Around the twenty-fifth or twenty-sixth of the month, this character begins to feel content and hides it all behind a polite little smile. The irrepressible happiness of late summer

In August, time finally seems to be ours, but it is precisely because it is so empty that we ask ourselves: what are we doing with our lives? Between the Greek concept of kairòs and the watchful waiting of Christians, the holiday forces us to grapple with the meaning of time and with the anguish of having to bring it to a fulfilment

In one of his lesser-known works, Italo Calvino wrote: “After the Second World War, democracy arrived, that is to say, the whole population going to the public baths.” A reality that has not changed

From those who always think they know it all to those who go on seaside holidays to their second home and look down on others. A list of our little snobbish tendencies

Sanchez, British prime ministers and French ministers are discovering the rule of the digital age: politicians may well work whilst on holiday, but they must not appear to be on holiday. In the past, politicians used to go on holiday wearing Moro’s coat or staying with Andreotti’s nuns. Today, all it takes is a summer playlist on Instagram to spark accusations of irresponsibility

From the ‘facilitating parent’ to the ‘AI slopper’, right through to the ‘ice-cream kid’ and the ‘super-tanned one’. A few dinosaurs have disappeared, a few monsters have turned up. Happy 1st August!