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The Door to the House of Democracy
by Owen Gallagher
RITA DI SANTO reports on the films from Iran, Spain, Belgium and Brazil that won the top awards
JOHN GREEN wades through a pessimistic prophesy that does not consider the need for radical change in political and social structures
The Star's critic MARIA DUARTE reviews Along Came Love, The Ballad of Wallis Island, The Ritual, and Karate Kid: Legends
Heart Lamp by the Indian writer Banu Mushtaq and winner of the 2025 International Booker prize is a powerful collection of stories inspired by the real suffering of women, writes HELEN VASSALLO
FIONA O'CONNOR recommends a biography that is a beautiful achievement and could stand as a manifesto for the power of subtlety in art
ANDY HEDGECOCK admires a critique of the penetration of our lives by digital media, but is disappointed that the underlying cause is avoided
The door to the house of democracy
is being kicked in
its windows smashed
roof stripped
all that’s left is a shell of a building
that once housed many
it’s currently floating
on the stock market
it is not a listed building
care-workers brickies plumbers
and sparks from all over the country
are rushing to clear the debris
they are rebuilding
linking arms
and fighting back
slates timber floorboards
have been ordered
prospective tenants are applying
in their thousands
a surveyor’s report is expected
Owen Gallagher is a working-class writer, born in Gorbals, Glasgow who now lives in London. He left school at 15 and worked in factories and on building sites, also as a street-sweeper and bus conductor. His latest publication is: Clydebuilt (Smokestack, 2019)
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