WORTH A LOOK?: ****
This single marks Ellis-Bextor’s return to working with Ed Harcourt who co-wrote her Wanderlust and Familia albums before her greatest hits and Kitchen Disco eras.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHEN?: Saturday 11 March (matinee), runs through 23 April 2023 RUNTIME: 180 minutes (with a 20-minute interval)
We take our 4th row seats and notice steps leading down from the stage into the centre aisle and a terrifying fear about being invited onstage and interrogated in a language that is not native to us grips us.
By Neil Durham
WHEN?: 8pm 9 May 2023
WHERE?: Liverpool Arena
HOW DO I WATCH?: BBC
‘Irregular voting paterns’ in 6 jury votes last year means this year’s semi finals will be televote only with this being the toughest semi and tasked with finding 10 finalists from a field of 15.
By Neil Durham
WHEN?: Saturday 13 May 2023 8pm (GMT)
WHERE?: Liverpool Arena
HOW DO I WATCH?: BBC1
We’ve now heard all the songs by the 6 countries pre-qualified for May’s Eurovision Song Contest final and below we predict where we think they will finish there.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: *****
WHEN?: evening 7 March 2023
WHERE?: C. de Villarroel, 163, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
Last night I had the best meal of my life.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHEN?: 25 February (matinee) and runs through 22 April 2023 RUNTIME: 90 minutes (no interval)
We’re in the front row of this intimate venue and Okonedo’s Medea points at us, locks eyes with us and asserts: ‘Watch and keep silent.’
WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2
Leeds-born Woolford had a top 5 hit in 2020 with Looking For Me with Diplo featuring vocals from Kareen Lomax – and this new single feels far more current than Alison Goldfrapp’s recent collaboration.
By Carron Stacey, A Humdrum Mum
congratulations (sic): a wall of Rage Against the Machine sound, with vocals from Siouxsie Sioux, production by Sparks and styled by (boilersuited) Warmduscher.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: *****
WHEN?: 3 March, opens 13 March and runs through 2 September 2023 RUNTIME: 160 minutes (including a 15-minute interval) UPDATE: This production is now booking through 31 August 2024 Tickets
Marisha Wallace is scene-stealingly sensational in this revival of a musical theatre classic as nightclub singer Miss Adelaide, a role often played for laughs rather than deploying the killer voice Wallace has.
By Aline Mahrud
WHEN? 7pm UK time Saturday 11 March 2023
WHERE? Avicii Arena, Stockholm
WHERE DO I WATCH? SVT Play
2024 will be the 50th anniversary of ABBA‘s Eurovision win and we would imagine Sweden would be quite keen to host – and therefore win in 2023.
