Hannah Auckland

A practical packing guide for students moving into Liverpool university accommodation recommends 15 items to improve convenience, socialising, health, storage and comfort. Key suggestions include an extension cable, door stop, mirror, portable charger, first-aid kit, reusable food containers, storage boxes and fancy dress, while students are advised to check which appliances their halls already provide.

The guide outlines alumni benefits available to graduates of five Liverpool-area institutions. The University of Liverpool offers postgraduate and PhD tuition discounts, global networking, lifelong careers support, library access and leisure or hotel deals. LIPA provides access to an international creative-industry network and tailored career support, while Liverpool John Moores University offers a 20 per cent postgraduate tuition discount for every year of a course. Edge Hill provides three years of AI CV analysis, psychometric-test preparation and careers guidance. Liverpool Hope offers lifelong library access, careers advice, transcripts, postgraduate awards, merchandise access and external discounts. Graduates are advised to update their personal email addresses before student accounts expire.

Zendaya faced backlash after wearing earrings incorporating Iranian gold discs believed to date to around 700 BC at the London premiere of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. Archaeologists and art historians criticized the use of potentially looted antiquities as luxury fashion, arguing that altering them removed the objects from their historical and spiritual context and that replicas should have been used. Jeweller Glenn Spiro created the earrings, later acquired by Barron London, whose provenance and legal compliance the company defended while saying the loan was intended to celebrate ancient Persian artistry rather than generate commercial benefit. The controversy reflects wider disputes over the ownership, stewardship and display of culturally significant artifacts.

The 2026 National Student Survey ranks Oxford highest among Russell Group universities for teaching quality, with 94.4 percent of students responding positively. Cambridge follows at 93.2 percent, while Durham and Imperial College London jointly place third at 92.1 percent. Newcastle ranks last at 85.6 percent, creating an 8.8-percentage-point gap between the highest and lowest scores. The survey, commissioned by the Office for Students, measures student perceptions of teaching quality, including clarity of explanations and engagement of teaching methods.

Andy Burnham’s newly appointed Labour cabinet is portrayed as being predominantly state educated. Among members whose school histories are publicly available, only John Healey, Louise Haigh and Hamish Falconer attended independent schools. Several ministers have not disclosed their school education, while at least 12 studied at Oxford and five at Cambridge. Angela Rayner is the only cabinet member without a university education, having left school at 16 before entering politics through the trade union movement.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup final drew a large celebrity audience, including Louis Tomlinson, Zara McDermott, Timothée Chalamet, Kylie Jenner, Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, the Beckhams, Beyoncé, Jay-Z and numerous music, film and social-media stars. The event also featured a star-studded halftime show with Madonna, Justin Bieber, BTS, Shakira, Jennifer Hudson and Coldplay. Rihanna’s attendance revived online jokes about a supposed “Rihanna curse” after Argentina’s defeat by Spain, while Pharrell Williams was mistakenly identified as A$AP Rocky by a commentator.

The guide recommends practical, compact alternatives to bouquets for Liverpool graduates, including a celebratory meal, restaurant vouchers, a graduation-themed Jellycat, Liverpool Guild merchandise, degree-specific tools, handmade cards, Liverpool artwork and upgraded homewares. The suggestions are intended to be easy to carry on graduation day or delivered later, while remaining personal and useful for the graduate’s next stage.

A humorous guide to five mishaps the author says are likely to occur at a University of Liverpool graduation: someone falling on stage, a graduate overperforming, a family argument, names being mispronounced, and summer gowns causing wardrobe and sweating problems. The piece highlights crowded ceremonies, uncomfortable conditions at the Philharmonic Hall, family tensions and the anxiety surrounding public graduation rituals.

A humorous guide for Liverpool residents and students who want to cope with England football superfans during the summer tournament. It suggests either pretending to have football connections and adopting convincing jargon or avoiding match-day crowds by shopping and visiting parks during games, retreating indoors, and using noise-canceling headphones.

Former Calderstones School pupil Thelo Aasgaard, born and raised in Liverpool, is set to represent Norway at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The 24-year-old qualified through his Norwegian father and has made a rapid impact since his senior debut, scoring once and assisting in a 5-0 win over Moldova before scoring four goals in an 11-1 return fixture. Norway's qualification ends a 28-year wait for a World Cup appearance. Aasgaard is expected to feature in a demanding group involving Iraq, Senegal and France, where he could face Kylian Mbappé alongside teammates Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard.

A guide to Liverpool venues showing England’s 2026 World Cup matches recommends options ranging from the large-scale BOXPARK Liverpool and Camp and Furnace to traditional pubs including Kelly’s Dispensary, The Flute and The Brookhouse. It highlights factors such as giant screens, food and drink, student atmospheres, outdoor space and the need to arrive or book early because popular fixtures are expected to fill venues quickly.

The piece highlights the Liverpool summer experiences graduating students are likely to miss, including day drinking in Smithdown Road beer gardens, relaxing in Sefton Park, trips to Formby beach, outdoor dining on Lark Lane, sunny walks along the waterfront, warm-weather nights out, and graduation celebrations around the city. It presents these places and activities as central to students’ memories and sense of Liverpool as a home during university.