Pepys wrestled with some of the same questions confronting us today, but approached daily life in a pandemic rather differently

Whether you’re a jihadi or a heavy metal fan, a fringe subculture offers dark temptations

Israel-Palestine has come to be defined by platitudes. Can fiction succeed where journalism has failed?

Exploring the offerings from Mubi and Curzon home cinema

A new history tells us much about power relations between men and women—from Samuel Richardson to The Game

How a half-man half-crisp in a suit became a symbol of the Irish diaspora—and an important part of the Brexit deliberations

Plus the BBC adapts Eleanor Catton’s The Luminaries

Darran Anderson's memoir shows a child navigating a gruesome conflict

Performances of Shakespeare's works reflect America's tumultuous past

Many Londoners will never see them. But the office cleaners and night wardens, healthcare workers, bus drivers and hotel receptionists that keep the city running in the dark make up over a third of...