Arts
Emotional intelligence
The difference between a poor ballet of the book (see the Royal Ballet’s Frankenstein) and a good one — indeed…
What lies beneath
It was not so unusual for someone to turn into a god in Egypt. It happened to the Emperor Hadrian’s…
War on want
Radiohead have been at the top of the musical tree for so long now that it’s easy to forget what…
War on want
Radiohead have been at the top of the musical tree for so long now that it’s easy to forget what…
Wish upon a star
Out come the stars in Kenneth Branagh’s Romeo and Juliet. He musters a well-drilled, celebrity-ridden crew but they can’t quite…
Wish upon a star
Out come the stars in Kenneth Branagh’s Romeo and Juliet. He musters a well-drilled, celebrity-ridden crew but they can’t quite…
The supremes
When I interviewed Richard Farnes in Leeds six years ago about Opera North’s project of performing the complete Ring, he…
The supremes
When I interviewed Richard Farnes in Leeds six years ago about Opera North’s project of performing the complete Ring, he…
Sound and fury
There are few jobs more dishonest than being a radio critic in Britain. I know this because it was how…
Sound and fury
There are few jobs more dishonest than being a radio critic in Britain. I know this because it was how…
Impure thoughts
Spoiler alerts aren’t normally required for reviews of Shakespeare — but perhaps I’d better issue one before saying that in…
The great pretenders
Can the beauty of Palmyra be reproduced by data-driven robots? Stephen Bayley on copies, fakes and forgeries
Punk turns 40
There have been many punk exhibitions over the years so I can’t help but chuckle at the ‘experts’ who are…
Myth-making
For years I have been telling people that they should listen to, in the absence of staged performances, Enescu’s opera…
Mind games
Blue/Orange by Joe Penhall enjoys the dubious status of a modern classic. A black mental-health patient, Christopher, is about to…
Giving Tate Modern a lift
Tate Modern, badly overcrowded, has built itself a £260 million extension to spread everyone about the place more. This means…
Jane Austen on speed
Love & Friendship is based on the little-known Jane Austen epistolary novella, Lady Susan, which was not published until after…
Counting on sheep
Going Forward (BBC4, Thursdays) is a BBC comedy about the continuing adventures of Kim Wilde, the fat, cynical but lovable…
Baby love
I like Radio 4 — you can have it on in the background burbling away for hours and hours without…
Royal Court Theatre
If there were an Eddie the Eagle award for theatre — to recognise large reputations built on minuscule achievements —…
Eoin Andersen
Zurich’s loss was Melbourne’s gain in 2015 when Eoin Andersen became Concertmaster of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Having begun violin…
Giving Tate Modern a lift
Tate Modern, badly overcrowded, has built itself a £260 million extension to spread everyone about the place more. This means…
The great pretenders
There is fakery in the air. And maybe the French are done with deconstruction. A drone operated by a French…
Jane Austen on speed
Love & Friendship is based on the little-known Jane Austen epistolary novella, Lady Susan, which was not published until after…
Punk turns 40
There have been many punk exhibitions over the years so I can’t help but chuckle at the ‘experts’ who are…
