Doctor Who: Wild Blue Yonder, review: a jaw-dropping injection of sheer Saturday night magic

Michael Hogan
Sat, 2 December 2023

Revelling in chemistry: Catherine Tate and David Tennant in Doctor Who: Wild Blue Yonder - James Pardon/BBC

It began with an historical bang and ended with a heartbreaking posthumous appearance. In between, Doctor Who (BBC One) delivered a blockbusting adventure. Writer Russell T Davies warned that Wild Blue Yonder was “weird”. Leading man David Tennant said it was “shocking… unlike any episode ever”. They weren’t wrong. This was a deeply creepy, dazzlingly creative hour of teatime TV.

A witty prologue saw the Tardis crash-land in an apple tree, circa 1666. A certain physicist happened to be sitting beneath it. The Doctor greeted him as “Sir Isaac Newton” before correcting himself and losing the honorific. The colour-blind casting of Nathaniel Curtis, the half-Indian actor best known for starring in Davies’ It’s A Sin, could rattle a few cages. The Doctor (Tennant) and Donna (Catherine Tate) were far more concerned with the fact that the influential polymath was “hot”. They left him with the made-up word “mavity” as a parting gift. He’ll get there eventually.

The main meat of the story took place on a seemingly empty spaceship at the edge of the universe. Except this is sci-fi, where spaceships are rarely really empty. Lying in wait was “something so bad that the Tardis ran away”: two shape-shifting, war-mongering lifeforms which morphed into doppelgängers of the Doctor and Donna, planning to steal the Tardis and wreak intergalactic havoc. Like Newton said: “Odd bodkins! What the devil?”

As their physical forms settled, they sprouted long arms, slack jaws and vampiric teeth. They ran on all fours, grew to outlandish size, got stuck in corridors and melted into puddles. Unsettling and strange, they referenced horror films from Invasion of The Body Snatchers to Jordan Peele’s Us.

The design team faced a challenge bringing to life what Davies had written on the page. They rose to it. The show’s new distribution deal with Disney brings a boosted budget, which was visible in the fully realised spacecraft and Hollywood-worthy visual effects. These were supplemented by fine physical acting by Tennant and Tate, playing their own doubles in eerie style.

When they finally returned to Earth, they were greeted by Wilfred Mott (the late Bernard Cribbins), now wheelchair-bound but still a doughty warrior. Cribbins filmed scenes last year before his death. The Doctor spoke for us all when he beamed: “Now nothing is wrong. Nothing in the whole wide world. Hello, my old soldier.”

For all the hype-building talk of shocking weirdness, this was Doctor Who boiled down to its essence. The Timelord and his loyal companion, landing somewhere mysterious, finding themselves in trouble. No big cast nor political preaching. Just a rollicking yarn in a confined setting with scary monsters. A back-to-basics “base under siege” adventure with a whopping twist.

Tennant was funny and fizzingly charismatic, revelling in his chemistry with Tate. There was warm bickering, clever wordplay and dark hints of the Doctor being haunted by his origins. Their reunited double act feels nostalgic yet thrillingly new – perfect for marking the show’s 60th anniversary, before launching its new era.

We now await next Saturday’s climactic special The Giggle, which marks the return of classic villain The Toymaker (now played by Neil Patrick Harris) – and presumably ends with Tennant’s regeneration into the 15th Doctor (long-term replacement Ncuti Gatwa). In just two episodes, Davies has restored our faith in family-friendly sci-fi. This was a jaw-dropping, joyous injection of sheer Saturday night magic.

Doctor Who says Sir Isaac Newton 'was so hot' in hint at his sexuality

Liz Perkins
Sat, 2 December 2023 

David Tennant, back in the Tardis, has made a hint about the doctor's sexuality

He has travelled across time and space but in his latest adventure, the Doctor has revealed a previously unseen dimension to his character in saying he finds Sir Isaac Newton “hot.”

David Tennant, who has stepped back into the Tardis to be the 14th doctor for three Doctor Who anniversary specials, made the hint about his sexuality in a remark to Catherine Tate, who returns as his assistant Donna Noble.

They have been asked to make a comeback to mark the 60th anniversary of the hit show, after originally starring together in 2005, which David previously described as an “unexpected treat.”

Sir Isaac Newton was ‘hot’

In the exchange seen by viewers on Saturday night, Donna said: “Is it just me or was Isaac Newton hot?”

And the Doctor replied: “He was, wasn’t he? He was so hot. Oh! Is that who I am now?”

Donna added: “Well, it was never too far from the surface, mate. I always thought you...”

Award-winning Russell T Davies, who was the creator and the sole writer of Queer as Folk, has returned as the showrunner to mark the special anniversary.

He is credited with turning the series into a worldwide hit after returning in 2005.
Show moving into new areas

Ahead of the show being screened, he said: “It’s set far away from Earth. It’s a bit weird, it’s scary, it’s freaky, it pushes the show into areas it’s never quite been into before.”

The programme in the official synopsis is described as “The Tardis takes the Doctor and Donna to the furthest edge of adventure. To escape, they must face the most desperate fight of their lives, with the fate of the universe at stake.”

The Doctor Who: Wild Blue Yonder show saw the Tardis crash-land in an apple tree, circa 1666, and on his return to Earth, the Doctor was greeted by Bernard Cribbins, who played Donna’s grandfather, Wilf.

David Tennant previously revealed Cribbins was making his final appearance in the poignant episode. The actor died in July last year.

BBC Studios are partnering with Bad Wolf to produce the series.

UK
Police ‘surrounded’ by protesters at pro-Palestinian march in London

Janet Eastham
Sat, 2 December 2023 

The Metropolitan Police said it had arrested a man for a racially aggravated public order offence in Brixton, and another, a teenager, on suspicion of criminal damage

Police were “surrounded” by demonstrators and prevented from leaving after making two arrests at a pro-Palestinian march in south London.

The arrests came as Liz Truss, the former prime minister, claimed on Fox News that people are being allowed to “demonstrate in favour of terrorists”.

