Dinner comes with a spectacle in La Tremblade. Before I sit down to a platter of oysters at La Cabane des Bons Vivants, one of the village’s canal-side restaurants, I stand and watch orange flames bellow up from a tangle of long, skinny pine needles inside a large, open oven. They are piled on top of a board of carefully arranged mussels and, by setting fire to the pine needles, the shellfish cook in their own juices.

This is the curious tradition of moules à l’éclade, a novel way of cooking mussels developed by Marennes-Oléron oyster farmers along the River Seudre in the Charente-Maritime, halfway down France’s west coast. The short-lived flaming spectacle is a prelude to sliding apart the charred shells and finding juicy orange molluscs inside – and just one highlight of our evening along La Grève. The avenue that cuts between the oyster beds, lined by colourful, ramshackle huts and rustic pontoons is an alluring venue for a sunset meal by the canal, the atmosphere all the more lively and fascinating for it being in a working oyster-farming village.

China’s domination of minerals – especially the copper needed for electrification, data centres, robots, cellphones and defence technology – is pushing the United States to ramp up its control of oil and minerals worldwide, argues Daniel Yergin, one of the world’s top experts in the economics of oil.

In this episode, Yergin explains how Venezuela, Greenland, Iran, Russia and other issues are connected to the business of oil and the competition to control Earth’s minerals. And while US President Donald Trump’s motives in Venezuela and Greenland are unclear, Yergin says one thing is certain: The US is desperate to achieve supply chain independence from China.

Chilean President Gabriel Boric ‍has announced a ‍state of emergency in two southern regions.

Two dozen active forest fires are tearing across southern Chile, forcing more than 50,000 people to flee their homes and killing at least 16 people, authorities have said.

Security Minister Luis Cordero told reporters at a press conference on Sunday that 15 deaths had been confirmed in the Biobio region, bringing the total to 16 after ‌the government previously reported one death in Nuble.

Biobio and Nuble – central-southern regions located about 500km (300 mi) south of the capital, Santiago – have faced the blazes’ worst effects.

President Gabriel Boric declared a state of emergency in both regions earlier on Sunday, writing on X that “all resources are available” to contain the fires. The declaration allowed Chile’s armed forces to start pitching in.

The majority of the evacuations have taken place in the cities of Penco and Lirquen, located in Biobio, authorities said. Together, the cities are home to around 60,000 people.

Interior Minister Alvaro Elizalde said unfavourable weather conditions in the coming days – particularly extreme temperatures – were expected to make firefighting efforts more difficult.

“We face a complicated situation,” he added.

The fires have torched around 85sq km (33sq mi) across Biobio and Nuble, prompting the mass evacuations. At least 250 homes have been destroyed so far.

South-central Chile has been battered by forest fires in recent years, with simultaneous blazes in February 2024 leading to the deaths of more than 130 people.

At the time, Boric called it the “greatest tragedy” the Latin American country had faced since a 2010 earthquake that killed at least 500 people.

Walt Disney Co.’s “Zootopia 2” is now the highest-grossing U.S. animated film of all time, the company said Sunday.

The animated sequel to 2016’s “Zootopia” raked in $1.7 billion in worldwide box office revenue as of Sunday. The movie edges out the previous record holder, “Inside Out 2.” The 2024 Disney and Pixar hit grossed $1.69 billion.

Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman noted the film’s international appeal in a statement Sunday about the new record.

“This milestone belongs first and foremost to the fans around the world whose enthusiasm made it possible,” he said in the statement.

The film has earned the bulk of its money overseas, with an international box office total of $1.31 billion. In the U.S. and Canada, “Zootopia 2” has made $390 million.

The movie’s largest international haul has come from China, where “Zootopia 2” grossed $610 million thus far.

The first “Zootopia” was a surprise hit in China, where audiences connected with rabbit cop Judy Hopps’ storyline of moving from a small rural village to the big city, as well as the unconventional relationship between Judy and her partner Nick Wilde, a fox, Disney executives have said.

Disney then built on that popularity by opening a “Zootopia”-themed land in Shanghai Disneyland — the only such themed area in any Disney park.

But the warm response in China was not a given.

A decade ago, Hollywood blockbusters that got government approval could count on the China market to boost their international box office totals.

But since the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China and the growth of the local film industry, that kind of reception has been much more unreliable.

The last Disney film that was released in China and earned more than $100 million was 2024’s “Alien: Romulus.”

Pressure is growing on European leaders to deploy its trade bazooka against the United States after President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs if Denmark does not agree to sell the territory of Greenland. In a scenario of coercion, the EU counts with a powerful tool in the anti-coertion instrument, and calls are intensifying for Brussels to trigger it.

But how does it work? Euronews explains:

What is the anti-coercion tool?

Adopted in 2023, the tool was designed with the US and China in mind as the world’s two biggest economies become more assertive in pushing their national interests through tariffs and the weaponisation of natural resources.

Under the existing legislation, economic coercion exists when a third country “applies or threatens to apply measures affecting trade or investment in order to prevent or obtain the cessation, modification or adoption of a particular act by the European Union or a member state.”

President Trump is threatening tariffs from February 1 ranging from 10% to 25% if Denmark does not agree to sell Greenland by June. On paper, it looks like coercion.

Why is the anti-coercion tool seen as bazooka?

Last year, the EU mulled different options of possible retaliation as the US threatened to hammer the bloc with tariffs on Liberation Day.

Brussels drew up a list of American items that would be hit, affecting states mostly ran by Republican governors, in a tit-for-that move. At the peak of transatlantic tensions, the EU said it would target €93 billion worth of goods including bourbon, airplane components which would have dented Boeing, soybeans and poultry among other items.

Ultimately, the EU decided not to retaliate and took a deal which tripled tariffs on the bloc to 15% while cutting duties to zero on American industrial goods. While the deal was seen as imbalanced and unfairly tilted in favour of Washington, the Commission said it had provided clarity and stability for businesses in a difficult geopolitical scenario.

At the time, the idea of using the trade bazooka was only floated, but never seriously considered. That is because the anti-coercion tool was seen as the nuclear option.

The ACI allows the EU to shut off access to the European single market representing 500 million consumers. It limits trade licenses and access to public procurement tenders. For American services, it means the European market would be off the table.

How is coercion established and how long does it take?

The tool is not automatic, and it takes time to implement. For many, the power behind it comes in the form of deterrence. Once the trade bazooka is out, it is clear that the EU means business and is willing to enter a fight with the single market as leverage.

