Guardian Weekly

The Guardian Weekly magazine is a round-up of the world news, opinion and long reads that have shaped the week. Inside, the past seven days' most memorable stories are reframed with striking photography and insightful companion pieces, all handpicked from The Guardian and The Observer.

Indonesia

What to expect from 2022; Brexit, a year on; Desmond Tutu’s legacy

Global report • Headlines from the last seven days

DEATHS

SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT

United Kingdom

Rock on

HOW WAS IT FOR YOU? UNITED KINGDOM • Twelve months after leaving the EU, Britain’s promised rewards should surely be evident by now. What have been the results of ‘taking back control’?

UK and the EU likely to remain best of enemies

Omicron and decline in trade threaten growth

Big hits, deep anger – and a sense of betrayal

A rise in political pressures over the protocol

‘Not if … but when’ Sinn Féin on the path to power • The republican party is riding high in the polls and could complete a seismic shift in Irish politics in three years

Crunch time A bleak New Year – or the beginning of the end?

A steadfast voice for justice amid tumult in South Africa

2022 The year ahead

Continental shifts • On the brink of a new year, the world faces a daunting array of challenges: the resurgent Covid-19 pandemic, the climate emergency, the struggle between democracy and authoritarianism, humanitarian crises, mass migration, and trans-national terrorism. There is the risk of new inter-state conflicts, exacerbated by the breakdown of the rules-based international order, and the spread of lethal autonomous weapons. All in all, for most people on Earth – and a handful in space – 2022 will be another year of living dangerously

A mass move to the Orkneys and the return of horse travel? • We asked the Guardian’s 1 million supporters for their new year’s predictions. As the small selection of responses here shows, the picture painted was very much an alternative story of a year foretold…

Nature’s ‘super year’ is on hold… again • Covid is likely to postpone vital talks in Kunming for a fourth time but the world needs a Paris-style agreement for nature.

What’s next for Uber, Twitter and NFTs? • The year ahead for podcasts, games and the social media giants – and will there be yet another hyped return for virtual reality?

The moon is once again within touching distance • Elon Musk claims his Starship rocket will carry passengers to Mars within five years, reports Richard Luscombe

The cultural year in review 2021

Eyewitness The 2021 Guardian agency photographers of the year • Working with press agencies around the globe, photojournalists file powerful visual records of history unfolding in all weathers and often at risk to their personal safety. It is not possible to include all the talented photographers who have contributed to our journalism in the past year, but here are a few

In memoriam The late greats of 2021

Mary Wilson • The founder of the Temptations on his fiercely determined Motown colleague who lit up the stage as a member of the Supremes

Nawal El Saadawi • Feminist author who railed against the patriarchy and FGM, and was a challenger to Egyptian governments

Una Stubbs • The British actor remembers a doyenne of British TV and fellow Sherlock cast member

Michael K Williams • The actor, who played Snoop alongside Williams’s Omar in The Wire, on her ‘big brother, little sister’ chemistry with the man who transformed her life after spotting her in a Baltimore nightclub

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry • The British dub artist on the craft of the pioneering and talented reggae producer

Helen McCrory • The actor remembers his Peaky...