The battle for The Close
A cluster of historic buildings in Selly Oak are at the centre of a row between the University of Birmingham and local residents — and no one is backing down
Featured
Chicken Quarter: fair or fowl?
A host of US-style fried chicken shops have colonised a section of New Street.
Woon Wing Yip built an empire. Is it in decline?
Once locally beloved and a touchstone for the Chinese disapora, Wing Yip is fading on both fronts
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Our Team
Kate Knowles
Kate is a reporter from Birmingham who set up The Dispatch in 2023. She has written extensively about politics in the West Midlands and has investigated the region’s housing and hospitality sectors.
Latest post: The battle for The Close
Samuel McIlhagga
Samuel is a features writer and reporter whose work has appeared in the Financial Times, UnHerd, Jacobin and the LA Review of Books. In 2024, he won The Independent’s Rupert Cornwall Prize
Latest post: Woon Wing Yip built an empire. Is it in decline?
Moya Lothian-McLean
Moya joins us from Novara Media. Among others, she’s written for The New York Times and The Guardian, and is the host of several successful podcasts, including Human Resources and If I Speak.
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