New York mayoral candidate and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo made his catwalk debut this week.
Politicians from across New York, including former Gov. David Patterson (D) and Republican mayoral competitor Curtis Sliwa, joined Cuomo for the second annual “Style Across the Aisle” event during New York Fashion Week on Wednesday.
Hosted by the Gracie Mansion Conservancy, the bipartisan event seeks to bring Democrats and Republicans together to highlight local designers. The event was founded by Skye Ostreicher, a former journalist.
“We see what’s going on out there: the violence, the protests, people not getting along, just because of politics,” Ostreicher said at the end of the show, according to The New York Times. “I know for a fact that every person here wants to collaborate and work together and reach across the aisle and move New York City forward.”
Cuomo donned a custom blue suit from Bond & Bari Bespoke, a Manhattan based tailor and menswear label. The brand also dressed New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services Commissioner Louis Molina.
The Hill reached out to Cuomo’s campaign for comment.
The mayoral candidate made his New York Fashion Week debut as the mayoral election heats up.
Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani holds a comfortable lead over both Cuomo and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams. Both Adams and Cuomo are running as independents in November’s election.
Polling from Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill this week showed Mamdani 15 points ahead of Cuomo, 43 percent to 28 percent.
Proceeds from Wednesday’s fashion show will support Witness to Mass Incarceration, a nonprofit providing support to formerly incarcerated individuals. Fashion week ends on Sept. 16.
Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) is poised to sign the new map into law for the 2026 midterms after the state Senate gave approval on Friday. The map would likely give Republicans one additional seat in the House as the GOP tries to hold its narrow majority, taking out a current Democratic House member.
But Democrats may be able to send the issue to Missouri voters as a veto referendum for them to decide whether the map should be used.
Here’s what to know:
How it would work
Democrats legislatively didn’t have many options to stop the map other than temporary stalling tactics. But the vote margins that the map received in the legislature can determine whether they have another chance to stop it.
Missouri law has a mechanism for voters to effectively veto legislation passed by lawmakers by gathering support to force a statewide vote.
The legislation for the new map passed this week didn’t include a so-called emergency clause, which would have made the bill effective as soon as the governor signs it, local outlets reported. Despite the Republican dominance in both chambers of the legislature, the threshold for approving the emergency clause is higher than the number of seats the GOP has in the state House.
Now, Democrats and other opponents will have 90 days after the map is signed to collect enough signatures — five percent of voters in each of two-thirds of the state’s congressional districts — to order a referendum, according to the Missouri Secretary of State’s rules.
If enough signatures are gathered, an election would be held and the public’s vote would decide the map’s fate.
“I think that’s kind of the Democrats’ best bet at this point, that they’ll be able to use the referendum to beat it back,” said Greg Vonnahme, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
The Missouri Democratic Party declared its support for a referendum following the state Senate’s vote.
“They don’t care about the will of the people, or about protecting our voice in government,” said state party Chair Russ Carnahan about those who voted for the map. “Now it’s up to us to do what they won’t.”
The nonpartisan coalition People NOT Politicians – Missouri formally filed a referendum petition with the Missouri Secretary of State’s office on Friday, starting the process of gathering signatures.
Protests, polling signal opposition
Big crowds have reportedly gathered at the Missouri Capitol this week as thousands protested the redistricting plan, signaling a vocal opposition in the Show Me State as observers wonder whether a referendum push could get the support it would need.
Polling is sparse, but a Change Research survey commissioned by the Democrats’ House campaign arm at the end of August, as shared by Politico, found 48 percent of Missouri voters oppose the redrawing. Another 37 percent supported it, with 19 percent undecided.
Chris Melody Fields Figueredo, the executive director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, said the protests suggest people are energized to oppose the map and opponents are in a strong position to block it through the referendum process. The progressive organization works to use ballot measures to strengthen democracy, draw attention to marginalized communities and advance racial equity, according to its website.
“We’ve had thousands of people at the state capitol speaking out against this illegal gerrymander,” she said, adding that groups have a long history of using the initiative and referendum process to ensure that Missourians’ voices are heard.
But Dan Butler, a political science professor at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., suggested that it may not be in Democrats’ best political interest to push forward with a referendum.
“When voters go to the polls, maybe there are people who normally vote Republican, but they’re upset about this district map. They want to send a message. If there’s not a referendum … they’ll vote against the Republicans, in favor of Democrats,” Butler said.
