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April 10, 2025
 

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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
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 6, 2015
Line's AI program captures hearts with lifelike personality
An artificial intelligence program posing as a sweet and innocent schoolgirl has captured the hearts of young men nationwide, with some smitten users even declaring their love for their new "girlfriend."
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2015
Artist Aida defiant over latest work
Controversial artist Makoto Aida is refusing to bow to demands that he alter a politically sensitive submission to the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo after museum chiefs and Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials deemed it unsuitable for children.
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 25, 2015
Okubo brace lifts Frontale past S-Pulse
Yoshito Okubo scored twice as Kawasaki Frontale came through a wild, swinging encounter with Shimizu S-Pulse with a 3-2 win on Saturday night.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jul 22, 2015
Sanfrecce lay down marker with second-stage surge
The J. League's return to a two-stage system gives teams who started slowly another bite at the championship cherry, but Sanfrecce Hiroshima have bigger ambitions than just the second-stage title.
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2015
National Stadium architects return fire, say design not behind high costs
Zaha Hadid Architects hit back at the decision to scrap their plan for Tokyo's new National Stadium, insisting the ambitious design was not responsible for spiraling construction costs.
SOCCER / Women's World Cup
Jul 7, 2015
Nadeshiko reflect on World Cup journey after return to Japan
Nadeshiko Japan manager Norio Sasaki wasted no time in targeting the gold medal at next year's Rio Olympics as the beaten Women's World Cup finalists returned home from Canada on Tuesday.
SOCCER / Women's World Cup / SOCCER SCENE
Jul 1, 2015
Gritty Japan gathering steam ahead of semifinal against England
Japan is still waiting to ignite at the Women's World Cup, but the slow burn that has carried the team all the way to the semifinals may yet be enough to take it further.
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 27, 2015
Reds wrap up unbeaten first stage
J. League first-stage champions Urawa Reds beat Albirex Niigata 5-2 on Saturday night to complete the opening campaign with an unbeaten record.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2015
Zushi opens with eye on reviving summer buzz
Zushi Beach in Kanagawa Prefecture opened for the summer on Friday as it battles to attract visitors following a clampdown on rowdy partygoers that saw numbers drop by more than half last year.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jun 24, 2015
Urawa responds to 2014 heartbreak in rampant style
After throwing away the J. League championship last season, few could have expected Urawa Reds to respond so emphatically.
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 20, 2015
Antlers click on offense in rout of Marinos
Caio and Shoma Doi scored in the first half and Shuhei Akasaki added a late third as Kashima Antlers put Yokohama F. Marinos to the sword 3-0 in the J. League on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 17, 2015
Japan takes booing on chin after Singapore stalemate
Keisuke Honda believes fans were right to boo him and his Japan teammates after Tuesday's shock World Cup qualifying 0-0 draw with Singapore, and insists he would have had no complaints had they voiced their displeasure louder.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 16, 2015
Japan held to scoreless draw by 154th-ranked Singapore
Japan got its 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign off to an embarrassing start after being held to a 0-0 home draw by Singapore on Tuesday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / Women's World Cup / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 15, 2015
Japan has room for improvement at Women's World Cup
Japan has made it through to the knockout phase of the Women's World Cup with the minimum of fuss, but the reigning champions will have to move up a gear if they are serious about defending their title.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 12, 2015
Cronut master is concocting new pastries for Tokyo store
Cronut fans in Japan can swap local imitations for the real thing when the creator of the croissant-doughnut hybrid, pastry chef Dominique Ansel, opens his new bakery in Tokyo on June 20.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jun 12, 2015
Win over Iraq helps Samurai Blue rebuild confidence
Keisuke Honda admits Japan is still suffering mental "damage" from last year's World Cup and needs more wins like Thursday's 4-0 thrashing of Iraq to exorcize the demons.
SOCCER
Jun 11, 2015
Japan trounces Iraq in friendly
Japan warmed up for the start of its 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign with a ruthless 4-0 win over Iraq in a friendly on Thursday night.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 10, 2015
Halilhodzic looking to build on strong start as qualifiers begin
It would be unthinkable for Japan to begin its 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign with anything other than a win at home to Singapore next Tuesday, but manager Vahid Halilhodzic will be looking for more from his team than just three points.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2015
National Stadium architects reject reports they may be fired
The architects behind Tokyo's new National Stadium deny reports that they may be fired from the project as criticism mounts over the building's cost and appearance.
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 7, 2015
Reds close in on first-stage title
Urawa Reds as good as wrapped up the J. League first-stage title but were forced to leave the champagne on ice after beating Shimizu S-Pulse 1-0 on Sunday.
Wall Street will regret helping the world burn
Wall Street banks, under political pressure and tempted by short-term gains, are abandoning climate commitments and pouring billions into fossil fuels, risking both environmental catastrophe and massive future economic losses.
Trump's tariff gambit leaves Asia stunned and scrambling
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he attends the National Republican Congressional Committee dinner in Washington on Tuesday. Trump allowed new tariffs — including a 24% levy on Japan — to go into effect as scheduled on Wednesday.
Japan and U.S. appoint tariff negotiators after Ishiba-Trump phone call
Economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa enters the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japanese makers rush to mitigate possible Nankai Trough earthquake damage
Toyota is considering transferring some production in the key Tokai region, which is expected to be hit hard in a Nankai Trough earthquake, to the Tohoku and Kyushu regions.
Japan gets a new U.S. ambassador — and he has his work cut out for him
George Glass, U.S. President Donald Trump's pick to be ambassador to Japan, attends a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing in Washington on March 13.
Online art scene eager to go offline, at least for the moment
Digital artist Polygon1993 revels in the physicality of nostalgic technology, making art out of materials such as miniature CDs, holographic prints layered with plexiglass shards and a giant custom-made floppy disk.
Tottori takes a bold leap forward in the arts
The city of Kurayoshi in Tottori Prefecture celebrated the opening of its public art museum with festivities such as a parade that drew 1,000 revelers.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
Nintendo to launch the Switch 2 on June 5
The controllers for the Switch 2 will attach to the console magnetically rather than sliding on rails as with the original device.

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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An ongoing shortage of rice has resulted in rising prices for Japan's main food staple.
Why Japan is running out of rice — and farmers to grow it
By Alex K.T. Martin

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