Going out: Cinema
Bugonia
Out now
One of the wildest directors of the 21st century, Yorgos Lanthimos returns with something that you might not expect from him: a remake. But this isn’t a standard Hollywood cash-in; it’s a black comedy that sees Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons go to some truly crazy places in a story of two conspiracy theorists who kidnap a CEO.
Relay
Out now
Riz Ahmed plays the guy you call when a dodgy corporation and an individual with the potential to expose their corrupt practices need to talk. Basically he’s a “fixer”, who can broker payoffs for eye-watering amounts, while keeping a piece of the pie for himself – but is he about to bite off more than he can chew? The new thriller from David Mackenzie (Hell Or High Water).
Palestine 36
Out now
The Palestinian entry for the best international film at the Oscars, this historical drama from Annemarie Jacir explores events leading up to the Arab revolt of 1936, when Palestinians tried to gain independence from British colonial rule. Starring Hiam Abbass, Kamel El Basha and Jeremy Irons.
Kontinental ’25
Out now
This is the first winner of the Silver Bear at the Berlin film festival to be shot on an iPhone in 10 days. A social satire from Romanian film-maker Radu Jude, it follows a bailiff aiming to evict a homeless man from a building’s basement. Catherine Bray
Going out: Gigs
Winging it … These New Puritans. Photograph: Hedi Slimane
These New Puritans
6 to 12 November; tour starts Liverpool
Brothers Jack and George Barnett take their fifth album, Crooked Wing, on tour. As with all their records, it ignores the rules of genre, fusing chamber music, jazz and classical with moments of post-rock majesty. Michael Cragg
Ravyn Lenae
Albert Hall, Manchester, 2 November; Roundhouse, London, 3 November
A Top 5 hit in her native US and the UK, Love Me Not encapsulates Lenae’s unique take on soft-focus pop-R&B, all cascading melodies and lyrics that investigate love’s turf wars, wrapped in a supple soprano. Catch her before she goes stratospheric. MC
The Makropulos Case
Royal Opera House, London, 4 to 21 November
It has taken 99 years for one of the 20th century’s greatest operas to reach Covent Garden. Katie Mitchell’s production sets Janáček’s Makropulos Case among the world of LGBTQ+ relationships and dating apps. Jakub Hrůša conducts a cast led by soprano Ausrine Stundyte. Andrew Clements
Laura Jurd
1 to 20 November; tour starts Cambridge
When UK trumpeter Laura Jurd released her 2012 debut album, Landing Ground, pundits ransacked vocabularies for superlatives. Jurd introduces her powerful new folk-influenced record Rites & Revelations on this tour. John Fordham
Going out: Art
Family portrait … Benode Behari Mukherjee’s Lady With Fruit, 1957. Photograph: J Fernandes/Tate. Courtesy of Mrinalini Mukherjee Foundation
A Story of South Asian Art
Royal Academy of Arts, London, to 24 February
Mrinalini Mukherjee, who died in 2015, had a huge impact on post-second world war modern art in India, this exhibition aims to show. Her mixed-media works are at the centre of this survey, also starring her friendsand family, that starts in the 1930s before independence and comes up to today.
Joseph Wright of Derby
The National Gallery, London, 7 November to 10 May
This great British painter gets a closer look as the NG’s own An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump is reunited with his other scientific masterpiece The Orrery. These spectacular scenes take you to the heart of the 18th-century Enlightenment, when people were intoxicated by knowledge and learning.
The Shelter of Stories
Compton Verney, Warwickshire, to 22 February
Stories take us on adventures and journeys but always begin and end at home, as sure as Bilbo Baggins returned to the Shire. Anyway, that’s the thesis of this show that’s co-curated by cultural historian and critic Marina Warner. The argument is illustrated by artists including Paula Rego and Ana Maria Pacheco.
Jane Bown
Newlands House, Petworth, 1 November to 15 February
This wonderful portrait photographer who took many of her classic shots for the Observer gets a well-deserved show. Bown’s craggy image of Samuel Beckett is one of her most memorable. She also took black-and-white pictures of a young David Hockney, a laughing Mick Jagger and many more. Jonathan Jones
Going out: Stage
Bard times … Caitlin FitzGerald and David Harewood in Othello. Photograph: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg
Othello
Theatre Royal Haymarket, London, to 17 January
Director Tom Morris has pulled together a cracking cast for his new take on Othello – with David Harewood as the jealous soldier and Toby Jones his scheming sidekick. Music by PJ Harvey. Miriam Gillinson
The Hunger Games
Troubadour Canary Wharf theatre, London, to 15 February
Conor McPherson has penned this adaptation of Suzanne Collins’s thrilling books – so expect soul as well as spectacle. It’ll play in a brand new 1,200-seat theatre designed to plunge the audience into the heart of the action. MG
Helen Bauer
Canal House, Nottingham, 6 November; tour continues to 24 November
Merging exuberant buffoonery with messy millennial woman tropes (anxiety, eating disorders, mummy issues), the 34-year-old standup’s twist on confessional comedy is irresistibly uproarious. Rachel Aroesti
Kunsty
Southbank Centre, London, 5 to 8 November
A series of shows from radical artists on the edge of the dance, live art and cabaret worlds. Includes Bullyache and their unnerving clash of dance/pop/queer culture, and Adam Russell-Jones, who is inspired by Depression-era dance marathons. Lyndsey Winship
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Staying in: Streaming
Beyond the law … Kim Kardashian and Naomi Watts in All’s Fair. Photograph: Ser Baffo/Disney
All’s Fair
Disney+, 4 November
Divorce proceedings get the Ryan Murphy treatment with this mind-bogglingly camp drama about two rival LA law firms. Come to scrutinise Kim Kardashian’s acting chops, stay for the blistering putdowns of Sarah Paulson’s OTT attack-dog attorney. Glenn Close, Naomi Watts and Teyana Taylor co-star.
Pluribus
Apple TV+, 7 November
Breaking Bad creator and key golden-age-of-TV figure Vince Gilligan returns with an intriguing premise: when a virus causing complete contentment and unfettered optimism sweeps the globe, misanthropic romance author Carol (Better Call Saul’s Rhea Seehorn) is the only person unaffected. Can she save humanity from happiness?
All Her Fault
Sky Atlantic/Now, 7 November, 9pm
Succession’s Sarah Snook swaps savage scheming for parental trauma as a mother who attempts to pick up her young son from a playdate only to find no trace of him. Dakota Fanning and The White Lotus’s Jake Lacy round out the cast in this twisty thriller.
I Love LA
Sky Comedy/Now, 3 November, 10pm
Star of indie hits including Shiva Baby and Bottoms (plus featured player in Charli xcx’s Brat-era cultural universe), Rachel Sennott is a one-woman riot, and her debut TV comedy about a chaotic friendship misguidedly revived is the perfect vehicle for the 30-year-old’s uniquely unhinged energy. RA
Staying in: Games
Tale of Tears … Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment. Photograph: Nintendo
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
Switch 2; out 6 November
Koei Tecmo (Dynasty Warriors, Ninja Gaiden) follows up 2020’s Age of Calamity with another hack-and-slash take on The Legend of Zelda (above), this time delving into the backstory of Tears of the Kingdom as Zelda unexpectedly travels to the distant past.
Football Manager 26
PC, Mac, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, iOS; out 4 November
The compelling series took an unexpected break in 2024, and this year’s edition has some major updates to make up for the wait, including an overhaul to matchday visuals, a new management interface and the long-overdue addition of women’s football. Matthew Reynolds
Staying in: Albums
Human emotions … Cat Burns. Photograph: Sebastian Xavier
Cat Burns – How to Be Human
Out now
South London singer-songwriter Burns, who recently extended her portfolio on Celebrity Traitors, returns with her second album. The skipping pop-rock of All This Love is a thoughtful take on grief, while There’s Just Something About Her encapsulates the sweet rush of early lust.
KeiyaA – Hooke’s Law
Out now
Five years on from her acclaimed debut, Forever, Ya Girl, an off-kilter exploration of R&B and soul, Brooklyn-based KeiyaA (above) releases her follow-up. Interrogating her identity as a Black queer woman, the fidgety, mind-bending Take It touches on jazz, hip-hop and experimental electro.
Florence + the Machine – Everybody Scream
Out now
On Florence Welch’s sixth album alongside her increasingly nebulous “Machine”, witchcraft, folk horror and poetry weave in and out of music that offers a heavier version of her baroque pop-rock. With the sonic moodboard including both Swans and Adele, songs such as One of the Greats sound royally pissed off.
Daniel Avery – Tremor
Out now
Featuring vocal assistance from the Kills’ Alison Mosshart and Sophie collaborator Cecile Believe, DJ and producer Avery’s latest album mixes shoegaze and techno, ambient and industrial, euphoria and disquiet, to create something genuinely thrilling. MC
Staying in: Brain food
Art and soul … D’Angelo. Photograph: Paras Griffin/Getty Images
The Exhausting Genius of D’Angelo
YouTube
In honour of the recent death of neo soul originator D’Angelo, here’s a video essay from music history channel Mic the Snare that unpacks his artistry, from emulating James Brown and Prince to becoming a dazzling auteur of his own.
Playwright’s Podcast
Podcast
London’s Royal Court theatre returns with a new season of its engaging interview podcast. Highlights include Nina Segal on her Foley piece Cow/Deer and rising writer Sophia Chetin-Leuner on her Royal Court debut, Porn Play.
Child
Radio 4, 5 November, 3.30pm
Former Today in Focus host India Rakusen brings us a new series of her fascinating exploration into the early stages of a child’s life. Across eight episodes, Rakusen looks at the emotional development of toddlers. Ammar Kalia
