Arts
Tolkien rubbish
A couple of years ago, in that near-forgotten era when we could travel almost freely, I canvassed social media as…
The great pretender
Eleven years ago, Kirat Assi received a message on Facebook from a man named Bobby. There was a family connection…
Nitram
Nitram is the Martin Bryant film which sent shivers down everyone’s spine at the mere prospect. Justin Kurzel’s film about…
Sleeker than its scrappy parts
The Barcelona-born choreographer Joan Clevillé has form for off-beat storytelling with a streak of sincerity. Before becoming artistic director of…
The 900 numbers game
We’ve been living through a nostalgia for the 1990s that has lasted longer than the decade itself. That was back…
Foreign parts
There are, perhaps, two types of exhibition visitor. Those who read the texts on the walls and those who don’t.…
I saw a film today, oh boy
My late friend Alexander Nekrassov loathed the Beatles, which I used to think was a wantonly contrary position akin to…
The reel deal
Hand of God is the latest film from Paolo Sorrentino, the Italian filmmaker who won an Oscar with The Great…
Liquid silk
That strain again… it’s the morning after the concert and one tune is still there, playing in the head upon…
The National is the graveyard of talent
Somewhere in the wilds of England a stately home is collapsing. Rising floodwaters threaten the foundations. Storms break over the…
The singing is the star
When I were a lad — back when you could buy the entire back catalogue of the Fall for thruppence…
High resolution
Jimmy Chin is part Bear Grylls, part David Attenborough: he both climbs snow, ice and rock and films other mountaineers doing it too, writes Theo Zenou
As You Like It
As You Like It is middle Shakespeare, probably lateish 1590s. It’s not one of the earlier happy comedies like the…
The weird turned pro
Pop quiz time: which act was named Melody MakerGroup of the Year in 1975? The answer is not, as you…
Adele: 30
Grade: C The problem I have is that I thought she was pretty awful before — when she was just…
Formula milquetoast
If it weren’t for this job I sometimes wonder whether I’d even bother watching TV at all. This mood strikes…
Too much cod and not enough camp
Ridley Scott’s House of Gucci has been much anticipated. The cast is stellar. It’s based on a luscious, true story…
Sublime – and ridiculous
It’s the final scene of The Valkyrie and Wotan is wearing cords. They’re a sensible choice for a hard-working deity:…
Our old Macca
The Paul people are out in force these days. A New Yorker profile, a book and a new documentary have…
Guilt-free hilarity
World-class sex bomb Janie Dee stars in a fabulously silly revival of the American comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha…
Wild at heart
On 13 July 1815, John Constable wrote to his fiancée, Maria Bicknell, about this and that. Interspersed with a discussion…
The Guinea Pig club
Lloyd Evans on a musical that tells the story of the pioneering maverick whose methods for treating disfigured second world war airmen revolutionised plastic surgery
Don’t forget the motor city
No Sudden Move, Directed by Steven Soderbergh, Streaming on Amazon Prime
Sean Connery
Anyone who cares about the theatre should rush to see Kendall Feaver’s Wherever She Wanders which Griffin Theatre Company is…
Putting on the glitz
From quartz to quince: Daisy Dunn on the art and science of Fabergé
