Russell Brand

The comedian’s curious collection of defenders

Elon Musk and Allison Pearson are just a few of those defending Brand against allegations of sexual assault.

the news matrix

media

Murdoch’s succession drama

Lachlan Murdoch inherits the crown – but will he last?

“He and his son have poisoned the atmosphere… and that’s a bad legacy.”

Barry Diller, founder of Fox Broadcasting Company at the Sir Harry Evans Summit

Fox News’ relationship with the truth reportedly cost Murdoch $787 million. This is the inside story of what happened

13 March 2023

the royals

William and Rupert: Did the Prince’s secret deal with media mogul help fund the Earthshot prize?

Long stories short

• China confirmed a life sentence for Rahile Dawut, a Uyghur academic missing for six years.

• The UK’s competition watchdog changes its mind over Microsoft’s bid to buy the video game giant Activision Blizzard for $69 billion.

• Indonesian TikTok star Lina Lutfiawati was sentenced to two years in prison for eating pork on camera.

new audio series

trendy

Each week, explore the key trends shaping what voters think and politicians do with Sir John Curtice and Rachel Wolf

Listen to episode one now .

hero to net zero

The Tory letter that forced Sunak’s hand
on climate change

PM’s watered-down goals closely match list of Tory MP demands delivered after Uxbridge by-election.

Sunak’s u-turn is a gamble on voters. Will it pay off?

future of sport

Lionesses and FA reach agreement over World Cup bonus dispute

Player’s will receive performance related back-pay, as Captain Millie Bright says “For us it’s about becoming world leaders on and off the pitch.”

Equality is the goal: why this summer’s World Cup was always about more than just football

20 July 2023

we’re watching

Father and the Assassin

The danger India faces is made palpable in this mind-bending play about the man who murdered Gandhi.

we’re reading

A Small, Stubborn Town

The war in Ukraine is told through one small town, revealing how actions – both individual and communal – can nudge history.

we’re listening to

The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We

True to Mitski’s earlier work, her latest album is a focus on how emotions tell their own story.

gender

Coroner delays verdict but says care for trans people is “insufficiently resourced”

21 September 2023

india and the world

Canada’s stand over Sikh murder forces West to confront Modi’s ugly truth

20 September 2023

The octopus’s world

Embattled Odey’s first admission: I did grab employee’s breasts

20 September 2023

cold war politics

Kim Jong-un on the Siberian express

18 September 2023

lording over it

Charlotte Owen’s elevation to the Lords is hard to explain, but speaks volumes about how British democracy works.

ecology

What can the story of one dying river and the campaign to save it teach us about how to value nature?

sport

Britain’s biggest match-fixing scandal in over a decade starts in a snooker hall in Sheffield – and ends in a black market in south-east Asia.

Martha’s rule

Is the NHS “fobbing off” the mother of a girl who died of sepsis?

Had doctors intervened sooner, Martha Mills might still be alive. Now her parents are calling for a new rule to give families the right to a second opinion.

war in ukraine

The Ukrainians rooting for Russia

human rights

Disabled women are being excluded from essential services

online hate

How I found the person behind QAnon

true justice

Three doors down

A mother. A murder. An innocent man wrongly convicted. And a 30-year search for justice.

Tortoise members can listen to the whole series now.

Tortoise Quarterly | Edition 13

Faith

From Xavier Greenwood’s account of converting to Judaism to Rosie Blunt’s story about a lost religious masterpiece, many of the pieces in Tortoise’s thirteenth book of long reads follow a recurring theme: faith.

Non-member price: £15 + postage
Member price: £12 + postage

Find out more