Current issue

Here are a selection of excerpts from the current issue. You can see more in the current issue page here

Planet magazine has been offering a radical approach to the culture and politics of Wales and the world for nearly half a century. You can read a little more about our history here

Deian Timms celebrates how small-label indie music can be a powerful channel for popularising independence for small nations such as Wales and Scotland. He argues that in a long tradition dating from the balladeers of the 1848 revolutions, this is part of a deeper yearning for an alternative reality in a dysfunctional world.

Mike Joseph recounts an uncanny chain of coincidences, drawing on his experience as the child of German Jewish refugees in Cardiff and his career in journalism, which led him to reflect on the histories of Jewish and Black people in Britain, and the racist violence faced by both communities.

Writer Meltem Arıkan recounts how she fled to Wales in fear of her life following persecution in Turkey over her play, which was accused of being a dress rehearsal for the Gezi Park protests. She reflects on how walking across Wales has transformed her, and the new play this has inspired.

Damian Gorman draws on his own experience of the ‘Troubles’ to share the story of how he came to be involved in a project marking fifty years since the start of the conflict. He describes how the project engaged with people on both sides of the divide who were profoundly affected by violence, followed by the poem he wrote which emerged from these dialogues

Planet is hosted in the Old College at Aberystwyth University. For more information about the New Life for the Old College project see https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/oldcollege/ Planet receives financial support from the Welsh Books Council and is sponsored by The School of English, Communication and Philosophy and The School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University. For more information about how you or your organisation can support us please contact us here.