Tag Archives: The Guardian Weekly

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY – MAY 9, 2025 POLITICS PREVIEW

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (May 7, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Trump meets political gravity’…

The Weekly’s cover focuses on the US president, who has at last been feeling the pull of domestic political gravity. Trump’s chaotic first 100 days in office – marked last week – have featured a blitz of sweeping and vengeful changes to America that have been hard to fully compute. But as the US economy falters and his poll ratings sink, David Smith asks whether the seemingly unchallengeable president is showing some signs of vulnerability.


Five essential reads in this week’s edition

Spotlight | Russia’s new sabotage campaign in Europe
Moscow’s intelligence services have launched a new type of attack on the west, violent but piecemeal and hard to prove, writes Shaun Walker

Spotlight | Palestinians face difficult decisions over future in Gaza
As Israel’s aid blockade rumbles on and humanitarian zones disappear, fears of a ‘second Nakba’ are being realised. Bethan McKernan reports

Feature | How Ticketmaster ate the live music industry
From grassroots gigs to stadium shows, there’s no escaping the ticketing giant, making billions from increasing prices (and whacking on fees). Dorian Lynskey investigates who is really to blame for the great rock’n’roll rip-off

Opinion | We recall the joy of VE Day. My worry is what we forget
In 1945, Sheila Hancock’s street party tea was a muted celebration, full of uncertainty. Then, as now, we faced a long struggle towards a better world

Culture | Black Sabbath on reconciling for their final gig
Heavy metal’s godfathers are preparing a star-studded farewell – but will Ozzy Osbourne be well enough to perform? In their first interview for two decades, the original lineup talk to Alexis Petridis

The Guardian Weekly – May 2, 2025 – Politics Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (April 30, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Northern Exposure’ – Can Mark Carney save Canada from Trump?

The North America edition showcases Mark Carney, the prime minister of Canada, who achieved a remarkable victory in Monday’s federal election. As our reporter in Ottawa Leyland Cecco explains, Carney reversed a huge Liberal party poll deficit after voters backed him over his conservative opponent, Pierre Poilievre, to stand up to the threats of Donald Trump. Can the dour but tough former central banker succeed in fending off the aggressive advances of his US counterpart?

The big story | Kharkiv suffers in the shadow of a peace deal
While US-led negotiations threaten to carve up Ukraine, deadly Russian attacks continue amid deep cynicism about the process. Luke Harding reports from a city under siege

Science | Why f ish farms on the moon aren’t such a wild idea
The Lunar Hatch project is studying whether aquaculture might be able to provide a source of protein for astronauts on space missions. Kim Willsher paid them a visit

Feature | The dirtiest race in Olympic history
How did the 2012 Olympics women’s 1500m get its reputation? Athletes cheated out of medals talk to Esther Addley about what happened – and how the results unravelled

Opinion | Will Pope Francis’s compassionate legacy endure?
Some, especially within the US, see the forthcoming conclave as an opportunity to establish a more conservative leader, says Guardian associate editor Julian Coman

Culture | The genius of Barrie Kosky and his Wagner phantasmagoria
He put Carmen in a gorilla suit and had Das Rheingold’s Erda represented by a naked elderly woman. What are the the opera director’s plans for his edge-of-the-seat Die Walküre? Fiona Maddocks finds out

The Guardian Weekly – April 11, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (April 10, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Crash Course – Trump’s Tariff War on the World; Reach for the stars – Are reviews changing our brains?,,,


Trump’s crash course: inside the 11 April edition

The US president’s tariff war on the world. Plus: The unsellable art of Jeremy Deller


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Graham SnowdonWed 9 Apr 2025 13.00 EDTShare

Donald Trump’s “liberation day” US tariffs on imported goods from a long list of international territories – including some inhabited only by penguins – sparked market turmoil and fears of a global recession.

As the chaos continued into this week, the question loomed of how the world, from China to Europe, would respond. An increasingly dark-looking spiral with China of tariff threats and counter-threats this week led Beijing to vow to “fight to the end”, while vice-president JD Vance again showed his lack of class by referring to “Chinese peasants” in an interview.