The Metropolitan Police said it had arrested a man for a racially aggravated public order offence in Brixton, and another, a teenager, on suspicion of criminal damage.


The protest in Brixton was one of dozens taking place across the country on Saturday in a day of action organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC).

The group is demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war after fighting resumed on Friday and said its primary motivation was concern over further civilian casualties.

Police talk to protesters at the demonstration in Brixton - Peter Marshall/Alamy Live News

The Met declined to provide details about the content of the placard it deemed to be potentially “racially aggravating”, but numerous posters on display during weekly pro-Palestinian marches have been described as anti-Semitic by campaign groups.

The force said protesters obstructed their route as they attempted to leave the Windrush Square, a pedestrianised area in the centre of Brixton, having arrested the first man.

In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, the force said: “When officers tried to leave the area, their vehicle was surrounded by other protesters. Some sat in the road blocking their path. Additional officers were deployed and the arrested man is now on his way to custody.”

Turning onto Saltoun Road, the police van was again stopped by protesters and a male teenager was arrested for criminal damage to the vehicle. A spokesman for the Met said that “a number of people tried to obstruct the police van as it drove off. They were moved out of the way by officers”.

The force had been criticised for being “too soft” at initial marches in the capital. However, last weekend it warned demonstrators that it would take incitement to violence or racist language far more seriously.

Officers handed out leaflets to provide “absolute clarity” on what was deemed an offence, while Arabic-speaking officers were deployed to pick out offensive chants and images in the crowd.

The protest in Brixton was one of dozens taking place across the country on Saturday - Peter Marshall/Alamy Live News

In response to the resumption of hostilities in Gaza, protesters gathered at rallies and vigils across the UK and Ireland on Saturday. While the marches were largely peaceful, protesters across the country continued to chant slogans condemned by many as anti-Semitic.

On the streets of Dublin, some marchers called for an “intifada”, while at Plashet Park in East Ham, east London, there were chants accusing Israel of being a “terrorist state”.

Ms Truss, who has been on a trip to the United States as part of a delegation with the Conservative Friends of Ukraine, claimed the protests showed the “woke Left” would “rather support authoritarian regimes” than the West.

She said: “On the streets of London, I see people demonstrating in favour of terrorists, and that being allowed to happen.

“They are about saying: ‘The way of life that we have in Britain or America, that is not the right way of life. Actually, we would rather support terrorists, we’d rather support authoritarian regimes.’”

Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader who has previously refused to condemn Hamas as terrorists, appeared as the keynote speaker at a Stop the War Coalition event in east London.

Journalists attending the “Freedom for Palestine; Imperialism, War and the Middle East” were told the meeting at a small conference centre was not open to them.

Pro-Palestinian protesters block police cars as two arrested at rally in Brixton

Sky News
Updated Sat, 2 December 2023


Two people have been arrested at a pro-Palestinian protest in Brixton, south London.

People sat in the road blocking the path of the police cars carrying the arrested protesters, the Metropolitan Police said.

One man was arrested because of the placard he was carrying - police said he was detained "on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence".

Police did not release details of what the placard said.

Met Police said on X, formerly Twitter: "When officers tried to leave the area their vehicle was surrounded by other protesters. Some sat in the road blocking their path.

"Additional officers were deployed and the arrested man is now on his way to custody."

A male teenager was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage of a police vehicle.

People again tried to block the police van as it drove off and were moved out of the way by officers, police said.

Read more from Sky News:
What does jihad mean and why isn't it illegal to chant the word?

Last weekend police handed out leaflets to pro-Palestinian protesters warning them about potential criminal offences.

The leaflet warns against using "words or images that are racist or incite hatred against any faith", that "support Hamas or any other banned organisation" or "that celebrate or promote acts of terrorism - such as the killing or kidnap of innocent people".

"If in any doubt bin any placard or sign that might break these rules," it says.

The leaflet also tells those attending to check if any restrictions are in place and warns: "Don't cause fear or be violent, including using flares or fireworks, or using threatening words or aggressive behaviours that could be considered intimidating.

"Don't deface or damage statues, monuments or other property."

Pro-Palestinians being ‘allowed to march in favour of terrorists’, Liz Truss claims

Patrick Daly
Sat, 2 December 2023 

Liz Truss has claimed people are being “allowed” to demonstrate “in favour of terrorists” as more pro-Palestinian marches take place across the UK on Saturday.

In an extraordinary interview with right-wing broadcaster Fox News, the former prime minister also claimed “trans extremists and eco extremists” would rather support authoritarian regimes than the “Anglo-American” way of life.

Her interview came as the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) has arranged a country-wide “day of action” to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

Fighting has resumed between Tel Aviv and the Palestinian military group following a week-long truce that allowed hostages being held in Gaza to be released, along with Palestinian prisoners who had been incarcerated in Israel.

There are fears of further civilian casualties after Israel dropped leaflets on Friday warning residents to leave the southern part of the strip where two million people — almost the entire Gazan population — are based.

On the streets of London, I see people demonstrating in favour of terrorists, and that being allowed to happen  

Liz Truss, former prime minister

The conflict, sparked by Hamas’s deadly assault on Israel on October 7, has led to regular protests in support of the Palestinians in the UK since the bloodshed started. The protests split opinion within government, with sacked home secretary Suella Braverman describing them as “hate marches” while former cabinet colleagues such as justice secretary Alex Chalk publicly distanced themselves from her comments.

But former PM Ms Truss, who has been on a trip to the US this week with the Conservative Friends of Ukraine, claimed the protests showed the “woke left” would “rather support authoritarian regimes” than the West.

Speaking to the right-wing US broadcaster Fox News while in Washington DC, the Conservative MP said: “On the streets of London, I see people demonstrating in favour of terrorists, and that being allowed to happen.

“And you’ve got the trans extremists, the eco extremists, the anti-capitalists, the degrowth-ers.

“They are about saying, ‘The way of life that we have in Britain or America, that is not the right way of life.

“‘Actually, we would rather support terrorists, we’d rather support authoritarian regimes’.”

Former home secretary Suella Braverman had branded the protests “hate marches” before she was sacked by the Prime Minister.

