“My words stayed in folders”: life as a fandom lurker
I was listening to the conversations of other fans, but I wasn’t talking. For years—for more than a decade, in fact—I didn’t say a word. When I was a child, I wrote stories about my favourite...
View ArticleLeave will leap on the immigration rise, but Brexit would not make much...
Non-EU migration is still well above the immigration cap, which the government is still far from reaching. On announcing the quarterly migration figures today, the Office for National Statistics was...
View ArticleNo, Christopher Hitchens did not convert to Christianity on his deathbed
From Mother Theresa to Princess Diana, for Hitchens, there were no sacred cows. He certainly would not have wanted to become one. The suggestion that atheist writer Christopher Hitchens converted on...
View ArticleCommons confidential: Comrade Corbyn the coverstar
Milne's messages, Chilcot rumours, and why the Evening Standard may have backed Zac.Tony Blair’s first flatmate, Charlie Falconer, will find himself in a difficult spot should Jeremy Corbyn stick to...
View ArticleI didn't expect to have to choose between a boyfriend and Judi Dench - but it...
He told me I'd spoiled the cruise by not paying him enough attention. But what was I to do when Dame Judi Dench asked for a chat? This happened around 20 years ago, in the days when a new boyfriend...
View ArticleLast Whites of the East End reveals the complex effects of immigration
Is it possible to feel uprooted from a place you've never left? Plus: Going Going Gone: Nick Broomfield’s Disappearing Britain. Tony Cunningham is a West Ham-supporting bus driver, thick of eyebrow...
View ArticleAre 50 per cent of misogynistic tweets really sent by women?
A new Twitter analysis suggests that while women may troll differently to men, they do abuse one another more than we realise. Trolls are white men alone in their bedrooms, right? We all know that....
View ArticleLeader: Against neverendums
At present, we are experiencing a fetishisation of referendums. But we must remember that Britain is a representative democracy. Imagine a Britain where the death penalty was restored, where...
View ArticleLet’s not abolish sex work. Let’s abolish all work
To describe sex work as “a job like any other job” is only a positive reframing if you consider a “job” to be a good thing by definition. Is sex work “a job like any other” – and is that a good thing?...
View ArticleIt's time to rid the beautiful game of online abuse
Kick It Out first started receiving reports of social media discrimination relating to football in 2012/13. Today at Kick It Out we’re launching a social media campaign called ‘Klick It Out’ – looking...
View ArticleWas the BBC's World on the Move trying to cheer up coverage of the refugee...
Angelina Jolie looked nervous as she addressed the threatre. But if anyone should feel foolish, it ought to be the BBC.“Welcome to this special broadcast on Radio 4 and the BBC News Channel in the UK,...
View ArticleIain Duncan Smith says what most Brexiters think: economic harm is a price...
The former cabinet minister demonstrated rare candour by dismissing the "risks" of leaving the EU. Most economists differ only on whether the consequences of Brexit would be terrible or merely bad....
View ArticleHow Ken Loach's radical vision won him a second Palm d'Or
In Loach's films, authenticity is everything, and when his quest for realism pays off, there's nothing as raw in all of cinema. On 22 May, at the age of 79, Ken Loach became the first British director...
View ArticleNext month's Spanish election is on a knife edge
After a December election failed to produce a clear result, Spain goes to the polls again a month today - but the result will likely be tight again. In December 2015, Spain had the general election...
View ArticleThree’s adblocking trial is terrible news for journalism
Against a backdrop of editorial redundancies, it's hard to feel celebratory about the rise of adblocking. In a decision which will delight phone users but strike fear into media companies' hearts,...
View ArticleDonald Trump is definitely the Republican presidential candidate
Previously unpledged delegates have revealed their support for the billionaire, taking him past the delegate tally required. Donald Trump has attained the number of delegates required to become the...
View ArticleTuition fees uphold socialist principles - the left should support them
The amount of disadvantaged students applying for university between 2005 and 2015 went up 72 per cent in England, which was bigger than all other countries within the UK, including Scotland. Since...
View ArticleThe new catchphrase that John McDonnell hopes will keep Britain in Europe
The shadow chancellor's gambit could prove decisive. John McDonnell has a new catchphrase: “Tory Brexit”. It may sound uncomfortably close to the name of a new character in Star Wars but it’s what...
View ArticleThe NS Podcast #150: Englishness, X-men and Equality
The New Statesman podcast. This week, Helen and Stephen try their best not to talk about the EU. Instead they turn to Boris Johnson’s media strategy, MP’s expenses, and Labour and the idea of...
View ArticleThe polls appear positive for Remain but below the surface the picture is...
If you take out the effect of the drift towards phone polling, the last month has seen an improvement in the Remain vote of just 1 per cent. The last couple of weeks have looked very good for the...
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