Innholdsfortegnelse for 27-12-18 i The Big Issue

01 SEE Manga vs van Gogh London is spoiled for choice in 2019 when it comes to major art exhibitions. The British Museum hosts the biggest ever celebration of Manga ever staged outside of Japan. The Tate meanwhile presents van Gogh and Britain – the largest collection of works by the Dutch master in the UK in a decade. Iconic comic art or timeless post-impressionism, which will it be? You could do both of course. British Museum, London, May 23-August 26; britishmuseum.org; Tate Britain, London, March 27-August 11; tate.org.uk 02 SIT! STAY! ROLL OVER! Dogfest – the ultimate summer festival for dogs Dogs finally get the party they deserve. Going walkies to three different locations around England next summer, it’s a weekend of have-a-go activities for canines and canine owners…

I like remembering Christmases, even the bad ones. Most of the good ones have disappeared into nothingness. You learn something from the bad ones, hopefully, though often nothing from the good ones. Perhaps it’s our natural state to suffer. Certainly most of the world has a crummy, distressed Christmas. One year a transitional girlfriend of mine gave me a pound a day for the whole holiday period, starting off with Christmas Eve and ending on New Year’s Day. And the keys to her flat. She would be away with family in their bourgeois home. There was only one proviso: no wild sex, drink and drug parties. It was the greatest of Christmases up ’til then. Twenty-one troubled Noëls, and now this yuletide oasis. No fights. No privation. No cramped, sweaty…

As a historian, is it really true that history just repeats itself and the turbulent times we are currently going through are nothing new? You might stand in a river at the same place, but the water always flows slightly differently. It's certainly true that in history there are massive shifts in global power, which is what I think we're going through right now with the rise of Asian economies, climate change, migration. But one thing that history does teach you is that change in itself is normal and once you've got your head around that then the question is not how do you stop it, it's how do you adapt. Are we in Britain hindered by our lingering empire state of mind? We definitely do have a sense that…

Housing policy is easily the sexiest New Year’s party topic. But after 12 months of turbulence in Westminster’s Department for Housing and dizzying policy announcements – half-announcements, re-announcements, repackaging and rehashing – across the UK, does anyone actually know where we are with this most fundamental of issues? To help you navigate the murky waters, we have put together a handy quiz to test your housing knowledge. Clearly it will dazzle your pals, and you’ll be a better person for knowing it… 01 Why did Windsor council leader Simon Dudley cause a stir in January ahead of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Windsor Castle wedding? a) He couldn’t find the right top hat to match his suit b) He refused to shut off roads in the town centre to allow…

At 16 my main preoccupation was with getting drunk. Oh yeah, and I played Hamlet in the school play. So I was quite focused on that, and the rest of the time I was trying to get illegal drinks in pubs. Did I have a privileged upbringing? Well, I grew up near the moors, just outside Sheffield, with six brothers and sisters. We had a couple of dogs and various other pets, hamsters and fish and all that crap. I spent most of my time on my bike running up and down the road. We were quite self-sufficient because there were so many brothers and sisters. We did have friends but I don’t remember leaving the house much because I just played with my siblings. So yes, it was a…

UNTITLED BY LARISA BARTASEVICIENE Larisa started making and selling art at the end of 2014, before she and her son became homeless. “I stored my acrylic paintings under a bridge, where they were damaged,” she says. “When you don’t have a home, you don’t have a guarantee of anything. Now I am working, paying for rent, studying and dreaming about putting on a small exhibition, selling some of my artworks and prints and buying frames for others.” Street Art is created by people who are marginalised. Contact street.lights@bigissue.com to see your art here. To see more and buy prints: bigissueshop.com At least half the proft goes to the artist.…

