Archive July 2, 2025

Pete Doherty hints at huge plans just weeks after death of Babyshambles star

By in Entertainment News, News

Pete Doherty has teased there are plans in place for The Libertines to release new music after their successful performance at Glastonbury at the weekend

Pete Doherty opened up on the potential of new music(Image: Europa Press via Getty Images)

Fans of the Libertines rejoice – the band is ready to make new music. The news comes just weeks after the heartbreak of Babyshambles star Patrick Walden’s death.

The tragic news saw Libertines frontman and former Babyshambles bandmate Pete Doherty pay tribute. Pete had previously created Babyshambles when he was driven out of The Libertines due to his drug habit.

But now, after returning to the Libertines, Pete and fellow band mate, Carl Barat, have teased they ready to share new tunes with the world. Despite releasing new music as a solo act earlier this year, Doherty admitted there could be original Libertines songs thrown out there too after a successful Glastonbury.

Carl Barat and Pete Doherty of The Libertines
The Libertines tried to share a message at the end of their set(Image: WireImage)

When Speaking to NME, Pete was asked about any future tunes, and he admitted: “We did have quite a strong idea”.

When he was then probed on any plans to release new music soon, in his unique way, he joked: “I just released an album [‘Felt Better Alive‘] a month and a half ago, man! What do you want? Blood? ”

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He went on: “Anyway, I have to say all in all, it’s a game of two halves. At the end of the day, you’re either chuffed as a lad or sick as a parrot. “

And he added his delight at one moment in Glastonbury. “Did you see that fan with The Simpsons flag? ,” he said.

“It had Carl and me really fat with a ‘tasch playing the guitar. The f***? Happy days, man. ” He then joked that he would always be ready for an appearance in the iconic cartoon.

During their sat on the Pyramid Stage on Saturday, the band tried to start a ‘Free Palestine’ chant during their performance. However, they failed as the microphone wasn’t on.

Libertines performing at Glastonbury
Pete teased new music(Image: PA)

The band was met with a huge crowd on the day as they performed a number of their biggest hits, including Can’t Stand Me Now and Don’t Look Back into the Sun. But as they waved goodbye to the vast crowd, Gary Powell decided to stay on and hold up a Palestine flag that was on stage during their performance.

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And as he attempted to get a chant going, his efforts were foiled as the microphone was off, which meant Gary’s chant wasn’t heard by fans. A source told the Mirror at the time: “The camera was zoomed in on his mouth so everyone could clearly see he was mouthing the phrase ‘free free Palestine’ but the mic was muted.

“Those at the front tried to get the chant going on his behalf, but it fizzled out, and he gave up and left the stage. Fans leaving debated if it was intentional as he picked up and waved the flag before heading to the mic. “

Raducanu ready for Sabalenka after ‘statement’ win

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Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport tennis news reporter at Wimbledon
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There is something about Wimbledon which really makes Emma Raducanu tick.

Coming into her home Grand Slam, the British number one tried to temper expectations after a difficult grass-court swing.

The belief is already back.

Raducanu outclassed 2023 champion Marketa Vondrousova on Wednesday, moving into the last 32 for the third time in her four SW19 appearances.

The assured performance set her up nicely for a shot at world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a blockbuster third-round clash on Friday.

“I think that was one of the best matches I’ve played in a long time, which I’m very proud of,” said the 22-year-old, who is ranked 40th in the world.

Before the tournament started, Raducanu said she did not “truthfully expect much” from herself over the next fortnight.

After losing in Eastbourne last week to Australian teenager Maya Joint, Raducanu admitted she needed to get her “head in the game” for the start of Wimbledon.

She explained she had received some “pretty bad” personal news which she wished to keep private and, on the tennis side of her life, has been coping with ongoing back spasms since the off season.

But the 2021 US Open champion came through her opening match – a tricky occasion against British teenager Mimi Xu – without a major scare and upped her level again in a dominant victory over Vondrousova.