Spotlight | Families’ shock at IDF’s killing of paramedics in Gaza
Relatives who waited an agonising week before the bodies were found speak of the passion that drove Red Crescent workers. Malak A TanteshJulian Borger and Bethan McKernan report

Science | Is ratings culture changing our brains?
We live under mutual surveillance, asked to leave public ratings for every purchase, meal, taxi ride or hair appointment. What is it doing to us, asks Chloë Hamilton

Feature | The huge, unsellable public art of Jeremy Deller
Jeremy Deller can’t really draw or paint. Instead of making things, he makes things happen. Charlotte Higgins spends time with one of Britain’s best-known but unlikely artists

Opinion | Donald Trump won’t stop me visiting the US – a country I love
For John Harris, the United States means music, progress, hope. Whatever their president does, he argues, plenty of Americans continue to believe in those too

Culture | How Tracy Chapman captured a moment and inspired a generation
Zadie Smith was 12 years old when she saw Tracy Chapman captivate a massive crowd at 1988’s Free Nelson Mandela concert. Her astonishing debut album has mesmerised the novelist ever since

The Guardian Weekly – April 4, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (April 3, 2025): The latest issue features ‘The End of Turkish Democracy’ – Inside the anti-government protests...

The detention of the popular Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu last month has sparked Turkey’s largest anti-government protests in years, with people gathering nightly amid violent clashes with police. But after thousands of arrests and with disagreements about how the protests should move forwards, the opposition movement is at a crossroads.

Amid concerns that Turkey may be slipping irretrievably towards full authoritarianism, Ruth Michaelson reports from Istanbul on how the detention of a popular young activist has caused particular anger among opponents of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government. Ruth also weighs up what options now lie ahead for the protest movement amid disagreements about the best way forward.

Spotlight | Myanmar, after the earthquake
With thousands now known to have been killed as a result of last Friday’s earthquake that struck near Mandalay, Rebecca Ratcliffe reports on fading hopes of finding more survivors

Environment | The power of dead seaweed
Rotting sargassum is clogging up Grenada’s beaches – but innovative technology is turning it into fuel, fertiliser and bioplastics. Natricia Duncan and Abigail McIntyre report

Feature | The rapid growth in beard transplants
Demand for beard transplant surgery is soaring – despite the dangers that lurk in unregulated clinics. Are the risks worth it? Simon Usborne investigates

Opinion | How to beat the far right
As a lonely, hate-filled kid in Sydney’s suburbs, Matthew Quinn turned to far-right ideology. Now he reveals how he helps others avoid that path

Culture | The return of FKA twigs
Despite global stardom, FKA twigs has always felt a lack of belonging. The musician opens up to Zoe Williams about f ighting censorship, crying on stage and performing for peanuts

The Guardian Weekly – March 28, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (March 26, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Ties That Bind’ – Can the West break free from the US?

Spotlight | How the world forgot about Sudan
As territory is won and lost by opposing military forces, people grasp at scraps of normality. But the country is undergoing the world’s most severe humanitarian catastrophe, reports Mark Townsend from Khartoum

Science | The moral question of prolonging a pet’s life
Many cat or dog owners would happily pay for medicines that help their four-legged friends to live longer, and the biotech industry is cashing in. But is it the right thing to do? Joel Snape investigates

Interview | Amanda Knox: ‘This is my story’
Ten years ago, the American was f inally cleared of the brutal murder of her housemate Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy. But is Amanda Knox really free? She talks to Simon Hattenstone

Opinion | The broken bond between Canada and the US
With the US president now warmer to Moscow than to Ottawa, it’s little surprise the Canadians Andy Beckett met on a recent visit rolled their eyes at the decline of the special relationship

Culture | Reappraising the reputation of Paul Gauguin
The French artist has been tarred as a colonialist who gave syphilis to underage girls in the South Seas. But author Sue Prideaux has made discoveries that challenge this picture

The Guardian Weekly – March 21, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (March 20, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Driven to Fury’ – How Tesla became a target for protest…

 Lauren Gambino examines how growing difficulties for Musk have given heart to Democrats as they see his recognition factor and billionaire status as an easy rallying point to rebuild their own battered political fortunes. 

Spotlight | On the frontline of the tariff wars
Leyland Cecco takes the pulse of Hamilton, Ontario’s steel-making hub, after the Trump administration imposed a 25% levy on imports of Canadian steel and aluminium

Environment | Loess regained
The Loess plateau was the most eroded place on Earth until China took action and reversed decades of damage from grazing and farming, finds Helen Davidson

Feature | A Syrian civil war survivor
Ghaith Abdul-Ahad chronicles the life of Mustafa, determined to succeed in the new Syria even with his past as a forced soldier for the Assad regime

Opinion | Trump’s every misstep brings chaos
The honeymoon is over for a president who seems to personify the law of unintended consequences, says Simon Tisdall

Culture | A painter in her own write
Celia Paul tells Charlotte Higgins about her relationship with Lucian Freud and the struggles of being out of step with the art world

The Guardian Weekly – March 14, 2025 Preview

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THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (March 13, 2025): The latest issue features ‘Call to Arms’ – The remilitarization of Europe…

With unaccustomed speed, Paris, Berlin and London, along with the European Commission, are stepping up with a new “whatever it takes” mentality to create a framework for their own defence. Our coverage, led by Toby Helm and with contributions from our correspondents in Kyiv, Brussels and Berlin, examines how fiscal shibboleths are being shed to allow for increased military spending, and from Berlin a growing enthusiasm for Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz to consider sheltering under France’s independent nuclear umbrella.

