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.


City's slump

L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1

It Was Just an Accident

Director: Jafar Panahi

Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr

Rating: 4/5

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Avatar: Fire and Ash

Director: James Cameron

Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana

Rating: 4.5/5

Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

Brief scoreline:

Crystal Palace 2

Milivojevic 76' (pen), Van Aanholt 88'

Huddersfield Town 0

The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition and Experience

by David Gilmour

Allen Lane

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Pad Man

Dir: R Balki

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte

Three-and-a-half stars

Copa del Rey

Semi-final, first leg

Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')

Second leg, February 27

Winners

Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)

Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski

Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)

Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)

Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea

Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona

Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)

Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)

Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)

Best National Team of the Year: Italy 

Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello

Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)

Player Career Award: Ronaldinho

The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo flat-six

Power: 480hp at 6,500rpm

Torque: 570Nm from 2,300-5,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto

Fuel consumption: 10.4L/100km

Price: from Dh547,600

On sale: now 

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

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What is a robo-adviser?

Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.

These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.

Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.

Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home. 

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