The Audio Long Read
As a teenager, John was jailed for assaulting someone and stealing their bike. That was 17 years ago – will he ever be released?
John Wright, now 34, has spent 17 years in prison for stealing a bike and assaulting someone as a teenager, serving an Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentence that was supposed to last less than two years. His indefinite detention has led to severe mental health deterioration, including schizophrenia, and he remains incarcerated despite completing his minimum sentence over a decade ago.
From the archive: ‘The Silicon Valley of turf’: how the UK’s pursuit of the perfect pitch changed football
The article explores how the UK became the global leader in sports turf management, with British groundsmen and pitch experts being recruited by top European clubs to create perfect football pitches. This transformation revolutionized how football is played, with improved pitch quality enabling faster, more technical gameplay.
From the archive: The secret deportations: how Britain betrayed the Chinese men who served the country in the war
The Guardian investigated Britain's secret deportation of hundreds of Chinese merchant seamen in 1945-46, who had served the war effort but were forcibly repatriated without notice to their British wives and children. The story remained hidden for decades until descendants began uncovering the truth through archival research.