News

HBO has released the first look at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from its upcoming «Harry Potter» television series.

The design has been created by production designer Mara LePere-Schloop, known for her work on «Interview With the Vampire» and «Pachinko». The series is currently in production at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in the United Kingdom.

The cast includes Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, alongside Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley and Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger. Other key roles feature John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape and Nick Frost as...

Amelia Vanderhorst, 20, has been convicted of a graffiti offence after attaching googly eyes to a well-known sculpture in South Australia. She pleaded guilty at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court on Tuesday and was ordered to pay A$2,000 ($1,394) in compensation and complete 60 hours of community service.

Vanderhorst had consumed MDMA and three litres of vodka on the night of the incident last September, her lawyer Michael Hill told the court.

Charge reduced after negotiations

Originally charged with property damage, Vanderhorst’s offence was amended to a graffiti charge following discussions with the prosecution. Hill stated that since the...

Warner Bros. has announced that Stephen Colbert and his son Peter McGee are developing a brand-new «Lord of the Rings» movie. The announcement was shared on the studio’s social media accounts on Tuesday evening.

The reveal opened with director Peter Jackson providing an update on the next franchise film, Andy Serkis’ «The Hunt for Gollum,» set for release in 2027. Jackson praised Serkis’ work, saying the script was coming together well and the project looked «amazing.» He then introduced Colbert as his «very special partner» for the following film, titled «The Lord of the Rings: Shadows of the Past.»

Manchester City and Uzbekistan centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov has become a father for the first time. The joyful news came just before his arrival in Uzbekistan, and a video from the hospital was shared on social media.

Khusanov reached Tashkent in the early hours of March 24 to take part in the FIFA Series tournament with the national team. The competition will be held in the capital later this month, with Uzbekistan facing Venezuela, Gabon, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The national team’s head coach, legendary Italian Fabio Cannavaro, named Khusanov in the starting squad. Other players selected include Utkir Yusupov...

The government of St Kitts and Nevis has launched a national biometric enrolment and passport modernisation programme, effective from April 14, 2026. The initiative is being implemented by the Ministry of National Security, Citizenship and Immigration alongside the Citizenship by Investment Unit.

The move aligns with International Civil Aviation Organization standards, which require countries to issue biometric-enabled travel documents in line with leading jurisdictions such as the European Union, the United States and the United Kingdom.

Mandatory for investment citizens

Biometric enrolment will be compulsory for all citizens who obtained nationality through the Citizenship by Investment programme, with a...

Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom is aiming to begin main construction work on a nuclear power plant (NPP) in Uzbekistan’s Jizzakh region this summer, chief executive Alexey Likhachev told TASS.

He said preparatory concrete work is already underway, with the project expected to move to the first major concrete pour for two small power units by the summer. Initial groundwork began on March 24 and is due to be completed in April, involving around 900 cubic metres of concrete to form the foundation, including waterproofing and grounding systems.

Project Design And Capacity

Moscow and Tashkent have approved...

Mohamed Salah has announced he will leave Liverpool at the end of the season, bringing his nine-year spell at Anfield to a close.

The 33-year-old Egypt international confirmed the decision in a video posted on social media, calling it the «first part» of his farewell. Despite signing a new two-year deal in April 2025, he will depart on a free transfer after reaching an agreement with the club over his future.

Salah described his time at Liverpool as life-changing, saying the club and its supporters had become part of him.

«Liverpool is not just a...

OpenAI has closed its AI video generation platform Sora, less than two years after it gained global attention for producing highly realistic clips from simple prompts.

The company is also ending its content partnership with The Walt Disney Company, according to the BBC.

OpenAI said it had discontinued Sora to prioritise other areas of development, including robotics aimed at solving real-world physical tasks.

A spokesperson for Disney said the company respected OpenAI’s decision to move away from video generation and would explore other AI platforms to develop the technology responsibly without breaching intellectual property rights.

Sora launched in...

Iran has informed the United Nations Security Council and the International Maritime Organization that «non-hostile vessels» may transit the Strait of Hormuz, provided they coordinate with Iranian authorities, according to a diplomatic note seen by Reuters.

