Front Row

This Friday sees the release of the much anticipated ‘Barbie’ starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. Samira meets director, Greta Gerwig to discuss the making of the film and her myriad of influences. A tapestry commissioned by Henry VIII has come up for sale in Spain. Historian of early modern textiles Isabella Rosner tells Samira why ‘Saint Paul Directing the Burning of the Heathen Books’ is so significant. We also hear from the collector and philanthropist behind the Auckland Project, Jonathan Ruffer, about why he's campaigning for the tapestry to be saved for the nation and installed at Auckland Castle.Last year, Tanika Gupta’s play, The Empress, was put on the GCSE curriculum for the first time. Set in the late 19th century, the play intertwines the story of Queen Victoria’s relationship with her Indian teacher Abdul Karim, with the story of Rani Das, a young Indian woman brought to the UK by an English family. It was premiered by the RSC in 2013 and Tanika joins Front Row to discuss updating it for a

Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One - the long awaited seventh film in the series - and the Royal Academy's new exhibition about architecture practice Herzog & de Meuron. Ryan Gilbey and Oliver Wainwright review. Plus Walter Murch. The renowned film editor and sound designer has won Oscars for his work with directors like Francis Ford Coppola and Anthony Minghella. On the occasion of his 80th birthday he leads Antonia Quirke through several key scenes from his films, including the Godfather and Apocalypse Now, and explains his use of sound. He also talks about his own films, Return to Oz and the documentary Coup 53.Presenter: Antonia Quirke Producer: Harry Parker

Front Row remembers the renowned Czech-born novelist, poet and essayist Milan Kundera who has died aged 94. Novelist Howard Jacobson and French journalist Agnès Poirier discuss the influence of his magical realist writing. Imagine a world where prison inmates fight to the death, for entertainment. That’s the premise of Chain-Gang All-Stars, the debut novel of Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, who joins Samira live in the studio to discuss writing inspired by his dislike of the American justice system.The first Northern Soul Prom is happening this weekend. Writer and broadcaster Stuart Maconie, who has co-curated the Prom, joins Samira to discuss this celebration of the northern club culture of the 1960s and 1970s.And the £120,000 Art Fund Museum of the Year award is announced this evening. In recent weeks, we’ve been spotlighting all of the shortlisted nominees: The Burrell Collection, Glasgow; Leighton House, London; The MAC, Belfast; Natural History Museum, London and Scapa Flow Museum, Orkney. Samira will be sp

Sally Potter is best known as a filmmaker- from Orlando starring Tilda Swinton to The Roads Not Taken with Javier Bardem. But she's also a musician, collaborating on the scores for all of her films. Now Sally has released her first album as a singer-songwriter, Pink Bikini and joins Nick Ahad to reflect on this musical coming of age.This month the British Library celebrates its 50th anniversary - a half century of caring for the UK’s research collection. For Front Row, reporter JP Devlin hears the stories of the people gathered at the UK’s national library for their own unique purposes.Why are love stories so often centred on the young? Two playwrights join Nick to discuss dramatizing love in later life. Jennifer Lunn has written Es & Flo about two women in a four decades-long relationship that began in Greenham Common. In Ben Weatherill's Frank and Percy, two men, neither of whom will see sixty again, embark on a romance after meeting while walking their dogs. Presenter: Nick Ahad Producer: Ekene Akal

PJ Harvey talks to Samira Ahmed about her new album, I Inside the Old Year Dying. She explains how her poetry and lyrics were influenced by the Dorset dialect and how the film-maker Steve McQueen helped her to find new inspiration. Benjamin Grosvenor wowed audiences for the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year competition when he was just eleven years old and is now regarded as one of the most exciting pianists working today. As he prepares for this year’s Proms, he performs in the Front Row studio and explains what drew him to the music he will play. Front Row is hearing from the museum’s shortlisted for this year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year award and tonight reporter Huw Williams is at the Scapa Flow Museum on the island of Hoy in Orkney. He hears about how the refurbished museum, which is named after the Scapa Flow body of water off the island of Hoy, reflects the area’s wartime history.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Olivia Skinner

Kwame Kwei-Armah discusses his play Beneatha's Place, which imagines a future for Beneatha Younger, a character from Lorraine Hansberry’s ground-breaking 1959 play A Raisin in the Sun. He talks to Samira Ahmed about the themes of race and politics in the play, which is set in 1950s Nigeria and the present day. Samira is joined by critics Leila Latif and Ekow Eshun to review some of the cultural highlights of the week: A World in Common, an exhibition of contemporary African photography at Tate Modern in London and Disney Pixar film Elemental, which imagines a world where the inhabitants are all elements.The Edinburgh Film Festival re-launches today, following its forced closure in 2022 when the charity that ran it went into administration. The festival’s director Kate Taylor joins Samira to outline the plans for the re-vamped festival. Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Corinna Jones

Yayoi Kusama: You, Me & The Balloons is the inaugural show in Aviva Studios, the new headquarters for the Manchester International Festival. In a variety of ways Kusama’s distinctive polka dots fill the new Warehouse space. Economics the Blockbuster – It’s Not Business As Usual at The Whitworth is a very different kind of visual art show which asks artists to re-imagine that most topical of subjects, the economy. Art critic Laura Robertson and novelist Okechukwu Nzelu review.In his illustrious career Benji Reid has moved from the world of breakdancing, to contemporary dance, to physical theatre, to hiphop theatre. After pursuing his interest in photography, he has now created a new art form which he calls Choreo-Photolism. He talks to Nick about the importance of curiosity both for artists and the arts. Grammy award winning composer John Luther Adams and the composer Ailís Ní Ríain have been commissioned to create brand new work inspired by the environment as part of the Manchester International Festival.

