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Serbian street paper Liceulice launches biannual English language magazine, Belgrade Less Ordinary

Serbian street paper Liceulice is set to launch a sister magazine, published in English, which is billed as an “extraordinary, socially responsible, activist guide for the guests of Belgrade and Serbia”.

Belgrade Less Ordinary (BLO), which will be released twice a year, is seen as a “2-in-1” product: customers will not only be treated to a high quality magazine carefully crafted to provide interesting stories and expert guides to English-speaking residents pf and visitors to the Serbian capital, and so a special souvenir to take away, but also means socially-conscious magazine readers can do all this whilst also contributing to Liceulice, and its vendors, projects and other beneficiaries.

The cover of the first issue of Belgrade Less Ordinary

Liceulice, and BLO, editor-in-chief Milosav Saki Marinovic, told INSP: “Of course, as with most of us in the world of street papers, the best ideas arise from the need to survive – to improve the support for the vulnerable, meaning for us the obligation to our vendors.

“Throughout the year, many foreigners pass through Belgrade, and many stay here for longer, some even deciding to stay for several years. Many of them support us and buy Liceulice even though they cannot read it. For a long period, we wanted to give them some sort of repayment, and also to give them the opportunity to get to know Liceulice and our cause better. So we were planning a special edition in English for a long time.

“Until six months ago, everything regarding this idea was just a wish. Our team is small and burdened with a lot of everyday work, so we postponed this project for a long time. But after receiving investment in the idea, we were able to move forward, and it was sufficient to go to print for the first issue. Now, we’ve already sketched out plans for BLO number two.”

Liceulice vendor Svetlana Petrović [Credit: Sara Ristic]

The first edition of the magazine will feature numerous guides to getting out and about in Belgrade, the food to eat, the places to visit, and interviews and features focused at helping readers better understand more about Serbian history and culture. It includes Liceulice’s previously published, award-nominated, big name interview with multiple Grand Slam winning tennis star Novak Djokovic. There’s also plenty of space dedicated to explaining the work of Liceulice and placing street paper vendors front and centre.

Speaking about the concept behind the magazine itself, Marionvic added: “It’s kind of natural to offer foreigners in your city a guide through it, but also its culture and history, as well as getting to know its people and the essence and soul of the city. And if such a guide is made by Liceulice magazine, then it must be something new and original, different, well designed and excellently written, along with its socially engaged mission – that’s how we got to Belgrade Less Ordinary.

A sneak peek inside the first edition of Belgrade Less Ordinary A sneak peek inside the first edition of Belgrade Less Ordinary A sneak peek inside the first edition of Belgrade Less Ordinary

“All in all, once we started, we relatively easily developed the concept and content thanks to our experience and knowledge as an organisation and team of people. We invited many friends and supporters to contribute texts, photographs and illustrations. It seems to me that the easiest part is done – now we have to work on its promotion and sale.”

The 80-page, full colour magazine will be distributed via brightly designed branded acrylic boxes placed in a network of hotels, hostels, embassies, businesses and other Liceulice partners, as well as sold at large meetings with foreign participants, such as international conferences held in Belgrade. The recommended donation for a copy will be 500 RSD [Serbian dinars], or 4 Euros.

Branded BLO box

BLO isn’t the first time a street paper has decided to engage a rapidly changing, multi-cultural, and increasingly knowledgeable of the English language, audience. Slovenia’s Kralji Ulice has been experimenting with including English pages and articles in its magazine, while L’Itinéraire, a fortnightly street paper which publishes in French and is sold in Montréal, Canada, includes one article per month in English, usually taken from the INSP News Service.

For more information about Belgrade Less Ordinary, visit: https://www.liceulice.org/belgrade-less-ordinary