Vice UK

Riyadh - Saudi Road Skating

You might think that growing up in a country that didn't get around to outlawing slavery until the 60s and where even thinking about getting into a girl's abaya will land you a round of public lashings (and her death) would temper a young man's wild streak. However, as this new Saudi fad attests, when you let a whole nation's worth of pent-up testosterone bake in the hot Arab sun it leads to forms of teen rebellion that make Western kids look like they're still hocking buckeyes at the town farmer's prize milkin'-cow. Even their national aggro-driving has got a leg-up on ours.

Ballet Boot Camp

Riddarfjärdens Royal Ballet School is the toughest dance school in Scandinavia. Students have personal mentors that push them to the limit, both physically and mentally. Even warm-ups can be brutal. Half the students drop out after the first year because they can't take the pressure. Class is in session from 8 AM to 5 PM, six days a week. Those who get through the three years are almost guaranteed a place at the best of the best of companies in the world.

I just graduated from a school nearby and I used to sell hash to the dance kids at parties. I met up with ballet girl Nor, fresh out of the school, and I asked her to tell me some stories about what was going on there...

SPONSOR ME

Several months ago I blogged about the fierce fitness regime I was going to follow to prepare for the New York marathon. Unfortunately, I didn't do shit, my belly is still the same size, and the marathon starts in 2 weeks. Though I might die during those 26 miles, the important thing is I'm running for charity. So sponsor me. It will make you feel good...
 
 

Berlin - World Cup Semi-Final

The hosts of the World Cup are out. Two last minute goals from the Italians killed a whole nation's dream and a fantasy of recovery from the recent depression - both economic and emotional. We'll all have to keep guessing what would have happened if Germany would have won the World Cup, if the abolition of the mental East/West division was ever going to be possible again, if the economy and the ethos of a nation was going to boost again. Yesterday we didn't know that. What we knew, though, is that it was going to be a quite shaky night in the streets of Berlin. We wanted to capture both perspectives so we sent Nina, one of our new interns, to Brandenburg's Gate, where more than 800,000 Germans were gathered to see the game. On the other side, Jane Stockdale preferred to hang out in one of biggest and most charismatic Italian restaurants in Berlin.

London - Inside The Football Riot

The majority of the British press has predictably overlooked Wayne Rooney stamping on Ricardo Carvalho’s balls and are instead blaming Cristiano Ronaldo’s “wink” at the Portugese bench following the incident for the national team’s tawdry exit from the World Cup. Umm, blaming a "wink"? How about playing Peter Crouch up on his own at the front? How about missing three fucking penalties? How about having Swedish Mr Burns for a manager (we wrote him off years ago when we found out he kept his stack-heeled shoes outside Ulrika Jonsson's boudoir to keep the maid from interrupting their frantic coitus).
No matter, sites like www.ihateronaldo.com are popping up all over the internet today, threatening Ronaldo with a broken neck etc etc. What a beautiful game it is.

What you don’t see in the press is the riot that our photographer Jane Stockdale got caught up in the West End of London following the match.

Germany - World Cup Fever

You’ll have noticed that the World Cup is happening in Germany. It’s a spectacular celebration of the world that brings the myriad cultures of our lonely planet together in a wonderful festival of colour and joy. Throw a brick into a fountain in any German city centre and you’ll hit a football tourist. But do me a favour: throw it hard. The World Cup brings out the herding instinct in the human race. People are sheep, and here’s the VICE guide to avoiding them. Thankfully a tonne of them have gone home after their teams were booted out of the tournament. This is our guide to the fans who are still here.

LONDON - CRACK OPEN YOUR SIX PACK

The lump of flesh you see on the left is me. I have ginger hair so my skin colouring is so white it's almost blue. Place an orange rug of hair on that skin, throw in gluttony, a love of junk food, a low level drink issue, years of physical inactivity, and a job that involves nothing but long hours of talking and typing (ie media), and the result is what you see ... 215 pounds of gross.

When your girlfriend only ever wants it from behind or starts turning the lights out when you fuck because the sight of you cascading above her is offputting, it's time to take action!

AUSTRALIA - COMMONWEALTH GAMES

So the Commenwealth Games are on right now and in the spirit of the event an attempt was made at local qualification for the Synchronised Swimming. Hilarity ensued with sexy results.