RearView
Five hundred issues on and The List is well established and expanding. Publisher and co-founder of the magazine, ROBIN HODGE, submits himself to the Answer Machine.
What’s the best thing about being publisher of The List?
Being involved with everything creative that's happening here where I live. Everything from festivals. films. galleries. theatre. music and books to restaurants. bars and parties. If it's exciting we'll be involved. trying to publicise and support it.
So do you just live off free tickets and free meals?
There are some perks that are offered to us but we try only to ask for free tickets for our writers and reviewers so they can do their job. We realise that most organisations struggle to make ends meet — were keen to help them rather than bleed them.
What’s the atmosphere like at the office?
Great. The List has always been really lucky — somehow an amazing team of talented people seem to come together. inspire each other and keep the magazine sharp, fresh and vibrant. It's always a lively office and there's a strong sense that everyone really cares about what they're doing.
What’s the worst thing about your job?
It used to be the constant finanCial crises. The endless struggle of trying not to go bust; apologising for bounced Cheques: being hauled up in front of the bank manager. Oh. and the regular debt collecting visns from the Sheriff Officers — although they came so often we got to know
them quite well in the end and. in fact. they can be Quite friendly if yOu offer them a Cup of tea. But we were amazingly lucky a few years back. made some money from helping to launch the radio station. Beat 106. and so thankfully we're not completely skint any more.
So what’s the worst thing now?
It used to be putting the rubbish out in the morning as I lived next door to the office. But I haven't had to do that for a while and I'm movmg Out of the courtyard across town. so I don't have to lock up at night either.
What’s the mission statement at The List?
We haven't got one pinned up on the wall but the ethos is ‘to do something worthwhile. make some money and have some fun'. We rarely manage all three as making money is still tOugh but we like to think we do all right. What do you do when you’re not working?
Well. I've just been sailing on the West Coast — or rather learning to navigate and skipper a boat by day and night. Brilliant fun — even when the weather is mixed. Exploring the wild places of Scotland. the mountains. the islands. the coast and beaches. That's where I like to escape to. What’s going to happen next at The List?
Next year we'll be celebrating 20 years of the magazine and we're planning a big revamp this autumn. We're also about to launch a whole range of goodies online. And we'll soon be launching a new irresistible quarterly magazine dedicated to contemporary visual art. BeSides that. we'll be rolling out more titles in Our great little series of pocket gUides. expanding our coverage into new subject areas.
How often have you published your own photo in the magazine?
This is the first time for a decade — before it there were two small picture bylines With other staff. And it took some persuasion from NiCk Barley to run this piece.
PS The biscuit question:
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The noodling Geordie is touring the Highlands this month, and his odyssey culminates with a date in Glasgow. We catch up with him along the wa
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