Going out: Cinema

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Out now
The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White plays the Boss in this buzzed-about Bruce Springsteen biopic focusing on the period when he was making his 1982 album Nebraska (so, post-Born to Run but pre-Born in the USA), with Jeremy Strong playing critic turned producer Jon Landau.

The Mastermind
Out now
Kelly Reichardt returns with an art heist movie inspired by a real robbery in 1970s Massachusetts, in which two Gauguins, a Picasso and a Rembrandt were nicked. Here, it’s Arthur Dove paintings that catch the eye of Josh O’Connor’s art thief James Blaine Mooney.

ParaNorman
Out now
An odd dearth of family films has left a gap in the market into which this rerelease of 2012’s animated adventure ParaNorman has decided to slip. Norman Babcock (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is the misfit 11-year-old who speaks with the dead, enabling a spooky adventure to unfold in time for Halloween.

Regretting You
Out now
Josh Boone is best known for directing the adaptation of the romantic novel The Fault in Our Stars, and he’s back to similar territory here with another romance novel adaptation, this time about a mother (Allison Williams) and daughter (McKenna Grace) forging new romantic connections in the wake of a traumatic event. Catherine Bray

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Going out: Gigs

Samia
26 to 28 October; tour starts Glasgow
Currently enjoying a viral moment thanks to TikTok getting hold of 2022’s atmospheric downer Pool, New York-based singer-songwriter Samia arrives in the UK for a short tour. Expect a big reaction when that song appears, but there’s much to enjoy across her three albums of fragile indie rock. Michael Cragg

Freak Queer Rave
New Century, Manchester, 25 October
Berlin-based dance provocateur Lsdxoxo – whose recent DGTL ANML mixtape featured the likes of Shygirl and Boys Noize – brings his unashamedly queer blend of ghetto house, techno and pop to Manchester for this all-nighter. Sam Quealy and Surusinghe add to the night’s free-spirited celebration. MC

The Railway Children
Glyndebourne Opera House, Lewes, 30 October & 1 November (two perfs)
One might have thought Mark-Anthony Turnage had all the awards for new opera this year safely tied up with the premiere of his superb Festen at Covent Garden last February. Embarking upon another adaptation, Turnage and his librettist Rachel Hewer take E Nesbit’s children’s novel as their starting point. Andrew Clements

The Necks
London, 26 October; Bristol, 27 October; Birmingham, 28 October
The Australian improv trio formed in 1987, originally to apply avant-jazz methods to the minimalism of Terry Riley and Steve Reich. Decades later, all their gigs still sound fresh and different. Pianist-organist Chris Abrahams, bassist Lloyd Swanton and drummer Tony Buck reassemble for three UK dates. John Fordham

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Going out: Art

The Singh Twins and Flora Indica
Kew Gardens, London, to 12 April
Kew’s botanical wonderland grew alongside the British empire. You can feel the echoes of global history everywhere here from its Pagoda to Palm House. The Singh Twins explore the colonial dimension of plant-collecting alongside a show of Indian botanical art commissioned by British plant fanciers from 1790 to 1850.

Turner: Always Contemporary
Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, 25 October to 22 February
Some quite surprising artists measure themselves up against JMW Turner in what may be the most provocative exhibition of his 250th anniversary year. Who knew Jeff Koons was a fan of the great romantic painter? Claude Monet, Maggi Hambling and more also star in a survey of Turner’s continuing influence.

Robert MacBryde and Robert Colquhoun
Charleston, East Sussex, to 12 April
These hard-living gay painters who met at Glasgow School of Art in 1933 haunt the history of modern British art. For friends such as Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon they were models of artistic bohemianism and avant garde adventure – if not financial success. How does their work hold up today?

El Anatsui
October Gallery and Goodman Gallery, London, to 29 November
The great Ghanaian artist returns to London with more of his magical creations. El Anatsui is a conjurer of materials who can turn bottle tops and product labels into glistening veils of beauty. Here, in a show of new works across two venues, he makes intricate modernist surfaces from wood. Jonathan Jones

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Going out: Stage

Ross Noble
On tour to 22 March
One of the pre-eminent figures in the 00s standup boom (nine DVD releases in nine years), Noble’s surreal comedy is still going strong. Witness the Newcastle native’s inimitable improvisational jams in new tour show Cranium of Curiosities. Rachel Aroesti

Little Brother
Soho theatre, London, to 22 November
Eoin McAndrew’s new play won the Verity Bargate award, which does such a brilliant job of unearthing meaty new work. It’s a dark comedy set in Belfast and is about the dangerously destructive relationship between two siblings. Miriam Gillinson

An Oak Tree
Brighton Dome, 30 October to 1 November
Rory Kinnear takes a turn in Tim Crouch’s elusive but electrifying play. Kinnear will join Crouch on stage, having never read the play, and bring to life a story about grief, loss, magic and transformation. MG

