Iran
How playing heavy metal in Iran can put your life in danger
Rock in a Hard Place — Journalist and life-long heavy metal fan Orlando Crowcroft spent six years penetrating the rock and metal scenes in the Middle East, finding a new generation of rockers, rappers and metalheads who are flogged, imprisoned and exiled for writing songs that give a voice to those otherwise unheard. This is an extract from his book, Rock in a Hard Place.
Written by: Orlando Crowcroft
Raving as resistance in Iran's underground party scene
Desert disco — Putting on parties in the desert thousands of kilometres from Tehranm, Anoosh Raki and Arash Shadram found freedom through music in their ultra-conservative country.
Written by: Biju Belinky
Gliding across borders: Taking flight in Iran
A new perspective — The last foreign glider to fly in Iran found himself locked up behind bars. When American pro-glider Nick Greece took flight, he had no idea how his border-breaking trip would end.
Written by: James Joiner
Divided by the #MuslimBan: For my family this is nothing new
From Where I Stand — Mostafa Rajaai's family are being kept apart by the Muslim travel ban, but he argues the rest of us have for so long sat and watched Islamophobia and prejudice rage on in silence.
Written by: Mostafa Rajaai
The Travel Diary: Taking to the snow covered ski slopes of Iran
What you see along the way — Photographer Oscar Yoosefinejad headed to the pistes of Iran, to find out more about the country's ski community, finding a community who take to the snow with passion.
Written by: Oscar Yoosefinejad
The pioneering female Iranian athlete taking on the world's toughest race
All hail Shirin Gerami — Shirin Gerami is no stranger to defying expectations. Iran's first female triathlete, the first Iranian woman to race in a World Triathlon, now she's set to become the first woman to represent Iran at Ironman Kona.
Written by: Alex Taylor
Icy and Sot: The exile of Iran’s radical street artists
Subversive art fugitives — Dubbed the ‘Banksys of Iran’, repression of Icy and Sot’s politically charged art lead them to claim asylum in the US and be barred from Iran for life.
Written by: Alex King
Iranian and Cuban artists break America
Art from the Axis of Evil — New York’s Rogue Space hosts IRAN X CUBA: Beyond the Headline - a gallery of artwork produced by Iranian and Cuban artists, inspired by their respective revolutions. Curator Roya Khadjavi talks about struggles that both separate and unite the two countries.
Written by: Hanna Dugall
Ash Koosha: The Iranian artist building sound sculptures from magnified waveforms
Future shock — After fleeing Iran, Ash Koosha’s future-focussed productions blur the lines between music, film and virtual reality.
Written by: Alex King
First Person: I fled Iran, fearing death, in search of religious freedom
Refugee Stories — Majid Golshani fled Iran following his conversion to the Bahá’í faith, which could be punishable by death. Settling in the UK, Majid's life remains in flux, legally unable to work but desperate for a sense of purpose. As part of our Refugee Stories series, Majid talks of his continued hopes for a better life.
Written by: Elizabeth Sulis Gear