My Neighbour Totoro
We took our kids to see the musical adaptation of My Neighbour Totoro at the Barbican which was every bit as magical as we had hoped it would be. The puppets from the Jim Henson Company were marvellous, including an enormous Totoro himself and some extremely life-like chickens!
Lucian Freud
Celebrating the centenary of Freud’s birth are two excellent exhibitions that you won’t want to miss. The biggest (over 60 paintings) is Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery which has a new Friday night initiative that invites viewers to pay what they wish (minimum £1) from 5.30pm onwards. It isn’t much to pay to get a fascinatingly close-up view on the progression of Freud’s painting style. The second is at the Garden Museum, Lucian Freud: Plant Portraits, which shows how integral plants were in Freud’s paintings.
The Bear, Disney+
Formerly a chef at the best restaurant in the world, Carmy moves back to his native Chicago to take over the family sandwich shop following his brother’s death.
By far the most addictive show we’ve watched this autumn, we binged the whole series in two nights.
The Old Man, Disney+
With a new episode airing weekly, we’re not totally sure where The Old Man is heading, but find ourselves eagerly awaiting every update. What we do know is that Jeff Bridges is trying to dodge his past as a CIA operative. His relatively quiet life living off the grid in Vermont is disrupted when the past comes back to haunt him. The cast is brilliant, including John Lithgow, Amy Brenneman, and Alia Shawkat. Already renewed for a second season, this is one to watch if you love a spy story.
Cezanne at Tate Modern
With the largest collection of paintings by Cezanne in the UK in over 30 years, The Tate has put together what is probably the must visit exhibition of the autumn. Walking through room after room of the artist’s best known works, it’s hard not to be in awestruck — and these are most definitely paintings to be seen in person rather than in high definition images.
We will be going back with the whole family.
Podcasts
Julia Samuel has teamed up with her two psychotherapist daughters for her new podcast, Therapy Works. She interviews guests (first up, Minnie Driver) and then reflects on the conversation with her daughters. An interesting look at the differing opinions of therapists.
Ahead of the launch of Series 2 in December, The River Cafe’s Table 4 podcast is revisiting its artistic guests to coincide with Frieze. We had missed Sam Taylor-Johnson and enjoyed catching up.
Finally, we’ve mentioned it before but with English politics being the current rollercoaster ride it is, we are really enjoying The Rest is Politics with Rory Stewart and Alistair Campbell.
A Little Bird Loves
