A record of what was published, when, and how it changed.

Every year, humans speak less and less. That’s bad news, even if you hate mindless chit-chat

By Emma Beddington

Silent retreats are all the rage; hotel guests are embracing ‘hushpitatility’. But won’t this leave us more isolated? Are we becoming too quiet? As a joyless, intolerant shrew, my kneejerk answer is a predictable “if only” (writing this on a train full of happy holidaymakers isn’t helping). But am I wrong? I find myself confronted with evidence that people are taking the expression “ say less ” literally. A study rec

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‘Can we accept what we have done or not done?’: harrowing film follows doctors in Gaza

By David Smith in Washington

American Doctor follows three volunteer doctors as they try to save lives on the frontline and then return to the US to become advocates in congress When she wanted to confront Americans about the consequences of their actions – or inactions – in Gaza, Poh Si Teng reached for a genre with mass popular appeal: the medical drama. “Whether it’s The Pitt, Grey’s Anatomy, House, ER, even a comedy like Scrubs, you name it,

‘I had to learn how to be a feminist’: Greg Dulli on surviving grunge, shunning misogyny, and Afghan Whigs’ glorious return

By Stevie Chick

With a soulful sound and soul-baring lyrics, the Afghan Whigs rode the post-Nirvana boom to the big leagues. Their frontman explains his exploration of the male ego – and how Usher got the band back together The Afghan Whigs were always heavier than their grunge-era brethren. Not musically – their turbulent, sophisticated rock was rooted in soul and funk, and frontman Greg Dulli says the group only embraced distortio

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The Jason Arday media storm was partly of his own making. But he deserved better

By Hugh Linehan

Was the coverage excessive? Yes. Was it driven by racial animus? Undoubtedly, in some cases

Govt 'sleepwalking into major problem' over excise cuts

Byline not supplied

The industry body representing the liquid fuel sector has expressed concern that the Government is "sleepwalking into a major problem" with the unwinding of fuel price subsidies.

TikTok monitoring content relating to M9 crash

Byline not supplied

Tiktok has said that it is closely monitoring content related to the deaths of five teenage boys in a head-on collision on Sunday morning.

Swedish Chamber Orchestra/Fröst review – dance, dynamism and a wild rumpus as maverick clarinettist-conductor takes charge

By Alexandra Coghlan

Royal Albert Hall, London The ferociously dynamic SCO help Fröst drill down to the rhythmic essence of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony as well as works by contemporary composers It’s a Sunday morning, and as the Royal Albert Hall darkens and the stage is suddenly back-lit, spotlighting a charismatic figure speaking sibilantly at its centre, you’d almost swear you’d wandered into an American megachurch. But the gospel pr

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Irish medal winners hoping to ride wave of positivity

Byline not supplied

European Aquatics Championship medal-winning duo Ellen Walshe and Mona McSharry are hoping to ride the wave of positivity into October's World Cup series with the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles also quickly coming into view.

‘Fated to become a cult classic’: why Barcelona is my feelgood movie

By Ryan Chapman

The latest in our series of writers detailing their most pleasurable comfort films is a trip to 1980s Spain courtesy of Whit Stillman An hour into Whit Stillman’s 1994 film, Barcelona, the protagonist, Ted Boynton (Taylor Nichols), considers using “maneuver x” in his stalled romantic life. He’s an American working in the Spanish branch of an auto conglomerate, looking for love in the titular city’s post-Franco, sexua

‘Our new normal’: how marine heatwaves affect life in British seas

By Melissa Hobson

As warming seas push native species to cooler waters farther north, once-rare visitors have become more common ‘It sounds silly but I thought it was a person in the water waving,” says Kurt Lander, skipper of the Yellowfin charter boat, based out of Brighton. But when he grabbed his binoculars, he realised the fluttering movement he had noticed in the middle of the Channel shipping lane was a pair of sunfish. The hug

We’ve seen this insect around our house. Should we be worried?

