
great-grandchildren. His youngest
son, Andrew, died in 2018.
David Boardman
Eric Pye
Adult literacy specialist, creative
recycler and prizewinning maker
of allotment scarecrows
My friend Eric Pye, who has died
aged 67, was an adult educator
who was passionate about creating
fairness in the world. He was also
an inventive recycler who found
ways to reuse everything, from
clothes to towel rails.
Eric described himself as
“peasant class”. He was born in
Rainford, near St Helens, now
in Merseyside, to Edith (nee
Harrison) and Horace Pye, and
grew up on their tenanted farm
without electricity, inside toilet
or bathroom.
At Ormskirk grammar school,
where he was bullied about his
humble upbringing, he became
a rebel and was expelled, though
one of his teachers was able to
ensure he sat his O-levels. He
then attended sixth form at Wade
Deacon grammar in Widnes.
He always said that he arrived
at East London Poly (now the
 obituaries@theguardian.com
 other.lives@theguardian.com
 @guardianobits
University of East London) with
all his life’s possessions in a single
plastic bag. He graduated in
biophysical science in 1976.
In 1979 he started work at the
Blackfriars Adult Literacy Project
and soon became one of its
coordinators. It was this experience
that inspired him to move into
a career in adult education. His
accommodation at the time was
squats in Brixton and Islington,
where he became adept at avoiding
waste, making sure everything was
used or reused as something else.
After travelling to South America
and Russia in the early 1980s,
Eric and his partner, Jean Ireland,
moved to Sheffield, where in 1984
he became education manager for
Nacro, the charity working with
offenders to reduce crime. After
six years there he became manager
of the school governor support
service at Sheffield city council.
In addition, he took up a role in the
council’s advice and reconciliation
 Readers who would like to offer
a piece to Other lives can find more
information online at theguardian.
com/contact-obits
Submission and publication of all
Other lives pieces and Obituaries
page letters is subject to our terms
and conditions: see theguardian.
com/letters-terms
In her portraits she
demonstrated a rare
sensibility for colour
and a focus on
patterns and textures
at the Tib Lane gallery in 1989 and
1992. Her work was also included
in several group exhibitions.
Barbara continued painting at
her home studio until her late 70s.
In 2007, aged 75, she presented her
work in an in-house exhibition at
her home in Alderley Edge.
Aside from her painting, she
was a qualified swimming teacher,
and from the 1960s onwards gave
swimming lessons to children,
including at Victoria Baths in
Manchester and at the Royal
School for the Deaf in Cheadle,
as well as privately at clients’
homes in Cheshire and France.
She continued to do so until well
into her 80s.
Barbara had real strength of
character, great compassion,
an excellent sense of humour and
a profound curiosity about people
and places.
Dennis died in January 2021.
She is survived by Alexandra
and me, Dennis’s children, Olivia
and Richard, from his previous
marriage, and two grandchildren,
Aurelia and Linus.
Lyn Winter
service, working with schools to
help resolve conflicts, and touching
the lives of thousands of children
and parents. He retired in 2013.
With Jean he had two sons,
Daniel and Ben, to whom he
was a playful and loving dad,
inventing games and making all
sorts of toys – shadow puppets,
Thunderbirds outfits and models –
from recycled junk.
After Eric and Jean separated,
he became a life partner to
Jan Novitzky, an adult educator.
In retirement they took up
modern jive dancing and travelled
extensively. Eric also joined a choir
and captained a team for his local
bowls club, Whiteley Woods,
where he brought new ideas to
a restrained and quiet game,
creating the Wobbly Woods intra-
club tournament. He often sported
a bandana for matches.
He was also a keen and creative
allotmenteer. His self-built shed
was replete with a living roof
on which old plastic animals
roamed. The plot was peopled
with prizewinning scarecrows –
ballroom dancers, Jimi Hendrix, a
biker and a suffragette. Eric bought
nothing, supporting his vegetables
with curtain poles, towel rails and
even an old trampoline frame.
Eric is survived by Jan, Daniel
and Ben, his brother, Keith, and
nephews, Dean and Michael.
Sally Goldsmith
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

Puzzles 11

Sudoku Easy Medium Expert

The normal
rules of sudoku
apply: fill each
row, column and
3x3 box with all
the numbers
from 1 to 9.

Futoshiki Easy Kids Word search Kids Countdown

Fill in the grid so that every row and column contains
the numbers 1-5. The “greater than” or “less than” signs
indicate where a number is larger or smaller than its
neighbour.
Find all the listed Beanie Babies in the grid, reading in Can you work out the answers to the sums below?
straight lines, up, down or diagonally, either backwards
or forwards.
AMBER, ANGEL, ANTS, BEAK, BUBBLES, CHINA,
FAUNA, FINN, GEORGE, GROOVY, LEGS, MAGIC,
PRINCESS, WALES

> < 4
<

>

>

2 >
>

>

>
>

>

< <

Solutions

Kids Countdown Sudoku Easy Sudoku Medium Sudoku Expert Futoshiki Kids Word search
Hard: 52 2 < 5 1 3 < 4
Medium: 93
>

>

Easy: 10 2 4 > 3 1 5
>

>

4 > 3 5 2 1

1 5 2 3 4
>

>

<

1 < 4 5 > 3 2
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

12 Puzzles

Yesterday’s Killer sudoku Chris Maslanka’s puzzles

solutions
4 A square bar of
Hard No 794 Pyrgic puzzles Sigh‘n’Hide chocolate
1 Pedanticus read in a certain newspaper that consists of 4x4 squares
Killer sudoku The normal rules of sudoku apply: fill each row, column and 3x3 box with all a grammar school served a “’pathetic’ £3.50 of chocolate. You and
Easy the numbers from 1 to 9. In addition, the digits in each inner shape (marked Christmas dinner with a tiny slither of turkey Doctor De’Athe both
by dots) must add up to the number in the top corner of that box. No digit can and a single pig in blanket in a bap to pupils”. know which square he
What did he object to? has injected with poison.
be repeated within an inner shape.
2 If you are to keep just one of these n New He and you take it in
Year resolutions, which should it be? turns to break off a piece
1 I will break just one of these resolutions and eat it. The piece broken off can be as many
2 I will break just two of these resolutions pieces long or wide as you like – or as few as
3 I will break just three of these resolutions just one square, so long as at each go you
... and so on all the way up to: make just one break going all the way across
n I will break all n of these resolutions. in a single straight line. The aim is for your
3 Jack and Jill set out from home at noon opponent to end up with the tainted piece.
and pull their sledge Rosebud at 3mph to the Should you go first? Or second? What exactly
bottom of the hill. They pull it up to the top should your strategy be?
of the hill at 2mph, and then jump on and 5 I received this message over Christmas.
zoom down to the bottom at 6mph. They What does it say? BIBQQ ZDISJ TUNBT
Medium then pull their sledge home at 3mph by a UPBMM PVSSF BEFST!
slightly different route. All in all they cover 4
miles. What time do they get home? email: maslanka@easynet.co.uk

Wordplay Dropouts
Replace each asterisk with a letter to make a
Wordpool word: *S*I*N*G*
In each case find the correct definition: Same Difference
UNGULIGRADE Identify the two words that differ only in the
a) nonsensical, as in the Ging Gang Goolie song letters shown:
b) walking on hooves **S******* (New Year determination)
c) swallowing without gulps **V******* (sudden change)
d) unsaleable
Cryptic
THUJA Huge flower representing an ancient god (6)
Codeword a) genus of coniferous tree One bird nipped another (7)
b) mythically remote island
c) Viking leader Missing Links
d) thingummybob Find a word that follows the first word in the
clue and precedes the second, in each case
DUTCH ROLL
making a fresh word or phrase. Eg the answer
a) bap and butter
to fish mix could be cake (fishcake & cake mix)
b) move in gymnastics
and to bat man it could be he (bathe & he-man)
c) runaway barrel
d) instability in flight a) sup wine b) snow guy
c) work soil d) plant ash
E pluribus unum e) beef pie f) fair time
Rearrange the letters of THE CENSORS to
make a single word. ©CMM 2022. Solutions on Page 50

Cryptic crossword
Guardian cryptic crossword No 28,643 set by Brendan
Solution No. 28,642
G C G T F M Q
LOTHAR I O OD I OUS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Across Down
W E A U C D E 1 Turk who served rum in jars, say (9) 2 Primate turned up to perform
M I C RON R E I NDE E R 9
T C D I L N 9 Dramatic scenes, initially, having christening each year (6)
UHOH J U S T THE J OB some impact on election (3,3) 3 Crowd suddenly arriving and
O E U M R A F 10 occupying plant (6)
SUB Z ERO NAUGHT Y 10 Briefly mad about it in heated state (9)
T L O K V E H 11 View outside broadcast, back in 4 Only fish left — chippy’s closing (6)
ESPADR I L L E SEEK 11 pavilion (6) 5 Fix radius on out-and-out circular
A F E L P S
L Y K E WA K E S O R R OW 12 Wet area damages bit of bridge across construction (7)
I M L N I E U 12 lake (9) 6 A doctor agitated over check for
E N AME L E N C HA N T S
G E Y X K D H 13 Tiny border in middle part of Irish instrument (9)
13 plan (6) 7 Proceeded cautiously about live
17 Musical ability that’s central broadcast turned into fiction (9)
14 15 16 17 18 throughout rehearsal clearly heard (3) 8 Break down style in art and poems,
19 Annoying person necessitating differently (9)
19 20 change of earplug (7) 14 Philosophical attitude shown as a
20 Awfully sorry about return of monk is leading mass (9)
21 22 weekend letters? Special deliveries (7) 15 Historic vessel is liable to sink with
21 Vote for one of two in fairly violent fellow aboard (9)
23 24 25 26 exchange, we hear (3) 16 Meeting places for judge and working
23 Held by fine performance as it groups set outside court (9)
27
happens (2,4) 17 Period starts or ends in Europe,
27 Cuts food in way that’s right in remember — also Asia or Africa (3)
28
summer months (9) 18 Whiskey or port (3)
28 Raw recruit that is seen by castle (6) 22 Raised purchase price, ultimately
29
29 Get me and you, finally, organised screening available website (7)
more than before (9) 24 Key man on board is run into a lot (6)
30
30 Getting, since believing? (6) 25 Release granny, say, from trunk? No
31 Seating put back around piano — time thanks! (6)
31
for some music (9) 26 Very bad part — character in Romeo
and Juliet (6)

The first five correct entries drawn each week win Can You Solve My Name □ Tick here if you do not wish to receive further
Problems? Address information from the Guardian Media Group or
Want more? Get access to more than other companies screened by us.
4,000 puzzles at theguardian.com/ Entries to: The Guardian Crossword No 28,643,
crossword. To buy puzzle books, visit P.O. Box 17566, Birmingham, B33 3EZ, or Fax to 0121-742 1313 by first post Postcode How many times How many times
guardianbookshop.com or call a week do you buy a month do you buy
on Friday. Solution and winners in the Guardian on Monday 10 January. Telephone number
0330 333 6846. the Guardian? the Observer?
 •

Saturday 1 January 2022

Welcome
to an epic
year Pagess
8-9 
Hollioake
ke
answerss
d’s
England’s
OS
Ashes SOS
22 events to savourr
ths
in the next 12 months Page 13 

‘It was
intense …
instinctive’
Denmark captain
Simon Kjær, who helped
save Christian Eriksen’s
life, is the Guardian
Footballer of the Year
Interview Pages 2-3 
BORIS STREUBEL/UEFA/GETTY IMAGES

‘It brings noise

risking his relationship with Tuchel to the Premier League from Atlético
Jacob Steinberg after questioning the manager’s Madrid and is being pursued by
system and adding that he wants to Newcastle.
return to San Siro while still at “a good Tuchel would not comment on

we don’t need’ Romelu

R
leaving
l
Thomas
T
Lukaku has no intention of
Chelsea despite angering
Tuchel with an interview
enough level”.
Lukaku is not thinking about quit-
ting Chelsea now and sources said
reports in Italy about Lukaku looking
to leave. He would also not confirm
whether Lukaku would face discipli-

Tuchel irate
in
i which the striker said he was “not there was “zero chance” of a reunion nary action and said the 28-year-old
happy”
h with his situation at Stamford with Inter in January. The forward had hurt Chelsea’s focus before they
Bridge
B this season. revealed he had turned down an offer try to revive their ailing title chal-
Lukaku, who became Chelsea’s from Manchester City in 2020 and, lenge by beating Liverpool tomorrow.

at Lukaku record
r

summer,
s
signing after joining from
Internazionale
I for £97.5m last
stumbled into a controversy
when Inter rejected his request for a
new contract last summer, decided
Chelsea were the only team he would
“We don’t like it,” Tuchel said. “It
brings noise that we don’t need and
it’s not helpful. We don’t want to

but forward
of
o his own making when comments contemplate joining. make more out of it than it actually
about
a his dissatisfaction with his Nonetheless the interview has is. It is easy to take lines out of con-
role
r under Tuchel were released by irritated Tuchel, whose problems text, shorten lines, make headlines
Sky Italia
S on Thursday. increased after Reece James was and then realise later that it is not so

will stay the

The interview took place three
weeks
w ago and was intended to help
t Belgian build bridges with Inter
fans.
f However, Lukaku ended up
ruled out for at least two months with
a torn hamstring. James’s absence
could prompt Chelsea to try to sign
Kieran Trippier, who wants to return
bad. We need a calm environment
and focus and this does not help.”
Tuchel said he would 5 
speak to Lukaku, who fired

2 Sport
‘Football
has become
secondary to
me. It’s not
as important’
The Guardian
Footballer of the Year
Simon Kjær
Denmark’s captain
reflects on a year in which
his outlook changed
when he helped save
Christian Eriksen’s life
Nick Ames
Helsingør
T
hrough the window
behind Simon Kjær,
a grey November
afternoon is dimming
and the lights across
the Øresund strait
are starting to flicker. Boats carry
commuters home between Sweden
and Denmark, or in reverse; the
view is striking and simultaneously
mundane, a confluence of
inexorable nature and everyday
business. Inside, Kjær is reflecting
on 12 months in which barely
anything came to feel familiar.
“Positive, negative, we’ve been
through everything,” he says. “All
the register of emotions. We had it
all.” A pause; a repetition. “We had
it all.”
We are here, in this meeting
room at the national team’s hotel in
Helsingør, because Kjær has been
named the Guardian’s Footballer
of the Year for 2021. On 12 June he
did something nobody on a football
pitch would ever expect necessary:
when Christian Eriksen, a close
friend, collapsed with a cardiac
arrest during Denmark’s Euro 2020
tie with Finland he ran to his aid
immediately, putting him in the
recovery position and starting the
CPR procedure that ultimately
helped save his life. As the situation
developed, he formed a protective
ring around Eriksen with their
teammates and comforted Eriksen’s
partner, Sabrina Kvist Jensen. Kjær
is Denmark’s captain and led them
with extraordinary strength and
composure through an unthinkable
ordeal.
The recognition has been
overwhelming: name a year-end
shortlist and Kjær has been on it,
most notably finishing 18th in the
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Football
Ballon d’Or ranking, while Uefa
bestowed its president’s award
on him and the Danish medical
staff. He accepts our accolade with
the same request that greeted the
others: that it is taken as a collective
honour, shared among the squad to
highlight their response.
“I appreciate all the positive
words and gratitude,” he says. “I’m
honoured. But as I’ve always said,
my reaction was impulsive and so
was everyone’s. What we did, we
did as a team. I would not have been
able to keep my shit together if I
didn’t have anyone to lean against.
“It was our friend: not a
colleague, a friend. That made it
so much more intense, and what
we did was instinctive. I don’t
believe you can prepare yourself
for anything like it. At the end of
the day everything was only for one
purpose and that was for Christian,
his wellbeing at the time and his
family.”
Kjær comforts Sabrina Eriksen is now healthy, which is
Kvist Jensen, partner all that has ever mattered. When
of Christian Eriksen the Finland game restarted with
inordinate haste Kjær realised he
had, as he puts it, “nothing to give”
and was quickly substituted. For
whatever it was worth, Denmark
lost and the context makes what
followed all the more jaw-dropping.
Nobody would have criticised
Kjær and his team for deciding a
summer tournament was no longer
for them; they would certainly not
have blamed themselves. They
took things day by day and found
themselves powered by something
that, even now, is not easily
described. Denmark knew they
were a good side but it took more
than that to defy logic and reach
the last four. “You tried it all,” Kjær
says of their attempts to restore
a semblance of normality. “We
allowed ourselves to train an hour,
an hour and a half a day, and then
get through it with all the bounces
and difficulties that the days would
bring.”
The first match-shaped hurdle
was against Belgium on the same
pitch at Parken, Denmark’s national
stadium in Copenhagen, that had
witnessed such trauma five days
previously. They lost 2-1 but that
was immaterial. Nobody who
was present will forget that sun-
drenched afternoon, which became
a visceral affirmation of life.
Amid a heady atmosphere of joy,
relief, regret, gratitude and pride,
Denmark tore into their opponents
‘When you have that
experience, you
carry it for the rest
of your life. But you
learn from it’
and could have scored five or
six. Eriksen watched from the
Rigshospitalet, a few hundred yards
away. Forget the result: it became
the match of their lives.
It had been a case of putting
one foot in front of the other. “I
went on; warm up; dressing room;
walk out for national anthem; get
through the national anthem; hear
the whistle; take it from there,”
Kjær says, slowly enunciating each
stage. “I had no idea whatsoever
what would happen. Even if I went
into the game knowing I should
play, at the end of the day I didn’t
know if I would play. I had no idea
how I would act, no one did, but I
was OK. So we enjoyed it and the
result didn’t matter, I can tell you
that, 100%. It didn’t matter. Not at
any point.
“The fans, the stadium, that
support, the feeling inside, I think
it describes what happened for
Denmark overall that summer, for
people who were there but also
those watching on TV. How could
we do that performance? I cannot
find you explanations; I can only
come back to the team, the support,
the trust, the comfort we find in
each other. Our bond was the only
thing that gave us a chance to get
back out on the pitch.”
Their participation in the
tournament hung by a thread
but now they knew they could
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
perform. Russia, Wales and Czech
Republic were all seen off in a string
of adrenaline-fuelled, but coolly
executed, victories that led to the
semi-final at Wembley. Had destiny
simply decided they would go all
the way? Not quite: Kjær scored an
own goal and, while the extra-time
penalty that brought England’s win
was marginal, Denmark were out on
their feet by the end. The result was
fair but it cast no shadow.
“If we hadn’t passed through the
group stage I’d have been totally OK
▼ Kjær kneels with his stricken
teammate as team doctors tend
to Christian Eriksen in Copenhagen
WOLFGANG RATTAY/POOL/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
•
▼ Simon Kjær and Denmark’s
players surround Christian Eriksen
after his collapse on the Parken pitch
WOLFGANG RATTAY/REUTERS
‘My reaction was
impulsive and so
was everyone’s.
What we did,
we did as a team’
with it,” he says. “Sure, afterwards
I might have looked back and still
hoped. I’m still pissed about the
penalty, and missing the final. But
in the end it was secondary, and
football has become secondary for
me. It’s not as important as it was
before.”
Although he would do anything
to reverse the circumstances
behind this realignment, Kjær has
not fought it. He calls the football
pitch “the place on earth where I
feel the most comfortable”; it can
never quite be the same place after
Eriksen’s brush with death but it
has become one of perspective. It
has helped him compartmentalise:
every drop must be wrung from
the chunk of the day allocated to
football, but time with his two
children every morning and evening
is sacred.
“When you have that experience,
you carry it with you for the rest of
your life,” he says. “But you learn
from it, you take things out of it,
and maybe that also allows me to
play better football than before. I
let myself enjoy it and that gives me
a more relaxed approach; a more
dedicated approach but one where,
at the same time, I’m resting in it. I
love playing football, always loved
it, but I don’t have 10 more years, so
I have to appreciate the time that’s
left.”
T
hose words soon carry
added meaning. After
the interview has
finished Kjær graciously
offers a follow-up
conversation if any
loose ends need tying, but neither of
us really expects it to be necessary.
Three weeks later, though, his
fresh outlook is tested. In the early
moments of Milan’s match in Genoa
on 1 December, he collides with
Andrea Cambiaso and is taken off on
a stretcher after lengthy treatment.
It looks bad and two days later the
news is confirmed: he required
surgery to the anterior cruciate
ligament in his left knee, along with
a reinsertion of his medial collateral
ligament, meaning he will be out for
six months.
On top of the year’s other
fluctuations, Kjær did not need
this. He has been playing the best
club football of his life, anchoring
the defence for Stefano Pioli’s
rejuvenated side and perhaps
bearing out his own analysis.
At 32 there has been no sign of a
slowdown, quite the opposite, but
now it is forced upon him.
We are in touch again the
following week, after all, and speak
remotely. His attitude is consistent.
“In the bigger picture this is just
my leg, and it is just football, even
though both things are pretty
important to a footballer,” he says.
“I am well, my family is well, and I
will return to the football pitch.
“I prefer to see it as a positive
and rare opportunity. I’ve often had
the thought about how it would be
to take two or three months away
from matches, both to be creative
about optimising my game and
making my body stronger. Normally
that’s never possible in a career. I’d
rather not have been injured but I
have to accept it, work to get over it
and get out as a stronger version of
myself.”
Kjær has incentives to do that:
there is a Scudetto to win and
a World Cup in which to lead
Denmark, whose armband he has
worn since 2016. Back in Helsingør,
he drills into the mentality that
has brought him this far. He
came through the youth system
at Midtjylland, where his father,
Jørn, was kit man until retiring
in February, and had the culture
shock of joining Palermo when he
was 19. Stops at Wolfsburg, Roma,
Lille, Fenerbahce, Sevilla and
Atalanta followed: it was a fine, if
undulating, club career that became
outstanding after he signed for
Milan last year.
“In my mind I’m a guy who grew
Award roll of honour
Established five years ago, the
Guardian Footballer of the Year
award is given to a player who has
done something truly remarkable,
whether by overcoming adversity,
helping others or setting a sporting
example by acting with exceptional
honesty. Simon Kjær joins these
previous winners of the award:
2016 Fabio Pisacane
The Cagliari defender showed
remarkable determination to reach
Serie A after being diagnosed with
Guillain-Barré syndrome at 14. “It’s
an illness that strikes one person in
a million,” Pisacane said. “But it’s
serious stuff once you have it.”
2017 Juan Mata
The Spaniard used
sport as a tool for
social change.
Members from the
football industry
in the Common Goal movement
donate 1% of income to charity
projects. “Some of the best ideas
are simple ones and, when it comes
to football, the power of the game
is incredible,” he said.
2018 Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw
The University of Tennessee striker
overcame personal tragedy – she
lost four brothers, three of them
to gang-related violence – to guide
Jamaica to the 2019 World Cup.
“Remain humble, stay focused and
just do the best you can,” is Shaw’s
mantra.
2019 Megan Rapinoe
The US World Cup
winner used her
stage to amplify the
voices of others in
the fight for equality, saying she
would not visit Donald Trump at
the White House. “Everybody has a
personal responsibility to do what
they can to make the world a better
place,” she said.
2020 Marcus Rashford
The forward was honoured for
forcing the issue of child hunger
in the UK on to the national stage;
persuading ministers to extend
free school meals into the summer
holidays; raising money to enable
FareShare, the food charity he
works with, to distribute nearly
10 million meals for children and
families in need.
3
up in a small city and my feet are
solidly planted on the ground,”
he says. “But sometimes you
have to be a little bit arrogant, a
little bit ignorant, about your own
capabilities because it will push you
a little bit more. If you’re playing
against Messi or Ronaldo, they are
probably better than you. But if you
know that every day you work your
ass off, you can tell yourself: ‘Who
is a better defender in the world
than me right now?’ A few, maybe
a little bit more, but under the right
conditions … I have to believe I’m
the best. If not I never will be.”
Kjær speaks softly and
deliberately, his answers lengthy
but clear. It is not difficult to see
how he might carry a squad with
him. Denmark has a population
of 5.8m and, from the outside, its
stream of top-level footballers have
exuded a palpable toughness in
defying limitations of size. It could
be simplistic to twin that with their
response to such shocking adversity
last summer but the question seems
worthwhile: what makes a Danish
footballer tick?
“Overall we’re very respectful,
educated people,” he says. “If
you take 100 Danish players from
around the world, maybe one will
be a little nuts, but I think you’ll find
parallels between all of us. You’re
brought up to be very independent,
learn to take care of yourself, learn
to be polite. You learn attitude and
confidence is a good thing, but not
too much. You appreciate and earn
your respect, never taking anything
for granted. We’re very direct,
we’re very honest – that is very
important.”
T
hose qualities forge the
ties that bind. On the
pitch they have been
augmented by genuine
excellence. Kjær and
Denmark qualified
for Qatar 2022 at a canter; they
have secured their place when we
meet, but beat the Faroe Islands
two days later for a ninth straight
victory. Even without Eriksen, their
undoubted star, they can be backed
for at least a quarter-final place.
In October 2020 Kjær and Eriksen
won their 100th caps in a Nations
League win at Wembley. Only
eight other players had achieved
that for Denmark and it is a small,
apt snapshot of the journey they
have undertaken together. The
symmetry when they ended
up in Milan, Eriksen playing for
Internazionale, delighted both men.
Eriksen has since departed and is
training with Odense, where he
played as a teenager, as he discerns
whether a return to professional
football will be possible. The
happiest coincidence was short-
lived but it was one episode in
something far more profound. “I
speak a lot with Christian,” Kjær
says. “It’s been my therapy.”
Outside, the beams over the
water are becoming sharper;
hundreds of invisible figures are
returning to the places they know.
“Of course I have things I struggle
with, and I will always struggle with
them. But with time, and if I can see
Christian and his family are good,
then I am too. That is where I find
my peace in it, and that is enough
for me.”
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

4 Sport
Football Premier League

Southampton lodge complaint Reassessing the league table

after Newcastle visit postponed After a number

of Covid
cancellations
teams have
Current standings

Manchester City 20 16 2
Chelsea 20 12 6
2
2
51
43
12 +39
14 +29
50
42
Points per game

Manchester City
▲ Liverpool
2.50
2.16
played between Liverpool 19 12 5 2 50 16 +34 41 ▼ Chelsea 2.10
Arsenal 19 11 2 6 32 23 +9 35 Arsenal 1.84
but there is mounting frustration at “There were times where we had 16 and 20
Saints unhappy with lack of the blurred lines between players nine out – and we played academy matches each.
West Ham 19
Manchester Utd 18
9 4
9 4
6
5
34
30
25 +9
26 +4
31
31
▲ Tottenham
Manchester Utd
1.76
1.72
transparency in lead-up to being absent because of Covid and players,” the Southampton manager, Is ranking them Tottenham 17 9 3 5 22 20 +2 30 ▼ West Ham 1.63
Wolves 18 7 4 7 13 14 -1 25 Wolves 1.39
Covid-related cancellations injury. Southampton are among Ralph Hasenhüttl, said this week. by points per
Leicester 18 7 4 7 31 33 -2 25 Leicester 1.39
numerous clubs who believe they “Injuries are not Covid cases. They game played a Brighton 18 5 9 4 17 18 -1 24 Brighton 1.33
should be informed of the numbers [Newcastle] had seven or eight players fairer measure Crystal Palace 19 5 8 6 27 27 0 23 ▲ Aston Villa 1.22
Ben Fisher behind a postponement. on the bench during their last game. for now? It would Aston Villa 18 7 1 10 24 28 -4 22 ▼ Crystal Palace 1.21
Southampton 19 4 9 6 20 29 -9 21 ▲ Everton 1.12
Newcastle’s Allan Saint-Maximin, They should still have 13 players plus lift spirits at Brentford 18 5 5 8 21 25 -4 20 ▼ Southampton 1.11
Callum Wilson and Ryan Fraser one [goalkeeper].” Clubs must declare Liverpool and Everton 17 5 4 8 21 29 -8 19 ▼ Brentford 1.11
Southampton have complained to sustained injuries against Manchester which “appropriately experienced” Tottenham – but Leeds 18 3 7 8 18 36 -18 16 Leeds 0.89
Watford 17 4 1 12 22 35 -13 13 Watford 0.76
the Premier League over what they United on Monday. Southampton feel under-21 players are available. end West Ham’s
Burnley 16 1 8 7 15 24 -9 11 Burnley 0.69
perceive as a lack of transparency they were operating under similar Premier League rules on the infiltration of the Newcastle 19 1 8 10 19 42 -23 11 Newcastle 0.58
after their home match against circumstances when injuries saw suspension of matches have been Big Six at the top Norwich 19 2 4 13 8 42 -34 10 Norwich 0.53
Newcastle became the latest to be them field a youthful team in a 9-0 the subject of much scrutiny, with
postponed. The game, scheduled for defeat at Old Trafford last season. Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta one of the
tomorrow, was called off yesterday managers to call for greater clarity. make a case for postponement but those infected, and the inability of a
because Newcastle, for the second The rules were adjusted in light of also list players who have taken a team to prepare safely for a match,
time in four days, have a shortage of the spread of the Omicron Covid positive Covid test, and list their vacci- for example where the UK Health
players owing to Covid and injury. variant and just before Christmas the nation status. Medical information on Security Agency has requested the
The Premier League board league published a guide to match injured players must also be shared, closure of their training ground.
accepted an application from postponements that gave “more with the league’s medical officers In recent weeks the Premier
Newcastle, whose trip to Everton on details on the process by which recent reserving the right to crosscheck the League has had meetings with club
Thursday also did not go ahead, for fixtures have had to be called off ”. information with club doctors. executives at which the postpone-
a postponement. League rules state The guide confirms that Further considerations can also be ment process has been discussed.
that matches can be rearranged if postponement decisions are taken applied. These include the possibil-
clubs have fewer than 13 outfield ▲ Ralph Hasenhüttl said he had to by the Premier League board after ity of an outbreak occurring too close Transfer window reckoning
players and one goalkeeper available, use young players in an injury crisis an application by a club. Clubs must to a fixture to be able to establish all for Howe’s Newcastle Page 11 

Sky Bet Championship Kieran Scott, the director of football,

tested positive along with three kit
Wilder vents fury before men, a sports scientist and a trio of
performance analysts.

