WFI chats with the founding editor of The Big Issue magazine in the kitchen of his central London home.
Where did you get the inspiration for The Big Issue?
Body Shop entrepreneur Gordon Roddick approached me with the idea after visiting New York, where he'd seen a similar paper called Street News. Street papers were nothing new to me as I used to sell the Evening Standard and revolutionary papers such as the Workers' Press in the Sixties. We launched in 1991 with myself as editor. One of the reasons Gordon thought that I was right for the job was because I used to be homeless myself and had had a tough childhood. My parents struggled to pay the rent and I was sent to an orphanage when I was seven. Soon afterwards, I began getting in trouble with the police.
How did you and Gordan meet?
By chance, in a London pub during the late Sixties. After a few drinks we had a friendly argument as to who had the biggest nose. We've been friends ever since, despite falling out of contact for a while. When we got back in touch in the Eighties he was a multi-millionaire with the Body Shop Foundation and had the capital to start The Big Issue.
Why is The Big Issue a business rather than a charity?
It would only work as a business. Being a charity would mean less freedom, as we'd have to answer to trustees. Neither could we challenge government policy on issues such as homelessness. Being independent allows us the freedom to take risks and continually reinvent ourselves.
What's the best thing about the paper?
The fact that it's not only radical in intent but radical in its distribution, too. Someone who is destitute can pick up a few copies and be earning a living within an hour. We've always tried to appeal to squatters and suits alike, and because people can find something of interest in it, vendor and buyer are equals; the vendor isn't begging and the money isn't being given to them out of pity.
Why did you move to France for a spell recently?
I was writing my autobiography, and I knew I couldn't continue living in London, with all its distractions, and get it done. I'd visited Lille a few years back and really liked the feel of the place, so I hopped on the Eurostar, popped into an estate agent, and took the first flat they showed me.
Do you like to cook?
Until recently, the only thing I'd cook was shepherd's pie, which took me hours. When I moved to Lille, I ate out a lot, which was expensive, so I decided to learn to cook. The first big meal I made was goose with the all trimmings for a friend who was staying at Christmas. It involved several lengthy phone calls to England, but was a success in the end. Now I'm back in the UK, I plan to cook more roasts for friends and family. I suppose I'm a late convert.
Round John's kitchen table
"I have always enjoyed cycling," says John, "and I've taken it up again since moving back to London. With all the traffic, it can be much quicker than travelling by car."
"When I was young, I was always in trouble with the police. At 15, I was put in a reformatory for three years, which was where I started to draw and paint. At 18, I got a place at the Chelsea School of Art. I've drawn and painted ever since."
John Bird is editor-in-chief of
The Big Issue. His autobiography, Some Luck, is published by Penguin, priced £16.99. WFI readers can order a copy for only £14.99 including p & p. To place your order, call 01624 836000 and quote 'WFI'.