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Sudan’s last civilian prime minister warned that the country’s brutal civil war risks turning it into “fertile ground” for the spread of regional terrorism at a time when several African countries are struggling with an onslaught of jihadist violence.

Some 150,000 people have been killed and 10mn pushed out of their homes since military president General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy and paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemeti, went to war last year. About half of Sudan’s population of 49mn is now on the verge of famine.

Abdalla Hamdok, prime minister between 2019 and 2022 who now leads the Taqaddum — Progress — coalition of democratic forces, said Sudan’s descent into violence risks bolstering jihadis across the region.

“I really feel quite frightened about this,” he told the Financial Times. “With Sudan bordering seven countries, it will become fertile ground for terrorism in a region that is very fragile.”

The Sahel, the semi-arid strip of land below the Sahara that is home to some 400mn people, has become a haven for jihadis. They range from Boko Haram in Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad to Isis, which is most active in the border area between Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

Hamdok fears the descent into violence in Sudan, which hosted Osama bin Laden in the 1990s, could also connect groups allied to al-Qaeda in the Sahel to jihadis such as Somalia’s al-Shabaab in the Horn of Africa, which is linked to Yemeni Houthis.

Analysts and officials in neighbouring countries have echoed Hamdok’s concerns. The country was long on the US’s list of state sponsors of terrorism before it was removed under Hamdok in 2020.

Sudan’s war has already attracted a complex web of external actors. The United Arab Emirates is accused of backing Hemeti, claims Abu Dhabi denies, while Iran and Russia support Burhan. Mercenaries from Chad and pilots from Ukraine have also entered the fray.

Burhan’s army this week launched a major assault to retake the capital city, Khartoum, from Hemeti’s Rapid Support Forces, which captured most of it last year.

Negotiations for a ceasefire to stop the fighting began in Geneva last month, led by the US and brokered by a range of countries — including Egypt, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and the UAE — but without direct contact between warring parties.

Hamdok and members of Taqaddum criticised the process, saying that while it could help “put more pressure” on the warring parties there could not be a “sustainable” solution without including civilian politicians.

“There is a tendency to try to get a quick fix, to just bring in the belligerents. The fact is that all attempts have failed,” said Khaled Omar Youssef, a senior member of the Sudanese Congress party, which is part of Taqaddum, referring to previous unsuccessful talks in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

A western official involved said the focus of the Geneva negotiation was “to open up humanitarian access and ensure protection of civilians as well as trying to get ceasefires”. The official said “efforts to transition to the civilian government is outside of the realm” of the current talks.

A critical challenge for civilians is to unite Sudan’s array of political forces amid differences among groups who have competing views on how its political future should unfold. Many Sudanese see Taqaddum as aligned with Hemeti, something Hamdok labels as “propaganda” spread by the army.

Among other things, there is a sharp divide between those pressing for a purely civilian government and those who advocate power-sharing with the military. Sudan has suffered some 17 coups and a string of civil wars — including one that led to the creation of South Sudan — since independence from Britain and Egypt in 1956.

Hamdok took charge in 2019 following the ousting of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir in a putative transition government backed by Burhan and Hemeti. He was ousted in a coup in 2021 before being briefly reinstated.

“The only formula that would keep this country together is a government led by civilians,” said Hamdok. “The military has messed up the country for over 50 years. They cannot be entrusted with the future of the country.”

In an unforgiving stretch of the North Sea roughly 250km east of Aberdeen, Shell’s engineers have been drilling since last September to develop the vast Jackdaw gasfield, aiming to produce its first gas in 2026.   

Yet in less than two months, lawyers for the FTSE 100 company will head to a courtroom in Edinburgh to try to defend the project from climate campaigners who want it shut down, after a judge ruled last week the case could proceed.  

The legal challenge brought by Greenpeace will be the first involving an offshore oil and gas project to be heard in the wake of a landmark Supreme Court ruling in June that has emboldened activists and tightened the squeeze on fossil fuel projects.

The so-called Finch ruling, named after the activist and writer Sarah Finch who helped bring the case, means that planning officials considering allowing big developers to drill for fossil fuels need to factor in the emissions spewed out when the product is used by consumers. 

It raises further questions for the UK’s oil and gas industry in the North Sea as the Labour government tries to ultimately wind down fossil fuels in favour of renewable energy, and position Britain as a global leader in tackling climate change. 

