Last year, when Disney+ was spending big to promote “Doctor Who” on the New York subway, an advertising campaign wrapped trains with images of the incoming Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, and his time traveling police box, the TARDIS. “Your cosmic joyride awaits,” the train wrapper read, and Gatwa’s hand stretched out to invite prospective viewers — many of whom would likely be new to the show — to join him. The BBC had been making “Doctor Who” since the 1960s, and it had been shown in the United States on BBC America and HBO Max in recent years. This revamped “Doctor Who” returns for a new season on Friday, with Gatwa once more playing a modern kind of Doctor, who is in touch with his feelings. The Welsh screenwriter Russell T Davies, who also oversaw an earlier revamp in 2005, is also back again, as the showrunner.

In the early summer of 2023, as the Ukrainian army launched its long-awaited “spring offensive”, the codename for one crucial advance was named not after a famous Ukrainian figure or place, but a British politician. The “Wallace” axis referred to Ben Wallace, then defence secretary, who had played a leading role in getting Ukraine the weapons it needed in the early days of the war. His support led to the affectionate nickname “the man who saved Kyiv”, according to one Ukrainian military source. While Britain’s unwavering support for its eastern European ally has been no secret, the extent of its involvement and influence — last-minute dashes to Kyiv, help forging battle plans and collecting vital intelligence on the Russians — has remained largely hidden.

They are among the 25 villages in France to be ranked as the country’s most beautiful, in a new list by The Times. The newspaper used the latest edition of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) - the official guide published by the rural village association of the same name - as its starting point. The edition includes 180 of the most beautiful villages in the country, all with fewer than 2,000 residents, and at least two protected monuments or sites each. Domme, DordogneDomme margouillat photo/ShutterstockA gem above the Dordogne valley, this bastide village has well-preserved medieval architecture and beautiful river views. Rodemack, Grand EstRodemack baths ciw1/ShutterstockSometimes compared to “a little Carcassonne”, this medieval village is close to both Luxembourg and Germany, and has fortifications dating back to the 10th century.

The Times has reported that the UK played a key role in restoring dialogue between Kyiv and Washington after Ukraine changed its agreed-upon counteroffensive plans in 2023. Source: European Pravda, citing an article by The TimesDetails: The Times sources described the depth of UK officials' involvement in planning Ukraine's counteroffensive in 2023 and in relations with the then-US military leadership. Advertisement:According to the article, Ukraine's counteroffensive, initially set for March, was postponed due to expectations of additional weapon supplies from its allies, a delay that allowed Russia to fortify its positions. Advertisement:The Times notes that Washington was "impatient" and expected a quick result on the south front. During a five-hour discussion, they focused on the plans of the Ukrainian forces for the winter and the following year.

20:54 (IST) Apr 10Sri Lankan opposition parties and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake met here on Thursday to discuss the impact from the new Trump tariffs. The opposition demanded urgent government attention claiming that Sri Lankan exports would be hit by the US tariffs. Countries subject to the pause will now be tariffed at 10 per cent with the exception of China which faces a 125 per cent tariff. The opposition claimed the tariff would shut garments factories causing a severe impact on the island nation's economy. The president and the opposition share almost the same opinion on the issue," the opposition's main economic spokesman Harsha de Silva told reporters.

The top stories and transfer rumours from Friday's newspapers... THE ATHLETICArsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle and Spurs have met or had discussions with the representatives of Netherlands-born Spain defender Dean Huijsen, ahead of a decision being made on the 19-year-old Bournemouth player's future. THE TIMESWest Ham are considering a summer move for Southampton and England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, 26. DAILY MAILNewcastle are ready to make Matheus Cunha one of their top targets this summer. Manchester United fans have accused French police of tear-gassing them in Lyon following their 2-2 Europa League draw.

What is the ChatGPT Barbiecore trend? Here's how to turn yourself into a doll using AIBarbiecore is back: How to turn yourself into a doll using ChatGPT

In her latest show of support for a treasured cause, Lady Amelia was Princess Diana’s mini-me as she shared a throwback photograph in honour of Great Ormond Street children’s hospital. Great Ormond Street Hospital, where Princess Diana served as patron, has been celebrating ‘School Photo Day’, with young patients receiving treatment at the London hospital having their portrait taken by lauded royal photographer Rankin. Like Diana, Amelia has expressed an interest in humanitarian work, particularly in areas related to children’s welfare and healthcare. Lady Amelia SpencerLady Amelia paid homage to one of her aunt's most famous looks at the 2024 Fashion Awards. She harnessed her late aunt’s timeless style with a leather dress that recalled the one Princess Diana wore to a 1995 screening of Apollo.

