Charlotte O’Sullivan
Ted 2
Released Jul 10
In the sequel to Seth MacFarlane’s lewd bromantic comedy about a man (Mark Wahlberg) and his teddy, the furry fella and his new wife want to have a baby and (to gain custody of the child) must prove Ted is human. Ach, no one cares about the plot. We just want to hear the bear swear.
The Fantastic Four
Released Aug 6
This origin story from the Marvel team boasts an incredible cast: some of the most intense young actors on the planet, including Jamie Bell and Toby Kebbell. Two state-educated Northerners in the same ultra-American blockbuster? The casting director deserves a high five.
45 Years
Released Aug 28
Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay are agonisingly good as a couple whose apparently stable marriage goes into freefall when they get a blast from the past. Director-writer Andrew Haigh’s previous film, Weekend, was a daring delight. Here’s proof that it was no fluke.
Mr Holmes
Released Jun 19
Why has it taken so long for Ian McKellen to be cast as Sherlock? The script is based on a novel which imagines the sleuth as a fragile 93-year-old. The director is Bill Condon (who worked with McKellen on Gods and Monsters). And Carter Burwell did the soundtrack. Yum.
The Second Mother
Film4 Summer Screen at Somerset House, WC2. Aug 12
The film that enchanted audiences at Sundance and Berlin. A live-in maid, Val (Regina Case, fabulously funny) has a teenage daughter who comes to stay with her in São Paolo. Naturally, chaos ensues. A beautiful dissection of Brazil’s ugly class system.
Brixton’s finest: Baba G Burgers FOOD & DRINK
Sarah Cohen
Le Chabanais
8 Mount Street, W1. From Mon
The team behind Le Chateaubriand in Paris, often listed among the world’s best restaurants, is opening its first London outpost. Expect the same French cuisine with a Basque twist as served by its continental cousin.
New restaurants from Jason Atherton
Social Wine & Tapas, James Street, W1. From Jun 8
Sosharu, Turnmill Building, 63 Clerkenwell Road, EC1. Jul/Aug
The serial restaurateur and chef has two new London openings this summer. Sosharu offers casual Japanese dining but before that comes Social Wine & Tapas, which does what it says on the tin.
Summer Tales
Red Market, EC1. Tonight-Aug 29
Winter foodie pop-up Night Tales has had a summer makeover, with a hammock-strewn sun terrace, dancefloor, four different bars and street food from the likes of Burger & Lobster, Pizza Pilgrims, Bonnie Gull and Forza Win.
Taste of London
Regent’s Park, NW1. Jun 17-21
Superstar chefs Nuno Mendes, Raymond Blanc and Michel Roux Jr are just some of the names signed up to appear at this huge celebration of the capital’s restaurant scene.
Pop Brixton
53 Brixton Station Road, SW9. From May 29
This cluster of shipping containers will house independent shops, a community garden, co-working space and food outlets from Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen, Miss P’s BBQ and Baba G’s.
Summer star: Kylie, who is performing at British Summer Time Festival (Picture: Ken McKay/Darenote/REX) MUSIC
David Smyth
Take That
O2 Arena, SE10. Jun 4-19
They’ve shrunk to three members and downsized from stadiums to arenas as well but the man-band’s 10 nights here prove they’re still in huge demand.
British Summer Time
Hyde Park, W1. Jun 18-28
Six giant shows in the park over two weekends, beginning with The Strokes, Blur and Kylie and following on with The Who, Taylor Swift and Union J.
New Look Wireless
Finsbury Park, N4. Jun 28; Jul 3-5
The place to be for dance, hip hop and R&B, marking its 10th birthday with an extra Drake show the week before. Avicii, Kendrick Lamar, David Guetta and Nicki Minaj also feature.
Ed Sheeran
Wembley Stadium. Jul 10-13
He’ll be lonely up there with just his acoustic guitar and loop pedals but it’s hard to think of anyone else who could pull off three nights in a stadium completely solo.
David Byrne’s Meltdown
Southbank Centre, SE1. Aug 17-30
The Talking Heads man is the latest to curate the Southbank’s long-running, eclectic music season. Highlights announced so far include Anna Calvi, Benjamin Clementine and the first show in many years from Young Marble Giants.
Theatrical beginnings: Stephen Merchant will make his stage debut in The Mentalists THEATRE
Fiona Mountford
Bakkhai
Almeida, N1. Jul 23-Sept 19
The highlight of the Almeida’s ambitious three-play “Greeks” season stars Ben Whishaw as the vengeful God Dionysus in Euripides’s tragedy.
The Mentalists
Wyndham’s, WC2. Jul 3-Sept 26
Funny man Stephen Merchant makes his theatrical debut in this comic two-hander by Richard “One Man, Two Guvnors” Bean, about a friendship gone awry.
