Music

15 songs Prince wrote that were made famous by other perfomers

No one wrote music like Prince, so it was usually easy to identify his influence — though, in some cases, the artists would transform the songs into something that belonged as much to them as it did to Prince.

Bogart: Life Comes in Flashes review – enjoyable look at extraordinary life of mythic star

Kathryn Ferguson’s very serviceable and enjoyable documentary about Humphrey Bogart takes us through his extraordinary, almost mythic life story; it uses clips, voiceovers and existing interview archives (including the inevitable and indispensable Dick Cavett) but no new on-camera material. Bogart was the son of a distinguished New York surgeon and a refined artist, illustrator and suffragette and might easily have become a bland east coast...

20 songs that were unexpected bangers

We never expected to be jamming to a country Beyoncé song or a love ballad sung by Lil Wayne, but here we are. Keep scrolling to discover 20 unsuspecting songs from artists that we can't get enough of.

Best PS1 Games Ever

The first PlayStation was an instant success, boasting a ton of popular video games. Here are the greatest classics to grace this console.

The most memorable posthumous film roles

Unfortunately, not every actor gets to see their final work hit the big screen. Over the years, many films have been noted, often bittersweetly, for featuring a posthumous role by a notable actor.

Denzel Washington at 70: his 20 greatest films – ranked!

20. Cry Freedom (1987) Already radiating charisma, and sporting a credible South African accent, Denzel Washington earned the first of his 10 Oscar nominations for this portrayal of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko. Alas, Richard Attenborough’s well-meaning film seems more preoccupied with the fate of the white journalist (Kevin Kline as Donald Woods) on whose book this was based. 19. Antwone Fisher (2002) Washington’s directing debut is a...

Born on December 5: Little Richard, one of the pioneers of rock'n'roll

The rambunctious kid born in Macon, Georgia, in 1932, whose real name was Richard Wayne Penniman, paved the way for black artists in the world of rock. As the third of twelve children and under the strict authority of a father who swore by religion, little Richard had to fight not only to make his attraction (seen as “diabolical”) to rock music understood, but even more to have his latent homosexuality accepted. This was never to be the case...

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew met with praise – but critics are divided over one thing

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew met with praise – but critics are divided over one thing - The first two episodes may pander too much to 1980s nostalgia

Si King ‘grateful’ for ‘wonderful outpouring of support’ after Dave Myers death

Si King ‘grateful’ for ‘wonderful outpouring of support’ after Dave Myers death - He was speaking ahead of The Hairy Bikers: You’ll Never Ride Alone documentary, about the memorial day which will air on BBC Two on December 23.

20 canceled TV shows from the 21st century that need to be revived

Many TV shows from the 21st century have been canceled. Some were rightfully shelved, and others seemed like they could go on forever. Thanks to streaming networks (hey, Netflix!), a few classics have seen a revival, but there are many more that people are eager to see —like the 20 below!

The Cine Files: from Daniel Craig in Queer to Cate Blanchett in Rumours, December’s best cinema films

The Cine Files: from Daniel Craig in Queer to Cate Blanchett in Rumours, December’s best cinema films - Luca Guadagnino gets sexy, trippy and sweaty with Queer, while Guy Maddin’s G7 satire Rumours is a surreal hoot: here are the top 10 movies this month

HBO confirms when Harry Potter series will start shooting amid casting speculation

HBO confirms when Harry Potter series will start shooting amid casting speculation - The reboot series has seen 32,000 young actors audition for lead roles

Whoopi Goldberg plays the baddie onstage in 'Annie' this holiday season in New York

Whoopi Goldberg plays the baddie onstage in 'Annie' this holiday season in New York - Whoopi Goldberg is about to break two ironclad rules of show business — never work with animals or children

Emmy-award winning actor Thom Christopher dies at 84

The icon died Thursday.

‘Intensely nostalgic’: why A Knight’s Tale is my feelgood movie

There’s a neat little moment in A Knight’s Tale that I like to think speaks directly to how it became one of my favourite films. Having riled up the crowd before Heath Ledger’s imposter knight William rides into a joust, Paul Bettany’s boisterous Geoffrey Chaucer tells him: “I got their attention. You go and win their hearts.” Brian Helgeland’s 2001 film is on paper absurd. It’s a medieval sports movie about jousting, filmed on cheapo sets in...

