title: Atomwaffen Division

text: In May 2022, RCMP laid terrorism charge against Seth Bertrand of Ontario over alleged links to Atomwaffen. He was also charged with vandalizing a transgender centre. In June 2022 the RCMP raided houses in St-Ferdinand and Plessisville in rural Quebec allegedly connected Atomwaffen Division. La Presse subsequently reported the raids were related to an Atomwaffen training camp in an old school building in Victoriaville.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: In October 2018, a group which is modeled after Atomwaffen and calls itself the Feuerkrieg Division (German for "Fire War Division") was established in the Baltic states, most likely in Saaremaa, Estonia where several members of its leadership reside. In mid-2019, the Feuerkrieg gained attention when it issued death threats against Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt and YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki. It has previously praised the actions of Dylann Roof, Robert Bowers, Timothy McVeigh and Brenton Harrison Tarrant, and encouraged violence against government authorities, Jews, LGBTQ people, leftists and feminists. Propaganda videos produced by the group show its members building and detonating homemade explosive devices in Estonia. Feuerkrieg has also shared a video among its members that instructs how to make TATP bombs, used by ISIS in the Manchester Arena bombing. On June 13, 2019, Feuerkrieg Division announced their presence in Ireland and encouraged people in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Germany to join the intercontinental network. Later that year the Gardaí announced they had deported a member of the Atomwaffen network from Ireland for his role in a murder plot.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: According to Eesti Rahvusringhääling, an investigation revealed that newly elected Estonian MP Ruuben Kaalep (EKRE) is connected to British neo-Nazi terrorists. Among these a founding member of the former National Action whose followers went on to form the British branch of the Atomwaffen Division, which subsequently opened a branch in Kaalep's native Estonia in the form of the Feuerkrieg Division. ADL and Hope not Hate also confirmed that American and English Nazis and Azov members have visited Tallinn multiple times, organizing events with Kaalep and Feuerkrieg "which began in early 2019, originally organized with Sonnenkrieg" before becoming a full-fledged branch. The Finnish Resistance Movement from neighbouring Finland cooperates with the group as well. Kaalep was also found to have been organizing firearms training with pistols and assault rifles to groups of youths recruited from Blue Awakening, some of whom wore skull masks associated with Atomwaffen and were shown doing Nazi salutes. Kaalep had stated that they are ready for armed combat and the collapse of law and order. The Estonian Internal Security Service had earlier expressed its concern over his events.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On September 2, 2019, the British police arrested a 16-year-old Feuerkrieg member for plotting a mass shooting and arson attacks. The army cadet had professed his admiration for Adolf Hitler and James Mason. Prosecutor Michelle Nelson said he adheres to "occult Nazism" and satanism. He had also allegedly surveyed the synagogues in the Durham area in preparation for the attack and talked with another man about buying a gun from him. He also tried to obtain a dangerous chemical from his neo-Nazi friend. The boy wrote in his journal how he needed to "shed empathy" in preparation for the attack. The group published the addresses of the force's station buildings, custody suites and training centres in retaliation and encouraged its members and sympathizers to kill West Midlands Chief Constable Dave Thompson. It was added that all police are "race traitors" and that police stations should be "considered high value targets to any local NS [National Socialist]". On November 20, 2019, he was found guilty of preparing a terrorist attack and several other terror offenses and is awaiting sentencing in custody. In addition to the terror offenses, he is charged with sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl. He was eventually convicted of five sexual assaults in addition to the terror offenses.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On October 8, 2019, Feuerkrieg Division took responsibility for the bombing of Western Union offices on the Balčikonis street in Vilnius, Lithuania, posting footage of the bomb being constructed and stated that "Our threats are not empty". Nazi symbols were also spray painted on the building. The next day, a 21-year-old Luke Hunter appeared in court in London charged with terror offences, allegedly having supported the Feuerkrieg Division and encouraged the mass murder of Jews, non-white people and homosexuals. In December 2020 he was sentenced to four years in prison. Subsequently, a 21-year-old Lithuanian named Gediminas Beržinskas was arrested and charged with the bombing and Lithuanian police removed a large quantity of explosives and firearms from his apartment. It was also revealed that his gang had previously been charged with the brutal beating and sexual assault of a teenage girl. The Estonian Internal Security Service also stated that their operation had stopped a similar bombing from taking place in Estonia by another member of Feuerkrieg Division.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On January 16, 2020, a 22-year-old Latvian named Arturs Aispurs was charged with preparing an act of terrorism for building a bomb he was planning to detonate in a crowd of "Muslims and foreigners" during the New Year's Eve celebration in Helsinki. During the search of his apartment the police found a large amount of propaganda in his possession linking him to the neo-Nazi network. In response, Feuerkrieg Division announced they are ceasing their public activities. However, according to an investigation by "Der Spiegel" into firearm smuggling from the Balkans and Eastern Europe to Germany by Atomwaffen, the purported halt of activities was a ruse targeted at law enforcement, and that the group is still very much active.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: According to "Eesti Ekspress", Estonian Internal Security Service detained a local teenager they alleged was one of the leaders and recruiters for the group, operating under the nickname "Commander" or "" ("Warlord"). He had instructed others how to build bombs, spoke about planning attacks and encouraged members to take part in the paramilitary training. However, the authorities could not legally arrest him due to his minor status, and being not criminally liable. His alleged status in the group was also disputed by "Eesti Ekspress". In a published picture, the boy can be seen wearing a skull mask and holding a pistol, taking part in the firearms training organized by Kaalep, who is also believed to have taken part in the group's chats under the pseudonym "Kert Valter".


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: In the United Kingdom, the Home Office announced on July 13, 2020, that it has designated the Feuerkrieg Division as a terrorist organization and the designation came into effect on July 17. In addition John Mann, Baron Mann proposed "discussions with Estonian ministerial counterparts, given that the FKD and the Sonnenkrieg Division appear to have strong Estonian links ... to see what we can learn about the reason for the growth in such organisations in the Baltics".


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On September 2, 2020, Paul Dunleavy from Warwickshire appeared in Birmingham Crown Court, charged with preparing an act of terrorism. He had allegedly stated he was getting armed and in shape for a mass shooting to "provoke a race war", having acquired a handgun and ammunition for this purpose. He was found guilty on October 2, 2020, and was jailed for five years and six months. On February 1, 2021, a Cornish man said to have been the leader of the UK branch of the Feuerkrieg Division pleaded guilty to 12 terrorism offences. Police had previously raided his home in 2019 for firearms and had found bomb building instructions and O9A literature.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On May 31, 2020, it was announced that new Atomwaffen cell had been uncovered in Russia that allegedly receives military training from the Russian Imperial Movement, designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. United States citizens affiliated with the group are also believed to have taken part. Leader of the Atomwaffen Division Kaleb Cole allegedly was one of the Americans who was trained by RIM. The ties between Atomwaffen and RIM reach back to 2015 when Brandon Russell met with the leadership of RIM.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: BBC Russian Service investigation managed to identify some of the members of the group. Some had previously been active in the banned National Socialist Society whose members committed 27 hate crime murders and decapitated a police informant. The members published a Russian language translation of Brenton Tarrant's accelerationist manifesto. A copy of the book was found in the apartment of Yevgeny Manyurov who was allegedly inspired by it to shoot and kill multiple Federal Security Service agents in the Moscow FSB headquarters. The cell maintains contact with the rest of the Atomwaffen network and affiliated militants in Ukrainian Galicia. In July 2020 Security Service of Ukraine conducted a raid against allegedly affiliated neo-Nazis in Kiev who operated printing presses and sold printed versions of the manifesto and other Nazi literature. Another raid was conducted against a group of neo-Nazis in Odessa planning to burn down a synagogue. Firearms were seized in the raids. According to the Security Service of Ukraine both of these operations were masterminded by men from Russia.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: As is the case elsewhere, AWD Russland is connected to the Russian O9A chapter. The group is tied to numerous crimes, including burning down a church, sexual assaults, child prostitution, possession of occult extremist material and incitement to murder due to religious and racial hatred. Multiple members have been arrested and one was sent to involuntary psychiatric treatment. On August 20, 2021, four O9A members were arrested for satanic ritual murders in Karelia and St. Petersburg. Two of them are also accused of large-scale drug trafficking as a large amount of narcotics was found in their home. In October 2021 a cell in Buryatia was arrested for having planned attacks against the government and migrants. The police seized firearms, explosives and Nazi paraphernalia from their hideout in Ulan-Ude.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: Already previously active in the Italian speaking Switzerland, by 2021 Atomwaffen had a full-fledged chapter in Italy with 38 members, formed in Savona. The group is called Nuovo Ordine Sociale or "New Social Order" in English. On January 22, 2021, the police arrested a 22 year old leader named Andrea Cavalleri in Savona and searched the houses of 12 other members in Genoa, Turin, Cagliari, Forlì-Cesena, Palermo, Perugia, Bologna and Cuneo in an anti-terrorism operation. Various firearms were seized. Cavalleri is suspected, among other things, of preparing to commit a mass shooting and the police believe they foiled an attack. Ten rifles and three pistols were confiscated from his house. According to investigators he also had published and distributed propaganda inciting a revolution against "Zionist Occupation Government" and extermination of the Jewish people and "race traitors". Cavalleri also allegedly encouraged people to commit mass murder attacks like Anders Breivik and Brenton Tarrant and rape and kill enemies of the group. He is charged with forming a terrorist organization and incitement to criminal actions motivated by racial hatred. The NOS described itself as "A special unit of National Socialist revolutionaries" which "only welcomes warriors ready to die" and has "race war as its main purpose".


