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James Gunn's early feature film Slither, initially released in 2006, is being re-released in cinemas ahead of its 20th anniversary. The film, a comedy horror with a heavy focus on body horror, was Gunn's first feature-length project. At the time, it was met with commercial disappointment but has since garnered attention due to Gunn's subsequent success with major franchises such as Guardians of the Galaxy and Superman.The film's plot revolves around an alien lifeform that crash-lands on Earth and takes over a small town in South Carolina. The alien larvae, resembling flaccid phallic worms, infect the townspeople through various orifices, turning them into evil minions or hideously swollen incubators. The movie features Michael Rooker, Elizabeth Banks, and Nathan Fillion in key roles.Despite its thinly conceived science fiction elements and reliance on rubbery practical effects and lame jokes, which align more closely with the style of Troma, a production company where Gunn got his start, the film does showcase Gunn's early experimentation with comic timing and musical cues. A notable scene features a killing spree set to Air Supply's 'Every Woman in the World', a technique Gunn would later refine in his Guardians of the Galaxy films.The cast, including Michael Rooker and Elizabeth Banks, appears to be enjoying the film's humor, bringing some bright spots of wit and amusement to the movie. Slither is set to re-release in UK cinemas on April 10 and will be available on digital platforms from May 1.

The Artemis II mission has achieved a remarkable feat, with the crew flying further from Earth than any human before them, reaching a distance of 406,778km (252,760 miles) from Earth. This historic moment broke a 56-year-old record set by the Apollo 13 mission.During their six-hour lunar flyby, the crew captured unprecedented views of the moon's far side, providing a human perspective on features previously only known through robotic photographs. The astronauts used high-powered Nikon cameras and their iPhones to document the lunar surface, with plans to return with thousands of pictures, including images of the Apollo 12 and 14 landing sites.The mission also included an emotional moment when the crew honored the legacy of past astronauts. They began the day with a wake-up message from Jim Lovell, the Apollo 13 commander, who recorded the message two months before his death. Lovell welcomed the crew to 'my old neighborhood' and encouraged them to enjoy the view.In a touching gesture, the astronauts named two fresh lunar craters. They proposed the names Integrity for their capsule and Carroll, in honor of Commander Reid Wiseman's late wife who passed away from cancer in 2020. Wiseman, a former fighter pilot, has been raising their two daughters on his own since then. The names will be passed along to the International Astronomical Union for official designation.The mission's free-return lunar trajectory took advantage of gravity from the Earth and moon, reducing the need for fuel. This figure-of-eight path will put the astronauts on course for home once they emerge from behind the moon. As they passed across the far side of the moon, the capsule experienced a 40-minute communications blackout, a routine occurrence during the Apollo missions.Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen challenged future generations to make sure the record broken by Artemis II is not long-lived. The crew's achievements and emotional moments highlight the significance of this mission in the history of space exploration.

