Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days. With Mariana Vieira, Rory Reid and Leaf Arbuthnot.
In this week’s episode, we discuss:
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Lithium rush
Argentina is preparing for what it hopes will be a boom in lithium production. Selling licences to mine the mineral, which is a critical ingredient of the batteries that power electric cars and other consumer goods, is a rare bright spot for a country that has endured years of economic and political turmoil. Many in the West are hoping that, along with its South American neighbours, it will offer a counterbalance to China, so far the principal lithium exporter.
First-class error
This week All Nippon Airways announced that it was cancelling scores of first-class tickets it mistakenly sold for a twentieth of the intended price. In some cases, travellers were snapping up $10,000 fares for just $300. The story drew attention to two underlying issues: the rights (or lack of rights) afforded to airline passengers when they buy a ticket – and the value of premium tickets to airlines, many of which could not survive without them.
Feline feelings
The shortlist for the National Cat Awards, announced this week, included Zebby, 2, from Derbyshire, who helps his deaf owner by alerting her to phone calls and knocks at the door. That story followed research published in New Scientist suggested that cats are more attuned to humans than was previously thought. So have we been wrong all along about man’s best friend?
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September 14 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include RFK Jr on the hook, the destruction of discourse, and more
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Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-warTalking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
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A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful northThe Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
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The Week Unwrapped: Why is horse-racing going on strike?Podcast Plus, will the South Korean women who worked in state-run brothels set up for US soldiers succeed? And what’s behind a surge in leg-lengthening surgery?
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The Week Unwrapped: What does Bake Off say about Channel 4?Podcast Plus, why are Scottish drug deaths so stubbornly high? And are women in their 30s too anxious about their eggs?
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The Week Unwrapped: Could robotic dogs help clear landmines?Podcast Plus, what can we learn from a new approach to urban renewal? And how much power rests with political spouses?
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The Week Unwrapped: Is it time for a new world map?Podcast Plus, why is the pope getting flatmates? And why are seagull 'muggings' on the rise?
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The Week Unwrapped: Has Donald Trump secured his Nobel Peace Prize?Podcast Plus, what does the use of North Korean and Indian labour tell us about the Russian war economy? And why have we all gone crazy for pickles?
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The Week Unwrapped: Why are we watching the ocean floor?Podcast Plus, what can we learn from a football club on the brink? And which jobs will fall to AI first?
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The Week Unwrapped: Could AI replace catwalk models?Podcast Plus, should countries sue each other for climate damage? And what does Grand Theft Auto 6 tell us about the video game industry?
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The Week Unwrapped: Are electric bikes 'invading' London?Podcast Plus, why is Volodymyr Zelenskyy opposing anti-corruption laws? And how will US withdrawal affect Unesco?