By Éanna Ní Lamhna

Your notes and queries for Éanna Ní Lamhna

Farmers count the cost of prolonged drought: ‘Do the maths, that’s €3,500 a week’

By Ronan McGreevy

Dairy and tillage farmers in east and south-east struggle as a result of dry, hot summer

Where Are the Kings: Donal Ryan’s wrenching, gorgeous new novel

By Greg Londe

Story of an orphaned boy connects the tectonic emotions of adolescence to the stormy tempers of the natural world

The Ego Trip by Kimon de Greef review – a bizarre tale of psychedelic toads and hair-raising treatments

By Oliver Bullough

A journalist investigates the unsettling world of a charismatic shaman and the people who trusted him Which, in your opinion, is the worst current cultural trend: social media influencers; unregulated wellness practitioners; macho manosphere posturers; psychedelic bores; cultural appropriators? The good news is that, with Octavio Rettig, the central character in Kimon de Greef’s The Ego Trip, you don’t have to choose

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Skoda dramatically undercuts its EV SUV rivals on price with the new Peaq

By Neil Briscoe

The new seven-seat Peaq is significantly more affordable than its Hyundai and Kia rivals, while Skoda’s Irish boss reckons the dam on electric car sales has finally broken

Tupac's accused killer was out for 'revenge', jury hears

Byline not supplied

A former street gang leader orchestrated the 1996 drive-by shooting of hip-hop star Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas in retribution for the beating of his nephew, a prosecutor told jurors during ⁠opening statements in a murder trial.

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Wrong-way drivers going to 'jail or grave', minister says

Byline not supplied

The Minister for Justice has warned those driving the wrong way down a motorway: "You'll end up in jail or you'll end up in a grave."

Surge in demand for power forces EirGrid to switch on emergency power plant twice

By Barry O'Halloran

National grid operator confirms it used back-stop generators in June and during eclipse last week

'Are you not entertained?' - Hunt enters stardom with iconic quadruple

Byline not supplied

Amy Hunt asserts herself as Great Britain's new track sensation after winning an unprecedented four gold medals at the European Athletics Championships.

Is it true that … it’s harder for women to do pull-ups?

By Kate Lloyd

The differences in body types does mean that, on average, women find the exercise more difficult – but that’s not the whole story Pull-ups are a bodyweight exercise where you hang from an overhead bar, usually with an overhand grip, and pull yourself up until your chin clears the bar. “They’re a great upper-body exercise,” says Prof Leigh Breen, a specialist in muscle physiology at the University of Leicester. “They

My generation had no voice on Brexit – but Burnham gives the young fresh hope on Europe | Ceira Sergeant

By Ceira Sergeant

Brexit didn’t create all the problems young people now face, but renewing close ties with Europe will give us so many opportunities I was 14 when the UK voted to leave the EU. Too young to vote, but not too young to understand that a decision was being made that would affect the rest of my life. In many ways, Brexit was my political awakening. It taught me that politics matters, because decisions made by people in po

Brandon Flowers: Thrasher review – Killers frontman’s country pivot is a rootin’ tootin’ cowboy-bootin’ hoot!

By Shaad D'Souza

(Island) Even a couple of bafflingly misguided social commentary songs can’t detract from the joys of Flowers’ classically full-throated commitment to the Nashville bit Here are three immutable facts about Brandon Richard Flowers: he was born just outside Las Vegas, Nevada. He is 45 years old. And he never does anything by halves. When he and his band the Killers debuted in the early 2000s, as disaffected New York co

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Maire Claire Reid: ‘I would never ask someone to do something I haven’t done myself’

By Conor Healy

Logistics group TST Group built its business by creating value backed by service, not by being the cheapest

Trump orders cuts to joint US military drills with South Korea

By Raphael Rashid in Seoul

US president says move is based on his ‘very good relationship with Kim Jong-un’ but military officials warn North Korea’s combat capabilities are growing

Hamas disarmament could begin within 30 days - Kushner

Byline not supplied

US President Donald Trump's envoy Jared Kushner said that progress towards disarming Hamas and moving forward with a Gaza peace plan could begin within a month, after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.