The decision to start a family is an emotional one, a hope for many wishing to expand their own family units and ensure their own legacies in turn. The confrontation however of child loss and abortion life altering realities faced by women globally, yet quietly navigated. Highlighting the heaviness of the impact of these realities – writer, director and producer Lauren Melinda talks about Oscar 2026 qualifying short film Before You, a film painting an intimate portrait of a couple navigating the quiet grief that follows a decision rarely spoken about in public, yet carried by so many in private. Lauren tells us more about exploring this sensitive topic further, collaborating with Planned Parenthood Federation of America and what she’s learned from creating the film.
The trustees and chair of Stockroom, formerly Out of Joint, announce the theatre company’s formal closure. This follows the loss of its Arts Council of England National Portfolio status in April 2023.
The remaining assets of the company will be donated to the new writing touring theatre company Paines Plough, who will continue Stockroom’s work of supporting and championing new writing. The remaining royalties accrued from Stockroom’s past work are being transferred to The Writers Guild of Great Britain and their Writers Welfare Fund.
Mark Powell Chair of Stockroom says –
“After trialling a new writers room business model and exploring other partnerships, Stockroom’s outgoing trustees are confident that in Paines Plough & The Writers Guild of Great Britain we have found exemplars equally committed to writing and writers. Both organisations share our common goal of nurturing the valuable creative talent that fuels the nations stages. Not every theatre company can live forever. Change is essential and healthy in the theatre sector to keep our practise and programmes vital. We know this pair of beneficiaries will take the spirit of Stockroom’s brief life into the future.”
Iconic DJ and broadcaster Annie Mac has announced the first-ever Before Midnight London residency, taking place at major cultural hub HERE at Outernet on the last Friday of every month between January – June 2026.
Designed as the perfect remedy for those who adore going out and value their sleep, Before Midnight offers an authentic, euphoric clubbing experience which ends at the stroke of midnight. Injecting life into London’s clubbing scene, the brand-new residency will provide a permanent base for all those who love Before Midnight. Fans can expect extended DJ sets, special guest appearances, and one-off B2B sets at the innovative Outernet.
As part of the new residency, Annie will be introducing a ‘no phones’ policy, encouraging crowds to be present by eliminating the pressure to capture every single moment. Annie first trialled this approach at her sold-out Before Midnight party launching Warehouse Project’s Autumn season this September, describing the atmosphere as “totally electric from the off”.
Multi-GRAMMY and BRIT Award-winning band Kings of Leon have announced a series of UK shows for 2026. The band will perform at Bellahouston Park, Glasgow on Friday 3rd July, Co-op Live, Manchester on Saturday 4th July, and First Direct Bank Arena, Leeds on Monday 6th July.
Recognized as one of the biggest alternative rock bands of the last 20 years, Kings of Leon have headlined the world’s most prestigious festivals including Coachella, Glastonbury, Roskilde and numerous Lollapaloozas in Berlin, Sao Paulo, Chicago and Santiago, to name but a few. Just last year, they also reclaimed their all-time attendance record with a fifth night at London’s massive Hyde Park venue.
Since their debut in 2003, Kings of Leon (Caleb (guitar/vocals), Nathan (drums), Jared (bass) and Matthew Followill (guitar)) have released nine albums – Youth & Young Manhood (2003), Aha Shake Heartbreak (2004), Because of the Times (2007), Only by the Night (2008), Come Around Sundown (2010), Mechanical Bull (2013), WALLS (2016), When You See Yourself (2021), Can We Please Have Fun (2024) – selling over 20 million albums and nearly 40 million singles worldwide.
Just last week, Kings of Leon dropped an EP with 4 new songs. Other recent releases include a ‘Live in Jersey’ single from Zach Bryan featuring Bruce Springsteen and Kings of Leon, covering the Springsteen classic “Atlantic City’, and, prior to that, a couple of new song collaborations with Zach Bryan.
