Going out: Cinema
Nitram
Out now
A disturbing but brilliantly crafted film from Justin Kurzel built around a powerful performance from Caleb Landry Jones. Nitram is a portrait of a man who commits a mass shooting, and is loosely based on 1996’s Port Arthur massacre, that led to significant reforms of Australia’s gun legislation.
The Princess
Out now
For audiences alienated by Pablo Larraín’s ambitious but divisive Spencer, which provided an arthouse take on the People’s Princess, this documentary will be just the ticket: archive, news footage and interviews combine to present a vivid, factual deep dive into the life of one of the world’s most scrutinised women: Diana, Princess of Wales.
Wayfinder
Out now
The talented British-Ghanaian artist Larry Achiampong turns his hand to cinema with a soundscape and image-led film in six chapters, tracking the progress of Perside Rodrigues’s Wanderer through a post-pandemic, post-Brexit landscape.
Minions: The Rise of Gru
Out now
Sure, they may now be synonymous with iffy Facebook memes, but that’s hardly the fault of the Minions themselves. The little yellow mischief- makers are back in cinemas, with an origin story for anyone who has ever wondered what supervillain Gru was like as an enfant terrible. Catherine Bray
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Going out: Gigs
Pixies
Castleford Bowl, Manchester, 5 July
Ahead of supporting Pearl Jam in London’s Hyde Park, Black Francis et al (above) play this headline show. Expect a smattering of new songs from their eighth album, Doggerel, out in September, plus, you’d imagine, 1988’s enduring Where Is My Mind?, now a staple of Hollywood soundtracks. Michael Cragg
Olivia Rodrigo
2 to 7 July, tour starts Glasgow
Still bouncing around the UK Top 20 more than a year since its release, Rodrigo’s debut album, Sour, is the perfect mix of heart-on-your-sleeve longing and gut-punch emo. Both sides will be on show on this debut UK tour, with her nine-week No 1 Drivers License likely a smartphones-aloft highlight. MC
Chris Batchelor’s Zoetic
Kings Place, London, 2 July
Eclectic and exciting trumpeter-composer Chris Batchelor’s group Zoetic flow between South African, Arabic and Brazilian influences, Balkan folk tunes and jazz/classical fusions. It reflects the diverse experiences of the lineup, including two former Batchelor sidekicks from Loose Tubes, alongside subtle percussionist Paul Clarvis, and viola player Margrit Hasler. John Fordham
Stanford’s Requiem
Symphony Hall, Birmingham, 2 July
The Birmingham Triennial festival was one of Britain’s most important musical events in the 19th century, and in 1897 it premiered a major work by the leading British composer of his generation: Charles Villiers Stanford’s Requiem. It’s getting a rare revival now from the University of Birmingham Voices and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra; Martyn Brabbins conducts. Andrew Clements
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Going out: Art
Back to Earth
Serpentine North & Kensington Gardens, London, to 18 September
You can eat the Climavore menu devised by last year’s Turner prize nominees Cooking Sections, hear planet-conscious sounds by Brian Eno, and see art in and out of doors at this exhibition about the climate emergency. Participants include Karrabing Film Collective, Carolina Caycedo and Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg.
David Batchelor: Colour Is
Compton Verney, nr Stratford-upon-Avon, to 2 October
Our cities are nowhere near as grey as we think they are, insists this artist of found colour. Batchelor beautifully mixes minimalism with urban grit. His joyous collections include goods trolleys from King’s Cross – their coloured boards come in an amazing variety of hues – and polychrome stacks of glowing lightboxes.
Anatomy: A Matter of Death and Life
National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh to 30 October
Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings of dissected bodies give their gory subject matter compassionate, wondrous beauty. Here they are juxtaposed with more gothic fare from a city steeped in anatomy, including the skeleton of the body snatcher and murderer William Burke, and a mysterious collection of miniature coffins from Arthur’s Seat.
Howardena Pindell: A New Language
Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, to 30 October
This American artist and curator’s abstract paintings may look like visual bliss at first sight with their glitter and shine and bright ethereal colours, but Pindell is a lifelong activist whose art also includes her 1980 video Free, White and 21. This show surveys six decades of radical vision. Jonathan Jones
Going out: Stage
Patriots
Almeida theatre, London, to 20 August
A new play from big-hitter Peter Morgan (The Crown), set against the fall of the Soviet Union, Patriots is about the rise and fall of billionaire businessman Boris Berezovsky and stars the reliably brilliant Tom Hollander (above). Miriam Gillinson
A Little Night Music
Leeds Playhouse, to 16 July
A revival of Leeds Playhouse’s acclaimed co-production with Opera North, featuring Dame Josephine Barstow. Worth the price of admission alone for Sondheim’s Send in the Clowns. MG
They Seem Nice
Soho Theatre, London, 5 to 9 July
As a comedic form, the improv show is decidedly out of style, but this relatively hip offering helmed by writer and actor Nic Sampson could rehabilitate the genre. He’ll be joined by his Starstruck castmates Rose Matafeo, Emma Sidi and Alice Snedden, plus Ghosts’ Kiell Smith-Bynoe. Rachel Aroesti
National Youth Dance Company
AMATA, Falmouth University, 3 July; touring to 3 September
NYDC recruits the best of the country’s young dancers, mostly aged 16 to 19, and pairs them with a top-level choreographer to develop new work. This year’s artistic director, Alesandra Seutin, delves into society’s ills in Quartier Paradis. Lyndsey Winship
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Staying in: Streaming
The Baby
7 July, Sky Atlantic & Now
Hilarious and terrifying in equal measure, this comedy-horror about a homicidal infant who latches on to childless women – in this case, Michelle de Swarte’s freedom-loving Natasha (above) – sums up the frequently nightmarish experience of first-time motherhood in a wickedly original way.
