Culture

Between beer gardens and picnics: Climate Culture Care at the Ashmolean

When I returned to Oxford this term, just as England teased us with the sixth heat-wave of the year, I found myself at a loose end. With the deadline for two vacation essays still far in the distance, the sun lit up the sign for Soma Surovi Jannat’s Ashmolean Now exhibition, Climate Culture Care.

“What is a good life?”: The Standard of Living in review 

“What is a good life?” This axiological question, asked earnestly in the opening lines of James Graham’s The Standard of Living – playing at Theatre Royal Haymarket until December 12 – is often overlooked by the fractured and hyper-specialised discipline of economics.

Diverse voices: ‘Inshallah, Madonna, Inshallah’ by Miljenko Jergović 

‘When he created Earth and these lands upon it, when he divided people into...

Art as protest on university campuses

CW: rape. This week, Cornell University has made headlines as prosecutors reopened an investigation into...

This Old Dog review – ‘Convincing signs of newfound maturity’

Ollie Webb reflects on 'one of the best albums of 2017' - Mac DeMarco’s This Old Dog, which explores themes of old age and his relationship with his father.

The Jungle review- ‘an incredible, heart-wrenching story’

Lucy Miles is left awe-struck and moved by the story of a Refugee camp in the Young Vic's new play, The Jungle

Is it possible to release too much music?

Maxim Mower discusses the current trend of constant releases in Hip-Hop

In conversation with Matt Maltese

Ollie Braddy discusses 'brexit pop' and the London music scene with singer-songwriter Matt Maltese

Pinocchio review – “a visual and acoustic marvel”

Charles Britton was impressed with the thoughtful alterations and expansions to Walt Disney’s beloved classic

The Twilight Zone – ‘dizzyingly strange’

The Almeida’s adaptation of the hit TV show is baffling and brilliant in equal measure, writes John Livesey

War Horse – ‘Technically brilliant, but lacks the acting to match’

El Port enjoys a decadent press night for War Horse but is entertained rather than moved

Parliament Square – ‘an assemblage of half-formed thoughts’

The Bush Theatre’s production of James Fritz’s new play fails to live up to its full potential, writes John Livesey

‘Cat Person’ — how does literature survive in a viral age?

Online commentators have transformed a piece of fiction into a relatable thinkpiece, at the expense of its status as literature

Evidence of magic at the British Library

Harry Potter: a History of Magic wonderfully illuminates the inspirations behind a cultural icon, writes Raffaella Sero

A woman weaving herself into history

Hypnotising acidic colours scream out for Anoushka Kavanagh’s attention

The legend of Sherlock Holmes

Erin O'Neill explores the iconic status of Arthur Conan Doyle's literary creation

The Christie Mystery

Raffaella Sero considers why Agatha Christie's characters still enthral us in the present day

We need diverse books now more than ever

Sally Christmas reflects on the importance of diverse literature in the current political climate

Spike Lee Doesn’t Have It

Imogen Edwards-Lawrence finds fault with the Netflix reimagining of Spike Lee's classic film

Blockbuster bust-up?

This might be the year when mainstream movies shake up awards season

The Death of Stalin review – ‘it straddles that oh-so-narrow line between repellent and comic’

Christopher Goring enjoys the satire of Iannucci’s warped world behind the Iron Curtain

Poirot’s enduring appeal

Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express reminds us why the detective remains so intriguing, writes Raffaella Sero

All That Fall review – ‘Powerful and perturbing, with something of the uncanny about it’

Sam Rice immerses himself in a stage adaptation of Beckett's radio play

The strange death of Constable’s rural idyll

Daniel Villar explores how the English countryside has changed since John Constable painted The Cornfield

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