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Fifty years on from the death of painter LS Lowry, the BBC has made a documentary featuring recently discovered recordings made in the last years of his life. Recorded by Lowry fan Angela Barratt over a period of four years, the tapes have been lip-synced for the documentary, with Ian McKellen playing Lowry and Annabel Smith as Barratt. Art historian Verity Babbs and curator of the Lowry Collection, Claire Stewart, join Samira Ahmed to discuss the painter's life and legacy. Actress Neve Campbell...
Poet, playwright and curator Inua Ellams and film critic Hanna Flint join Tom Sutcliffe for this week's reviews. Riding high after the huge success of the Wicked films, actor Cynthia Erivo returns to the London stage for a one-woman production of Bram Stoker's Dracula, in which she plays all the parts. Last summer was dubbed 'brat summer' by the press, with the word 'brat' entering the dictionary as an adjective - all in response to the pop album Brat by singer Charli XCX. In a new mockumentary,...
Director Mona Fastvold and actor Amanda Seyfried discuss their film The Testament of Ann Lee, a musical history about the life of the founder of The Shakers, a mystic who moved from Manchester to the United States in the 18th century and founded a religious community, and who advocated for celibacy, communal living, and gender equality. As a new production of George Bernard Shaw's St Joan opens, director Stewart Laing and theologian and art historian Ayla Lepine discuss how the 15th-century Fren...
In 1986 Jim Cartwright's debut play, Road, was the theatrical sensation of the year and its reputation has only grown in the decades that have followed. As a new production to mark its 40th anniversary opens at the Royal Exchange in Manchester, Jim Cartwright joins Front Row to reflect on why the play has had such an enduring impact. "How lovely yellow is! It stands for the sun.” So exclaimed Van Gogh in a letter. Now an exhibition, 'Yellow: Beyond Van Gogh's Colour', at the Van Gogh Museum in A...
Baz Luhrman's newest film is recently rediscovered footage showing Elvis Presley, live in concert at the height of his fame. We speak with Baz about his continuing love for The King. 75 years of The Archers; Emma Freud and Archer's editor Jeremy Howe discuss the world's longest running soap opera and how the programme has dealt with the attack on George Grundy. London's Royal Court Theatre is famous for productions that caused stir – Look Back in Anger, Saved, Blasted, The Rocky Horror Show. Its...
Anne Brontë biographer Samantha Ellis and writer Stephanie Merritt join Tom to discuss Emerald Fennell's racy adaptation of Wuthering Heights starring Margot Robbie. They also review Adolescence co-writer Jack Thorne's BBC adaptation of William Golding's Lord of the Flies. After a 35 year campaign, the South Bank Centre has secured Grade II listing. Former Artistic Director Jude Kelly and architecture historian Barnabas Calder talk about whether we're learning to love Brutalism. Finally, Samanth...
LIsa McGee on her fresh spin on the murder mystery genre How To Get to Heaven from Belfast, and on the impact of the Derry Girls phenomenon. At this month's Grammy Awards, Olivia Dean, Lola Young and FKA Twigs - all alumni of The Brit School in Croydon - walked off with prizes. We speak to the school's Principal, Stuart Worden, about how the school prepares students for a career in the music industry. And as the world premiere of The Great Wave, a new opera inspired by Hokusai's iconic print, ta...
The creator of Yes Minister - Jonathan Lynn - on his new play I’m Sorry Prime Minister. Griff Rhys Jones plays Jim Hacker, the octogenarian former Prime Minister. Clive Francis plays civil servant Sir Humphrey in this elegiac comedy which draws the saga to a close. Inside Aardman is a new exhibition opening at the Young V&A this week to mark the 50th anniversary of the creative company who have brought plasticine stop-motion animation to a global stage in the form of Wallace and Gromit. Tom ...
Hollywood star Kristen Stewart talks about her directorial debut, The Chronology of Water, which is a searing portrait of childhood abuse and redemption that’s based on the life story of author Lidia Yuknavitch. Seurat and the Sea is a new exhibition opening at London’s Courtauld Gallery. It features 26 paintings and sketches - many of which haven’t been seen together since they were created - that show the pointillist painter’s love for depicting the coast of northern France. Bad Bunny has made...
Tom is joined by reviewers Tristram Fane Saunders and Natalie Jamieson to discuss... Mark (The Curious Incident of The Dog in the Night-time) Haddon's autobiography Leaving Home. The dark comedy film Twinless about two men who lost their respective twin brothers and develop a growing friendship after meeting in a support group. And Mackenzie Crook's new TV series Small Prophets, which stars Michael Palin. Also Saturday Night Live has announced its UK line-up, and the return of The Muppets. Prese...