There is also a push for planning officials to take into greater account climate goals when deciding whether to approve other projects beyond fossil fuels.

“One by one, spurious lines of defence are being knocked back,” said Niall Toru, senior lawyer at Friends of the Earth. “Developers have to own the climate impacts of their projects.”

The Finch ruling, a three-to-two majority judgment led by Lord Justice George Leggatt, quashed planning permission for onshore oil drilling in Horse Hill, Surrey. Two further projects have already been stymied in its wake. 

Permission for onshore oil drilling in Biscathorpe, Lincolnshire, was knocked back by High Court judges in July, while in September they also quashed permission for a mine in Whitehaven, north-west England, to supply coal to steel mills. 

The challenge to be heard in November against Shell’s Jackdaw gasfield will be the next test of the Finch ruling’s implications, as will a separate challenge brought by campaigners Greenpeace and Uplift to Equinor’s giant Rosebank oilfield in the North Sea. If the companies lose, they would need to decide whether to reapply for development consent or walk away. The government is not defending the cases.

Meanwhile, there are 14 UK oil and gas projects with drilling licences from the government that are at various stages of seeking development consent from the oil and gas regulator, and are now affected by the Finch ruling.

The judgment specifically covers fossil fuel projects, given the clear line between production and consumer emissions. But it is “not impossible” to imagine the ruling being cited in other carbon-intensive projects, noted Steven Wilson, senior associate at Vinson and Elkins. Airport expansions are an obvious target for climate campaigners. 

“I think it will be fascinating to see how this will be applied in other types of projects,” said Matthew McFeeley, partner at Richard Buxton Solicitors, which represented South Lakes Action on Climate Change in its challenge to the Whitehaven coal mine. “It’s the million-dollar question.”

Approvals for oil and gas projects are not out of the question, however. The Finch ruling does not prevent authorities from approving projects, as long as they have considered their impact. The law does not specify what level of emissions is acceptable.

“That’s a hard question that will need to be taken case by case,” said Robert Meade, partner at Bracewell. “These [legal rulings] are about the procedure.” 

At Edinburgh’s Court of Session in November, Shell’s lawyers will argue the energy security benefits of its Jackdaw project. It was approved at the height of the energy crisis in 2022, when gas prices soared in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. 

To help clarify what officials should do, the UK government said last month it would develop new environmental guidance for oil and gas projects. It is expected to set tough standards, given its approach towards the sector so far.

Planning policy beyond oil and gas projects is also evolving. The government is continuing to explore potential changes proposed by its Conservative predecessor to the national planning policy framework, which covers planning in England. Ideas include a “carbon impact assessment”, although a consultation raised doubts over the proposal.

In the meantime, the legal cases are likely to further undermine oil and gas drillers’ confidence in the UK following Labour’s decision to increase taxes on the sector and reduce investment allowances. It also plans to stop issuing licences for new exploration.  

“You’ll get to the stage where investors would be doing a disservice to their shareholders if they were to allocate capital here,” warned one industry figure. Oil and gas still supplies 75 per cent of the UK’s total energy demand, but domestic production has been dwindling as the basin ages.

Climate campaigners, on the other hand, sense the growing opportunity for legal victories. “We are always looking [at potential legal cases],” adds Toru, at Friends of the Earth. “I wouldn’t rule anything out.”

This is an audio transcript of the Life and Art from FT Weekend podcast episode: ‘‘My Old Ass’ director Megan Park on advice to our younger selves’

Lilah Raptopoulos
Welcome to Life and Art from FT Weekend. I’m Lilah Raptopoulos. The new film My Old Ass is a coming-of-age story. Its lead character, Elliott, played by Maisy Stella, is 18 years old and home for that last summer before college. She’s ready to leave, but she clearly still has a lot of growing to do and a lot to learn about her relationship with her family, about her sexuality, and more. The twist in the story is that the person who helps Elliott understand herself better is her older self, or in other words, her old ass. On a mushroom trip in the woods with her friends, younger Elliott conjures the 39-year-old, more jaded version of herself up, played by Aubrey Plaza, and then that version of her continues to advise her throughout the film.

[MOVIE CLIP PLAYING]

The film was produced by Margot Robbie’s production company, LuckyChap, which also produced Barbie. It focuses on work about women. And it was written and directed by Megan Park. Megan is a former actor. This is the second film she’s written and directed. The first was about young adulthood, too. It was called The Fallout, and today we’re thrilled to be talking to Megan from her home in Toronto. Megan, hi. Welcome to the show.

