Weekend

In the defamation trial of the century, Australia’s most-decorated living soldier is seeking to defend his reputation against reports in three newspapers that he says falsely accuse him of being a war criminal. His lawyers argue Roberts-Smith has been unfairly targeted by envious comrades and assisted by credulous journalists. The newspapers’ lawyers say their reporting is true, and that Roberts-Smith broke the ‘moral and legal rules of military engagement’, something he denies outright. But who is Ben Roberts-Smith, and how did he earn the military’s highest honour, the Victoria Cross?

This week, Marina Hyde rattles through the PM’s first week (1m26s), the Guardian’s head rock and pop critic Alexis Petridis talks to singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi about staying grounded in the limelight (10m10s), columnist Guy Lodge dissects the history of queer horror (25m46s), and finally, technology editor Alex Hern explores the seemingly innocuous algorithm that pushed TikTok to the top of its game (36m27s).

This week, Marina Hyde on the political chaos of the last four days and counting (1m28s), columnist Zoe Williams meets Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu, the woman who may have just changed the fortunes of Love Island (10m01s), and writer Amelia Tait reveals how our body clocks can improve the effectiveness of everything from our nutrition to Alzheimer’s (34m50s).

This week, Marina Hyde on the plight of a constantly aggrieved, and very particular, subsection of male “celebrity” (1m28s); Zoe Williams asks, why has Britain fallen in love with Botox? (8m38s); Gaby Hinsliff explores the big British Burnout (24m42s); and Ellen E Jones meets Oscar-winning actor Violas Davis to talk about her new film, The Woman King (40m12s).

This week, Marina Hyde picks over the rubble of this week’s decision-making by the Tories (1m25s), Sean Ingle delves into the wild world of chess (10m52s), and Tom Lamont sits down with comedian, writer and actor Lenny Henry (25m57s).

This week, columnist Marina Hyde examines how Kwasi Kwarteng responds to the chaos he creates (1:22), Aimee Levitt investigates why Americans like adding pumpkin spice to things (8:08), Emine Saner interviews Jayde Adams about her hopes for Strictly Come Dancing (19:00), and Will Coldwell looks back at the business of the smiley symbol (34:38)

This week, columnist Zoe Williams on the curious political role of the ‘First Bloke’ (1m31s), writer Tom Lamont meets the Oscar-winning actor and all-round ‘dude’ Jeff Bridges (18m06s), and finally, journalist Bronwyn Adcock gains a little insight from a radical Buddhist nun on the secret to happiness (35m16s).

In this new six-episode podcast, Guardian journalist Sirin Kale investigates the story of a cyberstalker who terrified people in his hometown and beyond for over a decade. Episode one begins in his hometown, Northwich, where Sirin meets some of his earliest victims - Andrea Yuile, Amber and Amy Bailey. They tell us how he infiltrated their lives and talk about the horrendous fallout of what he did

This week, columnist Marina Hyde on heckling the royal family and the fallacy of ‘free speech’ (1m35s), fashion editor Jess Cartner-Morley talks to Willow Smith about her complicated relationship with the limelight (8m41s), film critic Peter Bradshaw reviews the many fictional iterations of the Queen (29m41s), and, finally, writer Niloufar Haidari on why Kourtney Kardashian’s new sustainable fashion line will do far more harm than good (42m57s).

This week, Yvonne Roberts on the importance of small talk (1m34s), Emine Saner meets Nickelodeon actor Jennette McCurdy to discuss her explosive new memoir (7m15s), and Hadley Freeman has an out of body experience with shoe designer-turned-psychedelic-guide Patrick Cox (22m56s)

The Queen has died aged 96 at her Scottish home of Balmoral. In this episode of our Today in Focus podcast, Polly Toynbee joins Nosheen Iqbal to look back on her life

This week, Sirin Kale meets former Tory MP and hit podcaster Rory Stewart (1m36s), columnist Eva Wiseman counts the clinical cost of heartbreak (20m27s), and Ryan Gilbey sits down with the queen of Blaxploitation Pam Grier (37m18s)

This week, columnist Marina Hyde asks why all the blame for the sewage dumping scandal is pointed towards politicians and not the water company bosses (1m50s), writer Sam Parker on the Gen Z entrepreneurs who are turning their backs on office nine to fives and turning their personal passions into full-time jobs (9m20s), historian Lucy Worsley on whether best-selling author, Agatha Christie, really did go into hiding to frame her husband for murder (26m06s), and finally, neuroscientist and psychologist Lisa Feldman Barrett asks: can we really tell what animals are feeling, or are we merely projecting? (43min19)

This week, Marina Hyde on Brooklyn Beckham’s ever-evolving career path (1m46s), comedian Nish Kumar is at the Edinburgh fringe (9m49s), Jess Cartner-Morley investigates Whatsapp fatigue (21m39s), and writer Daniel Dylan Wray asks why thirtysomethings are giving up on music (34m12s)

This weekend, columnist Marina Hyde on why the FBI’s search of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home will lead to him running again in 2024 (01m50s), Simon Hattenstone sits down with diver Tom Daley to discuss how making a documentary about gay rights led to an awakening (09m37s), and Annalisa Barbieri reveals what triggered – and eventually settled – her late-onset hypochondria (31m42s)

Weekend is taking a break. So this week, the team are picking out their favourite pieces from the last few months just in case you missed them. This week, reporter Kari Paul asks why so many people are going ‘goblin mode’ (1m46s), Hadley Freeman shares some defining moments from the Wagatha Christie trial (9m51s), and Charlotte Higgins asks why Brits are still obsessed with the Regency period (43m40s)

Weekend is taking a break. So for the next two weeks, the team is picking out their favourite pieces from the last few months just in case you missed them. This week, columnist Eva Wiseman chats to comedian and activist Joe Lycett (01m15s), comedian Hannah Gadsby unpicks the myths and personal struggles surrounding autism spectrum disorder (15m55s), and Michael Segalov reviews Netflix’s recent LGBTQ+ coming of age romcom series, Heartstopper (35m47s).

This weekend, journalist Elle Hunt on why thousands of people are embracing the ‘age of anti-ambition’ (01m10s), Aaron Hicklin meets with John Cho – or as you may know him – Harold of Harold and Kumar, now Sulu in the new Star Trek (15m47s), and Kelsy Burke strips away the pretence after trying out naked yoga (34m12s)

Rhik Samadder finds out how it feels to walk down his local high street in a skirt (1m45s), Sirin Kale looks at what happens to pets after relationships break down (8m20s), and John McEnroe reflects on how he went from tennis bad boy to the game’s elder statesman (25m56s)

This week, Marina Hyde on the week the prime minister’s house of cards finally fell down (1m53s), Rebecca Seal investigates if our smartphones are ruining our memory (10m32s), Tim Lewis interviews actor Daisy Haggard (26m25s), and Francisco Garcia introduces us to the people who earn a living looking like our favourite famous people (41m18s)