Campaigners seek listed status for historic trig points that mapped Britain

Heritage campaigners are bidding for listing status for two concrete pillars hailed as “modest obelisks of modernity in the countryside”.These functional 120cm (4ft) stone or concrete “trig points” formed part of a 6,500-strong network of surveying posts that were vital for the development of modern mapping.They have since been rendered obsolete by GPS and drones but are still beacons for walkers and the focal points of countless hilltop group photos and selfies. They have even sparked a niche hobby of trig-bagging for those intent on visiting all of them.Now the Twentieth Century Society (C20), which campaigns to preserve modern architecture and design, has applied for listing status for the first and last of these posts to be used

DJ Shadow: ‘Kraftwerk are a touchstone for every phase of my career’

The hip-hop producer, remixer and crate-digger on staying fresh creatively, the influence of David Lynch and giving away his most valuable recordCan you share any regrets or missed opportunities from your career? nnagewadIn 1999, I was approached by Deftones to work on White Pony, but I had just come off of Unkle’s Psyence Fiction album. I was nursing a hip-hop image and reputation, so I was wary of working with anything that felt like it was too alternative or rock-oriented. So I missed out on being a part of a pretty seminal album. I wouldn’t say it’s a regret, necessarily, because I feel like my rationale was sound, but it’s kind of a missed opportunity.Was your move towards sample-free production on your recent albums driven by the headache and costliness of sample clearance, a desire to keep the creative process fresh, or a bit of both? EditorialJoeDefinitely both

Meghan’s Sydney wellness retreat promises ‘a girls’ weekend like no other’ – but what does a $3,200 ticket buy?

Hi Caitlin. The top-secret program for Meghan’s Her Best Life retreat in Sydney has reportedly been leaked – but is it legit?Hi Daisy. Well, maybe. Social media and news outlets kicked into a frenzy after the apparent full itinerary was published online this week, partially because so much of the women’s wellness retreat has remained a mystery.According to the leaked itinerary, the Duchess of Sussex will be appearing at the InterContinental in beachside Coogee, where the weekend festivities are being held, for VIP group photos from 4

Stephen Colbert to Trump: ‘Why would you start a beef with the pope?’

Late-night hosts dissected Donald Trump’s ability to anger Christians around the world with his attacks on Pope Leo XIV and the AI-generated image depicting him as Jesus.“The last 10 years of Donald Trump worming his way into our brains have been weird,” said Stephen Colbert on Tuesday evening. “But yesterday might have been the weirdest weird that ever weirded. And I’ll just let this actual 100% real, we did not make this up or change this footage in any way, CSpan report sum up the times we’re living in.”Colbert then played a clip of CSpan reporting that Trump took questions outside the White House after having McDonald’s delivered via the food delivery app DoorDash

‘This craving to go viral is tiresome’: the artists sick of the pressure to promote on social media

From Stewart Lee in his wolf costume to Werner Herzog’s big steak sizzle-up, artists are now under huge duress to ‘chase the algorithm’ and reach audiences. Many of them are hitting burnout – and hitting backThere was a meme recently featuring Tony Soprano looking characteristically menacing, with a caption that reads: “Imagine telling him he needs to create short form content to engage the algorithm.” But that sentiment feels inescapable: 82% of all internet traffic is now made up of videos, and the number of short-form videos published on the likes of TikTok and Instagram grew by 71% in the year from 2024.You may have noticed there is a particularly high number of videos featuring people’s faces, which the algorithm rewards. All of a sudden, chefs, lawyers, podcasters, critics – all people with jobs once associated with an off-camera existence – are turning the lens on themselves

Sir Neil Cossons obituary

Neil Cossons, who has died aged 87, wore a convincing disguise as a mild, respectable, affable, slightly conventional chap. But over a long and outstanding career in the museums and heritage sector – during which he was director of the Science Museum for 14 years – civil servants, trustees and ministers who battled with him over policy and funding discovered he was as tenacious as a terrier. He was determined to preserve and promote Britain’s scientific and industrial heritage and make culture accessible to all.In 2000 he became chair of English Heritage, the quango responsible for protecting the historic environment – since split into Historic England and the charity English Heritage, which cares for 400 sites and monuments.In his first year there, he led the steering group that produced Power of Place, an influential policy document produced in partnership with other heritage organisations, which stressed the value and potential of the wider historic environment including high streets, town centres and suburbs; it set the tone of his interests at English Heritage