Fergus Finlay: We’ve always needed hope, and we certainly need lots of it now
'I can barely think of anything redemptive or uplifting that happened in 2023. It was, in all sorts of ways, the worst of years'
Ukraine’s counteroffensive stalled and Russia continues to kill civilians by bombing cities such as Kostiantynivka in Donetsk Oblast. Picture: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
Fergus Finlay is a former political activist and adviser to three governments, the former head of the children's charity Barnardos, a writer and a broadcaster.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... No, actually it wasn’t. I can barely think of anything redemptive or uplifting that happened in 2023. It was, in all sorts of ways, the worst of years. And perhaps a harbinger of worse to come.
To make matters worse, it was one of those years — abroad at least — when hope seemed to surge and was then suddenly dashed.
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