Special Relationships

Well, 2025 was an interesting year. The extreme polarisation playing out on the world stage seems to be finding its way into almost all of us. Stress, anger, blame and shame abound.

However, there is also kindness, love, beauty and humour in abundance. It just doesn’t always make the headlines.

At the end of a very difficult year, personally and globally, we were excited to celebrate the publication of our anthology: the first step in an ongoing effort to connect with other artists and theatre-makers to create meaningful impact.

Project Whale explores the links between violence against women, children and the planet. Through creative writing workshops inspired by theatre, art and emerging scientific attempts to decode whale communication, women and children reflect on our relationships with one another and with the Earth. Written against the backdrop of the 2024 UK and US elections and rising political tensions, the whale becomes both a metaphor for the planet and a call for transformation, especially in how we treat other species: learning to listen rather than chasing them into silence.

We are lucky to live and work in Central London, which feels like more than just the capital of the UK. In many ways it mirrors New York, multicultural and full of all sorts. A science teacher friend once described America as the parasite to our host, a compelling analogy when considering the so-called Special Relationship. Like it or not, we are more closely connected to the US than to any other nation. We love them and hate them almost as much as we love and hate ourselves. What happens across the pond ripples over here. With Musk’s endorsement of Farage and Trump’s fondness for the crown, it’s clear we matter to them, just as what’s happening in Minneapolis matters to us all. We must do whatever we can, wherever we can, whenever we can. Make Art Not War!

Linocut by Sophy Hollington