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On December 27, 2021, five Italian Atomwaffen leaders were arrested and searches were conducted in Pordenone, Brindisi, Milan, Turin, Ferrara, Modena, Verona and Bologna. Nazi propaganda and weapons were confiscated during the raids. The arrested leaders are suspected of distributing information on explosives.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: Atomwaffen Division Finland "Siitoin Squadron" (AWDSS) was formed after the ban of the Nordic Resistance Movement (NRM) in 2019, following members of the underground group embracing accelerationism and occultism. The AWDSS was announced on September 15, 2021, the anniversary of the adoption of the swastika flag and the Nuremberg laws in Germany, with footage of members holding assault rifles. However, the group had already been active long before the announcement, and a few of their members had previously been exposed by antifascist activists. The former NRM accelerationists had been active temporarily as "Kansallissosialistinuoret" ("National Socialist Youth") prior to the formation of the AWDSS. AWDSS also maintains particularly close relations with the Feuerkrieg Division in neighboring Estonia. According to an investigation by Yleisradio, two thirds of the known members who were previously involved with NRM or Soldiers of Odin have a conviction for a violent crime, and multiple have been convicted of murder. In their private chats Finnish Atomwaffen members talk about raping political enemies and publish videos of firearms training.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: AWDSS is connected to and shares membership with Finnish O9A nexions. Finnish MP Vilhelm Junnila quoted a newspaper article about Atomwaffen that the nationally active group should be added to the list of proscribed organisations. In September 2021, Save the Children foundation warned that extreme movements like Atomwaffen and O9A were grooming and recruiting children in Finland. Five Finns were previously arrested for sexually abusing multiple children, and according to the police the activities involved "Nazism and satanism" and consumption of methamphetamine. On September 25, 2021, Atomwaffen members assaulted antifascist counterdemonstrators to a Nazi demonstration in Helsinki and were arrested by the police at the scene. Atomwaffen and Finnish lodge of the Black Order also formed a border patrol militia in co-operation, recruiting former military police. According to "Seura" magazine, some members had previously served in the Azov Battalion.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: On December 4, 2021, the Finnish police arrested a five-man cell in Kankaanpää on suspicion of planning a terror attack and confiscated numerous firearms, including assault rifles, and tens of kilos of explosives. According to the Finnish media, the men adhered to the ideology of Atomwaffen, James Mason and ONA Satanism and used Atomwaffen-like symbols.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: According to "Le Parisien", a French man referred to as Simon planned a double mass murder with an Alsatian man known as Nicholas which was to occur on Hitler's birthday, April 20. As a preparation, Simon had already scouted around his former high school and a nearby mosque, in Seine-Maritime. Simon wrote that "[he] want[ed] to do worse than Columbine", also professing an admiration for mass murderer Anders Breivik. Simon was arrested and taken into custody on September 28, by the police from the General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI). Brought before an anti-terrorism judge, he was indicted for "criminal terrorist association" and placed in pre-trial detention. At his home, investigators discovered a collection of around 20 knives and at least three firearms including a long rifle equipped with a telescopic sight and a shotgun. Through Atomwaffen Division, Simon came to meet his "brothers in arms", Leila B and Nicholas. Like Simon, Leila B. planned to carry out a deadly attack in her high school. She also planned to plant a bomb in the church closest to her home during the Easter holidays. Detected by the DGSI a few days before the planned day of action, she was indicted on April 8, 2021, for "criminal terrorist association".


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: The existence of Atomwaffen Division affiliate in Argentina was first reported in early 2020. Tomás Gershanik of the Public Prosecutor's Office in Buenos Aires stated that Argentina is no exception, and the local chapter spreads propaganda in universities and organizes firearms drills. The expose by the media was spurred by Grand Rabbi Gabriel Davidovich of Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina being violently beaten by the Argentinian neo-nazis. According to Cyber Threats Research Centre (CYTREC) at Swansea University, AWD Argentina maintains contacts with Atomwaffen affiliated neo-nazis in neighbouring Brazil. Atomwaffen Argentina is member of Iron Order, a coalition of accelerationist groups.


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: Atomwaffen has been the subject of two full length documentaries, "Documenting Hate: New American Nazis" by PBS and MSNBC's "Breaking Hate: Atomwaffen Division".


title: Atomwaffen Division

text: Karin Slaughter's book "The Last Widow" features Brandon Russell as a neo-Nazi leader. "Incendiary Attraction" by Sarah Andre features fictional neo-Nazi group "the Race" that is the sister group of Atomwaffen Division and they perpetrate a terror attack killing muslims. "Ghost Hunter: Occultus" by Martin J. Best mentions Atomwaffen and Sonnenkrieg as being tied to a satanic ritual murder.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language historical action film directed by Surender Reddy and produced by Ram Charan under the Konidela Production Company banner. Surender Reddy scripted the film based on an original story given by Paruchuri brothers. A work of fiction, the film is inspired by the life of Indian independence activist Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy from the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh. The film stars Chiranjeevi as the title character with Nayanthara, Tamannaah, Sudeep, Jagapathi Babu, and Vijay Sethupathi (in his Telugu film debut) in supporting roles. Amitabh Bachchan and Anushka Shetty make guest appearances, marking the former's Telugu debut. Pawan Kalyan, Kamal Haasan, and Mohanlal gave narration in the film. The film tells the story of Narasimha Reddy in his fight against the rule of the British East India Company.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: It was officially launched on 22 August 2017, coinciding with Chiranjeevi's birthday, whereas principal photography of the film began on 6 December 2017 and wrapped up within 24 June 2019. The film was shot across Hyderabad, Kerala while some scenes were filmed in Georgia.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film's cinematography was handled by R. Rathnavelu, and editing done by A. Sreekar Prasad. The film features soundtrack composed by Amit Trivedi, whilst the background score was composed by Julius Packiam. "Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy" was released theatrically worldwide on 2 October 2019, with simultaneous dubbed versions released in Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, and Tamil. The film received mostly positive reviews from critics, and the original Telugu version was successful in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. But the dubbed versions in other languages were not commercially successful. It grossed (US$34.2 million) against a budget of (US$28.4 million).


