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Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová starred in the 2007 film Once together, and performed music as the Swell Season. Alamy Stock Photo
Series7 deadly reads
Sitdown Sunday: Markéta Irglová and the late Glen Hansard on making music together
Settle down in a comfy chair with some of the week’s best longreads.
IT’S A DAY of rest, and you may be in the mood for a quiet corner and a comfy chair.
We’ve hand-picked some of the week’s best reads for you to savour.
1. Taking in murder suspects
Adrienne Behrman took in two young women to help them get back on their feet. They stayed in her home for several days, but when holes began to appear in their backstories, Behrman began digging, and discovered her guests were wanted for murder.
(The Washington Post, approx 10 mins reading time)
‘That nearly week-long stretch in Genoa, Ohio — and Behrman’s immediate call to 911, followed by the suspects’ swift arrest — is now part of a homicide case that began inside a Maryland high-rise apartment where Hilde Henderson (67) was found beaten to death in late May.’
2. Are we living in a romance recession?
There is no shortage of dating apps and matchmaking events, but in the US the number of people dating and in relationships has sharply dropped over the last 50 years. What’s going on?
(The Atlantic, approx 28 mins reading time)
‘Dating has always entailed some hardship, but it used to be the norm to find love in everyday life—at the office, at church, at a party. People didn’t need to choose what to step away from. Now many of the quirks of modern life have made meeting organically in person less likely. More people are tucked away at home, working remotely, streaming TV, and having food delivered to their door; approaching strangers feels fraught when so many of us are used to flirting via text with people who have already ‘liked’ us. So we depend on the apps even as we resent them. Dating becomes another responsibility to squeeze in, ‘like you’re scheduling a job interview,’ Sarah Boyle, a 29-year-old public defender in Chicago, told me.’
3. Lured to London for organ trafficking
A 19-year-old man called Daniel who worked on a market in Lagos, Nigeria was promised a better life in the UK. He didn’t know that in exchange he would have to donate a kidney.
(The Guardian, approx 20 mins reading time)
‘Noticing Daniel’s uneasiness, Dupont asked if he was scared to tell the Ekweremadus that he did not want to go ahead. Daniel said he did not want to donate his kidney. It was only when Dupont made clear that the operation would not happen that Daniel finally made eye contact, the doctor testified. ‘He was nervous that I would say or imply that the decision not to proceed was his fault. I assured him that confidentiality was paramount and the intended recipient would be told he was unsuitable.’ He recalled Daniel saying about Obeta: ‘He had not told me anything about this. I would never have agreed to any of this. My body was not for sale.’
4. Jackmaxxing
US singer-songwriter Jack Johnson has transfixed Gen Z with his calming lyrics and chilled out vibe. His songs have inspired the concept of ‘Jackmaxxing’ – maximising relaxation by listening to Johnson’s songs.
(The New York Times, approx 11 mins reading time)
‘It was a rainy Monday night, and “SURFILMUSIC,” a documentary about the singer-songwriter’s enviously low-cortisol life, had just screened at Angelika Film Center. At 51, Johnson hovers an inch or two below the rarefied air of household-name status. His catalogue of unassuming beach pop is a staple at many a white-walled brunch spot where drinks come in Mason jars. Banana Pancakes, his song about, among other things, the tyranny of getting out of bed, has more than 750 million streams on Spotify. He is the soundtrack for a Sunday drive in a sensible hybrid vehicle, and, these days, his original devotees are, like him, navigating the turns of midlife. Surprisingly (or not), some of their kids have become Jack Johnson fans, too.’
5. The psychic capital
Cassadaga, Florida has become known as the psychic capital of the world. People have flocked to the small wetland town for decades to converse with spirits. But how did it all start?
(Dispatch, approx 12 mins reading time)
‘What people come for, mostly, is grief. A loved one recently passed, an unresolved conflict, a guilt that’s never quite let go. Spirit tells some they did nothing wrong, that they took care of them. ‘We call it spiritual counselling,’ she says.’
6. The UK’s hikikomori
Hikikomori is a Japanese term for people who withdraw from society. This article looks into the lives of young men living as hikikomori in the UK, some of whom love their lives, and others who want change.
(Dispatch, approx 11 mins reading time)
‘Since leaving school five years ago, Daniel estimates he has left the family home ‘maybe once a month’, to pick up essentials at a local shop — always making a beeline for the self-checkout — or to put out the bins when Claire was away. Instead, he has spent his time gaming, sleeping long hours, reading online forums, listening to podcasts and watching TV. He’s ‘a film nerd’, working his way through the catalogues of different directors in turn and noting down his thoughts and analysis afterwards.’
…AND A CLASSIC FROM THE ARCHIVES…
7. Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
Glen Hansard, who died aged 56 in July, and Markéta Irglová starred in the 2007 film Once together, and performed music as the Swell Season. In this 2025 Hot Press interview with Markéta Irglová and the late Glen Hansard, the pair discussed working together and their Swell Season career highlights.
(Hot Press, approx 14 mins reading time)
‘Whenever we play something as an ensemble, it takes on a different feeling. And, of course, we’re singing from a different place too, because our relationship has deepened and broadened. Sometimes there’s a bit of sadness in a lyric, but I like to take that now and transform it into the positive of things. And there are certain songs we wrote back then that are actually just too sad. Yesterday, I suggested a song and Markéta just said ‘No!’ And I totally understand why, like, ‘We’re not going there!’.’
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