List of All Articles with Tag 'l'

With pumpkin season reaching a crescendo for Halloween celebrations (October 31), chances are you’re after a few spine-chilling party props to ward off evil spirits – and entertain friends and family. From decking out the house with ghoulish garlands, to casting a spell of witchcraft with candles and cushions, here’s what’s hot for a howling Halloween… 1. Black Twig Halloween Wreath with Bats, £22.49 (was £29.99), Halloween Garland Foliage Door Kit with Webbing & Hanging Bats, £52.49 (was £69.99), Ginger Ray. For a drop dead gorgeous doorscape, black twigs entwined with bats and framed by eerie foliage sets the scene for an evening of skulduggery. 2. Set of 3 Halloween Candle Lanterns, £5, (was £18), Studio. Don’t let your entrance hall be an afterthought… this terrifying trio can be styled on a staircase; otherwise place on a hallway table next to a trick or treat bucket of sweets and gruesome goodies. 3. Trick Or Treat Halloween Neon Wall Light, £59.99, Lights4fun. A standout light show is all part of the dramarama, and this neon flex features 190 orange LEDs which can be hooked up on a feature wall. Think a dedicated #halloweenbackdrop for costume parties. 4. Trick or Treat Mugs, £15 each, rest of items from a selection, Sophie Allport Whether it’s a witches brew, hauntingly good hot chocolate or pumpkin spice latte, these motif mugs are the perfect prop to elevate those warming drinks. 5. Pumpkin Ramekin, Cream, £10, Pumpkin Casserole Dish, £40, Set of 3 Paper Pumpkin Decorations, £10, rest of items from a selection, Next. From Halloween chili con carne with witches fingers (chipolata sausages topped with red peppers to resemble fingernails), to mini pumpkin pies, these dishes will dress up your tablescape. 6. Curzon Table Candle Holder, £28, rest of items from a selection, Garden Trading. Sometimes it only takes a striking centrepiece to steal the show… fill a Gothic-inspired candle holder with tapered orange candles and style with Halloween cupcakes. Job done. 7. LED Halloween Garland – Black, £11.99, Halloween Checkered Pumpkin, £2.99, rest of items from a selection, The Range. A fearsome fireplace is a great styling tool, but if you don’t have one, this garish garland can be draped along a windowsill or dining table. With skeletal hands, skulls and red roses, even the grim reaper might be on the guest list. 8. Very Home Set of 3 LED Slim Wax Candles Halloween Decoration, £11.99 (was £17.99), Very. Spooktacular black candles and cobwebs go hand in hand, and these tall pillars will cast shadows over dark and moody settings. 9. Happy Halloween Cushion – Black, £8.99, Hey Boo Embroidered Cushion, £8.99, Trick or Treat Cushion – White, £7.99, rest of items from a selection, The Range. Tailor-made for humorous Halloween settings, these scatter cushions are far from sinister. 10. Very Home Set of 4 Halloween LED Pumpkin Pathfinders, £10.99 (was £19.99), Very. To complete your costume drama, let trick or treaters be guided by these pumpkin pathfinders when darkness falls… and there’s only the light of the moon. Read More Black magic: Go back to black this season with the catwalk-inspired trend How to prep your home for when the clocks go back Menopause campaigner Mariella Frostrup: ‘I look forward to a future where women gradually stop feeling so ashamed’ More girls miss school and college due to their periods than colds, survey finds More girls miss school and college due to their periods than colds, survey finds How to look after your immune system as the weather changes

Egypt has agreed to allow aid trucks into Gaza as anger rises globally over Israel's siege of the isolated enclave in response to the brutal, coordinated Hamas attacks nearly two weeks ago.

Egyptian stocks rallied to fresh highs this week even as tensions escalated in the Middle East, as local

TOKYO Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's cabinet is set to approve a scheduled economic stimulus package on Nov.

Beijing is once again trying to have it both ways.

With her new world tour due to wrap up next April, sources say Madonna is already in serious negotiations to headline 2024’s Glastonbury festival.

Blink-182 bassist Mark Hoppus had to learn "how to play" again and "rebuild his throat" after his cancer battle.

