The Sunday Magazine

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with The Globe and Mail's Paul Waldie and Kelly Malone from The Canadian Press about tensions facing Canada's trade relationships, The Sunday Magazine's Pete Mitton looks at what's lost when physical signatures are replaced by digital analogues, actor and raconteur Stephen Fry explores why ancient Greek myths still have great resonance in our modern world, and as the beaver marks 50 years as an official symbol of Canada, we consider what our national markers say about us. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

Whether whiling away a rainy afternoon at the cottage, or winding down after a day on the lake… for many, games are key parts of long summer days. But moving pieces around a board can mean a lot more than just entertainment. Author and board game journalist Tim Clare's book Across the Board examines the history and culture of games. He tells Nora Young how they hold big lessons on politics and civilizations, and can make radical statements on productivity, autonomy and freedom.

Guest host Nora Young speaks with CBC News senior business reporter Peter Armstrong and The Economist's Canada correspondent Rob Russo about Donald Trump calling off trade talks with Canada, The Economist's Middle East correspondent Gregg Carlstrom and Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari consider Iran's future, writer Tim Clare explores how board games are a portal to the past, and we revisit Piya Chattopadhyay's conversation with entertainment legend Barbra Streisand about her memoir My Name is Barbra. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

You may know Ed Helms from The Daily Show, The Office and The Hangover movies. But the actor and comedian is also a history buff. And he thinks there's a lot we can learn – and laugh about – by delving into history's greatest, zaniest and funniest screw-ups. Helms explores those stories in his podcast and book SNAFU. He joins Piya Chattopadhyay to share some of his favourites – from a CIA plot to make Fidel Castro's beard fall out, to a nuclear scare in Canada where a 20-something future-president named Jimmy Carter saved the day.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with historian Arash Azizi and foreign policy expert Barbara Slavin about what may come next following U.S. strikes on Iran, astrophysicist and science journalist Adam Becker interrogates tech moguls' visions of the future, The Economist's Rob Russo and Ottawa-based journalist and author Paul Wells take stock of the new government's progress as the House rises for summer, and actor and comedian Ed Helms talks about finding laughs and lessons in historical 'screw-ups' Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

One year ago this month, Joe Biden’s performance at the first U.S. presidential debate against Donald Trump sparked global headlines – and rang alarms – about his mental and physical acuity, culminating in Biden's eventual withdrawal from the race. After the Democrats went on to lose the election, CNN anchor Jake Tapper and Axios political reporter Alex Thompson began investigating the roots of Biden's decline. In their new book Original Sin, they argue that his inner circle went to great lengths to cover it up. Tapper joins Piya Chattopadhyay to make his case, and respond to the criticism his reporting has received from across the political spectrum.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with global affairs experts Arif Lalani and Jennifer Welsh about how heightened tensions between Israel and Iran are looming over the G7 leaders' summit, historian Augustine Sedgewick looks at how fatherhood has evolved through the ages, CNN anchor Jake Tapper defends his case that Joe Biden's cognitive decline was covered up, and literary food historian Nathalie Cooke muses on what menus can reveal about art, culture and class. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

Erica Jong became a literary sensation and feminist icon in the 1970s and 80s for her depictions of female agency, sexuality and relationships. And her work often drew from her real life, with friends and family members inspiring her characters... including her daughter, Molly Jong-Fast. Jong-Fast joins Piya Chattopadhyay to discuss her new memoir How to Lose Your Mother, which lays bare her perspective on her upbringing, relationship with her mom – and the conundrum of competing narratives in families.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with defence and security experts David Perry and Stephen Saideman about how Canada should prepare for less U.S. involvement on the world stage, Julia Pagel explores how tariffs are causing chaos for customs brokers, The Atlantic's David A. Graham outlines how Project 2025 is reshaping U.S. policy, and Molly Jong-Fast discusses her new memoir about her relationship with her famous feminist novelist mother, Erica Jong. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

In the latest edition of our monthly challenge That's Puzzling!, Piya Chattopadhyay competes against one familiar voice and one clever listener in a battle of brain games devised by puzzle master Peter Brown. Playing along this month are Brent Bambury, host of CBC Radio's Day Six, and Truro, N.S. listener Katherine Reed.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with University of British Columbia professor Lori Daniels about what Canada's early fire activity signals about the wildfire season ahead, nature writer Robert Macfarlane reflects on the push for rivers to be designated as living entities, former National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation director Ry Moran looks at progress made 10 years after the TRC's calls to action, we play an all-new round of our monthly challenge That's Puzzling!, and poet and lecturer Lee Campbell explains how the underground queer slang Polari went mainstream. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