Rishi Sunak, who succeeded Ms Truss after the fallout from her disastrous mini-budget led to her becoming Britain’s shortest-serving prime minister, is reportedly looking to tighten the law to make it easier to ban marches and prosecute those glorifying terrorism.

More than 80 people have been charged in the UK over alleged hate crimes and violence linked to pro-Palestinian protests since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict.


There has been controversy about those on the marches chanting the phrase “from the river to the sea”, which critics have claimed is antisemitic, while some attendees have been accused of showing support for Hamas.

The militant organisation is proscribed as a terror group in the UK and support for it is banned.

Former No 10 incumbent Ms Truss said anti-Western sentiment was “not the view of the vast majority” of Britons and that her constituents in South West Norfolk were “frustrated” that such ideology “is not being taken on enough by Conservatives”.

“This is why we need Conservative leadership to actually take on the leftists, show strength in the face of aggressors abroad, so that we can revive the values that most people in our societies are desperate for,” she said.

“They believe in family, they believe in freedom, they believe in Anglo-American values.

“The problem is that so much of the public debate is now dominated by the woke left.

“You can see that here in Washington DC, you can see that in London, you can see that right across Europe.”

Pro-Palestinian protesters are expected to gather across the UK, with the PSC arranging ceasefire rallies and vigils in places such as London, Cardiff, Hull and Coventry.

Israel pounded targets on Saturday in the southern Gaza Strip as it pursues Hamas targets following the resumption of violence.

Most Gazans are in the area after Israel urged people to relocate there at the war’s start, a move that left three-quarters of the population displaced and facing widespread shortages of food, water and other supplies.

In a move that appears to hint that the Israel Defence Forces plans to extend its ground assault, Palestinians are being urged to move out of the south.

Unable to go into the battleground of north Gaza or neighbouring Egypt, their only escape is to move around within the 85 sq mile area.

Lord Ricketts, who served as the UK’s first national security adviser, said Israel is in danger of causing “massive civilian casualties” if it takes the fight to Hamas in southern Gaza.

The peer told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “They’ve got an increasing dilemma.

“They ordered a million people from the north to leave into the south.

“They now have two million people there, many of them displaced, many of them living out in the open.

“They simply can’t use the same kind of armoured all-out assault that they used in the north without massive civilian casualties.”

He said Tel Aviv’s plan to destroy Hamas “seems to me to be impossible” due to the political and social nature of the organisation.

UK

Civil servants ‘trying to block’ Sunak’s Rwanda legislation

Will Hazell
Sat, 2 December 2023 

The Prime Minister reportedly hopes to finalise plans for a new illegal migration bill by the end of Monday - GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Civil servants are trying to block Rishi Sunak’s legislation to deem Rwanda a safe country to deport asylum seekers to, it has been claimed.

Sources have claimed that Whitehall feels “institutionally bound” to raise concerns about proposals to disapply elements of the Human Rights Act from the Rwanda scheme.

It comes amid heated discussions in Government about how far the Bill should go, with Conservative MPs on the Right of the party claiming that the legislation will fail unless it also disapplies the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

The Telegraph understands that Victoria Prentis, the Attorney General, has been opposing such a move, arguing that using “notwithstanding” clauses to circumvent the ECHR would be unlawful.

After losing at the Supreme Court last month, Mr Sunak wants to get deportation flights off the ground by passing legislation that will declare Rwanda a safe country.

The Government has also been negotiating a treaty with Rwanda that would commit the country not to deport asylum seekers to third countries – one of the chief concerns raised by the court.

The Telegraph understands that the treaty could be finalised this week, with the Home Secretary on standby for a flight to Rwanda to sign the deal.


However, debate is still ongoing about how expansive Mr Sunak’s legislation should be. Under one plan – dubbed the “semi-skimmed” option – the UK’s Human Rights Act would be officially disapplied in relation to the safety of Rwanda.

Sources have claimed that ministers are facing resistance in Whitehall to such a policy in the form of questions repeatedly being raised around its legitimacy, conflicting advice and attempts to dissuade ministers.

The Prime Minister is expected to finalise his plan by the end of Monday, meaning that it could potentially be signed off by ministers at Tuesday’s weekly Cabinet meeting.

However, senior Tories have expressed concerns that if he chooses the semi-skimmed option it may be too “limited” to resist legal claims against deportation.

Some MPs on the Right of the party are pushing for a “full-fat” option – believed to be supported by Robert Jenrick, the Immigration Minister – that would use notwithstanding clauses to set aside the whole of the Human Rights Act, the ECHR and other international conventions.

But this hardline approach is being resisted by the Attorney General and Tory centrists.
‘The most appallingly adverse reaction’

The Telegraph understands that Mrs Prentice has argued that notwithstanding clauses would be unlawful and previously blocked them when they were proposed by Suella Braverman, the former home secretary.

Mrs Prentis is also strongly opposed to the idea of withdrawing from the ECHR altogether.

In conversations with Conservative MPs she has said that leaving the ECHR would require the Government to reopen the Northern Ireland Protocol Brexit deal, with any new agreement with the EU requiring every member state to ratify it.

A former cabinet minister on the Tory Right claimed that Mrs Prentice was “wrong in law” on the use of notwithstanding clauses.

The MP said there would be “huge concern” if Mr Sunak’s Bill did not include the clauses.

“If we can’t utilise the Rwanda policy – and we won’t be able to if we don’t block off all the obstacles through notwithstanding clauses – then there will be the most appallingly adverse reaction from Conservative voters,” they said.

“Bearing in mind that we’re now on average more than 20 points behind in the polls, I think that lots of MPs simply won’t put up with that.”

Another senior Tory warned that Mr Sunak faced the prospect of a leadership challenge if he was seen to deliver weak legislation that was unlikely to fix the problem or reassure the public.

Concerned MPs on the Right were generally backbenchers rather than ministers and “more likely to do something” than centrist parliamentarians nervous about changes involving the ECHR and Human Rights Act, they said.

