Intriguing final day in prospect as Middlesex and Yorkshire look to conjure victory in title decider September 22, 2016 Middlesex seamer Tim Murtagh admits his side face a dilemma on the final day of their crunch title-decider against Yorkshire after Somerset wrapped up a convincing victory over Somerset at Taunton. In some ways the equation is clear; whoever prevails between Middlesex and Yorkshire will be crowned county champions, while Somerset will only seal first [...]
Do not partner me with Phil Mickelson at Ryder Cup, pleads US Open winner Dustin Johnson September 22, 2016 US Open winner Dustin Johnson has urged United States captain Davis Love III not to partner him with team-mate Phil Mickelson during the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, which starts next week. Johnson partnered five-time Major winner Mickelson for the first two games of his Ryder Cup debut at Celtic Manor in 2010, against Lee [...]
Abstract Expressionism at Royal Academy: These rarely travelled loans and invigorating, bombastic artworks resonate strongly with today’s fractured world September 22, 2016 This superlative show is huge in every sense: big themes, giant icons of mid century art, enormous canvases, and no small amount of ambition on the Royal Academy’s part, tackling an often shied from movement – or ‘ism’ – which was last explored in such a survey in the UK back in 1959. Even for [...]
Little Men review: A powerful and deeply moving story of young friendship in hard times September 22, 2016 When a family inherits a building in a rapidly gentrifying area of Brooklyn, the resulting feud between its long-standing tenant and its new owners forms the agonisingly corrosive backdrop against which two young teenagers attempt to maintain their new friendship. Comparisons to Romeo and Juliet would suggest a degree of melodrama and forced sentimentality that [...]
The Magnificent Seven: This weak Western lacks true grit September 22, 2016 Antoine Fuqua’s The Magnificent Seven was always going to face significant challenges. Remaking not one but two classics, it also has to buck the trend of recent big budget westerns that have badly flopped. Nevertheless, the Training Day director has some impressive hired guns. Denzel Washington takes the lead as Sam Chisolm, a bounty hunter [...]
De Palma review: An incisive and revealing doc about the director’s best, and worst, work September 22, 2016 In this documentary, two young filmmakers interview the great Brian De Palma about his career, philosophies, and the often frustrating business of working with Hollywood, from his early days making avant garde and disturbing thrillers, to hits like Carrie, Scarface and Mission: Impossible. De Palma is disarmingly honest about his failures, often bemused by his [...]
Imperium review: Racist Harry Potter is the most remarkable thing about this undercover drama September 22, 2016 Ever wanted to hear Harry Potter utter every racist epithet under the sun? In Imperium, Daniel Radcliffe shaves his head and gets rowdy as an FBI agent going undercover to find out the full extent of the threat from White Supremacist terror groups in America. However you feel about potty-mouthed Potter, it’s jarring to see [...]
Freddie Ljungberg interview: Former Arsenal midfielder looking to Wenger as he plots his new life in coaching September 22, 2016 If the past really does dictate the future then former Arsenal midfielder Freddie Ljungberg has a notable back catalogue to consult as he plots his ascendency to the upper echelons of the coaching world. A member of the Gunners’ Invincibles who went the entire 2003-04 campaign unbeaten, Ljungberg, who won five major trophies in nine [...]
English Football League clubs reject proposals to incorporate Premier League B teams and Old Firm in overhaul of competition September 22, 2016 Premier League B teams and Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers have been ruled out of a revamped English Football League (EFL) structure following opposition from clubs to the proposals. It means that the extra eight clubs needed to make up a fifth tier of 20 teams – with the working title of League Three – [...]
Bath back attacking rugby brand to win over Londoners at Twickenham for Leicester Tigers fixture September 22, 2016 Bath believe that their exciting brand of rugby will attract Londoners to Twickenham for a meeting with old rivals Leicester Tigers in April next year. The 151-year-old club are relocating to the capital’s iconic 82,000 stadium for the 8 April Premiership fixture against the Tigers in a bid to engage with rugby fans beyond the borders [...]