Trump threatens war and punitive tariffs to recapture Iranian resources – just as in 1953, when the CIA overthrew Mossadegh and US corporations immediately seized 40% of the oil, says SEVIM DAGDELEN
Many of these weekly ramblings focus on something in grave danger of extinction. It might be a bird, or a tiny insect or a huge and dangerous big cat but today I’m looking at the threat of extinction to something rather different. Today I’m looking at the traditional circus.
I’ve always been in two minds about circuses. As a small child in north-west London huge touring circuses like Billy Smart’s or Chipperfield’s would set up their huge colourful marquees on Wormwood Scrubs – in the shadows of the famous prison – and off would go the family Frost to see the clowns, the tightrope walkers, trapeze artists and the horses, elephants, lions and tigers.
At Christmas those same big circuses would set up in huge indoor arenas like Olympia, Earls Court, Alexandra Palace. And I’m sure other cities and towns all enjoyed their own local touring shows.
One of the major criticisms of China’s breakneck development in recent decades has been the impact on nature — returning after 15 years away, BEN CHACKO assessed whether the government’s recent turn to environmentalism has yielded results
HENRY BELL notes the curious confluence of belief, rebuilding and cheap materials that gave rise to an extraordinary number of modernist churches in post-war Scotland