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: During 1857, the Indian subcontinent is in the grips of a widespread revolt against the rule of the British East India Company. The city of Jhansi is under siege by the British, and the defending soldiers begin to waver upon seeing that they are outnumbered. However, their queen, Rani Lakshmi Bai, motivates them by telling the tale of the rebel who started their war ten years ago: Narasimha Reddy.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Reddy was born to the chief of Uyyalawada and his two wives who are the daughters of Nossam's chief. He defied death after being born still and coming to life, and is believed to be blessed by God with gifted abilities and has demonstrated athletic and acrobatic skills from a young age. One day, a teenage Reddy rides past an execution conducted by the British, and his grandfather explains the predicament faced by villagers under the rule of the East India Company. Reddy vows to retaliate and learns combat and philosophy under sage Gosayi Venkanna. 25 years later, Reddy gathers several fallen chiefs and kings from different provinces and organizes a fully operational resistance in the city of Renadu. The kingdoms were taken over by British forces led by Cochrane, the governor of Madras. Cochrane is told of Reddy's resistance being effective against their rule and sends a general named Jackson to forcefully collect Renadu's taxes.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Reddy meets the dancer Lakshmi and saves her life from stampeding cattle, who have been drugged by fellow chief Avuku Raju, who is known to have hostility towards Reddy for his popularity. Reddy rounds up the cattle, forgives Avuku, and also displays feelings for Lakshmi. But this comes to nothing as a child marriage has already been conducted between Reddy and a girl named Siddhamma, who has had feelings for Reddy even then. Due to believed omens, they were separated and reunited for a "Yagam" ritual. Upon knowing this, Lakshmi attempts suicide, but Reddy convinces her to give life another chance. In the meantime, Jackson raids and pillages the surrounding regions of Rennadu, and challenges Reddy by killing villagers who speak against him. In retaliation, Reddy attacks Jackson's home by himself and kills all of his soldiers. He eventually beheads him and sends his head to Cochrane.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The resistance grows stronger when Lakshmi travels across the nation and promotes it, leading Tamil chief Raja Pandi to join. Cochrane sends a battalion of hundreds of men led by his man Daniel, all of whom are killed when Reddy and a group of civilians hold themselves down in a fort, using strategic traps to counter their technology. Avuku reforms and helps Reddy defeat them, admiring his bravery. In the process, Siddhama gives birth to their child in the fort, and Reddy names him Subbaya after his farmer friend who perishes. As Reddy expands his army by training civilians, Cochrane manages to capture Lakshmi and use her to get to Reddy. When Lakshmi is told that Cochrane has enough ammunition and weapons to demolish the resistance, she lights her clothes on fire and causes an explosion, killing herself and the men. Cochrane however survives and gathers his remaining troops to make a final stand against Reddy's army. The two armies clash, and Cochrane kills Obanna and Raja Pandi is gravely injured however Reddy saves him by defeating Cochrane in a sword duel. The rebels hold them back and kill 10,000 men, but Reddy is forced to go into hiding when an injured Cochrane continues to search for him.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: A chief named Veera Reddy betrays the resistance out of anger since Reddy had killed his son for attempting to assassinate him and collect a British bounty on his head. At the same time, Reddy gave his treacherous brother a second chance but only to reveal his allies. It turns out that Reddy had spared and forgave him, without knowing Veera drugs Reddy's tea which weakens him, allowing Cochrane's men to capture him. Reddy is convicted and his supporters are exiled, but before Reddy is executed he gives a speech to his people telling them to stand strong and hold up the resistance. However, Reddy does not die even from hanging and escapes the noose. One of the soldiers beheads him, but even afterward, Reddy's body manages to stab Cochrane dead. Reddy's head is hung for a display to suppress the rebellion. Gosayi Venkanna, Avuku Raju, Raja Pandi, and other supporters of Reddy are exiled from India. 10 years later, Rani Lakshmi Bai and her men fight the British and defeat them. A narration states that Reddy's rebellions will have served as inspiration for warriors and activists to gain their deserved freedom.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Following the phenomenal success of the Chiranjeevi-starrer "Khaidi No. 150" (2017), Ram Charan who made his production debut, through this film, announced that he will collaborate with his father Chiranjeevi for the second time. Touted to be mostly based on the life of Indian independence activist Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy from the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh, the script was written by Paruchuri Brothers, and was rumoured to cast Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, opposite Chiranjeevi, although her dates had not been finalised. Amitabh Bachchan and Ravi Kishan were reported to sign in pivotal roles. In June 2017, a still featuring Chiranjeevi in a tweaked moustache went viral, with many fans supposed to mention about his look for the film. On 22 August 2017, the makers released the motion poster of the film, revealing the title as Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy, and was announced that the film will be made on a budget of . It was revealed that the makers spent more than on the film's visual effects out of its total budget.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Soon after the launch of the film, Vijay Sethupathi and Amitabh Bachchan was hired to play a crucial role in the film, marking their debuts in the Telugu film industry. Kiccha Sudeep, Jagapathi Babu and Nayanthara were hired to play pivotal characters. Bachchan was essayed to play a short role of Chiranjeevi's mentor in the film, while Vijay Sethupathi's role was reported to be a close aide of the protagonist. Tamannaah was hired to play the second female lead in April 2018. Chiranjeevi's niece Niharika Konidela, was hired for a crucial sequence in September 2018. In May 2019, Anushka Shetty was confirmed to play a cameo role in the film. She was reportedly playing the role of Rani Lakshmi Bai, in which the story was narrated through her perspective.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Cinematographer Ravi Varman who was initially signed for the project, was replaced by R. Rathnavelu, after he walked out of the project due to schedule conflicts. Rajeevan was signed to do production designing. Anju Modi, Uthara Menon, Sushmitha Konidela was signed to work as costume designers. London-based stunt choreographers Greg Powell, Lee Whittaker, and "Ram Lakshman" choreographed the action sequences.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Principal photography of the film kickstarted on 6 December 2017. The first schedule of the film was kickstarted on an aluminium factory located at Hyderabad, with the presence of Chiranjeevi and Brahmaji. The first schedule of the film was completed on 25 December. The second schedule of the film which was supposed to happen in January 2018, was postponed due to 20 February 2018. This schedule will be shot across Kerala, where Chiranjeevi and Nayanthara will be present. In March 2018, Nayanthara joined the sets of the film, after the shooting of her Tamil film "Viswasam" (2019), with Ajith Kumar, has been interrupted due to a strike. The unit has completed some action sequences under the guidance of a team of stunt choreographers from South Africa. Amitabh Bachchan joined the sets of the film in Hyderabad on 28 March 2018.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: On 17 April, the shooting of the film was called off due to unknown reasons, and was resumed later on 7 June 2018. Rajeevan erected a grant village set for a war sequence, which will be shot in night effect. The team spent 35 nights to shoot the entire schedule, which was wrapped up on 27 July 2018. In August 2018, the makers shot an action sequence at the Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. In September 2018, a crucial war sequence was filmed, which cost the makers . On late September 2018, the makers film an extensive climax sequence at Georgia, which was filmed within 25 days. A single stretch schedule was completed on 1 November to 10 December, followed by the team which went to shoot some sequences in Mysore.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: In March 2019, Amitabh Bachchan rejoined the sets of the film, to complete few portions of the film, which were completed on 19 March 2019. Kiccha Sudeep, too entered the last schedule of the film on 29 March and completed late April. The makers filmed few scenes at Kerala on 19 April 2019, for a 10-day schedule which had battle sequences and several crucial scenes to be shot. After this schedule, the team returned to Hyderabad to shoot some important sequences with patchwork, which will be the last schedule in the entire shooting part.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The final schedule took place at a specially erected set in Kokapet which resembles a huge kingdom. On 2 May 2019, a major fire broke out at Chiranjeevi's farmhouse due to a short circuit. The farmhouse which was located nearby the shooting location, made a significant part of the film's set burnt to ashes, which made the makers lose more than . Due to which the team had halted the shooting midway. On mid-May 2019, Anushka Shetty shot her cameo sequences for the film, followed by a shoot of a special song featuring Nayanthara and Chiranjeevi in a customised set at Annapurna Studios. On 24 June 2019, the entire shooting process of the film was wrapped.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: A. R. Rahman was initially approached to compose the music for the film, but in November 2017, he announced that, he will not be a part of this project, citing a busy schedule. Composers S. Thaman (who provided music for the film's motion poster) and Hiphop Tamizha and Himesh Reshammiya were decided to be hired as a replacement for Rahman. In February 2018, Ilayaraaja was rumoured to compose music for te flick, however no official announcement has been made in development. In July 2018, Amit Trivedi was hired to compose music for the film, thus making his debut in the Telugu film industry. Julius Packiam provided the background score for the film. Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry, Anantha Sriram, Chandrabose, Swanand Kirkire, Madhan Karky, Azad Varadaraj, and Siju Thuravoor wrote the lyrics for the soundtrack in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam respectively.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Lahari Music acquired the music rights for Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages, whereas Hindi music rights were sold to T-Series. Prior to the soundtrack release, the first song, "O Sye Raa" was released as the film's lead single on 1 September 2019, which had vocals by Sunidhi Chauhan and Shreya Ghoshal, rendering the song in all languages. The complete soundtrack album was released in all languages (Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, and Kannada) on the same day, through streaming platforms, whereas it was released later in YouTube on 2 September 2019.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Neeshita Nyayapati of "The Times of India" wrote that "The album of Sye Raa is underwhelming, with Amit trying too hard to match up his numbers to the grandeur of the film. What’s more disappointing is the lack of traditional Andhra elements in the film’s music, despite the story being set in the 1800s. But "O Syeraa" and "Swaasalone Desame" somehow manage to make up for the mediocrity of the other two songs." Vipin of "Musicaloud" on reviewing the music of the film, gave 3 out of 5 stars and stated that "Amit Trivedi’s Telugu debut is pretty much along the lines of "Baahubali" – majestic in an expected way and partly comes across as dependent on the elaborate visuals to bolster its appeal."


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: "123telugu.com" stated that "The album of Sye Raa is a completely situational album which takes the story ahead with its lyrics and compositions. Every song is special in itself as Amit Trivedi has given a lot of heart and soul which evoke good emotions and patriotism. This is not the regular commercial album and is the one which will impress you once you watch the lavish and beautiful visuals on screen. For now, the makers have got the music right which will surely take the narrative to another level."


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: "Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy" was initially scheduled to release in January 2019, which planned to coincide with the Sankranthi occasion. However, it was postponed to the occasion of summer, due to Ram Charan's "Vinaya Vidheya Rama" (2019), being released on the Sankranthi occasion. The release was further postponed due to delay in film production and the makers finalised for a Dusshera occasion (7 October 2019), although being preponed to 2 October 2019, since the release coincides with Gandhi Jayanthi and also adding the benefits of the extended holiday weekend. On 23 September 2019, the film was sent to the Central Board of Film Certification for public viewing, where it received U/A certificate from the officials.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film was opened up on more than 4,800 screens worldwide, despite clashing with the Hindi film "War" (2019), and the Hollywood film "Joker" (2019). The film's Hindi version was distributed by Rithesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar, under their Excel Entertainment banner. The film's Kannada distribution rights were bagged by Dheeraj Enterprises for a sum of . The film made a business of , before release. Weekend Cinemas acquired the distribution rights of the film in the United States for a sum of , and it was premiered a day before the Indian release, on 1 October 2019.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film's pre-release event which was supposed to be held on 18 September 2019 at Kurnool, was cancelled due to heavy rains on the location. Instead on the said date, the makers launched the official trailer of the film. The event was later held on 22 September 2019, at the Lal Bahadur Sastri Stadium in Hyderabad, with the presence of the cast and crew and other celebritites. Another pre-release event was held on 29 September 2019 in Bangalore.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Popular Indian comic book company, Amar Chitra Katha collaborated with the film for its promotion, where a comic book based on the life of Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy, was launched during the film's pre-release event. To promote the film, the makers headed a city tour in Bangalore, Cochin, Chennai and Mumbai. Amarapali Jewels teamed up the film, and launched a special collection of jewellery, which were used in the film. A pre release event was also held in Chennai, to promote the film’s Tamil version.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The digital rights of the film were sold to Amazon Prime Video for crores. The film was released on the streaming platform (simultaneously in all languages), after its theatrical run, on 21 November 2019. The satellite rights of the film were sold to Sun TV Network (for Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada versions) and Zee TV (for the Hindi version), for a sum of crore. The film was initially slated to air on 1 December 2019, was postponed due to unknown reasons; the dubbed Tamil version of the film was premiered on Sun TV instead, and registered a TRP rating of 15.4 with more than 11 crore impressions. The original version was premiered later on Gemini TV, in January 2020.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film met with generally positive response from the viewers. Neeshita Nyayapati writing for "The Times of India" gave the 3.5 stars out of 5 stating that "the story-telling has its flaws, but the characters are intriguing. What's impressive is the massive canvas the film is mounted on. Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy might work only in bits and pieces, but the scenes in which the film works makes it all worthwhile!". Rahul Devulapalli writing for "The Week" gave the 3.5 stars out of 5 stating, "The movie's biggest strengths are its visuals, especially the war scenes. Roping in of international stunt directors has enhanced the overall experience. The producer and son of Chiranjeevi, Ram Charan, has pulled out all stops in marketing the film and it did not go waste. In the end, though the product is worth appreciating, it cannot be called a biopic of Narasimha Reddy as a lot of events in the movie are historically questionable. If you can silence the fact-checker in you, watch the movie for Chiranjeevi and the action sequences". Hemanth Kumar writing for "Firstpost" gave the film a 3.5 stars out of 5 statings, "At a runtime of nearly 170 minutes, Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy tells a fascinating story about a rebellion that's never been explored in Telugu cinema. Despite the familiarity of the genre, the film relies quite a lot on Chiranjeevi's screen presence. And he packs a punch and how".


