Has White Heat got the 1960s right?
White Heat, Paula Milne's 1960s-set drama has premiered on BBC2. But does it offer anything more than a stylised, nostalgic image of the decade? Six writers look back to their experiences of the eraFay...
View ArticleLife on the breadline: welcome to the world of Britain's working poor
The Rowleys are a hard-working married couple with two children. They do not earn enough to be in the 'squeezed middle' – the group that has attracted so much media coverage. They only just manage to...
View ArticleWomen don't fantasise? In your dreams, guys | Yvonne Roberts
As EL James's Fifty Shades of Grey sells and sells, it's amazing that men are still astonished that women enjoy bonkbustersEL James, the author of the ebook trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey, deserves...
View ArticleCapital ideas: what the mayor must do
The coalition has indicated new mayors will be able to seek 'hard' powers. But London's mayor already has many 'soft' powers with which to show leadership, convey a strategic vision, strike alliances...
View ArticleBoys and girls come out to play? How unusual | Yvonne Roberts
The National Trust has launched a new 'adventure' initiative, but maybe parents need to get more adventurousOh my, oh my, the helicopter (as in always hovering) parent is surely fainting with delight....
View ArticleVidal, I adored you – but you were hard work | Yvonne Roberts
For all the brilliance of Vidal Sassoon's hairstyles, they were anything but low maintenanceVidal Sassoon, who has died at the age of 84, spent decades at the literal and metaphorical cutting edge of...
View ArticleAnger as lone parents face benefit cuts
Short notice of welfare shake-up hits 124,000 now under increased pressure to find workCharities have spoken of their fury over changes to the welfare system which from tomorrow will force unemployed...
View ArticleCampaign calls for open investigations into deaths of mental health patients
Anger as hospital's internal inquiry into death of leading schizophrenia campaigner Janey Antoniou not made publicCampaigners are fighting for investigations into the deaths of mental health hospital...
View ArticleJaney Antoniou: 'She was a person, not a diagnosis'
In 2010, the mental health campaigner Janey Antoniou died in hospital. Now, inspired by her legacy and the controversy surrounding the the hospital's investigation, her husband is campaigning to ensure...
View ArticleIt should always be father's day | Yvonne Roberts
It's high time we let go of outdated prejudices about parenting and celebrated fatherhood properlyTies, socks, mugs, books, gizmos, shirts, brandy, aftershave, cigars, tobacco, golf balls and, once, an...
View ArticleWhat does it mean to be British – and does it still matter?
It is a summer for celebrating Britishness, but in many ways our identity has never been more complex. In the wake of the Queen's diamond jubilee and before the Olympics, we asked five young people to...
View ArticleFeminism: where exactly is a woman's place these days? | Angela Neustatter...
Cherie Blair has attacked the 'yummy mummies' who choose to stay at home. By contrast, Angela Neustatter, author of a controversial book on women and the home, claims a whole generation put their own...
View ArticleThe Price of Inequality by Joseph Stiglitz – review
The Nobel economist savages the neoliberal ideology that has made society intolerably unfairThe ancient Greeks had a word for it – pleonexia – which means an overreaching desire for more than one's...
View ArticleThe women changing Britain's unions
With unemployment among women at a 20-year high, a new wave of female union leaders and activists has come to the fore, reviving the fight for workers' rights when they are under greater threat than...
View ArticleThe cost of living timebomb that's ticking for us all | Yvonne Roberts
Rising mortgages and food and fuel bills are bringing home the reality of Mr Osborne's failing strategyIt's all so macro, or so it might seem from the headlines. In July, the government borrowed £600m...
View ArticleThere's no single solution to the many kinds of loneliness | Yvonne Roberts
A new poll reveals how many lonely people there are but highlighting the problem doesn't give us the answers'All by myself" uttered by a four-year-old is seen as a triumphant declaration of...
View ArticleCalling us all middle class solves nothing | Yvonne Roberts
Social mobility has stalled which is why politicians are so keen to persuade us we're all middle classIn Georgian times, Jane Austen's family lived an impecunious life, on £210 a year, better off than...
View ArticleFeminism – a spent force or fit for the 21st century?
Feminism is dead, says Netmums. As feminist activists prepare to lobby parliament, we bring together a group of female thinkers to discuss the rights and roles of women – and men – in societyYvonne...
View ArticleGrandparents who become full-time carers plead: 'We can't do it all for love'
Public backs support for relatives who must care for childrenOne night earlier this year Stephen Merchant, 55, was contacted by his local council's children's services department. Twelve hours later,...
View ArticleChildcare: how the cost of bringing up baby is bankrupting middle Britain
Paid work has become an activity that many parents can no longer afford, according to an explosive Resolution Foundation report due out this week: childcare costs are prohibitive, there are too few...
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