Arts
Forget Vienna - Britain now has its own chamber of curiosities at the British Museum
Art is not jewellery. Its value does not reside in the price of the materials from which it is made.…
A handy liberal guide on how to save mankind, courtesy of Soho Theatre
Refugee crisis in the Mediterranean! Fear not. Anders Lustgarten and his trusty rescue ship are here to save mankind. Lampedusa…
New works at the Proms that some would rather dernière than première
This year the Proms are to stage 21 world premières and 11 European, UK or London premières. It is good…
Listen: the gaffe from Nicola Sturgeon that everyone missed
It’s not surprising that politicians have such an on-off relationship with the broadcast media. One slip. One casual comment. One…
A documentary that ought to rank with the footage of British troops liberating Belsen
So you’ve just popped out of town for the day on an errand. And when you get back, everyone has…
Culture buff
My 18-year old consultant can’t understand why I haven’t written a column about games – video and computer games, that…
The beat goes on
It’s rare that I see a piece about music that makes me want to cheer from the rafters and shake…
Chorus of disapproval
If heartwarming, against-the-odds, triumph-over-adversity, wrong-side-of-the-tracks films float your boat and you are in no way demanding then The Choir is…
Première league
This year the Proms are to stage 21 world premières and 11 European, UK or London premières. It is good…
Première league
This year the Proms are to stage 21 world premières and 11 European, UK or London premières. It is good…
The beat goes on
It’s rare that I see a piece about music that makes me want to cheer from the rafters and shake…
The beat goes on
It’s rare that I see a piece about music that makes me want to cheer from the rafters and shake…
Behind the Black Flag curtain
So you’ve just popped out of town for the day on an errand. And when you get back, everyone has…
Ringo's no joke. He was a genius and the Beatles were lucky to have him
Ringo’s no joke, says James Woodall. He was a genius and the Beatles were lucky to have him
The Sun King deserves better than this silly cabaret from Birmingham Royal Ballet
It’s a comfort that the creation of a new ballet inspired by French court entertainment can still happen in the…
Poetic or pretentious? Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust at the Royal Academy reviewed
Someone once asked Joseph Cornell who was his favourite abstract artist of his time. It was a perfectly reasonable question…
Michael Eavis has brought more joy to more people than almost any Englishman alive
I had meant to write a dispassionate account of this year’s Glastonbury, really I had. But I’m afraid my plans…
The gang rape was the least offensive thing about Royal Opera's new William Tell
There’s no such thing as a tasteful rape scene — or there certainly shouldn’t be. It’s an act of grossest…
The Seagull needs a roof to stop Chekhov's subtleties flying off
A new Seagull lands in Regent’s Park. Director Matthew Dunster has lured Chekhov’s classic into a leafy corner of north…
Masterly and heartbreaking: Amy reviewed
Asif Kapadia’s documentary about Amy Winehouse, whom Tony Bennett describes as ‘one of the truest jazz singers that ever lived’,…
Does history provide the answer to what happened in Tunisia?
There’s a part of me that thinks OK, we’ve heard enough now, one year on from the beginning of the…
As blatant rip-offs go, this one is shaping up nicely: Odyssey, BBC2, reviewed
This week’s Imagine… Jeff Koons: Diary of a Seducer (BBC1, Tuesday) began with Koons telling a slightly puzzled-looking Alan Yentob…
Culture buff
They’re just recovering in Adelaide from the sold-out success of the Cabaret Festival which was directed by the wonderful, endlessly…
Eyes wide shut
Asif Kapadia’s documentary about Amy Winehouse, whom Tony Bennett describes as ‘one of the truest jazz singers that ever lived’,…
Dying of the light
It’s a comfort that the creation of a new ballet inspired by French court entertainment can still happen in the…
