Thursday 12th June 2025

Culture

The Oxford Cinema & Café: A profile

"The opening of The Oxford Cinema & Café marks a new chapter in Oxford’s cinema scene: a move further towards independent cinema."

W.H. Auden at the Bus Stop: In Praise of Intellectual Delay

It’s a damp Tuesday afternoon, and W.H. Auden is waiting patiently at the bus stop...

The Case for Reincarnated Romances

"Reincarnation romance films are sometimes silly, mostly melodramatic, but always overlooked as a subgenre."

Review: All My Sons – ‘At the end of the American Dream’

Joe Keller, played by Tristan Hood, represents the American dream. He is a wealthy...

W. G. Still: The Forgotten American Tchaikovsky

At one point America's most successful symphonist, lauded for his ode to forgotten black soldiers, few today have heard of W. G. Still. According to The Cambridge History of American Music, “No composer plummeted from authentic prominence to an eclipse more total than endured by William Grant Still.”

Review – Awkward Conversations With Animals I’ve F*cked

Fringe hit one-man-show exploring loneliness, love, sexuality and bestiality starts national tour in Oxford.

100% That Bitch

It was May Day afternoon when I clicked play on the movie ‘Someone Great’ on Netflix. It had come out a few days ago,...

Prometheus Unbound – An ancient tragedy in open air performance

"This performance breathed a fresh, modern dynamic to an otherwise static play". Phoebe Athena Hennell explores the implications of language in a Modern Greek performance of Aeschylus' ancient tragedy 'Prometheus Bound'. With contributions from Andreas Janssen.

Antony Gormley at the RA

A new-born baby is lying naked on the ground in the crisp September air. Some stride nonchalantly past her, while others stop and instinctively stroke her smooth body, as though trying to shield her from the elements.

FLEABAG – Triumphant return to where it all began

Imogen Harter-Jones reviews Phoebe Waller-Bridge's return to the stage.

Festival Review: We Out Here

Jazz, soul, hip hop, afro, electronica, and house - a look at the festival made for everyone

Fry ‘held audience in the palm of his hand’ in Mythos performance

Fry has enough charisma and charm to match any of the Olympian characters in his tales, but could he hold the audience’s attention for such a mythological marathon as this?

The Huffman scandal: just another story of privilege and bribery?

Last week, Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman was sentenced as part of Operation Varsity Blues, the college admissions scandal, receiving 14 days in prison, a $30,000 fine, 250 hours of community service, and one year’s probation.

Stilettos, Broken Bottles and Teenage Heartbreak: A Love Letter to Robyn’s Dancing on my Own

When I was sixteen, I was in love for the first time. It was a boy from a school near mine, who I’ll refer to...

Stephen Fry on Mythos

James Rampton speaks to one of the nation's favourite story tellers about the upcoming production of his book 'Mythos'

Review: Lover by Taylor Swift

Jess Curry looks at why Taylor Swift's latest record represents a strong return to form

Sex, drugs and gender roles: Frank Turner’s historical concept album

A discussion of the new historical concept album from Frank Turner, "No Man's Land".

The Raft of Medusa: 200 Years of a Masterpiece

Things on the raft turned horrific pretty quickly. Thirst, suicide, drowning, murders, cannibalism. By the time the raft was found on the 17th of July, just fifteen men were still alive.

Intricate Designs: Stanley Kubrick at the Design Museum

Walking around the Stanley Kubrick exhibition at the London Design Museum in South Kensington, the overwhelming impression you get is of a man meticulous to a fault.

Dark Trends: Sexy Sociopaths

As we’ve learnt more and more about the confusing grey splodge of the human mind, we’ve uncovered more and more of what makes sociopaths tick. As such, they’ve increasingly inhabited that attractive idiosyncratic loner role in our popular imagination.

The Dangers of Disney+

For the past few years, the same small collection of streaming services has vied for the attention of UK viewers. But things are set to change rapidly in the coming months, as practically every big media company will pitch their own tent in an increasingly competitive media landscape.

Why a No-Deal Brexit could mean the end of British Film

But it’s independent British films that have the most to fear in the looming shadow of a no-deal Brexit. Most people working in the film industry voted against leaving altogether – why? Because the European Union massively supports creative industries in a way that our government alone either can’t or won't.

Twelfth Night – Shakespeare’s Rose blossoms in York and Oxford

Madness, hilarity and revelry ensues in Joyce Branagh's production of Twelfth Night.

Were Nickelback really that bad?

Were Nickleback responsible for killing guitar music in the pop charts?

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