Woman jailed for harassing Rachel Reeves’s MP sister
A woman who tried to summon her MP, the solicitor general Ellie Reeves, to court has been jailed for harassment in London,Tracey Smith sent Reeves 22 emails and 10 voicemails calling her “transphobic” and accusing her older sister – the chancellor, Rachel Reeves – of physically assaulting her at a buffet bar,Smith, who is a trans woman, used phrases including “a person is dangerous when they have nothing to lose” and “bullets will be flying around”,The 58-year-old was jailed for 26 weeks and ordered to pay costs of £650 at Westminster magistrates court on Friday,District judge Michael Snow also ordered a restraining order without time limit to be imposed.
Smith had persuaded a county court to issue a witness summons to Reeves, which the MP was able to avoid only with the help of lawyers for the speaker of the House of Commons,Smith also made accusations about the local council, doctors and the police, and demanded that Reeves contact her personally to get the full story,Smith claimed she was trying to ask the Lewisham West and East Dulwich MP for help, but a judge found her guilty of harassment after a one-day trial last month,Snow said Smith’s offending was intended to cause Reeves “maximum fear and distress” and was “a direct attack upon democracy”,He told Smith she had used language which was “inflammatory, which was threatening and which continued even after you were told in no uncertain terms to desist”.
Snow added: “It was deliberate, planned and had a very significant effect on Ms Reeves – causing her significant anxiety which prevented her from fully engaging with her family.”Sentencing Smith, he told her: “You did cause Ms Reeves to adopt considerable changes to her lifestyle and this directly impacted upon her democratic duties.Sign up to First EditionOur morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it mattersafter newsletter promotion“You caused her to engage a special protection officer to accompany her, caused her to change the ways in which she behaves within her constituency in that she no longer travels by foot or public transport.”Between July and October 2024, Smith sent emails and left voicemails accusing Reeves of “legalising sexual abuse”, “abusing the law” and being a “fascist”, the court heard.Reeves told the trial that Smith left her a “slightly menacing” voicemail telling her “time is running out” for her to respond.
In one of her emails, Smith said the MP’s sister and chancellor “looked like the woman who attacked me at a buffet bar”, the court heard.Reeves also told the trial that Smith’s action “was upsetting me, it was upsetting my staff.It just felt like it wasn’t going to stop.”
Susan Loppert obituary
My partner Susan Loppert, who has died aged 81, was the moving force behind the development of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital Arts in the 1990s. This pioneering programme, which Susan directed for 10 years (1993-2003), was a hugely innovative and imaginative project to bring the visual and performing arts into the heart of London’s newest teaching hospital.As Susan wrote in an article for the Guardian in 2006, this was not about “the odd Monet reproduction or carols at Christmas … but 2,000 original works of art hung in the vast spaces of the stunning atrial building” as well as in clinics, wards and treatment areas – many of them specially commissioned. And on top of this, full-length operas, an annual music festival, Indian dancers in residence, and workshops by artists from poets to puppeteers.Susan was born in Grahamstown, South Africa, to Phyllis (nee Orkin, and known as “Inkey” because of her dark hair), a lawyer and anti-apartheid activist, and her husband Eric Loppert, a manager
Oh yes he is! Kiefer Sutherland dives into the world of panto
Hollywood megastars hit Leeds this year to make Tinsel Town, a feelgood festive comedy about panto. The 24 star, Rebel Wilson and more talk about their addiction to Greggs sausage rolls – and epic brawls with Danny DyerTwenty-odd years ago, I binged a TV series on DVD for the first time. At my mate’s house in a village outside Harrogate, I was glued to Jack Bauer shooting his way through 24. We probably only made it to episode six before surrendering to sleep for school the next day.Fast forward to the start of this year, and photos are all over the local news of Kiefer Sutherland out and about in nearby market towns Knaresborough and Wetherby
O come out ye faithful: a joyful roundup of UK culture this Christmas
The 12 Beans of ChristmasTouring to 19 December Last year, character comedians Adam Riches and John Kearns joined forces for an archly silly tribute to crooners Michael Ball and Alfie Boe. Now Riches is back with another leftfield celebrity riff as he gives his Game of Thrones-era Sean Bean impression (as seen on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown and his Edinburgh show Dungeons’n’Bastards) a yuletide twist. Rachel AroestiThe BFGRoyal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, to 7 February Are you ready for snozzcumbers and dream-catchers, for norphans and whizzpoppers? A stellar team have come together for this world premiere of Roald Dahl’s children’s classic, with a script courtesy of Tom Wells (Jumpers for Goalposts) and puppetry by the masterful Toby Olié (Spirited Away). John Leader heads up the cast for this beloved story of an orphan befriending a giant; Daniel Evans directs. Kate WyverCount Arthur Strong Is Charles Dickens in A Christmas CarolTouring to 14 December The reliably bewildered and chronically digressive one-time variety star takes his tangent-riddled festive show on tour again
Nominate your favourite Australian children’s picture book of all time
A good picture book is pure magic – and Australia has produced some of the best. Nominate your favourite hereThe best children’s picture books can be pure magic for adults, too: witty and wise prose or poetry that is a joy to read aloud, coupled with vivid, evocative illustrations that live on in the memory – and the culture – for decades.Australia has produced more than its fair share of classics, from the effortlessly educational to the cheekily irreverent, and we want you to nominate your favourite for a major reader’s poll we will run in late January: the best Australian children’s picture book of all time.To be eligible a book must be:Primarily intended to be read aloud to children who don’t yet read independently;Able to be read in a few minutes – we’re looking for a child’s picture book, rather than a graphic novel or illustrated chapter book;Written by an Australian (or someone we’ve claimed);Published in Australia.If the respondent is under 18, a parent or guardian must complete the form on their behalf
Jimmy Kimmel: ‘Thankful that we only have five weeks left in this year’
Late-night hosts recapped Donald Trump’s especially weird address at the annual Thanksgiving turkey pardon.On his final show before the Thanksgiving holiday, Jimmy Kimmel counted his blessings. “This year, I am most thankful that we only have five weeks left in this year,” he joked on Tuesday evening.Meanwhile at the White House “the presidential ketchup boat is filled to the brim and ready to go.” On Tuesday, at the “freshly paved over Rose Garden”, the president presided over the annual pardon of the turkeys, “which at this point are the only thing that Trump hasn’t pardoned this year”
Seth Meyers on Trump’s meeting with Mamdani: ‘I’ve never seen Trump this smitten before’
Late-night hosts discussed Donald Trump’s strangely friendly meeting with New York’s mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.Seth Meyers devoted his Monday Closer Look segment to the bizarrely friendly White House meeting between Donald Trump and New York’s mayor-elect, Zohran Mamdani, where the president seemed downright pleased to be meeting the Democratic socialist that his administration has long demonized.“He looks like a five-year-old meeting Mickey Mouse,” said an amused Meyers. Though Trump had previously called Mamdani a “communist” and a “total nutjob” the president seemed charmed by the 34-year-old mayor.“I’ve never seen Trump this smitten before,” the Late Night host said
UK at risk of ‘sudden confidence crisis’ if markets lose faith in budget – as it happened
Asda hits out at government for ‘killing confidence’ among consumers
OBR challenges claims Reeves dropped income tax rise due to rosier forecasts
Germany to urge EU to soften 2035 ban on sale of new petrol and diesel cars
Ryanair closes frequent flyers club after members take advantage of discounts
JP Morgan boss gave go-ahead for new £3bn tower in London after UK assurances