N E W U R B A N W O R L D 6

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 8

F e a t u r e J a y a k u m a r C h r i s t i a n 9

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 10

F e a t u r e J a y a k u m a r C h r i s t i a n 11

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 12

F e a t u r e J a y a k u m a r C h r i s t i a n 13

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 16

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 18

F e a t u r e V i v G r i g g 19

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 20

F e a t u r e V i v G r i g g 21

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 22

F e a t u r e V i v G r i g g 23

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 24

F e a t u r e V i v G r i g g 25

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 26

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 28

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 30

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 31

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 32

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 33

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 34

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 35

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 36

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 37

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 38

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 39

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 40

F e a t u r e K e n d i H o w e l l s D o u g l a s 41

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 44

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 46

F e a t u r e S c o t t B e s s e n e c k e r 47

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 48

F e a t u r e S c o t t B e s s e n e c k e r 49

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 50

F e a t u r e S c o t t B e s s e n e c k e r 51

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 52

F e a t u r e S c o t t B e s s e n e c k e r 53

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 54

F e a t u r e S c o t t B e s s e n e c k e r 55

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 56

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 58

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 60

C o l u m n J o h n S h o r a c k 61

C o l u m n To n y C a m p o l o 63

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 64

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 66

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 68

C o l u m n C . R o s a l e e Ve l l o s o E w e l l 69

C o l u m n B e r t H i c k m a n 71

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 72

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 74

C o l u m n S i u F u n g Wu 75

C o l u m n C l a u d i o O l i v e r & S a m E w e l l 77

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 78

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 88

R e v i e w A n d r e w M e n z i e s 89

R e v i e w D o u g P r i e s t 91

R e v i e w S h a n e A n d e r s o n 93

R e v i e w S t e p h e n B u r r i s 95

R e v i e w C r a i g B r o w n 97

This BBC series treads familiar ground, almost mimicking reality TV in its approach:

take a mix of young Brits, some obnoxious, some caring, all of them with a superficial

understanding of the issues before them, and throw them in to the deep end of

Southeast Asia. They bitch, moan and complainone leavesand, after a few weeks,

including one in which they live as Thai rice workers, take on pseudo expert status

based on what they have experienced.

Despite examples of genuinebut limitedtransformation, the question around

this show is do we learn anything new? The focus is primarily on the journey of the

Brits rather than the issues of material poverty and the poverty of choice. The flaw in

Blood, Sweat and Takeaways is the limited engagement with the key issues of poverty

since we are seeing them through the lenses of raw personalities whose transformation

could be described as progressing from ignorant to basic. By series end, we have

hope for the participants, but cant be so optimistic for the poor they visited.

The stories that grip you are, for example, of Jiab. a young mum working in a

chicken factory on the outskirts of Bangkok, who has left behind her son in order

to support him. At series end, Stacey accompanies and pays for Jiab to return home

for a reunion with her son. Its heartbreaking to watch the reluctant son embrace his

mother, then heartbreaking all over again to watch him gently kiss her, only to know

that this brief interlude will soon end and the cycle of separation and regret will start

afresh. I hope one day to be able to live with my son, she laments. Her wish is so

simple, but her situation so complex.

Then theres the story of the (nameless) sex worker the Brits meet as they celebrate

the end of living like the food workers of Southeast Asia (with added benefits

BLOOD, SWEAT AND TAKEAWAYS

by Craig Brown

R e v i e w C r a i g B r o w n 99

such as optional hotels and private medical care). On average, the sex worker earns

significantly more than a factory or rice worker, but she is visibly upset as she tells

the Brits about her two children, and her reluctance to be in the sex industry. They

patronize her, telling her that that she must be making great sacrifices in doing what

she is doing. They can see how factory work dehumanizes someone, but fail to see

that what is happening to this woman is also dehumanizing. I want one man, she

says imploringly, but what can I do? Again, the poverty of choice stares us starkly in

the face.

Still more disturbing is the argument that then breaks out with a male tourist who

claims that sex workers are empowered, which stands in stark contrast to the tears

and despair on the face of the sex worker. She is again marginalized, as we see the Brit

women reduced to tears of frustration in the ensuing screaming match. Againthey

are our eyes and ears. Yet it is the workers in these situations who touch our hearts.

The audience of Blood, Sweat and Takeaways needs to be satisfied with the minor

transformation of Westerners to find this series transformative. On a positive note, it

does touch on deep issues of being separated from family and our imagined best self

in order to survive, the links between Western consumption and developing world

poverty, and tourism and the sex industry. The hope in this series is that Westerners

can learnbut the basic learning we see here is still a large step away from alleviating

and empowering those living in poverty in Southeast Asia.

Series Directed by James Christie-Miller and Ed LevanAired by BBC 3 (4 episodes)

101

N E W U R B A N W O R L D 102