The long read
In-depth reporting, essays and profiles
‘Why would he take such a risk?’ How a famous Chinese author befriended his censor
The long read: Online dissent is a serious crime in China. So why did a Weibo censor help me publish posts critical of the Communist party?
The mystery of the nameless girl found dead in a Spanish border town
From the archive: The great betrayal: how the Hillsborough families were failed by the justice system – podcast
My mother, the racist – podcast
She spent her life in northern France doing exhausting, back-breaking work – and yet she turned her anger against people who had done no wrongs to her. But as much as I couldn’t stand her rants, I was forced to accept her as she was
By Didier Eribon. Read by Mark Noble
The reluctant collaborator: surviving Syria’s brutal civil war – and its aftermath – podcast
At 18, Mustafa was told his only way out of prison was to join the regime forces. After 14 years, his past as one of Assad’s fighters could get him killed
By Ghaith Abdul-Ahad. Read by Mo Ayoub
‘I am not who you think I am’: how a deep-cover KGB spy recruited his own son
The long read: For the first time, the man the KGB codenamed ‘the Inheritor’ tells his story
From the archive: Votes for children! Why we should lower the voting age to six – podcast
This week, from 2021: The generational divide is deforming democracy. But there is a solution
By David Runciman. Read by Andrew McGregor
‘All other avenues have been exhausted’: Is legal action the only way to save the planet?
The long read: Monica Feria-Tinta is one of a growing number of lawyers using the courts to make governments around the world take action
The Rainham volcano: a waste dump is constantly on fire in east London. Why will no one stop it? – podcast
Under Arnolds Field, tonnes of illegally dumped waste have been burning for years, spewing pollution over the area. Locals fear for their health – and despair that no one seems willing to help
By William Ralston. Read by Sam Swainsbury
It came from outer space: the meteorite that landed in a Cotswolds cul-de-sac – podcast
Meteorite falls are extremely rare and offer a glimpse of the processes that formed our world billions of years ago. When a space rock came to an English market town in 2021, scientists raced to find as much out as they could
By Helen Gordon. Read by Sasha Frost
‘We thought we could change the world’: how an idealistic fight against miscarriages of justice turned sour
When a no-nonsense lecturer set up a radical solution to help free the wrongfully convicted in the UK, he was hopeful he could change the justice system. But what started as a revolution ended in acrimony
From the archive: ‘The treeline is out of control’: how the climate crisis is turning the Arctic green – podcast
This week, from 2022: In northern Norway, trees are rapidly taking over the tundra and threatening an ancient way of life that depends on snow and ice
By Ben Rawlence. Read by Christien Anholt
From acid house to ancient rites: Jeremy Deller’s enormous, collaborative, unsellable art
As his most ambitious project comes together, the artist plans to unleash a bacchanalian festival that will be his most daring public artwork yet
Holidays in hell: summer camp with Russia’s forgotten children – podcast
At the rural orphanage where I volunteered, the place resembled a Dickensian workhouse. The staff’s main tools were antipsychotics and violence. The experience gave me a window into Putin’s Russia
By Howard Amos. Read by Harry Lloyd
The savage suburbia of Helen Garner: ‘I wanted to dong Martin Amis with a bat’ – podcast
Over 50 years, she has become one of the most revered writers in Australia. Is she finally going to get worldwide recognition?
By Sophie Elmhirst. Read by Nicolette Chin
The real Scandi noir: how a filmmaker and a crooked lawyer shattered Denmark’s self-image
The Black Swan follows a repentant master criminal as she sets up corrupt clients in front of hidden cameras. But is she really reformed – and is the director up to his own tricks?
From the archive: Is society coming apart? – podcast
This week, from 2021: Despite Thatcher and Reagan’s best efforts, there is and has always been such a thing as society. The question is not whether it exists, but what shape it must take in a post-pandemic world
By Jill Lepore. Read by Kelly Burke
What happens when the US declares war on your parents? The Black Panther cubs know
The Black Panthers shook America awake before the party was eviscerated by the US government. Their children paid a steep price, but also emerged with unassailable pride and burning lessons for today
The Coventry experiment: why were Indian women in Britain given radioactive food without their consent? – podcast
When details about a scientific study in the 1960s became public, there was shock, outrage and anxiety. But exactly what happened?
By Samira Shackle. Read by Dinita Gohil
My life as a prison officer: ‘It wasn’t just the smell that hit you. It was the noise’ – podcast
I saw first hand how prisons are having to use segregation units for acutely mentally ill inmates who should not be in prison at all
Written and read by Alex South
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