'Killers of the Flower Moon' director Martin Scorsese had to stop Leonardo DiCaprio from improvising quite as much opposite Robert De Niro.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. projected quarterly revenue ahead of analysts estimates, reflecting expectations for an improved chip market

Call it a belated birthday present, perhaps. Sir Jim Ratcliffe turned 71 on Wednesday. For those who have amassed such riches, it is less a question of what others buy them and more what they buy for themselves. And in Ratcliffe’s case, at a cost of £1.3bn, the answer may be a quarter of the club he has supported since he was a child in Failsworth. There are details to iron out and no deal will be finalised just yet but the Manchester United board will vote – though probably not on Thursday – whether to accept Ratcliffe’s offer. The petrochemicals billionaire has already seen off his main competitor: if there was a widespread assumption – one that may have been shared by the Glazer family – that Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani would dramatically raise a bid that many believed was financed by the Qatari state, it never happened. Ratcliffe has been a triumph of persistence and flexibility, amending his own offer from a majority to a minority stake, negotiating with the Glazers. It comes to something when a man of his wealth feels like the underdog but the outsider has prevailed. While Sheikh Jassim also presented himself as a United supporter and while Ratcliffe had attempted to buy Chelsea, the Ineos co-founder has the feel of the local boy made good. And, at points in the past, a place on a football club board would have felt a reward for many who matched that description. Now the sums are so massive that the motivations become most instructive. Thus far, the questions outnumber the definitive answers. Will United be a trophy asset for Ratcliffe? Perhaps not immediately, given that the Glazers will remain the biggest shareholders, at least in the short term. Is it simply an astute business deal? Not on the face of it, given that Ratcliffe has valued United at around double its market price and Sheikh Jassim felt the Glazers’ demands were outlandish. Yet Ratcliffe has proved he can make money: that 25 per cent could yet yield a profit and the Glazers’ reluctance to walk away seemed to stem in part from a belief the club will be worth more again in the future. The most pertinent issue for many supporters, who have long called for the Glazers to go, is whether it leads to a full takeover; and if so, whether the terms of Ratcliffe’s buy-in ensure it, or merely make it optional. Moreover, the new structure, assuming it is improved, does not necessarily promise the investment United require: with other parties holding 75 per cent of the club, Ratcliffe would have less incentive to put his own money in. The presumption at the moment is that the £1.3bn will largely go to the Glazers, not United. The general sense is the club need the money more than their owners. Sheikh Jassim’s promises will now never be tested but he had pledged to invest more than £1bn; with the need to either revamp or rebuild Old Trafford, any plans to improve the infrastructure the Glazers have neglected will not be cheap. So if Ratcliffe pursues such plans, will the debt – currently at £725m – rise over £1bn? United’s current scope for signings is limited more by Financial Fair Play than anything else, but could he bring an improvement in recruitment? The feeling is that Ratcliffe wants control of the football side of the club, where United’s underachievement has been particularly grievous in the last decade. Would that be beneficial? Given United’s record, it may be welcomed. Ratcliffe’s own record in sport is mixed: Nice are currently second in Ligue Un but their fortunes have fluctuated during his ownership and have been pockmarked by transfer-market missteps. Lausanne have been both relegated and promoted under Ratcliffe’s regime. He bought the most successful outfit in world cycling, then known as Team Sky; since rebranded as Ineos, but they have lost their pre-eminence and appear in an identity crisis. But if his initial emphasis is on the pitch – rather than the commercial side of the business the chief executive, Richard Arnold, oversees – there is an obvious focus on the director of football, John Murtough. Inside Old Trafford, there is already a recognition the team has achieved too little and their record in recruitment has been underwhelming since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. Some nevertheless feel that there is more structure and strategy since Ed Woodward handed over the reins: they can point to a new training centre for the women’s and academy teams, the appointment of Erik ten Hag, and a fine season last year. Yet a stumbling, stuttering start to this season, the struggles of several recent signings and the reality that around £400m has been spent in the last two summers feels ill-timed. Accusations United have overpaid are scarcely new but will it prompt Ratcliffe to seek change behind the scenes? The initial noises are that, despite the team’s slump, Ten Hag is seen as far more of a solution than a problem, though it would be instructive to know if that stance were maintained should the next 10 games bring another six defeats. Shifts in ownership do not always bode well for incumbent managers, whereas the Dutchman has enjoyed the backing of Murtough and the Glazers. Ten Hag always projects an air of confidence and decisiveness but many at Old Trafford could be forgiven for wondering what Ratcliffe’s investment means and what comes next. If it has scarcely helped United that they have lingered in limbo for 11 months, since the Glazers put the club up for sale, a boardroom vote could instead bring about a time of uncertainty. Read More The best in the world? Jude Bellingham sparks debate after latest England masterclass Man Utd set timeline to decide on Sir Jim Ratcliffe offer Manchester United Supporters’ Trust calls for ‘clarity’ in takeover process Man Utd manager fumes at Women’s Champions League format after exit Who will make Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Euro 2024? Michael O’Neill wants Shea Charles to learn from dismissal on frustrating night

Despite admitting the ‘Venom’ star was one of the friendliest people on set before cameras roll, Austin Butler has said Tom Hardy is one of the most “intense” actors he’s ever seen at work when action is called.

A Marine suspected of involvement in the death of another Marine was taken into custody at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, Wednesday night, the base said in a statement.