Blades return finally called

It would not have been the first
return Wilder had wanted to the
club he led from League One to the

off after 20 Boro positives Premier League, played for and

Louise Taylor
Three hours after an impassioned
public plea by Middlesbrough’s
manager, Chris Wilder, the Football
League finally agreed yesterday
afternoon to postpone his side’s
Championship match at Sheffield
United, scheduled for this lunchtime.
An alternately incandescent and
bewildered Wilder had made plain his
shock after the EFL declined initial
requests by the Teesside club to call
off the televised game. Boro had
registered 19 positive Covid tests in
the wake of their 2-1 win at Blackpool
on Wednesday night.
Nine players and 10 staff members
were affected, with seven of the nine
senior professionals affected due to
have been in Wilder’s starting XI at
Bramall Lane. “It’s been the most
difficult 48 hours of my 20-year
‘We’ve been
decimated and
there’s been zero
preparation. This
outbreak has
ripped through us’
Chris Wilder
Middlesbrough manager
managerial career,” he said. “We’ve
been absolutely decimated by Covid.”
With two more players developing
sore throats yesterday afternoon and
a 20th positive test result recorded,
the fixture eventually fell but Wilder,
in charge of Sheffield United until last
March, was earlier astonished when,
he says, the EFL advised him to recall
four loan players.
Two played a full 90 minutes for
their clubs on Thursday night, Djed
Spence appearing in Nottingham
Forest’s 1-0 home Championship
defeat against Huddersfield and
Lewis Wing featuring for Sheffield
Wednesday in their 5-0 League One
thrashing at Sunderland.
“The blunt message we keep
getting back from the EFL is: ‘You have
an obligation to fulfil this fixture,’”
said Wilder yesterday afternoon as
he suggested that playing in South
Yorkshire today would threaten the
league’s integrity and player welfare,
while exacerbating Covid’s spread.
“Apart from Covid we have four or
five injuries and one boy who might
last 30 minutes but the EFL want us
to supplement our available players
with the group out on loan. I can’t get
my head around that. I’ll be making
calls to Forest and Wednesday to see
if we can have Djed Spence and Lewis
Wing back to sit on the bench.”
The away dugout would have
been sparsely populated after key
members of Wilder’s backroom staff,
including his assistant, Alan Knill, the
first-team coach, Matt Prestridge, and
supported as a boy. He had never
envisaged joking that he might be
required to lay out the kit at Bramall
Lane and even drive the team bus.
Since succeeding Neil Warnock at
the Riverside in November, he has
presided over a marked upturn in
form with promotion-challenging
Boro having won four of their past
five games, climbing to fifth.
He remains adamant he was not
crying wolf and insists he had been
looking forward to the reunion with
Paul Heckingbottom’s recently much
improved Sheffield United, regarded
by Wilder as potentially the strongest
side in the Championship.
“I’m a man of integrity and a man
of honesty,” Wilder said before the
postponement. “I’ll play a game
anywhere against anybody on a level
playing field and I understand you
can’t always play your best side. But
we’ve been absolutely decimated.
There’s been zero preparation.
“Our history as a club in the past
two years shows we’ve had minimal
Covid issues, our protocols are very
tight, we’re not sloppy and we don’t
cut corners, but this outbreak has
ripped through us.
“It’s quite baffling that other games
are being called off but we’re having
to do our best, with hardly any staff
or players, to prepare for a top game
in the Championship live on Sky in
front of 30,000 people.
“I’ve not seen anyone else have
to recall anybody from loan. What
will Public Health England [now
UK  Health Security Agency] say
about this? There’s obviously an
▲ Chris Wilder said he was ‘baffled’ by the EFL’s initial stance on the fixture outbreak at our training ground. It’s
RICHARD SELLERS/PA WIRE incredibly confusing.”
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Klopp seeks ‘perfect’ run
from stumbling Liverpool
to reel in runaway leaders
Liverpool’s manager needs a
win at Chelsea tomorrow to
give his team a realistic shot
at catching Manchester City
Sachin Nakrani
H
aving been there,
done that, just
fallen short and
finally succeeded,
Jürgen Klopp knows
exactly what it
takes to compete with Manchester
City for the title and there was no
mincing of words by the German
as he outlined the task facing
Liverpool in their latest battle
with Pep Guardiola’s men. “You
have to be perfect,” he said. “And
if you’re not perfect you have to
hope City are not perfect.”
Both parts of that statement
could be deemed wishful thinking
at the end of a week in which the
gap between the sides stretched
to nine points on the back of
Liverpool suffering a shock 1-0
defeat to Leicester and City
winning by the same scoreline
at Brentford to make it 10 league
victories in a row for the champions
and leaders. They are looking
relentless again, whereas for
Liverpool there is the very real
threat of a stumble becoming
a full-on fall given their next
assignment is tomorrow’s trip to
Chelsea. It will not be easy against
the team one place and point ahead
of them and defeat, coupled with
City winning again at Arsenal today,
really would make Liverpool’s title
hopes feel terminal.
Some may deem that a case
of bleak exaggeration clashing
with the fresh hope of a new
year but the truth is that, under
Guardiola, City have become a
side who do not panic and pull
up when they have their noses
out in front, and in the process of
Lukaku has no
plans to leave
despite saying
he is unhappy
 Continued from front page
Inter to the title last season. “I don’t
feel him unhappy,” the German said.
“I feel the exact opposite. That’s why
it’s a surprise. If there is something
to discuss it’s behind closed doors. It
does not reflect his daily work.
“But you need to ask him. Every-
•
In the main section New year honours
The Kennys and Raducanu lead sport’s
decorated high-achievers News, Page 12
winning three out of the previous
four titles have racked up a huge
amount of points, most notably
a league-record 100 in 2017-18.
Liverpool could not outdo them
the following season even after
reaching 97 points and had to go
to 99 points in 2019-20 to finally
take their crown. It is hard work
and with City on course to break
the 90-point barrier again, little
wonder Klopp feels perfection is
needed to prevail.
“The problem is not the
motivation, the problem is the
quality of City,” he said. “We had
a couple of years where we really
thing you say is out there if you are
such a big player like Romelu. He is
experienced and should know what
kind of value it has when he speaks
out like this.”
Lukaku, who has seven goals in
18 appearances in all competitions,
has endured a frustrating time since
returning to Stamford Bridge. He had
gone seven games without a goal
before suffering an ankle injury in
October and had a further spell on
the sidelines after testing positive for
Covid-19 just before Christmas.
Lukaku had given a less explosive
interview after making a goalscoring
return in Chelsea’s win over Aston
Villa on Boxing Day. The striker, who
also scored in Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with
Brighton on Wednesday, described
could catch up with them and
be close but they are able to do
ridiculous things, like win their
last 15 [games] or whatever. That
is the situation, but we want to
have that competition; it’s fine,
City are there to be beaten, and
during a season, usually, each
team has a problematic phase.
The shorter that phase is, the
better it is, and the more likely
it gives you the chance to win
something. And we will really give
it [winning the title] a go.”
Liverpool’s commitment under
Klopp has never been in question
and it should be noted that the
himself as “multidimensional” and
said he had asked Tuchel for clarity
about his role.
“This is the problem because you
have a quote in another direction and
he says he had a chat with me,” Tuchel
said. “Then the suggestion comes
and it seems the chat was about how
he was not happy how we used him.
But maybe that was not the chat. We
have chats with a lot of players. This
is a normal chat.
“We have a discussion now where
it seems that we benched him because
other players suited our style better.
Romelu played when he came, then
he got injured, then he caught Covid
and when he came back from Covid,
he played with no training in Aston
Villa. That’s why I’m surprised. There
loss to Leicester was only their
second of the season, the same as
City have suffered. It is frustrating
draws, such as against Brentford
and Brighton, that are truly hurting
the Reds and if they can cut those
out then there is no reason why
a team brimming with quality,
experience and nous cannot remain
in the title mix.
For that to be the case, they
really could do with beating
Chelsea and will feel that is a
realistic proposition given their
opponents’ lack of form with one
win in their past league four games,
lack of resources due to injuries
and a Covid outbreak, and internal
strife caused by Romelu Lukaku’s
interview to Sky Italia in which the
‘The problem is not
the motivation, it
is the quality of City
– they are able to do
ridiculous things’
is absolutely zero going on. Maybe he
has a problem so he needs to speak
up. I don’t have one.”
Tuchel was asked how Lukaku
could best function in his system.
“Training, training, playing,” he
replied. “Training, playing, train-
ing, sleeping, eating good, training,
‘There’s absolutely
zero going on.
Maybe he has a
problem – I don’t’
Thomas Tuchel
Chelsea manager
5
£97.5m striker declared he was “not
happy” at the club.
Liverpool should smell blood,
but it hardly helps that they have
selection problems of their own
with Thiago Alcântara among
a host of players out injured –
according to Klopp, the Spain
midfielder has a “hip issue which
we have no idea where it’s coming
from” – and three fresh Covid
cases confirmed within the squad,
all currently unnamed. As things
stand, Liverpool have not asked for
tomorrow’s game to be postponed
but, speaking yesterday, Klopp did
not rule that out.
“We never had this proper
outbreak where 15 to 20 players
had it [Covid],” he said. “For us
it is every day, another one, stuff
happens more and more often. It’s
like a lottery waiting for the results.
“We deal with difficulties
like this every day, which is
challenging. But in the end, when
the lineup is out there, when the
meeting is finished, the boys are
ready to go. And we try again.”
City have been warned.
Reduced
but still
ready for
the fight
Jürgen
Klopp’s
preparations
have been
hindered by
three fresh
Covid cases
in his squad
JOHN POWELL/
LIVERPOOL FC/
GETTY IMAGES
playing, sleeping, eat good, drink a lot
of water, sleep, train and don’t give
interviews.”
Chelsea, eight points behind
Manchester City, have injury prob-
lems. Ben Chilwell is out for the
season and scans have confirmed
that James suffered a torn hamstring
against Brighton, leaving Tuchel
without his first-choice wing-backs.
Tuchel, who could also be without
Andreas Christensen, Thiago Silva
and Timo Werner against Liverpool,
needs cover at left wing-back. Chel-
sea are looking into recalling Emerson
Palmieri from his loan at Lyon, but the
French club do not want to break the
agreement. If Emerson stays, Chelsea
could target Everton’s Lucas Digne or
Barcelona’s Sergiño Dest.

6 Sport
‘I know which Arsenal is going
to play – the best I have ever seen’
Pep Guardiola
Arteta absent for
today’s clash but his
side is admired by
former employer
Pep Guardiola believes Mikel Arteta
has produced the best Arsenal
team he has faced since arriving at
Manchester City in 2016.
Arteta, Covid-positive and
isolating, will not be at the Emirates
today when fourth-placed Arsenal
face the Premier League leaders.
Guardiola has sent his best wishes
and praised his former City
assistant. “The most important
thing is for him to stay well – the
symptoms were low, everything is
under control – and he recovers,”
said Guardiola. “But I know
exactly which Arsenal is going to
play, with or without Mikel. It will
be, since I arrived here, the best
Arsenal I have ever seen.”
Arsenal have won their past
four league matches, winning 4-1
at Leeds and 5-0 at Norwich either
side of Christmas. Improvement
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Football
The talk
News and views from around the game
has coincided with Pierre-Emerick
Aubameyang being dropped
by Arteta. In August City beat
Arsenal 5-0 after Granit Xhaka
was sent off in the 35th minute.
“Mikel is the most important player
they have,” said Guardiola. “I
know his charisma and ideas and
especially his personality to do
what he believes is the best for the
team and the club.”
City go into the game with João
Cancelo available following the
violent assault on the Portuguese
at his family home that left him
with facial injuries. Guardiola’s
João Cancelo will
be available to face
Arsenal today
side are coming off 10 successive
Premier League wins, the latest
Wednesday’s 1-0 victory at
Brentford. Beating Arsenal would
increase pressure on Chelsea and
Liverpool, eight and nine points
behind respectively and due to
face each other at Stamford Bridge
tomorrow. “It’s an unexpected
situation,” said Guardiola. “Not
even a month ago we were four or
five or six points behind Chelsea
and Liverpool but we have 54
points more to play for.”
Riyad Mahrez and Raheem
Sterling, scorers in Boxing Day’s
6-3 defeat of Leicester, sat out at
Brentford and seem likely to play at
Arsenal. “Raheem and Riyad were
the best players against Leicester
and they didn’t play one minute
[against Brentford],” Guardiola
said. “But in this kind of period
everyone will be involved.”
City are chasing a fourth title
in five seasons, but Guardiola
reluctantly compared this team
with their predecessors.
“It would be unfair on the
previous ones to say this was the
strongest because of what they
Claret but not blue
The Burnley manager, Sean Dyche,
enters the new year feeling
“very confident” about his team’s
chances of avoiding relegation
from the top tier. “Performance
levels have been generally high.
The mentality is still firm,” he said.
▲ Emile Smith Rowe has been one
of the standout players during
Arsenal’s resurgence this season
STUART MACFARLANE/ARSENAL FC VIA GETTY
did together, the generation with
Vincent Kompany, Sergio Agüero,
making 100 points, 98 points,
facing the best team I ever faced,
like Liverpool, in this period. They
were the big rival for us. I am not
thinking about what is going to
happen in the future. I am thinking:
‘OK, what’s next?’ What’s next is
Arsenal.” John Brewin
‘It will feel frustrating
not to be involved …
I will need a big room’
Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta has admitted
frustration at being forced to
watch Arsenal’s meeting with
Manchester City in isolation today
as he recovers from Covid but is
still hoping to have an influence
from afar against the runaway
Premier League leaders. With
Arteta recovering after what he
described as “a couple of rough
days” with the virus, his assistant
Albert Stuivenberg will take
charge at the Emirates as Arsenal
attempt to record their first Premier
League victory over City since
Pep Guardiola’s arrival in 2016.
Precisely who will be alongside the
Dutchman, an assistant to Louis
van Gaal at Manchester United
and Ryan Giggs with Wales before
joining Arsenal in 2019, remains
uncertain given the large number of
cases within the coaching staff.
Arteta will watch at home
via a feed provided by the club
but intends to leave most of the
instructions to his trusted deputy.
“I will need a big room so I can
walk and move a little bit because
I won’t be able to just sit on my
sofa,” he said. “We will be in touch
but as well I want to give them the
responsibility and freedom to make
decisions on the pitch and express
themselves. It’s totally different
being on the touchline close to the
players and the action so I’m going
to be there to support in certain
moments. It’s not going to be easy –
it will feel frustrating and like I have
a lack of options. I haven’t been in
training sessions or been able to
prepare the players.”
The Arsenal manager – who
confirmed that Pierre-Emerick
Aubameyang had been allowed
to report early for Africa Cup of
Nations duty with Gabon after
being stripped of the captaincy
– spent more than three years
working under Guardiola at City as
an assistant. He revealed that he
had spoken with his compatriot on
Thursday “because we have that
relationship” and believes Arsenal
have improved immeasurably since
their 5-0 thrashing at the Etihad
in August when Granit Xhaka was
sent off in the first half.
“It was a real challenge and
we suffered,” said Arteta. “But
sometimes that helps you to
become a better team. You need to
stick together to understand what
the level is and the mistakes that
you cannot make against this type
of opposition. The most important
thing is that we have the belief that
we can win the game.” Ed Aarons
▲ Mikel Arteta has backed his
assistant to shine in his absence
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian •

Fixtures and tables 7

(all fixtures today 3pm unless stated)

PSG’s forward thinking Eagles hope for manager liftt PREMIER LEAGUE Stevenage 22 4 8 10 16 34 -18 20
P W D L F A GD Pts Carlisle 21 4 7 10 15 29 -14 19
Paris Saint-Germain are hopeful of Patrick Vieira could return too Manchester City 20 16 2 2 51 12 +39 50 Scunthorpe 22 3 10 9 19 37 -18 19
persuading Kylian Mbappé to sign it of
the touchline for today’s visit Chelsea 20 12 6 2 43 14 +29 42 Oldham 23 4 5 14 22 39 -17 17
a new contract. The 23-year-old West Ham. Vieira has missed d the Liverpool 19 12 5 2 50 16 +34 41 Barrow v Bradford; Crawley v Colchester; Forest Green v
Arsenal 19 11 2 6 32 23 +9 35 Stevenage; Harrogate v Port Vale; Hartlepool v Oldham;
forward is free to discuss pre- last two Crystal Palace matches
hes Leyton Orient v Bristol Rovers; Rochdale P Mansfield P;
West Ham 19 9 4 6 34 25 +9 31
contract terms with other clubs – ovid.
after he tested positive for Covid. Manchester Utd 18 9 4 5 30 26 +4 31
Salford P Tranmere P; Scunthorpe v Carlisle; Sutton v
Exeter; Swindon v Northampton; Walsall v Newport
including Real Madrid – but His assistant, Osian Roberts, Tottenham 17 9 3 5 22 20 +2 30
VANARAMA NATIONAL LEAGUE
the French side remain positive. said: “Patrick is very well.” Wolves 18 7 4 7 13 14 -1 25
P W D L F A GD Pts
Leicester 18 7 4 7 31 33 -2 25
Chesterfield 19 11 7 1 37 16 +21 40
Brighton 18 5 9 4 17 18 -1 24
FC Halifax 20 12 4 4 32 17 +15 40
Crystal Palace 19 5 8 6 27 27 0 23
Wrexham 21 11 6 4 37 20 +17 39
Aston Villa 18 7 1 10 24 28 -4 22
Boreham Wood 18 11 5 2 28 13 +15 38
Southampton 19 4 9 6 20 29 -9 21
Bromley 21 11 5 5 36 24 +12 38
Brentford 18 5 5 8 21 25 -4 20
‘I wasn’t able to to be kept to a minimum. The
former Denmark international
four free transfers – two of which
were back-up goalkeepers – and
Everton
Leeds
17
18
5
3
4
7
8 21 29 -8 19
8 18 36 -18 16
Stockport County 20 11
Solihull Moors 21 10
3
6
6 35 23 +12 36
5 28 21 +7 36

resolve the lowering Jonas Lössl has joined on loan spent just £1.7m on Demarai Gray. Watford
Burnley
17
16
4
1
1 12 22 35 -13 13
8 7 15 24 -9 11
Dag & Red
Notts County
21 11
19 10
2
5
8 40 26 +14 35
4 33 22 +11 35

of performance’ from FC Midtjylland until the end

of the season with an option to
That was not enough to prevent
the first half of the season being
Newcastle
Norwich
19
19
1
2
8 10 19 42 -23 11
4 13 8 42 -34 10
Grimsby
Yeovil
19 10
19 9
2
4
7 31 21 +10 32
6 20 18 +2 31
Marcelo Bielsa make the move permanent as the decimated by injuries which have Arsenal v Man City (12.30pm) BT Sport 1; Brentford v
Woking
Eastleigh
21
19
9
8
1 11 34 33 +1 28
4 7 23 25 -2 28
Aston Villa (tomorrow, 2pm) Sky Sports Premier League;
club contend with fitness concerns severely impacted results, with the Chelsea v Liverpool (tomorrow, 4.30pm) Sky Sports Premier Torquay 21 8 3 10 32 34 -2 27
Marcelo Bielsa has revealed that over goalkeepers David Raya and club 15th in the table heading into League; Crystal Palace v West Ham (5.30pm) Sky Sports Altrincham 21 7 4 10 34 36 -2 25
Premier League; Everton v Brighton (tomorrow, 2pm); Barnet 19 7 4 8 24 31 -7 25
Leeds will be without their key Álvaro Fernández. the new year. However, despite Leeds v Burnley (tomorrow, 2pm); Leicester P Norwich P; Aldershot 21 6 3 12 24 34 -10 21
central midfielder, Kalvin Phillips, Frank insists any additional new the injury list still being a lengthy Manchester United v Wolves (Monday, 5.30pm)
Wealdstone 19 5 6 8 19 29 -10 21
Sky Sports Premier League; Southampton P Newcastle P;
and their captain, Liam Cooper, arrivals will have to fulfil strict one Benítez will not be making Watford v Tottenham Maidenhead Utd 19 5 3 11 20 38 -18 18
until March and admitted he is criteria as he takes confidence significant purchases in January SKY BET CHAMPIONSHIP
Southend 19 4 4 11 16 31 -15 16
Weymouth 19 4 3 12 21 38 -17 15
struggling to correct his team’s poor from his squad negotiating a tricky – although the club are expected P W D L F A GD Pts
King’s Lynn Town 19 3 2 14 17 40 -23 11
Bournemouth 25 14 7 4 41 20 +21 49
form. “I have not been able to solve period marked by injuries and to bring in Dynamo Kyiv left-back Fulham 23 13 6 4 51 19 +32 45 Dover 21 0 4 17 17 48 -31 -8
the situation as I thought I could,” Covid. “Historically we almost Vitaliy Mykolenko for £18m with Blackburn 24 13 6 5 43 28 +15 45 *deducted 12 points
Bielsa said. “I wasn’t able to resolve have never done too much in Lucas Digne likely to be offloaded West Brom 24 11 8 5 30 18 +12 41 Chesterfield v King’s Lynn; Boreham Wood v Barnet
(tomorrow, 3pm); Dag & Red v Dover (tomorrow, 3pm);
the lowering of performance. The January, for at least the last five after reportedly falling out with the Middlesbrough 25 11 6 8 29 24 +5 39
Eastleigh v Weymouth (tomorrow, 3pm); Maidenhead
Huddersfield 25 11 6 8 32 29 +3 39
evaluation of my task is negative. years I’ve been here. So I don’t manager. “We are working hard. QPR 23 11 5 7 35 29 +6 38
United v Wealdstone (tomorrow, 3pm); Notts County v
Wrexham (tomorrow, 3pm); Southend v Bromley
I imagined resources would think it will be a busy transfer We are trying to find some targets Stoke 23 10 5 8 27 23 +4 35 (tomorrow, 3pm); Woking v Aldershot (tomorrow, 3pm);
resolve them but evidently those window,” Frank said. “I don’t just to improve the team. Everybody Nottingham Forest 25 9 7 9 32 28 +4 34 Yeovil v Torquay (tomorrow, 3pm)
Coventry 23 9 7 7 29 27 +2 34 VANARAMA NATIONAL NORTH
resources were not the adequate want to bring in numbers. If we knows how difficult January is,”
Millwall 23 8 9 6 25 24 +1 33 Darlington v Spennymoor; Blyth Spartans v Gateshead
ones.” The Leeds manager is want to bring someone in, he Benítez said before the visit of Sheff Utd 22 9 5 8 29 28 +1 32 (tomorrow, 3pm); Boston Utd v Alfreton Town (tomorrow,
preparing to face fellow strugglers needs to fit the role we are looking Brighton tomorrow. “Everybody Blackpool 25 8 6 11 26 32 -6 30 3pm); Chester FC v AFC Telford (tomorrow, 3pm); Chorley v
AFC Fylde (tomorrow, 3pm); Guiseley v Farsley Celtic
Burnley at Elland Road tomorrow for. He needs to fit the character is a little bit worried about Covid, Luton 22 7 8 7 31 27 +4 29
(tomorrow, 3pm); Hereford FC v Kidderminster (tomorrow,
Preston 22 7 7 8 24 28 -4 28 3pm); Kettering v Brackley (tomorrow, 3pm); Leamington v
after seeing his 16th-placed side profile in terms of being a good no-one wants to spend too much Swansea 22 7 6 9 26 31 -5 27 Gloucester (tomorrow, 3pm); Southport v Curzon Ashton
win only one of their previous eight guy who wants to work hard and money. I am quite confident we will Birmingham 23 7 6 10 22 30 -8 27 (tomorrow, 3pm); York v Bradford PA (tomorrow, 3pm)
games and concede 16 goals in the be part of our culture. All those do two or three things.” PA Media Bristol City 24 7 6 11 27 37 -10 27 VANARAMA NATIONAL SOUTH
Hull 23 6 5 12 20 28 -8 23 Bath City v Chippenham (tomorrow, 3pm); Braintree Town v
past four fixtures. things need to get ticked. I then Chelmsford (tomorrow, 3pm); Concord Rangers v
Cardiff 23 6 4 13 25 42 -17 22
With Phillips recovering
from hamstring surgery and the
say: ‘These are all done’ and then
apparently there’s also something
Busy Celtic make Reading*
Peterborough
22
23
8
5
3 11 27 34 -7 21
4 14 20 44 -24 19
Billericay (tomorrow, 3pm); Dulwich v Welling (tomorrow,
3pm); Ebbsfleet United v Dartford (tomorrow, 3pm);

three signings from

Havant and W v Dorking Wanderers (tomorrow, 3pm);
similarly hamstrung Cooper about price and salary!” Barnsley 24 2 8 14 16 36 -20 14 Maidstone Utd v Tonbridge Angels (tomorrow, 3pm);
Derby** 24 7 10 7 21 22 -1 10 Slough v Oxford City (tomorrow, 1pm); St Albans v Hemel
unavailable at centre-half, Bielsa
acknowledges that his squad
Lössl, who won one cap in 2016,
had two loan spells at Huddersfield
Japan in one day *deducted six points **deducted 21 points Hempstead (tomorrow, 1pm)
Birmingham v QPR (tomorrow, 2pm) Sky Sports Red Button; PITCHING IN ISTHMIAN PREMIER
requires reinforcement during the and also spent two years at Everton, Blackburn v Huddersfield (tomorrow, 2pm); Blackpool v Bishop’s Stortford v Cheshunt; Corinthian Casuals v
Hull; Bristol City v Millwall (tomorrow, 1pm) Sky Sports Red Carshalton Ath; East Thurrock Utd v Cray Wanderers; Enfield
transfer window. but the 32-year-old failed to make The Celtic manager Ange Button; Coventry P Luton P; Sheffield United P Town v Potters Bar Town; Haringey Borough v Brightlingsea
“We will see in January if an an appearance at Goodison Park. Postecoglou is excited to seal the Middlesbrough P; West Brom v Cardiff (tomorrow, 2pm) Regent; Hornchurch v Bowers & Pitsea; Leatherhead v
Sky Sports Red Button Kingstonian; Lewes v Bognor Regis Town; Margate v
alternative comes up which we “Jonas is a very good goalkeeper signing of three new Japanese Folkestone Invicta; Merstham v Wingate & Finchley;
SKY BET LEAGUE ONE
can take advantage of,” said a who will bring with him lots of players. The Parkhead club P W D L F A GD Pts Worthing v Horsham
manager who has long preferred experience,” Frank said. PA Media confirmed yesterday that forward Sunderland 24 15 4 5 47 26 +21 49 CINCH SCOTTISH CHAMPIONSHIP
Rotherham 23 14 5 4 43 16 +27 47 P W D L F A GD Pts
to work with an unusually small Daizen Maeda, 24, will join from Arbroath 19 10 7 2 33 14 +19 37
Wigan 21 14 3 4 40 20 +20 45
nucleus of senior professionals
but is perhaps realising that the
‘We are working hard Yokohama F Marinos, initially on
loan until the end of the season but
Plymouth
Oxford Utd
24 12
23 12
7
6
5 38 25 +13 43
5 39 24 +15 42
Inverness CT
Kilmarnock
18 10
19 10
4
3
4 26 14 +12 34
6 24 14 +10 33
spine of his starting XI may be trying to find targets with a compulsory purchase clause Wycombe
MK Dons
23 12
22 11
6
5
5 36 27 +9 42
6 42 29 +13 38
Raith
Partick
19
18
9
9
6
4
4 27 19 +8 33
5 30 16 +14 31
too weak to resist a relegation
skirmish. Without England’s
to improve the team’ included. In addition, midfielder
Yosuke Ideguchi, 25, will arrive on
Sheff Wed
Portsmouth
23
22 10
9 10
6
4 30 26 +4 37
6 28 22 +6 36
Hamilton
Ayr
19
19
5
4
5
6
9 19 34 -15 20
9 18 32 -14 18
Phillips to anchor midfield, Leeds Rafael Benítez a four-and-a-half-year deal from Accrington Stanley 24 10 4 10 30 39 -9 34 Queen of South 18 4 5 9 19 26 -7 17
Ipswich 24 8 8 8 39 34 +5 32 Dunfermline 18 2 8 8 18 31 -13 14
have frequently looked a pale Gamba Osaka and the versatile Morton 19 2 8 9 17 31 -14 14
Charlton 23 8 5 10 30 28 +2 29
shadow of the vibrant side who The Everton manager Rafael Reo Hatate, 24, will check in from Burton Albion 22 8 4 10 24 28 -4 28 Arbroath v Inverness CT (tomorrow, 3pm); Kilmarnock P
finished ninth last season. Benítez is confident he can bring Kawasaki Frontale. Postecoglou Cheltenham 23 7 7 9 29 42 -13 28 Ayr P; Partick v Morton (tomorrow, 3pm); Queen of the
South v Hamilton (tomorrow, 3pm); Raith v Dunfermline
Patrick Bamford has recovered in two or three players in January said: “We are really pleased to bring Bolton 22 7 5 10 29 33 -4 26 (tomorrow, 3pm)
Shrewsbury 24 7 5 12 25 29 -4 26
from hamstring trouble and is but admits they have to be in these guys to Celtic and I think Cambridge Utd 23 6 8 9 32 38 -6 26
CINCH SCOTTISH LEAGUE ONE
back, although Bielsa cautioned “careful” with their business. The they will excite our fans.” PA Media AFC Wimbledon 21 6 7 8 30 35 -5 25
P W D L F A GD Pts
Cove Rangers 19 12 4 3 41 19 +22 40
that his team’s principal striker Spaniard’s first transfer window Fleetwood Town 23 5 7 11 36 43 -7 22
Montrose 19 9 8 2 33 16 +17 35
may begin on the bench. “Patrick in the summer was severely Women’s Euros and men’s World Cup Lincoln City 22 5 7 10 24 31 -7 22
Airdrieonians 18 10 2 6 29 22 +7 32
Morecambe 23 5 5 13 30 46 -16 20
is healthy but he hasn’t played for restricted by Financial Fair Play in unique sporting year Page 8  Crewe 23 4 6 13 21 39 -18 18
Queen’s Park 18 6 9 3 32 19 +13 27
Clyde 18 6 5 7 23 33 -10 23
four weeks now,” he said. “That regulations and he brought in Transfer window special Page 10  Gillingham 22 3 8 11 18 34 -16 17
Peterhead 19 6 4 9 28 31 -3 22
puts into doubt the convenience of Doncaster 22 4 4 14 13 39 -26 16
Falkirk 18 6 4 8 21 28 -7 22
him playing.” Everton have Burton v Crewe; Charlton v Wycombe; Ipswich P Lincoln P; Alloa 19 5 5 9 26 33 -7 20
MK Dons v Gillingham; Morecambe v Doncaster (tomorrow,
Junior Firpo, Dan James, Diego been linked 3pm); Oxford United v Cheltenham; Plymouth P AFC Dumbarton 18 5 3 10 25 37 -12 18
Wimbledon P; Rotherham v Bolton; Shrewsbury v Sheffield East Fife 18 3 4 11 21 41 -20 13
Llorente and Jack Harrison have with Dynamo Wednesday (tomorrow, 3pm); Sunderland P Fleetwood P; Alloa v Falkirk (tomorrow, 3pm); Clyde v Queen’s Park
overcome a mix of injuries, Covid Kyiv’s Ukraine Wigan P Accrington Stanley P (tomorrow, 3pm); Dumbarton v Airdrieonians (tomorrow,
1.30pm); East Fife v Montrose (tomorrow, 3pm); Peterhead
and suspension but Rodrigo, Pascal left-back Vitaliy SKY BET LEAGUE TWO
v Cove Rangers (tomorrow, 3pm)
P W D L F A GD Pts
Struijk, Jamie Shackleton and Mykolenko Forest Green 20 13 5 2 43 20 +23 44 CINCH SCOTTISH LEAGUE TWO
Charlie Cresswell remain sidelined, (right) Northampton 21 12 4 5 29 17 +12 40 P W D L F A GD Pts
with Shackleton and Cresswell OLEG PETRASYUK/EPA Tranmere 22 11 5 6 20 14 +6 38 Kelty Hearts 17 13 3 1 38 15 +23 42
Sutton Utd 22 11 3 8 33 27 +6 36 Forfar 18 10 5 3 35 18 +17 35
expected to be absent until early Annan Athletic 18 10 2 6 32 22 +10 32
Port Vale 21 10 5 6 35 23 +12 35
February. Louise Taylor Newport County 22 9 7 6 35 29 +6 34 Edinburgh City 18 7 4 7 22 27 -5 25
Swindon 21 9 7 5 29 24 +5 34 Stenhousemuir 18 6 5 7 27 30 -3 23
Stranraer 18 6 4 8 22 28 -6 22
Brentford swoop for
Exeter 21 8 9 4 32 24 +8 33
Mansfield 22 9 5 8 27 28 -1 32 Stirling 18 6 3 9 23 24 -1 21
Albion 18 6 3 9 23 31 -8 21
former Huddersfield Leyton Orient
Harrogate Town
22
22
7 10
8 6
5 37 21
8 35 31
+16
+4
31
30 Elgin 17 4 5 8 16 25 -9 17

goalkeeper Lössl Walsall 21 7 7 7 25 24 +1 28 Cowdenbeath 18 2 4 12 11 29 -18 10

Salford City 21 7 6 8 24 21 +3 27 Edinburgh City v Albion (tomorrow, 3pm); Elgin v Forfar
Rochdale 22 6 9 7 30 30 0 27 (tomorrow, 3pm); Kelty Hearts v Cowdenbeath (tomorrow,
3pm); Stenhousemuir v Stirling (tomorrow, 3pm); Stranraer
Hartlepool 22 8 3 11 24 34 -10 27 v Annan Athletic (tomorrow, 3pm)
Brentford have made their first Bradford 21 5 11 5 27 25 +2 26
SCOTTISH LOWLAND LEAGUE
signing of the January transfer Bristol Rovers 21 7 5 9 27 33 -6 26
Berwick P Bonnyrigg Rose P; Caledonian Braves v Broomhill
Crawley Town 20 7 4 9 23 30 -7 25
window but the manager Thomas Barrow 22 5 8 9 22 26 -4 23
FC; East Stirling v Bo’ness Utd; Gala Fairydean P Vale of
Leithen P; Gretna 2008 v Dalbeattie Star; Stirling University
Frank expects further recruitment Colchester 20 5 7 8 16 25 -9 22 v Edinburgh University
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022

8 Sport

22 for 2022 Africa Cup

of Nations
n
Australian Open

A bumper year 9 Jan-6 Feb Cameroon

This tournament takes place
a year later than scheduled
17-30 Jan Melbourne
Will Novak Djokovic be in
Melbourne trying to make

of unmissable
because of the pandemic and
could miss many of its biggest
names for the same reason.
European clubs are concerned
history by winning a record
21st men’s major title? That
question has been dominating
the buildup to the first grand

sporting action
about allowing their players
to travel and that could lead to
such as Mohamed Salah and
Achraf Hakimi not being in
Cameroon. One Europe-based
player who will want to be
Armchair viewers will be spoilt over the next 12 months. involved is Riyad Mahrez, as
Algeria look to defend the crown
Sachin Nakrani guides you through the highlights, they won in Egypt in 2019.
culminating in the first ever winter World Cup
slam of the year ever since
tournament director, Craig
Tiley, announced unvaccinated
players will not be allowed to Novak Djokovic’s defence
compete. Djokovic has kept his of his Australian Open
vaccination status a secret, withh crown remains in doubt
the belief being he has yet to be
jabbed and is therefore ineligiblee
to take part.

