A tale of two trap houses: being cuckooed ruined my friend’s life – but did it then help save him?

I felt a duty to write about the Tang dynasty and its incredible social and cultural sophistication – but also to connect my Chinese past with my child By Xiaolu Guo. Read by Elizabeth Chan. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors This week, from 2023: he first became prime minister in 1996 and has been pushing the country further right ever since. Most agree his political days are numbered – but the approach he established will prove very difficult to shift By Joshua Leifer. Read by Andrew McGregor. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

Drug gangs have moved off Britain’s streets and into vulnerable people’s homes. Addicts like my friend are easy targets, but the reality can be more complicated than it seems By Max Daly. Read by Simon Darwen. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

For more than three decades, Michael Gove has been a leading figure in British Conservatism. As a journalist, government minister and now editor of the Tory bible the Spectator, he has helped shape the UK right even as it has moved further rightwards. In the latest episode of Radical Thinking, Gove joins Aditya Chakrabortty to discuss the future of the right, his record on Brexit and austerity and the Spectator’s position on Islam Radical Thinking will be published every Saturday in the Politics Weekly feed You can also watch Radical Thinking on the Politics Weekly YouTube channel. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

Every decade, the BBC’s continued existence must be secured through an elaborate multi-year negotiation with the government. But what does charter renewal actually involve – and will it secure the BBC’s long-term future? By Barbara Speed. Read by Carlyss Peer. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors This week, from 2023: Even those at the top admit the NHS can’t do what is being asked of it today. But it is far from unsalvageable – we just need serious politicians who will commit to funding it By Gavin Francis. Read by Greg Miller Burns. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

Instagrammers have upended the British restaurant scene and amassed followings in the millions. But has their moment already passed? By Stephen Buranyi. Read by Josh Berry. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

Are we really living through ‘end times fascism’? Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor think so. In a new series from the Guardian, the pair speak to Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty in an extended interview. From Trump 2.0 and the rise of the tech billionaire to Gaza and the climate emergency, Klein and Taylor argue we are not just lurching from crisis to crisis but are in a new and dangerous moment in history. But they haven’t given up hope of a fightback Radical Thinking will be published every Saturday in the Politics Weekly feed You can also watch Radical Thinking on the Politics Weekly YouTube channel. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

The new prime minister has declared he wants to end 40 years of neoliberalism. But is he really prepared to be that radical? By Hettie O’Brien. Read by Philip Whitchurch. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors This week, from 2022: All my life, my exiled parents had told me about the tragedy of Palestine. Then, when I was in my early 20s, my family moved back – and I saw it with my own eyes By Fida Jiryis. Read by Sarah Agha. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod