Going out: Cinema
Tron: Ares
Out now
Perhaps the most exciting thing for many about this new Tron film is that it has a score from Nine Inch Nails. It also stars Jared Leto as the embodiment of a super-advanced AI program sent into the real world on a high-stakes mission. (Just try not to notice that Ares is an anagram of arse, because you won’t be able to unsee it.)
I Swear
Out now
Robert Aramayo gives a rousing turn as Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson, whose experience of the condition in the 1980s (before it was widely acknowledged to exist in the UK) led him to become one of the first people to try to raise awareness, leading to the presentation of an MBE during which he duly shouted “Fuck the queen”.
Terence Davies retrospective
Cinemas nationwide, to 30 November
A major director, but not necessarily a household name, Terence Davies, who died two years ago, is now being honoured with a retrospective by the BFI in London, plus a UK-wide re-release of his acclaimed Edith Wharton adaptation The House of Mirth, starring Gillian Anderson.
Good Boy
Out now
Told from the perspective of a dog, this horror movie with a difference has already seen its canine star honoured with South by Southwest’s Howl of Fame award. The plot concerns a loyal hound who moves to a rural location, where it seems that his humans’ lives may be in danger. Catherine Bray
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Going out: Gigs
Little Simz
Co-op Live, Manchester16 October; the O2, London, 17 October
After her breakout moment at the 2022 Brit awards, rapper-actor Little Simz has built on that platform via 2022’s No Thank You and this year’s Top 3 hit, Lotus. It’s that album, a brooding opus about relationship breakdowns and self-doubt, that will be highlighted on these two arena dates. Michael Cragg
Nova Twins
11 to 18 October; tour starts Bristol
Out in August, Parasites & Butterflies, the third album from London duo Amy Love and Georgia South, channelled their big rock sound into future live anthems such as Monsters and Piranha. This UK tour feels like the perfect place to test that theory. MC
Gwilym Simcock & Tommy Smith
Dorking, 14 October; Eastleigh, 15 October; Lancaster, 16 October
Lyrical Scottish jazz saxophonist Tommy Smith and eclectic UK pianist Gwilym Simcock – a collaborator with guitarist Pat Metheny and many other stars – spin fascinating thematic and improvised music from the immense reserves of their lives. John Fordham
Albert Herring
Coliseum, London, 13 to 16 October; Lowry, Salford, 21 & 22 October
ENO’s inaugural production to be seen in both London and Manchester is Antony McDonald’s semi-staging of Benjamin Britten’s chamber opera. Daniel Cohen conducts a cast led by Caspar Singh as Albert, Leah-Marian Jones and Emma Bell. Andrew Clements
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Going out: Art
Sean Scully and Giorgio Morandi
Estorick Collection, London, to 23 November
The intensity and force of Scully’s abstract art is a paradox. He keeps to the simple logic of minimalist grids, yet fills these patterns with what looks like barely contained emotion. You can see why Scully identifies with the similarly ambiguous still lifes of Morandi. A fascinating couple.
Máret Ánne Sara
Tate Modern, London, 14 October to 6 April
The latest spectacular in Tate Modern’s colossal main space the Turbine Hall brings a bit of the Arctic to London. Northern Sámi artist Máret Ánne Sara uses the hallowed materials and traditions of her reindeer-herding people in art that protests, both against enduring oppression by Nordic states and the destruction of the environment.
Quentin Blake
The Sherborne, Sherborne, Dorset, to 4 January
A pastoral excursion from this beloved artist, now in his 90s. Blake draws people escaping their city lives to explore the countryside. A woman befriends a hedgehog and a man admires a crowd of butterflies as Blake brings his gentle humour to portrayals of human harmony with the natural world.
To see oursels as ithers see us!
Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh, to 8 February
Scotland’s Romantic poet Robert Burns has inspired many illustrators over the past two centuries. This display explores how artists have visualised his down-to-earth eye for rural realities combined with a visionary ability to empathise with nature. David Allan, James Howe and more depict cottage storytellers and rustic riders. Jonathan Jones
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Going out: Stage
Michelle De Swarte
11 October to 30 May; tour starts Canterbury
On stage, this London-born model turned comedian comes over like a formidably cool and ferociously funny best friend, regaling audiences with tales of her wild youth and her attempts to defy the ageing process. Rachel Aroesti
The Weir
Harold Pinter theatre, London, to 6 December
Conor McPherson directs his own play for the first time, to stunning effect. It’s a simple set-up – four men and a mysterious woman share stories in a remote Irish pub – but it’s packed with raw emotion, deep truths and a supernatural tremor. Miriam Gillinson
The Seagull
The Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, to 1 November
Mike Poulton (Wolf Hall) has created a darkly comic new take on Chekhov’s masterpiece. Caroline Quentin stars as the captivating Arkadina – mother to the tormented Konstantin and a fading actor struggling to let go of fame and fortune. MG
Richard Chappell Dance
Sidmouth, 11 October; Poole, 14 October; Newbury, 16 October; touring to 1 November
The Devon-based contemporary dance company go out on tour. In Sidmouth they dance a mixed bill; in Poole and Newbury it’s the piece Hot House, which draws on inspiration from bonfires and rave culture. Lyndsey Winship
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Staying in: Streaming
Riot Women
BBC One & iPlayer, 12 October, 9pm
We Are Lady Parts brought us female punks from a Muslim angle – now we’re getting a menopausal version. Happy Valley creator Sally Wainwright returns with this sparky drama about five middle-aged women who form a band and discover a new lease of life. Lorraine Ashbourne, Tamsin Greig and Amelia Bullmore star.