Megan Park
Hi. Thanks for having me from my Covid den, my isolated Covid back house.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yes, we learned you got Covid on the press tour, is that right?

Megan Park
Yeah. Unfortunately. It’s my first time, actually. My first time having it.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Welcome to the club. (Laughter)

Megan Park
Thank you.

Lilah Raptopoulos
It’s great to have you.

Megan Park
Thank you.

Lilah Raptopoulos
I wanted to start with a kind of weird question, because for so many teens that post-high school summer is this funny, liminal space. I wanted to ask you, like, where you were when you were 18. What was that summer like for you?

Megan Park
You know, it’s funny. I don’t have, like, a distinct memory of that summer other than the feeling of I wasn’t ready to move on. I remember going on a really long kayak ride. I grew up on a river, and we would . . . you can either go for a short kayak ride up the river, or a long one down and have someone pick you up at the spot, you know, a few hours on the way. And my mom and I were doing it and going down the river, and I remember just being so relieved because I had decided to not go to university right after high school and take one year to pursue acting.

All my friends were like, gearing up to move into their dorm rooms and doing that whole thing, and I was just sort of having this long, leisurely kayak ride with my mom. And I remember trying to soak it up and feeling like, oh my gosh, I would so not be ready to be leaving home yet, even though I didn’t know that by the end of that year, I think like, in LA and like, on a TV show. But in that moment, in that kind of end-of-summer feeling, I was feeling really anxious about the idea, truthfully, of leaving home, which is very different than how Elliott is feeling.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah, yeah. And then can I ask, when did you . . . So you started acting that following year. What was that like?

Megan Park
I had started acting, you know, professionally when I was around 16 because I live just outside of Toronto and there’s a lot of, you know, big productions that film there, both Canadian and American. But my parents were very adamant, and at the time I was so angry about it, but they didn’t want me to miss a lot of school. So, like, they would let me audition for things that would only take me away for a few days. But all of my friends were like serious regulars under Grassi, and we’re doing all these big jobs, and I really wanted to do that. And they kept saying, if you want to do that, you can do that once you graduate school. You can do that once you turn 18. But we really want you to have a normal high school experience. And I was really pissed. And now I’m so grateful for them because I really had such a normal high school experience, and there’s just no price tag on having a normal childhood and young adulthood.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Right. So you did have success during that gap year, and then you went on to be on shows like The Secret Life of the American Teenager. You were in movies. I’m sure that time was very formative to you, but I’ve also seen interviews where you say that in the movies that you’re doing now, you think of them as kind of a way to redo those experiences, as a way to, like, kind of change what the set was like for the teenagers that are in your films now. Can you talk about that a little?

Megan Park
I mean, I think things have changed a lot. I mean, I’m, you know, 38 and this was, you know, me at 20, 21. So there’s been a lot of time. But certainly when I was younger, always like some older dude was the director and it was like a hierarchy. Everyone had to please the director. You could tell the director generally loved that vibe and wanted that environment, and it was like them trying to tell these stories about young people and never asking us our opinion on anything. And I mean, I remember like, there was writers and powerful people coming up to me as a young person and the threat, a literal threat, I was told once, was the power of the pen. You know, that was like the threat of, like, we can make you or break you sort of thing. And it just . . . it was, I don’t know, looking back, it was like pretty messed up. And, I was lucky to come out pretty unscathed compared to most people because I was a little bit older.

But I really don’t think there’s a need for that. It creates the least creative environment ever. And a director is a curator, I think, like, you know what you know and know what you don’t know, and you hire people who do what you don’t know. And so I really want to make sure that my sets never feel like a hierarchy. In fact, I’m doing a show next, and I have this whole theory that I don’t think that creators and writers of shows should also be the sole showrunners because I think it’s just too much power. I don’t know. It’s just a weird thing that I think should change within the industry.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah, yeah. I would love to hear a little more about how you collaborated in this film with your team. But first I wanted to ask, you know, the movie is like a comedy at its core. It’ll make you cry — it made me cry — but it’s funny. And it’s set in a small town in Canada. Or was it the woods? It was on a lake. It was like a rural cranberry farm?

Megan Park
Yeah, it’s an area north of Toronto called Muskoka Lakes, where there’s like a bunch of lakes. There are actually some cranberry farms that is a thing up in that area, and it’s really close to where I grew up, which is called Kawartha Lakes.

