Very poignant to watch on Tuesday night before the election result. A biopic on Trump — his years in real estate, family relationships, his mentor Roy Cohn, and his marriage to Ivana. Great acting, especially Sebastian Stan.
A horror-satire from Coralie Fargeat. The Substance is a drug that allows you to transform to a younger body — the catch is you are in the younger body for 7 days before needing to transform back. Demi Moore is sensational.
Watched at Cromarty Cinema. Set in London in the 1930s — a theatre critic and an aspiring actress. Incredible performance from Ian McKellen.
A lovely film that magically depicts the filming of cinema. Michelle Williams is incredible as Steven Spielberg's mother.
Paul Mescal is incredible. A devastating, quietly observed film about a father and daughter on holiday.
John Boyne is one of my favourite authors and writes about such wide-ranging topics, often from the POV of unlikeable characters. A really interesting Desert Island Discs where he says the writer's role is not to provide the answers but to 'pose the questions better'.
He discusses the complicity of those who turned a blind eye to the Catholic Church's abuses in Ireland, his own abuse as a child, and what it was like to grow up as a gay man in Ireland. I read The Heart's Invisible Furies years ago — the podcast gives really interesting context to the novel if you've read it.
A recent favourite. 38 minutes with Cate Blanchett — actor, on her music, life, and the eight tracks she'd take with her.
Very good episode.
The Parthenon sculptures — one of the great rooms in London.
Printed in gold on the spines of 2,700 of the books are the names of first and second generation immigrants to Britain. Whether celebrated or lesser known, they have shaped British culture. A quietly powerful installation.
Saw the screening at the Lexi (a lovely volunteer-run cinema in Kensal Rise). Incredibly profound, harrowing, and an important watch. Rosamund Pike was fantastic.
So so good. Jenna Coleman and Aidan Turner are amazing. Sam Steiner's two-hander imagines a world where everyone is restricted to 140 words a day. Sharp, funny, devastating.
Emma Corrin as Virginia Woolf's Orlando is great. Jumping through time, condensing 400 years to 90 minutes — fun and interesting. The housekeeper, Deborah Findlay, is particularly lively.
If you don't know what to read next, let someone else decide. I spent an hour at Heywood Hill on Curzon Street talking to Edward about what I loved — and every month a parcel arrived with a novel I'd never have picked myself. It's a gift worth giving.