Happy Hour in Wigan
If you wonder why an old fashioned socialist like Jeremy Corbyn has been re-elected leader of the Labour Party you could pay a visit to the deindustrialised North. George Orwell learned a lot up here in 1936. Eighty years later many in Wigan are waiting for „Socialism of the 21st century“ to arrive.
British author and artist Edmund de Waal about the obsession with porcelain, Austria and his international bestseller „The Hare with the Amber Eyes“.
Instead of profiting from a chaotic government situation after Britain’s Brexit vote on June 23rd the Labour party is about to destroy itself. Jeremy Corbyn seeks re-election as leader.
This is an updated English translation of an article which appeared in profil.
If you would be a left wing British leader of the opposition and you would want to show the world the deplorable consequences of neoliberalism, what would you do? On his way to a campaign meeting in Newcastle Jeremy Corbyn threw himself last month on the floor of a train and complained that there were not enough free seats for him and his entourage to sit on. In his view this was clearly caused by the privatization of British Railways.
High hopes: #hugabrit with Joe & Caitie - who founded creative lab Fancylamps - on June 18th.
How #hugabrit tried to convince the British people to stay in the European Union. And failed.
(updated English version of a text published in German in Cicero and Die Furche)
Murder victim Jo Cox on The Guardian cover: A country in shock
The best and the worst British traditions come to show in these last days of panic before Britain holds a referendum about the membership in the European Union.
The Three Brexiteers as photoshopped by The Sun
Three weeks to go to the EU referendum in Britain on June 23 and the Conservative party is close to explosion.
http://www.cicero.de/weltbuehne/brexit-so-zerlegt-man-eine-ehrwuerdige-konservative-partei/60981
Polish film director Agnieszka Holland about her work at “House of Cards” and parallels between Frank Underwood and Donald Trump.
Interview published in profil, Austria
There are not many like Agnieszka Holland. The 67 year old Polish filmmaker has pushed through the glass ceiling: A feature film director from Europe playing in the first league of American TV series. And a woman. Holland directed some episodes of the Netflix-Hit “House of Cards”, which follows the power hungry couple Claire and Frank Underwood alias Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey on their way into the White House. “House of Cards” has been called “Shakespeare for the TV age”. Holland also directed the rough police series “The Wire” and the New Orleans saga “Treme”, both for pay TV HBO.
What do the subjects of her majesty really think about her? A pub crawl through the pubs with the Queen in the name.
Text: Tessa Szyszkowitz, Photos: Alex Schlacher
Before they discuss business the three gentlemen standing around the Queen’s larder take a good sip of beer. Then they are ready to talk about the upcoming 90th birthday of Elizabeth II. “She has done a fantastic job!”, says Nick Startup with such pride as if he had contributed to her success. Stuart Martin, 71, can only agree: “Especially if you consider that all 12 prime ministers who she had during her reign were all useless.”
Turkish author Elif Shafak talks about the relationship of her government to humour, the problematic deal for the refugees and the responsibility of European populists for the situation in Turkey.
She speaks softly, polite and thoughtful. Even so, each of her words are being heard loud and clear: Many of her 14 books have been bestsellers and many were translated in dozens of languages. Her most recent book was “The architect’s apprentice”, Penguin, 2015. The voice of the 44-year old Turkish intellectual carries considerate weight in social media, too. She has 1,7 million Twitter follower. Shafak lives in Istanbul and London, where she met profil in a coffeeshop in Marylebone for an interview.