“But if now they can vote both against this redistricting plan and still vote Republican, it actually, I think, ironically — potentially, it protects Republicans from some of the blowback they might get otherwise.”
Voters used referendum to reject law in 2018
Precedent exists for this type of process in the Show Me State to overturn actions from the legislature.
“Missouri is pretty active in its initiative use. But … we really don’t see the popular referendum used that much at all,” Vonnahme said.
Still, voters last used a referendum in 2018 to reject a right-to-work law that passed through the GOP-controlled Legislature. Labor advocates submitted roughly three times the signatures they needed to set up a statewide ballot vote, then rejected the law by a 2-to-1 margin.
“Grassroots organizations should use any opportunity available to them to defend direct democracy that has been widely popular in the state,” Figueredo said.
Targeted Democrat promises legal fight
Republicans control six of eight districts in the Show Me State, and the new maps would dramatically reshape Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver’s 5th Congressional District in Kansas City to help Republicans net a new seat.
After the Missouri House approved the maps this week, Cleaver called it “deeply disappointing” that legislators had “put the demands of DC power brokers ahead of the wishes of Missouri families in yet another partisan power grab.”
Cleaver, who has been in Congress for two decades, won reelection with 60 percent of the vote last fall, after line changes in 2022.
The Associated Press reported that Cleaver plans to challenge the new map in court –- and run for reelection next year, no matter what his district looks like.
“I think for opponents, the only shot is legal challenge, or this referendum avenue,” said David Kimball, a political scientist at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democrats’ House campaign arm, said “all options” are on the table.
“Missourians hate Republicans’ plot to gerrymander the state. The voters have pushed back to stop state Republicans from their past attempts to ignore the will of the people, and all options, including legal action and the referendum process, are on the table to ensure fair maps,” DelBene said in a statement after the state Legislature approved the maps.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health this week reported the death of a school-aged child due to a rare complication occurring from a measles infection experienced as an infant.
In a statement Thursday, the health department said the child had become infected before they were eligible to receive the measles vaccine. Their death was due to subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE).
The department described SSPE as a “rare, progressive brain disorder that is a late complication of infection from the measles virus.” It affects roughly 1 in 10,000 people who get measles, but this rate jumps to 1 in 600 for those who get measles when they are an infant.
“SSPE usually develops two to ten years after the initial measles infection after the patient seemed to fully recover. It is characterized by a gradual and worsening loss of neurological function with death occurring one to three years after the initial diagnosis,” added the agency.
In light of the death, the agency encouraged Los Angeles County households to ensure that all members are protected against measles.
Children typically receive their first dose of the measles vaccine at 12-15 months and receive their second dose when they are between 4 years old and 6 years old.
This death comes just weeks after the measles outbreak in West Texas was declared over. More than 700 cases were ultimately confirmed in the Texas outbreak, causing two deaths of school-aged children who were unvaccinated and had no underlying conditions.
“This case is a painful reminder of how dangerous measles can be, especially for our most vulnerable community members,” Muntu Davis, Los Angeles County health officer, said in a statement.
“Infants too young to be vaccinated rely on all of us to help protect them through community immunity. Vaccination is not just about protecting yourself—it’s about protecting your family, your neighbors, and especially children who are too young to be vaccinated.”
Vaccine policy is rapidly fracturing along party lines under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and states are prepping for more upheaval following a meeting of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in Atlanta next week.
Public health leaders are anticipating that the panel, which Kennedy stacked withvaccine skeptics, could roll back coverage of key vaccines ahead of the winter respiratory season.
To bolster vaccine access and insulate themselves as much as possible, legislators, governors and health officials are passing bills and issuing orders to clarify that pharmacists can administer COVID-19 and other vaccines.
A patchwork of regulations across the United States has added to confusion around vaccines. To date, at least Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Colorado, and Pennsylvania have taken steps to try to ensure that people who want a COVID-19 vaccine can get the shot.
The Food and Drug Administration recently approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but only for adults 65 years and older or those with certain underlying medical conditions that put them at greater risk for developing severe illness from the disease.
But the agency did not specify what conditions place a person at greater risk, sparking widespread confusion over who is eligible to get the shot, how to get them, and in some cases, how to pay for them.
States have always been able to make their own public health policies, but the federal government’s recommendations have helped align and standardize guidance.
At least 18 states and Washington, D.C., base their pharmacists’ vaccination authority on ACIP recommendations. A positive recommendation from the panel means that virtually all insurers will cover the vaccines for free. But if they don’t make a recommendation, there’s no guarantee insurers will cover the shots.