“That’s quite a statement that Emma has put out,” said former British number one Annabel Croft, who was analysing the match for BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I don’t think she could be hitting the ball any better, I really don’t. She was absolutely middling it.

“I would think that would be quite worrying for Sabalenka actually because she’ll be facing Raducanu at her best.

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The weapons she is looking to develop

What helps Raducanu flourish at Wimbledon is, of course, having a game which allows her to thrive on the grass.

Her athleticism and fluid movement on the quicker surface is a key strength, allowing her to get into position to inject the extra aggression she is trying to find in her shots.

Along with her serve, the forehand is a weapon which she has been particularly looking to further develop with coach Mark Petchey.

Wimbledon’s shot quality analysis – which measures the success of a player’s key shots on a scale of one to 10 based on speed, spin, depth and impact – rated her forehand at 8. 2.

That is well above the average of 7. 0 in the women’s draw.

“I think what’s going to be the real difference for me to get up to the top [of the rankings] is going to be the aggressive side,” said Raducanu.

Home is where the heart is

Emma Raducanu hits a forehand at WimbledonGetty Images

Since bringing Petchey back into her team, Raducanu has cut a much more relaxed figure and it is allowing her to play with greater freedom.

Having a tight-knit and trusted group around her is a key factor in the progress she made this season.

Raducanu has had a tumultuous time since her stunning US Open victory, but she has regained her place in the world’s top 40 after a productive few months.

Feeling “at home” at Wimbledon and being able to hang out with friends, who she was seen taking selfies with on the All England Club balcony after beating Vondrousova, is helping her mood.

“It’s so rad. I have all of my friends here in one place. They’ve been my rock through everything,” added Raducanu, who has reached the fourth round in 2021 and 2024.

“I had the same sort of routine last year. I just really cherish these moments because we know how hard it is week to week playing on the tour.

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EU presses China over exports of rare earth elements and Ukraine war

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The European Union’s foreign policy chief has urged China to end restrictions on the export of rare earth elements and warned that Chinese firms’ support for Russia’s war in Ukraine posed a serious threat to European security.

The statement from Kaja Kallas came on Wednesday after a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Brussels.

The EU is seeking to improve its relations with China amid United States President Donald Trump’s tariff war, which has rocked major trading powers.

But instead of improvements, a trade spat has only deepened between Brussels and Beijing over alleged unfair practices by China. The 27-nation bloc is also railing against the flow of vital tech to Russia’s military through China.

On Wednesday in her meeting with Wang, Kallas “called on China to put an end to its distortive practices, including its restrictions on rare earths exports, which pose significant risks to European companies and endanger the reliability of global supply chains”, a statement from her office said.

On trade, Kallas urged “concrete solutions to rebalance the economic relationship, level the playing field and improve reciprocity in market access”.

She also “highlighted the serious threat Chinese companies’ support for Russia’s illegal war poses to European security”.

China says it does not provide military support to Russia for the war in Ukraine. But European officials say Chinese companies provide many of the vital components for Russian drones and other weapons used in Ukraine.

Kallas called on China “to immediately cease all material support that sustains Russia’s military industrial complex” and support “a full and unconditional ceasefire” and a “just and lasting peace in Ukraine”.

Wednesday’s discussions were to lay the groundwork for a summit between EU and Chinese leaders on July 24 and 25. European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to China for the summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.

Earlier in the day, Wang also met Costa as part of those preparations.

In that meeting, Wang called on both sides to respect each other’s core interests and increase mutual understanding, adding that “unilateralism and acts of bullying have seriously undermined the international order and rules”, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, shakes hands with European Council President Antonio Costa during a meeting in Brussels [Francois Walschaerts/AFP]

Besides discussions on improving bilateral ties, Kallas and Wang also discussed the situation in Iran.

