By Mark James (Allerton), director of Southampton’s Inkjet Media, local dj and owner of Overdraft Records Store, in response to: “Southampton council criticised for handing city rebrand to London firm” Eighty grand gone! This, honestly, feels like a slap in the face to every creative trying to make a...
Opinion Pieces
Reader’s letter: keep Russells Equestrian Centre at Itchen Valley Country Park
By Amanda Winstone, Epona Trust Sponsor. In 2021 In-Common featured an article about Carol Boulton, the proprietor of Russells Equestrian Centre along with her daughter Verity Tidmarsh. The article describes Carol’s amazing calmness with horse and rider and the unique experience it is to visit Russells, the tranquil and...
Opinion: New Southampton welcome signs are unwelcome!
By Mabel Wellman. The new Welcome To Southampton signs have recently been unveiled, replacing the previous signs which have remained the same for decades. This change has not been well received by many people in Southampton. The previous signs, which warmly exclaimed “Welcome to Southampton” with an image...
Reader’s letter: puberty blockers are life saving treatment
By Trans Pride Southampton. We at Trans Pride Southampton are appalled to hear of the banning of puberty blockers for trans youths. Puberty blockers are a life saving treatment for trans kids. They allow children to live their lives and figure out their identity without the pressure of...
Opinion: Why Stonewall’s Rainbow Laces Campaign matters
By Mabel Wellman. From the 16th November to the 4th December, Stonewall is having its annual Rainbow Laces Campaign to promote inclusion in sports. Various sporting organisations including the Premier League and England Lacrosse are taking part this year, as do thousands of regular people who put pairs of...
Experience: The trials and tribulations of working out as a trans woman
By Mabel Wellman. Since I was in primary school, I have enjoyed exercising. I was around ten years old when I got my first set of dumbbells with my pocket money. My step dad bought me a set of weights, dumbbells and barbells from a neighbour too not long...
View from the Kingsland: Rock Bottom
By Nick Mabey. Considering we’ve only amassed a grand total of one point from nine games, it’s surprising Saints have only just arrived at the bottom of the table (discounting goal difference moments here and there). We had Wolves to thank for elevating us to 19th until this past...
Opinion: Anti-racism – a call to action
By Manthan Pathak. This summer, the country endured a series of racist attacks that were perhaps the most vivid expression of hatred we’ve witnessed in decades. Now, we face the threat of that hatred spilling onto our streets again. As an anti-racist campaigner for 30 years, I write these...
Opinion: Home thoughts from ‘abroad’
By Martin Brisland. Image – Shanklin Old Village Earlier this year I managed to break my humerus bone where it joins my left shoulder. Not feeling up to a long-haul holiday and looking for a recuperative trip, we crossed the water and spent an extended time on the Isle of...
Letter: Why are our Pride crossings so neglected?
By Mabel Wellman. Did you know Southampton has two pedestrian crossings gilded in a stripe of rainbow colour, to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community? We do! They are situated on Commercial Road and Above Bar Street near Watts Park. However, they are not well looked after, sadly. The rainbow crossings...