Harry Potter star Michael Gambon, who played Dumbledore, dies HARRY POTTER Michael Gambon, the actor who played Dumbledore in most of the Harry Potter films, has died. The 82-year-old passed away after a short bout of pneumonia in hospital, his family has said in an announcement. Gambon played the Hogwarts school headmaster Professor Dumbledore in six of the eight Harry Potter films. Sir Michael Gambon was [...]
The Creator review: why this slick new action film is well worth your time NEW FILMS Hollywood loves a bogeyman. In the 80s, films like Red Dawn and Rocky IV had antagonists in the Soviet Union. The internet, climate change, and terrorism are also drawn upon to provide villains. In the 2020s, AI has taken up that mantle. We’ve already seen Tom Cruise chase The Entity in the latest Mission: Impossible [...]
Derren Brown Unbelievable review: Good ideas in a show that needs work DERREN BROWN Derren Brown Unbelievable review and star rating: ★★★ Derren Brown may have one of the most quietly sustaining careers in showbiz. It’s been 23 years since he first popped up on TV, during a noughties era that famously saw him shoot himself in the head in a live game of Russian roulette and correctly predict [...]
‘Alcohol free beer is healthy!’ Sober October tips from London’s first alcohol free bar September 27, 2023 I take a sip of my No Sleep till Brooklyn, a cocktail featuring two types of alcohol-free whisky, and I have to admit that it tastes pretty darn like the real thing. It even has the ‘slow burn’ feel of whisky in the mouth. “You see!” says Laura Willougby, co-founder of Club Soda, London’s first [...]
Sober October: the best alcohol free events in London September 25, 2023 If you hit it hard all summer, you’re not alone: in fact, far too many of us make a habit of drinking far too much on the regular. Statistics show over half of Londoners ‘drink to get drunk’, which means drinking to excess. Enter, Sober October… This October the month-long initiative by Macmillan Cancer Support [...]
Beautiful Thing, Stratford East, review: the Heartstopper of the 1990s September 25, 2023 Beautiful Thing review and star rating: ★★★★ It’s a dangerous game, hauling up relics from the past and refashioning them for contemporary tastes, especially when the subject matter is this sensitive and ever-changing. Beautiful Thing was a 1993 play that was adapted for the screen in 1996 about two teenage boys who fell for one [...]
London Film Festival’s new director shares five films she’s excited about September 24, 2023 Kristy Matheson is the BFI London Film Festival’s new Director. She replaces Tricia Tuttle who spent five years in the role. Matheson previously held the title of Creative Director at the Edinburgh International Film Festival and before moving to the UK in 2021, she held the directorship at the ACMI, Australia’s museum of screen culture. [...]
Six top car hire tips from a car rental expert at Sixt September 23, 2023 Hiring a car can be stressful, especially when there’s so much choice. But there are a few simple things you can do to make car hire simpler on your next trip. We spoke to Jamie Holt, Operations Director at Sixt, to find out their top tips for car hire in London, from the type of [...]
Dawn French at the London Palladium: Seven things we learned September 22, 2023 Dawn French has more nights at the London Palladium this month and in October Dawn French’s new stand-up show, Dawn French is a Huge Twat, had its London premiere at the Palladium last night, marking the first of a string of dates in capital for the 65-year-old. The two-hour show features adorable anecdotes from throughout [...]
The Big Little Things review, Soho Place theatre: Fan theatre at its best September 21, 2023 The Big Little Things review and star rating: ★★★★ In the closing moments of The Big Little Things, the actor Ed Larkin is spun around the Soho Place auditorium in his wheelchair, swooshing around in big circles some 20 metres above the audience. It sends an empowering message and it’s hugely emotional to witness: I [...]
