Is it hot enough for you? After what felt like a brief return to winter this time last week, Britain is suddenly basking in record-breaking temperatures.
If you’re suffering from weather whiplash, you’re not alone, and Helen Coffey wanted to get to the bottom of what is really going on. Is climate change behind the weird weather, or is this pattern not as unusual as it seems? If you’re a weather-obsessed Brit, the chances are this is a question that has rattled around your brain, and Helen has a definitive answer for you here.
There are few cooking rituals more dependent on optimism than the British barbecue, which always appears, at the first hint of sun and especially on a Bank Holiday. But we can all do better than throwing a few hastily bought sausages on to the fire. This weekend, Jamie Oliver’s BBQ guide has you sorted with delicious recipes for everything from a delicious herby leg of lamb to charred cauliflower with romesco.
Away from the sunshine, some of our biggest reads look at what’s really going on behind the headlines.
Many of you may still think of Cuba in terms of a bucket-list tourist destination, but Havana-born investigative journalist Mónica Baró Sánchez reports on what life is really like there today. As the oil runs out, there are blackouts, shortages and exhaustion and in this fantastic dispatch, ordinary Cubans tell her what survival now looks like and how Cubans really feel about Trump’s threat of military action.
Closer to home, Rebecca Thomas speaks to one of the bereaved families from the Mid Staffordshire hospital scandal, who says Prime Minister wannabe Andy Burnham refused to meet relatives during their fight for answers. As Burnham positions himself for a possible future leadership bid, the anger and hurt remain raw nearly two decades later. Her piece “Mum's death was not worth one second of Andy Burnham’s time’ is essential reading.
And in The Longer Read this weekend, Alex Hannaford examines why British police appear to be moving more aggressively on Epstein-linked allegations while the FBI in America seems far quieter than many expected. As campaigners step up their action, could one event change things? Read his analysis here
Whatever your plans this weekend – sunbathing, travelling, grilling or simply hiding from the heat indoors – thank you for reading. If you like what we do each week, do spread the word, and let us know what you think in the comments sections. I love hearing what you think every week, and we take your feedback very seriously.
Until next weekend!
Victoria Harper
Executive Editor
