Tuna has overtaken cod as the UK’s top-selling seafood – here’s why
Awesome, unexpected and unforgettable: a sudden bolt of silver as a tuna jumped clear of the sea. Nobody else saw it, and I (Angus Atkinson) almost thought I was hallucinating. But since I first saw one from a boat just off the south Devon coast ten years ago, Atlantic bluefin tuna have steadily increased in […]
Matt Brittin takes over as BBC director general – will the former Google exec’s tech world experience be right for the job?
The BBC started a new chapter on May 18 when Matt Brittin took over as director general. The former senior Google executive has come to the broadcaster at a time of profound change in both media and technology. While the worlds of media and big tech face different challenges, their corporate and competitive strategies are […]
Net migration and asylum claims have fallen – here’s what the latest figures tell us
1000 Words/Shutterstock The latest figures on immigration to the UK show a sharp decline in net migration, which is now at its lowest point since 2012, excluding the pandemic years. Data released by the Office for National Statistics and the Home Office covers the most recent changes in visas, small boat arrivals, asylum hotel use […]
How ‘zebra striping’ on a night out can help you drink less – and potentially avoid a hangover
‘Zebra striping’ involves alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Halfpoint/ Shutterstock On a typical night out, the rhythm of drinking can be hard to control. Rounds arrive quickly, glasses are topped up before they’re empty, and intentions to “take it slow” often dissolve by the second or third drink. If you’re not careful, you’ll find […]
Spying, Southampton and economic pressure cooker of the ‘richest match in football’
Football kit. beast01/Shutterstock In elite football, competitive advantage is pursued relentlessly. Big clubs invest heavily in performance data and tactical analysis in the pursuit of marginal gains. Yet that desperate search for gains has now led to one club, Southampton FC, suffering an enormous loss. Southampton admitted to spying on their opponent’s training session and […]
NHS shakeup: if it sounds like we’ve been here before, it’s because we have
People in a hospital waiting room. toodtuphoto/Shutterstock.com Amid political upheaval and the subsequent resignation of the health secretary, the king’s speech unveiled the NHS modernisation bill – the most significant overhaul of the health service in more than a decade. By legally abolishing NHS England and bringing operational management directly into Whitehall, ministers say they […]
Cooling poverty is making extreme heat more dangerous for millions
Vidigal is a favela in Leblon, one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. SIALABE/Shutterstock Imagine walking along Ipanema beach on a summer afternoon. The sand is golden, there’s a cooling sea breeze, the shade of a parasol and a cold drink in hand. Now look up. Clinging to the hillside just […]
Wildfire risk is now spreading to cool climates like the Scottish Highlands and Irish uplands
An Irish Air Corps helicopter extinguishing a wildfire in Howth, Dublin, in 2023. Thomas Halpin/Shutterstock The most destructive wildfire season on record in Europe was in 2025, with more than one million hectares burned and tens of thousands of people displaced by fires across the continent. For people in Ireland and Britain, the type of […]
A single dose of psilocybin eased depression symptoms for months, our study found
A row of psilocybin mushrooms. Cannabis Pic/Shutterstock.com A single dose of psilocybin eased symptoms of depression within days, with benefits lasting for more than three months compared to placebo, our new study has found. The study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open involved 35 people with recurring depression. We randomly assigned participants to either […]
Married at First Sight: does reality TV’s duty of care support participants – or the industry?
MYP Studio/Shutterstock A BBC Panorama investigation has revealed serious allegations of assault on Channel 4’s hit reality show, Married at First Sight. Three women who took part in the programme say they were raped or sexually assaulted by their on-screen “husbands” during filming. They have alleged that both Channel 4 and the production company CPL […]