Hello and welcome to Weekender – the newsletter that guides you through all the highlights of our Weekend edition.

Out of control
Out of control

Delusion, paranoia, psychosis: The dangers of outsourcing your life to chatbots.

Bride or groom? Neither
Bride or groom? Neither

The rise of ticketed Indian weddings - and the tourists paying to be part of them.

Can literature make sense of the devastation wrought on Gaza and its people?

How the E11 motorway drove Sheikh Zayed's vision for the UAE.

Culture

'Cat on the Road to Findout'
'Cat on the Road to Findout'

From Cat Stevens to Lionel Richie, the unmissable musical memoirs of 2025.

Arabic word of the week: Why 'ghurba', or exile, has a special meaning for migrants.

Where do childless adults fit in a world built around families?

A heated debate
A heated debate

UAE Property: ‘Can I insist my landlord repairs my air conditioning now or do I have to wait until summer?’

Future Beat newsletter: The stories shaping tomorrow's world.

The 'Venice of the East'
The 'Venice of the East'

Breathing life into Basra’s past: Revival of Old City is a beacon of hope after decades of war and repression.

Find out how well you've kept up with the news of the last seven days in our Quiz of the Week.

Plus much, much more in our latest Weekend edition.

And in case you missed it last week: Your country needs you (again) - Europe's reluctant generation braced for the call-up.

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