Samir Shah offered a long thought about Northern Ireland while Tim Davie repeated terms so broad as to be meaningless

Caroline Dinenage, the chair of the culture, media and sport committee, regretted at its opening meeting with the BBC chiefs Tim Davie (director general) and Samir Shah (chair) that their catch-up would be detained by a recent scandal. She indicated in her tone that the fault, if not theirs, definitely wasn’t hers, and she meant the documentary recently pulled from iPlayer, Gaza: How to Survive a War Zone.

Although the tone was pretty punchy throughout, they observed the fundamental courtesy of the committee, that you do all the boring stuff before you get to the interesting bit. So this account will not be chronological.

Forthwrite, which takes place over two days this month, aims to dispel stereotypes around older women

Writer Kit de Waal is set to headline a new UK festival celebrating writing by women over 50.

Forthwrite festival, due to take place on 15 March in Brighton and 30 March in Crawley, will offer “inspiring workshops and lively discussions with authors and publishing industry professionals”, said organisers.

With London’s West End chockful of Hollywood A-listers, crowds are thronging stage doors. But do some fans go too far? We uncover a shadowy story of joyful adulation, gobby putdowns – and endless TikToks

On a cold evening in London, two German tourists survey the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Lina, 19, outlines their master plan to meet Tom Hiddleston, starring in Much Ado About Nothing. Tonight: scrutinise the procedure at stage door, where only ticket holders are allowed to wait for a chance to meet the cast. Tomorrow: watch Much Ado then race to join the stage-door queue. As a backup, they’ve bought tickets for the next night, too.

“Be prepared!” Lina declares. Are they hoping for autographs, selfies … acting tips? “Just to see him. That would be enough. We especially travelled here for this. It’s all worth it. I just worry a little that he hasn’t much time.” She considers the arriving fans. “Wow – that’s a very big line.”

With London’s West End chockful of Hollywood A-listers, crowds are thronging stage doors. But do some fans go too far? We uncover a shadowy story of joyful adulation, gobby putdowns – and endless TikToks

On a cold evening in London, two German tourists survey the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Lina, 19, outlines their master plan to meet Tom Hiddleston, starring in Much Ado About Nothing. Tonight: scrutinise the procedure at stage door, where only ticket holders are allowed to wait for a chance to meet the cast. Tomorrow: watch Much Ado then race to join the stage-door queue. As a backup, they’ve bought tickets for the next night, too.

“Be prepared!” Lina declares. Are they hoping for autographs, selfies … acting tips? “Just to see him. That would be enough. We especially travelled here for this. It’s all worth it. I just worry a little that he hasn’t much time.” She considers the arriving fans. “Wow – that’s a very big line.”

In a dramatically changed world, defence, targeted aid and domestic priorities will need to be balanced to keep us secure, says Anthony Lawton. Plus letters from Tim Conway and Chris Jones

Your reporting (28 February) of the overseas aid cuts highlights a worrying myopia among aid NGOs about Britain’s evolving challenges. This generational moment demands more than the simplistic equation of aid spending with security. The 138 NGOs calling these cuts the single largest in history overlook profound shifts: Donald Trump’s return, Russia’s aggression and rising global instability. Britain’s security and diplomatic influence depend on robust military capabilities, especially when our alliance with the US becomes less certain.

The issue is not percentage targets (0.5% to 0.3%), it is how effective aid is. Now that significant aid funds are redirected to asylum and refugee support at home, we must reassess whether our approach meaningfully affects global development. Critics of these cuts ignore political reality. The “forgotten” people most vulnerable to populism want the government to focus on the NHS, education, the cost of living and border security. To present aid as sacrosanct while domestic services struggle widens the disconnect. David Lammy’s proposal to use frozen Russian assets for Ukraine shows creative thinking. This is far more relevant than clinging to outdated spending targets.