JENNY FARRELL relishes an intimate memoir about growing up in the household of the great Irish communist and playwright Sean O’Casey

SIAN LEWIS relishes a comprehensive account of high rise social housing in Britain by prize-winning social and political historian Holly Smith

SIMON PARSONS feels a little overwhelmed by the joke count of an ebullient production that manages to convey Stoker’s Dracula without corpsing

SYLVIA HIKINS enjoys a varied Scouse alternative to traditional pantomimes

Rereleases from The Pentangle, The Charlie Daniels Band, and Cousins and Willoughby

ANDY HEDGECOCK picks out his cultural highlights of 2025