The Guardian Weekly looks forward and back in this, our final edition of 2021. Our longstanding foreign affairs commentator Simon Tisdall offers his perspective on what to expect in 2022, a year that appears fraught with problems on almost every front. There’s also consideration of prospects for the environment, technology and space exploration.
Then, you’ll find cultural reflections on the year drawing to a close, with agency photographers of the year, memories of those we lost, and critics’ picks of the best film, music and more.
A year ago, Britain formally exited the European Union in one of the most traumatic and divisive political acts in the nation’s history. For our big story this week, the Observer’s political and economics experts consider the benefits – or otherwise – of “taking back control”.
The passing of the anti-apartheid icon Desmond Tutu, at the age of 90, sparked a week of mourning in South Africa and heartfelt tributes from around the world. From Cape Town, Jason Burke reflects on the legacy of the man who coined the term “rainbow nation”, and who bore a moral authority equalled by few others.
As data trickles in, scientists, epidemiologists and governments have been grappling with how to respond to the fast-spreading Omicron Covid variant. The Observer’s science editor Robin McKie brings us up to speed with what we know so far.
