This week’s editorial musings from magpie’s nest
The quote Toys are really not as innocent as they look. Toys and games are the preludes to serious ideas Charles Eames
Design for performance World Stage Design is a pretty special event, a quadrennial celebration of how any and every kind of live performance can be staged. This year it’s being held in Sharjah (18-25 October). There will be workshops, exhibitions, competitions, and networking a-plenty for professionals, users and consumers. We took a deep dive into what’s happening and why, via an extended interview with Project Director Jacqui George from Sharjah Performing Arts Academy; our report is here …
Access Art Dubai The Art Dubai catalogue (120+ easy-access instant-click images of works on show) is now online here. Art Dubai runs 18-20 April at Madinat Jumeirah; tickets are on sale now, AED 100 for one day or AED 200 for a three-day pass – but until 11 April you can bag a 20% discount using promocode ARTDUBAI20. Shop here …
Stressed UAE … Apparently work-related stress is prevalent in the UAE, with 90% of professionals regularly responding to work emails and calls outside official hours: 76% reporting their work-life balance has worsened since the pandemic: and 59% saying they find it hard to switch off. Market research agency Perspectus polled 2,000 people, which didn’t include team magpie …
… Happy UAE On the other hand, the UAE has been ranked ranked 21 out of the 147 countries listed in the 2025 World Happiness Report, above the likes of the UK (23rd) and the USA (24th). Finland is considered the world’s happiest nation for the eighth year. It’s worth noting that this kind of index has been widely criticised for oversimplification and inherent biases – here, for instance – though our reading of it suggests that the authors do take a rather more nuanced approach …
Dupper? Sinner? When magpie was a mere fledgling, ‘brunch’ was a portmanteau of ‘breakfast’ and ‘lunch’ that happened around 11am. Arriving in the UAE to discover that ‘brunch’ meant something which ran from midday to 4pm was initially problematic but soon second nature. But on 4 April the Hilton Jumeirah Trader Vic’s has scheduled a “brunch like no other” – from 6pm to midnight. Makes you nostalgic for the midmorning OJ and eggs benedict …
Poking the beast Twitter locked our account for a few days last week because of this post: “Dogequest maps US Tesla owners and invites them to remove their listing by proving they have sold their vehicle” We regard that as simple reporting of an actual fact and chose not to comment on it, believing that readers can make up their own minds. Still, we’ve been forced to delete it, so please don’t click here in case it annoys them. Possibly unrelated fact: we hear that Tesla and X/Twitter have the same beneficial owner …
Then and now A Long Return is a short film juxtaposing two videos along the same section of Salah al-Din Road, a main thoroughfare connecting north and south Gaza. Taken five years apart, in January 2020 and January 2025, the footage is synchronised to illustrate the full impact of the war. Recommended …
Branding with Louvre AD The deadline for proposals to the Made with Louvre Abu Dhabi branded goods initiative (“an exclusive range of innovative, high-quality products that embody the spirit of the museum and resonate with both local and international audiences”) has been extended to 30 April. There’s some information here, but we still have several questions about the deal – we received no response when we asked originally, but you may have better luck …
Grassed up Touch Grass is an iOS app that blocks all the other apps on your phone until you find some grass to touch (it uses AI to recognise the green stuff). There are no shortcuts, and AFAIK it’s not possible to cheat; just go outside and take a break. Of course, it’s not so relevant if ‘outside’ is virgin desert or a balcony on the 49th floor of a city centre tower…
Apply here So you’ve got a great idea for an app? Hooray, but don’t expect to get rich from it. The 2025 State of Subscription Apps report from RevenueCat says 81% of new apps are making less $1,000 per month within two years of launch; only 5% reach $10,000 pm …
Something for the weekend Pop the bubbles. Try it here …
Things we didn’t know no.94 Honey doesn’t go off – there’s too much sugar, too little water and too low a pH to allow mould and bacteria to grow. Tutankhamun’s tomb contained some that was still entirely edible …
Earworm of the week Woomb : Shape Yourself Around Me
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