What do we owe her now?
The important, powerful story of Amber Wyatt, a woman who in 2006 reported that she had been raped at a high school party, and the many ways in which she was subsequently let down by her community.
This guy doesn’t know anything: the inside story of Trump’s shambolic transition team
Michael Lewis (Moneyball, Flash Boys, The Big Short) on Trump’s transition is exactly what you’d expect – a tragicomedy. In amongst the tales of alarming incompetence, the piece features such glorious anecdotes as Trump declaring his enjoyment of The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” to Egypt’s President, the first head of state to congratulate him on his election victory.
Queens of Infamy: The Rise of Catherine de’ Medici
The first instalment of a two part look at Catherine de’ Medici’s storied life, running from her birth into one of the most powerful families in Europe, to a precarious position as an unpopular Dauphine of France, pleading her fate with her father-in-law Francis 1st.
How the Alternative for Germany Has Transformed the Country
A look at the rise of the far-right wing party Alternative for Germany (Alternative fr Deutschland) and what it means for democracy. The piece shares this insight on political upheavals – “They begin slowly, and then one morning you wake up and find yourself in another country”.
Circle Or Sphere? Inside The UK’s First ‘Flat Earth’ Conference
A look at a conference for flat earth conspiracy theorists. A speaker at one of the events kicks off with “I don’t accept logic and reason”, which is a pretty good summary, all in all.
The Plot to Subvert an Election: Unraveling the Russia Story So Far
This piece goes back to the beginning and unpacks in meticulous detail and with great clarity, Russia’s interference with the 2016 US Election.
A giant crawling brain: the jaw-dropping world of termites
It turns out termites are absolutely fascinating creatures, and this article explains why.
Queen of Crime
A look at the life and work of Agatha Christie, a woman who can lay good claim to being the most widely read novelist in history.
Here was a plague
A sobering, finely wrought and hugely powerful narrative of the Aids epidemic in the 1980s.
A Warning From Europe: The Worst Is Yet to Come
A story about political polarisation in Poland and the warning signs for liberal democracy everywhere. The author of the piece, Ann Applebaum, is in a unique position to write the story, with Polish and American nationality, a celebrated career writing about the former Soviet Union, and a husband who was formerly Poland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs.