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George H.W. Bush advocated a "kinder, gentler" America and initiated campaigns that ousted one foreign dictator and crippled another.

Son and grandson of admirals, Navy aviator, POW, congressman, senator, presidential candidate. And maverick. That was John McCain.

Quotations from former President George H.W. Bush.

• Day one report: England dominant after skittling Sri Lanka
  
• The 80s and 90s Cricket Show: podcast relives England’s nadir
• And you can email Daniel here or tweet @DanielHarris

9.17am GMT

81st over: England 289-3 (Root 148, Lawrence 70) There were fears of rain roundabout now, but we’re looking good for the next bit as Embuldeniya takes the new globule and Root leans back to crack for four behind point; the single which follows raises the 150 partnership, then after Lawrence adds one too, Root creams fo mo to midwicket via pull. Er, and you know that bit where I said we weren’t getting the rain? Well in metaphorical terms, it’s not just raining for the Lankans because it never does, it’s pouring on them. Root takes one to cover, then Lawrence comes down the track, the spin takes the ball away from his almighty hoik, and Dickwella misses the grab and stumping in one as they run two. When it’s your day it’s your day; when it’s not your day, it’s not your life.

9.10am GMT

80th over: England 275-3 (Root 138, Lawrence 67) And that’s the new ball. I’m sure Sri Lanka will take it.

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At least seven people have died and hundreds more injured after a 6.2-magnitute earthquake hit Indonesia's Sulawesi island early Friday, the country's disaster mitigation agency said.

Authorities said it either "failed to navigate" a turn on a highway or suffered a brake failure. All nine people on board were brought to area hospitals.

The Trump administration is inflicting even more damage on Chinese businesses — including smartphone maker Xiaomi — with just days to go before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.

The Manitoba government has left the Métis out of its COVID-19 vaccine task force and plans no vaccination clinics targeted to them. That’s despite Premier Brian Pallister having said he’s committed ...

WHO moves emergency meeting forward; US government executes inmate with Covid; US officials warn of ‘full resurgence’ in major population centres

• Surge in Brazil’s largest state leaves health workers begging for help
• Testing times: how UK government fell short, again and again
• Struggling London hospitals sending Covid patients to Newcastle
• ‘No time to waste’: Biden unveils $1.9tn coronavirus stimulus package
• See all our coronavirus coverage

8.58am GMT

A World Health Organization-led team investigating the origins of Covid-19 are to begin virtual meetings with their Chinese hosts from a hotel in Wuhan, where the pandemic first emerged, on Friday.

Their arrival at the city in central China on Thursday was disrupted by the absence of two members who failed Covid-19 antibody tests in Singapore. One of the missing members has since passed a test and their travel to China is being arranged, according to China’s foreign ministry.

Finally here in Wuhan! Team now undergoing the mandatory 14 days quarantine & being treated very well by our hosts. Work begins today, day 1, in teleconf. mtgs w/ China team. https://t.co/gi7Mjr1iBf

8.53am GMT

Health authorities in England have published weekly surveillance statistics on Covid-19 (and respiratory illnesses) that show hospital admission rates for coronavirus are at their highest in London and have increased in all regions except the north-east.

ICYMI: We've published our weekly #COVID19 surveillance report: https://t.co/a6mN93iPod

It shows hospital admission rates for covid-19 are highest in #London and have increased in all regions except the North East. pic.twitter.com/Hzgj9OKHxn

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Singer John Rich said Thursday he’s heard from other country stars who have told him that conservative voices are being "muzzled" by the industry.

French motorcyclist Pierre Cherpin dies five days after crashing during stave seven of the Dakar Rally.

The last time the leader of North Korea sent such a letter to ordinary citizens was on Jan. 1, 1995, according to Seoul's Unification Ministry.

The clubs are shut, but there’s always your living room: here we’ve got techno reveries, Balearic bliss and unlikely club divas

The only criticism you can make of Giorgio Moroder’s motor-disco landmark is that it is too short. Enter like-minded New Yorker Patrick Cowley, five years later, who exploited that Escher-staircase bassline to create a dizzying 3D labyrinth with shades of dub, jazz and psychedelia, and premonitions of techno. Sixteen minutes that hint at infinity.

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The 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act has needlessly criminalised thousands of people, and done nothing to tackle abuse

A pandemic is gripping Europe with its centre in Great Britain. More than 3 million Britons caught it in 2019-20, of whom 5,657 died – a number that has quadrupled since 2013. Scotland’s death rate has soared to three and a half times that of the whole UK, and is the worst in Europe. Multiple cures are being tested round the world, but the British government opposes every one of them.

This year is the 50th anniversary of Westminster telling the world that its Misuse of Drugs Act (1971) would stamp out illegal drugs for ever. The act failed utterly, but it has never been repealed. Among other horrors, the industry it created now enslaves an estimated 27,000 children and teenagers, some as young as eight, in “county lines” drug gangs. The government has no answer but to throw a few of them in jail.

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Forward opens up on how a six-month sabbatical got her career back on track, working with Casey Stoney and taking on Chelsea

Leah Galton suspected her love affair with football was over. After a highly promising stint playing professionally in North America, the left winger hit an unexpected wall at Bayern Munich and, suddenly, craved a different life.

She remained in fantastic physical shape but Galton was mentally jaded, low on confidence and in urgent need of a fix of “normality”. A restorative six-month sabbatical spent re-connecting with friends and family in Harrogate beckoned.

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Now the Marvel head honcho has been brought into the fold, the Star Wars saga needs to try something more thrilling than it current cosy, reactive approach

When it comes to TV, Star Wars is sitting very pretty after the enormous success of Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian, a space opera tour de force that has completely re-routed Disney’s vision for its long running saga. All of a sudden, we are due to see multiple enticing spin-offs centred on characters including Boba Fett, Ahsoka Tano and Cara Dune, which will eventually culminate in a grand crossover event involving the soft-hearted bounty hunter. Star Wars’ number one rule – that members of the Skywalker clan must be at the heart of all major events – has been Death Starred in less time than you can say: “Great shot kid, that’s one in a million!”

But how about the big screen, where Star Wars began, and where – until very recently – it was always imagined the saga’s most vital moments would play out? Here, we find ourselves in a very different place, with the once promising sequel trilogy having ultimately disappointed due to a lack of fresh thinking and an approach to macro-storytelling more chaotic than a box of angry Krykna.

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(Phantom Limb Music)
The composer’s two new works, exploring slavery and homophobia, are like immersive non-visual films

On paper, the latest album by electro-acoustic composer and installation artist Yvette Janine Jackson isn’t the most inviting of propositions for these miserable days. It features two lengthy soundscapes: the 23-minute Destination Freedom is a sonic representation of a slave ship crossing the Atlantic; the 20-minute Invisible People is an aural collage that confronts homophobia within African American communities.

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As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, doctors in Quebec and Ontario are conducting what one physician called "dry runs" and using triage guidelines to prepare for the possibility that they may have to decide who gets access to life-saving treatment when the demand exceeds capacity.