For the Love of Dogs

This week we’re celebrating The Big Issue dogs. On our cover is Jess – kitted out in her full festive regalia with Santa hat, reindeer antlers and a tabard – who belongs to vendor Ben. He and many more vendors tell us how their four-legged friends helped them get their lives back on track. Their stories are uplifting – and heartbreaking. We also hear from a canine charity boss who says Big Issue vendors’ dogs are the best behaved and best looked-after in the country, and we catch up with our vendor Ralph, who’s currently in Lapland training huskies.

Also in this week’s magazine…

There is a very funny, revealing interview with Ronnie O’Sullivan. The Rocket explains where the lines blur between his extraordinary life and the “parallel life” of the protagonist in his debut novel, Framed.

The ever-exuberant girl-group icon Martha Reeves shares details about her early days in the studio with Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder in her Letter to my Younger Self.

We hear first-hand from inspirational young carers, delve into why Trump unleashed a Twitter rant against the stars of Broadway musical Hamilton, and zoom in on some of the 100 million pieces of space junk lurking above Planet Earth.

And we have an incredible HBO giveaway (featuring booze and great TV shows), Hamilton giveaways, a quiz that tests whether you are smart enough to work for GCHQ and much more.

And, as always, much more…