Women’s Cricket Winter F1 world The Masters Champions

World Cup Paralympics championship League final
4 Mar-3 Apr New Zealand 4-13 Mar Beijing 20 Mar-20 Nov 7-10 Apr Augusta 28 May St Petersburg
Postponed by 13 months This year Beijing will become The most highly anticipated F1 The first major of the year and The farcical nature of the last-16
because of the pandemic, the the first city to host a summer season for many years. How can it is hard to look beyond a home draw could be viewed as a bad
showpiece event in women’s and winter Paralympics, with it not be, given the epic nature victory given the strength omen for the knockout stages:
cricket is finally all set to get the event in March poised to be of the 2021 campaign, with Max of American golf, illustrated it is never good when the little
under way. England will travel the largest in history. In total Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton most vividly by the United white balls have to be drawn
to New Zealand as reigning 736 athletes will compete battling for the title all the way States’ record 19-9 defeat of from the big clear bowls twice
champions and begin their across 78 events, with six to the final lap of the final race Europe at September’s Ryder in the same day. Yet ultimately
defence against Australia in sports contested – alpine skiing, in Abu Dhabi, with the former Cup at Whistling Straits. it led to some exciting ties, most
Hamilton, the teams facing each biathlon, cross-country skiing, ultimately triumphing amid Hideki Matsuyama may have notably Paris Saint-Germain v
other less than a month after sled hockey, snowboarding huge controversy and fallout. something to say about that, Real Madrid. The winner of that
completing an Ashes series. In and wheelchair curling. Team The bad blood is sure to spill into however. The 29-year-old contest will fancy their chances
total there will be 31 matches GB will harbour ambitions another closely fought contest. returns to Augusta as reigning of going all the way, although it
played across 31 days, with the of improving on the record Hamilton will have a new champion having become the is hard to look beyond Chelsea,
final taking place at the Hagley seven medals they won in teammate at Mercedes in the first Japanese man to claim a Manchester City, Liverpool and
Oval in Christchurch. Pyeongchang in 2018. shape of George Russell. major title there. Bayern Munich for the trophy.
ANNA GOWTHORPE/SHUTTERSTOCK

Tour de France Euro 2022 The Open

& TdF Femmes
1-24 Jul, 24-31 Jul 6-31 Jul England 14-17 Jul St Andrews
Copenhagen hosts the Grand Another tournament delayed The 150th edition of this event
Départ having been denied the by the pandemic and for which takes place, aptly, at the home of
chance to do so this year for there is much anticipation. golf. The Old Course was chosen
Covid-related reasons, and for With 750,000 tickets having some time ago to be the venue
Tadej Pogacar the aim will be to been made available by the for such a historic moment in
get off to a good start in pursuit Football Association, it is set to the Championship’s history
of a third successive general be the most-watched women’s and one man who is especially
classification title. The chasing European Championship in keen to be involved is Tiger
pack will again include the 2018 history. For England, hosts Woods. “I would love to play at
champion, Geraint Thomas. for the first time since 2005, St Andrews, it’s my favourite
Meanwhile the women’s Tour the aim is to go at least one course in the world,” said the
de France is due to return for better than they did in the American last month, speaking
the first time since 2009, for an Netherlands four years ago and for the first time since a car crash
eight-stage race beginning as the reach the final, which will be left him fearing he may have to
men’s race ends, on 24-31 July. held at Wembley. have a leg amputated.

Commonwealth US Open
Games
28 Jul-8 Aug Birmingham 29 Aug-11 Sept Flushing Meadows
Following London 1934 and Even now it is difficult to
Manchester 2002, Birmingham comprehend what Emma
will become the third English Raducanu achieved at the
city to host the Games and, 2021 US Open. Ending Britain’s
while it may seem like a relic – or 44-year wait for a women’s
as the comedian John Oliver grand slam singles champion
put it, “the historic display of a England’s Ellen White was one thing but to do it
once-mighty nation gathering became her side’s top having entered the tournament
together the countries it lost and scorer in November as a qualifier was truly jaw-
finding a way to lose to them dropping. Acclaim and
once more” – there are reasons accolades have followed and
for excitement, most notably the there will be no getting away
inclusion of women’s Twenty20 from the attention when she
cricket and basketball 3x3. returns to Flushing Meadows.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Six Nations
5 Feb-19 Mar
Wales will be seeking to retain
the title they won in March
2021 and will get things under
way in Dublin, against an
Ireland team who may still be
revelling in their 29-20 win over
New Zealand in November.
Elsewhere on the opening
weekend is the Calcutta Cup
clash at Murrayfield. Scotland
have the chance to claim back-
to-back victories over England
after their 11-6 triumph at
Twickenham in last year’s
tournament.
The Derby
4 Jun Epsom
The world’s most famous
flat race will be at the centre
of a four-day bank holiday
to celebrate the Queen’s
platinum jubilee. Days after
her coronation in 1953 she saw
her first runner, Aureole, finish
second, and it is the closest
she has come to victory. If
everything goes to plan, Reach
For The Moon and Frankie
Dettori will carry her colours
next summer and there would
likely be no more popular winner
in the Derby’s long history.
Katarina Johnson-
Thompson is defending
heptathlon champion
Super League
Grand Final
24 Sept Old Trafford
Can anyone stop St Helens
making it four Super League
titles in a row, a feat not
achieved since Wigan’s heyday
in the 90s? That is domestic
rugby league’s burning question
ahead of the 2022 season as a
new era of dominance begins
to take shape. The chasing pack
can take encouragement from
how far Catalan Dragons pushed
Kristian Woolf’s side in the 2021
grand final, reflected in the
narrow 12-10 scoreline.
•
MARK RALSTON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Amir Khan
han v Winter Olympics
Kell Brook
ok
19 Feb Manchesterter 4-20 Feb Beijing
It has taken way y too long and The build-up has been
ultimately may not be worth the dominated by matters away
hassle but there is undeniably from the snow. The US
a fascination in seeing one of government has said it will not
British boxing’s most intense send diplomatic representatives
rivalries shift from
om war of words to Beijing in protest over China’s
to exchange of blows. Amir human rights record, with
Khan and Kell Brookrook are finally other nations adopting the
getting it on and,d, while neither same stance, including the UK.
spective peak,
is close to his respective Chinese officials hit back and the
nough speed
there remains enough row threatens to overshadow
and ring craft between
etween them, the sport. Speaking of which,
ade’s worth of
alongside a decade’s Team GB will travel in expectant
heir clash at the
bad blood, for their mood, with Laura Deas going
AO Arena to be explosive. in the skeleton racing.
Wimbledon
don
27 Jun-10 Jul
There will be a
sense of tradition n
as well as
change at these
Championships
given it is one in which
Centre Court celebrates
lebrates its
100th birthday and matches are
hedule for the
finally on the schedule
first Sunday. As ever there will be
attention on Andy dy Murray (),
who has signalleded his intention
to be involved by y entering two
grass-court events
nts prior to
Wimbledon. Team GB’s Laura Deas
won skeleton bronze at
the last Winter Games
World Athletics
hletics
Championships
Cham onships
15-24 Jul Oregon
The United
Unite Statess hosts these
champion
championships or the first
for
alth
time, although ere is sure
there
to be som
some regret over Oregon
being the host givenven the recent
sc
doping scandal nvolving
involving
Alberto Salazar
Sa and
nd his Nike
Oregon Pr hat is likely
Project. That
to be put tto one side
de once the
get going, however, and
action gets
for Team G GB the hope is to be
among th the medalss. Once again
Dina Ashe
Asher-Smith h and Katarina a
Johnson-T
Johnson-Thompson on will be
among g Br
Britain’s biggest hopes.
Women’s Rugby
by Rugby
Ru League World Cup
World Cup World
W Cup
8 Oct-12 Nov New Zealand 15 O
Oct-19 Nov England 21 Nov-18 Dec Qatar
Covid-19 forced this tournament
ment This tournament will go A first men’s football World
to drop off the 2021 calendar ahea in 2022, organisers have
ahead Cup to be held in the northern
but the postponement has insis
insisted, after it was postponed hemisphere winter, and one that
allowed organisers to make 20 following Australia’s
in 2021 takes place amid controversy
positive changes to what willl and New Zealand’s refusal to over the hosts’ human rights
be the first women’s World Cupup take part due to concerns over record. For England there is
to take place in the southern Cov
Covid-19 rates in the United genuine hope of going all the
hemisphere. It has been King
Kingdom. The fallout from way. Sadly from a home nations
extended to 43 days, bringingg that decision was bitter but, point of view, only one of
the minimum five-day rest England’s scrum-half onc it finally gets going, the
once Scotland or Wales has a chance
period in line with the men’s Leanne Infante hopes Wor Cup should be a cause
World of making it to Qatar after they
World Cup. England, championsions to outdo the hosts for ccelebration, with the men’s, were drawn in the same section
in 2014, are in the same pool as wom
women’s and wheelchair events of the play-offs, which take
France, South Africa and Fiji. runn
running at the same time. place in March.

10
Window
shopping
The transfer market is open for business
until 11pm on 31 January. From budget
bargains to big buys, Guardian writers
assess what each Premier League
club is aiming to achieve this month
Burnley
As with any side in
relegation trouble,
Burnley will be keen
to add to their brittle
squad. Sean Dyche
has spoken to the owners about
bringing in some new faces.
Scoring has been an issue, so a
striker and added creativity are
the areas the club plan to target.
Maxwel Cornet() – their biggest
attacking threat – is off to the
Africa Cup of Nations, making
the matter far more urgent for the
club. Budget They do not work
to specific numbers but it is safe
to say there is money to spend on
requisite signings. Will Unwin
Leicester
Brendan Rodgers
hopes good news is
on the horizon, with a
raft of key players set
to return to fitness,
lessening the need to strengthen
defensively this window. Rodgers
is hopeful of having Caglar
Soyuncu () and Jonny Evans back
before the end of the month while
James Justin and Wesley Fofana are
into the final stages of their rehab.
A shopping spree is off the menu
but no club in the division is likely
to have more players at the Africa
Cup of Nations, with at least four
players set for duty in Cameroon.
Budget Around £10m. BF
Southampton
Ralph Hasenhüttl ()
is relaxed after adding
greater depth to his
squad in the summer
but the Saints could
look to utilise the one permitted
loan spot they have left. They could
also try to replicate the success
they have had with the teenage
sensation Tino Livramento (), a
£5m pickup from Chelsea, by luringring
a youngster from a rival with the e
es.
carrot of first-team opportunities.
They have a decision to make overver
whether to extend 40-year-old
goalkeeper Willy Caballero’s deal al
beyond January.
Budget Around £5m. BF
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Sport
Football Premier League
Chelsea
Much depends on Ben
Chilwell’s recovery
from the knee
injury he sustained
against Juventus in
November. Chilwell needs surgery
and they could go into the market
if the left wing-back is ruled out
for the season. Everton’s Lucas
Digne () is an option. Meanwhile
Thomas Tuchel could revive his
interest in the Sevilla centre-back,
Jules Koundé, and there could be
a move for the Monaco midfielder
Aurelien Tchouameni. Budget
Tuchel should have funds given
that Chelsea missed out on Koundé
last summer. Jacob Steinberg
Liverpool
Stellar names
continue to be
linked with Anfield
but Jürgen Klopp
is reluctant to buy
in January unless a golden
opportunity (Virgil van Dijk) or a
bargain (Takumi Minamino, )
presents itself. The Africa Cup of
Nations will stretch resources up
front although Mohamed Salah and
Sadio Mané will potentially miss
only two league games. Budget
Liverpool made a profit on transfers
in the summer, underlining how
stringently the club is operating in
Covid
vid times and while building a
new Anfield Road. AH
w stand on Anfield
Arsenal
Mikel Arteta is eager
to fine-tune a squad
that looks increasingly
capable of a top-
four push. He would
like to address a lack of depth in
midfield, perhaps using the sale
of Ainsley Maitland-Niles ()
to part-fund any signing, while
Nicolas Pépé’s future is uncertain,
so a right-sided forward may be on
the agenda. Arsenal need a new
centre-forward, too, but even if
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is
frozen out for good, that is likelier
to be addressed in the summer.
Budget Will be sales-dependent
but could reach £30m. Nick Ames
Crystal Palace
A busy summer
window in which
Palace strengthened
in several departments
means it is unlikely to
be a busy window. Patrick Vieira
() has insisted that, despite the
absence of Wilfried Zaha and
Cheikhou Kouyaté for the Africa
Cup of Nations he is interested
only in signing players who can
improve his side. They have been
linked with the Roma forward
Borja Mayoral () and the Napoli
midfielder André-Frank Zambo
Anguissa. Budget Funds in place
if the right player becomes
available. EA
Manchester City
Ferran Torres ()
has joined Barcelona
but this may be
Manchester City’s
only major piece
of mid-season business as Pep
Guardiola’s wish to sign a No 9
appears one to be revisited in the
summer window. A glance at the
Premier League table shows why:
the champions have won 10 league
games in a row, are eight points
ahead of second-placed Chelsea
and continue to be a formidable
force. Guardiola’s is a close-to-
perfect squad. Budget £100m-plus
but
b u likely to be kept until the
summer. Jamie Jackson
su
T
Tottenham
A
Antonio Conte wants
a centre-half and
so
someone for the right
flank
a but he knows
th
that, even though
D
Daniel Levy says he will always
back
b a him for the right player, sales
w
will be vital to the extent of that
b a
backing. Virtually everybody in
th
the squad has his price and the key
qu
question will be whether they are
re
realistic – with particular focus
on those for Joe Rodon, Steven
Bergwijn, Harry Winks and Dele
B for bargains, so loan moves – Sead
Alli (). Budget Levy could stump
A Kolasinac () has been linked –
up £20m-£25m. On the other hand
he might not and it will be largely
sell-to-buy. David Hytner
se
Aston Villa
Steven Gerrard is
expected to be backed
in his first window in
charge. A defensive-
minded midfielder
is high on Gerrard’s wishlist after
Marvelous Nakamba suffered a
knee injury that may rule him out
for the rest of the season, while
reinforcements at full-back are
also wanted. Southampton’s Oriol
Romeu () was tracked in the
summer, as was his clubmate James
Ward-Prowse. Villa have been linked
with moves for the Liverpool’s
Joe Gomez and Glen Kamara, who
excelled under Gerrard at Rangers.
Budget Around £30m. Ben Fisher
Manchester United
A central midfielder
of Declan Rice’s ()
quality remains the
No 1 target but Ralf
Rangnick’s hopes of
landing the West Ham player or
someone as good in this window
appear remote. A centre-back who
can challenge Raphaël Varane,
Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelöf
is the next priority but, again, this
may have to wait until the close
season. The interim manager has
indicated that Anthony Martial,
who has been at the club since
2015 but has expressed a wish
to leave, could depart on loan.
Budget £50m-£100m. JJ
Watford
The only top-flight
team yet to keep a
clean sheet, Watford
will at the very
minimum seek to
strengthen the centre of their
defence this month while, with
the summer gamble on former
Tottenham defender Danny Rose
having apparently failed, a left-back
would also be useful. The Hornets
rarely spend heavily on defenders
and January is not usually a time
might be preferred. Budget Limited
while relegation remains a threat –
perhaps £10m. Simon Burnton
Brentford
The Bees’ squad
depth has been
tested to the limit by
injuries and, even
though relegation
looks unlikely, they have been
exposed at times. Thomas Frank
would like to sign a right wing-
back, although he appears to
have missed out on the Monaco-
bound Brazilian Vanderson.
Goalkeeping cover for the injured
David Raya () and competition
for the strike duo of Ivan Toney
and Bryan Mbeumo could also
come into consideration. Some
squad players could depart on loan.
Budget Around £20m. NA
Everton
There is a pressing
need for Everton to
act swiftly. Rafael
Benítez, who spent
merely £1.7m in his
first window as manager, wants to
strengthen at full-back – Dynamo
Kiev left-back Vitaliy Mykolenko
() and Rangers’ right-back Nathan
Patterson are targets – while
a central midfielder, possibly
Newcastle’s Sean Longstaff, is also
on his wishlist. Budget “I think we
will have some money to spend but
I don’t think that will be too much,”
said Benítez, whose budget could
be shaped by whether Lucas Digne
stays or leaves. Andy Hunter
Newcastle
Newcastle may be the
world’s richest club
but they are also in
acute relegation peril
and, accordingly, not
the most attractive destination for
top talent. While reinforcing the
defence – Atlético Madrid’s Kieran
Trippier () is among the targets
– remains Eddie Howe’s priority,
central midfield also requires
bolstering. Fresh injuries to Allan
Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson
have made frontline recruitment
another unexpected imperative.
Budget Financial fair play rules
would allow Newcastle to spend up
to £200m. LT
West Ham
Desperately need
a new centre-back
after losing Angelo
Ogbonna and Kurt
Zouma to serious
injuries. Liverpool’s Nat Phillips,
Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly and
Burnley’s James Tarkowski ()
have been targeted by David
Moyes. The squad looks
stretched and they would also
like reinforcements in attack.
Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard
is still on their wishlist and Moyes
likes the Blackburn striker, Ben
Brereton Díaz. Links with Sparta
Prague’s Adam Hlozek also refuse
to go away. Budget Up to £30m. JS
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Brighton
Another striker who
could lighten the load
on Neal Maupay’s
shoulders has
remained elusive but
Graham Potter will know that, if
he can find one, it could make all
the difference. Brighton welcomed
back Danny Welbeck from injury
as they ended their winless run
against Brentford on Boxing Day
and have been linked with a £20m
move for Blackburn’s Ben Brereton
Díaz (). With several key players
coming back from injury, Potter
is likely to be able to concentrate
his resources on his main targets.
Budget Around £20m. Ed Aarons
Leeds
Marcelo Bielsa’s
budget is said to be
“tight” but the Leeds
manager has always
preferred to work
with a relatively small nucleus of
senior professionals. Injuries to,
among others, Patrick Bamford
and Kalvin Phillips this season
have suggested that he might
have taken this policy too far and,
with relegation now a real danger,
some spending is expected. The
Reading central midfielder John
Swift() is one target but another
striker is also required. Ditto an
extra defender. Budget Might
stretch to £20m. Louise Taylor
Norwich
There is hardly a
position on the pitch
where Norwich
could not do with
reinforcement. Only at
centre-half, where Dean Smith has
five first-team options, are there
the requisite numbers, but with
31 goals conceded there is room
for improvement there, too. The
need is greatest in attack, where
they have scored only eight times,
but the sporting director, Stuart
Webber, has made clear players
must leave first. Max Aarons (),
admired by Spurs and Everton, is
their most saleable asset. Budget
£5m maximum. Paul MacInnes
Wolves
A low-key window is
likely, with no major
incomings expected.
Wolves could recall
Rúben Vinagre and
Dion Sanderson from loans to
cover for the Morocco defender
Romain Saïss heading to the Africa
Cup of Nations and give Bruno
Lage a chance to cast his eye over
his options. Up front Jonny, Pedro
Neto and Hwang Hee-chan should
be fit before the end of January.
Rúben Neves and Adama Traoré
have admirers but it is difficult to
envisage Wolves sanctioning sales
unless clubs offer silly money.
Budget Up to £10m. BF
•
Howe must conjure quick fixes
in unique winter player hunt
Newcastle may be the world’s
richest club in theory, but are
a hard sell to top names given
their precarious league plight
Louise Taylor
A
t least Eddie Howe
has retained his
sense of humour. “If
we signed everyone
we’ve been linked
with we’d end up with
a squad of around 1,000 players,”
reflected Newcastle’s manager
as he surveyed the gap between
appearance and reality.
Howe finds himself in charge
at St James’ Park at the strangest
of moments. Over the next
month Newcastle are expected to
establish themselves as football’s
biggest paradox; theoretically
the world’s wealthiest club yet
currently an extremely hard
sell to the planet’s best players.
Admittedly Kieran Trippier, an
England right-back, could arrive
from Atlético Madrid as early as
next week after talks between his
representatives and Newcastle over
activating the £31m release clause
in the 31-year-old’s La Liga contract
reached an advanced stage in
recent days – but that potential deal
looks a bit of an outlier.
While Trippier is apparently
keen on a reunion with Howe, the
manager who once signed him for
Burnley, other players of similar
calibre may take more persuading.
This is much less about geography
– those who tend to roll their eyes
in horror at the idea of living in the
north-east have frequently never
actually visited the region – than
league position.
Money invariably serves as
a talent magnet but there are
exceptions to every rule and no
club as rich as Newcastle have
previously found themselves
floundering in the Premier League’s
relegation zone at new year after
recording only one win during the
entire first half of a season. Given
that the club’s new Saudi Arabian
led owners bought the club from
Mike Ashley in October and Howe
replaced Steve Bruce as recently
as November, the new regime
cannot be blamed for the current
▲ Kieran Trippier could become
Howe’s first signing at St James’ Park
▼ Eddie Howe may find
selling clubs upping their
prices when Newcastle call
PETER POWELL/EPA
disconnect yet must somehow
conjure the quickest of quick fixes.
Newcastle’s manager has
now seen two successive games
postponed – his side’s scheduled
visit to Southampton tomorrow
followed Thursday’s aborted trip
to Everton – due to a mounting
list of players hit by Covid and
injury. Howe appreciates there are
no guarantees he will be able to
conduct sufficiently extensive repair
work by 1 February. “We’re under no
illusions,” said Howe, who hopes to
have at least Trippier in his starting
XI for forthcoming relegation six-
pointers against Watford and Leeds.
“There’s no promises about what
we can and can’t do but work’s
going on behind the scenes to try
and make things happen, to try
and bring players here.
“We have targets we’ve
identified between myself, the
coaching team and the recruitment
team and we have a big body of
people working on the club’s behalf
to try and find a way to strengthen
the squad. A lot of detail’s gone
into that but you can have the most
detailed process in the world yet
if players don’t want to come to
your team, or clubs don’t want to
sell them, the challenge of January
becomes very difficult.”
It hardly helps that, as yet,
Newcastle have not filled their
vacancies for a director of football
and chief executive, although Nick
Hammond, who previously filled
the former role at Reading, is on
board as a short-term consultant
and Steve Nickson, Ashley’s old
11
head of recruitment, remains
in post. Nickson was the man
responsible for driving Newcastle’s
£40m capture of Joelinton from
Hoffenheim in 2019. While the
Brazilian is now excelling as a
midfielder and appears reborn
under Howe’s tutelage, he was
signed as a centre-forward. It
did not take long for Bruce to
emphasise that the most expensive
acquisitions are not necessarily
always the safest transfer market
bets by explaining that the record
signing was “not really that
interested in scoring goals”.
M
aximising due
diligence and
minimising
transfer market
mistakes is
Howe’s immediate
challenge but this task has been
complicated by the need to not
only repair a sieve-like defence
but replace his key striker, Callum
Wilson, who is likely to be sidelined
by a torn calf for about two
months. Although Howe would
prefer to recruit an established
Premier League No 9 there is a tacit
acceptance he will almost certainly
need to import one from abroad.
Before Wilson’s injury, the
manager’s shopping list was
defender-heavy. While the Sheffield
United midfielder Sander Berge and
his Spurs counterpart Harry Winks
have been monitored, the principal
focus has centred on hiring not
only Trippier but at least two new
centre-halves from a list topped by
Lille’s Netherlands international
Sven Botman, Manchester City’s
Nathan Aké, Bournemouth’s Lloyd
Kelly, Liverpool’s Nat Phillips,
Burnley’s James Tarkowski and
Brentford’s Pontus Jansson.
A loan move for Tottenham’s Joe
Rodon is another option.
Despite Newcastle playing
down suggestions that rival clubs
fiercely opposed to the Saudi
takeover including, perhaps most
notably, Spurs, could well decline
to take transfer-related calls from
St James’ Park, it remains hard to
envisage Burnley selling Tarkowski
to fellow strugglers. Moreover, the
board’s initial hopes of spending no
more than £50m before February
appear increasingly fanciful.
Unsurprisingly, agents are
swarming around a perceived
honeypot, leaving Amanda Staveley,
the director who runs Newcastle
on a daily basis, besieged by player
representatives wanting to become
her best friend before charging top
dollar. Every decision has to be
agreed with Staveley’s co-owners,
the British based Jamie Reuben and
the Saudi-domiciled chairman, Yasir
al-Rumayyan, who represents the
majority shareholder, Saudi Arabia’s
Public Investment Fund.
There remains a clear consensus
about one thing, though: when
it comes to transfers, there is a
price for Newcastle and another,
more modest, rate for everyone
else. Potential sellers are acutely
aware that financial fair play rules
could permit the St James’ Park
hierarchy to spend almost £200m
in January and seem determined
to hold the Saudis to ransom.
A high stakes game of “Who blinks
first?” beckons.

12
A top Test side thrives
on imagination, not
middle manager Giles
The current England red-ball
setup appears to lack the
innovation and expertise
that propels a team
m forward
Jonathan Liew
W
ith impeccable
timing, Ashley
Giles flies into
Sydney next
week to join
up with the
England squad ahead of the fourth
Ashes Test. I know what you’re all
thinking: if only he’d arrived earlier.
How differently things might have
panned out had the “Managing
Director, England Men’s Cricket”
been able to effect his unique
brand of managerial direction
earlier in the series? Perhaps, like
Glenn McGrath in 2005 or John
Snow in 1974-75, the Giles Effect
(Conjecture) seems fated to remain
an arresting counterfactual in the
footnotes of Ashes history.
Instead, Giles arrives with the
Ashes gone and English cricket
in varying states of disarray. The
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Sport
Cricket The Ashes
captain, Joe Root, is said to be
quietly seething at the mannerr
of this defeat and the entirely
foreseeable missteps that have e panel, and a bare minimum of
led to it. Chris Silverwood, the e
man whom Giles decided to
make the most powerful England and
coach of the 21st century, will
probably end up leaving his job b.
However Tom Harrison, Giles’s ’s
boss and the chief executive off
the England and Wales Crickett
Board, still gets his share of a £2m
bonus pot. So let’s charitably call
it a mixed picture.
Of course, such is the level of
public anger at this latest Asheses
debacle that it is not entirely
beyond the realms of possibility ity
that all four of the above could d be
out of a job in the next few weeks.
eks.
Silverwood feels the likeliest to go;
Giles as the man who appointed ed
him might also find himself
dispensable collateral; Root will
probably be given the right to go
on his own terms should he wish; ish;
Harrison is beginning to show
the strain of almost seven years rs
at the helm, to the point where e one: Silverwood,
he has largely ceased being able le
to communicate in coherent
English sentences.
▼ The England Test setup is under
scrutiny amid concerns that the
red-ball game is being sidelined
JOEL CARRETT/AAP IMAGE
For fans and pundits still stinging
from the manner of this latest
Ashes debacle, perhaps this would
classify as a necessary purgation,
a long-overdue cleansing of the
stables: an opportunity to burn
down the entire festering structure
and build something afresh. Which
feels instinctively right at a time
like this, with England’s defeat
widely being described as their
worst in Ashes history. And yet
perhaps the real lesson of this series
perha
is not about who needs to go, but
who needs
n to come in.
After
Aft all this is – by recent
standards – a remarkably thin top
stand
team, consisting of no chairman, no
chief selector
s or full-time selection
panel
coaching staff. Silverwood’s
coach
absence from the Sydney Test after
absen
a close
clos contact tested positive for
Covid has merely underlined the
paucity of coaching expertise on
pauci
tour. PPaul Collingwood has left to
concentrate on the white-ball tour
conce
of the West Indies, Jeetan Patel and
Jon Lewis
Le are also isolating, and
so pretty
pre much the entire setup is
currently in the hands of assistant
curren
coach Graham Thorpe.
In a way this is a pretty good
metaphor for the organisation
metap
whole: a setup that has been
as a w
brain-drained,
b rain- hollowed out
from the inside. It is no secret
from t
Ashley Giles’s role the last two years have
that th
is under scrutiny had a punishing impact on the
after a poor Ashes ECB’s finances. Staff have been
furloughed and laid off. Reserves
furlou
have b been whittled down.
Programmes have been cut. The
Progra
officia
official selection panel has been
trimm
trimmed from four in 2018 to just
S whose latest
brainwave
b rainw was to leave out both
immy Anderson and Stuart Broad
Jimm
on a green
g wicket in Brisbane.
Giles is personally
admirable and
perfectly competent
but you need people
who aspire to more
Perhaps some of the pruning
was necessary: certainly there
have been times in the past
when Team England on tour
felt more like a circus. But these
days there seems to be a distinct
absence of expertise at the heart
of the setup: the innovation and
imagination and life experience
and variety of voices that moves a
team forward, rather than simply
keeping it running. For all his faults
national selector Ed Smith was
one such voice: a man prepared to
embrace the heterodox, posit the
wacky idea, imagine the world a
shade of Joe Denly.
A
ndy Flower was
another, and the
decision to retain
his services as Lions
coach after the
2013-14 Ashes was a
quietly inspired move. But perhaps
the biggest loss was Sir Andrew
Strauss, the man responsible for
remaking English cricket twice:
first as captain from 2009 to 2011,
and then as director from 2015 to
2018, where he put in place the
white-ball-oriented strategy that
helped England win their first
men’s World Cup.
This is not to argue that any
of them is necessarily the right
man right now, or that any of the
current occupants necessarily
deserve to stay. The broader
point is that any successful
team needs a surfeit of hard
thought as well as hard work, an
ability to see round corners and
approach problems in new ways.
With respect to both, neither
Silverwood nor Giles really fit the
bill: the latter having overseen a
gentle regression of the white-ball
side as coach from 2012-14, the
former now having done the same
to the Test side.
In Silverwood’s determination
to “take the positives” from
England’s third Test defeat
there were echoes of Giles’s
infamous claim in the wake of
the humiliating defeat to the
Netherlands at the 2014 World T20
that England had “warmed up
well”. They are middle managers,
factotums, details men, personally
admirable and perfectly
competent. They are the bread
and cheese of any self-respecting
organisation. But you also need
people who aspire to more.
Instead, Silverwood and Giles
were given the keys to the palace,
and in the process we learned a
good deal about the ECB’s attitude
to Test cricket. That with a base
level of competence it would
essentially look after itself, while
the more viable revenue streams
were explored instead: 50-over,
20-over, 100-ball. Replacing the
men themselves will be easy
enough. Replacing the philosophy
they embodied will be several
degrees harder.
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Depleted England
call on Hollioake to
lend Thorpe a hand
Former all-rounder answers
distress call and joins staff
further thinned by Covid
Ali Martin
Sydney
Adam Hollioake has answered
a distress call to join England’s
depleted coaching staff amid the
Covid outbreak that is threatening
the back end of the Ashes series and
has now ruled Australia’s Travis Head
out of the fourth Test in Sydney.
On the day Australia called up
three players to their Test squad in
response to Head’s positive result,
and the Big Bash League was gripped
by a raft of new cases, England asked
Hollioake, their former one-day
captain, to travel down from his
home on the Gold Coast to work with
the players next week.
Graham Thorpe is now interim
head coach due to Chris Silverwood’s
enforced isolation period but
currently has only Ant Botha and
James Foster, two consultants, to
help out. Jon Lewis (seam bowling
coach), Jeetan Patel (spin) and
Darren Veness (fitness) have all been
forced to stay behind in Melbourne
after contracting the virus.
Hollioake, the combative former
all-rounder who played four Tests
and 35 one-day internationals
between 1997-99, has been roped
in by Thorpe, his former Surrey
teammate. The 50-year-old will meet
a squad still reeling from losing the
series inside 12 days, even if Cricket
Australia’s Covid protocols mean
he can only work with the players
outdoors before the fourth Test
starts on Tuesday.
•
“Adam is not just another set of
hands,” said Thorpe, before England’s
players cleared their latest round of
PCR tests and flew to Sydney. “He can
bring a bit of energy to the dressing
room and the philosophical side of
life as well, which is very important
in times like this. He’ll bring that nice
sense of perspective.
“But also for me it’s about standing
up as well. The players have an
opportunity. We want to see fight
and character. I don’t want to see
people drop their heads – there’s
no point getting like that. We’ve got
two matches left in this series for our
players to show they’ve got the charac-
ter and spirit and the skill to perform.”
While England’s Covid outbreak
remains contained to seven
individuals – three coaches and four
family members – and David Boon,
the match referee, has also caught the
virus, Head represents the first posi-
tive case among either set of players.
Australia’s response to losing
their No 5 – calling up batsman Nic
Maddinson, all-rounder Mitchell
Marsh and wicketkeeper Josh Inglis
– suggests they are braced for further
positives among the now daily tests
being undertaken by both squads.
CA, also battling with outbreaks at
two Big Bash franchises, are clearly
determined to complete a series that
bounces on to Hobart, Tasmania, for
the fifth Test. England, 3-0 down
and with only pride and World Test
Championship points to play for,
appear to be on board at this stage,
albeit with a number of families
having left the tour early.
Though Silverwood will speak to
his assistant coach from afar, Thorpe
appears to have firmly grasped the
helm alongside Joe Root, the captain.
Their challenge is to rebuild the
Kirsten: reviving England Test fortunes a ‘lovely project’
Gary Kirsten has declared his
interest in coaching England
by saying reviving their Test
fortunes would be a “lovely
project”. The former India
and South Africa coach has
been linked with the England
job before and his comments
come with speculation over
Chris Silverwood’s future as a
result of the Ashes humiliation
in Australia. “Working with a
Test side, or working with an
ODI side is great,” Kirsten told
the i newspaper. “Listen, the
▼ Adam Hollioake has
travelled to Sydney from
his home on the Gold Coast
MIKE EGERTON/PA
England ODI side is set up, you’re
the best ODI side in the world at
the moment. It’s a project that has
been well thought out. You’ve got
consistency in the players that
have been picked. Your Test side
has battled for a while but it would
be a really lovely project to get
that going.” Kirsten, who spent
last summer working with the
Welsh Fire in the Hundred, added
he could not commit to white-ball
and red-ball formats and would
only become involved if the two
coaching roles were split. PA Media
13
confidence of a batting lineup that has
failed to make 300 and was shattered
to the tune of 68 all out at the MCG.
The 52-year-old cited an example
from his 100-cap career – England
being bowled out for 46 by West
Indies in Trinidad in 1994, before
winning the following Test in
Barbados – and at least knows the
SCG well, having begun his coaching
career at New South Wales in 2005-06
under Trevor Bayliss.
Asked about England’s shortcom-
ings with the bat, amid a wider debate
about the domestic structure, Thorpe
replied: “They’re trying to learn in
county cricket, but the truth is, when
they come out of county cricket, they
have to learn it all again, because Test
cricket is 10 times harder.
“We’ve had a massive focus on
white-ball cricket in the last five or six
years, our four-day cricket is pushed
to one side. We need to address those
things. Some of our young players
are getting an education and if they
didn’t know before, they understand
how tough Test cricket is. Not just on
the field, but off it.”
While frustrated his charges have
failed to adopt his stated blueprint –
“Leave the ball well, defend straight,
cut and pull really well, bat long” –
Thorpe at least hopes the tour has
served as a “wake up” that could
kickstart careers. Among them is
Rory Burns, who was dropped for
Melbourne and seemingly will not
return until adjustments are made.
Thorpe said: “I told him: ‘You’ve
played 30 [now 31] Test matches and
you average 30. We want you to be
doing more, to be better as a player.’ He
needs to do the simple things better,
calm things down with his move-
ments. It’s tough to do in competition.
Sometimes they have to come out and
then you can reset a little bit.
“When players get a little bit of
success they then think: ‘My way is
the right way.’ And there’s a balance
to it. But the best bowlers in the world
are going to analyse your technique
and the right-hand [runs] column tells
you if you’re getting it right or not.
“We’ve seen he’s got a fighting
character but at the same time you
need a technique and temperament
at the highest level.”

