— **Announcements − December 9, 2025: A Day of Celebration and Reflection in Malta** As December 9th approaches, Malta is gearing up for a day filled with excitement, reflection, and community spirit. This date holds a special place in the hearts of Maltese citizens, marking significant cultural and historical events that have shaped the nation’s…
Archbishop Charles Scicluna startled worshippers on Sunday when, from the steps of St John’s Co-Cathedral, he catalogued what he called the “betrayals of independence” that have corroded Malta since 1964. Preaching at the annual pontifical Mass that marks Independence Day, the usually soft-spoken Bishop of Malta ditched the customary polite homily and delivered a stinging…
**Momentum calls for reflection on the meaning of independence** As Malta marks another Independence Day, the activist group Momentum is urging the nation to look beyond the fireworks and fanfare to examine what freedom truly means for the islands today. Their call comes at a time when many Maltese are questioning whether the promises of…
Are we really independent? The question hangs over Malta like the August humidity—familiar, heavy, impossible to swat away. Every 21 September the islands explode in tricolour: band marches down Valletta’s Republic Street, fireworks bruise the night sky above Floriana, and Facebook feeds clog with nostalgic black-and-white photos of Dom Mintoff holding the independence document. We…
Under the honey-coloured limestone of Rome’s Pantheon—still the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome after 1,900 years—Joseph Calleja’s tenor soared through the oculus and into the Maltese night sky beamed live to Valletta. On the eve of Malta’s 59th Independence anniversary, the Mdina-born artist swapped the familiar stage of the Granaries for the ancient Roman temple,…
# Joseph Calleja’s Voice Fills the Pantheon as Malta Rings in 61 Years of Independence Valletta’s skyline shimmered under a late-summer haze on Friday night, but every eye inside the Mediterranean Conference Centre’s historic Patheon dome was fixed on one man: Joseph Calleja. The world-renowned tenor stepped onto the temporary stage shortly after 9 p.m.,…
Żepp’s Wake-Up Call: How One Man’s September 14 Pledge Rocked the Islands By Hot Malta Staff | September 15, 2025 Żepp’s name has always been shorthand for “everyman” in Malta—the guy who can fix your muffler, quote the Gospels, and whistle a ħanżira tune before you’ve finished your first espresso. But by sunset yesterday, September…
