FT Big Read

Borzou Daragahi reports from an increasingly polarised Middle East where in Cairo, Ayman Ramzy's confession on a TV chat show that he did not believe in God shattered his life as a teacher, bringing him vilification in the streets and turning him into a prisoner in his own home

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Vincent Boland reports from Dublin as Ireland prepares for a referendum on marriage equality. Opinion polls suggest the country is poised to become the first in the world to adopt same-sex marriage through a popular vote. The ballot itself is testament to a more liberal spirit taking hold in a country long dominated by the Catholic Church

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Martin Arnold and Patrick Jenkins examine whether HSBC's new strategy can revitalise Europe's biggest bank, a wounded giant under attack from regulators, politicians and investors and overstretched by trying to keep up with rivals

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Lionel Barber describes how Li Keqiang, China's second most powerful man, told the FT that his country had no desire to create a new world order

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Cynthia O'Murchu explains how the arrest of Yves Bouvier casts a harsh light on how art is bought, stored and sold, raising questions over whether the market is vulnerable to manipulation

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James Crabtree looks at the reality behind the vow of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi to double production at Coal India in five years amid a looming energy crisis and an industry marred by inefficiency and corruption and facing rising concern over pollution.

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Sarah Gordon and Arash Massoudi reveal the clash of cultures - and personalities - that threatened the 42bn euro cement merger between Holcim and Lafarge

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Big US food groups have missed a major shift in the nation's tastes, says Gary Silverman. Brands as famous as Campbell's Soup are now languishing on the back shelves of supermarkets while a more health-conscious millenial generation seeks fresher, more natural foods.

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David Cameron, prime minister of a Britain that looks to outsiders increasingly like a 'Disunited Kingdom', tells Lionel Barber and George Parker that he deserves five more years to finish the job of confirming the country's status in the world

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Erika Solomon looks at the mayhem in Syria,where opposition fighters who took up arms four years ago, are now struggling to navigate the war that seems to be addressing every agenda except the one that they care about - ending the Assad regime.

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