Author

Sara Sheridan’s new book Where are the Women? reimagines Scotland as a country where many monuments, streets and natural wonders are named after women, writes Laura Waddell.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar turns 50 years old this week, and I can think of no better reason to celebrate with the stickiest, spongiest, most sprinkle-laden cake.

The much-maligned talking toilets on Virgin Trains do, it has to be said, express the underlying psyche, just as their scent drifts through carriages like a ghost for whom malfunctioning pneumatic doors are no match.

The bravery of Lauren Mayberry in calling out abuse of women – when she and her band Chvrches criticised a musical collaborator for working with Chris Brown, who pled guilty to one count of felony assault after attacking his then girlfriend Rihanna in 2009 – is not ‘self-righteous’ and should be applauded, writes Laura Waddell.

Online trolls – both Unionist and pro-independence – remain an embarrassment, but there are hopeful signs of a greater maturity in the constitutional debate, writes Laura Waddell.

Sinead Gleeson’s newly published book Constellations makes her the latest in a raft of brilliant Irish essayists, each distinct, using the medium artfully to tell stories about their lives and the world we live in

The Channel 4 sitcom Derry Girls deals with serious subjects – that could help some UK mainland politicians get a better understanding of Northern Ireland – but is also genuinely hilarious, writes Laura Waddell.

In an interview with the Financial Times last weekend, Ian Buruma gave his account of what happened when he was let go as editor at the New York Review of Books after only 16 months.

He attributes his sacking to the “indignation” of the “Twittersphere” following his decision to publish a personal essay by Jian Ghomeshi, a broadcaster accused of sexual assault or violence by upwards of 20 women, writes Laura Waddell.

Searching ‘Fleabag’ on Twitter after watching an episode of the show reveals tweets coming in every few seconds. Viewers are keen to discuss the hit series, written by and starring Phoebe Waller-Bridge, whose flapper-haired, cafe-owning, unlucky-in-love character breaks the fourth wall to talk directly to the audience, writes Laura Waddell.

The Mueller report into alleged collusion between Russia and Donald Trump – as described by the US Attorney General – was more complicated than it first appeared, writes Laura Waddell.

Children arriving at US-Mexico border can find angry, armed protesters who even seek to deny them water, writes Laura Waddell.

Limmy’s comedy comes from a slightly off-kilter angle and hopes to make a few people doubled over with laughter rather than a mass audience chuckle, writes Laura Waddell.

In contrast to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, many senior politicians are in crisis-management mode over Brexit, while refusing to look head-on at the actual crisis itself, writes Laura Waddell.

Does our society have enough space for thoughtfulness and intellectual curiosity, wonders Laura Waddell.

The rarest of its kind, there is only one Blockbuster video store left on earth. After a contender for that title shut up shop in Australia recently, the last standing is in Oregon, USA.