Front Row

Katherine Parkinson is best known as an actress – she won a BAFTA playing Jen in The IT Crowd and warm praise for her performance on stage in Laura Wade’s play Home, I’m Darling. But she has also written a play, Sitting, an interwoven set of three monologues first performed at the Edinburgh Festival and now on BBC4 as part of BBC Lights Up. It is inspired by her own experience sitting for a portrait painter when she was a student and like the work of the actress herself spans from sharp comedy to raw emotion. She talks to John about performing in the play for the first time.Louise Kennedy discusses her new collection of short stories, The End of the World is a Cul de Sac, which focus on the rugged landscapes and tough characters of north-west Ireland, just south of the border, where she lives. Secrets, lies, cruelty and history lie at the heart of many of the 15 stories, infused with the country’s folklore and politics.The band Years and Years released a snippet of their new single on TikTok before any oth