Once the question of coercion is raised, the European Commission has four months to assess the case and the actions of the third country in question, after which EU member states must decide by qualified majority whether to activate the instrument or not.

If that happens, a negotiation phase with the country in question begins.

If talks fail, the EU can deploy a broad range of countermeasures beyond tariffs.

The tool covers services, investments and access to public procurement. It also allows for steps such as excluding foreign companies from EU tenders or partially suspending the protection of intellectual property rights.

The implications are such, that any response under the ACI must be “proportionate and not exceed the level of injury to the European Union”.

What are the implications for the EU?

There are many second-round effects. The first one stems from the fact that the ACI has never been used. Member states have often talked about it, but don’t really know what kind of implications it could bring about on political and geoeconomic terms.

This is why countries from Germany to Italy have repeatedly cautioned against deploying it too quickly or without a good legal case behind it. Berlin and Rome were two of the member states most in favour of cutting a deal with the US last year.

Last year, even as the US threatened to punitive tariffs on the bloc, the EU also feared that deploying such strong measures against the US could backfire and damage the transatlantic relation. The EU still hopes to keep Washington engaged in the continent’s security through NATO and discussions around Ukraine’s peace settlement.

Beyond the US, the EU also considered triggering the ACI after China began weaponising the export licensing of rare earth and critical minerals – vital for Europe’s tech and defence industries – at the end of last year. Ultimately, the EU opted for dialogue.

So, what happens next?

The EU could decide this time around President Trump has crossed the line and gather a qualified majority to trigger the anti-coercion instrument. European leaders have said they will not be “blackmailed” and expressed full solidarity for Denmark and Greenland.

If they go ahead, that will likely mean a new trade war and fresh escalation, but it may be the price to pay for the European Union to defend the sovereignty of a member state.

Unlike the EU-US deal signed last year where a compromise was deemed possible, Copenhagen has repeatedly said there is no room for negotiation when it comes to transferring the sovereignty of Greenland and has rejected any possibility of a sale.

The EU could go back to the retaliatory tariffs it drew up last year and – this time around – implement them hoping the impact on US companies and consumers ahead of the midterm elections where Republicans risk losing control of the House of Representatives and the Senate prompts Trump to change course.

One thing is clear, if the tariffs on Denmark and its allies go into effect on February 1, the European Union and the United States will enter a new trade war.

WASHINGTON — President Clinton signaled Tuesday that he might be able to reach agreement with the new Republican congressional majority on school prayer.

“I’ll be glad to discuss it with them,” the President said at a press conference at an economic conference in Jakarta, Indonesia. “I want to see what the details (of a school prayer proposal) are. I certainly wouldn’t rule it out. It depends on what it says.”

In Washington, White House Chief of Staff Leon E. Panetta indicated further agreement with GOP leaders, saying that trade and congressional reform are two issues that the two sides can agree on.

Emerging from the first post-election meeting between an Administration official and the new Republican leadership, Panetta rejected proposed Republican tax cuts, however, saying that they would swell the federal deficit and weaken what has been a strengthening economy.

“I have always supported voluntary prayer in the schools,” Clinton said in Jakarta. “I have always thought that the question was when does voluntary prayer really become coercive to people who have different religious views from those who are in the majority in any particular classroom. . . .

“Obviously, I want to reserve judgment, I want to see the specifics. . . . And again, I would say this ought to be something that unites the American people, not something that divides us. . . . The American people do not want us to be partisan, but they do want us to proceed in a way that is consistent with their values and that communicates those values to our children.”

Panetta made an hourlong “courtesy call” on Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), who is expected to be Speaker of the House in the next Congress, and Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.), who is expected to be Senate majority leader, at Dole’s Capitol Hill offices.

After the session, Panetta said that if the Republicans are serious about balancing the federal budget in five years, their proposed tax cuts and increased defense spending would require cutting a trillion dollars from the federal government at the same time.

“Whatever the outcome of the election, we all have a responsibility of helping to move this country forward,” Panetta said. “We have to be very straight with the American people.”

Neither Dole nor Gingrich commented after the meeting.

Earlier, Alice Rivlin, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, told reporters at a breakfast meeting that the proposed Republican tax cuts, if enacted, would swell inflation, ignite interest rates and “probably throw the economy into recession.”

The likely new chairman of the House Budget Committee, Rep. John R. Kasich (R-Ohio), accused her of “alarmist and inflammatory” rhetoric.

Panetta called the congressional vote scheduled for later this month on a new world trade agreement “the first test of the relationship” between the Democratic Administration and the new Republican majority in Congress–although that majority will not be seated until January.

Gingrich and other GOP leaders have generally indicated that they will support the trade agreement in the lame-duck session. But Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), the likely new chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, signaled his intention to delay consideration of the pact.

In a letter to the President, Helms threatened to make trouble later on foreign policy matters unless Clinton agrees to put off the trade vote until next year.

Helms’ letter said: “I can assure that it will have an exceedingly positive effect on my making certain that the Administration positions on all foreign policy matters during the 104th Congress will be considered fully and fairly.”

Panetta said that there are other reforms that the Clinton Administration and the Republican leadership agree on, including lobbying reform, campaign finance reform, welfare reform, health care reform and the line-item veto. Referring obliquely to the Helms threat, he added that foreign affairs is an area where it is “extremely important” that Congress and the White House work together.

He also said that he praised Gingrich for his promise to cut House committee staffs by one-third and noted that the Clinton Administration had cut the White House staff by 25% and the executive branch by some 270,000 jobs.

But on economic policy, Panetta declared: “As the President has made clear . . . the important thing is that (tax cuts) are paid for, and that they not increase the deficit. . . .

“That is a very fundamental discipline that we have put in place in the budget process here on Capitol Hill and throughout the government,” he said, and if tax cuts are not matched with spending cuts, “you are simply increasing taxes on our kids for the future.”

In their “contract with America,” House Republicans have promised what they call a middle-class tax cut, including a repeal of the so-called “marriage tax,” a tax credit to families making up to $200,000 per year for each child they have, and broader eligibility for individual retirement accounts.

Other Republicans, including the probable new chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Bill Archer (R-Tex.), have proposed cutting capital gains taxes.

“Whatever we do is going to be paid for by spending cuts,” Archer said in an interview on “The McNeil/Lehrer NewsHour.” He suggested that $50 billion could be saved over five years in welfare reform alone. “This is tough, but the American people are prepared for us to be tough.”