Writing for The Telegraph, the veteran backbencher Sir Bill Cash – a proponent of notwithstanding clauses – said the issue was about “the will of the voters and their trust in government” and that the public would “not excuse failure on illegal migration in yet another Bill”.

On Saturday night, Labour said that they believed that activity in the Channel on Saturday meant that the number of people crossing in small boats was likely to have met or exceeded the 28,526 recorded in 2021, making it the second highest year on record.

Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, said: “Rishi Sunak claimed he would stop the small boats this year but instead this weekend’s figures are set to make it the second highest year of crossings on record, the Tory asylum chaos is continuing and he has broken another promise he made to the British people.

A source close to Mrs Prentis said she was focused on making the policy work and getting flights off the ground to Rwanda.

They indicated that the Attorney General would wait to see what any clause said before making a judgment about it.

‘That’s not resistance, that’s the job’

Dave Penman, the general secretary of the FDA civil servants’ union, hit back at claims that Whitehall mandarins had been obstructing the Rwanda plan.

He said: “The job of a civil servant is to give evidence-based frank advice to ministers and if ministers have got policies which will create difficulties, may fail legal challenges, then it’s the job of a civil servant to give that advice.

“That’s not resistance, that’s the job that they’re there to do.”

He went on: “It’s not civil servants that have stopped Rwanda happening. It’s the courts.

“We’ve just got people pointing fingers and trying to blame civil servants for the fact that their policy has significant flaws in it.”

He said the idea that there was “some kind of resistance movement within the Home Office” was “nonsensical”. “You wouldn’t go and work in the Home Office unless you knew you were going to be dealing with some pretty controversial things,” he said.

Mr Penman said briefing against civil servants by ministers was an “act of desperation”.

“What it shows is their policy is failing and the failure of their policy they want to blame on someone,” he added.

“If a civil servant does resist – genuinely resist and doesn’t do what they’re asked or refuses to implement a government decision – then name them.”

Liz Truss urges Government to protect Telegraph’s editorial independence

UAE CAN OWN UK FOOTBALL CLUB 

BUT NOT UK PRESS
Tony Diver
Sat, 2 December 2023 

Liz Truss has said it is vital that The Telegraph is able to publish freely - Dermot Tatlow for The Telegraph

Liz Truss has urged the Government to protect The Telegraph’s editorial independence amid growing concerns about a takeover of its titles by an Abu Dhabi-backed fund.

The former prime minister said it was vital that it was able to publish “freely” after ministers decided to launch a review of the deal amid fears of censorship and foreign interference.

In an interview with The Telegraph in Washington DC, Ms Truss also argued that the UK should work to prevent Gulf states becoming part of a growing global “axis of authoritarianism” led by Russia, China and Iran.

“I am a great supporter of the free press and I’ve always been a great supporter of the free press,” she said. “I want the Government to ensure that any ownership of the press enables them to freely publish according to what they believe to be the case.”

Ownership of The Telegraph is set to pass to RedBird IMI, an investment fund led by Jeff Zucker, the former CNN boss, and backed by Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of the UAE’s royal family.

The fund has issued a £600 million loan to the Barclay family, who have owned Telegraph Media Group since 2004, to repay a debt to Lloyds Banking Group. IMI, an Abu Dhabi vehicle, is lending them an additional £600m to repay other debts to the bank. Under the deal, the first loan will be converted into shares of The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine.

However, Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, last week temporarily blocked the fund from taking control of The Telegraph while she carries out a review.

Her decision came after a dozen Conservative MPs, including Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former Tory leader, and Alicia Kearns, the chairman of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote to the Government requesting a review. They warned of a “very real potential national security threat” if the deal went ahead.

Liz Truss is in Washington DC to discuss foreign policy with wavering Republican congressmen who have threatened to end security assistance from the US to Ukraine - Dermot Tatlow for The Telegraph

In her interview with The Telegraph, Ms Truss said the UK must try and prevent the UAE from being drawn into an alliance with hostile foreign states, including Russia and China.

Citing the rise of the USSR during the Cold War, she said: “What worries me is that we have this axis of authoritarian regimes trying to build their influence around the world, and what we need to do is show strength. That is both economic strength, military strength and moral strength.

“We need to attract other countries who are not part of that axis to align with the West and to align with our values. No country is perfect. And if you only had allies that perfectly subscribe to every value that we hold dear in Britain, you wouldn’t have that many allies. So we need to reach out, in my view, to countries and persuade them.”

Ms Truss is visiting Washington DC to discuss foreign policy with wavering Republican congressmen, who have threatened to end security assistance from the US to Ukraine.

She said wars in Ukraine and Israel and concerns over Taiwan were part of the same conflict of democracies against “authoritarian dictators”.

“These are not multiple wars – this is the same war,” she added. “This is a war against freedom and democracy and our way of life. That’s what it is, and we should see it as such. If you look at Israel, or you look at Ukraine, or you look at Taiwan, these are free democracies that are neighbours to autocracies.

“We need to give our full support to the Israeli government. No ifs, no buts. I don’t want to see double standards applied, that Israel is held to different standards than other countries.

“They are a free democracy in a part of the world where free democracies are rare and the heinous crimes, the rape, the brutality, the kidnapping of children that has taken place is truly horrific.”

Ms Truss called on the US to do more to support Ukraine in the coming months as the country faces a winter air offensive from Russian forces, saying: “What I would like to see is more of the weapons that will help Ukraine actually win being provided. So the long-range weapons, for example, the mine-clearing equipment, for example.

“Planes, as well, would be extremely helpful to enable the Ukrainians to actually have the wherewithal to win the war, rather than just maintaining the status quo.”

Responding to the UK Supreme Court’s decision last month to declare the Government’s Rwanda migrant deportation policy unlawful, Ms Truss said Rishi Sunak should legislate to circumvent the European Court of Human Rights.

Asked whether she supported the Government’s plan to pass a law to allow the flights to go ahead, she replied: “I’ll wait to see the legislation.”