The communication, sent by Iran’s foreign ministry on Sunday and circulated among IMO member states on Tuesday, comes as the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran has severely disrupted shipments through the key waterway, which handles around one fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

Conditions for passage

The note states that vessels not involved in or supporting actions against Iran, and...

Uzbekistan has launched construction of a nuclear power plant in the Farish district of Jizzakh region, with initial concrete works now underway, according to Uzatom.

On March 24, Uzatom and Russia’s Rosatom approved a cooperation roadmap and signed an agreement linked to the project to build an integrated nuclear facility. The plan covers construction, workforce training and the development of infrastructure, including a future town for nuclear specialists.

Uzatom director Azim Akhmedkhadzhaev said the project marked a decisive step in implementing the country’s nuclear energy programme.

«We have taken a crucial step in delivering a...

The China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan railway is expected to be launched by 2030, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov has said.

Speaking during Nowruz celebrations in the Naryn region, Japarov said the project would transform Kyrgyzstan from what he described as a «dead-end» country into a key transit hub linking Europe and China.

According to the president, the new railway will strengthen transit connections, enhance the region’s international role and significantly expand logistics capacity across Kyrgyzstan, particularly in Naryn.

He said shorter delivery times would create broader opportunities for accessing new markets and improving trade routes across the region.

Construction of the railway began...

Organisers of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games have revealed the event’s official visual identity, a floral-inspired design system reflecting the city’s landscape, neighbourhoods and cultural character.

The branding will feature across venues, fan zones, signage, digital platforms and broadcasts throughout the Games, according to LA28 organisers.

“Superbloom” Concept

At the heart of the identity is the «Superbloom», a nod to the bursts of wildflowers that appear across Southern California after rainfall. Officials described the design as energetic and welcoming, aimed at setting the tone for the Games.

The visual system includes 13 stylised blooms representing different...

The global luxury goods market is officially transitioning from a period of rapid acceleration into a state of measured normalization.

According to Kearney’s 2026 Global Luxury Industry Outlook, the industry is projected to see a modest 2% to 4% growth this year, stabilizing at approximately $530 bn. Rather than relying on scale and speed, 2026 will require brands to actively earn their relevance through creative clarity and consumer engagement.

The shifting geographic landscape

While the traditional “big three” heavyweights — the United States, Europe, and China — continue to provide crucial scale and anchor global demand, they are...

The construction of two large and two small nuclear power units in Uzbekistan will serve as a «global showcase», Rosatom chief Alexey Likhachev said in an interview with RT.

He said the project would combine large-scale and small modular reactors at a single site, describing it as a development of global significance that could attract interest from other countries in similar power plant models.

Likhachev added that the small-capacity plant, with an output of about 50 to 55 MW, represents the world’s first export contract of its kind.

In spring 2024, Rosatom and Uzbekistan’s Uzatom agency signed an...

Celine Dion is preparing for a major concert comeback in France, after her stage return at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony performing Edith Piaf’s «Hymne A L’Amour», Variety reports.

The announcement, first reported by French-Canadian newspaper La Presse, was hinted at with posters of Dion’s hit songs, including «Pour que tu m’aimes encore» and «Power of Love,» appearing across Paris.

Dion is set to perform a series of shows at the Paris La Defense Arena starting this autumn. The 40,000-seat venue, recently acquired by Live Nation, has previously hosted artists such as Taylor Swift, the Rolling Stones and...

Iran fired several waves of missiles at Israel, the Israeli military said, following U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to delay plans to bomb Iran’s power grid after what he described as productive talks with Tehran.

Air raid sirens sounded across parts of Israel, including Tel Aviv, as missile interceptions caused explosions. Debris from one interception damaged homes in northern Israel, but no fatalities were reported.

Trump said on Truth Social that the United States and Iran had held «very good and productive» discussions aimed at a «complete and total resolution of hostilities in the Middle East,» prompting a five-day postponement...

