making great art even better: thread

Today is the anniversary of Jo Cox's murder by a white supremacist eight years ago on her way to a surgery in Birstall in her constituency whose ethnic diversity she praised in her maiden speech to the Commons. She was a supporter of Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East.

The Enid Blyton classic

The Telegraph is now having to publish so many corrections to articles where it attempts to find *any angle whatsoever* to attack net-zero polices that it makes sense to start tracking them here. These are the ones published since Labour won the election. "We are happy to correct the record."

Back on its bullshit

This is the BEST news. (For a non-driving Edinburgher, I mean, of course. Not in any other context. Much better news is needed.. for the world generally.. But this is still a fundamentally good thing.)

Happy St George' Day!

You ain't seen me, right.

What if Elon is the first autistic person RFK has ever actually met and that’s why he assumes we don’t pay taxes or go on dates

Oh gawd also: Children of Men 28 Days Later High Life Never Let Me Go Threads

5 Science Fiction movies to get to know me: Arrival Sunshine Moon Alien 2001

It's my privilege to be producing this mesmeric, captivating, haunting, beautiful show at #edfringe. The kind of show that suspends time, and distills something profound & unreachable about human nature. I can't wait for people to experience it.

As it is #WorldTheatreDay 🎭, let's marvel at one of the most impressive and best-preserved ancient theatres of the Roman world. The theatre of Aspendos in Turkey was constructed during the reign of Marcus Aurelius by an architect named Zeno. Its capacity was about 12,000.

The UK Labour government is plunging 250,000 people into poverty with their cruel cuts. Poverty isn't inevitable, it's a political choice. It's time for real change. It's time to tax the rich.

Oh, f*** off, Coach. You suggesting you're a better writer than me is a real fucking turnoff. Meanwhile I ask you to, I dunno, do a mailmerge from a spreadsheet for me, or put the details of a train I just booked into my calendar, and gosh no, that's beyond you. What are you for??

@fergusmorgan.bsky.social nailed this

Every time I read The Great Gatsby, the final paragraph brings me to tears. Breathtakingly powerful writing:

Happy to have been able to support @welcometothefringe in bringing Palestinian artists to the Fringe in 2025. Their crowdfunder is still open if you would like to support too. www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/welcome-to...

Amnesty UK İnsan Hakları Elçisi Olivia Colman'ın başrolde olduğu "Before Our Eyes/Gözlerimizin Önünde" adlı film Los Angeles'ta Shorty Ödülü'ne layık görüldü. ✊ Film, Birleşik Krallık'taki barınma ve konut krizini müthiş bir vuruculukla anlatıyor. Sanat dönüştürür. www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1st...

ShinagawaMonkey - Vanishing Point's show at Tramway was superb. Made me remember what it's like reading Murakami. The absolute lucid sharpness of the images, and the hazy shape-shifting elusiveness of the meaning. DREAMY. Also the unrelated monkey pic in the exhibition next door

Fun valentines day gift for the man in your life, according to John Lewis, genuinely

🎉THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH 🎉 This episode is a celebration of all the highs & lows of the last 7 years. We also mention the new edition to the podcast: MAIL BAG - more deets to follow.It’s a full fun episode. Grab your favourite drink & celebrate with us. #podcast #artsindustry

There were some happy tears on Thurs morning! So proud. So relieved. Now, much work to do!

Keen to hear from as many cultural events, theatres, festivals, arts centres, organise & freelances as possible on Creative Scotland’s funding decisions. Feel free to email or DM me. CS aren’t planning to disclose which applications have been rejected, but I certainly want to hear about them!

Amazing list of things that “won’t work in Edinburgh” but actually work and are commonplace elsewhere and when implemented here work just fine too: Bus lanes Trams Bike lanes Short term let regulations Tourist tax Not sure #Edinburgh is that unique! ✍️ article from @turvill.bsky.social

oh no

Sexism alive and well in Ayrshire

Nice to see someone give so many words to how great Industry is www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio... Industry is SO GREAT. Yasmin's final scene is still haunting me. The power plays and whiplash about-turns with her now-employee-aka-only-witness-to her-shocking-criminality. Oh, SO GOOD.

I find that accepting that Satan is in charge of the world is very simplifying

Treasure Island at @lyceumedinburgh.bsky.social was such a good time. Rollicking, ridiculous, pacey, making magic out of odds+ends, and above all CONFIDENT in itself. A show that knows exactly what it's doing and why. I have missed seeing that, it's been a while. You will be richer for seeing it!

If you have any amount of £ to spare (appreciate many don't), the Big Give is on til midday tomorrow, all donations to participating charities are doubled. Seems a no-brainer. I'm giving a bit to International Rescue Committee, Scottish Refugee Council & @hopenothate.org.uk

Threads (1984) is a Christmas movie.

2 Scottish festive feminist theatre drinks event on same day and I can't make either due to lack of childcare - boo. www.facebook.com/Persistentan... www.eventbrite.com/e/mingle-all... Please others go for me and have good chats and dismantle the patriarchy, thanking you

I am stupidly romantic about this kind of weather and I walk through these icy bright crisp days muttering Dickens under my breath.. "cold, cold, piping for the blood to dance to!" For a time I read Christmas Carol every year, so it lives inside me and I'm grateful for it

Excited to have a short piece selected for the Imaginate & Capital Theatres scratch night on 30th Nov. Scratching at ideas around youth climate activism, generational divides, and an epic mother-daughter battle of wills! www.capitaltheatres.com/whats-on/all...

A list of collective noun suggestions for various professions…   8. A lot of parking attendants 7. A great deal of car salesmen 6. A rash of dermatologists 5. A lack of principals 4. A notherweek of builders 3. A fraid of clowns 2. A well (actually) of pedants 1. An enlargement of pianists

Exeunt is back!! Exeunt!!! This is fucking amazing news. exeuntmagazine.substack.com?utm_source=s...

Dissertation I'm writing in my head: "RIVALS and the myth of the incredibly wealthy+powerful man of past toxic misdeeds who is actually so loveable. And why the female fantasy of getting to save/redeem said man is so fucking persistent. [Ref. Rupert, Rochester, Darcy, Christian Gray etc etc etc]"

Rebranding not shaving over the winter months as "rewilding my legs"

"Given a moment that called for either a stab at unity or slingshotting rocks at Goliath,Burr chose instead to kick liberal women while they’re down. Worse, he did so with the kind of “feminists are ugly” jokes that peaked in an era when the hottest thing in comedy was Jay Leno" tinyurl.com/y9w9u78j

If I learned anything in 2016 it's to choose your lanes and stick to them. There will be a million terrible things happening at once and no one is served by you getting so overwhelmed that you can't help with anything. It doesn't mean you don't care about it. But we can each only do so much.

Also:

To quote Samuel Taylor Coleridge: hope is a solemn duty which we owe to the world.

Phewee, Naomi Alderman can turn a phrase.

Gimli points out that this could have been an email.

Okay... this helps me understand why Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez went on Graham Norton and refused to say a word about what Emilia Perez is actually about

"Folks want the drugs they're selling. Cos there's nowt else, mate." "Well there should be." Yeah, no shit, Sherwood.