Going Out: Cinema
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Out now
Zingers and web-slingers abound in a further slice of expanded universe, this time involving various Spider-villains – dating back to the Sam Raimi era of Spider-Man – colliding with Tom Holland’s iteration of Spidey. Zendaya returns as MJ.
The Story of Film: A New Generation
Out now
In 2011, through a framework prioritising formal innovation over fame, the film-maker Mark Cousins explored the story of film so far, across 900 minutes of provocative video essay. Ten years on, he is adding a new chapter, with films covered including Parasite, Cemetery of Splendor and Lovers Rock.
The Lost Daughter
Out now
Based on the novel by Elena Ferrante, Maggie Gyllenhaal’s debut as a director stars Olivia Colman as an academic holidaying alone in close proximity to a large, loud – and possibly criminal – family. An exquisite and suspenseful drama, well worth seeking out on the big screen.
The Matrix: Resurrections
Out 22 December
Of all the franchises that feel like they merit a comeback, The Matrix is surely top of the pile. Keanu Reeves is still well liked; the tech-dystopia concept still feels relevant; and the novelist David Mitchell (Cloud Atlas) has been enlisted to co-write the script of this fourth film in he series. What’s not to like? Catherine Bray
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Going Out: Gigs
Supergrass
O2 Academy, Glasgow, 19 December; 02 Academy Brixton, London, 20 December
Now two years into an understandably faltering reunion, the Britpop veterans close out a successful live return with two more shows. Last year’s double live album is a good primer of what to expect – some filler, mostly killer. Michael Cragg
Heath Quartet
Wigmore Hall, London, 28 December
While most musical life goes into hibernation across Christmas, the Wigmore Hall promises a premiere: framed by Haydn and Beethoven, the Heath Quartet give the first European performance of Helen Grime’s String Quartet No 2, composed during lockdowns before and after the birth of her second child. Andrew Clements
Liane Carroll’s Cold Turkey
Ronnie Scott’s, London, Boxing Day & 27 December
A post-Christmas regular at Ronnie’s, the witty and bluesily eloquent singer-pianist Liane Carroll’s cruise through her varied back catalogue and remarkable remakes of road-weary old classics is a constant reminder of what a class act she remains. Any seasonal favourites are liable to get a wry tweak or two. John Fordham
Love Unlimited NYE
02 Academy Brixton, London, New Year’s Eve
Celebrating house and disco while also paying homage to the inclusive roots of club culture, Love Unlimited launches with a New Year’s Eve blowout. Helping you ease into 2022 will be the Blessed Madonna, German electronic connoisseur Hunee and disco modernist Jayda G. MC
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Going Out: Art
Bridget Riley
The Lightbox, Woking, to 10 April
If you crave light in the winter darkness, or just want the high of a Christmas party without the hangover, the mind-opening art of this great British modernist is just the thing. In Riley’s 90th year her passionate intelligence and experimental courage are captured decade by decade. Sample the sublime.
Summer Exhibition
Royal Academy of Arts, London, to 2 January
Midwinter may seem a strange time to see a “Summer Exhibition”, but this fun-filled epic survey of world art, masterminded by artist Yinka Shonibare, is an all-ages holiday treat. A genuinely inclusive, humorous feast, with great works by Frank Bowling, Rose Wylie and Shonibare himself.
Sickert
Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, to 27 February
Perhaps one to see when you have had enough seasonal jollity, for there is nothing cosily Dickensian about Walter Sickert. His vision of London around 1900 is cold and alienated, from baying music hall audiences to sex and death in seedy flats. His dark genius makes this one of the year’s unmissable exhibitions.
Gold of the Great Steppe
Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, to 30 January
There are golden reindeer in this exhibition and you can’t get more seasonal than that. Not all of it glitters. There are ghosts here, too: the burials of ancient Scythian nomads excavated in the last few years in Kazakhstan. Their world is brought to life by an intense, beautiful show. Jonathan Jones
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Going Out: Stage
Force Majeure
Donmar Warehouse, London, to 5 February
Tim Price has adapted Ruben Östlund’s award-winning film, a deliciously twisted tale about the aftermath of an avalanche and a father’s failure to look out for his family. It stars the mighty Rory Kinnear.
