Category: Television

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Curating some of the best recent links across literature, philosophy, and the arts
Lauren Elkin
Lauren Elkin, Flâneuse (Penguin Books, 2016)
Sonny Rollins, Newk’s Time (Blue Note, 1957)

This is the fifth in a new weekly series that brings together the articles, reviews, interviews and miscellany that has caught my eye over the past seven days. Including: Thelonious Monk’s tips for playing a gig; a free course on creative writing from William Burroughs; and a review of the first authorised biography of Angela Carter. Take a look, and feel free to share! (more…)

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Curating some of the best recent links across literature, philosophy, and the arts
Imbolo Mbue.
Teju Cole

This is the fourth in a new weekly series that brings together the articles, reviews, interviews and miscellany that has caught my eye over the past seven days. Including: a review of the fourth and final volume of Samuel Beckett’s Letters; how to spot a communist using literary criticism; five films that influenced David Lynch’s Blue Velvet; and successful authors offer their best writing tips. Take a look, and feel free to share! (more…)

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Curating some of the best recent links across literature, philosophy, and the arts
Brian Eno

This is the third in a new weekly series that brings together the articles, reviews, interviews and miscellany that has caught my eye over the past seven days. Including: articles commemorating the 15th anniversary of the September 11th attacks in 2001, news about the mythical long-lost soundtrack of David Bowie’s The Man Who Fell to Earth, and President Barack Obama’s summer reading picks. Take a look, and feel free to share! (more…)

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John le Carré

I am always fascinating to hear about the daily rituals of writers and creative people. Readers of this site might be familiar with previous posts on walking and improvisation, thinking, or Kierkegaard’s fondness for daily walks. And so, whenever I hear about writers who are also keen walkers, I’m always curious to know more.

This morning I read that the British spy novelist John le Carré, author of The Night Manager (1993) and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974) is one such writer. He talks of the pleasure he takes in perambulations around London, of finding inspiration in trains and cafés, and his preference for ‘drawing the words’ over using typewriters and word processors: (more…)

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Curating some of the best recent links across literature, philosophy, and the arts
Eric Dolphy, Out to Lunch! (Blue Note, 1964)
Margaret Atwood

This is the second in a new weekly series that brings together the articles, reviews, interviews and miscellany that has caught my eye over the past seven days. Including: a look at the first ever reviews of James Joyce’s Ulysses, articles on HBO’s new crime drama The Night Of, and over 500 hours of jazz. Take a look, and feel free to share! (more…)

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A celebration of veteran cinematographer Frederick Elmes
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John Turturro and Riz Ahmed star in HBO’s The Night Of
For the last eight weeks, Sundays have been the night of The Night Of, a dark HBO crime story set in New York. The show blended police procedural, courtroom drama, and character study to produce mystery, suspense, and black humour. Based on a five-part UK drama produced by the BBC in 2008-9, the mini-series centres on a man accused of murder after a night of drugs and heavy drinking. Riz Ahmed is excellent as the young Muslim defendant, inspiring sympathy and suspicion in equal measure. And John Turturro steals the show as an opportunistic lawyer who leads the defence (a role originally intended for late Sopranos star James Gandolfini).

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Curating some of the best recent links across literature, philosophy, and the arts
Teju Cole
Margaret Atwood

This is the first in a new weekly series that brings together the articles, reviews, interviews and miscellany that has caught my eye over the past seven days. Including: an exclusive look inside the final volume of Samuel Beckett’s correspondence, a guide to david Bowie’s favourite books, and troubling news that Langston Hughes’ Harlem home is under threat. Take a look, and feel free to share! (more…)

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What the hit Netflix show can tell us about our fascination with ’80s nostalgia and American suburban gothic

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The word ‘stranger’ can suggest many things. One antiquated definition, used in the 18th and 19th century, refers to ‘things which are popularly imagined to forebode the coming of an unexpected visitor’ (OED). These ‘things’ might refer to tea leaves floating in a cup, a moth appearing suddenly out of the dark, or candlewax that causes the light of a flame to flicker and die. For viewers of Netflix’s thrilling new drama, Stranger Things, this superstition holds a unique significance.

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