* POLITICAL VETERANS: Majority in new Congress have past political experience. A20

‘Contract with America’: The full text of the Republican “contract with America” is available on the TimesLink on-line service. Also available are biographies of Newt Gingrich and up-and-coming GOP leaders. Sign on and click “Special Reports” in the Nation & World section.

Details on Times electronic services, B4

Follow our live build-up, with team news coverage, ahead of our text commentary stream of the 2025 AFCON final in Rabat.

Wagner Moura won the Golden Globe for lead actor in a motion picture drama on Sunday night for the political thriller “The Secret Agent,” becoming the second Brazilian to take home a Globes acting prize, after Fernanda Torres’ win last year for “I’m Still Here.”

“ ‘The Secret Agent’ is a film about memory — or the lack of memory — and generational trauma,” Moura said in his acceptance speech. “I think if trauma can be passed along generations, values can too. So this is to the ones that are sticking with their values in difficult moments.”

The win marks a major milestone in a banner awards season for the 49-year-old Moura. In “The Secret Agent,” directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho, he plays Armando, a former professor forced into hiding while trying to protect his young son during Brazil’s military dictatorship of the 1970s. The role earned Moura the actor prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, making him the first Brazilian performer to win that honor.

For many American viewers, Moura is best known for his star-making turn as Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar in Netflix’s “Narcos,” which ran from 2015 to 2017 and earned him a Golden Globe nomination in 2016. He has since been involved in a range of high-profile English-language projects, including the 2020 biographical drama “Sergio,” the 2022 animated sequel “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,” in which he voiced the villainous Wolf, and Alex Garland’s 2024 dystopian thriller “Civil War,” playing a Reuters war correspondent.

“The Secret Agent,” which earlier in the evening earned the Globes award for non-English language film, marked a homecoming for Moura after more than a decade of not starring in a Brazilian production, following years spent working abroad and navigating political turmoil in his home country as well as pandemic disruptions.

Though he failed to score a nomination from the Screen Actors Guild earlier this month, Moura now heads strongly into Oscar nominations, which will be announced Jan. 22. “The Secret Agent” is Brazil’s official submission for international feature and has been one of the most honored films of the season, keeping Moura firmly in the awards conversation. Last month, he became the first Latino performer to win best actor from the New York Film Critics Circle.

Even as his career has been shaped by politically charged projects, Moura has been careful not to let that define him. “I don’t want to be the Che Guevara of film,” he told The Times last month. “I gravitate towards things that are political, but I like being an actor more than anything else.”

ATLANTA — Against a backdrop of political division and upheaval, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter said Monday’s holiday honoring her father’s legacy comes as “somewhat of a saving grace” this year.

“I say that because it inserts a sense of sanity and morality into our very troubling climate right now,” the Rev. Bernice King said in an interview with the Associated Press. “With everything going on, the one thing that I think Dr. King reminds people of is hope and the ability to challenge injustice and inhumanity.”

The holiday comes a day before President Trump will mark the first anniversary of his second term in office Tuesday. The “three evils” — poverty, racism and militarism — that the civil rights leader identified in a 1967 speech as threats to a democratic society “are very present and manifesting through a lot of what’s happening” under Trump’s leadership, Bernice King said.

King, chief executive officer of the King Center in Atlanta, cited Trump administration efforts to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives; directives to scrub key parts of history from government websites and remove “improper ideology” from Smithsonian museums; and aggressive immigration enforcement operations in multiple cities that have turned violent and resulted in the separation of families.

“Everything President Trump does is in the best interest of the American people,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in an email. “That includes rolling back harmful DEI agendas, deporting dangerous criminal illegal aliens from American communities, or ensuring we are being honest about our country’s great history.”

Maya Wiley, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, one of the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights coalitions, said that Martin Luther King’s words “ring more true today.”

“We’re at a period in our history where we literally have a regime actively working to erase the civil rights movement,” she said. “This has been an administration dismantling intentionally and with ideological fervor every advancement we have made since the Civil War.”

Wiley also recalled that King warned that “the prospect of war abroad was undermining to the beloved community globally and it was taking away from the ability for us to take care of all our people.” Trump’s administration has engaged in deadly military strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats and captured Venezuela’s president in an invasion this month. It also bombed nuclear sites in Iran last year.

Bernice King said she’s not sure what her father would make of the United States today, nearly six decades after his assassination.

“He’s not here. It’s a different world,” she said. “But what I can say is his teachings transcend time and he taught us, I think, the way to address injustice through his nonviolent philosophy and methodology.”

Nonviolence should be embraced not just by those who are protesting and fighting against what they believe are injustices, but should also be adopted by immigration agents and other law enforcement officers, she said. To that end, she added, the King Center developed a curriculum that it now plans to redevelop to help officers see that they can carry out their duties while also respecting people’s humanity.

Even amid the “troubling climate” in the country right now, Bernice King said there is no question that “we have made so much progress as a nation.” The civil rights movement that her father and mother, Coretta Scott King, helped lead brought more people into mainstream politics who have sensitivity and compassion, she said. Despite efforts to scrap DEI initiatives and the deportation of people from around the world, “the inevitability is we’re so far into our diversity you can’t put that back in a box,” she said.

To honor her father’s legacy this year, she urged people to look inward.

“I think we spend a lot of time looking at everybody else and what everybody else is not doing or doing, and we’re looking out the window at all the problems of the world and talking about how bad they are, and we don’t spend a lot of time on ourselves personally,” she said.

She endorsed participation in service projects to observe the holiday because they foster connection, sensitize people to the struggles of others and help us to understand one another better. But she said people should also look at what they can do in the year to come to further her father’s teachings.

“I think we have the opportunity to use this as a measuring point from year to year in terms of what we’re doing to move our society in a more just, humane, equitable and peaceful way,” she said.

Brumback writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Matt Brown in Washington contributed to this report.

The independent minor leagues are baseball’s laboratories.

Pitch clocks? The robot umpires coming to the major leagues this year? The home run derby used to settle ties, as seen in last year’s All-Star Game? All first tested in an independent league.

Some concepts are hits. Some are flops.

The experiment to watch this year is almost spiritual in nature: Can professional baseball make starting pitching great again?

Baseball’s obsession with velocity has dampened the soul of the sport. The marquee pitching matchup is an endangered species. The oohs and aahs over a 100-mph pitch have been replaced by yawns.

The potential solution, or at least a piece of one, is evident in this job description:

The United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL), an independent league based in Michigan, is recruiting for the position of “primary starting pitcher.”