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of "The Hindu" praised the cinematography, costumes, Chiranjeevi's performance and adding that the makers skilfully use cinematic liberties to play to the mainstream, crowd-pleasing format. "DNA India" gave the 3.5 stars out of 5 stating, "Sye Raa has enough strength to start a rebellion even today. It is a tale of how the warrior changed the future with his life and even in death". Jigar Ganatra of Mumbai Live gave the film a 3.5 out of 5 stating, "Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy Is Packed With Powerful Performances." Haricharan Pudipeddi writing for "Pinkvilla" gave the 3.5 out of 5 stating, "Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy definitely needed a visionary filmmaker like SS Rajamouli to make it work even more wholesomely. But, Surender Reddy still manages to impress and delivers a product that's masses-friendly. Ram Charan deserves a lot of praise for believing in this story and in his father and mounting this project on a scale that's only next to Baahubali, and there's no second thoughts about it". Shruti Rhode writing for "Times Now News" gave the 3 stars out of 5 stating, "The background score, crisp script and effective screenplay of Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy make for an intense, entertaining film that you definitely ought to watch. And don't be surprised if you find yourself amidst whistles, cheers, and hoots every once in a while". Janani K writing for "India Today" gave 3 out of 5 stating, "Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy, directed by Surender Reddy, takes the safe route in showcasing the fight to freedom. Chiranjeevi's excellent performance makes up for an underwhelming screenplay".


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Apoorva Gupta writing for "India TV" gave 3 out of 5 stating, "Though the movie boasts of a great cast and a good story-line, it fails to make the desired impact on the audience. The screen time is too long, with the movie running for over 2 hours and 50 minutes. The story-telling feels rushed in the beginning and too-stretched in the second half. With great sets, action scenes and talented actors, Sye Raa Narasimha can make for a good one time watch!". "The Hans India" gave 3 out of 5 statings, "Mounted on an epic scale the movie has some breathtaking visuals, elaborate sets, life-like battle scenes, and colorful costumes. There is a lot more in the movie than just the war for freedom. There are so many wonderful scenes in the movie which will make the audience applaud. The movie is all about why Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy went against British rule and how he had formed a group and rampaged the British etc. There are some outstanding scenes in the film which will give goosebumps to the audience. Especially the one where the British hang Narasimha Reddy will make the audience emotional. Also, the court scene is definitely amazing and the climax is handled really well. Overall, Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy is an epic story that cannot be forgotten". Krishna Sripada writing for "The News Minute" gave 2.5 out of 5 stating, "Surender Reddy's could-have-been magnum opus is not boring. Yet, for the budget it had, the storytelling and narrative threads leave a lot to be desired". Manoj Kumar R writing for "The Indian Express" gave 2.5 out of 5 stating, "The major flaw in Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy is Surender's attempt to force a sprawling story into a mould that fits the narrow definition of mainstream commercial cinema". Baradwaj Rangan of "Film Companion South" wrote "But even the biggest star needs the gravity of a strong screenplay, and that's where Sye Raa falters, and ultimately fails. Apart from Chiranjeevi, there is nothing holding things together — and nothing that differentiates this rise-against-the-British saga from any villager-versus-evil-landlord masala movie".


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Historians across India have noted that the concept of Indian nationalism was not yet developed at the time. Instead, the rebellion was his struggle to keep his rights and privileges that the East India Company were trying to confiscate from him. Nekkanti Srinivasa Rao, a Telugu historian, told to media that the movie lacks historical accuracy, saying that Narasimha Reddy only questioned the British authorities for his monthly pension which he was supposed to inherit from his grandfather.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: Telugu writer SDV Aziz who penned the popular biography of Narasimha Reddy "Renati Surya Chandrulu" was of the opinion that some cinematic liberty is necessary because of the emotional charge it needs to provide to the viewer. However, director Surender Reddy has made it clear to the Telangana High court that "Sye Raa" is not a biopic but is inspired by his life. The film was released with a disclaimer through which the makers emphasize that while the story is inspired by the life of Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy, they do not claim historical accuracy for all the events shown in the narrative.


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film opened in more than 3,000 screens across India, with 1,270 screens in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The film received six shows, including a special midnight premiere on the day of its release. At the day of its release, the film earned worldwide, becoming the fifth biggest opener in South India. The film performed extremely well at the Chennai box office, with Tamil and Telugu version of the film collectively has raked in Rs 32 lakh. The Hindi version of the film, raked in Rs. 3.10 crore, despite clashing with the Hindi film "War" (2019), and the dubbed Indian version of Hollywood film "Joker" (2019). At the southern markets, the film earned a combined gross of .


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The film earned more than on the second day of its release, On the end of the extended sixth weekend, the film managed to rake in more than , with a share of . The film faced a significant drop at the box office, due to mixed word-of-mouth, and the decline in the film's collections, in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and North Indian markets. At the end of its 50-day theatrical run, the film earned a share of against a gross of .


title: Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

text: The movie opened in the United States on 1 October 2019 and it collected around $750,000. and in Australia it collected at A$162,000. At the US, the film crossed the $1 million mark, in the first day of its release. At Uk, the film collected 29,442 pounds during its premiere.


title: Datura stramonium

text: Datura stramonium, known by the common names thorn apple, jimsonweed (jimson weed), devil's snare, or devil's trumpet, is a poisonous flowering plant of the nightshade family Solanaceae. It is a species belonging to the "Datura" genus and "Daturae" tribe. Its likely origin was in Central America, and it has been introduced in many world regions.<ref name= 'NPGS/GRIN'></ref> It is an aggressive invasive weed in temperate climates across the world. "D. stramonium" has frequently been employed in traditional medicine to treat a variety of ailments. It has also been used as a hallucinogen (of the anticholinergic/antimuscarinic, deliriant type), taken entheogenically to cause intense, sacred or occult visions. It is unlikely ever to become a major drug of abuse owing to effects upon both mind and body frequently perceived as being highly unpleasant, giving rise to a state of profound and long-lasting disorientation or delirium (anticholinergic syndrome) with a potentially fatal outcome. It contains tropane alkaloids which are responsible for the psychoactive effects, and may be severely toxic.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The root is long, thick, fibrous, and white. The stem is stout, erect, leafy, smooth, and pale yellow-green to reddish purple in color. The stem forks off repeatedly into branches and each fork forms a leaf and a single, erect flower.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The leaves are about long, smooth, toothed, soft, and irregularly undulated. The upper surface of the leaves is a darker green, and the bottom is a light green. The leaves have a bitter and nauseating taste, which is imparted to extracts of the herb, and remains even after the leaves have been dried.


title: Datura stramonium

text: Datura stramonium generally flowers throughout the summer. The fragrant flowers have a pleasing odour; are trumpet-shaped, white to creamy or violet, and long; and grow on short stems from either the axils of the leaves or the places where the branches fork. The calyx is long and tubular, swollen at the bottom, and sharply angled, surmounted by five sharp teeth. The corolla, which is folded and only partially open, is white, funnel-shaped, and has prominent ribs. The flowers open at night, emitting a pleasant fragrance, and are fed upon by nocturnal moths.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The egg-shaped seed capsule is in diameter and either covered with spines or bald. At maturity, it splits into four chambers, each with dozens of small, black seeds.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The genus name is derived from the plant's Hindi name, "dhatūra", ultimately from Sanskrit "" 'white thorn-apple'. The origin of Neo-Latin "stramonium" is unknown; the name "Stramonia" was used in the 17th century for various "Datura" species. There is some evidence that "Stramonium" is originally from Greek "nightshade" and "mad". It is called umathai (ஊமத்தை) in Tamil.


title: Datura stramonium

text: In the United States the plant is called "jimsonweed", or more rarely "Jamestown weed" deriving from the town of Jamestown, Virginia, where English soldiers consumed it while attempting to suppress Bacon's Rebellion. They spent 11 days in altered mental states:


title: Datura stramonium

text: Common names for "Datura stramonium" vary by region and include thornapple, moon flower, hell's bells, devil's trumpet, devil's weed, tolguacha, Jamestown weed, stinkweed, locoweed, pricklyburr, false castor oil plant, and devil's cucumber.


title: Datura stramonium

text: "Datura stramonium" is native to North America, but was spread widely to the Old World early where it has also become naturalized. It was scientifically described and named by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753, although it had been described a century earlier by botanists such as Nicholas Culpeper. Today, it grows wild in all the world's warm and temperate regions, where it is found along roadsides and at dung-rich livestock enclosures. In Europe, it is found as a weed in garbage dumps and wastelands, and is toxic to animals consuming it. In South Africa, it is colloquially known by the Afrikaans name "malpitte" ("evil seeds").


title: Datura stramonium

text: Through observation, the seed is thought to be carried by birds and spread in their droppings. Its seeds can lie dormant underground for years and germinate when the soil is disturbed. The Royal Horticultural Society has advised worried gardeners to dig it up or have it otherwise removed, while wearing gloves to handle it.


title: Datura stramonium

text: All parts of "Datura" plants contain dangerous levels of the tropane alkaloids atropine, hyoscyamine, and scopolamine, which are classified as deliriants, or anticholinergics. The risk of fatal overdose is high among uninformed users, and many hospitalizations occur among recreational users who ingest the plant for its psychoactive effects. Deliberate or inadvertent poisoning resulting from smoking jimsonweed and other related species has been reported.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The amount of toxins varies widely from plant to plant. As much as a 5:1 variation can be found between plants, and a given plant's toxicity depends on its age, where it is growing, and the local weather conditions. Additionally, within a given plant, toxin concentration varies by part and even from leaf to leaf. When the plant is younger, the ratio of scopolamine to atropine is about 3:1; after flowering, this ratio is reversed, with the amount of scopolamine continuing to decrease as the plant gets older. In traditional cultures, a great deal of experience with and detailed knowledge of "Datura" was critical to minimize harm. An individual seed contains about 0.1 mg of atropine, and the approximate fatal dose for adult humans is >10 mg atropine or >2–4 mg scopolamine.


