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Elisa Allen - You Name It – She Does It for PETA!

From high-profile demonstrations across Europe to getting angry with the photocopier technician – nothing is above or below Elisa Allen! And now she's found the time to write to you all on PETA's blog.

She's new to the team, but we all think we're pretty lucky to have her. Recently transplanted to the UK from Ireland, she always knew that she would eventually work for PETA, as it runs in her family – her identical twin sister works in the Cruelty Investigations Department at PETA US.

Her CV, which is as varied and interesting as she is, includes such pursuits as teaching English in Ukraine, working at a large animal shelter in Colorado and writing her master's dissertation on "Nudity and Animal Activism".

As a stylish "lady about town", she simply loves shopping for vegan shoes and exploring London. When she's not calming her blistered feet (from all the new shoes, of course), she likes nothing more than to kick back and chillax with a good book. Oh, and she likes gnomes – end of!
  • 02
  • May

The UK’s Top Five Vegan-Friendly Cinemas

Cornerhouse with credit

Even in the age of Internet downloads and widescreen TVs, nothing beats a trip to the cinema to lose yourself in the magic of the movies. And thankfully for compassionate filmgoers everywhere, long gone are the days of only having stale popcorn and processed hot dogs to munch on. Today’s cinemas, recognising that patrons enjoy healthy meals and snacks during films, are offering a wide variety of creative, delicious meat-free treats. If there were an Oscar for compassionate catering, then our Top Five Vegan-Friendly Cinemas would all be worthy nominees:


  • 20
  • Apr

Jude Law’s Seal Appeal

Star speaks up for seals“As an actor who will always consider Britain home, I was proud to learn that the European Union has banned seal-fur imports. In light of next week’s seal-products dispute hearing, I’m writing to urge the panel to uphold this ban, which is in line with the wishes of compassionate people all around the world, including the majority of European citizens.”

So wrote Jude Law to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), as it decides whether to overturn the European Union’s ban on importing seal fur at a final hearing in Geneva this week.… Read more.


  • 15
  • Apr

Eat da Veggies Like da Vinci!

Leonardo da Vinci

Happy Birthday, Leonardo!

Leonardo da Vinci was not only a great artist but also a compassionate person who led a cruelty-free lifestyle. He was such an ardent defender of animals that he sometimes bought caged birds from poultry vendors and set them free. He frequently wrote about cruelty to animals in his Notebooks, writing of the meat and dairy industries, “Endless multitudes will have their little [babies] taken from them, ripped open and flayed and most cruelly cut in pieces” and “Of the beasts from whom cheese is made … the … Read more.


  • 12
  • Apr

Arlene Phillips: Cruel Fortnum & Mason Doesn’t Deserve a Royal Warrant

After receiving her CBE from Her Majesty The Queen last month, TV presenter and choreographer Arlene Phillips is no stranger to royalty. So it’s no surprise that Prince Charles was the recipient of the letter she sent this week asking that Fortnum & Mason be stripped of its Royal Warrants as long as it continues to sell foie gras.

After learning about how birds have metal tubes rammed down their throats several times a day and are force-fed until they become ill to make this distasteful foodstuff, the Strictly Come Dancing judge … Read more.


  • 20
  • Mar

Vegan on a Budget: Recipes From A Girl Called Jack

We’ve all seen the headlines – with rising bills, increasing food costs and widespread austerity cuts across Britain, people are feeling the pinch. So for single mum and frugal food blogger Jack Monroe (aka “A Girl Called Jack”), finding inexpensive ways to feed her family is a top priority. Since pledging to go vegan for Lent, however, Jack has discovered that there’s no reason why you can’t adopt a diet that saves animals while still counting the pennies – her collection of tempting vegan recipes works out to as little as … Read more.


  • 05
  • Mar

Crufts – Last Year’s Top 10 So-Called ‘Winners’

Crufts Genetic FreaksThe animals crowned as “winners” at dog shows like Crufts are more likely to be major losers – in the genetic lottery, that is. “Purebred” is a euphemism for “inbred”: in some cases, pedigrees come from a gene pool of only about 50 dogs, meaning that these unfortunate pooches are riddled with painful inherited diseases and may live for only half as long as their healthy mixed-breed cousins.

What’s more, the exaggerated features that breeders and competition judges prize, such as a squashed-in face, a narrow skull or disproportionately short legs, are … Read more.


  • 22
  • Feb

101 and Still Going Strong – Is Fauja Singh the World’s Most Impressive Vegetarian?

You’re only as old as you feel, as the saying goes, and record-holding marathon runner Fauja Singh certainly proves that your age needn’t hold you back – the lifelong vegetarian will run the Hong Kong marathon on Sunday, despite having celebrated his 101st birthday last April!

So what’s the secret to Fauja’s awe-inspiring stamina and longevity? A wholesome plant-based diet, which is good for the planet and his own health. “In many parts of the world, people are dying because of starvation, whilst others are dying because of overeating”, he explains. “My … Read more.


  • 14
  • Feb

Slaughterhouse Secrets

On Tuesday, the police and food standards inspectors raided a UK abattoir and meat processing firm to find out if they had been passing meat from horses off as beef – the latest development in the ongoing British horsemeat scandal, which has affected major retailers from Tesco to Burger King.

While the authorities have yet to reach a verdict about these particular facilities, at every slaughterhouse in Britain atrocities go on every day that would turn most people’s stomachs.

From being strung up by their legs and given repeated electric shocks to  … Read more.


  • 11
  • Feb

Low on Cruelty, Low on Carbon

“Go Green” Week starts today – a great student initiative asking people around the country to get serious about tackling climate change. If you want to reduce your carbon footprint, recycling and switching over to energy-efficient light bulbs will only get you so far. But to make a lasting difference to the planet, there’s one simple lifestyle change that outweighs all others: going vegan!

Meat’s harmful environmental impacts are too many to list, but they include deforestation, water depletion, soil erosion, fertiliser run-off, methane emissions and pollution from animal transportation.

Raising animals … Read more.


  • 04
  • Feb

8 Reasons to Stop Eating Meat on World Cancer Day

Today is World Cancer Day, an opportunity to raise awareness about the causes of cancer, which is still one of Britains’ biggest killers. In an article in the Independent today, Dr Neal Barnard, President of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, explains that eating meat is up there with smoking as a lifestyle choice that increases our risk of this devastating disease.

Going vegan is one of the most effective ways to protect our health – here are some key points from Dr Barnard’s article that explain why:

  1. Unlike foods from

    2. … Read more.


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