He’s television’s most daring documentary-maker, known for asking questions others wouldn’t. But Theroux doesn’t seem to like it when the tables are turned

On the pavement outside the Netflix office, I stand in the rain, confused. Was that interview a little off? Louis Theroux seemed not to like my questions, which were typical interview questions, related to him and his big glossy Netflix debut, Inside the Manosphere. He seemed, I don’t know, prickly? A bit testy? I’m prone to rumination, so perhaps I am overthinking. Because Louis Theroux is a good guy, right? He skewers the bad guys. And yet here I am, baffled. The only thing to do is sit in a cafe and replay the tape.

Theroux is solicitous, lightly ironic in tone. “Louis,” he says. “How do you do?” I am fine. Looking forward to our chat, as you may imagine. Theroux, 55, might be north London dad in appearance – specs, grey T-shirt, black jeans, sneakers – but he’s the grandmaster of both the immersive documentary and interview form. The son of American writer Paul Theroux (a nepo baby before they existed), he has built a 30‑year career in television, much of it at the BBC, making a virtue of being a socially awkward verbivore, hyper‑curious, super-funny.

The lowdown on journey times, season ticket costs and average house prices in places you should know about

• In pictures: homes for sale in new commuter hotspots in England

The commuter belt is being redrawn. During Covid, in the hope that remote working would stick, buyers broke free from conventions and transformed the housing map. A race for space – and to the coast and rural areas – were the stories of the pandemic.

As the call back to the office intensified, this trend unwound and homebuyers began targeting the more traditional commuter zones once again. Unfortunately, the homebuying landscape is very different to five years ago and some of those locations are unaffordable.

A story that started in the British Virgin Islands led to a sensational arrest 4,000 miles away – but was it ever more than a shaggy dog story?

Is it really plausible that Peter Mandelson could have hatched a daring plot to escape to the British Virgin Islands? In the capital of Road Town for the last week or so, the question has been on many minds. And even if the UK’s Commons speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, came away with that possibility in mind from a recent visit, very few of them are convinced.

“It seemed strange to me,” said one bemused local official who had met Hoyle at a function a few days earlier, “that if you were going to flee, it would be to a British territory. From a logical point of view, you’re still more or less in the UK. It’s like fleeing to Southampton.”

Co-op Live, Manchester
Recorded for the streaming giant, this performance wrestles songs from the star’s new album into more interesting shapes

As 2026’s first big pop moment, everything around Harry Styles’ new album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally feels suitably blockbuster. At last weekend’s Brit awards, Styles premiered the record’s lead single, Aperture, alongside a troupe of dancers and an expensive-sounding choir, while Friday’s “one night only” de facto album launch party takes place in a 20,000 capacity arena.

This is “intimate” for Styles, who switches to stadiums this summer – and the show is being recorded for posterity by Netflix. The streaming Goliath’s presence means all phones are to be placed in a recyclable bag that prevents the use of recording equipment; it’s a nice way to stay inside the moment, sure, but chiefly a fail-safe against spoiling the forthcoming TV special.

Harry, 24, an ecologist, meets Freya, 24, a theatre-maker and cook

What were you hoping for?
Some tasty food, and a nice evening with good company to block out the Sunday scaries.

Didn’t you know? True British patriots are the ones who want to join an obviously disastrous war on behalf of Israel and Donald Trump

Have you heard enough pant-wetting about Britain’s “reputation” this week? Honestly, I don’t think any of us can bear the social embarrassment of not getting immediately involved in an obviously disastrous war in the Middle East. The awks of it. How will good old Britannia hold her head up high if she isn’t an instant ride-or-die for a US administration described by a former senior Nato commander as “gung-ho nutters” with “no clear understanding of how this thing is going to end”? You should be simply unable to stand it. You should have Middle East-catastrophe Fomo.

Opposition party leaders and politicians seem genuinely excruciated by the fact that Earth’s pettiest man, Donald Trump, sniffed earlier this week of Keir Starmer: “This is not Winston Churchill we’re dealing with.” Boo-hoo for you, pal. We’re having to deal with the Cheeto FDR, so everyone’s making sacrifices.

IDF says Revolutionary Guard training site in Tehran among targets of new strikes; Trump says he would only accept Tehran’s ‘unconditional surrender’ as war expands

• Tell us: how have you been affected by the latest events in the Middle East?

The Saudi defence minister, Prince Khalid bin Salman, urged Iran on Saturday to “avoid miscalculation” after missile and drone launches at the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry said earlier in the day it had blocked repeated missile launches at an airbase housing US military personnel and drone attacks at a major oilfield.

We stressed that such actions undermine regional security and stability and expressed hope that the Iranian side will exercise wisdom and avoid miscalculation.

One week on from the first strikes, we look at why the war started, what the cost has been and what may come next

The US-Israeli war on Iran, now into its seventh day, has set the Middle East alight, threatening millions of people’s lives and livelihoods as the violence spreads in widening arc stretching from central Asia to the edge of Europe.

The joint operation, named “Epic Fury” by the US and “Roaring Lion” by Israel, has been sold as a high-impact show of intimidating power, but its impact so far beyond the chaos and bloodshed is unclear. What is certain is that predictions that this type of war would destabilise the region have indeed rapidly materialised.

The normally vibrant southern suburbs are a ghost town, their throngs of people replaced by rubble and fires

• Middle East crisis – live updates

The ding of half a million phones, a pause and a collective gasp: in an instant, more than 500,000 people had been made homeless.

Shooting in the air, panicked phone calls and honking filled the streets of Beirut as people began to flee. Thousands abandoned their cars and began the slow march to the sea, desperate to escape the Israeli bombs which they knew would soon fall on their homes, whether they were in them or not.

People tell of scenes of panic during airstrikes on Iran’s capital, with several saying they feared they would die

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Sleeplessness, fear and exhaustion gripped residents of Tehran as successive waves of strikes struck the Iranian capital, judging from messages sent by people in the city after the latest overnight onslaught, which several described as the worst bombardment in six days of war.

With Iran imposing a near-total internet blackout, information emerging from inside the country is fragmentary and difficult to verify. But in a series of accounts sent through proxy connections, and calls with friends abroad, Tehranis described a night of intense explosions.