Notting Hill carnival came ‘very close’ to not happening, says chair in funding appeal

About 2 million people are expected to take to the streets this weekend at the annual Notting Hill carnival for its mix of music, food and Caribbean culture, but for the man who runs it, there is a sense of relief to see it taking place at all.The chair of Notting Hill Carnival Ltd, Ian Comfort, told the Guardian that the event needed to secure a sustainable future after a year of funding rows, public disagreements with the Met police, and negative press after violence last year.This year’s event was saved only a few weeks ago after almost £1m of funding was raised to provide extra safety and infrastructure measures, with Comfort admitting it came “very close” to not happening.Comfort, who usually stays in the background and rarely gives interviews, says that cannot continue. He says the whole conversation around carnival, which costs more than £11m a year to police but is worth about £400m to the local economy, needs to change

Stranger Things actor Millie Bobby Brown adopts ‘sweet baby girl’

The Stranger Things actor Millie Bobby Brown and her husband, Jake Bongiovi, have announced they have become parents after adopting a “sweet baby girl”.Brown, 21, and Bongiovi, 23, said in a statement on social media that they were “beyond excited” to enter the next chapter of their lives.Alongside a sketch of a tree, the couple wrote on Instagram on Thursday: “This summer, we welcomed our sweet baby girl through adoption. We are beyond excited to embark on this beautiful next chapter of parenthood in both peace and privacy.”The post, which was accompanied by the Beatles song Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, continued: “And then there were 3

Will at centre of legal battle over Shakespeare’s home unearthed after 150 years

A will that has been lost for more than 150 years and was at the centre of a bitter legal battle by William Shakespeare’s family over who owned the playwright’s final home has been unearthed in an unlabelled box at the National Archives.The original 1642 document was made by Thomas Nash, who was married to Shakespeare’s granddaughter Elizabeth Hall. In it, he bequeathed New Place, reputedly the second grandest house in Stratford-upon-Avon, to his own cousin Edward Nash.However, on Thomas’s death in 1647, Shakespeare’s daughter, Susanna Hall, and granddaughter Elizabeth, Thomas’s widow, refused to honour the will, claiming Shakespeare’s own will had decreed the property be left to them and Thomas had no right to bequeath it.The result was chancery court proceedings, lodged by Edward against Elizabeth, to claim the valuable property

Should babies wear socks all the time? The new battleground in the generational war

Emma, I hear parent-internet is abuzz about baby feet. Has Hemingway’s six-word story gone viral?Not this time, though some may find it just as heartbreaking. There’s a generational divide over whether or not babies need socks, and it’s confusing grandparents around the world. Young parents are opting for barefoot babes – on TikTok, in playgrounds, at the supermarket, in the comfort of their own warm and cosy home. Everywhere

Michael Sheen says prospects for actors from poorer backgrounds ‘quite scary’

Michael Sheen has warned the pathways that helped him break into acting have all but collapsed, as he said the “bank of mum and dad” would be unable to support aspiring actors from poorer communities.The Good Omens star, who grew up in the working class community of Port Talbot, said he had benefited from school support, youth theatres and grants that have since come under financial pressure or been abolished entirely.He said his journey was also aided by a supportive family and the knowledge that his home town had already produced acting royalty in Richard Burton and Sir Anthony Hopkins. However, he said the prospect for actors from underprivileged backgrounds now looked “quite scary”.“Having those school plays where the drama was happening in my school – then there was a youth theatre that was funded through the education department of the council, and then I got a grant to go to drama school,” said Sheen, who was speaking at an event opening the Edinburgh TV festival

Aubrey Plaza talks about her husband’s suicide: ‘A daily struggle, obviously’

The actor Aubrey Plaza has opened up about the suicide of her husband, director Jeff Baena, who died in January.The White Lotus and Parks and Recreation star was speaking to Amy Poehler for her podcast Good Hang when she was asked how she was doing during “a terrible, terrible, tragic year”.“Right in this very, very present moment, I feel happy to be with you,” Plaza said. “Overall, I’m here and I’m functioning. I feel really grateful to be moving through the world