arts
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The usual offerings not doing it for you? Here’s a roundup of the best on-demand shows to get you through the festive period
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Andrew O’Hehir of Salon magazine was told to ‘die and leave us alone’ by one fan after posting a negative review of the much-hyped space fantasy
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The idea of a black Hermione is fantastic in pushing against the idea that fictional heroes are white by default – but it also points to inconsistencies in the series
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From Simple Minds to Public Enemy, here are the albums our writers turned to when they’d had enough of new releases
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We were correct about the likely quality of new movies by Andrew Haigh and Noah Baumbach – but miles off the mark when we predicted future classics from Cameron Crowe and Gus Van Sant
talking points
people
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The rapper has stepped up to impress the judges on the show, to celebrate the TV series’ final run, in a clip shared by Kim Kardashian
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the big picture
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From Bake Off winners and musicians to Mexican tequila farmers, artists and scientists, here are the top portraits taken by Guardian photographers this year
reviews
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A favourite of film buffs, this Japanese classic about a Kabuki actor finding his muse is elegant, rich and ultimately heartbreaking
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pictures & video
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The film team review this week’s big releases, include David O Russell’s biopic of the Miracle Mop inventor and Eddie Redmayne as the world’s first sex change operation patient
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Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s much loved Stick Man has been turned into an animated film to be shown on Christmas day. Discover the story through stills from the TV film and original illustrations
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Backstage at Hackney Empire’s pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk
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Nigel M Smith interviews Kaufman and the film’s puppeteers as he discovers how much work goes into creating the detail of every aspect of Michael’s world, including puppet pubic hair
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People campaigning for Britain to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India should take comfort in the fact that at least one looted jewel was returned this year: Zayn Malik. Yep, 2015 was the year Zayn learned his self-worth and freed himself from One Direction. Being in a boyband usually involves a lot of self-censorship, followed by going all-out rebel once you leave. Has it gone that way for Zayn? We break down his post-1D year in pictures
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Watch a clip of Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s martial arts epic, about a trained killer tasked with murdering the man she was once betrothed to
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Stage Alexis Soloski's top 10 New York theatre of 2015