Good morning. This has been one of those years when the news cycle feels almost surreal to caricature. From Jeff Bezos commandeering Venice for his lavish wedding at a time of growing backlash over inequality, to the spectacle of Donald Trump returning to office for a second term, the material was endless for cartoonists, though often difficult to navigate.
Less unrealistic include Israel’s violence against Palestinians in Gaza, the strengthening of the Russia-Ukraine war, the threat of AI to human creativity, and the return of the far right across Europe and the US.
Political cartoonists have the incredible task of trying to capture the absurdity, cruelty, and resonance of these moments. They also have to understand the news cycle: prioritizing the most outstanding moment of each day, and choosing how to portray it.
So for today’s newsletter, we talked to the award-winning cartoonist and illustrator ben jenningsAsked him to choose some of his favorite cartoons from the past year. We also discussed the challenge of portraying a world already teetering on the edge of absurdity. He’s after the headlines.
In Depth: A Gift and a Curse
Cartoons have long been a major subject of satire for British newspapers and the Guardian is no exception. This tradition of vilifying leaders – from kings to prime ministers – dates back to the 18th-century satirist James Gilray, who exposed the grotesque underpinnings of the Enlightenment. Veteran cartoonist Martin Rawson’s exploration of that history is essential reading.
Centuries later, Ben Jennings tells us that the hunger and need for such satire is just as strong.
“We had the return of Donald Trump 2.0H-No to keep cartoonists busy in 2025,” says Jennings. “Despite being somewhat of a gift to cartoonists, it is a double-edged sword that his presidency has been so ridiculous that it can be a challenge to satirize it. In a way, it seems his existence itself is a satire of America and the turbulent times of late-stage capitalism.”
We’ve compiled a list of the 12 most powerful cartoons of the year. The selection includes seven personal favorites of Ben Jennings, along with his commentary on the inspiration behind his sketches. We chose the remaining cartoons for the list.
It was fitting to start with Rawson’s January 2025 illustration, as it reflected a decade of attacks on free speech: from the 2015 terrorist attack on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo to the unsettling takeover of The Washington Post by technology mogul Jeff Bezos.
January 1: Martin Rawson on a brief 10-year history of cartooning
February 2: Ella Baron on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
March 3: Elon Musk reacts against Ben Jennings and Tesla
Jennings says, “Donald’s troubled relationship with Elon Musk, which was always destined to break down, given that two egos of such magnitude could not possibly coexist, provided much fodder for cartoonists, as did Musk’s frequent moves to the extreme right.”
April 4: Ben Jennings on Donald Trump’s dominance in news headlines
Jennings says, “Continuing to watch the spectacle of the headline-hogging Trump Show – where one unprecedented scandal is soon forgotten and replaced by the next – has been exhausting. I made this cartoon about this phenomenon.”
5 May: Ben Jennings on the 80th anniversary of VE Day
We asked Ben to choose the one cartoon that best expresses the political mood of the year. They chose it for the 80th anniversary of VE Day. He says: “It combines memories of past wars with the worryingly increasing conflicts happening today. Certainly a big part of remembering is to try to avoid anything like this happening again, but unfortunately it can now feel as if history is beginning to repeat itself in many ways and humanity never learns.”
June 6: Ben Jennings on Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s Venice wedding
“Where some people might choose to rent a private room at a pub or perhaps even a barn conversion for their wedding party, Jeff Bezos rented the Venice,” says Jennings. “It was a lot of fun covering it with this cartoon, which also touches on the extreme wealth of billionaires, which has been a hot topic of conversation in 2025 as there is an increasingly vocal demand that such abundance be taxed more effectively rather than hoarded by a handful of tech bros as astronauts.”
July 7: Ben Jennings on starvation in Gaza
“Despite the ridiculousness of some of the above, it’s an easy choice for cartoonists to make, but with some of the conflicts we’ve seen over the past year, such as the repeated horrors in Gaza, it’s become harder to find new ways to approach and imagine them,” says Jennings.
August 8: Madeline Horvath on life under our new AI overlords
9 September: Pete Songhi on UK recognition of Palestine as an independent state
10 October: Ben Jennings discusses Keir Starmer’s concerns over Nigel Farage
“Closer to home, Labour’s tumultuous first year in government has provided much of the inspiration for cartoons as well as a national obsession with flags,” says Jennings.
November 11: Ella Baron on Zoharan Mamdani’s New York City mayoral victory
12 December: Ben Jennings on social media ban for Australia under-16s
Before Jennings left on vacation, we asked him what’s coming next. “I’m currently preparing a book of my cartoons from the last 10 years that will be published by the end of next year,” he says. “Within that time period there have been some significant events that we’ve gone through – from the pandemic to Brexit – that we’ve moved on from very quickly.” What will 2026 bring to their drawing boards? “We’ll have to see what happens!”
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