14
Biggar fears backwards
step if Six Nations takes
place without crowds
The Wales and Northampton
fly-half remains hopeful
supporters can attend games
despite fresh uncertainty
Gerard Meagher
N
o sport ushers in
the new year free
from the worries the
pandemic brings but
rugby union, perhaps
more than most,
looks to 2022 with trepidation. The
Premiership carries on today with
bumper crowds, as was the case
for the festive fixtures, but behind
the scenes and with the Six Nations
looming key talks are scheduled in
the coming days.
The government has not
yet seen fit to introduce crowd
restrictions to sporting events in
England – Premiership clubs are
likely to lobby for a pause to the
season if it does – but that fate
has already befallen Scotland and
Wales. The Dragons chairman,
David Buttress, has described the
move as “devastating” and Wales’s
first minister, Mark Drakeford,
recently admitted he could not say
if the restrictions would be lifted
by the time of Wales’s first Six
Nations home match next month.
In Scotland – who host England on
the first weekend of the Six Nations
– restrictions have been imposed
for at least three weeks and a
formal review is scheduled for 11
January. Before that, however,
it is understood a key meeting is
scheduled for next week when
organisers are expected to learn
whether contingency plans will
need to be activated and Covid
protocols tightened.
Add in the current plight of
the two European competitions
– recently postponed fixtures
have to be shoehorned into a
cluttered calendar while the French
government’s rules on travel from
the UK threaten the next rounds
of fixtures in January – and the
situation is all the more precarious.
The French government’s
insistence that all sportspeople be
fully vaccinated by mid-January
is just another headache that
European officials and Six Nations
organisers are grappling with.
Granted, adapting to the
challenges posed to cross-border
competitions is not an issue
limited to rugby union but, unlike
the Champions League, club
rugby is not awash with money.
As Bristol’s director of rugby, Pat
Lam, recently pointed out, even
the cost of chartering a plane only
to find the European fixture has
been cancelled hits rugby clubs
• The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
Sport
Rugby union Gallagher Premiership
hard. The same goes for cancelling
matches – for gate receipts rather
than lucrative sponsorship or prize
money are the lifeblood – and
Bristol forewent around £300,000
after their fixture against the
Scarlets was scrapped. That Sale’s
Boxing Day trip to Newcastle was
called off on Christmas Day only
highlights how the Premiership is
not immune, as do the 55 positive
cases – the second highest on
record – produced this week.
The optimistic view is that the
bullet
b ullet will be dodged, that crowd
restrictions will not be required
‘We played a lot
of games with no
crowds but, if you
look at the first
handful of them,
they almost felt like
training games’
Dan Biggar hopes this
year’s Six Nations can
be played in front of
full crowds despite the
latest Covid outbreaks
such a showpiece event,” says the
George boost for England Northampton and Wales fly-half
Dan Biggar, who last week ran out
in front of more than 70,000 fans
Jamie George has recovered from at Twickenham during Harlequins’
a knee problem to give England’s annual Big Game. “You saw it in
Six Nations title quest a lift. Eddie the autumn, getting crowds back.
Jones’s second-choice hooker Everyone coming to games now
sustained the injury in a 32-15 has to have a passport, they’ll be
victory over Australia in November double or triple-jabbed and it’s an
and was not expected to return outdoor event, so I don’t see why
until the end of January. However, they wouldn’t be allowed in. As
the 31-year-old has been named long as it’s safe, that’s the most
in the starting XV and captain important thing.
in England, that they will be lifted for Saracens’ Premiership trip to “I hope for an event like the Six
soon in Scotland and Wales, that Northampton tomorrow. Nations and for the game up and
teams competing in France will be “Jamie was nearly OK for last down the UK moving forward we
granted the necessary exemptions weekend but now he’s raring to get some sort of sensible outcome.
and that the Six Nations can go go. It’s great to have him back,” As long as everyone is safe and
ahead with full crowds. For the Saracens’ coach Mark McCall said. jabbed then I think it makes sense
unions the financial impact of England open their Six Nations to keep crowds in. I think you
having to play behind closed doors campaign against Scotland on would have seen a different game
or with strict limits on attendance 5 February with only 500 fans [against Harlequins] if the stadium
does not bear thinking about. For allowed to attend Murrayfield had been empty.
supporters and, indeed, players it is because of Covid-19 restrictions. “We played a lot of games with
a similarly desperate prospect. Meanwhile the Wasps fly-half no crowds but, if you look at the first
“It would be a huge, huge step Jacob Umaga will miss the next handful of games, they almost felt
backwards
b ackwards if there are no crowds three ggames because of the red card like training games. It felt like it did
moving forwards for clubs and he received against London Irish on not really matter whether you won
no
the Six Nations which is obviously Boxing Day. PA Media or lost because it felt like a training
match and like the intensity was
ma
knocked out of it. You lose any
kn
ALED LLYWELYN/HUW EVANS/SHUTTERSTOCK
advantage of playing at home.
ad
“I think it would be a huge step
backwards
b a if crowds were to go. I
think the rest of the lads in Wales
thi
are pretty frustrated with it. That’s
normal frustration, isn’t it? We
no
are probably getting into different
things with politics now but I think
thi
everything should be aligned.”
ev
I
f the new year is also a time to
reflect as well as look forward,
then listen to Biggar and you
cannot help but wonder what
might have happened had full
crowds been allowed for the
Bri
British & Irish Lions series against
South Africa. Rugby union was not
So
without its jaw-dropping moments
wi
in 2021 – Harlequins’ Premiership
victory is testament to that – but
vic
the Lions was supposed to be the
showpiece and it barely registers
sh
a footnote
f in any sporting reviews
of the year. It has also sparked
erce debate about the quality of
fie
the product on the pitch but Biggar
sees a sport moving in the right
see
direction.
dir
“With the Lions, if we’d have
won the series there might have
wo
been
b e some [negative] column
inches written still but we would
inc
have been celebrating a massive
ha
success,” adds Biggar, who lines up
su
for Northampton at Saracens. “One
penalty decision either way and
pe
there’s a different slant on it. You
the
look at the way the international
loo
game is, defences are tighter.
ga
“If you look at the way we
[Saints] try and play it’s very
[Sa
positive, like Quins. We’re always
po
trying to be positive with the ball.
try
There are lots of high scores in the
Th
Premiership at the minute, and
Pre
that’s the way the game is going –
tha
you’re going to have to score a lot of
yo
po
points to win in this league.
“Gone are the days of
acc
accumulating three, six, nine
po
points and then edge a game that
way. Week in, week out you are
wa
PHOTOG/AGENCYX CYX
YX
playing against the best players
pla
GENC
ENC
GEN
EN
GE
E NC
N
in the world in front of sell-out
OG/A
G/A
G/ AG
//A
crowds.” Biggar is not alone in
cro
OTO
PHOT
HOT
OT G
hoping that remains the case in the
ho
coming weeks and months.
co
P
Saturday 1 January 2022 The Guardian
Wood is UK’s top newspaper tipster
Guardian correspondent wins 2021 National Press Challenge
The Guardian’s racing
correspondent, Greg Wood, was
the UK’s leading newspaper
tipster in 2021, finishing several
lengths clear of the opposition
position
in the Racing Post’s annual
nual
National Press Challengenge in his
first year as our lead tipster.
pster.
Wood went to the top op of the
table in June and maintained
ntained a
clear lead for the second
nd half of
the year, in a contest based
ased on
the total return to a notional
otional
£1 stake at starting price
ce on
all selections. The Guardian’s
ardian’s
picks over the course of 2021
had the highest strike-rate
-rate of
Zanza can turn the tables
on Coole Cody at Cheltenham
Seven-year-old has strong
claims to upset course
specialist in feature race
Greg Wood
Guide to today’s TV races
Cheltenham is preparing to
welcome 30,000 racegoers to its
traditional New Year’s Day card and
many will look no further than the
course specialist Coole Cody in the
feature race, a handicap chase over
two-and-a-half miles.
Evan Williams’s 11-year-old is
equally at home on either of the
two courses at Cheltenham and
boasts three wins at the track,
including the Paddy Power Gold
Cup in November 2020 and the
valuable handicap at the December
meeting three weeks ago.
That form looks the strongest on
offer but a 4lb higher mark makes
life more difficult for Coole Cody
and, while his bold, front-running
style makes him tough to pass,
Zanza (2.50), who was two lengths
behind him in second last time,
could be worth an interest to turn
the tables.
That was Zanza’s second big
run at Cheltenham in a row after
finishing sixth in the Paddy Power.
He also runs in cheekpieces for the
first time which could be another
positive given that he comes from
a yard which shows a level-stakes
profit from more than 100 runners
in first-time cheekpieces over the
past 10 years.
Cheltenham 1.25 When
L’Homme Presse finished 13
lengths clear at Ascot last time he
still had plenty left in the tank and
he has made a flawless start to his
chasing career. This is a significant
step up in grade from that but he
has only six starts to his name
and should bridge the gap with
something to spare.
Musselburgh 1.40 Based on
••
Sport
Racing
any tipster at 27.6%, and showed
a return of just under 92%
on turnover, nearly 2% higher
than the runner-up.
In addition to individual
winners at prices up to 28-1
the win at Kempton in November
Stoner’s Choice remains on a fair
mark and the drop back in trip is
expected to be in his favour.
Musselburgh 2.10 Last time
out First Impression unseated his
rider before halfway over track
and trip but on his winning form
at Wetherby in November he has a
big chance.
Tramore 2.20 The dual Gold Cup
winner Al Boum Photo has had his
Festival warm-up in this race for
the last three seasons and is fancied
to make it four in a row with a
minimum of fuss.
Cheltenham 2.35 It takes a leap
of faith to back Spiritofthegames,
even at around 16-1, as his 18-race
losing streak stretches back
to November 2018. He rarely
runs a bad race at this track,
however, reverts to hurdling off a
competitive mark and should get
the strong pace he needs.
Musselburgh 2.50 A small
field but all five runners have a
▲ Zanza was a close second to Coole Cody over course and distance recently
ALAN CROWHURST/GETTY IMAGES
15
Chess
Teenager shocks
Carlsen to win
during 2021, Wood’s selections
at Royal Ascot in June showed
world rapid title
a profit of £53.10 to a £1 level
stake, including Perotto Leonard Barden
(Britannia
(Brit Handicap) at 18-1,
Lola Showgirl (Kensington
Palace
Pala Stakes) at 12-1, two more A little-known 17-year-old from
Uzbekistan made a clean sweep of
winners
winn at 10-1 and Subjectivist Magnus Carlsen and the global chess
(13-2)
(13-2 in the Gold Cup, the elite on Tuesday, incidentally set-
feature
featu event of the meeting. ting a world age record. Nodirbek
Other
Ot big-race winners Abdusattorov won the World Rapid ▲ Nodirbek Abdusattorov is the
included
inclu Commanche Falls championship in Warsaw, claiming youngest ever world champion
en route the scalps of Magnus Carlsen
(10-1)
(10-1 in the Stewards’ Cup and the No 1’s last two challengers, and Caruana from the play-off due
at Goodwood
Go in July and Fabiano Caruana and Ian Nepomni- to their inferior tie-breaks. An angry
Midnight
Midn Shadow (9-1) in achtchi. In rapid chess each player Carlsen denounced the rules as
the P
Paddy Power Gold Cup at has 15 minutes for all moves, plus a “idiotic. Either all players on the same
Cheltenham
Chel in November. 10 second per move increment. amount of points join the play-off or
After 21 rounds of three-minute no one does.”
games on Wednesday and Thursday, It was balancing luck for Nepom-
France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave niachtchi, who in this same event
fair chance on their best form. defeated Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof and under the same rules in 2017
Amour De Nuit is back below his Duda in a tie-break to win the World was excluded from the play-off,
last winning mark over fences and Blitz title. The 18-year-old world but the Russian was outgunned in
looks the safest option.
Cheltenham 3.10 A fascinating
No 2, Alireza Firouzja, was third but
Carlsen was well adrift in 12th place.
the tie-break games. Abdusattorov
easily drew with Black, then won the
renewal of the Relkeel Hurdle, with He said: “Some days you just don’t second game despite twice missing
McFabulous marginally preferred have it. I was nowhere near close to mate in two near the end.
to the likely favourite as he returns the level I needed to be today.” Abdusattorov is the second player
to action after a wind operation. At 17 years three months Abdu- from Generation Z, defined as peo-
He has gone well when fresh in sattorov becomes the youngest ever ple born from 1995 to 2010, to break
the past and anything close to his world champion in open competition, through to the chess top. Firouzja,
winning form when this race was surpassing Ruslan Ponomariov at 18 in whose victories in Latvia and Slove-
switched to Kempton last year the Fide version of the then disputed nia last month made him No 2 behind
could be sufficient. classical crown in 2001 and Carlsen, Carlsen, was out of form in Warsaw in
also at 18, in the 2009 World Blitz. the rapid but finished strongly in the
The next youngest were 22 – Garry three-minute blitz to take the bronze
Greg Wood’s tips Kasparov, in his first victory over medal and narrowly miss out on the
Anatoly Karpov in 1985, and Daniil Vachier-Lagrave v Duda play-off.
Dubov and Sergey Karjakin when win-
Cheltenham 12.15 Get A Tonic 12.50 The Wolf ning speed titles. The world women’s 3796 Sergey Volkov v Nils Grandelius,
1.25 L’Homme Presse 2.00 Zanza (nap) Stockholm 2014. What was White’s winning
2.35 Spiritofthegames 3.10 McFabulous
championship has a younger record
move? A trickier puzzle than usual and a test
3.50 Iliade Allen holder, as Hou Yifan won it in 2010 even for experienced players.
Catterick 12.25 Bob’s Bar 1.00 Fame And Hope aged 16, after being the defeated
1.35 Tommie Beau 2.15 Socialist Agenda finalist two years earlier. 8
2.45 Spot On Soph 3.20 Bestiarius
Earlier in the teen from Tashkent’s
Musselburgh 12.30 Collingham 1.05 Pitempton
blossoming career he had won the 7
Power 1.40 Stoner’s Choice 2.10 First Impression (nb)
2.50 Amour De Nuit 3.25 Morraman world under-eight championship, 6
Southwell 12.33 Chillsea 1.08 Paddy Elliott defeated two grandmasters at nine
1.43 Lammas 2.18 Arriviste 2.53 Al Ameen
3.28 Muscika 4.00 Sky Power 4.30 The Thin Blue Line
and been singled out in this column 5
when he narrowly missed becoming
Exeter 12.40 Gustavian 1.15 Dubrovnik Harry
1.50 Gamaret 2.25 Le Milos 3.00 Keep Rolling the youngest ever GM at 12. Abdusat-
4
3.35 Getaweapon 4.05 Ben Bulben torov had his share of good fortune 3
Fakenham 12.45 Powerful Position 1.20 Hidor De at Warsaw, surviving three lost posi-
Bersy 1.55 Animal 2.30 Ray’s The One 3.05 Leave
My Alone 3.40 Henschke tions, but he also played a very strong 2
field where Levon Aronian and Boris 1
Gelfand were among his other victims.
After 13 rounds he was in a quad- a b c d e f g h
ruple tie on 9.5 points with Carlsen, 2 c8=Q Qa1+ 3 Kg2 Qf1 mate.
Caruana and Nepomniachtchi, but makes a second queen. The trap is 1 Rd8?? Qxa6
3796 1 Rc1! Qxa6 2 Rxc4! bxc4 3 Qh3! and White
the regulations excluded Carlsen
Fixtures
Results TODAY
Rugby union
Gallagher Premiership
Exeter v Bristol (4.30pm); Sale v Wasps (2pm)
United Championship
Connacht v Munster (5.15pm); Scarlets v Ospreys (5.15pm).
Postponed Dragons v Cardiff; Ulster v Leinster
Football RFU Championship
Ampthill v London Scottish (1pm).
LOWLAND LEAGUE Postponed Doncaster v Bedford; Ealing v Cornish Pirates
Postponed Rangers B v Celtic B
Cricket
LA LIGA First Test (second day of five)
(top 10) P W D L F A GD Pts New Zealand v Bangladesh, Mount Maunganui (10pm)
Real Madrid 19 14 4 1 41 16 +25 46
Big Bash League
Hobart Hurricanes v Brisbane Heat, Hobart (6.40am); Sydney
Sevilla 18 11 5 2 29 13 +16 38 Sixers v Melbourne Renegades, Coffs Harbour (8.30am)
Real Betis 18 10 3 5 32 21 +11 33
TOMORROW
Rayo Vallecano 18 9 3 6 26 18 +8 30
Atlético Madrid 18 8 5 5 29 22 +7 29 Rugby union
Gallagher Premiership
Real Sociedad 18 8 5 5 20 20 0 29
Gloucester v Harlequins (3pm); Leicester v Newcastle
Barcelona 18 7 7 4 29 22 +7 28 (3pm); Northampton v Saracens (3pm)
Valencia 19 7 7 5 31 28 +3 28 United Championship
Espanyol 19 7 5 7 22 22 0 26 Postponed Benetton Treviso v Zebre; Edinburgh v Glasgow
Villarreal 18 6 7 5 26 20 +6 25 RFU Championship
Hartpury v Nottingham (2.30pm).
Valencia 1 Espanyol 2 Postponed Richmond v Coventry
 • The Guardian Saturday 1 January 2022
16
ILLUSTRATION: DAVID HUMPHRIES
O
n days like these, as the calendar
Bruno backlash ticks around, as we link hands and
sing of our joy at being one notch
further on the doomsday clock, it is
customary to talk about hopes for
Fernandes in danger the future and life lessons learned
from the last 12 months of kicking
balls, running around tracks, driving
fast cars and all the rest.
of being swept Except, of course, there are no actual lessons to be
learned from professional sport, which is basically
lighted shapes moving on a screen, digital celebrity
worship, a confusion of desires coopted into a pay-per-
away on a digital view entertainment product.
Perhaps, though, if we dig a little deeper and adopt
a twinkly, world-weary frown, we might say the only
lesson to be drawn from sport is that there are no
wave of revisionism lessons, that what really matters is, you know, the
friends we made along the way, the show, the harmless
distraction.
Which is fine but it doesn’t explain why nobody
really thinks that, and why we are all still so violently
addicted to this, splayed on our backs like dying
woodlice, maws crammed with 24-hour rolling
hot opinion-substance. Or why so much energy is
expended on picking shapes and stories out of that
confusion, anointing heroes and castigating villains,
like dogs barking at the skies.
Barney Ronay All of which is a flowery and circuitous way of (1)
avoiding another folksy review of the year; and (2)
getting on to the strange fate of Bruno Fernandes,
whose up-and-down year has been capped by a
particularly strange week.*
Dan Biggar
‘No crowds for the Six
Nat
Nations would be huge,
hug step backwards’
huge
Page
Page 14 
Welcome to the ballad of Bruno. This is a footballer
who spent the first half of 2021 as a Ballon D’Or
candidate, team leader and exemplar of dressing-room
standards. Last January Manchester United were top
of the league and Fernandes was the best player in the
country.
F
ast forward to Thursday night and
Fernandes missed the win against
Burnley having been booked (for
whingeing) against Newcastle. In the
meantime a kind of opinion-creep has
wheedled its way in, a digital wave of
revisionism. With a whiplash sense of
urgency, Fernandes has been fingered
as something else: a whinge-bag, penalty fraud and
general tactical misfit, perhaps even a dressing-room
toxin, to be rooted out by the fearless hand of Ralf.
This is, of course, a familiar process with the current
United, a sporting institution so fraught with ghosts
and ghouls, so frightened by its own shadow it has
become a real time Murder on the Orient Express, a
place where in the end everyone is guilty, everyone did
it and everyone must pay. Fernandes will survive this.
He remains United’s most effective attacking player.
But it is all a little wild and pointlessly destructive.
Gary Neville started the whinge-bag thing in his
punditry spot during the Newcastle game. Neville is
always brilliantly watchable and clearly has his own
inside track. But it is also a funny line coming from
an ex-player whose own very successful career was
basically powered by high-grade whinge-baggery, who
spent 15 years with a full bladder of whinge cradled
beneath each arm, the droning, screeching, whinge-
piping soundtrack to the glories of Fergie-era United.
Until a recent run of poor form the whinge-baggery
of Fernandes was seen as an asset. Here is a man who
will not accept mediocrity, who works like a demon
and demands the best. So what changed?
The most obvious problem is tactical. Under Ole
Gunnar Solskjær the plan was simple. Basically, give it
to Bruno. His job was to float in between the lines with
three mobile runners ahead of him, to provide instant,
high-risk forward passes or shoot himself. Bruno was
the end point of every attack, his job simply to provide
the final click of the hammer.
Three things have interrupted this. First, Solskjær’s
team dissolved, driven in part by
Under a doomed urge to move on from
Solskjær
the plan
this slightly linear style. Secondly
Cristiano Ronaldo arrived,
which changes everything, not
was simple. just tactically but culturally. An
Basically,
give it
ambitious creative Portuguese
footballer will always say playing
with Ronaldo is a dream. In reality,
and at this late stage, it’s a nightmare.
to Bruno That presence is too heavy, the
gravity too strong. There is room for
only one basking tactical nabob in a Ronaldo team. And
he’s not going to be called Bruno.
The third thing is the distinct blueprint of Ralf
Rangnick, whose 4-2-2-2 system (or 4-4-2 on Thursday
night) sees Fernandes pushed to the left of the
attacking “box”. He can make this work. Even Bad
Bruno has burped up a load of goals and assists in the
Champions League and made 44 chances from open
play, more than anyone else in the Premier League.
He deserves a little more respect. Those Peak Bruno
times have been among the few moments of clarity, the
closest United have looked to a more evolved entity,
divorced from the past, the ghost train, the haunted
house.
Plus, one folksy end-of-year reflection: Fernandes
was good in the dark times too, when crowds were
absent, when things could have simply wound down
into entropy, and when his hunger and his whinge-
baggery really did seem to fill those lighted spaces. I
went to a few of those games and was always grateful
for a bit of Bruno, who may have his own brittle edges
but who is quite clearly a part of the solution.
1-7 January 2022

NEW YEAR’ S DAY

The Tourist
9pm, BBC One
Jamie Dornan is lost in Oz

SUNDAY
Anne
9pm, ITV

MONDAY
Four Lives
9pm, BBC One

TUE SDAY
Toast of Tinseltown
10pm, BBC Two

WEDNE SDAY
Mandy
10pm, BBC Two

THURSDAY
Screw
9pm, Channel 4

FRIDAY
A Discovery of Witches
9pm, Sky Max
 WHAT’S ON
They’ll be duelling with Daleks,
schmoozing with Helena Bonham
Carter and pogoing with the Pistols.
Rachel Aroesti meets the rising stars
who are going to be all over 2022
Call
their
agents!
W
hatever 2022
brings, there’s
one thing we
can bank on:
there’ll be
some cracking
TV. Here we meet the stars of the
year’s most exciting new shows,
from Danny Boyle’s Sex Pistols
biopic to the UK version of Call My
Agent and the Steve Coogan-led
#MeToo comedy Chivalry. By the
year’s end, these four new faces
may well feel like old friends.
‘I don’t even know who
Alan Partridge is’
Adjani Salmon
Growing up in Jamaica, Adjani
Salmon wasn’t familiar with the
British obsession with Doctor Who.
In fact, he only realised the full
extent of it while filming an episode.
One of his first acting jobs was
Eve of the Daleks (which broadcasts
today), in which Salmon’s Nick gets
tangled up with the Whoniverse
baddies, alongside his crush Sarah
(Aisling Bea). Fans turned up to
the set, and the crew told him they
needed to “‘get the umbrellas,
because we don’t want to give
away who’s in the special’. And I’m
like: ‘Oh shit, this is a big thing!’”
he laughs from his family home in
Kingston, where he is for Christmas.
Salmon started out as an editor
in Jamaica’s reality-dominated
TV industry before moving to
London to follow his film-making
ambitions. Soon he was making
his own web series, Dreaming
New year’s
revelations
Clockwise from
left: Emma
Appleton;
Fola Evans-
Akingbola;
Kit Connor
Whilst Black, which was adapted in the BBC adaptation of Dolly
last year into a charming BBC pilot. Alderton’s 2018 memoir Everything
In it, he plays a frustrated movie- I Know About Love, a potently
maker toiling in an office job. But relatable coming-of-age tale
Salmon only cast himself to avoid peppered with 00s nostalgia, about
paying a proper actor – and he’s navigating your 20s in a London
conflicted about his inadvertent house-share. It’s a book that struck
career shift. “You’re so exposed a chord with her. “On the second
– there’s a level of vulnerability page it’s talking about messaging
I don’t like. But acting has made boys on MSN – what a flashback,”
me a better director.” enthuses the 30-year-old.
The exposure is about to get Appleton presumed playing
much greater. Later this year, the a character “so similar to me on
32-year-old will co-star in Steve paper” would be a breeze – but, in
Coogan and Sarah Solemani’s fact, the opposite was true. “I so
#MeToo comedy Chivalry. He plays desperately wanted to get it right.
the husband of Bobby, Solemani’s It felt quite precious.”
film-maker who has to rescue a Just before Everything I Know
flailing project helmed by Coogan’s About Love, Appleton was trying to
problematic producer. It has hit do another real, but less relatable,
written all over it – but Salmon
wasn’t even sure if he should
audition. “I thought it’s either going
to be really cutting-edge … or really
bad,” he says of the #MeToo angle.
Part of his reluctance was
that, again, he didn’t understand
Coogan’s significance. “I’d tell
someone I was doing this show
and they’d say: ‘Bro, do you not
know what Alan Partridge is?’”
His cluelessness did wonders for his
nerves. “It’s so interesting meeting
people who are almost icons –
they’re beyond humanisation
– and being like: you’re cool as
people. It was great.”
‘At school all I got to play was
leopard No 2 – no lines’
Emma Appleton
This year, Emma Appleton stars
 The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

The Language of Love

person justice. In Danny Boyle’s
upcoming Sex Pistols series, Pistol,
she plays Sid Vicious’s girlfriend
Nancy Spungen. Before filming,
Appleton had been aware of the
fatally stabbed Spungen as a semi-
mythical rock figure, and heard
weight of expectation? “Nick is a
6ft 2in, big, built lad and I was very
skinny – I don’t know how I got the
role to be honest. I was thinking,
OK, do I get on a pogo stick?! But I
managed to gain some weight and Sangrias at the ready! This absurd dating
did a lot of rugby training.”

show will get you through miserable January

that “no one liked her and she was
a nightmare. Which is true but she’s
also incredibly complex.” Despite
the troubling source material, the
shoot itself was “a dream come
true” thanks to Boyle. “Growing up
watching his work then being on set
with him was great!”
For a while, acting was just a
dream. She never got the main
parts in plays at her Oxfordshire
school – “It would be: ‘OK, you can
be leopard No 2, no lines’” – and so
instead she became a model.
But when Appleton’s agency
offered her a short film casting, she
won the part, and it all happened
very quickly: a lead role in BBC teen
drama Clique soon followed. Then
she was cast as the vengeful Renfri
in the Netflix smash The Witcher,
a role that required her to master a
whole new skill set. “I just wanted
to get my sword-fighting right
and try not to blind Henry Cavill,”
she smiles. “It took a month of
training, six days a week, six hours
a day. It was a lot!”
‘Elton John gave me a huge hug’
Kit Connor
He may only be 17, but Kit Connor
has already endured one of the
most daunting moments in any
actor’s life: playing a real person in
Having spent his childhood
juggling education with acting jobs
– at 10 he starred in comedy caper
Get Santa, and later lent his voice
to the BBC adaptation of His Dark
Materials (he played Lyra’s dæmon Joel Golby
Pan) – on Heartstopper’s set Connor
was treated like an adult. Which
meant no time to study during the
day. “I was working 12 hours a day
and thinking: ‘I could go home and
do my homework right now, but I
need to sleep.’ I got back to school
thinking this is going to be hell!”
It doesn’t seem to have put
him off, though. Connor’s already
primed for more Heartstopper:
“I can’t wait for it to come out –
hopefully we’ll be called back for
another instalment.” As teenage
dreams go, it doesn’t seem
particularly outlandish.
‘I asked Helena Bonham Carter
for a selfie on set’
Fola Evans-Akingbola
In the British version of the cross-
Channel hit Call My Agent, Fola
Evans-Akingbola has been plunged
into a cast swimming in national
treasures. When Helena Bonham
Carter came on set, the 27-year-old
“didn’t even attempt to play it cool,
I was so embarrassingly like: can
I take a selfie with you?!”