Jodie Whittaker Doctor Who herself! We are in the age of streaming and I am a binge watcher. So I watched three episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine last night. I have seen it all already, but I am watching it again because there is a big long gap between new episodes because someone stupidly cancelled it. Ruth Wilson Mrs Wilson star Misty at the Trafalgar Studios was fantastic. That is a new form of theatre, so brave and raw and completely creative and from his imagination. Arinzé Kene is putting it all out there. We have not seen anything like it for years. Everything has been very plot, structure-based. I feel like this is the future – new voices and so many platforms. So Phoebe Waller-Bridge is making her own stuff,…

01 Look after your mind as you would any other part of your body. Take responsibility for your life. We all have valid reasons for the hardships we face. It empowers us to blame the world, getting angry at people for letting us down. Bad news? It is your problem. Good news? You are the solution. 02 Take 10 minutes out every day to take care of your mental wellbeing. We all have days that get a bit tough. It’s what makes us human. But, we need to react to it in the right way. Ten minutes is how long it takes to do our hair, brush our teeth, do the dishes. We need to invest the same amount of time looking after what’s most important – our minds. 03…

Every week one of our vendors tells us their story. They’re honest and moving and offer a fascinating insight into the journey that's led to them selling the magazine, what’s happening for them now and what their plans are for the future. Here are some of the best of the past year. JULIE CHERRY, 47 M&S, Wimborne, Bournemouth “I started selling the magazine after I got sick and ended up losing everything. I’d been working in the NHS secretarial temps bank but I got Graves’ disease, so they had to let me go. To begin with I was rough sleeping and it was awful, after that I was in a hostel and eventually I got a one-bedroom disability flat. Through The Big Issue I’ve also got a second job as…

Istvan Kakas was so well-loved on his Halfpenny Bridge pitch in Bath that he was even honoured by the city mayor after saving the lives of a dad and daughter. Originally from Hungary, Istvan kept the bridge where he sold The Big Issue for eight years clean using a broom and that proved handy to pull the pair out of the River Avon in 2014. The former chef, who once cooked for top chef Gordon Ramsay, died in October aged 52 following a battle with leukaemia and around 100 people attended his memorial service a month later. Istvan underlined his selfless streak when he spoke after his life-saving effort. He said: “I was so scared for the poor girl, she looked in shock and her family were terrified. I’m just…

The silk roads were the trade routes that connected the ancient world together and this century could become dominated by their return. China is investing $1 trillion in its Belt and Road Initiative that will make Beijing an economic hub and establish the country as the undisputed heavyweight superpower of the world. Currently, China is carrying out or planning construction projects in over 60 countries connected by six economic corridors. Critics fear it will use ‘debt-trap diplomacy’ to exert its will over other countries, but China says it is about improving international relations. The plan is to increase trade by $2.5 trillion when the project is completed, planned to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China in 2049.…

01 Match these numbers to the question: 1) 42 2) 66 3) 817 4) 13 a) In March, how many millions of pounds of the housing budget were MPs told had gone unspent? b) What percentage of all families accepted as homeless in England were found to be headed by single mothers? c) How many UK people held the same wealth as the 3.7bn poorest this year? d) What percentage was the rise in foodbank use announced by the Trussell Trust? ANSWERS: a3, b2, c1 d4 02 Can you guess the numbers?: a) How many houses has the government pledged to deliver every year by the mid-2020s? b) How many homes did they deliver last year? c) How many of those homes were affordable? d) How many homes do the…

MY BREAKOUT YEAR It has been an absolute whirlwind. I would go to work, then they would fly us off to San Diego for Comic-Con or to film in South Africa. Now I can reflect and appreciate the journey I have been on. You are part of Doctor Who forever. And to be an Asian character that is part of a sci-fi show and is not a stereotype of an Asian character – for me, that was a big deal. HOW DID IT HAPPEN? There are a million people you can get on well with. But me and Jodie [Whittaker], from the first audition, absolutely hit it off. [Showrunner] Chris Chibnall told us, “It is not about finding a new best friend”, but Jodie was like, “It is, it is.”…

