Soap and the City
Edwina Attlee’s book ‘Strayed Homes’ praises the in-between spaces of everyday life – the intimate public spaces that can be homes from home.
12 Articles by:
Rhian E. Jones
Rhian E. Jones grew up in South Wales and is now based in London, where she writes on history, politics, popular culture, and the places where they intersect.
Lost and Familiar Worlds of Socialism
A new history of early socialists in Bulgaria documents how many problems of the movement reach across the generations.
Still Shafted
Two new books on the Miners’ Strike reveal the solidarities that existed across the divides of today’s ‘culture war’ – and the ongoing effects of the defeat on the communities at the heart of it.
Late to the Party
In his new book, Ed Miliband’s speechwriter calls for a new politics of equality and community. Where has he been for the past five years?
Neither the Government nor the Market Will Save the Culture Industry
As the government treats the cultural industries – and cultural workers – with contempt, community-led initiatives may be the only way for cultural spaces to survive after the Covid-19 pandemic.
E. P. Thompson and the Volunteers on the Red Railway
A recently republished book edited by E. P. Thompson chronicles the story of British socialist volunteers who travelled to post-war Yugoslavia to assist in the construction of a railroad from Šamac to Sarajevo.
Saint Monday
The balance between work and leisure time has been contested for centuries including, famously, in ‘Saint Monday’ – where workers declared their own day off when a one-day weekend was not enough.
An Enterprise Allowance of the Left
Labour’s cultural policy needs creative responses to the disappearance of working class voices from the arts.
Every Day a Day Out
Britain’s working-class festivals are as much about a vision of the future as they are a product of the traditions of the past.
Bonnets Rouges et Gilets Jaunes
From the Rebecca riots to Occupy and most recently the ‘gilets jaunes,’ political costume has often been a part of anti-establishment movements.
Do Miners Read Dickens?
The history of the working-class in Britain has been one of creativity and dignity in the face of harsh and demoralising circumstances.
Politics After Satire?
It’s often said you can’t satirise politics anymore, but the Brexit fiasco ending in a socialist government would be a punchline of historic proportions.