Arts & Ideas Folgen

Bernard Rose, whose new film Boxing Day is a modern rework of Tolstoy’s Master and Man, is in conversation with Philip Dodd. In a year when public inquiries have been especially resonant, we consider what we mean by ‘the public’ and its right to justice. Historian Helen Bynum talks about the history of tuberculosis and how the disease has been romanticised in culture. And Radio 3 New Generation Thinker Nandini Das spots an unexpectedly seasonal image in the British Library’s new exhibition about Mughal India.

Matthew Sweet discusses The Girl, a new film about Alfred Hitchcock’s vexed relationship with Tippi Hedren, with the leading lady herself and actor Toby Jones. We celebrate the centenary of Tarzan with author Michael Chabon and the former ‘Ape Man’ stars Johnny Weissmuller and Ron Ely. And Matthew examines the compelling creations of the writer, artist and creative polymath, Alasdair Gray.

Anne McElvoy talks to the director Ang Lee about his latest film The Life of Pi. Susannah Clapp reviews August Strindberg's play The Dance of Death which has a new adaptation by Conor McPherson. Polish-born writer and critic Agata Pyzik and Jatinder Verma who founded the South Asian theatre company Tara Arts discuss why some immigrant groups make more cultural impact than others. And Anne talks to Valery Rees about her new book, From Gabriel to Lucifer: A Cultural History of Angels.