This week’s Guardian Weekly has two very different covers, depending on where you pick up your copy of the magazine. In the UK it’s all about Boris Johnson who, just two years ago, was the hero of Brexit-supporting Tories after a thumping general election victory. Now, damaging revelations about an illicit lockdown Christmas party at Downing Street last year – on the back of a series of other scandals – have pushed the prime minister close to the exit door of No 10. Toby Helm, Michael Savage and Jamie Grierson ask how it all came to this.
Outside the UK, our international editions lead on fears that Vladimir Putin may be about to launch an invasion of Ukraine, where a massive buildup of troops is taking place on Russia’s side of the border. Why is Russia’s president on the brink of war, and what can the west do to stop it? In Ukraine, Luke Harding finds resignation, while in Moscow, Andrew Roth hears why Kremlinologists fear the worst.
Anxious governments around the world were still assessing the likely impact of the fast-spreading Omicron Covid variant this week. In the spirit of optimism, Julia Kollewe looks at the next generation of vaccines that scientists hope will prove more resilient to virus mutations.
In our features section, don’t miss Akhtar Mohammad Makoii’s gripping account of his 24-hour nightmare to escape from Taliban-occupied Afghanistan earlier this year. Plus, there’s a fantastic photographic behind-the-scenes look at the early days of Sesame Street, the groundbreaking children’s educational puppet show.
The Guardian Weekly will take a short break over Christmas. Your next edition is out on 31 December and will include more year-end reflections as well as a big look ahead to 2022. To top up your reading list until then, check out the bumper roundup of this year’s best books in this edition.
Thank you for supporting Guardian journalism; if you mark a holiday at this time of year, we hope it is a peaceful one.