While both leaders welcomed the de-escalation between Israel and Iran, Kallas said she had “urged Iran to immediately restart negotiations on its nuclear programme and that Europe stands ready to facilitate talks”, according to a statement from her office.

Kallas and Wang also “agreed on the importance of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as the cornerstone of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime”.

Everton close in on signing Villarreal striker Barry

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Nizaar Kinsella
BBC Sport football news reporter

Everton have moved closer to reaching an agreement with Villarreal over signing France Under-21s striker Thierno Barry.

The 22-year-old has a £34. 5m release clause with the Spanish club and is understood to be keen on a move to Merseyside.

Barry scored 11 goals and provided four assists in 38 games last season as Villarreal finished fifth in La Liga to qualify for the Champions League.

He would join as a replacement for striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin who left Everton upon the expiry of his contract this week.

Forward Armando Broja also exited when his loan ended, returning to Chelsea without the deal being made permanent.

Barry was born in Lyon and left French club Sochaux aged 19 to play in the Belgian second division with Beveren.

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Trump announces deal to impose 20% tariff on trade with Vietnam

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The United States will place a lower-than-promised 20 percent tariff on many Vietnamese exports, President Donald Trump has said, cooling tensions with its 10th-biggest trading partner days before he could raise levies on most imports.

Vietnamese goods will now face a 20 percent tariff, and any transshipments from third countries through Vietnam will face a 40 percent levy, Trump said, announcing the trade deal on Wednesday. Vietnam would accept US products with a zero percent tariff, he added.

“It is my Great Honor to announce that I have just made a Trade Deal with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,” Trump said on Truth Social after speaking with Vietnam’s top leader, To Lam.

Trump’s announcement comes just days before a July 9 deadline he set to resolve negotiations before he ramps up tariffs on most imports, one of the Republican’s signature economic policies.

Under that plan announced in April, US importers of Vietnamese goods would have had to pay a 46 percent tariff.

The Vietnamese government said in a statement that the two countries agreed on a joint statement about a trade framework. It did not confirm the specific tariff levels mentioned by Trump.

Vietnam would commit to “providing preferential market access for US goods, including large-engine cars”, the government in Hanoi said.

A deal between the two countries would be a political boost for Trump, whose team has struggled to quickly close deals with Washington’s biggest trading partners ahead of the deadline.

While the administration has teased a forthcoming deal with  India, truces reached earlier with the United Kingdom and  China  were limited in scope.   Talks with Japan, the sixth-largest trading partner for the US and closest ally in Asia, appeared deadlocked.

“Vietnam has been very keen to get out from under this,’’ said Mary Lovely, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. “This is forcing a smaller country to eat it, basically. We can do that. It’s the big countries that everybody’s keeping their eyes on. ’’

She said she doubts that Trump will be able to impose such a lopsided agreement on big trading partners such as the European Union and Japan.

The US is Vietnam’s largest export market, and the two countries’ growing economic, diplomatic and military ties are a hedge against Washington’s biggest strategic rival, China. Vietnam has worked to retain close relations with both superpowers.

Shares of major US apparel and sportswear makers, including Nike, Under Armour and North Face maker VF Corp, rose on the news.

Lam also asked Trump for the US to recognise Vietnam as a market economy and remove restrictions on the exports of high-tech products to the country, Vietnam said. Those changes have long been sought by Hanoi and dismissed by Washington.

The White House and the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade did not respond to requests for additional comment.

Growing trade ties

Since Trump imposed tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars in Chinese goods in his 2017-2021 term, US trade with Vietnam has exploded.

Since 2018, Vietnam’s exports have gone up nearly threefold, from less than $50bn that year to about $137bn in 2024, Census Bureau data shows. US exports to Vietnam are up only about 30 percent in that time – to just over $13bn last year from less than $10bn in 2018.

Washington complains that Chinese goods have been dodging higher US tariffs by transiting through Vietnam.