Lilah Raptopoulos
It’s gorgeous. Idyllic living. And basically Elliott’s life seems good, you know, she’s like queer and everyone’s cool with that. She’s hooking up with this cute girl that she’s had a crush on. She’s not actually awkward at all. She has this, like, cool boat that she rips around the lake in. That really struck me because, in so many teenage movies, the thing that makes the protagonists relatable is that they’re kind of struggling. Like, they feel awkward or they’re uncomfortable in their skin, or they have bad braces or whatever. And, yeah, I’m curious why you sort of chose to have her starting her journey in this movie from like, a pretty comfortable, nice place.

Megan Park
Well, I was kind of sick of seeing, like, the teenage vibe of, like, this angsty girl who, like, hates her parents and, like, I don’t know, I’m like, is moody and insecure. And sure, like, there’s parts of that in all of us and little tinges of that in Elliott. But I really wanted to see a young female lead in a movie who was happy and grounded and secure about her identity and loves her family. Maybe she takes them for granted, but like, at her core, loves them and wants to connect with them, is bright and sunny and optimistic. And that’s one of the things that I kind of feel like a lot of people get wrong about this generation. And I was so wildly taken hanging out with the young people in this movie. They are so optimistic. And despite how shitty, like, some things in their life, you know, the world and stuff that they’re looking forward into, these kids don’t, like, talk shit, which was amazing. Like, they really don’t! Like, they all speak so kindly about each other and love each other and are open and accepting. And I wanted to see that reflected on screen, you know, about this like, strong, bright young woman, full of joie de vive and positivity, but who’s still very cool. Like, that is what’s cool. It’s not cool to be a shit talker, to be a bully. Which I think was like more of the trope of the cool girl, like, you know, Mean Girls when I was younger, right?

Lilah Raptopoulos
It’s funny, I felt like, well, this isn’t what movies are like. When I was watching it, I thought, wow, this is not really what I’m used to seeing. I don’t know, it was refreshing. And on the other hand, the older Elliott is more unsettled. And I wonder, you know, if you were trying to poke holes in this idea that, you know, life is linear and we’re awkward as kids, and then you become an adult and you get it and you haven’t figured out or . . . What was your thinking about?

Megan Park
It feels a little true. Like both from like, what could we be looking at, you know, planet mirror, and the world is being like, 20 years from now realistically. But yeah, I liked the idea that there was sort of a hardness to the older version. And she’s not even that much older, you know, she’s 39, but her younger self is sort of this, like, which I don’t think is that uncommon, that your younger self is sort of like the more optimistic and blissful, you know, right, sort of version of yourself. And a lot of it really came together tonally with these two actors.

Like Maisy really does have that essence to her, which was one of the reasons why I loved her so much for this character. So many of those conversations I pulled real moments from that her and I had, where she would be asking me, you know, like, you know, oh my God! Like, so like, what is middle-aged like? What is love like? I’m never gonna fix things. I actually feel like I’m one of those people who’s never gonna fall in love. Like, all those moments were real conversations we had, which was so funny. It made me feel so old.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Interesting. And you’re like, I’m not middle-aged. Not middle-aged.

Megan Park
I was like, wait, I’m not. I’m like 35 or whatever. And she’s like, oh, but that’s pretty close to middle age. I was like, oh shit. Wow. OK. And I think, you know, when you cast someone like Aubrey, what her energy brings to the table, it was really fun to play with that. But Aubrey is a very soft, sentimental, nurturing person, so it was fun to pull that side of her. And she has sisters who are a lot younger than her. Maisy has a sister who’s older than her, so there was like a natural vibe that happened that we kind of played around with. But at their core they have like a very similar sense of humour and very similar coolness to them, I think, that trumped any sort of like need for them to look like in the casting process.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

[PODCAST TRAILER PLAYING]

Lilah Raptopoulos
You know, Megan, one of the things that I found really moving in the movie is that it isn’t sort of young Elliott who gets the biggest lesson, like, she sort of can’t help being who she is. But there’s this big lesson that older Elliott learns from her younger self to kind of maybe be less guarded. Like, it feels sort of like if we knew what happened, what would happen in the future, maybe we wouldn’t change our decisions in the present. But if we could see what had really happened in the past, like maybe it’ll change the way we process the past or the story we tell ourselves about our life. And I’m wondering if you were thinking about that, how you were thinking about that?