My Life As a Rolling Stone
2 July, 9.30pm, BBC Two & iPlayer
The cornerstone of the BBC’s celebration of 60 years of the inexhaustible rockers, each episode of this series dives into the life, career and psyche of a single Stone. Features exclusive interviews with the band and an impressive roster of stars (Slash, Rod, Tina Turner, Chrissie Hynde) giving their two penn’orth.
Black Bird
8 July, Apple TV+
Taron Egerton stars in a nail-biting prison drama with a difference. A man is given a 10-year stretch; he’s also given a choice: freedom in exchange for a transfer to a high-security jail, where he must attempt to elicit a confession from an inordinately creepy suspected serial killer.
April Ashley
4 July, 10pm, Channel 4
The UK’s first Pride rally took place 50 years ago this month, and Channel 4 is marking the milestone with a slew of LGBTQ-themed programming, including this documentary about Ashley: a pioneering transgender model who, in 1960, became one of the first Brits to undergo gender-reassignment surgery. RA
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Staying in: Games
F1 2022
Out now, PC, PlayStation, Xbox
The official simulation of the FIA Formula One World Championship returns with an overhauled handling system, new highly advanced AI drivers and refreshed versions of all the circuits, including the new Miami International Autodrome. Created by veteran racing game studio Codemasters, the game’s array of modes offers an arcade experience for newcomers as well as in-depth simulation. As close as you’ll get to the real-life action without gatecrashing the pit lanes.
MADiSON
Out 8 July, PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch
Imagine waking up and discovering you’ve been trapped in a nightmarish ritual by a demon and that all you have to help navigate your way back to the real world is a possessed instant camera. That’s the premise behind this extremely dark and gory first-person psychological horror game that blends the photography element from the acclaimed Project Zero titles with the unremitting jump scares of Hideo Kojima’s infamous horror demo, P.T. Not one for the faint-hearted. Keith Stuart
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Staying in: Albums
Paolo Nutini – Last Night in the Bittersweet
Out now
After an eight-year hiatus, the grizzled Scottish singer-songwriter (above) returns with his fourth album of widescreen rock and crumpled heartache. That soulful, throaty roar of a voice is given a full workout on the ambling lead single, Through the Echoes, while Shine a Light grows steadily into a sky-scraping, string-drenched epic.
The Game – Drillmatic: Mind vs Heart
Out now
Released in 2019, Compton rapper The Game’s Born 2 Rap was trailed as his final album before early retirement. Three years later and he’s back with this 30-track epic, executive produced by ubiquitous producer Hit-Boy, and featuring Kanye West, who shows up on the swirling, minor-key single Eazy.
Gwenno – Tresor
Out now
Sung mainly in Cornish, Welsh singer‑songwriter Gwenno Saunders’s third album mixes lilting dreampop and modern psychedelia to create something otherworldly. While its lyrics might be lost on many, Tresor (meaning treasure) majors in atmosphere, with Anima the soundtrack to a psych-rock medieval banquet.
Burna Boy – Love, Damini
Out 8 July
Built around a sample of Toni Braxton’s He Wasn’t Man Enough, new single Last Last – the first from this sixth album by Nigerian superstar Burna Boy – epitomises his ability to mix genres. Mixing the Afro-fusion he’s famed for with the R&B swing of the 2000 original, it’s a summer anthem in waiting. MC
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Staying in: Brain food
Mark Ronson’s Music Production
From 5 July, BBC Maestro
The online education platform BBC Maestro features hitmaker Mark Ronson (above) as the latest addition to its celebrity stable, presenting 18 detailed lessons for budding musicians on everything from sampling to preparing recording sessions and developing tones.
Chanel Connects
Podcast
A departure from the usual fare of big names waffling on branded podcasts, this offering from the fashion house Chanel pairs celebrities for surprisingly informative conversations on the creative process, including the artist Kehinde Wiley, musician Grimes and more.
Storyville: On the Morning You Wake
5 July, BBC Four
In January 2018, an alert for an incoming ballistic missile was sent to the mobiles of 1.4 million Hawaiians. This immersive film examines how, for the following 38 minutes, they had to reckon with the coming catastrophe. Ammar Kalia
