British actor and filmmaker, knighted in 2012
Film at Lincoln Center has unveiled its main slate for the New York Film Festival, promising a mix of international cinema and high-profile premieres. Gray's Paper Tiger opens the festival, with Behemoth center stage, and Ava DuVernay's 14th closing the lineup. Other veteran and rising directors feature prominently.
The Royal Shakespeare Company has opened The Mad King, a Game of Thrones prequel, in Stratford-upon-Avon. The 3h45m production brings younger versions of familiar figures to the stage with a 36-strong cast and innovative puppetry. Reviews are mixed on pace and poetry, but the project aims to broaden GoT’s reach beyond devoted fans.
Carly Simon has announced her first album in years, Comes in Waves, while revealing a Parkinson’s diagnosis and skin cancer treatment. The collection revisits defining moments of her life and career, with songs touching on love, loss and renewal. Readers are invited to explore the full context of her career and health as she moves forward.
The Harry Potter TV series has replaced Nicholas Hoult with Kit Harington to play Gilderoy Lockhart in the second season, adapting The Chamber of Secrets. The change follows scheduling conflicts and comes after fan backlash to Rowling’s involvement. Other cast updates include Paapa Essiedu as Snape and John Lithgow as Dumbledore.
New film, theatre and music events have been announced, spanning cinema premieres, stage productions and live tours across the UK. The Guardian and Independent cover forthcoming releases and performances; dates run through September with festivals and exhibitions filling the calendar.
A rogues’ gallery of action stars delivers a breezy chase comedy set in 1987 Europe. Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh play an unlikely duo on a mission that zips from a snowy forest to Moscow, balancing slick stunts with blunt humor. The film earns beeps of heart and a smile, even as it revels in outright cartoonish spectacle.
A new film about James Stagg, the meteorologist guiding Dwight Eisenhower before D-Day, has sparked praise for Andrew Scott’s restrained, intense performance. The drama, drawn from a stage play, emphasizes data-driven judgment under extreme pressure and the cost of uncertainty in wartime planning.
The gWest estate at Blackford, Perth and Kinross, known as Scotland’s ghost course, has been offered for sale. The 639-acre site includes an unfinished 18-hole course, a domed clubhouse shell, and planning consent for up to 170 homes, a hotel and spa. Buyers face a legacy of delayed development tied to the global financial crisis, Brexit, and the Covid-19 pandemic. Knight Frank warns the asset could reposition Scotland’s luxury tourism, with global interest anticipated.
Anders Holch Povlsen’s WildLand has purchased Kinross House Estate on Loch Leven, expanding its Highlands holdings to 13 estates. The company says it will provide exceptional hospitality while protecting nature and heritage; critics raise questions about wealth concentration, access, and local living costs.