How Rupert Murdoch became an estate agent
The revenue from Murdoch’s Australian newspapers was once so huge it launched a media empire – but now, the money comes from a different source
The Magazine
Sometimes I do “do God”, but only as a favour to the Pope
There’s a golden rule that you don’t plug someone else’s book when your own one is out. But there are some times when you have to make an exception
There can be no doubting it now – Google is dead
It was once a great search engine. But then along came AI, and that was that
Sorry Andy – Manchester and ‘the north’ aren’t the same thing
Just because it worked in the big city, doesn’t mean it’s going to work across the north. If you want to understand the problem, just go to County Durham
The far right tradwives who want Yesteryear back
The pastel-toned social media trend is popular even with progressive women. But there’s a dark side to the oven-fresh bakes and homegrown veg
Revealed: Postcards from our summer holidays, by Burnham, Badenoch, Farage, Davey and Polanski
Capped fares for donkey rides, yachting with oligarchs and Lib Den log flumes: How Britain’s political class have been spending the season
Andy Burnham’s high street fantasies make me worried about the PM
His nebulous prettification plans ignore reality – and he should be focused on bigger things
Writers
Alastair Campbell
Sometimes I do “do God”, but only as a favour to the Pope
Marie Le Conte
Excuse me, but why are you swimming so damn slowly?
Matthew d’Ancona
The Democrats’ secret plan to elect JD Vance
Patience Wheatcroft
Andy Burnham’s high street fantasies make me worried about the PM
Tanit Koch
Inside the culture war over Berlin’s ‘woke’ swimming pool
Paul Mason
The 60% problem: Why a hotter climate is a crisis for the UK economy
Latest
Tim Bradford’s cartoon: World leaders holiday fun
Modern Toss’s Tossary: Prioritit
Nic Aubury’s poem: History Will Record
Want to visit somewhere new in Europe? Here are 10 suggestions
Letter of the week: Russia should have no say in how the peace is won
Revealed: Postcards from our summer holidays, by Burnham, Badenoch, Farage, Davey and Polanski
Podcasts
The Two Matts
2026: the year the climate crisis came home
Touching Grass
Dobby’s grave and problematic internet boyfriends
The Two Matts
The Two Matts Q&A: On the death of Jason Arday
The Two Matts
Andy Burnham vs Geoffrey Howe… and a side order of Jason Arday
Touching Grass
The Sex Purge Movie, and catching predators
Touching Grass
Panopticons and the fall of the Magaverse
Arts & Culture
The strange death of sex in the movies
Hollywood used to understand desire. Now even its sex comedies are embarrassed about the bedroom
What happened to Marisol, the celebrity artist who disappeared?
Now that’s what I call the best music books ever!
Why Ruth Ellis still haunts us
A secret diarist inside the Nazi war machine
Toodle-Pip! Reform’s new welfare policy is already causing the party problems
Did Nigel Farage ever intend to attend his by-election count?
Why is the BBC parroting Robert Jenrick’s back-of-a-fag-packet welfare figures?
Farage’s victory is a defeat – now we can finally get to the truth about his money
Audio
2026: the year the climate crisis came home
The Matts discuss the government’s response to the severe heat this summer in England and Wales (sorry Scotland!)… and whether this year will be a turning point in the public’s perception of urgency around the changing climate
Dobby’s grave and problematic internet boyfriends
This week Lucy Reade unpacks the latest discourse over Harry Potter fans, whilst James Ball tells us about the strange world of boyfriend simulator games
The Two Matts
The Two Matts Q&A: On the death of Jason Arday
The Matts answer listener questions in their regular Sunday morning episode, including the tragic death of Jason Arday
Andy Burnham vs Geoffrey Howe… and a side order of Jason Arday
The Matts remember an astonishing letter of 45 years ago which provides stark contrast with Andy Burnham’s politics of place
The Sex Purge Movie, and catching predators
James Ball discusses the film that the internet has dubbed The Sex Purge Movie and Lucy Reade dives into the controversial world of To Catch a Predator
Panopticons and the fall of the Magaverse
Lucy Reade discusses the infamous ‘kissing lawyers’ and James Ball dives into why the influencers behind the ‘Magaverse’ are quietly losing their audiences
The Two Matts Q&A: Is Andy Burnham a hot dad, and eff off Gianni Infantino
The Matts answer listeners’ questions including: when will politicians actually face up to the climate crisis?