The language is intentional. In today’s major leagues, a starting pitcher generally is selected, trained and deployed to throw as hard as he can for as long as he can. Five innings is perfectly acceptable, with a parade of harder-throwing reinforcements in the bullpen.

What the USPBL plans for a primary starting pitcher: “Build the ability to pitch deep into games.”

That used to be self-evident for a starting pitcher, but no longer. Yoshinobu Yamamoto turned into Sandy Koufax last October, with back-to-back complete games during the Dodgers’ championship run.

However, in the regular season, the Dodgers did not throw a complete game, and neither did 12 other teams. The Dodgers’ starters averaged 4.85 innings per game; no team averaged even six innings.

In 2025, three major league pitchers threw 200 innings. In 2010, 45 did.

“Being able to get more Mark Buehrles or Cliff Lees back into the fold would be good for the game,” said Justin Orenduff, a 2004 Dodgers first-round draft pick and now the USPBL executive director of baseball strategy and development.

Buehrle, a five-time All-Star, and Lee, a four-time All-Star, each featured precision rather than power.

Lee, twice a Game 1 World Series starter, did not average 92 mph on his fastball but pitched 200 innings eight times. Buerhle, whose average fastball did not top 90 mph, pitched 200 innings for 14 consecutive years.

Neither might be drafted today. Major league teams crave velocity, and young pitchers train to boost it. The number of players throwing at least 95 mph at the Perfect Game national showcase increased sevenfold from 2014 to 2024, according to a report from Major League Baseball.

The average MLB fastball rose from 91 mph in 2008 to 94 mph in 2024, the report said.

“Velocity is the No. 1 predictor of success,” Billy Eppler, then the Angels’ general manager, told me in 2018.

Velocity also is associated with an increased risk of injury. Teams have implemented well-intentioned measures — pitch counts, innings limits, more rest between appearances — that have not mitigated the risks and might well have led to more injuries.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga prepares to pitch in the bullpen

(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

Kyle Boddy, the founder of Driveline, the seminal program for velocity training, said a hard-throwing pitcher is not going to manage his velocity on an inflexible pitch count.

“If he goes 60 or 70 pitches, he’s going to sit 100,” Boddy told Baseball America. “He’s not stupid. And if we tell him, ‘There’s no limits on you,’ but we keep taking him out after 70 pitches every time, he’s going to realize what’s going on.

“If he can’t control the volume, the one lever he can control is the intensity. I personally think that’s worse for his arm, going max effort for shorter stints.”

That ultimately works against developing starting pitchers capable of delivering six innings, the MLB report said.

“Modern workload management strategies — ostensibly intended to prevent overuse, protect pitcher health, and maximize pitcher effectiveness — may actually increase injury risk by allowing and even incentivizing pitchers to throw with maximum effort on every pitch,” the report said, “rather than requiring pitchers to conserve energy and pace themselves in an effort to pitch through longer outings.”

Not only does throwing harder increase the risk of injury, the MLB report said, but the resulting parade of strikeouts runs “counter to contact-oriented approaches that create more balls in play and result in the type of on-field action that fans want to see.”

In the independent Atlantic League, the league has run several years of testing on a “double hook” rule: when a team removes its starting pitcher, it loses its designated hitter. That would incentivize a major league team to use its starter for six or seven innings instead of four or five, but it would not solve the underlying problem: What if the starting pitcher cannot work six or seven innings?

That is where Orenduff and the USPBL come in.

Dillon Chapa from the Westside Woolly Mammoths gets set to pitch in a USPBL game last season.

(Courtesy of the USPBL)

Every general manager says he would love a rotation of five 200-inning starters, if only he could find them. They cannot offer on-the-job training in the majors, lest their team find itself at a competitive disadvantage.

In an independent league, Orenduff need not worry about that. Tough matchup with the bases loaded in the fourth inning? Third time through the order in the sixth inning? Pitch through it.

“It’s not going to be that quick pull,” he said.

This is not about leaving a starting pitcher out there to get crushed just to pitch through it. This is about shaking off the shackles of those one-size-fits-all limitations.

“You basically want to start by showing fans and the industry, for example, that 100 pitches is just a number,” he said. “It’s completely arbitrary.

“Some guys may be able to go 110, 120. We want to be able to show that the game can still produce players that are successful on the mound, most importantly, but are capable of going beyond the fifth inning and beyond 100 pitches if the expectation and the leadership and the structure are there to support it.”

The USPBL will have pretty much the same technology as major league teams do, to measure spin rates and recovery rates and every other rate. If you can maintain command and velocity, if you can get outs without max effort on every pitch, and if you can bounce back between innings and between starts, you may be able to be that primary starting pitcher.

Frankly, Orenduff says, all the velocity in the world cannot help your team if you cannot pitch.

“That has to be a metric too: sustainability and availability,” he said.

He conducted a study evaluating each team’s top three pitching draft picks since 2013. With the caveats that some pitchers were traded and some prospects still are developing, Orenduff found that three in four of those top drafted pitchers never have pitched for the major league team that drafted them, at a combined cost to the 30 MLB teams of $800 million in signing bonuses.

“We just have to have some sort of proof we can help more players have longer careers by being a little more flexible in how we frame things for them,” Orenduff said.

Here’s hoping the USPBL can discover some training methods that major league teams can use. Better that than listening to a major league manager with a 13-man pitching staff say after a game that he ran out of pitchers, as we too often hear. Can you imagine what Tommy Lasorda would have to say about that?

Agreement will see government takeover of SDF-controlled areas, and SDF integration into the Syrian military.

The Syrian government has announced a ceasefire has been agreed with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that will involve the withdrawal of the latter’s forces from areas west of the Euphrates River, according to Syrian state media.

Sunday’s deal will also see SDF forces integrate into the Syrian military.

The agreement comes after days of fighting between the Syrian government and the SDF in northeastern Syria. The army and the SDF had been clashing over strategic posts and oilfields along the Euphrates River.

Speaking in Damascus, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said that the agreement will see Syrian state institutions move into three eastern and northern governorates – al-Hasakah, Deir Az Zor, and Raqqa – previously controlled by the SDF.

“We advise our Arab tribes to remain calm and allow for the implementation of the agreement’s terms,” al-Sharaa said.

The agreement stipulates that the SDF administration in charge of ISIL (ISIS) detainees and camps, and the forces guarding the facilities, will be integrated into the country’s state structure, now giving the government full legal and security responsibility.

Additionally, the SDF will propose a list of leaders to fill senior military, security, and civilian posts within the central government, ensuring national partnership.