Megan Park
You know, I think writing for me is really therapeutic, and I do not write pitches or outlines or anything. I never have. I just think about sort of like the feeling that I’m trying to tap into, which was that nostalgic ache and sort of that sadness about the passing of time. But I really feel like now, in retrospect, so much of this movie was actually born . . . I just had my daughter, my first child, and I was home in Canada. And I feel like when you have a kid, time really does speed up.

I remember when I was pregnant, everybody was like, oh my gosh, you blink and they’re gonna be 10. And I’m like, OK, I got it. Like, everybody said that. But then I really was feeling that so viscerally. And so even though this movie’s so much about, you know, an 18-year-old meeting her 39-year-old self, I feel like it was the feeling of new motherhood for me, in a weird way, that really got me in the feels to want to talk about some of these things. And I think the most personal scene in the movie for me, just for me as Megan, was like, definitely the mom and daughter, Elliott and her mom sitting on the porch talking in the scene about rocking her daughter to sleep.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Can you explain that scene just for listeners, if they haven’t?

Megan Park
Yeah. There’s a moment where Elliott and her mom are talking, and it’s like a few days before she leaves and her mom is kind of talking to her about, you know, I’m really happy for you that you’re moving on with your life. And this is what all parents want to see. And there’s such a beauty and a joy in seeing your kids grow and go off and be free and confident in the world. But there’s also, like this bittersweet sadness that a huge part of, not your life, but just sort of our time as it is, is over. And, I don’t know, maybe having kids makes you more aware of like the infinite amount of time you have.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Lilah Raptopoulos
I was thinking about these questions that we ask ourselves, and we seem to be asking them a lot in culture like, you know, advice that we would give our younger selves. There’s like, all these think pieces, you know what I wouldn’t tell my younger self? And there are so many movies where people become sort of older or younger versions of themselves, like 13 Going on 30 and Big. And then there’s movies where, like, people time travel into their own family history, like Back to the Future, or they encounter themselves like Interstellar. And I feel like a lot of people are sort of obsessed with these questions and these perspective shifts and like, we’re searching for something. I’m wondering what you think that is.

Megan Park
I think it’s just the universal . . . All these themes in this movie are so universal. Time passing, family dynamics. You know, your disappearing youth, grief, motherhood, becoming a parent. That’s why it’s been kind of funny because, like, the title of the movie, it’s like, ooh, My Old Ass, you see Aubrey and you see, you know, the kind of this bright poster and you think it’s gonna be like this kind of, I don’t know, raunchy coming-of-age comedy. And the movie is quite heartfelt and quite universal. And it’s been really interesting to watch.

Like, I’ve said this before, but the amount of old dudes, like over 65, they come up to us and are like, this is my favourite scene. And they’re just like, sobbing is so interesting and amazing but I never expected that. I don’t know. I think I’m discovering myself as a filmmaker, and I remember really, one of my favourite moments in my career and life so far is after Sundance, you know, in Sundance, it was really like, it’s like putting your baby out into the world. After that premiere, you know, you don’t know if a movie’s gonna work and it’s in this massive theatre and that I got a standing ovation. It was so surreal. And I got in the car afterwards with the producers and one of our producers, Tom Ackerley, he sounds like an emotional guy, but he kind of was like had tears in his eyes. And he said to me, he was like, you know, Megan, as a filmmaker, you have this ability to really get inside people’s hearts.

And I was so moved by the compliment. But I was also . . . it struck this like lightning bolt inside of me of the I was like, oh yes, oh yes, that’s what I want to do as a filmmaker. And it sounds cheesy because of course, you know, everybody wants to get an emotional reaction, but they’re saying about the phrasing of like getting inside people’s hearts that rang true to me of like that is . . . that became my North star immediately in that moment because I was like, yes, those are the movies that have stuck with me and that I love and that I go back to, and those are the movies that I want to make at the core.

Lilah Raptopoulos
What does that mean to you? Get inside people’s hearts or, yeah. What is that feeling you’re trying to . . . well, what does it mean?

Megan Park
I think it’s like about these, like, universal themes, but, like, masked behind something maybe more palatable and grounded, like, you know, with The Fallout, I was like, how do I tackle this awful subject matter that is not palatable, like, I don’t . . . It’s so dark. Yeah, I was like, I can’t watch a movie about school shooting. That shit is like so heavy. But I tried to get into in a way that was like as least triggering as possible, but surprise people with sort of like, the nuance of, like the journey that it wasn’t just like, I don’t know, black and white.