Folk musician Martin Carthy speaks about his long career and about his recent decision to retire from live performance following a diagnosis of late-onset Alzheimer's Disease; As a major retrospective of the work of Gwen John goes on display at National Museum Cardiff, the exhibition's curator Lucy Wood and historian of visual culture Becca Voelcker discuss this formidable and fascinating modernist. 77-year-old curator Alison Luchs of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC has gone viral w...
Jared Bush, head of Walt Disney Animation Studios, on his record-breaking film Zootropolis 2. Alex Tadros, owner of Mars Tapes, the last cassette shop in the UK, and culture writer Sian Pattenden on the resurgence of the cassette tape. Oliver Royds, co-founder and joint CEO of Troubadour Theatres, on his company's plans to create London's biggest theatre venue in Greenwich. Debris Stevenson on her new play My Brother's a Genius, and how rap battles helped her to co-create the RSC's new productio...
Author Rachel Rachel Joyce and musician Passenger discuss the new musical based on Rachel's hit book The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. Eric Schlosser’s book Fast Food Nation has been republished after 25 years as a Penguin Classic. Samira Ahmed talks to the author about the impact of the book. Emily Itami and comedian Iszi Lawrence review the British Museum's new exhibition "Samurai". Critic Tim Robey on the work of Catherine O'Hara, following news of her death.
Tom Sutcliffe and guests Viv Groskop and Dorian Lynskey, review Bradley Cooper's film Is This Thing On? - about a marriage in crisis and a comedian on the rise. Guess How Much I Love You? is the new play by Luke Norris at London's Royal Court Theatre, which deals with starting a family, enduring love and impossible choices And George Saunders' new book, Vigil, set in the living world and the world of the dead and the in-between. Also how successful is British soft power in China? Presenter Tom S...
This episode of Front Row features an interview with John Carter Cash about "The Ballad of Johnny and June," a musical exploring his parents' complex love and struggles with addiction. It also delves into the controversy of politicians using pop music without artist consent and the exciting rediscovery and authentication of a lost Robert Burns portrait. Finally, author Benjamin Wood discusses his Nero Prize-winning novel, "Seascraper," detailing his immersive research and unique writing process.
Michael Sheen on the first production of his newly-formed Welsh National Theatre, Thornton Wilder’s 1938 play Our Town seen through a Welsh lens. Film critic Larushka Ivan-Zadeh reacts to the Bafta nominations announced today and how they compare with last week's Oscar's list. 100 years since Laurel and Hardy united for their first film, Neil Brand discusses the comedy duo with film historian Pamela Hutchinson. And writer Patrick Charnley discusses his Cornwall-set novel This My Second Life, whi...
Front Row features director Richard Linklater discussing his new film 'Nouvelle Vague,' an homage to French New Wave cinema, and his approach to recreating 1959 Paris. The program also delves into the growing trend of children's authors, like Francesca Simon, transitioning to adult fiction, examining their motivations and the genre's evolving landscape. Additionally, it highlights the Daughters of Donbass musical project, which uses traditional Ukrainian music to raise global awareness about children abducted by Russia. Finally, music economist Will Page explains how Robbie Williams broke The Beatles' UK album chart record, analyzing the surprising role of physical sales and Williams' enduring appeal.
Tom Sutcliffe is joined by film critic Larushka Ivan-Zadeh and novelist Lawrence Norfolk to review: Korean auteur Park Chan-Wook's redundancy revenge thriller No Other Choice. Julian Barnes' Departure(s) which he's said will be his last book. Oliver Hermanus' film The History of Sound starring Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor in a folk music love story. And they discuss the Oscar nominations which were announced today. And the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have announced that they will be...
Actor Claire Foy on her role as a grieving academic who finds solace in falconry in the film adaptation of Helen Macdonald's award-winning memoir H Is For Hawk. As it goes on display for a period of three months, Chris Cassells of the National Library of Scotland, Ashleigh Hibbins of Perth Museum and playwright and poet Liz Lochhead discuss the cultural significance of the last letter of Mary Queen of Scots, written hours before her execution in 1587. Two of the creative team behind Trolleydarit...
Comedian John Bishop on how his life story inspired Bradley Cooper's new movie, Is This Thing On? starring Will Arnett and Laura Dern. Hull Truck Theatre has just won the Innovation prize at the Stage Awards for their new training scheme for GPs. Associate Director Tom Saunders and GP Dr Eman Shamsaee discuss why drama classes are helping doctors treat patients. Writer Jamila Gavin on winning the Children's Fiction category of the Nero Book Awards with her World War One-set novel My Soul, A Shin...