A Colombian Air Force transport plane crashed shortly after takeoff in the south of the country, killing at least 66 people and injuring dozens, officials confirmed.

The aircraft, a U.S.-made Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules carrying 114 army personnel and 11 crew members, went down near Puerto Leguizamo in Putumayo province, close to the border with Peru.

Rescue efforts underway

Emergency workers were seen combing through wreckage for survivors while locals helped transport injured soldiers to hospitals using motorbikes. Images from the site showed smoke rising and military trucks heading to the area.

Colombian Defence Minister Pedro Sanchez said...

A new study by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) calls for a major pivot in India’s subsidy regime, recommending a move away from universal benefits toward tightly targeted, Aadhaar-linked transfers.

The report, titled “A Study of Subsidies and Transfers in India”, was released in March 2026 to assist the Sixteenth Finance Commission in evaluating public expenditure quality by the central government and 21 major states.

The upward trajectory of state spending

While central government subsidies peaked during the pandemic at 2.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022/23 before declining to 1.7% by 2024/25, state-level spending has followed...

Leonid Radvinsky, the owner of OnlyFans, has died at the age of 43 following a prolonged illness.

Radvinsky, who was born in Ukraine and raised in Chicago, acquired the platform in 2018 from its British founders. He «passed away peacefully after a long battle with cancer», the company said, requesting privacy for his family.

Founded in 2016, OnlyFans allows creators to share content with subscribers in exchange for fees or tips. While the platform hosts a variety of material, it is widely associated with adult content and reshaped the online pornography industry by enabling direct interaction between creators and...

Two pilots were killed in a runway collision at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, an incident that forced its closure and intensified disruption across an already strained U.S. air travel system.

The crash between an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 and a firefighting vehicle injured dozens of passengers and led to hundreds of cancellations at the start of the working week. The aircraft, operated by Jazz Aviation, was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members. Nine people were taken to hospital with serious injuries.

A flight attendant was found alive and strapped into her seat, which was outside of the...

American Cooper Lutkenhaus made history on Sunday by becoming the youngest male athlete to win an individual title at the World Indoor Championships, taking gold in the 800 metres in Poland at age 17.

Lutkenhaus finished ahead of Belgium’s Eliott Crestan in 1:44.24, breaking the previous record set by Ethiopian Mohammed Aman, who was 18 years and 61 days old when he won the same event in 2012.

«I probably wasn’t the favourite, but any time I step into a final I have a chance to win,» Lutkenhaus said. «Maybe it came from confidence or...

Project Hail Mary, the sci-fi adventure starring Ryan Gosling as a teacher tasked with saving Earth, has launched to a $140.9 mln global debut. The total includes $80.5 mln from North America and $60.4 mln across 82 international markets.

The film marks the largest opening of 2026 so far, surpassing Scream 7 and setting a new record for Amazon MGM, topping 2023’s Creed III. Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the $200 mln production follows a former molecular biologist on an interstellar mission to prevent global extinction. It is adapted from Andy Weir’s bestselling novel, whose earlier work The...

«Harry Potter» actor Paapa Essiedu has revealed he received race-based death threats after being cast as Professor Snape in the upcoming HBO Max adaptation.

«I’ve been told, ‘Quit or I’ll murder you,’» Essiedu told The Sunday Times, adding the messages affect him emotionally but also motivate him. «The abuse fuels me and makes me more passionate about making this character my own,» he said.

Essiedu, known for Black Mirror and I May Destroy You, never saw the original films but loved the books as a child. The series, set for 2027, will feature a...

LaGuardia Airport in New York remains closed after an Air Canada plane collided with a Port Authority firefighting vehicle responding to another incident.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop late Sunday and warned it may be extended. The aircraft, a CRJ 900 carrying 76 people, had arrived from Montreal and slowed to around 24mph before hitting the vehicle.

Local media say several passengers were injured. Video footage showed the plane, operated by Jazz Aviation, coming to a stop with its nose upturned. LaGuardia confirmed the aircraft struck the rescue vehicle and that emergency protocols were immediately activated...