The true story of a lonely American who arrived in Thailand in 1977 planning to stay for two months. He left 8 1⁄2 years later after having become an “international guest star”. International Guest Star is an autobiography that gives a no-holds-barred insight into Thai film, TV and culture during the early 80’s when the industry, Bangkok and Thailand began a cultural growth spurt while enmeshed in the past.

“But we can still rise now”, runs a line of Scotland’s unofficial national anthem Flower of Scotland, “and be the nation again” who defeated the English King Edward II in 1314 at the Battle of Bannockburn. These short lines tell us much about the concept of the nation. Firstly, the pronoun of the nation is “we”. Secondly, nationhood remains aspirational for some, while it is entirely taken-for-granted for others. Thirdly, nations often trace their origins back to an implausibly dim and distant past. Finally, it points to the fundamentally discursive nature of the nation: the nation appears not as something which simply is, but as something which can be, called into existence through talk, official documents, official and unofficial national anthems, ceremonies and parades, monuments and statuary, press coverage and, increasingly, television. This book, which arose out of a conference held in Tarragona in 2007, focuses on the complex discourses of the nation to be found in the television systems of twelve different countries, examining how these circulate in fiction, in news and documentary (including re-enactment formats), and in entertainment programmes, adverts and the coverage of large-scale sporting events. The nation which emerges is everywhere and nowhere, talked about endlessly but never finally grasped, repeatedly staged and re-enacted but lacking a foundational script. In short, it is a site of struggle. The stakes are high, since the nation when mobilised is a force to be reckoned with, and the on-going attempts to define it are many, varied and often highly creative. This book details many such events, from the high drama of war reporting to the self-mocking irony of ten-second commercial spots.

November issue includes abridged index to yearly volume, -1981.

Expanded coverage highlights this updated guide to one of the most popular travel destinations in the world.

Artists working in a variety of western European nations have overturned the dominant traditions of comic book publishing as it has existed since the end of the Second World War, seeking instead to instill the medium with experimental and avant-garde tendencies commonly associated with the visual arts. This book addresses this transformation.