Blue state leaders are wary of the panel and have been outspoken against the changes Kennedy has made.
Welcome to The Hill’s Health Care newsletter, we’re Nathaniel Weixel, Joseph Choi and Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech — every week we follow the latest moves on how Washington impacts your health.
More than 70 reproductive groups are asking the Trump administration to call off the planned destruction of roughly $10 million of usable birth control products. Planned Parenthood is leading the most recent charge to save the contraceptives and sent a letter Friday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio with 77 co-signers. In the letter, the groups write that they “strongly oppose” the administration’s “cruel and wasteful” decision …
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, called on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to publicly support the whooping cough vaccine as Louisiana experiences one of the worst outbreaks in recent history. In 2024, six times the number of whooping cough — or pertussis — cases were recorded than the prior year. According to the Centers for Disease …
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health this week reported the death of a school-aged child due to a rare complication occurring from a measles infection they experienced as an infant. In a statement Thursday, the health department said the child had become infected before they were eligible to receive the measles vaccine. Their death was due to subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE). The department described …
Cox: ‘Social media is a cancer on our society right now’
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) on Friday urged people to turn away from social media, calling it a “cancer on our society” after announcing that the suspected gunman in the killing of Charlie Kirk is in custody. At the end of his press conference announcing 22-year-old Tyler Robinson as the suspected gunman in the shooting at Utah Valley University, Cox urged people to log off of social media, citing the violent imagery …
FBI Director Kash Patel reportedly criticized subordinates in a tense Thursday morning meeting over their handling of the investigation into Charlie Kirk’s killer.
More than 200 agents joined the online call, which was first reported by The New York Times. An official attending the meeting told the Times that Patel criticized the agency’s “Mickey Mouse operations,” saying it was one of the few times in the call that he wasn’t cursing.
During the call, Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino emphasized the need to catch Kirk’s killer. Patel also criticized Salt Lake City agents for not providing him with a photo of the suspected killer until 12 hours later, the Times reported.
Both Patel and Bongino flew to Utah on Thursday to personally oversee the investigation.
The FBI arrested Tyler Robinson, 22, the suspect in Kirk’s shooting, on Friday. According to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), Robinson was apprehended after a family friend reached out to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, stating Robinson “confessed to” his family “or implied that he had committed the incident.”
Kirk was shot Wednesday at an event at Utah Valley University. Patel said in a Wednesday evening post on social platform X that the FBI had taken a “subject for the horrific shooting” into custody, only to later announce the subject had been released after being interrogated by law enforcement.
The Wednesday blunder has cost Patel. Several MAGA allies criticized the director over his leadership, casting doubt on whether he was the right person to head the FBI.
“He performed terribly in the last few days, and it’s not clear whether he has the operational expertise to investigate, infiltrate, and disrupt the violent movements—of whatever ideology—that threaten the peace in the United States,” conservative activist Chris Rufo wrote on X.
Patel joined the FBI after a career as a federal prosecutor and Defense Department chief of staff. His lack of law enforcement experience led to some former GOP officials’ reservations against him stepping into the position.
Steve Bannon, a former Trump administration adviser, said he didn’t see the shooter’s apprehension as “great law enforcement work” speaking on his “Bannon’s War Room” show directly after the conference.
“I don’t know why Kash flew out there, you know, thousands of miles, to give us, ‘Hey, working partnerships and our great partnership in Utah’ — OK, got that,” Bannon said.
More Nato countries will move troops and fighter jets eastwards after more than a dozen drones entered Polish airspace on Wednesday.
Denmark, France and Germany have joined a new mission to bolster the military alliance’s eastern flank. Other Nato allies are expected to take part later.
Tensions have been high across Europe since Poland accused Russia of an unprecedented incursion. Some of the 19 drones that entered Polish territory were shot down, while others crashed into fields and even a house in eastern Poland.
Warsaw said the incursion was deliberate, but Moscow downplayed the incident, saying it had “no plans to target” facilities in Poland.
Drones and missiles have occasionally veered into countries bordering Ukraine, including Poland, during Russia’s full-scale invasion – but this was the most serious incident of its kind since the war began in February 2022.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said it was “the closest we have been to open conflict since World War Two”.
Denmark will contribute two F-16 fighter jets to support Poland’s air defence, as well as a warship, its defence ministry said.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said: “We must not be naive. Putin will stop at nothing, and he is testing us. Therefore, it is crucial… Denmark is contributing to this.”
