The Big Issue

The Big Issue is one of Britain’s leading news and cultural magazines. Every week’s edition is packed full of original takes on the biggest issues of the day as well as interviews with the most significant figures in politics and entertainment. The Big Issue was founded 1991 to give people experiencing homelessness the opportunity to earn their own income. We continue to support hundreds of vendors across the UK and all proceeds from sales go to help anyone wanting to lift themselves out of poverty.

Talking shop

THE DISPATCH

PM FOR THE PM • We put the Glaswegian author, activist, rapper and social commentator in the Downing Street hot seat for an afternoon

‘She’s the Queen of Mill Street’: Sam, Demi and the town that brought them both back • Bideford vendor Sam Oates credits his dog Demi with getting him through addiction and seven years of homelessness. In rural Devon, though, keeping a dog healthy is harder than it ought to be. Marc Burrows spends a morning on Mill Street

YOUR LETTERS

EDITOR’S LETTER

The Big Issue

BIRD’S WORDS • Ending rough sleeping is the goal, but less discomfort is a good start

Natalie Imbruglia • An early belief that stardom was imminent led to a role in Neighbours and a pop career, but self-confidence wasn’t easy to hold on to

How do we put the spark back into the British high street? • More than a million buildings are currently lying empty across the country – including thousands of commercial properties that remain boarded up as high street footfall continues to decline. Paradoxically, we also have 135,580 households in temporary accommodation and a social housing list that would take – according to Shelter – 119 years to clear at the present rate. Isn’t there an obvious solution here? We’ve looked at the underlying causes behind retail’s collapse, and gone to meet people who’ve repurposed empty buildings for the benefit of their communities, to find out how they did it and see how we can replicate their success.

Can closed pubs offer a solution to the housing crisis?

Homeless in a heatwave

EVER THE YOUNG SOUL REBEL

Lashes and a Sock

The prints of Egypt • Egyptian author Shady Lewis has written a profoundly British tragicomedy, based on his experiences as a support worker navigating the absurdities of London’s housing, homelessness and mental health services

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SAM DELANEY IS NOT AT HOME

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‘There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to assisted dying’

BIG Kids • ISSUES / IDEAS / IMAGINATION

Puzzles

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