Ease into the weekend with our brand new podcast, showcasing some of the best Guardian and Observer writing from the week, read by talented narrators. In this episode, Marina Hyde looks at the new additions to Downing Street (ms), Hadley Freeman interviews Hollywood actor Will Arnett (ms), Sirin Kale tries her hand at quiz show Mastermind (ms), and David Robson examines why we’re so stressed about stress (ms). If you like what you hear, subscribe to Weekend on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts ..read more

With a no-deal Brexit blocked and no snap election in sight, is there any way out for the PM? “The madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets,” Boris Johnson said at the weekend. On Monday, the prime minister flexed his muscles once more by telling Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European commission, that he will not be asking for a Brexit extension at the next EU summit, nor will he accept one if offered it by the EU ..read more

As Tories choose their next leader, we ask if he stands any better chance than May did The race to be Theresa May’s successor is well under way, with Boris Johnson looking like it’s his to lose and nearly every candidate promising to have a go at the EU because they think they’re hard enough. But while Conservative party members may humour them, Brussels certainly won’t ... so what next? And does whoever eventually succeeds May stand any chance of avoiding her fate by being able to deliver Brexit ..read more

Our panel discusses what happened during the first round of negotiations on the future relationship About 100 British officials made the trip to Brussels led by UK chief negotiator David Frost, who is up against his opposite number Michel Barnier as the two sides try to reach agreement on everything from trade in goods to fishing rights. The outcome is far from certain, and Barnier said afterwards there were “serious divergences” between the two sides ..read more

With less than three weeks to go before the UK (almost certainly) leaves the EU, Jon Henley looks at what changes 31 January will bring. He’s joined by Jonathan Lis, deputy director of British Influence, Georgina Wright of the Institute for Government, and the Guardian’s Jennifer Rankin Will Boris Johnson stick to his promise not to extend the transition period, and what are the consequences of that for the kind of deal that can be done? Will he abide by his pledge not to align the UK with EU rules and standards, and what are the consequences for the UK economy ..read more

With just two days until Britain leaves without a deal, will the EU grant an extension? Things are moving fast in Brexitland. With Theresa May’s thrice-defeated deal out for the count, and MPs proving unable to reach any kind of consensus on an alternative, two things happened ..read more

Now that Boris Johnson has the decisive parliamentary majority he wanted, Jon Henley asks if it will be plain sailing for his Brexit bill. He is joined by Jennifer Rankin, the Guardian’s Brussels correspondent, Anand Menon, of the UK in a Changing Europe thinktank, and Joe Owen, the director of the Brexit programme at the Institute for Government If Boris Johnson is successful in passing his Brexit bill through parliament by 31 January, the EU and the UK then have just 11 months to attempt to define and set out their future relationship. We still have no idea yet of the prime minister’s direct ..read more

As parliament grabs the steering wheel of the Brexit process, could a solution finally be in sight? With just over 1,000 days since the referendum, and hours before Britain was originally due to leave, it’s all still to play for. Deal, no deal, soft Brexit, hard Brexit, no Brexit, general election, second vote, the lot. Everything looks up for grabs. What’s new, though, is that the EU has told Britain to finally get off the fence and decide – and exasperated MPs, rather than the government, fully intend to ..read more

Days before the crunch EU summit, Jon Henley asks whether Boris Johnson can secure a Brexit deal. He is joined by the Guardian’s Brussels correspondent, Jennifer Rankin, and opinion writer Rafael Behr, and by Georgina Wright of the Institute for Government Less than a fortnight ago, the European parliament rubbished Boris Johnson’s “two borders for four years” proposal, saying it was not “even remotely” acceptable to the EU. Then, last week, Johnson met the Irish taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, in a country house hotel in Wirral and, miraculously, there was “a pathway to a possible deal”. Suddenly ..read more

With Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement looking no closer to winning the support of MPs, what other possible scenarios lie ahead? Few seem to think the government can win next week’s Commons vote on the withdrawal agreement. So as the clock keeps ticking down to 29 March and the UK’s exit from the EU, what do the next few weeks have in store? What are the chances of a second referendum? Extending article 50? A ‘Norway-plus’ arrangement? Crashing out of Europe with no deal? Or, somehow, Theresa May’s deal getting through ..read more