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Robbie Collin Chief Film Critic |
When my editors asked me to come up with a list of the 50 greatest films ever made, I opened a fresh page in my notes app and began to jot down all the titles that had to be included in order for the final piece to be remotely credible. When this preliminary inventory hit the low 300s, I realised an alternative approach was probably required.
What I eventually realised, after much agonised spreadsheeting, was that greatness is felt in the gut. It’s not that I simply think all of my 50 selections should be on this list. It’s that, unlike a number of canonical classics that I hold in high esteem but are missing in action, I simply couldn’t imagine the list existing without them.
The top three, in reverse order, are the funniest film ever made, the scariest and, at the peak, the most beautiful. Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr celebrated its 102nd birthday last month, and no comedy released since has been more imaginative or baldly uproarious.
David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive is a bewitching, terrifying parable of cinema’s lies and seductions: it makes my soul prickle each time I watch it. Then, just beyond both at the summit sits Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen’s sublime, movie-smitten Singin’ in the Rain, the one film I’d show to the aliens if they wanted to know what cinema could do.
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Singin’ in the Rain (1952) is Robbie Collin’s pick for the best film of all time |
I would love to know what you think of the list, and I will be going into the comments section of this article at 11am on Monday May 4. Let the debate commence!
Read the list in full here ➤
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Christine Dawood photographed for The Telegraph at home near London earlier this month |
It has been nearly three years since an expedition to see the wreckage of the Titanic went horribly wrong.
At 9.00am on June 18 2023, the American tour operator OceanGate launched the Titan submersible from its mother ship to begin a 3,800-metre dive to the bottom of the ocean.
It was the trip of a lifetime for the Dawood family, British citizens who had dreamt of seeing the Titanic for many years. Christine Dawood waved off her husband Shahzada and their 19-year-old son Suleman, who were joined in the sub by OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, deep-sea explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet and the British pilot and adventurer Hamish Harding. However, less than two hours later, communication with the sub was lost.
The Titan submersible lost contact just a few hours into its descent to the Titanic wreck |
The international search-and-rescue effort that ensued made headlines around the world, in a race-against-time mission to find the sub, which only had 96 hours of oxygen remaining.
In an exclusive extract from her upcoming memoir, Christine writes for the first time about the harrowing hour-by-hour countdown to try and locate her husband and son.
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Zoe Strimpel Too many jobsworths are pushing local government in a horrific direction Continue reading ➤
William Sitwell I once took a decade to say sorry – it’s never too late Continue reading ➤
Janet Daley The words of the King enabled us to see beyond the hopeless present Continue reading ➤ |
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*Estimating what the 2021 outcome would have been under the new 2026 boundaries |
Scottish Labour once seemed like a government-in-waiting. Now, the party faces coming third, writes Jacob Freedland, our Scottish Reporter. The reason is simple: Sir Keir Starmer. Scots feel his party has betrayed the very places that paved its path to victory in 2024, from Aberdeen, Europe’s declining oil capital, to Glasgow, the pro-independence stronghold where Reform UK is now surging. The winner in all this? The SNP, which is set for a third decade in power.
This article is only available to subscribers.
Continue reading ➤ |
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Georgia Garlick before and after her weight-loss journey |
At the age of 19, Georgia Garlick was told she was on the brink of Type 2 diabetes. At 5ft 8in and 20.4 stone, she was morbidly obese, a consequence of years spent secretly binge-eating and yoyo-dieting. Here, Georgia explains how the health scare forced her to overhaul her lifestyle and lose nine stone through a combination of strength training, walking and a high-protein diet. Continue reading ➤ |
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For decades in Pakistan, the “establishment”, a code name for the military, controlled political affairs from the shadows. Now, Field Marshal Asim Munir is the public face of delicate negotiations between Iran and the United States. His prominence has ended the “fiction” that civilians were running the country, says one former finance minister. However, it comes with risks, and Munir must now deliver change at a politically combustible moment. Continue reading ➤ |
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Madonna’s Like a Prayer video, for which Patrick Leonard wrote and produced the song, was condemned by the Vatican |
Patrick Leonard wrote many of Madonna’s most enduring hits – Like a Prayer, Live to Tell – yet he’s come to regret his role in shaping pop music history. The songwriter and producer talks to Poppie Platt about the Queen of Pop’s countless controversies, his “greatest collaborator” Leonard Cohen, and why he won’t be watching the new Michael Jackson biopic. Continue reading ➤ |
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Amid an exodus which may soon include Max Verstappen, can Red Bull return to their former glories? |
After 124 race wins, six constructors’ championships, and eight drivers’ titles over a 20-year period, Red Bull made the huge call last summer to sack Christian Horner, their team principal and CEO. Nearly 12 months on, they find themselves in a strange place. Red Bull’s car is off the pace, senior staff are leaving and the future of star driver Max Verstappen is up in the air. Is the ship sinking, or is it merely going through choppy waters as the team looks to rebuild under the leadership of new man Laurent Mekies? Continue reading ➤ |
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Many of us dream of a sunny retirement, but instead of flocking to the usual European destinations with the masses, we’ve found some places that you might not have considered. In these locations, dotted all around the world, the cost of living is low, English is widely spoken, and you don’t have to compromise on good weather. Continue reading ➤
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Guy Goma, after being mistaken for a tech expert live on BBC News 24 in 2006, had to bluff his way through it |
These days, it takes minutes for a video to spread around the world. However, back in 2006, when YouTube was barely a year old, Myspace was still the world’s biggest social network, and TikTok was the sound a clock made. It was difficult, if not impossible, for a video to go properly viral.
Even so, Guy Goma’s video went more viral than a sneeze in an overcrowded edit suite. To which I can only say: you’re welcome. For it was me wot done it. I was the producer who, for better or worse, accidentally picked up the wrong guy, turning him forever into the legend that we know today as “The Wrong Guy”.
This also happens to be the title of the book we’ve been working on for the past two years and which came out this week. Reliving that day in May with Guy, meeting his family in Congo and learning how it changed both our lives, has been a blast, and quite cathartic to boot.
Why did we do it? Well, despite the passage of two decades, “The Wrong Guy” still has a hold on us; he still spreads joy everywhere he goes. We’re the only two people in the world who know the real, inside story, so we thought we’d share both sides with the good readers of The Telegraph. Enjoy.
Continue reading ➤ |
Richard Harries as Bishop of Oxford |
The Right Reverend Lord Harries of Pentregarth, who has died aged 89, was a long-serving Bishop of Oxford and one of the best-known churchmen of his time. For more than 50 years, he was a regular contributor to Radio 4’s Thought for the Day slot, writes Andrew M Brown, our Obituaries Editor.
Harries was a liberal but not an agitator, quietly spoken and confident in his arguments.
The biggest controversy of his career arose over his nomination of a celibate but gay cleric, Jeffrey John, as suffragan bishop of Reading. At the time, in 2003, the global Anglican Church was locked in a bitter dispute over the legitimacy of gay clergy.
The then-Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie with Richard Harries |
John eventually became Dean of St Albans and there was much sympathy for him, but many in the Church felt that Harries could have avoided the scandal.
Nevertheless, as a skilled communicator he spoke for the Church of England on many ethical and social subjects, notably the 2003 Iraq War, on the grounds that it did not meet the Just War criteria. He also wrote more than 30 books, far more than most modern bishops.
Read the obituary in full here ➤ |
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Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including The 1% Club, Cogs, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was CAMERAMAN. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. |
Thank you for reading. Allister Heath, Sunday Telegraph Editor
P.S. Please share your thoughts on the newsletter here. |
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