I
a film, then watching the finished She plays Zoe in the showbiz f you pay close enough little pre-roll interviews saying (What else was I going to do? I’d
ZOE MCCONNELL; JOSEPH SINCLAIR; TERI PENGILLEY; DERRICK KAKEMBO; MARK BELTRAN

product right beside them. That
person was Elton John, and that
film was Rocketman. “We were
sitting with him in Cannes and he
was getting emotional,” recalls
Connor from his Croydon family
home. John later made a beeline
for the teenager to give him a huge
hug. “I think it might have been the
best day of my life,” he grins.
Connor’s next project is destined
to make him a household name. He
plays Nick, a “popular rugby boy”
who falls in love with Charlie, a
boy in the year below at school, in
the new Netflix adaptation of Alice
Oseman’s beloved graphic novel,
Heartstopper. It’s a particularly
contemporary gay love story:
homophobia doesn’t enter the
equation. “It’s a very optimistic
portrayal,” explains Connor. “The
show is a ball of sunshine.”
Connor hadn’t read Heartstopper
before he got cast. Did he feel the
Making a splash
Adjani Salmon,
star of Doctor
Who and the
upcoming
Chivalry
satire, the equivalent of the
original’s Sofia, the talent agency
receptionist desperate to become
an actor. She struggled to capture
Zoe’s pushiness, but identified
strongly with her character’s
battle between ambition and
“crippling self-doubt.”
That self-doubt stems from
Evans-Akingbola deciding to
become an actor later in life. She
was a sports scholar at her school in
Dulwich, south-east London, and
did no performing arts. “People
from my school would be like:
‘What? Fola’s an actor?!’”
A stint at the Identity School
of Acting (other alumni include
John Boyega and Letitia Wright)
showed her a student body that
was far more racially diverse than
her school. “It was the first time
in a classroom with all sorts of
different skin tones,” says Evans-
Akingbola, whose father, Sola,
is a Nigerian-born percussionist
who plays with Jamiroquai.
“That awakened something.”
She consulted her uncle, the
actor Jimmy Akingbola (soon
to star as Geoffrey in the Fresh
Prince of Bel-Air reboot), who
urged her on. The milestones of
British acting both old and new
(“got to get Holby City on the CV!”)
quickly racked up.
She is still eager to pick up acting
tips, though. “It’s been so exciting
to watch these amazing actors do
their thing,” she says of her Call
My Agent castmates, who include
Dominic West and Phoebe Dynevor.
If the original’s success is anything
to go by, it won’t be long before
Evans-Akingbola joins their ranks.
Doctor Who: Eve of the Daleks is
on today, 7pm, BBC One
attention you will notice
that there are only three
types of dating show:
“laughs”, “influence”
and “genuinely wanting
romance”. The first category,
laughs, barely counts: participants
on these one-episode dating shows
are rarely in it for anything other
than a story, ironically enough to
use as a conversation starter on
subsequent, untelevised dates –
“An interesting fact about me? Oh,
uh: my episode of Dinner Date is
still available on ITV Hub for the
next 19 days”, “Ah, yeah? I got sent
home after the penis round on
Naked Attraction”. Second is the
blockbuster dating format, where
everyone entering a villa half-hopes
not for love but for a significant
uptick in Instagram followers and
the offer to open a shop in a local
mall for a head-spinning amount of
cash. These shows litter our screens
in the summer months – a Love
Island, an Ex on the Beach, a Ready
to Mingle. (Play the game right and
you can enter the Love Island villa
at the start of the summer and leave
the Celebs Go Dating villa at the end
of the following winter.)
Then you get what Channel 4
excels in: taking people who are 30
or almost 30 or a bit past 30, and all
emotionally damaged by something
in their romantic history, and
throwing them into a speculative
dating show that, if sociologists
enacted it in the 60s, we’d be talking
about now in the hushed tones we
use when we mention the Stanford
prison experiment. Anyway:
welcome to The Language of Love
(Channel 4, Tuesday, 10pm).
It is exactly as ridiculous as it
sounds: six lovelorn Brits do their
they’ve tried everything and they
just can’t find the missing piece,
all they want is love, and they’re
willing to travel to the Costa del Sol
to find it, and blah blah blah blah
blah. Then they get on a rickety
coach and exchange tentative
banter with each other (lads
blasting the question “OI, WHAT’S
YOUR TYPE?” at each other like
a football) as it winds up a hill.
Then Davina McCall pops out, the
pedigree presenter to end all other
presenters, and tells them: you’ve
all tried everything, you all failed
to find the missing piece, you all
want love and, guess what, today
you’re going to find it. But guess
what guess what: none of the sexy
singles we’re going to introduce
you to can speak English, and none
of you can speak Spanish. You have
to negotiate heavy petting with the
same staccato elan you use to order
an omelette at a Tenerife hotel.
Channel 4 more than any British
channel understands the need to
fill January, the most miserable
of months, with a captivatingly
absurd dating show. This is how
they got me hooked on Married
at First Sight: Australia last year.
Six lovelorn Brits
spend a fortnight
trying to forge
a horny lingua
franca … just
because Davina
McCall told them to
spent all my Christmas money and
I wasn’t drinking.) The Language
of Love seems similarly primed for
an audience of people who can’t
legally leave the house for whatever
reason. As a result, I’m already
resigned to watching it to the
bitter end. After the initial group
meetings between the Spanish boys
and the British girls, you think:
“How fun can this be, really? They
keep misunderstanding each other.
Nobody knows how to count. This
is stupid.” Then, a banquet-style
paella meal and some sangria jugs
later, and the electric crackle of
human chemistry is somehow
overriding the language barrier,
and you’re engrossed.
Kimey, a medical student,
is infatuated with Akonne,
a surprisingly sweethearted
Brummie MMA fighter. Tracy and
Thalia are squabbling over the same
hotel worker. The whole thing
seems to be filmed on the exact
same hardware they use for the
grainy interior shots of First Dates
Hotel, so you keep expecting Fred
to turn up. Instead, as Davina and
co-host Ricky Merino watch from
a distant balcony, you actually spy
something darker and more primal:
the inherent human impulse to try
to get off with someone even if you
can’t confidently tell them where
the library is. It doesn’t make sense
that this show is as good as it is, but
then it doesn’t make sense that any
human would spend a fortnight
trying to forge a horny lingua
franca just because Davina McCall
told them to, and yet here we are.
This is what your January looks
like. Staring into the abyss of the
human condition and seeing just
how deep it can go.
 WHAT’S ON Television

Monday

Pick of the day

Four Lives, Mon
four-part drama tells the story of
Anne Williams (Maxine Peake)
and her 23-year campaign for
the truth about the 97 victims
of the Hillsborough tragedy. It is
particularly hard to watch two
teenage mates excitedly head
off to support their team, and
Peake’s trembling performance
as she looks for them afterwards
will break your heart – but it is
sensitively done, and serves as a
fervent call to never back down in
the fight for justice. HR
Around the World in 80 Days
6.20pm, BBC One
Episode three of the stylish, lively
adaptation of Jules Verne’s classic
adventure novel sees Phileas Fogg
(David Tennant), Passepartout
(Ibrahim Koma) and Abigail
Pick of the week One minute Jamie Dornan is animatedly singing Fortescue (Leonie Benesch) stuck
on Yemen’s west coast and facing a
The Tourist along to Bette Davis Eyes while driving around, dangerous desert crossing. Lindsay
the next he is being violently knocked off the road Duncan guest stars and episode
Saturday, 9pm, four follows straight after. HR
BBC One by a truck driver on a mission. This is the tense
opening to a six-part thriller from The Missing The Great Pottery Throw Down
7.45pm, Channel 4
writers Harry and Jack Williams, set against a Mash Report presenter Ellie Taylor
fills in for the injured Siobhán
sparse yet claustrophobic Australian outback in McSweeney, as another dozen of
which we immediately feel lost. When Dornan’s the UK’s nicest people descend on
Stoke to palpate clay competitively.
character later wakes up in hospital, he has no idea Task one is to make crockery based
who he is or why he is there (although his eclectic on childhood memories, plus as
many milk bottles as can be thrown
taste in music remains intact). Cue a twisty-turny in 15 minutes. Jack Seale
retracing of his life, with plenty of cinematic
Call the Midwife
action and some licks of welcome comedy along 8pm, BBC One
the way. Hollie Richardson It’s Easter at Nonnatus House,
which should be a time for hopeful
new beginnings, though a case of
This Is Joan Collins Taskmaster’s New Year Treat dry rot unearths something more
New Year’s Day 9pm, BBC Two 9pm, Channel 4 sinister in the attic floorboards.
A sumptuous feature-length Six game celebrities join Greg Meanwhile, an expectant mother
documentary sharply narrated and Alex to provide New Year’s and her partner – who was exposed
Four Lives
9pm, BBC One
Following a very recent inquest
that found infuriatingly major
police failings in the case, this is a
three-part drama about the four
victims of rapist and murderer
Stephen Port. Sheridan Smith
plays Sarah Sak, who wrote a book
about the circumstances around
her son’s death, while Stephen
Merchant sheds his funny bone to
step into an uncomfortably sinister
role. Although bleak in subject,
the makers spoke with the families
of the victims to make sure their
stories are told correctly. HR
Food Unwrapped’s Healthy
New Year
7.30pm, Channel 4
At a time of year when many of us
are reassessing our diets, here’s a
special edition of the foodie science
format. The information buffet
includes Briony May Williams
investigating why gluten-free
products often come at a premium
price, Jimmy Doherty pondering
the health benefits of chia seeds,
and a look at raw dog food (for pets,
not humans). GV
Inside Dubai: Playground of
the Rich
9pm, BBC Two
“Dubai is somewhere that, y’know,
you can enjoy your wealth.” Meet
highly unrelatable Gaynor Scott,
who splits her time between
mansions in Dubai and Jersey.
Some will find this look at life in the
shoes of Scott and her fellow expats
in the Monaco of the Middle East
guiltily moreish. Others might well
be instantly repulsed. HR
Art on the BBC: The Great
Salvador Dalí
9pm, BBC Four
Art historian David Dibosa
explores the BBC archives to chart
television’s relationship with
artists from Monet to Turner.
IAN ROUTLEDGE/BBC/TWO BROTHERS PICTURES; ANNE BINCKEBANCK/CHANNEL4; SIMON RIDGWAY/SKY

Pick of the day
Harry Potter 20th Anniversary:
Return to Hogwarts
8pm, Sky Max
Ignoring the disappointment
of recent screen reunions, it’s
time to regather the Harry Potter
cast two decades after the first
film. Daniel Radcliffe, Emma
Watson and Rupert Grint are all
confirmed to join in, along with
Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham
Carter and Matthew Lewis. For
Pottheads everywhere, it will likely
be an emotional blast of magical
nostalgia (even for Slytherins). HR
Doctor Who
7pm, BBC One
Lock the doors and head upstairs,
because your nightmare is about to
unfold: being stuck in a time loop
with angry Daleks. Sarah (Aisling
Bea) hopes she’ll just have the one
regular customer at her storage unit
on New Year’s Eve – Nick (Adjani
Salmon). But then it all kicks off in
true Who style. Hannah Verdier
by the great dame herself, who
promises to show us “what it
feels like to get what you want”.
Watching archive from her seven-
decade career in showbiz, the
star of Dynasty is unfiltered as
she tells all – and that really does
mean every detail. HR
Anne, Sun
This Is Joan Collins,
New Year’s Day
Day comedy balm. Adrian Chiles,
Claudia Winkleman, Lady
Leshurr, Sayeeda Warsi and Jonnie
Peacock try their hands at vinegar
detection, ball decoration and
egg presentation. Effortlessly,
irresistibly funny. Phil Harrison
Mrs Brown’s Boys New Year’s
Special
10pm, BBC One
The second festive episode of this
raunchy domestic farce features a
wayward take on Shakespeare and
the usual demolition of the fourth
wall. There is also a surprise visit
from Grandad’s sketchy brother
Micky. Graeme Virtue
Sunday
Pick of the day
Anne
9pm, ITV
“I need to know why my son
died at a game of football.” This
to radiation during his national
service – cope with memories of
their first baby’s death. Henry Wong
Gogglebox Festive Special
9pm, Channel 4
A Very British Scandal, Walk the
Line and The Greatest Snowman
are just some of the festive telly bits
we hope our favourite armchair
critics will cast their eyes over in
this special. Then, of course, there’s
the Queen’s speech and whatever
else the government has thrown at
us over the last couple of weeks. HR
The Man Who Bought Cricket
9pm, Sky Documentaries
Until recently, this was English
cricket’s most shameful moment in
living memory. This documentary
recalls the English Cricket Board’s
ill-advised dalliance with Texan
fraudster Allen Stanford, who
convinced England to play a big-
money game against the West
Indies. It turned into a cautionary
tale about greed and credulity. PH
First up is surrealist Salvador
Dalí, who used the medium for
self-promotion and found favour
among producers. HW
The Cabins
9pm, ITV2
Series two of a dating show that did
well last year, perhaps because it
basically puts the would-be couples
in lockdown: they cohabit in log
cabins, with an epic 24 hours to
decide if they want to prolong the
courtship. The twist is that the
cabins are now adjacent, allowing
gossip with other couples. JS
Party Island: Summer in Zante
10pm, Channel 4
A fizzy hour of the antics of young
people in Zante? Sure, let’s do it on
this grim Monday night in January.
In the first of three episodes, Harry
and Connor arrive for a last-minute
lads holiday, while Tom and
Duncan – who run a bar famous
for its “dentist chair” – need the
island to get busy again. HR

Toast of Tinseltown, Tue
Tuesday
Pick of the day
Toast of Tinseltown
10pm, BBC Two
Stephen Toast is back, and he’s
angrier than ever. In fact, he’s
reached Peak Anger: cue a trip
to the retreat of Des Wigwam for
some kill-or-cure therapy. But the
anger management programme
has unexpected side effects – one
of which eventually explains
this show’s new title. With Ray
Purchase, Jane Plough and Clem
Fandango still in tow, it’s wonderful
to have Matt Berry’s grotesque
thesp back. PH
Digging for Britain
8pm, BBC Two
Alice Roberts once more uncovers
what lies beneath Britain. Tonight,
she’s in the east of England to see a
spectacular Roman mosaic, while
a Saxon burial in Kent reveals a
gnarly seventh-century death.
The team also learn about Anglo-
Saxon beer-making in Norfolk.
Continues tomorrow. HW
Sarah Beeny’s New Life in the
Country
8pm, Channel 4
Update: Beeny still has not finished
her massive house. She has moved
upstairs, though, and this week her
four sons, who have been closely
involved throughout the build, give
their opinions on what form their
bedrooms should take. Meanwhile,
that zipwire over the pond won’t
erect itself. JS
Future of Work
8.40pm, PBS America
This three-part documentary
examines how the pandemic
has helped to accelerate the use
of artificial intelligence in the
workplace. Spoiler: we are all
one software update away from
being out of a job and replaced
by robots. HR
Pen15
9pm, Sky Comedy
Cringes are guaranteed as Anna
Konkle and Maya Erskine return
to negotiate dial-up, braces
and a whole lot of bullying in
their superior comedy. But life
is changing fast for the girls. As
Maya’s attention is turning to
romance with high-school boys,
Anna’s adjusting to her parents’
divorce – and splitting her time
between two houses. HV
The Language of Love
10pm, Channel 4
Davina McCall and Ricky Merino
host this new series where a group
of daters can’t speak each other’s
language. Can they break past the
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022
obvious barrier? Nauseating this
might sound – but with most daters
being genuinely sweet, it’s actually
quite a charming, fun watch. HR
Wednesday
Pick of the day
Mandy
10pm, BBC Two
Following a festive special, Diane
Morgan brings hapless Mandy back
for a welcome second season – and
the job hunt continues. This time,
she tries her hand at being a tour
guide at Brompton Hall and ends
up accidentally serving nibbles at a
cult gathering. Michelle Greenidge
and Tom Basden also star in this
15-minute dose of silly (read:
secretly very clever) fun. HR
The Repair Shop
8pm, BBC One
Usually, Jay Blades and the team
carefully strip down heirlooms
before building them back better.
Tonight, a grandfather clock arrives
already in bits, requiring a lot of
TLC from horologist Steve Fletcher.
Other items getting a painstaking
glow-up include a kick-ass pair of
speedway boots and a kaput 1960s
electric organ. GV
Kirstie and Phil’s Love It Or List It
8pm, Channel 4
Tonight, a Lincoln couple are at
loggerheads over how best to
find more space for their growing
family. Luckily, property gods
Kirstie and Phil are on hand to try to
settle a five-year debate and advise
on whether Eric and Carly should
extend their bungalow or move. HR
Paul O’Grady: For the Love
of Dogs
8pm, ITV
In need of a pick me up on the
year’s first hump day? Paul O’Grady
and the staff of Battersea Dogs
and Cats Home are on hand to
give us plenty of furry faces to
coo at – including eight-year-old
Paul, a shi tzu with an extreme
case of bladder stones and needing
surgery, and a feisty chihuahua not
easily charmed by the host. HR
Inside the Factory
9pm, BBC Two
Gregg Wallace shows no signs of
dropping off our screens in 2022,
A Discovery of Witches, Fri
as Inside the Factory rumbles on.
Tonight, he and historian Ruth
Goodman dig deep into all things
malt loaf – the squidgy cake that
apparently Brits eat around 130m
times a year. HR
Britain’s Most Expensive Houses
9pm, Channel 4
Broker Lee is tasked with selling
off one of the jewels of Hampstead:
the £17.5m Huxley House, on The
Bishops Avenue (AKA “Billionaire’s
Row”). But the really romantic
draw tonight is a 100ft double-
decked houseboat, the Flamant
Rose, once owned by Edith Piaf; the
site of her liaisons with a French
professional boxer. Ali Catterall
Thursday
Pick of the day
Screw
9pm, Channel 4
Based on his own experience as
a prison volunteer, Killing Eve
writer Rob Williams delivers a juicy
comedy-drama to rival Bad Girls
(well, perhaps not quite). Ballsy
new screw Rose (Derry Girls star
Jamie-Lee O’Donnell) joins an
all-male block being firmly run
by enigmatic head officer Leigh
(Nina Sosanya). Rose claims to be
here because she is “really good
at shutting up dickheads” – but
will her first day change that? With
dark undertones bubbling away
throughout, the show leans more
into its drama side – but there are
still a few hard laughs to be had. HR
Dragons’ Den
8pm, BBC One
Quids game: veteran investors
Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones,
Touker Suleyman and Sara Davies
return for a new series of the
business-boosting show. After
the departure of vitamin tycoon
Tej Lalvani, they are joined on
their metaphorical piles of gold
by millionaire social media guru
Steven Bartlett: at 29, apparently
the youngest ever Dragon. GV
The Dog House
8pm, Channel 4
Because one dog show isn’t enough
to get us through to the end of the
week, here’s another offering of
matchmaking dogs and humans –
this time from the Animals Charity.
Screw, Thu
Tonight, Olivia the blind spaniel,
Vinnie the staffie and Cech the shy
terrier are all looking for a new
family and home. HR
The Apprentice
9pm, BBC One
Oh joy: yet another series indulging
some of the most inept bunch
of grifters outside the current
government. In tonight’s opener,
the Eye of Sauron demands they
pitch a campaign for a new cruise
liner. Whatever: the real fun is
second-guessing who’ll be the
next bloviating contrarian to fug
up future editions of Question
Time. AC
Andy Warhol’s America
9pm, BBC Two
This considered three-part series
looks at the way Andy Warhol’s
life and career intersect with the
history of the 20th-century United
States. In week one, talking-head
acquaintances explain the artist’s
love of – and determination to
become – a great American brand.
Interviewees range from intelligent
analysts of Warhol to a beaming
Jerry Hall, whose sole contribution
is: “Andy – so good!”Alexi Duggins
The Real Anne: Unfinished
Business
9pm, ITV
Following the hard-hitting
drama’s conclusion, this
documentary traces the true story
of Hillsborough campaigner Anne
Williams. Maxine Peake speaks
with survivors of the tragedy,
Williams’s daughter, and footballer
John Barnes who was on the pitch
that day. Previously unseen footage
of Williams and pivotal moments
in court also help colour in what
exactly happened. HR
Friday
Pick of the day
A Discovery of Witches
9pm, Sky Max
In the intense opener of the final
season of Deborah Harkness’s
fantasy trilogy, Matthew (Matthew
Goode) and Diana (Teresa Palmer)
return from the past to find that
Peter Knox (Owen Teale) has
attempted to steal a page from the
Book of Life and Aunt Em is dead.
The rest of the series will focus on
Diana attempting to reassemble
the Book of Life and crack open its
tantalising mysteries. HR
Monty Don’s Adriatic Gardens
8pm, BBC Two
New three-parter in which Mr
Don “looks for gardens where you
mightn’t expect to find them”,
starting with Venice, and its hidden
horticultural treasures – such as
a rejuvenated public garden with
a secret passageway leading to St
Mark’s Square. Next up: Croatia. AC
Would I Lie to You?
8.30pm, BBC One
Did John Cooper Clarke spend
three months sharing a flat with a
monkey? Was Judi Love dumped
after a lover found a list of pros and
cons she’d made about him? And
how has an exercise in trying to
spot celebrities’ lies managed to be
so consistently entertaining for 15
whole series? All will be answered
at the start of this latest run. AD
Death in Paradise
9pm, BBC One
As series 11 of this Caribbean crime
caper opens, it’s all distorted
voices on phones demanding
ransom money and a murdered
businessman whose killer has
considerately restrained the blood
spatter to the victim’s hands for a
family audience. DCI Neville Parker
(Ralf Little) is soon on the case to do
his thoughtful, occasionally comic
best – even if he is distracted by
writing a pub quiz for his boss. AD
8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
9pm, Channel 4
Jimmy Carr – the man no Channel 4
panel show can escape – returns
with the 22nd season of Cats.
Jon Richardson and Rob Beckett
take on Kiri Pritchard-McLean
and Roisin Conaty, while Huge
Davies is in Dictionary Corner with
wordy Susie Dent, and Rachel
Riley provides those all-important
numbers and letters. HR
The Graham Norton Show
10.35pm, BBC One
It’s the first Graham Norton of the
year, and he’s kicking things off
with another impressive lineup
of celebrity guests, including
Martin Freeman – who is starring
in upcoming BBC police drama
The Responder – and The Last Leg
comedian Josh Widdicombe. HR
 WHAT’S ON Streaming

Rebelde
Netflix, from Wednesday
Textbook telenovela cheese from
Netflix, which begins the year with
this trashy, soapy melodrama set in a
high school in Mexico – although it’s a
remake of an Argentinian show from
the early 00s. The story follows a new
group of students who are bonding,
hooking up and preparing for a Battle
of the Bands contest while contending
with various elaborate hazing rituals
from a shady group known as The
Lodge. No cliche goes unexploited
and no heartstring goes untugged
but it’s undemanding and potentially
addictive – especially at a time of year
when guiltily bingeing is all too easy
to fall into. PH

Pick of the week The third and final season of this charming French
The Hook Up Plan romcom stars Zita Hanrot as goofy but likable Elsa,
Netflix, available now with Sabrina Ouazani and Joséphine Draï as her
well-intentioned but interfering friends. As we left
the trio, the show decided to weave Covid-19 into
its plotline and the women were trying to maintain
their connection through lockdown despite a
romantic upset threatening their friendship. Will
we see a reconciliation and freedom? Expect a wider
focus on the nature of friendship, some new love
interests and a pregnancy test. Glossy and soapy but
nicely performed and the backdrops – alternating
Parisian glamour with bucolic rural France – are
seductively escapist. Phil Harrison

The Hype House The Defence

Netflix, from Friday All 4, from Friday

Banksy: Most Wanted
BritBox, available now
For the last couple of decades, it has
felt as if graffiti artist Banksy has
been simultaneously everywhere
and nowhere: a constant ambient
presence in British life, but also
an absence where detail should
be. Wisely, Aurélia Rouvier and
Eating With My Ex
BBC Three, from Sunday
There is something undeniably
odd about the idea of a former
couple deciding to go on television
to openly discuss the reasons
their relationship ended. But this
show has now reached season
four so it is clearly an itch people
El Deafo
Apple TV+, from Friday
Based on Cece Bell’s New York
Times bestseller and Newbery
Honour-winning graphic novel
memoir, here is a charming
three-part animation about a girl
who loses her hearing and finds
her inner superhero – El Deafo.
For anyone who is not on TikTok
(basically, if you are over the age
of 25) you’re going to first need
an education on what the Hype
House is: a gen Z collective of the
social media platform’s creators
established in 2019 and based in a
bizarre, collaborative LA mansion.
Netflix has now given the group the
documentary treatment, promising
to show the gory details of life as an
influencer and their relationships
with each other. Considering every
moment of their lives is already
shared with millions, is it even
possible to get any closer? If you
can bear it, tune in to find out. HR
A gritty Polish legal drama selected
by the Walter Presents arm, with
Magdalena Cielecka starring as
lawyer Joanna Chylka in the second
season. As we rejoin Chylka, the
nation is scandalised by the arrest
of the son of Piotr Langer Sr, a
successful businessman. Langer Jr
is the heir to a massive fortune
but also stands accused of a brutal
double murder. Chylka finds
herself defending the younger
man, which is unfortunate as his
dad has decided to publicly cut
ties. Chylka smells a rat but Langer
Jr seems oddly unwilling to try to
defend himself. PH
STEPHANIE BRANCHU; MAYRA ORTIZ

Seamus Haley’s documentary
largely steers clear of the endless
speculation about Banksy’s
actual identity and instead asks
what Banksy is, how Banksy
works and why anyone should
care. It’s probably the only
realistic approach to an artist who
continues to both loom large and
elude categorisation. PH
are wanting to scratch. This new
series begins with three former
couples: Flame and Alex, Jade
and Higor, and Jack and Indigo.
What will their televised therapy
sessions over meals reveal? Issues
discussed include text dumpings,
emotional inarticulacy and, of
course, the corrupting effects of
social media. PH
Conscious about wearing a hearing
aid on her chest at school, Cece
(voiced by newcomer Lexi Finigan)
quickly embraces her “super
powers” – such as being able to use
her aid to detect when the teacher
is on her way back from the loo (she
picks up the flush). Sweet, funny,
poignant and definitely not just
for kids. Hollie Richardson
 Audio
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

Catchup TV
Divorce, aristocratic style,
and a bunch of lovely bones
A Very British Scandal
Radio
George Michael: Older at 25
Sat, 9pm, Radio 2
It is a quarter of a century since
George Michael returned after six
years with his third solo album,
Older (pictured above) – arguably
his last coherent original work,
introducing a more authoritative,
considered pop artist than the
author of Faith. Melanie C narrates
a two-part retrospective on the
making of the album, featuring
contributions from producer
Jon Douglas and video director
Vaughan Arnell, along with
visiting the Hollingworths at celebrity fans including Russell T

BBC One/iPlayer
★★★★★
It’s surprising that no one has
brought this story to the screen
before now. But Sarah Phelps has
delivered: not an Agatha Christie
adaptation this time, but an
original drama about the notorious
case of Argyll v Argyll – the only
one any erstwhile law student
ever remembers (and I speak
from experience). This is thanks
to the fact that it was a vicious
divorce case between the Duke
and Duchess of Argyll involving
multiple allegations of infidelity,
one of which was attested to by a
photo of the duchess fellating a
man whose face was not visible in
the picture but who was not her
husband. The duke had various
measurements taken so this
could be proved in court. The
duchess was identified by her pearl
necklace. No, really. The Argyll
case (or the “Headless Man affair”
as it was also known, thanks to
the photo that quickly became
infamous) of course provoked
a media storm. Here, Claire Foy
(pictured above) is masterful as the
duchess, and the whole thing is
lean, mean and utterly magnificent.
Lucy Mangan
Attenborough and the
Mammoth Graveyard
BBC One/iPlayer
★★★★☆
After decades of fossil hunting
in their spare time (they cut
their wedding cake with a
Neanderthal handaxe they
unearthed together), Sally and
Neville Hollingworth made the
NICK WALL; CHEYENNE EWULU
their neat suburban home. Every
wall is lined with immaculately
presented fossils they have found.
The mammoth bones are on the
kitchen table. Attenborough floats
through in a trance of delight. “It’s
a great thrill, isn’t it?” the world’s
most revered naturalist murmurs
reverently, as he lays hands on
a giant ice age humerus. “The
whole of this business.” What a
stroke of genius it is to put such
a documentary on at Christmas.
It is the closest we spiritually
impoverished lot will come to
religious awe, but I wouldn’t trade
it. A great thrill indeed. LM
Around the World in 80 Days
BBC One/iPlayer
★★★★☆
Given the past two years, the
prospect of watching adventurers
gallivant all over the planet, on
a whim, seems almost too cruel
to contemplate. Those global
circumnavigators didn’t know
how good they had it in 1872! After
hearing of a new railway while
dining at his private members’
club, Phileas Fogg (David Tennant,
with moustache) accepts a bet that
he can be the first man to travel
around the globe in 80 days. Off
he goes to get into all manner
of historical scrapes. Tennant
promised a “romp” from this
updated version of Jules Verne’s
novel, and it certainly is lively.
This is big television in the vein
of His Dark Materials. It shows off
its many locations, and a second
season has been confirmed before
the first has even aired. Clearly,
there is great confidence in it. It is
justified, largely (though it does
Podcasts
Davies, Mutya Buena, James Blunt
and Holly Johnson. Jack Seale
Pick of the week The Cultural Frontline: Black
Speculative Arts
Reclaimed & Rewritten Sat, 10.30pm, World Service
The Black Speculative Arts
Widely available, episodes weekly movement is wide-ranging,
A century after the Tulsa massacre, gal-dem shines a covering genres such as sci-fi,
fantasy and horror but always
spotlight on the atrocity that destroyed the thriving centred in Black culture.
Black community of Greenwood. Host Clarkisha Historically, it’s been overlooked,
but lately the movement has
Kent (pictured above) has many a sharp intake of thrived, with films such as Black
Panther leading the charge. Author
breath as she hears about how the district known Sheree Renée Thomas does an
as Black Wall Street wasn’t the utopian community illuminating re-evaluation of the
practice, from Star Trek’s Black
it was meant to be. As the six-part podcast unfolds, characters to contemporary artists
it doesn’t hold back with uneasy truths – but it is such as rapper Megan Thee Stallion.
Henry Wong
about time they were told. Hannah Verdier
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
The Famous Sloping Pitch Mon to Fri, 9.45am, Radio 4
Widely available, episodes weekly In 1972, BBC Two broadcast the
Is football getting “a little bit groundbreaking series Ways of
more shit”? Nick Hancock and Seeing, in which John Berger
Chris England think so, hence this examined the way we perceive art:
banter-packed podcast which offers everything from the female nude
a comic – and considered – take on and the male gaze to advertising,
the week’s news in the beautiful art and commerce. To mark its
game. Its interviews with celebrity 50th anniversary, five writers
football fans are also impressively explore an image that has profound
starry. Think Gary Lineker, Adrian thoughtful, smart exploration of significance or fascination for
Chiles and Jo Brand. Alexi Duggins sex work which bubbled over with them, beginning with author
a vivacious hilarity. In season two, Geoff Dyer’s beautiful meditation
We Stay Looking nothing seems to have changed, on a wartime image from Robert
Widely available, all episodes opening with a funny and very frank Capa (“I will never love another
available now interview with Skins actor Megan photograph more”). Ali Catterall
Insecure’s spin-off podcast Prescott (pictured above), who
Looking for LaToya spoofed true followed up her TV role by trying her The Coming Storm
crime to the max and now its hand at stripping. AD Tue, 11am, Radio 4
star investigative reporter Rose A spellbinding, albeit alarming new
Cranberry is back with more You’re Not My Mum series in which Gabriel Gatehouse
cases. With her quota of six Black BBC Sounds, episodes weekly traces the origins of our fake news-
stories per year, Cranberry had Stepmums have long had a bad rep addled era. His routes to QAnon,
better work fast to solve those – just ask Cinderella and Sleeping the Capitol insurrection and the

discovery of a lifetime at the
bottom of a quarry in Cerney
Wick. It was a collection of
mammoth bones of a size,
state and number more usually
found in Siberia than Swindon.
Attenborough and the Mammoth
Graveyard opens with Sir David
suffer from a touch of first-episode
syndrome, taking its time to build
its world). But as an eight-part
series, it has plenty of time left
to unfurl and reveal its charms.
I am looking forward to seeing
where it goes next, in every sense.
Rebecca Nicholson
mysteries, exposing the media and
justice system’s inbuilt racism as
she goes. HV
Strippers in the Attic
Widely available, episodes weekly
In series one, this podcast hosted
by two strip club workers was a
Beauty. But while it’s true that
navigating stepfamily life isn’t
always a fairytale, the joys of it
need to be celebrated, too. In this
candid new series, Katie Harrison
reassuringly talks from a place of
experience, while also speaking
with experts. Hollie Richardson
general bewilderment of 2021 are
disorientating but convincing
– from the witch hysteria of the
15th century to the death of Bill
Clinton aide Vince Foster in 1993.
With grim inevitability, the ever-
charmless Rees-Mogg family are
involved, too. Phil Harrison

Pick of the week
Youngof
Name Adult
programme
Friday,channel
11.25pm,
Time,
BBC One
The Sound of Music
Saturday, 2.20pm, BBC One
Sneaking into the festive schedule
in time for the dregs of the mulled
wine, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s
nun-on-the-run musical makes its
welcome, perennial appearance.
Julie Andrews, coming off the back
of Mary Poppins, is a natural as
Maria, the novice governess whose
real calling is turning the seven
Von Trapp children into a happy
family of choristers. Christopher
Plummer has more gravitas than
charm as the stern father, and the
looming Nazi peril is at a family-
friendly level, but the songs are
the clincher – Edelweiss still wrings
out a quiet tear. SW
WHAT’S ON Film
Starred Up
Monday, 11.15pm, Film4
The title refers to the procedure
where a juvenile offender is moved
to an adult prison. Jack O’Connell’s
cocky Eric has that dubious honour
due to his violent behaviour,
but his new home also contains
his dad (Ben Mendelsohn) who
is a lifer. O’Connell is a livewire
presence here, holding his own
against Mendelsohn’s hardman
act. David Mackenzie’s edgy drama
reveals the powder keg that a
prison run on rules both legal and
illegal can be, fuelled by a fractious
father-son relationship. SW
Charlize Theron’s underused talent for comedy is A Quiet Place Part II
seen to full effect in Jason Reitman’s cutting 2011
film. Her YA author, Mavis, returns to her childhood Friday, 12.40pm, 8pm, Sky
Cinema Premiere
Minnesota town with the half-baked notion of Here’s more of the same horror
seducing ex-teenage sweetheart Buddy (Patrick from director John Krasinski and
star Emily Blunt – but the first
Wilson) away from his wife and baby. Reluctantly film’s triumph of nerve-tingling
abetted by ex-schoolmate Matt (a touching Patton tension is worth repeating. After
a flashback to the origins of the
Oswalt), she puts her plan into action by playing alien invasion, we take up with
Blunt’s newly widowed Evelyn
her old college rock mixtapes, drinking too much and her children, Regan (Millicent
and acting like the “psychobitch prom queen” Simmonds), Marcus (Noah Jupe)
and that crying baby. Cillian
she once was. Grass-is-greener delusions and the Murphy’s lone wolf Emmett mixes
debilitating effect of youthful trauma reverberate up the family dynamic a bit, but
silence is still golden – and deaf
as Theron storms through suburbia, a magnificent Regan the key to survival – as the
car crash of a character. Simon Wardell group discover signs of human life
amid the sound-sensitive ETs. SW
The Peanut Butter
Falcon
Monday, 10pm, BBC Two
Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz’s
2019 film is an engaging adventure
with more than a touch of the
Huckleberry Finns about it. But
the most impressive thing about
it is the agency it gives its co-lead
Cast Away character, would-be wrestler Zak The Trial
(Zack Gottsagen), who has Down’s
syndrome. Stuck in an old people’s
Sunday, 6.05pm, Channel 5 home because there’s nowhere else Friday, 10.50pm, Talking
There are few actors who could to put him, Zak makes his escape Pictures TV
carry an entire film by themselves and hooks up with Shia LeBeouf’s A convincing adaptation by Orson
– and then make you want more of dodgy fisherman, Tyler. Yes, their Welles of Franz Kafka’s novel,
them – but Tom Hanks is that guy river trip together is a learning about an office worker accused
in Robert Zemeckis’s 2000 drama. experience for Tyler but it is equally of an unnamed offence who
His FedEx executive, Chuck, is so for Zak, who grabs his newly won becomes lost in a nightmare of
stranded on a desert island in the independence with both hands. SW bureaucracy as he tries to clear his
remote Pacific Ocean after his name. Anthony Perkins brings the
cargo plane crashes, with only a nervous energy of Norman Bates to
volleyball for company (which he the role of Josef K, and Welles uses
names Wilson and personalises his usual limited budget to great
with a bloody handprint for a effect (not least by dubbing most
face). Chuck’s initial mishaps and of the actors himself), throwing
despair give way to practicality Perkins into a disconcerting world
and acceptance – the seven stages of pan-European architecture and
of grief, in effect – all orchestrated people – Jeanne Moreau and Romy
deftly by Zemeckis. SW Schneider among them. SW
Sport
Premier League Football
Arsenal v Manchester City
Sat, 11.30am, BT Sport 1
The first top-flight match of 2022
from the Emirates Stadium.
Premiership Rugby Union
Sale Sharks v Wasps
Sat, 1.30pm, BT Sport 2
Followed by Exeter Chiefs v
Bristol Bears at 4.15pm.
World Cup Ski Jumping
Sat, 1.40pm, Eurosport 1
The Four Hills competition from
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
International Test Cricket
New Zealand v Bangladesh
Sat, 9.30pm, BT Sport 3
Day two of the first Test in the two-
match series at Bay Oval.
Premiership Rugby Union
Gloucester v Harlequins
Sun, 2pm, BT Sport 2
Coverage of the league match from
Kingsholm Stadium.
Premier League Football
Chelsea v Liverpool
Sun, 4pm, Sky Sports Main Event
Mason Mount (pictured) and
co host another title contender.
Brentford v Arsenal is at 2pm.
Premier League Football
Manchester United v Wolves
Mon, 5pm, Sky Sports Main Event
From Old Trafford.
International Test Cricket
Australia v England
Tue, 10.30pm, BT Sport 1
The first day of the fourth Test at
PHILLIP V CARUSO/ALLSTAR
Sydney Cricket Ground.
FA Cup Football
Swindon Town v Man City
Fri, 7.30pm, ITV
Third-round tie at the Energy
Check County Ground.
 New Year’s Day
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

