The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals has been considered Charles Darwin's forgotten masterpiece and is his only book on psychology. It is also the first ever systematic application of Darwinian theory to the expression of emotions and has been considered by some to be the foundational text of evolutionary psychology. This article explores some key concepts in the book and gives reasons why both psychiatry and psychology can benefit greatly from becoming better acquainted with this work.

John Bowlby's ‘Attachment and Loss’ trilogy set the scene for half a century of attachment research and theorising. This article picks out the key themes of his work – the attachment dynamic, the impact of trauma and life events, defensive exclusion, loss and bereavement, and internal working models – and points to their continuing relevance.

Stengel, Cook and Kreeger's Attempted Suicide is the most sustained early attempt to draw out the social setting of an attempt at suicide. It is part of a real flourishing of social psychiatry in the UK and reinforces a productive model for collaboration between research psychiatrists and psychiatric social workers in the 1950s and 1960s. The sheer amount of work required for a robust social setting, charting the social repercussions for an attempt at suicide, is laid bare in this text.

In this issue of BJPsych Advances Siddaway explores the challenges of assessing and treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD. In this commentary I reflect on those challenges, not least of which is the need for a thorough understanding of different approaches to diagnoses. The very concept of diagnostic classification systems can be problematic, but when used sensitively they can aid communication, assessment and treatment. The relatively new diagnosis of complex PTSD may serve as a more accurate and more useful description of some psychological difficulties, leading to better treatment decisions. Good assessment, leading to accurate diagnosis, useful formulation and effective treatment takes time, and adequate resources should be allocated. Professionals can help patients to make well-informed choices about treatment options and they should offer evidence-based treatments without unnecessary delay.

In A Plea for the Insane (1918), Lionel Weatherly outlined the inadequacies of the Lunacy Act 1890 and of asylum care in England and Wales, and proposed solutions and ways to bring about improvements. It took courage to persist, but Weatherly was undeterred by controversy or criticism. This article reflects on his book and its context and timing at the end of the First World War, and considers whether we may be inspired to confront current healthcare crises with the same sort of passion and fervour as he did.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists’ report CR193 details the responsibilities of psychiatrists who provide expert evidence to courts and tribunals. This brief commentary describes the rewards and challenges of expert witness work, the author's role as the College's Lead for Expert Witnesses, and importance of CR193 for expert psychiatric witnesses.

Email is a major means of communication in healthcare and it facilitates the fast delivery of messages and information. But email's ubiquity has brought challenges. It has changed the way we get things done, and working days can be dictated by the receipt and reply of multiple email messages, which drown out other priorities. This article examines email's advantages and disadvantages and, with a focus on healthcare professionals, examines what individuals and organisations can do to ensure email works for us, rather than – as can seem the case – the other way around.

Acute behavioural disturbance is relatively common during the perinatal period. The management of agitation in pregnant women is similar to that in the general population, although with some additional considerations, such as modifications to restraint techniques, careful medication selection, monitoring of maternal and fetal well-being and the importance of a debrief. There are benefits of agreeing a pre-determined care plan for women who are at risk.

Many authors have considered the ethical dilemmas of a doctor being both the treating physician and expert witness in litigation. The debate has often focused on the potential for bias and the adverse impact being an expert witness can have on the therapeutic alliance. Much of this debate seems rooted in the ethic of non-maleficence. In this article we attempt to examine the other end of this ethical quandary. Using a pragmatic approach, we explore these conflicts and consider biases from other sources. Ultimately, taking on the mantle of both roles is becoming increasingly unavoidable. Hence we argue that, although there are challenges, embracing this dual role can be an important part of holistic treatment, risk management and the pursuit of the ethical principle of justice.