A double-standard in colorblind casting
Why can black actors play white roles but not the other way around?
Culture
The good, the bad and the ugly in books, exhibitions, cinema, TV, dance, music, podcasts and theatre.
February 22, 2021
Did PBS and Henry Louis Gates downplay crimes against humanity?
Gates never once uttered the words ‘genocide’, ‘extermination’ or even ‘ethnic cleansing’ to describe Ottoman atrocities
February 15, 2021
Cancel culture comes for Bachelor Nation
Stupid Cupid or cancel-culture victim?
Does anybody practice what they preach?
What Joss Whedon’s downfall tells us about the application of morality
February 11, 2021
Gina Carano deserves to be flogged
Hopefully she can now reprogram herself to think only correct thoughts
February 10, 2021
Old Masters, new look
Books and ArtsThe Met has cleaned up its act
Confessions of a hype artist
Books and ArtsWhere there’s pop, there’s hype — and there’s nothing wrong with that
February 5, 2021
The joy of listening to old pianists
Books and ArtsAs he gets older, Barenboim has become more and more keen on recording Beethoven sonatas in front of audiences
Songs of freedom
Books and ArtsRemain unmoved to the songs on Lifeline and you’re made of much sterner stuff
January 21, 2021
January 19, 2021
Bridgerton to nowhere
Books and ArtsThe storyline is Jane Austen with all the plot and nuance and character sophistication removed
January 17, 2021
The king is dead
Books and ArtsIt’s like rock ’n’ roll never happened
January 16, 2021
Lullaby in Birdland
Books and ArtsLife is still a cabaret
January 15, 2021
Peake practice
Books and ArtsAn artist with the soul of a pirate
January 12, 2021
Heroine problem
Books and ArtsFemale antiheroines — at last
December 31, 2020
The movies’ crush on ‘Auld Lang Syne’
Part of the song’s resonance surely comes from its sheer staying power
December 27, 2020
Hungry like the rabbit
Books and ArtsEighty years ago, Bugs Bunny first launched himself on an unsuspecting Elmer J. Fudd
December 23, 2020
Charles Brown’s Christmas
Books and Arts’Tis the season for collectible vinyl
It’s good for your elf
Books and ArtsA history both naughty and nice
A holly Dolly Christmas
Parton hits all the right notes with her Christmas classics
December 22, 2020
Pawn show
Books and ArtsThe Queen’s Gambit overcomes its hackneyed ‘girl power’ message
December 20, 2020
The great lost Beatles album
Books and ArtsIt’s a real shame the Christmas flexis have not had a proper, all-on-one album release
December 11, 2020
The best video games to buy for Christmas
With the latest generation of consoles comes some great new games
Christopher Nolan wants to save cinema
Straight-to-streaming films could kill the theater for good
December 10, 2020
Netflix’s Barbarians taught me those Romans had it coming
Barbarians reviewed
December 3, 2020
The great Poetry Foundation shakedown
Poetry, an anti-racism petition and a $250 million endowment
December 2, 2020
Mostly ghostly: Henry James haunts Bly Manor
Books and ArtsIf you’re hoping for a show that requires your blanket be used to cover your eyes, skip this one
November 25, 2020
Night at the museum
Books and ArtsIs the Baltimore Museum of Art exploiting the COVID-19 crisis to sell off major modern paintings?
Meet the real-life gangsters who inspired Guys and Dolls
The musical premiered on Broadway 70 years ago this week