Sister Act,
Channel 5

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 10.0 Saturday
Kitchen (T) 11.30 Nigellissima
(T) (R) 12.0 Football
Focus (T) 12.30 Football
Focus Special: Euro 2020
Review (T) 1.0 News (T)
1.10 Weather (T) 1.15 The
Archbishop of Canterbury’s
New Year Message (T) 1.20
Attenborough and the
Mammoth Graveyard (T)
(R) 2.20 The Sound of
Music (Robert Wise, 1965)
(T) 5.10 News (T) 5.20
Regional News and Weather
(T) 5.30 The Hit List Celebrity
Specials (T) 6.15 The Weakest
Link (T) 7.0 Doctor Who (T)
6.25 The Dengineers (R) 6.55
All Over the Place: UK
(R) 7.25 Blue Peter (R)
7.55 Strange Magic
(2015) 9.25 Malory Towers
(R) 10.15 New Year’s Day
Concert Live from Vienna
2022 12.40 She Wore
a Yellow Ribbon (1949) 2.25
Wild West: America’s Great
Frontier (R) 3.25 Inside the
Factory XL (R) 4.25 Sign
Zone: The Archbishop of
Canterbury’s New Year
Message (R) 4.30 Final
Score 5.15 Flog It! (R) 6.0
Porridge (1979) 7.30 My
Comedy Hero: Ronnie Barker
6.0 CITV 9.25 James Martin’s
Saturday Morning (T) 11.40
John and Lisa’s Weekend
Kitchen (T) 12.40 News and
Weather (T) 12.55 ITV Racing:
Live from Cheltenham (T)
3.30 Tipping Point: Lucky
Stars (T) (R) 4.30 The Chase
Celebrity Special (T) (R) 5.35
News and Weather (T) 6.0
Celebrity Catchphrase (T) 7.0
The Masked Singer (T)
6.15 The King of Queens (T)
(R) 7.05 Everybody Loves
Raymond (T) (R) 7.55 The
Simpsons (T) (R) 8.50
A Dog’s Purpose
(Lasse Hallström, 2017) (T)
10.50 Terry Pratchett’s The
Abominable Snow Baby
(T) (R) 11.25 Puss in
Boots (Chris Miller, 2011)
(T) 1.05 Ferdinand
(Carlos Saldanha, 2017) (T)
3.10 Ice Age: Collision
Course (2016) (T) 5.0 News
(T) 5.10 Indiana Jones
and the Last Crusade (Steven
Spielberg, 1989) (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 10.0 SpongeBob
SquarePants (T) (R) 10.25
Entertainment News (T)
10.30 Friends (T) (R) 12.45
The Proposal (Anne
Fletcher, 2009) (T) 2.55
Sister Act (Emile
Ardolino, 1992) (T) 5.0
Sister Act 2: Back in the
Habit (Bill Duke, 1993) (T)
7.0 New Year’s Day Concert from
Vienna 2022 (T) Highlights
of the traditional concert
from the Musikverein in
Vienna, featuring the Vienna
Philharmonic conducted by
Daniel Barenboim.

8.0 Michael McIntyre’s The
Wheel (T) With Matt Baker,
Gyles Brandreth, Maggie
Aderin-Pocock and HRVY.
9.0 The Tourist (T) New series.
Drama, starring Jamie
Dornan as a car crash survivor
with no memory, who is
pursued across the Australian
outback by enemies from a
past he does not know.
8.30 The Perfect Morecambe &
Wise (T) (R) Compilation
featuring classic sketches
and routines, with guests
John Thaw, Vanessa
Redgrave and Des O’Connor.
9.0 This Is Joan Collins (T)
The veteran British actor
reflects on her life and
career, sharing footage
from her home archive.
8.30 Downton Abbey
(Michael Engler, 2019)
(T) In 1927, Buckingham
Palace informs the Earl and
Countess of Grantham that
George V and Queen Mary
will visit Downton Abbey.
Big-screen version of the TV
period drama series, starring
Hugh Bonneville, Michelle
Dockery and Maggie Smith.
7.40 The Great New Year Bake
Off (T) Paul, Prue, Matt
and Noel are joined by four
contestants from the 2018
and 2020 series.
9.0 Taskmaster’s New Year Treat
(T) Festive special of the
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Chiles, Claudia Winkleman,
Jonnie Peacock, Lady Leshurr
and Sayeeda Warsi.
7.0 World’s Strongest Man
2021 (T) James Richardson
and Eddie Hall present
action from the final held in
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8.30 UFOs: The Proof Is Out
There! (T) The work of
a secret US government
department investigating
sightings of unidentified
aerial phenomena.
9.0 Ultimate Number Ones (T)
(R) A selection of chart-
topping hits from the BBC
archives, originally shown
in 2012 to mark the 60th
anniversary of the UK singles
chart. Featuring tracks from
the Bee Gees, T-Rex, Donna
Summer, John Lennon,
Culture Club, Spice Girls,
Rihanna and Adele.

10.0 Mrs Brown’s Boys New Year’s
Special (T) Grandad’s ex-con
brother Micky turns up.
10.30 News (T) Weather
10.45 Match of the Day (T) Includes
Arsenal v Man City.
11.45 The NFL Show (T)
12.15 Man Up (Ben Palmer,
2015) (T) Romantic comedy.
1.40 Weather for the Week
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10.40 Joan Collins: Talking
Pictures (T) (R) Archive
interviews with the actor.
11.10 My Generation (David
Batty, 2017) (T) Michael
Caine’s personal journey
through 1960s London.
12.30 TOTP2: The 60s (R) 1.0
A Town Like Alice (Jack
Lee, 1956) Second world war
drama. 2.55 This Is BBC Two
10.45 News (T) Weather
11.0 Billy Connolly: My Absolute
Pleasure (T) (R) The
comedian shares a selection
of his best-loved standup
routines, some of which have
never before been on TV.
12.15 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Joanna Lumley’s
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4.05 Unwind With ITV
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2021 (T) (R) With James
Acaster, Guz Khan and Sara
Pascoe. Jimmy Carr hosts.
11.55 Back to the Noughties
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A look back on a decade of
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1.40 Come Dine With Me (T) (R)
3.55 Hollyoaks Omnibus (T)
(R) 5.35 Countdown (T) (R)
10.0 The Green Mile
(Frank Darabont, 1999) (T)
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Tom Hanks and Michael
Clarke Duncan.
1.20 The Live Casino Show (T)
3.10 Witches: A Century of
Murder (T) (R) 4.45 Wildlife
SOS (T) (R) 5.10 House
Doctor (T) (R) 5.35 Peppa Pig
(T) (R) 5.50 Paw Patrol (T) (R)
10.0 Inspector Montalbano (R)
Italian detective drama,
starring Luca Zingaretti.
11.50 Timeshift: Jet Set (T) (R) A
look back at the glamorous
heyday of the jet set.
12.30 How Auld Lang Syne Took
Over the World (T) (R) 1.30
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(R) 2.15 Ultimate Number
Ones (T) (R)

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Roads 10.50 Richard 5.45 The Devil Skyfall (2012) to Hogwarts 10.0 6.0am Gilbert and New Year’s Day Concert Under the Influence fictional villain. (R) 9.0 My Years of Awe and
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12.50 Richard Osman’s Naked Attraction 12.10 American Dad! 1.15 Don’t Who of the Wizarding George Ezra: Live at conducted by Daniel Shipping Forecast 12.04 comedy about a prime North 1.45 Christmas
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Richard Osman’s House First Dates: The Proposal Stirling’s CelebAbility Hogwarts Tournament of André Rieu: Love in by the Strauss family and money from unwanted every time he lies, a part 2.0 The Penny Dreadfuls
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Man: 48 Hours in Miami 11.0am Wonder 8.55am Kirstie’s House of Houses 5.0 Rob & 3.0 Kipps: The New set in the future, plus an 1.10 Correspondents’ a mug of warm spiced Miss Marple: A Pocket
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Tube Shorts 6.10 6.0am Totally Bonkers Castle 8.0 The Great Artist of the Year Canada Rattle. 10.15 New Music 6.15 Loose Ends. Clive Sisters compose a 1.45 Christmas With
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Little (1999) 12.50 You’ve Been Framed! Ted 12.15 Father Ted Suzie 3.0 Chernobyl 9.0 6.07 Open Country (R) Paris and Cherise. 7.0 As World Service 5.33 Museum of Everything
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Week Ahead (T) 1.15 Songs
of Praise (T) 1.50 Escape
to the Country (T) (R) 2.40
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Tube Shorts 8.10 The Bed 4.15 Four in a Bed Here 5.0 Highway Cops Barry White Story: Let Petersburg. 7.30 Drama of Our Own: Solva, Shipping Forecast 5.43 11.0 Edge Falls (1/5)
Great New Year Bake ITV2 4.50 Four in a Bed 5.20 5.30 Highway Cops the Music Play 2.30 Sky on 3: The Mother. Mark Pembrokeshire (R) 3.0 Prayer for the Day 5.45 11.30 The Museum of
Off 9.25 The Big Bang 6.0am Totally Bonkers Come Dine With Me 5.50 Arts Book Club 3.30 Rock Ravenhill’s adaptation The Ambridge Mystery Farming Today 5.58 Everything (3/6) 12.0
Theory 9.55 The Big Guinness World Come Dine With Me 6.25 and Roll 5.0 Lily Cole’s of Bertolt Brecht’s play, Plays: The Passion (2/2) Tweet of the Day (R) Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Bang Theory 10.25 Records 6.25 Celebrity Come Dine With Me 6.55 Art Matters starring Maxine Peake. 4.0 Bookclub. Abir 12.40 The Lottery
The Big Bang Theory Supermarket Sweep 7.20 Come Dine With Me 7.30 (R) 9.30 Record Review Mukherjee talks about Radio 4 Extra 12.50 Absent Friends:
10.55 The Big Bang In for a Penny 8.0 In for Come Dine With Me 8.0 Sky Atlantic Extra 11.30 Slow Radio: A Rising Man. 4.30 6.0am Letters from The 7th Dimension 1.0
Theory 11.25 The Big a Penny 8.30 You’ve 24 Hours in A&E: Heart 6.0am Richard E Grant’s A Sonic Journey Across Fummsbowo (or What Tove Omnibus (1-5) The Valley at the Centre
Bang Theory 11.55 The Been Framed! Gold 10.0 Special 9.0 999: On the Hotel Secrets 9.0 Game the Universe 12.0 Is the Word). Jennifer 7.10 Inheritance Tracks of the World Omnibus:
Big Bang Theory 12.25 The Masked Singer 11.35 Front Line 10.0 24 Hours of Thrones 3.0 Little Classical Fix (R) 12.30 Walshe leads a discussion 7.20 D for Dexter Part One (1-5/10)
The Big Bang Theory Celebrity Catchphrase in A&E 11.05 Emergency Birds 9.0 Game of Through the Night of Kurt Schwitters’ Omnibus 8.30 Play 2.10 Inheritance Tracks
12.55 The Big Bang 12.40 Ice Age 2: Helicopter Medics Thrones 10.30 Game of sound poem Ursonate. It Cool (1/6) 9.0 The 2.20 Young Victoria
Theory 1.25 The Big The Meltdown (2006) 12.05 999: On the Front Thrones: The Last Watch Radio 4 5.0 Jeremy Irons Reads Clitheroe Kid (9/6) 9.30 Omnibus: Part Two
Bang Theory 1.50 The 2.25 Back to the Line 1.10 24 Hours in 12.30 Olive Kitteridge 6.0am News Headlines TS Eliot. With Martha Reluctant Persuaders (6-10/10) 3.30 Natural
Big Bang Theory 2.20 Future Part II (1989) A&E 2.15 Emergency Bridesmaids, 2.55 Dexter: New 6.05 Something Kearney and Fiona Shaw. (2/6) 10.0 Desert Island Histories (24/25) 4.0
The Big Bang Theory 4.40 Despicable Helicopter Medics Blood 4.0 Storm City Understood (R) 6.35 (R) 5.40 Profile (R) Discs Revisited 10.45 Isaac Newton 5.0 Poetry
2.50 Sonic the Me 2 (2013) 6.35 3.20 Father Ted ITV2 5.0 Storm City Natural Histories (R) 5.54 Shipping Forecast The Curious Cases of Extra 5.30 HR (3/6)
 Monday
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

Four Lives,
BBC One

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 9.0 The
Railway Children (1970) (T)
10.45 The Moment of Proof
(T) 11.15 Homes Under the
Hammer (T) (R) 12.15 Bargain
Hunt (T) 1.0 News (T) 1.15
Regional News and Weather
(T) (T) 1.25 Father Brown (T)
2.15 The Repair Shop (T) (R)
3.0 I Escaped to the Country
(T) 3.45 The Farmers’
Country Showdown (T) 4.30
Antiques Road Trip (T) 5.15
Pointless (T) 6.0 News (T)
6.20 Regional News (T) 6.30
Attenborough’s Wonder
of Song 7.30 Still Open All
Hours (T) (R)
6.35 Bargain Hunt (T) (R) 8.05
Sign Zone: Inside the Factory
XL – Diggers (T) (R) 9.05
The Wonder of Animals (T)
(R) 9.35 Odette (1950)
(T) 11.30 The Wooden
Horse (Jack Lee, 1950) (T)
1.10 War Stories: Talking
Pictures (T) (R) 1.55 The
Train (John Frankenheimer,
1964) (T) 4.05 
Operation Crossbow (Michael
Anderson, 1965) (T) 6.0
Richard Osman’s House of
Games (T) (R) 6.30 Rick
Stein’s Cornwall (T) 7.0 Tom
Kerridge’s Fresh Start (T) (R)
7.30 Mastermind (T)
6.0 CITV 9.25 Britain’s Favourite
Walks: Top 100 (T) (R) 11.55
Antz (Eric Darnell,
Lawrence Guterman, 1998)
(T) 1.25 News (T) 1.30 Local
News (T) 1.40 The Chase:
The Bloopers (T) (R) 2.40
Dickinson’s Real Deal (T)
(R) 3.40 Lingo (T) 4.40
Tipping Point (T) (R) 5.45
The Chase (T) (R) 6.35
News (T) 6.50 Local News
(T) 7.0 Emmerdale (T) 7.30
Coronation Street (T)
6.05 Countdown (T) (R) 6.45
Cheers (T) (R) 7.40
Everybody Loves Raymond
(T) (R) 9.05 Frasier (T) (R)
10.30 Ramsay’s Kitchen
Nightmares USA (T) (R) 11.30
Sun, Sea and Selling Houses
(T) (R) 12.30 Steph’s Packed
Lunch (T) 2.10 Countdown
(T) 3.0 A Place in the Sun
(T) 4.0 A New Life in the
Sun (T) 5.0 Four in a Bed (T)
6.0 The Simpsons (T) (R)
6.30 Hollyoaks (T) (R) 7.0
News (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy
Vine (T) 11.15 Friends (T)
(R) 11.40 Night at
the Museum (Shawn Levy,
2006) (T) 2.0 Home and
Away (T) (R) 2.30 Neighbours
(T) 3.0 Hook (Steven
Spielberg, 1991) (T) 5.50
News (T) 6.0 Neighbours
(T) (R) 6.30 Winter Road
Rescue (T) 7.0 Motorway
Cops: Catching Britain’s
Speeders (T) (R) 7.0 Great British Railway
Journeys (T) (R) Oxford to
Abingdon. 7.30 Winter Walks
(T) (R) Selina Scott enjoys a
walk around Wharfedale in
the Yorkshire Dales.

8.0 EastEnders (T) Tensions are
high at the Trueman-Foxes.
8.30 My Family (T) (R) Susan finds
an expensive watch.
9.0 Four Lives (T) Fact-based
three-part drama telling the
story of killer Stephen Port
from the point of view of his
victims and their families.
Starring Stephen Merchant
and Sheridan Smith.
8.0 Only Connect (T) The first
of the semi-finals.
8.30 University Challenge (T)
Two teams vie for the last
place in the quarter-finals.
9.0 Inside Dubai: Playground
of the Rich (T) New series. A
look at what life is like for the
millionaires and billionaires
who live in the tax haven in
the United Arab Emirates.
8.0 Coronation Street: Soapy
Slip-Ups (T) Outtakes from
the programme’s archives.
8.30 Coronation Street (T) Emma
and Faye make a pact to keep
their accident a secret.
9.0 Anne (T) Disgusted with the
verdict of accidental death,
Anne is determined to find
out what really happened to
her son at Hillsborough.
7.30 Food Unwrapped’s Healthy
New Year (T) Special episode
offering advice on improving
health through food,
including how chia seeds
could help with overeating.
9.0 24 Hours in Police Custody:
Cold to the Touch (T) A major
crime unit investigate the
death of an 11-week-old
baby. Concludes tomorrow.
8.0 Traffic Cops (T) PC Craig
Dawes attends a fatal
collision involving a
motorcycle and car.
Includes news update.
9.0 Warship: Life at Sea (T)
Return of the documentary
following the ups and downs
of everyday life for a Navy
crew, this time aboard frigate
HMS Northumberland.
8.0 Fake Or Fortune? (T) (R) Art
experts come to the aid of a
man who has inherited three
paintings and needs to prove
they are by LS Lowry.
9.0 Art on the BBC: The Great
Salvador Dalí (T) Art
historian David Dibosa
explores the BBC archives to
create a television history of
of the Spanish artist.

10.0 News (T)
10.25 Regional News (T) Weather
10.35 Have I Got 2021 News for
You (T) (R) Satirical quiz.
11.20 Mrs Brown’s Boys New Year’s
Special (T) (R) Sitcom.
11.50 The Graham Norton Show
(T) (R) With Jessica Chastain,
Michael Sheen and Claire Foy.
12.55 Weather for the Week Ahead
(T) 1.0 News (T)
10.0 The Peanut Butter
Falcon (Michael Schwartz,
Tyler Nilson, 2019) (T) (R)
Adventure, starring Shia
LaBeouf and Zack Gottsagen.
11.30 Frankie Boyle’s New World
Order Unseen (T) (R)
12.05 Sign Zone Countryfile (T)
(R) 1.0 Zara McDermott:
Uncovering Rape Culture (T)
(R) 2.0 This Is BBC Two (T)
10.10 News (T) Weather
10.24 Local News (T) Weather
10.25 The Chasers Road
Trip: Trains, Brains and
Automobiles (T) (R)
11.20 All Elite Wrestling:
Dynamite (T) (R)
1.05 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Anne (T) (R)
4.15 Unwind With ITV 5.05
Tipping Point (T) (R)
10.0 Party Island: Summer in
Zante (T) Documentary.
11.05 Naked Attraction (T) (R)
12.05 Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 1.0 24 Hours in A&E
(T) (R) 1.45 Couples Come
Dine With Me (T) (R) 2.40
Undercover Boss USA (T) (R)
3.40 Handmade: Britain’s
Best Woodworker (T) (R)
4.25 Mend It for Money (R)
10.0 Casualty 24/7: Every Second
Counts (T) (R)
11.05 Police Code Zero: Officer
Under Attack (T) (R)
12.05 999: Criminals Caught on
Camera (T) (R) 1.0 Live NFL:
Pittsburgh v Cleveland
(T) 4.30 Britain’s Greatest
Bridges (T) (R) 4.45 Wildlife
SOS (T) (R) 5.10 Nick’s Quest
(T) (R) 5.35 House Doctor (R)
10.0 How to Be a Surrealist With
Philippa Perry (T) (R) The
psychotherapist examines
the roots of surrealism.
11.0 Life of a Mountain: A Year on
Helvellyn (T) (R)
12.30 Winter Walks (T) (R) 1.0
Great British Railway
Journeys (T) (R) 1.30 The
Great Salvador Dalí (T) (R)
2.30 Fake Or Fortune? (T) (R)

Other channels Radio

Dave Celebrity Coach Trip 9.0 Me 3 (2017) 6.40 Moments 1.0 Golf’s Treasures of the British Radio 3 population change. (1/5) 10.0 The World Tonight Morton: Travelling Into
6.0am Teleshopping Celebrity Gogglebox Pitch Perfect 2 Funniest Moments 2.0 Library 12.0 I, Claude 6.30am Breakfast 9.0 9.45 (LW) Daily Service 10.45 Book at Bedtime: the Light 3.0 A Room
7.10 Sin City Motors 8.0 10.0 Naked Attraction (2015) 9.0 The Cabins The Amazing Monet 1.0 Tales of the Essential Classics 12.0 9.45 (FM) Book of the Subterranean Homesick With a View (1/4) 4.0
World’s Most Dangerous 11.05 Gogglebox 10.0 Family Guy 10.30 Mr Blunden (2021) Unexpected 1.30 Tales Composer of the Week: Week: Viewfinders – Blues (R) 11.0 Butch (R) Jest a Minute (1/6)
Roads 9.0 World’s Most 12.05 Celebrity First Family Guy 11.0 Family 4.0 Rugby’s Funniest of the Unexpected 2.0 Errollyn Wallen (1/5) Ways of Seeing at 50 11.30 Fummsbowo (or 4.30 Getting Nowhere
Dangerous Roads 10.0 Dates 1.10 Below Deck: Guy 11.30 American Moments 5.0 Sport’s Discovering: Claudia 1.0 Lunchtime Concert. Geoff Dyer on an image What Is the Word) (R) Fast (4/4) 5.0 Reluctant
Red Bull Soapbox Race Mediterranean 2.10 Dad! 12.25 Bob’s Burgers Funniest Moments Cardinale 3.0 Exhibition Live from Wigmore by Robert Capa. (1/5) 12.0 News and Weather Persuaders (3/6) 5.30
2018 12.0 Would I Lie Celebrity Coach Trip 1.25 Superstore 2.20 6.0 Harry Potter 20th on Screen 4.0 Jefferson Hall, soprano Elizabeth 10.0 Woman’s Hour 11.0 12.30 Viewfinders: Ways I’m Sorry I Haven’t a
to You? The Unseen Bits 3.05 Naked Attraction The Stand Up Sketch Anniversary: Return Airplane: Music Icons Watts and pianist Julius Consumed By Desire (R) of Seeing at 50 (R) 12.48 Clue (5/6) 6.0 The
12.35 Would I Lie to You? 4.0 Ramsay’s Kitchen Show 2.50 The Stand to Hogwarts 8.0 A 4.30 Video Killed the Drake perform works 11.30 Loose Ends (R) Shipping Forecast 1.0 Hitchhiker’s Guide to the
1.55 Gavin & Stacey 6.0 Nightmares USA 4.45 Up Sketch Show 3.20 League of Their Own 9.0 Radio Star 5.0 Tales of by Gustav and Imogen 12.0 News 12.01 (LW) As World Service 5.33 Galaxy: The Secondary
Taskmaster 7.0 Whose How I Met Your Mother Unwind With ITV 3.30 The Fog (1980) the Unexpected 5.30 Holst. 2.0 Afternoon Shipping Forecast 12.04 Shipping Forecast 5.43 Phase (5/6) 6.30 A Good
Line Is It Anyway? USA Teleshopping 11.45 Road Wars 11.55 Tales of the Unexpected Concert. Pianist Nikolai Subterranean Homesick Prayer for the Day 5.45 Read (5/9) 7.0 Marriage
8.0 Travel Man: 48 Film4 Russell Howard Hour: 6.0 Discovering: Walter Lugansky and the Blues. By AL Kennedy. Farming Today 5.58 Lines (6/13) 7.30 The
Hours in Rome 8.30 11.0am Bee Movie More4 Selection Box 12.45 Matthau 7.0 Vermeer Berlin Philharmonic (1/5) 12.18 You and Tweet of the Day (R) Phenomenon Squad
Travel Man: 48 Hours in (2007) 12.50  8.55am Kirstie’s We’re Here 2.0 Dan from the National play Rachmaninov. Yours 12.58 Weather (1/5) 8.0 Dr Finlay: The
Valencia 9.0 QI XL 10.0 Hotel for Dogs (2009) Handmade Treasures Brown’s The Lost Symbol Gallery, London 8.0 4.30 New Generation 1.0 The World at One Radio 4 Extra Further Adventures of
Live at the Apollo 11.0 2.55 Monster 9.15 A Place in the Sun 4.0 Road Wars 5.0 Send André Rieu: Welcome Artists. Thibaut Garcia 1.45 Past Forward: 6.0am Dr Finlay: The a Black Bag (1/6) 8.30
The Misadventures of Trucks (2016) 5.0 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog in the Dogs to My World 9.0 plays Rodrigo. 5.0 New A Century of Sound. Further Adventures of Detective (6/8) 9.0 TED
Romesh Ranganathan Wonder (2017) It 12.05 Find It, Fix It, Hitsville: The Generation Artists: Recordings from the a Black Bag (1/6) 6.30 Radio Hour (36/48)
12.0 Mock the Week: 7.10 Black Knight Flog It 1.05 Building the Sky Arts Making of Motown Winter Showcase. With BBC archives. (1/10) Detective (6/8) 7.0 9.50 Inheritance Tracks
Election Special 12.40 (2001) 9.0 World Dream 2.10 Four in a 6.0am Hollywood: (2019) 11.0 Guy Garvey: Johan Dalene and Tom 2.0 The Archers (R) 2.15 Reluctant Persuaders 10.0 I’m Sorry I Haven’t
QI XL 1.40 Live at the War Z (2013) 11.15 Bed 4.55 Find It, Fix It, Singing and Dancing 7.15 From the Vaults 12.0 Sky Borrow. 6.15 Words United Kingdoms. Short (3/6) 7.30 I’m Sorry I a Clue (5/6) 10.30 Life
Apollo 2.35 Whose Line Starred Up (2013) Flog It 6.55 Escape to Sir John Eliot Gardiner Arts Book Club 1.0 A Play and Music (R) 7.30 In dramas about laughing. Haven’t a Clue (5/6) 8.0 With Lederer (5/5) 10.45
Is It Anyway? USA 3.35 1.25 The Taking of the Chateau: Designing Conducts Mendelssohn in a Day 2.0 Download Concert. From the 2021 (1/5) 3.0 Counterpoint Marriage Lines (6/13) A Wet Handle (3/5)
Eddie Eats America 4.0 Pelham 123 (1974) the Dream 7.55 Grand & Schumann 9.0 Tales Festival Reloaded 4.0 Salzburg festival, the (2/13) 3.30 The Food 8.30 The Phenomenon 11.0 The News Quiz
Teleshopping Designs 9.0 Love It of the Unexpected 9.30 Classic Albums 5.0 Vienna Philharmonic play Programme (R) 4.0 Faith Squad (1/5) 9.0 Jest (1/10) 11.30 Inside Alan
ITV2 Or List It Australia Tales of the Unexpected Auction 5.30 Auction Honegger’s Symphony in Music: Ralph Vaughan a Minute (1/6) 9.30 Francis (1/4) 12.0 The
E4 6.0am Totally Bonkers 10.0 George Clarke’s 10.0 Discovering: No 3 and Brahms’s Williams (R) 4.30 Getting Nowhere Fast Hitchhiker’s Guide to the
6.0am Hollyoaks 6.30 Guinness World Records Remarkable Renovations Gregory Peck 11.0 Sky Atlantic Symphony No 4 in E Beyond Belief (7/7) 5.0 (4/4) 10.0 A Room With Galaxy: The Secondary
Hollyoaks 7.0 Ramsay’s 6.15 Totally Bonkers 11.05 24 Hours in 6.0am Richard E minor Op 98. 10.0 Music PM 5.54 (LW) Shipping a View (1/4) 11.0 TED Phase (5/6) 12.30 A
Kitchen Nightmares Guinness World A&E 12.15 Emergency Grant’s Hotel Secrets Matters (R) 10.45 The Forecast 5.57 Weather Radio Hour (36/48) Good Read (5/9) 1.0
USA 8.0 Mike & Molly Records 6.45 Celebrity Helicopter Medics 7.0 CSI: Crime Scene Essay: Artists and the 6.0 News 6.30 I’m Sorry 11.50 Inheritance Dr Finlay (1/6) 1.30
9.0 How I Met Your Supermarket Sweep 1.20 George Clarke’s Investigation 7.55 Spirit World. Jennifer I Haven’t a Clue (6/6) 7.0 Tracks 12.0 Marriage Detective (6/8) 2.0 Man
Mother 10.0 The Big 7.50 In for a Penny Remarkable Renovations Scenes from a Marriage Higgie examines the The Archers 7.15 Front Lines (6/13) 12.30 The of Iron (1/5) 2.15 D for
Bang Theory 11.0 The 8.20 You’ve Been 2.20 24 Hours in A&E 1.35 In Treatment 3.20 influence of spiritualism Row 8.0 The Untold. A Phenomenon Squad Dexter (1/5) 2.30 HV
Goldbergs 12.0 Brooklyn Framed! Gold 9.10 The 3.25 Food Unwrapped Six Feet Under 5.40 on art. (1/5) 11.0 couple who decided to (1/5) 1.0 Dr Finlay: The Morton: Travelling Into
Nine-Nine 1.0 The Big Masked Singer 10.45 The Wire 7.50 Game of Night Tracks 12.30 live in a van. (R) 8.30 Further Adventures of the Light 3.0 A Room
Bang Theory 3.0 The Celebrity Catchphrase Sky Max Thrones 9.0 Dexter: New Through the Night Crossing Continents (R) a Black Bag (1/6) 1.30 With a View (1/4) 4.0
Goldbergs 3.30 The 11.45 You’ve Been 6.0am Harry Potter: Blood 10.05 Euphoria: 9.0 Science Stories. Detective (6/8) 2.0 Jest a Minute (1/6)
Goldbergs 4.0 Brooklyn Framed! & Famous 12.50 Hogwarts Tournament Trouble Don’t Last Radio 4 How testosterone has Man of Iron: Thomas 4.30 Getting Nowhere
Nine-Nine 5.0 The Space Jam (1996) of Houses 10.0 Harry Always 11.10 Billions 6.0am Today 9.0 been used and abused in Telford and the Building Fast (4/4) 5.0 Reluctant
Big Bang Theory 7.0 2.35 Back to the Potter: A Who’s Who 2.25 Yellowjackets Rethink: Population. history. (R) 9.30 Pride Or of Britain (1/5) 2.15 Persuaders (3/6) 5.30
Hollyoaks 7.30 The Future Part III (1990) of the Wizarding World 3.30 In Treatment Amol Rajan and guests Prejudice: How We Read Children in Need: D for I’m Sorry I Haven’t a
Big Bang Theory 8.0 4.55 Despicable 11.0 Football’s Funniest Space Jam, ITV2 4.05 Fish Town look at the facts about Now (R) 9.59 Weather Dexter (1/5) 2.30 HV Clue (5/6)
Tuesday
Toast of
Tinseltown,
BBC Two

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 9.15 Morning
Live (T) 10.0 Countryfile
Winter Diaries (T) (R) 10.45
The Moment of Proof (T)
11.15 Homes Under the
Hammer (T) 12.15 Bargain
Hunt (T) (R) 1.0 News (T) 1.30
Regional News and Weather
(T) 1.45 Father Brown (T)
2.30 The Repair Shop (T) 3.0
I Escaped to the Country (T)
3.45 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) 4.30 Antiques
Road Trip (T) 5.15 Pointless
(T) 6.0 News 6.30 Regional
News and Weather 7.0 The
One Show 7.30 EastEnders
7.50 Holby City (T)
6.30 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) (R) 7.15
Antiques Road Trip (T) (R)
8.0 Sign Zone: Shop Well
for the Planet? (T) (R) 9.0
News (T) 1.0 Eggheads (T)
(R) 1.30 Put Your Money
Where Your Mouth Is (T) (R)
2.30 Heir Hunters (T) (R) 3.15
Lose Weight and Get Fit With
Tom Kerridge (T) (R) 4.15
Natural World: Iceland – Land
of Ice and Fire (T) (R) 5.15
Flog It! (T) (R) 6.0 Richard
Osman’s House of Games (T)
(R) 6.30 Rick Stein’s Cornwall
(T) 7.0 The Hairy Bikers Go
North (T) (R)
6.0 Good Morning Britain (T)
9.0 Lorraine (T) 10.0 This
Morning (T) 12.30 Loose
Women (T) 1.30 News and
Weather (T) 1.55 Local
News and Weather (T) 2.0
Dickinson’s Real Deal (T) 3.0
Lingo (T) 3.59 Local News
and Weather (T) 4.0 Tipping
Point (T) (R) 5.0 The Chase
(T) (R) 6.0 Local News and
Weather (T) 6.30 News and
Weather (T) 7.0 Emmerdale
(T) 7.30 Emmerdale: Soapy
Slip-Ups (T)
6.05 Countdown (T) (R) 6.45
Cheers (T) (R) 7.35 Everybody
Loves Raymond (T) (R) 9.0
Frasier (T) (R) 10.30 Ramsay’s
Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 11.25 News (T) 11.30
Sun, Sea and Selling Houses
(T) (R) 12.30 Steph’s Packed
Lunch (T) 2.10 Countdown
(T) 3.0 A Place in the Sun (T)
4.0 A New Life in the Sun
(T) 5.0 Four in a Bed (T) (R)
6.0 The Simpsons (T) (R)
6.30 Hollyoaks (T) (R) 7.0
News (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy
Vine (T) 11.15 Shoplifters &
Scammers: At War With the
Law (T) (R) 12.15 News (T)
12.20 Nightmare Tenants,
Slum Landlords (T) (R)
1.15 Home and Away (T)
1.45 Neighbours (T) 2.15
Ruby Herring Mysteries:
Her Last Breath (Fred Gerber,
2019) (T) 4.0 Rich Holiday,
Poor Holiday (T) (R) 5.0 News 7.0 Great British Railway
(T) 6.0 Neighbours (T) (R) Journeys (T) (R) Stoke
6.30 Winter Road Rescue (T) Mandeville to Beaconsfield.
7.0 The Big Fat Lies About 7.30 Winter Walks (T) (R
Diet & Exercise (T) (R) Lemn Sissay walks along
ancient drovers’ roads in
Cumbria’s Dentdale.

