Nothing to fear: Facing down Donald Trump, one joke at a time

In this week’s Big Issue…

Halloween is coming. So’s the American presidential election. Why not combine both? Our great cover image is from illustrator Mitch O’Connell. It’s inspired by John Carpenter classic They Live, in which a chap finds a pair of old sunglasses that when worn show the unseen reality of the shadowy forces controlling us behind a normal façade. Which feels fitting. We interview Carpenter about that film and whether he foresaw what was to come. Good piece.

With Trump, there is no point trying to get stuck into policy detail. But the more buffoonish aspects of his character have been ripe for satire and ridicule. Peter Geoghegan looks at the rise of new political satire that the Donald has brought, much of it making the most of non-traditional means, such as Peter Serafinowicz’s sassy Trump parodies and the Bad Lip Reading people.

We celebrated our 25th anniversary with a party at Proud Camden on Wednesday. Surrounded by vendors, ex-vendors, friends, supporters and some great musicians, it was a wonderful night. We carry pictures, a report and detail how it’s inspiring all of to the next 25 years.

This week our Letter To My Younger Self is with Star Trek favourite George Takei. Simple and moving, he details an incredible early life that includes time spent in an internment camp as a child and also why he felt betrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Our featured vendor is David Rawlinson who sells outside Tesco at Leigh-On-Sea. Reading is his hobby, he says. He spends any spare time he has in the library.

Meanwhile, on Trump related business Brendan O’Neill explains why those who claim Trump and Brexit come from a similar place are wrong

We carry an interview with Anna Kendrick, we have a very special Street Art page and there are some odd and ghoulish images of the strange, scary things some people like to collect.