It’s always great to have an excuse to play Beatles songs in class and the latest one is this summer’s feel-good movie, Yesterday. In it a wannabe pop star from England wakes up from a bike accident caused by a global power cut to discover that he is the only person left on Earth who … Continue reading “Yesterday”
Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë were wonderful storytellers, but their lives have fascinated generations of audiences almost as much as their books. The play Brontë by Polly Teale combines their biographies and their fiction. We talked to Barry Purves, who directed a recent production. Brontë by Polly Teale (2005), intertwines the biography of the Brontë … Continue reading “Staging the Brontë Sisters”
British Prime Minister Theresa May stepped down as leader of the Conservative Party on 9 June, starting the process of electing a new leader, who will take over as Prime Minister. For three years, May has tried to deliver Britain’s exit from the European Union, despite having campaigned for Remain in the Brexit referendum. But … Continue reading “May Leaves”
The eighth FIFA Women’s World Cup will be held in France from 7 June to 7 July. Women’s football has come a long way since the inaugural tournament took place in China in 1991. And the players are beginning to demand closer pay and status to men’s teams. The eighth FIFA Women’s World Cup will … Continue reading “On the Ball”
Self-portraits in Lille and the Golden Age of English Painting in Paris. Get ahead of the crowd by signing up now for class visits for exhibitions opening in September and running through to the New Year. The Dream of Being an Artist at the Palais des beaux arts in Lille is a thematic exhibition around … Continue reading “Save the Date: Exhibitions for September”
JRR Tolkien’s stories of Middle Earth, hobbits, wizards and dragons have captured the imagination of generations. A new film looks at his experiences of friendship, love and war as a young man, and how they may have influenced the man and work. Tolkien the film opens with a young officer, Tolkien, ill with a fever, … Continue reading “Tolkien the Storyteller”
As part of the commemorations of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, the town of Bayeux is hosting an immersive audio performance in English about British war poet and D-Day veteran Keith Douglas. Douglas was a WWII tank commander, who fought in North Africa and participated in the Normandy landings. He was killed three … Continue reading “D-Day in Sound and Poetry”
While it may be the last film of the current X-Men movie franchise, Dark Phoenix is also shaping up to be the absolute darkest chapter of the series yet. What’s the Dark Phoenix story? The Dark Phoenix story is based on Chris Claremont’s iconic 1980s X-Men comic book (specifically The Dark Phoenix Saga). … Continue reading “Dark Phoenix: back to black”
If you think the ukulele is a gadget, a novelty instrument for children, get ready to be blown away. Hawaiians love the instrument, and Taimane is one of its greatest exponents. Don’t miss her in concerts in Paris and Brittany. Taimane grew up in Hawaii with a Samoan mother — her name means “Diamond ” … Continue reading “Hawaiian Heaven”
After six weeks of voting, the results were as rapid as they were clear: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu Nationalist party, BJP, returned to power with a landslide victory in India’s elections. The Indian electorate is so enormous it represents more than 10% of the population of Earth: over 900 million people. So the election … Continue reading “Voting in the World’s Biggest Democracy”