Al-Sharaa made the announcement after he met United States Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack in Damascus. SDF chief Mazloum Abdi was supposed to be at the meeting, but al-Sharaa said that weather conditions meant that his trip would be postponed until Monday.

‘Victory’

Al Jazeera’s Ayman Oghanna, reporting from the Syrian capital, said that the agreement “can be seen as a victory” for the Syrian government.

Syrian state media says that the agreement will see the military handover of the SDF-controlled governorates and the takeover of civilian institutions.

The Syrian government will also take over “all border crossings and oil and gas fields”.

A previous agreement in March that included the integration of SDF forces into the Syrian military was not implemented, and fighting has periodically broken out between the two sides in recent months, increasing in ferocity this month.

But on Saturday, the Syrian army continued its advance into towns in the SDF-held territory.

According to state media, the army had taken the northern city of Tabqa and its adjacent dam, as well as the major Freedom dam, formerly known as the Baath, west of Raqqa.

Moreover, the army seized the Omar oilfield, the country’s largest, and the Conoco gas field in Deir Az Zor, in a major blow to the SDF. Last week, al-Sharaa said it was unacceptable for the SDF to control a quarter of the country and hold its main oil and other commodity resources.

According to Gamal Mansour, a lecturer in political science at the University of Toronto, the SDF had become isolated politically, explaining their rapid retreat.

“Sometimes you have arms, but your political situation, the lack of backing, the strategic and regional background in which you’re operating … therein lies the problem that SDF has,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Iraqi Kurdistan read the regional image and the strategic posture of the SDF in a way that had them go to the SDF and tell them ‘you need to … [cooperate] with the Americans so that you can have a peaceful relationship with the Syrian government’”, he said, adding that the US has also told the SDF as much.

Mansour explained that the success of the Syrian government’s rapid advance was also driven largely by Arab tribes in SDF-controlled areas, whose loyalty to the SDF was already fragile amid discontent with their rule, Kurdish nationalist dominance and a lack of economic investment.

The ceasefire agreement also outlined that the SDF had committed to the removal of all non-Syrian Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leaders and members from the territory to ensure sovereignty and regional stability.

United States President Donald Trump has promised to steadily increase tariffs on European countries that have opposed his move to acquire Greenland, escalating a dispute over the semiautonomous Danish territory he has long coveted.

So what is behind Trump’s push to control Greenland, the world’s largest island, and how have Washington’s NATO allies responded?

What is Trump’s tariff threat over Greenland?

In a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, Trump wrote that he has subsidised Denmark and other European Union countries by not charging them tariffs.

“Now, after Centuries, it is time for Denmark to give back – World Peace is at stake! China and Russia want Greenland, and there is not a thing that Denmark can do about it.”

Trump added that “the National Security of the United States, and the World at large, is at stake.”

Trump wrote that starting on February 1, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland will be charged a 10 percent tariff on all their exports to the US.

On June 1, the tariff is to be increased to 25 percent, he said. “This Tariff will be due and payable until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland,” Trump wrote.

Trump additionally wrote: “The United States has been trying to do this transaction for over 150 years. Many Presidents have tried, and for good reason, but Denmark has always refused.”

Is Trump the first US president to seek control of Greenland?

Leaders in Denmark and Greenland have consistently insisted that Greenland is not for sale. In the past few days, Greenlanders have been protesting against Trump’s wishes to acquire Greenland. Yet Trump has pushed for acquiring the Arctic territory since his first term, and he is not the first US president to pursue such a purchase.

After buying Alaska from Russia in 1867, then-Secretary of State William H Seward unsuccessfully sought to buy Greenland. During World War II, the US occupied Greenland after Germany’s invasion of Denmark and built military and radio facilities there. It maintains a permanent presence today at the Pituffik Space Base in the northwest.

In 1946, while Greenland was still a Danish colony, President Harry S Truman secretly offered Denmark $100m for the island, but Copenhagen refused. The proposal became public only in 1991.

American citizens do not support Washington acquiring Greenland, polls have indicated. This week, a Reuters/Ipsos poll of US residents showed less than one in five respondents support the idea of acquiring Greenland.

Why does Trump want Greenland?

The location and natural resources of the island make it strategically important for Washington.

Greenland is geographically part of North America, located between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean. It is home to 56,000 residents, mostly Indigenous Inuit people.

Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, is closer to New York City – about 2,900km (1,800 miles) away – than the Danish capital, Copenhagen, located 3,500km (2,174 miles) to the east.

It is a NATO territory through Denmark and an EU-associated overseas territory with residents holding EU citizenship.

Its location offers the shortest air and sea routes between North America and Europe, making it strategically vital for US military operations and missile early-warning systems. Washington has also sought more radar coverage around the Greenland-Iceland-UK gap to monitor Russian and Chinese movements.

Greenland is rich in minerals, including most of the EU’s listed “critical raw materials”, but there is no oil and gas extraction, and many Indigenous residents oppose large-scale mining. The economy mainly depends on fishing.

As climate change opens up more of the Arctic, major powers such as the US, Canada, China and Russia are increasingly interested in its untapped resources.

How has Europe responded to Trump’s tariff threats?

All 27 members of the EU will convene for an emergency meeting on Sunday to discuss their response to Trump’s threat.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer responded in a post on X on Saturday, saying: “Our position on Greenland is very clear – it is part of the Kingdom of Denmark and its future is a matter for the Greenlanders and the Danes,” Starmer wrote.

“Applying tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective security of NATO allies is completely wrong. We will of course be pursuing this directly with the US administration.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also responded in an X post, saying: “The EU stands in full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland. Dialogue remains essential, and we are committed to building on the process begun already last week between the Kingdom of Denmark and the US.

“Tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. Europe will remain united, coordinated, and committed to upholding its sovereignty.”

European Council President Antonio Costa shared a post identical to von der Leyen’s on his own X account.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wrote on X: “China and Russia must be having a field day. They are the ones who benefit from divisions among Allies.”

Kallas added: “Tariffs risk making Europe and the United States poorer and undermine our shared prosperity.”

David van Weel, the foreign minister of the Netherlands, said during an interview on Dutch television on Sunday: “It’s blackmail what he’s doing, … and it’s not necessary. It doesn’t help the alliance [NATO], and it also doesn’t help Greenland.”

After the Flood features an impressive cast of familiar faces from hit shows including Peaky Blinders, The Crown and Bridgerton – here’s your guide to the ITV drama’s stars

After the Flood is back for series two and it boasts a star-studded cast that fans will recognise from popular shows like Peaky Blinders and Bridgerton.

