I stand to defend vertical drinking. Is a pub that doesn’t allow it a real pub at all?

The time-honoured tradition of standing up with a drink, gossiping and putting the world to rights is under threat. If councillors ban it, we’ll all lose out, says Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins

Open waters pose risk of drowning, injury and illness for dogs, UK campaigners warn

Dogs Trust points to hundreds of incidents over recent years, some involving deaths of pets or owners trying to rescue them

Struggling to get through summer? Treat yourself like a beloved dog – and six other survival tips

August usually sends me into an anxious funk, but I think I’ve worked out how to handle 2026’s terrifying heat and apocalyptic images, writes Emma Beddington

Digested week: As wildfires rage, should I buy a helicopter or marry a guy with a bunker?

Plus, train toilet roulette, an astonishingly stoic hiker and the tradwife paradox

Amid the social and political panic about falling birthrates, why not ask new mothers what they think?

Medals and cash bonuses have been mooted as incentives, but the priority is for policy that addresses women’s real concerns, says author and journalist Lucy Jones

‘I don’t know where the kids will go’: beloved football cage in east London to be demolished

Hackney council will close Keith Miller sports pitch at end of year to build urgently needed social homes

Tick bites are on the rise in the US and UK. Here’s how to protect yourself

Experts share tips to avoid the blood-sucking pests that can transmit Lyme disease and other illnesses on to humans

Man in his 70s dies after being injured by cattle on Norfolk estate

Police investigate incident on parkland near 17th-century National Trust country house popular with walkers

Roll up, roll up! Older generation find joy and fearlessness in circus

Juggling, trapeze and hula hoop classes for over-50s are taking off as people rediscover their inner child and tap into health benefits

OurChemist

Our Chemist – Health