After the news of the casting of black actress Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy and transgender actor Elliot Page as Achilles, we have also learnt that Nyong’o will be playing Helen’s sister Clytemnestra as well; while controversial hip hop artist Travis Scott will be appearing as a ‘rapping bard’ in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming Odyssey movie.

The Danube Institute hosted a conference in Budapest, Hungary on the Abraham Accords and the IMEC economic corridor amid the ongoing Iran conflict. The distinguished experts speaking at the event, such as Eugene Kontorovich, argued that expanding regional economic cooperation and normalization between Israel and Arab states could reshape the Middle East and reduce Iran’s influence.

A new Der Spiegel investigation claims Germany’s rapidly changing school demographics are fuelling tensions over religion, migration, and integration, especially in schools where pupils from migrant Muslim backgrounds form majorities. According to the report, many teachers feel unable to act decisively in conflicts for fear of being accused of discrimination.

The zoos of Pécs and Osijek will undergo infrastructure and digital upgrades under a 2.1 million euro European Union-funded cross-border cooperation project aimed at boosting sustainable tourism and year-round visitor numbers.

Former Hungarian president János Áder warned that drought years will become increasingly common in the Carpathian Basin, as climate experts say rising temperatures and declining spring rainfall are accelerating soil drying and threatening agriculture across Hungary.

Hungary currently faces no direct public health threat from hantavirus infections, Health Minister Zsolt Hegedűs said, stressing that the virus poses a low epidemiological risk and is fundamentally different from COVID-19.

The European Commission, European Parliament, and senior EU officials have launched a synchronized LGBTQ rights campaign ahead of Pride Month, promoting the bloc’s new LGBTIQ+ Equality Strategy 2026–2030 through nearly identical messaging across social media platforms. The highly visible campaign has sparked criticism from conservative circles, which accuse Brussels of increasingly pushing ideological activism.

‘For some Hungarians, America promised bread, freedom, and a new beginning; for others, it revealed exploitation, prejudice, and the unsettling realization that far from home, even identity itself could slowly dissolve.’

Bulgaria won its first-ever Eurovision on Saturday, 17 May, after singer Dara secured more than 500 combined jury and televote points with her song ‘Bangaranga’. The contest was overshadowed by wider political tensions surrounding Israel’s participation, with several pro-Palestinian EU member states withdrawing from the competition over the war in Gaza.

‘On his return journey from the Holy Land, [King Andrew II] engaged in a remarkable amount of diplomatic activity. He behaved as one would expect from the head of a European middle power: he held talks with the leaders of the states he passed through, formed alliances, and forged diplomatic ties…As a result, from 1213/14 onward, the overland route through Asia Minor reopened and became safe.’

‘Ferdinandy…did more than almost anyone else among Hungarian historians to experience and depict history not as a series of data or a mass of economic and social facts, but as a living, organic drama of fate.’

‘In a bathhouse, one can feel as though they are not in this world, but in some strange, liminal state. A space where the all-too-familiar rules of everyday life temporarily do not apply. The bathhouse is a place of retreat, of solitary contemplation, but also a place for togetherness, for carefree or very serious conversations.’

Poland officially registered its first legally recognized same-sex marriage on Thursday after Warsaw authorities transcribed the marriage certificate of two Polish men married in Germany, triggering celebration among progressives and sharp backlash from conservative politicians and right-wing commentators.

Budapest’s City Park is preparing for one of the biggest events in its history as tens of thousands of Arsenal supporters are expected to gather there during the 2026 UEFA Champions League final weekend.

This year’s Gourmet Festival in Budapest will focus on the flavours of rural Hungary, featuring more than 20 countryside restaurants, Michelin-starred chefs and dozens of culinary programmes at Millenáris Park.

The police interrogation footage has just been released in the case of Mia Bailey, a biological man identifying as a woman who killed both of his parents in June 2024 in Washington City, Utah. In the interrogation, he admits that he committed patricide and matricide because his mother tried to cancel his gender reassignment surgery.

Hungary’s residential property market continued to grow in April, though the pace of price increases slowed nationwide and Budapest recorded a slight monthly decline, according to ingatlan.com.

Authorities in Czechia are continuing their search for the thief who stole the skull of Saint Zdislava from one of the country’s most important pilgrimage sites shortly before mass on Tuesday evening. Police released security camera footage as outrage grows over the theft of the centuries-old Christian relic.

An ‘intersectional work and social club’ in Berlin, Germany, that proclaims it is only open to ‘BIWoC and TIN*BIPoC’ (meaning people who are not white or men) has received €662,450 in funding from a federal German programme, The European Conservative has uncovered.

A major new exhibition marking the 120th anniversary of Victor Vasarely’s birth has opened in Budapest, exploring the influence of the pioneering op-art artist on Hungarian experimental and neo-avant-garde art of the 1960s and 1970s.

Olympic champion Viviana Márton added another major title to her growing collection after winning gold in the women’s 62-kilogram category at the European Taekwondo Championships in Munich. The Hungarian athlete staged a dramatic comeback in the final against Spain’s Elsa Secanell Charles to secure the continental title.

Antoinette Fernandez, the person in charge of the UK Green Party’s reparations programme that would give monetary compensation to the descendants of slaves in the British Empire, was revealed to come from a family of Nigerian monarchs on her mother’s side that made fortunes on commissions on slaves they sold to the Transatlantic slave trade.

China’s revival of Confucianism is increasingly tied to the CCP’s global ambitions. While presented as a philosophy of harmony and stability, Beijing uses Confucian ideals to legitimize authoritarian governance, promote a Pax Sinica in Asia, and challenge the Western-led international order through economic influence and civilizational identity.

In the local council elections taking place across England last week, over 100 of the councillor seats were taken by Muslim candidates running as independents. The Muslim population has been steadily increasing in the United Kingdom for decades, especially in England.

The last time Hungary qualifed for the FIFA World Cup was in 1986. The Hungarians came to the tournament in Mexico as ‘dark horse’ favourites after an impressive qualification campaign, only to leave very disappointed after the group stage. Diego Maradona’s Argentina ended up taking home the glory—their run included one of the most memorable games in football history against England in the Quarter-Finals.

Hungary’s incoming agriculture minister has announced plans for a 5 per cent VAT rate on fruit and vegetables, alongside major reforms targeting drought management, food self-sufficiency and land ownership rules.

Rumours that transgender actor Elliot Page could portray Achilles in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey have sparked intense backlash online, with critics arguing the casting would fundamentally clash with the traditional image of the legendary Greek warrior. The speculation has rapidly become one of the many controversies ahead of the movie’s July 2026 release.

‘America is a large and prosperous country that has attracted talented individuals from all over the world—that’s how it reached such a high level also in science. Through the exhibition, Americans can learn about the remarkable contributions Hungarian scientists have made to this success.’

‘The way we think about water as a science today, the way our rivers look and flow, and the manner in which we create soda water are all, on some level, due to Hungarians.’

Canadian schoolchildren were pulled from a theatre performance involving a drag performer after teachers deemed parts of the show inappropriate for students, according to media reports. Videos circulating online quickly fuelled outrage, and the school is reportedly preparing to file a complaint.