John Maier

Yuri Gagarin – poster boy of manned space flight

The young Russian cosmonaut, appointed ‘first man’ only weeks before launch date, had the perfect looks and temperament for a hero’s mission

Yuri Gagarin — perfect body, perfect temperament, perfect smile, perfect blood pressure. Credit: Getty Images 
issue 17 April 2021
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  • Beyond: The Astonishing Story of the First Human to Leave Our Planet and Journey into Space

    Stephen Walker

    William Collins, pp. 512, £20

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Thomas Edwards

Pope Francis leaves behind a divided church

Pope Francis’s death at the age of 88 was neither untimely nor a great surprise. Having made what appeared to be a miraculous recovery from double pneumonia and kidney failure – and subsequently turning up at St Peter’s in a poncho just two weeks ago – Francis appeared to have been granted a new lease

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