The first series saw an unidentified man found dead in an underground car park after a devastating flood with PC Jo Marshall, played by Sophie Rundle, commissioned to investigate the truth of the man’s death with devastating and shocking revelations.

The second series of After the Flood follows newly promoted detective Jo as she embarks on a perplexing murder investigation. As Waterside teeters on the brink of disaster due to the looming threat of moorland fires and potential flooding, a body is found under strange circumstances.

Jo’s pursuit of the killer puts her at odds with the town’s powerful and influential figures, leading her into an investigation that becomes deeply personal.

To uncover the corruption that has plagued the town’s police force – and her own family – for years, she’ll need to conduct her investigation covertly.

But who are the new and returning familiar faces gracing series two? Let’s take a look…

Sophie Rundle – Jo Marshall

Sophie, 37, takes centre stage in After the Flood as Jo Marshall. Viewers may recognise her from a host of TV programmes such as ITV’s miniseries Titanic, Merlin, The Bletchley Circle, guest appearances in Call the Midwife, Happy Valley, and Brief Encounters.

Her most notable role came in 2013 when she landed the part of Ada Shelby in BBC’s historical drama series Peaky Blinders, where she starred for all six series until 2022. In the show, Sophie shared the screen with Cillian Murphy, who played her character’s brother and notorious gang leader, Tommy Shelby.

Sophie has also graced Sky One’s Jamestown as Alice Kett and a year later, she portrayed Vicky Budd in BBC’s thriller Bodyguard, sharing the screen with Keeley Hawes and Richard Madden. Fans of Gentleman Jack will recall Sophie for her role as Ann Walker, while viewers of the 2020 surrogacy drama series The Nest will recognise her as Emily.

Jill Halfpenny – DS Sam Bradley

Jill Halfpenny, 50, is joining After the Flood for series two as DS Sam Bradley. Jill first soared to fame playing Nicola Dobson in Byker Grove in 1989. Jill later gained roles in Coronation Street as Rebecca Hopkins in 1999 and later EastEnders as Kate Mitchell in 2002.

Other roles include Izzie Redpath in Waterloo Road, Emma in Mount Pleasant, Fiona in Wild at Heart, Diane Manning in In The Club, Julie Winshaw in Three Girls, Jennifer in Liar, Jodie Walsh in The Drowning, Roisin in Everything I Know About Love, Doreen Hill in The Long Shadow, Emma Bartlett in The Feud and Eve Riser in Girl Taken.

Nicholas Gleaves – DS Phil Mackie

Nicholas Gleaves, 57, is known for his role as Sergeant Phil Mackie, Jo’s boss and surrogate father figure in the series but he’s hiding a dark secret. Nick, as he’s often called, has certainly carved out a successful career since his TV debut in 1993 as Carl in Boon.

Since then, he’s amassed an impressive list of credits, having starred in Casualty, The Bill, Faith and Soldier, Soldier. In 1997, he landed the role of PC Rudy Whiteside in Wokenwell before securing the role of Rick Powell in the hit series Playing the Field, which also featured his wife Lesley Sharp.

Other TV roles include Eddie in Being April, Duncan in The Queen’s Nose, and Ray Fairburn in Conviction. He’s also known for his performances as DS Gary Tate in City Lights, Tom Bedford in The Chase, Oliver in Murderland, James Whitaker in Survivors, and Richard Whitman in Waterloo Road.

In 2011, Nick took on the role of DS Andy Roper in Scott and Bailey, where he starred alongside his real-life wife once again. He went on to secure minor roles in Cold Feet, Death in Paradise, The Split, and Midsomer Murders before landing a part in Bodyguard as Roger Penhaligon.

Soap enthusiasts will remember the actor from his stint on Coronation Street, where he portrayed Duncan Radfield from 2018 to 2019. He’s also ventured into film, with roles in Spider-Man: Far From Home and a portrayal of John Birt, the former director general of the BBC, in Netflix’s The Crown in 2022.

Philip Glenister – Jack Radcliffe

Audiences will recognise Philip Glenister, 62, who takes on the role of property developer Jack Radcliffe, from his successful television career. He is most renowned for his portrayal of DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC’s Life on Mars from 2006 to 2007, and its sequel Ashes to Ashes from 2008 to 2010.

Beyond these popular TV series, Philip has landed roles in David Walliams‘ sitcom Big School in 2013 as Trevor Gunn, in the horror series Outcast as Reverend Anderson, and in Belgravia playing the lead role of James Trenchard. Most recently, he assumed the lead role of DCI Paul Bethell in Steeltown Murders.

Some might also recall his film roles, including his part in 2003’s Calendar Girls as Lawrence, as Squire in Kingdom of Heaven in 2005, or as Charles Forestier in 2012’s Bel Ami.

Lorraine Ashbourne – Molly Marshall

Another standout cast member is Lorraine Ashbourne, 65, who portrays Jo’s worried mother Molly. Her acting career spans over three decades, with one of her most beloved roles being Mrs Varley – the housekeeper for the Featherington family – in Netflix’s Bridgerton.

The actress has also portrayed Barbara Castle in The Crown, DI Tessa Nixon in Unforgotten and Lace Polly in Jericho. Her impressive television portfolio includes roles in Playing the Field, Clocking Off, The Syndicate, Cheat, Jericho, and Vera.

In 2022, she brought to life the character of Daphne Sparrow in the popular TV series Sherwood. Lorraine also played Karen in I Hate Suzie, Joan in the comedy Alma’s Not Normal and Michelle Lafferty in Silent Witness.

Off-screen, Lorraine is part of a renowned family, being married to actor and filmmaker Andy Serkis, famed for voicing Gollum in The Lord of the Rings films. Their son Louis Ashbourne Serkis is carving out his own acting path, having appeared in 2020’s The Queen’s Gambit as Georgi Girev and alongside Sheridan Smith in the 2022 drama No Return.

Faye McKeever – Kelly

Actress Faye McKeever, 40, is known for her role as Kelly, but recently she was seen as Tanya Helsby in BBC’s prison drama Time. One of her most memorable roles was Linda in the comedy Trollied, though she’s graced our screens in numerous gripping dramas.

She featured in the Shannon Matthews-inspired BBC drama The Moorside in 2017 as Petra Jamieson, and in ITV’s chilling miniseries Des in 2020 as Linda Jay. In 2022, Faye took on the role of Jodie Sweeney in The Responder and a year later starred in BBC’s The Reckoning as Alison – which is a factual drama examining the crimes of Jimmy Savile.

