It might be said of the two outstanding British playwrights who were born in 1930 that both had great talents, one for the epic and the other for a theatre of contained limitation, and that the latter developed that talent to its maximum extent, while the former allowed his to diminish.

I intend it as a compliment (I think) to suggest that the subterranean confines of Trafalgar Studio 2 provide an ideal venue if you want to create the sense of a stifling claustrophobic hell.

James Mottram on the Bond star playing Aung San Suu Kyi in a new biopic

In Freedom from Fear, first published in 1990, Aung San Suu Kyi wrote: "It is not power that corrupts but fear... in any society where fear is rife, corruption in all forms becomes deeply entrenched." Sadly, Burma's military junta retains its grip on power through fraudulent means and intimidation.

India suddenly seems keen on banning books. The Justice Minister, Moodbidri Veerappa Moily, is considering legislation to protect Mahatma Gandhi from "insults". This has been prompted by a new biography of the Indian independence leader that suggests Gandhi might have been bisexual. Gujarat, the state where the Mahatma was born, has already banned the book.

Nelson Mandela, the former South African president, remained in hospital yesterday for medical tests, reviving concern over the health of the frail 92-year-old anti-apartheid activist.

Since their last outing, this harmonious four-piece comedy a capella outfit have gone up a scale and, to a certain extent, eased themselves away from the controlled irreverence I'd previously ascribed to them. This has been achieved by getting silly on a grand scale.

Re-issued to coincide with Andrew Davies's new BBC television adaptation, Winifred Holtby's 1935 novel South Riding rings with timely parallels. Set in the early 1930s, it concerns the dilemmas facing a fictional northern council. Presented with new austerity measures, the local dignitaries must decide whether to slash spending on welfare, or adopt a bold programme of public works to stimulate economic recovery. It's Holtby's genius that a novel about local government should make such an extraordinary and absorbing read.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela wants to attend today's World Cup final for a while to greet soccer fans, his grandson said.

When Philip Glass’s ‘Satyagraha’ got its ENO staging three years ago, critical reactions were mixed. Everyone loved the aerialists and the joyfully Pythonish giant puppetry, but the fact that the libretto was sung in Sanskrit (without surtitles) was regarded as unhelpful, even if the ‘medititles’ projected on to the corrugated-cardboard back wall made partial amends. ‘Over-long’ and ‘relentlessly minimal’ were the general put-downs.

The Last Station is like Chekhov dumbed down for a tea-time serial.