Harry and Meghan: The disorientation of royalism

The popularity of the British monarchy has constantly fluctuated with the successes and scandals brought about every year regarding specific members of the family. More recently, we can look at Prince Andrew, for example, and his involvement in the Epstein scandal, though he is yet to be held accountable. Despite him arguably not being a fair representation of the family, the damage made to the public image was significant and it shifted the narrative around the family. We’ve seen this far more prominently in the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, who have provided the biggest source of interest and speculation for royalists and abolitionists alike. However, their sudden move from their traditional, intimate home in London to the celebrity-ridden, flashy Los Angeles has reignited a debate of whether the royal family is a toxic, corrupted and scandal-drenched household or whether it is conversely a structure that maintains dignity, and simply had a pivotal discussion with the couple about their duties and desire in the family.

Harry and Meghan: The disorientation of royalism

Britain’s high street: gone as we know it?

When I heard the news that Asos had bought out Topshop (and by extension Topman and Miss Selfridge), it suddenly began to dawn on me … Oxford Street is going to have a gaping hole. More seriously, it is indicative of the profound changes our high streets are destined to experience in the next few months and years. This was following Boohoo’s acquisition of the struggling department store Debenhams. That same online fashion retailer is set to buy the remnants of the Arcadia group (Dorothy Perkins, Burton and Wallis) in the next week or so.

Britain’s high street: gone as we know it?

Brooklyn 99’s ‘evil’ twin: is The Good Place an analogy for the prison system?

The Good Place. It’s good. It’s funny (case in point: Kristen Bell yelling ‘ya basic!’). It’s thought provoking (case in point: William Jackson Harper quoting Nietzsche is the biggest source of inspiration for my coursework). It has some much-needed representation—including a south Asian main character, which I don’t think we see enough of on TV. But I would like to postulate another nuance: is The Good Place a metaphor for the prison system?

Brooklyn 99’s ‘evil’ twin: is The Good Place an analogy for the prison system?

2020: The good news

2020 has been an exhausting and eventful year for all of us, and as it is we already have trouble focusing on the positives rather than the negatives, so in case anyone needed a reminder (because I know I do), here are some of the best things to come out of 2020

2020: The good news