The Guardian UK

U.S. President George W. Bush (R) walks on the colonnade with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama at the White House November 10, 2008 in Washington, DC.  Photo: Getty Images.  > More pics of Obama. There's a fabulous scene in The Commitments when the band try to get themselves into the mood to make soul music by chanting: 'I'm black! And I'm proud!' It is funny, of course, because they are all white. That was brought to mind by the even more hilarious spectacle of our politicians and other leaders around the world shamelessly jostling to try to grab a piece of Barack Obama and his ... Read Full Story

1 Al Frash The balti triangle (a patch of Sparkbrook to the South of Birmingham) packs over 50 restaurants into three streets. Al Frash is one of the best. The curry is accompanied by enormous fluffy nan breads. Dishes are cooked to order. About £8. 186 Ladypool Rd, Birmingham, 0121 753 3120, alfrash.com 2 Baozi Inn The Baozi Inn flies the flag for Sichuan noodles, buns and snacks. Order a bowl of noodles or one of the Sichuan specials. £6. 23 Newport Court, London WC2, 020 7287 6877 3 Cafe Espana Good Spanish cooking at very reasonable prices. Sharing a paella option will nudge ... Read Full Story

Good people of Word of Mouth, northerners and particularly Mancunians, your attention please. Now in its 11th year, Manchester Food & Drink Festival starts this Friday, October 3. To celebrate, over on Travel, I've compiled a Top 10 of the best budget eateries in the city . Well, I could have hardly done a Top 10 on Manchester fine dining could I? We're rubbish at it. Anyhow, as you can imagine, space was still tight - I couldn't squeeze in Abdul's godlike kebabs , for instance, and I didn't get a chance to roam far out of the city centre, to say Smiths in ... Read Full Story

One of the delights of the Spectator's Parliamentary Awards, of which I am one of the judges, is that they often showcase great swings in political fortunes. George Osborne was the Politician of the Year in 2007, then acclaimed as the master tactician who had frightened Gordon Brown into bottling an early election. What a curse these gongs can be. The closest that Mr Osborne got to a prize this year was handing them out to other politicians, notably the award for Newcomer of the Year to Peter Mandelson. That was the judges' way of marking his extraordinary comeback and, let's be honest, contriving ... Read Full Story

Are we seriously supposed to buy into the 'Sarah Effect'? And would this be entirely fair on Sarah Brown? The Labour win in Glenrothes has been widely credited to the PM's wife, who, alongside her husband, flouted byelection convention to knock on doors and persuade people into the booths. The result has been hailed as proof of Sarah's quasi-messianic appeal, first noted when she jumped on to the stage to introduce Brown at the Manchester conference. You can just imagine the excited plotting around the Westminster watercooler: how to employ the Sarah Effect to, well, best effect? Indeed, the only question no one seems ... Read Full Story