Tom Flanagan

Why vintage football shirts are becoming fashionable - Catawiki

Fashion’s never been afraid of reinventing itself. The recent trend of reusing and recycling, coupled with the surge of nostalgia the current generation are experiencing, has seen the revival of an old icon – the classic football shirt. While we’ve touched on the collectors’ appeal of these pieces, they aren’t just interesting for investors.

Mezrab: the Amsterdam venue turning audiences into storytellers - Hyphen

It’s a Tuesday night in Amsterdam. Along the banks of the IJ river in the east of the city, between a gym and a bagel chain, people filter into a low-lit room lined with cushions and chairs. The space looks more like a tea room than a performance venue. The lights dim and a man emerges at the front.

Third Culture Kids: the DJs reshaping Amsterdam nightlife - Hyphen

Parallel, a club in Amsterdam Noord, is booming. This space is used to the high-octane pulse of techno but tonight, it’s being taken on a different journey: sledgehammer beats give way to Bedouin rhythms, minimal electronica is swapped for riotous Egyptian shaabi edits, Eurodance goes Persian. The energy is frenetic, chaotic even. This is exactly what Moataz Rageb, the night’s organiser, wanted.

The Lonely Mediterranean

Every year, the world descends on Greece, a country known for its warmth and hospitality. But for the residents, a crisis of loneliness threatens to tear a culture of family apart. Tom Flanagan investigates the lessons an increasingly lonely Europe can learn from the Mediterranean nation.

My Life as a Male Model on OnlyFans

Juggling both professions might not be intuitive for some, but he’s far from the only one turning to sex as a career. Since the arrival of OnlyFans in 2016 and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, more people are taking up sex work—a trend that has only been compounded by the cost of living crisis.

VICE • 15th September 2023

Sex Parties Actually Bring Me Closer to My Partner

Sophie takes a deep breath before heading down the concrete steps into what looks like an underground cellar, its dark entrance concealing the feverish passions within. (Her name, and all names in this story, have been changed to protect privacy.) She takes a step forward and relaxes. She knows this passage well. What might seem like an unassuming hole-in-the-wall to many is a gateway into a world of fantasy – a party where (almost) anything goes. She grabs her partner’s hand and walks ahead.

Remembering the queer authors who changed fiction forever

Children's books are often one of the most important parts of growing up – they inform literacy, emotions and creativity. And so many important children’s and illustrated books were written by queer authors, who have always existed in the space, even if the public never realised it. While many of these writers chose not to make their identity the central tenet of their output, their lived experiences informed so much of the writing they published.

Every day, bread

I roll out of bed. Bleary-eyed and subdued, I stumble towards the kettle. Tea or coffee – depending on how heavily caffeinated I need to be – is the first point of call. Bitterness in cups, sweetness in relief, intoxicating in the ritual. Then, once the brew has made its way to my stomach, food calls, as much driven by a pang of hunger as a cry for relief from the caffeine.

Tom Flanagan

My Writing

Follow my Substack

Get in Touch

My Work

Why vintage football shirts are becoming fashionable - Catawiki

Pride and Progress

Mezrab: the Amsterdam venue turning audiences into storytellers - Hyphen

Third Culture Kids: the DJs reshaping Amsterdam nightlife - Hyphen

The Lonely Mediterranean

Tilda Swinton Feature

Where the wild flowers are

Pages Unturned - Literary Amsterdam

My Life as a Male Model on OnlyFans

Fantastic forts and where to find them

Sex Parties Actually Bring Me Closer to My Partner

Best late-night dining in Amsterdam | I amsterdam

Derek Mitchell - letsDoubleDutch - Interview

Beetlejuice 2 proves gothic style is here to stay

Cosy neighbourhood bars in Amsterdam | I amsterdam

New in Town: Summer 2025 | I amsterdam

Dearly beloved: the renaissance of love letters

Beautiful bodies: the irresistible allure of homoerotic art

Reporting from the Arctic

Welcome to the Elm Tree Capital of the World

Searching for Clive

Envy Peru Profile

Remembering the queer authors who changed fiction forever

Every day, bread

Tom Flanagan