The Nutcracker
The Radlett Centre, Radlett, 28 October; The Stag, Sevenoaks, 31 October; then touring to 20 December
Like Creme Eggs appearing in shops in January, it feels too early for Nutcracker season. The first of the year comes from New English Ballet Theatre, a ompany of young dancers in a new production by the Royal Ballet’s Valentino Zucchetti. Lyndsey Winship

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Staying in: Streaming

IT: Welcome to Derry
Sky Atlantic & Now, 27 October, 9pm
Not another trip to 1990s Northern Ireland, but a sojourn to 1960s Maine, where the evil clown Pennywise is hunting for local children. Director Andy Muschietti helms this prequel to his hit 2017 film adaptation of the Stephen King novel; Bill Skarsgård reprises his role as the iconically nightmarish antagonist.

Down Cemetery Road
Apple TV+, 29 October
Before Slow Horses, Slough House and the incomparably flatulent Jackson Lamb, Mick Herron penned a book series about Oxford-based private detective Zoë Boehm. This adaptation of the first tale – involving an explosion and a missing child – boasts a leather-jacketed, estuary-accented Emma Thompson in the title role. Ruth Wilson and Adeel Akhtar co-star.

Once Upon a Time in Space
BBC Two & iPlayer, 27 October, 9pm
The previous two instalments in director James Bluemel’s mesmerisingly evocative documentary about complex geopolitics focused on the Iraq war and the Troubles. Now he’s using the same immersive techniques to tell a markedly different kind of story about the past and future of humankind’s movements in space.

Daisy May and Charlie Cooper’s Nightwatch
BBC Two & iPlayer, 26 October, 9.30pm
It’s not just comedy that unites the sibling co-creators of This Country, Daisy May and Charlie Cooper, both have a penchant for the paranormal. Now the pair have reunited for a series of sleepovers in Britain’s spookiest buildings, during which they’ll bicker, banter and lie in wait for a supernatural encounter. RA

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Staying in: Games

The Outer Worlds 2
PS5, Xbox, PC; out 29 October
Fan-favourite role-playing game studio Obsidian (creator of Fallout: New Vegas and this year’s Avowed) expands its humorous space-faring universe with a sequel. Expect revamped combat, larger worlds with more seamless exploration, and a story packed with corporate satire.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection
PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch, Switch 2, PC; out 30 October
After exploring the history of Tetris, Atari and Jeff Minter, Digital Eclipse gives Mortal Kombat the interactive doc treatment, with playable versions of the fighting franchise’s early iterations – including added multiplayer support – and behind-the-scenes interviews. Matthew Reynolds

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Staying in: Albums

Dave – The Boy Who Played the Harp
Out now
Four years after his last album, We’re All Alone in This Together, Brit award-winning rapper Dave returns with his highly anticipated third LP. Appetites have been whetted further given he’s been basically silent since Sprinter, his UK No 1 collaboration with Central Cee, dominated summer 2023.

Sigrid – There’s Always More That I Could Say
Out now
Featuring singles that touch on endearing social awkwardness (Jellyfish), broken relationships (Two Years) and the resultant emotional shutdown (Fort Knox), the third album by Norwegian pop star Sigrid is loaded with skyscraping bops anchored by freewheeling catharsis.

Halle – Love? Or Something Like It
Out now
Having released two excellent albums alongside her sister Chloe, Halle Bailey, AKA Ariel in 2023’s The Little Mermaid, steps out alone on this solo debut. Co-written by Raye, single Braveface channels Halle’s much-publicised recent relationship breakdown and showcases her extraordinary R&B voice.

Brandi Carlile – Returning to Myself
Out now
Sixth months after her UK No 1 album with Elton John, the US singer-songwriter releases her eighth solo record. Co-produced alongside Andrew Watt and Aaron Dessner, with help from Justin Vernon, its 10 tracks focus on the importance of standing strong and the comfort of being held up by others. MC

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Staying in: Brain food

The White House Effect
Netflix, 31 October
Using only archival footage, this often shocking film recounts how George HW Bush’s administration made several key decisions in the early 90s that have since shaped the way we respond to the climate crisis.

Low Culture
Podcast
Culture website the Quietus’s subscriber podcast takes a monthly deep dive into a work of art they deem essential. Editors John Doran and Luke Turner bring their insights to everything from Alice Coltrane’s spiritual jazz to Octavia Butler’s writing.

smalin
YouTube
Composer Stephen Malinowski’s Music Animation Machine is a delightfully interesting program that visualises classical scores in 3D motion. Viewers of all ages and expertise can follow works by Bach, Satie and more on his YouTube channel. Ammar Kalia