Matt Stokoe – Pat Holman

Matt Stokoe, aged 37, portrays Jo’s on-screen husband Pat Holman, and off-screen, the couple – Matt and Sophie – are engaged and proud parents to two children who are four and one. Matt first gained recognition for his role as Alex in Channel 4’s Misfits, which paved the way for roles in The Village and the third series of The Musketeers.

In 2018, he starred as Luke in the TV series Bodyguard, alongside his future wife Sophie who played Vicky Budd in the BBC thriller. The couple also shared screen time in Sky One’s Jamestown and the film Rose, penned by Matt himself.

Matt took on the role of Gawain in Netflix’s original series Cursed and the contentious character Raoul Moat in The Hunt for Raoul Moat. He’s also appeared in films such as Hollow and Outlaw King, and lent his voice to several Final Fantasy video games.

Jacqueline Boatswain – Sarah Mackie

Jacqueline Boatswain brings to life local politician Sarah Mackie in After the Flood, boasting an impressive resume in both television and film. Audiences may recognise Jacqueline from her roles as Mima Blodwen in Carnival Row, Victoria in Wolfblood, and Patreesha St Rose in Shameless.

Fans of Grange Hill will also recall her memorable portrayal of headmistress Mrs Bassinger from 2003 to 2006 in the popular BBC teen drama. She later joined the Hollyoaks cast as Simone Loveday, a role she held from 2015 until 2019.

More recently, Jacqueline graced an episode of The Good Ship Murder and shared the screen with After The Flood co-star Sophie Rundle in The Diplomat.

Alun Armstrong – Alan Benson

Alun Armstrong is joining After the Flood series two as Alan Benson. Alun, 79, is known for roles such as Cardinal Jinette in Van Helsing, Mornay in Braveheart, Baltus Hafez in The Mummy Returns, and the High Constable from Sleepy Hollow.

Other roles include Gary Jackson in Sherwood, John Southouse in Garrow’s Law and Brian Lane in New Tricks – to name a few.

Ian Puleston-Davies – Tony Rower

Ian Puleston-Davies is joining After the Flood series two as Tony Rower. Ian, 65, is best known for playing Owen Armstrong in Coronation Street from 2010 to 2015.

Other roles include Terry Williams in Hollyoaks from 1995 to 1996, Jimmy in EastEnders in 1998, Mick Glover in The Bill, Phil Wiley in I’m Alan Partridge, Charlie Fisher in Waterloo Road, Peter Cullen in Marcella, Arthur Pennyworth in Pennyworth, Brian in The Teacher, Supt. Ross Beardsmore in D.I. Ray, Terry McGregor in The Bay and Eric in The Responder.

After the Flood returns on Sunday, 18 January, airing weekly on Sundays and Mondays on ITV. All episodes are available on ITVX.

For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website.

Northampton: Ramm; Todaro, Freeman, Dingwall (capt), Sleightholme; Belleau, Mitchell; Iyogun, Smith, Davison, Munga, Van der Mescht, Kemeny, Graham, Pollock.

Replacements: Wright, Fischetti, Millar-Mills, Lockett, Chick, McParland, Pater, Hendy.

Scarlets: J Davies; Mee, James, Hawkins, Murray; Costelow, Hughes; Mathias, Elias, Thomas, Douglas, Ball, Plumtree, Macleod (capt), Anderson.

Replacements: Van der Merwe, Hepburn, O’Connor, Taylor, Davis, G Davies, Page, Lewis.

Sin-bin: Mathias (35 mins)

Electoral commission says two parties aligned with President Patrice Talon win all 109 seats in the assembly.

President Patrice Talon’s ruling alliance has won full control of Benin’s National Assembly in legislative elections, according to provisional results.

The electoral commission said on Saturday night that of the five parties running in the January 11 vote, only the Progressive Union for Renewal and the Republican Bloc – both aligned with Talon – won seats in the assembly.

The Progressive Union for Renewal will have 60 MPs while the Republican Bloc will have 49.

According to a new electoral code, a party must obtain 20 percent of the national vote and 20 percent in each of the 24 electoral districts to be eligible for seat allocation.

The main opposition party, The Democrats, won about 16 percent of the vote and failed to reach the threshold.

The results strengthen the presidential bloc’s hand going into the presidential election in April, in which 67-year-old Talon, who has ruled the country for a decade, is barred from standing again by term limits.

His handpicked successor, Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, is expected to succeed him. The Democrats, meanwhile, are barred from standing in the presidential polls after failing to gather enough signatures to register.

The same rule sidelined them from local elections that were held alongside last week’s legislative polls.

“These results confirm the struggle that [The Democrats] party has been waging for about two years,” Guy Mitokpe, spokesperson for The Democrats, said, according to The Associated Press news agency.

“We denounced this electoral code, saying that it heavily favoured parties aligned with the president. It’s an exclusionary electoral code. As proof, we won’t have a candidate in the presidential election, and we were excluded from the municipal elections.”

Turnout in last weekend’s elections was 36.7 percent, officials said, roughly on par with the 37 percent in the last legislative polls in 2023.

The legislative vote took place weeks after a deadly military coup attempt to overthrow Talon, which lasted a few hours on December 7 before authorities announced it had been foiled.

Under a November constitutional reform, the presidential term was extended to seven years with a two-term limit.

Venezuelanalysis editor Ricardo Vaz joined Steve Grumbine on the Macro N Cheese podcast to take a broader look at the Bolivarian Revolution and its historical context.

The discussion included the revolutionary advances under Hugo Chávez, including communes and the path to socialism, as well as an analysis of the struggle for sovereignty in Venezuela’s oil industry.

Source: Macro N Cheese

Speculation has been rife that Zoe Ball is being lined up to take over Strictly Come Dancing as host following the exit of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman – and now she has hinted this may well be what will happen this year

Zoe Ball has confirmed she would “love” to host Strictly Come Dancing following the shock exit of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman last year. The 55-year-old radio and TV host is a firm favourite to take over hosting duties on the long-running BBC dance show.

However, Zoe has also warned that whoever does end up taking the reigns from Tess and Claudia will have big shoes to fill. It is not as though Zoe is unfamiliar with Strictly, however, as she was a contestant herself during season three back in 2005 and hosted spin-off show Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two from 2011 until 2020 – and even stood in to host the main show in 2014.

Speculation has been rife that Zoe could take over as main host – thanks, in part, to her strong association with the hit BBC show. And after she recently quit her Saturday Radio 2 show, fans have noted that her weekends are now free to take over the TV show.