A STATUE of a rather youthful Dietrich Bonhoeffer by the sculptor Tim Crawley is among those of the ten martyrs of the 20th century on the west front of Westminster Abbey. An anniversary of someone whose legacy has been taken up by so many causes, inevitably including some to which Bonhoeffer himself would have strongly objected, raises the question, What we are to do with Bonhoeffer today? Yet, Bonhoeffer recognised and articulated the danger ensuing from the Nazi movement very early on (both before and after Hitler’s rise to power). Like the saints of other times, Bonhoeffer was a complex character (as recent biographies have sought to explore). Yet, like the saints of old, this 20th-century German pastor, theologian, and ecumenist asks challenging questions of us today.

ONE way or another, I have written leaders at least once for every broadsheet newspaper in London, except the Financial Times. For younger readers, “broadsheet” was a style of printing newspapers on large sheets of paper, now represented only by the FT and the Telegraph. To write leaders is a bit like manufacturing a cryptocurrency: they have value only to the extent that people believe that they do. But this was nonsense even in the days when people got their news from physical papers rather than their phone screens. The warrant for thoughtful and well-informed discussions is now no longer the surrounding daily newspaper, but the writer’s byline.

Jenny Wilson dwells with the earth in this book and finds that, through that lens, new perspectives are found, and the preaching imagination is transformed. Besides drawing deeply from the scriptures, Wilson refers to prophetic voices who also speak up for the earth: St Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis, Sir David Attenborough. Each sermon is attentive to a planet that groans in pain from exploitation and climate catastrophe, longing for rest and renewal. She is preaching here for all things loved by God, who creates, redeems and sanctifies the planet as also humanity. Preaching for the Planet: Sermons on creation and climateJenny WilsonSacristy Press £14.99(978-1-78959-355-6)Church Times Bookshop £13.49

Andrew Tate, the online influencer known for his misogynistic views, has been accused of raping two women and threatening one of them with a gun, in a claim filed in Britain’s High Court. The accusations are part of a civil suit filed by the two women, and two others, last June against Mr. Tate. The four British women are suing Mr. Tate for alleged abuse relating to a period when he was living in England, between 2013 and 2015. All four women accuse him of choking them, and two of them, one of whom was working for him at the time, accuse him of rape. One woman who worked for Mr. Tate’s webcam business in 2015, said in the claim that Mr. Tate, a former kickboxer, raped her and beat her with a belt.

The UK is set to record its hottest day of the year so far on Friday with temperatures expected to reach 24C in southeast England. Some areas in the southern half of the UK are expected to exceed 21C, while London and parts of the southeast could reach 23C. The London Fire Brigade (LFB) urged caution and warned against using barbecues, saying the wildfire risk was “heightened” due to low rainfall. Dan Stroud, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said the average temperature for this time of the year was about 13C, so temperatures on Friday were expected to be about ten degrees above average. “We’ve got high pressure at the moment which effectively acts like a force field,” he said.

Write to letters@thetimes.co.ukSir, The prime minister’s pledge on voting by 16-year-olds smacks of political desperation (“Starmer says 16-year-olds will definitely get vote”, news, Apr 8). Anyone who, like me, has taught this age group will know that they are great fun but not fully formed as adults and hardly to be entrusted with voting rights. I taught at an Oxford college where first-year students (usually aged 18) were regularly described by a colleague as “kiddies”. He was popular and highly respected by students; in no way perceived as condescending. These young people, however bright, are not yet adults and voting for the nation’s future is a serious matter.

The Bank of England has halted an auction on long-dated government bonds, making it the first central bank to respond to market jitters caused by President Trump’s erratic tariff policy decisions. In a statement on Thursday, the Bank of England said that “in light of recent market volatility” it had postponed a sale of 30-year UK sovereign bonds that was due to take place on April 14. Instead, the Bank will offload £750 million of short-dated bonds rather than £600 million of long-dated bonds. The Bank of England and other central banks are in the process of unwinding their quantitative easing programmes — buying to stimulate economic growth — where they purchased vast sums of sovereign and corporate bonds during the 2008 financial crisis and