title: Datura stramonium

text: "Datura" intoxication typically produces delirium, hallucination, hyperthermia, tachycardia, bizarre behavior, urinary retention, and severe mydriasis with resultant painful photophobia that can last several days. Pronounced amnesia is another commonly reported effect. The onset of symptoms generally occurs around 30 to 60 minutes after ingesting the herb. These symptoms generally last from 24 to 48 hours, but have been reported in some cases to last as long as two weeks.


title: Datura stramonium

text: As with other cases of anticholinergic poisoning, intravenous physostigmine can be administered in severe cases as an antidote.


title: Datura stramonium

text: One of the primary active agents in "Datura" is atropine which has been used in traditional medicine and recreationally over centuries. The leaves are generally smoked either in a cigarette or a pipe. During the late 18th century, James Anderson, the English Physician General of the East India Company, learned of the practice and popularized it in Europe. The Chinese also used it as a form of anesthesia during surgery.


title: Datura stramonium

text: William Lewis reported, in the late 18th century, that the juice could be made into "a very powerful remedy in various convulsive and spasmodic disorders, epilepsy and mania," and was also "found to give ease in external inflammations and haemorrhoids".


title: Datura stramonium

text: Henry Hyde Salter discusses "D. stramonium" as a treatment for asthma in his 19th-century work "On Asthma: its Pathology and Treatment".


title: Datura stramonium

text: Smoking of herbs, including "D. stramonium", has been a recognized temporary relief to asthmatics by physicians since antiquity, onto the early 20th century. The mainstream medical use of smoking "D. stramonium" to treat asthma would later wane in popularity, following new understandings of asthma as an allergic inflammatory reaction, and developments in pharmacology that provided a variety of new, immediately more effective treatments for asthma.


title: Datura stramonium

text: Muscarinic antagonists, found in the tribe Datureae (among other plants), such as atropine, and synthetic tropane derivatives selective for muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes such as ipratropium bromide and tiotropium bromide, are prescribed in some cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma.


title: Datura stramonium

text: Across the Americas, indigenous peoples, such as the Algonquian, Aztecs, Navajo, Cherokee, Luiseño and the indigenous peoples of Marie-Galante used this plant or similar "datura" species in sacred ceremonies for its hallucinogenic properties. In Ethiopia, some students and "debtrawoch" (lay priests), use "D. stramonium" to "open the mind" to be more receptive to learning, and creative and imaginative thinking.


title: Datura stramonium

text: The common name "datura" has its origins in India, where the sister species "Datura metel" is considered particularly sacred — believed to be a favorite of Shiva in Shaivism. Both "Datura stramonium" and "D. metel" have reportedly been used by some sadhus and charnel ground ascetics, such as the Aghori as both an entheogen and ordeal poison. It was sometimes mixed with cannabis as well as highly poisonous plants like "Aconitum ferox" to intentionally create dysphoric experiences. They used unpleasant or toxic plants such as these in order to achieve spiritual liberation ("moksha") in settings of extreme horror and discomfort.


title: Datura stramonium

text: Among its sacred and visionary purposes, jimson weed has also garnered a reputation for its magical uses in various cultures throughout history. In his book, "The Serpent and the Rainbow", Wade Davis identified "D. stramonium", called "zombi cucumber" in Haiti, as a central ingredient of the concoction vodou priests use to create zombies. However it has been noted that the process of "zombification" is not directly performed by vodou priests of the loa but rather by "bokors". In European witchcraft, "D. stramonium" was also a common ingredient used for making witches' flying ointment along with other poisonous plants of the nightshade family. It was often responsible for the hallucinogenic effects of magical or lycanthropic salves and potions. During the witch-phobia craze in Early Modern times in England and parts of the colonial Northeastern United States it was often considered unlucky or inappropriate to grow the plant in one's garden as it was considered to be an aid to incantations.


title: Datura stramonium

text: "Datura stramonium" prefers rich, calcareous soil. Adding nitrogen fertilizer to the soil increases the concentration of alkaloids present in the plant. "D. stramonium" can be grown from seed, which is sown with several feet between plants. It is sensitive to frost, so should be sheltered during cold weather. The plant is harvested when the fruits are ripe, but still green. To harvest, the entire plant is cut down, the leaves are stripped from the plant, and everything is left to dry. When the fruits begin to burst open, the seeds are harvested. For intensive plantations, leaf yields of and seed yields of are possible.


title: Progressivism

text: Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, technology, economic development, and social organization. Adherents hold that progressivism has universal application and endeavor to spread this idea to all human societies through aggressive foreign policy, threat of military force, and actual war, when necessary. Progressivism arose during the Age of Enlightenment out of the belief that civility in Europe was improving due to the application of new empirical knowledge to the governance of society.


title: Progressivism

text: In modern political discourse, progressivism gets often associated with social liberalism, a left-leaning type of liberalism, in contrast to the right-leaning neoliberalism, combining support for a mixed economy with cultural liberalism. In the 21st century, a movement that identifies as progressive is "a social or political movement that aims to represent the interests of ordinary people through political change and the support of government actions."


title: Progressivism

text: Immanuel Kant identified progress as being a movement away from barbarism toward civilization. 18th-century philosopher and political scientist Marquis de Condorcet predicted that political progress would involve the disappearance of slavery, the rise of literacy, the lessening of sex inequality, prison reforms which at the time were harsh and the decline of poverty.


title: Progressivism

text: Modernity or modernization was a key form of the idea of progress as promoted by classical liberals in the 19th and 20th centuries, who called for the rapid modernization of the economy and society to remove the traditional hindrances to free markets and the free movements of people.


title: Progressivism

text: In the late 19th century, a political view rose in popularity in the Western world that progress was being stifled by vast economic inequality between the rich and the poor, minimally regulated "laissez-faire" capitalism with out-of-control monopolistic corporations, intense and often violent conflict between capitalists and workers, with a need for measures to address these problems. Progressivism has influenced various political movements. Social liberalism was influenced by British liberal philosopher John Stuart Mill's conception of people being "progressive beings." British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli developed progressive conservatism under one-nation Toryism.


title: Progressivism

text: In France, the space between social revolution and the socially-conservative "laissez-faire" centre-right was filled with the emergence of radicalism which thought that social progress required anti-clericalism, humanism, and republicanism. Especially anti-clericalism was the dominant influence on the center-left in many French- and Romance-speaking countries until the mid-20th century. In Imperial Germany, Chancellor Otto von Bismarck enacted various progressive social welfare measures out of paternalistic conservative motivations to distance workers from the socialist movement of the time and as humane ways to assist in maintaining the Industrial Revolution.


title: Progressivism

text: In 1891, the Roman Catholic Church encyclical "Rerum novarum" issued by Pope Leo XIII condemned the exploitation of labor and urged support for labor unions and government regulation of businesses in the interests of social justice while upholding the property right and criticizing socialism. A progressive Protestant outlook called the Social Gospel emerged in North America that focused on challenging economic exploitation and poverty and, by the mid-1890s, was common in many Protestant theological seminaries in the United States.


title: Progressivism

text: Early 20th-century progressivism included support for American engagement in World War I and the creation of and participation in the League of Nations, compulsory sterilization in Scandinavia, and eugenics in Great Britain, and the temperance movement. Progressives believed that progress was stifled by economic inequality, inadequately regulated monopolistic corporations, and conflict between workers and elites, arguing that corrective measures were needed.


title: Progressivism

text: In the United States, progressivism began as an intellectual rebellion against the political philosophy of Constitutionalism as expressed by John Locke and the founders of the American Republic, whereby the authority of government depends on observing limitations on its just powers. What began as a social movement in the 1890s grew into a popular political movement referred to as the Progressive era; in the 1912 United States presidential election, all three U.S. presidential candidates claimed to be progressives. While the term "progressivism" represents a range of diverse political pressure groups, not always united, progressives rejected social Darwinism, believing that the problems society faced, such as class warfare, greed, poverty, racism and violence, could best be addressed by providing good education, a safe environment, and an efficient workplace. Progressives lived mainly in the cities, were college educated, and believed that government could be a tool for change. President Theodore Roosevelt of the Republican Party and later the Progressive Party declared that he "always believed that wise progressivism and wise conservatism go hand in hand."


title: Progressivism

text: President Woodrow Wilson was also a member of the American progressive movement within the Democratic Party. Progressive stances have evolved. Imperialism was a controversial issue within progressivism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly in the United States, where some progressives supported American imperialism while others opposed it. In response to World War I, President Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points established the concept of national self-determination and criticized imperialist competition and colonial injustices. Anti-imperialists supported these views in areas resisting imperial rule.


title: Progressivism

text: During the period of acceptance of economic Keynesianism (the 1930s–1970s), there was widespread acceptance in many nations of a large role for state intervention in the economy. With the rise of neoliberalism and challenges to state interventionist policies in the 1970s and 1980s, center-left progressive movements responded by adopting the Third Way, which emphasized a major role for the market economy. There have been social democrats who have called for the social-democratic movement to move past Third Way. Prominent progressive conservative elements in the British Conservative Party have criticized neoliberalism.


title: Progressivism

text: In the 21st century, progressives continue to favor public policy that they theorize will reduce or lessen the harmful effects of economic inequality as well as systemic discrimination such as institutional racism; to advocate for environmentally conscious policies as well as for social safety nets and workers' rights; and to oppose the negative externalities inflicted on the environment and society by monopolies or corporate influence on the democratic process. The unifying theme is to call attention to the negative impacts of current institutions or ways of doing things and to advocate for social progress, i.e., for positive change as defined by any of several standards such as the expansion of democracy, increased egalitarianism in the form of economic and social equality as well as improved well being of a population. Proponents of social democracy have identified themselves as promoting the progressive cause.