The Booker Prize-winning author Sir Ben Okri joins Antonia Quirke to reflect on his new collection Tiger Work, intended as a wake up call for a warming world. It blends fiction, essays and poetry inspired by environmental activism in the face of climate crisis.Film director Shamira Raphaela discusses her documentary Shabu, which follows an aspiring teenage musician from Rotterdam during a single summer.Antonia visits Leighton House in London, one of five finalists for this year's Art Fund Museum of the Year award. The Victorian 'studio house' was once the home of Fredric Leighton, artist, collector and former president of the Royal Academy. Presenter: Antonia Quirke Producer: Olivia Skinner

Dolly Parton, one of the few global stars to have truly earned the title icon, talks to Samira Ahmed about departing from her Country sound to record an album of Rock songs. Rockstar sees her collaborate with some of the biggest names in music including Paul McCartney, Sting, Elton John and new generation of musicians such as Miley Cyrus and Lizzo. She discusses her long career and mentoring women in music as well as her philanthropy, funding for the COVID vaccine, and the influence of her films and music on feminism.Are musicians at home being unfairly hit with noise abatement notices? Lewisham council have recently issued a notice which prevents one musician from practicing in her own home. We find out more. The Booktastic schools programme: author Patrice Lawrence on the importance of the UK’s only book festival to focus on engaging disadvantaged children and reflecting the diversity of children’s lives in literature.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Paul Waters

Our critics Hanna Flint and Larushka Ivan-Zadeh watch Harrison Ford’s last outing as the title character in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, also starring Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Is it a crowd-pleasing exit? Presenter Tom Sutcliffe talks to Brandon Taylor about his new novel, The Late Americans. Taylor's debut, Real Life, was Booker Prize nominated and his collection of short fiction, Filthy Animals, won the Story Prize. He discusses interweaving tales of sex and aspiration, played out amongst friends in a mid-western university town.Hanna and Larushka also review Young V&A, the new incarnation of the Museum of Childhood in London’s Bethnal Green, which is reopening after a £13 million 3-year redevelopment. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Harry Parker

In 2019 Kimber Lee won the first International Award from the Bruntwood Prize, the UK’s biggest national competition for playwriting, with her work - Untitled F*ck M*ss S**gon Play. As the play’s world premiere production prepares to open this year’s Manchester International Festival, Kimber joins Front Row to discuss how Groundhog Day helped her to take on a century of East Asian stereotypes.Finding queer musical stories: tenor and composer Elgan Llyr Thomas has been exploring LGBTQ+ representation in vocal music and performs live.Eric Broug, writer and artist specialising in Islamic geometric design and Annemarie O’Sullivan, basket-maker and artist, join Nick Ahad to discuss the nature of pattern in their respective fields and its fundamental presence in culture.Presenter: Nick Ahad Producer: Ekene Akalawu

Playwright and composer Michael R Jackson talks about his musical A Strange Loop, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The musical is based on his own experiences and follows a black man working as an usher at the musical The Lion King, who is himself writing a musical about a black male usher writing a musical. Michael R Jackson talks about why his reflective drama was such a hit in the United States.Singer songwriter Ray BLK discusses making her acting debut in new BBC and Netflix drama Champion. Written by Candice Carty Williams, the series is set in the cut-throat world of the British music industry.Samira Ahmed is at the Natural History Museum in London, which has been shortlisted for the Art Fund Museum of the Year Award. She takes a tour of the Titanosaur exhibition and hears about the museum’s expertise in mammals and dinosaurs.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Kirsty McQuire

Wes Anderson, known for his quirky storylines and individual aesthetic, talks about his latest film Asteroid City. Set in 1955, at a science competition in the middle of the desert, it follows a cast of characters who are thrown into close contact when an alien appears. Wes Anderson discusses his fascination with America in the 1950s and working with his high profile cast, including Scarlett Johansson and Tom Hanks.The Bee Gees were megastars across four decades, but to musician and music journalist Bob Stanley, they remain critically underrated. In his new biography, Bee Gees: Children of the World, Stanley argues that the Gibb brothers were far more influential than they’ve been given credit for since they emerged in the 1960s. He joins Samira to discuss their rise, endless reinvention and why he believes they should be reclaimed.Stephen Smith reports on the opening up of Pompeii's treasures at the Naples Museum of Archaeology.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Corinna Jones