Culture Secretary blocks Abu Dhabi fund from seizing Telegraph during investigation

James Warrington
Fri, 1 December 2023 

Lucy Frazer's most recent order blocks any changes being made to Telegraph management or the removal of key editorial staff - Yui Mok/PA Wire

The Culture Secretary has blocked an Abu Dhabi-backed fund from taking control of The Telegraph while she carries out a review of a proposed takeover deal.

Lucy Frazer today issued a “hold separate” order that prohibits ownership of the newspaper from being transferred to RedBird IMI.

The move, known formally as an interim enforcement order, also prevents the group from merging The Telegraph with any other entity and blocks any changes in management or the removal of key editorial staff.

The order is designed to prevent actions by the bidders that might impede the Government’s ability to review the transaction.

Under the terms of the proposed deal, RedBird IMI will provide a £1.2bn loan that allows the Barclay family to repay debts to Lloyds Banking Group, releasing The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine from receivership.

Roughly half this loan would then be converted into ownership of the two titles. However, the hold separate order ensures this second phase of the transaction cannot go ahead until the review is completed.

It comes after Ms Frazer yesterday intervened in the takeover amid concerns about censorship and foreign state ownership.

The Culture Secretary issued a Public Interest Intervention Notice (PIIN), triggering investigations by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and media regulator Ofcom.

Manchester City owner and UAE vice-president Sheikh Mansour has provided three quarters of RedBird IMI’s funding - Martin Rickett

RedBird IMI is a joint venture between RedBird, a US private equity firm, and International Media Investments (IMI), an Abu Dhabi vehicle backed by the Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan.

IMI is providing 75pc of the £600m price for The Telegraph and The Spectator, while the bid is being fronted by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker.

The proposed deal has sparked concerns given the UAE’s authoritarian leadership and track record of press censorship.

Senior figures including Lord Hague have called for the deal to be blocked, while Tory MPs this week wrote to Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden urging him to intervene on national security grounds.

RedBird IMI has said it is willing to make legally binding undertakings to ensure editorial independence, with the UAE remaining a fully passive investor.

But in a letter to the group yesterday, officials said Ms Frazer felt further investigation was needed “given the limited information she has seen and the lack of detail about the proposals”.

Ofcom will examine the impact of the deal on the need for accurate presentation of news and free expression of opinion in newspapers, while the CMA will look at potential competition issues.

Both watchdogs have opened a call for evidence allowing interested parties to comment over the coming fortnight. They must report back to the Culture Secretary by Jan 26.

Rival suitors, whose bids were derailed by the complex loan-funded deal, are expected to lobby against the UAE-backed takeover in their responses.

They include a consortium led by the hedge fund founder Sir Paul Marshall and DMGT, the publisher of The Daily Mail.

In a statement on Thursday, a spokesman for RedBird IMI said: “We welcome the opportunity to provide the Government with the information needed to scrutinise our deal, and we will continue to cooperate fully with the Government and regulator throughout this process.

“RedBird IMI remains entirely committed to maintaining the existing editorial team of The Telegraph and Spectator publications and believes that editorial independence for these titles is essential to protecting their reputation and credibility.”

John Lennon: Murder Without a Trial, review: startling eye-witness accounts heard for the first time

Anita Singh
Sat, 2 December 2023 

John Lennon with his son Sean in 1977 - Vinnie Zuffante/Archive Photos

Everyone over the age of 50 remembers where they were when they heard the news that John Lennon had been shot. For a handful of people, that day remains horribly vivid because they were there. The concierge and porter of the Dakota building, the first police officers on the scene, and the doctor and nurses who tended to a dying Lennon at the Roosevelt Hospital all present their recollections in John Lennon: Murder Without a Trial (Apple TV+).

It is remarkable to listen to these first-hand accounts, so vivid and detailed despite the passage of more than 40 years. There is a danger that documentaries like these can be little more than true-crime titillation, but here there is a sense that those present wanted history to be recorded. The concierge, Jay Hastings, has never spoken publicly before. Asked why he is doing so now, he replies: “Time’s passed. We’re on the record. Once and done.” Also speaking on-camera for the first time are Richard Peterson, a cab driver who witnessed the shooting, and Dr Naomi Goldstein, the psychiatrist who assessed shooter Mark Chapman.

Other contributors to the first episode include two police officers who were first on the scene and the doctor who spent 45 minutes massaging Lennon’s heart before accepting that it was futile. The documentary takes us minute by minute through that night, and the witnesses describe their moment of realisation that this gunshot victim was one of the most famous men in the world. “It hit me,” says one of the cops, as he remembers kneeling down to check for a pulse. “I said, ‘Holy smokes, this is John Lennon’.”

The three-part documentary, narrated by Kiefer Sutherland, weaves in archive footage and news coverage of the case, which helps to illustrate the huge impact of this story back in 1980. Episode two focuses on the police investigation and episode three on the trial, and the focus in both of these is Chapman. The programme weighs up whether he was legally insane, as his defence claimed. His former lawyer and the lead detective on the case argue both sides. And we hear from Chapman himself, in previously unheard recordings made in prison, giving various explanations as to why he did it.

The list of contributors is impressive and the researchers have done a sterling job, although it is never explained if Yoko Ono was asked or declined to appear. There is one count on which the documentary feels on shaky ground; its toying with conspiracy theories. It is legitimate to mention these, and it is a fact that the FBI considered Lennon to be a threat due to his anti-war stance.

The theory that Chapman had been under the influence of MK-Ultra mind control has been around for decades. But the way these things are addressed – and conspiracy is trailed in the opening minutes – adds a slightly sensationalist tone, and the theories are soon cast aside without thought.

Witnesses to John Lennon’s murder speak for first time

Anita Singh
Sat, 2 December 2023 

John Lennon’s last words have been disclosed in a new documentary which also features a recording of Mark Chapman discussing his motive.

The series, John Lennon: Murder Without A Trial, includes interviews with witnesses to the shooting on 8 December 1980 and its aftermath, and looks at the conspiracy theories that sprung up.

The concierge of Manhattan’s Dakota building, where Lennon was shot as he returned home, speaks publicly about that night for the first time and says the former Beatle said, “I’m shot,” before collapsing. In another first, audio recordings of Mark Chapman speaking to his lawyers as he awaited trial are heard.

