Game changer: Emilia Clarke interview
Issue 1097
In this week’s Big Issue…
In November, a helicopter crashed into the Clutha pub in Glasgow killing 10 people. It was a shocking, shattering event. Playing that night was a ska band called Esperanza. The members have refused all interviews and requests from media across the world since it happened. They’ve decided they want to talk now, but only to The Big Issue. An incredibly moving and ultimately uplifting piece from Peter Ross dealing with loss and what comes after. Esperanza, incidentally, means hope.
And more…
Our Letter To My Younger Self this week is with Frank Skinner. Very funny on lies told of early sexual encounters, very open about wrestling with faith and why he likes Pope Francis and some belting quotes about vandalism as an artistic expression.
Our cover splash is on Game of Thrones. It’s a TV show – you might have noticed trailers and ads. We speak to star Emilia Clarke and we also investigate how this thing of dragons and feuds is helping build a multi-million pound industry in Northern Ireland and also prop up a teetering economy.
John Bird looks at the identity of the Labour party – where it has come from since Keir Hardie and where it goes now after the death of Tony Benn.
Rachel Johnson gets stuck into the M&S ads. Speak better to women, roars Rojo, all women. And that goes beyond M&S.
There’s a great chat between Jemaine Clement, formerly of Flight of the Conchords, and MacKenzie. New Zealanders’ attitudes to homelessness and football make, oddly, for an interesting copy.
Our featured vendor telling their story in My Pitch is Ziggy Stewart, working in Norwich. He’s living in a tent and he supports Manchester United. The Big Issue is lifting his spirits.
Elsewhere – discover how the hunt for tiny people in central London went, Mark Ayres of the Radiophonic Workshop features in the coveted My Week spot and we have a panda picture.
And read about our new subscription service.
If you’d like to subscribe to The Big Issue, or if you wish to buy a copy but can’t locate a vendor, email robert.white@bigissue.com