Saharial‘s first Korea TV drama review – and she has her doubts about one of the most popular ones. I am a busy gal and simply do NOT have time to waste on a drama that doesn’t push all the right buttons for me. I have been lucky though, that in all this time there … [Read More]
Front Page
Five from the archive
Soup and Ideology: Yang Yonghi’s exploration of the Jeju 4:3 incident through her own family history
It must be a nightmare living with Yang Yonghi: you are constantly being filmed. Yang’s work focuses on her family history, and she has been collecting footage of her daily life since the mid ’90s. When the individual scenes are filmed – conversations, family meals, seemingly unremarkable incidents – the filming must seem without purpose. … [Read More]
Interview: Swag Age — Korean tradition in a contemporary musical comes to the West End
Guest contributor Timothy Holm meets the creatives behind the Joseon-era musical Swag Age, and gets to the bottom of the meaning of the catchy Oh-Eh-Oh! chorus. [Read More]
Concert notes: China, Korea and Syria at Club Inégales
The final gig of Club Inégales’ current season was predictably unpredictable. You know the format in advance, but you never know what the outcome will be. The house band, or subsets of it, improvise in the first set; in the second set the guests solo; and in the third set everyone plays together, cross fertilising … [Read More]
James Church: Hidden Moon
(Thomas Dunne Books, 2007) After A Corpse in the Koryo, the rip-roaring start to the Inspector O series, Hidden Moon comes as a bit of a disappointment. Maybe the freshness of the debut is a tough act to follow, but somehow the first time round Inspector O had more character. He’s still got his quirky … [Read More]
Recent Posts
Bleak, relatable, daring, humane: how Korean literature emerged from its niche
The following is the text of the talk I submitted to the LTI Korea conference held in Seoul on 1 – 3 July 2026 celebrating their 30th birthday. I am grateful to LTI Korea for the invitation to present, and to those who helped and encouraged me in the preparation. Special thanks go to literary … [Read More]
The LKL Korean Literature in Translation survey: a quick look at the results
A few months ago I asked for your help with preparing for a talk at a conference organised by the Literature Translation Institute of Korea to celebrate their 30th birthday. The brief for my talk was, to quote from the email I received commissioning it, “how Korean literature is received by English-speaking readers — what … [Read More]
July events
Twin highlights this month: BTS’s comeback and Yunchan Lim opening the Proms. Tickets for both are like gold dust. Exhibitions The KCCUK’s summer exhibition, Korean Traditional Painting in Alter-age: Pure and Hybrid, is on all month. Look out for special events associated with the exhibition. Experience Young Huh’s maximalist minhwa interior design style at WOWHouse … [Read More]
In pictures: Icheon and Beyond — The Space Within Form
In the past few years, the potters and other artisans of Icheon have shown off the beauty of their work at the Collect craft fair, in partnership with Han Collection. That arrangement worked well for a few years, but had its limitations. On the one hand, Collect gave them the opportunity to find buyers for … [Read More]
In pictures: Songs beneath the Sacred Tree
It was a huge privilege to be one of the few members of the audience when two leading practitioners of the East Coast Byeolshin Gut tradition displayed their talents in Durham’s music department towards the end of May. Husband and wife team Hong Hyojin and Jung Younrak continue the traditions of the hereditary shaman practice, … [Read More]
K-music Festival 2026: the official press release
Here is the official press release for the 2026 K-music festival, released earlier today. Much to look forward to! Europe’s Largest Korean Music Festival Beyond Genre Boundaries 28 Sep – 23 Nov 2026 From folk traditions and experimental sound art to gaming soundtracks, jazz, hip-hop and indie rock, K-Music Festival returns to showcase the depth, … [Read More]
For more posts, visit our Featured Content page.
