arts
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In pieces that range from his own success as a junior player to the sport-changing ability of Roger Federer, Foster Wallace combined a nerd’s outlook with a novelist’s gift for exposition
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An Artist of the Floating World was written in the early 80s, years of crucial, often fractious and bitter transition in Britain. The author recalls how attempts to transform the country influenced his approach to the novel
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Comedians tend to apologise for making any highbrow references in their material. I wish more felt at ease quoting poetry like Liam Williams
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With war ravaging their homeland, the Orchestra of Syrian Musicians has been scattered across the globe. But five years since the violence erupted, the group are reuniting for a cathartic tour – and opening Glastonbury
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The award-winning author on race, satire and watching samurai films with his mother
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Los Angeles jury finds Robert Plant and Jimmy Page did not steal the most famous passage from the 1971 anthem from the band Spirit
talking points
the citadel
people
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As the Oscar winner takes a rare lead turn this week in the charming comedy The Meddler, we look back on her finest big-screen performances
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From playing on a truck in Leigh to a drunken nightmare in Scandinavia, the band pick the wildest weekends of their four decades in music
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the big picture
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Architect Anna Gibb’s illustrations span global cities from Hong Kong to Glasgow – and bring to life the rich histories that emerge out of their buildings
reviews
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Matthew McConaughey stars as Newton Knight, a southerner who ended up fighting the Confederacy, but despite the pleasingly nuanced view of history there’s simply too much plot
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The new pavillion for the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec has a sense of humour and humility, and is designed above all for showcasing art
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pictures & video
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After Theresa May says Britain should leave the European convention on human rights, Patrick Stewart, Adrian Scarborough and Sarah Solemani expose the problems in the Conservative plan for a UK bill of rights
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Quentin Blake guides us through the remarkable story of his collaboration with Roald Dahl to make The BFG
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The Italian pianist Ludovico Einaudi, renowned for his career composing scores for television and movies, gives a haunting performance among the icebergs of the Arctic
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Axel Scheffler, the illustrator behind the Gruffalo, has created an image for the Guardian to demonstrate his support for Britain remaining in the EU
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As a child, Stanley Spencer was always rummaging in dustbins – a tea pot, jam tin and cabbage stalk seemed to him a holy trinity. In this short film, Spencer’s paintings glorifying the everyday are brought to life in the artist’s own words
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The UK composer’s work premiered to gasps of astonishment at the Proms in 2014. His ‘sound theatre’ piece, filmed by fixed cameras and headsets worn by musicians, is available to watch exclusively here from 24 June at 5pm BST
popular
culture webchats
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The director-star of Garden State and new film Wish I Was Here – and of course Scrubs – has answered your questions on Kickstarter, Scottish independence and ghosts’ nether regions
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She’s the soul star loved by everyone from Elvis to Will Oldham, who saw her career resurrected by a song she recorded for a weight-loss documentary. She answered your questions about being an old man’s sweetheart, Beyonce and Elvis.
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Back with a new show at White Cube, modern art's most inseparable duo joined us live from the gallery, to talk about painting, politics and why good things often come in pairs
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Standup, panel-show regular and Stephen Fry's favourite Canadian funnywoman ... on Tuesday, Katherine Ryan will be joining us in the hotseat. From her Comic Relief turn as Nicki Minaj to her Beyoncé obsession, ask her your questions now
Shakespeare Solos
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Samuel West speaks Henry V’s soliloquy on the night before battle, in which he reflects upon the public’s expectations of the king
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Adrian Lester performs Hamlet’s soliloquy in which the prince considers taking his own life
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Daniel Mays speaks Macbeth’s lines from Act II, Scene 1, in which he sees a murder weapon in a hallucination
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Laura Carmichael speaks Portia’s lines from the courtroom scene in The Merchant of Venice, in which she tells the moneylender Shylock to be merciful
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Ayesha Dharker plays Titania, the queen of the fairies, in a scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
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David Morrissey speaks the opening lines from Richard III in which the scheming Richard lays out his plan to turn his brothers, Clarence and the newly enthroned King Edward IV, against each other
Real-life roadies review Roadies I felt like a nurse watching an hour of ER