Going out: Cinema
The Forgiven
Out now
Starring Ralph Fiennes and Jessica Chastain as a wealthy couple navigating the consequences of drunkenly running over a local boy in Morocco, this is a bracing throwback to a kind of film that rarely gets made these days. Rising star Christopher Abbott features as a dissolute finance guy drowning in ennui.
Blackbird
Out now
At the time of going to press, nobody had been allowed to see this top-secret film. We know it was written and directed by Michael Flatley, Lord of the Dance, who also stars as a retired James Bond type who opens a nightclub in the Caribbean to escape the dark shadows of his past, all of which qualifies this as unmissable.
Three Thousand Years of Longing
Out now
Even within the field of odd-couple movies, this is an unusual pairing: Tilda Switon is an open-minded academic and Idris Elba is a djinn trapped in a magic lamp until the inevitable happens. Written and directed by Mad Max creator George Miller, it doesn’t always work, but it’s certainly unique.
Cinema on the Edge: Japanese Film in the 1970s
Home, Manchester, 3–20 Sep
A sensual season packed with X-rated rarities such In the Realm of the Senses, Ecstasy of the Angels and Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion, this retrospective showcases the boundary-pushing work of Japanese directors of the 70s and is absolutely not for the faint-hearted. Catherine Bray
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Going out: Gigs
Manchester Psych Fest
Various venues, Manchester, 3 September
Back for its ninth edition and bigger than ever, this fest gathers a veritable buffet of the gloriously weird. Kurt Vile and the Coral are the big names among a list that includes Black Midi, Dream Wife, Gwenno, Gruff Rhys and – who could forget? – the Psychedelic Porn Crumpets. Michael Cragg
Pete Wareham/Ruth Goller/ Seb Rochford
The Vortex, London, 9 September
Saxist Pete Wareham, bassist Ruth Goller and drummer Seb Rochford – founders of exciting UK jazz-punk group Acoustic Ladyland in the 2000s – make a Vortex return for this cliffhanging improv journey. The club’s late show presents a returning rarity too: bassist/composer Orlando le Fleming with his Romantic Funk ensemble. John Fordham
Lammermuir festival
Various venues, East Lothian, 8–19 Septtember
The pianist Jeremy Denk and the period-instrument Quatuor Mosaïques are this year’s artists in residence at the classy festival. Denk begins with Ravel, Mozart, Ligeti and Beethoven, while the Mosaïques play Haydn and Schubert. Other highlights include Massenet’s Thérèse from Scottish Opera and Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet by Gavin Bryars. Andrew Clements
Laura Mvula
Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, 9 September
The creator of one of 2021’s best albums, Pink Noise, Mvula gets another chance to showcase its brilliance at this one-off London date. Eschewing her jazzy, orchestral-tinged pop of old, her third album leaned fully into 80s synthpop, showcased on the excellent single Got Me, which channels Bad-era Michael Jackson. MC
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Going out: Art
Carolee Schneemann
Barbican Art Gallery, London, 8 Sep to 8 Jan
In her performance Meat Joy, this revolutionary body artist got a crowd of dancers to drape themselves in raw animal flesh. Schneemann took the 1960s “happening” to new levels of Dionysian ecstasy. But it’s not all blood and guts: her art questions and probes the way our identities are embodied.
Visions of Ancient Egypt
Sainsbury Centre, Norwich, 3 Sep to 1 Jan
The art, religion and rituals of ancient Egypt have haunted modern culture. From candlelit gatherings to unwrapped mummies in the Romantic age to Howard Carter’s discovery of Tutankhamun in the 20th century, Egypt is where archaeology, popular culture and colonial anxieties meet. This show surveys Egyptomania’s beauty, vulgarity and terror.
The Lost King: Imagining Richard III
The Wallace Collection, London, 7 Sep to 8 Jan
Was Richard III a tyrant or the maligned victim of Tudor propaganda? Killed at Bosworth Field in 1485 and portrayed as a murderous monster by Thomas More and Shakespeare, this medieval antihero got a new lease of life when his skeleton was found. This show examines the legend and evidence.
