The HPV vaccine works – but only if we keep trusting it
Komsan Loonprom/Shutterstock.com Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination is already saving lives in the UK – and the scale of that success is striking. Among young women who received the jab as schoolgirls, there have been no recorded deaths from cervical cancer in recent years. Between 2020 and 2024, no woman in England aged 20 to 24 […]
This Father’s Day, it’s time to listen to dads
Father’s Day is a time to celebrate fathers and father figures. Today’s dads may be more involved in their children’s lives than ever before, sharing the day-to-day responsibilities of raising children. But while expectations of fathers have evolved, the support available to them has not always kept pace. My colleagues and I undertook research in […]
It’s 50 years since the 1976 drought: how would the UK cope with its next major one?
It’s 50 years since the intense heat of the 1976 drought hit the UK. The country’s worst drought for 200 years, and one of the most severe ever, left reservoirs dry, cracked land, and melted tarmac on roads. For 15 consecutive days, temperatures hit 32°C in parts of the country. The record temperature for a […]
Freedom of speech takes many forms and they are always cultural
In the early 20th century, American anthropologist Franz Boas argued that being free just means being fully in harmony with your culture. The Inuit with whom he had done fieldwork saw themselves as incomparably free, even though he saw them as constrained by traditional rules. But the opposite was also true: they saw his (freely […]
How a 45-minute family exercise session could boost thinking skills
WOSUNAN/Shutterstock Getting enough exercise is one of the most important things we can do for our health. Yet many people around the world are not active enough. Around one in three adults fail to meet the recommended levels of physical activity, while four in five children aged 11–17 do not achieve the recommended average of […]
New evidence reveals extent of anti-fascist motives behind ‘insane’ aristocrat’s plot to assassinate Mussolini
Violet Gibson pictured after her arrest in 1926. wikimedia Benito Mussolini stepped out onto the Piazza del Campidoglio at 10:58 in the morning of April 7, 1926. He had just delivered a speech prepared for him by his lover, the Jewish writer Margherita Sarfatti. The speech had been a success, and Mussolini left satisfied, making […]
Seven memorable films to watch with your dad on Father’s Day
Despite the prominence of family relationships in cinema, fatherhood remains a surprisingly underexplored area of academic film study. There are a few exceptions. Charting the emergence of the paternal protector as a key masculine archetype is Katie Barnett’s Fathers on Film: Paternity and Masculinity in 1990s Hollywood. And crucially, Gershon Reiter’s Fathers and Sons in […]
The 11 best songs and albums about fatherhood – according to music experts
Shutterstock Songs about fathers and fatherhood range in tone from joy and celebration to absence, tension and grief. For Father’s Day, we asked 11 experts to share their favourite tracks and albums about fatherhood. 1. Teeth of Time by Joshua Burnside (2025) Joshua Burnside’s album Teeth of Time is an, at times, gut-wrenching exploration of […]
Heatwaves: five reasons why Victorian houses are cooler than modern buildings
Alex Segre/Shutterstock More than four million homes were built in the UK during the Victorian era. Victorian homes were constructed long before the complex computer models used today to design buildings were invented. Yet, these homes, built over 100 years ago, are cooler in summer than many built more recently. Here are some fundamental architectural […]
Think before you flush: expert advice on how and when to save water at home
BaLL LunLa/Shutterstock. Water unites everyone on the planet, and as well as keeping us alive, it has thousands of other uses, yet we undervalue it, take it for granted and often waste it. As many countries are now experiencing hot weather more frequently, our demand for water increases. Water companies need to act to reduce […]