It’s clear even before we start our interview that Vivien Ellis’ twin passions are music and harnessing its power to bring a community together. Ten minutes after we meet, she’s already regaled me with tales of eighteenth century ballads, her efforts to learn how words were pronounced in historical songs in a bid for authenticity, and her love of first person musical narratives that put the singer ‘in the character’s shoes’. And that’s before her impromptu performance of a Bulgarian work song, right there in her suburban living room...

In one of the more blatantly cliché moments of my life, I watched the 1981 TV adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s iconic Oxford interwar novel Brideshead Revisited. Notwithstanding the fact that Oxford only features in the first four episodes, it remains that for many of us, Brideshead played a part in shaping our perceptions of life at Oxford. Daisy Dunn, author, critic, and an Oxford Classics graduate (St. Hilda’s, 2005), counts herself within that number – “you think, ‘it’ll be so idyllic’”…

Where do we come from? I mean, where does it all come from, all this? – the books that we read or skim; the computers that we frantically tap; the cultural values that press upon us in every decision we make? Some would posit the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans as the progenitors of our western society. Stories of names like Cleopatra, Socrates and Caesar abound in British accounts of ancient history, at least. However, Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads: A New History of the World, points to...

Perhaps best known for his television roles as Caleb in Casualty and Father Francis in Hollyoaks, Richard Winsor began his career dancing in a variety of Matthew Bourne productions, including Swan Lake and The Picture of Dorian Gray. He now brings Saturday Night Fever, his debut role in a musical, to London's Peacock Theatre, and sits down with us to discuss the show and his approaches to acting.

Best known for having played one of Broadway's most iconic roles, Elphaba in Wicked, Jessica Vosk makes her solo London concert debut at Cadogan Hall later this month. A native of New Jersey, Vosk's other New York theatre credits include Jason Robert Brown's The Bridges of Madison County, Fiddler On The Roof, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. Under the judgmental stare of her dog Fred ("Mom, why are you constantly on Zoom?", jokes Jessica midway through our conversation), we talk...

Mimma, a new musical telling the stories of Italians living in London during World War Two, will debut in a one-night-only concert performance at Cadogan Hall later this month. The cast includes David Suchet, Celinde Schoenmaker, Louise Dearman and John Owen-Jones. We talk to Schoenmaker, the Dutch star best known for her West End roles in Les Miserables and The Phantom Of The Opera, about her eponymous role in Mimma and the musical's universal themes. Tell us a bit about Mimma, and why its st

Hannah Lowther, the 24-year-old former child star whose viral musical theatre parody videos made a splash on TikTok in the first lockdown, has recently joined the ensemble for The Other Palace production of Heathers, understudying the roles of Heather Chandler and Heather McNamara. We sat down with her to discuss social media fame, the TikTok musical theatre revolution, and why an 80s cult classic remains relevant today.

“I didn’t help the community, and now I want to give back,” began Daniel Wallace, a formerly incarcerated motivational speaker giving a talk at Stoke Newington Youth Hub. Having served ten years for firearms and drug-related crime, Wallace was released in 2019 just prior to the pandemic (“I went from one sentence to another,” he observes humorously). He now aims to share his perspective on the prevention of crime with young people. Also a boxer and personal trainer, Wallace remarks that “kids see me and want muscles like me, but I can pass down core beliefs...

We’ve all seen the hordes of dogs of every breed flocking to Primrose Hill, but have you ever wondered about the stories behind those canines and their owners? The @PupsofPrimroseHill Instagram account aims to answer exactly this question: who are the four-legged denizens of Primrose Hill? Katy Ryder, the Texas-born content marketer behind the account, told the Ham&High: “I spent a lot of time on Primrose Hill during lockdown, as there was nothing much else to do...

When I ask composer and singer Frances M. Lynch to tell me about her new show Working From Home, to be performed by Electric Voice Theatre as part of the Stroud Green Festival, she replies that “it’s interesting that you should call it a show”. This remark sums up the esoteric nature of the performance, which combines acapella singing and poetry from the Gaelic-speaking Crown Bard of Scotland to tell the stories of historic women who worked from home long before the pandemic...

During the first lockdown, with a rush of nostalgia familiar to many people stuck at home, Highgate journalist Chris Proctor chanced upon a set of diaries. These diaries, which he calls “a dreadful, time-wasting habit”, recounted his five years living with his young family in the Dordogne region of France in the early 1990s, and formed the basis of his new self-published novel, French Leave...

Rates of unemployment and Universal Credit claims have skyrocketed since the pandemic all over the country, and Hackney is no exception. By November 2020, the number of Hackney residents claiming the income support had increased by 140 per cent. This dramatic rise necessitated Job Centre Plus’s new shopfront on Hillman Street, a couple of minutes away from its parent establishment on Mare Street. The Hillman Street Job Centre’s customer service lead, Funmi Sanya, is acutely aware of the help residents need...

Nestled in between the canal and the Olympic Park, the 114-year-old Dutch barge which houses most of Barge East’s dining areas is an eye-catching introduction to the Hackney Wick restaurant. However, just a couple of feet away from the water is the true star of the restaurant — Barge East’s lockdown project, a garden made up of 20 or so planters growing many of the herbs and vegetables used in the modern British menu. Despite a decade working in kitchens, head chef Stefano Camplone had no experience...

When one thinks of destinations for cutting-edge contemporary art, North Lincolnshire may not be the first place that crosses the mind. However, the 20-21 Visual Arts Centre is challenging this perception. The Scunthorpe venue, which is based in the formerly derelict St John’s Church and celebrates its 20th anniversary this year (the centre’s name plays on how renovation commenced in the 20th century, but finished in the 21st), has established itself as a key player in a rising regional culture...

It is no secret that Covid-19 has put a strain on the UK’s live theatre, especially given recent restrictions legally limiting public indoor gatherings to six people. This is doubly true of student theatre, and the upcoming term promises to be a testing one for Oxford’s student production companies, given the necessity of hosting auditions and rehearsals, communicating with cast and crew and creating engaging theatre almost entirely on a virtual basis.