48 hours in… Gothenburg March 1, 2015 WHERE TO GO Cars aren’t allowed on the southern part of the Gothenburg archipelago – the 20 islands offer uninterrupted natural beauty with bijou villages and stunning beaches a short ferry journey from the city centre. Seal safaris, boat rides and fishing are just some of the activities available on the islands. goteborg.com WHERE TO [...]
Theatre review: Closer is going through the motions February 27, 2015 Donmar Warehouse | ★★★☆☆ Patrick Marber’s Closer, which debuted at the National Theatre in 1997, is a caustic, bitter, sometimes hilarious exploration of modern relationships and the perils of lust. Those parts of us we keep hidden away – petty jealousies, nagging doubts that the grass is greener somewhere else – are laid bare, opened [...]
Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime at the Wellcome Collection – art review February 27, 2015 Wellcome Collection | ★★★★☆ After a £17.5m rebuild, the Wellcome Collection reopens with another stomach-churning exhibition for the “incurably curious”. The Institute of Sexology made visitors blush with an extensive collection of risqué artefacts, while Death: A Self-Portrait chilled them to the bone with ghoulish exhibits. Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime has more in [...]
Film review: It Follows is terrific, horrific fun February 27, 2015 Cert 18 | ★★★★☆ The last decade hasn’t been kind to the slasher movie. Its heyday came in the late 1970s and early 80s, with John Carpenter’s iconic Halloween, which paved the way for the likes of Friday 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street. Then Wes Craven reinvigorated the genre with 1996’s Scream – a [...]
Theatre review: The Nether at the Duke of York’s Theatre February 27, 2015 Duke of York’s Theatre | ★★★★★ In the near future, the internet has evolved into the Nether, a construct of increasingly convincing fantasy realms, where ever more people choose to escape the costs or privations of the real world. A man known as Sims (Stanley Townsend), has created a private realm called the Hideaway. It [...]
Theatre review: Tour de force Ralph Fiennes steals the show in Man and Superman February 26, 2015 Lyttelton Theatre | ★★★★☆ Whew, how he does talk!” So exclaims the commodore from Don Juan, listening in as Ralph Fiennes’ garrulous Juan debates with the Devil. The same applies to Jack Tanner, Juan’s descendant and the protagonist of this supremely wordy play. First performed in 1905, George Bernard Shaw’s Man and Superman may be [...]
Something for the weekend February 26, 2015 DRINK! MEANTIME TASTING ROOMS If you’re into your craft beer, why don’t you, er, hop along to the Meantime Tasting Rooms where all the brewery’s beers are on tap. Open all day till 11pm, Lawrence Trading Estate, Blackwall Lane, Greenwich, visit meantimebrewing.com WATCH! BEST PICTURE WEEK Missed out on some of the films of the [...]
London Fashion Week 2015: The best of the collections February 25, 2015 Morning Wire Bespoke fashion director Ozzy Shah gives his take on this year’s London Fashion Week. OSMAN White is a big trend I loved this show. It was an absolutely brilliant collection, one of his best ever. It was very clean and minimal, quite refreshing compared to a lot of busy, complicated shows [...]
The National Theatre’s head chef Simon Flint on organising chaos February 24, 2015 There are two main challenges to running the restaurants at the National Theatre: people have very high expectations because the theatre is so good, and they’re often in a hurry, so we need to serve great food quickly. Our restaurants are open at other times, but pre-theatre – which is 5–7.30pm – is very much [...]
Mix it up: How vermouth, like the Negroni, is experiencing a comeback February 24, 2015 Each generation rebels against the values and fashions of the last, often unaware that they’re drawing on the fashions of their grandparents. Take the Negroni. It’s now the height of cocktail sophistication, but the chances are your grandparents knocked them back like alcopops. And it’s not just the Negroni – people are starting to drink [...]