Dick Van Dyke says he’s not afraid of dying: ‘I could go any day now’

Dick Van Dyke says he’s not afraid of dying: ‘I could go any day now’ - ‘I could go any day now,’ the ‘Mary Poppins’ star says in the moving footage, ‘but I’m not afraid of it’

You owe it to yourself to not spoil these 20 films' endings

Thanks to the rise of the internet and social media, it is almost impossible to avoid spoilers for movies. As soon as a movie hits theaters or streaming, its contents are all over the web. Having a movie spoiled can sometimes completely ruin a viewing experience, so avoid spoilers for these films at all costs.

Five of the best music books of 2024

The Secret Public: How LGBTQ Performers Shaped Pop Culture 1955-1979 Jon Savage, Faber From his definitive punk history England’s Dreaming to his forensic examination of mid-60s pop culture 1966, Jon Savage’s work has long represented the gold standard of music writing. This may well be his masterpiece: an epic of meticulous research and analysis that’s fascinating in its unearthing of a frequently buried history. Beautifully written – its 800...

Chris McCausland’s Strictly diary: ‘There’s no point thinking this is a dancing competition’

So far on Strictly Come Dancing, I’ve been a zombie, a matador, a sailor and, given that my pro partner Dianne is an Aussie, even mimicked a kangaroo. It feels like I’m making one of those rubbish calendars that’s trying to be sexy, but missing the mark every time. That said, the costumes are generally really fun, apart from the fact that the wardr...

20 actors who tried their hand a career in music

Entertainers are multi-talented people, but not all actors are meant to be pop stars.

Madame Choi and the Monsters by Patrick Spät and Sheree Domingo review – the stuff of blockbusters

This graphic novel, published first in German, is based on a true story, and if you don’t already know that tale (I’m afraid I didn’t), it will astonish you. A successful actor and her movie director ex-husband are kidnapped by an enemy state, so that they might make movies to please a dictator. On paper, this is the stuff of a disaster-ridden major motion picture, dreamed up by some crazed auteur. But it really happened. In 1978, Choi Eun-Hee,...

The best movies of 2024 as ranked by AP film writers

The best movies of 2024 as ranked by AP film writers - Break out your “Dune” popcorn bucket: It's time for the best movies of the year

Mark Lanegan 60: A Celebration: The late grunge growler gets a loving, fittingly contrary celebration

Mark Lanegan was one of rock’s great brooding refuseniks, cut of the same cloth as Johnny Cash and Nick Cave, a grunge-era growler who scored only one substantial hit with his first band, Screaming Trees, and whose restless creativity and contrary attitude thereafter made him a fearsome cult hero. After a life lived on the edge, Lanegan was hospita...

The IP that wouldn't die: Film franchises that just keep on going

How many times can Vin Diesel go fast and be furious for his family? When will Andy’s toys finally get some rest? Will Michael Myers ever cease to exist? While some franchises know how to either keep the magic alive or realize when to hang it up, some film franchises just won’t quit.

The 15 best films of 2024, ranked

The 15 best films of 2024, ranked - THE COUNTDOWN: When it comes to cinema, 2024 was a year of toilets, tennis and trash heaps; sand, sadness and Saoirses. From ‘Poor Things’ to ‘Dune: Part Two’, Clarisse Loughrey has selected the greatest movies from the last 12 months

At The Fashion Awards, Kojey Radical Has Reasons to Smile

Esquire grabbed a moment with the British-Ghanaian musician pre-ceremony as he prepared to host the night wearing Botter, Etro, Denzil Patrick and Zac McGarry, styled by Toni-Blaze Ibekwe

20 TV characters shockingly recast during the show's run

A recast for a minor character usually isn’t too noticeable, but sometimes it can take a lot of getting used to if a lead character is recast and even changes the dynamic of a show.

20 films so great they shouldn't ever be remade

We’re not categorically opposed to remakes. There are several that have been done quite well. But loads of cinematic masterpieces need to be left just as they are. Check out 20 examples below.

Peter Jackson and The Lord Of The Rings cast reunite at premiere of new adaptation

Director Peter Jackson was joined by some of the cast of the original Lord Of The Rings trilogy at the premiere of the new anime adaptation, Lord Of The Rings: War Of The Rohirrim. The new film is set to be released on December 13.

Did you know these 20 facts about 'Alien'?

“Alien” is an unexpected franchise starter, but also a fine film worth delving into with 20 facts about the movie.

20 Disney movies you totally forgot existed

While many titles in the Disney catalog are considered classics, the studio has many forgotten films that have fallen into obscurity. Whether they are duds or hidden gems, these movies have slipped under the radar.