The Red Lion
National, SE1. From Jun 3
This long-awaited new drama from Patrick Marber delves into the world of semi-pro football; Daniel Mays heads the cast.
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Open Air Theatre, NW1. Jul 16-Aug 29
The Open Air Theatre’s musicals have become a staple of summer and 2015 heralds this classic from the golden age of American tune and toe shows.
Bend it Like Beckham
Phoenix, WC2. Previewing now
Director Gurinder Chadha transforms her own charming 2002 hit Brit flick into a stage musical, with cultural fusion-style songs from Howard Goodall.
benditlikebeckhamthemusical.co.uk
Bikini inspiration: the Riviera Style exhibition FASHION
Karen Dacre
Erdem store
70 South Audley Street, W1. Late Jun
Fans of the Duchess of Cambridge’s favourite floral dress are in for a blooming lovely treat this summer as Turkish-Canadian designer Erdem Moralioglu opens his debut store on South Audley Street. Head there for foliage with a high-fashion twist.
Topshop Playland
214 Oxford Street, W1. May 29-31
Oxford Circus Topshop will take its reputation for being a fashion playground to the next level when it transforms into a fun house for big kids. The pop-up, which includes an inflatable store front and a giant arcade-style grabber as well as candy floss, ice creams and popsicle giveaways, will be in situ for three days only. Go crazy.
Riviera Style: Resort & Swimwear since 1900
Fashion and Textile Museum, SE1. Today-Aug 30
For bikini inspiration, the great British public serve as surprisingly effective subjects. See for yourself in this exhibition which shows swimwear shots snapped everywhere from Skegness to Saint Tropez.
True grit: Vince Vaughan as a career criminal in the second series of True Detective (Picture: Lucy Terrell) TV
Alastair McKay
The Genius of British Cinema
BBC2, BBC4. From Thu
Running in conjunction with BBC radio and the BBC Arts website, this celebration of British film includes Jonathan Ross’s appreciation of Pinewood studios, and an Arena programme about director Nicolas Roeg. The In Conversation strand includes interviews between Dame Judi Dench and Richard Eyre, Ken Loach and Cillian Murphy, and Richard E Grant and Julie Walters.
True Detective
Sky Atlantic. From Jun 22
The hard-boiled crime serial returns. Writer Nic Pizzolatto has penned all eight episodes, with Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams and Taylor Kitsch joining forces in the aftermath of a murder on Pacific Coast Highway. Vince Vaughn plays a career criminal. Expect moral compromises and moustaches.
The Brink
Sky Atlantic. From Jun 22
Black comedy focusing on a geopolitical crisis in Pakistan, with Tim Robbins as US Secretary of State Walter Larson, with support from Jack Black and Pablo Schreiber. The fate of the world is in the balance as a rogue general seizes control of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.
Veep
Sky Atlantic. Jul
Armando Iannucci’s last series in charge of the presidential comedy focuses on the team’s efforts to make Selina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) seem presidential, while selecting a running mate for the forthcoming election. Hugh Laurie joins the cast as a potential VP.
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp
Netflix. From Jul 17
A prequel to David Wain’s 2001 cult film of the same name, set in the hot summer of 1981 with most of the (now starry) ensemble cast returning, including Bradley Cooper, Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Janeane Garofalo and Elizabeth Banks.
Major talent: Tate Britain will host a retrospective of Barbara Hepworth EXHIBITIONS
Ben Luke
Agnes Martin
Tate Modern, SE1. Jun 3-Oct 11
Mouthwatering retrospective of a quiet giant of American painting, whose subtle abstracts were informed, she said, by an “awareness of beauty, innocence and happiness”.
Barbara Hepworth: Sculpture for a Modern World
Tate Britain, SW1. Jun 24-Oct 25
Major retrospective of one of Britain’s greatest ever sculptors, from intimate carved beginnings to the late, monumental bronzes.
Station to Station
Barbican, EC2. Jun 27-Jul 26,
Artist Doug Aitken’s “30-day happening” consumes the Barbican, with free events by artists including Ed Ruscha and Olafur Eliasson, choreographer Siobhan Davies and composer Terry Riley.
Carsten Höller: Decision
Hayward Gallery, SE1. Jun 10-Sept 6
A psychological theme park by the Belgian artist: take a secret pill, follow robotic beds and hurtle down Höller’s famously vertiginous slides.
Soundscapes
National Gallery, WC2. Jul 8-Sept 6
Aural art appreciation: sound art from musician Jamie xx, artist Susan Philipsz and sound recordist Chris Watson among others, all in response to the National’s collection.