Spotlight | ‘Here you will die’
Mark Townsend reports from Sudan on how the retreat of rebel RSF forces has led to the discovery of a torture centre, evidence of what could be one of the worst atrocities of the civil war

Technology | Roboshop
Can an AI agent prove itself smart enough to help Victoria Turk with her shopping? And, if it can order groceries and a takeaway, what else might it soon be able to do?

Feature | All the young Reform dudes
What is it about Nigel Farage’s Reform party that is attracting young men fed up with establishment politics? Gaby Hinsliff finds out

Opinion | The Sicilian ways of Donald Trump
The US president’s way of doing business is uncomfortably close to the fictional Corleone method, but without the mafia’s sense of honour, says Jonathan Freedland

Culture | Arthouse animation moves on up
Hot on the Academy Awards’ success of Flow, Xan Brooks looks at how independent animators are taking on the big-budget Hollywood studios and finding audiences are falling back in love with stop-go techniques

The Guardian Weekly – March 7, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (March 6, 2025): The latest issue features ‘An End To Aid?’ – The crushing cost of development fund cuts…

Spotlight | Can Keir Starmer be Europe’s bridge to Trump?
Amid the fallout from Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s catastrophic trip to Washington and efforts to secure a peace plan for Ukraine, is Britain’s prime minister the man for a critical moment? Kiran Stacey reports

Science | Is the world ready for bigger waves?
In some seas, swells are growing noticeably larger. Scientists say coastal communities should be prepared for damaging consequences – but also potential opportunities. By James Bradley

Feature | The savage suburbia of Helen Garner
Over 50 years, the Australian has become one of her country’s most revered and beloved authors, writing as if readers were her friend, party to her most candid thoughts. Is she finally going to get worldwide recognition? By Sophie Elmhirst

Opinion | Defiance, not subservience, is how we resist Trump
The US president has utterly changed the rules of engagement. World leaders must learn this – and quickly, argues Simon Tisdall

Culture | Gracie Abrams, the year’s biggest pop star
The US singer’s unfiltered approach to pop has made her a superstar. She talks to Alexis Petridis about the horror of American politics – and the solace of needlepoint

The Guardian Weekly – February 28, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (February 27, 2025): The latest issue features ‘The Middle Man’ – Can Friedrich Merz mend Germany?

Can Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting fend off the far right? Plus: Bong Joon-ho interviewed

Diverting our eyes away from Trumpworld for a moment this week, attention shifted to Germany where Friedrich Merz’s conservative CDU/CSU alliance came out on top in the country’s federal elections.

For many though, the story of the night belonged to the far-right Alternative für Deutschland, which received more than a fifth of the vote and came top in virtually the entire eastern side of the country. Merz’s alliance did not win an outright majority so, having previously vowed not to work with the AfD, the chancellor-in-waiting must now try to form a grand coalition with other mainstream parties, which is likely to include Olaf Scholz’s heavily defeated SPD.

Amid surging support for the far right, Ashifa Kassam and Deborah Cole report from Berlin, where many people from immigrant backgrounds feel real fear for the future. Kate Connolly looks at Merz’s bulging in-tray as likely new leader of the EU’s largest economy, while in an opinion piece Musa Okwonga writes powerfully about the extent of anti-migrant feeling and xenophobia in Germany’s “time of the cowards”.

The Guardian Weekly – February 14, 2025 Preview

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY (February 13, 2025): The latest issue features The Orbánisation of America…

We’re just over three weeks into the second Donald Trump administration, and the pace of events both inside and outside the US has been dizzying and unprecedented.

Many of us have been alarmed by Trump’s shocking pronouncements on the Israel-Gaza war, trade tariffs and territorial claims on Greenland and Panama. But inside America, an equally startling transformation has been taking place.

Aided by the tech billionaire Elon Musk, Trump has moved swiftly to fire critics, reward allies, punish media, gut the federal government and exploit presidential immunity. Yet much of the blueprint comes not from Trump’s own policy team, but from a power-consolidation playbook established over the past decade by the Hungarian authoritarian leader Viktor Orbán.