‘In Cyprus you cannot live off music’
The story goes that the great rembetika player Markos Vamvarakis was walking the streets of Piraeus and Athens in the late 1940s with his fellow musicians on the lookout for ...
What you see is what you get: Cyprus’ light-hearted feminist
Monica Gavrielides is someone you remember. She talks loudly – so loud she’ll often embarrass more self-conscious companions – in a musical accent honed by 40 years in Brazil and America. She’...
What’s it really like being John Malkovich
It’s around 12 midday in the foyer of the Cyprus Theatre Organisation (Thoc) building in Nicosia, and one middle-aged chap in a white shirt and navy-blue jacket greets another warmly.
“...
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Thanasis and the butcher shop of justice
Leto Cariolou’s CV is easy to find. Go online – whether to her law firm in Cyprus, or Garden Court Chambers in London – and you can read about her years ...
Uncle Mete: the ‘go to’ man on Cyprus
Agnieszka Rakoczy meets DJ, artist, former hotel manager, political analyst and Cyprus expert Mete Hatay, and is not at all surprised to learn he reads four books at a time
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The glamorous, unbelievable life of Cyprus designer
From partying in LA to a semi-rural life in Larnaca, one man is always dressed to impress. THEO PANAYIDES finds him where art and engineering meet
There’s a phrase ...
Extreme balance: a contortionist’s story
The ancient art of contortion led one headstrong child out of her home nation to the circus and on to balancing business with wellness. THEO PANAYIDES meets her
For best ...
‘I wouldn’t do it to my own kids’
From a Birmingham fish and chip shop to the Cyprus village of Kato Drys, everyone knows Panayiota. THEO PANAYIDES meets a restless lacemaker mourning the loss of local traditions
I ...
Blood-curdling tales of a Larnaca chef
A rock-star restaurateur in Larnaca is taking it slow after being given a second chance at life. THEO PANAYIDES finds out what is scary on the outside and beautiful on ...
His brand is creative chaos
Using the body itself as art, one local man with a curated look is both playful and serious. THEO PANAYIDES meets a man (once half fish) who trusts his instincts
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The paradox of the Palestinian Cypriot
In the creator of award-winning adverts, THEO PANAYIDES meets a driven, cool man who sees things other people can’t and believes the world should fight for Gaza, not feel ...
Three-act life of a travelling storyteller
In a Colombian storyteller, THEO PANAYIDES finds a woman who has lived through drama – stepping over dead bodies on the way to school – but finds medicine in stories
It’s ...
How does money work?
In the Queen of Money, THEO PANAYIDES meets a woman bored by the easy things, striving to overcome her impostor syndrome to shape change
It’s a strange thing about ...
Dynamic doctor buying time for his patients
In a roving oncologist, THEO PANAYIDES finds a socially conscious doctor who believes a positive mindset can help fight the bad vibes and worse of his days
“I had a ...
‘How could they allow themselves to reach such depths of depravity?’
Peace is the crucial element of life, the UK’s chief rabbi tells THEO PANAYIDES. He is a jovial man whose lifelong goal was to become a rabbi, now more ...
Farmer instructed by God to yell
Working the land is a gamble, one angry lifelong farmer tells THEO PANAYIDES, and credits praying to St Parthenios for curing his cancer
Tractors parked in single file, blocking the ...
The man who’s tried 33,000 different beers
In a beer celebrity drinking his way around the world, THEO PANAYIDES meets a man who has seen a lot and done a lot, including tasting 67 brews in Cyprus alone
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Palestinian Cypriot creative with an eye for emotion
In the creator of award-winning adverts, THEO PANAYIDES meets a driven, cool man who sees things other people can’t and believes the world should fight for Gaza, not feel ...
‘Six minutes that changed my life’
In a Turkish Cypriot poet who gained notoriety through what became an 80s anthem AGNIESZKA RAKOCZY meets a woman who was always a rebel but has only reunited both sides ...
Activist charged with saving the Akamas
In an outdoorsy, fiery architect THEO PANAYIDES meets the woman trying to steer a course between money and natural beauty
When I meet Antonia Theodosiou, in her office on a ...
Has Limassol therapist found secret to wellbeing?
From a child who was never heard, to a young ‘asshole’, to wearing many emotional hats, one alternative doctor is fearless. THEO PANAYIDES meets him
Where to begin? Most of ...
The mental strength of Cyprus’ long-distance runner
THEO PANAYIDES meets an ultra runner with a warrior’s tenacity in search of a hippy’s sense of freedom, a man who finds freedom when moving through nature
Some ...
Delivering ‘crazy science’ with compassion
In a woman working in Limassol on a cure for cancer, THEO PANAYIDES finds someone whose life fell apart when members of her own family died from it but is ...
Accidental politician with the burden of a famous name
In a Turkish Cypriot public figure, THEO PANAYIDES meets a doleful doer who treated politics much like a business. While dismissing the chances of Cypriots living together again, he is ...