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Opening up to The Sunday Times Style Magazine, she gushed: “Obviously there’s part of me that would love to do it. I love that show. I loved performing on it with Ian Waite, who is one of my best buddies. It’s so joyful.”

However, she did add: “It’s live telly, which is another thing that people don’t give the girls enough credit for. That show is a beast. Whoever gets to do it has a tough act to follow.’

Zoe’s teasing comments come hot on the heels of remarks from her father, broadcaster Johnny Ball, who suggested his daughter would be a shoe-in for the job. And he even suggested she would be even better at the role than outgoing stars Tess and Claudia.

He told the Express last month: “Nothing’s going to be decided until after Easter, but she’s in the mix, and people are coming to her, but it’s too early to say.” And he added: “I think she would love it, I think she would love the job because she took over from Claudia on It Takes Two, and if anything, she did a better job than Claudia.”

Johnny’s update comes after Zoe stoked speculation she will host Strictly when she shared a horoscope message on Instagram that promised big changes for Sagittarians in 2026. The post stated: “It will be a powerful year for you. There’s a lot of newness and freshness coming into your life. There’s a lot to feel and heal.”

The caption continued: “You’re clearing a lot of old karma this year, karma that is older than you in this life, karma that encompasses much larger cycles of who you are. You are being asked to find your way back home, to where you belong within yourself.”

And it concluded: “This year wants you to unlearn so many things and meet yourself in an organic and raw way, without any filters or glitters, just to experience yourself clean and clear.”

Last year, Strictly fans were blindsided when Tess and Claudia abruptly quit the scandal-hit show in the middle of the 2025 season. The duo suddenly announced that they planned to walk away from the show after decades of service, stating it was “the right time” to leave – after the show had been rocked by years of affair scandals and behind-the-scenes abuse claims.

After hosting their last ever show at Christmas last year, Tess took to social media to express her gratitude for being able to helm the show since it first launched in 2004 until the end of 2025. She wrote: “Strictly is a show that is made with love, where joy is the currency and the only agenda. That love is down to every single member of the brilliant team that makes it, because to none of them is it just a job. It is a gift, and it is truly treasured.”

Sir Bruce Forsyth was her original co-host when the show first began – and scandal risked engulfing the family friendly weekend show since the first season. It has long been claimed there is a “curse” on the show that destroys marriages and relationships.

Many contestants that have appeared on the show over the years have ditched their wives, husbands or partners to run off with professional dance stars. While in more recent years, darker stories of backstage attacks have leaked – with allegations and confirmation that some dance professionals physically attacked their celebrity co stars when tensions exploded behind the scenes of the squeaky clean image show.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

MEET Metz. It’s a French city you may not have heard of – but with impressive history, great food, and world-beating stained glass and art, it’s worth putting on your radar.  

It has Luxembourg and Germany as neighbours and has been at Europe’s crossroads since Roman times.

My discovery began with checking in at the surreal Maison Heler Metz hotel, part of Hilton’s characterful Curio Collection.  

Designed by French architect Philippe Starck, the nine-storey monolith-style building is topped with an incongruous silver house designed like a traditional 19th-century Metz home. 

The 104-room hotel, described as a “habitable work of art” by Starck, opened in March and feels like walking into one of the more leftfield episodes of Channel 4’s Grand Designs. 

Its theme is the story of fictional character Manfred Heler, an inventor who lives alone in a grand 19th-century home – meticulous, contemplative and obsessed with new technology. 

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Public areas are decorated with brown wood, stained glass and surreal  photographs of men wearing masks. It’s a feast for the eyes. 

French and fabulous 

Room decor is minimalist and functional, featuring brown leather, exposed concrete and moody lighting. 

Nearly half of the wall space in my suite was taken up by huge windows overlooking the city centre.  

The bathroom, with ultra-modern sink and walk-in shower, is hidden behind a sliding mirror. It’s a bit like washing in a very expensive cupboard.  

In fact, it felt more like a sanctuary than a hotel room and, at bedtime, thick curtains can be pulled over the giant windows leaving the room totally dark. 

Up on the ninth floor, restaurant La Maison de Manfred – styled as the family dining room in the whimsical house Monsieur Heler inherited from his  parents – serves an exciting, non-conformist menu. 

Expect everything from zesty ceviche and grilled octopus, to delicious Argentinian ribeye steak with chimichurri sauce. If weather permits, there’s also a balcony for drinks, with  grandstand views across the city. 

This is definitely a one-off hotel experience and I enjoyed every minute of my stay. 

Heading out to explore, I started at Centre Pompidou-Metz, the younger sibling of the contemporary art museum Centre Pompidou in Paris.  

The latter recently closed for renovation, so the curators at Metz have been able to pick from the massive Paris collection and create a remarkable exhibition. 

Opened in 2010, the building –  inspired by a woman’s hat – is only a short walk from the hotel (from £6pp, see centrepompidou-metz.fr/en). 

Next on my itinerary was the 800-year-old gothic Cathedral of Saint Stephen,  completed in 1552 after a 300-year build – but it has continued to be worked on over the past 500 years. 

Nicknamed La Lanterne du Bon Dieu (the Good Lord’s lantern), the church has the largest expanse of stained glass – mostly Renaissance – in the world, totalling nearly 70,000 sq ft of amazing glazing (free, £4.50pp for crypt and tower). 

Another fascinating selling point is that Metz, which straddles the Moselle river in north-east France, has considerable German architecture as it was annexed by its neighbours after the 1870 Franco-Prussian War. 

The new “owners” also changed all the street names before handing the city back after the Allies’ victory in World War One. 

But Metz was again seized, this time by the Nazis, during World War Two before it reverted to France in 1945. 

History lesson over, I strolled to the Brasserie Le Arts et Metiers for dinner – a meal that was very French and fabulous. 

To start, I had a fresh and vibrant shrimp-and-crab tartare served with yoghurt and dill – delicious smeared on freshly baked bread. 

I could not resist a main of classic Confit Duck with roasted new potatoes.

What makes this dish extra-special is that the duck leg is cured in salt, garlic and herbs before being cooked in its own fat. 

It’s a rich, unctuous recipe which pairs perfectly with potatoes of any kind. 

For dessert, I had my first Rum Baba. When I saw the small, spongy cake covered with syrup and booze and topped with whipped cream, the poor thing did not stand a chance (brasseriemetz.com). 

You may not have heard of Metz, but it’s the surreal deal for a city break with a difference.