World AIDS Day: stigma about HIV and AIDS is damaging lives and productivity in the City December 1, 2022 Harun Tulunay lost his job when he was first diagnosed with HIV because he wasn’t aware he was legally protected in the workplace, and stigma around his condition meant it wasn’t easy to speak with his HR department. He is one of many Londoners who has been treated unfairly despite people living with HIV being [...]
Best of Enemies, Noel Coward Theatre, review: Explosively good, but Zachary Quinto lacks Gore Vidal’s charm November 29, 2022 Best of Enemies, Noel Coward Theatre, review: This energetic reimagining of some of the first televised political debates of the 1960s has a shocking contemporary relevance, is addictively fast-paced and has some incredible performances The names Gore Vidal and William Buckley would be sinking into the pit of history by now, had it not been [...]
Matilda the Musical review: Brilliantly British, Roald Dahl would be proud November 29, 2022 Matilda the Musical review: An homage to the original 1990s film directed by Danny DeVito, Matilda the Musical justifies a revisit to these loveable characters by taking them home to Britain Of course it should have always been British – Roald Dahl’s classic, Matilda, has had its inevitable remake and it replaces the white picket [...]
A Christmas Carol, the Old Vic review: Bright and joyous, even Scrooges can’t dislike this November 25, 2022 Joy to all – including you Scrooges out there – it’s Christmas! We’ve collectively spent weeks ignoring the Christmas cards and wrapping paper that appears pointlessly early in shops, but now that it’s December it’s actually time to start getting in the mood for the festive season – and the best way to do that, [...]
David Harewood: White actors should be able to play Black roles November 24, 2022 For some, being a role model can feel like a weight. Emmy-nominated Black actor Samira Wiley said recently it can be “overwhelming sometimes, representing so much for so many people.” And trans artists Travis Alabanza and Ezra Furman have spoken about how being seen as “inspirational” overlooks their daily struggles. But not for David Harewood. [...]
Matt Hancock’s eating bugs to improve his image – will the same work for me too? November 17, 2022 Spare a thought for poor former health secretary Matt Hancock, who has been so drastically misunderstood that he’s had to fly all the way to Australia to eat bugs and worms and testicles to present his “human” side to the British public. “The honest truth is there’s so few ways in which politicians can show [...]
La Clique Leicester Square review: Camp cabaret is essential for Christmas November 16, 2022 Leicester Square is probably number one on the list of places Londoners avoid at all costs, but during Christmas there’s a surprisingly decent market there that’s atmospheric enough to justify breaking our avoidance pacts. The centrepiece of it is the Spiegeltent, an in-the-round theatre space hosting La Clique, which has become the Christmas cabaret tipple [...]
Reasons You Should(n’t) Love Me, Kiln Theatre review: Masterful comedy about being single and disabled November 11, 2022 Amy Trigg is a name we’ll be hearing from and seeing more prominently at the top of cast lists in the years to come. She won The Women’s Prize for Playwriting 2020 for this piece, her debut play, which has just been on a nationwide tour and now returns to the Kiln Theatre where it [...]
The Crown is royal cosplay – look out for James Bond and King Charles as a 1990s rock star November 11, 2022 There’s been much hoo-haa about how The Crown isn’t historically accurate, but one element about the show that is close to fact is the style sense of the royals. It’s hard to believe by today’s standards but in the 1990s Prince Charles was actually something of a style icon. God love him, but these days [...]
The Connaught Grill review: London’s classiest hotel plays with the formula November 9, 2022 There are lovely five-star London hotels and then there are the ones run by The Maybourne Group. That’s the company behind The Berkeley, Claridge’s and The Connaught, the eagles of the hotel world that fly higher than all the rest. In Mayfair, all the buildings look gorgeous, but propping up the corner of Adam’s Row [...]