The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart
Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, to 15 January
As snow falls outside, an academic leaves a conference and embarks on a wild night of seduction and sambucas. David Greig’s fizzing comedy stars Joanne Thomson and features live music from Michael John McCarthy and folk musician Malin Lewis. Miriam Gillinson
No More Jockeys Live
Soho Theatre, London, 20 December
Early on in the pandemic, comedians Alex Horne, Tim Key and Mark Watson brought their self-invented parlour game to YouTube. The giddy, digression-filled videos were a joy; now the trio revive the format in a live, late-night show. Rachel Aroesti
The Nutcracker
Royal Albert Hall, London, 28 December to New Year’s Eve
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s festive extravaganza comes complete with Sugar Plum Fairy, live orchestra, vast video projections by 59 Productions, and a voiceover from Simon Callow. Lyndsey Winship
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Staying In: Streaming
The Great Christmas Bake Off
Christmas Day, 8pm, Channel 4
Following 2020’s Derry Girls x Bake Off special, another giant of the Channel 4 schedules cross-pollinates with the cooking phenomenon: this year, the cast of It’s a Sin – Russell T Davies’s 80s-set drama – take to the tent. Expect much inter-contestant banter and a fair amount of cake-based disaster.
The Amazing Mr Blunden
Christmas Eve, 7pm, Sky Max
Anything involving Mark Gatiss is well worth a watch, especially if he is wearing enormous fake teeth. Which he most definitely is in his action-packed remake of the 70s children’s film: a tale of ghosts, murder and time travel set between the wars.
A Very British Scandal
Boxing Day to 28 December, 9pm, BBC One
The stonking first outing of this anthology drama series saw Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw re-enact the Jeremy Thorpe affair; the second enlists another stellar cast – Paul Bettany, Claire Foy and Julia Davis – to bring to life another mid-century press obsession: the Duke and Duchess of Argyll’s deeply exposing divorce.
Stay Close
New Year’s Eve, Netflix
The latest instalment in the thriller writer Harlan Coben’s whopping 14-book Netflix deal returns to the author’s favoured setup: a suburban idyll simmering with disturbing secrets. Starring Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt and Eddie Izzard, this UK-set adaptation is certain to be packed with Coben’s typically wild plot twists. RA
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Staying In: Games
Unpacking
Out now, PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Moving house is always emotional, and in this puzzle game you follow a woman through several different homes, arranging her possessions and reflecting on the life story they tell.
Among Us
Out now, Xbox One, PlayStation
If you’ve thus far missed out on one of the quintessential games of the pandemic, this social space skulduggery simulator is newly available on Xbox and PlayStation. Keza MacDonald
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Staying In: Albums
Tierra Whack – Rap?
Out now
Since announcing herself as one of rap’s new superstars with 2018’s personality-packed debut Whack World, the 26-year-old Philly native has collaborated with the likes of Willow Smith and Beyoncé. After a string of one-off singles – including August’s hypnotic Walk the Beat – she’s back with a new EP.
John Dwyer – Gong Splat
Out now
The frontman of California’s garage rock mainstays Osees (formerly Thee Osees) spent the pandemic working on a series of collaborative, improvisational albums. Gong Splat, the third to emerge, was recorded “in the peak of dope smoke lock down” and, if the wonky title track is anything to go by, was also influenced by Can.
Roddy Ricch – Live Life Fast
Out now
Fresh from guesting on Kanye West’s Donda, the Compton rapper – who scored a huge US No 1 in 2020 with The Box – returns with this second album. The DJ Mustard-produced single Late at Night finds the 23-year-old offering a typically graphic slow jam.
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis – La Panthère Des Neiges
Out now
When Warren Ellis started work on the soundtrack to La Panthère Des Neiges, a documentary about the rare snow leopard, he asked his Bad Seeds bandmate Nick Cave to help out for a day. After watching the film, Cave stayed for four, with the pair crafting a 13-track opus. MC
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Staying In: Brain food
The Waves
slate.com/podcasts
Slate’s long-running podcast tackling news stories through the prism of gender continues to provide a clear-sighted view of issues that can often be sensationalised in online discourse. Staff writers discuss everything from kitchen politics to Succession.
Google Arts & Culture
artsandculture. google.com
The tech giant’s arts and culture strand is always adding new features to its arsenal of searchable digital content, from immersive online exhibitions to ultra-detailed images of artworks and themed collections on national parks, fashion history and more.
Play in a Day
Sky Arts, 20 December
This three-part docuseries – continuing nightly – poses an ingenious solution for the cohort of actors, writers and directors graduating into a Covid-shutdown theatre landscape: produce a 15-minute play in 24 hours, to be screened on the show. Ammar Kalia