Monday, 6 April 2026 marks the most consequential day for human spaceflight in over half a century, as NASA’s Artemis II mission prepares to eclipse the Apollo 13 distance record.At 13:56 EDT (17:56 GMT) the Orion spacecraft will pass the 400,171 km (248,655 mi) mark set by Apollo 13, and by 19:07 EDT (23:07 GMT) it is slated to reach a maximum of 406,773 km (252,760 mi) from Earth – roughly 6,600 km farther than any human has ever traveled.The Artemis programme is NASA’s multi‑decade effort to return people to the Moon, establish a sustainable presence there, and use the lunar foothold as a springboard to Mars. The initiative currently comprises five missions (Artemis I‑V).Artemis I, an uncrewed test flight launched on 16 November 2022, spent 25 days orbiting Earth and validating Orion’s performance, paving the way for the crewed flight.Artemis II lifted off from Kennedy Space Centre on 1 April 2026 at 18:35 EDT (22:35 GMT) with a four‑astronaut crew for a ten‑day deep‑space test.Crew members:Reid Wiseman (50), commander – veteran ISS commander and test pilot.Victor Glover (49), pilot – first Black astronaut assigned to a lunar mission; previously flew on SpaceX Crew‑1.Christina Koch (47), mission specialist – holds the record for longest single women’s spaceflight (328 days) and has extensive EVA experience.Jeremy Hansen (50), mission specialist – Canada’s first astronaut to travel to the Moon, former fighter pilot.The crew will manually pilot Orion at key phases, verify life‑support, propulsion, power, thermal control, navigation and proximity‑operations systems, and rehearse critical procedures such as course corrections, long‑range communications, re‑entry and splashdown.Scientific work will include lunar observations, human‑health experiments, and extensive photography. On 2 April, Commander Wiseman captured a striking “Hello, World” image of Earth from Orion, showing upside‑down continents, vivid auroras, city lights across Africa, Europe and South America, and a faint zodiacal glow.Nutrition for the ten‑day flight comes from a fixed menu of 189 shelf‑stable items – tortillas, nuts, beef brisket, macaroni‑and‑cheese, cookies, chocolate, and rehydratable drinks – all prepared without a refrigerator, using a water dispenser and a small heater to keep crumbs from floating in microgravity.NASA plans the splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego at about 20:07 EDT on 10 April 2026. Recovery helicopters will retrieve the crew for medical checks aboard the USS John P Murtha before they return to Johnson Space Center in Houston.The Moon lies an average 384,400 km (238,855 mi) from Earth – roughly ten Earth‑equator circumferences. Its diameter is about one‑third that of Earth; if Earth were a basketball, the Moon would be a tennis ball. Surface temperatures swing from –173 °C (–180 °F) at night to 127 °C (260 °F) in daylight, and gravity is only one‑sixth of Earth’s, so a 60 kg person would feel the weight of a 10 kg mass.Between 1961 and 1972 NASA’s Apollo programme conducted 33 missions (11 crewed, 22 uncrewed), achieving six successful lunar landings. The last humans to walk on the Moon were Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt on 14 December 1972 (Apollo 17).Other nations have also left their mark: the Soviet Luna 9 (1966) delivered the first soft‑landing images, China’s Chang’e 4 (2019) explored the far side, and India’s Chandrayaan‑3 (2023) achieved the first soft landing near the lunar south pole – a region rich in permanently shadowed craters that may hold water ice.Looking ahead, Artemis III (targeted for 2027) will test integrated operations in low Earth orbit with commercial landers, Artemis IV (early 2028) aims for the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 at the south pole, and Artemis V (late 2028) will begin construction of a lunar base.

President Donald Trump told Fox News host Trey Yingst that the United States had dispatched a substantial cache of firearms to Iranian protesters, routing them through Kurdish groups. He said, “We sent them a lot of guns. We sent them to the Kurds,” and added that the Kurds likely kept the weapons. This admission lends weight to Tehran’s long‑standing narrative that the December‑January demonstrations were not spontaneous but were driven by “foreign‑backed terrorists.” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has repeatedly blamed the United States and Israel for hijacking the economic unrest that began on December 28, when Tehran shopkeepers protested the plunging rial. The protests quickly spread nationwide, drawing hundreds of thousands onto the streets. Rights groups and the United Nations report that at least 5,000 people were killed, with some estimates suggesting the death toll could rise to 20,000. The crackdown also saw thousands arrested and an internet blackout imposed to conceal the violence. As the US‑Israel war on Iran entered its 38th day, official tallies record 2,076 deaths and over 26,000 injuries across the country. Despite Trump’s statements, several Kurdish opposition groups have categorically denied receiving any U.S. weapons. A senior official of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) told Iraqi broadcaster Rudaw that the claims were “baseless,” noting that their armaments are decades‑old and sourced locally. The Komala Party issued a similar denial. Analysts caution that Trump’s remarks are difficult to verify. Neil Quilliam of the United Kingdom’s Chatham House said the comments “reveal nothing material” and may reflect Trump’s personal rhetoric more than concrete policy. Nonetheless, such statements could undermine the cohesion of Iranian opposition groups and influence international perceptions of the conflict. In the broader geopolitical context, the United States has framed its February 28 strikes—carried out jointly with Israel—as a response to Iran’s nuclear program and as a means to “free” Iranians from the Islamic Republic’s repression. Trump linked the military action directly to the protests, claiming Tehran had “killed tens of thousands of its own citizens on the street as they protested.” While Kurdish factions continue to advocate for peaceful, civil protest methods, the U.S. and Israeli governments have not yet committed to ground operations in Iran. Opposition Democrats in the U.S. Congress remain skeptical of any escalation involving troops. Overall, Trump’s confirmation of arms shipments adds a new layer to the already complex narrative surrounding the Iranian protests, the US‑Israel military campaign, and the broader struggle for influence in the region.

