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Conor meets Daniel Mulhall, now retired but once Ireland’s most senior representative abroad. He was ambassador to the UK during Brexit, the US during Trump’s first term and Germany in the wake of the financial crisis. He has packed a lot of history into his career, and he gives his ideas on what Ireland should be doing right now.

Most of us have Male or Female registered on our birth certificates - but what does this certification mean, in terms of its effect on our lives? There are many other things about us that have at least as much significance as our gender - our sexuality, our ethnicity - but only gender has legal status. This week we're talking about the pros and cons of uncoupling gender from the law.

CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta's new book examines the world of pain — why we feel it, and how we can treat it. He says distraction and meditation can be useful tools for managing pain. He spoke with Terry Gross about how the brain gets pain signals wrong, alternatives to painkillers, and how a family of circus performers inspired a new drug. Gupta's book is It Doesn't Have to Hurt.

It’s not just school kids who could use a back-to-school reset. Your body could use one too. This episode of Life Kit, medical professionals share advice to help you care for your ears, eyes, teeth, feet and skin. We hope these tips leave you feeling healthy and strong as the fall season begins.

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Günther Anders predicted the exact technological crises we’re facing today… but 70 years ago. The uncanny relevance of Anders’ thoughts about technology — from the atomic bomb to artificial intelligence — and how it makes us feel what he called “Promethean Shame."

Gideon talks to Albanian academic Lea Ypi about her book Indignity. In the book, she describes how living first under the Ottoman empire, then as part of fascist Italy and later in a post-war communist state affected the lives of her grandparents. They discuss possible parallels between the first half of the 20th century and the times we are living in today and ask what lessons can be drawn from this history to avoid making the same mistakes. Clip: AQSHF

Free links to read more on this topic:

Kant and the case for peace

Albania’s ‘old sheriff’ on course to win fourth term as prime minister

Why the EU’s migration dilemma is pushing the bloc further right

Subscribe to The Rachman Review wherever you get your podcasts - please listen, rate and subscribe.

Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.

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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Stories about brotherhood are a mainstay of classical writing, from brothers Romulus and Remus to brothers-in-arms Achilles and Patroclus.

Ferdia Lennon's award-winning debut tells the story of two unemployed theatre-loving best friends in ancient Sicily who tempt Athenian prisoners of war with food and drink in exchange for recitations of their favourite Greek poetry. From there to a full production of a Greek tragedy is only a small step in this this exhilarating story of friendship, art and war that brings the ancient world vividly alive.

Find out more about the best and worst that humans are capable of with Ferdia Lennon, in conversation with Australian playwright Tom Wright.

This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival.

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In this special episode of the Shakespeare and Company Interview Podcast, we celebrate the paperback release of The Shakespeare and Company Book of Interviews (Canongate), a compelling collection of literary conversations recorded live at our bookshop in Paris. Capturing a decade of rich, revealing discussions, the episode revisits unforgettable moments with some of the world’s most acclaimed writers, exploring the craft of writing, the power of stories, and the electric atmosphere of bookshops. Expect insights into the creative process, unexpected moments of vulnerability, and reflections on how literature intersects with politics, identity, and the human condition. Featuring live clips and commentary, this episode is both a celebration and an invitation—to listen, to read, and to be part of the ongoing conversation.

Buy The Shakespeare and Company Book of Interviews: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/the-shakespeare-and-company-book-of-interviews-2

Featuring…

Percival Everett

Olivia Laing

Marlon James

George Saunders

Karl Ove Knausgaard

Colson Whitehead

Hari Kunzru

Leïla Slimani

Jesmyn Ward

Reni Eddo-Lodge

Carlo Rovelli

Jenny Zhang

Annie Ernaux

Rachel Cusk

Meena Kandasamy

Madeline Miller

Miriam Toews

Katie Kitamura

Claire-Louise Bennett

Geoff Dyer

Adam Biles is Literary Director at Shakespeare and Company.

Listen to Alex Freiman’s latest EP, In The Beginning: https://open.spotify.com/album/5iZYPMCUnG7xiCtsFCBlVa?si=h5x3FK1URq6SwH9Kb_SO3w

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Every so often, I’ll re-publish one of my favorite How I Write episodes. This classic episode is with Steven Pressfield, the author of more than 25 books who speaks as beautifully about the creative process as he writes. He waded through 27 years of Resistance so you don’t have to. Come learn his best practices for doing your best work.

TIMESTAMPS:

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When David Graeber died in 2020, at the age of 59, he left not only a substantial body of work on economic and social anthropology, and high-profile books including Debt: The First 5000 Years and Bullshit Jobs, but also a legacy as an influential political activist and leading figure in the Occupy movement, credited with contributing the slogan ‘We are the 99 per cent’. Following the publication of a new collection of Graeber’s essays, Richard Seymour joins Tom to survey his thought, ranging from the theories of power Graeber developed from his early field research in Madagascar to the daring arguments of his posthumous work, Dawn of Everything (co-written with David Wengrow) challenging the orthodox view of how egalitarian and hierarchical societies developed over the past thirty thousand years.

 Richard Seymour is a writer and theorist whose books include Disaster Nationalism and The Twittering Machine.

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