British rock band from Manchester, formed 1982, pivotal in indie/post-punk scene.
Guitars from The Smiths’ Johnny Marr have been auctioned at Christie’s in London, fetching £3.65m. The sale features iconic instruments tied to Marr’s career, including the 1982 Rickenbacker 330 Jetglo and a 1960 Cherry Red Gibson ES-355, with proceeds donated to The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and The National Autistic Society. The event coincides with the release of Marr’s new album.
A new show from Dundee Rep and Solar Bear, The Singer, centers Deaf performer Jamie Rea and a listening partner, with KT Tunstall providing original music. The production marks a milestone for bilingual, Deaf-inclusive theatre on Edinburgh’s main stages, following a decade of development in Scottish arts.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe production of Mayflies, staged by Grid Iron at Brown’s of Leith, has opened a nuanced, site-specific take on Andrew O’Hagan’s novel. The play follows two friends’ teenage road trip and their later confrontation with terminal illness, using 1980s Manchester and Thatcher-era Leith as backdrop. Performances fuse live theatre with striking visuals and a powerful soundscape.
The UK has formalised support for Ukraine by sharing blueprints for long-range Scalp missiles, a French variant of the Storm Shadow. Kyiv is set to produce components domestically. Russia has warned of retaliation, while UK leaders press ahead with allied security cooperation and sanctions enforcement.