Artist Beryl Cook would have been 100 this year - famed for her cheeky paintings of large ladies and people having fun, there's a new exhibition opening in Plymouth. Cole Escola is the man behind the stage musical sensation, Oh Mary, which has been hailed in some circles at The Next Hamilton. Washington National Opera is leaving their base for more than half a century. They have cited a slump in ticket sales since Donald Trump became chair of the Trump Kennedy Center in America's capital, as wel...
In the Front Row review programme, author Emily Itami and critic Tim Robey assess the steamy Canadian drama Heated Rivalry, which has caused a sensation in North America. Also, The British Museum's new exhibition Hawaiʻi: a kingdom crossing oceans, and Jose Ando's novel about racial and sexual identity in Japan, Jackson Alone. Are contemporary art prizes favouring identity politics over artistic quality? Guardian art critic Jonathan Jones and artist/editor Veronica Simpson are on to discuss. Pre...
Sir Ian McKellen talks about performing Laurie Slade's one-man play Equinox - about an older man wrestling with his past and conflicting desires - at the inaugural Out in the Hills LGBTI+ culture festival at Pitlochry Festival Theatre. One of the world's most renowned and influential choreographers Wayne McGregor on his book We Are Movement, an exploration of "physical intelligence" which also asks what it means to be human in the age of AI. Ahead of a European farewell tour, country and America...
The boyband Blue perform one of the biggest early hits - One Love - and talk to Tom Sutcliffe about celebrating 25 years together with new album Reflections and a major tour. Marty Supreme director Josh Safdie discusses his film about an ambitious 1950s table tennis player. Timothee Chalamet won a Best Actor Golden Globe for the title role this week. It’s 40 years since Poems on the Underground was launched and a new collection is being released to mark the anniversary. And Claire Malcolm tells ...
Screenwriter Eric Roth (Forrest Gump, Benjamin Button, Dune) on his West End stage adaptation of High Noon 50 years since her death, we ask whether Agatha Christie is still the preeminent crime writer Emmy-winning guitarist Tommy Emmanuel plays live Archaeologists in Wales have discovered a previously unknown Roman villa in Port Talbot - we speak with the leader of the team working on the site Presenter Samira Ahmed
Jessie Buckley talks to Tom Sutcliffe about her role in the historical drama Hamnet, adapted from Maggie O'Farrell's book which explores the origins of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Journalist Bidisha Mamata and writer Mark Ravenhill join Tom to review Hamnet. They also discuss award-winning author Bryan Washington's Palaver, which focuses on an estranged mother and son who attempt to reconcile in Tokyo. And they offer their verdict on Sheridan Smith's starring role in a revival of Alan Ayckbourn’s Woma...
American Ira Sachs' latest film is Peter Hujar's Day, which brings to life the transcripts from an unused 1974 interview that photographer Peter Hujar did with his friend, the nonfiction writer Linda Rosenkrantz. Ira shares what he's learned about the artist through the project. French pianist RIOPY first taught himself to play piano while growing up in a cult. After running away he was able to pursue a career in music, culminating in an album that topped the classical charts for years. His new ...
We hear from award-winning writer Dennis Kelly, the man behind Matilda the Musical and comedy show Pulling. In his new BBC One series Waiting for the Out he goes behind bars to tell the story of a man who teaches a philosophy class in prison. How do you choose the books you read? The Department of Education has launched the National Year of Reading and continuing Front Row's look at the subject of reading, today we’re looking at the evolution of book clubs. Nick is joined by Guinevere de La Mare...
As the tenth anniversary of David Bowie’s death approaches, Alexander Larman - author of Lazarus: The Second Coming of David Bowie – and Jonathan Stiasny – director of the documentary Bowie: The Final Act - join Tom to discuss David Bowie’s legacy and his less successful, low-profile period. The National Year of Reading 2026 is a government campaign to address declining literacy, and we're running a series of items on the state of modern literacy. Today, we're discussing reading and the brain, w...
As Scottish indie pop legends Belle & Sebastian prepare to celebrate 30 years of musicmaking, they look back at what got them here. Plus they help ring in the new year with a Rabbie Burns classic. Jamaica’s former Poet Laureate Lorna Goodison reflects on her recent residency at Ellisland Farmhouse, where Robert Burns wrote Auld Lang Syne. Award-winning Scottish poet and spoken word artist Michael Mullen brought their debut collection Goonie in to the world this June. Now they share a poem wr...