William Reinsch, a former US trade official now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the significance of the transshipment crackdown will depend on “how the term is defined and enforced. Some transshipment is outright fraud – simply changing the label; some is a legitimate substantial transformation in Vietnam into a new product; and there is a lot in between. Enforcement is always complicated”.

Details were scarce, and it was not immediately clear how any transshipment provision aimed at products largely made in China and then finished in Vietnam would be implemented.

Trump announced a wave of tariffs for countries around the world on April 2, before pausing the implementation of most duties until July 9. More than a dozen countries are actively negotiating with the Trump administration to avoid a steep spike in tariffs on their exports.

The UK accepted a 10 percent US tariff on many goods, including autos, in exchange for special access for aircraft engines and British beef.

Like the agreement struck with the UK in May, the one with Vietnam resembles more a framework than a finalised trade pact.

Taylor Swift ‘bigger than Oasis’ as Liam and Noel Gallagher prepare for first concert

By in Entertainment News, News

According to data, stateside songstress Taylor Swift is bigger than Oasis, with her Eras Tour being more popular than the band’s UK comeback

Oasis will kick off their tour in Cardiff on Friday(Image: Redferns)

Don’t look back in anger, Gallagher brothers. Taylor Swift is officially bigger than Oasis mania. The nod for the Swifties is real and comes as the Mancunian band prepares for its epic comeback. Oasis’ reunion tour begins on Friday, with 17 sold-out nights across the UK, ready to transport Britpop fans back to the nineties.

However, while excitement may be building ahead of the opening night in Cardiff, data has found that the American songstress still has the bigger pulling power. According to stats, TayTay’s 2024 Eras Tour proved to be more popular than the upcoming Oasis gigs.

Fans’ total searches for Taylor Swift were one and a half times the number of views compared to Oasis. The findings were compiled by comparing ticket sales from the week of each respective act’s general on-sale date.

Noel Gallagher and Liam Gallagher
Oasis is returning as a band on Friday(Image: Getty Images)

What song do you think Oasis will open their tour with? Take our poll below, and if you can’t see it, click here

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And according to viagogo, they found that the Shake It Off songstress could have filled Wembley Stadium nine times more than Oasis based on global page views alone.

Despite the findings, it’s clear Britpop is back. The company said: “Over the past few years, Britpop and guitar music fans have been treated to a long-overdue revival with era-defining bands like Oasis, Blur, Pulp, Suede, The Charlatans and Travis returning to the spotlight. Whether it’s new music, reunion tours or festival headline sets, these icons have reignited the sound of the ’90s. “

Taylor Swift fans believe they have 'figured out' the name of her next album (stock)
Data found Taylor Swift had more search pull than Oasis(Image: Getty Images)

Ahead of the Oasis reunion getting under way, the band’s set list is thought to have been revealed. Oasis have already arrived in Cardiff to put together the finishing touches on their show and fans nearby are saying they know the setlist.

Earlier in the week, those close to the stadium heard Cigarettes and Alcohol blasting out of the stadium. They were also treated to hits, Some Might Say and F****n’ In The Bushes. According to a fan on Reddit, the band are ready to play a lengthy 24 song setlist over two hours.

The user said they had heard the rehearsal setlist. Giving fans a clue as to what may appear at the live shows, they claimed the setlist kicks off with an intro of F****n’ in the Bushes, then Hello, Acquiesce, Morning Glory, followed by Some Might Say.

As they carried on to spill the apparent set list, fans were loving the thought the rumoured lineup. However, one tune has apparently not made the cut and left fans disappointed. One user said: “Crazy there’s no Columbia but little by little got my stoked. “

Another added: “No Columbia? ” while a third commented: “I need to convince one of them of Columbia’s importance. “

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Oasis are set to take to the stage at 8. 15pm this Friday, marking their long awaited comeback. They will play for just over two hours before their first comeback show ends at a 10. 30pm curfew.

READ MORE: Oasis have released new tickets for UK tour – how to buy yours if you missed out