The Chair Company
Sky Comedy & Now, 13 October, 9pm
Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin – they of outlandishly funny sketch show I Think You Should Leave – debut a characteristically odd comedy with Severance pastiche vibes: Ron Trosper (Robinson) believes he’s landed on a “vast criminal conspiracy” at his work. Could he be on to something?
The Iris Affair
Sky Atlantic & Now, 16 October, 9pm
It hasn’t been long since we were watching Tom Hollander cavort insidiously in Sicily in The White Lotus; now he’s back for more sinister Italian thrills. In Florence, genius puzzle-solver Iris Nixon (Niamh Algar) hacks into a mysterious machine at the behest of a shady entrepreneur (Hollander).
Murdaugh: Death in the Family
Disney+, 15 October
Maggie and Alex Murdaugh (Patricia Arquette and Jason Clarke) are South Carolina royalty whose perfect world is destroyed when their son is implicated in the death of a friend. Yet as anyone familiar with the real case – this series is based on a hit true-crime podcast – will know, there’s plenty more horror to come. Rachel Aroesti
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Staying in: Games
Pokemon Legends: Z-A
Switch, Switch 2; out 16 October
Use tiny balls to kidnap unsuspecting critters and then mercilessly pit them against each other in this latest entry in Nintendo’s longrunning animal cruelty simulation series, which replaces the turn-based combat of old with button-stabbing real-time scuffles.
Kaku: Ancient Seal
PC, PlayStation, XBox; out 17 October
Vibrant, Zelda-lite fantasy actioner, in which you play a child who must embrace his magical destiny in order to avert catastrophe. The story may be the usual spirits-and-prophecies fluff, but any game with a porcine companion called “Piggy” has to at least be worth a look. Luke Holland
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Staying in: Albums
Amber Mark – Pretty Idea
Out now
The Grammy-nominated US-born, Germany-raised singer-songwriter, whose collaborators include everyone from Chromeo to Dirty Projectors, returns with the follow-up to 2022’s Three Dimensions Deep. Like that debut, Pretty Idea elegantly melds R&B, pop and bossanova to create honeyed highlights such as Too Much.
Blawan – SickElixir
Out now
British electronic producer Jamie Roberts, AKA Blawan, has come a long way from his teenage years working at a maggot farm, an industrial setting he says inspired the clanging beats of his music. This second album adds crisp metallic riffs (Rabbit Hole) and pulsating cacophonies (NOS) to an already mind-melting soundscape.
Khalid – After the Sun Goes Down
Out now
After years of rumours about his sexuality, and having been forced to come out last year, the US R&B singer-songwriter exhibits a laidback ease on his fourth album. Lead single In Plain Sight, about a complicated situationship, breezes around an infectious earworm chorus.
Mobb Deep – Infinite
Out now
Featuring previously unreleased vocals from rapper Prodigy, who died in 2017, Infinite is the ninth album from hip-hop pioneers Mobb Deep. Produced by the duo’s Havoc, alongside the Alchemist (Eminem, Earl Sweatshirt), it also features guest spots from Clipse, Nas and Jorja Smith. MC
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Staying in: Brain food
The Fascinating Map of Fungi
YouTube
Domain of Science’s clear and precise video on the world of fungi explains how many of the 150,000 currently discovered species contribute to the ecosystem and produce everything from consciousness-expanding chemicals to food.
Fela Kuti: Fear No Man
Podcast
Radiolab’s Jad Abumrad returns with a new musical series focused on the controversial life and career of Fela Kuti. Kuti’s family and famous fans recount his founding of Afrobeat and rebellion against the Nigerian government.
Artworks: Who Is the Door to Door Poet?
Radio 4, 14 October, 4pm
Poet Rowan McCabe’s charming show takes door-knocking to a newly creative level, speaking to people on their doorsteps before composing a poem about their lives. Here, he’s in Donegal to connect with his own Irish heritage. Ammar Kalia
