New Welsh Review: The Last Word

The latest edition of New Welsh Review is out now. It is the first under the stewardship of Kathryn Gray. You can read Kathryn's debut editorial here. The mag contains a couple of brand new features, including an opinion piece, The Last Word. Yours truly was given the dubious honour of writing the inaugural one.

An opinion piece should, I think, be a bit provocative, so I decided to have a little dig at Welsh literary criticism. In particular, I questioned why Welsh science-fiction, fantasy and horror are so often ignored by critics in favour of more 'authentic' authors like Dylan Thomas, RS Thomas etc. In my view putting authors into an officially-sanctioned top 10 and then writing about them ad nauseam is about a 100 years out of date. Anyway, I look forward to getting slaughtered in the next issue.

But listen, it's not all about me. There's plenty of other good stuff in the mag too. Welsh film director Justin Kerrigan talks about the making of his new film I Know You Know; Lloyd Robson raps about gonzo and Robert Mitchum; Terry Eagleton discusses Raymond Williams; there's a photo essay by John Briggs; new poetry by the sickeningly talented Joe Dunthorne, and much more.

You can get hold of New Welsh Review from your local bookshop or purchase a copy online, here. And remember, a magazine subscription makes a great Xmas present that lasts the whole year.