The 20 best Australian cookbooks – sorted
A brief history of Australian food through the books that got us into the kitchen, from Women’s Weekly birthday cakes to Rosheen Kaul’s Chinese-ish cooking
Oliver Jeffers grew up in Belfast hating violence. Now he wants children to see how futile it is
The children’s author, who lived through the Troubles, believes that kids should be taught to seek peace from an early age. By Donna Ferguson
John Sutcliffe obituary
Other lives: Interior designer and artist with a passion for colour who made an important contribution to the Farrow & Ball range of paints
Can I start my own country? We ask an expert
Becoming an independent nation isn’t as simple as picking a name and a currency, says referendum expert Matt Qvortrup
A moment that changed me: ‘We crossed the border from Northern Ireland when I was six, and the adults bristled’
A family outing to County Mayo had a fairytale, idyllic quality. But it was underpinned by dramatic tension as we were questioned at a checkpoint heading into the Republic
Three things with Craig Silvey: ‘I wrote songs, many of them unforgivably awful’
In our weekly interview about objects, the hit Australian author tells us about moonlighting as an electric ukulele player – and the childhood stories he wrote
‘Death? I can’t wait for the adventure!’ Most Haunted’s Yvette Fielding on ghosts, sceptics and the afterlife
The woman who made her name screaming on a rollercoaster in Blue Peter has spent the past two decades screaming for the cameras in spooky castles. She talks about friendly phantoms, doubtful comedians and her mission to terrify the next generation
The big idea: do we all experience the world in the same way?
Every human brain is different – it’s time to embrace the diversity of our experiences
Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves review – the descent of man
A thoughtful analysis of alarming evidence of a male malaise avoids the culture wars, arguing for structural and societal change
Mrs Harris Goes to Paris review – Lesley Manville is terrific in Mary Poppins-ish fun
Manville is utterly convincing as a wide-eyed chirpy cleaner who comes into money and sets her heart on a Dior dress in this 1950s-set charmer
Bill Bryson breaks retirement to record Christmas audiobook
Despite assertions that he is ‘enjoying not doing anything’, author pens The Secret History of Christmas to reveal Santa’s true identity
1984: was the year quite as awful as George Orwell predicted?
Big Brother wasn’t watching you, but there was the IRA Brighton bombing, famine in Africa and the miners’ strike to think about
Ready for Absolutely Nothing by Susannah Constantine review – the naked truth
From boarding school through the Sloane years to her turn as Anton Du Beke’s worst-ever Strictly partner, the former TV style guru’s memoir is sometimes borderline deranged, often haphazard, but never dull
What links Aubrey Plaza to Sally Rooney and The White Lotus?
Sashay down the rabbit hole to discover how the Hollywood actor is connected to these cultural touchstones – as well as a medieval sex farce
Michael Rosen and his son Joe look back: ‘I am gooning about, but this photo is tinged with sadness’
The poet and children’s author and his film-maker son on homework, holidays and health scares