UK Has a little girl from Northamptonshire just ended local government cuts? After a child and her family challenged their council, the High Court has ruled its decision to close 21 of the county’s 36 libraries unlawful. By Anoosh Chakelian
Elections Why you should probably ignore that interesting new poll suggesting a Tory lead No, seriously. By Stephen Bush
Film The problem with Disney casting a straight actor to play its first gay character Straight actors playing gay characters is fine – but there are still plenty of reasons for the LBGT+ community to be disappointed. By Louis Staples
Economy What the Turkish lira crisis means for President Erdogan’s hold on power Erdoğan built his supporter base by promising economic stability. Can he withstand a crisis? By Yörük Bahçeli
Middle East How the Islamic State caliphate was lost IS has lost control of most of the territory it once held. But it is not defeated and is morphing into an international movement, inspiring more attacks. By Shiraz Maher
UK Why a fight with Benjamin Netanyahu is good news for Jeremy Corbyn With the row over the wreath into its fourth day, Corbyn had been fighting a clumsy rearguard action. A fight with Bibi shifts things onto safer territory. By Patrick Maguire
Middle East How the Islamic State caliphate was lost IS has lost control of most of the territory it once held. But it is not defeated and is morphing into an international movement, inspiring more attacks. By Shiraz Maher
Asia The Nepalese girls who lost their childhoods In 2002, Nepal outlawed indentured labour for children. Now, girls taken from their families are trying to make up for missing out on education. By Helen Lewis
Why there’s no such thing as a civilisation The West is obsessed with the idea that it is under threat, but that fear springs from a misunderstanding of how modern human societies work. By Yuval Harari
Books Master of his universe: the warnings in JRR Tolkien’s novels Dismissed as reactionary fantasy and even labelled fascist, Tolkien’s novels told of the corrupting influence of power. He deserves to be taken seriously, now more than ever. By Rowan Williams
Economy The cost of Britain’s “bargain basement” model The UK’s vast current account deficit is a symptom of its broken economic system. By Grace Blakeley
The Staggers Jeremy Corbyn’s Black September remarks will enrage his critics – but relieve his allies Corbyn has admitted attending a memorial service for those killed by the Mossad, including a terrorist behind the 1972 Munich Massacre. By Stephen Bush
The Staggers Did Brexit kill Mark Fisher’s theory of capitalist realism? After the financial crash, Fisher wondered why it was so hard to come up with an alternative to capitalism. By Nicholas Barrett
Sponsored by Royal Bank of Scotland Scotland Standing up for Scotland’s microbusinesses Microbusinesses form the fabric of Scotland’s business landscape. By Marcelino Castrillo
UK Brexit is dividing the Tories over Europe – and everything else The party’s row over Boris Johnson’s comments on the burqa highlights its internal psychodrama. By Stephen Bush
UK The Tories’ rough sleeping strategy is too little, too late Austerity has led rough sleeping to increase by 169 per cent since 2010. The £50m announced by ministers will make little difference. By George Eaton
UK Will the trade unions defeat Jeremy Corbyn on anti-Semitism? A third union – Usdaw – has called on the Labour leader to adopt the IHRA definition and its examples in full. By Patrick Maguire
Books Christopher Andrew’s history of spying shows how undercover ops have changed history Spying has been called the second-oldest profession – after prostitution. By Adam Sisman
Q&A Alan Garner Q&A: “As we ran, Alan Turing asked me whether AI was possible” The author talks Alcibiadesk, his portraits, and lifelong advice from his grandad. By New Statesman
Music & Theatre The Globe’s Othello and the National’s Home, I’m Darling suffer opposing problems The former is oddly depoliticised, while the latter wants to make political points, but never quite lands them. By Helen Lewis
Travels in Trumpland with Ed Balls is enjoyable, if undeniably cheesy, stunt journalism The BBC Two series doesn’t tell us anything new about the motives of Trump voters, but it does remind us that people – even Trump’s people – are not all the same. By Rachel Cooke
UK Why a select group of men think Yorkshire is the sexiest accent in the world A secret history of sex and the voice. By Kate Mossman
TV & Radio The economic conservatism of Queer Eye Today’s reboot may outshine the original, but its failure to address economic injustice makes the otherwise progressive show more backward than its predecessor. By Sophie McBain
Media The BBC isn’t wedded to balance – it’s dedicated to serving its audience Speaking to, and for, the whole of the UK – means hearing from a wide range of voices, and airing conflicting opinions. By Gavin Allen
Media How the BBC’s balance issue is alienating its supporters – just when it needs them most The pursuit of balance breaks down when applied to people who have no interest in telling the truth, and who in fact set out to deliberately mislead. By Patrick Howse
UK Don’t waste valuable water on your lawn – you’ll only regret it when your vegetables bolt We should not be surprised when plants bolt or run to flower and seed – but if they’re vegetables, it is hard to be sympathetic. By Stefan Buczacki
Media Shout it from the rooftops: Alex Jones’s YouTube ban is NOT a First Amendment issue The alt-right conspiracy theorist doesn’t want free speech – he wants consequence-free speech. By Nicky Woolf
Space What if the same force that created civilisation is the thing most likely to destroy it? Have a lovely weekend, everybody. By Jonn Elledge
Health Does the NHS have a summer crisis? Spikes in demand are now an all-year event. By Saffron Cordery
Asia The Nepalese girls who lost their childhoods In 2002, Nepal outlawed indentured labour for children. Now, girls taken from their families are trying to make up for missing out on education. By Helen Lewis
Middle East Trump’s Iran sanctions are a dangerous gamble As US sanctions kick in against the Islamic Republic, Iranians suffer and the world becomes a more perilous place. By Sophie McBain
Africa South Africa is the only country with a chance of stopping the bloodshed in Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa wants the international community to forget the past, but the escalating violence makes it impossible. By Martin Plaut
North America How Michael Cohen’s intervention could mark the beginning of the end for Donald Trump The president has managed to retain some personal distance from the allegations that his campaign colluded with the Russians. No longer. By Sophie McBain
Media The Daily Mail welcomes Syrian refugees – but only if they’re Christian “All the arrivals were Muslims.” By Media Mole
Observations Churches have become havens from Trump’s migrant crackdown Debora Barrios-Vasquez has not been able to leave the church since 14 May, when she sought sanctuary there to avoid being deported. By Sophie McBain