France has already said it will contribute three Rafale fighter jets, and Germany has pledged four Eurofighters.
The UK is “fully committed” to help strengthen the Eastern Sentry operation, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement, adding that it will provide more details soon.
On Friday, European countries and the US backed Poland during an urgent UN Security Council session in New York discussing the incursion.
“The United States stands by our Nato allies in the face of these alarming airspace violations,” acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea said. “And rest assured, we will defend every inch of Nato territory.”
She noted that since US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had held their peace summit in Alaska nearly a month ago, Moscow had intensified its bombing of Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
European allies have said these large-scale aerial assaults indicated Putin had no interest in bringing the war in Ukraine to a close. Kyiv has itself probed deeper into Russian territory, hitting refineries, fuel depots and logistics hubs.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday that there had been a “pause” in peace negotiations, blaming Ukraine’s European allies for “hindering” the process.
Trump – who has so far resisted calls for greater sanctions on Russia while pursuing a peace deal – also warned that his patience was “running out fast”.
He told Fox News: “It’s amazing. When Putin wants to do it, [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky didn’t. When Zelensky wanted to do it, Putin didn’t.
“Now Zelensky wants to and Putin is a question mark. We’re going to have to come down very, very strong.”
While addressing the UN on Friday, Poland’s Secretary of State Marcin Bosacki held up photos of one of the downed drones and a house one had damaged.
“We know – and I repeat – we know that it was not a mistake,” he said.
But Russia continued to insist it had not targeted Poland, with ambassador to the UN Vasilly Nebenzia saying: “The maximum range of the drones used in this strike did not exceed 700 kilometers, which makes it physically impossible for them to have reached Polish territory.”
He said Moscow was willing to discuss the matter with Poland “if the Polish side indeed is interested in reducing tensions rather than fomenting tensions”.
Belarus – which sits between Poland, Russia and Ukraine, and is allied to Moscow – has previously said the drones had veered off course after their navigation systems were jammed.
The Netherlands and Czech Republic have already said they would send defences to Poland, while Lithuania will receive a German brigade and greater warning of Russian attacks on Ukraine that could cross into its airspace.
Meanwhile, Russia and Belarus began joint military drills on Friday, which they stage every four years.
They again rejected accusations that these posed a danger to neighbouring countries. The drills include exercises close to the border with Poland and Lithuania and in the Baltic and Barents seas.
Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) said he’s received threats over his Thursday statement urging the Trump administration to help cool the nation’s political temperature after the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
“My office has received an extraordinary number of violent and graphic threats yesterday and today from right-wing individuals online and over the phone—directed toward me, my family, and my staff—after I pointed out the simple fact that President Trump should join [House] Speaker [Mike] Johnson [R-La.] and other level-headed Republicans in condemning political violence, not inciting it further,” Moulton wrote in a Friday statement on social platform X, with a screenshot of hateful comments under his social media posts.
The Massachusetts Democrat said the “solution” to political disagreement in America is “never violence.”
“It should be easy for everybody to say that,” he told his followers, urging GOP lawmakers to condemn violence “just as I and many other Democrats condemn violence by the left.”
Lawmakers across the aisle condemned the assassination of Kirk at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. Several high-level Democrats, including former Presidents Biden and Obama, also spoke out against the violence.
“We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children,” Obama wrote in a public statement.
President Trump, however, blamed the political left for the loss of Kirk in a Wednesday night video message from the Oval Office.
“Radical left political violence has hurt too many innocent people and taken too many lives. Tonight, I ask all Americans to commit themselves to the American values for which Charlie Kirk lived and died,” Trump told the public.
Shortly after the shooting, GOP Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.) called on Trump to tone down his rhetoric.
“I think that’s ridiculous rhetoric,” Massie told The Hill.
“It’s amusing,” he added. “It doesn’t offend me that he’s over the top with the rhetoric, but some people take it literally, and he should probably tone that down himself.”
Still, some Republican lawmakers, such as Rep. Nancy Mace (S.C.), have openly blamed those with differing political views for Kirk’s assassination.
“Democrats owned what happened today,” Mace told reporters outside the Capitol shortly after the news of the shooting broke. “Just because you speak your mind doesn’t mean you get shot.”
Kang is a slight figure but when she walks into the canteen room in heels at Cobdown Park for the exclusive interview with BBC Sport, her presence can’t be ignored.
