Sharing a bed is a Victorian habit, not a biological need, and for many couples it is the biggest single cause of disturbed sleep. Independent sleep expert Dr Neil Stanley, who has studied couples’ sleep since 2005 and co-wrote A Sleep Divorce, makes the case for sleeping apart without falling apart.

The government’s new Be Ready campaign asks every household to be able to manage for three days without the services it relies on, electricity included. This guide covers the part of that the official checklist leaves open: how a house loses heat once the power stops, which bedding and blankets do the real work in an unheated bedroom, and how to layer them so a cold night stays a comfortable one.

Few things cause more quiet friction in a shared bed than temperature. One of you is throwing the duvet off, the other is pulling it back. Independent sleep expert Dr Neil Stanley explains what actually happens to body temperature overnight, why men and women so often feel it differently, and why the continental habit of two duvets on one bed may be the simplest fix of all.

Snoring is the subject of plenty of bad jokes, but for the person doing it, and the person lying next to them, it is no laughing matter. Independent sleep expert Dr Neil Stanley explains what causes snoring, how to protect your sleep from a partner who snores, and when loud snoring may be a sign of obstructive sleep apnoea.

Waking at 3am has become one of the most repeated claims on social media, and one of the least well explained. Independent sleep expert Dr Neil Stanley sets out what sleep cycles actually do through the night, why stress and cortisol get the blame, and the difference between what wakes you and what keeps you awake.