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Dolly Parton, the singer and songwriter, who has died aged 80, used her talent, intelligence and extraordinary looks to escape first poverty, and then the restrictive, sexist world of American country music. She went on to become a highly successful mainstream recording artist, television and film celebrity, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and international icon.
During the course of her career, Parton recorded dozens of albums and more than a thousand songs, many of which became country and pop classics. Her high-pitched, almost child-like voice proved surprisingly effective across a wide range of styles.
Her songwriting was equally adaptable, from the confrontational directness of Jolene (1974), through the gossamer prettiness of Love Is Like a Butterfly (1974), to the poignant pleas of what she referred to as her “hurtin’” songs, such as I Will Always Love You (1972), which became a worldwide No 1 for Whitney Houston in 1992, although purists regarded Parton’s understated original as the superior version.
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Jane Fonda, Parton’s 9 to 5 co-star, is among the celebrities, including Donald Trump and Mick Jagger, who have paid tribute to the singer online |
She was, perhaps, best known for her appearance, especially her outsize bosom and enormous blonde wigs, and never left home without makeup. “If you’re a star,” she explained, “you owe it to your fans to look like one.” Her dresses, which were, she admitted, “gaudy” and “tasteless”, completed her image, something she had no shame in embracing, often telling interviewers “it costs a lot to make a person look this cheap”.
Read the full obituary ➤
‘Dolly Parton was one of the most open-hearted stars I’ve ever met’ ➤
Watch: Audience gasps as death announced before 9 To 5 musical ➤
Parton’s 20 best songs, ranked ➤ |
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Joe Wright Senior Money Writer |
In the wake of the Second World War, Birmingham led the way with a new kind of urban renewal. It took its neighbour Coventry’s crown as Britain’s “motor city” and became the home of the citizen driver, an individual made free by the car.
Now, its Left-wing coalition council has been accused of waging war on motorists as it seeks to become the first English city to impose a blanket 20mph speed limit.
The Liberal Democrat, Green and independent-led authority said it wanted to ensure cars “no longer dominate street life”, but opponents argue the council is “determined to make getting around Birmingham harder”.
In 2023, the Welsh Government imposed a nationwide low-speed policy. Just a year later, it was watered down following widespread backlash and several councils have already reintroduced the standard 30mph limit.
Even the Department for Transport has stated that 20mph limits “should only be used where they are appropriate”, yet Birmingham city council said it intended to plough on with its “simple message” that “slower is safer”.
Continue reading ➤ |
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Hamish de Bretton-Gordon This is not an army marching confidently towards victory, it is a meat grinder consuming young men at an industrial rate Continue reading ➤
Allison Pearson Britain is no longer safe for women and children Continue reading ➤
Nick Hoult Joe Root has never looked more like a leader – imagine Harry Brook dealing with this Continue reading ➤ |
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Andy Burnham needs cash, and wealthy pensioners should be the ones to pay it, according to Labour’s favourite think tank. The Institute for Public Policy Research has proposed to charge pensioners National Insurance Contributions, a tax from which they are currently exempt, as well as increase Capital Gains Tax and introduce a new proportional tax on property. With rising debt interest costs, the economic fallout of the war in Iran and expensive plans for spending on housing and social care, Burnham is being advised to take radical action to get money into the Exchequer. Continue reading ➤ |
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Christian Drogan spent a year infiltrating the Channel people-smuggling networks, posing as a migrant to discover how the trade really works. He trekked through camps, negotiated with traffickers and twice attempted the perilous journey to Britain. What did he find? Police with their hands tied, forced to help those making the crossing, and a clandestine smuggling operation that was far more organised than the headlines suggest. For subscribers only ➤ |
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The shocking deaths of two police officers in a head-on crash caused by five youths travelling the wrong way down the A66 has sparked a wave of outrage, writes Rosa Silverman. Blaise Cloran and I explore the lethal social media trend in which reckless driving is posted online for likes, regardless of the consequences.
