- 49 minutes 31 seconds‘It makes your heart sing’: can a pioneering project show that rewilding really works?Intensive farming has all but destroyed England’s ancient woodlands and freshwater wetlands. On a farm in Lincolnshire a radical aristocrat hopes to show there’s money in protecting nature By Patrick Barkham. Read by Dermot Daly. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod31 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 34 minutes 20 secondsFrom the archive: ‘A dizzying maze’: how the UK immigration system is geared to rejectWe 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 2019: Navigating the roadblocks into Britain gets ever more difficult and expensive, as government hostility leaks into every transaction. By Maya Goodfellow. Read by Lucy Scott. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod29 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 37 minutes 50 seconds‘It is comforting to be haunted’: how attitudes to abortion have changed through the agesThe abortion debate – the language of life, choice and rights – severs women, and their pain, from history. I don’t want to forget my abortion and I don’t want to forget theirs By Erin Maglaque. Read by Lanna Joffrey. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod27 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 29 minutes 14 secondsWhat training my chaotic dog taught me about power, control – and human beingsOur lovable yet unruly boxer Dusty forced me to wonder: if a dog has no morals, how do you teach it to be ‘good’? By William Davies. Read by John Robins. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod24 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 52 minutes 14 secondsPinker’s progress: the celebrity scientist at the centre of the culture warsWe 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 2021: How the Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker became one of the world’s most contentious thinkers By Alex Blasdel. Read by Christopher Ragland • The summer issue of the Long Read magazine is out now. Click here to order. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod22 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 41 minutes 13 secondsSaint Levant: the pop star from Gaza caught between passionate fandom and bitter disapprovalHis detractors say he shouldn’t be making pop music in times of war and destruction. His millions of fans say he has given them permission to celebrate their culture and their cause Written and read by Nesrine Malik. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod20 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 52 minutes 34 seconds‘There’s this deep mystery of what, actually, is this thing?’: the philosopher inside Google DeepMind AISince 2017, Iason Gabriel has worked at the tech giant, trying to anticipate – and think through – the impact of AI. But as commercial and geopolitical pressures escalate, can ethicists make any difference? By Robert P Baird. Read by Simon Darwen. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod17 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 43 minutes 7 secondsFrom the archive: Battle of the botanic garden: the horticulture war roiling the Isle of WightWe 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: When a US businessman took over a beloved garden a decade ago, he decided on a radical new approach, all in the name of sustainability. But angry critics claim it’s just plain neglect By Mark O’Connell. Read by Simon Vance. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod15 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 38 minutes 11 seconds‘Navigating the unknown together’: me and my idiot AI boyfriendI believe that chatbots have no place in a decent society, and am repelled by the topic of AI in general. But could I be seduced? By Lauren Oyler. Read by Kate Handford. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod13 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 37 minutes 59 seconds‘He liked that people were scared of him’: my year unpicking fantasy and reality with a veteran of Italy’s football ultrasI’ve met many hardcore, violent fans, but the hostage-negotiating, cocaine-smuggling, Marxist-Leninist Alessandro Casolari still stood out By Tobias Jones. Read by Bert Seymour. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod10 July 2026, 4:00 am
- 33 minutes 21 secondsFrom the archive: Leave no trace: how a teenage hacker lost himself onlineWe 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 2021: Edwin Robbe had a troubled life, but found excitement and purpose by joining an audacious community of hackers. Then the real world caught up with his online activities By Huib Modderkolk. Read by Aaron Vodovoz. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod8 July 2026, 4:00 am
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