Valvoline, bourbon and a touching tribute from Russell Crowe: radio star John Laws farewelled at state funeral 19. November 2025 (06:27) John Howard, billionaire Lindsay Fox and Dawn Fraser among mourners at service for broadcaster known as ‘the Golden Tonsils’Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free weekly media newsletter hereIt was left to Russell Crowe, the Academy Award-winning actor and John Laws’ good mate and neighbour, to bring a touch of irreverence to the traditional state funeral held in the broadcaster’s honour on Wednesday.In the rarefied atmosphere of Sydney’s St Andrews Cathedral, Crowe traversed Laws’ unmistakable talent and loyalty, but also his political views and his role in the 1999 cash-for-comment scandal.Sign up to get Guardian Australia’s weekly media diary as a free newsletter Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Launch of East West Rail services to be delayed in row over guards on trains 19. November 2025 (06:00) Trains between Oxford and Milton Keynes put back to 2026 partly due to dispute, Chiltern Railways saysThe start of passenger services on the new East West Rail line will be delayed until at least 2026 with no start date confirmed, the operator has said, partly due to a row over guards on the trains.Passenger trains were supposed to come into service between Oxford and Milton Keynes this autumn, the first stage on the new railway along the Oxford-Cambridge arc where the government hopes for rapid economic growth. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Tropical cyclone Fina on torrential path to hit northern Australian coast this week 19. November 2025 (05:36) If it makes impact on Friday, it would be the earliest cyclone of the season to make landfall in Australia since 1973Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter hereIf tropical cyclone Fina crosses the Northern Territory coast on Friday, it could equal the earliest cyclone to make landfall in Australia.Fina, a category one cyclone about 370km north-east of Darwin, was moving east and expected to intensify to category two before turning south on Thursday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
WHO to lose nearly a quarter of its workforce – 2,000 jobs – due to US withdrawing funding 19. November 2025 (03:06) Donald Trump’s administration withdrew from the World Health Organization in January, prompting the agency to scale back its workThe World Health Organization has said its workforce will shrink by nearly a quarter – or over 2,000 jobs – by the middle of next year as it seeks to implement reforms after its top donor, the United States, announced its departure.US President Donald Trump’s administration withdrew from the body upon taking office in January, prompting the agency to scale back its work and cut its management team by half. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UN to hear human rights complaint over New Zealand’s treatment of Māori 19. November 2025 (03:00) UN committee to consider claim by prominent Māori leader Tureiti Moxon that alleges government policies have harmed Indigenous people The United Nations has agreed to hear an urgent complaint against New Zealand’s coalition government alleging it is responsible for significant and persistent discrimination against Māori.Prominent Māori leader, Lady Tureiti Moxon, has filed the complaint to the UN’s committee for the convention on the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination (CERD). Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Singer D4vd reportedly identified as suspect in death of teen found in Tesla 19. November 2025 (03:00) LAPD sources tell NBC4 singer has not been cooperative with investigation into death of Celeste Rivas, 15The singer D4vd has been identified as a suspect in the death of Celeste Rivas, a teenager who went missing and was found dead in the singer’s Tesla in September, Los Angeles police department sources told NBC4 Investigates.The decomposed body of Rivas, 15, was found on 8 September in the front trunk of a black Tesla registered to D4vd, whose real name is David Anthony Burke. The car had been ticketed in a Hollywood Hills neighborhood and then impounded in a tow yard in Los Angeles. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Gustav Klimt portrait sells for $236.4m, making it the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction 19. November 2025 (02:50) Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer, which was looted by the Nazis and nearly destroyed in a fire during the second world war, sells at Sotheby’s auctionA painting by Gustav Klimt has sold for a record-breaking $236.4m (£179.7m, A$364m) with fees, making it the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction and the most expensive work of modern art sold at auction.The six-foot-tall painting, titled Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer, was painted by the Austrian painter between 1914 and 1916 and shows Lederer, a young heiress and daughter of Klimt’s patrons, draped in a Chinese robe. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Similar logos, different views: Australia’s peak health body for men distances itself from conservative group’s International Men’s Day campaign 19. November 2025 (02:34) Australian Men’s Health Forum says it is not affiliated with Dads4Kids group espousing anti-feminist, anti-LGBTQI+ views Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA group that espouses anti-feminist and anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments is running an International Men’s Day (IMD) campaign that is similar to a government-funded campaign aimed at “supporting men and boys”.The Australian Men’s Health Forum (AMHF) is the government-funded peak body for men’s mental and physical health and has coordinated IMD, an annual event on 19 November, since 2017. This year’s theme is “supporting men and boys”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Coroners’ advice on maternal deaths in England and Wales routinely ignored, study finds 19. November 2025 (01:01) Nearly two-thirds of ‘prevention of future deaths’ reports by coroners are not acted upon, say researchers at King’s College LondonThe advice given by coroners in England and Wales to help prevent maternal deaths is not being acted upon, research suggests.Academics at King’s College London looked at prevention of future deaths (PFD) reports issued by coroners in cases of pregnant women and new mothers who died between 2013 and 2023. They found these reports were not being “systematically used nationally”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Lack of planning has hit Labour’s efforts to fix public services, says thinktank 19. November 2025 (01:01) Keir Starmer accused of failing to adequately strategise while in opposition, leading to uncoordinated policymaking Keir Starmer is failing to make major improvements to public services partly because he did not plan properly while in opposition, according to a report from the Institute for Government (IfG).The prime minister went into government without a clear idea about how to achieve his targets, the IfG found, resulting in haphazard attempts to reform various sectors, from the health service to the courts. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
