RereadingFictionCocktail parties, pink hair and Paris in the 1950s – what more could you want? Elaine Dundy's The Dud Avocado examines the timeless dilemmas of a girl about townSally Jay Gorce, the clever, funny, good-looking and mildly disorganised heroine of Elaine Dundy's first and best novel, is most often compared to Truman Capote's Holly Golightly, a character who is her exact contemporary in publication terms (The Dud Avocado and Breakfast at Tiffany's appeared, to rave reviews, in 1958).

From a karaoke-singing paramedic on a boat in Bangladesh to a proud campaigner for a queer museum in Namibia, these are some of the figures who raised our hopes for humanity Published: 25 Dec 2023 ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaKiipLOquMRomKaqmal6pbTIpaOopg%3D%3D

Matthew PerryHe called himself a just-add-water addict, hooked on painkillers after a jetski accident. In last year’s shockingly frank memoir, detailing ferocious substance abuse and on-set drinking, he seemed resigned to a young death Matthew Perry, actor best known for Friends, dies at 54 Matthew Perry was a Friend to all, known the world over as Chandler Bing, always seconds away from a great wisecrack and a show-stopping grin. But he was also an addict.

27 Dec 202307.07 GMTStumps Day 2 - Pakistan 194-6, trail on the first innings by 124Geoff LemonAnother good day for Australia, though it could have been a good one for Pakistan. They bowled with great success in the first session, got through Australia’s final seven wickets and kept them to a further 131 runs added. Conceding 318 at least kept Pakistan in the game. And at 124 for 1 themselves, they had every chance to push towards that score and past it.

UK weather This article is more than 5 months oldDozens of yachts retire from Channel race due to ‘brutal’ gale-force windsThis article is more than 5 months oldOne crew evacuated before boat sinks as more than 80 vessels abandon world’s largest offshore race Dozens of yachts have been forced to retire from the world’s largest offshore race due to “brutal” gale-force conditions in the Channel, with other vessels forced to seek shelter and one believed to have sunk.