8.30 Garden Rescue (T) Charlie
and the Rich brothers
redesign an unusually shaped
garden in Droitwich Spa.
9.0 Four Lives (T) Another man’s
body is found in the same
place in London, but again
the police only rule it an
overdose. The suspicions
of the previous two men’s
families continue to rise.
8.0 Digging for Britain (T)
New series. Alice Roberts
rounds up a year of British
archaeological digs. In the
east of England, a Roman
mosaic is unearthed.
9.0 The Hunt for Bible John (T)
A two-part exploration of the
unsolved murders of three
women in Glasgow from
1968 to 1969.
8.0 Coronation Street (T)
Adam accuses Lydia of
vandalising his car. Alya
worries about Zeedan and
Marrium’s closeness.
9.0 Anne (T) Ten years after the
disaster at Hillsborough,
Anne refuses to give up her
fight to get justice for her
son Kevin. Fact-based drama,
starring Maxine Peake.
8.0 Sarah Beeny’s New Life
in the Country (T) The
boys decorate their own
bedrooms, and Graham and
Sarah install a zipwire.
9.0 24 Hours in Police Custody:
Cold to the Touch (T) The
mother and her partner are
under suspicion of inflicting
injuries on the child, but
neither is yet in custody.
8.0 Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly
(T) New series. Graeme Hall
meets a pair of troublesome
Newfoundlands who are
scaring a family away.
9.0 Ben Fogle: New Lives in the
Wild (T) Ben Fogle goes to
central Portugal to meet a
British man who traded in
a retail career for his own
mountainside hideaway.
8.0 Keeping Up Appearances
(T) (R) Hyacinth attends a
family christening.
8.30 One Foot in the Grave (T) (R)
Victor has a sleepless night.
9.0 Timewatch: Killer Storms
and Cruel Winters – The
History of Extreme Weather
(T) (R) Dr Lucie Green looks
back at the UK’s worst
weather disasters.

10.0 News (T)
10.25 Regional News (T) Weather
10.35 Gossip Girl (T) Julien and
Zoya are still not speaking.
11.35 The Great British Sewing
Bee: Celebrity New Year
Special (T) (R)
12.35 The Hit List Celebrity
Specials (T) (R) 1.25
Weather for the Week
Ahead (T) 1.30 News (T)
10.0 Toast of Tinseltown (T) New
series. Comedy following
the actor in Hollywood.
Starring Matt Berry.
10.30 Newsnight (T) Weather
11.15 NFL This Week (T)
12.05 Sign Zone David Baddiel:
Social Media, Anger and Us
(T) (R) 1.05 Scotland’s Sacred
Islands (T) (R) 2.05 Take a
Hike (R) 2.35 This Is BBC Two
10.0 News (T) Weather
10.35 Local News (T) Weather
10.45 The Chasers Road
Trip: Trains, Brains and
Automobiles (T) (R) Anne
Hegerty, Shaun Wallace and
Mark Labbett reach Japan.
11.45 Anne (T) (R)
12.40 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Loose Women (T)
(R) 4.05 Unwind With ITV
10.0 The Language of Love (T)
11.05 8 Out of 10 Cats Does
Countdown (T) (R)
12.05 Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 1.0 The Simpsons
(T) (R) 1.25 Couples Come
Dine With Me (T) (R) 2.15
Undercover Boss USA (T) (R)
3.05 Amazing Spaces (T) (R)
4.0 Handmade: Britain’s Best
Woodworker (T) (R)
10.0 Body in the Snow: The
Murder of Joanna Yeates (T)
12.0 999: Criminals Caught
on Camera (T) (R) 1.0
The Live Casino Show (T)
3.0 Entertainment News
(T) 3.10 Motorway Cops:
Catching Britain’s Speeders
(T) (R) 4.0 Now That’s Funny!
(T) (R) 4.45 Wildlife SOS (T)
(R) 5.10 Nick’s Quest (T) (R)
10.0 Shipwrecks: Britain’s Sunken
History (T) (R)
11.0 Timewatch: The Killer Wave
of 1607 (T) (R)
11.50 The Channel Tunnel: Life on
the Inside (T) (R)
12.50 Winter Walks (R) 1.20 Great
British Railway Journeys (T)
(R) 1.50 Killer Storms and
Cruel Winters (T) (R) 2.50
The Great Salvador Dalí (R)

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Dave The Big Bang Theory The Cabins 5.0 You’ve Sky Max Gala 2014 9.0 Tales of Radio 3 50. Olivia Laing on a How We Read Now (R) the Building of Britain
6.0am Teleshopping 7.0 Hollyoaks 7.30 The Been Framed! Gold 5.30 6.0am Grimm 8.0 the Unexpected 10.0 6.30am Breakfast 9.0 painting by Giovanni 9.59 Weather 10.0 The (2/5) 2.15 Children
7.10 Sin City Motors Big Bang Theory 8.0 You’ve Been Framed! 6.0 Supergirl 9.0 DC’s Discovering: Claudia Essential Classics 12.0 di Paolo. (2/5) 10.0 World Tonight 10.30 in Need: D for Dexter
8.0 Ultimate Movers Celebrity Coach Trip 9.0 Celebrity Catchphrase Legends of Tomorrow Cardinale 11.0 Treasures Composer of the Week: Woman’s Hour 11.0 The (LW) TMS: Australia v (2/5) 2.30 Everyone a
9.0 Storage Hunters UK Celebrity Gogglebox 7.0 Superstore 7.30 10.0 The Flash 11.0 of the British Library Errollyn Wallen (2/5) Coming Storm Gabriel England – Fourth Test, Rembrandt 3.0 A Room
10.0 American Pickers 10.0 Naked Attraction Superstore 8.0 Bob’s NCIS: Los Angeles 1.0 12.0 Hepworth 1.0 Tales 1.0 Lunchtime Concert. Gatehouse investigates Day 1 10.45 (FM) Book With a View (2/4) 4.0
11.0 Scrapyard Supercar 11.05 Gogglebox Burgers 8.30 Bob’s Hawaii Five-0 2.0 of the Unexpected 2.0 Highlights from the the dark underbelly at Bedtime: Subterranean The 3rd Degree (4/6)
12.0 Top Gear 1.0 12.10 Celebrity First Burgers 9.0 The Cabins MacGyver 3.0 DC’s Discovering: Walter 2021 Prague spring of the US today. (1/7) Homesick Blues (R) 11.0 4.30 Elephants to Catch
Border Force: America’s Dates 1.15 Below Deck: 10.0 Plebs 10.30 Legends of Tomorrow Matthau 3.0 Sky Arts festival, featuring works 11.30 The Imperilled (FM) Fortunately. With Eels (1/6) 5.0 Small
Gatekeepers 2.0 World’s Mediterranean 2.10 Plebs 11.0 Family Guy 4.0 Supergirl 5.0 The Book Club 4.0 Joni by Dvořák and Janáček. Adventures of the food writer Nigel Slater. Scenes (3/4) 5.30 It’s
Most Dangerous Roads Celebrity Coach Trip 3.10 11.30 Family Guy 12.0 Flash 6.0 Grimm 7.0 Rob Mitchell: Music Icons 2.0 Afternoon Concert. Adventure Playground 11.30 (FM) Compression a Fair Cop (1/5) 6.0
3.0 Rick Stein: From Naked Attraction 4.05 American Dad! 12.30 & Romesh vs Cricket: 4.30 Video Killed the Thomas Hampson sings (R) 12.0 News 12.01 Versus Art (R) 12.0 The Hitchhiker’s Guide
Venice to Istanbul 4.0 Don’t Tell the Bride 5.0 American Dad! 12.55 South Africa 8.0 Rob Radio Star 5.0 Tales Mahler, and Alan Gilbert (LW) Shipping Forecast (FM) News 12.30 (FM) to the Galaxy: The
Top Gear: Ambitious But How I Met Your Mother Bob’s Burgers 1.25 Bob’s & Romesh vs Cricket: of the Unexpected conducts Nielsen’s 12.05 Subterranean Book of the Week (R) Secondary Phase (6/6)
Rubbish 5.0 Rick Stein: Burgers 1.55 Superstore The Test 9.0 Strike 6.0 Discovering: ’Inextinguishable’ Homesick Blues. By AL 12.48 Shipping Forecast 6.30 Soul Music (3/5)
From Venice to Istanbul Film4 2.20 Superstore 2.45 Back: Shadow Warfare Shirley MacLaine 7.0 Symphony. 5.0 New Kennedy. (2/5) 12.18 1.0 (LW) TMS 1.0 (FM) 7.0 The Goon Show
6.0 Taskmaster 7.0 11.0am The Black Totally Bonkers Guinness 10.0 Harry Potter 20th Leonard Cohen: Generation Artists: Call You and Yours 12.57 As World Service 5.33 7.30 Molesworth 8.0
Whose Line Is It Anyway? Arrow (1948) 12.35 World Records 3.15 FYI Anniversary: Return to I’m Your Man (2005) Winter Showcase Weather 1.0 The World at Shipping Forecast 5.43 Dr Finlay: The Further
USA 8.0 Travel Man: The Million Pound Extra 3.30 Teleshopping Hogwarts 12.40 The 9.0 Discovering: Paul (10/10) 6.15 Words One 1.45 Past Forward: (LW) TMS 5.43 (FM) Adventures of a Black
48 Hours in Amsterdam Note (1954) 2.30 Lost Symbol 1.35 Russell Simon 9.30 A Play and Music (R) 7.30 In A Century of Sound Prayer for the Day 5.45 Bag (2/6) 8.30 Detective
8.30 Travel Man: 48 The Black Tent More4 Howard Hour 2.0 We’re in a Day 10.30 I Am Concert. The St Gallen (2/10) 2.0 The Archers (FM) Farming Today (7/8) 9.0 Tomorrow’s
Hours in Stockholm 9.0 (1956) 4.20 The 8.55am Kirstie’s Here 3.0 Hawaii Five-0 Steve McQueen 12.30 Symphony Orchestra and (R) 2.15 Isaac Newton: 5.58 (FM) Tweet of World, Today 10.0 It’s
QI XL 10.0 Live at the Thirty-Nine Steps Handmade Treasures 4.0 MacGyver 5.0 Send The Story of the Jam: baritone Shea Owens Nemesis. By David the Day (R) a Fair Cop (1/5) 10.30
Apollo 11.0 Taskmaster (1978) 6.25 Star 9.15 A Place in the Sun in the Dogs About the Young Idea perform Enescu’s Dectet Ashton. (1/2) (R) 3.0 Cowards (1/6) 11.0
12.0 Mock the Week Trek (2009) 9.0 10.05 A Place in the Sun 2.15 Download Festival for Winds in D, Op 14, The Kitchen Cabinet (R) Radio 4 Extra Facts and Fancies (1/5)
12.40 QI XL 1.40 Live at Rocketman (2019) 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog Sky Arts Reloaded 3.45 Iron Mahler’s Lieder Eines 3.30 Moving Pictures: 6.0am Dr Finlay: The 11.15 The Damien Slash
the Apollo 2.45 Whose 11.25 Terminator It 12.05 Find It, Fix It, 6.0am André Rieu: Maiden: Somewhere Fahrenden Gesellen, The Feast of Herod by Further Adventures of Mixtape (1/4) 11.30
Line Is It Anyway? USA Genisys (2015) 1.50 Flog It 1.05 Building the Welcome to My World Back in Time – Live 5.0 Bruckner’s 2 Aequali in C Peter Paul Rubens (R) a Black Bag (2/6) 6.30 Concrete Cow (4/6)
3.35 Eddie Eats America Raw (2016) Dream 2.10 Four in a 7.0 A John Williams Auction 5.30 Auction minor and Schoenberg’s 4.0 Consumed By Desire Detective (7/8) 7.0 12.0 The Hitchhiker’s
4.0 Teleshopping Bed 2.40 Four in a Bed Celebration: LA Opening Verklärte Nacht, Op 4. (3/3) 4.30 Great Lives. Small Scenes (3/4) 7.30 Guide to the Galaxy:
ITV2 3.15 Four in a Bed 3.50 Sky Atlantic 10.0 Free Thinking. The Profile of William Lever, It’s a Fair Cop (1/5) 8.0 The Secondary Phase
E4 6.0am Totally Bonkers Four in a Bed 4.20 Four 6.0am Richard E career of actor Jean-Paul the founder of Unilever. The Goon Show 8.30 (6/6) 12.30 Soul Music
6.0am Hollyoaks Guinness World Records in a Bed 4.55 Find It, Grant’s Hotel Secrets Belmondo. 10.45 The (5/8) 5.0 PM 5.54 (LW) Molesworth 9.0 The (3/5) 1.0 Dr Finlay (2/6)
7.0 Celebrity Coach 7.0 The Ellen DeGeneres Fix It, Flog It 5.55 Find 7.0 CSI: Crime Scene Essay: Artists and the Shipping Forecast 5.57 News Quiz (1/10) 9.30 1.30 Detective (7/8)
Trip 8.0 Mike & Molly Show 8.0 You’ve Been It, Fix It, Flog It 6.55 Investigation 7.55 Spirit World (2/5) 11.0 Weather 6.0 News 6.30 Elephants to Catch Eels 2.0 Man of Iron (2/5)
9.0 How I Met Your Framed! Gold 8.30 Escape to the Chateau: Six Feet Under 10.15 Night Tracks 12.30 It’s a Fair Cop. Alfie (1/6) 10.0 A Room 2.15 Children in Need:
Mother 10.0 The Big You’ve Been Framed! The Great Outdoors 7.55 The Wire 12.35 Game Through the Night Moore considers sexual With a View (2/4) 11.0 D for Dexter (2/5) 2.30
Bang Theory 11.0 The Gold 9.0 The Cabins Grand Designs 9.0 Car of Thrones 1.45 In misconduct. (R) 7.0 The Tomorrow’s World, Today Everyone a Rembrandt
Goldbergs 12.0 Brooklyn 10.0 Dress to Impress S.O.S 10.0 Emergency Treatment 3.30 Six Radio 4 Archers 7.15 Front Row 12.0 The Goon Show 3.0 A Room With a
Nine-Nine 1.0 The Big 11.0 Secret Crush 12.0 Helicopter Medics 11.05 Feet Under 5.45 The 6.0am Today 9.0 8.0 Pakistan’s Long 12.30 Molesworth 1.0 View (2/4) 4.0 The
Bang Theory 1.30 The Supermarket Sweep 24 Hours in A&E 12.10 Wire 7.55 Game of Rethink: Population Game. How Pakistan Dr Finlay: The Further 3rd Degree (4/6) 4.30
Big Bang Theory 3.0 1.0 Celebrity Tipping Emergency Helicopter Thrones 9.0 The Nevers (2/5) 9.45 (LW) Daily outwitted the US in Adventures of a Black Elephants to Catch Eels
The Goldbergs 3.30 Point 2.0 Family Medics 1.15 Car S.O.S Rocketman, 11.20 Billions 3.40 Service 9.45 (FM) Book Afghanistan. 8.40 In Bag (2/6) 1.30 Detective (1/6) 5.0 Small Scenes
The Goldbergs 4.0 Fortunes 3.0 The Ellen 2.15 24 Hours in A&E In Treatment 4.15 of the Week: Viewfinders Touch 9.0 Inside Health (7/8) 2.0 Man of Iron: (3/4) 5.30 It’s a Fair
Brooklyn Nine-Nine 5.0 DeGeneres Show 4.0 3.20 Food Unwrapped Film4 Fish Town – Ways of Seeing at 9.30 Pride Or Prejudice: Thomas Telford and Cop (1/5)
 Wednesday
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

Mandy,
BBC Two

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 9.15 Morning
Live (T) 10.0 Countryfile
Winter Diaries (T) (R) 10.45
The Moment of Proof (T)
11.15 Homes Under the
Hammer (T) (R) 12.15 Bargain
Hunt (T) (R) 1.0 News (T) 1.30
Regional News and Weather
(T) 1.45 Father Brown (T)
2.30 The Repair Shop (T) 3.0
I Escaped to the Country (T)
3.45 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) 4.30 Antiques
Road Trip (T) 5.15 Pointless
6.0 News (T) 6.30 Regional
News and Weather (T) 7.0
The One Show (T) 7.30 The
Bidding Room (T) (R)
6.30 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) (R) 7.15
Antiques Road Trip (T) (R)
8.0 Sign Zone: See Hear (T)
(R) 8.30 Walking With Steph
McGovern (T) (R) 9.0 News
(T) 1.0 Eggheads (T) (R) 1.30
Best Bakes Ever (T) (R) 2.15
Politics Live (T) 4.15 Nature’s
Weirdest Events (T) (R) 5.15
Flog It! (T) (R) 6.0 Richard
Osman’s House of Games (T)
(R) 6.30 Rick Stein’s Cornwall
(T) 7.0 The Hairy Bikers Go
North (T) (R)
6.0 Good Morning Britain (T)
9.0 Lorraine (T) 10.0 This
Morning (T) 12.30 Loose
Women (T) 1.30 News and
Weather (T) 1.55 Local
News and Weather (T) 2.0
Dickinson’s Real Deal (T) 3.0
Lingo (T) 3.59 Local News
and Weather (T) 4.0 Tipping
Point (T) (R) 5.0 The Chase
(T) (R) 6.0 Local News and
Weather (T) 6.30 News and
Weather (T) 7.0 Emmerdale
(T) 7.30 Coronation Street (T)
6.05 Countdown (T) (R) 6.45
Cheers (T) (R) 7.35 Everybody
Loves Raymond (T) (R) 9.0
Frasier (T) (R) 10.30 Ramsay’s
Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 11.25 News (T) 11.30
Sun, Sea and Selling Houses
(T) (R) 12.30 Steph’s Packed
Lunch (T) 2.10 Countdown
(T) 3.0 A Place in the Sun (T)
4.0 A New Life in the Sun
(T) 5.0 Four in a Bed (T) (R)
6.0 The Simpsons (T) (R)
6.30 Hollyoaks (T) (R) 7.0
News (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy
Vine (T) 11.15 Shoplifters &
Scammers: At War With the
Law (T) (R) 12.15 News (T)
12.20 Nightmare Tenants,
Slum Landlords (T) (R)
1.15 Home and Away (T)
1.45 Neighbours (T) 2.15
Death, Disappearance
and Deceit: Mystery 101
(Blair Hayes, 2019) (T) 4.0
Rich Holiday, Poor Holiday 7.0 Great British Railway
(T) (R) 5.0 News (T) 6.0 Journeys (T) (R) West Ruislip
Neighbours (T) (R) 6.30 to Windsor. 7.30 Winter
Winter Road Rescue (T) 7.0 Walks (T) (R) Poet laureate
How to Give Up Sugar (& Simon Armitage walks the
Lose Weight) (T) east coast from Ravenscar to
Robin’s Hood’s Bay.

8.0 The Repair Shop (T) Items
fixed include a pair of racing
boots, a 1960s electric organ
and a grandfather clock.
9.0 Four Lives (T) A fourth
man’s body is found and
the victim’s family want
answers. Stephen Port is
arrested, but securing a
guilty conviction is far from
certain. Last in the series.
8.0 Digging for Britain (T) Alice
Roberts heads to the south
of England to see a haul of
Roman treasure that brings
to life the fall of the empire.
9.0 Inside the Factory (T) Gregg
Wallace follows a malt loaf
production to see for himself
the massive dough mixing,
tin filling and intensely hot
baking involved.
8.0 Paul O’Grady: For the Love
of Dogs (T) Paul meets a shi
tzu with an extreme case of
bladder stones.
8.30 Coronation Street (T) Tim
is shocked to learn that he
needs a triple heart bypass.
9.0 Anne (T) A new panel is
created, and Anne and the
other families hope they will
finally get the truth.
8.0 Kirstie and Phil’s Love It Or
List It (T) Kirstie and Phil are
in Lincoln to help Eric and
Carly end a five-year debate
over their bungalow.
9.0 Britain’s Most Expensive
Houses (T) Lee tries to sell
the £17.5m Huxley House,
while fashionista Karl Chu
asks Polina to find him a
bachelor pad.
8.0 You Are What You Eat (T)
New series. Trisha Goddard
and Dr Amir Khan help
two people in need of a
life-changing intervention.
Includes news update.
9.0 22 Kids & Counting (T)
Return of the documentary
following Noel and Sue
Radford as they cope with
their supersized family.
8.0 Thailand: Earth’s Tropical
Paradise (T) (R) The wildlife
of the mountains and forests
of northern Thailand.
9.0 The Windermere Children
(T) (R) A psychologist and
his team look after child
survivors of the Holocaust.
Fact-based drama, starring
Thomas Kretschmann and
Romola Garai.

10.0 News (T)
10.25 Regional News (T) Weather
10.35 How Police Missed the
Grindr Killer (T) (R)
Documentary examining the
case of Stephen Port.
11.25 Michael McIntyre’s The
Wheel (T) (R) Quizshow.
12.25 Question of Sport (T) (R)
12.55 Weather for the Week
Ahead (T) 1.0 News (T)
10.0 Mandy (T) New series.
Diane Morgan’s comedy.
10.15 Mandy (T)
10.30 Newsnight (T) Weather
11.15 Inside Dubai: Playground of
the Rich (T) (R)
12.15 Sign Zone See Hear (T) (R)
12.45 Quentin Blake: The
Drawing of My Life (T) (R)
1.45 Take a Hike (T) (R) 2.15
This Is BBC Two (T)
10.05 News (T) Weather
10.35 Local News (T) Weather
10.50 The World’s End
(Edgar Wright, 2013) (T) Five
childhood friends reunite
for a pub crawl in their home
town. Sci-fi comedy, with
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.
12.45 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Anne (T) (R) 4.10
Unwind With ITV (R)
10.0 I Literally Just Told You (T)
Gameshow with Jimmy Carr.
11.05 24 Hours in Police Custody:
Cold to the Touch (T) (R)
1.05 Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 1.55 Couples Come
Dine With Me (T) (R) 2.45
Undercover Boss USA (T) (R)
3.35 Handmade: Britain’s
Best Woodworker (T) (R)
4.30 Mend It for Money (R)
10.0 Skin A&E (T) (R)
11.05 Extraordinary People: The
World’s Heaviest Child (R)
12.05 Shoplifters: At War With
the Law (T) (R) 1.0 The
Live Casino Show (T) 3.0
Entertainment News (T)
3.10 Rich Holiday, Poor
Holiday (T) (R) 4.0 Now
That’s Funny! (T) (R) 4.45
Wildlife SOS (T) (R)
10.30 The Windermere Children:
In Their Own Words (T) (R)
11.30 Life of a Mountain: A Year on
Blencathra (T) (R)
12.30 Winter Walks (T) (R) 1.0
Great British Railway
Journeys (T) (R) 1.30
Thailand: Earth’s Tropical
Paradise (T) (R) 2.30
Shipwrecks: Britain’s
Sunken History (T) (R)

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Dave Brooklyn Nine-Nine 5.0 Celebrity Catchphrase Sky Max Matthau 11.0 Treasures Radio 3 Hour 11.0 Now the Parliament 12.0 (FM) a View (3/4) 4.0 The
6.0am Teleshopping The Big Bang Theory 7.0 Superstore 8.0 6.0am Send in the Dogs of the British Library 6.30am Breakfast 9.0 Twelfth Night Show (R) News 12.30 (FM) Book of Write Stuff (1/6) 4.30
7.10 Yianni: Supercar 7.0 Hollyoaks 7.30 The Bob’s Burgers 8.30 7.0 Grimm 8.0 Supergirl 12.0 David Hockney: Essential Classics 12.0 12.0 News 12.01 (LW) the Week: Viewfinders – Smelling of Roses (2/6)
Customiser 8.0 Ultimate Big Bang Theory 8.0 Bob’s Burgers 9.0 The 9.0 DC’s Legends of Time Regained 1.0 Tales Composer of the Week: Shipping Forecast 12.04 Ways of Seeing at 50 (R) 5.0 Believe It! (2/3) 5.30
Movers 9.0 Storage Celebrity Coach Trip 9.0 Cabins 10.0 Family Guy Tomorrow 10.0 The of the Unexpected 1.30 Errollyn Wallen (3/5) Subterranean Homesick 12.48 Shipping Forecast The Missing Hancocks
Hunters UK 10.0 Celebrity Gogglebox 11.30 American Dad! Flash 11.0 NCIS: Los Tales of the Unexpected 1.0 Lunchtime Concert. Blues. By AL Kennedy. 1.0 (LW) TMS 1.0 (FM) (8/8) 6.0 Schalken the
American Pickers 11.0 10.0 Naked Attraction 12.25 Bob’s Burgers Angeles 12.0 NCIS: New 2.0 Discovering: Shirley Highlights from the (3/5) 12.18 You and As World Service 5.33 Painter (1/2) 6.30 The
Scrapyard Supercar 12.0 11.05 Gogglebox 12.55 Bob’s Burgers Orleans 1.0 Hawaii Five- MacLaine 3.0 Christian 2021 Prague spring Yours 12.57 Weather 1.0 Shipping Forecast 5.43 Radio Detectives (5/5)
Top Gear: Ambitious 12.05 Celebrity First 1.25 Superstore 1.50 0 2.0 MacGyver 3.0 DC’s Dior: Designer of Dreams festival, featuring works The World at One 1.45 (LW) TMS 5.43 (FM) 7.0 Hancock’s Half Hour
But Rubbish 1.0 Border Dates 1.10 Below Deck: Superstore 2.20 The Legends of Tomorrow 4.0 Neil Diamond: Music by Dvořák and Weber. Past Forward: A Century Prayer for the Day 5.45 7.30 If You’re So Clever,
Force: America’s Mediterranean 2.10 Masked Singer 2.55 4.0 Supergirl 5.0 The Icons 4.30 Video Killed 2.0 Afternoon Concert. of Sound – Christmas (FM) Farming Today Why Aren’t You Rich?
Gatekeepers 2.0 World’s Celebrity Coach Trip 3.05 Totally Bonkers Guinness Flash 6.0 Grimm 7.0 the Radio Star 5.0 Tales Includes Kirill Gerstein 1945 (3/10) 2.0 The 5.58 (FM) Tweet of (4/6) 8.0 Dr Finlay: The
Most Dangerous Roads Naked Attraction 4.0 World Records 3.20 Harry Potter: Hogwarts of the Unexpected 5.30 in Rachmaninov’s Third Archers 2.15 Fake the Day (R) Further Adventures of
3.0 Rick Stein: From Don’t Tell the Bride 4.55 Unwind With ITV Tournament of Houses Tales of the Unexpected Piano Concerto. 4.0 Heiress. By Chloe Moss. a Black Bag (3/6) 8.30
Venice to Istanbul 4.0 How I Met Your Mother 3.30 Teleshopping 9.0 A League of Their 6.0 Discovering: Charles Choral Evensong 5.0 In (1/2) (R) 3.0 Money Radio 4 Extra Detective (8/8) 9.0
Top Gear: Ambitious Own 10.0 NCIS: New Bronson 7.0 Celebrity Tune 7.0 In Tune Mixtape Box Live 3.30 Inside 6.0am Dr Finlay: The The Sondheim Archive
But Rubbish 5.0 Rick Film4 More4 Orleans 11.0 The Force: Portrait Artist of the Year 7.30 In Concert. Daniel Health (R) 4.0 Thinking Further Adventures of (2/3) 10.0 The Missing
Stein: From Venice to 11.0am Alvarez 8.55am Kirstie’s Manchester 12.0 Dan 8.0 The Michelangelo Barenboim conducts Allowed (2/6) 4.30 The a Black Bag (3/6) 6.30 Hancocks (8/8) 10.30
Istanbul 6.0 Taskmaster Kelly (1966) 1.15 Handmade Treasures Brown’s The Lost Symbol Code: Secrets of the West-Eastern Divan Media Show 5.0 PM 5.54 Detective (8/8) 7.0 Little Lifetimes (6/6)
7.0 Whose Line Is It Red Mountain 9.15 A Place in the Sun 2.0 Caught on Dashcam Sistine Chapel 10.15 The Orchestra in Beethoven’s (LW) Shipping Forecast Believe It! (2/3) 7.30 The 10.45 Tim Key’s Late
Anyway? USA 7.30 (1951) 3.0 Death 10.05 A Place in the Sun 3.0 Hawaii Five-0 4.0 Eighties 11.15 Great Film Overture: The Creatures 5.57 Weather 6.0 News Missing Hancocks (8/8) Night Poetry Programme
Whose Line Is It Anyway? Drums Along the River 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog MacGyver 5.0 Send in Composers: The Music of Prometheus, Op 43, 6.30 Ellie Taylor’s 8.0 Hancock’s Half Hour (6/6) 11.0 Radio Active
USA 8.0 Travel Man: 48 (1963) 4.40 Carry It 12.05 Find It, Fix It, the Dogs of the Movies 12.15 Dean Brahms’s Double Safe Space (R) 7.0 The 8.30 If You’re So Clever, (7/8) 11.30 The News at
Hours in Brussels 8.30 on Regardless (1961) Flog It 1.05 Building the Martin: King of Cool 2.15 Concerto for Violin & Archers 7.15 Front Row Why Aren’t You Rich? Bedtime (7/8) 11.45 The
Travel Man: 48 Hours 6.25 Hidden Dream 2.10 Four in a Sky Arts Sammy Davis Jr: Legends Cello in A minor, Op 102, 8.0 Breaking History. (4/6) 9.0 The Write Stuff Goldfish Bowl (7/8) 12.0
in Oslo 9.0 QI XL 10.0 Figures (2016) 9.0 Bed 2.40 Four in a Bed 6.0am André Rieu: in Concert 3.20 Walden and Franck’s Symphony The power of empathy (1/6) 9.30 Smelling of Schalken the Painter
Live at the Apollo 11.0 The Escapist 3.15 Four in a Bed 3.50 Welcome to My World 5.0 Auction 5.30 Auction in D minor, Op 48. 10.0 to shape political worlds. Roses (2/6) 10.0 A Room (1/2) 12.30 The Radio
Taskmaster 12.0 Mock (2008) 11.05 Spy Four in a Bed 4.20 Four 7.0 Cats: The Musical 9.0 Free Thinking. A look at 8.45 Four Thought (R) With a View (3/4) 11.0 Detectives (5/5) 1.0
the Week 12.40 QI XL (2015) 1.25 Jane in a Bed 4.55 Find It, Tales of the Unexpected Sky Atlantic glove-making. 10.45 9.0 The Flipside With The Sondheim Archive Dr Finlay: The Further
1.40 Live at the Apollo Got a Gun (2015) Fix It, Flog It 5.55 Find 10.0 Discovering: Walter 6.0am Richard E The Essay: Artists and Paris Lees. A woman who (2/3) 12.0 Hancock’s Adventures of a Black
2.40 Whose Line Is It, Fix It, Flog It 6.55 Grant’s Hotel Secrets the Spirit World (3/5) went through therapy Half Hour 12.30 If You’re Bag (3/6) 1.30 Detective
It Anyway? USA 3.30 ITV2 Escape to the Chateau 7.0 CSI: Crime Scene 11.0 Night Tracks 12.30 in her second language. So Clever, Why Aren’t (8/8) 2.0 Man of Iron:
Eddie Eats America 6.0am Secret Crush 7.0 7.55 Grand Designs 9.0 Investigation 8.0 Six Through the Night (2/4) 9.30 The Media You Rich? (4/6) 1.0 Thomas Telford and the
4.0 Teleshopping The Ellen DeGeneres The Great British Dig: Feet Under 10.15 The Show (R) 9.59 Weather Dr Finlay: The Further Building of Britain (3/5)
Show 8.0 You’ve Been History in Your Back Wire 12.30 Game Radio 4 10.0 The World Tonight Adventures of a Black 2.15 D for Dexter (3/5)
E4 Framed! Gold 9.0 The Garden 10.0 Return of Thrones 1.35 In 6.0am (FM) Today 10.45 Book at Bedtime: Bag (3/6) 1.30 Detective 2.30 Asian Weddings:
6.0am Hollyoaks 7.0 Cabins 10.0 Dress to of the Black Death: Treatment 3.30 Six 7.30 (LW) Today 9.0 Subterranean Homesick (8/8) 2.0 Man of Iron: Something Gold, Nothing
Celebrity Coach Trip 8.0 Impress 11.0 Secret Secret History 11.05 Feet Under 5.45 The Rethink: Population Blues (R) 11.0 (LW) TMS: Thomas Telford and Borrowed, Everything
Mike & Molly 9.0 How I Crush 12.0 Supermarket 24 Hours in A&E 12.10 Wire 6.50 The Wire (3/5) 9.45 (LW) Daily Australia v England – the Building of Britain New 3.0 A Room With
Met Your Mother 10.0 Sweep 1.0 Tipping Point: Emergency Helicopter 7.55 Game of Thrones Service 9.45 (FM) Book Fourth Test, Day 2 11.0 (3/5) 2.15 Children in a View (3/4) 4.0 The
The Big Bang Theory Lucky Stars 2.0 Family Medics 1.15 The Great 9.0 Dexter: New Blood of the Week: Viewfinders (FM) Ruby Wax Talking Need: D for Dexter (3/5) Write Stuff (1/6) 4.30
11.0 The Goldbergs 12.0 Fortunes 3.0 The Ellen British Dig: History in Carry on 10.05 Billions 2.25 – Ways of Seeing at 50. Human (4/4) 11.15 (FM) 2.30 Asian Weddings: Smelling of Roses
Brooklyn Nine-Nine 1.0 DeGeneres Show 4.0 Your Back Garden 2.20 Regardless, Yellowjackets 3.30 In Tom Overton on a self- Sophie Willan’s Guide to Something Gold, Nothing (2/6) 5.0 Believe It!
The Big Bang Theory The Cabins 5.0 You’ve 24 Hours in A&E 3.25 Treatment 4.05 Fish portrait by John Berger. Normality: Do Monogamy Borrowed, Everything (2/3) 5.30 The Missing
3.0 The Goldbergs 4.0 Been Framed! Gold 6.0 Food Unwrapped Film4 Town 5.0 Fish Town (3/5) 10.0 Woman’s (R) 11.30 (FM) Today in New 3.0 A Room With Hancocks (8/8)
Thursday
Dragons’ Den,
BBC One