Eminem and Debbie Mathers showed that hip-hop is the genre where men come to terms with their mothers

Hip-hop has long been a culture that honours single mothers and their many sacrifices. “She was barely even grown and became my momma!” rapped a tearful Cee-Lo Green over a wounded piano on Goodie Mob’s criminally underrated 1995 song Guess Who. “I never knew my dad, so even when the times got bad / I was glad, because I had my momma.” On the powerful hood-gospel song, Dear Mama, 2Pac famously paid tribute to the persistence of his own family...

Tall tales, campfire singalongs and Oldham slang: the White Stripes’ 20 best songs – ranked!

20. The Big Three Killed My Baby (1999) Not, as one might initially assume, a reference to the Merseybeat band from noted scholar of 60s obscurity Jack White, but a rare White Stripes protest song (of sorts), decrying the US automobile industry’s penchant for engineering planned obsolescence in cars. Perhaps more importantly: mammoth, sludgy, distorted and thoroughly electrifying sound. 19. Hello Operator (2000) The roots of Hello Operator lie,...

20 critically-panned movies that were box office hits

Audiences and critics have been known to clash in opinions. These 20 movies were commercial successes, but critics didn't have much good to say about them.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review

Dr. Jones stole my heart in MachineGames' best game to date.

Wicked: How cinema re-invented the witch and restored her powers

As 'Wicked' prepares to cast its spell over the box office, we look at how portrayals of witches on screen have evolved to become symbols of female empowerment and an embracement of otherness. View on euronews

Amazon Prime subscribers can claim a frankly absurd number of free games like The Outer Worlds and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine with Prime Gaming right now - these are my top picks

Amazon is celebrating the release of Secret Level by giving away loads of great games with Prime Gaming.

The people who put on a production of Hamlet… inside Grand Theft Auto

The people who put on a production of Hamlet… inside Grand Theft Auto - IN FOCUS: During the pandemic, two out-of-work actors decided to mount a Shakespeare adaptation within the blocky, sun-kissed world of ‘Grand Theft Auto’. Now their unexpectedly touching story has been brought to life in a new documentary, writes Greg Evans

Rosamund Pike: ‘The older you are the more complex the lives you’re playing get – and it has a cost’

One of the achievements of which Rosamund Pike is most proud (and for which I most admire her) is related not to her acting career (although she has had memorable roles in dozens of films, from Pride & Prejudice to Saltburn) but something that occurred on a road trip from Prague to London this summer. At the wheel of her 1972 Citroën DS, she ran in...

J-pop star and Love Letter actor Miho Nakayama dies, aged 54

J-pop star and Love Letter actor Miho Nakayama dies, aged 54 - Nakayama was found dead at her home in Tokyo after cancelling a Christmas performance

A Christian Perspective on Netflix’s 'Mary'

As a later-in-life Christian, I felt confused and anxious when the credits rolled for Netflix’s biblical movie Mary. I immediately ran to my computer to type up my feelings once the credits rolled. I needed to get my thoughts out to the world. Word of advice from me, a follower of Christ. As you watch Mary, it’s important to have this in the forefront of your mind: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”...

Matt cartoons – December 2024

Fallout season two starts filming with Walton Goggins back in character

Walton Goggins has slipped back into his Ghoulish guise to start filming the second season of Fallout.

The 25 best emo records of all time

A child of hardcore and post-hardcore punk, emo is almost a culture in and of itself — honest, genuine and personal lyrics, within the confines of screeching guitars and emotional melodies. Here's our list of the 25 most notable emo albums of all time.

Jesse Eisenberg opens up about filming tough movie scene: ‘I couldn’t stop crying’

Jesse Eisenberg opens up about filming tough movie scene: ‘I couldn’t stop crying’ - ‘I was glad when the movie ended,’ said actor

How an Irish YouTuber turned a niche following into millions for charities with holiday livestreams

How an Irish YouTuber turned a niche following into millions for charities with holiday livestreams - An Irish YouTuber hopes to raise millions of dollars for charity this holiday season — and is using a popular gaming technology to rally his fans around the cause

20 facts you might not know about Elf

Santa gets a lot of love at Christmastime, but let’s not forget the workers who make it happen: Elves. They don’t get as much attention on the holiday movie front, but one movie changed that.

Tributes paid to singer Dickie Rock after death aged 88

Tributes paid to singer Dickie Rock after death aged 88 - The Dublin-born singer represented Ireland in the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Come Back To Stay.

Kate says she ‘didn’t know’ what 2024 held in store as she hosts carol service

Kate says she ‘didn’t know’ what 2024 held in store as she hosts carol service - It is the fourth time the Princess of Wales has held her event at Westminster Abbey.

20 actors who have rejected the role that made them famous

Many actors are defined by a singular role in their performance history, and some actors wish they could be defined by any character other than the one that made them famous.