Month: October 2025

GIG REVIEW: The Divine Comedy at the Barbican Centre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN? Sunday 12 October, tour runs through 11 July 2026

Setlist: Achilles; The Last Time I Saw The Old Man; When The Lights Go Out All Over Europe; Rainy Sunday Afternoon; Have You Ever Been In Love?; Norman And Norma; Generation Sex; Leaving Today; The Plough; The Man Who Turned Into A Chair; Songs Of Love; At The Indie Disco; Neapolitan Girl; Mar-a-Lago By The Sea; A Lady Of A Certain Age; Our Mutual Friend; The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter; Other People; Absent Friends; Becoming More Like Alfie; Something For The Weekend; National Express; The Booklovers; Invisible Thread; Tonight We Fly

We’re in the 12th row of this sold-out 1,943-capacity venue for the 2nd consecutive night here by this band and the fan in the seat next to us slips off his shoes shortly before curtain up to appreciate the gig better.

  • Read on for reasons including why The Divine Comedy offer the most comfortable 2 hours in public without your shoes
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GIG REVIEW: Robert Forster And His Swedish Band at The Gate, Cardiff

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Andrew Mosley

WHEN? Friday 10 October, tour runs through 19 October 2025

It’s almost 40 years since I first clapped eyes on and lent ears to the wonder of The Go-Betweens.

  • Read on for reasons including how the former Go-Between incorporates the band’s songs into this set
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THEATRE REVIEW: The Unbelievers starring Nicola Walker at the Royal Court Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHEN? Saturday 11 October, opens 16 October and runs through 29 November 2025 RUNTIME: 120 minutes (no interval)

Walker (Unicorn, Garrick Theatre) plays mother Miriam Wright whose teenage schoolboy son has gone missing and is determined to leave no stone unturned to find him.

  • Read on for reasons including how those hoping this might repeat the West End transfer and awards success of the recent Giant may have a long wait
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AWARDS SHORTLIST: MONSTAS: Best Podcast of 2025

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

It’s been quite the year, it’s almost Christmas and what would the festive season be without some recognition of the best of 2025? Over the next 3 months we’ll shortlist five nominees in each of 17 categories for our Oscars, or monstas if you will, of 2025.

  • Read on for the nominees for the monsta for the Best Podcast of 2025 2024 winner Kermode and Mayo’s Take Listen 2023 AussieVision 2021 and 2022 winner Second Cherry
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FILM REVIEW: Plainclothes with intro by its star Russell Tovey

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? *****

WHERE? BFI Southbank, film released in the UK Friday 10 October 2025

‘Shame is such a wonderful thing to play as an actor,’ says Tovey as he reflects on how his part in Angels In America next door at the National Theatre saw him cast here.

  • Read on for reasons including how we can see why Tovey referred to this as a film he would have loved to have seen when he was younger
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GIG REVIEW: Gene at Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? ****

WHEN? Saturday 4 October 2025, tour runs through 26 March 2026

Setlist: London, Can You Wait?; Be My Light, Be My Guide; We Could Be Kings; Your Love, It Lies; Where Are They Now?; Truth, Rest Your Head; Long Sleeves For The Summer; Stop; Sleep Well Tonight; Rising For Sunset; Save Me, I’m Yours; O Lover; Speak To Me Someone; A Car That Sped; Walking In The Shallows; The British Disease; Haunted By You; Olympian; For The Dead; You’ll Never Walk Again; Sick, Sober and Sorry; Fighting Fit; I Can’t Help Myself; Somewhere In The World; Who Said This Was The End?

Does absence make the heart grow fonder?

  • Read on for reasons including how to see Gene on tour around the UK next year
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THEATRE REVIEW: Mary Page Marlowe starring Susan Sarandon & Andrea Riseborough at the Old Vic

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Tuesday 29 September, opens 8 October and runs through 1 November 2025 RUNTIME: 90 minutes (no interval)

Oscar winner Susan Sarandon makes her London stage debut in a play which looks at a woman’s life across 7 decades and 11 scenes.

  • Read on for reasons including how this is never less than totally engrossing as we see the unvarnished portrayal of a woman’s difficult life
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