‘I was in a kind of ecstatic freefall’: artist Miranda July on writing the book that could change your life

The artist and filmmaker has always enjoyed challenging convention. Now she has written a novel which takes a breathtaking look at menopause, sex, death and transformation

Compliments – why can’t we just accept them?

Learning to respond to an admiring comment is a skill in itself

Ciarán Hinds: ‘I’m not very good at the glamorous side of the industry’

The actor, 71, on rubbing shoulders with Hollywood’s finest, his Belfast upbringing – and why he’s made a decision to work a bit less

Mambar Pierrette review – big-hearted parable of women’s resilience in Cameroon

Pierrette is beset with troubles, from a robbery to a house flood and more, but the neorealist drama comes with solidarity and surprising humour

What makes people annoying?

‘Annoyance is probably the most widely experienced and least studied of all human emotions,’ say the experts – here’s what we know, and how to deal

Strictly Confidential review – Elizabeth Hurley’s softcore sex drama directed by … her son

Awful secrets and gorgeous swimwear are present in equal measure in this bizarre drama featuring a lightly-clad Hurley on top telenovela form

Ditch the mirror and celebrate your strengths: therapists on 20 ways to boost your body confidence

Do you want to love how you look but always compare yourself with others? There are plenty of ways to overcome this, from life drawing to CBT to social media detoxes

Cold review – theatrically evocative folk-tale treatment of the pain of miscarriage

A man spins a story in a doctor’s waiting room, sparking a fairy tale of loss and desperation

‘I get a little stir-crazy’: Jennifer Connelly on David Bowie, working with family and going back to college

Growing up on set put Oscar-winning actor Jennifer Connelly on the fast track to Hollywood fame. But despite her success, one of her lasting regrets was not finishing college – and, she says, it’s still on her to-do list…

Ditzy, unfiltered: why Drew Barrymore is Hollywood’s great survivor

The troubled child actor turned chatshow host faces flak for her toe-curling interview with Kamala Harris. But oversharing is all part of her shtick

On my radar: Andrew O’Hagan’s cultural highlights

The novelist on a comedic TikTok sensation, the importance of a good suit and his favourite educational app

It’s not stranger danger you should be afraid of, it’s video doorbell derangement syndrome

Symptoms include paranoia, anxiety and a compulsion to snoop on your neighbours. I’m not judging – I’ve had a brush with it myself, writes Arwa Mahdawi

I live in an uninhabitable ‘boy room’ – can a comedian save me from myself?

Rachel Coster’s TikTok show, which documents the extremely messy dwelling spaces of New York’s young men, has clearly struck a nerve

Outside London, the dating pool may be smaller – but there are fewer sharks

I thought moving out would be a dating disaster, but a new report finds my peers in the capital have it worse, says journalist Elle Hunt

‘The science isn’t there’: do dating apps really help us find our soulmate?

The effectiveness of Tinder and Hinge are hard to judge without access to their data. But now researchers are creating a free alternative with full transparency