President Donald Trump announced that the US military has successfully rescued a missing American fighter jet crew member from a remote part of Iran. The Air Force officer went missing after his F-15 jet was downed on Friday, with the pilot being quickly rescued, but a search had to be launched for the F-15's weapons systems officer. In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump wrote that the US had rescued the second airman, described as 'seriously wounded, and really brave,' from 'deep inside the mountains of Iran.' A firefight between US and Iranian forces reportedly took place in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province before the rescue, though Iran has not confirmed this. The rescue mission involved two raids, with the pilot being rescued in 'broad daylight' during the second raid. Trump noted that the type of rescue mission that recovered him 'is seldom attempted because of the danger to man and equipment.' The operation reportedly involved dozens of aircraft carrying 'lethal weapons.' Iran had also been racing to locate the airman, with Tehran calling on the public to hand over the soldier to the authorities. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed that Iranian forces had destroyed two C-130 aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters during the operation. This incident is part of a broader conflict that has resulted in the loss of 13 US service members and wounded over 300, according to the US military's Central Command. The US has lost several military assets, including three F-15 fighter jets in a friendly fire incident over Kuwait and a military refueling aircraft over Iraq.

The recent football match between Saints and Arsenal ended in a stunning upset, with Saints emerging victorious. This result has significant implications for both teams, particularly in light of Liverpool's painful exit from the competition. The loss for Arsenal raises questions about their current form and strategy, while Liverpool's exit prompts speculation about their future under Slot. The football world is abuzz with discussions about what this means for the upcoming season and the potential changes that may arise in team lineups and coaching staff.

A24 marketed Kristoffer Borgli’s second English‑language film as a darkly comic romance, pairing Zendaya and Robert Pattinson as a seemingly picture‑perfect couple on the brink of marriage. The studio’s teaser, a faux wedding announcement in the Boston Globe, amplified the buzz that began with the trailer’s release and even earlier Reddit speculation. The narrative follows Charlie (Pattinson) and Emma (Zendaya) through a series of sun‑lit flashbacks that culminate in a tense pre‑wedding dinner. During a “worst‑thing‑you’ve‑done” game, Emma confesses that, as a depressed teenager in Louisiana, she once planned a mass shooting and even practiced with her father’s rifle, though she never pulled the trigger. This revelation serves as the film’s central twist and propels the story into a moral quandary about forgiveness and trust. Critics note that the film’s premise is deliberately provocative. Borgli, known for his satirical take on cancel culture in Dream Scenario, uses Emma’s confession to interrogate America’s obsession with gun violence. By placing the “thought crime” in the hands of a Black woman—contrasting with statistics that over 95% of mass shooters are male and more than half are white—the director forces a reversal of the usual gendered narrative surrounding firearms. The twist has provoked strong reactions from survivors and advocacy groups. Tom Mauser, who lost his son in the 1999 Columbine shooting, called the plot “awful” in a TMZ interview, while 2019 school‑shooting survivor Mia Tretta told USA Today that such a storyline “shouldn’t be joked about.” Parkland survivor Jackie Corin offered a more measured view, urging the film’s stars to use their platforms responsibly and questioning whether the project rises to the ethical standards their influence demands. Beyond the controversy, the film boasts technical strengths. Arseni Khachaturan’s cinematography creates a lush visual palette, and the editing maintains a brisk pace as the wedding day approaches. The climactic ceremony—described by many reviewers as the film’s “pièce de résistance”—forces Charlie and Emma to confront the fallout of Emma’s secret amid a chaotic, alcohol‑fueled toast that lays bare the fragility of their relationship. In the final scene, the couple reconvenes at a diner, echoing the opening “can we start over?” motif. The ambiguous resolution suggests that exposing one’s darkest thoughts may either deepen intimacy or foreshadow further turmoil. Overall, ‘The Drama’ is both a compelling watch and a flashpoint for debate about how cinema engages with the United States’ endemic gun‑culture. Whether the film succeeds as a thought‑experiment or merely courts outrage remains a divisive question that will likely fuel discussions well beyond its theatrical run.