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 9.15 Morning
Live (T) 10.0 Countryfile
Winter Diaries (T) (R) 10.45
The Moment of Proof (T)
11.15 Homes Under the
Hammer (T) 12.15 Bargain
Hunt (T) (R) 1.0 News (T)
1.30 Regional News and
Weather (T) 1.45 Father
Brown (T) 2.30 The Repair
Shop (T) 3.0 I Escaped to
the Country (T) 3.45 The
Farmers’ Country Showdown
(T) 4.30 Antiques Road Trip
(T) 5.15 Pointless (T) 6.0
News (T) 6.30 Regional News
and Weather (T) 7.0 The One
Show (T) 7.30 EastEnders (T)
6.30 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) (R) 7.15
Antiques Road Trip (T) (R)
8.0 Sign Zone: Attenborough
and the Mammoth Graveyard
(T) (R) 9.0 News (T) 12.15
Politics Live (T) 1.0 Eggheads
(T) (R) 1.30 Put Your Money
Where Your Mouth Is (T) (R)
2.30 Heir Hunters (T) (R) 3.15
Lose Weight and Get Fit With
Tom Kerridge (T) (R) 4.15
Nature’s Weirdest Events
(T) (R) 5.15 Flog It! (T) (R)
6.0 Richard Osman’s House
of Games (T) (R) 6.30 Rick
Stein’s Cornwall (T) 7.0 The
Hairy Bikers Go North (T) (R)
6.0 Good Morning Britain (T)
9.0 Lorraine (T) 10.0 This
Morning (T) 12.30 Loose
Women (T) 1.30 News and
Weather (T) 1.55 Local
News and Weather (T) 2.0
Dickinson’s Real Deal (T) 3.0
Lingo (T) 3.59 Local News
and Weather (T) 4.0 Tipping
Point (T) (R) 5.0 The Chase
(T) (R) 6.0 Local News and
Weather (T) 6.30 News and
Weather (T) 7.0 Emmerdale
(T) 7.30 Tonight: How Much
Is Your Car Worth? (T)
6.05 Countdown (T) (R) 6.45
Cheers (T) (R) 7.35 Everybody
Loves Raymond (T) (R) 9.0
Frasier (T) (R) 10.30 Ramsay’s
Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 11.25 News (T) 11.30
Sun, Sea and Selling Houses
(T) (R) 12.30 Steph’s Packed
Lunch (T) 2.10 Countdown
(T) 3.0 A Place in the Sun (T)
4.0 A New Life in the Sun
(T) 5.0 Four in a Bed (T) (R)
6.0 The Simpsons (T) (R)
6.30 Hollyoaks (T) (R) 7.0
News (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy
Vine (T) 11.15 Shoplifters
& Scammers: At War With
the Law (T) 12.15 News (T)
12.20 Nightmare Tenants,
Slum Landlords (T) (R)
1.15 Home and Away (T)
1.45 Neighbours (T) 2.15
Killer Secrets in the
Snow (Jose Montesinos,
2020) (T) 4.0 Rich Holiday,
Poor Holiday (T) (R) 5.0 News 7.0 Great British Railway
(T) 6.0 Neighbours (T) (R) Journeys (T) (R) Guildford to
6.30 Winter Road Rescue Aldershot. 7.30 Winter Walks
(T) 7.0 The Cotswolds With (T) (R) The Rev Richard Coles
Pam Ayres (T) (R) walks across the North York
Moors to Rievaulx Abbey.
Last in the series.

8.0 Dragons’ Den (T) New series.
The long-time investors
are joined by a newcomer,
29-year-old Steven Bartlett.
9.0 The Apprentice (T) New
series. Lord Sugar, joined by
Karren Brady and the winner
of series one, Tim Campbell,
challenges the 16 hopefuls
to come up with a marketing
campaign for a cruise liner.
8.0 Digging for Britain (T) Alice
Roberts visits archaeological
digs in the north of Britain,
including Scotland’s oldest
railway and one of the best-
preserved Norman castles.
9.0 Andy Warhol’s America (T)
Documentary looking at the
history of the US in the 20th
century through the life and
career of Andy Warhol.
8.0 Emmerdale (T) Will worries.
Cain flies off the handle.
Nate is vulnerable.
8.30 The Martin Lewis Money
Show: Live (T)
9.0 The Real Anne: Unfinished
Business (T) Documentary
examining the campaign of
Anne Williams, who lost her
son Kevin in the Hillsborough
disaster in 1989.
8.0 The Dog House (T) Return
of the documentary about
Wood Green animal charity.
Roshni and Jay meet two
different dogs – a playful
staffie and a shy terrier.
9.0 Screw (T) New series.
Comedy-drama following the
staff and inmates at a men’s
prison, starring Nina Sosanya
and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell.
8.0 Our Great Yorkshire Life
(T) New series. The lives of
people living in Yorkshire,
starting with a family who
fish off the coast of Whitby.
Includes news update.
9.0 999: Critical Condition (T)
New series. Staff at Stoke’s
Royal University Hospital
treat a woman with life-
threatening head injuries.
8.0 The Sound of Music
(Robert Wise, 1965) (T) (R)
A novice nun is employed
as governess to the seven
children of an austere
widower and brings laughter
and love to the family.
Rodgers and Hammerstein
musical, starring Julie
Andrews, Christopher
Plummer and Eleanor Parker.

10.0 News (T)
10.25 Regional News (T) Weather
10.35 In the Heart of the Sea
(Ron Howard, 2015) (T) Fact-
based historical adventure
about a whaling ship, starring
Chris Hemsworth, Cillian
Murphy and Ben Whishaw.
12.30 Superman & Lois (T) (R) 1.10
Weather for the Week Ahead
(T) 1.15 News (T)
10.0 The Apprentice: You’re Fired
(T) Tom Allen talks to the
first candidate to be ejected
from the competition.
10.30 Newsnight (T) Weather
11.15 Toast of Tinseltown (T) (R)
Comedy, starring Matt Berry.
11.45 Sign Zone Amazing Hotels:
Life Beyond the Lobby (T) (R)
12.45 Take a Hike (T) (R) 1.15
This Is BBC Two (T)
10.0 News (T) Weather
10.30 Local News (T) Weather
10.45 It’ll Be Alright on the Night
(T) (R) TV clangers.
11.40 All Elite Wrestling:
Rampage (T) (R)
12.30 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Tonight: How
Much Is Your Car Worth? (R)
3.40 A Year in the Beacons
(T) (R) 4.05 Unwind With ITV
10.0 First Dates (T) New series.
11.05 Taskmaster’s New Year Treat
(T) (R) Festive special.
12.10 The Language of Love (T)
(R) 1.05 Kitchen Nightmares
USA (T) (R) 1.55 Project
Almanac (2015) (T) 3.40
Handmade: Britain’s Best
Woodworker (T) (R) 4.35
Mend It for Money (T) (R)
5.30 A Place in the Sun (R)
10.0 A&E After Dark (T) (R)
11.05 Police Code Zero: Officer
Under Attack (T) New series.
12.05 999: Criminals Caught
on Camera (T) (R) 1.0 The
Live Casino Show (T) 3.0
Entertainment News (T)
3.10 Rich Holiday, Poor
Holiday (T) (R) 4.0 Britain’s
Biggest Mosque (T) (R)
4.45 Wildlife SOS (T)
10.45 Viva Las Vegas (George
Sidney, 1964) (T) (R) A racing
driver in need of money falls
in love while working at a
casino. Musical, starring Elvis
Presley and Ann-Margret.
12.10 Sings Elvis (T) (R) 1.10 Winter
Walks (R) 1.40 Great British
Railway Journeys (R) 2.10
The Windermere Children: In
Their Own Words (T) (R)

Other channels Radio

Dave The Big Bang Theory DeGeneres Show 4.0 Sky Max 11.0 Treasures of the Radio 3 performance by Amanda Tonight 10.45 Book at Man of Iron: Thomas
6.0am Teleshopping 7.0 Hollyoaks 7.30 The The Cabins 5.0 You’ve 6.0am Send in the Dogs British Library 12.0 The 6.30am Breakfast 9.0 Coogan. (4/5) 10.0 Bedtime: Subterranean Telford and the Building
7.10 Yianni: Supercar Big Bang Theory 8.0 Been Framed! Gold: 7.0 Grimm 8.0 Supergirl Art of Architecture: Essential Classics 12.0 Woman’s Hour 11.0 Homesick Blues (R) 11.0 of Britain (4/5) 2.15
Customiser 8.0 Ultimate Celebrity Coach Trip 9.0 Harry’s Favourites 6.0 9.0 DC’s Legends of Great Museums of Composer of the Week: Crossing Continents. (LW) TMS: Australia v Children in Need: D for
Movers 9.0 Storage Celebrity Gogglebox Catchphrase Celebrity Tomorrow 10.0 The the World 1.0 Tales Errollyn Wallen (4/5) A look at a giant new England – Fourth Test, Dexter (4/5) 2.30 Rosa
Hunters UK 10.0 10.0 Naked Attraction Special 7.0 Superstore Flash 11.0 NCIS: New of the Unexpected 1.0 Lunchtime Concert. canal for the world’s Day 3 11.0 (FM) The and Leos 3.0 A Room
American Pickers 11.0 11.05 Gogglebox 8.0 Bob’s Burgers 9.0 Orleans 1.0 Hawaii Five- 2.0 Discovering: From the 2021 Prague biggest ships in Turkey. Nether Regions. Comedy With a View (4/4) 4.0
Scrapyard Supercar 12.0 12.10 First Dates 1.15 The Cabins 10.0 Family 0 2.0 MacGyver 3.0 DC’s Charles Bronson 3.0 spring festival, works (8/10) 11.30 The Lotte sketches. (1/4) 11.30 Many a Slip 4.30 Clare in
Top Gear: Ambitious Rick and Morty 1.50 Guy 11.30 American Legends of Tomorrow Leonardo’s Rediscovered by Dvořák, Robert Berk Technique (R) (FM) Today in Parliament the Community (5/6) 5.0
But Rubbish 1.0 Border The Robot Chicken Dad! 12.25 Bob’s Burgers 4.0 Supergirl 5.0 The Masterpiece 4.0 Diana Schumann and Scriabin. 12.0 News 12.01 (LW) 12.0 (FM) News 12.30 Meet David Sedaris (6/6)
Force: America’s Walking Dead Special: 1.20 Superstore 2.10 Flash 6.0 Grimm 7.0 Ross & the Supremes: 2.0 Afternoon Concert. Shipping Forecast 12.04 (FM) Book of the Week 5.30 Fags, Mags and
Gatekeepers 2.0 World’s Look Who’s Walking 2.15 The Stand Up Sketch Harry Potter: Hogwarts Music Icons 4.30 Video Fabio Luisi conducts Subterranean Homesick (R) 12.48 Shipping Bags (1/4) 6.0 Schalken
Most Dangerous Roads Celebrity Coach Trip Show 2.35 The Stand Tournament of Houses Killed the Radio Star 5.0 Beethoven’s Eighth Blues. By AL Kennedy. Forecast 1.0 (LW) TMS the Painter (2/2) 6.30
3.0 Rick Stein: From 3.10 Naked Attraction Up Sketch Show 3.05 9.0 An Idiot Abroad 2 Tales of the Unexpected Symphony. 5.0 In Tune (4/5) 12.18 You and 1.0 (FM) As World Great Lives (2/9) 7.0 The
Venice to Istanbul 4.0 4.05 Don’t Tell the Bride Totally Bonkers Guinness 10.0 Frayed 11.0 6.0 Discovering: Peter 7.0 In Tune Mixtape 7.30 Yours 12.57 Weather 1.0 Service 5.33 Shipping Men from the Ministry
Top Gear: Ambitious But 5.0 How I Met Your World Records 3.30 Frayed 12.15 The Force: O’Toole 7.0 Julie In Concert. Pablo Heras- The World at One 1.45 Forecast 5.43 (LW) TMS 7.30 After Henry (4/8)
Rubbish 5.0 Rick Stein: Mother 5.25 How I Met Teleshopping Manchester 1.0 Road Andrews Forever 8.0 Casado conducts Freiburg Past Forward: A Century 5.43 (FM) Prayer for the 8.0 Dr Finlay: The
From Venice to Istanbul Your Mother Wars 2.0 Stop, Search, Discovering: Nicolas Baroque Orchestra and of Sound (4/10) 2.0 Day 5.45 (FM) Farming Further Adventures
6.0 Taskmaster 7.0 More4 Seize 3.0 Hawaii Five-0 Cage 9.0 Lennon’s mezzo-soprano Marianne The Archers 2.15 Vital Today 5.58 (FM) Tweet of a Black Bag (4/6)
Whose Line Is It Anyway? Film4 8.55am Kirstie’s 4.0 MacGyver 5.0 Send Last Weekend 10.30 Crebassa in Schubert’s Signs. By Ben Musgrave. of the Day 8.30 Colvil and Soames
USA 8.0 Travel Man: 48 11.0am Santa Fe Handmade Treasures in the Dogs Beatles Stories 12.30 Symphony No 8 in B 3.0 Open Country. Ian (1/6) 9.0 Desert Island
Hours in Madeira 8.30 Passage (1955) 12.50 9.15 A Place in the Sun Joni Mitchell: Music minor, Berlioz’s Les Nuits Marchant explores Radio 4 Extra Discs Revisited 9.45
Travel Man: 48 Hours on Anastasia (1956) 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog Sky Arts Icons 1.0 Concert D’Été and Schubert’s archaeological sites 6.0am Dr Finlay: The The Curious Cases of
the Côte D’Azur 9.0 QI XL 3.0 The Weaker Sex It 12.05 Find It, Fix It, 6.0am André Rieu: for George (2003) 3.45 Symphony No 5 in B flat. in Dartmoor. (13/16) Further Adventures of Rutherford & Fry (1/6)
10.0 Live at the Apollo (1948) 4.45 The Flog It 1.05 Building the Welcome to My World Eric Clapton: Live in 10.0 Free Thinking. 3.27 Radio 4 Appeal: a Black Bag (4/6) 6.30 10.0 Fags, Mags and
12.0 Mock the Week Colditz Story (1954) Dream 2.10 Four in a 7.0 Turandot on Sydney California 5.0 Auction Rana Mitter looks at Help Musicians (R) 3.30 Colvil and Soames (1/6) Bags (1/4) 10.30 The
12.40 Taskmaster 1.40 6.50 Goodbye Bed 2.40 Four in a Bed Harbour 9.0 Tales 5.30 Auction war and tactics. 10.45 Bookclub (R) 4.0 Think 7.0 Meet David Sedaris Penny Dreadfuls Present:
Live at the Apollo 2.45 Christopher Robin 3.15 Four in a Bed 3.50 of the Unexpected The Essay: Artists and With Pinker. Why making (6/6) 7.30 Fags, Mags Richard III Rebothered
Whose Line Is It Anyway? (2017) 9.0 Venom Four in a Bed 4.20 Four 10.0 Discovering: Sky Atlantic the Spirit World (4/5) predictions can be hard. and Bags (1/4) 8.0 The 11.15 A Wet Handle (4/5)
USA 3.10 Whose Line (2018) 11.10  in a Bed 4.55 Find It, Shirley MacLaine 6.0am Richard E 11.0 The Night Tracks (8/12) 4.30 Inside Men from the Ministry 11.30 The Secret World
Is It Anyway? USA 3.35 Raging Bull (1980) 1.50 Fix It, Flog It 5.55 Find Grant’s Hotel Secrets Mix 11.30 Unclassified. Science 5.0 PM 5.54 8.30 After Henry (4/8) (4/6) 12.0 Schalken
Eddie Eats America Croupier (1998) It, Fix It, Flog It 6.55 7.0 CSI: Crime Scene Space Afrika are in the (LW) Shipping Forecast 9.0 Many a Slip 9.30 the Painter (2/2) 12.30
4.0 Teleshopping Escape to the Chateau Investigation 8.0 Six Listening Chair. 12.30 5.57 Weather 6.0 Clare in the Community Great Lives (2/9) 1.0 Dr
ITV2 7.55 Grand Designs 9.0 Feet Under 10.15 The Through the Night News 6.30 Fags, Mags (5/6) 10.0 A Room With Finlay (4/6) 1.30 Colvil
E4 6.0am Secret Crush 7.0 Escape to the Chateau Wire 12.30 Game and Bags (R) 7.0 The a View (4/4) 11.0 Desert and Soames (1/6) 2.0
6.0am Hollyoaks 7.0 The Ellen DeGeneres at Christmas 10.0 Sarah of Thrones 1.35 In Radio 4 Archers 7.15 Front Row Island Discs Revisited Man of Iron (4/5) 2.15
Celebrity Coach Trip 8.0 Show 8.0 You’ve Been Millican: Thoroughly Treatment 3.30 Six Feet 6.0am (FM) Today 7.30 8.0 The Briefing Room 11.45 The Curious Cases Children in Need: D for
Mike & Molly 9.0 How I Framed! Gold 8.30 Modern Millican Live Under 5.45 The Wire (LW) Today 8.31 (LW) (7/14) 8.30 Lights of Rutherford & Fry Dexter (4/5) 2.30 Rosa
Met Your Mother 10.0 You’ve Been Framed! 9.0 11.05 24 Hours in 7.55 Game of Thrones Yesterday in Parliament Out. A personal account (1/6) 12.0 The Men and Leos 3.0 A Room
The Big Bang Theory The Cabins 10.0 Dress A&E 12.15 Emergency 9.0 Yellowjackets 9.0 Rethink: Population of familial childhood from the Ministry 12.30 With a View (4/4) 4.0
111.0 The Goldbergs to Impress 11.0 Secret Helicopter Medics 1.15 10.05 Euphoria: Fuck (4/5) 9.45 (LW) Daily sexual abuse. (R) 9.0 After Henry (4/8) 1.0 Many a Slip 4.30 Clare
12.0 Brooklyn Nine-Nine Crush 12.0 Supermarket Amazing Spaces Snow Anyone Who’s Not a Service 9.45 (FM) Book Inside Science (R) 9.30 Dr Finlay: The Further in the Community (5/6)
1.0 The Big Bang Theory Sweep 1.0 Tipping Point: and Ice Special 2.20 Raging Bull, Sea Blob 11.10 Billions of the Week: Viewfinders Pride Or Prejudice: How Adventures of a Black 5.0 Meet David Sedaris
3.0 The Goldbergs 4.0 Lucky Stars 2.0 Family 24 Hours in A&E 3.25 3.30 In Treatment – Ways of Seeing at 50. We Read Now (R) 9.59 Bag (4/6) 1.30 Colvil (6/6) 5.30 Fags, Mags
Brooklyn Nine-Nine 5.0 Fortunes 3.0 The Ellen Food Unwrapped Film4 4.05 Fish Town Sinéad Gleeson on a Weather 10.0 The World and Soames (1/6) 2.0 and Bags (1/4)
 Friday
The Guardian
1 January-
7 January 2022

Would I Lie to
You?, BBC One

BBC One BBC Two ITV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Four

6.0 Breakfast (T) 9.15 Morning
Live (T) 10.0 Countryfile
Winter Diaries (T) (R) 10.45
The Moment of Proof (T)
11.15 Homes Under the
Hammer (T) (R) 12.15 Bargain
Hunt (T) 1.0 News (T) 1.30
Regional News and Weather
(T) 1.45 Father Brown (T)
2.30 The Repair Shop (T) 3.0
I Escaped to the Country (T)
3.45 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) 4.30 Antiques
Road Trip (T) 5.15 Pointless
(T) 6.0 News (T) 6.30
Regional News and Weather
(T) 7.0 The One Show (T) 7.30
Question of Sport (T)
6.30 The Farmers’ Country
Showdown (T) (R) 7.15
Antiques Road Trip (T) (R)
8.0 Sign Zone: Sort Your Life
Out With Stacey Solomon (T)
(R) 9.0 News (T) 12.15 Politics
UK (T) 1.0 Eggheads (T) (R)
1.30 Put Your Money Where
Your Mouth Is (T) (R) 2.30
Heir Hunters (T) (R) 3.15 Lose
Weight and Get Fit With Tom
Kerridge (T) (R) 4.15 Life in
Polar Bear Town With Gordon
Buchanan (T) (R) 5.15 Flog It!
(T) (R) 6.0 Richard Osman’s
House of Games (T) (R) 6.30
Rick Stein’s Cornwall (T) 7.0
The Hairy Bikers Go North (R)
6.0 Good Morning Britain (T)
9.0 Lorraine (T) 10.0 This
Morning (T) 12.30 Loose
Women (T) 1.30 News and
Weather (T) 1.55 Local
News and Weather (T) 2.0
Dickinson’s Real Deal (T)
3.0 Lingo (T) 3.59 Local
News and Weather (T) 4.0
Tipping Point (T) (R) 5.0
The Chase (T) (R) 6.0 Local
News and Weather (T) 6.30
News and Weather (T) 7.0
Emmerdale (T)
6.05 Countdown (T) (R) 6.45
Cheers (T) (R) 7.35 Everybody
Loves Raymond (T) (R) 9.0
Frasier (T) (R) 10.30 Ramsay’s
Kitchen Nightmares USA
(T) (R) 11.25 News (T) 11.30
Sun, Sea and Selling Houses
(T) (R) 12.30 Steph’s Packed
Lunch (T) 2.10 Countdown
(T) 3.0 A Place in the Sun (T)
4.0 A New Life in the Sun
(T) 5.0 Four in a Bed (T) (R)
6.0 The Simpsons (T) (R)
6.30 Hollyoaks (T) (R) 7.0
News (T)
6.0 Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy
Vine (T) 11.15 Shoplifters
& Scammers: At War With
the Law (T) 12.15 News (T)
12.20 Nightmare Tenants,
Slum Landlords (T) (R)
1.15 Home and Away (T)
1.45 Neighbours (T) 2.15
Poisoned in Paradise: A
Martha’s Vineyard Mystery
(Mark Jean, 2021) (T) 4.0
Rich Holiday, Poor Holiday 7.0 Sounds of the Seventies (T)
(T) (R) 5.0 News (T) 6.0 (R) 7.10 The Shirley Bassey
Neighbours (T) (R) 6.30 Show (T) (R) The singer
Winter Road Rescue (T) 7.0 stars in the first of her 1970s
Secrets of the Imperial War BBC shows. Her guests are
Museum (T) the Three Degrees, Charles
Aznavour and the Nigel
Lythgoe Dancers.

8.0 EastEnders (T) Suki’s actions
have huge consequences.
8.30 Would I Lie to You? (T) New
series. With John Cooper
Clarke, Chris McCausland,
Judi Love, Caroline Quentin.
9.0 Death in Paradise (T) New
series. When a kidnapping
ends in murder, Neville and
the team must work out what
went so badly wrong.
8.0 Monty Don’s Adriatic
Gardens (T) New series. The
gardener investigates the
influence of the Venetians,
exploring Venice on a barge.
9.0 QI XL (T) With Cally Beaton,
Jamali Maddix, Alan Davies
and Josh Widdicombe.
9.45 Live at the Apollo (T) Chris
McCausland hosts Sophie
Duker and Emmanuel Sonubi.
7.30 Live FA Cup Football (T)
Swindon Town v Manchester
City (kick-off 8pm). Mark
Pougatch presents coverage
of the third-round tie at
the Energy Check County
Ground, as League Two outfit
Swindon look to produce
a major upset against the
six-time winners of this
competition.
8.0 George Clarke’s Amazing
Spaces (T) New series. In the
first episode, George meets
a former events manager
who has put her savings into
building a stargazing cabin.
9.0 8 Out of 10 Cats Does
Countdown (T) New series.
Roisin Conaty and Kiri
Pritchard-McLean face Jon
Richardson and Rob Beckett.
8.0 Kate Humble’s Coastal
Britain (T) New series. On
Holyhead Island in north-
west Wales, Kate discovers
one of her favourite rare
birds. Includes news update.
9.0 New York: World’s Richest
City (T) New series. Cameras
focus on the people and
places that make up the Big
Apple. Kim Cattrall narrates.
8.0 TOTP: 1992 (T) (R) With
Queen, the Sugarcubes,
Isotonik and Kym Sims.
8.30 TOTP: 1992 (T) (R) With
2 Unlimited, Shakespears
Sister and Genesis.
9.0 Dame Shirley Bassey:
Electric Proms 2009 (T) (R)
Highlights of the singer’s
performance to celebrate
50 years in showbusiness.

10.0 News (T)
10.25 Regional News (T) Weather
10.35 The Graham Norton Show (T)
With guests Martin Freeman
and Josh Widdicombe.
11.25 Young Adult (Jason
Reitman, 2011) (T) Comedy,
starring Charlize Theron and
Patrick Wilson.
12.55 Weather for the Week Ahead
(T) 1.0 News (T)
10.30 Newsnight (T) Weather
11.05 This Is Joan Collins (T) (R)
The veteran British actor
reflects on her life and
career, sharing footage
from her home archive.
12.45 Sign Zone: Inside Dubai –
Playground of the Rich (T)
(R) Life in the tax haven in
the United Arab Emirates.
1.45 This Is BBC Two (T)
10.20 News (T) Weather
10.55 Local News (T) Weather
11.10 The Bourne Identity
(Doug Liman, 2002) (T) An
amnesiac man is targeted by
assassins. Espionage thriller,
starring Matt Damon.
1.10 Shop: Ideal World 3.0 FYI
Extra 3.15 Moneyball (T)
(R) 4.05 Unwind With ITV
5.05 Lingo (T) (R)
10.0 Gogglebox Festive Special
(T) (R) TV reviews.
11.35 Sarah Millican: Chatterbox
Live (T) (R) A 2011 gig.
12.35 Party Island: Summer in
Zante (T) (R) 1.30 Victor
Frankenstein (2015) (T) 3.20
Come Dine With Me (T) (R)
5.30 A Place in the Sun (T)
(R) 5.55 Kirstie’s House of
Craft (T) (R)
10.0 Britain’s Favourite 90s Hits
12.05 Cher: Secrets of Her
Biggest Hits (T) (R) 1.0 The
Live Casino Show (T) 3.0
Entertainment News (T) 3.10
Rich Holiday, Poor Holiday
(T) (R) 4.0 The Funny Thing
About Kids (T) (R) 4.45
Wildlife SOS (T) (R) 5.10
Nick’s Quest (T) (R) 5.35
House Doctor (T) (R)
10.0 Shirley Bassey: I Am What I
Am (T) (R) Documentary.
10.50 David Bowie: Five Years (T)
(R) Rock star profile.
12.20 TOTP2: David Bowie (T) (R)
12.50 TOTP: 1992 (T) (R)
1.20 TOTP: 1992 (T) (R) 1.50
Dame Shirley Bassey: Electric
Proms 2009 (T) (R) 2.45
Shirley Bassey: I Am What I
Am (T) (R)

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Dave Brooklyn Nine-Nine 5.0 You’ve Been Framed! Sky Max Desplat 9.0 Tales Radio 3 Lubaina Himid. (5/5) 8.50 A Point of View and Soames (2/6) 2.0
6.0am Teleshopping 7.0 Hollyoaks 7.30 Full Throttle 6.0 6.0am Send in the Dogs of the Unexpected 6.30am Breakfast 9.0 10.0 Woman’s Hour 11.0 9.0 The Northern Bank Man of Iron: Thomas
7.10 Yianni: Supercar The Big Bang Theory Celebrity Catchphrase 7.0 Grimm 8.0 Supergirl 10.0 Discovering: Essential Classics 12.0 Fungi: The New Frontier. Job Omnibus: Part One Telford and the Building
Customiser 8.0 Ultimate 8.0 Celebrity Coach 7.0 Superstore 7.30 9.0 DC’s Legends of Charles Bronson 11.0 Composer of the Week: Research that’s changing (1-10) 9.59 Weather of Britain (5/5) 2.15
Movers 9.0 Storage Trip 9.0 Celebrity Superstore 8.0 Bob’s Tomorrow 10.0 The Treasures of the British Errollyn Wallen (5/5) our understanding of life 10.0 The World Tonight Children in Need: D for
Hunters UK 10.0 Gogglebox 10.0 Naked Burgers 8.30 Bob’s Flash 11.0 NCIS: New Library 12.0 The Art of 1.0 Lunchtime Concert. on Earth. (1/3) 11.30 10.45 Book at Bedtime: Dexter (5/5) 2.30 Birth
American Pickers 11.0 Attraction 12.05 First Burgers 9.0 The Cabins Orleans 1.0 Hawaii Architecture 1.0 Tales Highlights from the The Train at Platform 4: Subterranean Homesick of An Orchestra 3.0
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Top Gear: Ambitious Mediterranean 2.10 Family Guy 11.0 Family 3.0 DC’s Legends of Discovering: Peter festival. 2.0 Afternoon Dennis and Steve Punt. Australia v England – You Should Ask 4.30 In
But Rubbish 1.0 Border Celebrity Coach Trip Guy 11.30 American Tomorrow 4.0 Supergirl O’Toole 3.0 Celebrity Concert. Russian (1/4) 12.0 News 12.01 Fourth Test, Day 4 11.0 the Red (7/7) 5.0 The
Force: America’s 3.05 Naked Attraction Dad! 12.0 American Dad! 5.0 The Flash 6.0 Grimm Portrait Artist of the music from Prague, (LW) Shipping Forecast (FM) Great Lives: William Headset Set (2/6) 5.30
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Most Dangerous Roads 4.55 How I Met Your 12.55 Bob’s Burgers Anniversary: Return Icons 4.30 Video Killed Symphonic Dances. 4.30 Homesick Blues. By in Parliament 12.0 (FM) Ageing 6.0 The Drowned
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