Unapologetic authenticity meets aggravation, as Banks delivers an furiously efficient yet audacious set.A tour titled “back to the union jack” could have been a hard sell in Glasgow. A post-10pm, sub-40 minute set should be harder still. As the unremarkable supporting DJ set rumbled on, anticipation of Banks’ arrival turned into frustration, then for some, indignation. We danced, but more reluctantly, we debated buying more shit booze. A minority took to Snapchat to have their moment: “Come out...

Paul Lynch, winner of The Booker Prize 2023, told the awards ceremony that he risked “dooming his career” by writing Prophet Song. His dystopian novel follows an ordinary, middle-class family, The Stacks, whose lives deteriorate in tandem with the city where they live, Dublin. Written poetically – with no paragraph breaks or speech marks – its tragedy lies in the helplessness of its characters: its floundering mother, Eilish, and her bed-wetting, school-skipping children. Prophet Song is formida

Glitz, glam and deceit: these ladies are all showstoppers in one way or another

Dorothy was right: there’s no place like home. This adage from The Wizard of Oz surely extends to Real Housewives franchises, too, and while there will always be purists asserting the supremacy and authenticity of Bravo – the network which launched the show – I am convinced that ITVBe have done a fine job with their UK spin-off series (or, at least, this one). After 175 episodes of quintessentially British drama, th

Punk died six years ago according to Joe Corre (the late Dame Vivienne Westwood’s son). Though he lambasted its transition into a “marketing tool” used by the music industry, the success of Big Joanie’s UK headline tour - Glasgow being their 3rd sold out show - suggests a radical alternative is alive and thriving.

Big Joanie are a Black feminist punk band. Its three members - Stephanie Phillips on guitar, Chardine Taylor Stone on drums, and Estella Adeyeri on bass - charmed veggie bar-turned-gi

Cheryl Tweedy Cole Fernandez-Versini. Several articles about the former Girls Aloud member, who is now known as “just Cheryl”, commence with a bricolage of the last names she has accumulated over the years, and why shouldn’t they? It’s an etymological masterpiece - Kimberley Gail Ratcliff (née Marsh, previously Ryder and Lomas) just doesn’t hit the sweet spot! - and a reminder of the chaotic love life that, among other reasons, induces a very British affection for her. Following a long period in

BILLY IDOL | OVO HYDRO | OCTOBER 21ST | FROM £88.00 Punk rock but make it borderline geriatric, Billy Idol is still going strong and performing at the Hydro.

ELLA HENDERSON | SWG3 | OCTOBER 17TH | FROM £94.00 Ella competed on the X Factor when she was only 16 but was nonetheless eliminated before Rylan. Still, with 16 million monthly listeners on Spotify and very limited availability despite the £94 tickets, she seems to have done okay in the end.

KENDRICK LAMAR | OVO HYDRO | NOVEMBER 2ND | FR

It’s the intricacy of original film scores that makes them so satisfying. Meticulously crafted with utmost precision, any Danny Elfman or John Williams creation is overanalysis galore as their sudden staccatos and cautious crescendos interact seamlessly with the action on-screen. In King Kong, Max Steiner famously utilises the technique of mickeymousing as he deploys a descending scale in complete synchronisation with the heavy and deliberate footsteps of the sacrificial dance. Alas, the golden