Barbican revamp to give ‘bewildering’ arts centre a new lease of life

Project will make the famously confusing London landmark easier to navigate and more accessible“Everything leaks,” says Philippa Simpson, the director of buildings and renewal at the Barbican, who is standing outside the venue’s lakeside area and inspecting the tired-looking tiles beneath her feet.Water seeps through the cracks into the building below and serves as a reminder of the job facing Simpson and the team who are overhauling the 43-year-old landmark.The first phase of the project will cost £231m, and Simpson – who did a similar, if less daunting, job for the Young V&A in east London – hopes it will be finished in time for the 50th anniversary in 2032. The overall bill is estimated to be £451m.A mammoth task awaits her

A minimalist statement or just Pantonedeaf? ‘Cloud dancer’ shade of white named Pantone’s 2026 colour of the year

Hi, Emma! I’m so pumped to find out what colour 2026 is going to be. Fill me in!Brace yourself, Nick. Every year since 1999 Pantone chooses a colour for the year, a representation of the zeitgeist – from how we’re feeling to what we’re wearing, how we’re styling our homes and even our eyebrows. Last year’s was the darker shade of beige “mocha mousse”, the year before that was the soft, warm “peach fuzz”.This year’s pick is even more baffling

Norman conquest coin hoard to go on show in Bath before permanent display

The coins were buried in a valley in the English West Country almost 1,000 years ago at a time of huge political and social turmoil.A millennium on, plans have been announced to bring the Chew Valley Hoard, 2,584 silver coins hidden shortly after the Norman conquest, back to the south-west of England.The feelgood story of how the coins, worth more than £4m, were found by a band of metal detectorists will be told but visitors will also be encouraged to reflect on how the world continues to be gripped by worries about conflict, the actions of the powerful and money.Sam Astill, the chief executive of South West Heritage Trust, which acquired the hoard for the nation last year, said the idea was not just about showing off the coins and telling their history.He said: “There will also be a conversation about turning points, turning points in history or in people’s lives

Jon Stewart on Trump claiming not to know about his own MRI: ‘That’s not physically possible’

Late-night hosts tore into Donald Trump for his use of an ableist slur and unconvincing attempts to assuage concerns about his cognitive abilities.As the Thanksgiving spirit gave way to the work week, Jon Stewart tore into the president for using an ableist slur to describe the Minnesota governor, Tim Walz. In a Truth Social post over the weekend, Trump called Walz, who ran against him last year as Kamala Harris’s running mate, “seriously retarded”.“On Thanksgiving?! Are you confusing that with Festivus?” the Daily Show host exclaimed on Monday evening.Days later, asked by reporters if he regretted his remarks, Trump doubled down, saying that there was “something seriously wrong” with the Democratic governor

A Traitors cloak, Britpop Trumps and a very arty swearbox: it’s the 2025 Culture Christmas gift guide!

Put some artful oomph into your festive season with our bumper guide, featuring everything from a satanic South Park shirt to Marina Abramović’s penis salt and pepper potsThe Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.Is there an overly sweary person in your life? Do you have a friend who’s utterly bereft without The Traitors? Would anyone you know like to shake up their cocktail-making? And do you ever wish your neighbours’ doormat was, well, a bit more kinky?The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link

Comedian Judi Love: ‘I’m a big girl, the boss, and you love it’

Judi Love was 17 when she was kidnapped, though she adds a couple of years on when reliving it on stage. It was only the anecdote’s second to-audience outing when I watched her recite it, peppered with punchlines, at a late-October work-in-progress gig. The bones of her new show – All About the Love, embarking on a 23-date tour next year – are very much still evolving, but this Wednesday night in Bedford is a sell out, such is the pull of Love’s telly star power.She starts by twerking her way into the spotlight, before riffing on her career as a social worker and trading “chicken and chips for champagne and ceviche”. Interspersed are opening bouts of sharp crowd work – Love at her free-wheeling best