Culture

(v.) to talk boastfully or pompously; to talk without actually saying anything meaningful

As hustings are held throughout the country as part of that morbidly parochial spectacle that is the Tory leadership contest, the Count of the Saxon shore remembers the internationalism that was always part of the regional nature of English identity.

WAG Club founder and DJ Chris Sullivan reminisces and riffs about the rave scene of the late 80s

Otto English on why celebrities, who know very little about the political issues they are offering views on, should stick to their métier.

The Count of the Saxon Shore on the Anglo-Saxon arguments about independence and internationalism over a religious customs union with Europe.

Salena Godden on how our ancient dreams of the impossible became today's realities and prove that 'Pessimism is for Leightweights'

(n.) a noisy quarrel about politics

In the first of a new Byline Times series, ‘Wall in the Mind’, Hardeep Matharu explores the 30th anniversary of the end of the Berlin Wall and how and why the building of walls is making a worrying comeback.

Erika Koljonen investigates whether cheap and cheerful clothing can be sustainable as the fast fashion brands claim.

Chris Sullivan on the age-old debate about whether fictional displays of violence increase it in reality, now informed by some groundbreaking research.

Whenever Mike Stuchbery travels to Stuttgart he is reminded that the courage to resist authoritarianism and tyranny isn't restricted to a particular kind of individual and here manifests itself in the form of a bookish single mother.

Salena Godden's fourth episode of 'Pessimism is for Lightweights' warns of the dangers of too much bad news and the need for hope.

aberglaube (n.) belief in things beyond the rational or verifiable.

John Mitchinson on the life and times of Ignácz Trebitsch and the prescient lessons our politicians can take from his grisly demise.

In the latest in his series exploring how to experience travelling as a antidote to your mood, Kyle Taylor sets out the wonders of Hong Kong.

John Mitchinson explores why weeds force us to think differently about what is and isn't 'natural'

Salena Godden writes her third episode of 'Pessimism is for Lightweights' about a testing week that had a precious moment of solidarity

Mike Stuchbery on a renaissance artist who overcame the predatory sexism of her day and survives as an emblem of feminist persistence.

The Count of the Saxon Shore on why 'the North Remembers'. It was the original source of a progressive, articulate English identity.