Asked by his legal team why he shot Lennon, Chapman refers to the Beatles song when he says, ‘All You Need Is Love, have you ever heard that? Well, this is what I say to that: all you need is love and 250 million dollars. He was the biggest, phoniest bastard that ever lived.”

Barbara Kammerer and Deartra Sato, first responder nurses to Lennon - CHP

The first police responders on the scene also speak to the documentary, along with the doctor who treated Lennon at the Roosevelt Hospital and the nurse who broke the news of the star’s death to his wife, Yoko Ono.

The title of the series refers to the fact that Chapman pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on the eve of his trial. He was sentenced to at least 20 years in prison and has repeatedly been denied parole.

The series director, Nick Holt, said: “I felt that a lot of people directly involved in the case were getting on a bit now and if we didn’t capture and gather them into a series, their testimony would be lost forever.”

The producer

Lennon spent his final hours at a recording studio where he had begun work on a new single. Jack Douglas, his producer, tells the documentary: “He was on top of the world. The last I saw of him was getting in the elevator. As the elevator door was closing, he was standing right in front of me with this big smile. He was so happy about how everything was going. It had been a glorious day and he just said to me, ‘I’ll see you in the morning, 8am.’ Happy as a lark.”

The taxi driver

Cab driver Richard Peterson was parked outside the Dakota and witnessed the shooting. “Lennon was walking in and this kid says, ‘John Lennon.’ He was a chunky guy. I’m looking at him through the front window of my cab. I’m looking at him shoot him. This guy just shot John Lennon.

“I thought they were making a movie, but I didn’t see no lights or cameras or anything so I realised, hey, this ain’t no movie.”

The concierge

Jay Hastings, who worked on the front desk at the Dakota building, heard Lennon’s last words. “He runs past me. He goes, ‘I’m shot.’ He had blood coming out of his mouth. He just collapsed on the floor. I half rolled him to his back and took his glasses off, put them on the desk. And Yoko was screaming, ‘Get an ambulance, get an ambulance, get an ambulance.’”

The police officers

NYPD officer Peter Cullen arrested Chapman, who had remained at the scene clutching a copy of The Catcher In The Rye. “We put the cuffs on him and it was strange: there was no resistance at all. He actually apologised to us. He said, ‘Gee, I’m sorry you guys, I ruined your night.’ I says, ‘You gotta be kidding me. You know you just ruined your whole life?’”

Herb Frauenberger, another NYPD officer, tended to Lennon: “Somebody is yelling, ‘There’s a guy shot back here.’ So we go in and the first thing I see is a man laying on the floor. I turned his head just a little bit so I could try to feel for his pulse, and he had a very faint pulse… and then it hit me. I said, ‘Holy smokes, this is John Lennon.’”

The medical staff

Dr David Halleran treated Lennon when he was rushed into the emergency room at Roosevelt Hospital. “I go running down there and they say, ‘We have a gunshot wound.’ We’re working on him, pumping his heart, and it’s like, ‘My God, that is John Lennon.’

“Your hands are on the heart and you’re squeezing it - just keep pumping. The hope is that you get some flicker of life and unfortunately it was just not enough. I think the total time was about 45 minutes before it became futile and we called it and stopped… You feel like you failed.”

Richard Peterson, taxi driver, in John Lennon: Murder Without A Trial - CHP

Barbara Kammerer, a nurse, went to break the news to Ono: “She knelt down and I knelt down next to her. She had her arms around me and I kept reiterating that he wasn’t in pain, he was not scared. Then Yoko said, ‘I have to get home. I have to see my son.’ She did not want him to hear it on the radio or TV.”

As staff walked out of the room where Lennon lay dead, another nurse says, the ‘muzak’ playing over the hospital system was ‘Imagine.’

The family friend

Elliot Mintz visited Yoko the day after the shooting. He recalled: “Yoko was barely there. She stared at the television for a while; although the sound was off it was only showing one thing over and over and over again. We heard the singing [by fans who had gathered on the street below]. Although we were on the top floor we heard it very very clearly. And then she looked at me and said, ‘Why would that man do that?’

“I’ve never expressed this before, [but] one of the things that Yoko asked me was to look into the various theories, the conspiracy theories, after John’s murder. The two of them were convinced that their apartment was being bugged.”

The psychiatrist

Dr Naomi Goldstein was tasked with assessing Chapman’s sanity and ability to stand trial. She said: “He showed so many different facades - he could be nasty, he could be sweet, he was difficult. He tried to avoid giving straight answers.” But she said that “nothing remotely psychotic came out of him, no evidence of hallucinations or delusions,” and concluded that he was fit to stand trial.”

The lawyer

David Suggs, one of Chapman’s lawyers, maintains that he was legally insane. “It was weird because you could talk to him at times and he would seem pretty normal and then, wham, out of his mouth in the next instant would come something that was just so out of left-field you realised, ‘Oh, yeah, he’s crazy.’”

The audio recording

The documentary includes tapes of Chapman explaining his actions to his legal team. In one, he says: “Well, this is kind of a crazy thought but I thought I would turn into somebody if I killed somebody… you know that book [JD Salinger’s] The Catcher In The Rye? I had that book on me and I thought I would turn into the character in the book… Holden Caulfield… It is my sincere belief that I killed John Lennon to get as many people as possible to read The Catcher in the Rye.”

Later he uses Caulfield’s favourite criticism - “phoniness” - when he says: “Here’s what I say about John Lennon. ‘All you need is love’, have you ever heard that? Well, this is what I say to that: all you need is love and 250 million dollars. He was the biggest, phoniest bastard that ever lived. I wasn’t about to let the world endure 10 more years of his menagerie of bull—-.”

The pastor

Charles McGoan, a pastor at Chapman’s church, still visits him in prison. He said: “He’s paid a bigger penalty than a lot of people realise because he’s having to live in isolation in prison. He can’t even go to chapel services because of fear of harm to him from other prisoners. If he’d shot somebody who wasn’t famous, I don’t think he’d be in prison today. He shot the wrong man.”

