Writer Mark Dapin’s childhood was disrupted at the age of 10, when his mum fell in love with the lodger. He was then raised in an army town called Aldershot in the UK, which began his fascination with stories of crime and warfare

The army town, the lodger, and a succulent Chinese meal

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When psychologist Ariane Beeston started having delusions after the birth of her son, and hallucinating that he was a dragon, she had to learn how to become the patient

The secret psychosis of a first-time mother

Jake Adelstein's dogged reporting on Japan's organised crime earned him a nemesis in Tadamasa Goto, one of the most powerful Yakuza bosses in the country. When Jake's life was on the line, he found protection in surprising places

Japanese gangsters: the secrets of the Yakuza

When Bonnie Garmus tried to sell her first novel, it was rejected 98 times. Then at 66, she wrote a novel called Lessons in Chemistry, which sold four million copies around the world

Bonnie Garmus on becoming a global phenomenon in her 60s

Archaeologist David Wengrow has discovered an entirely new way to think about the history of humanity, from the origins of farming, cities, democracy and slavery to civilisation itself

David Wengrow: everything we know about the human story is wrong

Matt Hall made his first solo flight at 15 years old and has been addicted to life in the air ever since. He became a top gun fighter pilot and after serving for more than 20 years, he still hasn't come down to earth (R)

The army town, the lodger, and a succulent Chinese meal

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