Category : Focus

Rick Davies brought a peculiar funk to Supertramp, a band that existed on its own unfashionable terms

The tension between co-founders Roger Hodgson and Davies – who has died aged 81 – was the driving force of a band who refused to fit into any genreIt must be odd to have been a band’s co-founder and joint frontman and to know that when thousands of p...

‘I thought, I can’t keep living with this shame’: five life models on the power of posing nude

What is it like to be in a room full of artists who are observing and drawing your naked body? Sitters discuss the freedom and healing they have experiencedCraig, 54 (@tattooed_nude) I started life modelling 18 months ago. My mum said: “You’re getti...

The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown review – weapons-grade nonsense from beginning to end

Code-breaking hero Robert Langdon is back for another conspiracy thriller, featuring underground laboratories and new thoughts on the nature of consciousnessHe’s back, baby! Dan Brown’s first novel in nearly a decade reunites readers with the world’s...

‘It’s so different from the media narrative’: telling a different story of 7 October

Brandon Kramer’s documentary Holding Liat follows an Israeli family torn apart by the Hamas attacks, but clinging to hopes of reconciliationWhen Hamas attacked southern Israeli communities on 7 October 2023, unleashing a devastating retaliation again...

The Christophers review – Ian McKellen and Michaela Coel spar in smart Soderbergh original

Toronto film festival: the actors play off each other beautifully in an intimate London-set comedy drama about art, commerce and the mess in-betweenIt seems like Steven Soderbergh might have developed a late case of anglophilia, the retirement-teasin...

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai review – a dazzling epic

Longlisted for the Booker, this capacious story of love, work and family set between India and the US is both dizzyingly vast and insistently miniatureOn a trip to see his grandparents in the Indian city of Allahabad, journalist Sunny Bhatia flicks t...

School, self-image and rebellion: what it feels like for a girl – in pictures

Nancy Honey’s candid portraits capture girls between 11 and 14, when their bodies start to change and they begin challenging accepted codes of behaviour Continue reading...

To Be Frank review – Fun Lovin’ Criminal drummer offers up life lessons from many irons in fire

Documentary portrait of musician’s varied career is engaging if a little too easy in its admiration for its subjectMusician Frank Benbini is most probably known best as the drummer from Fun Lovin’ Criminals and a latter incarnation of UB40, although...

Brave the Dark review – delinquent teen drama comes off as if James Dean met Mr Chips

Warmly drawn melodrama based on a true story follows a delinquent teen taken under the wing of his kindly drama teacherHere is a sincere and traditional melodrama that opens with a brief sequence that slightly wrongfoots the audience: a small child r...

TV tonight: Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash are unbelievably sweet as their reality show returns

The couple up the romance in their charming reality show. Plus: crumb-believable challenges in Bake Off’s biscuit week. Here’s what to watch this evening8pm, BBC OneIn the first series of Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash’s life-at-home series, Joe was a...

‘Looks so sizzling they could fry an egg!’ How the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice adaptation changed my life

The 1995 adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic, starring Colin Firth, has its own fan group, has inspired university courses and was even featured in the Barbie movie. What’s behind its enduring appeal? I was born in the wrong century – or so my mother...

Only Murders in the Building review – does this show just need to die now?

There are still many things to love here, but the cracks are well and truly appearing. Too many moments feel laboured … and Meryl Streep should be kept away from comedyIn the mid-90s, Bonnie and Terry Turner created a TV sitcom about a group of alien...

Billy Porter recovering from ‘serious case of sepsis’ as Broadway show closes early

The 55-year-old actor has been playing Emcee in Cabaret, which will now shut a month earlier than plannedBilly Porter is “recovering from a serious case of sepsis”, forcing the early closure of Broadway’s revival of Cabaret in which he played a leadi...

Advertorial: Highwood Motorhomes Celebrates Double Recognition in One Week

It’s been a landmark week for Highwood Motorhomes, with the company achieving two prestigious industry accolades that highlight its commitment to excellence in motorhome sales, hire, and servicing. The workshop has been recognised under the Approved...

The DOVE Welcomes Highwood Motorhomes As New Weather Sponsor

The DOVE Derbyshire Dales’ smart new digital radio station, is delighted to announce Highwood Motorhomes as its latest weather sponsor. John Haynes, Station Director, said: “We’re thrilled to partner with Highwood Motorhomes. Their support helps us...