‘She sacrificed care home residents’: health chief Jenny Harries under fire after UK Covid inquiry revelations

Michael Savage Policy Editor
Sat, 2 December 2023 


The head of the UK Heath Security Agency is facing a growing backlash after it emerged she suggested that discharging Covid-infected hospital patients to care homes would be “clinically appropriate” to protect the NHS from collapse.

Care home providers and the families of those who died after contracting Covid while in residential care said the revelations confirmed their suspicions at the time, adding that it disproved the claim of ministers to have thrown a “protective ring” around the homes.

It comes after the disclosure of an email from Dame Jenny Harries, then England’s deputy chief medical officer, sent in March 2020 as Covid was unfolding. In a message to health officials, she said that discharging care home residents from hospital would have to happen if there was exponential growth of Covid – and acknowledged the move would be criticised by the families involved.

“Whilst the prospect is perhaps what none of us would wish to plan for, I believe the reality will be that we will need to discharge Covid-19 positive patients into residential care settings for the reason you have noted,” she wrote. “This will be entirely clinically appropriate because the NHS will triage those to retain in acute settings who can benefit from that sector’s care. The numbers of people with disease will rise sharply within a fairly short timeframe and I suspect make this fairly normal practice, and more acceptable, but I do recognise that families and care homes will not welcome this in the initial phase.”

Appearing at the inquiry last week, Harries – who has since been promoted to run the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and given a damehood – conceded that the email “sounded awful”. However, she had been taking “a very, very high-level view” of what would need to happen if the NHS was overwhelmed with an “enormous explosion of cases”.

It has now provoked an angry response from families of those who died in care homes and from care providers who complained at the time that they had not been prioritised on a par with the NHS. “In the face of a virus that would go on to kill 230,000 people in this country, Jenny Harries was employed specifically to find a way to protect people and make the best of the situation,” said Deborah Doyle, spokesperson for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK.

“It’s clear that instead she took the ‘easiest’ and cruellest option of sacrificing care home residents, some of the most vulnerable people in the country. It was families like ours that paid the awful price for her failure and it’s absolutely disgraceful that she has since been promoted, made a dame and is head of the UKHSA.”

Prof Vic Rayner, chief executive of the National Care Forum, said the evidence heard so far “confirms the distressing experiences of our not-for-profit members, their staff, the people they supported and their relatives”. “On 19 March 2020, DHSC issued guidance to discharge people, regardless of testing status, into social care settings without ensuring that the necessary PPE, infection prevention control and clinical support was in place to keep everyone safe. Among the devastating revelations was confirmation that PPE paid for by social care providers was requisitioned by the NHS. The inquiry has laid bare that there was no ring of protection around care homes – instead decisions seemingly taken in abstraction of the reality of social care or available evidence were implemented with unforgettable consequences.”

Ministers are also facing political pressure over the revelations, with opposition parties stating that it now contradicts claims of prioritising care home safety. “The government said they were putting a protective ring around care homes, when in reality they were infecting care homes,” said Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary. Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem health spokesperson, said it was “simply staggering that the government knowingly spread Covid into care homes by allowing the discharge of patients with the virus”.

The UKHSA did not comment. However, an ally of Harries reiterated that she had been commenting on what would happen “if and only if” hospitals were overflowing with patients and the system had no other option.

• This article was amended on 2 December 2023 to clarify that Jenny Harries was deputy chief medical officer for England, not the whole of the UK.

Conservative Supreme Court justices seem open to an attack on the Securities and Exchange Commission

BY MARK SHERMAN
 November 29, 2023

WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservative Supreme Court justices on Wednesday seemed open to a challenge to how the Securities and Exchange Commission fights fraud, in a case that could have far-reaching effects on other regulatory agencies.

A majority of the nine-member court suggested that people accused of fraud by the SEC should have the right to have their cases decided by a jury in federal court, instead of by the SEC’s in-house administrative law judges.

The justices heard more than two hours of arguments in the Biden administration’s appeal of a lower-court ruling that threw out stiff financial penalties imposed on hedge fund manager George R. Jarkesy by the SEC, which regulates securities markets.

“That seems problematic to say that the government can deprive you of your property, your money, substantial sums in a tribunal that is at least perceived as not being impartial,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh said.

Senate Democrats authorize subpoenas in the Supreme Court ethics probe. GOP won’t back enforcement

Justice Department lawyer Brian Fletcher warned the justices that their decision could have effects reaching far beyond the SEC, noting that roughly two dozen agencies have similar enforcement schemes.

“I don’t want you to think it’s just about the SEC,” Fletcher said.

The case is just one of several this term in which conservative and business interests are urging the court to constrict federal regulators. The court’s six conservatives already have reined them in, including in May’s decision sharply limiting their ability to police water pollution in wetlands.

In the Jarkesy case, the Democratic administration is relying on a 50-year-old decision in which the court ruled that in-house proceedings did not violate the Constitution’s right to a jury trial in civil lawsuits.

But Chief Justice John Roberts, signaling his concerns with the power of federal regulators, noted that “the impact of governmental agencies on daily life today is enormously more significant than it was 50 years ago.”

The court’s three liberal justices seemed sympathetic to the Biden administration’s arguments. Justice Elena Kagan, responding to Roberts, said “our problems have only gotten more complicated and difficult.”

Later, Kagan said in-house enforcement actions have been close to routine for the past half-century. “Nobody has had the, you know, chutzpah, to quote my people,” said Kagan, who is Jewish.

Last year, a divided panel of the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Jarkesy and his Patriot28 investment adviser group on three issues.

It found that the SEC’s case against him, resulting in a $300,000 civil fine and the repayment of $680,000 in allegedly ill-gotten gains, should have been heard in a federal court instead of before one of the SEC’s administrative law judges.

Although the Supreme Court basically dealt only with the federal court issue, the appellate panel also said Congress unconstitutionally granted the SEC “unfettered authority” to decide whether the case should be tried in a court of law or handled within the executive branch agency. And it said laws shielding the commission’s administrative law judges from being fired by the president are unconstitutional.

Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod wrote the appellate opinion, joined by Judge Andrew Oldham. Elrod was appointed by President George W. Bush, and Oldham by President Donald Trump. Bush and Trump are Republicans.

Judge Eugene Davis, a nominee of President Ronald Reagan, also a Republican, dissented.

Jarkesy’s lawyers noted that the SEC wins almost all the cases it brings in front of the administrative law judges but only about 60% of cases tried in federal court.

The SEC was awarded more than $5 billion in civil penalties in the 2023 government spending year that ended Sept. 30, the agency said in a news release. It was unclear how much of that money came through in-house proceedings or lawsuits in federal court.

A decision in SEC v. Jarkesy, 22-859, is expected by early summer.

Protester critically injured after setting self on fire outside Israeli consulate in Atlanta

A protester was in critical condition Friday after setting themself on fire outside the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, authorities said. A security guard who tried to intervene was also injured. (Dec 01) (AP production Javier Arciga)

December 2, 2023

ATLANTA (AP) — A protester was in critical condition Friday after setting themself on fire outside the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, authorities said. A security guard who tried to intervene was also injured.

A Palestinian flag found at the scene was part of the protest, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said at a news conference.

He added that investigators did not believe there was any connection to terrorism and none of the consular staff was ever in danger.

“We do not see any threat here,” he said. “We believe it was an act of extreme political protest that occurred.”

Authorities did not release the protester’s name, age or gender. The person set up outside the building in the city’s midtown neighborhood on Friday afternoon and used gasoline as an accelerant, Atlanta Fire Chief Roderick Smith said.

The protester was in critical condition, with burn injuries to the body. A security guard that tried to stop the person was burned on his wrist and leg, Smith said.

Schierbaum said police are aware of heightened tensions in the Jewish and Muslim community and have stepped up patrols at certain locations, including the consulate.


Emergency personnel work the scene after a protester set themself on fire outside the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, Friday, Dec. 1, 2023.

 (Jason Getz/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Demonstrations have been widespread and tensions in the U.S. have escalated as the death toll rises in the Israel-Hamas war.

The conflict began after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas and other militants, who killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in southern Israel and took around 240 people captive. More than 15,200 people have been killed by Israel’s assault on Hamas-controlled Gaza, according to the Health Ministry there.

A weeklong cease-fire that brought the exchanges of dozens of hostages held by Hamas for scores of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel gave way Friday morning to resumed fighting between Israel and Hamas.

MORE INFO

 

Canadian mining company starts arbitration in case of closed copper mine in Panama

 December 1, 2023

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Canada’s First Quantum Minerals Ltd. announced Friday it has requested arbitration proceedings to fight a Panamanian decision to halt a major open-pit copper mine concession in Panama or obtain damages.

First Quantum said one arbitration was requested under the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement. It has also started proceedings before the International Court of Arbitration, which would meet in Miami, Florida, the company said in a statement.

In a historic ruling on Tuesday, Panama’s Supreme Court declared that legislation granting the mine a 20-year concession was unconstitutional. That decision was celebrated by thousands of Panamanians activists who had argued the project would damage a forested coastal area and threaten water supplies.

First Quantum said it requested arbitration from the international panel on Wednesday and that it had initiated proceedings under the free trade agreement even before the court ruling. It did not say what remedy or damages it was seeking, but did say it was open to talks.

First Quantum’s subsidiary, Cobre Panama, “reiterates that transparency and compliance with the law has always been fundamental for the development of its operations and remains open to constructive dialogue in order to reach consensus,” the company said.

The mine, which would be closed by the court ruling, has been an important economic engine for the country since the mine began large-scale production in 2019.

But moves this year to grant the company the 20-year concession triggered massive protests that paralyzed the Central American nation for over a month, mobilizing a broad swath of society, including Indigenous communities, who said the mine was destroying key ecosystems.

The company has said the mine generates 40,000 jobs, including 7,000 direct jobs, and that it contributes the equivalent of 5% of Panama’s GDP.

The firm said it would take time to properly close the mine.

“The Court’s decision does not take into account a planned and managed closure scenario, in which key environmental measures are required to be implemented to maintain the environmental safety of the site during this process,” including water treatment and the storage of mine tailings.

Panama two weeks ago received an initial payment of $567 million from First Quantum under the new contract that was finalized in October. Due to the legal dispute, the amount went directly to a restricted account.

The contract also stipulated that Panama would receive at least $375 million annually from the mining company, an amount that critics considered meager.

Cobre Panama published a scathing statement on Wednesday saying the Supreme Court decision will likely have a negative economic impact and warned that lack of maintenance of drainage systems in the mines could have “catastrophic consequences.”

The move also “puts at risk” all of Panama’s other business contracts, the company said.

VICTOR JARA

US expels an ex-Chilean army officer accused of a folk singer’s torture and murder

BY JOSHUA GOODMAN
 December 1, 2023

MIAMI (AP) — The U.S. has expelled a former Chilean Army officer accused of torturing and killing folk singer Victor Jara during the country’s bloody 1973 coup.

Pedro Barrientos had emigrated to Florida in 1990, the same year the bloody dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet came to an end.

This year, he was stripped of his U.S. citizenship after it was found he concealed information about his Chilean military service during his immigration proceedings.

Jara, a popular singer and university professor, was a fervent supporter of socialist President Salvador Allende. He was seized and taken to a Santiago stadium where thousands of prisoners were held only hours after Pinochet assaulted the presidential palace and overthrew Allende on Sept. 11, 1973. There, he was beaten and he was shot with at least 44 bullets — one of the first of more than 3,000 Chileans killed for opposing Pinochet’s iron-fisted rule.

Barrientos has always denied any involvement in Jara’s murder

But in 2016, a federal jury in Florida found him liable for the torture and killing of Jara in a civil lawsuit brought by Jara’s widow, the British dancer Joan Turner Jara.

Homeland Security Investigations said that Barrientos was removed Thursday on a flight from Miami and taken into custody by Chilean law enforcement officials upon his arrival in the South American country.