title: Progressivism

text: Progressivism, in the general sense, mainly means social and cultural progressivism. There is "cultural liberalism" in a similar term, which is used substantially similarly. However, cultural liberals and progressives may differ in positions on cultural issues such as cancel culture and political correctness.


title: Progressivism

text: Unlike progressives in a broader sense, some cultural progressives may be economically centrist, conservative, or politically libertarian. The Czech Pirate Party is classified as a (cultural or social) progressive party, but it calls itself "economically centrist and socially liberal".


title: Progressivism

text: "Economic progressivism" is a term used to distinguish it from "progressivism" in cultural fields. Economic progressives' views are often rooted in the concept of social justice and aim to improve the human condition through government regulation, social protections and the maintenance of public goods.


title: Progressivism

text: Some economic progressives may show center-right views on cultural issues. These movements are related to communitarian conservative movements such as Christian democracy and one-nation conservatism.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The Codex Gigas ("Giant Book"; ) is the largest extant medieval illuminated manuscript in the world, at a length of . Very large illuminated bibles were a typical feature of Romanesque monastic book production, but even within this group, the page-size of the Codex Gigas is noted as exceptional. The manuscript is also known as the Devil's Bible, due to its highly unusual full-page portrait of Satan, and the legend surrounding its creation.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The manuscript was created in the early 13th century in the Benedictine monastery of Podlažice in Bohemia, now a region in the modern-day Czech Republic. The manuscript contains the complete Vulgate Bible, as well as other popular works, all written in Latin. Between the Old and New Testaments are a selection of other popular medieval reference works: Josephus's "Antiquities of the Jews" and "De bello iudaico", Isidore of Seville's encyclopedia "Etymologiae", the chronicle of Cosmas of Prague ("Chronica Boemorum"), and medical works: an early version of the "Ars medicinae" compilation of treatises, and two books by Constantine the African.


title: Codex Gigas

text: Eventually finding its way to the imperial library of Rudolf II in Prague, the entire collection was taken as spoils of war by the Swedes in 1648 during the Thirty Years' War, and the manuscript is now preserved at the National Library of Sweden in Stockholm, where it is on display for the general public.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The codex's bookbinding is wooden boards covered in leather, with ornate metal guards and fittings. At long, wide and thick, it is the largest known medieval manuscript. Weighing , "Codex Gigas" is composed of 310 leaves of vellum claimed to be made from the skins of 160 donkeys, or perhaps calfskin, covering in total. The manuscript includes illuminations in red, blue, yellow, green and gold. Capital letters at the start of books of the bible and the chronicle are elaborately illuminated in several colours, sometimes taking up most of the page; 57 of these survive. The start of the Book of Genesis is missing. There are also 20 initials with the letters in blue, with vine decoration in red. With the exception of the portraits of the devil, an author portrait of Josephus, and a squirrel perched on top of an initial (f. 110v), the illuminations all display geometrical or plant-based forms, rather than human or animal forms. There are also two images representing Heaven and Earth during the Creation, as blue and green circles with respectively the sun, moon and some stars, and a planet all of sea with no landmasses. Within books, major capitals are much enlarged, taking up the height of about five to six lines of text, in red ink, and placed in the margins. Less important divisions, such as the start of verses, are slightly enlarged within the text and highlighted with yellowish ink around the letter forms.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The codex has a unified look as the nature of the writing is unchanged throughout, showing no signs of age, disease or mood on the part of the scribe. This may have led to the belief that the whole book was written in a very short time (see § Legend), but scientists are starting to investigate the theory that it took over 20 years to complete.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The length, size, and detail of the codex are of such extraordinary magnitude that legend surrounds its origin, specifically the story that it was written by one scribe in one night with help from the devil himself. It initially contained 320 sheets, though twelve of these were subsequently removed. It is unknown who removed the pages or for what purpose.


title: Codex Gigas

text: Folio 290 recto, otherwise empty, includes a picture of the devil, about tall. Directly opposite the devil is a full page depiction of the kingdom of heaven, thus juxtaposing contrasting images of Good and Evil. The devil is shown frontally, crouching with arms uplifted in a dynamic posture. He is clothed in a white loincloth with small comma-shaped red dashes. These dashes have been interpreted as the tails of ermine furs, a common symbol of sovereignty. He has no tail, and his body, arms and legs are of normal human proportions. His hands and feet end with only four fingers and toes each, terminating in large claws; both his claws and large horns are red.


title: Codex Gigas

text: He has a large, dark green head, and his hair forms a skull cap of dense curls. The eyes are small, with red pupils, and his red-tipped ears are large. His open mouth reveals his small white teeth, and two long red tongues protrude from the corners of his mouth.


title: Codex Gigas

text: This doubling of tongues evokes negative associations with serpents, which have forked tongues, a metaphoric reference to dishonest human beings. The expression 'forked tongues' is an ancient one and is found in the Bible (Nordenfalk 1975, n. 15).


title: Codex Gigas

text: Several pages before this double spread are written in yellow characters on a blackened parchment and have a very gloomy character, somewhat different from the rest of the codex. The reason for the variation in coloring is that the pages of the codex are of vellum. Vellum, or scraped and dried animal hide, "tans" when exposed to ultraviolet light. Over centuries, the pages that were most frequently turned have developed this tell-tale darker color.


title: Codex Gigas

text: According to legend, the Codex was created by Herman the Recluse in the Benedictine monastery of Podlažice near Chrudim in the Czech Republic. The monastery was destroyed some time in the 15th century during the Hussite Revolution. Records in the codex end in the year 1222. Shortly after it was written, it was pawned by the Benedictines to the Cistercian monks of the Sedlec Monastery, where it remained for 70 years. The Benedictine monastery in Břevnov reclaimed the bible around the end of the 13th Century. From 1477 to 1593, it was kept in the library of a monastery in Broumov until it was taken to Prague in 1594 to form a part of the collections of the Emperor Rudolf II.


title: Codex Gigas

text: At the end of the Thirty Years' War in 1648, the entire collection was taken as war booty by the Swedish army. From 1649 to 2007, the manuscript was kept in the Swedish Royal Library in Stockholm. The site of its creation is marked by a maquette in the town museum of Chrast.


title: Codex Gigas

text: On 7 May 1697, a fire broke out at the Tre Kronor royal castle in Stockholm, which destroyed much of the Royal Library. The Codex Gigas was thrown out of a window; according to the vicar Johann Erichsons, who wrote 50 years after the fire, it landed on and injured a bystander. In September 2007, after 359 years, the Codex Gigas returned to Prague on loan from Sweden until January 2008, and was on display at the National Library of the Czech Republic.


title: Codex Gigas

text: A "National Geographic" documentary included interviews with manuscript experts who argued that certain evidence (handwriting analysis and a credit to "Hermann Inclusus" – "Herman the Recluse") indicates the manuscript was the work of a single scribe.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The first page has two Hebrew alphabets. There are also added slips with Early Cyrillic and Glagolitic alphabets (Folio 1). About half of the codex (f. 1–118) consists of the entire Latin Bible in the Vulgate version, except for the books of Acts and Revelation, which are from a pre-Vulgate version. They are in the order: Genesis–Ruth; Isaiah; Jeremiah; Baruch; Lamentations; Daniel; Hosea–Malachi; Job; Samuel and Kings; Psalms–Song of Solomon; Wisdom of Solomon; Wisdom of Jesus; Chronicles; Esdras; Tobit; Judith; Esther; and Maccabees.


title: Codex Gigas

text: The two works by Josephus then continue the history of the Jews (f. 118–178). The first page of Josephus, which recounts the Genesis creation story, is illustrated in the margin with the pictures of Heaven and Earth (f. 118v). These are followed by Isidore's "Etymologiae" (f. 201–239), and the medical works (f. 240–252). Following a blank page, the New Testament commences with Matthew–Acts, James–Revelation, and Romans–Hebrews (f. 253–286). This is followed by some pages with common prayers, and a page of "conjurations", "Three adjurations and two charms", some of them known from Jewish sources (f. 286–291). The full-page images of the Heavenly City and the devil are on f. 289–90 of this section. Then comes Cosmas of Prague's "Chronica Boemorum" (f. 294–304). A list of brothers in the Podlažice monastery, and a calendar with a necrology, magic formulae, the start of the introits for feasts, and other local records round out the codex (f. 305–312).