She shakes hands with everyone, introducing herself warmly before taking her seat, careful not to ruin her glamorous dress.
It is clear Kang is a highly-intelligent woman from early conversations. She has humour, compassion and a lot of knowledge in what she talks about.
Her multi-club ownership model has become a topic of conversation as women’s football continues to grow and explores new ways to seek revenue.
She has invested heavily in London City Lionesses’ infrastructure, playing staff and female-specific research and it has paid off so far.
Will it become a model that others follow?
“I don’t know if they say ‘we will follow this model’ but I think if you come into women’s football and have real, genuine interests of supporting women’s football, it’s a no-brainer conclusion,” says Kang.
“We don’t have the huge media deal that the men have. We don’t sell-out stadiums yet. We don’t have hundreds and millions of dollars of corporate sponsorships. But we still want to advance women’s football by investing in it.
“So what’s the natural conclusion? You have to build a scale. There is no reason why every team should invest in female research. We should pool that research together and share it. It’s the same with global scouting.
“I know it has bad connotations on the men’s side with greed and all those things, but in women’s football it’s a necessity until we have decent commercial resources available.”
Kang glows with pride at the work being done behind her, turning to point at the training ground’s construction work to improve facilities.
She has used the Premier League as a benchmark on the standards required for success and has designed, with architects, a plan she wants to replicate across all her clubs to provide the best environment.
Kang returns to this when asked if it is upsetting that some suggest she signs players from her other clubs in a way of manipulating the market.
Does she sign players from Paris St-Germain, Lyon’s rivals, to benefit her French club? It is one of the main criticisms of multi-club ownership – a model which is not universally liked.
“I understand it because they haven’t seen this yet so it’s only natural for people to assume that because in the men’s world, [it is perceived that] teams buy players so they can sell them for a much higher price,” adds Kang.
“In the absence of any other alternative, it’s not unreasonable to think, ‘oh, that is what she is doing’. I get that. My job is to ensure I don’t do that so they can appreciate they are not the same models.
“It is not about building a feeder system – that is not the purpose. It is to bring critical scale so we can invest in all the necessary infrastructure and research how our players need to be the best athletes. So we can put out the best product, so we can bring more people into the stadiums, and the media finds women’s sport attractive.
“It’s all related and all necessary. While we’re talking about comparisons… women’s football is very different to men’s football. We should really treat this differently.”
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) on Friday urged the public not to focus on the political alignment of the suspected Charlie Kirk shooter but to focus on mental well-being instead.
“What f****** difference does it make if this murderer was left or right. Pull yourself together, read a book, get some exercise, have a whiskey or walk the dog or make some pasta or go fishing or just do anything other than let this algo pickle your brain and ruin your soul,” Schatz posted on the social platform X.
He later quoted a post from Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), who referred to social media as a “cancer.”
“I know this guy is a Republican and all but I swear you could win all the electoral votes with this message in 28,” Schatz wrote in a follow up post on X.
Online discourse has fermented with theories about the motive behind Kirk’s shooting and graphic footage of his death.
Prior to Kirk’s death, Robinson shared disdain for Kirk’s rhetoric with family members at dinner, according to law enforcement officers.
Robinson is currently registered as an unaffiliated voter in Utah, but allegations about his political alignment has been publicly debated by Democrats and Republicans in recent days.
“Radical left political violence has hurt too many innocent people and taken too many lives. Tonight, I ask all Americans to commit themselves to the American values for which Charlie Kirk lived and died,” Trump told the public on Wednesday.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker later addressed reporters telling them, “The president’s rhetoric often foments” violence in the country.
However, Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) condemned divisive statements blaming either party for recent threats against elected officials.
“If the left is going to blame the right, and the right is going to blame the left, and we’re going to continue to say ‘It’s your fault,’ and we’re not collectively going to try to bring it down together, then this cycle is just going to continue to go on,” he told Fox News Digital.
Three series of The Summer I Turned Pretty have been building up to which brother Belly chooses
“Please tell me one of you watches The Summer I Turned Pretty???” reads a text from one of my best friends in our group chat.
We’re both in our 30s, married, have busy careers, and yet we’re hooked on a TV series about a teenage love triangle. The kind of obsession that involves shouting at the screen like it’s a football match, and then taking a week to recover from the emotional turmoil.
The third series of The Summer I Turned Pretty (TSITP) follows Isabel Conklin (Belly to her friends) as she makes what’s expected to be her final decision about which brother – Conrad or Jeremiah Fisher – she will end up with.
