AIs are not sentient – but tweaks to their ethical codes can have far-reaching consequences for users

Do you want an AI assistant that gushes about how it “loves humanity” or one that spews sarcasm? How about a political propagandist ready to lie? If so, ChatGPT, Grok and Qwen are at your disposal.

Companies that create AI assistants, from the US to China, are increasingly wrestling with how to mould their characters, and it is no abstract debate. This month Elon Musk’s “maximally truth-seeking” Grok AI caused international outrage when it pumped out millions of sexualised images. In October OpenAI retrained ChatGPT to de-escalate conversations with people in mental health distress after it appeared to encourage a 16-year-old to take his own life.

Barn theatre, Cirencester
Simon Nye brings back the characters from his hit TV series for a misconceived comedy set on millennium eve

In a nervy theatre economy, with familiar material most likely to sell tickets, nights out often feel nostalgic for nights in. TV detectives including Morse, Barnaby and Rebus have been put on stage, as have sitcoms such as Some Mothers Do ’Ave ’Em, Only Fools and Horses and Yes, Prime Minister.

As its sequel to that last show transfers to the West End, the Barn theatricalises another telly comedy: Simon Nye’s 90s peak-time powerhouse Men Behaving Badly – about manchild flat-sharers and the women who try to mature them – whose Christmas 1998 finale was watched by 13.9 million viewers.

At Barn theatre, Cirencester, until 7 March

Mandelson tried to explain as everyone from Harriet Harman to Robert Jenrick lined up to condemn him

Last week, Peter Mandelson was giving his comeback interview to the Times, scheduled to be published later this month. He posed for cosy pics with the dog as he explained how hard done by he had been and how much the country could benefit from his largesse and expertise.

Late on Sunday night, that interview was crowbarred into a hastily rearranged one to take in Mandy’s sudden resignation from the Labour party after seemingly more revelations of Peter taking money in the recently released Epstein files. Mandelson appeared to take it in his stride.

In the Marvel films he was unassailable, but in real life the actor says he’s more like the anxious thief he plays in Crime 101. He and its writer/director Bart Layton talk midlife angst, imposter syndrome – and Alzheimer’s

‘It’s like a therapy couch,” says Chris Hemsworth, as he takes a seat on a chaise longue in the London hotel room where we’re meeting. He laughs, but it quickly becomes clear the Australian actor is more than ready to examine his life and the image he has long presented to the world.

As Thor, the God of Thunder, Hemsworth has come to embody a certain idea of masculinity: invulnerable, assured, unshakeable. The role, which spanned nine films, put him up among the world’s highest paid actors and made him a global pin-up. Yet the confidence was, in part, a construction. “The character you see in interviews,” he says, easing into the chaise longue, “and the presentation of myself over the last two decades working in Hollywood, it’s me – but it’s a creation too. It’s what I thought people wanted to see.”

League’s star said to be unhappy over his club’s transfer dealings and Karim Benzema’s move. Now he could face his first backlash

Jurassic Park sounded great given the spectacular beasts on display, but there was chaos after they started to do their own thing. When Cristiano Ronaldo, surely the T rex, and Karim Benzema, perhaps a velociraptor, are scoring in spectacular fashion there are headlines around the world, but the Saudi Pro League is finding out that when they start to flex their muscles off the pitch, there is even more interest and, it turns out, a real problem for the competition.

What happened on a manic Monday in the SPL should have been about what unfolded on the pitch. Al-Hilal, in first, drew with third-placed Al-Ahli. Al-Nassr won, to stay second, closing to within a point of the leaders. If Brendan Rodgers, having a whale of a time with Al-Qadsiah, wins his game in hand then four points will separate the top four with just over a third of the season remaining. It is the kind of title race most leagues would love.

A good pair of boots is essential in the colder months, and our fashion expert has picked out the best ones for every occasion

• The best men’s coats for winter

Much like our bodies, our wardrobes need to acclimatise to winter. It’s time to unpack your chunky knitwear and arm yourself with a waterproof coat or an umbrella at all times. And you can shelve your shoes and switch to boots instead.

It’s good to have a few pairs at your disposal so you’re covered no matter what you’ve got planned. Sophisticated brogues for a formal event. Hiking boots for outdoorsy activities. Boots with a fluffy lining for sub-zero temperatures. Or, if you’re following Timothée Chalamet’s lead, you could get a pair of black Timberlands and wear them for anything you’ve got in the diary.

Epstein files appear to show then business secretary passing market sensitive information to child sex offender

• UK politics live – latest updates

The Metropolitan police have formally launched a criminal investigation into allegations that Peter Mandelson leaked Downing Street emails and market sensitive information to the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Documents from the Epstein files released in recent days appeared to show the then business secretary sent confidential details of internal discussions to the late financier in the aftermath of the financial crash.

Exclusive: Police say they will review allegation that Epstein sent woman to UK to have sex with Andrew at Royal Lodge, his former home

British police are to review fresh allegations that Jeffrey Epstein provided Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with a woman to have sex with at the Royal Lodge in 2010, as it emerged that the former prince had moved out of his home.

The woman has claimed she spent the night at the then prince’s residence in Windsor, her US lawyer, Brad Edwards, said after the allegations surfaced over the weekend. The woman, who is not British, was in her 20s at the time, and was later given a tour of Buckingham Palace, it is further alleged.

Apparent leak by Peter Mandelson gave advance notice of Gordon Brown’s resignation and €500bn eurozone deal

On a brisk Monday evening in May 2010, Gordon Brown stood on the steps of Downing Street and delivered one of the most dramatic announcements of the New Labour era: his resignation as UK prime minister.

The decision came days after a nail-biting general election that left no single party with a clear run at No 10. Brown kept his decision, which followed days of political wrangling, to a tight inner circle. Nick Clegg, who would go on to serve as deputy prime minister of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, was formally told of Brown’s resignation only 10 minutes before the announcement.

Latest communications undermine Chomsky’s earlier claims that he primarily had financial dealings with Epstein

The close friendship that Noam Chomsky maintained with Jeffrey Epstein continued being detailed extensively among millions of investigative records pertaining to the late convicted sex offender recently released by the US justice department, including Chomsky “fantasizing about the Caribbean island”.

In Friday’s tranche of documents, which built upon earlier disclosures of their close social ties, there is no specific indication that the famed academic and linguist was referring to his friend’s private Caribbean island where children were sexually abused. But the personal familiarity between the two men in that exchange is palpable, as it is in numerous other emails between Chomsky and Epstein aimed at planning more mundane social gatherings.