For subscribers only ➤
‘Gang rivalry’ led to A66 crash in town living in fear ➤ |
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With her nursing degree and pink nails, Jeremy Clarkson’s right-hand woman doesn’t look like a stereotypical farmer, but don’t underestimate her. The 25-year-old “pocket-sized powerhouse” (Clarkson’s words) lets rip on online admirers, Labour’s “awful” policies, how rewilding “wastes the land”, and whether she would back JC to become PM. Continue reading ➤ |
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While some food combinations just make sense, a cup of coffee with your breakfast cereal or the glass of red wine with your steak, your body doesn’t agree. Certain foods and drinks can block our digestive system from absorbing vital nutrients in the items we pair them with. Here, nutritionists share the foods you should think twice about eating together. Continue reading ➤ Here is another article that I hope you’ll find helpful this morning:
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Christopher Howse |
Whitehaven captivated me in a way no town has for years. It is a town by the sea, but not a seaside town. Built in the 1660s, it was the first purposely designed town in England since the Middle Ages.
I came across a sort of self-contradiction: glorious Georgian houses preserved by generations of poverty. Many prosperous people in Whitehaven today depend on work at the nearby nuclear power station at Sellafield. There are few choices of career for the rest.
I found high street shops that have disappeared elsewhere, including a department store, run as a family business. Just as rare is a large secondhand bookshop where I found the wryly humorous Michael Moon, who has a great knowledge of Whitehaven and a love for it.
A few doors down, my eye was caught by a model train looping round the window of what turned out to be a wine shop run by a former deputy lieutenant of the county. It was not at all what I expected.
First, my exploration of Whitehaven began with an unplanned walk at midnight...
Read Christopher’s full column ➤ |
Fashion faux pasEvery weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal Reader Correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
I’ve long suspected that whenever I’m abroad I am identifiable from at least 20ft as an Englishman. Is it the sunburn? Quite possibly. There’s also that “shifty hangdog look” (to quote PG Wodehouse) that appears whenever I attempt to speak, or even read, a foreign language.
I hadn’t thought so much about my clothes, though I’m sure my linens (complete with fold marks) look more “M&S out-of-office range” than cosmopolitan globetrotter. Lisa Armstrong, however, has produced a comprehensive guide to the sartorial choices of Britain’s assorted holidaymaking tribes.
Telegraph readers have offered their own giveaways. Ruth Martin singled out “men dressed like toddlers in shorts and logo T-shirts, and ladies in T-shirts and elasticated skirts in ditsy prints, with floppy sun hats and fabric bags. The English middle classes on tour.”
Ouch. Drew Anderson recalled: “My dad used to wear socks and sandals on holiday” (a combination referred to by several readers).
“He knew it was a terrible fashion faux pas that upset sartorial sophisticates, but he didn’t care. In fact, I think he might have done it for that reason.”
Jonathan Hull added: “It’s the baggy shorts that give most British men away. The Desert Rats look never fails to impress.”
For another reader, it was more a matter of what we don’t wear: “No shirt when walking down the street if the sun’s out. No other nationality would do that.”
For another, meanwhile, it was all about the accessories: “Most perpetually have a wine, G&T or beer in hand.” Guilty as charged, I’m afraid. What’s in your holiday wardrobe? Send your responses here, and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of this newsletter.
Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name. |
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1346 | England, led by Edward III, defeats France at the Battle of Crécy
1682 | Edmond Halley first observes the comet named after him
1959 | The British Motor Corporation introduces the Morris Mini-Minor
2025 | Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce announce their engagement (you can see how we covered this below)
Birthdays: Michael Gove (59), Alison Steadman (80), Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester (82)
In the news today, scientists in Switzerland have ranked Shakespeare’s plays using a measure known as the Kolmogorov complexity, which usually assesses how simply a computer program can be written. Which was the most complicated?
1. Antony and Cleopatra
2. Romeo and Juliet
3. Much Ado About Nothing
4. Coriolanus
Click one of the options to reveal the answer...
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Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including The 1% Club, Cogs, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was KEYHOLDER. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. |
Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback at fromtheeditor@telegraph.co.uk. |
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