Culture
Top Culture stories
Welcome to a spectacularly fraught edition of the Venice Biennale
Come for the art, stay for the drama
The weird, wild story of humanity’s obsession with gold
A new book charts the gilded history of an ancient asset
Who wants to relax on holiday?
Daredevil vacations are becoming thrillingly popular
The AI that transformed American warfare
Maven not only identifies targets—it tells commanders how to attack them, too
“Companion podcasts” are the latest hit format
Ready for more after bingeing on TV?
Jan Morris was a man, then a trans woman—but always a narcissist
A new biography digs into the life of an intrepid journalist
Books
Many celebrities now have book clubs. Most are irritating
They involve a lot of gush—but not a lot of literary criticism
The history of Moscow helps explain Russia’s pathologies
Invasion marked the city’s rise from medieval backwater to imperial metropolis
What is Elon Musk’s formula?
A historian and a technology writer uncover the essence of “Muskism”
Oscar Wilde’s grandson separates fact from fiction
Merlin Holland sets the record straight on the Irish writer’s life
The rhetoric of war has changed. Not for the better
Fitting literary allusions are out. Jarring clips from Hollywood movies are in
What really happened during the Black Death
A new book offers a different account of the pestilence
Television and film
Back Story
Turn on, tune in, trust no one: the paranoid style captures TV
Conspiracy thrillers are the favourite genre of a distrustful age
In “The Devil Wears Prada 2”, fashion magazines are off-trend
The sequel to the hit film is about the changing world of journalism
Back Story
In a new biopic, Michael Jackson is an eccentric saint. Yuck
The megastar’s uncancellable songs are his rightful memorial
Back Story
A rom-com ignites a row about tragedy, taste and art
Jokes about painful subjects should be serious at heart. Does “The Drama” pass the test?
Back Story
An Oscar-nominated documentary goes behind enemy lines
“Mr Nobody Against Putin” takes on patriotism, propaganda and the limits of sympathy
With “SNL UK”, Britain’s laughing stock appreciates
The television show offers a chance to make sketch comedy amusing again
The arts
Is a fortune gathering dust in your attic?
Demand for trading cards, sports memorabilia and other collectibles is huge
LA’s levitating amoeba: a radically new kind of museum
Does ditching chronology and geography inspire or confuse visitors?
In an age of status symbols, tiaras take the crown
Women worldwide are channelling royal glamour
Back Story
Russia should not be welcome at the world’s top art show
Would you invite a serial killer to a garden party?
What is the big deal with Ovid and artists?
The Latin poet appeals because he deals with transformation. And smut
Why understudies are seeing their wages rise
Understudies are an insurance policy. Their premiums are rising
Internet culture
The staggering strangeness of the Labubu bubble
Want a scary elf doll? That’ll be $150,000
In the AI propaganda war, Iran is winning
A joyless theocracy produces wittier videos than the Trump administration
The dark side of posting about your children online
A new book offers an exposé of the “kidfluencing” business
Western men are going abroad to find traditional wives
Frustration with modern dating has fuelled the rise of “passport bros”
Is looksmaxxing dangerous or silly?
Anything that encourages young men to take hammers to their jaws is both
Punch, a young Japanese macaque, has hit a nerve
A lonely monkey is beloved by millions
Food
Why children become fussy eaters
Parents swallow bad advice all too eagerly
The great comeback of cottage cheese
The mild, lumpy food is being eaten by gym bros and grannies alike
Which is the best sparkling water?
Diving into the frothy world of bubbly
The world’s most common vegetable is enjoying a great year
Like chips and pancakes? Lucky you
Restaurants are changing their menus for the age of Ozempic
The challenge is enticing those with reduced appetites to dine out
Why a new, playful style of wine is delighting drinkers
“Blouge” wines, mixing red and white grapes, open up new markets
Music
The biggest band you’ve never heard of
If you want to impress your children, tell them you listen to this South Korean boyband
How to hear an album before it drops
Fans are flocking to listening parties
The best albums of 2025
Emerging stars and established acts alike released remarkable records this year
The risky plan to take the “K” out of K-pop
Music executives reckon the genre’s future lies outside its home country
Popular music is getting sadder and angstier
The rise of blues music
How Russian brainrot became a hit for children
“Sigma Boy” has spread faster than nits
