Expat writers who are in the know

Because Euro Weekly News is written by expats for expats, we know what’s important to our readers, and our hardy band of local reporters is out across the Costas every day.

We thought it was time you got to know some of them a little better.

Eleanor Hawkins works our Costa del Sol beat, and having moved there at the age of 10, she knows every angle of expat life. “I’ve lived all over the Costa del Sol, in Marbella, Fuengirola, Alhaurin el Grande, La Cala, Mijas Costa. You could say I’ve popped about a bit!”

Joining Eleanor in our Benalmadena office is Steve Walsh –Walshy arrived in Spain 10 years ago in a bus he’d converted himself, with, he says, “my mother, my sister, my sister’s three teenagers, two rottweilers, a hamster and a pioneer spirit.” The family lived completely off-grid on an olive farm in Granada for six years, building their own renewable energy systems, until they moved to Torreblanca for a slightly more comfortable life.

Linda Hall is our Grande Dame in Altea, who’s seen every possible change in the south of Spain over her 46 years here. She’s been writing for EWN - the most popular English language newspaper in English -since its launch in 2000.

“I understand how difficult it is to learn a language. But expats ought to know what’s going on around them, at a local and national level. And that’s where the EWN can help.”

Our regional news editor on the Costa Blanca, Jan Gamm, completely agrees. “We’re serving our community by keeping in touch with everything that’s happening.

Jan herself is more citizen of the globe than expat, having grown up in Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia, attended school in New Zealand, and worked in Dubai and Sudan. All this experience means she has a unique understanding of how to help our readers play a role in their community.

Gemma Quinn was a radio journalist at home in Lincolnshire, and now she loves sharing the stories of the unique characters on the Costas.

“I’m constantly surprised by the fascinating people who congregate here. I’ve interviewed film directors and soap stars, people from all walks of life you just wouldn’t come across in your home town.”

Irena Bodnarec is Euro Weekly’s woman on the beat in Benidorm.

She’s lived there for 14 years after moving from London with her family, and for four years has written a popular blog about the town. She’s so much in the know, she’s the first point of contact when TV production companies need background information on Benidorm locations, and where to feed their crew members.

Covering the town and its surroundings, Irena is putting her experience to use for EWN readers as an expat writing for expats.

“I came over here with young children, one who’s been through the Spanish school system and the other through the international school system. I’ve seen the broad range of pitfalls that people can come across.

“Apart from that, there’s just so much going on here, and people need someone to tell them about it!”

Bringing the whole bunch together is editor Dilip Kuner. Originally from Uganda, via Coventry, he learned his trade on local papers from Folkestone to Bridlington, and served time on the Sunday Mirror. He moved to Spain 21 years ago to open a restaurant, before returning to journalism with the EWN.

“I’ve brought my family up here, and I’ve run a business. I know the problems that expats experience when they don’t understand the system, because I’ve gone through them too. The EWN is truly written by expats for expats."

These are just some of the writers who make up the assembled expertise at EWN, and it’s all just a click away on our website, and at more than 4,000 distribution points for our print editions.

“After all,” adds Jan, “it costs nothing to pick up a copy of EWN!”