PAUL DONOVAN applauds an intriguing multi-layered depiction, dominated by a stunning impersonation of Marilyn herself
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In poetry, what matters is where you stand and who the audience are
LEO BOIX applauds an audacious, self-questioning film about grief, friendship and film-making
MARY CONWAY admires a brave and topical study of Armageddon that is, unfortunately, unable to come to a conclusion
ANDY HEDGECOCK, JAMES WALSH and JAMIE BRITTON review Hanging by a Wire, I Want Your Sex, The Pout-Pout Fish, and Rise of the Foot Soldier: Retribution
Chris Searle speaks to US pianist RAN BLAKE
The Bard hands out medals for his Edinburgh campaign and urges us to support The Men They Couldn’t Hang
RECENTLY I’ve taught a couple of classes on the history of spoken word. More particularly, I was brought in to discuss the ranting poetry of the '80s as part of a course.
Spoken word is in a healthy place and it’s starting to look back to where it came from. That’s certainly a good thing. What many find shocking is that there was spoken word before hip hop.
And this is more to do with the windowpane history of YouTube — we simply weren’t there on the interwebs because there wasn’t an interweb when the New Cross fire, the Special Patrol Group and the miners' strike were issues we were addressing and fighting, among many others. I’ve been making much of this available at standupandspit.wordpress.com. Some of it is even in colour.
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Two inspring books — that’s your New Year’s musing from me on January 2 2026