Dive in: the pond at King’s Cross EVENTS
Sarah Cohen
Of Soil and Water: King’s Cross Pond Club
Lewis Cubitt Park, N1. From today
London’s newest outdoor swimming pool is part of an art installation in the middle of the King’s Cross redevelopment site. Bathers will share the unheated fresh water with plants that naturally purify their surroundings.
kingscross.co.uk/kings-cross-pond-club
Pride in London
Central London, Jun 27
Join the parade from Baker Street to Whitehall — theme: Pride Heroes — then head to Trafalgar Square for a free LGBT+ party, which will spill into Soho. Satellite events are planned for Pride in London week (June 21-28).
Sunset Safari
London Zoo, NW1. Jun 5-Jul 17
What do the animals of London Zoo get up to after hours? Find out at these night-time openings where you can learn about the creatures’ habits, watch them being fed — and then feed yourself at the on-site food market.
Notting Hill Carnival
Notting Hill, Aug 30-31
August bank holiday means only one thing to west Londoners: Carnival. It’s probably best to head east if the sound of steel drums and whistles, the smell of jerk chicken and huge crowds aren’t your thing.
thelondonnottinghillcarnival.com
Secret Cinema presents Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
Secret venue, Jun 4-Sept 27
Secret Cinema’s intergalactic immersive movie experience features a secret nightclub, so you can dance like a droid till dawn.
Cubania: an evening of Cuban-inspired dance (Picture: 2014 Royal Opera House/ Bill Cooper) DANCE
Lyndsey Winship
Dutch National Ballet, Christopher Wheeldon’s Cinderella
Coliseum, WC2. Jul 8-11
UK premiere of a new Cinderella by Chris Wheeldon, the Brit choreographer who is currently hot property on Broadway, thanks to his Tony award-nominated An American in Paris.
Sylvie Guillem, Life in Progress
Coliseum, WC2. Jul 28-Aug 2
Thanks to frenzied audience demand, the legendary French ballerina has announced more London shows for her final tour before retirement. This really is your last chance.
Cubania
Royal Opera House, WC2. Jul 27-Aug 2
Carlos Acosta curates an evening of Cuban-inspired dance, with guests from the Ballet Nacional de Cuba, live music and an extract from his semi-autobiographical Tocororo Suite.
A TV regular: Katerine Ryan COMEDY
Bruce Dessau
David Baddiel
Soho Theatre, W1. Jun 3-6
The versatile writer returns to his confessional brand of stage humour with My Family: Not The Sitcom, tackling old age, death and dementia.
Rob Delaney
Bloomsbury Theatre, WC1. Jun 8; Queen Elizabeth Hall, SE1. Jun 24-26
The US stand-up who was last seen in C4’s pithy romance Catastrophe. If you can’t get tickets, follow him on Twitter, he’s also hilarious there.
thebloomsbury.com; southbankcentre.co.uk
Katherine Ryan
Udderbelly, SE1. Jun 19-20
The UK-based Canadian has become a TV regular, but she is much better onstage in her show exploring politics, relationships and the British obsession with glamour models.
Rich Hall and his Band
Hyde Park, W2. Jun 22
The British Summer Time Festival comedy week starts with Hall and his Nashville combo. Enjoy an alfresco hoedown with host Russell Kane and guests Marcus Brigstocke, Shappi Khorsandi and Romesh Ranganathan.
A bit of him in all of us: Peter Pan
CLASSICAL
Nick Kimberley
Peter Pan
Royal Opera House, WC2. Jul 24-25
There’s a bit of JM Barrie’s Peter Pan in us all, and Richard Ayres’s opera aims to find it. Keith Warner directs, the libretto is by poet and novelist Lavinia Greenlaw. For kids of all ages.
The Queen of Spades
Coliseum, WC2. Jun 6-Jul 2
Tchaikovsky’s opera offers a precise anatomy of gambling addiction. No-one is better equipped to locate its dark heart than stage director David Alden. Edward Gardner conducts his last production as English National Opera’s music director.
Bank holiday blow-out: South West Four
CLUBBING
Sarah Cohen
Seth Troxler’s Acid Future
Tobacco Dock, E1. Aug 8
Slap on your smiley face badges — aciiieeed is back! Seth Troxler will bring together DJs including Skream, Danny Rampling and Marshall Jefferson, for a mega warehouse rave.
Found
Various venues and dates
Club promoters Found are playing out for the summer with a string of outdoor dance music festivals around the capital, kicking off with Born & Bred in Haggerston on Sat Jun 6, headlined by Wiley and Goldie.
South West Four
Clapham Common, SW4. Aug 29-30
This bank holiday blow-out, with a bill topped by Faithless, Fatboy Slim, Skrillex and Basement Jaxx, is London’s biggest festival for clubbers. See summer out in style.
Source:https://www.standard.co.uk