It’s funny, you remember weird things from when you were young. I was obsessed with listening to the radio and I remember when Kenny Everett played Bohemian Rhapsody on Capital Radio 194 in the mid-1970s, I must’ve been about seven or eight years old. It was the longest record I’d ever heard on radio – I thought it was three records he was playing in one. I wasn’t a rock fan, but I remember it changing how I felt about hearing music on the radio. As a child, I didn’t think I’d have the chance to be a radio broadcaster as I had no role models to aspire to. I remember going to bed with the radio on. I felt better, like I had company. I’m a black DJ –…

A hand up, not a handout... Our sellers BUY every copy of the magazine for £1.25 and sell it for £2.50. Trade, not aid… Which is why we ask you to ALWAYS take your copy of the magazine. Our sellers are working and need your custom. Poverty is indiscriminate… That is why we provide ANYONE whose life is blighted by poverty with the opportunity to earn a LEGITIMATE income. The right to citizenship… The Big Issue Foundation, our charitable arm, helps sellers tackle social and financial exclusion. Prevention… Big Issue Invest offers backing and investments to social enterprises, charities and businesses which deliver social value to communities.…

There has to be light. There has to be a belief that the current confused state is one that we will overcome. The turn of the year is always a period of different visions and renewal. Though it is tricky to peer through the fog just now. A senior politician, in the days before Christmas, using rather more colourful language than on their regular media appearances, told me things were fecked. This politician spoke of government departments swamped by Brexit preparation, moving to no deal preparation, with ministers not sharing a lot of the info they had as they were protecting their fiefdoms. It wasn’t a pretty picture. How we leave is now framed as a matter of belief rather than one of fact. And battles of faith rarely end…

Big, bold, celebratory, challenging and shouting about issues that matter – that was our year in covers. And our readers have come with us: you stood by hardworking Big Issue vendors through the Beast from the East and supported our campaign to ‘Turn Up The Heat’ on politicians (more on that in 2019). We created a special souvenir edition for Arctic Monkeys, who invited our vendors to their shows to sell the magazine, and Snow Patrol gave away an exclusive 7” only available to Big Issue readers. And you loved the new-look magazine when we launched our redesign in November. Next year will bring new innovation and campaigning – be sure to join us. Back issues & tea-towel versions available at bigissueshop.com…

Erin Kellyman may be in the early stages of her acting career, but she is already on her second iconic role. Passionate, lovelorn Éponine is one of the most memorable characters in Les Misérables . Her unrequited feelings for Marius and journey from riches into destitution are guaranteed to yank the heartstrings. Kellyman is the latest actor to emerge, fully formed, having trained at the Television Workshop in Nottingham (see also: Vicky McClure, Samantha Morton, Jack O’Connell). And the tragic Les Mis heroine role was a dream come true. “Les Misérables has been my favourite film since I was little,” she says. “And I loved Éponine ever since I went to see the musical in London when I was even younger.” But there was one small…

MY BREAKOUT YEAR A lot has happened in the last 12 to 18 months. I went from being fired from working at a theatre because I couldn’t make coffee very well to being the lead in Informer. It was a big learning curve, but also a big stepping stone. I took my family and close friends to a screening and could see they were buzzing. WHAT’S NEXT? One of my main inspirations would be Yasiin Bey, formerly known as Mos Def. He had a shortlived but quality acting career – you could tell there was some motivation for him that was not money or prestige in the roles he picked. I’m looking for quality, not quantity. There has to be something for me in it to do a half-decent job.…

Boosted by well-intentioned New Year’s resolutions a lot of us will be thinking of joining a gym, or at least going out for a run if and when the weather ever picks up. But should we be equally determined to improve our mental as well as our physical health? “Most of us will spend at least 10 minutes a day showering or washing, making food, reading a book or newspaper, on social media, a call to a friend or shopping, but few of us spend any time on our mental health, strength and happiness,” says Owen O’Kane. O’Kane has developed a system combining various techniques called Ten to Zen that he believes can change our outlook in just a few minutes every day. It was developed from his work as…