So same thing with this movie. It was like I wanted this to feel like a fun coming-of-age story about, you know, growing up, but then surprise people with sort of like the heartfelt truth of like the, the message. And there’s also like, this is a little thing but in both my movies there’s no like villain. I mean, obviously, there is a villain you never meet or see in The Fallout, but all these characters are like pretty endearing people, and they’re messy and they’re nuanced, but they’re good people. And I love movies like that. I was always so bored watching movies like The Bad Guy. Through the line, I’m like, I don’t care. Like, you know, this is like a story vehicle, like, move the plot along, but who cares? I just want to watch, like, the good people figure out life. So that’s really important to me too.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Lilah Raptopoulos
Megan, as my last question, I’m curious what draws you to stories about teenagers and young adults? You know, you’ve talked about The Fallout, your last movie, I was about kids in the aftermath of a school shooting, which is obviously pointing to a very specific problem in American society. But I’m wondering if you think there’s something like more broadly that we aren’t talking about when it comes to young people or that we’re not reflecting when it comes to young people?

Megan Park
I didn’t like intentionally set out for both my movies to be centred around Gen Z, weirdly. I mean, obviously, though, if you’re gonna talk about school shootings in America and Gen Z, those all go hand in hand. But I also think there is a part of me that when I was a young actor and telling stories about young people, nine times out of 10, the stories didn’t necessarily feel authentic to my actual experience as a young person in that moment. So there is a part of me that I think is trying to listen if I’m gonna tell a story about young people, I want to give them the quality they deserve and like the respect that they should get in their stories.

And I think there was a generation, a long time ago, of filmmakers who were really doing that about stories for young people. And I think all of a sudden they’re in the last 10 years and this shift of like, how do you . . . it’s so hard to tack into Gen Z, how do you . . . like, how do you get them? And the second you’re trying to write a young person or trying to get them, you’ve already lost it. You’ve already messed up. I think. because when I started writing Elliott, I wasn’t like, OK, she’s 18, how do I write an 18-year-old? I was like, this is a human being, and I’m writing a human being. Later, I’ll figure out if, like, she’s gonna say the word suss or not.

And that it’s like, but that doesn’t matter, right? And I’m not trying to put slang in for the purpose of getting young people to watch the movie. Like there were certain elements, like the Bieber thing, like I went to Maisy’s, like, who was that performer of your childhood? Like, there’s moments. Yeah, you have to, like, bring that into it. And that is sort of like a pop culture reference. But in general, as I’m creating Elliott in my head, I was in no way thinking first and foremost about how it was a 17-year-old girl.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah. And when you are talking about the Bieber thing, you’re talking about when, Maisy’s character, Elliott is like, having another mushroom trip and she’s decided that she wants to be Justin Bieber and serenade the fans.

Megan Park
Yeah. And I went to her and I was like, who is . . . Yeah. What was that moment? Or who was that first concert for you and your generation that was really formative? And she was like, oh, it was the “One Less Lonely Girl”, Justin Bieber and every girl in the audience wanted to be chosen as the one less lonely girl, and he would bring this girl up on stage and give them roses. And I was like, what? That’s insane. And she showed me the “Never Say Never” tour doc. And then I was like, oh, wait a second, you have to be Belieber. But yeah, it’s about like, you know, bringing in opinions and opening it up when it’s important, but not like the whole time being so caught up and like, OK, this is a Gen Z-er. And like, how would hey say it? It’s like . . . it’s a, it’s a human being, man. You know?

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah. Try . . . You gotta try a little less hard maybe.

Megan Park
100 per cent.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Yeah. Also, her Justin Bieber was perfect.

Megan Park
She killed that. She really embodied that. She really took over. It was in her all along. We kept joking. She was a changed person for sure.

Lilah Raptopoulos
Well, this was such a pleasure. Thank you so much for being on the show. And, please feel better.

Megan Park
Thank you.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Lilah Raptopoulos
That’s the show. Thank you for listening to Life and Art from FT Weekend. My Old Ass is in theatres in the US and the UK now, and we put some relevant links in the show notes. Also in the show notes are places to find me on email and on Instagram @lilahrap where I love chatting with you about culture.

I’m Lilah Raptopoulos and here’s our exceptional team. Katya Kumkova is our senior producer. Lulu Smyth is our producer. Our sound engineers are Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco, with original music by Metaphor Music. Topher Forhecz is our executive producer and our global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. Have an excellent week and we’ll find each other again on Friday.

