Monday 19th January 2026

Culture

‘Beautifully we may rot’: ‘Madame La Mort’ in review

In a small, black-painted room on the top floor of a pub in Islington, known as The Hope Theatre, Madame La Mort was staged for the public for the first time.

Damaging detachment: Reflections on the Booker Prize 

This Christmas vac, I made up my mind to get out of my reading slump using the Booker Prize shortlist, revealing toxic masculinity as a key theme.

In defence of the theatrical release

If film, like all art, nourishes itself on its own œuvre, I don’t think we can afford to sever the association between the cinema and the film.

Falling out of Louvre

In spite of recent events, the expected heightened security was nowhere evident.

Setting the Scene: When location becomes character

I can remember the first time I watched The Revenant in an empty screening at my local cinema. It was during the height of...

Review: The Places I’ve Cried in Public

"The book tackles abusive relationships in a way that allows younger (and older) readers to realise the many forms abuse can take."

Theroux thick and thin

Louis doesn't just question those he is filming but seems to become part of their journey

A Fresher’s Guide to Oxford Drama

Everyone feels on the outside, until they don’t anymore

Friday Favourite: The Cairo Trilogy

“A historical allegory that mirrors political events through the livelihood of the Al-Jawad family, it is a seminal work of modern Arabic literature and is crucial to understanding Egypt’s modern history, society and culture.”

Arcade Fire’s ‘Funeral’: an underappreciated album built for times like these

It is a fact of the universe that, in difficult times, people turn to music. It often seems somewhat counterintuitive that in states of...

When Will We Be “Satisfied”? – Hamilton And Its Discontents

Four years after the now familiar opening thumps of Hamilton were first heard, the White House has met the Mouse-House; Disney+ allows subscribers to...

The language of Pride: five books I read in the closet

"As well as the direct dialogue from writer to reader, I realised that I was just one of a larger readership: an intoxicating mix of individual and collective experience that was validating above all else."

In defence of self-help

"It took my own experience of trauma to recognise that maligning self-help can contribute to disempowerment, and to think non-judgementally about the traumas which might have led other people to seek self-help and self-care."

Review: The Chicks’ ‘Gaslighter’

Fourteen years since their last album, and 17 since they were effectively shut out from the country music industry, The Chicks (formerly known as...

Review: Bladee’s ‘333’

Bladee’s music is either airy transcendence...or the worst thing you’ve ever heard.

“But where are the bonnets?”: Little Women and historically inaccurate costumes

In case you didn’t know, Little Women (2019) won Best Costume Design at the most recent Oscars and there are a good number of...

‘Lockdown made me do it’: the sustainable benefits of getting crafty

"If people were making a small fortune on Depop and Etsy (occasionally funded by me) by selling vintage and up-cycled clothes, I might as well try doing it for myself on a budget." Sophie Wright discusses how she turned old into new by upcycling during lockdown.

Culture in crisis: the impact of the pandemic on theatres

The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on countries around the world. A huge number of services and businesses are struggling: the NHS, airlines, retail...

Comfort Films – Stand By Me

"Immature boyishness and naivety are never glamorised..."

Of bops and bargains

“I mean we are doing something to slow it down, but this fashion is still going very fast.” With this statement hanging in the air,...

Review: Haim’s ‘Women in Music Pt. III’

As with other albums scheduled for 2020, the release date for Women in Music Pt. III experienced an upheaval. Having moved from its original...

Coming down from Eden: the darkening sounds of Sly and the Family Stone

No band – on record or off – better encapsulated the demise of the sixties and that era’s spirit of excited possibility than Sly...

Reading the Room

"plays are meant to be performed"

Review: Taylor Swift’s ‘Folklore’

Usually, Taylor Swift begins a new album cycle with a blank slate. Instagram is cleared of any record of previous ‘eras’. Easter eggs are laid out...

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