This past Sunday marked five years since George Floyd's murder by a Minneapolis police officer. His death sparked global outrage and propelled a movement for racial justice. But the anniversary arrives against a backdrop of stalled police reform, and polling that shows the number of Americans who believe an emphasis on racial injustice leads to progress has declined. Selwyn Jones, Floyd's uncle, and Robert Samuels, co-author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning book His Name is George Floyd: One Man's Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice, join Piya Chattopadhyay to reflect on Floyd's legacy, and what a path forward looks like for racial equality.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with The Economist's Rob Russo and The Toronto Star's Susan Delacourt about the key issues facing MPs as they return to the House of Commons, author and columnist Pagan Kennedy explores the history and bigger meaning of the rape kit, we take stock of the gains and setbacks for racial justice since George Floyd's murder with his uncle, Selwyn Jones, and journalist Robert Samuels, and columnist Niigaan Sinclair reflects on how Winnipeg helps tell the story of Canada. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

For many Canadians, the May long weekend means the official kick-off of the summer travel season. And if you're out on a road trip, there's a good chance you may end up sailing down the Trans-Canada Highway. Mark Richardson wants us all to know the often overlooked stories that paved this roughly seven-and-a-half thousand kilometre road system. The automotive journalist speaks with Piya Chattopadhyay about the history, people and politics that shaped "Canada's Main Street", as he explores in his book The Drive Across Canada.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with The New York Times' Luke Broadwater and The Economist's Gregg Carlstrom about the impact of Donald Trump's visit to the Middle East, WIRED's Louise Mataskis and University of British Columbia's Muhammad Abdul-Mageed look at how AI translation tools may affect language learning, the Atlantic Council's Michael Bociurkiw helps make sense of the latest talks between Russia and Ukraine, automotive journalist Mark Richardson shares a history of the Trans-Canada Highway, and linguist Sali Tagliamonte surveys the factors that have shaped the language we use to describe summertime escapes. Discover more at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

If you've ever owned an iPhone, iPad or Mac, you may have noticed these words printed on the back: "Designed by Apple in California. Assembled in China." But there’s a bigger story behind that simple tagline. Financial Times journalist Patrick McGee tells Piya Chattopadhyay that few understand just how key China and Apple have been to each other's rise. His new book Apple in China explores a relationship that's central to the world as we know it, one which is facing new challenges from tariffs to tensions with Taiwan.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with Vatican journalist Charles Collins about the path ahead for Pope Leo XIV, Financial Times journalist Patrick McGee gets to the core of Apple and China's symbiotic relationship, journalists Shannon Proudfoot, Rob Benzie and Jason Markusoff explore how Prime Minister Mark Carney might approach competing provincial priorities, and New York Times culture critic Amanda Hess delves into how tech culture is shaping modern parenting. Find more at at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

In the latest edition of our monthly challenge That's Puzzling!, Piya Chattopadhyay competes against one familiar voice and one clever listener in a battle of brain games devised by puzzle master Peter Brown. Playing along this month are CBC News reporter and videojournalist Brett Ruskin in Halifax, and Dundas, Ont. listener Brenda Bjarnason.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with The Economist's Rob Russo, Le Devoir's Emilie Nicolas and The Hub's Sean Speer about our post-election political reality, science journalist Laura Spinney explains how one ancient dialect inspired scores of languages we speak today, veteran political columnist Andrew Coyne talks about the "crisis" he sees in Canadian democracy, and we play an all-new round of our monthly challenge, That's Puzzling! Find more at at https://www.cbc.ca/sunday

This Wednesday marks the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. The conflict led to more than one million people fleeing the war-torn countries of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Canada accepted approximately 200,000 refugees from the region between 1975 and the 1990s. Canadian author Vinh Nguyen was among them. He speaks with Piya Chattopadhyay about retracing his family’s journey in his memoir The Migrant Rain Falls in Reverse, and how this moment in history resonates with diasporic experiences today.