The Know Daily - Thursday 10 August 2023

_{Thursday 10 August ∙ Read in 5m 20s ∙ Listening to Cian Ducrot}

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Golden lion tamarins are bouncing back from extinction in Brazil’s Atlantic Rainforest, a new survey has found. Efforts to save the monkeys began in the 1970s, when they numbered around 200. Today, there are around 4,800 in the wild - so while the monkeys are still considered endangered, conservationists are celebrating their resurgence.

🎓 Stay-at-home students

As many as one in three students starting university this year may opt to live at home, a new study has found.

Tell me more.
Before the pandemic, about 20% of first year undergraduates in England lived at home, including mature students.

This academic year, that proportion could rise to 34% of 18-year-old school-leavers if they are accepted by their first-choice uni, a new University College London survey of 11,000 current sixth-formers has found.

Why is this the case?
“While some students planning to live at home said their preferred university was nearby, most said they could not afford to live away from home or needed to remain near their families,” said The Guardian.

The survey also found that young people from families who used a food bank or who were in arrears on mortgage or rent payments were much more likely to plan on living at home.

What have the experts said?
Sir Peter Lampl, chair of the Sutton Trust social mobility charity, has called on the government to reintroduce maintenance grants “so that disadvantaged young people can study away from home and benefit from the full university experience”.

But the Department for Education has defended the current finance system, saying it ensures that “the highest levels of support are targeted at students from the lowest income families”.

Is there anything else I should know?
There is reportedly fierce competition for university places this summer, amid a population growth in 18-year-olds and a rise in international students. A-level students who miss out on their expected exam grades next week have been warned that they must act quickly to secure a place elsewhere through clearing.

📺 A craving for cosy crime

Cosy crime comedy-dramas are reportedly going down a storm at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe festival - but what’s behind the enduring popularity of the murder mystery genre?

What’s happening at the Fringe?
“2023 is expected to be the year of ‘cosy crime’,” said The Observer’s Vanessa Thorpe, “when world-weary fringe punters will turn to the comfort and escapism of a whodunnit”.

Shows such as Murder on the Disorient Express - along with other detective comedies and parodies - are reportedly proving themselves to be “killer tickets” at the festival, with acclaimed producer Francesca Moody telling the paper that it’s “definitely a comfort thing” for audiences.

But why do we find murder mysteries so comforting?
Today’s so-called “cosy” crime dramas - think: Midsomer Murders or Father Brown - are a throwback to the golden age of detective fiction in the 1920s and 1930s, epitomised by authors such as Agatha Christie. In these satisfying whodunnits, graphic or explicit depictions of violence are almost always avoided - and the killer is invariably caught.

In today’s uncertain economic and geopolitical times, it’s perhaps unsurprising that we’re once again craving the certainty offered by the genre. “Crime dramas are all about law and order,” George Chrysostomou wrote in Reader’s Digest. “In the end, the status quo is restored and some justice is served.”

So what’s next for cosy crime?
The tried-and-tested formula is still proving to be a winner for authors and directors alike. Knives Out - the murder mystery franchise starring Daniel Craig as gentleman detective Benoit Blanc - has proved a box-office hit, while Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club was an instant bestseller and is making its way to the big screen.

So whether you’ll be tuning in or not, cosy crime dramas certainly seem here to stay.

Are you a fan of the genre - and if so, are there any TV shows/plays/books/films/podcasts that you’d recommend? Let us know by replying to this email.

🔥 Pub fire latest: The fire which caused extensive damage to The Crooked House pub near Dudley is being treated as arson, police have confirmed. The remainder of the building was demolished by a mechanical digger two days after the blaze on Saturday evening.

🩲 Period pants VAT debate: Retailers, MPs and charities are urging the UK government to scrap the 20% VAT on period pants, urging that the absorbent underwear should be classified as a period product - rather than a garment.

🇪🇨 Ecuador shooting: An Ecuadorian presidential candidate was shot and killed at a political rally in the capital on Wednesday. Fernando Villavicencio was known for speaking up against cartels and corruption, and in his final speech he said he would lock up the country’s “thieves”.

🐦 Taking a piece of Twitter: Almost 600 Twitter items are set to be auctioned off by Elon Musk weeks after the company was rebranded to X. The list includes coffee tables, Twitter building signs, oil paintings of viral images and a DJ booth.

🎥 Barbie banned (again): Kuwait has banned showings of the global hit Barbie in order to protect “public ethics and social traditions”, its state news agency has said. Lebanon is poised to bring in a similar ban, due to the film “[promoting] homosexuality and sexual transformation”.

Trivia answer: B) Teachers in Hillsborough County, Florida, are preparing to use only excerpts from works by Shakespeare in a bid to comply with controversial rightwing legislation that also clamps down on LGBTQ+ and gender issues.

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