title: Codex Gigas

text: According to one version of a legend that was already recorded in the Middle Ages, the scribe was a monk who broke his monastic vows and was sentenced to be walled up alive. In order to avoid this harsh penalty, he promised to create, in one night, a book to glorify the monastery forever, including all human knowledge. Near midnight, he became sure that he could not complete this task alone so he made a special prayer, not addressed to God but to the fallen angel Lucifer, asking him to help him finish the book in exchange for his soul. The devil completed the manuscript, and the monk added the devil's picture out of gratitude for his aid. In tests to recreate the work, it is estimated that reproducing only the calligraphy, without the illustrations or embellishments, would have taken twenty years of non-stop writing.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The Sun is a British tabloid newspaper, published by the News Group Newspapers division of News UK, itself a wholly owned subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. It was founded as a broadsheet in 1964 as a successor to the "Daily Herald", and became a tabloid in 1969 after it was purchased by its current owner. "The Sun" had the largest daily newspaper circulation in the United Kingdom, but was overtaken by freesheet rival "Metro" in March 2018.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The paper became a seven-day operation when The Sun on Sunday was launched in February 2012 to replace the closed "News of the World", employing some of its former journalists. The average circulation for "The Sun on Sunday" in September 2019 was 1,052,465.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In February 2020, it had an average daily circulation of 1.2 million. "The Sun" has been involved in many controversies in its history, among the most notable being their coverage of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. Regional editions of the newspaper for Scotland (The Scottish Sun), Northern Ireland (The Sun), and the Republic of Ireland (The Irish Sun) are published in Glasgow, Belfast, and Dublin, respectively. There is currently no separate Welsh edition of "The Sun"; readers in Wales receive the same edition as the readers in England.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: "The Sun" was first published as a broadsheet on 15 September 1964, with a logo featuring a glowing orange disc.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: It was launched by owners IPC (International Publishing Corporation) to replace the failing "Daily Herald" on the advice of market researcher Mark Abrams. The paper was intended to add a readership of "social radicals" to the "Herald" "political radicals". Supposedly there was "an immense, sophisticated and superior middle class, hitherto undetected and yearning for its own newspaper", wrote Bernard Shrimsley of Abrams' work 40 years later. "As delusions go, this was in the El Dorado class". Launched with an advertising budget of £400,000, the brash new paper "burst forth with tremendous energy", according to "The Times". Its initial print run of 3.5 million was attributed to "curiosity" and the "advantage of novelty", and had declined to the previous circulation of the "Daily Herald" (1.2 million) within a few weeks.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: By 1969, according to Hugh Cudlipp, "The Sun" was losing about £2m a year and had a circulation of 800,000. IPC decided to sell to stop the losses, according to Bernard Shrimsley in 2004, out of a fear that the unions would disrupt publication of the "Mirror" if they did not continue to publish the original "Sun". Bill Grundy wrote in "The Spectator" in July 1969 that although it published "fine writers" in Geoffrey Goodman, Nancy Banks-Smith and John Akass among others, it had never overcome the negative impact of its launch at which it still resembled the "Herald". The pre-Murdoch "Sun" was "a worthy, boring, leftish, popular broadsheet" in the opinion of Patrick Brogan in 1982.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Book publisher and Member of Parliament Robert Maxwell, eager to buy a British newspaper, offered to take it off their hands and retain its commitment to the Labour Party, but admitted there would be redundancies, especially among the printers. Rupert Murdoch, meanwhile, had bought the "News of the World", a sensationalist Sunday newspaper, the previous year, but the presses in the basement of his building in London's Bouverie Street were unused six days a week.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Seizing the opportunity to increase his presence on Fleet Street, he made an agreement with the print unions, promising fewer redundancies if he acquired the newspaper. He assured IPC that he would publish a "straightforward, honest newspaper" which would continue to support Labour. IPC, under pressure from the unions, rejected Maxwell's offer, and Murdoch bought the paper for £800,000, to be paid in instalments. He would later remark: "I am constantly amazed at the ease with which I entered British newspapers".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The "Daily Herald" had been printed in Manchester since 1930, as was the "Sun" after its original launch in 1964, but Murdoch stopped publication there in 1969 which put the ageing Bouverie Street presses under extreme pressure as circulation grew.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Murdoch found he had such a rapport with Larry Lamb over lunch that other potential recruits as editor were not interviewed and Lamb was appointed as the first editor of the new "Sun". Lamb wanted Bernard Shrimsley to be his deputy, which Murdoch accepted as Shrimsley had been the second name on his list of preferences. Lamb was scathing in his opinion of the "Daily Mirror", where he had recently been employed as a senior sub-editor, and shared Murdoch's view that a paper's quality was best measured by its sales, and he regarded the "Mirror" as overstaffed, and too focused on an ageing readership. Godfrey Hodgson of "The Sunday Times" interviewed Murdoch at this time and expressed a positive view of the rival's "Mirrorscope" supplement. "If you think we're going to have any of that upmarket shit in our paper," Murdoch replied, dropping a sample copy into a bin, "you're very much mistaken".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Lamb hastily recruited a staff of about 125 reporters, who were mostly selected for availability rather than their ability. This was about a quarter of what the "Mirror" then employed, and Murdoch had to draft in staff on loan from his Australian papers. Murdoch immediately relaunched "The Sun" as a tabloid, and ran it as a sister paper to the "News of the World". "The Sun" used the same printing presses, and the two papers were managed together at senior executive levels.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The tabloid "Sun" was first published on 17 November 1969, with a front page headlined "HORSE DOPE SENSATION", an ephemeral "exclusive". An editorial on page 2 announced: "Today's "Sun" is a new newspaper. It has a new shape, new writers, new ideas. But it inherits all that is best from the great traditions of its predecessors. "The Sun" cares. About the quality of life. About the kind of world we live in. And about people". The first issue had an "exclusive interview" with the Labour Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, on page 9. The paper copied the rival "Daily Mirror" in several ways. It was the same size and its masthead had the title in white on a red rectangle of the same colour as the "Daily Mirror". These papers are now known as red tops. The "Mirror" "Live Letters" was matched by "Livelier Letters".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Sex was used as an important element in the content and marketing the paper from the start, which Lamb believed was the most important part of his readers' lives. The first topless Page 3 model appeared on 17 November 1970, Stephanie Rahn; she was tagged as a "Birthday Suit Girl" to mark the first anniversary of the relaunched "Sun". A topless Page 3 model gradually became a regular fixture, and with increasingly risqué poses. Both feminists and many cultural conservatives saw the pictures as pornographic and misogynistic. Lamb later expressed some regret at introducing the feature, although he denied it was sexist. A Conservative council in Sowerby Bridge, Yorkshire, was the first to ban the paper from its public library, shortly after Page 3 began, because of its excessive sexual content. Shrimsley, Lamb's deputy, came up with the headline, "The Silly Burghers of Sowerby Bridge" to describe the councillors. The decision was reversed after a sustained campaign by the newspaper itself lasting 16 months, and the election of a Labour-led council in 1971.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The Labour MP Alex Lyon waved a copy of "The Sun" in the House of Commons and suggested the paper could be prosecuted for indecency. Sexually related features such as "Do Men Still Want To Marry A Virgin?" and "The Way into a Woman's Bed" began to appear. Serialisations of erotic books were frequent; the publication of extracts from "The Sensuous Woman", at a time when copies of the book were being seized by Customs, produced a scandal and a significant amount of free publicity.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Politically, "The Sun" in the early Murdoch years remained nominally Labour-supporting. It advocated a vote for the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson in the 1970 General Election, with the headline "Why It Must Be Labour", but by February 1974 it was calling for a vote for the Conservative Party led by Edward Heath while suggesting that it might support a Labour Party led by James Callaghan or Roy Jenkins. In the October election an editorial asserted: "ALL our instincts are left rather than right and we would vote for any able politician who would describe himself as a Social Democrat." In the 1975 referendum on Britain continuing membership of the European Economic Community, it advocated a vote to stay in the Common Market.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The editor, Larry Lamb, was originally from a Labour background with a socialist upbringing, while his temporary replacement Bernard Shrimsley (1972–75) was a middle-class uncommitted Conservative. An extensive advertising campaign on the ITV network in this period, voiced by actor Christopher Timothy, may have helped "The Sun" to overtake the "Daily Mirror" circulation in 1978. Despite the industrial relations of the 1970s – the so-called "Spanish practices" of the print unions – "The Sun" was very profitable, enabling Murdoch to expand his operations to the United States from 1973.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In 1979, the paper endorsed the Conservative Margaret Thatcher in the year's general election at the end of a process which had been under way for some time, though "The Sun" had not initially been enthusiastic about Thatcher. On 3 May 1979, it ran the unequivocal front-page headline, "VOTE TORY THIS TIME".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The "Daily Star" had been launched in 1978 by Express Newspapers, and by 1981 had begun to affect sales of "The Sun". Bingo was introduced as a marketing tool, and a 2p drop in cover price removed the "Daily Star"s competitive advantage, opening a new circulation battle which resulted in "The Sun" neutralising the threat of the new paper. The new editor of "The Sun", Kelvin MacKenzie, took up his post in 1981 just after those developments, and, according to Bruce Page, "changed the British tabloid concept more profoundly than [Larry] Lamb did". Under MacKenzie, the paper became "more outrageous, opinionated and irreverent than anything ever produced in Britain".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: "The Sun" became an ardent supporter of the Falklands War. The coverage "captured the zeitgeist", according to Roy Greenslade, assistant editor at the time (though privately an opponent of the war), but was also "xenophobic, bloody-minded, ruthless, often reckless, black-humoured and ultimately triumphalist."


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: On 1 May, "The Sun" claimed to have "sponsored" a British missile. Under the headline "Stick This Up Your Junta: A Sun missile for Galtieri’s gauchos", the newspaper published a photograph of a missile (actually a Polaris missile stock shot from the Ministry of Defence) which had a large "Sun" logo printed on its side with the caption "Here It Comes, Senors..." underneath. The paper explained that it was "sponsoring" the missile by contributing to the eventual victory party on when the war ended. In copy written by Wendy Henry, the paper said that the missile would shortly be used against Argentinian forces. Tony Snow, "The Sun" journalist on "Invincible" who had "signed" the missile, reported a few days later that it had hit an Argentinian target.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: One of the paper's best known front pages, published on 4 May 1982, commemorated the torpedoing of the Argentine ship the "General Belgrano" by running the story under the headline "GOTCHA". At MacKenzie's insistence, and against the wishes of Murdoch (the mogul was present because almost all the journalists were on strike), the headline was changed for later editions after the extent of Argentinian casualties became known. John Shirley, a reporter for "The Sunday Times", witnessed copies of this edition of "The Sun" being thrown overboard by sailors and marines on .


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: After was wrecked by an Argentinian attack, "The Sun" was heavily criticised and even mocked in the "Daily Mirror" and "The Guardian" for its coverage of the war, and the wider media queried the veracity of official information and worried about the number of casualties, "The Sun" gave its response. "There are traitors in our midst", wrote leader writer Ronald Spark on 7 May, accusing commentators on "Daily Mirror" and "The Guardian", plus the BBC's defence correspondent Peter Snow, of "treason" for aspects of their coverage.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The satirical magazine "Private Eye" mocked and lampooned what they regarded as the paper's jingoistic coverage, most memorably with the mock-"Sun" headline "KILL AN ARGIE, WIN A METRO!", to which MacKenzie is said to have jokingly responded, "Why didn't we think of that?"


