Front Row

The 1983 Scottish film Local Hero was a much-loved comedy drama about an American oil company rep who is sent to a fictional village in Scotland to purchase the town for his company. This film has now been adapted into a stage musical at the Edinburgh Lyceum with all 19 songs composed by Mark Knopfler, who wrote the film soundtrack. So does Local Hero the musical work? Novelist Ian Rankin delivers his verdict.After a two-year build-up, the UK will not be leaving European Union today after all. To reflect the mood of the nation, we investigate the anti-climax in art with film critic Hannah McGill and writer Matt Thorne. Why do writers and film-makers use it, what effect does it have, and what makes an anti-climax poignant or simply frustrating? Legendary film-maker Agnès Varda's death was announced today, at the age of 90. She was one of the key figures in the French New Wave in the 1960s, making films like Cleo from 5 to 7, Le Bonheur and The Creatures. Hannah McGill reflects on the career of the influential