Recent Event updates
Hong Sangsoo’s The Day She Returns, at the ICA
The Day She Returns follows actress Bae Jeongsu (Song Sunmi), who, having stepped back from acting after marriage and a subsequent divorce, returns to the profession with a role in an independent film. As the film’s release approaches, she takes part in a series of press interviews. A subtle meditation on memory and performance, Hong … [Read More]
Yeon Sang-ho’s Colony: UK theatrical release
A biotech conference turns catastrophic when a rapidly mutating virus is unleashed, trapping survivors inside as they fight to escape. Yeon Sang-ho’s latest movie, Colony, gets a UK theatrical release on 28 August. Exact locations and other details tba
Sangeun Lee in world premiere of Jae Man Joo’s Auguries of Innocence
English National Ballet lead principal Sangeun Lee will be featuring in the world premiere of Jae Man Joo’s Auguries of Innocence, in a compelling triple bill entitled Rhythm Riot that launches the company’s Autumn season: One stage, three moods. Explosive energy. Deep resonance. Unstoppable drive. Feel the pulse of ballet now. Experience all the music … [Read More]
An Evening with Pachinko author Min Jin Lee: American Hagwon
Min Jin Lee is the award-winning author of Pachinko, a multigenerational saga about the lives of Koreans in Japan during an era of colonisation, war and upheaval. The much-loved novel was a finalist for the National Book Award and later adapted into a critically-acclaimed television series for Apple TV+. This October, Lee comes to the Intelligence Squared … [Read More]
Korean musical: You & It
South Korea’s award-winning musical sensation arrives in London. Following sold-out acclaim across Asia and a triumphant Edinburgh Fringe run, You & It transfers to the King’s Head Theatre, Islington, for a limited season. A grieving widower meets an artificial intelligence built in his late wife’s image — and must confront grief, memory, and what it truly … [Read More]
[Leeds] From South Korea to the World: Korean Literature in Translation
![Thumbnail for post: [Leeds] From South Korea to the World: Korean Literature in Translation](https://londonkoreanlinks.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/starfield-suwon-120x120.jpg)
How do Korean stories travel from Seoul to readers around the world? What happens between the writer’s desk and the English-language page? And how are contemporary Korean authors reaching global audiences today? Join award-winning writers Kim Keum-hee and Hwang Bo-reum, together with translator Clare Richards and scholar Dr Eugene Kim, for a day of readings … [Read More]
The above events list includes recent updates to events which might have been uploaded some time ago (eg an update confirming venue or ticket link). A chronological listing of all event notices published, most recent first, can be found here. A list of all upcoming events can be found here.
Recent Book updates
Fighting for Your Right to Party
A foreign spin on 100 Korean music gems. Written in English by former GQ Korea editor Jung Wooyoung, Fighting for Your Right to Party explores Korean popular music through the perspectives of ten international collectors, DJs and writers. Blending essays, interviews and a curated selection of 100 Korean albums and songs spanning 1967–2022, the book … [Read More]
The Tarot Reading Café [forthcoming]
Moon Hye-jung’s novel “The Cafe Where Tarot Cards Are Read” is a psychological novel that delicately captures the bare faces of love, wounds, and desire by looking into the hearts and emotions of others through the eyes of a tarot reader. According to Changbi, “The Cafe Where Tarot Cards Are Read” (2025) by Moon Hye-jung, … [Read More]
Holy Boy
One idol. Four fans. Worship’s never been bloodier. Yosep is a K-pop idol with millions of adoring fans. But for four of them, a poster on the wall just won’t cut it. They have a plan—a perfect, foolproof plan—to get their idol all to themselves. Kidnapping Yosep seemed like the ultimate act of love. But … [Read More]
Light and Thread
In this light-filled and multi-faceted book, her first since being awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, Han Kang draws together the threads of her work and life, tracing the connections between her interior and exterior worlds through a sequence of essays, poems, photographs and diaries. A book of reflections, of words and light, it has … [Read More]
Project V
STEMinist mecha fantasy meets reality television in this high-stakes novel from the author of A Magical Girl Retires — a wildly imaginative tale of sibling bonds, unexpected friendship, and an existential quest to understand what it means to be human. Robotics student Kim Wooram, runner-up at the World Gigantic Mechanics Olympiad, is a world-class pilot and … [Read More]
Teddy Bears Never Die
A young girl teams up with a hatchet-wielding teddy bear to solve the mystery of her mother’s murder and get her revenge in this campy slasher from Cho Yeeun, a rising star in Korean horror. Hwa-young never believed that her mother was murdered in a mass-cyanide attack at the luxury apartment complex where she worked. … [Read More]
The above booklist includes recent updates to books which might have been uploaded some time ago (eg an update to reflect a release of cover art, or a new review). A chronological listing of all books uploaded, most recent first, can be found here.