Friday July 3rd 2026 – Bellahouston Park Glasgow
Saturday July 4th 2026 – Co op Live Manchester
Monday July 6th 2026 – First Direct Bank Arena Leeds
Multi award-winning comedian Romesh is known for fronting hugely popular series The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan, BAFTA-winning Rob & Romesh Vs, A League Of Their Own, Parent’s Evening, The Ranganation, and BBC One’s The Weakest Link. Romesh is the much-loved host of BBC Radio 2’s Saturday 10am – 1pm show. He also hosts several podcasts, his own, The Romesh Ranganathan Show, as well as For The Love Of Hip Hop (BBC Sounds/Radio 2), which won him the prestigious Radio Academy ARIA Gold award for Best Specialist Music Show in 2023. He is also the co-host of the critically acclaimed Wolf & Owl with Tom Davis.
A Sunday Times Bestseller with his autobiography Straight Outta Crawley: The Memoirs Of A Distinctly Average Human Being and Romesh’s second book As Good as It Gets: Life Lessons from a Reluctant Adult.2023 saw Romesh turn his hand at writing for a middle-grade audience in his debut novel, Lil’ Muffin Drops the Mic, which he followed up in 2025 with Yasmin Bandara Levels Up!
Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s Artistic Director, Alan Cumming has announced his highly anticipated inaugural season of exciting programming for 2026, which will coincide with the 75th anniversary of the celebrated Scottish Highland Theatre.
The Season 2026 will feature a programme of creatively bold and inventive productions, featuring amongst others, world premières, Scottish and UK premières, revivals of musicals and plays, a visiting production and two exciting festivals.
Throughout the season, the theatre will welcome an incredible line up of Scottish, British and internationally renowned award–winning talent to the Scottish Highlands for what promises to be a theatrical highlight for Scotland in 2026.
The Old Vic is delighted to announce One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Dale Wasserman, based on the novel by Ken Kesey, starring Aaron Pierre (Rebel Ridge, Mufasa: The Lion King) as Randle P. McMurphy and Giles Terera (Hamilton, Othello) as Dale Harding. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, directed by Clint Dyer (Death of England, Othello), is at The Old Vic from 01 Apr–23 May 2026, with a press performance on Wed 15 Apr.
Director Clint Dyer said, ‘It feels such an honour, and the perfect time to place this wonderful play, based on the counterculture novel by Ken Kesey, back into the discourse. In directing this great play, I hope to hold more closely its original conversation on colonialism and identity from the novel, whilst maintaining its sense of mischief, anarchy and pathos.’
In Artistic Director Matthew Warchus’ final Season all productions will take place completely In The Round, forming an intimate seating configuration that surrounds the stage.
Matthew Warchus, Artistic Director of The Old Vic said, ‘I’m delighted to be welcoming the brilliant Clint Dyer to be a part of this In The Round Season at The Old Vic. We can’t wait to share his exciting new take on this iconic story.’
Tickets for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest go on sale to members on Wed 12 Nov at midday GMT and on general sale on Fri 14 Nov at midday.
Celebrating the release of her new single “Mature,” multiplatinum global superstar Hilary Duff will return to the stage for the first time in over a decade with a very special run of intimate live shows in January 2026. The “Small Rooms, Big Nerves” dates kick off January 19 at London’s historic O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, followed by stops at HISTORY in Toronto, ON (January 24), New York City’s brand new Brooklyn Paramount (January 27), and Los Angeles’ iconic Wiltern (January 29).
Fans can sign up for the artist presale now HERE untilWednesday, November 12th at 3pm PT / 6pm ET / 11pm GMT. No codes are needed (access is tied to the fan’s Ticketmaster account) and anyone who signs up can join the sale. The artist presale begins on Friday, November 14th at 10am local time. General on sale begins Friday, November 14th at 3pm local time HERE and via LiveNation.co.uk
“It’s happening,” says Hilary. “I’m over the moon to be stepping on stage again. I’ve got some new songs that I can’t wait to share with you and of course some old favorites we can scream together. It’s been a minute and I’ve missed you. Let’s make some mems.”