Outlook Mixtape: Rare orchids, manga love and Liverbirds

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The stories we love from Outlook this week. Tom Hart Dyke's obsession for plants led him to the Darien Gap in Central America, in search of an orchid to name after his granny. But his mission was cut short when he was kidnapped at gunpoint. Daniyal Ahmed was mesmerised by a video clip of an elderly musician playing the benjo – an obscure stringed instrument with typewriter keys. Eventually he set off to Balochistan to try to find him. When Japanese manga artist Eri Nanato was diagnosed with autism and ADHD, she and her husband, Satoshi, decided to create a manga inspired by their experience. Within just a few years of forming an all-female rock'n'roll band as teenagers in 1960s Liverpool, The Liverbirds were a commercial hit with adoring fans as far away as Japan. Surviving band members Mary McGlory and Sylvia Saunders reminisce about their chaotic rise to fame. Presenter: Jo Fidgen Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707 (Photo: Cassette tape. Credit: Getty images)