The appointment of a banker to oversee JPMorgan’s junior banker programme signals recognition of the human toll high-pressure environments take (Report, September 18). However, the key question is will this meaningfully improve working conditions or serve as a surface-level fix in an industry notorious for gruelling demands.

While capping the working week at 80 hours is an improvement, exceptions during crucial times mean the pressure remains unchanged. Appointing someone to manage wellbeing will have limited impact if core issues — relentless deadlines, high-stakes environments and an expectation of constant availability — aren’t addressed. Wellbeing measures often focus on monitoring stress rather than changing the conditions that cause it. Mental health checks may lead to masking struggles, as junior bankers fear appearing weak or uncommitted in a culture that equates success with stamina.

True change requires a shift in how productivity and success are defined. Banks must prioritise long-term wellbeing over short-term wins by embracing flexibility, redistributing workloads and reducing work hours without exceptions.

Integrating mental health support and resilience training into professional development will help retain talent and ensure sustained performance. Without this, the core issues remain unchanged.

John Tench
Global Managing Director, Wysa
Reading, Berkshire, UK

THERE’S a VIP hotel suite in Spain that has a DJ Mixer, 52-inch flat-screen TV, a terrace with a hydro massage tub, and it boasts panoramic views over the Mediterranean.

The Ushuaïa Ibiza Beach Hotel is a legendary haunt of the rich and famous with music artists Calvin Harris, David Guetta and Swedish House Mafia performing at its club.

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Holidaymakers who want to glimpse the glittering life of a celebrity might want to book an overnight stay at the I’m on Top of the World suite.

Located on the eighth floor of the Ushuaïa Ibiza Beach Hotel, the suite spans for 200 square metres.

It has all the features you’d expect to find inside a plush hotel suite, including a king-size bed, a cluster of armchairs, a walk-in wardrobe, two bathrooms and a dining room table.

The sprawling suite has plenty of wow-factor amenities like a jacuzzi in the bedroom, a DJ table and stereo system, a huge 63-inch flat-screen TV and a champagne fridge.

There’s also a balcony with sofa beds, armchairs, hammocks and a jacuzzi – in case you were worried one wasn’t enough.

Guests are also given a Hermes welcome kit and a bottle of champagne upon arrival.

Some interesting extras can also be requested like tattoo kits and a bar stocked with alcoholic drinks.

And it’s not just the amenities that make the suite arguably one of the best in Spain, it’s the hotel services that are available to guests like a complimentary massage and preferential treatment over sunbeds.

Away from the rooms, there’s plenty to keep guests entertained like the hotel’s well-known stage where music legends have performed.

There are plenty of other amenities in the hotel, including five restaurants and two pools.

The hotel has been praised by guests on TripAdvisor, with a 4.5/5 star rating from thousands of reviews.

One person wrote: “My husband and myself have Been going to Ushuaia for quite a few years now and the experience is exceptional every time.”

Another person added: “My stay at Ushuaia Hotel in Ibiza was fantastic! From the moment I arrived, the atmosphere was electric, and it only got better with the incredible events.”

Sun Online Travel have found overnight stays in the I’m on top of the World suite from £2,860.

Stays at the Junior Suite are a lot cheaper, starting from £135 per person.

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OTHER SPANISH HOTELS

Several other hotels in Spain have incredible hotel rooms like the 80’s Suite at the Hard Rock Hotel Ibiza.

Fit for rock and roll royalty, the lavish suite is equipped with a full bar, an indoor jacuzzi and guests can get a Fender electric guitar or a Crosley turntable delivered to their suite.

Overnight stays start from £162 per night per person, based on two people sharing a room.

There’s also the Signature Level Junior Suite Swim Up at TRS Ibiza Hotel.

Exclusively for adults, guests in this suite will have their own jacuzzi and a semi-private pool, with other benefits include free access to the hydrotherapy spa circuit and a late check-out.

Stays at TRS Ibiza Hotel start from £235 per person per night.

There’s also the Rock Star Suite at the Hard Rock Hotel in Tenerife.

Located on the top floor of the Nirvana Tower, it’s the largest and most exclusive suite in the hotel.

It’s home to luxury comforts like two king beds and a living room with designer furniture.

Stays at Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife start from £129 per person per night for a Junior Suite.

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