The Big Issue

By Greg BarradaleBig Issue Senior Reporter Poverty is set to be a crucial factor in the next general election – with political leaders urged to act on the soaring number of people in poverty and give the disillusioned public something to vote for. Lo

Detached period cottage, three bedrooms, conservatory, original features and magnificent sea views. All for the bargain price of £132,000. The catch? Turns out, the sea views got closer and closer. A landslide in April made the aptly named Cliff Farm

Sexism, misogyny, social media, calling your mates out, toxic masculinity, cancel culture… being a teenager in 2024 is tricky. It’s something I’ve discussed on my BBC Radio 5 Live show a lot, but until recently I’ve not had the chance to have a frank

A rotund willow tree is missing a ring of bark, cut out like a belt. Tree stumps stand, gnawed to a point. A path has been worn into the grass by the water’s edge. These features haven’t been seen in the capital since Shakespeare’s time. That was unt

The fight for our environment is gathering pace around the UK and beyond. The people behind Knepp Estate, a 3,500-acre project near Gatwick Airport, are changing the fates of endangered species. Knepp began its transformation in 2001 when its owner c

Furiosa is a new film but it’s an old, almost primal, story. The feverishly anticipated prequel to 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road, revs and roars into cinemas this week. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is the fifth film in the franchise, now spanning almost half

“There’s no deep meaning that initially motivates any of my collage work,” says longtime regular Street Art contributor Robbins, who is 96. “I cut and gather a pile of random shapes and images and place them on the paper, creating interesting juxtapo

What was I like at 16 – is slutty drug addict a good description? I was doing a lot of meth, getting pregnant and having abortions. And I’d stopped going to punk shows because I was sick of white guys spitting on me in the name of punk. When I look b

Catherine Swire’s life changed forever the day her sister was killed in the Lockerbie bombing. Her new memoir Flame, Ash, Feather: A Dozen Eggs from Lockerbie explores the deep emotional trauma of terror and loss. Here she details for Big Issue how s

When was the last time you consciously thought about Garfield the heroically lazy cartoon cat for longer than a split second? For me it was in 2012 when Andrew Garfield was starring in blockbuster reboot The Amazing Spider-Man. My hot take was tellin

Richard Rankin’s dad warned him not to become a cop. Now he’s about to be the most famous one in Scotland. “One of the biggest things he said to me was, ‘Don’t join the police,’” said the Glasgow actor, recalling his late father Colin’s advice. “He s

Wouldn’t you like to be able to fly? I would. I’d have to overcome the fear first, of course – not so much a fear of flying (that would be the fun part) as a fear of plummeting. But once I’d got the whole ‘aaarrrggghhh’ thing out of the way and had p

1. Musty, woolly growth on your head (6)4. Stiffness of various charts (6)9. Fall back into another error? (7)10. Changed position when touched (5)11. Entrance to Hades possibly in north-east England (9)12. Vehicle in the lead (3)13. Would it go to a

CHRISTOPHER CROSS, 35 Tracy in the Big Issue office really saved my life with the help she has given me. I’ve been selling the magazine about a month now and this job has really, really helped me. I had a hard time and I was homeless after my family