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September 27, 2024
 

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Andrew MCKIRDY

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Andrew MCKIRDY
Andrew McKirdy is a sports writer for The Japan Times. His main beat is soccer, but he has also covered rugby, tennis, volleyball, golf and even tug-of-war. A native of the Scottish Borders, he has written for The Scotsman newspaper and organized filming for a program on Japanese soccer for ITV television.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jul 6, 2019
Cosplay conquers the world
The art of dressing up as characters from anime, manga, video games or TV shows has evolved into a global phenomenon.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 4, 2019
The life of a professional Japanese doppelganger
With his single sequined glove, sparkly jacket and sharp moonwalk dance moves, the man on stage could be no one else. Or could he?
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jun 19, 2019
Episode 17: Hikikomori — Japan's missing million
Over 1 million people are thought to be hikikomori in Japan. Andrew McKirdy, who interviewed several recovering hikikomori, joins Oscar Boyd to discuss the issue.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2019
Rugby World Cup organizers tap traditional Japanese art for ticket designs
Rugby World Cup 2019 organizers on Monday unveiled their ticket designs for matches for the tournament, bringing a traditional Japanese flavor to what will be Asia's first-ever hosting of the event.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 6, 2019
Chiba loquat grower loves his work, but frets over the future of the biwa business
Kenzo Takeba picks a loquat out of his basket, unwraps it from its paper cover and expertly begins to peel off the delicate orange skin with his fingers.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 1, 2019
The prison inside: Japan's hikikomori lack relationships, not physical spaces
Fifty-three-year-old Kenji Yamase doesn't fit the traditional image of a hikikomori, but then perceptions of Japan's social recluses are changing.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 16, 2019
Scotland's Stuart Hogg looks ahead to rematch with Brave Blossoms
Scotland fullback Stuart Hogg admits the autumn heat in Japan could hamper his team's chances of claiming a Rugby World Cup quarterfinal spot at the host nation's expense later this year.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 13, 2019
Taking the fall: The hard-knock life of a stunt performer in Japan
Trainer Chuck Johnson explains what it takes to get a piece of the action in this rough-and-tumble world of stunt performers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 8, 2019
Support act: Behind every Japanese prime minister is a fascinating first lady
When Chizuko Obuchi's husband, Keizo, became prime minister of Japan in July 1998 and the couple moved into the official residence, she was taken aback by what she found.
Japan Times
Rugby
Apr 11, 2019
Wallabies icon George Gregan preaches value of preparation in quest for RWC title
George Gregan has experienced the full gamut of Rugby World Cup emotions, but the Australian legend knows what he is looking forward to most when Japan hosts the tournament later this year.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 10, 2019
Pooches put their best paw forward at Japan International Dog Show
The event is the biggest dog show in Japan, with 2,201 canines representing 134 different breeds at this year's edition, which marks the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the Japan Kennel Club.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 6, 2019
Tokyo Big Sight: Japan's biggest convention center all set for Olympic duty
One thing you notice pretty quickly when you spend some time attending events at Tokyo Big Sight is that there is a lot of esoteric language on display.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2019
Yamanote Line train driver fulfills life's dream, down to the exact second
Ask any group of children in Japan what they want to be when they grow up and one answer in particular is sure to feature.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2019
After almost a year behind the wheel, Tokyo's foreign cab drivers reflect on navigating a new way of life
Growing up in Canada, Alex Lipson never imagined he would one day become a taxi driver — especially not on the other side of the world in Tokyo.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 2, 2019
'No one wants to be homeless': A glimpse at life on the streets of Tokyo
Seventy-year-old Yoshitomo Hara now lives in a housing facility, but he is well-versed in strategies to deal with sleeping rough in Tokyo during winter.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 27, 2019
Episode 8: So you want to be a Japanese comedian?
What makes a quail's egg funnier than an ostrich's? Andrew McKirdy finds out with a little bit of help from professional manzai comedian Patrick Harlan. Hosted by Oscar Boyd.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 20, 2019
Heavy metal: Moonlighting knights and medieval swordplay in Tokyo
Jay Noyes, clad head to toe in the steel armor of a medieval knight, is steadily advancing toward me with a longsword, which he intends to hit me with.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2019
Olympic and Paralympic venues on track to be completed in time for summer test events
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic venues are on course to be completed in time for test events to be held there later this year, games organizers said Tuesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Feb 5, 2019
Game for a laugh: Learning to become a manzai comedian
As I stand in the cramped wooden gangway at the side of the stage, going over my lines in a frantic whisper, I am reminded of something that American comedian Patrick Harlan had told me when we first met four months ago.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Jan 24, 2019
In smoker's paradise Japan, 81-year-old Bungaku Watanabe has spent decades leading a war on tobacco
"Is it OK if I smoke during the interview?" I ask Bungaku Watanabe, reaching into my coat pocket.
China fires long-range missile into Pacific Ocean in rare test
Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles travel past Beijing's Tiananmen Square during a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, on Oct. 1, 2019.
Russia has a secret war drones project in China, intel sources say
Russian President Vladimir Putin visits a drone production facility of the the Special Technology Center in St. Petersburg on Sept. 19.
As Onosato dominates the spotlight, former sumo stars exit the stage
Takakeisho during a one-day tournament at Kokugikan in Tokyo in February 2020
Japan MSDF warship sails through Taiwan Strait for first time
The Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Sazanami arrives in Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean during a scheduled port visit in July. The Sazanami became the first Japanese warship to sail through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday.
Putin issues nuclear warning to the West over Ukraine striking Russia
Russia's President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Security Council on the subject of nuclear deterrence in Moscow on Wednesday.
A first look inside the new Nintendo Museum
The Nintendo Museum opens to the public on Oct. 2, but unlike the company's all-ages games, the new attraction may be geared more toward older rather than younger gamers.
Japan MSDF warship sails through Taiwan Strait for first time
The Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Sazanami arrives in Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean during a scheduled port visit in July. The Sazanami became the first Japanese warship to sail through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday.
Weather makes for an unpredictable artist at Nagano art festival
“A Whisper in the Eye of the Storm,” by Canadian artists Caitlind R. C. Brown and Wayne Garrett is an outdoor installation of around 14,000 recycled lenses of varied prescriptions.
China fires long-range missile into Pacific Ocean in rare test
Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles travel past Beijing's Tiananmen Square during a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, on Oct. 1, 2019.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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A woman passes an "akichi" (vacant lot) in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. The capital is littered with such small lots in part because of Japan's aging and shrinking population.
Dealing with rising land vacancies as Japan shrinks
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