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November 22, 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
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.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 28, 2018
An enthusiast of toy trains gives kids, young and old, a chance to play
Ten-year-old Koharu Yagi gazes at the meters and meters of plastic train track laid out in a room at the Plaza North culture center in the city of Saitama and lets out a sigh of wonder.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 20, 2018
NPO Fukuribi's wigs offer Japan's chemo patients new weapon in their fight against cancer
When TV celebrity Miki Yakata was told she would need chemotherapy after undergoing a mastectomy in April, she realized she would have to buy a wig.
Japan Times
Rugby
Dec 18, 2018
Volunteers audition for Rugby World Cup roles
Tokyo resident Masaru Seto knows why he wants to become a volunteer at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Dec 8, 2018
Irasshaimase!: Foreign-born clerks are becoming a familiar sight at convenience stores nationwide, but is Japan ready to welcome them?
Phan Hoang Tu Linh feels she has gotten the hang of working in a Japanese convenience store now, but she admits she found it tough at first.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Dec 1, 2018
Top flight: Japan's drone racers are go!
The tranquility of a warm autumn morning in Chiba Prefecture is broken by three shapes streaking through the sky above a rugby field.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 29, 2018
Faced with Japan's changing habits and demographics, delivery firm Sagawa looks to diversify
Sagawa delivery driver Keisuke Kawabe has seen the video that went viral on the internet two years ago of one of his colleagues smashing up parcels out of frustration that the customer wasn't home, and he doesn't approve.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2018
Pole dancing sheds seedy image to climb to new heights
Sixty-three-year-old Kiyoshi Ikehara mops his bald head with a towel, wipes his hands and grips the vertical pole.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 22, 2018
Humans and nature coexist in Ramsar-recognized wetlands — in the heart of Tokyo
A flock of great crested grebes floats on the sea, gently bobbing up and down under the warm November sun.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 7, 2018
Tokyo 2020: Workers raise section of giant roof at tradition-inspired Olympic gymnastics venue
The venue for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic gymnastics competition moved a step closer toward completion Wednesday when construction workers raised the center section of its giant timber roof.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 3, 2018
Breaking down barriers: The challenge of getting around Tokyo in a wheelchair
Gaining a first-hand insight into what is needed to create universal access in Tokyo in time for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.
Japan Times
Rugby
Nov 3, 2018
All Blacks whip Brave Blossoms
Japan scored five tries against the world champion All Blacks but still suffered a 69-31 defeat on Saturday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Nov 1, 2018
A blond Swedish landscape artist flexes for NHK — remember his name ... Tatsumasa Murasame
Who's that hunk of blond beefcake crunching his abs on NHK's workout program "Minna de Kinniku Taiso"?
Japan Times
Rugby
Nov 1, 2018
Steve Hansen names second-string squad to face Brave Blossoms
New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen on Thursday told his new-look All Blacks to "trust your instincts" after naming his team for Saturday's test against Japan.
Japan Times
Rugby
Oct 28, 2018
Japanese rugby history embedded in Hanazono
Harumi Okuno pours another batch of octopus-filled batter into the round hollows of the hot griddle and looks out of the serving hatch toward the rugby stadium at the end of the street.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

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

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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