Chelsea urge fans to avoid crowd trouble on return to London Stadium for West Ham clash March 5, 2017 Chelsea have issued a plea for good behaviour to supporters as they prepare to return to the London Stadium for the first time since crowd trouble marred their EFL Cup tie against West Ham in October. West Ham chiefs banned 94 fans following the violence, which broke out during the closing stages of the Hammers’ [...]
Brighton & Hove Albion chief Paul Barber explains off-field strategy of a Premier League club in waiting March 4, 2017 In less than a decade Brighton & Hove Albion have evolved from a mid table League One side playing at a converted athletics stadium to fewer than 10,000 fans, to a Premier League club in waiting who call the state of the art 30,000 capacity Amex Stadium home. Brighton have been amongst the Championship promotion contenders in three of the [...]
A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The Young Vic review: A dispiriting slog through the mud March 3, 2017 A perennial favourite, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is traditionally presented as a magical, romantic comedy. However, Joe Hill-Gibbins’ conspicuously dismal production at the Young Vic cares little for such frivolities. The treatment of the text is fairly conservative, but there’s a subtle change in tone that refocuses the audiences’ attention on the play’s murky [...]
Ugly Lies the Bone at the National Theatre review: War vet VR drama a rare flop for the NT March 3, 2017 A perfect storm of poor acting, casting, script and execution beats all life from this under-powered story about a soldier dealing with the mental and physical effects of war. Jess returns home horribly scarred and in chronic pain, barely able to move her twisted body. In a bid to regain her lost freedom she embarks on a form [...]
Logan is the bloody and bold Wolverine film fans have been waiting for, and a perfect end to the series March 3, 2017 While not every outing was a gem, Hugh Jackman’s seventeen years as Wolverine have made him a superhero movie icon. Taller and prettier than the comic book character, he nonetheless won over the nerds during his six-film run (plus two cameos). The missing ingredient (“X factor”, if you will), however, has always been edge; his [...]
Hamlet at the Almeida: Sherlock star Andrew Scott brings a twitchy charm to the Danish prince March 3, 2017 King Lear has overtaken Hamlet as the most performed of the Bard’s work, but this outstanding production shows why the Danish prince is still king. The setting is thoroughly contemporary. Hamlet’s world of mid-century modern furniture and 24-hour news is seamlessly woven into the text; if you were watching the play for the first time [...]
Kong: Skull Island review: The daddy of all monster movies reimagined as a Vietnam war film March 3, 2017 Kong: Skull Island takes the daddy of all monster movies and reimagines it as a Vietnam war drama. Set in 1973, references to Apocalypse Now are thrown around so liberally it makes you wonder if director Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ (whose only previous feature film is the coming-of-age indie film The Kings of Summer) wanted to make [...]
British Cycling boss issues apology after bullying, sexism and doping allegations March 2, 2017 British Cycling chairman Jonathan Browning has issued an apology for the governing body’s failings following allegations of bullying and sexism and has vowed to make changes to the organisation. Funding body UK Sport opened an investigation into British Cycling last year after former technical director Shane Sutton resigned following accusations of sexual discrimination against track [...]
Elliot Daly is a must for England, but also a big British and Irish Lions contender March 2, 2017 Amid all the “ruckgate” chaos of England’s Six Nations clash with Italy at the weekend, Elliot Daly underlined that he is a player who continues to grow. He’s excellent and fast becoming one of the first names on Eddie Jones’s teamsheet. More than that, the 24-year-old has firmly put himself in contention for this summer’s [...]
Andrew Flintoff interview: England will rule the world under leadership of Joe Root March 2, 2017 Former captain Andrew Flintoff has backed England to conquer the world and initiate an era of dominance under the leadership of new Test skipper Joe Root. The 26-year-old was installed as the country’s 80th captain last month, taking the reins from Alastair Cook who called time on his four-and-a-half year tenure following a dismal winter [...]