Re: Isha...
I asked my sheikh, who is a hanafi scholar and a graduate of Islamic Univ of Madeenah and this is what he said.
It is afzal if you pray Isha before midnight, but the time for isha lasts until Fajr.
Now when is midnight? No its not always 12am. Midnight is half way between, when the sun sets completely (this is when Maghrib time ends) and Fajr time.
So if the sun sets at 7pm and Fajr is at 6am, midnight will be at 12.30am.
Notice you dont use Isha time for for finding out when the night begins, because Isha Azaan is usually given a bit after the night starts.