Behind the Times

Ghosts of Java

Indonesia’s bloody past has produced a country populated with ghosts. Now, they are sharing their stories on YouTube.

Decline and Fall

Vladimir Putin has decried the ‘decadent West’ as destined to fail as a result of its degeneracy. Fears of decadence are not new.

Chaucer on Trial

Geoffrey Chaucer may have been accused of rape 600 years ago. Do newly discovered documents exonerate him?

Sign of the Times

Speech, rather than hearing, has been at the heart of the long history of deaf exclusion.

Demanding Surrender

The exchange of wanted persons between the UK and the US is a contentious issue and has been for more than 200 years. 

Sri Lanka’s Deep Wounds

Sri Lanka’s historic ethnic divisions were forged during British colonisation and a bloody civil war. Could the current crisis help unify a divided country? 

The 51st State?

Puerto Rico’s future might be statehood, independence or more of the status quo, but change is unlikely to be won through voting alone. 

Hong Kong and the Huguenots

The city’s ‘one country, two systems’ policy was boldly pragmatic, but it was not the first time such an idea has been tried. 

Goodbye to the Vikings

The term ‘Viking’ as it is commonly used is misleading, warping our perception of the Middle Ages. It should be retired.

Gifts for the Nation

Class interest and ostentatious generosity are the hallmarks of elite charity. So, too, is a fixation with posterity.