The right finance minister at the right time
Not all politicians are the same, finds THEO PANAYIDES after meeting the man given a baptism of fire after the financial meltdown of 2013. He finds an outward looking, low-key former ...
Casino’s executive chef living the nomadic dream
From picking salad in the garden growing up in France to overseeing the 10 restaurants in the island’s upcoming casino resort, one man, a dynamic doer, has bounced around the ...
TV and theatre actress keeping it real
THEO PANAYIDES meets an actress who’s in people’s living rooms every night, a woman who was quiet and not very brave as a child but grew up into ...
An ordinary guy with some ‘dangerous’ ideas
In a citizen journalist broadcasting controversial political views on Ukraine from the streets of Cyprus, THEO PANAYIDES finds a man who misses the right to disagree, keen on stressing the ...
Life for flower grower is no bed of roses
With a boom in sales for Valentine’s Day, you would imagine it is a welcome time of year for a high-tech flower grower. But THEO PANAYIDES meets a man ...
Second-hand bookseller in a world of language
In a proud but troubled Cypriot poet and bookworm, THEO PANAYIDES finds someone for whom books themselves have stories, and not just the ones inside them
The book is at ...
Deputy minister believes in the power of culture
Installed only eight months ago, AGNIESZKA RAKOCZY speaks to the newest member of the outgoing cabinet, a man who has served in many roles on the island’s arts scene
...
Makariou landlord is a natural scholar
Driven by the pursuit of knowledge, one former civil servant who has spent most of his adult life in the shadow of Makarios Avenue tells THEO PANAYIDES about his life ...
Turkish Cypriot pianist grew up with music
In a home surrounded by pianos one local musician eventually went to Turkey and London to learn her craft. AGNIESZKA RAKOCZY meets a woman trying to perform around the world ...
Where physics meets metaphysics
In a physics teacher who is also a priest THEO PANAYIDES finds a man who believes in miracles, and that science and religion can sit side by side. He also ...
Archaeologist sees the passage of time in human bones
Another year over but the work never ends for a prize-winning busy scientist who studies the physical markers of history, and has even co-written a children’s book about it. ...
Exuberant expat is a not-so-secret Santa
In a former preacher and biker, THEO PANAYIDES finds a cheerful free spirit who combines chaotic good with a joy for living
The café in Tseri, just outside Nicosia, isn’...
Guitar-maker “Dr Fret” bringing lumps of wood back to life
In the only luthier on the island, THEO PANAYIDES finds a man who loves to talk who labours over custom-made instruments but will listen to ‘anything beautiful’ himself
The sign ...
Poet, photographer, traveller, dentist
In Marios Taramides, THEO PANAYIDES meets a Renaissance man who rails against mediocrity
In the dentist’s waiting room you’ll find shelves of Bronze Age antiquities, books on Abba ...
Clinical scientist on the magic of mushrooms
The future is bright for a scientist working with microdosing psychedelics. THEO PANAYIDES meets a man into 60s counter culture who is an activist for drugs being the tool for ...
Poet is deeply connected to her past
AGNIESZKA RAKOCZY meets an acadmic who says education is her weakness now entering her ‘third act’
Ten years ago, London-based Turkish Cypriot poet and journalist Mustafa Izzet Adiloglu first showed ...
‘Crazy dog lady’ goes from strays to serial killers
In an animal welfare activist who featured in a local film, THEO PANAYIDES meets a forensic neuropsychologist who was born fearless and now takes the same approach to abused pets ...
Round-the-world cyclist is a man on a mission
On a sometimes dangerous journey through 191 countries that has taken 18 years, THEO PANAYIDES meets an activist on a mission
A man on a bike – or actually next to a bike, ...
Mournful restaurateur looks back on the glory days
THEO PANAYIDES meets the owner of what was once referred to as the Moulin Rouge of Cyprus, a place visited by all presidents
We’re in the British bases, a ...
Legendary boxing ref grew up fighting
In an internationally known and respected referee, THEO PANAYIDES meets an entertaining and organised man still capable of fancy footwork who is shocked by the increasing violence in his native ...
Poet and academic in thrall to the ‘logos’
In a ‘romantic migrant’ THEO PANAYIDES finds a man of simple pleasures and complex theories who is a great talker but struggles in our fluid times with the impoverishment of ...
World-class tattoo artist a “miracle from Nicosia”
In the island’s most famous tattooist THEO PANAYIDES finds an intense, disciplined man dealing in pain all his life, whose vivid artistic style saw him draw in the celebrities ...
Dramatic life of a card-carrying artist
Arriving at his grand passion in middle age, the Larnaca man producing paintings to fall in love with is small and fast with a business mind, finds THEO PANAYIDES
There ...
Renowned Indian guru trying to get people back ‘in rhythm’
In a spiritual leader, an institution in India, THEO PANAYIDES meets a man for whom actions speak louder than words, from coming up with a breathing technique to conflict resolution ...