With the vaccine rollout underway, the theatre world is betting on a triumphant return in the spring – and this time for good. If, like me, you can’t wait to get back to the West End, here are eight shows to book ahead for (whilst keeping your fingers firmly crossed for the vaccine rollout). Good
Gone Girl star and former Spectator contributor Rosamund Pike steps into the shoes of a con artist in Netflix’s new original, I Care A Lot. Just like serial killers, swindlers and hustlers have long held a fascination for film-makers and audiences alike – not least during the golden age of Hollywood. If you appreciate a
The anarchic traders of Reddit stunned stock-markets this week, boosting the share price of struggling retailer GameStop by some 400 per cent. It’s the latest stunt from WallStreetBets – an infamous Reddit page for novice millennial traders (which was featured in The Spectator last February). But who are the Redditors behind the great Wall Street
With the arts world still largely in hibernation, the launch of a big podcast is as close as we get to a big cultural event these days. Such is the case with The Apology Line, the latest serial podcast from Amazon-owned Wondery, which shot to the top of the ‘most downloaded’ charts last week and
As the success of The Serpent and The Pembrokeshire Murders shows, many of us remain oddly fascinated by serial killers. But for all its popularity, the serial killer format can be tricky to get right – with many coming across as distasteful, clichéd or overly sensationalised. Here are eight recent shows – both dramas and documentaries
Nearly three months since the US election, Kamala Harris will soon make history as the first woman to be sworn in as Vice-President. As the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, Harris has made much of her historic background. And not always without controversy – the recent ‘fweedom’ gaffe being a case in point. So
Back in the golden age of Hollywood, American’s theatres provided a steady supply of would-be hits ripe for adaptation. These days, fewer plays make it to the silver screen but those that do usually prove their worth. Here are eight recent picks well worth watching: Una (2016), Amazon – to rent Blackbird, a jet-black thriller
The electoral college has confirmed it: the US will have its 46th president on 21 January next year – Joseph R Biden Jnr. While Scranton Joe might not have much in common with his predecessor in many departments, there are (some) similarities when it comes to their personal lives. As grandfathers in their 70s, both
Looking for something new to watch on Amazon Prime this Christmas? Here’s our guide to the best shows and films arriving over the winter season: Tenet, 15 December (to rent or buy) Christopher Nolan’s time-bending venture – which revolves around the concept of bullets fired backwards in time – may have failed to reverse the
With the November shutdown and talk of Christmas restrictions, you could be forgiven for wanting a good dose of escapism right now. If that’s you, here’s our guide to the best films to watch when you’re feeling fed up and want a break from it all: North by Northwest (1959) Preserved by the United States
With the dark evenings rolling in and the headlines sounding gloomier than ever, what better way to enter winter than by getting stuck into a good Scandi noir? Once the preserve of late nights on BBC Four, the genre has become a bankable success for streaming services – and a source of friendly(ish) competition between
Even with filming and production stalled, Netflix is set to deliver an impressive slate of new content this autumn. From the return of Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown to new work from Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher, here’s our guide to what’s coming up. The Crown (Season four), 15 November To
Whether you’re stuck at home in quarantine or just looking to spice up those weekday evenings, there’s plenty coming to Amazon Prime over the autumn. Here’s our round-up of the shows and films you don’t want to miss: The Boys (Season Two), 4 September Set in a parallel universe in which superheroes are real –
With her marriage to property developer Edoardo ‘Edo’ Mapelli Mozzi, Princess Beatrice – the Queen’s fifth eldest grandchild – becomes part of one of Italy’s oldest aristocratic families. As well as becoming a ‘Contessa’ (a purely symbolic title in post-war Italy) Her Royal Highness’s husband will also inherit the family’s grand residence – a large
With flexible working set to increase after the coronavirus, more Londoners will be in the market for a commuter bolthole. While the likes of Guildford have been drawing in commuters for decades, experts predict that we’ll see new hotspots emerge in coming years. ‘With the adoption of new working practices, people are realising how easy
While the coronavirus might have delayed filming for now, the big streaming services are still managing to put out new content – at least for the time being. Here are eight new releases on Amazon Prime to keep you entertained on those lazy summer evenings: Dating Amber, available now Fans of Sex Education and Derry
In Beeb-dominated Britain, the commercial triumph of podcasting — epitomised by Spotify’s recent £100 million deals with Joe Rogan and Kim Kardashian — is held up as proof of the complacency of the radio establishment. Freed from the constraints of box-ticking commissioners, wily podcasters have been able to steal a march on Broadcasting House by
Did the US secretly write a power ballad in order to bring down the Soviet Union? That’s the question behind Wind of Change, a serial documentary that has topped the podcast charts. It’s the work of an investigative journalist called Patrick Radden Keefe who claims to have once received a tip-off, from an intelligence contact,
With Britain’s theatres closed until at least late autumn, enthusiasts have had to rely on the internet – and streaming archive recordings of hit plays – to get their fill. Following our first round-up of plays to watch in lockdown, here are eight other shows you might like to get stuck in to: Hamilton, Disney+
Talking Sopranos — a new weekly podcast which launched this month— is another example of a seemingly unstoppable sub-genre occupying an ever-growing slice of the podcast market: the television-rewatch podcast. The format is simple: take any much-loved yet expired television series (the kind usually prefaced by words like ‘I can’t believe you haven’t seen…’) and