President Donald Trump opened the traditional Easter Egg Roll on the White House South Lawn alongside a child dressed in a giant bunny costume, before turning the event into a platform for a stark Iran warning to a room of reporters. Hours later, the president entered a packed briefing room flanked by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. The press conference highlighted the recent rescue of a U.S. airman whose jet was downed by Iran, a mission Trump praised as "genius" and likened to a Hollywood production. Amid the celebration, Trump shifted focus to a $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget request he had submitted the previous week, emphasizing military spending while domestic programs face cuts. In a chilling turn, the president warned that the United States could "take out the entire country in one night" by targeting Iran’s bridges and power plants, a threat he framed as a potential path to freedom for the Iranian people. He claimed, without evidence, that Iranians would accept such suffering to topple their regime. When a reporter cited the Geneva Conventions, Trump dismissed the concern, questioning the journalist’s affiliation and mocking the New York Times for its declining circulation. Trump also hinted at personal profit, stating, "I'm a businessman first" when asked about seizing Iranian oil, and invoked a quasi‑religious narrative, saying, "God was watching us" during the Easter festivities. Defence Secretary Hegseth, known for his ties to Christian nationalism, likened the rescue to a resurrection, describing the timeline from the aircraft’s downing on Good Friday to its recovery on Easter Sunday as a "pilot reborn". Critics on social media and within Congress have labeled Trump’s rhetoric as "insane" and "dangerous," urging the cabinet to consider the 25th Amendment to assess his fitness for office. The president brushed off mental‑health concerns, suggesting that if his condition were an issue, "you’ll need more people like me." Recent weeks have seen Trump make contradictory statements: first denying the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz, then threatening escalation; first boasting of air superiority after a U.S. fighter was shot down, then claiming the war is already won. These erratic pronouncements have heightened worries that the nation’s nuclear launch authority may be in the hands of a leader whose public behavior resembles the "Mad Hatter" of Lewis Carroll’s classic.

The organiser of the Wireless Festival has reaffirmed that Kanye West, legally known as Ye, will appear on the bill, even as senior UK officials and Jewish organisations demand his exclusion over a series of antisemitic statements and admiration for Adolf Hitler.West’s controversial remarks, including a 2025 song titled “Heil Hitler” and the promotion of a swastika‑bearing T‑shirt, have drawn condemnation from MPs and prompted calls for a government ban. Bridget Phillipson, a senior minister, described his comments as “completely unacceptable and absolutely disgusting,” while Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the booking “deeply concerning.”Melvin Benn, managing director of Festival Republic, the promoter behind Wireless, said the artist is “intended to come in and perform” and stressed that the festival will not provide a platform for “extolling any opinion,” only for the songs that are popular on radio and streaming services. He added, “I am a deeply committed anti‑fascist… I lived on a kibbutz attacked on 7 October and support both a Jewish and a Palestinian state.”In a personal appeal, Benn invoked his experience with a family member’s mental illness, urging the public to extend “forgiveness and hope” to West, whom he described as seeking “second chances” in a “divisive world.” He also asserted that West has a legal right to enter the UK, though ministers are reviewing his entry clearance.Jewish leaders remain unconvinced. Phil Rosenberg, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, warned that Benn’s comments “will not reassure many within the Jewish community” and highlighted that West has “proclaimed himself a Nazi” while the festival stands to profit from his appearance.Political opposition has also weighed in. Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey called for a ban on West’s entry, urging the government to act “tougher on antisemitism.”Commercial fallout has been swift. Pepsi and Diageo have withdrawn their sponsorship, and AB InBev announced it is pulling Budweiser and Beatbox support. PayPal confirmed it will no longer feature in the festival’s promotional materials.West has not performed in the UK since headlining Glastonbury in 2015, and his recent full‑page apology in the Wall Street Journal attributed his inflammatory remarks to bipolar‑1 disorder stemming from a 2002 car‑crash injury. Nonetheless, critics argue that a three‑day stage slot does not constitute a meaningful path to “health and healing.”