Oscar-nominated Elliot Page, best known as star of comedy drama Juno, on coming out as gay and as a trans man, all in the glare of the Hollywood spotlight - and sharing this now in his new memoir, Pageboy.Marking Jewish history. With proposals for a Holocaust Memorial in London, and the closure of the Jewish Museum building, historian Sir Simon Schama, and Aviva Dautch, poet and Executive Director at Jewish Renaissance, discuss what recent developments mean for Jewish culture.The Wicker Man. As the cult horror film turns 50, Scottish folk musician Alasdair Roberts and ex-Pogues hurdy gurdy player Jem Finer celebrate with music, live in the Front Row studio.Plus, writer on architecture Gillian Darley appreciates the work of the late Sir Michael Hopkins.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Harry ParkerThis programme has been edited since broadcast

Tom is joined by reviewers Boyd Hilton and Susannah Clapp who look at Dear England, a new play by James Graham at the National Theatre which examines the changes in England’s football since Gareth Southgate became manager. And the National Portrait Gallery reopens today having had the most extensive refurbishment since 1896, including a redisplay, a new entrance and public spaces. Violinist Rachel Podger performs from the Baroque repertoire live in the Front Row studio.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Sarah Johnson

Front Row hears from the winner of this year’s Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing, which is awarded for a book for children or young people. Manon Steffan Ros has won for her novel The Blue Book of Nebo, the first time the prize has been awarded to a book in translation. Originally written in Welsh, it explores Welsh identity and culture.There are plans for eight new arenas across the UK, including ones in Cardiff, Bristol, Gateshead and Dundee. But does the UK really need more arenas when smaller, grassroots music venues are said to be struggling, closing at the rate of one per week? Mark Davyd, CEO of the Music Venue Trust, and Tom Lynch of ASM Global, who run arenas all over the world, discuss. Steven Rainey reports from the MAC, the Metropolitan Arts Centre, in Belfast, which has been shortlisted for this year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year. The museum’s chief executive Anne McReynolds and creative director Hugh Mulholland discuss how the venue has thrived as a creative hub in a Belfast looking to the future

The Beatles at Stowe School: Front Row made the news with the discovery of the earliest recording of a concert by The Beatles in this country, at Stowe School in April 1963. Today Samira brings news of a new home for that recording, one where anyone interested will be able to hear it. And, remarkably, another Beatles recording, made that day, has surfaced too.Plus Maggi Hambling discusses her new exhibition, Origins, which has just opened at Gainsborough’s House in Sudbury in Suffolk. Like Gainsborough, Maggi Hambling was born in Sudbury and these works reflect on her early life as an artist and the influence of her parents and lifelong friends on her career. And Nick Drake. Today would have been the musician’s 75th birthday. He died aged 26, before he found worldwide fame and admiration. His sister Gabrielle Drake and biographer Richard Morton Jack join Samira to remember his life and music.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Emma Wallace

Front Row plays tribute to Oscar winning actor Glenda Jackson, who has died aged 87. Theatre critic Sarah Crompton remembers the power of her stage performances, and Aisling Walsh discusses directing her in her TV drama Elizabeth is Missing. Choreographer Wayne McGregor talks about his new ballet, Untitled 2023, which was inspired by the works of Cuban-American artist Carmen Herrera.And Tom Sutcliffe is joined by critics Erica Wagner and Isabel Stevens to review some of the week’s cultural highlights, including the new series of dystopian TV drama Black Mirror and the new novel from Lorrie Moore, I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Sarah Johnson

Allan Little visits the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, which re-opened last year after a £68 million transformation and is now a finalist for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2023. He talks to Director Duncan Dornan and Caroline Currie, Learning and Access curator. Ahead of their performance at the St Magnus Festival in Orkney which gets underway on Friday we have a live performance from members of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Accordion Ensemble whose theatrical performances breathe new life into existing repertoire from tango to classical. We hear from one the players who'll be performing in the ensemble and in a number of other concerts throughout the festival; BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist Ryan Corbett and Serbian born accordion professor at the RCS, Djordji Gajic who'll also perform with Ryan a duet of Puccini's Crisantemi.The winner of the Women's Prize is announced tonight. We hear live from the winner direct from the ceremony.Jamie Chambers founded The Folk Film Gathering in 2015. He explains

Author and former data scientist, Cecilia Rabess joins Samira Ahmed to discuss her debut novel, Everything’s Fine, which explores the unlikely and complicated relationship between a liberal black woman working in the world of investment banking and her conservative white male colleague, during the lead-up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Following yesterday’s announcement that the Epstein Theatre in Liverpool is to close by the end of the month, Front Row takes a close look at the cost for arts organisations of maintaining infrastructure and cultural heritage sites across the UK. Joining Samira to discuss this are: architecture correspondent for The Times, Jonathan Morrison; Gillian Miller, CEO of Liverpool’s Royal Court, who reflects on the challenges of maintaining and modernising that grade II listed art deco theatre; and CEO of the Southbank Centre in London, Elaine Bedell, who thinks it’s time for new era of regeneration of the arts. Pretty Red Dress, which captured a lot of attention when first