Will in conversation with Sylvain Bourmeau about his latest book, Will, and many other things at Villa Gillet for the recent Littérature Live Festival (translated in French).
The end of London’s vintage Routemaster buses
“So, farewell then to the Routemaster bus – and while I fully appreciate that those of my readers who live elsewhere than the corporate death star formerly known as ‘London’, the fact remains that these vehicles were symbolic not just of the city but an entire culture. That this culture was largely bogus is neither here nor there – because let’s face it, most culture begins with fakery of one sort or another that once entrenched becomes indisputably real. Transport for London were operating a ‘heritage service’, the 15H, that ran from Tower Hill to Trafalgar Square, but what with the emissions issue and the lack of step-free access – plus the pesky pandemic – there was no longer any economic justification for a seasonal service aimed mostly at the tourist trade.”
The future of tourism after the pandemic
“There’s been a great deal of guff expelled over the past year or so about how the pandemic will make us rethink our lifestyles going forward: no longer will we sacrifice our souls on the altar of consumerism – no longer will we leave huge and sooty carbon footprints all over the place, and no longer will we treat other cultures as if they were a form, of exotic wallpaper, to be hung for a couple of weeks then stripped.”
Read Will’s latest New European column here.
Boris Johnson and Mexican Coke
Two new columns for The New European, on Boris Johnson’s reported disdain for John Lewis and on the arrival of Mexican Coke.
Why should you read?
Another essay for the Literary Hub, this time asking “Why should you read?”
The Vanuatu tribe who worshipped the Duke of Edinburgh
Will on the death of Prince Philip.
Why the world’s largest painting is a prodigal waste of paint
Will’s New European column on Sacha Jafri’s The Journey of Humanity, which sold for $62m.
Do we need to rediscover our animal selves?
Will and Melanie Challenger, the author of How to Be Animal: A New History of What it Means to Be Human, consider the notion that at the heart of the human condition there’s a complex struggle with being animal in this Bridges to the Future episode by the RSA.
Why being online does not mean we are all connected
Will’s latest column for The New European is about the implications of our surveillance culture.
Will Self Takes the Waters
Listen to all five of Will’s episodes on bottled water – from its origins to its environmental impact – for Radio 4 here.