Most popular
Puzzles
Sudoku Hard
Sudoku Medium
Sudoku Easy
Number Fit
Jigsaw
Cryptic Crossword
Crossword
Codeword
Politics
Andy Burnham’s high street fantasies make me worried about the PM
Inside the culture war over Berlin’s ‘woke’ swimming pool
Sorry Andy – Manchester and ‘the north’ aren’t the same thing
India has 750m people under 30. They want a new future – they might just get it
This is why Andy Burnham seems so authentic
Sometimes I do “do God”, but only as a favour to the Pope
Revealed: Postcards from our summer holidays, by Burnham, Badenoch, Farage, Davey and Polanski
Letter of the week: Russia should have no say in how the peace is won
Brexit
Project Fear? Tell the 78-year-old British widow fighting deportation from Sweden
The Leavers promised British citizens living in the EU would have their rights fully protected after Brexit. The reality is somewhat different
Some advice to Shabana Mahmood: follow Suella Braverman’s example
The Home Office is telling potentially thousands of EU citizens they have no right to remain. The home secretary needs to stop before it becomes a fiasco
Want to know Burnham’s EU policy? Watch Ed Miliband
The new foreign secretary appears to have successfully wrestled back ownership of European policy from the Cabinet Office
Should Burnham really have nixed Nick Thomas-Symonds?
The outgoing Europe minister, a Starmer loyalist, has paid the price despite putting in the hard yards on a Brexit reset
Yet more Brexit baggage we’re left with
The EU is banning airlines from charging for hand luggage. Guess who will only, at best, half-benefit?
The EU’s Burnham question – is the new PM worth the risk?
Andy Burnham is pro-EU and politicians across the continent know it. The issue is whether he will last long enough to change British views on Europe
Ukraine
Trump failed to kill Nato. Will Marine Le Pen succeed?
If Le Pen wins next year and goes through with a threat to step back from Nato, the consequences for western security could be dire
The end of Putin is at last on the table – but we must be sceptical
An oligarch’s way out of war would give Russia and its dictator an easy ride, and may yet prove to be a con
The WWI ‘butcher’ who inspired Putin’s meat-grinder warfare
Douglas Haig’s willingness to trade thousands of lives for a few miles of ground has proved sadly durable
Burnham’s biggest problem – UK leftists parroting Putin’s lies
Russia is losing the war in Ukraine, so the Kremlin is boosting its disinformation campaign. Unfortunately for the next PM, the British left are falling for it
Inside the empty palaces of the faded Soviet scientific dream
Photographs of iron curtain research labs reveal the depth of communist ambition – and the fatal flaw buried within it
A message to the next PM – to avoid Starmer’s fate, concentrate on defence
This is Labour’s last chance to see off the threat of a 2029 Farage victory. There is one piece of advice that the next PM needs to hear
The big picture
How outsiders built the American city
A generation of immigrants and their descendants chronicled an urban revolution
The battle of the Notting Hill Carnival
Fifty years ago, a riot made the front pages – but violence, racism and political hysteria couldn’t stop the party
Great Lives
BKS Iyengar, the ferocious gentleman of yoga
Why did Babe Ruth’s rivals think he was black?
Inside the wild film flop that unlocked Robin Williams
The night Fela Kuti turned music into a weapon
Phyo Zeya Thaw, the MC who faced down Myanmar’s generals
Kevin Keegan was my babysitter
Andy Burnham’s high street fantasies make me worried about the PM