Madeleine Finlay hears from co-host Ian Sample and from Kate Adamala, professor of genetics at the University of Minnesota

The Guardian’s chief culture writer, Charlotte Higgins, on the citizens risking their lives to salvage Ukraine’s cultural heritage

Every Wednesday and Friday in August we will publish some of our favourite audio long reads of 2025, in case you missed them, with an introduction from the editorial team to explain why we’ve chosen it.

This week, from June: he’s spent 24 hours immersed in slime, two days buried alive – and showered vast amounts of cash on lucky participants. But are MrBeast’s videos simply very savvy clickbait – or acts of avant garde genius?

Written and read by Mark O’Connell