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: These years included what was called "spectacularly malicious coverage" of the Labour Party by "The Sun" and other newspapers. During the general election of 1983, "The Sun" ran a front page featuring an unflattering photograph of Michael Foot, then aged almost 70, claiming he was unfit to be Prime Minister on grounds of his age, appearance and policies, alongside the headline "Do You Really Want This Old Fool To Run Britain?" A year later, "The Sun" made clear its enthusiastic support for the re-election of Ronald Reagan as president in the USA. Reagan was two weeks off his 74th birthday when he started his second term, in January 1985.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: On 1 March 1984, the newspaper extensively quoted an American psychiatrist claiming that British left-wing politician Tony Benn was "insane", with the psychiatrist discussing various aspects of Benn's supposed pathology. The story, which appeared on the day of the Chesterfield by-election in which Benn was standing, was discredited when the psychiatrist quoted by "The Sun" publicly denounced the article, describing the false quotes attributed to him as "absurd". "The Sun" had apparently fabricated the entire piece. The newspaper made frequent scathing attacks on what the paper called the "loony left" element within the Labour Party and on institutions supposedly controlled by it. Ken Livingstone, the leader of the left-wing Greater London Council, was described as "the most odious man in Britain" in October 1981.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: During the miners' strike of 1984–85, "The Sun" supported the police and the Thatcher government against the striking NUM miners, and in particular the union's president, Arthur Scargill. On 23 May 1984, "The Sun" prepared a front page with the headline "Mine Führer" and a photograph of Scargill with his arm in the air, a pose which made him look as though he was giving a Nazi salute. The print workers at "The Sun" refused to print it. "The Sun" strongly supported the April 1986 bombing of Libya by the US, which was launched from British bases. Several civilians were killed during the bombing. Their leader was "Right Ron, Right Maggie". That year, Labour MP Clare Short attempted in vain to persuade Parliament to outlaw the pictures on Page Three, and gained the opprobrium of the newspaper for her stand.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: During the 1987 general election, "The Sun" ran a mock-editorial entitled "Why I'm Backing Kinnock, by Stalin".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Murdoch responded to some of the criticisms of the newspaper by saying that critics were "snobs" who want to "impose their tastes on everyone else". MacKenzie claimed the same critics were people who, if they ever had a "popular idea", would have to "go and lie down in a dark room for half an hour". Both have pointed to the huge commercial success of the "Sun" during that period, and its establishment as Britain's top-selling newspaper, claiming that they are "giving the public what they want". That conclusion was disputed by critics. John Pilger said that a late-1970s edition of the "Daily Mirror", which replaced the usual celebrity and domestic political news items with an entire issue devoted to his own front-line reporting of the genocide in Pol Pot's Cambodia, not only outsold "The Sun" on the day it was issued, but became the only edition of the "Daily Mirror" to ever sell every single copy issued, something never achieved by "The Sun".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In January 1986, Murdoch shut down the Bouverie Street premises of "The Sun" and "News of the World", and moved operations to the new Wapping complex in East London, substituting the electricians' union for the print unions as his production staff's representatives, and greatly reducing the number of staff employed to print the papers. A year-long picket by sacked workers was eventually defeated (see Wapping dispute).


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: During that period, "The Sun" gained a reputation for running sensationalist stories of questionable veracity. On 13 March 1986, the newspaper published one of its best known headlines: "FREDDIE STARR ATE MY HAMSTER".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: The story alleged that British comedian Freddie Starr, while staying at the home of a writer and old friend of his named Vince McCaffrey and his partner Lea LaSalle in Birchwood, Cheshire, had, after returning from a performance at a nightclub in the early hours, found little to eat in their house. LaSalle was reported as saying that Starr put her pet hamster "between two slices of bread and started eating it".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: According to "Max Clifford: Read All About It", written by Clifford and Angela Levin, La Salle invented the story out of frustration with Starr, who had been working on a book with McCaffrey. She contacted an acquaintance who worked for "The Sun" in Manchester. The story reportedly delighted MacKenzie, who was keen to run it, and Max Clifford, who had been Starr's public relations agent. Starr had to be persuaded that the apparent revelation would not damage him, and the attention helped to revive his career. In his 2001 autobiography "Unwrapped", Starr wrote that the incident was a complete fabrication: "I have never eaten or even nibbled a live hamster, gerbil, guinea pig, mouse, shrew, vole or any other small mammal."


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Fuelled by MacKenzie's preoccupation with the subject, stories in "The Sun" spread rumours about the sexual orientation of famous people, especially pop stars.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: "The Sun" ran a series of false stories about Elton John from 25 February 1987, which eventually resulted in a total of 17 libel writs. They began with an invented account of the singer having sexual relationships with rent boys. The singer-songwriter was abroad on the day indicated in the story, as former "Sun" journalist John Blake, recently poached by the "Daily Mirror", soon discovered. After further stories, in September 1987, "The Sun" accused John of having his Rottweiler guard dogs' voice boxes surgically removed. In November, the "Daily Mirror" found their rival's only source for the rent boy story, who admitted it was a totally fictitious concoction created for money. The inaccurate story about his dogs, actually Alsatians, put pressure on "The Sun", and John received £1 million in an out-of-court settlement, then the largest damages payment in British history. "The Sun" ran a front-page apology on 12 December 1988, under the banner headline "SORRY, ELTON".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In May 1987, gay men were offered free one-way airline tickets to Norway to leave Britain for good: "Fly Away Gays – And We Will Pay" was the paper's headline. Gay Church of England clergymen were described in one headline in November 1987 as "Pulpit poofs".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Television personality Piers Morgan, a former editor of the "Daily Mirror" and of "The Sun"s "Bizarre" pop column, has said that during the late 1980s, at Kelvin MacKenzie's behest, he was ordered to speculate on the sexuality of male pop stars for a feature headlined "The Poofs of Pop". He also recalls MacKenzie headlining a January 1989 story about the first same-sex kiss on the BBC television soap opera "EastEnders" as "EastBenders", describing the kiss between Colin Russell and Guido Smith as "a homosexual love scene between yuppie poofs ... when millions of children were watching".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In 1990, the Press Council adjudicated against "The Sun" and columnist Garry Bushell for their use of derogatory terminology about gay people.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: In January 1988 the Sun described Chris Mullin’s efforts on behalf of the wrongly convicted Birmingham Six as being "Loony MP Backs Bomb Gang" and "If the Sun had its way, we would have been tempted to string ‘em up years ago".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: "The Sun" responded to the health crisis on 8 May 1983 with the headline: "US Gay Blood Plague Kills Three in Britain".


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: On 17 November 1989, "The Sun" headlined a page 2 news story titled "STRAIGHT SEX CANNOT GIVE YOU AIDS – OFFICIAL." "The Sun" favourably cited the opinions of Lord Kilbracken, a member of the All Parliamentary Group on AIDS, who had said that only one person out of the 2,372 individuals with HIV/AIDS mentioned in a specific Department of Health report was not a member of a "high risk group", such as homosexuals and recreational drug users. "The Sun" also ran an editorial arguing that "At last the truth can be told ... the risk of catching AIDS if you are heterosexual is 'statistically invisible'. In other words, impossible. So now we know – everything else is homosexual propaganda". Although many other British press services covered Lord Kilbracken's public comments, none of them echoed the argument in the "Sun", and none of them presented Lord Kilbracken's ideas without context or criticism.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Critics stated that both "The Sun" and Lord Kilbracken cherry-picked the results from one specific study while ignoring other data on HIV infection and not just AIDS infection, which the critics viewed as unethical politicisation of a medical issue. Lord Kilbracken himself criticised "The Sun" editorial and the headline of its news story, stating that, while he thought that gay people were more at risk of developing AIDS, it was still wrong to imply that no one else could catch the disease. "The Sun"s article and editorial were reported to the Press Council and an adjudication ruled that they were "misleading in its interpretation... and the headline... was a gross distortion of the statistical information supplied by the Minister." "The Sun" later published an apology, which was run on Page 28. Journalist David Randall argued in the textbook "The Universal Journalist" that the story in "The Sun" was one of the worst cases of journalistic malpractice in recent history, putting its own readers in harm's way.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: At the end of the decade, "The Sun"s coverage of the Hillsborough football stadium disaster, in which 97 people died as a result of their injuries, proved to be, as the paper later admitted, the "most terrible" blunder in its history.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: Three days after the accident, editor Kelvin MacKenzie published an editorial which accused people of "scapegoating" the police, saying that the disaster occurred "because thousands of fans, many without tickets tried to get into the ground just before kick-off – either by forcing their way in or by blackmailing the police into opening the gates". The next day, under a front-page headline "The Truth", the paper falsely accused Liverpool fans of theft and of urinating on and attacking police officers and emergency services. Conservative Member of Parliament Irvine Patnick was quoted as claiming that a group of Liverpool supporters told a police officer that they would have sex with a dead female victim.


title: The Sun (United Kingdom)

text: MacKenzie maintained for years that his "only mistake was to believe a Tory MP". In 1993, he told a House of Commons committee, "I regret Hillsborough. It was a fundamental mistake. The mistake was I believed what an MP said", but privately said at a 2006 dinner that he had only apologised under the instruction of Rupert Murdoch, believing: "all I did wrong was tell the truth ... I was not sorry then and I'm not sorry now". On "Question Time" the next year, MacKenzie publicly repeated the claims he said at the dinner; he said that he believed some of the material they published in "The Sun" but was not sure about all of it. He said in 2012, "Twenty-three years ago I was handed a piece of copy from a reputable news agency in Sheffield in which a senior police officer and a senior local MP were making serious allegations against fans in the stadium... these allegations were wholly untrue and were part of a concerted plot by police officers to discredit the supporters... I published in good faith and I am sorry that it was so wrong". A member of the Hillsborough Families Support Group responded "too little, too late".