Michelangelo & Sebastiano review: The National Gallery’s compelling visual investigation of an overlooked artistic partnership March 16, 2017 You probably haven’t heard of Sebastiano del Piombo, the Venetian born artist and contemporary of the Renaissance superstar Michelangelo. Frankly the dynamic, superlative output of Michelangelo blows Sebastiano’s relatively diminutive works out of the water. Thankfully, this show is unconcerned with ‘rediscovering’ a lost master, or using Michelangelo’s name to sex-up a generic Italian Renaissance [...]
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at the Harold Pinter Theatre review: Imelda Staunton is sublime in this vicious, heartbreaking drama March 16, 2017 Imelda Staunton is the furiously palpitating heart of this intoxicating – not to mention intoxicated – production of Edward Albee’s brilliant treatise on mid-life alcoholism. Often portrayed as a seductive Mrs Robinson figure, Staunton’s Martha is sexuality’s terrifying sunset, refusing to go gentle into that good night. Her conquest of the young academic Nick is [...]
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at Royal Opera House review: a spectacular production that’s a perfect send-off for director Kasper Holten March 16, 2017 Wagner’s great comic drama, Die Meistersinger, premiered in 1868 and has been hugely successful ever since. It portrays the clash of the old and the new, of tradition and progress, of ancient and modern. The Nürnberg choir festival is shaken when a young knight, Walter, comes to the town and falls in love with Eva, [...]
Evergreen Jermain Defoe earns England recall three and half years after his last cap as Gareth Southgate trials Nathan Redmond and James Ward-Prowse March 16, 2017 England manager Gareth Southgate has praised Jermain Defoe’s enduring effectiveness after recalling the evergreen Sunderland striker for next week’s fixtures against Germany and Lithuania. Defoe, 34, is in line for a first cap since November 2013 after his 14 Premier League goals for the struggling Black Cats earned him the nod over the rusty Wayne [...]
Ireland v England stats preview: Have Eddie Jones’s men been less impressive Six Nations winners than last year? March 16, 2017 Eddie Jones demanded improvement from his England side ahead of this year's Six Nations — a tough ask of reigning Grand Slam champions. Until last weekend's demolition of Scotland at Twickenham, there were few signs his calls had been heeded. England have been accused of only playing well in spurts, of struggling to consistently match some of [...]
Monaco 3, Manchester City 1 (Agg: 6-6): City suffer European crash as Ligue 1 leaders reach quarter-finals on away goals March 15, 2017 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola blamed an anonymous first-half performance after his side succumbed to a Monaco fightback and failed to reach the Champions League quarter-finals. Despite leading 5-3 from the first leg, Guardiola had promised to attack the Ligue 1 leaders, although there was little sign of that in a tepid opening period for [...]
There will always be hurdles to clear but English domestic Twenty20 franchise system is perfect vision March 15, 2017 There are always upfront hurdles to overcome with projects and it has been suggested that the new domestic Twenty20 franchise tournament, set to begin in 2020, could lose organisers £15m in its first year. Australia’s Big Bash League also took a few years to establish itself and it might take a while for our competition [...]
Cheltenham Festival 2017: Special Tiara lands shock Champion Chase win as Douvan flop costs one punter £500,000 March 15, 2017 Jockey Noel Fehily admitted his shock after piloting Special Tiara to victory over red-hot favourite Douvan in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival on Wednesday. Henry de Bromhead-trained 11/1 chance Special Tiara held off the fast-finishing Fox Norton to win by a head and claim success in the race at the fourth [...]
Nier: Automata review: a thrilling, endearing, unhinged sequel to the cult classic from Yoko Taro March 15, 2017 While big-budget western game franchises often stand accused of design-by-focus-group, their Japanese counterparts are still dominated by mercurial auteurs with singular – and often bizarre – visions. Legendary figures such as Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Dark Souls’ Hidetaka Miyazaki, Metal Gear Solid’s Hideo Kojima and Silent Hill’s Keiichiro Toyama are inextricably linked with the blockbuster [...]
Ghost Recon: Wildlands review: Hunt down druglords in this ambitious but flawed open-world shooter March 15, 2017 In Ghost Recon Wildlands, the latest open world game from Ubisoft, you head to Bolivia, here a narco state overrun with junkies and drug lords who’ve corrupted those in power and killed anyone that stood in their way. You traverse and shoot your way across mountains, deserts, woodlands and floodplains as a four-strong team of [...]