Julian Sayarer

Julian Sayarer writes at (this is not for charity). The site and blog arose from his 2009 world record for a circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle, a protest against the corporatisation of sport and human endeavour. You can buy his account of the adventure, Life Cycles, locally on Hive. His latest book, Interstate, is published by Arcadia Books.

Disobedient Objects - you must go

Disobedient Objects is not a UK exhibition of well-designed protest materials. Disobedient Objects is a protest.

By Julian Sayarer

/ 1 Sep 2014

Day 138 - Atchafalaya - 14.438 Miles

Extracted from "Life Cycles" (reviewed here), in which Julian, racing around the world on his bike, accepts the hospitality of the bayou-dwelling Lemoine family, and confronts the contradictions of their generosity and their racism

By Julian Sayarer

/ 4 Jul 2014

A Turkish Spring?

Should Cameron, Obama, Hollande and Merkel remain tight-lipped about the disorder spreading across Turkey, we must conclude it is because they regard the measure of police force as an expedient that they themselves could ultimately resort to.

By Julian Sayarer

/ 4 Jun 2013

Beauty, burgers and Wilde's blue china: on the power of aesthetics

Do the "consumers of radicalism" Jon Moses refers to in his recent essay actually exist? An exploration of beauty and rebellion, through the lens of our relationship to the aesthetic.

By Julian Sayarer

/ 24 May 2013

Socialism in one country... and English football's Premier League

The beautiful game is rotting because of its place in the global economy: meaningful participation and attachment is being commodified, a process which brings great whooshes of cash into football. Can the game be fixed for the better?

By Julian Sayarer

/ 7 Apr 2013

'The BNP lost their way' and other gems from the Midlands

A self-confessed member of the London bubble ventures home to pole dancing, burger van politics and the final arrival of organic yoghurt.

By Julian Sayarer

/ 25 Feb 2013

openDemocracy: The price of principles

Julian Sayarer's post at thisisnotforcharity.com in support of openDemocracy

By Julian Sayarer

/ 25 Feb 2013

Cycling through Reading or Kazakhstan: otherness is not what it seems

Rape in India, protest in China, manufacturing conferences in Manchester - we find it hard not to think in the categories of "first" and "third" worlds. But look elsewhere for the important differences

By Julian Sayarer

/ 11 Jan 2013

Generation Rent: stop blogging, start acting

When everyone wants to be the 'voice of the lost generation', who will do the finding?

By Julian Sayarer

/ 8 Jan 2013

Is the end of cheap food just an agricultural problem

Food is getting scarce - and expensive. This is no longer news. But can we really confine ourselves to thinking about the agricultural end of this problem?

By Julian Sayarer

/ 8 Sep 2012

Twicktivism: could the illusion of power be potent after all?

The criticism of clicktivism may be well founded - that it is a substitute for action, a feel-dummy that makes life easier for the perpetrators of injustice. The author reflects on his participation in recent bicycle activism to offer the optimistic twist that an illusion of power could give peopl

By Julian Sayarer

/ 24 May 2012

Is inflation a good tax? Can we have an honest political discussion about it?

UK inflation at 5% is considered almost a victory by the economic managers of the nation. Yet it is a blunt instrument with strong redistributive effects. So what is a well-managed currency, and can we have an honest political discussion about it?

By Julian Sayarer

/ 30 Dec 2011