It’s Prime Video’s most popular show in the UK right now and social media is full of fan-made clips and opinions about whom she should choose. The much-anticipated finale airs on 17 September.
So, what is it that’s making us so emotionally invested in a romantic dilemma that doesn’t even exist?
Everyone loves a love triangle
Erika Doss/Prime
Conrad (in the black shirt) was Belly’s first love, Jeremiah came later
Love triangles aren’t a new storytelling device. TSITP could be compared to throwback TV shows such as The Vampire Diaries and One Tree Hill (though the latter features half-brothers rather than full brothers like Conrad and Jeremiah).
Warning: The below may contain potential spoilers – especially if you haven’t watched series three of the show
“It very much [encapsulates] everything that was really good about 2000s romcoms and those angsty, yearning dramas,” says fan Nathan Scott (no, not the One Tree Hill character). “All the looks across the room, the forbidden little touches and everything – it’s all there.”
Nathan used to see his fiancee Oliwia Netter, both aged 25 and living in London, watching TSITP, and initially his attitude was “this is rubbish and I’m not watching it”.
But after he glimpsed more and began asking questions, Nathan admits he binge-watched the first series in three days.
Nathan Scott
Nathan credits fiancee Oliwia for introducing him to both Taylor Swift and TSITP
Superfan Varun Lobo, 26, got into TSITP a couple of years ago but had not read any of the books, written by US author Jenny Han, on which the show is based.
He agrees it builds on storytelling elements that have worked well before.
“It really kind of evokes a nostalgia that takes you back to your first teenage crushes and teenage romances,” he says. Controversially, Varun is Team Jeremiah.
Becca Kittler, 30, read the books as a teenager in the US and has been Team Conrad from the start.
“I think everyone has their person and I know that Conrad is Belly’s. There’s that spark, that tie they have with each other, the history.”
Varun Lobo
Varun is proud of his posters that he says bring a little bit of Cousins to Nottingham
But isn’t a love triangle involving brothers a bit much, even for fiction?
“At the end of the day, it’s about escapism,” Varun explains, pointing to how he feels about the current state of the world. “Sometimes it’s nice to just take yourself out of it and go to Cousins Beach.”
Unafraid to discuss serious issues
Michelle Elman, 32, is also an avid TSITP viewer and works as a life coach in London. Despite the show skipping over some of the moral quandaries that arise from dating a pair of brothers, she appreciates how it deals with significant issues.
Death – a theme that also features in Dawson’s Creek, another popular show from the turn of the millennium – hangs over the second and third series of TSITP.
“It has a lot of threads around grief, as the boys lose their mum, and so there are some really serious undertones to it,” Michelle says. “But they are presented in quite a digestible way – I think that’s also where it’s resonated with some people.”
Michelle knows of mothers and daughters who watch the show together and use it as an opportunity to discuss how to deal with difficult situations – whether it be grief, dating problems or hurt feelings.
There is plenty of this to go around: for example, when Jeremiah gets drunk and makes unpleasant comments, or when Conrad fails to communicate his feelings.
The hype around TSITP has been fuelled by social media, particularly on TikTok where fans of the books speculate about the ending of the TV series.
This became more frenzied when Han teased the seriescould end differentlyto the book.
Others have created videos dedicated to the couple they’d like to see get together and many of these are set to songs by Taylor Swift, whose music features prominently in the show’s soundtrack.
Fans of Swift – who famously drops hidden messages and hints about future projects – have also become convinced Han has been planting seeds throughout the series to foreshadow the outcome.
Erika Doss/Prime
The bathtub scene – that’s all
Varun has had posters used to advertise the show reproduced at a print shop near his home in Nottingham. He’s framed them and they now adorn his dining room.
“That is how much I love the show,” he laughs.
Becca is particularly grateful for the online community that has built up around TSITP on forums like Reddit.
“I will forever be eternally grateful to this show. Because of it, I’ve been able to find some of my best friends and break out of my comfort zone,” she says.
Meanwhile, my group chat is bound to be pinging come finale day when it will become clear if my friends and I have backed the winning team (Team Conrad) – or not.
Like me, Nathan also feels watching the show is a bit like following a sport.
“The hype is like a Super Bowl or Champions League final,” he tells the BBC.
“I get the same feeling watching Conrad and Belly moments as I do when watching Liverpool… The feeling I got for the bathtub scene, or the peaches scene, is the same to me as a last-minute winner at Anfield.
