Glyndebourne's dreadlocks-and-driftwood Janacek misses the Slavic touch, while Harrison Birtwistle's 'opera' is simply loathsome
Album: Saint Etienne, Words and Music by Saint Etienne (Heavenly)
Sunday 20 May 2012
The handover between "Over the Border" - a semi-spoken memoir about the powerful hold of pop over the young mind - and "I've Got Your Music" encapsulates everything that's great about Saint Etienne: one minute they're singing about great pop, the next they're actually doing some.
How We Met: Chris Cox and Tim Minchin
Sunday 20 May 2012
'I get frustrated by how good he is, but it inspires me to do better'
James Cusick: Britain's most televised barrister dons the disguise of Captain Slow
Tuesday 15 May 2012
His disguise works best when the person on the receiving end gets too comfortable
The Insider: How to freshen up your second-hand buys
Sunday 13 May 2012
Like your homewares pre-loved – but wary of whiffy flea-market and charity-shop buys? Don't be: take tips from the pros and do a Cinderella on scabby, shabby or stinky second-hand finds...
Angry Birds Land comes home to roost in Finland
Wednesday 02 May 2012
Finland’s Särkänniemi Adventure Park has opened its doors for the summer season with a brand new addition, the world’s first Angry Birds themed attraction.
Poetry in motion from across the seas
Wednesday 18 April 2012
Chanting, dancing, singing and stamping – welcome to the township take on the Bard. By Ivan Fallon
Poetry in motion as South Africans tackle Shakespeare
Wednesday 18 April 2012
A Cape Town theatre company offers an exciting take on the Bard
Leading article: Better to maintain the mystery of Springfield
Thursday 12 April 2012
And so the mystery is solved. After 20-plus years and more than 500 episodes, the creator of The Simpsons has finally cracked and admitted that it was Springfield, Oregon, all along. Since the very beginning, fans have speculated as to which of the 34 US towns that bear the name – not to mention the one in Essex – could claim to be "the real Springfield", home of the world's most famous yellow family. Now they know.
Album: Klaus Florian Vogt, Helden (Sony Classical)
Friday 06 April 2012
German tenor Klaus Florian Vogt has the appeal of a period film star – the granite chin, the mane of shoulder-length hair and legs that probably look great in swashbuckler's tights – and there's a sunlit, youthful spirit to his delivery that's entirely suitable for the heroic roles anthologised on Helden: soaring, ambitious, morally certain, with little of the gravitas, doubt and compromise one detects in more mature tenors.
'Game of Thrones': It's like Tolkien, but with naughty bits
Sunday 01 April 2012
It's back on the box from tomorrow and Tim Lott explains why its blend of swords, sorcery and sex is such a winner
DVD: Puss in Boots (U)
Friday 30 March 2012
"What can I say, I was a bad kitty," explains Antonio Banderas's outlaw mog at the start of this very enjoyable spin-off from the Shrek franchise.
The Barometer: SBTRKT; Lil B; Guided by Voices; Sleigh Bells; Gossip; Beach House; Keep Shelly in Athens; Bobby Womack; Lemonade
Friday 16 March 2012
What's hot on our playlist
Pair jailed for 'witch' boy murder
Monday 05 March 2012
A couple were jailed for life today for torturing and drowning a teenage boy they accused of being a witch.
Robert Fisk: The heroic myth and the uncomfortable truth of war reporting
Saturday 03 March 2012
Like other correspondents, Robert Fisk has risked his life to 'witness history'. But after almost four decades, he feels ambivalent towards his profession








