Category : Culture

A Cat Called Dom review – home truths about the big C from a feline friend

Scottish animation-cum-documentary about a son coping with his mother’s cancer diagnosis has flashes of originality but feels unfinished This film from Scottish animators Will Anderson and Ainslie Henderson might have been a straightforward piece abo...

The Young Man by Annie Ernaux review – an expert dissection of sex, age and power

The Nobel winning French writer documents her affair with a much younger manAnnie Ernaux’s work is proof of how expertly autobiography can be done. Across more than 20 books, the Nobel prize winner seems to have subjected every sentence to the litera...

Absolutely & Forever by Rose Tremain review – a lost first love

This delicate novel traces a young woman’s awakening, from 1950s country house parties to not-so-swinging London and an unhappy marriageAt one point in this slim coming-of-age novel, Rose Tremain’s 17th, the main character, Marianne, is accused by he...

The Job of Songs review – folk melodies and melancholia in rural Ireland

Lila Schmitz’s documentary offers a candid look at Irish music and community struggles in a small Irish village known for its bar-room sessionsThat The Banshees of Inisherin may apparently be a documentary is the main takeaway of this swift but wide-...

Small business, bright future: how the SME landscape may evolve over the next five years

What can small and medium-sized businesses learn from the turmoil of the recent past – and what trends and opportunities will emerge over the next few years?One of the biggest challenges in business is being able to respond to sudden disruption in so...

‘Give yourself a break’: why small business owners need to regain a sense of balance

Despite flexible working becoming commonplace, a healthy work-life balance is far from the norm, especially among the small business community. So how can SME owners properly switch off?If we are honest, most of us could use a little more balance at...

The lifeblood of SMEs: five steps to improve cashflow

Keeping track of money moving in and out can be challenging for any small business owner, but if you follow these basic steps, you should stay on top of your overheadsIt is not an easy time to be a small business dealing with a combination of high in...

‘Make personal connections with the people you do business with’: why supplier relationships are key to SME success

Building a strong rapport with partners increases resilience and flexibility, helping small businesses survive and thrive during difficult timesThere are few things more important to a small business than its suppliers, and with recent supply chain c...

‘You have to look for the good things or you will fall apart’: how families face childhood cancer together

When a young person is diagnosed with cancer, the impact is felt by all who love them. Five families share the realities of loving and, tragically, sometimes losing a child with cancerThere are around 4,200 new cases of cancer in children and young p...

Margherita, this is malt: eight foods and the whiskies to pair them with

If you understand the basics of pairing food and wine, then you’re halfway there with whisky too. From stilton to seafood, here’s how to find the right single malt to matchWhisky is the kind of drink that makes friends with everyone at a party. When...

‘Cancer made me grow up very quickly’: how a 12-year-old and his family faced a serious illness

Taylor Kershaw wasn’t even in his teens when he was told he had Hodgkin lymphoma but, thanks to a groundbreaking clinical trial, he went into remission without having to go through radiotherapy“The doctor asked if I had any questions and I asked two:...

‘I was so young when I was diagnosed’: how one family faced childhood cancer

When Katie Currie was diagnosed with leukaemia as a toddler, the lives of her family changed overnight. Here, they share how doctors, nurses and an experimental drug brought hope – and then eventual recoveryWhen Katie Currie was just three, the usual...

A taste of the past: a food writer on the power of timeless flavours

Dominated as our world is by the visual, it’s easy to forget how important our tastebuds are in creating meaning and memory. Clare Finney pays tributes to the tastes that have the power to take her back “He was just a bit bland,” my mum once said of...

From Halloween to Hogmanay: seven menus for autumn and winter festivals – and the drinks to pair them with

The second half of the calendar is packed with occasions to celebrate. So what’s on the menu for these big dates, and how best to pair a whisky with festive food?The grinches among us always seem to moan about the festive season getting longer every...

Whisky and what now? Four surprising pairings for double-casked single malt

From jollof rice to Taiwanese fried chicken, here are four new food trends you’ve got to sample with a dramLike ham and pineapple, some unexpected pairings just make sense. The same goes for whisky, which, when partnered with the right foods, can sit...