Forest
Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol, to 2 Oct
The forest has inspired art for centuries. Dark, labyrinthine, creative – woodlands represent both natural wildness and the unconscious for artists from Lucas Cranach the Elder to Max Ernst. With the survival of forests now under threat, Eva Jospin, David Nash, Ai Weiwei, among others, praise them and invoke that irreplaceable magic. Jonathan Jones
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Going out: Stage
Nureyev: Legend and Legacy
Theatre Royal, London, 5 to 12 Sep
Masterminded by former Royal Ballet principal Nehemiah Kish, this ballet gala features 22 top-class dancers in extracts reflecting different aspects of Rudolf Nureyev’s life and work. The evening is introduced by Ralph Fiennes, who made the film The White Crow about Nureyev’s defection. Lyndsey Winship
The Cherry Orchard
The Yard, London, 5 Sep to 22 Oct
Convinced that Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard has been reimagined in every way possible? Wrong. Vinay Patel’s new SF version is set in space. Brace yourselves. Miriam Gillinson
Reasons You Should(n’t) Love Me
Live theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne, 7-10 Sep; touring to 26 Nov
Amy Trigg’s prize-winning play tours the UK. It’s a subtle, funny and provocative work about a woman with spina bifida navigating her tumultuous 20s. MG
Kevin Bridges
OVO Hydro, Glasgow, to 25 Sept; touring to 15 Dec
Bridges came close to quitting comedy seven years ago. He’s also just written his first novel. It sounds like we should appreciate him while we can. His tour has reached his home town: a 16-night run at the 14,000 capacity Hydro. Brian Logan
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Staying in: Streaming
Central Park
9 Sep, Apple TV+
As the animated series from the creators of Bob’s Burgers returns, the Tillerman-Hunters are busier than ever and Bitsy is still determined to bulldoze their beloved park. Even if you don’t appreciate such delightful whimsy, this is still the only place to hear Tituss Burgess harmonise with Stanley Tucci.
Walter Presents: Redemption
Out now, All 4
If Inspector Montalbano had a grittier, moodier cousin in Rome it would be ex-cop Valerio (Alessandro Gassman). He’s determined to investigate when his estranged son Ettore (Luigi Fedele) is found dead on the banks of the Tiber. Everyone says it’s suicide, but Valerio may prove otherwise.
Brassic
7 Sep, Sky Max & Now
What we know for sure about the new series of Joe Gilgun’s comedy caper: and his gang of Hawley heisters will pull off all manner of ill-advised schemes and scams, involving racing dogs and severed body parts. What we’re still wondering: can romance finally blossom between Vinnie and the absent Erin (Michelle Keegan)?
Growing Up
8 Sep, Disney+
As part of the Disney+ Day mass content drop, Captain Marvel (AKA Oscar-winning actor Brie Larson) has invited 10 courageous and overearnest teens to collaborate on this series of docudrama hybrids. It seems wherever you come from, whatever your challenges, coming of age is always – as one teen puts it – “ugh”. Ellen E Jones
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Staying in: Games
Splatoon 3
Nintendo Switch, out 9 Sep
This riotously fun team shooter is kid-friendly, stylish and hilarious, featuring youngsters who transform into squid and octopuses, competing to splatter arenas in colourful paint.
The Last of Us Part 1
PS5, Out now
Stellar developer Naughty Dog has remade its emotionally powerful horror classic about a tough teenager and her reluctant father figure trying to outrun the apocalypse. Keza MacDonald
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Staying in: Albums
Nina Nesbitt – Älskar
Out now
Honouring the Scandinavian half of her ancestry, Scottish singer-songwriter Nesbitt returns with third album Älskar, or “love” in Swedish. Continuing the gentle electropop of independent second album The Sun Will Come Up, the Seasons Will Change, Älskar honours Nesbitt’s late grandmother on the lilting Dinner Table, and rails against misogyny on Pressure Makes Diamonds.
Sohn – Trust
Out now
South London-born Christopher Taylor has spent most of his career country-hopping to find inspiration for his tactile electronic music. For his third album he left Catalonia for the community of LA, opening up his process to other collaborators. The result is the more personal Trust, anchored by the lovely single Segre.
Yungblud – Yungblud
Out now
Doncaster’s alt-rock pin-up returns with this third album of jet-black anthems. The follow-up to 2020’s chart-topping Weird!, it features current pop-punk priestess Willow on the galloping single Memories, while an extra dollop of experimentation is added to the mix via 100 Gecs producer Dylan Brady.
Isabella Manfredi – Izzi
Out now
The former frontwoman of Australian rockers the Preatures steps out on her own on this svelte solo debut. Features 2021’s funk-tinged Jealousy, released the day after the band announced it was disbanding, and the deliciously sugary Naive, muses on Manfredi’s two roles as both rock star and mother. MC
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Staying in: Brain food
The American Führer
9 Sep, PBS America
A little-known but fascinating story is the focus of this sobering film. In 1936, Fritz Julius Kuhn was elected as a member of a Nazi-sympathising American organisation the German American Bund. We learn how he subsequently tried to infiltrate the US government.
Missing Pages
Podcast
One for the bookworms: this gossip-fuelled series sees literary critic Bethanne Patrick unpick the biggest scandals in publishing across seven episodes. There’s a look at fake memoirist JT LeRoy and controversial social media influencer Caroline Calloway.
Apartment Therapy
Online
If your home is in need of some serious decluttering, look no further than long-running interiors site Apartment Therapy. Take inspiration from galleries of enviable holiday homes, or follow the many guides to better organisation techniques. Ammar Kalia
