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SubscriptionsCategory: Public Holidays and Traditions
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The Upside Down: For Whom the Bell Tolls
John Mitchinson explores the strangely complex method behind the music of the bells
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The Upside Down: Mummers The Word
In his monthly column, John Mitchinson explores why so many Christmas rituals boil down to fun and money
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The Upside Down: That’s The Way to Do It!
John Mitchinson explores why are we so fascinated by the odious, uncancellable, Mr Punch
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Revealed: The Worst Big Woke Things in the World
In a bid to join the booming right wing media market, Otto English reveals his secret Big Woke hitlist
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‘Culture Thrives On Dialogue and Difference’: Seasons Greetings From Byline Times
An end of year reflection from Peter Jukes, Co-Founder and Executive Editor of Byline Times
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The Upside Down: Why We Should Raise a Glass to the Real Father Christmas
John Mitchinson explores the attributes of the character that long pre-dates ‘Santa Claus’
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The Upside Down: Why Our Rituals of Death Need Re-Thinking
John Mitchinson reflects on what he learned about the ‘baffling presence of absence’ when his father died in his arms
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The Twelfth: ‘Celebrating One’s Own Culture Should Not Require the Oppression of Another’s’
Bonfires to mark the day in Northern Ireland are often used not as a symbol of one’s national identity but as a marker of territory, writes Emma deSouza
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The Upside Down: Why We Still Celebrate Christmas with Dickens
John Mitchinson explores the enduring relevance of the “little Christmas book” the author penned in 1843
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‘Pity Porn on Santa’s Knees’
Penny Pepper reflects on what the festive season means for her, as politicians and the media continue to marginalise the creation of new cultural narratives around disability
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Watchdog Thwarted from Deciding Whether £120 Million ‘Festival of Brexit’ Provided Value for Money
The Conservative chair of Parliament’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee has said questions must be asked as to ‘what the festival was for and whether it was worth it’
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The Upside Down: Where Is the Man? The Many Lives of Pontius Pilate
John Mitchinson explores the enduring fascination with the man who was asked to send Jesus to his death
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A War Christmas: What Exactly Are We Remembering?
Otto English explores how Remembrance Sunday has been commercialised and weaponised to feed hollow national myths
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Beyond the Masquerade: The Real Powers Behind the Hollow Crown
Hardeep Matharu explores how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have exposed the real power structures in Britain – now in full destructive, neo-imperial retreat
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Let the Nation Mourn: UK Marks One Year Since First COVID-19 Death
Amongst the politics swirling around the Coronavirus crisis, Britain must find time for collective grief, says Stefan Simanowitz
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We Should Never Forget COVID’s Many Victims – Or Why they Died
In our individual acts of remembrance we can honour the memories of all those lost – something Boris Johnson has no moral authority to offer any leadership on, says Otto English
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Give Our Sorrow Words: Biden Is Right to End Trump Era with Grief for COVID Losses
The incoming US President Joe Biden is today providing a space of collective mourning for the American nation, reports Stefan Simanowitz
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Emerging From the Christmas Mire
The Government may not seem like it cares much for its people, but the common humanity which has emerged in this challenging year can still be celebrated this Christmas, says Reverend Joe Haward
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The Upside Down: The Year of No Yule – How the Puritans Created Christmas Without Meaning To
John Mitchinson explains how increasing intolerance around festivities in the 17th Century helped promote a reactionary backlash
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Cop Violence to COVID-19: The Survival of Notting Hill Carnival
Chis Sullivan examines the history of Notting Hill Carnival and its decades-long battle against the Establishment
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UNCONSCIOUS EMPIRE: Saving ‘Britannia’ and Losing the Plot
Continuing to wage a Steve Bannon-style culture war, Boris Johnson’s Government will do nothing to confront the damaging legacy of our imperial past because its mythologised symbolism is all it has to sell to Brexit Britain, argues Hardeep Matharu
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Did Black Lives Matter to the British Empire in World War Two?
The often overlooked story of the African soldiers who risked their lives and left their families to fight for the British must finally be recognised – as the sacrifice of their white counterparts is
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THE UPSIDE DOWN: Not So New New Year – The original Winterval
John Mitchinson traces the significance of New Year and where the customs associated with it originated.
